Monday, January 31, 2005

Ticketmaster Sux

Ok and here's the rant. 1st off, I understand how popular U2 is, so its not surprising that both of there shows sold out in 35 minutes. So yes, I am disappointed and a bit jaded, but I do think that Ticketmaster is still an unfair monopoly. Not only do they not seem to feel the need to have an automated system that says, "hey folks U2 is sold out", but they also don't feel the need to post this on there website. We waisted an hour dialing and dialing and dialing and clicking and clicking because no one told us that the shows were sold out. Dear Ticketmaster, I am there for U2 tickets, I am not going to have my interest sparked by the prospect of seeing Tony Bennett instead, so just tell me what the hell is going on! Extremely frustrating!

Weekend revue

The weekend started out very nicely, had a dip that I will rant on in a later post and then a relaxing end, so how could that be bad?

My aunt and uncle came down to Philly for a visit and some EC classes for my uncle, who is a dentist. They stayed in the Sheraton Society Hill, which was nice, though not overally spectacular, so I don't know if I would totally reccomend it without the one night free deal the city has implemented to get people to stay. The 1st night we went to Sotto Varalli which had a pretty good selection of food. Being that it was restaurant week it was hard to find a place to go. The food was good FuW enjoyed her meal more there then the next night, though I would vote for Bliss which overall was just better in my book. Bliss has a very chi chi NY feel to it, and the beef I had was awesome. We both also loved the tempura shrimp appetizer and the liquid chocolate cake dessert, yum. Plus, the Bellevue was having a 100 year anniversary and Broad Street was all blocked off and the sidewalks were filled with orchestra music and people wearing tuxedos. One revelation was the fact that FuW has decided to make the wedding black-tie optional. It does fit, so I don't care, I'll be in a tux anyway.

During the day Saturday, we walked around Old City, including a visit to the Constitution Center, an excellent stop for Philadelphia visitors who love politics, Betsy Ross's house and the City Tavern Restaurant which struck me as some place one would find in the middle of Colonial Williamsburg, with the waiters all dressed up as colonists etc.

Sunday was deconstructing the tree and a West Wing marathon. Its amazing how much a sports fan can miss football this time of year.

Friday, January 28, 2005

Did you Know-Wyoming Basketball

Did you know that they have a 10-8 record and a conference record of 2-3, with an RPI ranking of 95?? 95!! The have a 1-3 record against top 25 rpi teams, but a 3-1 record against creampuffs in the 75-100? and 6 wins against teams from the bottom 175 in RPI, schools like our lady of the deaf and blind? And they are actually 0-4, 0-4!!!! against teams in between that ranking? A tournament bid sure could be decided by those 4 losses. But they did beat Denver and IPFW, two schools that have had a division one program longer then um, hmm, well older then 2005 at least.

Growing and growing

You people should feel the surge of Eagles fever in this town and we still have over a week to go. Buildings are green, bridges are green, every bus has Go Eagles on it. I think we will be looking at an epidemic by next week, and a major suicide watch if they lose (which is pretty likely if you break down the stats etc).

Please, lets also stop railing on about whether TO plays or not. I am beginning to not freaking care, probably like most of u people reading this now.

Anybody ever here of Dowington?

Thursday, January 27, 2005

13 Strong

This list was taken from an excellent local newspaper blog Campaign Extra, with people pointing this stuff out in the papers, it is truly great to live in a democratic hub like philly.

The Original 13
...with a spine -- Democratic senators who voted against Condoleezza Rice yesterday. Like the United States itself, hopefully they will grow from 13 to 50 over the next couple of years -- and then beyond. (Note: List borrowed from Steve Soto's most excellent blog, Left Coaster.)

Barbara Boxer, D-Calif.
Robert Byrd, D-W.Va.
Edward Kennedy, D-Mass.
John Kerry, D-Mass.
Carl Levin, D-Mich.
James Jeffords, I-Vt.
Jack Reed, D-R.I
Mark Dayton, D-Minn.
Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii
Evan Bayh, D-Ind.
Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J.
Tom Harkin, D-Iowa
Richard Durbin, D-Ill.

Prominent MIAs: Corzine, Feingold, 2008 wannabes Biden and Clinton.
Democrats who annoy us most these days: Lieberman (duh), Biden, Feinstein.


(a good question really, where was Gov. Corzine)

Reception Venue

Ok this is the website for where we will be getting married and having the reception as well. We signed the contract yesterday, so I would say its all locked up.Cairnwood, Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania Amazing thing this place is 5 minutes from our house, yet it seems like its in a different world in comparision.

Master of MultiTasking

We went to show the future in laws the place for the reception last night, and I again proved after dinner that I am a Master of Multi-Tasking when need be. I was able to catch the end of the Maryland/Duke game last night, while holding an indepth conversation with FuW about the fun she is having in her career life. And I really didn't miss anything she said. I am the man.

Maryland was the Man last night by the way. The series between the two of them is still one of the greatest in college basketball, no matter how bad a year either team in having.

Tuesday, January 25, 2005

I love music

Saw this on Baby Girlz blog and I am always interested in music. One thing that can always make me happy. Its almost like a lottery to see what comes up.

1/25/05
Itunes Party shuffle

1.Wanted Dead or Alive (live version)-Bon Jovi
2.Dont Let the Sun go Down on me-Elton John
3.Sound of Silence-Simon & Garfunkel
4.No Letting Go-Wayne Wonder
5.Kick Start My Heart-Motley Crue
6.Dont Know Why-Norah Jones
7.Black Gold-Soul Asylum
8.Can U Stand the Rain-New Edition
9.Welcome to the Terrordome-Public Enemy
10. I Don't Wanna Be-Gavin DeGraw

An odd mix if you ask me. I'd always be interested in a peek at others, so post if ya want.

Soldier's Lost Photos Recovered With High-Tech Help

This is a really happy ending to one of those little human interest stories you see on the 5 o'clock news when they have some time to fill. MSNBC - Soldier's Lost Photos Recovered With High-Tech Help Three thoughts,

David Akers is really a great guy
Technology is amazing
And I sure hope the soldier gets back from Afgahnistan someday to enjoy the darn things in person.

Promised Land

Ok, I am not going to take any credit, mostly because it would be rude of me. But I am a believer in jinxes, curses, lucky and unlucky shirts, so I am a bit giddy about the Philadelphia Eagles finally getting to the Super Bowl. If you are not from here, I doubt you know how much this means to most of the people in this city. I know I did not understand it until I saw the way they celebrated, peacefully in the streets, all of the signs of encouragement along Woodhaven Rd and I-95, and the tears that actually welled up in FuW eyes when she saw Donovan & B-Dawg holding that trophy. I guess it goes to show how much NY/NJ people take things for granted, it seems that every couple of years one of our teams gets into a championship of some sort, and whether you love the Yankees/Rangers/Devils or hate them, it becomes second nature to expect them there. Not here in the city of brotherly love, and for that I am truly happy for the people here. They deserve some good luck.

Sunday, January 23, 2005


one time Posted by Hello

On Edge

Well, Nothing left but to do it in the end. The whole city is on edge. There is quiet confidence for the Eagle fans on the surface, but bubbling just underneath is this feeling of "oh my god it could all happen again". I feel it too, and as I have always said, I am a quasi-Eagle fan.

Along those lines, its time for the predictions:

Eagles 24-17, in a hard fought roller coaster game, which is just a close as the score indicates.

Patriots 16-7, lead as always by the defense and the foot of Adam Vinatieri. The clock strikes Midnight for Big Ben.

Saturday, January 22, 2005

Batten Down the Hatches

Ok I will give those weather people some credit at least. They may still have no real clue how much snow a area is going to get, but they are always accurate on timing of the things. They said between 10 & 12 and 10:40, we had our 1st remnants of sticking snow. Now, whether we are in for the storm of the century or not in the Delaware Valley is still something that I will look forward to waiting and seeing, but I will give out my kudos when I have to.

Good news, I found my camera cord, so I look forward to sharing some snow pictures...

Friday, January 21, 2005

line of the night

Hal Sparks, I love the 90's part deux

RE:Riverdance

"Lord of the Dance was popular like watching a house fire. You kind of look in and stare and say 'What the hell is going on here?'"

Wednesday, January 19, 2005

Someone explain a duvet cover?

You are telling me in the age of man on the moon, teflon, and ipods, we can not come up with technology that either makes a duvet cover easier to put onto a down blanket, or even better, down that can actually be washed in the washing machine like all of the other bed things? Lets just say I was so fed up with the thing on Monday night, it was hanging from the bannister at the bottom of the steps!

Tuesday, January 18, 2005

Racist Literature Left At Homes On MLK Day

I hate to give these people any kind of advertising or publicity, but this is still pretty despicable in the grand scheme of things.

McNabb will get his chance

I am a bit backlogged on reading some of my magazines with the holidays and all, so I finally got to my January 3rd issue of Sports Illustrated last night. Look what I came across

Who would the pros pay to see play

Donovan McNabb, Philadelphia eagles QB would pay to see

Michael Vick

"He's got so much ability; he can throw, run. I can run but I don't do it as fast as he does. Everybody starts talking about stats, passing yards, rushing yards and how he is an exciting player, but the think people forget about Mike is, he's a winner. Forget the numbers and just look at his career record (23-11-1). He doesn't get enough credit for the fact that he is a winner."

A bit of foreshadowing if you asked me. Guess which two Qb's are facing off for a trip to the Super Bowl this weekend? I am a quasi-Eagles fan, I still wouldn't pick them over the Giants, but you have to start to feel sorry for the fans of Philadelphia and the anguish that they have felt for the last 20 years or so that you can't help but root for them (that is along as you don't go to a game with them, they are still some of the rudest fans out there). But I am genuinly concerned for this weekends game. Vick is something you do not see very often in sports, and the Falcons are very fast on both sides of the ball. I can see more doom coming for the city of Brotherly Love!

Egg??

So, Im laying down in bed with FuW, just lounging out, nodding off at about 12:30am or so on Sunday and then I hear this bang against the upstairs window right above my head. Now 1st off, FuW or the furball that sleeps on my bed dont even move. God forbid we are under attack or something, because it will be all up to me. Anyway, lucklily the window did not break and in the light of day, I find egg splattered all over the window! Now we have not been here in this development to have made any enemies or anything like that. Plus since we are an end unit, we are a cut thru for the hoodlums of the neighborhood to get to the back of the development. I have my theories on what happened. The maintenace people live in the development and I could see one of there children annoyed about coming home and taking it out on my upstairs window, because eventually the maintenance man will be stuck cleaning it up ( a beauty of renting) I am sure no one is surprised that I did not sleep well the rest of the night though are they?

Monday, January 17, 2005

A Tradition

Yes, I was a History major, but it still should be a speech that effects anyone, no matter what day it is.


The Text of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s
"I Have a Dream" Speech
Aug. 28, 1963



I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.
Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon of hope to millions of Negro slaves, who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity. But one hundred years later, the Negro is still not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacle of segregation and the chains of discrimination.

One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land So we have come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.

In a sense we have come to our Nation's Capital to cash a check. When the architects of our great republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir.

This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed to the inalienable rights of life liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check that has come back marked "insufficient funds."

But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So we have come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and security of justice.

We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now. This is not time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism.

Now is the time to make real the promise of democracy.

Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice.

Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood.

Now is the time to make justice a reality to all of God's children.

It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment and to underestimate the determination of it's colored citizens. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end but a beginning. Those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual.

There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.

But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining our rightful place we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds.

Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must ever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.

The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. They have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We cannot walk alone.

And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back. There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality.

We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities.

We cannot be satisfied as long as the Negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one.

We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their selfhood and robbed of their dignity by signs stating "for white only."

We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote.

No, no we are not satisfied and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.

I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of your trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. Some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom left you battered by storms of persecutions and staggered by the winds of police brutality.

You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive.

Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our modern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed.

Let us not wallow in the valley of despair. I say to you today, my friends, that even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow. I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed. We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal.

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; that one day right down in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and every mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plains and the crooked places will be made straight and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.

This is our hope. This is the faith that I will go back to the South with. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope.

With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood.

With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to climb up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning "My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring!"

And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true. So let freedom ring from the hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York.

Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania.

Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado.

Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.

But not only that, let freedom, ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.

Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi and every mountainside.

And when this happens, when we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every tenement and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old spiritual, "Free at last, free at last. Thank God Almighty, we are free at last."






Saturday, January 15, 2005

Overkill?

Yesterday was black, green and white day in the city of Brotherly Love and its surrounding neighborhoods, in honor of the playoff game between the Igles and the Vikes. I have to say that this town falls into there same traps over and over again. All 3 news stations has Eagles Party specials on, as well as rapping fans who rip of Wild Wild West by Kool Moe Dee and enough renditions of "Fly Eagles Fly" to have you hear it in your sleep. NYC doesn't do those things, DC doesnt do those things, Phoenix only trots out this kinda of hoopla for the World Series, not a second round playoff game. I think its just another way for this town to get hurt all over again. I will root for the Eagles tomorrow, but they maybe out of luck if they play Michael Vick and the Falcons this weekend. Run Westbrook Run.

Friday, January 14, 2005

Thanks Matt's World

batman
You are Batman! You are damned cool. Too bad
nobody's around to enjoy it. You creeped them
all out. You are so intense that no one can
compete, so they get out of your way. Don't
get me wrong, we all look up to you, but kinda
how we look up at God. With fear and from far
far away.


Which Superhero Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

Gotta love Verizon

They did an excellent job of keeping me from my PC for the last few days. The dsl system seemed to have a major malfunction on Tuesday, and while it was fixed up Wed and Thurs, it still was not perfect. I think we should get credit for a day for lack of use.

Anyway, lotsa thoughts. This weekend is one of the best weekends if you are an NFL fan. The divisional games are usually the most exciting of the lot, and Sundays games will be better then Saturdays, though I would be remiss if I did not recommend at least checking out any game with Michael Vick. The Indianapolis Colts made some bulletin board type mistakes this week leading up to the game with New England. Not only did there kicker mouth off about how well they were going to do, there website began to sell AFC Championship T-shirts, about a week to early! Not a good plan.

$50 million on an inaugural?

We are going to the Philadelphia Home Show at the Convention Center this weekend. It will be fun, though I made the suggestion to go and FuW said no, yet when AM suggested it, off we go. Anyway, FuW says that its always over the top, but maybe we can get some ideas and rework them to be more affordable. I am emboldened with confidence after getting the Ikea PC desk together, though I would be thrilled if they actually included directions with words.

We think we found a place to hold the wedding, we both love it. I will post the website once everything is concrete, since I am the superstitious type. Plus I promise ring pictures once I find the wire for the camera.



Monday, January 10, 2005

Patriots Against Senator Santorum

A worthwhile cause in the state of PA. This guy makes Spector look warm and fuzzy for gods sake.Patriots Against Senator Santorum Question is can Dems find someone more helpful for this cause the Hoeffel?

Good thing I dont bet

Because if I did, I probably would have been wrong on most of the games this weekend, though I must admit that I usually pick teams with my heart as opposed to my head. One thing I must say, that really should not be that surprising is that I missed probably the best game of the weekend shopping. Now this was entirely my own doing, since I figured I had to give up one game for FuW. I mean that much football has got to be mind numbing, unless u love it, which I do. With the new supplies, I hope to have her computer set up in the next day or two, which means I can have the ipod that I got her for Xmas setup as well. Yes the fun life of Sparky.

PS-Is Greg Barton the luckiest man this weekend or what?

Friday, January 07, 2005

Lifted from Wonkette

Jon Stewart is still the Man, even if its a saddened voice based on the position of us poor progressives.Jon Stewart's Daily Show 109th Congress

Monica Yant Kinney | Eagles above, varmints below

I am including an article from our Local paper, obviously, since no one outside the region would know who Monica Yant Kinney is.Philadelphia Inquirer Eagles above, varmints below
It pretty much goes to show how deep the powerful are involved in local government around the Delaware Valley, as well as how stupid officials can be. I can say, while Camden may need help, the last thing NJ as a whole needs is more freaking people.

Wednesday, January 05, 2005

Things get worse for Ashlee

Oddly this was the only place so far I could find information on Ashlee Simpson's Halftime Performance . So it wasn't just me watching TV on a set of rabbit ears in the computer room because this room does not have satelitte, she really did suck.

Could happen to a nicer Stoops

So this game last night was totally hyped, totally broken down over and over again into the possibility of a close game, a nail biter. The only ones biting there nails were the executives at ABC and Coach Stoops of Oklahoma Let me just add my own too sense, it could not have happened to a nicer team. Not only does Oklahoma never play anybody, they run up the score every chance they get against University of the Poor Sick Children, and every word out of Coach Stoops mouth seems to be a complaint, a whine, or some other cry baby tactic. To lose 55-19 on the grand stage is a fitting demise.

Tuesday, January 04, 2005

Auburn doesnt get it done

Yes, there defense played very well, but they did manage to give up almost 300 yards of passing, and how in the world do you let a guy get open and behind you by 10 yards when you are protecting a 10 point lead. So no, the War Eagles did not do what they had to do last night. I for one would have liked to see what would have happened if they played Utah. And thats another thing about Tommy Tuberville's logic, Utah does not even exist on his radar, yet they too were undefeated!

Monday, January 03, 2005

Another Year

So the wedding was very nice. The ceremony was held in a church in University City section of Philadelphia. It was one of those old style churches, with the ornate decorations on the inside and the old wood. It made for a lovely setting. The church wedding was your typical church wedding, with all of the catholic ceremony bells and whistles.

The reception itself was held at the Marriot Courtyard, with a view of city hall. While the room may have been too small, and the DJ did a horrible job of mixing songs for the people, overall it was a good time, especially for New Years Eve. FuW and I enjoyed it, and picked up some hints for our own wedding to come, though we have been having a bitch of a time deciding on a place to hold the reception. And then there is the whole anullment thing, still a sticky wicket that I will go into at a later time.