This is the end.

As the decade draws to an end, I have decided to complete this blog's run as well. 640 or so posts is a lot of material. I think I've said enough at this URL.

No, I am not cowering to my detractors. Though they have criticized the content and premise of my blog with little or no original thought of their own, they are not the sole reason to end living in misery. I have probably posted longer than I intended just to spite them.

I will continue to blog elsewhere. Right now I am deciding which of my blogs are worth keeping and which should be digitally burned forever. Plus, I have an idea for a new blog that is more thoughtful and universal in it's message. A link will be posted here in a few days once it's up and running.

Thank you for reading, commenting, and participating in this little experiment. It's been fun. I love you all.

Leave any good byes, pleasant memories, or good riddance in the comments. I probably won't respond, but I'll read every one.

Peace.

A Trip to the Farm

Living two hours from the closest major city (or cities) provides one opportunities for agrarian experiences. Today, our friends invited us out to their farm for such an adventure. There was dinner involved as well, but more on that later.

Our friends own a nice plot of land backed up to a creek with space for cows, ducks, chickens, pigs, and turkeys. We've eaten some of their chickens and eggs and have not been disappointed thus far. Despite growing up in a farming community, I rarely tasted meat grown by someone I knew. (This does not take into account the numerous times I've eaten my father's lamb in adulthood.) There's something comforting about eating an animal that was carefully and humanly raised by a friend or acquaintance.

Anyway, Lucia had a great time meeting the chickens, turkeys, and dogs. She seemed unsure of the cows. Of particular interest was a poor caterpillar who could not escape her grasp.

One thing that Lucia loved (as well as the adults) was dinner. The coq au vin our hosts put together was pretty unreal. It's not often one eats rooster slow cooked in a pot of wine. Maybe that doesn't sound great to you, but it was pretty awesome. Only in rural Misery...or France. (We washed it down with an Ommegang Abbey Ale. Perfect pairing.)

After dinner and some delicious custard, we headed down to the creek. Lucia enjoyed the water as she was simultaneously thrilled and terrified of the running water. We'll certainly have to bring her back once it's warm again and I remember my Tevas.

Overall, it was a nice evening on the farm.

For all the cracks I make about Misery and COMO, I do appreciate what the countryside has to offer. We are regulars at the farmer's market and buy several other foods from local farmers through other networks. This we like about Misery.

(If interested or just plain voyeuristic, click on the pics for the source or click below for the set.)

A Trip to the Farm

Reason #9 Why Lucia and I Live in Misery: Science BAD!

News hit this week that the high school band in Sedalia stirred up some controversy with t-shirts depicting apes evolving into band geeks. Apparently, some religious zealots were up in arms over the school's overt promotion of evolution. The shirts were returned.

Really? Where do we live? Tennessee circa 1926? Kansas circa 2008?

It worries me that schools would fold on such an issue. If they can't stand up for science because it's confused for religion, what are they teaching the students in this state? What will they teach Lucia when the time comes?

You know, Jesus didn't do a lot of algebra... Well, Lucia will know about evolution whether the schools teach it or not. She may or may not know much about religion, but she'll certainly know about science. Maybe her mother will share memories from her Catholic upbringing.

Things Lucia Should Know About Her Birthplace

I have mixed feelings about this place. Sure, the blog is called living in misery and I often complain about living here, but I also point out the positives no matter what some claim.

Like all places, there is good and bad. I'm reporting on both here. I'm reporting on what is. Lucia should know something about her birthplace. So, like I did for my own home state, here are the most important points about Misery/Missouri.

1. Misery is known as the "show me" state. There are a couple of stories behind the state's nickname. One is that Congressman Willard Vandiver was quoted as saying, “I come from a country that raises corn and cotton, cockleburs and Democrats, and frothy eloquence neither convinces nor satisfies me. I'm from Missouri, and you have got to show me.” Of course, I prefer to cite the story of a pit boss in a Colorado mine where several laborers from Misery were hired. One supervisor turned to the other and said, "They're from Missouri. You'll have to show them," referring to their inability to complete simple tasks.

2. Misery was a slave state. As I described Ohio's great history in slavery and abolition, Misery too has some ties. However, MO has a less savory past. It became a state in the Missouri Compromise in which Maine also received statehood but as a free state so as to keep things even in Washington between slave and free states. Misery was such a proud slave state that they sent a militia over to Kansas to "talk them into" being a slave state as well.

3. I know of two movies set in Misery that both describe what it's like to live here. The first is Roadhouse with Patric Swayze as the outsider brought in to clean up a barn-turned-bar (slash roadhouse) in Joplin. He deals with hot ER doctors and crooked rich guys as he tries to make the roadhouse a respectable establishment where folks can drink Wild Turkey and listen to a blind dude play the blues in peace. The Wild West-meets-Midwestern Sensibility aesthetic of this Swayze epic encapsulate the Missouri ethic to a tee. The other film is Jesus Camp. Just know that this film is about giant mega-churches and even bigger crosses. I don't think it needs much explaining beyond that.

4. Yakov Smirnoff now calls MO "home". The former Soviet Union's greatest comedian ever now resides in Branson, Nashville's somewhat retarded stepson. I hear his show is really a hoot. We have yet to make it down there, but it is on our bucket list.

5. The University of Missouri at Columbia, a land-grant university, is a great source of pride for the residents of Misery. The university brought us here for R's job and they employ me as well. Did I mention they are a land-grant university? I want to make sure I get that in there since it has been mentioned to us nearly every day since we arrived. People are very proud of this fact. I'm not exactly sure what "land-grant university" means, but I wonder if it has something to do with calling it "MU" instead of "UM" even though it's the University of Missouri.

6. If you don't like the weather, wait a while longer for it to change. I know that this is an old adage used everywhere, but it is actually true here. One can never predict what the weather will do from day to day. There have been days when it is one way in the morning and completely opposite in the afternoon. Tuesday's high is expected to be in the nineties, but it will be in the mid-seventies by Thursday. How does that work?

7. Jefferson City is actually called "The City of Jefferson". This is more of a trivia item, but one should know the true name of our capital. Of course, we'll still just call it "Jeff City".

8. Misery has a rich political history. It's not the "mother of presidents", but MO has a rather interesting place in American politics. John Ashcroft (no relation to Richard) did some damage here as Governor and Senator. Mel Carnahan famously beat Ashcroft posthumously, sending Ashcroft to do "God's work" as attorney general for the US. The two current senators Kit Bond (no relation to K.I.T.T.) and Claire McCaskill have also made their fair share of splashes on the Washington scene.

9. Langston Hughes is from Misery. There have been many famous Missourians, but this is the one who always surprises people. I know that Hughes is most famous for the work he did in the Harlem Renaissance, but a bunch of his poems describe his life growing up in MO. "What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up Like a raisin in the sun?... Or does it explode?" - Langston Hughes No matter where you come from, that's some good stuff.

10. The state's most famous river is known as "Big Muddy" for its high silt content. It's not the Seine, but Missourians love them some Big Muddy. The Missouri marks the many routes to the West, particularly during the great expansion. Even though the Gateway Arch is in STL, near where the Missouri meets the Mississippi, many of these routes began in KC, MO's other city.

That's all I have for now. I'm sure I missed something. Someone who hates my blog will complain about how many great things I forgot. Oh well.

For my Misery/Missouri readers, what do you think is important to know about this place? Let me know in the comments.

Reason #7 Why I Live in Misery: Morans

Morans:

Reason #6 Why I Live in Misery: Cynthia Davis

Here in Misery, we only care about unborn children. Once you’re birthed - preferably through a scheduled C-section - you’re on your own. Nowhere is that more apparent than in our state legislature where Cynthia Davis is chairperson for the House Special Committee on Children and Families. She thinks the summer program that gives out breakfast to poor children is a waste of taxpayer money and that “[H]unger can be a positive motivator.” Nice. I hate this place.

Here’s a Kansas City take on the whole thing. Plus, check out some videos below. You have to watch the Olberman clip all the way through to hear him bash Davis, but it’s worth it. Oh, and feel free to sign a petition to remove her from her chairmanship, because you never know when she might make that run for federal office.

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Tip/Wag - Cynthia Davis & Fox News
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Jeff Goldblum

I Won!

I never win anything, but today I won something. Mike over at STL Hops let me know this morning that I won the drawing for the invite-only class with a rep from Founders Brewery at the Wine and Cheese Place in Clayton.

I'm really excited for a couple of reasons. First of all, this event will officially welcome Founders to Misery. Founders isn't my favorite brewery from Michigan (Bell's), but they make some awfully tasty beers and will always have space reserved in the stash. Their presence here only makes the beer scene better, more diverse. Secondly, I get the chance to learn first-hand about their beers and operations. As a new beer fanatic and even newer brewer (one batch down), I welcome these opportunities to learn all I can about craft beer.

For those of you looking for some new beers to try, here are a few of my notes on the beers from Founders I've tried...

Centennial IPA
Grapefruit, pine, and malty sweetness dominate this IPA. It's actually quite refreshing and an easy drink for an IPA, i.e. not too bitter. This beer should be a regular right beside Bell's Two-Hearted and Schlafly's APA. (Here's a picture of the Centennial I finished Friday at the 'Tag.)






















Curmudgeon
This was the first Founders brew I had ever consumed when my sister brought me one of these last Christmas. This is an old ale that makes me forget barley wines. It's thick, strong, and alcoholic, much like an actual curmudgeon. My goal is to buy a pack of these and store it along side my barely wine collection for some aging.

Dirty Bastard
My problem with scotch ales is usually that there's not enough scotch nor ale in the flavor. Dirty Bastard redeems the style by punching you in the mouth with his mug of ale before pouring a shot of scotch down your throat. Besides, the name reminds me of Old Dirty Bastard.

Double Trouble
I love that breweries in the East can pull off imperial IPA's that rival their West Coast counterparts. DT does that with plenty of citrusy, piney, hoppy goodness.

A few of their beers I have yet to try, but their on the list...

Cerise
I have to admit that I'm weary of fruit beers, especially those with cherries. I realize that many beer geeks are into cherries and sours and whatnot, but I am not sold. Either way, I'll keep searching until I find a fruit beer I like.

Red's Rye
This beer is definitely on my radar as I have developed a taste for rye beers. This one is everywhere and I assume will be readily available.

Porter
Again, this is a style that I have not been overly impressed by. I'd rather have a stout, but folks love their porters. There must be a good reason. This one has not been as available as the others, so it may be a while until I give it a go.

After the beers above, I am eagerly awaiting the arrival of Founders' seasonal and specialty releases: Breakfast Stout, Imperial Stout, Kentucky Breakfast, and Devil Dancer.

So, now I can welcome Founders to MO in-person on Wednesday when I cash in my prize in Clayton.

What I'm Not Doing

I was always told that my life would stop after having kids. Well, that's an exaggeration. As anyone who reads this blog would know, I find plenty of ways to get out of the house. However, things have certainly slowed around this house.

A key difference between this year and last year is in my record buying. I used to stop at the local shops every Tuesday to see what releases came in. Those that didn't make it to COMO were purchased online or even at the shows. Now, I do almost all my record buying online. I'm not sure if I went vinyl because I could get everything on vinyl online or I went online because that's the only place to get vinyl in COMO. It doesn't matter. I've realized that this hobby has no time in my current life, so to Insound I go with my dollars.

Speaking of music...One thing I'm definitely not doing is going to shows. Sure, I've seen some good shows since Lucia's birth, but the number of shows I've missed is enormous. I bet I've missed 75-80% of the shows I wanted to attend. In the past, I might miss 10%. A perfect example are all the Tops shows I missed. Those kids have supported this blog and kept me in the loop for nearly two years, but I never made it out to see them play.

Another example of a show I've missed is tonight's Willie Nelson concert on Ninth Street. I'm not saying I'm a big Willie fan, but I would have walked up to tonight's show if there wasn't some baby who needed to be put to bed.


















Despite sneaking out twice in the last seven days for some beer geek revelry, I've missed a ton of tastings and other events with the Columbia Beer Enthusiasts. Last week, I shared some beers with fellow enthusiasts as we planned out the summer events. Then, Monday was the night to share your favorite brewery. Almost no one actually followed the theme. We did enjoy several good homebrews, including my own. At one point, there was even a little side trip to the new brewery downtown. Looks like it's two months away to me. These two nights out just reminded me of what I'm missing.

Then there's this blog. I have had no time to post. You wouldn't believe the number of posts I've started that never see publication. I don't have all those free hours in the late evenings or early mornings just to blog anymore. I have to be in bed by 10:30/11 with the expectation that I have to wake around 5 AM. Then, the morning comes and I have to help with diapers and packing for the nanny and such. The blog just won't fit.

So, I complain a lot about the time I don't have to record shop, go to shows, hang out with beer nerds, and write blog posts.The complaining never stops. I mean, that's what this whole blog is about, right?

Then, I think of this.

I guess I am doing something. I'm probably doing more than a lot of new dads. And does it really matter?

The Biggest Loser

Since high school, I have gained forty pounds. You might not know it by looking at me, but it's true. I played three sports in school and kept myself in really good shape. Of course, I may have been too skinny. The point is that I've put on forty pounds in 16 years.

I attribute this weight-gain to three factors: beer, stress, and work.

I never put on weight until my first year of college. Before then, I ate everything I could (including sprinkling wheat germ on everything I ate) just to put some weight on. College is when I discovered beer. Even then, I could take the weight off by running, working summer camp, or picking up smoking.

After several years of drinking, I put on maybe 10-15 pounds. This amount of weight was fine in that I was probably too skinny in high school. It sort of filled me out. Even R says the weight did me some good.

Then, we moved to Misery. The stress of moving away from friends and family along with a great job teaching in Columbus stressed me out. For anyone who knows me outside this blog, the first two years here were extremely stressful. I finally made a career change and have relieved much of that stress, but the weight gained stayed.

Currently, my job requires me to drive all over central MO. When you're on the road, you make bad eating habits. After 7.5 years of vegetarianism followed by a couple of years of good meat eating, I finally found myself on a fast food diet. My last two years on the job have been rather Morgan Spurlock-like.

On top of all this, my exercising habits have become nonexistent. Getting up early to visit teachers and staying out late to facilitate professional development has left me little time to work out. I've tried at various times, losing the first five pounds from my gains about year ago, only to see it return with five more.

So, the guy who couldn't buy more weight in high school suddenly finds himself 40 pounds over his fighting weight. It's been hard to motivate myself now that my hobbies (blogging, beer) counteract any healthy choices I make.

This week, I feel, is the beginning of me getting back on track. I obtained a jogging stroller last week that has been used twice in the last four days. I even made it out to the gym tonight, making that three-for-four days of working out. While on the road, I've made a conscious decision to not buy junk food. When I do have to eat out, I've made healthy (er) choices.

I'm not totally sure why I'm posting this tonight. Most of you read for the music commentary or to see what beer I've had last. Maybe I'm doing this so that it's on record that I'm trying to become healthier, lose a little weight. I set a goal last December that if I lost 20 of the 40, I could get another tattoo. It's too bad that I've waited so long to commit, but it's better than never committing at all. Right?

Living - and nearly dying - in Misery

Tonight, I hit a deer on my way home from work. I'm OK, but it was pretty scary. The collision went down something like this...

I had just crossed MO-19 where it intersects with MO-54, heading east towards Mexico. (I realize that some of you might be geographically challenged. Mexico the country is actually hundreds of miles south of us. Mexico, MO is like a 35 minute drive from COMO.) As I moved along, I suddenly noticed a deer...I hit the breaks...deer against windshield...skidded...deer flew off as if it was sucked away by a tornado...I stopped in the middle of the road.

I looked around and noticed that I was not in a good spot and needed to move. The truck behind me had stopped and luckily there was no traffic coming in the other direction. I pulled forward and over to the side of the road. The car seem to move and run just fine.

I got out to inspect the damage. The hood and grill were crushed, but the wheels and engine looked pretty OK. There were four or five huge cracks in the corner of the windshield, but it looked to still be intact. There was something splattered all over the windshield - maybe blood but most likely slobber. The best part is that a bunch of the deer's fur was caught in the grill.

The truck behind me pulled up and the driver got out to see if I was OK. I told him I hit a deer. He responded, "Really? I didn't see a deer." As I pointed to where I thought the deer landed, I noticed the deer on the opposite side of the road, hopping through the field as if nothing had happened.

I checked to see that my headlights worked and the guy in the truck followed me as far as Mexico. I then drove the rest of the way to COMO.

Somehow, the car ran fine. So, I figured I'd drive home and deal with it in the morning.

Then, about a half mile outside COMO, the engine began making funny sounds. I hit the hazards and pulled into a gas station parking lot. After getting hit up for some gas money and receiving permission to leave the car overnight, R came to my rescue and took me home.

In the end, I'll have to get my car fixed right away. So, you know what I'll be doing tomorrow morning. There goes another half-day of work. Friday's happy hour can't get here soon enough.

It's just another day in Misery.

A Ho-Hum Record Store Day

Some people get excited for Christmas or St. Patrick's Day. I get up for Record Store Day. This is the day when we celebrate God's gift of records and the independent stores who sell them to the masses. April 18, 2009 is Record Store Day.

Of course, I live in Misery. I've complained (some say "whined") before about the abysmal record store situation in this god-forsaken place. The letdown on my favorite holiday confirmed these feelings.

To be fair, last year's Record Store Day was a great one, hard to equal. Some of us headed to STL for the famous Vintage Vinyl - a real record store - before hitting the New Porno/Okkervil show at the Pageant. VV served PBR to its customers and I picked up some choice records. It was a Record Store Day of which I will tell my grandchildren.

This year was not so great.

For starters, I had to work today. I realize that is not COMO's or Record Store Day's fault. It is what it is. On top of that, it was rainy and miserable all day.

While at work, my sister texted me that she was going to buy me one of those live Pavement LP's at her store in Cincinnati. She quickly dashed my hopes, though when she texted back that there was a limit of one per person.

Eventually, I was able to finish work and head to the only record store officially recognizing Record Store Day in town. Little was going on when I entered Slackers this afternoon. There were supposed to be some bands playing later, but I didn't really have time to check that out. I did wonder however, why last weekend's Bathtime was not held during Record Store Day. I'm sure there's a plausible explanation for this. (An explanation that I'm sure one of the the Bathy kids will share in the comments. In truth, I'm just bummed that I missed the festivities last week.)

I sifted through the vinyl and was not overly impressed. So, I grabbed a Thermals' record I do not yet own and the re-issue of Mission of Burma's Vs. The only Record Store Day exclusives were a few uninteresting seven inches and some freebies. The highlight was the sweet Record Store Day bag and a RSD/Def Jam turntable pad the clerk gave me with my purchase.

Record Store Day this year was a bust. I'm writing this as my sister is witnessing the Breeders in her store. Maybe next year I'll plan to drive to a store and a proper Record Store Day celebration.

How did you Record Store Day pan out?

Some Thoughts About 'living in misery'

When I started this blog, I wanted some way to deal with my (self-diagnosed) depression. I felt that much of my unhappiness was due to my circumstances, including living here. The blog was a place for me to get all of that off my chest.

After a few posts, I realized that it wasn't enough to just write. I wanted someone to read what I was writing and to even comment once in a while. So, I started reading other blogs, leaving comments, and telling anyone I could about lim.

At first, just a few friends would read and comment, but they would mostly talk to me about what I had written over beers or at work. A lot of conversations were started with something I posted. The conversation was what I wanted. And my friends took what I had to say seriously. I mean, they are my friends. Shouldn't they take what I say seriously?

Then, something happened. People I didn't even know began reading the blog and leaving comments. I became real-life friends with some. Others are my friends on Facebook or Twitter; the only thing separating us are actual miles. The conversation grew to include perspectives outside my physical social circle.

Like my friends, these new readers started to pay attention to the content on lim. I don't mean to say that I was replacing the New York Times or even The Columbia Tribune, but people I didn't even know were now reading and discussing my blog.

Of course, along with the fans and followers came the critics, but even they somehow saw me as some sort of authority that needed to be corrected.

Through all of this - nearly 500 posts of it - my readership has grown and so has the interest in what I have to say. That's what gets me. People are actually interested in what I have to say and they often want to be part of that conversation without even knowing me. Somehow I have been given a certain amount of authority just because I'm willing to post my thoughts online, on a public forum.

I want to thank my readers for participating in the conversation. Thank you for keeping me in check when I'm wrong. Thank you for reading even though I'm talking about something you don't care about just to see if I mention something in which you are interested. Thank you for mentioning me to your friends. Thank you for keeping me on your blogroll. Thank you for the shout-outs. Thank you for reading and commenting.

Thanks for living through misery with me.

I'm sorry for the sappy post. I have just been inspired by so many readers and fellow bloggers recently with their own ideas and blog posts. I really am flattered that any of you think I have something worthwhile to say. It's motivated me to keep blogging. That's why this is already the fifth post of the week and it's just Wednesday.

Don't worry. I'll get back to cynicism and hating this place by tomorrow. Come to happy hour at the 'Tag if you happen to be in COMO. Let's have a beer together.

Bathtime

I told you that I'd post something about music really soon...

The boys (and girls or is it grrrl?) at the bathysphere have done something I always wanted to do but never had the time, resources, or local music scene knowledge...They put together a compilation of music by bands from Misery.

The best part is that the rock comes free. You can go to their site here and download the MP3's starting tomorrow for free. Did I mention that it's free?

The other best part is that Bathtime (That's what they're calling it.) includes the following lineup of MO bands...
Burger Kingdom
Cpt. Captain (formerly NASCAR Diarrhea)
In Dark Trees
Nonreturner
Ptarmigan
and many more (not sure who they are)

Oh, and I almost forgot to mention the other bestest part is that there will be a Bathtime party (presumably sans any group bathing) at Slackers on April 11th featuring anywhere from 7 to 15 bands. It's free and you'll receive a hard copy of the album for free. Are you sensing a theme?

Thank god these bathysphere kids are rich enough to give away so much local music. (Actually, I have no idea whether they're rich or not. I'm just impressed that they're giving away so many free tunes.)

That's it for my local music PSA.

Searching for a Blogging Identity...or Blogdentity

I haven't posted much here lately. It seems I've had trouble coming up with topics and narratives to stick in this here HTML-for-dummies they call Blogger. Sure, I haven't had a lot of free time, but that's nothing new. I've found time to blog in the past. Recently, I have struggled in finding this blog's central focus or identity, a blogdentityTM if you will.

I feel that if I could identify what this blog's about, its main theme, then I could figure out what to write next. I thought long and hard about it over the past week. Two hours of driving for my job today was occupied with this puzzle.

Wordle provided my first clue as to running themes and word choice for lim. At first, I tried to use the blog's URL and feed to create a word cloud, but the results seemed skewed toward my most recent posts. To combat this problem and to provide a more random sampling, I pulled the text from about every 25 posts or so, skipping those that were primarily other media. The results can be seen below.

title="Wordle: random living in misery"> src="http://www.wordle.net/thumb/wrdl/683101/random_living_in_misery"
alt="Wordle: random living in misery"
style="padding:4px;border:1px solid #ddd">

I'm not completely sure what to make of the word cloud above.The words "one", "best", "new", and "album" seem to come up the most. "Misery" comes up about as often as "Oberst". "Ohio" and "Obama" to occur as often. No clear message is revealed. I would say that most of what I write is about great new music, but that doesn't account many for other aspects of my life.

Then I decided to check my Google Analytic numbers. Here is some of what I found...
I charted my blog's traffic from the day that Google Analytics has randomly chosen to archive (August 17, 2008) to the present. The highest peak happened to be the day Lucia was born. Apparently, there were a lot of friends checking the site over and over to see if anything had happened. Beyond that (and one random day last November), my numbers have gone up and down, generally trending in the 70-80 range when I post more often and the 40-50 range when I slack. Of course, today I've hit my lowest since September 27th when I was barely blogging at all.
I looked at the ten most visited pages. The main page with the latest post always ranks first, so I'll skip #1. The number two slot has been held down by the same post ever since I started using Google Analytics: "Contemplating Kenny Chesney's Gayness". Believe it or not, this was actually a post about a concert...a concert I never attended, but a post about a concert nonetheless. Next are posts about being an indie rock dad, hipster Christians, and my snarky take on a best of list in COMO. Aside from a couple of sad posts about a friend who committed suicide, various rants about COMO, and several parenting postings, the most visited pages on the blog overwhelmingly have to do with music.

On a side note, the combination of keywords that comes up the most has to do with the whole Kenny Chesney post. In fact, "kenny chesney gay" comes up almost twice as much as the next combination, "living in misery".

I don't know what any of this really has to do with lim's blogdentityTM. It does seem that music comes up the most often. So, maybe that's where I should turn when looking for new content. I did get a new record in the mail. (Guess which one and win a prize.) Maybe I'll post about that.

Either way, thanks for reading and continuing to keep me on your RSS reader despite my lack of production lately. This blog is approaching 500 posts soon. I'd hate to lose any readers because I have writer's block. Look for some new posts really soon.

In the meantime, I'm adding a poll for you to vote on your favorite lim content. It will be near the top right of the page.

List of Things to Do on My Birthday

Drive all over central MO to do my job.

Check.

Continue doing my job until after 5 PM.

Check.

Get home after 6 PM.

Check.

See R for two minutes (not counting the ten she was on the phone with her mother).

Check.

Sit alone, drinking a beer while the baby sleeps.

Check.

Eat some COMO vegan delicacy from Main Squeeze.

Check.

Catch up on last week's Lost while this week's is playing.

Check.

Drink another beer.

Check.

Go to bed.

Check.

This is my birthday in a nutshell. Thanks for all the well-wishes on Facebook, Twitter, etc. I will post something on my shitty experience reserving tickets for True/False.

Reason #3 Why I Live in Misery: What's up with this weather?

I realize that many places are experiencing stranger-than-normal weather patterns. It's 50 one day and snowing the next. Global warming sucks. I get it, Al Gore.

I'm complaining because this is a regular occurrence here in Misery. Some people like that we have all the seasons here. I don't like that we have all four each week.

A typical pattern for a week is a steady increase from say the 20's to the upper 50's over the course of four or five days. Then, we hit a high of like 60 by noon and the temperature would drop from there. By dinner, it would be 20 with a howling wind.

Now there's this week. Today there was a low of 6 degrees. 6. By Saturday, it will be 61. That's just silly.

I hate that you can have no idea what temperature it will be from day to day, unless it's summer. Then the temperature lingers in the 90's, making it impossible to go outside.

So, reason #3 why I live in Misery is the roller coaster weather.

Ten Things to Make COMO Better

I realize that my whining gets on people's nerves, but they should realize...


1. Get a Trader Joe's and/or Whole Foods. I'm all for supporting local, organic grocers, but I have my issues with the prices and food care of certain stores in COMO. The competition and variety these two chains would provide COMO would be very welcome. There is a large store that stands empty just west of downtown. One of these stores would fit perfectly.


2. We need a record store that is the equivalent of Used Kids or at least Vintage Vinyl. OK, so I've harped on this before, but it's worth repeating. Columbus' Used Kids was a weekly mecca for me. It is what record stores are supposed to be: grungy, manned with drunk record snobs, and cheap. STL's Vintage Vinyl would also be an acceptable alternative, as they stock a huge amount of vinyl and an impressive back catalog. Either way, there is no record culture here and I'm starving.


3. Establish a beer bar with 40 or so beers on tap and another 200+ in the bottle. If a town like Asheville, NC can boast several breweries and a couple of these monster tap rooms, COMO should be able to support one. And don't give me this recession crap. Craft beer sales have been on the rise over the several years. It seems people are staying home for their vacations. They have to drink somewhere, I guess.


4. Speaking of beer...COMO needs a beer shop the way Top Ten Wines fills our wine needs. Top Ten Wines is a great spot to get some good wine, a little wine 411, and a chance to meet some characters (no, not just winos). Beer is growing in popularity here, but there is no suitable place to hang out and buy some hard-to-find beer. When I saw Seattle's Bottleworks last spring, I knew exactly what we needed in this town.


5. We need a real Thai restaurant. Bangkok Gardens is not an authentic Thai option. You'd know what I'm talking about if you've ever had authentic Thai cuisine. I always forget how amazing great Thai food until we travel and eat real Thai. The spices and flavors are otherworldly. Trust me.


6. Why isn't there a gay bar in the District? There are two gay bars (that I know of) in COMO. Neither are anywhere near downtown. How can you have a hopping club scene or downtown with no gay clubs? I've often complained about the lack of diversity in this town, this is only another example of such hegemony.


7. A Banana Republic would greatly help our clothing options. I realize this seems weird coming from my blog, but a BR or some equivalent would certainly up the shopping options, if not people's wardrobes. Besides, it would make my professional (and tall) partner rather happy.


8. We had this place called North Star in Columbus. We need one here too. There is no place in COMO that combines the tasty, organic sensibilities of Uprise with the down-home earthiness and variety of Cafe Berlin. Even imagining the combination of these two fine restaurants doesn't compare to North Star. This joint paid employees living wages and provided benefits. All there food was within a small radius of Columbus. Oh, and I forgot to mention that it was really good and vegetarian-friendly. (Besides, if the urinals at North Star look this good, don't you think we need one too?)


9. Lawrence, Kansas gets a way better concert lineup than COMO. Why is that? We are located within two hours of two major cities on a major highway. We area bigger town. Why do we suffer through so many seasons (particularly winter) with virtually no worthwhile shows. I guess we could all go see Tapes 'n Tapes again. Ugh.


10. A train. We need a train. With the energy crisis what it is and major cities so-close-yet-so-far, we need another way to travel. A train that connects KC, COMO, and STL would be great for starters, but imagine that line connected to trains that head to Colorado or Chicago or New Orleans? Imagine the energy savings, jobs created, and additional geographic access.

So, those are just a few of my ideas for making this a better place. I'm sure my COMO readers have more ideas than these ten. Also, if you know of any of the places I mentioned, back me up and tell people just how good they are.

This might be my only post of the week. Work has me swamped and I have to finish preparing a conference presentation...on blogging. So, don't worry if Friday hits and there's no more Misery to brighten your day. I'll be back.

Reason #2 Why I Live in Misery: Drivers Here Can't Drive in Snow

Ever since the first dusting of our first winter here, I have noticed that MO drivers are petrified of ice and snow. Cold, wet conditions causes them to drive irrationally slow on roads that can be more accurately described as damp-at-worst. The result is that it takes me twice as long to get places as soon as the first snowflakes fall or the first patch of black ice develops.

You may just think that I am overreacting to drivers in town that are careful on pre-plowed side streets, but I drive all over the middle of Misery for my job (and to reach a decent city once in a while). So, I have plenty of experience with Misery drivers. They just can't drive in the snow.

What's even more peculiar here about some drivers is that they won't even attempt to drive at the slightest inkling of inclement weather. I'm only from Ohio. It's not like we get tons more snow than Misery. Sure, Cleveland does, but I grew up nowhere near Lake Erie. The rest of the state gets moderately more snow than this place, but not much. A foot of snow won't stop me from going to the store, visiting a friend, or attending a Band of Horses show in STL.

Come on people! Pump your breaks. Downshift once in a while. It's not that hard.

I Need a New Look

I have been sporting the jeans, rock band t-shirt, and hoodie for a long time now. Sure, I've veered into other territory from time to time, but rarely too far or far enough never to return. Now I believe it's time for a change.

I'm getting up there in years (34 next month) and have new responsibilities as a dad. I want to dress for the job I want, not the one I have. It's time for a new look.

I realize that this is somewhat superficial, but a makeover just feels right at the moment.

So, I am asking for the help of my readers in deciding which direction I should go. First, I'd like to share some fashion trends I will not follow. Then, I'd like to share some inspiration for the next phase in the comoprozac look. You can leave your thoughts in the comments. So, if you have a better idea, tell me. Also, if you think this is ridiculous, I welcome that line of thinking as well.

First, the rejects...

I will not be that sports nut who wears his football jersey and Zubaz pants. Actually, I won't even wear a jersey. Sorry.

While I have to agree that Han Solo was bad-ass, I won't be wearing that low-cut shirt and vest any time soon.
Do I need to explain why this next one would not work for me? At the very least, I am too old for this. I'll leave this look for the kids.


I've worn this for pretty much ten to fifteen years straight...


Except when I was dressed like this for work...

Now, I'd like to find something that can mesh both my private and professional lives with a little bit of style. This is what I'm thinking...

Maybe a little of this when the occasion calls for it...


But probably not this...


And certainly not this (particularly not Carlos D)...


So, that's it. I'm trying to avoid jeans, t-shirts, hipster threads, Carlos D, and Zubaz pants. I'm trying to be the sixth member of the Walkmen...in fashion sense only.

I feel like if I can make a simple little change to clothes I wear that I might be able to enjoy this place and my station in life. It's not as sad as that just sounded, but it holds a lot of truth.

Any thoughts? I can take the jokes and criticism. I mean, if you think Carlos D is a god and that I'm wasting every second that I don't grow a mustache from the wild west, then let me know.

(This is what happens when you drink too much coffee in the evening.)

Jury Duty in Misery

I have been on call for jury duty this week. What that means is I have to call the courthouse every day after 4:00 pm to see if I'm needed for possible jury selection. Today, my number was up.

The day got off to a grand start as the parking garage was full, so I had to go search out a spot on the street at a meter, hoping that I wouldn't get a ticket (which I didn't, but five dollars is five dollars). Eventually I made it to my destination.

I was given a number and asked to sit in a room of 35 or so other randomly selected jurors. Meanwhile, a deputy read us some rules and showed a terrible video about the history of courthouse and its procedures. (I never realized the columns that once held up the original courthouse mirror those columns on MU's campus. No one has ever told me that before even though it's so vital to my job as a juror.)

After sitting around and loading up on bad coffee, we were ushered into the courtroom - a brand new courtroom - for the next step in jury selection. We were informed that the defendant was fighting a moving violation on a revoked license. It was no murder or rape trial, but I guess it was important enough to the defendant that we all be there today.

The judge made a few bad jokes and asked if everyone could be fair in placing judgment on the defendant. Then the prosecutor asked if anyone had had bad experiences with police. A couple of people felt it necessary to share all of their convictions while another man decided to wait in order to share privately. Then the defense did a little of the same.

The public defender also did something a little different, she asked to hear from each of the potential jurors who had not spoken yet. I was one of those jurors. My big secret to tell was that I socialized and shared a nanny with a public defender. That was my ticket home. My friend once told me that a juror who socializes with public defenders are always the first to get booted from a jury by the prosecution.

So, my day of jury duty ended with no drama or excitement. I've already called in to see if I'm to show up tomorrow, but I am not needed. My hope is that there is nothing on Friday. Who wants to be sequestered with a bunch of strangers on a Friday?

I mixed feelings about jury duty. On one hand, I feel it is a responsibility of citizens to serve time in a jury. On the other hand, I had way more important things to do than to sit around for three hours, hopped up on bad coffee just to be sent home. The defendant certainly deserved a fair trial, but was his little moving violation really worthy of the time and resources spent today?

Either way, I may have to go back on Friday. Otherwise, there will be no jury duty in Boone County for another year.

I was hoping to fill this space with a review of the new Animal Collective album, Merriweather Post Pavilion, but Insound informed me that the album is on back order. That's good news for Animal Collective and bad news for me.