Friday, August 29, 2008

My New Digs

With much trepidation I was moved to a new apartment off campus last week. At first, I was vigorously opposed to the idea of moving for the basic fact that I had a very nice on campus apartment and was quite comfortable there. Add to that the fact that the university could come up with no good reason for the change, I was more than a little pissed off.

Moving day was a sight to behold. If Koreans do nothing else well, they sure as shit know how to move people. Five guys showed up at my house last Wednesday, packed all my stuff ( I didn't have to do ANYTHING), loaded the stuff into the truck, ran it to my new place, and then UNPACKED EVERYTHING AND PUT IT AWAY!! These guys managed to do all this in just about three and a half hours. It was unbelievable.

Now that I'm settled in, the move is turning out to be a pretty good thing. While the new lace is significantly smaller than my old one, it's quite comfy. The thing I like the most is that it's at the end of the building, so I have balconies at each end of the apartment. Because I'm on the 12th floor, this allows for a great cross breeze to run through the apartment and keep it relatively cool even on hot days.

Here are some pics of the new place.



I have to say, I really like the view from the front of the apartment.

It's a long way to the street.

The front room.

The kitchen.

The backroom which I'm using as an office.

The view from the back of the apartment.

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Sunshine? We don' need no steenkin' sunshine!

Summer is BBQ season damnit!! There is no way that we're gonna let something so trivial as a little rain get in our way!










Sunday, August 03, 2008

Art Monk (81) and Darryl Green (28) Enter the Hall of Fame

In fist-pumping vindication to the class, humility, and professionalism that seems so lacking in today's sports world, two of the classiest, most humble and professional figures in sport were inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio today: Art Monk and Darryl Green.

Monk, the quiet, dependable receiver from the glory days of the 80's Redskins, who made his living making all the tough, clutch catches going over the middle, had to wait almost ten years for this moment. For Skins fans like myself, every year Monk was denied enshrinement was like a knife in the throat (Steelers fans had to feel the same way when Lynn Swann was over-looked repeated times before his eventual trip to canton). No one who lived in D.C. during the 80s, who watched Art Monk, week after week, make clutch catch after catch will ever understand the thinking of the sports writers that denied him for so long. It just seemed SO wrong. Justice has finally been served and Art Monk is enshrined among the greats where he belongs.

Darryl Green is another story altogether. It was impossible to imagine he wouldn't get in the Hall of fame on his first year of eligibility. The undersized, ebullent, speedster drafted in '83, who went on to play an unbelievable TWENTY years for the Redskins (with the exception of one other, Jackie Slater, the longest tenure on one team for any position player). His speed - who can forget him in his rookie year coming from twenty yards back and across the field to catch Tony Dorsett from behind - and his sheer enthusiasm for the game and life in general made Green an instant favorite in Washington. His loyalty to the team after free agency began, when he had ample opportunity to chase the money and chose to remain a Redskin, earned him undying respect and adulation.

According to the Washington Post, more than 15,000 Redskin fans from all over the country invaded Canton for the induction ceremonies; turning them into what Michael Wilbon called a massive Redskins tailgate. In these days when snotty, self-absorbed, prima-donnas who have no values other than, "What have you done for me lately?" rule the sports scene, it's good to know that TRUE sportsmen can given the accolades they so richly deserve.