This is just so amazingly awesome.

My brother has had some significant difficulties in his life, as many of you know if you've followed this blog for some time.

Today, he got married to a wonderful woman. I could not be happier for them.

In addition, my nieces and nephew continue to astound me.

It was a beautiful (and entertaining) ceremony, and the reception was a great deal of fun. I saw family I hadn't seen in years, and even met an old friend of the family I had never actually met in person. I couldn't have imagined a more incredible and perfect event for celebrating the love these two people have.

Todd: I love you. Rae: Thank you for becoming part of this family.

Get your ballot mailed today! It's the last day, and there's some big important stuff on that ballot!

...a post entirely to show off my new icon, thanks to one of the images from my brother's bachelor party.

Growing up, Halloween was like my own personal holiday. Two days after my birthday, everyone dresses up in awesome costumes and goes trick-or-treating. My slumber-parties would always be Halloween-themed, and people would come in costume, and it would be fantastic.

Then came my late teen years. I'm not much of a drinker, and as my friends discovered the joys of boozing, my parties became more sparsely attended. To many adults, Halloween without alcohol is like Thanksgiving without the turkey, and people just weren't as interested in hanging out.

Instead, my Halloweens have become increasingly introspective times. Sure, there's the joys of putting on a costume and being someone else for a day. There's the ritual of either taking my niece and nephew out trick-or-treating, or staying at home and giving candy out to the children who come by. There's the fun of watching scary movies, or playing RPGs with a horror theme.

But Halloween has its roots in Samhain (pronounced Sau-wain for those who are unfamiliar), an ancient Celtic tradition in which they believed the dead would come back for a day. It was a time to reflect on those who had left us. Michelle lights candles for the departed, and it's a chance to say goodbye to those who had passed on in the last year, and to remember those who have been gone longer.

Last night was my brother's bachelor party. He was widowed almost 5 years ago, and no one will ever replace the incredible woman who had been at his side for decades before that point. But last night was a celebration: a moving on to another life with another incredible woman. It was a celebration of transitions. I got home and fell into bed in the wee hours of the morning.

I was awakened a little under four hours later by a phone call. A good friend had just lost someone close to them in a tragic accident, and they needed someone to talk to. Michelle and I spent some time talking to her, but it got me thinking.

I hope everyone out there has a fantastic Halloween. But I ask that each and every one of you take a moment to remember the loved ones who have touched your life, and who have moved on from their own. Remember the transitions.

And then go and have yourself a very happy, very spooky, and very fun Halloween.

Obama Abuse. Definitely worth reading.

As I did last year, here's my take on the various things on the ballot this election season.

( How Gavin Voted: )

Yeah, I caught it, too.

Damn it.

Michelle, apparently, has the swine flu.

Not just a bug that people will joke is the swine flu. No, no. She's got all the symptoms of it.

Oh boy!

In good news, the Kent Teachers' Strike is over.

Now to just make sure I don't also get the piggie flu, now that gigs will finally start rolling my way...

Too true.

I broke down and made a Facebook page.

When my mom (who reads this LJ; Hi, Mom!) asked me if I'm on Facebook yet... I think it's time to join the rest of the world.

The chances of joining Twitter are still pretty slim.

So I mentioned that I was striking on Monday with the teachers down in Kent.

It seems that a judge has ordered the teachers return to work on Monday. CORRECTION: Not Monday, but Tuesday.

The district claimed that the school not running hurt parents because there are "parents who have no idea what to do about day care and child supervision." I hate to be the one to point this out, but school isn't "free daycare." If free daycare is all it is, then it's true. Class size doesn't matter... and class size is what the teachers are striking about.

When a strike is forced by a court to return to work, but tells the district, "Oh, but you should keep negotiating in good faith," is effectively declawing one side but not the other.

So school is daycare -- not a place where we educate our youth and prepare them for the world. It's a place to stash kids for a few hours.

Congratulations, Judge Darvas. You're concerned with the "irreparable damage" to students and parents, and I can see that... but what about the irreparable damage to student's education?

So while striking on Monday, I got a call from my stepmother, asking me if Michelle and I would like to see Wicked on Thursday night. She gave us tickets, which I picked up from my aunt yesterday afternoon, and last night, we went to see it.

I did get to see princessgeek in the lobby, and she immediately hit me up for money. (She was collecting donations for restoring the sign out in front of the theater.) It was good to see her.

Then the performance. Wow.

First of all, the actress playing Elphaba had a great set of pipes. Glinda wasn't bad at all either. The sets were great, the cast was fantastic, and the script was entertaining. We had a great time.

If you're in the Emerald City while it's playing, I strongly recommend checking it out.

Well, I'm alive.

( That's pretty much it in a nutshell. Click here for more info. )

Totally all over this. Thanks to my mom for finding this for me.

I didn't get the job.

On the plus side, I had a great visit from an awesome friend. And we watched a great movie this morning before I had to take her to the airport. And this movie, Mega Shark Vs. Giant Octopus, starring Lorenzo Lamas and Debbie Gibson, had one of the most amazing moments in cinema history, as shown in the icon I created.

( And a clip of the best part of the movie below the cut! )

I get all the typical spam. Offers for "male enhancement." Offers to help distribute Michael Jackson's funds however I want. All kinds of ridiculous offers that prey on the gullible.

But every once in a while, I see one that really just makes me laugh.

( I don't know whether to laugh at the attempt, or cry because SOMEONE will believe it... )

Really? I mean... really? So the scammers are now trying to double-scam the same person?

And someone out there really didn't learn the lesson the last time? "Oh, I was scammed before! And now the UN and the Nigerian government have decided to give $1.5 million to me because I was scammed! Let me give my bank information to this John Mark (or is it John John?), the way I did last time I was scammed!" And... Union Bank in Nigeria uses Gmail for their business e-mail? Really?

Oh, spam. Sometimes, you amuse so.

Last week, I was in a bit of a fender-bender. Someone rear-ended me as I was turning into the grocery store. I had my turn signal on -- I always turn it on; at this point, it's a force of habit -- and a woman bumped into the back of my car. It was enough to damage my bumper and put out her front headlight.

Now, I did nothing wrong. I did have my turn signal on -- to be fair, the setting sun was just behind me, and it's possible that this reflected off my rear lights in general to make it difficult to make out either the brake lights or the turn signal, which could give an impression of me not having my turn signal on, or of not showing that I was slowing down when in fact I was. But a quick lesson for all of you:

Even if the person ahead of you slams on their brakes and turns into a parking lot without a turn signal (neither of which I did, but, hey, for the sake of argument, let's say I did, since it's been posited by the other driver), if you rear-end someone? You weren't giving enough following distance, and it's your fault.

Just sayin'.

Oh, and a footnote? Replacing a bumper is expensive.

So yesterday was the first day of my Masters program. I am going through Antioch, and I'm getting my library media endorsement while I'm at it.

I've not been updating much; I've got a lot going on. Preparing for school, a test to be rated "highly-qualified" this Saturday, hunting for jobs, trying to find anything to get me working and earning income over the summer... I'm pretty swamped.

Michelle and I had a good time over the holiday weekend: we traveled out to her aunt and uncle's place, and took their boat out onto the sound, out by Bremerton. We watched all the amateur displays going on all around us -- many of which were impressive enough that we thought we might be seeing the "official" Bremerton display. But no... then the barge just a few hundred feet away started launching off the official display, which blew all the rest of them out of the water, right overhead. It was beautiful.

Things are going well overall for Michelle and me, though things are going to be tight for a while. I'm up for a couple jobs for next school year, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I'm going to ask for prayers and well-wishing for my friend, steelerdaddy, however. Shawn was in a serious car accident a couple weeks ago, and is still in the hospital, only barely regaining consciousness. I am hoping and praying for a speedy recovery. I've never met a man better suited for the nickname, "Supes;" though I believe he disliked it, he certainly earned it.

Get better soon, Shawn. You're in my thoughts.

I have two fathers. Happy Father's Day, Bob; I look forward to seeing you later today. Happy Father's Day, Dad, on whatever distant shore you're sailing today. I love you both.

To my brother, who is also a fantastic father, and who also helped raise me: happy Father's Day. I love you a great deal, and I want you to know that I have always been impressed by your skills as a dad. I hope that, when I finally have kids, I do half as well.

To all my dad-friends out there: happy Father's Day to you as well.