oh flying...

Last night at the airport, I saw something that I hadnt seen before. At the security checkpoint, they had this air shooter machine. When instructed, I stepped into this human car-wash chamber. I remained still and then several intense bursts of air hit me quickly from every angle. After a few seconds, the light turned green and the clear doors opened. Then I walked through the metal detectors and waited for my carry on bag.

As a fairly experienced traveler, I had minimized my chance of having any holdup at security. I was wearing only jeans and a t-shirt, and everything on my person had been removed and put into my backpack while I was waiting in line. Taking off my belt, long sleeved shirt, hat, and removing everything from my pockets was a bit of a hassle, but far from the trouble that goes along with the personal body search. I took away any and all potential reasons for setting off any alarm.

However, the same was not true for my fellow airplane riders. The people in front of me had clearly not ridden a plane since 9/11. Everything was new to them. But that wasnt an excuse. This new air pumping machine was slowing up the line. That meant you had plenty of time to watch the people in front of you. It should have been obvious by the time they got to the front that they needed to remove their shoes and jackets. But they hadn't, so I waited.

And then the people in front of them were overprepared. They had decided to take their entire pantry with them. And they were aware of some new rule about the amount of fluids that can be carried onto a plane. They have about a dozen ziplock bags with 2.34 ounces (or whatever the new rule is...) The problem was they knew the rules better than the people enforcing them. Despite what you might think, this also held up the line. The security officer didnt know what to do when the old guy took a sip of hand soap from a sandwich bag. Then when the big-on-rules guy told the security guy the rules, he went power-trip and took offense. So then he had to act like there was a big problem, which delayed everyone even more. The sad fact of the matter is if I were a criminal I would have had a perfect distraction to slide through the line. You had a bunch of overeager wanna-be hostage negotiators giving a 65 year old law abiding man a hard time.

Argh. So frustrating. I have decided that the break even point of flying is getting bigger. That is to say that if you are traveling under 300 miles, it is more efficient to drive (or walk or bike or swim.) I dont know what the old thresehold point was, but it is getting longer. They tell people to get to the airport an hour or two early. Well the people who are getting there that early are the ones who are holding up the lines. People who travel often do not need that much time. They arrive with boarding pass in hand without the intention of checking bags.

Then i boarded the plane. Since I was on Southwest and had a C grouping and did not check any bags, I didnt care where I sat. Instead of standing in line for 30 minutes I bought a newspaper and sat in a chair and read it. Then I boarded the plane, last. The flight was almost, but not completely full. I ended up sitting in a middle seat about halfway back. I sat in between a man and women, about 40 years old. I thought they didnt know each other but later learned they were together.

Which was a major problem. They thought they were being so savvy be sitting in the aisle and window seats. Their little sceme was to try to discourage another person from sitting between them by putting their bags in the middle seat. Well it didnt work. I wasnt checking any bags and had a tiny backpack that I could hold on my lap if need be. I wasnt going any further back than I had to, so when I asked if the seat was taken and he reluctantly said it was available I sat down.

It was then I realized they knew each other. It wasnt the immediate conversation that gave it away. It was the next 45 minutes of chatter across me that gave it away. Ok sneaky people, your trick didnt work and I sat in your row. You lost. Well dont talk across me the entire time. If you were so pressed to sit next to your friend/wife/whatever then offer to switch seats with me once I sat down. But that never happened. Jerks. Oh well.

Atleast I arrived at the airport with no way of getting home. At first it was sort of exciting. Sort of like my own personal make-shift Amazing Race. However, after wandering around baggage claim for 10 minutes I thought it was way to sketchy to ask a random person for a ride. My original thought of chatting it up on the plane and getting to know my plane neighbors was ruined by annoying couple, and i was unable to spot anyone wearing a high school jacket of the school near my house (which was my back up plan...) so i ended up sucking it up and just getting a taxi. Atleast I was home in time to watch Monday night footballl.

PS Merry Christmas!

Come on ride the D-Train

I have always liked Dontrelle Willis, and wasn't excited to read about his recent arrest. Drunk driving is certainly nothing to joke about, but I did think his story was interesting. He was driving his Bentley at 4:00 am near some nightclubs, when he stopped his car and got out. Then he took a leak in the road.

Apparently the police officer noticed signs of intoxication, and D-Train failed a field sobriety test. I am pretty sure anytime you are peeing in the road at 4 in the morning, its pretty safe to say you have been drinking.

I just keep seeing a mental movie of a guy driving, stopping for no apparent reason, and then getting out of his car and going to the bathroom in the road. Who does that?

those crazy animals

Apparently pythons from Burma are too tough for the US and taking over the Everglades National Park. It is quite amazing to hear that a python killed and ate an alligator, which then actually killed itself. Here is that story, check out the pic. And another python was in a gators mouth for over 30 hours and survived. These things sound pretty badass. I must admit that even though I am scared of snakes I sort of want to buy a baby Burmese python at a flea market, feed it tiny rodents and watch it grow up from inches to 6 feet in a year. Unfortunately, at that point I would be scared and unable to handle my snake. And then instead of killing it I would probably let it go in the woods behind my house. The funny thing is this is exactly what people did in Florida, and now they are eating all the other animals. Imagine if you walked outside and saw this.

And in other animal news lizards can reproduce with themselves. Judging from the picture, that is probably good news for that lizard. I just hope that Komodo dragon isn't a runner, if so she had better get in touch with Barry Bond's trainer.

random, but fun

What was this guy was thinking... I think I found a clip of the employee telling the story.


If your week at work is especially slow, watch this. I hadnt seen it in a long time.


I was pleasantly surprised when I grabbed an individually wrapped candy from the candy bowl at work and found out it was orange flavored. Turns out that there are two new flavors of Lifesavers candy.


You can go here to light a candle and make a wish for someone special (or select a gift idea for someone...) I am not sure if it is working yet, but I think you are supposed to be able to see all the wishes that are made by other people too.

like i need another reason to not watch

I do not understand how this happens. I really dont know why you would play a basketball game outside. But even if you were going to do it, wouldnt you check the weather? How are you caught by surprise in 2006 when it rains? And the worst part is the stadium has a roof, it was just open. It seems to me like they wanted it to get rained out. I do, however, enjoy people playing basketball in long sleeve shirts.

Back on the market

I read today that my favorite athlete is single again... Perhaps this is the reason the Pats played so badly against Miami last week. Hopefully this will allow him to focus for the playoffs and lead the team to another superbowl. Maybe I should have picked him on my fantasy tabloid team!

My new free toy...

A while back I was invited to join Man Beard Blog. I hadnt yet posted, as contract negotiations were taking longer than expected, when MBB received an email from a public relations firm looking to get a review for a beard related product. Two days later I had a brand new razor in hand and was anxious to write my first entry for MBB. Below is my post from MBB, its another long one!

[since this is my first post on MBB i copied it below. in the future i dont intend to post the same material in both locations so be sure to check out MBB from time to time...]

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Due to the overwhelming popularity of Man Beard Blog, we were recently asked to review the new Philips Norelco Bodygroom and share our opinions with our readers. As an experienced manscaper and self proclaimed body hair expert, I was anxious to receive the electronic device and begin testing.

I did not have to wait long, as less than 48 hours later I had the ergonomically designed electric razor in hand and was ready to put it to the test.

I was pleasantly surprised when I opened the package, pushed the button and the razor turned on. Less than 30 seconds and I went from holding a FedEx overnight box to eliminating unwanted body hair. It is nice when rechargable electronics come charged. There is nothing worse than getting a present that you really wanted only to find out you have to charge it for 8 hours to use the thing. Not the Bodygroom, the folks at Norelco are better than that.

The cordless trimmer comes with 3 attachments, and from my previous clipping experience I knew that these were intended to control the length to which the follicle was cut. Feeling crazy, I first snapped on the "2" piece and raised my right arm. This is where things got hairy. Armpit hair, especially that has been in a long sleeve shirt under a lowered arm all day, tends to be less coarse than hair on other parts of the body. This was immediately giving me trouble with the razor. It seemed to be combing my armpit hair more than cutting it. The actual cutting blades are not large, and are hidden deep under the attachment. So I felt like each swipe of the Bodygroom was removing only the first few hairs it confronted. Then those hairs were clogging the cutting area and preventing the other hairs from entering the cutting zone. I thought that if I switched to the shorter “1” attachment that the problem would be reduced. It wasn’t, as I was still struggling to cut the hair. I will say that I have had this trouble with underarm hair before. I have a three other devices and have had the same problem with all three. So it is possible that it’s not the cutting instrument, it’s me. Needless to say, when I removed the clip and went with the zero I was more successful in removing the hair from under my arm. Then I realized that at no point did I ever intend to remove all the hair from under my arm. Ouch. Not good so far, Bodygroom. On to my chest hair…

Luckily for the BodyG I don’t have much hair on my chest nor do I want any. Since the clips were already removed, using the BG to remove all the hairs was simple. One of the best features is that it has a cutting edge on both sides. This feature is nullified when using an attachment. However, on level zero the user is able to cut hair on both strokes for an increased rate of hair removal. This took much less time than cutting in the first zone mentioned.

The last area that I attempted to trim was my groin area. PS I have never refered to or heard anyone refer to pubic hair as groin area hair. I honestly felt like this is what the BG was made to do. I found that the hair in this location had a different texture that allowed it to be cut much more efficiently with the design of the Bod-G. I started with the level 3 attachment and noticed that the hair was not being clogged as in area 1. In fact it was just the opposite, I felt like Johnny Depp in Edward Scissorhands. It was only a matter of minutes before I moved down to level 2 and re-cut.

It was in region 3 that I really appreciated the shape of the product. Historically, I have issues due to my angle of attack and relative location of the hair to my hands. I had no trouble positioning the cutting machine and I was hacking away. I feel like I was able to remove hair that I was previously unable to reach. I was also able to put the razor in areas that I normally would not place a cutting device. This is because of the position of the cutting blades relative to the attachments. I did not feel like I was at risk for cutting myself. To explain more clearly, all forms of clippers involve some sort of blade. In most cases, this means two teeth shaped metal blades on top of one another. When the blades vibrate or move, the hairs in between the teeth are cut by the teeth of the other blade. This works well to cut hair, however, it also cuts anything that enters between the two blades. Region 3 is an area that is not as smooth as your back and the tension in your skin isn’t always as consistent. Without getting into too much detail, I have injured myself before and am always very careful to make sure it doesn’t happen again. With the BG it was not a concern. I would be foolish to say it couldn’t happen, but with the design I don’t think I came close to cutting myself.

I performed all of this hair removal in the shower to contain the hairs. One of the worst things about removing body hair is my inability to control where it goes after removal. There are very few things as gross as finding tiny hair pieces all over the bathroom for days. Like grabbing your retainer on your way to bed and finding tiny pieces of dark hair. This is when you try not to think about what region it is from, until you taste what you think is Gold Bond and can no longer fall asleep.

Anyways, in the shower I was able to contain and then vacuum (because I never turned on the water) all of the hairs. The box says that the B-Gro can be used wet or dry, so during future body maintenance I may try using it while showering. I just wouldn’t recommend it if you are going to be removing a decent amount of hair or else your drain will probably get clogged.

After I stepped out of the shower I removed the cutting blade (I think it is supposed to be easily removable, otherwise I broke it already…) and cleanup was a breeze. It was just then that I noticed there was a mesh screen between the two blades. I own an electric razor (although I don’t use it much either) and I know the foil on the top of the BG was for removing very short pieces of hair. I concluded that this hypoallergenic foil was to complete the hair removal process, if you were looking for complete hair removal. Since I am not filming any adult movies anytime soon, I had no desire to use this feature anywhere on my body… except my face. Without thinking I turned the BG back on and began rubbing the razor all over my face. Having just shaved with a normal razor this morning I had very little hair to cut. However, what little stubble that I had was removed by the BG. Next time I should go from face to the rest of my body, as opposed to from region 3 to my face. That was entirely my fault though.

After I finished shaving, I reviewed the packaging and the website and I noticed that this product is not advertised as a facial razor. That reinforced my thoughts, that it cut shorter and more coarse hair more effectively. While it was able to cut facial hairs, that is not what it is born to do. vI felt that it performed best in region 3. This is probably not a surprise to the creators of the project, but I could see how they may have trouble pitching a male private part razor.

Overall, I would give the Bodygroom a thumbs up. I found that it outperformed all of the other products I have used for the same purpose, removing hair from the groin region. Further, it was very easy and fun to use, without compromising performance or safety. I think it would make a good present for any boyfriend or brother, in particular if they are between the ages of 18 and 40 and are troubled with unwanted hair in their most personal regions.

If you are interested, you can purchase on here.

A special thanks to Melanie for providing Man Beard Blog the opportunity to review this new product!

Tuesday night TV

While watching the WSOP on ESPN tonight it was down to 10 players. The players were playing at a single table, and each of them had earned over a million dollars (tenth place paid over a million.) The announcers kept saying that they would play down to the final table. The episode ended after one player was eliminated and there were 9 players remaining and the final table was set.

I understand that the 'final tv table' was going to be only nine players. But even knowing that (I bet many viewers didnt know that) it was still super annoying for them to keep saying that 9 of these 10 players were going to make the final table. Last time I checked all 10 made the final table. Now I remember why I dont watch poker (especially tournament poker) on TV anymore.
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I have watched all of the episodes of My Boys so far and have enjoyed the show very much. Perhaps it is not surprising, since I admittedly enjoy chick-flicks. The show reminds me of Sex in the City, about a single woman in a big city. The difference is that all her friends are guys, and she acts like a guy. And she is pretty hot. The best part of the show, in my opinion, is that she is a sportswriter for the Cubs. As a result, each show is themed around some aspect of baseball. The show is cheesy at times, and has been predictable on a few occasions, but they are on the right track in terms of having a recipe for success; a show that appeals to both men and women, possibly for very different reasons.
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I am looking forward to 24 and American Idol starting in January.

Online car purchasing

Below is a long email chain between me and a friend at work. He is selling his car online so I created a fake email address and have been emailing him about his car all week. I was pretending to be interested and asked as many random questions as I could think of. Start from the bottom and read up to follow the conversation. It is pretty funny.

(Start from the bottom)

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Then we called him again and while on the phone we walked over to guy's desk.

After the call, Guy wrote:

are u sure that wasn't u being ur own secretary? they said u were forgetful sometimes lol

Guy wrote:

ok i missed the first call because i was busy with somthing at work, but i just called back, and they said anytime for noon to 2 pm. i told him thats fine with me

(Now Ben calls Guy pretending to be my assistant)

Guy wrote:

oh u got a secretary? dont u think u should schedule it when u are free, i cant tell them i time for you to meet me, its up to you whenever you want to come

On 12/8/06 Timmmy Washington wrote:

can you please give my secretary a quick call in a minute to set it uptomorrow? i have to run into a meeting and am not sure how long it will take. the number is XXX-XXX-XXXX.thanks and i will see you tomorrow

Timmy

Guy Wrote:

what time do u think u can stop by? like morning, mid-day, afternoon?

On 12/8/06, Guy wrote:

yeah i know crossfires are rare, only seen like 5 on the road my whole life, but i;'ve been looking at them at dealerships for a while now. ok well i b4 going to quiznos for lunch

On 12/8/06, Tim Washington

crossfires are nice cars, although i dont see them on the road very often. remember that game called crossfire... and that catchy song that they played on the commercials. i have been saving for a new car for a while, but other things keep coming up so i have been putting it off since my current van gets the job done (for work, but its embaressing for personal use) since i cant seem to get an actual date with that girl kate i mentioned, I guess my goal for my new car is to have it before my friends work christmas party. i think it is next weekend. i am just going with her as a friend, since she doesnt have a date but wanted to bring someone. the place it is at isnt super fancy, but i think its pretty nice and i would prefer not to roll to her party in my van, or make her pick me up.i have talked to a few others about their cars, so hopefully i can get one by then. maybe even your galant...

From: "Guy" To: "Tim Washington"

i bought my car from workin at the XXXXXX. i worked there for like 7 months making 8.75-$10 a hr, and saved $6,000 , put that down. the car was $10,300 + tax, tags, and title=$11,300. plus $350 per rim, $150 per tire, +$100 for taillights + 375 for tints.=$13,775. but now that i got a new job with higher pay, im think im going to buy a Chrysler Crossfire.

On 12/8/06, Tim Washington wrote:

19 and you already own and are selling that car? nice work by you. as far as the mall goes, i need to get a tie or something (maybe a video game) for my brother and also something for my sister. i have no idea really. i was thinking abotu getting my parents a gift certificate to a restaurant or something. i think i have used up all the 'free yard work' as gifts, since I started my business it doesnt really count anymore. the party is at my house in canton. people will probably come over starting at 7 or so. nothing fancy.and if we do go to the mall, i hope we can take the Galant, otherwise we will be pushing a busted up white van with my company's logo on the side of it.

From: "Guy" To: "Tim Washington"

yea give me a call on my cell, i should answer it. if not just shoot me a e-mail. I am 19, what things u gotta get form the mall. i think i need to go to a few places. need to get my mom some PJ's, slippers, and somthing else. my dad some license plate holders, and maybe some camo seat covers for his truck. got to Victorias secret for my GF, and to some nail saloon for my sister. what time is the party and where is it?

On 12/8/06, Tim Washington wrote:

ok cool, i could give you a call tomorrow when i get off work. or if you wanted i could go to the mall with you, i have some shopping to do also. i know its kind of random but how old are you? i am having a party tonight and if you wanted perhaps you could stop by. maybe thats totally random, if so i appologize, just saying there will be around 10-15 of my friends and the age ranges from like 18-23. so if you were interested. if not, no big deal at all. let me know about the party tonight and/or the mall trip tomorrow.

Timmy

From: "Guy" To: "Tim Washington"

it doesn't matter to me, I'll be home most of the day, i think im gonna go to the mall for sme shopping but atleast not until dark. and i'd prefer if you didn't come before 10am.i guess anytime from 10 until whenever, but i guess u dont want to see it in the dark

On 12/8/06, Tim Washington wrote:

i dont really know, obviously that is the idea. she thinks i am in med-school though, which is becoming more and more of a problem. anyways, she wrote me back and said she couldnt make it saturday so nevermind about my idea of borrowing your car. i really should be free after work though to test drive it. what time is best for you? TW

From: "Guy" To: "Tim Washington"

sure will she put out?

On 12/7/06, Tim Washington wrote:

would you want to come on my date with kate?

From: "Guy" To: "Tim Washington"

no reason. um about that test drive. i think i would rather be in the car for the drive, or any questions, to make me feel better so i dont have to see u drive away in my baby, and its against my insurance policy. however you would be covered if i give you consent to drive and im present the entire time. Sorry but its just not worth it to me to have my car totaled on a test drive and not be insured. but if you can make it anyother time, or maybe stop by earlier b4 the date and we can go for a ride together

On 12/7/06, Tim Washingtonwrote:

i think columbia, not ellicott city. why do you ask? she is actually at nursing school in philadelphia. i dont think i can buy itbefore i test drive it. i was thinking i could test drive it from 4 pm until 2 am and after i drop off kate i would swing back to your hosue and give you the car back. then i could decide if i wanted it.


From: "Guy" To: "Tim Washington"

Well be careful, dont get robbed or kidnapped on your date. i heard that happens alot online, its actually a guy or a bunch of them and they will jump u. does she live in Ellicot City? anyways yea u can test drive it until 2 am if you want, and if you got the total amount of the car in cash to give me first. yea sure, 4pm is good, are u talking about Saturday?

On 12/7/06, Tim Washington wrote:

not enough! i am at a different client pretty much every day of the week, so it varies. i might try and stop by this weekend if i have free time. i am trying to set up a date with this girl who i actually met online. well, i have never actually met her, just emailed her and she sent me some pics. anyways, you dont need to hear about that. i work until 2 pm sat, but if i dont have anything with her than maybe i can check it out. or do you think i could maybe come by around 4 before my date (if she says she wants to- i havent heard back from her yet) and then test drive it until like 2 am or something? that way i could show up to meet her with your ride?

From: "Guy" To: "Tim Washington"

ok, kinda figured somthing like that. what part of "Downtown" do you work in? how much lawn care is there in the city? so are u interested in stopping by this weekend?

On 12/7/06, Tim Washington wrote:

Blank road, nice. thats so appropriate because i have my own lawn manicure company. thats why i was asking about the bags of leaves and the trunk room. at time i have haul bags of grass clippings and trim trimmings and stuff. and it actually helps that the windows are tinted because that way people cant see what i am doing. technically, this will be a company vehicle, which is why i was asking about the decals on teh windows. i might have to put my business on the windows for some free advertising. also sometimes on the side i work with a pawn shop in town helping them sell things on ebay. i really just handle the ebay side of the business, i dont work in the store or buy any merchandise.

Tee Double U

From: "Guy" To: "Tim Washington"

I live in Baltimore County. from Canton I'd say less then 20 minutes depending on traffic. Im in the City right now tho. I work on St. Paul Street. my house is XX Blank Road Baltimore Maryland XXXXX, if you want to look up a map

On 12/7/06, Tim Washington wrote:

well i live in canton and work downtown during the day, how far away is your house?

From: "Guy" To: "Tim Washington"

lol not sure of any exact numbers for acceleration, but it goes pretty good. as far as spinners, i never really wanted them on that car, and never really even thought of it. the front seats recline all the way back until they hit the front of the rear seats. I've had people sleep my in my passenger seat almost straight back. and so far nearly every CD i've played is burnt and i have never had any problem. the sound system sounds great on CD. depending on what type of music u listen to, it can make some nice bass.

On 12/7/06, Tim Washington wrote:

does it accelerate quickly? i have a friend who lost his liscense (dont ask) and as a result he rides his bike. he can get moving pretty quick and among my group of friends any car that beats him in a 30 foot race is fast. do you think it would win? hes no lance armstrong(although he might also be on drugs) but he is pretty fast. have you ever considering getting spinners? i was thinking about getting them on whatever new car that i guy, but with your already sweet almost dubs i probably wont. do the seats recline real far back? i like to lean back while driving. do you ever have any issues with burned CDs? i know some cars work fine with normal cds but any cd that was burned can be trouble. i have a few burned cds that i occasionally like to listen to (when I am in classical mood or need to focus on something.) i guess i could always buy the real cd if this were a problem but then thats another 10 bucks per cd. sorry for all my questions- but i appreciate your prompt responses.

From: Guy" To: "Tim Washington"

lol no, it was like the first week i got my car and was coming home from movies and as testing it out. um i havn't named my car, sorry, feel free too. yes the all the windows except front are tinted, including the back. i couldn't say the tint is too dark. it is 35, meaning 35% light gets through.my sister was 30, which was illegal, and i thought that was too dark, and now she has limo tints, like 5%. I think they apply gfx to the outside, not sure tho. the guy at the tinit place (D&L tinting) told me. 35% u can see someone is in the car and tell they are a guy or girl, 30% u can sell somone is there, less then 30 u cant see anyone. the P brake is right hand, you can see it in the fron interior pic i send. the wipers are um. gettin a little old, AutoZone told me to change them every 6 months, and i last changed them in the summer but i think still work fine. perfect mechanically or course. 2 Washer nozzles on the hood spray it. as far was blind spots, not really, its got pretty big windows all around and its got a good view.

On 12/7/06, Tim Washington wrote:

115? have you ever been chased by the cops? is this car stolen? sike im just playing. sounds like the backseat wont be an issue. iknow it sounds stupid, but i figure if i am buying a car i might as wellthink about the little things and try and find the perfect car. does your car have a name? if not its cool, just wondering. is the back window tinted? are the windows too dark to see graphics if i put some on the windows? is the parking brake a foot brake or a hand one? do you notice any blind spots when you drive? how are the winshield wipers? T U U (get it?)

From: "Guy" To: "Tim Washington"

lol, yea that is the rear trunk pass thru, its nice cause u can haul larger things. lol yea i just washed my car yesterday, and i plan on washing and detailing it nice thei friday after work. yea the trunk is big, i barly use it. I'd the backseat is plenty big, the pics i took, both seats are almost all the way back, when no one is in the back the passenger usually goes far back for the most space. but the passenger can easily pull the seat up and give plenty room to the back. I haul my friends around all the time and i've got no complaints. Yes it is a V4. its not bad, top speed/pick up is not an issue for me. Honestly, I've be 115 in it and it handles and goes just fine.

On 12/7/06, Tim Washington wrote:

J Dein- yeah, sorry i have been really busy at work. the pics looked good. seeing the condition of the exterior, i would say you are ridin dirty... (which is better than rollin white and nerdy...) ha, im just kidding. is that a picture of the connection from the trunk to the backseat? that looks like it might come in handy for myjob. the trunk size appears large enough for what i need it for. also, how would you rate the space of the backseat? i have never been in a galant but hopefully there will be two average sized adults back there if you know what i mean... it is a 4 cylinder right? how would you rate the speed and pickup? i cant be picking up girls in a busted hoopty, i would rather be pushing a nice ride, which it seems like you have.

T-Dubs

From: "Guy" Guys Email To: "Tim Washington"

hey, just wondering if your still interested in coming by this weekend to check my galant out, please get back with me if your still interested

On 12/5/06, Guy

thats my ad on www.cars.com on the top tab click Kelly Blue Book Value, and input the information, v4 engine, 61950 miles, then u have to pick the options, (power sun roof, power seat, leather, premium wheels, rear spoiler) those will not be checked but u needto check them to get correct price, then scroll down and pressrecalculate. Private Party Value: 7,875 --$8,725-- $9,360, thats fair, good, and excellent KBB values. If you have any other questions u can mail back for just call my XXX-XXX-XXXX. RIP-BIG

TWash20 Wrote:

hey J-thanks for the information. i will let you know about coming to take it fora spin this weekend. the rims look pretty sweet. is the tint legal? it looks pretty dark... it has a pretty large gas tank, what kind of milage do youget? what grade of gas does it take? does it have a 5th (spare) tire? if so is there a rim on that one?do you know the volume of the trunk? can you fit two sets of golf clubs? four trashbags of bagged leaves? just trying to get a sense if it will belarge enough for what I need it for. i need some space for all my junk (andsome other business related stuff...)do you know how they get they get the KBB values? who is kelley and why is the book blue? is 8700 the lowest you will go? also i have a friend at work who is also interested, so i will pass along the information to him.

TWash

ps nice email address. RIP BIG!

From: "Guy To: "Tim Washington"

Hello, those are the only 3 pictures i took. but i can save some more if you want, i will get a few more angles for you. The car was in 1 minor accident. it was hit and ran in a parking lot, put a small dent in the right rear quarter panel. i had it professional repaired a reported. there was no major damage, nor frame damage, the repair was around $300 and only damages the quater panel. You cannot notice it now since the repair, the paint match is perfect. i do not have a history report, but if you are serious after a test drive i can get on online instantly. I plan on selling to buy a new car. this was my first car and it ran great for a year, but now i have a new job and more income and im ready to get somthing a little more expensive. the car runs great nothing wrong at all. the tires a about 6 months old on 18" chrome akuza rims. no blown speakers, no stains. its really in great shape. if you want to give me a call just just reply back with a time you would like to come by thats great. anytime on the weekend is good for me, just give me enough notice before you come.

On 12/5/06, Tim Washington wrote:

Hey- I saw your ad for your 02 XXXX and I was interested. Do you have any other pictures? Has the car been in any accidents or do you have a vehicle history report? Why are you selling it? Please send me some information and maybe we can schedule a time to meet this weekend so I can take it for a test drive. Thanks- Timmy

good decision?

i feel like these two are probably aspiring models... whether or not that is the case i feel like they made a great career choice. i see them everywhere on the internet. does anyone else know what i am talking about?

that leaves only one other question: 1 or 2?

is this guy for real?

Yesterday something very unusual happened at lunch. We (Ben, Eric and I) were on our way to Chipotle walking east on Pratt Street. We approached Calvert Street, a one way northbound road, and were about to cross. I noticed to my left (in the direction of traffic) that there were those labor union protesters chanting something. I remember thinking that if I were one of them I would have moved like 5 feet to the side to be out of the shadow of the building. I was thinking that they would probably be much warmer if they got into the sun. Anyways, I turned my head about 180 degrees and looked at the oncoming traffic. It turns out there wasn’t any so I started crossing the street. Ben had the same idea, but Eric was frightened and did not cross. In Eric’s defense there were cars about 250 yards away and they were traveling almost 25 mph so he was just playing it safe. Ben was furthest to our left, followed by Eric (always in the middle) and then I was the closest to the oncoming traffic. A few steps into the 4 lane road I admit I slightly accelerated. The cars were a bit closer than I thought but I was still in no danger. If anything I think it was my desire to eat a burrito that caused me to accelerate. In any case, I hear something coming from the area of the protesters. I think it was “look out buddy.” I could barely hear this voice and knew I wasn’t in any trouble because I was staring at the oncoming traffic. It was at this point that the collision happened. Some guy on his bike, riding the wrong way on a perfectly straight portion of a one way street that was 48 feet wide, crashed right into me. Yes, he was unable to redirect the position of his wheeled vehicle to avoid me. I guess during the 15 seconds he had as he approached me he was unable to predict my next move, which just so happened to be to continue walking across the street as I had been doing. Go figure.

Then he had the audacity to act like it was my fault. I do wish I had of said something better. I think he said something like “what are you doing?” and I responded “what, me? you are going the wrong way on a one way street?” That was pretty much the end of the conversation as he picked his bike up (yes, the collision caused him to fall off his bike although he did get his leg down in time so it wasn’t a major fall.) I admit we were all kind of thinking, did this really just happen? And then we laughed about it. I probably could have said something funny or been angry at him or something.

After the fact I put all the pieces together. I think what happened was he saw Ben crossing the street and Eric lagging behind. Then he tried to make it in front of Ben, which he barely did, at which point I was passing Ben. He probably didn’t even know I was there. But that doesn’t explain why he was cutting it so close. There are 4 lanes of pavement in that area, not to mention a sidewalk on both sides of the street.

I can’t stop thinking about the thought process of the rider. Imagine you are riding your bike into traffic on a 4 lane road. There are no cars approaching and you have the entire road. Due to the risk of hitting pedestrians, you decide to ride in the road. You are approaching an intersection, and it looks like 2 guys are crossing the street from your right. You are in the right lane. You decide to maintain your path and call out “watch out buddy” when you are 5 seconds from reaching them. They don’t appear to be moving, but you still pedal straight for them.

Tabloid Fantasy

I have created a tabloid fantasy league for anyone interested. To join, go to TABFL.com and register. You will need to use 2IJPu392041 as the entry code for the group number to join in the league that I created. Good luck!

Gmail is awesome

Update: Here is the newest web clip.

Celebrity Fantasy Leagues - TabloidFantasyLeague.com - Draft Your Celebrity Team Today. If they are in the Tabloids You win

I read about this idea on Page 2 when Bill Simmons wrote about it. Then on vacation in Jamaica we had a mock fantasy draft (and I think B Spears was my second round pick...)

Would anyone want to be in my league if i started one, assuming it was free?

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I have been using gmail for a few years and have been very happy. One thing that is unique about it is the advertisements that it places in the banner on the page are supposed to be related to your email content. Another feature is a 'web clip' that is near the top of the page. You can somewhat control the content.

Anyways, the point of this rant is the web clip that I just read while checking my email. It said the following:

Man Powder vs Baby Powder - www.Man-Powder.com - Men. Sprinkle it on your balls. Put an end to your sweaty nuts.

I sort of wanted to click on it.