Lucky Man

Sometimes I can't believe how lucky I am. When times are tough - whether at work or whatever - I can always look forward to spending my evenings and weekends with a beautiful wife who loves me. Not every man can say this about his wife and that's a shame.

It should go without saying, but I will anyway - I love her. I'm so happy she wrote me on Match.com three years ago. She takes care of me and I'm very grateful. And she tries so hard. I love that. Oh, and the little things are a big part of the fun. In fact, they're what it's all about. The "nest" where we find refuge from the world, a goofy picture of me she puts on her bathroom mirror to make her laugh each morning, the silly faces we make at each other - just for laughs.

One recent weekend morning, while relaxing in the nest, watching TV and enjoying a 70's cross-breeze, she puts on an impromptu mini-play - mimicking my habit of sitting with the laptop while giving her the latest news while she flips between reality TV, entertainment news and a Lifetime flick. She played the part of me and her and hid behind the bed to switch characters. A short play just to amuse me and make me laugh. Very sweet and just one example of countless ways she keeps me laughing.

She's wonderful like that.

Ronald McDonald - Anti-Christ?

We watched "Super Size Me" this weekend - a documentary by a filmmaker who ate nothing but McDonald's meals for 30 days. He ate every item on the menu at least once and if given the option to "super size," he had to say yes - which caused him to vomit three days into the experiment. Each day, he ate three meals. Suffice to say: This should be required viewing for every American. It's not just an indictment of McDonald's, but all fast food and the country's obesity culture in general.

And, without a doubt, it makes you think about what you're putting into your body. I feel like double cheeseburgers I ate at 30 are probably only now breaking down in my system - at 37. They're long gone, of course, but what about the preservatives?

Among some disturbing points:
1) In any given hamburger patty, there are bits of a thousand-odd cows. The slaughtered animals are essentially mixed into a heaping bovine stew and stamped into millions of patties. Ick.
2) An experiment shown on the DVD's extras revealed that several menu items grew mold after a few days under a glass case, but the french fries looked the same eight weeks later. An intern inadvertently tossed them out or they'd probably still be edible today. Mmmmm, chemicals and assorted artificial agents. Tasty. (That's the problem, of course, the fries and many other menu items are tasty - and addictive - and that really gives one pause. Why are they so addictive? Why does every single McDonald's burger taste exactly the same?)
3) The filmmaker, Morgan Spurlock, started the experiment at my height and weight - considered normal. At the end, he had gained 26 pounds, his cholesterol had shot up 40%, his moods and love life had apparently suffered and he managed to damage his liver. Three doctors tracked his "progress."
4) It was mentioned that because of widespread childhood obesity and soaring diabetes problems for this age group - as well as many other health problems - mean the youngest generation likely will become the first in centuries to have a shorter lifespan than their parents. Unreal.

Thanks to Little Feisty, we eat pretty well day-to-day. We splurge at times on a weekend or a road trip, but we're mostly good. I won't say I'll never set foot in a McDonald's again - that would be unreasonable - but this film will have a lasting impact and could just be the best bad-food supressant around. Like I said, it should be required viewing - and perhaps most importantly for parents of little ones.

Lovely, Rita

I did not intend to sit around talking about the weather all the time but it certainly is beyond freaky lately. Somewhere between Key West, Fla. and Galveston, Texas churns a Category 5 hurricane that at this moment is the third-largest U.S. storm on record. Katrina killed more than 1,000 people in New Orleans and Mississippi just three weeks ago and damn nearly wiped New Orleans off the map. If Rita hits land in a couple of days still classified as a Cat 5, well, it's hard to imagine what could happen. Right now, it tracks to near Galveston.

All of this, naturally, brings to mine the cinematic tour de force that is "The Day After Tomorrow" - the disaster flick released a year or two ago that saw the United States pretty much north of the Mason-Dixon line submerged under a block of ice. Presumably, millions died - the president included - but the film ended all happy and fun with the surviving millions camped out in Mexico, apparently drunk on margaritas, celebrating the irony. You know, the irony of Americans taking residence in Mexico. Ha ha! Ohhhh, irony. Heh. *sigh*

Hopefully this won't happen with Rita.

Our Town

New Orleans. The charm, the poetry and romance of this unique American city convinced me it would be a great place to pop the question to Little Feisty when I did so in March 2004, a day before her birthday. She said yes by the banks of the Mississippi River - essentially in front of Jackson Square and the French Quarter - after we had had a boat ride. I was so nervous and awkward but she made me feel great anyway. I wanted to give her a long speech about how much I love her and plan to always take care of her and cherish her but I think I kind of slurred it all together instead. It's a blur now. Wow was I nervous. I stumbled down to one knee.

Note: She said yes! Which is a good thing, since we were married about a year ago.

New Orleans, because of this, will always mean more to us than it does to most people. It's a place I figured we'd visit many times through the years - one day showing our child where we got engaged. I still believe we'll be able to do that, but Hurricane Katrina and the subsequent flooding had left it in doubt for a few weeks. Now, people are being allowed back in the city to check their homes and businesses. Presumably they can stay if they're prepared to deal with the potential for sickness - due to water and air quality and general filth. Meanwhile, much of the city apparently is devastated and the shape of the city clearly will change as it's rebuilt. The historic areas - including the French Quarter and the Garden District - on the other hand, are in relatively good shape by comparison. That's good. It means rebuilding will happen, the levees should ultimately be improved and the city will recover.

Of course, another Katrina-like storm coming along before the fixes are done and the revival finished - both expected to take years - could change everything. Here's hoping we make many return trips to the Big Easy through the years. Here's hoping we tip back a drink or two one night at LaFittes on Bourbon Street.

Hey there, Internet!

Hi Dead Space,

What's been goin' on? A veteran blogger all of 15 minutes, I figured I'd check in with you. You sure are intimidating.

So, hey, I suppose it was only a matter of time really, before you sucked me in and convinced me that I too needed a virtual soapbox. Lurking for quite some time on various blogs - some by old friends and some that I found by pure happenstance - I resisted your call. But, in the end, you, empty void, proved mighty.

So, what now? I guess I need a platform or some cool cause or something. I suppose something might come out in time should I keep this up, but likely I'll just spout off on the mad crazy - but full of promise - world we live in.

The news of the day when my blog sprung forth is this: Our president takes the blame for the epic tragedy that was Katrina, the Hurricane - which occurred more than two weeks ago and they're still finding bodies. Many have died. Many of them didn't have to. Facts of the tragedy are facts. So, George W. says, more or less, "my bad!" - as if that makes a difference.

Don't get me wrong, Dubya is a nice guy. I know this for a fact. Or, at least he was 13 years ago, when a previous career thrust me into several chats with him in a desolate Texas town I once lived in. If he was still a drinker then, knocking back a High Life or three with him would have been a hoot. Instead, we just talked it up at the local Lions Club meetings or Rotary or wherever we were that I'm currently forgetting.

All I can really say about the man now is that he has yanked the Republican right out of me - and, frankly, that was no easy feat. No hardcore liberal either, I'm somewhere in the middle. These days, I surprisingly find myself leaning left. When I knew Bush, he didn't strike me as presidential material. Today, I think it's clear - and has been for a few years - that he's in over his head. I see a lost puppy dog look, a deer in the headlights glaze. The smoke-and-mirrors act couldn't last much longer.

So he apologies on behalf of the federal government and my question is, why? What's the point? Who cares, old buddy? You're the president - second termer - you ain't runnin' again. And, by the way, did you not turn on the presidential television set when the hurricane and flooding unfolded? You didn't realize what was going on in New Orleans? Our nation's leader shouldn't be the last person in America to know about an American catastrophe. That's beyond sad.

Bottom line: Bush's war has weakened us as a nation and bankrupt our government.

Well, I'll be danged, Dead Space, you sure are a crafty one. I didn't know I had a little grandstanding in me tonight. Don't worry, I won't moan about politics too much. I've met too many to care about there b.s. I'm more of a pop culture whore, or a sports guy or sometimes just an SOB who needs to wax poetic about shit you don't care about

Well, anyway, DS, I think I'll turn in for the night. It's been nice getting to know you. Maybe I'll see you around. Take care.

...et tu, brute?

I guess I'll give this blog biz-natch a whirl. Why not? You've got one too. Don't lie!

Here, I'll post whatever I feel like and whenever. You, currently non-existent reader, are welcome to mock me if that makes you feel better about yourself. Wow, you're kind of pathetic. Sad, really.