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Thursday August 31st, 2006--Re-posting and slacking continues...
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Brooke shredding (by Seth "I can do almost anything including triathlons very well" Stafford)
Hey folks, no new stuff yet. I meant to use this night to put up all the Borek event photos, but I got side-tracked reading this surprisingly interesting book by John Dean (White House legal counsel for Nixon) called, Conservatives Without Conscience. It is the first thing I've read that clearly explains how authoritarian religious fundamentalists hijacked the term, "conservative" and how these people are anything but. The key word here is, "Authoritarian,"--it is the perfect word to describe what has been happening. Anyway, I need to go to sleep and work hard tomorrow before I go to Christian and Coley's wedding in L.A.
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I messed this up the first time I posted it and I thought it was awesome, so it's being re-posted:
For those who are dying for photos, you're gonna have to wait. There are 100s of photos from this past week sitting on the prafterdotcom mainframe computer, but they need to be processed and yadda yadda yadda...
Until then, my friend Tracey informed me about this excellent LA Times video/article on our deteriorating oceans. The culprits are simple to identify--eutrophication (addition of fertilizers) to coastal oceans and over-fishing. The solutions are simple, don't over-fertilize and stop eating fish.
Here's the link: www.latimes.com/news/local/oceans/la-oceans-series,0,7842752.special
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Tuesday August 28th, 2006--More Updates
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I've updated the painting stuff once again and I'll put more photos on later today. Why am I doing this at this time, you might ask? I am sick of all these half-finished paintings sitting in my house and I'm sick of all these finished paintings sitting in my office. Go ahead and take a look--if you like any of these, take a look to see if they are available and then shoot me an email (patrickrafter1 "at sign" hotmail dot com). I will let you have the painting for a minimal cash payment and the promise to never abandon the painting to a thrift store (oh all those poor, lonely thrift store paintings...).
Not a good photo, but a cool painting I think.
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Also, there is a surprising addiction to Triathlons lately. Here are some results from the Wildwood, NJ triathlon in which Ryan Miller, Scott Soens, Scott Ohntrup, Seth Stafford, and Matty Pellini partook in.
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Monday August 28th, 2006--Paintings
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Ok, I needed to update the pictures of my paintings because I want to give some / sell some / get rid of all that I can. Go take a look over here.
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Sunday August 27th, 2006--Slacking Staff
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While the soon-to-be Mrs. Prafterdotcom is using the company computers to search for the perfect wedding cake topper (you know, those things that you place on top of the cake--duh), the prafterdotcom staff is working late into the night to bring you something to waste your time on. Cake toppers... for real, this is serious business. I'm paying the prafterdotcom staff top dollar, but they've all left their cubicles to look at all these "Vintage Wedding Cake Toppers." One of these cake toppers... my mom will probably roll her eyes many times during this wedding. Let me just say that.
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This is old news, but we've been playing the newest Sigur Ros album ("Tak") around the office again (I think it came out last winter). It is amazing and I'm going to try to have it played during office nap time--just imagine the wonderful dreams you'd have with these Icelandic voices steering you through the cool, white mists of dreamtime...
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Here's a picture of Matthew J. Pellini drinking from a viking's helmet. Don't see that every day now, do you? 
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Ok, sorry for the huge delay. There have been many disgruntled prafterdotcom fans that are wondering (usually out-loud in a slightly perturbed voice, "Well, I wonder when the hell the photos from the Borek contest will make it onto prafterdotcom????"
It's not our fault, after the staff got back from vacation it was mid-week, which means very little work gets done. You know the scenario, if you start work on Wednesday, how hard do you really work that week? It might as well be Friday and before you know it, it is Friday. To top it all off, one of our employees had a huge birthday bash and most were well intoxicated throughout the next work day. I can't blame them for wanting to have fun, but c'mon people, let's get it together this next week. If I don't start to see some work getting done, I'm shutting down the wavepool. Here are some photos:
Moments after Brooke agreed that she would eventually become Mrs. Prafterdotcom. Crazy, but true. I don't know how to smile, but I'm working on it.
Lorraine, Brooke, and Libby at Libby's store (Haven in Sea Isle City). Also, Brooke and her dad Tom.
Chase Deegan shredding his way through the contest. Bob McClure with the best surf photo of our final heat. Brian Herron as he becomes aware that he has beaten me for the first time ever. I'll get you next time, Herron.
The "Finger Point" is not a very well known dance move, but Brooke has it mastered.
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Thursday August 24th, 2006--
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For those who are dying for photos, you're gonna have to wait. There are 100s of photos from this past week sitting on the prafterdotcom mainframe computer, but they need to be processed and yadda yadda yadda...
Until then, my friend Tracey informed me about this excellent LA Times video/article on our deteriorating oceans. The culprits are simple to identify--eutrophication (addition of fertilizers) to coastal oceans and over-fishing. The solutions are simple, don't over-fertilize and stop eating fish.
Here's the link: www.latimes.com/news/local/oceans/la-oceans-series,0,7842752.special
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Wednesday August 23rd, 2006--Back On the Map!
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Well, well, well.
A well deserved vacation for the prafterdotcom staff! We shut down the office and sent everyone out into the world to do their worst. Some of the staff took adventurous vacations to the Himalayas and some (like Eileen) simply worked on writing a new book. An interesting group we have here at prafterdotcom--maybe someday we'll profile each of the staff for you.
I (the Chief Operating Officer of Prafterdotcom) travelled back to my roots in Avalon, New Jersey for the 16th annual Brendan Borek High Tides Memorial Fund events with my lady Brookie Bear. We had a great time starting with the Art Show (in which I sold 7 paintings {all but one}) on Tuesday, then I gave her a ring on Wednesday, then we watched Scott and Pat Chapman's (among others) documentary on Friday with my niece and nephew, then the surf contest/drunken meat-eating contest on Saturday (I took second to the new-comer Brian Herron), next a get-together BBQ for anyone that I or Brooke remembered to invite (sorry to those I didn't call--I was freakin' tired!), and finally we had a trip to Wildwood to ride roller coasters, race go-karts, and eat bad food (highlights include not breaking my back again on the "Great White," and me dusting and bashing everyone in the go-karts).
Oh yeah, you're probably saying to yourself, "Self, did he say that he gave Brookie a ring? What exactly does that mean?" Well, it means that I gave her a very special ring that I sought for many a year. Here's the story...
In the beginning of my search, I was looking underneath a mountain for a special ring for Brooke--a very precious ring. I stopped looking for this certain ring when--after many years underneath this mountain--my skin started to lose pigment, my hair began to thin, I started eating raw fish from the subterranean lake I lived near, and I had acquired a nasty habit of talking to myself. I still talk to myself to this day.
Next, I had a different idea. Why don't I just save money and buy her a precious ring? This had the added bonus of providing me with a great excuse for not giving her the ring, "I only have enough for a not-really-very-precious ring, so we'll have to wait." This was a good strategy for awhile.
All of this seeking of the ring and looking for the ring and craving of the ring started me thinking about the fairness of the ring. Was it really fair that I could give Brooke a precious ring and then perform some arcane legalistic rituals afterward, but other citizens in this country can not also do this relatively simple thing? Maybe I would refuse to give the precious ring as a statement that I do not support taking rights away from people. This could be my stand against a group of people who are supposedly obsessed with "freedom," yet have no qualms at limiting the rights of other U.S. citizens. Finally, if I bought a traditional precious ring, many of the newer rings are the products of slave labor. You can expect to pay an extremely high premium for precious rings from places where there is no slave labor (like Canada).
All of this deliberation was ended when my mom said that I was going to be inheriting a precious ring from my grand mother! I was very excited to have a ring with my family history behind it and it solved some of my other problems too.
To end this long story, I offerred the ring to Brooke and she accepted it. We'll be married sometime in the future--hooray!
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Monday August 14th, 2006--
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I'm leaving tomorrow for Jersey!!! Yeah, it will be very fun. I wanted to get a video camera before I went, but I don't think that's happening. Things that are left on my "to do" list today: meet with thesis committee member, FedEx acid-washed bottles to research ship Ka'imimoana in Hawaii, finish one more painting for art show tomorrow (Avalon Yacht Club at 6 or so), and more that I can't discuss here. Oh yeah... and I have to pack. Does anyone back east have a surfboard for me to use? I wonder if they are that nice. Speaking of nice, that Matty Pellini (while known as "Hard To Please") is a nice SOB. Real nice.
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I heard that Alison Kaz's paintings for the art show are in hot demand, so I'm glad I got one before the masses (a picture soon to come--Scott can you send me your copy?). My paintings will not be in hot demand--I have little love for them. Perhaps this is because I've looked at them too much. Perhaps it is because they are (as I've termed them), "non-threatening". I think I'm done with that style of painting until next year.
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One final, really cool, blog for you. Listening to NPR this morning I heard an interview with a local (San Diego) middle school math teacher who calls himself the "Rappin' Mathematician."
He is awesome.
Have a listen at one of his best song here (TEST TIIIIIIMMMMEEEEEEE!!!!). My favorite line is, "I might drive a Honda Civic, but you drive a BMX... what time is it? It's TEST TIME!"
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Friday August 11th, 2006--UPDATED!
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As you should know, next week is a week of Brendan Borek events (see the Brendan's Fund website for more information). There's the art show next Tuesday August 15th, some other stuff that I can't remember, and then on Friday there is Movie Night! This year, the movie will be the Brendan Borek documentary, which was created/produced by many good friends of Prafterdotcom like Scott Soens, Pat Chapman, another guy we don't really know and help from several nice people. We have received a very old version of the trailer for this movie and we had it uploaded to You Tube.
Click below to view the
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As for the artshow, the head webmaster here at prafterdotcom just finished most of his paintings. He decided to send them to New Jersey via FedEx because he is flying in a little bit late on Tuesday. Hopefully, Scott will get them and put them up in the for me. Unfortunately, Fed Ex charged me a lot of money to send them, so I'm going to raise all my prices $10 more than I wanted to sell the paintings. I hope you (the people who are going to buy these paintings!!!) won't care too much... Maybe I'll put some up on this site...
Here's one:
Here's another:
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And here's a photo of my friend Brian Herron absolutely shredding this wave (there are many more, but I don't have time right now to put them up):
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Tuesday August 8th, 2006--Last Post For Some Time...
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Sorry to all the prafterdotcom fanatics... it's been hectic. Between trying to perform two weeks worth of science in one week, finishing my sort-of-okay-maybe-not-so-bad paintings for the Borek Art Show next Tuesday, and updating this page I have very little time for eating/sleeping/surfing/kissing Brookie, etc.
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So, let's not waste time then, right? Hop to it. Here's some photos from when Brian and Bob were here. There are many more, but some are on Brooke's computer and some are still on Bob's camera.
Brian and Bob, straight up chillin' in La Jolla
Brian Herron strumming (click)
The Gimp fell asleep with Wellington the Cat
More straight up chillin' in La Jolla
Bob and Brian can't even focus when there's a surf movie playing
This was sent to me by Brad Seville (Left) and contains Brian Herron and Bob from Dan Vesci's toga party
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Wednesday August 2nd, 2006--
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Bob and Brian Herron are visiting and it's hard to stop laughing. I don't think it would work in a stand-up comedy club, but BH is one of the funniest people on the planet.
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What else?... Mike Ternosky got engaged to the mysterious Nicky. The event went down in a similarly mysterious location half across the globe and here's the situation as Mike describes it:
Hello friends and family, Oh boy what a trip it's been, we just got done our first leg of trade shows in europe and nik and I decided for a little pit stop in Millorca, an island off of Spain. The weather and beaches have been second to none. In fact the sun sets so late in the mediteranian and the water has been so nice, that nik and I decided to take a dip in the ocean this evening. I decided it was was finally time for her to see my new euro swimwear, ala "speedo". Little did my darling know that this wasn't just any speedo. This was a down right custom ditty I made especialy for this trip. I went with the classics and chose a basic blue with an oh so important message on the back. That's right a message, an oh so important message.... " Nik will you marry me! " And the answer was "YES!!!!!" Over and out, Mike T and Nikki G Spread the word "ya heard" Oh man you know we got the pics of me in the speedo. Nik didn't know whether to laugh or cry! |
Just to keep things clear, I have asked Mike T. if he is cool with prafterdotcom printing these photos and to quote him, " YO THERE BROTHER. NO PROBLEM, GO FOR IT."
So, I know you've been waiting for these images for your entire life...
They are going to have some really skinny kids.
(SEE EARLIER HOMEPAGE WRITINGS/RANTS HERE)
