Trunks and such

Tonight I found my car yet again with a dead battery. This has become a common trend in Philly, and usually I end up calling AAA, but this time I had some friends around, so I asked one of them to help me out. But first I had to get the jumper cables out of my trunk. The problem was, I couldn't open up my trunk because there is no physical knob, only a button that is run by an electrical signal, which obviously doesn't work when your battery is dead. So I reverted back to some knowledge I had gained in high school.

See, one random night during my junior year of high school I was hanging out with my girlfriend, and I devised the brilliant plan to see if we could both fit into my trunk at the same time - with it closed, naturally. First, I tested it myself. What I figured out in this experiment is that there is usually some small panel or hole on the inside of the door of the trunk with a lever or wire inside of it that, upon being pulled, releases the latch. So essentially, there is a way to escape on your own from inside a closed car trunk. With this vital knowledge acquired, my girlfriend and I, somewhat confident we could get out (or at least I was confident), attempted to complete our mission. First I got in, and then she crawled in after me. We assumed a semi spoon-like position, with her as the little spoon. Keep in mind, this was the trunk of a 2-door coupe, so there wasn't a lot of room, but somehow we managed to squeeze in and shut the door! I was pretty excited it actually worked, and there is no horror story about us getting stuck in the trunk. I found my hole in the paneling and released the trunk latch. Easy as pie.

This pointless knowledge I had gained proved itself surprisingly useful today during my dilemma. I simply crawled over the seats into the trunk of my hatchback, located a suspicious looking snap-in panel, removed it, and found a small lever. Sure enough, the trunk popped open. Before I knew it, I had my jumper cables out and was ready to start my car. And now all is well because I challenged my high school girlfriend to squish into a trunk with me. Ain't life grand!

I think I'm going to coin the phrase "trunk-spoon." I have no idea when I would actually use it though. Ideas?

Dharma and Greg

I always liked the show Dharma and Greg, but I think originally because they were such an odd couple. I used to want to find a partner who was, when I think about it, just like me. I thought Dharma and Greg's incredibly different backgrounds and interests made for an amusing storyline, but nothing more. But over the past couple of years or so, their relationship, or what it signifies has become more interesting to me. I suppose in many ways I saw, and still see, myself as a Greg. But over time, I've come to realize I don't want to spend all of my time with another Greg, in girls clothes - I'd rather be around someone different from me, someone who can amaze and surprise me with their different perspective and personality and interests. Not that I would want to settle down with someone completely different from me, but the idea of being with someone who is more "artsy" and less serious than me is very appealing. Maybe it's because, as a young adult, I've started to discover an "artsy" and alternative side of myself, and I'd like someone who can relate to that, and even tease it out of me a little. And I guess even broader than that, I've just become more open to possibilities, and not trying to design someone in my head. That would not be at all surprising.

(I wonder if I'll have the same perspective in 3 years? Maybe I'll want another Gregette again?)

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Now playing: James Taylor - How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)
via FoxyTunes

Am I a contradiction?

At times my life does not seem to make any sense. I have very little ambition or drive, and yet I find myself working past midnight in an intensive career full of over-achievers. All I really want to do is lay out on a blanket and listen to music. I could do that all day and all night. It would be like one of those scenes from The Discovery Channel where a fixed camera captures the sun move across the sky and set, then the stars sailing across the sky, only to reveal the sun all over again. A girl lying next to me and a bottle of sparkling wine would make it perfect.

Seriously, where is my blanket...

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Listening to The Weepies - All Good Things

Crash songs

If you've ever been in a really serious car accident, you know that it is a truly unforgettable experience. It happens so fast, you feel so helpless, and yet at the same time everything moves incredibly slowly. In the crash I experienced, we literally rolled sideways down the side of a mountain a few times. It was terrifying in a way I cannot express. All I can remember thinking is "if we don't stop soon, we will die." And yet realizing to the core of my being that I had absolutely zero control over if and when we would stop.

We did eventually stop, and all 4 of us escaped relatively unscathed given how bad it could have been. I might have even done some good, but I usually don't like to talk about it.

For some reason, the whole experience has made me fascinated with songs about accidents, so I've listed my favorite 3 crash songs below, in no particular order.

Come Crash, by A.C. Newman

So Damn Lucky, by Dave Matthews

The Scientist, by Coldplay

The last is not explicitly about a car crash, but the music video almost brought me to tears the first time I saw it. It involves an accident, and there are many similarities to the accident I was in. I just watched it again, and it still sends chills down my spine.

Please, please always wear your seat belt. It's quite likely I can type this blog only because I was.

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Now playing: A.C. Newman - Come Crash
via FoxyTunes