This morning, I woke up at 7:15 a.m. in Utica, MS, put on a green toga and plastic laurel wreath, and went to breakfast. After breakfast, I sang songs, played sports, and met a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. I was still wearing the aforementioed Greek-themed garb.
Evidently, just before I met Congressman Chip Pickering (MS), I was pointed out to him as a professional stand-up comic. He made sure he had the right guy, referring to the laurels, "You mean the one with the flower on his head?" That is how I shall be known in D.C. from this day forth.
By way of a quick explanation for all this, I am at Camp Dream Street (See posts from last June regarding showertime radio shows and superhero costumes). This year's theme is time travel - we are in ancient Greece today. My outfit is not a manifestation of some delusion that I am now Greek, resulting fronm my recent Greek education.
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Some Crap-ass Crap PLUS G(r)eek
I paid over $3/gallon for gas last night. It's the first time I've ever done that. I managed to avoid it during the spike immediately following the hurricanes, and Memphis has stayed below that threshhold, despite national averages having long since eclipsed it (score one for Memphis). It hurts.
The NBA Draft Lottery also took place last night (Do not, under any circumstances, score one for Memphis!). Oh my lordy did the Grizzlies get hosed. The national media, however, seems unaware this morning that Memphis was even participating in the lottery. I am really only hearing about how Boston fell to pick number 5. I understand, of course, that the Grizzlies are not the Celtics, in terms of franchise fame and history, but I think it's worth noting that if that continues to be the case for a long time, it could, one day, be pinned on last night's crap-ass crap.
In other news, I am a Greek god. I graduated from my Greek class last Thursday (see post from last week) and cleaned up on Greek class awards! My friend and I shared an award for pronunciation and I earned the highest grade (118 out of 120) on the final exam/contest of anyone in both sections of the class. I won a decorative plate with a rendering of Poseidon (god of the seas) on it, a Greek statue (armless, of course) and a Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, in addition to my diploma (suitable for framing). That's a lot of loot. I tell you this not to brag or spread word of my prowess for recreational language study, but simply to add to the huge pile of irrefutable evidence that my life is hilarious.
Kai eis anotera (And on to higher things)!
The NBA Draft Lottery also took place last night (Do not, under any circumstances, score one for Memphis!). Oh my lordy did the Grizzlies get hosed. The national media, however, seems unaware this morning that Memphis was even participating in the lottery. I am really only hearing about how Boston fell to pick number 5. I understand, of course, that the Grizzlies are not the Celtics, in terms of franchise fame and history, but I think it's worth noting that if that continues to be the case for a long time, it could, one day, be pinned on last night's crap-ass crap.
In other news, I am a Greek god. I graduated from my Greek class last Thursday (see post from last week) and cleaned up on Greek class awards! My friend and I shared an award for pronunciation and I earned the highest grade (118 out of 120) on the final exam/contest of anyone in both sections of the class. I won a decorative plate with a rendering of Poseidon (god of the seas) on it, a Greek statue (armless, of course) and a Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, in addition to my diploma (suitable for framing). That's a lot of loot. I tell you this not to brag or spread word of my prowess for recreational language study, but simply to add to the huge pile of irrefutable evidence that my life is hilarious.
Kai eis anotera (And on to higher things)!
Monday, May 21, 2007
Life As A Campfire
The campfire smell that I mentioned in the last post is still with me. It's fading, but it's there. The scary part is that I can hardly tell - my sense has become numb to it.
Life is interesting when you smell like a campfire. More than once today, people in my presence have randomly launched into ghost stories.
Even stranger? Several people have waved skewered marshmallows over my head.
Stranger still? Late last night I was hanging out with a couple of friends and when they were ready to call it a night, they took turns peeing on me. That, as it turns out, was not as enjoyable as you might think. Luckily, however, it did not give me a new scent.
Thank heavens for the smokiness!
More on BBQ Fest and Greek Graduation tomorrow...
Life is interesting when you smell like a campfire. More than once today, people in my presence have randomly launched into ghost stories.
Even stranger? Several people have waved skewered marshmallows over my head.
Stranger still? Late last night I was hanging out with a couple of friends and when they were ready to call it a night, they took turns peeing on me. That, as it turns out, was not as enjoyable as you might think. Luckily, however, it did not give me a new scent.
Thank heavens for the smokiness!
More on BBQ Fest and Greek Graduation tomorrow...
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Day 66
Today is Day 66 of "Headache Watch: Michael Recovers from Shingles." It has been 66 days since I woke up with the strange pain that was soon diagnosed as shingles and I have yet to completely shed the shings. Now, before you go feeling too sorry for me, it's a stretch to say that I have a headache, but there is still very slight pain and sensitivity on the parts of my head that were afflicted. I'm not quite back to normal. The shingles have had an amazing run. I'm glad I could be a part of it.*
In other news, it's Thursday afternoon, I'm sitting in my office in East Memphis' Ridgeway Loop office park, and I smell like a campfire. I was at Barbecue Fest last night and again today for lunch. My team is great and our booth is really cool. I'll try to post pictures in a later post. I guess the smell of several hundred grills and smokers cooking tons of rightly seasoned meat in a relatively contained area is a little hard to shed. I could smell it in the shower this morning. I could smell it after the shower. I guess what I've learned is that there is really no need to shower for the next several days. Let's hang out.
* I am NOT glad I could be a part of it.
In other news, it's Thursday afternoon, I'm sitting in my office in East Memphis' Ridgeway Loop office park, and I smell like a campfire. I was at Barbecue Fest last night and again today for lunch. My team is great and our booth is really cool. I'll try to post pictures in a later post. I guess the smell of several hundred grills and smokers cooking tons of rightly seasoned meat in a relatively contained area is a little hard to shed. I could smell it in the shower this morning. I could smell it after the shower. I guess what I've learned is that there is really no need to shower for the next several days. Let's hang out.
* I am NOT glad I could be a part of it.
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Born Again
I feel reborn.
The truth is, however, I am just writing for the first time in a long time, but without ZiggyBackRide in my life, I wasn't really living. I'm sure you felt the same way. I'm back and I'm a blogger reborn, ready to regale you with tall tales of my experiences and observations. It's gonna be something to behold.
There should be plenty of material over the next few days as I participate in my first year of competition at the Memphis In May World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest. I'm part of a team called "Born in the Que-S-A." It should be a lot of fun. For those of you unfamiliar with this contest, it's known as the "Super Bowl of Swine." It is held in downtown Memphis (BBQ Capital of the World) on the banks of the Mississippi (the Lifeblood of America) with hundreds of teams competing and thousands of visitors from around the US and the world looking on, sampling, and living it up. Watch for it on all major media outlets this weekend. Al Roker, Martha Stewart, Bobby Flay, and other such stars of the small screen are frequent visitors.
Also this week, I will be graduating from Greek class. That's right, Greek class. I took Greek at our local Greek Orthodox church - an hour a week for fifteen weeks. The teacher was a highly entertaining retired priest that has long been a friend of my father and is well-known around the community. It was really fun and I learned a lot, highlighted by my new ability to say the Lord's Prayer in Greek! Thursday evening we'll know if I scored the highest on the optional final exam/contest. It would be quite a coup! Wish me luck.
I'll be writing regularly for the next little while, getting the Ride back on track and rewarding those committed visitors who've been waiting. Tune in often and enjoy!
The truth is, however, I am just writing for the first time in a long time, but without ZiggyBackRide in my life, I wasn't really living. I'm sure you felt the same way. I'm back and I'm a blogger reborn, ready to regale you with tall tales of my experiences and observations. It's gonna be something to behold.
There should be plenty of material over the next few days as I participate in my first year of competition at the Memphis In May World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest. I'm part of a team called "Born in the Que-S-A." It should be a lot of fun. For those of you unfamiliar with this contest, it's known as the "Super Bowl of Swine." It is held in downtown Memphis (BBQ Capital of the World) on the banks of the Mississippi (the Lifeblood of America) with hundreds of teams competing and thousands of visitors from around the US and the world looking on, sampling, and living it up. Watch for it on all major media outlets this weekend. Al Roker, Martha Stewart, Bobby Flay, and other such stars of the small screen are frequent visitors.
Also this week, I will be graduating from Greek class. That's right, Greek class. I took Greek at our local Greek Orthodox church - an hour a week for fifteen weeks. The teacher was a highly entertaining retired priest that has long been a friend of my father and is well-known around the community. It was really fun and I learned a lot, highlighted by my new ability to say the Lord's Prayer in Greek! Thursday evening we'll know if I scored the highest on the optional final exam/contest. It would be quite a coup! Wish me luck.
I'll be writing regularly for the next little while, getting the Ride back on track and rewarding those committed visitors who've been waiting. Tune in often and enjoy!
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