My well-meaning friends from grad school gave me a few gifts when I left Oregon for the cold ND tundra: mittens, a hat, a flask, and a cute little Coleman keychain thermometer. The latter goes to zero. It hasn't worked in over a week. So do you know how you can truly judge cold? How long does it take for the moisture inside your nose to freeze and form little ice crystals on your nose hairs?

Like I said before... cloning--where do I sign up? how quickly can I get a couple? Oh, and don't forget to program them to let me know if my... services... are needed with regard to the girlie(s) before they take matters into their own hands (gotta love the phrasing). Just remember what I said about being able to do more for people when I'm single.

It never ceases to amaze me how quickly things can change. Anyway, I am not here to bore you folks with the details of my life OR my new love life, for that matter. She's nice, she's easy to be with, and I'm happy. We'll leave it at that for now. Apparenly, Jenn is still lurking about, and she might as well post here and take my place... her personal blog is still up, and mine is now history. Anyway, I have just now promoted myself to "Blog Voice From Above", as I doubt I will be a regular daily contributor from here on out.

To Susan: Men are dogs/pigs/assholes/. And women, generally, are bitches. Having said that really changes nothing. I had typed a whole bunch of nonsense in way of advice for you, but really everyone has already told you all that you need to know. You'll get the answers to your questions eventually if you think about it... that is, WITHOUT letting your emotions get in the way. The first step towards understanding men is to detach. Best of luck.

To Kate: What if your motivation is actually to question your own motivation on a fairly regular basis? Just a thought. Anyway, good luck having the man in town. Also, I have a job that I love, and I barely break a mental sweat, so I can't help you with that one.

Oddly enough, I am looking forward to 2005. 2004 was a great year for me, the perfect counter to a lousy 2003. I'm not nearly as freaked out about turning 30 as I was about turning 20. I feel the transformation from a Luke Skywalker to an Obi-Wan Kenobi (I can only wish I was a Han Solo type). It is my hope that I will consider myself less, and others more, as I move into the next phase of life like my father before me, like his father before him.

The Force shall be with you... always.

We aren't all we present ourselves to be. Ever. And if your words and actions don't match, well, which speaks louder?

It's totally freaking cold here. I finally gave in this morning and drove to work -- it was -20. Plus, I am going to go and see two houses after work. One of them is small, cute, well-located, and in an area I like, PLUS I can afford it. I wonder what's wrong with it.

Why is it, at work, that even when you have a job you love, you spend lots of your time putting out other people's fires, finishing other people's work, covering other people's asses, and placating people who expect you to do their work? I want to do projects I pick out!

Thanks and praise be! I am not just shouting into the void! The long, dry monologue has ended! The violin in the void is now joined by a cello. Or would you rather be a viola?

I don't think you can trademark Progress. It's been done.

I think that, yes, it is likely that psych boy is more cautious because he has a kid. I don't think it's the child -- it's that there was a long-term relationship that produced offspring and yet, didn't work out. The traditional nuclear family structure, despite all evidence to the contrary, is still deemed "stable." People who fail at creating that stability the first (or second, or third) time, should be a little more cautious. We all have our past-relationship baggage. But people who are now divorced committed to eternity and then backed out. Many of them harbor guilt over that. So caution is a really good sign, IMO. It hopefully means that he's done some time figuring out what went wrong last time -- so he doesn't repeat his mistakes. Maybe it also means that he's done some figuring on what he wants out of a relationship -- and why bother jumping into something that will not be what he wants? We cannot have perfect relationships. But at least we should fuck each new one up in a different way, right? Who wants to make the same mistakes again and again?

Love and glory from the frozen tundra of the North.

Oh, and to the commenters, thanks for reading. We (the Royal We) know that Mark's off on his own journey of new discovery. The milk carton's haven't helped Daniel's case, unfortunately. As for Ragining Lunatic, dude, I don't know what to tell you. Um, I'm confused by your comment, but thanks for tuning in. And good luck, I think.

And so the monologue continues....

Welcome to 2005, world. Things are constantly shifting, which is good when you realize that a lack of change means stagnation. Change is like life -- the ultimate outcome isn't about the change or event itself. It's about how you deal with the shifting techtonic plates in your life. You can follow the Tao of Chaos in life, nature's tendency towards chaos. Or you can fight it, live life like a salmon fighting the current every step of the way. Or swish of the way, whatever. I don't really do fish metaphor well.

So, New Year's resolutions: adopt the serenity prayer as a way of life and butt out of things that aren't my business. Finally create a budget that involves saving, retirement, and fun for me. In the vein of budgeting, plan grocery store trips better to waste less -- money and food. Drink more water and eat more vegetables. Incorporate more exercise into my life -- maybe even follow my advice to my mom 5 years ago and try some yoga. Live exquisitely.

May you become master of your own destiny this year. I could wish nothing more nor anything less for myself.