The Lost Spy

Started reading a new book today called The Lost Spy: An American In Stalin's Secret Service. It's written by the same guy who wrote one of the last books I read, Black Earth, and so far its a really cool book. It basically a spy story about some guy who betrayed the US and went overseas to become a Russian Agent. I guess he eventually got caught and rotted away in the gulags, but the book tells all of what happened in between in a very unique way. If you like spy thrillers, read this book. It's all true and paints a really cool picture of what the political climate was like in the US and Europe right after World War 1 and just before World War 2. Otherwise just keep watching re-runs of Friends and drinking your Venti Mochachino Latte's from Starbucks like the automaton you probably are.
Yes, I Am Still On That Russian History Kick

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Went out to my grandparents for Thanksgiving today. Dang I love the meal my Grandma always cooks up! Im sure its all good, but i can't ever get past a huge plate mashed potatoes and gravy, followed up with another full plate of bread crumb stuffing and gravy. Oh yeah, then I follow it up with as many slices of Pumpkin Pie as I can manage to eat! Mmmmmmmm! It was good to see all of the family and eat a delicious meal, but once it was time to go we decided to head over to Morongo Casino to do some gambling. Lucky for me my cousin owed me $200 so that was my cash to bet with right there... After only 30 minutes, things were not looking good. Both my cousin and I had lost over $100 bucks on that lame ass Wheel of Fortune slot machine. We were playing the max lines, so each press of the button was basically $3.00 down the drain. After losing a grand total of $115.00 on Wheel of Fortune I decided to do what I never do... try my hand at Blackjack. We played at a $10.00 minimum bet table and I got a bunch of breaks while my cousin lost all of his dough. I think I even gave him almost $100 in chips since I was winning so much. I decided that since I had my original $200.00 back that anything else was cool, but as long as I could break even I was down with that. So I left the table with $300.00. I had to take a whiz and it was time to go so coming out with an extra hundred to spend was fine by me. However I passed the table again for one last time as I was walking to the door. I decided what the heck and put $100.00 worth of chips down and won, doubling my money! NICE. I'm sure this is total chump change to most people but to win anything when gambling for me is a minor miracle... I guess I need to try to play this crap more often because i turned $60.00 into almost $400.00. For some reason I felt like I couldn't lose.

12-1... Are You Kidding Me?

Another major blowout by the Lakers last night. Even when they play at a mediocre level they are still hammering teams and running them out of the building. NOBODY in the NBA is looking this good right now.
Pau vs Yao? No Pau vs Yi... I think...

The Shield Grand Finale

Last night I watched the much anticipated conclusion to my favorite TV show of all time, The Shield. I never thought it would end how it did, and I don't want to spoil it for anyone, so I won't go into too many details, but overall I thought it was a fantastic episode. However, I'm definitely very sad that the show is done for good. In fact, I'm not sure that its finality has even sunk in yet. No show has ever entertained, shocked, saddened, and kept me as interested in watching television like The Shield has. Now it's done. No more Farmington, no more Armenian Money Trains, no more Biz Lats and One Niners, no more con jobs by Billinglsly, no more Dutch getting dissed by every female he falls for, no more shady moves made by Shane, no more Julian and Thomas (had to put this one in for my girl), no more backstabbing by Aceveda, no more Strike Team, and most importantly no more Vic Mackey. What a great 6 years of episodes this has been... Thanks for everything FX, this show truly rocked! And for those of you who have never watched this show. Go rent season 1 ASAP and start your new TV addiction. You won't be disappointed.
Former Residents Of The Barn

Drunken Whackos... You've Gotta Love 'Em!

Yesterday while I was getting my bike repaired at my favorite local bike shop, Incycle Pasadena, I shared in a classic Bum encounter with the staff. It was one of the most ridiculous things I have seen lately, and especially since it wasn't in Hollywood, or Downtown LA, it was all the more unusual. So lets begin... I walked into the store minding my own business, when I began to notice that all the staff had smirks on their faces and were kind of giving each other funny looks. Then from behind a rack of bikes I see this Lady, dressed in the latest Bum/Thug attire looking like Chris Rock in CB4 pop up and start giving the staff a piece of her mind. First it was that she didn't want one of they guys who appeared to be Armenian touching her bike at all. Apparently he had something to do with a terrorist cell, and his work couldn't be trusted, especially on something as important as her piece of shit bike. Then she kept throwing her $10 bill at the staff saying here's the money take it, I want to pay for my bike, take it! To which she was denied every time and told that she had to pay up front at the register, when the work on her bike was done. I guess she finally got the picture because she gave up, and then began to go into this whole long story about how her husband is some cross dressing transvestite. Apparently she discovered this when she found a ton of high heeled shoes in the closet when she was doing some cleaning, and now she's cool with it. Keep in mind that she was practically yelling the whole time she told this story, the store was packed, and there were young kids in the store as well. I don't think I've seen someone clear out a store much quicker than this lady did it, but I could see why people wanted to get out of there. BUT NOT ME! Nah... I wanted to leave, but they were still changing my tire. So then she starts talking about some weird lesbian biker shit and making innuendos about some of the bikes they had in the store. I'm telling you this lady was off her rocker! So me and some members of the staff began laughing our asses off, and I think the lady caught on. She started calling me a "Peckerwood" and was saying how she knows I live in a huge house and that she is glad it burned down in the fires last week, and started to get all irate. I began to wonder if I might have to knock this lady out, since it seemed like she was about to snap and attack me or anyone else within arms reach. Luckily at this point the guy working on her bike was "finished" with the work. Well I'm not sure if he really was or not, but she left almost immediately, so maybe he did that to get her the hell out of there. A few minutes later my bike was fixed and I went and paid the bill. The grand total wound up being $17 dollars. I though to myself, not too bad for a new tire and a comedy show...
Yes The Thug Bum Lady Shared A Strong Resemblance To Him

CHINESE DEMOCRACY RELEASED

After 17 years of waiting, Axl Rose and Gun's N' Roses have finally released the album that many said would never come out... Chinese Democracy. Maybe its because I've always thought that Axl Rose is the greatest rock singer of all time, or maybe it is due to my life long love of Gun's N Roses music that I'm biased, but I think this album kicks some major ass! I'm gonna cut this entry short 'cuz I want to get back to listening to the album...
Inside Artwork From The New Album

Movie Time

Went and saw Slumdog Millionaire today with my lady. It was one of the best films I have seen in a looooooong time. Maybe it's because I get to see a lot of films at work, and more often than not I don't enjoy them, or maybe I was just pleasantly surprised since I knew nothing of the film and had no expectations before going in. Either way, you need to go out and see that film. You won't regret it.
There Is Grimy India Footage Galore In This One

Lakers Keep On Rolling

Another blowout win tonight on the road in Phoenix!
See Ya Later Shaq!

Pasadena Marathon... CANCELLED!

It's a little past 4am and I Just got up to walk the dog before the Marathon. It smells like a burnt Christmas Tree outside. I only walked maybe 500 feet total and I can feel the effects on my lungs from the fires we are surrounded by. It makes sense that they cancelled the marathon today. I don't think anyone would be finishing it without a gas mask and oxygen tank strapped to their backs... Oh well, better luck next time!
Dang This Suuuuucks Bigtime!

Artie Sighting

A friend of mine went by the Barnes & Noble Bookstore in the Grove to check out the scene at Artie Lange's book signing. She said it was insanely packed with gibronis and guidos, and the line was about 4 hours long. Despite all the commotion, she did manage to snap a pic of Artie. Its good to see he's still looking as fat as ever! I want to get his new book To Fat To Fish ASAP and read it. Im sure it will be hilarious.
Too Fat To Sign Books

Bathroom Remodel Complete!

After almost a month of work, 3 weeks of which we had to spend living at my parents house, the new bathroom can finally be unveiled. Although its still not 100% done, it's at the fully functional level now and I can't even begin to explain how much nicer this bathroom is compared to the old one it replaced. All that's really left to do is put in a cabinet over the toilet in the new enclave we had built for us, put a little cabinet on the far side of the sink, and also maybe put up a few picture's here and there. Now why don't you scroll down and take a cyber tour of facilities...
Taa Daaaaa!
The Bain Ultra Basa Duo... We Got Hooked Up!
Vertical View Of The Shower And Bath Fixtures
Finally A Real Shower Head And No More Snake Nozzle
Reverse Angel, New Shower Set Up And Hooks
New Shower Curtain... How Tranquil
New Recessed Lighting
The Toto Lloyd Toilet In It's New Alcove
A Closer Look At The Pedestal Sink And Medicine Cabinet
Tiled Floors Looks So Much Nicer Than Linoleum Ones

7-0

The Lakers are on fire right now! They stomped New Orleans in their own building last night on the second game of a back to back while N.O. had 4 days of rest. Now that's what I call a statement. Three cheers to the Lakers being the sole undefeated team left in the NBA! Let's keep it up fellas!
Throw It Down Big Man... Throw It Down!

Mishka NYC - Skyway Trippers Gear

On Halloween one of my favorite clothing companies, Mishka NYC had a 50% off sale which is a VERY rare occurrence. I like Mishka due to the fact that they always come through with very unique Soviet inspired graphics, and also due to the fact that it hasn't blown up yet, so I don't ever see anyone wearing the same gear as me! Anyways, they killed it once again with the Skyway Trippers line. In my opion it's kind of a Voltron meets the Soviet Space Program theme, which equals BADASS! Since all of their shirts are over $30 a pop minimum I HAD to take advantage of the sale and re-up on some gear. The shirts I ordered on Halloween just arrived via UPS so here's a look at them...
Trippy Trails Just Like That Old Disney Intro
Cyclops Infantry Division
This Shirt Has A Old School Glossy Iron On Graphic
Voltron Or Tranzor-Z Look A Like
Russian Cosmonaut Styles
Prison Tattoo Graphic
This One Reminds Me Of That Old Jason Jesse Graphic
Another Space Robot Design

The Devil We Know

Started reading a new book today since I finally finished that one about modern Russia. It's called The Devil We Know: Dealing With The New Iranian Superpower, and it's another mind bender of a read on what's going on right now in the Middle East. I already thought that the Iraq war was bad, but reading this book written by an ex-CIA Middle Eastern intelligence specialist, it seems a whole lot worse. So far this book has provided many a reason to further my theory that the Earth will be done in 200 years tops! Enjoy it while it lasts everyone!!! Strangely enough the book does make me want to visit Iran. Go figure!
Read It Then Start Saving For $10 A Gallon Gas

Another Lakers Beatdown

And the Rockets were supposed to have a shot at the title? HAHAHA
You Know I Had To Go See Yao Get Dominated Tonight
Walking Down Pico Towards Staples
Sorry Only This Rocket's Warmup Pic Came Out
The Tookster Passed Out In Lakers Gear

Fallout 3

At long last I finally got this video game I had damn near been waiting 2 years for, Fallout 3. Thank God it doesn't dissapoint. However, since I've been busy as heck lately I have hardly been able to play it at all, but from what I have played so far (about 3 hours worth) it is bonkers. Post Apocalyptic World... CHECK, Tons Of Badass Guns... CHECK, Mutants... CHECK, Zombies... CHECK...Ridiculous Gore... CHECK... whatmore could you want in a game? I could go on and on about how sick this game is, but why bother? Just do yourself a favor and go buy yourself that early Christmas gift already.
This Guy Will Kill You Sooner Or Later...uh...I Think?
Looks Like Someone Just Got Blasted In Slo Mo!
Retro Futuristic Poster

Happy Friday

In honor of Friday being here once again, I decided to post one of my favorite pictures of all time... The Gold Spray Paint Huffer Guy! Now go out and find anything you can and inhale yourself into oblivion. Just kidding, don't just get anything... get some Gold Krylon. After all, look at the wonders that it has worked on him...
A True Warriors Fan

OBAMA WINS!!!

It's official! Change has finally come!
Suck On This You Right Wing Religious Nut Jobs!
Bye McCain!!!

Election Day

If you haven't already, you better get out there and vote today. This election is much too important to skip. You don't want to suffer another 4 years of idiotic leadership do you? I didn't think so! NOW STOP READING THIS AND GO VOTE!
I Was At The Polls At 6:30am Waiting In Line
That's At Least One For The Obama Biden Ticket

The Big Three Oh

Turned 30 today. Didn't do much except went out to a nice dinner at Elena's with my fiance and parents. Im officially an old fart now...

Volume 3

About 2 years ago while up in Santa Cruz for a friends wedding I found a very strange book at Urban Outfitters. I'm not sure whether the book's title or the strange front cover caught my eye first, but whatever the case, I picked up the book and after thumbing through just a few pages, decided to buy it. The book was called the Russian Criminal Tattoo Encyclopaedia Volume 2 and to this day its still one of the weirdest and creepiest books I have ever seen. The book is basically filled with tons of R. Crumb-esque pen and ink drawings, that are actually hand drawn replicas of real prisoner's tattoos. Most of these prisoners happened to reside in the worst Prisons and Gulags that the former U.S.S.R. had to offer, so their tattoos reflect their grim situations. Corpses, Satan, Stalin, you name it, they have it tatted on them. Also every tattoo meant something. If you were a facist tattoo X signified it, a murderer then get tattoo Y, an anti Communist then tattoo Z, and so on... Every prisoner was a human piece of hieroglyphics waiting to be deciphered. So yesterday out of the blue while I was reading Black Earth I was wondering about Russian Criminal Tattoos again and I decided to do an Amazon search. Low and behold they had just added Volume 3 of the Russian Criminal Tattoo Encylopaedia for pre-order!!! Also Volume 2 has since gone out of print and sells for anywhere from $100 to $700 online! SCORE!!! Needless to say I pre-ordered Volume 3 and will be looking forward to getting it in the mail. Maybe I will even buy a few extra copies to slang in a year or so to finance a purchase of Volume 1, which is even more expensive and harder to find.
Just One Weird Image From The Book

Pasadena Marathon Update - The Route Is Set!

I can't believe that I almost forgot to register for the 1st ever Pasadena Marathon!!! If it wasn't for the flyer I got in the mail yesterday I probably would have been shit out of luck. This morning I logged on to register, and probably snagged one of the last spots available. I guess registration had been closed already, but they just opened up a few more slots yesterday for people who want to bike the marathon, run the half marathon, or run the 5k. So basically I'm going to bike the marathon, which sounds way more fun anyways. Hopefully by this time next year my feet will be fully healed from a string of basketball related injuries, and I can start running full force again and maybe run it. We shall see...
Looks Like Fun!