PCHS 10 year reunion, a weekend I will never forget...

I arrived in Utah safe and sound on Thursday August 21st. The only problem was I had a little tickle in the back of my throat. At first I really wasn't that concerned, seeing that I got up at 5:30 am to catch my 6:30 flight out of Burbank. But after I had been in Salt Lake City for a few hours, I really started to feel off. I had the shakes, very similar to the kind one gets after drinking too much coffee/cola. I still didn't think that much about it. I thought maybe it was my body acclimating to Utah's high elevation. It wasn't until later that night that I realized those symptoms were just the simple beginnings of what was going to be a long, painful weekend. By 9:00 I was lying in bed with a hellish fever, temperature of 101.7 degrees.

Now, I share this fact to help everyone understand just how perfect the timing of this illness was. For starters it has been months, maybe even longer than 1 year, since I had last been so sick. And here I was in Utah for 4 days to see and party with all my old high school friends and acquaintances, only I was too sick to move let alone talk. So thank you, mother nature, for spoiling what was supposed to be a wild weekend of old friends and crazy fun.

Fortunately the reunion wasn't until Saturday night, which gave me two and a half days to rest up and be in good enough form to make my grand arrival to the class of 1998's 10 year party. Although I wasn't at 100% and still had a mild fever, I did my darnedest to enjoy myself and be social. It was a lot of fun to see all the familiar faces. It was weird and neat at the same time to be around all the grown up Park City Miners. For the most part, everyone (that showed) looked exactly the same as they did on graduation day, save a few receding hairlines, beer bellies, and extra curves. The changes that I had been warned about from others who had attended previous high school reunions were not as apparent in my class. So I must say that my hat is off to my class for maintaining their health and sharpish good looks. Hell, even my buddy Lee who we called "Fats" for obvious reasons, had shed so much weight that nickname need not apply any longer. So despite my taxing illness, well damn, BECAUSE OF my sickness, this 10 year reunion weekend has been a memory that I will surly NEVER forget. Below are some pictures from The Lodge at Stillwater, where my precious get together was held...



*Thanks Matt Lyle for picking up after our class prez and putting great occasion together for us.

Best Action Movie of the summer?

Wanted in HD

*click the little box on the far right to see it in full screen.

If you ask me Wanted looks to potentially be one of the best movies of the summer. Finally an "R rated" action film that appears to live up to the standard that was once the norm. Ultra violence, over-the-top action sequences and gorgeous women (In this case Angelina Jolie).

If you want to get an edgier look at Wanted check out this Russian trailer. Thanks to the lack of the MPAA in Eastern Europe, we can enjoy this segment thoroughly!

Indiana Jones and the "not as good as the others but still fun" movie...

It's taken me a few days to write about it, but I need to get my opinion of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull out in the open. As I wrote a few days ago, I was one of the crazy Indiana Jones fans that braved the crowds and attended a midnight showing on May 22nd 2008.

I will say from the get go I never expected to the movie to be as good as the previous three. All the critics said that "Crystal Skull" was the 4th best Indy film in the series, but an Indy Film nonetheless. Often times I go into a movie expecting the film to be REALLY bad and come out of the theater actually liking the movie more than I would have ever guessed, Transformers. The good thing with this approach is that the flick can only better your expectations if not remain the same. Nothing is worse than when you go into a movie hoping for one thing, and you get something completely different, Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace. And that is exactly what I didn't want to happen with Indy 4.

I wasn't too disappointed. The fourth installment turned out to be exactly what I expected, the fourth best Indy film. Go see it...it is a lot of fun!

What a day, what a day, the 17th of May...

The 17th of May has always been a big date in the world of Kristian Odland. All my life I have celebrated the day as the "syttende mai" or Norway's Independence Day. It is also my parents wedding anniversary. This year marks yet another monumental day in the world of Kristian, for today I bought my first brand new car, EVER.

For the last 5 years I have been driving around my trusty little 1997 Toyota Rav4 (above). Donned as The Silver Hornet, it was my very first vehicle. It was able to get me safely up and down the snowy roads of Parley's Canyon during the final 2 years of my tenure as a student at the University of Utah. It also withstood the long trek from Utah to Los Angeles in 2006, and even the everyday wear and tear of that which is Los Angeles traffic. But like every beginning, there has to be an end.

I have been talking about getting a new car for a few months, and have even been saving some extra money during that time as well. I decided to go "look" at cars on Saturday and get a head start on my auto shopping. I arrived at the dealership in North Hollywood, touched base with my contact and went for a little stroll. The test drive was awesome. Everything about the car was a dream. The only exception was that the clutch was a little sensitive, so there were a few unexpected bumps in the ride(normal behavior of a transmission with less than 1,000 miles). When I got out of the car, I was sold. It took a little longer than I would have liked, but I finally cut the deal, signed the contract and pulled my new baby off the lot. For the FIRST time in my life I was officially "in love." With only 5 miles showing on the mileage meter, the sunroof open, and my spirits high, I could have not felt any better about purchasing my 2008 Scion tC.

*A little Knight Rider Nostalgia

OH MY SUMMER TOUR GOODNESS...

This is probably the best news I've heard all year. My favorite Band, 311, has announced their 2008 summer tour. And of all the times I've seen them perform, this is already sounding like one of the best tours to date. Headlining with Rap GOD, Snoop Dogg, I can see no reason why anyone in their right mind would not want tickets to this show. It has been a few years since I went to a 311 concert, so you better believe that I will be going this year. I need my fix of the three-one-one. The Unity Tour begins in June and will go through August:

"Come Original" -311
(USANA Amphitheater, summer 2005, West Valley City, UT)

I took this video myself.

More exciting news, one of my all-time favorite bands, Stone Temple Pilots, has finally put their differences aside and have officially announced that they are getting back together. Not only that, but rumor has it that STP will reportedly play more than 50 amphitheaters across the U.S. this summer. The new dates are expected to be announced April 7th.

STP broke up in late 2002; the band's last album was the previous year's "Shangri-La Dee Da." But they are most well known for their previous albums "Core," "Stone Temple Pilots," "Tiny Music...Songs from the Vatican Gift Shop," and"No. 4 ." I say, as long as Scott Weiland, who recently got the boot from current band Velvet Revolver, keeps it together, I have a feeling things will be as kick ass as usual for STP. At very least, let's hope he can keep it together long enough to have a successful tour.