Resurrecting the 80's

A couple of weeks ago, I resurrected Taco's video for "Puttin on the Ritz." Thanks to YouTube, I can raise all sorts of songs from the dead. I give you "One Foot Back in Your Door" by Roman Holiday. Enjoy.

The New American Family

Tonight I enjoyed some dinner with my daughter at Posado's. On our way to the ice cream machine for some self-serve softserve, we passed by a family of five: two parents and three boys. I'm guessing the boy's ages ran from 7 to 12 or 13. So while the parents were eating and talking, the boys were all engaged with their Nintendo Gameboys. Just to be clear, these boys were not taking turns with one Gameboy. Each had their own!

What a wonderful family night out. Way to go mom and dad. You can pat yourselves on the back for getting everybody to the dinner table and spending some quality time together.

What A Pisser

VIENNA, Austria - An Austrian businessman announced Thursday that he would get rid of urinals shaped like a woman's mouth from a public toilet near Vienna's national opera, after facing pressure from politicians who demanded their removal.

The urinals, which are located in the "Opera Toilet," a lavishly decorated public restroom, feature thick, lipsticked lips, a set of teeth and a bright red tongue.

"We think that it's tasteless, misogynistic and offensive," Marianne Lackner, media spokeswoman for the Vienna Department of Women's Affairs told The Associated Press. (full article)

What's ironic is that these urinals have been in place for three years. Only now has somebody raised a stink about them.

This is a telling quote: "The thing that surprises us the most," Lackner said, "is that no man has ever said anything about this."

Tasteless? Yeah. Kinda. Misogynistic? Debatable. Offensive? I can see that.

So why do I want one?

Three Reasons Why I'm A Happy Hoosier

Gordon Commits to Hoosiers: Prize recruit breaks promise with Illinois, stays home
From SI.com:

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) -- Eric Gordon let his wardrobe and father do the talking Friday night. It was enough to whip an already excitable Hoosiers crowd into a frenzy.

As he walked across the Assembly Hall court dressed in a cream-and-crimson warmup suit, fans chanted his name, sought autographs and snapped photos after news spread that the state's top recruit was staying close to home.

Gordon backed out of his 11-month commitment to the Fighting Illini, giving Kelvin Sampson his first major victory of the season hours before the Hoosiers held their first official practice.

Eric Gordon is the number two-ranked recruit on Scouts.com and the number one guard. He was also the number one recruit coming out of Indiana. It was essential that IU land some in-state talent, a skill which eluded former coach Mike Davis. And one Davis left, Gordon felt Sampson and IU was the better match and allowed him to finally fulfill his dream.

Personally, I'll wait until November 8 when Gordon finally signs his name on the dotted line, but his verbal commitment to IU has fans dreaming of another national championship. I'm certainly dreaming of better things to come.

Indiana Shocks #15 Iowa
From ESPN.com:

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) -- Indiana waited nearly two decades to party like this. So why worry about another 20 seconds?

Players stormed the field and fireworks went off before the Hoosiers' biggest upset in almost 20 years was official, but there was nothing premature about Saturday's stunning 31-28 upset over No. 15 Iowa.

As officials spotted the ball for the final time, the scoreboard clock was at 22 seconds and with the Hawkeyes out of timeouts, all that remained was a celebration of the Hoosiers' biggest win since beating No. 9 Ohio State 31-10 on Oct. 10, 1987.

I got a chance to watch this game on ESPN2. I couldn't believe how into the game I was. Not since the bowl-bound days of the late 80's when I attended IU have I been this excited about a sport that traditionally has registered nothing more than intramural status in the minds of students. Now, with Coach Terry Hoeppner leading the way and a redshirt freshman running the show, the Hoosiers could be looking at it's first bowl game in more than a decade. The only hiccup could be the fact they lost to a Division I-AA opponent this season. But maybe, just maybe, IU will be the answer to a trivia question instead of having to wait yet another year for a bowl berth.

The Basketball Season Officially Started Saturday, October 14, 2006

From the Indiana Daily Student:

"I'm anxious to start practice tomorrow," Sampson said Friday night before he and his team took the floor. "When your season ends the previous year, you are at such a loss because you don't have a game to get ready for...I'm anxious to get started. (I'm) really excited about this team. I'm pleased with the way they've attacked preseason conditioning. These kids have worked hard, and they are going to work a whole lot harder starting tomorrow."

This is usually a great time of the year. However, with a new chapter of Hoosier basketball starting this year, I have mucho excitement and optimism heading into this season. But it's not all because of what I will get to see as a fan while watching the game. It's because of this:

But Sampson's not interested in the sounds of thousands of screaming fans inside his stadium. Not yet, anyway.

He's too excited about other sounds. Those of whistle blows, basketball dribbles and his players huffing and puffing in the quiet comfort of an Assembly Hall practice.

The Hoosiers are getting back to basics and playing hard-nosed basketball after six years of prima donna pampering. I would love to watch these practices now that Touch Every Line is the new team motto. And that's just for practice!

I must say that the state of Hoosier Nation is pretty good after such an eventful weekend.

Waking Up to Davis's Suckiness

I’ve dedicated a fair amount of blog space to criticizing former Indiana University head basketball coach Mike Davis. And for good reason--he sucked. But you don’t have to take my word for it anymore. Here’s a telling quote from junior guard A.J. Ratliff (emphasis mine):

From the Indianapolis Star:
Ratliff said the discipline is something IU lacked. Now it appears the days of stars like Bracey Wright or Marco Killingsworth doing whatever they please on the court are over.

“If Coach Sampson would have had a hold of Marco (Killingsworth), I think he would have been incredible,” Ratliff said. “But that was something last year’s team lacked, was discipline. Coach Sampson is heavy on that. He doesn’t care who you are. It could be D.J. (White), and he’s going to get on you. Last year, anybody could say anything and (former) coach (Mike) Davis might kick him out for a day, but he’d be back the next day. I think that’s different this year.”

Might kick the player out? Might???

Welcome back to the real world, guys. Just the title of the article ("Workouts wake up IU players") should put a nail in the coffin that was Mike Davis’s coaching ability. And it’s refreshing to see his former players waking up and throwing him under the bus after all the times he refused to accept any responsibility for his crappy coaching. Plus, Ratliff did it in a very tactful way. Bravo, A.J.

Midnight Madness starts tomorrow. The first official practice takes place the next day.

College basketball season is here, people. Life is good.

I Am Animal

A complete lunatic, you're operating on 100% animal instincts. You thrive on uncontrolled energy, and you're downright scary. But you sure can beat a good drum. "Kill! Kill!"

The Muppet Personality Test

I'm a Dorky Child of the 80's

This morning, I’m cruising down the highway with the wind in my hair. It’s such a beautiful morning that the windows HAD to be down. I’ve got the radio cranked as high as it can go. I’m listening to Mix 102.9 as it’s playing hit from 1983.

Suddenly, Taco’s rendition of Irving Berlin’s Puttin' on the Ritz comes on. I’m ecstatic. If the radio could go louder, I would have cranked it even louder. I’m “singing” along with Taco. TACO!!

And still singing when I pull through the toll booth and stop at a traffic signal. The song conveniently ends right when I pull into my garage.

That was fun.

I’m such a dork. And proud of it.

The Daily Show as Substantive as Network News

It's no joke: IU study finds The Daily Show with Jon Stewart to be as substantive as network news:

"It is clearly a humor show, first and foremost," Fox said of Stewart's program. "But there is some substance on there, and in some cases, like John Edwards announcing his candidacy, the news is made on the show. You have real newsmakers coming on, and yes, sometimes the banter and questions get a little silly, but there is also substantive dialogue going on … It's a legitimate source of news."

This is where I go to get the straight poop on the hot button topics of the day. This is also where I go to laugh my ass off. It's win/win!

No Nudes Is Good News

If Texas isn't now officially the big, shiny, obnoxious belt buckle of the Bible Belt, it surely moved one notch closer with this load of crap.

From Truth Dig:

A fifth-grade teacher is out of a job after leading a class through an art museum in Dallas. One of her students saw nude art; the student's parent complained; the teacher is suspended. Even crazier: Local TV stations are blacking out Greek sculpture genitalia during newscasts.

Here's the link to the full New York Times article.

Although the tour had been approved by the principal, and the 89 students were accompanied by 4 other teachers, at least 12 parents and a museum docent, Ms. McGee said, she was called to the principal the next day and "bashed."

She later received a memorandum in which the principal, Nancy Lawson, wrote: "During a study trip that you planned for fifth graders, students were exposed to nude statues and other nude art representations." It cited additional complaints, which Ms. McGee has challenged.

The school board suspended her with pay on Sept. 22.

It just makes me want to poke the eyes out of the parents. Can't people, specifically conservative Christians, finally get a healthy view about human sexuality? Obviously, these people need to listen to a sermon by this guy.

Loosen up people. What's next? Banning children from viewing the Mona Lisa? I mean, look at how she's smiling. She was clearly up to no good.