Concert Review: The Tragically Hip

My friend P and I went to see the Tragically Hip last Saturday (referenced in a previous post). I have to say that it was definitely an interesting show. There were a lot of people there from Canada - wearing Canadian flags and carrying Canadian flags - the band is Canadian.)


The band was an interesting mix. It reminded me at various times of Primus, Phish, and Rush. Interesting....

It was an entertaining show, but awkward since i didn't know any of the songs.

No concert Tee from this show. No girl options. beat.

Another First

earlier this evening i went to see a band that i have never heard before. ever. not one song.

i've never done that before.

it was sort of weird being around a bunch of people who know all of the songs that are being played.

all i was trying to do was not get stepped on or elbowed in the eye/face/boob/etc.

really difficult to do when you are 62 inches tall.

but i had a good time. it was nice to do something different. Just so tired of BF's band...

new concert review coming later. I need to sleep. have to run 3 miles in 7 hours from now...

Restaurant Review: Pazza Luna

So, D and i didn't feel like cooking anything for dinner (really i just didn't want pizza for dinner) so we decided to eat out - so we walked down the street to Pazza Luna.


First impressions: decor is very nice, much better than before (all Sopranos memoriabilia is gone) but still has the same layout as far as where the tables are and the bar location.


We sat ourselves at the bar and waited a good 3 minutes before the bartender removed the dirty glasses and the check that belonged to the people who were there before us.

He must have said sorry like 3 times in the first 30 seconds after acknowledging our presence. I don't need your sorrys. i need you to just get your shit together and don't let it happen again.

So we placed our drink order and received our menus. Again - a good 10 minutes before we were told the specials by the bartender - who again said sorry "we are understaffed" - well, i don't care about your staffing issues - especially since the bar area isn't even packed and it looks like the host working the door is also a waiter and pours drinks...

so.. we got the specials and before he could leave us again we placed our order - we weren't trying to wait another 20 minutes before putting in our order.

first - before the food - i started out with a glass of pino noir which was lovely. very good - and a heavy pour. D had his usual burbon and ginger.

I went with the specials the whole way. For my app i got the salmon app which was thinly sliced salmon rolled onto a bed of mesclun greens with a lemon vinegrette and two large grilled prawns. VERY tasty. and actually quite filling.

D's app was a lamb raviolli. looked good.

for my entree I got a dish that was bascially mini lasagna noodles made with spinach mixed with lump crab in a VERY light cream and tomato sauce. WONDERFUL!

D's entree was veal thinly sliced with veggies. said it was tasty but i didn't try any.

for our dessert we were so full but wanted to try something, so we split the creme brulee. Mistake. Don't do it. The top was nice and crispy, but the rest was watery. They still need to work on this one.

Overall I would give the food an A- and the service a B+. We will definately go back again, but will probably get less food now that we know what's pretty good.

Taking Public Transportation: Rules to live by

ok... so now we know i take the train to work everyday.

public transportation is an interesting thing. you get all kinds of people.

Here are basic rules that should be followed when taking public transportation - the MARC train specifically...

1. bathe
2. familularize yourself with the schedule
3. don't take up more than one seat - either with your fat ass or with your crap
4. sit with your legs closed. I understand that dudes can't sit with their legs completely closed other wise they might hurt themselves, but seriously, i don't believe for one minute that you need to sit with your legs so wide that you create a 90 degree angle between your legs.
5. NO PERSONAL HYGEINE on the train - this includes but is not limited to: trimming or filing fingernails and applying make-up
6. you can speak / talk on your phone, but try not to be so loud about it. No one on the train gives two shits that your kid needs to be picked up or what you are having for dinner...
7. if the conductor says don't stand on the stairs or in between cars then don't do it.
8. also, don't mess with the little switches at the ends of that cars that keep the door open. Who do you think you are?

this is it for now... more to come later

On the Train....

ok so.... my commute to and from work every day always gives me something to think about.

The other day it was this... I am sitting there in my seat waiting for the train to take me home and there are are few other people in seats in my general area.

This woman gets on the train and walks over to me and asks me if someone is sitting in the seat next to me. well, no. no one is sitting there. The general assumption is that unless there is stuff on the seat the seat is available for you to sit in. I just thought it was a stupid question. You should assume that no one is sitting there.

I know in the grand scheme of things this is really nothing, but i just thought it was a stupid question...

Oh - that reminds me of something else really stupid someone said to me once while waiting for the train in the AM.

The train usually leaves at 735 - so we are all waiting on the platform for the train to show up and it is 15 minutes late so now it is 750 and this woman - who i have seen before so i know she isn't a tourist - she walks up to me and asks me if the train is late... um... i looked at my watch to make sure that i wasn't in some sort of time warp or something... yep. it is 750. OBVIOUSLY the train is late....

duh. stupid questions waste time.

One of the best TV ads I've seen in a while...

I need to figure out how to post video. I will update this once i figure it out. In the mean time... check this out~

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mp7Uc5a_XRE

Firsts

Yesterday I did something I have never done before.

I ran for 5 miles!

I have been running 3 - 4 with no problem for a few years now, but with J & J's peer pressure to run in the Baltimore half-marathon in October I need to start increasing my distances. I am thinking of signing up for a training program, but in order to do that I have to be able to run 5 miles 3 times a week. Hopefully I'll be able to do that. Today is a day off from running.

I need to go to a proper running store (NOT lady footlocker who sold me a pair of tennis shoes that I can't wear) and buy ANOTHER new pair of running shoes and also discuss what to do about my knee. My left knee has been killing me every time i run. I just ran through it yesterday and it eventually (after 3 miles) went away, but for the last 2 miles my ankle started to hurt.

This is so frustrating. My body is falling apart just at the point were my lungs and heart can actually deal with running long distances without a problem. The only reason I couldn't keep going after 5 miles was my stupid knee and ankle. Grrrr.

Concert Review: Wierd Al 5/8/07

OK.... so i've seen a lot of random bands and acts over the years, but i have to say that this one was one of the wierdest (no pun intended. really.) shows I have been to.

First off, i was certainly expecting that at least half of the people at the show would be under the age of 21 and i was right. The other half where their parents and a few randoms like D and I.

Apparently the show had sold out and the line to get in was super long... all the way down the block from the venue. We can only assume this is because it takes a long time to draw big black X's on people's hands before they go into the concert hall.

so, b/c the line was so long to get in, D, N, C, and I went to the bar next door. I grabbed something to eat while they started to get their drink on.

We headed into the club once the show started and there was no line at the door - around 8:45 ish.

The show was a mixture of his classics and new stuff, but in between almost every song he and the band would do a costume change (even the drummer. He must have hated that), so the house was playing clips from "Al TV." Honestly i think the clips from AL TV were more funny and interesting than the songs he was doing.

The venue is really not the best place to see a band - especially if you are short - and the sound really sucked last night. So, again, b/c i am short i really couldn't see much for the first few songs - but after about half way through the show we found a spot at the bar (suprise suprise) and were actually able to see him on stage.

He played a few songs i didn't know, but he also did his parody's of: Smells Like Teen Spirit, Eat It, Gangster's Paradise, the Jedi one (i can't remember), and of course I'm Bad. He actually put on the fat suit for that one. Seeing that made the ticket price worth it.

Also - a side note, apparently the Rams Head was also selling "premium" tickets for 15 bucks more. these tix got you a seat in the riser section on the second floor. CRAP! I hope they don't do this for all of their shows! Usually the riser section is the only place I can go to actually see the band. (this time was different b/c there were so few people drinking that we were able to get that spot at the bar.)

This is discrimination against short people! making us pay more just so we can see the band! I hope this doesn't continue otherwise I will have to find a new place to see bands....

Anyways... it was sort of wierd, but it was fun. Good people watching for sure. I also of course did buy a T-shirt. - I am doing pretty well with my band t-shirt collection but can always use more... I wanted to get one at the Chris Cornell show, but they didn't have any girl styles... beat.

Random Thing I found on the web....

Long Live Star Wars!

The Top 15 Han Solo Quotes You Need to Use in Regular Conversation
Written by Anthony Burch

We at DoubleViking consider Han Solo to be the apex of all that is manly. He’s our number one role model, he’s a badass in his own right, and his sarcastic, roguish presence helped make the original trilogy vastly superior to the crappy prequels. He’s so cool, in fact, that we have to suggest you model your life around him – or, at the very least, use some of his quotes in everyday conversation. So, without further ado, here are the fifteen best Han Solo quotes (and when to say them), ranked in order of importance.

15. “I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”

When to say it: When you get a bad feeling, obviously

Had Han Solo been the only character to speak this line in the entire series, it definitely would have been much higher on the list. In reality, sadly, the line is present in every single Star Wars film, thus downplaying its importance as a method of character development, instead turning it into a device that allows George Lucas to wink at the audience. It’s a cute line, but it’s not distinctly Han Solo.

14. “Had a slight weapons malfunction, but everything's perfectly alright now. We're fine, we're all fine, here, now, thank you. How are you?”

When to say it: When your cell phone signal begins to break up

Granted, this is a Star Wars quote which will almost immediately get recognized as a Star Wars quote -- hopefully, you’ll never find yourself in a real life situation where you have to use the term “weapons malfunction.” Still, though, if you’ve got to go through the typically banal “wait, you’re breaking up – can you hear me?” conversation with a friend over your phone, why not throw in a Han Solo quote for good measure? Pretty much everything Harrison Ford says in the series is gold – in everyday life, one should always be searching for methods, no matter how forced, to speak the words of Han Solo.

13. “No, no, NO. THIS one goes THERE, THAT one goes THERE.”

When to say it: When working on a project with a partner

This particular quote won’t make you look particularly cool or Han Solo-ish, but if you use this quote on someone and they recognize it as what Han yells to Chewie at the beginning of Empire Strikes Back, marry them. Immediately. Doesn’t matter what gender they are.

12. “Great, kid. Don’t get cocky.”

When to say it: When a friend accomplishes something

As much as you like your friends, you can’t give them too much credit: genuine enthusiasm from one friend to another is generally a trait only shared by women, and Han Solo is decidedly not a woman (in fact, his penis could probably break concrete). You can only use this line (or lines like it) for only so long towards your friends – one must be careful to stay in the realm of “lovable asshole” and not crossover into “outright asshole” territory. You want your friends to stay your friends, regardless of how much you may want to mock their accomplishments.

11. “Never tell me the odds!”

When to say it: When gambling

If anything, a decision to not know the odds when gambling seems like lunacy. Logic would dictate that if you bet on a boxing match, you’d damn well better know the spread, right? Well, not if you want to look like a bad-ass, you don’t. Refusing to hear the odds when gambling is so blatant a mistake, so obvious a screw-up, that the other gamblers around you will have no choice but to seriously consider what you hope to accomplish by insulating yourself from the odds. Some of the more nervous men, influenced by your steadfast refusal to play by the rules, may change their bets. Their changed bets will influence others to change bets, and, before you know it, your one line of Han Solo dialogue has completely reversed the spread. And if, by chance, your boxer of choice should actually win, then you will be viewed as a gambling prodigy – a man with an unconventional, unbeatable system who knows exactly what he is doing. And as is the case with so many of these Han quotes, seeming to know what you’re doing is a lot more important than actually knowing what you’re doing.

10. “Yeah, I’ll bet you have.”

When to say it: When an intergalactic bounty hunter tells you he’s been waiting a long time to bring you in

But after you say it, MAKE SURE TO SHOOT FIRST. Even if you somehow manage to “dodge” his blaster shot and return fire in self-defense, it will look nowhere near as cool as if you’d just taken the initiative and blasted the sonofabitch before he knew what hit him. Honestly, what kind of moron would even consider not having Han shoot first?

9. “Here’s where the fun begins.”

When to say it: When you’re about to enter a dangerous situation

The purposes of this quote are twofold: firstly, it gives a greater sense of gravitas to whatever situation you are about to undertake. Even if it’s something as simple as getting called to your boss’s office, or taking an off-road shortcut on the way home, this quote alone will make the event seem much more dramatic and cool. Secondly, having made the event seem much cooler and more dangerous than it actually is, this quote will make the speaker seem that much more skilled, self-assured and bad-ass in the context of the event.

8. “You know, sometimes I amaze even myself.”

When to say it: Anytime

This is pretty much the catch-all arrogant wise-ass phrase to use whenever you do something worthy of congratulation. And if you consider yourself an arrogant wise-ass, then everything you do is worthy of congratulation.

7. “What an incredible smell you’ve discovered!”

When to say it: Anytime you smell something awful

When showing disgust, one has to show repulsion and righteous indignation without seeming like a complete and utter pansy, which is where this quote comes into play. Han is obviously not happy that Leia convinced him to jump down a garbage chute, but at the same time, he’s not running around, whining and crying over the fact that he’s knee-deep in human fecal matter. The “incredible smell” line serves as the perfect balance of arrogant irritation and bad-ass indifference to use when someone lets out a particularly gruesome fart.

6. “Laugh it up, fuzzball.”

When to say it: When a fat/hairy person laughs at you

Again: not outright whiny and confrontational, but this line lets everyone know that you mean business and that you’re tired of their crap. Nobody would dare ignore an insult as unconventional-yet-harsh as “fuzzball,” but they also wouldn’t start a fight over it.

5. “Wonderful girl. Either I’m going to kill her, or I’m beginning to like her.”

When to say it: When talking about a woman you’re attracted to

It’s okay to show attraction to a woman, but not unqualified attraction. It’s okay to show that you would very much like to date a girl you’ve just met, but only so long as you remember to state that you don’t really like her that much. Guys who show unqualified attraction to potential mates usually end up as the schmoes who get screwed over when push comes to shove (“push,” in this case, being a synonym for “woman,” while “shove” is a synonym for “musician”). Not to mention that if the girl hears you use this line, her curiosity will be piqued: why does he like me? Why does he want to kill me? Such curiosity will lead her to talk to you more frequently in a teasing attempt to get you to reveal what you really think about her. So long as you never reveal the truth, the teasing will make way for flirting, and the flirting will more than likely make way for astounding amounts of unprotected sex.

4. “How we doin’?”
“Same as always.”
“That bad, huh?”

When to say it: When asking someone about their day

Ah, world-weariness. The idea that you’ve seen everything, done everything and had sex with everything, and yet you still consider life to be generally disappointing and awful. When using a quote like this, people will wonder why you’re so world-weary, and, if you don’t tell them, you’ll seem to have some sort of dark and mysterious past that you never talk about, despite the reality that you spent most of your childhood eating Cheetos and watching Thundercats. Is there a more wonderfully cynical, yet strangely attractive worldview to have? I think not.

3. “I've seen a lot of strange stuff, but I've never seen anything to make me believe there's one all-powerful force controlling everything. There's no mystical energy field controls my destiny.”

When to say it: During a debate on religion

It doesn’t matter if you actually believe in God; you have to use this quote in a debate on religion. It’s specific and useful enough to not necessarily seem like a Star Wars quote, and it’s got just the right amount of pseudo-philosophy and world-weary ranting to make you seem infinitely cooler than the other person in the debate. Yeah, you’ve been around. You’ve seen the world. You know what it has to offer. And, you know what? None of it impresses you. You are in charge of your life. God? Psh. Who needs him? Granted, after the debate is done you may need to go home and pray for twenty straight minutes as a method of apologizing to your deity of choice, but the important thing is that, to the guy you argued against, you look like a total bad-ass who remains completely unafraid of Jehovah’s wrath.

2. “Hey…it’s me!”

When to say it: When someone tells you to “be careful”

Who are they to doubt you? Hey, it’s you! If you weren’t the careful, clever guy you were, you’d be dead by now. You don’t need expressions of worry – you’re too cool for that. Admittedly, right after Han says this in ROTJ he steps on a twig and alerts every stormtrooper in the vicinity to his presence, but ignore that for now.

1. “I love you.”
“I know.”

When to say it: Duh

If you use this line at least once in your lifetime, you can die a happy man. It is the epitome of everything Han Solo stands for: cocky and bad-ass, yet sincere. It’s rumored that George Lucas (though he didn’t direct Empire Strikes Back, or even write its screenplay) wanted Han to tell Leia that he “loved her too,” but Harrison Ford demanded that the current version of the line we all adore so very much. Solo’s final line to Leia before getting his shit carbonite-frozen is, bar-none, the greatest moment in the entire Star Wars saga.

Not to mention that if you use this line on a woman who is legitimately expressing love for you, it will drive her nuts. If there’s one thing women love – other than musicians – it’s having strong feelings for someone who doesn’t reciprocate them (especially if the person in question is a musician). If you respond to “I love you” with “I love you, too,” you’re essentially begging the woman to lose interest in you. Making an arrogant, not-quite reciprocation of that love that hints at possible affection without outright stating it is the most intelligent thing you can possibly do; it keeps the mystery up, it keeps you in control and you keep your dignity intact.
Han Solo knows this. That’s why he’s Han Solo.