5 Obama Facts

5 things you *probably* didn't know about Obama;

1. He wrote an auto biography at the age of 30. - Sure, everyone is hung about this born in Kenya thing, but my question is what kind of a guy starts writing his autobiography before he turns 30? I guess I should through in the tag line that he never finished the book 'Journeys in Black and White' and took another 15 years to put out Dreams of my Father.
2. He was a pot head in high school - He also worked at Baskin Robins, a deadly combination.
3. On top of his Noble Prize, Obama has already won two Grammys. - Back in 2006, That smooth sultry voice of his also got nominated in 08, along with Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter. I still think George Ws' rendition of "Goodnight Moon" got jip'ped. (Who's smiling right now?)
4. He is being Sued by Over 40 Chatholic Organizations - Which doesn't bother me as much as the department of Health and Human Services coming out and saying that a church can only serve, primarily, it's own members. Sooo..... Church homeless shelters and soup kitchens are no longer religious based institutions? What is going on here?
5. And this one I can not forgive him for, will never forgive him for <deep breath> - Obama uses Macs...

Anyone else got some good ones?

Lunchtime Golfing

I'm telling all my friends, Twin Pines Golf Course in Cedar Rapids has a pretty neat lunch time special. You get a Hot Dog, Bag of Chips, and a Drink for only $9!! Oh wait, did I mention there is a medium bucket of Range Balls included? 'Cause there is!!

Third Wheel

KG from the Silence isn't Golden Duo called my rep and got me booked on Episode 9 of the Silence isn't Golden Podcast. In a word, Enjoyable. In two words, Freakin' Sweet, and if you want more then a two word description, keep reading;

Without regurgitating the details that anyone who listened to the Podcast would be aware of, I will state that those two guys have gotten much better at the conversing then I am currently. There where several spans that I just sat back a bit and enjoyed watching those two bounce back and fourth. A few notes on my own performance, I need to get a little bit (Ok, a lot bit) more infliction in my voice and slow down a bit. I tend to speak how I read and just blast through a thought with the hope that the words themselves carrying most of my meaning. So perhaps in the future I'll find some median on which to improve that aspect.

Clarification on the Video Clerk response; I think I was having a moment of self reflection at that time where I realised how much I enjoy the jobs I've had where I do nothing, a little too Office Space for ya? Yeah, after sleeping on it, me too. I change my answer to Political Analyst. You get to spend 7 hours a day reading and watching the news on the clock, then you go to make up and sit in on a round table discussion for an 8 minute debate where you try and yell over another person to get your two cents in. I am available for booking now Mr. Hannity and Mr. Schultz.

But ultimately this invite was about building a network or like minded people to expand on debates of things we find interesting. We put them on blogs instead of Google+ or Facebook in the hopes of adding new faces to the conversation and the hope that we will develop both within, and outside of our inner sanctum of friends.

Justice League Road Map

Made another Super Hero Movie Road Map, this one for a JLA movie that I shared with the Golden Boys on the Silence isn't Golden Blog. Check it out.

http://sigolden2.blogspot.com/2012/05/episode-8-justice-avengers-league.html#comment-form

Avengers 2 Road Map

Suffice to say, I think I squealed in my seat when I saw Thanos turn his head towards the camera at the end of The Avengers. So, knowing what I know about the Marvel Universe. Here is what I think the next several movies will be/should be played out to get us to Avengers 2: The Infinity Gauntlet;

Thor 2: I think bringing in Thanos would make a lot of sense here. Yes, Avengers ended with the line implying that Earth would make a sweet serenade for the Mistress Death, but, in several story arcs, Mistress Death desires that which she can not have, the soul of an Immortal. With the help of Loki (of course) Thanos tricks Thor to return to Earth where he is alone and separated from his friends in Asgard. Ending with a stand offish moment where Thanos threatens the life Nurse... err... Astrophysicist Jane if he does not submit, some scenario that leaves the audience know that Thor saved the day not because he was stronger then Thanos, but for some other reason. Credit scene with Loki (or maybe another character) in weapons chamber swiping the Infinity Gauntlet.

Iron Man 3: Already hears the rumor that  Ben "Sexy Beast" Kingsley will play The Mandarin, which should be great departure of Technology based villains in the first two movies. I would tweak his origin story to tie in with one of the Gems of the Infinity Gauntlet (probably Souls, a la Valley of Souls). Nothing too scene stealing, just a shot of a green shimmer during his escalation to SUPER villain. With an after credits scene again of Loki or some other known baddy snatching the gem.

Captain America 2: Prop up the Good Guys in this one. Introduce Giant/Ant Man, Wasp, Vision, Scarlet Witch, or some variation as minor characters picked up by S.H.I.E.L.D. The list of possible story arcs here are endless, part of me would love to see Nick Fury travel with him to Africa to confront Black Panther. (Shaft in Africa Spoof!) Or perhaps if Giant Man is prevalent, introducing Ulton (Though I have a feeling this will be saved for Avengers 3), but most likely it will be Baron Zemo in some form. Like I said, lay down the ground work for swapping out Hawkeye's and Black Widow's roster spots for some fresh faces here (Got to sell those toys!)  Credit Scene of aforementioned baddy presenting Thanos with a final gem/completed Infinity Gauntlet.

Avengers 2: I would veer away from doing too much with this character wise. You will need an Adam Warlock type character, but if you infuse Silver Surfer and Dr. Stranges role's from the original Comic series into this character you can pull it off while spending a lot less time on back story during the movie. Beyond that the possibilities are endless. And regardless of how the individual movies play out I am already super pumped for the sequels!!

Cubs Report Card: Position Players

Moving on to Position Players;

Position Players - Starters:
   David DeJesus RF - Not the big bounce back that the organization may have hoped for, but he's doing allright in the lead off role with a .360 OBP. GRADE: B
   Tony Campana CF - If you converted his Stolen Bases to doubles, this guy would probably lead the team in slugging. Torn between getting this guy into the leadoff role to get into scoring position quickly or making double play balls almost impossible in the two spot. GRADE: A
   Starlin Castro SS - Picking up from last year with good contact, and hot cold defense. Get those feet set and do us proud! GRADE: B
   Bryan LaHair 1B - First Base has to be one of the hardest positions to crack the big leagues in. B and I watched Hoffpauier at Iowa for years have great success and never given a clean shot to make it in the majors. So, I am super excited that Bryan is getting that chance and running with it. GRADE: A+
   Alfonso Soriano LF - What can be added here that hasn't been said on every Cubs Blog in the universe. I guess his defense is off to a "better" start then last year. GRADE: C-
   Ian Stewart 3B - I think we are a better defensive team with him in the hot corner. (Note: better is not good, just better) The bat needs to come alive to make me not start chanting 'Vitters' by year end though. GRADE: C-
   Geovany Soto C - Flashes of his rookie self from time to time, and he still calls a good game, but we needed an offensive anchor in the back of the lineup and my eyes where on Soto. No major harm has come from our low Caught Stealing percentage, but if your catcher isn't offensive, and so-so defensively... well... GRADE: D+
   Darwin Barney 2B - Not skipping a beat in the offseason, our solid dependable Second Baseman is back along with about half the team I'd like to see some improvement offensively, but he shouldn't have the burden of hitting 20+ HR's. GRADE: B-
 
Position Players - Bench
   Reed Johnson OF - Look at his playing time to be anemic until either Campana gets hurt, or Soriano gets traded. But he has shown in the past he can be a potent pinch hitter. GRADE: C-
   Joe Mather IF/OF - Wasn't sure what we where doing with this guy having Baker, DeWitt, Johnson, and Campana ready to go, but I'll admit, this may be the best off season add on. GRADE: B
   Jeff Baker IF/OF - Once LaHair was healthy I didn't really see a reason to put Jeff in at first, and when Campana got called up I didn't see why he needed to be put in right field. Just switching a right handed bat when he's batting sub .200 at the time makes little sense to me. GRADE: D-
   Steve Clevenger C - Another pleasant surprise. Makes up for some defensive shortcomings with good at bats. GRADE: B
   Wellington Castillo C - When I've been seeing Soto's numbers slip the last couple years, I've checked in on how Wellington was doing at Iowa. His time has been limited but 5 K's in 11 AB's for what most would consider an offensive Catcher leaves you witched a cocked brow and bitten lip. GRADE: Incomplete
   Blake DeWitt - IF - Obviously Joe stole his job, hopefully we can get a decent bullpen pitcher or something for him. GRADE: Transfer

Cubs Report Card: Pitchers

Hey Cub Fans! We're 30 games into the 2012 season, let's issues some 1/5th of the season report Cards. First up, Pitching;

Pitchers - Starters:
   Ryan Dempster - What can you say? Yeah, he's 0-1, but EVERY other stat falls in his favor, averaging over 7 innings a start, 10K/9 innings, sub 1 ERA? GRADE: A+
   Matt Garza - You gotta feel good that he hasn't had to carry the full weight of the starting rotation this season.  This is a front of the rotation guy doing his thing. GRADE: A
   Jeff Samardjiza - A Pleasant surprise! Some rocky starts but showing good enough stuff that you feel he belongs in the rotation after several seasons having to watch him learn to be a Major League pitcher the hard way, by being an overpaid minor league'er in the majors. GRADE: B
   Chris Volstad - What a Spring Training! And it does appear that if he can just get through the "Big Inning" each start he could reach his potential that made him a first round pick. Needs to cap those big innings or stretch starts to 7+ innings consistently. GRADE: D+
   Paul Maholm - Already seeing some turn around with him the last couple starts. Rough start but settling down and picking up wins. GRADE: C+
   Randy Wells - Only a couple starts, but he seems to have lost that pinpoint pitch placement. GRADE: D
   Travis Wood - Solid opener, high walks but low hits. Grade: Incomplete

Pitchers - Relievers:
   Carlos Marmol - When you are in a spot that you HAVE to through something over the plate and you can't do it. He's 2 for 4 in Save Opportunities on paper, but by my count he's 2 for 5. GRADE: F
   Kerry Wood - I love this guy, I really do, hopefully it's just a bad early season streak, but you have to be worried that his arm is just not there. GRADE: D-
   James Russell - I loved Sean Marshall, and I still contest that we shouldn't have traded him. BUT, the Cubs higher ups where ready to hand over the left handed specialist role to Russell, and he has excelled splendidly! Grade: A
   Rafeal Dolis - Definitely one of the bright spots of the season so far, Holding a lot or water for a bullpen that is lacking people filling critical rolls. GRADE: B+
   Shawn Camp - Closest thing Cubs have to a veteran presence in the bullpen. helping shore up some short starts and getting out of a couple jams. GRADE: B
   Rodrigo Lopez - Picking up the long releiver roll from where he was last year. Pretty ho-hum. GRADE: C-
   Lendy Castillo - A good example of just how shallow the Cubs farm system is for pitching, probably should be a AA right now, but what ya gonna do? GRADE: D

 

Oil Changes and the EPA

Random thought of the day had to do with Mobile Oil Change Service. A concept that I heard about while living in the Des Moines area several years ago where a technician comes to you/your home/your work to change your oil for you. Curious to see what was new in the industry, I simply Google'd "Mobile Oil Change Service" came up the www.oilchangeguys.com. On their page, they have a link explaining why they are NOT environmentally friendly anymore. It's an interesting read;

Take it good or bad as you will, but for a private business to make such a bold statement like that right on their webpage I think is telling in and of itself. And if you are really interested, here is a link to the guidlines in all of it's 225 page glory;

Silence isn't Golden

And where would I be if I didn't give a shout out to my favorite Podcast! Check out Silence Isn't Golden on the web, iTunes, or as part of their live studio audience.

Reading

For those of you who don't know me, don't know me well, and think they know me, but just tune in to see how well I know myself, even though you heard there was going to be a quiz on this later, you may be interested to know that I have a Google site 98% devoted to my book reading;

http://sites.google.com/site/kurmudkin

My "to read" pile is big but I'm always up to have a book or author added to it.

Introduction

Welcome!

This is my personal brain dump page. No no no... don't be scared, I'm mostly harmless. I'm just searching for that perfect balance of getting my thoughts out away from the hustle and bustle of a Facebook post where everyone and their mothers will comment on your status updates, and not so secluded that you get the feeling of drifting through space enclosed in a Kryptonian mirror with nothing more then a pair of scantily clad cohorts to keep you company. So join me, as I explore the inner thoughts of the all too overlooked middle aged, midwestern, male blogger. We may talk about the weather, or talk about politics, you may become enlightened, or you may become more dumberer. Read along, leave a comment, tell your friends, or just roll your eyes in disgust that Google sent you to this site when you searched for a good cookie recipe (you meant to go here).