everything I do makes sense

Ok, so.

I can’t sleep. Like ever. I have pretty severe sleeping problems. Always have. This is part of the reason why I love Fight Club. Because it makes total sense to me. I mean, fighting (natch)  insomnia, chewing Valerian root-these are all things that I capital “I” Indentify with.

This is how the Griz and I first became acquainted I guess.

Unremembered to most people beside MRWAD^sd Griz and I had a group. It was basically just us. We were called “The Insomniacs”. By, you know, us. And really no one else. But we did “vandalize” other people’s whiteboards by writing things like “THE INSOMINIACS ARE HERE” and shit like that on them.

I guess what I’m saying is, actually, I’ve been an asshole for a while now.

But then again, you knew that.

Anyhoo, the band known as “Chicago” after the great...uh. City. Or something. I’m to lazy to research this. But! They made this one song called “Saturday in the Park” and someone thought that I might like it. I did. Then, they suggested “25 or 6 to 4”. Which, obviously, I loved too. So I listened to it a lot. Then I stopped for a while. Because that’s how I am with music.

This is all going to come together^sd2 I promise.

Also, when I was 14, like everyone else, I fell in love with Green Day^sd3.

No-not love love. But I really liked listening to their songs. So of course “Brain Stew” came across my radar at some point in time. And, naturally, so did “Jaded”, Because, you know, how hard it is to hear “Brain Stew” without hearing “Jaded”?

But here’s the kicker. “Brain Stew” and “25 or 6 to 4” are the same song

Well, maybe.

It’s totally possible that “25 or 6 to 4” is not a reference to not being able to sleep at 0335 (or 0336) while trying to write a song. It could be about banging a whore.

...

Oh, come on now. Don’t get all PC on me. If you use Cockney rhyming slang 25 or 6 to 4 clearly rhymes with whore. So it could be about banging whores. You never know.

But at face value at least, these songs are the same. Both are about being awake. Not being able to sleep. Similar theories in similar songs.

And by “similar” I mean “HOLY SHIT THE BASSLINE IS ALMOST EXACTLY THE SAME”.

That kind of similar.

I mean, i found out by happy coincidence that my iTunes playlist played these two songs relatively close to each other. And now, as it should, it hurts to hear “25 or 6 to 4” without hearing its cousin (brother?) of “Brain Stew” after it.

And we all know “Brain Stew” is best followed by a rousing rendition of “Jaded”. Which, naturally, followed by the crippling fact that you are no long 14. Welcome to real life asshole.

Anyhoo, here they are.

I spend a lot of time alone.

Ok. This is one of those instances in which I think that I am not odd. That I am, in fact, like a lot of other people. But my problem is that I also spend a lot of time observing that I am alone. That’s key. Most people don’t think about it^sd But I do.

Anyhoo, while alone, I spend a lot of time doing things to occupy my time so that I don’t feel so alone. One of those things is writing^sd2. But the major one is watch TV.  Well TV shows. Or shows, that at one point, aired on the television channels that you know and love.

Let me backtrack for a minute. Because this post is, in fact, an example of an evolution. Or something. 

About two years ago The Dutchman introduced me to the brilliance of Firefly. Though he didn't know it at the time, this did three things. 1) Made me rewatch Buffy. 2) Turned me into a Joss fanboy 3) Gave me the idea to name my first daughter Inara.

...

Ok. He probably could have guessed #3. But that’s not the point. I became a Joss fanboy. Which heightened to a fever pitch around the time before Dollhouse started. Notice that I said before. Because when the series started I watched ever episode with antici

pation.

But it really wasn’t a good show. At least for a while. I mean, I recently rewatched the entirety of Dollhouse (during the hiatus) and most of the first season is comically bad.  I mean, its great to watch while you’re drinking^sd3. But other than that…the episodes don't work. Especially w/r/t the greatness that the show has become^sd4.

I know what your thinking right now. Well, you’re probably thinking two(ish) things. 1) wtf is ditriech doing writing?^sd5 and 2) what does this have to do with anything. This is the Beirut song of the weekend. Not the Beirut ditriech rambles on about tv shows of the weekend.

I assure you I’m getting to the latter point.

The reason why I^sd6 was excited about the new Whedon venture is the premise. The same as Firefly^sd7.  A western. But in space. Fucking awesome idea. Dollhouse’s is _even better_

Dollhouse premise: “Ok. So there are people who get their mind wiped. And can be whatever you need them to be. For a price.”

That’s a great premise. because when you hear it you think two major 1) if you can afford to pay for this what do you really need? 2) Is this nothing more than a really great brothel? because most guys just generally want sex.

Then you want to see what Joss does with it. Ok. That’s not technically true. I think that you’d want to see how any great show runner would deal with this^sd8. Because if you had this premise, you’d want to see how they’d reconcile these things.

Whatever the reason you’d first tune into this show as a casual fan, you’dve stopped watching quickly. The first 5 or 6 episodes were pretty bad. Ok, that’s an overstatement. The first 4 were bad, 5 is where it started to be a decent show. But, where it got great was 01x08.

The title of 01x08 is “Needs”. And it is, by far, my favorite episode of Dollhouse. In fact, it may be one of my favorite hour 42ish minutes of TV ever. And I’m going to tell you why^sd9.

Needs completes a mini arch in which the Dolls are glitching. Meaning, that something in their former lives, generally, was messing up them being a doll. Like it was infiltrating the “imprints” or personalities that they were assigned to do for a particular, uh, shift.

It’s really hard doing this show without spoilers. Especially this ep. And I'm going to spoiler something after this here jump. But it’s worth it.

Anyhoo, theses glitches convince the dollhouse upper management to allow certain dolls to fulfill their needs.

To be honest, when I first watched this episode, it didn’t really register. But when I watched it a second time^sd10 I noticed what this episode was doing. Ok, well, to be honest, I guess that all the episodes were kinda doing this. But this one was the most overt.

“Needs” is showing us that even if you completely, and I mean completely, wipe someone’s mind, there are some things we don't lose. Ever. These are the things that make us human^sd11. Well, not just human. These needs make us who we are. Not us as in a group of people. But us as individuals.

What I mean is that even if my mind was wiped, my doll version would probably still show a predilection toward the internet and drinking. It’s part of who I am at my core. And that’s what this show was about. It is about who we are as people individually. And what, if anything, can take that away from us.

The song that plays during the climax of this episode is “Lonely Ghosts” by “O+S”. And, is hauntingly beautiful. Also: this week’s BSOW. I mean, I would go on about how this song is pretty much perfect and all. But I’ve gone on enough about Dollhouse. So just listen and draw your own conclusions.

O+S
Lonely Ghosts
O+S

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sd: but I bet you do now!

sd2: Something that will become more evident over the next moth or so. Probably.

sd3: Not that I do much without drinking. Well work. Most of the time. I think. I don’t know. I’m pretty drunk most of the time.

sd4: Seriously, one of the best TV shows I’ve watched in very long time the last 5 or so eps. Which is why I now think all sci fi shows need an end date

sd5: And why can’t he do more? Ok, fine. You twisted my arm. I’ll write about TV now too. Happy?

sd6: Seriously one of the best show’s I’ve ever watched. And if you’ve never seen it we probably shouldn’t be friends. Or we should, so I can show you how awesome it is. Something.

sd7: see sd4

sd8: To be honest, I didn’t know what a show runner was/did until Dutch introduced me to Firefly. But I really want to see what someone like JJ Abrams or Shawn Ryan could have done with this premise. Not that I think it would be better. But because I enjoy other things they’ve done and it would make me happy.

sd9: what? you thought I wasn't?

sd10: I’ve noticed that I typically watch everything twice. At least. Which is totally new and different for me, because I rarely watch things more than once.

sd11: Which, honestly, is what the show is about. What is human? How are we humans alike? And what makes us different? It, actually, should probably been seen as a counterpart to BSG.
 

Yeah, so. I know I haven’t been writing for a while. Sorry about that. I totally meant to start the first, but you know how that goes. Other stuff got in the way. But I’m back. Sorta. In a way. I guess.

Oh, there they are

Dutch golfer Tiger Woods captured his 67th victory this Sunday at the Memorial in Muirfield Village this Sunday*

Of note: This sentence by itself simultaneously fulfills the Ohio, Dutch, and sports monthly requirements of cofabg. So at least we got that going for us

While in a 4-way tie, the Dutch golfer birdied back to back holes (17th and 18th on a way to a one shot victory at the Memorial, his fourth. Jack Nicklaus^sd1, the former Ohio State golfer and host of the Memorial tournament said that the Dutch golfer will more than likely surpass his record of 18 major tournament victories. This statement, no doubt was well received in Holland, as they've been looking for a champion of their own for quite a while now.

The Dutch golfer had a 7 (seven) under par day on Sunday, coming up with back to back clutch birdies on the 17th and 18th holes to win by one stroke. This finish gave golfers around the world a momentary pause, as we are only two weeks away from a return to the US Open at Bethpage Black, which was the site of the Dutch golfer's notable win in 2002. Notable, mostly, because Tiger was the only golfer to shoot under par for the entire tournament. Also notable because of the....excitable New Yorkish sports^sd2 fans that showed up to support, heckle, and otherwise yell at the golfers attempting to play at the extremely difficult "Black" portion of the Bethpage State Park golf course. This tournament was also personally notable to cofabger ditriech, as it was the tournament that "solidified" his love for the sport of golf, becoming only the third time in his life that he could remember with accuracy what caused, or made him realize his love of a sport or team^sd3.

written by the cofabg staff (for primarily the enjoyment of Dutch) with help from these two fine intertube publications.

One of my favorite movies of all time is "Friday Night Lights". This, actually, makes complete sense to pretty much everyone. However, I don't love the movie because its about football in general or high school in particular. Nor because it has Connie Britton^sd1 in it, though normally either one of those would do it for me. FNL: The Movie, is about perfection. Which makes it right up my alley.

I don't know if anyone knows this but attempting to be perfect is the thing that gets me to do, well anything. It's the only thing that makes me try new things^sd2. Perfection is pretty much the goal in everything I do. Naturally I fail almost all the time. But that's not the point. The point is to try to be perfect each and every time you do something.

But what is perfection? Well, Coach Gaines defines it by saying:

Being perfect is not about that scoreboard out there. It's not about winning. It's about you and your relationship with yourself, your family and your friends. Being perfect is about being able to look your friends in the eye and know that you didn't let them down because you told them the truth. And that truth is you did everything you could. There want one more thing you could've done. Can you live in that moment as best you can, with clear eyes, and love in your heart, with joy in your heart? If you can do that gentleman - you're perfect.

And I think that's a pretty good example of what personal perfection is. Perfection can also be when everything seemly comes together in a strange confluence of instances that can't really be explained or repeated.^sd3

Why am I talking about perfection all of a sudden? In a BSOW no less.

Because this week's song is frakking perfect.

I mean it. It's my favorite song in the history of songs. For a multitude of reasons. Mostly because it's just happy. Seriously. I mean, it makes me get up (or want to get up) and dance. And I can't dance^sd4. The beauty of this song cannot really be explained. It just has to be experienced

Postcards From Italy - Beirut

Postcards From Italy
Beirut
Gulag Orkestar

IRN:
(13:04:46) ditriech: I think I might change the South Carolina pick though.
(13:05:06) WoodnShoePimp: why is that?
(13:05:20) ditriech: vandy's at home. didn't have too bad of a year last year.
(13:05:25) ditriech: they could get within 0
(13:05:28) ditriech: err
(13:05:29) ditriech: 10
(13:06:03) WoodnShoePimp: go gamecocks

I'm so getting the rabbit this week.

Gon’ head and get the party started

Mr. Ice Cream Man
Master P (f. Silkk the Shocker)
Ice Cream Man

Ice Cream
Raekwon (f. Cappadonna, Ghostface Killah, Method Man)
Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...

Jungle Love
The Time
Ice Cream Castle

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Picture Credits

Picture 1

Picture 2

Picture 3

bg: The Thudder's^sd1 status message said this: Shit you couldn't make up: [with this link]

(10:50:01) ditriech: you know what else you couldn't make up? a prominent Black leader saying that Rocks was cutting his nuts off with the Blacks. I mean, this stuff never happens on tv.
(10:50:48) WhamBangThud: Obama may be one of the Horsemen of the Apocalypse.
(10:50:56) WhamBangThud: And I'm strangely comfortable with that.
(10:51:36) ditriech: or! you could have the right use the exact same "he's a communist" rhetoric that they used with MLK
(10:56:41) WhamBangThud: I mean hell, look what they had to come up with for Kerry.
(10:57:03) WhamBangThud: I mean, he was a nearly comatose lifetime bureaucrat.
(10:57:44) WhamBangThud: But no. They had to somehow, by some absolutely wacky, brain-bleeding contortions, make him a no good hippy draft-dodger.
(10:58:02) WhamBangThud: And he was a Navy Fucking SEAL.
(10:58:17) WhamBangThud: You're either a Hippy or a Red.
(10:58:20) WhamBangThud: depending.
(10:58:29) ditriech: well, the democrats have always sucked at branding.
(10:58:43) ditriech: esp. seeing as I didn't even know he was a seal.
(11:00:41) WhamBangThud: Wait, never mind.
(11:00:48) WhamBangThud: I just wildly hallucinated that.
(11:00:53) ditriech: ok
(11:00:54) ditriech: good
(11:01:02) ditriech: I mean, we are bad at branding
(11:01:04) WhamBangThud: I really need to stop licking the mold on the bottom of my coffee cups
(11:01:11) ditriech: I just was hoping not that bad
(11:01:11) WhamBangThud: ... and maybe clean them
(11:01:15) ditriech: well, no.
(11:01:22) ditriech: on both counts
(11:01:27) ditriech: They Haz Flava.
(11:01:32) WhamBangThud: But he was a combat-duty naval officer.
(11:01:46) ditriech: yeah, so not a hippy at all
(11:02:00) WhamBangThud: And somehow, the Republicans still ran against him on a hippy-coward-draft-dodger ticket.
(11:02:16) WhamBangThud: With a candidate who did no combat service in the exact same war.
(11:02:52) WhamBangThud: Of COURSE they're going to call Barack a commie. He's too young to be a 60's hippy, and those are the ONLY TWO THINGS they know how to run against.
(11:03:26) ditriech: see, this is where politics makes no sense to me
(11:03:46) ditriech: 1) what the fuck are clinton supporters thinking?
(11:04:16) ditriech: 2) how are you a muslim commie with a crazy christian pastor
(11:04:31) ditriech: 3) why doesn't barack obama answer my emails?
(11:05:12) WhamBangThud: I know what you mean. My flowers came RIGHT BACK to me by FedEx.
(11:05:59) ditriech: I thought I was the one he was waiting for you know?
(11:28:10) WhamBangThud: Then he goes and says WE are waiting for us. Or something.
(11:28:27) WhamBangThud: My heart is a blood interstate of confusion.

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^sd1:I keep telling you people everything I do makes sense. (back)