Putting the 'Me' Back in Mediocrity

So, It's not ALL Bad

2008-07-07T11:50:00.000-07:00

I guess there actually some nice areas in Michigan afterall. You just have to get yourself a fair distance from the Detroit/Ann Arbor area in order to experience them. I took this picture from the back porch of a ridiculous beach house in New Buffalo, MI this past Saturday, not long before fireworks started:

Something I Learned This Weekend.....

2008-06-29T19:12:00.000-07:00

According to this picture I took with my cell phone at the Cleveland Wine Festival on Saturday, little people like wine too. I'm just saying. And no, I don't think this picture makes me a bad person. At. All.

Hoping for Justice

2008-06-23T07:50:00.000-07:00

Fair Warning Time: This post probably won't be very funny. I know, I post once a darn month, and now I'm going to try and get all serious? At least the title sounds kind of comic bookish, right?

Anyway, as a lot of you who see me or talk to me on a regular basis know, back in February, a high-school classmate of mine, Lindsay Graygo, was murdered in her apartment. It was a really tough thing to hear, being that in HS, this girl lived right up the street from me. Further, I pretty much grew up with this person, as we attended elementary, middle, and HS together. We played soccer together as kids. We weren't especially close, but we had a number of close mutual friends, enough that I was truly troubled by the circumstances surrounding her death. I wasn't anything resembling her best friend, but I knew her well enough to know that she was truly a happy, caring, good person. And, this stuff shouldn't happen to good people. Even more, when you grow up in a relatively upper middle class community like the one we did in Erie, you don't think of this kind of thing happening, even as we've spread out to all corners of the country over the past 10 years.

What made it all the more troubling was that b/c she had only lived in Michigan for a little over a year, she wasn't very close with a lot of people, making it hard for the police to draw any conclusions about probable suspects. As recently as a week ago, it seemed like this was going to end up being one of those unsolved crimes. The police certainly hadn't released much information publicly about their investigation into the crime. It made sense, really, as this isn't a necessarily high profile case, no matter how much the Erie and McDowell High School community, along with her friends from her State College days, and her brief time in Michigan care about the outcome.

Then, yesterday, I was checking my email, and whatnot, and I realized I hadn't checked lately to see if there had been more news, and I went and looked. Talk about timing: They made an arrest yesterday in the case. Of course, it might not mean much, but they do have a DNA match, and the guy did live in the same complex, and moved out shortly after the crime was committed.

Of course, after all of this, we still need to hope that the police have the right person (which seems likely after a DNA match). After that, we have to hope that there aren't any mistakes made in the investigation, and that this all leads to a conviction for the crimes he is currently charged with, not some garbage plea bargain deal.

Then, we have to live with the fact that no jail sentence is going to undo what's been done. I can only hope that it helps bring a sense of closure to those who's lives have been impacted by this senseless crime.

Things you Want Out of your Inbox Vol. 37

2008-05-13T23:27:00.000-07:00

Those of you that have a Yahoo email account know that is has a feature that allows you, when you're logged into your Yahoo account, to simply scroll over the mail link, and get a drop down that will show you the senders of the last 4 messages, with the begining of the subject line. Of course, it's a small window, so it can't give you a full subject line. Now, I really only use this account for my online purchasing, as I set up my accounts with Amazon and Ebay and what not using that address, and frankly, I"m too lazy to change it. SO, I get a lot of junk mail there, most of it useless stuff that doesn't get a second glance.

Nevertheless, imagine my surprise when I was at work the other day, and happened to absently scroll over the link and saw this as one of the messages:

Sender Subject
Tiffany & Co. New Tiffany Cock

Yeah, that's where it got truncated. Apparently, it was for cocktail rings, as I found out when I had a chance to actually see the whole subject line later in the day.

Of course, those of you that know what's going on with me lately can imagine what I saw the first time I read this, when the subject read to my eyes "Tiffany's New Cock". Then, I refocused and thought that the email was simply about Tiffany's selling cock rings......and somehow that made me feel better......

Tuned In

2008-04-30T06:57:00.001-07:00

Well, since I haven't posted in a while, and needed some inspiration, I'm stealing from Sarah and doin a music post of my own. Let's face it, it's been a REALLY long time since I've posted anything, even longer since I did a music related post, and I was overdue for both.

Besides, it's been a rough few weeks around these here parts, which usually leads to me drowning my sorrows in music (and Captain Morgan. and Dortmunder. And...well you get the idea).

I don't have time to get all HTML link crazy and imbed those, so if you want to check out these bands, you'll have to dig them up the old fashioned way, by downloading them illegally. (Just kidding RIAA! Kids, go to iTunes, stealing is bad! Don't arrest me!)

Anyway, here's some of the stuff that's been in heavy rotation on my iPod:

What Made Milwuakee Famous: Blood, Sweat, and Fears--- Apparently these guys have been cool before this year, as this is off of their second album. Heck, they played on ACL as part of a episode with Franz Ferdinand back in '05. How much more indie rock cred do you need? Frankly, this entire CD is very good. It's very straight ahead modern rock n' roll, and the fact that I like it is probaby some indication that I'm getting old, even if it is dubbed "indie rock" There's another really good song on this album called The Other Side at the end of the disc.

Panic at The Disco: Mad as Rabbits--- I was literally almost drooling on myself when I downloaded this album. No really, I had to get a cavity refilled a couple of weeks ago, and they had to numb my mouth, so I was spitting a lot when I talked. And, since I was waiting around to be allowed to eat anything, b/c the doctor was afriad I'd bite my tongue off, I remember I needed this one. This is actually the last song on the album, and the one that's probably most like some of the stuff off the first album. Honestly though, if you buy this one expecting all the angry, angsty punk of the first one, you'll be disappointed, and then happily surprised, b/c it's just a good song. The whole album is way more upbeat and melodic than the first.

Jack Johnson: Sleep Through the Static--- Hey, it's my inner hippie coming through. Again, this album is spectacular, but this song especially works for me. When I first heard Jack was "plugging in" for his this album, I got a little nervious, I'll admit. However, it's a very well constructed song, and besides, it really is just about blasting the Bush administration, and the war etc....How can you not be on board with that these days?

Kimya Dawson: Chemistry--- Okay, I know, now I really should stop showering and eschew plastic bags at the grocery store, right? I got hooked on her after I saw Juno (she did most of the soundtrack, as if you didn't know that). This is my fav song of hers right now. Granted, that seems to change about every 2 weeks for me, but still. The music is so simple, and the lyrics aren't much more complex, but they just fit together.

My Chemical Romance: I Never Told You What I Do for a Living--- Yeah, I just went from back to back hippie tree hugger songs to a track about murder. It's nice how I keep you guys on your toes like that right? No, this is just a good and angry song, which may or may not be healthy. Actually, I usually have to listen to this song right after I listen to this next one......

Damien Rice: Volcano--- You know what's nice? When your g/f makes you a mix CD for your birthday, and then decides a week later she's not going to be your g/f anymore. Listen, I can make my own break up mixes, thank you very much. If John Cusak can handle it, I sure as heck can. Great, now I have a disc with a bunch of songs I like but can't listen to without a six pack within reach. Thanks.

Jack's Mannequin: Last Straw--- I agree with Sarah that the new Jack's Mannequin CD can't come out soon enough, though I'm lamenting that it will do well and quite possibly mean the end all of Something Corporate. Either way, the first time I heard this song was when we went to see Jack's last year, and then I tracked it down like 8 minutes after I got home. It's actually another break-up type song, mixed with a cheapie at the president. Nice combo.

Fall Out Boy: Beat It--- What's better than Michael Jackson? Punk bands covering Michael Jackson. I saw the video for this the other day, and thought two things:

1) They still make videos, really? Who shows these? Where does MTV have room in its schedule between reruns of "The Hills", "My Super Stuck-Up Sixteen", and "I'll Do ANYTHING to be on television. I mean, ANY. THING." (also known as seasons 6-20 of the Real World.)
and
2) If a video was an absolute classic, like say, anything Michael did in the early to mid-80s, then a band covering the song shouldn't even bother trying to make a video. It just makes the whole thing look silly. Rappers can get away with it b/c all they do is steal music and beats from each other, but for rock/pop music? Bad idea.

Regardless, it's a nice take on the song, and more upbeat than half of what I just mentioned up here. I'm curious if any of you guys are listening to any of this stuff....

Settling Up? or Down?

2008-02-20T08:33:00.000-08:00

So, ten months between posts isn't so bad, is it? Right? *Taps my imaginary microphone* Is this thing on?

Anyway, since my last post was about something that was so depressing (VA Tech), and I was tired of seeing that hanging out there, I knew that I needed to put something else up.

And then I realized: I have NO ideas. We all know that I don't love talking about myself, except to complain, so topical stuff was kind of hard to come up with.

Then, I read the post, and the comments from Sarah's VD Blog

And, I had material.

Let me first state that I went and read said article in The Atlantic before coming up with any of the thoughts that I'm going to spell out here. So, before I get bashed, castrated, and labeled a moron, let's be clear.

First, I'd like to lead off with this: To all the people, women or otherwise, decrying the author as anti-feminist, anti-progressive, and a passive, useless c-word: Shut. Up.

Let's remember something about writing, since most of us fancy ourselves as writers in some form or another. An author, especially one who writes shorter columns, has one main goal: To keep you interested enough to finish the column, and evoke enough of a reaction that you'll read her next offering. And, even if you hate what she had to say, and wish her strung up by her ovaries, the author is getting exactly the desired results. I guarantee that people will read her next piece, simply to find something else to hate about her.

She did this by using what must be the most reviled word in the entire world when it comes to the female outloo on relationships: Settling. I'm sure the mere mention of the word puts fire in the bellies of most women.

Our generation (late 20s, early 30s), has been raised with the preconcieved notion that we deserve the "best" of everything. You know what? I don't hesitate to agree with that.

Here's the problem. In that conditioning, we've been convinced that the "best" we are searching for has to be nothing short of perfection, whatever that means. In that, we have created all of these unreasonable expectations for ourselves. For men, it often comes in the form of career fulfillment. For women, it comes in the form of maternal and marital measures. Part of that is simple biology, no matter how much we've evolved over the past thousands of years.

Women, at least in my experience, especially the ones that claim that they can't ever meet the right guy, can't do so b/c they are A) Sensitive to the perception others will have of their choice of mate and B) set on finding this mythical "perfect" guy that doesn't exist.

On A) I'd like to think that this dissapates as we all age, on both sides. We are all far too superficial of a generation for our own good. From the women I know, I have heard plenty of statements that just make me wonder what planet they are searching for guys on. So, just in general, let me provide some general thoughts.

Just b/c he's a pilot, or a doctor, or a scientist doesn't mean that they are more interesting. It means they happen to be really smart, and have an acumen for something that the majority of society doesn't. It doesn't mean that they are more thoughtful, communicative, or dedicated. Their upbringing and their personality determine that.

A guy who was a big time athlete, or in the military, or participates in some other lifestyle that assures an abundance of testosterone and physicality, isn't necessarily going to be a better compromiser, provider, and partner than someone who's never shot a gun, made a tackle, or punched a guy for looking at him funny.

The fact is, I think women approach these situations in ways that are destined to cause pain. They see the superficial factors (job, looks, etc), and think to themselves "That's fine, I'll just fix whatever I don't like. Besides, if my friends and better yet, my enemies are jealous, isn't that half the battle?"

Guess what? If a guy doesn't like to talk, he's not going to just b/c you keep hammering him to do so. If a guy doesn't listen, he's not going to start just b/c your mouth is on overdrive. If a guy doesn't have an interest in learning and improving himself, you're not going to be able to hit him in the head with a book everyday and expect him to start reading it.

The more likely option is that you're going to a) give up and move on, or b) give up and "settle"

The thing is, settling has gotten this connotation that it's a BAD thing. It's like accepting defeat.

All this author was trying to get across is that there is no such thing as "the perfect partner" To draw an analogy, it's like saying there are "perfect teammates" in a team sport. I had the fortune of playing with a few guys for the better part of 10 years coming up through the little leagues to high school and traveling teams. And you know what? I wouldn't have deemed any of them as "perfect" Some weren't aggressive enough for my tastes. Others didn't work as hard as I thought they could in practice. But, whenever I had the choice, I chose to play with some of these guys b/c I trusted that they would always give their all on the field.

And really, at the end of the day, isn't that what women want, or are said to want? Really, having someone who has the same goals as you, the same ideals, and will work hard to help you both achieve them? So what if you don't always have the same way of going about things? Isn't that where compromise comes in? Or has the feminist movement that I keep hearing about pushed you so far in one direction that every aspect of your life has to be done on YOUR terms, at YOUR pace, and with YOUR goals as the only desirable results?

As for the case Lisa brought up in Sarah's blog, about the couple in the library where she works: That women hadn't settled. She GAVE UP. Probably as a result of getting knocked up. (Remember: Don't be a fool, wrap your tool)

Here's a relatively simple example, and then, I promise, I'll get off my soapbox: In my opinion, the girl I'm currently dating can sometimes be polite to a fault, in certain social situations. In her opinion, I'm a bull in a china shop in the same settings (yes, this is pretty much true). It drives each other nuts, b/c she worries about me embarrassing myself, and I worry about people taking advantage of her. Could we both stand to move a little bit in the others' direction? Absolutely. Do either of us want to? Not necessarily. Chances are though, we'll both get there, simply b/c we see benefits in taking on certain aspects of each others personalities. And, in the cases where we don't act quite the way the other would hope, we'll learn to shrug and say "they're not a bad person, that's just who they are".

And that's the point. Yes, I've been hammering at women, b/c that's the topic of the article. However, in reality, those of us who claim that we can't find a way to be happy need to stop chasing that white unicorn, and learn to appreciate the people who are around us for what they are.

No Adequate Title Came to Mind Here

2007-04-17T22:05:00.000-07:00

I know, I know, it's been damn near a month since I've written anything here for the 5 (maybe 6?) of you that still check this spot on the occasional basis, and for that, I apologize.

I could give some mundane updates about the job, life in general, or the shabby state my apartment has undertaken since I started working a full-time job again. Then I spent the last 30 hours or so peeking at the TV, CNN.com, and any other place that had more information about yesterday’s tragedy at Virginia Tech. From there, I realized that:

a)my problems are pretty simple by comparison and
b)some of the Big Mouths that offer barely informed opinions on TV are going to have a field day with this. You have to almost think that some of them are absolutely are simply salivating at the prospect of deconstructing these events. It’ll mean big ratings, and even bigger exposure.

Perhaps it is because I’m only a few years removed from college, or perhaps because I went to a quiet, reserved campus, in a safe area, that I feel very moved by this whole thing.

Even at a cursory glance, it’s obvious that there will be plenty to debate about, and for all the yapping, a whole lot of problems will go unsolved.

They’ll talk about all the aspects of this tragedy, till they’ve beaten the story so far into the ground that we’ll forget the fact that this was the worst civilian massacre in the history of this country. We’ll forget the fact that 32 very innocent, contributing members of society were gunned down for no other reason than their mere existence.

They’ll ask: Is there too much violence in our society? Do we need stricter gun controls? Should someone have seen this coming? Did the University do enough to try and prevent the attack from claiming 32 lives as opposed to only 2? How accountable are they?

And you know what? It’s a whole group of questions with zero simple answers, no matter what some makeup wearing, loud-voiced- jackass, and his louder mouthed, hair-piece wearing counter part will want you to believe.

First of all, I don’t think that there was any way that anyone could have seen this coming. The angle that a lot of the news agencies are taking on this at this point is that the man who did this had shown a lot of disturbed ideas in his writings. They were disturbing to the point that the head of his English department had referred him to go to counseling at the school. Therefore, someone obviously saw signs of a troubled individual, and they made an attempt to help him, as a representative of the university. Being able to foretell an incident of this nature, from that information, would have been next to impossible. People will compel the authorities and the university to release the man’s writings, under the guise of “perhaps we can find clues so this won’t happen again”.

However, he was an adult, and an adult with no prior history of violence or aggression, no less. He was not obligated to go to any type of counseling beyond being compelled by a concerned educator. Judging from the small excerpts of writings that have been released, he seemed to have a problem with the culture that surrounded him. If that’s the case, and I can only go by the little bit that’s out there, then it’s entirely possible that he would have resisted any type of therapy, instead choosing to believe that it was the rest of the world that had a problem.

Additionally, it will be very hard to say whether or not Virginia Tech, as an institution, did enough to protect its students in the two hours that elapsed between the dorm shooting, and the attacks at Norris Hall. As one friend very astutely pointed out to me, according to the Clery Act, which has been around since 1990, a school is required to give a “timely warning” to students. According to the website for the act: “The timely warning requirement is somewhat subjective and is only triggered when the school considers a crime to pose an ongoing "threat to students and employees"”.

What will be called into question then, is if Va Tech reacted quickly enough. I’d like to think that they did the best that they could with the information that they had available. Think of it in these terms: Most college administration buildings don’t open until 8 am. The average college student, I’d wager, doesn’t get up until 8 am, and that’s if they have a 9 am class. That’s for the on campus kids. The commuters are already on the road around 8 am, making sure they get places to park for their 9 o’clocks. The first attack occurred at 7:15 AM. Chances are, in this case, that the first attack had more “direction” to it, if you will. The victims were a woman and a ‘companion’, if I recall correctly. Therefore, chances are, in this case, that the shots probably woke up students in the surrounding rooms, giving the shooter plenty of time to stow two pistols in his backpack and make his way out of the building, relatively unnoticed.

The best-case scenario from this point is that 911 receives a call around 7:25ish, meaning cops hopefully show up by 7:30-7:35. If they are lucky, an administrator gets tracked down via cell phone around 7:35-7:40, on his or her way into the office, most likely. At that point, the most anyone can hope for is that the administrators get some information together and get something out to the streets by maybe 8:30. Even then, all they know is that two people got shot, and the gunman isn’t accounted for. Even then, an email to the campus, and notification of as many resident assistants and professors as possible, isn’t going to get notification to every student before a little after 9, especially on a campus that big.

Remember, not everyone checks his or her email all throughout the day, even on a college campus. Between shuttling through to classes, stopping at the dining hall, etc, there’s a good chance that not a lot of people would have gotten the information all that much more quickly. By then, most likely, the killer was already very close to, or already at the classroom building where the worst of the killings occurred. Perhaps they could have made it happen faster, however, I find it hard to blame the university for the deaths of the students in Norris Hall.

However, there will be those who blame the university. They will get lawyers, big time, flashy, good lawyers. The type of lawyers that can win big judgments against negligent parties. Virginia Tech will get sued, the Clery act will be cited, and experts will be called to testify. Some will say that the school did all it could; some will say that they were too slow, and they cost students and professors their lives.

Somewhere along the line, most likely, a jury, or better, a group of juries, will award a lot of money to families of the survivors. It will be said that they deserve to be compensated for their loss, and additionally, that the awards will serve to “send a message” to not only Virginia Tech, but schools across the country that they must be swift to act in situations such as these.

I certainly don’t feel that either of those above statements have much validity to them. A cash award has never put a family back together, to my knowledge. It definitely won’t bring someone back from the dead. I can only hope that if there are financial considerations paid to those who lost loved ones that the recipients of those awards will use that money to help build foundations, and push for social change in whatever area they see fit. Perhaps they can push for greater control over the types of weapons that are available to the general public, or more research on the links between depression and violent criminal outbursts in adolescents and young adults. In that, they would be following the lead of those who fostered the Clery Act, and affecting some positive out of this.

Furthermore, in regards to the notion of “sending a message”, I would hope that doing so financially would only serve to put a very small exclamation point on a very loud statement. I don’t believe for a second that any university administrator that has seen the images on TV, read the accounts online and in the paper, and listened to reports on the radio, doesn’t already have every available resource towards reevaluating their schools’ plans for dealing with incidents like this. Whether its for self preservation, or better yet, I hope, for the notion of protecting valued young lives, I wouldn’t think that any administrator would want to see anything even closely resembling this nightmare taking place on their campuses.

And that, right there, kids, is the scariest thought. The fact that this can, and probably will happen again is right there in front of us. We live in a country of 275 million people. The majority of them are law abiding, decent people, who are just doing what they can with what they’ve got. There are some bad ones too. Before anyone feels too badly for this individual, calling him a tortured soul, etc. remember that he had to go through the steps to acquire these weapons, and take the time to at least plan out some of the events that would take place.

The bottom line of all this is that there are a lot of families out there going through an unspeakable amount of grief. This applies not only to the families of the victims, but the friends, and families of their friends whose children will most likely never look at the world, or their university, the same way ever again.

And, again, I'm a Moron

2007-03-20T08:31:00.000-07:00

Here's a sign that I'm so not ready to be working and getting up early again. And yes, it's day 2 of my new job.

This morning, I decided to make oatmeal for breakfast (and yes, I'm at least 68 years old). Well, you know the part where you have to heat up some water before putting it with the oatmeal? Well, obviously it's easy to microwave it, right?

Except, when you forget to put water in the cup. Yeah, I just microwaved an empty mug for 3 minutes.

Just Because

2007-03-15T22:18:00.001-07:00

I probably don't have any real reason to blog tonight, other than the fact that I want to try and be a little more consistent with updating this thing, like I used to be, way back when I started it almost 2 years ago.

You'd think that, all things considered, I might actually have a few things to write about, considering that in the last few weeks I've gotten a job, gotten my diploma (hi $30,000 piece of paper), celebrated a birthday, got an iPod, and started going to the gym on a more regular basis. That's a lot of shit that I could have talked about.

And yet, I totally don't. This is mostly a self imposed pressure, but because I know most of my friends read this at some point or another, I feel compelled to keep this nice and light, and entertaining, and funny. (Even though I'm the opposite of funny, really)

Strangely though, the fact remains is that when I started to learn that I liked to write, or had any ability to do so, a long time ago, I did it as a kind of catharsis for when I had bad days, or weeks, or whatever. Truthfully, that wouldn't play here, for a number of reasons. See, when I was taking writing classes in HS, it was the opportunity to be autobiographical without being blatantly so. I wasn't a very skilled writer then (not that I am more of one now), so I'm sure it seemed pretty obvious when I was referring to certain things. This, however, this blog, has always been unabashedly self-referrential, so when I have a bad day, or negative thoughts, they are on display for everyone to see, should I choose to write about them, which, as you may have noticed, I try not to as much anymore.

That's the thing, as I've grown as a person, and learned that I don't always have to wear my emotions on my sleeve, I've become better at putting at least a tolerable face on the days that I don't feel that great. And, we all have those days. The ones where things just don't feel quite right. Where you don't feel right in your own skin, where you question the decisions that have placed you at the station that you are in life, and wonder about your self-worth.

I had one of those days today. And it's not that I couldn't talk to almost any of my friends about it, b/c I know that I could. Generally speaking, they are a wonderful group of people, each in their own way. It's just that, what's the point? There are certain things that don't change overnight, no matter what anyone says. But, if I don't say anything and then write about it here, I wonder that isn't that just the same as telling everyone I know about it?

That's all, just kind of needed to get that off my chest.....

(oh, and Duke lost tonight in the first round of the tournament, so, you know, if the sun didn't come up tomorrow, for whatever reason, I suppose that wouldn't be all bad....)

Things Parents Just Don't Understand Volume 39

2007-03-13T09:25:00.000-07:00

Ok. Honestly, at 28, I shouldn't be making jokes about things that my parents don't get. However, sometimes, they, despite being great people, good parents, and relatively intelligent people, do manage to amaze me with their lagging in certain realms.

So, I headed home this past Sunday, to spend some time with them to celebrate my birthday, and my mother's, which is a relatively normal thing this time of year. Of course, I made this trip with a pretty hefty hangover, courtesy of Saturday night, but, that part can wait.

Over the course of the day, my father mentions that he's looking at a new set of irons for the upcoming summer. Apparently, old age hasnt' quite caught up with him yet, and he doesn't need the graphite shaft irons he bought a couple of years ago. Good for him. He also mentions that he's a little concerned about the price of said irons, b/c for as often as he golfs etc, he wonders if they're really worth it.

I asked him if he'd looked on eBay for them. You know, since you can get a lot of stuff cheaper on eBay. If words were actually physical items that came out of my mouth, the eBay suggestion would have been snatched out of the air and stomped to death by my mother before they even had a chance.

Apparently, according to my mother, who controls the spending, eBay, and in the world of shopping on the internet in general is populated by scammers, liars, and people generally looking to take advantage of you.

So, of course, I made the point that a venture, any venture, couldn't exist for as long as eBay had if the majority of the people using the site were dishonest. The whole system would implode upon itself.

That argument actually almost swayed her. Then, I brought out the heavy hitter "Mom, look, do you want to see if you can save some money on these clubs, or what?"

That at least got her to agree to let me show her on the computer how "the eBay" worked.

There, I got to answer questions about how to find stuff, etc, the usual. That stuff I could live with. Finally, I found a set that was going for about $150 less than he was going to pay for them in the store. There was like an hour left in the auction.

Mom: "Are you sure these are new clubs?
Me: Yes
Mom: How do you know?
Me: It says right there that it's a new set
Dad: These clubs just came out this year, so they would almost have to be new
Mom: Are you sure?
Me: Well, since the picutres still show the plastic sheathing around the shafts, I'm going to guess so. Besides, this guy has a strong rating, so I'm guessing that he's honest.
Mom: A good what?
Me (trying to be patient. And failing): His rating, when you sell something on ebay, the person that buys it gets to give feedback on the item and your service, etc. A higher rating means that he's sold a lot of items, and if he's got a real high percentage of positive ratings, that means that he's a good, honest seller. (Note: This guys rating was like 2300 something, and it was 100% positive. I think we were safe)
Mom: Well, if we get them, how do we pay for them? I'm not giving this person my credit card #
Me (at this point, I don't want to explain PayPal) Well, I'll tell you what, since I already have an eBay account, I'll get the clubs, use my PayPal account, and send them to your office. Fair? Just write me a check.
Mom: Well, if you think it's safe. If I don't get the clubs though, you're giving me my money back.
Me: Outstanding.

Moral of the story? I got my dad his clubs for about 135$ less than he would have paid in the store for them. And my parents didn't learn anything.

I told my dad that when he retires, he should take one of those community college classes or something that they offer for older people, that would help him really understand the internet. His statement? "I understand the internet!"

Trust me. He doesn't.

More Reasons to Hate Duke.....

2007-03-05T06:59:00.000-08:00

Wow, so I haven't written here in two weeks? That's kind of bad form, isn't it? I guess I haven't had much inspiration lately. And yes, I'm aware, it's just a blog, you'd think it shouldn't take much to get me to write about something, ANYTHING. You'd think, at least. Apparently, that's the case though.

However, there was something that happened yesterday evening, that is getting more than it's share of press, and opinions written about it, that I couldn't resist. As most of you know, I hate all things Duke related. This is as much a function of my fandom for UNC as it is a product of just never really seeing much that I liked about Duke. Mind you, I didn't attend either school, nor did I grow up in, or near, North Carolina. It's just one of those things that's always been. I couldn't trace the exact roots of it if you paid me. It's just that simple.

So, as anyone who catches a glimpse of Sportscenter knows, yesterday Duke and UNC played their second game of the year at Chapel Hill, with not much more of importance on the line than the regular season ACC title for UNC (a nice to have, but not vital) and nothing but pride for Duke, (no comment).

Sporting a double digit lead with less than 20 seconds left, as you may have seen, one of Carolina's stars, Tyler Hansbrough, was shooting free throws. He missed them both. He got his own offensive board, because a) he's kind of crazy, and rebounds anything that moves, regardless of the situation and b) Duke isn't a good rebounding team. Having secured a rebound 3 feet from the hoop, he did the rational thing: He tried to put it back in. The hoop would have been meaningless, as the game was basically decided.

That's when a lot of stuff starting flying. Gerald Henderson through the air. His forearm into Hansbrough's face. Blood from Hansbrough's nose. A lot of empty explanations and lies. And defense of the action from the typical Duke apologists.

In short form, Henderson's blast through Hansbrough (a "hard foul" if your an apologist) got him tossed from the game, and a one game suspension to boot. After the game, Coach K said that it was unfortunate that there were still starters in the game at that point, and that his player (Henderson) wasn't trying to hurt anyone, b/c that's "not how Duke plays".

Here's my thoughts.

1) The whole thing was garbage. It was senior day, and with a little over a minute left, and still spoting a double digit lead, Williams had put back in Wes Miller, and left Rayshawn Terry (a third senior) in the game. Bobby Frasor (who also doesn't start) was in. The fact is, UNC is deep enough that they probably have 8 or 9 guys that would start at most of the programs in the country.
Duke was still pressing. Apparently, UNC was supposed to put the back end of it's roster in there and let the Black and Blue Devils pick their way back into it. I forgot that it's in the ACC bylaws that Duke is entitled every extra-ordinary opportunity to win a game that it can't win based on talent, coaching, and execution.

2) Saying that Henderson wasn't trying to hurt anyone is like saying that Barry Bonds has never shoved a needle in his ass. Do I think he was trying to bludgeon Hansbrough out of the game? Doubtful. But, there are different levels of hurt, I think. There's the kind that knocks someone out of a game, then there's the "send a message" style. The message being that Carolina was going to try and score anymore with the game more than likely out of reach, then they were going to pay for those buckets with bumps and bruises. Remember, Coach K comes from the Bob Knight school of coaching. That would be the school of coaching that belittles refs, throws tantrums the sidelines, and takes losing as a personal insult. It's "old school" which is a polite way of saying "occasionally dirty" Which is what that foul was.

To that end, it was dirty, and should be treated as such. I don't think that a one game suspension is enough, and it certainly won't deter it from happening again. It wasn't the first UNC player bloodied by a Dukie, and it won't be the last. However, I give the Dean Dome fans, and the UNC players, a lot of credit for not exacting any physical revenge. As Henderson was exiting, it would have been easy for the fans to throw things other than insults at him. They didn't. And, with only 14 seconds left, Carolina could have afforded to send a little used player in there to take a shot at a Duke player, but they didn't. I would have liked to see Roy Williams get a little more fired up over the whole incident, especially when he had a chance to give Coach K an earful while the officials were reviewing the tape. Then again, Roy also had the satisfaction of knowing that he's taken 4 of 5 from Duke, and that with the relative talent levels of the past two years recruiting classes, he's in good shape to take 4 of the next 5. That would be the best revenge of all.

One Legged Woman To Embarass Self on National TV

2007-02-21T13:32:00.000-08:00

So, I just saw an article that said that Heather Mills, the soon to be ex of Paul McCartney, is going to appear on "Dancing With The (kind of but not really) Stars"

You guys, this isn't even fair? Who approached who about this? Is she worried that she's not going to be getting enough publicity from divorcing one of the two surviving Beatles, so she called ABC? Or did ABC say "Hey, she's kinda sorta famous, and she'd probably come cheap, let's give her a call"

And, I know, I'm so going to burn for this but really, TV gods: Please please please, even though I don't watch this show, and still won't, let that leg come flying off on live television during some kind of spin, or pirouette, and give me something that will set the all time record for most watched clip in YouTube history. Please?

Shotguns, Shots, and Some other items (24 Spoiler Goodness)

2007-02-12T23:41:00.000-08:00

Apparently, I'm too lazy to post on a regular basis, so I guess I'm going to do one of those crazy catch all type posts. This probably isn't the best timing for me to write one of these, given that it was a 2 hour 24 event tonight. However, it was amazing tonight, so we'll do that first.

Jack Bauer Official Terrorist Kill Count: 3 with 1 very cool assist.

It's actually been a while since Jack actually killed a terrorist, and this hasn't been one of the stronger seasons for shootouts and the like. After last weeks episode, which was one of those build-it-up-with-not-a-lot-happening-efforts, this weeks total throwdown of devious subplots was a welcome return to form.

Let's do the less interesting stuff first: I don't know exactly what creepy Chad Lowe and creepier Peter MacNichol are cooking up against Wayne Palmer, but if they go down the "impeach the President based on trumped up thoughts of fraility of mind", then I am going to be a tad upset. It's not really the way that I want to see things go down. Especially since we've seen this once before, WITH HIS BROTHER. Once is enough, kids, that's all I'm saying.

As for Jack's father? Okay, the fact that he was ultimately behind it all, not that surprising. The fact that he would use his own grandson as leverage against his daughter in law in order to simply cover his own backside? Awful. Yet, as they say in 24, no one is safe.

Of everyone, I feel for Morris in this one. He's not trained to withstand torture, etc. And we're not talking run of the mill electric shocking, or cutting off fingers. They f'ing drilled him with what looked like about a half inch drill bit. Into his shoulder blade. I cringed pretty hard at that, to say the least.

Now, the good stuff. Jack, running point, with a MF'ing SHOTGUN. We only get maybe two of these a season. The operations that aren't "non-lethal force" rather "mf-ing shoot and kill everybody in the joint" Let's just say we watched it 2x at Drews, and I watched that part again when I got home. It was just sweet b/c there's no artistry or finese with a shotgun, it's point, shoot, and shred some bad guy's chest all over the wall.

So, if anyone thinks the show has jumped the shark? Doubtful. I don't even feel like I covered all the pertinent points with this post. And tonight was only Episode 9 for this season. So, rest assured, some sh*t has yet to go down.

And, b/c it's later than I realized, it's also the only thing I'm going to write about tonight....

Things I Would Sell Plasma to Witness...

2007-02-06T00:05:00.000-08:00

Honestly, I don't think that it will come to that. Incidentally, I have interviews on Tuesday and Wednesday (different places) Keep your fingers crossed for me, seriously, you guys.

But really, if I needed any kind of a sign that things are starting to go right with the world, it's that David Lee Roth is going to be on this summer's Van Halen tour

This is especially cool for me, b/c Van Halen was the first concert I ever went to. Okay, actually, it was Van Haggar, when I was 15 or 16, and I'm sure that's not quite the same. So, really, this is about comparing the two versions, almost 15 years apart. Oh, and going to a Van Halen concert without being chapperoned by my dad.*

Let's put it this way. If Pittsburgh ends up being the closest venue for this show? I'd still go. Okay, I'm lying, I'd drive to Cincy, Toronto, or Guam preferrably.....

*Ed Note: Yes, I know, 16 seems old enough to go to a show by myself. Here's the story: We lived in Erie, the show was in Pittsburgh, and I had won 2 tickets on the radio. So, having had my license for 4 months or so, my mother wasn't about to let me drive by myself. And, as my father explained to me a couple of years ago "You probably could have handled driving back and forth with a friend, but I wasn't going to talk your mother into taking a Van Halen ticket away from me" Well played, sir.

Quick Thoughts.....

2007-02-02T09:21:00.000-08:00

I didn't even read what Sarah had to say about the Office last night, mostly b/c I wanted to post a few unedited thoughts of my own....

Dwight, in a bra? Gew. Priceless, but stomach wrenching.

Also priceless, Michael telling Karen (who they probably dress better than any of the other women on that show) that she should invest in a dress or a skirt or something*

I actually missed Ed Helms (Andy) this week. He's so batshit crazy that it's kind of wierd not having him around, especially b/c Jim was bound to do something else ridiculous to him. Incidentally, someone asked me what happened to Andy, and I'm betting NBC.com doesn't have the video up from last week, but there was a deleted scene where Andy is in his car and says "Dunder Mifflin is sending me to management training. Well, anger management. It's supposed to take 10 weeks, but I'll be out in 5, definitely" I wish I could find it on YouTube, b/c I'm obviously not doing it justice.

Dwight telling the stripper "we paid for three hours, and we're getting it" when he tells her to answer the phone.

And the highlight/lowlight for me?

Pam: Didn't Ben Franklin have syphillis?
Ben Franklin impersonator: But I don't. (Pause) My name's Gordon

Yeah, that pretty much ruined my night. When you have a relatively unique name, and then that happens? I won't be able to introduce myself to anyone for a while with out that joke coming up. Super......

*A note on Karen. Once, Steph told me that she didn't like Karen b/c the girl that played her (Rashida Jones) was the daughter of Quincy Jones, and she went to Harvard, and sang back up on Maroon 5's first album, and was really pretty, and dating the guy that plays Jim. Her life was too perfect. I think on the Scale of Irrational Thought with 1 being "I enjoy chocolate, I think I'll have a piece" (very rational) and 10 being "Satan's minions are roaming the Earth in the form of small Asian children and they are following me around" (ie-out of your damn mind) that this scores a solid 6.

When the Summer of George isn't Summer Anymore.

2007-02-01T12:00:00.000-08:00

Hey, guess what? It's about 20 degrees out, so being off work isn't as much fun anymore. It's kind of hard to go sit out on your deck and have a drink when that activity would require one to bundle up and shovel the deck just for the privelege of feezing my ass of outside. So, what I'm saying is, I'm not enjoying the being out of work thing as much anymore.

Another sign that I'm not enjoying it? I'm contemplating taking the big jar on my fridge that I throw change in and marking it "March Rent". I'm guessing my landlord wouldn't appreciate being paid in a sock full of quarters though. Just my opinion.

Oh, and in referrence to Sarah's comments about my Pictionary drawings? Be careful, I might just end up going mute the next time I'm on your team, and then you won't have my seriously sick guessing abilities. I'm just saying.

Also, and this is random, but I watched the documentary Wordplay the other night, the one about the American Crossword Puzzle championships and the people that construct the puzzles and stuff. And honestly, I thought it was really interesting. So, now I've moved from Sudoku to crossword puzzles.

Between that and the change jar? I'm officially my grandfather. Someone bring me a vodka-tonic and a bowling ball. Oh wait, I already have all of those items in my apartment. Kill me now.

Never Graduate

2007-01-26T13:43:00.000-08:00

So, since I'm sitting around a lot during the day, sending out resumes, and leaving ESPN or TVLand on in the background, I get to hear a lot of commercials. This might be one of my favorites.....It's kind of hard to see, but that guy is definitely wearing a Texas A&M shirt....

Thoughts on 24 (Spoilers if you haven't watched 10a-11a)

2007-01-23T21:15:00.000-08:00

Official Jack Bauer Terrorist Kill Count: 1 (I don't expect this to stay at 1 for too too long, really, it's 24)

Well.

Another week, another "Holy crap, did they just do that?" moment.

So, Graham, the guy that spearheaded multiple attempts to kill Jack in Season 5 is Jack's brother? I have to admit, I didn't see it coming, but I wasn't completely in shock either when it happened. I've officially adopted a policy of not thinking very far ahead in '24' for the simple fact that I'll drive myself nuts trying to figure out what's going to happen next, b/c either I'm wrong, or I'm disappointed that I've figured it out. So, I've done the thing that makes the show more enjoyable than anything. I just don't think about it till something happens.

The odd thing about this turn of events is that it's a rare time when Jack who knows less about a situation than someone else. Jack doesn't know that Graham was behind the plots of Season 5. At this point, he still thinks it was Logan, who took the fall, that masterminded it. All Jack seems to know is that his brother is not exactly an upstanding citizen who is possibly working to protect their father from Jack and the government.

And that was enough to get Jack to punch his brother, tie him up with a lamp cord, and then put a plastic bag over his head from behind. For an episode where there were a lot more plot moving agents than action segments, the 5 minutes or so at the end where this took place definitely balanced things out.

Also, we're definitely getting our requisite amount of "drama inside the White House" this episode, and I'll all say is: I know David Palmer, and Wayne Palmer is no David Palmer. That being said, I think he's handling it well and doing a good job of not succumbing to the pressures from more aggressive members of the administration.

So where do we go from here? Well, we're getting Jack's dad in the next episode, the previews gave us that much.

Jack's probably going to do a good amount of torturing Graham, at least in the beginning of the ep, also a positive.

Also, as much as I don't want to look ahead, I want the backstory on this whole thing with Jack and Graham's wife (Marilyn), that just plain looks like fun.

Oh, did I mention that's there's still 4 tactical nukes floating around LA somewhere? Yeah, someone is going to need to find those.....

Dreaming.....

2007-01-16T10:08:00.000-08:00

I will, for the record, get to last nights' 24 in a little bit, at some point today.
I'm still not sure if I'm in a place where I can process all of it, especially the ending.

I must be eating something wrong, or must be a little off lately, b/c I've been having some messed up dreams lately. Sunday night I had a dream about 24, which I was okay with b/c we had just watched it, etc. However, last night, I had this really wierd dream. I dreamt that when the Browns came back in 1999 (which would have been my junior year at BW) they were so bad that they had an open tryout. Of course, that makes sense, b/c 1) They were terrible and 2) Their training camp facility is 4 blocks from campus.

Then, it gets wierd. In my dream, apparently I made the team as the 4th QB. Yes, I know, teams don't carry 4 QBs on the active roster. It was a bad dream. OK?

And, since the team was so bad, apparently (in my dream) the other quarterbacks all got injured, and somehow I ended up in a game. And I was awful, b/c I was still my regular old 5'10" small handed self. It was one of those like imagined, really embarrassing moments. I was like one-for-four with 3 picks or something? Like everytime I threw the ball it didnt' work out, b/c NFL balls are huge and I have tiny little 12 year old girls hands.

I really need to get a job, so I can start dreaming about work and stuff like that again, like a normal person.

Please Don't Ever put a Knife through my Knee

2007-01-15T10:05:00.000-08:00

WARNING! This is totally all about the first two hours of '24' Season 6, so don't go any further if you don't want it ruined b/c you didn't watch for some reason.

Official Jack Bauer Terrorist Kill Count: 1*

Let's start off with this: Jack looked like hell. I mean, I don't know much about Chinese prisons, or being a political prisoner, but let me just say that if how Jack came off that plane looking was any indication, then no thanks.
But really, that little exchange with Bill and Curtis when he's sitting in the hanger right after he got off the plane, when he could barely even find a voice? Just give Kiefer his Emmy right now, there's no point in even putting it up for a debate.

I think my favorite part of the episode, other than Jack getting away from the terrorists, was Wayne Palmer's reaction to Jack getting away from the terrorists. You could see him smile a little, though obviously in complete disbelief. It was kind of like in his head "thank God I didn't end up resposible for the death of someone who saved my brother's life x3 at least" combined with "only f'ing Jack could get out of that situation"

I already pretty much hate Peter MacNicol's character (Tom Lennox) He sucks, a lot. Obviously that's his role, to play the "Presidential advisor who keeps coming up with really bad ideas", but still.

Wayne Palmer as President by the way? That one's a bit of a stretch for me in the plausibility department, but I'll take it. What was his campaign slogan, I wonder? "At Least I'm not Charles Logan"? That's really all it would have taken, I suppose.

Also, can we discuss the fact that Taj is a freaking terrorist? Yeah, I know he was in other movies since Van Wilder, but really, it's Taj, okay? And he just shot that guy! And he's going to be blowing stuff up, obviously, or he wouldn't have a "package" stuffed behind the wall of his house.

It kind of made me think a little bit when Jack was standing there, before they went to chase down the next subway bomb and he says "I don't know how to do this anymore". It was like between the mental and physical abuse he took, and the fact that he obviously shouldn't be in any condition to do this, he doesn't have a choice. And you'll notice, that, in the moment, he's fine, and still able to do what it takes. When he has to, he can. I found it telling though, that he couldn't torture that terrorist. It was like he knew what it was like to be on the other side, and even though he needed the information, he just couldn't bring himself to do it. It will be an interesting story line to follow, for sure.

Let's put it this way. It was son intense that I watched it last night, then had a dream about what was going to happen tonight. All I remember was that it involved a missle targeting CTU and Jack almost drowning. So, obviously, I'm way off. Some crazy shit is going to happen tonight, that much I know, just from knowing how this show works.

*Oh, and really, a note on the killing? He BIT A GUY'S NECK!!!! Are you serious?
I was going to give Jack more kills, but that guy on the subway did blow himself up, and Jack was trying to stop him, so I can't give him that one.

Four More Days....

2007-01-10T22:58:00.000-08:00

Am I the only person in the world that is seriously growing impatient with waiting for the new season of '24' to start? After plowing through Season 5 in a mere three days, thanks to that lovely flu bug, I've developed a nervous tic everytime I see a commercial or a teaser for it on Fox. It doesn't help that they carry the NFL playoffs, and they had the national title game this week, (which, by the way, I'm NOT going to dicuss, ever. I don't even think it actually happened) so therefore I've seen approximately 1,398,469 teasers for the show. What's probably most sad is that plotting out my Mondays to watch 24 is the most structure I'll have had in a month. This is probably not a good thing, at least until I start working again.

At least it's almost the weekend, and I can somewhat put the job hunt on the back burner for a day or two. I've gotten into such a rut of getting up in the morning, checking email, eating some breakfast, and then some combination of doing whatever needs done around the house and spending a good 4 hours or more a day looking for jobs that by the time the weekend rolls around, I don't want to think about it for a while.

How long has this been going on? Let's put it this way, according to my iTunes, I have 8 days worth of music on there, and in the last 3 weeks, I've plowed through most of it, even the stuff I really hate. I'm just saying, I didn't even know I HAD Air Supply on there.

Fortunately, I'm looking forward to this weekend. I have a date on Friday, with someone that I've gone out with a few times already and like, but we've had to cancel out on each other the last two weeks b/c we took turns getting sick. I think ti's going to be a pretty low key dinner-and-movie thing, but we have fun when we hang out, so I don't think it matters what we do.

However, here's the thing with doing the dinner and a movie thing. At least for me.

Problem #1- Late movies (the after 9pm starts) are almost night killers, as far as I'm concerned. You get out of the theater at 11:30 or something, after being anchored ass-to-chair for 2+ hours, you don't really feel like doing much.

Problem #2- I HATE being rushed through dinner, esp on a Friday night. There's a time to rush through dinner, and a date when you've first started seeing someone is NOT the time. Unfortunately, since the theaters start most of the movies between 7 and 7:30 you're either going to rush through dinner, or you're going to dinner at like 5. With the seniors. No thanks. I mean, really, can I get a movie that starts at 8:15? Seriously.

So, I'm voting for an earlier showtime and a later dinner. Obviously, it's not all up to me, but that's the suggestion I'm going in with.

Unfortunate

2007-01-07T21:02:00.000-08:00

So, this newly discovered patience that I have allowed myself in the job search, the one that keeps me from taking the first thing that comes down the line, and hopefully means that I'll end up getting something that is at the very least a good career move and financially rewarding, has had it's side effects.

Ever since I've stopped working, I've been a bit on the bored side, but up until about 3 weeks ago, school took good care of that, believe me.

Bored is the least of my troubles though, at this point. It's been a long couple of weeks, between getting the flu, arguing with certain people, and my own personal touch of neurosis that I hold so dear to my heart.

Left to my own devices, and too much free time, I'm very capable of over thinking, over-analyzing, and over worrying things. The unpleasant offshoot of this is that I end up hiding in my house, listening to angry music, and feeling crappy about myself. And, as usual, it's a direct result of worrying too much about what other people think, or how they feel. Such is life.

Five Days In, And......

2007-01-06T02:40:00.000-08:00

Well, I promised myself that this would be not only a new year, but a new perspective. I would accomplish more. I would worry less, and all the little pitfalls that I've tripped over in the past would remain there. You know, in the past, and all that. Instead, I catch myself doing more of the same. Worrying, thinking that I don't measure up.

Maybe it's the fact that I haven't been gainfully employed for 6+ months.

Maybe it's the year and something without a meaningful relationship, or even a hint of one.

Maybe I'm just too hard on myself, in general.

I want so badly to succeed in every aspect of my life, that I kill myself over it if I'm not doing well in any/all of them.

It's silly, and it's hard, b/c I can't change, completely, obviously. I know the standards and whatnot that I hold myself too, and they aren't limited, that's for sure. I guess I'm just frustrated, b/c I feel like I'm putting a decent amount of effort in to certain things, both personally and professionally, and feel as though I'm just beating my head against the wall. And that's not an easy thing. When you care about someone or something, you want to feel some kind of reciprication, or reward, in return, otherwise, it feels helpless, worthless, and just plain silly.

Recovery, Physically and Otherwise.....

2007-01-03T13:32:00.000-08:00

You know that little mention I made of feeling pretty ill last Thursday night? Well, let's just say that from about 15 minutes after that till sometime Monday, I was victim of an illness the likes of which I hope I never experience again. I was VERY sick. I spent most of Thursday night crippled on the bathroom floor, and the better part of the next few days doing the following:

1) Being mis-diagnosed with pnuemonia
2) Not eating
3) Living on a combination of prescription drugs, tea, juice, and Tylenol PM
4) Realizng that if you're going to get sick during the NFL season, don't do it in Week 17

I mean really, there were NO games worth watching. Couple that with spending New Years on the couch (lame) and it was a pretty vicious case of the flu. Now, sadly, a lot of other people I know have it. Fortunately for me, I'd imagine by now that I've pretty much got my immunity up on it, for what it's worth.

On the bright side of all of this, I managed to not have a hangover on New Years Day, which in a way wasn't a bad thing. I caught up on sleep, and plowed through all of Season 5 of '24', so now I'm ready for Jack to come back from China in about 11 days.

So that's it. I'm alive again, and seriously hurting for some human interaction. And I really hope nobody else comes down with this flu thing. Seriously.

Sickly

2006-12-29T00:46:00.000-08:00

Well, how's this for a turn of events?

So, somewhere along the line, within the last hour or so, while I was having a drink with some friends, I started to feel sick. Not like a little sick, either. More like, drop to your knees stomach pain and throwing up sick.

I have no idea what I ate, or what I did to myself, but I haven't felt this awful in a long freaking time. Maybe it's just the culmination of stress and not sleeping enough, etc etc, but man, not good times. Hopefully, I'll feel better soon, b/c there are somethings I'd really like to do this weekend.....

Cleaning up

2006-12-28T19:29:00.000-08:00

Yeah, I know, again, a week plus without a post. Listen, it took me three days to waddle to my computer after the copious amounts that I ate Sunday, Monday and Tuesday while at home, so tough luck.

It's not like a lot is happening though, it's the end of the year, there hasn't been a darn thing good on TV in a while, everything has been on reruns for the holidays, so I haven't even got anything that's been on to talk about.

Well, except this, maybe:

I don't even have words for this. I know I've made my remarks about Timberlake in the past, and well, I still don't really care for his style of music, but really, this may be the funniest thing I've ever seen.

And yes, I've been watching this instead of finding a job. Classy, I know.

Christmas was pretty standard, which is why I don't have a ton to say about it. We see most of our relatives on Thanksgiving, so Christmas is just me and my parents. In a way it's nice, b/c it's totally low key, and I'm not bouncing around to 9 different houses like some of my friends have to. However, it does mean fewer presents, and we all know how I feel about that. Bad.

The Sounds.....

2006-12-21T07:55:00.001-08:00

Well, I got tagged to talk about what I'm listening to right now. I can tell you right now I'm not going to have 7 people to tag back with this, so I'm a total chain breaker, I know, I suck. So let's see, what seven songs am I listening to a lot right now?

1) This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race- Fall Out Boy
2) White Unicorn- Wolfmother
3) Where We Gonna Go From Here - Mat Kearney
4) Just a Thought - Gnarls Barkley
5) Waitress - Live
6) You're All I Have - Snow Patrol
7) Thunderstruck - AC/DC

I probably could have kept going on this one.....
I'm not going to force anyone's hand on this, feel free to jump on board if you want.....

Moving Forward

2006-12-15T09:01:00.001-08:00

I reread that post and realized that it might have sounded, I don't know, a tad on the angry side. That honestly wasn't directed at most of the peolple that I know read this blog. Most of you are good friends in some way, and have been supportive of me as I've gone through all the stuff that's happened this year. Most of the people who have doubted me are people from my past professional life, and people in my personal life that I've put far behind me, for obvious reasons.

So, that's that.

I AM done with school though. Graduated, etc. Well, not technically graduated, but I never have to take another class again. So that's the good news.

Last nights final was no picnic, that's for sure. I handed in my blue book (yeah, really, a blue book, in grad school) and said to the professor "Well played sir, well played" And left.

Today is the true catharsis of the whole thing, where I get to throw out all of my old papers and what not. That's the most fun. That, and listing my books on Amazon so I can get some money out of them.

This is the End, my Only Friend, the End.....

2006-12-15T01:20:00.000-08:00

My last final ever ended 6 hours ago. I'm done. I have my MBA. I acheived, in spite of those who said I couldn't, who said I wouldn't.

I made it, on my own, of my own volition. To those who tried to stop me, who tried to hurt me along the way.....you can't. You won't. You never will. To the people who pretended to care when it was really all about their own personal gain...I know. You're sad, you're fake, and for the garbage pain you've inflicted on me, may you get it back tenfold.

Crammed

2006-12-14T14:25:00.000-08:00

Today is it. D-Day. Last final. Ever. You know, unless I can't find a job and decide to go back for my doctorate. Right, so that's not very likely.

Tonight is the worst of the lot though, Corporate Finance. And the fact is, it's not even that I'm tired, but I'm just so worn down, pysically, emotionally, and mentally from all the stuff that's been going on around me for the last few weeks that studying is literally almost painful, and my usual day of cram session is pretty much turning to mush.

I'm certainly not going to be getting all negative right now, I can't afford that, I have to keep pushing forward and hoping for the best. In 5.5 hours, this will be over, for better or for worse.

I feel like I'm going to puke.

Coming to the Finish Line...Sort of....

2006-12-11T22:40:00.000-08:00

So this is it. The last week (allegedly) of my academic career. I turned in one take home final earlier today, am in the process of finishing another one, then have only a project (which is f'ing huge) and a pair of tests to undertake.

I'm already tired. The body of a 27 year old doesn't battle like it used to, that's for sure. I could go on 5 hours of sleep for days in a row, and now, I feel like I HAVE to get a full 8 hours or I'm going to be useless the next day. I know I can do it for a few days in a row, and I'm tougher than I give myself credit for, but its a mental block I seem to be having a tought time with.

I'm scared though. Honestly. There is a lot of uncertainty that follows this, and really, I still have to graduate. It's not in the bag yet. I have a lot of crap to do over the next three days, a lot of information to process, and a lot to worry about still. Monday, my real job search begins, when I can be done stressing about all this school stuff, and I have no idea what that holds. I could very easily be in another city, far away from my friends and family, a mere 30-60 days from now. And you guys know me, I don't always do uncertainty very well. And change isn't really my friend either.

Leaving would be giving up a lot, and it IS something I have to accept as a possibility. The thing is, my friends are all here, my family is close by, and there is a lot to love about this town, even as much as people try to say that it's not a great place to live.

That being said, if the right opportunity presents itself, I have to consider it. Money isn't the end all of life for me, but the fact is, after I've worked for 5 years, learned more about what I am capable of, and what I do bring to the table on a professional basis, and after getting my MBA, I know what I think I'm worth, and I have to pursue that.

It's just a lot to think about, especially considering that I should be studying right now, that's all.

Since Its Somewhat of A Blizzard.

2006-12-07T13:13:00.000-08:00

And, because Sarah keeps preaching about the Peter Cetera Christmas album, I figured I'd do a little searching for something much cooler. Note, this is mostly b/c I don't want to work on my take home finals anymore. They really suck, you guys, seriously.

But, Sarah, I see your Peter Cetera, and I raise you THIS

Seriously. That's so much cooler. Not that I would EVER buy it.

Apparently sick, as well as Exhausted......

2006-12-03T19:19:00.000-08:00

You know how I know I'm depressed?

I spent 40$ at Target. For the second time this week.

Twice you guys. Seriously.

Nothing soothes like buying inane household objects and holiday themed snacky-things.

I mean, really, I spent $40 and got:

DayQuil (b/c I'm sick now)
Tea (ditto)
A Lamp (to replace the one I broke last night in my drunken stupor)
An Orange Crush t-shirt (b/c dorky clothing also cheers me up)
Pizza flavored Goldfish crackers (cause I'm a fatty)
Mint Hershey kisses (see above ref to holiday themed snacks)

And you know what? I don't feel any fucking better. Hopefully the tea will help, at least. It has chamomile. I have no idea what that is, but I want it.

Exhausted

2006-12-03T14:50:00.000-08:00

So this is literally the third or fourth night in the row that I've gotten practically no sleep. You'd think for the hangover I have right now that I'd have gotten more than 3 hours of sleep last night.

Not true.

I just feel pretty beat down right now. There's a lot of things that seem like they are moving in the wrong direction, which isn't a good thing with only 2 weeks left of school.

I might stop blogging for a while too, not that I've been doing it all that much.
It just seems like all I've been using it for lately is another outlet for negative thoughts.

What's the worst is that the Browns are actually playing well right now, and I can't even enjoy that due to certain circumstances regarding the game. Just sucks. That's all.

You know, In Case you Were Wondering

2006-12-01T09:50:00.000-08:00

Yes, things got worse yesterday.

Remember when I was kind of annoyed about being caught outside with no shoes and no jacket in a freezing downpoor? So, what could have possibly gone wrong after that? I turned my paper in, sat through a dull class, and then what?

I got locked out.

No, not "forgot my keys" locked out. I have a door that only locks from the inside now. The key for the dead bolt won't catching when using it from the outside. So, I'll be doing a little home repair today. Super.
So, at 10PM last night, I'm frozen, soaked, and hungry, and standing inches from my kitchen. WITH NO WAY TO GET IN!
And of course, the only other way into my house is to get on my deck and pop in through a window in the living room. Problem is, I'm on the second floor, and my landlord is never home anymore to let me come up the front stairs of the house.

Fortunately, Drew and Diane were kind enough to give me a place to stay. Drew had one of my old contact cases and they gave me a tooth brush. (Incidently, you guys are right, those sheets ARE amazing)
So, not knowing when my landlord will be home, I got up this morning, went to Home Depot, strapped a 20 foot aluminum ladder to the roof of the Maxima, and brought it home. Climbed it, barefoot, in the rain, with noone to hold the ladder, and got onto my deck, and into the house.
But, now that I'm showered, at least I feel a little bit better. Really, who else could this happen to? Seriously.

On another, unrelated note, and this doesn't apply to anyone specific I don't think, but I'm learning that a true measure of someone's friendship is their willingness to meet you half way in an argument. Sometimes, we get so wrapped up in "I was right" or "I know how I meant to say something" that we could care less for the impact of our words on the reciever. Sometimes, we want so badly to be right, or to be the stubborn one, that we could care less for the consequences, and we lose sight of the big picture. And sometimes, we get so mad at a person for something they said, that even when they say they're sorry, and they've done their part to make it right, we still can't be bothered, b/c we're still too self-important. And another thought, friendships aren't measured by the things you've done in the past, they're better gauged by how you treat someone in the present.

Eh, that's enough. I need to eat and go play Bob Villa....super.

Really? Seriously?

2006-11-30T16:02:00.000-08:00

So, two posts in one day? That makes sense. Okay, no, it doesn't

I'm inconsistent. It's kind of fun that way.

So, THIS is how my day is going.

In the interest of being somewhat studious, I decided to come over to campus early today to finish up that paper I mentioned earlier. Coming to school during the day means parking off campus, as I have a restricted pass.

Well, shit, it's been 60 degrees and nice all week in Cleveland, so, no big deal. In fact, it was so nice out that I wore flip flops, and left my jacket in the car, figuring I'd get it later when I left to go get dinner.

Sadly, I didn't account for Mother Nature, and God's general dislike for me.
I finished what needed to be done in less than three hours. That's the good news. The bad news is, I'm hungry, it's dropped 20 degrees, and it's raining HARD here around campus. So instead, I'm stuck blogging. And pouting.

If I wasn't having a moderately annoying last 3 or 4 days, I'd probably just curse, and be done with it. As it is, I'm almost annoyed enough to just laugh, b/c really, who else would this happen to? At least there's a bunch of loud, inconsiderate undergrads in here that won't shut up so that I can ward off the headache I feel coming. I'm really old, you guys. Seriously.

Eff it, I don't care if I get sick, I want pizza.

Sometimes, I Confuse Even Myself.....

2006-11-30T10:51:00.000-08:00

I'm really starting to think that I might be going through menopause or some crap like that. I've been as moody as anything lately. All week I've been in a moderately good mood. Today, I'm in a "hate everyone, hate myself, hate ice cream" kind of mood.

Okay, well not ice cream, b/c NOBODY hates ice cream. There's two reasons for the mass obesity in this country, folks, and their names are Ben and Jerry.

Seriously though, I'm just angry today. And apparently, with me, anger breeds apathy. I have this paper, 20% of my finance grade worth of it, to complete, and it's due today, and I have no interest whatsoever in finishing it all of a sudden.

Maybe it's b/c I've suddenly had to shift my focus from job searching to actually graduating. I can line up all the jobs I want, but if I tank between now and December 20th or whatever, then it doesnt' mean a whole heck of a lot. And, knowing me, that's totally plausible.

Maybe if I eat some ice cream for breakfast, I'll feel better.

A Few Thoughts on A Lot O'Stuff

2006-11-28T09:33:00.000-08:00

Sadly, I haven't had much of interest, at least not anything really funny, going on around here lately, so the blog has been lacking for material. For that, I apologize. I really like writing here, I do, I promise, but I just feel like I have no direction lately with it. So, seeing as how I lack the gusto (did I just use that word? Oh well, the delete key is for pansies, so it sticks) to hammer out a real post, here's a bunch of little thoughts:

Once you get to 27 and a half, (listen, I can hear 30 knocking on the door, I know it's coming, so I'm measuring every step carefully) multiple consecutive days of even moderate drinking can really break you down. Somehow, I found it within me to have at least one drink everyday from last Tuesday through this past Sunday. Needless to say, I went to bed a little after 11 on Sunday, and slept STRAIGHT THROUGH to 10 AM on Monday.

My professor asked me after class last night to stay for a second. Has this ever actually worked out well for anyone? The stay after class request?? Well, for once, it may have. He wanted to give me a contact on a marketing job with a manufacturing company that a colleague had asked him if he knew anyone for. So, we'll see where that leads. I'm learning the lesson about getting my hopes up. As in, don't.

The Browns are AWFUL. I mean painfully bad. Sunday against Cincy was so bad that I sent Drew and Tony (who were, bless their souls, at the game) that said "I have a new idea for a website: www.jcribbsatqb.com" Yeah, that's Josh Cribbs, the Browns kick returner/Former QB at Kent State. And, really, it didn't seem like that bad of an idea after the 3rd interception. By the fourth one, I was practically ready to run home to register the domain name.

In fact, the Browns are so bad that some of us have taken to going to Johnny Malloy's on Sundays, so that we can watch other games as well, and maybe see what a REAL professional football team is supposed to look like. Oh, right, and they have $5 medium pizzas, which are quite good. I got mine with pepperoni and bacon. And I did NOT eat the whole thing myself, I did share. In fact, when mine came first, I told Bob and Carrie to go ahead and grab a slice if they wanted. Of course, Carrie misunderstood this to mean "Go ahead and take some before I even get my first slice out of there" But whatever.

By the end of this week, I will most likely have super terrific carpal tunnel syndrome from all the papers I'm writing. Blogging and emailing all day probably doesn't help that, huh?

I put in a request for a new computer desk for Christmas from the parents this year. This one is a mess, it's too small, and it's falling apart. The keyboard shelf falls down at least once a day, and I smashed my toe once with it. Super.
Plus, perhaps I'll be motivated to actually clean this one up if I have to clean it off to throw it out.

Some more music for you....

2006-11-20T20:46:00.000-08:00

Well, you guys know I'm always looking and tracking down new stuff to listen to.
So, of course, here's some of what I'm tuning into these days.

Fall Out Boy - This Ain't a Scene it's an Arms Race
Incubus - Anna Molly
Lily Allen - Smile
+ 44 - When Your Heart Stops Beating
Cartel - Honestly
Angels and Airwaves- The War

So, check them out, if you can get them. It's a short list, but it's all good stuff, I think....

It's 10:24 AM and....

2006-11-17T10:24:00.000-08:00

Michigan still SUCKS!

Go Buckeyes! Only 20 hours till we leave for Columbus for the big game.....

Somethings just ain't right....

2006-11-15T00:10:00.000-08:00

Where I come from, there are certain things you don't do. Now of course, some items are more severe than others. In fact, I'd imagine that in most cases, a simple 10-point scale could be used to rate most of these things, as far as severity. Let's look at some examples, keeping in mind that a 1 is "not really a big deal" to 10 being "holy shit that isn't really happening":

For example, here's how some things would play out on this hypothetical scale

1- Lying to your friend about having a quarter b/c you're saving it to play Ms. Pac-Man.
2- Cheating on a test
3- Burping in front of a girl on the first date
4- Leaving the door open while you pee
5- Using the bathroom, not washing your hands
6- Using the bathroom, not washing your hands, and shaking hands with your girlfriends father
7- Stealing from the homeless
8- Sleeping with your friends ex-girlfriend
9 Sleeping with your friends mom
9.5 Beating up a girl
10 Giving O.J. Simpson a two part special titled "If I Did it, Here's How it Happened"

Well played Fox News, well played.

Phew

2006-11-07T17:14:00.000-08:00

Almost another full week of me being MIA from this thing. It's all about dedication over here. Sometimes, I kind of question myself on whether I should keep this up or not. It seems like a lot of the times, there's no reason to do so. Like I spend a lot of time complaining about things, and really, who wants to read that?
Sadly, it seems a lot lately, that I've been having "one of those days (weeks, months, whatever)" where things in general just don't feel that great. I'm not sure if its' b/c of the six months or so that I've been more or less removed from society, or something more than that, or if I'm just a negative person. (Shut it, you guys, really)

Realistically, you'd think that being only a few weeks away from finishing a challenging MBA program before my 28th birthday, the prospect of finding a new job, and the money and such that comes along with it, would be enough to pick me up, and make me feel pretty good, right? Hm, No. I'm in a rut, and it sucks. And it's also of my own doing, so I really don't ahve any right to complain, correct?

At least there's a guy out there much less cool than me

Well, I promised.....

2006-11-02T09:23:00.000-08:00

I promised we'd stop being all deep and thinky around here, b/c well, that's not what we (okay, I) really do well. So, in honor of the Cavs win in the opener (a 97-94 win over the Wiz) I found the interviews with the different LeBron characters on YouTube. I don't know if the kid one is complete, but it's the best I could find.

I think Wise LeBron is my favorite

Business LeBron is good too though....

Kid LeBron is also classic

And the Real LeBron....a little more serious...

See, Here's the Thing....

2006-10-31T23:39:00.000-08:00

As much as I don't normally want to admit it, I'm a control freak. Those of you that have known me for a long time already pretty much know this. I don't like situations where things are left up to "fate" or "whatever happens" or other people, b/c I don't trust most people as far as I can throw them. I like situations where I at least have some measure of influence, and unfortunately, the reality is, that is not most things in life.

On top of it, I don't half ass most things. This actually probably gets me in more trouble than being a control freak. Unfortunately, a lot of people seem to be completely okay with indifference, which is fine for them, but sometimes it affects others, and that's where I get in trouble. It explains why I'm so hard on myself, and why I'm so competitive. I think it also somewhat explains why a lot of my relationships, at least the ones where I get emotionally involved, end up trainwrecking. It frustrates me very much to put effort into something that is going nowhere, or when someone else is putting in half the effort that I do. It's that sense of someone taking something for granted that makes me resent people sometimes. I have no problem being patient and letting things develop, in that regard, but once it's there, I tend to expect someone to put forth as much effort as I do.

Trust me, I wish I didn't care about stuff as much as I did, and that I could just let go of things. But, it's not how I'm wired.

Sorry for being all introspective and thinky, guys, I promise, I'll try and keep a lid on it.

Well, It Certainly Was....

2006-10-30T23:17:00.000-08:00

An interesting weekend. I didn't even realized that I posted something Saturday night until I just pulled up the blog today. Whoops. We'll just disregard that last statement. I'm amazed that everything is spelled properly and all that, considering I really don't remember doing it. So, regarding who it was directed at? I have no clue. It's a little disconcerting for the simple fact that after a long stretch of not doing so, I've had a couple of incidences over the last couple of weeks where my "angry drunk" side has decided to show up. You know, the one where you're having a normal night, out for a few drinks, then all of sudden something snaps? Well, on the bright side, I didn't last out at anyone specific, just the Internet. I could just take it down, but, it's out there, and I always said that if I post something, it stays. So there.

On to more important things.

The Cardinals, in case you didn't notice, won the World Series on Friday night, taking it in 5 games, with a 4-2 win against Detroit. Surprisingly enough, I didn't react as extremely as I thought I would. Granted, we were all at a Halloween party when the game was going on, and though I was quite fixated on it, it isn't the same as watching from the comfort of your own home, or watching at a bar where that's the specific purpose of being there. That, and there weren't exactly any other Cardinals fans around, so it's hard to celebrate by yourself. That being said, I plan on enjoying it for the next few months, because let's face it, the Browns, despite picking up a win on Sunday, aren't going to do much to make me happy. Then again, it's only 2 more days till we get a new season of LeBron and Co., so I have that to look forward too.

Drunk Angry Blogging

2006-10-28T23:44:00.000-07:00

You know what's fun? Finding out someone who really isn't good enough for you would rather spend their time on someone who isn't even CLOSE to as good as you........and still managing to feel shitty about yourself b/c of it....

Sometimes not a Fantasy.....

2006-10-25T10:37:00.000-07:00

So, this past weekend I was the recipient of an odd little turn of events. Allow me, if you will:

In our fantasy football league, we have a little thing where the person with the highest scoring individual player each week gets $5, and the person with the highest scoring team also gets $5, as a way for everyone, even if their team is BAD, to make a little extra money. In a way, it makes each week a bit more interesting, and keeps people interested sometimes, even if they are doing poorly. As luck would have it, I won both categories this week, meaning I pick up an extra $10. That's cool, right?

Answer: Well...............

See, here's the thing. The highest scoring player in our league last week was Hines Ward (aka-Bane of my Existence). As a direct result of his output, basically, I won the team award as well.

This is the problem. I HATE Hines Ward. HATE. Why? Well for one, he plays for the Steelers, the team that I'm sworn to hate with every fiber of my being. Let's just say that them being 2-4 makes the Browns 1-5 record at least somewhat palatable. The other thing? Well, he's Megan's favorite player. And as much as I'm past that whole thing, I'm still very spiteful towards everything she stood for. Carry a grudge much? Please, next time I fly somewhere I'm buying my grudge a plane ticket.

Oh, but you're damn right I'm taking the $10. Come on guys, I'm unemployed!

Oh, and also, there is an extended trailer for Season 6 of 24 online. You HAVE to see this. I've only watched it like 4 times already. Enjoy

Give it a Listen

2006-10-17T12:22:00.000-07:00

I know, I know, I randomly pimp some random bands around here. Some of them are good, some of them are, well, meh.

But I feel pretty good about these guys, they're called

Don't Call it A Comeback

They're kinda cool, that link will take you to their Myspace page, and they've got 3 songs you can check out, if you have sound on your computer. I'd say its' worth the 10 minutes time. Besides, any band that lists its influences as 311, Outkast, STP, Phil Collins, Michael Jackson, John Mayer, the Postal Service, etc, deserves a chance, don't you think?

Oh, and I can't go without mentioning this:

Wesley Snipes accused of Tax Fraud

Always bet on black. Bitches.

And society reaches a new low

2006-10-16T10:25:00.000-07:00

I know a lot of people probably saw tape of the fight that occurred during Saturday's Miami-Florida International game, but they have clip on YouTube of the actual broadcast, with commentary being provided by UM alum and former player Lamar Thomas. Just listen to how stupid and ghetto he sounds:

Really, I hope he loses his job, and that the University disavows any association with him. Since it wasn't national, it won't happen though. Seriously though, what an embarrasment.

Holy......(Grey's Spoiler-ish)

2006-10-13T00:13:00.000-07:00

It's twelve something, and I just watched the ep, so I'm a little tired right now, so this will be short.

I'm sorry, but, did that guy actually burst into flames? Are you kidding me? I know that was in the first five minutes of the show, but that was enough for me right there. I actually paused the TiVo and just stared at the screen. Creepy

Somehow, I get the feeling that we haven't seen the last of Chris O'Donnell, which in a way is good, b/c after I cursed him showing up at the end of last year, I feel a lot better about him.

Oh, and 8.7 Million? What? Did we at any point know that Denny had money? Did I completely miss this in an episode from last year?

That being said, it was creepy/really well done how they tied his phone message/monologue thing in with some of the things happening in the show.

And for her sake, I hope that Callie doesn't sleep with McSteamy, unless it means George gets to punch him in the face too......

Oh, and on a completely unrelated note, the Cards lost 2-0, in case anyone missed it. If they lose Friday night with Carpenter on the hill, I'm officially on suicide watch.

Not to get all political and stuff, but.....

2006-10-11T13:37:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I just feel like I want to, or need to. And you guys know, normally, this isn't my thing. At least not here. This space is generally reserved for making fun of people (myself), talking about TV and movies, sports, and poo jokes. However, sometimes you care about stuff, and sometimes you just don't want to see underhanded legislation sneaking through a state election. This is something that was forwarded to me, and is available on the American Cancer Society's website:

This November 7th, there will be two smoking-related issues on the ballot. One is clear cut, the other is designed to confuse voters. Issue 4 is sponsored by a coalition of pro-smoking groups including the Ohio Licensed Beverage Association and the RJ Reynolds Tobacco Co. Their PAC goes by the name "Smoke Less Ohio." (This is a spin name. What the backers want is for there to be more smoking in Ohio ). They propose a constitutional amendment that would ban smoking in a very few places, and would specifically exempt bars, bowling alleys and bingohalls. It would mandate smoking sections in all restaurants. It would also repeal all current municipalities' smoking restriction legislation and bar any further local choice in the matter. This is the BAD ONE!

Issue 5 is sponsored by the American Cancer Society, the Lung Association and a coalition of health groups called "Smoke Free Ohio", including the Association of Ohio Health Commissioners. It restricts smoking in indoor public working environments and is meant to ensure the safety of people who work in the hospitality industry and to shield non-smokers from second-hand smoke. If passed, it would be a state law, not a constitutional amendment. Make no mistake about it, THIS IS THE GOOD ONE!!!. If people vote yes on both issues, Issue 4 will trump Issue 5, since it is a constitutional amendment that bans all smoking legislation. This is most likely what the Smoke Less Ohio folks want. It is imperative that you, your friends and neighbors know and understand the difference. This is the most important Public Health Issue to come down the pike in Ohio in the past three decades. It is important that you vote NO on Issue 4 and YES on Issue 5.
****************************************

There's a couple of reasons I posted this, the least of which is that I think smoking is a dangerous and unhealthy habit. People want to smoke? That's their business, I understand that. But here's a couple of thoughts.......

1) In no way, shape or form do I think that corporations should be driving a constitutional amendment that affects individual municipalities. For one, the state should leave it up to local governments to better decide what is right for their communities, as the state of Ohio has done on this issue up to this point.

2) I find it marginally to completely reprehensible that companies that KNOW that they produce products that kill their customers and non-customers would produce a bill called "Smoke Less Ohio" that is still very much geared towards protecting their own self interests.

3) (and this is very personal) Have you ever been to a smoke free city? Its' SPECTACULAR. Columbus is smoke free, and I know when I go down there, I drink a ton, completely over do it, and get way out of hand, but I never seem to get a hangover, despite often getting 5 hours of sleep on a floor or a couch, not a bed. Additionally, I don't smell like an ashtray, which is a nice bonus. And for anyone who says that their business will go down if smoking is banned in bars? If its' banned everywhere, people won't have a choice. Ask the C-bus bar owners if they are having any problems keeping their places busy. Trust me, they aren't.

Being In Love Means Never Having to Say Sorry..........

2006-10-02T17:58:00.000-07:00

But being single means never having to share the big bag of candy corn on your dining room table with anyone, either.

So, I think I'll take my end of that trade. Thanks!

Can There Be Too Much Down Time?

2006-09-21T14:41:00.000-07:00

So you know how I say I look forward to fall b/c of football season, and things like that?

Well, when I wake up an it's 64 degrees in my aparment, I realize I'm full of shit.

So here's the thing. You'd think with the abundance of free time I have, I'd be writing more often. You know, except not.

Problem is, other than some studying, a break to go for a bike ride, another one to maybe play a few video games, and the occassional errands, I don't so much DO anything. Having a ton of free time during the day when you're an undergrad? Pretty cool. Same thing at 27 when everyone else has a real job? Not as much. And yes, I know that I have plenty going on taking my last four classes, and that I'm "accomplishing" something, but still, being home everyday when the mail comes? If this is what my mother felt like when I was growing up, I'm surprised she didn't go insane.

Wins, Losses, and getting Drunk Somewhere in Between

2006-09-12T10:28:00.000-07:00

After a little harrassing, some sleeping in, and a crap load of reading, it came to my attention that I'm not updating much, AGAIN. I get it.....

So, this is going to be a quick little rundown post, and I'll try to do better going forward.

Last weekend was pretty much completely out of hand. Drew and Diane had their "housewarming" party on Friday. This was basically code for "we haven't had everyone over here to get drunk since we moved in, so lets do it."
Either way, I can walk there and back, so I'm fine with it. Plus there were door prizes. I won a bottle of wine, that I'm sure I'll drink at some point. (Really, I'm sure it's good, I just don't drink wine all that often)

Saturday, we won our first football game of the season 28-24. We actually looked relatively competent. We'll see how long it lasts.

Saturday night we went to the Fox and Hound to watch the Buckeyes beat up on Texas. That was decent, except I was exhausted from Friday, knew I had to get up early on Sunday, and it was, oh, in Parma. Parma is two things. 1) Far from my house and 2) Quite densely populated with white-trash idiots.

Sunday was Browns tailgate at 7 am. Well, roughly 7 am. Some people slowed us down a bit, which worked out okay. One annoying thing about all this though. We parked in the Municipal Parking lot, which is where a lot of the fans park that like to tailgate early. Now, it's a huge lot, and people typically save a spot or two for friends who are coming later. That's something that we had to do. Small problem. They CLOSED the lot at 8:15 am, when there were still a lot of spots open! Made no sense. All they did was cost themselves money. SO dumb. So, people had to haul stuff around that they had no intention of hauling around. It was classy, really. City of Cleveland, A+ as always

Tailgaiting

2006-08-23T22:43:00.000-07:00

So, on my last post, there was a comment that asked "What is tailgating?" I didn't feel like I could give a good answer just in another comment, and I really can't fathom reading anymore about monopolies and perfect competition, and demand elasticity, so I figure I owe it to our friends abroad to try and explain it. I like lists, so that's how it's going to work.

Location: Tailgating typically takes place a large parking lot within walking distance of the stadium that you are going to, or in the case of a lot of colleges, in a large grassy area where cars can be parked. This allows you to interact with friends, other fans of your team, and to viciously heckle/verbally assault fans of the team you are playing that day. Cursing and slurs about the sexuality of your oppenents is encouraged.

What to wear: Dress for the occassion. This is NOT a black tie event. If you wear khakis, you will be beaten. If you wear a collared shirt, unless it's a polo with the team logo, you will be mocked. Jerseys, jeans (shorts if it's warm) Tennis shoes, hats; these are what you should expect to show up dressed in.

Transportation: The average person just brings their car, puts a few friends in it to save on the parking fee, and parks in the lot. The hardcore (ie: moderately insane) drive assorted types of vehicles, which are ideal for drawing attention to oneself, and carrying a lot of stuff. At Browns games, you'll see a few RV's, some old converted school buses, and even a hearse or a limo as well. Of course, these are old and run down, and have been painted in home team colors.

What to bring: You'll need a grill. Those little portable propane ones are ideal if you are just taking a car, otherwise, go big. If you have a big truck, and want to strap something larger to the back of it, feel free. Also, in some cases, you might want to buy one of those portable camping toilets with you. Trust me, it comes in handy when the nearest portable provided by the city is far away from your parking spot. Oh, also, bring a football, and some sort of yard game like cornhole or Texas horseshoes to play, b/c you're going to be there for a few hours, and what are you going to do? Stand around and talk? I don't think so.

Food and Beverage: Meat. Lots of meat. Burgers, ribs, sausages, steaks....you get the idea. Tailgaters don't so much like vegetables and fruits. Fruits might be okay if they've been sliced and soaked overnight in alcohol, but that's about it. Vegetables? Unless it's cut up and on a skewer between a couple pieces of chicken or steak, no one wants to see those either. Oh, and you'll need beer. Plenty of beer. Because going to a game sober is like, I don't know, going on a date sober. It's just not as much fun. If you are adventerous, you can bring some hard liqour as well, but that's really being aggressive.

So there you go, a brief guide to tailgating. Hope that helps folks!

Under Pressure

2006-08-21T14:40:00.001-07:00

It is officially the worst part of the summer if you happen to be a student. Finals Week. However, it was brought to my attention that I hadn't posted anything in a while (10 days to be precise) and I had to get off my behind and do so.

The hardest part of this little finals crunch is only amplified by the fact that Put-In-Bay is only a few days away. Four to be exact. Twenty people, 2 houses, and plenty of alcohol means that the potential for debauchery reaches some kind of exponential level that even my stats-Nazi econ professor couldn't compute. Speaking of him, I really can't wait to take his final and walk away from that class forever. It seems like the closer I come to graduating the more I question why I'm doing this to myself.

Granted, it beats working for a living, right?

Oh, and somewhere along the line I drank the Kool-Aid and got myself a MySpace page, and I am officially a 15 year old girl. All I need now is to buy some Justin Timberlake records and complain about how my parents aren't fair. Actually, I can't be too hateful or bitter towards the MySpace thing, I've actually gotten back in touch with quite a few good friends from HS and college that I hadn't seen in forever, and even tracked down one of my cousins. Also, it helps me keep up with some of my newer, very fun friends, like Melissa, Suz and Jen. Though I think some (all) of them might drink more than I do. Let's just say when you have an event called Wasted Wednesday, and the only qualifier for it is that it's a day of the week, well you know.....

Other than that, I got nothing! I'm just busy looking forward to the beginning of flag football season, the Buckeyes, and the Browns home opener, and of course, the tailgaiting and heavy drinking that comes along with those events.

Procrastination

2006-08-11T14:25:00.000-07:00

I'm pretty much an all-star when it comes to putting things off. For whatever reason, I've always worked a lot better under pressure. I always put off studying to the last possible second. Take today, for example. I don't have anything specific to do all day, so you'd think I'd be doing my homework for my Monday classes, working on my individual and group projects, and generally taking care of business, right?

Yeah, no.

Instead, I've been sorting through stuff on my desk, cleaning, doing laundry, watching my TiVo'd recording of last nights Browns preseason game, and now, playing on the internet.

Why can't I motivate myself to do school work? Lack of interest? Check. Adult ADD? Check. The fact that it's beautiful outside, and sitting on the porch listening to a Jack Johnson bootleg is about 1000X cooler than macroeconomics? Check.

Speaking of Macroecononmics. I think this is one the generally younger generation of the internet can appreicate. That class starts at 6:30, so I have a routine. I get there about 20 after, drop my books, run to use the rest room, and grab something to drink out of the vending machine. On Monday, somehow, I got caught in a conversation with someone from an old class, and didn't make it in until 6:32. The professor, in front of everyone, asks to see me at the break. At the break he says "I'd really appreciate it if you could be here when I start" What???? I was TWO minutes late. Besides, he's NEVER on time. Additionally, I'm PAYING to be there. So if I want to miss two minutes of his babbling? Guess what? It's on my dime. I didn't make a sound when I came in, no one looked at me, and I sit in the back, so I was in no way disruptive. Besides, to call me out in front of the class? Classy. Really.

Oh, by the way, Happy Birthday Sharda, I'll see you and everyone else at the Map Room tonight! That should be fun, to say the least.

Recovery

2006-08-07T14:53:00.000-07:00

Ouch. Friday Weddings plus Saturday outdoor music festivals = me still being very hungover and tired today. At least I had class all morning, that was fun. You know, except not.

Couple of quick things:

1- Congratulations to our friends Shannon and Mark on their wedding and all that good stuff. I think everyone had a great time. According to Sarah's recount of the festivities, some people had more fun than others, I think

2- The Indians keep getting worse, and the Cards aren't playing much better. These are not fun things for me to talk about.

3) Since I talk about sports here more than half of you probably care to read about, myself and a couple of the other guys decided to start a Sports Blog.......hopefull I'll update that one more often. Credit to Jen for coming up with the actual title. When we become a big deal, I'll make sure you get the first coffee mug with the name of the site on it.

Ha! I knew it!!

2006-07-26T17:02:00.000-07:00

Like there was really ever any doubt

Not that there's anything wrong with that.....

It's perfectly socially acceptable.

Rushed....

2006-07-24T11:59:00.000-07:00

Well, it only took me about 50 tries to log in today, just to put up a little blurb. I actually have a lot of things I'd love to ramble about, but I have a midterm tonight at 6:30, and well, being that I'm dumb, studying kind of preempts blogging. (Don't stone me to death for saying that)

Couple of quick thoughts though, just b/c:

The new Killers' song When You Were Young is on their MySpace page
I highly reccomend checking it out, it's pretty much spectacular.

To the guy on World Series of PopCulture that didn't know that George Jefferson ran a dry cleaning business: Shameful, just shameful.

To the woman on World Series of PopCulture that couldn't identify Young MC from this lyric:

"A chick walks by you wish you could sex her But she's in another world like you was Poindexter"

Your hair clearly indicated that you grew up in the 80s. Be embarrassed.

But, to the guy who got eliminated in a tie breaker because he couldn't name any songs off of ABBA Gold? You just got plain screwed buddy. I feel for you.

Bleh.....

2006-07-12T20:16:00.000-07:00

So you'd think now that I'm doing even less with my life, I'd have more time to blog. Well, I do, I just haven't utilized it to do so.

The last time I wrote was on the 29th, which coincidentally ended up being my last day of work, two weeks ahead of schedule. This isn't necessarily a bad thing. It was suprirsing to say the least, especially b/c we found out THAT DAY that we were done. So, I took a few days off (literally 5) and then started school last week. So I'm officially a full time student, which right now means 2 classes and an independant study type thing. And to someone who's used to working and going to school, and having a flag football league going on and etc etc, I feel like a general vagabond. A relatively relaxed one though.

So in the last two weeks....hm....

1) I spent 300$ on books, FOR TWO DAMN CLASSES
2) I went on a nice little 4th of July weekend bender
3) Learned that I like to play Scrabble way too much, to the point of almost trying to brave a downpour (4th of July, pre-fireworks, not good times)
4) Got boned for another 100$ by my car for a part that seriously looks like a slightly mutated spark plug
5) And solidified that I would be the most lamest uncle in the world.

In regards to #5, it was my friends 8 year old's b-day this past Sunday, and they had a little pizza party type thing with games and the like for him over the weekend. We were basically told to bring a gift if we think it's appropriate. Now, mind you, I haven't been 8 for a long, long time, and most of my friends don't have kids. Therefore, I'm living in kind of a vacuum of cool. So what did I buy? I got him books. Not action figures, or Leggos, or Superman stuff (all of which he got). I got him a copy of Charlotte's Web, and a shorter book that's part of a series that he apparently likes (via his dad).

Mind you, he opened my gift right after he opened gifts from his real uncle, one of which included a BAG OF CASH!!!

Listen. Even 8 year olds like money. I know this, you know this. I'm pretty sure nothing makes you feel more lame than the look on a small child's face when he realizes that what he just unwrapped is meant to be read, not spent. On more toys.

Bottom Line? If I had brothers and sisters, I'd be that lame uncle that gives crappy gifts.

I suck.

Taking A Spill

2006-06-29T10:24:00.000-07:00

I'm amazed that I haven't blogged more often lately, given that I'm doing just short of, oh, I don't know, NOTHING at work right now. Granted, I can't complain, b/c I am a total of 12 days or so away from being done with the company forever. Nothing to be mad about there.

So I was relaxing on my front porch the other day (because somehow, it's nice and cool outside, and a total f'ing sauna in my house) and I saw some kid learning how to ride his bike in the parking lot of the church across from my house. And I started thinking why don't I have any memories of my dad teaching me how to ride?

Then I remembered:

I got my first "big kid" bike when I was 5. Of course, it was black, with the foot brakes, the kickstand, and the requisite training wheels. The training wheels didn't last too long. (Surprise, I was impatient as a child too!!) Now, my birthday is in March, which in Erie means "the dead of fucking winter). So I didn't get a lot of practice in right away. By May, I was ready to ride outside though, sans training wheels. So on a relatively chilly afternoon, after a nice spring rain storm, my father takes me out with the intention of "learning to master this here bi-cycle".

There were two inherent problems here. One, we lived on a tar-and-chip road, which is a fancy form of well pressed gravel, with sharper rocks. Two, in front of all of the houses on both sides of the streets, there were open run-off ditches that filled (and occassionally overflowed) with rainwater. Oh, and I still hadn't ridden on my own, without the trainers. This sounds like a recipe for a concusion, doesn't it?

So we start out the old fashioned way, nice and slow, the old man holding onto the back of the seat, walking/jogging behind the bike, going only a quarter of the way up the street, letting me get a "feel" for it. Apparently, I thought I was doing well, b/c I said "Let's go all the way up the street and back"

Well, we made it up, again going relatively slow. I must have thought I was actually good at riding my bike at this point. Because after he helped me turn around, I hammered it.

To his credit, the old man kept up for a good 75 yards or so as I remember it. Then, well, physics took over, and I outran him. Unfortunately, I didn't know it. So I'm cruising, pumping away as fast as I can, when I realize that I'm getting close to our house on the corner. Dilema

I have to somehow stop, or get into the driveway quick, b/c our quiet, suburban street intersected with a relatively busy one. Not the place for a clueless kid on a bike. Without a helmet. Herein lies the problem though. I hadn't so much mastered slowing down and turning or braking. Whoops. So, I tried to turn it hard, while trying to brake, and maneuver into the driveway. Yeah, not so much. Instead, I ended up going flying off the bike, towards the yard.

Remember those run-off ditches I mentioned? Oh, they were full. And, I hit one, hard. Actually the water kind of broke my fall, you know, kind of. Oh, and the bike then bounced of the mailbox and landed on me. Awesome.

****Other note, I know Sarah already mentioned this, but Sunday we helped Drew and Diane move into their new, very cool house. For me, there were two highlights:

1) In the moving truck, Drew, Matt and I had a kareoke moment to Hootie and the Blowfish's "Hold My Hand"

2) Diane had an old wardrobe thingy that she was going to throw out, so she let the boys take the hammers to it. So. Much. Fun.

And I'm a dork.

The Countdown Continues

2006-06-22T06:05:00.000-07:00

I've officially hit the wall. I only have 22 calendar days left at my job. There's no new work coming in, I've finished up almost all of my existing work, and I'm more or less getting stir-crazy over here. (Who says stir-crazy anymore anyways? Apparently, your grandma, and me.)

That being said, I'm relatively serene about the whole thing, possibly because I've scheduled for school, I have a severance package coming, and really, in some ways, it's going to feel so much like a vacation.

But then, I'll have to find another job, and that's going to suck. Because working for the man is so overrated. You except for that whole, "getting a paycheck" and "paying your bills" stuff.

Rockin Out

2006-06-19T16:28:00.000-07:00

Stuff I'm currently listening to to the point that it'll bore me to death before long I'm sure......

Matchbook Romance- Monsters
Hard-Fi Hard to Beat
Pearl Jam- Life Wasted
Yeah Yeah Yeahs- Cheated Hearts
Panic! At the Disco- I Write Sins Not Tragedies
Brandi Carlile- Follow
Taking Back Sunday- Make Damn Sure
Buck Cherry-Crazy Bitch
Gnarls Barkley-Crazy

And yes, I'm a total dork. Anybody got anything I might like based on what I've listed here? Let me know

Two out of Three Mentally Impaired People Agree....

2006-06-15T10:50:00.000-07:00

Always wear a helmet-

I couldn't resist that one. F*ck Pittsburgh.

A Little About A Lot

2006-06-08T13:37:00.000-07:00

Unemployment Countdown: 36 Days

Again, I've managed to go over a week without updating.

I attribute part of this to the fact that I'm in Claustrophobia Row for the rest of my days here at the company. Unfortunately I used to have a seat in a relatively remote area of our floor, where I didn't have anyone in the cubes on either side of me, across from me, or behind me. Now I'm surrounded. Couple that with the fact that the person behind me is way too close b/c our row is so narrow that a pre-lipo Star Jones couldn't fit down it with a can of Crisco and a battering ram behind her, and you can see why I don't get a chance to "work" on my blog much lately.

Also, it's taken me a good 2-3 days to recover from the Pujols injury. Watching the Cards lose three in a row threatened to actually keep me in bed today, but I figured I'm already off tomorrow, since I don't do Fridays anymore, so I better get in here.

I'm not even going to talk about the Indians. I was going to post about them after going to the game on Sunday (where they got blasted by the Angels of Southern California/Los Angelas/Alameda County/Northern Mexico) but I decided that I don't write about minor league teams.

Oh, and for anyone paying attention, I'll be in Columbus Satruday night, hopefully less than sober, and hopefully ending up at Frog Bear at some point.......

People from My Hometown Continue To get Famous

2006-05-31T15:17:00.000-07:00

Or is it infamous????

Folks, you wonder why I moved here 9 years ago? People like this is why

Catching Up

2006-05-31T09:15:00.000-07:00

Good lord, I haven't posted in 8 days? Why? Oh wait, b/c I spent 3 days recovering from the Cavs playoff collapse, 3 more days being completely drunk and worthless, and 1 day at a wedding. So really, it's only been a day since I've posted. So, in interest of that, and the fact that nothing interesting has happened, I'll just throw a few things out there:

For Drew: Air Guitar World Champsionship Video

The girls in our group are going to Vegas for the weekend, leaving tomorrow, coming back Sunday, as Sarah already mentioned. As a public service, I'll make sure I compile some of the classy drunken text messages we recieve over the weekend, as I'll be with most of their boyfriends and husbands. I'll post them here for you as they come in.

The Indians (25-26) continue to flounder along like the team most likely to underachieve all season. When the season started I said I thought they'd win 95-97 games. I'm retarded.
At least I still have the Cardinals.

Also, I know this happened a week ago, but AJ Pierzynski getting punched in the jaw? File that under things most of us have been DYING to see happen. This is a great little reenactment. Trust me, you just have to see it.

Pistons 79-LeBron 27-Cavs 34

2006-05-22T10:04:00.000-07:00

Well, the NBA got the outcome that I couldn't have imagined that it wanted.

LeBron is out of the playoffs.

I hate to sound like just another bitter Cavs fan, complaining about the refs, cursing ABC Sports, and hoping to attend the funeral of Rasheed Wallace during my lifetime just to spit on his grave, but that's what I am right now.

Fact is though, we still had no business being there. Our (alleged) second best player, Larry Hughes was a shell, getting his first significant minutes in over a week after the passing of his brother. Our (supposed) All-Star center pretty much seemed like he was part of a David Copperfield act, considering how many times he disappeared.

And quite frankly, I haven't seen a supporting cast this bad since the last season of the Cosby Show. I mean, really, Cousin Pam=Damon Jones. Neither of them are funny, nor do they bring anything but really odd fashion sense to the table.

The Cleveland Sports Tragedy montage was the epitome of class by ABC. Showing it once before the game wasn't enough. Showing it twice apparently was. If the game producers suddenly end up at the bottom of a lake somewhere, don't be surprised when it's Cleveland natives who end up being responsible.

The really insulting part of that is that those were all games or series that we were supposed to win. This wasn't really even a comparable situation. Yet, ABC decided that punching us in the stomach wasn't enough. They were going to steal our girlfriends and burn down our homes as well.

Hey, how about that Tribe? Oh, they're 22-22 and 7 1/2 games out already? Sweet.

At least I still have the Cardinals. I'm moving to St. Louis. Seriously.

Because He's LeBron James, and You Most Definitely Are Not...

2006-05-18T14:00:00.000-07:00

It's almost 2 in the afternoon, and I think I'm just now coming down from last nights Cavaliers game.

If you don't follow basketball, or better if you live under a rock, you might not have noticed that the heavily un-favored Cavaliers just went up 3-2 in the best of seven.

When I say heavily, I mean Rosie O'Donnell after 5 days on a cruise ship heavy. The Pistons, they of two straight losses to the Cavs in Cleveland, went into the game as 11 point favorites.

Basically, the Pistons are a two time defending Eastern Conference champion. They have their bling, courtesy of an aging and decombusting Laker team in the 2003-2004 Finals. The Cavs have precisely one guy on the roster who's even been to an NBA finals: Eric Snow. Most of this roster hadn't seen significant playoff minutes.

Small problem: Apparently with all the fervor surrounding the playoffs, their win over the Wizards, and the unfortunate drama around Larry Hughes family, someone forgot to tell the Cavaliers that they didn't have any business winning even a game in this series.

The Cavaliers have won these games in a manor in which a team with limited experience, a young superstar, and a rookie coach aren't supposed to understand. They've played defense, limited possessions, maintained poise, and occassionally smacked Detroit in the mouth when necessary.

And sadly, most of the media is still just waiting for the other shoe to drop. For the Cavs to feel the pressure, Detroit to regain it's composure, and for LeBron and company to fold like a Walmart tent in a stiff breeze.

It still hasn't happened. It was supposed to go down last night. It didn't. The LeBronaires made their plays when they had to. Detroit looked scared, lost, and rattled.

And yet, the failures of the Pistons are still being attributed to the Pistons. They're beating themselves, making mistakes, not coming through. Here's my thought on that: By the time you get to this level, you've won a title, etc, you don't solely beat yourself. Someone has to make you do it.

By finally discovering that there ARE two ends of the floor in an NBA game, the Cavaliers are giving Detroit a taste of it's own heavy medicine. Ten blocked shots last night? Forcing Chauncey Billups to foul out? That's not just Detroit short-comings, that's the Wine and Gold exerting their will as an extention of that one man: LeBron.

Even if they don't win this series, which, being that it's a Cleveland team, I'm not going to rule out something bad happening. However, if nothing else, this has served as a notice: They're not just happy to be there to learn.

Scoop Jackson of ESPN.com said "Not only will the Pistons' 4-0 or 4-1 series win make LeBron face linear defeat for the first time in his career, the beatdown the Pistons will hand out will make him make sure he'll never go through anything like it again"

But, what if they win, what about the fact that they've taken 3 games from the "best team in the East". Isn't it possible that it didn't take a whole series of beatdowns, only a game and a half, for this young man to realize what needed to be done? LeBron's always taken to things ahead of schedule. Why should this be any different?

To top it all off, LeBron's been keenly reserved in his comments. Even after last nights game he said "This is just basketball, this isn't life or death"

It probably feels like it in Detroit.

They won't tell you that though. It's hard to say it when you've got your hands wrapped around your own collective necks.

Viva the LeBrons!

2006-05-16T12:02:00.000-07:00

Note: I know that Grey's ended last night, and that 24 is getting all kinds of crazy out of hand, but really, I have plenty of time to talk about those two things. The Cavs, on the other hand, play Game 5 tomorrow night in Detroit. AND, they aren't playing to stave of elimination persay.

Why do I bring all of this up?

Because, the Cavaliers have been written off as too young, to inexperienced, too reliant on LeBron James, too soft and too over matched by the Detroit Prisonball Pistons to compete.

Because we live in Cleveland, and we're not supposed to exceed expectations, we're supposed to be set up for disappointment, for failure even. We're supposed to have our dreams crushed.
In this series, the relatively average, competent fan didn't even bother with dreaming. We figured 1 win, stealing a game somewhere, would be good enough. This team wasn't expected to win more than 5 games in this playoffs. Past that, it feels like one big bonus round. We're playing with house money.

The main reason I bring this up? Because it comes at the expense of Rasheed Wallace, that big mouthed, overrated, petulant, team killing piece of garbage. He runs his mouth like he's the one carrying that team on his back. Let me tell you, when you shoot 3 of 13 after shooting your mouth off like that? Priceless. You couldn't carry my left effing shoe, let alone a world championship team. Remember, this is the same guy who "lead" multiple playoff meltdowns against the Lakers as a member of the Portland JailBlazers.

Even better? He's STILL talking! Direct quote:

"I ain't worried about these cats," he said. "There's no way in hell they beat us in a series. They played well. I give them credit. We lost. We shot 30 percent and they had to play their best to beat us."

The Cavs had to play their best? Let's see. The Cavs barely out rebounded them (by 2), had more turnovers, (18 to Detroit's 14), and LBJ shot a rockin 8 of 23, and a bonus 5 for 10 from the line. That's the Cavs best game? If that's the Cavs best game, we don't win more than 35 games this whole season. We certainly don't beat San Antonio once in the regular season, and we sure as all hell don't take two from the "almight" Pistons. Oh, did I mention that we didn't have Larry Hughes for two games?

The moral here? Rasheed Wallace is a piece of garbage.

Because Someone has To

2006-05-15T11:37:00.000-07:00

Disclaimer: If you don't watch, or haven't watched last night's Grey's Anatomy, then I wouldn't bother reading this. I'm just going to bore you or ruin things.

Okay, Let me start this by saying that I feel like someone has to play devil's advocate, or defend the writers, or something like that.
Both Sarah, and well, Sarah, have basically slandered this show, for the story lines, the poor choices by the characters, and the general loss of control that seems to have taken place. I had two people tell me seperately that the show has jumped the shark already. Mind you, we still haven't hit the end of this season.

Here's the thoughts. And such:

1) Listen, I dislike the Izzie and Denny storyline thing as much as anyone. I think she's way over the line, and etc etc etc. But here's the thing. She hasn't gone completely crazy. Is she being completely immature? Absolutely. She's totally crossing a line that they're supposed to know not to cross. But they're interns! They haven't learned not to cross the line. We forgive Meredith and Christina for sleeping with their attendings (also a big no-no, remember?) but we're going to slander Izzie for CARING about a patient. Granted, it's more than she should care, but the fact is, she sees something in Denny. What that is, I'm not sure, but the fact is, we forget that Izzie is as damaged and scary as the rest of them. She's got a daughter she gave up for adoption, she comes from total total white trash and is competing against these kids who have no idea what it's like to grow up like that. Then, lest we forget, her hockey player boyfriend (who appeared for all of 5 seconds) dropped her b/c he couldn't handle it. Oh, did I mention that she was stupid enough to fall for Alex for a minute, who treated her like he treats everyone, and that really, at this point, she doesn't have anyone.
So she's feeling alone. Denny doesn't make her feel alone. He needs her. And she needs to be needed. So, when he goes to sign the DNR papers (for his own, very valid reasons), she sees another person leaving her, bailing out. She can't handle that. She chose him over Alex, and then for him to have the audacity to give up the fight in her eyes is unforgivable.

Then, the heart might not come through. And she knows he signed the DNR. Does she freak out more than she should? Maybe.

Someone said something to the effect of "oh, and now she suddenly loves him?" Um, she was knitting him a sweater, fighting tooth and nail to stay on the case, and doing everything she could to keep him alive. Was some of it selfish? Absolutely. Her little "what about me" speech proved that she had no business being his doctor anymore. Besides, sometimes traumatic or dramatic events bring out emotions that normally wouldn't be there. There's that possibility too....

All that being said, I think we make the mistake of wanting these people to be nothing but black and white to us. This situation, if it were happening in real life, which given the way we react to it, makes it seem like it is, has a lot of gray area. We seem to forget that when writers create these characters, they take a lot of stuff that maybe we never see into account, then give us these little details that try to explain the choices they make, and leave it to us to decide.

The other thing is, everyone's freaking out about what's happened, and we haven't even seen the resolution yet. Sometimes, the writers have to paint someone into a corner to give them a chance to redeem themselves. Think about it that way.

With all that off my chest (finally) There's a lot of other crap going on in that show, to say the least. I think Burke getting shot will teach both him and Christina a lesson. He's not going to die, I really believe that.

Meredith and Derek? Yeah, it's definitely the opposite of done.

In a way, you have to feel bad for Addison. But remember, she started it.

Guess What?

2006-05-10T23:46:00.000-07:00

I don't care if you're moving back to Pennsylvania.

In fact, I figured you were already gone. Even more, I hoped for it.

I certainly didn't need a text message from you, after a crap day at work, and a depressing day in general, to remind me that you existed.

We Are All Witnesses

2006-04-30T23:58:00.000-07:00

I'm not happy about the fact that they lost tonight, or that they played like garbage, but I took this picture of the LeBron James thing downtown last night after we left the Indians game, and I felt like sharing:

It doesn't transfer real well, and I didn't get a great angle, since we were walking the other way, so I kind of had to run up the street and back, but it's still not bad. And honestly, it doesn't do the sheer enormity of it any justice....

2006-04-27T10:57:00.000-07:00

So I walked into work this morning, and on my desk was a letter. I'm not sure why, but Tom Cruise left a note on my desk, and asked me to put this out to the world. Why he didn't just use his publicist is beyond me. Granted, I think the note said something about his publicist not letting him speak in public b/c he thinks he's "unstable", but the note scrawled off into some kind of odd hieroglyphics after that. Anyways, here it is:

Planet Earth,

Greetings from the Kingdom of Lord Xenu! I'm sure many of you are wondering why you haven't heard much from Katie or I since the birth of our daughter Suri. Well, frankly, I've been very busy hyping MI 3 overseas, mostly because the studio thinks that the Europeans are more likely to go see it because they don't think I'm nearly as crazy as most of the American moviegoers do. As for Katie, well, I've encouraged her to extend the silent birth thing into a kind of silent motherhood thing. I think it's best for the baby to learn her Scientology teachings from me. Granted, I've heard Katie mumbling a few things about some kid named Dawson, and something about running away to some place called "Toledo", wherever that is. I've just ignored it though, even though our nanny said she thinks that Katie might have signs of postpartum depression. I fired her for that though, b/c 1) That doesn't even exist, there's no such thing as a chemical imbalance, and 2) We don't need that kind of negative energy around the kid.
Now, the real reason that I'm writing this is because of some of the recent speculation that I might not be the best parent because of my "beliefs" (or as I like to call it "my neverending knolwedge of the truth"). I mean really, look at some of the other awful celebrity parents that are out there. Seriously, look at Frances Bean Cobain. Her dad committed suicide, and her mother can't stay off the smack long enough to make a public appearance. I mean really, Courtney Love is a MESS people. And Frances is fine. She doens't even have a important, creative name.
And really, Brad and Angelina? First of all, they're having their baby in f*ing Namibia, away from the watchful eye and positive vibe of the papparazi. How stupid is that? Besides, didn't she drink Billy Bob Thornton's blood when they were married?
And don't even get me started on that Brittney chick. That fatty can't put down the Cheetos and Red Bull long enough to do anything. I mean really? Am I ever going to let my kid fall out of a high chair? Besides, Lord Xenu is totally watching over her, and that would never happen.
Anyways, I need to get back to my press junket now. I have to make sure that the public remembers that I'm the star of this movie. Not that Philip Seymour dude, who can totally act way better than me, but is so not the star that I am. I mean really. I'm Maverick. Plus, I don't think Katie is going back to work anytime soon. She's sitting in the corner of the hotel room right now rocking back and forth, whispering something about getting Prozac, which is so not good for the baby. I don't care if it's already been born.

All Praise Xenu

TomKat

Karma Strikes Back

2006-04-24T06:10:00.000-07:00

Or my back, or whatever.

So, after making fun of Paul for breaking his finger after 5 minutes of basketball, and the usual mocking of Sarah for getting punched in the face playing football, karma decided to get it's revenge on me.

Actually it got revenge on my back. Painfully I might add. Now mind you, I've had a bad back pretty much all of my adult life, mostly because I have an extra vertebre, or one grew down lower into my body than it was supposed to. I really don't remember, but when I went to the chiropracter a couple of years ago, and they took X-rays, that's what was determined. I've really done a number on it a coupl eof times. Once in college, once about 2 years ago, and then Saturday.

Apparently, at the age of 27, being in the relatively lousy shape (mind you, I'm not in awful awful shape, but definitely the worst I've been), and playing football at 9 am on a Saturday is a bad combination.
Let's just say that the injury in question involved an interception by me (patting myeslf on the back) a short return, and a spin move (pulling a muscle or something in said back).
Oh, and it's our touch football league. For some reason I decided to pull out a spin move in TOUCH football. The lesson here? I'm retarded.
So, I spent most of yesterday on my back, not moving, and cringing every time I had to get up. Good times

Sorry You Guys

2006-04-19T08:59:00.000-07:00

I'm apolgizing for this up front, before y'all scroll down to see this.

We played basketball last night for a little over an hour. About 6 points into the first game, Paul kind of sort of caught a pass the wrong way. It dislocated his pinky finger. Somehow, he didn't even scream or make a big deal about it. He just had his brother take him to the hospital. Fortunately, he was kind enough to send us a picture message of what it looked like at the emergency room, which I will share now.....

See? I told you. Not good times. Sorry Paul, at least I didn't throw that pass!

Sometimes you Just have to Laugh

2006-04-17T08:18:00.000-07:00

Just to prove that I be on my way out and still have a sense of humor about it:

**It's probably a lot funnier to people who work here, but the gist is that my company (which is headquartered in Delaware, was bought by Bank of America, hence many of us losing our jobs now)

Well, That Figures......

2006-04-13T09:07:00.001-07:00

So I'm watching the Cavs get beat (nay: blown the hell out) by Detroit last night, and caught myself thinking "well, it's not that big of a deal, we're already locked into our playoff spot".

Then, Lebron went down.

Hopefully it's not that bad. Right now, they're saying ankle sprain. He's saying it's not that bad. Personally, I don't want to even see him on the floor for more than 10 minutes or so between now and Game 1 of the playoffs.

The thing is, I get the feeling that my reaction was pretty typical of any Cleveland sports fans' response to him getting injured.

It was basically me going "Oh Motherf***er!! Are you serious?!" Then, taking a moment and thinking "Well, that figures"

See? That's the thing. I just accepted it, that no matter how well things seem to be going for a Cleveland sports team, the sports gods refuse to allow us to get to the pinacle.

Now don't get me wrong, these Cavs weren't going to win a title this year. No one who's sane thinks that. But this was supposed to be the year that Lebron breaks through, gets us to the playoffs, and the team would have something to build on.

Now? We're a week-plus from the playoffs, Z is just coming back from a sprained ankle, Lebron just sprained his, and Larry Hughes is just starting to get his legs back, and still probably won't be all the way there when the playoffs roll around.

Again, it figures.

The thing is, it's been that way since here since I was born. Just look at the last 25 years. Jordan over Ehlo, The Drive, The Fumble, That Jose Mesa/Tony Fernandez debacle in the 97 series, and hell, everything that's happened to the Browns since 1999.

And yes, I know this stuff has all been covered before. I'm not coming up with some new, cute angle on it. I'm just saying, suffering is apparently the destiny of a Cleveland sports fan.

It's funny, b/c anywhere else you only hear about the fans of certain teams, not entire cities, being tortured. Like those insufferable, antagonizing Red Sox fans before they won their title.
Oh really, Boston fans? Those 3 Superbowls and 16 Celtics titles weren't enough? F. You.

Well, That Figures......

2006-04-13T09:07:00.000-07:00

Nothing Wrong Except......

2006-04-12T09:58:00.000-07:00

Apparently, Brittney's kid keeps garnering visits from Child Services......

An excerpt from the story:

Spears' attorney, Martin Singer, said in a statement that the hospital made a report to the Department of Children and Family Services as required by state law.

"DCFS immediately responded and determined there was no problem and no reason to open a formal investigation. They determined that the parents weren't involved in the injury and nothing was improper within the home," he said

Nothing wrong, except for the corn rowed, no talent, chain smoking white boy that claimed to be the father.

Two visits from Child Services before the kid hits the 6 month mark? Nice work, Brit.

Granted, if I was Child Services, I'd have someone sitting outside that house FBI survellience style pretty much all the time. But that's just me.

These guys are starting to make Courtney Love look like a competent parent. Just kidding. She's still completely batshit crazy.

Long Live Jack!

2006-04-10T10:49:00.000-07:00

Keifer Sutherland just signed on for another 3 years of 24.

Best. News. Ever.

My Liver is Filing for Divorce---

2006-04-10T08:23:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure if it was the half a pitcher of margarita's, the Captain that I drank before we left, or the shot of Jager at the end of the night, but my stomach was beyond angry with me Sunday morning.
Granted, the fact that we started drinking at 2 o'clock on Saturday may have had something to do with that. In my defense though, I had to keep drinking to allow myself to ignore the girl at the bar who kept trying to take out my knees with her crutches in some lame attempt to flirt with me.
(Memo to Steph on this one-if you have to say a girl has "perfect eyebrows" as a way of complimenting her, that's probably a sign that she's not that cute. Sorry)

For entertainment purposes:

If you watched The Office on April Fool's day, you remember the PSA's they had with the actors from the show? The show's website has all of them, plus quite a few more that haven't aired yet. Check them out here.. Hilarious to say the least

Also, don't forget, new 24 tonight! I linked the trailer again. How many more weeks until we get to see Jack kick President Crybaby in the ribs? Or just shoot out his knees. I get the feeling that on the level of good fights, that wouldn't be one of them.

Also, if you're hunting for something fun but chill to listen to at work, check out Gnarls Barkley. They were featured on an ep of Grey's a couple of weeks ago. I'm not sure what the story on this band is, as far as who's actually in it, but I know any time Danger Mouse gets involved, something unique usually comes out of it.

Random Thoughts

2006-04-07T10:17:00.000-07:00

At least it's Friday. Too bad it's raining for the Indians home opener. Oh wait, I'm not going, so I guess it's not that big of a deal for me. But I do feel bad for all the people that will be going if it does get rained out. Granted, rain won't close the bars......

Oh, if anyone wants to buy my a present, this would be a nice addition to my tshirt collection.

I'm glad to see the Cardinals are off to a 3-0 start, but I'm not believing anything until October rolls around. They've taunted me for two years now, and I'm not about to fall into that trap again.

Also, on Yahoo! There's a trailer for next week's episode of 24. It certainly looks like Secretary of Defense Heller might be making a reappearance, which would be spectacular.

Warning! 24 Semi-Spoiler

2006-04-05T10:20:00.000-07:00

If you haven't watched yet this week, you may want to skip this. I'll try not to give too much away, but I want to offer a theory or two on what's going on......
My general reaction to this weeks' episode? Holy Crap.

The whole Wayne Palmer coming back and helping with the operation? Amazing.

The last scene, when we see who's ultimately behind all of this? Are you serious? Logan? The spineless wonder of a President?

I was discussing this whole thing with Drew last night (you know, since we're moderately obsessed), and we couldn't come up with a good reason for why the President, of all people, would be behind all of this, or how he orchestrated it without anyone finding out. So I started kicking around some theories/premises, whatever you want to call them.

So here's my personal/general theory on the whole thing. Mind you, there's some holes in it that I imagine may or may not be filled in by the writers in the next 2-3 weeks.

Here's my thoughts. First off, I think it started with the plot centered around the Centax gas. Logan is a guy who's supremely worried about public opinion, and how things look to the American people, and how history is going to remember him. Remember, he's not an elected President. He took over after President Keeler was shot down in Air Force One during season 4. He knew there was a prevailing feeling (though not publicly, but within his own administration) that David Palmer held a great deal of the responsibility for getting the country through the last crisis. By manufacturing a crisis, and then dealing with it effectively, he shows his own strength and ability in dealing with a situation such as this. That, or he's fallen into this whole "I'm a patriot" thing that Cummings and Henderson have both been spewing.
How do the other players fit into this though? Well, as we saw last season, Cummings was more than willing to do the Presidents dirty work, as in ordering Jack's murder. I believe now that he committed suicide b/c he knew all along that the President was the man behind this, and killed himself to prevent ever having to give up that information. It was a risk he assumed when he involved himself in this plot.
What about Jack? Well, I have a feeling that we're going to find out down the line that Logan had managed to find out that Jack was still alive. That's very plausible. Once he found this out, the rest became easy. Framing him for Palmer's murder makes everything else a piece of cake. One, it elimiates Palmer, who was about to expose the plot. Two, it eliminates Jack in one way or another. Either he's going to be killed, or imprisioned as a traitor. That alone would eliminate any heat that may have been felt by the Chinese, should they ever find out Jack was still alive. Killing of Jack's friends, well that was just to help draw Jack out of hiding, to aid in the killing or capture for Palmers assasination.

So it's a loose theory, but it makes sense.

Was that....

2006-04-02T23:04:00.000-07:00

Chris freaking O'Donnell?

As in-School Ties, the two really bad Batman movies Chris O'Donnell?

Grey's Anatomy, now you're just f'ing with my head. Seriously.

Sharda, drunk, champagne, etc

2006-04-01T20:43:00.000-08:00

Yeah, We're at Sharda's, and there's multiple bloggers here. Danielle is singing 80's songs in my ears. I have had wayyyyyyyy to much Captain, and I am definitely definitely the only guy here with 12 girls. That's fine though. Oh, and we're listening to 80s tunes. Lots of them. But as long as Sharda takes her shirt off, we'll be fine. Sarah and Danielle say hello. Oh....you all missed the Kris Kross incident. Drunk blogging+hot chicks+hors= superterificfun. Write that down. PS, Sarah has the worst bruise ever on her face. Don't ask.

The Countdown Begins

2006-03-30T06:43:00.000-08:00

Days Until I'm Unemployed: 106 (July 14th)

Well, the official countdown starts today. My department is shutting down, and those of us that don't choose to, or aren't able to, find other opportunities with the company are out.

I'll be unemployed. Out of work. A virtual vagabond.

I have 2 bachelors degrees, and I almost have my masters. I'm reasonably intelligent, talented, and relatively motivated.

And now? I'm screwed.

I don't know what I'm going to do. I don't have a good plan. I've said I can do this, or that, or the other thing, but I don't know for sure what I'm going to do. I'll get a severance, and there's always unemployment, and I'm sure I can find a job if I need to.

But here's the thing: I've spent the better part of the last 4-5 years doing stuff I don't like. I want to do something I enjoy, or at least, find challenging next. However, I'm scared that I won't find something I like, or won't be able to get the job I want.

Today's List

2006-03-27T08:49:00.000-08:00

Things Making My Day Better Today

1) My new Jack Johnson bootleg, circa 2001, courtesy of Sharda. It's a really really good disc. It's clear sounding, there's no background noise, and it's got a bunch of Brushfire Fairtales songs on it. Bonus points for the partial covers of Garden Grove (Sublime) and Who Do You Love? (George Thorogood). Good times. I owe you for that one, Sharda

2) A new episode of 24 tonight. Seriously, the show is like my little piece of crack for the week. Of course, watching it also means ordering food from Angelo's, playing Xbox 360, and probably at least a beer or two. And yes, I promise I'm 27, not 19.

3) Diane's b-day party on Saturday was a rockin good time, to say the least. Highlights included Sarah drinking an entire LARGE bottle of Arbor Mist (really, who's 19?), Kareoke Revolution (PS-I. Can't. Sing. At. All) and an ill-fated experiment with chocolate vodka. Good times

Things Not Working Out Today-

1) Work. Or better yet, incompetance. Here's a tip. When you get a big office and a fancy job title, and make more money, people surprisingly expect things. Telling the entire floor of people to call the help desk when we're having a system freeze up isn't a solution. It's passing the buck.

2) Cold- I think I caught Diane's. Thanks. First you toss me under the bus, then you get me sick. Want to shoot out my winshield while your at it?

3) My bracket completely fell apart over the weekend. Thursday night I was in great shape, in very good position to win. By Saturday night, I wouldn't have wiped my backside with that thing. To make this worse, everyone paid me for it on St. Patty's day, and in my stupor, I spent a chunk of the money. Nice work moron.

A Band-aid Covers the Bullethole

2006-03-20T11:13:00.000-08:00

Alright, I admit, I stole the title of this entry from an episode of Grey's from about 2 weeks ago.

That's not the point.

I'll go on record with a warning right now. This post won't be funny, or intellectual, or any of the above. This is going to be all thinky and feely and uncomfortable. So a good portion of y'all might stop right about here.

Why did I choose this as a post title? Good question.

She came back. In some kind of karmic, "thanks for making peace with one of your old ex's, now try this one on for size" Megan started contacting me last week. It started innocently. Allegedly. Last Monday, a text message that simply said "hello" that led to exchanging texts for about 2 hours. Then, Tuesday, a morning email about a dream she had that involved a friend of mine. That lead to emailing and texting all day. Wednesday, she called, saying she was tired of sending text messages. Another phone call on Thursday, this time from me in repsonse to a text message. Then Friday, at 2 AM, she calls. We talk, but not about anything important.

The whole time, she says just wants to be friends, allegedly. Here's the thing, she made the efforts on multiple occassions, to be friends??
Didn't seem likely. So last night I called her on it. Asked right up front "How are you going to feel if I tell you about dating other pepole, are you okay with that?" She said no. I said, then you don't want to be friends. I tell her there must be more to it. She says it doesn't matter, that she's moving back to Pittsburgh or something, or far away from Cleveland, as soon as she can secure a position, and knows I'm not leaving Cleveland for anything. Says she hates it here. The rest of the conversation trail is pretty hard to follow, and I'm not sure where we left things. Obviously we're not together, but beyond that I don't know if I'll hear from her or not.

The bottom line? A friendship was a band-aid for a bullethole. It's nice to be able to be civil to each other, and talk, but eventually it's going to go bad and bleed out. Should I have been more patient? Maybe, but the fact is, once she made multiple contacts with me, I assumed that she wanted something.

The truly awful part? 2 months of progressing towards getting past it killed off in a few days. Square f'ing One over here.

Fact is, it's nobody's fault but mine. I never should have convinced myself she wanted anything.

Talking myself into it just opened up the bullet hole.

Why My Birthday was Fun.....I think......Maybe?

2006-03-12T17:25:00.000-08:00

Well.

I'm pretty sure that the fog from my hangover is starting to clear just a little bit. Very little.

Let's just say that last night was ridiculous. Check that. Saying that does a disservice to ridiculous.

We started out with drinks, margarits mostly, at Crazy Ritas. There was about 20 people there, and it was a blast. I have to say that I don't think I appreciate some of my friends as much as I should, it was really nice to have everyone there, and celebrate with everyone.

Something really interesting happened though while I was there. So we're sitting up on the little back area, which is kind of elevated a few feet over the rest of the bar. We had pretty much taken it over. I was standing kind of against the wall, just looking around the bar, checking out the crowd. And I see Bethany f'ing Borger.....

Who?

Bethany. Let's try and make this simple. She was like Megan, before Megan existed in my world. In other words, she was someone I was with for a good amount of time, things ended pretty badly, mostly b/c I'm an ass, and needed to grow up, (probably still do, thanks guys, really). Why is this weird? Becuase we broke up all the way back in 2003, before my old roomates got engaged, married, had kids. Before she finished school, before I moved to Lakewood and started grad school.

Literally, it was that long ago, pretty much like a lifetime. And the girl lives at home, 5 minutes away from me, and I hadn't run into her yet. And westside Cleveland ain't that big.

I guess the thing that's wierd about it is that I hadn't given her much of a thought once Megan came along or even for quite some time before that. But until then, I wondered how I would react. I was bitter about the way things ended for a long time. As much for my role in it and the way it went down, and the way I handled it (poorly), as anything.

So when I saw her, it was wierd. But not bad. Just different. It was fine actually. Maybe it was the 3 drinks I had already had, or the fact that I wasn't going to mope on my birthday, or that someone had really crushed me more recently, and you can only really hold a bitterness for one person at a time.

That, or maybe I just realized that she was my friend for over a year before we dated, that until it ended we had a lot of fun together, and that really, she's a genuinely good person with a huge heart, who really meant well pretty much all the time. Hindsight being what it is, I would have left me too. I wasn't a great person to be around back then. I needed to grow up.

So, I did the right thing. I went and said hello. We talked, caught up on each others careers, families, friends of each others that we had grown fond of while we were together. We laughed a little bit, talked about how everyone changes a lot in 4 years, especially at our age, and that was it. She saw people coming up to say happy birthday, wished me one as well, we said it was good to see each other, and that was it. I went over and said good bye to her before we moved on to the next bar, bought her a drink, and told her maybe I'll see her again in another 4 yeras......

And then yesterday, of all things, I was messing around online, and saw her instant messenger account was active. Why I had instant messenger on is beyond me. It logs me in when I turn the computer on and I just leave it up for no reason. So I hit the little buddy info thing, just to see what she had up, and the girl has a blog. Of course. Small world huh?

Playlisting

2006-03-03T08:37:00.000-08:00

Just a sampling of what's rocking on my iTunes lately....

Matisyahu-Youth
Arctic Monkeys- I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor
White Stripes- The Denial Twist
Franz Ferdinand- The Fallen
Panic! At the Disco- There's a Good Reason These Tables are Numbered Honey, You Just Haven't Figured it out Yet.....
Prince- Black Sweat
The Killers - Indie Rock n' Roll
Jack Johnson - Jungle Gym/Better Together
Teddy Geiger - Try to Hard
Brandi Carlile - Throw it All Away
New Found Glory - The Story So Far
Foo Fighters - Friend of a Friend

I know, none of these songs really fit together. Anybody else finding anything new out there that they like?? I'm always trying to hunt new stuff down.

In Case you Are Bored Today....

2006-03-02T10:01:00.000-08:00

Sometimes, through the wonders of the internet, I stumble upon greatness....and I share it with you, out of friendship.

CNN/Money.com apparently has a lot of time on their hands, even though it's tax season. TV Dad's probably salary calculations? Priceless. Tony Danza is really getting the short end of the stick here.

But this link is much better. MC Hammer + New Album + Blog = Speechless.

3 Day Hangovers, The Rise of George, The Fall of Rudy

2006-02-28T09:16:00.000-08:00

Let's just say that it's Tuesday morning, and I'm still feeling very beat up from Saturday night. Drinking from 7:30 PM to 3 AM? At 21, this equals fun. At almost 27, this equals fun at the time, then roughly 2-3 days of feeling like holy death. Really, spending all day Sunday feeling like I was punched in the stomach? Bad times.

That being said, the party/fundraiser at the LVT on Saturday was one of the best times I've had in a long time. We had roughly 70 people, killed 2 kegs in about 4 and a half hours, and as far as I know, everyone had a really good time. Granted, as far as I know, I had a good time, but I'm not 100% sure. I am thankful that it worked out as well as it did, I was worried that we'd have a subpar turnout, and that I'd feel like a big jackass for thinking it could work. Fortunately, everyone on our team did a great job of getting a lot of fun, cool people to show, so the hardest thing I had to do all night was walk around with an envelope of money on my arm without losing it, and put wristbands on people's arms without anyone losing too much arm-hair.

Grey's Anatomy

My first mistake in writing about this show is that I go to the writer's blog after every episode, so I take what I already think about the episode, then add it to that, and I feel like I'm not making any points that haven't already been made. However, I will say a couple of things. 1) Having George narrate the episode was really cool, and a great change of pace. We always see everything through Meredith's eyes, and as she gets more pathetic, and more lost in her own despair, it's good to see her through someone else's eyes. 2) I liked how they built the entire episode around karma, seeing people getting what they deserve for their actions, both good and bad. And 3) I know we're 19 episodes into the season, and I'm really mad that it's going to be over soon.

24

Sarah and Sharda are going to kill me for this, significantly, but it's good to see stupid Rudy get his. He was awful! And you guys, if you were watching the show, you'd know what I'm talking about, so you can't defend him anymore. Also, apparently Tony and Kim are coming back next week, which means this thing is really going to escalate.

Home Sweet Home?

2006-02-23T14:55:00.000-08:00

I realized that lately all I've been posting about lately is 24 and Grey's Anatomy. This means one of two things:

1) I'm very shallow, and have so little going on in my life that I talk about TV constantly.

2) At least I'm not whining about my break up anymore. (You know, save for that vicious set of lyrics I posted on V-Day, but that was to be expected. Deal.)

Anyway, I had the wierdest dream last night. I dreamt that I was a little kid again back home in Erie, and I was at the butcher shop with my mom. Yes, my mother was old school, we still went to the butcher shop, and she had her own garden. I'm pretty sure my parents were hippies in a former life.

And by a former life, I mean the 70s.

Looking at our furniture from around the time I was born, I'm almost positive of it. Given my love of taking showers, I'm really glad I didn't have to grow up on a commune or something, that would have sucked.

Nevertheless, in my dream I just kept eating. And I remembered that everytime we went to the butcher shop, my mom would give me a piece of baloney out of the stuff she just bought, and buy me one of the black and white iced sugar cookies. The ones that were like the size of my friggin head, but only cost 30 cents? Let's face it, that was like 20 years ago.

Then I woke up and I'm like-baloney? WTF? I haven't had that in like 5 years, and the last time I tasted it, I thought I was going to puke. So why the hell would I have a dream about it? Better yet, why did we ever like that stuff when we were kids? It's like an old shoe mixed with salt.

I guess the point of all this is that it's wierd. If I was like a lot of my friends from high school, I never would have left Erie, which, after visiting there a couple of years ago, is not a good thing. Unfortunately, my hometown is very much on the downside of it's peak, and with the way a lot of blue collar jobs are being outsourced, I don't see that changing anytime during my lifetime.
But when you're a kid, home is home and you don't know any better, you can't imagine packing up and moving, and starting a whole new life. Now, we all contemplate the potential of moving at one point or another to take another job, explore other opportunities, or whatever. And as much as I still sometimes miss the familiarity of my small little hometown, I certainly wouldn't trade where I live for anything. (Okay, minus the snow and the crime)

Grey's, Jack, and F*ing Rudy.....

2006-02-22T09:54:00.000-08:00

Jack Bauer Terrorist Kill Count: 10
Helicopters grounded with a handgun: 1 (a f*ing handgun...come on people, that's amazing!)

I know it's been two weeks since I've done a 24 post, but I didn't have much to say about last weeks episode. And I'm lazy. And fat. You get the idea.

However, I have to say things are finally starting to take a turn for the better this season. Granted, I'm pretty sure I hate Sean Astin right now, and will heretofore refer to him as "Rudy", as I refuse to acknowledge his role in Lord of the Rings, and would prefer to mock him in this manner.
I mean really, you're going to put Jack in custody? For saving 800 lives? That makes sense.

Personally, I'm really looking forward to the point where Tony wakes up from his coma, verbally berates Rudy, and possibly pistol whips him. That's what I'm hoping for at least.

As for Grey's, well what can I say other than: Holy crap.

First of all, I just picked up Season 1 on DVD over the weekend, and effectively cut my productivity down to zero as a result.

Secondly, Burke is slowly turning into my favorite character. The way he got away with yelling at Christina, and that ridiculous dancing thing? Amazing x2.

Third, is Meredith retarded? That whole thing at the end of the episode repulsed me. Is it possible to start to dislike the main character of a show?? She's becoming this self-destructive, sad, whiny person.

Also, if I saw you Saturday at Blind Pig and don't remember, well, you can thank the Captain for that. As for me, all I had to thank him for was a hangover.....

Made up Holidays and Things Of that Sort.....

2006-02-14T09:29:00.000-08:00

Valentines Day is not a day that I've ever enjoyed. For whatever reason, I've felt it was always just an overhyped, super commercialized excuse to pump money out of people. I mean, you don't even get drunk on it normally, so how much of a holiday can it be.

And yes, that being said, I know some people enjoy it, and take it very seriously. Good for you. I on the other hand will probably be out with the rest of the single folks tonight, enjoying not having to be sappy.

In respect of that fact, and the fact that I'm still maybe a bitter little soul, and because I really like this song, I figured I'd post the lyrics here just for fun.

LYING IS THE MOST FUN A GIRL CAN HAVE WITHOUT TAKING HER CLOTHES OFF (by: Panic! At the Disco)

Well Is it still me that makes you sweat?
am I who you think about in bed?
When the lights are dim and your hands are shaking as you're sliding off your dress?
Well Then think of what you did. And I hope to God he was worth it.
When the lights are dim and your heart is racing as you're fingers touch your skin.
I've got more wit, a better kiss, a hotter touch...a better fuck
than any boy you'll ever meet. Sweetie you had me.
Girl I was it, look past the sweat, a better love deserving of
exchanging body heat in the passenger seat? no no no you know it will always just be..me

Let's get those teen hearts beating. Faster faster!
So testosterone boys and harlequin girls:will you dance to this beat- and hold a lover close?

Now I guess we're back to us, oh cameraman, swing the focus!
In case I lost my train of thought where was it that we last left off ?
lets pick up pick up
Oh now I do recall, we just were getting to the part...
Where the shock sets in, and the stomach acid finds a new way to make you get sick.
Well then think of what you did. and how I hope to god he was worth it
For that I'm very sorry love... and though you may have butchered us...
I sure hope you didn't expect that you'd get all of the attention.
(besides) did you really think I'd let you kill this chorus?

***************************************

That was nice and cathartic.....

Ridiculous----Amazing----Etc....

2006-02-13T12:00:00.000-08:00

Grey's Anatomy last night completely blew me away. Sarah already said most of what needs to be said about it, but there were two things she didn't talk about that I thought were truly awesome about last nights episode. Actually more than that, so I'll just type and see what comes out.

My thoughts are always more about the writing than anything, because I like writing (even though I'm an awful writer), and when you've watched enough television, you start to appreciate the really well done stuff. This show totally falls into that category. With sitcomes I don't care so much, as long as it's fun, but for drama, for me to sit frozen in front of the tube for an hour, it better be well written.

First off, I loved the way they brought something simple, and inconsequential completely full circle with the girls in the shower. It was so perfect because when you watched the first part of the episode right after the Super Bowl, you figured that was something just a little gratuitous to hook everyone in for the hour. Then, they brought it all the way around to when Meredith was just completely in shock, and broken, and you see the contrast, especially when you see it through the eyes of George.

Secondly, the way they built a relationship between Burke and Derek. First episode, Burke makes it so clear that he doesn't like Derek, and leaves it so simply. Then, through the course of the episode, they're stuck in this horribly impossible situation together, and if nothing else, gain a certain mutual respect from each other that you can really only get from going through a traumatic event.

Also, I thought it was interesting to see the other side of Bailey, b/c she's pretty much 99% bad-ass. At least, that's how she was always written. So seeing her so weak, giving up like that, and then seeing her snap back was awesome. Especially when she says "O'Malley, stop staring at my va-jay-jay". Priceless.

Let's Vote!

2006-02-13T09:43:00.000-08:00

I meant to post this a week ago, but we still have time since the event isn't until Thursday.

Danielle, as you may remember, is putting herself up for auction all 18th century slave-trade style, except with nicer clothes. And drinks. And for chairty. So it's not like that at all.

Anyway, we were joking about a week ago that we should get a bet going on the age of the wonderful philanthropist that's going to wager hard earned bling for the chance to spend an evening with her. We'll make it easy, it's either over or under.

We decided on an age: 44. Oh, and I'll take the over. Game on.

I sorta feel bad even doing this, since Danielle is doing it for a good cause, and is clearly a better person than me. Then again, me putting myself up for auction would just lead to a very disappointed charity.

Wait. I'm over it.

2006-02-10T06:34:00.000-08:00

I'm kind of mad at myself today. I left my Jack Johnson/Curious George Soundtrack at home, and I was truly looking forward to listening to the disc at work. I picked it up yesterday at Best Buy (whom I still hate, but they sell stuff cheap, so oh well). And yes, I bought a soundtrack from a "kids movie" But admit, you l.o.v.e.d Curious George when you were a kid, so deal.

Also, I've decided after a few listens that I really like Panic! at the Disco. They're kind of Fallout Boy-ish, which I am enjoying. And yes, I'll be 27 in a few weeks, and I'm still listening to punk-pop music, which means I may or may not need to grow the hell up.
However, I highly reccommend them, especially "Love is the Most Fun A Girl Can Have Without Taking Her Clothes Off"

Oh, and The Office last night? Hilarious. Granted, the Dwight bobblehead doll may or may not give me drunken nightmares this weekend.

That's how slow my week has been, I haven't done crap other than watch TV, clean, and listen to CDs. And my apartment is still a mess, so watching TV won the battle apparently.