Why we are the best... (sounds cocky, I know)

I just received a sheet of all the stats the Los Angeles County Lifeguards had for the month of July 2006. These are the stats for the entire County...including 70 miles of coastline, and Santa Catalina Island.
Check it out:

Attendance: 13, 886, 272
Prevents : 300,314
Ordinances: 93,741
EVR: 4,264 (Emergency Vehicle Response)
Medical Assists: 4,963
Rescues: 3,622
Agency Assists: 1,456
Boat Warnings: 1,005
Boat Distress: 176
Boat Value: $11,701,800
Missing Persons: 475
Resuscitations: 475
SCUBA Attendance: 16,030
Drownings: 1
Body Recovery: 1

Numbers that the whole agency are very proud of.

The Endless Summer...

I wish! So, this weekend is technically the end of Summer...whatever. Luckily here in the Bay Area, we get an Indian Summer in September and October, so the best weather should be coming up. Who knows though, the whole planet was fucked this year and weather patterns all over were screwed. Fingers crossed that October is nice!

I have been driving around the whole state the past several weeks like a mf'er. Up and down the 5 will make you go nuts, but at the same time, it was very therapeutic for me. On this past weekends trip to SLO, had lots of time to think about shit in some enjoyable scenary. At least it didn't smell like cow shit the whole way.

Looks like I am gonna go camping this weekend at Lake Nacimiento (back down to SLO!). About 14 of us are gonna go down to San Luis Obispo County, fish, boat, kayak, canoe...so much fun.

Sort of a funky time in my head right now. Half of my crew is headed to BRC for the week. Two of my closest are leaving for their 2 month honeymoon as soon as they get back. Also, I made a really good friend in (ng) and he just moved back to Detroit to finish school. Good fricken guy and we used to gtalk all day so its wierd. Still trying to stay positive but sort of super stressed about work as well.

Been planning the 2nd Annual Lake Sonoma Harvest Moon Flotilla as well. Got 3 boats reserved, including 2 pontoons and a ski boat. Also reserved a group site for 50 of us to party....all by ourselves. Already have 27 onboard and looks like more and more are gonna join up each day. Stoked!

I have decided that this year, I will try my best to get back into the ocean. Even though its butt fucking freezing out there, i need to start surfing, paddle boarding, rowing....something. I also plan to travel to LA a little more. Its easy for me to just jump in the water there, in any conditions, and enjoy myself.

Lastly, WineGuzzlers last week was a MAJOR success. Steve with Roshambo Winery came down with some delicious wines that he shared with the entire group. Had a Rock, Paper, Scissors Tournament and 34 people participated. Our friend (LG) won the tournie which was followed with a 13 wine tasting. This months theme was Syrah! After the tasting, we all headed down to an art exhibit/party going on, on the 5th floor. All I really need to say is that Vodka drinks after drinking wine for 5 hours...not a good idea. But, it was free booze so all 50 of us went down to enjoy the rest of the night. All-in-all, we had a fricken blast!

Under the Sea....

For the first time in years, I was able to go snorkeling this past weekend. Many of you have been lucky to have been diving or at the very least snorkeling. I grew up in a home where SCUBA was a big deal. My dad actually wrote did tons of research on SCUBA and was pretty well-established in the diving world of Southern California. I mean, I have seen a book he wrote strictly on the propeltion of fins for diving.
Although I was not certified, I did lots of diving cause my dad trained me to dive from an early age. Some people may say thats sketchy, but he was very experienced and knew exactly what he was doing. I never did anything to gnarly though.
If you have never been in the ocean and had the opportunity to explore, you must! Its truely the only place on earth where we can go and actually totally "submerge" outself into a whole other world. Amazing! How lucky are we?!

Check out this soundtrack...

I know some people aren't into soundtracks at all, but I previously mentioned that I was looking forward to this one.
The Last Kiss is the new Zach Braff (Garden State) movie and the soundtrack is awesome.
I got it last night and love it already. So good!

Back to reality today...I just want to thank the United States Government and the State of California for stealing all of my money. Thanks a$$holes.

Wrappin up my Summer in the South Bay...shark attacks...conclusions....

What a way to wrap up my Summer in the South Bay with 3 days at Cabrillo Beach! I ended up having to work a night shift with some guy that I used to be "friends" with. Eventually, he freaked out cause I was close friends with his GF at the time, basically the guy is a kook. Anyway, he ended up being as gnarly as expected.
My second two days were at Rancho Palos Verdes Beach. Its the new one near Trumps course. This place is fricken sweet! A handful of swimmer each day, mostly jsut people with dogs. Its a secret spot for dog owners and the only dog beach in all of LA Co., for now. I did so much awesome snorkeling, swimming, hanging with close friends....Mellow was good for me, but it was still super duper exhausting sitting in the sun all day and walking down the gnarly cliffs.
I got off work at 7:00 pm. after a 9 hour shift, and ended up just charging back to SF. Bruteskies!

Woke up with the shakes so i decided to work from home. So tired.

**side note**
Ran into a fellow lifeguard that I haven't seen since we were 14 years old. We swam against each other at major meets across the country, and we both tripped out for like an hour. Ends up, after we both went to high school, both of us got into good music and starting socializing outside the swimming circles. We have many friends in common from his hometown (Phoenix) and he told me a gnarly story. A girl that I used to um...date...got attacked by a shark with her brother while spearfishing in Florida. She almost got her arm taken off until her brother (mutual friends again) fought the thing off. She is ok, but had to get grips of stitches!
Gnarly!
Good thing that in the history of LA County, we have never had a single shark attack!

A brief history lesson....

While working today at Bouff Tower at Cabrillo Beach, I was approached by two men, older, one with a video camera. They introduced themselves as filmmakers that making a documentary of the Angels Gate Lighthouse in San Pedro. They asked me what the ruins at the base of the cliffs at Cabrillo Beach were, and I told them the story about the place. They were super stoked about all the shit I knew and asked me tons of questions.

I thought I knew a little more about the history of the neighborhoods, but these guys knew a ton of awesome stories about the history of San Pedro, Palos Verdes, Long Beach, etc.... After talking for about half an hour,(tells you how mellow my day was!) I found out that in the late 1800's, a ship carrying gold for Wells Fargo, and a few sketchy businessmen, sank shortly after leaving the docks. The thing basically blew up after catching fire, and all the gun powder was set off. Most the crew were killed, but many members of the crew survived and documented what happened. Ends up Wells Fargo lost only a few thousand dollars, but as these guys did their researh, they found out that supposedly a $100 million in gold was onboard that vessel. These guys even were able to get in touch with the historian for Wells Fargo, and several other family members of big name families (Banning, Huntington, etc...) and confirmed that nobody really treid to retrieve the gold because they didn't really have the technology to do it back then.

Ends up people forgot about the gold, and eventually, the United States Gov't made/built/created an island and the Port of Los Angeles right on top of the ruins. There is $100 M that nobody will ever see...

CRAZY!

Relating to a previous blog, today I got to see something pretty neat. Personally, I have been fortunate to have been on the set for a few tv shows, movies, and commercials. The people don't really affect me, but todays set was amazing. The funny thing is that I am not a huge fan of this series of movies, but ships amaze me! Pirates of the Carribean III is currently being shot in various places, but THE BLACK PEARL was directly right behind my tower and today had some awesome stuff going on. The Black Pearl is built on top of a barge and although it can move and is the water, th barge is tied to the docks. The ship was HUGE and looked so neat somewhat up close. As I glanced at it with my binoculars, I can see guys with cameras hanging from the rafters, filming inside the ship. The coolest part was that there were a dozen + boats with huge fog makers blowing their creation in copious amounts! Enough to make the ship almost disappear. Amazing. I have sailed several tallships in my life, but the faux Black Pearl is fucken ginormous.


Quick SoCal History notes!
* Did you know that Long Beach was a city created by the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce?
*Did you know that Long Beach was once the richest city in the World?
* Did you know that 4 people were killed by bears in Palos Verdes during 1920-1922? 4 more by mountain lions!
*There is a tribe of native people, approx 2000 bc, that lived on the same land that I am currently typing from. Many folks thing they were aliens.
Hahaha! Seriously!

Hines Ward...

I am not a huge Steelers fan, nor do I like them just cause they just won the Super Bowl. Actually, two of my closest friends in the world are HUGE Steeler fans, and a close friend of mine growing up is a starting Outside Linebacker. Clark has a fuckin Super Bowl Ring! It still gives me chickenskin when I think about it. So stoked for him cause he is truly an awesome guy and I can't think of anybody that was so stoked about football.

Anyway, Hines Ward is in the news again. This time its to bring awareness to the biracial community. Hines is half african american, and half korean. He was actually born in Seoul, and after winning the Super Bowl, he immediately went out to the motherland. Good for Hines Ward too!

SoCal baby...

Recently, I have been feeling a little bit "out of it" due to my recent trip to LA. Now I am back and looking forward to finding some stoke while I am here. I am searching hard in my head, in others heads, and from my peers about something I can do in the Bay Area that will keep my heart and soul with the ocean. I really miss being a waterman.
Outrigger canoeing seems like the logical choice, but the SF Club seems to be run by a dick. Maybe I should go to the Sausalito Club. I had no intentions of seriously competing, but perhaps I should join Sausalito's team, and race against SF, and kick their ass! That would be sweet.
As popular as Paddle Board racing has become, I think its super boring, way to gnarly on my back, and I don't really need to try and act macho by doing it anymore. Its nearly impossible to get a dory boat even though thats my passion, so I gotta make some decisions soon!

On the long drive through California, I came to a decision about one thing for sure. Since I have several wetsuits (diving and surfing), and I have fins and a snorkel, I am gonna invest in a hawaiian sling and hunt me some fish. Its obviously gonna be tough to free-dive in the Bay Area, but maybe this will encourage me to get south more...even to Central California.

Tomorrow, I have a pretty mellow day at Cabrillo Beach. Its called Jurassic Beach cause at the beginning of summer, usually the old school guards like to work here. It will be a day full of working out, swimming, rowing, and hopefully surfing, but very doubtful for that one. Saturday, I get to work about 200 yards away from my parents place. Its not even a lifeguard tower! Recently, Donald Trump purchased the gold course my folks live at, renamed it Trump National Golf Course, and spent grips of cash remaking the 18th hole. (It previously sank into the ocean, so Trump got a sick deal on the land) Since its a public golf course, the County of Los Angeles is requiring him to provide public access to the beach down below. Its hardly a beach, the water is cold, and I hardly expect to have a single person actually swim in the water. I dont have a lifeguard tower, and sit on a log with an umbrella propped next to it. Ghetto! I am super fired up though! I decided to go shopping for the sling tomorrow am, and doing tons of diving and hunting this weekend!

Don't look forward to the 7 hour drive home starting at 8:00 pm on sunday night though....


Did you love G.I. Joe as much as I did growing up?

Soundtracks...

Growing up, there weren't too many soundtracks that stood out to me and impacted my life. These days, I almost feel like some soundtracks are made straight out of the book of my life!
I guess it started when the "Singles" soundtrack came out. Probably one of the best compilations for the 90's rock/grunge/alt. scene in general. Everything from Pearl Jam to Smashing Pumkins. Good stuff. Lately, I haven't been listening to as much jamband stuff. Its all sort of blending into each other and honestly, I find myself getting bored easily.
Now days I think simple is better. The best soundtrack that I can think of in recent years is easily the "Garden State" soundtrack. Simply put...really good shit. The Shins, Remy Zero, even Coldplay got so much attention from this soundtrack was released. There is an awesome article in last months Rolling Stone but only in the print form, not electronically. Zach Braff, the director and actor in "Garden State" and "Scrubs", is also set to remake "Open Heart". Its a remake of a gnarly danish movie from 2002 that is about how a wife's life turns upside down after her husband suffers paralysis from a car accident. The soundtrack is supposedly sick!

I find that more and more awesome music is being played through soundtracks. Actually, its not a new phenomenon considering that smaller, independant bands tend to sell their rights at a way less price to the movie folks, but even tv show soundtracks are incredible. (While watching an old episode of CSI, I heard Zero 7/Give It Away...a beautiful song.

Keep your ears peeled! There is so much good music in the world!

Birthdays, canoes, rivier and MEGA-CHILL....

After being in LA for 6 whole days, I find myself in a confused state of mind. I feel like I should be at the beach saving lives, I also feel like I should be in SF enjoying my City life. Sort of a super wierd, surreal feeling I haven't had to really deal with before.
I planned on going canoeing with friends a few days ago and up until the last second was unsure about how I really felt about going. Ended up getting up to the campsite early saturday am, and as soon as I saw some friends, I knew I would be around for the weekend.
Once again we camped at a private campground right near downtown Guerneville. Let me tell you, camping at private campgrounds is NOT the way to go. Too many rules, too many people, and the "trashie" factor is never too comforting. In anycase, the campground was right next to the river and with 20 friends, you can't really go wrong.
It was also our friends (to)'s b-day so we had even more to celebrate. We arrived a little late, and after waiting for the entire group to ge to the start location, our trip began.
I ended up sharing some tiny litte thingies with everybody and we all had a wonderful time down the river. Most of the day consisted of floating, drinking, paddling, floating some more, drinking some more, and finally towards the afternoon, working our asses off just to beat the head wind. SO BEAT!
No fires at the campground but were broke open some wine and more drinks and ended up having a good, early, fun night.
Went to a few wineries today. Roshambo as always took excellent care of my group, and Iron Horse was nice. The view was incredible, but the young pourer was a cocksucker. (LOL!)
I am a huge fan of the delicious crushed, fermented grape juices at Roshambo.

Finally got home now, have been sleeping on and off all afternoon, and will prob end up staying up for the rest of the night...great...

I still think ball chaffing sucks, and now I must decided if I go to the races in FONTANA or not....

Here is a quick game that is coming out....looks fun but are kids really gonna be allowed to play this shit?

Something fun to get your through the day...


courtesy of my friend (ss).

Give this a whirl.

MOVIE REVIEW: TALLADEGA NIGHTS-The Ballad of Ricky Bobby
(The clips in throughout the blog are not in the movie, so even if you click them, it wont ruin the movie)


Honestly, I am not the biggest Will Ferrell fan at all. I thought Anchorman was not just bad, but pretty fuckin horrible. BUT....I was looking forward to Talladega Nights for about a year now.
Regardless of a few of my concerns before the movie, I knew I was prob gonna see this movie a few times anyway. I was worried that the trailers showed all the funny stuff, Will Ferrell in general, the ridiculous story, etc...

Well, went last night and the movie is fricken hilarious. Obviously a lot of the funny stuff was from the trailers, but there was so much more as well. I think I giggled the entire time.
Maybe its the fact that I love NASCAR, but I thought it was a pretty classic movie. Bored a couple of times, but that could've been due to the pre-show session wearing my tired body out.

Go see the movie, its worth it...especially if you get the student discount.

Last thing...I knew there was a reason why I always like Dale Jr.

Back to life, back to reality....

For the first time since I moved away from the South Bay, I must admit that I miss it a lot right now. At the same time, it was the first time since 1999 that I actually spent almost an entire week there. Being able to work 54+ hours in 5 days, having my toes in the sand at all times, and the HOT SoCal sun beating down on me was sick! I wore boardshorts the entire time, and probably only had a t-shirt on for about 5 hours the entire week. I was able to throw myself back into the lifestyle i used to live, completely, fully, and without any concern. Saw most of my close friends, but not all of them. Kept running into a few kooks over and over too, which is inevitable i guess.

Now that I am back in SF, its time to spend a few days catching up at work, and getting my head on for a few days before I head back to LA for another quick round of gnarliness. Can't decide if I should camp tonight, tomorrow night, both nights, or at all yet. Looks like I wont have a single weekend in SF for the month of August, so spending some time here would be nice. I think I have to skip wine-tasting on Sunday regardless though...I wanna watch a race.

Couple of fun things for you to do...play this kinda gross but funny game.
Check out this rad mocumentary.

Day in review...Part Deux

Started off with a fuckin insanely dericious burrito from Dos Amigos in Hermosa Beach. The best breakfast burritos ever!
Headed to Manhattan Beach but hit some gnarly traffic...I dread LA traffic. Got to the beach on time though (phew) and opened up to find out my Permanant (Supervisor) was a good friend of mine. It was overcast and hazy, with super pinner surf, and the wind was a little bit chilly. Started out a great day.
By 11:00 am, the swell started building again, the tide was going out, and the rips started pulling balls out. First rescue of the day ended up being a Jr. Guard that just finished his morning session, and was hanging out with his family. Got stuck in a super duper fricken huge rip that was easily 250 yards out. Took me a second to get to him, then swimming him out of the rip took another 5 minutes, then into shore was another 5 minutes. He was a super good kid, probably would'nt have drowned, but at the same time, he probably would have ended up shark bait if I weren't there. I then got back to my tower to find that a cadet would be helping me. Hannah was awesome, smart, and she is gonna be a really great lifeguard one day.
Second rescue came late in the afternoon. Cadet was gone, the beach was started to get crazy again, 25 year old male, stuck in a gnarly gnarly gnarly gnarly gnarly rip. Had to request for backup from Baywatch cause it was so far out. Got to him and it took me for-god-damn-ever to get him into the beach. To the point where my neck is FUCKED up with a rash, cut to shit, and chaffed from the strap on the rescue can. Guy was cool though and really really needed my help. He was def gonna be a goner if I was about 5 second late. Epic!
Only shittie thing is that my body is sore as shit and I can hardly walk straight. Super tired...actually exhausted. Can't even put links in my blog right now...

btw...ball chaffing sucks!

One of the best parts of LA....

Besides the perfect weather, awesomely fantasmic beaches....

THE MEXICAN FOOD!!!!!
I heart mexican food from LA.

Weekend in review....

So I am down in the hot hot hot hot heat of Los Angeles. Not sure why its the city of angels, cause 10 mins after getting in my car, I almost go right out of it to kick some guys ass. Hollywood, wannabe motherfucker cut me off, so i road his bumper. Then he abruptly hits his brakes and pulls over to the side really fast. Basically, I think the asshole thought I would pass him, so thats probably why he started shouting shit out the window. Well...I didn't pass him, but instead slammed my brakes on and started to get out of the car to scare this guy. Then, the pussy rolls his wondow up and starts begging me to not do anything to him or his car. Fuckin cocksucker.

Anyway, Friday night, went to Intercrew and met up with some of my closest friends. Got to even see a bunch of folks that I didn't care too!
Intercrew as a major success with Hermosa Beach winning the title. Saturday, worked at North Pier Manhattan Beach, where my close friends (mn) and (en) brought their awesome son, Jack, but lets backtrack a few hours...
Wake up butt ass early, head down to Manhattan to get the truck ready, and I get a call over the radio about CPR in progress in Hermosa. My captain and I take off, ends up the guy was alive, and with a heartbeat, but his breathing was shallow and weak. Wasn't as crazy as I thought it may have been. The call said that people were doing full-on CPR on some dude!!!! Gave him some O2, and after about 10 mins, he came to. Ends up the guy was PISS wasted, passed out from drinking too much, and went face down in the drop zone. Was face down (not ass up) for about a minute we assume.

After 9 hours on the beach, with the 6-man volleyball tournie going, and huge surf, I headed to work the Taplin for the rest of the night. South Bay won!

Sick! The bell is back home in the South Bay, where it belongs.

Last night, around 11:30, got a call from my friends (mn) that came to the beach earlier. Asked me if I knew about the guy that almost drowned...(not quite a drowning at all, but due to his drunkeness, he did swallow a ton of water, but nothing in his lungs), and it ends up the guy is someone that he knows closely. The patient is in ICU, just becaus he ingested large amounts of salt water, but he is gonna make a full recovery. Small world huh?

Today was hell. Worked from 6:00 am, until about 3:00 pm. Set everything up for the pier-to-pier swim an paddleboard race. Then had to lifeguard the finish of the swim. No joke, 6-8 foot, gnarly faced, walled-out, fucking big ones pounding the beach. 890 swimmer entered the race this year. We ended up only having to make one rescue...and all swimmers finished.

All in all, the only word to describe the weekend...EPIC.

LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA.....

So, for being someone that says I don't like Los Angeles anymore, I am sure looking forward to my trip this afternoon down south. Tonights Intercrew, tomorrow Taplin and the rest of the Surf Festival events are gonna be so much fun. The only thing I am worried about is the fact that I hear Hermosa Beach picked my name and they may be short handed tonight. I already told the Hermosa Captain that I would NOT swim, paddleboard, or surf ski...so that leave rowing or running. HA! Ain't gonna happen!

I am looking forward to seeing all my old lifeguard buddies and just throwing myself into the South Bay scene again for a few days. Taco Tuesday is gonna be in full effect as well!
Tonights schedule...arrive at LAX 6:15 pm, get parents car from Lot C and go straight to Torrance, go to my buddies (NUT) house to make a drop off/pick up, meet my other friend (js) near Ave. C for tonights Intercrew, then head to Kincaid's to see a (rm) and have adrink while he bartends, finally heading over to see Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby with (js).
Thats my plans for this evening. Gnarls!

I am gonna go visit my gramps tomorrow am, then work an long day, finishing up with officiating the Taplin Relay tomorrow night. Sunday am, gotta head to the pier to pier swim and paddle races as well. So much fun.

I really look forward to the weather and the surf. I hear its still nice and hot, and the surf is pretty good for the summer. I think Autumm has arrived early this year...better plan on it being this way for a while since we suck. Can't wait to get my toes in the sand tonight! Can't wait to surf with some old braddakine.

My stomach is churning with excitement!

btw...anybody wanna do this dance with me?

Carroll Shelby...

So I may heart NASCAR, but I am not a mechanical buff or anything. Cars don't interest me that much. I can change a tire, change the oil, even had to flush my radiotor one time...but thats about it. A buddy of mine that loves cars, is the personal assistant to Carroll Shelby.
He gets to take all the cars out for a ride, and he gets paid to just fuck around basically.

Thats a mechanics dream job right?

Just thought I would share this thought because my friend called me last night to tell me that the 2007, Shelby Mustang was just delivered to the house. #13 off the line!

Thats pretty rad. Oh yeah, check out these dumbasses!

URBAN TRIBES...

So, I started reading this book randomly after picking it up at the bookstore, curious because of the title. After reading the back, I wasn't really sure wtf the book was really about. Regardless, it seemed like something I could appreciate so I got it.

The author Ethan Watters writes the book while living in San Francisco, and being non-fiction, this further intrigued me. Ends up, he coined the term while writing an article for a magazine.

So you ask, what is an URBAN TRIBE?

Well, I am still reading it so I cant give you a total definition, but my take is that is about how our generation has formed communities oof single, like-minded people, that provide the comforts of almost a family-like feel. (look here for a MUCH better idea)
My interpretation of it is basically a group of "single" people that have for one reason or another have not married yet. Its not about being just a group of people that enjoy the same bands, or enjoy reading the same type of books...its much more than that. Its about people (like me) that choose not to marry, have children, "settle down", because of our careers, our dreams, our crazy lifestyles.

Being single these days isn't that tough. Even more strange, my group of friends consists mainly of couples...like 90% of us. Now, people are starting to have kids, twins, etc...are you kidding me? I have no false illusions of being single. I am NOT single because I want to "play the field" or date several different women. Due to my career, I will be moving away from the Bay Area within the year, and unless the woman of my dreams comes into the picture, I dont think its fair for me or my potential partner to have to deal with something long-distant. Also, its not as if I am conscienciously choosing to not have a relationship, I just don't need one. Does that make sense.
I find that even though many of my friends are married now, our URBAN TRIBE is so single friendly because most of us were single when we first met. There is never pressure to go out and get a date for a party, or to show up at a show with someone in hand. The sense of community, family, friendship and loyalty all serve as an almost surrogate partner. Strange...but true!

I looked back at the past few years and realize that I am notorious for dating woman that don't live near me. (1500 miles away, 500 miles away)
WTF!
I think a lot of it has to do with that fact that I need more space than I realize. I know that I can be a needy fucker sometimes, but I am pretty independant and like to be able to do my own thing. Don't get me wrong, I love being in a relationship, but I dont really wanna waste my time searching. I dont really feel the need to...Maybe subconsciously I get involved with these woman because I know I dont have to check in with them, or worry about what they are doing. I always end up breaking up with them, and then feeling like a dick for doing it, but then I tell myself I wont get involved with the whole long distance thing anymore. Fucking lame...

Nowdays, I dont really think about relationships as much as I think about other things...

Hahaha.
Do you belong to an Urban Tribe?

Fuckin NASCAR! Even I suprise myself sometimes....

So, some of my friends in LA wonder, "What the fuck is up with James and Nascar?"
My answer...its the shit!
My passion started as a joke. Skins and I used to go fishing a lot and I would talk in a trashy, white, southern accent. I would say things like "Fish aint bitin boys! We should pack up and go watch the race!" Being IGNORANT and not knowing anything about the lifestyle, I mocked it. After some time, a friend (do) came with us and joined in on the joking. He suggested we sit down one weekend, pick drivers beforehand, and just watch a race. In my own head, I knew right away that I wanted Tony Stewart. Didn't know the car number, or anything about him, but I knew he was a "bad boy".
The stars and planets must have been aligned, because that night, ESPN had a special with Dale Earnhardt Jr. at Daytona, FL. He walked up the bank that his father Dale Earnhardt died, turn 4, last lap of the Daytona 500, Feb. 2001. In order to walk up the track, he had to use his hands to balance himself off the track. The banks (turns) are up to 36 degrees. Cars have to travel over 150 mph just so gravity doesn't flip them over...all the while, driving 2 inches from the guy next to him in a 4000 lbs. car! Thats nuts!
So, with that segment of ESPN, I became an addict. The next day, we sat down and watched a race and within weeks, we were learning the about NASCAR.
My first race was in Sonoma at Infineon, one of two "road tracks" on the circuit. (Watkins Glenn being the other). Very dramatic race and TS won! So stoked!
Since then, I have travelled to Las Vegas and Phoenix and am gonna git me sum tickets to the Daytona 500 in 2007.
I am constantly telling my friends how much I hate corporate america, but yet, I am the biggest NASCAR slut of all time. If you only knew one thing about NASCAR, its probably the fact that each car is covered in sponsers. Home Depot, Lowe's, Budweiser, Miller Lite, Tupperware, Tide, Jack Daniels, etc...covered!
It cost up to $40 million to run a car for the season!
At the same time, NASCAR uses 1200 tires a weekend, and gallons and gallons of leaded fuel. That shits horrible for the enviroment! What am I to do?

Well, one thing is for sure right now...I heart NASCAR.

Mel Gibson is a dick....

So, I am not here to bitch about the Catholic Church, or traditionalists, or even Christians at all. This is all about Mel Gibson, and what a cocksucker this guy is.
One of the worlds great questions is: Why do so many people die in the name of religion? I mean, lets face it, more people have died in the history of world due to religion and religious wars. Its happened amongst the Christians, Muslims, Jewish people, Buddhist, ete...Even in the United States, many religions were thought to be "witchcraft" for years. Thats a whole different topic about how hypocritical our country is...

Basically, my biggest problem with dicks like MG is that they don't practice what they preach. Aren't Christian people supposed to love everybody? Isn't all about forgiveness? Love? Helping thy neighbor?

So Mel Gibson gets pulled over doing 87 mph, in a 45 mph zone. Dick manuever right there. Then he proceeds to chew out the arresting officer with anti-semitic bigotry? Who the fuck are you? Just cause the guy makes millions and millions of dollars does not give him the right to be high and all-mighty over anybody...let alone because of their religion or nationality. Hollywood has always stood behind MG. When his movie Passion of the Cheebas came out, nobody (but STERN!) really talked about what a freak this guy is. You know, his beliefs basically say that his own wife wont go to heaven when she passes. I mean, wtf?
You have to check out what Traditionalists are all about here.

Basically, this guy is a hypocritical, self-righteous, ignorant Fuck.
So is Tom Cruise...