Gotta stand up close to the teacher if you ever wanna learn anything...

It's been seven long years since I had to go back to school, & I think I've almost completely forgotten what it's like to have new classmates, new teachers & new subjects. Come to think of it, the last good friend I ever made in a classroom was one of my best, Ryan. We shared an American History class my freshman year in college. The professor, ironically, was Japanese & could not pronounce my name very well. It was also my first college class. I sat by these two football players who hit on this other gal & cracked bad jokes the entire time. I figured this didn't bode well for my college career. Luckily, it got better, thanks to friends like Ryan.

Nowadays, the new school year hardly registers on my calendar, & except for the few minutes it takes for me to get from my house to my car & my car to the store & the weekends Summer hardly registers. There's all sorts of summer activities I missed out on this year, through no one's fault but my own. I've only played golf about five or six times, no tennis. I don't think I've hopped on my bike once & I haven't hit the hiking trails either. I have seen the ocean for the first time (okay, that was in the spring) & swam in it numerous times, traveled to Indianapolis, Detroit & Charlevoix, & walked my dog, though.

We've been hearing alot about Alaska, lately. In the past few weeks I've heard of two groups of people I know of that have rented RV's & driven around Alaska. A customer of mine recently moved to Holland from a town north of Fairbanks. He was a cop, & he said there was a ton of crime for a small town of 3000. Then there's that Vice Presidential candidate. Why am I mentioning all of this, you ask? Well, it's an excuse to play a clip from Northern Exposure. Sicely is my idealized vision of Alaska; a small town surrounded by wilderness filled with quirky characters that all know each other & where the arts flourish.





Five Favorite Songs of the Day

The End of the Innocence-Bruce Hornsby

This song has been in heavy rotation lately.

Remember when the days were long
And rolled beneath a deep blue sky
Didnt have a care in the world
With mommy and daddy standin by
But happily ever after fails
And weve been poisoned by these fairy tales
The lawyer dwell on small details
Since daddy had to fly

But I know a place where we can go
Thats still untouched by men
Well sit and watch the clouds roll by
And the tall grass wave in th4e wind
You can lay your head back on the ground
And let your hair fall all around me
Offer up your best defense
But this is the end
This is the ned of the innocence

Obeautiful, for spacious skies
But now those skies are threatening
Theyre beating plowshares into swords
For this tired old man that we elected king
Armchair warriors often fail
And weve been poisoned by these fairy tales
The lawyers clean up all details
Since daddy had to lie

Bt I know a place where we can go
And was a away this sin
Well sit and watch the clouds roll by
And the tall grass wave in the wind
Just lay your head back on the ground
And let your hair spill all around me
Offer up your best defense
But this is the end
This is the end of the innocnece

Who knows how long this will last
Now weve come so far, so fast
But, somewhere back there in the dust
That same small town in each of us
I need to remember this
So baby give me just one kiss
And let me take a long last look
Before we say goodbye

Just lay your head back on the ground
And let your hair fall all around me
Offer up your best defense
But this is the end
This is the end of the innocence

Passenger Side-Wilco, AM

Blue is the Color of a Broken Heart-Old '97s

I Hear a Voice Calling (It Must be my Lord)-Bob Dylan, Toronto 2002

Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds-The Beatles, Sargent Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band

Happy Tuesday, friends...