1. Loveless Love -- The Feelies
2. Black Hole -- She & Him
3. The Prisoner -- The Clash
4. Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band -- The Beatles
5. The Cities Are Burning -- Rev. F.D. Fitzpatrick
6. Like A Soldier -- Johnny Cash
7. Clementine -- Decemberists
8. Bossa Nova Baby -- Elvis Presley
9. Celebrated Summer -- Husker Du
10. Smash the Mirror (live) -- The Who
Bonus: Can't Hold On -- Cheap Trick
That was a little different. Hey Big Mak, I think I might do a story out of this one. Only wrinkle will be to incorporate SPLHCB into the mix.
What's your top 10?
]]>It has come out that Grienke is not only a great pitcher but uses sabermetrics to help him approach batters. The guy uses his brawn and his brains.
So if you are a Major League Baseball player, making millions of dollars, awarded the highest honor for your position, and obviously extremely bright what else could you ask for? How about engaged to a former Dallas Cowboy Cheerleader?
Well done sir. Well done.
1. Canary - Liz Phair
2. A Song for You - Gram Parsons
3. You Make It Easy - Golden Smog
4. Champaign Supernova - Oasis
5. Cool Blues - Charlie Parker
6. The Neighbors - Jonathan Richman
7. Tired of being Alone - Al Green
8. Who By Fire - Leonard Cohen
9. War on War - Wilco
10. Hound Dog - Elvis Presley
Bonus: Dog for Fire - Pixies
Seven solo artists and a wide range of styles. Also at least one song from every decade since the 1940s! Beat that! What's your top 10?
Responding to the Star Tribune's Katherine Kersten could easily fill a blogger's screen for a year and I typically have ignored her. But this past Sunday's screed against gay marriage is just too delicious to pass up. It's no surprise Kerstin is writing about her opposition to gay marriage. Gays probably rank right up with there with scary Muslims and the downfall of today's culture as tried and true Kersten columns.
I found it interesting that Kersten in her opening paragraph has to backtrack a little on gay marriage. She admits that if a married couple asks "how does gay marriage directly impact my own hetero-marriage?" she can't point out any good examples. Part of this is a realization that we've had gay marriage now for a number of years in some states (including next door Iowa) and all the doom and gloom predicted by the gay marriage opponents have not come to pass (much like we have yet to see a Islamic-centered agenda from Congressman Keith Ellison that KK was so worried about).
Doom and gloom won't work because we have too much evidence that gay marriage really has no impact on how we live our everyday lives. So Kersten has to fall back on philosophy. Kersten's main argument against gay marriage is that marriage is an institution needed to create families. In other words, marriage is reserved for those who can procreate. Here's the kicker quote: "Marriage channels men's and women's sexual attraction into productive ends, and harnesses the male sex drive by binding men to the mothers of their children."
No word on whether or not a couple's marriage can be revoked if for some reason they were not able to produce children or if there is some sort of contract a couple signs when getting a marriage license that states that they will produce x number of children over the course of their marriage. Just think of the possibilities! More importantly what about post-menopausal women who want to get married? Should they be refused marriage too? Under a KK world will men and women have to undergo fertility testing to make sure that they are able to procreate and thus uphold the real purpose of marriage? Does every man over the age of 55 get Viagra with their marriage license?
Of course if we talked with KK she would scoff at all of those examples. But in a nutshell these examples are at the core of her problem. The anti-gay marriage logic is so tortured, so gerrymandered to solely defend her anti-homosexual agenda that it just falls apart under the faintest of scrutiny.
Not withstanding the disappointing vote against it in Maine last week, gay marriage is more and more becoming a reality on the United States. Younger people have no issue with gay marriage and since most of the opposition lies with older people, each year that opposition becomes less and less pronounced. The states that have approved gay marriage have not become Sodom and Gomorrah, gays haven't been "recruiting" more kids to their team, and existing hetero marriages are just as strong (or weak) as ever. The fact that gay marriage opponents are left with flimsy philosophical arguments and stale anti-gay anecdotes to make their case shows how out of the mainstream they've become.
Update: There was a hilarious parody of the Kersten column in today's strib. Read the Kersten column from the link above, then check out this. Good stuff.
Last week the City Pages used that term to describe Corey Brewer, the string bean of a forward employed by the Minnesota Timberwolves. Besides generating page hits through teh google, I thought that phrase perfectly captured Brewer and the potential of the Wolves.
If you haven't been paying attention, the Wolves have completely revamped their team once again in the hopes of creating something out of the big stinking growler left by the Kevin McHale regime. So far the results have not been pretty: a Detroit Lions-like 1-7 record including a record-breaking 146-105 loss last night against the Golden State Warriors, crowds at Target Center that are listless and sparse, and the team "savior" Ricky Rubio playing in Barcelona for another 2 years.
There is hope however. Kurt Rambis seems to be a good coach and has put together a pretty good coaching staff, including Dave DeBuscher Bill Laimbeer (God was that embarrassing). Just seeing those guys on the sidelines is a little comforting. Also Corey Brewer is one of those guys you gotta love, not necessarily for his basketball skill but for his ineptness. The guy can play defense -- he's all energy, and with those long arms and legs he is up in your grill in a flash. Problem is he can't shoot a lick, doesn't understand the offense, and is just as likely to throw the ball away, shoot an airball before his team is set in the half court, or commit a foul his body is out of control and the opponent takes advantage. He's one of those lovable losers that, when your team is bad, you have to embrace just for the futility of it all.
Now all isn't lost if you are a fan of NBA basketball. You can easily score tickets to any game you want. Last Friday, a couple of friends and I went to the Wolves-Bucks game and sat 6 rows behind the Wolves bench for $20. This was a Friday night against a Milwaukee team that will pull in some 'Sconi fans. I am guessing midweek games can be had for a song. Even with the Wolves as bad as they are, watching NBA basketball for that cheap and that close is a treat.
So go to a Twolves game. Cheer on Corey Brewer and his spindly little legs as he goes 1-12 from the floor. Watch all 5'-7" of Johnny Flynn flying down the court, getting hammered by much bigger opponents, see Stewie look-alike white Euro dude Percherov score 24 points against a nice Celtics team and then not even sniff the basket against a lousy Bucks team. It's all good. It's the 2009 NBA as we know it in Minneapolis.
1. Pale Blue Eyes -- R.E.M.
2. Bob Dylan Wrote Propaganda Songs -- Minutemen
3. Troublemaker -- Weezer
4. Mesmerizing -- Liz Phair
5. I'm Sorry For You My Friend -- Hank Willams
6. One - Aimee Mann
7. Bad Luck -- Social Distortion
8. Kid About It -- Elvis Costello
9. Joke About Jamaica -- The Hold Steady
10. What Led Me to This Town -- The Jayhawks
Bonus: Alone + Easy Target -- Foo Fighters
Hey, that's not a bad list, good variety, nothing embarrassing. What's your top 10?
Last weekend was big plus rare with all four major sports leagues were in action. Here are some thoughts
Vikings-Packers. This was the biggie. Favre back at Lambeau. Opportunity for Vikings to put away the Pack and grab a stranglehold on the NFC North Division. A million words have been spilled on the event, I'll just add that the anguish Packer fans are going through (see image above) makes me even happier than the Vikings 7-1 start. Vikings secondary is still a big concern and I worry how they would match up v. the Saints or Colts.
Gophers v. MSU. A must win and a crazy game. How many times does a team commit 17 penalties and win? Plus the Gophers got a couple of key calls late. Go back to my prediction, I've practically nailed it. Gophers win next two and lose at Iowa. However, I would gladly trade those two wins for a victory against the Hick-eyes and ruining their national championship hopes.
Timberwolves Start Play. A miracle win in their opener followed by 3 loses. This team ain't going to win a lot of games, hopefully they will be entertaining.
Gophers Hoops. Three plays suspended. Ouch that's 25 percent of the team. Hopefully White and Bostick's transgressions are minor. With those three players, this could be a fun team to watch this year.
World Series. Jeez, Chase Utley is playing out of his mind, too bad it seems like the Phillies will need to score at least 6 runs every game to even have a chance at winning. It will be interesting to see if Girardi's strategy of using only three pitchers on three days rest backfires. Burnett looked awful last night.
Even though cases of H1N1 increases every week, including mounting deaths to younger people and those who have weakened immunity, there still is a small, but vocal, contingent of vaccine deniers who will refuse to take the vaccine once it becomes available. Given the fact that a Minneapolis clinic was overwhelmed with over 120,000 calls last week when it became known it had the vaccine, I do believe that vaccine deniers are a small minority of people, hyped up by 24/7 news channels looking to fill time and by (ahem) bloggers who need something to write about.
I have no issue with taking the H1N1 vaccine and will get a shot when it's available and make sure the rest of my family can get one too. The vaccine, its development, and manufacture is no different than the seasonal flu shot, and while I am sure there are some people concerned about the seasonal flu vaccine, we don't hear much about them.
I also don't have an issue with people refusing the H1N1 vaccine, even though it may cause the virus to spread further. First, more people refusing the vaccine means that I will get my vaccine that much quicker and will be easier to find vaccines for my family. But more importantly if a few of these vaccine deniers actually contract and die from the virus, we will "thin the herd" of those who obviously are of lesser intellect. Many of these vaccine deniers would be prime candidates for a Darwin Award and if they want to eliminate themselves from the gene pool, we'll mourn their passing but then feel grateful they can no longer propagate. Surely someone who takes their medical advice from some white dude rapping about H1N1 or Bill Maher instead of the CDC, gets what's coming to them.
So all you vaccine deniers out there, deny away. I'll go get my shot, stay healthy, and check out your stuff when the estate sale is held.
1. Don't Be Cruel - Jerry Lee Lewis
2. Chinese Lorraine - Jack Logan
3. To Sir With Love - Lulu
4. Wear My Ring Around Your Finger - Elvis Presley
5. Baby I Love You - Aretha Franklin
6. I Ain't Ever Giving In - Fred Eaglesmith
7. He's A Good Dog - Fred Eaglesmith
8. Blue Sky Mining - Midnight Oil
9. Floaty - Foo Fighters
10. Jesus Built My Hotrod - Ministry
Bonus - Too Much Sex (Too Little Jesus) - Drive By Truckers
A little different list today. Double shot of Fred Eaglesmith and a double shot of Jesus! Big Mak, how many Jesus songs do you have?
1. The Rest of the World -- The Waco Brothers
2. Mayfly -- Belle & Sebastian
3. When the Whip Comes Down -- The Rolling Stones
4. Darby Hall -- The dB's
5. Stacy's Mom -- Fountains of Wayne
6. Black -- Pearl Jam
7. Window of My World -- Guided By Voices
8. New Amsterdam -- Elvis Costello
9. Son of a Gun -- Nirvana
10. Nightshift -- The Names
Bonus: 3-Legged Dog -- The Handsome Family
How did Stacy's Mom get in there? What's your top 10?
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I guess there is a reason they call him A-Rod! Also Robins Cano's facial expression is classic. Like he always suspected but seeing the evidence right in front of him was too much too take. Matsui's just playin' it cool.
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Today I rode my bike to work and given the 5 day weather forecast and late date, it is probably the last time I ride my bike to work or anywhere for that matter so let's look back at 6 months of bike riding.....
First I will have over 1100 miles on my bike from mid-April (plus 50 miles on a tandem) which is about 200 miles a month. While a big increase from years past, there is room for improvement. One thing I want to do next year is to have more later evening rides, even short 10-15 mile rides, during the week. I have purchased a light in anticipation of later rides. If October hadn't been so crappy I probably could have broken the 1200 mile mark but I still refuse to ride in the cold and rain and don't have anything to cover my legs. (I do however have a biking jacket, a long sleeve shirt, and ear warmers).
As documented in this blog, I really increased my longer rides. Prior to this year, the furthest I ever rode was probably about 40 miles. Beside my 97 mile trip to Siren Wisconsin, I had a ride of 71 miles, a couple of about 60 miles, and a 50 mile ride in addition to the numerous 35-45 mile rides that I have done in the past. I definitely increased my routes and went out to Lake Minnetonka a couple of times and out to Stillwater. Next year I will have to go south more often.
I try to set a goal for myself each biking season with last year making it up the hill at Fort Snelling and this year the ride out to Siren. Next year I want to ride the Willard Munger Trail from Hinkley to Duluth with an overnight stay at Jay Cooke State Park and then onward to Two Harbors. Mileage may be similar to Siren but the camping will add a complication. I also hope to have more rides in the 70-80 mile range. It would be nice if I could approach 1500 miles but that may be tough as I have lots of other things going on and an old house to take care of. I had fun at the Urban Assault Ride and definitely plan to do that next year as well. I think I may check out other bike races as well. It might be kind of fun to see where I stack up.
Finally my bike. I ride a Marin hybrid which is good for the bike trails around the metro area. It's 5 years old now but is still holding up. While not a touring bike, it serves me quite well. Unfortunately I don't have the coin to buy a new $1000 or more bike so I'm going to stick with the bike I have for a while. I do think I am going to invest in new wheels however. I have had trouble with broken spokes which I think speaks to a general cheapness of the existing wheels. Also hopefully with new, higher quality wheels I will be able to add a mile or two per hour to my average speed. Even that slight improvement would be a big help. Also a tandem may be in our future so more bike rides with the wife may be a bigger part of the summer.
Finally besides the health benefits, the main reason I ride is because it is a blast chugging along at around 20 miles per hour under your own power, music screaming in your ears. Sure the scenery is sometimes gorgeous and there is nothing like riding by or over snarled car traffic but the thrill of going fast is what keeps me motivated to keep going. This year was a success, hopefully next year will be even better.
1. Dying -- XTC
2. M.O.R. -- Blur
3. Wake Me Up When September Ends -- Green Day
4. Dr. Wu -- The Minutemen
5. The Infanta -- The Decemberists
6. (I Don't Want to Go to) Chelsea -- Elvis Costello
7. Red Light Indicates Doors are Secured -- Arctic Monkeys
8. See No Evil -- Television
9. Vicar in a Tutu -- The Smiths
10. Shake -- Hypstrz
Bonus: Pink Triangle -- Weezer
Must be punk and alternative music day today at LFAD. The Minutemen's version of Dr. Wu has to be one of the greatest covers of all time. What's your top 10?
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As someone who has spent some time in the East and West Village and Washington Square Park, it's hard to believe that at one time New York City officials wanted to run an elevated highway right through those neighborhoods and separately turn Washington Square into basically embankments to a 4-lane, enhanced 5th Avenue. Currently those neighborhoods are quaint, highly functional urban areas that cater to a diverse (although increasingly wealthy) population. Ruining them with superinfrastructure would seem crazy now and in the 1950's and 60's that seemed crazy to one woman: Jane Jacobs.
Wrestling with Moses: How Jane Jacobs Took On New York's Master Builder and Transformed the American City by Anthony Flint is a slim book chronicling the efforts of New York's Master Builder Robert Moses to bring highways, urban renewal, and superblock housing to the Greenwich Village area of New York and how Jane Jacobs was not only able to stop those efforts in their tracks but to change the way that people in general, and urban planners specifically, thought about how urban areas worked.
The Flint book is a fascinating retelling of Robert Moses' plans for the Greenwich Village area and how Jane Jacobs was able to use the public planning process, the press, and neighborhood activism to stop those plans. Although today we hear all the time about how neighborhood groups organize to stop some sort of huge public works project or highway project, in the 1950's this was unheard of. Any group that stops a highway from going through their neighborhood should give a tip of the hat to Jane Jacobs.
Having said that, however, Jacobs lasting legacy will be her book The Death and Life of the Great American Cities. Although it espouses concepts we take for granted today -- good urban development needs eyes on the street, a diversity of uses, places for kids to play, places to walk, work, and shop -- in the early 1960's this was a radical concept and flew in the face of the massive "urban renewal" effort that was going on throughout the country. While neighborhood groups eagerly embraced her concepts, city officials, developers, and yes urban planners, treated the book with scorn.
Although the Flint book champion's Jacobs' efforts and recognizes their impact on the urban form some 50 years later, it's not afraid to point out the negative fallout and their lasting impacts. NIMBYism is a direct descendant of what Jacobs wrought and many neighborhoods have used her writings and concepts to oppose any and all development, regardless of merit. Furthermore, although Jacobs also spoke out against gentrification, it is clear that by preserving the quaint urban elements of the West Village and SOHO, those neighborhoods have become a magnet for wealthy professionals and national chain stores, while the dock workers, shop owners, and elderly Jacobs celebrated in her book have long moved away.
One side note, In Robert Caro's book The Power Broker, which is a 1200-page magnum opus on the life and times of Robert Moses, there is nary a word on Jane Jacobs. Apparently Caro turned in a 1500 page manuscript and the editor made Caro trim it. A whole chapter on Jacobs was eliminated, as was a chapter on the Brooklyn Dodgers leaving for Los Angeles and the inner workings of the New York City Planning Commission. Oh to read those chapters! Come on Vintage, reprint The Power Broker in two volumes with the cut chapters intact.
You may not want to tackle 1200 plus pages about Robert Moses, but if you are at all interested in urban planning and the effort to transform/preserver lower Manhattan, the 200 page Wrestling Moses is highly recommended.
There's a hole where my heart did reside.
It was ripped out and smashed,
turned into hash
left on the road with no place to hide.
I believed in a team that just wouldn't quit.
Representing the masses, the verdant,
the unmonied classes
surviving on guile, guts, and wit.
Alas, fell beasts this earth still roam.
Crushing our hopes, they went bashing,
sometimes mashing
leaving us tattered, crawling for home.
But we will rise again to fight once more
We'll be noble, fearless, and strong,
nothing goes wrong
in our new field named after a store.