Bear Down

I am a little late to the punch with this one, but HOW 'BOUT THEM CHICAGO BEARS!!!!!!! I will be honest and say that I was the last person to think that the Bears would be worth a damn this year, but that game on Sunday night was a very pleasant surprise. Now I understand that it was just one game, but it felt great to stick it to gutless Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts. It is a long season and who knows what will happen next week, but this first game sure did feel great.

NPR Is At It Again!!

This is a great day for all connoisseurs of fine music. Our beloved NPR has done a great thing and made the final show of Radiohead's North American tour available for all of us to download. The show was recorded at the Santa Barbara Bowl on August 28, 2008. It goes without saying that I have already downloaded the podcast from iTunes and have listened to the majority of the show. Actually, this reminds me that I might be overdue for mentioning the Radiohead show I saw this summer in Chicago. It was fantastic. To be honest with everyone, it is the single best concert that I have ever been to. The show that NPR is making available is very good as well. After listening, I would have to say that the highlights for me have been "Talk Show Host" (this song was a standout from the Romeo & Juliet soundtrack), "Jigsaws Falling Into Place", "Body Snatchers" and "There, There." 

Who am I kidding? The whole set is awesome and if you have never given the modern masters a chance, I suggest that you give this set a whirl. Here is a link to the site that allows you to stream the show.

You can also download the podcast via iTunes. Just go to the npr homepage and look for the show All Songs Considered. Lastly, if you have not purchased In Rainbows, please do so. It really is a masterpiece. Every single song breaths with life and I truly believe that it will be considered one of the greatest albums of the first ten years of the 21st century when it is all said and done.

Oh Stewardess, I Speak Jive

In the interest of being fair, I decided to watch McCain's speech last Thursday. I have to admit, it was everything that I expected, which is not a good thing. As a matter of fact, the thing that stuck out in my mind the most was the fact that McCain constantly pronounced Washington as "Warshington," as if it has an r in it. I understand that people from different parts of the country speak with different accents and inflections. However, I consider it to be completely ridiculous that anyone would pronounce the name of our nation's capital in such an absurd manner. 

Anyways, I was reminded of different types of accents and dialects when I read a recent blog entry by our friend Lisa, who lives in New Zealand. She has been down there for about a year and we have spoken to her a couple of times. Each time we speak, she brings up the different ways that Kiwis express themselves, which usually puts a smile on our faces. Her post is very amusing and it has led me to realize that I was perhaps being a little too hard on McCain. However, I still expect him to correct the way he pronounces the name of Washington, D.C. and say it like a normal person. 

Also, here is the classic clip from Airplane! that highlights a particular American dialect:

One Of My Favorite People Plugging One Of My Favorite Shows

While looking for my frakkin' compilation, I came across this jewel of an Office clip:

Further evidence that BSG is the best show on television. So say we all!

When In Doubt, Frak It

One of the many great things about Battlestar Galactica is their liberal use of the word "frak." I know that many of you will tell me that it is not a word, but in the world of BSG, it is. While perusing the web today, I came across this great article that points to the cultural relevance of the word frak. I was very excited to share it with everyone, so here is a link to the article. In addition to the article, here is a little video showcasing the proper way to use frak:

Feel free to use frak whenever you feel it necessary.

History In The Making?

I hope that I am not the only one who was fortunate enough to see the Obama speech from last Thursday night, because it was truly a sight to behold. Mar and I finally got a chance to watch the speech on Sunday, and needless to say we were very impressed. The sheer spectacle of the event was awesome. His speech was excellent and I hope it will push him over the edge come November. We need a leader who can inspire the way he does and usher us into a new direction that will end the eight year funk of the Bush regime. As memorable as the speech was, I think it was only fitting that he was able to deliver such a powerful message on the 45th anniversary of Dr. King's I Have A Dream speech that has come to symbolize the Civil Rights movement. Hopefully, Mr. Obama will be able to lead us in a direction that will help us realize our potential for change and start a new movement for the future.

Another BSG Connection

Laugh all you want, but Battlestar is apparently taking over the world. I'm sure you all read my post from Monday discussing the idea of John McCain being the final Cylon. Well, it goes much deeper than that. The blogosphere is abuzz with chatter surrounding the fact that not only does McCain resemble Colonel Tigh, but his veep, Sarah Palin also bears a resemblance to our beloved President Roslin. Here is a link to give you more information on this breaking story. Creepy.

Yes We Can

I got a major treat last week: a free Cubs game. Most of us know that I am a Cubs fan, and I love to attend games. There is no other place on Earth I would rather be than Wrigley Field, watching my Cubbies win. Well, one thing that I have sacrificed for the sake of our wedding fund is purchasing Cubs tickets. I will usually attend around ten games a year, but I told myself I will just have to enjoy the games from home this year so we can have the wedding of our dreams. However, if tickets somehow come my way, I will always say yes. Last week I was lucky enough to have one of the teachers I work with toss me a couple of tickets for the game on Thursday, August 28 against the Phillies. I gladly accepted and was giddy with anticipation for the whole week.

After picking Mar up from the train station in Hinsdale, we made our way to the North Side and promptly headed to the Shrine. The seats we were sitting in actually belong to one of the deans at my school and were very good. We were on the third base line in section 407, which is a prime spot to view the game. Ryan Dempster was pitching, which is almost a guaranteed victory at home for the Cubs. On this particular day, Demp didn't have his good stuff as he labored through six innings while keeping us in the game. By the time the eighth inning came, we were down by 4-1 and the magic was about to begin.

Mike Fontenot led bottom of the eighth off with pinch hit solo homer, cutting the Phillie lead to two runs and riling the crowd up. Alfonso Soriano followed with a double and Ryan Theriot promptly moved Soriano to third with a solid single. This put men on the corners with no outs and Derek Lee at the plate. The crowd was really worked up at this point, but I kept my cool because I knew that nothing was set in stone quite yet. We were still down by two runs and there was no guarantee that we were going to take the lead. Well, D-Rock worked a walk out of his at-bat and the bases were now loaded for Aramis Ramirez. This is when I got excited.

As Rami made his way to the plate, I turned to Mar and pointed to the bleachers in left center and said, "That is the spot where Aramis is about to hit a grand slam." Rami then took the first pitch high and tight. I then said to Mar, "The pitcher is about to groove Aramis a fastball and he is going to give it the ride of it's live." The next pitch was a fastball, and Mr. Ramirez deposited the ball in the exact spot that I pointed to in the left center bleachers. I can honestly say that I don't think I have ever heard Wrigley that loud as the crowd went into a frenzy. Everyone was jumping and giving each other high fives as our Cubs took a 6-4 lead. They did not score anymore runs, but the lead was enough for Woody to hold down the Phils in the top of the ninth to earn a save. After the final out, "Go Cubs Go!" blared for the PA system as we sang along word for word.

This was one of the best regular season games I have EVER been to. Besides the victory, it was a real treat for me to go to the game and I was very thankful for the opportunity. I really hope this is the year that we go the distance, and I whole heartedly believe that we can. On top of the game being so great, the Punky QB sang the Stretch. It really doesn't get much better than this.

The Real Olympic Spirit

As I mentioned before, I really enjoy watching the Olympics. This year was no exception as I watched most night with rapt attention. After so many great moments, it was tough to pick my favorite Olympic memory from the Beijing Games. But without further suspense, I have decided that my favorite Olympic moment comes from Cuban taekwondo fighter Angel Valodia Matos.

During the bronze medal match of his weight class, Mr. Matos was supposedly injured and needed a break to regain is composure. Taekwondo fighters are allowed one minute of injury time before they are required to resume the fight. Apparently, Mr. Matos took to much time and he was disqualified, even though he was leading the match with the match in it's later stages. This disqualification did not sit well with Mr. Matos, and he promptly kicked the judge in the face and spat on the mat to show is displeasure. Mr. Matos was then escorted from the event by his support staff and soon after was banned for life from the Olympics for supposedly showing unsportsmanlike conduct that did not represent the spirit of the Games.

Here is a link to a recap of the event if you would like to read a little more.

A Girl and her Sports

All my life I have been a sports fan. Maybe not the die-hard, crazy, need to watch every single freaking baseball game when they play 160+ games a season type of fan, *DEEP breath* but nonetheless I'm a fan of Chicago sports.

I was extremely fortunate to be able to experience the glory days of the Chicago Bulls, with the six championships and all. :) I remember vividly watching the playoff games and Michael Jordan dominate the court. My favorite was my little point guard, John Paxon. For those of you who don't know this (I'm sure there are, hm, maybe a few) he is their current GM. I used to have this HUGE--like took up a quarter of my bedroom wall--poster of him. Back in the day, I loved me some good basketball! I still enjoy a good basketball game, and do catch the occasional games when Chris tosses them on the television.

Moving onto my FAVORITE sport. Football. I LOVE LOVE LOVE me some football!! I've always been a huge Chicago Bears fan! I can remember when the Bears won the Superbowl! I remember the Chicago Tribune, with it as a heading, I remember the little (maybe it's called a 45?) Super Bowl Shuffle record that we got--in the newspaper I believe. Needless to say, I love football. I love watching football on Sundays. Fantasy football has made me *so* much more aware of who's doing what on the other teams. Now, I may not know all of the "technical" lingo or what the "technical" point of a corner back is, but I can for sure follow a game and enjoy each and every down. A little FYI...I pray that the Bears put on a better show during the regular season than what I saw in the pre-season! Who's with me on that one!? :)

Last but not least on my list of sports are my beloved Chicago White Sox. Now if you've gotten this far I'm pretty sure this just put a smile on many of your faces. While football is my favorite, I do love baseball as well. But, it's a LONG season, with about a million games, so I do allow my life to take me where it needs to. While I may not know the score of the game the night before, or sometimes even what time they start (which is another reason why I love football...it's either Sunday, Monday, or Thanksgiving.)--but I surely know what series they are in and usually what the race is between the Sox and the Twins. I remember going to the old Comiskey Park, and praying that the upper deck wasn't going to fall off with all the people sitting in it. I then remember them tearing down the old one and replacing it with a new one. My dad totally had the side-by-side picture from the newspaper hanging in our garage. My other memories include ALL of my friends being Cubs fans. And me always being the lone Sox fan. Maybe that's why my heart lies within the heart of Solider Field rather than Comiskey--er, US Cellular Field.

Which now brings me to my next train of thought. There is absolutely, 100% nothing wrong with me being a SOX fan. Nothing at all. Chris mentioned "flawed" when it comes to me supporting my Southsiders (and I know he's "kidding"). And some, not all (...easy Ellie) of my friends have given me crap for it over the years as well. Here is my point. I support MY team because they're MY team. Not because they are by friends team, or the team that everybody else likes, or anything along those lines. I've followed them for years. I have great memories of games, stadiums, outings etc. Just because Chris or any other of my friends are Cub fans (or any other team for that matter) it DOES NOT mean that I should have climbed aboard the all of my-friends/boyfriend/fiancee-bandwagons and become a fan of THEIR team. They should all be proud that they support their team and that I've continued to support mine. Let me tell ya, it's way more difficult to support your team when you are in the minority. I've stood by my Chicago White Sox for years, and I will continue to stand by them in the years to come.

**Sidenote...not too much into hockey. Maybe now that it'll be aired on tv it'll be easier for me to get into? We'll see...**

AND...It Begins...

First off...

*ahem* I'd like to say hello, my name is Marilyn, and this is my first blog posting. :)

I have to tell you all that I'm a little intimidated!! Why you may (hm, or may not) ask? Well, Chris is a bit of a tough act to follow when it comes to this blogging era that I have now weaseled my may into. I'm not quite sure that I am going to have as much to say, or be able to share it as vividly as Chris. It'll be interesting, and I guess we will just have to see as time moves forward.

A few things to note about me and my writings:

• Chris and I have two WAY different styles of writing.

• I love punctuation! You will undoubtedly see a plethora of exclamation marks (!), the little ... (is that even called anything? Either way, I really love to using it...and will use it at every opportunity that I see fit...), and then the run of the mill periods (.), quotes ("), parenthesis (()),and commas (,).
  

• I love different fonts! I wish they had more to choose from.
  

• I'm big on smiling, so I only see it fit to use smiley faces. This bugs the heck out of Chris, which sometimes gives me more incentive to use them... :)
  

• Spelling + Marilyn = Thank God for spell check!

• I'm a pretty conversational type of writer. I feel like you should be able to hear what I'm saying through my writing. I can only hope that I convey my thoughts, hopes, and ramblings in a clear manner to you all. As many of you know while actually HAVING a conversation with me, I tend to get sidetracked, but then usually --wait! He said what? No! Not that she-- huh? What was that?! I get back to what I was saying--or in this case writing--at one point or another. :)

One thing that I can absolutely guarantee you is that it'll get to be even more interesting than it was before. Chris has done a wonderful job thus far. Together we have joined our forces and you will now get both sides of what's really going on out here in 'Thrill.

We've got a new name! We've got a new style! We've got a wedding to plan! So kiddies, saddle up and enjoy the ride~

**Sidenote, I just wanted to point out that I did notice that Chris still managed sneak in HIS desire for the Cubs to win a world series into the title of OUR blog. I don't know if he thinks I'm blind or something, but to set the record straight, I'm rooting for my Southsiders to get ANOTHER world series. Hm...I think I just came up with an idea for my second blog.**

So It Begins...

Tonight, the new television season began for Marilyn and I with the premiere episode of Prison Break. Needless to say, it was a dud. I am not quite sure why we continue to watch this show, but it is sort of like itching a scratch that you cannot quite ignore. Michael and the gang are once again trying to take down the "Company" with some hair brained scheme that is supposed to free them from their various sordid pasts. I can honestly say that I hope this show does not make it past mid-season. Even though I feel like I am loosing brain cells by continuing to watch the show, I have this fascination with finding out how it will end. The real season will kick off tomorrow with the fist episode of The Shield's final season. We CANNOT wait to see how Vic and the rest of the Barn's residents will end their run. The Shield is one of the best shows on television and you would be doing yourself a favor if you started watching the past seasons on DVD.

The Great Outdoors

For our final week of summer break, we rented a cabin in northern Wisconsin and it was fantastic. I found the place online and it looked great, so I booked it. It was a little bit of a drive, about seven hours, but totally worth the trip. Most of us know how plain Illinois is, so it was great having a drive that was so beautiful. Lots of hills and forests as we traveled further away from the congestion of the suburbs. The cabin was located in a the town of Danbury, WI, which is along the Wisconsin and Minnesota border on the northwest border of WI. A few friends (Jessica, Vince and Sara) from Chili's joined us as well.

Well, the first night was only Vince, Sara and I. We met up in Milwaukee and I joined their car as we left Marilyn and Jessica in Milwaukee to attend the Sunday, August 10 Dave show. The trip up was beautiful as we traveled to the northwest border of Wisconsin. After the six hour drive, we finally arrived to the cabin and were happy to see that it more than lived up to the pictures we saw on the web. The owner was there to welcome us and give the tour. After showing us around, he left the keys and wished us a pleasant stay.

As I mentioned, the cabin was gorgeous. It was three thousand square feet with three bedrooms, three bathrooms, a full kitchen, 50-inch plasma hi-def television, wet bar, sauna, hot tub, deck, patio, a fire pit and two grills. The place was unbelievable. Sara, Vince and I enjoyed our first night there and just relaxed. The sky was lit by the stars without any annoying light pollution, which was a treat. Monday morning we made the trip to Superior, WI to do some grocery shopping as we waited for Mar and Jess to join us. Unfortunately, we had to go to Walmart to get the best bang for our buck. We tried to go to the local grocer, but the prices were outrageous. For example, a gallon of milk was five dollars. However, we did go to a local meat market for burgers and chicken. The fresh meat was great, especially the homemade chorizo that I bought and prepared for breakfast.

While in Superior, we made the quick trip across Lake Superior to Duluth, MN. Crossing Lake Superior was a truly spectacular scene. It was awesome seeing another of the Great Lakes, and Duluth was a very eclectic town. We headed back and finally met up with Mar and Jess. They were equally impressed with the cabin and we continued our week long stay.

As Brian mentioned on his blog, Mar, Frank and I met up with them in Hayward, WI. It was quite the coincidence that we would be in Wisconsin at the same time and only one hundred miles apart. Hayward is a nice little town with fun shopping and it was great to see Mickey and Minnie. That was a joke Brian, so relax.

The rest of the week was just spent relaxing and hot tubbing. We also made a return trip to Duluth so Jess and Mar would have a chance to see Lake Superior. Once again we enjoyed the sight of Lake Superior and spent time walking up the coastline. We visited some of the shops and had some great pizza at Pizzaria Luce. If you are ever in Duluth or the Twin Cities, I highly recommend stopping by for a slice. The last stop in Duluth was a trip to the Leif Erickson Rose Garden, another breathtaking sight.

Last but not least, Sara brought home a cat. One morning, we were sitting there and this little stray with a severely injured eye came strolling up to us looking for a bite to eat. Since Sara is a sucker for an animal in distress, she went up to Willie (named after our favorite Goonies hero) and tried to console the frightened animal. Willie did not have claws and was obviously domesticated. After a couple of days, the cat did not move on and Sara decided to take our little friend to the local vet. Willie is now named Millie and resides in Sara's loving home.

As you can tell, we had a great time. I will post pictures soon.

Without Further Ado

Well, the decision has been made. This blog will now be called Notes From the Blackboard. It pains me to see my passions thrown to the wayside, but they will remain frequent topics as I continue to drop my nuggets on the unsuspecting public. Marilyn will now join me as an administrator of the blog, which will no doubt provide us with her insight on my skewed perspective of things. God speed.

The Final Cylon?

Ben and Mindy came over tonight and we watched the Battlestar Galactica: Razor DVD. Needless to say, it was excellent and really helped to explain some of the events in the fourth season. As we approach the end of the series with the start of the final batch of episodes set to begin in January, I have begun to wonder who the final Cylon is going to be. Initially, I suspected that the final Cylon would be the Galactica itself, but I am starting to question this theory. Other top candidates could be Old Man Adama, Starbuck or perhaps President Roslin (that would help explain all of her visions.)

But after a lot of thought, I have decided that the final Cylon is John McCain. I know this may come as a shock, but I can really see it happening. He bares a resemblance to Colonel Tigh, who has already been revealed as a skin job, not to mention military background. I will post a couple of pictures so you can decide for yourself.