I married the most amazing, loving woman in the entire world. She loves me for who I am and has taught me so much about life and love. Words could never accurately convey how much I love her. She gave me the three wonderful children who bring me so much happiness in my life. I’d be nothing without her.
Thank you honey. I love you so much and will always love you.
Happy Anniversary, Crafty Momma!
I will admit that I am unsure who I will be voting for in this year’s Presidential election. I definitely lean more to the right in my political views and have always considered myself more of a Republican. Neither political party has impressed me much over the last few years, however, and sometimes I get to thinking about President Bush’s last few years in office and how I feel he has disappointed me. I start thinking that maybe people are right that Obama could bring something fresh and invigorating to this country. Maybe it’s time to give the Democrats another shot, even though I make no bones about the fact that I think Clinton did way more to hurt this country than to help it.
So anyway, I am still unsure of who I will vote for, but this sort of thing does not bode well for Obama when it comes to me. I came across this story today while perusing the Drudge Report:
Obama says Republicans will use race to stoke fear
JACKSONVILLE, Florida (Reuters) - Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama said on Friday he expects Republicans to highlight the fact that he is black as part of an effort to make voters afraid of him.
“It is going to be very difficult for Republicans to run on their stewardship of the economy or their outstanding foreign policy,” Obama told a fundraiser in Jacksonville, Florida. “We know what kind of campaign they’re going to run. They’re going to try to make you afraid.
“They’re going to try to make you afraid of me. He’s young and inexperienced and he’s got a funny name. And did I mention he’s black?”
He said he was also set for Republicans to say “he’s got a feisty wife,” in trying to attack his wife Michelle.
“We know the strategy because they’ve already shown their cards. Ultimately I think the American people recognize that old stuff hasn’t moved us forward. That old stuff just divides us,” he said.
Obama, born to a white mother from Kansas and a black father from Kenya, has cast himself as a candidate who can bridge divides within the country, including those involving race.
It has been rare for him to bring up the topic during his presidential bid. In March he gave a widely praised speech on the subject after receiving criticism over racially charged comments by his longtime pastor.
Obama, who faces Republican John McCain in the November election, would be the first black U.S. president.
This coming from the guy that is supposed to unite this country? First thing out of the gate, he plays the race card and basically says that Republicans are bigots. It’s the same page from the Democrat handbook that I’ve seen time after time……accuse Republicans of fear mongering while at the same time fear mongering themselves by basically saying, “You’d better stay away from those Republicans….they are a bunch of racists!!!” Anyone else ever notice the extra animosity heaped upon black Republicans? It seems to me that Democrats, and therefore Obama, are the ones who are all about race.
Not a good start at all. I would not be so rash as to let this make or break my decision to vote for him or not. I will continue to listed to both candidates positions on the issues and watch the debates and ultimately make up my mind on who to vote for based on who I think will be best for this country without regard to race. But if Obama spends the entire campaign harping on race while McCain makes it a non-issue, it will go a long way toward telling me a lot about what I need to know about the two candidates’ character.
Crafty Momma found this guy on MySpace a few months ago. Not too long after, I began seeing this video on the VH1 Top 20 Countdown. We’ve since bought his CD and it is spectacular. Check it out and if you like it, there are several other videos of Justin performing live on YouTube.
A little more about the history of my love affair with music: toward the end of high school in the early 90s, Hair Metal was breathing its dying breath and Grunge was bursting on the scene. I hated it. A friend of mine was a big Nirvana fan…..I hated them. Some other friends were listening to Pearl Jam…..I hated them. Even before that, Hair Metal had begun to change and I found my attention turning more toward R&B and Rap.
I had actually been a fan of Rap since I first heard “the Show” by Doug E. Fresh & the Get Fresh Crew. I was a really big fan of Run-DMC. Around the time I was losing interest in Hair Metal, I walked into a record store and saw a cassette single (a cassingle) for “Eazy Duz It” by a guy called Eazy-E. I bought it, listened to it, loved it, and wore it out. I found out Eazy was a member of a group called N.W.A so I bought their album “Straight Outta Compton” and was blown away. From there I went on to listen to all kinds of Rap music until the days shortly after when everyone in Rap seemed to be trying to imitate N.W.A or to one-up them. The music in Rap seemed to change and the lyrical style evolved into something I just couldn’t get into anymore. I went off to college, discovered Alice in Chains, and have liked very little Rap since then.
Then, just the other day, I logged into Rhapsody to check out the new releases for the week. There was a new album on there by a couple of guys who seem to be bent on single-handedly bringing back Old School Rap. They are called Cool Kids and the album is called “The Bake Sale”. I was completely blown away and sat and listened to the entire album at least three times in a row. It’s full of the old beats I’ve been missing all these years and the Old School lyrical flow. Along the way, I heard references to Rob Base, the Fresh Prince, riding bicycles, eating Fruity Pebbles, Star Wars, and playing Street Fighter on the Sega. “How gangsta is that? Not gangsta at all!” If you are a fan of Old School Rap you’ve got to check these guys out. I’m willing to bet you won’t be disappointed.
Here is the first video from the album titled “Black Mags”. Anyone who used to love riding their BMX will know from the title exactly what it’s about.
And here’s an “unofficial video” for another great song called “A Little Bit Cooler”.
I haven’t done a very good job of posting and an even worse job of posting about what I have been reading. I have read (or listened to on tape) several books since the last time I posted about what I am reading. I have read some good books, some just OK books, and one terrible book. The book I want to write about today is the book I just finished yesterday…..”the Dirt: Confessions of the World’s Most Notorious Rock Band” by Motley Crue.
Before I start about the book however, I’d like to give more background about my love affair with “Hair Metal”. I didn’t always like all Hair Metal. In fact when I was younger I had this strange idea that most Metal bands in general worshipped the devil. Therefore, I would not listen to them. This included Motley Crue, AC/DC (someone had told me it stands for After Christ/Devil Comes or something idiotic like that), or even KISS (stood for Kids in Satan’s Service). I don’t know why I was so obsessive about it, but luckily as I grew older I also grew more open-minded or I would have missed out on a lot of great music.
So now that I am a fan of Motley Crue and Hair Metal in general and it was time for me to select a non-fiction book to read, I decided to grab “the Dirt”. I was not disappointed. Within awaited all the tales of decadence I could have hoped for. There was, of course, sex, drugs, and rock ‘n roll but also death, divorce, fights, tears, life lessons, and really a lot more than I expected. Each member of the band wrote several chapters so you get most of the notorious instances in band history from several different points of view. Even people like the band’s former managers threw in a chapter or two.
There were times when I was totally disgusted by the band’s antics, like the time they invited in a homeless girl off of the streets, stole all her clothes, and then sent her back out on her way. I read several reviews on Amazon.com where reviewers gave the book a one-star rating because of such instances. But I know that everyone has done things they aren’t proud of (maybe they aren’t as bad as the example above, but you know what I mean). It doesn’t excuse their behavior, of course, but every member of the band has issues ranging from being abandoned by their father to having a degenerative skeletal disease and they all went from being dirt poor to filthy rich in the blink of an eye. What really amazes me is that these guys were able to put out some good albums as messed up as they were. When they finally decided (for the most part) to get serious and sober, the result was the Dr. Feelgood album, which elevated the band to an entirely new level.
You also get to read about the failed marriages like Tommy and Heather Locklear, Tommy and Pamela Anderson, and Nikki and Donna D’Errico and the intra-band fighting which lead to all the breakups and reunions. You get to see how the guys matured, became fathers (reading the chapter about Skylar Neil broke my heart), and a lot of times, how they are just like you and me in a lot of ways. The book was published in 2002, so there is a lot that’s happened since then but at the end they mentioned “the Dirt II”. If they do, I’ll be one of the first in line to read it. Until then I’ll just keep enjoying their music….they are actually releasing a new one later this month and I for one can’t wait!
Four years ago today, we were blessed to welcome Sweet Pea into the world. Here she is, just hours old……four years ago today:
Time flies by so quickly. Today she turns four years old….only one year away from starting school! I don’t know if I’m going to be able to handle it….seeing my youngest head off to school…..knowing how even more quickly those years seem to fly by. I guess I’ll cross that bridge when the time comes. In the meantime, I will continue to enjoy all the tickles and teasing, bedtime stories, and great-big hugs for as long as I am allowed.
Have a happy, happy birthday! Daddy loves you, Baby Girl!
I had one of those “here’s your sign” moments this weekend. But before I begin the story, I guess I should have you take a look at this:
This is the sticker on the back window of Crafty Momma’s SUV. Everyone who knows us and knows Crafty Momma’s sense of humor has found this sticker pretty damned funny.
This weekend we stopped off to get some gas. I had just finished at the pump and was walking around the back passenger side when I spotted a guy whose car was at the adjacent pump staring at the sticker. The following conversation then took place:
Him: “Does that say the Ass Family?”
Me: “Yes”
Him: “Is your last name Ass?”
Me: “Um….no. It’s my wife’s sense of humor”
I then rounded the back and jumped into the passenger seat and relayed the story to my wife. We spent the best part of the ride home laughing at that guy and how incredibly clueless some people can be.
I have been away for awhile, partly due to illness and partly due to a lack of material to write about. But I had to write at least a short post to mark this special day. 10 years ago today, we were down at Centennial Hospital welcoming our first daughter into the world. Now she is the sweetest, most kind-hearted young lady I have ever known. Thank you, Sugar Bear, for the last 10 years of joy and happiness. Now, slow down and stop growing up so fast!!!!
But, seriously……have a great birthday, Sweetie. Daddy loves you!
I came across this news story today and just had to share. I just thought this was hilarious.
PENNSAUKEN, N.J. — Two Pennsauken High School students have been arrested after a teacher found what was believed to be a hit list that targeted actor Chuck Norris.
Camden County prosecutor’s spokesman Jason Laughlin says the list also included the names of three students and a school staff member.
No one was injured.
The two boys, both juniors, have not been found to have possessed any weapons.
School superintendent James Chapman said in a posting on the district’s Web site that the boys said the list was a joke. School officials and police were taking it seriously.
The local prosecutor said, “At this point we believe that this student did not pose any serious threat to any of the people on the list, especially to Chuck Norris,” TMZ reported.
I just get this picture in my head of two teenagers having the following conversation:
Kid #1 - I say we kill Bob Jenkins, Freddy Smith, Jimmy Jo Bob Fredrickson…..
Kid #2 - Yeah, and my Math teacher Mrs. Johnson!
Kid #1 - Cool! Anyone else?
Kid #2 - Hmmmmm…… Oh, I know! Chuck Norris!!!
I was watching TV this past weekend when I saw that MTV was showing some Real World awards show. Interested in catching up on some of the early season cast members, I put the show on. It didn’t take long for me to be reminded once again why I hate MTV.
Remember when the Real World first started? It was such an interesting experiment…..taking people of different sexes, sexual orientations, backgrounds, etc. and putting them in a house to live together for awhile and see what would happen. I remember watching a lot of the first season, which was in New York, and being fascinated by the results of this experiment. That season, it seemed, everyone got along pretty well. There were the inevitable arguments and misunderstandings, but everyone stayed pretty civil and no one was kicked out of the house. But it seemed to me at the time that everyone was just placed in the house and were followed around by the cameras as they went about their business. None of the cast were obvious lunatics and the house was not stocked with alcohol.
My personal favorite Real World season was season 3, San Francisco. Again, all of the people seemed genuine, even Puck, who may be the very person who caused the Real World to down the road it has today. I’m sure the producers knew from the start that this guy was going to be a problem in the house, but I just get the feeling that this was an added element to the experiment and not a sure-fire ratings booster. I could be wrong, but that’s just my feeling. Of course, there was Pedro, who brought HIV/AIDS awareness to the forefront of the show…only Magic Johnson taught me more about HIV/AIDS than Pedro and I was extremely sad when he passed away shortly after the final episode of the season premiered. I was happy to see on the awards show that Pam and Judd had gotten married. I liked them both so much on the show and they seem like really great people.
I continued to watch the show for a few seasons and then it seemed that as I got older and the casts remained around the same age, I could no longer relate to them and they just didn’t seem as interesting to me. Crafty Momma stilled like to watch the show and later I found myself watching an episode or two with her and some sparks of interest popped up again. It was pretty much the same show, but now they had the casts doing things such as working on projects together for charity or working jobs together. It was still pretty interesting, but once again, as time went by I lost interest and even Craft Momma lost interest not too long after.
It wasn’t too long ago that Craft Momma decided to try watching the show again for some reason. I resolved not to get into it again, but did catch a snippet of an episode here and there and could see where it was heading…..which is exactly where it is today. I’ve seen enough of the commercials for the latest seasons to know that I have absolutely no interest in ever watching the show again. MTV has taken what was a pretty cool experiment and twisted it almost beyond recognition. It seems to me that they go out looking for the most depraved, messed-up people possible for the show……people who are sure to cause trouble and fight with each other or jump in the sack with each other. Then they make sure alcohol is readily available to make these messed-up people become veritable monsters. Then they set them free on each other (but of course, the one rule is they can’t hit each other) and act like it makes for great drama. Well, not to me.
The awards show was filled with these unfamiliar cast members running around drunk while scenes were played of them screaming at each other like maniacs, coming close to death from alcohol poisoning, getting arrested, getting thrown out of the house, jumping on each other in their beds, getting into the shower together, having what amounts to virtual orgies in the hot tub, etc. I guess this is what it takes to get younger folks interested in watching shows today……which would also explain the Hills.
I grew up on MTV so I remember what it once was and how great it was…..even when they started moving away from music videos. I do not want anything whatsoever to do with what it has become today.
