so i'm back from the lake arrowhead thing. i got a cool jacket from the pendelton store and a present for robyn. not much new. i'm really tired, but i'm still going to go to a movie. i love going to movies but i can't really afford them (or anything these days) which is why it's nice to be on a couple lists that send me invites for free screenings. tonight i was going to have to choose between the new david cronenberg thing eastern promises and the diving bell and the golden compass. the golden compass is overbooked, so i think i'll go to eastern promises, though the diving bell sounds good too. sunday i have one for into the wild, but i think we're going to disneyland... and tuesday i've one for juno- a movie by the guy who did thank you for smoking. if anyone wants to go, give me a ringy dingy as i've a free spot. cool out.

11.27.2007

i'm leaving for a conference in lake arrowhead, so i'll make this quick.

last night at cha cha, whilst having a cheap beer with andy, i left a fifty cent tip and got yelled at by the bar tender for not leaving enough tip. i was paying in quarters, so i think he thought i didn't leave any tip at all, but it really pissed me off nonetheless. he bitched that he only got minimum wage and tips paid his salary. boo hoo. get another job that's less indie if it's that much a concern. don't work at the cheapest bar in town. when's the last time you tipped at starbucks? or mcdonald's? or flipped the greeter a quarter at my beloved walmart? stupid indie trash. entitlement is what's ruining this country. what a joke. what a fool. i made a promise to never tip at cha cha again. ever. and i will go there again soon. come if you like. i'll buy your beer and not tip in protest. chucklehead indie rock dork loser.

i've got a free screening of the diving bell and the butterfly on wednesday if anyone wants to go. give me a ringy ding.

11.25.2007

thanksgiving weekend is coming to a close. we had much fun in ventura with family and friends. good food was a theme. nice italian on wednesday. turkey day. sushi with the family and corban. tri-tip. turkey and other such nice things throughout.

we had fun walking around downtown with the jew-ntas. boy jewnta bought a ghostbuster thing. i wanted to buy a large wooden painting of an indian but robyn wouldn't let me put it up in our living room, so i figured there wasn't much of a point.

right now robyn is putting up christmas stuff and i'm working on my movie with vern and listening to ravel. i've school tomorrow. a retreat tuesday and wednesday in arrowhead for work. and hopefully some band practices mixed in as well. and maybe a baby- who knows? though i ought to see a movie. maybe a cheap one on wednesday in highland park. anyone interested? me. i am. okay. sweet. movie and a drive-by in highland park on wednesday. indie movie and indie drive-by that is!

11.23.2007

we had a very nice thanksgiving yesterday at my aunt's house. not much to say. it was good. i enjoyed the sweet potatoes with pecans the most.

i just woke up from an intense dream with fires. it was awesome. i think it was a school retreat.

today i'm going to stain a crib (LOL, LOL, LOL. snort. fart.), watch my parents buy a christmas tree, and maybe see a movie. i think.

11.21.2007

i am thankful for everything and nothing.

last night andy and keith came over. we made sweet tunes.

i'll be in ventura for a few days. come up if you like. we may go see a movie or something. maybe two. maybe a hike or a little beach time if the santa ana winds pick up.

that is all.

11.19.2007

we had a nice weekend. i thought i was getting sick last night. i think i even had a fever, but i'm better now.

11.17.2007

today we went to a breast feeding class.

then i went to andy's and wrote a song.

then i came home and finished a short film.

then i made a dinner. steak, asparagus, boiled potatoes.

then i started watching royal and his tenenbaums.

when i am finished, i will wash dishes and put away clothes.

then i will go back over the short film and check for mistakes.

then i will watch dumbo.

then i will go to sleep.

then i will wake up and make coffee.

then i will go to church.

then i will go home and eat some lunch. maybe tuna melts.

11.16.2007

there was a wreck on the freeway this morning. the first one of the year, but it being friday, i was still able to get into the gated parking. i like coming to work early. i actually like getting up early too. problem is, i like going to bed late (which i don't really do much anymore). i wish i had a job that would let me break up my sleep into two three hour blocks throughout the day.

not knowing how, or if it would be good for me (not like that's ever stopped me before), i think i would choose to sleep from 11:00 am- 2:00 pm, wake up, do some work or go for a run or something, eat, then sleep from maybe 7:30 pm- 10:30 pm. i think that might work.

can't think of anything else. i'm making gumbo, hush puppies, and some vegetable maybe for dinner with the tisa and kevins. yeah, nothing else.

11.15.2007

i ended up going to the movie by myself last night- which was cool. i enjoy seeing movies alone. i don't think movie going is meant to be a group activity. unless you're on a make-out date, which is why i'm looking forward to no country for old men... or you have a jerry and elaine camaraderie and penchant for ribald comedic movie wit with someone, but i make myself laugh in my head more than anyone else so it doesn't really matter to me in my old age whether i'm with someone or not.

the movie itself was really cool. if you don't like bob dylan, you will be bored and think it stupid i imagine (however it is a much more rewarding cinematic experience than bob's own similarly odd masked and anonymous). if you do like bob dylan, you will listen to his music on random when you get in your car and you will put on your rayban's when you get home. you might even go on ebay and look for a polka dot shirt before realizing you're a teacher and teachers don't wear polka dot shirts. neither do most normal people.

man, but bob dylan was (and is) so cool. wanting to look like him is sort of the grown up version of putting on superman pajamas to impress friends. which i did. when i was much, much younger. allegedly.

some features of bob i've tried to emulate:
polka dot shirt. being mean. nodoz. a not full beard. triumph motorcycle shirts. bad poetry. good poetry. being funny. mumbling. singing off key. singing. living off candy and coffee. being a hermit. not making sense. not putting my roots down. creating different characters to cover up the real me. being christian. being apathetic. wearing boots. old things.

11.14.2007

if anyone is interested, ive an extra ticket for a screening of the new dylan movie tonight. todd haynes, the director, is speaking after. text or call me if you want to go- 5626523644.

im other news... nothing.

except...
many people know evil spirits reside in our house. mike heard voices, others (though they choose to ignore the truth) have heard circus music, and things generally go bump in the night in weird, unexplained ways... anyhow, yesterday at school, i had a girl (with very much a similar sweet shy disposition as my sister) let me know she's been seeing a small girl appear at the front of my class. awesome? yes. do i believe her? wholeheartedly. why? because.

11.13.2007

my dog whitney is going to die very soon. we got her when i was starting the eighth grade. my dad spent way too much money on her thinking she was a purebred. we laughed when her papers never came.

now her breath smells and her body is twisted and lumpy with cancer and arthritis. thinking of this makes me sad and melancholy... like listening to a gordon lightfoot song or remembering something nice from the past that's long since faded.

but i'm having a baby.

this makes my heart joyful and my insides excited.

11.12.2007

i am sitting at my kitchen table looking at a yellow piece of paper, a flash drive, a pen, a cartoon picture of myself created by a friend, and a copy of children of a lesser god. i'm trying to get some stuff done, but my mind is stuck in a rut.

today i'm helping tisa and kevin move. helping people move can be rewarding and fun. it can be a friendship building adventure. i must keep this in mind.

when we are finished (and after pizza) we will be going to nightmare before christmas 3D! the prospect of this is both awesome and exciting. it will keep me going throughout the day.

all in all, i've had a very fun weekend. a birthday party and spaghetti on friday. a baby shower and a downtown adventure on saturday. a church and a rock out yesterday. and a move and 3D today.

i thought bland, middling, rambling writing would help, but it is not. the coffee is, though. it is from out friends in brasil. the computer almost just made me auto correct brasil to basil, but you me and the south americans know that brazil is brasil in brasil.

it's also good to see that even with andy laroche hitting sweetly to the tune of three home runs and nine rbis at the baseball world cup, idiot dodger fans still want to trade him. our best hitting prospect out of our fantastic young group is being shuffled out of town after only 93 major league at bats. stupid.

11.11.2007

many thanks to all the fun people who came to the baby shower yesterday (and to those who couldn't make it but are still worthy of being thanked). you are all so very nice.

for old time's sake...

11.10.2007

thanks for coming.

11.7.2007

hi internet. i've been in good spirits lately. i'm looking forward to having a baby. i'm also looking forward to doing some other things i cant think of. i should work on something, but my brain is fried like dice.

i shall go watch small change in a moment.

but first. i shall find a funny picture for you to laugh at my friends.

say la v. i found a funneee picture of jack and robyn in one year.

11.5.2007

wow. congrats to biola alum and current cold war kids' guitar hero on his new career.

in other news check out this nsfw pic on why i really hate devendra banhart and really everyone and everything that comes from the hip side of town. zero in on the below the belly button hair. what a stupid idiot.

10.3.2007

i would love to sock devendra banhart in the face. i just saw some picture of him. he's asking for it. what a weirdo. he needs a real job, a haircut, and a sock in the face.

11.2.2007

last night we went to baby class in long beach. we met at the same hospital where robyn was born and keith had cancer (says rodney dangerfield "one outta' two ain't bad" HOOAH!). anyhow, the funny something that happened was this... just like something out of a tv show written by matt miller, the lady had us all on the floor with the lights off... i think we were supposed to be visualizing something about our child's safety, or something... i'm not really too sure... but the funny thing, the matt miller thing, occured when she played a native american influenced (and wordless) version of tears in heaven for our soothing meditation on the future well-being of the baby.

i hope she did it on purpose.

10.25.2007

off to yosemite tomorrow for a fun filled trip. pray for the wife, she may have to be put on bed rest and there's a chance we might need to induce early in december. we'll see.

in other news, anyone want to go down to the sports arena with a crisp twenty dollar bill tuesday night on the off chance someone very nice has an extra ticket they're willing to part with for the cheese springsteen (and the holy hinks) concert?

10.22.2007

i just made my 300th post. neat. to celebrate... grossness:

different types of cheeto flavors from around the world.

India

Varieties of Cheetos sold in India:

• Cheetos Cheesy Masala Balls
• Cheetos Masala Balls (Red and Green Chili flavored)
• Cheetos Spicy Cheese Whirlz
• Cheetos Tangy Loops (Tomato and Red Chili flavored)

Korea

Neither Flamin' Hot Cheetos nor Cheesy Cheetos is sold in Korea. Koreans instead made different flavors of Cheetos such as:

• Chicken-Flavored Cheetos
• Bulgogi- Flavored Cheetos
• Barbecue-Flavored Cheetos
• Hot & Spicy Cheetos
• Strawberry Cheetos[1]

Mexico

• Cheese & Jalapeño Claws Cheetos
• Cheese & Jalapeño & Ham Cheetos
• Cheetos Puff
• Cheetos Twisted
• Cheetos Flamin' Hot

In Mexico, Chester Cheetah is "Chester Cheetos."

Egypt

• Cheetos Puffs (Smaller Size than the U.S. version, 50 and 100 gm packs).
• "Mini" Cheetos (Looks like small balls of Cheetos. Served in small thin packs so the consumer eats them directly from pack to mouth).

Peru

• Hamburger flavored Cheetos.
• Hot Dog flavored Cheetos.

10.18.2007

happy almost friday. mavis staples just blew my ever-lovin' mind out my ears. she was neat. i had a great time and now i will go to sleep. i think i would like to go camp by the beach soon. even if it is very cold. i may just go by myself if nobody wants to come.

cool.

bye.

10.16.2007

i always like mornings where i buy good coffee from a real coffee place. i'm always much more alert and happy. i need to grade some papers that i've been putting off- and some book report projects.

todd helton is amazingly good- even with his loss of power. check out his baseball reference page. he is weird good. tenth and eighth place all-time in obp and ops. all-time. i am having fun watching the rockies and living vicariously through robyn's brother and parents in colorado. good for them.

i'm also happy because i will see mavis staples sing sweet soul music on thursday.

10.15.2007

a bowl of oatmeal w9ith blackberries, a tall glass of delicious brita safe water and i'm off to work. rocktober! i like the playoffs of the baseball. they are much fun. anyhow, not much to report. i had a boring weekend. robyn was gone and i just sat around the house all day saturday with nothing to do. good thing it's monday so i can go back to work.

10.10.2007

im working on a movie vern and jeff are going to shoot. it should be fun. it has magic and murder and sailboats and ponsters. i like writing about these things.

im almost over being sick, which is nice. or as borat would say NIIIIIIECE, actualy that's neice. borat's funny again, right? like iLL BE BAACK! is funny, or did IIIII DOOO THAT? both funny. along with- nawt gonna' do it, no new taxes. say it again in jarvis voice.

anyhow, poppo spent the night on monday. it was fun. we went to the pantry and had delicious meats. there's talk of me and him going to normandy this summer. i am quite honored and excited- we'll see.

last night i saw the wii barbarians. it was fun. they sang the pop songs.

10.7.2007

i've been sick for a few days. i keep waiting for it to go away. every morning i wake up and wonder if i will feel nice- and every morning i don't. i am becoming increasingly convinced that i have sars.

last night i went to vern and melinda's wedding. it was fun.

today i will sniffle and cough through church and breakfast club.

10.4.2007

i watched the new wes anderson short the other day with natalie portman and jason schwartzman. it was really lame and natalie portman was gross looking.

and... happy birthday to anne gloyd.

10.2.2007

oh yeah. on sunday when i went to disneyland with tisa and some other people, i completely ruled the buzz lightyear game. and by completely ruled, i am refering to my amazing level 5 score 0f 433500. to put it in perspective mrs. pool got a 6400, mrs. cassidy got a 12, and mrs. gloyd got a -400. matt got a respectable 200000 or so.

here is a sweet pic of me blasting. you have to copy and paste the code (4C421EA0991CFD240653B78C751B6806) to see it but it is worth the work. it's a great hero shot. like rudy giuliani after 9/11.

10.2.2007

did anyone watch the game last night? i did. it was fun. i also ate a bowl of spaghetti con meatballs.

10.1.2007

i had a very action packed weekend. on friday, i played music with the band until late, ate hotdogs and then jammed again until even later with senior aaron ballard sitting in on keys and awesomeness.

saturday, i helped my wife with her baby shower, watched the jesse james movie- which i liked- and went to octobre-fest at alpine village to celebrate vern moen's loss of bachelorness. it was fun.

sunday i went to disneyland with the cotherns, belts, and pools. now i need to start school.

i also just made myself laugh in my head by imagining walking around disneyland with some real actual pools with water- like if somehow we had swimming pools, or even just stagnant pools of water for friends.

9.27.2007

this is funny from fire joe morgan:

Paddy (St. Louis, MO): Hi Joe, I've heard 2008 will be Vin Scully's last season in the booth. Do you have any Scully stories, and will you have him as a guest next year?

Joe Morgan: I have stories, but I can't tell them!

KT: One hundred dollars to anyone with an awesome story involving Joe and Vin Scully. Two hundred if it involves cocaine.

and boo dodger management. boo ned.

if you like the dodgers, read this good post from dodgerthoughts.

Today, I read yet another column scapegoating one of the team's most valuable position players, Matt Kemp, for the Dodgers' fall into fourth place - and going on to suggest that he could be traded, maybe should be traded.
The player is being criticized for a bad attitude, even though he is surrounded by veterans with bad attitudes. Different kinds of bad attitudes, perhaps, but bad attitudes nevertheless.
The player is being critcized for speaking out in the press, even though he did so in response to veterans speaking out in the press.
The player is being criticized for on-field mistakes, even though veterans have repeatedly made the same on-field mistakes.
The player is being criticized for perhaps not being willing to learn, even though the veteran that started this whole thing has been one of the most irascible, stubborn people in baseball, whose baserunning in the past two seasons indicates that he hasn't learned nearly as much as he wants us to think.
Headline from inside today's Daily Irony: Sweeney hopes to stay on as a voice of experience
Yes, Mark Sweeney. The veteran who made the single dumbest baserunning mistake of the year.
I have had it with the utter stupidity that has come out of the Dodger clubhouse and local papers this past week.
Bill Plaschke writes that Kemp's "power and speed have been negated by silly at-bats and baserunning mistakes."
Negated?? Are you serious??
The silly at-bats have already been factored into his on-base percentage and slugging percentage, which currently stand at .364 and .509. Yes, those are the numbers of the irresponsible Kemp.
The baserunning mistakes? What have there been, five? Ten? Let's say the latter. Instead of 198 outs in 294 plate appearances, give Kemp 208 outs in 294 plate appearances. Wow, what a change.
Negated???
Is third-base coach Rich Donnelly going to be traded in response to the baserunning mistakes on his watch?
Mustering the resilience to read to the end of Plaschke's column, I found that the nuance of the suggestion is that Kemp be traded for a veteran in his prime that won't be worried about losing his playing time to Kemp and therefore won't be resistant to mentoring him. Brilliant idea - except the guy you're worried about mentoring won't be around anymore.
Here's an idea that apparently isn't good enough for the papers: Why not have the manager and coaches do the damn mentoring? Seriously, what else are they there for? If Grady Little and the coaching staff are too weak to do it, then bring in a drill seargent. Hell, bring in Lou Gossett, Jr. and have him go all Sgt. Foley on Kemp.
Apparently not. Apparently, I'm left to understand that the young brats in the Dodger clubhouse won't heed anyone currently in the Dodger organization, but will pay attention to some 28-year-old, $14 million-earning All-Star to be named later? Apparently, this isn't Plaschke's idea, it's the Dodgers' (though none of Plaschke's sources for it are named).
This is our plan for the future?
Look, I get that every player has his price. There are people out there better than Kemp, and if you can get one of them and keep him, that's great. But that's not what we're talking about here. We're talking about a fundamental misunderstanding of what has happened to the Dodgers this year.
Throw the babies out with the bathwater. That's the operating strategy that has been suggested over the past week. Amazing.

9.26.2007

wow. i know i need to not get so worked up about these things. baseball is just not that important... but i like the team. i like the dodgers and their cool young players. creepy old men were yelling on the radio about young players getting things together and other creepier old men were saying that some of these same young players were going to be traded in the offseason. the news made my heart pound and my palms sweat. frustrated for no real reason, i switched the dial to the adam carolla show. i like adam carolla, but is there really a need for me to listen to him talk about things he likes? i don't really care what he likes and he usually likes things that are kind of stupid, he just expresses his likes in a funny way, which is why guess i should like him. and i do, kind of. but he was stressing me out. i needed soothing, so i plugged in my newly updated bookworm podcast featuring miranda july. her apathetically smooth voice was a nice change of pace, but after a few minutes of self-absorbed meandering of a different kind, i found myself once again standing on the precipice of frustration and whatnot. she was called the voice of her generation by the bookworm guy. the. voice. of. her. generation! miranda july. she. her. boo.

it made me glad to realize that as a card carrying member of generation ex, i can choose whoever i please as my voice. because, like, who cares (shrug)... which is why my voice, for my generation in my mind, is mike love.

9.24.2007

i know i give people a hard time about posting youtube clips, but ive actually been watching them lately. here's an awesome version of cotton fields by the beach boys. the song is good, but mike love is AWEEEESOMMEEEE!

AWESOME UPDATE:

matt kemp, james loney, and adam laroche's myspace pages.

9.23.2007

im watching a dancing show with robyn. the judges are very nice.

yesterday i went fishing with mike s. on the ventura pier. we did not catch any fish.

jack is moving a lot inside of robyn. we watched a movie thing on discovery about babies being born. it looked not fun. um... im tired.

9.18.2007

the top ten most racist commercials here. according to some blog.

9.14.2007

i had a good week. on tuesday i hung out with vern and went for a jog at the beach where bums hang out and lift weights. on wednesday i watched a bunch of the office and did nothing. on thursday i had an LA sandwhich day- eating pastrami at farmer's market and a french dip at philleppeees. then i went to union station to see poppo off to missouri. then i went to cha cha with andy. and tonight i went to a dodger game. tomorrow i'm going to ventura for a fun wedding. sunday i'm eating barbecued foods. and monday im working.

work doesn't stress me out much this year. the amount they pay me does, though. i want more bread man.

9.12.2007

100 days until we have a baby. cool dude. i've the day off tomorrow. i'm watching the office season 2 right now. it's funny, but i still hold to the old one. the jokes seem delivered a little too obvious on this one. the writing's good, but the delivery really is a little forced. it still makes me laugh hard though. real hard.

9.10.2007

i was tired at school today. i got a lot of sleep, so i'm not really sure why. work does it to you, i guess. i just worked out on our machine that helps you work out. i also did some push-ups and have been eating really healthy the last week or so. we have to make all of our meals and not eat out because we are trying to live on one salary until baby time. that includes cocktails and whatnots. oh well.

in other news. brad wants me to do the master plan with him. i might, though robyn thinks it's weird and unhealthy. tell that to beyonce. and billy- you sound like a grumpy old man... .

9.9.2007

robyn's not feeling so hot, so we're going to stay home from church. we got a new couch from my parents yesterday. it's cool.

today is the first day of football fun. i'm actually pretty excited about the season, i guess.

my plan for the day: lesson plan some. write a little. watch football. workout.

9.7.2007

today is my third day of work. funny thing... it's going very well. the kids are well behaved, i'm more organized- more structured, and nobody is shouting and cussing at me. i was even able to play both dark side of the moon and solo monk for them while they were working on group projects. it was weird and it ruled.

the dodgers are winning with the young steeds taking charge.

time to do work.

9.4.2007

tomorrow school will begin. i think my room looks very nice- compared to last year at least. i'm having a couple beers and a steak and fried potatoes and some corn to usher in my belly (which will most likely be turning come tomorrow) for the coming year. all bitching aside, i'm a little excited and looking forward to what's in store.

rumor has it stevie wonder is in town manana. who wants to go? me. okay. sweet.

and people should go see ratatouille. is was super real fun.

9.3.2007

i am watching duce bigalow part one. his girlfriend is missing a leg. HA. = funny. not. syke. i've watched tv for like three hours. it has been fun and enjoyable. i should start doing it more. i guess it's hot outside, but i wouldn't know because i'm sitting inside with air conditioning.

last day of prep tomorrow.

9.2.2007

we're off to cha-cha for some good time fun. tomorrow we're going to see a movie and hang out. maybe we'll bbq, maybe we'll sit inside and chill, maybe we'll workout and eat candy.

today we watched edward scissor hands and a dodger game. i'm very happy andy laroche is back with the team. i like the team we put on the field today. it was almost the team of the future.

9.1.2007

this chad billingsley blog is cool. look at it and be happy. i will start school soon. teaching children does not make me happy. i look forward to when i am not doing it.

8.30.2007

hi internet friends. i start school soon. boo boo hoo hoo.

8.26.2007

im pretty tired after a long fun weekend in las vegas with good ventura friends. we stayed at the palms and splashed around mtv party pools. i started a mid afternoon dance party and almost lost my ipod when i slipped in the pool while dancing to saturday night's alright for fightin'. the move was par for the course.

8.23.2007

the dodgers have won and its not even 2:00.

today we're getting the poster we bought on our honeymoon framed. finally. our good pal aaron ballard is helping us out. he's a nice fellow and he plays music in a good band. check them out if you have the chance.

we went to disneyland yesterday. it was fun as usual.

i'll be going to las vegas tomorrow for jerimiah fuller's bachelor party. i think i may try and take in a 51s game or two.

that's all. work starts next week. boo.

8.22.2007

via fire joe morgan ... more great reasons to not like juan pierre.

You guys know how we feel about Juan Pierre. We like him as a dude. We like the way it looks like he's borrowing a giant man's helmet. We like calling him John Peter. And we think he stinks at baseball.

Just for giggles and shits, I plugged the phrase "Juan Pierre" into our Bill Simmons 1980's Movie Reference Software (available at BestBuy), and here's what I got:

"In the world of out machines, Juan Pierre is the WOPR." Not bad for $24.95!

And now, take it away, Jayson Addcox of mlb.com!

What is it about the on-base percentage that a player like Juan Pierre -- who leads the Dodgers in at-bats, runs scored, hits, stolen bases, triples and games played -- gets knocked for not having his higher than .350?

So much to digest, so quickly. Let's chuck the grammatical wonkiness out the window and just try to deal with the question at hand: Why does Juan Pierre get knocked for having an on-base percentage below .350? I made a list!

1) Because he's a lead-off hitter.
2) Because he has no power to make up for his lack of OBP.
3) Because he's being paid $45 million by the Dodgers.
4) Because his OBP isn't just a hair below .350 -- it's .324 this year.
5) Because .324 is good enough for 134th out of 171 eligible MLB batters.
6) Because there's a massive conspiracy against Juan Pierre.

By the way, why didn't he just say "gets knocked for not having his higher than .400"? It would have made Pierre look a lot better to anyone who was too lazy to look up his actual OBP.

Of course, Juan Pierre leads the Dodgers in triples, so I'm supposed to let it go, I guess. I'm supposed to forget that he's a lead-off hitter who doesn't walk for a second, and give him credit for leading the team in AB's? Wait -- hold on -- I'm supposed to be giving him credit at all for leading the team in AB's when in the same sentence you're admitting that he can't get on base? Ba-wuh?

He's batted in four different spots in the lineup this season. When he's hitting well, he's in the leadoff or No. 2 slot, but when he's slumping, manager Grady Little hasn't hesitated putting Pierre in the seventh or eighth slot.

I know I'm opening myself up to "you wouldn't know because you never played baseball" criticism here, but is it really so difficult to hit in different spots in the line-up? Does Juan Pierre's head explode when he sees that he's batting in the 7th spot? Is he suddenly going up to the plate and trying to catch the ball in his mouth because he has no idea how to hit 7th?

(Incidentally, I did play baseball, at least when I was young. Played 3rd base for my little league team. My coach encouraged me to play 3rd like a hockey goalie, and ended up earning the nickname "Reggie" that year thanks to late 80's Bruins goalie Rejean Lemelin. What were we talking about again?)

The issue with Pierre is that he doesn't walk. Plain and simple, his OBP suffers because he averages one walk every 21 at-bats. On the season, he has just 24 walks in 510 at-bats, which is the lowest in the Majors. On the flip side, Pierre doesn't strike out often, either. He has struck out just 32 times this season, which is once every 15.9 at-bats, making him the hardest batter to strike out in the Senior Circuit.

In the red corner: walking. Getting on base. Not getting out. Making the pitcher throw at least four pitches to you. Getting to first base so you can do the one thing you do well: steal bases.

In the blue corner: not striking out. In Pierre's case, finding other ways to get out. If you believe us, not really a good thing. Not a bad thing, just not a good thing.

Not striking out isn't "the flip side" of not walking. It's a different goddam coin. A coin that you keep in your pocket when talking about baseball because it's not really relevant, unless you want to talk about the virtues of the coin itself in a vacuum. You know what I mean. (Hopefully. Because I don't.)

Also, those of you who like not-striking-out-ability usually point to things like productive outs and "good things happening when you put the ball into play." Of course, Pierre's a lead-off hitter, so more than any other player in the line-up, he's going to have the lowest percentage of opportunities for "productive outs" anyway.

This season, Pierre leads the Dodgers with 147 hits. He is fifth in the NL with 45 multi-hit games, he leads the Majors with 14 sacrifice bunts and he's second in the Majors only to Jose Reyes with 50 stolen bases, and yet his OBP supposedly isn't cutting it.

"Jayson, it's Darryl. Just going over your copy for the latest mlb.com article...No, yeah, it's fine. One thing. Looks like the word 'supposedly' somehow got into the last sentence of paragraph eight...Right...No? You sure?"

"He's a disruptive force when's he's on base," Little said. "The other team has to be concerned with him regularly and it disrupts the pitcher. The whole key is for him to get on base and that's what we like."

Write it down, kids: When writing an article in support of Juan Pierre, it's okay to admit that he has a low OBP, as long as you quote the manager of his team saying that the whole key is for him to get on base. A thing, which, you've already pointed out, he does poorly.

Compared to some of the elite leadoff batters in the game, Pierre's .324 on-base percentage is considerably low. Reyes has an OBP of .375, Hanley Ramirez is at .392, Chone Figgins is at .392 and Ichiro is at .396, so the consensus is that a No. 1 or 2 hitter in the lineup needs to have a .350 or higher OBP.

But like Pierre said, "It is what it is."

Can't argue with that.




mona lisa of the 21st century.

8.22.2007

i've been good about posting, so i'll post.

i wish i was still traveling. i like it better than being at home. some people get to the end of a long trip or a weekend away and feel the pull for home. i think those people are nuts. crazy nuts. home is where stress and boring is. the road is where awesome is.

i'm going to see if robyn wants to hit the road for life. if she does, i'll be in rule zone max forever. peaches and sweet cream.

8.20.2007

UPDATE:

this article basically sums up why i hatge juan pierre as a member of the dodgers. i got it from the nice 6-4-2.blogspot.com site.

Fish, Barrel, And Gun, Part 3 In A Series: On Juan Pierre's OBP I don't generally take the MLB.com site reporting beyond their daily game recaps terribly seriously, and Jayson Addcox's latest is a decent enough example of why:

What is it about the on-base percentage that a player like Juan Pierre -- who leads the Dodgers in at-bats, runs scored, hits, stolen bases, triples and games played -- gets knocked for not having his higher than .350?

...

For Pierre, the criticism and constant reminders about his OBP is nothing new. In seven years in the Majors, he has put together a great resume including, a .350 OBP, but according to Pierre, it's brought up every year and it's always the same thing.

"When I'm hitting good, my on-base percentage is high and that's just the way it is," Pierre said. "The Dodgers knew that before I came here. It is what it is. I just go out there and play the game, and I don't get caught up in all of this."

The issue with Pierre is that he doesn't walk. Plain and simple, his OBP suffers because he averages one walk every 21 at-bats. On the season, he has just 24 walks in 510 at-bats, which is the lowest in the Majors. On the flip side, Pierre doesn't strike out often, either. He has struck out just 32 times this season, which is once every 15.9 at-bats, making him the hardest batter to strike out in the Senior Circuit.

The problem is really twofold:

1. His career OBP is hardly germaine. Pierre has had only three full years above .350 OBP, logging three straight seasons with .320-.330 figures.
2. Pierre's speed is a declining asset. This translates into fewer infield singles, thus depressing his batting average and therefore his OBP.

This represents the worst kind of disingenuousness. Even ignoring his noodle arm in center, his offensive faults might be tolerable in a young, cheap player, but are hardly acceptable in a player signed to be a leadoff man, the only real job he's suited for. The Pierre signing was a poor use of money at the time, one that looks only to get worse over time.

open question: what's the weirdest/ most interesting baseball stat, player, number, or thing you can think of? mine, as of today is dan quisenberry's career ERA + of 145. this would put him tied for third with walter johnson, joe wood, and hoyt wilhelm. it would also make him (though tied with wilhelm) the all time leader for a relief pitcher.

... back to writing...

8.19.2007

i went with my parent to see richie furay and chris hillman play last night. it was pretty cool. i talked to a guy i knew who i saw there and he told me that this guy was there (which he was) and that this guy was supposed to come (which he didn't). it was fun as i'm a big liker of buffalo springfield and the byrds.

richie furay told a cool story about his neighbor in new york giving him a copy of the byrds first album. after listening to the album, he decided to leave for la- where his neighbor would join the byrds and later start a cool band with hillman.

8.18.2007

i've got too much to do and im not doing any of it. yet.

when i get up i will run. go to the jewnta's for a few.

go to maliboo to hang with mom and dad.

go to a concert.

bye.

8.16.2007

i have found my ukulele (actually my mom did) at the lax. i was quite worried seeing that i lose things a lot.

the baby is still healthy and kicking. we saw him again today.

i just had a bean and cheese burrito from rick's. i am washing it down with a miller chill.

update:

i found this via deadspin. kind of cool.

Lance Niekro Will Give Knuckleballing a Shot

Being the son of a 221-win knuckleballer, and the nephew of a 318-win one, you'd think that Lance Niekro would survey the genetic evidence and think that he, too, could blaze a straight trail to major league stardom via the meandering knuckleball.

But you would think wrong. The young Niekro became a first baseman. The Giants picked him in the second round of the 2000 draft, and he made the majors three years later.

He never stuck. Niekro's 28 now, and he has only 17 major league homeruns. He started the year with the Giants, went 3-17, got hurt, and went to AAA Fresno, where's he's been a platoon player. His prospects for major league stardom as a hitter seem bleak.

So he's started experimenting with the knuckleball he last threw in competition as a junior in high school.

During last night's game against Tacoma, Niekro was warming up in the pen, but didn't have a chance to get in the game. “He’s got a good knuckleball,” Fresno manager Dan Rohn told the Fresno Bee. “We’ll see if we can get something out of it.”

8.15.2007

happy birthday james duke gloyd

fire joe morgan makes me laugh always...

Hey everyone! Never read Dan Shaughnessy and want to see two jokes that demonstrate how lame and out-dated his sense of humor is? Okay.

"He blew two games in three days in Baltimore, first spitting up a 5-1 lead, then coughing up a game-tying two-run homer to Miguel Tejada...He was Eric Gag-me-with-a-spoon."

Eric Gagné was a bomb. Then he was the bomb.

Emphasis his.

I put "gag me with a spoon" at maybe...1982? And referring to someone as "the bomb" is roughly as embarrassing in the modern day as was that moment in the "Bringing Down the House" trailer wherein Eugene Levy (white) says to Queen Latifah (Black), "You got me straight trippin', boo."


and this switched at birth was funny to me when i thought of it the other day. it make me laugh and smile and then it made my head explode with awesome and jellybeans.

8.14.2007

it is my dad's birthday tomorrow, but we're celebrating today. he's turning sixty and i'm having a baby. strange things are afoot at the casa de gloyd. anyhow, we got him an ipod. i loaded it up with fun tunes, so it's ready to go.

i got a nice call from matt and drew via new york. they were drinking and i was wishing i was there.

my mom and robyn are cutting melons and we're waiting for the meat to arrive.

i had some reason for writing, but i can't remember. i hope darren has a fun last week in california. as a parting gift i killed the man who is effing with him with my mind.

8.13.2007

we leave for the airport in about a half and hour. boo hoo us.

and... in response to keith's witty remark in the last comment section- i give you this article on (among other things) david cone (fourth paragraph in if you don't want to read the whole thing).

quote of the day: This woman says that as she left the bullpen Cone told her, "You're a big baby. You're not invited to showtime anymore."

8.12.2007

we went surfing today. leaving tomorrow will not be fun. i don't like real life and work and living in a busy city very much.

i just had sushi (rolls and fish), poke, and oysters in a can on wheat thins. i am washing it down with a perrier con lime.

time for the beach and sitting. we'll be in ventura until wednesday if anyone cares or is wondering.

UPDATE:

not that important, but if you like the dodgers you should read the season rundown. i like the idea of his just for fun 2009 line-up at the end of the post.

UPDATE DOS:

this is a good write-up on bonds. john sickles worked for bill james and espn- and is now running one of the better minor league blogs around. i basically agree with him wholeheartedly.

Barry
By John Sickels
Posted on Wed Aug 08, 2007 at 06:13:02 PM CDT

Cheating of various kinds has been going on in baseball since Day 1. There is no such thing as "pure" record. Should we throw out all the records before 1947 since the game wasn't integrated then and guys like Ruth and Gehrig did not play against black players? To me that is a bigger mark on the game than the use of steroids.

What about use of amphetimines? They are still used today when they shouldn't be, and they were VERY commonly used back in the 1950s and 1960s and 1970s. What about the no-hitter that Doc Ellis threw while tripping on LSD back in the 1970s? Should we throw that out of the books too?

Gaylord Perry and several other Hall of Fame pitchers cheated by scuffing the ball. Should they be kicked out? You think Whitey Ford didn't cheat?

A highly-placed major league baseball source told me a few years ago that by his estimate well more than half of the players in baseball, including more than half the pitchers, used steroids sometime in the 1990s and early 2000s before the crackdown.

I don't understand why everyone picks on Bonds. Did he use stuff he should not have used? Probably. So did the pitchers he was hitting against. It probably made him stronger, yes, but it did not improve his strike zone judgment, or his hand-eye coordination, and those were the things that have made him such an exceptional hitter. And it helped the guys he was hitting against just as much as it helped him. And he was hitting in San Francisco...you think that the steroids helped him more than the park hurt him the last few years?

This is really ridiculous I think. If Bonds were more personable, this wouldn't be a controversy. The press has hated Barry Bonds way before the steroid thing, just like they hated Ted Williams. Because he doesn't put up with their crap.

Is Barry Bonds a jerk? Sure. So are a lot of other baseball players...including some people that the press worships because they feed them good soundbites and pal around with them, but who then turn around and are jerky to fans and others. I have seen more than one "beloved" baseball figure treat fans poorly when the press wasn't watching. . .and sometimes even when they were, not that it gets into the press.

Bonds has a chip on his shoulder. But I know of people in baseball who do much MUCH worse things than he does, and who get a free pass from the press. It's all a bunch of crap.

I don't think I would like Barry Bonds as a person. And I wish the whole steroid thing had never happened. But I also wish that ballplayers didn't use speed, or scuff the ball, or cheat in other ways. I wish the game had been integrated from the beginning.

But wishing does not make it so.

Barry Bonds is the best baseball player I have ever seen. He is basically Ted Williams with more speed and a better glove. If he's not the best player in history, he's the second or third best. The fact that he's not a nice person does not change that.

8.10.2007

we've spent the bulk of the day at a spot called black rock. it was very hot and the sun continued its slow awkward burn across my back (awkward because someone whose name i will not mention did not apply the suntan juice properly). anyhow, i did a little reading, visited the whaling museum to sign the guest book, and bought a perrier with lime.

now i'm eating a tuna melt and listening to the traveling willbury's. when i'm finished with the compy i will walk to the beach and read until dinner.

UPDATE:

not that important but i found this cool blog about everything steroids related in beisbol.

UPDATE DOS:

damien, do you have this game? because if you do, i want to play it and drink beer.

8.8.2007

today looks to be lazy. we are discussing whether or not to eat a loco moco... the hawaiian heart attack equivalent of a monte cristo. it looks to be a lunch dish... after a run and before a chill out.

in other news, i had a dream last night that all my friends and i (i think everyone was there), were hanging out in the desert- i think somewhere near baker. for whatever reason, people were launching missiles for sport at a sort of missile firing range (blasting targets and whatnot). after watching for a few minutes, o'Brien decided to try one himself. being a fraidycat, i scampered away, just as matt- not used to the mortar he was using, exploded one over a house. not satisfied, he tried a second time and blew up part of a residential neighborhood. the jury's still out, but i think someone may have been killed, which would explain why we drove out in a flash with helicopters on our tail.

i think matt was supposed to be representitive of jason bourne.

8.7.2007

i felt my baby kick this week a few times and it was/ is the coolest thing ever in history.

8.6.2007

in response to drew's question about the chances of another 300 game pitcher...


Trying to project a 300-game winner from the young crop of pitchers isn't easy. The straightforward way is compare their win totals to the pace set by Roger Clemens and Greg Maddux, who reached roughly the same number of wins at the same ages on their way to reaching 300 wins in 2003 and 2004, respectively.

Only the Indians' C.C. Sabathia with 92 wins at age 26 is near the pace Maddux and Clemens set at points when they were in their 20s.

But then again, Bill James — a baseball historian and father of the baseball minutiae known as "sabermetrics" — wrote in his 2007 handbook that more often than not 300-game winners are late bloomers, winning the bulk of their games in their 30s. Johnson, for example, had only 64 wins when he turned 30.

Based on a statistic he calls "EWL" for "established win level" and "momentum" James projected Glavine with a 74 percent chance of winning 300 before the season started and players such as Roy Halladay and Jason Schmidt at 1 percent.

That's a numerical way of saying what Braves manager Bobby Cox says this way: "It would surprise me if some kid comes up and wins 300 games. Those guys were never on the DL — a lot of that factors in."

Cox points to the shrinking strike zone, and the high number of pitches starters are throwing that prevent them from going deeper into games.

"Pitch counts have gone sky high," Cox said. "Just to stay in for 120 pitches, sometimes it's the seventh inning."

And when he thinks of pitchers such as Glavine and Maddux, whom Cox managed for much of their careers, he knows how unique they are. Glavine has never gone on the disabled list. Maddux has been on it once.

"It takes a special person to win 300 games — never miss their starts, will pitch later into games," Cox said.

That's why it's such a small fraternity.

Rare feat has gotten rarer

With two more wins, Glavine will become the 23rd pitcher to reach 300. That's fewer than players with 3,000 hits (27) and only two more than those with 500 home runs , though there are four players within 16 homers of 500.

Of the 22 300-game winners, half (11) achieved that mark before 1924. Only three have gotten there since Don Sutton did in 1986.



the whole article is here...

off the top of my head, other than sabathia, i'm not sure who might be able to go for it...

here's my list:
oswalt, zambrano...

any others?

8.5.2007

keith and karen have arrived. they are at the beach... a beach i will be sitting on soon.

i answered drew's bonds related question in the previous comment section, but i'll paste it here as well since it is a pretty insightful response... from bill james (not myself).



Q: Should players known to use (or strongly suspected to have used) performance-enhancing drugs be treated differently in history? Was the Baseball Writers Association of America electorate correct in not voting Mark McGwire to the Hall of Fame on the first ballot? Are you cheering for Barry Bonds?

A (bill james): I'm not cheering for Bonds, but then, I didn't much like (Henry) Aaron, either. I look at it this way. There's a rule in basketball against traveling but the NBA has pretty much stopped enforcing it. Well, they still call traveling but they will allow you to take about five steps without dribbling as you are running toward the basket. There was no "decision" not to enforce this rule; they just kind of lost track of it. They started not calling one step and progressed to not calling two steps, not calling three steps, and eventually they just kind of lost track of the rule. Should the players who took advantage of this failure to enforce the rule be banned from the NBA Hall of Fame? After all, aren't they cheating? They're not obeying the rules. Julius Erving, out. The Hall of Fame doesn't need cheaters like you. Kobe, Michael, get out. If you don't play by the rules the way Elgin Baylor did, you're not deserving.

Or it is, rather, the responsibility of the LEAGUE to enforce the rule? It seems to me that it might be the responsibility of the league to enforce the rule rather than the responsibility of the media to punish those who didn't obey the rule that wasn't being enforced.

8.4.2007

i went for a run this morning. i am very proud of myself for running 4 out of our first six days. it will be a uphill battle, but i'd like to get back to my playing weight. it may mean sacrificing beers, which i'm cool with, i guess, sort of. i don't like being fat, though.

anyhow, keith and karen come in today. let the adventure begin! or continue, as much adventure has already taken place.

8.3.2007

last night i finished deadwood season 3. today it is raining.

8.2.2007

the rest of the group is off walking, but robyn and i decided to hang back and relax some. i'm writing some and am about to go read by the beach. robyn finished potter and is about to dive into the golden compass. i'm still cruising through the book on the right- which is really, really hitting the spot.

otherwise, all is nice and ripe for daily and miuntely hard core chillin'. some of my chillin' music today will include the four new albums i bought with my birthday itunes gift cards: modern lovers, modern lovers; paul simon, paul simon; stooges, stooges; and, bucking the trend, the album on the right.

8.1.2007

happy birthday to my mom.

i played dominoes late into last night and i'm tired.

i shall drink coffee... coffee i wish was darker. poppo calls my coffee a weapon of mass destruction. anyhow. time to rock. loo owe tonight= blue drinks in big glasses.

my mind wasn't as blown by bergman as many people i know, but this quote from david mamet is cool... When I was young the World Theatre, in Chicago, staged an all-day Ingmar Bergman Festival. I went at ten o'clock in the morning, and stayed all day. When I left the theater it was still light, but my soul was dark, and I did not sleep for years afterwards.

7.31.2007

early morning time. everyone is mildly frantic. we're going on a snorkeling trip. i'm trying to figure out a book to read. just finished 42 p. hmmm. not too sure. i've brought several books that i'd started at various points, but never finished (for a variety of reasons).

we've had a good time. yesterday i ran, wrote, drank coffee, read, floated in the water, read, wrote, checked fantasy baseball, thought of a fun trade, went surfing, ate a good dinner (ribs, chicken, kielbasa, etc.), and played mexican train dominoes.

today i will snorkel in deep water and finish the movie for mike w and maybe have beach libations and run.

UPDATE:

i think scott proctor to the dodgers is both useless and mildly harmful. and stupid. though i assume andy will try and justify it. the only justification in my mind is at least it was betemit and not laroche, loney, kemp, etc. oh well, could've been worse i guess.

7.25.2007

we're rocking the beach and ventura. it is going to get us in the mood for rocking the beach and hawaii. we will each sushi tonight and surf all day. and i will write a hit movie. and read harry potter and the witches of cancer. and maybe see the cartoon rat who makes food and does comedy.

12.23.2007

i'm watching deadwood season 3. it's good and i enjoy it, though i should be working on some writing. dan bush is still here- taking a test at the coffee shop- and the pools have been in and out some.

we had a fun bachelor party over the weekend. the beach baseball was definately something of a highlight. the rest of my week includes heading to ventura, seeing a few friends off, and writing. between baby, job, and writing there's a lot on my plate and my mind.

hope all's well.

7.13.2007

so, i tried putting up a picture of the ultasound, but my scanner wasn't working. anyhow, we're having a boy. and the boy's name will be jackson duke gloyd. we are quite excited.

7.12.2007

i've kept a semi-daily record of our trip in a sloppy blue travels abroad notebook that i think may have belonged to my dad sometime in the seventies. though three or four interested friends, relatives, and readers may have been curious of my goings on in the mother country, i felt it somewhat rewarding to keep a paper record, a record that won't be destroyed when satan takes over the internet for his own evil purposes. thusly, satisfied as i am with my pen to parchment account, i feel it appropriate to give a somewhat sparse overview of...(wait for it)...(cue the kenny loggins)... EUROTRIPTWOTHOUSANDMUTHAHUMPINSEVEN!!!

i will categorize.

chicago 6.23-6.25:

inspirational chicago movie: high fidelity
inspirational chicago song: a cub's fan last request
inspirational chicago food: beer with dan

we started our fine trip in chicago with daniel bush- murder, friend, lover (?)- staying in his fine (and by fine, i mean gay well put together very nice fine) apartment. being the generous friend, he gave robyn and i the bed. i assume this was so he could check fantasy baseball (wink wink) late into the evening without being disturbed.
dan was a fantastic host. he took me out the first night to a couple hot spots in wicker park where we drank beer and listened to jazz in bars that still allowed smoking and cargo pants. it was nice talking with dan. i have a lot of friends but dan is my favorite. he is my best friend and i would kill for him. i would. i'm not joking. he is the michael collins of chicago. he led us into freedom- freedom being beers by wrigleyville, delicious sandwiches and dogs, giant reflective orbs, beers, and awesome conversation about life, womens, baseballs, and life.
on the way to the airport robyn barfed for the first time on the trip. it was a fitting end to a great beginning a beginning that would eventually turn into the middle... before coroding into THE MUTHAHUMPIN END!!!

london 6.26-6.27:

queen's choice food: fries
queen's nasty ass food: everything else but candy
queen's drink: mineral water
queen's rock: village green preservation society by the kinky kinks

london was a pretty beautiful city. we arrived to horn fanfare (yes, there were flags at the ends of the horns) and jewels from the queen. actually it was a man who called himself a queen, but i figured it was close enough (though i'm not sure what to do with his jewels-- HOOAH!). anyhow, we ended up walking like eight or nine miles because we couldn't figure out how to use the british transit system. had we'd realized the tube stop was five feet from our hotel we would've saved ourselves at least two blisters and one cranky fetus.
our hotel was very nice. the indians who ran it made me think of home (because we too have indians running our hotels). anyhow, london was awesome because we saw a play (which we were late to), because hyde park was nice for running, because it was very beautiful and it reminded me of harry potterland, and because it was foriegn. london sucked; however, because of the exchange rate. when i was a child i used to ask my mother how much i was worth in terms of monetary value. she would always assure me that i was more precious than silver or gold- like jesus. i've since come to realize; however, that after visiting london i'm worth about half a brit.

rome 6.28-7.3:

nero's dish: fine cheese and sweet meats
nero's goblet: peroni
nero's song: when i paint my masterpiece by b. dillin

rome. beautiful rome. though it may have looked like tiajuana, it felt like ... well it felt at least like ensenada. actually, rome was by far my favorite city of the trip. italy in general was pretty cool, but rome was the one place i would move to tomorrow (tomorrow being the day i have to return to reality, so it would actually be pretty nice if things lined up).
our trip to rome started with another crappy travel day. we flew ryan air- a cheap but inconvenient airline that runs all over europe. though the price was awesome, it would have been beneficial to figure out our travel routes prior to landing in each city. anyhow, as i said, rome was beautiful- i'd give anything to have some job that would give me either the time or money to work from the spanish steps a couple times a year.
what was rome? rome was, as i learned, a great place for christians. being a christian, i loved checking out awesome christian sites such as the coliseum, the forum, the spanish steps, and the appian way (the site of this year's WOW festival). all things considered, i loved rome the most and would place it firmly behind los angeles and hawaii as my third favorite place to be in existence.

gay pairee 7.4-7.6:

gay song: perfect day by louis reed
drink: hot milk

paris was cut short because some silly terror man decided to blow up rome. this turned out to be a good thing because we were able to visit a beautiful roman lakeside village. this turned out to be a bad thing, though, because we missed some gay pairee.
the first day, the hotel said we had canceled our trip, so we stayed in the lobby for a while doing nothing and worrying. once everything got figured out, we rested and headed out for the e. tower. the magnificent structure was really very inspiring to me. i was quite intruiged by it and plan on building one myself when i get back.
the next day, we went to napolean's tomb and participated in a very exclusive masonic ritual wherein we ate napolean's hair. it cost us one million zillion euros but it was worth it because we both love napolean so damn much. when the ritual was finished we walked around some war museums and went home to each cheese that smelled like the hill next to stewart hall.
the following day, robyn felt very sick and pregnant (sick because she ate french chow mayne and pregnant because, well, because of the trout swimming in her womb). it was the sixth, which meant it was my birthday, which meant that robyn or no robyn, i was going to treat myself to a birthday crepe, a birthday beers, and the louvre. the birthday crepe and beers ended up being a much more worthwhile investment than the louvre. i went to the louvre, paid my dough, and headed straight to the mona and the venus (getting lost in egypt somewhere along the way). the mona and the venus were comparable to patti smith's horses and that one billy ripken card with the f-word written on his bat. horses is on every top list and everyone name drops it, but if you've ever listened to it, you realize it sounds like the taste of cold nachos. good in theory, but tainted and a bit boring. the venus is similar to billy ripken because the missing arms make it the equivalent to an error card (and not a very good error card because it sucked and was a waste of my damn money).
paris ended the next day after robyn got better and visited notre dame with me. it was lackluster and a little boring compared to rome, but i guess it was good. sort of.

dub.lynn 7.7-7.13:

green music: asstral veeks and nate willet and the mausts.
green movie: michael collins
green beer: guinness, jameson, murphy's, etc.

dublin, our last and final (and the birth of this post) spot, has been very nice. we've stayed with m. and h. kingsley. they, their father, their friends, and their children have been very nice in welcoming us to the beautiful green city and its 800 years of british oppression.
we arrived, rested, slept, and woke. when we woke we put on rain boots and rain coats and headed to the oxegen festival to watch roy seven (sam's band) and nate willet and the mausts rock the irish countryside. the mud was up past our ankles and the rock was good. bands we enjoyed included: daft punk, cwk, the arcade fire, bright eyes, brian wilson, rufus wainwain... and a few others i can't remember. daft p was amazing, cwk made me proud, arcade fire was too hard to see, bright eyes was surprisingly good, and brian wilson was... amazing. honest. though he said a few crazy things, we saw him in a smaller tent and he was really in great form- a far cry from the bridge school performance.
the rest of the trip commenced with a drive to the irish countryside where we ate mussels, slept in beautiful big bed and breakfasts, climbed through abandoned castles, and saw green grass through falling rain.

now it is almost finished, good friend from childhood steven ryan is coming out for drinks and a late night- and after a full day in dublin (though i can't say i'm ready to come back) i am satisfied. good show europe. good show.

6.30.2007

we're taking a breather at a little internet cafe next to the spanish steps. it is nice here, though we're staying a little outside of the city, which was a little disconcerning when we first landed- seeing that the outskirts of rome look like tiajuana. rome central is quite amazing, though. we're just strolling around some. yesterday we saw the forum, had a beer on some steps outside of the old senate building, etc. we will see the pantheon and some other stuff today. maybe take a day trip to a lake tomorrow and hit up the vatican on monday. then it's off to paris and dublin. i'll probably write more when we get back. london was excellent- beautiful, and cold... jogging through hyde park listening to village green preservation society was a highlight. too expensive, though. nothing else to speak of.

6.22.2007

we'll be in europe until july 13. visit the pools- they'll be staying at our place. if you need to get in touch, drop an email.

6.21.2007

finished.

6.20.2007

last day of school. weird. i really need the break and i can't fathom working summer school. next year with the baby, i'll probably have to, but i'm not thinking about that right now. students are signing year books, three amigos is on, and i am overwhelmed with a deep sense of relief. so overwhelmed, in fact, that my head may explode from sheer awesomeness and euphoria.

i'm looking forward to changing things up next year, though i'm not completely sure i'll be teaching. i plan on reading a few novels with them. my curriculum this past year didn't include any novel study, which kind of sucked. we got in a shipment of very cool books this past year and i plan on reading through a few- maybe one per quarter- that have to do with the content area we're studying. some possible selections (that i'll be reading through this summer to see if they'd work) include: tortilla flats, the red pony, peter pan, a wrinkle in time, and the hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy. we'll see how it goes. if anything, the books should make for some fun summer reading.

if anyone is interested, we will be going to fuddruckers in burbank tonight to celebrate the end of the school year. it was a tradition when i was a kid, so it seems like the right thing to do. we'll be going around 6:00 or 7:00. if you want to go, give me a call.

6.17.2007

i got my first father's day presents today. it was fun. my unborn child bought me a baseball glove and a green brooklyn hat. it made me very happy. i'm editing the script a little, so this may be a late one. people are actually reading it, which is cool and exciting- though i'm trying not to get too excited.

looking forward to chicago and europe. some good times await with the bush and the mother country. i'm over my being down on europe- though seeing that sick duck blood sauce didn't help my prejudice any. i should get to writing soon, but i'm listening back to the songs i downloaded (mr. blue sky and come softly with me) and both are quite enjoyable.

my sickness is gone, portnoy's complaint is funny and gross, and i'm really enjoying well produced late 1950s pop songs. some of those one hit wonder bands were really hoppin'. fun. good times. i'm out.

6.13.2007

time to post. i'm really sick right now- the first time all school year. the final days of school have been pretty stressful... grades, sickness, prepping for europe, finishing a writing project, sickness, weight gain, hair loss... being sick makes everything less fun.

we're trying to figure out this europe thing. it should be fun, but it's a pain booking places all around countries we know nothing about. it should be fun, but stressful. after this trip, i'm sticking to tropical places. tropical rules the known universe.

tropical: mangos, sleeping, drinks in pineapples, drinks in coconuts, lots of fish, surfing.

europe: blood pudding, dog poop in the street, crowded, sweaty tours of castles, rude people, mad cow disease, italian men.

tropical wins each and every time.

5.29.2007

i had a good time camping this weekend. it was fun walking my dog past a group of people playing nude volleyball.

work is starting soon. i've got the rest of this week. a full week next. a full week (with a professional development) the following week. and a partial week. then chicago, london, france, italy, ireland, maui- with some relax time in between around the house. then work. then i become a padre.

5.26.2007

the votes are in for best autobiography name... and the winner is-- me. i win because i say and because of the following- i cooked myself an omelet. after eating it, and coming to the realization that it was cooked to perfection, i realized my champion awesomeness. the egg based treat was wheat field gold, and it featured strength giving spinach, passion inducing sun dried tomatoes, euphorically danceriffic garlic, and mesmerizing light mexican cheese. i also rule because of my washing it down with a beer. and i might even walk across the street and buy a donut and a beer for lunch- which will commence in about fifteen minutes.

things to do today... see a pirate blockbuster. write a pirate blockbuster. make love to a pirate blockbuster. prep for beach camp fun. learn.

listening: ipod on random.

song: rock n' me

5.23.2007

so, i went ahead and started in on tender is the night. i love it. and i love my wife. and i love my baby that is not born. and the new yiddish book i bought. and i love my job. and i love what i write. and i love love. and george harrison, sadie, my friends, red headed stranger, life, feeling sorry for myself, netflix, dodgers, my family, camping, and everything that is important. and i am a bum with good intentions. my autobiography shall be titled: bum with good intentions.

what would your autobiography be called?

5.20.2007

so, i finished the road last night. it was quite entertaining. i haven't been reading as much as i should, but i think it got me back on track. i'm not really sure what to read next. any suggestions? i've got a handful of books on my shelf, so i probably won't listen to your suggestions, but throw them out anyhow.

5.16.2007

today is the final day of testing- which is nice. i'm kind of running out of things to do, i realize, but i'm sure i'll figure something out. i have to finish grades today and would like to get some writing done. i'm not really sure why i'm writing about any of this as it may prove boring for you feeble minded readers.

four cool things i saw yesterday: a dodger game with famed crooner brien downie, jayson belt, jason bateman, and my baby and its little heart. i would scan up a picture, but my printer is all messed up.

hmmm... anything else? i want to check out the new michael chabon book and i'm looking forward to deadwood coming out in june. i'm also going to go ahead and shed a few pounds. i believe i'm going fat. seeing as i'm loosing my hair at a very rapid pace (stress related, i imagine- like roger maris), i need to combat the oncoming downward spiral by becoming fit.

things to eliminate for a time: booze, saturated fats, candy, goldfish by the handfuls at 11:00 before bed.

5.15.2007

yesterday i made coffee at 6:00 in the morning. i had a little left at 9:45 in the evening and wouldn't you know it- the stanley thermous had it still decently warm. i was pleased.

5.8.2007

i've got a few minutes between testing and meetings, so i figure i'll post noncryptically for the first time about the baby. hmmm... yes, robyn is pregnant... yes, it was a bit of a surprise... yes, i am now excited...

robyn will be eight weeks along at the end of next week. she is a little queasy, but doing alright. i, however, kind of feel like that guy in the slow motion black and white stock footage who gets hit in the stomach with a cannonball... slow intense impact... flopping... wobbly... in the end, (i guess) the guy survives and winds up looking pretty cool, though. i'm not too worried. all i need to do is keep writing on that thing i'm writing on so i can sell it and chill in the park with my baby next year all day with sadie and the baseball game on the transistor.

strange things are afoot

my 2007 christmas present.

4.22.2007

watching the wire, watched the prestige, drinking an adult beverage, missing robyn. out.

4.20.2007

i'm listening to some harry potter, drinking a delicious newcastle, and eating a bowl of sauteed spinach, shrimp, and scallop- a new dish i have named ZONK! zonk is very very good. if i were a talented cook, one of those talented famous cooks, i'd name my new dishes like candy. Zonk, Buzork, Chew-Zappers.

if they happen to replay the food network awards- try and watch- if only for the appearance by albert pujols and his wife- presenting an award to "cheese burger and fries" for best comfort food combo.

and... way less crazy... and way more awesome... and quite charming

4.14.2007

this is a link to a cool simulation espn did with jackie robinson- supposing he had played third base for the dodgers last year (and this). it's pretty cool.

robyn leaves tomorrow for africa. i'll be all by my lonesome for a couple weeks.

4.12.2007

last night we went to a dodger game with alan and xio. it was a fun goodbye evening- some cha-cha, some free dodger dogs- quite an amazing time was had by all.

the seats were most definately the best i've ever had for a game. i saw ron cey, frank mccourt, tommy lasorda (sleeping as usual), and- oddly enough- kevin malone (former gm and darren dreifort benefactor).

i'm waiting for parents to come. i'm going to conference them.

4.10.2007

i just had a great sandwich... some good swiss, salami, turkey, prosciutto, mustard... very tasty (though mustard tends to hide the taste sometimes, so i'd probably do it dry next time).

sandwiches are probably my favorite food right now. i've all-time favorites and in the moment favorites. my all-time favorite food is probably fried chicken or chicken fried steak... or pizza.

off the top of my head, foods that have attained favorite status at some given juncture include (but are not limited to): sushi, pizza, home town buffet, china buffet, orange chicken, Velveeta mac and cheese, klamata olives, beer, mojo potatoes, cheese burgers, fried fish, chicken fried steak, fried chicken, fried shrimp, blackberry cobbler, peach cobbler, chicken fried chicken, fried zucchini, fair food, goldfish crackers, western bacon cheese burgers, ribs, kielbasa, onions, crazy bread, skippy peanut butter bars, minestrone, bloomin' onions, jalapeno poppers, arby sauce.

the above selections would be my last meal.

4.9.2007

i'm in a good mood. i spent the day away from my job at superzone inc. to work on some writing and watch baseball. i had a treatment that needed to be finished today and finish it i did. so, i am happy. hard work is the measure of a man. that's what they say at least. it's a good motto to live by. i'm glad; however, it's not good work is the measure of a man. it's easy to work hard. not so easy to work good. though i do good work, i am not measured by it.

this seems to me like a question for poor richard's stupid almanack to answer. good thing i sent my copy to the dump.

wouldn't it be funny if benjamin franklin somehow came from the past and entered the future- only to become obsessed with stuff magazine? the funny twist to the funny thing would be benjamin franklin taking stuff back in time with him. instead of inventing poor richard's almanack, he would go on to invent stuff magazine .

it seems every time i see juan pierre at bat, he grounds out weakly to first base. i think this is going to be a season long trend.

4.8.2006

i'm up too late trying to work on something i will finish in the morning. that is all for now. up way too late. procrastinaing way too much.

4.6.2007

jeff kent just struck out. looser. big fat looser.

i had sushi for dinner. now i get to grade state tests. i would rather be writing or playing a video game or something, but i don't really have a choice.

i can't think of anything witty right now. i wish i could. wit. witty wit wit.

when i think if wit, i think of benjamin franklin. he seems like he must've been a witty fellow. a pretty witty jerk.

three things i hate:

1. indie things
2. apathetic guys will be guys fast food commercials
3. benjamin franklin and his stupid poor richard's almanac and his stupid wit

4.4.2007

man, i need a detox from food. for lunch, i had a delicious value meal from kfc. for din-din, i ate at dupars. what did i eat at dupars?
a deep fried monte cristo sandwich with jelly, blueberry syrup, coffee, and chocolate cream pie. the chocolate cream pie was the healthy alternative to the cheese pie. yes. cheese pie. i almost got chicken pot pie, but i didn't think i could have regular pie after getting chicken pot pie for my main meal. i guess it wouldn't be any different than eating two sweet pies, though i'm not sure how sweet cheese pie is. i bet it's awesome, though.

i feel like i have a dr power grader running full blast in my stomach right now.

i'm watching a tlc show about a little girl with no face. i'm not sure if anyone's seen this, but man. wow. poor girl. makes me appreciate my face all that much more. i'm a pretty lucky guy to have a face.

question: would you trade your face to be able to play major league baseball for five years?

answer: yes.

4.3.2007

i've been in colorado since friday. we've had a nice time and are watching roxanne right now. i've been watching movies, writing, reading, and hanging out. it's a lot like my regular life without the stress of work. nothing too interesting, i guess.

i went to opening day rockies v. diamondbacks. we had first row field seats. myself, robyn's brother, his girlfriend, and a work friend. i ate a lot of food that day. cracker barrel for breakfast, dog for lunch, ribs and steak for dinner, candy, nuts, seeds, cotton candy, and cracker jacks.

we had fried chicken tonight. it was pretty good. i'm buying a piano out here. a real piano to play shows with. not some new fangled electric piano. a real acoustic honky tonk number. a real humdinger.

the rest of the week will include the following: getting a passport, cleaning my garage, flying in a plane, grading state writing tests, writing a movie, writing a story, making fantasy baseball deals, playing with my dog, practicing future hit songs, hanging out at a beach maybe, and celebrating with ham.