Gym Doody, Please Rescue

At the gym last nite, Mrs. ETJB had to vacate the elliptical machine because of bad air. Someone on the treadmill a row ahead repeatedly blasted, passed gas from his or her ass.

Holy smokes. Second hand, that is.

Inaguration Day

At least I got the day off.

It is weird, as readers point out, that such a freedom-lover has such tight security including stinger missels. It's also ironic that such a common man is throwing an elitist party in a time of war.

TV is too much. Appropriately, I am listening to Hail To the Thief. O well.

And the Wizards are losing badly without Larry Hughes.

I'm going to Miami for a few daze so blogging won't be happening. Peace.

"He's coming off the bench to be an energizer..."

Great story about Etan Thomas this morning.

Tonight's game in Milwaukee may get him booed, since he stiffed them. His book of poetry will be released in March.

If you missed this story last fall, please read.

The Indigent Gourmet

I overheard two bums talking yesterday. One was eating something, smacking his lips in obvious enjoyment.

The other one asked him: “Yeah, uh huh, you ever had cucumber and onion?”

Watergate, Tickets, Unicycle

Several years ago, I meet a guy through a friend who worked at Riggs/Watergate. At the time, I needed a safe deposit box to keep valuables, and he was nice enough to set me up. I always enjoyed a trip to the Watergate; it’s in a weird part of town--interesting and pretty.

Anyway, with the new job, HR needed to verify my citizenship with a copy of my birth certificate or passport, both of which are in the safety deposit box. Yesterday, I walked to the Watergate at lunch time to return my documents previously retrieved the week before.

On the way back (a 15-minute walk), I saw 3 cops ticketing 3 different illegally parked cars. Say what you want about DC’s finest, but they do ticket cars effectively. I generally don’t have a problem with this; it is a necessary way to raise revenue. As you know, DC must cover expenses that most states cover, such as Medicare, Medicaid, mental health services, etc. Furthermore, Congress won’t allow DC to charge a commuter tax—like other border cities such as New York and Philadelphia do for New Jersey and Delaware workers who use their city services (roads, sewage, etc.) Anyway, all 3 cars had Virginia tags. Screw ‘em.

When I got to George Washington campus, I stepped to the side for a bicycle lady coming towards me carrying a big load. When she approached, I realized that she was riding a unicycle. My friend AZ has a unicycle. I’ve tried it. It’s pretty much impossible for me, but this lady was riding it for distance. She wasn’t jerky at all, as smooth as a regular 2-wheeler, but with a little apprehension on her face.

Crazy.

Silent But Deadly

I do think that if smokers should be allowed to smoke anywhere in public, it should be in a bar. From a libertarian perspective, business owners should be able to run their businesses as they want. But I gotta tell you, I don’t smoke that much anymore, and I like it a lot better when the bar is smoke free.

I don’t care much about the health risks as a customer/bar-goer because I can get up and leave. However, from a worker’s rights perspective, we all should be able to work in a safe environment. If the bar was full of dangerous chemical fumes instead of cigarette smoke (which are dangerous chemical fumes), this wouldn’t even be an argument.

Forget workers: why should children and other people have to put up with dangerous health consequences as they live their lives?

See dontpassgas.org.

CHECK THIS OUT, MAN!

THESE LINKS ARE THE BEST!

See Ya, HFS

You know what? There was a time when HFS was money.(Check out the pic with Damian and Weasel at the bottom.) Before R&R in Baltimore. In the spirit of good college radio stations. I never followed the corporate issues with the station; now that I have XM, who cares. But for the past many years, HFS was worse that DC101 playing the same 5 Rolling Stones songs, the same 4 Aerosmith songs, the same 8 Def Leopard songs, the same pre-packaged crap that was to increase its bottom line, presumably keeping shareholders happy. Only nobody thought about its soul. That's what selling yourself to corporate greed will get you.

R.I.P, m.f.

ANOTHER W

Wizards win fifth in a row against Blazers. Etan Thomas is reactivated.

Things are good.

Gross, man

When you buy a pack of spearmint mints at Starbuck's, it shows up as "SPERM" on their register. You don't think...nah, that's how urban legends get started.

UPDATE: Gwadzilla asks if I swallowed or spat.

Jon Stewart's Power

Or, Crossfire No More!

CNN/U.S. President Jonathan Klein sided yesterday with comedian Jon Stewart, who used a "Crossfire" appearance last fall to rip the program as partisan hackery. "I think he made a good point about the noise level of these types of shows, which does nothing to illuminate the issues of the day," Klein said in an interview. Viewers need "useful" information in a dangerous world, he said, "and a bunch of guys screaming at each other simply doesn't accomplish that."

Random Thoughts

I hit floor 4 button on elevator this morning like I was at my old job.

I am the first person here again this morning without even trying. This crowd is more late-workers than early birds.

There are some smart people here.

There is no shortage of Starbuck’s around here. Mrs. ETJB gave me a $25 Starbuck’s card as one of my x-mas presents this year and it is already gone. And I don’t drink the fancy drinks, just small coffees. There’s one (too) conveniently between work and the Metro. Has anyone ever seen a Starbuck’s close for lack of business?

Speaking of coffee, no one drinks it here. No one drinks anything, water, Cokes, nothing. There’s a water jug in each of the kitchens, but I’m the only one who seems to use it. I don’t get it.

I'm going to hire one or two people.

There's more travel. I'll be going to meetings in Miami, San Diego, and Seattle this year; Honolulu, Pittsburgh, and Boston next year; and Baltimore, Seattle, and San Francisco in 07. And that's just what I know about now.

The shift from Mac to PC has been no problem as expected.

Thanks for bearing with me, readers. As I acclimate to my new environment, I will cease with these observations.

USC left no doubt as to who is number one. I suppose that the BCS system worked after all.

The Wizards continue to kick ass. They beat the Nets last night by like 30. Once Etan Thomas returns, which should be soon, they should be more competitive with the better teams like Miami, Sacramento, Detroit, Indiana, and Seattle. We will see.

This blog is over a year old. It's anniversary was Veteran's Day 2003.