Adopted Bears

We have adopted a bear family to live with us - rescued from the in-laws pending yard sale, is Humphrey, Edna and Jr. bear. Cute family, eh?

Metro Transit storefront

Metro Transit storefront in downtown Minneapolis

Wide Load comin' thru

As seen on I40 West last week - from what I could tell, a restoration project -

Yada Yada Nada

Cool visual for Sony's noise cancelling headphones - seen in Minneapolis airport.

Beautiful Downtown Minneapolis

I love the mix of modern, old and contemporary structures in downtown Minneapolis.





All of the downtown buildings are connected by second floor skywalks -



and there are some beautiful downtown churches...

Lego parts in a cup to go

To leave the Lego store with only $35.00 in purchase was a miracle for me - I had only an hour to shop, so I had no time to visit the rest of the stores in the Mall of America.



One of the Lego store specials is access to open bins where for $12.95, you can fill a approx. 16 oz cup of parts.



There is a half cup size as well for 6.95. I obtain some parts to add to my "Best Lego Band in Nashville" stage rigging including parts that look like speaker cabinets and spotlights!

More Lego Imagination Photos

Entrance to Lego Imagination Center...


Third floor view...


Lego park bench in front of store...


Lego Rhino...

Lego Mania in Minneapolis

I just returned from a business trip to Minneapolis - and enjoyed some Lego mania in the process at the Mall of America.



"The LEGO Imagination Center is filled with four stories of excitement for LEGO fans of all ages. Located at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, the 6,500-square-foot LEGO Imagination Center offers an unbelievable array of all things LEGO, including 90-plus large-size figures and objects made of LEGO bricks. Among the LEGO creations on display at the LEGO Imagination Center are dinosaurs, astronauts, a blimp that required more than 130,000 LEGO bricks, and a clock that's said to be the largest LEGO clock in the world. Visitors are invited to make their own LEGO sculptures in the largest LEGO play area anywhere. LEGO aficionados have been coming to the LEGO Imagination Center since the store opened at the Mall of America in 1992."

Friday Flashback "Love Shack"

Thanks to YouTUBE, I'm going to post a music video every Friday... just for kicks.

Here's a video performance of The B52's - "Love Shack" which is a major party song (and great for crusing down the highway).

I got me a car, it's as big as a whale and we're headed on down to the love shack.
I got me a Chrysler, it seats about twenty, so hurry up and bring your jukebox money!

The love shack is a little old place where, we can get together.
Love shack baby. (A Love Shack bay-hay-bee).



About The B-52's from Wikipedia:
The B-52's is a rock band from Athens, Georgia; the first of many from the college town that has become one of the most important centers in alternative rock.The name comes from the bouffant wigs that are a part of the band's distinctive look, worn by singers Cindy Wilson and Kate Pierson. Along with Wilson and Pierson, drummer Keith Strickland, guitarist Ricky Wilson (Cindy's older brother) and vocalist Fred Schneider formed the band after a drunken night at a Chinese restaurant.

The song "Love Shack" was inspired by a real-life cabin in Athens GA that was home to singer Kate Pierson in the early days of the B-52's. It was destroyed by fire in late 2004.

(Note: since the video takes a while to load based on your bandwidth, just hit play, then pause... while the video buffer gets full.)

The B-52's Official Home Page

Hipster Bingo!

Let's Play Hipster BINGO !

Write for Engadget!

Do you read Engadget and Engadget Mobile like, a hundred times a day? Do you live and breathe gadgets? Good. Now, can you write about all this stuff with wit, concision, and authority? If so, Engadget needs you --
Write for Engadget!

Love means saying "You're Not Interesting..."

Dang, love hurts - a classic from Savage Chicken

I been in the right place

With apologies to Dr. John:

I been in the right place
But it must have been the wrong time
I'd said the right thing
But I must have used the wrong line
I been in the right trip
But I must have used the wrong car
My head was in a bad place
And I'm wondering what it's good for

May 16 - A man who turned up for a job interview at the BBC found himself being interviewed live on air after a mix-up at reception.

The BBC's News 24 channel said the mix-up happened when two similarly named people were waiting at the reception of the corporation's London studios.

View the video - BBC in a muddle over the wrong Guy -

No Illegals working here!

People tell me I have a really nice backyard with flowering plants and veggies. Just to set the record straight, I, Kerry Woo DO NOT have any illegals as the AP reported in the above captions working at Kerry's... (excuse me - someone's banging on my front door...)
From: Bush to Send Up to 6,000 Troops to Border

The Gadgeteer

One of my favorite gadgets sites is The-Gadgeteer.com

Julie Strietelmeier and Judie Hughes are self proclaimed Gadgeteers and they do an excellent job of reviewing gadgets, Palm OS and Windows Mobile stuff, laptops, accessories and more. The reviews are written in a non tech down to earth practical lay(wo)men's terms fashion.

I was on the hunt for a laptop backpack and always turn to The Gadgeteer site to give me a base line of what to look for. Maybe because they're female, they bring a more practical aspect and perpective for all things gadget related.

Oh by the way, I recently had the opportunity to do a Gadgeteer Hands On Review Maxpedition Thermite Versipack Gear Bag

Blogging The 'Boys

"America's team: Love 'em or hate 'em, this year, we're going to be watching them. Of all the mysteries awaiting us in NFL season 2006, some of the most compelling story lines are sure to unfold in Dallas." Coach Parcells last season before retirement, Terrell Owens, a serious run for the Super Bowl - looks promising!

If you love the Cowboys, heres to Blogging The 'Boys: A Dallas Cowboys Blog. Full of daily updates and a great aggregator of all things Cowboys.

Are you a Beatles guy or a Stones guy?

"Are you a Beatles guy or a Stones guy?"
I suppose the question has been phrased differently throughout the ages.
"Are you a Jesus guy or a Mohammed guy?"
"Are you an Elvis guy or a Beatles guy?"
But for me the answer has always been the same.
I'm a Beatles guy.

- The Marathon Man aka Joseph Kelly ranks his favorite
Beatles Songs: From First to Worst

"My aim is to list the songs in groups, from worst to first, along with individual song reviews and tidbits about the making of each song. I still have not completed my initial ranking of the tunes, so I'm not actually ready to begin announcing my selections. There's one bias I should mention going into this project: I don't think there was ever a truly bad Beatles song. There were some clunkers, some experiments that didn't work, some odd instruments employed to ill effect, some bizarre lyrical phrasings. But it's my belief that the worst Beatles song is still better, more engaging, more exciting than the best song produced by any chart topping performer of the last decade."

xxx

Heartache with Hard Work aka Charles got inspired to do the same!

""Hey, I love The Beatles," I thought to myself while reading it. "Why can't I do the same thing?" So here I am. It's a chance to listen to a lot of Beatles songs, think about why I like them, and see if I can come up with something interesting to say about all of them (which is tougher than I thought it would be. I mean, you tell us something interesting about "Hold Me Tight"). And its always fun to make lists, particularly "best to worst" lists. Of course, "worst" is a relative thing. I mean, the worst Beatles song is still pretty great. Well, okay, some of them are actually kind of bad, but very very few."

Here's Charles' list of Beatles from Worst to First

Check out these two very ambitious blog postings -

Picture Source

Delirium - swept away by an artistic tidal wave

I'm still saying WOW having been swept away by an artistic tidal wave with Cirque du Soleil - Delirium at the Gaylord Entertainment Center this past Wednesday.

I've been a live music fan since my teens, having worked in the concert biz in Atlanta and seeing a number of shows over the years - but I have never experience anything like Delirium!

Perfected planted right of center about twenty rows up, we were simply immersed in the experience of it all. The show was well paced, with great music - heavy on the percussion, trumpets, guitars, a variety of vocals, and memerizing graphics and multiple set changes.

Should the performing arts ever need a standard for excellence, I saw it unfold before my eyes. If Jann Wenner from Rolling Stone can exclaimed, "I have seen the future of rock 'n' roll" when describing Bruce Springsteen, I had the same experience in seeing the future of the arts in Delirium - the complete package with dance, music, multimedia, props, acrobatics, story line... all perfected fitted together in true ensemble form - no front person, just over delivering with great passion by the musicians, singers, dancers whatever the audience expected to see.



Even at $110 each for the tickets, which is probably the going price for a U2 concert with 100,000 people, I loved the arena intimacy with the limited end zone to end zone seating and the sound -- especially in the GEC where the acoustics are pretty good to begin with.

Here's a 1:26 second clip of cirque du soleil - Delirium.



Matthew Reed from the Arkansas Times writes a great review:

If you showed up wanting to see the circus, you might have been disappointed. Otherwise, you were in for a hell of a show.

World-renowned Cirque du Soleil is again touring the country, and the spectacle is as overwhelming as it's ever been, but this time it's not about the acrobats. Creator Guy Laliberte's vision for this outing is a musical one, an audio-visual showcase for the best music to come out of his traveling carnival. The show's name is also its theme, its mission statement and its driving force: "Delirium."

The show depicts a man's search for harmony and balance in a world becoming increasingly unbalanced and fragmented, out of touch. Floating through a series of surreal musical and visual tableaux, he searches for a way to (both literally and metaphorically) touch solid ground again, to return to the earth. On his journey he encounters flood and fire, love and loss, death and rebirth, and the audience is swept along with him.

It's difficult to describe the scale of this enterprise, or the complex (at times, even chaotic) interplay between music, light, live action, multimedia, gigantic set pieces, and nearly enough projection screen area to fill four IMAX theaters. From time to time, giant tulle sheets are stretched in front of the stage and used as screens to create moving backgrounds and foregrounds that envelope the players and submerge them into live-action, virtual worlds. In fact, everything in the arena is a canvas to be painted on, even the audience itself. Lights flash, images flicker, the music rises, and worlds are created.

That interplay is precisely what makes "Delirium" work as well as it does -- not only does it combine to create instant, moving sets and play with all of the available space, but it also disorients the viewer, confuses and overloads the senses until it is at times difficult to tell what is real and what is not, what is on the screen and what is living in the screen. There are moments when it seems that there are seven things happening simultaneously on and around the stage, trying to pull the eye in seven directions at once, flashing scenes now inspiring, now comforting, now joyous, now jarring and disturbing. Sort of like life, actually, life with 24-hour television and the Internet and war and famine and a new happening every day, updated by the hour, but here it is infused with art and color and dream-logic and triumph. It is a world that you will be reluctant to leave.

The music itself is an updated, "urban tribal" remix of the best music of Cirque du Soleil's previous shows, a melange of jazz, Latin, African tribal, Eastern European and other "world music" influences, as one would expect from such an international production. In place of pure instrumental pieces and previous "invented language" lyrics, the songs all have new lyrics in English, French, Spanish, Wolof and Portuguese. Much of it is music intended to create mood, music written to complement visual spectacle, and in this it succeeds very well, though there are a few standout songs that work well as singles in their own right.

And fear not, there are indeed acrobats and other assorted feats of strength, aerial grace and dear-God-that-looks-painful flexibility that will most assuredly delight you. This is Cirque du Soleil, after all, and they would be remiss to leave out the "Cirque" part of the equation. Tumbling, hand-balancing, juggling -- you name it, though these performances are but one facet of the show, not shoved front and center as they are in the usual Cirque performances.

This time, the play's the thing. And quite a delightful, delirious thing it is.



Web Site: Cirque du Soleil

MacroEconomics 101: Every Breath You Take

Every Breath You Take
Dean Glenn Hubbard
Parody: Follies Student Comedy Revue



Those wacky Columbia School of Business grads are back with their Follies - enjoy!

A MultiMedia Tidal Wave

Tonight's the night to experience "A MultiMedia Tidal Wave" - DELRIUM from Cirque Du Soleil is performing here in Nashville at the Gaylord Entertainment Center.

The tickets were a Valentine's gift for my wife and a birthday present for myself.

Should be a great night for sensory overload, especially for my wife Becky as she loves the Peter Gabriel, RiverDance type art performances.

Rehearsal Clip

Here's an article from the Tennessean published May 8:

Circus meets arena rock
Splashy, acrobatic troupe puts focus on music with new show

By LIBBY CALLAWAY
For The Tennessean

So much for the big top.

When the Cirque du Soleil team rolls into town this week, it won't be packing its usual tent. That's because "Delirium," the latest entry in their 13-show repertoire, doesn't depend as much on acrobatics as the Montreal-based entertainment troupe's other shows.

With 540 square feet of massive projection screens and a large cast of dancers, singers and musicians, "Delirium" has more in common with a Madonna tour than it does anything Ringling ever dreamed up.

" 'Delirium' is about music," says Carmen Ruest, the show's creative director and founding member of Cirque (she's a stilt-walker extraordinaire). With "Delirium," "we're exploring a new artistic direction, a new way to entertain."

The show was produced in collaboration with arena rock specialists Live Nation, who approached Cirque execs with the idea last year. Mere months later, "Delirium" made its debut as the Cirque group's 17th production since it was founded in 1984. (The company has 13 different productions on tour internationally, which collectively employ 900 performers; most Cirque shows tour for a decade or more, Ruest says.)

The 100-minute production's storyline centers on Bill, an everyman disappointed by his life, which he sees as dominated by computers and technology, Ruest explains. "So he leaves this planet and goes on a journey into his dream life. All the tableaus in the show are his dreams," she says.

Eventually, Bill returns to the planet -- with the knowledge that he can make his dreams into a reality with support from others. "It's about reaching out and realizing your dreams surrounded by other people," Ruest says.

Ruest says this is the first Cirque production to use actual lyrics to tell a story. (She says former shows have used movement and "invented languages" to tell the story, because they're performed all over the world.) The musical lineup consists of 20 songs -- remixes made from the best tunes featured in other Cirque shows with added lyrics. The vibe, says Ruest, is very percussive -- "a bit hip-hop."

A cast of 45 multidisciplinary artists from 20 countries, including 11 musicians, six singers, 18 dancers, eight acrobats and two actors, inhabit Bill's dreamscapes -- which are presented on a 130-foot, two-sided stage that divides the arena. There are 540 feet of projections -- equivalent to almost four IMAX screens -- showing both pre-recorded and live footage, as well as roll-up screens and scrims that are moved to create new spaces during the show.

It takes a crew of 75 technicians eight to 10 hours to unload and construct the set at each stop, Ruest says. The show requires 130,000 pounds of equipment, including 27 motors that allow actors to fly over the expansive set, which is dominated by performers in constant motion in addition to the action on the towering video screens.

If it sounds like a lot is going on, it is. Ruest says the term "sensory overload" is often used -- aptly -- to describe the experience.

However, she says, "the mission was the same as with other Cirque du Soleil shows: to allow people to get outside of themselves. It gives you a moment to say 'Wow!' "

Ruest adds that despite its concentration on multimedia as star attraction, "Delirium" still includes acrobatic dances as well as classic Cirque du Soleil moves such as aerial tricks and balancing acts.

"There are a few circus acts," she allows. "We are Cirque du Soleil. We could not at this point do a show without acrobatics."

How To De-Motivate Volunteers

Dave Ferguson has a nice blog posting regarding "How To De-Motivate Volunteers"



Jim Collins says that when you have the right people doing the right work you don't really need to concentrate on motivating them - they will show up motivated. What you need to do is make sure you don't do anything to de-motivate the people on your team. So, leaders, coaches and staff - here are the top 10 ways to de-motivate your volunteer teams:

1. A sense that their service is not valuable.
2. A sense that they do not matter as a person, only as a "worker"
3. A sense that their contribution is not as valid as others.
4. A lack of community.
5. A lack of connection with a bigger purpose.
6. Poor leadership and management.
7. Poor communication/direction.
8. Lack of appreciation.
9. Failure to recognize them as a donor.
10. Lack of development of them as a person.

Read the rest here!

Dave Ferguson and four friends from college launched Community Christian Church, a church that is passionate about "helping people find their way back to God". This church has grown to 600+ leaders with more than 4,000 in attendance at eight sites every weekend throughout Chicagoland.

image source

What would Jesus do with $40,000?

Shaun Groves asks a great question that demands a great answer - or at the least, deep thoughts and examination of how "church" is to be done.

Here's the set up: "What else could have been done with the $40,000? A small army of Christian men organized the 8th annual Soulstock in Athens, Alabama yesterday. Several thousand people attended the outdoor music festival and funnel cake feeding frenzy for free. I did not. I attended for $3000."

Read the rest and join the conversation here

Sarah McLachlan asked the same question too with $150,000 - here's the result:

Tom Loves His Boxer

Taken at the Art & Crafts Show, Centennial Park, Nashville

iPod owners get free classic cartoons Images

Cartoon fans looking to get some classic laughs on their iPods or computer on the way to work can now download a batch of free public domain cartoons courtesy of American website refrederator.com



The America website has launched a new daily vintage cartoon video Podcast called ReFrederator.

The free series features classic cartoons including characters such as Bugs Bunny, Mighty Mouse, Daffy Duck, Betty Boop, Little Lulu, Porky Pig, Donald Duck and Felix the Cat, along with fairy tales and musicals.

Each daily update will feature a short cartoon and the five per week will be grouped into weekly themes.

The first week of films has a Mother Goose theme. Fleischer, Iwerks and Freleng are just a few of the pen and pencil giants spotlighted in the sites first batch of golden goodies.

The shows are available through iTunes or via the company's site at refrederator.com/ and users can opt to have the latest episode automatically downloaded to their computer just like a Podcast.

via Pocket-Lint

New Cartoon blog worth looking at -

Duck Dodgers has a real love for classic cartoons; thus you should stop by and take a look -



This blog is intended to support the love and rediscovery of Classic Theatrical Cartoons from the Golden Age of Animation but with an eye on modern productions as well as on tv animation!

What I don't understand is the many frame to frame image posts - I did try to scroll fast using the roller ball on my Mighty Mouse to create a flicker effect; I suspect Duck just wants us to appreciate and savor the artistry that goes into each frame to deemed the cartoon being a "Classic".

Check it out - lots of good stuff - visit and support his labor of love for the Classics from Tex Avery, Norman McCabe, Bob Clampett, Terrytoons, Ren and Stimpy and many more!

I see dead people; it's the sweeps!

TV Squad talks about the ABC bird flu movie scaring us even further...



"Lately, there isn't a day that goes by where we don't here something about the bird flu that may, or may not, be passed along to humans. Not to get too freaky, but experts are saying that a worst case scenario would be 20 million Americans affected, 2 million dead, schools and businesses shutdown to prevent the spread of the disease. So, you would think that the networks' entertainment divisions would give us something light and fluffy to keep our minds off of this fact.

Um, apparently not."

Check out the comments and the upcoming made for TV movie such as:

According to the World Health Organization Bird Flu (Avian flu H5N1) has caused the confirmed deaths of 113 people WORLD WIDE in the last 3 years. Over 36,000 people die of Seasonal Flu EVERY YEAR in the United States alone.

People, get over it. It's a movie, therefore, I hope it's entertaining. If along the way I learn something, great...if not....just show me a good time with an interesting plot.

AND

Don't sweat the bird flu. It's probably more dangerous to talk on your cell phone while driving. If you like to worry, worry about that.

As for me, I worry more about eating undercooked chicken or another Grizzly Burger from Shoneys.

Shoney's Grizzly Burger

Since May is National Hamburger Month, I caved into trying out the new Shoney's Grizzly Burger. "Two giant slabs of beef, Grizzly sauce and a honey of a bun make for the best burger ever" is the ad copy that goes with the burger.

Think of it as a big brother to the McDonalds Big Mac. The beef totals 2/3 pound, the sauce is familiar, with less lettuce - just nastier to eat.

There are three other versions of this big daddy: the Cub Burger for kids 10 and under, the Bear Burger with 1/3 pound of beef, and the Grizzly Burger with more than 1/3 pound of beef. All burgers come with fries and coleslaw.

Eat enough of these Grizzly Burgers and you can win a Big Truck to leave in your will. Contest Rules here

Mr. Fortune Cookie Writer

Mr. Fortune Cookie Writer gave us 4 mini conversation starters for the short drive home tonight after our Chef Yang Buffet (with 6 lbs of crab legs)

Your life does not get better by chance, it gets better by change.

A difference, to be a diffrence, must make a diffrence.

Your individuality provides a light for others.

AND

How you look depends on where you go.

Thanks Mr. Fortune Cookie Writer - here's one from Nigeria:



Photo Source

questions left unanswered

"When God seems far away, focus on biblical answers that can not be questioned, rather than life's questions that cannot be answered."

- Bobb Biehl

Inquisitive Reading Ahead (in search of authenticity)

I've been having a spiritual itch that has needed some scratching for some time; I suspect it kicked into high gear when I did some mission/relief work in Louisiana after Hurricane Rita. I don't find pewsitting attractive anymore as there is a huge gulf between hearing and doing.

There is something about the word "missional" in one's approach to make a difference; what is the slice of the world that as a Christian I've been assigned to partake in? Another definition of missional is: Christians going out into the world to serve God rather than isolate themselves within communities of like-minded individuals.

I remember Henry Blackaby's statements in "Experiencing God" -
God is always at work around you.
God pursues a continuing love relationship with you that is real and personal.
God invites you to become involved with Him in His work.
God speaks by the Holy Spirit through the Bible, prayer, circumstances, and the church to reveal Himself, His purposes, and His ways.
God's invitation for you to work with Him always leads you to a crisis of belief that requires faith and action.
You must make major adjustments in your life to join God in what He is doing.
You come to know God by experience as you obey Him and He accomplishes His work through you.

Last year, a friend mentioned the emerging church which made the itch more intense and seeking to understand what all the talk was about via many bookmarked links - Wikipedia distills the definition of the emerging church as:

The emerging church or emergent church is a diverse movement within Christianity that arose in the late 20th century as a reaction to the influence of modernism in Western Christianity. The movement is usually called a "conversation" by its proponents to emphasize its diffuse nature with contributions from many people and no explicitly defined leadership or direction. The emerging church seeks to deconstruct and reconstruct Christianity as its mainly Western members live in a postmodern culture. While practices and even core doctrine vary, most emergents can be recognized by the following values:
Authenticity
People in the postmodern culture seek real and authentic experiences in preference over scripted or superficial experiences. Emerging churches strive to be relevant to today's culture and daily life, whether it be through worship or service opportunities. The core Christian message is unchanged but emerging churches attempt, as the church has throughout the centuries, to find ways to reach God's people where they are to hear God's message of unconditional love.
more values defined

I just placed an order from Amazon for these three books is search of looking for perspectives on Authenticity:

"Why Men Hate Going to Church"
David Murrow -
Book Description
It's Sunday morning. Where are all the men? Golfing? Playing softball? Watching the tube? Mowing the lawn? Sleeping? One place you won't find them is in church. Less than 40 percent of adults in most churches are men, and 20 to 25 percent of married churchgoing women attend without their husbands. And why are the men who do go to church so bored? Why won't they let God change their hearts?

David Murrow's groundbreaking new book reveals why men are the world's largest unreached people group. With eye-opening research and a persuasive grasp on the facts, Murrow explains the problem and offers hope and encouragement to women, pastors, and men. Why Men Hate Going to Church does not call men back to the church-it calls the church back to men.

"A New Kind of Christian: A Tale of Two Friends on a Spiritual Journey"
Brian D. McLaren
A New Kind of Christian's conversation between a pastor and his daughter's high school science teacher reveals that wisdom for life's most pressing spiritual questions can come from the most unlikely sources. This stirring fable captures a new spirit of Christianity--where personal, daily interaction with God is more important than institutional church structures, where faith is more about a way of life than a system of belief, where being authentically good is more important than being doctrinally "right," and where one's direction is more important than one's present location. Brian McLaren's delightful account offers a wise and wondrous approach for revitalizing Christian spiritual life and Christian congregations.

"Revolution"
George Barna
Book Description
World renowned pollster George Barna has the numbers, and they indicate a revolution is already taking place within the Churchone that will impact every believer in America. Committed, bornagain Christians are exiting the established church in massive numbers. Why are they leaving? Where are they going? And what does this mean for the future of the Church? Using years' worth of research data, and adhering to an unwavering biblical perspective, Barna predicts how this revolution will impact the organized church, how Christ's body of believers should react, and how individuals who are considering leaving (or those who have already left) can respond. For leaders working for positive change in the church and for believers struggling to find a spiritual community and worship experience that resonates, Revolution is here. Are you ready?

First things first: I cleaned up a ton of links on Safari to not browse so much so that I can devote more physical book reading time in my schedule.

The season ending shows should wrap up soon: 24, Invasion, Alias, My Name Is Earl, The Office, Desparate Housewives, American Idol, Survivor, The Simpsons, That 70's Show... which will give the TIVO a break and shift 8 hours into reading...

Purging out my BlogLines feeds - I check out about 93 on a daily basis; some I have to keep on top of for my work such as the handheld/PDA/wireless/Palm feeds, but I will pull back radically on the opinionated ones. Reading rants about politics, nonsense or non tolerance towards Christians isn't productive anyway, so I''ll pass it on by...

With a birthday coming up, I get reflective on spiritual things anyway, so I'm anticipating some thought provoking epiphany moments to spring forth in search of authenticity.

The Best Buy Invasion of 2006

Big Idea: get a large group of people in blue polo shirts and khakis to enter a Best Buy or a group in red polo shirts and khakis to enter a Target. Wearing clothing almost identical to the store's uniform, the agents would not claim to work at the store but would be friendly and helpful if anyone had a question.

See the invasion unfold as they seek out WMDs...

King of the Hill: Church Hopping

Nice article from Adam Finley from TV Squad (reprinted here in its entirety)

Just because a place is big doesn't mean it's bad. The Pentagon's good. --Hank Hill

I wouldn't have though I could ever become nostalgic for those days when I was forced to wake up early, don uncomfortable garments and too-tight shoes, get shuttled off to church, and then try to stay awake through some boring sermon. I don't recall ever actually enjoying church, but it was part of our routine, and last night's episode managed to touch on all the ups and downs of attending church in a small town.

The episode begins with the Hills arriving late for church, only to find a new family has taken their seats. Hank tries to get them to move, but they refuse. He confronts the reverend about it, but she refuses to assign seats. Upset, Hank leaves the church for another church, which is more like a gigantic worship complex, complete with a coffee bar and a movie theater. Hank is wooed right away by the promise of assigned seats, but eventually grows tired of the fanfare and goes back to his old church, though not before trying out Luanne's boyfriend's worship approach, which involves getting drunk at the bar and singing along to the jukebox.

The episode showed that religious people each have their own way of worshiping and communing with God, and that no way is necessarily worse than the other. It also brought out a major part of Hank's character, which is that he does not accept change very easily. In fact, he's willing to make his life vastly more complicated rather than accept the fact his family has to sit in the back of the church.

I lamented in my last review of a lack of Peggy, so I was happy to see her back in full force this time, offering her unsolicited suggestions to the reverend of their new church, and at one point addressing the congregation to see if anyone had taped The Amazing Race. Yet another great episode, and another funny and poignant look at small town America. Having King of the Hill lead into the rest of the Sunday night lineup and shows like The Simpsons and Family Guy is like having a folk singer open for a punk band. It's different, the styles aren't even the same, but it's the perfect respite for those of us who don't mind a show that's willing to slow down and let us soak everything in.

It's time to play Oprah or Osteen

OK... it's... time to play Oprah or Osteen, courtesy of The Wittenburg Door and Monday Morning Insight

These quotes were taken either from Joel Osteen's blockbuster bestseller "Your Best Life Now" (and the accompanying study guide) or Marcia Z. Nelson's insightful analysis of Oprah's philosophy in her book, "The Gospel According to Oprah." See if you can guess if the pastor of the largest church in the US or America's favorite guru uttered a particular quote.

1. The first step to living at your full potential is to enlarge your vision.

2. If you develop a vision of victory, success, health, abundance, joy, peace and happiness, nothing on earth will be able to hold these things from you.

3. Live your best life.

4. You must concieve it in your heart and mind before you can receive it.

5. I have been beyond blessed.

6. Every day I pass the front of my house, I sing, "Jesus Loves Me."

7. Thank you. Two words that can make miracles

8. We have to conceive it on the inside before we're ever going to receive it on the outside.

9. Today is the only day we have. We can't do anything about the past, and we don't know what the future holds. But we can live at our full potential right now.

10. The expression of your feelings is like magic.

Answer key found here at Monday Morning Insight

Feel good gospel, eeh?

Whoa-oa-oa! I feel good, I knew that I would, now
I feel good, I knew that I would, now
So good, so good, I got you
(The Good Rev. James Brown)

Friday Flashback "Black Horse and The Cherry Tree"

Thanks to YouTUBE, I'm going to post a music video every Friday... just for kicks.

Here's a live performance of KT Tunstall - "Black Horse and The Cherry Tree" where she sings solo with loops and a variety of instruments.

well my heart knows me better than i know myself
so i'm gonna let it do all the talking.
(woo-hoo,woo-hoo)
i came across a place in the middle of nowhere
with a big black horse and a cherry tree.
(woo-hoo,woo-hoo)



About KT Tunstall from Wikipedia:
Kate "KT" Tunstall is a Scottish singer-songwriter from Fife. Her mother is of partial Chinese descent, and her father Irish. She was raised by adoptive parents, scientists who did not own a television or stereo, as they would interfere with her congenitally deaf adoptive brother's hearing aid. In her twenties she met her birth mother, who told her that her natural father was a folk musician, long after she had chosen that route herself.

Her nickname, "KT", is a play on "Katie". While a student at Royal Holloway, University of London she performed on an acoustic guitar in a student bar, under the name "Katie". Her style of music varies from the folk genre to the more pop genre.

(Note: since the video takes a while to load based on your bandwidth, just hit play, then pause... while the video buffer gets full.)

KT Tunstall Web Site

Hamburger on the brain

I am so starving for a good hamburger.

Turns out that May is National Hamburger Month!



A Hamburger Today is the definitive source for all things burger...

Ever since Fuddrucker's closed here in Nashville, I miss a good burger - (with no gristle)

I did find a great burger at the CheeseCake Factory that runs about $12.00 which was one of the most memorable burgers I have eaten.

I recently dined at the superb J. Alexanders on West End; the Tuna Burger is off the charts - a half pound Fresh Ahi tuna from Hawaii with a ginger-mustard glaze for $14.00.

Speaking of gristle burgers, here's a oldie April Fools prank:

The Left-Handed Whopper
In 1998 Burger King published a full page advertisement in USA Today announcing the introduction of a new item to their menu: a "Left-Handed Whopper" specially designed for the 32 million left-handed Americans. According to the advertisement, the new whopper included the same ingredients as the original Whopper (lettuce, tomato, hamburger patty, etc.), but all the condiments were rotated 180 degrees for the benefit of their left-handed customers. The following day Burger King issued a follow-up release revealing that although the Left-Handed Whopper was a hoax, thousands of customers had gone into restaurants to request the new sandwich. Simultaneously, according to the press release, "many others requested their own 'right handed' version."
(courtesy: museum of hoaxes

White Castle is the official sponsor of National Hamburger Month PRNEWSWIRE

Pure evil...

My friend Homer-J just got a brand new job, and they took his picture at orientation. Another friend who happens to work at the same company saw it on their intranet and forwarded it to me. As a stupid joke...

It be stupid, but I find it brilliant... A top tenner fo' sure.

TRUE LOVE

If you love something, set it free.

If it comes back, it was, and always will be yours.

If it never returns, it was never yours to begin with.

If it just sits in your living room,
messes up your stuff,
eats your food,
uses your telephone,
takes your money,
and never behaves as if you actually set it free in the first place, you either married it or gave birth to it.

from MikeysFunnies