Thursday, March 08, 2007

This is what democracy looks like, this is what democracy sounds like

In Hoosiers, the best basketball player in the town is Jimmy Chitwood. He stopped playing on the high school team right when a new coach (Norman Dale) was coming into town. This coach, played by Gene Hackman, bless his heart, is different from the former coach, much to the chagrin of the townfolk, bless their hearts. They hold a meeting to vote on whether or not to oust Coach Dale. Despite his best efforts, the upfront Coach Dale, bless his heart, was unable to get Jimmy Chitwood to suit up for the team. During this town meeting, after the votes had been placed but before the results had been announced, Jimmy Chitwood, bless his heart, walked into the meeting and said, "I have something to say." Jimmy Chitwood was given silence and he said, "I think it's time I start playing ball again." He then said that he would only do so if Coach Dale was kept as the head coach. He was, Jimmy played, and Hickory High beat the big boys.

Likewise, I have decided to put aside my differences with the world and start dropping blogs again. Should I say it? If only for dramatic effect? Would it give you goosebumps? Should I? Okay. I think it's time for me to start writing blogs again.

Let me get sidetracked for a few. Hoosiers is a good movie about high school sports. Want to know of a good television show about high school sports? Friday Night Lights. Dislike football? Well, lucky for you, it's about more than high school football. The movie it was based on (which was based on a book) is good, but the show is even better. I might spend more time on this, but HB Cliff did such a great job over at Replikate that I won't waste my time blatantly copycatting her. Subtle copycatting? I probably will still.

Just because I ripped Jimmy Chitwood's line doesn't mean this blog will have the same results as Hickory High's basketball team. In fact, you can count on quite the opposite. This blog has never been about high-achieving anyway. It's not how it do. Also, the reason I haven't written isn't deep or anything interesting. It is two-fold: 1) My brain hasn't been in the blogging place and even if it was, 2) I haven't been around the I (aka the Internet) enough to drop anything.

Anyhoo......

MY NEW BEST FRIEND?
Jeff Rosso has been coming around again. He stopped into work a few weeks ago and we chatted it up again. He's really excited about my move to the big city and when I told him I was studying journalism, he said, "You're my hero. That's what I wanted to do." I responded, "You're my hero." It wasn't as creepy as it sounds. Anyway, on Tuesday as I was leaving work to go to escuela I saw him at the coffee place across the street and last night as I was leaving I saw him walking down 2100 south. I pulled up to him and offered a ride, but he politely declined. That setback aside, I think our friendship grows stronger every week.

MUSIC/FOOD
I had the pleasure of finally seeing Say Hi To Your Mom last weekend. It's about d__n time, if you ask me. I've been perving a dish on them for nigh unto two years now and they take the time to come here at least three times a year. I like them a lot. Seriously. A few months ago, I made a girl a mix of my current three favorite bands. Who made the list? Yo La Tengo, Pavement, and, yep, Say Hi To Your Mom (if you buy one album, make it Numbers and Mumbles).

The show was great. For once in my life, I wanted the band to play more songs. Usually, my dislike of standing around beats my like of the band. They did a really good job of playing most of the songs I really wanted to hear.

That night wasn't over after the show, though. Me and Maren, bless her heart, made a wise move by heading straightway to Big Daddy's Pizza. She only ate one slice, but bought me a drink. Somehow, that worked out to be a fair deal. It's no Este, but the pizza there incredible. One can purchase a 14-incher for the small price for $6.99. "Not quite as good a deal as a Hot and Ready," you might be thinking and/or saying. "True," I'd say if I were right next to you. "But, as good as the ol' Hot and Readys are (providing they are, in fact, both hot and ready), this pizza is in a much higher class." It would be unfair to Domino's, Little Caesar's, Papa John's and Pizza Hut to compare them to it. Trust me. After pizza, we went to a hip-hop show at a joint called Johnny's on 2nd with Kung-Fu Chris, bless his heart, where we danced the pizza off. Well, Maren did. I ate too much to be burned off in one dance-a-thon.

The bands I have been listening to the most over the last few days are:
Dandy Warhhols - remember this? My mind might have changed
Le Tigre - inspired this blog's title
Marvin Gaye - This one popped up only last night because I saw a clip of an American Idol contestant who dedicated "Let's Get It On" to his dad on Best Week Ever. I hate American Idol and have boycotted it for four years now, but if stuff like this and Katharine McPhee keep happening I might have to reconsider my cause. Anyway, I listened to Marvin Gaye as I showered today. I recommend it.

HUMOR
Do you find the following funny?
Good Afternoon. I trust you had a good President's Day weekend. Hope you took some time to think about Mr. Lincoln and Washington. You know they were both 6'4"?!? Reminds me of some musings I have...

Old Honest Abe was a good man. Freed the slaves, kept the Union together, and could give a speech worthy of any Fourth of July. I read somewhere where the man said, " Towering genius disdains a beaten path. It seeks regions hitherto unexplored." Well, that's fine with me. I'm not going to argue with The Great Emancipator. Towering geniuses can wander where they will, but those neighbor kids better stay off my lawn!

I cannot tell a lie, I've chopped down a few trees in my time. No, no, I'm no George Washington. The Father of our Country didn't chop down that cherry tree because his boss Mr. Benson told him to. He did it because it was there. And that's what makes him great. Why, if a man with a bit of spare time on his hands looks at a cherry tree and says "I'm going to chop that down," then it only stands to reason that he will look at tyranny and say "Yessir, I'm going to chop that down too." And Mr. Washington was man enough to do both.

When I was real young I once heard FDR say over the radio that "We have nothing to fear but fear itself." He was a good man. Gave hope to a country that was pretty low and did as fine a job running the United States as any many without healthy legs could do. But I bet if FDR lived today he would say, "We have nothing to fear but fear itself and identity theft."

I just don't think it's right to take another man's name...

That reminds me, I have to be getting inside now...


then send an email to dailymusingsemail@gmail.com and say something like, "I want in." Be as anonymous as you want, I think. You'll get one of these a day, excluding weekends. Nobody muses on the weekends. Weekends are the things musers muse about.

TELEVISION
This blog has served its purpose and has gone on way too long, so I will limit this section to telling you to start watching America's Next Top Model.




18 comments:

Judy Neil said...

yay. you're back, bless your heart. ANTM is a good show and the musings are delightful.

El Jefe said...

Say Hit To Your Mom...Fun, but not as fun without the Jefe factor. I'm like salt, I just make everything better.

Joy said...

FNL rocks. That and 30 rock are the two best shows on tv.

becky said...

i might give FNL a chance, but here's the thing...i hated that movie. or strongly disliked. no, hated. so i'm a bit wary of watching the show.

also, Say Hi To Your Mom was in town? WTF?

also, i'm so glad you're back. i have been having withdrawals.

El Jefe said...

If you want to date Maren, you should just ask her out. She will probably say no, but you should still ask her.

carmen said...

What Jefe doesn't realize is that I grab Lee's butt on a regular basis (when I am asked to) and I bought him a coke. This makes him my bitch, no date required.

Lee said...

You've touched my can? Man, I'm such a tramp for not remembering that. Tell everyone the rumors about me are true.

carmen said...

I guess the squeeze wasn't as memorable as the handful of heaven I had.
Incidentally, I feel it is my duty to point out that in the South "bless her/his heart" has a particular meaning. Let me use it in a sentence that can illustrate my point. "Bless his heart, I suppose it is more efficient to swallow his food whole, chewing can be so bothersome", or "Bless her heart, no one ever taught her not to wear horizontal stripes across hips like that." It is how Southerners got the reputation for being so polite; they just add a "blessed heart" to every insult.

nathaniel said...

if "handful of heaven" isn't just a perfect set-up for an "in my pants" joke good heavens i don't know what is.

hey lee, i have a handfull of heaven for you..........

El Jefe said...

Nathaniel- You're about 2.5 hanfulls of heaven. I'm not saying you're fat, I'm just saying there's a lot of you in all the right places. If you know what I mean. Do you?

Maren- Was it at Hoon's birthday party? I remember getting felt up (and down) that night. Also, my use of 'bless your heart' was appropriately misused for comic effect. Some people (i.e. Lisa Propane) weren't amused. Bless my heart.

El Jefe said...

Crud. Jefe was signed into this computer. Dumb roommates.....

(to clarify, that last comment was by sugarcube, not Jefe)

Lee said...

crap. I forgot to sign him out again.

carmen said...

Yes indeed the ass grabbing occurred at that particular party. It's possible I actually grabbed your leg, it was awkward seeing as it was my first time and all...not ever just, well you know. The point is that it was, for a split second, magical.

I must add, Lisa knows “things” about “stuff” and she's a promoter of humanitarian puppeteering (ask her). This qualifies her for awesomeness. I'm just saying she may have a point, but I applaud your efforts at humor, bless your heart.

Lee said...

Now I remember. You totally overestimated the lenght of my butt and grabbed my leg.

k8 said...

you can subtle copycat me all you want baby.

Lee said...

Oh you.

Anonymous said...

i went to the say hi to your mom show before the one you went to, and i wore my custom fangs. every once in a while, i'd just flash 'em at kids in high school. i also ate a cheap hamburger at carls jr with them in... it freaked out a homeless guy. he could've been freaked out already though, by the voices.

Lee said...

I don't mind if you want to hide your fangs too.