...it totally cracked me up. I think a lot of those Bud Light commercials are hilarious. Too bad the beer isn’t any better.

Posted by pat at 09:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Look. It’s very simple.

It’s = It is

That’s all there is to it. If you aren’t sure if something should be “its” or “it’s,” just substitute “it is.” If that doesn’t make sense, then lose the apostrophe.

I won’t get into speculation as to when or how our schools stopped teaching basic grammar, especially the past participle form of verbs. I held my tongue for years when people would say things like “He had drank too much,” figuring they thought the word “drunk” might be misunderstood in that context. But since I heard an NPR reporter actually say “We had went earlier,” I guess we can safely call game over. If you never learned that every verb has three forms and not just two*, you’re probably not going to learn them all now.

But it’s and its? Simple. Don’t make me explain this again, okay?

*Yes, I know, in some verbs the past and past participle are the same, i.e., "jump, jumped, has jumped.” My point is, in some verbs they’re not the same and if you claim to speak English you should know that.

Posted by pat at 10:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I wasn’t going to do any more TMI surveys. But since Stephanie and Christy and a couple other friends did, and I thought theirs were entertaining, I will too. We all swear this is the last one:

1. Do you still have items that belong to your ex?
   Yes, she still has a lot of clothes and books here, but neither of us can afford shipping. And I haven’t had time to organize it, anyway.
2. Do you have a date this weekend?
   No. Are you busy?
3. Can you live without the computer?
   Hard to imagine. Most of my work and most of my play is done on it. Or them, rather.
4. Are you trying to avoid liking somebody at the moment?
   No. I try to avoid licking most people, though.
5. Do you get along with guys or girls better?
   I get along fine with both, but most of my closest friends are women.
6. If you could bring back anyone that has passed who would it be?
   I miss my mom, but she was ready to go. I wouldn’t ask for her back.
7. Do you hide your emotions?
   Not on purpose.
8. What book are you reading?
   Becoming a Successful Producer/Engineer by Bill Gibson. It’s okay.
9. Who is the last person you had an argument with?
   Probably Howard, about how to record or mix something. Not really an argument, and I don’t remember whose opinion we went with.
10. Do you prefer to take showers at night or in the morning?
    Morning.
11. When was the last time you had pizza?
    Sunday night. In the shower.
12. What is the last movie you saw in a theater?
    Oh god, it’s been several years. I can’t remember.
13. What do you wish you had right now at this moment?
    Time and money. I guess that makes me unique, right?
14. When was the last time you got really upset?
    When I found out I was going to get stuck with someone else’s debt.
15. Has someone ever made you a Build-A-Bear?
    That sounds frightening.
16. Worst relationship mistake you wish you could take back?
    Painful as they have been, both of us always learned from them, so I don’t suppose I would take any of them back.
17. Has anybody ever given you butterflies?
    Yes.
18. When you see new people, do you critique how they look or act?
    If you mean, am I judgmental, not generally. But of course I evaluate whether they are interesting, whether they’re somebody I’d like to know better or avoid in the future, and so forth.
19. Do you have nice eyes?
    I’ve been told I do. They’re a lot nicer when I’ve had enough sleep or my allergies aren’t acting up!
20. What is something you need to go shopping for?
    My Target list this morning: generic Claritin, dishwashing powder, kitchen bags, face scrub. And return a lampshade that doesn’t fit.
21. Whose birthday is coming up?
    Reek (Monday).
22. Were you happy when you woke up?
    No, I was sleepy. I’m a very slow starter, and I rarely get enough sleep.
23. How old do you think you will be when you finally have kids?
    Not in this lifetime, with any luck.
24. What's your favorite restaurant?
    Probably Korma Sutra. Indian food.
25. Do you think you have made a difference in anyone's life?
    I would like to think so. Hopefully a positive one.
26. What was the last thing you cried about?
    How much everything sucks.
27. Do you tend to make relationships complicated?
    No.
28. Would you do anything to have someone back in your life?
    No one I can think of.
29. What do you think of people who have their name tattooed on them?
    I like Stephanie’s answer: what, they can’t remember?
30. What are you currently thinking about?
    That I should stop doing this and get some work done.
31. When's the perfect time to have a boyfriend/girlfriend?
    It’s not about time, it’s about the person.
32. What are the last spoken words you heard?
    From a client: “Well, just let me know if you need anything.”
33. What song are you listening to?
    “Our Last Night” by Howard Iceberg. We added vocal harmonies last night and I didn’t even notice it was going through my mind until this question.
34. Where were you on new years?
    Playing a gig in Carrollton, MO.
35. Do you plan on moving in the next year?
    Oh please no.
36. Why do you like the person you like?
    I like lots of people. Because they’re likable.
37. What's the best feature of yourself?
    I try to do the right thing.
38. Are you ticklish?
    Unfortunately yes. I am easily tortured.
39. Who's thinking about you right now?
    Maybe Christy—we’re supposed to have lunch in a little while.
40. What color is your favorite?
    I tend to like combinations rather than single colors, like orange-red with midnight blue, or light gray with olive, or lately, magenta with hot pink. Single colors are like musical notes, and I like chords. And chord progressions.
41. A - is for age:
    Old enough to know better.
42. B - is for beer of choice:
    Bass is pretty damn good. Or Harp, or some of the Boulevard seasonal beers, like Irish Ale, Nutcracker Ale, Bob’s 47 lager.
43. C - is for career right now:
    Musician/engineer. And web designer, which is what I should be working on right now.
44. D - is for your dog's name?
    No dog, many cats.
45. E - is for essential item you use every day:
    Toothpaste
46. F - is for favorite TV show at the moment:
    The Daily Show
47. G - is for favorite game:
    I don’t often play games. Scrabble is probably the last one.
48. H - is for Home town:
    Wichita, KS
49. I - is for instruments you play:
    Drums, a little piano
50. J - is for favorite juice:
    Grapefruit
51. K - is for whose butt you'd like to kick:
    My bank, and I plan on doing it later.
52. L - is for last place you ate:
    Home. Last night: M & S Grill on the Plaza—very good!
53. M - is for marriage:
    I mostly liked it. It’s all about marrying the right person, though.
54. N - is for your full name:
    Pat Douglas Tomek
55. O - is for overnight hospital stays:
    Once, a few years ago, for a botched colonoscopy. Five days with a tube through my nose pumping my stomach. That was not fun, but at least I didn’t have to have surgery.
56. P - is for people you were with today:
    No one yet. Later—lunch with Christy, recording session with Howard, rehearsal with Rockhill.
57. Q - is for quote:
    “Your food makes my poo smell funny” — on the dressing room wall of a club we played in Berlin.
58. R - is for Biggest Regret:
    Not sticking with piano lessons.
59. S - is for status:
    Single.
60. T- is for time you woke up today:
    7:30
61. U - is for underwear you have on now:
    I can’t believe anyone would actually want to know anything about my underwear.
62. V - is for vegetable you love:
    Asparagus.
63. W - is for worst habit:
    Taking on more than I can do.
64. X - is for x-rays you've had:
    Dental x-rays, probably some when I was in the hospital, once when I broke some ribs.
65. Y - is for yummy food you ate today:
    Indian food buffet! (I’m back from lunch now)
66. Z - is for the zodiac sign:
    Sun in Virgo, Moon in Aquarius, ascendant Cancer.

There. TMI.

Posted by pat at 08:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

I am so glad that someone had the courage to say this about John McCain. Everything Phillip Butler says in the article has been documented somewhere else, but it is valuable to hear it from someone who has known McCain since Annapolis and who was a fellow POW.

Via Digby, where dday wryly notes the amount of media coverage this article will not get. Meanwhile, we’re bombarded with stories about the new Corsi book about Obama. Even though his Swift Boat book about John Kerry was completely discredited, and his new book does things like simultaneously trying to claim Obama is a secret Muslim and a member of a radical black church, the media is lining up to give him a megaphone for whatever outrageous crap he can spew.

Meanwhile, the Butler article (which came out five months ago—had you heard about it? I hadn’t) languishes in the archives of military.com. Maybe because Butler tries to be even-handed, gives McCain credit for his courage and service as he explains why he personally will not vote for McCain. Mostly I think it’s because he says the unthinkable: Being a POW does not qualify you to be President of the United States. They are, as he says, two different jobs.

Posted by pat at 03:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

On NPR’s Morning Edition this morning I heard a little item mentioned in passing that made me gasp (unfortunately I can’t find a link to the story on their website).

The American women’s water polo team had a big win, and to celebrate, someone was playing the song “American Woman” over the PA system.

Are you kidding me? American Woman? In case you’re not familiar with the song, it was by the Canadian band The Guess Who, and it’s basically about resenting and resisting the encroachment of American culture. For instance:

I don’t need your war machine
I don’t need your ghetto scene
Colored lights can hypnotize
Sparkle someone else’s eyes
Now woman get away from me
American woman mama let me be

That says “Go USA water polo!” to me, all right…. It’s right up there with that Lee Jeans commercial a few years ago using Creedence Clearwater’s “Fortunate Son” for music (lyrics here). I think the point probably was Fogerty singing the words “red white and blue,” but nobody seemed to notice that the song was about how it was the sons of the poor and not the elite who were doing the fighting and dying in Vietnam. Oh well. You’re just supposed to buy this stuff, not listen to it.

Posted by pat at 01:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I saw this in my browser the other night, don’t remember what site I was on. It was so stupidly funny I had to take a screenshot:

There seems no end to the ways this is just wrong, starting with “a young beautiful women.” I haven’t gone to the site, so I have no idea if it makes any sense. I’m still grappling with the idea that owning a Hummer could make you attractive to young beautiful womans. Of course, maybe that’s just the circle I run with: the reactions of the women I know, upon sight of a Hummer, range from eye-rolling and making barfing sounds to waving the “teeny peeny” sign.

Anyway, that’s the closest to a moment of Zen I’ve run into lately.

Update: I had to see what the site was about—apparently it’s to hook up guys with foreign brides. Maybe the kind of person who would consider doing that would also consider buying a Hummer to make himself more attractive. Ya gotta wonder….

Posted by pat at 11:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

(Sung to the melody of “Born Under a Bad Sign”): If it wasn’t for (stupid) surveys, I wouldn’t have no writing at all…. Really, this one was more interesting than most. Believe it or not, I only post a small fraction of the surveys I receive.

What happened at 9:00 am today?
I was on the treadmill.

What do you want in your life right now?
Money. Love. Sex. Actually, the second one isn’t quite right—there are a number of people who love me, just not “that way.”

Are you wearing anything you borrowed from someone?
Only my underwear—just kidding!

What is the last thing someone bought you?
A guy I didn’t know paid for my beer at the Record Bar last week. That was nice of him. I guess he recognized me from the Rainmakers—Bob Walkenhorst was playing at the time.

Where did you last eat?
Other than home, it might have been Quizno’s. Maybe sushi at Sakura a couple weeks ago. I’ve been really busy and really broke (how is that possible?), and rarely eat out.

What were you doing at 7:30PM last night?
Talking to a ZZ Top tribute band about doing their website.

What did you do today?
Cleaned, exercised, showered, emailed and phone called, worked on a tropical jewelry website, did a 3-hour edit session with Howard Iceberg, went to Target and PetSmart, talked to Christy on the phone (didn’t realize how much I had missed her), fixed dinner, processed photos and did a Flash slideshow for the jewelry site, watched the Daily Show, and somehow roped myself into answering this survey. Pretty typical day.

What are you doing right now besides this survey?
Listening to Morphine.

What was the last movie you watched?
A really disturbing Chinese movie called Dumplings, on the IFC channel. Good movie, but creepy.

Why did your parents give you the name you have?
I am named for my maternal grandfather, whose name was Henry but went by Pat. He died in an accident a couple years before I was born. As the oldest grandson it was pretty much inevitable I would have his name—not that I mind.

What is something you say when you are mad?
Fucking SHIT!!!

Is there anyone you wish was still in your life?
Sure. I’ve had lots of great friends whom I’ve lost touch with over the years.

Are you taller than your mom?
Yeah. I’m 5'10", she was 5'3".

What are you listening to right now?
Ivy, “Blame It On Yourself.” From one of my all-time favorite albums, Long Distance.

Describe yourself…
Smart, creative, geeky. Most people tell me I’m quiet, though it doesn’t seem it to me. Polite, a bit distant unless it appears we have something in common.

What did you do yesterday?
Didn’t we just do this? I’d rather talk about tomorrow: 9 am to noon or so, work on a DVD project with a client here. 2 to 5 pm or so, another edit session with Howard. 7 to 10 pm, rehearsal with Issues. Which reminds me, I have three songs to learn before I go to bed tonight.

You're sitting at home alone bored, who do you call/txt?
Boredom sounds kinda good at this point. I’ve been too busy too long…. Probably Angela, or Shenon, or Christy, or Steph, or Reek. Depends on who might be around.

Does anyone like you right now?
Sure, lots of people. Unless you mean like me “that way,” in which case no one that I know of.

Who was the last person who hugged you/you hugged?
Oddly, it was a group hug in the parking lot of the Record Bar last week. After sitting in with the band for the last song, we were all hanging out in the parking lot before heading home. So I actually hugged Bob, Norm, Jeff, and Brent.

What is your mood right now?
Tired but wired, worried about a situation, a little discouraged about my progress on a bunch of things, but determined to see it through. Because I don’t know what else I can do.

What are you looking forward to?
Sleep sounds good. I’m about due for a drink, too.

Are you gonna be home alone tonight?
I am, and I nearly always am. Don’t get me wrong—I like to spend a lot of time alone. I could stand for it to be less, though.

Is your myspace profile private?
Nope.

Feel free to send me your own answers! (ptomek AT kc.rr.com)

Posted by pat at 11:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)