The Velvet Ribbon

I had another great weekend. Christmas is my favorite time of year. I love the lights, Christmas carols, the cool temperatures (well, 60-degree weather in Phx), and PRESENTS!!!!

But eeking in a close second is Halloween. I like being scared, sort of. And most of the cable stations air horror films. For the past two weeks I've been watching some really good and some really bad horror films.

In addition to horror films on 24/7, it was the International Horror & Sci-Fi Festival in Tempe this past weekend. Saturday night they showed the original Nightmare on Elm Street. AND they had a Q&A after with Heather Langenkamp (I don't know who she's with here) who played Nancy in the first, third and seventh films!

So I asked Joe if we could go there instead of going to a haunted house. He kindly said yes and got the tickets.

The film festival had a couple of tents and vans hawking stuff like comic books. And some of the people in line were dressed up in costume. But overall I would have to say there were only geeks in line. Which, of course, made Joe and I geeks too.

Some kid came up and stood behind us in line. He was probably in his late teens. He asked if we'd seen any of the other films and asked about the free comic book I had in my hand. I was nice to him and tried to converse with him. Joe was his normal smart-assed self which totally confounded the poor kid. I mean, he's probably not used to Joe's special brand of humor. So when he left the line to get a free comic book I told Joe he had to be nice (right after Joe called him a virgin--not to his face)....

It was the first time I'd ever seen the first one on the big screen. It's kind of dated, especially the clothes and some of the lines. But for the most part it stands up well. And it's fun to see Johnny Depp in his first film. Ronee Blakely, who plays the mother, did the worst acting job ever. It turns out she used to be a good actress and was celebrated for her role in Nashville. But here she just sounds ridiculous saying lines like, "Freddy can't hurt you because mommy killed him." Plus her hair often matched the color of her skin, she looked really freaky.

Heather L. sat just a few seats back from Joe and I. Honestly, if it had been Johnny Depp or Robert Englund I wouldn't have been so excited. But it was Heather! I thought she was really cool in the movies and it turns out she's really cool in real life.

She told some great stories and answered even the dumbest questions from the audience.

We went back again on Sunday (as did Tod, Dave and Gilbert) and saw an independent sci-fi flick called Firefly. I thought it was pretty good and I loved the ending.

Saturday's a rugby day!

The Phoenix Storm played the Cave Creek Critters on Saturday. I did not get to play because I was still a little banged up from Flagstaff. I begged Phill to let me play but he wouldn't - something about having my best interest in mind. I guess it's just as well, but it sucked not being able to play.

Especially since the Storm kicked MAJOR ASS. We had possession of the ball probably 60 - 70% of the time. The problem was their backs were better than ours. They were able to juke our guys and score. Open field tackling is REALLY difficult, so it's not something that we're going to be good at immediately. It'll take time.

But the intensity on the field was the best I've ever seen. Our guys hit harder, scrummed better and rucked like never before. It was so great to see. And when we finally scored a try (our first against a straight team), it was really exciting. I almost pulled a Phill and cried. I definitely choked up for a second.

I'm really proud of how well everyone is trying. And I think it's a testament to Phill and Aimee that they've gotten us to quickly forget the debacle of Thunderbird and move us forward.

SPOOKY TUNESDAY!

When I was a kid we had this record of scary poems and stories. Some of the poems were really cheesy and short, like this one. But there was one story that we used to listen to over and over again. It's called The Velvet Ribbon. I hope you like it (it's only 2 minutes so give it a listen). I told you you'd be SORRYYYYYYYYYY. ;-)

A Thank You From My Sister Lorraine

My sister Lorraine sent me a letter (see below) and I was supposed to post it last week. I'm always a day late and a dollar short.

I want to thank everyone for helping Lorraine raise money for the MS Walk. She walked the 30+ miles for my sister Michele who has been battling the disease. Your thoughts, prayers and money were greatly appreciated!!!

From Lorraine:

It is hard to believe that a month has passed since I walked 31 miles in this year’s MS Challenge Walk. We started at the 50 yard line of the U.S. Navy Stadium and walked for 2 days ending at Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. Once again, we were blessed with perfect weather and great volunteers supporting the walkers every step of the way.

I cannot thank you enough for supporting the MS Society, myself, and my sister Michele who I walk for. This year Michele did not participate because she married her best friend Elman Lobos! What a joy to see my sister so happy!

Life for Michele has changed by her disease, but the dedication of the MS Society to finding a cure, and family and friends raising money, has made great strides in fighting the disease. Michele is managing her MS through medication and we are thankful. Other folk’s struggles are more severe, because MS varies in symptoms and affliction no two cases are the same. Hope is the only thing that keeps some people going at times. Thank you for giving all those touched by this disease Hope!

This year we raised $2,115! In our 3 years of participating we have raised $8,328.14 toward fighting MS by finding a cure! What an awesome contribution – Thank You!

I am blessed with good health and great family and friends, I plan to walk every year that I can, to do my part in fighting the devastation that MS brings unwelcoming into people’s lives. I hope that you too will continue to support the efforts of the MS Society and those living with MS by staying on our team next year!

I have enclosed a picture of Michele and I with the quilt I made for her 40^th birthday from the tee-shirts she and I had worn (they were washed first) during the last 3 walks.

Thank you again for your love and support, I hope that you have a wonderful holiday season filled with God’s Blessings!

Peace,

Lorraine

Hello

I'm still bitter over the Project Runway thing so I had to take a break from blogging.

OK. That's only half true. I've actually been so flipping busy that I haven't had too much time to do it. I've been having a lot of fun though.

First, look at this picture. I had to order eye ointment for Duke. The cheapest place to purchase it was ironically from www.dog.com.

I paid extra shipping for overnight delivery. It came in this HUGE ASS box! Look how small the little tube of ointment is.

Last Friday was my friend Neil's 50th Birthday. He had a nice small dinner (only 30 people - which is actually small for Neil) at Pasta Brioni. He then had a big bash at one of the local bars here. I had a great time!

Saturday was Rickie's 24th birthday. It was a radically different scene. It was a combo birthday/fashion show. I had a blast. I loved hanging out with the rugby guys in a different setting. I laughed so hard because we are all so radically different. But everyone is nice and sweet so that's our common thread.

Last night some of us ruggers and my friend Ryan went to the Arizona State Fair. It was hysterical watching John A. buy anything and everything that was friend and on a stick. The pickle was REALLY tart! I tried a snickers and it was good but too sweet. I could only eat a quarter of it. I gave the rest away.

We got on some absolutely insane rides. The problem is, my fear of heights has gotten MUCH worse. I was so afraid I was going to fall off the stupid Skyline Ride (you know the hanging bench that goes from one side of the fair to the other). We got on one ride that had us hanging upside down 73 feet in the air. The only thing holding holding us in the seat was a little shoulder bar. I held on SOOO tight. I just felt that at any second the shoulder bar would fly up and I would fall out. According to its Web site, the open seating is supposed to give riders "an extra thrill."

I did get on the Zipper though, which is my absolute favorite ride ever!

My sister Lorraine has a message for all of you peeps. I'll post it tomorrow.
:-)

Wat de Fuch?

Ok. I'm never going to watch that piece of shit television show ever again. It's inconceivable to me how the man who created the crappiest, shittiest clothes wins the whole fucking show.

I can't believe Jeffrey won.

What's even more amazing is that Michael Knight sucked too. I was embarrassed for him. What the hell is this? And could someone please give that girl a sandwich?

Uli should have won. She had the best collection of clothes. And the judges were correct. Every woman in the world would want to wear them. I really loved the bathing suit.

Laura - my personal fave. Created a very nice elegant collection. True. It's nothing that makes you go WOW! But the clothes she makes are timeless and I think are exquisitely made.

So that's it. I boycotted American Idol after LaToya London got voted off before Jasmine Trias. I mean Jasmine SUCKED MAJOR and LaToya was the best singer out there. I never watched AI again. And I'm not going to watch PR again either.

Goodbye to You

This week, two of my favorite shows will be off the air. Two-A-Days is actually over now. I watched the final show this morning. And then I watched the "extra" episode online tonight.

Wednesday is the end of Project Runway. I hope Laura wins (but she won't). I hope Jeffrey is exposed for cheating (but he won't be).

It's interesting how I watch television on anything but a TV.

I don't own a DVR. I have Qwest cable because it has the Tennis Channel. Qwest doesn't rent out DVRs for an extra $10 per month or however much it costs. I don't want to buy a TiVo because I know I'll be with a different cable company in a year or so. And it doesn't make sense to buy one, because my new cable company will probably have a rentable DVR. Or, I'll end up getting an HDTV in a couple of years and would need a different TiVo model.

I watch most of my TV online or on my phone.

I always forget to set the VCR (or I set it to the wrong channel). So I end up watching Lost, Jericho and Grey's Anatomy online. I love ABC and CBS for doing this. It makes it SUPER convenient for me. And I'm so grateful that I even watch the stupid commercials (there's only three or four for the entire broadcast). I feel like I owe it to them, so I'll watch the Nasonex bee buzz around for 30 seconds every ten minutes.

I've downloaded the entire first season of Supernatual to my computer. Then I transfer a couple of episodes to my phone. At night I watch 10 - 20 minutes of it before turning out the light. It's great because I don't have a TV in my bedroom. And it's a show that I never get a chance to watch (I don't even know what night it shows on "real" TV).

I think I might get a Creative Zen or perhaps the Microsoft Zune when it comes out. That way I can watch videos on a larger screen. They're WAY better than iPods.

That's the future of television folks. I'm hoping the cable companies (and networks) get smart and just do things on demand. It makes more sense. I'm also hoping we'll have to stop spending XX amount of dollars on stupid channels like CSPAN, Outdoor or Wealth TV.

One final thing... A family of shrooms sprouted up outside of Joe's apartment. I took a picture with my phone but it was really bright outside so the wide shot didn't look too good. So I got on my hands and knees and took a closer pic and captured the neatest little animal.

Deep Purple

I'm addicted to AOL Radio. It's free. It's commercial free. And it's genre specific.

It also lets me program 5 stations like a real radio. So I've programmed the All Pearl Jam station (PJ 24/7!!!!), classic rock, 90s alternative rock, 1-Hit Wonders and 70s.

I'm really digging (pun intended) the 70s channel. It makes me feel happy and safe. I know that's funny to say, but it's true. It really takes me back to when I was a wee lad.

Most of the songs are typical songs -- hits from Barry Manilow, Neil Diamond, etc. But sometimes they throw in a zinger, like Playground in My Mind. We used to sing that song all the time when we were kids.

The 00s are very much like the 70s in some aspects. We have a crooked president. We have an unpopular war. We just need disco, bell bottoms, Tab and psychedelia to make a comeback and it'll be just like living in the past.

Oh, that reminds me. I saw a commercial for Weebles. They're making a comeback.

I LOVED our Weebles. We had the haunted house and the tree house.

HAPPY TUNESDAY!!!

One of the songs the 70s station played that I hadn't heard in a long time was Deep Purple by Donny & Marie. I can't believe there is a video of it on YouTube. When I wasn't being blinded by Marie's DAZZLING earrings, I noticed that Donny looks a lot like Steve May. How funny!

What a Difference a Week Makes

Saturday we played in a tens tournament in Flagstaff, AZ. Tens is like regular rugby except there are only 10 players. This is supposed to open the field up a lot. But the fields were really narrow and short, so it didn't.

But let me back up a little. Friday everybody drove up to Flag. It's about a 2 hour drive. It took Joe and I about 3 hours because we got caught in traffic.

Once we got up there, we had a couple of beers with everyone and headed to bed. I had my normal sleep drama (meaning I got none). I fell asleep for an hour and then was wide awake.

Since we were sharing a room with Robbie and Steven I couldn't turn on the TV. So, I sat on the couch (it was a suite), surfed the Net and played Tennis and Jeopardy on my phone. I finally fell back to sleep around 4. But our wakeup was at 6:45. That means I got a whopping 4 hours of interrupted sleep. :-(

Fortunately, I didn't feel sleepy all day.

We played three games on Saturday. Instead of 40 minute halves, we played 15 minutes halves (thank God!). The team that took the field on Saturday was RADICALLY different than the week before. Everyone played with incredible intensity.

We hit harder. We dove for balls. We ran our asses off. And we competed against more experienced players.

I won't go through play-by-play of each game but I wanted to relate a happy story.

During the first game we were just a few meters from the try zone. Rickie threw the ball to me and I dove onto the ground behind what I thought was the try zone. It wasn't (trust me, the fields were marked oddly and it was difficult to determine the various lines on the field).

I heard people screaming, "Release the ball."

In my head I was thinking, "Why? I just scored."

But then I felt two guys trying to get over me and get to the ball. Joe came up, grabbed the ball and ran it in for a try! It's his first ever. So, it was pretty exciting for me. He didn't think it was a big deal.

Tens is a different animal than fifteens and I felt like I was out of position a lot. I also seemed to do way more tackling than I'm used to and my body is REALLY sore. I have brusies on my back, sides, arms and I think my entire left leg.

I weigh about 50 - 80 pounds less than everyone I was tackling (the smaller guys played on every team we DIDN'T play). So sometimes I couldn't bring the guy down. I could only contain them until help arrived. That's kind of frustrating.

The rest of the day was great. Everyone played so well. I could name each person on the field and write a whole post on how well they did, but I'm tired. Just know that everyone who walked onto the field played with a purpose and it showed. Many people throughout the tournament came up to us and complimented on how well we've improved since last year. That means a lot!

.... Today was the second day of the Rainbows Festival. It was nice, but I was tired. The highlight of the day was when John and Jacque brought Lilly -- our rugger baby. She's so cute!

Decisions...Decisions...

Poor Meredith Grey. She was courted by McSteamy last year. Now she has to figure out if she wants McVet or McDreamy.

When I saw the Batman & Robin movie, I gasped out loud in the movie theater when it panned up to Chris O'Donnell's face. I thought it was so cute.

And then last Thursday night I gasped again at McSteamy's exit from the bathroom (see video below).

So now Meredith is having McVet and McDreamy compete for her affections. Honestly, I don't know what they see in her. She's decent looking. But SO self absorbed.

So my question to you dear readers is, which one would you choose? McVet, McDreamy or McSteamy?

Silent Lucidity

Monday evening, I dragged SJ to see QUEENSRŸCHE. Or as Joe called them Drama Queensryche. I'll explain in a second.

In the late 1980s, Queensryche was known as the "thinking man's heavy metal band." Instead of writing songs about booze, women and sex, they wrote about social injustice, introspective pieces on how the mind works and esoteric subjects.

In 1988 they released a concept album called Operation: Mindcrime. It's way too complex to give a description but let me steal a sentence from Wikipedia: It is about a man becoming disillusioned with American society, and joining in a conspiratorial plot to assassinate its corrupt leaders, with spoken dialogue between songs that advances the story and ties the songs together. (Click here for a paragraph on the storyline--it's actually quite interesting).

When I was sent to Kuwait, I listened to this record almost every day. It saved me from the intense boredom of being stuck in the desert for months. I dissected all of the words and tried to piece parts of the story together.

The words are dark and angry and fitting. For example, here's a sample from Speak:
Seven years of power
The corporation claw
The rich control the government, the media the law
To make some kind of difference
Then everyone must know
Eradicate the fascists, revolution will grow

The system we learn says we're equal under law
But the streets are reality, the weak and poor will fall
Let's tip the power balance and tear down their crown
Educate the masses, We'll burn the White House down

Fast forward 18 years. Queensryche wrote the sequel to the first album. It's even more angry at the political situation than the first one. Ironically, the first was written when Bush was in office. The second one was written when his son was in office. Bush sucks!

This past Monday, Queensryche performed both records in their entirety back to back (with an intermission) at the Dodge Theater. Instead of the normal concert routine though, they had a set, actors, and extensive video and lighting. It was pretty damned cool.

Of course, it was a little difficult to follow for Joe. At one point, Geoff Tate (and the crowd) was singing Revolution Calling. Joe didn't know what the "C" word was. He thought it was coolie.

In other news... we're going to Flagstaff tomorrow to play rugby in a tens tournament. This is a little different way of playing rugby. There's a lot more running in the open field. I'm really looking forward to it. I didn't get to go last year because of a wedding.

I missed Tunesday. So here's a video from the Ryche. This is from their album Empire. Silent Lucidity was their biggest song from the biggest record.

This Will Only Hurt a Little

Saturday we played Thunderbird. We came to play rugby. But actually what happened was the Phoenix Storm watched Thunderbird play rugby. We (the Phoenix Storm) just kind of stood there (in the 100 degree heat) the whole time and watched as Thunderbird scored again, again and again. Oh and again and again...

It was the worst game we've ever played. And it was terribly frustrating. And I'm still pissed.

Before the game, Phill gave us backs a little slip of paper. On it were things we needed to remember during the game. For me, he wrote to be a more (vocal) leader on the pitch, to take some risks (although it wasn't stated, I inferred he meant defensively) and to follow through when I threw the ball.

I was much more vocal on the pitch than I've been in the past. I don't know if it did any good. But I was yelling and talking a lot. I never got a chance to take any risks (offensively or defensively). It was more important to try to slow the train wreck. I only got to touch the ball once or twice offensively. But I didn't throw the ball away when I did get it, so that's good.

I don't know what the hell happened. All last year, our forwards (the big guys) were so strong. They really managed to hold their own in scrums, rucks and defensively. But Saturday, they just kind of stood there and watched the ball roll on the ground in front of them. When a T-bird had the ball, the wouldn't run up to the guy and tackle him. Instead, they waited until the guy with the ball approached them. That does no good. There was no aggression.

I found myself having to tackle (or attempt to tackle) too many forwards. Although I don't mind, I shouldn't have to continually tackle guys 100 pounds heavier than me. Don't get me wrong. I could have played better too. I needed to tackle lower. And there were a couple of times I probably could have been more aggressive.

I managed to burst a blood vessel around my eye. After I tackled (or tried to tackle -- honestly, sometimes I was just hanging on the person until someone helped bring the guy down) someone my right eye was blurry. I thought my contact was messed up. But after the game everybody made fun of "my mascara running." I also managed to jam my thumb. I heard a crack or a pop. It's still swollen at the joint and I can't bend it very well. And I have the obligatory scabby knees (it wouldn't be a rugby match without them).

There were some success stories to Saturday. John A. -- the oldest guy on the pitch at 51 -- played the hardest. I've told him before that he's an inspiration for me. Once again, he was. He was honored with forward of the match. And Padlock Tony deservingly won back of the match.

After the game, Phill told us all to think of why we're there. Were we there to play rugby or for social reasons? I'm afraid of how people will answer...

I was bitching to Kevin about the game today. He said, "When I watched you guys play it was obvious that you, Joe, that tall guy (Dave) and maybe one or two others played like you cared. The rest are in it for social reasons and that's it."

Grr...

So, I was up late Saturday night thinking about the game. While Joe was sleeping I caught a couple of episodes of this show called Two-A-Days on MTV. It's about a high school football team. The team is #2 in the nation and undefeated after 27 games. It was interesting to watch them finally lose a game (I think #28) and how they responded. I hope we bounce back. I hope we play with purpose.

In other news... Joe and I watch Underworld: Evolution. It was ok but a little confusing since I didn't see the first one. We also watched the remake of Poseidon. It sucked compared to the original, The Poseidon Adventure. The first one is bad. But it's campy bad. The remake was just crappy.

That's all for now.