Interior life on the outside

Bah, I was going to post about how much the internet dominates my life, but I've been through it before. It is funny to see the boundaries created tho. Am I the collection of information I've created on the web or something more, or something less. Or have I made myself more by creating a synergy with my webself. I can honestly say I know more about me because of what I've experienced on the web. What is a little self knowledge worth?

I downloaded the soundtrack to Dune tonight and it's very good. I'm not what you'd call a Toto fan, but this music holds up the epic nature of what Frank Herbert set forth. It doesn't hurt that Brian Eno helped out, he's always a nice addition.

Last night I was browsing and decided to check out Henry Rollins' website. He's got a nice little blog type thing going there and I had to read that of course. That man has a serious work ethic going. That, as most of you know, is the area that I struggle, well one of the areas.

Can Tardly wait?

Last night I went to hang with Trip and both Danny and Corb showed up. We just hung out for most of the evening and had a pretty good time. Pretty low key, but always nice to get up with them. Corb, Trip and I ended up playing a little Halo 2 for old time's sake and man, our powers are weak. You lay off for a few months and your skills fade.

Today I didn't do a lot. I watched The Royal Tenenbaums again. That may be my all time fav. movie. There is just something about it that keeps drawing me back. Also I really love the suicide scene. It's got so much depth. I'm sure some would say it's bad to be inspired by a scene about killing yourself, but to me it's just got so much raw emotion. I could go on and on about it, but I'll not bother right now. Sufficed to say if you haven't seen it, you should.

After that I watched various movies on TV and played Warcraft. Yeah, I'm back on the horse (dreadsteed?). Now I plan on listening to some music and maybe doing a bit of emailing and reading. I've been kinda obsessed with ohGr's Welt album lately. He's a member of Skinny Puppy, which is good if you like industrial music. I've also obtained She Wants Revenge's self-titled album, which has a nice Bauhaus/Joy Division feel.

The Year of E

Sometime in January, Adam declared this the "Year of E" and I plan on doing whatever I can to make that the case. So far things are going my way: Steelers win the Super Bowl, I got a job, my bro is coming to live in North Carolina. Now I need to focus on moving out and getting laid.

Anyway I'm in an exceptionaly good mood, as things seem to be going my way. I talked to Nick and Mike today, also getting an email from Adam. We're all setting up for Mike's Bachelor's Party in April. (I gotta get tell my new job I need that weekend off, it may not look that good.)

Hopefully I'll hear that my Jeep is fixed tomorrow so I can start work as planned. I gotta think I got a shot with how well things are going so far.

Good news everyone

At long last I have a job offer. That's right, I got the call last night and I will be working as soon as Monday at the Fox/WB stations in Roanoke. Wooo. I have Kev to thank for this, so thanks Kev. I'll be blaming you if it sucks, hehe.

Of course, the Monday start is pending my Jeep being running again, which remains to be seen. I'm pretty excited. It'll be nice to not be broke all the time. Maybe once I get the cash flowing I can make an attempt to even some debts.

Anyway I'm pretty pleased by that and I'm hoping that my Jeep will be ready by Monday so I can get it going. Not much else to report. I think I'm gonna go to bed early tonight as I'm feeling tired... and cold actually. I hope I'm not getting sick.

Killing and preaching, it's all in there

Well I had a jolly Valentine's Day. Trip took me out for sushi, it was a fantastic date... Anyway I swore I wasn't gonna be more depressed than normal because of a lame corporate holiday and I wasn't. I enjoyed the company (and generosity) of my good friend Trip, came home and watched the end of the Westminster Dog Show. I was pleased that the Bull Terrier won. I was impressed with most of the dogs that won their groups, but dear Rufus was my preference and he won! Woo.

Anyway my cable went out around midnight (that's three times in three months, with three power outages as well, it's becoming tiresome). So I settled in for some reading. I had finished Night the other day and it was very good, some passages were haunting. So moving on in my reading I picked up this collection of stories called Notes from the Underground. It's all journalistic pieces taken from alternative press papers. Some fascinating stories written outside of the normal five questions style of most papers, i.e. with depth.

There was one tale of this serial killer who was convicted in Texas. He admitted to killing around 20 women (and has bragged about killing four times that number), but due to a plea bargain and loopholes in the system he may be getting out of jail in April of this year. Come on this is Texas we're talking about. They do the death penalty for parking tickets and they are gonna let this guy out? If Coral Eugene Watts moves in next to you later this year, be very afraid for the local women.

Another story was about the Fundamental Mormans in Arizona. These people are scary. They practice polygamy and marry off teenage girls to grown men and keep them pregnant almost constantly. The leader (The Prophet) makes all the decisions, including who marries who. This Prophet also controls almost every decision that takes place in town, divorces, who's allowed to live where and so on. It's a scary tale of a patriarchal religious society run amok.

Anyway I'm looking forward to reading more of these incredible stories.

I'm not who I thought I was

Tonight I found out that it's gonna take a whole new engine to get my Jeep back on the road. Yup, the whole schmear. More money I owe my mom. At least it's being fixed now tho, having it sit in front of the mechanic's shop was annoying me. Those guys tend to take their time getting to crap.

Not much else going on. Watched part of the Westminster Dog Show tonight and was actually pretty pleased with the dogs that won. The pug won the toy group and that's the only dog in the group I would even consider owning. Also Rufus the bull terrier won and I love a bull terrier.

I just watched some Wallace and Gromit (gotta love the villanous Feathers McGraw). I think I'm gonna go try to finish Elie Wiesel's Night, which is fairly depressing. That whole Holocaust thing really does not make for happy stories, I tell you. Still amazes me that mankind can be that horrible... not sure why, I see evidence of it everyday.

Sunday sans Steelers

So it's the first Sunday without football. Well, there is the Pro Bowl, but that's like a small amount of methadone for a hardcore heroin addict. So it's a little depressing. But of course I do have the Steelers' Super Bowl victory to keep me warm. Sometimes that will pop into my head and I'll smile spontaneously.

Anyway I'm gonna write a few predictions for next year here and now, so I can lord them over everyone next year when I'm right (and completely forget about em when I'm wrong). Of course, this type of early prediction can really change with one or two free agent moves or injuries. So cut me some slack.

I'm gonna start with the NFC. The big team I can see surprising a lot of people next year is the Cardinals. That's right, the hapless Cards. They showed some signs of life and will be playing in a brand new stadium. Their passing game looked outstanding and if they can get their O-Line some help and shore up that defense they will be a threat. Dennis Green is a solid coach and frankly their division isn't the toughest out there.

The Seahawks will be in the hunt again, baring injury to Hasselbeck and Chicago is only gonna get better offensively. Also, I think the Skins will continue to improve and they could be a serious postseason contender if that offense finds a second receiver. Sorry Gabe, but I think the Eagles were only starting their bad times this season. That defense is getting old and the offense is lacking some firepower now. I also think that Atlanta will continue to be overhyped because of Michael Vick, but will ultimately flop.

In the AFC, almost anyone can win. I have to start with my Steelers. Keeping Ken Wisenhut for another season really keeps the dream alive. We're probably gonna lose Randle El, which sucks, but what can you do? We still have enough threats without him to be a serious contender, especially with Big Ben at QB. He may have looked shaky in the Super Bowl, but he is a game winner. I really do expect Pittsburgh to be in the thick of things again next year.

The out of nowhere team (sorta) of the AFC will be the Dolphins. That six-game winning streak was a nice way to end the season and makes for a good leaping point for next year (and probably kept Nick from leaping off any very tall buildings). That offense really came around. I'm not 100% sold on Mike Mularky as an offensive coordinator (he's too pass happy and Miami wants to play smash mouth, run-first football), but he's not terrible. But yeah, I think the Fish could challenge the Patriotss in that division.

Other than that there are plenty of teams that could legitimately go all the way. Pats, Colts, Broncos, Bengals all have to be at the top of the list with the Steelers. You can pencil in the Chiefs (although there may be too much upheavel with the coaching change) and the Chargers.

Anyway I think that's enough of my lame football predictions. I'll try to hold off with my football chatter at least until the draft.

Ennui strikes once again

Man I am sooooo bored. Nothing seems to capture my interest. I've been tempted to reactivate my WoW account today I'm so bored. I'd like to not do that until I have a job and can determine if I'll have any time to play. Of course, until I get a job I'm gonna have mountain of free time and nothing to do during it. I know, I know I should be writing... I have no excuse, I just don't feel particularly inspired at the moment. Anyway we'll see if my will can hold off the wiles of Warcraft.

Actually I got an email today from City of Heroes about them giving me a trial for Valentine's Day. So I set forth to reinstall it and see what's new. Unfortunately I have forgotten my login, so I have about three gigs of a game I can't play on my comp. at the moment. I sent in a support email and we'll see what they have to say.

Stormy gullet

I'm not feeling well. It's like El Nino and Hurricane Katrina are have a knife fight in my belly. It's unpleasant. I went to Trip's this evening and had to leave early because I felt shitty (literally... I may have said too much). I suppose it's subsided a little since then, but it hasn't been pleasant.

Anyway, I watched Cold Mountain last night. It was substantially better than I anticipated i.e. it wasn't so slow paced like a lot of those heavy dramas. I mean I understand the concept of nonverbal acting conveying meaning, but sometimes those ponderous films just drive me nuts. Also the depth of the cast surprised me, I mean all I heard about was Jack White being in it. Who knew Natalie Portman and Giovanni Ribisi were in it? Also is it just me or is Ethan Suplee in every damn thing I tune into lately? Anyway I'd give it a foot massage on the whole.

This afternoon I watched a bunch of sports talk where everyone talked about how lackluster the Super Bowl was and how the officials robbed the Seahawks. The refs did seem to roll in favor of the Steelers, but it wasn't anything as glaring as the Indy-Pitt game. And the Steelers played through that and still won, so I say screw em. The better team won. It wasn't pretty, but a win is a win.

They both deserve it

One of the best things I've ever seen. Also I'd like to take this moment to point out that I picked every single playoff game correctly. I rule!

Storybook

Well it's all over. The last kickoff kicked and the last tackle made. The dust has cleared and my Pittsburgh Steelers hoist the Lombardi trophy in victory. It's magnificent. It's the perfect ending. Jerome Bettis retires as a champion, Bill Cowher is now locked into the Hall of Fame and Hines Ward has gone from a preseason holdout to Super Bowl MVP. The team that only had an outside shot of making the playoffs, stormed back for the sixth seed and made the top teams in the NFL bow to its will.

All that said, watching the game was pure torture. It was too close to going the other way so many times. I sat on the edge of my couch the whole game. Well, except for those moments I was on my feet cursing or cheering. I'm glad I watched it alone, I would have been incredibly bad company for anyone else. After that interception in the red zone, someone could have died at my hands with me never thinking twice.

But it's all over now and it's the first football season I've ever seen end the way I hoped. Adam and I were talking after the game and he noted that this is a day of joy and sorrow. It's the pinnacle of the NFL, what everyone wants to see and it's also the end. No real football until August. Ahh well, I'm just gonna try to enjoy it. It's the perfect ending.

Barely Hold(ing) Steady until the Super Bowl

So it's been an odd week. It started off with me facing extreme depression caused by no word from any job front and my Jeep's engine issues. Then I made it to Thursday and things picked up considerably.

Trip hooked me up bigtime and we went to see The Hold Steady in Chapel Hill. I really like Chapel Hill, it's just a fun place and man is the full beard ever in vogue there. Lots of Grizzly Adams wannabes. Anyway, the Plastic Constellations and Screaming at Motorists opened for the Hold Steady. Neither was particularly exceptional, but both had moments (a Meh. label is in order). Still I was more than ready for the headliner to hit the stage.

The Hold Steady delivered a kickass show (Filet Mignon). The lead-singer's manic singing style carried over to how he acted on stage and that made for a visually stimulating show. They played most of my favorite tracks and some new stuff that really kicked ass. I feel confident the new album (which they said was coming in the fall) is gonna be up to the high standard they have set forth with their first two.

Anyway because we didn't get back to Martinsville until it was way late I stayed the night at Trip's (no I did not put out). We hung out for a while Friday evening and Kevin called and delivered some good news. The guy at the station said I was in as long as my background check came back clean, which it will since I've lead a fairly white bread life. So that kicks ass.

On top of that my Jeep goes into the shop on Monday and hopefully it won't take forever to fix... although my confidence on that is shaky. Still it's good to get it all started. Maybe I'm finally collecting my fecal particles (aka getting my shit together).

Also I don't know if you guys know this but the Steelers are in the Super Bowl tomorrow! I feel pretty good about the game, although I have to admit I'm nervous. Yes, I know I'm not actually playing, but it's still a big deal to me. It's one of those things that's impossible to explain to anyone who doesn't feel this way. There is no analog here. Either you are relentlessly loyal to a sports team or you aren't. Anyway I'm hoping for a huge Steelers blowout. Yes I know most want to see a good game, but screw that I want Pittsburgh to run it up and me not have to sweat to the very end.

Vikings, cyborgs and futility

So it was another humdrum day here in the rushing gorge of futility (where I now reside). I watched sports tv again (where apparently the Steelers travel plans were a hot topic of debate for some reason) and then watched some more tv, most of which I had seen before. Ohh yeah, I'm living large.

I did read some of this book League of the Damned by William Dietz and will probably finish it tonight. It's about future warfare against a hostile alien race and somehow the French Foreign Legion is still intact and partially populated with cyborgs. I'm rating it a Meh. now, as I doubt it will get better.

I'm hoping the week improves. Trip and I are going to see The Hold Steady in Chapel Hill on Thurday and, of course, there is the Super Bowl. I do have to say if the Steelers lose I'm gonna be pretty damned stunned for quite a while.

I'm now listening to Borknagar, which is best described as a "viking metal" band. I've been hanging out at last.fm and listening to some of their radio stuff, which is interesting. I have to say this isn't my favorite music, but I do sometimes miss listening to metal and need a fix of something interesting.

I'm sorry you can't have any more food

So it was Trip's B-Day today so he, Corb and myself got together and hit the sushi place, which was an adventure. The guy who owns the place seems to have bitten off more than he can chew and the service is suspect. At one point the waitress told Trip that they were out of crab, so he didn't get his complete order. When he tried to get a substitude for his crab sushi she told him the guy wasn't taking any more orders?!?? I enjoyed the food, but it's kinda ridiculous how long it took... not to mention the look of bafflement on the waitress when she was ringing us up. That was scary.

I finished reading William Gibson's Virtual Light, which is not really my favorite of his works. It's pretty good, but he sets a really high standard with his other books. I'm giving it a +1 chainmail rating. I think it might also help if I knew the correct order to read his books in as well, since some of them share characters.

Anyway tomorrow is the first Sunday without football in a while and I'm not sure how I'm gonna adjust. I got one more week after that and then it's the long haul, where I have to fend for myself. Hopefully I'll have a job soon and all this free time will be accounted for properly.

Think I'll wear my Columbian Necktie

So Trip and I watched The Aristocrats tonight, which is a documentary on this incredibly dirty joke. Actually it doesn't have to be dirty...well... unless you want it to be interesting, then it does. But yeah, it's a bunch of comedians telling this joke, each in their own unique manner and it's magnificent.

When Doug Standhope tells his version, whooooo, Trip and I couldn't stop laughing. It was soooo filthy, ohh it was horrendous. Oh and he was telling it to his infant son, which made it even funnier. Gilbert Gottfried and Bob Saget were also awesome (never thought I'd be saying that sentence, I can tell ya). I'm saying it's a filet mignon movie, at least after one watch.

So I'm listening to this rocking band Boris now. It sounds like Black Sabbath and My Bloody Valentine got together and had a Japanese baby that rocks hard (in a shoe-gazey way, sometimes). It's thumping, I can tell ya, killer guitars. That's me bringing you word of the odd Japanese metal band, I'm not afriad of it.

Hip slang

The new cool word in Ericville is Ufia. I will be threatening people with these for a while.

Paint drying and flies fucking

So I lead the most boring life. All I did today was watch sports talk (listening to how great my Steelers are) and fiddle on the internet. That's it... I'm sad. I spent like an hour playing this lame game. I miss WoW, but refuse to get it back until after I have a job and am settled. In the interim I may go crazy. I did play a little Need For Speed Underground 2, but it's hard to play for extended periods.

I did watch How I Met Your Mother and yeah, it's kind of a girly show overall. Lots of dating and romance talk, but what can I say? I love it. It's got good dialogue, hot chicks and Neil Patrick Harris, can you ask for more?

Hey on top of being terminally boring, my Jeep is acting up. Isn't that a kick in the crotch. Anyway I'm gonna go finish watching the first season of Arrested Development and then maybe do some reading.

The very essence of bliss.  

SUPER BOWL!

Hell yeah, Pittsburgh in the Super Bowl. Oh shit I'm happy. It's our year, we're gonna win this one. Jerome Bettis is gonna get his ring. Number six seed coming through on the road beating the three, two and one seeds in their own houses.

I don't know which team I want to face. Both are pretty good. I think we'd match up better against Seattle, just because they are more run oriented. Also Steve Smith is dangerous. Ahh fuck it, I don't care bring em on. We're going to Detroit!!!!!

Down to the wire

I'm coming in with my last minute picks for today's games. I'm obviously picking Pittsburgh, how can I do anything less? It's gonna be close, but the Steelers have more weapons I think, particularly on defense. In the other game I'm really torn. I think I'm picking Seattle. The loss of Foster does make a difference, even though Nick Goings is a decent back. This one is also close, but I'm going with the home team.

I am a heathen

Argh I'm sick of waiting. I emailed the paper in Danville about the job I applied for there and got an email back telling me they just started the process. I haven't heard anything about the job in Roanoke and I'm antsy. I want to work. I got kinda defensive tonight when Trip and Corb asked me about it, but I really am trying and am feeling helpless. So that sucks.

Anyway, here is a report on movies I've watched lately. I watched Hero tonight with Trip and that is still really good (Filet Mignon). The use of colors and scenery is inspiring. It may be better than Crouching Tiger (Filet Mignon), although it's close.

I watched American Pie's Band Camp last night and it's everything you'd expect. That's right, it sucks outright (Mudbutt). It has some boobs, although none that were noteworthy, in my opinion. Trip and I also watched Sahara yesterday and whew, that movie was awful. A convoluted storyline, dull action sequences and a soundtrack that did not seem to fit with the movie at all. It too receives notice for it's Mudbutt nature.

Yeah, I think this photo says it all. 

You ain't got it like I got it

Woo, so I spent the afternoon watching Arrested Development, Season 1. Man is that show funny. I swear, it's awesome. Such an amazing cast and soooo well written. It's a small wonder most people don't get it, it's not dumbed down.

Now I'm watching a South Park episode that I haven't seen. Cartman thinks he's dead.

You know I really don't have anything else to say. I am that dull. Sheesh. Hope I hear from one of those jobs soon.

Nessie, the savior of my nitelife

I have decided my new pickup line will be "Do you think the Loch Ness Monster is real?" That's high quality conversation starting. It is a varient on M. Doughty's genius piece "Do you like robots?" Is it wrong that these thoughts come to me when I'm laying on the sofa watching crap?

I managed to salvage some of my day by watching The Life Aquatic. I LOVE! Wes Anderson and his movies. They are the best. Wonderful tales of faded glory and father issues wrapped in an almost dreamlike world. Magnificent. The cast was amazing and, of course, Bill Murray is a genius.

Inspired by Stephen Colbert's Dead to me list, I have decided to do my own I wish they would die list. I'm sure that sounds harsh to some of you, but I'm coming strong. No halfstepping here, although I will only be listing celebrities on this list and no one else for fear of backlash. Also for legal reasons this is only a hope, there will be no actions taken to this effect by me. My inaction is guaranteed.

Anyway members of my list include: Pat Robertson (chart-toppingly annoying!), Uwe Boll, Terrell Owens, Zell Miller, Anne Coulter, Celine Dion, Scott Stapp and the people who run the oil companies (yeah that's probably half the current presidential administration and their cronies). That's all that's coming to me at the moment, although I am 100-percent certain there are considerably more that need to be added. I'll come back for them. Feel free to make suggestions, I always blank out when I'm doing a list.

Complete waste of space

So my WoW account is cancelled but I still don't have a job yet. That leaves me with an absurd amount of time and no safety valve for it. This afternoon has been brutal. I watched King of the Hill for fuck's sake! I'm becoming a vegetable! Help me!

I mean I was ok watching all the football stuff on ESPN for most of the afternoon, but the football coverage is dwindling. Tomorrow it'll be all NBA oriented, yesh. I understand Hunter S. Thompson's final letter at these moments.

I need me some frontbutt

Well I'll start with some odds and ends before moving into football-speak. First off, I watched Oldboy last night, which was an odd film. Odd. It's a Korean movie about a guy who gets picked up off the street and imprisoned for 15 years. Not by a government or anything, just some odd people grab him and keep him. It gets weirder from there. It had some cool images, including a nice torture sequence and a fight with a hammer. I'm saying +1 chainmail, but not recommending it for the weak of heart.

I forgot to mention I was reading John Berendt's The City of Falling Angels. He's the guy who wrote Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (which I never read, but the movie was good). Anyway this time Berendt is in Venice and goes on and on about it. While some of it was interesting, by page 200 or so I was tired of hearing about the squabbles of rich Europeans and expatriates. So I gave it up. If I was forced to rate it despite my lack of completing it I'd say it straddles the line between Meh. and Shaq-fu.

On to football. I would like to now brag that I was a perfect 4-0 in my picks on the weekend. All bow before my skills. Honestly I woulda been happy with a 1-3 record if that one win was Pittsburgh. But I'm hoping to continue my streak next week (hint: I'm picking Pittsburgh).

I'm rooting for both road teams next week. Obviously I'm dedicated to the Steelers, but I'd like to see Carolina pound the Seahawks as well. I've hated Seattle for a long time for purely idiosyncratic reasons. I've only met two Seahawks fans in my entire life and both of them annoyed me, one to the point of hoping he dies slowly and painfully. I blame him for making me hate them.

But yeah, Steve Smith is gonna be a pain for them to stop. He made the Bears' D look inept and I hear they have a little talent. Does Seattle have that kinda defense? I dunno, I haven't seen enough of em to know. Watching them stop the Redskins' offense wasn't that inspiring (those guys need a #2 receiver really bad). I suppose they could turn it into a shootout. I dunno, I'm not prepped to make picks yet, well picks that don't involve Pittsburgh.

Cocksucking refs can't stop Steeltown

That's right, those pricks did everything they could to steal that game from us, but we managed to hang on. I nearly destroyed my living room watching the game. I swear, when Bettis fumbled late I almost pushed my couch through a wall. The Steelers lose that game and I may have went into a coma (from banging my head against the wall).

Anyway, the Steelers did win and head to Denver next week. Both teams coming off emotional wins, it could go either way. Playing in Mile High (or Invesco or whatever it is now) is not gonna be easy. Pittsburgh has to bounce back and get ready to go. I know The Bus will be happy to get a chance to carry the ball again. His final carry couldn't be a game-losing fumble, it just wouldn't be right. I'm hoping his final play is a kneel down with Pittsburgh beating Carolina in the Super Bowl with ease.

Pick it, don't flick it

So before the games start I will go on record with my picks for the weekend. This is tough cause there are a ton of really close games this weekend.

• Washington at Seattle - This game is tough, but I think the Seahawks will win. I hate the Seahawks for a variety of not good reasons and am actually rooting for the Skins. Nonetheless the week off for Seattle and travel time of the Skins makes it hard to see them coming through with the win.
• New England at Denver - This one is maybe the hardest to pick for me. Denver beat them earlier this season and that makes the Pats even more dangerous, since noone beats them twice in a year. However the trip to Mile High coupled with depleted secondary of New England forces me to pick the Broncos.
• Pittsburgh at Indianapolis - I'm a complete homer on this one. Pittsburgh is gonna win. It's gonna be close, but you just don't beat the Steelers twice in a season, even in Indy. Also the Colts haven't played in soo long it's gonna be hard for em to get back into thier midseason form.
  
• Carolina at Chicago - Another close one, but I'm going with Carolina. The Panthers have looked like a team peaking at the right time. Also the Bears defense is truly great, but the offense is truly terrible. Also Rex Grossman has absolutely no playoff experience, he's gonna look bad with Julius Peppers applying pressure.
  

Anyway there are the picks I'll be belittled for come Monday.

St. Smythins Medical Facility and Pork Sausage Distillery

So I had my interview today and it went pretty well. I wore a tie and played nice and the guy seemed like a decent human being. The job is working master control at the Fox and WB stations in Roanoke. I kinda got the idea that the job is one that is not overly demanding mentally, but who cares. I gotsta get paid! Maybe I can work my way up the Fox ladder and get in good with Rupert Murdoch and turn him liberal! Or if he refuses to turn assassinate him.

*Realizes he doesn't have a job yet.* Ummmm, I'm kidding, I will do nothing to upset my future Fox overlord's wishes or threaten his life in anyway.

I ended up spending the whole damn day in Roanoke, most of it in a coffee shop re-reading Pattern Recognition, which is awesome. I think I'm moving it up into the headcavingly orgasmic ranks. This is a relatively quick move into the "Hall of Fame" but it is well deserved.

But yeah Kev offered to buy me dinner and so I ended up hanging out with him and his coworkers and that was cool. Sadly I didn't get to hook up with Adam, but if things go well I'll be up there a lot and we'll have plenty more chances. I am kinda beat now tho. That commute is gonna be a stunner, I know that.

What's done is done

So I discovered this band Xiu Xiu recently and while they are anything but conventional I am enthralled. There is this song Ale, that's so heartbreaking, it literally brought tears to my eyes. This song is very minimal, woodwind sounds a voice filled with sorry, anger and resignation. It's really amazing. I know some aren't really into sad music, I understand it's the equivalent of a tearjerking movie (although usually not as long). But if you are down, check it out.

Also this tidbit for Nick, I heard someone describe The Hold Steady as sounding like Counting Crows. I admit this isn't my first comparison, but I know how crazy you are for the Crows and maybe I can get you into a band I'm loving. I feel sure that the Hold Steady are a little more about the darker side (drugs and whatnot), but there honestly is some Christian influence there. Seems like being on drugs can make you seek out salvation. Anyway I'm just here to inform, you can choose to act or not as you see fit. No pressure.

Anyway tomorrow is my big interview and I'm hopeful. I still have to weave my shirt and whatnot, but I feel good. I can do whatever needs doing.

Bored and single

Man I've been terminally bored all day. I found no respite. I tried to play WoW and felt stunned, I tried Jade Empire and couldn't get into it. I even pulled out NBA Street V3 for a little mindless flavor. Nothing. I dunno. I think I just wanna fast forward the week to Friday so I can do this interview I got in Roanoke. Probably gonna be antsy til that goes down.

I've been reading the original X-Men comics lately and man, 60s comic dialogue is highly contrived. Also I would like to nominate the Angel for being the lamest X-man of all time. I've been skimming a lot of em just to get through em until they develop into a more captivating story line.

Ohh more good news! My friend Noel from college is getting married. Nobody deserves to be loved more than Noel, he's one of the best guys ever. Of course this marks another name off my ever-shortening list of single friends. If this continues I could be the last single person on earth in my age bracket. I'm gonna try to not focus on it.

Anyway tomorrow is my last day with WoW and part of me wants to play that, but another part of me knows that I should get the hell out of the house. I'm torn.

Sitting there playing clutch butt

Well I discovered my Xbox isn't what's broken, it's the VCR I run my XBox through that has the problem. Sadly this means I can't watch DVDs except for on my computer. Alas. I suppose I'll live, but it is annoying.

I have made an executive decision to stop playing WoW for a while. Just until I get my shit together with real life. Honestly if things go as I hope I won't have time to dedicate to it and paying for it anyway would be dumb. This will also help me put forth time instead of regressing into my fantasy land. Still I'm gonna miss my online friends, they are cool people.

Lots of new music to discuss, which if you've clicked on my new music link over there you can see it all. I'll start with Morningwood (which is fairly standard for me, OH!... sorry) which has some really good tracks on it, but the album is uneven. The four good tracks are foot massage worthy, but the rest of the album is a decided Meh., so we end up with a +1 chainmail rating.

Ummm, got a coupla Spoon albums that I'm still deciding how much I like. They are good, but I can't decide if they are gonna become regulars in my playlists. I'm liking this Xiu Xiu album I got, but it's slow, noisy and off kilter, so I probably wouldn't recommend it to most of the people who read this blog.

The way he wore it made it look more like a tourniquet

Last night I was floating through the ether of cyberspace when I discovered something cool. It's a site that keeps track of all the songs I listen to on my computer. It's pretty badass. I'll be linking it in on the side panel there when I get around to it, but for those of you in a hurry to see bands you most likely aren't familiar with here is the link to my profule at Last.fm.

Obviously it's far too soon to see the grand scheme of my listening. It's currently kinda slanted toward a lot of new bands I've been trying on lately, as opposed to the bands I tend to listen to more often. It'll pan out. Anyway with the addition of that link I will no longer be doing the What I'm listening to thing at the beginning of posts. I'm evolving.

Last night I watched I (Heart) Huckabees. I don't know the keystroke for the actual heart, but whatever. It was pretty good (foot massage) in a quirky way. It had a bit of a Wes Anderson feel, but with a more modern look and didn't have his usual themes of faded glory. But it had a kickass cast and some very nice existential discussion.

Tonight I headed to Trip's for How I Met Your Mother and various other entertainments. We ended up watching a history channel show on the history of marijuana in the U.S. It's funny to note that most of the War on Drugs started from laws used to keep minorities marginalized. That's not liberal propaganda, that's fact.

It's hard for me to understand why our government can't learn from it's past mistakes. We banned alcohol, it didn't turn out well and so we legalized it again, but legislated it a certain way. Couldn't you do the same damn thing with drugs? I dunno, I could go on a tirade, but I'm gonna let it go. It's just one small example of the stupidity of a large beauracracy run by rich, white people.

Who dey? Nobody really.

Woooooooo! Is there anything better than watching the Steelers win a playoff game? I suppose if I was in the stadium... and got to have sex with a Bengals cheerleader on the 50-yard line at the half. That might be better, but this is pretty damn sweet too.

The only problem was now we have to hear about how Carson Palmer wasn't in the game. Pittsburgh was gonna win anyway, but they'll be whining. Anyway next week it's the Colts. I'm hoping they can't bounce back from all the late season strife. Pittsburgh is definitely dangerous and can win that game. Ahh another week of life in the playoffs. Lovin it.

Get up, stand up

Now listening to: Iron & Wine/Calexico (In the Reins)

So I tooled up to Roanoke today to watch some football with Adam and his boys, Had a really good time, but man it's a haul up and back. But yeah, we had fun. The Redskins game was pretty good. I was kinda rooting for the Skins, just cause I hate John Gruden. Not really sure why I do, I just do.

The second game was kinda dull. I don't normally have trouble watching football, but I really didn't give a shit about the Jags or the Pats. I wish the Jaguars would have won, just so I wouldn't have to hear more about New England. But I would have never picked Jacksonville in Foxboro. His friends bailed and we just sat there and talked through most of the game, well and watched all the high school girls wander around. I know I'm too old for em, but what can I say? My eyes wander.

The ride home wasn't too bad, but it was kinda cold. Now I'm just chilling and listening to some mellow tunes. I'm gonna reserve my energy for tomorrow's Steeler game. I'm really nervous about it. On paper I think the Steelers should win, but the Bengals have been awful quiet. I suppose it all comes down to the running game.

Gimme the ol' rusty trombone

Now watching: Colbert Report rerun

So I've been watching the new Daily Shows and man are they awesome. Lots of good ammunition after a month off. I mean this administration gives us something laughable each week, so a month of stuff is ludicrous. Also the "Coot off" was hysterical. I love it that those ancient old white men are the only people we can find to run our government. Oh wait, no I don't.

Moving along, I've been listening to the new ...and you will know us by the trail of dead album and Sleater-Kinney almost exclusively. They are both really, really awesome. I know most of you people have never heard of either band, much less listened to em, but you should. I decree it!

I suppose that's all for now. Have a good weekend. Or don't whatever.

Paging Dr. Benway

Now listening to: Tortoise

Spent the last coupla days vegging and watching college football. Fun to see Penn State pull one out over FSU. Watched the National Championship game tonight and Vince Young could not be stopped. Pretty awesome to watch. Still it's hard to believe that football season is coming to a close. I mean, sure, there are the NFL playoffs but that's it. And it's a long cold winter after that.

Trip tells me I take football too seriously, and I may, but I really love it. I love it more with each passing year. Fantasy football has only added to my mania. However, of all my obsessions, this is the one I have the biggest chance of making work for me professionally. I mean, I'd love to write about video games, but if you aren't in San Francisco or Seattle and willing to work as an intern for two years (aka volunteer) it ain't gonna happen. (Also Japanese language skills are a plus.) On the other hand there is a sports writer or three in every single town across the nation.

Not much else is going on really. I'm looking for a job and hoping the one I'm sniffing now will pan out. Not gonna say much about it until it does, so as to not increase my humiliation should I not get it.

New WoW patch came out this week too, so I've been involved with that playing too much really. I also watched Shaun of the Dead again and it's still good. I borrowed a bunch of DVDs from Kevin to keep me occupied, but my XBox is in the process of dying. It still plays games, but the DVD player is fucked. Another reason to hope I get that job. Anyway I'm off to read Hellboy comics. Ta.

Way to go lunchbox

Man I slept like a damn rock last night. Trip and I went to hang with Kev yesterday and we had a good time. Hit the Noke for some chinese and shopping. I gotta be honest, I'm sick of watching other people shop while I'm broke. I've got to get paid man... gotta. Anyway we ultimately headed back to Kev's place to chill and have dinner. Hung with Courtney and Eve when they got in. Eve's a little cutie. Could it be my tolerance for children is growing? I dunno, maybe in short bursts.

But yeah I didn't get much sleep the night before and when I got up at 9 a.m. it was painful. The rain and gloom didn't help perk me up. So when I got home around 9 p.m. I crashed out until around 10 a.m. today. Whew a nice 13 hour nap.

One of the things hanging with Eve made me think of was words you can say to insult your friends around a small child that you won't get into trouble if they repeat. So far I've come up with are teabag, lunchbox, fairy and nancy.

New year, new season

Now watching: Redskins-Eagles

The Steelers managed to stave off a surging Lions team (who thought they'd show up?) and are now in the playoffs. Woohoo! Next week we head to Cincinnati and look to show them who's the real team in the AFC North. Of course to do that the defense will need to look better on third down than it did today. (Not that I actually watched the game, but I followed it play-by-play online). Too many time the lowly Lions would convert on third-and-long. We need to stifle Cincinnati!

My New Year's Eve was low key. Trip and I went to see The Ringer, which was ok, but not great. I'm gonna say +1 chainmail for Brian Cox and some amusing moments. We then had dinner at IHOP and came home. No big whoop. I did pickup The Life Aquatic on DVD for $4, which is nice. Gotta love Wes Anderson and Bill Murray.

Anyway, tomorrow Trip and I are heading up to spend the day with Kevin. Should be cool, but I gotta not spend money. I'm way poor.

A pain I'm used to

Now listening to: Depeche Mode (Playing the Angel)

Yesterday I was completely useless. I know, I'm usually fairly useless, but I at least manage to do something to up my nerd cred or whatnot. But yesterday all I did was watch a bunch of tv with little or no redeeming value. It's really sad how easily I can get caught up watching reruns of a show I didn't really want to watch the first time around.

Today I did a little bit better, actually making it out of the house. Actually I found some cool stuff online that will help greatly increase my nerd cred. Woo, my nerdiness will know no bounds! Anyway Trip and I grabbed some dinner and then watched a PBS's Independent Lens on the P-Funk. Man is that good stuff. Gotsta love George Clinton. I gotta say that Maggot Brain is the best guitar solo of all time... even without weed.

We then played a little hockey. I schooled Trip the first game and then he racked up back-to-back wins against me. I was irritated, as my guys seemed to go from superstar level to total scrubs. Maybe it was Trip, I dunno. It boned.

We then watched both the new American Iron Chef and the classic Japanese one. That's a show I have never set out to watch, but end up watching it if it's on.

Now I'm reading comics and enjoying the new Depeche Mode. It's pretty good. Some really great songs, although I acknowledge that the Mode isn't for everyone. Still I consider them pretty great and the new one holds up. I'd say it's foot massage material.

fortune favors the brave

Now listening to: The Editors

Went to Trip's for more movie watching. We started the evening off with Puddle Jumpers, which is Broken Lizard's first movie. They are the guys who did Super Troopers and Club Dread. Both of which are pretty good. This movie, however, is soooo bad. It had Clerks level acting with not near as good writing. It had a coupla funny moments, but whew it's a stinker. And so I cast it down into the dark, depraved area where the Torn Colon reigns.

After that Kevin came by and he was spending the night with Trip. We watched the 40-year-old Virgin, which was fucking funny. This was the unrated version, which has extra boobs and is therefore even better. Man, Steve Carell is awesome and lots of good lowbrow humor. I try to be a mature adult, but I love me a good dumb comedy. I'm saying this was a nice foot massage.

We then shifted into video game land and played some Far Cry Instinct multiplayer. I'm not 100-percent sold on that game as great, but we had fun. It was cool because none of us have any background playing that and therefore no one has a big advantage. I mean when we play Halo, Kevin is like a lamb amongst wolves. He was still a bit of a noob in this, but it was less glaring and he won the last round we played. Bastard discovered the rocket launcher and applied rocket sauce liberally. But yeah, that was cool.

Oh and this Editors album is yummy. It's got a nice New Wave revival sound that I'm loving. I think Trip will like some of it, but the slow songs aren't gonna go over. Anyway I'm saying it deserves a loving foot massage. And I don't be tickling or nothing.

Cinemaesthete

Now listening to: KT Tunstall and Deerhoof

After two days of staying in and watching football I decided that seeing the sky might be a good idea. Of course I kept the viewing truncated by heading to the movies with Trip. We finally saw King Kong. The movie was about what I expected really, good but not new and in desperate need of editing. Peter Jackson seems to have lost his ability to cut the chaff from a film to keep it under three hours. Jack Black was fun and Naomi Watts hot (in a classic 1930s kind of way). I dunno it had moments, but I'm just a little to jaded to be impressed by a giant gorilla (even a brilliantly animated one) and a 70-year-old plot line.

I'm saying Meh. but it was decent. Part of that may come from the fact that movie goers are complete assholes. We had the pleasure of dealing with two of the most notorious movie annoyers known to man. We had cell phone bitch on one side, who took the call and had a nice little conversation with no regard to the rest of us. On the other side we had aging couple who don't know how to shut the fuck up. I certainly appreciated their running commentary throughout the film, I hope Peter Jackson can get them to record a track for the DVD release. Personally I wanted to stab them in the eyes with a blunt object over and over again.

Anyway we headed back to Trip's after that and watched Batman Begins again (which was part of Trip's bountiful X-Mas DVD harvest). That movie rocks (Filet Mignon). I'm really looking forward to the sequel and seeing how they do the Joker (who was alluded to at the end of the movie).

A movie I forgot to mention I saw was Hotel Rwanda, which I watched Friday before heading to the Noke. Man that movie is amazing, in a absolutely horrific kind of way. Don Cheadle is one of the best actors alive today, no doubt. The movie details the horrors of what went down in Rwanda and what one man did to help save people from the mob. It's so damn powerful I have a hard time imagining the type of strength it would take to survive that. On top of that it shows the complete hypocracy of the Western world, ignoring that type of genocide because it's in Africa and who care? You can damn well bet if Rwanda had oil we'd have been there from day one. It makes me sneer at our culture.

Anyway the movie gets a Filet Mignon rating, although I don't know if I can bear to watch it again. This is a special class of movie that touches me so much I don't want to see it again. It sparks a special kind of revulsion and any movie that affects me that way deserves high marks.

A slice of cauliflower ear

Now watching: The Three Stooges

Did you see the way the Steelers pounded the Browns? It was a beating of epic proportions. Barring a collapse next week against the Lions we're playoff bound! My only complaint about the game was that Hines Ward needed to catch another TD and Jeff Reed should have not kicked so much. (Both those have to do with fantasy football issues.)

Nick and I were neck and neck all day long in our fantasy football matchup. I was actually a few points in the lead most of the afternoon. But it all came tumbling down when Shaun Alexander stayed in his game way too long. He even got a freebie touchdown from the one-yard line after he'd been taken out of the game. I felt cheated. Now Thomas Jones is my only hope of advancing to the finals. He has to score 11 points to catch me up plus match whatever Todd Heap does, which is a tall order.

Friday I treked to Roanoke to hang with Adam and Rachel (with Mike and Shannon showing up as well). We had a good time. Mike brought his laptop, so the guys ended up playing Techmo Bowl all night. Good times. I actually bookmarked this blog for Adam, so I may have a new reader... maybe.

Here's the new boss (same as the old boss)

Now listening to: Sleater-Kinney (The Woods)

Since Nick and Abbie enjoy the links of my rankings so much I will be trying to update those a bit more frequently (aka more than once every 3 years). I have to admit updating those is a challenge tho. The top ranks and bottom ranks are soo easy, but I really have a a hard time filling in the middle. The Meh. rating is particularly challenging since it is inherently a group of things that didn't really capture my attention one way or the other.

Mr. Pibb + Red Vines=Crazy Delicious

Now listening to: Bob Mould (Body of Songs)

Man am I beat. I got up early and went to Mike's place around 11 a.m. We ended up goofing off for a while and played Techmo Super Bowl on Mike's laptop. I don't remember the Steelers offense sucking that much, but whew, Bubby Brister blows.

Anyway, once we finally got it together we left the house around 12:30-1. We (Mike, Shannon, Greg and Sharon and myself) stomped around Winston-Salem shopping. Mike and Shannon were looking for their wedding rings, so I followed them through every jewelry store at Hanes Mall. I actually didn't grumble (which is a surprise I'm sure), because I understand that it was a big deal for Shannon. So I just trundled along and kept my eyes peeled for both the veal and the milfs (which were both in bountiful supply).

But I finally found a decent pair of gloves in my price range at Eddie Bauer (sale woohoo) and had a good time hanging. After our day shopping we went to Greensboro for a touch more shopping and then hooked up with Nick and Abbie for dinner. It was cool hanging, although I have to say that sometimes I feel weird about being the odd man out. It's all couples and me... but I suppose that's me just focusing on the negative.

Anyway we had a nice dinner, then went to this bakery for cheesecake. We ended up wandering the mean streets of Greensboro looking for some place to chill and ended up at the Green Street club, which was DEAD. Of course this suited us all fine as we just sat down and chilled.

Anyway it was a good night and I am wrecked. I was gonna watch Hotel Rwanda, which Mom checked out from the library, but it has gone missing and she may have returned it. It's for the best as bed is my best option at the moment. I'm probably gonna be heading to Roanoke for hijinks with Mike and Adam. I needs my rest.

P.S. check this shit out, courtesy of Trip.

Three shots of tequila and his panties come flying off

Now listening to: The Exploited (Punk's Not Dead)

Well is has been an odd few days. On Thursday afternoon my power went out. That was fun. I spent that evening playing my Gameboy (Fire Emblem is highly addictive) and reading William Gibson's Idoru, which is very, very good (filet mignon). The next day I get the news that the power will be down for another day. Fortunately Trip was good enough to take me in so I didn't have to spend another night in the dark and cold.

We got some sushi on Friday and watched National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation which is a timeless classic (headcavingly orgasmic). I'd say it's Chevy Chase's best work, although I would be willing to hear arguments on the behalf of both Caddyshack and Fletch. Anyway Trip went to bed around midnight and I stayed up playing WoW and watching tv. When I finally did decide to sleep, I found it hard to come by. I was sleeping in a chair and that never works out.

So when the morning came I was feeling haggard. Trip wanted to go shopping and so I went with him. I have to admit that a lack of sleep did not help my attitude and I was probably a pain in the ass for a lot of the day. When we went to the mall all semblance of good humor evaporated and I became a ripe bastard.

Anyway, we finally made it home and I forced Trip to watch some football. Danny came over and we hung out and played some Burnout Revenge after the game was over. It's pretty fun destroying stuff and trying to outcrash each other. Kev even showed up later on to hang out for a bit and that was cool. I ended up hanging out and watching part of SNL, which had Jack Black and was pretty good. I'm pretty sure Trip wasn't sad to see me go at this point and I really can't blame him for it. It was nice of him to put up with me for that long.

Anyway coming home to a fully powered house and my own bed was fanfuckingtastic. I gotta tell you, I slept like a damn baby. When I finally rousted I was in a pretty good mood (despite my mother's loudass vacuum). The Steelers dominating Minnesota only added to my joy. I didn't get to watch the game, but I followed it play-by-play at NFL.com and that's almost as good...

Anyway not only did the Steelers win, but I advanced to the second round of my fantasy league's playoffs in a dominating fashion. Chris Cooley had a bit of a day for me. Wonder who I'll end up matched against next week.

Oh and tonight I watched Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the new one. I'm torn. I wanna say the old one was better, but I know the first 45 minutes are slooooow. But once you hit the factory its wonderous. Of course, Johnny Depp was really good and I liked what they did with the remake overall (if you can call it a remake). But yeah I liked the new one although I can't decide between +1 chainmail and foot massage. Might take another watching sometime.

Anyway I expect next week to take place in whirlwind fashion as well, between X-mas and Mike coming in. Hopefully my damn power will stay on.

The spirit is willing, but the flesh is spongy and bruised

So yeah, I've been having a fucked up time this week. I'm not gonna get into specifics, but I'll say it sucked. But I'm not gonna talk about that, I'm gonna talk about the cool shit that's happened instead.

First off I got a couple of X-mas gifts (in spite of the fact I had declared the Holiday cancelled in E's world, but I won't belittle my friends' generosity). Karen sent me a nice Delaware Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement coffee mug thingie that was pretty cool. I think I may actively try to get some moonshine in it at some point just for the sweet irony.

Trip came through with his usual cool gifts. He has a knack for finding little things that I enjoy (and it's not just me, he's really good at finding cool stuff for everyone). He got me Jade Empire, which is a game I'd been debating getting for a long while and it's very cool. He also got me these cool rubber bracelets that are a spoof of the Livestrong bracelets I'm sure most of you have seen. He got me three of them, Despair, Apathy and Nihilism (one for each of my moods he says) and those are pretty cool.

Tonight I went over to his place and we watched the documentary Murder Ball, about Quadrapeligic Wheelchair Rugby. Man it's good. I'm having a hard time putting into words what this movie does. It's deep and shows people who've really stepped up and made the most of things without making any excuses for themselves. I could stand to take a few lessons from those guys, honestly. Anyway it's filet mignon and you should see it if you get a chance, it's inspirational and touching without being cornball.

He's a mudder!

Isn't that the most beautiful photo you've ever seen?

yes I love technology

Yay! The Steelers won in definitive fashion (not that I got to see the game, but whatever). In addition to that Kansas City, Jacksonville and San Diego all lost putting Pittsburgh right back into the playoff race. We gotta have a good game next week in Minnesota or we could be right back on the outside looking in. Seems like we played well today and hopefully Cowher has straightened things out. I'm still concerned out our third-down defense, which seems to give up way too many long passes for first downs, but we'll see what happens.

In fantasy football I won one and lost one, finishing the season just over .500 at 14-13-1. We now head into the playoffs and anything can happen. I'm hoping to at least make it into the second round, but no guarantees. Mike has managed to move out of the eight seed, putting Adam against Nick (who is dominate at this point). Adam is unthrilled about his chances.

Saturday I hooked up with Jeff, his wife Melissa, Jill and Trip for some minor holiday festivities and that was fun. Saw the baby, Camden and he's cute. We went to Danville for some dinner and saw the movie Just Friends, which was pretty good. I'd say foot massage overall, Ryan Reynolds is a funny mofo.

Once more into the hallowed halls of consumerism

Trip and I trekked to Roanoke for lunch with Kevin and some shopping yesterday. I arose astoundingly at 9 a.m. and didn't feel too haggard for it. Well I didn't feel haggard until I made the huge mistake of eating hot wings for lunch. When I arise early my body seems to not deal with food well, especially Thai wings. I felt ill for the remainder of the day.

But we did have a good time. I like Roanoke and enjoyed being out for a change. I didn't actually buy much of anything, but shopping was still fun. Tiring, but fun. Some notes of things that left a mark on my mind:

• There was a storm the night before we left. So first thing when we left the trees were coated with a nice sheen of ice that sparkled and made being up early almost worth it.
• A gorgeous woman that smiled as she walked by Trip and myself. Not sure if our oggling was that plain or if she was just in a good mood, but the smile was nice.
• A flower patch at Tanglewood that had blooming flowers sticking out of snow. You just don't expect to see those purple and yellow blossums poking out of a layer of white.
  
• An aquaintance of mine feigning putting my email in his PDA, am I so dumb as to not realize you're not actually inputting something? Jeez, you don't have to email me if you don't wanna, but don't be a douche bag.

When we got back we watched My Name is Earl and The Office and both were awesome. You gotta watch those shows. We also played some Burnout Revenge, which is chock full of arcadey goodness, punctuated by shit blowing up. Good times.

When I got home I pulled out an old fav. and re-read Neuromancer by William Gibson. Man is that a good book. Typically a book that invents a new genre is a good idea, but often tends to be a little bit hard to read (I offer you the Lord of the Rings, which is way too long with far to much digression), but Gibson is a wordsmith who can also weave a totally engaging story all in one. I give this book the rare and amazing Headcavingly Orgasmic rating. Read it if you have any, and I mean even the vaguest interest in cyberpunk and the interweb.

Anyway I gotta go and get ready to hang with Jeff, Melissa, Trip and Jill. We're doing dinner and a movie I think.

Wake up the dying, don't wake up the dead

Well it's good to be back in the digital world. Yesterday around 6:30 p.m. life stopped. That is to say both the power and cable went out. Of course I didn't know the cable was out until after the power came back on (around 3 a.m.) but it stayed out all freaking day. Man was I bummed. I ended up reading through the night by candlelight. You really don't know how dark it gets until the power goes out.

I actually spent an hour or so writing some tho, so it wasn't all bad. The laptop finally pays off! It felt good to write, but I'm not sure if I'm happy with what I've written. It seems to lack depth. I suppose I should just write it and then use that as a starting point to work off of, but it's hard to continue with something you have misgivings about. If course I am the king of self-doubt so I should probably just shut the fuck up and keep in plugging.

Anyway today I headed over to Trip's and we got some sushi action (I had udon noodles and beef, with a california roll) and watched The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, which was still good the second time around.

I have big plans this weekend. Trip and I are gonna hit Roanoke on Friday for lunch with Kevin and shopping afterward (I'm gonna have to get up at an ungodly hour). Saturday we are getting together with Jeff and Melissa for a X-Mas thing and Jill is supposed to show up as well. We're hoping to get Kevin involved and Corb as well, but no word on if they'll be able to make it.

Beat me with cables

I've been slow in updating because I was in mourning after the Steelers loss to Cincinnati. It was a close game, but Pittsburgh did all the things you have to do to lose it. Fumbles, interceptions and penalties. So now we're on the outside looking in for the playoffs and have the Bears next week, who have a decent defense I hear. If we don't make the playoffs I will be stunned.

I did manage to win both my fantasy games, so that was nice. Only one more week left in our regular season and I'm over .500 again, barely. I got a couple of tough games next week, but they are winnable. If I win em I think I would be the third or fourth seed. Probably not gonna win, since Nick has it locked down, but it'd be nice to make a run at it. Of course, it's all about who shows up which week.

Other than football I haven't really accomplished much. I am reading The Once and Future King by T.H. White and that's ok. It's a little dry and has a dated writing style, but has moments. Still I'm struggling with it a little. I think I'm gonna go try to email some folks now, I've been pretty damn awful about staying in touch with people this year and need to catch up.

I don't know about coyote, but it's definitely ugly

Here is a little memorial for Sam, three-time "winner" of the World's Ugliest Dog award, who died recently. Man that's a scary pooch.

Aeon sux

So Trip and I went to Danville today. He did some X-Mas shopping (I've cancelled the holiday due to insufficient funds). We then grabbed a burger and went to see Aeon Flux, which sucked ass. The highlights include Charlize Theron in form fitting clothing. The negatives... are too numerous to mention.

It's a definite sign of what MTV was vs. what MTV has become. It was like they took everything good from the old cartoons and took it out and you were left with a husk. No S&M love-hate murder relationships, Aeon acts like a girl (in the cartoon she was feminine, but always in charge and never to be fucked with) and the hands for feet girl annoyed me too. All in all I'm saying mudbutt. But I do wanna see the old series again, to remind me what I liked about it.

Anyway it was a weird trip anyway because I was on the verge of a black mood for most of the day. I think it's holiday related, although I am just a moody bitch sometimes. The movie didn't help and after we got back I just drove home. Which was for the best, as Trip sounded like he was gonna settle in for a long winter's nap.

Quick recap and pervy discussions

Well since the devastating loss on Monday I've kept lowkey. Went to Trip's on Tuesday and watched How I Met Your Mother (which Trip was nice enough to record for me) and The Biggest Loser finale. Of course, I was sad to find that Threshold was cancelled, but I enjoyed it so it was a safe bet to die.

Wednesday I played a bit of WoW and had a lot of fun. It's hot and cold with that game at the moment. Sometimes it seems kind of dull and sometimes it's really cool. I think it all depends on my mood and the loot that drops.

I also finished reading Inkheart, which is a children's book that my mom checked out for me. It wasn't bad, but not up to the Harry Potter standard. Still it was a good read, so I'll give it +1 chainmail (which seems to be my default rating of late).

I would now like to talk about a discussion that I've had in the past with Kevin and brought up again with Mike and Adam. It's a fun hypothetical topic and it attempts to put your greed and morals at odds. The question that starts it all is: "Would you blow the entire NBA for $600 million?" That's the 12 man rosters and head coach (get it, head coach).

What happens is you end up haggling over the specifics. Would you do it on national television? Do you have to swallow? You also end up with someone who categorically states they wouldn't, but cmon, $600 million? You could buy plenty of Scope for that. I don't know why I find this type of offputting discussion so entertaining, but I do. Whaddaya say Nick? The entire NBA?

Rules to live by

So last night I made an effort to bone up on my Tenacious D knowledge, since they are in fact the greatest band ever. In doing so I saw some super-awesome promo stuff for their new movie "Tenacious D and the Pick of Destiny" dropping in 2006.

I also found the 10 Commandments of the D. We should all live by these simple rules:

• 1. Never stop Rocking.
• 2. Legalize all drugs.
• 3. Quit your day job.
• 4. All Religion should be taxed.
• 5. Cut down on carbohydrates.
• 6. Fuck her gently.
• 7. Never believe what people tell you after a show.
• 8. Always take a spoon full of Metamucil after a heavy day of eating.
• 9. Get at least 9 hours of sleep a day.
• 10. Eatin' ain't cheatin'.

Everybody got that?

Dark and stormy stunnage

Now listening to: Nirvana (Nevermind)

So yeah, I had a bad night with football. The Steelers' D couldn't contain the Colts and the offense sputtered for a resounding defeat. Which sucks. I lost both fantasy games by narrow margins. Just bad news.

Mike and I hit the Noke and hooked up with Adam and went to Buffalo Wild Wings. We had fun (despite the Steelers defeat). I gotta say though, it's best if I watch the Steelers alone. I could easily lose it in a close game. The guys across the room cheering for the Colts got on my damn nerves. If I ever were at a Steelers home game and some Browns fans started some shit, I honestly could see me going buck wild. I get a little crazy. Hell, Mike and Adam thought I was gonna jump the bald dude standing in front of me so I couldn't see the tv.

Aside from my potential violent side and the sad state of football I had a pretty good time. I love hanging with those guys. Wish Nick coulda came up, but he's got a "real life" and "responsibilities," so I'll let it slide.

Getting back to Pittsburgh, we now have to win next week's game against Cincinnati. Five losses at this point in the season is gonna make the playoffs a long shot at best. If we win that game our schedule lightens up a bit with AFC North teams. My luck the Vikings will still be rolling and playing way over their heads.

Anyway, I'm trying to shake off the beer and wing induced stupor I'm in. Man I spent waaaaay too much money this weekend. Sigh, I have to get a job.

Occupado

So I stayed busy over the weekend. Mike always manages to keep me occupied. Saturday we called Jill, who we haven't seen in years, and hung with her. It wasn't bad except for Mike's guilty conscience showing through. But all in all, we had fun, although our abbreviated visit to the Dutch Inn was a total stunner.

Anyway yesterday was devoted to football. Our intention was to go to Hurley's and watch football on the big screen. Well that didn't happen because the place was closed... A sports bar, closed on a Sunday during the height of the NFL season. Dumb. We ended up spending the afternoon at Applebee's. We made the best of it I suppose. It's always entertaining when Mike, Adam, Nick and I hang out, even when consigned to a crappy restaurant.

Actually around 8p.m. we moved from Applebee's to El Parrel just for a scene change. But we got tossed at 10 p.m. when it closed down. No respect for the football watching public in Martinsville. Ahh well.

Tonight I'm heading to Roanoke with Mike to watch the Steelers-Colts game. I've heard nothing but how the Colts are gonna spank the Steelers and I'm hoping we can shock the world. Roethlisberger is back so anything can happen. I think we're also going to Buffalo Wild Wings so I'm looking forward to some tasty Thai wings.

Turkey and boredom

Woo Thanksgiving. Yeah I stayed in all day and had turkey with the fam. No big whoop. I watched a spot of football and vegged. I played a little bit of my college football game and had two completed games freeze up on me. Kinda stunning. I also watched a little tv, saw part of Finding Nemo again. It's good clean fun.

Fact of the matter is I got kinda bored, which is unusual. I'm usually pretty good at finding stuff to occupy me. But since I completed the new Wheel of Time book (filet mignon, things are finally starting to wrap up) I haven't jumped into another book. Also I just wasn't in the mood for WoW today. Not sure why, but I didn't bother.

Ohh, this just in, Nick and Jessica are officially separated. How will I go on living? Oh yeah, like I did before cause I don't care. That Nick has to be a moron, he's not gonna do any better... although she is dumb and probably annoying to deal with. Still his career just died with minimal chance for resurrection.

Brother my cup is empty

Now listening to: The Eels (Blinking Lights and Other Revelations)

I'll start with football, so Trip can skip down, but I'm highly annoyed. The Steelers lost, which is irritating enough, but I didn't get to see a single live moment of the overtime. I'll conceed that the Colt-Bengals game was a big deal, but the Steelers in OT and not a minute of coverage? That's lame. Then to top it off I lost a fantasy game because of a penalty. Late in the game the Chiefs are on the two-yard line and ready to score. I'm trailing by six points. Larry Johnson (my premiere running back) was gonna get the ball and score to put me ahead. (I also have the KC kicker and it woulda been 7 total points.) The Texans go offsides and now it's on the 1! Larry Johnson from the 1 with the Chiefs' O-Line is money in the bank and false start. Move back to the six-yard line and Johnson heads to the sidelines. I lose... Argh!

Anyway, I headed to Trip's tonight and we watched The Lords of Doggtown. Which was decent. I'm a fan of skateboarding and what it's supposed to represent. Often these days it's just commodified rebellion, but at it's heart it's about being yourself and not answering to anyone. I can get behind that. But the movie did a decent job of taking the documentary Doggtown and Z-Boys (which was very good) and putting together a narrative from it. Heath Ledger played a good roll as a surfer dude and I'd give it a +1 chainmail rating overall.

We also watched How I Met Your Mother, which is one of my fav. shows currently. If you haven't watched it, you should give it a shot. It's a sitcom, but hasn't really delved into the cliche fest most sitcoms do.

Finally I just read a really good interview at Salon. It's John Cusack and Harold Ramis talking about their new movie which is a dark comedy. I love the dark comedy, especially with a Christmas background it works for me. But besides that those two make for a really interesting read. You should read it if you are a fan of either of those two (and you should really love em both).

unfuckingbelievable

So I settled in to watch the Steelers-Ravens game, anticipating a physical defensive battle. I watched 20 minutes of the game when my screen went black and then switched over to Oakland-Washington. That's right in the middle of the goddamn game! I'm outraged! Dirty motherfuckers tease me. I couldn't be more annoyed right now. I emailed the godawful station and managed to be civil but it took every ounce of my self control. ARRRGH.

Cruciatus curse on the audience

Ahhh. Sitting here with an air of contentment. Wearing my fav. sweatshirt, basking in the afterglow of a "breakfast" of biscuits, gravy and bacon and watching college football. All is right with the world.

Last night Trip and I went to Danville to see the new Harry Potter movie. The CockGoblet of Fire as Trip calls it. I gotta tell you I'm a little dissappointed. This is my fav. book, but the weakest movie by far. I knew going in that it was gonna be hard to translate a book that big into a watchable movie under 3 hours long and I was proved right.

I'll start with the good things. The new director Mike Newell managed to keep the same feel and similiar look that Alfonso Cuaron set forth in Prisoner of Azkaban (the best of the bunch so far). The school feels like a real place and has a very majestic look with beautiful scenery around it. Also nice job on the casting of Fleur Delacour (def. cutie) and the costume design for the Beauxbattons girls. Well done.

Yeah... that's about it. Everything else seemed rushed or haphazardly cut and then jammed together to keep some semblence of story continuity. Also seemed like some things they decided to cut were based less on making a good movie and more on not spending more on special effects. Also those kids also are not the best actors, a couple of sigh-worthy moments with them.

Often it seemed like the movie was created solely for people who read the book as it glossed over things that required more explanation. I dunno, I think they made a pretty big hash of it. I'd say it was Meh. at best and that's being generous.

Mythology for $500

So I was reading this story over at salon and it made me remember how much I like mythology. I tend to forget how much I enjoy intellectual discussion of some things since I seldom get a chance to think deep about things around here and actually talk to someone else knowledgeable. That isn't a dig at anyone I do talk to regularly, it's just that often noone locally is interested in the same things. Plus we have a ton of morons... let's not forget that.

Anyway, I think once I finally catch up on all my fantasy novel reading I will delve into reading some books of actual academic value. I need to study up on Jung's concept of archetypes and read some Joseph Campbell. Maybe if I do that it'll make up for some of the time I've spent wasting playing WoW or fantasy football. Also maybe if I read enough about it, I will finally sit my ass down and write something. It could help me find my muse!

Actually PTI had a discussion about fantasy football the other day, where Wilbon hated on it. I was kinda surprised. This is my first year of fantasy and I'm fairly captivated. It adds a certain depth to my interest (which was already rather full). Also it gives my friends and I another thing to bullshit and belittle over. In fact, Adam called me tonight and we talked about fantasy football almost exclusively for about 45 minutes. So there ya go.

Over 5K served

So I reached the 5,000 visit mark. Not sure what that means really, but its some sort of landmark I suppose. Soo yay.

Haven't really been doing a lot, continuing to plow through The Wheel of Time. I'm up to book nine, with two more to go after that. They are very good, but I'm starting to wear a little thin. It's a lot of story, but at least the later books cover some plot points and keep me involved.

Other than that I've been watching tons of football. The early games on Sunday were really kinda dull. While it was interesting to watch Minnesota beat the Giants, I can't say it was a game I woulda picked. The Tampa Bay/Washington game proved to be more interesting tho.

Of course, I shouldn't complain as the Steelers were on late and I got to see that. It was a nice win over the Browns, but man I hate to see Charlie Batch hurt. He was playing so well and now Tommy Maddox will start next week. He has to redeem himself in Pittsburgh (I heard his house suffered the consequences after the Jacksonville loss).

I won both my fantasy football games and am now over .500 for the season. Woo. Next week is gonna be tough though as I play Nick, who has all but locked it up. Here's hoping for a big week for Larry Johnson.

Books, books, books and football

So T.O. is apologizing now huh. What a punk. If he hadda done that last week it would have made a difference. Now it's too late. Of course, when he found out that the Eagles were gonna "Keyshawn" him he changed his tune. (To Keyshawn someone is to refuse to deal them and sit them on their ass for the season.) I wish the NFL would just say we don't need your crap and let him go, but some team will take him, the Raiders maybe. Although they already have one douche receiver, how many can they pay?

But moving along, I am getting behind in my reading. That's not to say I haven't been reading a ton, but I've been re-reading The Wheel of Time, which is a serious endeavor. In the meantime the new book in that series has come out, so hopefully I'll have time to finish the rest of the series before the library gets the book to me.

On top of that, the new Song of Ice and Fire book, was released recently. That is probably the best fantasy series going on, maybe ever. (Some would say Tolkien, but he can get way too dry and dull at times. Just cause you invent a genre don't mean you are gonna write the most compelling books in that genre.) I'd put Wheel of Time in at second on the fantasy list, unless you wanted to count Frank Herbert's Dune books as fantasy. Dune is the champ with the other moving down a spot apiece, if that's the case. But l'd say that is more science fiction than fantasy. Which I suppose means that I'd rate Dune as the best series ever, across any genre.

I also really wanna see Good Night and Good Luck, the new movie about the media and McCarthy. It looks really good, but I don't think it's playing anywhere around here.