Category: Diversions

666

Diversions

Today is 6-6-06, BFD!

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But Kudos to the marketers to the remake of the movie The Omen, for choosing today to release their remake of the classic move about the antichrist. They deserve credit for capitalizing on a coincidental date, that matches a symbolic bogey-man, from a book that many take as the word of God, to sell movie tickets. It’s great. But it does make me feel old to see they are re-making a movie that came out in my lifetime. Meanwhile, others agonize about how the movie version of The Da Vinci Code is blasphemous, dangerous, or whatever.

If only getting mad about a movie was as far as we allowed our irrational beliefs to take us. The book I’ve just started reading, The End of Faith, offers this interesting bit of perspective:

Imagine a world in which generations of of human beings come to believe that certain films were made by God or that specific software was coded by him. Imagine a future in which millions of our descendants murder each other over rival interpretations of Star Wars or Windows 98. Could anything – anything – be more ridiculous? And yet, this would be no more ridiculous than the world we are living in.

Anyway, believe what you like, but do me a favor and don’t kill me for not sharing them. And yes, that goes for you too beast.

with thanks to Chuq for the fun 666 link

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A Christopher Comeback?

Diversions

A year ago I wrote about the dropping popularity of the name Christopher, the name having dropped to the #10 spot in the list of Most Popular Baby Names for 2004.

But there is good news to report. The Most Popular Baby Names for 2005 list has been released, and I’m happy to report that Christopher has climbed back into the #9 spot!

When we reach #1, it will be the greatest comeback in popular names history.

with thanks to Chris Massicotte for spotting this happy trend

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Storm Shots

Diversions, Guide to Life
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A strong and fast-moving thunderstorm had just passed, bringing dramatic dark clouds, major lightning bolts, and a much needed downpour. As it started to let up, I ran out to snap some photos and was rewarded with a very cool rainbow. I just couldn’t get far enough away to capture the whole thing in my photos!

Then I went inside to drag the kids away from their video game for a minute, to come outside and take in the rainbow (and stand in an open field during an electrical storm) and give Mother Nature her due.

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Billy Joel: Sharing the Tunes

Diversions, Music

Billy Joel in Washington DCTonight we caught Billy Joel in Concert in Washington DC. It’s at least the fourth time I’ve seen Bill in concert, which put him up with the Replacements, Elvis Costello, and The Clash, for performers I’ve seen live most often.

And Billy didn’t disappoint. We were seated in the front row, behind stage right, which gave a great view of the concert, probably better than I’ve ever enjoyed. It wasn’t just that we could see Billy and his band, but it was like seeing the concert from his band’s point of view. When he looked back at his drummer with a nod or a mouthed word, we saw it. And in most cases we knew which song was coming next, because we shared Billy’s view of the teleprompter which shared his lyrics with him.

There were a few other notable moments. We could see what was obviously a hearing impaired section of the arena, where a rotation of signers worked vigorously to sign every song for their section. And an unexpected moment on the playlist came when Billy put on a guitar and brought a long-serving roadie on stage to sing “Highway to Hell”.

To my wife’s frustration, I couldn’t just enjoy the show without using the gadget on my hip to share the love. So I snapped a lot of crappy quality Treo photos, and dialed up various friends to share some live Billy with them.

Here’s who go what:

Neal – Allentown

Kenny – Goodnight Saigon
(he knows why)

Mike – Movin’ Out

Doug – Captain Jack

Marne – I Don’t Know Why I Go to Extremes
(would have been ‘Pressure’, but I was in line for a drink)

Jenny – It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me

Kevin (in Tokyo and by request) – You May Be Right

Rick – sorry man, you should have gotten ‘Big Shot’, but it was one of the few moments that I put my phone down and just listened. But I still dedicated it to you.

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Four Things

Diversions

Wow, I’ve been tagged in a Four Things list! OK, I’m game, here goes…

Four jobs I’ve had

  1. Paperboy, The Daily Pilot
  2. Projectionist, USC & UCSB
  3. Systems Administrator, US Senate
  4. Political Consultant

Four movies I can watch over and over

  1. An American Werewolf in London
  2. Animal House
    (two movies directed by John Landis, who knew?)
  3. Dr. Strangelove
  4. The Silence of the Lambs

Four places I’ve lived

  1. Virginia Beach, Virginia
  2. San Diego, California
  3. Huntington Beach, California
  4. Montclair, Virginia

Four TV shows I love

  1. The Twilight Zone
  2. Survivor
  3. The Daily Show
  4. Cheers

Four places I’ve vacationed

  1. Morro Bay, California
  2. London, England
  3. Boston, Massachusetts
  4. Sayulita, Mexico

Four of my favorite dishes

  1. Spaghetti
  2. Burritos
  3. Steak
  4. Pizza

Four sites I visit daily

  1. Yahoo’s Most Popular News
  2. Wikipedia
  3. CNN.com
  4. Flickr

Four places I would rather be right now

  1. In my Hot Tub
  2. Tahiti
  3. Limerick, Ireland
  4. Somewhere, Over The Rainbow

Four bloggers I am tagging

  1. TJ Southard
  2. Eric Folley
  3. Mike Sager
  4. Nathaniel Pearlman
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In the Sunday Washington Post

Diversions

Going to see my picture on the cover
Gonna buy five copies for my mother
Gonna see my smiling face
On the cover of the Rolling Stone

Cover of the Rolling Stone
by Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show

I’m not likely to ever be on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine, but as the familiar chorus of Dr. Hook’s classic song describes, it’s a dream held by many performers.

But today I enjoyed an analogous accomplishment for someone who works in politics like myself. My opinion piece appeared in the Sunday Washington Post, in the ‘Close to Home’ section dedicated to local issues.

You won’t see my smiling face. And it’s online, so I won’t have to buy five copies for my mother. And I’m not creative enough to write new lyrics that will rhyme. But if you catch me humming ‘rolling stone’ this week… well, know you know why.

My Rights Aren’t A Matter of Address
The Washington Post, Sunday, January 22nd, page B08

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Happy New Year!

Diversions
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We rang in 2006 with our neighbors, and skipped the traditional champagne for some Kamikaze shots, which proved to be a very fine choice. After the party broke up, we hit the hot tub for the first dip of the year. And this morning, surprisingly hangover free, I made pancakes and sausage.

All in all, a very promising start to the year. A win by the Redskins today would be nice too.

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