In no particular order:
5. My Cell Phone: I shopped long and hard for a new phone. I was looking to replace a phone, mp3 player and camera with one device, I selected the Samsung Galaxy II and man, what a great choice it was. It does all of the three things I listed above and a ton more. My calendar, calorie counter, pedometer, GPS, and so much more are all handled by this device. Apps, man apps. My morning radio show has an app, I use an app for movie times...hell my truck (see #1 on this list) doesn't have a working speedometer...but my phone does.
4. My Motorcycle: this one is pretty self explanatory. The great thing is not the places it takes you that another mode of transport could but the places it takes you that nothing else can. If you've ever ridden any real distance, like across a state line on a bike you know what I mean. If you haven't....well you just should.
3. Movies: thanks my folks for this one. I remember going to see movies as a child and young adult and a love of the theater experience has stayed with me. Despite all the BS you have to endure to see a movie in the theater these days (things like crazy high prices and other movie goers) I'm still a believer in the experience. I still get excited buying my ticket and walking halls filled with posters, giant banners and cardboard cutouts. I enjoy trailers of coming attractions and most of all, I enjoy the ways a movie can make you feel and experiencing that in a dark room full of people.
2. The Vortex: I remember the first time I saw the giant white skull with trippy eyes in the Little Five Points area of Atlanta, GA. I was in high school and we had ridden there for a show at the Masquerade. I was almost drawn to it thinking it might just have been the coolest thing I had ever seen. Little did I know how right I was or how much better the inside was. I didn't go that day, my friends sucked and wanted to eat some shitty pizza or something instead. Sometime later I went and saw old license plates on the walls, a BMW motorcycle in the middle of the room and a velvet painting of a topless show girl. All kinds of other cast-off oddities have become a part of the restaurants decor and pulse. The food is the main attraction, killer burgers and several varieties of fried sides. The beer and liquor selection is also top notch. Combine all of that with a straight forward, no BS attitude and zero tolerance for rudeness and stupidity and you're dealing with a whole lot of awesome. I mean, you have to love an 18 and up only restaurant.
1. My Pickup Truck: $350 worth of badassness. I had always wanted a pickup and when I got mine, it was everything I thought it would be. I painted it black in a Mountain Brook parking lot with house paint and a brush. Has carried motorcycles, furniture, tv's, gravel, bark and damn near everything in between. No radio, no a/c but tons of character. I'll never sell this one. It is in partial retirement now, what with 2 kids and a need for a backseat but both of them have ridden in it and when they both get old enough to face forward, it is going back to being my daily. It has three seat belts, game on.
