TWO OUT OF THREE AIN'T BAD

I didn’t really claim a winner for Dance so we just won’t count that. Plus, a fall in dance is almost unheard of so how was I to know Belbin and Augusto were going to be out before things really even started. They were lucky to pull up to fourth. No one was predicting Buttle would walk away with the gold in the men’s event. As far as pairs, I called first and the couples that came in 2nd and 3rd (The Zhao’s and Dube and Davidson) were mentioned in my post. For ladies, Mao Asada came out on top even with the fantastic opening fall below. I've taken that fall before and it really knocks the wind out of you. I can't believe she got up and did as well as she did. Just as I predicted and Kostner and Kim were right behind her. It’s good to be right.



Other than watching skating I had a pretty calm weekend. Tony was working a lot so I really got to take it easy. We did have time for a few movies though, Bee Movie and No Country for Old Men. I enjoyed them both. Bee Movie was technically pretty horrible but there were some nice messages in there, like we all exploit each other for the good of the world. An odd message for a children’s film but an interesting one. As far as No Country For Old Men is concerned, I didn’t see the other nominated films but this one was pretty freaking good. It left me with one question though, who came up with the idea for a silencer for a shotguns. It’s just evil.

Lyrics reveal

1. Identity/ Identity is the crisis you can’t see/ Identity/ Identity. Identity X-Ray Spex

2. Did I/ See a moment/ With you/ In a half-lit world. Mourning Air, Portishead

3. Ghost, ghost I know you live within me/ Feel as you fly/ In thunderclouds above the city/ Into one that I. Ghost, Neutral Milk Hotel

4. I’m tired of wasting gas living above the planet/ Mister show me the way to earth/ The boys from quadrant 44 with their vicious metal hounds don’t come round here no more. Ballad of Maxwell Demon, Shudder to Think

5. Downtown/ We’ll drown/ We’re in our never splendor/ Flowers/ Showers/ Who’s got the new boy gender. I’ll Tumble For You, Culture Club.

THEY DID NOT DISSAPOINT: AND OTHER NEWS

I so called it. The US “ladies” have a world team that will be made up of the 3^rd, 5^th, and 7^th place finishers at nationals. Poor 6^th place Katrina Hacker got passed up for last year’s champ Kimmie Meisner but I can’t blame anyone for doing so. She certainly isn’t ready for Worlds. The Pairs event also saw its winner being bypassed for Worlds because of age issues. At least the US ladies Jr. World team will kick butt.

The Men’s event was, as predicted, awesome. The two top finishers actually tied (unheard of with the new scoring system) but as Evan won the long program (by 1.35 points) he won the gold. It wasn’t the result I wanted and made me wish Johnny tacked one single jump onto the end of something or held a spin for one more revolution but so it goes. He was happy with the results so I am as well. Plus, he is so freaking fab in the most hilariously awesome way. I wish I had a picture of him strutting down the NYC streets in a blue bomber jacket with a popped fur collar, skinny jeans, fitted white ankle boots with pom-poms, and aviator glasses while toting shopping bag upon shopping bag that they showed in the NBC profile video. It was too perfect. This will have to do. Oh, and the pictures on his website that Nigel Barker of ANTM fame took of him….uh…yeah.

This weekend I also found a new show, Torchwood. Sure it’s been on for a season already but I had seen one episode with the rents and loved it so when I saw the season 2 opener was on I just had to watch. Imagine my happiness when James Marsters (aka Spike from Buffy) was on. I also learned that there was a very entertaining remake of Bye Bye Birdie starring Jason Alexander, Vanessa Williams, and George Wendt. Awesome and Awesome.

In other awesome news Avenue Q is coming to town as well as JC Superstar with Ted Neely (of the movie) as Jesus and Corey Glover (of Living Color) as Judas. In case anyone was planning to get tickets who is not me or Monica you shouldn’t because we still need to get ours. You can get them next week.

Now for the song reveal.

1. When the Witch Doctor Life/ throws his silent bones/ some are crowned kings/ while others lose their thrones. Witch Doctor, by Captain Beefheart

2. It was a clear black night/ a clear white moon/ Warren G was on the streets trying to consume. Regulators, Warren G and Nate Dogg (come on people)

4. Goodnight/ Goodnight/ Sweet baby/ The world has more for you/ Than it seems. Lullaby, Ben Folds

WE KNOW WHERE I'LL BE THIS WEEKEND

It’s time. The weekend where the US Figure Skating nationals will be aired has finally arrived. This is going to be a very interesting competition. Last night I watched the Ladies event (although it may as well be renamed girls) on icenetwork.com and realized that we very well may be in sorry shape internationally this year. While many of the results surprised me, the judges must have seen some things I didn’t in a few of the skaters, one thing I predicted was true. The best hopes we have for high placements internationally won’t get the opportunity to compete. The reason being they are simply too young.

Skaters are allowed to compete at Worlds and The Olympics if they are over 16 at a particular date. The girl in first place is 14 and the one in third is 15. Neither will be eligible for World competition. Although Caroline Zhang (also 14) currently sits in 7^th for some odd reason she will likely move up in the long program. The person in fifth is not only unknown but didn’t have any of the really hard jumps in her short program which worries me. It looks like there is no way for our best skaters to make the World Team. The Pairs team that is currently leading is also ineligible because the girl in that team is also 15. At least we’ll have a great chance I the 2010 Olympics, provided all these kids don’t hurt themselves.

Anyway, I’m incredibly excited to see what happens this weekend. In case you are interested, and who wouldn’t be, Coverage is on NBC 4-6pm and 8-11pm on Saturday (I believe pairs, dance, and men’s) and 7-9pm on Sunday (I believe ladies). The men’s event should be very promising and I am hoping to see Rohene Ward who Skated at the same rink as me and has one of my old coaches on the TV. Plus he’s a skater of color that isn’t Asian, something incredib;y rare at the top levels. I hope they put him on. If not, though I’ll be seeing it on icenetwork. Best $30 I ever spent.

1. When the Witch Doctor Life/ throws his silent bones/ some are crowned kings/ while others lose their thrones

2. It was a clear black night/ a clear white moon/ Warren g was on the streets trying to consume

3. Riding round town with all the windows down/ Eight track playing all your favorite sounds Summer, War. Identified by Johnny Yen

4. Goodnight/ Goodnight/ Sweet baby/ The world has more for you/ Than it seems

5. All my friends are embryonic/ All my friends are dead and gone/ All my friends are microscopic/ All my friends wake up alone. Gutless, Hole. Identified by Jason

THIS IS FOR ME JUST AS MUCH AS...MONICA

So while browsing around I found an entire of Montreal concert from their recent tour and decided to put it on this blog because...duh, it's awesome. Sadly, they are playing for the lamest crowd I have ever seen in life. Apparently, people in Amsterdam are notoriously dull concert goers or at least so said a commenter who was there that night. Sadly, the dull concert goers seem to have made the band rather dull as well. Where are the jumping up and down crazy theatrics??? Huh??? Huh??? Wait...they are in Amsterdam. Regardless, if I was at a concert where they played So Begins Out Alabee, Wraith Pinned To The Mist and Other Games, Requiem for OMM2, and many many more awesome jams I would have been a crazed dancing fool. Still, it is great to see some live footage that sounds good. Monica just called me to say I am an of Montreal obsessed fool, and it is true. Whatever, she can't wait to watch.


On another note, I have realized that my blog is now about Figure Skating and of Montreal. I should change the name to Definitely Boring Musings Unless You Love Figure Skating and of Montreal. I won't though. I'll just find some other things to post about.

I could write about those fool ass fools who decided to hold a white supremacy rally in Jena on MLK Day but the absolute mess that was such an event doesn't even warrant my rantings. Even a person completely blind to any and all racial bogusness would understand that one.

Today is exciting because I submitted my first flex spending reimbursement. OOOOHHHHH neat. Now that I have a grown up job I get real grown up job perks. I wonder where my transit card that I ordered through that great pre-tax transit program is? There is less than a week and a half until February. It better get here.

Speaking of transit. I can't believe G-rod (our Gov) made it so people over 65 can ride the CTA for free. I hope that only Srs who actually need the break apply for the card. I guess the CEO types generally take their cars anyway. Regardless, as much as I love the Baby Boomers there are far too many of them and they will all be over 65 in the not too distant future. They also happen to be the richest generation ever. It just doesn't quite seem right. I'm all for not taxing people on seriously fixed income and would be more than supportive of a sliding scale payment tier for Srs that went all the way down to free. I guess that would be too much work though. Eh. I'll just watch awesome concert footage and forget about it. When, oh when, will there be a DVD of their awesomeness?

1. When the Witch Doctor Life/ throws his silent bones/ some are crowned kings/ while others lose their thrones

2. It was a clear black night/ a clear white moon/ Warren g was on the streets trying to consume

3. You sure you want to be with me/ I’ve nothing to give/ Won’t lie and say this lovings best. Overcome, Tricky. Identified by Jason.

4. Hey, hey, mama/ said the way you move/Gonna make you sweat/ gonna make you groove. Black Dog, Led Zepplin, Identified by Katrina

5. riding round town with all the windows down/ Eight track playing all your favorite sounds

I REALLY THOUGHT I HAD A POST IN THERE

Since Thursday I have had about a million ideas for a blog post. Sadly, none of them can be remembered currently. So it goes.

I do remember that my record of not falling down has been broken. There was a time when I used to fall down rather often. I don’t know why I was such a clumsy goof but I was always tripping over something. In the past five years or so, maybe more, I have actually regained my balance. It has all been for naught. I went down. I was walking home from work on Friday and there was a light dusting of snow over everything. It also happened to be extremely icy. I slipped and there was no hope of recovery. I was so disappointed in myself.

This weekend was unbelievably cold. I vowed that I wouldn’t leave the house because I was not ready to deal with the cold. I stayed true to my word. The weekend was awesome. On Saturday I spent the large majority of the day under a blanket doing crossword puzzles while Tony played Resistance Fall of Man. Sunday I watched the rest of my old Figure Skating DVDs and Tony and I watched Empire and Jedi. I got out my Jedi figures (many of which have mysteriously disappeared over the years) and acted out many scenes from Jedi (with hilarious embellishment) as the movie played. Yes, I realize this is the dorkiest thing ever to do but it was really funny at the time. Tony had wanted to see all the toys and once they were out I had to do something with them. I miss when my speeder bikes exploded at the push of a button. Now they just kind of flop apart. I thought I had many more old school figures than I appear to have. Many are the next gen figures that I have somehow come into possession of. I wonder what happened to my original Lando at Jaba's figure? He had that awesome helmet and everything. He was super cool. Now I just have the new version. I bet Eric stole them. What a dick (I don’t really think he did but I wouldn’t be at all surprised).

1. When the Witch Doctor Life/ throws his silent bones/ some are crowned kings/ while others lose their thrones

2. My old man he’s a singer in the park/ He’s a walker in the rain/ He’s a dancer in the dark. My Old Man, Joni Mitchell. Identified by Mom.

3. It was a clear black night/ a clear white moon/ Warren g was on the streets trying to

4. You sure you want to be with me/ I’ve nothing to give/ Won’t lie and say this lovings best

5. I ain't happy/ I'm feeling glad/ I got sunshine/ in a bag. Clint Eastwood. Gorillaz. Identified by Monica

SORRY, I AM ALMOST DONE WITH SKATING

I am sure that many of my readers understand that I love Figure Skating more than most people. I accept this fact as well. However, this weekend I think I sunk to extreme Figure Skating dorkdom. Ages ago Mom had taken our beloved Beta tapes from the 1988 Olympics and put them on DVDs for me (although I am still waiting for dance, pairs short, and ladies). Sadly, they would not play on my DVD player or on my ps2. However, I hadn’t tried them on the wonder that is the ps3. Lo and behold they worked! Glory be to me.

It was time to pop some popcorn and settle in for some “Battle of the Brians”. Truly, there was never a greater moment in Olympic history. I also got to watch plenty of Chris Bowman (whose cause of death is still unclear and apparently won’t be knows for many weeks) and was struck by how well he would have fared under the current judging system. His spins were more innovative than virtually anyone else on the scene and he had some decent footwork as well. It is truly amazing how far spinning has come over the past 20 years. Jumping has made some strides as well but not to the extent of spinning. I mean how many rotations can a human being possibly do in the air? I bet someone makes a quintuple jump one of these days but, after that, fuggedaboudid.

Anyway, I remember that the Battle of the Brians was excruciatingly close and was essentially won by Boitano’s higher technical merit marks. I was curious to see if the results would have been as close under the new judging system. Why? Cause I’m an enormous dork. I had to base my results primarily on jumps (because I can easily comprehend their assigned point values) and then factored in spins, footwork, and connecting moves to the best of my ability. The way I calculated the technical marks Boitano came out about five points ahead of Orser. Had I subtracted the points for one of Orsers double axels (it wouldn’t have counted today because it wasn’t in combination) it would have been greater but since they didn’t know about that rule I thought it would be unfair. I also didn’t factor in the 10% bonus for jumps at the end of the program because, again, they didn’t know to backload their programs. The biggest difference was that Boitano did two triple axels (although one got a negative grade of execution for a slight two foot). Orser got a negative grade of execution for a two foot and a “wrunch around” on a triple flip, while Boitano’s triple flip got a positive grade of execution. He also may have gotten a negative grade of execution on his last triple toe. It seems to have been two footed but I am not positive. Both of their spins would have been scoffed at today but it seemed to me that Boitano held his positions a little longer and that they were more precise. That camel Orser did, what was that? A comparison of their Death Drops left Orser in the dust.

However, the presentation mark is something I was unsure about. For the past 20 years I have been trying to understand why Orser so greatly outscored Boitano’s presentation marks. Not that I found anything wrong with Orser’s presentation, it was a fine program, but Boitano’s was a mixture of a cohesive story, emotion, superior positioning on basic skating elements, and general awesomeness. His connecting movements were stellar (the spread eagle heard around the world and those Russian splits that hurt to watch) and the choreography was impeccable. Maybe there is something I simply don’t see? There has been a lot of talk that Orsers scores were inflated because it was "his turn" but there has been a lot of talk the other way as well.

I'm not trying to diminish Orser, he was a great skater and put together an awesome program. Either way, my opinion is that, if the current judging system was around in 88, Boitano would have won by much more. Then again, I didn’t judge the short program (which Orser won) so maybe the seven or eight point difference in the long wouldn’t have meant as much? I doubt it though. Anyway, Here they are if you want to be the judge.
Boitano (the program starts at one minute)

Orser


1. Every second/ of every minute of the day/ I let my fancy play. Spike The Senses, Of Montreal.

2. OOOHH Baby/ Cry Baby/ Cry Baby/ Welcome back home. Cry Baby, Janis Joplin

3. There are people going hungry/ Far away/ They got nothing on their plates. A Cantury of Fakers, belle and Sebastian.

4. Deep in the bosom of the gentle night/ Is when I search for the light/ Pick up my pen and start to write. Insomnia, Faithless.

5. Glue/ Stuck to my shoe/ Does anyone know why/ We play with an orange rind. Putting The Damage On, Tori Amos.

RIP SHOWMAN

This morning I checked my email and saw a link that a champion figure skater had died. I clicked on the link and my jaw dropped when I saw the name Christopher Bowman. I guess i had expected one of the current skaters was in a car crash or something (which would have been equally tragic)Bowman was one of my all-time favorite skaters and I had a huge crush on him (which is a little embarrassing but I was 12 and loved figure skating, who else). In 1991 when the US Nationals were in Minneapolis I took a black baseball cap and put silver puffy paint on it that said “Congratulations Chris”. When I gave it to him I received the sweatiest hug known to man.

He was 40 years old and died in his sleep at a Motel in California. It is posited that it was a drug overdose. He had many problems over the years in that area. Seen as one of the “bad boys” of skating he could easily serve as the prototype for Will Farell’s character in Blades of Glory. As I was reading some comments on the story I was shocked at how many negative things there were about him. People commenting that he couldn’t’ have been that good because they had never heard of him. Maybe they were just too young or maybe they were just assholes.

For those who followed the sport in the late 80s and early 90s, Bowman couldn’t be missed. He had a flair that few skaters have and it earned him the nickname, “Bowman the Showman”. In the article I read Boitano named Chris as one of the top three male figure skaters of all time. Maybe of US male figure skaters…. Regardless, he brought a sense of levity to the sport that is in many ways lacking in this day and age. He’ll be missed.

Bowman’s Short Program from the 1988 Olympics in Calgary. It exemplifies who he was as a skater and you can easily see where he got his nickname.


Bowman’s Long Program from the 1991 Nationals. It’s a more subtle performance, although still great.


1. Every second/ of every minute of the day/ I let my fancy play

2. OOOHH Baby/ Cry Baby/ Cry Baby/ Welcome back home

3. There are people going hungry/ Far away/ They got nothing on their plates

4. Deep in the bosom of the gentle night/ Is when I search for the light/ Pick up my pen and start to write.

5. Glue/ Stuck to my shoe/ Does anyone know why/ We play with an orange rind.

NOT SO MINI MUSIC RANT

In the comments section from yesterday’s post my Mom talked about me getting on the ice to skate. I have been thinking about it a lot for the last month or even a little longer. The itch got really bad about three weeks ago while I was listening to The Magical Mystery Tour and my body just wanted to make a program for Strawberry Fields Forever. Sadly, there are no rinks that are particularly easy for me to get to and I like things to be easy. I secretly hoped that there was a rink on the DePaul campus that I could sneak some ice time on but there isn’t. They have an intramural hockey team but they practice at one of the few city rinks.

The first event of the season, Skate America, aired Oct 28th and the second, Cup of China was on last Sunday. Happily, there will be skating on every Sunday (except one) from now until Dec 23rd. Even though it makes me incredibly happy to see the top skaters so often and gauge how they will end up performing this year as we get to Worlds in March I am also experiencing some frustration with the sport.

In my posts last year I talked about how much I love the new judging system (based on a base value of points for each element) because it really pushes the skater to achieve more than they had to on the 6.0 system and is much fairer. I still agree with that statement. However, I am interested in why skating in the Us, which used to bring in great ratings, is failing so much. One of the reasons could be the lack of people like Dick Button to get spectators excited about the new system and instead maintaining his typical curmudgeon attitude. Some people have said that the sport is suffering because it is perceived as unfair and corrupt because of the incident at the 2002 Olympics. That could very well be true. However, instead of trumpeting the merits of the new system as being a way to stop such practices, the system was rolled out as complicated. Maybe it is just m but I think it is easier to understand that each move has a point value and then the points are added up then a system where they get random numbers assigned to them based on a program as a whole. Even after a life of skating that system didn’t make all that much sense.

Anyway, I have digressed from my point. My point is that even a lover of skating such as me sometimes has a hard time with some of the skaters. I have my favorites, people that light up the ice and you can’t stop watching, and I have people that I tend to watch out of the corner of my eye. I think the problem is incredibly simple. They need to do something about the music. They need to bring back innovation and interest. I can’t stand to hear another program with the music from Carmen, Sing Sing Sing, Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, The Mission soundtrack, or a Broadway melody. If I am getting bored with the music and I love the sport I can only imagine what the casual observer must think.

It isn’t as if there is a lack of music out in the world. There isn’t even a lack of instrumental music in the world. You don’t have to use classical music to be graceful and artistic. There are instrumental arrangements of popular music all over the place. Why aren’t people tapping into the true variety that is out there? New music would inherently bring new artistic expression and with new expression comes new excitement. How awesome would it be to see a short program to Da Funk by Daft Punk or a long program to some instrumental Radiohead piece? It would be entirely crazy awesome I tell you. Some people can carry off the classical pieces, they have a dance quality and a maturity that can actually express the music but some of the skaters just can’t get in tune with the traditional pieces. They need to recommend some selections to their coaches and choreographers, things that they like and motivate them. Sure, it may take the judges a little bit to get used to but if the top skaters do it I think it could work. I mean Jubert won everything possible last season to instrumental versions of Metallica. He was awesome. I’m keeping my fingers crossed. The sport is progressing physically and is increasingly more complex. The music needs to get modernized as well.

Oh, and another thing, stop taking skating videos off youtube for copyright issues US Figure Sating Assn the sport needs all the viewers it can get. Dumbases.

1. Underneath the bridge/ top has sprung a leak and/ the animals I trapped/ Have all become my pets

2. I met you on a midway at a fair last year/ and you stood out like a ruby in a Black man’s ear. That Song About The Midway. Joni Mitchell. Identified by Mom.

3. Make a list little Lars never seen a star/ Put his fans behind bars/ Can’t you see mp3 means you’re stealing from me/ you should have bought a Cd

4. Daddy’s ghost behind you/ sleeping dog beside you/ You’re a point of mystery/ You’re the prayer inside me

5. Does it make you happy to ignore me on streets/ I guess by now you think I’m weak/ I wish you could have said something before now

MANIC MONDAY- MISS

The Manic Monday word for today is MISS. To view other Manic Monday participants check out Mo at It's a Blog Eat Blog World.

There are a lot of things that I miss. Some of these things them are people, some are places, some are inanimate objects, some are feelings. People and places can be visited. Inanimate objects can be brought out of storage. Feelings, however, can rarely be recaptured once they are gone.

The feeling of summer vacations, carefree and unending left at about age eleven. After that summers got to be too long. I ran out of things to do. The warm days lost their interest and a cardboard box no longer held hours of entertainment. There weren’t enough stations on the television to keep my interest and the friends I spent past summers with we no longer next door. I could recapture glimpses of that carefree feeling in the summers that followed. Some days felt like they could go on forever as if I would never again have to do anything but the feeling was fleeting and I would realize that I wasn’t being “mature” or maybe would be distracted by a cute boy.

I miss those days. I think that vacations as an adult carry almost a desperate quality to them. The idea that you have to regain a snippet of that carefree unending feeling of weightlessness before you are forced to return to the daily grind pushes you to relax to the point of exhaustion. You know your time is limited and you know what you are returning to. By the time you are able to lose track of the date you have to snap back quickly because the date of your return is right around the corner. It doesn’t stop us from trying though. Any mere taste of that childhood freedom is a beacon of hope. That the feeling still exists somewhere out there, you just need to grab it.

I miss flying. From seven to seventeen I could fly, metaphorically that is. I could always escape on the ice. The cold wind blasting into my face brought tears to my eyes. They weren’t tears of sadness or even tears of joy; they were tears of speed. There came a point where that feeling of flight became a chore and I lost the joy. I knew it was time to quit. But I missed it. In college I tried to recapture that feeling, the tears would still come but not as often and not as strong. I couldn’t fly as fast or jump as high and the work that I would have had to put in to recapture that feeling was too much for me to handle at that point. I simply didn’t have the time. Even today I toy with the notion of getting back on the ice but I know I would be even more disappointed than I was seven years ago and I have even less time to bring that feeling back.

Not to say that there aren’t new feelings that I feel privileged to have and that I am sure I would miss just as much were they to leave. They are everywhere. Some are very comforting. I guess the feelings I miss are the ones that leave you wide open. I miss not being a grown up. Even though there is a lot in my life that is still wide open, I know that the time I have to take advantage of all that life has to experience is slowly fading. Even though I don’t know all the specifics, I have a general idea of where I am going. I like that general idea, it feels good, but I miss not knowing and I miss having all the time in the world to make up my mind.

I put 90% of my music back on my iPod. The only things that I couldn’t put back were things that I got before my computer crashed so they aren’t saved on my hard drive and were only held in the iPod itself. At least I know what those things were so that I can get them again. At least there is enough on there to have a proper shuffle game. Here we go.

1. Hey Mr. Tough/ Don’t you think we’ve suffered enough/ Why don’t you meet me on the dance floor/ When it’s time to time time. Mr. Tough, Yo La Tengo. Identified by Monica

2. All aboard/ The night train/ Miami, Florida/ Atlanta, Georgia, Raleigh, North Carolina. Night Train, James Brown. Identified by Johnny Yen

3. Good morning Worm, Your Honor/ The crown will plainly show the prisoner who now stands before you/ Was caught red-handed showing feelings. The Trial, Pink Floyd. Identified by Johnny Yen

4. I’m so happy cause today I found my friends/ They’re in my head/ I’m so ugly that’s ok cause so are you/ Broke our mirrors. A song by Nirvana that my Mom doesn't know the name of but then recalled that it is Lithium.

5. Sittin in a park in Paris, France/ Reading the news and it sure looks bad/ They won’t give peace a chance/ That was just a dream some of us had. California, Joni Mitchell. Identified by Mom.

MANIC MONDAY- GRACE

I have never been a particularly graceful person. In all actuality, I am a big of a galumphing fool. I fall over quite a bit. I can’t dance, except for the most ridiculous choreographed routines. I am quite good at learning choreography. The only time I come even close to being remotely graceful is when I have a pair of ice skates.

Even on ice, I wasn’t the most artistic of skaters. I was more of a powerful skater. Not to say I didn’t have artistry. I certainly was one of the skaters who can “feel the music” and exert some sort of emotion in their movements. I truly loved what I was doing and it came through. In that sense, there was a sort of grace.

Although figure skating is typically seen as a graceful sport, off the ice there isn’t a lot of grace. There are rivalries, fake smiles, dismissive attitudes, and outright rudeness. There are also a few friendships scattered here and there but those more often occur between people who don’t compete against each other. Some friendly rivalries do exist. It always struck me that skaters who were supposed to be so graceful and so proper were some of the most horrible people I had ever met. I guess that is what happens when you are all alone out there.

I always tried to be graceful in winning and in losing. Sometimes I was more successful than others. It often depended on the grace of those who I was competing against. There were just a few people who I LOVED to beat. Those who put meanness out into the universe are certainly the ones who deserve to get a little smugness when they can’t be on top. Gracious? Maybe not. But virtuous all the same.

Now to reveal our songs from last week.

1. Well my name is Young MC and I’m cold rockin’ the house/ I came up into the place and now I’m turning it out. My Name is Young, Young MC

2. My baby’s always dancing/ And it wouldn't be a bad thing/ But I don't get no loving/ And that's no lie. Blame it on the Boogie, the Jackson 5

3. The creator of what’s now cliché/ Had some funny words to say/ all you little things are incomplete/ Why did he speak of us that way. The Repudiated Immortals, Of Montreal

4. Just before our love got lost you said/ I am as constant as the northern star and I said/ Constantly in the darkness/ Where’s that at/ If you need me I'll be in the bar. A Case of You, Joni Mitchell

MANIC MONDAY- HEAT

To see other interpretations of the theme check out Mo.

When I saw the Manic Monday word was Heat all sorts of things came to mind. The song, “The Heat is On,” by Glenn Frey was one that just wouldn’t leave me alone. Many years ago, in one of the many ice shows I was in, a group that I was not a part of skated to that song. Although I wasn’t part of that performance, I think my group was on shortly after them because the song was deeply embedded into my head. Ice shows gave such wonderful memories. Oh, ice shows.

However, that is my no means my favorite “heat” memory. That has to come from the wonderful musical Guys and Dolls. Scene is in the corner barber shop. Nicely Nicely and Benny Southstreet are waiting for their boss, Nathan Detroit, to come in and tell them where the floating crap game will be held. However, instead of Detroit showing up, Lt. Brannigan appears instead with a message for Nathan.

Brannigan- Tell Nathan Detroit that Brannigan says he is not going to find a spot for his crap game because Brannigan has turned on the heat and Brannigan is breathing down everybody's neck.
Brannigan exits through the revolving door, Nathan Detroit comes through it
Nicely Nicely- Nathan, you are lucky. You just missed Brannigan.
Detroit- I am lucky. I missed Brannigan.
Nicely Nicely -He left a message. He said...
Detroit- I am not going to find a place for my crap game because everybody knows Brannigan has turned on the heat and is breathing down everybody's neck.
Nicely Nicely- That is what he said.

I know this may not seem all that hilarious but it was a really funny scene. One of the things I love about Guys and Dolls is that they rarely use contractions. This piece isn’t the best example of that, but the rhythm that contractionless speaking gives to the characters creates a mood that I have never got from any other film. The extreme formality of the language coming out of the mouths of crazy hooligans is hysterical.

I think this scene was one of the first times I was acutely aware of the term heat being used in this manner. I like the word because it has so many connotations. One thing I realized while thinking of this post is that not many of the connotations are positive ones. Initially I thought it was because, while people like to be warm, most don’t like to be hot. However, warm doesn’t have many positive alternate connotations either. Huh, that’s strange.

It’s time for guess that song.
1. Once Again/ I’m in trouble with my only friend/ she is papering the window panes/ She is putting on a smile. Life In A Glass House, Radiohead. Identified by The Doc

2. I’m a street walking cheetah with a heart full of napalm/ I’m a runaway son of the nuclear a-bomb. Search and Destroy, The Stooges. Title by Kiyotoe, Band by Johnny Yen.

3. Well my name is Young MC and I’m cold rockin the house/ I came up into the place and now I’m turning it out

4. So/ So I wish you could tell/ Heaven from hell/ Blue skies from pain. Wish You Were Here, Pink Floyd. Identified by Jeff Roberts

5. Since age one/ Kita knew he had the answer/ And it was/ That someday he’s be a dancer. Show Me How To Do Like You, Stevie Wonder. Identified by Mom.

MAKING PEACE

The Manic Monday theme for today is peace. To see all participants head over to see Mo at "It's a Blog Eat Blog World".

Obviously peace in all the war-torn regions of the world would be a more obvious and probably more relevant topic than what I am thinking about but that just isn’t where my mind is going right now. Therefore, here is my self-centered post about peace.

Tomorrow I am going to be 28. While I knew that last year was officially my entrance into the late-twenties, I feel I could still fudge my way into mid-twenties if I really wanted to. No more. That is ok though, I have made my peace.

Over the past week I have done a lot of thinking about direction and goals, as my regular readers know I am prone to do. I thought a lot about where I planned to be at this time in my life and where I am now. I worked hard on reconciling the two in my head and, I can confidently say, I am ok. In order to really be ok I had to examine a few stages of development of Natalie. I needed to look at where I thought I would be at this point in my life and see how things have changed.

Natalie Age 6- By age 28 I will have graduated from Medical School and finished my residency and be a practicing pediatric neurosurgeon with years of work under my belt (my sense of time was a bit off). I will have the perfect marriage, like my parents, and have 10 kids. I will live in a huge house on Summit Ave in St. Paul. I will have published many articles and cured some unknown neurological condition. I also will have skated in the Olympics.

Natalie Age 13- By age 28 I will be a pediatrician. I will have written the great American novel and be working on my second opus. I will have the perfect marriage and live in a huge house, very likely on Summit Ave in St. Paul. I will have three children, two girls and a boy and they will be gorgeous beautiful renaissance children.

Natalie Age 20- By age 28 I will be finishing up my residency in psychiatry and getting ready to open a private practice. I will have the perfect marriage and live in a nice house. I will possibly have a child but if not I will be getting ready to have one in the next year or so. I will have published many articles and will be working on some major psychiatric research.

Natalie Age 27 (for one more day)- At 28 I am trying to figure out what I want to do when I grow up. I am in a wonderful and loving relationship and am not married but am with someone who I want those things to happen with sometime in the next ten years. I am thinking about how to eventually save enough money to buy a condo, probably in Chicago. I am working a job that I enjoy most days and feel as if I am making a difference to some of my students. I am “working on” my first novel that is incredibly self-indulgent that I have been "working on" for the past year and a half and I might eventually finish it. I periodically think of submitting my children’s book for publication. I am an utterly confused relatively directionless person but I am happy. I am at peace with that.

1. I never meant to give you mushrooms girl/ I never meant to bring you to my world/ But now you’re sitting in the corner crying/ And now it’s my fault my fault. My Fault, Eminem. Identified by Brooke.

2. I’ll do anything/ For my sweet sixteen/ And I’d do anything/ For little runaway child

3. The sea is foaming like a bottle of beer/ The wave is coming but I ain’t got no fear/ I’m waxing down so that I’ll go real fast/ I’m waxing down because it’s really a blast. Surf Wax America, Weezer. Identified by Monica

4. Two-headed boy/ all floating in glass/ The sun it is passed now it’s blacker than black/ I can hear as you tap on your jar. Two Headed Boy, Neutral Milk Hotel. Identified by Monica

5. Look on yonder misty mountain/ See the young monk meditating rhododendron forest/ over dusty hills I ask you/ What it’s been like being you. Epistle to Dippy, Donovan. Identified by Monica

MAO SPRINGS ETERNAL

Manic Monday for today is Spring. After a wonderful weekend of watching coverage of the 2007 Figure Skating World Championships the only thing I can think of when it comes to spring are the jumps of Mao Asada. Be damned 78degree weather. Your spring is nothing like that of this young lady from Japan!

When I was skating I had some height to my jumps but nothing even thinking about coming close to the spring in this girls step. The way she vaults of her toe pick for flips, toe-loops, and lutzes is outstanding. She also gets amazing spring from her knee-bend on edge jumps suck as the loop and the axel (although I am pretty sure she didn’t do a salchow). Sure, she wasn’t perfect but at 16 who is? It was too bad she missed her combination in the short program because it cost her the title. Then again, she is 16 so she’ll have plenty of chances to be on top.

Speaking of the Worlds, remember how I said that US Figure Skating was on its way out? Well at the 2007 Championships the US took home only one medal, the bronze in Ice Dance. Since when did Ice Dance become the strongest event for US Skating? Super strange. I was also right that Japan is becoming a serious force to be reckoned with in singles skating. Pairs and Dance, not so much. Props to the brother from Germany who took home a bronze medal in Pairs. I always love to see black folks skating. It’s rare and exciting.

I leave you with the wonderful Spring of Mao. Enjoy.

Oh, and the unguessed songs from last week are

1. It’s raining/ It’s raining/ There’s nothing you can do/ It doesn’t only rain on you/ But you’re acting all upset/ like you’re the only one that’s wet. It's Raining, by Quasi

2. On the corner/ We talk away/ Everybody's older these days/ I'll just hit the reset button on this game. Glass Conversation, by The Pony's

NO HAIR NATALIE

Ok the haircut pictures are at the bottom of the post. Here is a picture showing what my hair essentially looked like before. The post-cut photos are a little on the dark side so I’m not sure if you can really see everything. From their replies, it seems like it looked better on Friend’s computer than my mom’s. It is impossible to see on mine at work but this computer is as dark as they come as far as pictures go. Even after adjucting color I couldn't see anything. I look not so good in the picture but, whatever, I’m cute enough in real life and this picture isn’t about me it’s about the hair. So if your computer is dark like mine all you get is a bad picture of Natalie, Ha. I'll do a description for you poor folks. It is very short in the back and longer in the front. I have very subtle highlights that is what I wanted when I ended up with blondish mess the last time I put color in but I am sure that is impossible to see in the pictures. It is hard to see in person. It looks closer to what we like call “natural tones and highlights”. Tony likes it and apparently he has always wanted to date a girl with a long in the front short in the back haircut. Much thanks to Monica for her company and moral support and her suggestions because this truly was her idea. Much thanks to David at Sine Que Non on Lincoln and Diversey not only for doing n excellent job but for being so freakin fun and adorable and bringing Monica a chair to sit by me. The only bummer about my cut is that it was a few inches too short for locks of love.

I sadly have nothing to offer for Foodie Friday but am planning to make a Grecian Tofu Pie sometime this week so expect that for next week. I can just see the excitement in the meat eaters eyes. The other exciting this happening this weekend is the TV coverage of the ISU World Championships. I know the results are out there but I haven’t seen anything but two Men’s short programs yet so don’t spoil anything. Like anyone but me cares anyway.












1. It’s raining/ It’s raining/ There’s nothing you can do/ It doesn’t only rain on you/ But you’re acting all upset/ like you’re the only one that’s wet.

2. On the corner/ We talk away/ Everybody's older these days/ I'll just hit the reset button on this game.

3. Plants and rags/ Ease myself into a body bag. Plants and Rags, PJ Harvey. Identified by Eve

4. When I was young I knew everything/ She a punk who rarely ever took advice. The Freshman. Verve Pipe. Identified by Monica

5. Underneath the bridge/ The tarp has sprung a leak/ And the animals I’ve trapped/ Have all become my pets. Something In The Way, Nirvana. Identified by Brooke.

CAN I GO HOME YET?

Today is a blah day. I felt all types of nasty this morning and blame most of it on the nice weather. I was happily enjoying the fun outside and then got all kinds of sniffles and allergic feelings. It was awful. This morning I woke up and my head was so full of pressure and non breathing that I decided I couldn’t move and needed a combination of medicine and sleep. It isn’t as if I didn’t get a normal amount of sleep I was just messed up. I called work and told them I would be in by noon at the latest. If I hadn’t had five appointments scheduled for the afternoon I would be at home still. I still feel crappy.

I realized that the ice rink is still open across the street. I really should go skating sometime this week. It is really nice outside to be able to skate outdoors. I think it would be fun. I wonder if anyone else would want to come? I wonder how crowded the rink is after working hours on a Friday. I bet it will suck. Maybe not though, maybe no one will think of skating. It might be raining by Friday, maybe even snowing. I think my plan might suck. I should have gone yesterday.

Speaking of Ice Skating, I can’t wait to see Blades of Glory. It looks like the funniest movie about figure skating ever. Usually I hate movies about figure skating because they have all types of unrealistic premises. The Cutting Edge- Hockey Player becomes Olympic caliber figure skater in one season. Ice Princess- Physics student who can barely skate applies science to skating and is suddenly unbeatable (the top people apply science all the time and it helps but not that much). Ice Castles- Skater is foolish enough to skate on a rink full of chairs and crap. You get the picture. Blades of Glory also wouldn’t happen because I do believe pairs skating has been defined as being between a man and a woman (but maybe I am wrong) and I don’t think the ISU would go for two guys skating together, particularly ones that used a loophole to embarrass the sport. Regardless, the utter silliness of the premise makes it seem enjoyable to me, those other movies aren’t supposed to be slapstick comedy. I fully plan to see it as soon as possible. Sisterhead saw it last night and said she had a huge smile on her face the whole time and her cheeks hurt afterward. Sounds like my kind of film. I also think the characters are ideal stereotypes of American male skaters, the frufru sequined guy and the macho tough guy (which is an oxymoron in and of itself). I can’t wait.

I want to crawl under my desk and die. I should go home. My appointments are done as my last one called to say she too was feeling crappy. I wish I had the luxury of being at home like her. Instead I am sitting here in a very hot office with a runny nose and a headache. At least I can breathe.

Zak and Sara, Ben Folds- Can Rockin’ The Suburbs be any better? The answer is no, not for what it is supposed to be. Are there better albums? Of course. However, this one is pretty darn great. I think Ben Folds going solo was a great idea.

Dance Me To The End of Love, Leonard Cohen- I love this song. It is something that I would expect to show up on some sick and twisted episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Some obviously evil but slightly comical vampire would be dancing around with some droopy bloodless body and just singing away. I think it would be fantastic.

In The Way, Ani DiFranco- Evolve is another one of those albums that I think is simply prefect for what it is. I think it has such a swinging jazzy style that is really different from many of Ani’s other albums. I could see both Ani fans and people typically interested in other genres meeting up at this album and all nodding their heads in approval. I really like this song too.

IT ISN'T ALWAYS PRETTY

I was watching skating this weekend (no surprise there) and was reminded, once again, of how much this sport can hurt. I took a few nasty falls in my day. Once I kicked myself in the shin and had a decent little puncture wound. Gladly, I never had anything hospital worthy. This incident, however, required some immediate facial trauma surgery. The Canadian champions Dube & Davison were going into their side-by-side combination spins when something awful happened. Paris spins are judged on their synchronicity and the closeness of the skaters. This pair got a little too close. Searching for footage, I found this wonderful clip that not only included their spin, but fantastic falls throughout the past few years.


Just so you know, the skater is "fine". She was all stitched up and doing interviews just a few days after the fall and the team plans to compete in the World Championships next month.

THE RESULTS ARE IN

A wonderful weekend of skating was had by me. Not because there were tons of wonderful performances, because there were only a handful. But because the performances that were great were FANTASTIC. One thing I will say about coverage for US Nationals is that it is far more extensive than the typical World and Olympic coverage. I don’t completely understand why, but that is the case. Maybe because only one event was on broadcast TV, they were able to show more skaters and skip a lot of the profiles and boring stuff that usually comes with skating. Maybe it’s just me, but I would much prefer seeing an additional skater than hearing about one of the top athletes backgrounds. To me, that stuff doesn’t really matter. Sure hearing a little comment about an injury or something else in their life is great but that can be covered in warm-up or even during their program. I don’t care how they do in school or that their mother tripped over a barrier at nationals thirty years ago. I just want to see them skate. I also want to see more than just the top contenders because the up and coming skaters are often overlooked. I know a lot of people don’t care and only want to see big names but, for my money, show me everyone! The fact that I watched everything on the DVR also helped because I could fast forward all that mess. Now for a few highlights.

Pairs:
New champs Brooke Castile and Benjamin Okolski moved up from an 11th place finish last year to take the gold from reigning US champs Rena Inoue and John Baldwin Jr.. As much as I like Rena and John, I am kind of done with them. John is too inconsistent to make them really exciting to watch. Brooke and Benjamin, on the other hand were fantastic and exciting throughout their entire performance. They performed a triple twist (as did third place team Naomi Nari Nam and Themistocles Leftheris) something that I have never seen an American Pair attempt. However, all the top pairs have been doing them fir years internationally. Their music was wonderful; the score from Requiem for a Dream (such a good movie) and their skating had power and speed to rival the Chinese. How the judges gave Rena and John such good marks I have no idea. If they had won I think there could have been a revolt. If Naomi and Themistocles had skated a clean program I think Rena and John would have been knocked out of second place and therefore out of the world team.

Dance:
I don’t have too much to say about the dance competition. The new program that Tanith Belbin and Benjamin Agosto put together to the score from Amelie (such a god movie) was far superior to the mess they had earlier in the season. It still needs some work to be truly competitive internationally but they are on the right track. I really enjoyed Melissa Gregory and Denis Petukhov (2nd place) and Meryl Davis and Charlie White (3rd place) as well. The Dance event at Worlds in March should be quite a deep field.

Mens:
My DVR cut off the last performance and a half so I missed Ryan Bradley’s surprise ascension to second place and am somewhat disappointed about that. I am somewhat glad I only saw half of Johnny Weir’s performance because I like him and he didn’t do so well, leaving him in third. Evan Lysacek, on the other hand, was a performance of a lifetime. I haven’t seen a quad landed that cleanly in some time. He made it look effortless. I am still tired of his Carmen program but it was so good that I almost didn’t mind. Derrick Delmore (one of the few Black skaters ever) put in a great performance at what will be his last Nationals (he has been there for the past 10 years or so) and I was really happy to see him go out on a high note. His 6th place finish I think is the second highest he ever has achieved at Nationals. One thing that surprised me is that Stephen Carriere (9th place) was chosen to head the US Jr. World team. I didn’t know that a Sr. level skater could compete at the Jr. Worlds. You learn something new everyday.

Ladies:
Although reigning world champion Kimmie Meissner won her first national title, it wasn’t an easy win. She really struggled with the landings on many of her jumps, although I don’t remember her actually falling. Had Emily Hughes not fallen, she would have easily defeated Meissner for the title. The real excitement of the night came from third place winner Alissa Czisny. She actually won the long program to bring her up to third from a fifth place finish in the short program. I haven’t seen spins like that since…ever and her jumps were delightful as well. They sowed the two top finishers in Jr. ladies (Mirai Nagasu and Caroline Zhang) during the pairs and dance finals and they will be a force to reckon with. I think either one of them would have placed very well in the Sr. finals and they are only 13!

If anyone is the huge skating dork that I am (and I am sure there are very few of you out there) I have included the detailed results. This is not for the faint of heart. Even I didn’t look at all these pages. These results show the full judges report for each skater’s long and short programs. It shows what element the technical specialist identified, the base value of the element, the + or – they received in grade of execution and the scores of each judge. It also shows what level of difficulty their spins, footwork, and spiral sequences were graded at 1-4. Finally, it shows the various components that make up their program component score (the old artistic score) skating skills (stroking & posture), transitions (the skating between elements), performance/execution (how well they skated their program), choreography, and interpretation. I found this very exciting, as these results are not often easy to find, but I am sure no one else will.

Time to identify the unguessed songs from last week.

1. If you had a choice of colors/ Which one would you choose my brothers. Choice of Colors, Curtis Mayfield

2. Remember when you were young/ You shone like the sun. Shine On You Crazy Diamond, Pink Floyd.

3. You know I’ve been searching for someone/ Who can share that special love with me/ Your eyes have that glow. Computer Love, Zapp and Roger

4. Tim wish you were born a girl/ Wish you were born a girl/ So I could have been your boyfriend. Tim Wish You Were Born A Girl, Of Montreal.

SKATING IS STILL SUBJECTIVE

Last night the first portion of the US National Figure Skating championships aired. I haven’t got a chance to watch most of it because I was busy playing Katamari with Monica and Tony, oh and watching the OC. HAHAHA. How embarrassing. However, I did catch the short programs of the two top male contenders, Johnny Weir and Evan Lysacek. I have to say they are quite an interesting match up. Personally, if they both skated at the top of their game, I would take Weir any day. I know many people wouldn’t agree with me but I have good reason.

When Weir is on he is on and he skates beautifully. His jumps have an awesome rideout (the speed and edge coming out of a jump) and his artistry is more to my taste (most of the time). I think his spin positions are more innovative, although he as has been doing the same ones for years now and I guess they have lost a bit of their WOW factor. Nonetheless, I think he is awesome. Lysacek is also fantastic. He has a passion and intensity on the ice that is contagious. He truly commits to what he is doing and had a lot of power. However, he has skated the same long program for two seasons to the most played out of all music in skating, Carmen. I am so sick of this program that I have a hard time watching it despite his wonderful skating. You know how they retire people’s numbers in some sports; they should retire music in skating. Then again I suppose everyone can interpret music differently and it is hard to reinterpret a number but still, some things have got to go.

Although Weir is the reigning US champ three years running, I would assume Lysacek is the favorite because he has had much more success on the international circuit. Weir has been inconsistent and unreliable and I know how skating works, the judges want the most internationally competitive skater to be the champ. Even with the new judging system, there is room for favoritism, less than before, but skating still remains a subjective sport. After watching their two programs, I felt that Weir should have been ahead because of extra points given to the grade of execution in his jumps. His positioning and landings were far superior in my opinion. I was also more of a fan of his choreography. However, after the judging was said and done Lysacek was ahead both technically and artistically. It baffled me. Although he was only ahead by less than one point, which is nothing, I thought it showed severe preference by the judges. I did just read that Weir was graded higher than Lysacek on his jumps which meant the judges either really hated his artistry (huh?) or really don’t want him to win (likely). We’ll just have to see what happens in the long program but, if they both skate clean, I am guessing that Lysacek will win the title.

I didn’t get a chance to watch the top ladies but reigning World Champion Kimmie Meissner is essentially a shoe in for the title. I do want to make one small comment about the event though. I only watched one skater but was delighted when there was some argument about a statement Dick Button made regarding Ulrich Salchow who he claimed was an excellent champion in the last century. Button had seemed to forget that we are seven years into a century currently so Salchow who skated in the late 18 and early 1900s did not fit in that definition. As someone tried to correct him he got all stickler about his facts and was just wrong. I like to see Dick Button wrong. If you have ever watched a skating event in the past 25+ years you know that Dick Button is like the Simon Cowell of figure skating, or maybe that should be that other way around. He is the original mean commentator. It is really nice to see him look a little stupid for a change.

Here are some new musical options for skaters. You know, you can choose music with words now.

1. Not a lotta bling/ When you do the thing/ Bada boom bada bing. Bada Bing, Dangerdoom. identified by The Doc

2. If you had a choice of colors/ Which one would you choose my brothers

3. Remember when you were young/ You shone like the sun

4. You know I’ve been searching for someone/ Who can share that special love with me/ Your eyes have that glow

5. Tim wish you were born a girl/ Wish you were born a girl/ So I could have been your boyfriend

THE THINGS A COMPUTER CAN DO

A long time ago I decided not to put a stat counter on my blog because I didn’t believe I was technically capable enough to do it. Then I realized that I would have to be a complete idiot with no hands or feet not to be able to do it so I did. I love my stat counter. I am slightly obsessed. I think that it could become a huge problem for me. I have always liked graphs, facts, figures, useless information, and randomness. The stat counter combines them all. I wish I had done it a long long time ago.

Yesterday I found a friends computer and was able to deduce what she was doing on it by looking at the length of time she spent on the page and my deductions were confirmed. I felt real special, like a secret agent. I also realize that most people who end up on my blog don’t stay all that long, which is ok by me because I am sure that my almost interesting musings aren’t at all interesting to many people. I can deal with that, it makes sense. What I don’t understand is why some people spend over an hour on my page. I admit that I am happy about their interest. I just don’t understand it. At all. I’m only almost interesting.

The country breakdown is also interesting. I knew I had visitors from all over but I didn’t know how much all over. I’m talking about places like Brazil, Malaysia, and Ireland. I knew I had visitors from the UK but not Ireland, and there were a few.

As any of you people with a stat counter know, the search results that bring people to your page are always incredibly interesting and often hilarious. Surprisingly, about 75% of the searches that brought people to me were about figure skating. Granted, when I talk about figure skating I really talk about figure skating but I only did it twice. I’m sure more will come after Nationals this month and Worlds in March but it obviously isn’t my main thing. My favorite search was “Ironman racist lyrics”. Last I knew, Ironman didn’t have racist lyrics but apparently the site that comes up after mine talks about a sir-mix-a-lot song called Ironman that apparently has some racially stereotypical lyrics. Who knew? I thought it was funny that my page came up before the one that obviously answered their query but whatever. “Natalie, I love you, I love you, I love you” was also a nice search. I guess there are a few songs by Natalie’s that have those lyrics in them as well as my many posts about things that I love. Actually, a lot of things got to my page because of song titles or lyrics, which makes sense since I include them on every post. I was flattered to know that if you google the first line from “Little Red Corvette” my blog is the first page you will come upon. I am second in line for “King Herod’s Song” and, as a lover of musicals, which is also a big deal.

For the past two weeks we have been instructed to wear orange and blue on Fridays in support of our Chicago Bears. Most people wear their Bears gear or don’t wear any orange and blue at all. I have no Bears gear but still wanted to show my support. Last week I wore my Orange “Super Dad” shirt with blue lettering. Today I am wearing my Mets shirt, which is particularly hilarious to me. One other person found it funny so far but it is only 10:30. I truly hope that my awesome levels of “spirit” help the Bears get to the Super Bowl. It would be nice. Someone else just told me in a mean voice that I was wearing the wrong team. I explained it was the best I could do and she looked at me crazy. What?

Songs To Aging Children, Joni Mitchell- When I first started to really listen to Joni Mitchell I was in high school and I had a morbid fascination with this song as I felt I was certainly an aging child. I was far too dramatic for my own good. I think it applies more to me now than it did then. Not that I am anything but an adult (although occasionally that could be debated) I just think I understand it better now.

Rise, Public Image Limited- Oh how this song reminds me of “The Rules of Attraction,” the movie not the book. Monica and I watched this movie A LOT for a while. I never thought I would be such a fan of a movie staring Dawson but this movie is fantastic! If you haven’t seen it you should stop reading this silly blog and haul tail to the video store. There are so many priceless scenes in this film that I can’t even begin to think about them. THE NAME IS DICK!

Astro Boy, The Dwarves- I don’t think this song has anything to do with the cartoon Astro Boy that my Mom loves so dearly. I think her face on Christmas when she opened Astro Boy was almost as adorable as my face when I opened Jabba The Hut after a good 15 years of wanting it.

THE DECLINE OF THE UNITED STATES

I have not made a new post in the last few days because my next post will be my 100th post and I am working on something that takes a long long time. I hope you are all very excited.

Ok so I obviously wrote this post some time ago because the final aired on the 23rd but I still like the post so whatever. Additions are in Italics

With the Grand Prix Final airing this coming weekend (although the competition was over on Sunday) it’s time to talk figure skating again. I don’t believe the US team has had lower expectations to do well on the world scene since 1961 when the entire Olympic team died in a plane crash. I realize that may have been an insensitive statement but my point is that US skating this year is hopeless on the International scene.Although Sasha Cohen didn’t compete in the grand prix this year (I am hoping she retired but have since found out she is just stepping off the scene for a few years to refocus and will be back for the next Olympics), not a single US female qualified for the Grand Prix final. Not even reigning World Champion Kimmie Meisner, pathetic. Granted she didn’t make the final last year and won worlds but it doesn’t bode well. Maybe she is just a late season skater. However, being that the American women have been such a dominant force for years, I have serious misgivings about the continuance of that legacy at this point. I think things are changing and the Japanese women have taken over the sport. They certainly deserve it. I haven’t seen a field that deep since those pictures of flooding on An Inconvenient Truth. There have to be at least five skaters that could take a title on a good day. Unfortunately, most of them aren’t incredibly consistent. Then again, at least one of them will skate cleanly on any given day. Not to mention Yu Na Kim from South Korea coming in and taking over.

Looking at the men’s competition, the Americans seem to be faring a little better. Two skaters made the Grand Prix final, Evan Lysacek and Johnny Weir. Unfortunately, Lysacek pulled out before the competition and Weir pulled out after the short program. I’m not sure why but I’ll fill in after I watch the event, injuries that’s why. After those two there is nothing. Lysacek is known as the come back kid because he seems to mess up his short program and then make up a lot of ground in the long. However, that kind of strategy can never win gold. Weir, although the US champ three years running, has never won a world medal-which only proves my point. He can skate wonderfully but is incredibly inconsistent and can’t come back after a mistake. Once again, the Japanese skaters are coming and the world had better watch out. They are wonderful and I can’t say a single bad thing about them if I try. They are also younger than most of the rest of the field. I am guessing the reason is that figure skating in Japan is getting huge and they are not the types to make fun of boys who want to skate. Stupid Americans. I sadly forgot the French; they are also on the come up. That Brian Joubert can’t be beat if he skates cleanly and that one goofy guy isn't bad either.

Throughout my love affair with skating, American Pairs have never been at the top of the heap. Inoue and Baldwin have come onto the scene and begun to change that, maybe. The fact that they became the first and only to do a throw triple axel is fantastic but their side-by-side jumps leave something to be desired. See, Baldwin became a pairs skater because with his 17 or so trips to the nationals he never did all that well because he fell all the time. Now, as a pair, he still falls all the time. He doesn’t even have to do the hard triples and he falls all the time.

American dance was thought to be on the come up. When Belbin and Augosto won the silver at the Olympics it was thought that a new era might have begun. There are two other US dance teams, one made it to the final, who I thought were far more interesting to watch than Belbin and Augosto, I don’t remember their names though. One did a somewhat Arabian themed program that was very avant-garde and the other did an Adam and Eve themed program that I also thought was beautiful. Belbin and Augosto did some tired dance number type ting that made me want to die. They need to beef it up if they want to stay on top of the world. They also withdrew from the Grand Prix meaning that Inoue and Baldwin were the only Americans that actually competed. I must be getting old because I have started to like dance again. Or else, dance is finally getting to where it was headed in '88 more modern dancelike vs. ballroom dance. Therefore, more interesting. I'll go with this vs. getting old. Even though I feel old. It’s definitely the artistry and interpretation that I like. Sister agreed with me that the dance was awesome to watch.

Things may be changing, however, for US skating. Apparently, American skaters in all events dominated the JR Grand Prix. Jr. ladies USA went 1-4, the men were 1 and 2, pairs 1, 3-6, and dance 1-2. However, Jr. skaters don’t always succeed on the Sr. level so it isn’t always the best of indicators. It gives some hope though.I just realized that this post is all about US skating, and while that was my original intention I don’t want to be seen as someone who only roots for athletes from my country. In fact, in skating, I have always rooted for the best skater regardless of where they are from. This season I am rooting for Japan more than any other country because their skaters are simply better. Oh yeah and that German pair cause the man is a brother. It is pretty rare to see world-class skaters of color who are not Asian. I think I could count the ones that made it to the world stage since ’88 on one hand. Wow, how sad. That’s a whole different post waiting to happen I suppose.

Now for the first guess that shuffle of the new year. This is where the first line of a song goes upand people comment on what song it is and who the artist is. In case I have any new readers, but that is unlikely.

1. Golden rose the color of the dream I had not too long ago. One Rainy Wish, Jimi Hendrix. Idntified by Brooke

2. When I met you I was just a kid hadn’t built up my defenses. Requiem for OMM, Of Montreal. Identified by Monica

3. Give me time to realize my crime. Do You Really Want To Hurt Me, The Culture Club (or are the just Culture Club? less the "the"). Identified by Jaclyn and Shadowfalcon

4. She lives on Love Street lingers long on Love Street. Love Street, The Doors. Identified by Jaclyn

5. Life used to be lifelike now it’s more like showbiz. Dialate, Ani DiFranco. Identified by Brooke.