Shiver Me Timbers!

Shiver me timbers you know loads about pirate
vocabulary matey so Splice the Mainbrace and
celebrate!yoho!{please vote}
pirate vocabulary
brought to you by Quizilla

Thanks Ali for a great Friday Quiz! I could work at Championship as well. Check out this quiz. You all do know my love for pirates! I think I need to remember this site for this year's "Talk Like a Pirate Day". If there is one thing I love more than pirates it is random obscure holidays. I wonder if Michelle Branch will be impresses with my pirate vocab knowledge... B

Brooklyn, WHAT!

Apparently I have been misunderstood. My creative endeavor to discover new depths in Warren G. was a half jest and half a nod to the old school. By old school I mean CYO dances. Being Catholic comes with all kinds of things. You get indoctrinated 1 to 6 times a week about the church. Your parents will probably want you to take Latin. But best of all you get CYO dances. The Catholic Youth Organization puts on these mid-day and sometimes, when you get older, at night, dances. Being at the height of the early 90's we heard a lot of Warren G., Cranberries, and Violent Femmes. To the mind of the twelve year old Warren G. and Paperboy are pretty dope. Plus they have a good beat that your plaid-skirted classmates enjoy shaking it to. That right there is a selling point. Had I been the hep cat that I am now, I would have made requests for some Tribe or Digable Planets. But alas I was not always this cool. Had I been, I could have been the kid that threw his hands in the air when the bass dropped yelling "Brooklyn WHAT!" and represent for my brothers back on the east coast... B

G-funk on a whole new level...

In the infinite boredom that is my day job I have been pondering the eternal question: "How can I keep it real like Warren G?" I know that I am blessed to have a job that allows me time to ponder such important issues. Second only to Paper Boy in shear genius and inspiration, Warren is a pioneer. Because of him I learned it was cool say "Mount Up!". I also learned what exactly to do when trying to pick up the ladies (read as "gang of hoes") or what to do when you see your homie "end-up". I would be remiss in not also thanking Nate Dogg. Although I do want a public apology for his later work. I don't quite see my self as a "regulator" and I don't think I can impact the level of G-funk. Personally I will try to do for blogging what Warren did for G-funk. I have begun to toy with Movable Type. We will see to what extent I can elevate this art form... B

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everyone and welcome to the Year of the Monkey! I was born in the Year of the Monkey myself, which I think makes a lot of sense. I would like to give a shout out to all the new monkeys coming onboard this year. The Lunar New Year is one of those great holidays that proves the Universe does not revolve around the USA. I would like to invite you all to share this holiday with me by going to your local Chinese restaurant and checking out those cool zodiac placemats before your food comes. If your choice is a buffet please read the placemat first anyway. Please enjoy learning about a whole new set of sky animals that have absolutely nothing to do with your life. They always say two sets are better than one. Woo hoo, I love being a crab and a monkey. It's just so versatile. Just remember the next time someone asks you what your sign is, tell them both. B

News Flash: Dick Cheney Is Alive!

People of America be not afraid! I know that you all thought, much like me, that the Vice President had died some months ago. This is the only possible reason why no one has seen him. However, last night during the State of the Union address a very much alive Dick Cheney sat behind our beloved and fearless leader. Okay , now on the serious part of the post. Last night I had the pleasure of watching President Bush's State of the Union Address. For those of you who had better things to do let me explain. There are two things that really define the State of the Union Address. The first is the President making a speech. The second and far more obvious is way too damn much clapping. One thing I have noticed over the years is the applause during the speech is very interesting to watch. It has it's own dynamics and subtleties. First you have the congressmen and senators of the incumbent president. They clap like hapless idiots after every second sentence. This is quite annoying. Then you have the opposing side. They almost never clap. They did clap last night after Bush said two things: "Key provisions of the Patriot Act are set to expire next year." and "The tax reductions you passed are set to expire". I found this most humorous. Next you have the Supreme Court Justices. They never even blink much less clap. And last you have invited guests like Tom Brady. He just sat and wondered what the fuck he was doing there. The speech made no mention of space exploration and carried the same Bush rhetoric as always. There was a bunch of "we did good in Iraq", "the economy is really ok", and "seniors won't die now because of prescriptions". There was also a bunch of "everyone is equal in God's eyes, but straight people are more equal", "motherfuckers best recognize or we will blow their shit up", and "there have been no attacks since September 11th so I will say September 11th as much as possible". Ok so that is a bit of paraphrasing, but you get the point. If you really want to read or see the speech visit the link above. Kerry's response afterwards with Tom Brokaw was nice and low key, he did make a point to say Bush was wrong a lot. I like that. As if an article about the State of the Union could not get funnier, take a look at what I found on the web while looking for pictures and transcripts. On the whitehouse.gov page their is link to Laura Bush's recipes. How funny is that. The "Cowboy Cookies" are my favorite. Proof once again that Bush likes his women in the kitchen. What were your impressions of the speech? B

Review: Old 97's at The Vogue Indianapolis, Indiana

Last night Brie and I saw the Old 97's at The Vogue. I was really looking forward to this because the last time I saw them was when they opened up for Train and Matchbox 20. As if this was not bad enough I went with a super annoying girl who would not shut up. People who talk through an entire show are way worse than just seeing a shitty band. We arrived promptly when the doors opened at 7 and were able to snag a table and waitress, prime property at The Vogue. It was not very crowded and for a while it looked like no one was coming. A little after 8 The Damnwells from Brooklyn, NY took the stage. The lead guitarist had some serious hair and style issues but the music was a good solid 7/10. Not bad for an opening act. After about an hour set and a quick change Rhett and Co. took the stage. The third song they played was my favorite of theirs , "Lonely Holiday" off of Fight Songs. They played a great mix of old b-sides, singles, brand new songs, a Merle Haggard cover, and a song originally written for the Ranchero Brothers side project. After a nice long set Rhett came out and performed two off of his solo record. Much like when he opened for Tori Amos he tore through the songs playing them as fast as possible. I like the album version better. After that Murray played one of his solo more country than alt songs. The rest of the band then joined them for three more songs. Quite a long encore. All said and done we were out of their by a little after 11. Not bad for a full Monday of music. I enjoyed the band much more this time and hope that the next time Rhett is in town he brings Murray, Ken and Phil with him. Join the Reviewer's Corner next week for a look at Gomez. B

Kerry Wins...

Welcome everyone to yet another exciting day in politics. Big news all around, from the big win for Sen. John Kerry (D MA), to GW's State of the Union Address. Although I do favor Howard Dean, I must say that all the excitement and big turn out last night are good signs. I am also pleased with Dick Gephardt's decision to drop. He was my least favorite. I was listening to a NPR this morning and a commentator said that with this big of a race and the top three contenders so close it could go all the way to the convention. This would give lots of free press to the Democrats and not give Bush the time he wants to attack one candidate early on in the campaign. This is good for voters. After being disillusioned for a while, this primary is really giving me hope. Although I still think the idea of Al Sharpton as president is real funny, I think whoever the Democrats decide to run will be at least a better choice and possibly a really good choice against Bush. I think the biggest bonus is the fact that the Democrats have much better blogs. You would think that the president could slide in some blogging time while running the free world. In completely unrelated news it is David Lynch's 54th birthday. Happy birthday David! Stay tuned for last night's show review...B

Conversations...

Get excited everyone, I have been accepted into the BlogChat beta. This means that if I am online you can have a conversation with me right through the blog. Please give it a shot. Just visit the Congo Tribal Council link. If you want even more conversations check out Fresh Air and listen to some great interviews by Terri Gross. B

Happy Democracy Day!

Today is truly a day to celebrate democracy. I would like to wish everyone a happy King Holiday and hope that you spend at least a little time today reflecting on what this means. Sure it is a day off school and work for some but I think we overlook the intentions of this day of observation and reflection. Today is truly a day to reflect on how far our young country has come and what we still have left to do. We have fought hard the battle against discrimination and hate, but the war is not yet over. I challenge everyone to step back for a couple of minutes today and think of what they can do in a small way to make us better. If I have any readers in Iowa, you guys have an extra special opportunity today. Today is the first primary election for the 2004 election. As you probably all know, we here in the Congo proudly support Howard Dean. If you would like to please vote for him, but also remember that the most important thing is just to VOTE! Voting is not only fun but it also buys you the right to bitch for the next 4 years. So when you have some time today reflect on the importance of today's events, I know I will. P.S. Who do you want to win the caucus in Iowa? Let me know I will keep a tally. B

Worst Christmas Ever...

Today when I woke up I got into the shower. At least I thought it was the shower. I think that although I was cleaned by water and soap, it was in fact Mr. Peabody's Way-back Machine. I was wisked back to 1994 and saw a Colts team from that era. Four intersecptions and a fumble as well as well horrible officiating led to the demise of the Colts. After close watching all year this was not the team I knew. They played outside in the cold and snow, but I can not blame what happened on the weather. I don't know why they fell apart but I will look forward to the next season. I hope the jersey I bought, the first sports paraphenalia I have owned, will not go to waste. With all this said, I would like to thanks them all for a great season and I look forward to a good one next year. B