Salad Spinner

A quick update on my homeless friend, I talked to him when he got back from his surgery and he said everything was fine and he felt much better. That's great news. Still have no idea what was wrong.

There is another homeless guy I walk by on my way home. I think he has been around forever. I have NEVER seen him without sunglasses. He has a whole set up with a chair and a big sign (maybe 4 feet x 4 feet). The sign changes sometimes but always has something about feeling Jesus in your heart today or something like that. I thought he was blind since he always wears sunglasses, but one day when I was walking by, I was staring at his sign to take it all in. I figured why not stare he doesn't know. I know, how rude. Well he is not blind cause he asked if I wanted to be saved. I just smiled and said "No Thank You."

Anyway he has been giving me a reason to smile in this cloudy, rainy, cool weather we have been having. For the past couple of weeks his money collecting container is a salad spinner. He doesn't have the top part obviously just the clear plastic part and the colander thing.

Team Red

I organized a beach volleyball team for the summer. Most of the team consists of ex- swimmers. And those that are not swimmers we are currently trying to convert to swimmers.

We had few practices before the season started just to get our volleyball legs. We seemed decent.

Game 1-It was a WIN! Now we think we are pretty darn good. Great serves. Good ideas even if the execution was off.

Game 2-Going in pretty confident. Other team is far superior and trash talkers and sticklers. We call them the Net Nazis. Loss is devastating.

Game 3-We now know we are NOT "all that". Go in with a good attitude and plans to hit The Cordial after the game. The highlight of the night? Recession special: $1.50 Schlitz cans. Our record is 1-2.

No other team has team shirts. Do you think they make us a target?

Talk About Fiasco

Justin Timberlake, Lupe Fiasco (Chicago Rapper), and Kenna (Singer) are gearing up to climb Mount Kilimanjaro. If you're like me you have been wondering when JT was going to do this. It seems like the most logical next project for him. And to boot, here is what these guys are saying about their trip.

Lupe Fiasco has jokingly suggested he might "murder" Justin Timberlake on their charity climb. The two stars are set to make a gruelling trek up Mount Kilimanjaro with fellow musician Kenna this autumn and the rapper has a unique approach to easing the group's suffering if things get tough. He joked: "Hell yeah, I'm worried. If things go bad out there, everybody's dying I'll go psychopath, freak out and murder everyone for the sake of none of us suffering! It would be like the ending of a Stephen King movie, by the time the rescue helicopter comes."

Kenna also said that he is feeling competitive with Timberlake as they prepare for the climb, saying: "I refuse to work out with him, because he's way fitter than I am. I'm training in secret."

And Fiasco insists he's ready for the challenge, which he plans to turn into a fun race with his pal: "I'm an adventure junkie. Part of the motivation is beating Kenna to the top. Sabotaging his tent, taking the lining out of his coat, lacing it with ants or something like that."

A mountian top murder, secret training, the old ants in the coat trick? This should be good.

My New Relationship

This relationship is not new, but there has been a new advancement in the relationship.

I could be wrong but I think that most people who live or work in the city have "their" homeless guy (or gal). This is a particular homeless person that you pass everyday. You may acknowledge them, you may not. You may give them money or food, you may not. Nevertheless they are part of your life. My homeless guy stands in front of the Boeing Building. Everyday as people pass he says "Good Morning Young Man" or "Good Morning Young Lady" to every single person. At times people are coming so fast its a whirl wind of pleasantries. Most people don't respond. I always say "Good Morning" and smile. At that particular spot I cross the street. It is not a cross walk so I usually have to wait a bit for traffic. After the first few days he acknowledged me a bit more with some Sweeties and Honey's and some other stuff I can't understand and finally an "I lu yewwww!" as I crossed the street. Now this interaction is our normal morning routine. Oh I forgot to mention that he sounds like Billy Bob Thorton in Sling Blade! I still just say "Good Morning" but my smile has moved to more of a laugh. I wish you could experience this. It makes my morning. There are days that I am just not in the mood for him, but I walk by anyway and by the time I am across the street my mood is lifted. I just can't help it. He is so priceless.

I know I am not the only one he loves so today I was caught off guard a bit. As I passed he starts saying things I hadn't heard before. Not the sweeties and the honey's and the usual garble I can't understand. So I say "What?" and walk closer. As a side note I have never given him anything, no money, no food, nothing. So today he tells me that he is going to be having surgery tomorrow, so after tomorrow I will not see him for the rest of the week. He reiterated, "You will see me tomorrow morning but not for the rest of the week." I just said "Oh No! Good Luck. I will definitely come by tomorrow morning to see you." He said a few things I didn't understand something about praying for him I think. Then off I went across the street with his "I lu yewww" trailing behind.

Now what do I do? Should I get him something? I don't even know what that would be. I know he likes to smoke but that's not appropriate. Maybe some food? I am at a loss. Maybe just a good luck with your surgery and see you soon.

This Is Crazy

Heidi Montag, Spencer Pratt, Dog the Bounty Hunter, Janice Dickinson, Geraldo Rivera and Rod Blagojevich are dropped in a remote jungle....

Sounds like the start of a great joke, right? It is no joke. This is a reality show! "I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!"

The gist is celebrities live in jungle conditions with few comforts and have to earn human essentials. Viewers will decide which celebrities stay or go. The last remaining star will be crowned King or Queen of the Jungle, winning a cash prize for their favorite charity.

I know you will not want to miss this gem. "I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!" begins June 1st (8-9 p.m. ET) on NBC.

Update: 4/21/09 11:41 am
A federal judge has denied permission to former Gov. Rod Blagojevich to travel to Costa Rica to participate in a reality TV show. Although I am sad he won't be participating, I sort of can't believe he had the guts to even ask. On second thought, when it comes to him nothing should surprise me.

It gets me everytime

There is a new ad campaign out for 1-800-Flowers. I see it everywhere on buses driving around the city. Every time I see it I think, "I totally want a giant cupcake for my birthday! I hope someone gets me one! Yum!" And every time I am deflated by the fact that it is a giant cupcake shaped flower bouquet. Who would want a giant cupcake shaped bouquet of flowers? I think anyone would get this and be disappointed and wish they received a real giant cupcake. Don't you think it looks delicious? At least for a split second?

By the way it looks MUCH bigger on the side of a bus.

Dream Jobs

I have two dream jobs. The first one is Billboard Painter. I'm not talking about the run-of-the-mill wall paper billboard you see along the highway. I am talking about the few true old fashioned billboards that are still painted on the the wall of a building. I mostly want to do this job to find out how they do it. Some how they draw the lines and create a line drawing of the picture. I think they use a giant overhead projector. Then they fill in the lines with color. I'm picturing a paint by number type system. And if it is, I could do that. But if it is some kind of real artist type that is experienced in painting murals then I'm out. Incidentally the best painted billboard in Chicago (that I know of) is off of 90/94 at the Armitage exit. Right now its paint in support of the Chicago 2016 Olympic bid. If you are in the neighborhood, drive by. Here it is under construction.

Awesome. I can't wait to win the lottery, so I can intern with the billboard painting company that does this. Do you think it is a competitive position to get? Probably. Who wouldn't want to be a billboard painter?

My second dream job is Namer of the OPI Nail Polish Colors. I rarely get my nails done but when I do I pick the color just by the name. I also do the same with paint colors for my home.