Barkley vs. Godzilla

I don't remember things from when I was young. Some might say that there's something wrong w/ my memory when it comes to recalling events from my 'childhood', we're talking 0-16 years old. I don't know why, I just don't remember little things. But there is one thing that I remember VERY well, and that's when Nike came out w/ the Barkley vs. Godzilla ad campaign.

Some of you might have realized by now that I love basketball, you also might have realized that Charles Barkley is my favorite player (refer to my dog over on the right) so it should come as no surprise that this ad campaign was a magical moment for me. But it's not just the association of two things I love, I also think this is one of the most genius commercial ideas ever! Later that year Barkley hosted SNL (Nirvana was the musical guest and it was their last appearance on SNL) and so they did a sketch 'Barkley vs. Barney', man I wish I could find that on Youtube!

Recently, to re-cash-in on an old cash cow, Nike reissued the t-shirts from this commercial and, of all things, I found one here in China. Now I probably won't wear the shirt very much, but come on, I had to buy it; I was like Mel Gibson in Conspiracy Theory!


This is the original campaign poster graphic on the T-shirt. I took this w/ my cellphone so it's not 'hi-def' by any means.

So w/o further ado, and w/ the help of Youtube, here's those two commercials:

Barkley vs. Godzilla (the trailer)


Barkley vs. Godzilla (the feature, which is shorter than the trailer...)



Here's a promo for that SNL episode I mentioned above. It's kind of a cool little moment even though I'm not one of those Nirvana crazies.



and this is the closest thing I could find to the Barkley vs. Barney clip. Some one used the video from the sketch but covered it w/ the Barney song, man I wish I could find a clip of that complete sketch.

From the www, Vol. 19 (not from Youtube)

I came across this funny little video while reading my friend's blog. It's a short little clip (or you could call it a lesson) showing why some people shouldn't 'sky to the rack' b/c sometimes the 'rack' fights back.




My favorite part is the textbook ai-ya you hear when it falls, after playing ball countless times in central China, you hear this (and English cuss words) a billion times! Another laughable angle to this is when you consider that the goal was most likely already damaged. (note the excessive flimsy shaking) So they were dunking on this goal b/c it was tilting forward lower and thus more 'dunkable', but none of them thought, "this thing is broke, this might not be safe." This guy is lucky to still be alive b/c until he hopped up, I thought the thing landed on his head!

What's crazy is that I had a similar thing happen to me when I was 15, backboard and all, and it will scare the 'fecal matter' out of you! Before you call me a liar I'll note that the goal that broke and fell on me was 8'6". But in my case there was no indication the goal was gonna 'go'. I'll never forget the feeling of falling straight to my back w/ the rim still in my hands and how disorienting it was to see the backboard and rim following me to the ground.

ONE MORE NOTE! ONE MORE NOTE!!

This isn't another 'Youtube' post, I promise!

So you might be vaguely familiar w/ my love of a little band called The White Stripes, well recently they set out on a tour of 'The Great White North' w/ the ambition of playing every province and territory in Canada. A side cursor to this is that they also played a small secret show before every concert in the town of the tour stop. So they finished up this tour in the little territory of Newfoundland and, of course, every Newfy alive expected to also get treated to a 'super secret small venue show'. (that's not an illogical assumption) Now I don't know the whole story, but I do know that 'super secret' location was being leaked through the local rock station, but someone was having fun w/ the whole situation. To make a long story short; after 3 hours and 5 incorrect location 'leaks' The White Stripes' road crew showed up and told the wandering mass of people that "The White Stripes will arrive in 20 minutes and treat you to a 1 note show." A one note show? What is a 1 note show, many wandered, just as I would. Surely it wouldn't only be one actual note. Well 30 minutes or so later, the crew shows up and sets up all the guitar amps, drums, and musical gear you'd expect a highly respected world class band to use. A little while after that, out comes Jack and Meg, just as they said they would. Things are looking pretty good so far for the average little Newfy rocker...

press play:


I love the chants you hear at the end of the video "One more note! One more note!" In the end Jack says it all "We've now played every province and territory in Canada." Oh man, that's hilarious! I'm sure there's some reason for this, like maybe they were running late getting set up that day and literally didn't have time for a whole show, or maybe they just thought it'd be good for a laugh, either way, it got me!

If you were one of the 300 in attendance, can you actually be mad about this? I mean, it was free. Not to mention, The White Stripes played a 2+ hour show a few hours after this '1 note show'. Also, it's not like The White Stripes charge much for their shows and Newfoundland isn't very big, so I'm certain that everyone that wanted to see them that night had their chance that night. The setlist on Youtube reads:

"1. F"

Hey, who can complain about a free F note from the strings of Jacky White? I myself have never had the honor of attending a White Stripes show, but I will definitely see them soon and I look forward to lots more Fs from Sir Three Quid himself! (hopefully I'll also get some Ds, Cs, Gs, Bs, As, Es, among other chords)

From the www, Vol. 18

I'm sorry, I really don't mean for this to be a blog of only Youtube commentary, but it's digressing into one! I've been entertaining myself w/ Youtube a lot lately b/c my wife's been in America for over a month now. I am amazed everyday by what I stumble across but my newest fascination is the hordes upon hordes of viewer reply videos. These are just webcam responses to real videos and they're chopped full of unintentional comedy.(and tragedy, as we saw in Vol. 16) But this one made me laugh even though it's not really funny, it's just so not funny that it's funny. In fact, it's not really worth posting but I've already typed this all out, so here it is:



I just feel embarrassed FOR this person...

From the www, Vol. 17 (Bet's number)

I 'enjoyed' this website...

Don't be afraid to 'fish around' in there, lots of good stuff.

Here's a preview:



I think this photo is located in that website, not sure though.

From the www, Vol. 16

Ok, before you watch this video, I have to say that I'm not making fun of the guy. Seriously, I'm not, I mean I can't, I just can't. If I did make fun of him I'm pretty sure I'd be scuba diving in a lake of fire for eternity. So don't watch this thinking that I'm making fun of the guy b/c I'm not! This is more of a train wreck type thing. You know, like you can't look away and you can't help but point and say 'look at that'; that's what this is. It's not like you're happy there's a train wreck you're just acknowledging the rarity, the catastrophy, and exercising natural curiosity and amazement. Yes, it's possible that this dude isn't 'playing w/ a full roster' but I don't know, that's for you to decide. He does know how to operate a computer better than most people I know. (and he has made 748 of these beauties!) Either way, I came across this on Youtube and I was like a deer in headlights, I couldn't look away. I don't know who Ashley Tisdale is but I'm guessing she's really famous right now and this dude obviously has a huge crush on her. So now that I've cleared my conscience and fully rationalized posting this, here's the video.

This is BeeBee, Ashley Tisdale's #1 fan:


More of BeeBee, he does these viewer replies like ten times a day!

From the www, Vol. 15

My friend John Taylor mentioned this radio station and, frankly, I'm in love...

Click on the 'listen' tab near the top on the right and you will download a radio file for your iTunes that you can play at anytime from your playlist.

They play a good mix of music, mostly non-mainstream, but always interesting. They don't delve too far into heavy rock, dreary music, noise rock, punk, rap. Basically put, it just plays middle of the road, non-pop radio, quality music; the best parts of every genre. If you dig a little further, I think you can also find their playlists, which is good incase you hear a song you want to hear again and again.

Hope you also enjoy it.

Thanks John!

Ok, back to blogging (it's a long post)

So I've been a little derelict in my duties...

In my defense, I had a crazy busy schedule the past three weeks getting everything squared away at the end of school. I had to do a bunch of stuff for Bet on top of all the stuff I was supposed to do.

On top of all that, I had to do all this purchasing, reserving, and moving of household items for a certain couple moving here. (one half of this couple is an avid Batesdynasty reader and the only frequent commentator)
So as he frequently passes judgement, I'll just continue to take the high road and turn the other cheek... j/k

So this is going to be a brief 'all encompassing trip.' (nice Pearl Jam reference, eh?)

Ok so Bet has been in Connecticut taking grad school courses at Wesleyan for three weeks now. (ya she's smart)
It's been tough b/c:
a. We're not used to being apart this long. (not that anyone should be 'used to it')
b. School's out so no one's around. So I'm stuck eating by myself a lot.
c. The afore mentioned purchasing/reserving/moving of a certain sibling-in-law's future belongings. (cough-cough)
d. My dog has/had a chemical burn on his back end from the shampoo used by the Chinese vet, (awesome right?) so I have to take care of him by myself; I have to wash him twice a day and prepare his medicine. This wouldn't be so bad if my dog weren't so squirmy and I had a little help. I'm not whining, I'm just saying it's difficult by myself...

I'm guessing it didn't help matters that they put him in this 'oven' for 20 minutes after his bath. I don't want to sound mean, but the Chinese medical profession is highly questionable at times...
e. This hippo...

This hippo could probably make the list as well... Not really, but the last two photos lead me to a quick preview of what's to come; I'm going to start a new 'Periodical' called 'from the cellphone camera' b/c I see some crazy crap here so it's worth a little mention on the ol' blog from time to time...

I've been opening the gym for basketball workouts and there's been a decent turnout. The schedule has been sporadic so far but starting next week we have the gym reserved three nights a week 7-9pm. (and three mornings a week as well, for the girls that can't come at night) Some of the girls seem to be benefiting a lot from this extra training time. While I am super stoked about doing it, it's still 'another log on the fire,' thus helping explain why I've more busy the last few weeks than I am during the school year.

Lastly, a large portion of my days have been spent tutoring. I'm currently tutoring a Chinese business woman 2hrs/5 days a week for some extra cheddar. (pretty nice) Tutoring in English is usually bothersome but this hasn't been bad at all. The woman I tutor is really nice and she works really hard.

So that's been my daily life, now on to blog type stuff...

Music:
The White Stripes had an album come out (Icky Thump) which I might have mentioned before... It's pretty solid; it won't dethrone their last two albums anytime soon but I'm enjoying it and it's got the potential to pull of an upset. Highlights include Effect And Cause, Little Cream Soda, Bone Broke, Catch Hell Blues, and Icky Thump. But to summarize; it's very solid, there isn't a mediocre song on the album, go buy it!


Ryan Adams put out a new album 'Easy Tiger' and I haven't listened to it as much as 'Icky Thump' but it is a really solid album. It seems to be a culmination of his previous albums w/ some really great songs. After I listen to it some more I'll talk about it in further detail.


Due to a combination of my location the last 5 years, and this particular band's lack of mainstream coverage, I totally missed the release of 'Live From Paradise: The Best Of The Toadies.' I LOVE THE TOADIES, not many people would agree w/ me but I frickin' love them. My love for them mixed w/ the fact they only have two full albums, makes this an awesome discovery! To explain this album I'll just give you a summary of the media blarb that was written up about it: This album was recorded, for better or worse, as a 'warts and all' live performance. There's no edits, no overdubs, no exceptions or additions, it's just a show recorded straight through. So there's lots of horribly off key vocals, some missed chords on the guitars, some regrettable audience banter, and LOTS OF ROCK! It packs a lot of energy and a lot of what I love about the Toadies, ROCK! Did I mention it ROCKS? Hey it may sound like a hair-band cliche but I love when a band just cranks out some loud, screaming, grooving, rock that swaggers along like a drunk tiger. (did I just say drunk tiger? I might be losing my mind...)


Another little gem I found, while trying to use up all my eMusic downloads for the month, was a b-sides/remixes/live cuts album from one of my favorite bands, The Violent Femmes. I haven't had adequate time to rummage through these 22 tracks but I'm loving the stuff I've heard so far. There's some great covers on there like 'My Way' by Elvis and some great live takes on older songs I love like 'Waiting For A Bus.' If any of you out there are actually VF fans (which I doubt) drop me an email or a comment and I'll email you some songs from this album. (is that legal?)

(not album cover)

Movies:
I went and saw Pirates Of The Caribbean 3 two weeks ago; it was entertaining but admittedly lame. (how's that for a review?)

I'd give it '1 thumb up' as well

Life:
I mentioned a bunch of stuff already but two other things that happened since I did a proper post were the 'closing ceremonies' of our men's 'Ping-pong and pizza' guys' nights. We had a weekly crew of dudes that, you guessed it, got together once a week for ping-pong and pizza. It was a great year and deserves a proper post, but I don't have it in me right now so you'll have to check out what 'The Senator' wrote about it over on his blog. Here's a preview...

'The Kid' is missing from this picture but you get the idea...

Also in the last month, we went on an awesome trip to Yangshuo. Me and Bet have been to Yangshuo 4 or 5 times now but this was by far the most enjoyable of all our trips there. Numerous reasons:
a. We went w/ John and Mandy Taylor, two really great people and friends
b. We flew there (nuff said)
c. We stayed in a hotel room instead of a hostel room that could double as a POW 'box'
d. We rode electric scooters everywhere instead of bikes
e. We did a 'greatest hits' type trip, meaning we just did our favorite things

Check out John's post for a different perspective.
Here's some pics (probably from John and Mandy's collection b/c we didn't take many pictures this time)

Water cave


Moon Hill


Ladies


Gentlemen (possibly in my top 5 favorite pictures ever)


Mid air high five (children, don't try this at home)


Not a flattering picture of John, but it cracks me up! If you know John, this picture is a lot funnier. But you probably don't, so you'll just have to trust me...


Bet w/ some monkeys


Me and the Wifey

I'll post more of these pictures on Flickr when I can. (China is blocking Flickr right now and I really can't figure out why)

Well I'm going to wrap this one up for now but trust me, I'm getting back into my blog form so I'll be posting more soon, stay tuned...