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June 18, 2004 - Friday, 6:49 p.m.

It's another rainy day. It hit 60 at some point in this overcast day, but it is already down to 54. I was up early and into work around 6 am, so you know it was REALLY early when I got up.

Kind of a sad day today. Lots of talk about the beheading of a US civilian in Saudi, Paul Johnson. Terribly, terribly sad. How sad the state of the world is that an innocent is executed to make a point, to make a statement. ::sighs::

The work day slipped by very quickly today. I went out to lunch with a friend from work. It was a nice relaxing lunch. Then I left work at 2:30 pm for the day. I wandered down the hill to the theatre. I managed to hit a spot in the day when it wasn't raining.

[The intersection at the bottom of the hill by work, theatre on the corner, center of picture]

Rainy, rainy day. I saw "The Terminal". It was pretty good. Kinda sweet and kinda sad. I got to the theatre about 40 minutes before the show started. I wandered in and watched the last 20 minutes of Harry Potter again. Then sat in my theatre for 30 minutes before the show started. A nice leisurely afternoon.

Still pondering the whole cataclysmic event thing, that I was thinking about yesterday. I realized something, or thought about something I hadn't thought about in a really long time. I recalled that when I was in Jr. High, back in the early 70's, I used to think alot about what would happen if there were a nuclear war. Interesting, I didn't remember that I'd worried about that. In my imagination, I always lived, and I spent a great deal thinking about the whole 'starting over again from scratch' type of thing. What would I do? What would life be like if all the comforts were gone? Those thoughts still run through my mind, but it isn't thoughts of nuclear war any more. It's thoughts of a world where automobiles are too expensive to run. What would life be like if we had to walk or ride bikes everywhere? What if the economy collapsed? I think about stuff like THAT now.

I suppose that is why I like the 'natural disaster' type movies. It always shows that indominable spirit of man. Our ability to bounce back from anything, to survive through all odds.

It's been a movie week. I want to do nothing but sit in a dark theatre. Escape!! The grand escape into the world of the imagination, where anything is possible. For a few hours the world simply vanishes, our problems, our worries, our sadness is swept away. Before us is unfurled the vistas of history, myth, or fantasy. It's almost a shock to walk out of the theatre back into the sunlight, or misty rain, as the day may have it. Success, love, and victory all seem within our grasp, for those precious hours. No bill collector enters the dark recesses of the theatre, no one looks for us to break our hearts. For a short time you can forget you walked into the theatre alone, and will go home alone. For a little while everything feels possible.

I spend many of my nights listening (if not watching) the TV. Not usually TV shows on TV, but DVD's... movies... Sadly enough I think I spend more time with the crew of "Voyager" then I do with my friends. I've journey'd to Mordor more then a few times. I've traveled to Egypt a zillion times with Brendan Fraser. "Daylight", "Dante's Peak", "The Mummy", "The Lord of the Rings"(take your pick of ANY of the three)... I've watched each of these movies dozens of times. The drone of the movies lull me to sleep most nights... keeps me company...

M.