Make Good on All My Back Loans

In a story that you must read simply because it combines references to Fort Thomas, Kentucky, Spartacus, and Harding University, I present to you:

"Obama Supporters Take His Middle Name" by Jodi Kantor in yesterday's New York Times.

Before everyone gets worked up over this, I still remember stories of my grandmother changing her middle name to "Delano" in '32, and my uncle adopting "Milhous" in '68. Truth be told, I'm not sure if he wanted to support the eventual 37th President of the United States or had a premonition on the eventual popularity of Milhouse Van Houten, but I digress. In the words of Ecclesiastes, "There is nothing new under the sun."

P.S. For the McCain supporters out there (coughyourstrulycough), feel free to change your middle name to Mr. McCain's, Sidney.

Impress All the Women, Pretend I'm Samuel Clemens, Wear Seersucker and White Linens

Congratulations once again to Ms. Amanda Pierce for almost naming "Anytime" by My Morning Jacket as the Thursday Song of the Day. Luke, before you file an official protest with the Running Down a Dream Song of the Day Rules Committee, you should note that she named the correct band and actually made an effort to win the prize, whereas your lack of participation was noticeable.

One of the more jarring sports-related experiences that I have had in the past 18 months occurred last May in Arlington as the Ballpark was transformed into Fenway Park Southwest by a roving band of bandwagon-hopping BoSox fans. The only living member of the Jig and Twig witnessed the same phenomenon last night at the Juice Box and left feeling worse than Kobayashi after a 4th of July spent at Nathan's Famous hot dogs on Coney Island.

Finally, thanks to information relayed by an unnamed source from the ABC/ESPN promotional department, Running Down a Dream is proud to bring you the rejected taglines for today's Euro 2008 Final between Spain and Germany:

Rejected Tagline #1:

Franco!

Hitler!

It's the Euro 2008 Final...on ABC!!!!

Rejected Tagline #2:

Guernica!

Dresden!

It's the Euro 2008 Final...on ABC!!!

Boy, You Better Learn to Express Yourself

Congratulations to Ms. Amanda Pierce for correctly naming "Chariot" by Gavin DeGraw as the Wednesday Song of the Day. Luke, the gauntlet has been laid down, my friend.

I've played in a few pickup soccer games in the past two or three years but none quite like this.
God bless you, Steve Nash, and God truly bless you, Thierry Henry.

Furthermore, in the more important news of the day, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its decision in the much awaited case of D.C. v. Heller. Justice Scalia's opinion can be found here. Read it, learn it, love it.

To Guide Me Give Me Your Strength

Congratulations to Mr. Christopher Luke Reeves for correctly naming "When You Come Back Down" by Nickel Creek as the Tuesday Song of the Day. A near congratulations to Ms. Amanda Pierce for almost naming "When You Come Back Down" by Nickel Creek as the Tuesday Song of the Day. As I've said before, Luke Reeves is no respecter of persons when it comes to the Song of the Day contest.

I realize it's probably too late in the proverbial game to throw my Euro 2008 support behind Spain, but in honor of the last minute theatrics that have characterized this year's tournament I'm throwing my support behind near-septuagenarian manager Luis Aragones, Liverpool ace striker Fernando Torres, Valencia striker David Villa, and Real Madrid netminder Iker Casillas.

Tomorrow, the Spainards take on the Russians in a familiar retelling of the War of.....wait, Spain and Russia may be the only two European/Eurasian countries that have never fought reach other. Either way, Spain is already crafting excuses for a possible defeat tomorrow based solely on the color of their jerseys, yellow.

The traditional Spanish superstition surrounding the colour is thought to have arisen because French playwright Moliere was said to have worn yellow when he collapsed on stage performing Le Malade Imaginaire in 1673. He later died at his home.

And that, my friends, is why I love the beautiful game. Only an international soccer match could somehow turn on one team's ridiculous superstitious beliefs based on the death of a 17th century French playwright. Wake me up next time that the Mavericks are blaming their next losing streak on Miguel Cervantes.

Then, and only then, will I be impressed.

Take Every Chance You Dare

If you see me walking around in the next few days rubbing my eyes, it's probably because I'm suffering from culture shock within my own state. Truth be told, it has nothing to do with the perceived inherent superiority of one situation to another, but in the past few days, I've made more rapid transition than the sales of Mrs. Pacman arcade games in the wake of Adam Jones's latest name related announcement.

This time a week ago, I was enjoying the finer things in life. Lunch at a great restaurant? No problem. Exciting events on the social calendar multiple nights per week? The usual. Doing anything more physically strenuous than lifting a coffee cup? Not likely.

This week?

Well, let's just say things have changed quite rapidly. If there were a song to describe my journey from Houston to the Rose Capitol of America, it is undoubtedly "From the Ritz to the Rubble" by the Arctic Monkeys. Granted, the song never actually uses those words, but the title is incredibly prescient.

Today instead of going to work on the 20th floor of the second tallest building in Texas, I drove with my Dad to work at a company of about 10. We loaded and unloaded rebar, we moved brush, and we sweated more than I thought was humanly possible. As much as I might have been tempted to wonder what in the world I was doing moving steel in the middle of an East Texas afternoon, I remembered a line from Kipling's great poem "If".

"If you can meet with triumph and disaster and treat those two impostors just the same..."

This is not to say that the position in Houston was an absolute triumph or that my job here in Tyler is an absolute disaster. Instead, what I believe Kipling was striving to convey is the idea of constancy and contentment. The ability to learn from whatever situation you find yourself in on a given day. The understanding that even though I'm training to be an attorney, a little manual labor for a few weeks is going to make me a better man.

You'd Know What a Drag It is To See You

As the Anonymous Commenter noted last Tuesday, Running Down a Dream has a long, long way to go in establishing some type of presence in the African Blogosphere. As I began to ponder that pressing issue, my initial inclination was to cast blame towards the African blog-readership and their stubborn refusal to join the illustrious Jeff Pearlman in reading my blog. After that brief and fleeting moment of personal vitriol, I paused for reflection, assessed the situation in the most objective manner possible and came to one very sobering conclusion, my dear readers.

The problem does not lie with the average blog reader in Addis Ababa, Cairo, or in Pretoria. No, ladies and gentlemen, the sole source of blame is your (self) esteemed author, yours truly. After a quick calculation, I determined that I've only written to you 18 times since I made my way to the Most Populous City in Texas on May 11th. This pathetic total represents not only a personal humiliation, but it represents the pain that I must bear in knowing that you, the ever-faithful reader, have retired to bed all too often in the past month and a half without your daily dose of whatever it is that you come here seeking. I can ignore the cries of a wounded blogosphere no longer.

This, my friends, is the day of my return. The day of my re-commitment to the ideals that made this blog (barely) great in the halycon days of old. In the future, when the legends of this day are recounted to young and old alike, it will be said that the benevolent editor-in-chief of Running Down a Dream listened to the agonizing demands of his people and responded with decisive action.
Welcome back.

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

Perhaps the vast majority of Americans can relate much more easily to an "everyman" figure like Rocco Mediate rather than the Olympian persona put forth by Tiger Woods, but in the question of relation versus aspiration, I, in the words of Lt. Sam Weinberg of A Few Good Men fame, will take Tiger Woods "everyday of the week and twice on Sunday."

In a period that has brought us instant messaging, multitasking, wireless distractions and attention deficit disorder, Woods has become the exemplar of mental discipline. After watching Woods walk stone-faced through a roaring crowd, the science writer Steven Johnson, in a typical comment, wrote: “I have never in my life seen a wider chasm between the look in someone’s eye and the surrounding environment.”

"The Frozen Gaze" by David Brooks of the New York Times.

Current Reading

Soldier: The Life of Colin Powell by Karen DeYoung

Sounds of Laughter, Shades of Life

I'm not sure where the news of Tim Russert's death yesterday fell yesterday on the scale between mildly shocking and downright unbelievable, but it is always odd to hear about the death of someone who seemed as though they had many more years to live.

I suppose that's the nature of life itself, this fleeting notion of permanence that can be taken away in the most unexpected of ways.

Though I likely disagreed with a number of Russert's political positions, it was impossible to watch the man at work and not be taken by his fervor and passion for his life's work.
Now, the Russert family will try to fill an unfillable hole, the longest-running show on television will need to find a new host, and the Buffalo Bills will go into the 2008 season missing one of their most ardent supporters.

Godspeed, Tim.

Come On, What Does This Remind You Of?

Congratulations to Mr. Jeremy Masten for correctly naming "Knights of Cydonia" by Muse as the Sunday Song of the Day.

Since it appears that no one who reads this blog can tell me about "Agricultural Leadership/Leading Agriculture", I have been forced to move our discussion to other topics.

First, a hearty Running Down a Dream congratulations to Mr. Trey Watten on being drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 7th Round of the First-Year Players Draft. In addition to his status as a dominating pitcher for my alma mater, Trey is also a proud member of Gamma Sigma Phi, and I think I speak for all past and current Gamma Sigs and Wildcats in wishing Trey the best of luck trying to make it to "The Show".

Second, the New York Times has a fantastic story today on the highs and lows of cuisine at all 30 major league stadiums. At the Ballpark, they give high marks to the prime rib buffet in the Diamond Club, which I'm sure that everyone frequents during their trips to see the Rangers battle, and low marks to "the pretzel dog". In the provided photo, the pretzel dog looks like a giant kolache, which, as anyone who has been through West, Texas, can tell you, is a great feat of culinary invention. In my opinion, they left out the best part of the Ballpark's menu, the garlic fries at numerous locations throughout the park, which are as enjoyable to eat as they are horrendous to smell.

At Minute Maid Park, the reviewers loved the fajitas from Rosa's Taqueria and loathed the superstar dog with cheese from Union Station. In a story that will shock absolutely no one, I had the superstar dog with cheese during my visit to the Juice Box a few weeks ago, and let me tell you, it may have tasted like a used Goodyear, but there is something fundamentally askew with someone that does not enjoy a frankfurter during a viewing of America's Pasttime.

Come Ride With Me Through the Veins of History

Congratulations to Mr. Joseph R. Halbert, currently of Guadalajara, Mexico, for correctly naming "Fake Plastic Trees" by Radiohead as the Wednesday Song of the Day.

Normally, most colleges and universities do a decent job playing up the entire "student-athlete" concept, but today, the proverbial scales fell from my eyes as I watched the Texas A&M-Rice baseball Super Regional (even better than the regular regional, because it's SUPER).

During coverage of sports that folks do not normally watch, college baseball being one of these sports, the networks love showing facts about the players on the screen just below their relevant stats. For instance, during the game, a viewer might learn that Tim Nelson (name entirely fictional) is hitting .345 this season with 13 homeruns and 56 runs batted in for State U. Below this information, ESPN might choose to tell us: "Tim is an Aquarius. Normally, before heading to bed in the evenings, Tim enjoys a nice glass of port along with a few passages from selected Cormac McCarthy novels and poetry by Samuel Coleridge Taylor."
That information, while perhaps not as relevant as Tim's current slugging percentage, helps the viewer to understand Tim as a complex figure, rather than a baseball playing-drone. Well, at least that's what the information is intended to do. Today, however, I learned that multiple players on the Texas A&M baseball team are "Agricultural Leadership" majors.

What in the name of Yogi Berra does that mean exactly? Does that degree allow you to serve as one of the people who led Big Brown from the paddock to the starting line at yesterday's Belmont Stakes? The idea that there is a major such as "Agricultural Leadership" both shocks and intrigues me.

I'm begging for anyone who is an A&M graduate or anyone has experience leading agriculture to enlighten me on this shadowy subject.

I Can't Help the Feeling, I Could Blow Through the Ceiling

Congratulations to Mr. Joseph R. Halbert for correctly naming "Cochise" by Audioslave as the Tuesday Song of the Day.

Joey's mention of Chris Cornell as a nominee for the Best Rock Vocalist of All-Time sparked another firestorm in this Houston-addled brain of mine.

If you had to choose one song as personal entrance music and/or a personal soundtrack what would it be?

For me, in the realm of entrance music, I'm going with the song named earlier, "Cochise" by Audioslave. It really has it all, my friends: A thundering drum intro, an absolutely filthy guitar riff, and wailing lead vocals.

In the category of personal soundtrack music, I'm stealing the choice of a Bill Simmons-mailbag contributor who noted that each and every Explosions in the Sky has the ability to make even the most mundane tasks seem like epic adventures that take on a mythical quality.

In the personal soundtrack clip, I'll be depicted eating a bowl of fruit loops while an 8-9 minute musical adventure takes place in the background.

Oh, also, pyrotechnics will be present.

Yes, many, many pyrotechnics.

I Drink to Health While You Kill Yourself

Congratulations to Mr. Dan Carlson for correctly naming "Pick Up the Change" by Wilco as the Friday Song of the Day.

In a recent conversation, I cited the following video as the "Best of the 90's" or at least the one that has stuck with me for the longest time.

Tell me where I'm wrong here, good readers of Running Down a Dream.