AHHHHH!!!

Six weeks since the last contest in this drawn out primary. They were hitting us every week, sometimes twice there for a while. But then we have this long, long break and the suspense has been killing me.

The contest will be crazylicious. Absolutely crazy. Six weeks ago polls had HRC up by over 20 points. But that lead has been eroding steadily. Most polls have her up around 8 points and some within the margin of error. Now, I am ridiculously optimistic at times but I am not expecting an Obama win at all. I will be shocked if he loses by under ten. For one, the polls themselves are pretty dubious. Polling firms with the best track records are very mixed, most floating around ten and twelve.

What is significant about all this pre-game stuff is how ineffective HRC's strategy has been. Polls overwhelmingly show no effect to the faux-fiasco with the 'bitter' remark, or Obama's relationship with Bill Ayers, who apparently is a big evil nasty or something. The news outlets talk about the hits he is talking for this. The polls shift by a whopping 1%, and not always in her favor. In short, the kitchen sink assault of last month really was the last of her ammunition.

Well, the primary is tomorrow. I plan on spending it glued to the nets.

Well, that was fast.

Apparently I have only one class and a thesis to write. Problem is I should have started looking into a topic last semester, if I was in that program. I have worked with two professors at Buff State. One of them works in a field I am not interested in, the other is on sabbatical next year.

So I spent yesterday talking to a few different professors to see if my interests and theirs match. One of them does American art history and I would love working with the guy. I have a class with him next semester, so it might work out.

But, as I am late in getting into this, I have been thinking of expanding my senior thesis. It was on the transition from a medieval mindset to a Renaissance/Humanist mindset in Northern Europe. It dealt heavily with artists like Bosch and Durer, as well as my hero Erasmus. Oh ya, I could put you folks to sleep talking about it. (begin historian/rock star voice) "Hello Buffalo! Are you ready to NAP!" (end)

There aren't many Early Modernist historians in this country. It was a period in vogue in the 70's and is due for a comeback sometime before I am dead. You can imagine my surprise to hear that one of the professor in the department not only is an Early Modernist, but also just wrote a book and my very topic but with a different focus. Jackpot!

I might actually have fun with this!

A martini is made with gin.

A martini is always made with gin.

A martini is never made with vodka.

Now, a vodka martini. Yes, that is made with vodka.

But a martini is always, always, always made with gin.

Next bartender who makes me a martini with vodka looses an eye.

Thankfully estrip's own (e:TheJuggernaut) knows this and is to be loved for it.

But for the rest of you bartenders out there, learn how to tend bar.

Ugh,

To get an MA in Social Studies education, you need about half pedagogy classes, half history. I walk into the history/S.S. ed. department to find out what I have to do to finish up my S.S. ed.MA. Reasonable, you cannot get that degree without finishing student teaching. So, I can't get that. However, they would be more than glad to have me in their history MA program.

crap.

So everything comes full circle and I am back to history again. Luckily, I have only four classes and a thesis to go.

ka-boom

I think I am a gentleman of taste and culture. I am also a man of no shame. With that said, my favorite movie of all time has to be



the wasteland that is Over the Top; which is greater than TS Eliot's Wasteland. I know, in those desolate planes of your childhood, this movie was on some channel people watch only when they are bored or stoned.

The plot is the very stuff of American folklore, like Johnny Apple Seed but with trucks. Sly Stalone picks his estranged son up from military school. He enters into arm wrestling matches and in the end wins not only the tournament, but also the love of his son.

The film can be sumarized in this one minute clip without missing anything. (A brief note. For all you aspiring actors. If you want to learn how to act with just your eyes, look at the man Stalone arm wrestles. He is no less than sensational.)



A light up stage? Multiple refs? A Roped ring? Over a thousand people watching and cheering? WTF?

But Stallone's character, Hawk, is no hulk. He is a samurai, calm even in the moment of striking his enemies down. For example, this scene. And ask yourself "Do you want it?"



This movie is great for so many reasons. Most of all, because it is a sad reflection on Sly. It wants to be Rocky. But instead of the drama of boxing, it is the junior high version: arm wrestling. Instead of fighting for the love of a sexy woman, he is fighting for the love of his son.