Late-night post that went longer than I planned.

I was perusing Facebook this afternoon and came across a status update from an acquaintance, not really much of a friend. The update upset me, and I hurriedly copied it to use later in this post. This acquaintance wrote:

"Dear Lord Obama, please increase teacher salary or cut my taxes so that I can take home the money I earn instead of paying for the following: 1. Medicare and Medicaid (I pay for my own insurance, thanks ;-), 2. Some skank-meth-addicts 5th drug baby 3. Food stamps of those who will never do anything to pay society back. Love, C. Montgomery Burns." (name obviously changed)

I normally don't scoff at all when this stuff all too frequently appears on Facebook, but for some reason, this upset me. I'm not going to write a lot about this, but I will say a few things in my own little letter.

"Dear C. Montgomery Burns, shouldn't the free market determine your wages? Don't like what you're earning, get a different job or complain to the free market. Your 'letter' displays an alarming lack of compassion, not that compassion is commonly associated with conservatism or anything, but I'd expect a little more from you. You and I both, after all, spent two years of our lives trying to help people live better and happier lives. Not that the government necessarily needs to be the body to extend compassion to people, but history has shown that treating one another with compassion has not been high on mankind's list of priorities. What did James say about religion pure and undefiled? I feel like your views are shortsighted, not to mention selfish. You probably don't have any kind of preexisting condition which would preclude you from receiving affordable health insurance. You have a job, however low-paying the salary may be. You are fortunate and should consider yourself lucky. Everyone isn't that fortunate, however. And yes, people can and should work to improve their lot in life, but you do not know people's circumstances and are really in no position to judge them or determine how worthy they are of aid. But maybe you're right. Maybe we can't possibly worry about helping other people until we first worry about ourselves and make sure that we have all we want. Thank you for your timely Facebook status update."

It's been a good week for concerts. I saw two bands I had wanted to see for a very long time. Sunny Day Real Estate played a reunion show with the original lineup, playing mostly songs from their first two albums, and it was amazing. They sounded just like I hoped they would. They played with a lot of energy and intensity. They played a fantastic set and were very tight. The lead guitarist had a huge grin on his face throughout the entire show, and it always made me happy when I saw it. Having been a fan since I first heard them as a teenager (many moons ago), I never thought I would have a chance to see them live. I'm grateful I did. Then later in the week I saw Autolux with my boys Andrew and Whitney, and it was one of the loudest shows I've ever been to. Autolux were incredible and put out an incredible wall of sound for a trio. We were bombarded with sound, standing only a few feet from the small stage. Each member of the band was off in their own little world, doing their own thing, but they were always right with each other. The drummer, Carla Azar, was incredible to watch. She is an amazing drummer. During the set, she rarely smiled or showed any emotion. She seemed very focused, very into what she was playing, almost oblivious to everything else going on around her. Then after the show, she was at the band's merch table. Andrew, Whitney, and I dropped by because we wanted shirts. (I bought a band shirt for the first time since I saw the Wrens in Seattle in December 2005). At the table, Carla was smiling and laughing, very friendly. I told her I really enjoyed the set and thought the new songs they played were fantastic. (Their second album will finally be released after New Year - it's been over five years since they released their perfect debut album). I was pleasantly surprised with the difference in her on-stage and off-stage demeanor. Let it be know, I love Autolux. They put on an amazing show, and I hope to see them again someday. Hopefully my ears will have recovered by then.

In other music news, I have been listening to The XX a lot this week. I first heard them months ago on NPR, and I was very impressed then. The band consists of four 20 year old Brits. Their songs are quite low-key and feature a lot of back and forth, boy-girl vocals. I'm astounded that 20 year-olds are making music this refined and mature. They're not overcompensating for songwriting deficiencies with volume or enthusiasm. They just write very, very solid songs. Their debut album is perfect for listening to at night with a set of quality headphones. I recommend the song "Crystalised" as a good introduction.

I will now attempt to sleep so I can wake up, finish cleaning my bedroom and bathroom for cleaning checks, and play an intramural football game. Adieu.

Go mighty Cougars!

I should have written this earlier, but it's been a crazy week. Last week saw the return of college football, and all was well in the (sports) world again. Ever since I heard that BYU was in talks to play Oklahoma in their season opener for 2009, I was worried. That worry grew when Florida defeated Oklahoma in the BCS championship game, and Sam Bradford and Co. announced that they would return for another season. Only winning a championship could motivate players guaranteed millions in the NFL to return for another season. With that kind of motivation, I figured the entire Oklahoma team would have a chip on its shoulder all season.

However much I feared Oklahoma, I never wrote off BYU's chances because in college football anything can happen. That fact became the basis of my hope that BYU could pull of an incredible upset. Whenever people asked me how I thought the game would turn out, I would answer that the logical part of me thought Oklahoma would win, but the rest of me was holding onto that one beautiful truth that anything could happen.

It's gameday. Twenty-five people crowd into the living room of my apartment. The game is dead even. The atmosphere is electric. Everyone is cheering loudly. I jump to my feet and high five nearly everyone in the room after every great play. The little blue wind-up dancing robot leads us in our celebration dance. We run around the apartment complex and yell after each of BYU's two touchdowns and after the final whistle blows. Provo is full of celebration. We drive down the streets slowly. I honk my car's horn. We all yell and put our index fingers into the air triumphantly. Crowds of people are gathered on street corners, all of them cheering loudly and happily. A rally is quickly organized to meet the players when their plane lands in the early morning hours. The college football world is stunned, and Provo is content, ecstatic, and optimistic. College football is back, and the Cougars have burst onto the scene with one of their biggest victories of all-time.

It really was an intense and incredible game. I have never been in a better atmosphere for watching a road game on TV. Many props to everyone who watched the game in my apartment. I'll never forget the game or my experience watching it. I'd like to forget the monstrous bratwurst sandwich thing my roommate Jeremy concocted; it was delicious but later destroyed my innards. Earlier that day, before the game started, I was speaking with a friend who said she couldn't understand the appeal in watching sports on television. I tried to explain to her why I love watching sports, but I wasn't very successful. Had she watched the game with us, I think she might finally understand.

A few observations made during and after the game:

• DEFENSE! How great was the BYU defense? That goal line stand was epic. I am now very proud that my #1 jersey, which used to be Fui Vakapuna's number, is now being sported by Pendleton, the outside linebacker. He had a fantastic game and, along with Andrew Rich, the safety, was the most pleasant surprise of the evening. Let's hope the Cougar defense continues to play with such ferocity. Props to Coach Hill for calling a great game and constantly confusing Oklahoma's inexperienced offensive line and putting pressure on Bradford. Clawson is a beast.
• I feel like this game could be for Max Hall what the 2006 TCU game was for John Beck: a season and career-defining performance. Let's hope this victory will give Max the confidence and poise to take on other high-powered defenses (TCU, Utah). The nine minute fourth quarter drive was superb. It was later revealed that Hall called all of his own plays until reaching the red zone, and that impressed me a lot.
• Play of the game (other than the goal line stand): the fourth-down conversion during the epic fourth quarter drive. On 3rd and long, J.J. Di Luigi manages to pick up a couple yards on a draw play. Immediately the team lines up and snaps the ball, and Hall finds Pitta for what turns out to be a twenty yard gain. What impressed me most was the fact that the play was called in the huddle on third down. The team knew exactly what to do, and Oklahoma's defense was left reeling by BYU's perfect execution.
• This game was won by BYU. True, Bradford's injury changed things, but anyone who watched the game knows that BYU was outplaying Oklahoma even with Bradford in the game. Take away BYU's turnovers, and Oklahoma wouldn't have scored in the first half. Anyone wanting to play the injury card ought to remember that BYU was playing without Harvey Unga. While Kariya played spectacularly as Unga's replacement, Unga brings a whole new dimension to the BYU offense. Had he played, BYU would have won by a larger margin.
• It was just one game. True, but it was just one amazing game, one of the biggest in BYU's history. Go ahead and celebrate it. Too many wet-blanket pessimists have been coming out of the woodwork, trying to discount the victory and act as if we shouldn't enjoy it. It's not every day, or decade, that we beat a Top 5 opponent. As long as the players continue to prepare well and focus their attentions on the next game at hand, everything will be okay. There's no need to repress the celebrations. I, for one, think every second of the celebration was earned. I hope to celebrate many more victories this season. People need to enjoy life and not worry about protecting themselves from disappointment and pain. Every Cougar fan suffered through last season's losses, but this is a new season and a new team.
• I am a believer in this BYU team.

I have been way too excited for the next game against Tulane, and I am relieved that it is just over fifteen hours away. Go Cougars!

The Beatles: Rock Band

TWO THUMBS UP!

I picked up my copy of The Beatles: Rock Band today and finally got around to playing it around 9:30 p.m. Nearly four hours later, I can say that it is a great game. I always imagined that playing with six people at once (guitar, bass, drums, and three vocalists) would be great, but I didn't know just how great it would turn out to be. While we didn't hit many of the three-point harmonies perfectly, there were moments of sublime harmonization. It's going to be a lot of fun learning and mastering the different parts. I even played the bass and sang during the Apple Corps rooftop, made possible by a neighboring apartment's mic stand. It was difficult but still a lot of fun.

I am excited for the downloadable content, especially the Abbey Road Side B medley, and I'm sure my love for this game will only continue to grow.

Anyway, time for golden slumbers.

And in the end...

...the beard you take is equal to the beard you make.

I have been bearded since the end of the intramural basketball season in March, but the end is in sight for my current beard. I have grown quite attached to this beard, or perhaps saying it has grown quite attached to me is more apt. Anyway, intramural soccer starts next Wednesday, and I must shave. The sacrifice will be worth it because we have more talent on our roster than I've played with on any intramural soccer team. I am very excited to play.

The shaving of the beard will take place in a gradual process. I plan to initiate phase one tomorrow afternoon. If all goes according to plan, I will post a photo on this blog. That is all for now.

A few words

I am now involved in a social experiment of sorts. I'm not going to go into details right now, but this so-called experiment will lead to more writing. How much of that writing will end up on this blog is uncertain, but there will be more writing.

Just felt like posting something since it's late and I'm still awake.