Correct Yourself

My own domain

Shameless Promotion

My friend Maraget's brother has released a new CD. His name is Citizen Cope. The album is Clarence Greenwood Recordings. I thoroughly enjoy his music, but I'm not sure if it's because I know his sister (never met him) or if it's because I like his music. Let me know what you think!

Click here to listen to Fame. Click Citizen Cope above to see web-site and see the video for Bullet and a Target.

Who among us....?

"Who among us doesn't love NASCAR?"

John Kerry was quoted as saying this in a Maureen Dowd column that I can't access without paying the New York Times my idly-earned dollars, so you'll just have to take my word for it.

This quote, which has started to be used by those who want to pit Kerry as out of touch with the common man, has now been reported to have never been said.

Did he say it? Who knows. Is it something that Kerry would say? Absolutely. Is it hilarious? Yes.

Here are some links to stories about this quote/misquote.

Saying the quote is false

Also claiming the quote is false

Football Fans for Truth

Site suggesting that Kerry should spend some time among those who do like NASCAR

By the way, I hate NASCAR. So, I, who is among you, do hate NASCAR. Indeed.

Jim's Blog

Twin brother Jim has a blog called Laterally.

He used to hate my blog; now he doesn't. He didn't like it when I was talking about what a mess the Iraq war would be on my old blog.

Enjoy.

Tom Foolery II

• I had "stupid-question day" the other day so students could ask questions about France (which are usually really dumb questions). I made it stupid-question day so that students wouldn't be embarrassed to ask questions since it was under the auspices of every question being stupid.
  I had two zingers that nearly made me blush. The first one was by a student who asked me "Is it easy to get laid in France?" I had no idea how to answer it, so I told him to stay after class and I'd tell him. The class oohed and ahhed thinking I was going to tell him the details of my personal Benjamin Franklining around France. Instead I hit him with this answer, "Ask your Mom [long pause so he knows how I meant it], your parents should decide how much you know about sex and when." It was gold.
  The second question involved some sort of sexual position apparently invented by French prostitutes according to a (slutty) curious student. I told her that I didn't appreciate her asking that. I should've told her to ask her mom, as well.
  
• We had a French Club picnic. We had pizza instead of French food. Why, you ask? Logistics. We did play some soccer. I hit random students with random sporting goods equipment just to make them remember that I owned them.
  
• My neighbor-teacher Sherry and I have started making Espresso in her classroom like we live there. It's great. Lots of caffeine everyday. I'm having a caffeine headache as we speak since she's been out for a few days.
  
• I told my students, without thinking what I was saying, that they shouldn't look for sexual organs on their pencils and papers (referring to gender in the French language).
  
• One of my students inadvertantly F-bombed the entire room. I told him that he'd really offended me and needed to apologize. He felt horrible. When talking about it to another teacher I exclaimed, "You won't believe what [insert name] fucking said!"
  
• A fellow teacher was doing a St. Jude's drive. During the middle of his sales pitch to my students I said, "Wait a second! St. Jude is the patron Saint of lost causes! Don't throw your money away!" He didn't appreciate it so much.
  
  

Shame oh the shame

The following was found in a forum on the web. Note: these are not for puritans.

Do the Lynddie!

Click here for the funniest thing ever

Belated Movie Reviews

It seems that I missed a lot of movies in the past decade and watched quite a few of them this past weekend. I thought I might give a review of them:

Windtalkers
**
It was a decent action flic with more of a story than John Woo usually lets you have. Nicolas Cage gives the usual mailed-in Johnny Fontane performance that you would expect from Hollywood Silver Spoon trying to play the part of a war hero.
The Navajos are decent actors except their characters are one dimensional and you feel nothing but sympathy for them. It isn't clear whether the actors are actually Navajos or not, nor whether the language you hear is really Navajo. One would have to do some research to find out the answer to those questions.
Unfortunately, I watched this movie the night after I watched When We Were Soldiers, so the fake battle scenes done on what was surely a Hollywood set seemed very contrived if not reminiscent of the A-team. It was tiring to watch the correct person run while poorly trained Japanese soldiers shot at the dirt around their feet (go for the chest!).
It's worth watching if you like fake action movies that try to have a serious message and plot.

When We Were Soldiers
****
I avoided this movie for a long time because the previews had that line, "We will ride into battle...and this will be our horse." The rhythm with which Mel Gibson said those lines really bothered me. I wish I could recreate it for you, but I can't, you'll just have to remember how he said it. In any event, I did myself a disservice by not watching this movie sooner. Because of movies like Full Metal Jacket, Platoon, and TV shows like Tour of Duty, battle in Vietnam felt very stifling, lacking in strategy, and not very technological. When We Were Soldiers gives the strategy on both sides a lot of play and take a realistic approach to showing a true story without embellishing much. Soon to be canonized, Mel Gibson gives another great performance.

G.I. Jane
***
Good story, thought provoking, erotic. See it, not sure if you should believe it.

The Recruit
***
An on-the-edge-of-your-seat-thriller if you missed the previews and ignore Pacino playing the same bad guy that he's played since the Devil's Advocate. C'mon Scarface, do some coke and get all crazy in a movie.