nastiness

state route 99 is the lesser traveled little cousin of i-5. i don't like to play favorites, so i tend to take i-5 during the morning commute and 99 in the evening. however, i think i'm a rarity in this even-handed use of the washington state byways. some seattlites, like neuropsychological and neurophysiological technician sean meichle, pass their props to 99. others are devoted to the eight lane behemoth that is i-5. perhaps the only consensus regarding these north-south tributaries is that they are both in serious need of work, especially 99. as they pass through downtown, the narrow lanes of 99 ascend a series of ancient stilts and pass through a cavernous tunnel. according to most reports, in an earthquake this section of 99 (known as the viaduct) would be a disaster. tonight, as i was navigating north through a sea of red tailights, there was just such a catastrophe. with an odd rumble, my southern slice of highway suddenly crumbled beneath me. my trusty truck lept from the crashing concrete and barrelled through the air, but its flight was doomed. the puzzled craft and i flew headlong into the waiting supports of a still intact northern segment of highway. in the instant that i dreamed this surprising death, i thought 'God, forgive me...' and then somehow kept driving; thankfully, it was just my imagination (running away with me)*. i'm not really sure what spawned this harrowing imaginative burst, but it was certainly surprising.

after arriving safely at home, i whipped out my laptop, checked scores on espn, and then dropped my head on the pillow for a little nap. a moment later, i felt my nose running a bit, but thought nothing of it. this was nap time, no time to worry about a little snot. i lazily wiped my nose with my hand -- something felt funny. snapping my eyes open i saw a bright crimson pool on my pillow -- a bloody nose! what the heck? can someone tell my why, after twenty years of mild nose abrasions and no blood, i suddenly find myself bleeding all over my bed? what the goose? here's google's attempt (oh, i also have a bit of a headache), which could be a bit frightening...


andrew david 'stuck inn here' the tropicana, puerto vallarta, mexico
day 1, the hallway right outside our hotel room. i can't decide if i like the ant-like duo in the bottom right corner of the window. they're probably too small for web-watchers to render much of an opinion...

* corrected link; i was previously trying to link directly to the online music clip, but apparently you can't do that; it only worked temporarily. now the link takes the surfer to the music clip page, and the surfer has to scroll down (or use ctrl-f) until he or she finds the clip.