i wonder what would happen if all cities started charging a fee for you to drive in them?

london congestion charging

would make people think twice about driving, i would think. in the US the car is often the cheapest and the most convienent form of transportation. but we're not paying the 'real cost' of both gasoline and the environmental impacts of driving. unfortunately, in a consumer driven economy often the only way to change people is through the pocketbook. it'll be interesting to see what happens in london with this new policy...

speaking of driving...i'm headed back to north carolina...3 more months, until may...long long drive. if anyone is bored... 916.802.9220. :P finally got a new phone that works.

i should be back saturday. :) back on the computer, that is.

phish was awesome. the 'hippest' crowd i've seen at a phish show. people were pretty cool - someone commented when we were waiting in line (one of them...they checked your ticket/you four times before they let you in the door!) that no one was from LA anyways. sure enough, all of the people standing around him were from elsewhere. security was INCREDIBLY lax inside. people dancing in the asiles, on the concourse...i didn't see a single security 'guard' once inside. it was nice, especially after some of the dmb shows i've been to recently. played 'fee', my favorite. why is it that i've only been to a handful of phish shows and have heard my favorite song (which isn't all that common) TWICE, and have been to 15 dmb shows with no say goodbye? i just hope that it's not 18 by the time this tour is over...

i'm always paranoid about missing the beginning of a show because of traffic. (because of the fact i missed the opener to my first dmb show because of insane traffic - almost 3hours to do a 45 minute drive! hate the sac valley amp) i wanted to leave dan's sister's house in north hollywood by 5:30pm. we were waiting for dan's coworker who left santa barabara at 4:30pm (!!) and kept calling him to tell him how bad the traffic was. finally, when they weren't there by 6:45, we left. the forum was at LEAST a 25 minute drive, and that would only happen if you drove at 3am when there weren't cars on the road. needless to say, i was stressed. by some amazing traffic miricle (and the fact that they didn't hit the stage until almost 8:30pm, we made it just as the show was starting. ironically, dan's coworker ended up pulling into the parking lot less then 10 cars behind ours and parking next to us. but, of course, me being female and drinking a huge vanilla ice blended, i spent the first two songs in the bathroom line. *sigh*

why i always leave for a show waaaayyy early. i'd rather sit around than miss it. a great show - really...much better than the nye run imo. (not that i was there, but downloaded 'em all)...had a great time. looking forward to greensboro. and making to the show on time. :)

not phish, but something i like...it's toad the wet sprocket, who will be back east this march...hmm, maybe another concert for me. :) i leave for north carolina again tomorrow morning, and it's all too fitting...

Another day I call and never speak
And you would say nothing's changed at all
And I can't feel much hope for anything
If I won't be there to catch you if you fall

Again
It seems we meet
In the spaces
In between
We always say
It won't be long
But something's always wrong

Another game of putting things aside
As if we'll come back to them some time
A brace of hope a pride of innocence
And you would say something has gone wrong

ice cream ice cream ICE CREAM!

or, i scream, you scream [uscream is inferior to iscream, imo. ;)] we all scream [wealscream is kinda funny tasting] for...

NEW BEN AND JERRY'S flavors!!!!!!!!

woo. i had the oatmeal cookie one at the ben and jerry's in sacto - almost as good as festivus. the oatmeal cookies are better than the gingerbread, but it needs a caramel swirl. looks like it's a limited edition...which means they won't have it in the crummy b&j's selection in north carolina. maybe i should fill my freezer in sacramento...(what i'd do for a 'hidden' pint of festivus right now).

headed to the phish show in LA tonight. :))) been 2 and a half years...i'm excited. and i have a vanilla ice blended from the coffee bean and tea leaf (much tastier than a frappachino) to caffeinate me, considering i got up at 5:30am to meet my dad for breakfast. (long story)...*yawn*

I fear that our true motivation is about oil and our own flailing economy; about the failure to destroy Al Qaeda and about revenge. - djm

i've been gone, so i just read this, but i must say i agree...i just don't *get* war - and have a very difficult time understanding how continuing to use weapons and take lives solves anything.

mmm..bonnaroo...looks like it's going to be even more amazing than last year. and i WILL NOT get sick and miss everything i want to see! watching the bonnaroo dvd makes me realize how much i missed laying in that damn first aid tent. james brown? who knows, dave may pop in. ;)

The Dead
Widespread Panic
James Brown
The Allman Brothers Band
Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals
Jack Johnson
moe.
Galactic
The Roots
Bela Fleck & the Flecktones
Medeski Martin & Wood
Sonic Youth
Yonder Mountain String Band
Robert Randolph & the Family Band
Nickel Creek
G. Love and Special Sauce
Tortoise
Sound Tribe Sector 9
O.A.R.
North Mississippi Allstars
Warren Haynes
Keller Williams

i'm off for a week...dan's sister is getting married in LA, going to climb for a week down there-ish (vegas...4 hours from so cal)...then PHISH!!! friday. wooo!!!

then i'm home for a few then off again to north carolina!

i'm really wishing my horoscope would stop telling me what to do...

Is it time to take a more drastic approach to a problem, Alissa? If you've made several attempts to resolve your trouble to no avail, it might be something to consider. As long as drastic doesn't equate with destructive, you may find it successful to try something far more forward and insistent however, be careful. Think things through long and careful first. Run any ideas you have past a trusted friend.

any ideas? hmm, think i'll run off to tahiti and live on the beach for a few years. ;) any trusted friends wanna back that up? hee hee.

my attempts for the sticker contest. hmm. free tickets would be nice. :)

wow. this is pretty cool. when you've grown up an 'alissa' in a world of 'jennifers', it's always fun to see something with your name. i found my name (spelled correctly) on ONE thing growing up - a lightswitch plate which i still own - from when i was 6. but now they have a series of 'alissa' books. she even has brown hair and blue eyes. :) according to amazon:

These bright, independent, and curious girls are ready for almost any challenge. They'll take you on exciting adventures to places you've always dreamed of--and some you've never imagined.

to top it all off, she's a princess. :) take that, jennifers! hee hee.

lost: space shuttle columbia

i don't know what to say. i remember vividly my teacher crying as we watched that eerie shape in the sky the exploding challenger shuttle made, the big cloud with streaks of smoke trailing out. i didn't have the emotional maturity to quite understand why it effected her so. sadly, today i do.

both of my parents have worked for the shuttle program for the past 20 years. dad would leave late nights when it was being launched. we would stop in huston and cape canaveral on road trips to looks at all the displays and mock-ups at the centers. i have many tshirts and patches commemorating different shuttle launches - including one for that fateful mission in 1986. it's been a part of my life for some time. it is an amazing thing, to be able to put humans in space, and be able to bring them back. there are such enormous risks involved, everything must go perfectly. sadly, today something went wrong.

what a terrible tradgedy. my thoughts go out to those close to the flight crew.