I wish it was 1987 again, but thank God it's 2005

Obviously I am feeling a bit nostalgic this evening, but as the title suggests, now is great too.

A couple of friends and I used to joke in college that we were living the lives of a Bruce Springsteen song. From "Nebraska." Or maybe "The River" or "Darkness on the Edge of Town." How young and naive we were.

I have been in contact with an incredible friend from back in the halcyon, heady days of what I humorously refer to as my "back when I was cool phase" when I lived in San Francisco and seemingly ruled the world --- going to concert after concert of new wave, post-punk, and hard rock legends; attending graduate school working on my Master's in English: Concentration in Creative Writing degree; writing poetry in bohemian coffee shops; spending my free time at repertory movie houses, record stores, and book stores; getting crushes on and lusting after new wave hotties (they were called "Betties" back then); and eating Dove Bars on the stoops of flats on Lombard Street. We actually haven't talked about any of that stuff; what started my weird mood tonight was that I remembered having seen a San Francisco singer with him back in the day, couldn't remember the singer's name, and asked him who it was. Answer: Robert Seidler. I then went to www.robertseidler.com, watched the video for "Christian Boy," and everything flooded back.

Yes, there is a lot that I would have done differently in my life, but there are also things that I would never change, such as having my wonderful son, who is simply amazing. And becoming an improv comedian.

"Back when I was cool" was amazing. But 2005 is pretty great too. And much will change for me during the next several years, to which I look forward.