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Mookie livejournal....

added: Tue, 11th October 2005 | 529 views | 0x in favourites
feed url: http://www.livejournal.com/~mookieghana/data/rss

Politics, Wrestling, Religion, Finance

Latest feed entries:

The local news had a graphic of a hot dog during the weather forecast today!

Really, the big news this week is that NBC averaged 31.1 million viewers on Saturday Night during the rocking Michael Phelps medal #8 extravangza. I was performing a show in the Cabaret that evening and there was such a loud pop & ovation from next door (in the hotel bar lounge) when it happened. My favorite tidbit is that they were not able to beat the longstanding record of 31.4 million viewers on Saturday Night for a 1990 episode of EMPTY NEST. WHO LOVES EMPTY NEST THAT MUCH? I could understand it for a very special episode of ALF where he confronts the peeping neighbor and gets to eat the cat or an episode of Inspector Gadget where they show Dr. Claw's face but EMPTY NEST?! NAY I SAY.

Sodium Fun!

Currently Watching: Jeff Hardy vs Shelton Benjamin (Smackdown, aired 8/16/08): Great match. Good calls from Tazz & JR. A little sloppy at the end, but Shelton has been excellent. MVP messes up their match AGAIN which makes sense.

Top Ten Countries earning medals per per capita (prior to 2008 Olympics)

Liechtenstein Liechtenstein (LIE) - 9 medals, 30 games, 36k people
Norway Norway (NOR) - 415 medals, 42 games, 4.8m people
Finland Finland (FIN) - 446 medals, 42 games, 5.3m people
Sweden Sweden (SWE) - 588 medals, 44 games, 9.2m people
Hungary Hungary (HUN) - 454 medals, 43 games, 10.0m people
Switzerland Switzerland (SUI) - 292 medals, 45 games, 7.6m people
East Germany East Germany (GDR) - 519 medals, 11 games, 16.1m people (as of 1991)
Austria Austria (AUT) - 268 medals, 44 games, 8.3m people
Denmark Denmark (DEN) - 164 medals, 35 games, 5.5m people
Bulgaria Bulgaria (BUL) - 213 medals, 34 games, 7.6m people

Best Five Winter Games (medals per capita): Liechtenstein, Norway, Finland, Austria, Switzerland
Best Five Summer Games (medals per capita): Finland, Sweden, Hungary, Denmark, Norway

If Equestrian will be in the Summer games, Dogsled racing should be in the Winter Games. In exchange, Summer Games should get Super Slip N' Slide - it's essentially the equivilant of luge.

Rock on! Delicious breakfast: Potato Soup, New Pretzel/Normal Crackers, Dr. Pepper: SODIUM HO~!

Why each of these Trotsky deaths is merely a variation!!

I'm sure others have asked. What's on Michael Phelp's hiphop iPod? I'm going to guess Kayne West's "Stronger". Alissa is doing better - last night was probably the worst night of coughing and sickness, but she rebounded considerably today. Yippee! I finally saw Trampoline today. Baseball is out but Trampoline is in. Okay. I think there should be a new event called, "Ye Olde European Gentlemen Trophy Club" and move over Olympic events such as shooting, equestrian, badminton and rowing. Rock!

Delaney Done!

WWE announced this afternoon that they had released Colin Delaney.  Other long-timers recently released include ref Nick Patrick, Nunzio, Steven Richards as well as newer to WWE faces such as Domino, Cherry and Chris Harris.  Such is life.  It was very exciting to turn on the TV and see Colin on ECW each week.  Honestly, in the eight months since he started, he only missed a handful of shows.  He even made a few appearances on both Smackdown (losing to Kozlov, teaming with Batista) and RAW (being killed by Umaga, getting beat up by JBL).  Each week, when Colin would face a monster superstar like Kane, Mark Henry, Great Khali, Viscera and even BIG SHOW, I couldn't believe it.  These were guys we'd joked about while watching PPVs - now Colin was wrestling them on national television.

I kept a blog detailing his progress at http://colin-delaney-tracker.blogspot.com

ECW - 8/12/08 - Tommy Dreamer vs Colin Delaney
ECW - 8/2/08 - Colin Delaney tries to interfere during Dreamer/Estrada
ECW - 7/29/08 - Colin Delaney vs Matt Hardy
ECW - 7/22/08 - Colin Delaney vs Tommy Dreamer
PPV - 7/20/08 - Great American Bash - Colin Delaney turns heel during Henry/Dreamer
ECW - 7/15/08 - Mark Henry attacks Colin Delaney backstage
ECW - 7/8/08 - Tommy Dreamer w/ Colin Delaney vs Mark Henry
ECW - 7/1/08 - Colin Delaney vs Mark Henry
RAW - 6/23/08 - Umaga kills Tommy Dreamer & Colin Delaney
ECW - 6/10/08 - Colin Delaney vs Armando Estrada
Smackdown - 6/9/08 - Batista, Colin Delaney, Nunzio and Funaki vs Edge, Hawkins, Ryder and Chavo Guerrero
ECW - 6/3/08 - Colin Delaney vs Armando Estrada
ECW - 5/27/08 - Colin Delaney Interview w/ Lena
ECW - 5/20/08 - Colin Delaney & Kelly Kelly vs Mike Knox & Layla
ECW - 5/13/08 - Colin Delaney vs Mike Knox
ECW - 5/6/08 - Colin Delaney vs Armando Estrada
Smackdown - 5/2/08 - Colin Delaney vs Vladimir Kozlov
ECW - 4/15/08 - Colin Delaney vs Mike Knox
ECW - 4/8/08 - Colin Delaney vs Tommy Dreamer
ECW - 4/1/08 - Big Show vs Colin Delaney
ECW - 3/25/08 - Tommy Dreamer challenges Chavo Guerrero
ECW - 3/18/08 - Colin Delaney vs Chavo Guerrero
RAW - 3/17/08 - Colin Delaney vs JBL
ECW - 3/12/08 - EXTREME RULES: Colin Delaney & Tommy Dreamer vs Miz & Morrison
ECW - 3/5/08 - Colin Delaney & Tommy Dreamer vs Miz & Morrison
ECW - 2/26/08 - Colin Delaney & Tommy Dreamer vs Miz & Morrison
ECW - 2/19/08 - Colin Delaney vs Miz
ECW - 2/12/08 - Tommy Dreamer (w/ Colin Delaney) vs John Morrison
ECW - 2/5/08 - Tommy Dreamer (w/ Colin Delaney) vs Miz (w/ Morrison)
ECW - 1/29/08 - Colin Delaney vs Miz & Morrison
ECW - 1/22/08 - Colin Delaney vs Great Khali
ECW - 1/15/08 - Colin Delaney vs Kane
ECW - 1/8/08 - Colin Delaney vs Mark Henry
ECW - 1/1/08 - Colin Delaney vs Big Daddy V
ECW - 12/18/07 - Colin Delaney vs Shelton Benjamin 

My top five matches for him?
#1 ECW - 12/18/07 - Colin Delaney vs Shelton Benjamin (his debut!)
#2 ECW - 3/12/08 - EXTREME RULES: Colin Delaney & Tommy Dreamer vs Miz & Morrison (best match in WWE)
#3 Smackdown - 6/9/08 - Batista, Colin Delaney, Nunzio and Funaki vs Edge, Hawkins, Ryder and Chavo Guerrero (Funaki & Delaney together!)
#4 ECW - 4/1/08 - Big Show vs Colin Delaney (Big Show just destroyed him - it was wonderful)
#5 ECW - 3/18/08 - Colin Delaney vs Chavo Guerrero (main event ECW) 

Obviously his work with Estrada & Dreamer really were the main crux of his programs.  But for me, when Colin was in the main event on ECW, that was the day that I really remember being so astonished.  Hopefully, he'll make some nice money back on the independent scene and I know he never got a big head about this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

He won at least four matches and was on a single house show (up in New Hamsphire, a few weeks ago I believe)
6.10.08: Colin Delaney def. Armando Estrada
6.6.08: Delaney/Funaki/Nunzio/Batista def. Edge/Ryders/Hawkins/Guerrero
5.20.08: Kelly Kelly & Delaney def. Mike Knox & Layla
5.6.08: Colin Delaney def. Armando Estrada (100th ECW episode; wins contract) 

ROCK on Mr Delaney.  Woo!  You got to work with Shelton, Henry, Kane, Khali, Miz, Morrison, Dreamer, Knox, Chavo, Matt Hardy, Kelly Kelly, Layla, Big Show, Kane, Kozlov, Estrada, Tazz, Nunzio, Funaki, Atlas, JBL, Batista, Edge, Hawkins, Ryder, Striker and Umaga. Not bad for a guy who got called in as a last-second job dude when they wanted someone small and impressed Vince enough to get a contract because they liked how you sold.

Age Controversy Rocks Nestle Nutrition

In a shocking turn of events, web researchers have alleged that Chris Harrington, carrying a passport for a 27 year old, is actually four. Take that Chinese Gymnists!

I recorded TWO Indeed Wrestling Weekly shows last week covering DeathValleyDriver's Best of the 80s: Midsouth Wrestling with two guests: Phil Schneider and DEAN.

Listen in: http://player.blastpodcast.com/emPlayer.php?code=3457659758fa30f822e686245073350f - flash player

Alissa & I went to a fantastic Improv a-go-go show last weekend seeing Crockpotprov, 722 (Improvised Mid-90s TGIFesque Sitcom) and Larynx (my coach Jason along with two fantastic improvisers Dave & Josh). Hilarious stuff - especially the success that was "Bowl of Feathers".

I enjoyed watching all of the Olympic Opening Ceremonies on Saturday morning (thanks TiVo!) - especially the flag factoids like Paraguay's flag having a different front and the country which changed it's flag after it discovered it was the same as Haiti. (Which one was it?)

we need to a get a new Fence. Anyone have an old one lying around?

Alissa is coughing her lungs out. Yeah, she got my plague that kept me in a non-rocking state for quite some time. Alas! I hope she starts to feel better ASAP.

A giant box of yuck!!

Yesterday, on my way out the door, I decided to check the cooler on the three-season porch with the idea that maybe I would haul some water & pop to the Park show that evening. That's when I remembered the bratwrust that I had put in there a few weeks ago. Oh, yes - it's horrific. I will be buying some Lysol and using the hose very liberally tonight to try and clean out that mess.

I just complete my four day tour of IMPROVMANIA. Thursday night, I taught Tim's "Improv Tech II class" which was really fun. See, I was supposed to have a level two class about eight weeks ago, but I didn't get enough students signed up. So, I was prepared for this class based on the false-start back in June. On Friday, I performed with the troupe at the Cabaret to a decent-sized audience. On Saturday, I hosted both the 8 PM show (with my usuaul performing troupe) and also the 10 PM show (with the Outtakes). Then on Sunday, it was time for Stevie Ray's Improv in the Park at Lake Harriet. I hosted both the 5 PM and 7 PM shows. Numerous people from work attended (which included my co-worker Adam performing a rare show alongside me along with Mister Stevie Ray himself) including my manager, boss and my boss' boss. Woo! So, I've spent at least a dozen hours preparing and performing improv since Thursday which is enjoyable but also very tiring. I was essentially ringleader most of those nights and that can take a lot out of you. However, I received lots of great feedback and encouragement so I'm pleased to say that my energetic hosting style was well-received.

And I had to be energetic while at the Cabaret (located at the Sheraton Hotel in Bloomington, Minnesota - not far from the MALL OF AMERICA~!). Why? Because of KAKKOI CON 2008 - basically a Japanese Culture Convention mainly focusing around Anime. It was a sight to see. I found this pic online:

Alissa had warned me that this event was going on after seeing a posting on a LJ twin_cities group looking for models for their Japanese fashion show. When I arrived, there was ample parking. For such a well-attended convention, this surprised me. Then I went inside and all made sense. The average attendee is probably about 15 years old. I don't know if I saw anyone just wearing blue jeans. It was either three-piece Vampire Hunter D suit or requisite goth outfit complete with GIANT WALLET CHAIN. As the majority of people appeared under the age of 18, I couldn't take any pictures with my cell-phone without feeling skeevy. Giant Drums, Giant BattleAxes, Tiny Costumes - it was an adventure both nights while we tried to do our funny make-em-ups rockin' in our corner of the hotel.

My dog has been going a little bonkers this weekend - I imagine it was the weatherfront moving in. She seemed to have calmed down considerably since it rained last night (luckily, minutes after we left the park without blowing all the electronic equipment!!).

TALKIN 'BOUT TAKINS

Hola Seniors and Senioritas!

I've been battling the PLAGUE COUGH OF DEATH for the past week and it's sapped a lot of my energy to write updates like this. For some reason, my broadband internet access seems to be done in the eveningtime so I haven't been able to post updates after watching programs such as Next Food Network Star or RAW lately, either. (Big Daddy & Mike Adamle, eh? Wrong Adam in my book.)

On Sunday, Alissa & I utilized some free passes from my wonderful boss to visit the Minnesota Zoo in Apple Valley, MN. It was awesome! My favorite animals were the BEARS (they were literally one foot from us with just a pane of glass between us and the swimming hulks), the TAKIN (if I invented a superhero, it would ride one of these) and the immense Tapirs. The Butterfly garden, active Red Panda and the Japanese Snow Monkeys were really nifty too. I was sad that the MOOSE was hiding from us. Seems incredible, but the creature pulled it off!

They also have an absolutely massive IMAX theatre there where we watched BATMAN: DARK KNIGHT. It was fantastic - a marked improvement over Batman Begins. I'm most impressed that the Nolans wrote the script along with directed it. It's a bit like Stars Wars: Episode 4, they could have started the story at this movie and we'd be just as hooked. The origin tale can be cumbersome. Best movie I've seen this year. It rocked.

Photobucket

Nice use of Axel F~!



Can't stop the rock when you have Beverly Hills Cop 2 music. Most Costume Changes in One Minute by those nutty Germans~!

I also improved the AWF database search by laerning some Javascript and doing some ugly coding. You wizards out there - IMPROVE THIS~!

http://www27.brinkster.com/mookieghana/awf-files/AWF.HTML

Power Grid Rules~!

Some nifty people came over last night so we grilled hot dogs and played Board Games including Power Grid (#2 game on BGG) and Bohnaza (#128). I really liked how which resources were available as the game progressed changed (i.e. more nuclear power, less coal power). I was also impressed that in a six-player game, three people reached the goal (14 cities) on the final turn. Bohnaza was neat, but I struggled to comprehend my strategy. As the guys pointed out, being benevolent is beneficial in this game, which is why competitive folks like me rarely would win. It was fun and would make a neat family game, I think. In future adventures, we're hoping to tackle Avalon Hill's games like Betrayal at House on the Hill and Dune. I'd also like to try "Ticket to Ride" (currently #42 - woo DA.)

OTHER ROCKING THINGS:
.

. AWF MATCH DATABASE

.

Reality Shows Fiends

One new television habit that Alissa & I share is our sudden interest in Reality Shows. In the past, I believe we've both avoided them like the plague. I was especially unhappy with network shows like Survivor, Big Brother and Bachelor(ette). Since we both love E!'s "The Soup", we saw our fair share of train-wreck clips from the MTV/VH1 brand of dating shows (Rock of Love, Flavor of Love, A Shot at Love) & faux-reality drivel like "The Hills". I never had a desire to watch 10 minutes (let alone the HOUR that most of these shows get.

However, when it comes to skill-based reality show competitions, we're both hooked.

Celebracadabra (VH1): Glad that C. Thomas Howell won. This was a terrific show that I eagerly awaited each week. Hal Sparks obviously had a lot of skills coming into the contest, but his attitude really hurt. David Regal (Howell's coach) coverage of this experience in Genii magazine has been awesome.

The Next Food Network Star (Food Network): Expected Jennifer to be eliminated after her terrible intro of the food and pretty disasterous cooking display. We liked her but she really went 0/2 that week. Pretty sure the judges are doing everything in their power not to eliminate Aaron until Nipa, Adam and Jennifer are gone. So, he has about one more week of grace left! The editing on this show is improving, but it was attoricious the first few weeks with the terrible pacing for the eliminations.

Side Note because Alissa & I have been wondering about it: According to Wikipedia, Amy Finley (last season's winner) made six episodes of "The Gourmet Next Door" and then quit, citing stress, and moved to France. I'm sure Rory is pretty angry because while she might have been somewhat of a caustic personality, it seems pretty tough they would start a whole new competition instead of throwing her a bone. However, considering the margin of Amy's win, I doubt Rory's show would have fared too well.

Groomer Has It (Animal Planet): I don't know exactly how we got looped into this, but we watched the marathon this weekend. I think Alissa saw an episode one weekend while I was performing improv and later there were clips on Animal Planet. Despite the ridiculous name, it's a decent show, especially because all the personalities involved provided not only great contrast, but it showcased a lot of the skills and variety in dogs and dog grooming. (I can't believe I just wrote that!) Maybe it's because I now have a pet schnoodle, but it's a fun show to watch. The 12 episode season (plus one recap show) is pretty long and last night was the finale between Artist & Jonathan. (Humorous moment when they were introducing the significant others of the finalists and Animal Planet chose that moment to put a graphic in the lower right corner obscuring the title of Jonathan's buddy. Bravo this is not!) Artist's win was again a great underdog (pun intended) story. Personally, the fact he chose to groom the dog that needed it the most from the Lange Foundation kennel really cemented it for me even though it pretty much assured he would be eliminated (though the stipulation was recanted). In a profession like dog-grooming, it can be seen a very luxury job - but really, it can make a huge difference in the life of an animal, particularly one that is matted and in pain due to their hair. I'm sure that all of the contestants, particularly the top six will have rockstar celeb jobs lined up for months after this!

Most of the other Shows we've watched in the past are all on Bravo:
Top Chef (Bravo)
Project Runway (Bravo)
Shear Genius (Bravo)
Top Design (Bravo)

Words that can be spelled...

...only with the top row of keys:

Typewriter
Perpetuity
Potpourri
Prototype
Pirouette
Propriety
Property
Priority
Treetop
Torture
Require
Quieter
Pottery
Tripper
Yippee
Potpie
Qwerty

...only with the middle row of keys:

Alfalfa
Salads
Flasks
Flash

...only with the lowest row of keys:
zxcrockvbnm

These are a few of my favorite hats...

This morning, Meliora (our pet schnoodle) and I went to Starbucks for coffee. (Chris' favorite custom drink - Caramel Macchiato with a shot of peppermint). I decided to wear my new Orange Fanta baseball cap from Atlanta's World of Coke. Got me thinking of my favorite head adornments:

* Atlanta Braves Hat - My prize possession. I've had it since I was a young kid. Can't seem to find a pic of me wearing it since I was about 8.

* Sun hat - pictured here while I was in Germany in 1997

:: BOUGHT 1987 in Penang, Malaysia ::

* Arcadia Cross-Country white baseball hat

:: BOUGHT 1998 in Greece, NY ::

* The infamous Ghana hat --

:: BOUGHT 2001 in Ghana ::

* Fred Durst looking Red Caltech Cap

:: BOUGHT 2003 in Pasadena ::

* Awesome Checkered Hat from Alissa

:: BOUGHT 2003 in San Diego ::

* LOBSTER HAT!!!

:: BOUGHT 2005 in Cedar Point, IA ::

* Above mentioned Fanta Hat:
:: BOUGHT 2008 in Atlanta ::

Of course, I would only be a true Hat Enthusiast if I had been a Hat Museum. Oh wait, I HAVE!!

Nurom Hat Museum - Ghana 2001

HATS THAT ALMOST WERE:





(Tom modelling my rockin' WINNER hat from Disney)

Saturday Morning Bravo Time (SMBT)

Watching Kathy Griffin's "Allegedly" and there is an ad for Jeff Lewis' "Flipping Out" where he wants to *clandestinely tape his staff. Doesn't he have an entire CAMERA CREW AT HIS OFFICE ALL DAY? Can he's ask them?! (Kathy is coming to town in October. Oddly, her website has a whole section about Lasik complications.)

(I tried to spell 'surreptitiously' for several minutes before I gave up - though I did discover that another synonym for 'secretly' is 'huggermugger'. I encourage each and every one of you to use 'huggermugger' in your daily speech today!)

iOffer is an interesting place because you can find some pretty amazing rare DVDs like all of "Pirates of Dark Water", all of the "Muppet Show" and all of "Get Smart". My puppy is sleeping next to me on a giant pillow. Woohoo!

Twin Cities Improv Festival started this week. I went to see Larynx, Stevie Ray's and SCRAM on Thursday night. It was some of the best improv I've seen in a long time - particularly Joe Bill (half of Bassprov) in SCRAM. I was astounded and moved.

ROCK.

Latest Science Research by Chris Harrington

Helsinki, Finland – Scientists confirmed today that the size of the planet Earth was not as large as initially anticipated. It appears that the cause for this shrinkage was an increase in the mirth, snuffling, aspirations and qualms. Sentient people have contended that fair allotment of resources may have also contributed to the decrease in the globe’s girth. Researchers suggest utilizing a grin in order to communicate camaraderie to all follow humans. While a craggy foothill might separate continents and the deep-sea is expansive, the planet is still not as immense nevertheless. In a related note, at last count, there still is only a single Luna and Sol. Rock.

Lakini's Juice is mostly Juice Concentrate


Meliora graduated from Puppy Class last Sunday. I tried to give her the diploma which she almost ate.

We're back from Atlanta. We had a great time:
* Visiting Dad's Garage to see "SONG OF THE LIVING DEAD" which was INCREDIBLE
* Seeing the Center for Puppetry Arts with an inspiring Jim Henson exhibit which will be worth returning for to see when it's expanded by 2012.
* Eating BUFFALO (or is it Bison?) at Ted's Montana Grill - wine + onion rings = good eats!
* Seeing Abdullah the Butcher's House of Ribs & Chinese Food in all wacky splendor
* Buying a KILLER RABBIT (MP: TSFTHG) puppet at Oxford Comics and Game
* Yummy breakfast (with wacky valet parking) at Wild Egg Cafe.
* Witnessed 8 Million of Rocking Gallons of Water at the Georgia Aquarium
* Performed Theatresports on Friday night with Mr. Matt Horgan and Mr. Tommy Fuchs which was a very generous offer by them.

It was a very fun trip. Thanks to Adam and most of all to my wonderful wife for coming down and indulging in my aimless driving, hot weather and melon flavors from World of Coke.

Fortune House

Alissa & I had a nice dinner at Fortune House (Chinese Food) in St. Paul last night. We had just spent the afternoon driving around Wyoming, Lino Lakes and Mahtomedi including a brief excursion into the park with our dog Meliora. Today is the last week of Beginner Puppy classes for schnoodle. Alissa is asleep on the loveseat and Mel is sitting next to me on the couch stretched out. It's a quiet morning for certain! We saw our friends Jason & Krista (who will be married in a few weeks) for an open-house bridal shower (we left before the storms of DOOM came rolling in), visited Alissa's parents (her mom is home from the hospital!) and even drove through Willernie after picking up coffee at the non-nutty Dunn Bros. drivethru.

We both actually watched the CBS debut of EliteXC last night before there was nothing good on TV. I don't believe it can be technically called the Network debut of MMA because IFL was on MyNetworkTV drawing microscopic ratings last year. However, it's definately the birth of a legitimate network putting Mixed Martial Arts on their primetime (albeit Saturday) schedule. It went majorly over and wasn't done until almost 40 minutes into the normal newstime slot. I can only imagine how elderly news viewers felt when they turned on their TVs and saw Kimbo Slice and that monstrosity that was James Thompson's ear! I feel that local CBS affiliates will be having angry letters pouring in. That said, I think it was a very successful show. There was a lot of interesting pieces: articulate, quiet Kimbo; Mauro's stream of UFC references; two Minnesota fighers; an amazing women's match; two TKO matches from Doctor stoppage and some good KOs. I am not 'shocked and distressed' at Kimbo headlining this event the way many in the MMA internet media are. Just like wrestling, the top draws are rarely the "best in-ring, technical performers". Instead, they are the strongest characters with the most compelling storylines. Honestly, MMA is not different. They did a lot of the right things such as acknowledging other MMA organizations (Hook-N-Shoot, UFC, Pride, WEC) in the manor of treating MMA as an international sport which is competed at many levels. They showcased a good woman's fight (including a girl from Circle Pines, MN who put up a heck of a battle with Gina) which is probably the largest viewing audience for a woman's MMA match in history. They did not have losers out of their stars such as Kimbo Slice and Robbie Lawler, but both performed in a way that suggested they could be beat. Yes - Kimbo didn't kill Thompson the way he beat Tank Abbott. However, it rocked me far more as a viewer to see the battle. And I felt EliteXC did a decent job of not blaming the doctor's when fighters uttered the magic words. If you tell a commission doctor that you "can't see", it's well-understood that is MMA-speak for "stop the match but I'm not throwing in the towel". If fighters still don't understand that, it's their own fault because that's general knowledge. The fights & pre-match pieces were good. The music was dreadful. The post-match interviews were sloppy. Show gets a solid B.

A Crystal Skull Hotdog

So, we got a blackberry! Yup - I won an award at work for "knocking down the pins" which meant a crystal bowling trophy (no lie - I have two!) and a gift certificate good for places like Target, Home Depot and WillernietownUSA. We went to Best Buy to investigate whether we could use the money towards a new Verizon phone. It was too early for us to upgrade so we decided to hold off. The very next day, I received an email from Verizon advertising a discounted "early upgrade" if I wanted to buy a Blackberry Curve or Blackberry Pearl. AMAZING! So, we went to the store last night and the best rep ever got us quite a deal (work discount, upgrades and more!). By the time everything was said & done, we had a new Blackberry Curve for $100. Not a bad deal at all!!

Adam & I went to Wendys today. I mourn the Big Bacon Classic being replaced with the Baconator, even though it's pretty good too! But boy, did I crash hard around 2 pm today from all those bacon particles zooming through my veins. Our latest idea for greatness: mygirlfriendfromcanada.com : Based on the idea from the NYTimes article that relationships aren't real until they are confirmed on facebook, we would set up a website that would hire models from Craiglist, create facebook pages, photoshop a few pics and invent the virtual girlfriend for those lonely lads who want to prove they are the better half of some lovely lass. It would probably violate lots of facebook Terms of Services, but I think Silicon Valley is waiting for Vick & Roy Industries to level the town with an idea like this!

Tonight, I decided to watch some TNA Impact! while I finish a powerpoint for work. I only watch TNA about once a year, and it's a decent show with some absolutely wacky segments (Christy Hemme rockstar?). The ODB push is nice and the wrestling is solid, albeit "just there". Homicide in the hot opener with Dudleyz is again - decent - but shows the potential he has to really be the star that he was in ROH. KEVIN NASH IS OLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLD. Matt Morgan seems terrible. I'll have to ask Jon how much fun working with that guy is. Who is Kelly Hart? ROCK.

Be good to one another.
Robby Roode looks like the giant version of Jimmy Olsen when they zoom in.

Iron Man was GOOD

When I spoke with Jason yesterday, he said Iron Man was good. And he was right. And his Jason continues forever - amen.

Speed Racer looks bad. Alissa's dad saw it. He said the most subdued color in the entire thing was "neon yellow". He actually thought it was good for fans who knew the storyline from the original show but otherwise might be confused to newcomers. I feel like that's the real hurdle - we're talking about a show which is being marketed as:

a) a throwback to the old cartoon series (30-40 somethings?)
b) fast & the furious for the kids whose parents won't let them see iron man
c) the hip matrix bros crazy light show

That's some poor targeting.

We're making baked potatoes. Thank you wikihow! Tomorrow I head to Boston for a one-day work trip and then will complete in the luge and skelton on the willernie sled. It will rock.

What can't Queen Latifah do?

...Jail ward, Jail warden, Taxi Driver, Bank Robber, Marriage Counselor..

Today's wacky song: ** Santogold - L.E.S. Artistes **

Puppy is crazy and that is a good thing usually. WOO! I think I might be mildly allergic to her scratching though so I always have raised skin whenever she bites or plays and catches my hand/face.

I finished a week at Pathways learning about asking forward-focused front-side energy map questions. I performed improv at the dinner in front of lots of bigwigs which was an exciting adventure to try without my team. I will probably be performing tomorrow with Adam in a similar role. Rock!

MAGIC WEEK ON LETTERMAN! MAC KING IS TONIGHT. Lance Burton was weird and Lance Burtonesque last night - he did a routine about the MASKED MAGICIAN. What's next? Dan Quayle jokes?

We've been enjoying Celebracadabra on VH1 on Sunday nights. The drama is extra mellow-dramatic and the judges/coaches are personalities that I recognize as a short-term reader of both MAGIC and GENII magazines. David Regal started a great column last month about his experience on the show with details about how they RAN OUT OF PLAYING CARDS ON DAY ONE and were told LA HAS NO MORE AT ALL. Great times!

A world record?!

Alissa didn't realize I was serious, but after watching "KING OF KONG" a few weeks ago twice in one day, I determined that my latest S.L.O. (Short Lived Obsession) would be SETTING A WORLD RECORD SPEEDRUN IN MANIAC MANSION FOR NES. I've been practicing for a few weeks and so far, I've been able to whittle away at my time. For those interested in my technique & tricks, here is an outline (from memory) that I typed up:


DAVE GOES LEFT
DAVE PULLS DOORMAT
DAVE USES KEY IN FRONT DOOR
DAVE ENTERS HOUSE
DAVE OPENS KITCHEN DOOR
DAVE ENTERS kitchen
DAVE GOES RIGHT
DAVE IS CAPTURED BY Nurse Edna
NEW KID

RAZOR GOES LEFT
RAZOR ENTERS HOUSE
RAZOR ENTERS kitchen
RAZOR GOES to fridge
RAZOR OPENS FRIDGE
RAZOR GETS CAN OF PEPSI
RAZOR GOES RIGHT
RAZOR exits kitchen
RAZOR climbs stairs
RAZOR OPENS steel security door
RAZOR ENTERS door
RAZOR GOES RIGHT
RAZOR climbs stairs
RAZOR GIVES Can of Pepsi to Green Tentacle
RAZOR DESCEND stairs
RAZOR ASCENDS stairs
RAZOR ASCENDS stairs
RAZOR OPENS FIRST DOOR
RAZOR ENTERS FIRST DOOR
RAZOR climbs Ladder
RAZOR takes Yellow Key
RAZOR DESCEND Ladder
RAZOR leaves ROOM
RAZOR OPENS FOURTH DOOR
RAZOR ENTERS FOURTH DOOR
NEW KID

BERNARD GOES LEFT
BERNARD USES DOORBELL
NEW KID

RAZOR uses HUNK-A-MATIC
RAZOR exits room
RAZOR OPENS THIRD DOOR
RAZOR ENTERS THIRD DOOR
RAZOR GETS HAMSTER
RAZOR GETS CARD KEY
RAZOR EXITS ROOM
RAZOR OPENS SECOND DOOR
RAZOR ENTERS ROOM
RAZOR IS CAUGHT BY NURSE EDNA

NEW KID
DAVE GOES LEFT
DAVE PUSHES LOOSE BRICK
RAZOR EXITS CELL
RAZOR GETS SILVER KEY
RAZOR GOES RIGHT
RAZOR ASCENDS STAIRS
RAZOR OPENS DOOR
RAZOR EXITS HOUSE
RAZOR OPENS BUSHES
RAZOR OPENS GRATING
RAZOR ENTERS GRATING
RAZOR GOES RIGHT
RAZOR TURNS ON WATER VALVE
RAZOR GOES LEFT
RAZOR EXITS GRATING
RAZOR ENTERS HOUSE
RAZOR ENTERS KITCHEN
RAZOR GOES RIGHT
RAZOR OPENS DOOR
RAZOR ENTERS DINING ROOM
RAZOR GOES RIGHT
RAZOR OPENS DOOR
RAZOR ENTERS PANTRY
RAZOR USES SILVER KEY IN DOOR
RAZOR EXITS HOUSE
RAZOR DESCEND STAIRS
RAZOR GETS GLOWING KEY
RAZOR ASCENDS STAIRS
NEW KID

BERNARD ENTERS GRATING
BERNARD GOES RIGHT
BERNARD TURNS OFF WATER VALVE
BERNARD GOES LEFT
BERNARD EXITS GRATING
BERNARD USES DOORBELL
NEW KID

RAZOR ENTERS PANTRY DOOR
RAZOR ENTERS DINING ROOM DOOR
RAZOR GOES LEFT
RAZOR ENTERS KITCHEN DOOR
RAZOR GOES LEFT
RAZOR ENTERS HALLWAY DOOR
RAZOR ASCENDS STAIRS AND IS CAUGHT BY WEIRD ED
RAZOR GOES LEFT
RAZOR UNLOCKS TOP PADLOCK WITH GLOWING KEY
RAZOR UNLOCKS BOTTOM PADLOCK WITH GLOWING KEY
RAZOR OPENS OUTER DOOR
RAZOR OPENS INNER DOOR
RAZOR USES CODE "0000"
NEW KID

BERNARD USES DOORBELL
NEW KID
RAZOR ENTERS SECRET LAB
RAZOR WAITS UNTIL WEIRD ED CUTSCENE
RAZOR OPENS DOOR
RAZOR GOES RIGHT
RAZOR OPENS LOCKER
RAZOR GETS RADIATION SUIT
RAZOR USES CARD KEY IN CARD SLOT
RAZOR ENTERS METEOR CHAMBER
RAZOR USES SWITCH
RAZOR WAITS FOR LONG CUTSCENE TO END
RAZOR GET METEOR
RAZOR OPENS DOOR
RAZOR GOES INTO GARAGE
RAZOR USES YELLOW KEY IN TRUNK
RAZOR GETS TOOL
RAZOR USES METEOR IN TRUNK
RAZOR USES YELLOW KEY IN ROCKET POWERED JET ENGINE
GAME OVER


You can see the official criteria I am using at TwinGalaxies. I have been able to be in the Secret Lab when the first cutscene ("I hope you're enjoying your time here...") happens which is funny because you will be standing in the background and Sandy will actually try and go out the door at the end!

In other news, I checked my mixi account and got another AWESOME message from Survival Tobita. He rocks!

I put a few more pictures of our puppy up on my Facebook account. She had her first day of Puppy Training Class on Sunday which went okay but she is really easily distracted and was a bit intimated by the giant Siberian Huskie puppy next to us. Be good to one another and enjoy KOTR tonight!!

N/A

Rock.

State Capitol Population vs State Population

I was curious about this recently so I looked it up. ROCK!

StatePopulationCapitol Population Percent
Hawaii 1283388Honolulu37726029.4%
Arizona 6338755Phoenix141804122.4%
Rhode Island 1057832Providence17812616.8%
Oklahoma 3617316Oklahoma City52804214.6%
Nebraska 1774571Lincoln23614613.3%
Idaho 1499402Boise19012212.7%
Indiana 6345289Indianapolis78424212.4%
Colorado 4861515Denver55683511.5%
Wyoming 522830Cheyenne5536210.6%
Tennessee 6156719Nashville5467198.9%
Massachusetts 6449755Boston5691658.8%
North Dakota 639715Bismarck555328.7%
Utah 2645330Salt Lake City1786056.8%
Iowa 2988046Des Moines1943116.5%
Arkansas 2834797Little Rock1840816.5%
Ohio 11466917Columbus7300086.4%
Mississippi 2918785Jackson1792986.1%
Minnesota 5197621St. Paul2769635.3%
Louisiana 4293204Baton Rouge2240975.2%
Alaska 683478Juneau311184.6%
Kansas 2775997Topeka1223774.4%
Georgia 9544750Atlanta4191224.4%
Alabama 4627851Montgomery2009834.3%
Wisconsin 5601640Madison2203323.9%
Oregon 3747455Salem1461203.9%
Delaware 864764Dover321353.7%
North Carolina 9061032Raleigh3266533.6%
Connecticut 3502309Hartford1248483.6%
New Hampshire 1315828Concord406873.1%
West Virginia 1812035Charleston534212.9%
Texas 23904380Austin6818042.9%
Montana 957861Helena257802.7%
New Mexico 2315896Santa Fe622032.7%
South Carolina 4407709Columbia1163312.6%
Virginia 7712091Richmond1924942.5%
Nevada 2565382Carson City524572.0%
South Dakota 796214Pierre138761.7%
Maine 1317207Augusta185601.4%
Vermont 621254Montpelier80351.3%
California 36553215Sacramento4543301.2%
Michigan 10071822Lansing1169411.2%
New Jersey 8685920Trenton854021.0%
Illinois 12852548Springfield1147380.9%
Florida 18251243Tallahassee1566120.9%
Missouri 5878415Jefferson City396360.7%
Washington 6468424Olympia425140.7%
Kentucky 4241474Frankfort277410.7%
Maryland 5618344Annapolis362170.6%
New York 19297729Albany956580.5%
Pennsylvania 12432792Harrisburg489500.4%

King of Kong is great.

I just finished, "King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters". AWESOME. I've read a number of reviews of it and it definately delivered. I went to the Classic Gaming Expo in Oconomowoc, WI last summer and it was pretty cool. I hope sometime to go to one which has a bigger arcade, but it was pretty groovy.

Even more nifty, Alissa & I got a pet Schnoodle this week whom we named Meliora (Mel for short).
Meliora

ROCK. She's currently taking a nap next to me on the couch!

Television Shows set in each State

Last month, I wondered if people could come up with a TV show set in every US State. Wikipedia to the rescue!!!

Arizona - HEY DUDE
Alaska - NORTHERN EXPOSURE
Arkansas - Evening Shade
California - Beverly Hills, 90210
Colorado - Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman
Connecticut - Who's the Boss?
Florida - Dave's World / Golden Girls (Alissa insisted I include it)
Georgia - Matlock
Hawaii - Magnum, P.I.
Illinois - Roseanne
Indiana - Eerie, Indiana
Iowa - Drexell's Class (I loved Dabney Coleman)
Kansas - Gunsmoke
Kentucky - CHEERLEADER NATION? REALLY THAT'S IT? NOTHING ABOUT A FLYING BELMONT STAKES HORSE WITH A DREAM? I'M CHOOSING OVW - OHIO VALLEY WRESTLING - FOR THIS ONE.
Louisana - Swamp Thing
Maine - The Dead Zone / Murder She Wrote (Home of Cabot Cove - murder capitol per capita OF THE WORLD)
Maryland - The Lone Gunman
Massachusetts - Wings
Michigan - Home Improvement
Minnesota - Coach (Tom loves him Craig T. Nelson)
Mississippi - In the Heat of the Night (A TV series based on the movie that ran for 8 seasons which I've never seen.)
Missouri - AfterMASH (Something that I believed, until two minutes ago, was simply some kind of weird word-joke like Ishtar. Both are real. Be afraid!)
Nevada - Reno 911! or CSI.
New Jersey - Hi Honey, I'm Home! (Clearly, I have a soft spot for early-90s Fox sitcoms which I could get on my little b&w; portable TV in my room.) House M.D. would also work.
New Mexico - Quantum Leap
New York - Taxi
North Carolina - The Andy Griffith Show
Ohio - The Drew Carey Show (We watched an episode last night with Jeremy Howard, whose father played the detective on MATHNET~!, playing Ryan Stiles son.)
Oklahoma - Saving Grace (some show with Holly Hunter).
Oregon - Eureka (also known as "A TOWN CALLED EUREKA")
Pennsylvania - Mr. Belvedere / My So-Called Life / The Office (Great potential for a mash-up here.)
Rhode Island - Family Guy
South Carolina - American Gothic (Apparently NBC has a horror channel called "Chiller" which is a great name for a network. Wish I got it!)
Tennessee - Christy (LeVar Burton was on this show. Therefore we must include it.) Again, I might have to choose wrestling and go with Memphis Wrestling TV (Jerry Lawler country.)
Texas - Walker, Texas Ranger / Beavis and Butthead (sad that the cartoon was more realistic)
Utah - Big Love (Bill Paxton = TV's Aaron Eckhart)
Vermont - Newhart
Virginia - American Dad!
Washington - Harry and the Hendersons (they got 72 episodes - 36 HOURS - of out that film's plot)
Wisconsin - That 70's Show
Wyoming - Laramie (Old Timey Rockin' Goodness) or The Virginian or the Men from Shiloh. Westerns love Wyoming.

EDIT (4/4/08)
Adam has been helping me with this project and suggested a few more -
SOUTH DAKOTA - Deadwood
MONTANA - My Friend Flicka
NEW HAMSPHIRE - The Brotherhood of Poland, New Hampshire (CBS) / Last episode of Newsradio where they move there.
ALABAMA - Any Day Now (Lifetime)
NEBRASKA - Heartland (1989)
WEST VIRGINIA - Hawkins (Jimmy Stewart mystery series).

States still searching for: Delaware, Idaho and North Dakota.

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