"What's good for me might not be good for the weak minded." - Gus McCrae

thanks to everyone who voiced their support after the last blog. sometimes when things catch me off guard like that it's real easy to lose sight of the bigger picture.

anyways, the long saturday night led to to a sunday of just trying to make it through church with eyes remaining open, which i did. the true test was trying to watch the chargers battle their way through the playoffs. i'll talk about that later. so that lack of sleep on saturday has translated to a few days of not being able to get back to a decent sleep pattern, but who cares. the cool thing about this weekend is that it caused me to spend a monday doing things i never thought i would do. this included (among other things) skateboarding down hollywood blvd, buying lunches for people on skid row, and singing with a street performer to tourists in front of Grauman's theater. i don't know what the connection is between my mourning and my sense of adventure being heightened, but it seems like the past few years when something hits hard, i tend to go on some crazy adventure. i don't know if i've always been this way, or if this is something that has developed recently, but any psych majors who'd like to take a crack at that one i'd appreciate the help.

oh yeah, and the craziest part about skating in l.a. is that no one notices you are there. this is lame when it comes to cars, but it's weird because i almost ate it riding over a storm drain and no one even batted an eye.

and the soundtrack to skate l.a. day goes something like this:
bad religion - los angeles is burning
clash - police and thieves
p.o.d. - youth of a nation
thrice - artist and the ambulance
dr. dre and tupac - california love
sixer - farmington
beach boys - i get around
lupe fiasco - kick, push
switchfoot - american dream
mxpx - punk rawk show
rancid - ruby soho
bedouin soundclash - st. andrews
bob marley - concrete jungle
operation ivy - bad town
and no list of songs for los angeles would be complete w/o guns'n'roses - welcome to the jungle

i know there are plenty more but i didn't skate for that long. by the way, los angeles has really cleaned up over the past few years. there's still plenty of crazy people around, but overall the city seems to be a lot cleaner. at least it was to me.

i think its good to get away from the normal every once in a while and just check out the world from a different perspective. i think it's why so many people in the suburbs listen to rap, why hawaii is so popular as a vacation spot, and why we (as americans) are so obsessed with tv and movies. don't get me wrong, i'm all about being in the here and now, but more and more i'm aware of how much i desire for things to be in constant flux. in the 1940's we had millions of people heading overseas for this 'great adventure' of fighting evil (in no way, shape or form do i intend to be disrespectful to our veterans, just roll with me here). before that we were heading across the prairies to find gold, and before that we were mapping out a new world. our country was discovered by people bent on finding something new. i guess it's inherent in our blood to seek some new adventure. now i feel a lot better about taking a day to skate. all done.

ahhhh, the chargers. i have to admit i was heading up the anti-norv bandwagon at the beginning of the season, but he did bring results. if not for a couple of torn acl's by some though as dirt players (seriously, who would even begin to imagine LT's toughness) i think this blog would be talking about how many times merriman would be putting the other manning into the grass. oh well. the chargers ended up with an excellent season, and i can't wait to see what a healthy bolts team looks like next year. by the way, cromartie gets my pick for mvp, and as soon as he signs on again i'm buying the powder blue 31 jersey.

me and the cuz were watching the lonesome dove series last week, getting ready for the comanche moon mini series that was coming on. simply amazing. there's something about a good western that really speaks to me. i think the cuz hit the nail on the head when he said the most used phrase in both shows was ' a man oughta'. i really like that phrase. i think it is becoming increasingly necessary to clarify that there are certain things that a man 'oughta' do.

a man oughta know how to throw a baseball.
a man oughta know the difference between a screwdriver and a phillips.*
a man oughta own a truck at some point in his life.
a man oughta have a healthy fear and respect for God, his parents, and guns.
a man oughta be slow to speak, and quick to listen.
a man oughta know how to slow dance.
a man oughta have at least one scar from a story worth telling.
a man oughta know how to hold his tongue.
a man oughta know start a fire.
a man oughta pay for dinner.
a man oughta have at least two hats, one for work, and one for sports.
a man oughta be able to navigate using north, south, east and west.
a man oughta know left from right, and right from wrong*
a man oughta be ready to pray.
a man oughta have respect for his elders.
a man oughta try something stupid at least once.
a man oughta leave the house clean, and come back dirty.
a man oughta know how to shine his own shoes.
a man oughta do what he says he will*
a man oughta have a favorite book, hero, and athlete.
a man oughta know how to shake hands.
a man oughta be able to tie a tie.
a man oughta appreciate beauty.
(*from the cuz, although he heard them somewhere else)

well, that's all the 'manoughtas' i've got right now, but i'm sure there are plenty more out there. feel free to send in your own.

and in honor of the fact that i'm the mood for watching a western, here's my:
TOP TEN FAVORITE WESTERNS
pale rider/ young guns (tie)
blazing saddles
the searchers
el dorado
butch cassidy and the sundance kid
silverado
tombstone
lonesome dove/comanche moon
the good, the bad, the ugly
magnificent seven

basically anything but dances with wolves.

one love, one heart.