Tell Pluto Size Doesn't Matter

Things are good...life is moving at a good clip. Heres some snoop dog to enjoy.

Employment!

Yes! It's finally happened. To the endless rejoice of my parents and those who hold the rights to my studen loans (read:soul)...I found a job, a good one, that actually pays well, is close to my house, and requires the use my law degree/education...and they found me. Fuck Yeah, ain't life a bitch. So thats all I'm gonna say about my job.

Now that the job hunt is officially over for me (God bless you if you're still on the hunt), I'll ideally be using the space as a place to rant and and get away from my job. The Astros aren't looking like a team with the right chemistry to make it to the playoffs, but with that pitching...anything could happen. I don't really like the makeup or momentum of any team but the Dodgers, and I think they're gonna end up winning the West. So Cinci may very well end up winning if they can continue to be consistent. Damn...and I was gonna say I probably won't be talking much about baseball.

How 'bout movies? Well, I saw plenty between the waves of cover letters and resumes I sent out. The Puffy Chair was excellent. You'll love it if you like The Office or Arrested Development. Superman...was so/so..v.if you're yet to see it, I'd suggest seeing the IMAX version, the 20 minutes of Digital 3D would probably make the thing worth while.

Music? ACL is right around the corner and I'm sure I'll eventually do a post on my picks and reviews...etc.etc. I'm so serious about this years festival, that I'm preparing 4 weeks ahead of time. Aftershows, housing travelers, planning potential lineups (its always a gameday call). I do know which shows I'm look forward to the most. Federico Aubele/Thievery Corporation at Stubb's on Thursday before everything gets started and Okkervil River/Deadboy and The Elephantmen at the Parish on Saturday. One show people are amazed I'm excited about is John Mayer, but I think this guy is gonna blow people away....so long as he doesn't play his body is a wonderland. He's been doing nothing but blues of late (which is why he's kinda fallen off the face of the earth) and I saw him go toe to toe with Eric Clapton in Dallas.

Politics? Go Kinky (thats a useful slogan on many levels). That's all I have to say for now...besides things won't start heating up 'til Sept 15th..which is ACL weekend of course).

TV? Here is where I'm offically eating Crow. FX is the shit. I'd originally questioned the networks ability to actually put on good programming. It's Always Sunny in Philly and Nip/Tuck have been my summers most vivid addictions. And Over There turned out to be waaay more captivating than I'd anticipated. TNT and USA have started to field some pretty good stuff too, The Closer being one example. The Networks are planning their retaliation this Autumn. I house sat for a family friend and watched the entire first season of Lost....hooked on that. The summer season of Entourage has been quite entertaining, and of course there was the World Cup. Oh man...the World Cup.

Alright...back in the game....

Clerks II and a fat line of Coke for the Bar

Ok, since I'm not taking the bar and don't have to work 'til 1pm tomorrow...I went to see Kevin Smith's Clerks II this evening.

Overall...I think the Austin Chronicle got it right, this movie is about 3.5 stars out of five. There were cheesy moments and some of the acting was a little contrived, but still a highly entertaining, well thought out, and funny movie. Also....it's incredibly disgusting and not for the tame of heart or weak of stomach. If you can't handle conversations about ass-to-mouth "sexual expression" or people drinking piss...then you should probably go watch Prairie Home Companion (also a good movie). The best thing about this movie was definately Rosario Dawson...yeah...she sold me. The worst thing about this movie is the soundtrack, some of the 90s songs the used for flashback appeal kinda missed the mark in my humble opinion. Either way, its a movie I'd recommend to most people (except said squimish citizens).

Ok, so for anyone who hasn't seen this yet, here is a sitting congressman telling Steven Colbert how fun hookers and cocaine can be when mixed:


To all you future lawyers, good luck on the bar this week. I'll be waiting outside onn Thursday with a watermelon full of vodka and two nicely rolled stogs from Jamaica mon'! Good luck to all!!!


A congrats to Div for entering the upper echelon of responsibility holders: Fathers (with mothers also being part of that echelon).

mmm....World Cup

So I got a part time gig doing...of all things...writing (please note the irony).

At any rate I wanted to catch up on a few things about the world cup:

First, ABC/ESPN suck. I've long known both of those facts. I stopped watching the Sportscenter and its crappy production value and least common denominator targeting strategy and instead reverted to reruns of the Perry Logan show. The fact of the matter is that ESPN is sucking the life out of sports. No where is that more evident than in the World Cup. In fact there's a great NY Times World Cup Blog article about it here. AT this point, more people are tuning in to Univision to watch the games. If only Univision had an HD feed!

Second, the US, despite what many claim, did not flame out of this tourney. The US's group was one of the two most difficult groups in the entire cup. The US were legitimately one call away from having a shot at advancing to two calls away from beiing in a position to win the group. They played like the Texans against the Czech, responded with heart against Italy, and then were sucker punched against Ghana (though Ghana played with my upfield passion that the US with the exception of Clint Dempsey).

Third, Clint Dempsey (East Texas reprezent) and Eddie Johnson are the future of American soccer. They have a flair and fearlessness that most American soccer players lack, whether it be becuase of lack of talent or over-respect for European players (read: Landon Donovan).

So, who looks good? Germany and Argentina look like the two best teams....unfortunately they play on Friday instead of in the finals. Tomorrow, Brazil v. Ghana and Spain v. France should both be highly entertaining matches.

Back to the grind stone....enjoy studying for the bar.

World Cup Observations I

Over the next 30 days I’m gonna try to post some observations on all the beautiful games I’ll be watching when I’m not looking for a job (every one who knows me, knows I’m not taking the bar because of the World Cup, so that last statement is sure to have drawn a few laughs).

I.) Everyone loves smooth balls, unless you have to handle them. This is exactly the case in this years Cup chase. Evidently, this year’s official World Cup soccer ball is made using a special engineering technique which makes the ball seamless and perfectly round (or at least as perfectly round as man is capable of producing). This means the ball dances without spin, wreaking havoc on opposing goal keepers. Expect to see many more shots from outside the 18 (that would be the penalty box for you nubes). Germany had two long distance goals on Friday, and already you are seeing more and more attempts from between 20 and 40 yards out! This could make for a very exciting World Cup.

II.) Trinidad & Tobago is not a tobacco store at the Galleria. It’s the smallest nation to ever qualify for the World Cup and did so as the fourth qualifying team from the CONCACAF region (the US’s region, where Mexico and Costa Rica also qualified). In their first ever Cup match against perennial “always the bride’s maid and never the bride” of European soccer, Sweden, T&T: (1) lost their star, starting goal keeper to injury during warm-ups, (2) started their 37 year old back up who played for Howard University in 1988, (3) lost key defensive midfielder Avery Johns to a red card, (4) and were forced to play a man down for roughly 1/2 of the game. Still, T&T fought out a 0-0 draw behind the folkloric play of back up goal keeper Shaka Hislop. My roommate, a soccer watching neophyte, was sold on the sport after being thoroughly entertained by this David v. Goliath match, despite the fact that no goals were scored and it ended in a tie (but a moral victory for T&T).

III.) While everyone else is picking Brazil, and being the contrarian that I can tend to be, I’m choosing Germany as my favorite to win the Cup. Their new attack minded coach, Juergen Klinsmann, and home field advantage should be enough to carry them easily through the first round. If Friday’s 4-2 victory over Costa Rica was any indication, this team is nasty as hell, even without their best player (Michael Ballack) and with national hero and goalkeeping legend Oliver Kahn on the bench.

IV.) Tomorrows game between the US and the Czech Republic will be the most important match for the team this year. In the last two Cups, only one team (Turkey) that lost their first match advanced out of the first round. Lucky, the Czech’s have been plagued by injuries to their most vital players of late, including stars Pavel Nedved, Milan Boros, and 6’8” forward Jan Koller. Of course these are just injury reports, who will and won’t actually play is always info held close to the vest. In order to win the US will have to have great wing play from Bobby Convey (whom I have very high expectations of) and great defense from the US back line (I’m talking to you Gregg Berhalter). Kickoff is at 11am. Sam’s Army will be at Fado’s on 4th, with another contingency watching at Ringer’s. Wear red, unless you’re a Czech commie bastard (how ironic is that).

The Job Search Continues

So I've sent out about 50 resume/cover letter combos with little or no waves made. And now the World Cup is upon us. Fucking wonderful!

Already the bulk of my focus has shifted to The Beautiful game. This NY Times blog has become a daily fixture in my media mix.

Here's something to whet your excitement:



For those really bored readers, check out Frank Zappa sticking it to the man on CrossFire.

The Blues

As a self taught guitarist from East Texas, everything I play is the blues in some form or fashion. From Robert Johnson to Lightnin' Hopkins, my roots are anchored in the rich American tradition that is the foundation for Rock'n'Roll.

Tuesday evening, the man largely responsible for making Austin the live music capital of the world died. R.I.P Clifford Antone.