Listen here!

For these students, Benny Hill, Sam Kinison, Sam Walton, Bert Parks and Tony Perkins have always been dead.

1. Few in the class know how to write in cursive.

2. Email is just too slow, and they seldom if ever use snail mail.

3. “Go West, Young College Grad” has always implied “and don’t stop until you get to Asia…and learn Chinese along the way.”

4. Al Gore has always been animated.

5. Los Angelenos have always been trying to get along.

6. Buffy has always been meeting her obligations to hunt down Lothos and the other blood-suckers at Hemery High.

7. “Caramel macchiato” and “venti half-caf vanilla latte” have always been street corner lingo.

8. With increasing numbers of ramps, Braille signs, and handicapped parking spaces, the world has always been trying harder to accommodate people with disabilities.

9. Had it remained operational, the villainous computer HAL could be their college classmate this fall, but they have a better chance of running into Miley Cyrus’s folks on Parents’ Weekend.

10. A quarter of the class has at least one immigrant parent, and the immigration debate is not a big priority…unless it involves “real” aliens from another planet.

11. John McEnroe has never played professional tennis.

12. Clint Eastwood is better known as a sensitive director than as Dirty Harry.

13. Parents and teachers feared that Beavis and Butt-head might be the voice of a lost generation.

14. Doctor Kevorkian has never been licensed to practice medicine.

15. Colorful lapel ribbons have always been worn to indicate support for a cause.

16. Korean cars have always been a staple on American highways.

17. Trading Chocolate the Moose for Patti the Platypus helped build their Beanie Baby collection.

18. Fergie is a pop singer, not a princess.

19. They never twisted the coiled handset wire aimlessly around their wrists while chatting on the phone.

20. DNA fingerprinting and maps of the human genome have always existed.

21. Woody Allen, whose heart has wanted what it wanted, has always been with Soon-Yi Previn.

22. Cross-burning has always been deemed protected speech.

23. Leasing has always allowed the folks to upgrade their tastes in cars.

24. “Cop Killer” by rapper Ice-T has never been available on a recording.

25. Leno and Letterman have always been trading insults on opposing networks.

26. Unless they found one in their grandparents’ closet, they have never seen a carousel of Kodachrome slides.

27. Computers have never lacked a CD-ROM disk drive.

28. They’ve never recognized that pointing to their wrists was a request for the time of day.

29. Reggie Jackson has always been enshrined in Cooperstown.

30. “Viewer Discretion” has always been an available warning on TV shows.

31. The first computer they probably touched was an Apple II; it is now in a museum.

32. Czechoslovakia has never existed.

33. Second-hand smoke has always been an official carcinogen.

34. “Assisted Living” has always been replacing nursing homes, while Hospice has always been an alternative to hospitals.

35. Once they got through security, going to the airport has always resembled going to the mall.

36. Adhesive strips have always been available in varying skin tones.

37. Whatever their parents may have thought about the year they were born, Queen Elizabeth declared it an “Annus Horribilis.”

38. Bud Selig has always been the Commissioner of Major League Baseball.

39. Pizza jockeys from Domino’s have never killed themselves to get your pizza there in under 30 minutes.

40. There have always been HIV positive athletes in the Olympics.

41. American companies have always done business in Vietnam.

42. Potato has always ended in an “e” in New Jersey per vice presidential edict.

43. Russians and Americans have always been living together in space.

44. The dominance of television news by the three networks passed while they were still in their cribs.

45. They have always had a chance to do community service with local and federal programs to earn money for college.

46. Nirvana is on the classic oldies station.

47. Children have always been trying to divorce their parents.

48. Someone has always gotten married in space.

49. While they were babbling in strollers, there was already a female Poet Laureate of the United States.

50. Toothpaste tubes have always stood up on their caps.

51.  Food has always been irradiated.

52. There have always been women priests in the Anglican Church.

53. J.R. Ewing has always been dead and gone. Hasn’t he?

54. The historic bridge at Mostar in Bosnia has always been a copy.

55. Rock bands have always played at presidential inaugural parties.

56. They may have assumed that parents’ complaints about Black Monday had to do with punk rockers from L.A., not Wall Street.

57. A purple dinosaur has always supplanted Barney Google and Barney Fife.

58. Beethoven has always been a dog.

59. By the time their folks might have noticed Coca Cola’s new Tab Clear, it was gone.

60. Walmart has never sold handguns over the counter in the lower 48.

61. Presidential appointees have always been required to be more precise about paying their nannies’ withholding tax, or else.

62. Having hundreds of cable channels but nothing to watch has always been routine.

63. Their parents’ favorite TV sitcoms have always been showing up as movies.

64. The U.S, Canada, and Mexico have always agreed to trade freely.

65. They first met Michelangelo when he was just a computer virus.

66. Galileo is forgiven and welcome back into the Roman Catholic Church.

67. Ruth Bader Ginsburg has always sat on the Supreme Court.

68. They have never worried about a Russian missile strike on the U.S.

69. The Post Office has always been going broke.

70. The artist formerly known as Snoop Doggy Dogg has always been rapping.

71. The nation has never approved of the job Congress is doing.

72. One way or another, “It’s the economy, stupid” and always has been.

73. Silicone-gel breast implants have always been regulated.

74. They’ve always been able to blast off with the Sci-Fi Channel.

75. Honda has always been a major competitor on Memorial Day at Indianapolis.

I am still trying to unclog my bathroom drain…

Thankfully everyone is A-OK. Check out this tornado

my sister snapped from her driveway in Aurora, CO!

I’ve been limping around for a lot longer that I thought I would be. See, I recently went to go workout at Wilson’s, and I stepped up to the treadmill. I’m no stranger to cardio – I love it! Normally, I go about a half-hour. This time, I thought, I was going to go for an hour. I was inspired by the contestants on the Biggest Loser. I could do it. I was on fire.

The run started out simply. I plugged in my iPod and started plugging away at mile #1. Within a couple of minutes, the woman in front of me changed the channel to VH1’s Rock of Love Tour Bus. “Hell yeah!” I thought. “An hour will be nothing!!” I unplugged my iPod and switched my headphones to the aweful-but-sooooo-entertaining reality mess. Things were good. I didn’t push myself too hard.

As my hour was wrapping up, I felt really good! During the last commercial break in the show (the episode featuring the first annual Redneck games, LOL), a promo came on for VH1’s Tool Academy – which I also watch – next up. I was already DVR-ing it at home, and like I said I was feeling really good on the treadmill. So, I decided to stick it out and do the treadmill for another hour while I watched my show.

I DIDN’T WANT TO HURT MYSELF, so I purposely walked quickly during the show-parts of the 2nd hour, and ran fast during the commerical breaks. I assumed my quads would hurt, but I was kind-of looking forward to it. Tight quads are normally a good hurt, to me.

My quads were not the issue. Rather, my quads ARE not the issue. It’s my ankles. I never would have thought that I’d strain my ANKLES – how wimpy is that?!  That deserves to be ask again: HOW WIMPY IS THAT?! Man, I AM getting old. I’ve been limping – on both feet – for 5 days now. Ridiculous…

If anyone asks me what happened, my standard reply is, “It’s not impressive.” This never seems to satisfy, so I normally then say, “I stayed on a treadmill too long”, which prompts a lot of laughter. Many people have instructed me to come up with a better story.

A liar, I’m not. A good storyteller, I am. So, I decided to atleast make it a good story. Here’s how it “happened…”

There was a burning building. I heard screams. I ran in and found a bunch of defenseless babies. I scooped all of them up in my safe, net-like arms. I fought the smoke and flames, heading for the safety of outside, when I heard whimpering. I looked to my left through the rubble and thats where I saw them – a mother dog sheltering her newborn puppy from the flames.

With my arms full, I channeled the Dog Whisperer, communicating with the mum what had to be done.

Instinctively, both she and her pup bit about my ankles, savaging the flesh and gnashing the bone. I winced in pain but did not cry out as to not further frighten the babies. I kept safe hold of all the babies, who had been crying but seemed now entranced with the ankle-meat-fest just a meter below.

I trudged on. Walking with the sheer determination you only see in movies – much like the Terminator when he knew he was oh-so close to Sarah Conner. Through the smoke and sweat, I robotically, emphatically marched to the beat of my own drummer. The song was “We are the Champions,” and as I reached the safety of the afternoon sun outside that fire-ravaged building, I knew I was.

My ankles woudn’t be the same ever again – not for a couple of weeks at least – but I knew it was worth it the second the mother dog began to lick my gnarled ankle. A thank you? Did she understand? I will never know. What I do know is both mother and dog-child were safe, as were the half dozen-or-so babies I had plucked from the horrors inside the fire-ravaged death trap behind me.

Death was everywhere that sunny day, but it was not with me. I laughed in its face and barked “Not today!”, as its retreated… off to find someone else – someone… weak.

So that’s it. That’s how it happened. You probably didn’t hear about it because the fire spread to all other media buildings in town expect mine, so no-one could report on it. Y107 could have, but until now, it was just too soon to recall. The wounds, still too raw (both literally and metaphorically). Surely you understand.

Leave a coment if you’d like. I won’t be making any more public comments about my experience and actions that awesomely heroic day.

Thank you.

OK, so I don’t watch Oprah (if you listen to our show, you know I don’t mind saying if I did), but pretty much everyone knows that once a year Oprah does a show called her “Favorite Things.”

During these shows, the audience goes donkey-bonkers because she gives away a sample of every – single – one of her favorite things to each and every person in her audience. That, may I say, is awesome. Seriously… that is awesome!

It got me thinking, why not do a list of my own? I’ll probably be adding to this list as I think of more, but I think with even a few minutes of head-scratching I could come up with a few easily…

-Culver’s Butter Burgers (Bun!)

-Apple’s MacBook

-Laser Hair Removal (go to Pela Cura! They’re the best and least expensive!!)

-The Wii

-Lasik Eye Surgery

-Lean Cuisine Meals

-Shampoo with Mint so your scalp tingles

-Diet Coke

-Degree “Shower Clean” (this is only available for women now, which is BS because it used to be for “everyone”)

-HydroxyCut

-Steak seasoning

Lately, on Facebook, I keep getting tagged with the “One Word” note. If you haven’t seen it yet, basically it asks you to describe several things in your life using only one word.

For example-

Cell phone:

Mom:

Clothes:

You get the idea.

Answers for the fb note are as creative or factual as you wanna be. For example…

Pocket.

Friend.

Sweats (or in my case – “loathe” LOL).

So………. Rather than just copy the note from Facebook for my blog (as that is lame), I figured I’d steal the idea and tweek it (not tweet it, that’s a different website).

I’d like you to think about your childhood. Growing up in general. It’s too difficult to file decades of life into one word, so I’m going to allow 3 words.

What 3 words best describe you and your life when you were growing up?

For me, the first 3 that came to mind (put the first 3 for yours, too – the best and most-accurrate answers come if you don’t think too hard) are: Happy. Nerdy. Innocent.

You??

I cannot wait to do my taxes. I am blessed that, growing up, my parents were tax accountants. Although April 15th equals fear for the maority of Americans, all it ever meant for me growing up was that I didn’t see my parents much for a couple of months (they worked a lot around tax time).

Now that my parents are retired, I think they are pretty *done* with doing taxes (although I think they still enjoy them). Thankfully, my brother in law is also an accountant-type, and is kind enough to take me under his protecive tax wing every year. Yep – April 15th is always an exciting time to me, simply because of the rufund!! Even growing up with 2 accountants in-house, I know NOTHING of taxes. Sure I’ve heard of W2’s and I-9’s, 1040 E-Z’s and Earned Income Credit, but who really knows what that crud means?!

I really came to appreciate my brother in law’s (and my parents’) tax knowledge a couple of weeks ago… A friend’s facebook status said he was trying to figure out his taxes and he was losing his mind. I felt bad for him, and soooooooo thankful to be able to be ignorant of how it all works.

So that brings me to this year. I bought a house in Columbia last March, so this will be my first tax-time as a home owner. My friends without houses tell me I should get ready for a HUGE refund. My friends that *do* own homes tell me it’s more, but don’t get too excited. Anyhoo… I can’t wait to get my refund back, no matter how big or small. Daddy needs a little economic stimulus!!

I’m gonna pay off my credit card FIRST (thank God – as the son of 2 accountants, that debt has been weighing heavily on my conscience). Second, if there is anything left over (come oooooooooon, BIG check I keep haring about!!), then I am *finally* going to buy the new couch I’ve been wanting for months. Got’ daaaaang I want a new couch!!

Unfortunately, it seems I will be needing a new Mac in the coming months (or days??). Mine is 3 years old and seems near death. Boo. A new Mac would be nice, but it’s not in the budget. I guess I’ll be financing that… it’s the American thing to do. You’re welcome, Steve Jobs. Get well soon.

How are YOU spending your tax refund? Or are you saving it ? Pansy. Just kidding…

As a news junkie, I was wondering – where do YOU get your news from?

I don’t want to affect your answers by telling you what recent surveys of the American public have gauged, but it doesn’t take a news-hound to realize your options for news outlets are growing everyday.

Is it with Shelley Tucker Y107 every morning (it better be, LOL!)? Your local news on TV? National television or radio? Your local newspaper? National papers? Entertainment magazines (like People, US Weekly, etc)? Your phone? Word of mouth? Or the web? Multiple outlets? Maybe you don’t care and prefer to be unplugged?

For those who will answer with the web (for all or part of their response), I am curious to learn which ones? Personally, I use many different avenues for my news-hunting. I won’t say which ones now because I don’t want to influence your answers, but I *do* think your feedback will be useful in how I prepare for the Cosmo and JC Radio Show (and be really interesting, speaking as a confessed news-junkie)!!

It’s about that time…With 2009 here, did you make your resolutions this year? I know, I know… people rarely fulfiill them and normally forget about them by mid-January, but I think its important to remember why we make resolutions in the first place.

New Year’s resolutions exist solely to make us better people. To help keep us moving forward in the game of life. So even if you fail, I would argue that it’s better to have tried and failed than to have ignored your faults all-together, right? Its a great opportunity to examine your faults and improve oneself.

So with that being said, I have one fun resolution, and one serious one. For starters, I resolve to “get back to my Kansas City roots” and start calling “soda” “pop” again! After 12 years of living in mid-MO, I’ve lost my pop-ways. Sigh… (that’s the not-so-serious resolution, obviously).

My serious resolution is very general, but I prefer them to be. I feel the less-defined, the easier it is to stay on the resolution wagon. Therefore, I resolve to make an honest attempt to eliminate negativity from my life. It’s something I resolve to do pretty much every year – and I’m getting better at it with age. I think negativity is the easy way out, and nothing good really comes from it. I’m pretty good finding the downside of negative situation, though. So this is a resolution that is right up my alley.

So now it’s your turn! What are some of your resolutions??

What’s Brown and Sticky?

A Stick!! Ha!

That’s probably my favorite (clean) joke. What’s yours? Add your CLEAN jokes below, pleeze…

We all are guilty…

The finale of the Biggest Loser is on tonight. I started this season late, but I’ve caught up and I like that show a lot. Honestly, I can’t stand any of the finalists anyway (and if Vicky wins, I may actually be angry). I wanted Amy C. to win

Anywhooooooo, my question for you this week is: What makes you the “Biggest Loser?” What is your guilty pleasure that you’d be embarrassed about if anyone found out? post a response and let me know (it’s anonymous, silly!!)!!

Mine is my nerdy computer game from my childhood, Civilization! I remembered it exited about a year ago and bought it for my Mac. I can EASILY blow an entire weekend playing it.

The next step is about to happen… I recently remembered how much I LOVED playing Sim City growing up – so I bought it for the Wii!! I’m giving it to myself for Christmas IF I’m am good about not spending any money and paying-down debt. Seriously – the game is sitting on my dresser WITH THE RECEIPT so I can return it if I am bad. I’m going to wrap it and everything!! I figure if I’m a loser and play with the game (for hours on-end) at home, I won’t be out spending more $$$$, right?!?! See? It’s an investment in my economic future and stability

What ultra-nerdy thing makes YOU the “Biggest Loser?”

Here is your Forum…

In life, there are moments when we must bite our tongue, swallow our pride and smile. Whether it is your Mother-in-law commenting on the dryness of your Thanksgiving turkey, or your boss who did something you know isn’t fair. Growing up in Catholic schools, I’ve learned from the best and been doing it my whole life

Keep it clean, Mid Missouri – please – but this is your chance to vent! I don’t want any names, and no specifics (it could come back to bite you!!), but vent below. What would you have liked to (tactfully) say back to your Mother-in-law about your turkey?!?! Say what you’ve been wanting to say!

It freaked me out…

I look up to my parents – always have, always will. Even at 30 years old, I still call my parents for advice (I’m sure this isn’t a surprise to folks my age, but I thought that might catch some younger readers off-guard). I feel very lucky I still can. But…

I can remember when I was young – very young – and found out that I knew something that my Dad didn’t. This wasn’t a “maybe” situation, it was “for sure.” My mind was blown…

It wasn’t something in the field of “street smarts,” either. It was “book smarts” stuff. This is what impressed me so much. Sure, I knew current slang, cartoons, who the “druggies” were to avoid at school, and that the hairspray I was forced to use was uncool, but this was different. My teacher had taught it to me. I learned it and HE HAD NOT. I was stupefied…

Are you ready for what it was?

It’s pretty silly, looking back…

It was millimeters.

Yep millimeters. I remember helping my Dad with some sort of home-improvement project around age 8-ish. He ask for the sum of some random measurement, and I answered back that it was very small… “about 7 millimeters” (or something to that effect).

My Dad answered back, “What?”

My Dad – like most Dads, as I’ve come to find – is and was hard of hearing. A response of “What” to anything wasn’t unusual from my Dad.

(as a matter of fact, I used to make my Dad angry when I was a jerk-head teenager by saying something to my Dad, then immediately repeating myself before he could ask “what?” He would then ask when I was halfway through the repeated statement already. Maaaaaaaaaaaaaaan that used to make him mad! Kids can be “a handful” as Mom would say!)

Anywhoooooo… after I repeated the measurement (in millimeters), my Dad explained that “we didn’t have millimeters when I was growing up.” He added, “That’s new.”

WHOA… hold the phone!

Now that I’m older, I know that adults sometimes (especially parents, when pride is involved) fib to kids to save face. I have no idea if it was true that millimeters were “new,” or if he just never learned about them and should have. It didn’t matter… I officially knew something – something from a book – that my Dad didn’t. I had to teach HIM.

My DAD! I used to go to my parents for help with my algebra! To proofread my papers on Abe Lincoln! They knew what an “atomic weight” meant when I didn’t!!

But not millimeters. Whoa.

WHOA.

It stopped me dead in my tracks, and I’ve never forgotten it.

Be nice, Mid-Missouri, but can you think of a moment like this from YOUR life? What’s something you knew, but your parent(s) did not?

It’s fun to think about!!

Recently, that really annoying Bare Naked Ladies song popped into my head and stayed there. So I started thinking… what would I do if I had $1,000,000 – taxes PAID. I ask you the same question. Here’s what I’m thinking…

Charity HAS to come first. 10%… $100,000 would be spread out amongst my 5 favorite charities. I really should set more aside, but I’ve got some big goals… That’s my Catholic guilt talking.

My parents: They got me to where I am today, healthy and educated. Recently retired and living off of their stock market savings, I’m saddened they are looking for temporary jobs once again. I deem $100,000 to my parents to take some of the pressure off.

My debt: Including my house and all outstanding debt, I figure I’ve got about $120,000 in outstanding debt. As the son of 2 Accountants, I can’t in good conscience leave that unpaid. Whew! I feel a lot better that’s all paid-off!!!!

Savings: Economic guru-lady Suzy Orman says Americans, to be safe, should have 8 months of bills-worth of cash saved and in the bank. I’d like to 1-up her save much more just so I impress myself and pull down some REAL interest on my money! I’m throwing $20,000 in the bank which I vow to NEVER touch!!

FUN: There’s a few things I’d like to do. A few of my close friends are going on a cruise in February, but I can’t afford to go this year. -I’d fix that pronto!! As a matter of fact, I’d pay for their trip-related costs, too (great friends are so rare and important!!). I’d guess that would be about $5,000 – including my shopping and drinks

Family: I have 6 older sisters and 2 great parents. We are spread out all over the country. Having recently bought a home, I still haven’t had a huge gathering at my homestead to show my new digs off to (all of) my family. I’d pay to fly all of them to town (first class, baby!!), and hold some cash back for hotel (as my house couldn’t hold NEARLY all of my family, and we’d all probably get along a lot better if everyone had their own space!!). Cash allotment… I have NO IDEA! Ummmmm… $10,000???

Culture/Travel: My parents and I have talked for years about traveling to 2 places where my ancestors came from: Italy and Ireland (I know, I don’t look Italian, but I swear I am! Take one look at my Dad… he looks like a mafia Don!!). Again, I have no clue how much this would cost… I’d budget about $20,000 for this once-in-a-lifetime trip!

Home Improvement: There are a few things I’d like to do to improve my home’s look and value. Unfortunately, after remodeling both of my bathrooms (with A LOT of help from my neighbor friend), I have ZERO desire to do it myself!! I’d hire someone for the stuff I want done, but don’t want to “do”: tile throughout, deck/backyard/landscaping improvements, and some crazy-expensive counter tops – just because they’re really nice! Price tag: $25,000

Stocks: Every economist everywhere says its a hell of a time to buy. You’ve gotta spend money to make money, therefore I’m allocating the bulk of my free Million to the stock market before it takes off again. My parents didn’t raise no dummy!! Allocation: $600,000.

There we have it… I’ve just spent $1,000,000!! I’d argue that I did it pretty smartly, huh?!?! This is probably the most FUN blog I’ve written so far! Take a few minutes and use your imagination – it’s fun to be a kid again and pretend. What would YOU spend $1,000,000 on??? Who knows… maybe some rich person will like your thoughts and gift it to you?!?!

*Rich people please note… not to look unappreciative, but you hafta give it to me TAXES PAID or it’ll throw my whole plan off. Oooooooooooor, I’ll just take the straight Million!!! LOL

I’ll TOTALLY say the my Donor’s name on the air! Huh?!?!? Incentive??

Everyone always asks the opposite…

I am what I would consider a “musical person.” Although I cannot play any instrument adeptly – which is something I regret – I have been around music my whole life, and have established a career in which music pays my salary (in essence).

I have what many would attest to be a “musical brain” (I remember sounds and songs quite well and am REALLY good at identifying a ton of songs in very few notes).

I love most all music (except country – I grew up in Missouri, but I just can’t get into it). There *are* a few artists, though, that I just can’t stand. A couple even produce anger “inside,” – kind of like when everything goes red and the alarm starts sounding in Kill Bill…

For example, Smokey Robinson. I hate so few people in this world, but he’s one of them. Nickelback (and I know I’m not alone on this one). I don’t know why, but I’ve got some sort of beef with Roy Orbison. I absolutely loathe Bon Jovi. I block most of them out of my mind, so they aren’t flooding to the forefront at the moment. I normally am reminded of my deep-seeded hatred whenever a song from a despised artist comes on a jukebox (or ANY time I’m at karaoke… because if you hang around long enough, someone WILL try and fail at Bon Jovi).

What musical artists do YOU have an unnatural hate for?!

A 1st-Person Account of a Once-in-a-Lifetime Event…

If you ever listen to the Cosmo and JC Radio Show, you know I attest to being a “political geek.” As involved as I am, I recognize most people are not. Therefore, I try hard to limit my political rantings to “get yourself involved” and “know what side you’re on and WHY.”

My Dad is a proud Republican, and we have fun back-and-forths, arguing why his or my side is right (or is it left)? For years, he has told me a story of the time he got to shake John Kennedy’s hand. Although a Democrat, my Dad was a big Kennedy fan. From the way he talks about his love for Kennedy the man (back then), I parallel his feelings with mine for Obama today. Whether you like his policies or not – you cannot deny that President-Elect Obama is a good man.

I hadn’t told my Dad that I went to the Obama rally in Columbia 5 days before the election. For one, it hadn’t come up in conversation, and secondly, with my would-be gushing over my experience, I didn’t want to reinforce the Right’s “Obama is a celebrity-type” argument.

But then, the day after the Election, my Dad e-mailed me a really nice letter. In short, it congratulated “my side” of the political spectrum, and wished the President-Elect the best of luck, for the sake of the country.

He also included the following passage:

“I remember how excited I was when my candidate, John Kennedy, was running.  Just the simple fact that he was Catholic, made his election an impossibility. I couldn’t wait for the weekly update from US NEWS & WORLD REPORT.  And when he was finally elected, I was ecstatic.  I was too young to vote for him but I did shake his hand and that almost got me killed. So I think I know how you feel. 

Congratulations again and keep up that spirit.”

This Olive Branch-extending moment inspired me to open up about my experience at the Obama rally to my Dad. I figured I’d simply post the Obama portion of the e-mail I sent him on this forum, in case you wanted to go and couldn’t make it. Or perhaps you, too and forget your biases, and take a moment to get wrapped-up in (and stand behind) the powerful rally I attended, featuring the new President of these UNITED States.

Post:

President-Elect Obama (whoa…) held a rally in Columbia the Thursday before the election, outside on the MU campus near Jesse Hall. Several friends and I went to hear him speak (Raven and Kelly even drove here from KC!). It was quite an experience…

In the back of my mind, as I walked the mile or so from the car to where we would try to get our best view of the event, I thought of your story regarding Kennedy – and how you were able to shake his hand. I didn’t remember if he was in a passing vehicle, or walking by a line of gated voters. My candidate was up on stage.

There was absolutely no way I’d be able to get near him. I was across the street, standing in the middle of a parking lot, just north of Stankowski Field. From this, my second vantage point (we had been on top of a parking garage 3-4 blocks away until police booted us for security reasons), Obama was a dot in the distance about 2 inches tall. Behind the podium, I could make out his black hair, white collar, and black suit. I wasn’t even sure if the figure I was staring at was him – until I could clearly see his left hand thrusting with every point he made. I KNEW THOSE HAND MOTIONS! After watching the man’s speeches (pretty much daily) for the past two years, I knew those non-verbals. I was excited.

The campaign had set up extra speakers, so we could hear clearly. On the north side of the rally, we could see at least one extra video screen for the crowd that was behind Jesse Hall (therefore had NO chance of seeing the 2 inch dot that I could). I knew his speech almost verbatim. 75% of it was the same one I’d heard him give from other swing states on cable TV. I said the lines with him under my breath.

Obama was to start speaking at 9:30 pm. He actually began at about 9:20. “Doors” to the outdoor event were to open at 7:30 pm. A friend who works on campus said there were 30-45 people lined up at 9:45 am. As of 3 pm, the line was over a mile long, snaking around buildings for blocks – 8 people wide. I had to remind myself that I was going to see a politician, not the Beatles. This was crazy and awesome.

Final crowd estimates were at 40,000.

I tried to take pictures. Despite my camera’s mega-zoom, the lighting and distance proved too much. I didn’t get any good ones. I tried to get a photo of the Secret Service sharpshooter that seemed to be pointing right at me (there were a total of 3 on the ledge of the Business School just in front of me), but those were blurry, too. Once I realized he seemed to be aiming directly at me, I stopped,  lowered my camera and clapped vigorously at whatever Obama was saying…

I’m so glad I went. I knew I would never be able to shake the hand of my candidate, but being there – 5 days before he was elected President – was almost as good.

Love,

JC Jr.

Some Fell, but it Missed You

During a spacewalk in July of 2007, Astronaut Clayton Anderson had some trash to toss. It was a refrigerator-sized tank of unneeded ammonia coolant. Most pieces of space junk normally burn up upon re-entering Earth’s atmosphere. Unfortunately, I guess Mr. Anderson chucked the trash a little too much *toward* Earth, because it didn’t burn-up. Monday, Earthlings were warned that you may be thumped in the head by some space junk, as NASA had no clue as to where it would fall. I did not report this on the Cosmo and JC Radio Show so as to not raise a panic (in a couple people without enough to worry about).

Well, the verdict is in… It fell harmlessly in the South Pacific ocean. Whew.

If you could burn something up harmlessly from your basement – what would it be?

I’m not ready for winter

I don’t know about you, but I am not a fan of winter. I very-much prefer summer over all of the other seasons. The leaves on the two trees in my back yard kind of skipped the pretty changing of colors and have all-together just started dying – losing their leaves. What a bummer.

Winter brings colder weather, more layers of clothes (I hate wearing any at all – gross, I know), and holiday-related bills. Damn. I think I’ll be baking a lot of cookies for presents this year – never had a house payment during the Chhristmas season before this year.

I don’t like snow much, either. At least I won’t have to dig my car out as much this year since I’ve got a garage now. About the only thing I like about winter is sippin’ Baileys and hot chocolate (if you’re 21, kids).

Do you like winter?

Are you registered to vote?

If you’ve already registered, you *may* need to again. For example, if (like me) you’ve recently moved. Or if you got married, for example – you may need to re-register.

FORTUNATELY, it only takes a couple of minutes (seriously). Plus with the internet (which, if you’re reading this, you clearly have access to), you don’t even have to leave your chair.

The deadline to have your registration POSTMARKED (and in the mail, with a stamp) in the state of Missouri is WEDNESDAY (10/8/08). After that, you’re powerless – left out in the cold without a voice! Don’t let it happen to you!!

There are many websites you can go to in order to regiser, or even to check and make sure your current registration information is up-to-date. The EASIEST site I’ve found to do this at is www.voteforchange.com

Yes, I know, it’s run by “a particular” candidate – but you can still vote for whomever you like come election day (AS LONG AS YOU’RE REGISTERED!). Again, this is just the most simple, quickest registration website I’ve found (versus maps.google.com/vote for example, which works too, but I’ve found to be more cumbersome).

As I always say on air, I hope you vote, but do so with a firm reasoning as to WHY you’re voting for who you are. My suggestion – pick 3 things YOU really care about. The war, economy, education, immigration, taxes, etc. etc. etc. Then go to BOTH of the major Presidential candidate’s websites and research how they stand on YOUR issues (both have an “issues” tab on their site’s navigation bar). Try to have an open mind upon reading BOTH sides.

You can find the candidates at www.barackobama.com and www.johnmccain.com.

Now that you know WHY you’re voting for WHO you are – you can sound smart at parties!

It’s CRAZY that we’re liberating other countries – giving them the ability to vote – yet MANY in our blessed U S and A don’t vote. See the irony, there??

Again – the deadline for Missouri to register is WEDNESDAY (10/8/08). Don’t be left powerless!! Are you registered??

Actually, I’m in 2 different leagues this year. Impressed? Me too. Last year was my first year for a fantasy sports anything, and it went OK and proved to be a positive experience.

Wish me luck in this year’s season!

Do you play fantasy sports?

Look! It’s “Reality” Blogging!!

I love baths. I don’t know if it’s because (long story short) we pretty much had to take baths growing up, or what – but I love baths.

At least, I think I do. I remember them fondly. As an adult away from home, I haven’t taken a bath in a tub in probably over a decade. I bought my first home a few months ago, and I thought I’d in the guest bath all the time, like some Cal-gon commercial.

I haven’t used it once.

For anyone scrtching your head about now, I *do* take showers (duuuuuuuh). I’m a germaphobe. I actually think that’s my problem…

See, like I said above, I remember liking baths. They’re relaxing. Unlike showers, your whole body can be warm at the same time. Put on some Y107 and lay back and I could stay there forever (or until the water gets cold, then you have to drain the cold and replenish). But now that I’m older, I don’t think of the nice parts of a bath anymore.

Now I think about sitting in yuck. If you lay down and look across the water, you can always see some sort of something floating on top. Now matter HOW clean it was before you started to draw the water.

NO MATTER HOW CLEAN.

In my head, I know I’d be satisfied with the clean thing if I “comet-ed” the tub first. I’d accept that the little on-the-water-floatie-things (that would STILL be there) are no big deal, and were probably stuck on me to begin with. I know I’d be able to relax in the bath water (yuck! it even sounds gross) – but who wants to spend 15 minutes cleaning the tub, just so waste even more time in it?!?! I’d really rather just shower (which also takes me forever – Cosmo’s knows).

I supposed I won’t be bathing until I have a housekeeper who will clean my tub for me both before AND after I “relax.” But then I’d feel bad for making a mess.

Can you tell I was raised with 6 older sisters??  There were a lot of cards stacked up against me, but somehow I like chicks. I’m guessing this blog made you question that

When was your last bath??