Who do I still think I am??

This one's about February, so far.

[So, about the worst time you can ever have an internet outage is when you're in the middle of doing something, right? I had about 90% of this typed up last night, and then...nothing. Read this while I play catch-up...]

MOB-RELATED ACTIVITY:

'Sup y'all? Before I tear into today's entry, I really need to thank the members of the "30-Day Blogging Challenge ON HIATUS"  Blog Mob for their part in the successful kidnapping of Andre The Blog Monkey. His captivity has raised over 11k in gift points so far for the "30-Day Bloggers Group" , which is really awesome...especially considering I really didn't think anyone would want to take him on. I'm pretty sure the bOSS (with an uncapital B), Brother Nature , will be more than pleased to see what his Mob has been up to when (and if) he returns.

There comes a time in a man's life when he believes he must take a stand. He must go against the grain of the ideas once laid before him...he must show the world that what he once believed in should now become a rallying point for changes that sweep across many platforms. We must rise above our oppressors, and show those in control that we will not function as a body without its head. Where is our leader? We're lookin' right at you, Brother Nature , but we don't see you. So from the very same mouth that I once commanded "Kidnap The Monkey!", am I offering a peaceful plea for his safe return (once everyone has spent time in his charm, I'm sure).

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As in "release from captivity", and not "low-cost alternative to reptiles".

If I owned a street corner, I'd have a tent set up where I could sell these out of the trunk of a car. In fact, I'm copyrighting and trademarking that idea right now, WDC...if anyone wants to sell virtual t-shirts as a fundraiser, remember, I came up with that first . As soon as I can come up with a legit way to make, protect, and distribute, I'll turn our little Mob into something other than a place for people to freely associate. That's the overall purpose of mobs, isn't it? To turn shady activities into prosperous endeavors?

BCF PROMPT: "Are you watching the Olympics? What do you think? Did Russia meet the expectations placed on the host? {Especially with all the hype that was made in the news before the games began} What's your favorite event? Why? "

I actually have yet to watch one single Olympic event, but I think that has more to do with me not owning a television than anything else. Men's ice hockey hasn't started yet, and that's the only winter sport I'm really interested in. Most of the other sports have a tendency to fly squarely in the face of what I stand for and believe in: staying warm, dry, and inactive.

I'm almost surprised by the lack of press Russia's anti-gayness has received since the games began as opposed to the hype it was generating before, but maybe the real story is where it should be: on the athletes and their performances in their respective fields, and not their preferences off the field. The Olympics is a celebration of Sport; all else should remain secondary. When discussing the Super Bowl or the World Series, the host cities get a mention and a bit of a profile; the teams and athletes involved are discussed; culture is merely one aspect of a much larger event. In the end what is (and should be) remembered most is who won. It's not about which underground gay bar is the coolest, or which black coach/trainer is the toughest, or who serves the best pad Thai. It's about who triumphed. Maybe I'm not reading the right news sources, but Bob Costas' eye infection seems like a bigger story so far than Vladimir Putin, and that could be the best thing so far during these Olympic games as far as avoiding controversy goes. Once the medals go around the necks, then let's talk about who these athletes are as champions and as people, and let's respect them as both regardless of their lives outside competitive arenas.

Whew...I didn't mean for that to turn into a rant or anything. It's just...there're so many bigger things we could be talking about, and Russia hating gay people feels so much like 1984 (the year, not the Orwell novel) for some reason, like shame on the US and our taboo society while you get all Ivan "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygQvB6OjHOU" Drago on us. Anyway...

Like I said, I prefer hockey because it's the only winter sport I'm a fan of that I can say I've actually played to some degree (minus the cold and skating parts). Figure skating doesn't excite me. Skiing? See: figure skating. Curling? Reminds me of shuffleboard, only with a bigger surface and larger pieces; if one thing in this world is truly ass-backwards, it's curling, and I'll tell you why. Shuffleboard is primarily a senior citizen thing, right? (Go along with the stereotype, for the sake of my argument.) Old people need things enlarged and magnified, like books and texts for example. Hence, if curling is similar to shuffleboard, yet it's bigger, it's the opposite of what you'd expect. There's a point in that mess somewhere, trust me.

Now, where was I? Winter sports...yes, are there any others besides what I mentioned? Probably, but those are just the first ones that come to mind. I think the very reason, and this is how much the internet has ruined society changed how we view important worldwide events like the Olympics, that I would tune in this year has already happened and will probably not be topped throughout the entire duration of this year's Olympiad: the meme face, or more specifically, "The Bullshit Moment" (http://deadspin.com/ashley-wagners-bullshit-moment-is-the-first-meme-of-15192921...). I could probably watch that over and over and over, and feel more empathy for her each time, without even knowing the actual outcome of the event she's clearly upset about. That, my friends, is the essence of my Olympic spirit. USA! USA!

MUSICAL BREAK!!

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Growing up in and entering one's teenage years the 1980's was a very weird and surreal time. One minute everything was bubblegum and new-wavy, and then we were pseudo-adults with all this misguided angst and hatred...but somewhere in the middle there was this, uhhhh, I don't know what else to call it, besides an era, where life was ripped jeans and teased hair and girls writhing around on the hoods of muscle cars to ironically-titled heavy metal ballads. I was not immune to this moment of MTV grandeur. I think everyone chose sides in the hair spray wars, where one or two bands were your absolute favorites (mainly because you liked girls who idolized those same bands) and everyone had an opinion, but basically it was a bunch of douchebags with scarves coming out of every pore doing everything you wanted to do to captivate the attention of the fairer sex. And for me, that band was Mötley Crüe (album: Theatre Of Pain {link:http://www.amazon.com/Theatre-Pain-Motley-Crue/dp/B001EN1R36/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1392243285&sr=8-1&keywords=motley+crue+theatre+of+pain}; lyrics: http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/motleycrue/homesweethome.html). I can remember hangin' out at a cousin's house with friends, and we'd all pick different parts and become our own air-band whenever they were on tv. And no matter how much hip-hop or grunge would ultimately impact me the most in life, there will have been a little too much time spent being a closet metal-head (even if this stuff nowadays hardly classifies as metal).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DasvuHUgUHg

THE DAILY BOX SCORE:

Ok, the best Mötley Crüe song is actually "Kickstart My Heart", but for all intents and purposes related to today's entry, "Home Sweet Home" is the better choice.

Y'all know I hardly ever interrupt myself when I'm composing an entry to check my email, but I'm glad I did just now...it seems the bOSS has responded to our hijacking of his beloved monkey, and has surrendered to most of our demands decided to make Andre into a pawn of some sort ("Andre! Where are you?"  )...I don't know if anyone's gonna be willing to cough up that kind of loot to give up Andre. But I'm still keeping the t-shirt idea for myself.

Ok, well, since it looks like I've got internet access again, I'm gonna try and figure out what I've missed since last night. Peace, I'm on my way, and GOODNIGHT NOW!!