A Friday Five for the first time in...well, I really can't recall

1. I've bee thinking a lot about time again. As many of you who regularly read my blog (or talk to me when I'm in an existential mood) know, this is a topic that intrigues me. I am not a true chronomaniac as I am not obsessed with schedules and time management, and I am kind of the opposite of a chronocentric as I believe that you have to judge people based on their own time and not the time in which you are most accustomed, and I am definitely not a chronomancer as I believe that your fate is created by the actions you take and not what time you take those actions. So my question is, what is it called when someone is obsessed with how time flows and how the past, present and future interact with each other? With how many sci-fi books on time travel there are out there and how many time theories there are in physics, I can't imagine there isn't a term for someone like me. And this all started thanks to a decades costume party I'm going to tomorrow night.

2. I can't seem to make myself sit down and read a book, write a review, work on a manuscript or do anything else at the moment. It is all I can do to make myself post on my blog. I think it's because I changed jobs at work and now spend more of my day reading newspapers, editing editorial submissions and writing media responses. I think I'm kind of burned out at the moment. Hopefully going to Chicago for Labor Day will help pull me out of my funk.

3. I have finally finished unpacking. After more than a month in my new place, I unpacked my last box this week. As this is just a temporary place, I'll have to pack and unpack everything again in January. I don't know if I'm looking forward to that or dreading it.

4. I also organized my bookshelves this week. When I realized I had far to many books to fit, I took about 25 books to the library donation books. While I always deal with a bit of separation anxiety when I give away books, I know the books will go to a good cause--supporting my local library. I also feel a bit liberated by the fact I gave away a bunch of books I have owned for years and will probably never read. Those books haunt my bookshelf. There are so many good books out there and not enough time to read them all, so I need to be a little more selective in my reading choice. Okay, if I was really reading at the moment I would need to be more selective in my reading choice. Right now I just need to chose something--anything--to read.

5. I've been feeling nostalgic for 80's sci-fi movies this week like The Boy Who Could Fly, Flight of the Navigator and Space Camp. I often get in the mood to watch these movies, so I'm thinking I need to start buying some of these classics. I also just realized all of these movies were released in 1986--I wonder if there is any significance there.

Where is Wonderland?

I loved this movie. Mostly because it made me think and hope and feel. It also made me wonder why I'm not working on a masters degree.

Stalking Judy Blume

I have big plans for Sept. 26. I will be spending the day stalking Judy Blume. Do you have any idea how Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret changed my life? I mean, my childhood was defined by The Pain and the Great One, and to this day I wish I have freckles thanks to Freckle Juice. As an adolescent I wanted to be every one of Judy Blume's characters, and now I just want to be Judy Blume.

Here's my chance (and yours) to meet the Great One herself at the National Book Festival in Washington, DC.

Oh, yeah. And you can stop and say hi to Mo Willems, Shannon Hale, Nicholas Sparks and John Grisham if you must. But, come on! Judy Blume will be there!

Life can sometimes be really unfair

I was a good kid, really. I never got in serious trouble. I got decent grades. I did my chores without too much complaint. I was in band, scholastic bowl, French club and Mathletes. My brother, on the other hand, was a troublemaker--in fact, I think that Weezer song was written about him.

So why he's living here

while I'm living here

I'll never know.

I used to think the view of my city's skyline was pretty cool

until I saw what he gets to see everyday

and life just doesn't seem fair anymore.

So here's to the kid who I used to joke would be the unemployed bum who would have to crash on my couch. I'll be the bum on your couch just as soon as I can afford the plane ticket.

Our Public Works System

I have to admit, I've never really thought much about public works unless I land on one of them while playing Monopoly. But this summer I've gotten to spend some time with my cousin as he and his crew have work on the piping system throughout Alexandria.

Whenever Drew (or "Freddy" as the guys all call him) comes into town for a job, he'll give me a call. Sometimes we meet up for dinner or go to a movie or just hang out at my place. But every once in awhile he'll be working a night or evening shift down the street from my house so I'll bring him dinner or keep him company while he waits for a job to start. I'm not really versed in the intricacies of his job, but I know that his company cures water pipes using a rosin system rather than digging up roads and replacing old concrete pipes. Drew assures me this method creates about an eighth of the carbon footprint and nearly triples the lifetime of the water system.

Last night I stuck around for a little and watched Drew at work, and I have to admit, I was kind of impressed with all of the work that goes into what they do. I don't think I'll ever look at tap water the same way again. (It was about 10:30 p.m. when I took these pictures, so I had to lighten them considerably so you can kind of see what's going on.)

I've always wondered why so many people just "stand around" on a construction sight, but after watching how much attention is required to maintain, operate and monitor all the machinery and equipment, I understand why so many people are needed. And watching my cousin be lowered into a deep, dark hole in the middle of the road made me grateful there were so many trained guys there to watch over him.

I don't envy Drew having to go into that hole. I guess after so many years as a Marine, he's kind of used to damp, dark and dirty, but I'd get claustrophobic real quick.

Our jobs might be vastly different, and we might look like polar opposites, but we're still family and have a lot of fun together. We like to trade books (we both have a weakness for urban fantasy and the paranormal), and we're going to Crue Fest 2 together next weekend. He was also with me the first time I saw the Nats actually win a game.