Did anyone watch the debate last night? For me it was a culmination of weeks of build up on one singular theme across the Republican Party - The Glorious Reagan years. I for one can't speak too intelligently on the Reagan years as I spent the early part of it in Middle School and High School. I do remember one thing and at the time it was a positive - I was Bar Mitzvahed in 1982 when interest rates were around 14%, so if you get where I am going...I socked away a lot of cash in 7 year CD's at a ridiculous rate! Today, I'd kick your ass if my mortgage was going to be above 6% so now I feel the difference, but I digress.
What amazes me about ALL politicians is how they are able to pull off the "now isn't that the pot calling the kettle black" deal. Here's what I mean; the Republicans are BLASTING Hilary on 'going back to the good old days of Bill' and even Obama has joined in with 'moving forward and away from old politics', HOWEVER, here they were last night in what can only be described in as a 'Ronald Reagan love fest du jour'. Inherently I have no issue with that, but isn't the exact same thing as what they are accussing Hilary of, just with a diferent guy? By the time the debate was 45 minutes old I turned to Ilene and said this would make a great drinking game, every time a candidate or Anderson Cooper for that matter, mentions Reagan you drink. Thank G-d we didn't play because I would have been 3 sheets to the wind by 9:30!
That aside, I thought last night was interesting. Here is my 30,000 foot view - if Mitt Romney was NOT a Mormon he would have the Republican nomination locked up. Conversely, if McCain weren't as old as Ronald Reagan would be he would have it locked up. I think McCain did a poor job last night. He looked smug and whiny. He really needed to get off the whole 'timetable' issue with Romney. Let's face it, if you are a Republican who is voting based on 'National Security' you are most likely voting McCain and if you are a Republican that recognizes what is going on with our economy then you are most likely looking at Mitt. My highlight from last night was Ron Paul. He was just awesome! He was like the fighter who is on his feet by sheer will power alone and is just going to throw haymakers until someone throws in the white towel. He was playing to the wrong audience but his comments about the war and the economy were so contrarian to rest of the group they all just sat there and laughed at him. I also thought Huckabee scored some points but he is just way too scary for this Jewish kid from Philadelphia.
Last point on the debate last night. It seemed to me that the extra 'moderators' (not Cooper) were asking questions with an 'Agenda' and not really looking to spur debate but trying to illicit combat. Are these televised debates about ratings or enlightening the American public on issues and where candidates differ? It's getting harder to tell.
I for one am watching the debates at this point for entertainment and trying to get a feel for the leaders these folks can be not their positions. As I told my mother-in-law, if I want to know their positions then I'll pull up their websites and read their positional papers.
Oh yeah, one more thing on politics. What the fuck is wrong with changing your mind? Don't things change? Don't circumstance change? Doesn't science and research provide us with new information that helps us readjust reality? I guess G-d missed the 'it's ok to change you mind gene' on the 6th day of creation :)
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
The last few days @ Philips Arena
It seems like the home to the Hawks and Thrashers has become my temporary home.
Over the weekend Atlanta hosted the NHL All-Star game and I went down to soak in some of the festivities. On Saturday night was the Super Skills Competition. The event was nice, nothing spectacular but it was good feeling to be around true hockey fans. One thing really got me though, I was browsing the Program for the weekend and I noticed in the back the NHL took out a page ad if you will and made a memorial/dedication to my friend Jon that passed away last month. Standing on the concourse as people buzzed by me I was once again drawn back to what is now 7 weeks ago. It still blows me away to the amount of folks Jon touched and how blessed I will always be to have had him in my life. The game on Sunday was a great display of great offensive skill but also some very nice goal tending on both ends with the exception of Chris Osgood who looked more like a deer in headlights than a goaltender for a Cup contender.
Monday night found Ilene and I right back in the Arena for Matchbox 20 and Alanis Morrisette. I REALLY enjoy MB20. I'm not a music critic but I am pretty sure no one is going to call them musical geniuses but they put a very good, lively and entertaining show. I've been a fan since their first album and have caught them every time they are in town. It was good seeing Alanis on stage. Her Jagged Little Pill album is still one of those few 'records' I can listen to from start to finish at any random time. They both played all of their hits as well as new stuff. One of the things I like about Rob Thomas/MB20 is he/they come off as genuine. I get the message of the music and right now with all the things swirling around in my world I can relate. Right now one of their older songs keeps hitting my playlist and I think of my hero today. The song is Real World and it makes me think of my good friend Steve Talbott and the struggle he is going through and how he is facing adversity. Steve, you are a rainmaker and a superhero and my inspiration. If you want to follow Steve's journey I have linked his blog here on my page.
Over the weekend Atlanta hosted the NHL All-Star game and I went down to soak in some of the festivities. On Saturday night was the Super Skills Competition. The event was nice, nothing spectacular but it was good feeling to be around true hockey fans. One thing really got me though, I was browsing the Program for the weekend and I noticed in the back the NHL took out a page ad if you will and made a memorial/dedication to my friend Jon that passed away last month. Standing on the concourse as people buzzed by me I was once again drawn back to what is now 7 weeks ago. It still blows me away to the amount of folks Jon touched and how blessed I will always be to have had him in my life. The game on Sunday was a great display of great offensive skill but also some very nice goal tending on both ends with the exception of Chris Osgood who looked more like a deer in headlights than a goaltender for a Cup contender.
Monday night found Ilene and I right back in the Arena for Matchbox 20 and Alanis Morrisette. I REALLY enjoy MB20. I'm not a music critic but I am pretty sure no one is going to call them musical geniuses but they put a very good, lively and entertaining show. I've been a fan since their first album and have caught them every time they are in town. It was good seeing Alanis on stage. Her Jagged Little Pill album is still one of those few 'records' I can listen to from start to finish at any random time. They both played all of their hits as well as new stuff. One of the things I like about Rob Thomas/MB20 is he/they come off as genuine. I get the message of the music and right now with all the things swirling around in my world I can relate. Right now one of their older songs keeps hitting my playlist and I think of my hero today. The song is Real World and it makes me think of my good friend Steve Talbott and the struggle he is going through and how he is facing adversity. Steve, you are a rainmaker and a superhero and my inspiration. If you want to follow Steve's journey I have linked his blog here on my page.
Friday, January 18, 2008
Your internet 'footprint'
I have been thinking about this post for awhile...
As I've written about before, it's now been a little more than a month since a good friend of mine passed away. In the wake of everything else he left behind there is his blog, his Facebook Page, his LinkedIn account, etc...I keep seeing his name pop up whether it be on my Treo or here on my own blog and I am beginning to wonder how long that 'presence' stays? What is appropriate? Is there 'standards' being created?
A few years ago I had another friend take his own life and for a long time I left his contact info in my Outlook and on my phone. After a while I deleted it and that was not as easy as pushing a 'button'.
In 2001 my father passed away and he had a website for one of his businesses. I remember at one point he had a picture from my wedding on it and my wife was none to thrilled about it (amazing how far we've come with Internet comfort ability) but a few months after his death the site was down, I assume because no one paid his hosting bills and such that his site was taken down.
That leads me to today. With blogs and social networking sites there is no 'maintenance' fees per se, so do these things stay up in perpetuity and is that a bad thing? One things I am thinking about is how do we per serve all of these individual acrchivable items? Is there a way to turn a blog into a real life, nicely packaged journal? I would think so.
So, just some random thoughts I guess...
As I've written about before, it's now been a little more than a month since a good friend of mine passed away. In the wake of everything else he left behind there is his blog, his Facebook Page, his LinkedIn account, etc...I keep seeing his name pop up whether it be on my Treo or here on my own blog and I am beginning to wonder how long that 'presence' stays? What is appropriate? Is there 'standards' being created?
A few years ago I had another friend take his own life and for a long time I left his contact info in my Outlook and on my phone. After a while I deleted it and that was not as easy as pushing a 'button'.
In 2001 my father passed away and he had a website for one of his businesses. I remember at one point he had a picture from my wedding on it and my wife was none to thrilled about it (amazing how far we've come with Internet comfort ability) but a few months after his death the site was down, I assume because no one paid his hosting bills and such that his site was taken down.
That leads me to today. With blogs and social networking sites there is no 'maintenance' fees per se, so do these things stay up in perpetuity and is that a bad thing? One things I am thinking about is how do we per serve all of these individual acrchivable items? Is there a way to turn a blog into a real life, nicely packaged journal? I would think so.
So, just some random thoughts I guess...
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Ahhh...the power of 'The Secret'
Put it out there and it will happen right...
For my next trick I will have a million dollars in 6 months, a new BMW 550i, membership at The Standard Club, zero debt and a new kitchen...
...back to reality, this morning I wrote about the Wii and now, just a few hours later, I have one! Persistence and perseverance come in early.
I called several places and went to Best Buy, Circuit City, Toys R Us (TRU) and Costco. One of the places I called, GameStop/EB Games said they were waiting on a shipment any day and their daily arrivals usually happen around 1:00. So, at 1:10 I called over there and yes indeed they had arrived. I zipped on over and now have my Wii. I was most excited about Guitar Hero III but low and behold they did not have that and the clerk said the entire city was out. He felt good about 7-10 for more. Well, on my way back into the office I thought, let's swing into the TRU in Buckhead and give it a shot...guess what 2 Wii guitars left...today is my day after all!
Unfortunately set up probably won't happen until late tonight or tomorrow since I have a basketball game tonight but I am psyched.
For my next trick I will have a million dollars in 6 months, a new BMW 550i, membership at The Standard Club, zero debt and a new kitchen...
...back to reality, this morning I wrote about the Wii and now, just a few hours later, I have one! Persistence and perseverance come in early.
I called several places and went to Best Buy, Circuit City, Toys R Us (TRU) and Costco. One of the places I called, GameStop/EB Games said they were waiting on a shipment any day and their daily arrivals usually happen around 1:00. So, at 1:10 I called over there and yes indeed they had arrived. I zipped on over and now have my Wii. I was most excited about Guitar Hero III but low and behold they did not have that and the clerk said the entire city was out. He felt good about 7-10 for more. Well, on my way back into the office I thought, let's swing into the TRU in Buckhead and give it a shot...guess what 2 Wii guitars left...today is my day after all!
Unfortunately set up probably won't happen until late tonight or tomorrow since I have a basketball game tonight but I am psyched.
I need a Wii
IN what will go down as one of the great birthday gifts, Ilene has granted me my wish - a Wii. Unfortunately it came in the form of a 'check' since she couldn't find one in town. So now I am on the hunt. I will not go gently into the goodnight and breakdown and buy one on eBay, at least not for the foreseeable future.
The quest began with calls to Costco, Circuit City, GameStop, Toys R Us (who I found out is called TRU on message boards) and a drop in to Best Buy.
Basically I was told, "no we don't have them. we may get some and no there is no list you just have to keep trying". I really don't understand how demand is so out of whack with supply on this one. It's been out now for over a year and it's 3 weeks after Christmas. Is Nintendo seriously holding back on production trying to act like OPEC?
Oh well, hopefully it won't be long until I am jamming to "Story of my Life" on Guitar Hero III!
The quest began with calls to Costco, Circuit City, GameStop, Toys R Us (who I found out is called TRU on message boards) and a drop in to Best Buy.
Basically I was told, "no we don't have them. we may get some and no there is no list you just have to keep trying". I really don't understand how demand is so out of whack with supply on this one. It's been out now for over a year and it's 3 weeks after Christmas. Is Nintendo seriously holding back on production trying to act like OPEC?
Oh well, hopefully it won't be long until I am jamming to "Story of my Life" on Guitar Hero III!
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Weigh in Update
I made sure to be VERY good last week up until Friday because we were heading out of town. It paid off becasue I ate and drank too well Friday night AND Saturday night but still managed to lose 1.6 pounds.
New weight - 232.6
total lost - 11.2
For the record, I am .6 away from the lowest I got to in this process, 232. I hope to break through that barrier and be on my way to 220 by June 30th.
This week's challenge - tomorrow, Wednesday, I turn 39 so I'm sure there will be a cake and then on Saturday night we are going to dinner with about 20 folks to my favorite Italian place in Atlanta, Alfredo's.
Wish me luck!
New weight - 232.6
total lost - 11.2
For the record, I am .6 away from the lowest I got to in this process, 232. I hope to break through that barrier and be on my way to 220 by June 30th.
This week's challenge - tomorrow, Wednesday, I turn 39 so I'm sure there will be a cake and then on Saturday night we are going to dinner with about 20 folks to my favorite Italian place in Atlanta, Alfredo's.
Wish me luck!
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
SEC dominance
Not sure why I took such pleasure in watching LSU win the BCS Title game last night...
Oh yeah, it was all those obnoxious Ohio State fans we encountered last year at the same game! Seriously, I love trash talking with my rival friends (Georgia, FSU, Miami, Tennessee, etc...) but as much as we do it there is a mutual respect that underlies all the trash talk. The Ohio State fans and probably all Big Ten fans have zero respect for anyone but their conference. I have never seen this level of arrogance. Last year we knocked them down a peg (a few times and a few pegs) yet there they were again brazen and bold as ever disrespecting LSU and the SEC. Did last night change their mind? I hope so. Don't get me wrong guys, keep bringing it, but at the end of the day give respect to those who earn it.
Here is an example where you can trash talk AND give respect:
Did you see the final polls? Wow, Georgia #2, congratulations little dawgies! Imagine if you didn't lose to Spurrier at home with a team that only wound up 6 and 6. He might not be at Florida anymore but St. Superior owns the Dawgs, that's gotta hurt. In all seriousness, I love Knowshon Moreno and watching your defense against Hawaii I was envious for what we should have flying around at UF, but at the end of the day, like Ricky Bobby said, "If you ain't first your last" so see you next year with the Heisman Trophy in hand and both of us undefeated going in Jax.
See, respect, dig, respect, dig and a mutual looking forward to next year...your turn sweater vest, pay some damn RESPECT!
Oh yeah - Troy Smith is a midget and just got sacked again!
Oh yeah, it was all those obnoxious Ohio State fans we encountered last year at the same game! Seriously, I love trash talking with my rival friends (Georgia, FSU, Miami, Tennessee, etc...) but as much as we do it there is a mutual respect that underlies all the trash talk. The Ohio State fans and probably all Big Ten fans have zero respect for anyone but their conference. I have never seen this level of arrogance. Last year we knocked them down a peg (a few times and a few pegs) yet there they were again brazen and bold as ever disrespecting LSU and the SEC. Did last night change their mind? I hope so. Don't get me wrong guys, keep bringing it, but at the end of the day give respect to those who earn it.
Here is an example where you can trash talk AND give respect:
Did you see the final polls? Wow, Georgia #2, congratulations little dawgies! Imagine if you didn't lose to Spurrier at home with a team that only wound up 6 and 6. He might not be at Florida anymore but St. Superior owns the Dawgs, that's gotta hurt. In all seriousness, I love Knowshon Moreno and watching your defense against Hawaii I was envious for what we should have flying around at UF, but at the end of the day, like Ricky Bobby said, "If you ain't first your last" so see you next year with the Heisman Trophy in hand and both of us undefeated going in Jax.
See, respect, dig, respect, dig and a mutual looking forward to next year...your turn sweater vest, pay some damn RESPECT!
Oh yeah - Troy Smith is a midget and just got sacked again!
Finally a weigh in
Jumped back on the WW train last night with the first Monday night meeting of the year. In fact, thanks to the Holidays it was the first Monday meeting since 12/17/07!
The weight? I actually lost 1.2 lbs since 12/17/07. I was pretty happy about this given the holidays and our 9 day vacation to Florida! I am back down to 234.2 and I resolve to see the scale get under 220 by the summer!
Last night's meeting was packed and it was a riot! First, here's a stat that was thrown out that I can't believe, but I guess that research will tell me if it's true - the average American gains 10 pounds in the period from Thanksgiving to Christmas. Personally, I find that to be pretty high but who knows?
The room was packed with fat people duh, but last night there were some ornery fat people! Kaye, our faithful leader tried hard to make the first meeting of the year a 'bonding experience' with a get to know you game and some other stuff but as usual the meeting went off the track with great commentary from the 'peanut gallery'. As I've written about before we have one guy that is huge, and I mean huge. I'm a big guy at 6'1" and 234 lbs but this guy makes me feel tiny. He sat next to me last night and I swear his thigh is the size of my waist. As mentioned before, when he starts doling out advice the eyes start rolling. Last night, Kaye is giving tips on snacking and we build a list. Lots of great ideas and then an older woman says "grapes". My ham hock buddy to the left goes off about how careful you must be with grapes, and all the sugar, bah blah and the sweet old lady responds, "I'm on core". OUCH! ZINGER! In WW world this woman just "fuck you fatso and the horse (or hearse) that you rode in on". There are 2 plans at WW now; the flex plan which is the traditional count up your points deal and the newer Core which is sort of a low carb deal where you don't track points you only eat from a 'core' set of food groups and basically eliminate breads, pastas, etc...
Me and the boys got a great kick out of the meeting which means we'll be back just hopefully lighter!
We're off to a wedding this weekend so I will need to be careful and then next week is my birthday but I think I finally have the proper motivation.
The weight? I actually lost 1.2 lbs since 12/17/07. I was pretty happy about this given the holidays and our 9 day vacation to Florida! I am back down to 234.2 and I resolve to see the scale get under 220 by the summer!
Last night's meeting was packed and it was a riot! First, here's a stat that was thrown out that I can't believe, but I guess that research will tell me if it's true - the average American gains 10 pounds in the period from Thanksgiving to Christmas. Personally, I find that to be pretty high but who knows?
The room was packed with fat people duh, but last night there were some ornery fat people! Kaye, our faithful leader tried hard to make the first meeting of the year a 'bonding experience' with a get to know you game and some other stuff but as usual the meeting went off the track with great commentary from the 'peanut gallery'. As I've written about before we have one guy that is huge, and I mean huge. I'm a big guy at 6'1" and 234 lbs but this guy makes me feel tiny. He sat next to me last night and I swear his thigh is the size of my waist. As mentioned before, when he starts doling out advice the eyes start rolling. Last night, Kaye is giving tips on snacking and we build a list. Lots of great ideas and then an older woman says "grapes". My ham hock buddy to the left goes off about how careful you must be with grapes, and all the sugar, bah blah and the sweet old lady responds, "I'm on core". OUCH! ZINGER! In WW world this woman just "fuck you fatso and the horse (or hearse) that you rode in on". There are 2 plans at WW now; the flex plan which is the traditional count up your points deal and the newer Core which is sort of a low carb deal where you don't track points you only eat from a 'core' set of food groups and basically eliminate breads, pastas, etc...
Me and the boys got a great kick out of the meeting which means we'll be back just hopefully lighter!
We're off to a wedding this weekend so I will need to be careful and then next week is my birthday but I think I finally have the proper motivation.
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