Anybody forget this?

In his state of the union address Tuesday, Mr. Bush did. I don’t want to place blame specifically with the president because I do think Katrina has faded from most of our consciousness. I fortunately have reminders everywhere. On my left hand ring finger, sits a ring a first wore on the street of the French Quarter seven months after the storm. But I know my life is not nearly as affected as so many others. There are kids who are still on waiting lists for school. For most in New Orleans proper the FEMA trailer or downtown hotel is the place of residence. I’m not going to pretend that I’ve devoted my life to helping the people of that city. But I expect my government to take care of its citizens. Bush did not write his speech Tuesday, I know that. Therefore the omission is even further proof that the administration as a whole has neglected the victims of the storm. It be easy to push this aside as a idiotic snub by a man most of us have come to accept as an imbecile, but it goes deeper than that it speaks to the fact that our government has nothing new to report on the recovery effort because very little has occurred, which in and of it self is sad.

On a more positive side Bush did not mention a ban on same sex marriage, preach against stem cell research, nor did he press for tougher abortion laws. He avoided this topic because for the first time in his presidency he delivered his annual address to a majority Democratic Congress. And that friend is sweeter than the powder sugar still tossed on beignets all over New Orleans.

If the thunder don't get you than the lightning will

So Erin and I made the usual new years resolution. Eat better and exercise more.

I don’t smoke we barely drink, aside from the aforementioned guitar hero addiction, sloth and gluttony are my only vices. So we’re three weeks in and I feel like we’re making progress and yesterday we took a huge step towards sustaining this habit. We took our first spin class at the Union Center Gold’s Gym, which is by the way a freggin palace.



For those of you naïve to the world of spinning, it boils down to a stationary bike race. A stationary race is exactly what I just said. I know that sound ludicrous. How can one have a race that doesn’t move? Well I guess it’s not really a race but more of a non-competitive struggle. Basically, like any other fitness class the instructor is prompting you in your work guiding you through different moves set to music except in spin you’re on an exercise bike and the moves are visualizations for a real bike race, like hills and sprints and so on. This entire experience takes place under a black light so all the self-conscious baggage that goes with working is gone cause no one can see you. As torturous as it sounds, its really fun and we’re going again on Wednesday.

So combine that with a more veggies and less ice cream and we may be pedaling down the road to salvation, even if the bike isn’t moving.

Just one more Free Brid before bed mom...

I know I know. Its been a while. Life’s been busy. No excuse, but get over it after a two month hiatus I’m back. To fill you in on life related stuff: Dewey’s is pretty sweet I’ve learned a lot about the operations of successful restaurant and get a chance to experiment with ingredients to pricey to mess with at home on a regular basis or to unusual to find at the Cincy grocers. Finished off the season with the Bengals ( if my life makes any improvements in the coming year it will be not working there). Thanksgiving went well, so long a go. We had a new years party the party went well the food not so great. I tried to make some beer butt chicken three ways and the grill never got hot enough I’m still having some charcoal issue but when the temp does get hot enough the flavor is so superior to gas its worth it. At our New Years Party, a friend brought over the greatest game ever. The next day we purchased our own and have been rocking out hence forth.

And that’s really what I’m here to talk about. How effing sweet Guitar Hero is. For years I’ve shunned rhythm based games like Dance Dance Revolution and Donkey Konga. Mostly because I felt it was not about the music but only a small piece, the rhythm. I’m a percussionist not a drummer and I need some tonal changes every once in awhile. Guitar Hero gives me that, all be it simulated, I feel like I’m actually making music not just reacting to it. The other thing about the game that makes it so much fun is the controller (yes that’s a whammy bar). Having it shaped like a guitar is one thing. Adding a tilt sensor brings it to a whole new level of sweet buttery rock goodness. You use it to activate a bonus mode so that when you go from this to this everything is worth more points.

The best thing about this game is its overwhelming universal appeal. The weekend after we got it, we brought it up to in laws place mostly for her brother to enjoy. Little did we know everybody would be in on the act including the Erin’s parents. And even Erin’s grandma seemed interested on the phone. Who hasn’t thrown up a little air guitar and maybe had just a glimmer of a dream of rocking out for real. This is the chance. And with set lists that boast tracks from the Stray Cats (Brain Setzer) to Anthrax to the Police to Black Sabbath (of course the invetiable Lynrd Skynyrd), everybody can rock out in the manner they see fit. The sequel which is what we own offers the best co-op mode I’ve ever seen in a video game. While one player takes the lead guitar line another plays their way through a bass or rhythm guitar part. Its great for parties cause novices can play on the easy level while a seasoned vets can work through a more difficult level simultaneously and no one will get bored or frustrated. So I extend an open invite, come play this game, I’ll make gaming appropriate snacks. You’ll rock out and your life will be changed.

One draw back…




Erin kicks my ass in it, which makes me feel like less of a man.