And if you don’t think it was a show, think again. Look no further than the evangelical jugglers showing up among the throng of protestors at the hospice which cared for Terri Schiavo during her final days. Jugglers. Come on, you think I could make this stuff up?

The sad fact of the matter is that this case was used as a political fulcrum with which opposing parties could weigh their competing interests. Sure, legislative squabbling plays a role in a healthy political process, but whenever I see a case such as this, where dueling policy-makers claim to have a victim’s well-being in mind, I can’t help but wince. To grapple over legislation is one thing, but to do so under the pretext of exhibiting greater care than a political adversary is utterly hypocritical, not to mention shameful.
Continue reading “The Terri Schiavo Show”

Two hours to go before my last final, after which I am done for the year. 4:00 this morning saw me salsaing in Albuquerque with some New Mexican natives, but now here I am back in C-Town. Why am I taking this final again? Right now I find myself struck by how misleading the outward and obvious appearance of my worldly pursuits must be in relation to those things which actually inspire me. For it is the things that have not yet sprung into my life – those that are waiting, lurking – which fuel my passion. The presence of their mere potential, whether or not they in fact come to fruition, drives me, granting me new insight in discerning between what I can live with or without and indellibly impressing upon me the undeniable assertion that life IS good.

In a word: perfect. That’s how I would describe the weather in downtown Cleveland tonight. It was well past dusk as I chatted with fellow classmates at a local watering hole, but the day’s heat lingered and I found myself altogether comfortable sitting outside in a t-shirt and khakis, residual clothing from the long work/school day. Walking back to the bike around 9:30, I heard a song that never fails to lift my spirits, and I mused that it should be a crime to be in this good of a mood. I could think of only one more thing with which to top it off…

I leaned into the hairpin loop ramp connecting Prospect with I-90 Eastbound. My path straightened as I came about even with traffic and an irrepressible smile spread across my face as I cracked the throttle with the familiar flick of the wrist. I was GONE. The bridges overhead began to pass quickly, their resident lights reduced to glowing streaks of amber. The night’s warm air grew angrier as it rushed past the outside of my helmet; its mounting objection was overcome only by the mocking scream of 600cc’s roaring past 10k as they hurtled me toward Cleveland’s infamous Dead Man’s Curve.

Woohoo.

Such were the telling words of Morton in regards to our alma mater, Ohio University, winning the MAC tournament and proceeding to the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. Those words pretty much say it all. To be sure, Ohio University doesn’t have what anyone would consider a powerhouse sports program, but once in a while they do something out of the blue that makes no particular sense. Here we have such an occasion.

Maybe I shouldn’t be so harsh; after all, a 21-10 record isn’t too shabby. I don’t follow college hoops much, but I’ve been dabbling a bit since learning the Bobcats are going to the The Dance. According to one ESPN talking head, they have two of the best freshman in the nation. If that’s true, perhaps it bodes well for our team’s future. For now, I’ll take what I can get, which is Game 1 against Florida on Friday, March 18th, at 11:35 AM CST. One thing about being the underdog: we’ve got nothing to lose.

Go Bobcats!

There’s something about traversing the country (and then some) on a single 10-hour, three-legged trip. There is something about watching, with suspended belief, each time an airplane carrying you and 300 others is able to break its earthly ties and point skyward. There’s also something about arriving at your final layover to find your flight home delayed late into the night. There is something about eventually settling into the driver’s seat of your trusty Jetta at 3:30 the next morning, turning the key, and hearing the familiar sound of the starter as it turns the car engine over. And there’s definitely something about hearing the same sound of the same starter turning the same engine over 10 seconds later….20 seconds later. There is just something about confirming with the AAA representative on the line that she did indeed just say your membership includes only THREE free towing miles, when you’re forty miles from night’s end. I promise you, there is something about finally crawling into bed at 5 A.M., realizing you have to work in a few short hours. But, most assuredly, there is nothing like hearing the sound of your own laughter as you drift asleep, ultimately reveling in the fact that, however twisted its path or frustrating its complications, your life will never be boring.

I rolled out of bed late Sunday morning and hopped on the computer for my daily brush-up on the news. Braced for reports of massive bombings and mass boycotts on your election day, I instead found myself silently cheering the fact that an estimated 72% (which was later revised to around 60%) of your population defied threats of violence by taking to polling stations around the country, making their voices heard.
Continue reading “Iraq: I Applaud You”

Memphis, TN. I do like the accents here. I’m not sure the spoken words are even relevant. I could probably be on the receiving end of a Tennessee belle’s drawl-laden public berating and still just grin and nod. I don’t plan on putting that theory to the test during my brief stay here today, mind you.
Continue reading “Layover”

While “21st Century” itself sounds futuristic enough, the years 2000-2004 teetered so precariously on the tails of the 20th Century, as if in danger of slipping back into the ’90s, that to me they weren’t convincingly representative of a new century/millenium (nevermind the technically accurate argument that the 21 Century didn’t begin until 2001, anyway).

With the arrival of 2005, however, I feel as if the the future is here. 5 years in…there’s no going back now. 2005 carries with it the credibility that several years of bumps and bruises bring with them and yet still manages to maintain that fresh-start zeal of a new era. I think the 21st Century is only starting to wind-up and has barely begun to show us all it has to offer. While the 1900s brought with them the massive scale with which humankind can annihilate itself and the planet on which it resides, this new century promises us the opportunity to wield such weapons as tolerance and ingenuity to live in harmony with the earth and its inhabitants. The big question is, will we do so? I, for one, am optimistic.

Happy New Year.

Some fads I see these days leave me pretty baffled, at times. In short: I just don’t get it. Here’s a few, to which I reserve the right to add.

Sushi
Though sushi can consist of vinegared rice with any number of ingredients, I typically see it with raw fish. Raw fish. At its best it tastes like nothing. The real genius about making this an “in” thing is marking it up to sell at your bar along with $9 martinis. Tres sophistique. I *really* wish I would have thought of this one.

Atkins
The whole anti-carbs movement, in general, actually. Hasn’t this diet been pretty much established as the wrong way to KEEP weight off? And yet, the low-carb craze continues. The sheer amount of effort I see people put into carbohydrate management is frightening. If a fraction of the discipline were only directed toward moderate physical activity and a “reasonable” eating routine…

Poker
Okay, now I know I’m gonna take some heat on this one, but I’m serious. Yeah, it’s a good game, don’t get me wrong. But is it $200-poker-kit-I’m-having-a-texas-hold-’em-tournament-once-a-month-bring-your-personalized-visor good? I mean, the game’s been around for centuries. Why the sudden passion? If a table dispute were resolved with an eight-pace duel outside, I might be more interested. And playing poker is one thing, but how about watching it on television? It’s on ESPN incessantly; there are seemingly innumerable World Series in the professional poker world. I never was able to reconcile the fact that these best-of-the-best players wear shades that cover half their faces (though I must admit, someone did recently tell me that the “truly great” ones do not wear sunglasses). I’m thinking it’s a matter of time until a Hollywood pretty boy is tapped to star in a movie depicting one man’s rise to poker greatness against the backdrop of a budding romance, all to the sounds of the latest Top 40 Billboard hits. Tell me you can’t see it. Maybe I’m just bitter than the majority of my web blog spam comes from online casinos. Maybe that’s it.

Anyway, a little high-and-mighty’ish on this post, I know. And, after all, diversity makes the world go ’round. But, that said: I just don’t get it.

Well, Christmas is here, and with it have come those things which over the years have become indelibly branded onto my brain as signifying the arrival of the Christmas season. It’s funny how certain objects can bring seemingly forgotten memories racing to the forefront of one’s mind. This phenomenan is not limited to tangible items, either; there are sounds and smells that I have come to subconsciously associate with the queen of all family holidays.

One of the primary indicators in my folks’ house that Christmas is upon us is the Christmas Mice.

Now, I’m not sure if it’s the fact that these mice have resided upon that same lamp every Christmas I have known or the fact that my dad seems so paternalistically attached to them, but they have taken on a role bigger than that of mere decoration; I’ve found their perennial emergence to invariably carry with it warm feelings of years past. Though in themselves only one example, the Christmas Mice are representative of those things which mark the holiday season.

In closing, I thought I’d list some of my Christmas favorites:

Favorite CD: John Denver and the Muppets: A Christmas Together
(one thing that’s recently come to my attention: the later release of this album is absent THREE songs on the original, including such classics as “Lil’ Saint Nick” and “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”…so beware)

Favorite Show: A Charlie Brown Christmas

Favorite Movie: Die Hard (it counts!)
(yes, I considered “A Christmas Story;” it comes in a close second)

Favorite Food: anything in quantity (except for sweet potatoes)

Favorite Weather: snow (and lots of it)

All-Time Favorite Gift Received (adjusted for loss of kid-at-heartedness): probably the Capsela 1000 of yesteryear, maybe the original NES, maybe my 1st R/C car the Grasshopper…
(in all fairness, this year’s slot car sets have to be up there, too)

Merry Christmas, folks.