September 30, 2009- Colorado, Giving it up

Returned recently from a trip to visit my buddy Steve in Colorado. A large part of me has become intrigued by the world around me outside of home. Don't get me wrong, there truly is no place like home...it's that there are billions of people who will never see anything outside of their neighborhood and that saddens me when there's so much beauty out there. I think this hit me at some point during a hike in the Rockies; it was one of those moments that hits you and you say to yourself "whoa, I'm really here". In my case, the Rocky Mountains were that place. Imagine- those of you who do not live near mountains- waking up in the morning, looking outside your window, and seeing breath-taking, white-capped mountains. These colossal hills just aching to be explored and experienced....and this is your daily life, your reality. I'm curious to see what it is about the world away from home that people don't at least want to visit. To me, it's been a no-brainer, seeing different parts of the country and the world...

Anyway, Colorado was great. Saw a lot, experienced a lot, caught up with a good friend...and I think I left a piece of myself out there, which means I'll be back to pick it up some time. Managed to catch Shannon Sharpe Day at the Broncos home opener, as well as a Rockies game, which makes me happy. Upon my return home, I decided to buy a ticket to the last Twins game at the Metrodome (barring a last-minute push to the playoffs)...before realizing that it's over a thousand miles to Minnesota. Fuck. Oh well, stranger things have happened...and there's a chance I may make the trip anyway. It's a life-long goal to visit every MLB ballpark, and this is the first opportunity I've had to get myself to one that's closing...so I'm conflicted as to whether I should make the trip. Anyway, September's just about over, and the results are mixed. I'll update more tomorrow, though it's going to be a big day...

Talk to each other.

September 16, 2009- Shameful

http://www.youthnoise.com/playcity/blog/view/18755

The above link is to a truly heartbreaking story. Caster Semenya, a young track champion from South Africa, was recently outed for her sexual orientation, and has since been put on suicide watch. A BIG "fuck you" to the hoardes of people in the media who shamelessly and relentlessly covered this and pried and pried in dibelief that a "real" female could possess such skills. Honestly, fuck yourselves. You have publicly outed this poor kid in front of the ENTIRE WORLD. I hope you can pick up the sense of self-satisfaction for breaking this story in Hell.

September 15, 2009- Hair, Work, Movies

Caught up on Stripes and Platoon. Stripes was hilarious...right up until they tried to add a twist involving the Russians. This was also problematic with James Bond films in the early-to-mid 1980's (see, For Your Eyes Only, Octopussy, and A View To a Kill)...strap on your history helmets, kiddies, it's story time:

By the 1980's, the Soviet Union had become the clear-cut second-place superpower in the world, and it wasn't really close. Despite whatever supersoviet supporters wanted to believe, the Russians were fighting a losing battle and knew it. Hence detente, perestroika, glasnost, etc. This gave outside filmmakers an opportunity to poke fun at the gradual decline of the Soviet power. Check out the role of General Gogol in the Bond films he appeared in. In The Spy Who Loved Me (1977), Gogol is fairly menacing; while not making any really life-threatening actions, he is the highest-ranked KGB official. By the time he appears in A View To A Kill (1985), Gogol is content with awarding Bond with the Order of Lenin. C'mon, really? While I acknowledge that the entire Bond series is fictitious, I have a harder time believing that the overall sentiment of Soviet Russia was really THAT friendly, even in 1985. Otherwise, wouldn't the Cold War have ended then?


Needless to say, this would never have happened if the Cold War ends in 1985...unless it happens after Christmas Day.



Okay, so back to Stripes. The build-up and training part of the movie (roughly 2/3 of it?) I thought was hilarious. Harold Ramis and Bill Murray are a riot together (not as good as Ghostbusters (what is?), but maybe better than Ghostbusters II (Roman numerals make anything look more badass)). It's not until the gents take their Military officers, who are both foxy females...in 1981, this seems hardly plausible, even for the sake of the plot of the movie. I mean, okay, two female officers. But both of them bombshells? C'mon! At LEAST give us more believable odds (one of two), leading to some more cheap laughs through a wingman scene...perhaps Ramis in a pre-Dr. Spengler moment?


Okay...so not everything is more badass with Roman numerals...


Once they take the van for a romantic getaway, I sort of lost interest. Yes it was funny that the military's prize toy was a converted camper. No it was not enough to hold the movie together. Yes there was potential with Hulka running amok alone. No I did not love the last third of the movie. YES (yes, and more yes) I liked the ending montage with the newspaper headlines (sort of reminded me of Animal House (or the Simpsons)). That said, I just felt like it could have even gone a good twenty minutes longer if it meant that the escape-to-Czechoslovakia mess was avoided.

IN THIS MESS is where the parallels are drawn between Stripes and Bond. The Soviets are made to look ridiculous and, while tensions had calmed between the two superpowers, I'm not sure that that caricaturization of Soviet Russia translates to comedy. I dunno, maybe that's because I wasn't born until the 80s, and so poking fun at topical issues (Cold War) has always been funny. I mean, I got a kick out of Achmed the Dead Terrorist...so maybe that'll seem just as dated twenty years from now. Stripes came out in 1981, by the way, so close to 30 years later...I guess we'll see.

Platoon is simply the best war movie I have ever seen. Like The Deer Hunter and Apocalypse Now, Platoon deals just as much with inner turmoil as it does with defeating the physical enemy, if not more so. It really seems to be a reflection on the way Vietnam was perceived compared to other U.S. military conflicts ("Are we doing the right thing?"), whereas other wars up to that point weren't really questioned en masse; the assumption was that soldiers fought for greater good of America. Oliver Stone really gets to the heart of the internal conflict of Charlie Sheen's character, as well as the struggle between Willem Dafoe, whose Sgt. Elias seemed to embody the "fight the evil for the glory of America" mentality, and Tom Berenger's character, who was too war-engulfed to recognize "the enemy" from anything around him, which may have become the sentiment of so many in the jungles of Southeast Asia. I thought it was a powerful film, and deserving of praise.

So other than that, the big news is that I got myself an interview! I'm not really nervous yet, as I've had a few things to deal with in the meantime. That said, the main thing that concerns me right at this very moment is my hair. I've been growing it out as a rally; as I've said, I'd grow it until I get a job. I wonder how long that will be and, in the interim, how my hair will be perceived by prospective employers. I get how first impressions work, and by meeting lots of people over the years, have made a few myself. I wonder whether a suit will detract from it or make it stand out more. I wonder how long it will grow to be, and- at this pace- how long it would take to grow it for Locks for Love. I mean, if I'm already a good portion of the way there (I just measured...and the front is about four and a half inches long), how long would it take to grow to the necessary length? And, can I do that? See, I've always had the reality of hair loss waiting in the wings, and so my desire to cut it short has dwindled, the logic being that if I'm going to lose it, I might as well savor it while it's here, right? Well, we shall see. But in the immediate future, I have a strong first impression to make, hair or not. I just hope that it won't be a hinderance.

By the way, saw Kings of Leon on Saturday night. They put on an incredibly tight live show. For those who are unfamiliar with the band, here's an example of their music. For those of you who are familiar, I suggest looking into seeing them live if you're a fan, since they sound much better live than they do on the radio (so if you like them on the radio, chances are you'll really enjoy the live act).

Alright, time to get back to work on my portfolio (makes me sound professional...)

Talk to each other.

September 11, 2009- Thanks

Well, after a massive (by comparison) post yesterday, I'm still a little light-headed and feeling the effects of the anniversary hangover. Last night I celebrated my one year anniversary as host of trivia night, and before I get into the meat of this post (which will be gamey and sparse), I just wanted to send a thank you to everyone who has come out in the last year to enjoy themselves on Thursday nights at the Hyde Park Brewery. It has been a hell of a lot of fun, and you all have made Thursday nights something to really look forward to. Seriously. No matter how days and weeks have gone, Thursday night never fails to get me amped up to read questions, play music, and enjoy the company of people who are as enthusiastic about the game as I am. So thank you all.

NOW....being in New York, you'd have to be living under a rock to not know that today is, in fact, September 11th. The brave men and women who serve this country and keep it safe deserve your thanks. That's all there is to it. Why it has to wait until today, I don't know. I got weird looks in New York City my last time there for applauding the FDNY trucks as they passed. I figured a random show of appreciation for New York's bravest would be a welcome gesture...and yet there are people who looked as if I had lost my mind. I don't understand this. Look, if you KNOW someone who betters the well-being of this country, whether they are in the military or civil service, let them know you appreciate them...because much like a loved one, you never know when you won't get that chance again. I don't understand why it's only on Memorial Day, or Veterans Day, or 9/11 that we take the time to honor the people who make the ultimate sacrifice for our well-being. Just boggles my mind...that said,

THANK YOU to the brave women and men serving in our armed forces for allowing people like me to keep writing freely. THANK YOU to the civil servants who keep me safe.

Uncle Dee sends his thanks, as well.

So the agenda this weekend will take me into New York City for some sightseeing, a concert, and knocking a few items off of a friend's to-do list. Will be updating early in the week.

September 10, 2009 (a)

Spacing is not my strength, as demonstrated in my last post. I apologize for nothing; I merely acknowledge that the spacing is unrealistically crappy.

September 10, 2009- Let it all out

Let me preface this entry by saying I don't know anyone who eats the McDonald's Filet-O-Fish (so why is it the top story that comes up on Yahoo! when I try to check my mail?). Frankly, I don't want to speak for any of you that are reading this, but I can MAYBE see ONE of my good friends eating this thing by choice...and so it came as quite a shock to me when,

1) I heard such a catchy jingle honoring a novelty meal at a successful diarrhea-inducing factory (a crap factory, if ever there was one). By the way, it's not that I get diarrhea every time I eat McDonald's...it's that in the last five years or so, every time I've eaten it, I've had improper reactions. Let's leave it at that, shall we?...

and 2) I found out that McDonald's actually STILL SELLS Filet-O-Fish sandwiches, and they are NOT the original ones made in 1963, that in fact they have as recently as today ARE STILL MAKING these sandwiches. Impressive. I urge you to tell me how this experience goes/went if you have or are planning on devouring said sandwich in your travels.

I think the closest I have come to having a FOF was en route to Cape Cod, circa 1991...we stopped at McD's and I got chicken Mcnuggets that must have been fried with a FOF or something because they were fucking TERRIBLE.

Fresh off the McDonald's Filet-O-Fish, I'm sure

Now, to back it up a few pages, here's my hostory with fish:

Had clams and such as a kid. Hated them. Disgusting, chewy, rubbery...which I assumed all seafood was.

Introduced to grilled salmon by my first girlfriend. Thoroughly enjoyed it. That said, didn't think to broaden my horizons.

Fast forward to c. 2006- out to eat at a family-style restaurant where multiple seafood dishes were offered and ordered. Tried and liked most of it. Again, avoided for the most part.

2007- Went to Cape May to visit my cousin Mike and his family and was taken to a seafood place and tried probably a dozen varieties of seafood. Didn't and don't care for lobster, but have come around on most varieties of seafood.

First sushi: 2005, drenched in soy sauce. Delicious, like soy sauce packets. Haven't looked back.

Last week: prepared my first seafood dish (stuffed clams). End scene

Now, you've just read a mostly true (dates may be off) account of my foray into seafood. This does not include NE Clam chowder, which I have been scarfing down for the last 13 years and 100 lbs. Key ingredient: potatoes. Go figure. So to bring this full circle, I just read that the FOF is alive and well and all I can think to myself is: "who the hell eats those things?".

Look, if you enjoy seafood, cool. If you don't eat meat, your loss. But WHY would you go to a world-famous burger place (albeit not for the burgers but the purple gumdrop named Grimace, obviously) and order fish? I've never understood this and have a hard time justifying that decision....ahh yeah, Gallagher's steakhouse, ooh look at all the marbled pieces of beef here...I know! I'll have the haddock. NO! You go to a STEAKhouse for steak. You go to BURGERworld or wherever the fuck for a BURGER...never trust the food that's NOT a signature offering of the restaurant...look, I wouldn't trust a sushi place that serves RAW FISH as it's marquee meal with serving me a hamburger, done medium-well. Call me crazy.

Aaaaaanywho...I thought I'd explain my absence for the last two months, since I got TWO thumbs up at the mention that I'd be blogging again (Jay and Evita, I salute you with an equally gratifying thumbs-up in return. When we look back on this experiment years later, I will owe each of you a cigar and a bottle of a cheap, domestic beer)...

Since July 5th, I successfully meandered my way through another summer at DAC, this time as the Assistant Director. Felt good. We had scores (a score, by the way, is twenty...as in "four score and seven years ago"...that's 87 years. Gettysburg Address: 1863. Declaration of Independence signed: 1776 (which was the subject of Lincoln's introduction). 1863-1776? 87. Four score is 80, divide by four....a score is 20, so we had TWENTIES) of parents commend our camp for a job well done. Young staff, new director, and yet we came out of the summer feeling good about our job well done.

Also this summer, I played temporary host to my favorite foreigner (not this one)! It was great to have Sebby in town to get an idea of the sort of stuff I have involved myelf with since his last visit (i.e. camp, trivia night, legal drinking), as well as finally get to see a Yankee game live and in person.

I got to see CitiField, home of the 2009 Trainwrecks. I got to a couple more Yankees games, making the overall record of the home team in ballgames I've seen this year to an impressive 7-0, with this one being the worst.

I got to see The Hangover, The Count of Monte Cristo (online), Harry Potter VI (which really makes it look like the Rocky series)...knocking out 3 of my ten summer films. Star Trek is still playing at the discount theater and I have promised myself that if it's still playing on Monday, I am there; I am watching Citizen Kane with Jay post-Dolphins victory on Sunday; Tropic Thunder may also be worked out, depending on whether I can obtain someone's downloaded copy...and I think that I'm gonna watch Platoon AND Stripes tonight JUST because I looked at this list from June and think that I need to cross off more than three of the films on it. Right now I'm hitting a comfortable .300 with the potential to knock off another 4 slots on the list. I can feel it; it's gonna be a big next few days...

Managed to see Coldplay in concert again in late July...now here's my take on Coldplay: they get a bad rap for sounding somewhat effeminate, having sappy lyrics, and basically a representation of the pussification of rock music. Here's my problem with that: no one ever said the same thing about Frankie Valli. Was it the chest hair? Frankie Valli has released a number of successful songs, and he's considered a Jersey Boy. He ain't no fucking Bruce Springsteen, so let's cut the crap. To be as cool and as universally respected as Springsteen takes something special.

Coldplay, on the other hand, have released technically-proficient and downright alarmingly catchy songs in the last decade and have grown to become excellent at putting on a show, as well. This is not to say that they are as good as Springsteen, or that Valli is a chump, but the things that people criticize Coldplay for are things that we could easily be applied to other artists, perhaps MOST NOTABLY....Mr. Frankie Valli!! So my point to all of this is that for people who are looking to criticize a talented and successful band, that sort of criticism should be aimed elsewhere. Look, call their pandering to love and angst whatever you want to call it, they're making bank. Show me a band that doesn't want to make bank, and they better fucking be in a garage. People get in bands TO MAKE MONEY! If it was all about the music, they'd becoming fucking music critics. The minute you step into a fucking club or stadium or arena with the purpose of performing in front of people, it's for fame and recognition, which in turn, earn you money. That's it. "Naw, man, it's about the music"...yeah, okay. Ya got me there. It's about the music...then do me a favor: never play in public again. Be with your music, alone, on your own time, and stop hyping yourself over the airwaves. Ridiculous.

THERE'S your pussification of rock music.

People forget how truly uncool a move this was...not that I have anything against Grease...I'm just saying...

August: moved my brother into school, saw Blink-182 and Weezer at Jones Beach, and spent a week in North Carolina relaxing. This was a groovy month for a variety of reasons:

1. My brother finished his work at the local community college with a dual Associates Degree, which is commendable in and of itself, and is now getting to experience away-from-home school. This can only be a good thing. I can't wait to visit.






2. Finished camp. I love working at camp and being in that environment. That's right. Love it. Doesn't come lightly. That said, I was happy for a few weeks of R&R.






3. Finally saw Blink-182 in concert. Look, I enjoy Weezer as much as- but definitely not more than- the next guy, but I never got stoned, and kind of blame Rivers Cuomo for bringing back the Woody Allen, "I seem all meek and geeky, woe is me" type of look. The music's good, I just think that there's a fine line between self-deprecation and coming off like a total loser, and Cuomo had a tendency for a while there to blur them, which essentially gives green lights to people to hate themselves. THAT SAID...I enjoyed hearing Blink and Weezer live.............................................but................I wish I had seen this show ten years ago. Ten years ago, I would have paid you every penny I made at my first summer job to see Blink-182 live. This summer I went with Justin and Matt and felt fucking OLD. Not even uncool, just old. Our pants were comfortable but not super-tight, none of us had painted out nails, and we were probably the most vocal supporters of Dude Ranch (which, while the soundtrack to my first relationship's early phases, is best remembered for the teenage anthem "Dammit", which doesn't crack my top 3 ON THAT ALBUM (top 5, maybe)...(by the way, they are, in no particular order, "Untitled"; "Apple Shampoo"; and "Enthused"). So being out of place (it's probably never a good idea to shout "Play Dick Lips" when you're sitting behind a ton of 15 year-olds who are having a make-out party right in front of you while you shake your head and DREAD having children with a freedom for musical preferences. Fuck.) in this environment kinda took away from the moment; it did not resemble Superbad when they wanted McLovin to succeed. On the contrary, I wanted to smack these kids in the face (more on this another time; I feel like there's a lot more to say, just not now).






4. Finished Farenheit 451 (fantastic!) and the Outsiders (good...endearing is a good word to use, I think), as well as a couple of the half-finished books on my shelf. Also purchased Huck Finn and Atlas Shrugged, meaning I now own the vast majority of books that I need to hack through.

North Carolina was good; needs to be saved for another post, I think. My hands are starting to hurt (landscaping duty). Let's wrap this up with a re-cap of my goals (and the reason for this blog in the first place):

July finished successfully! I made it through the month without using my phone while driving. I have since used it, but mostly during long, otherwise stifling car rides to and from NC. I also managed, through camp and other endeavors, to help at least one person each day. It IS rewarding, in all the feel-good, happy-go-lucky ways you would imagine. I suggest you try it!

August, I gave up having second portions at dinner time. This was successful until the last week; vacation in NC doomed me. This is fine, since A) I was on vacation; and B) it wasn't as though I had had 3-4 large meals anyway...by the time dinner rolled around, I was hungry. Really hungry. And I vacationed with a number of excellent cooks. My goal was to finish books, and I did that 4 times. ::Flexes brain::

Now, September...here's my goal: to not cross my legs. It's a habit I have, and while not necessarily connected to varicose veins per se, I'd like to think I can kick this habit. Problem is, it's gotten to a point where- just like most habits- I will start doing it without noticing, including when I lay down to sleep (I like to think it's my subconscious telling me to get a hammock). My circulation is already terrible, and while it may be strictly superstitious, I would rather avoid complicating such an issue.

My one way of bettering myself is to plan out a healthy means of losing weight. This will ultimately include joining a gym, but not before my trip to Colorado (Sept. 18-23)! That said, I'm pumped to get this started, as I'm starting to feel less comfort in my most favorite pair of jeans...that's my sign. Oh, and to find and catch up with watching Mad Men and 30Rock.

I don't want to be alive when 15 year-old boys don't find this to be extremely amusing

That's all from me. Join me next time for discussions/rants about: The Wire, North Carolina, Kings of Leon, and a variety of other less important topics. Thanks for listening, and talk to each other.