Other than the humans there is the small game. Good for chasing and practice hunting. The squirrels are especially good for a chase and are almost catchable.

The dog paces again. Around the house. She is getting hungry now and wants dinner. Going outside would be good too. There are always treats involved when going outside.

Time to stop. The human is doing that thing with his feet. They will go outside now.

In other areas our impulse for love can be subverted and used to control us. The much maligned simp is often one whose impules for love has been captured and used against him.

Ultimately, like the famous Raymond Carver characters, I must admit I have no idea what I’m talking about when I talk about love.

I remember in my youth, standing in the door watching a storm sweep across the land. The rain was heavy and the thunder loud. A spirit swept me and I ran out to the field. The rain washed over me. Instantly making me as wet as if I had dived underwater. My wet robe cast aside I raised my head and drank myself full of the rain. Then a flash and the taste of heat on my tongue.

Blinded I saw pure white and heard rumbling. When my vision cleared I was in a court. Marble columns towered and a fountain decorated the center. Around the center were the finest specimens of men and women. Frozen in place as living statues. There the memory ends. I returned to earth. Waking inside the house. Tongue burnt, blinded and in total pain.

Years latter I still know the image. But the rains are all calm now.

When I was young I didn’t have the money or the vision to have a really great summer vacation. Now that I have some money and a more adventurous spirit I just have to keep working. At least I’m trying to relax a bit more while I can.

Soon after the prom my Melissa announced that she would be moving to Florida. Her mother had a new job and the whole family was going. That abrupt end left me with a wistful wonder about what might have been had she stayed. My life certainly would have taken a different course if I fell in love with a High School sweet heart and settled down right away.

Thinking about the song it is sort of a mirror of my situation. There it is the man who travels away from home while his Melissa remains behind. Instead of moving on he remains in love, always thinking about the woman he left behind and dreaming of returning. In the end the song’s protagonist succumbs to the world and passes away. But we don’t know to where. A ghost? a mere corpse? a spirit floating away? In the end the song affirms that no matter where he as gone he won’t stay there. Not without his Melissa.

Overall I think it is a good name and I wouldn’t change it. After all what would really change about my life if only my name had been different? Of all the things that could be different in my life I have never put thought into having a different name.

First and surprising no one is pizza. I’ll pick my homemade Detroit style since it is both unique and honestly my favorite pizza to eat.

Second the legendary chopped cheese. If you’ve never had one it’s like a cheeseburger absorbed too much flavor and just exploded inside the bun. I could eat these forever.

Third is scrambled eggs on toast. Sometimes the simplest meal is the best and if the technique is there this is a great quick meal to have whenever. Plus eggs are one of the best things you can eat.

Fourth I really want some kind of sushi. If I can only pick one it’s going to be a spicy salmon roll. Both delicious and nutritious.

Fifth I’m thinking I need desert. I’ve got a sweet tooth and I’ll go nuts without some chocolate. Therefore, chocolate chip cookies. The big kind that even eating one makes you feel like you’ve had a meal. I’ve tried the 48-hour recipe and those cookies taste like they cost $20 each. If I’m stuck on a private island I’m going with maximum luxury.

That’s it a sparse but mighty menu. I don’t eat this good most days so I hope the island has a gym. Given the last prompt I think living on a private island with a menu made of my favorite foods is probably a dream come true. I hope the island has some interesting stuff to explore.

I’ll limit this to just one. The game I think best captured my childhood.

Link’s Awakening had the advantage of being on the Gameboy so I could play it whenever I wanted. No waiting for someone else to finish using the TV. The world was such a pleasure to explore. The mix of strange and quirky characters everywhere, new secrets to find, and power-ups all over. It had everything that appealed to ten year old me. I particularly remember the music. The windfishes theme and the way the song gained a part each time an instrument was found.

Now I’m wondering if this game influencedmy love of islands. The appeal of just going away to a small island and exploring is still with me. So is finding secrets. It’s a big reason I want to make my way to Block Island and search for an orb one of these days.

It’s not a complicated plan really. Just one that takes time and discipline. The formula is easy. So easy that those who know will recognized it from just two words, four percent.

Motivation is the real problem here. With a plan that takes years of discipline it is easy to get distracted and loss site of the long term goal. I think motivation is the thing I am most looking for right now.

The last remember the plastic of these toys had degraded and they had a perminant sticky feeling. Most likely they would have been thrown out when my parents redecorated their apartment. There is a possibility that they still exist. Buried in a box in a storage room. Maybe I will see them again one day.

In my mind I dream of writing just one poem that can compete with Bukowski. Just one poem that reminds me that I am living in a moment. But I never get there. I just watch pornography and pretend it will bring me to a higher meaning.

These days I’m focusing on something I hope will be a bit more of a benefit to my life, learning Spanish on Duolingo. Is gamifying education a good thing? I don’t really know. But I do know I took the top spot in the Diamond league last week.