Baraka

I'm part of a great american institution called Monday Night Club. MNC consists of 3 members who meet on Tuesday or Wednesday night with each member providing one of three very importart items for the night. 1) movie 2) pizza 3) beer. We're on hold right now because we're looking for a third member but before we took this sabatical we watched a movie called Baraka. It was brought by my friend Julie and I was very nervous when she broke the news that it was an hour and a half long and didn't have any words. Only music and visuals. It was an amazing meditation on the connection we share as humankind and I would recommend it to anyone. I mention this because it is playing on INHD2 this month so if you have that service on your television you should check it out. Set aside some time and watch the entire movie from start to finish. I'm sure it can be rented as well but I'm not sure if it will be at your local blockbuster. Julie, know where it can be found?

So check it out and let me know what you think.

Flugtag

Anyone ever heard of this? I've seen it several times on INHD and it is the most bizarre thing I've seen in a long time. Apparently in German it means "flying day" but the lovely people at Red Bull have created or at least cashed in on a whole new phenomenon in the states. So here is what I know about Flugtag ...

... teams create a sort of "flying machine" although none of them are actually made to fly. They are usually some sort of creative aparatus that may or may not have wings. The team members usually wear costumes of some sort and then when it is their turn to show off their creation they push it as fast as they can with a team member at the helm down a long platform that is 30 ft above a body of water. They run the machine off the end where it crashes into the water below along with all team members. They are judged on certain criteria and a winner is declared at the end of the day.

Here is the website. www.redbullflugtagusa.com

I don't think it actually does the whole ordeal justice (you should see it on tv) but it's a start. I welcome any experiences with or comments on this.

I was going to post some pictures of this stuff but I'll do it later when I figure out how.

ABC and beyond

Has anyone been keeping up with the show "Lost". All season I've been hearing about how unbelievable this show is and probably for that reason I have not seen any of it. Tonight with all the American Idol hype I was searching for something else to watch. Fortunately the One Tree Hill finale was not calling my name so I decided to tune into the last hour of the Lost finale. I have no idea what happened in the previous episodes but I am hooked. The strange thing is I can't put my finger on the exact reason why. It has a lot to do with the mystery and edge of your seat intensity but there is more there. I guess I'll buy the DVD's when they come out.

Did anyone watch Boston Legal when that show was on? Shatner ... that guy kicks big time butt.

That Tom Cruise guy really creeps me out. I saw a clip of him on Oprah and apparently he's dating Joey Potter now. He made her come out onto the set so he could parade her around. Although now that I think about it, if I was dating Joey I would parade her too.

The progression of a sunburn:

Day 1) You hurt ... I mean really really hurt.

Day 2) You think, holy crap that Aloe Vera really worked. I'm cured.

Day 3) You're attacked by the itch and proceed to scratch off all remaining layers of skin.


Does anyone know who invented the necktie? What a horrible idea. I'm required to wear one to work with the exception of fridays. Do you think a bowtie would suffice? I'm also looking into clip ons. The messed up thing is the company wants its employees to look "professional" but what ends up happening is I role up the sleeves on my long sleeve dress shirt, unbutton my top button, loosen my tie and end up looking like more of a slob than if I just dressed business casual.

I'm currently listening to The Police on vinyl.

Early Summer Heat Wave

Nothing like getting a sunburn on 75% of your body and then having to put on dress clothes and go work all day long. I think I may have passed out at some point today from the pain of sunburned feet rubbing the inside of leather shoes. Take the sunburn and add the muscle soreness from the first time boarding this summer and it would be a safe assumption to say my day could have been better.

Seriously though, what was up with this freakin' heat? I tend to watch the weather about once a week and they said it would be 92 degrees on Saturday and 90 on Sunday. Somehow that changed to 98 and 99 respectively. How can you miss that bad? They are still requiring meteoroligists to obtain some sort of degree in that field before giving them the job right?

So on Saturday I helped some friends move in the morning and then went to the 3:05 baseball game between the Rangers and Astros. I've never seen so many people with backs and butts that were soaking wet. It's amazing to see the misery we go through in the name of fun. I'm reminded of everyone I've ever seen at Six Flags. No one ever smiles there and yet they must think it's fun because they drop hundreds of dollars to get the family in and they keep coming back. I was always more a fan of Wet 'N Wild myself.

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention something about the Ranger game. My friend Jason and I went to the game and it turned out our seats were under the overhang on the first deck in the shade. Obviously there was someone already sitting there since we arrived a little late. We told them they had our seats and then asked where there's were. They said on the front row right by third base. We thought briefly if we were up to braving the sun for good seats and then proceded to make the trade. I was 30 feet from Hank Blalock and could reach out and tough the tarp. We were the first group of seats right after the Astros dugout. Apparently the seats belong to the former mayor of Arlington who was in office when they built the stadium. It was well worth enduring a little heat to see the game that close. It was like watching them play on a high school field.

Okay, enough rambling for tonight.

Dr. Marvin, I wakeboard ...

... I'm a wakeboarder. That's what I do. I wakeboard.

I bought my first wakeboard tonight. I made the leap from skis to the board last summer but since I only got to go out a few times I just borrowed boards. One of the added benefits of being in the Dallas area is the resource of family and friends with boats to take out on the many area lakes.
I ended the summer last year with a wipe out that nearly left me with a concussion and definitely left me without my senses for a few seconds so hopefully I'll start things off this season a little better than they ended last year. This Sunday we hit the water for the first time. Will still be a little chilly in the water but if George Costanza can handle it then so can I.

In an unrelated incident I was in a very nice part of North Dallas today. While driving along I saw an H2 directly ahead of me, a Mercedes to the right and a Jaguar on the left as I cruised along in my mini van. Nothing like that scene to make me feel like a real man. I'm thinking of getting a soccer sticker for the back window that says my imaginery child's name and number on the team. Maybe a "My kid's an honor student at ... " sticker for the bumper.

Anyone watch that show on MTV about Travis Barker and his wife. I think that guy's really cool except for one part in the intro to the show. She sort of introduces Travis and then he introduces her. He says she's a loving wife and great mom which I'm sure is true. Then he says she was Miss America (I think). And then he refers to her as a very talented actress as they show a scene of her in some bike cop tv show she did a while back. That's like showing clips from my high school basketball days and then claiming I could play in the NBA. Give me a break. Other than that, Travis, you're cool and please continue to quench my thirst for more MTV reality television. P.S. - The Transplants are cool but don't forget the band that's writing the checks.

Speaking of MTV reality, did anyone ever watch that show Laguna Beach. I'll say this ... they didn't make 'em like that at my high school. My life is so far away from that place that I cannot even fathom these kids being real people doing real things. And was anyone else annoyed by Steven's girlfriend saying his name over and over. No one at my high school ever went for sushi most likely because we didn't even know it existed. But you have to remember that I grew up in a suburb of a suburb of a suburb.

Finally, if you're board at work or home and want some good stuff to check out go to www.hundredyearstorm.com and check these guys out. It's hard for me to sound objective when referring to friends but trust me, these guys are making good music these days. So if you like experimental rock 'n roll have yourself a listen or better yet, go see a show when they come to your town.

P.S. can someone tell me what happened on The O.C. tonight. I think it was the season finale and I missed it. I guess I need to work on getting my priorities straight.

Record of the Week

... You should not be angry if all she wants is your money. You should not be angry 'cause all you want is her body. Your love is a fast song and I'm dancing 'cause I'm loved again. My heart is in motion for the rhythm inside you. Your love is a slow song. It's resounding through my world again. My heart is in motion for the song inside of you.

This is the first installment of "Record of the Week". The coveted award this week goes to Copeland for their latest effort In Motion. For those of you unfamiliar with this band I think it is high time that change. These guys have mastered the art of seemlessly weaving passionate, artful lyrics in and out of fluid, melodic rock 'n roll. Voices and instruments melt into one single, powerful musical force that will have you singing along without even knowing. Their first full length Beneath Medicine Tree is also a record worth owning. It was what won me over and made me a believer in this band. The new record is the next step in a continual musical evolution for these guys. If you're a fan of powerful melodies, multiple part harmonies and slightly left of the middle rhythms then you should check these guys out. You can find them here. Or listen at myspace or purevolume.

Enjoy.