More Favorite Songs

in regards to my favorite songs, I added some to the list. I was going over my top 101 as well as my top 250, and realized some songs were pretty much interchangeable. So instead of agonizing over what to put in and what to leave out, I just added some. The list is at 128. I do have a fear that this list will continue to grow. Like if Im listening to a song on the top 250, and I “realize” it should be in with the best of the best. Cuz the thing is, I have a pretty tough time taking songs out of that playlist. And in regards to the asterisks denoting what songs would might move onto the next round if there was one, well, I’m thinking about abandoning that as well. I think it’s pretty safe to say that the list cannot really be narrowed down any further. I mean, it could, but there would be uncertainty. I could narrow it down today, come back to the top 128 again in a weak and narrow it down again, and I would probably have different lists. Of course, there would be a lot of overlap, but they wouldn’t be the same. Out of the 128, there are songs that would without question make it, and some that would without question not make it, but too many on the border line. Why not just go with the ones that are without question? Well even there there is question. I feel there would still be songs on both sides of the bubble. There is no detectible drop in quality from, say, #25 to #26. But here is what I’ve done: I’ve gone down the list and but asterisks by the songs that would undoubtably make it to the ficticious next round. If I even hesitated on a song, even had the most brief thought of “should this one make it?”, it did not get an asterisk. But keep in mind these asterisks are just for at this point in my life. Some could get taken away (although I don’t really see how that’s possible. Maybe if I grow distant from the song or something) and others could be added. And also, most of the songs with an asterisk only get it because I convinced myself long ago that they were going to be at the very top of the list. I think more important is the 128 as a whole. These songs, do have a finite step up in quality over those not on the list, however small the step up may be:

*	AFI	The Prayer Position
	AFI	God Called in Sick Today
	Alicia Keys	Fallin'
*	Alicia Keys	Why Do I Feel So Sad
*	The Assembly	Never never (Remix)
	Bach	Air On The G String
	Beggars	Lovely Soul Detonator
	Ben Kweller	In Other Words
*	Boondock Saints	Boondock Saints Main Theme
*	Carly Simon	Let ther River Run
	Citizen Cope	Bullet and a Target
	Collective Soul	The World Below
*	Concrete Blonde	Joey
	Craig's Brother	Insult to Injury
	Craig's Brother	Homecoming
	The Cynic Project	Matrix ][
*	Derrick and the Dominoes	Layla
	Digital Underground	Freaks of the Industry
*	Dire Straits	Sultans of Swing
	Dixie Chicks	Not Ready to Make Nice
	Dr. Dre	Nuthin' but a "G" Thang f. Snoop
*	Dr. Dre	Still D.R.E.
	Dr. Dre	The Next Episode
*	Eminem	White America
	Eminem	Business
	Eminem	Sing for the Moment
	Eminem	'Till I Collapse f. Nate Dogg
	Eminem	Never Enough f. 50 Cent
	Eminem	Encore f. 50 Cent and Dr. Dre
	Eminem	Stan
	Eric Prydz	Call On Me
	Fleetwood Mac	Thunder Only Happens When It Rains
	Frank Sinatra	Theme From New York New York
	Goldfinger	Don't Say Goodbye
*	Green Day	Jesus of Suburbia
	Green Day	Holiday
	Green Day	Having a Blast
*	Green Day	Welcome to Paradise
*	Green Day	When I Come Around
	Green Day	,86
*	Green Day	J.A.R. (Jason Andrew Relva) {from Angus}
*	Green Day	2000 Light Years Away
	Green Day	Christie Road
	Green Day	80
	Green Day	Going to Pasalacqua
	Inspection 12	Red Letter Day
	Jackson 5	I want you back
	Jay-Z	Roc Boys (And The Winner Is)...
	Jay-Z	Renagade (Feat Eminem)
	The Jazz Butcher	Bicycle Kid
	The Jazz Butcher	Girls Say Yes
	Johann Pachelbel	Canon in D
*	John Lennon	Imagine
*	John Williams	Jurassic Park - Main Theme
*	John Williams	Terminator 2 (Long)
	Jonathan Richman	I Was Dancing In The Lesbian Bar
*	Kanye West	Never Let Me Down f. J Ivy, Jay-Z
	Kanye West	Through the Wire
	Katrina and the Waves	Walkin On Sunshine
	Kelly Clarkson	Behind These Hazel Eyes
	Kelly Clarkson	Because Of You
*	The Knack	One Day At A Time
	Led Zeppelin	Fool In The Rain
	Led Zeppelin	All My Love
*	Led Zeppelin	Stairway To Heaven
	Less Than Jake	Al's war
	Mamas & the Papas	California Dreamin'
	Mamas & The Papas	Make Your Own Kind Of Music
	Marvin Gaye	Sexual Healing
	Michael Jackson	Man in the Mirror
	Michael Jackson	The way you make me feel
	Michael Jackson	Thriller
	Michael Jackson	Beat It
*	Michael Jackson	Billie Jean
	Michael Jackson	Human Nature
	Midnight Oil	Blue Sky Mine
	Midnight Oil	Forgotten Years
	Nick Lowe	Cruel To Be Kind
*	NOFX	The Decline
	The Notorious B.I.G.	Going Back to Cali
	The Offspring	Gotta Get Away
*	Piano - Michael Nyman	The Heart Asks Pleasure First
	Pink Floyd	Time
	Pink Floyd	Money
	Protein	Passing By
	Puff Daddy & The Family	I'll Be Missing You feat. Faith Evans and 112
*	Queen	Under Pressure
	Queen	Another One Bites The Dust
*	Queen	Killer Queen
	The Rolling Stones	Gimme Shelter
	The Rolling Stones	Stealing My Heart
	The Rubinoos	Hey Rita
	The Rubinoos	Hit The Nerve
	The Rubinoos	I Don't Wanna Break Up
	The Rubinoos	No More Where She Came From
	Saves The Day	Nightingale
	Saves The Day	Rocks Tonic Juice Magic
	The Shangri-Las	Leader of the Pack
	Shania Twain	It Only Hurts When I'm Breathing
	Simple Minds	Don't You Forget About Me
*	The Skeletons	It's The Little Things
	Smashing Pumpkins	Disarm
*	Smashing Pumpkins	Tonight, Tonight
	Snoop Dogg	Who Am I (What's My Name)?
	Snoop Dogg	Ain't No Fun
	Snoop Dogg	Gz And Hustlas
	Social Distortion	Dear Lover
	Social Distortion	Don't Drag Me Down
	Social Distortion	When Angels Sing
	Spin Doctors	Two Princes
	The Standells	Dirty Water
	Sublime	What I Got
	Talib Kweli	Just To Get By (Remix) f. Mos Def, Jay-Z, Kanye West, Busta Rhymes
	Tech N9ne	I'm A Playa
*	Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers	American Girl
*	Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers	Breakdown
	Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers	Learning To Fly
	Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers	Mary Jane's Last Dance
*	Warren G	Regulate
	Xzibit	Get Your Walk On
	2pac	Life Goes On
	2pac	Hit 'Em Up
	2pac	Brenda's Got a Baby
	2pac	Changes
*	2pac	California Love f. Dr. Dre
	2pac	Picture Me Rollin'
	2pac	Dear Mama
*	2pac	Ghetto Gospel

There. Now, some of the changes I made a few days ago. Others just today. And even looking at this list right now, I wonder about some songs. Should Kanye West's "Through The Wire," Biggie's "Going Back to Cali," and Tech 9's "I'm a Playa" really be on there? But then I think about how much I listen to these songs, and I guess they probably should. Point is, all of these songs have been floating around my head for the last 2 weeks, and chances are I've lost perspective. What I need to do is sit back for a month or two, and then make some cuts if I feel need to. Problem with that is, while making changes to the list now might be a result of improper perspective, making changes after putting it out of my mind for a while could be impulsive. Whatever. This is what I've got and this is what Im going with.

These are a few of my favorite songs

Well, I finally did it. My best attempt at narrowing my music collection down to my top 100 favorite songs. Well, I got down to 101. My initial plan was to go for my ultimate top 25 songs, but I don’t think I can do that. I might be able to narrow the following list down to a top 40 or so, but that would seriously limit the diversity of the list. See, one thing I was going for was for on the list was to represent a cross-section of my music tastes. Like I said, this list is My 101 Favorite Songs, not necessarily The 101 Best Songs of All Time. While there is no doubt a ton of overlap between the two, there is a difference. For one, no one can argue with this list because they are my favorites (but please do argue anyway). But also, while there may be some songs left off this list that I think are better than some on this list (very rare if it is the case), I went in the direction to have a variety. I mean I could probably come up with a top 100 composed soley of Green Day, Eminem, Queen, 2pac, Tom Petty, and Michael Jackson. But that wouldn’t be as fun. Think of it this way: If I were on a deserted island, I think I could be pretty happy if I had these 101 songs with me (in alphabetical order by artist):

	Artist	Song
*	2pac	Hit 'Em Up
*	2pac	Changes
*	2pac	California Love
	2pac	Picture Me Rollin'
	2pac	Dear Mama
*	2pac	Ghetto Gospel
*	AFI	The Prayer Position
	AFI	God Called in Sick Today
	Alicia Keys	Fallin'
*	Alicia Keys	Why Do I Feel So Sad
*	The Assembly	Never never (Remix)
*	Bach	Air On The G String
*	Boondock Saints	Boondock Saints Main Theme
*	Carly Simon	Let ther River Run
	Citizen Cope	Bullet and a Target
	Collective Soul	The World Below
*	Concrete Blonde	Joey
	The Cynic Project	Matrix ][
*	Derrick and the Dominoes	Layla
*	Digital Underground	Freaks of the Industry
*	Dire Straits	Sultans of Swing
*	Dr. Dre	Nuthin' but a "G" Thang f. Snoop
*	Dr. Dre	Still D.R.E.
*	Eminem	White America
*	Eminem	Business
	Eminem	Sing for the Moment
	Eminem	Never Enough f. 50 Cent
*	Eminem	Encore f. 50 Cent and Dr. Dre
	Eminem	Stan
*	Eric Prydz	Call On Me
	Fleetwood Mac	Thunder Only Happens When It Rains
	Frank Sinatra	Theme From New York New York
	Goldfinger	Don't Say Goodbye
*	Green Day	Jesus of Suburbia
	Green Day	Holiday
	Green Day	Having a Blast
*	Green Day	Welcome to Paradise
*	Green Day	When I Come Around
	Green Day	86
*	Green Day	J.A.R.
*	Green Day	2000 Light Years Away
	Green Day	Christie Road
	Jay-Z	Roc Boys (And The Winner Is)...
	Jay-Z	Renagade (Feat Eminem)
	The Jazz Butcher	Bicycle Kid
	The Jazz Butcher	Girls Say Yes
	Johann Pachelbel	Canon in D
*	John Lennon	Imagine
	John Williams	Terminator 2 theme
*	John Williams	Jurassic Park - Main Theme
	Jonathan Richman	I Was Dancing In The Lesbian Bar
*	Kanye West	Never Let Me Down f. J Ivy, Jay-Z
	Kelly Clarkson	Because Of You
*	The Knack	One Day At A Time
	Led Zeppelin	Fool In The Rain
	Led Zeppelin	All My Love
*	Led Zeppelin	Stairway To Heaven
	Mamas & the Papas	California Dreamin'
	Mamas & The Papas	Make Your Own Kind Of Music
	Marvin Gaye	Sexual Healing
	Michael Jackson	Man in the Mirror
	Michael Jackson	The way you make me feel
	Michael Jackson	Thriller
	Michael Jackson	Beat It
*	Michael Jackson	Billie Jean
	Michael Jackson	Human Nature
	Midnight Oil	Blue Sky Mine
	Midnight Oil	Forgotten Years
	Nick Lowe	Cruel To Be Kind
*	NOFX	The Decline
	The Offspring	Gotta Get Away
*	Piano - Michael Nyman	The Heart Asks Pleasure First
	Pink Floyd	Time
	Pink Floyd	Money
	Protein	Passing By
	Puff Daddy & The Family	I'll Be Missing You feat. Faith Evans and 112
*	Queen	Under Pressure
*	Queen	Killer Queen
	The Rubinoos	Hey Rita
	The Rubinoos	Hit The Nerve
	The Rubinoos	No More Where She Came From
	Saves The Day	Nightingale
	Saves The Day	Rocks Tonic Juice Magic
	The Shangri-Las	Leader of the Pack
	Shania Twain	It Only Hurts When I'm Breathing
	Simple Minds	Don't You Forget About Me
*	The Skeletons	It's The Little Things
*	Smashing Pumpkins	Tonight, Tonight
	Snoop Dogg	Who Am I (What's My Name)?
	Snoop Dogg	Ain't No Fun
	Social Distortion	Dear Lover
	Social Distortion	Don't Drag Me Down
	Spin Doctors	Two Princes
	The Standells	Dirty Water
	Sublime	What I Got
	Talib Kweli	Just To Get By (Remix) f. Mos Def, Jay-Z, Kanye West, Busta Rhymes
*	Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers	American Girl
*	Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers	Breakdown
	Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers	Learning To Fly
	Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers	Mary Jane's Last Dance
*	Warren G and Nate Dogg	Regulate

As I mentioned, I could probably narrow the list further, and those songs marked with an asterisk (*) are the ones that would probably move on. Those are the songs that, without a second thought, are definitely in my top 50 songs of all time. The process of making this list was a long one. I came up with the plan about a year ago. First, I narrowed my entire music library of about 7000 songs (at the time) down to about 2000. Basically just the better 1/3 or ¼ of my music. And it was done in a relative way. I.e. for the most part, I would look at artists or album individually, and pick off the songs that I felt were above the others. Then I didn’t do anything for about 6 months. Then I narrowed this list down to roughly 750, and this list down to roughly 250. Again, to make it easier on myself and to preserve diversity in the list, I would narrow the list on a somewhat relative basis. Then, I didn’t do anything for about another 6 months. These breaks were not part of the plan, but I just did not find the time to put in the effort required. But I digress. From here, it wasn’t too hard to pick out the songs that I could say with a good amount of confidence are my favorite songs of all time. There are some arbitrary choices for songs on the bubble, and some songs left off the list will probably be mad at me, but all in all I’m pretty happy with what I’ve got.

A few notes on specific songs:
-I’m not sure if some songs, like “What I Got” by Sublime should be on there. I think (not positive) there are songs not on the list that I like better. But I figured Sublime needs to be on this list because they are one of my favorite bands of all time. And “What I Got” is probably my favorite song of theirs.
-Some songs on the list—among them “Never Never” by the Assembly and “Let the River Run” by Carley Simon—are undoubtedly deserving, but only rose to that rank as a result of my mom or dad playing them a lot throughout my childhood.
-There are some cases, like Pink Floyd, where the following problem arose: Im not positive if either “Time” or “Money” should be in My Top 101 Favorite Songs. Definitely close if not in there. But I like those songs equally. Seriously, I cant decide which one I like more. So I could not justify taking out one of them without taking out both. And I certainly could not justify a list with no Pink Floyd on there (just like Sublime), so they both remain.
-Finally, there may be some songs that deserve to be there, but they are relatively new (at least to me), so they have not had a chance to stand the test of time. Jay-Z’s “Roc Boys” is the exception to this, as I like it and listen to it so much these days, I couldn’t help but put it on there.

So there you have it.

Speaking of sports and big stories....

NBA: some idiot referee was betting on games; games he was officiating.

NFL: Michael Vick gets indicted for a freakin dog fighting ring.

MLB: Our lord and savior Barry Bonds is about to break the all time home run record.

All of these stories are the biggest in recent years for all three sports. All going on at the same time. All three commissioners are freaking out. Kinda cool.

Especially Barry. This is obviously one of the biggest stories in baseball history. Its gonna be awesome.

The Answers

The biggest story in human history? Like I said it's not an easy question. Good amount of candidates. Obviously, humans beings coming into existence is the easy answer. But that's way more of a gradual progression. Not really a single story. Same thing with the computer. I'm sure when it gets done with what it's doing, it will have revolutionized society more than maybe anything before it. But again, this is gradual, and it's not even done yet. Oh, and before we go any further, let's count out so called miraculous events. Don't tell me Jesus resurrecting, or Noah building an ark is the biggest story in human history. Because these events did not actually happen, they cannot be considered.
The Holocaust was a pretty big story. Couple that with WWII and you got a pretty good candidate I'd say. 9/11 was huge. But I can't see these things being the biggest stories/events in all of human history. The birth and life of Jesus has to be considered a top candidate. Or Mohamed. Or whatever other prophets there were.
But I think I'm gonna go with the discovery of the New World. The Vikings, Columbus, whoever. Whenever it happened, that's my pick. For all intensive purposes, the world doubled in size. New land, new people, new resources, new everything. Am I way off here?

As for the question of of what will be the biggest story in human history when it's all said and done with, that's easy. If it ever happens. But if and when life is discovered somewhere other than Earth, that will be the biggest story in human history. It will mean so much to how we think of ourselves, the universe, whatever god people believe in. It'll be awesome. And it could happen in the next 50 years. And that's conservative. Scientists are pretty much certain that on Jupiter's moon, Europa, there is liquid water below it's icy surface. And as far as I know, there's no reason life could not exist there. All it takes is a mission to get there, melt through the ice, and check for life. This is not too far off. See here and here. If life is discovered there...oh man. One day, life on Earth is unique. Then NASA or someone makes an announcement, and life on Earth is literally commonplace in the Universe. Because if there are two places life exists in one solar system, you know life has got to be all over the place. Furthermore, it's not out of the question that Mars used to have life on it. And then there's Saturn's moon, Titan, which is a possibility. But the real challenge will be getting to life outside the solar system. Because interstellar travel is still a long long way away for us. See? Science is cool. Please watch "The Universe" on the History Channel. Tuesdays at 9. Real good stuff.

Now, the biggest sports story of all time. I think that one is pretty easy too. It's gotta be Jackie Robinson. Right? What else? The first Superbowl? That was bound to happen. The '98 (and '61) home run chase was pretty huge, but no way that that's bigger than Jackie Robinson. I myself am probably biased towards baseball, so if there's something I'm missing, let me know.

As for the cheesy ending to the last post (what will be the biggest story of your life when it's all said and done?): I dont know what it will be. But other than some sort of marriage or birth of a child, I hope the biggest story of my life comes in one of those space control rooms where something is accomplished and then everyone claps, like in the movies. I want to be in one of those rooms real bad. Definitely on my "things to do before I die" list. So that's my story.

Oh, actually, the invention/discovery of fire might be the biggest event in human history. I don't know.

The biggest story of all time

What is it? What is the biggest story of all time? Or, let's say the biggest story in human history. I was thinking about this yesterday. It took me a while to come up with some possible answers. I'll reveal my thoughts by the end of this weekend. What are your thoughts?

Furthermore, when it's all said and done with, what will be the biggest story of human history? What future event will take the place of whatever story currently holds the title of "biggest story of human history"?

And what is the biggest sports story of all time? And what future story will replace it?

And while we're at it, what is the biggest story of your life? Although that one's pretty easy if your parents are divorced. But ah-ha. Watch this:

Awesomely cheesy but even more awesomely inspiring end to the blog: What will be the biggest story of your life?

A Comparison

In case anyone cares, now that I've finished a full school year at Columbia, I thought I'd do a comparison between Columbia and University of Puget Sound. First, academically:

I don't think that it can be summed up as simply as statements such as "Columbia/UPS is easier" and "I got a better education at Columbia/UPS". There's a lot of different things to be factored in. Columbia is definitely more of a grind. That's for sure. While no class I had this year at Columbia was harder than the hardest classes I had at UPS, there is definitely more volume here. At UPS, four classes was the norm, and usually at least one of those was a I-don't-have-to-work-hard-at-all-for-this-class class. At Columbia, you need to be taking 5 classes, and at this level of a Mechanical Engineering major, they are all legit. You can't really mail it in for any of them. So I'd say I was probably busier with school work this past year than I ever was at UPS, but I could handle most of the material. For the most part, I had a pretty good grasp on the concepts. There were definitely a few classes at UPS where I was much more lost, struggling to keep my head above water.
Professors: Another topic for which there is a lot to say. For one, it is pretty easy to say that at UPS, the professors care more about the students than they do here. At UPS, professors were there to teach, and they did research because that's just sort of what you do aside from teaching (get on the tenure track, etc). At Columbia, it seems like the professors are there to do research, and they teach because that's just sort of what you do aside from research (after all, they do need a venue for their research). At UPS, classes were smaller, and, in general, professors much more personable and approachable. This serves well for education purposes. On the other hand, with a few exceptions, the professors are smarter here. It amazes me sometimes to think about how much some of these people know. That does not necessarily translate into being a good teacher, although it often does. Sometimes I'm in class thinking "I could teach this lesson better than you are." But usually that's not the case. I can't say for sure which institution gave/is giving me the better education. Small classes with approachable professors is a huge plus. No question you learn better ("learn better" - it sounds weird, but that's what I'm going with). But as a ME major here, you are just bombarded with knowledge--it's hard to say I'm not learning more.
That being said, I will say this. And it may seem surprising. This point was actually brought up by Bethany, but I have to agree: students here are not held to very high standards. The prevailing attitude when it comes to grading seems to be "Oh you didn't do well on this test. But nobody else did either. So we'll just give pretty much everyone A's and B's." Not that there were never any curves at UPS. But they are much more generous here. I mean, it is no easy task to write a test that's hard enough to separate those who know their shit from those who don't but easy enough so that it actually can be done (within a time limit as well). My suggestion to most professors would be make the tests easier, and curve less generously. One thing I said about UPS after going there was that there was definitely some grade inflation. I can name a few classes where I felt I deserved a grade significantly worse than the one I received. But I have to say grade inflation there is nothing compared to what it is here. Even slightly above average can get you at least a B+. I'm curious to know what the average GPA is among ME majors, the engineering school as a whole, and Columbia University as a whole. Also UPS as a whole and physics majors at UPS. Really, the average GPA should be a 2.0. But I bet here its about a 3.2. That guess is completely blind by the way. It could be way off. But part of the problem is that anything lower than a B- these days is disastrous. A C used to be average. Now it's "what the fuck am I gonna do Im never gonna get into Med school." It'd be nice if we could go back to when there was a nice bell curve centered around C, but the fact is, professors want to look after their students. I read an article in the Columbia newspaper a while ago that said that in Columbia College--not the engineering school--a couple years ago 52% of grades given were an A or A-. Students did exceptional/outstanding work 52% of the time? Really?
Anyway, on a selfish level, I did find a nice little loophole for getting into Columbia. People always seem pretty impressed when they find out I'm at Columbia. But all I did was take what I needed to at UPS and get at least a 3.0. It's funny. Most of us Dual Degree students agree that we would not have gotten into Columbia out of high school. And yet compared to the students who did, we do pretty well. So I guess that says something about education at small liberal arts schools. I think also it helps being a year or two older and wiser, but whatever.

Comparing the schools socially is no easy task either. Mainly this is hard because I spent 4 years at UPS, and I have a lot of friends who I am very very close with. So its easy to say that I had better times back at UPS. But its really not all that different. Play beer pong for a while, then go out. At UPS it was out to a bar or house party. No house parties here. On the rare occasion you do go to a dorm/apartment party, its usually a bit cramped. Columbia being in NYC is the other wild card. Obviously, New York is sweet. For the most part, we usually stick to the 5 or 6 bars that Columbia kids go to around here. But when we do make it downtown or wherever else, its pretty refreshing. Anyway, there's not much direction to this comparison, but I guess what I'm trying to say is that the social scenes at the two schools are pretty similar. And they're both probably about what you would expect. You got your different types of groups, and fortunately, my type of group is pretty easy to have fun with.
Girls are better looking here, but it's nothing to brag about being better looking than UPS. Actually, at UPS, I don't think it really was that bad. But its so small, its like you're never gonna see anything new. Sometimes I wish I went to a big school, partly for this reason. Also, a good sports school would be sweet. I mean I can't imagine what it would be like to be at Florida these days. 2 basketball championships in a row, with a football crown between them. That'd be awesome.

Anyway, hope you enjoyed that.

I hate Jeff Pearlman

Once again, Jeff Pearlman has written an article berating Barry Bonds for doing something positive. This guys acts like he not only knows Bonds, but that Bonds also slaughtered his family. I think my thoughts are best represented in the email I wrote Pearlman promptly after reading his article:

"No matter what he does, he's wrong. He can't win with you. I read your Page 2 article on espn.com. The link to it had this description: "Barry Bonds planned to wear no. 42 on Sunday to join in the honoring of Jackie Robinson, further proof that this man just doesn't get it." I'm not sure if you wrote that, but I'm sure if Bonds did not plan on wearing no. 42, you would have written a similar article with the description, "Barry Bonds did not plan on wearing no. 42 on Sunday to join in the honoring of Jackie Robinson, further proof that this man just doesn't get it." I'm surprised you didn't blame him for the rain that washed away the games today. I'm sure you could have come up with something like "Barry told the public he would honor Jackie Robinson by wearing no. 42. But since he's simply an evil man, he decided he needed a way around it, because in reality, he actually hates Jackie Robinson. So he used the powers that his evil performing-enhancing drugs gave him and summoned a rainout." Seriously, with the bullshit you write about Barry Bonds, I would not have been surprised to see that in there.

Here's a man, one of the greatest baseball players of all time, who wants to honor one of his heroes, and you come up with a way to make that a bad thing. Even if his track record in regard to race and sports is not great--although I've heard about plenty of times Bonds has lent advice to black rookies--he is in fact trying to honor Jackie Robinson. This is what he currently wants to do. The quote you used--the one he told mlb.com--what more do you want? It's easy to say he's not being sincere. In fact, it gets you a paycheck. But whats more logical is to assume he is being sincere, because who wouldn't be sincere when saying something like that? It's Jackie Robinson, for christ's sake. What he said was fact: "You just can't underestimate the impact Jackie had on this game." But it's Barry Bonds, so obviously there's something deceptive or wrong or evil about it, right?

It's time to move on, Mr. Pearlman. We know you don't like Barry Bonds. But enough with making him out to be worse than Hitler. You say "he has treated his black baseball forefathers like Aaron not as legends to be honored, but as stepping stones in his own maligned assault on the record books." As far as I'm concerned, this statement alone ruins your credibility. Bonds has shown nothing but respect for Aaron. If you say he treats Aaron as a stepping stone, you also should write an article claiming Cal Ripken considered Lou Gehrig as a means to personal gain. Barry Bonds not trying to erase Hank Aaron from the record books. He's simply hitting home runs. He's trying to win baseball games. He will pass Aaron on the way, and you can bet on him showing nothing but respect at that time, even though Aaron will be showing disrespect by not being there. So when the guy goes out of his way to show respect Jackie Robinson, just let him be. The next thing you write about Barry Bonds should be an apology.

-Mike Meade"

Here and there

A few things:

I feel as though this blog hardly ever gets read. I know this for a few reasons. 1) the pathetic ticker down at the bottom of the page. 2) the lack of comments. 3) I still am observing copious amounts of girls wearing hideously large sunglasses that make them look like Kim Jong Il if he went to the beach and needed his glasses to be shaded. If this blog was read like scripture like I secretly wish it was, there would have been huge-sunglasses-bonfires by now. But it makes sense that no one reads this blog, because it hardly ever gets written in. That being said:

Baseball season is upon us. Thank god. Unfortunately, my Giants are sucking more than Chipper Jones does in the back of a gay bar. After every Giants loss, I get in a remarkably bad mood for a good few hours. Luckily, sense baseball season is unnecessarily long, there is ample time to turn it around. The question is, how likely is it that they will turn themselves around into a contending team? I still have a good amount of optimism, but not nearly as much as I did before the season started. On the plus side, Barry hit two more home runs yesterday, leaving him 18 shy of Hank Aaron. My former 948 Cedar (aka CTU, aka The Hatch) housemate Matt has claimed for a while that if Barry gets reasonably close, he would take a crowbar to his knees. I doubt it will happen, but just be alert, Barry. The best way to avoid it would be to hit 19 home runs tomorrow, because I doubt Matt would be able to get to Pittsburgh on that short of notice.

Other than the slow start for the Giants, life is pretty good these days. I've found myself in mostly good moods. I do have a ridiculous amount of work remaining in the final month of school, but in a month, for better or for worse, it will be over. I've got an engineering internship in San Francisco lined up for the summer, which I'm fairly excited about. It's not my dream job, but I put a lot of time into landing an internship this summer, so it's nice that my hard work paid off. What else? Me and five of my best mates here will be moving into a nice suite closer to campus next year, which should be fun. One of them is talking about building a kegerator, and if anyone is gonna follow through on something like this, its him, so I'm pretty excited about that. I think we could do about a keg a week if we share a bit.

Oh, I wanted to write about this a few weeks ago. Has anyone played polo? Like, with horses? If you think about it, that's a pretty sweet sport. Man and beast working together and all? It's like a Midi evil battle scene, except instead of impaling each other with huge swords, they try and knock a ball into a goal or some shit like that. Anyway, I had the thought, so I thought I'd share it with you all (no one). Good day.