Too much excitement

AG and I just had the pleasure of "walking through the garden" with Lester, Marlo, Chris and Sydnor...unreal. Now we each have Marlo-signed posters. Mine says "It's my turn to wear the crown" while AG's is "You want it to be one way...but it's the other way."


And then we had Chinese food lunch specials. What an afternoon...and watching the debate tonight with Dan...this is too much stimulation for one day!

A Dark Day

The Doodle is no more. I don't know where I will get my butter fix next time I'm in New Haven. The place shall be missed dearly. But maybe there is hope if some wealthy alumni (like Al) step in and save the day...

By complete coincidence I wore my Doodle t-shirt today.

Update: New York Times piece on the Doodle.

Just when I think I'm out, they pull me back in

It shocks me to say this, but last night's episode of The Simpsons was actually pretty funny. The highlight of course was a somewhat obscure Back to the Future reference that I loved (obvi).

(Homer is playing in Nirvana-style grunge band concert)
Guy on Phone nearby: Kurt, Kurt, it's Marvin, your cousin...Marvin Cobain. You know that new sound you're looking for? Well listen to this.

Winter X Games

These supposedly "extreme" contests still award winners with Gold, Silver, and Bronze medals. How mainstream.

I propose instead that the third place finisher gets an eighth of weed, the second place finisher gets a gram of cocaine, and the first place finisher gets a hooker and an eightball.

Official Not About Marquis Grissom Endorsement

Everyone's doing it these days, so I figured that I had to trump them all with my influential voice.

Not About Marquis Grissom is officially endorsing Barack Obama for the Democratic nomination. Finnegan is recommended as his running mate.

Back in the Saddle

The boys from Huge in Asia are at it again with a brand new music video, but this one is completely made in America. Sit back, relax and enjoy the smooth sounds of "Give Me Your Heart in San Francisco":

Whirlwind Day

I wake up this morning (after a sleepless night of debate watching) desperate to read spin. Then the Fed cuts interest rates by 0.75 %! Then Heath Ledger dies.

Oh boy.

I'm a little confused

This is an admittedly simplistic reading of the situation, but there's something I just can't help but be annoyed by throughout the political campaigning that has been going on recently.

Why exactly is it a bad thing that candidates have evolved and changed their opinions in some ways on certain issues? Isn't the obsessive ideological bent exactly what people (rightly) hate about George W. Bush? He has one viewpoint that he adheres to and never changes his mind. Hasn't anyone ever read Emerson (and yes I know that there are pithy quotes to support everything under the sun)?

Constantly changing your mind about major issues or changing your mind specifically to pander to voters (Mitt-ster I'm looking at you) is a bad quality. But the ability to carefully analyze a situation and change your opinion should be a quality that we look for in a leader, not something that we demonize.

Heck, I swore off South Park for two or three years at one point and now I think it's one of the greatest comedy shows ever made. You see...people can change.

Changing Banners

So this is how they do it for those ones on street lamps:

Stolen Shtick?

This article about why young people don't get involved enough with politics hits too close to home for me:

And the thing is we do care, our generation, we really do. It’s just that we got a Wii for Christmas and we absolutely have to beat “Super Mario Galaxy” before we do anything else.

And:

How are we supposed to find the time to protest when HBO just put the next episode of “The Wire” on demand?

Question

Why are so many diners owned by Greek people? Does anyone have answers for me?

Sick Pride/Irrational Perfectionism

It really irks me when there are ANY typos, formatting issues, etc... with websites that I am working on (e.g. this blog, Eat Richly, or my work web site). I always try to fix these mistakes ASAP. Even though I am sure that there are other mistakes out there and this sometimes prevents me from dealing with larger, more important issues, I slavishly correct minor errors as quickly as I can. Character flaw?

On Notice

Patriots fans, consider yourself warned about the Billy Volek experience. This is the man who once put up back-to-back 400+ yard games and led my fantasy football team to a title. He means business and could potentially end the perfect season. You heard it here first.

Oh, wait, he lost both those games...

I'm not the only one

Quick: What's the first thing that you want to do right after you get a haircut?

If you're me (and at least one friend of mine), the answer is go to a sink or shower. Basically do anything to muss up my hair and make it feel normal again. Apologies to my barber, who spends a lot of time making sure that my hair is parted and combed correctly...

It's like a Maury show episode

Instead of appearing on TV, it just got written up on the internet. A woman needed some extra money and a man needed some extra sex. Imagine if he hadn't recognized her:

Him: I've gotta warn you, I'm into some pretty kinky shit.
Her: More like 3 seconds and a cloud of...
Him: Do I know you from somewhere?

Zing!

To my adoring fans

For some reason, I rarely know how to respond to compliments. Should I compliment the complimenter? Should I just say "Thank you"? So remember this next time I seem awkward responding to your compliment of me. But whatever you do, NEVER stop complimenting me.

So this is why people do crack

A former Washington Post crime reporter discusses his own demons. This is a description of his first experience with crack (emphasis mine).

She loaded a small chunk of crack, less than half the size of an M&M, onto the mesh. She produced a lighter, brought the pipe to her lips and the flame to the filter. She inhaled, and white smoke coursed through the pipe, which she handed to me.

The rush hit me in two or three seconds and literally knocked me back two steps. It was as if a euphoria bomb had exploded in my brain. Imagine the most physically rapturous moment of your life, multiplied exponentially, and you might get close to the feeling.

I wobbled but stayed on my feet. I looked at the woman. She asked if I was okay. I said, "Wow."

That was my first hit.