There is Not a River Wide, Not a Mountain High, and Neither Sin nor Evil Could Change What I Feel Inside

If Matthew Fox in a shaggy beard doesn't get you fired up for January 31 and the 4th Season of Lost, well, honestly, I don't know what will.

Perhaps this video might do the trick.

Current Reading

Winning with Integrity: Getting What You're Worth Without Selling Your Soul by Leigh Steinberg

It's Been Raining for Hours, There's Water Everywhere

2007: Part Deux

July:

• 14: The kids from Memorial C of C in Houston compare me to the evil German camp counselor Lars in Heavyweights. I'm strangely honored.
• 20: Honestly, eating spam is not that bad for a few weeks each summer.
• 26: Lightning and I are almost tragically united.

August:

• 15: I call out Bear Grylles and somehow still survive to this very day.
• 16: Michael Vick: Federal inmate and covert operative for Al Qaeda.
• 22: Anchorwoman begins its rather brief run on Fox. The residents of Tyler exhale as one in response.

September:

• 4: "Battery Hut, Battery Hut, Battery Hut!!!"
• 7: Matt Phillips, we salute you.
• 24: Mike Gundy and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: Just a Couple of Guys Keeping Things Crazy.
• 27: If you are a Texas Rangers fan, hope must spring eternal.

October:

• 1: If you don't think this is yet another opportunity to bring up the GSP Sing Song win streak, well, you just don't know me that well.
• 7: I manage to send the Baylor Bear football program to even greater depths of despair.
• 19: College football fan arrogance at its finest.
• 25: The 3rd Anniversary Post.

November:

• 8: The Trinitarian Opposition to the Evil Empire.
• 13: Ruminations on the phenomenon that is Soulja Boy.
• 15: Take it from me on this one: Always try to remember who's alive and who's dead.
• 28: The Sports Guy's date with destiny.

December:

• 5: Take this quiz and help determine the fate of the free world.
• 10: The best piece I've read so far on the 2008 Presidential election.
• 13: Happy Mitchell Report Day!
• 17: Gus Johnson's status as a liar is still up for debate.
• 19: Anton Chigurh v. Jason Bourne for all the marbles.

I'm Still Out on Sunset in a Taxicab

2007: A Look Back at a Year in the Life of Running Down a Dream

January

• 1: I went to sleep before the end of the Fiesta Bowl. You can always see the winning running-back propose to his girlfriend, but after a Statue of Liberty play? That's too much.
• 16: My 23rd birthday. I commiserate with Blink 182 and Coolio.
• 20: The first 2008 Presidential Roll Call. Tom Tancredo, we hardly knew ye.

February:

• 6: I announce my devotion to Liverpool F.C., chaos ensues.
• 14: Valentine's Day and a few lessons learned.
• 26: Martin Scorcese's eyebrows are the stuff nightmares are made of.

March:

• 3: I begin screaming at computer screens at 7:30 in the morning over football matches being played in England. This might be a problem.
• 5: Pound the Rock.
• 16: I develop the paranoia of a crackhead after keeping a perfect bracket for the first two days of the NCAA tournament.
• 29: I plead with the Rangers to become relevant once again. Sadly, they do not comply.

April:

• 8: A snowstorm of biblical proportions descends on the Tyler metropolitan area. No one besides the newscasters is remotely fazed.
• 11: Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm, Dead Poets Society.
• 16: Rolling Stone's Top 10 Songs of All-Time along with Joey Halbert's dissent.
• 23: The death of a true legend in his own time.
• 25: The legendary Chelsea-Liverpool running diary.

May:

• 3: "I'm a lion among men" and other quotable quotes from Tyler area defendants.
• 12: Small town election conspiracy theories in Whitehouse.
• 16: Still one of the best YouTube videos I've ever seen.
• 30: My parents purchase furniture from Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

June:

• 10: My return from the Agan-Freede wedding and the inevitable repudiation of Lou Gehrig.
• 13: Houston v. Dallas: The Great Debate.
• 20: Andrew Tuegel and I discuss the extension of Jon Daniels's contract as Rangers GM.
• 27: Lance and Kayla Agan, Cody Girod, Bethany Freede, Austin Brennen, Alex LaBounty and yours truly enter the Shakey-Face Pantheon.

Check back tomorrow for the July-December recap.

My Heart Can't Wait to Meet You on the Other Side

Congratulations to Mr. Jeff McCain for correctly naming "Gravity" by Coldplay as the Wednesday Song of the Day.

Current Reading

The Amateurs: The Story of Four Young Men and Their Quest for an Olympic Gold by David Halberstam

In what will lead to the ultimate downfall of the 2007-2008 New England Patriots, ESPN has begun airing a useless series where Bill Parcells compares the Pats to great team from the NFL days of yore. If you will take a trip with me in the way-back machine to the halycon days of late 2005, you will recall that the Worldwide Leader in Sports aired a series comparing the USC team led by Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush, and LenDale White to the ghosts of college football past.

There was only one tiny problem with such a programming strategy. ESPN devoted more time towards enshrining the Trojans among the all-time greats than they did breaking down the matchup between USC and the 'Horns, which, as I clairvoyantly predicted in the above-linked post, ended poorly for Leinart, Bush, White & Co.

ESPN, please continue allowing the Tuna to extol the virtues of the '07 Pats. It will make their ultimate downfall all the more enjoyable.

When Your Wheels Stop Turning and You Feel Let Down

I do not have a lot to write tonight before I go to bed, but as I was looking back at pictures that I took today during our trip to my grandmother's farm, one stood out among the rest.

I can understand if the more photographically astute readers of this blog chastise me for the blurry nature of the shot or the problems with spacing, but to truly understand this photo, you must know my grandmother. You can see her walking here with my cousin Andrew, but if I told you that she's 82, you would probably be pretty impressed that she's keeping up with a 21-year old as we walked through the fields.

I could tell you that she lost her husband 27 years ago to lung cancer, and has lived alone almost ever since, and that might make you feel sorry for her, but this picture says everything. Instead of feeling sorry for herself and constantly wondering why life dealt her the hand that it did, she has moved forward. She loves each and everyone of her 17 grandchildren, including yours truly, in countless ways. She travels around to visit her 6 remaining children whether they be in Waco, Irving, or Whitehouse. She continues to learn, grow, and enjoy each day as it is given to her.

That's why this picture tells the story of a woman, my grandmother, who is in perpetual motion.

And yes, she still calls me "Jason", but I've forgiven her many times for that.

Then I Looked Up at the Sun and I Could See

I'm not sure what each of you were able to give and receive on this Christmas Day, but just in case you were wondering, I was actually able to give exactly what I wanted to my entire family.

That's right, I delivered a pitch-perfect imitation of Converse Judson head football coach Jim Rackley's halftime interview during this past weekend's 5A Division I state championship game. Many thanks my grandmother for playing the role of the sideline reporter.

I'm not really sure why, but after my performance everyone just told me to go into the bedroom and lay down for little while.

Oh well.

Merry Christmas, everyone.

It's Been a Long Time Coming, Such a Long, Long Time

I'm not sure how I wandered so far off base, but yesterday I failed to mention that annual time of joy and frivolity, Festivus.

Remember, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, a successful Festivus gathering requires 6 elements:

1. Festivus Rituals (i.e. donations in someone's name to the Human Fund)
2. The Festivus Pole (Available through the Wagner Companies of Milwaukee, Wisconsin)
3. Festivus Dinner (preferably meatloaf or spaghetti in a red tomato-based sauce)
4. The Airing of Grievances (occurs immediately after Festivus dinner, but try to keep it under 2 hours in the name of family unity)
5. The Feats of Strength (culminates in an attempt to pin the head of the household, thus ending Festivus)
6. Festivus Miracles (can occur throughout the Festivus period)

As Frank Cosntanza once said, "It [Christmas] was destroyed. But out of that a new holiday was born: a Festivus for the rest of us!"

And So She Woke Up, Woke Up From Where She Was Lying Still

A few words on Christmas from former ABC and CBS anchor Harry Reasoner:

"The basis for this tremendous annual burst of gift buying and parties and near hysteria is a quiet event that Christians believe actually happened a long time ago. You can say that in all societies there has always been a midwinter festival and that many of the trappings of our Christmas are almost violently pagan. But you come back to the central fact of the day and quietness of Christmas morning--the birth of God on earth

It leaves you only three ways of accepting Christmas

One is cynically, as a time to make money or endorse the making of it

One is graciously, the appropriate attitude for non-Christians, who wish their fellow citizens all the joys to which their beliefs entitle them

And the third, of course, is reverently. If this is the anniversary of the appearance of the Lord of the universe in the form of a helpless babe, then it is a very important day

It's a startling idea, of course. My guess is that the whole story that a virgin was selected by God to bear His Son as a way of showing his love and concern for man is not an idea that has been popular with theologians. It's a somewhat illogical idea, and theologians like logic almost as much as they like God. It's so revolutionary a thought that it probably could only come from a God that is beyond logic, and beyond theology

It has a magnificent appeal. Almost nobody has seen God, and almost nobody has any real idea of what He is like. And the truth is that among men the idea of seeing God suddenly and standing in a very bright light is not necessarily a completely comforting and appealing idea

But everyone has seen babies, and most people like them. If God wanted to be loved as well as feared he moved correctly here. If He wanted to know his people as well as rule them, He moved correctly here, for a baby growing up learns all about people. If God wanted to be intimately a part of man, He moved correctly, for the experiences of birth and familyhood are our most intimate and precious experiences

So it goes beyond logic. It is either all falsehood or it is the truest thing in the world. It's the story of the great innocence of God the baby-- God in the form of man-- and has such a dramatic shock toward the heart that if it is not true, for Christians, nothing is true

So, if a Christian is touched only once a year, the touching is still worth it, and maybe on some given Christmas, some final quiet morning, the touch will take."

I Said When It Drops You Gonna Feel It

Congratulations to Mr. Joseph R. Halbert for correctly naming "The Scientist" by Coldplay as the Friday Song of the Day. Even though the following story sounds a bit odd and will like cause you to derisively mock me, I'm telling it anyway.

I still remember that the first album I purchased as a college student was A Rush of Blood to the Head by Coldplay. That album was purchased at the Circuit City in Abilene, Texas. Who was my intrepid co-pilot on that fateful journey? That's right. Joey Halbert. As Manny Ramirez once said, "It was destination."

In the latest installment of activities that are amazing but will likely lead to a horrific death in the next 5 years, I give you kite-suiting.

If I don't see Daniel Craig kite-suiting away from a monocle-wearing villian in the next Bond film, well, let's just say that the James Bond franchise will no longer be the avant garde institution that I once thought it was.

Nobody Said It Was Easy, No One Ever Said It Would Be This Hard

Congratulations to Ms. Stacy Villescas for correctly naming "A Day in the Life" by the Beatles as the Thursday Song of the Day. Stacy, if you want to think of a win in the illustrious Song of the Day contest as my Christmas gift to you, so be it.

The UEFA Champions League first knockout round draw was held this morning at UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland. Here's how things shook out for Europe's elite footballing clubs:

• Arsenal FC (England) v. AC Milan (Italy and current Champions League title holders)



• Olympique Lyonnais (France) v. Manchester United FC (England)



• Celtic FC (Scotland) v. FC Barcelona (Spain)



• Schalke 04 (Germany) v. FC Porto (Portugal)



• AS Roma (Italy) v. Real Madrid CF (Spain)



• Olympiacos CFP (Greece) v. Chelsea FC (England)



• Fenerbahce (Turkey) v. FC Sevilla (Spain)

And the moment you've all been waiting for...

Liverpool FC v. Internazionale Milan (Italy)

Yes, that's right, Liverpool drew the two-time defending Serie A champions who also happen to be on a 16 game unbeaten run to open the 2007-2008 Serie A campaign. Does that mean that the Liverpool faithful will not be thrilled by the chance to take down Inter and claim victory in the legendary San Siro? No sir. Every one of the teams left in the competition at this point is capable of greatness and the Reds must live by the maxim of "Face them now or face them later."

In the other matchups, the Arsenal-AC Milan matches are going to be outstanding. It is always fun to watch the old guard take on the up-and-comers and this is definitely the case with Arsene Wenger's "kids" taking on the battle-hardened lineup from AC Milan. At this point, I'm going with Arsenal to progress.
Man. U., as usual, drew a Lyon side that is talented, but at this point must be considered among the weaker remaining teams in the field of 16. Barring any significant injuries between now and February, I'm picking Man. U. to win this matchup in a fairly easy fashion. It pains me just to write that.
The Celtic-Barcelona matches are probably going to a more entertaining version of the Rangers (Scotland)-Barcelona matches during the Group Stages. I have no doubt that Celtic Park will be a sight to behold when Barca come calling, but I think that Ronaldinho, Messi, Henry, Eto'o, Deco & Co. will just be too much for Celtic to contain; Barca moves on to the Round of 8.
The Schalke-Porto matchup is a combination of some of the lesser-known teams remaining in the competition but the Germans clawed back from an early deficit to claim the second qualifying spot from Group B and Porto won Group A, the same group as Liverpool. Even though Schalke is a strong team, I think the individual brilliance of Porto's playmakers like Quaresma, Lisandro Lopez, Sektioui, and Lucho Gonzales will guide the Portuguese giants to victory.
Roma-Real Madrid presents a very interesting Round of 16 matchup due to the star power and name recognition presented by both sides. I know that there are a lot of people who are pointing to Madrid as the team that will the trophy in Moscow, but I have to go with Roma in this matchup. The leadership of Francesco Totti and the brilliance of Mancini will lead the Italian side to the Round of 8.
Olympiacos versus Cheslea is a case of a relatively unknown team against a squad that is world-renowned. It should be noted that key Chelsea players such as Didier Drogba, Michael Essien, and John Obi Mikel will be back from national team duty at the African Cup of Nations in time for these matches, and I expect Chelsea to advance from this pairing. You don't know how much I endured composing that last sentence as well.
Finally, Fenerbahce versus Sevilla, even more than Schalke versus Porto, presents a matchup between the competition's two dark horses. Even though Sevilla has won the last two UEFA cups (the NIT to the Champions League's NCAA tournament), they still manage to fly under the radar thanks to the fact that they play in the same league as media darlings Real Madrid and Barcelona. In what will no doubt be some highly entertaining matches, I see Fenerbahce advancing to the Round of 8.

Remember kids, it's the most wonderful time of the year.

Nobody Was Really Sure If He Was From the House of Lords

Congratulations to Mr. John Middleton for correctly naming "Under the Bridge" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers as the Wednesday Song of the Day.

You'll also notice that when Mr. Middleton was naming the Song of the Day, he set aside a little time to take a pro-Chelsea F.C. potshot in my general direction. You might wonder why I would allow such insubordination on the normally respectable forum of the Running Down a Dream comments section, but don't worry my friends, I'm not going soft, it's just that John has immunity from attack based on the fact that we have gone to the same school twice: Whitehouse High School and Baylor Law respectively. If any of the rest of you pulled a stunt like that, well, let's just say it would not be pretty.

I greatly appreciate everyone's thoughts on the Chigurh v. Bourne debate. In the interest of coming to a more definitive conclusion I should have clarified the true goal of the matchup. If the question is best villain, the winner is obviously going to be Chigurh due to the fact that Bourne is the protagonist in his storyline. If the question is which one of the two would exit the no-holds barred grudge matchup envisioned by Joey, I have to go with Bourne. I realize that Chigurh may or may not have a pulse, and he may or may not have destroyed the oxygen tank industry as we have known it, but in the end, Bourne is walking out of that room alive. Why? Because he snagged Julia Stiles and Franka Potente, that's why.

In other news, Tom Tancredo is dropping out of the 2008 race for the White House. There are some who would ask if he was ever really "in" the race, but Tancredo's candidacy raises an interesting question: Is it worth it for a relative unknown to run for President if only because they are passionate about a single issue, in Tancredo's case immigration, and use a presidential campaign as an opportunity to raise awareness and generate public discourse on that issue?


First, as I have already stated, the immigration topic was already on the minds of many Americans, but the Tancredo campaign believes that despite their infetismal poll numbers in Iowa and New Hampshire, they accomplished a significant goal in pushing the national conversation on the issue of immigration and reform. In reality, is this not exactly what Steve Forbes did with the flat-tax issue when he ran in the Republican primaries in 1996 and 2000?

Forbes was obviously campaigning on his extensive personal wealth, but it would be very interesting to see who donated money to the Tancredo campaign and the percentage of his campaign funds that came from donors and the percentage which was derived from the fund-matching program administered by the Federal Election Commission. It seems unlikely that American voters, even those who are passionate about the immigration issue, would donate large amounts of money to a candidate that they ultimately did not believe had a puncher's chance in 2008.

I Don't Ever Wanna Feel Like I Did That Day

I would write more about Liverpool's 2-0 loss to Chelsea today in the quarterfinals of the Carling Cup, but I might start cursing, and this is a family-friendly blog after all. Once more with feeling, John Middleton, I hope you're happy.

My buddies from ACU and I have an email group that we communicate on frequently, and today, as I was picking people's brains on No Country for Old Men, my friend Brandon presented the following question:
Jason Bourne v. Anton Chigurh, Who wins?

Frankly, I think we all win in that situation. Well, except for the numerous folks killed by the aforementioned duo. Because those characters represent two of the most definitive one-man wrecking crews in recent cinema history, we're breaking this one down Dr. Jack Ramsay style to determine the victor once and for all.

Bio:

• Chigurh: psychopathic killer employed by drug kingpins to track down money lost in a drug deal gone horribly wrong.
• Bourne: A CIA trained assassin who speaks a minimum of 7 languages.
• Advantage: Bourne. Who doesn't love a man who can tell you how you're about to die in Italian, Spanish, French, Dutch, Russian, or English?

Driving Skills:

• Chigurh: Throughout the film, we see him driving a myriad of vehicles (most of a Dodge make) so we know he is versatile. The only downside is that he is always driving on deserted West Texas highways so we have no idea whether he can handle a little stress on the roadway.
• Bourne: Do I really need to regale you with tales of Bourne driving a 1970's era Mini Cooper through the streets of Paris in what is probably the best chase scene committed to film since The French Connection? Furthermore, the chase scene in The Bourne Ultimatum caused both of my parents to cringe at least 25 times when we watched the film last summer.
• Advantage: Jason Bourne by a large margin. Honestly, what takes more skill, driving between Marfa and Del Rio or navigating the streets and alleys of Paris at breakneck speed? I thought so.

Disregard for Human Life:

• Chigurh: Let's see here, the guy kills a deputy simply for pulling him over, then proceeds to take the dead deputy's car out to a remote stretch of road just so he can pull over an unsuspecting motorist and observe the killing utility of a cattle stun gun attached to an oxygen tank. Yes, he's one bad hombre.
• Bourne: He obviously tears through the U.S. consulate in Zurich like a whirlwind, but lest we forget, he froze up when he had a chance to finish off Wombosi on the yacht simply because he sees one of Wombosi's children. Jason, it's all about focus and you were judged and found wanting.
• Advantage: Chigurh by a large margin. Joey mentioned in a recent comment that Chigurh might just be one of the most chilling movie villains since Hannibal Lecter. Even though it drives me crazy when people make unnecessary noise in movies, people were actually gasping when he would appear onscreen. Again, it drove me crazy, but there's no denying his presence.

Love Interests:

• Chigurh: None, unless you count the uber-creepy semi-erotic look he had on his face as he strangled the hapless deputy with his own handcuffs. In fact, that was so disturbing we'll just move on to Bourne.
• Bourne: An excellent case-study in why women are drawn to the brooding, dark male figure. After he wins the enduring affection of Marie Helena Kreutz in the first two films, he moves on after her death to a new fling with Nicky Parsons, played by Julia Stiles. He did have an odd way of ending up with women who cut and then dyed their hair black in order to maintain a covert identity.
• Advantage: Since the closest Chigurh came to connecting with another human being was his floor tussle with the deputy, Bourne wins this category easily.

What Others Say About Them:

• Chigurh: "Just how dangerous is he?" "Compared to what? The bubonic plague?"
• Bourne: "Listen, people - do you have any idea who you're dealing with? This is Jason Bourne. You are nine hours behind the toughest target you have ever tracked. Now I want everyone to sit down, strap in, and turn on all you've got. That would mean now."
• Advantage: Chigurh. When people are comparing you to a pandemic that ravaged 14th-century Europe, that's really as much as you can hope for in this life.

What They're Saying to Others:

• Chigurh: "I think you do. So this is what I'll offer - you bring me the money and I'll let her go. Otherwise she's accountable, same as you. That's the best deal you're gonna get. I won't tell you you can save yourself, because you can't. "
• Bourne: "Where are you now?" "I'm sitting in my office." "I doubt that." "Why would you doubt that?" "If you were in your office right now we'd be having this conversation face-to-face."
• Advantage: Bourne. It's easier to talk trash to a guy about killing him and his wife when you're across the Rio Grande, but it's much more difficult to talk smack from the director's office of a covert-CIA program. Well done, Jason.

Potential Marketing Opportunities:

• Chigurh: What kid doesn't want an officially-licensed, Coen brothers signed, Anton Chigurh action-figure this hristmas complete with an oxygen-fueled cattle stun gun and a removable toupee?
• Bourne: If Jason Bourne hasn't been hired by NASCAR or the Charles Berlitz language schools by this point, well, I just don't know what to tell you.
• Advantage: Chigurh. I'm tired of all of the action figures on the market having perfectly manicured hairstyles that would make David Beckham jealous. Chigurh makes the Unabomber look like a fashion-maven and presents a breath of fresh air to the staid action figure world.

Staying Power:

• Chigurh: We are only able to see Anton's maniacal genius in one novel and one film. Until author Cormac McCarthy decides to delve back into the story, we have a singular, bloody showing from Mr. Chigurh.
• Bourne: As they always say, "All good things come in threes." We have a trio of novels from Rober Ludlum chronicling the story of Bourne and three accompanying films.
• Advantage: Bourne. As the Hall-of-Fame voters look at a player's "body of work", I'm looking at the total product from Bourne. This is not a mark against the tremendous work of Chigurh in "No Country...", but a recognition that he needs to replicate the feat in order to enter the stratosphere.

Dramatic Foils:

• Chigurh: Llewellyn Moss (played by Josh Brolin), Sheriff Ed Tom Bell (played by Tommy Lee Jones), and Carson Wells (played by Woody Harrelson). A trio of cowboy hat wearing Texans that are defined by their words and actions.
• Bourne: Alexander Conklin (Chris Cooper), Ward Abbott (Brian Cox), the Professor (Clive Owen), Noah Vosen (David Straithairn), and Dr. Albert Hirsch (Albert Finney). Usually this list of bozos were not even worthy of setting foot in the same room as Bourne, although Brian Cox's performance were practically indistinguishable from the characters he also played in Troy or X-Men. Judging from how quickly Brian mailed in the performances in the aforementioned movies, there must have been a little problem with mortgage payments in the Cox household during the 2002-2004 period.
• Advantage: Chigurh. Even though Ed Tom Bell had two first names, he always seemed as though he was in on a joke that no else had heard yet. The quality of a character is often determined by those around him, and Chigurh had worthy opponents in Moss, Bell, and Wells. Also, it should be noted that Chigurh was considerate enough to avoid staining his boots with Wells's blood after Carson meet his demise.

Conclusion:

• Chigurh: A thoroughly terrifying figure that has already elicited fearful appraisals from a few of my friends. I'm pretty sure that no one will ever look at an oxygen tank in quite the same way again. I know I won't.
• Bourne: A classic story of redemption from a life of violence to a life of peace, but who watches movies about that?
• Advantage: Bourne. In the final count Bourne wins by a count of 5 to 4 in the arbitary categories constructed by yours truly.

Perhaps you see it differently, and if you do, let me know. Oh, another thing, don't tell Anton that I said he wasn't the best. Thanks.

Leavin' on a Southern Train, Only Yesterday You Lied

In the annual lunacy that surrounds the 17th of December, I somehow used multiple song lyrics yesterday and created chaos that made Attica look tame by comparison.

The first Monday Song of the Day award goes to Mrs. Sarah Yee for correctly naming "Tribute" by Tenacious D, and the second Monday Song of the Day award goes to Mr. Tim Henderson for correctly naming "Badlands" by Bruce Springsteen. In the future I will make my best efforts to restrain the madness for the greater societal good.

I would write more tonight but I'm currently hiding in my room from the killing machine that is Anton Chigurh.

I finally saw No Country for Old Men tonight, and if I ever see a pale, poorly coiffed man walking my way holding an oxygen tank, I'm running the other way faster than millions of Americans could jump off of the Roger Clemens Hall-of-Fame bandwagon.

Lights Out Tonight, Trouble in the Heartland

I've written before about the vim and vigor that Gus Johnson brings to the announcing booth, but unfortunately it looks like he also brings something else along for the ride: a blatant disregard for the facts.

Today, in an interview posted on the blog Awful Announcing, Johnson gave the following quote:

"Things were difficult at one time, I remember working in Waco making $16K a year and eating at Del Taco everyday. They used to have this deal where you would get 4 tacos for $2.50 plus a drink and that was my thing, but it was fun. It’s always been fun, I’ve enjoyed this ride so much. I’ve been so fortunate to experience the things I’ve experienced."

I'm glad that GuJo, as he is called by Bill Simmons, took the time to mention the 254 in his interview, but Gus there's only one tiny problem with your heartfelt rags-to-riches story. There is not a Del Taco location in the entire state of Texas. Please consult the Del Taco website for visual confirmation that Del Taco only exists in Washington, Oregon, California, Montana, Idaho, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Michigan, Illinois, Missouri, and surprisingly, Tennessee.

What I really need in this situation is a Waco expert who can confirm or deny that a Del Taco location existed in our fair city in the early 1990's when Johnson was employed at KXXV-TV.

David Koresh, you weren't busy during the early 90's, I know you can answer this query.

Hello?

Is this thing on?

This is the Greatest and Best Song in the World

During my junior year at ACU, I had the opportunity to attend a conference at Pepperdine Law School and hear Professor Doug Kmiec speak on the relationship between lawyers, faith, and social justice.
Even though I thoroughly enjoyed Professor Kmiec's lecture in 2005, he didn't say anything quite as interesting as suggesting that a Hillary Clinton presidency could possibly see Bill joining the U.S. Supreme Court, as he does in today's Wall Street Journal.

Note: Any and all references to my 2005 journey to Pepperdine should never be confused with the greatness that was the 2006 "Bike to Ride Pepperdine", which you can fondly remember through the following posts.

• The send-off photos courtesy of William Austin Riggs.
• Hanging out with Elvis in front of Grauman's Chinese Theater. At least I think that was Elvis.
• Enjoying victory cigars and purchasing knock-off N.W.A. shirts.
• Visiting Jimmy Kimmel, Homer Simpson, and Chinatown.
• Wreaking havoc at the USC bookstore, being refused entrance to the Rose Bowl, and greeting O.J. and The Duke.
• Riding bikes, more riding bikes, and enjoying Paradise.

She Likes to Read, I Like to Write

An excerpt from Dixieland Delight--

Step 8 on the Sports Grief Scale:

"Whichever team beat mine sucks and so do their fans": Comforting myself with juvenile thoughts is a great way to move forward in your recovery. When I was about ten and Tennessee had just lost to Auburn, my dad said, "Clay, right now there is a boy the same age as you in Alabama who is really happy that his team beat Tennessee. Sometimes you'll be happy and sometimes he'll be happy, but you really aren't that different." After seventeen years, I have a much better perspective about things like this. For instance, now that little boy from Auburn is also twenty-seven and, right now, I am still sure he sucks and so does his team.

Clay Travis is right after all. At 23, I realize that there are fans of Manchester United and the Philadelphia Eagles who are happy right now. I also realize that they still suck and so do their teams.

Today was not a great day to be a supporter of Liverpool F.C. and the Dallas Cowboys. I'm pretty sure that I am part of the extremely small population that supports both franchises, but the similarities between the two losses were downright eerie.

• The Reds lost at home to (insert expletive here) Manchester United and the 'Boys fell at Texas Stadium to the (insert expletive here) Philadelphia Eagles.
• Liverpool failed to find the back of the net in dropping a 1-0 result to the Red Devils and America's Team failed to score a touchdown and lost by a final score of 10-6.
• Both teams are owned by residents of North Texas, Tom Hicks and Jerry Jones respectively.
• Admittedly Liverpool did not have to deal with the great scourge of Jessica Simpson casting all kinds of bad karma over their squad, unlike the Cowboys,but they did have to deal with their own prima donna in Man. U.'s Cristiano Ronaldo.
• Honestly, if Jessica Simpson rips apart this Cowboys team like Yoko Ono tore apart the Beatles, millions of Texans might move en masse to have her citizenship revoked or at least see to it that she was blacklisted from Texas Stadium like Elaine's communist boyfriend was blacklisted at Hop Sing's. Ms. Simpson, you've been warned.

Just a Casual, Casual Easy Thing

Current Reading

Dixieland Delight: A Football Season on the Road in the Southeastern Conference by Clay Travis

With Dixieland Delight closely following on the heels of my reading of Rammer Jammer Yellow Hammer it appears that I'm not doing a very effective job concealing my covert attempt to learn about the pigskin culture of the Deep South. Also, since Clay Travis is a 2004 graduate of Vanderbilt Law School, I can always spin my time spent reading Dixieland Delight as "job shadowing".

Tried Yesterday to Get Away and Hitchhiked to the Beach

"WASHINGTON—Amid a growing list of domestic and international concerns such as skyrocketing fuel prices, the slumping dollar, massive recalls of tainted food, the housing market collapse, and an increase in obesity, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals delivered the country's only positive statistic Tuesday when officials announced that cases of feline leukemia had stabilized."

The Onion with "Only Positive Statistic of the Year Announced."

This was an epidemic of staggering proportions and if there was one thing that could bring cheer and good tidings during this holiday season, it is the knowledge that cats around America no longer need to live in fear. Well, at least from leukemia. Kids who torture cats on their eventual path to becoming serial killers? That might still be a cause for concern for fickle felines everywhere.

See What There is to See, Time is Just a Melody

Congratulations to Mr. Andrew Tuegel for correctly naming "City of Blinding Lights" by U2 as the Wednesday Song of the Day.

Even though the United States intelligence community might have been confused about Iran's nuclear capabilities, the Running Down a Dream reading community should never be confused about the abilities of the great Tuegel in the realm of Bono & Co.

According to a highly placed, unnamed source that contacted our offices in the early morning hours, something called "The Mitchell Report" was released today. From everything that this anonymous source told me, I feel very bad that no one, absolutely no one, is talking about the 409-page document that this Senator Mitchell fellow quietly produced for delivery to an unsuspecting populace.

A few tips passed on by the anonymous source regarding the aforementioned, under the radar report:

• Roger Clemens' wife is probably not talking to him in that Cingular commercial because his battery was dead from ordering HGH.
• The Orioles-Astros trade was not actually Baltimore's way of throwing Miguel Tejada "under the bus", because as we learned today, Miggy probably could have lifted said bus.
• The reason Andy Pettitte keeps following Roger Clemens from city to city is that The Rocket buys performance-enhancing drugs for him like Wooderson buying cheap beer for the underclassmen in Dazed and Confused.
• If revisionist historians want to accurately summarize the career of former Phillies outfielder Lenny "Nails" Dykstra, he would be henceforth known as "Syringes". It's not your father's Phillies nickname, but it is probably bit more accurate.
• Now I think we all understand why Chuck Knoblauch had all those problems overthrowing the first baseman towards the end of his career. For a more effective strategy, the Yankees should have positioned Knobby to make his throws from Westchester County.
• If Mo Vaughn is on this list, that must mean performance-enhancing drugs are also found in BigMacs, and that I just cannot handle in an appropriate manner.

Welcome to the Brave New World, my friends. If you need me, I'll be out in the yard playing Backpaddle with the good fellows from The Jig & Twig.

The Less You Find Out as You Grow

For what it's worth (probably not much to some of you):

• I was 1 for 2 yesterday on my picks for the final two squads to reach the Champions League knockout stages. Lyon (France) dismantled Glasgow Rangers today by the score of 3-0 to claim the second spot in Group E behind FC Barcelona, which defeated Stuttgart by the score of 3-1. In Group G, Fenerbahce (Turkey) secured its first ever appearance in the Final 16 of the Champions League by defeating CSKA Moscow 3-1 in Istanbul.
• The draw for the Round of 16 will take place next Friday, December 21, at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco. Don't forget to invite me to your "Round of 16 Draw" parties.
• The always interesting Malcolm Gladwell on the controversial debate over the relationship between I.Q. and race in the latest issue of The New Yorker.

Me and All My Friends, We're All Misunderstood

Congratulations to Mr. John Middleton for correctly naming "Wonderwall" by Oasis as the Tuesday Song of the Day. Mr. Masten, your somewhat specious "my computer won't load the photos" excuse has been noted and disregarded. I'm sorry, but it's a cruel, cruel world in the Song of the Day contest.

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, Running Down a Dream enthusiasts of all ages and literacy levels, it is my distinct pleasure to announce the arrival of a new blog to the information superhighway: The Jig and Twig, primarily authored by the two gentlemen (Lance Agan and Jacob Wardell) to my left in the following photo.

The picture obviously makes it appear that Mr. Wardell is the "Teller" character of the arrangement and Mr. Agan is "Penn", but appearances can be deceiving.

Another deceiving facet of that photo is that it did not actually snow in Abilene on the day we graduated from ACU. That's obviously the aftermath of a Blahg promotional stunt gone horribly wrong. Luke, I always told you that no one wanted the shredded Enron documents as a graduation gift.

All the Roads We Have to Walk Are Winding

Remember all of the pathos captured in this post?

Well, as of today, all has been forgiven.

Liverpool, in a dominating 4-nil victory over Olympique de Marseille, secured a place in the final 16 of the UEFA Champions League. Goals were scored by Steven Gerrard (4th minute), Fernando Torres (11th minute), Dirk Kuyt (48th minute), and substitute Ryan Babel (90th minute).

Here's video of all 4 goals as the Reds become the first English side to ever win at the Stade Velodrome:

Tomorrow the final matches will be played for Group E, F, G, and H.

The following teams have already qualified for the knockout stages:

FC Porto (Portugal)

Liverpool FC (England)

Chelsea FC (England)

Schalke 04 (Germany)

Real Madrid CF (Spain)

Olympiacos (Greece)

AC Milan (Italy and Current Holders of Champions League Title)

Celtic FC (Scotland)

FC Barcelona (Spain)

Manchester United FC (England)

AS Roma (Italy)

Internazionale Milan (Italy)

FC Sevilla (Spain)

Arsenal FC (England)

Essentially, the final two spots in the 2007-2008 UEFA Champions League knockout stages come down to matches between Rangers FC (Scotland) and Olympique Lyonnais (France) in Group E and Fenerbahce (Turkey) and PSV Eindhoven (The Netherlands) in Group G. For the record, my money is Rangers and Fenerbahce to claim spots in the Final 16. You know, if gambling were legal.

In the excitement over the Reds living to fight on another Champions League day, one crucial point might have been missed. Due to the fact that they finished one point behind FC Porto in Group A, Liverpool must now face one of the clubs that finished atop their given group.

For instance, the Champions League has regulations that restrict a team from facing a member of their group or a team from their home country in the first knockout stage, in the Round of 16 Liverpool will either face Barcelona, Real Madrid, AC Milan, Internazionale Milan, or Sevilla. Although each of those teams are obviously very talented, I would probably want to face either Real Madrid, Sevilla, or AC Milan in the next round.

Also, don't think that my ears are deaf to the "Milan beat Liverpool in last year's Champions League final" statements. If anything, it's time for a little revenge, which as we all we know, is a dish best served cold.As always, You'll Never Walk Alone.

The Outcome Feels the Same

"At its best, the Obama candidacy is about ending a war—not so much the war in Iraq, which now has a mo­mentum that will propel the occupation into the next decade—but the war within America that has prevailed since Vietnam and that shows dangerous signs of intensifying, a nonviolent civil war that has crippled America at the very time the world needs it most. It is a war about war—and about culture and about religion and about race. And in that war, Obama—and Obama alone—offers the possibility of a truce."

Andrew Sullivan of The Atlantic Monthly in "Goodbye to All That".

Everyone, You Look So Lonely

Current Reading

The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town by John Grisham

Maybe I'm the Chance of Rain

"Sixteen years and seven albums into the career that has made Radiohead the most widely pondered band in rock, it is taking chances with its commerce as well as its art. For the beleaguered recording business Radiohead has put in motion the most audacious experiment in years. "

Since at first glance Radiohead does not seem to mesh thematically with the Cowboys or Rangers, I decided to link to a NY Times story on the band here instead.

"In Rainbows" has obviously been working its way around the globe for weeks now, but for those of you that have always wanted to begin listening to them but stayed away because of the purported inaccessibility of "Amnesiac" and "Kid A", this is their most straight-forward offering since 1995's "The Bends."

Maybe I've Been the Problem, Maybe I'm the One to Blame

On a Sunday that witnessed America's Team defeat the pesky Detroit Lions on a last-gasp touchdown pass from Romo to Witten, I could go on and on about the gridiron happenings, but I come to you instead with a little baseball news.

In the first large-scale move for the Rangers this offseason, the club announced today that it has come to terms (1 year at $5,000,000) with outfielder Milton Bradley. No, not the guy who supposedly invented "The Game of Life" or serves as the namesake for the source of "Candy Land", "Operation", or "Battleship." I am referring to the former Expos, Indians, Dodgers, Athletics, and Padres player.

In case his name sounds more familiar than your lingering childhood fascination with Queen Frostine, he reserved his place in the Infamous Injury Hall of Fame last year when he tore his ACL after being restrained by his manager, Bud Black, while arguing a call with first-base umpire Mike Winters.

Here's video evidence:


No one has ever questioned that Bradley is a very talented player, but he's been a bit of a headcase at times during his major league career. I going on record as being in favor of anything that provides a little spice to a usually bland Rangers stew, and perhaps Mr. Bradley will stay out of trouble just long enough to help the crew in Arlington towards a playoff berth in 2008.

Milton, we welcome you with open arms to the Ballpark in Arlington/Ameriquest Field/Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. Enjoy your stay in the friendly confines of the Metroplex. Oh, and you probably need to stay away from this guy named Terrell Owens. He's doing just fine right now minding his own business and we want things to stay that way until the second week of February. Don't ask me why, it's for your own good.

For All These Questions Being Directed At Me

After being called out by the Alico Dreamer, I felt compelled to respond by taking the Democratic edition of the Washington Post candidate quiz that I linked to earlier this week.

Here's the Blue rundown:

• Hillary Clinton (8 pts.)



• Bill Richardson (7 pts.)



• Chris Dodd (5 pts.)



• Barack Obama (3 pts.)



• John Edwards (2 pts.)

I will now go bathe in hydrochloric acid, or in lieu of that soothing activity, pull an Oedipus on myself. That was not a good way to start a Saturday.

Hillary Clinton???? Really???

I Looked Like Someone I Used to Know

I'm not sure how many of you are fans of the folks over at Deadspin, but if you are not, I feel obligated to bring this fantastic piece of news to you.

Former Minnesota Vikings and Arizona Cardinals head coach Dennis Green has filed an official trademark request with the United States Trademark and Patent Office for his immortal phrase: "They are who we thought they were."
If you are telling yourself that there is no way that you would wear a "They are Who We Thought They Were" emblazoned knitted cap, t-shirt, polo, golf cap, or jogging pant, you are obviously dealing with substantial self-honesty issues.

In case some of you have no idea what I am talking about, here is Green's press conference after the Cardinals' loss last season on Monday Night Football to the Monsters of the Midway, the Chicago Bears.

I'm pretty sure that Green is the last person that will ever get this fired up about losing to a team quarterbacked by the one and only Rex Grossman.

She Says You're Not There and I Should Take Care

A few Friday morning links to articles/editorials/columns that I thought everyone might enjoy:

• Peggy Noonan of the Wall Street Journal on Mitt Romney's speech yesterday in College Station at the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library: "Mormon in America"
• "The nation’s founders knew the answer to that question says nothing about a candidate’s fitness for office. It’s tragic to see it being asked at a time when Americans need a president who will tell the truth, lead with conviction and restore the nation’s moral standing, not one who happens to attend a particular church."--The NY Times editorial board in "The Crisis of Faith."
• "Religion can certainly be conducive to freedom. But does freedom require religion? Is religion always conducive to freedom? Does freedom not also thrive in far more secular societies than our own? Isn't the better course for our nation to seek solidarity among lovers of liberty, secular as well as religious? After all, as the Princeton scholar Jeffrey Stout has noted, it was a coalition of believers and secularists that sent a communist dictatorship tumbling down in Pope John Paul II's native Poland."-- E.J. Dionne of the Washington Post in "Boldness, Watered Down."
• "Romney’s job yesterday was to unite social conservatives behind him. If he succeeded, he did it in two ways. He asked people to rally around the best traditions of America’s civic religion. He also asked people to submerge their religious convictions for the sake of solidarity in a culture war without end."--David Brooks of the NY Times in "Faith v. the Faithless."
• "Hollywood is in somewhat the same position as Las Vegas these days. It went from being the capital of sin to Disneyland, and now it’s landed somewhere in between. It tries to keep the sins hidden away and outwardly present itself as a defender of American virtues: justice, individual freedom, and the power of one innocent soul to save the world. The Golden Compass should not offend, or be controversial at all, Weitz swears. It will certainly not, heaven forbid, offer any critique of religion. 'The movie’s first job is to beguile the audience for a couple of hours,' he says, and that much it can promise to do."--Hanna Rosin of The Atlantic Monthly in "How Hollywood Saved God."
• "When Barry Bonds walks into the Phillip Burton Federal Building in San Francisco on Friday, it will be only the beginning of an unpredictable legal odyssey. A few days after the fourth anniversary of his BALCO grand jury testimony, Bonds will surrender to U.S. marshals, go through the bureaucratic rigmarole of being arrested and later appear in court to enter a plea on four counts of perjury and one of obstructing justice."--Mark Fainaru-Wade and T.J. Quinn of ESPN.com in "Answers to Key Questions as Bonds Begins Legal Journey."