2006 (in)personal Review

Even though this blog is pretty new, that doesn't mean I wasn't living 2006, so I find it appropriate to at least give a personal reflection about the year (albeit haphazardly, since I will be leaving for New York City in approximately 30 minutes).

This was probably one of the most significant years for me. I turned 21, I became an RA, a job I've always wanted to have since coming to college, and I found myself a job for after I graduate. I had to do a lot of growing up in a short period of time. I had focused solely on researching for my honors thesis over the summer and immediately after that, it was RA training, and with no time to break, I was thrown into the job search. Luckily, everything turned out alright, and I'm thankful for that. There was a lot of stress and anxiety that came with everything that happened, but I don't regret any of my decisions this year. Even not getting to be an RA in my top choice dorm turned out to be a blessing, as I have what I a very tight-knit staff, great residents, and an awesome floor.

I can think of a few criticisms, however. I didn't exercise as much as I wanted to this year, especially with working taking a priority. I didn't call home as much as I should have. I didn't even go home except for Thanksgiving and Winter Break. I've absolutely sucked at keeping up with friends from high school. And the 5 straight days of rain we got in Hawaii during Spring Break wasn't so good, either.

But, my life did not occur under a microscope. I still hate to see where the United States is in global affairs, and that the global issues our planet faces still remain unsolved. Blood continues to be spilled in Iraq, global warming now appears to be a more pressing issue, gas prices are rising, and money is only be thrown at the AIDS problem. Newspapers recently reported that Wall Street stock brokers received record bonuses this Winter, but 1/5 of New York City's citizenry has to decide between food or rent.

I refuse to be pessimistic. After all, the Cardinal's managed to win the World Series which proves that anything is possible. Plus, the Democrats retook Congress. Will U.S. politics shift in 2007? That's the question being posed to the Democrats and I'm interested to see how they answer next year. So as the ball drops in Times Square and 2007 rushes in, we can leave behind the problems, unsolved issues, and bad spirits and approach a new year with measured optimism of what's to come. I know I will.

Classic Videos

I don't claim to watch every single internet video that gets posted, but here are a few classics that I think everyone will enjoy. Just click the relink to relive the magic.

It's Peanut Butter Jelly Time!

- It's just a dancing banana telling us what time it is. And it hardly makes sense. Why is a banana cheering about peanut butter jelly? What the heck is a PB&J with a baseball bat? Tic tac toe? Freestyle? You style? Where does it all come from? And why does he keep dancing after the song stops? Did the creator not know any rules of grammar? Still, it's a classic. Incredibly addictive. Incredibly stupid. Incredibly awesome.

- Favorite Line: Where you at? Where you at? Where you at?

Badger Badger Badger

- I have fond memories of my friend Harry doing a rendition of this cartoon in the car. I could not stop laughing for the entire ride home and would repeat the stupid song for the next month. There's also versions with "Potter Potter Potter" and a Christmas version if you read the Wikipedia article about this cartoon.

- Favorite Line: SNAAAAAKEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Guitar - Homestar Runner

- Strongbad cartoons were all the rage a few years ago, and although I don't watch them anymore, this one was a favorite of mine. The Homstarrunner site has a lot of really good content; it would take hours to go through it all. Another popular email is number 58, entitled: Dragon, where Trogdor is introduced.

- Favorite Line: And the dragon comes in the NIIIIIIGHTTTT

End of the World

- I think this video had the widest reach a few years ago. People who normally didn't use the internet would watch this in my high school classes. Hehe, "Chinese Sons of Bitches"

- Favorite Line: And Australia is still like, wtf, mate?

What Would Asians Do?

- I gotta include this clip that was made using a poster my friend Wilmot produced. It's not a classic, but it should be!

- Favorite Line: wwad?!?!

Geostationary Banana Over Texas

Hilarious. Maybe some of you will want to donate money to make this happen. Either way, be sure to read their "On the Concept" page.

Check out the site here.

And thanks to For Your Entertainment's blog for this link.

New Year's in New York

Jenny and I will be heading up to New York City for New Year's. Here's our tentative itinerary. Be sure to check back when it's all over for many pictures and our personal reflections on NYC. Also, we will review the numerous restaurants we head to on our food blog.

December 31st
- Lunch at Papaya King. They have amazing hot dogs and papaya drinks.
- Rockefeller Center for ice skating and shopping
- Dinner at Mark Joseph. The #1 Steakhouse in NYC. $78 for a steak for two.
- Times Square. Maybe you'll see us on TV. Probably not.

January 1st
- Lunch at Dumpling House. This Chinatown spot has great prices on dumplings - 5 for $1! And they're supposed to be delicious!
- Exploration of Chinatown and Ground Zero.
- Dinner at River Cafe and Grimaldi Pizzeria. Drinks at River Cafe, which features a beautiful view of the NY Skyline at night. Grimaldi Pizzeria has been voted the #1 pizzeria in NY by Zagats.

January 2nd
- Lunch at Carnegie Deli. The best pastrami sandwich we will ever eat!
- Rockefeller Center.
- Dinner at Babbo. Mario Batali's restaurant. We booked this reservation exactly one month in advance.

January 3rd
- Central Park.
- Metropolitan Museum of Art.
- Lunch at Gray's Papaya.
- SoHo.
- Dinner at Le Gigot.
- Seeing a Broadway Musical. We're not sure which one!
- Dessert at La Petite Auberge.

January 4th
- Guggenheim Museum.
- Lunch at the Pearl Oyster Bar.
- Greenwich Village.
- Magnolia Bakery.
- Dinner at Lupa.

I'll definitely be broke after this trip, but it will be worth it!

Card's Apologize for Winning the World Series

Cardinals Apologize For Winning World Series

ST. LOUIS—Calling Friday night's victory on baseball's grandest stage "a terrible mistake," members of the St. Louis Cardinals issued a formal apology for making the playoffs, winning the World Series, and depriving baseball fans everywhere...

I can't believe I missed reading this article. It's hilarious! Read it NOW!

Chihuly at the Missouri Botanical Garden

Dale Chihuly's glass art was on display at the Missouri Botanical Garden this year. I had a chance to walk through the gardens last week and was quite impressed with the detailed glass sculptures that were spread out across the gardens. Unfortunately, I'm sure the exhibit would have been much more impressive in the summer when the art would have wonderfully complemented the flowers. Here are a few pictures from my walk through the gardens:





Click here additional information about the Chihuly exhibit at the Missouri Botanical Gardens. There's also an interesting article about the installation of "Missouri Botanical Garden Blue Chandelier, 2006," here. Here's Dale Chihuly's website.

Funny Story: What? That was 23 years ago, Officer

From the AP Press and Yahoo! Oddly Enough News:

What? That was 23 years ago, officer

Talk about the slow wheels of justice. A man was arrested on a 23-year-old bench warrant that he said he thought was taken care of years ago.

Merle Hulbert Jr., of Eldred, was brought Thursday before McKean County Judge John Yoder, who noted that Ronald Reagan was president when the warrant for failing to appear at a hearing was issued.

Hulbert said he had no idea the case, a driving-while-intoxicated charge, was still open. His former attorney has since died and he said he was stopped once or twice by police before without the warrant coming up.

Yoder ordered the case to be scheduled for a plea, then told prosecutors he hopes they have a witness with a good memory.

I find it pretty funny that the police would take the time to follow up on a case like this, especially at this time of the year. If you're interested in more postings of odd news articles, please let me know in the comments box.

Winterbells High Score

My high score from the best Winterbells game of my life. 22,325,992,035,810,622. I don't even know what that number is.

Wilmot: twenty-TOO FUCKING MUCH.

I'm never playing again.

Ford Disagreed with Bush About Invading Iraq

Breaking news from the Washington Post. Ford was interviewed in July 2004 and claimed the Iraq war was not justified. The interview would not be released until after his death.

While you can read the interview here, below are a few the excerpts about the Iraq war:

"Rumsfeld and Cheney and the president made a big mistake in justifying going into the war in Iraq. They put the emphasis on weapons of mass destruction," Ford said. "And now, I've never publicly said I thought they made a mistake, but I felt very strongly it was an error in how they should justify what they were going to do."

"And I just don't think we should go hellfire damnation around the globe freeing people, unless it is directly related to our own national security."

Ford also offerred his criticism of Cheney, Henry Kissinger, and Rumsfeld. I think it's funny that as Bush has to call for a national day of mourning for Ford, he also knows that Ford think he's a dumbass.

How to effectively waste time over Winter Break

I had the goal of writing most of my Senior Thesis over Winter Break. It was a grand plan, consisting of staying in my room, with my laptop and my hundreds of pages of notes and articles, typing away on Microsoft Word for two straight weeks. I wanted to hit 60 pages over break. But who am I kidding? There's no way I could be that productive. It's Thursday night and I don't think I've even hit twenty pages, and it's twenty poorly written pages at that. So what have I been doing? Here's a list of five things.

*Before I begin, I would like to thank my friend Wilmot, for singlehandedly dropping my productivity with his amazing links that have distracted me this entire break. If it wasn't for him, there might have been no need for this post. Oh, by the way, this is Wilmot pictured here.

1) Lemmings Online:

I got this link from Wilmot. If you haven't played Lemmings before, the game is quite simple. Lemmings drop from a hatch and start walking mindlessly in one direction. It's up to you to direct them to do certain tasks, like digging, climbing, blocking, or even turning into a bomb to blow themselves up. Your goal is to get a certain number of Lemmings into their exit before time runs out. It's much harder than it looks. Of course, I decided I had to complete as many stages as I could. Unfortunately, the Javascript platform would not register the necessary fast clicking needed to make bashers bash fast enough to beat the Mayhem level I was stuck on. So, I had to move on. Nonetheless, I was up until 5-6am many nights playing this game.

Reward: Nothing

2) Eyemaze: Grow Cube, Rpg, ver. 3.

From Wilmot again. It's hard to explain these puzzles. They're 3D and based off a flash platform. The object is to complete the puzzle in a correct order. And it's hard! Things interact with each other differently based upon on the order that you use them. Of course, Jenny had to figure out how to beat the level before me an hour after I started playing. So besides finding out that I'm pretty dumb, I stayed up until 7am playing this game. Double dumb.

Reward: Seeing a cube turn into a lizard and a bouncing ball travel through a tube.

3) Orisinal.com's Winterbells

Courtesy of Wilmot. This game features the cutest that can be bunny as it hops higher and higher on white winterbells. Each bell you hit gives you 10 points plus 10 more for each subsequent bell you hit and every now and then there's a dove that will DOUBLE your score! Needless to say, this game really has no upper threshold, so you can play as long as you want for and go as high as you want.

Reward: Hitting 1,088,576,251,100. Basically 1 trillion points. That's fulfilling. Sorta. No, not really.

4) NY Times Crossword Puzzle / Yahoo Crossword Puzzle / St. Louis Post-Dispatch Crossword Puzzle

I became a crossword puzzle fiend over break. My family has been into them for as long as I can remember, but since I was the only one really around the house, I got first dibs. I did the print editions of the St. Louis Post Dispatch Puzzle which included their own puzzle plus an older puzzle from the New York Times. And if I was feeling lucky, I would do the one found in the NY Times. And when that ran out, there was always a puzzle on Yahoo games. But this would be something I could only do Monday - Wednesday. After that, it gets too hard, except for the Post-Dispatch puzzles.

Reward: Completing a puzzle feels good. A self-esteem boost when you have no friends.

5) Drinking

Of course this would screw me over. How could I ever think some wine would make it any easier to write a paper at night? With my sister's boyfriend visiting for the past few days, work was a no-no past dinner.

Reward: Being tipsy feels nice. Everything seems so much more funny.

Except for the last two, Wilmot contributed mightily to all of this procrastination. So thanks a lot. I can't say its been all that bad. I've definitely had a relaxing break, I've gotten a lot of sleep, and I even did productive things like get my license renewed, cleaned parts of the house, and went shopping. But when I think about all of the work I could've done, I just get sad. And then I go back to surfing the internet. :-)

A Ghost Story

Last fall, a group called Campus Movie Fest came to Stanford. The task was to give each group a camera, a laptop, and a week to film a five minute film. The short films would then be entered into a campus competition, with the winners moving on to a regional competition and so on. Winners would win iPods, laptops, fame, and glory. A few of my friends entered the competition and produced what I thought was the most professional video out of the entire Stanford group. They were in the top 16 (out of 70!). The video is only five minutes, so watch it! Here's their clip.



If you're interested in watching more clips or reading more about Campus Movie Fest, check out their website at:

http://www.campusmoviefest.com

Manners!

For Christmas, my parent's, err...Santa, always gets us some random gift. This year was no exception, as I was given "From Clueless to Class Act: Manners for the Modern Man." It wasn't that bad a gift - there's useful instructions about how to properly set your table or the appropriate way to act in business situations. Having some insight into hosting a party will be timely information in the future. Nonetheless, while I had my doubts - why would anyone need a book like this? Who doesn't know basic courtesy's like saying "please" and holding a door open for a woman?

Well, all of those assumptions were laid to rest this evening. My Dad invited one of his Doctor friends for dinner - we deep fried a turkey which basically involves immersing a turkey in a big tub of boiling oil for 45 minutes. My Dad's friend is an opthamologist (an eye doctor) and had his misgivings about the ocular dangers inherent with the cooking procedure. But, they were curious about the whole thing and came over, with their two sons, one a senior in high school, the other a college student at Washington University in St. Louis.

Something was amiss when they first arrived. When we offered to take their coats, one of the boys kept his own up until dinner, although we were in the house almost the whole time. And what was worse, he hardly talked to us! He walked around our house the entire time! While we were in the kitchen and the adjacent dining room talking, he was in our living room, the closets, and even went upstairs. He opened our drawers and played with whatever he felt like. He dipped one of his fingers in one of the desserts my sister was making and ate some of our chocolate that was not out on the table for eating. When we were warming up the gravy, he had the audacity to tell us that we should turn the stove down so we wouldn't burn. My mom also makes a really nice green bean casserole, that is topped with some crispy onion rings. While the casserole was cooking, he opened up the container holding the rings and ate some! He missed the rings going on the casserole in the oven, so when he went to steal some more of the rings, he looked disappointed when they were gone. Finally, during dinner, he started to pick at the turkey with his hands! And when we were having dessert, he went over to our living room, picked up this random wooden puzzle that was sitting on our shelf, and started to work on that at the table while we were having what's called a "conversation."

WHAT THE FUCK??????????

And this kid is going to college at Wash U. How can someone apparently so smart - be so fucking rude? We all saw him doing this, but my parents were too nice to tell him to stop nosing around our house. And his parents, who were really nice, did not tell him to stop being an asshole. I have no idea how this kid could be their child. I had no idea some people could be like this. I hope I never raise a kid like that.

Time's Person of the Year: You

When I first heard about Time magazine naming the person of the year, You, it was on a clip from Jon Steward's Daily Show. Called "Newsweak," Stewart appropriately pointed out how silly it was for Time to consider "You" as the person of the year. Are we so stupid to get excited about seeing ourselves in a mirror on the cover of the magazine so that we buy it? Are we supposed to be surprised?



Now I actually read some of the articles in the magazine, including the cover story and I have to admit that it's not that bad. Aside from "you" being a total marketing scheme to sell more magazines, the issue it raised about a new generation of bloggers, podcasters, and internet gurus I think is really one of the major stories about 2006. Everyone is having their 15 minutes of fame with a creative YouTube video, bloggers are becoming an alternative voice for news, and Facebook and MySpace have become unmistakable networking and social tools for countless teens and adults. And it's ridiculous how everything is so integrated. When I started this blog, I was going for the more cut and dry look, with mostly text and maybe some links here and there. But, blogs have become so much more than what I started with a few years ago on my Xanga. It's about sharing videos from YouTube and other video sites. It's about linking to other blogs. When my friends talk about the latest video to sweep the internet, I don't laugh anymore, thinking that the audience who actually cares about these things is small and hardly influential. Justin Laipply's "Evolution of Dance" had been played 37 million times on YouTube, while Smosh performing Pokemon's Theme Song had been played 18 million. The numbers are absolutely astonishing.

But as the Time article admits:

Sure, it's a mistake to romanticize all this any more than is strictly necessary. Web 2.0 harnesses the stupidity of crowds as well as its wisdom. Some of the comments on YouTube make you weep for the future of humanity just for the spelling alone, never mind the obscenity and the naked hatred.

But that's what makes all this interesting. Web 2.0 is a massive social experiment, and like any experiment worth trying, it could fail. There's no road map for how an organism that's not a bacterium lives and works together on this planet in numbers in excess of 6 billion. But 2006 gave us some ideas. This is an opportunity to build a new kind of international understanding, not politician to politician, great man to great man, but citizen to citizen, person to person. It's a chance for people to look at a computer screen and really, genuinely wonder who's out there looking back at them. Go on. Tell us you're not just a little bit curious.

What I believe is that we're just getting started. As more and more kids jump on the internet and take advantage of blogs, photo sharing, etc, the web will continue to get more and more crowded. And as some will find, maintaining a blog is hard work, as is creating a 2 minute clip for YouTube. Some will drop off, while others will thrive. But, who knows who is reading what you write? That's the great anonymity of the internet, where posting is as anonymous as the person reading it. Yet not having a blog or your own MySpace page does not mean you're not participating in this grand experiment. From the most addicted YouTube user to the casual web-browser, you are all the people for which online content exists. So while probably nobody but my girlfriend (thanks Jenny!) reads this blog at the moment, maybe one day more will find it interesting as they click the "Next Blog" button on the top of this page. And maybe one day an anonymous person in Europe will find that some of my posts have something interesting to say about life and culture in America. Until that day happens, I still remain happily content, posting about things I find interesting on the net. But, I do know one thing:

I am putting Time Magazine Person of the Year: 2006 on my resume!

Carson Williams is Awesome

When I found out that it was a gentleman named Carson Williams who had created the amazing Xmas lights display that was Break.com's #4 video for 2006, I was curious if he had made one for this holiday. I was not surprised to find that he had. Here he is with "Jingle Bells" by Barbara Streisand.

Ever since his video of the Trans-Siberian orchestra's piece "Wizards of Winter" circulated the internet, Williams found himself a new job. He has started Consar Lights which provides custom holiday lighting. Northfield Stapleton in Denver, Colorado hired him to do a lights show for the Christmas season. Here's a TV report courtesy of YouTube - the display here is even more incredible than the one rigged up for his house:

I can't wait to see this guy do something incredible for the Super Bowl or a huge choreographed show during 4th of July fireworks.

Deer

There were two deer running around my backyard a yesterday. Here's photographic proof. Regardless of these pictures, I want to emphasize to my Stanford friends that I do not live on a farm!

Of course, I didn't get to close to them, since deer can be pretty vicious, as this stupid hunter found out:

Amazing Christmas Lights Show

Here's one of the most elaborate Christmas lights display I have ever seen. I'm not sure if it tops the Trans-Siberian Orchestra light show put on last year, but it sure comes close. Check it out:



Here's last year's video, which was used later used for a Miller Light commercial. It's Break.com's #4 video of 2006.

Funny Blog

I was clicking the "Next Blog" button on the top of my Nav bar when I came across this blog:

http://butchdingo.blogspot.com/

Affectionately called "My Blog Rules Your Ass!" Butch has consistently posted some hilarious pictures. So in the spirit of Christmas, here's Santa!

Happy Holidays

Happy holidays to you all, regardless of what holiday you celebrate.

I had a nice, relaxing Christmas. Cooked yakisoba noodles for lunch. I made off with some nice gifts:

I had asked for this "Dating for Dummies" guide not because of a struggling love life, but because I post each day on a wall in my dorm for my resident's to enjoy. My most recent calendar was "The Worst Case Scenario Survival Guide," but since there is always a complaint about a lack of dating at Stanford, this guide should help them out.

I had asked for a tripod for the holiday's, since I've gotten into photography lately and want to get better. I'll be taking this bad boy to New York City next week and then back to school. It should aid a lot with some nighttime photography.

Ignoring Hawaii and St. Louis Sports

On Christmas Eve, while the Eastern half of the United States was sleeping and many in the Midwest were attending midnight mass, the Hawaii Warriors were beating the Arizona State Wildcats senseless in the Hawaii Bowl. Colt Brennan, the Warriors QB, demolished the previous NCAA single-season touchdown record of 54 by tossing five of them, finishing the season with 58 TDs. Along the way, he threw a school-record 559 yards, and finishing the season as the nation's leader in TD passes, passing yards, total offense, passing efficiency, points responsible for and completion percentage. Of course, few people even knew who Brennan was. In fact, Hawaii has been a very dominant football team that is continually ignored. Just look at:

1) Timmy Chang

One of the few Chinese Americans to play football, Chang was part of the continually underranked Hawaii squad and holds the NCAA record for total passing with an astonishing 17,072 yards. He blew past Ty Detmer's record 14,665. But, while Detmer would go on to win the Heisman during his time at BYU and be considered one of the best college QB to ever play the game, Chang would be relatively unnoticed.

2) The 2006 Hawaii Warriors

They finish the season unranked, even though they run over San Jose State 54-17 and win against Purdue 42-35. Both of those teams are playing in a bowl game. For a team with the nation's most dangerous offense, you would think they would be in the the AP Top 25. Nope.

3) Colt Brennan

I already explained my reasoning for this in the beginning, but this guy announced he will be most likely return to Hawaii for his senior season. What a class act.

But, since I haven't had a chance to express my opinion about this year's World Series, let me sound off about the St. Louis Cardinals. And their 2006 World Champsionship:

When the Cardinal's made the playoffs, they were 83-78 and had finished the season with a loss. Every media critic wrote them off. They would lose to the red-hot Padres. When they won that series, critics were certain they would be beaten by a talented Met's squad. And when the Cardinal's won that series in a thrilling 7-game set, critics bet on Detriot to sweep or win in 5 games. Nobody but St. Louis fans believed that the Cardinal's could do it. Yet, the story of the World Series was that it had record low-ratings. Of course, if the World Series featured teams like the Yankees or the Red Sox, ratings would have been much higher. How come nobody realizes that the Cardinal's are one of the most dominant teams in baseball? They now have 10 World Champsionships, second only to the Yankees (with 26). Tony LaRussa is only the second manager to win World Series champsionships in the American League and the National League.

The problem is an East Coast sports bias. Nobody watches games without huge sports markets. There's no love for the Hawaii Warriors or even the World Champion Cardinal's. Talented teams are ignored. And it's a shame.

Freud and Popular History

A big historical mystery has been solved- Freud did have an affair with his wife's younger sister, Minna Bernays. It was reported in the New York Times on Christmas Eve. Franz Maciejewski, a sociologist formerly at the University of Heidelberg, tracked down a leather-bound ledger that shows Freud and Minna Bernays stayed in the Schweizerhaus, an inn in Maloja in the Swiss Alps, on August 13, 1898. They stayed in Room 11, and Freud signed in the book, "Dr Sigm Freud u frau,"abbreviated German for “Dr. Sigmund Freud and wife.”

(By the way, Freud's handwriting sucks. Compared to the guy's signature above him, he can't write straight or clearly.) So there you have it, one signature to offset our whole thinking of the father of psychoanalysis.

It's interesting, however, that Freud's affair would be such big news. Understandably, Freud scholars have always had to confront this historical question, but what surprises me is that it seems like another celebrity "who's sleeping with who" game. There are plenty of historical figures who have had extramarital affairs. Here are just three other figures that I'm aware of:

- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Although David Garrow's work "Bearing the Cross" is not available online, it was the first well-known look at MLK's life that brought to my attention King's extramarital activities. As the MLK Research and Education Institute notes, after the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in 1963, FBI director J. Edgar Hoover stepped up his "effort to damage King's reputation by leaking information gained through surreptitious means about King's ties with former communists and his extramarital affairs." This FBI evidence, no matter how politically motivated, is not disputed or denied. Yet King is still presented as a morally righteous figure and his reputation has not sufferred at all.

- John F. Kennedy, Jr.

King's Presidential counterpart during the Civil Rights Struggle in the early 1960s, Kennedy is known to have had an affair with Marliyn Monroe in 1962. Still, Kennedy is presented as one of the most sympathetic Presidents for Civil Rights, is praised more for his handling of the Cuban Missile Crisis and forgiven since he was assasinated in November, 1963.

- Strom Thurmond

I have to include Thurmond, who had an illegitimate, biracial daugher named Essie Mae Washington-Williams when he was 22. If you have a chance, read Dan Rather's interview with Essie on 60 minutes. What's fascinating is that Thurmond was quite supportive of Washington - helping her through South Carolina State College and even visiting her on a few occasions. Of course, he could have been more supportive by actually raising her as her father and not visiting her every 10 years. And then he could have not been such an ardent supporter of racial segregation. But who am I to judge?

Anyway, my point is that history is full of famous affairs and whenever one comes up, it piques the interest of contemporary newspapers and casual historians. It's the equivalent of celebrity gossip, rooted with social impacts that require us to rethink previous assumptions about a person. I suppose we rethink our feelings towards current stars, but I hope those thoughts are more superficial than rethinking how Freud's affair forever changed our understand of pyschoanalysis. At its core, sex scandals always have been, and always will be, fascinating gossip. Whenever a person deviates from societal norms of fidelity, people want to know. There's something to be said about wanting to know what's taboo and the fallout that inevitably occurs from such actions.

For further famous sex scandals, see the Wikipedia page on it.

DMB = God

The first CD I ever bought was Dave Matthews Band's "Crash" back in 1997. I knew little about music, much less DMB, but some of the cool kids I knew in 6th grade were talking about DMB and since I badly wanted to be cool, I bought the CD. "Crash" didn't make me any cooler, but it served as my entrance into music and would forever change how I listened to and played music.

68 minutes and 54 seconds of pure bliss. Here's why I love each and every track:

1) So Much to Say

Dave begins with an infectuous acoustic guitar riff, building up to an impressive overlap of bass, drum, violin, and saxophone. The lyrics were what first hooked me to the song - his alluring way of saying "I see you young and soft oh little baby / little feet, little feet, little hands little baby." His walk of punctuating "t-t-t-talk" and "b-b-baby." But, what keeps me coming back to this song was Carter Beauford's continuous improvisation with his drum lines and and Leroi Moore's subtle saxophone lines. The musicians blend so well in the song that unless you listen for their parts, they get overlooked by Dave's voice. When you listen for them, however, you realize that each member has so much to say.

2) Two Step

I had trouble warming up to this song when I first heard it, since there's a long introduction. Sure, the song starts off slow, especially after So Much to Say ends on a high note. But Two Step quickly crescendo's and accelerates you into a complex interplay of voice and instruments. My favorite lines: "Hey, my love, you came to me like / wine comes to this mouth. / Grown tired of water all the time / You quench my heart and you / quench my mind." The contrast between the pizzicato of Boyd Tinsley's violin and Moore's sax after Dave's vocals make this piece simply fantastic.

3) Crash Into Me

This song propelled DMB into stardom and won them a Grammy, but at its core, it's just a sexual song about a boy being attracted to the physical beauty of a woman. "Hike up your skirt a little more / and show the world to me." and "Oh I watch you there / through the window / And I stare at your / You wear nothing but you / wear it so well" provocatively explain how every adolescent (and older) male feels when he's attracted to a woman. It's voyeristic but innocent at the same time. The acoustic intro with running bass lines always attracted me as a bassist and the Beuford's snare keeps the song from getting too busy.

If you ever have a chance to hear the song live, it's even better - Dave often adds a few lines from the song "Dixie Chicken" by Little Feat, released in 1973. Beauford also has an incredible drum riff at the end, hitting his toms down to a big floor toms in rapid notes in perfect sync. Check out Crash Into Me, track 7, on DMB's Listener Supported CD #1/2 precisely at 5:35 on the track.

4) Too Much

It's a song about excessive materialism. "Ooh traffic jam got more cars / than a beach got sand" was my favorite line from this song. I tend to concentrate more on the instruments in this song, since their presence is purposefully felt throughout. Tim Reynold's provides some raw electric guitar. Moore's sax fade at 1:08 is a great transition back into verse. He totally hits his solo at 1:32 with Beauford providing great drum lines in the background. Dave's acoustic descending scale back into verse at 1:55 is utterly amazing. Tinsley takes over at 2:05 with an off-the-wall electric violin solo that has little breathing room but fits the part perfectly. And Dave's ascending scale leading back into verse at 2:28 really shows off his guitar skills. All motors are turned on for this fun song.

5) #41 / 6) Say Goodbye

Since #41 fades into Say Goodbye, I'm going to treat these songs as a singular unit. Hand down, these two songs are my favorite on the album. The lyrics are sensual, the jamming is amazing, and the instrumentals all demonstrated that DMB had true talent. #41 gets it name from being the 41st song Dave wrote. I've listened to this song hundreds of time and each time I find something new about it - either by listening for particular parts of holistically. I love Moore's sax on this song and how Beauford continually mixes up his drum lines. Even Stefan Lessard on bass has some great little runs and slides. Above all, the instruments complement Dave's voice so well. As his voice rises with the line "I'm begging slow, I'm coming here" the instruments instinctively follow. The song hits its high point as Dave croons "I'm coming waltzing back and moving into your head / Please, I wouldn't pass this by / I would take any more than / What sort of man goes by / I will bring you water." So good!

After the lyrics end, Boyd has a pretty classical violin solo, staying away from playing contiuous chords like usual. Moore is completely jazzy, switching off by playing on the clarinet and then back to sax.

Say Goodbye is a wonderful piece to link to and follow #41. It starts with a wonderful flute solo and some creative drumming by Beauford. The lyrics are an emotional rollercoaster - it's a song about two friends, with one wanting to have a one night of passion. Although the hope is that they can be friends after it, by the end he realizes that he has to say goodbye. The lyrics are alluring: "Stay here with me, love, tonight / Just for an evening / When we make / Our passion pictures / You and me twist up / Secret creatures" and "Just for this evening / Let's strip down, trip out at this / One evening starts with a kiss / Run away." The violin at the high point of the song is fantastic - long, emotional chords. The perfect song for a romantic couple, a breakup, or a make-out session.

7) Drive In Drive Out

The best part about this song is the ending. It's a jam session that you don't want to end. Moore and Tinsley play a simple descending and ascending scale, that is layered over with guitar, bass, and drums. They play it over and over, with Moore improvising on the sax, Beauford providing some wicked drum licks. I found it funny that at the end of the song, you can hear Dave scream "Cut, that was bad as shit!" I think they deliberately left that bit in there, but if this was a bad version, I can't imagine how amazing a version would be up to Dave's standard.

8) Let You Down

This is one of the quieter songs on the album and a nice contrast to "Drive In Drive Out." The focus here is on the lyrics: "I'm a puppy for your love / I'm a puppy for your love," as Dave continually begs "Forgive Me." It's not the best DMB song yet, but it fits nicely after track 7 and before things are kicked up with track 9.

9) Lie In Our Graves

The acoustic guitar on the song is addicting. The imagery is also great: "When we're walking by the water / splish splash me and you taking a bath / when we're walking by the water / come to my toes to my ankles to my head to my soul / then I'm blow away." The drums accent the lyrics perfectly and the sax and violin provide great solos between the verses. The bridge at 2:40 isn't busy with flashy solos, but patiently leads up, with chatter in the background, guitar strumming, and joined by violin at the end. It sounds like the song will end, but at 4:55 Dave starts the chorus again, this time with Reynold's providing some clever guitar riffs, Moore punctuating with his horns, all crescendoing to an even better finish than if the song simply faded away.

10) Cry Freedom

It's hard to say why I like this song. The lyrics are good and the violin and electric guitar particularly shine through on this song. I think it's because the song is incredibly soothing with a deeper message. "Hands and feet are all alike / But gold between divide us / Hands and feet are all alike / But fear between divide us / Hands and feet are all alike / Hear what I say / Hear what I say." Just listen to this song in its entirety.

11) Tripping Billies

I love this song. The chorus sends a great message: "Eat, drink, and be merry / For tomorrow we die." I was always a fun of all the violin solos between verses - Boyd must have loved playing on this song. What could have been a 3 minute song is extended out to 5, with some infectuous solos and jamming.

12) Proudest Monkey

When I first got this CD, I hated this song. It's over 9 minutes, it's slow, and it doesn't have a definiteable rhythm or hook like all of the other songs. For what it's worth, if you listen through, you can enjoy some of the jamming around the 5 minute mark. I don't expect anyone to fall in love with this song, but since it's at the end, you can just consider Tripping Billies to be the end of the album and call it a day.

In the end, Crash really did provide me with an inspiration for how listening to music can be just as emotional as playing it. When I listen to Crash, it triggers the gamut of emotions. And I've found that no other band has really had that impact on me. At the same time, DMB made me want to listen to more music, as I quickly kept up with Ska, Rap, Alt. Rock in middle school, and the mainstream pop of the early 2000s. It's hard to say where my tastes are given the plethora of one-hit wonders and wannabees performing on MTV these days. But DMB has a tried and true formula - a 5 person band that can jam for 3 hours on stage have that be the most amazing live performance time in and time out. So if DMB ever comes to your area of the country, I strongly recommend you go out and see them. You won't be disappointed.

Off to College

I've always been a fan of Page 2 on ESPN.com for its humorous take on sports commentary. So when front page news was Michelle Wie getting into Stanford it was only appropriate for Jemele Hill to provide some much needed advice for Wie as she prepared for life on the Farm. You can read the full article here, but here are my favorite excerpts:

Now, obviously you won't be the typical freshman because you're already a millionaire, you've got an entourage that's as big as most of your lab classes, and you'll be one of the few girls on campus who haven't shown off some silicone in the latest installment of "Girls Gone Wild."

To set the record straight, I have yet to meet a female at Stanford with fake breasts and Girls Gone Wild will never come to Stanford. Lies!

Join a student organization that matches none of your interests whatsoever. In college, you're supposed to get to know different kinds of people and learn useless skills. Student organizations help you with both. I did some preliminary checking on Stanford's Web site and I found an organization that would be perfect for you -- the Mariachi Cardenal de Stanford. It's an organization for student mariachis, and the best part is you have to take Music 157: Introduction to Mariachi Ensemble. That's the kind of class that, when your parents see it on your transcript, they will bludgeon you with a heavy object.

And I'm sure Michelle could use it to hone her violin skills, seeing as how every Asian baby learns to play a musical instrument. I dunno, but I see Michelle fitting right into the Ping Pong club.

I bet she'd also be a great RA. Everyone would come to her hall meetings. She's actually quite attractive, although her game face on the putting green leaves something to be desired.












And with pigtails and a sleepy yawn, she could fit right in with every other tired Freshman for 9AM chemistry.
I know you've got a ton of money, but no college experience is complete unless you sell some element of your body for a completely frivolous pursuit. The going rate for plasma on most college campuses is $20 to $30 per session. I once funded a spring break trip to Florida and sponsored a child in Uruguay with plasma money, but that's a story for another day. But can you imagine how much someone would pay for Michelle Wie's plasma? You could charge 60 or 70 bucks, easy.

I disagree. I donated blood Freshman year and all I got was an Xmas card in the mail at the end of the year. If Michelle really wants to rake in some money, she should consider being an egg donor. Every classified section of the Stanford Daily has listings for rich Palo Alto couples looking for an egg donor. For example: "$8000-$15000 for qualified, committed applicants. All Ethnic backgrounds welcome. Special need for Jewish, Asian, East Indian donors." And if you're tall, better! I bet Michelle could pay for her entire Stanford education with one egg. But then again, she has $20 million in the bank...

Anyway, I hope Michelle really tries to blend into Stanford. Hill is right - she should take classes, fail classes, stay up late eating Ramen, and enjoy all that Stanford has to offer.

This article further reminded me to take stock of the Unofficial 101 Things to Do At Stanford before you graduate. While the list, coming from the Alumni sponsored Stanford Magazine, is a bit more tame than the funnier Stanford Daily's version (Raise your hand in the middle of a lecture and ask a Nobel Laureate professor: “Why are you so arrogant? It’s not like you invented the wheel.”), I still think I should find out how much I've accomplished after 10 quarters on the Farm.

1. Throw paper wads from the balcony at Flicks. Definitely.
2. Hike to the Dish. Yes
3. Carve your initials into a table at the Oasis.
4. Learn the Axe cheer. I learned it Freshman year but I think it's the dumbest cheer and will refuse to re-learn it.
5. Fountain-hop. Freshman and Senior year!
6. Play Frisbee golf. Sadly no. I need to work on that.
7. Get to know a Nobel laureate. Nope, but Andrew Fire will be coming to speak in my dorm next quarter.
8. Go to an a capella concert. I saw all of Anna's Counterpoint concerts Freshman year.
9. Go on a Tahoe ski trip. Oh the horror of sleeping in a cabin with 50 other people.
10. Volunteer through the Haas Center. Of course.
11. Pull an all-nighter. Too many to count.
12. Learn a new language. A quarter of Chinese!
13. Go on your frosh dorm's San Francisco scavenger hunt. Completely debaucherous.
14. Attend a fraternity party. Sweaty and smelly.
15. Host a ProFro. Even better, I was a HoHo! And Max ended up coming to Stanford!
16. Hash. Worked at the Dining Hall for a quarter Freshman year.
17. Join in the midnight Dead Week Primal Scream. Yes.
18. Get kissed at Full Moon on the Quad. Too drunk to remember, but people say I did =p
19. Dance at the Mausoleum party. I can finally say yes to this, since they brought it back Senior year. Although it was pretty lame.
20. Do the Wacky Walk at Commencement. In June I will!
21. Storm the field after Big Game. Haha yeah right. We suck.
22. Visit the Cantor Center for Visual Arts. For class and for fun.
23. Take a freshman or sophomore seminar. History 48Q - South Africa: Contested Transitions. I got an A+ too :)
24. Study outdoors. The Oval is too distracting.
25. Attend a basketball game at Maples Pavilion. 6th man club this year!
26. Throw someone into the pool at MuFuUnSun. I dunked someone Freshman year.
27. View an item in Special Collections. As a history major...too many to count.
28.Hear the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra. Wow I haven't done this yet...
29. Vow to stop procrastinating. Every quarter.
30. Go to Senior Pub Night. A wee bit overrated, but still fun.
31. Rollerblade to class. I borrowed Harry's Freshman year and did this. I don't recommend it since the ground is really bumpy (although better rollerblades might have helped).
32. Attend a concert in MemChu. Saw Stanford's Symphony perform here.
33. Have brunch at Hobee's. When are you going to take me, Jenny?
34. Study abroad. Three weeks in Tokyo
35. Run Campus Drive. Yup!
36. Dance at Viennese Ball. Going this year!
37. Mentor a younger student. I'm an RA. Of course.
38. Go to Gaieties. Yup.
39. Go to the beach. Yup.
40. Learn to say CoPo, FroYo, CoHo, FloMo, ProFro and MemChu without embarrassment. Yeah, except CoPo must be a typo...
41. Fall asleep in Green Library. All too often.
42. See a play in the Nitery. Nope...
43. Play pick-up volleyball in the Oval. With sketchy grad students? I think not!
44. Bike Alpine Road. Yes, but only when I was trying to get to Arastredero.
45. Go to the top of Hoover Tower. Yes.
46. Eat dessert at Max's Opera Café. For my birthday!
47. Buy a Stanford sweatshirt. Every Stanford students has one.
48. Get into a bike accident. It was her fault!
49. Visit San Jose -- once. Okay, I've done it twice.
50. Catch yourself paying heed to the Honor Code. I think so.
51. Contemplate a Rodin sculpture. Only because it was a part of a clue during the Game.
52. Read a book for fun. Probably.
53. Plan a dorm program. Too many.
54. Complain about Wilbur food. Too often.
55. Buy clothes at the Gap. Socks and boxers.
56. Yell "Branner sucks!" All the time during Orientation Week.
57. Get to know your resident fellow. Yes.
58. Live on the Row. Well, not really, but I'm going to count it as yes, because when I went to debate camp in high school, I lived in SAE.
59. Ride a cable car. From the Wharf to Union Square!
60. Determine permanently and irrevocably the precise meaning of life. Hell no.
61. Go to Rinc-a-Delt. I don't know what they're talking about, sadly.
62. Study in a café off campus. I suppose Starbucks counts, but I've gone to Coupa Cafe a few times.
63. Volunteer to be a subject in a research study. All the time.
64. Invite a professor to dinner. Yes.
65. Attend a Women's Herstory Week event. I should really be a better person.
66. Vote. Yes.
67. Design a web page. Check it out!
68. Get a parking ticket. In downtown Palo Alto, yes.
69. Be an Orientation Volunteer. Sophomore year.
70. Write a letter to the Daily. I've done it twice. Once to protest a new housing policy and another to take out the hypen in Asian American.
71. Picnic in the Foothills. Sounds romantic.
72. Play the Game. Played and got my ass kicked. Planned one too.
73. Attend a reception at Hoover House. Nobody invites Undergrads :-(
74. Get to know an alum. Yes? My future boss graduated from Stanford Business School.
75. Attend a day game at the Sunken Diamond. I'm ashamed that I haven't.
76. Pose a question to a campus speaker. Maybe?
77. Go to the Dutch Goose on a Wednesday night. This is on the to-do list.
78. Ride the Marguerite. All too often.
79. Play sports with an Olympic athlete. Sadly this does not happen everyday.
80. Take an incomplete. I'm going to say yes, since I've done much worse with a Withdrawal.
81. See a Band halftime show. Ridiculous.
82. Go to Senior Dinner on the Quad. I will soon enough.
83. Eat peanuts at Antonio's Nut House (and throw the shells on the floor). Sounds stupid, but I'll give it a try.
84. Go to a career fair. Free Nalgene's and pens!
85. Play intramural inner-tube water polo. It was cancelled as an IM! Not fair!
86. Take a Spring Break trip with friends. Yup.
87. Lose a drinking game. All too often.
88. Raft on Lake Lag. Nope.
89. Go to Big Game at Cal. I skipped out this year, because, yes, we suck.
90. Play dorm vs. dorm paintball in the Santa Cruz Mountains. I should plan this for our dorm.
91. Donate blood. Freshman year!
92. Go steamtunneling. I did it last summer. If you don't know what steamtunneling is, check this Wiki article out.
93. Hike in Big Basin. Did some photography there.
94. Go on a date. Holla!
95. Take a class just because you hear the professor is great. I guess.
96. Attend a double feature at the Stanford Theater. Nope, just one movie.
97. Dance with the Band. On the band run!
98. Stay up all night talking in your dorm hallway. Oh the memories.
99. See the Stanford Improvisers. Yeah.
100. Attend a protest,demonstration, rally or sit-in. Supporting Stanford Workers!
101.Wear your cap and gown to The Graduate. I can't wait!

So I've done 75/101. 5 more and I "Bleed Cardinal red." I should have no problem knocking off about 10 more of these things before I graduate. All of those thoughts make me cherish the memories I have had at Stanford, and the memories I will have in 2007!

Peace!

Kicking Things Off

Finding Facebook posting inadequate and planning to never, ever, create a MySpace account, I've made a triumphant return to Blogging. I used to have a Xanga, even updating it everyday from Freshman to the middle of my Junior year of college. I've realized, that my life isn't incredibly exciting and furthermore, there's a lot I have to say about what's going on in the world. And my beliefs are constantly shaped by my experiences. So yada, yada, here I am with another blog to try and do that. Please comment if you like what you see or want me to write about something in particular.

Irony of the Day: "Bush Signs Bill to Preserve WWII Camps"
When I first read the article, I finally felt like Bush had done something right as a President. The National Park Service will administer a grant worth $38 million to preserve, research, and protect 10 internment camps where Japanese Americans were incarcerated during World War II. It's about time legislation like this was passed. After more than 60 years, the U.S. Government will no longer ignore the tragedy of internment, but protect and understand it. Good. Now here's the kicker: 1) Bush announces the new legislation at the Indian Treaty room. 2) Democrats Mike Honda and Doris Matsui of California co-sponsored the bill. I wonder if this bill would have ever been drafted in the first place without their representation. 3) I still can't get over the fact that it was President Roosevelt (Dem) who interned Japanese Americans in WWII and it was President Reagan (Rep) who signed a redress bill for surviving Japanese Americans in 1988. So who's side should Japanese Americans be on?

Reflective of this question is the current controversy over the refusal of Lt. Ehren Watada to deploy to Iraq and the Japanese American Citizens League (JACLs) refusal to support him [this is a PDF]. But hey, perhaps the best thing out of the new internment preservation legislation is that I could have a potential job in the future.

That's the story for now. Stay tuned for sports tomorrow!