Life Updated

Recent Affairs of a Good Life:

300: Wow! Is this movie an experience or what? The look is revolutionary. The off-colored film appear brushed with a metallic stroke. Heavily relied on slow motion drew you into the action. In slow motion, slicing swords appeared to cut flesh and at times through the movie screen, then blood would irrupt as if at a splatter-paint convention. Musically, the soundtrack meshed with the actions perfectly. In the most violent episodes slow motion and synchronized instrumentals made warriors appear like untouchable herculean heroes. If you don't mind violence, gore and skies darkened with raining arrows then 300 is a fabulous way to spend a few hours.

Peter, Bjorn and John: These rockers are straight outta Sweden. Home of beautiful blonds, safe yet sophisticated cars and Swiss cheese. Not that they are from Switzerland but I'm sure they have some Swiss cheese. I mean I've never yodeled at the foot of the Matterhorn while enjoying the aromatic pleasures of my herbal RICOLA!!! But I still frequently indulge in Swiss cheese. PB&J's album incorporates differing flavors better that a PB&J sandwich. Big fat bass lines aided and abetted by drum machines, samples and the round ones often times played in a garage. The main vocalist sounds like Elvis Costello and refreshingly pronounces some words with a Nordic accent. Some lyrics paint pictures, some invoke emotions and others generate ideas and inspiration. The aptly fit "Roll the Credits" soothes your inner anxiousness and suggests, "Let's take the easy way out, let's pull away for good, let's pull the curtains down and leave." Now imagine it with a finger picked mandolin and the drum roll of a marching army. I'm into the album. You can hear some tracks here.

UCLA, UCLA, UCLA
After missing last years March Madness I've come to realize home much I LOVE it. These kids want to win. There are no shoe contracts or money laden scoring incentives. It's like this: You don't hustle, you don't play. You complain, you sit. College basketball is a beautiful sport. Unlike the pros, this is about the cohesiveness of the team. There are few isolation plays, rarely do you see a player Kobe-it(dribble up court, no pass, instant fadeaway forced shot). It's all about winning. These kids play for each other and although few win, all try their hardest. March Madness is the greatest sporting event of the year...every year.

"Lost"
Like my mom says, "One question is answered and three more come up." Summed up perfectly. It's very entertaining but at times it lacks answers. Showing the events that led to Locke's stint in the wheel chair answered pre-island Locke questions. But what about delving into how and why Locke could walk after the plane crashed. Just a thought, regardless I'll tune in again this week.

Santa Barbara
Beautiful. I've mainly been on the Eastside and Downtown. Working a bit at Whitcraft Winery. We got a good crew down there trying to put the finishing touches on bottles so their contents can be poured in stemmed glasses and sniffed and drank with considerable thought. Sadly, it's temporary work but definitely a cool thing to be a part of.
Spring and it's rising temperatures have dipped in and out of the forecast lately. Last Friday I pedaled to Butterfly Beach. Once a bastion of youngsters laying around listening to tunes, throwing boches balls and sipping a cold one or two. Now, wow, what a difference. Even on a weekday it was filled with loud, out of town college meatheads more interested in making their presence known than appreciating the beach.

Shout Out's:
The boys up on Loma Media (excluding Sammy) for having Sunday afternoon BBQ's. Yesterday's menu included Tri-tip, chicken breasts and grilled crunchy asparagus with an infusion of an amazing city view complemented by a zesty setting sun.
Attorney General Gonzales and his muscular fortitude. I thought he'd have fallen off the cliff by now. He must have enormous strength in those fingertips to continually hold onto the edge. He'll slip into the disgraced abyss sooner than later.

Country of the Week: Iran. The gull, under all this international pressure, to detain a boat full of British soldiers. Like the country or, in all likelihood not, they sure make the news interesting...them and that whole legal custody battle over Anne Nicole Smith's infant child. I think the father is her deceased billionaire ex-husband's son. It's the only way he could get that fortune back.

Bye.