This weekend I will be marching in the Minneapolis Gay Pride Parade. I will be doing so as a member of the Orono High School Gay/Straight Alliance Reunion. The parade kicks off at 11 am and follows Hennepin Ave from 3rd St S to Loring Park. If that's all the convincing you need to come to Downtown Minneapolis on Sunday morning, wave as we walk by and we'll wave back.
http://www.tcpride.org/pride_events/2009_Parade_Location.php
Now for a further explanation. Thirteen years ago, the world was a different place for gay and gay-friendly kids. At the time there was no gay marriage, there was no Lawrence V. Texas and there was a need for an organization which supported kids who were gay or had gay friends. From that need sprung the Orono High School Gay/Straight Alliance.
The purpose of the OHS GSA was to create understanding and acceptance where the students already were. The cliche of the closed small town which saw the world in one way and everyone who didn't see it that way was destined to leave wasn't true about our community. For a high school which had tremendous programs in art, band, newspaper, choir, theater and a diversity of sports, this was a vibrant community which embraced its kids and their accomplishments. The OHS GSA felt that should extend to all of the community's kids including those who were gay.
Now it is 2009 and gay rights have advanced by leaps and bounds in the last decade. There are six US states which will perform gay marriages, Lawrence V. Texas struck down anti-sodomy laws and there is still a need for an organization which supports kids who are gay or have gay friends. Sadly there no longer is a Gay/Straight Alliance at Orono High School. The group never received official recognition from the school or school district and folded once those who were involved graduated.
That's why we're asking for your support. We are looking to you, our vibrant community, to simply show up. Those who are against gay rights believe they represent a silent majority. They believe they are "saying what no one else will say" or "standing up for what everyone else wants but won't admit it." This is not true.
If there was a silent majority, then support for gay rights would not be helping people get elected. If they were "saying what no one else will say", then the gay rights movement would be shrinking, not growing. If they were "standing up for what everyone else wants but won't admit", there wouldn't be a Pride Parade.
This Sunday The OHS GSA is having a reunion. There are a few of us who have contributed our talents, our time and a little bit of money. It's been frantic at times but the pieces are coming together. If you are an OHS alum and you'd like to march with us, please contact me, Ariel Dumas or Thom White directly. We have a t-shirt for you.
But in the end we are only asking for the smallest of measures. Please come out and support us on Sunday morning. Go to the early service of church or take your morning run an hour earlier. Then find a patch of pavement on Hennepin Ave where you can see. When we come walking past with our banner and Spartan helmets, wave to us. Wave to us and be counted as a member of a community who supports and is proud of its kids. All of them.
R.I.P. Karen Erdmann
Friday, June 26, 2009
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Thirty By Thirty #3 - Stop Buying Comic Books
"When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. But when I became an adult, I set aside childish ways. For now we see in a mirror indirectly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know in part, but then I will know fully, just as I have been fully known."
1 Corinthians 13:11-12
In the spring of 2001, I dropped out of college. Specifically I'd had my fill of the small liberal arts institution I was attending in Wisconsin and decided to move home mid-semester. I moved in with my grandfather for the summer, got a job downtown at a production company and started riding the 156 bus to work. Most days I'd have a little extra time on my way to my stop and I'd duck my head into Big Brain Comics which was located on 10th St at the time.
When I was growing up I read a lot of comic books. My grandmother would buy old issues at garage sales and bring them to our family cabin in Central Minnesota. For the most part they were Archie comics with people being more willing to part with them I'd guess than X-men books. But occasionally there would be a superhero book mixed in. This was providential, of course, because when I was nine the first Michael Keaton Batman movie was released. Suddenly there was an entire realm of knowledge to dive directly into face-first.
Now fast forward back to 2001 when I'm living with my grandfather. I'd wanted to get back into comic books for a while but getting comics in Green Bay was inconvenient if you were like me and lacked a car. Now I was walking past a comic book store everyday on my way to the bus. After doing a little poking around, I took the plunge.
Even though the movie was still a year away, the character I was most interested in was Spider-man. Seeing there was a new title which was less than a year old I bought my first issue of Ultimate Spider-man written by Brian Michael Bendis. I was instantly hooked. I started adding other Bendis titles like DareDevil and other Ultimate titles like Ultimate Marvel Team-Ups. Little did I know there was a comic book renaissance going on which would explode a year later when that first Spider-man movie would push comic books into the collective conscience. I expanded my titles and reading further and further, again discovering new knowledge to drink up.
But like all good things, there needed to be an end. My favorite series "Y: The Last Man" ended in January of 2008. Most of the books I was reading out of habit instead of really wanting to read them. I wasn't spending a lot of money keeping up but it felt more like responsibility than entertainment. So I decided I was going to follow the series "100 Bullets" to its conclusion and that would be it.
The 100th and final issue of "100 Bullets" came out this April. I went into Big Brain (now on Washington Ave but again on my commute home) bought the last issue and put it on the stack of comic books I need to catch up on. I'll probably keep reading comics from time-to-time in graphic novels. The days of buying individual issues though has ended.
I threw the "growing up" tag on this post even though I dislike that phrase. "Growing on" would be a better way to describe setting aside comic books. I've benefited from reading comic books because they taught me a love of reading and of voluminous knowledge and itt would be foolish to lose that message as I separate from the medium.
1 Corinthians 13:11-12
In the spring of 2001, I dropped out of college. Specifically I'd had my fill of the small liberal arts institution I was attending in Wisconsin and decided to move home mid-semester. I moved in with my grandfather for the summer, got a job downtown at a production company and started riding the 156 bus to work. Most days I'd have a little extra time on my way to my stop and I'd duck my head into Big Brain Comics which was located on 10th St at the time.
When I was growing up I read a lot of comic books. My grandmother would buy old issues at garage sales and bring them to our family cabin in Central Minnesota. For the most part they were Archie comics with people being more willing to part with them I'd guess than X-men books. But occasionally there would be a superhero book mixed in. This was providential, of course, because when I was nine the first Michael Keaton Batman movie was released. Suddenly there was an entire realm of knowledge to dive directly into face-first.
Now fast forward back to 2001 when I'm living with my grandfather. I'd wanted to get back into comic books for a while but getting comics in Green Bay was inconvenient if you were like me and lacked a car. Now I was walking past a comic book store everyday on my way to the bus. After doing a little poking around, I took the plunge.
Even though the movie was still a year away, the character I was most interested in was Spider-man. Seeing there was a new title which was less than a year old I bought my first issue of Ultimate Spider-man written by Brian Michael Bendis. I was instantly hooked. I started adding other Bendis titles like DareDevil and other Ultimate titles like Ultimate Marvel Team-Ups. Little did I know there was a comic book renaissance going on which would explode a year later when that first Spider-man movie would push comic books into the collective conscience. I expanded my titles and reading further and further, again discovering new knowledge to drink up.
But like all good things, there needed to be an end. My favorite series "Y: The Last Man" ended in January of 2008. Most of the books I was reading out of habit instead of really wanting to read them. I wasn't spending a lot of money keeping up but it felt more like responsibility than entertainment. So I decided I was going to follow the series "100 Bullets" to its conclusion and that would be it.
The 100th and final issue of "100 Bullets" came out this April. I went into Big Brain (now on Washington Ave but again on my commute home) bought the last issue and put it on the stack of comic books I need to catch up on. I'll probably keep reading comics from time-to-time in graphic novels. The days of buying individual issues though has ended.
I threw the "growing up" tag on this post even though I dislike that phrase. "Growing on" would be a better way to describe setting aside comic books. I've benefited from reading comic books because they taught me a love of reading and of voluminous knowledge and itt would be foolish to lose that message as I separate from the medium.
Thirty By Thirty #2 - Read A Murakami Book
(It's not that I'm falling behind. It's that most of the things I want to do are more conducive to good weather and full employment. What I'm falling behind on is documenting.)
I've recently been thinking about who my favorite authors are and I'm coming to the realization they are almost all authors who are my contemporaries. Not necessarily my peers as they are usually older than me and most definitely more accomplished than me but my contemporaries because they are writing about now. If I had to name my five favorite authors three of them [1] would be writers who are producing excellent work right now while there are many more [2] who I hold a great deal of respect.
I find this to be a thrilling realization. Part of this may be passing beyond the saturation point [3] where the canon has revealed the majority of what it's going to or maybe it's because the level of access to writing is just higher right now [4]. More likely though is the simplest explanation. Right now is just a really good time for literature.
Case in point is the Japanese author Haruki Murakami. Often praised as one of the great post-modern authors and perhaps the greatest author Japan has produced since the war, Murakami has written 12 novels since 1979. Still his 2002 book "Kafka On The Shore" (English Translation 2005) stands amongst his greatest work. He's not slowing down and he's not resting on his laurels.
"Kafka" details the travel stories of two men in Japan with possibly intertwining stories. Murakami uses dream sequences, the supernatural and American advertising figures to suggest a world which isn't real. Which in the end is true. It's a fiction book detailing the lives of fictional characters.
What was so amazing about the book is how the suggestion of unreality in the fictional world pointed back at the reality of the world around you the reader. Murakami may have a character who wears a white suit and a small goatee named Colonel Sanders. He also has his characters taking naps, preparing food and using the bathroom. With these little anchors linking his world back to the real world, he suggest the reader take a deeper awareness of their own life.
Part of the idea behind Thirty By Thirty is to experience new things like reading an author I had not before. It's also about doing things which remind me to be aware of my own life. For that reason I am glad not only to have read "Kafka On the Shore" but also to be living in an era with a wealth of literature.
[1] Klosterman, Gladwell and Simmons
[4] Chang, Pollack, Hornby, Sedaris, Ruiz-Zafon, Martel, Jacobs, Moore, July, Auster, Azzerad, Thompson, Roumeiu, Bendis, Mack, Johns, Morrison
I've recently been thinking about who my favorite authors are and I'm coming to the realization they are almost all authors who are my contemporaries. Not necessarily my peers as they are usually older than me and most definitely more accomplished than me but my contemporaries because they are writing about now. If I had to name my five favorite authors three of them [1] would be writers who are producing excellent work right now while there are many more [2] who I hold a great deal of respect.
I find this to be a thrilling realization. Part of this may be passing beyond the saturation point [3] where the canon has revealed the majority of what it's going to or maybe it's because the level of access to writing is just higher right now [4]. More likely though is the simplest explanation. Right now is just a really good time for literature.
Case in point is the Japanese author Haruki Murakami. Often praised as one of the great post-modern authors and perhaps the greatest author Japan has produced since the war, Murakami has written 12 novels since 1979. Still his 2002 book "Kafka On The Shore" (English Translation 2005) stands amongst his greatest work. He's not slowing down and he's not resting on his laurels.
"Kafka" details the travel stories of two men in Japan with possibly intertwining stories. Murakami uses dream sequences, the supernatural and American advertising figures to suggest a world which isn't real. Which in the end is true. It's a fiction book detailing the lives of fictional characters.
What was so amazing about the book is how the suggestion of unreality in the fictional world pointed back at the reality of the world around you the reader. Murakami may have a character who wears a white suit and a small goatee named Colonel Sanders. He also has his characters taking naps, preparing food and using the bathroom. With these little anchors linking his world back to the real world, he suggest the reader take a deeper awareness of their own life.
Part of the idea behind Thirty By Thirty is to experience new things like reading an author I had not before. It's also about doing things which remind me to be aware of my own life. For that reason I am glad not only to have read "Kafka On the Shore" but also to be living in an era with a wealth of literature.
[1] Klosterman, Gladwell and Simmons
[4] Chang, Pollack, Hornby, Sedaris, Ruiz-Zafon, Martel, Jacobs, Moore, July, Auster, Azzerad, Thompson, Roumeiu, Bendis, Mack, Johns, Morrison
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
LOST Live Blog
Hey, I haven't made a post in April. Let's do a LOST live blog.
7:56 - Uh, oh. The President is speaking. This may be an abbreviated LOST tonight.
7:59 - Okay, he must've looked at his watch and thought, "Oh, shit. LOST is almost on. I gotta go."
8:00 - I would've loved this show unconditionally if the Obama press conference had been part of the show.
8:03 - Love Jack's period sideburns.
8:04 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - If I had any doubts about "Star Trek" totally sucking, that commercial put them to rest. It's going to TURBO-suck.
8:06 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Forgot to mention the attendance to night: Me and a squeeky-toy-loving Bron-Bron.
8:07 - Destiny? The kid is a piano genius and doesn't know the meaning of "destiny"?
8:10 - JEREMY DAVIES!!!
8:11 - See, that's a callback to my comment about that moment in the season premiere.
8:12 - "I'm from the future (and suggest you invest in Apple)."
8:14 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - I did a quick scan earlier this week. There are only seven movies I'll probably see on their first day this summer. Seriously, out of 16 weekends I found 7 films worth seeing. And I was being generous.
8:16 - Miles also has 1997 hair.
8:19 - It's Sean Connery's journal from "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade."
8:22 - When the guy who can speak to dead people calls you crazy, you know you're chiquita bananas.
8:23 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Evening Dog Time!
8:27 - Faraday doesn't seem like the most stable of individuals. He's kinda flaky.
8:29 - Cost matters not to Charles Widmore, fool!
8:32 - Bron disappeared upstairs and it's really quiet. Chances I walk upstairs and find she's pooped - 2:1
8:34 - Gah-ross! She's his girlfriend in the future. Now he's talking to the eight-year-old her. Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
8:37 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - What's the likelihood you'll get cell phone service in the middle of the woods? Honestly, if I'm some place where I can use my iPhone and I need a compass just leave me.
8:42 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - No dog pile upstairs. I did find a turkey sandwich and a Surly though.
8:45 - Just a flesh wound.
8:47 - Shot by a PHYSICIST?!?! Not a PHYSICIST!!!!
8:49 - Finally some explanation.
8:52 - Okay, I'm on board. I'll do it if it means shit is going to happen.
8:54 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Bron likes to bark when she needs something. It can mean she needs to use the bathroom or it can mean she wants attention. She's the only high-maintenance female I need really.
8:55 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - OMFHGSWINEFLU!!!!1!1!!! Film at 11.
8:58 - Widmore and Faraday's mom? I guess they were sittin' in a tree K-I-S-S-I-N-G.
8:59 - You shot me, you dick.
9:00 - Thanks, mom. Happy Mother's Day everyone!
7:56 - Uh, oh. The President is speaking. This may be an abbreviated LOST tonight.
7:59 - Okay, he must've looked at his watch and thought, "Oh, shit. LOST is almost on. I gotta go."
8:00 - I would've loved this show unconditionally if the Obama press conference had been part of the show.
8:03 - Love Jack's period sideburns.
8:04 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - If I had any doubts about "Star Trek" totally sucking, that commercial put them to rest. It's going to TURBO-suck.
8:06 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Forgot to mention the attendance to night: Me and a squeeky-toy-loving Bron-Bron.
8:07 - Destiny? The kid is a piano genius and doesn't know the meaning of "destiny"?
8:10 - JEREMY DAVIES!!!
8:11 - See, that's a callback to my comment about that moment in the season premiere.
8:12 - "I'm from the future (and suggest you invest in Apple)."
8:14 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - I did a quick scan earlier this week. There are only seven movies I'll probably see on their first day this summer. Seriously, out of 16 weekends I found 7 films worth seeing. And I was being generous.
8:16 - Miles also has 1997 hair.
8:19 - It's Sean Connery's journal from "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade."
8:22 - When the guy who can speak to dead people calls you crazy, you know you're chiquita bananas.
8:23 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Evening Dog Time!
8:27 - Faraday doesn't seem like the most stable of individuals. He's kinda flaky.
8:29 - Cost matters not to Charles Widmore, fool!
8:32 - Bron disappeared upstairs and it's really quiet. Chances I walk upstairs and find she's pooped - 2:1
8:34 - Gah-ross! She's his girlfriend in the future. Now he's talking to the eight-year-old her. Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
8:37 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - What's the likelihood you'll get cell phone service in the middle of the woods? Honestly, if I'm some place where I can use my iPhone and I need a compass just leave me.
8:42 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - No dog pile upstairs. I did find a turkey sandwich and a Surly though.
8:45 - Just a flesh wound.
8:47 - Shot by a PHYSICIST?!?! Not a PHYSICIST!!!!
8:49 - Finally some explanation.
8:52 - Okay, I'm on board. I'll do it if it means shit is going to happen.
8:54 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Bron likes to bark when she needs something. It can mean she needs to use the bathroom or it can mean she wants attention. She's the only high-maintenance female I need really.
8:55 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - OMFHGSWINEFLU!!!!1!1!!! Film at 11.
8:58 - Widmore and Faraday's mom? I guess they were sittin' in a tree K-I-S-S-I-N-G.
8:59 - You shot me, you dick.
9:00 - Thanks, mom. Happy Mother's Day everyone!
Saturday, March 21, 2009
The Story of LeBron James Herman
LeBron James Herman began her life under humble means. The youngest of four littermates LeBron was born to a single mother illegitimately and out of wedlock. Because she was the youngest it often fell to LeBron to help her mother complete such household tasks as folding the laundry, rinsing the dishes and sometimes caring for her three siblings who were just minutes older. But there lived inside her a simple dream. LeBron James Herman was going to be the first female canine President.
Adopted by rank strangers in 2009, LeBron began her campaign for President almost immediately. She was comfortable with the face-to-face person-canine contact required of all great candidates. Able to switch quickly from barking for attention to overwhelming her constituents with playful licks to the face, LeBron was a natural at winning people to her side.
"Awwwwwwww," said local voter Marie Johnson. "Who's a cute puppy? Yes, you are. Yes, you are."
In 2010, LeBron attended law school at the University of Minnesota. She studied constitutional law to get a firm handle on the advanced principles she'd need later in her political career. An excellent student from the first day, LeBron showed an aptitude which was unexpected.
"I have to admit this shit to you." explains U of M law professor John Hamburg. "When LeBron wandered past the door of the classroom, then back in front of the doorway and then kind of hesitantly entered the room and fucking cocked her head expectantly, I thought, 'Whose fucking dog is this?'. Then I realized this dog was in the fucking class like a goddamn straight-to-video Disney movie."
LeBron was on the dean's list her entire academic career and graduated summa cum laude in 2012. Shortly afterward she began working for a local Minneapolis special interest group where she showed herself to be a prodigious talent. She successfully lobbied for increased parks funding, school lunch programs and the introduction of the two-hour midday nap.
In 2013, LeBron began to address her ultimate goal of a political career. Setting her sights on the Minneapolis mayorship, she campaigned night and day (minus two hours) by ringing doorbells and appearing with local celebrities in a full-court press unheard of previously.
"The crazy thing is you think, 'This is just unhuman,'," says campaign manager Inez Munoz. "Then you remember LeBron is a dog and it really is unhuman. She has a secret well of doggie power which gives her an extra gear she can go into and just blow people away."
Elected by a landslide, LeBron's time in Minneapolis was short. With her eyes set to Washington, she accepted the Governor's 2014 invitation to replace resigning Senator Al Franken who was leaving to pursue a career in something else I don't know what. Six months later the people of Minnesota concurred with the governor's decision and elected to another six years in office.
Still LeBron's gaze cast higher with 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue as her ultimate goal. She quickly formed an exploratory committee and announced her candidacy in late 2015. Often winning debates by barking until her opponent was quieted (How you like them apples?) and garnering endorsements from both sides of the aisle, LeBron was swept into office on a tidal wave of voter support.
"There was the fucking-shit-ass matter of whether you counted her age in dog years or in fucking people years," says Hamburg. "Then it occurs to you she knew this was an issue and was fucking thinking ahead all the fucking way back in 2010. I mean, fuck."
The LeBron Administration created broad initiatives such as no-leash laws, an end to animal testing and the flat tax. A firm believer in term limits, LeBron stuck by her ideals and served only one term in office before retiring from public life in 2020. She returned to the home of her adoptive strangers where she lived out the rest of her days just chillin' doooood. Shortly after her 14th birthday she went to live on some farm somewhere or something where she could chase tennis balls or something. Dan couldn't explain it very well through the tears so I'm confused, especially since we don't have cousins on Dad's side who own a farm.
"Yes, you are," recalls Johnson. "Just so cute. Sooooooo cute."
Adopted by rank strangers in 2009, LeBron began her campaign for President almost immediately. She was comfortable with the face-to-face person-canine contact required of all great candidates. Able to switch quickly from barking for attention to overwhelming her constituents with playful licks to the face, LeBron was a natural at winning people to her side.
"Awwwwwwww," said local voter Marie Johnson. "Who's a cute puppy? Yes, you are. Yes, you are."
In 2010, LeBron attended law school at the University of Minnesota. She studied constitutional law to get a firm handle on the advanced principles she'd need later in her political career. An excellent student from the first day, LeBron showed an aptitude which was unexpected.
"I have to admit this shit to you." explains U of M law professor John Hamburg. "When LeBron wandered past the door of the classroom, then back in front of the doorway and then kind of hesitantly entered the room and fucking cocked her head expectantly, I thought, 'Whose fucking dog is this?'. Then I realized this dog was in the fucking class like a goddamn straight-to-video Disney movie."
LeBron was on the dean's list her entire academic career and graduated summa cum laude in 2012. Shortly afterward she began working for a local Minneapolis special interest group where she showed herself to be a prodigious talent. She successfully lobbied for increased parks funding, school lunch programs and the introduction of the two-hour midday nap.
In 2013, LeBron began to address her ultimate goal of a political career. Setting her sights on the Minneapolis mayorship, she campaigned night and day (minus two hours) by ringing doorbells and appearing with local celebrities in a full-court press unheard of previously.
"The crazy thing is you think, 'This is just unhuman,'," says campaign manager Inez Munoz. "Then you remember LeBron is a dog and it really is unhuman. She has a secret well of doggie power which gives her an extra gear she can go into and just blow people away."
Elected by a landslide, LeBron's time in Minneapolis was short. With her eyes set to Washington, she accepted the Governor's 2014 invitation to replace resigning Senator Al Franken who was leaving to pursue a career in something else I don't know what. Six months later the people of Minnesota concurred with the governor's decision and elected to another six years in office.
Still LeBron's gaze cast higher with 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue as her ultimate goal. She quickly formed an exploratory committee and announced her candidacy in late 2015. Often winning debates by barking until her opponent was quieted (How you like them apples?) and garnering endorsements from both sides of the aisle, LeBron was swept into office on a tidal wave of voter support.
"There was the fucking-shit-ass matter of whether you counted her age in dog years or in fucking people years," says Hamburg. "Then it occurs to you she knew this was an issue and was fucking thinking ahead all the fucking way back in 2010. I mean, fuck."
The LeBron Administration created broad initiatives such as no-leash laws, an end to animal testing and the flat tax. A firm believer in term limits, LeBron stuck by her ideals and served only one term in office before retiring from public life in 2020. She returned to the home of her adoptive strangers where she lived out the rest of her days just chillin' doooood. Shortly after her 14th birthday she went to live on some farm somewhere or something where she could chase tennis balls or something. Dan couldn't explain it very well through the tears so I'm confused, especially since we don't have cousins on Dad's side who own a farm.
"Yes, you are," recalls Johnson. "Just so cute. Sooooooo cute."
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
5(+1) Questions About Watchmen (NO SPOILERS)
One of the joys of living in Chicago for the last two years was meeting, befriending and seeing a metric ton of movies with Miss Mary Kravenas. We met when I worked briefly at a book-seller in Evanston and bonded over our love of all things nerdy, geeky and comic book-related.
In fact, we have one of the best origin stories of any friendship. One day on the train into the city I read an ad saying Amy Sedaris would be signing copies of her new book at the Michigan Ave. Borders near my office. We decided we would go and took our place pretty far back in line when we arrived after work. So far back it took us until past midnight to reach the head of the line. Anyone you can spend six and a half hours in line with and have a deliriously happy good time is surely a true friend.
Mary was fortunate enough to see a preview screening of "Watchmen" tonight and when she got home, I asked her five spoiler-free questions about the film.
Mike: Okay, first question. The one every fanperson is worried about. Is it good?
Mary: Yes, and one of the people I went with was unaware of the graphic novel and he enjoyed it a lot.
Mike: Does the movie have the feel of the graphic novel or is it an entity unto itself?
Mary: It has the feel of the graphic novel. But it definitely has the cinematic feel too, much like "300" where the hong kong action film, turn-and-pivot filmmaking is present.
And the use of some of the actors--namely the dwarf actor who's in, well, everything, brought some unintended humor, I think. There were definite cheers and applause
Mike: Peter Dinklage?
Mary: No, let me find his name. He was in Seinfeld... Danny Woodburn
Mike: Malin Ackerman. Was she okay? Please be honest.
Mary: She did a good job. She kicks ass as Silk Spectre. There were some parts as Laurie where it was a little soft. The Night Owl/Silk Spectre sex scene made me roll my eyes a little.
Mike: Related to that. Did the filmmakers have the um... guts to include Dr. Manhattan's um... bits?
Mary: Yes, uncircumcised and everything. I haven't seen that much wang in a movie that didn't have an NC-17 rating.
Mike: Finally everyone worth their salt knows the Giant Squid is out. Did the replacement ending live up to it?
Mary: Well, it's no Giant Squid. There were parts of the replacement ending that I feel worked well. Because this is a movie, I think the changes that were made to the ending worked and made the ending and how things tie together/are explained more... realistic isn't quite the word.
Also there are a couple of elements that were very "Hollywood." There are going to be quibbles. If the movie could just end a couple minutes earlier I think some reviewers would've been happier. I don't know that I agreed completely with some of the thinking on the ending. There is a parallel to some recent movies.
But in an overall sense, I think the new ending worked for the movie. Even if I didn't agree with it completely.
Mike: Anything else to say?
Mary: There are some great choices of music like when Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" is played during the Nite Owl/SS2 sex scene which made me snort. And Jackie Earl Haley is brilliant.
Mike: Mary, thanks a lot for putting a lot of my fears to bed.
Mary: You're welcome. It's not a perfect movie. But it's really good.
In fact, we have one of the best origin stories of any friendship. One day on the train into the city I read an ad saying Amy Sedaris would be signing copies of her new book at the Michigan Ave. Borders near my office. We decided we would go and took our place pretty far back in line when we arrived after work. So far back it took us until past midnight to reach the head of the line. Anyone you can spend six and a half hours in line with and have a deliriously happy good time is surely a true friend.
Mary was fortunate enough to see a preview screening of "Watchmen" tonight and when she got home, I asked her five spoiler-free questions about the film.
Mike: Okay, first question. The one every fanperson is worried about. Is it good?
Mary: Yes, and one of the people I went with was unaware of the graphic novel and he enjoyed it a lot.
Mike: Does the movie have the feel of the graphic novel or is it an entity unto itself?
Mary: It has the feel of the graphic novel. But it definitely has the cinematic feel too, much like "300" where the hong kong action film, turn-and-pivot filmmaking is present.
And the use of some of the actors--namely the dwarf actor who's in, well, everything, brought some unintended humor, I think. There were definite cheers and applause
Mike: Peter Dinklage?
Mary: No, let me find his name. He was in Seinfeld... Danny Woodburn
Mike: Malin Ackerman. Was she okay? Please be honest.
Mary: She did a good job. She kicks ass as Silk Spectre. There were some parts as Laurie where it was a little soft. The Night Owl/Silk Spectre sex scene made me roll my eyes a little.
Mike: Related to that. Did the filmmakers have the um... guts to include Dr. Manhattan's um... bits?
Mary: Yes, uncircumcised and everything. I haven't seen that much wang in a movie that didn't have an NC-17 rating.
Mike: Finally everyone worth their salt knows the Giant Squid is out. Did the replacement ending live up to it?
Mary: Well, it's no Giant Squid. There were parts of the replacement ending that I feel worked well. Because this is a movie, I think the changes that were made to the ending worked and made the ending and how things tie together/are explained more... realistic isn't quite the word.
Also there are a couple of elements that were very "Hollywood." There are going to be quibbles. If the movie could just end a couple minutes earlier I think some reviewers would've been happier. I don't know that I agreed completely with some of the thinking on the ending. There is a parallel to some recent movies.
But in an overall sense, I think the new ending worked for the movie. Even if I didn't agree with it completely.
Mike: Anything else to say?
Mary: There are some great choices of music like when Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" is played during the Nite Owl/SS2 sex scene which made me snort. And Jackie Earl Haley is brilliant.
Mike: Mary, thanks a lot for putting a lot of my fears to bed.
Mary: You're welcome. It's not a perfect movie. But it's really good.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
LOST Live Blog
Guess who is home this Wednesday night in time for LOST? Let's do this.
7:59 - An attendance tonight: Dan, myself and a sleeping Bron-Bron.
8:00 - Jack wakes up on the island. I think I've seen this one before.
8:02 - The part they didn't show you is when Hurley let Leonardo DiCaprio sink just a moment beforehand.
8:03 - Can I just say I like flash-forwards better than I like flashbacks? It's like seeing something on the horizon and getting to walk to it.
8:05 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - I have a small bone of contention. So out of all of the people Ben was trying to recruit to come back to the island, he went to Jack, Sayid and Hurley. Then the only person who actually went with Ben was Jack while Sun is in this weird showdown and Desmond Hume more or less just showed up. How was Ben the leader of The Others for so long? I mean, wouldn't it be necessary to win people over to your side at least once?
8:09 - "Is he telling the truth?" One of those things that if you need to ask...
8:10 - "Okay, guys there are all of these 'pockets' and one of them is a tropical island." "I'm going to go out on a limb here and say we should try to find the one which is a tropical island."
8:12 - See what I mean about having something to work towards?
8:13 - Err, Desmond. I think it's been obvious for a while that Ben is playing chess while everyone else is playing checkers.
8:14 - Or land in Guam.
8:15 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Is anyone else really fired up for "Watchmen"? It's getting so close they're running the short commercials now.
8:18 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - By George, Dennis Leary will sell Smallz a truck with a step if they have to mail it to him.
8:19 - Have we established whether Locke's legs work yet?
8:20 - A very good summation about watching the rest of this show.
8:24 - Okay, who's that guy?
8:22 - Ben: Dropping some knowledge on Jack.
8:25 - Oddly enough her name WAS Freckles.
8:28 - Kiss 'er. Kiss 'er.
8:29 - YES!
8:30 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Doctor or God? Wasn't there an Alec Baldwin movie about that?
8:33 - Ah, yes. The venerable Coffee of Shame.
8:35 - You know when you think the bully from your school was the BAAAADDDEST dude around and then you see him get beat up? Yeah.
8:37 - I mean, it's obvious Locke's legs don't work now when he's dead.
8:38 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - So I got a new phone today. It has a QWERTY board and everything. If you think I sent a lot of text messages before... Mu-ha-ha-ha-ha!
8:41 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Would you actually hold a friend to a "... I'll marry a goat." I mean, there needs to be an acceptable substitute like a slug in the arm. But to make him actually marry a goat?
8:44 - Hurley! Buying up the plane like Daddy Warbucks. Anyone remember that part in "Annie"? Anyone?
8:46 - "What will happen to the other people?" "Who cares?" Ben!
8:49 - Doesn't Frank LaPetis sound like the type of name you'd write down on the attendance sheet when there was substitute?
8:51 - And how exactly does a surgeon get to know an airline pilot very well? Doesn't that seem unlikely?
8:52 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Having Dan here pays off. Frank is apparently the helicopter pilot. Again, I ask...
8:54 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - How nice is it to see Nathan Fillion getting cast in other stuff? I mean, even meaningless mid-season replacements.
8:55 - Do you think the LOST writers just sit around and think up one-liners for Ben to zing Jack with?
8:56 - Well, now that you put it that way...
8:59 - Ah, yes. It's not where you are, it's when.
7:59 - An attendance tonight: Dan, myself and a sleeping Bron-Bron.
8:00 - Jack wakes up on the island. I think I've seen this one before.
8:02 - The part they didn't show you is when Hurley let Leonardo DiCaprio sink just a moment beforehand.
8:03 - Can I just say I like flash-forwards better than I like flashbacks? It's like seeing something on the horizon and getting to walk to it.
8:05 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - I have a small bone of contention. So out of all of the people Ben was trying to recruit to come back to the island, he went to Jack, Sayid and Hurley. Then the only person who actually went with Ben was Jack while Sun is in this weird showdown and Desmond Hume more or less just showed up. How was Ben the leader of The Others for so long? I mean, wouldn't it be necessary to win people over to your side at least once?
8:09 - "Is he telling the truth?" One of those things that if you need to ask...
8:10 - "Okay, guys there are all of these 'pockets' and one of them is a tropical island." "I'm going to go out on a limb here and say we should try to find the one which is a tropical island."
8:12 - See what I mean about having something to work towards?
8:13 - Err, Desmond. I think it's been obvious for a while that Ben is playing chess while everyone else is playing checkers.
8:14 - Or land in Guam.
8:15 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Is anyone else really fired up for "Watchmen"? It's getting so close they're running the short commercials now.
8:18 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - By George, Dennis Leary will sell Smallz a truck with a step if they have to mail it to him.
8:19 - Have we established whether Locke's legs work yet?
8:20 - A very good summation about watching the rest of this show.
8:24 - Okay, who's that guy?
8:22 - Ben: Dropping some knowledge on Jack.
8:25 - Oddly enough her name WAS Freckles.
8:28 - Kiss 'er. Kiss 'er.
8:29 - YES!
8:30 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Doctor or God? Wasn't there an Alec Baldwin movie about that?
8:33 - Ah, yes. The venerable Coffee of Shame.
8:35 - You know when you think the bully from your school was the BAAAADDDEST dude around and then you see him get beat up? Yeah.
8:37 - I mean, it's obvious Locke's legs don't work now when he's dead.
8:38 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - So I got a new phone today. It has a QWERTY board and everything. If you think I sent a lot of text messages before... Mu-ha-ha-ha-ha!
8:41 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Would you actually hold a friend to a "... I'll marry a goat." I mean, there needs to be an acceptable substitute like a slug in the arm. But to make him actually marry a goat?
8:44 - Hurley! Buying up the plane like Daddy Warbucks. Anyone remember that part in "Annie"? Anyone?
8:46 - "What will happen to the other people?" "Who cares?" Ben!
8:49 - Doesn't Frank LaPetis sound like the type of name you'd write down on the attendance sheet when there was substitute?
8:51 - And how exactly does a surgeon get to know an airline pilot very well? Doesn't that seem unlikely?
8:52 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Having Dan here pays off. Frank is apparently the helicopter pilot. Again, I ask...
8:54 - COMMERCIAL BREAK - How nice is it to see Nathan Fillion getting cast in other stuff? I mean, even meaningless mid-season replacements.
8:55 - Do you think the LOST writers just sit around and think up one-liners for Ben to zing Jack with?
8:56 - Well, now that you put it that way...
8:59 - Ah, yes. It's not where you are, it's when.
Monday, February 16, 2009
Thirty By Thirty - #1 - Start Taking a Multi-Vitamin
Okay, when I was thinking up things to do for 30 x 30 it wasn't all just glamorous things like "Go parachuting" or "Visit New York City." Sometimes they're just going to be little things which I really should be doing anyway. Taking a multi-vitamin is a good example.
When you're young, you don't have to care about things like eating right. Your margin of error is much higher and you can do most anything without facing really grave consequences you can't recover from. Ask anybody you know about "how much wilder" they were in their youth and you'll surely hear tales of "I can't believe nothing bad happened" from most of them.
Well, later in life is when you start paying for those youthful indulgences and indiscretions. I know this personally from needing to undo years of abuse by losing a lot of weight and now fighting to keep it off. So I need to start thinking now about the little things I can be doing now to pay off positively much later.
Thus I am taking a multi-vitamin. There are some questions about their effectiveness. But I know that I'm most definitely not getting a balanced and completely nutritious diet right now. So I will take a One-A-Day multi-vitamin a vitamin C tablet to make sure I am augmenting my diet correctly.
When you're young, you don't have to care about things like eating right. Your margin of error is much higher and you can do most anything without facing really grave consequences you can't recover from. Ask anybody you know about "how much wilder" they were in their youth and you'll surely hear tales of "I can't believe nothing bad happened" from most of them.
Well, later in life is when you start paying for those youthful indulgences and indiscretions. I know this personally from needing to undo years of abuse by losing a lot of weight and now fighting to keep it off. So I need to start thinking now about the little things I can be doing now to pay off positively much later.
Thus I am taking a multi-vitamin. There are some questions about their effectiveness. But I know that I'm most definitely not getting a balanced and completely nutritious diet right now. So I will take a One-A-Day multi-vitamin a vitamin C tablet to make sure I am augmenting my diet correctly.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
25 Things
I technically did 29 things for my 30 x 30 unrelated to the 25 things craze. But here are 25 random things about me.
1.) Sometimes I just get lazy about shaving and turn it into an opportunity to grow a sweet beard.
2.) I always watch the Onion News Network twice, once with the sound and again without the sound to read the scroll.
3.) When I go on a date I have to listen to three songs as I'm getting ready: "Today" by Smashing Pumpkins, "I Have A Date" by The Vandals and then "First Date" by Blink 182. Then I listen to as much Jay-Z as possible. Do you know how super confident listening to a lot of Jay-Z makes you?
4.) If you and I are going somewhere in a car and we get to our destination, I am out of the car before you have your seatbelt off. Then I'll stand next to the car like it's you who has the problem.
5.) My brother and I have an ongoing competition to see who can shake famous people's hands. Basically the only way to win would be to shake Obama, Jordan or Thom Yorke's hand (and I was close on the first two).
6.) When I go to the movies, I try to sit in the dead center of the theater. I will go to the extent of counting rows and seats in a row if it's a place I've never been before.
7.) Peanut butter + two slices of bread = meal at any time of day
8.) If I had to pick my best year of my life, I'd pick 2005 followed by 1998.
9.) If I had to pick the worst year of my life, I wouldn't pick one. Each year had something going for it.
10.) My archnemesis for my entire life has been the telephone. If I'm ever on the phone with you for more than a minute consider this a show of the strength of our friendship. I'm literally torturing myself on your behalf.
11.) It would be my dream to one day play a game of Risktego, aka a game of Risk with each of the battles being a game of Stratego. And by "one day" I mean the week it would required to play straight through only taking breaks to sleep, to eat, to use the bathroom and to take a walk outside pondering why you wanted to play a game of Risktego.
12.) I don't eat beef. It's partially a consciousness thing but also beef just makes me feel logey.
13.) When I was little I read a lot of comic books. Here's the weird part. They were mostly Archie comics.
14.) I know that in kindergarten I was as tall as an emperor penguin. I know this because I stood up to show the class how tall an emperor penguin was.
15.) In college my friends and I developed a thirty-hours-a-day, four-days-a-week calendar. We're pretty sure you'd go crazy but the idea of twenty hours on and ten hours off appealed to us. I mean, let's be honest. We were already doing the twenty hours on.
16.) I've moved at least once every year since I was 16 except 2004 and 2007. Amazingly I still check and use the very first e-mail account I ever set up.
17.) When the World Cup rolls around, I'll cheer for any team that speaks English or Portuguese.
18.) I have a friend who I always considered a music expert and was intimidated by his knowledge of music. He then told me he considered me a music expert and was intimidated by my knowledge of music. This individual is now one of my best friends.
19.) During high school, I used to run up to people I knew, put my arm around their shoulder and try to swing into their arms. This worked about as often as you would imagine.
20.) If I had to pick between the ability to fly, invisibility or the strength of 10 men, I'd pick flying. People who pick invisibility are creepers and not to be trusted. I don't know anyone who would pick the strength of 10 men.
21.) To date I have yet to incur any credit card debt.
22.) My favorite soft drink is RC Cola.
23.) I believe there are two appropriate responses when someone offers you a piece of pizza: "Yes, thank you. How generous of you." and "No, thank you. I already have my own slice."
24.) I made a decision a few years ago to be more polite. I rethought it as the minimum amount of consideration you can expect from another person and perhaps politeness keeps us from tearing other apart.
25.) I remember what it was like to be the kid who got left out in grade school. For that sole reason, I am always trying to include new people into whatever I'm doing.
1.) Sometimes I just get lazy about shaving and turn it into an opportunity to grow a sweet beard.
2.) I always watch the Onion News Network twice, once with the sound and again without the sound to read the scroll.
3.) When I go on a date I have to listen to three songs as I'm getting ready: "Today" by Smashing Pumpkins, "I Have A Date" by The Vandals and then "First Date" by Blink 182. Then I listen to as much Jay-Z as possible. Do you know how super confident listening to a lot of Jay-Z makes you?
4.) If you and I are going somewhere in a car and we get to our destination, I am out of the car before you have your seatbelt off. Then I'll stand next to the car like it's you who has the problem.
5.) My brother and I have an ongoing competition to see who can shake famous people's hands. Basically the only way to win would be to shake Obama, Jordan or Thom Yorke's hand (and I was close on the first two).
6.) When I go to the movies, I try to sit in the dead center of the theater. I will go to the extent of counting rows and seats in a row if it's a place I've never been before.
7.) Peanut butter + two slices of bread = meal at any time of day
8.) If I had to pick my best year of my life, I'd pick 2005 followed by 1998.
9.) If I had to pick the worst year of my life, I wouldn't pick one. Each year had something going for it.
10.) My archnemesis for my entire life has been the telephone. If I'm ever on the phone with you for more than a minute consider this a show of the strength of our friendship. I'm literally torturing myself on your behalf.
11.) It would be my dream to one day play a game of Risktego, aka a game of Risk with each of the battles being a game of Stratego. And by "one day" I mean the week it would required to play straight through only taking breaks to sleep, to eat, to use the bathroom and to take a walk outside pondering why you wanted to play a game of Risktego.
12.) I don't eat beef. It's partially a consciousness thing but also beef just makes me feel logey.
13.) When I was little I read a lot of comic books. Here's the weird part. They were mostly Archie comics.
14.) I know that in kindergarten I was as tall as an emperor penguin. I know this because I stood up to show the class how tall an emperor penguin was.
15.) In college my friends and I developed a thirty-hours-a-day, four-days-a-week calendar. We're pretty sure you'd go crazy but the idea of twenty hours on and ten hours off appealed to us. I mean, let's be honest. We were already doing the twenty hours on.
16.) I've moved at least once every year since I was 16 except 2004 and 2007. Amazingly I still check and use the very first e-mail account I ever set up.
17.) When the World Cup rolls around, I'll cheer for any team that speaks English or Portuguese.
18.) I have a friend who I always considered a music expert and was intimidated by his knowledge of music. He then told me he considered me a music expert and was intimidated by my knowledge of music. This individual is now one of my best friends.
19.) During high school, I used to run up to people I knew, put my arm around their shoulder and try to swing into their arms. This worked about as often as you would imagine.
20.) If I had to pick between the ability to fly, invisibility or the strength of 10 men, I'd pick flying. People who pick invisibility are creepers and not to be trusted. I don't know anyone who would pick the strength of 10 men.
21.) To date I have yet to incur any credit card debt.
22.) My favorite soft drink is RC Cola.
23.) I believe there are two appropriate responses when someone offers you a piece of pizza: "Yes, thank you. How generous of you." and "No, thank you. I already have my own slice."
24.) I made a decision a few years ago to be more polite. I rethought it as the minimum amount of consideration you can expect from another person and perhaps politeness keeps us from tearing other apart.
25.) I remember what it was like to be the kid who got left out in grade school. For that sole reason, I am always trying to include new people into whatever I'm doing.
Monday, February 9, 2009
Thirty By Thirty - Mission Statement
As I approached my 29th birthday, I made a decision of how I would celebrate the last year of my twenties.
A lot of people approach their thirties in a mournful state. I should know as, in the last few years, my peers have increasingly become people approaching thirty. They think of it as the dying of their youth and the end of their best years. I take the opposite tack. I would much rather be 30 than 20. When I was 20 I had no money, had no girlfriend and didn't know who the fonk I was or who I wanted to be. Well, those three things are still true but I'm much further along the journey. I wouldn't peel back my twenties in any kind of redo because what I did and what happened made me into who I am today.
Thus I will celebrate my twenties as this great time I did, went and saw everything I could and enjoyed myself while doing, going and seeing. In much the same way we congregate together on New Years Eve to celebrate the passing of time instead of mourning it, my turning thirty will not be the dying of one era but the commencement of another. They will be the years when I find my way in the world, discover those people who will be my life companions and enjoy all of the perks of being an adult instead of being an over-inflated kid.
As a part of this year long celebration I'm going to do thirty things which I have never done before and then come back here and write about the experience. My brother calls it my "busted list" as in I have to do these things before I'm old and busted. Some of the tasks will be small and easily completed. Others will require planning and assistance. It is not my intent to have a list of thirty items and only accomplish twenty-something. There is a list which is already greater than thirty items and your suggestions are appreciated to expand upon it further. As I said, the intent is to share in this celebration both in the actual commission of the thirty things and also in writing about it in this space.
To that extent I have written the following as a declaration of purpose:
Between his 29th and 30th birthdays, Michael Herman will celebrate his transition into his third decade by completing thirty tasks he has never previously experienced and embracing the idea you can always find new experiences no matter how old you are thanks to the wonder, beauty and timeliness of Life.
A lot of people approach their thirties in a mournful state. I should know as, in the last few years, my peers have increasingly become people approaching thirty. They think of it as the dying of their youth and the end of their best years. I take the opposite tack. I would much rather be 30 than 20. When I was 20 I had no money, had no girlfriend and didn't know who the fonk I was or who I wanted to be. Well, those three things are still true but I'm much further along the journey. I wouldn't peel back my twenties in any kind of redo because what I did and what happened made me into who I am today.
Thus I will celebrate my twenties as this great time I did, went and saw everything I could and enjoyed myself while doing, going and seeing. In much the same way we congregate together on New Years Eve to celebrate the passing of time instead of mourning it, my turning thirty will not be the dying of one era but the commencement of another. They will be the years when I find my way in the world, discover those people who will be my life companions and enjoy all of the perks of being an adult instead of being an over-inflated kid.
As a part of this year long celebration I'm going to do thirty things which I have never done before and then come back here and write about the experience. My brother calls it my "busted list" as in I have to do these things before I'm old and busted. Some of the tasks will be small and easily completed. Others will require planning and assistance. It is not my intent to have a list of thirty items and only accomplish twenty-something. There is a list which is already greater than thirty items and your suggestions are appreciated to expand upon it further. As I said, the intent is to share in this celebration both in the actual commission of the thirty things and also in writing about it in this space.
To that extent I have written the following as a declaration of purpose:
Between his 29th and 30th birthdays, Michael Herman will celebrate his transition into his third decade by completing thirty tasks he has never previously experienced and embracing the idea you can always find new experiences no matter how old you are thanks to the wonder, beauty and timeliness of Life.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
The 29 Things About Me At Age 29
1.) I was born at 8:30 in the evening on February 1st, 1980 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The hospital where I was born (Abbott-Northwestern) is still standing. No, Gregory Peck, it did not burn down years ago.
2.) I grew up in Edina, Minnesota where I lived at the end of a cul-de-sac with a large yard. I'm the oldest of three children with one sister two years younger and a brother four years younger.
3.) When I was really little (my aunt estimates 3 or 4 years old) I kept another little boy from drowning. We were up at my family's lake cabin and this boy hadn't been raised near the water like I had and thus couldn't swim very well. I laid down on my belly on the dock as I held his head above water and shouted until the adults heard me.
4.) I've been to the hospital a few times in my life. I can't give you an exact number because a good number of them happened when I had epilepsy as a very small child. There are the three times I remember.
When I was four, I was playing in the basement of our old house with my dad and my sister. My sister and I were taking turns jumping over a comforter my dad was swinging back and forth. Normally if you tripped you'd fall into the comforter. I overshot once and had to get stitches in my chin.
When I was 13, I had an incident during my sleep at summer camp which made it seem like my epilepsy was coming back. It turned out it wasn't. But I did have to have a battery of tests to verify this. The one upside was my dad and I stayed up all night watching "Terminator 2: Judgement Day" and "The Commitments" per doctor's orders.
Then when I was 20, I fell into a door frame and needed stitches in my eyebrow. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. It was a klutzy trip into a door frame, not a shameful display of foolishness. Move along now. Nothing to see here.
5.) Since I was very young I've been fascinated by the news. As a kid I would read Newsweek and US News and World report while being glued to CNN Headline News. On the morning the democratic demonstrations in Tienanmen Square were suppressed I watched the news report on CBS's This Morning with Charles Kuralt. It was the same day the Ayatollah died.
6.) The very first time I was on the Internet was in 1988 or so when the kid up the block got a modem. He had to place a long-distance call to Houston in order to sign into a very basic version of Prodigy. Later his father got the phone bill and hit the roof. The point was we were there.
7.) I was there in-person with my dad, my sister and my brother when this happened.
The fact I love baseball is not entirely unrelated.
8.) After my ninth grade year I transferred away from Edina to Orono where I graduated in 1998. Being at a smaller school allowed me to letter in varsity basketball, concert band and theater while participating in the school newspaper, the literary magazine and ultimate frisbee. I would not have had the opportunity to participate in all these extra curriculars at a school like Edina High School.
9.) I lived in the state of Wisconsin across three academic years while I attended school near Green Bay. This experienced exposed me to what it's like to live in a town smaller than Minneapolis.
10.) While I was in school at St. Norbert, I was a member of a "frat." It wasn't frat really. It was technically a "men's independent social group" and it was made up of a the really smart, really independent kids who "would never join a frat except... Hey, what's this?" To this date, my best and closest friends are people I met through this group.
11.) In the fall semester of my junior year, I won a student-faculty grant from the school to write a manuscript under the supervision of a professor. The college gave me $2000 which I promptly dumped back into tuition. To this date I have yet to finish the manuscript. But at one point in my life I was technically an endowed writer.
12.) I published the on-campus underground satirical newspaper while I was at St. Norbert. We were pretty serious about getting the paper out every two weeks. So serious that one time I drank too much, got up the next morning, puked during class (I was running to the restroom at the time), went home to sleep it off and still got up to meet my own self-imposed deadline of that evening.
13.) After my junior year of college I was blown out. I wasn't feeling challenged by my school work so I was making up impossible challenges to complete this school work. For example, I would type my papers for the critical writing class (the hardest class in the English major) on the day of class. When this wasn't enough, I started writing them in the two hours before class. In April I took incompletes in all of my classes and moved home.
14.) I graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2003. Since I'd missed some gen ed classes on my first time through I took an extra two semesters (fall and summer) to finish. Recently I saw my diploma for the first time in five years. I put it back in the box it was in and don't expect to see it for another five years.
15.) I've visited 31 out of the 50 states. My family was very good (and fortunate) at taking a lot of trips when I was growing up. Since then I've added to my 50-state tally by taking long road trips to each coast either with my friends, my high school band, protest trips or just by myself. These are the states I've visited.
16.) I've been out of the country three times total. I went to Canada with my mom for a week and I've been over the border from Brownsville into Matamoros twice. I don't consider this a deficiency. Do you know how much of the United States there is to see?
17.) The one time I ever tried to hitchhike I was successful. In fact, it was someone I knew who picked me up. My friend Pete and I were leaving the Phish concert in the middle of the Everglades for Y2K and he needed to be on a plane the next morning. We were holding a sign near the front gate when my friend Jake drove by in an RV. It's possibly the luckiest moment of my entire life.
18.) When I got out of college, I didn't know what to do with myself. So I did what any person would do in that situation. I went into whatever paid me the most. In this case, it was insurance.
19.) There was one Friday night when I was nary a year post-college I was sitting at home watching a re-run of "Cops." Suddenly it occurred to me. I was sitting at home on a Friday night watching a re-run of "Cops." Even worse, I'd seen that episode previously. It was that night I decided to be more of an extrovert.
20.) I've had seven girlfriends in my lifetime. I loved all seven of them in their own way. I've felt bad about how things ended with all seven of them. The good news is three of the last four will probably read this so I'm getting better at staying friends.
21.) I lived in the state of Illinois for two years while my now-ex-girlfriend pursued an acting career. This experience exposed me to what it's like to live in a city larger than Minneapolis.
22.) When I lived in Chicago, I worked for the insurance arm of a large property holding firm doing complex filings of yada yada yada and blah blah blah. Our offices were on the Magnificent Mile and I would ride the train down from Evanston every morning. This was the best job I've ever had. The work was challenging, I was given a great deal of autonomy and there was an amazing culture of camaraderie amongst the young people of the office.
23.) The best part about living in Chicago for me was the really cool concert festivals I attended in that city's parks. I went to Pitchfork three times, the Touch and Go 25th Anniversary weekend and numerous great bands famous and otherwise playing at the summer street festivals. Still one of my five favorite moments ever was at Lollapalooza last year when this happened by accident.
24.) Three of my friends have died in my lifetime. The first was my childhood friend Brendan who used to come down the block to play when we were little. He died from a sudden onset of meningitis when we were in high school. The next was my college friend Emily who crashed her bike and flipped over her handlebars while not wearing a helmet. She used to call everything "fascist!" and I'm sure would've actually exploded if she had lived to see the Bush years. Then I was 24 when my friend Chuck who worked across the hall passed away after coming home from the bar. He complained to his girlfriend about feeling ill and went to bed. That "feeling ill" was his vital organs shutting down.
25.) I have only one grandparent left, my paternal grandmother. I was six years old when my dad's dad died and that makes me the youngest member of our family who remembers him. My mom's mom died when I was a sophomore in college and my grandfather died two days after I'd visited him when I was 26. I realize how lucky I am in all four circumstances.
26.) I cried when Kirby Puckett died. I actually cried twice, once when I heard the news and once when they held a moment of silence for him at the T'Wolves game two days later. After the moment of silence I turned to my then-girlfriend, pointed at Kevin Garnett and said, "That's the only other athlete I will cry over when he dies."
27.) I've been quoted twice in the newspaper of the metro area in twice I was living. When I was in high school, I was a part of an article about kids who transfer high schools under Minnesota's open-enrollment rules. When I was in college, I was a part of an article about a protest trip we took to the School of The Americas in Fort Benning, Georgia. I also appeared on the front page of the newspaper in the later article.
28.) My brother and I were in a band together called MidDef when I was in college and he was in high school and even wrote a few original songs. We played exactly two concerts; once in Dad's basement for X-mas and once in our Mom's backyard for some friends.
29.) When this posts I will be when I have just turned 29 years old. If I live until at least 70, my life isn't even halfway over. The best part isn't that I feel like I've done a lot with the 29 years I've had. It is that I feel like I can do even more in the coming years ahead.
2.) I grew up in Edina, Minnesota where I lived at the end of a cul-de-sac with a large yard. I'm the oldest of three children with one sister two years younger and a brother four years younger.
3.) When I was really little (my aunt estimates 3 or 4 years old) I kept another little boy from drowning. We were up at my family's lake cabin and this boy hadn't been raised near the water like I had and thus couldn't swim very well. I laid down on my belly on the dock as I held his head above water and shouted until the adults heard me.
4.) I've been to the hospital a few times in my life. I can't give you an exact number because a good number of them happened when I had epilepsy as a very small child. There are the three times I remember.
When I was four, I was playing in the basement of our old house with my dad and my sister. My sister and I were taking turns jumping over a comforter my dad was swinging back and forth. Normally if you tripped you'd fall into the comforter. I overshot once and had to get stitches in my chin.
When I was 13, I had an incident during my sleep at summer camp which made it seem like my epilepsy was coming back. It turned out it wasn't. But I did have to have a battery of tests to verify this. The one upside was my dad and I stayed up all night watching "Terminator 2: Judgement Day" and "The Commitments" per doctor's orders.
Then when I was 20, I fell into a door frame and needed stitches in my eyebrow. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. It was a klutzy trip into a door frame, not a shameful display of foolishness. Move along now. Nothing to see here.
5.) Since I was very young I've been fascinated by the news. As a kid I would read Newsweek and US News and World report while being glued to CNN Headline News. On the morning the democratic demonstrations in Tienanmen Square were suppressed I watched the news report on CBS's This Morning with Charles Kuralt. It was the same day the Ayatollah died.
6.) The very first time I was on the Internet was in 1988 or so when the kid up the block got a modem. He had to place a long-distance call to Houston in order to sign into a very basic version of Prodigy. Later his father got the phone bill and hit the roof. The point was we were there.
7.) I was there in-person with my dad, my sister and my brother when this happened.
The fact I love baseball is not entirely unrelated.
8.) After my ninth grade year I transferred away from Edina to Orono where I graduated in 1998. Being at a smaller school allowed me to letter in varsity basketball, concert band and theater while participating in the school newspaper, the literary magazine and ultimate frisbee. I would not have had the opportunity to participate in all these extra curriculars at a school like Edina High School.
9.) I lived in the state of Wisconsin across three academic years while I attended school near Green Bay. This experienced exposed me to what it's like to live in a town smaller than Minneapolis.
10.) While I was in school at St. Norbert, I was a member of a "frat." It wasn't frat really. It was technically a "men's independent social group" and it was made up of a the really smart, really independent kids who "would never join a frat except... Hey, what's this?" To this date, my best and closest friends are people I met through this group.
11.) In the fall semester of my junior year, I won a student-faculty grant from the school to write a manuscript under the supervision of a professor. The college gave me $2000 which I promptly dumped back into tuition. To this date I have yet to finish the manuscript. But at one point in my life I was technically an endowed writer.
12.) I published the on-campus underground satirical newspaper while I was at St. Norbert. We were pretty serious about getting the paper out every two weeks. So serious that one time I drank too much, got up the next morning, puked during class (I was running to the restroom at the time), went home to sleep it off and still got up to meet my own self-imposed deadline of that evening.
13.) After my junior year of college I was blown out. I wasn't feeling challenged by my school work so I was making up impossible challenges to complete this school work. For example, I would type my papers for the critical writing class (the hardest class in the English major) on the day of class. When this wasn't enough, I started writing them in the two hours before class. In April I took incompletes in all of my classes and moved home.
14.) I graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2003. Since I'd missed some gen ed classes on my first time through I took an extra two semesters (fall and summer) to finish. Recently I saw my diploma for the first time in five years. I put it back in the box it was in and don't expect to see it for another five years.
15.) I've visited 31 out of the 50 states. My family was very good (and fortunate) at taking a lot of trips when I was growing up. Since then I've added to my 50-state tally by taking long road trips to each coast either with my friends, my high school band, protest trips or just by myself. These are the states I've visited.
16.) I've been out of the country three times total. I went to Canada with my mom for a week and I've been over the border from Brownsville into Matamoros twice. I don't consider this a deficiency. Do you know how much of the United States there is to see?
17.) The one time I ever tried to hitchhike I was successful. In fact, it was someone I knew who picked me up. My friend Pete and I were leaving the Phish concert in the middle of the Everglades for Y2K and he needed to be on a plane the next morning. We were holding a sign near the front gate when my friend Jake drove by in an RV. It's possibly the luckiest moment of my entire life.
18.) When I got out of college, I didn't know what to do with myself. So I did what any person would do in that situation. I went into whatever paid me the most. In this case, it was insurance.
19.) There was one Friday night when I was nary a year post-college I was sitting at home watching a re-run of "Cops." Suddenly it occurred to me. I was sitting at home on a Friday night watching a re-run of "Cops." Even worse, I'd seen that episode previously. It was that night I decided to be more of an extrovert.
20.) I've had seven girlfriends in my lifetime. I loved all seven of them in their own way. I've felt bad about how things ended with all seven of them. The good news is three of the last four will probably read this so I'm getting better at staying friends.
21.) I lived in the state of Illinois for two years while my now-ex-girlfriend pursued an acting career. This experience exposed me to what it's like to live in a city larger than Minneapolis.
22.) When I lived in Chicago, I worked for the insurance arm of a large property holding firm doing complex filings of yada yada yada and blah blah blah. Our offices were on the Magnificent Mile and I would ride the train down from Evanston every morning. This was the best job I've ever had. The work was challenging, I was given a great deal of autonomy and there was an amazing culture of camaraderie amongst the young people of the office.
23.) The best part about living in Chicago for me was the really cool concert festivals I attended in that city's parks. I went to Pitchfork three times, the Touch and Go 25th Anniversary weekend and numerous great bands famous and otherwise playing at the summer street festivals. Still one of my five favorite moments ever was at Lollapalooza last year when this happened by accident.
24.) Three of my friends have died in my lifetime. The first was my childhood friend Brendan who used to come down the block to play when we were little. He died from a sudden onset of meningitis when we were in high school. The next was my college friend Emily who crashed her bike and flipped over her handlebars while not wearing a helmet. She used to call everything "fascist!" and I'm sure would've actually exploded if she had lived to see the Bush years. Then I was 24 when my friend Chuck who worked across the hall passed away after coming home from the bar. He complained to his girlfriend about feeling ill and went to bed. That "feeling ill" was his vital organs shutting down.
25.) I have only one grandparent left, my paternal grandmother. I was six years old when my dad's dad died and that makes me the youngest member of our family who remembers him. My mom's mom died when I was a sophomore in college and my grandfather died two days after I'd visited him when I was 26. I realize how lucky I am in all four circumstances.
26.) I cried when Kirby Puckett died. I actually cried twice, once when I heard the news and once when they held a moment of silence for him at the T'Wolves game two days later. After the moment of silence I turned to my then-girlfriend, pointed at Kevin Garnett and said, "That's the only other athlete I will cry over when he dies."
27.) I've been quoted twice in the newspaper of the metro area in twice I was living. When I was in high school, I was a part of an article about kids who transfer high schools under Minnesota's open-enrollment rules. When I was in college, I was a part of an article about a protest trip we took to the School of The Americas in Fort Benning, Georgia. I also appeared on the front page of the newspaper in the later article.
28.) My brother and I were in a band together called MidDef when I was in college and he was in high school and even wrote a few original songs. We played exactly two concerts; once in Dad's basement for X-mas and once in our Mom's backyard for some friends.
29.) When this posts I will be when I have just turned 29 years old. If I live until at least 70, my life isn't even halfway over. The best part isn't that I feel like I've done a lot with the 29 years I've had. It is that I feel like I can do even more in the coming years ahead.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
LOST Live Blog
I didn't watch LOST from the beginning. I tried to catch up a couple of times but each time obfuscation frustrated me. But I am giving the the series another chance since it's ending and one of my favorite comic book writers, Brian K Vaughn (Y: The Last Man, Runaways), is the headwriter. He's very good at bringing his stories to a conclusion so I'm getting on for the rest of the ride. In celebration, I'm going to do a live blog of the season premiere of LOST tonight. Tune in back here as I update this post with my thoughts.
8:00 pm - Okay, I'm "caught up" on the show thanks to that primer show that was just on. Up next is the real deal. Who else is ready?
8:02 pm - I have no idea what's going on.
8:05 pm - I have no idea what's going on.
8:06 pm - Jeremy Davies!
8:10 pm - I have no idea what's going on.
8:11 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Okay, it's a joke. I kinda get what's going on. So far it's a lot of hinting at time travel which is the other reason I'm giving LOST another chance. I love time travel movies and stories. If this is going in that direction and will cross into true sci-fi, I'll see it through.
8:15 pm - Spoiler Alert - Tom Cruise's cousin is in this one.
8:16 pm - "Why did you jump off that boat?" "So I'd have another chance to take off my shirt."
8:18 pm - One complaint I have about this show is when the characters stop and have a conversation purely for plot exposition. If it's important, show it to me and I'll figure it out. LOST has a smart audience.
8:21 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - So what I've heard is this first half hour is supposed to be mind-blowing. As of yet I've been a little disappointed. It seems to be a lot of reveals but not a lot of revelations.
8:23 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - One of the most disorienting things about living in Chicago the last two years is when I came home and I didn't recognize any of the local newscasters. I don't know who any of the KSTP people are save for Dave Dahl. He's like a beacon in the darkness.
8:27 pm - So, if this show is going in a time-travel direction, is there any chance Hiro Nakamura shows up?
8:30 pm - OWWWWWWWW-IE!
8:33 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Is anyone else weirded out by Dakota Fanning? Not anything specific. Just y'know in general.
8:35 pm - Gosh, I really love Jeremy Davies. He's one of those guys who should've had a much better career. I mean, he was in "Saving Private Ryan."
8:38 pm - Here's another complaint. Why can't the show just have characters show up without having their face obscured?
8:41 pm - Is that the triceratops poo from "Jurassic Park"?
8:42 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - One of the things I'm doing during the commercial breaks is making plays on Lexulous (nee Scrabulous). I mention it because there's a really interesting article about Scrabble and its online versions in this week's New Yorker. It's not online but you should check it out, especially if you're a fan of the game.
8:48 pm - Minute forty-eight and Sawyer is still shirtless.
8:49 pm - Ah, yes. The "blood out of the nose" trick. Is it cliche or archetype? You decide.
8:53 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Uhhhhh, nothing to say here. As you were.
8:59 pm - This is what I was hoping for. Let the characters talk amongst themselves and the audience will pick it up.
9:01 pm - Michelle Rodriguez!
9:04 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Okay, wtf is with the pig in the mall? It's memorable but still I don't know if it makes me want to buy their product. I do have to admit they put a pretty good button on it to remind you what the product is and therefore it's actually a good effort.
9:07 pm - And Sawyer finds a shirt.
9:10 pm - I think I see a very successful "Weekend at Sayid's" franchise spin-off with potential.
9:15 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Okay, so Sayid was calling Locke "Bentham". And anyone who appreciates the very wierd knows Jeremy Bentham asked in his will to be preserved and placed on display at either Oxford or Cambridge. Now Ben is a little dodgy about whether "Bentham" is really dead. Hmmmmm...
9:18 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - I was completely off-base. It's University College London.
9:22 pm - "It's like 'The Godfather.' They smother you with pillows and make it look like an accident."
9:24 pm - Mmmmm, mangoes. I love mangoes and could eat the shet out of one right now.
9:25 pm - Ah, the "headache" trick. Is it cliche or archetype? I'd like to see someone just once move through time and come out on the other side with a lot of ear wax.
9:26 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Okay, so I'm doing well in one of the two games I'm playing against my ex-roommate Brian and just getting slaughtered in the other. I'm really good at getting at least 20 points each turn and Brian is really good at getting at least 20 points each turn AND bingo at least once a game.
9:33 pm - "Everything is going to make sense. I promise." It better.
9:35 pm - "You mean 'Take care of her?' take-care-of-her?"
9:38 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Is it okay I find those Comcast Triple Play commercials annoying but like the Of Montreal song at the end? I know Kevin Barnes gets a lot of crap for licensing his songs out for commercials. But they are good songs.
9:43 pm - Yes! More characters talking between themselves. I'm not feeling as frustrated by all of this.
9:45 pm - Thank God for mothers. What kind of mother wouldn't believe her son in that situation? If I told my mom everything Hurley just said, she'd believe me even if she was the only person who believed me. Yay Hurley's mom!
9:48 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - There are a few movies coming up which I should be superbly pumped to see. I'm pretty sure "Watchmen" is going to be good. I'm waiting to see about "Terminator: Salvation." But what to think about this new "Friday the 13th" movie? I mean, I saw the recent "Halloween" movie and it didn't set a good precedent.
9:52 pm - "Hoooooooooot Pockets"
9:55 pm - Bigger badass: Locke or Chuck Norris? I think it's a toss-up.
9:57 pm - What the ...? Who is that lady?
9:58 pm - I have no idea what's going on.
8:00 pm - Okay, I'm "caught up" on the show thanks to that primer show that was just on. Up next is the real deal. Who else is ready?
8:02 pm - I have no idea what's going on.
8:05 pm - I have no idea what's going on.
8:06 pm - Jeremy Davies!
8:10 pm - I have no idea what's going on.
8:11 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Okay, it's a joke. I kinda get what's going on. So far it's a lot of hinting at time travel which is the other reason I'm giving LOST another chance. I love time travel movies and stories. If this is going in that direction and will cross into true sci-fi, I'll see it through.
8:15 pm - Spoiler Alert - Tom Cruise's cousin is in this one.
8:16 pm - "Why did you jump off that boat?" "So I'd have another chance to take off my shirt."
8:18 pm - One complaint I have about this show is when the characters stop and have a conversation purely for plot exposition. If it's important, show it to me and I'll figure it out. LOST has a smart audience.
8:21 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - So what I've heard is this first half hour is supposed to be mind-blowing. As of yet I've been a little disappointed. It seems to be a lot of reveals but not a lot of revelations.
8:23 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - One of the most disorienting things about living in Chicago the last two years is when I came home and I didn't recognize any of the local newscasters. I don't know who any of the KSTP people are save for Dave Dahl. He's like a beacon in the darkness.
8:27 pm - So, if this show is going in a time-travel direction, is there any chance Hiro Nakamura shows up?
8:30 pm - OWWWWWWWW-IE!
8:33 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Is anyone else weirded out by Dakota Fanning? Not anything specific. Just y'know in general.
8:35 pm - Gosh, I really love Jeremy Davies. He's one of those guys who should've had a much better career. I mean, he was in "Saving Private Ryan."
8:38 pm - Here's another complaint. Why can't the show just have characters show up without having their face obscured?
8:41 pm - Is that the triceratops poo from "Jurassic Park"?
8:42 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - One of the things I'm doing during the commercial breaks is making plays on Lexulous (nee Scrabulous). I mention it because there's a really interesting article about Scrabble and its online versions in this week's New Yorker. It's not online but you should check it out, especially if you're a fan of the game.
8:48 pm - Minute forty-eight and Sawyer is still shirtless.
8:49 pm - Ah, yes. The "blood out of the nose" trick. Is it cliche or archetype? You decide.
8:53 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Uhhhhh, nothing to say here. As you were.
8:59 pm - This is what I was hoping for. Let the characters talk amongst themselves and the audience will pick it up.
9:01 pm - Michelle Rodriguez!
9:04 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Okay, wtf is with the pig in the mall? It's memorable but still I don't know if it makes me want to buy their product. I do have to admit they put a pretty good button on it to remind you what the product is and therefore it's actually a good effort.
9:07 pm - And Sawyer finds a shirt.
9:10 pm - I think I see a very successful "Weekend at Sayid's" franchise spin-off with potential.
9:15 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Okay, so Sayid was calling Locke "Bentham". And anyone who appreciates the very wierd knows Jeremy Bentham asked in his will to be preserved and placed on display at either Oxford or Cambridge. Now Ben is a little dodgy about whether "Bentham" is really dead. Hmmmmm...
9:18 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - I was completely off-base. It's University College London.
9:22 pm - "It's like 'The Godfather.' They smother you with pillows and make it look like an accident."
9:24 pm - Mmmmm, mangoes. I love mangoes and could eat the shet out of one right now.
9:25 pm - Ah, the "headache" trick. Is it cliche or archetype? I'd like to see someone just once move through time and come out on the other side with a lot of ear wax.
9:26 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Okay, so I'm doing well in one of the two games I'm playing against my ex-roommate Brian and just getting slaughtered in the other. I'm really good at getting at least 20 points each turn and Brian is really good at getting at least 20 points each turn AND bingo at least once a game.
9:33 pm - "Everything is going to make sense. I promise." It better.
9:35 pm - "You mean 'Take care of her?' take-care-of-her?"
9:38 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - Is it okay I find those Comcast Triple Play commercials annoying but like the Of Montreal song at the end? I know Kevin Barnes gets a lot of crap for licensing his songs out for commercials. But they are good songs.
9:43 pm - Yes! More characters talking between themselves. I'm not feeling as frustrated by all of this.
9:45 pm - Thank God for mothers. What kind of mother wouldn't believe her son in that situation? If I told my mom everything Hurley just said, she'd believe me even if she was the only person who believed me. Yay Hurley's mom!
9:48 pm - COMMERCIAL BREAK - There are a few movies coming up which I should be superbly pumped to see. I'm pretty sure "Watchmen" is going to be good. I'm waiting to see about "Terminator: Salvation." But what to think about this new "Friday the 13th" movie? I mean, I saw the recent "Halloween" movie and it didn't set a good precedent.
9:52 pm - "Hoooooooooot Pockets"
9:55 pm - Bigger badass: Locke or Chuck Norris? I think it's a toss-up.
9:57 pm - What the ...? Who is that lady?
9:58 pm - I have no idea what's going on.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Friday, January 16, 2009
OMFG!!1!1! ITZ TEH WINDCHHILZ!1!!1!
I don't believe in the wind chill factor. Don't get me wrong. I do believe it exists. I'm merely stating its importance is over-stated. Its importance is in making pedestrian numbers sound SCARY!!!
Do you ever walk out the door when it's 40 degrees out, feel a 5 mph breeze and think "Man, it feels like it's 36 degrees today." NO! Because noone cares at that temperature. Even if the wind is whisking by at 60 mph, the windchill factor is still only 25 degrees. You'd be more concerned about how a tropical storm got to the Upper Midwest in the middle of January than how cold it feels like outside. It's even more meaningless when you get further down the scale. Can any of us really tell the difference between -10 degrees and -28?
But that's what gets the fonking headlines. A negative -10 degree temperature is bad. You wouldn't want to be standing around outside for too long when the mercury drops that low. But add a 10 mph wind and suddenly IT'S -28 WINDCHILL!!! THAT SOUNDS ALMOST THREE TIMES WORSE!!! CAN YOU FONKING BELIEVE WE LIVE SOMEWHERE IT "FEELS" LIKE -28 DEGREES OUT?!?!?
Take a step back for just a second. This is the methodology of how you determine wind chill. Wind chill is the heat transfer on a bare face walking into the wind at 3 mph. Sooo basically you can mitigate the effects of wind chill by not having exposed skin and/or not standing in the wind. Either this strikes you as common sense or you're a fool.
Here's what wind chill is expressing. Your body radiates heat. That heat stays close to your body as the energy required to diffuse with the air around you is quickly exhausted. The wind comes along to blow that heat away from your body. When it does, the air surrounding you is made colder. So instead of being 5 degrees mitigated by this layer of heat near your skin, it is 5 degrees next to your skin. (Ludo, how are my physics?)
So what you can do is trap this warm air near your skin. If the wind can't blow it away, then it will continue to shield you from the cold. You can either wear layers or a hat or a scarf or a less permeable jacket. Sounds like something Mom told you years ago, right?
Wind chill is, at best, a factor of inconvenience and discomfort. Wind chill won't make your car harder to start in the morning (your car doesn't naturally radiate heat) or cause frostbite (the cold itself has that locked down). It just means you may need to plan better about what you wear and how much exposure you get to the elements.
It's true. It is it's cold outside. It's January and we live in the middle of the continent north of the 40th parallel. So stay inside and while you're at it invite me over. I'll brave the cold because I'm well-prepared and don't believe in the windchill.
P.S. For those of you who care, here's the formula for calculating wind chill.
where Twc (wind chill) and Ta (actual temp) are measured in °F, and V (wind velocity) in mph.
Do you ever walk out the door when it's 40 degrees out, feel a 5 mph breeze and think "Man, it feels like it's 36 degrees today." NO! Because noone cares at that temperature. Even if the wind is whisking by at 60 mph, the windchill factor is still only 25 degrees. You'd be more concerned about how a tropical storm got to the Upper Midwest in the middle of January than how cold it feels like outside. It's even more meaningless when you get further down the scale. Can any of us really tell the difference between -10 degrees and -28?
But that's what gets the fonking headlines. A negative -10 degree temperature is bad. You wouldn't want to be standing around outside for too long when the mercury drops that low. But add a 10 mph wind and suddenly IT'S -28 WINDCHILL!!! THAT SOUNDS ALMOST THREE TIMES WORSE!!! CAN YOU FONKING BELIEVE WE LIVE SOMEWHERE IT "FEELS" LIKE -28 DEGREES OUT?!?!?
Take a step back for just a second. This is the methodology of how you determine wind chill. Wind chill is the heat transfer on a bare face walking into the wind at 3 mph. Sooo basically you can mitigate the effects of wind chill by not having exposed skin and/or not standing in the wind. Either this strikes you as common sense or you're a fool.
Here's what wind chill is expressing. Your body radiates heat. That heat stays close to your body as the energy required to diffuse with the air around you is quickly exhausted. The wind comes along to blow that heat away from your body. When it does, the air surrounding you is made colder. So instead of being 5 degrees mitigated by this layer of heat near your skin, it is 5 degrees next to your skin. (Ludo, how are my physics?)
So what you can do is trap this warm air near your skin. If the wind can't blow it away, then it will continue to shield you from the cold. You can either wear layers or a hat or a scarf or a less permeable jacket. Sounds like something Mom told you years ago, right?
Wind chill is, at best, a factor of inconvenience and discomfort. Wind chill won't make your car harder to start in the morning (your car doesn't naturally radiate heat) or cause frostbite (the cold itself has that locked down). It just means you may need to plan better about what you wear and how much exposure you get to the elements.
It's true. It is it's cold outside. It's January and we live in the middle of the continent north of the 40th parallel. So stay inside and while you're at it invite me over. I'll brave the cold because I'm well-prepared and don't believe in the windchill.
P.S. For those of you who care, here's the formula for calculating wind chill.
where Twc (wind chill) and Ta (actual temp) are measured in °F, and V (wind velocity) in mph.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Who Is On First?
Last night, after my book club meeting, I proceeded further south in Minneapolis to the new Chatterbox Pub at 45th and France. The Chatterbox is a now-chain-of-restaurants where you can have a drink, eat good bar food and play games. Board games are free though you can also play old-school videogames for a small fee. My friend Pete lives near this newest location and he was already there with our friend Peder.
One of the oddities of this location of The Chatterbox is the bathrooms are for one person at-a-time. (When you lock the door it flips an "in use" sign like on an airplane.) So in the men's room there is a toilet next to a urinal with no divider in between them. When one of my book club compatriots accidentally opened the unlocked door to find it occupied, the nearby and observing waitress regaled him with this story.
When the restaurant was just opening, a gentleman opened the door to find the bathroom occupied. He waited and let the occupants exit. That's right; occupants. But get you mind out of the gutter because this is what the gentleman in question told our waitress storyteller. When he opened the door what he saw was one occupant was making use of the toilet while the other was using the urinal. Not that odd in a usual bathroom except in this one, as I mentioned, there is no divider.
Here's the question I want an answer to which has, no doubt, been lost to the sands of time. Who was there first? I suppose it's possible (and in fact, most likely) they both entered the restroom at the same time since they also both left at the same time. But drive with me for a while.
If you are in said restroom using the toilet and someone else comes in to use the urinal, that's just rude. Obviously it's meant for just one person and your oversight of not locking the door should not put you at the peril of someone walking in on you and choosing to stay. Other than when we are sleeping, the most vulnerable a person is each day is when they are sitting down to use the toilet. Society has established rules governing this situation for just this reason. Ultimately though it's just harmless.
However it's more intriguing to me if the man using the toilet was the second occupant. Talk about a ballsy motherfonker. Short of it being an "emergency" that would be one of those moments where you just kind of have to take it. Yes, it's still rude. But c'mon. Could you imagine the conversation you would have?
(Man opens the door while you are peeing)
You: Occupied!
Man: (nothing)
(Man crosses the room, unbuckles his pants, pulls down his underwear and sits down on the toilet.)
You: (stunned silence)
I mean, men hate to even make eye contact while washing their hands. This man is flaunting etiquitte so basic it's to the point of being informal and understood. Either he doesn't know (which is unlikely) or he doesn't care (which makes him a total fonking bad-ass). Anyone who is audacious enough to walk into an occupied restroom, basically expose themselves to a complete stranger and then subject the same captive stranger to all of their foul odors is a man not to be fonked with and perhaps one whose movements should be tracked.
And since we can imagine him, it means it is possible for him to exist. And if this man were to exist, we'd all be in trouble. Because a man who can poop in a one-man bathroom next to another strange man who is peeing is a man who has the will to dominate us all.
It's only worth mentioning because everyone is thinking it. I hope we never see such a day. And may God have mercy on us if we do.
One of the oddities of this location of The Chatterbox is the bathrooms are for one person at-a-time. (When you lock the door it flips an "in use" sign like on an airplane.) So in the men's room there is a toilet next to a urinal with no divider in between them. When one of my book club compatriots accidentally opened the unlocked door to find it occupied, the nearby and observing waitress regaled him with this story.
When the restaurant was just opening, a gentleman opened the door to find the bathroom occupied. He waited and let the occupants exit. That's right; occupants. But get you mind out of the gutter because this is what the gentleman in question told our waitress storyteller. When he opened the door what he saw was one occupant was making use of the toilet while the other was using the urinal. Not that odd in a usual bathroom except in this one, as I mentioned, there is no divider.
Here's the question I want an answer to which has, no doubt, been lost to the sands of time. Who was there first? I suppose it's possible (and in fact, most likely) they both entered the restroom at the same time since they also both left at the same time. But drive with me for a while.
If you are in said restroom using the toilet and someone else comes in to use the urinal, that's just rude. Obviously it's meant for just one person and your oversight of not locking the door should not put you at the peril of someone walking in on you and choosing to stay. Other than when we are sleeping, the most vulnerable a person is each day is when they are sitting down to use the toilet. Society has established rules governing this situation for just this reason. Ultimately though it's just harmless.
However it's more intriguing to me if the man using the toilet was the second occupant. Talk about a ballsy motherfonker. Short of it being an "emergency" that would be one of those moments where you just kind of have to take it. Yes, it's still rude. But c'mon. Could you imagine the conversation you would have?
(Man opens the door while you are peeing)
You: Occupied!
Man: (nothing)
(Man crosses the room, unbuckles his pants, pulls down his underwear and sits down on the toilet.)
You: (stunned silence)
I mean, men hate to even make eye contact while washing their hands. This man is flaunting etiquitte so basic it's to the point of being informal and understood. Either he doesn't know (which is unlikely) or he doesn't care (which makes him a total fonking bad-ass). Anyone who is audacious enough to walk into an occupied restroom, basically expose themselves to a complete stranger and then subject the same captive stranger to all of their foul odors is a man not to be fonked with and perhaps one whose movements should be tracked.
And since we can imagine him, it means it is possible for him to exist. And if this man were to exist, we'd all be in trouble. Because a man who can poop in a one-man bathroom next to another strange man who is peeing is a man who has the will to dominate us all.
It's only worth mentioning because everyone is thinking it. I hope we never see such a day. And may God have mercy on us if we do.
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