House of Cards, season 2, ep. 3

The stories seem to be hitting its stride a bit. There's a neat scene here where Frank needs to get a certain bill through the Senate, and the GOPpers are absent so as to throw off quorum. It's about social security age and entitlement reform, and the Republican Party is of differing minds not he degree to which to cooperate. (The WaPo write-up indicates a lot of people online see one of the dissenting delayers is a Ted Cruz pastiche. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/style-blog/wp/2014/02/19/house-of-cards-recap-season-2-episode-3-whatever-faith-i-have-is-quickly-evaporating/)

Things this episode got right:

Star Wars Phantom Menace famously flubbed the idea of building suspense in something as wonkish as parliamentary procedure. Simpsons really nailed them on this in Cosmic Wars: A Gathering Shadow. This HoC episode did a neat job of making "how do we break this gridlock" interesting without being too much of a departure from reality. There may have been some "I'm not sure it'd work just like that", but that's okay. That's different from "Shenanigans!!" Five years ago we might have said nothing like rounding up the absent senators under threat of arrest could happen, but with some state legislative factions getting cutesy over the past couple of years this seems much less far-fetched.

Very well done --- this episode managed to contain both tea party legislators AND someone (the resurfaced Rachel, re-re-re-stashed and threatened ex-hooker that knows too much about the late PA rep's fall off the wagon) being invited to a local Christian group and deciding to go there in search of a little solace when beaten down and confused.  Amazingly, both are presented not with the usual Hollywood straw man ridicule but actually in a relatively straightforward way. Kudos for that.

The guy applying to be the Underwoods' new press officer also got a great intro, in terms of saying actual astute press officer things. Hope they keep with that.

The male RIP-Zoe-ex-bf journo editor gumshoeing about seems a bit meh. It's good in that it's suspenseful  and you really don't know who's behind the "deep web" info he's getting with tantalizing promise of records on Frank... But I came out of it a bit when he gets a burner ipad (helluva expensive way to connect with someone), complete with a magazine cutout note with the completely unnecessary instruction to turn it on (what else did you think he might do with it, lacking that helpful instruction?) They also seem to be doing the "I asked you if you're an undercover cop so you have to tell me by law" thing, which is of course fertilizer.

The Frank vs. Major Dad Warren Buffet thing is played much better this time. That ol' buddy warns the prez against Frank shitting the bed, and then Frank (for the...6th time in a dozen episodes?) gets the bill he wants through a step, to which Major Dad sez "I said all along you had this on lockdown"... Frank nicely calls BS. For maybe the first time I'm genuinely interested now to see how that dynamic rolls.

House of Cards, season 2, ep. 2

So, this take will be much shorter. Impressions from the second episode.

It's great to see frank have an actual human reaction and even get emotional about something. When Claire shares that the soldier Frank has to pin a star on assaulted her when they were in college, he's furious and ready to go kick the guy's ass and/or destroy him. Good for Frank. He has to be somewhat believable and "real world", after all.

We're some more setup of stuff... like a house of cards I suppose, go fig. Frank (sneakily) gets the president to go against his Warren Buffet-esque chum and broach the suubject of cybersecurity with the Chinese delegation. Frank (sneakily) works tog et his preferred unqualified person in for House Majority Whip, getting her to ultimately let the world know that congressman-with-the-developmentally-disabled-daughter has a developmentally disabled daughter. This one seemed a bit cumbersome, in that how exactly is that going to "break" someone these days? But anyway we seemingly have our surrogate Peter Russo "Gee thanks for getting me in over my head" guy/gal.

Zoe's boyfriend / former editor obsessing over her death is fairly interesting. That's the best thread they've had with the journos for a while. I also like the fact that Franks evens to have underestimated what a pain in the ass it would be to turn a regular house into the VP residence.

The president still seems a little non-descript. I think if he was I a scene that wasn't in the Oval Office I might need someone to remind me that's the prez. Maybe he'll do something soon besides being the other other other older white guy Frank acquiesces to and then tats (sneakily).

WaPo spoiler free review is here... http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/style-blog/wp/2014/02/14/house-of-cards-recap-season-2-episode-1-hunt-or-be-hunted/ kudos to them for good cliff's notes...

House of Cards Season 2 Ep 1

So I'm gonna try to blog my reactions to episodes of the new season of House of Cards, which cam available 2/14. Spoilers abound, of course.

2.1

It really would have helped if they've started with a bit of a "Previously on House of Cards" or somehow worked in a refresher. Like most people it's been quite a few months since I binge watched the 1st run. This jumps right in with a lot of "They're going to speak to Rachel!!" and I was left trying to remember who the hell Rachel was and where she'd been left in the story. As a result, maybe half of this episode seemed a bit scrambly. Of course with a show like this you don't want to go pause and look stuff up because you're liable to inadvertently stumble across someone being tossed off the show prematurely.

Course, on the subject of someone getting the old heave-ho, it was a shock to see The Chipmunk Zoe bring a new meaning of "press" to the MTA train. In retrospect it shouldn't be a surprise, I suppose.... The intrepid cub reporter unraveling the twisted baddie's web is a pretty perilous role to be in. But whacking a featured player out of the cast in the middle of 2.1 is impactful.... Err maybe impactful isn't the word to use. Kudos to those involved keeping that twist secret somehow.

It wasn't till I read the WaPo blog (http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/style-blog/wp/2014/02/14/house-of-cards-recap-season-2-episode-1-hunt-or-be-hunted/) that I even realized there was some explanation in the whole Claire/ former business partner gal suing for wrongful termination thing. I missed that the drug Claire asked the doctor about was the same that the other gal needs to get for her pregglet, and Claire only got the information to... somehow see what specifically could be done to twist the knife on her? I dunno I put this in that column that really could have benefitted from a refresher course as well. I never got that emotionally invested in the fired ex-business partner at the NGO storyline, so the nuance seemed lost. I didn't even get til perusing the article that's (probably) why Claire went to the doc to begin with and the point of her canceling future visits.

In retrospect that whole thing seems a bit of a miss. Going to a doctor under a fake ruse you set up and act out to ask of he knows about a certain drug... I dunno, even if she couldn't find info online like they said, it seems you could just ask  a doctor friend contact if he knows anything about what it is and what they do.

I dunno if they really 100% know what they want to do with Claire, though. Is she a female Frank? She's certainly not his conscience. The whole boring thing with the European photographer presumably was to say she has some humanity and femininity Frank doesn't, but it seems inconsistently applied.

I suspect there are some seeds that were planted in episode 1 that for now I didn't even recognize as seeds. Let's hope some good fruit bears out. 

We got one good plum already with RIP Chipmunk Zoe.

Happy trails to you....

So I was researching (aka stumbling around on Google) to make a larger point, and came across the fact that if you search Miley Cyrus you get 35 million news stories.

I, for one, welcome our new insect overlords.

New piece in Drawnlines.com

I'm not much better about posting there regularly than I do here on my own blog... however, por favor check out this piece I just wrote a piece about the Coca-Cola / Super Bowl thing.

Also, Coca-Cola is short for COmmunist CAbal COnspiracy… ummm LA. (via www.drawnlines.com)

I’m going to do something here nobody else has done anywhere else on the Internet… talk about Coca-Cola’s Super Bowl ad. I’m of course employing a bit of sarcasm. (Also something no one has ever done on the Internet.) A quick Google News search…

---

Maybe Bradley v1.1 can post some

Maybe I'm missing something. It seems 7 or 8 years ago there was suddenly a lot of discussion about human cloning... ethical concerns, issues of rights, a bit about the march of technology, etc.

There was a lot of "what do we do, and what does it all mean?" There were well-publicized but ultimately bullcrap claims by groups saying they were already doing it.

Then a couple of governments passed laws that said "No! We disapprove."

... and... that's that? We just figured set it and forget it?

No scientist is ever gonna work on something that would change the world and make history so long as it's... federally disapproved of?

What blog? This is a... wording!

No one ever shook their ass suggestively when dancing before "twerking" in 2013.

Technology allowed "selfies", the amazing new phenomenon of taking a picture of yourself.

"The Knockout Game" introduced the never-ever before seen occurrence of delinquents finding fun in randomly beating the crap out of somebody.

I think 2013 might have been the year of pretending something is new because we just agreed to call it something else. I drove by Barnes and Noble yesterday, and I noticed it was full of, umm... "pagies"

Lines in Star Wars That Make Absolutely No Gorram Sense Thanks To ThePrequels

I'm sure I'm not the first one to do this. I'm probably not even the first person to do it on blogspot. 

But Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope is on, and I find myself wondering if George Lucas paid any damn attention at all to his own movie when he was farting out the prequels that are supposedly tied to this series. 

This is kinda low-res, but it has the part of the movie I want to look at. It's also one of the very few parts of the original trilogy that tells us the backstory. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZ_mjtTCdcg

This is from the shooting script, lovingly stolen from http://www.imsdb.com/scripts/Star-Wars-A-New-Hope.html. I'll offset my comments in red... 

BEN 

Well of course, of course I know him. He's me! I haven't gone by the name Obi-Wan since oh, before you were born. Or, ya know, soon thereafter actually. (Mind you, there's no particular reason for Obi-Wan to lie about this, and certainly wouldn't be mistaken.)

 LUKE 

 Then the droid does belong to you. 

 BEN 

 Don't seem to remember ever owning a droid. Very interesting...Well, okay actually I spent many years not only with a droid but this very same one.

He suddenly looks up at the overhanging cliffs. 

<<<>>>

 INT. KENOBI'S DWELLING The small, spartan hovel is cluttered with desert junk but still manages to radiate an air of time-worn comfort and security. Luke is in one corner repairing Threepio's arm, as old Ben sits thinking. 

 LUKE 

No, my father didn't fight in the wars. He was a navigator on a spice freighter. 

BEN 

That's what your uncle told you. He didn't hold with your father's ideals. Anakin's ideals were --- autocratic dictatorial rule would make things run a lot more smoothly. Oh, and his uncle's last experience with Anakin was his slaughtering an entire village singlehandedly and one-by-one.

Thought he should have stayed here and not gotten involved. He didn't leave because of his ideals, he was taken from Tattooine as a tiny kid (by Obi-Wan).

 LUKE 

You fought in the Clone Wars? 

BEN 

Yes, I was once a Jedi Knight the same as your father. 

LUKE 

 I wish I'd known him. 

BEN 

He was the best star-pilot in the galaxy, and a cunning warrior. I understand you've become quite a good pilot yourself. And he was a good friend. This may be true, but really we just see the scenes of Anakin being douchey and bitching to Obi-Wan.

Which reminds me... 

Ben gets up and goes to a chest where he rummages around. As Luke finishes repairing Threepio and starts to fit the restraining bolt back on, Threepio looks at him nervously. Luke thinks about the bolt for a moment then puts it on the table. Ben shuffles up and presents Luke with a short handle with several electronic gadgets attached to it. 

BEN 

 I have something here for you. Your father wanted you to have this when you were old enough, but your uncle wouldn't allow it. Or, ya know, he had no idea he even had a son and never said anything of the sort. Let's look at this one for a minute. If Obi Wan is NOT honoring Anakin's wishes here, there's only one other reason he could be handing Luke a lightsaber. It's to get him started on the path to being a Jedi, under the false pretense of it having been what his father wanted. And if this was Obi-Wan's agenda he wouldn't have been hiding OR waited until Luke was so much older than Jedis begin training... and must unlearn what he has learned.

 He feared you might follow old Obi-Wan on some damned-fool idealistic crusade like your father did. Again, Anakin didn't follow Obi-Wan crusading 

 THREEPIO 

Sir, if you'll not be needing me, I'll close down for awhile. 

 LUKE 

 Sure, go ahead. Ben hands Luke the saber. 

LUKE 

What is it? 

BEN

 Your fathers lightsaber. This is the weapon of a Jedi Knight. Also of jedis that aren't masters, and of Sith. I really should explain those too. But I'm sure I'll get to them later... or, ya know, not.   

Not as clumsy or as random as a blaster. 

Luke pushes a button on the handle. A long beam shoots out about four feet and flickers there. The light plays across the ceiling. 

BEN 

An elegant weapon for a more civilized time. For over a thousand generations the Jedi Knights were the guardians of peace and justice in the Old Republic. Before the dark times, before the Empire.  

Luke hasn't really been listening. 

LUKE 

How did my father die? 

 BEN 

A young Jedi named Darth Vader, who was a pupil of mine until he turned to evil, helped the Empire hunt down and destroy the Jedi Knights. He betrayed and murdered your father. Now the Jedi are all but extinct. Vader was seduced by the dark side of the Force. 

 LUKE 

 The Force? 

BEN 

Well, the Force is what gives a Jedi his power. It's an energy field created by all living things. MIDIfreakingCHLORIANS. It surrounds us and penetrates us. It binds the galaxy together. 

Artoo makes beeping sounds. 

BEN 

Now, let's see if we can't figure out what you are, my little friend. And where you come from. 

 LUKE 

 I saw part of the message he was... 

 Luke is cut short as the recorded image of the beautiful young Rebel princess is projected from Artoo's face. 

BEN 

 I seem to have found it. Luke stops his work as the lovely girl's image flickers before his eyes. 

 LEIA 

General Kenobi, years ago you served my father in the Clone Wars.  

Or, ya know, what you were doing during the Clone Wars had nothing to do with her father.

Now he begs you to help him in his struggle against the Empire. I regret that I am unable to present my father's request to you in person, but my ship has fallen under attack and I'm afraid my mission to bring you to Alderaan has failed. I have placed information vital to the survival of the Rebellion into the memory systems of this R2 unit. My father will know how to retrieve it. You must see this droid safely delivered to him on Alderaan. This is our most desperate hour. Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi, you're my only hope.

Is this overly dissecting one scene? Probably. But this is basically the only thing the prequels had to jive with --- this and a bit of Yoda's explanation in Empire. So why have basically everything Obi-Wan explain be contradicted?

Later on after Jedi they even make the point that Obi-Wan's misleading information about Vader killing Luke's father is true from a certain point of view... and ignore the fact that apparently everything else he said at the time was also off.

Thoughts?

Drawnlines.com article - Your 2014 Resolution: Stop Using These Phrases in Politics

Your 2014 Resolution: Stop Using These Phrases in Politics (via www.drawnlines.com)

As 2014 dawns, here’s a list of some expressions you can help by leaving in 2013 alongside the unfortunately indelible memory of “twerking”.   THIS: “Well at least he did something. He should get credit for doing something about the issue.”…

---

The problem with most TV advertising today

"You know that commercial where the guy in a suit is talking with a bunch of kindergarteners and they say cute stuff?"

"Of course, those are great commercials. I love them, the kids are so cute and the ads are always so memorable."

"Yep, that's it. What's it an ad for?"

"Ummm.... I wanna say a bank? Or is it some kind of insurance? A lot of those are insurance."

(For what it's worth, they're for......

AT&T)

Maybe it's an elaborate marketing ploy by Poli-Grip?

So Tim Tebow's gonna be a guest commentator for ESPN. Seems a good choice, he speaks well and can offer some insights, seems generally likable.

 Hey, here's an idea... How bout they swap him in instead of mealymouth Lou Holtz. Or Mack Brown, I hear-tell he has some time on his hands. Hell, let Gallagher on there with his sledgehammer... His insights will sounds just as silly, and the studio won't get any wetter than it does from his schhhhlober flying around.

The big question (no, not Sammy or Dave)

Had an interesting conversation come up in a recent discussion in a community group I was part of. We were taking a look at the generations (millennials, greatest generation, baby boomers, etc.) In this particular conversation we were talking about my own age group... for the sake of this illustration let's say those born between 1973 and 1983.

The question was.... do we ask "The Big Question"?
Obligatory Monty Python reference...

That is to say, does my generation preoccupy ourselves with --- or at least discuss --- What's it all about? Is there a higher power? Why be moral? 

My answer at the time was, generally speaking, no. These are not priorities for my generation. I said we care about two things:

1) Being distracted/entertained... we want the latest games, electronics, Netflix, etc. to occupy our attention and amuse us.

2) Having our individuality recognized and celebrated... well we were raised for decades being told how we were each a beautiful snowflake full of potentiality etc. etc.... we got in the workforce and even if you're 22 with a BA in English, we are special and wanna be heard and challenged and patted on the head, dagummit.

What do you think? Does the 30-40 set think much about "dear 8 pound, 6 ounce baby Jesus"?

If not, is it just because most people don't think about such weighty issues as they start off on what's supposedly adulthood? Or is there more?

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Honestly, is there a real rash of ChiComm trying to break into my time entry system to illicitly enter hours on my timesheet in my name?  Errr....

Maybe people were confused what it was going to be about

Battleship director says he's finally figured out why it was a massive flop

http://www.blastr.com/2013-8-19/battleship-director-says-hes-finally-figured-out-why-it-was-massive-flop

Amazingly, the answer STILL isn't "Turns out nobody was even a little bit interested in seeing it."

No. Dude sez it was lack of star power. Cuz, yeah... Liam Neeson in an action flick in early 2012 was slappin' together a real indie no-name kinda cast.

Quick! What color is the bailiff's watchband? It could change everything!

Dear news media,

The following is a list of the 1,000 things I need to hear about the Zimmerman / Trayvon Martin trial:

1. Verdict.

Ummm, actually that's about it. Is Kate Upton going to be there for some reason? No? Okay, then yeah... the outcome.

Hugs and kisses,

Bradley

Mutually Assured Corrpution

I've posted another one of my political pieces to Drawlines. http://drawnlines.com/better-living-through-mutually-assured-corruption/. This one is called "Better Living Through Mutually Assured Corruption".

an open letter to...

Dear News Media,
If my social media streams are anything like a representative sample, you all are the only ones who seem to give two craps about the minutia of the jury proceedings in the trial of Jodi Arias.

Hugs and kisses,
me

Is it worth 60 Minutes?

So, an NBA player I've never heard of (which, to be fair is probably 85% of the league) came out and is the first active player in a major men's sport to do so. Being the first to do something like that is a huge decision, and of course one that ain't easy...

Enough has been / is being said about that... I'm interested in a ripple.



One athlete, newly signed Dolphins WR Mike Wallace, said on Twitter "I'm not bashing anybody don't have anything against anyone I just don't understand it." "All these beautiful women in the world and guys wanna mess with other guys SMH..."



One little bit of clarification... I'd seen "SMH" to mean so much hate, but I heard this AM that this is more likely shaking my head.

The news media, in a story like this, desperately wants a bad guy. There's only so much life, and very little conflict (woohoo conflict!) in a news story if it's met only with active and former players and celebs universally coming out and all saying something to the extent of "Good for him. We support you."

Secretly, or perhaps not so secretly, the media really wants someone to say "Well if I see him I'm gonna punch him hard in his face with my hand because queer. Grrrr!" What reporters love more than men or women is being able to say "We're not gonna call this guy a knuckle-dragger... but... here's what he said, and here's someone else who said this guy's a real knuckle-dragger."


The awkwardness here is that this isn't what Mike Wallace said. Wallace basically said "I don't get it and can't relate. I like women. I don't see it."

You can't subtextually suggest people grab their torches and head for someone's house for saying "That's his thing. Mine's chicks." To be proportional, the suggestion has to be... umm... let's all go and turn this guy's thermostat up from 70 to 73.


I'm sure Bill Romanowski's phone is probably ringing off the hook. There are a lot of cub reporters out there who are desperately seeking someone who will say "Grab a rope let's string this guy up. Yeehaw"

So far the closest I've heard was Chris Broussard on ESPN saying he's been led to believe it's a sin, and that he also holds in his heart that premarital sex goes against his personal beliefs. Some more on that here... http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nba-ball-dont-lie/espn-chris-broussard-clarifies-views-jason-collins-don-221941033.html

May that be the worst that comes out of this.

Side note, and a bit of stupid humor (b/c what would this vanity blog be without...)

Do you suppose this makes it harder to be the color commentator for the next game this guy plays? There's a lot of unintentional double entendre in sports speak, esp. if you're a giggly third grader. Collins comes out with the ball, penetrates hard into the lane, etc. etc.

Too hard to be an I- and an O' before everything?

http://allthingsd.com/20130310/online-betting-site-intrade-shuts-down/

So apparently the Ireland-based trading site Intrade is shutting down because of “financial irregularities which, in accordance with Irish law," require them to cease operations. It's one of those sites where you can bet on non-sports stuff, like presidential elections.

I'm thinking there's a joke in there somewhere regarding weird finances and an Irish website for bookmaking. Something about the potatoes ->  shamrocks exchange rate. But I can't quite put it together.

Not (entirely) because it's racist/lazy... more because the humor's only marginal...

And everyone knows you don't go marginal on potatoes, you need to use better.

No. That was... wow but did that suck.

Thou Shalt Meme

We watched the Bible miniseries last night... 

I dunno, I think they may be taking some liberties with some of it. I don't remember the part about Noah and all the animals doing a Harlem Shake video.

'Merica!

College baseball season starts today. What's that, you say you don't care about college baseball?

Ya know who else didn't care about college baseball? That's right, Hitler.

So tune in for FSU vs. Rhode Island at 4 pm. Or be just like Hitler.

Can I carry around a "Like" Button?

I confess that I don't know how to process it when someone walks up to me and starts a conversation with "I thought what you put up on Facebook was really funny. I always think your stuff is great."

My initial reaction is to think Dammit, I have no use for real-world feedback. If you like something, post on Facebook that you like it. Plus, hey, then the world can see how genius you think I am!

But I'm fairly certain that's not a healthy or proper response.

Facebook is my meth. Or, more to the point, getting feedback from my peeps is my meth.

Walking up to me and just telling em you liked something is... like showing me a picture of meth instead.

Wait, no, that's a pretty shitty analogy. I need to figure out a better metaphor. And figure out how to respond when people say they liked something I put online.  Damn you, first world problems!

How to Cook Everything (Abridged)

So, I noticed in our kitchen there's a giant cookbook called How To Cook Everything.

I dunno, we must have picked it up when were in Georgia, because the entire thing's blank except for one page that just says:

"Deep-fry it".

Then underneath it says "Serve it with white gravy."

There's no I in Christmas... oh wait...

Clearing up for those needed. Things Christians SHOULD, and SHOULD NOT get worked up about around Christmas.

YES:
Menorah + Christmas tree do not = balanced decorations

Why it's probably worth it:
A menorah is a religious decoration. A nativity scene is a religious decoration. A Christmas tree is not a religious decoration.

Christmas tree instead of nativity is "Well we don't want to put up anything religious."

Okay. Then take down the menorah. It has to be both or neither.

NO:
WalKMartcy's says Happy Holidays in their advertisements instead of Merry Christmas! Boycott them!

Why it's misguided:
Retailers' primary purpose for the holidays is to run specials, generate sales, etc. This holiday agenda has nothing to do with the Christian notion of what Christmas is to be about. So... if they want to turn their promotions around this season into being 10% off for the holidays rather than 10% off because of the birth of Christ... let'em. 

The local Kim Kardashian perfume vendor shouldn't really factor that much into whether you observe the season in your particular house of worship.

YES:
Holiday specials about "the true meaning of Christmas"

Why it's probably worth it:
The last TV special that actually addressed the meaning of Christmas was the Charlie Brown one. Not saying it's been a long time, but I think there's a scene where they're sitting around smoking Lucky Strikes. It seems like instead there are a lot where Christmas is about reconnecting with a deadbeat estranged father, finding a nice boyfriend, or successfully accomplishing the task of spending a harmonious evening with your family.

There's one "true meaning of Christmas"... everything else is fodder for a Harriet Carter mail order coffee mug assortment.

NO:
It's not Xmas! It's Christmas!

Why it's misguided:
Do people sometimes use this because they don't want to mention Christ? I suppose. But more often it's likely because it takes up less space. And, as countless articles on the interwebz will tell you, chi, which is the Greek root of the letter X, and was the first letter of the Greek spelling. 

There's more important things to get worked up about, such as...

YES:
We're out of egg nog.

Nuff said.


   

New German word

Kammongitmoven -- the act of a pedestrian who sees the driver wave him to pass, slows down and gawks in front of the driver as if a car is a purple cow rather than shuffling out of the way.

Sent from my iPhone

might I borrow your buggywhip for a fortnight?

Had an interesting experience the other day that was probably irrelevant but I can still wax philosophic about, and after all isn't that what vanity blogs are for?

The other day I uttered three little words, words that used to be really common but I find few people utter anymore. And lest you think this is one of those romantic wanderings, it was "It's for you."

Yes, someone called my phone looking for someone else. It occurs to me this used to happen all the time, and now it's a completely bizarre occurrence. Like someone smoking a cigarette indoors and not having five people scream "WITCH!!!" and start boiling tar and plucking feathers.

I have about 1/3 of a complete thought on all the daily common experiences that are becoming outdated in less than a generation... certainly reinforced by seeing ads for "You've Got Mail" and ruminating on the point that this statement probably means nothing to a youngster now and meant nothing to anyone 25 years ago. Will report back if I ever do figure out what the point of this is.

Fourth meal after a fifth of Cuervo?

Dear Taco Bell,
Half your ads talk about fine Mexican culinary planning of your meals, which is bullcrap, and the other half says you appeal to drunk guys at 4:10 in the morning, which is absolutely true.
You may want to look into that.

Love,
Bradley

My new German word...

Kaputenfergoten --- the guilty feeling you get when the news comes out that an old time former celebrity died and you thought they were already dead.

Dear Mr. rebreG,

Dear Mr. Gerber,

We will not be referring to the upcoming FSU - USF game as "The Dyslexia Bowl". We consider the issue closed. Please do not write us again regarding this matter.

Hugs and kisses,

Florida State University

A Facebook group management rant

"I just joined your Facebook group so that I could post something for everyone to see. It looks like it's locked. Why is that?"

"Because you just joined the Facebook group so you could post something for everyone to see."