Bumper Crop.

I think they give you these bumper stickers in boxes of granola, and it's standard issue on the Prius Hybrid; but on a pick up truck?
Doesn't have an opinion, but thinks yours stinks.
The Shocker!

What the Kids are Watching Smackdown

WARNING: Some of the videos below are inappropriate for children and some adults. If any portion of Animal House bothered you, you might ought to skip this post.

In the last Smackdown, looks like y'all were Crazy about Aerosmith, which narrowly rode past Ozzie's Crazy Train. Oldest son, Davis, occasionally cues me in to what the kids at Sewanee are watching. He hooked me up with four videos that range from pretty funny in a conventional way, such as the Will Farrell skit, The Old Prospector; to a couple that are funny, but pretty raunchy; to one that is just bizarre. Anyway, The Old Prospector is pretty safe, but I can't embed it. If you want to watch it, you'll have to click the link above. What the kids dig the most is that the other actors can't keep a straight face while Will waxes crusty.

The second video is also by some SNL affiliated folks. The Lonely Island did their own thing before the boys joined SNL. This video is not for the easily offended (think "dick in a box"). It's pretty funny, though, and I love the cameo by Justin Timberlake as the "clean-up on aisle three" guy.


What do you get when you mix an innocent kids' show with gangsta rap? A natural! Lazy Town, Davis tells me, is a Nick, Jr. offering in the style of "Barney"; Lil John's nasty lyrics and raunchy style seem an oddly perfect pairing. Cooking by the Book became an immediate favorite (and one of the songs that Davis' friends played for him when he completed his comprehensive exams a few weeks ago). Nasty, but hilarious:



The last one, Shoehorn, is just... weird.



I'll post the poll tomorrow.

Thanks, John.

After spending the morning in Beaufort, I came home to see this box on my doorstep. The only parcel I've been expecting is a roaster pan from Sears. I don't know anybody in Groves, Texas. Who's Nancy Pellerin? Hmmmm. Seems I recall Col getting a surprise mug a couple of weeks ago, which I figured must have come from Illinois Internet friend John. Betcha that's a mug.

Well, waddya know? And a smiley face, too. The timing couldn't've been better, either. Though the Christmas season has been fun, I only had one present to actually open for Christmas: a nice coffee maker from the kids. Say, and this'll go nicely with that, too, won't it? Thanks, John.

Trip to the Mall

No malls in the Boro, so brother Andy takes the Lads and their friend, Nick, and me to a mall in Cigar City. Security guards shake down the Lads. Walking down the driving ramp is a serious matter. I'd never dream of dissing the mall police, so, naturally, I round up the Lads and direct them to the stairs.

Living dangerously.

AndyMan checks out some Auburn University slippers.

Don't buy it here, Andy; they'll steal your card!

AndyMan and I decide to catch the new Jim Carrey movie. View from the second floor of the theater at noon: not so crowded at the food court.

After the movie, the crowd picks up a bit. Apparently, food isn't the big draw at the food court.

My continuing quest to be the next Abercrombie and Fitch model.

The store clerk approaches. "Sir, you're not supposed to take pictures in the mall", she says. "I'm not taking pictures", I protest, "My brother is". I'm invited to leave anyway.

Hey, wait a minute! They're taking pictures here. Apparently Santa doesn't have to play by the rules.

Ted Nugent and Barack Obama are shelfmates. Talk about odd couples!

Damn, I love my job!

Pay no attention to the man behind the plexiglass. The elite mall security squad captain, who informs me that pictures are not allowed at the mall. Well, I guess I'd better not take any pictures, then.

Merry Christmas from Jesus, Santa, Frosty and the Gang!

Roadtrip: Florida, Part Three

Florida welcomes the Lads and their friend, Nick.

Visiting Uncle Bob and Aunt Maggie in Orlando.

Three-D fries at Five Brothers Hamburgers just East of Tampa. Kate, you do not want to see the hamburgers (but they were GOOD!).

AndyMan by the Hillsborough River. This park is about a block from Andy's house.
These people will never miss a couple of oranges.

AndyMan's fellow Ultra-Marathoner, Jon, who lives only a few blocks away.

Tall buildings in one section of downtown Tampa. Okay, it ain't NYC; still, the tallest building in the Boro is three stories.

If this gal wants to haul ass, she's got to make two trips!

A.P. Leto Comprehensive High School: My alma mater.

The Tampa campus of Stetson School of Law. It was built after I graduated at the main lawschool campus in Gulfport.

Greek Omlet at Nicko's Diner in Tampa. The menu says "Elvis Ate Here "1956"", and "Family owned and operated since 1980". I'm not an ace in math, but...

The Twins with their cousin, Alison.

I don't know where to go from here, so I reckon I'll stop. We had a side trip to the Mall, which I'll post later.

AC/DC.

The trip was fun, the show was great. I'll post the trip later. The show must go on first. The show we caught was at the St. Pete Times Forum, located, ironically, in Tampa. Not far, in fact, from the home of my brother. You got to learn more about his digs in the last- ghosted- post. I like his place. Just the right size for a single dad; the neighborhood has lots of trees, and it's close to a park.
The St. Pete Times Forum is the home of the Tampa Bay Lightning hockey team. Pretty nice. You can buy beer from any of lots of vendors (but at $10 a cup, I didn't).


The Lads and their guest, Nick, get in the spirit (man those boys need haircuts!).

Aging boomers and their children were the main demographic at the show. With tickets starting at $100 a pop, the kids seemed to accept the father/son and father/daughter tandems.

The Answer, a group from Belfast, Ireland (or Northern Ireland. Whatever), opened. The Lads enjoyed them. Certainly they were loud. But really, The Answer wasn't the answer: AC/DC was. AC/DC's intro was an animated short film which was scary, loud and funny, setting up Rock and Roll Train from their new c.d., Black Ice (I didn't film it, but another dude at another venue did. If you want to see it, look here. They played most of their "greatest hits": Back in Black, Hell's Bells (with a giant AC/DC bell lowered to the stage), Thunderstruck, Shook Me All Night Long (most of the crowd sang the entire song with them), TnT ("oy, oy, oy"), Dirty Deeds (Done Dirt Cheap- from which I included a brief clip), together with Big Jack from their new c.d., and Rosie (with a giant inflated tawdry gal riding the train. Couldn't see it from our seats, but we got a couple of glimpses in the side video screen). The crowd ate it up. To my amazement, these old dudes brought a ton of energy to the show for two hours. Angus blistered the guitar solos, shook his bootie, and strip-teased to reveal his AC/DC undies (kinda like seeing Harrison Ford in the most recent Indiana Jones flick: you know he's in his 60's, but it's still fun), and lead singer Brian Johnson high-fived people on either side of the cat-walk (Not us, of course. The "cheap" $100 seats where the Lads and I resided were well out of reach), and sang it just as fresh as he did twenty years ago. After the show-in-chief, the crowd brought them back to a pyrotechnical "Highway to Hell" and "For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)" (accompanied by really, really loud cannon shots). Here are some action pics:

Twin Tyler definitely dug it.

Here's a clip from the show:

My ears are still ringing, but it was a great show.