Pete Nickeas

Last night, the weather was a bit on the chilly side but it was nice.

So, I was driving to the grocery store, thinking, I wonder what my next blog post should be. And then it hit me!

Joy riding.

This has not to do with ghostriding the whip, or going dumb.

It’s more about driving slowwwww.

I used to love driving around the city with nowhere to go. That luxury hasn’t been fiscally responsible since around the time I sold (what used to be) my landscaping company in March of 2007.

But man, driving up and down Lake Shore Drive a few times or driving a loop from 290 into the city, LSD down to 55, 55 back to 355, and 355 back up to 290 was so peaceful. You could kill a whole night with two loops.

And what was the destination? No destination! Roll down the windows and turn the music up, and take in the fresh air.

Now, and this is going back a few years, I used to have an 84 Grand Marquis, two tone champagne and brown, that when you went over a speed bump it would go up with the bump, then slink real low when you come down, then continually bounce slowly until it leveled off. It was a heavy ass car, a lead sled if you will, and it it was smooth.

Oh man, that car. Sometimes I’d drive it a half hour or forty minutes just to get out of the house, go grab a couple hot dogs a few towns over.

I have a truck now so joy riding is not an option. Also, I don’t have money, so that puts the kibosh on any joy riding too.

I used to read people say, “Hip-hop is a kids game.”

I was even offended when people said in a snide and condescending tone that “you’ll grow out of it,” as if somehow, mature, intelligent, respectable and productive adults can’t be Hip-hop heads. That idea, that concept, is a joke.

But really, it’s hard to find good Hip-hop that’s new and refreshing. In doing research for a transportation planning research paper, I’ve been listening to a lot of old Pharoahe Monch, Talib Kweli, and Common tracks.

Now, it’s hard comparing tracks like Kweli’s Four Women to, well, anything. That song is just too amazing. But really, does Soulja Boy write his rhymes? I mean, does he physically have to write out what he plans on saying?

I’m not going to beat that drum - but it speaks to a greater point. It’s hard to find good Hip-hop music that means something, like a lot of it used to. There was a sizable socially conscious movement in the Hip-hop community in the late 90’s that countered the “bling” era and it seems to have tapered off a bit.

Part of it, I’m sure, is because I’ve fallen out of touch with the community after moving to Springfield and giving up concert and album coverage. But another part of it is because you don’t have good rappers spearheading anything. Nobody coalesces around an amazing album like people did with Internal Affairs or Train of Thought.

When Blue Scholars release a couple tracks that, to me, are right up there with the late 90’s classics, it barely makes a splash.

Maybe it’s weak promo, maybe their management sucks, who knows. But their music is super super super dope and nobody hears about it. And there’s such a lack of artists putting out music on a regular basis that my music consumption has basically dwindled to Blue Scholars, Lupe Fiasco, and a couple other random west coast groups.

It’s disappointing. I miss it.

I like storms. I find them calming and soothing. I enjoy the sound of rain, which also has an oddly comforting effect to it.

I like to try and plan my day differently if I know it will rain. When it’s raining, I like to be at my computer or at my desk, writing and journaling. Also acceptable is at a bookstore or coffee shop, though budgetary constraints prevent that sort of thing from happening with any regularity. I also like to be near an open window, with coffee or tea. If I have to work, I try not to do more than the standard 7.5-9 hour day.

I do like the process of self-examination and I feel compelled to journal about my thoughts, decisions, and the process leading to those decisions. I typically don’t share them with anyone. If asked, sometimes let people take a peek at the book but not typically.

I don’t like making decisions without having a reason. I don’t like not knowing the best and worst possible outcomes for any given situation I’m faced with and I do my best to prepare for both, even if sometimes the worst or best possible outcome is so outlandish that it stresses me out.

And when it’s raining, I don’t feel like I should be doing anything other than writing. I feel like I should put aside homework, cleaning, cooking, and everything else just to get open. I enjoy that feeling.

1. Being presumptuous.
I think, when someone’s presumptuous, it’s because of a few things. Part of it is because they lack humility. When someone’s demeanor is so self-assured that they give off an air of invincibility, its … well, it’s not a good look.

2. Bad pitching performances.
Gavin Floyd got rocked something fierce yesterday. He went four and a third giving up nine hits and 6 runs (though only *cough* five were his) and walked five in the process.

But the beauty of a pitcher’s duel! The thwack of a 12-6 curve snapping into the catcher’s glove conjures the smell of hot-dogs and fresh cut grass. When a pitcher throws a gem, life is right. It’s working.

Which is why seeing a pitcher get shelled and pulled mid-inning is so bothersome. Pitches aren’t located except the meatballs, and that’s when hacks like Rod Barajas can ruin your day.

That’s not how baseball is supposed to be! It’s supposed to be Greg Maddux shutting a team down for seven and a third. It’s Randy Johnson throwing at your head and spinning you around before the slider freezes you in place. It’s Mark Buehrle throwing a no-no and facing only 27 batters, picking off the only batter he walked - disgraced ex-cub Sammy Sosa.

That’s how life is supposed to be. Not a shellacking from the effing Blue Jays.

3. My Transportation Planning class.
This is totally my fault. I took a class I shouldn’t have and now I’m dealing with the consequences.

There’s a 25 page paper due in a week or so (well, just the presentation of it) that I’m not overly concerned about, but who wants to do a twenty five page paper about the power of politics in transportation planning? Not me.

I love the topic, it’s not that. It’s the structure of a class, I think, combined with the fact that it’s likely my last class for a long, long time. I don’t like online courses but I figured, it would allow me more time at my internship. So I sucked it up.

Now I’m just going to have to do this last homework assignment, bang out this paper, and be done with class and school for a very, very long time.

4. Volatile personalities
I don’t like shifty personalities. I dislike them a lot.

I can get along with anybody. If a person is unpredictable and likely to go off-the-chain at a moment’s notice, I can still work with that person and carry on a fully functional professional relationship.

But I can’t deal with people who are calm one moment and off the handle the next. I can be around people who are violent if I know that’s how they are.

This morning, when I was getting out of bed, Erin’s like “Pete, wake me up at … mmmm … 6:45.” So I’m like, OK. No problem.

So I get up, cut some strawberries to have with my Chex, and I go back into the bedroom to ask Erin if there’s anything I can do about the strawberry stains on the bamboo cutting board (there’s not), except it’s only 6:30. So she’s like, “just let me sleep ten more minutes!”

I almost said something, but was like, nahhhh. This will be funny. So a couple more minutes later she comes out of the bedroom while I’m checking my fantasy baseball (I’m winning in one league ) and it’s only like 6:37.

So I point out, it was only 6:30 when I first woke you up and you said ten more minutes, so I was like, ehhh it would be funnier if you woke up thinking it was 7 and it actually wasn’t.

She didn’t think it was funny. I did!

One of the things I enjoy about the spring is being able to smell again. You can’t smell shit except smog and unhappiness in the winter.

I like smelling fresh-cut grass, and freshly watered grass, and flowers on a breezy afternoon. And, coffee in the morning when it’s kinda cold but you have the windows open. What I do not like smelling, though, are the Bradford Pear trees. Those are the ones that smell like … shit. Only for a few weeks.

The problem is, the bloom is some kind of beautiful. For real. Gorgeous. But when the flowers go away, so does the smell. So deceptive :-/

I also enjoy that at random ass times, baseball is on. We’re situated in a weird market, apparently, so we get Sox, Cubs, and Cards games and the occasional Kansas City game.

And also, we have a fridge with some beer and some peanuts, though I don’t keep those in the fridge. Plus, The Office is on! HELLLLL YEAAAAA

This never really happened when I worked outside, but in the past few months, the combination of long hours in close quarters with other people who are sick has led me … to get sick. Big shocker there I suppose.

So I’ m at home today, making a list of bills that passed out of the House and Senate, as well as a list of bills I’ve followed, so as they pass I have daily stories to turn to. Woo hoo!

I’ll also rest, since that’s the point of staying home. I’m not worried about getting a full week of work in, even with a day off.

In other news, I’m toying with the idea of giving up journalism to become a permanent fantasy baseball manager, though there’s the question of what to do during the off season.

Also, I could play Call of Duty for a living. It’s fun, serves a public good, there’s never a shortage of work, and requires a fair amount of training. There’s just that issue of finding a viable revenue stream.

Ehem … that was delicious.

Poor man’s eggs Benedict is what it was. Along with some of my other favorite things - coffee, jazz (on the television set), and the Sunday paper.

The recipe is very simple: toast an English muffin, add bacon to it, put a fried egg over the top and smother it in your favorite mustard sauce. As the bacon can be a bit chewy, you’ll want to either a. accept that by eating it with your hands, you’ll get messy or b. use a fork and knife to cut it and mix it all up.

Next weekend I’ll be trying this with a side of hashbrowns.

The site, as I begin fleshing out, will be changing.

You’re going to see my pretty mug on the right side and twitter updates will be inside a box with my photo and a brief bio.

There will also be more clips added - there’s five or so from earlier this year that I have to copy from the QCOnline.com archives, so once that’s done, the clips section will be about full.

And … I’ll be updating the contacts page to include links to Twitter and a couple other places.

Also, a photo page, when I learn how to do that. Which should be Sunday.

Hooray

Barbecue tonight! Wooo hoo!

Nothing like cooking out with some good music - Dilated Peoples, Blue Scholars, Jurassic 5 - and enjoying the weather. Better still, it’s potluck!

There will be pictures to follow.

Office :-/
Working in an office during the spring/summer is going to suck. I love reporting. But I also love being outside, and save for baseball coverage, the two just don’t seem to jive. Since Small Newspaper Group doesn’t need baseball coverage from their Springfield bureau, I’m SOL.

This will by my first warm-season spent in-doors since 2003. And I’m worried. It’s definitely going to take some getting used to.