Ice Cream

By Mable and Gar Hoffman

Wendy sent me this book in the mail. I am thankful for it and her. Do you think Gar is short for Garfield, or just the fish?

Today I learned that it isn't attractive to be cocky and arrogant. It is better to just know that you are great and not say anything about it; that, apparently, is the line between confidence and conceit.

An umble blogger,

daniel

Touching Base

The Huskers won their dual against Mizzou in not the most dominating fashion dropping the last few matches and needing a bye to keep distance from the Tigers.

Glory Road is a good movie 3 outta 5 stars. I need to get better; I'm a bit sick.

Peace out you.

Gerald, Francine, and Lancaster

Friday was a slow, quick day at work. Slow on orders, quick on processing them and leaving. So I couldn't park in front of my apartment like usual, putting me on "H" Street parallel parking. As soon as I got out, I saw my favorite organist Gerald W. Holbrook (scroll about halfway down to see a picture of the immediate past dean) riding his bike. Then as I was walking to my apartment in front of Francine, I saw a squirrel that was literally cornered on the edifice of the building between two very curious cats, one orange in one window and another black and white in another window. It was a very picturesque triangle of tension, with the squirrel clucking like a chicken.

Tonight I went to Winterfest Ales and Auction. I saw a few Union students there, and it is always nice to see your own kind to justify your cultural transgressions. Here are my judgements on the beers I tried:

Gottberg Brew Pub in Columbus, NE

Tin Lizzie Hefeweizen and Unice Ivan's Dunkeweizen--Nay
Steinworthy Oktoberfest--Yea

Empyrean Lincoln, NE

Oak aged Imperial Stout--alright kinda bockish
Fallen Angel Sweet Stout--Yea

Upstream Omaha, NE

Unfiltered Wheat--Yea
Ebenezer Ale--Nay

Leinenkugel

Big Butt Doppelbock--okay, not spectacular
Apple Spice--Yea

Samuel Adams

White Ale--Yea, pleasantly surprised a bit fruity
Double Bock--not great, but there's worse

Spilker Cortland, NE Hopluia--Yea, I tried this one a long time ago and it has gotten better, very fruity lager

Widmer Brothers Hefeweizen--Nay, I liked it at the Okto-beer fest though.

Bacardi Silver Watermelon--Yea

Lindeman Framboise--Yea, I accept it for what it is now

Xingu Brazilian Black Beer--alright

St. Peters Golden Ale--Nay

I'm done.

I Promise

I find it interesting that homosexuals use a symbol that according to Christian mythology was given by God as a promise that he would never flood the earth again. Presumably flooding the earth in the first place because of the rampant sin and corruption of its inhabitants. Aren't sodomists, who God has given plenty of laws about to His people, kind of waving it with a limp wrist in His face?

One of my co-workers recently received her daughter's report card. One of the areas of evaluation for the teacher to mark is "Embraces paradoxical thinking." How can you evaluate an eight year old on that, or anyone for that matter?

Haagen-Dan?

Last night I made chocolate ice cream with peanut butter. I melted a cup of peanut butter and drizzled it in while the rest of the ice cream was blending. I'm very happy with the results. Brilliant!

Pegamus

Last Wednesday, I met my mother and step-father in York on their way down to TX to spend more time with the new grand babies. On the 40 miles of interstate to York, I saw a semi-trailer with a very nice silhouette of a moose with wings on the mud flaps. The company that made the trailer was Manac (canam). I really love the mythology of this creature. Often the "deer" of Swedish folk tales were moose particularly in one of my favorite illustrator's images.

Does this picture remind you of anything?

Saturday Night's Alright for Wrestling

Tonight the Huskers had a dual with American University. They won, and for the fans, only 3 of the 10 matches went the full seven minutes. Unfortunately, one of the matches that ended early involved a distant relative of mine, David Ingalls. He had the uneviable task of wrestling Muzaffar Abdurakhmanov. Notice that Muzi majors in Russian (what a stretch for someone from Uzbekistan).

The Husker match was at 7pm. At 5 this evening I went to my local public library and got two books from Junichiro Tanizaki, one a set of seven short stories, the other Some Prefer Nettles, and a book of pictures of Lee Lawrie's work mostly from the Nebraska Capitol. I was introduced to Tanizaki in my Non-Western Lit class at Union. I read and presented on an essay from him "In Praise of Shadows." I loved this essay and recommend it for any artist or aesthete. Here is an excerpt:

A glistening black lacquer rice cask set off in a dark corner is both beautiful to behold and a powerful stimulus to the appetite. Then the lid is briskly lifted, and this pure white freshly boiled food, heaped in its black container, each and every grain gleaming like a pearl, sends forth billows of warm steam-- here is a sight no Japanese can fail to be moved by. Our cooking depends upon shadows and is inseparable from darkness.

I looked thru (side note: Emerson pushed for that spelling of through to be standardized to make the language more efficient) the Lawrie book while enjoying a dish of peanut butter and jelly, grape Nerds, and toasted almond ice cream at Ivanna Cone.

After wrestling, I went to Donnie Darko at Starship 9. It was the director's cut which I think helps frame the film a bit better. It was nice seeing it in the theater, but I wonder why Douglas is showing it now. I'll find out. Donnie Darko is a 5 outta 5 (the fifth star is for Wendi). The casting deserves an award for how accurately everyone is placed. As per six degrees of separation, Katharine Ross, Donnie's therapist, was the girlfriend of the Sundance Kid and Benjamin Braddock and daughter of Mrs. Robinson; Patrick Swayze is a motivational pederast; one of the bullies Seth Rogen is also in 40 Dollar Virgin as Cal, the bigger friend. Noah Wyle one of many Dr. Dreamies on ER, and Drew Barrymore, child star turned Tom Green divorcee are also in it as teachers. Then you have the only performance with Jake and Maggie as brother and sister. I'll stop now. I know more and could tell you more, but I'll stop now.

Keyser Soze

Conflict of Interest

People who lean on logic and philosophy and rational exposition end by starving the best part of the mind. -William Butler Yeats, writer, Nobel laureate (1865-1939)

This quote and the previous one from the German fellow seem to be fairly antagonistic toward learning and other polymathic exploits. The rub for me is that they come at the end of one of my word a day emails by Anu Garg. Why would a person who makes their living by pandering to the intellectually curious sap the foundations with insidious aphorisms? And Billy Butler, what is the best part of the mind, and nice touch on using "lean" with "starving"?

I saw Munich tonight. I liked it I give it 3 outta 4 stars. All the actors did wonderfully, John Williams had a fine score, writing above par, and achievement of purpose not too shabby. Eric Bana was the only redeeming character in Troy, and he doesn't disappoint in this role. Geoffrey Rush, Daniel Craig (the new James Bond), and Matthieu Kassovitz (Nino from Amelie) round out a very satisfying ensemble performance. Their two French contacts played by Michael Lonsdale (he was the villian, Hugo Drax, in an old Bond movie, Moonraker) and Mathieu Amalric also turn fine performances.

The previews were fun "Thank You for Smoking" is about a tobacco lobbyist who becomes a consultant/strategist for them, and Inside Man with Clive Owen as a bank robber and Denzel Washington as a negotiator.

Mephistopheles

Fine minds are seldom fine souls. -Jean Paul Richter, writer (1763-1825)

I'm not sure egg-zactly what this means. It very well could mean that brilliant people are brilliant because they sold their soul to Lucifer for that privilege.

South Sigh-eed

There is a region in the world that refers to itself in a very odd way. They want religious convention managers to bring their conventions to their region. They have sent promotional material, namely stress foam lego blocks. They are Northern Kentucky. Of note is the new Creation history museum. Check out how eerily similar to the missing link Ken Ham looks (toward bottom of screen holding construction helmet).

My boss Hans is AdventSource's point man for the NAD From This Day Forward marriage conferences, because this also qualifies as a religious convention, he is a member of the RCMA, religious convention managers association. So he got some promo materials from different people that want the business of conventions. One of those is my new set of stress foam legos with Northern Kentucky promotional slogans.

Last night I watched After Life. It is directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda, who also directed Maborosi, the poster is in the lobby of the Ross on occasion if you have any questions about its value. His most recent film is Nobody Knows about some children that raise themselves in Tokyo. Anyway, now that you are familiar with some of his work, I'll tell you about After Life. The film is about a place where people go for a week after they die. They have three days to choose their favorite memory from their life which is then recreated for them in the facility's studio, and then they spend eternity in that memory. It is a fun question. What is your answer?

End note: Stephen Colbert ended last night's show saying "he had a dreamsicle" while eating it fast. He talked about how the dreamsicle is a metaphor of the black people (vanilla) and the white people (orange) shaking hands in a . . . . He was then interrupted by an intensely painful brain freeze and concluded saying nothing is worth that much pain.

Happy MiLK Day

Peanut butter and jelly ice cream at Ivanna Cone is good. The Bears lost, they didn't dance with the one that brung 'em (running and sound defense).

I caught most of the AKC Eukanuba National Championships. I didn't actually see the breed being shown, but I went to the AKC site and discovered a new favorite in addition to the Weimaraner, Viszla, and Great Dane, the Plott hound. I like the brindle markings a lot, and as you can tell from my other preferences I like short haired dogs.

Tattoo Inspiration

a surveyor

Sculpture: Lee Lawrie, a Sower and Atlas

Second from Bottom: John Bauer illustration for The Ring

Bottom: William Blake's Newton

Today's Weather:

Voluptuous. Today's People: Friendly and Accomodating.

It is about 60 today. I went and returned two way overdue books to Love Library, which I don't know where my card to is. Then I thought I would chance a stop by Ivanna Cone. As I was looking at their hours, I thought it said they were open at 11 on Sunday, actually not til 1. However, the long-haired fellow cleaning and preparing for the day said they weren't open, but he could probably get me some ice cream. So I got cinnamon, apple spice, and an oldie but a goodie: Dutch chocolate. I also wanted to get their peanut butter and jelly, but I forgot by the time I was done tasting the apple spice, maybe tonight.

Since he had to mop, I went upstairs and read the menu for Krem le Bistro. They have a roasted turkey sandwich and some stuffed peppers that look really good. They also have a homemade chai cheesecake drizzled with a honey and ginger sauce. They serve Jones Soda and no really good beers.

Now I buckle in for 6-7 hours of football. Go Bears!

Gay Dog and Budweiser Commercial

What are things voiced by George Clooney, Tre-BEK?

Honorable mention celebrity voice over artist, Gary Sinise for Cadillac.

GZUSROX

That was on a license plate behind the East parking lot at Union.

Last night I had a two hour nap, and then I got up since I couldn't fall asleep for good. I watched a couple episodes of a Kiwi TV show Mr. Gormsby. Tonight though, the Racquet Club again.

What's Up Doc?

I had a dream. I had a dream that one day I was at a church and at that church was a bunch of people I knew. It was a packed church. Bryant and Ceri even had to sit on pews on the platform; weird though was that those pews still faced the front of the church like all the other pews. In this dream, I rose up at the back of the church in the center aisle because everyone was gathered for me. I felt like I was at my wedding, but when I got to the dais the administrant was the only one up there.

He had a name tag that said Charles Carpenter, something like that. Then he started talking to the congregation like a pastor does before baptising someone. He asked the congregation if it was alright if he just talked to me, and proceeded to say how my committment was interesting considering the similarities between Christ and Bugs Bunny and how there are a lot of Jungian archetypes in Bugs. This was weird but more weird was the fact that in my dream I was making sense of it. So take that Martin Luther King Jr..

Needless to say, this morning didn't happen like the past couple. I think my dream had something to do with eating at Ivanna Cone last night at 10 pm. Rootbeer, Pistachio, and Cinnamon. Today sometime I'll try my homemade pumpkin ice cream I made with my new Cuisinart 2 qt. Ice Cream Maker.

What in Tarnation Instant Breakfast?!

So I've started a new trend where I get out of bed when I wake up instead of laying in bed and having those weird dreamlings. Friday I woke at 7 and got out of bed and read a bit on the internetting and then went to work an hour and an half earlier than the three other mornings that week. This morning I woke at 5ish; I still had a movie from Netflix I hadn't watched Sympathy for Mr. Vengance. To my kinda surprise but not really this was the first of a trilogy. I had previously seen Oldboy, which is the second. I was piqued by Chan-wook Park's interest in Shakespeare and how that translated to his writing. Turns out he is more influenced by Bill's tragedies than anything.

I didn't know what to expect with this second film, but I put it in this morning at 5 because I had two hours to kill until I should have been up. The first forty minutes, it was nice with cute little Korean children. I thought about recommending it to Angela. Then the dying started. Seven deaths later, the movie was over. It was a good movie; I liked it. Probably not the thing to start your day with.

The problem with being sure that God is on your side is that you can't change your mind, because God sure isn't going to change His.
-Roger Ebert, film-critic (1942- )

Every evening at work I check with Janet in accounting to make sure the credit cards match the invoices. I told her I was going to the Racquet Club for the first time in a long time. She said she thought I went there religiously. I said that's the problem; I go there about as often as I go to church. Hee He Hee

Rick James

Perkiomenville, Indeed!

I believe I previously mentioned, in this space, Perkiomenville, Pennsylvania. If I didn't, I should have. It previously raised its head as the residence of an AdventSource customer. Hodiernally, Mike Spaid, heavyweight wrestler for Bloomsburg University , is from there. The Huskers did well enough winning the dual 30 to 12. Another wrestler for the Huskies, I just now realized the irony of the Huskers beating the Huskies, Brad Forbes shares a name with my boss.

In other news, that crazy delicious video, Lazy Sunday, has garnered artistic and capitalist interest combined here.