May I Suggest a Myspace Page...No Really...This Is Not a Joke

There is actually one thing that myspace is good for. Among all the page designs that can cause epilepsy, and never ending random friend requests from strange porn sites -I mean women (Candee does not really want to be your friend.) myspace is actually pretty good for both finding music and putting your music out there. Every time I hear or read about a band I can usually go to myspace and listen to three or four songs.

It turns out one the friends of this blog has decided to put his music out there, and I thought it would be only right to share. M.O.L. Jr. aka Fauss aka Ronnie Fauss has a myspace page and I highly suggest you check it out. Why would you want to do that you might ask? Good question. There's a really good chance you will like the music, and then you will tell a friend, and they will tell a friend, and so on till 50 years later people will be arguing who was the better Ronnie: Van Zant or Fauss? It could happen. You would also be supporting an all around good guy, and you will feel good by supporting a him. So at least do it for yourself. And if you happen to also have a myspace page why don't you friend request him and tell him how much you enjoy his music. He needs all the ego boosting he can get. So here we go the glorious myspace page of Ronnie Fauss. Enjoy.

Now is the time to enact the fairness doctrine. See I actually did remember something from Dr. Baker's law class on media. If I pimp one friend's music I must pimp everyone's.

I've discussed this artist before but I shall remind you. The Sound and the Fury has recorded some heartbreaking music as Blackbird Harmony. You can take a listen here.

Finally, you know him as the plumber, some know him as Dal, and some just know of him. He too has taken to blessing us with some ditties. Dal's myspace page.

My job is done here. You still have to go listen.

My Weekend Wandering the Land of a Thousand MOL’s

Here’s a “little” breakdown of my first visit to Dallas for the annual(?) gathering of MOL’s.

Day One:

The flight was wonderfully uneventful: no sickness, no crying babies, and no delays. Upon arriving it was like the weather gods enacted their revenge for the balmy Christmas I had in Ohio. In other words it was cold and windy, at least until I left.

I settled into my hotel and called the voice and face of MOL Nation, MOL Jr. I was now prepared for my indoctrination into the nation. It began at Adair’s in the Deep Ellum area of Dallas. There I met the statesman El MOL, Suburban Jesus, and J-nice. I should state at this point that it’s odd of having everyone introduced as their real name and blog name. So, let’s stick with their given names.

Ronnie and Mitchell had families to attend so I joined Luke and fellow Hollywoodian Josh, Carter, and Eric at Lindsay A’s apartment for a viewing and discussion of the film The Constant Gardner. It wasn’t a bad plan except Luke had unwittingly bought an illegal copy of Constant Gardner which of course wouldn’t play. So we watched Millions instead.

Things then progressed to the Tipperary Inn where I met nearly everyone else (Sara, Babs, Kerri, Jess, etc.) for drinks and fish and chips. It should be noted that Serj Tankian of System of a Down apparently moonlights there singing Irish songs. At this point I realize there are factions within the MOL nation. Not being the only person that needs introductions helped make the acclimation process a little easier.

The first day of the MOL Weekend wrapped up as we closed the Tipperary, and went our separate ways. I don’t know if it was intentional or not, but the gradual meeting of MOL Nation in small groups throughout the day rather than all at once helped me feel not so overwhelmed.

Day Two:

I meet Ronnie, Amy, and MOL in training Phoebe for lunch. When I say MOL in training it is clear that Phoebe is perhaps the biggest MOL of them all. This got me to thinking that perhaps we are at the height of our MOLness when we are but wee pups and it’s all downhill as we age. That would explain our need to prove and vocalize how MOL we are when we’re older.

The rest of the day I had to explore Dallas by myself. I went to a few CD stores on Ronnie’s recommendation. The best being Good Records where they were celebrating their 5^th or 6^th year. To celebrate they had local bands scheduled to play all day. For the two hours I spent there I saw The Theater Fire and The Deathray Davies. Both are solid bands but the power pop leanings of the Deathray Davies won me over. I will give the accordion player, singer and Wes Anderson look-alike of the Theater Fire points for the following quote. “My Mom was at a Kinks show, and went home with Ray Davies…True story.”

I then went to Freebirds for a burrito. As many of you know there is much debate over who makes the best burrito between Freebirds and Chipotle. I will say that I actually lean towards the “Q” for my burrito. The other two are good, but they don’t have the cheese sauce that the “Q” does. Yes, I deducted points from Freebirds when it fell apart over my sweater because of poor construction.

That led to an impromptu shopping trip for non-stained clothes. It’s at this point that I would like to state that I was in fact planning on donning red and white for the party. Unfortunately, a Freebird burrito had other plans.

After a short nap, I readied myself for the MOL Jr. shindig.

The following took place at the MOL Nation party.

Here’s a small sampling of some of the things that took place at the MOL Nation party.

-Nerd shots

-MOLish discussion on such movie topics as best comedy and worst sequel.

-The unexpected appearance by the L-train.

-To Linz I'm now "the liar."

-Much picture taking, but not a lot on my camera. It was having occasional fits of shutting down. Also I’m not the best with a camera just ask Sara.

-Quiet reflection at the monument of Genslay.

-Faith made an appearance by phone. It was great to put a voice, accent and all, to the
face and blog.

-Video game and other geek goodness discussions with Shawn, Jess, and David.

-Devouring the sweet goodness of Sara’s Kahlua Chocolate Chunk cookies.

-Natalie even visited from Austin which trumps my visit because I least I had face to face time with Ronnie and Shawn before the birth of the MOL Nation.

Big ups to Sara who was kind enough to open her cool house to everyone.

I would also like to make one apology. I meant to post about this before I left for Dallas. If I was talking to you at the party, and at one point kept asking you to repeat yourself, and then after the fifth repeat I just smiled and nodded my head at something I shouldn’t have been nodding about it’s because I have tinnitus in both ears. It makes it a little difficult for me to hear voices in loud areas. So if I agreed to something and I haven’t done it, I’m sorry. It’s not that I’m a complete jackass, but that I can’t hear. Yes, I realize how old this makes me sound.

Day Three:

For some reason I scheduled my flight back home at 9pm. At least this gave another full day in Dallas.

It began with me picking up a Deathray Davies album, and seeing Match Point at the Angelika. I then had a late lunch at the recommended Gloria’s for some good Salvadoran food. The rest of the day was spent at the Grassy Knoll and the Dallas World Aquarium. It’s all about the otters. With a full day behind me I was ready to go home to warmer weather and 5 mph winds. Sure the weather wasn’t that great, but I recommend a visit to Dallas if you get the chance. It has a solid local music scene, nice eateries, and good movie theaters.

Eventually, I flew home, and my flight sucked. Why? Because 80% of the passengers were employees of some glorified pyramid cult called ACN. They wore their little badges and chains proudly as they discussed the “morons” that wouldn’t give their all to the company, and who was under what team leader. My idea of a nice plane trip is not people trying to sell me into joining their “team.” I had five people confront me before boarding. Three talked to me on the flight. Then one guy tried again to get me to join while I waited for my luggage. They clearly beat out crying babies, sick people, and the obese as the worst people you could get stuck with on a plane. Still it couldn’t damper the enjoyable weekend with the MOL Nation.

It was great putting actual humans with their blogs. Everyone was very accommodating and nice to the new old man from LA and it was definitely worth the plane flight. I only had a few regrets. I wish I could’ve met the third part of the MOL Trinity, Genslay. It would’ve been nice to spend a little more one on one time, but that’s not exactly conducive to parties. I wish Mitchell and his wife, Cheryl, had been able to join me and Ronnie’s family for lunch. I am facinated by El MOL and would've enjoyed a little more discussion time. I honestly wish J-Nice and Sound/Fury had been able to make it.

Finally, I leave you with some things I’ve learned on this trip to Dallas.

1. Dallas’ carbonated beverage of choice is Dr. Pepper. Not in a casual way, but in the “it was difficult for me to find Pepsi anywhere” kind of way.
2. Death will always show up at a concert.
3.I will pay $35 bucks more for an extra six inches of leg room on a plane.
4. Salvadoran skirt steak with chimichurri is the shit.
5.Phoebe may very well be to MOL Nation what Luke Skywalker was to the Jedi.

Thanks again MOL Nation and particularly Ronnie and Sara for a great weekend. For better pictures go over to J-lay and Sara's site. Mine suck.

Snobfest 2205: The Blog Posts

This is it. The last recap. I'm so sick of these. Snobfest has worn thin like a drunk date. Here are some of my favorite posts this past year.

What the World Sees: The Day of Papers

Not only did this bring back awful flashbacks, but the output of pages impressed me.

Krystal Ball: Gettin Presidential

I only wish I could apply it.

Tales from the Keymaster: Christmas Tradition

Often times I've heard friends talk about how crazy their family is. Often I've been disappointed by the level of craziness once I meet them. Somehow I think part of Keymaster's family would not disappoint.

Mol Jr.: 10/26/43-4/23/84

No explanation needed here.

3CT: To the Happy Couple (TS)

Classic Tim. I still go back and read this for a good laugh.

3CT: Skyr: Icelandic Yogurt / The 3rd Chair Trombone Interview (JD)

It raised the bar on 3CT.

3CT: Gilligan in Purgatory (BH)

And this one cleared the bar easily.

Now back to this blog's regularly scheduled boredom.

Ramblings

As with most people on the west coast, work at the office came to a halt to watch the Jet Blue plane make an emergency landing. I came with away with a few things after watching the amazing landing. First, Jet Blue owes that pilot whatever he requests. You couldn’t ask for a better landing. If I was on a plane that he was flying I’d feel completely safe. In fact I wouldn’t be surprised if Jet Blue advertised the flights he flew. Second, I found it slightly disturbing that the passengers were watching their own footage on the plane. Sure, you’d probably like to know what’s actually happening but it still seems morbid to me. Finally, with the reported jokes made by the pilot and passengers to alleviate the tension, and my co-workers compelled to quote Airplane it seems humor once again is the biggest defensive mechanism. I'm also never fyling anything with "bus" in its name.

So season premiere week is nearly over. There hasn’t been any series premieres that have really grabbed me. I had high hopes for Threshold, but they were quickly dashed. Supernatural makes a good effort but still falls a little flat. Invasion has promise. Prison Break came out of the gate strong, but has quickly bored me. I’d also like to thank ABC for moving Lost to 9PM which is the same time as Veronica Mars. Thanks for forcing me and my Tivo to make a choice. I’m sorry Miss Mars. Miss Bell is so cute too. Still hoping for Night Stalker to come through. I was also sad to see Diane Farr on Numb3rs, which means she really is no longer on Rescue Me.

Enough time has passed that I’ve come to terms with the Cubs not making the playoffs, again. It’s now time for me to pick teams to root for during the rest of the year. My AL choice is the Indians. I’m hoping they actually catch the Whitesox. I like to share my misery. It seems odd but my NL selection is the actually the Phillies. I hate the Astros so much that I’m actually going to back a Philly team. I do like the Chase Utley though. Overall, I’m for the Indians winning it all. Still hate the Yankees. Does any team for the NL West even deserve to go to the playoffs?

On a whim I picked up the new Rolling Stones album. It’s actually pretty good. They’ve seemed to have finally realized they don’t need to try to compete with the new bands musically. They simply need to rock. There are still a few stumbles along the way, but this is their best album in quite awhile.

Looks like Fiona Apple is finally releasing her album…YAWN.

Bought the bizarre trippy Jap-pop game We Love Katamari. If you’re a fan of the original, you’ll love this. There are no big changes. The worlds are more unique (underwater, zoo, space, etc). Vs. mode has been beefed up. There’s also a great co-op mode that will make the perfect drinking game. Basically it’s you and a friend trying to work together to roll the Katamari. Imagine the good times watching two drunk friends attempting to coordinate their motor skills. I was also pleased to hear they kept the same theme song. Kitschy Joy!

For some frightening and comical reading I recommend checking out the last few posts on Paper Graffiti and Potential Lunch Winner. It will give you a good glimpse into the mind of someone who needs some serious help. Who knew someone could love Kids Inc. that much? C! R! A! Z! Y! Incorporated!

I’d also like to welcome Krystal back to the blogging universe. If you need party ideas or want to know where pop culture is headed next I suggest you give it a read. Plus, her posts are much better written than mine.

Ramblings

First of all. I’d like to give a hearty “Bellbottoms!” to Bob the definition of friend.

“Big Ups” to MOL Jr. for actually leaving comments, and for his riling of the Harry Potterettes on his blog. It’s also a nice way to get more hits on your blog.

Congratulations to Rafael Palmeiro on getting his 3,000th hit. I think I still have his Topps “Future Stars” card somewhere. I remember him slapping hits all over the field when he started off with the Cubs. Of course they traded him because they thought he wouldn’t hit for power. What bothers me is this thinking that he doesn’t deserve to be voted into the Hall of Fame. He is one of four to have at least 3,000 hits and 500 HRs. Only four have accomplished this feat in all of baseball. Four! And people don’t think he belongs. For two sides on the Palmeiro issue check out Buster Olney (For the Hall) and Skip Bayless (Against the Hall). I personally side with Buster on this issue. I agree that Palmeiro is not the greatest of his era, and there are players with lesser stats that I would pick over him. But, perhaps that’s our fault. Rather than over estimating his stats, maybe we’ve under estimated Palmeiro in this juiced ball era.

ESPN began there 50 SportsCenters in 50 states Sunday. Fifteen minutes into the first state (Mass.) and I’m already sick of the Bryan Adams song (“Open Road”?) they are using as the theme. Actually I was sick of it, by the second promo I saw. Why they didn’t pick a song for each show that represents that state I will never know.

The Cubs are hitting and pitching well simultaneously. Yes, I’m scared that I just jinxed it with that last sentence. Of course they beat up on the two worst teams in the division, but it’s a start.

It’s tough rooting for the Cards when they play the Astros or Braves or whoever is in contention with the Cubs in the Wild Card race.

The last thing I expected to hear from Tim Brown when he retired was his interest in NASCAR.

Being a cancer survivor myself it’s tough not wanting to root for Armstrong in the Tour de France. But being a kid of divorce, I think him leaving a wife that stuck by his side in the tough times was a punk move.

Yes, I am actually happy that the NHL is back. I really don’t watch much of the regular season, but I do love the playoffs.

Does anyone really care about the ESPY’s? When sports have their own championships why do we even need the ESPY’s? I mean other than Matthew Perry, who was glad to remind the public he still exists.

Has a quote on a bumper sticker ever actually caused someone to change their life?

Where are these women that apparently love bald men?

The greatest TV title sequence is the one for “Rockford Files.”

If you haven’t yet started changed your internet browser from Explorer to Firefox, you seriously need to get with it.

Remember when “Collectibles” simply meant baseball cards and comic books?

Why can’t I find a really good enchilada in LA?

My youngest sister is coming into town tonight. She’s staying for a whole wonderful week, so the posts may be slow in coming this week. I can’t wait to show her the greatest record store in the world: Amoeba.