call me a douche...but....

What if we told the random strangers exactly what we thought.

---"ma'am you look ridiculous with that much make-up on"

---"sir, that facial hair makes you look European. but not in a good way. shave it off."

it's not that i want to be mean to random strangers. but i think it would be beneficial to throw constructive criticism their way.

---"you'll never get a boyfriend with your 'he needs to love me for me' attitude and only wear sweatpants when you leave the house. it's just not going to happen for you"

---"you eat like a horse, sir. please. take a little time for chewing if you can."

Try to get arrested in Texas...

So I was driving down to Austin over night last night. The week prior I was trying to get ahold of a radio guy named Bobby Bones so I could sit in on his show. I gave up hope that he would allow me to come up there, but then I got a call at 6:10am. I got on the air and he told me if I could get to Austin by 9:30 I could come up. I'm a long ways away, so I start HAULING to get there on time. Sure enough, an hour later PULLED OVER.

I called back to the Bobby Bones show and told them what happened and that I wouldn't be able to make it in time, and that was on the air too. It sucked, but it's kind of a funny story. Sorry Aunt and Uncle for using your car to commit a misdemeanor. Oops.

If you want to hear me on the radio, search "Bobby Bones" on iTunes. Click the podcasts. Then on today's date (1/22/10). My segments are titled "Kermit Bomb 3." It's at the end of the segment. And the longer one is at the beginning of "Steak Dinner 9." Sucks for me. But a story I'll probably tell for a while...

Maybe I need to watch Dirty Dancing...

So I went to Auntie Mae's "Trivia Smack Down" last night. Ouch. I think I need to buy a Trivial Pursuit game. Or I need to hang out with Josh Tedder more. Either way, I need to get smarter.

I feel like we got unlucky with our easy questions. For example, we were asked what the Dirty Dancing song by Eric Carmen was? We're 5 dudes who are hoping for movie and sports questions. Then when we finally get a sports question it's "in Nascar, what is the color of the flag signaling one lap left." Frick. I don't watch Nascar. And those were the easy ones.

Anyway, if you're smart. And know random crap. Please come join us Wednesdays at 7:45!! It's pretty stinkin fun.

New Roommate...

Everyone needs to welcome Stephen Freese. He can do things like this:



I know right...
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Since he's new to Manhattan, I was thinking of all the must do's/see's that our wonderful little city offers. I've been here over 6 years, and this is the short list I've come up with. Feel free to add your own in the comments. In no particular order:

- Call Hall ice cream
- watch a storm roll in from "Top of the World"
- get kissed in the "A Hole"
- Lawn chair for 4 hours at Pillsbury Crossing
- Get a Fishbowl/Fishtank at Fats
- Vista Burger greasiness
- Any shot from the "I Double Dare You" menu at Shot Stop
- Anything from TADS
- Grill out at Tuttle Creek
- Walk into Rusty's just to see how disgusting it is
- Irish Car Bomb from O'Malley's
- Frisbee/Football/Soccer at Old Stadium
- Pita Pit, no earlier than 2:10am
- Pinapple Beer from So Long Saloon
- Fake Patties Day (only time i've ever seen a cop conducting a DUI test before 10:00am)
- 50 cent tacos at Tubby's
- Long walk at Konza Prairie
- Enjoy an evening at the Little Grill
- Hit up the Farmer's Market
- Compare Radina's to Bluestem 100 times and still not know which is better
- A bike ride with the DBC!

Movies...

Some movies don't show me anything (Die Hard, the Incredibles, Dumb and Dumber) but they are just entertaining as hell.

Some movies speak a different message based on where I am in my own life. Braveheart and Band of Brothers, for example. When I first watched them, they made me want to fight a war and earn glory and honor. Now, years later, when I rewatch them, they make me want to believe in something outside of myself. To stand firm in a conviction of unwaivering truth.

I just rewatched (500) Days of Summer. The first time I watched it, I was floored. The movie reflected something about my life that I didn't like. An ache, an agony, and a desperation. It wasn't the movie itself, it was the emotions the movie brought out of me. The second time I watched it, I was floored again. But with a completely different set of emotions. I was made happy by it.

I was talking to a friend about the way that movies can make us feel. How Sleepless in Seattle makes us want to reach out and touch someone and know true love. How Motorcycle Diaries makes us want to live out on the road to find adventure and excitement. How Life as a House makes us want to reconnect with the ones we love.

But now I'm questioning...
Are all these emotions bullshit? Are they movie magic trying to make us feel one way or another without being authentic? Or, do these movies bring up underlying things about ourselves that are already true? Are they a new kind of mirror, allowing us to reflect?

I'm settling somewhere closter to the latter. I think the emotions already exist. It's the movie that stirs the pot.

Either way, (500) Days of Summer, great movie. You can watch it here. You can actually watch almost ANY movie there.