False Spring

For those of you experiencing the warmer weather, it is a “false spring,” that big tease before another inevitable blizzard. But for me, I can’t help but wonder if it’s just an early spring, because it’s not likely to get particularly cold again in Austin. I think this is actually spring. Already. Nice.

It’s hard to really get “spring fever” when your winter is so mild and short. Not to rub it in, but… nyah nyah nyah! :P

Amanda was here for much of last week. My mid-week “weekend” corresponded with her visit, though my sleep schedule did not. Actually, I didn’t sleep much at all. I don’t know what my problem is, but I barely slept all week. The combination of sleep deprivation, pizza, and too much coffee gave me a simulated hangover. It was awful. Following that, I ate nothing but fresh fruit and salad for a night, and I still felt hung over. All I have to say about that is, pineapple is the best thing EVER.

I wish I could have spent more time with Amanda on her visit, but then again she wasn’t here to visit me. She was here to visit her family. Her sister, my girlfriend, also wanted to spend more time with her. Amanda is a woman in high demand and low supply.

At work, I’ve gotten re-addicted to Google Maps. I’m a map fiend. I say “re-addicted” because I used to use that site to explore the world during slow spells at my office job in KC, back in ’07. But now, “street view” has me hooked. I can simulate a freeze-frame drive along any main road I’ve ever seen. It’s quite literally a walk down memory lane. The mundane visual aid of everything from Armour Hills to J.P.’s Coffee has evoked a stunningly potent sense of nostalgia. This time, I don’t think it’s to my detriment! This time, nostalgia is not an indulgence but a mood stabilizer. This time, I think it actually makes me a happier person. Sort of like, “We are all a lot closer than we think.” We can measure our distances apart in gallons of gasoline, but Google Maps is the tie that binds. Or something. Then again, it’s not current. They only update the imagery every so often.

Google Maps still has its limits. For example, I set it up so I could stand in the middle of N. Enterprise Street and stare at Scott Blanchard’s old apartment, but Google Maps won’t let me enter and fart on his couch and play Tiger Woods PGA 2003.

In time, it will.

On satellite view, I noticed on Google Maps that the BGSU quad has been run over with construction. I couldn’t figure out what was going on, but the place Josh Kalichman and I used to toss a Frisbee is being turned into something… sinister.

I wonder what it is?

And when will I eventually have to destroy it?

False or not, spring is here. For some reason, the change of climes makes me think of running the track outside the rec center and music building at BGSU. I want to go back there and kick some ass.

I guess, in closing, I can better qualify the statement that Google-borne nostalgia is a boon. In my mind, I am only two shades away from being convinced that I actually just sat down for coffee at Dunn Bros. on Red Bridge and Holmes in KC, on a Saturday afternoon after training with the dojo gang. After this, I’m going to the Plaza to grab some beers with the Reverend and the Unsinkable Herr Vogler. I can see it on my screen!

It’s right there. Viva Google Maps!