happy festivus!

so today is festivus! i have yet to begin actually celebrating festivus mainly because most people are traveling on festivus to avoid travelling on christmas eve. but one day i will have a pole and an airing of grievances... and the final test of strength. oh yes!

i got more i just can't think of it really... so if i dont write til sunday: merry christmas!

excuses, excuses, excuses...

So check out this nifty little link of a half-hourly updated light and cloud cover on earth image that i found thanks to many another blogs. If you aren't a fan of a rectangular projection (i mean seriously who is?) they've got mercator and peters too. Also check out the dawn and dusk images of earth and the image of the moon.

The last time Steven Speilberg and Tom Cruise got together we got Minority Report. Not a terrible movie but not a great one either... and thats probably because, in my opinion, that kind of movie isn't Speilberg's bread and butta. He perfected the 'grand story' on film. A gallivanting hero (Indiana Jones), aliens (ET), dinosaurs (Jurassic Park) and passionate (but not love) stories (Saving Private Ryan and Schindler's List) he is the master. But cute stories like (The Terminal, Always) he sorta comes up short. (I'll forgive him for AI since it really wasn't his movie in the first place.) Minority Report tho kind of disappointed me... good but not outstanding....

Sooo now Speilberg and Cruise are back together making 'War of the Worlds.' And the website is now up. Im interested because i think this is definitely Speilberg's kinda movie.

i wish turkey only cost a nickel

so a few while ive got the time...

1. Im way busy nowadays but am still determined to write on this puppy often... very often.

2. I just got my 'Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind' and am loving it more and more. a while back i wrote about how i thought it missed on a few points but that didnt mean i didnt love the movie... because i did, and still do. It HAS got to win something Academy Award wise. There is no doubt it deserves at least nominations for best film, director (Michel Gondry), screenplay (Gondry and Charlie Kaufman) and probably even best actor (Jim Carrey). Its about time Kaufman win an Oscar after being nominated for 'Adaptation' and 'Being John Malkovich.' Sadly tho i love Jim Carrey and i love him in this movie, i dont think this will be his 'Tom Hanks'-esque jump to legitimate actor in the eyes of hollywood. but ya never know.

3. I just cant get a handle on the weather its just plain odd. thursday morning was nice and warm and then it got wicked cold and windy.

and the hits just keep on coming!

so ive been called out on, in essence, being a hypocrite with the whole Lael liking design shows considering im obsessed with 'Good Eats.' touche.

anyhoo i spent a good portion of sunday evening watching yet another one of my teams win a championship. Back in 1996, when DC United won it's first championship my friends and I (and a few other DC United fans) celebrated by banging newspaper stands and streetlights in Georgetown. We were much luckier the next year since the championship was held at RFK and DC United made it to the final game winning once again. (It was wet, but worth it.) They were good for 2 more years, winning 3 MLS Cups out of 4 years. And then they tanked. Bruce Arenas was gone (Although they won one more championship after he left). Jeff Agoos, Raul Diaz Arce, John Harkes... all gone. And their prospects, like Bobby Convey, were just sucking. And today they win their 4th title... pretty cool i must say!

TLC 24-7

Im officially afraid. Lael loves to watch 'Trading Spaces' and those other home redecoration programs on TLC and the Home and Garden Network. Seriously, he's obsessed. Im sick of that little guitar riff song they play when they show the video of them working at like 4 times speed. Plus he comments with lines like 'look at that stupid little couch' and 'thats terrible.' He also comments in ways only an architect could like 'that's a fire hazard!' The biggest problem tho is that he wont admit it... sad, simply sad. the first step is to admit you have a problem, Lael!!!

bernard pivot

so, tell me:
what is your favorite word?
what is you least favorite word?
what turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally?
what turns you off?
what is you favorite curse word?
what sound or noise do you love?
what sound or noise do you hate?
what profession other than your own would you like to attempt?
what profession would you not like to attempt?
if heaven exists, what would you like to hear god say when you arrive at the pearly gates?

turn, turn, turn

so this time around the election actually ended somewhat on time. contrary to what some might believe im not really disappointed. i'm actually interested in seeing how bush's plans will work. will he be so extreme that it will all come crashing down? or will he lighten up now that he doesnt have to pander to the christian right to get re-elected... i bet you wont hear much more about an anti-gay marriage constitutional amendment from the white house. anyways on to less pallid matter.

the washington wizards are 2-0. read that again because 1. its true and 2. it hasnt happened it 10 years. just wanted to mention that...

to dream the impossible...

note: i started writing this thursday morning but it has been so hectic since, i have only now been able to finish and clean it up.

i feel like i've cheated. i've only been a fan of the red sox for about 18 years... and only in the last 10 can i say i have followed them well. Oh, I went through the agony of watching buckner in 86, but honestly since 86 was the year i started liking the sox (because of their appearance in the world series, and me fatefully choosing them to root for), i really didnt suffer all that much. most of the suffering came in the relentless replays since then.

but i felt the playoff victory drought until 98. the crap with Clemens. their finally being good in the late 90s. the loses to the Indians (trust me i felt well confident when the sox had to hit against Tom Gordon this year). the confusing time of Jimy Williams (amazingly it still crosses my mind that Williams needed a little more time... am i on crack?!) the futility against the Yankees, in the playoffs and the regular season (like that 22-crap drubbing a few years ago). the hope that Kerrigan would do better. the 'I want to shoot Grady Little' thoughts. A-Rod/Manny. Nomar. last year's Boone home run.

so thats why i feel like I've cheated... but you know what? i don't care. I love the Sox, I truly do. And you know what? Alot of my joy comes in the thought that there are so many people who also love them, and they've been going to sleep the past few days with a huge smile on their face too. People who put up with that crap much longer than me. It's a great feeling.

I was thinking, when it comes to sports, I'm a lucky fan. I've had 4 of my teams win championships in my lifetime: the Boston Red Sox (this year), Maryland Terrapins Basketball (2002), Washington Redskins (1982-83, 1987-88, 1991-92), and DC United (1996, 1997, 1999). Now all i need to see is a Chilean World Cup title, a Terrapins Football Championship and a Washington Capitals Stanley Cup trophy to finish of the set (technically speaking the Washington Bullets/Wizards won when I was alive in 1978 so it would be nice to redo that one... oh and now that I think about it, my newest addition to the group would have to be a World Series title for the new DC baseball team/Expos).

time for my own endorsement

It seems this past sunday is dubbed 'Super Sunday' as that the day most newspapers publish their endorsements for President of the United States. Well, According to dKosopedia.com (which is keeping a tally of endorsements, 133-69 for Kerry in case you are wondering) It seems 33 newspapers have 'flip-flopped'... that is switched their year 2000 endorsement of Bush by endorsing Kerry in this years election. That number doesn't include the 6 newspapers that endorsed Bush and are now endorsing neither candidate. By contrast only 2 newspapers have gone from supporting Gore in 2000 to endorsing Bush in 2004.

My favorite endorsement reads were of a paper that switched from Bush to Kerry (in the battleground state of Florida nonetheless!), The Orlando Sentinel and one of the two papers that switched from Gore to Bush, The Denver Post. (Note, tho, that according to EditorAndPublisher.com the Denver Post has a new editor this time around and he is 'known as a strong Bush supporter.')

I almost totally agree with what the Orlando Sentinel has to say but the interesting thing is that I, to a certain extent agree with what the Denver Post says. I was pleased to find an example of what last week I called the only respectable reason to vote for Bush. In essence, they stated that they did not believe what John Kerry said he would do. They then said something most Bush supporters, sadly, would never admit: Our support for Bush is tempered by unease over the poor choices and results of his first term. To succeed in his second-term, Bush must begin by taking responsibility for U.S. failures in Iraq, admit his mistakes and adjust U.S. strategy. (Get that! They admitted Bush's failures) I whole heartedly agree with that statement. If Bush were to be reelected he would need to admit his mistakes and adjust accordingly...

The crux is twofold (can a crux even be twofold??): First, I (along with at least 133 newspaper editors it would appear), do not believe Bush is capable of fixing the mistakes that, even newspapers that endorse him say, he made. (Remember, Bush doesn't even acknowledge these mistakes.) Bush has lost his credibility in the world and is not willing to truly become a 'uniter' by, as the Denver Post puts it, 'reach[ing] out for Democratic talent' for help. Second, I feel George W. Bush should be held accountable for, specifically, those mistakes. He should also be held responsible for policies in issues, like the environment, that apparantly aren't as important to Americans since 9/11. Even the Denver Post admits '[Bush] bows to corporate preference in matters of energy and environment' and that Kerry's postions 'are the superior proposals on environmental protection, on stem-cell research and judicial nominations.'

For me, this leave only one question which would keep me from endorsing John Kerry. Would the United States be less safe if Kerry were to become president? I do not believe it would. That is not to say the U.S. will not be attacked again, understand that no matter who is elected, there will be more attacks. I just do not believe either man would be better for the job of protecting America from terrorism. I do believe, though, that John Kerry would be the better man for restoring US credibility, keeping our environment safe, providing basic needs like health and education, and fixing our enormous budget deficit. (ironically enough that last point is a conservative belief which I hold: fiscal responsibility.)

we are family!

I'm not into downloading a specific RSS reader mainly because I'm on my Mac most of the time and Safari, the web browser for the mac, will soon support RSS, and will actually be called Safari RSS, with the release of Os X Tiger. So I get my RSS feeds delivered to my account at Bloglines.com. Currently I only have 3 websites (Electoral-Vote.com, PoliticalWire.com and Snopes.com) feeding my account. Thats mainly because I dont want to be overwhelmed with feeds, I have yet to spend some time trying to set controls and such. Anyways on to the real point of my post:

Did you know that John Kerry and George Bush are related? Well I didn't but thanks to PoliticalWire.com (via Electoral-Vote.com) now I do and so do you.

WHO'S YOUR DADDY!

ummmmm i seriously dont know what to say or write... aside from "who's your daddy!" ummmm yeah. Never in the history of postseason baseball... down 3-0 to come back and win a series? just beautiful.... arggggh!

i hate chris berman... and now tim mccarver

this will also probably make no sense but here goes: exactly how is giving up a walk when you are down 4-2 in the bottom of the ninth like giving up a home run? Foulke gives up a walk to Matsui and McCarver says its like giving up a home run. So why was giving up the walk to Sierra not like giving up another home run? oh thats right! Because giving up a walk ISNT like giving up a home run!

and to explain the chris berman comment last week... Aside from all the biased remarks he made in the Angels-Red Sox series... He acted like MLB was the scourge of the world for moving the Expos. MLB gave montreal EVERY chance in the world. They didn't do it willingly (the player's union probably had alot to do with it) but Montreal had plenty of chances to prove it would support a baseball team. It's sad to see Montreal lose its team but its not that great of a tragedy. Washington lost its team TWICE, why does the return not even it all out? If Montreal can prove later to be worthy of a team they can try expansion (which admitedly probably isnt happening for at least 15-20 years) or they can try and get a team like the Devil Rays. But trust me its not gonna happen tho, because obviously most of Montreal doesn't care about baseball.

there's something really cool about the Astros beating the Cardinals last night... and this post might make no sense later.

ahhh politics. yum!

The Associated Press realeased an interesting list of quotes from 2004 Presidential Endorsements from various newspapers. The most interesting part to me was the "No Endorsement" section at the end which listed two quotes:

The Winston-Salem Journal, Winston-Salem, N.C.:
"This is a presidency in deep trouble, made worse by the refusal to acknowledge the trouble. ... Unfortunately, Sen. John Kerry has not convinced us that he will be able to steer the nation out of the mess in Iraq and move forward appropriately in the war on terrorism."

The Tampa Tribune, Tampa, Fla.:
"We find ourselves deeply conflicted today about the presidential race, skeptical of the promises and positions of Sen. John Kerry and disappointed by the performance of President George W. Bush."

This fits well with two things i think about the upcoming election:

1. If you are voting for Bush, the only respectable reason I can think of is that you are not willing to believe John Kerry's promises to be better than Bush.

2. The second best reason (The best reason would be because you are willing to believe John Kerry's promises) to vote for Kerry is to hold GW Bush accountable for his "disappoint[ing]... performance" and his unwillingness to acknowledge the touble this country is in.

a place called... vertigo?

I need to remember to put a link with each post. It makes it more interesting when I give you something to click on. You know: "inter-ACTIVE!" Riiiight, so anyways, to the real point of this post: song lyrics!

U2 has a new song out called Vertigo. Not a bad song but definitely not outstanding lyrics. But come to think of it, when it comes to lyrics, U2 is definitely hit or miss. Which isn't exactly a bad thing, but it's an interesting trend.

Certain U2 songs just plain have weak lyrics ("well you left my heart empty as a vacant lot/for any spirit to haunt"). Now I'll admit not exactly bad lyrics, i mean they've had worse I just can't remember any right now. Those words roll well and sound good, but the metaphor is cliched. It's only when U2 comes up with some good original lyrics ("they say the sun is sometimes eclipsed by a moon/you know I don't see you when she walks in the room") that you realize the other lyrics are subpar for them.

hello? is this thing on?

Am I practically the only person who thinks the Jib Jab Bush/Kerry "This Land" and "Good to be in DC" videos are pretty lame? Seriously... Is it just me? If it is, what's wrong with me? Am I getting old? (Il'd say "old and crochety" but I think I'm already crochety.) They're really just not funny and the worst part is the second one is the same jokes as the first one, just set to different music. Ahhhh phooey! Oh, and get of my lawn!

roadkill cafe

I was driving home early this morning and I drove by some deer. It got me thinking about roadkill and about why some animals like to hang out near roadways. Practically everywhere in the DC area you'll see squirrel, racoon, and oppossum. On roads near and in wooded areas you'll also find groundhog, skunk (ya smell them real quick when they're dead), and deer. In the summer you'll also see snake and turtle. (you also find all types of feathered roadkill which has always surprised me since I thought birds were pretty skittish around cars anyways... not to mention they can fly! i mean, how do you get runover when you can fly?!) thats about it when it comes to roadkill... but i've seen fox in places like rock creek park and along the clara barton. i guess they must be wilier, tho, since i dont recall seeing fox roadkill. oooooh i almost forgot: i once saw a bear (yes a live BEAR) on the side of I-68 just west of Cumberland, MD but thats hardly the DC area, and most likely an aberration.

Anyways all this thinking also reminded me how recently I was surprised to find out that some people (from the west) had never seen a groundhog "in the wild." So I looked it up and it appears that in the western United States (practically speaking, east of the mississippi), groundhogs are only found in northern Washington state and northern Idaho. Most people are familiar with Phil of Punxsutawney fame. But they've never seen his kin outside of the realm of film, video, zoo, etc. We'll I've been to Texas and Arizona and I've never seen an armadillo in the wild, so maybe that makes us even?!? right?

talking baseball

take a wild guess when i started watching todays game? middle of the 3rd... and the Sox greet me with two runs. (now i never said the Angels dont score, since it appears everytime im watching Troy Glaus seems to hit the crap outta the ball) its 2-1 now but the bases are loaded and Manny is up... btw, i seriously hate Chris Berman.. seriously.

very superstitious, writings on the wall

im not braggin. i promise. but everytime i turn on the tv to watch the Red Sox-Angels series, the Sox score runs.

i turned on a bit late on tuesday because i thought they were playing later. the top of the 3rd inning was ending, and i watched Schilling handled the bottom half beautifully. And then came the 7 run top of the 4th. Thats the ballgame... Sox win 9-3.

wednesday night, i spent making cookies... i know, a(n) horrendous excuse, but its the truth. i was, tho, checking the score online periodically. finally when i'm almost finished with the (mighty delish, i should say) cookies, ESPN said it was top of the ninth, 4-3 Sox. my thinking was: wait till the bottom half, Foulke holds the 4-3 lead, sox go back to Boston up 2-0 in a best of 5. what more could i ask for?

So i go turn on the TV and the Sox aren't up 4-3... they're up 5-3. Orlando Cabrerra is up. there are 2 outs, but the bases are loaded. And what happens? He clears the bases with a triple in between left and center field. 8-3. Foulke's arm would have had to pull an "Idol Hands" and started killing people (never saw the movie, so i dont know if thats what happens, but im sticking with the comparison) for the Angels to have had a glimmer of a chance to just THINK that they could make up the 5 runs. ahhh nice... nice i tell you?

click

Well its a sad day in the world of photography. Richard Avedon died today. I'm not the biggest pop/fashion photography fan, but growing up there were 3 portrait/fashion photographers I admired: Mark Seliger, Annie Leibovitz and Richard Avedon. (I know, they're probably the 3 most well known pop photographers... but gimme a break, i told you i was young.)

Avedon's photography atracted me because he made photos of celebrities which felt real. It felt like you could tell so much about the person from just one photo. His photos and subjects weren't always glamorous, but were beautiful, telling, and often strange. Just like most of us, i guess...

Well here's saying goodbye to one person who made me want to be a photographer.

exposition!

HBO keeps reairing "Nine Innings from Ground Zero" the story of how the 2001 Diamondback/Yankees World Series helped the city of New York through the aftermath of 9/11. I've only watched the second half tho, since i never actually plan on watching it.

Anyways, the main reason I like watching it is to watch the supposedly perfect Mariano Rivera lose the World Series in the bottom of the ninth of game 7. I remember watching that game back in November of 2001, rooting for the Diamondbacks only because I hate the Yankees. Is that terribly evil of me?

Don't get me wrong, I feel for those Yankee fans who died and whose loved ones died on 9/11. But Mets fans, Redskins fans, Jets fans, NY Giants fans, and probably every team in the world's fans were affected by the events of 9/11. Does that some how make the Yankees or New York more deserving of a championship?

Anyways, including that series, the Yankees have lost 2 World Series since... and I've celebrated both. Sad i know, but the Expos are coming so thats good?!

i love the 80s

Do you have a movie that you like but are sorta ashamed to admit it? well mine is Secret of My Success back from that great decade of cheesiness, the 1980s. It stars the great Michael J. Fox and the hot Helen Slater. Its replete with 80s film cliches like:

• dream sequence (when Christy and Brantley first meet at the water fountain)
  
• music sequences (Brantley starting his job, Brantley and Christy spend the weekend together, Brantley impressing the millionaires)
  
• chase sequences (Brantley chased by dogs, by Prescott, and by his lowly mail boss, Christy chased by Prescott when she sneaks into Brantley's room to that song which goes "Oh Yeah" and then "Chick-Chicka-Chickah", you know the same song the Duff Beer guy from the Simpsons appears to)
  
• a trip to spend the weekend in a swank locale (i'm surprised they didn't make it on a lake)
  
• it ends with a triumphant night out to Opera at Lincoln Center
  

in 80s movies, it just doesn't get any better.

Why do I like it? Lets see: It takes place in NYC. It has a sneaking around element. I like Michael J. Fox. I'm all about Helen Slater. And I like that "Oh Yeah, Chick-Chicka-Chickah" song... well not really but its just so cheesy its awesome. It probably falls in that category of cheesy over the top things i love like: KISS, Elvis Presley, Ozzy Osbourne (before the whole TV show thing), and Def Leppard.

Anyways that reminds me. I'll end on one of my favorite jokes: What has 10 legs, and 9 arms? Def Leppard! i know its bad... but at the same time soo good.

baby i got your money

i like new money. i like when they change the design of money... not too sure i like the design of the new 50 tho.

man vs. beast

i finally got around to watching man vs. beast (which i had tivo'ed awhile ago) and it was good. not stellar, but good. i have a few complaints tho:

first, in the man vs. zebra 100 meter run (zebra won), the man was running on compacted dirt... clearly unfair since men normally run on a hard track. the zebra actually clocked in a time comparable to the human world record, so that would have actually been more of a race.

second, in navy seal vs. chimpanzee obstacle course (navy seal won), it looked like the chimp was just copying what the navy seal was doing. i guess thats an element of man vs. beast, that the animals aren't really aware that its a competition. but still, the chimp had no chance because he was just immitating.

third, in the little people vs. elephant airplane pull (elephant won), there were CLEARLY little people who weren't pulling. you could tell they were just walking with the harness on... i mean no leaning into it, no strained look of effort on their little faces. if i were one of the little people who actually worked hard to pull that monstrous dc-10, i would turn around and slap those lazy little punks.

anyways those were my issues. i started watching man vs. beast 2, but my recorder ran out of space.. sad i know....

a dilemma

so i've got a dilemma. it seems dc is getting a baseball team. now i've always been against the idea of rooting for two teams but this one is a toughy.
growing up in dc you get the orioles shoved down your throat as if they're "also dc's team." as a child i went to see baseball up at memorial stadium and then camden yards. i even cheered for the orioles, but as i got older i grew to resent them and the fact that dc didn't have a team. i had at least grown a healthy dislike for the yankees (as a forced child oriole fan). so, i figure, it was pretty natural that at some point i started liking the red sox. although as a kid, i never really felt or understood the rivalry... probably because i didnt grow up in boston.
anyways back to the dilemma... when it comes to sports, i'm definitely a homer. i cheer the skins, caps, united and wiz. (dont even get me started about my unrequited love of the caps and wiz) so i would be a HUGE dc baseball fan. (btw, i think any dc baseball team should be named the Senators... everything else has sounded like total made up crap.) the problem is that i don't know what i'ld do. i can't just stop liking the sox. but it would always silently nag me that i'm split like that. i guess it helps that the sox are in the AL and the expos are in the NL. but if they were to ever meet each other in the world series? it'ld be awful... like choosing which leg to get amputated if you HAD to choose.

foolsball

on saturday my terps give up 5 turnovers and lose in overtime by 3... on the road. and the sunday my 'skins give up 7 turnovers and lose by 6... on the road. THATS a total of TWELVE, 12!! turnovers and lose only by a total of 9 points? and both were on the road?! things have got to get better right? right?!

new money

check out the new design for the nickel. Awesome design... I'm impressed.

rowing and more rowing

First a correction: sculling isnt just a fancy word for rowing, its a fancy word for rowing with two oars. Thats in comparison to sweeping, which is rowing with just one oar (usually done with 4 or 8 rowers). Anyhoo on with the show:

On tuesday morning we got in the shells and it was disheartening. The second I left the dock I thought I was gonna take a nice dip in the Potomac. In fact, I spent the first half hour just trying to not tip over. Its hard to stay balanced when they just put you in a boat with two oars and tell you to "head on out." (Sweeping with 3 or 7 more ppl and 3 or 7 more oars has got to be WAY easier, btw). Since that first half hour, tho, I've slowly started getting the hang of it. I still skim the oar on the water, but as Dr. Lloyd (from "What About Bob?") would say... "Baby Steps, Bob. Baby Steps."

One thing which no one told me but I think would be helpful to anyone contemplating sculling: cut your fingernails. When sculling there are two points when you cross your left hand over your right. A skilled rower probably doesn't have a problem keeping his/her hands clear of each other. But being a beginner, I managed to take out a little layer of skin from my right index finger with my left thumbnail. Needless to say, it and my other fingernails are now nice and trim.

Wednesday morning started in a surprisingly pleasant light drizzle. That morning, tho, ended with a new concern. Since my confidence was building I started rowing harder. Consequently I finished with blisters waiting to happen on each thumb, and small blisters already formed under the knuckles of the middle and ring fingers of each hand. A few more days of this and I'll end up looking like I left my hands in a fire.... good times!

here comes the story of the hurricane

So it seems this is turning out to be a rather memorable year for hurricanes in florida. Ivan, it seems, will spare the "great election debacle" state and in its stead threaten one my newest favorite cities, New Orleans. (side note: there had always been something that I liked about The Big Easy, but I never really understood what it was until my visited this past spring... more on this in another post tho)

Anyways back to my point: I was looking through the National Hurricane Center's website and I remembered that one of the names in the rotation of Atlantic hurricane names was Juan. So I checked the list of hurricane names and found that it was no longer in the rotation. Frankly, I was disappointed. I had heard of a Hurricane Juan last year but I thought it just... well, hurricaned itself into nothing out in the middle of the Atlantic.

Lo and behold, it didn't. It actually caused a good amount of damage to the coast of Nova Scotia near Halifax. I found a website (http://www.novaweather.net/Hurricane_Juan.html) with a good deal of information on My Hurricane (as I believe I can rightly call it) and the damage it did.

row, row, row your boat...

This morning was my first class in beginning sculling... btw, thats a fancy word for rowing.

It all happened so fast. Sometime last week, Marci brought up taking a class every morning at 6:15 AM. I of course was not amused, until i realized she wasn't joking. Then i started considering it. And now Marci and i are spending the rest of the week getting up at 5:45 AM to learn to scull, or row, or... whatever.

Its ironic, in an 'Alanis Morissette' kinda way. All through high school i intetionally avoided joining (or attempting to join) the crew team even though a few of my friends rowed. It was just too preppy for me. It still is. But now i don't care. Funny how not caring will do that to you?

Well we didn't get out on the water (just on 'simulators') today but we'll be in shells on the water tomorrow if the weather is good... in other words thats the day i wear my swimsuit.

daily surf

so every time i get online i do two things: check my email and visit the few websites im addicted to. The sites which seem to magically run of my fingers on to the keyboard are: Yahoo (for email and news), Fark, ESPN, The Washington Post, Slick Deals and most recently added Gmail. I seriously don't think i ever get on a computer without checking those sites. Recently, tho, i've added a new website to my daily viewing: Electoral-Vote.com.

Electoral-Vote.com is updated daily with the most recent presidential election polls by state. In essence, it gives you a better view of the election then those National percentage polls. Plus the guy who runs it writes a nice little commentary on the polls and other election details.... just an all out awesome site.

the life aquatic

Wes Anderson is finally releasing his next film after The Royal Tenenbaums (can you believe it came out in 2001?).... it's called The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. The Trailer was recently put up.

It stars some of the usual actors Anderson uses like Owen Wilson and Bill Murray.... Anjelica Houston is back for this one... but the interesting new casts are Willem Dafoe and Jeff Goldblum. I've oddly been a fan of Goldblum if only for his manic, tall woody allen-like, mannerism. He has definitely worn that role out but it really seems like he might be like that in real life. Im looking forward to seeing Dafoe in a comedy since i cant recall any comedy he has done.

finally im also looking forward to I ♥ Huckabees... existentialism at its interesting-est. it is directed by the same guy who did Three Kings, which i surprisingly enjoyed a few years ago...

laborous

so this will prolly post for tuesday but im still calling it monday night....

i got back late sunday from a rather fun trip to southern west virginia. we stayed along the banks of the greenbrier river just south of lewisburg and ronceverte. some friends have built a 'straw bale' house (complete with composting toilet) on land there. its fairly rustic and just plain awesome. now i SERIOUSLY want my own. alas i have not the money... at least not yet.

cuz im free... freefallin!

so i jumped out of a plane at about 15k feet last month. ill post the few pics i have or others have up here or on bitterspider soon i hope...

ive read the odds of dying are anywhere from 1 in 20k jumps to 1 in 75k jumps. well, go figure! someone just died skydiving today... mmmhmm! i guess its safe now for the next 20k to 75k jumps.

tricky tricky

so have you seen the people who can breath in a string or spaghetti and bring it out their nose? well this definitely beats that trick.

mmmmmhmmm...

old people should not drive... let see what 75 year old Betty Hayslip thinks about this idea as she drives down the road in her (poetic is just the wrong word here) PT Cruiser

one more time.

this is another entry in my attempt to be a good blogger... still no one reading but maybe a gmail invite? maybe?