Writing until I fall asleep.

 I’ve decided to write my grandfather and ask forgiveness for whatever it is he’s mad at me about. No, readers, you didn’t miss anything, I just haven’t written that part yet. The grandfather who raised me has been never-speak-to-me-again mad at me for over three years at this point, and I really want to form a relationship with him. I know the reasons he’s written me off are mostly due to my bad decisions which were mostly centered around Cassandra. But now that she’s out of my life and I’ve moved on and gotten the beginnings of a name for myself, I’m hoping I can make him proud of me once again. I’ve decided to write him and tell him I’m sorry, and that I want him in my life. I don’t know how that’s going to go, but I have to try. 

It was asked of me how I was going to propose to Roxie. Well, I have an answer. She’s very, very into puzzles. She used to play Inward Hellix which was this browser based puzzle that you had to find the next extension for in the clue to proceed to the next page. (For exaple, the first part sows a picture of a door from the outside. You want to go inside, so the answer is like ww.puzzle.com/inside, or whatever. Get it?) Anyway, I bought a domain and hosting and have been creating a giant puzzle for her. It’s been difficult because she tends to get through them quickly, so I’m having to try and keep a step ahead of her. When the quarter starts, I’m going to print out a few QR codes and post them around campus. Then the clues will lead to real physical locations she’ll have to figure out. Anyway, I also dabble a bit in minecraft, and I made a roller coaster that passes through the fields, and along the sides I built, from the ground up, the words "Roxie will you marry me?" and I recorded it. At the end of the puzzle, that’s going to play, and I’m going to be there with the ring and everything. 

Speaking of rings; she really likes claddagh rings. For those that don’t know, they’re the rings with the two hands holding the heart that has a crown on it. Sometimes incorrectly reffered to as the "Buffy ring." Anyway, I found several stores that sell Claddagh rings with two teardrop diamonds forming the heart in the center. That’s what I’m going to be getting her. Similar to this below. Actually, not so much "similar" as "exactly."

She’s coming over to my place for the last weekend before classes start, which is going to be tiring fun. We were in bed all day today, until she had to go home. …Come to think of it it was over ten hours. We woke up at shortly after 9 and she didn’t leave until 7ish, so ten plus hours. Not bad. 

I’m sorry I haven’t written as much as I should be writing, I’d say I’ve been busy, but it’s quite the opposite. I’ve been lazy. Oh, so lazy. And it’s been wonderful. Went off to the falls and jumped off the cliffs, walked up the river and swam in the deeper pools. It was a beautiful day. Unfortunately, it was the last heat of summer. The temperature will be in a steady decline from here on out (at least that’s my prediction), and it’ll soon be time to put wood in the fireplace and stay toasty-warm all winter. Which won’t be a problem because, let’s face it, fireplaces are awesome. 

At this point I believe it qualifies me as rambling, so I will close with a few quotes that I recently found. Take them whichever way you will, but be warned, some of them have to do with disbelief in religion and if that offends, I’d suggest you stop reading at this point. 

"Religion can never reform mankind because religion is slavery." Robert G. Ingersoll

"Spirituality is a particular term which actually means dealing with intuition. In the theistic tradition there is a notion of clinging into a word. A certain act is regarded as displeasing to a divine principles. A certain act is regarded as pleasing for the divine … whatever. In the tradition of non-theism, however, it is very direct — that the case history are not particularly important. What is actually important is here and now. Now is definitely now. We try to experience what is available there, on the spot. There is no point in thinking that a past did exist that we could have now. This is now. This very moment. Nothing mystical, just now, very simple, straight forward. And from that nowness, however, arises a sense of intelligence always that you are constantly interacting with reality one by one. Spot by spot. Constantly. We actually experience fantastic precision, always. But we are threatened by the now so we jump to the past or the future. Paying attention to the materials that exist in our life — such rich life that we lead — all these choices takes place all the time, but none of them regarded as bad or good per se — everything we experience are unconditional experience. They don’t come along with a label saying ‘this is regarded as bad’, ‘this is good’. But we experience them but we don’t actually pay heed to them properly. We don’t actually regard that we are going somewhere. We regard that as a hassle. Waiting to be dead. That is a problem. That is not trusting the nowness properly that what is the actual experience now possesses a lot of powerful things. It is so powerful that we can’t face it. Therefore, we have to borrow from the past and invite the future all the time. Maybe that’s why we seek religion. Maybe that’s why we march in the street. Maybe that’s why we complain to society. Maybe that’s why we vote for the presidents. It is quite ironic. Very funny indeed."  ~ Chögyam Trungpa

Have a nice night, I’m going to go look at the stars. 

PS. To my favorite army wife up in Tacoma; I’ll get your pictures up here soon, I just have a camera that doesn’t do the view justice at all.