What Happened to July?!?

I can't believe how fast summer goes by. I wish winter would go by half so fast, but no. It draaaaags on for-seemingly-ever.
July has been a somewhat mellow month. Work is still slow, but at least holding steady and not getting any worse. I'm a month away from my half-marathon at Disneyland and still doing well with training. And by "doing well" I mean "no injuries." Both of my roommates have been having foot and knee trouble since they began running, so I guess I'm extremely lucky. I've also begun some weight training. I'm not trying to get buff or anything, just add some tone to my scrawny little self. I don't know when the results will be noticeable, but something must be changing. I thought I was constantly hungry before. Now its absolutely ridiculous how fast I burn through groceries. I just ate dinner 3 hours ago after work, my tummy is already growling for more.
Ok, since returning from Vegas, my summer of 80's music has continued. A couple of weeks ago I went to the Journey/Heart/Cheap Trick concert. We ran late and missed Cheap Trick completely, which bummed me out. Heart was performing when we got there. I gotta say, after all these years, that woman still has some serious pipes. I forget the musicians names. But I know the guitarist is her sister, and she still pretty much rocks as well. LOVED the guitar solos. We sang along with "Barracuda" and "Magic Man" and they did "Crazy On You" (my personal favorite) as their encore.
Journey was the main event, and they lived up to the hype. I was a bit taken aback at first. They have a new lead singer. He's a young kid from the Phillippines, which was not what you think of when you picture Journey. He's yet another YouTube find, that seems to be the place to get replacement singers. And he does sound exactly like the original singer. Plus has the added advantage of youth, so he was quite the bouncy little showman. He could definitely work the crowd. The fact that he wasn't bad lookin' helped with that, I'm sure. Really, what could be better than belting out Journey songs with a few hundred drunken strangers? And belt we did. I again forgot my camera, but my friend brought her's so if I get pics I'll post them later.
The next week was the Police concert, which both Amanda and Chrystie have done a good job blogging about so I don't have to. I will say I really liked the way they did "Wrapped Around Your Finger" Totally a different sound than I've heard it done before. I wish I could describe it, but can't think of the right words. Almost exotic, slower and stripped-down. Meh. Anyways, very cool.
I had an adventure last Friday and got to go outrigger canoeing. My little bit of regular canoeing expirience came handy so I didn't feel completely useless. A friend of the family, Kwan Ki (Ben) Au found me on the internet and invited me to come out. His father and his father's friends have been wanting to reconnect to their polynesian roots, and so have started canoeing on the weekends. Besides Kwan Ki and Mr. Au, I'm not entirely sure who was related and who was not. There were about a dozen people there, with lots of "uncle" and "aunt" being thrown around, but it seemed more an honorary title than actual relation. Everyone was very welcoming and friendly. They were a very easy-going, good-natured group and very easy to feel comfortable around.
The actual paddling was easier than I thought it would be. There are 6 to a canoe, with one steering. I suppose having 4 other paddles stroking at the same time as mine made it feel like less work. The only time I struggled is when we would sprint for a swell, then my arms burned a bit. I did get a bit raw at the base of my left thumb, but that was the only pain I felt the next day. Other than the bug bites on my shoulder.
The next day after work my friend Jeff and I drove up to Ogden to the Raptors game. Amanda got tickets from work so we got in free! Yay! We didn't realize it was a double header from a previously rained-out game and came in towards the end of the first game. But we did get to see the second game, which they won. It was a good night for a game, too. We were out of the sun, so it was pretty much the perfect temperature. After the game, Jeff said he was having a craving for a shake, so of course I took him to Jake's before heading home. Apparently if you're there when its not busy, they'll custom-make shakes for you. I had no idea!
So now you're all caught up with what's been going on in my neck of the woods. I'll try to do better at keeping this thing updated.