Blogrophenia: The Reverend Aton's Site

I know I promised that I would post reviews from all of Pearl Jam's albums and I will, just running behind a schedule AND decided to hit the Yankees game tonight for Kazmir v. Mussina. . .

The Jordan Rules

So Friday night I am hanging out and I get a call from my friend Nesharatu who tells me that I need to go up to Club Macanudo to meet him and a crew for this girl Colleen's birthday. I'm kind of like 'whatever' b/c me and Colleen don't really get along, then Nesharatu informs me that Michael Jordan is at the end of the bar. I head up there.

I look over at him and he is hanging out in a nice suit, no jacket and smoking a cigar and hanging with a bunch of very well dressed dudes (possibly some current or former players, I was looking for Charles Oakley but couldn't see him) and a gorgeous black woman. I order a beer and enjoy the moment when I notice that they are leaving and filing out right by me. As Jordan approaches me, I hold up my cell phone on which I've downloaded the Duke Blue Devil symbol (because, of course, he went to rival UNC), Jordan smiles gives me a high five leans over and asks: "You play lacrosse?"

Sometimes I dream,
That he is me,
You've got to see,
That's how I dream to be,
Moses

Bush Can't Get No Satisfaction

Good for rock god and musical genious Mick Jagger in not giving up his suite to Bush. Mick is on the record ripping Bush and his hypocritical and inane policies.

You call yourself a Christian,
I call you a hypocrite,
You call yourself a patriot,
well I think you're full of shit,
Moses

Mexogynist

I am not sure that Keith "Mex" Hernandez deserves all the heat he's getting for his comments. Citing it as a distraction he stated that "women don't belong in the dugout". While he showed poor judgement in saying this in not anticipating a backlash and while I personally don't agree with him, he's entitled to his opinion, I think.

He's a good broadcaster and his honesty and courage have always been his strength, let's not kill him for having an old school belief that many share and that really isn't all that big a deal anyway. . .

Hey all I really want is Girls!,
Moses

NY Post: You're Ugly Eddie!

The mean spirited NY Post is at it again, this time ripping Eddie Vedder. Is anyone or anything off limits to this paper? Now they're ripping people's looks? Jeez, the writers at this rag have the maturity of your average 13 year old (actually that may be giving them too much credit).

Pearl Jam

We are just a bit over a week from the release of Pearl Jam's eighth latest eponymous album. In honor of this, we here at Blogrophenia will be taking a comprehensive look at their work over the following week or so. . .

I have tasted,
A life wasted,
Moses

Old Dylan, New Young and Protest Songs

Interesting post by one of Andrew Sullivan's guest posters on his blog about old Dylan and new Neil Young.

There's nothing you can do that can't be done,
Nothing you can sing that can't be sung,
Nothing you can say but you can learn how to play the game,
It's easy,
Moses

Music Mags

The latest Rolling Stone looks pretty good what with the cover story and a review of Pearl Jam's new album, I'll be sure to pick it up. That said I haven't really enjoyed any music mag on a regular basis in a long time. My subscription to Spin just ended and I won't be renewing. Among many other things they try way too hard to be cutting edge. Probably Mojo or NME are the best mags out there right now and even they have declined. Well, I suppose I should just enjoy this issue of Rolling Stone for now and hope for the best.

I can't get no satisfaction,
Moses

The Young is So Restless

We are beggnng to see the very nascent disasterous returns on the Bush administration. The jig is up he's failed in so many ways. Here's Neil Young calllng out his bloodline via an entire album!

I hope Neil Young will remember,
Moses

Rummy

Things have just gotten flat ugly as more and more demand his resignation and while some are rallying around him this position has increasingly become indefensible. . .

So let us not talk falsely now,
The hour's getting late,
Moses

Movie Review: Scary Movie Four

Bad news: It's just more of the same. Good news: That same is very funny and entertaining. There really isn't much to say about this movie, if you've seen any of the previous iterations of this flick and liked them then you'll dig this one. It's a good light movie to see after a long day or to start out a weekend.

My favorite parts: The hilarious opening scene where Shaq and Dr. Phil have to work together to save themselves and Shaw has to hit a free throw to save his own life. Great stuff, especially for us Heat fans. Funny rips on Brokeback and, of course, the obligatory M. Night Shamalayan mocking. . .

Exciting and interesting news about Pearl Jam in this Reuters article. . . It's difficult to overstate how excited about this new album I am. . . If you missed them on SNL btw don't fret you can catch them on Letterman in a few weeks. . . Lest I am accussed of obsessing too much about Pearl Jam let me note that I am almost equally pumped for Audioslave's newest album that Morello describes as "Led Zeppelin meets Earth, Wind & Fire.". . . In Yankee news the Yankees, as I write this seem to be on their way to salvaging the final game of a three game tilt in Minny, speaking of which the interesting new out of there it that it appears jacked three today. . . He's pretty good. . .

Happy Easter: Be Not Afraid

From Pope Benedict's Inaugral Mass as Pope, just about a year ago:

"Are we not perhaps all afraid in some way? If we let Christ enter fully into our lives, if we open ourselves totally to Him, are we not afraid that He might take something away from us?...And once again the Pope said: No! If we let Christ into our lives, we lose nothing, nothing, absolutely nothing of what makes life free, beautiful and great. No! Only in this friendship do we experience beauty and liberation....When we give ourselves to Him, we receive a hundredfold in return. Yes, open, open wide the doors to Christ – and you will find true life"

They don't understand, they don't know what you mean
They don't get it,
I wanna scream I wanna breathe again, I wanna dream
I wanna float a quote from Martin Luther King
I am not afraid,
Moses

Movie Review: Lucky Number Slevin

In brief: The Usual Suspects meets Tarantino. Somewhat clever plotline, good dialogue and some fun action. Worthwhile weekday getaway movie for those looking for a short escape, but ultimately forgettable. Willis is a hitman yet again and has proven he can do this well. Lucy Lui doesn't have the stuff to be a leading lady, Harnett should have faded by now, probably will be soon. . .

Theater Review: The Odd Couple

Lane and Broderick are miscast as Oscar Madison and Felix Unger respectively. Lane is far too effeminate to pull off a slovenly sportswriter and Broderick's Unger while much better than Lane's attempt at Madison is not enough to carry the show. Bottom line: The only reason to see this show is if you missed this duo in The Producers and just really want to see them on Broadway. At any rate, it's tantamount to having seen Willie Mays as a Met, worthwhile for bragging rights, but ultimately empty. . .

Movie Review: Thank You For Smoking

Interesting movie with a sense of humor and a rare libertarian theme. The movie moves along well, keeps you smiling and occasionally laughing out loud and even makes some good, if obvious and perhaps even hackneyed, points. Definitely worth seeing.

Duke Lax Update

I'll still reserve judgement and I am honestly not rooting either way other than for justice to be served, but I am really beginning to think that these lacrosse players at Duke are innocent. Boorish? Yes. Ignorant? Yes. Spoiled? Yes. Classless? Absolutely. But rapists? I am beginning to think not, since there doesn't seem to be any DNA evidence and they were confident about it all along.

On the Bush Collapse

"Historians will figure this out, but my own view is that Katrina did it. Katrina was the equivalent of Toto pulling back the curtain. Once Bush's passivity, indolence and arrogance were put on full display, once it was apparent that the government was not working, and that Bush was the reason, people figured out why the war in Iraq was such a shambles. And so the mystique required to sustain patriarchal authority was shattered. I think this is largely irreparable because it's about a basic assessment of a single man. What worries me is that we have almost three more years. If we face a confrontation or a crisis, this president will not be able to carry Americans with him. Our enemies will take comfort from this. Which is why re-electing him was such a terrible risk." - Andrew Sullivan

Interesting story discussing evidence for the Big Bang. Good stuff. Personally speaking this stuff strengthens not diminishes my faith, I don't know why so many theists are threatened by science -- especially stuff like this -- when it really just confirms that we don't know shit. . .

I think every writer can relate to this quote: "Sometimes I have good luck and write better than I can" - Ernest Hemingway

Here's another nice one from the same man: "A man can be destroyed but not defeated" - from The Old Man and the Sea

"But one of the fascinating things about sports, it seems to me, is that when it comes the way we think about professional athletes, we're all liberals (without meaning to be, of course). We give people lots of chances. (Think Jeff George). We go to extraordinary lengths to help players reach their potential. We're forgiving of mistakes. When the big man needs help with his footwork, we ship him off to Pete Newell for the summer. We hold players accountable for their actions. But we also believe, as a matter of principle, that players need supportive environments in order to flourish. It would be nice if we were as generous and as patient with the rest of society's underachievers." - Malcom Gladwell from Bill Simmons's piece about him.

I would add, with much shame, that Yankee fans are conservatives. We deify the past. We oppress the less fortunate. We're all about money and we could care less about the state of the game (think in the analogue: environment, society, mom and pop stores) as long as we do well. I can only take solace in the fact the Red Sox are the "Yankees-lite" who in many ways are just incapable of being as annoying as the Yankee due to lack of relative success, but really are guilty of much of the same. . .