Having a tooth “pulled” is somewhat of misnomer, I’ve learned.  ”Pulling” sounds so easy…just pull and, voila, the tooth is out.  Well I’m here to tell you that it’s not exactly that easy.  Of course, if rather than saying that he was going to “pull” the tooth he instead said that he was going to “hammer, chisel, grind, saw, and drill your tooth, and then place enough torque on your jaw and skull to make you think  you’ve been in a car accident,” business might just dry up.

So dentists opt to tell you that they are going to “pull” your tooth.  What they’re really pulling is your leg; short of the doc gaining extra leverage by placing his heel against my chin, I can’t imagine how that could have been any worse.  Next time, I’ll just schedule an assault.  It would be cheaper and less traumatic.  Join me next week as I saw on my achilles tendon with a rusty hacksaw.

And it’s not over yet.  In another four weeks, I’ll head into be fitted for a “bridge.”  Well, a “bridge” sounds pleasant, sounds like an easy way to cross difficult waters.  Something tells me, though, that it will be more like the digging of an underwater tunnel in my head.  I, of course, will keep you posted.

Yes, a bridge.  I guess that shouldn’t surprise me, though, given the milestone birthday coming up.  It’s true, I’ll be turning 29 for the twelfth time on February 16.

Well, a funny thing happened; we started a business, we bought a house, we had kids, and before we realized it, we had been in Bend for 16 years.  During those 16 years, we had always prioritized snowboarding.

Until now.  I had always teased friends who moved here only to become what I like to call  ”noboarders,” without much sympathy for why they might have lost interest.  To me, it generally seemed as though the reason you’d endure these winters was to ride the mountain.

But after two kids and three knee surgeries (with two more suggested by the good doc), it has become increasingly difficult to bring as much enjoyment out of the sport as I could in the good old days.  Working in the snowboard industry for twelve years certainly didn’t help, either.   While I met a few great people during those years, the truth is that far too many of the stereotypes are true.

But, really, the final straw has been a change in Mt. Bachelor’s lift ticket options.  For years, Bachelor offered a “points” or “runs” pass, meaning that you paid, essentially, by the run rather than by the day.  As soon as I started getting too few days to warrant buying a season pass (a situation created by my declining knee health), the “runs” pass is what allowed me to go take three or four quick runs in the morning, on fresh snow days, before the ache in my knees sent me fleeing (to the Original Pancake  House) in pain.

As of the 2009-2010 season, Mt. Bachelor has eliminated the “runs” pass option.  Upon inquiry as to why, I’ve learned that the powers that be will spin this subject to the point of inducing dizziness, but the end result is that you either buy a day pass or some variant of a season pass, or Mt. Bachelor’s really not interested in your business.  When I complained, they did their best to up-sell me to a 12-day season pass but, really, the “runs” pass was the only option that worked for me.  Rather than acquiesce to their expensive suggestions, I’ve decided instead to not patronize their establishment.  Sure, I realize that they’re not going to miss the $200 or so that I would have spent on “runs” passes this season, but there needs to be a cost to them for eliminating a worthy, and unique product.  Simply, Mt. Bachelor has eliminated the ticket option that best served families, the injured, and the elderly.  Nice work.

So I’ve opted to not ride this year.  I may go out to Hoodoo for a couple of night powder sessions, but I’m done with Mt. Bachelor for awhile.  It’ll probably be good for the health of my knees anyway.

While reading an article at Techcrunch, as part of research for an article I was writing for a client (yes, I surf the web for work…and they feed me beer at the end of the day, too), I followed a link to the Blippy site, with an “invitation code” at the ready.

And then I watched as Blippy had what must have been its biggest explosion of purchase tracking yet, an hours long frenzy while 250 or so new users from Techcrunch tuned into, and even contributed to,  a stream of what might best be described as purchase porn.

And then a funny thing happened.  I connected Blippy to my iTunes account and it began broadcasting my iTunes purchases.  I couldn’t resist.

Marketing madness in the form public displays of consumption.  It dawned on me quickly that the biggest spenders would provide the greatest entertainment factor.  Blippy will be dominated soon by the feeds of hyper-consumers whose purchases stream from their wallet into our consciousness.  It’s all very strange, really…but actually very intriguing.

Hey, watch me spend my money!

It’s safe to say, though, that things work just a little differently in Jamaica.  Journalism, apparently, is no exception.

As evidence today,  I point you toward perhaps the most amusing take yet on Tiger Woods and his “transgressions,” courtesy of the Jamaica Gleaner.  The official language of Jamaica is English, though the double entendre is alive and well.

Now that’s a unique take!

Here’s the scoop:

Last Thursday was the “Civil War” game.  Nobody really cares about it outside of Oregon, but here in Oregon it is as big as sporting events get.  University of Oregon vs. Oregon State University for those of you outside of Oregon.  And this year’s game determined the PAC-10 representative in the Rose Bowl, so the stakes were higher than most years.  In fact, sports pundits, of which there are far too many, confidently claimed that this was the biggest sporting event in the history of Oregon.  Now, in my opinion, the biggest game in the history of this state would have to be Game 6 of the 1977 NBA Finals…but I digress.

Having lived in Oregon for more than 16 years now, I’m apparently the lone holdout when it comes to the opinion that these Civil War games, and college sports in general, are overrated.  This opinion comes, mind you, from a rather obsessive sports fan, so I realize there’s a certain degree of hypocrisy involved on my part. Oh well…just can’t seem to get all that excited about these two schools.  I don’t really get all that excited about the sports teams from my own alma mater (of course it helps that UCSB is best known for success in soccer, volleyball, and ultimate Frisbee….don’t ask), so it should come as no surprise that I don’t get all that excited about these games.

But back to hypocrisy for just a moment…

My son’s teacher (second grade) is one of those folks for whom these games mean the world.  Okay, fine; she was purportedly a cheerleader at one of the two schools (tough to care which one…sorry).  Well, for this year’s game she left school early so that she could drive over to Eugene to see the game in person.  The uptight parent in me couldn’t help but think that it was somehow inappropriate to put on display for your second graders that a football game should be prioritized over education (not to mention career).  I got over it pretty quickly, though…no big deal, really…or at least that’s what I tried to think.

While watching the game that night, my son got so excited about a play that he had seen, that he tried to re-enact it (a great play in a great game, by the way, even from the perspective of this humbugger).  Normally a coordinated kid, he somehow managed to sprain his foot.  Ouch.

The next morning, he wanted to stay home from school because his foot hurt.  It took some effort on my part to convince him that we don’t miss school or work for something as minor as a foot sprain.  Our obligations, I explained, using my best parental logic (not always easy), were to school and work.  I shuttled my son to school and then proudly watched him limp through the front doors.

But a funny thing happened.  When I went to meet him for lunch, I discovered that he had a substitute teacher.  Hmmm.  I inquired with the substitute as to whether subbing on account of a college football game seemed at all strange to her.  Since she was old enough to have been my second grade teacher, I expected her to pine for the old days.  No such luck.  “We get two personal days per year,” she said rather defensively, in a tone that reminded me of why I was never a big fan of most elementary school teachers.

Curious, I inquired with friends and family, who mostly seemed to agree with the sub; teachers get days off too.  Yes, they do….the entire summer, and winter break, and spring break, and every obscure holiday known to this country.  I’m in the minority, here, but it seems to me that college football is just college football, even if it’s a great game and you used to be a cheerleader.  Oh well, I might be wrong about this one…but I’m still not entirely convinced.

Caffeine makes me sweat…and something bad, too.  I’m not generally a sweaty guy, but caffeine brings out my sweaty and smelly sides, which wouldn’t really be a such a bad side effect if coffee actually had its intended effect.   But it doesn’t.  I get no “jolt,” no noticeable benefit, just bad cases of stankonia and monkey butt.  I like the smell (of coffee, not monkey butt), and I don’t even mind the taste (of coffee, not monkey butt).  But, for me, it just doesn’t do anything positive, so I long ago gave up trying.

But today I was feeling a bit lethargic, in large part due to a sinus issue that is making my head feel like it’s filled with pressurized air.  I mentioned this to a co-worker, who had battled the same thing over the last couple of days, and  he recommended that I try his blend of Yerba mate as a sort of alternative medicine .

Well, I guess I’m impressionable when it comes to trying to feel better, probably because I’m an absolute sickness wuss, so I decided to try this magical gaucho blend.  I quickly slurped down the contents of a rather strange looking cup, a cup that could certainly never stand on its own (which explains that weird stand thing, I suppose).  Nothing…except an aftertaste similar to the smell of hay, an odd sensation that might have made me feel as though that I had French-kissed a mare…not exactly sure.

So, of course, I had another cup, quickly gulping that liquid hay through a metal straw all in the name of equine envy sinus/sickness relief.  Again nothing…crickets.   Given all of the hype, I expected that I’d end up like Homer Simpson after eating insanity peppers.  No such luck.  Strangely shaped cup, metal straw, and a weird aftertaste, but a head still pounding….and then a ringing in my ears.

Though I’m a Gaucho, it doesn’t seem as though I’d make a very convincing gaucho.  Who knows, maybe it’s an acquired taste…but I can’t help but to be left wondering…what does a gaucho’s horse typically eat?

Zi is seven years old and is a bit obsessed with the big three sports…sort of like his dad, except that he’s a far better athlete than his old man ever was.  Enjoy.

First, a video of Zi’s favorite dribbling moves:

Next, a video of Zi’s favorite dribbling drill, the one that has enabled him to learn those moves above:

If you enjoy those half as much as I have, then you’re surely entertained.

Because this Qik thing is absolutely insane…no idea why this hasn’t caught on more widely.

If you have a smartphone with a video camera, odds are that you can stream live video from your phone using the Qik platform.

A few warnings/disclaimers.  When you download and install the app, and then sign up for the account, your shit is public…I mean truly public.  The default settings on the Qik platform are for your vids to stream directly to the public, right down to geo-location details.  When you hit that green button, make sure that what you’re filming is what you don’t mind the world seeing…because there are lurkers out there watching live Qik feeds just for their amusement.  As you know, we live in a voyeuristic society.  You can toggle all of your settings for maximum privacy, so you’re not stuck with the public settings, and you can choose exactly who can see your content, but you may want to take some time to learn Qik’s functionality before you start streaming video.

Private, VC funded, company for now, but keep an eye out.  I’m no stockbroker, but you might want to buy this stock someday…this thing’s fricking cool!

You can find my streaming video feed here.  There won’t be much there, I warn you, but if you’d like to see my son’s sporting events live, that’s the place to find them.

All of that changed for me with the release of the Droid. Now, don’t get me wrong, I was sort of excited about the iPhone but, simply, it wasn’t available here in Bend. So I patiently waited for something to come along.

That something turned out to be the Droid. Before AT&T could get their act together and bring their network to Bend, Motorola and Verizon dropped the Droid. Already being drunk on the Google Kool-Aid, it seemed like a no-brainer. My friend and colleague, Ben Goodsell brought his Droid into the office the day of its release and that’s all it took. I went AWOL and dropped into Best Buy and, voila, dropped some ching on a mobile for the first time ever.

I won’t bore you with my app strategy or any of my nerdy obsessions, but I will say that I am overwhelmingly satisfied with the Droid but for two features. First, the camera is awful…washed out, blurry pictures are more the norm than the exception and no matter how hard I try, the thing just won’t take good pictures consistently. Second, the slide-out Qwerty keyboard is garbage. Or my thumbs are. Or all three are. I’ve given up on the thing and just type using the landscape touch keyboard.

Other than those issues, I’m thrilled with the thing.

Want to learn more about me?  Well, I’m on Facebook.  And LinkedIn.  And Twitter.  And, yes, even Qik.  But who really cares?

I like baseball, some would say too much.  In that same spirit of unhealthy obsession, I wrote  about the Angels for the Orange County Register.  I  also wrote the 2009 AL West preview for the Wall Street Journal.

Want to know something really strange about me?  I was the 2008 Democratic Nominee for United States Congress in Oregon’s 2nd Congressional District.  No, I’m not kidding.  It’s a long story, but I took a beat down in the general election (I did manage 87,649 votes, though).

I work at AudetteMedia in Bend, Oregon.  If you’d like world-class SEO services, please contact me.

And don’t worry, I’ll be adding more content soon.