Monday, August 28, 2006

Wow.

It's pretty astounding (or not?) to see that a gubernatorial candidate could be such an idiot.

Her quote:
"If you're not electing Christians, then in essence you are going to legislate sin."

However:
"...the issues have been overshadowed by news of her dealings with a corrupt defense contractor who gave her $32,000 in illegal campaign contributions."

Later, she became even more audacious:
"Look, I'm an equal opportunity hater. Jews, Muslims, Buddhists...you're all going to hell. Unless you contribute to my campaign."*

*She didn't actually say that, but does it really matter?

Friday, August 25, 2006

Obsessive? Part 2.

A few months ago I pondered how I might attract more traffic to Scatterbrain. My friend Chad responded that the road to success lied in waxing philosophical about lion's testicles and Troy Polamalu's wife, which were sure-fire ways to obtain random hits. Interestingly enough, as I scanned my SiteMeter results a few minutes ago, I found that my site has been hit quite a few times by searches for "Polamalu's wife" via Google. And I never even made such a post! Said Google hits are actually locating Chad's comment responding to my original "Obsessive" post! Unbelievable. But, alas, I accept my fate.

So, my friends, welcome to Polamalu's Wife Blog, your one-stop shop for Polamalu's wife, Polamalu himself, and Polamalu's massive hair (actually, for the record, I hear Polamalu is actually a really great guy).

Just to make sure you're not feeling ripped off, since you no doubt clicked on my link to see pictures of Polamalu's wife, here's a hot picture of her for your viewing pleasure:


Misc. Music Ramblings.

Every time I see the Billboard Top 40 Albums these days, I become more perplexed. Let’s be serious here – I might not like a lot of top 40, but the list usually features at least a handful of good stuff. And as far as the top acts are concerned, if I haven’t actually heard them, I’ve usually at least heard of them at some point.

So it is with great surprise these days that I find myself continually clueless about who the most popular artist in the country is. Last month, it was LeToya, who turns out to be a chick that used to be in Destiny’s Child and got the boot. She’s still on the list at #11, and I’ve still never heard any of her songs…but my sixth sense predicts “crap.” This month the #1 is Rick Ross. Who, again? The record label is Def Jam, though, which must equate to “people will buy anything if Jay-Z says so.” Fair enough.

One more thing – why, why, why is Nickelback still in the Top 10? Do I really need to elaborate this point?

After reading these names in print, and possibly imagining listening them, you no doubt require immediate cleansing, so rush to the closest record store and buy anything by Radiohead, Tool, Smashing Pumpkins, Alice in Chains, A Tribe Called Quest, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Bob Dylan, Rolling Stones, U2…do you want me to keep going?

Let’s say you’re in the mood for some “Top 40” type music – then for God’s sake, go buy Kelly Clarkson’s Breakaway CD, which I have to admit, is actually incredibly good as far as pop is concerned. Plus she’s a good Texan girl and brings rock to the masses, and how can you argue with that?

Support good music!

Thursday, August 24, 2006

The Calm Before the Storm.

It's an interesting, unsettling feeling when you take a few minutes to relax, watch TV, and shut down your brain, knowing that those few minutes could have, and probably should have, been spent analyzing and strategizing for what will probably be the most hectic two months of your life forthcoming. But you’ve just finished running another 3 miles, you’re dead tired, and your brain isn’t feeling very active. The cherry on top is the looming fact that you have an EE (Electrical Engineering, for you non-nerds) undergraduate degree, are working a strictly-EE job, but you’re about to get your MBA and you have no idea how you will convince companies that you’re the right fit for a business job, partially due to the fact that it’s a very daunting task to make C++ programming experience sound compatible to finance or marketing jobs.

Instead, you decide to sleep.

Where's the Love?!

Ouch - no more love for my boy Pluto. Astronomers have decided to "demote" him! It's all good, Pluto - you don't need them anyway.

Saturday, August 19, 2006

Question:

...What's more satisfying than getting a new pair of tennis shoes?

Answer: Getting two new pairs of tennis shoes because although you didn't think there was anywhere in Fort Worth that sold decent tennis shoes, you stumbled upon the exact shoes you wanted, for which you were originally planning to drive to Dallas and spend $110 to obtain, but instead you inexplicably find them in a runner's store for $50 each because they have too much inventory, and you take advantage of the great deal:




















When I'm finished with school, these things are going to take a serious beating.

*insert evil laugh here*

Snakes + Plane = Massive Entertainment.

Yes, that's right, I saw the one and only Snakes on a Plane yesterday, and I am relieved more than anything else to declare is was a great movie. Although it won't be winning Oscars any time soon, it delivered the perfect amount of B-movie cheese without flagrantly being just a B-movie. Plus it maintained just the right amount of suspense to keep you on edge; even though you're not really scared, you know that those pesky snakes could be hiding anywhere, and could pop out at any time. And keep in mind, these are movie snakes, so they're quite ornery. The first time one lunged to, for example, take a nose dive into someone's eye socket, I thought "man, those snakes must have woken up on the wrong side of the bed!"

Of course, anchoring the movie is the one and only "Bad Motherfucker," Jules, I mean, Samuel L. Jackson. He ain't afraid of no snakes. I mean, if you're a snake, would you attack Samuel L.? I think not. Among my favorite nuances of the movie is the fact that on the plane, Mr. Jackson never takes off his black leather jacket - no matter what (you'll see what I mean).

Plot? Other characters? Come on now, you all shouldn't care about these details. What you should care about is that it's worth the price of admission just to see highly disgruntled snakes kill people in ways that will make you cringe just from seeing it, and to hear Mr. Jackson say "the line."

Let me know what you think!

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

First 3.

Yesterday was a brutal run. I always joke about my “retirement” from running at the end of each Half, although clearly I still get a lot of cardio work in through tennis. However, for the most part, I do drop any semblance of long-distance running for short bursts of speed, so the first run of the training regimen is particularly hellish. Today my muscles are actually pretty sore. Pathetic!

On a side-note, I’d like to reiterate my recommendation for the new Muse album. I thought I’d grow weary of the endless rotation after a couple weeks, but it hasn’t happened yet. Go pick it up!

Tuesday, August 15, 2006

Run, Badger, Run!

Today training begins for the trifecta of half-marathons Mrs. Badger and I will have run after November 5. We ran our first Half together while dating and our second while engaged, so it only makes sense to bring them full-circle with one married Half under our belt as well. Then, on November 5, somewhere around 10 a.m., I will once again retire from running, only to come back for brief, mediocre cameos over and over again, much like a professional athlete or rapper that just can’t leave well enough alone.

Goals for this year:

-Attempt to be photographed with a look that trumps the agony of The Half 2005.
-Turn around the inverse improvement trend currently implemented.
-Two words – huge calves. I must have them!
-Investigate whether it’s possible to do schoolwork while running long distances.
-Keeping hitting the gym as well, to avoid shrinking into stick-figure-Badger.
-Color-coordinate all outfits to look stylish while wearing aforementioned expression of agony (“Is he okay?!” “I’m not sure, but those Dri-Fit threads are nice.”).

I’ll try to keep you all updated with the training log, since my brain has been a vacuous wasteland of late, sapped of anything intelligible to say due to schoolwork overload. 2 more months…

Thursday, August 10, 2006

Jet-Setting

The crazy schedule never ends - I'm off to Vegas very early tomorrow morning for another weekend of madness with the boys. I'm fairly exhausted right now due to massive quantities of schoolwork I've finished in preparation to actually be able to relax a bit while I'm out of town. And speaking of which, today was a milestone of sorts - it was my last lecture class of the MBA. Monday I have a class which will consist of all presentations, then the subject courses are finished, and it's Management Game time. If I make it out of that with my sanity in check, I'm going to go on a one-month TV binge diet. I'll begin taking suggestions now for must-see shows and movies I missed over the last few years that I'll watch come October...

Thursday, August 03, 2006

Various Notes from the Road.

I've been out of town this week for work training. Here are a few notes from the Doubletree hotel in Rockville, MD:

-Surprise, surprise - it's just as hot up here as it is in Fort Worth. Boo.

-Since my bed at home is now decked out with a new mattress, down comforter, and astronomically high thread-count sheets, the hotel bed feels like a plank with a tarp on it.

-This hotel charges for internet use, which greatly annoys me. It seems to me that a hotel which accommodates 90% business travelers (if not more) should include internet at no additional charge. Yes, I'd rather have the internet charge built into the cost of the room even though it would take away my choice, and yes, I know how illogical that is.

-One of the things I learned at training this week was the "Scale o' Commitment" (not the real name). The "lowest" level of commitment is political, where you are dedicated to a project due to a "what's in it for me" perspective, i.e. you are paid to do it, etc. The intellectual commitment is when you are mentally attached to an objective through logic; you want to reorganize your desk in a certain way because you think it will be more efficient. The emotional commitment is even deeper, where you are driven by your feelings. Finally, there is the spiritual commitment, where you are driven by your dedication to a higher purpose. We glossed over the spiritual one since for the most part it doesn't apply to business initiatives, but it struck me the most since during breaks, the plasma TVs on the wall of the learning center flashed incessant reminders of war. How can you bring peace between two countries who both believe in their own, different, higher purposes?

-A super-short-top-of-my-head-which-I'll-probably-want-to-change-later list of awesome first songs off first albums (see TWM's "FIRSTS ON FIRSTS"):

Radiohead - "You"
Because it's Radiohead, and I'll never forget the first time I heard it.

Nine Inch Nails - "Head Like a Hole"
Trent arrives on the scene and sets the precedent for NIN's sound, which sounds just as fresh today.

Oasis - "Rock and Roll Star"
Although they've had a tumultuous career, "Definitely Maybe" is a masterpiece and the opener sets the stage.

Guns n' Roses - "Welcome to the Jungle"
An absolute no-brainer.

Rage Against the Machine - "Bombtrack"
Fierce. Thinking about this song makes me sad that Rage is no longer.

Korn - "Blind"
It took me a while to think of this one since Korn is godawful now. This song, however, has stood the test of time and was a crashing, unforgettable first-first.

Alice in Chains - "We Die Young"
Our introduction to AIC, the song is now even more gripping given Layne Staley's fate.

Weezer - "My Name is Jonas"
My favorite Weezer song was also their first^2.

That's all I can think of for now. Have a good night, everyone.