yesterday i called my mom and was like "hey what's going on?" and she's like "nothing" and i said "same here" and that's pretty much how things are going. i haven't been to trenton in what feels like ages, and i bet when i get back they will have built a couple new skyscrapers.

went to cincinnati w/ barb and dave this weekend and it rained a lot and it was just sorta uuuhhhhh

yesterday evening i decided i was tired of my jeans being tight so as of today i'm rededicating myself to extensive bicycle mileage. i have been riding to work but that's pretty much it - since i ride in a full-on kit (shorts and jersey and whatnot) i can just leave work at 4 and go for a longer ride instead of going home. that's the plan. so instead of 22.5 miles on commute days maybe i can get in 35 or 45 or whatever.

my knees make me nervous cuz they're sorta creaky and defective but they should be ok. whatever. if they're not i'm just gonna have them removed.

also i owe the hospital some money that i have but don't want to give them. i vote for free healthcare. taxes schmaxes.

lastly, john is moving out by the end of september, on his way to nyc. so there's that.

recap

friday we went to lafayette to visit a brewery and continue our quest to become the biggest drunks in the state.

saturday gina sold t-shirts at a beer festival and i wandered around and drank a bit and took some pictures

sunday was us/brazil and we had a fantastic 45 minutes in the bar with everyone screaming (in fact at one point i stood up and was screaming so much i nearly blacked out (so i sat back down)) but it wasn't meant to be. the 45th minute goal killed us. we could have used mike bradley or jeramaine jones or whatever that german guy's name is.

movies:

perfume: the story of a murder

was a good movie that brent recommended a way back. weird movie, sort of heavy handed, but still good stuff.

gone baby gone

is not a movie about a lady boxer. it's a movie about a kidnapping directed by ben affleck. and it took me a while to figure out what the hell was going on but all in all it was a pretty good movie.

also i bought punch out for wii last week and it's fun but my record is something like 12 wins to 56 losses. the old version didn't keep track of that... anyway, we play it the old way, controller sideways and just banging on the A and B buttons. entertaining. for a little while, anyway.

hey jim hows that kid that's about to be born sometime soon (i think?)

bikes might kill you #2

this morning as i rode to work in soupy wet conditions, a car passed on my left, then proceed to make a right turn in front of me.

cyclists are used to this sort of thing, enough that most call it "the right hook".

"that was stupid of him" i thought to myself quickly, knowing that if he had only waiting 10 seconds he could have just gone behind me and not cut me off.

and just as i was having that thought, the second car did the exact same thing - except this time i had to lock up my brakes, sliding the back wheel out sideways and narrowly missing a collision with the passenger's side door or quarter panel.

of course i went ballistic yelling, but that doesn't really do you any good.

in any case, a shot of adrenaline is a good way to wake up in the morning. idiots.

* * * * *

#1 would be a deer crash where i landed on the back of my head, in case you're wondering

the votes are in, and...

ok there aren't any votes. but there is this event, which will be the third time* we get a bunch of people together and drink. maybe even a couple hundred this time around.

Anyway, consider this poster above your invite - i'm looking at you, illinois residents (but not just illinois residents). I'll put you up. I just need a heads up that you're interested so I can get you on the VIP list or whatever. Tickets are supposed to be $25. We'll see how that goes. There might be a discount or something if you make that long drive. Details on the poster are correct apart from the time, which will be 6pm instead of 5pm.

I'd very much like for my friends to attend and see the sort of things we've accomplished with a little blog. I impress myself. Come be impressed with me.

*not actually the third time, just the third anniversary party. we're pretty good at putting together a crowd now.

behold the magic of eurovision

Maybe the first or second night we were in Reykjavik we were out walking and noticed that there were parties going on everywhere. We found a place to eat and noticed that the staff were all tied to the television in the next room, cheering along at some sort of international contest. That contest was the Eurovision song contest, which pits nations against each other in the ultimate battle - the battle of pop music.

Here's 2006's winner, from Finland, introducing the 2007 contest. I have a feeling Rod and Jess might already have this album.

Here's Iceland's 2009 entry, which came in second..



And here's the 2009 winner, from Norway. The contestant, Alexander Rybak, is kinda what you might get if you combined Ricky Martin with Mickey Mouse. And yes, he always makes those faces.



Anyway. Although Iceland came in second, we later witnessed more than one car driving around town with their Iceland flags out the window, honking and celebrating.

We plan to introduce the Amero-vision Song Contest (featuring a song from every state) later this year.

AND NOW... MOVIES

Here are movies I recently watched and plot twists which could have made them more entertaining.

Wanted - In addition to being a super-assassin, Angelina Jolie's character also likes to sneak into bakeries and make donuts
Three Kings - The innocent Iraqis turn out to be spies for Saddam and Ice Cube has to say "motherfucker" a lot and he has to use his AK.
Pineapple Express - The magic weed strain is actually called "Cocaine", causing much wacky confusion.
Iron Man - The Iron Man suit is actually made of superball material and Tony Stark is a woman.
The Reader - She doesn't work for the SS, she works for the DMV.
Gates of Heaven - All the pets in the cemetery come back to life when they hear those wailin' guitar numbers.
City of Men - The movie is worth watching.
101 Reykjavik - Instead of the gal sleeping with both the guy and his mom, she sleeps with the guy, his mom, and a randomly selected member of the movie audience.
W. - Dick Cheney is a black dude and says "yay!" really effeminately alot.
Blindness - Instead of everyone going blind, everyone gets a puppy and there's a bunch of puppy-related hijinx.
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - Brad Pitt just sleeps with a bunch of hot girls and they show EVERYTHING.

And in theaters:

Star Trek - Spock is... AN ALIEN.
Up - The flying house crashes into the arch and Albert Pujols is the only person who can save the world.
The Hangover - The movie is set in Trenton Illinois and instead of getting drunk and messed up they drink a bunch of ski and get all jittery and crash a car into the Kountry Store and stuff.

I'm forgettting some more movies I think.

i'd imagine you're every bit as interested in my link list as i am - in any case, everything is now sorted on the right. i go through this list daily, hitting probably 85% of those sites, which keeps me informed on the things i like to be informed on.

you might notice the design category, which features everything from furniture to site design - the site design stuff is where i go when hoosier beer geek needs a design tweak. it's not only inspiration for design, but also a good place to look for things to rip off completely.

now i'd like to shift my attention to dave huffman, if he's still alive. hi dave.

If you're wondering,

I died on the operating table.