In very sad news, comedian Mitch Hedberg has died at the age of 37 of as yet unknown causes.
He had so many great lines, and such fantastic, understated delivery. I must say that every time I watched him perform, I was reminded of my friend Abe.
Mitch, you will be missed.
Thursday, March 31, 2005
Wednesday, March 30, 2005
Stolen From Thom's Blog
St. Patrick's Day 2005 with Amanda and Theresa. This picture appears on Thom's blog with the caption "Wyatt's a pimp, a crazy, drunken pimp." The accuracy of this claim is still in dispute. Something that is beyond debate however, is that this is a pretty horrible picture of me. I'm not sure where I'm looking.
I think by this point, I had already had my interaction with Amy, the girl that works at Two Brothers, who was formerly employed by Quality Markets. Perhaps I'm smiling like a mental patient because she had actually talked to me, if only to inform me that she "sort of" had a boyfriend. Amy and I always seem to have intense eye contact whenever we meet, but that could be my imagination. Or it could be that she is just looking back at the scary guy who is staring at her. Anyway, I need to figure out more ways to interact with her after I've been drinking, because things were a lot smoother than when I tried to talk to her at the grocery store. Alcohol - the social lubricant.
Speaking of which, although it's not completely obvious in this picture, Theresa had been thoroughly oiled at this point in the evening, and spent much of her time at Muldoon's weaving in a somewhat circular fashion.
Amanda had admitted earlier that night to occasionally checking my blog after parties for tales of buffoonery by myself or others, but avoiding the political commentary, with which she evidently takes issue. Ah well - I can't enlighten everyone, now can I?
Friday, March 25, 2005
Thursday, March 24, 2005
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina House of Blues March 21, 2005
The Strange Sensation is...
Justin Adams - Guitar, Mandolin, Bongos
John Baggott - Keyboards
Clive Deamer - Drums
Billy Fuller - Bass
Skin Tyson - Lead Guitar
The Strange Sensation strode onto the stage at 8:30pm, picked up their instruments and broke into an ominous beat. Three of the band had various types of hand-drums, and Skin Tyson was on acoustic guitar. Robert Plant emerged from the shadowy stacks of amplifiers, his hands raised over his head, clapping with the rhythm of the drums. He picked up a drum as well and approached the microphone and told us to
"Close the Door, Put Out the Light
You Know They Won't Be Home Tonight"
...and so the crowd was hooked, entranced, and Enchanted for the next two hours. "No Quarter" has been dramatically reworked once again to serve as the opening number. As another review mentioned, "They choose a path where no one goes" is now the dominant refrain. Instead of evoking images of medieval warriors, the new rendition paints a picture of a relentless quest over a dark desert landscape (lyrics pertaining to snow notwithstanding). "Shine It All Around" was next, carried by the soaring emphatic cries of "SHINE" and built on the earthquake-proof foundation of Fuller's bass and Deamer's drums.
"Black Dog" is another mightily-rearranged Zeppelin tune. Plant gave the crowd the chance to fill in some verses, holding the microphone out, but there was some confusion among many and Robert had to pick up the slack, throwing a smile and shrug back to Deamer before launching into the "ahhh-ahhh" portion of the song.
Two new songs followed. "Freedom Fries" was well received, although it is questionable whether a crowd in Republican-heavy South Carolina would have cheered as much had they been truly listening to the lyrics "...A little give and take to satisfy my needs/You can give me lots but I'll take some more/I got my eyes on your treasure 'neath the desert floor" and "the liberator goes too far." Ah, well. "Let The Four Winds Blow" followed. This is a dynamic light and shade song in the Zeppelin tradition, with a somewhat mellow, tentative introduction leading into a raucous instumental section.
Plant instructed us that the new album was a sort of commentary on the aging Baby-Boomer generation, the people who ask "how are you, where are the restrooms, and what's a woody?", which he followed with "Thankfully, some things are still working properly."
"Heartbreaker" has also undergone significant change - the signature riff remains but has somehow been diminished. Despite hearing this version from the Tsunami Relief Concert webcast, I did not immediately recognize it at the show. This Page-less rendition has, predictably, no unaccompanied guitar workout in the middle, but Skin had a pretty nice solo nonetheless. Bonnie Dobson's "Morning Dew," popularized by the Grateful Dead, may be the number that has been changed the most in the shortest span of time, from Plant's subdued Priory of Brion performances in 1999 and 2000 to the early days of the Strange Sensation in 2001, the version on Dreamland, and now in its present incarnation as a more up-tempo rocker.
"That's The Way" is beautifully done, and as another reviewer noted, it is a welcome replacement for the somewhat tired "Going To California," although "Tangerine" would have been great too. I think Clive Deamer might be able to do "Poor Tom" some justice, but perhaps asking for anything off Coda is unrealistic.
I wholeheartedly agree with the suggestion that Plant could and probably should substitute some of his own back catalogue for the Zeppelin songs in the set. While it is certainly a thrill to hear "the voice of Led Zeppelin" as he is often billed - on songs that the Hammer of the Gods produced, I am of the opinion that songs like Wreckless Love, Horizontal Departure, Little By Little, Ship of Fools, and many others would be great to hear. As it is, Robert seems to have abandoned his earliest work as a solo artist. Nothing from Pictures at Eleven appeared on last year's Sixty-Six to Timbuktu retrospective. It would seem that Plant believes he's no longer near that particular place as an artist and that his more recent output is more representative of how he'd like to be viewed. Alternatively, it may be merely a concession to the sheer fact that so many more people were wearing Zeppelin shirts than Plant shirts, and that disparity represents general expectation in the crowd that he will be churning out a Zep-heavy set. I was a year old when Pictures at Eleven was released and two when Plant started to tour with Phil Collins on drums, but it would have been very interesting to go to some of those early shows where no Zeppelin songs were performed and fans had to be satiated by a few vocal nods to the man's previous band in the form of "Keep a coolin'" and "let me take you there..." It would be great to hear from people who attended those shows to see what the general crowd feeling was like after the show. Was it one of disappointment? There is also the distinct possibility that Robert really likes doing the Zeppelin songs because he has more fun singing them - and doing them in his own way - than some of his solo work. It could even be that he would work with Page again if they could just play small clubs, although I genuinely believe the control factor may be the key reason that Robert's guitarist happens to be named 'Skin' and not 'Jimmy' - the freedom to play whatever he wants in whatever arrangement he prefers on a given night, and knowing that his is the final word on the matter. In any event, personally I cannot shake the underlying feeling that something is missing when Plant does Zeppelin songs, even though I do unquestionably enjoy them. Unless two or three of the remaining members reunite, I don't believe I'll ever be able to top the feeling I got when I heard Plant sing live for the first time at the Orpheum in Boston 2001 - specifically on "In The Light" and "Whole Lotta Love." Absolute chills, goosebumps, hair standing on end, tears in the eyes - the whole bit. But enough of my ranting...
"If I Were a Carpenter" would not have been my selection from Fate of Nations, but it was performed well, very close to the version on the album. I would have preferred "Great Spirit" or "The Greatest Gift." Similarly, while "Tall Cool One" is a fun song (it has been arranged to rock more and be less silly than it ever was on the 1988 tour) and is always well-received, there are other songs on Now and Zen that might have been reworked to greater effect. Skin scraped four fingers of his right hand over the strings like a cat pawing at a feather and the band really seemed to be enjoying themselves.
"Tin Pan Valley" is apparently Robert's shot at his contemporaries, like The Who (or what's left of them anyway), who are cashing in on former triumphs without producing anything new. I think it's also a song that serves as a reminder to himself that he should only go forward. The song rocks, and everyone on stage knew it. It is another "tight but loose" number that had Plant screaming "like THIS" into the mic during the freak-out instrumental section.
"Babe I'm Gonna Leave You" should definitely be dropped from the set. After not playing it at all from 1970 to at least 1988 if not the 90s, this song has been overplayed from the Page/Plant outing in 1995 to the present, and the worst thing about that is that none of the post-Zeppelin versions even approach the glory achieved with the Jones/Bonham rhythm section. If it is a simple matter of Robert wanting to showcase his still-potent vocals, there are myriad other songs with which to accomplish that objective, and while Skin is indisputably a great axeman, he almost always disappoints me with the solo on this song.
In stark contrast, "When The Levee Breaks" is a welcome addition. Always one of my particular favorites, this was done with what one reviewer accurately described as a chain-gang style chorus on the last word of phrases like "Crying won't help you, prayin won't do you no GOOOOD." Bonham's drums are sampled for a backbeat and Justin Adams plays electric mandolin. This song was fantastic - although I think Jonesy's instrumental version with steel guitar does come close, the vocals put Plant's over the top.
For the encores, "The Enchanter" was up first, and provided another reason for optimism about the new Mighty Rearranger. Plant and company have managed to embrace some of the more modern directions of music, specifically 'electronica,' that Radiohead and others have enjoyed success with, and mixed it with elements of rock and Middle-Eastern vibes to create a unique and effective final product. Besides that, it gave the quirky and talented Mr. Justin Adams to dance around the stage with his guitar. This guy is quite the performer; I saw his antics produce a smile on Plant's face many times during the evening. In general, the entire band seemed to have a tremendously good time. There were smiles all around. Some of these may have also been produced by the very odd man to the front and right of me. He and his two moderately attractive female companions (one older and one younger) had been waiting in folding chairs outside the venue since 8:30 that morning, which put them three hours ahead of me. The rest of the early-arriving fanatics all had easy-going and smooth conversations, but this guy had remained apart from the crowd. His jet-black hair was set in a fashion that he doubtless believed to be the height of style, and he had three standard reactions to everything that went on during the show. First of all, I never saw him smile. He would instead emphatically point with all fingers extended to whatever band member he thought was doing a particularly good job at any one moment, all the while fixedly staring at them. At other moments, such as after "Shine It All Around," he would very stiffly hold up a small sign with a '10' on it, indicating his approval. Finally, he would also point vehemently at the elder female companion when Plant would look his way, perhaps indicating that he wanted Robert to take her backstage. I don't know. At the end of the show, he was pointing emphatically once again, this time at Billy Fuller, who seemed both mystified and amused enough to approach the edge of the stage and shake the man's hand while glancing with amusement and confusion to Justin Adams, who could only shrug.
"Whole Lotta Love" closed the show and featured a "Spoonful" introduction before the "Delta blues" slow beginning. The crowd erupted and Plant made them repeat the "wanna whole lotta love" refrain not just four times, but six or seven. The middle section now includes Theremin-like sounds produced not by Skin but by John Baggott, as well as an extensive bongo performance from Adams before returning to that incredible riff of all riffs. This song predictably got the greatest reaction of the night, and I must confess that I will probably never tire of it. All in all, a fantastic show - worth the 13-hour drive from southwestern New York.
I was hardly even disturbed by the woman who had vomited directly behind me between the opening band and Plant's performance. It was, however, a very close call. I had to be very careful where I placed my feet. The only other obstacle to having a better time was the guy who believed he was Robert Plant's illegitimate son and wore his blond hair in as Plant-like a way as he could manage, just to prove his point. Little Bobby Junior was not so little - in the immediate vicinity, he was the only one taller than me, and of course happened to be standing almost directly in front of me. Eventually - aided by the movement of the crowd to avoid the vomit - I was able to position myself slightly to his right, and spent most of the evening in a third-row center position.
That's about it, folks. I could tell you about my drive and about a few times where I walked into a gas station carrying a map, eliciting a response of "y'all is lost, ain'tcha?" but I won't.
Justin Adams - Guitar, Mandolin, Bongos
John Baggott - Keyboards
Clive Deamer - Drums
Billy Fuller - Bass
Skin Tyson - Lead Guitar
The Strange Sensation strode onto the stage at 8:30pm, picked up their instruments and broke into an ominous beat. Three of the band had various types of hand-drums, and Skin Tyson was on acoustic guitar. Robert Plant emerged from the shadowy stacks of amplifiers, his hands raised over his head, clapping with the rhythm of the drums. He picked up a drum as well and approached the microphone and told us to
"Close the Door, Put Out the Light
You Know They Won't Be Home Tonight"
...and so the crowd was hooked, entranced, and Enchanted for the next two hours. "No Quarter" has been dramatically reworked once again to serve as the opening number. As another review mentioned, "They choose a path where no one goes" is now the dominant refrain. Instead of evoking images of medieval warriors, the new rendition paints a picture of a relentless quest over a dark desert landscape (lyrics pertaining to snow notwithstanding). "Shine It All Around" was next, carried by the soaring emphatic cries of "SHINE" and built on the earthquake-proof foundation of Fuller's bass and Deamer's drums.
"Black Dog" is another mightily-rearranged Zeppelin tune. Plant gave the crowd the chance to fill in some verses, holding the microphone out, but there was some confusion among many and Robert had to pick up the slack, throwing a smile and shrug back to Deamer before launching into the "ahhh-ahhh" portion of the song.
Two new songs followed. "Freedom Fries" was well received, although it is questionable whether a crowd in Republican-heavy South Carolina would have cheered as much had they been truly listening to the lyrics "...A little give and take to satisfy my needs/You can give me lots but I'll take some more/I got my eyes on your treasure 'neath the desert floor" and "the liberator goes too far." Ah, well. "Let The Four Winds Blow" followed. This is a dynamic light and shade song in the Zeppelin tradition, with a somewhat mellow, tentative introduction leading into a raucous instumental section.
Plant instructed us that the new album was a sort of commentary on the aging Baby-Boomer generation, the people who ask "how are you, where are the restrooms, and what's a woody?", which he followed with "Thankfully, some things are still working properly."
"Heartbreaker" has also undergone significant change - the signature riff remains but has somehow been diminished. Despite hearing this version from the Tsunami Relief Concert webcast, I did not immediately recognize it at the show. This Page-less rendition has, predictably, no unaccompanied guitar workout in the middle, but Skin had a pretty nice solo nonetheless. Bonnie Dobson's "Morning Dew," popularized by the Grateful Dead, may be the number that has been changed the most in the shortest span of time, from Plant's subdued Priory of Brion performances in 1999 and 2000 to the early days of the Strange Sensation in 2001, the version on Dreamland, and now in its present incarnation as a more up-tempo rocker.
"That's The Way" is beautifully done, and as another reviewer noted, it is a welcome replacement for the somewhat tired "Going To California," although "Tangerine" would have been great too. I think Clive Deamer might be able to do "Poor Tom" some justice, but perhaps asking for anything off Coda is unrealistic.
I wholeheartedly agree with the suggestion that Plant could and probably should substitute some of his own back catalogue for the Zeppelin songs in the set. While it is certainly a thrill to hear "the voice of Led Zeppelin" as he is often billed - on songs that the Hammer of the Gods produced, I am of the opinion that songs like Wreckless Love, Horizontal Departure, Little By Little, Ship of Fools, and many others would be great to hear. As it is, Robert seems to have abandoned his earliest work as a solo artist. Nothing from Pictures at Eleven appeared on last year's Sixty-Six to Timbuktu retrospective. It would seem that Plant believes he's no longer near that particular place as an artist and that his more recent output is more representative of how he'd like to be viewed. Alternatively, it may be merely a concession to the sheer fact that so many more people were wearing Zeppelin shirts than Plant shirts, and that disparity represents general expectation in the crowd that he will be churning out a Zep-heavy set. I was a year old when Pictures at Eleven was released and two when Plant started to tour with Phil Collins on drums, but it would have been very interesting to go to some of those early shows where no Zeppelin songs were performed and fans had to be satiated by a few vocal nods to the man's previous band in the form of "Keep a coolin'" and "let me take you there..." It would be great to hear from people who attended those shows to see what the general crowd feeling was like after the show. Was it one of disappointment? There is also the distinct possibility that Robert really likes doing the Zeppelin songs because he has more fun singing them - and doing them in his own way - than some of his solo work. It could even be that he would work with Page again if they could just play small clubs, although I genuinely believe the control factor may be the key reason that Robert's guitarist happens to be named 'Skin' and not 'Jimmy' - the freedom to play whatever he wants in whatever arrangement he prefers on a given night, and knowing that his is the final word on the matter. In any event, personally I cannot shake the underlying feeling that something is missing when Plant does Zeppelin songs, even though I do unquestionably enjoy them. Unless two or three of the remaining members reunite, I don't believe I'll ever be able to top the feeling I got when I heard Plant sing live for the first time at the Orpheum in Boston 2001 - specifically on "In The Light" and "Whole Lotta Love." Absolute chills, goosebumps, hair standing on end, tears in the eyes - the whole bit. But enough of my ranting...
"If I Were a Carpenter" would not have been my selection from Fate of Nations, but it was performed well, very close to the version on the album. I would have preferred "Great Spirit" or "The Greatest Gift." Similarly, while "Tall Cool One" is a fun song (it has been arranged to rock more and be less silly than it ever was on the 1988 tour) and is always well-received, there are other songs on Now and Zen that might have been reworked to greater effect. Skin scraped four fingers of his right hand over the strings like a cat pawing at a feather and the band really seemed to be enjoying themselves.
"Tin Pan Valley" is apparently Robert's shot at his contemporaries, like The Who (or what's left of them anyway), who are cashing in on former triumphs without producing anything new. I think it's also a song that serves as a reminder to himself that he should only go forward. The song rocks, and everyone on stage knew it. It is another "tight but loose" number that had Plant screaming "like THIS" into the mic during the freak-out instrumental section.
"Babe I'm Gonna Leave You" should definitely be dropped from the set. After not playing it at all from 1970 to at least 1988 if not the 90s, this song has been overplayed from the Page/Plant outing in 1995 to the present, and the worst thing about that is that none of the post-Zeppelin versions even approach the glory achieved with the Jones/Bonham rhythm section. If it is a simple matter of Robert wanting to showcase his still-potent vocals, there are myriad other songs with which to accomplish that objective, and while Skin is indisputably a great axeman, he almost always disappoints me with the solo on this song.
In stark contrast, "When The Levee Breaks" is a welcome addition. Always one of my particular favorites, this was done with what one reviewer accurately described as a chain-gang style chorus on the last word of phrases like "Crying won't help you, prayin won't do you no GOOOOD." Bonham's drums are sampled for a backbeat and Justin Adams plays electric mandolin. This song was fantastic - although I think Jonesy's instrumental version with steel guitar does come close, the vocals put Plant's over the top.
For the encores, "The Enchanter" was up first, and provided another reason for optimism about the new Mighty Rearranger. Plant and company have managed to embrace some of the more modern directions of music, specifically 'electronica,' that Radiohead and others have enjoyed success with, and mixed it with elements of rock and Middle-Eastern vibes to create a unique and effective final product. Besides that, it gave the quirky and talented Mr. Justin Adams to dance around the stage with his guitar. This guy is quite the performer; I saw his antics produce a smile on Plant's face many times during the evening. In general, the entire band seemed to have a tremendously good time. There were smiles all around. Some of these may have also been produced by the very odd man to the front and right of me. He and his two moderately attractive female companions (one older and one younger) had been waiting in folding chairs outside the venue since 8:30 that morning, which put them three hours ahead of me. The rest of the early-arriving fanatics all had easy-going and smooth conversations, but this guy had remained apart from the crowd. His jet-black hair was set in a fashion that he doubtless believed to be the height of style, and he had three standard reactions to everything that went on during the show. First of all, I never saw him smile. He would instead emphatically point with all fingers extended to whatever band member he thought was doing a particularly good job at any one moment, all the while fixedly staring at them. At other moments, such as after "Shine It All Around," he would very stiffly hold up a small sign with a '10' on it, indicating his approval. Finally, he would also point vehemently at the elder female companion when Plant would look his way, perhaps indicating that he wanted Robert to take her backstage. I don't know. At the end of the show, he was pointing emphatically once again, this time at Billy Fuller, who seemed both mystified and amused enough to approach the edge of the stage and shake the man's hand while glancing with amusement and confusion to Justin Adams, who could only shrug.
"Whole Lotta Love" closed the show and featured a "Spoonful" introduction before the "Delta blues" slow beginning. The crowd erupted and Plant made them repeat the "wanna whole lotta love" refrain not just four times, but six or seven. The middle section now includes Theremin-like sounds produced not by Skin but by John Baggott, as well as an extensive bongo performance from Adams before returning to that incredible riff of all riffs. This song predictably got the greatest reaction of the night, and I must confess that I will probably never tire of it. All in all, a fantastic show - worth the 13-hour drive from southwestern New York.
I was hardly even disturbed by the woman who had vomited directly behind me between the opening band and Plant's performance. It was, however, a very close call. I had to be very careful where I placed my feet. The only other obstacle to having a better time was the guy who believed he was Robert Plant's illegitimate son and wore his blond hair in as Plant-like a way as he could manage, just to prove his point. Little Bobby Junior was not so little - in the immediate vicinity, he was the only one taller than me, and of course happened to be standing almost directly in front of me. Eventually - aided by the movement of the crowd to avoid the vomit - I was able to position myself slightly to his right, and spent most of the evening in a third-row center position.
That's about it, folks. I could tell you about my drive and about a few times where I walked into a gas station carrying a map, eliciting a response of "y'all is lost, ain'tcha?" but I won't.
Wednesday, March 23, 2005
Off The Road
I have returned. Details to come. Probably tomorrow. I'm quite tired. Over the course of 59 hours (from 11am Sunday to 10pm Tuesday), I was driving for 26 (approximately 1700 miles roundtrip, which is roughly equivalent to driving to western Colorado from here).
For anyone who may be interested, here's a fairly complete setlist of what was played Monday evening. The sequence is probably incorrect, but the beginning and ending is fairly accurate. I'll write up a little review in the next couple days so it can be ignored.
No Quarter (Houses of the Holy)
Shine It All Around (Mighty Rearranger)
Black Dog (fourth album)
Freedom Fries (Mighty Rearranger)
Let The Four Winds Blow (Mighty Rearranger)
Morning Dew (Dreamland)
Heartbreaker (II)
Tin Pan Valley (Mighty Rearranger)
That's The Way (III)
If I Were A Carpenter (Fate of Nations)
Tall Cool One (Now and Zen)
Babe I'm Gonna Leave You (I)
When The Levee Breaks (fourth)
Encores:
The Enchanter (Mighty Rearranger)
Whole Lotta Love (II)
For anyone who may be interested, here's a fairly complete setlist of what was played Monday evening. The sequence is probably incorrect, but the beginning and ending is fairly accurate. I'll write up a little review in the next couple days so it can be ignored.
No Quarter (Houses of the Holy)
Shine It All Around (Mighty Rearranger)
Black Dog (fourth album)
Freedom Fries (Mighty Rearranger)
Let The Four Winds Blow (Mighty Rearranger)
Morning Dew (Dreamland)
Heartbreaker (II)
Tin Pan Valley (Mighty Rearranger)
That's The Way (III)
If I Were A Carpenter (Fate of Nations)
Tall Cool One (Now and Zen)
Babe I'm Gonna Leave You (I)
When The Levee Breaks (fourth)
Encores:
The Enchanter (Mighty Rearranger)
Whole Lotta Love (II)
Saturday, March 19, 2005
Southern Man
Well, I was considering going to New York City on Thursday to catch Robert Plant. However, I decided that I would be nervous as hell driving there by myself and probably be too tweaked out to either enjoy myself or even find the place on time.
So with careful consideration...
Alright, so it was a spur of the moment decision. I'm going to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina instead. It's a few hundred more miles, but I figure it might be a more relaxing drive. I'm going to leave sometime tomorrow and probably get a hotel somewhere fairly close (within a hundred miles or so) and wait outside like the crazed fan I am to get in as early as I can (it's a general admission show at the House of Blues). Not sure if anyone is going with me at this point. I got two tickets just in case.
Should be interesting. I do think Robert will be touring later this year, but it looks like it may be a co-headlining slot with Jeff Beck. In the interest of seeing as long a show as possible, I am going to see him when he's the main man on the bill. A band called Love Drug will be opening the MB show.
That's it for now.
So with careful consideration...
Alright, so it was a spur of the moment decision. I'm going to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina instead. It's a few hundred more miles, but I figure it might be a more relaxing drive. I'm going to leave sometime tomorrow and probably get a hotel somewhere fairly close (within a hundred miles or so) and wait outside like the crazed fan I am to get in as early as I can (it's a general admission show at the House of Blues). Not sure if anyone is going with me at this point. I got two tickets just in case.
Should be interesting. I do think Robert will be touring later this year, but it looks like it may be a co-headlining slot with Jeff Beck. In the interest of seeing as long a show as possible, I am going to see him when he's the main man on the bill. A band called Love Drug will be opening the MB show.
That's it for now.
Friday, March 18, 2005
Hittin' the Board for the Lord
From an article entitled "Jesus on the Half-Pipe" - here are some of the highlights:
"...other members of the King of Kings Skateboard Ministries team are quick to say that they do not skate for adulation or even for the thrill of catching big air. They skate for Jesus."
"Mr. Palau is so convinced of skateboarding's effectiveness in youth ministry that he said he suspected that Jesus himself would be a skater if he walked the earth today. "Yeah, I mean, he was young; I think he'd get on a skateboard and go for it," Mr. Palau said. "I know St. Paul would.""
"...but I get to ride with guys who are stoked on Jesus."
If you're ignorant like me, you watched Saved! and thought the whole skateboarding thing was a joke with little basis in reality. That would be wrong.
I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. If they can attempt to co-opt rock music, then skateboarding would be another step in the same direction.
I laughed through the whole thing. Enjoy.
"...other members of the King of Kings Skateboard Ministries team are quick to say that they do not skate for adulation or even for the thrill of catching big air. They skate for Jesus."
"Mr. Palau is so convinced of skateboarding's effectiveness in youth ministry that he said he suspected that Jesus himself would be a skater if he walked the earth today. "Yeah, I mean, he was young; I think he'd get on a skateboard and go for it," Mr. Palau said. "I know St. Paul would.""
"...but I get to ride with guys who are stoked on Jesus."
If you're ignorant like me, you watched Saved! and thought the whole skateboarding thing was a joke with little basis in reality. That would be wrong.
I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. If they can attempt to co-opt rock music, then skateboarding would be another step in the same direction.
I laughed through the whole thing. Enjoy.
Thursday, March 17, 2005
Funny
This article talks about ways to deal with life's little annoyances. Some of them are pretty funny, like the guy who puts strips of sheet metal in reply envelopes that have "No Postage Necessary" marked on them.
It's along the same line as the people who send all the AOL discs they get back to the company.
Did anyone see that Daily Show episode where they interviewed the email spammer and put his private email address up on the screen?
It's along the same line as the people who send all the AOL discs they get back to the company.
Did anyone see that Daily Show episode where they interviewed the email spammer and put his private email address up on the screen?
March 17
Went to The Office last night. Discussed non-alcoholic beer with Turck.
Will head over to Steve's BYOB St. Patrick's Day festivities in a few hours. I may get some dinner with Laura, Randy, and Matt first. Thom is scheduled to join us at some point. The party at Steve's seems to be merely a prelude to a walk downtown for what promises to be a crowded and drunken mob. Not sure I'm up for that. I will probably be one of very, very few people in classes tomorrow, since it is the last day before Spring Break.
It remains to be seen if I'll have a computer here over that time. Things would be immeasurably easier for me if I did, but I have to be realistic about how much work I'm actually going to be doing while Kristen is visiting.
I might have some interesting stories tomorrow.
Will head over to Steve's BYOB St. Patrick's Day festivities in a few hours. I may get some dinner with Laura, Randy, and Matt first. Thom is scheduled to join us at some point. The party at Steve's seems to be merely a prelude to a walk downtown for what promises to be a crowded and drunken mob. Not sure I'm up for that. I will probably be one of very, very few people in classes tomorrow, since it is the last day before Spring Break.
It remains to be seen if I'll have a computer here over that time. Things would be immeasurably easier for me if I did, but I have to be realistic about how much work I'm actually going to be doing while Kristen is visiting.
I might have some interesting stories tomorrow.
Wednesday, March 16, 2005
Venturing To Kennedy This Evening
So I'm off to Kennedy to meet up with Matt, Brett, Turck, Lindsey, and possibly Randy and Laura as well. A continuation of the Falconer High School tradition of going for chicken wings at The Office on Wednesday nights.
And I'll be stopping at home to pick up a green shirt to wear to tomorrow night's St. Patrick's Day shindig at Steve's place.
And I'll be stopping at home to pick up a green shirt to wear to tomorrow night's St. Patrick's Day shindig at Steve's place.
Drilling For Oil in the Arctic Wildlife Refuge
...and the nation continues its trek to Hell, or something very much like it.
Krugman Column: The $600 Billion Dollar Man
Some comments on the latest round of discussion about Social Security "reform"/privatization/elimination. It also includes a nice shot at erstwhile Democrat Joe Lieberman.
Check it out.
Check it out.
Yes, Even More Pictures
The game of beer pong was expensive because it was played (on our side) with Corona. We ran out of beer toward the end of our run of consecutive victories. Our consumption of cheap, nasty beer can be held directly responsible for our loss.
Deanna appears in the first picture with Thom and I. Deanna is in my 1960s class. When I asked her how my presentation went, she said I did well. When I pressed her to tell me what she really thought, she replied with a sigh..."well, you'll never be a teacher. You might be able to be a professor though, because you can be a professor without knowing how to teach. You just need to know what you're talking about." I'm unqualified to be a teacher because of my mumbling and lack of eye contact during the presentation, it seems. I do fairly well with eye contact in one-on-one situations and in small groups, but she's right about my performance during the presentation.
One more career I can cross off the list, eh?
Deanna appears in the first picture with Thom and I. Deanna is in my 1960s class. When I asked her how my presentation went, she said I did well. When I pressed her to tell me what she really thought, she replied with a sigh..."well, you'll never be a teacher. You might be able to be a professor though, because you can be a professor without knowing how to teach. You just need to know what you're talking about." I'm unqualified to be a teacher because of my mumbling and lack of eye contact during the presentation, it seems. I do fairly well with eye contact in one-on-one situations and in small groups, but she's right about my performance during the presentation.
One more career I can cross off the list, eh?
Monday, March 14, 2005
More Pictures!
The GQ appearance was for Theresa's "Christmas Formal"-type party in mid-December. That's me and Nate VanWie, from my Western European Politics class. Nate's an extremely intelligent guy and was always funny in class, as well as in conversation at the parties. I believe he went to high school with Theresa in the Horseheads, NY region.
I can't figure out if I just look evil in that picture, or if I look like I'm trying to be....alluring? I don't know. You decide.
Probably two more pictures to come soon.
I can't figure out if I just look evil in that picture, or if I look like I'm trying to be....alluring? I don't know. You decide.
Probably two more pictures to come soon.
Sunday, March 13, 2005
Falling Short of My Blogging Potential
Sorry the posts have been mainly just pictures lately. I have some things to say, but I haven't had a lot of time to devote to 'blogging' lately. Perhaps I'll get some more time over spring break (March 18 - 29). Kristen's coming home Saturday, so it'll be great to see her.
Wednesday, March 09, 2005
Long Time
So I haven't posted for a while. I did post a couple pictures from two parties last semester.
Not very much to say right now.
Not very much to say right now.
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