Immigrants part Deux - Updated

This is not neccesary. I love college football but who needs to see a few more crappy post season games?


Also, this video emailed from Kevin is something.


Modern Skirts tonight at The Fabulous 40 Watt in downtown Athens.
The *Catalogues* album, start to finish with other stuff at the end.

Saturday will be spent enjoying the twilight Criterium festival and bike races. I'm hoping that we can grab a spot in the shade and proceed to consume mass quantities of beer while watching bicyclists wreck.


Sometime this afternoon on Hispanic radio stations nationwide, a new version of the Star Spangled Banner will be played. This version is exactly like every version you know except that it will be in Spanish.

As a general rule, when you visit someone's house, you don't rearrange the furniture to suit your needs. That would be considered rude; as is this recording. This recording can only be viewed as disrespectful and will only serve to drive the opposing sides on the immigration issue further apart.

Boycott this

I just finished kicking nature's ass all over the lawn. I trimmed two pine trees that thought they were more important than the grass that was trying to grow beneath it. I trimmed one large flower bearing tree that was doing the same thing but also trying to steal the heat pump by slowly hiding it from us. The lone tree in the front yard had a few dead branches that are now gone and the large bush next to the garage got a severe haircut. I can now pull into the garage without driving around the bush. If I had known that the results would have kicked so much ass, I would have taken before and after pics.

New topic

I don't have any opinion on the immigration issue. I just don't care. Go or stay, fence or no fence, let 'em in or keep 'em out; I have no opinion. It's not being lazy or apathetic, I've tried to get motivated about this issue, I just can't. I would rather our government spend its time figuring out the price of gas. (Side note: Giving everyone a $100 gas rebate check is the dumbest thing I have ever heard.) This coming Monday has been dubbed a "day without an immigrant". People* participating in this event will not go to work, their children will not go to school, and they will not buy or sell anything.

Now really, is this the best way to get your message across? People* participating in this event are going about this the wrong way. They are trying to show you that your lives will be worse off without immigrants. But that's not the message that we will receive.

By taking the day off from everything, these people* are going to make our lives easier and better for the day. There will be less cars on the road which mean our commute to and from work will be easier and shorter in duration. Our children will be the recipients of smaller class sizes for the day and will have the opportunity to receive a better education for a few hours. If you go to a store or restaurant, you won't be delayed because you won't be stuck behind someone that doesn't speak English. Go ahead and call me a racist but that's happened to all of us at one point in time.

While I applaud the effort of trying to be heard, does anyone associated with this group really think for one moment that taking the day off is going to persuade a single legislator to change their opinion? You have got to change the minds of the voters that put those men and women into power. That is the only way that you will get the change you so desire.

*I'm using the word "People" instead of the word that should be used, "Hispanics", because that is what our media is doing. They only show footage of Hispanics while reporting on this story but continue to address them as "Immigrants". Call a spade a a spade. I don't see any Irish, Chinese, or Indians (Slurpy Indians, not the Indians that we stole land from) complaining about these new laws. Heaven forbid our media actually report the facts without worrying that someone will get their feelings hurt.

So tonight as I make my way to the seventh concentric circle, I'll be at Moondogs to kick some ass young collegiate ass and drink some beer, then at some point in time, I will head downstairs to support Radio Cult.

The internet has been going in and out over the past few days. Comcast thinks that the box is going bad so they are sending someone out to the house between 11 and 2 to take a look. Something about static build up.

Also planned for today...

Weather permitting, I'm going to take a stab at trimming some tress back around the house. Some trees are crowding the yard and it's starting to affect the grass. Some trees are creeping a little to close to the house and can affect the siding. Some trees are creeping in on the heatpump. And some trees just need a good ass kicking.

Has anyone else noticed that just a few months ago, the news cycle was swamped with information about the Bird Flu and how soon we were all going to die? And recently, no new news. Makes me nervous.

Poker at 8PM and Radio Cult is performing at Peachtree Tavern. I can't wait to see these old friends and fantastic musicians.

Eval numero tres

The third and hopefully final Lasik appointment was a huge success.

From the moment I walked into Lasik Plus, I felt comfortable. Gone was the standard cramped waiting room and in its place was a large open space with lots of windows. The staff was engaging, professional and their questions and answers were more thorough than any other office I had visited.

There were 5 other patients in the waiting room when I arrived and one woman asked if I was thinking about getting corrective surgery done. I said yes and she replied that it was the best thing she had ever done. The other four people started nodding and sharing their positive opinions about the surgery and this particular office. They were all there for either their follow up appointment or their yearly checkup.

With each of the places I visited, I didn't meet the doctor until all of the tests had been executed by the technicians. When Dr. Wright called me back to go over my tests, there was something very familiar about him. It didn't hit until halfway through when I interrupted him and asked what his first name was. Scott...Scott Wright........From Wheeler High School? Did you play in the band? Ah-Ha!!! My eye doctor was a Senior my Freshman in high school and he was also my section leader. Small world. After a few minutes of catching up, it was back to business. Dr. Wright was more forthcoming with information than anyone else I had met.

As I had been previously told before, I am a great candidate for Lasik in the right eye. But more than likely my left eye is not. The alternative for my left eye is PRK. With Lasik, I would see the results instantly and it is very quick and easy. With PRK, the healing time is about a week with my vision would take anywhere from one to three months to come back. It also has the potential of being very painful for the first week.

With Lasik, a corneal flap is created and then the cornea is reshaped using a laser. Because my cornea in my left eye is so thin, a flap can not be created without complications. The difference between Lasik and PRK is that instead of creating a corneal flap, they make the surface of my left eye thin enough so that the laser can pass through it. To do this, they would scrap away about 50 microns worth of surface (the normal thickness is about 150-160 microns). After the area is thin enough, they apply the laser, reshape the cornea and finally install a healing contact lens. I would go back four days later for them to remove the healing lens and then go through the process of being blind in one eye for 4-12 weeks.

Whew...

Now that you know more about these two surgeries than you even wanted to. I'll go ahead and beat you to the punch. Yes, I'm planning on going through with this. I've been dependent on something else to see since I was 7 years old and I'm sick of it. If you have worn glasses or contacts for any length of time you know what I'm talking about. I can't imagine what it would be like to wake up in the morning and see and I get incredibly excited just thinking about it.

Kit Chatham sent out an email today regarding a tv apperance for tomorrow morning.

According to the email; weather permitting some of the cast memebers from Cirque de Soleil's Cortero show will be performing this morning on the Today show on NBC.

Seeing better

Lasik appointment number two was a great improvement over Lasik appointment number one.

At 11 AM I started a full and free evaluation with the practice of Dr. Farooq Ashraf. His technician was friendly, courteous, competent, and she moved quickly. I was into see the doc by 11:40 and had all of my questions answer by 12:30 PM. You have to like a doctor that starts out by saying; "Wow, your eyes are really bad." I immeadiatly liked him after that. Dr. Ashraf took the time to explain every aspect of the surgery to me; the rewards and the risks. He went a step further by explaining other options I have available to me including ones that he doesn't offfer. He was very honest and very direct.

I left his office feeling very confident about his ability, equipment, and staff. The only downside with Dr Ashraf is that he is not in our eye care network. Meaning the cost is much higher than we were looking to spend.

The final exploratory evaluation appointment is tomorrow.

Evaluate this

Bright and early this morning I went through with Lasik appointment number one. It was at Piedmont Better Vision off of Howell Mill Road. I was there specifically to see Dr. Kozarsky who came highly recommended. He has performed Lasik on a few celebrities including Greg Maddux and he also comes with a very high success rate.

I arrived a few minutes late due to your standard Atlanta morning traffic. But I walked in, filled out the requisite forms, and sat for approximately two minutes when I was summoned back to the desk. I was shocked when they surprised me with a ninety-five dollar charge for the "free" evaluation that I has scheduled. She then stated that she "would be happy to take the payment now".

I looked at her and plainly said; "No."

I told her that when I called and made the appointment, I requested a "free" evaluation and at no time was I told that there was a ninety-five dollar charge. I'm all for paying for a service rendered but don't mislead me. I said "free", you didn't correct me, and now you're going to look at me funny for the next two hours because I'm standing my ground over $95 dollars. This isn't about the money, it's the principle of the thing. I fully expected them to send me on my way and I would have been ok with that. No service given, no service paid for. Just an hour and a half of my life that I'll never see again.

They told me that instead of a full evaluation, I would be given a technical exam. The tech exam would give me a good idea of whether or not I was eligible. It was further explained that if I decided to go with Dr. Kozarsky I would have to come back at a later date to have the full ninety-five dollar evaluation. Fine, whatever, let's get it on.

The technician took me from room to room and instructed me to look through five or six different machines while they worked their medical magic. The routine with every machine was the same. I'd look into an expensive looking machine, bright lights would flicker, and a computer would spit out a report. The technician would look at the report and deem me eligible for the next machine. And repeat. The technician was very nice and took the time to explain to me what each machine was measuring or testing.

After the final machine, she left me in a room to go get Dr. Kozarsky. Before he came into my room, I heard a discussion through the thin door. I heard Dr. Kozarsky flipping through my report going over the details with the technician. He asked why a some of the standard tests for the full evaluation were not performed. The technician replied with; "He didn't want to pay." The Doc the sighed loudly and mumbled something unintelligible.

Dr. Kozarsky entered the room, introduced himself, and sat down. He proceeded to look over my charts while he spoke to me about what he was reading when he made a smug remark. He commented that he could make a better assessment if he all the data from a full evaluation instead of just the information from a technical exam. He was about to continue when I interrupted him.

I had been treated like a third class citizen since not falling for their bait and switch tactics and his cocky ass comment was enough. I started by telling him that his office walls were very thin. I continued with the fact that I had scheduled three lasik appointments this week so I could get to know the doctor and their staff. After all, if they are going to potentially be cutting my eyeballs open I want to know that the doctor and his staff are not only competent but caring and compassionate as well. I then proceeded to call him on his staff and how I was mislead about the "free" evaluation.

After these statements, which I delivered firmly but respectfully, his demeanor didn't change. He still acted smug and swarmy and from the look on his face, he couldn't have cared less. Needless to say he doesn't need my business and I won't be giving it to him.

Lasik appointment number two is tomorrow morning. I'm hoping it will go better.

The rest of the day was productive. The yard got weeded, the pine islands got sprayed with commercial strength weed killer and the yard also got mowed.

So my career as a retail specialist in the arena of cell phones is hopefully over and never to be heard from again. I have this week off and I am planning on conquering a pretty ambitious to-do list. It will be a mix of fun and things that are not.

It starts tomorrow morning at 8:20 with the first of three Lasik appointments. I have made three appointments for this week to see A) If I'm eligible for the procedure B) If I trust the doctor and his staff C) if they are on the new health care plan and D) if I really want to go through with this.

I stared wearing glasses in the 2nd grade and contacts in 9th. I have always said that if I found a genie in a bottle my first wish would be for perfect vision. Yes, that makes me a selfish bastard. But to my credit, my second wish would be for world peace.

Other things on the list for the week.

Two more Lasik evaluations

Mow the yard for the first time this year

Weed some aggressive Monkey Grass in the front yard

Spray the weeds in the pine islands in the back

Repaint an area of a doorway

Radio Cult, Thursday night at Peachtree Tavern

Lots of poker, Tuesday and Thursday with Trivia on Wednesday

Play with Modern Skirts Friday night in Athens; and yes Keith, they will be playing your fav song complete with a string quartet

Take in the Twilight bike race in Athens

Funkle rehearsal


A little much? Yes, but I want to enjoy my last week of freedom before returning to the work force.

Goodbye Retail!!!

Read this

I forget who brought the Overheard in Athens blog to my attention, but I thank you for doing it. Check out this gem.

Rebuild this

After fun filled retail shift I drove to Eric's parents' house in Snellville to assist Keith in remaking a cart. The cart would be used by the Odyssey performers to transport their sets from the truck to the stage and back to the truck for this weekend's WGI finals in Dayton, Ohio. (Wish them luck.) The changes we made were easy but time consuming. We started at 8 PM and I got home at 2:30 AM.

Things were going very smoothly when I realized the we (read: "I") bought the wrong size bolts to mount the wheels to the bottom of the cart. This meant that while we could mount the wheels, they would not turn due to the excess length of the bolts. Oops. I saw this mistake early but figured that a quick swipe with a dremel tool would solve our screw up. Problem...No dremel tool. Luckily Eric discovered a chain cutter that we used to lop off about an inch of bolt. Thus the picture.



Yes, it is as much fun as it seems. This man moment was complete with grunts and strained facial expressions. We all took a turn lopping off all 24 bolts. The wheels now turn freely and can be pushed in any one of 360 directions.

Here's a pic of the finished redone cart.

Eight feet long, three feet nine inches wide with the rails measuring four feet high from the base. We used framing braces to mount the rails to the base and it turned out to be a pretty good idea as framing braces are very, very strong. While it might not be much to look at, we weren't going for any aesthetic awards. I'm just hoping it will be used twice. Once for semis and once for finals. And yes, the inspiration came from a Home Depot cart.

It's now close to four AM and I'm heading to bed. The 2nd A/C man comes early in the morning.

Cool this

Yesterday I invited a gentleman out to the house to tell me why the air conditioner was blowing medium warm air. Dorsey works for himself and has been doing A/C repair for the past 30 years. In addition to his years of knowledge, he came highly recommended from my father-in-law.

He arrived right on time and we proceeded to trample to different places in the house trying to solve the problem. We checked out the wiring of the new thermostat that I installed in February and much to my surprise, I did it correctly. Yes!!! I am not the reason that I'm sweating in my own house.

After checking out the blower which is working just fine, we turned on the heat to see if the heat pump would turn on for that purpose. I turned off the heat weeks ago but when I did, it was working just fine. Not anymore. It's at this point I left Dorsey to his own devices to figure out what was wrong and how to fix it.

A little over an hour later, Dorsey came in the house with something close to the following statement.

In 30 years of doing this I have never seen a problem like this. Your pump
works fine. It has plenty of Freon, the compressor is working
right and it runs like a champ when I turn it on manually from the
unit. I checked the power leads going in and out of the different relays
and the only thing I can find is that one of the relays has gone bad and I have
never seen a relay like that in my life.

Great... So, now I need to find someone that knows how to replace a bad relay on a Tempstar 93. The good news is that Dorsey has a rule, If he can't fix it, then he doesn't charge a dime. I like that rule a lot. But I managed to talk him into taking a 20 for his time. He earned it, he is a really nice guy that was up front and honest about the problem. Sure he sells A/C units but that never came into the conversation. He found the problem and told me what it was, he just didn't know how to fix it.

While Dorsey didn't give a recommendation of whom to call, he gave me the names of several people not to call. On Whitney's recommendation, I called Accutemp and they are coming out Wednesday to take a crack at it. But I am armed with the knowledge that I know what the problem is. Any other recommendations would be appreciated. Comment away or shoot me an email.

I'll be brief

Saturday Night Live was funny and that hadn't happened in a while. If you didn't catch it, the highlights were the "Coin Slot" sketch and Tina Fey's line at the end of Weekend Update. Yeah, we had a very exciting Saturday night. I sense your jealousy.

Like a lot of brass players, I giged Sunday and it was a very good experience and profitable to boot. Thanks Billy!!! I owe you..........well, a lot.

This week will be rather uneventful. Four more shifts at the retail gig, some grocery shopping, a little more fun doing something for Odyssey. But first thing tomorrow, I have to figure out why our home air conditioner has decided to blow hot air instead of cold. Fun times? Not tonight.

I don't think I know a woman that would use this, but I've been wrong before. If you're confused as to the phsyics of this device, check out the animated instructions.

Thanks for all the congratulatory comments, emails, and text messages regarding the new and improved job situation.


Yesterday I traveled to Athens to sit in the UGA Performing Arts Center and watch Gunner wave a small stick at a group of musicians in order to fulfill a requirement for his Masters. And it was stunning. I've seen Gunner conduct before, but this was different. This was his program and I thought it reflected his personality very well. The group played very well under his direction and I heard some new pieces. One in particular was Renosances 1 by Ron Nelson. Unfortunately there is no known recording of this piece. And when I say I enjoyed it, I got honest to god goosebumps during it. The power of music is amazing. Congrats Gunner!!!

Afterwards, Brett, Trina, Gunner, Gunner's better half and I all went to 283 to enjoy a celebratory cocktail. I had a delicious beer but for the life of me I can't remember what it was. Damn alcohol. We laughed and laughed some more. Gunner's better half, also known as chief, brought up the always hysterical topic of my Mom's episiotomy. Seriously, it was really fucking funny.

While sitting on the front stoop of 283, former UGA drummer Blake passed by and he told us about an article in the Red and Black, the UGA, student run newspaper. The article is about Jace Bartet and his travels regarding the Collegiate Air Guitar championship. Before I make fun of him, I have a theory I want to share.

I think the Red and Black's *ahem* reporters get paid based on how asinine of a comment they can get their subject to say. Example, do you remember the 1997 story on the Redcoat Band? How about Javier's quote from that article? He was quoted as saying; "(the band director) called me the glue that keeps the band together." He claims he was misquoted, but no one believed that lame excuse.

So with that theory in mind, I think the reporter that interviewed the air guitarist, Jace Bartet, got a huge bonus when Jace ended the interview with this:

"I'm going to rock so hard it's going to punch a hole through the space-time continuum, and so if I don't wear those (fingerless gloves) Then I might create a big sucking worm hole that might destroy the universe. I don't want to destroy the Universe. I have to rock responsibly."

After the laughs had subsided, we went our separate ways. I crashed at JNC's house and hit the road at 11 this morning to make a doctor's appointment. The doctor was fine, just a check up. But as I was leaving my exam room, a fairly attractive college-aged co-ed that I saw earlier in the waiting room was walking into the exam room next to mine. The nurse followed behind her and this is what I heard;

Nurse: "So are you back for your genital warts?"

Patient: "Yes"

Nurse: "Well, are they getting smaller?"

Patient: "No, larger."

Nurse: "Oh....well that's no good."

Then the door closed. I ran to the front counter, paid my tab and giggled all the way to the car.

Hire this

The countdown timer installed to the right coincides with the end of my last shift at the retail gig. 30 minutes ago I accepted a full time job back in the field that I love at a prestigious venue in downtown Atlanta. I am thrilled and excited beyond belief for so many reasons.

Thanks to everyone that has helped and assisted with the job search and more importantly put up with my bitter attitude at times. Your ears and hearts got me through some rough times.

I got a job
I got a job
I got a job
I got a job
I got a job
I got a job
I got a job
I got a job
I got a job
I got a job

Ahhhhhhhhhhh.........................

Swallow this

UGA President Michael Adams has been on a Sherman-esqe march to stamp out all things alcohol in and around Athens. This stems from the death of Lewis Fish, a UGA freshman, late last year. Fish died from an overdose of alcohol, cocaine, and meth. But don't worry about the illegal drugs that were in his system Dr. Adams, let's focus on the legal ones. Cocaine is a rampant problem in Athens and can be procured about as easily as a blowjob from a Georgette. (I don't know anything about that, it was just fun to write.) But let's try and stay focused on booze.

Recently, Adams announced that there would be "family friendly" (read: Alcohol free) zones created on campus for football game days. We shouldn't be ok with segregating people based on their preference of beverage. And just because there exists a few students that can't control their drinking habits doesn't mean you should punish your tailgaters that bring millions of dollars of revenue to the school and community. But it is what it is and it won't change until we get a down to earth president installed at UGA.

But this is not a rant about Adams, it's actually about Coach Mark Richt. According to this article; during a meeting between University leaders and concerned students about the so-called alcohol problem; Richt suggested the idea of an "alcohol-free, night club on campus". Before I shred this idea, let me say that I love what CMR has done on the field. That is where he excels and I love cheering him and his players on in the fall. But with all possible respect for his football genius, this dry night club idea is fucking retarded.

CMR must think that the problem lies with the student's environment and not the student's ability to make decisions. He must think that if a student enters a downtown club to go dancing or listen to a band then they will be immediately forced to drink two Miller lights, four Jack and Cokes, three Irish car bombs, smoke one joint and do one hit of ecstasy. Because the students can't control themselves in a downtown environment then his solution is to spend money on a campus run dry night club where those kind of shenanigans can not take place.

Look, if someone, anyone, wants to drink alcohol they will drink alcohol. If someone, anyone wants to abstain, then they will not imbibe. Downtown Athens is not to blame for any type of crisis that is happening on campus. There are plenty of things to do in Athens that don't include alcohol. If students want to go dancing or see a band downtown and not drink, that is their decision. They posses the free will to "just say no". If CMR wants a dry night club then he needs to send students to dances thrown by the Baptist Student Union. But he should also know that the one BSU event I attended in college my freshman year was over by 11 so they could hit the bars.

Additionally, alcohol is not to be blamed. The students make their choices and do not need to be babied. By the time you are 18 you know that there is a reaction for each and every action. You don't study, you will fail. You don't get a good night's sleep, you will be tired. You have unprotected sex, your penis or vagina will ooze a frothy green substance.

College is a time of experimentation. If the student breaks the law, then they pay the consequences. And if one or two students die a year because of something as stupid as drugs then I chalk it up to natural selection. Yes it's harsh but some people are just dumb and it's was only a matter of time anyway.

If UGA wants to do something meaningful and proactive, then they need to have a mandatory class on alcohol and drug education for all incoming students and leave it at that. Remind them of the consequences and let 'em loose. They are technically adults and should be treated as such, don't throw money away on a half baked solution like an on campus dry night club when that won't solve the problem.

Today's job interview went really well. I won't hear anything about it until next Friday. I'd love to write more, but this is the internet and I'll leave it at that. Thanks for the well wishes, but while I feel positive about it, I'm not and I encourage you as well, not to hold your breath until next Friday. You'll die.

Damn, the one day I'm NOT watching CSPAN.
Cynthia McKinney apologized on the House Floor.

Beer and Cynthia

But speaking of beer...

I went by Greene's yesterday to return the keg. Funny thing happens when you return the keg; they give you your deposit money back in cash form. Well, I just couldn't leave without spending some of that money. I picked up a bottle of Jack for my brother's birthday present. Jack Daniels; it's a family thing. (Brandon, if you're reading this, ignore the last sentence. Your wife had no clue what to get you but she said you guys were out of Jack, so take it and smile.)

I was going to get a bottle of Yeti Imperial Stout and a bottle of Old Ruffian Barley Wine but then I saw the "on sale rack" So I picked up the Maredsous 8, which is a Belgian double and the Maredsous 10, which is their triple. I know nothing about this brand, but they normally sell for $8 a bottle and they were on sale for $4. I bit hard. Tony and Andy, commence with the beer knowledge.


But in really REALLY good journalism news. Soledad O'Brien is my new hero. If you missed it this morning, Soledad interviewed or at least attempted to interview Representative Cynthia McKinney. Soledad whipped Cynthia up and down all over the air waves trying to get her to answer one question. "What happened?" Cynthia couldn't answer that simple question. She kept trying to make her scuffle with the Capitol Police a race issue.

Then Soledad, not getting anywhere with Cynthia, turned to another satellite feed and proceeded to interview Terrance Gainer, the Chief of Capitol Police. Soledad's first question to him was also along the lines of What Happened?. His response was very clear, Cynthia is at fault and the officer did nothing wrong. He did not recognize her so her attempted to stop her, when she resisted she struck the officer. CNN posted the entire interview video here on it's website but it's sporadic at best. That could be because I'm at work and it will work fine once I access it from home.

Interview this

I have a job interview on Thursday and it's the first one in a long time. There just haven't been many jobs for my resume to apply for. But recently there has been a flood of ads out there just begging to be filled. And as an added bonus, I've actually been contacted for a few of them. When it rains, it pours kittens.

In addition to the scheduled interview for Thursday, I passed another phone interview last week and I'm waiting to hear from the hiring manager to schedule an interview for that potential employer.

I'm nervous about the interview but not because I haven't gone through one in a few months. I'm ready for the interview. I'm filled with the ADD butterflies from hell simply for the idea of being employed in a field that I love again. It really gets my blood pumping. Ln is as excited as I am, but I keep telling myself not to get too excited. Thus is the life of the laid-off, we get really excited when it comes to potential employment that even comes close to what we enjoy doing. And as excited as I am; my Dad has been going through this for much longer than I have and truth be told, I would rather see him find meaningful work than me.

Needless to say, if you pray, say one for a peaceful spirit over the next week or so, if you don't drop off a bottle of good beer.

I've been a fan of Penn and Teller as long as I can remember. In 2001 they were booked at The Smassic Smenter and I flew into my boss' office begging to be assigned to the event. I got a shirt, two 8x10 signed glossies and a deck of cards out of it. They are they only act I have ever asked something of and I only asked for a signed 8x10 for the facility. They threw in an extra after Penn asked my name. After the show the road manager hooked me up with the deck and shirt and I never asked for that. I felt like a smuck the whole time, grinning ear to ear, but part of me didn't care. I didn't act like a fan backstage, that's something you never do. I kept the professional image, but inside I was a kid in a candy store. Still to this date, P&T is the only act I ever felt star struck around.

So big fan? Yes. So much that I check out their website with some regularity and more often than not, if there is a televised appearance I'll set the DVR to tape it. I could care less about the magic aspect of their show. In fact one could argue that there is no magic in their show, they show you how most illusions are done. (Side note: One of their idols is Harry Houdini, which by they way, Harry and I share the same birthday, I always liked that.) What I really enjoy about P&T's show is how they incorporate their ideas and ideals into and around their show and they tell you a story while performing or explaining an illusion.

Tonight I got around to watching a recording of last Sunday night's Dateline. The topics ranged from a Matt Lauer interview with the Sago mine survivor, to a story about The Jesus Papers which I enjoyed, but I think the guy is totally off his rocker, to a small closing bit about two warring jugglers. Yes, we have people blowing each other up in the Middle East every day, gang violence is alive and well and preacher's wives are killing their husbands at an alarming rate. But let's focus on the important stories about warring jugglers. It hasn't resorted to violence yet, but let's not forgot that these pro jugglers use meat cleavers as instruments form time to time.

So there's this juggling video flying through the net. It stars Chris Bliss. I've spent time around jugglers that get paid for their skill and I thought it was impressive. Turns out there's this other juggler named, Jason Garfield. He thought Bliss' routine was not impressive. To quote Garfield off of his website; "Nobody should come away from his video thinking that they have seen a great juggler." He's so not impressed that he made his own video as a parody. The video is more impressive than the original mainly because Garfield uses five balls instead of Bliss' three.

How does this relate to Penn and Teller? If you read the section of Garfield's site about the video, he states that he did it because, "Penn asked me to". Ok that's funny. Penn knows this cocky ass juggler (read the last question in the FAQ section of Garfield's site for proof of that claim) and goads him into picking an internet fight about juggling. Dumbass. So in the juggling world this has escalated into pro jugglers taking sides and Penn laughing about the whole thing. It must be nice to sit on your throne and play with people like they are your personal play things.

Note to self; Don't become acquaintances with Penn, he will own your ass.

For those interested, here's a complete copy of the Dateline story.

The rumor flying around Atlanta is that today was the last day for 99x personality Jimmy Baron. I'm not crushed by this, in fact I could care less except that it's someone getting laid off and I know how that feels.

Jimmy's wife is Lisa Baron. Ring a bell? She is a columnist for Sunday Paper, an online magazine that deals with life in and around Atlanta. I've read a few of her articles over the past months and found some of then amusing, but not much more than that. But I did some googling and according to thinkprogress.org, she has written some saucy articles for Sunday Paper. Topics included the size of her Vagina and discussing it with her father-in-law, bisexual plumbers, and "...tantric, rabid, back-breaking, aerobic, primal, lengthy, suspended-from-the-ceiling, extracurricular, shout-it-from-the-hill-tops sex..."

You ready for the kicker? She's also the spokesperson for Ralph Reed. Remember Ralph Reed? Yes, he's the former President of the Christian Coalition and current uber-right candidate for Lt. Governor.

Sure this brings up many questions about what the Religious Right represents and what one of their spokespeople writes about for money. As I started to write about the contradictory nature of this relationship, I realized I was coming dangerously close to plagiarism. So instead, read this article from The Washington Post and then read this article from Thinkprogress.com. That should wrap it up nicely.

The gigs Friday went well and moderate. In that order.

Modern Skirts were quite good. I would even argue that one or two of the songs were the best that they have ever been performed. The hauling of ass up to Athens for the midnight Funkle show came and went without incident. The Funkle gig, was moderate. They were things we did well and things we did not do well. But for our first gig since the hiatus, I shouldn't complain.

After lunch at The Grill. I spent a few hours wandering through downtown poking my head into various shops. I was on a mission with some saved up birthday money for some new shirts. I found two. One for gigs from Junkman's and one t-shirt from the Flying Squirrel Outfitters. It a small new store on N. Jackson. I popper my head in, loved the picture on the back of the shirt and quickly spent twelve bucks.

I was back home Saturday afternoon, watched basketball and was thoroughly unimpressed with both games. I'm hoping the final game is something and for those that are curious; I will not be cheering *for* the Gators but I won't be cheering against them either. An SEC champion is good for everyone in the conference.


Cynthia McKinney is very high on my sensitivity meter. If anyone around me starts to defend her recent actions, I immediately want to rip their heads off and stuff pollen covered ants down their throats. I've hated McKinney ever since she lost her seat a few years back and her so called concession speech was anything but. I have never seen her be polite or graceful and I am embarassed that she represents a portion of our state on a national level. With that said, I'm trying really hard to keep my trap shut about the Capitol police thing. We need to be patient and not jump to conclusions. We need to hear the facts first and then form our opinions. Yeah, wish me luck on that.


And for those who didn't get the Athens memo, ten digit dialing invades your land today.