brainsplotch

I have been so neglectful of this blog. It's very sad. I know I've complained in the past of "not having enough time to write." That's only part of the problem, the other part is that when I'm on the computer, I usually waste entirely too much time on Facebook, spend way too much time reading the latest gossip and barroom chatter on the MSU Spartan fan sites, or just generally goof around too much aimlessly surfing the net. Darn it, I should be taking time to satisfy my legions of fans! I'll just take this time to write about some random things: Tomorrow, my wife and I are actually going to a grown-up movie for the first time since we saw "The Dark Knight" in, oh my gosh, July? Since then, I've been on a steady diet of kids' movies. I've seen all three of the talking dog movies ("Beverly Hills Chihuahua," "Bolt," and "Hotel for Dogs"), and others including "The Tale of Despereaux," and "Mad...

I don't even know how to begin, and I know whatever I say will end up sounding trite. What an amazing, historic, and emotional day. I was reminded of Martin Luther King's "I've Been To the Mountaintop" speech, the one he delivered in Memphis the day prior to his assassination. It's the King speech that has always stirred the most emotion in me, even more than the much more lauded "I Have a Dream" speech. Near the end, in the part that always makes me teary-eyed, King says: "I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land!" I always have believed that the "we" in "we, as a people" could apply as much to whites as blacks. Perhaps whites just didn't realize that they needed to make it to the promised land. Well...

While I was perusing Facebook , I noticed one of my Facebook friends had updated his status with "Rest in Peace Ron Asheton --punk is now dead." That was the first I'd heard of the Stooges' guitarist's death. Sad news, indeed. (One may make the argument that punk was already dead, but that's a matter for another post). I don't have any personal memories of Ron Asheton , since I'm too young to remember him in his heyday and never saw him play live, but I love the Stooges. They were one of the best things to ever emerge from the State of Michigan. A product of the greasy, blue collar industrial Michigan, expressing their frustration in their loud-ass nasty primitive music. Truly one of the first punk bands before anyone had come up with a name for it. For a true appreciation of what a great guitarist Ron Asheton, go no further than the first two Stooges albums, particularly their second one, Fun House . It's the aural equivalent of an auto fac...

I have always been an adament defender of the Big Ten in all sports. I'm a Midwest guy, born and reared in Michigan. I've spent my entire life in the Great Lakes state and, I must admit, attended Michigan State as much for its membership in the Big Ten Conference as for its academics. (All right, all you wisenheimers laughing about "Michigan State academics," shut your yaps. It's a darned fine land grant institution!). But this year, I have to say, the Big Ten was horrible in football. Northwestern hung with Missouri before losing in overtime (props to the Wildcats for pushing the Tigers to the limit in that game--just didn't have enough to win), Minnesota is blown out by Kansas (I could see that one coming), and my beloved Michigan State Spartans were simply over matched by the Georgia Bulldogs. The biggest surprise of New Year's Day was the way Penn State was pushed around in the USC Invitational...er, I mean the Rose Bowl. Let's not mince words...

I'm getting too old for this New Year's stuff. Last night, we went to a friend's house for New Year's Eve and I had the hardest time staying awake until midnight. After the ball came down, we finally headed home from Lansing to Okemos at about 1 o'clock in the morning. I really hate driving in the hour or so immediately following the New Year, as I'm paranoid of police and drunk drivers on the road. (I had only had two beers and a half-glass of champagne, but am always terrified that some Dudley Do-Right will pull me over for some silly reason). I was greatly relieved when we finally pulled into our safe driveway. Moving on to other matters. A few minutes ago, I watched Kirk Herbstreit, Lee Corso, and Chris Fowler give their pre-game "analysis" of the Capital One Bowl. As I should have expected, from their overview of the game one would assume that the only team playing was Georgia. I acknowledge that Michigan State is the underdog in this game, but I...