Neato

The music on this vid might get a little maddening, but it's sorta fitting for the trucks. It's got some kind of filter on it that makes it look like it's miniature and some kind of claymation animation. Super cool during the lights out/strobe section and the demolition derby part.

The love of 4 day weekends grows

Well, it was a success. A fat, happy, overfull success of a weekend. Poultry was consumed, belts were loosened, thankfulness was exuded. In a year where I've really learned what it means to be thankful for things, I was very pleased to enjoy such a great day of thanking with some real good people. Unquestionably, family were missed. This was a universal agreement. But, we managed to be with some friends who we also consider 'family', so all was not lost.

The weekend began swimmingly with the annual reenactment of "The Last Waltz" at Cervantes (a scant 6 block walk from our place). All the crew that wasn't back east were out in droves and fired up about a long weekend. It was quite fun. Great tunes. That evening led quickly to the morn 'o turkey and I woke and embarked on my first mission of turk roasting. We actually all went out to eat to a nice buffet for dinner, but I just wanted a turk for leftovers all weekend. No such thing as too much turkey.

And so we descend of a buffet. Strategic stomach stretching exercises were utilized throughout the day, in order to ingest as much feast as possible. Boy, we hit that bad boy running. I ate and ate and ate...so much so that I barely could finish one beer with the whole meal. The food was REALLY good and I felt pretty horrible for the next 3 or 4 hours after the feasting. I think we all did. Damn buffet of deliciousness. You are too tasty to resist.

As expected, such high levels of turk in the bloodstream induced much post ingestion sleepyness. We all were flogged and basked in uberfullness before we retreated to our couches and passed out in sweatpants. All the while thinking "now THAT was a great thanksgiving".

In retrospect, was a fantastic weekend (minus this damn cold going around Denver. It has found me and made a home, apparently). This year, I am thankful, mostly, to just be alive. But also for all of the people in my life. That's what counts.

Turkey Jell-O mold competition

Man, this is fun. Check out this turkey mold competition. I have pictured here the "smoreky", but there is all sorts of interesting turkeys. Egg turk, gum turk, sushi turk....lots of food represented here. Apparently, all you have to do is get the turkey Jell-O mold and then create away, winners getting posted on this site. Old winners at the bottom. The vid at the end is pretty funny, too. Dung turkey.

Make a turkey. Literally.

This is great. Make a turkey out of paper.

Ahh, thanksgiving.

First off, I gotta ask: is Thanksgiving the best holiday? To me, it's totally underappreciated. The whole point of Thanksgiving is to get together with others you care about and to consume fantastic food (arguably the best meal of the year) and booze and spend a great day together. There's no obligations concerning gifts, no crazy 'season' attributed to it. You don't see people buying 'thanksgiving sweaters'. Decorations are kept to a delicious turkey and the side dishes. It's all about people being with people, what holidays are SUPPOSED to be about. It's about giving thanks for all the amazing benefits we are awarded by being citizens of the US, and celebrating our families and friends. It's about taking a four day weekend. THAT's what I'm talking about. Man I can't wait for weds at 6pm.

Incidentally, Mere and I are in CO for 'giving this year. We'll eat with some friends and are looking much forward to it. We really will miss our family, tho. Hard to be away from them on the holidays. REALLY wish there were here with us.

There's all kinds of fun activities slated for the weekend, but I gotta say- I'm bummed we have no snow. First day of snowboarding woulda been sweet this weekend. Oh where hath thou gone, great snowmaker in the sky?

I really have no idea what this is:

Freaky, right?

Xmas gifts

This website that Zeus Jones did is really cool. I know everyone hates xmas shopping. It's nuts. I've come to try to make all my gifts or buy them online. Malls are the bain of my existence, and malls at xmas time make me even more anxious.

Anyway, the guys and gals at Zeus took some time and found some cool stuff online they like and recommended some of their favs. If nothing else, they are interesting choices.

Tres funny

It's tiled "The Morning After". Classic. It's done by Zina Saunders and you can get her book called "The Party's Over" here.

Never knew monks could fight

Watch this vid of Armenian and Greek monks duking it out at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. Apparently monks are allowed to throw sucker punches.

Sara didn't know Africa was a continent.

no, really. She really didn't. Good work, America. Way to avoid this ignorance in office. Watch info on this here.

Boom

Everyone loves seeing things blow up, right? Lord knows I do. Anyway, this guy did a whole photoshoot where he blows up teddy bears. Cool. So, there's a trippy video on this site, too, and I think you will like watching the bears get all explosion-y. check it out.

November

Ahh, life in Colorado in November. What leaves are left are golden, and the winter is just around the corner. Walking the dogs is still tolerable.

Today, I walked the pooches around a few blocks and noticed just how many Obama posters there were in my neighborhood. It's funny, but I found myself realizing I don't think I saw a single McCain sign around Denver during the whole recent part of the campaign. I liked that.

But, I realized there are, in fact, quite a lot of McCain supporters out there. My facebook status updates showed me that. Facebook is crazy, by the way, but that's a whole 'nother story. Anyway, I feel for those McCain people because I know what it's like to have the guy you want to win get beaten. I was never a Bush voter.

I have to say that I am very proud of this country, and my faith in our populace is renewed. On tuesday we showed the world that we do not want this war anymore. We showed the world that we are finally trying our hardest to overcome racism and to see people for who they really are and what they bring, from the inside, to the table. Immediately the US is more liked around the globe. I felt the most proud to be a part of this country I've ever felt on Tuesday night.

It's time for us all to get behind this guy. I can't wait to see what he can do.

woooooohoooooooo!!!!

COSTUME

This is the coolest costume I've seen yet. Watch it in motion here.

More political propaganda

Not only is it nicely designed, but it's funny, too. Bonus.

rally today

Went to the Obama rally at Civic park today. It was a short bike ride away, so we figured we'd check it. Couldn't see the stage there was so many people there. People were really fired up, tho.

Thought this was fitting.

After we busted LSU's chops this weekend, I thought this image was a good one. Now, we just gotta keep it together this weekend....HUGE game in Jacksonville.

NFL makes british ladies hot.

This captured from today's game in Wembley stadium in London. Was the Saints playing the Chargers. Guess American football gets Brit ladies excited.

Full facial hair chart:

This pic looks small. see if it gets bigger when you click it. if not, you can see it here.

holy crap this is funny

If I were drinking milk when I watched this, it woulda shot outta my nostrils and made my keyboard soggy.

Really funny that A) you would spend that much time rehearsing that routine- which was done a lot to memorize all those moves B) that you would then record yourself so you could watch it or share it C) that you own that outfit. Classic.

Watch it here.

Guatemala and Honduras

So, I put up some of my fav pics from the last half of our trip on flickr. check 'em out here.

I gave in.

I have resisted joining Facebook for a while. But Mere joined and for some reason that made me give in and do it.

I like the thought:

a cool site my friend Jamie sent me for providing young adults with cancer some tools to live.

back to reality.

Air travel is surreal. One morning you're sipping a coffee in Guatemala, that night a sparking water on your couch watching Saturday Night Live. It's fantastic.

it harder to sleep in guatemala

between the tuk-tuks, the f´ing roosters (one crowed ALL night long last night right by our place), the bird squakings, the hard beds and the early rising travelers speaking some loud consonant-ridden language like dutch or swedish, it´s hard to sleep in. we´ve tried, but not been very successful in these last two weeks. oh, i´m not complaining, i´m just rationalizing to myself something good about going home (my bed). i always to that when a trip is coming to an end and i wish it wasn´t.

we have figured out to keep the tv, if there is one, or music on low all night and that sorta drowns stuff out. The dreams get strange with all night reggae or spanish tv stations, tho.

guatemalan food

so, guatemalans don´t like spicy food. ¿strange, right? it took a while to figure out, as i´m a total puss with spicy stuff, so i was ordering blander stuff, being careful. eventually we realized they dont like hot stuff. if it´s hot, it´s "mexican". and, there´s not a whole lot of traditional food, either. we found a few traditional curries, and that was mostly it. oh, and they mash black beans into paste. not much else. and, they seem to love fried chicken (convenient, i do too. not been on the cancer diet, but screw it, i´m on vacation). the closest thing we found to local specialties was pollo campero. basically kfc for central america. oh, yes, we tried it. super good.

we´ve been up in some cool traiditonal towns around lake atitlan the last four days and it´s been cool seeing all the locals dressed in traditional garb. we took some pics. basically really patterny stuff, and patterns one everything the ladies wear. some men, too. the scenery is super amazing (mtns surrounding blue water), and the weather nice and cool come the afternoon rains. it´s rainy season, so it pretty much rains every afternoon. sunny in the mornings, tho, and amazing to wake up to.

we kayaked over to san marcos la leguna yesterday and had lunch. was really fun, but i can barely lift my shoulders today. so sore. today we woke up and had a nice breafast on the shore, then hit a boat across to panajachel, the larger of the towns around the lake. we´ll hang here tonight, then shuttle it thru the mtns to antigua tomorrow for one last night there then to the port. bout to go set up our shuttles then have some tacos and a brew.

while i´m always bummed to have a trip wind ùp, i´m feeling like we really had a long time away. strangely, i´m not so sad to go home. kinda looking forward to my bed, my dogs, my other clothes. we got to see a lot here- beaches, mountains, rivers, lakes, oceans, jungles, locals, ruins, animals and plants galore. it was truly a blast and super refreshing. i will now enter into my life again with a new found appreciation for the lovely things i have and sometimes take for granted.

oh, and before i ever come to a spanish speaking country again i´m taking an espanol class. i have managed over the years to pick some up, but screw not being able to talk to people. it´s for the birds. next time i will learn before i come.

san pedro la laguna

after a kidney jiggling 2hour shuttle over bumpy mountain roads and a 40 minute organ jostling ferry ride across a choppy lake we finally arrived in san pedro. Its one of 6 or 7 small villages around Lake Atitlan in the highlands of Guatemala. We arrived in Panajachel and saw a little of it on the ride in, then immediately jumped a boat and headed to San Pedro. We plan on also checking out Santa Cruz la laguna as well.

the lake atitlan area is amazing, huge mountains surrounding a turquoise blue lake. it was quite rainy and cold on the way in yesterday, and pretty much rained off and on all night. but, we awoke to an amazing day, and the views from our window are just stunning -a great hotel to which the backpackers here say is expensive. it only costs 25$. its got amazing views of the lake and mountains and has the best little restaurant next door. you literally walk down a path and sit at tables right on the edge of the lake. have´nt had breakfast with such a view in as long as i can remember. and the weather was abolutely pefect. not too hot in the sun, crisp in the shade.

we´´ve had great food here, too, and have finally found some authentic guatemalan food. man, took a while. there is a lot of not-that-great stuff we´ve eaten, but not here. i had a great guatemalan red curry last night that was outstanding. and our other two meals today have been great, and prob about 10$ each for both of us. Beers last night were about 1.25 each. cheap!

the ecosystem is interesting here. still tropical, but pine trees are around, too, and it gets pretty cool at night. we were in pants, shoes and sweatshirt last night. Great sleeping weather. oh, and it´s sunny in the am, cloudy in the afternoon.

all in all, liking this town a good bit. we´ll head off to maybe climb one of the volcanoes around the town or to hike to another town to explore tomorrow. should be fun. we plan to hang here another night or two, then check out santa cruz, then we´re either doing our last night in panajachel or, if there´s no aiport shuttle, heading to antigua for one more night (its only 45 mins from the airport with no traffic). we had planned on going down to a surf camp for the last couple nights, but we´re totally beat from all the traveling around. it´d be another 5 hour trek and then back to the airport from there in a few days. so far we´ve spent about 3 or 4 days on the road on this trip, and we´re gonna just chill and make the most of the rest of our time.

whew

well, let me say, watching the dawgs in roatan was a blast. glad they won, and ended up meeting a local from uga who we watched with. so darn fun. the bar our mutual friends had was quite the locals hang and we met tons of expats our age from the US. was real cool to see their community down there. and that night was the grand opening and the honduras v canada soccer game so a lot of peeps turned out. if anyone is ever going to roatan, ask me and i´ll direct you to this place. they rent rooms and have a great pool and bar and food and its a great place.

so, yestrday was so long. we woke up and started our travels at 6am. it went ride to ferry into ferry into cab into bus into bus into bus into cab and we finally got to our room in antigua at 11.30 pm. holy crap that was a long day. the upside is that we´re back near guatemala city where we fly out of next saturday and we head up to lake atitlan today for some exploring up there. the ride thru all the countryside was nice. it´s so beautiful here. think mountains only they are covered in tropical lushness. so amazing. the temps in roatan were very hot and humid and it´s nice and crisp and cool up here in the mountains. and, we get to retake some photos we took here last week. win-win, we think. so, we´´re off in a few hours, onto more adventures. more to come..

take the good with the bad

well, we're still in roatan. we thought we were leaving today but sometimes stuff just doesnt work out. thus far everything has just gone our way (knocks wood),but yesterday was just not our day. mere and i rented a scooter to cruise the island and to go to the airport to pay for our plane tix outta here. our very nice hotel operator had an employee call and reserve us tix, as we thought since we're only down here a few weeks (most people you meet are on VERY extended travels) we should avoid the ol' 13 hour bus ride back over to guatemala and treat ourselves to plane tickets. strangely, as we tried to pay for them at the Taca air desk, they had no reservations for us, and were totally booked. o, we've spent the last 24hrs scrambling to figure alternate plans. we could have left today, but we'd have missed our bus, and would have been stuck in La Cieba overnight. so, we're still here and catching the 7am ferry tomorrow, then bussing all day back to Antigua in Gautemala. Then, we'll wake up and finish the journey to panajachel, which is one of the cool little towns around lake Atitlan. whew, gonna be another long day on the road, but better to be one instead of two. another sad note was yesterday we accidentally erased all our photos, so today we've been trying to recreate as many as we can. like i said, yesterday was not our day.

so, all in all, this island has been great. done lots of stuff and met lots of good people, but we're ready to move on and to see some different things. it's real hot and sticky here, and we're looking forward to some cooler temps up in the mtns. yes, we're spoiled coloradans. thankfully, tho, we've managed to escape the hurricane season down here with sunny weather. it's been real nice.

also, our friend emily emailed us and let us know she has some friends running a kitchen up the road from the west end here in roatan. unfortunately we didn't check email until a few days ago, but we went by yesterday and said hello. they've got a real cool little spot, with the grand opening tonight. we didnt think we'd be back, but since we're here still, they told me they'd have the uga/tenn game on their 47inch samsung flatscreen. so, we're on our way after this. we're bummed we're not flying today, but at least I get to watch the game! see, there's a silver lining in every cloud.

we be in roatan

first off, it's been a few days. internet is not super avail here on the island, so we've come into to town for food and computers.

well, since i last posted, we've made some serious tracks. we got up the next am really early and bussed over to the carribean and ferried to roatan. we left at 5am and got to our (very sweet) bungalow at 6.30pm. wiped-13hour day. as you can imagine, we were very much looking forward to staying put after many days on the move.

so, roatan is really great. we have had a blast so far and haven't even really had a chance to explore the island. we got a scooter today, so tomorrow is exploration time. the first day we spent catching up on rest, hanging on the beach and snorkling. the reef is just a few mins swim out from shore. our place is a great little set of 6 bungalows across the street from the beach. it's owned by some expats, and is a nice change from all the resorts up and down the beach. they are bigger and overpriced. the beach is really beautiful, and is the best on the island. white sands, turquiose water, lots of coral and fish. love it. anyway, we played the day away and walked up to the nearest town (west end is 40 mins up the beach) for dinner and a few evening drinks at the local watering hole with all the haggared expats. met some interesting, yet strange people. mere and i are remebering that we love this about traveling. the act iteself is fun, the scenery and adventure amazing, but the people you meet along the way are the icing on the cake. we've made new friends from all over europe, cuba, south america and central am already. they all have very interesting stories to tell and make us wish we had more time, more money and no job. we could do this forever. time to start buying lottos again i suppose.

so, our second day here we started the diving. we did two dives with two instructors! one was the dive master, the other a divemaster in training and then just us two. talk about one on one. our one guide was from argentina, been traveling for 4 yrs before settling here and living for 4 yrs and was so great to us. the other in training was from cali and here getting divemasters cert before doing an around the world trip with his wife. they talked us thru everything and by the middle of the first dive i realized i had this. equalizing my right ear has been a bit of a trick, but i've got it finally figured out. so, we did two dives and by the second one, since it was just me and mere and they knew i was already very comfy down there, they had us swimming up thru channels in the coral. super duper cool. saw some big puffers and a huge eel on top of your many corals, fishes and the like. oh, and a ray, too. was great. we finished my last two certification dives today and there was actually another couple with us as well. we did another two great dives, and we saw some sweet turtles, which is waht i most wanted to see. i love it. i can see mere and i exploring lots of oceansides in our lifetime together.

so, we're not even half way and i can't believe the adventures we've had so far. i look around and thank my lucky stars i'm doing this every day. altho everyone we meet is living here, traveling for a year, on one of their 6 weeks of paid vacay (euros) or just traveling with no end ever in sight...i realize i'm a lucky guy(but jealous of them). I was laying on the beach today and looking up at the sky. I had the edges of palm leaves in my view and lots of sky. It suddenly hit me: this is what i saw every day i went to chemotherapy. The chemo people put a transparency of this exact view over the flourescent lights in the chemo ward, and so while you look up you see palm trees and blue skies instead of horrid flourescent lights. not sure if this helped or was a cruel joke, but it got mere and i talking. we used the thoughts of sitting on a beach REALLY seeing that view as our motivation to make it thru all those times when i was just really pissed off at everything. well, today was the day. I made it. i finally freaking made it. can't say enuf about how gracious i am about this.

so, i'm remebering that life is an amazing gift whether you're living it day to day in the US, or whether you're loving the days down in central america. that being said, vacation is good.

one last thing: as i type this, i see about 4 geckos outside the window catching bugs. so cool. we dont have lizards in the high west, and i'm loving being back in the jungle. it reminds me of living back in GA and the birds, bugs, plants and animals are amazing, much less the marine life. all i need is to see a monkey and i've seen it all.

ok, that was a lot of typing. off to hit some seafood and salve vida's (the beer i'm liking here). time to celebrate this kid being certified to scuba. everythime i say this word i think of that scene in "along came polly" when hank azaria asks stiller "are you for scuba". sorry, cant stop it. the only decent part of that whole movie.

so far so good...

Well, we made it. mostly, at least. our flight out of denver at 1am was a toughie, but we managed to get a few hours rest on it before landing at 5ish atlanta time (3 colorado!). we had an hour or so to nap and eat before some family arrived to visit for a few hours (was great to see ém) and then we were off again to guatemala city. we were too excited to sleep any more, which was prob not the smartest move ever. so, we landed and were expecting a cab to take us to another shuttle that we pre arranged to take us to copan. well, of course the guy wasnt there. one thing my last year of my life has taught me: roll with the punches. so, we went with plan b and got a cab to the town of antigua. by the way, this spanish keyboard is not allowing capitals most of the time. sorry. ç

anyway, we got a cab an hour or so to antigua and it was a great little town. really cool architecture and up in the jungle covered mountains. really nice. we immediately found a room, droppèd the bags and started exploring. we searched and searched for a guatemalan food place, and found nothing of the sort. thought maybe it was because it was so touristy, but have come to learn that they pretty much don´t have much of a ´specialty´. I´m told pollo campero is the closest thing they have to guatemalan. it´s basically their version of kfc. havent had it yet (but will), and am not givin up on finding something authentic.

so, we found a shuttle to get us to copan today to see the ruins. only problem is it picked us up at 3:45 am. needless to say, that´s where the needing rest comes into play. we were already exhausted, but getting up at that hour was rough. we managed to hit the sack early last night, but it still was a tough morning. to top it off, the shuttle was totally packed and i got the last seat which was in the back row (uber bouncy) and was very very tight. six hours of my knees in the seat in front of me. mere had the middle front row which was next to the driver and really small. neither of us loved that ride. but, we made here by 10am and have explored copan and the mayan ruins all day. the ruins were built in teh 8th century by hand, basically, and are really neat. was a great day, and feels like we´ve been gone forever already.

we met all kinds of cool peeps so far(met the girl who writes the lonely planet book for guatemala and hawaii), and are excited about all the adventures to come. needless to say we´re whipped. we get another bus (this time splurged for the ëxecutive bus with tv and air and bathrooms and reclining seats<) for an 8 hour ride at 5.15 am tomorrow. yes, it´s early, but if we get on that one, we can catch the ferry in la cieba and not have to stay there tomorrow night. that means we can be on roatan by tomorrow afternoon, and we´re fired up to see the ocean. ok, gotta go meet mere down the block for a gallo (kind of beer. good stuff.) and a bite. Miss and love everyone. will be back here soon to update as we have more adventures!

Getting there..

almost done packing. one last music session after work with the guys tomorrow, then home to grab the gear and off to the port. FUN!

Sometimes negative is positive

Loving the good news! Results of the CT scan are NEGATIVE! woo woo!

Time to go on vacation (tomorrow night) and have a good time.

On the road

Just a few days until Mere and I go on vacation! Needless to say we're excited about it. Def a lot of jamming things out all week at work and at home to be ready (we fly out Friday night LATE) to go. As of Friday we're gone for two weeks in Guatemala and Honduras, so I'll be signing off here for a minute.

Lots of pics to follow our return.

Veep

Kinda interested to see some of the VP debates tomorrow. The first presidential one seemed pretty average, not much happening, no one seeming really dominant or saying much in specific detail. Kinda expected, I guess.

But, after watching some of the Palin/Couric interview, I'm hoping they let Palin loose tomorrow. I have the feeling she could say something interesting. Some of the stuff on the Couric interview was both humorous and a little scary at the same time.

Scan it up, scanny

Went to get the PET scan the other day and the insurance turned it down. D'oh. Wasn't super stoked to hear that, but I'm getting a CT scan in the AM instead now. Guess the insurance people thought the PET was excessive. Oh, well, guess the oncologists did, too, in the end- as they seemed fine with the CT scan. I'll interpret that as good news.

Get to find out the results Thursday. Will keep you posted. Here's to good news always.

Funniest Monk-e mail

I know I've posted about GA football a lot lately, but just one more: this is the funniest monk-email I've seen yet. Sounds like some clip from a radio show that allows cursing. Real funny stuff.

1 yr ago

To comment on Mere's post below: last night was our 3rd anniversary. While 3 years has flown by, the passing of the last year is what we were really celebrating last night. One year ago, last night, I was in the ER getting a CT scan in a whole lot of pain. To me, that was the beginning of the life long battle with cancer that I have been forced to enlist in. That was when they realized something was obstructing my intestines. Being the naive boy that I am, when they said they didn't think it was cancer, or even anything that serious, I believed them. Silly Andy.

Anyway, here we are one year later. A little more scarred, a little wiser, and a lot more gracious to be alive and married to each other. Life throws things at you and you either duck and weave or you get hit with them and they take you out. Because I have such a wonderfully supportive and loving teammate in Mere, I'm able to escape the perils of tragedy. I am a lucky guy. Here's to making it this last year, beating the odds and making it many many more and to being healthy and happy the whole damn time.

HAPPY 3RD ANNIVERSARY ANDY!

Funeral, huh?

Apparently assistant coach for the Tahd (that's how Alabama people say "Tide"), Kirby Smart, thinks UGA is wearing black this weekend because they're "going to a fu*#king funeral". Hmmmmm. All I know is the matchup is the premier game for the weekend (both being in the top 10) and I cannot wait to watch. I desperately hope we absolutely flog them senseless, but they look good. If we can handle these guys, then I'll feel like we've really got a fighting chance in making this thing really happen. Watch this vid and listen carefully around the 1 min mark. He says it when he quiets down a bit.

New Rubiks cube

Dang. The old one was hard enuf.

Maze of Munson's mug

We all knew Larry Munson was bound to be fully recovered soon. It was a sad reality, and everyone can respect the beauty of retiring from work, no matter how sad it makes us all. Anyway, a farm in Henry county GA has dedicated a corn field maze to Sir Munson himself. Apparently you can see it from the sky. Sweet. Read the story here on the AJC site. (thanks for the link Chris and Templeman)

Dawgs thump Devils

What a good (and hot) time that was! Had a blast in Phoenix/Tempe and loved watching the Dawgs win one. Living out west has made it difficult to get to many games, so it's been quite a while since I've gotten to hang with old friends and bark as loud as I can.

I only managed to take about 3 more pictures than this the whole weekend, and they were, for some strange reason, blurry. I'm sure it had nothing to do with me. The stadium was sweet, with small rock mountains protruding on either side, as you can see in the one shot. What you can also see is that we were up at the very top of the Georgia section. It was actually a really sweet spot- you turned around and looked out and saw that bottom picture. It was the prettiest view I've ever had at a football game, and actually created a breeze which was real nice- it was around 100 degrees at gametime. All in all, it was a really great spot to sit and Chad and I got to sit with the Ramseys and Levys. And, to top off, the Dawgs stomped the Sun Devils and finally shut up their mouthy fan base. On the way in, they were very rowdy (as were UGA fans) and on the way out it was only the Dawgs contingency raising a ruckus. It was so sweet. Very loud chants of "S-E-C" ewrupted as we passed by Kirk Herbstriet on the way out (he was loving the attention). The atmosphere was electric.

Got to spend some good time with old school mugs and also some good pals from CO, so it was a great time all around. Lump and I had a hotel room just up from Mill street (aka Ariz State entertainment epicenter) and we explored the area a good bit at night. It was fun seeing all the GA fans and visitors mingling with college kids.

All in all, a fantastic weekend, and an event to remind me how much fun college football games are. I am super fired up to see the game this weekend against Bama, only wish I would actually be at the game.Gonna be a toughie but I'm psyched the dawgs are busting a blackout. Bound to be exciting.

PC uses Mac

For some reason, this cracks me up. I was parusing some articles in my google reader, and came across this on ISO50's site. Its the guy who plays PC using an iphone. One of the authors of the blog (obviously lives in Cali) saw this on some public transportation. Read his blog entry here.

on my way

headin' Tempe to see the Dawgs tomorrow. Cannot wait. Pics to come soon.

cool posters

I like cool screenprinted concert posters. Apparently so does this guy.. here's his collection of 50 he likes. They're very good.

Tour de Fat

First off, I am totally lamenting not being a part of this. I completely thought this event was Sunday. I went running in the park Saturday and ran up on all the bikes entering the final roundabout and them riding around and around just screaming and whooping and hollering- SO COOL. I quickly went home and we got on our bikes and biked back up to the park to at least hang out at the after party. Boo for missing the ride, tho- it looked so fun. So many people in costumes with really strange bikes.

Tour de Fat is a group bike ride for charity, sponsored by New Belgium beer (yes, they make fat tire). Everyone rides thru the town, this time Denver, and end up somewhere to 'after party' (read: drink much NB beer and watch circuses, music, performers, hang out in the park, etc). Man, you should SEE the people it attracts. Lots of people here are really into bikes (ME included! I LOVE this about Colorado), so there's all kinds of freaky bikes people build to ride on these group rides. Some of the bikes are just crazy. I took a few weak photos, so I completely poached those images above. You HAVE to check out this persons images on their blog. DO IT. they are really entertaining. Some crazy people and bikes.

Finally something to do with the netflix paper

Yes. I always hate that extra piece of paper on the Netflix envelope. What a waste. Now, you can make origami with it. God, I love the Internet.

Touching movie about cancer:

This short film is a real testament to what it's like to get cancer or to know and love someone who gets it. It was done by Errol Morris. It's a pretty interesting piece, and def really impactful for me. Watching it kinda reminds me of all those feelings I went thru when I found out (still remember almost every moment from about 30 minutes beforehand right thru about an hour or two after getting home from the docs). To be honest, watching this it was hard for me not to cry, because cancer is scary stuff.

Pardon my language, but fuck cancer.

Artists+Chucks=cool

Converse got 100 artists together to design custom Chucks, and some of 'em are pretty interesting. They don't quite have all 100 up there, so it may be worth cheking back as they add artists.
This was a part of project(red), a global campaign to fight AIDS in Africa. It's a great thing, as a lot of people are involved and pitching in. I'm sure you've seen the stuff, it's all over and usually pretty cool. This is the 1hund(red) initiative by Converse.

Funniest Apt ad ever:

Found this ad here.

new york craigslist > manhattan > rooms & shares

$1 Room for ONE DOLLAR in bright, clean apartment (Upper West Side)
Reply to: hous-834022781@craigslist.org [?]
Date: 2008-09-09, 1:44PM EDT

I am looking for someone to rent the spare bedroom in my spacious 2-bedroom apartment on the picturesque and desirable Upper West Side. You must read carefully, however, as this situation is not suitable for all.

The rent is $1 per month, utilities included, as long as you bake me fifty (50) tasty cookies every day by 6 p.m. If you have not completed this task by 6 p.m., I will pour vinegar on all your belongings, throw them into the street, and have the locks changed. No exceptions and no excuses. Hell or high water, those cookies better be done and yummy.

Cookies are always cookies and never biscuits. I do not eat “biscuits”.

I will decide the specific type of cookie the day before and will submit my preference in writing by 9 p.m. of that day. You are responsible for the recipe and ALL the ingredients (at your expense, of course). The kitchen is large and well equipped with cookie sheets, rolling pins, mixing bowls, etc. You may NOT hum or sing as you prepare the cookies. You may, however, recite song lyrics in a normal speaking voice.

Forbidden ingredients include anise, marjoram, allspice, caraway, and oats. I will nevertheless request oatmeal cookies from time to time and you must find a way to make them without oats. Good luck with that. The worst ingredient of all, though, is NUTMEG. If even one speck of nutmeg, even the tracest amount of the stuff, is discovered in my home, I will pour vinegar on your belongings and chuck them in the street. You may assume the locks will be changed. You may use cinnamon, cloves, and raisins, though I am rather indifferent to these and will likely not be impressed. Chocolate is encouraged, as is vanilla bean extract.

You will be given three cookie cutters: a crescent moon, a star, and a doggie in profile. All cookies must be in one of those three shapes. The doggies must be given names and all the names must be different and cute. Cuteness is my call, not yours. For example, “Smuggins” is cute but “Lionel” is not.

The cookies must be artfully arranged on a lace cloth on a silver platter and garnished. Permissible garnishes include jellied fruits and candied flowers. Sugared figs are under review, but don’t get your hopes up.

Your room contains a twin bed, a dresser, a desk w/chair, and a TV with cable access. The TV is tuned permanently to the Food Network. You may watch only shows featuring cookies and cookie by-products.

If you are interested in this arrangement, please submit the following:

1) Your favorite cookie recipe
2) A picture of tasty cookies
3) A short original poem about cookies

Thank you.

86 at B’way

If you don't support the war, this'll aggrivate you.

Funny, everything he says has actually happened. Maybe he has ESP? Watch the vid (from '94) and it'll creep you out.

He's baaaaack.

I've always heard things like "Lance is a cocky jerk" or "he was a dick to Sheryl Crow" (he's an idiot if so). You know what? I really don't care if that stuff is true. I'm sure the guy is cocky, I mean, hell, the guy won SEVEN tours. No one has ever come close. And, to top it off, he did it AFTER he fought a serious cancer fight. He had tumors in his brain, his lung, his testicle, his liver. The docs gave him a 4% chance of living. 4%. I think most people would immediately lay down and wait for the inevitable. Not this guy. You wanna talk about tough, well this guy's tough.

There are a lot of people out there that I get inspired from. Parents, siblings, family, friends, musicians, artists, athletes, etc. I woulda been inspired by Lance even if he just won 7 tours. That alone is a huge feat, as they say it's the most grueling sports events there is to compete in, and to win it that many times is superhuman (plus I love bikes!). But to look a most probable death in the eye, stare it down, trump the fear and then to rally yourself to win such a trying fight first is truly inspirational to me. I will forever look to him when I get scared about cancer, when I think I can't do something, when I think maybe my goals or dreams or hopes or aspirations might just be too lofty.

Well, yesterday our boy Lance decided to come back to professional cycling. He's been retired for around 2 years now, and he just can't stay away. He's run marathons (with his celeb buddies like McConahey), biked with stars, etc, etc, and it obviously wasn't enuf. He just got 2nd in the Leadville 100 a few weeks ago and it musta relit the fuse, because that was the impetus to get him back into it. By the way, the Leadville 100 is a 1oo mile mountain bike ride thru the Rockies...SUPER TOUGH. This guy is 36 and still competeing. Amazing. If he wins, he'll be the oldest ever. And, he's gonna post all doping results to show he's clean. Man, it's gonna be a fun tour to watch!

Anyway the best part is he's riding for free. No salary, no bonuses. He's only doing it to heighten the worlds awareness of this global burden we all shoulder called cancer. Once again, he's proven to be an inspiration. Makes me want to do more to help, too. Funny how one guy can do so much. I am an awe of Lance Armstrong. He is def one of my heroes.

10 houses that defy gravity

Huh. Some people have a lot of free cash to build interesting homes, apparently. Check out these 10 gravity defying designs. If nothing else, they're real interesting. Some of 'em would even be real cool to live in.

Muppet show cake set

I mean, I used to LOVE the Muppets. I think everyone used to love to see what would come out of Gonzo's horn at the end of the song, right? Oh, you knows you did. I also loved those crotchety old guys up in the balcony. Great stuff. Anyway, here's some pretty amazing Muppet Cakes.

I can't believe this has never been around before.

Kudos to those who created the Levitron AC3W-20. Not sure why all outlets don't have 3 sockets.

movie box office figures

this site is cool. It shows movie box office figures for this year in a really great design. Great colors and really fun to check out. The worst part, tho, is that I have seen maybe 1% of these movies. I need to get out more.

Holy crap

I can't believe it, but someone actually drew all over a Lamborghini with a sharpie. Nuts. I have to admit, the thought of drawing on a Lambo is kinda fun. I have always thought them to be over the top autos, but this just takes the cake. More photos here.