my mission: to get a new pair of running shoes to replace my old ones (they must be at least 5 years old now). i will still continue using my old shoes, this way i can leave a pair at work and a pair at home so i don't have to be constantly bringing them back and forth. after some searching, i got a pair of saucony static racer 2 shoes for $50 (retail $80). sports shoe technology has come a long way since the last time i bought a pair of sneakers. they're almost like futuristic footwear, with scientifically researched materials and treads and bounce bubbles.
leaving the office during lunch, i saw a bunch of construction workers lounging around outside underneath some trees, taking their break. one of them was very nonchalantly reading an issue of playboy, the one with chyna on the cover. that whole kendall square area is such a haven for sexism. i feel bad for any women unfortunate enough to work in that area, to have to walk through the gauntlet of leering construction workers. what is it with construction workers? does all that heavy manual labor make them super horny all the time? or maybe because people expect them to be like that, not wanting to disappoint, they purposely live up to people's expectations of them. does it also have to do when you get a bunch of guys together, they just naturally gravitate towards their most primal of emotions, all semblance of chivalry going straight out the window.
i got a lamb kabob wrap at a middle eastern restaurant on cambridge street. the guy behind the counter loved my "drama queen" t-shirt and asked me where i got mine, because he knew a girl who this t-shirt would be perfect for. i guess everyone knows a drama queen or two in their lives.
after work dan came by the office, his first time seeing the upstairs space. we went to porter square, where i had to go make a quick visit to my condo to drop off a "hello neighbor" letter to the guy living upstairs from me. 
i think he might be on vacation because a flyer left on his door handle since yesterday was still there today. i threw my letter into the slot and went into my own condo. this was a historical moment because dan became the first person other than my immediate family members to see my new home. i was happy to notice that the smell of the previous tenant was mostly gone since i left the house with most of the windows slightly opened. i want the house to smell neutral, then i'll move in and fill it up with my own familiar smells. i think the smell component is a big thing. so much of a house is visual and tactile, but the olfactory element is a big piece of the whole overall house experience as well.
walking onto somerville avenue guess who should i bump into but none other than alex wong, leaving porter square after buying some items from the japanese stores. 
i introduced dan and alex, but it was weird, because since dan had been reading my weblog, he already sort of knew who alex was. i'm kind of sensitive to that issue, when the privacy of my friends or family members become compromised because of my weblog. maybe it doesn't really bother me that much, but if i can help it, i try to minimize detailing the lives of people i know, unless it's somehow relevant to my own life, and if its something really personal, i try to get permission first, make sure it's not something incriminating. it's good for them, because it'll protect their privacy, and good for me, because i get to write more about myself, which is the whole purpose of my weblog.
dan and i ran into another coincidence on the subway ride into davis square, meeting david wohlgemuth inside the train, who was also heading out to red bones for the xtshers reunion. at davis square the three of us bumped into julie and jared, also having just arrived, 40 minutes late just like us.
at red bones we camped out downstairs, taking over a corner of the bar. lisa showed up, followed by two new guys (project managers?) whom i didn't know because they were hired recently (tough break, land a new job, a few months later the company goes under). later joel came by followed by sean. 
to be honest, these thursday nights aren't the same without the contrasting dynamics of klea and david cronin. and without elias, i'm left as the sole awkward photographer in the group. and no roy? that's unusual! the turnout out was surprisingly low, considering this was a historical first post-tsh gathering. i had some st.louis style barbecue ribs for dinner (lisa got us all 20% discount on food & drinks because she was a card carrying vip member of red bones), it was good enough but not the best ribs i've ever had (ground round has better ribs than red bones, imho). even though the st.louis ribs are lean meat, not the fatty kind red bones usually carries, there wasn't enough flavoring on the actual ribs.
we griped about screen house, tried to put a finger on when exactly the company started nosediving, and then reminisced about the good times we had back then, the different characters that've passed through the doors of tsh. there's probably enough material to turn into a book, and earlier i was half-joking to dan that somebody should make a documentary about our old company using the thousands of photos i've taken of tsh over the 3.5 years i've worked there. we'd get voice overs, and we could possibly even re-enact some pivotal scenes in the company history. now that it's all over, and for me it's been over a lot longer than some of the other people (i've been out of the screen house system for almost 2 years now), it didn't really feel like work the time i spent at tsh, and i think that's probably the highest compliment you could ever pay a company.
still, it's a scary time for these recently unemployed former coworkers of mine. at least they have unemployment payments to look forward to, but i don't envy them at all, the job searching. i think these gatherings are important because it reminds everyone that they're not alone, others are going through the same things they're going through. it's a nice little support group. the company might be gone, but the bonds that hold former employees together are even stronger now i think.
lisa made a remark about my t-shirt, and i told her where to buy it. later, from across the bar, i saw a woman eyeing my t-shirt as well. before she left, i got her attention and told her where to buy one too. i should really be working for this t-shirt company! i'm giving them so much free publicity! this "drama queen" t-shirt really seems to be some sort of chick magnet for some reason!
 dan and dave |
 lisa, julie, and jared |
 jared and dan |
 dan and joel |
 tony and dave |
 new guys steal our women! |
close to 10pm, dan and i were the first two to leave. dan had to go home because he was operating on fumes (not enough sleep), i wanted to go home because i had enough of socializing. we both got off at harvard square and went in opposite directions to catch our buses. the association's "cherish" song was going through my head.