every word of it.

If you haven’t had your ears suctioned, stop this minute and head to your local otolaryngologist and have it done. It was an amazing experience. He used his Suck-O-Matic 3000 and sucked up all the ear wax that was making me deaf in my left ear. When the wax was clear, it felt like I was back on top. As cheesy as that sounds. Cause, being slighly deaf slightly sucks. I really had to work and position myself so my right side was closer to people talking. And asking people to repeat themselves, that’s what old people do, not me.

But you know, the one down side to having awesome hearing again, my desktop pc has gotten super loud.

Have I mentioned lately how much I love Fareed Zakaria?

He’s by far my favorite regular guest on The Daily Show. The things he says, he should get a medal. He’s just so well-spoken. I should really try to catch his own show, Foreign Exchange.

Fareed Zakaria, will you marry me? If not, can we just hang out maybe? You’ll think about it. Great.

My favorite way to start the week: Falling asleep just after watching Mission Hill

I need to buy that DVD set one day

The Gilette Fusion is a waste of money. It offers no real advantage over the Schick Quattro, other than the single blade on the back of the head. In terms of “Shaving Excellence”, 5 blades aren’t better than 4. You’d figure since you’re paying a gajillion dollars for the blades, they’d be awesomer, but they’re not. I still have to make as many passes as I did with the Quattro. And I still don’t get a better shave. I don’t think I’ll ever experience a truly clean shave unless I try one of those old timey straight razors or those “safety” razors that use razorblades. But you see, I’m not crazy. I’d never try those razors. I’ll gladly pay the $$$ to Gilette and Schick if it means I don’t need a blood transfusion every other day.

Oh how I envy those guys who can shave once a week.

MySpace is exploding. Seems everyone and their cousin are joining MySpace. And as soon as they finish their profile, they’re finding me and I get emails with subjects like “_____ would like to be added to as one of your friends”. Essentially forcing me to log in and accept their request. Otherwise, I look like I’m too good to even log in and accept their friend request.

I’m not sure when I joined MySpace exactly, but looking at my profile it was probably during those cavalier days of 2003. I have my Top 20 of 2003 listed in my profile,

1. The New Pornographers “Electric Version”
2. Radiohead “Hail To The Thief”
3. Super Furry Animals “Phantom Power”
4. British Sea Power “The Decline of British Sea Power”
5. Blur “Think Tank”
6. Belle & Sebastian “Dear Catastrophe Waitress”
7. Arab Strap “Monday At The Hug And Pint”
8. Clearlake “Cedars”
9. The Decemberists “Her Majesty”
10. Dizzee Rascal “Boy In Da Corner”
11. The Shins “Chutes Too Narrow”
12. Four Tet “Rounds”
13. The National “Sad Songs For Dirty Lovers”
14. The Tyde “Twice”
15. The Thrills “So Much For This City”
16. Aereogramme “Sleep and Release”
17. The Constantines “Shine A Light”
18. Exploding Hearts “Guitar Romantic”
19. Snow Patrol “Final Straw”
20. The Thermals “More Parts Per Million”

Yep, even then I knew how to rock. The only thing I would change is the positions of “The Decline of British Sea Power” and maybe “Think Tank”. They need to be higher. “The Decline of British Sea Power” is a classic. Definitely one of my “Perfect CDs”.

Now, back to MySpace. The whole point of this post is to point out how I joined MySpace before you. 2003! Almost 3 years ago. I’m a trendspotter.

And as a bonus, here’s a clip from The Daily Show about MySpace, starring a fellow trendspotter, Demetri Martin

Also, first YouTube video I’ve posted. I think that officially makes me part of the Web 2.0. I’m sorry.

From Billy West, the man himself,

And the other good news is that they’re doing 26 new episodes of ”Futurama” for TV and we’re hammering out the deal now.The original plan was to have the DVD’s first but that’s no longer the case.I’m totaly jammed dude.

I’m so excited. It’ll probably be years before we see new episodes, but I’m still totally jammed. Now if only Clone High, Mission Hill, Home Movies, Lucy, Daughter of the Devil, and Undergrads would return.

Update! Seems it wasn’t true, http://billywest.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=2020&KW=billywest

Guys, I’m sorry I gave inaccurate info on the cartoon.I was told on one end that the TV show was a go but DXC enlightened me (with a hammer) that this was not the case.I think there is a Futurama project as in DVD’s but I appearently had bad info.But I do live to give good Futurama news to people.So I must’ve died or something.

All eyes on the skies,

Billy

http://billywest.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=2018&PN=1

HEY GUYS —-Please forgive me but I’m getting different information than what I was given about Futuarma. DXC told me that this info was not true right now –I think the DVD’s are happening at some point,but I’m terribly sorry about the misinformation! Please help me to tell all the posters about this.I’ll find as much accurate info as I can!

Thanks, Billy

It’s been a little over a week since the RAV4 rolled out of Don Davis Toyota and into my heart. One word, splendiferous. Absolutely splendiferous. I do have a few complaints though, and I’ll address them first. The wheel cover. The wheel cover is a pain in the ass to get off and put back on again. I wish it was either a soft cover or a hard cover, none of this inbetween garbage. Also, no steering wheel controls for the radio. Shouldn’t that be standard on all cars now-a-days. So what if I got the “Sport” model, I deserve radio controls on the steering wheel. Not a big deal since I just hook up my iPod into the AUX IN port in the center arm rest and hit shuffle. But it would’ve been nice. Then there’s the change holder. The Taurus had these spring loaded change holders that were very nice. The RAV4 on the other hand, has these indentations in the top section of the arm rest. It works, but whenever you open up the arm rest, it sounds like all your change is falling, getting all over the place. The next complaint, isn’t really a complaint, more of an observation. The RAV4 is fast. Like 269hp fast. To compare, the Taurus, only 145hp. The RAV4 is more powerful than the BMW X3 and about a second quicker in both the quarter mile and 0-60. I’m afraid to depress the accelerator. It feels like I’m in control of the forces of hell, and at my command they will spill forth and destroy this world. It’s a lot of responsibility. And that’s it. Seriously. I love everything else so much.

The best feature of the car is the back seats. Whoever designed those seats deserve some sort of car industry award for brilliance. The seats move back and forth, to maximize/minimize cargo space. AND they recline. The people in my back seat are some of the luckiest people in the world. Not to mention, if you need to fit half of a piece of whiteboard in the RAV4, the rear seats fold down easily by just pulling a lever that is conveniently located in the rear. Also, it’s a very car-like drive. It’s a nice fit between the toy-car feel of my dad’s old Jeep and the detached behemoth of his Expedition. And although the ride is stiffer than the Taurus, it is “nicer”. And, I can’t really explain it, the RAV4 feels more stable through turns, like on highway ramps. The RAV4 smacks of engineering. It’s like they went over everything and triple checked it. You can feel the love.

As for mileage, it’s rated higher than my Taurus (22/29 vs 20/28). I haven’t checked real world usage, but the next time I fill up I’ll make note.

So if you’re looking for a new car, check out the RAV4.

When it comes to lunch at UTA, the place to go is SomethingZone (the name escapes me). It’s that place by Montague’s Deli that’s not Pizza Hut. When I was an undergrad, way back in 2005, the wraps that the salad place maked were amazing. They were the size of a small dog, and on rare occassions I couldn’t even eat the whole thing. Plus, there was that asian guy who worked there that was just amazing. He may not have spoken English at all, but through a series of pointing and nodding he made some of the finest wraps ever created by man. He took wrapping to another level. He didn’t need to rely on such crude implements as toothpicks to assist him. You could eat his wraps without fear, or napkins. Wherever you are asian man, I salute you. You are a credit to your people.

Imagine my shock and horror when I went to the salad place recently and found out they don’t make the wraps anymore. Instead, those schmucks over at Montague’s Deli are in charge of wraps. The few I tried were just awful. I wanted to believe. They skimped on the ingredients, they were sloppy, and they just weren’t that good. So I tried SomethingZone the other day, and it was pretty decent. Definitely better than Montague’s Deli, and a nice change from Pizza Hut and Chick-Fil-A. What really makes them standout, is the service. I was going to get some pasta dish, but they were out. I overheard the person infront of me ask for Chicken Cordon Bleu, so I decided to try it, not knowing there was ham in it. Luckily, server guy was looking out for me and mentioned that interesting fact (Damn French). That’s quality service.

So next time you’re in UTA and it’s lunch time, try out SomethingZone. It’s pretty decent, plus it’s very reasonably priced. A main dish and 2 sides goes for $3.99-4.99. Amazing!

The Taurus is on the way out. The final nail in the coffin was the camshaft position sensor and synchronizer.

Last Friday, the check engine light came on. After needlessly spending $89 on City Garage to diagnose the problem, I found out Autozone would read the code for free. So on Sunday, my dad took a look at the camshaft position center, and it was a mess. Imagine, if you will, a can of tuna. The top half stays stationary, the bottom half rotates. Well the top half was split in two. The sensor was malfunctioning because it was completely loose and sorta hanging on there. And the bottom half was chipped, and the synchronizer was bent. My dad straightened the synchronizer as best he could and got a replacement camshaft position sensor. Very temporary fix. The Taurus is on the way out.

I love the Taurus. It’s the perfect car for me. I always enjoyed driving around in it. Plus it looks hot. It’s a very sleek looking car. It’s wide and low to the ground, very agressive. Long says it’s built like a spaceship, ready for intersterllar travel. And it’s true. The Taurus was ahead of its time.

So now I have to start looking for cars. As I’ve mentioned before, a sedan won’t do. I need something without a trunk. A wagon, a hatchback, or a SUV. Basically, the successor to the Taurus has to pass 2 tests. Can it fit a boxed 27″ TV, and can it fit half a sheet of whiteboard?

Currently in the lead is the Toyota RAV4. At first, I was a little cold on the RAV4. It’s a SUV. People aren’t supposed to buy SUVs anymore as I understand it. But Long really championed the RAV4. The more I looked at it, the better it looked. It’s the best car-based SUV on the market. It’s just the right size, yet has loads of storage. It gets better mileage than the Taurus. And from all the reviews, it’s a very nice drive. Not big and lumbering like my dad’s Expedition. And apparently, it’s the 2nd fastest car Toyota has out, only slower than the Avalon. Plus it looks great in red. What more do you want?

But unfortunately, the RAV4 is a hot commodity. I got the first V6 from Don Davis Toyota. It had 7 miles on the odometer when I took it for a test drive. It had just came off the truck, and they were cleaning it up when we got there. Unfortunately, a Red RAV4 Sport V6 is a very hard vehicle to find, considering production in the Gulf States for V6 models is around 10%. So here it is,my Flint Mica RAV4 Sport V6,