What kind of day has it been

I've never hated the internet more.

I'm taking a break for a while.

I need a vacation.

Fun interweb links

An interesting interview of Kurt Loder on Reason.

Have you seen my Thetan?

Remember The Damn Show!?
I do and I remember laughing my ass off in college.

They're still around. Waco (one of the guys behind TDS) has a deal with the TBS website; superdeluxe.com. He posted a parody of outtakes from Tom Cruise's scientology video. It was also posted on The Damn Show's website. A few days later, TDS's site was hacked, their files deleted and the only thing it said was; "Seek the Fundamental Truth". This all happened after Waco received threatening emails. News story here.

Here's the video. Hail Xenu!
NSFW

State of my bunion

I imagined what my teacher friends threw or yelled at the television when President Bush said:

"We must empower parents to demand more accountability from schools."

I already know what Philip thought of it (private).

I agree with part of it. Not the "empowering parents" part of it. That would lead to nowhere good. I agree with the "more accountability" part.

Is there another line of work that once you enter you're fairly guarenteed to remain employed? Well sure, every other government job. As long as you don't get caught having an inappropriate relationship, you're pretty much guaranteed to coast along with a small raise each year, for the next 30 years until retirement. Where's the motivation to do a good job? or even a half-assed job?

If teachers really cared and I'm probably not talking to the dozen or so that read this, because they're band directors and your job is very different from the average teacher, but if teachers REALLY cared about the students they were turning out and wanted nothing but THE BEST for them; then they wouldn't be afraid of vouchers, NCLB, competition from private schools or any other device that could be used to measure the competency of a teacher or a school. NCLB is not good, but it's a start and it's better than not holding employees accountable for their job that you and I are being forced to pay for. And I don't even have kids.

Of course, I'm a libertarian and I don't think that the government should be in the education business in the first place. My reasoning? Other than the military and taking your money by force, can you name one thing the federal government does well or even better than a privately owned company could? I can't and I've had that question burning for a few years now.

Teachers are under paid and under appreciated, but that doesn't mean that they deserve a job in which they are not challenged to put out the best student possible. It doesn't mean that should not be given goals to measure their performance by.

Competition is good and competition is good for teachers. If teachers were held more accountable for their job, the product they turned out would be of a higher quality. Just like in any other job.

Let the ranting and raging begin!!!

Damn youtube took down the video. The link below should work now.

I love the brass parts. Reminds me of a lot of different things.

Install this

Someone just got a free copy of Leopard.
Currently using Time Machine for the first time.
Sexy.

Tomorrow, work until 2 and onto the Atlanta Cask Ale Tasting.

Also, I fear that news stories like this give me false hope.

Watch this

Have I mentioned how much I enjoy Penn Jillette?
This did not end how I thought it would.

Employ this

Two friends of mine recently got new FABULOUS jobs and in both cases I received a phone call as a reference; one personal, one professional. I know my reviews of these people equals less than .00001% influence of them actually getting the job but it's still a fantastic feeling.

And by the way
50%

Who wants to go camping?

Watch this

SFW

From Crackle: Penn Says- Glenn Beck

Answer this

I despise ring back/answer tones.
Also high on the list; people who quote scripture as their outgoing message.

Why so Posthumerous?

HT; Kit for the title and if you get it; well you're just as geeky as I am.

I find it painfully disheartening to read about Heath Ledger.

He's three years (almost four) years younger than me and he's dead. He's dead.

D. E. A. D.

Gone. Not coming back.

I'm not a fan of his work and I'm not, not a fan. I thought he was light and funny is Ten Things I Hate About You. I never saw Brokeback Mountain but a lot of people thought he was good. And I have been really looking forward to him as the Joker for over a year. (A slight Batman obsession from my youth continues through today.)

Why is his death grabbing me? Is it because he was younger, thinner, (seemingly) more in shape, and (seemingly) more successful? What is success? Is it monetary? Is it popularity? What makes a person successful that his/her death causes a stranger a moment of pause. I want to figure out what makes a life successful. I know better. I know it's not money, fame or employment, but what is it?

This is probably a waste of time. The house is quiet tonight.

Debate this

I think there are three items from tonight's Democratic debate that everyone can agree on.

1) Dave Chappelle was in the audience.

2) The makeup person for the candidates should be fired.

3) Wolf Blitzer can't moderate a tea party.


I've never claimed to be on top of technology. I read as much as I can and try to at least know what is aavailable, but since the mid-nineties, I've always been about two years behind. Today I finally set aside some time to understand and start using this thing called "RSS". Some of you are laughing and some of you are scratching your head.

I used my day off to tackle this and now understand what those of you that have been using this tool have been saying. This is the easiest and simplest way to view all of the content I look at on the internet each day.

Blog Roll

It's been a while so here is a key to who is listed to the right. What they do for a living, how I know them and what there most recent post was about.

To make this easy CF=College Friend

Adam - Professional trumpet player/educator, CF, Squirrels in his attic

Bean - Nurse, Girlfriend of Dave D, looking back, looking forward

Braves 24/7 - I've known Martin since the 2nd grade. Chopping Talk is a Braves blog which he writes the majority of. An unbelievable knowledge of baseball.

Brett - Song writer/arranger, CF, How likely are you to vote in an online poll?

Chris - Writes software, lives in Vegas, CF, gym workout

Dave B - Videographer/photographer, sax player from Funkle, The New York Giants

Duane - I've only met Duane a handful of times, but he makes me laugh. We met through the internet. (That didn't come out right.) Five Song Friday.

Georgia Girl - (private blog) If you don't know then get a clue. Me nairing my ears.

Kevin - Communication/Technology. Husband of former Smingular co-worker of mine. He's a fan of cheap beer and the Clemson Tigers. His old neighborhood isn't very nice anymore.

Kit - AKA "Kiki", Big Dawg fan, CF, using the bathroom at a Walgreens.

LT - Works in the arts on the venue side, CF, packing and the memories that come with it.

Liv - I've never met Liv (Mona) in person. We met through the internet and exchanged a few emails. She and her partner make viral videos. Worse role model video.

Michael - (private blog) Band director, brother of Ms. Oob, CF, It's his birfday. Guitar Hero Concert.

Ms. Oob - Horn player, now in technology, kicks ass in pool and lives where snow is a common factor, CF, lost car, pool

Pez Girl - Met through Tony, a big pop culture fan, she and her husband are two of the nicest people you could ever meet. Snow with son and hubby.

Rusty - (I know, it's confusing.) With his GDGF, Amber, they run the Ga Podcast Network. Met through Tony, chat it up via email every now and then. BIG UT fan. New Years Resolutions.

Seth - I sat next to Seth our freshman year in college on our first trip to USC. One of his friends ended up marrying one of my high school friends. Music that gets stuck in your head, picking music for commercials, VWs

Special K - (private blog) Band Director, CF, An experience at Walmart

Stacy - Real Estate Agent, met through Dave B. Likes the NY Giants, USC (Cal), UGA, Vegas, and a boy from Tech. What side of your brain do you use?

Tony - Technology and code stuff, CF, beer nerd, frozen soup

Trina - (private blog) Office Manager, CF and former roomie, trip recap from Savannah

Troy - Band Director, CF, currently flighting cancer, about to be join the ranks of other sexy bald men

Walters - (private blog) Band Director, enjoys mushing and living in Alaska, videos from a night mush.

Warren T - I'm not sure what Warren does. CF. Made a women's basketball team laugh while at the free throw line during the NCAA tournament. LSAT, Christmas.

Whitney - wife of Dave B, likes soccer, DVR watching, Kissing Jessica Stein

Willie G - recent transplant to Georgia, CF, Across the Universe

Becky - School teacher, met through Dave D and Bean, Anxiety and detectives

The Big C - unknown, met through Stacy, YIR

Dave D - Arts festival organizer, CF, Is there somewhere you'd rather be?

Gunner - runs an underground military organization somewhere in Vermont, CF, likes to throw people to the ground and make them submit. Last posted, 1982.

Paul - Technology, recent moved from Athens, CF and former roomie, Ron Paul

Rest this

Today will be a well needed day of rest.

Working all four performances of this show after a full work week will cause anyone to bleed from the brain. I did take the opportunity to watch one performance and yes, it sucked about as much as I thought it would. It was partially the production and partially the musical.

Quasi safe for work. One brief appearance of a naked male arse.
The "I wish this video was real" obituary of Andrew Lloyd Webber.

HT: Planet Unicorn Dave

Outside of work, I was lucky to spend the majority of my time with good friends and it just reassured for me that when you're surrounded by friends and laughter; everything is ok.

And each year the memories of previous MLK days make me nostalgic for days gone by. Seriously.

Search this

First there was Google SMS.

Now there is Goog 411 and it is totally free.
800-GOOG-411

Brilliant.
HT Lifehacker

Eat this

Starkist Solid White Albacore Tuna (in water) is far superior to
Bumble Bee (yes, two words) Solid White Albacore (in water)


Tomorrow (later today) marks the 1 year anniversery of 5 Seasons North. To celebrate, I'm going back. This would mark the first time I have been back to to 5 Seasons North since it opened. Me thinks I should mark this on the calendar and go every year.


I have not trimmed my goatee in at least three weeks. It is very full at this moment and any day I expect it to get unruly. Part of me wants to let it go and see what happens. Part of me is frightened. Feed me Seymour!


Earlier in the week, I quoted a friend from an email in a blog post, forgetting that his girlfriend might peruse the site. I and he (although he was not named) was promptly busted by said girlfriend. I wore the dunce hat for the day and relearned a valuable lesson about teh interwebs and confidentiality. With that said, I'm fairly certain that no one will be able to trace the following text message, sent to me during Steve Jobs' Macworld keynote back to its original source.

"Is it possible that people have been heaping praise for 2000 years on Jesus Christ that should have been reserved for Steve Jobs?"

Yes.

This should scare the shit out of you.

"I have opponents in this race who do not want to change the Constitution," Huckabee told a Michigan audience on Monday. "But I believe it's a lot easier to change the Constitution than it would be to change the word of the living god. And that's what we need to do -- to amend the Constitution so it's in God's standards rather than try to change God's standards so it lines up with some contemporary view."

Presidential candidate Mike Huckabee.
(Click on the above text for the full article.)
HT; Cyanbane, via altbloggers

Think it might be taken out of context?

This doesn't need any extraneous commentary from me but needless to say; I will not be supporting Mr. Huckabee.

Geek me

Dear work,

For the next hour or so (during my lunch hour), I will be unavailable as all I will be doing is clicking "refresh" as fast as possible on two different Firefox tabs so I can be kept abreast of the latest and greatest coming out of Steve Job mouth. Thx. Bai.

Engadet
Gizmodo

Non-Paid Endorse this

Last week Elizabeth (Reynolds) Lyng emailed me and told me about her new online store. Lotties Loops sells handmade and very cute hair clips and bows for little girls. She mentioned that I might find something for my niece and I said I would check it out.

I picked out a UGA themed hair clip and bow and checked out using Paypal. I placed the order on Wednesday and later that day Elizabeth emailed me a few follow up questions about my order. I figured I would get the items sometime this week and I know Elizabeth so I wasn't worried. To my surprise, they were delivered on Friday.

Each item was professionally and individually wrapped and the two items together were protected in bubble wrap. The items themselves are well made. I know Elizabeth is a talented "crafts person" but this was beyond what I expected. They looked and felt like they had been assembled by a machine but with a greater attention to detail.

I'm not getting a kick back for this. I'm really impressed by Elizabeth's start up. She currently lists 39 items for sale and while there are a few SEC colleges represented in her product line there are plenty of non-collegiate items available as well. Go peruse her store and support a local blogger.

Gag on this

After watching Across the Universe, we headed to Suburban Tap for a few post movie cocktails and to talk about how we wish had been high while watching it. The cute hostess, while cleaning off a table, managed to crash 7 glasses to the ground. 5 at once and the last two a falling a few seconds later, like exclamation points just to make sure everyone was looking at her. She was unnecessarily embarrassed by gravity's prank and scampered off. She re-appeared a few minutes later with a broom and began sweeping.

While watching her sweep, one of the guys in our party said;

"I feel really bad for her. I wonder if I gave her a hug if she'd blow me."

And that is what cause me to gag on Jack Daniels and Diet Coke.

Weekend meal and flick

Across the Universe.
I was very apprehensive going in because I've heard the Beatles mashups for Love and I didn't care for them one bit. I was worried that this "re-imagining" would also let me down. But the singing and the music was well done and somewhere between good and great. Martin Luther was awesome. There were bits of humor and throw back to The Beatles which were amusing and kept me looking for more. Bono was surprisingly good. The ending scene was good.

Now the bad. The characters, with the exception of Jojo, were one dimensional, the plot was predictable (although the group consensus was that we were surprised that no one died), there were too many moments of blatant cheese, and by eliminating Prudence from the film they could have eliminated three or four superfluous scenes. The ending moment was cheap and lazy.

I like art films and this definitely is one, but I could have saved a buck seventy-five and had two hours to do something enjoyable instead.

Seasons 52.
I need to read emails more thoroughly. I thought tonight's celebratory dinner tonight was at 5 Seasons. Nope, the reservations were at the perimeter location of Seasons 52. From their website:

"Our passion is to serve highly flavored meals that are better for you and focus on the best of each season. We use natural cooking techniques such as grilling over open fires to give our food exceptional taste with fewer calories than similar restaurant meals."

Translated; really tasty and nothing on the menu is over 475 calories.

We started with unsalted edemame. A small dish of green tea salt was on the side if you cared for it. The dish was standard, no surprises.

Next up we tried one of their signature flat breads. Think of a really really thin pizza crust with no sauce topped with a combination of meats, vegetables, and cheeses. It came served on a thin wooden board of the same size; approximately eighteen by five inches. We tried the Grilled Steak and Cremini Mushroom Flatbread with Salmon Valley Blue Cheese. The blue cheese overpowered the rest of the dish. I could not taste the mushroom or steak until I pulled a piece of each off of the flat bread and tasted it separately. If you like blue cheese it was tasty but not well balanced.

For the main course, GG had the Jumbo Shrimp Stuffed with Lump Crab served with angel hair pasta and a light garlic sauce. The crab lumps were very good but the shrimp were a touch overcooked for my taste but GG said she liked them that way.

I had the Sesame Crusted Tuna (Medium) on Miso Mushroom Noodles with Roasted Peppers and Steamed Bok Choy. The size of the tuna was stunning. A LARGE delicious flaky piece on either side of a generous pile of miso mushroom noodles. I'm not sure what miso mushroom noodles are but they were great. And the bok choy; I just wish had been more of it.

Deserts are served in large shot glasses and the entire inventory is brought to your table for you to drool over before selecting one (or two) to consume. I (not by choice) opted for the small fruit cocktail that was fresh and popped in my mouth. GG had the pecan pie with Vanilla mouse and deemed it equally as good. If I could have, I would have tried either the strawberry-mango cheesecake or the Tiramisu. They looked awesome.

Intangibles. We were running late and called at 6 PM, our reservation time, to tell them we were running late. We walked in at 6:15 and were seated immediately despite people waiting and a full restaurant.

The feel is modern but warm. The interior is mostly wood, some finished, some not. The room is dark but not uncomfortably so. Our waitress was pleasant and well versed on the menu and restaurant.

The timing was as close to perfect as you could have wanted. We finished our first appetizer, then the second one came out. When we finished the second appetizer, our main courses came out. We were not rushed, we never waited and our food was always hot.

The final touch was with the bill. We consumed two appetizers, two main courses, two deserts, three cocktails and two cups of coffee. Based on that, we guessed that the final bill would be somewhere around $130. But when the bill came, it was correct and came in at $92.

The next time I have something to celebrate I'll go back to Seasons 52. Nothing about it disappointed me and based on the meal I had; I can't wait to try the other items that I had a hard time not selecting.

Rest in Peace

I'll miss what you used to be.

None of you want to read this

A few items of non-interest.

-I miss the staff at Moondogs. They are a group of tremendously nice people.

-Freeroll poker bores me. Once you go cash, you never go back.

-If I don't know you, evidently I will not put up with your douche-baggery. I sat down last night and had two sips of my beer, when a scrawny, early twenty-something, cocky ass obnoxious prick sat down next to me. Everything that came out of his mouth and his overall attitude screamed superiority complex. I know that the right thing to do is simply ignore this type of person. And I tried to. I tried really really hard. But he kept opening his mouth. Then he said; "What the fuck is that on TV? Who wants to watch women's basketball? They suck!"

I've never step foot on the front lines of women's lib, but he had spewed so much shit out of his mouth in the first ten minutes off sitting there, that his statement sent me reeling. Plus I happen to like women's basketball and I was keeping an eye on the game. Without thinking I said; "You're a fucking idiot." Yup. That was me. Not my proudest moment.

To my surprise, he kept talking. I retorted that he was a sexist idiot. He kept talking and I stopped. I had said my piece and if he wanted to continue to make an ass out of himself, who was I stop him? While I was calm on the outside, I was boiling on the inside. I'm not a violent person, but wow, I wanted him to say something about my Mom so I had an excuse to pummel him. In my mind, I had already decided how I was going to impale my right elbow into his face. Then magically, as if he sensed he was about to cross a line, he stopped talking. He lasted another 20 minutes and was out. Before he left, he offered up a weak apology. I hate assholes. I left an hour later and found a comfy seat at my cash game.

-This weekend I'm taking a trip to 5 Seasons for dinner. I'm already looking at the menu trying to decide what I'm going to order.

-Steve Jobs keynote at Macworld will be next Tueday at 9 AM PST. Yup, I'm excited.

-When you're selling a house, you have to make the bed everyday. Not my favorite thing.

Watch deez

Sony Pictures contacted a few celebrities and gave them a few High-Def cameras. One for home, one for work and one for the car. These folks were supposed to talk to the camera when they felt like it and post their shorts online at crackle.com.

One of the people selected was Penn. His channel is call "Penn Says". He has seven, two to four minute clips up. Some are funny, some are not. Some are off the cuff thoughts and some he's spent a few minutes polishing. Regardless. Here are three I enjoyed and I wouldn't watch these at work unless you have headphones.

The first one is entitled "I Agree with the Pope".

Why I will not vote for Mitt Romney.

And this last one almost makes me want to forgive Bill Gates for releasing Windows.

Effin' morons

Who names their child "Princess"?

Eat this

Tasty tasty dinner from the other night.

Black Bean Burgers
1 can of Black beans (drained and rinsed)
half a green bell pepper, chopped
half an onion, chopped
1 egg
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp cumin
1 tsp hot sauce
1 clove garlic
1/5 cup bread crumbs

If baking, preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Mash black beans in a bowl.
Chop pepper and onion. Add peppers and garlic to beans and stir together.
In a separate bowl, mix egg and spices, then mix into black bean mixture.
Now add your bread crumbs (to a consistency where you can form into burger patties)

If baking, cook for 10 minutes on each side.
If grilling, put them on a sheet of aluminum foil and grill for 8 minutes each side.

HOLY MOLEY

The Mole is coming back!!!

I can not begin to tell you how excited I am over this. This is the only show I have ever auditioned for and I got to the final hundred or so before the phone stopped ringing. For the record, yes, I will be auditioning for the show again.

Broadcast this

Thom, every time you open your mouth, college football dies just a little bit.

Buy this

It's official. The house is for sale. I'm very torn. One one hand, I'm excited about the potential for the next property and on the other, I'm going to miss this one. Great writing, I know.

If you know where the current house is then you should be able to look it up in the FMLS or MLS systems in a few days. But the pictures have been taken, the papers signed, and the virtual tour videographer comes on Tuesday.

Recently, and probably because of the impending location change, my mind keeps going to thoughts of death. Particularly my death and how I'd like to avoid it for as long as possible. I feel that I'm the only one who thinks about the end. Probably because no one I know talks or writes about it. Maybe it's something we're not supposed to talk or even think about.

I hate seeing pictures of myself from college. They remind me of being lighter, faster, and younger. While I gained a freedom and balance in my life, there is an unfortunate side effect for bailing on the idea of a supreme being. It the understanding of a surpreme ending. There is no afterlife. This is all we get. We better make the most of it. No really.

I had dinner tonight with two children. One was 15 months and the other I think was 5. But I could be off by five years or so. Looking at them and (honestly) enjoyed their company, I wondered what they would get to experience that I wouldn't. I envied them. The older of the two is a character. And by character I mean acts like a drunken monkey. And he knows what he's doing.

If the oldest is the entertainer, then the youngest is the thinker. Not that one is smarter than the other, the youngest just seems to think things through before acting; if that's possible for a fifteen month old. He's probably going to end up as the intellectual of the two. But I'm also basing this on the fact the his older brother took to sucking my thumb at one point during dinner.

I was reading one of my Jesamus presents when I read that; "By the age of 30, most Americans will have had 7.5 jobs."

That got me thinking if I could list every job I've had. From first to most current.

American Adventures - Ride Attendant

Eastside Baptist Church - Music Intern

Dave and Buster's - Casino Dealer and Food runner

UGA Bands - Office Worker

U.S. Government - Census worker

UGA Campus Transit - Bus Driver

ABC Package - Stock Boy (one shift)

Classic Center - Event Coordinator and Theatre Manager ("re" NOT "er")

The Village Idiot - Bouncer (Yup, you read that right, one shift)

Cobb Galleria - Catering Sales Manager and Event Services Manager

Cingular - Phone slave

And finally, my current employer who will not be named - Account Executive

If you take out the two jobs in which I lasted exactly one day, I'm left with a whopping 10 different employers in 16 years. Which equates easily to a new job every 1.6 years. Yup, that seems about right.

What the hell?!?!?!

The Sugar Bowl gets Bonearama?



And the Orange bowl gets hottie Catherine McPhee?

Her National Anthem wasn't great but still; she's a lot more fun to look at than a cheesy ass trombone quartet. (No offense Dave.)

How Sweet It Is!!!

Go Dawgs!

Oh and the Fox commentators can eat a plate of spoiled coconut covered oysters covered in Colt Brennan's tears.