A recent discussion thread:

"Max":  "none of the candidates running on the liberal ticket can tell the truth. I think that's a problem when your a liar before you take office....but then you liberals are used to that kind of representation so maybe it's not as big an issue.  http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,109269,00.html"

Me:  "From the Fox News Story: "Howard Dean (search), as he does routinely, stated that 60 percent of taxpayers only got $304 on average from Bush's tax cuts. That calculation applies to the lowest earning 60 percent of taxpayers -- many of whom pay little or no federal income tax to begin with. Middle income earners, especially those with children, saved substantially more than that from the lowering of income tax rates across the board."

Umm...Max? They're backing up what he said in that statement, yet complaining about it too. He didn't say middle americans, he said 60% of all Americans, which their info confirms."

"Max":  "I think you might want to re-read that article by the way. What they are saying is that Dean is full of shit. He's crying about the government not giving tax dollars back to all the assholes in this country that are too lazy to get a job and don't pay taxes in the first place."

Me:  "I think your eyes are playing tricks on you. The paragraph I quoted was the only part of the article you referenced that mentioned Governor Dean. Considering that those wacky-left-wing (at least I'm sure you'll call them that) US Census people place the median US wage for 2002 at $42,409 (don't take my word for it, click here to see for yourself), those "assholes in the country that are too lazy to get a job" includes even the 10% making between $42,409 and the upper limit!

That makes no sense. Perhaps you come from some silver spoon rich family who looks at $40K a year as nothing, but around here, that's called a good middle-class wage. Suddenly your political leanings make much more sense."

And a followup from me:  "One other thing: the 2001 Census data shows the upper limit for the 60th percentile at $62,500 annual. That means these lazy assholes you refer to are anyone making less than that. Don't take my word for it, click here for the Census source.

I'd entertain any rebuttals using facts from real non-biased sources. But somehow I doubt you'll provide any."

And "Max"'s fact-filled follow-up:  "$40,000 per year won't pay for shit in Iowa. Unless of course you are single and living in a studio apartment because you're too much of a fag to get a wife or girlfriend....no offense meant."

He is certainly a master debater, that "Max".  Anyway, I put it to the readers:  Does making under $62,500 a year make one a "lazy asshole" as "Max" puts it?  I know several people I'd call hard-working who don't, many of whom are even Republicans.  But what do you readers think?

So a recent posting with rather benign intentions got a flurry of comments from both sides of the political fence.  On one hand were myself, Jess, Josh and Ian, and on the other was "Bob", "Bill" aka "Max", and Mike.

I have no problem with people posting opposition on my site - I put my views out there and if others have different, I'm ok with that.  But what I don't like is when people post simply hateful responses without any rational analysis or evidence to back up their claims.  We teach our children that yelling "you're a stupid head!" isn't the right thing to do, so why do adults, especially those who like to keep referring to myself and my friends (most of whom are older than 25) as kids, find that acceptable?

Why is that when politics enters the fray, manners and intelligent response tend to fly out the door?

So, readers, what do we do about it?  I refuse to get rid of my comments section, as I feel discussion is a vital piece of the Internet.  And I hesitate to ban people, as censorship should be a last-ditch solution.  And I absolutely refuse to stop putting articles of politics in my postings, as it is my right as a citizen of a free-speaking country to do so, no matter how much the opposition might hate it.  So, readers, what do you think should be done?

Let's see, in the past two days I have:

• Appeared quickly on The Today Show in an interview re: Caucuses
• Gave a nice bit at Simpson about why Dean is the man which got applauded
• Met Janeane Garofalo and Joan Jett and talked politics with both
• Listened to Joan Jett rock Simpson in a rare non-band appearance
• Bought a 2004 Volkswagon Touareg, which arrives in a little over a week

So it's been kind of crazy.  And unpacking continues, as does pre-caucus functions.  Plus I am now officially signed as a consultant for Iowa Telecom.

Pictures of stuff coming...eventually.  I swear.  Really.

First Trish and I get yelled at by the guy at Cup-A-Joe, then today, as I was leaving Mercy Hospital with Jessica (whose mom just had major surgery to remove a cancer from her lung) we were yelled at by this guy smoking outside the door.  Apparently he is eagle-eyed, having spotted my 3/4" by 1/2" Dean lapel pin on my coat, so he launches into this tirade as we walk by about how "you liberal yuppies running this country are the worst thing to ever happen to it with your computers and stuff."  So odd.  At first I thought he was some homeless man muttering to himself, but apparently not.  And what really kills me is this was outside a HOSPITAL!  For all he knew, we could have had someone die or be seriously hurt, but he chose that as the best time to attack two people he didn't know.

Don't get me wrong.  I have friends who are conservative.  Some that are even arch-conservative.  But at least they are civil about it and we can respect that we have different points of view even if we don't understand them.  But these hate-spouting people, they're just too much.

Oh yeah, I might be on The Today Show tomorrow morning.  They interviewed me on the street today, so we'll see.

Hey readers!  Bob returned!

We'll see who wins in 2004 kids. The problem with debating liberals is that your point of view is strictly emotional. Republicans tend to deal in logic and fact. If you want to believe the propaganda being passed to you by the ultra-liberal media and ignore common sense, I have no reason to waste my time debating you. When you're a bit older you'll understand and my guess is that all of you will be registered republicans. My anonymity is my right by the way. If you want to host a "public" blog....deal with it kids.

I find this hilarious.  I was in Cup-A-Joe Coffee Haus last week with Trish, the Warren County Coordinator for the Dean campaign, and this guy starts yelling and getting all in our face about how much he hates us liberals because we're all immoral and we're self destructing and yadda yadda yadda.  And I mean spitting mad, and we weren't even doing anything overtly political - we weren't canvassing or handing out fliers or anything, we were just sitting there eating lunch and coordinating calls.  I don't know about you, but I'd call that an emotional response.

But in some ways, Bob is part right - there IS an emotional component to our views, and there SHOULD be!  I DO get SEETHING MAD when I think about how Bush's Department of Labor posted on their site info on how companies can get around the new overtime regulations and essentially cut out overtime pay for their workers by increasing the base weekly hours component of their job.  And I DO get SEETHING MAD when I think about how Bush lied to the American public in his State of the Union about Iraq buying enriched uranium from north Africa - something he had already been informed months prior was incorrect intelligence.  I DO get SEETHING MAD when I think how the No Child Left Behind program forces schools to meet testing criteria at the risk of cutting off funding - funding so minimal (it's called an "unfunded mandate" people) that only the schools in the most desparate areas utterly rely on it - and those schools need the most help meeting the criteria, not just a test of what the criteria is.

And as for your privacy, BOB...  that's true.  But I work for an ISP so I've seen first hand... all they have to do is send me (or your ISP Mediacom or your employer Principal or whoever) a fax summons with your IP, and EVERY bit of your private info gets turned over, lest they get charged with obstruction of justice.  It's good ol' HR 3162 - the US Patriot Act.  And yes, even the idea of being forced to do so for a bleeding idiot like you, Bob, makes me mad.

So I guess there is an emotional component.

BTW - I LOVE the comment about the "ultra liberal" media.  I mean, only that would explain why the worst of what Bush does, the most underhanded, get made back page news while things like "Dean said this about the South" or what not make the front page.  That's why the Clinton blowjob was top of the fold news for months and the Bush WMD issue gets relegated to deeper obscurity.  Oh wait, that's right, while the majority of reporters lean liberal, the vast majority of owners and editors weigh conservative.  And they determine placement and story viability.  But of course, I'm just blindly following rhetoric there, BOB.

Jackass.

Recently revealed.  Painted by a former wrestler aspiring as an artist for a former wrestler who aspired as a Governor:

My favorite bit from the description:

Gov. Ventura is pictured standing proudly over a landscape filled with symbols of Minnesota and important aspects of his life and career. A dark sky highlights his strong, determined face. He is dressed in a dark suit, white shirt and red-white-and-blue tie. On his lapel are a Navy Seal team pin and Navy jump wings, and in his hand is one of the fine cigars he relishes, this time clearly lit as was not always the case as he went about the State Capitol during his years as governor.

Blended into the landscape behind him are images of an undeveloped, wild Minnesota to his left, and to his right the Capitol building, the Minneapolis skyline, a bridge spanning the Mississippi River, a lush Minnesota golf course and a light-rail train. The governor’s right hand rests on a figure representing “The Thinker,” an image used in his campaign for office that contrasted his reputation as “Jesse, the Body,” with “Jesse, the Thinker.”

Hi all!  I haven't written for a while as I moved last Wednesday (photos forthcoming), and my DSL was down until today.  At least that left me free to do some Dean assistance!  Anyway, the move went great, I LOVE the new home (despite its still being full of boxes - which will likely stay for the next, oh, 2 years or so), and have a crazy week ahead between some work things and prepping for the caucus in one week.

A Question to Supporters of Kerry, Gephardt, Edwards and Lieberman:  How can your candidates justify supporting The Patriot Act, No Child Left Behind, and the Iraq Resolution?

Answer:  It's a trick question!  There are no Lieberman supporters!

Sorry, couldn't resist.

Happy Y2K4!  What is your new year's resolution?

The aquarium is empty and some boxes are forming.  It must be near moving time...  1 week from tomorrow!

It's weird - J. R. R. Tolkein really did set the groundwork for much of modern fiction!  Just take the recently unearthed deleted scene from The Return of the King:

"Nasty Hobbitses stoles our Precious from us!  Backs to the Matrixes with them!"

Who knew?

When you have a blog, you get all sorts of interesting responses to a post.  Take for instance the following comment by a man called "Bob" in regards to my post about Dean a few days back:

You boys can wish in one hand and shit in the other but I'll guarantee you that Bush will win in 2004. Your liberal representatives have done such a wonderful job of shooting themselves in the foot trying to find blame in Bush for the past 4 years, it would be inconceivable to get a democrat in the white house in 2004. Perhaps when you boys are a little older you'll understand politics a little better. You might not be quite as naive about what's best for the country as well.

Interesting, Bob.  I do try to take to heart political advise from anonymous strangers referring to "wish(ing) in one hand and shit(ing) in the other."  So elaborate for us, Bob, how is anything Bush has done been what's best for the country?  Perhaps it's the hatred felt towards America by even the citizens of countries we considered our closest allies?  Or the relaxing of the anti-emission and anti-pollution laws?  Maybe it's looking the other way on trillions of dollars in corporate fiscal inpropriety, especially with companies ran by Bush friends like "Kenny Boy" Lay.  Or is it the direct deception of our country about the reasons behind going into Iraq?  Oh, I know, it's their stance that Clinton "seems a little obsessed with Osama Bin Laden" in their first several months of office - up until 9/11.

So tell us, Bob.  Teach me and my naive friends with more facts and less colorful phrases.

And to the rest of you out there - I put the comments link on for a reason, so feel free and use it, even if you disagree with me.  But if you're going to make outright negative-spirited comments rather than meaningful debate, then I'd hope you at least have the cajones to put an email address - a *real* email address (ahem, "Bill") - because at least one of the two of us is willing to participate and not hide behind a contactless (and probably false) name.

It's 3:05am and I've just returned home from Trilogy Tuesday.  Yowch, that's a lot of movie!  I didn't fall asleep, which was a plus.  The theatre supplied a dinner (a slice of plain turkey on white bread, some chips and a cookie) between the first and second movie, and then Josh and I ran across the parking lot to Okoboji Grill between the second and third.  We all got "I Survived Trilogy Tuesday" t-shirts from Carmike and New Line gave out these little collectable frames with a piece of film from each of the three movies.

All in all I felt it was a pretty fun experience, kind of like waiting in line hours to see Star Wars when it was re-released - it's the experience of it that's half the fun, plus it's a great audience to see a movie like that with.

What did I think of Return of the King?  Without getting into too many specifics so as not to spoil the movie, it felt like action action action and then a really long conclusion.  By the end of the almost-12-hours, I was pretty ready to leave.  I would say, however, that knowing how the books ended, they needed to keep most of the ending there despite its length to fulfill expectations, and also that it likely would not have seemed so excessive had I not just watched the two extended editions of Fellowship and Towers right beforehand.

Can Jon hear Garfield?

Just saw the movie "Lost in Translation" tonight.  Awesome movie, very funny yet intimate between Bill Murray's and Scarlett Johannson's characters.  It's about a has-been but popular actor in Japan officially to advertise some liquor but unofficially to escape from his wife, his family, his life for a few days, who meets the wife of a photographer struggling with loneliness while her husband is off taking pictures of bands.  Neither can sleep, and by chance encounter in the hotel bar, they become unlikely friends despite their age differences.  I'd recommend checking it out, especially if you like Murray's more recent films like "Rushmore", or if you're into Johannson's down-to-earth yet offbeat presence.

INDIANOLA, IA - The website JasonCross.com shocked the nation today with its announcement that it would be officially endorsing Democratic hopeful Howard Dean in his bid for the office of President of the United States.  Said JasonCross.com chairman Jason Cross, "America can no longer continue down this path to self-destruction it has been put upon by President Cheney - I mean President Rove - oops, I mean President Bush.  Junior.  I believe that Howard Dean represents the hope for America's future."

---

Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Clause for those who fear the path this country is on, and his name is Howard Dean.  Gov. Dean stopped by Indianola today so Misty, Keith and I went down to the Legion Hall to see him speak.  I had been leaning towards Dean for a while, but today's visit really cemented it for me.  Some specifics:

• When some old man started railing on how illegal immigrants are the worst problem facing America and were destroying our country, Dean didn't back peddle to appease him but instead said, "Let me tell you why I disagree with you" followed by a great point on how America has been built on sensible immigration and how most of those who come to America do so for a better future, not because they are criminals looking to stir up trouble.  He then tied this in to his foreign trade plan which boils down to...
  
• He believes that countries allowed easy imports to America should have to abide by the same labor standards that we do.  No longer will manufacturers be able to take advantage of the low cost of labor overseas refinforced by poor and inhumane working conditions.  Yes, it will raise the cost of some of your favorite items at Wal-Mart, but it will also take away a primary reason that companies move labor jobs from America to elsewhere.
  
• While he strongly disagrees with the war in Iraq, he realizes that at this point we would be even worse off immediately pulling all forces as it would leave the country open for an easy takeover by militants.  Instead he'd like to see our troops brought back home and a transition to a multi-national nationbuilding force tied into our efforts at restoring relations with our allies as well.  He also believes we should encourage the use of muslim and arabic troops in Iraq while we are there to better co-exist with the culture.
  
• On the ads being run pointing out that Dean was endorsed as Governor by the NRA:  Vermont had only five homicides one year while he was governor - it's simply such a rural state that violent crime is a non-issue compared to a New York, Chicago or the like.  As such, Vermont enforces national gun control laws but has none on a state level.  Thus the NRA endorsement.  Governor Dean believes that national gun control policies like mandatory background checks even at gun shows and being able to hold those who illegally sell a gun used in crimes accountable should be made and tightened, while allowing states to do further control based on their needs.
  
• He believes that we, as the wealthiest nation in the world, have no legitimate reason to not be able to buckle down and provide universal health insurance.  While there are costs associated with doing so, he points out that the cost of providing healthcare to the uninsured is passed on to the public today anyway through medical expenses, taxes and insurance premiums.
  
• He is socially liberal while fiscally conservative, a combination we need right now.

Dean today is a Democrat's Democrat - I hope he doesn't go too far to the center should he get the nomination.  And to Republicans who are sick and tired to what Bush and his gang are doing to America, I encourage you to look at him as well.  Many Repubs I know claim to be so due to fiscal reasons - well here's your chance to prove it, because who is more conservative - someone spending billions on the war in Iraq while letting his corporate buddies get away with trillions in financial inproprieties (see Kenneth Lay) and gaining billions in no-bid public contracts (see Halliburton - whom VP Cheney still receives money from annually in violation of national ethics statutes), or someone dedicated to bringing in others to help with the Iraq rebuild (other countries, not other companies), repealing Bush's unwise tax cut (a $300 per year loss to us 60% in the middle class in exchange for being able to actually afford to provide government infrastructure), and balancing our budget (which no Republic president has done in 34 years).

Word is that Space Invaders is being re-released to arcades in its original code to celebrate it's 25th anniversary.  But now it costs 50 cents.

Now, I realize that 50 cents isn't much change these days, but still!  It's the original, it's not any better, and it costs 50 cents?  To hit a button shooting little pixel alien ships.  That you can find for free all over the Internet.  Like here for instance.

Thanks.  But no thanks.

First he followed me to San Francisco last year, and now to New York!  Our Thanksgiving friend is baaaaack...

Click for a larger image.

My house has sold, and I have bought another - on the fancy east side of Indianola no less.  At least everyone keeps telling me it's fancy.  It is in a new development and near a bike path, and it's very close to the Balloon Field, all of which are pluses.  And it's definitely more space than I'm used to at 2100+ finished square feet.  Feel free and send over some housewarming gifts!  ;)  Moving day is January 8th or so, so I'll have some pictures of the new digs up shortly after.

Yesterday was my last day with Lighthouse Communications following the sale of Consumer Internet to Iowa Telecom.  No Consumer Internet = no need for a Director of Consumer Internet.

This is a good thing, though, as I've been yearning to be my own boss again for some time.

So now I am officially an independant, working for JCross Enterprises, Inc.  For those of you who are CrossPaths or FBX members, never fear as I believe that Iowa Telecom will be a great home for you, plus I am doing ISP / Special Project consulting for them, so I'll be in a good position to make sure you're well taken care of.

We moved the servers from Lighthouse's data center in Des Moines to Iowa Telecom's in Grinnell overnight Thursday.  The entire process went from 10p to 10a - a long night!  So long in fact that I opted not to go to bed until Friday night so my sleep schedule wouldn't be too out of whack.  I did, however, almost fall asleep at the intersection of SW 9th and Army Post yesterday on the way back to work from home.  The fear of potential death was pretty effective at jolting me back awake after a split second, where I found some kids in the car next to me laughing.

And with a 12 hour overnight maintenance window, we only had a handful of customer calls.  We've been pretty good over the past couple years making enough fail overs and redundancy that to most people, other than some issues with our web sites, they didn't even know we were down, as connecting and email were completely unaffected.

Tonight I went to see the Will Ferrell movie Elf with the Dvorak clan.  For those who know Jessica, this will come as a surprise akin to finding bigfoot, the Loch Ness monster and Gandhi playing tennis at Wimbledon.  And winning.

Jess was down from the Twin Cities, and we were all eating Godfathers Pizza, when Connie started talking about wanting to see Elf.  Jessica looked chagrined because it's a Will Farrell movie (there's only one type of American comedian she seems to like, and Will Ferrell just isn't the right complexion), but Emil and I wanted to go as well.  So Jessica formed a plan.  She said that she would go if Connie and Emil went too, and because Connie and Emil have been to one movie in the past ten years - The Santa Clause 2 of all things - she didn't think she'd have to live up to the bargain.

Four movie passes later, Jessica was looking mighty embarassed to be there.

I thought the movie was pretty funny and had a great heart.  Plus it had Zooey Deschanel, so I had no choice but to succumb.  And a talking snowman - I mean, hey, with a minor part including a talking snowman, how can it go wrong?  So if you're feeling in the early Christmas spirit, go see Elf.  The bit where the elves are learning how to make high-speed next-generation 3D graphic accelerator chips is awesome.

HTML humor and my favorite comic - does it get better?

This morning I attended the 8am premiere of The Matrix Revolutions at Indianola's Paramount theatre.  While I will resist heartily going to work at 8am, I will get up early to see a movie.  Plus I figured the timing was good to not have to deal with school kids and crowds.  Of course, crowds are rarely a problem at the Indianola theatre, where opening night of movies that sell out 10 miles away can have a quarter of the theatre empty in I-town.

So what did I think?  Without being too spoilerish, I enjoyed the movie and loved some of the intense action sequences.  I need a little more time to process it overall to get a feel for how much I liked it or the ending, but I can say that I found it satisfying.  While not answering all the questions one might have about The Matrix, its history, components and denizens, it still had a good conclusion for the series and didn't take it quite where I expected.

From MSNBC:  "Space storm hits; Earth survives"  Whew, I was worried that we hadn't!

I have posted my New York City trip photos.  You can check them out here.  To nobody's surprise, there are quite a few of them, so take care on a slower connection.

They say that the great thing about a digital camera is that, because there is no cost or issue of film involved, you can take pictures with much more abandon than you would with a traditional camera.  I find this to be a blessing...and a curse!  When on a trip, I want to preserve the memories of where I've been, and in doing so, I tend to take pictures all the time - averaging 150 to 250 each time!  So as we were walking down the streets of NYC, a not-uncommon occurrence was for me to ask Ian and Carrie to stop for a second so I could take a shot of an interesting building or scene.  A tourist I surely was.

On Sunday, my last day in The City, Ian and I walked to Central Park.  The term "park" does not adequately conjure the right image of what Central Park is, as one tends to envision a typical city park.  Grass and trees, sure, maybe a pond or a fountain.  But in reality, Central Park shares more in common with a state park in terms of size and environment.  Ok, so maybe its a bit more cultivated than Lake Ahquabi, but in Manhatten, who would expect less?  Filled with pedestrians, bike riders and jibbering gray squirrels, the park was at once full of life yet still open a peaceful - a soothing green getaway in the busy metropolis.

At Belvedere Castle ("Wesley, you slime." - Mr. Belvedere) in the Park, some actors were preparing to perform a halloween show, so to get the audience in the spirit, the Ghostbusters theme was playing.  I found this hilarious as the movie took place in NYC and throughout the trip I kept spotting places from the movies.  I also saw a skull along the shore of the lake near the castle - probably a prop, but perhaps evidence of something...darker.

By this time my feet were killing me - specifically my achilles tendon.  But it was my last day in the City and I wasn't about to spend it sitting at home, so onwards we walked, through the Park and down 5th Avenue.  At the CBS building, we found that they were shooting the CBS Sports NFL Pre-Game Show.  On hand were Dan Marino, Deion Sanders, and Boomer Esiason, though here's a confession - Carrie had to later tell me who they were from a photo.  While I knew the names, I am *not* a football follower, so I didn't have faces for the names.  Ok, I did know Dan Marino, though that was (another confession) due to his part in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective.

We next went past the New York Public Library (home of the ghost at the beginning of Ghostbusters.  And some books.) and on to Rockefeller Center.  After taking a little time to watch the traditional "Ice Skaters at Rockefeller" scene, we went to the NBC studios next door to catch the NBC Experience Tour. 

On the tour, we visited the sets of Dateline NBC, The John Walsh Show (which I didn't know existed), and Saturday Night Live.  It was interesting to learn inside secrets like how small the SNL set really is (the sets are trucked in each Thursday from Brooklyn and assembled in a jigsaw pattern in a relatively small area), that the Dateline set isn't HDTV-ready (shortcuts like "brushed metal accents" made from spraypainted tape and the transparancy "control room" behind Stone Phillips would be evident at HD resolutions), and that John Walsh has a talk show (who knew?).

Post-tour, we walked (ok, so by this time I hobbled) to Grand Central station with its expansively open yet mall-like atmosphere, took a subway back to Ian's hood, and got a bite of Chinese for a late lunch.  Following a white chocolate and banana gelato dessert, Carrie and I caught a taxi to LaGuardia and made the journey back to the quiet midwest, bringing the NYC trip to an end.

It was a great trip - a surprising trip as I had no idea that I'd feel so comfortable in the City.  Perhaps someday...  But in the meantime, with Ian, Lena and Jay now living there, I have plenty of reasons to go visit, and there is no shortage of places to stay.  ;)

Walking through Times Square is something akin to a trip through a giant television.  A giant, crowded television.  With street vendors.  Oh yeah, lots of street vendors.  Including one big black guy dressed as a hat-wearing Superman.  Neon lights and gigantic video screens surround you, there is a clamor of noise and pedestrians, and all along the streets are stores and restaurants selling at premium prices on one side with vendors bargaining on the other.

Following a brief detour through Times Square so I could experience the gaudily eclectic area, Ian and I took the subway down to Battery Park.  There we found a small local pizzaria and got the classic duo:  a slice of sausage (something you might not realize - they slice the sausage lengthwise) and a slice of pepperoni.  I've found that everywhere I travel, I do enjoy their particular style of pizza.  Chicago thick, California eclectic, or New York wide, it's all tasty and definitely better than the Des Moines fare.

Our grease and mozzerella urges sated, we hopped a Circle Line ferry at Battery Park to tour down the Manhatten shorelinea past Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty, and underneath the Brooklyn Bridge.  The tour was reasonably priced (only $10 which is pretty cheap for NYC touristy entertainment) and afforded a great view of the city and Lady Liberty.  The best part of the cruise was the narrator, this older gentleman with a dulcet voice like Barry White reminiscing about New York history and offering tips on visiting certain places that were, according to him, "not the quickest route but certainly the safest."

The aquatic voyage complete, we rode up to Chinatown so I could see the mass of street merchants selling jewelry, knicknacks and ever pirated DVD you can imagine, including movies like Kill Bill and Scary Movie 3, which had just opened the day before.  Those who know my fondness for early-release movies will undoubtedly be surprised to find that I didn't purchase any.  Before you claim a victory for the MPAA, I'll admit that the thought to purchase a few crossed my mind before I realized that the Internet had the same movies available - I mean, if I *wanted* to get some "outside legal means" movies.  Which I'm not saying I do...

We trekked north through Chinatown to Little Italy than turned west to Soho.  Our destination:  the Jobsian mecca known as the Soho Apple store.  Nestled in a very hipster part of NYC, the Apple store is a construct of glass, wood, clear thick plastic and brushed metal, almost as if assembled from the same materials as their computers, though with less garish colors than the old iMacs.  What I find fascinating about Apple stores - and this is true for both the one I had previously visited in Palo Alto as well as this Soho store and, I presume, all of their locations - there is nothing sold at the stores that one could not buy elsewhere, especially online, and indeed, most of the computers on display are the same configuration and models with prices listed not for the particular computer you're demoing but rather a "starting at" price.  It seems that demoing an Apple is more about the experience and the task, whether viewing pictures, editing a video, whatever, than the particular details of the computer's innards.

By this time my feet were killing me.  Note to self - despite the short-term confort brought about by the liner in Born shoes, bring some sneakers on next trip to NYC.

Following Soho, we returned north for a brief stint at Ian's so that my feet could reform from the gelatinous pools they felt like into proper appendages.  A look online showed that the Met (aka The Metropolitan Museum of Art) was open until 9pm, so we trekked the nine or so blocks over.  I loved The Thomas Crown Affair and really wanted to see one particular painting - the one of man in a bowler hat with an apple covering his face whose name doesn't spring readily to mind.  After searching the whole of the museum, we finally found a childrens' book with the very painting on the cover.  Looking in the appendix, we found that the painting we sought was not actually in the Met at all, but was owned in a private collection.  So The Thomas Crown Affair has lied to me.  Liars!  Carrie points out that the irreality of the painting not being there is a far second to when he folds a painting being stolen in half without damaging it.

Dinner consisted of burgers at Jackson Hole.  Thick and juicy burgers.  Mmm.  And then Lena and Jay met back up with us for some bar hopping around 2nd Avenue.  Good friends, good location, and dark beer:  a fine end to a full day.

Friday was art day.  Ian, having things at work he could not get out of, left Carrie and I to our own volition, so we thought to begin hitting the extensive list of small art galleries she wanted to visit while back in the City.  Again the ritual of buying a New York Times and reading it at a coffee shop, and since I wrote about that particular segment of time interspersed in my entry yesterday, I won't go further into it now as there isn't much else to tell about it. 

Except Misty tells me that it sounds like an offer on my house is forthcoming.  So you should get your offer in now to beat out the others!

After the bakery cafe, we walked east, crossing Park Avenue (ritzy!) and turned south on 5th, walking along the edge of Central Park.  Carrie has a general dislike for nature - even parks due to their grass, trees, squirrels and the like, so we dared not enter at that time.  We eventually reached a building directly across from Trump Tower containing the DC Moore gallery featuring the works of Mary Frank.  While I did enjoy Frank's use of both shadowed imagery and geometric structures in several of her paintings, I really preferred her sculptures, especially a "landscape" with figures walking across it cut from the base land, the space they were cut from forming a sort of primal shadow.

We visited three other gallaries before calling it quits, though I cannot recall the names of the featured artists, other than to say one was selling in the hundred of thousands of dollars price range.

On the way back to Casa Del Ian, we stopped by Dylan's Candy Bar, a huge candy store that I had just read about in Fast Company this week.  Known for it's use of exuberant style and classic candy memorabilia, Dylan's was packed with New Yorkers on a bender for some sugar.  I bought some sour balls for the low low cost of $8.50 per pound and then we finished the trek back to Ian's apartment so that we could give our feet a break.

I am fortunate to have not one but three friends living in NYC - in addition to Ian, Lena and Jay, also former Des Moines residents, moved to the City over the summer.  Jay is a Resident at Beth Israel Hospital and Lena, a native Ukrainian, teaches english as a second language.  The five of us, along with Jay's dad who was also in town for his work, went to dinner at a good Mexican restaurant in the East Village.  Good times were had, filled with tortilla chips and habanero-enhanced salsa.

Carrie was tired and Ian had work so they split off afterwards to head back.  After his father went back to his hotel, Lena, Jay and I went to a bar where Jay and I had some Octoberfest while a very tired Lena had dessert and debated pros-and-cons of American living with me.

I took a cab back afterwards and learned that cabbies don't like to break twenties for an $8 fare.  I don't get to see Lena and Jay very often, so it's always a great time seeing them when I do.

Odds are that if you are reading this website, you know me well enough to know about the weekly ritual of watching Survivor with the family.  Since Survivor runs two seasons a year of 13-14 weeks each, that leaves several weeks in between without.  Last winter, NBC aired another reality TV show, another creation of Mark Burnett, the man behind Survivor.  This was "The Restaurant" and focused on Rocco DiSpirito, a semi-famous New York chef, and his opening a new restaurant.  For eight weeks, and covering a period of time of maybe the first two weeks in business, The Restaurant took us between the tables and behind the kitchen doors, showing the drama that happens when a bunch of hopeful actor/model types act it up for the camera in an attempt to stand out on national television - while serving food at an actual restaurant with actual guests. 

And as anyone who watched the show is aware of, they serve Coors Light on tap and take American Express.  Coors Light and American Express:  official sponsors of NBC's "The Restaurant."

While the show itself got pretty tiresome by the end of its eight-week winter replacement run, Carrie and I still wanted to eat at Rocco's while in New York because of its minor celebrity and our corniness factor.  Ian, though having a general disdain for reality TV, walked to Roccos from his work (it's only 7 ot 8 blocks away) and made us reservations, coming along for the ride and agreeing to not be too agitated towards our "star"-struck nature.

So there we were at Rocco's (now called Rocco's on 22nd due to a lawsuit brought by another restaurant in the City named Rocco's).  The first thing we noticed was that the hostess at the door was the same one on the show!  And look! - the bartender is the guy who used to be in the kitchen and had a storyline involving his problems cooking on the grill and another brief one with a restaurant romance.  And that waiter - he was on the show too.  But not ours, bummer.  And hey, there's Mama DiSpirito talking to that table.  Hey Mama! 

I ordered the Chicken Parmigiana and we shared some appetizers of Mama's Meatballs - a famous mainstay of the show and very tasty in their own right - and some calamari.  The meal was delicious, though a bit pricey, and viewers of the show might be interested to know that the food arrived warm - almost too warm, which beats the opposite - and that the cardboard appetizer boats were nowhere to be seen, instead replaced with wire baskets lined with some italian-language newspaper.

While we didn't get to talk to Mama or see Rocco anywhere, it was still a fun experience.  Ian and I ended the evening there playing a game of foosball while we waited for Carrie.  I then took some photos outside, and as we walked off Carrie pointed out that Laurent, the generally-disliked manager from the show, was sitting at the table talking to two others.  Now to see if he and the others are still there when they start filming season 2.