Brock Granite

We started slow, but then we took off. Probably (okay, definitely) with some help from the bullpen, but it was a second place finish, nonetheless.

I think we would have got there anyway, eventually.

Siryn was KILLING me though. Her energy was non-existent! Truly horrible. And she was distracting. But she's nice, and her cheerleading experience was handy when we were struggling though, so I guess there was that. All in all, good team.

Some folks have been asking for a list of who all the names in this here thing are, but I'm reluctant.

This might help:

Siryn, Psylocke, Wolverine, Gambit, Rogue, Husk, Shadowcat, and one other who I can't remember were there on Friday.
Gambit, Angel, and Jean Grey were there on Saturday.
No one who reads this was there tonight, I don't think anyway.

And Shadowcat's coming tomorrow! That should be fun.

He went home to get it

Thank you, Wolverine, it's been brilliant.

I don't usually do this sort of thing, but I cruised over to meganslaw.ca.gov the other day and purused the list of sex offenders living in my area. There were WAY more than I thought there would be. I guess it doesn't matter, I mean, not really. I think there are probably scarier people in all our neighborhhods than those little blue squares would indicate, but it is VERY strange to see them mapped out. I don't know how to describe it really. If you're up to it, check it out, and perhaps we could discuss what any of it means.

It's been an interesting few days. I had Senagalese food for the first time. It was quite delicious, though the company may have been even better. Scratch that, it definitely was. But the food was good. And I got eaten alive by mosquitoes, though this is common for us fair-haired types. But my step-mom is concerned I might have West Nile Virus. I tried to tell her I'm nearly invincible. Upon reading that again, it looks as if I got eaten alive WHILE eating Senagalese food. Not true. Two separate occasions.

Anyone familiar with Asbury Park? I met a New Jersey native who filled me in on a few of the details, of how it got where it is now. I haven't really found a definitive place to send you to get the background, but if you aren't familiar, it basically went from being akin to Coney Island to a place famous for its narcotics. Not exactly what you the city planners were looking for. But she said when Jersey closed many of its mental hospitals, the patients went there. Things sort of went down hill from there. But it's a place with cool architecture and a "creepy" aesthetic. You know, don't go there at night or anything.

Talk to you all later.

Codename: Nicole

It was an eventful weekend, to say the least. Foremost in my memory is yet another lassic tale from the lady's washroom. In fact, the title of this post is derived from just such a yarn. I won't get into though, as it involves espionage of the highest level. And besides, "you've got pot and liquor, what do you need money for?"

There were the Rivercats, fancy apartments, movies, trivia, an introduction into the mildly disgusting world of yelp, and a whole host of other fun stops. I'm tired now though, and would like to sleep.

Oy, this living thing is exhausting!

I should also note how nice it was to see Psylocke, Magma, and Husk. All delightful. I'm told there may be a repeat performance this weekend, which should be nice.

Suck out the poison, then spit it back

There has to be a better way. And me? I think I'm going to find it. Stay tuned.

Stay tuned for "Codename: Nicole", too. Probably tomorrow.

There's a thesaurus in the library...

No matter how hard I try,
This will be until the day I day.

Brick was awesome. Again. And it will continue to be awesome.

Now, Red Sky while waiting. (I also know...)

Then, car ride.

Tonight, Rivercats.

Put the claws away and I'll tell you a secret, or Make money, get chicks

I'm not backing down on this one. Garden State was an assault on a great many things I hold dear. I would rather Zach Braff make an entire movie about how I was bad in bed than do what he did. I feel like he lied. To a lot of people. But then you hear him interviewed and he sounds like a decent guy. VERY passionate about music. Just, you know, stop feeling so important.

For those who are in the know, I'm preety sure Sabretooth is officially back. And not "Sabretooth as a fake name for a friend Sabretooth." Sabretooth. THE Sabretooth. Phaedrus. THAT Sabreooth. He's been singing lately, and It feels good. A little strange. But good. Warm, you know? Wow. Rereading that, I hope no one thinks I'm crazy. :)

Does anyone else wonder if we can really appreciate Dave Chapelle right now? I just feel like he's lightyears beyond anyone else. There are a lot of smart people in the world, and a lot of them have made their work accessible. I don't know. I'm just consistently blown away by him. I don't even think he's that funny anymore. Not in the sense that LMS was funny. My jaw just drops sometimes. I caught a minute of him on Inside the Actors Studio and while the whole thing was a little heavy-handed, I get it. I wish I could follow in his footsteps a little bit. You know, the 50 million dollar ones.

Adam Carolla is also a genius. Kind of an obnoxious one, but still. I just wish he took himself a little bit more seriously. I would imagine that you can only scream about the things that don't make sense for so long before you give up, get yours, and go home. I guess that's what it's about. However, this caught my ear: He was ranting about the confidence everyone has these days. Like the people who fail miserably and then resolve not to ever give up and prove everyone wrong. I really don't get that. Not everyone was meant to shine. Or at least resolve to get better. That's always been my thought. Just keep getting better, at whatever it is you do. That's my whole deal. Oh yeah, and chicken fries. Self-improvement and chicken fries. And the lotto. OK, I have a lot of deals.

Breathless.

The crickets have spoken...

Someone tell the world to kill itself
Blow itself to smithereens for all I care

http://youtube.com/watch?v=u5BkZ_f4DXw
I really, really wanted to mock this video. Ultimately, it was worth watching once. Very cool visual effects PLUS (guitarists take notice) one of the coolest, most understated rock moves I've ever seen.

I finally saw Little Miss Sunshine (yes, after putting it on my top 5) and can safely say it belongs firmly atop the list. I'm stunned by how good Brick and LMS were. In the same year? After a constant parade of shit for so long? I tip my hat to both crews, and hope we never face each other in a dance off. You can ask Polaris this; when a movie gets me to speak, some shit is going down. In a good way.

Now we cross our fingers on Idlewild. The bar has been set extremely high and I''m not even sure they were trying to make a movie that would compete in that way. But much like I did with Garden State, I am attaching a lot to it. And much like Garden State, I will probably be severely disapointed. "Good luck exploring the infinite abyss....."......you have got to be fucking kidding me.

Dear Ellie, they say it only hurts until you start the carnage

Prom. I never went back when my peers did. I was busy. Doing what you ask? How about all the other shit I had to do?

But I went Friday. And it was grand. It took me a minute to get the hang of it, but I think I got it. As Sunspot said, "Look, Spanish Wolverine is here...and so is Spanish Havok!" We didn't know there was a Spanish Havok, but he made a brief appearance. Other memorable lines included some unknown cat saying to Angel while pointing at the dance floor, "You need to get in the middle of your own bullshit." I love it.

Angel dubbed the guy who kept fucking with the music "MC touch-my-shit".

Finally, one female guest overheard another female guest in the bathroom explaining how she had lost her virginity that night, presumably at or before the prom. Either way, awesome? Kids these days. There WERE a lot of high school kids and they WERE doing illegal things. I won't say what, but laws were generously bent. But high school kids know how to do a dance, so their presence helped. I think it made us old folks feel a little less weird.

I got to see Division Day last night, too. Briefly on them, they are great, this is without question. However, I think I enjoy seeing the individual components of the band and the a-list of fans who roll out as much as I enjoy the music.

Enough about my weekend! Instead, enjoy this list of awesome videos...

1. Stabbing Westward - "Shame"
http://youtube.com/watch?v=qeZwwIAm7Co

2. Division Day - "Hurricane"
http://divisionday.com/

3. Justin Timberlake - "Cry Me A River"
http://youtube.com/watch?v=AqRH9l1symk

4. Interpol - "Slow Hands"
http://youtube.com/watch?v=cwbn2SxKnl8

I'm not as think as you desperate I am

Havok's top 5 movies of 2006:

1. Brick
2. Idlewild
3. Little Miss Sunshine
4. Thank you for smoking
5. Wordplay

I haven't seen two of these. And actually, I don't care. I'm pretty god damn sure they'll be good.

The promise of a gift v. the danger of a promise

Breathless.

It's like your body telling you, "Not so fast, fucker. I'm still in charge here."

At first we let it shape us, and then we shaped it.

We never saw it coming.

God damn it, we were just kids.

This certain cemetary, this night, they don't need me here and I know you're there.

It's funny...after doing all this living and seeing all this dying, I don't feel like doing much of either.

This is the ballroom where I first met your father.

...lines from "Wolves at the Gates", by F. Sumner.

You were right, Marie, and from here on in...I'm taking notes

"Hey," he said, shuffling his feet.

Sing me something clear and true
Some otherworldly tune
I'll make it up for you
I know you're here
And I'm not afraid of ghosts