Chasing Amy

Starting off, these are some pictures I took at a birthday party a couple of weeks ago.  They aren't great for two reasons.  First, I was still trying to figure out how to use a new camera.  The other reason is that two year olds can move faster than the speed of light--unless it's early in the morning and I'm late for work.  The party was for another two year old.  Apparently when you have a child, you get the privilege of attending these things all the time.  I'm just glad that this one was inside.  We are still in the middle of what seems like an endless summer.  I am beginning to feel like the heat is never going to let up.  It's sad that I now consider any temperature below 105 a cool day.  Basically, I never want to go outside anymore.  Currently I am typing this from my air-conditioned living room while watching the latest episode of Food Network Star.  I don't know why I even like this show, but I have spent a lot of time watching this channel lately.  Ethan is also a fan, and he can correctly identify Bobby Flay.  Watching Food Network just makes me hungry, which is fine because I love to eat.  I have also been watching a great deal of Man Vs. Food, which is actually on the Travel Channel.  Weird.  In other entertainment options, I am now hooked on the podcast The Tobolowsky Files.  If you have any interest in the entertainment industry, or just good storytelling, you should definitely check it out.  In non couch potato news, I went out on Sunday night to see Filter and Saliva.  Neither of these bands are huge, but they are huge for Abilene.  The first time we saw Saliva, they opened for Kiss and Aerosmith.  I thought they were fun then, and we have seen them a few times since then, including a club show in Las Vegas.  Filter is a band that I have been a fan of since I was in high school.  I had tickets to see them in 1996 when they opened for White Zombie.  I no longer remember the reason we were late, but we got there in time to see them walking off of the stage.  A few years ago, Tiffany and I went to Edgefest in Dallas.  Unfortunately, they played early in the day, and I missed them again.  I did hear them from the parking lot, but I really can't count that one.  I was thrilled when I heard they were coming to Abilene, and I am glad that I was finally able to check this band off my list.  They didn't disappoint, and actually I think it was better this way.  I don't remember much about the White Zombie show, but I do remember being so hot that our clothes were drenched in sweat.  It was nice to see the show in a small little bar, with a couple hundred of Abilene's weirdest people.  As a side note, the band stayed around after playing and talked, took pictures, and shook hands with anyone who wanted to.  I always love a band that is good to their fans.