What's Dagromm Listening To???

That's the question I know that is on everyone's mind. Being on the forefront of of the music industry and pop culture like I am you get used to hearing questions like this. People want to know "what is cool" and they know where to find it. Me.

So this is what has been ringing around my ears lately.


The Ting Tings
I've been semi-obsessed with them for a month or more now. I love the way this song builds and I'm crushing on the lead singer.


The Blue Hearts
Rock and roll baby!! This group amps up some punk furiosity and I dig it. And yes furiosity is a word. I just created it. Feel free to spread your own furiosity at your discretion.


Katy Perry
This is my daughter's favorite video right now and so gets played through the Dagromm household quite a bit. I know that many others also love Katy Perry, so I'm just here to tell you that it's ok.

I'd like to thank everyone that keeps checking in on me. That list is mainly my Unemployment Case Worker. I'm glad that although she wants me to get a job, she's concerned that it be a good fit. She recently sent me this video.



I like to think that she sent it out of love.

Snow Day

Yes, that's right world travelers be forewarned that the children of Lewisville, Tx did not have school today because of closure due to inclement weather. Now what exactly that inclement weather is or where it is eludes me. I certainly didn't have any thoughts of it this morning when I drove them to school. I did luckily notice that absolutely no one was in the parking lot so I turned around and brought them back home and verified on TV that indeed the schools were closed. I seem to recall that I could never get a snow day when I was a kid yet somehow today's kids are able to get them easily, without the benefit of snow or ice on the ground. I've heard that it might ice tonight. MIGHT. M-I-G-H-T. What the hell? School lets out at 3:00. That's more than enough time to make it home before the arctic conditions make it unliveable outside. I guess I can safely assume that means that there will be no school tomorrow to.

Don't get me wrong. I love my kids. I love spending time with them. I love spending time with them on weekends and properly scheduled times called "holidays". The rest of the time is "me time". Instead I've spent my day constantly fixing them food. What is this where kids can go all day at school with just a sandwich, but at home they can't go five minutes without needing some elaborately prepared meal set before them. Like Ramen or Extra Cheesy Mac n' Cheese. I was saving that for me, you know.

Well, here's the one bright spot in the world that I was able to find today.

For those of you wanting to know what I've been up to since being laid off I thought I'd share.

Whew!! Made it!

Yes, that's right. I survived the holidays. It wasn't easy as you might imagine on one income and some unemployment, but we managed to get the kids a couple of things and we got a few things in return. Now we can concentrate on scraping by without the distraction of the holidays. To my son's credit he never really asks for much and seems delighted with whatever he gets and seems generally amused that anyone gets him anything at all. This was also the first year that he wanted to get gifts for some friends at school. I guess 7th grade is about that age, but it still kind of caught me by surprise. The boy remains kind of socially awkward, but he's managed to find himself a group of anime loving friends that he apparently fits in with. I've suggested that he invite them over, but he's not ready for that right now. That or he thinks I'm going to embarrass him. That remains a distinct possibility.

The girl had her 9th birthday party in early/mid December and for it we endured (cue ominous music and echo sound effects) the sleep over. We had nine girls come over and spend the night and although there were certainly the dramatic tear filled moments, in the end everyone had a good time. She also has been continuing with her writing and got some very positive feedback from her teacher about a story that she wrote. The assignment was to write a story using six of her spelling words, which for most of us means a story that is six sentences long. The girl loves to write though and wrote something considerably longer. Maybe I'll post it.

I received a soccer ball for Christmas from my son and a bouncey magic eight ball type thing from the girl. The soccer ball I wanted because I find I never have enough coaching supplies and really still need a few more. The bouncey eight ball/snow globe thing was something I had made a comment about Walmart and the girl determined was something I really wanted. It made for great conversation the rest of the break as I got to make several announcements to the family about how happy I am with my balls, and how proud I am of my balls, how I can't wait to play with my balls, etc. Finally the kids asked me to stop. That's the sign of good parenting. The kids have learned decorum.

Here are a few quick hits regardsing the last couple of months of unemployment.

I still don't know how to make much use out of Facebook. I think it's really like those memo boards that people use to put on their dorm room doors letting people know that they are out.

I've become addicted to Naruto.

I've recently made the single greatest meatloaf ever. I'm very proud of it.

I've recently made one of the hottest tastiest pots of chili ever. It'll make your eyeballs bleed it's so good.

Soccer sign ups are ongoing and I'm busily recruiting players to come back from last years team.

I am also planning practices and formulating some psychological tactics to get my team to play better. Some thing that uses less physical abuse and probably more verbal abuse. This is 2009 after all.

Happy birthday Goo.

A Pick Me Up

I know it's been quiet for a while. Unfortunately there's been no real change in my situation. I'm still looking and I've had some good interviews, but nothing has been locked in yet. I've found that sometimes when you're down you need Shoes.

Fool Me Once Shame on Me, Fool Me Twice.......Fuck!!!!

Okay, I wasn't really fooled. I saw it coming even through the protestations of the higher ups in the company. Regardless, for the second time in three years I was laid off from my job. In total somewhere around twenty folks were let go on Friday from the small company where I worked. Which of course answers the question, "What's worse than being pulled into an office and told that your job is being eliminated?" The answer of course is being pulled into an office and told that your job is being eliminated while dressed as Frank 'N Furter from the Rocky Horror Picture Show. If you can imagine watching person after person dressed in cowboy garb, afro wigs, and characters from the Wizard of OZ walking dejectedly out of the office than you can pretty much imagine what my Halloween was like.

So, I'm a professional job seeker now. Wish me luck. If you wish to call me about it, I'd appreciate you calling me at home rather than on my cell. My cell's been getting blown up the last few days. I'm pretty popular.

The Big Fear

I voted yesterday!!! Early voting is the best thing ever. With out a doubt. It's like getting a sneak preview of something, or a backstage pass, or one of those passes that they sell at amusement parks that allow you to skip the lines. Awesome. I spent all of two minutes yesterday evening waiting in line to vote. This beats my previous best record for shortest time waiting in line to vote by about 1.63 hours. The relief is overwhelming. For once I've done my civic duty and wasn't terribly inconvenienced.

So now I sit and wait. The candidate I selected is comfortable ahead in the polls and if you ask the news agencies then all but FOX would tell you that he's already won. The underlying thing that I think most people wonder though is still there. Is it possible for a Black man to actually win the election?

Truthfully, I'm not sure.

I don't know why this was on my mind, but...

cop
noun
short for copper, police officer

cop
verb
transitive verb slang : to get hold of : catch, capture; also : purchase slang : steal, swipe: adopt intransitive verb slang : admit—used with to

cop
noun
a cylindrical or conical mass of thread, yarn, or roving wound on a quill or tube ; also : a quill or tube upon which it is wound

Now you know. Feel free to take on the world and tackle your own demons today.

For Those Who Are Too Lazy

I have found the Barack Roll for you. Enjoy.

Where's the Dagromm At?

I've seen this and heard this asked multiple times over the last few months? Seriously, it's like where ever I go I'm hearing, "Where's Dagromm" and "Hey, Dags is missing" and stuff like that. It's been pretty crazy. I thought I'd end the silence and give you a trimmed down version of what's been indulging my time for the last several months.

1. JANGO - I love the internet, because there are always sites that the administrator misses when he tries to stop all the bandwidth from getting used up. I like to work on my on-line radio station "Dagromm's First" and increase my playlist. It's hard work though.

2. Soccer - The girl's team has started slow again and we are finally starting to turn the corner. I wish that we could get more participation at practice.

3. Election Talk - This has got to be the funniest presidential race in history. Once again I love he internet, because I receive something new almost everyday. My current favorite is the Barackroll on YouTube.

4. Fretting

5. Loving

6. Partying - Admittedly #'s 4, 5, and 6 used to happen in reverse order, but I'm older now and have had a vasectomy, so there you go.

7. Softball - We now have a social sports team at work. It includes practices once a week, games once a week, and female coworkers in shorts.

8. Poker - I now have a Facebook for no apparent reason. Q and Cyber D told me I needed one and it was free, so I caved to peer pressure. I still don't really make use of it except to play poker (for points) on line. I don't chat at the table unless I'm really bored. I am also amazed at how quickly people jump to conclusions when they see your avatar.

OUCH!

I've been doing some yard work and finally set myself to clear out a large patch of unattended growth along the side of my house last week. I spent about 40 minutes hacking and picking up scraps that had been growing unfettered for the last two years. It was a mess and still is as I haven't finished the work, but I had filled up my trash can and had to stop.

About two days later my legs looked like a war zone. Red, blistered, and itching. I have my suspicions that in my side yard there is a substantial amount of poison ivy. This suspicion was reinforced when I did some more work on my yard this weekend and got a fresh new patch of rashes. I had always assumed that I was immune to the effects of poison ivy, much as I am immune to every other poison known to man (iocaine powder, etc.), but I have since learned that resistence to poison ivy can lessen with age and continued exposure to it (unlike iocaine powder). So now the warzone that was just my legs has expanded to my arms and chest. I am even now resisting the urge to roll around on the floor at work. It's not that I haven't done it before, but my pants are freshly pressed and I think they've still got another use in them.

The Gift Bag for All Eternity

It has come to my attention recently that my life will eventually have a stopping point. I have my hopes that it will end with a really climactic scene. Maybe, I'll run the train off the tracks as I try to out run the law. I don't know. I'm still trying to wrap my head around this whole mortality thing. So, it occurs to me that I will have to make some arrangements for my remains after I am gone. I recently watched Conan the Barbarian again and think that I would like a funeral similar to what Conan gives to Valeria. Please when I go make sure that my soul is sent to Valhalla by means of a funeral pyre while you all curse Crom for letting this happen to such a swell guy.

I've also been thinking about who all will come to my final send off. Of course, I can't be sure of a final count, but I want you in the blog community to know that you are all invited. I'd like it to be a potluck affair, so if you'd all like to leave what you're bringing in the comments section that would help tremendously.

Lastly, I think that I should put together a Dagromm Memorial Gift Bag for everyone in attendance. I've just started to go over what will be included, but I thought I'd give you some of my preliminary thoughts.

1. A signed thank you letter for attending my funeral. I've never been good aboutdoing thank you notes, but it's how you finish not how you begin so as long as I get this right then I think it'll go in the plus column when resolving my afterlife status.

2. A toothbrush, trial size tooth paste and dental floss. I currently work for a dental care provider, so this should be pretty easy to score, and you the recipients of the gift bags get to be the lucky beneficiaries!!!

3. A CD (or equivilant futuristic media) with burned copies of my favorite songs.

4. Chinese finger cuffs.

5. Miscellaneous candy.

6. A tasteful nude photo of myself. Framed for display on any mantle.

7. Commemorative stationary with my photo (looking very peaceful and contemplative).

8. A random baseball card from the 1990 Topps set or basketball card from the 1991 Fleer set. Good luck!!

9. A puzzle piece that when joined with the other pieces from the other gift bag makes a photo of me on one side and forms a secret message on the back. Don't ask. I'm not telling.

For those that couldn't find this....

Hit and Run

Hey all, sorry for the long delay but it's been a busy few weeks all crammed together and I expect it to run into next week as well. I should have warned you all, but hopefully the Dagromm withdrawals haven't been to bad.

I don't know if any of you watch So You Think You Can Dance, but my daughters' former dance teacher is in the top 20 and I guess after this week is in the top 18! She was by far my favorite of all her teachers, and I still get happy eyes whenever she comes back to hang out at the studio. So if any of you watch the show then feel free to vote to keep her on. Her name is Chelsea Traille and she is still the only dance teacher to get a Christmas gift from us.

One of the other final dancers is also a previous dance teacher of my son's. His name is Chris something and I don't guess I paid much attention to him when he was here. I'm not nearly as interested in him so vote for him if you wish. His partner however is also a local product and graduated from the Arts Magnet High School. So, once again another tie to my artsy sisters who are also alums.

Best Fronds Forever

When I can’t sleep due to the worries of the real world running through my head I lay in bed and imagine that I am somewhere else. Somewhere peaceful that I can relax and let stress drift away. I envision that I am lying on a grassy hillside. There is a blue sky up above with clouds floating gingerly past. All of the clouds are shapeless and cottony. A cool breeze blows on me manufactured by a dozen Dutch milkmaids in Kabuki make-up waving giant fronds from some far off palm trees. They sing me songs from their native land about a wall made of bottles of beer, in which they dismantle the wall one bottle at a time and pass them a round. The sun peeks out from behind the clouds and gives me a wink and waves hello to me.

The grass doesn’t so much tickle my feet as it gently massages them and I can see a distant fair grounds bustling with activity just over the next hill. My cat gently nuzzles my face and gives me an affectionate nibble (that part isn’t imagined, she just likes to fuck with me when I’m trying to sleep). The steady rhythm of the breeze matches that of my heart beat and the song starts to fade in and out. Every now and again a bird chirps a playful song and I notice the sun is still poking around the clouds and waving at me, persistently.

The smell of Rosemary is in the air and I find peace in the scent. Rosemary was this chick I used to sit behind in Anthropology in college. She smelled like pot and ice cream. Come to think of it, she did use to work at a Baskin Robbins and had a reputation for partying fairly hard. She always seemed pretty mellow to me though, so I guess you can’t believe everything you hear. The sun is waving hard at me now and is very intent on getting my attention.

The vision starts to blur and come in and out of focus now. The milkmaids’ song is getting to the last few dozen bottles in the beer wall. The clouds are slowing their trek across the azure sky, and the birds sound further away now. The sun looks really frustrated so I wave back to it and it looks overjoyed. It then sends me a lollipop through a pneumatic tube and asks if I have any other transactions to make. When I say “no”, it thanks me and tells me to have a good day.

In other news, has anyone else noticed how long those lines at the bank take?

Bullet Points

• I love bullet points.


• They make random lists of things look organized and less like a bunch of last minute thoughts.


• They are also a great space killer for business documents. No need to complete paragraphs, these are just bullet points!


• Flavored cream cheese sucks. Does anyone really like strawberry flavored cream cheese? Cinnamon apple? Ugghhh.


• See how that worked. It's a bullet point so I don't need any kind of transition.


• Does the new Incredible Hulk movie have a chance when the last one sucked so bad and the CGI makes both movies look the same?


• I got published on a CNN blog. Look at me!!! You might have to scroll down a bit


• This is my 300th post. It's not my best.


• I'm still rated #1 by lesbians!!! I think.


• I've been re-watching Coupling season 2 and I will list the three things that Steve says that every bloke needs to know.

1. You will never be famous.


2. You're fatter than you think you are.


3. Stockings are a myth. There are only ten pair in the entire world that women pass around based on need, which is why they are so prevalent early in the relationship and then disappear as the relationship continues.

• I've almost got my body bathing suit ready again!


• The Mucho Nachos I ate for lunch isn't going to help though.

Q is an Ass

Some of you might remember former blogger, Q. I know that Fringes likes to portray Q as some sort of good guy, but I feel the world deserves the truth. In the spirit of honesty about Q's jerkdom I present the following e-mail exchange from last week.

From: Dagromm

Sent: Tuesday, May 06, 2008 10:02 AM

To: Q

Subject: Emergency

Q,
I need another copy of the College Dropout CD. Mine got scratched up and half of it is torn the hell up. I don’t know how much longer I can hold up.

Dagromm

From: Q

Sent: Tuesday, May 06, 2008 10:16 AM

To: Dagromm

Subject: RE: Emergency

Dude, I will get you 750 Mb of Kanye West stat!

From: Dagromm

Sent: Tuesday, May 06, 2008 10:17 AM

To: Q

Subject: RE: Emergency

Thanks, I’m getting the shakes real bad. Hey do you know when you might be available to come by and give me some help with a few things?

From: Q

Sent: Tuesday, May 06, 2008 10:26 AM

To: Dagromm

Subject: RE: Emergency

Saturday?

From: Dagromm

Sent: Tuesday, May 06, 2008 10:32 AM

To: Q

Subject: RE: Emergency

Crap, I was going to suggest Sunday, but then I remembered that’s Mother’s Day. How about the following Sunday?

From: Q

Sent: Tuesday, May 06, 2008 10:34 AM

To: Dagromm

Subject: RE: Emergency

Can’t then. That is my b-day.

From: Dagromm

Sent: Tuesday, May 06, 2008 10:36 AM

To: Q

Subject: RE: Emergency

Oh, I didn’t know you had a rule about avoiding me on your birthday. I understand………uhmmm………..I’m just going to cry a little bit now.

From: Q

Sent: Tuesday, May 06, 2008 10:43 AM

To: Dagromm

Subject: RE: Emergency

Well, that’s not what I meant. I will be going with my parents on Sunday to celebrate my birthday, without you. Is that better?

From: Dagromm

Sent: Tuesday, May 06, 2008 10:46 AM

To: Q

Subject: RE: Emergency

WHATEVER!!!!!! I don’t even care, because I’m gonna have lots of fun on my own. I already have surprise party planned…..for me……..because I’m so much fun. I hate you. I hate you. I hate you!!!!!!

From: Q

Sent: Tuesday, May 06, 2008 10:51 AM

To: Dagromm

Subject: RE: Emergency

That’s fine, you don’t even like horse racing. Which is where we are going. And you hate chocolate cake. I don’t know why you would even care. I didn’t invite you because I knew you wouldn’t like what we are doing. On a side note can you believe that CyberD is going to the horse races with us?

From: Dagromm

Sent: Tuesday, May 06, 2008 10:58 AM

To: Q

Subject: RE: Emergency

I totally CAN believe CyberD is going, because that sounds totally lame and totally the kind of thing that a totally lame person like CyberD would appreciate. So, I’m totally glad that I’m not going even though I haven’t been to the horse races all year, because I’m not into lame. I’m into things that are totally awesome like the party I’m throwing. There’s going to be birthday cake and ice cream and balloon animals and a clown that does like really awesome magic tricks. Everyone’s going to be talking about it.

From: Q

Sent: Tuesday, May 06, 2008 11:02 AM

To: Dagromm

Subject: RE: Emergency

Wow, your party sounds really fun. Sorry I won’t be able to attend because CyberD and I will be hanging out with each other gambling on horses. You know having a good time with some chocolate cake and paramutual wagering. After words we talked about attending a strip club but we knew you wouldn’t be into that either.

From: Dagromm

Sent: Tuesday, May 06, 2008 11:05 AM

To: Q

Subject: RE: Emergency

You’re right I really wouldn’t want to go, because I heard that strip clubs are like the worst place a person could ever go on their birthday. They don’t even give out balloon animals!!!!!

You suck. I hate your soul.

From: Q

Sent: Tuesday, May 06, 2008 11:09 AM

To: Dagromm

Subject: RE: Emergency

Well, actually there will be a stripping clown there that day on the main stage. She makes balloon animals/things and then has relations with them. I hear it is going to be really neato. You are going to have balloon animals huh. Your party sounds really fun.

From: Dagromm

Sent: Tuesday, May 06, 2008 11:12 AM

To: Q

Subject: RE: Emergency

Don’t patronize me!! It’s going to suck and you know it!!! I’ve scraped your name off the cake and it looks terrible now. Plus, I’ve had to spend the last hour scratching out “Happy Birthday Q” on all the napkins and writing in, “Happy 2nd Round of the NBA Playoffs!!!” You owe me some dinero to reimburse me for your big F’ Up on this one, jerk wad.

From: Q

Sent: Tuesday, May 06, 2008 11:19 AM

To: Dagromm

Subject: RE: Emergency

Dude, after the races I am sure I will have more than enough cash to give you some for the party decorations and cake. CyberD just rented a limo, this is going to be the best birthday ever!

So as you can see, Q was completely in the wrong on this. I hope this weekend you will each join me and swear an unholy curse and spit on the ground for his birthday.

Movie Update

I know that as the summer roles around people across the globe turn to the HoD to let them know what to watch. “What movies are worth watching Mr Dagromm?” they yell. Well fear not people of Earth I have heard your pleas and will help you in your time of need. Here is a quick run down of a few movies that I have watched as of late.

Iron Man

I don’t know if you’ve heard of this little motion picture, but if you have then you’ve probably heard that it’s pretty darn good…..and it is. The acting performances were good, the dialogue was fun, the look was spot on, and there were a lot pretty girls as Tony Stark really enjoys being a billionaire. This might be the best “summer blockbuster” of the year and after watching it, I’m already looking forward to the new Batman movie less. This movie is a strong A-.

Baby Mama

This movie was as funny to me as Knocked Up was supposed to be. I find Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, and Dax Sheppard to all be xtremely funny people. I think this is one of those movies that will circle back around as people catch it on video, etc. and realize that it’s really good. It also has smaller parts played by Sigourney Weaver, Steve Martin, and others that I didn’t realize were in the show. Check this one out and expect to get an A-.

Penelope

This is a movie that stars Christina Ricci as a girl that is born with the curse of having a pig snout and ears, a really cute figure, and a big sexy forehead. My daughter was all excited to see this movie, and was in to it from the outset. The best part of the movie to me other than Ricci and Reese Witherspoon was getting to mortify my daughter and wife at the ticket counter when I asked for three tickets to “Pee-nil-lope”. The movie is fluffy and nice and if you’ve got 8 or 9 year old daughters then it should be right in their wheel house. This one is a cuddly A- and might already be available on video.

Southland Tales (DVD)

Have you ever watched a movie that was overloaded with stars and resulted in a film that was an overwhelming disaster? 15 minutes into this flick I called FEMA and reported a disaster in Hollywood and its name was Southland Tales. This movie has everything you could ever want in a bad movie; bad acting, directing, effects, editing, cinematography, poor gaffing, and I suspect the Best Boy even under delivered. This really hurts me to write since it included former Crotch Wizard, The Rock, but I suppose this is really just indicative as to why he didn’t make it with us. It also has Sarah Michelle Gellar, Amy Poehler, Christopher Lambert, Jon Lovitz, John Larroquette, Mandy Moore, Miranda Richardson, Seann William Scott, Justin Timberlake, Kevin Smith, Janeane Garofolo. I blame how bad this movie is on Will Sasso and Nora Dunn who are also in it.

On shear name power and spectacle of atrociousness I give this movie an A-.

P.S. I know this post very easily lends itself to adding pictures, but it took too long to delete comments yesterday so I went without.

Huh? What??

Once again another long delay in posting. It’s kind of becoming my new thing. Unfortunately it has been caused by technical difficulties as the computer I’ve been using burned out again and my back up suddenly decided that it doesn’t recognize what an Ethernet cable is anymore. Perplexing.

I would have been accessing at work, but there have been a culmination of events here that have made me decide that it was best not to. The first was an unfortunate event that put our company in the news at least here locally. There were reporters and truthfully it will probably be revisited by news crews before it’s all said and done. A lot of scrutiny was being put on any communications and I decided it best not to push it for the sake of blogging. The second event occurred a week or two afterwards where I became upset with my employer and a comment that was made. In the grand scheme of things it probably wasn’t a big deal, but I let my frustrations be known and once again I felt that my communications might be monitored so I kept from the blog.

So, last night I was flipping around the channels and saw a Nightline or ABC News television article talking about Dooce. I’m not a big fan of Dooce’s blog, but I know Cyber D reads it and so I felt in some way a connection to the story. Dooce and her husband apparently make a full on living from her blog. Wow. That’s all I really had to say about that.

I’m still coming to grips with the fact that times are changed from when I was growing up. It doesn’t seem that long ago, but apparently it was. This was proven to me once again by my son. He got introduced to a role-playing group through the public library. So now instead of being worried about the devil worshipping practices of RPG’s like when I was kid, it’s a publicly funded event. I left my son at the library thinking that maybe I hadn’t done my son any favors as this would certainly damage his dating potential for years to come. That’s one of the inarguable laws of man. Dice wielding role playing geeks don’t get girls. Low and behold when I pick him up I find that there were two girls in the group. One of them was one he knew from school who was also a first timer. WHAT???!!!!???!!?!?!?!?!???? I left my son for geeky fun and come back to find that it’s some hooking up thing?

The girl’s going nuts that she can’t get on the blog to write more. I don’t know what she has to say, but I know how tough it is to hold on to those fleeting ideas that work their mercurial way through our heads and I sympathize.

I think it’s safe to say that I am found to be the most attractive guy to the Lesbians at work. Seriously they’ve told me multiple times that they have crushes on me. I assume that what I feel at this prospect is akin to the legless person that wins a lifetime supply of running shoes. I’m also curious as to what kind of guy the homosexual woman finds attractive comparative to the straight woman. I also have the feeling that I don’t really want to know the answer.