5/30/05: The mustard is off the hot dog, you big corn fed mule you

I don't have much tonight. I wanted to start on my little story, but I'm having some problems. I have the basic plot down, from beginning to end. And I have a couple of scenes mapped out pretty good. But there are a few things I'm totally undecided about, like the time period. It may be present day, it may be mid-late 1970's. Voice: pretty sure it'll be first person, but I'm not sure if it'll be a reminiscence or a day-by-day journal from the time period in question. And I have to figure this all out before I start if I want to release this masterpiece in serial form as I intend to. So we may need to wait a few days on this. Sorry about my false promises. Trust me, it won't be worth the wait.

Movie I watch all the way through every time it's on, but I'm not exactly proud of it: "White Men Can't Jump." I can't really call it 100% good, but it's way better than just a guilty pleasure or a time-period curiosity. It's funny, and it always puts me in a good mood. The basketball scenes are very entertaining. And when was the last time L.A. was photographed so well? Wesley and Woody are both just good enough for you to sit around and argue as to whether they're good or they suck. It also has: Rosie Perez at her absolute peak in every sense. Kadeem Hardison in a career-defining (and ending) performance. Marques Johnson with some fine comic relief. An interesting soundtrack featuring Cypress Hill, James Brown, Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin and Boo-Yaa Tribe. The movie could have ended about three times, but it just keeps going, and somehow they saved the best ending for last. Ron Shelton has made some duds, but he has a real soft spot for the eternal loser, and Woody Harrelson's character is a great example. He could have found redemption any number of times, but he keeps going back and screwing up the same exact way again and again. Just like we all do. And at the end of the film, has he finally figured it all out? Of course not. It's a rare example of a very commercial movie that has a great chance to sell its soul completely and give you an ending in which everybody finally finds a way to improve their place in the universe. But it doesn't do that, and for that I respect it even more. I know it's pretty wack, but I'ma give it a 24.2 on the VRS. I may rethink that at a later date.

Not much of a turnout for softball tonight. Kramer beat Kramer 7-2 in a 5 on 5 game cut short in the bottom of the third due to apathy. I went out with Rob M. and the Giambi Bros. after the game for a couple of beers. We went to the Blind Tiger over on Hudson, and it smelled like shit, piss, stale beer, sweat, ass sweat, ass, puke, and feet in there. The humidity hit 135% at one point. But we ordered cheese steaks and stuck it out through a pretty boring Yanks-Bosox game anyway. Believe it or not, I've never had a cheese steak before. I wasn't sure what I should order it with, but when Adam Giambi ordered his with onions and Cheese Whiz I sensed that was the way to go. And I was right.

Although my stomach seems to be telling me there is trouble ahead.

You know, we've had T-shirts on sale for over a year now, and we've only sold 8. First of all, thanks to the 8 who've stepped up and bought one, and secondly, I don't blame the rest of you for passing on the opportunity. If you had a bullshit website and you sold T-shirts, I probably wouldn't buy one either. That said, just because we don't sell any of the shirts doesn't stop us from putting out new ones. So here is the latest off the line. Don't bother buying one. Why would you want to be the coolest kid on your block anyway?

The wife and I have switched from the endless series of Poland Spring bottles to the Brita filter. No complaints at all so far.

I found this interesting. I've always enjoyed the "walk in" music or whatever it's called, and while I guess it's a bummer that it's become such an officially documented part of the concert experience, I still like seeing which bands the bands like.  You had to know Bruce would be diggin' on some My Morning Jacket.

Whodat (10 points) and whodat in the middle (10 points, 5 more for each of the other two dudes)? Answer as soon as you want.