Chianti and Fava Beans

Yesterday I went to Chicago to do research for the screenplay I am working on. (This blog will really be something when that screenplay is turned into a major motion picture). I spent the day walking the city and observing people for my character development and location development and doing social experiments as research. I plan to base my story in Chicago; I believe in staying loyal to the Middle whenever possible. Anyway, my personal assistant Roz (my I-pod for you new readers) and I walked 20,045 steps yesterday; that's the most I have walked in one day since starting to record them with Roz. (Roz is named after Roz Kelly who played "Pinky" Tuscadero on Happy Days (set in Milwaukee - Middle of the country) because she is Pink.

While I was in Chicago I also got two jobs. I received a call back and a phone interview from The U.S. Census Bureau while I was between The Field Museum and Soldier Field and I am now a Census Enumerator (census taker) for the next seven to eight weeks. Training begins tomorrow. I also was named the new coach of The Dekalb Park District Pony League Cardinals. Our first meeting is Sunday and it sounds like the player evaluation and draft are Monday. Who in the heck is going to keep the house in order while I have two part-time jobs and another that pays nothing (baseball coach)?
Scheduling practices is going to be tricky.

Wow I have a lot of notes in my notebook. This is the blog notebook not the other one that I have the screenplay notes in. So, here goes my rambling...

I have some good ideas but then I thought all ideas are good ideas. Bad ideas must start out as good ideas when we have them right? No one thinks "I have a bad idea and I'm gonna run with it."

Rode the train in from Elburn into Chicago (great people watching). I could tell that the people who rode the train in everyday were thrown by us being there. (Jill actually went for training for her work in the city and I was her Laurence Tureaud (that's famous bodyguard and bouncer Mr. T to you and me)for the day. I overheard conversations and saw seat changing... It's weird how we don't like change. Humans are more creatures of habit than I realized yesterday. Right down to the simplest things like your seat on a train. Our daily rituals betray us!

Sorting my tools in the garage the other day after a winter of just throwing them all in a bin so I wouldn't freeze my bippy (bippy?) I realized mechanics are pretty open-minded and smart. I mentioned in "Matt in the Middle" the other day that we only use liter bottles and cubic centimeter engines from our metric learning but, while putting my 14mm wrench away I thought to myself, "Self, mechanics learned the metric system when the rest of us couldn't." Then I thought Mechanical Engineers are supposed to be really smart and then I thought I am not really sure what a Mechanical Engineer is but has the word "mechanical" in it so mechanics must be smart. They are like Sherlock Holmes solving what's wrong with and engine, brakes...

Why are boobs (bras) and batteries measured the same? AA,A,B,C,D. I live to see a 9-volt boob.

I think I saw Tom Thayer jogging by the lake yesterday. If not, I think this guy could kick Thayer's butt; sounds like a futuristic Jean Claude Van Damme movie.

So, tomorrow I start my temp job training. President Obama and I have a lot in common: we're both incredibly handsome and articulate, both from a middle state (Illinois to be precise), both have intelligent hotties for wives and both have temporary U.S. Government jobs. However, his may last eight years whereas mine may last eight weeks. And, we could both be shot while performing our government duties. We may invite the Obama's over for dinner since we have so much in common now. It will happen but I cannot write about it due to National Security...but it DID happen.

Time is short this morning so I did not proofread this as I usually do so, sorry if there are typos. I am heading down to the unemployment office to find out how to handle this new job and how I will probably be making less money for awhile. Wish me luck! Smell ya later (tomorrow)!