The irony is just staggering.

First, after talking about how people would have to run their shoes through the X-ray machines at airports after this shoe-bomber guy came to town, I was stopped at the security checkpoint at Logan today, thoroughly scanned and patted down to the point where the security guard made me take off my shoes so he could inspect them.

Then I got to L.A. after an uneventful flight that I mostly slept through and allowed myself to be talked into renting a Ford Mustang convertible -- I figure I'm in California, I've got to do this at least once -- and it starts raining about 20 minutes after I leave Hertz.

All in all, though, the past few days have been rather interesting. I have, of course, missed you all and am seriously jonesing for an Internet connection -- thankfully, our family friends that I'm staying with have a modem, so here I am. All of my furniture was sold, I got more drunk on Friday night than I have in a very long time (several beers and tequila shots resulted in some serious drunkenness and some rather interesting consequences), and I slept on my own living room couch last night since the new guy had already moved in. So I'm officially no longer a Boston resident. The next chapter may begin now.

Now that the Patriots are going to the Superbowl, next Sunday will definitely be a hell of a party. I'm going back up to Boston for Superbowl Sunday. But first things first. I have to start making plans for the next stage of my life, and I have to start doing this over the next 2 days. Thankfully, from what I've seen here, rents are considerably less expensive than Boston, so it's just a matter of finding a place and getting some income to tide me over until I get what I want.

I'll try to check in at least once more before I get back to Connecticut on Wednesday. But if not, it's because it's sunny and warm out here and I'm terrorizing Southern California in my rented Mustang convertible. Woo hoo!