Good-bye 2011, you were amazing #Lineup

The Lineup: December ‘11

#EpicFail: Government.  No one thing was clearer to me this year than the disgust that people have had with government.  In the Middle East, we saw several revolutions that directly led to three dictators being ousted from their thrones.  Even stateside, we saw our fair share of protesting.  Whether it was the Tea Party or Occupy [Enter City Here], Americans were simply unhappy with the people that run our country.  Despite me being an avid Obama supporter, I too am disappointed with my government.  Shame on the Republicans for holding this country hostage and prolonging the economic crisis for the sole purpose of setting the table for the 2012 election and shame on you, President Obama, for allowing their antics to be paraded around as democracy.

(Related: Kim Jong-Il died this month. Not a great year for dictators.)

Okay you've eaten, now Line up!

The Lineup: November ‘11

What I can’t live without: Nostalgia.  Earlier this month, I along with my mentee and her family, visited my Alma Mater.  My mentee is applying there and she went for a visit.  Aside from reconnecting with old friends, seeing my University through her eyes really allowed me to re-live those years.  Those four years were special and it made me fall in love with those memories all over again.  The only thing that would make things better would be for her to get an acceptance letter. J #GoWC

(Related: A great conversation that I had with some fellow alums over Thanksgiving break.)
(Related: Thanksgiving dinner... yummm!)

My car broke down!

99%

The other day I was running some errands and was on my way to get a haircut when I found myself having to parallel park on a busy street.  As I pulled up, I noticed that the light behind me had turned green and in a few short seconds cars would be flying by and a) I didn’t feel like waiting for all these cars to pass and b) I didn’t feel like having one of those cars clip me trying to pass.  So like dozens of times before, I cut the wheel fast and surgically snaked my car into that spot.  As I was getting ready to get out of the car, I noticed smoke coming from the hood and seeping through the vents.

Landon Pigg knows what he's talking about

Coffee Shops

As I write this, I’m sitting at a Cosi.  For those that’s never been there, its like a combination of Starbucks and Panera Bread where you can get everything from a latte to a flatbread pizza.  It’s definitely a destination spot with comfortable chairs, warm color schemes and of course, free WiFi.  The good folks at Cosi expect you to purchase a few things and then spend a few hours taking care of whatever business that you want.  Usually around this time, if I’m not eating, I’m watching television or playing Playstation.  Spending a few hours at Cosi is definitely not on my short list of things to do; yet I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else in the world.  Why?

What do you expect?

Great Expectations

I feel bad for Tim Tebow.

It’s hard to feel bad for someone who gets paid millions of dollars to play a game but I really do.  After another miserable passing performance, Tim had to deal with a Monday morning firestorm of people talking about how he “sucks” and doesn’t deserve to be a Quarterback in the NFL.  It’s more than just your run-of-the-mill criticism – people are actually happy to see him fail and circle around him like vultures.  Someone so inexperienced is usually treated with kid gloves but unfortunately Tim Tebow is just the latest victim of a very dangerous and familiar epidemic.

You should be scared of this Lineup

The Lineup: October ‘11

What I can’t live without: Fear.  Nothing like the month of October for the cable networks to break out their horror movie marathons.  Although I didn’t go see Paranormal Activity 3 in the theaters like the rest of the world, I did enjoy bouncing around the tube catching old favorites like Saw, Texas Chainsaw…, The Shining, and Pet Cemetery.  Its still makes me laugh that once each year people will pay money and spend hours doing things that literally scare the hell out of them. 

(Related: The Walking Dead a.k.a. the most exciting show on television right now)

War Torn.

Casualties

32 people were shot in a hail of gunfire over a three-day span.  The 20 separate incidents left 7 people dead.

These kinds of headlines are all too familiar when your country has been at war with two countries for nearly 10 years. We’ve become so numb to it that these reports are just temporary hiccups between the gossip and sports columns.  Because shootings and killings go hand in hand with war, the shock and emotional attachment has all but worn off.  However the shootings that I described above did not happen during a combat mission, those 32 people we’re wearing army fatigues and not one of those 7 bodies were found on a street in Afghanistan.