I ran into a former teacher/coach recently, and we had the following brief exchange:
Mike: Hey Mr. Teacher, how are you doing?
Teacher: Hey Mike, How are you? You making some good money?
Mike: Uh, I guess I’m doing ok.
Teacher: You’ve been out of school a while now, you should be making some good money.
Mike: Ummm, sure.
Teacher: Alright Mike, I’ll see ya.
I’d like to thank Mike, for putting together this great blog, and of course, my neighbor’s daughter Jesse, for letting me borrow her toy microphone…
Holy Crikeys, does Keith Jackson even know what planet he is on?
(He just called an extra point that was wide right “good”, and then said that USC was not harmed by the blown call by the officials that resulted in a touchdown for Texas.)
Later:
What really struck me about the Rose Bowl was not only great players making great plays, but college kids making great mistakes. As great as Young was, USC made a TON of mistakes, including perhaps the biggest by their coach — going for it on 4th & 2 at the Texas 45 with 2 minutes to go (he clearly had ZERO confidence in his defense). It is really amazing that a team that is capable of making that many mistakes, players and coaching staff included, can win 34 games in a row. But that is the beauty of college sports — imperfections make it exciting.
Is there proper etiquette for when you run into someone you know at a restaurant? Are you expected to get up and go over to their table, or does a wave and a smile suffice? If you do stop at the table, how long should you stand there? On one hand, you don’t want to cut the conversation short, but on the other hand, standing by one table is standing by several others in most restaurants. I wouldn’t want some bozo standing next to my table talking to their friends. If there is an extra table nearby, should you sit down at that table and have a longer conversation? Ask the waiter if you can move?
This has happened to me quite often recently. Just the other day I ran into my buddy Leebo (who was on a date with a girl I didn’t know, complicating the situation even further). I decided to send him a text message saying “I see u”. He got freaked out and looked around the reastaurant. After noticing us, he came over to say hi. I was left thinking, should I have gone over to his table? Was that rude of me? Did we chat long enough?
Just when you thought it was safe to go out to eat…
Before the high school rock holy trinity (Zeppelin, Boston, Steve Miller Band) helped me convert to rockianity in 10th grade, I listened to top 40 pop almost exclusively (it happens). New Edition was my favorite band of all time (I can still perform the “Cool it Now” rap on cue) and Michael Jackson was my favorite solo artist (watch out for this guy at weddings). And while I’ve left most of that behind for more diverse and interesting tunes, my love of the hook remains. Although I like stuff that’s all over the musical spectrum, it still needs a catchy center to reel me in. This theme pervades my my top 10 albums for 2005: (more…)
David Byrne says PowerPoint’s medium is the message and Edward Tufte says PowerPoint is Evil. David Coursey has some good tips on using it (after surmising “does PowerPoint make us stupid?”) But, his tips are really for advanced users. Let’s start simple.
I’ve got a lot of problems with you people, but enjoy the holidays nonetheless…
As you might know, I am almost as obsessed with year-end music lists as I am with music. Let me know if you have something I need to hear or lovingly crafted your own year-end list.
Love,
Ian
1. The Hold Steady-Separation Sunday
2. Wolf Parade-Apologies to the Queen Mary
3. Okkervil River-Black Sheep Boy/Black Sheep Boy Appendix
4. Antony and the Johnsons-I Am A Bird Now
5. Deerhoof-The Runners Four
(more…)
So my hombre Gordo requested that I name my 5 favorite “cover” songs as part of a little multi-blog list collaboration. Because I’m currently swept up in the many joys of working in the retail industry during the holidays, I decided to modify this assignment and name my favorite Xmas song covers. So here goes…
“Santa Claus is Coming to Town”, Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band
Um, the definitive version of perhaps the definitive Xmas song. Along with Father Christmas by the Kinks, set the standard for rock n’ roll Christmas songs before they were big business. Perfect.
Christmas (Baby Please Come Home), U2
Darlene Love’s original version is perhaps one of the finest pop vocal performances of all time, Xmas or not, but U2 amazingly creates a version that is, arguably, as good if not better.
I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus, John Mellencamp
I’ve always loved 12-year old Jimmy Boyd’s (who later appeared on PBS’s The Electric Company) poignant original, but I definitely prefer this cover. In perhaps the most drastic re-working of a Christmas classic, Mellencamp turns a ballad into an alt-country rave up, fiddle and all.
Last Christmas, Jimmy Eat World
I never would have expected to like a cover of Wham!’s admittedly guilty pleasure cheesefest, but they managed to infuse just enough modern rock to make it listenable again.
Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer, Jack Johnson
Johnson’s laid back style doesn’t seem condusive to a quality Christmas tune, but he manages to mele kalikimaka the crap out of it. With the all the stress of the holidays, this mellow alternative to a classic story is just what the doctor ordered.
Rumors abound that the Red Sox have approached Roger Clemens about coming back to the team.
I originally tried to articulate how much this upsets me, but I failed for one of two reasons: 1) I couldn’t seem to accurately express my distaste for Clemens, or 2) I didn’t have the patience to list out the lengthy number of examples against his character.
Thinking about it more thoroughly, however, what bothers me is this: We all know that professional sports are driven by money first and loyalty second; gone are the days of players sticking for one team for their entire careers, becoming synonymous with a franchise. Rooting for a favorite team is rooting for a uniform more than a specific player, as free-agency precipitates a massive swapping of players each and every off-season.
As sports fans, we know in our minds that this is true, but in our hearts we cling to the idea that maybe, just maybe, there is something more. That each time the Red Sox and Yankees take the field, the venom rises and the hatred the fans have for the other side is shared by the players, that they’d never swap shirts for all the money in the world. Its a thin thread that we cling to, but we cling nonetheless — it keeps sports interesting.
Signing Clemens would shatter that ideal. After all he’s done, all he is — a Hall of Famer in a Yankee cap, if it was up to him — the last place he should ever be is Boston. The Sox are as guilty as any franchise of player swapping, even gutting a championship team just weeks after the clinching win, but this would be taking it too far. Signing Clemens would confirm once and for all that loyalty and love of Red Sox Nation matters so much less than money, money, money. If they bring back The Rocket, they might as well trade Manny & Big Papi for Jeter and A-Rod, just to make the destruction complete.
So, if you’re listening Boston, don’t let this happen. There are more important things than championships.