Fruit Platter

After laying low so I could make an early Saturday morning track meet out in Livermore (who names their city Livermore? Seriously, has to be the ugliest city name I've heard...feel free to prove me wrong on that), we get out there to find an incredibly run meet that actually finishes early for a change. Normally, that would mean that I return home at a decent hour, kick my feet up and watch the Saturday sun fade into early evening before finding something relaxing to do. But this Saturday is the last Saturday of the month, and that means that it's Mango at El Rio.

For those that haven't been to Mango at El Rio, I have to say that it's one of my favorite parties in the city. It's always packed, it takes place on a stellar outdoor patio so it feels like a BBQ and people get crazy trashed in the middle of the day. I drop the team off at 3:15, I'm home by 3:30 and by 4:45, I've showered, had two Rodkas, rolled up and arrived in the city with a very healthy buzz on. I meet up with Za, T and Xena and the party is packed as usual, line out the door and some fantastic mixing and dancing going on on the back patio. Marge shows up a little later on, but she's exhausted from work (and still in uniform) so she's not feeling the party too much.

Ever been to a girl party? You know how usually, if you're a guy, the bathroom just doesn't have a line and you walk by the girl's line feeling bad for them that they have to wait in a line, but extremely glad that you don't? Well, gender bathrooms don't really apply here and the line is equally long for both bathrooms. I decide that rather than be the guy to cut the line looking for a urinal, I'm just going to take it to the street. Try finding a spot in the lower Mission in broad daylight on a Saturday...I felt like Jack Bauer trying to do something impossible. I also felt like Jack Bauer when the mission was accomplished and I returned to the bar.

After a few more hours there, we take off and reload on some Cancun burritos down the street. The decision is made to go back to T's place and get set to reengage later in the evening. But, once we're there, that plan turns to shit as T gets into an hour long webcam conversation with her girlfriend which leaves Za and I slowly passing out on the couch until there's almost nothing left of the evening. I wake up when Xena comes out of her bedroom around 12, Za is done and T has passed out. I decide I'm not going to let my evening fade away like that, repack my bag, jump in the car and head over to Broadway to meet up with E at the I. It had been a while since the Brothers Grimm met up, and Saturday night when I'm on the rebound is a great time. Aside from the fact that Spooky got his entire evening for $9 bucks (making my drinks free of course), the place is packed which allows E and I the time to catch up without interruption.

Of course, Spooky can't hang with the crepes...he always feels the need to kick it outside for like an hour after they close the doors, but I'm starving, jump in the car, get crepes to go and eat back in the comfort of my own home. If you haven't had your crepes to go yet, give it a try...I'll argue that the result is better than eating them immediately in front of the stand.

Had some unreal soul food cuisine last night at 1300 Fillmore...fried chicken, shrimp with grits, pork bellies, foie gras and numerous other goodies. Za's parents were in town and took the group out to treat us. Two more kind, generous and fun to be around parents I'm just not sure I've met yet.

Up next, heading back to the city tonight to celebrate T's birthday and the death of March. And also, thanks to T for the glasses for that Clark Kent look!

10 Things to Think About on a Friday

So we're really almost done with March? Already? I'm a little freaked out by how time's running right now. At this rate it'll be summer time in a week. The job hunt continues, which is freaking me out, but for now I'll just keep my head down, keep billing hours, and try not to stress it too much. As for you, I'm sure you're ready to leave for the weekend already, but you're stuck, right? Here's a few things for you to ponder before Friday night arrives...

1) I'm sorry...did the Buffalo Bills think they were getting a GOOD teammate? News flash...T.O. could potentially be the worst teammate in the history of the NFL. Or do you have another one? T.O. won't be attending voluntary mini-camp to work with his new team...

2) Not getting enough when you get a double quarter pounder at McDonald's? How about a $20 burger with 5 beef patties, five slices of cheese, a cup of chili, salsa, and corn chips on an 8 inch bun weighing in at 4 pounds?

3) Big to-do over this before and after airbrushed photo of Kim Kardashian. Personally, I think she's gorgeous either way.

4) So this American exchange student and her Italian boyfriend are accused of sexually assaulting and killing a British exchange student in Italy. Leave it to the Italian media to turn the alleged killer, "Foxy Roxy" into the most popular female in the country!

5) Apparently John Mayer hates Twitter. He calls it "inherently silly and inherently dumb." That's funny, that's exactly how I feel about his music.

6) It would appear that whatever and wherever he likes are no longer options for T.I., at least for the next year. He'll need to bribe some guards if he wants to have any Patron on ice in his jail cell.

7) People have really latched onto this Chris Brown/Rihanna domestic violence story. But I think an artist doing an Andy Warhol impression of the leaked police photos post-beating is a bit more than tasteless.

8) Not really something to think about, but just a generally humorous story from this week...there's a squirrel that lives near the track where I coach, and it is virtually unafraid of humans. This week, I saw it run across the field and jump into a trash can. It disappeared in there for about 5 minutes and when it crawled out, it had an almost entire Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich clutched between its paws and mouth. The sandwich had to weigh more than the squirrel and looked bigger. This squirrel is so unafraid of people that it let me get close enough to take pictures of it with my iPhone. Here's the kicker...before the squirrel ate this sandwich, it sat down next to the trash can and removed the crusts. When it was done, it ran away and left all the crust next to the trash can. Probably one of the funnier things I've seen a wild animal do.
a) The squirrel gets in the trash can: http://twitpic.com/2f8oi
b) The squirrel eats his sandwich: http://twitpic.com/2f8nu
c) The squirrel leaves behind the crust: http://twitpic.com/2f8sq

9) Thanks to @dynamics for this one...


10) Finally...how's everyone's bracket after Memphis and Duke got knocked out last night?

That's it on this end folks...look both ways before crossing the street!

March iPod Update

{for all music related posts, see .Evolving.Music}

For February's music update, click here.

March has brought me some fantastic new cuts, and several blasts from the past that I hadn't heard before, making them new to me. I will say that I downloaded The Jackson's "Blame it On the Boogie" which is simply sublime. But through 56 new songs, including an album that won't be released until next month, March was good for music. I'm almost sad to see it end, until I remember that once it does, I get to start all over again with April...

Dessa, False Hopes: Released in 2005, False Hopes is a 5 song EP from Dessa (@dessadarling) of Doomtree. Why write about a 2005 release as "new music?" Well, have you given this EP a listen yet? While short in length, this EP is huge on style and poignant, introspective lyrics against musically gripping backdrops. "551" looks at an addictive and damaging relationship over a dark beat laced with piano. Throughout the album, Dessa mixes her vocal talent with her rapping and slam poetry background to great effect. "Mineshaft" utilizes an urgent string backing and heavy drum beat to accentuate the sense of loss in the song. Many of the lyrics focus on a central theme of personal loss ("The list of things I used to be is longer than the list of things I am," "I lost an octave to the Camel Lights") and they're delivered with such intensity that her personal experiences become visceral for the listener. "Kites" delivers an eerie underwater feeling that brings to mind the melancholy feeling I first heard on listening to Atmosphere's "God's Bathroom Floor." Through just 5 solo songs and her contributions to Doomtree, Dessa rivals P.O.S. in her passion and creativity on this album, and one can only hope that her poetry, lyrics and music gain the public recognition that they deserve. Don't Sleep On: "Mineshaft," "551," "Kites."

Kero One, Early Believers: This man does it all out of his self-run label, Plug, in the Bay Area. DIY in every sense of the word, Kero One plays his own instruments, makes his own beats, writes his own lyrics,

and for the rest of the new music I've been listening to this month, click here.

Album Review: Kero One's Early Believers

{for all music related posts, see .Evolving.Music}

When Kero One released his debut album Windmills of the Soul, he had no backing and no name recognition to speak of. The album's success came about through his persistent work to get it heard which resulted in it becoming a hit in Japan first, a humorous twist for a Korean DIY hip-hopper born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. Through this success, he has managed to remain independent, starting Plug Label, releasing The Tones' debut album and doing end-to-end production on his sophomore release Early Believers.

It is this spirit and energy that infuses Early Believers with an unfettered sense of optimism and musical joy. From the instrumentation to the lyrics, the album is unmistakably a complete work by a focused artist. The music is consistent and full, utilizing both hip-hop and jazz influences, while the lyrics are often personal and focused on a specific story. The marriage between Kero's thoughts and his beats serve to offer an album that never feels forced or out of place. Unlike some current hip-hop albums that feel like the goal is musical shock for shock's sake, Kero One never tries to do too much or move too far out of his range. On the opening track "Welcome to the Bay," Kero raps about the pros and cons of the area where he grew up over an easy synth and fresh beat produced by King Most. Jacqueline Marie provides the chorus about the mentality of never leaving the bay for a piece that is heartfelt and unmistakably San Francisco.

"When the Sunshine Comes" is an easy, sunny day melody. The pace and mood of this song seem to be the best fit for Kero's vocals, letting him sit back and rap without tempo pressure. The smooth delivery of tongue twisters is unhurried enough that it doesn't make the listener feel stressed that the words won't come out. This track gives way to "Keep Pushin'," a much more up-tempo track that lyrically resembles something Kanye might have produced, with a little more pop to it. The fusion of jazz and a glitchy stop-and-go guitar/handclap back and forth brought to mind edIT's "Crunk de Gaulle" off Certified Air Raid material. On his "I'm better off single" track, "Let's Just Be Friends," Kero brings a sing-along melody to the chorus (performed by Tuomo) and manages to make his desire to stay single sound happy and upbeat. The album then moves into Latin Jazz influences on "Bossa Soundcheck," where Kero displays the keyboard and piano education he was brought up on. Sounding like it would be best heard in a dimly lit lounge atmosphere, Kero manages to make a hip-hop song that would fool non-hip-hop fans into listening and enjoying.

To read about the rest of this album, click here.

10 Things to Think About on a Friday

It's hard to work or even concentrate on anything but basketball this week. From Sunday's selection show to the start of March Madness yesterday, it's been all college hoops. Of course, I had the Kero One interview on Monday which will be coming soon. If you haven't heard this chill hip-hopper out of the Bay Area (true local product this guy), check it out. St. Patty's day found me doing the Mateo Stumble/Crawl which found me waking up 2 hours late for work on Wednesday. Took the evening off (no dominoes :( unfortunately), and spent last night reveling in the madness. More to come this weekend. In the meantime, before everything goes haywire, here's 1o things to think about before your madness starts.

1) We all loved the 8-bit sound coming out of our old Nintendos. Now Jay-Z is harnessing that for his music.

2) How about a major newspaper (i.e. the Chicago Tribune) printing its masthead with Twitter names instead of email addresses?

3) He may look a little calmer, but do we really want Charles Manson anywhere BUT prison?
Manson in jail:

4) They're trying to close down "Tent City" near Sacramento. I find it interesting that they are trying to tie tent-city into our economic problems, yet the article states that the residents are pretty much all chronically homeless as opposed to having lost their homes in foreclosures. What a horrible term to have to even exist...chronically homeless.

5) With rising stamp costs, the ability to send more information cheaper through the internet and now this news of massive lay-offs, one has to wonder if snail mail is soon to be extinct.

6) I never knew (and I'm guessing that you didn't either) that coal ash has so many beneficial building applications. Or does it?

7) What hurt your bracket more? Cal losing in the 1st round or Western Kentucky beating Illinois?

8) Is your preference for regular french fries or sweet potato french fries?

9) Watch out...someone is in San Francisco torching porto-potties.

10) Ever wonder what Gavroche is up to when he's not showing up in the posts? Click here.

Have a good weekend and play nice in the sandbox.

New Blog Feature: Twictures

With the simple iPhone, the help of Twitter and the more spontaneous nature of phone cam pics, I've started on updates with pictures in them. These pictures are archived in the link called "Twictures" in the "other web niches" tab below on the right hand side. A more often updated, more mobile take on what I've been seeing lately.

March Madness

It has come again. We wait all year for college basketball to mean something, for a college sport to not end a season with a debatable championship, and to see the full parity of college athletics in full swing. It's bracket busting, spirit crushing, underdog cheering and enemy fearing mayhem. Here's my bracket.

Zion I Remix Summary

{for all music related posts, see .Evolving.Music}

Last week marked the end of the Zion I remix contest for the song off their new release The Take Over, "DJ DJ." The contest was a successful one, bringing out 35 new remixes of the track by fans and artists. At the beginning of the contest we explained the process and rules, and now it's time for a quick glance at what some of the contributors produced.

The best part of this contest is the incredible range of sounds and styles that were brought to the re-envisioning of the track. Hiright came with a remix that brought in 808s and a drastic slow down on the tempo of the verse for his "808 Remix" while keeping the backing music uptempo. RockG went the opposite direction on his "Parents R Out of Town" remix, opting for a techno heavy delivery. Also on the electronic side of the spectrum, MixMatchMusic's Gavroche decided on a "drumglitch" remix, subduing the source material under a pervasive layer of drum tricks. If those two don't tend enough towards house music for you, DJ STINJ-E's remix turns Zion I out into a serious rave sound. Inflect took the remix into serious video game sound territory, layering it with blips and beeps throughout before going heavy with the scratching.

To read about the rest of the remixes and find out how to vote on them, click here.

Watsonville to San Francisco

Saturday morning kicks off bright and early. I’m up at 5:15 to be at the school at 5:45 so we can leave for a meet at 6. I have found that the best method for getting a car full of teenagers to shut up in the morning is to play soft music and slowly filter heat into the car. It reaches a certain point that they get so warm they pass out. The trick is not making the van too warm before they go to sleep because then they’ll get hot and ask you to turn it down and then they’ll never be quiet.

We get into Watsonville about 7:30 am and I make my prerequisite run to a local fast food place for coaches’ breakfast. We take great delight in eating food in front of the athletes when they’re about to run. The meet starts at 9 and we go all day until 6. Of course, after racing and all day out in the sun, we can’t do the 2 hour drive back until after we’ve fed them, so we give them an hour at the local mall with a bunch of fast food options. Now, it’s a double-edged sword, this whole feeding thing. If you don’t feed them, they’re cranky, but low energy. Once you feed them though, they become high energy and crazy again. Only, this time, it’s night time, and they want to dance and talk in the back as opposed to falling asleep at 6 am.

We get back around 9:30 and after everyone is picked up it’s closer to 10:15 by the time I get home. I sit on the couch and have a few moments where I’m pretty sure I’m just going to doze off there. Glad I didn’t. I decide to rally and meet up with Za who is giving me some tentative line about going to the Rickshaw for Rebel Girl, but not being sure how long she’ll decide to stay out. I rally, roll, shower and mix a cocktail and I’m in my car on my way up to the city by 11:15.

When I get to the Rickshaw, it's packed as per usual, and hot as hell inside. I find Za quickly, who seems to have lost T, but it's not a problem as she knows the bartender and we're getting cheap drinks in tall glasses. The dj is on, so the crowd doesn't stop dancing, and we stay til just before they close. Out on the street, a girl comes up and asks for rolling papers. I give her one, but she's seen my cigarette case and now wants me to trade her one of my pre-rolled for some of her bag. I explain to her that that's not going to happen, but I'll gladly roll one up for her from her stuff. I proceed then to pull the quickest and cleanest 5 minute sidewalk roll I've seen yet before Za and I get off to get some crepes.

At the crepe stand, there's a crazy vibe in the air. I think it had something to do with the fact that down there street there is some sort of huge fight going on involving both guys and girls. Apparently, a guy hit a girl in the face for no reason, which, understandably, put both groups at each other's throats. I'm shocked and appalled that for nearly 10 minutes, this group is screaming at each other as well as sporadically throwing blows, and not a single cop shows up. While waiting in line for the crepes, a girl crying is walking by talking about how she got hit for no reason. The source of the aggravation and the eventual outcome are unclear, but it was certainly uncomfortable to watch.

After crepes, Za takes a cab ride home and I head for Mateo...after getting there, getting settled and unwinding, it's about 5 am when I get to bed. All in a day's work.

10 Things to Think About on a Friday

This week...good, and getting better. Got to check out Watchmen on Monday night, which I thought was a pretty stellar adaptation of the book. Wednesday I finally got a game of bones in for the first time in weeks, and I felt like an alcoholic getting a taste of rum after months of sobriety. I've also been reading a lot of Infinite Jest which has me thinking about substances, abuse and using words like sobriety. Last night, as evidenced, I got out to the Science night in Golden Gate Park which was a blast, and I'm getting prepared for an all day track meet Saturday. No sleep til Watsonville. But for all you folks, here's 10 things you can think about on your way to 5pm today.

1) I think most figured it would happen, but nothing says family values like Sarah Palin's daughter Bristol and her boyfriend breaking up and not getting married after their child was born. She wants to run a country and couldn't even impart her values to her own daughter.

2) I shared with you last week how Kellogg's took a massive hit due to the boycott by dope smokers in the wake of them dropping him for his bong picture. Well, looks like some good came out of it as thousands of boxes of cereal with his picture on them made their way to homeless shelters. Hope they have the munchies.

3) When my step-sister got married, not I nor even her father was allowed in to see the ceremony in the temple. Some Mormon rule. Well, now, thanks to Big Love, I'll know what I missed as they are showing a Mormon service in an upcoming episode. What do you think about a public showing of private religious services? Informative or intrusive?

4) Leave it to Radiohead to stir up dust. Hannah Montana and Kanye wanted to meet them. They weren't really interested. Hannah and Kanye cry like babies. Thom Yorke tells Hannah to grow up. What happens when Kanye starts remixing Radiohead tracks? On the other hand, you're at an awards show with other celebrities. How hard is it to play nice and meet them?

5) Big commotion over Michelle Obama's guns. What do you think? Do you care that she's going around sleeveless, or do you think more power to her for being so cut? Personally, I think the whole thing is a bit silly. We don't have more important things to talk about as a nation?

6) I thought California was liberal. Now we've got reports coming out of Oregon that the state wants to create a government entity to grow and sell marijuana. Ammiano's previously mentioned pitch to legalize the drug and tax it in CA is now also being talked about by Time magazine.

7) Here's a bargain for you...buy a used couch, get a free cat. Inside.

8) How about a funny little rant against Twitter?

9) I've been sitting here wondering how anyone can listen to the completely ridiculous and horrible music of Lady Ga Ga. I mean, not only is the music bad, but you have to sound like a baby when you share your musical tastes with someone. When will pop music be good again like it was in the 80s?!

10) On Monday I'm interviewing Kero One about his upcoming sophomore release, Early Believers. Chilly and jazzed out DIY hip-hop coming straight from the Bay Area. For those of you who don't know, I present "Welcome to the Bay."



Have a good weekend folks, and be good to each other.

Blinded By Science

Last night I got to partake in what has quickly become one of the biggest crazes of the San Francisco nightlife...Thursday night parties at the California Academy of Science. For 10 bucks, you go from 6-10 and can enjoy the exhibits, drink to your heart's content and dance to DJs they bring in for the show. I turn my drive up into a two way race between a cookie from the club and a fiery rum and coke. By the time I park in Golden Gate park, everyone is a winner. I meet up with Lean, her girl, T and Xena. Outside, the line is friggin' huge, but it moves pretty well.

Inside, the new space for the museum is excellent. Light, clean, bright and well planned out, the building is kinda centered around the rainforest exhibit. They're charging 6 for cocktails, but I buy a 3 dollar coke and mix it with the flask I've brought in. Unfortunately, while they say that the rainforest closes at 8:30, they actually cut the line for it off at around 7:30, so you need to be there early if you want to see that. But I'm more there for the people watching anyways, which is stellar as it seems that this event brings out a very nice cross section of city demographics, and offers them a space large enough so that no one is in anyone else's way.

The space and exhibits of the aquarium were phenomenal. You don't think that these little box windows of fish would be anything special, but when you think about the amount of money that must go into maintaining each individual habitat, I'm sure it's expensive. The inward bubble domes allowed you to get a feeling of being engulfed by the water, and the tidepool had me feeling like a kid again as I got to play with some starfish. When I see someone looking at me with that "I know you" look, I get freaked out, especially because it's no one I recognize. Turns out it's Christine Jacobs, who hates me. Probably because I've met her about 5 times now and still don't recognize her when she sees me. It's not intentional, or intentionally rude, I just don't think I'm paying much attention.

The DJs were solid last night, playing some great old tracks as well as some bouncy new ones. I think I spent the entire last hour I was there dancing. Then, of course it was on to Nutella/Banana/Coconut and a Cheese/Avocado/Tomato crepe stand run. I am happy to report that crepes to go are still warm when they get back to my apartment. A very good thing to know for the future.

So if you're looking for an excellent way to get some edumacation, have a fun night out, do some fantastic people watching and support a good cause all at the same time, Thursday night at the CA Academy of Science is a spot to take it. Forgot my camera last night, but I'll be going again and will snap some shots then.

10 Things to Think About on a Friday

This week flew. I think it was because I was home sick for two days. But would I let illness keep me down? Me thinks not, as I rebounded with a full work/track/going out on Thursday and I'm in the saddle again here on Friday. If you're looking for a new band to listen to, let me NOT recommend the Wavves. They're noise punk that sounds like they filtered all of their music through a static laced emergency broadcast system. I actually liked music a little less when I heard their CD. Of course, listening to some Glass Candy fixed that real quick. In the meantime, as you get ready to end whatever you've been up to on this rain filled week, here are 10 things to ponder from the wonderful world of wonder around us.

1) I saw a great Bill Maher panel the other night...Alan Cumming, P.J. O'Rourke and Gavin Newsome. Their conversation about the future of news media was very interesting. But on the hilarious end, Maher ripped one of the best "New Rules" segments I've heard in a while.

2) I've often wondered myself, and think this a good time for the conversation revolving around gender neutral pronouns on Twitter.

3) Finally. It only took a few years, but it looks like Eminem is ready to grace us with a new album. Actually, to be more specific, he's ready to drop 2 in 2009.

4) In really cool music news, the video game movie that I think most of our generation obsessed over, Tron, is returning for a sequel. The news? Daft Punk is going to be creating the original score.

5) In TV land, Curb Your Enthusiasm is set to start on their next season. And in what is sure to spark even more enthusiasm in the fans, the entire Seinfeld cast will be making a multi-episode story line.

6) So apparently this guy tried to get out of a conviction for sexually molesting his 13 year old step-daughter by claiming her AOL away message said nothing happened. Sorry guy, you were still hooking up with a 13 year old. Of course, that's gruesome and bad. As are the ever increasing details of Chris Brown beating the shit out of Rihanna. Sorry Chris, but you just don't hit someone you love like that, especially if she's right about you cheating. Cheating? On Rihanna? Get your head examined. You just threw away a gorgeous girl and a budding career so you could cheat on her and then leave her bloody on the side of the road. Someone say, "Jail time!" Do I seem amped on this subject? Well I am! We're talking about child molestation and domestic violence here. Moving on before I throw something...

7) Of course, maybe you want to throw something. No? What if I told you that Chris Brown, following his arraignment yesterday, went out to a bar to celebrate?!

8) I like our news media sometimes...they bring us funny stories of crazy animals, like this octopus, doing crazy things, like squeezing into a box to get lunch.

9) Obama will be lifting the stem cell ban put in place by former president Bush on Monday. Welcome back to America, science.

10) And finally, if you had to choose, would you rather be able to eat nothing but salad for an entire year, yet every beverage had to contain alcohol, or be able to drink whatever you want for an entire year, but every meal had to be a fast food one?

Cheers people, be good to each other.

Thursday Surprise

I thought I was going out for a drink last night in North Beach. On my way up to the city, I hear that my drink needs to be postponed, so I throw out a text and find out that T, Xena, Tif, Za, Lean and some others are doing a "happy hour" down in the SOMA. Now when I think happy hour, I think like 5:30-7ish at some sort of dive bar. I'm appropriately dressed, so after I hit the club, I head that way thinking that if it's 7, I'll have a drink and head back home.

Only when I get there, no one is there yet. Turns out that this happy hour doesn't start til like 7:30 so I order a Roke and some french fries and enjoy my time. The bar is Orso, and it's trendy, making me feel slightly under dressed, but no matter...I've come to realize that dress in the city is mostly about how comfortable you are, not necessarily about how you look. It's only after about 10 minutes that I realize this happy hour, at this bar on a Thursday is actually a Ladies' night. I have a light bulb moment like Brodie in Chasing Amy. The rest show up and because the waitress is a significant other, we get a bunch of free shots.

I'm told I look familiar by a woman at the bar. I tell her that I feel that's highly unlikely but disappointing. One drink turns into several, and Orso turns into a trip across town to the Marina to Silver Cloud, a karaoke spot. Now, when we come in, the place is virtually empty and T goes on rampage karaoke mode to get as many song requests in as possible. And for the most part, they're excellent. Fittingly, just as the bar is getting more crowded, they step up and do a version of a song so awful that several people leave, several others go on stage to try to help them do a chorus version, and I immediately bolt for the door to go to Pizza Pino down the street.

The pizza though, it just doesn't do it. The Thursday surprise? Try having a plan for a drink canceled, replacing it last minute with a drink at a happy hour, and then turn that drink into multiple drinks + shots, a karaoke bar and a Thursday night visit down to the crepe stand for nutella/banana/coconut. There's what I was least expecting.

Welcome Back Models!

While it feels like it's been a while since ANTM came across my TiVo screen, in reality they do two cycles a year, so it can't have been that long. However, regardless of the length of time, the models are back for cycle 12, and as usual, the first 2 hour episode had some hilarious and absolutely ridiculous quotes and doings by these model wannabes.

My first thought, when Tyra came out to the original 34 contestants last night was, "Does Tyra just need to continually put herself in the screaming limelight of masses of 18-25 year old girls?" Between her talk show and ANTM, it seems like Tyra gave up modeling but just can't seem to give up the desire to be famous, wanted and revered as a god by people around her. Sure, she makes a great deal of money, but as a world famous super model for a few decades, she didn't already have that? Something tells me that the day Tyra wakes up, looks in the mirror and realizes the public isn't clamoring for her anymore might be a very lonely one.

As usual, we got some very interesting potential models in the first episode. Here are some of the better quotes:

Monique, 21 of Telluride, CO had this to say: "I think I have a different personality than most anyone else. I'm very involved in politics. I guess you could call me a conspiracy theorist." Not surprisingly, she was booted off in the first 14 to go. Guess her whole rant about the "Elite 300" in the house and her explanation as to why Pearl Harbor was set-up in advance to the judges didn't earn her a spot at the table. Good luck in politics though! Although, not in raising a family..."My personal belief is I will never bring a kid into this world because I think the world is goin' to hell." Of course, once kicked off, she said that she'd be back next year. One can always hope.

Then we have London, an 18 year old Jesus freak from Arlington, TX. She says, "I'm a model with a mission...with that I can spread His name in this industry, which honestly, there isn't a lot of." Hello?!?! It's the Model and Fashion industry! You think that anyone in there wants religion? There isn't a lot of it because people in the industry are the exact ones that either see through the façade of religion or have been outcast by the ridiculous views on homosexuality and sexuality the churches hold. I suggest going back to Arlington where people love Jesus.

In one of the more courageous stories of personal triumph, Tahlia, 18, of Phoenix AZ made the show. At 8 months old her mom left her in a room with a dangling cord connected to a coffee pot. She pulled it down onto herself. After 14 surgeries to repair burns, she's understandably scared and looking to prove that you can overcome that and succeed at whatever you want.

Of course, in a big let down, they also cast a girl with epilepsy. Isabella, 19, from Barboursville, VA. Having never seen an epileptic seizure and being deathly afraid of ever seeing one, I thought this would be a good chance to see one from afar, because surely if she's on there for 12 weeks she'll end up having at least one. She got kicked off last night, so no luck there.

What's worse is that she got kicked off instead of Sandra, a self-righteous piece of shit from the East Coast and originally from Kenya. She's the one in the group who thinks she's better than everyone else because she's from a different country, and yet she only walked half way down the catwalk in her first runway show, and her photo shoot was god awful. I was hoping against hope that she would be the first to go (and so too were all the other models in the show, apparently) but no such luck.

My favorite so far is Fo, 19, from Albequerque, NM. She immediately told the judges when asked about her ethnicity that she's "Blaxican." Love it.

Rich girl Natalie, 19, from Palos Verdes, CA, "I was pretty spoiled as a child, and I'm really confident in my chances, I don't think any of the other girls have a look like I do. I think I have one of the strongest looks here." Wondering if maybe her being spoiled has something to do with her confidence here.

By far the funniest line I heard came from a girl who made the final 13 and is actually a former girlfriend of Dale Earnhardt, Jr. This is Kortnie, 24, from Houston, TX...."Your body is a temple and sometimes my temple wants cheesecake."

In the weird department, we have Allison, 20, from New Orleans, LA. "I'm really interested in hemophilia." Her fascination with blood goes so far that she's upset she's never had a nose bleed in her life.

Finally, in the award category for self-discovery, we have Teyona, 20, from Woodstown, NJ "When I was younger I didn't really think I was that pretty, then as I got older, I started realizing, "Oh Teyona, you are fine girl!"

Should be one interesting season.

Films of February (9)

A slow month (yet again) for movies, but when you're looking for a new roommate and a new job at the same time, how many movies should you really be watching to begin with? Had a good time watching an old favorite in Say Anything and was surprised to find out that Jason doesn't kill anyone in the first Friday the 13th movie.

5: Matrix Reloaded
7: Say Anything
8: Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay
13: Friday the 13th
15: Star Wars: The Clone Wars
16: Friday the 13th 2
19: City of Men
25: Cocaine Cowboys
28: Minority Report