You should probably not talk to me on July 21st. In fact, the week before. And the one after. Let's just cross July off completely, shall we?

There's nothing like getting to work at 11:30. The bus is empty, the weather is warm, the pay is woeful. By the time you actually start working, it's time to stop working, and you're wondering why the hell you came in the first place. Then you remember that in March, you're leaving on a five or six week jaunt across our merry little country and you remember, more importantly, that even a couple hours work will be valuable when you're living on Wonderbread, Peter Pan Peanut Butter, and spoiled jellies of various flavors. I'm like a squirrel, hording nuts for the winter. Sadly: no rabies. But a boy can dream, can't he?

I could explain why I was late, sure, but just know it involved an 11:30 set in Sacramento, a slow load out, and lots of half-hammered babbling, packing, loading, unpacking, unloading, parking, and, as follows, a too-late bed time. Yes, that about sums it up. I really enjoyed Sacramento too, I just don't have any good stories. Lots of old friends were out, which was kind of the theme of this California-centric adventure, but all in all, it was a pretty typical show. Actually, wait. We did have the illusive one-man-mosh-pit yesterday, which was a sight to behold. Personally, I loved it. It redefined the mosh pit genre. Take that, Dead Kennedys.

Now? I'm an hour into a half day and I just noticed a new guy at work who looks exactly like a Tango & Cash henchman and I'm bored already. Dorky-me, on the other hand, is very excited. I mean, LOST comes back tomorrow and J.K. Rawlings finally announced the launch date for the final Potter and while other folks gripe that it'll cost $45, I'll admit that I'd pay somewhere between $85 and my first born son for a copy.

This time, I've decided I'm going to go to one of those at-midnight fandangos where middle schoolers dress up in robes and everyone in attendance knows the rules of Quidditch to buy Potter 7. Last book, we were on tour and Amazon delivered my copy to my house, so I spent the entire week frantically avoiding anyone reading anything that looked vaguely green. That's not happening this time. This time, I'm going to be in the ground floor. I'm going to have a copy at 12:01. I will shove store clerks. I will hurt children at the front of the line. I will shiv their parents. I cannot be contained.

Of course, that's months away. For now, I'm going to attempt to actually make coming in to work today worthwhile. It's quite a challenge, but I think I'm up to it.