I was in downtown Miami the other night, at a big, for lack of a better word, mall called Bayfront (or maybe Bayside) that's on the river/bay and sits across from the big American Airlines Arena where the Heat plays. It is a really nice mall. Much of it outdoors with nice views and big fichus trees, street performers, one with a monkey with no teeth that would love to have them so he can chew your arm off and a really heavily ethnic crowd. They had a band playing waterside. All Latin music of course. Anyway, I went to eat at Bubba Gump's Shrimp Company. You may have seen them in another large city. They are themed after the movie Forest Gump with lots of pictures and memorabilia everywhere. Even the drink menus are made of ping pong paddles and the movie is constantly playing on TV screens. Well I couldn't even eat. It was so depressing all I wanted to do was drown my sorrows in alcohol. Depressing stuff everywhere. There was Sally Fields' dress she wore RIGHT BEFORE SHE DIED and a great picture of Forest in Nam holding Bubba RIGHT BEFORE HE DIED and Jenny waving goodbye as she gets on the hippie bus and LEAVES FOREST YET AGAIN and Jenny's dress RIGHT BEFORE SHE DIED OF AIDS and Captain Dan's PARAPLEGIC'S WHEELCHAIR and little Forest and Jenny HIDING FROM HER ABUSIVE ALCOHOLIC FATHER. Run Forest, Runnnnnnnn. I ran the hell outa' that place.
I went to the parking deck to leave and, lucky me, they had just let out from the WWE Royal Rumble XXIII super duper wrestling match at the arena so the deck and traffic was nut's. You couldn't go anywhere so I opened my windows and looked and listened to the crowd. Wrestlers are celebrities now. Wrestling fans are really strange groupies. They are really into it. Many were carrying metal folding chairs like you see the wrestlers hitting each other with, only with the vinyl seat and back cushion printed with cool wrestler faces and stuff. I asked one fan how much they were and he gleefully announced, "they's free whens ya' git the $300 ringside seats"! OK, so he really didn't say it like that but you get the point. So I started think about watching wrestling as a kid, Wahoo McDaniel, Sergeant Slaughter, The big tall blond haired guy they made a cartoon out of who's name I can't recall at the moment, oh yea, Hulk Hogan and of course Rick Flair. You know Rick Flair from Charlotte, NC. I used to see him in bars/restaurants there quite a bit. Well I remembered his trademark call which is a high pitched, screaming "whoooooooooooooo" that fades off at the end kinda like a screeching owl "who". I began to wonder if there were any old wrestling fans in the crowds or a following among the new generation of fans so I stuck my head out the window and in my best Rick Flair imitation I yelled "whooooooooooo". To my great amusement the entire echoing parking deck erupted in a synchronized response of "whooooooooo". I was cracking up and had to play this call and response game at least a couple more times. People. We so funny.

I am not a good stretcher. Never have been. In pretty good shape. Work out regularly but as you get older you need to work harder on flexibility and balance and you just need a little edge over the younger and stronger. So, since I have always been interested in marshal arts I figured I would check into it. I did some internet research and found a Kung Fu conservatory and went to sit in on a class. Let me tell you, that is some serious shit. Their teaching method is to layer your skills. You change from the inside out. You do not just practice step 1 and then master step 2 and so on as you would expect. With this method you just do it and you do it the best you can and they correct as they see necessary and you just continually adjust and improve yourself and make it second nature. Very different than what I have seen in other marshal arts. They do not have a belt system in Kung Fu (although they do have degrees) and the testing is very different. I was one of 4 in the class. Me, two older teens, maybe 19/20 and the instructor, all of which were extremely skilled having practiced various forms of marshal arts all their lives. I held my own fairly well. It was quite a workout and they deemed me worthy of further training in the art. As I mentioned, this is a serious school and not cheap. I am not sure I want to do this though. Beside being a huge commitment, they practice the Fu-Joy Phai or "Tiger Claw" style. One of a handful in the country and very deadly. Extend your arm directly in front of you, hand open, palm facing forward, hand/fingers at a 90 degree angle, fingers pointing straight up. Now curl the tips of your fingers into a claw. The Tiger Claw. You will become a tiger. This particular style uses a lot of "shredding" moves. Take note: there are NO blocks or holds in Kung Fu, ONLY strikes. If someone goes to hit you you do, you would respond by, what would appear to you as a block, but in reality you are trying to strike the opponents extended arm in such a way that you are trying to break it and thus immobilize it. These guys do not fight for they would kill someone. You don't even hardly do any sparring as part of your practice because it is so dangerous. It is all muscle memorization and mind control. You turn to avoid the opponent, grab with your tiger claw, shred his arm at the shoulder and remove his jaw with the other hand all in one felled swoop. Pretty wild stuff. Anyway, I am going to a different place next week to see a different Kung Fu style. Maybe I should just start with Tai Chi. I did have one funny thought. A friend of mine said I should just go all around sitting in on all kinds of martial art classes and write a book about my experience while getting trained for free. That could be the next big independent film documentary at the Sundance Fest or in Cannes! But I would hate having to look over my shoulder for attacking Ninjas though once they all found out. Till next time, see ya'.

Let me tell you about Karma. A couple of weeks ago I was standing outside of Rattlesnake Jake's, a locals hangout that I have always kind of considered as a home base for my beach antics, talking to a few of my smoker friends. I don't smoke (anymore) but it was nice out and it's fun to watch the tourists walk by. I looked over to the street and spied a wallet on the ground between two cars. Walked over, picked it up and, of course, looked inside. Inside was $100 Euro, $600 American and all the important passport/papers for an Italian tourist. Well, you could imagine the variety of suggestions that the local color had to offer, but me, being the nice guy who I am, decided I would do what I would want someone else to do for me. I am a firm believer that what goes around comes around, simply put, Karma. Besides, a similar situation occurred a while back and the guy gave me $50 to pay my tab when he came back to claim his wallet so I figured I would stay true to my conscience. Anyway, I studied the Italian's picture from his papers and I knew he couldn't be far. I could certainly not miss his wealthy middle aged Euro styling. Lo and behold, there he was with friends, none of whom spoke English, at a table at an outdoor cafe. I walked up, looked at him, looked at the picture and said, "Mr. Blah Blah Blah (I can't remember the weird, hard to pronounce name), I believe this is yours. You should be glad I am one of the good Americans." Whereupon he proceeded to look at me, take the wallet, give a perfunctory nod, mumble A short "thank you" and return immediately to his food and friends like I did not exist. Did not even offer to buy me a beer for all the grief I saved him in a foreign land with no ID. I am always dressed appropriately and well groomed so I don't think he would have been afraid of me. He was just rude. No big deal but apparently, as I was told upon returning to my friends, he waited for me to turn and he immediately checked the contents of his wallet. That too I understand but it did not go over well with the folks outside the bar who know my integrity. Even Rasta Man was really pissed and spouting off some unusually mean spirited Jamaican sounding banter. All I know is that I can't worry about other people's Karma. I can only worry about my own. If the guy wanted to be an ass that's his problem. I felt good.
Next day when I went for my run I started finding change on the ground. About 30 cents in all. Then, later on, I had a high tech epiphany and was able to correct a computer problem that I was prepared to spend over $75 on to repair. Cool. Then, a few hours later when I got the mail, I received a check from the phone company for $125 because they had apparently been overcharging me on a bundled package deal for the last year. Karma, I thought. That night I found out that in Italy there is a law that says if you find money and track down the person who owns it you are entitled , by law, to 1/3 of the money. As fate would have it, I received approximately 1/3 of what was in the guys wallet within 24 hours of it's return. Karma. I sure hate to think what the rest of that guys week was like!

I'm back! Did you miss me? Well, it has taken this long since Wilma hit (that bitch!) to find time to do a little creative writing. I am actually at O'Hare in Chicago waiting for a connecting flight to Lansing, MI. Taking some classes at Michigan State this week.

OK, hurricane Wilma made things quite a mess. It will take quite a while to recover here. So many beautiful trees gone. A category 3 when the eye crossed my place. It was bad. Curfews. No power, water, phone. You saw the news reports. 'Nough said. I have posted a couple pictures I took but descriptions do not do her justice. You really have to live these storms. Amazing power. My most interesting observation: The beauty of the night sky. That's right. Normally the nighttime satellite images of South Florida show us lit up like a Christmas tree. Terrible light pollution. But with no power the night sky was absolutely stunning. You would have to be miles out to sea or in the middle of the everglades to see that view again.

What else has been going on? Well, I was having a cocktail at Luna Rosa on the beach and met a burly old sea captain who was a friend of Edward Sewell (I think that's the name). He was the captain of the Edmond Fitzgerald. You know, the old Gordon Lightfoot song. Well this guy had just returned from the 30th anniversary memorial service at that little chapel on Lake Superior. It was an interesting conversation.

I saw Rare Earth at the Fireman's Challenge here on the beach. Firefighters from all over compete in these arduous tests of skill and endurance. It's pretty cool watching them pass out in the heat. Rare Earth was really great. There was hardly anybody there. You could dance right in front of the stage. They are ancient now though. If you can't remember their songs do a quick Google. You would be surprised how you know them all. They were the only white band ever signed by Motown. It was fun.

I went to Art Basil at the Miami Convention Center. It's an international contemporary art exhibit. World class and highly regarded in the international art world. I saw some great stuff. Some of it so strange I do not attempt to describe it. The people were just as interesting. I liked their fashions and hair styles. London, Paris, NY, LA. Hot hot.

I watched the Christmas boat parade come down the intracoastal waterway. All the decorated boats and fireworks. A buddy had a really nice party at his house on the waterway and we all got trashed and watched it there. Top notch event. All the finest top shelf beverages, char-grilled beef tenderloins, boats and boats of the finest sushi and so on. Excellent time had by all.

For Christmas I flew my Daughter, Son and his girlfriend down here for the week and we had a blast. Photos in gallery. Sorry kids. Did all of the tourist stuff. Airboat rides through the everglades, sushi, the beach and so on but the highlight for all was going to see the Chihuly exhibit/installation at the Fairchild Tropical Botanical Gardens in Miami. Chihuly is one of the best glass artist in the world and his works are integrated into one of the finest tropical botanical gardens in the world. It's phenomenal, whimsical, like being in a Dr. Seuss book. PLEASE check out the links below!

http://www.chihuly.com/installations/fairchild/

http://www.fairchildgarden.org/

I was in a weird part of Miami the other day. Near the docks. Lots of scrap metal dealers. Very ethnic, Hispanic and Caribbean/Haitian. Driving down the street taking in the sights, sounds and smells and saw the following: A pickup truck with 55 gallon drums of dead fish carcasses that were already stripped of there fillets. No attempt to keep fresh. Looked like red snapper. Pretty stinky. Where do you think they were going with that? Looked over and saw a one legged black man riding a bike. Think of that. He did not have any special clip or harness on the pedal like you sometimes see so he had to push down and then pull up with his one leg to propel himself. He was zipping down the sidewalk honking a big old fashion squeeze bike horn and hollering at hookers to get out of his way. Pretty weird, aye?

http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/tv/article.adp?id=20051021153309990003&ncid=NWS00010000000001

Here we go again. Another frigging hurricane. Watching Wilma closely. See NOAA pics in gallery. In a way it would be weird to be the first generation to witness a 22nd named storm in the same season if another one comes this year. They revert to Greek alphabet to name them. Alpha would be the next. A record I don't really care to be a part of. Of the 8 hurricanes in October since 1900, 6 have hit Florida. Joy. Not sure I can stand 30 more years of this particular climate cycle. Effects the economy here too which effects my paycheck. I have to go out of town on business this weekend too. I guess I will keep someone on retainer to put up my hurricane shutters if necessary while I'm gone. Just sucks. Ready for this season to be over with. Forecast for after storm passes is 69 degrees at night and 82 during the day. Bright sun, no humidity and light breeze. Good numbers.
Don't need this crap right now. Under a lot of pressure. Work mostly. Big week ahead and I take a hard exam next Saturday. One of those that give you letters after your name. Here's some letters for you: BFD! Really should be studying.
Feeling down lately anyway. Stupid and unfulfilled. Maybe even a little weak and abused. Choosing poorly lately. Have had an interesting life so far. Don't regret anything in the past much but might have added a couple of things to the list over the past year. Need less distraction and more focus. Purpose. Need to slow down and contemplate/meditate. Hopefully no irreversible damage done. Bought "God Wants You To Be Rich". Now just need the time to read it. Just need to make it to the holidays. Looking forward to them but even those thoughts are a bit skewed lately. Need something. Think I know what sometimes then get off track. I guess I'm just a regular old, every day, no good, run of the mill, flawed human. Oh well. Must....think......positive. Get in touch with the Source Energy. Utilize cognitive skills. Learn from error. Run the maze faster. What do you think Aliasqueen? I have read a lot of your writings. Perhaps I can learn from you as well.