The Post-Brodeo Recap

All in all, I have to say the brodeo was great fun. We kicked the day off by watching the Cubs/Cards game and grilling some brats. Then around 5:30, most of the guys showed up, and we commenced the full-on grilling (brats, italian sausage, steak, and hamburger). From about 6 to midnight, we sat on the patio swapping tales, telling jokes, sipping beers, and just generally enjoying life.

It's been a long time since I've had an outing with "the guys," and it was really a lot of fun. Thanks to everyone who came. We have to do it again soon.

A Brodeo

This weekend, my wife is out of town, so I'm having a "guys day" on Saturday at my place. Basically, it's just going to be a handful of dudes sitting around eating grilled meats, drinking beers, and kicking it. It should be fun.

A few days ago, I saw this video on Youtube and thought it was pretty funny. It's probably a lot like what's going to go down here on Saturday. By the way, in my day an all dudes party was a "sausage fest." Apparently the new term of choice is "brodeo." I can roll either way.
Punchy


And here's a little leaked footage from the making of Punchy 2. The guys at WickedAwesomeFilms are spoofing the recently leaked David O. Russell/Lily Tomlin meltdown on the seat of I Heart Huckabees.

Movie Geeks Club: Past and Future

Last night was the 4th Movie Geeks Club. As posted previously, we watched the Richard Linklater film A Scanner Darkly. I'm glad we had the opportunity to see this film on the big screen. I think the animation certainly looked cooler on the theater screen than it would on my 25" television. Personally, I enjoyed the movie a great deal. I've always like Philip K. Dick's writing, and so many of his common themes were explored in this movie. It really was a fun movie. As an aside, however, if you think this movie was cool, I would definitely encourage you to check out Dick's writing. A ton of his short stories and novels have been turned into movies, but they really don't do his work justice. To really experience Dick (har, har), you have to read him. Even if you don't have a lot of time in your schedule, track down a few of his short stories. They're quick reads and they immediately suck you in. One of my favorite of his short stories is "Second Variety."



Our next movie for Movie Geeks Club will be Leon (The Professional). This is the Luc Besson film with Jean Reno and a very young Natalie Portman. We'll be showing it Tuesday, May 29.

Springfield Air Service - A New Hope

Let’s hope today is a turning point for the Springfield Abraham Lincoln Capital Regional Airport etc, etc. Today is the inaugural United Express flight to Dulles International Airport in Washington, DC. In the past few years, SPI has barely had a pulse. There have been flights to Chicago and St. Louis and an attempt at Memphis but it seems that even that much service has been a struggle. St. Louis flights have even been on and off again.

This has not been entirely the fault of the airport or the people of this city. The airline industry has been struggling all together but some airports in small to mid-size cities like Springfield have evolved in this changing environment. They have invested money in their airports and attracted regional flights to major hubs as well as vacation destination flights. I look to Bloomington and Peoria as cities that have done this. Bloomington flies to major hubs (Atlanta, Detroit & O’Hare) and major vacation spots (Orlando & Vegas). Peoria has major hubs (Atlanta, Dallas, Minneapolis & O’Hare) as well as vacation spots (Vegas & St. Pete, FL). The make-up of those cities is different in that our major industry is state government while their industries are large private industries. That does make a difference particularly due to the fact that there is much more private investment money available.

However, we do have major tourism as well as many smaller companies. This is why adding the Dulles flight is so exciting. I feel like my post is a defense of the Dulles flight which I directly attribute to my obsession of paying attention to the comments on the SJ-R website. The comments on any story about Springfield are typically cynical. Mainly because those people are jaded about the direction of their own lives and feel good when they can make an argument against this fine city in the comfort of anonymity. Anyway, I was shocked to see that nearly ¾ of the people polled thought that the Dulles flight was a was a bad idea. I was shocked. I believe they saw that public funds were being used to jump start the flight and that it was to be Senator Durbin’s personal air service. I also have a feeling that people think that the only purpose of the flight is the destination. The purpose is the destination AND the fact that it is one of the biggest hubs in the country. It’s not quite O’Hare but it’s up there. This map below shows the destinations it serves. You will find shorter, and sometimes cheaper flights to cities up and down the east coast. It’s not only the east coast though. I randomly checked flights to London from Springfield through Dulles. It was $893. O’Hare was $1702. That is a huge difference but probably an extreme example.
I hope that people will take advantage of this new service when they can and I hope that if it is successful, new investment can go into our airport and we can attempt to attract flights to hubs not served in central Illinois like Denver, Phoenix or Houston. That would also open up opportunities for vacation destinations like a Las Vegas, Ft. Lauderdale or Orlando. I really believe that today’s flight could be a big turning point for Springfield air service.

Internet Archive Show of the Week -- Derek Trucks Band

It's been awhile. I haven't been listening to a lot of new stuff on the Archive lately. But then about a week ago, I found this show by Derek Trucks Band. Derek Trucks is the nephew of Butch Trucks, the legendary drummer of the Allman Brothers Band. Derek was a child prodigy on the guitar, picking it up at age 9, and touring heavily at age 11. In 1994, Trucks formed the Derek Trucks Band. In 1999, he also joined the Allman Brothers Band and has toured with them since.

Derek's guitar style is obviously influenced by Duane Allman's Southern blues style, but he was also heavily influenced by Middle Eastern and Asian music, especially by Indian sarod players, which gives him a definitive style. In early 2007, Trucks was listed alongside John Mayer and John Frusciante as one of the "New Guitar Gods."

This is one of the most recent and most popular Derek Trucks Band shows on the Archive, and it features guest appearances by Trucks' wife, Susan Tedeschi.

Live at Mushroom Stage, Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park on 2007-04-15

State Fair Lineup

Rich Miller is reporting the grandstand lineup for this year's state fair. I have to say I'm not only disappointed, I'm disgusted. This is one of the worst lineups in years. There's not a single act there that I would even consider going to see.

In my opinion, the state fair is one of the few chances people around here get to see bigger music acts locally. I don't know if I'm just out of touch with what the majority of people in this area want to see, but I don't see why these particular acts have been chosen. I'd like to see a little diversity. We're getting numerous country acts (Gretchen Wilson, Martina McBride, and Sugarland, with their accompanying openers). We're getting the teeny-boppers show (some dude from High School Musical and some dude from Nickelodeon). And then we get Daughtry.

There are so many musicians out there playing smaller arenas and grandstands that I can't imagine this is the best we can do. What happened to finding some aging rock and roll act that had some great tunes back in the day? I can at least live with that.

Sometimes I feel like the state fair grandstand shows are being run like the Cleveland Indians in Major League. Like the people in charge are trying to make it fail for some reason. There's always this complaint that attendance is low and that people are not coming to see grandstand shows. Lineups like this don't promote attendance.

Stealing Lincoln's Body

I read a review this morning of the book, Stealing Lincoln's Body, by Thomas J. Craughwell. It's a good review of a good book about a good story. It's about the botched attempt to steal Abraham Lincoln's corpse in 1876. The story is really pretty funny; a lot like something you'd see the Three Stooges in. I mean, these guys were inept.

Near the end of the review, the reviewer speculates on the power of Lincoln and how his popularity is still so prevalent in publishing circles. Specifically that we're going to see a huge resurgence in Lincoln books in the buildup to his 200th birthday. It sounds like we'll be seeing a lot of reprints becoming available, and it sounds like some new books are on the way as well.

My favorite quote is below:

In fact, there's an old adage in publishing that the way to ensure a book is a best seller is to write about Lincoln, dogs or doctors - which prompted one author to title a book about publishing in the 1930s, "Lincoln's Doctor's Dog."

Movie Geeks Club - A Scanner Darkly

It's that time of the month again. The Capital City Bar and Grill presents A Scanner Darkly on Tuesday, April 24th at 7:30 pm. Doors open at 7 pm.

A Scanner Darkly is based on a book of the same name that was released in 1977 and written by Sci-Fi author Philip Dick. While the book was written in 1977, it actually took place in 1994. In the film version, the setting is somewhere about 2013 in Los Angeles. The United States has essentially lost the war on drugs and the police are using a new type of surveillance to battle a new drug simply known as "D". "D" is a highly addictive, physchoactive drug that is derived from small blue flowers. The story follows an undercover police officer, Arctor, who has infiltrated the drug community. The story gets complex when it's revealed that Arctor is addicted to "D". There are elements of futuristic law enforcement tools, the blurred line between undercover law enforcement and the drug sub-culture, paranoia and hallucination. In the end, the concept of sacrificing one for the better of society is the question left for the viewer to digest.

Keanu Reeves plays the central character Arctor. The film also stars (ironically) Robert Downey, Jr., Winona Ryder, Woodey Harrelson and Rory Cochrane. It is directed by Richard Linklater.

He directed one of my all time favorites Dazed and Confused as well as subUrbia, Slacker, Waking Life, School of Rock and Fast Food Nation. He also directed the Before Sunrise and Before Sunset films.

One of the things that makes this film unique is that it is filmed in Rotoscope. That basically means that it was filmed digitally but edited over to make it animated. It's a striking technique because it's animation that captures true human movement.

A Great Story about Stephen Douglas

I read about this last week and thought it would make a great post on the blog. It really shows how far we've come as a country in terms of how we approach politics and each other as people.

Way back in 1837, Stephen Douglas was running for Congress. His opponent was John T. Stuart. Stuart was tall, strapping, handsome; a real Gaston, I'm told. He was also a Whig. Douglas, known at the time as "The Little Giant" was a Democrat and quite opposite in appearance. He was short and squat, but well-known for his strength.

One day the two men were holding a debate in downtown Springfield when things got a little heated. Douglas finally got so frustrated that he started spewing insults and using all-around rude and offensive language. Stuart grabbed Douglas and threw him in a headlock. With all his strength, Stuart held onto that headlock and proceeded to drag the much-smaller Douglas around an entire city block for everyone to see. Douglas, angry and embarrassed, screamed and kicked violently. He also nearly bit Stuart's thumb clean off.

Stuart went on to win the election.

No New Show This Week

Due to a desire to make some editing changes to the show we taped last week with The Writer's Block, we're going to postpone the airing of a new show this week. As a replacement, we will be airing our interview with Jessica English. It was a fantastic interview. Be sure to check it out.

It's Our Springfield, Damn It!

This is a screenshot from an opening sequence of The Simpsons that aired recently. You'll notice as the camera zooms out away from Earth that the dot I've located is roughly where the camera zoom originated from. Isn't that pretty close to Central Illinois? I say, "Hell yes, it is!"

Hey Candidate People

Stop leaving leaflets in my door. I'm about to vote on the people who have left the fewest number of leaflets at my house. Seriously, the number of times I see your name on a brightly colored piece of paper doesn't change my mind. It's just annoying. Especially when you leave 4-5 pieces at the same time. That just makes me feel like you don't care at all about the environment, and it makes me want to vote against you.

Don't be asses!

The Coach Blog

In a totally random turn of events, yesterday I stumbled on The Coach Blog, a blog devoted entirely to the sitcom Coach, starring Craig T. Nelson and Jerry Van Dyke. What's great about this blog is the guy who writes it, Chuck, claims that he was never really a fan of the show and doesn't even know that much about it. He stumbles through trying to remember episodes and aspects of the show using generalizations about the characters. The result is, in my opinion, hilarious.

Here are a couple of notable blog entries.

The Mime

Coach’s daughter (whose name I cannot remember) was dating this really pansy guy who was a mime. He was so pansy. He wore, I think, a helmet whenever he went out running because he was afraid of getting hurt. Also, I think he got nose bleeds all the time and Coach’s daughter would always dote over him and make sure he was okay and be hell of worried about his nose. But worst of all, from Coach’s point of view, he was a mime. Clearly if you are the head football coach at a Big-10 (I think it was the Big-10 or at least some fictional equivalent of the Big-10) college you do not want your daughter dating some pansy, nose-bleeding, effeminate mime. Also, the mime’s name was, I’m pretty sure, Stuart. Not only did the writers take the time to make him a weakly feeble mime, they also gave him a name that they knew football coaches the world over would detest; no one who is a football coach likes a guy named Stuart.

So much hilarity ensued when Stuart tried to show Coach how good he was for Coach’s daughter, and how strong he really could be. It was sort of tragic though, because he always failed, no matter how hard he tried.

Even though it was technically tragic I do not think it was sad, however. That guy was a real douche bag.

Or this one,

Dauber's Girl

I’ve previously made a couple references to the tall basketball coach chick that Dauber totally had a thing for. This created some hilarious situations on Coach because Coach really didn’t get along with the basketball coach chick. I think maybe the whole point of contention was that she thought women were good athletes and Coach was a sexist asshole. Anyway, it probably made for some pretty funny material when, for instance, she would be addressing Dauber and Coach was in the room and she would say something to Dauber that was just totally ordinary, but Coach would overhear what they were talking about and turn the phrase so that it was insulting and sexist. Then the basketball chick would like, maybe, roll her eyes and kind of mug at the camera, but Coach would just be hell of nonchalant, and not even look up from his paperwork. Man, Coach always played it so smooth, even when he was at his most sexist.

I think that chick had a southern accent or something.

Or this little gem:

I guess when it wasn’t football season Coach was less about the life of a football coach and more about the life of a tall misogynist and his zany friends. Actually, that sounds like an awesome show. I wonder if Coach would have been on the air longer if there hadn’t been as many football-themed episodes.

Chuck has had this blog up and running for over a year. I've started by going back to the very beginning and reading the posts. I honestly haven't laughed so hard in a long time. Some of the stuff is just hilarious. Why is it so funny? Well for starters, this guy's writing style is pretty hilarious. It's very informal and sort of slackerly. Also, I would wager that Chuck is actually very familiar with the show and uses his knowledge to play completely dumb. Some of his "guesses" are spot on.

How did I stumble across this thing? Well, Coach airs currently on USA at 5:00 AM and 5:30 AM. When I'm up in the morning getting breakfast together, I watch Coach. I also suffer from this thing called Internet Addiction where I feel that I need to learn everything I can about certain things by using the internet. Robots for example. Or, I did this with Roseanne last year, and now I'm doing it with Coach. It is really pointless to learn the depth of detail about these things that I do, and it makes for terribly lame party trivia. Someone will approach with some crazy trivia about some crazy piece of history, and I return in kind with some sort of lame-ass quip about a hilarious behind-the-scenes moment from My Two Dads. I'm pathetic. But, from time to time I stumble across great things. The Coach Blog is one of them. Check it out.

Assembly of Dust -- Making of The Honest Hour

I discovered Assembly of Dust through Internet Archive, and I like them more and more with each listen. This morning I was browsing YouTube, and I found this video they made to document some of their favorite elements of their live album, The Honest Hour.

This is a great video to watch if you're interested in Assembly of Dust. It gives you a little background on the songs on the album and how those songs came together for the live recording. You get a chance to see each band member talk about the songs and what the other players did that improved the song or the record as a whole.

It's a good video to watch even if you've never heard AOD before. It provides a nice look at the creative process that goes into making music, playing music, and putting together a live album. Plus, it gives you a chance to hear some core AOD tunes. A little preview, if you will. This is a good primer for AOD.



On a side note, Assembly of Dust will be playing the pre-party at Summercamp this year in Chillicothe. The date of that show is Thursday, May 24.

Jessica English on Just Two Guys

Today is the premiere of our episode with Jessica English. This is the first new episode to hit the airwaves in a while, so catch it if you can. As always, we open the show with a short Q & A and close down with a +/- 20 minute interview of Jessica English.

Showtimes are 11:30 AM and 8:30 PM on Access 4.

Baseball Show Postponed

We were also planning to tape a show last night about the baseball team/stadium issue we've been discussing in the blogosphere recently. Micah and I have a bunch of ideas on the issue, and we wanted to devote a show to discussing the various details involved with bringing baseball back to Springfield.

As we got closer and closer to tape time, however, I started to get this feeling that we were not quite ready to do it. I think Micah had spent some time preparing, but I've been so busy recently, that I didn't have much time to really think about what I wanted to say and how I wanted to say it. For me, it just came down to the fact that I want to hit a home run with this baseball issue (pun intended). If we would have taped the show last night, I fear I would have made a Cubs 8th inning choke look like a shining victory.

So, we talked and decided to postpone the baseball show for a little down the road. We've already got about fifty ideas to deliver a solid, informative, and thought-provoking show. We'll keep you posted as details become available.

Interview with The Writer's Block

During last night's taping, we interviewed Jen and Staci of The Writer's Block. Shanna couldn't be with us, due to an illness. We could tell that Jen and Stacy were both quite nervous prior to the interview, but they both relaxed as we started taping. It's pretty interesting to me how quickly people forget about the cameras and start talking. The ladies are obviously passionate about "local creativity," and they're certainly doing their part to promote a thriving literary community in Central Illinois.

If you've ever wanted to publish something you've written, send it to The Writer's Block and do your part to promote local creativity. Interested? Then click here.

We would personally like to thank Jen and Staci for being on the show.

When Government is Working for You

Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to let you know that your government is taking strides to make the world a better place for all of us. Here's a brief summary of a bill currently on the House floor.

Horse slaughter ban: The bill makes it illegal for any person to slaughter a horse if the slaughtered horse meat will be used for human consumption. Status: On the House floor.

This bill is sure to hurt companies like Hot Pockets in the state of Illinois. Let's just hope the horse slaughter lobby doesn't prove too great a challenge for our noble lawmakers.

from Prairie Farmer

Springfield's Race to the The Simpsons Movie

According to Rotten Tomatoes, Springfield is front-runner in the race for The Simpsons Movie Premiere because we "actually have some nuclear power plants."

Some nuclear power plants? That's the only reason they provide for our potential success in this endeavor? When I first read the headline, I hoped to read something substantial about how the various Springfields are faring thus far. Then when I saw Springfield, Illinois mentioned specifically, I got my hopes up. But this is a lame reason to think that Springfield is a front-runner. Not to mention, Scott Weinberg loses all credibility by by writing that our power plants are "nuclear," when they are in fact coal-fired. What ever happened to fact checking?

Springfield's bloggers have done a far better job of guessing the outcome of this thing.

What Springfield Needs Now

I think Springfield needs a microbrewery. I don't see any reason why a nice craft brewery couldn't survive in Springfield. Think about how cool it would be to have a tasty selection of hometown brews on tap when you visit a local bar or restaurant. Imagine an Abe Lincoln Ale, a Lincoln Lager, a Stovepipe Stout. Or maybe some of the Reisch brewery recipes could be dusted off and put back into use, thereby connecting Springfield's brewing past, with the brewing present and future.

I was reading an article in one of the beer magazines (can't think of the name right now, too lazy to go get it) about starting your own microbrewery. It just got me thinking about how Springfield doesn't have a lot of those things that draw local pride.

I'd gladly support a local product.

New Museum on its Way to Springfield

An article from WLNS News in Lansing, Michigan, is reporting that the National Museum of Surveying is relocating from its current home in Lansing to Springfield, Illinois. Hoping to draw on the Lincoln connection (Lincoln was once a surveyor himself), the museum thinks Springfield is a better place to draw visitors than Lansing. The article has no mention of where the new museum will be located, but it says the museum will be finished in Spring 2008, and will include a special exhibit on Lincoln's surveying days.

Two New Shows

We tape two new shows tomorrow night. In the first show, we'll explore the seedy underworld known as the Springfield literary arts scene. Our special guests will be Shanna Hull, Jen Pittner, and Staci Howard, the founders of The Writer's Block, a locally published literary arts magazine, featuring the writing and artwork of many local artists. The Writer's Block is coming up on its one year mark in the literary landscape.

The second show will feature a discussion on our dreams and ideas of bringing baseball back to the capital city. Micah and I will discuss the arguments for and against various locations around the city as the site of a new baseball stadium, as well as what it might take to attract a team, attract a fan base for said team, and keep a team here.

That Danged Intersection at Hedley and White Oaks West

Here's some Youtube footage of that death trap we call an intersection at Hedley and White Oaks West, right behind Cub Foods.
They claim this is some random intersection in Russia, but I think we all know where this footage was really shot.

Jessica English on Just Two Guys

We taped a new show last night with Jessica English, morning anchor at WICS Channel 20. The show will air next Friday (April 13, 2007) at 3:30 AM, 11:30 AM, and 8:30 PM.

It was one of our best interviews to date. Jessica spoke freely about her beginnings in broadcasting and about the daily routine of a morning anchor. She reveals some details you won't want to miss.

Jessica definitely brought a touch of class to the Just Two Guys set, and we appreciate her taking time out of her schedule to hang out with us for awhile.

Rumor Control

The city of Baltimore, Maryland has an official public office called the Baltimore Rumor Control Office. It was established in 1968 and was originally developed as a way to ease tensions brought on by the assassination of Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. At the time, there was rioting in the city, and a lot of people were getting a lot of bad information from word-of-mouth sources. Someone came up with the idea to establish an office that could deliver answers on rumors that bounced around town. After tensions declined, the city felt the Rumor Control Office had been helpful and decided to make it a full-time part of the city government.

Now fast forward to today. The Rumor Control Office is still opened, it's telephone manned by one guy in a lonely little office. The office only receives about 90 calls a month. Most people who call want to know which streets are closed for construction, or if the airport is experiencing any delays. But the city still feels it's an important asset during times of confusion. Take the days following the 9-11 terrorist attacks. The office received 45 calls a day asking about terror-related plots involving Baltimore.

Generally, the official rumor controller's job is to investigate the "big ones" that float around town. In Baltimore, for example, there have been rumors for years about Chihuahua-sized rats roaming around the ports or about alligators living in the city's sewer system. Additionally, a popular Baltimore-area rumor involves a research project at Johns Hopkins University. During the 1980s, the university was studying cicadas in the area, and they asked people to catch cicadas and turn them in for a small fee. Every year, the Rumor Control office has to answer questions about the price of cicadas this year.

I think this rumor control idea is an interesting one. On one hand, I think it would be a nice resource if I hear something about Springfield that just seems a little off. On the other hand, I feel like it would be a waste. Although, I do think that would be a dream job. Can you imagine the kind of weirdness you'd encounter?

Do you think a municipal rumor control office would be an asset to the community or an unnecessary waste of resources? For example, would Springfield benefit from such an office? I bet the phone would have been ringing off the hook during the Obama Announcement Frenzy.