UrbanTherapy.

a co-worker and i tried the “free” mcdonald’s “southern-style” chicken sandwich today.  we decided that if you’ve had the mcchicken sandwich, then you’ve pretty much had the “southern-style” sandwich.  the chicken needed more seasoning, and the bun needed more butter.  they should’ve brought in paula or something.

mcdonald’s sweet tea, though, is better than i thought it’d be.  it’s actually, well, sweet.  those of you who have had the misfortune of being around when i order iced tea know that i am not stingy when adding sugar.  and i didn’t need to add any sugar to this.  it really is sweet tea, as far as i’m concerned.  it’s weird that i can order sweet tea north of the mason-dixon, let alone at mcdonald’s. and it’s weird that it’s only $1.  

i’m actually heading south of the mason-dixon again this weekend for erica’s long-awaited graduation from law school.  assuming the hotel actually comes through with their promised free ‘net access, i’ll try to share more randomness.   maybe i’ll have more sweet tea NOM NOM NOM.  

the lineup for this year’s outdoor film festival has been announced. there’s a certain movie on that list that i think we should all go see. and by see, i mean sit outside and annoy everyone else by quoting dialogue loudly. and there’s another movie on the list that i wouldn’t be averse to seeing for the gazillonth time. what say you?

this first one is all keith’s fault. ok, technically it’s my fault for posting it, but it’s more fun to blame someone else.

and i thought y’all should know that mcdonald’s is doing a quasi-giveaway next week of their “southern-style” chicken sandwiches. i’ve not had one of these yet, so i can’t comment on their southern-style properties.  eta on 5/14: apparently someone has done a comparison for us. i’m still gonna go have one tomorrow, just for kicks.

hope y’all are having a good week.

e and I are going to have a shitty week; we see it coming. So I’ll take this time to post a song which gets stuck in my head every time I walk out of the office, battered, beaten, but unbowed. And, at the end of this week, we’re going down home to surprise my people for Mother’s Day. So if we can just make it til Friday…

Also, if this works, this is a quick and easy way for you, dear readers of UrbanTherapy, to listen to music! The possibilities are endless.

Nina says she’s feeling good. You should too.

(Because, as usual, acb did it first and better)

TRoyal
DE/WR 6′6″ 198 lbs
Northwestern

Positives:
Smart player who is comfortable in his roles. High school did not have a football team, so is raw.
As a DE, possesses the burst off the corner to harass and bring down the QB. Long arms are an asset. On sweeps and tosses, plays contain well and knows to funnel the ball carrier back towards help. Does not get fooled on reverses and stays home. Because of WR background, can peel back to play zone defense and has intercepted more than one ball. Understands leverage and getting under a bigger lineman. Motor constantly running.
As a reciever, he will go up and get it, making him an ideal red-zone target. Great route runner and can feel the holes in zone coverage. Has deceptive speed and is a long strider. Will go across the middle. Catches the ball with his large hands, rather than letting it get into his body. Despite lanky frame, tough to bring down and uses stiff-arm well. Blocks well in the run game.

Negatives:
Extensive injury history. As a DE, does not possess the upper body strength to ward off road-grader type tackles. Sometimes overpursues on draws and screens. Seems to care about getting the QB and getting the sack instead of playing the run. Does not use hands well to shed blocks, and because of high center of gravity, may get pancaked a lot. Stamina a concern.
As a reciever, lacks the speed to truly burn DBs, and vision condition makes it difficult to go deep. Not consistent and experiences stretches of subpar play. Will need extensive training to overcome a playground mentality to playing the position.

Overall:
A student of the game and a great character player who can be a leader in the locker room and is respected by teammates. He isn’t getting much bigger, and lack of bulk could mean a short career. Best used in situations where his skill set are best utilized, like in the red zone or short yardage situations. On D, on obvious passing downs as a psas rush specialist. Could possibly be used as a pass-rushing LB in the 3-4. His injury history alone will be enough to scare teams away, as he’s also mentioned retirement more than once.

Draft Projection:
Free Agent, grad school

i suppose i should write about the fact that gas is $3.87/gal at the gas station near urbantherapy. or maybe i should write about w’s “we’re gonna send out rebates early so you can buy gas! usa! usa!” antics. and yes, i should try to articulate something that resembles a response to the sean bell case. and that’s on top of the usual madness that’s swirling around.

but instead, i’m going to share this with you, because it’s been stuck in my head since yesterday and because it makes me happy. and i’m really at the point where i need to identify and cherish things that make me happy.

feel free to share things that make you happy in the comments. try not to go overboard with the “awww” factor, though.

Keep in mind, this is normal for us.

e: Did you know Danger Mouse was black?
me: (unsure) Nooo…I know DangerMouse is British.
e: Yeah, I read that in Rolling Stone. I’ve never heard him talk, though.
me: How could you have never heard him talk? We have the dvd!
e: What the hell DangerMouse are YOU talking about?

And I honestly wasn’t thinking of who she was thinking of, and she wasn’t thinking of who I thought of.

you ever have one of those moments when you realize just how much you love the internet? like, you almost wanna go hug al gore for inventing the series of tubez?

that was me earlier tonight.  i was switching between amazon and the library’s website, looking for books to put on hold.  and when i hit my 5-hold limit (which is really the only sucktastic part about being able to request books online — but that’s another post), i switched over to the ev,il library site and kept on requesting books.

and this was after i went to food network’s site to look up a recipe i’d seen while catching up on cooking shows earlier. and after i’d realized that i hadn’t blogged about my new source for red velvet cake and red velvet cupcakes.

therefore, i’d like to go on record as saying that i heart the interwebz. it’s made life so much easier for a nerd (yeah, i said it) like me.

but back to red velvet cake and cupcakes. i tried out the cupcakes a couple of weekends ago and fell in love. i went back on a thursday morning to take cupcakes to work, b/c we’ve all been getting pwned by various forces and events and i figured we deserved a treat. they didn’t have red velvet cupcakes ready yet, so i bought slices of red velvet cake instead. i can’t even describe the collective reaction that was had at work. ok, i probably could describe it, but just use your imagination.

meanwhile, i’ve started my “so you want us to use our vacation days before may 31? ok!” schedule, which means that i’m off work at least one day a week until mid-may. and then i’m off the last 2 weeks of may. i suppose i should do something useful with my time, like have deep thoughts about the current state of my career and if…ok, how i should change it. i’m open to ideas, preferably realistic.

so…how y’all doing?

She sips water, and even she’s dioing THAT nervously. The room isn’t full, but this is a sizale crowd, about 40-60 people. Mostly women, and a few guys who look like me; there to support. There are two microphones set up, and the fledgling sound tech in me wants to speak up and say something, but to hell with it.

She is second on the bill, she tells me. Two of who knows how many. I’ve been sent out of the house when she practices at home, and II totally didn’t see the programs up front, which I am now forbidden to get one of. She is intensely protective of her work, and I’m not to know what song she’ll be singing. After she’s done, I can see the program she reassures me.

I could not invite anyone, and was warned against even mentioning it to anyone. Personally, I want to put my creative output out there and get some commentary on it. She, quite simply, is doing this for herself. Not for the few friends for whom this “she can SING?” thing is not a foreign concept. Not for the people who’d be on the short list of people I’d tell and who would just HAPPEN to be at the Old Town School when this was going on. I can’t understand, but the fact remained is that I know that this is a big deal. Else, she wouldn’t be so nervous.

Her teacher is accompanying on the piano, and smiles as she makes her way to the stage. The self-appointed audio engineer busies himself with adjusting the microphones and cautions everyone to sing like they’re in the shower. “I can sing from behind the cutains, if you want,” she deadpans.

The first woman who went said her name, thanked her husband, who’d apparently heard her practive her song four billion times, and then launched into “Danke Shoen”. e does not do that.

“My name is (name), and I’d like to thank my husband for letting me kick him out the house while I practiced. (laughter from the audience, along with the usual looking around for this “husband”, but since she was a) looking right at me, and b)I was the only black guy in the room, people generally figured it out) I don’t think he knows what song I’m going to do…but this is for him. I love you.”

I beamed. The piano began.

Found this on my camera. Forgot I had done this. Marvel (or something) as I pan the camera around in the front of the house down home. Listen to the eighty billion wind chimes Dad has hanging up! Also, feel the only place where I can get cell phone reception! Not pictured: The food Mom was cooking, visible air pollution, the cows hanging out in the backyard.

4 MB.
40 seconds.
MP4 format.

And no, you’re not getting RickRolled. I wouldn’t do that to you. I’d rather Muppet-roll. you.