Dude

I am still pretty manly. I was called sir again this weekend. I think I am getting a complex.

Heroes

1. I do not like the Irish chick for some reason. Is Peter going to be confused this entire season too?
2. Mr. Bennett is quite a badass. I wonder who is evil?
3. How is Siler going to get his power again? Why does our black-tear crying friend trust him anyways?
4. Mohinder is so dumb. I do not think Nicki's treatment worked by the way.
5. Who is the painter? Peter since Isaac is dead?

Fearing Fear Itself - New York Times

Fearing Fear Itself - New York Times

Mas Minnesota

Yes, it was an enjoyable weekend.

Baptized in the waters of Lake Minnetonka

Just got back from our weekend in Minneapolis. We had a lot of fun catching up with old friends. Here are some pics from Ed's 40th bday party. We went to a cocktail party to celebrate my friend Jessy's marriage(MSU friend from the swim team)on Friday night. It was at a cool hotel that was like a gallery and very modern. Sat we celebrated Ed's 40th in a party bus around Minneapolis. It was a wild night, but no permanent damage resulted.

Spreken zie deutsch?

I am going to Germany for Christmas this year, so I need to learn a little useful German. As many of you know, Mike's German lessons consist of useless sentences and phrases that are not likely to come up in typical conversation. When I was visiting with his family, we went through my entire vocabulary which was much larger than I thought. Unfortunately, I can not use it at all (Unless I get Kaisarschmarren that I happen to enjoy, drop my keys in the onions, or if Kefin stink foichbar). Mike picked up some beginning German CDs from the library tonight. One of them says it will teach me to speak in 8 lessons. I will let you know if it works when I am on my trip. I guess I also need to learn French in 8 lessons too since we are going to Paris for sure!
Aufedersein!

WTF

I got this post card in the mail. The back says, Hello, I'm a 36 year-old male and I love to help people. I've been doing so for nearly 10 years. I travel to my client's home or business, minimal equipment is necessary to start exercising. If you're interested in becoming healthier, stronger, leaner, please contact me. Don't be shy, join my other clients. you won't regret it.
He included email and phone numbers as well as prices for sessions. The grammar and punctuation were transcribed as it appeared on my postcard. He lost major cred with me just based on the picture. 1. It appears to be dated circa 1985 based on the jams he is rockin', the babe's running outfit, and the pastel sweater draped over his shoulders. 2. Why is he shirtless with a sweater draped over his shoulders? It must not be sweater weather so I conclude it is a fashion statement of some sort. 3. Mike thought the card read a lot like a personal ad. I have to agree. 4. How did I get on this joker's mailing list? 5. If this is him in the picture, I doubt he is 36 years old.

Inked

Last night, we were lounging in front of the TV when we passed by a tattoo show. This girl was getting a HUGE roller derby tattoo on her entire thigh. I feel like an old fart, but it seems like a lot of people who are 7-10 years younger than me have tattoos. I know it started to be cool when I was in college. When I was a senior in undergrad, suddenly all of these girls on my team started getting dolphins tattooed on them. I wonder if they still have them. I also knew some guys who went to the Olympics, and they had the rings on their ankles. That is cool with me since they were small and on their ankles (not too show-offy, although I guess tatooing the rings is technically showing off).

I do not have any ink, and I have never had the desire to get a tattoo. I suppose I have never felt strongly enough about anything to get it permanently put on my body. I do not have a problem with tattoos at all, it is just not me. As far as I know, nobody in my family has one either. So it was a hard question to answer when Mike asked me who in my family would be the most likely to get a tattoo. That is a hard question, because I would be shocked if anyone had a tat (except if Pat got one in 1988!). Mike thought that my brother John and my mom would probably be more likely to get one than me. I thought that was an interesting assessment. So here is my wager on the matter. 1. Sue 2. Pat 3. Ann 4. me 5. John 6. Mom
I did not consider nephews, but I think they would all get inked before we do! I think Brian would be the first. Mike said his mom was his vote for his family.

The next question Mike posed was what the tattoos would be. I like the old school, so the mom with a heart or the skull and crossbones would do. For my mom, a plain crucifix would be enough. John could get a peace sign or donkey. Ann could rock a celtic sort of design. Sue would get some type of design. Pat is probably rocking a Slayer tattoo! So that is one way we waste time and precious energy at home after work!

Huts

Hey,
Who is up for a hut trip this winter? C'mon you know who you are!

Heroes

I thought this week was much better. I was not digging the last 2 so much. Nightmare man must have been haunting me this weekend before the Spartan game!
1. Mohinder on the dark side? or just a dumbass?
2. Parkman can develop some mad skillz eh?
3. Who's the new blond chick's daddy? The company head?
4. Why can't Ando read the scrolls? I thought he was literate.

Dumpster Divers Go Mainstream In Thrifty Germany - WSJ.com

Dumpster Divers Go Mainstream In Thrifty Germany - WSJ.com

NYC

Yesterday I went into the city, because we were having a party for one of my friends who is getting married. I did not drive in since the host lived close to Grand Central, so I just caught an express train. I am no longer new to the city, but I still love coming up from the bowels of the station into the Grand Central Terminal. Maybe if I commuted there every day I would get sick of it, but it is just so...grand! When I was walking back to the station, I saw a man squatting in the street with a camera on a tripod. I looked where it was pointing, and I saw the Chrysler building looming above me (and perfectly lit up). So those are 2 simple moments that can happen when you go there, but you can not get it anywhere else.

Now, should I sing some Sinatra?

Fearing Crime, Japanese Wear the Hiding Place - New York Times

Fearing Crime, Japanese Wear the Hiding Place - New York Times
I am not sure if I would like the fire hydrant model.

Little yellow houses for you and me......

Lately our weekends have consisted of hanging out, watching NCAA football (whatever we can actually catch on TV out here, have not been able to see my Spartans for several weeks due to the Big Ten network), and going to open houses. There have been some interesting possibilities lately. I am sure people are skeptical that we are actually going to buy something, but we are taking our time as the prices are dropping in a real way. In our market, that can make a major difference. We end up making up nicknames for the houses to remember them. I try to describe a house with address or neighborhood location, but Mike can never remember it that way. So nicknames work well. Most of our favorite houses happen to be yellow. One of the houses we looked at about 6 weeks ago just got painted yellow. Maybe we will like it better. One of my favorite houses has an identical floor plan to my in-law's house. Here are nicknames so far (good, bad, and ugly).

1rst Yellow
2nd Yellow
Lil' Yellow
Stinky yellow
Park yellow
Build up Greenwich
Greenwich flophouse
Tomato house
Nook house
Deck house
Ed's grandma
Shithole 1
Shithole 2

On another note, Mike just informed me that I woke him up last night mumbling. He thought I was awake and trying to talk to him. Then I said something about number 12, Nebraska. He asked me if I was dreaming about football, and I said yes. Funny! We watched the Southern Florida-Rutgers game last night, so I had football on my mind. I actually rooted for Rutgers, because I think So. Florida was really over-rated. Of course the Spartans are on TV this weekend, and I can not watch it due to a bachelorette party. Those friggin' girls!

In agreement

I was a little surprised that I did not get any comments on my recent Geek entry. Mike seems to think everyone was being nice to me, but since when does anyone hold back on their abuse? "Leeeeave meee alone!"

That leads me to conclude that you all agree that I am not a classic Geek. I will get back to a Geek I know very well to report on the findings.

I should mention that I have also become very fashion conscious since moving to NY.

On another note, Mike went to the Guggenheim for dinner last night (work event). They took everyone on a tour of the current exhibit, Richard Prince.

http://www.guggenheim.org/exhibitions/exhibition_pages/prince.html

Mike told me it was weird to look at the exhibit with the docent explaining the art, because some of the art was really weird and risque. It felt wrong to stare at it. Most of the exhibit were photographs, and there was a series of half-naked ladies. It actually got worse than half naked ladies, but I will not tell you about that here! So imagine yourself in this PC work environment looking at weird, provocative art, and trying to act scholarly about it. Usually when we see things like that over in the many fine museums we have access to here, we have a lot of fun being unfiltered.

PS I have awesome posture too.

NOVA | Ghost in Your Genes | PBS

NOVA | Ghost in Your Genes | PBS
This was the first show in our PBS double feature last night. I really thought it was cool, and they found that our behavior now may have impact on future generations! Cool stuff that makes me want to go back to school and work in a lab.

Good, but disturbing watchin'

FRONTLINE: cheney's law: watch the full program online (video) | PBS
I caught this last night, and it explored the Cheney machine.

Pinch Yourself..revealed

Asking price
95,000,000
That is not a misprint!

Whaaatt???

Cheney and Obama are distant cousins: Mrs. Cheney - Yahoo! News

Wait, I need to read this again.

Heroes

1. How will Siler get his powers back? Is that why he is going by Gabriel? What was up with the roach?
2. I am not digging Claire and the boyfriend.
3. What is up with Nathan and the crazy mirror man? Is it turning into a Nicki/Jessica scenario? Jessica was a sister after all.

Breakin' - Turbo's Broom-Dance

This one's for Pat.

Must see movies

Last night, P told me that he watched "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" with M since she had not seen it. That started a discussion about essential teen movies, especially eighties pop culture moments. We came up with a short list, but did we make any serious omissions? It was promising to know that M has NOT seen Street Trash or any of the Tromaville series.

Sixteen Candles
Better off Dead
Breakfast Club
Ferris Bueller's Day Off


Those were the big ones. Here are some more, but not as high caliber.

Pretty in Pink
Weird Science
Valley Girl


Here is a suggestion to understand what we thought was cool growing up in DTW
Purple Rain (Purple Rain is friggin' hilarious, it is really bad with a slammin' sountrack)
Breakin'

We need to come up a with list of great movies of the last 25 years too.

SNL - Paris Hilton

Geek?

I feel like I am geeky about certain things like physiology, neurology, health topics, nature, endurance sports, and angry female singers. I am the first to admit that I am not at all cool, nor have I ever been. I am not opposed to geeks as well. I am just not, in the classic sense, a geek. I do not like most sci-fi, I suck at math, and I do not like video games. I am not really good at computers either, and I never played Dungeons and Dragons. The renaissance festival people scare me, and I just do not like fantasy movies either. So what does that make me? Is nerd more appropriate? Check the video above to see classic Geeks.

Pinch Yourself

Here is something a little depressing. On the back of a real estate brochure for our county was this ad. The price is blurred, but care to guess?

Expect the unexpected

When I left the house this morning, it looked like a neighbor was moving. There was a big truck parked at the end of the street and lots of extra cars. I was excited since it is one of our favorite houses in the neighborhood, and it would be cool to buy it. I was nosey and drove by to discover they are shooting something over there. There were tons of weird trucks, cameras, and other gear everywhere. So, no house for sale after all! They are filming tonight too and have the lights blaring on like a high school football game.

Chuggin' on

I just started a second job last month. I reduced the hours I was working in the schools to open up a day I could devote to my new job. I am working with an aquatic PT practice, and I really love it so far. I initially felt nervous about it, but I am finding working in the water to really be natural. The only bummer about it right now is the fact I am going to have to work Sunday AM for about a month. They are replacing the windows around the pool. It will fun though since I have a nice group of kids. Being in the pool does not seem like work for some reason which is a good thing. My joints will be thanking me. I think I would like to increase my time working in the water. I think my body needs it, and it is good having colleagues again. I was not learning as much the last couple of years since the school population does not have much variety.

I had to take my car for a yearly inspection today. I did not feel so good about leaving my car after seeing a mechanic swing a car into a space, forget to put it in park, and watching the car smash into a truck. That is the first time I have inspected a car for damage after taking it into the shop.

On an unrelated note, I discovered that there is a Sodom, NY. I wonder what goes on there? I think it is more fun than Hell, MI (although Hell has pretty good mountain biking).

Stop the insanity

I can not stand this commercial! It makes me want to vomit, and animated sputum is just not cute. It also brings out one of my few major bodily gross outs, coughing up phlegm. I did not realize that I have not seen any of these spots for a long time, but I guess cold and flu season looms. What next, animated blood, bile, vomit, or stool?

Aimee Mann at Morning Becomes Eclectic (Part 4)

This has been running in my head all day. Goes with the gloom today.

Thank-You Note Enters College Admission Game - New York Times

Thank-You Note Enters College Admission Game - New York Times
I want to send a note to the jerk that started doing this! I can not believe how much more BS they can fit into every process.

Demographics

I joined the Democratic party last year, so now I get all kinds of interesting mail. Lately I have been getting some weird catalogs. This one arrived today. I would love to read my marketing profile, especially since I do not shop by catalog much. My favorite was still the charity catalog where you give a cow to third world villages.

Heroes debriefing

1. So Siler has lost power. I guess he needs to do the finger saw to get them instead of plain old fashioned MURDUUUURRR!
2. I think Claire bear and the flying boy may be kissing cousins. Flying seems to be a Petrelli trait.
3. Is Niki going to kick Mohinder's ass for some reason?
4. Do you think the dudes in Cork messed with the box with Peter?

Hangin' in the Mitt

I am back from my long weekend in MI. It was not the crisp fall weekend that I would have expected, but it was nice to be able to go swimming in the Grand Traverse Bay while seeing leaves changing color. It was a laid-back weekend of visiting and whooping it up in A+K's little piece of heaven. We hit Leland, tasted some wine, and tooled around the cottage.

New Heart Device Allows Cheney To Experience Love

Bird O'Rama

On my way home tonight, there was a huge flock of Starlings in my neighborhood. They were all over people's lawns on both sides of the street for about 1/2 a block. I estimated at least 200, but who knows how many more there were. They did seem friendly though since I did not have a re-enactment of a Hitchcock film.

REM R.E.M. Leaving New York Acoustic

Heroes week 2

1. There is no way Claire could have cut off her toe like that. She should have picked up on Mr. Muggles looking up while he was barking. Then I realized that Niki P. is just like the cheerleader. He cut off his fingertop with scissors, and it grew back too!
2. I thought Hiro would have used more of his fighting skill when he was pretending to be Kenze.
3. Well, I see that those Latin twins should not be seperated.
4. I thought Mohinder had met the Haitian, and Matt Parkman had met Ando before.
5. I liked when Ms. Petrelli told Parkman to get out of her head.
6. Will Peter have to rediscover all of his powers again?
7. Is Mohinder special too? Maybe he has power in his blood.