I'm On Fire

So it came to my attention that before my post last week I went almost an entire month without making a post. Which begs the question, to myself at least, what was I doing/learning/experiencing in my absence from the blogging world? Well I interrogated myself and below are the answers.

Q: In a nutshell what have you been up to in the almost a month in which you didn’t post? We all know you’re way too into how clever you think you are when you write these things, so why haven’t you been doing it more often?
A: For starters I got sick shortly after my September 19th post. And while it was nothing serious I didn’t feel like posting then or as I dragged myself back to health (side note: Working the graveyard shift and having barking dogs and family members wake you up every time you try to sleep is not a conducive environment for getting well.). I also was more into reading, listening to music and playing my new Nintendo DS (which is on it’s way to replacing the SNES as the best video game system of all time) in my free time then writing.

Q: Ok, that all seems a little contrived but I’ll run with it. So what was the best book you read during your absence?
A: That would be On Bullshit by Harry Frankfurt. It’s basically a long essay about Bullshit, namely its definition, its cultural impact and why there’s so much of it in our society. It’s extremely humorous and insightful; I mean what isn’t funny about someone analytically breaking down the concept Bullshit?

Q: Whatever you say Mr. 5 Dollar word. So what have you learned about the NFL so far this season?
A: Well this is a tough one considering we won’t know anything definite about any of these teams for at least a few more weeks, but here’s what I’ve learned thus far:
- Drew Bledsoe, no matter how much I like him or want him to succeed, has the uncanny ability to take a team with Super Bowl potential and turn them into an 8-8 team.
- Reggie Bush is the second best decoy in the league (with T.O. being first) and is going to be an All-Pro for the next 10-15 years.
- Matt Leinart is already one of the Top 10 QB’s in the league. I’m not being or homer or even hyperbolic. Who would you rather have starting a game for you instead of Leinart? Off the top of my head I’d say Brady, Manning, Palmer, Rothlisberger, Hassleback and maybe Grossman (with the exception of last Monday). I’m unsure if this says a lot about Leinart or about the sad state of QB’s in the current NFL.
- The Arizona Cardinals are might be the best team of all-time at giving away winnable games.

Q: Speaking of the Cardinals, what did you think of Monday Night’s epic collapse?
A: Teams from Arizona, regardless of sport, should never, ever, under any circumstance, play teams from Illinois.

Q: Sticking with football, what have you observer from the University of Arizona’s first 7 games?
A: Mainly that this O-Line is going to get someone killed by the end of the season and that Stanford might be the worst division I-A team of all-time. Speaking of the O-line, if we had a semi-decent one we’d be headed to a bowl game.

Q: So the outlook is pretty bleak these days in T-Town huh?
A: Yes and no. The outlook for the football team looks very bleak. Fans, myself included, are already in ‘Wait ‘til Next Year’ mode. And to make matters worse the snowbirds** are back, which means you take you life in you hands anytime you go out for a drive. And they all seem to flock to the Park Mall, which is terrible for me since I live directly behind it. So now anytime I leave my house or go home I have to wade through a flood of elderly drivers. But on the bright side the U of A’s basketball season is less then a month away, and that’s never a bad thing.

Q: So what’s the best movie you’ve seen in the past month?
A: Thanks to my schedule I rarely go see movie in the theaters. I did however see Jackass 2 a few weeks ago, and while I’m a little embarrassed to admit it, that’s the hardest I’ve laughed at a film in a long, long time.

Q: Ok, tool. How about TV? What shows have you been watching this season?
A: I only follow a few shows on network TV, and I almost never watch new shows. But I have started watching Heroes and while it takes itself a little too seriously it’s still very enjoyable. And of course I’m still watching Veronica Mars. This season has felt a little rushed, which is to be expected since the dumb a$$es at CW only bought 13 episodes. That said it’s still the best show on network TV. I’m also watching Lost, which couldn’t have had a more uneven start. The first episode was one of the worst the show has ever done. I generally don’t care for the back stories, but this one was absolutely horrible. I was so upset at how bad the first ep was that I almost gave up on the show entirely. Thankfully the second episode was amazing and ended with one of the best scenes the show has ever done. (Editors Note: I wrote this before seeing the 3rd episode of Lost, which was really good. I’m now excited for the show to go absolutely nowhere in the next 10-15 weeks.)

Q: Alright we’ll close with a question about music, what have you been listening to as of late?
A: I’ve mainly been bumping the new Killers and Decemberist records. Also the new Court and Spark is really good. I haven’t had too much time to listen to newer stuff since I’m trying familiarize myself with Bob Dylan’s entire catalog of work.

Q: Speaking of The Killers, their front man Brandon Flowers said that their new album, Sam’s Town, is one of the best albums of the last 15 years. Would you agree with comment?
A: Well I’m pretty sure he was joking, seeing as they’re a synth-rock band and no one in their right mind could take the backing vocals on this album seriously. But if Flowers truly believes that this is one of the best albums of the last 15 years then his idea of said album is Bruce Springsteen covering “All That You Can’t Leave Behind” in its entirety.

Until We Meet Again

*In honor of the probably pedophilic Bruce Springsteen song.
** For those of you who don’t live in Tucson or are somehow unfamiliar with Snowbirds, they’re a group of retirees who come here in the winter because it never gets below 35.