Random Thoughts...

Thankfully the Yankees looked more Yankeelike in their 2nd game and won 12-1. Was a little nervous after their lackluster performance in game 1. A-Rod was 0-5 today and left 6 men stranded on base, hopefully it's just jet lag or he ate some bad sushi. Not exactly the way to impress your new teamates when you go 1 for 9 in your first 2 games.

As many of you know, I'm not a big fan of president Bush, but I have been suportive of him duiring these recent difficult times. Well he did something the other day that really rubbed me the wrong way. The president joked about finding the WOMD by lifting the corner of a couch and saying something goofy like "Well they have to be somewhere!". That's ok if you're on Saturday Night Live and you're doing a sketch, but it's not cool when you are the commander and chief. The president asked the men and women (uggh) of the military to go into war, and there are US soldiers dieing just about every day over in Afghanistan and Iraq. I don't think it's cool that he's making a joke of this.

I heard that NBC is extending Jay Leno's contract for another 5 years and he's getting paid around $100 million dollars for his new contract extension. Considering Jay rips ideas off of David Letterman all the time, and is a major tool, I find it so hard to stomach that he's going to make $100 million for a few years work. It angers me more than when I watch a no talent rap guy on MTV Cribs show off his collection of Escalades, Hummers and a fridge full of Cristal.

I'm selling a camera on Ebay and I'm anxiously waiting for the auction to end so I can see how much I get for it. Just about 3 hours to go. Over the past 5 days I've probably checked on the auction at least 20 times a day. Hmm maybe I have OCD.
Current Mood:

Weekend Wrapup...

As usual the weekend flew by. What was nice was that Rachel had the rare priveledge of having the whole weekend off. Saturday morning we woke up and headed to Party City to pick up baloons for little Andrews birthday party. Hard to believe the little guy is 2 already. After I dropped Rachel off at her sisters so she could help her decorate the house for the party. I headed over to IHOP to meet up with Kelvin for some breakfast. On my way there, Kelvin asked where the IHOP was located. I told him it was located on Smoketown Road. Somehow Kelvin couldn't get the name right. Snakeskin Road? Stormtown Road? Well eventually he found it. We has a nice breakfast, I ate enough hash browns, eggs and sausage to feed an army, I spilled blueberry syrup all over the table, and we skipped out of there without paying the bill. Just kidding :-). It was nice seeing Kelvin and to see he seems to be getting his affairs in order. I hope his Rachael recovers from her illness so she can move down to Maryland with him.

I left Kelvin, he headed to Best Buy to look for a digital camera. I headed to the birthday party. I kept little Andrew entertained until some of his little munchin friends arrived. After everyone arrived, it was time to eat again. oh joy. I forced down a grilled hamburger and some chips to be polite. The burgers were tasty, but I was just so full. After we stuffed our faces, I chatted with Rachel's brother for a while to see if he had a plan for when he graduates this summer. His plan is to freeload off his parents for a while. His parents just got DSL and a big screen tv. Of course he's gonna stick around for a while :-). Then it was time for little Andrew to open his presents. I acted as videographer while Rachel kept tabs on what Andrew received and from whom for when it's time to send out thank yous. I never new about Thanks You's until I met Rachel. We send so many Thanks Yous it's crazy, her sister sends out even more. It's getting so ridiculous I'm waiting to get a thank you for sending someone a thank you. Andrew got some neat toys and some new summer clothes, and now it was time for birthday cake.

Andrew really seemed to enjoy the Thomas the Train cake his mom had baked for him. He smeared icing on his face like it was war paint, ahhh to be 2 again. Shortly after, it was time for Andrews afternoon nap. Once he was asleep we looked at photos of the new house Mike and Audra are having build down in Raleigh, then we headed home. The little 2 year old tuckered us out, so we took a quick nap. After the nap we headed down to Fredricksburg to do some shopping. We found this really neat woodworking stand. We purchased some neat stuff, don't know where we're gonna put it all, but it's neat stuff. On th way home I called my mom to see if she had heard any update on my sister. I was amazed to hear that my sister was doing so much better. She was completely off the respirator and back to eating solid foods. I can't believe how well she is doing less than a week after I saw her. When I saw her last monday she was so lifeless, she looked so weak, I feared it would be the last time I saw her alive. Now 5 days later she is on the road to recovery. She still needs to use the oxygen mask from time to time due to shortness of breath, but the doctors say that's normal for someone who's gone through all she has. My sister has been through so many hardships, I don't know where she gets all her inner strength.

Sunday we met up with Rachel's parents, Mike, Audra and Andrew for sunday brunch. Once we finished up there, Rachel and I headed up to DC to enjoy the Cherry Blossom Festival. We had temperatures in the upper 70's the past few days and some rain yesterday so the blossoms were in full bloom. We spend several hours up in DC, I shot a boatload of pictures, and I'm now exhausted from all the walking we did. When we got home we watched the Sopranos and here I am... Hope everyone has a great weekend.

Here's a photo from up in DC today. Rachel spotted a older looking Asian man trying to balance his camera on a tree limb to take a photo of he and his wife. She went over and asked if she could help. I don't think he quite understood all of what Rachel said, but she smiled politely, nodded a lot and handed over his camera. He returned the favor and snapped this picture for us...

New Obsession...

I'm totally hooked to this new show on GSN (Game Show Network). It's the World Series of Blackjack. I started watching the Celebrity Poker Challenge on Bravo a while back and really loved that show as well, but I don't know much about Poker, so I got a little lost at times. I found myself just annoyed at how pompous the contestants were on the World Series of Poker. But with the World Series of Blackjack, the contestants while a little flamboyant at times, are pretty normal people. Rachel and I watched it the other night and found ourselves watching it a 2nd time the next night. I've downloaded multiplayer blackjack from Golden Palace and started playing myseld (not for money, just for fun).

There's also a new show on GSN called Kenny vs Spenny. I haven't actually seen the show, but the commercials I've seen for it seem really cool. From what I've gathered, the show is two friends who are ultra competitive come up with these weird contests to challenge one another. The commercial I saw had the two of them competing to see who could stay awake the longest and there was another contest to see who could sit on a cow the longest. The best part is that the loser has to do some humiliating task such as eating cat food. I'll definitley by adding this show to my Tivo season pass.

One last note, we watched the movie Wonderland starring Val Kilmer last night. I really enjoyed the movie. The characters were all vert believable which is always a plus when watching a fi;m based on a true story. I highly recommend it.

Preview...

here's just a quick preview of the crazy monkey that kept popping up around the room. Luckily I caught him relaxing and was able to snap this photo...



Here's a lone Amish man walking in the field. I like this picture because it gives a sense of the Amish people's isolation from the rest of the world...

Back from PA

Rachel and I had fun up in PA. The room at the B&B we stayed at was called the loft. It was pretty awesome. It was a two level suite that had a hot tub and bathroom on the first floor and a nice little living room, bedroom and fireplace on the 2nd level. The only issue we had came from a mischievous monkey that kept popping up all around our room. I hope to post some pictures later in the week.

We learned that the Amish folks have a great sense of humor. When we booked the room at the B&B, judging by it's location just outsude of Lancaster, we expected to see Amish people everywhere. Well the first day there we didn't see a single one. The 2nd day, we went to an outlet mall and noticed they had special reserved parking for the Amish and their horse drawn buggies. So we decided to do some research and find out where the Amish were hiding. We came to discover that there are 4 little towns where the Amish are pretty heavily populated. The names of these towns... Inter

Off to Pennsylvania

Rachel and I are heading to Pennsylvania for a quiet weekend at a bed and breakfast joint to celebrate our first wedding anniversary. The past year of marriage has been a blast. Fortunately, the first year has been filled mostly with lots of happy times and laughter. I’m sure we’ll hit some bumps along the long road ahead, but that long road ahead is a lot less scary when you have a dedicated partner at your side every step of the way. Rachel has been my support system for several years now and I just don’t know how I dealt with things before I met her.

 

I had this irrational fear that as soon as we got married somehow we would change, and things between us would change. But for the most part we are the same as we have always been. We still laugh at the same silly jokes we tell each other, we still finish one another’s sentences and I still hate seafood. I’m very thankful that my fear didn’t hold me back from getting married; it’s been a very happy time for me.

 

If all the years ahead are as happy as this past year, I’ll be a happy man for a long time….

Current Mood:

Picture of the Day

I saw this picture and I found it to be very disturbing, funny and some how erotic all at the same time...

In need of a warm home

She's cold, wet and hungry. Can you find it in your heart to take this poor misguided stray in to your warm and loving home? God bless!!!

Prediction

I was driving home last night and I had a premintion. Ray Charles will die before the end of 2004. You heard it here first people!!!

The Stranger Part II

His hands wrapped around her wrists and pulled her to her feet in an instant. The second he touched her, she felt a surge of energy run through her body. A bright white light enveloped her, temporarily blinding her. By the time her eyes adjusted to the dark lighting of the alley, he was nowhere to be found. Her weakened legs now stood firmly, her aching head plagued her no more. As she bent down to pick up her purse, she saw a figure of a man in the distance some 100 feet away. She gathered herself and began walking towards the silhouette of the shadowy figure. Every time she got closer, the figure seem to grow smaller and move farther away. Walking faster only made things worse. Tired of chasing the figure, she yelled "You don't have to be scared, I just wanted to thank you for helping me. What's your name?" she shouted in the direction of the mysterious figure. The man made not a sound, as he remained hidden in the shadows. As she looked closer, she could see his blue eyes glowing dimly. They appeared to flicker and dance around while the rest of his form remained still. She was somehow drawn to his eyes, the longer she looked, the harder it became to look away. Then in a flash, she saw something. A horrible image that she would never again forget. The image of Karen's beaten and bloody body dangling from the ceiling. Held there by a single rope tied around her ankle. She could hear Mark screaming for help as Paula sobbed uncontrollably...

Curious Am I

Two weeks ago when Howard Stern started talking about how there was a right wing conspiracy against him, I generally believed him. After two weeks of hearing what he's said, I'm starting to think its more of an elaborate publicity campaign.

To me it seems like democrats and republicans alike (in Congress) are gung ho about letting the FCC put tougher restrictions on programming. Ever since the whole Janet Jacket nipplegate controversy, the FCC seems to be chomping at the bit. Last week congress voted on increasing the fines for indecent broadcasts. It was one of the most lopsided votes in history. This means that both democrats and republicans are backing this "cleansing" of our radio and television airways. It's not just a right wing consiracy like Stern would have you believe.

The fact is that if Howard Stern gets fired, Infinity Broadcasting would have to pay him the remainder of his contract. If Howard quits, he is voluntarily pulling out of his contract and would not get the remainder of the money on his contract. So if Howard feels so strongly, he should quit and put his money where his mouth is. Howard is already in negotiations with XM and Sirius radio. If one of these two satellite radio companies signs Howard, they know damn well that their month subscription rates will increase by millions. In fact the concern now is that XM and Sirius wont be able to produce enough satallite radios to meet the demand if Stern signs with them.

In addition to being a talented radio host and self promoter, Howard is a wise business man. He stands to make millions upon millions if he jumps ship to satallite. This will just be another feather in his cap. So Howard has everything to gain here. He can pioneer satallite radio, and become unbelievably rich doing it (not that he isn't already).

Lets say Howard does jump ship and signs with XM. I believe the monthly subscription price is $9.95 a month. If Howard brings 5 million listeners to XM (and thats a conservative number) @ $9.95 a month they will rake in $50 million a month!!! $600 million a year. If that happens, you can be sure Howard will be getting a HUGE chunk of that money.

So while I still enjoy his show, I just don't feel like him making himself out to be a martyr is necessary. To be a martyr, you have to sacrafice something. Making a fortune by jumping to a new format is hardly martyr worthy...

Feathered Friends

Rachel and I went to feed the birds down at the lake by our house today. Well actually Rachel fed the birds, I just took some pictures. On a side note, there was this rather odd family there at the lake as well. They were so loud!!! They were throwing chunks of potato to the birds. Im no animal expert, but I don't know how good that is for the birds and fish. Here's a sampling of the pics I tooks. Finally got to test out my Tamron 70-300 mm lens, I hope it does as well when I go to see the Yankees up in Baltimore in May. The lens really brought the detail of the birds out. I had no idea seaguls had red circles around their eyes until today.

http://www.pbase.com/squilky/feathered_friends

Enjoy!

The Stranger

The idea for this story popped into my head as I layed in bed last night. I'm not sure if I have enough to finish it or how far I can take it, but here's what I have so far. Enjoy...

She sat alone in a dark, wet alleyway. Her only friends now were the dozens of plastic beads around her neck. Where had Paula, Mark and Karen gone? She had no recollection of how she got there, or how long she'd been there. Her last memory was flashing her tits from atop a Bourbon Street balcony. Drinking Kamikazes and Jagerbombs with reckless abandone. In the distance she could hear festive music being played and the faint cheering of a crowd. She struggles to stand, her legs feeling like rubber, unable to support the weight of her body. She falls to the ground in an awkward slump and begins to cry. Feeling sorry for herself, scared that she won’t find her way back, terrified of what could have happened to her friends.

“Sounds like you could use hand” she heard coming from a shadowy figure about 10 feet away. She nodded her head, and extended her hands hoping the stranger could get her back to her feet. As he stepped closer, a beam of light coming from the overhead lamp post shone across his face, revealing piercing blue eyes. Eye so blue, they almost glowed. They were bright like morning sunlight bursting through a stained glass window.

Conversation I Overheard

I was in Comp USA tonight and I overheard this conversation between a father and a son. The dad was about 40, and the son was about 11 or so.

Son: hey dad, are we going to get a new computer?

Dad: We have to wait till I get my tax return back, then we have to convince mom that we need to spend money on a new computer

Son:I hate mom, she never lets you buy anything cool. How come it's ok for her to get her nails done every week, but I can't get an Ipod or a cell phone?

Dad: Getting her hair and nails done makes her feel pretty

Son: Uncle Jim was right, mom is a bitch.

Dad: Uncle Jim is just jealous.

Son: Jealous of mom? (scoffs) I don't think so dad.

When I heard that I nearly shat myself!!! Had I been drinking, I wish I was drinking something so I could have done a kick ass spit take. I think I may start listening on strangers conversations more often...

Song O' the Week

This weeks song of the week is "Ya'll Want a Single?" by Korn. It's a typically angry tale sung by Jonathan Davis accompanied by a vicious bass line that just kind of slaps you in the face (but in a good way). The song has also become the unofficial song of Howard Sterns plight to stay on the air. Check it out!!!

They think we're all the same
And always we're to blame
For shit I think is lame
It's time to stop the game
I think it's time to pay for everything you made me say

Great Television!!!

This week two of my favorite shows, HBO's The Sopranos and The Shield on FX return with all new episodes. Critics for the most part didn't give the Sopranos premier very good reviews, but after a 15 month drought, it sure was nice to see a new episode. I thought the episode was really good and teased enough to make me start wondering what would happen this coming season. Even though the Sopranos is an hour long, and commercial free, it's such a goos how that the hour just seems to fly by. You feel like the show is just getting ramped up, and it ends and you have to wait a whole week to see what happens. I'm very proud to announce that I have a small role in the Sopranos this year. I play young up and comer Benny Fazio. Check me out :-) http://www.hbo.com/sopranos/cast/character/benny_fazio.shtml

I haven't watched the premier of the Shield yet, but it sits on my Tivo waiting for me to press play. I hope to be able to catch it tomorrow night. I haven't seen the first season of the Shield, but I started watching about half way through season 2 and I am hooked. The show is so dark, and so well done it's hard to tune out. When I first started watching it, I really didn't want to get involved in another TV drama. I already spend enough time watching TV, do I really need to add another hour a week to my viewing schedule? Well after 1 episode I was so hooked. So many things happen in one episode and the story is always on the verge of being blown apart. There was one particular episode last season where the cops head down to Mexico and find a drug lord who is wanted for dozens of crimes in the US. They know if they wait for the Mexican government to extradite him, it could take months or even years. So they take a chance and grab the drug lord, drug him, tie him up and throw them in their trunk. Sounds easy right? Well when they get to the Mexican/US boarder the guards ask them to pop the trunk. Talk about a heart racing situation!!!

Are these shows violent? Sure. Chances are I wouldn't be so interested in them if they weren't. But behind the violence, there are lots of talented actors and writers. Should the FCC regulate the amount of violence on TV? FAHGETABOUTIT!!!!

Poor Guy Can't Catch a Break & OJ's at it again!

John Daly won a PGA golf tournament a few weeks back after a 9 year drought. He shows more promise by finishing 4th at the Nissan Open which moved him from being ranked 299th to 64th in the world rankings. Just when things are looking up for the guy, he has to withdraw from this weeks Honda Classic after he accidentally slammed his own hand in a car door.

Secondly, American's favorite murderer Heisman Trophy winner is being sued by Direct TV for stealing satellite signals. In a lawsuit filed Wednesday in federal court in Miami, the company demanded OJ Simson pay DirecTV $20,000.

Great News!!!

For those of you watching your weight, I'd like to let you know that Squilky.com is now Atkins Friendly. So enjoy it as much as you like, you won't find any hidden carbs!

Seacrest Out!!!

How Smart Are You?

I Tivoed this show on Fox on friday night that was basically a nationwide IQ test. It was quite interesting since you could play along at home (which Rachel and I did). What also added to the interest was how they broke the scoring down by certain groups. In the studio audience participating were a panel of celebrities which indluded Ben Stein, Fred Willard and Big Pussy from the Sopranos. They also had a group of students, college professors, doctors & nurses, blondes, garbagemen, and a group of unemployed men and women.

Rachel scored a 123 I scored a 114, proving what many have suspected for years, that Rachel is smart than I am. The test definitely showed that I was much more proficient at analyticla thinking and Rachel excelled at more of the logic and visual parts of the test. I answered 30 of the first 33 questions correctly which delat with language/vocabularly, memory and diagrams. I did much worse in the logic, math and perception parts. Those are the sections Rachel did really well in. She was nearly perfect in those three sections.

At the end of the show they revealed some interesting results. Of the groups in the studio audience the teachers and professors narrowly beat out the student for top honors.
1) teachers/professors 115
2) students 114
3) doctors and nurses 112
5) unemployed-108
6) celebs-107
7) blondes 107
7) garbagemen 101

HAIR

Bald 119
Black 111
Red 116
Blonde 115
Gray 115
Brown 114

EYES

Blue 116
Green 116
Hazel 113
Brown 113

SMARTEST CITIES

Detroit 123
Boston 119
NY 114
DC 114
LA 108
Philly 107

Smartest States

Colorado 125
Mississippi 125
South Dakota 124
West Virginia 119
Louisiana 117
Virginia 117
Florida 116

SEX

men 115
women 113

republicans 115
democrats 115

ZODIAC

Scorpio 118 (highest)
Gemini 107 (lowest)

The highest score by the celebs was by Fred Willard who scored a 124

The highest audience score was scored by Doctor Howard Kraus who scored a 136

First Round of 2004 and disturbing sports trends...

Got to play my first round of golf in 2004 yesterday. I started out very well and had a score of 47 on the front 9. Then my sucking caught up with me on the back 9 where I shot a 57. I guess a 104 after a 3 month layoff isn't so bad. The highlight of the round was a nice chip shot I made on a par 5. I hit a decent drive of about 230 yards, then my second shot went about 180 yards leaving me about 80 yards out. I played a nice bump and run shot over a hill that came to rest about 2 feet from the cup.

The weather this past week has been great. It was actually a little on the hot side yesterday with temperatures in the low 80's. Considering this time last year it was still so cold and there was snow on the ground, I'd day March of 2004 is definitely better weather wise.

I've noticed that lately, some of the networks and cable channels are trying to breathe life into some new sports. It srarted a few weeks back where I saw an advertisment for this "heated" cricket matchup between Pakistan and India. They were making it sound like they had a rivalry like the Yankees and Red Sox. I'm sorry, cricket is just gay. Maybe I would find it more interesting if the cricket players spit tobacco and grabbed their crotches more.

Then yesterday they had on table tennis mathes on ESPN2. They gave it some silly name like the "Spinmasters" tournament. The funniest thing about it was the atire the ping pong players had on. The shorts they had on were reminiscant of the NBA shorts of the late 70's and early 80's. I kept having flashbacks of Kevin McHale and Larry Birds pasty white thighs. Oh the humanity!!! Call me a homophobe, but I don't need to see that much of another mans thighs. I can see why swimmers and divers wear those little speedo bikinis, but I don't see why ping pong players can't wear little longer shorts. Plus how can I take a sport that Forrest Gump excelled at seriously?

SOng of the week....

I guess I can thank Carlos Santana for the new Probot CD. Carlos had the great idea a few years back to team up with different vocalists for each of his songs on Supernatural. It was a great idea. One of the best, most unique CD’s I’ve ever heard. So Dave Grohl of Nirvana and Foo Fighters fame decided to follow in Carlos’ footsteps and Probot was born! Dave teams up with hard rock and heavy metal legends such as Lemme from Motorhead, Max Cavalera from Sepultura, and King Diamond to go back to his heavy metal roots. The Squilky.com song of the week is Shake Your Blood by Probot. Lemme’s gravely voice is a perfect match for the grinding guitars heard throughout this in your face tune. Probot is no replacement for Nirvana or the Foo Fighters, but it’s a nice change of pace.

Rock out, strike it rich
My, my, my, it's a bitch
Rock out, I knew you could
Break your heart. Shake your blood3

Oldie But Goody!!

I know this is kinda old, but I still love it!!! Enjoy and don't forget to sing a long!!!

http://www.ebaumsworld.com/peanutbutter.shtml

Endless Journey

I received a letter in the mail today stating that the photo I had submitted is going to be featured in a book published by the International Library of Photography. The book's working title is Endless Journeys and is scheduled for publication the Summer of 2004. The book costs $70, so I don't expect everyone to run out and purchase a copy. I'll just show you my copy when I get it.

The picture that will be in the book can be seen here http://www.pbase.com/image/25465998

I can finally sort of justify all the money I spend on photo gear and books :-)