General Musings Archives - Page 33 of 96

Stu & The Dude’s Weekend Wrap-Up! Glassware, Bad Luck, Dr. Who, and a Sugartoad.

By:

The Dude on the Right
IIT Bog Glass It’s the New Year, and both Stu Gotz and I survived so we are back for 2010 with our first "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast of the, well, new year. Neither of us revisited our crazy days and ended up puking drunk on the street, but instead I spent some time at Sugartoad restaurant with my BFF and some friends while Stu kept things calm in his own world. But it was a long weekend, so we both did plenty, and also did a lot of nothing. Stu, well, he spent some quality time with the Little Gotz’s watching "Pink Panther 2" that he got thanks to his local RedBox, while I spent some extra quality time with my future in-laws. We talk about Dr. Who and some dudes named David Tennant and Matt Smith, Stu is worried he will have seven years of bad luck, and he also tells me if I should be watching "Jersey Shore" and "The Squeeze" while I don’t tell Stu if he should be watching "Bridezillas."

Stu needs to make things up to one of his sons who had a nice idea for a Christmas gift, I’m going to be painting parking lines in my garage, Stu wanted to talk about the new Google Android phone but doesn’t, and I give Stu a gift even though Christmas is over. It’s a new year and we’re back for the ride.

Thanks for listening!

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

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Stu & The Dude’s Weekend Wrap-Up! A Roomba Review, A Sherlock Holmes Reviews, Christmas is Gone, and a Batch of WTF’s.

By:

The Dude on the Right
Ahh, Christmas has come and gone, so naturally, during this "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast, Stu Gotz and I reminisce. Okay, we don’t really reminisce, but we did both see "Sherlock Holmes" and sort of agreed on most counts about it. Stu liked the chemistry between Holmes (Robert Downey Jr.) and Watson (Jude Law), but wanted more drug use, and I had to explain to him why "It’s Complicated" was rated R and only made $20 million while "Sherlock" skipped the drug references, kept things PG-13, and even though lots of people wind up dead it made over $65 million. Movie theater viewing aside, since TV viewing sucks in the holiday season, I let Stu know about "Julie & Julia," and that I caught up some BFF recommended viewing of "It’s a Wonderful Life" and "The Wizard of Oz," while he agreed that "Kelly’s Heroes" should be added to the "BFF must watch" movie list.

There was a lot of gift giving for Christmas, at least in the Gotz household, much to Stu’s dismay, but Mama Gotz seems happy with her Roomba, and Stu gives his full Roomba review, so I guess there will be no more vacuuming for Stu, he is also WTF’d about a member of his family who didn’t know what an iPod was, and although it seems AT&T is back selling iPhones to people in New York City, Stu is a hater (although I think he’s just jealous), so he wants an iPhone for Verizon.

Happy New Year everyone, thanks for listening, and we’ll see you next year!!

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

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A Mr. Squiggles Zsu Zau Pet, Avatar, Plumbing Talk, Computer Woes and Airport Delays.

Luckily Stu Gotz wasn’t trapped under a sink for their “Weekend Wrap-Up!” podcast, so he and The Dude on the Right were able to discuss a wasted day for both of them over the weekend. Wasted day aside, the boys did get to see “Avatar,” they do some discussing of “Extract,” there is no talk of “Julie & Julia” because The Dude missed quality BFF time due to computer issues, and it seems they missed an opportunity to go to NYC for some in-person research of the XOXO window displays. The boys did do some shopping for Zsu Zsu pets, Mama Gotz didn’t spend enough time at the airport, and Christmas is this weekend so next week we’ll get to see if they were naughty, or nice.

Stu & The Dude’s Weekend Wrap-Up! A Mr. Squiggles Zsu Zau Pet, Avatar, Plumbing Talk, Computer Woes and Airport Delays.

By:

The Dude on the Right
I had a Zsu Zsu pet, I think it was Mr. Squiggles, in my hands, sort of. I mean, I was holding it, but I gave it away. You see, I was getting ready to meet Stu Gotz for our “Weekend Wrap-Up!” podcast when he called me, frantically, to see if I could meet him at a Toys R Us to pick up one of the cherished pets because the store had a policy of something like one per customer per day, and all I know is I hope his kids appreciate it, or I better get a cut if he sells it on eBay. Yup, our podcast began even before I hit the “Record” button.

Luckily, though, Stu was even able to meet me for our podcast because he was almost the victim of a plumbing accident, or at least a victim of utter embarrassment due to some plumbing. While he was wasting a day under a sink I was wasting a day with computer issues, which interrupted some movie viewing, namely my not being able to see “Julie & Julia” and “Up In the Air,” although I Stu and I did see “Avatar” so we discuss the merits of the latest James Cameron film, and we also have a short discussion about “Extract,” the Mike Judge flick, that comes out on Blu-ray.

All in all it was mostly a weekend of getting ready for Christmas for the both of us, although Stu did give me some homework before the podcast because he wanted to talk about the XOXO window displays in New York City, so I had to do some YouTube searching to watch women in lingerie. The things I do for our podast.

Merry Christmas, and thanks for listening!

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

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No Sleep, No New Satellite, No Jon Bovi, No Oprah Caroling, but Yes Movies.

Tiredness and grumpiness are not a great equation for a "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast, but The Dude on the Right and Stu Gotz power through both as they put together another episode of weekend-ness. Stu’s grumpiness can be directly related to a satellite TV installation gone awry, as well as an hour and a half drive to hear some Christmas music, and a bizarre Christmas exchange at a Taekwondo party, while The Dude couldn’t sleep because of a dradle song and a song about a butcher. The boys do compare notes, however, on the Monk finale from a couple of weeks ago, on "G-Force," but The Dude talks about "Multiplicity" solo while Stu is the only one of the two that has seen "Inkheart." There is talk of Santa Claus, of the lack of Jon Bovi on Saturday Night Live, and Chicago Bears, but in the end, The Dude just wants to see video of Oprah out caroling like she said she was going to do in a tweet from last night. They talk, and hope you’ll listen.

Stu & The Dude’s Weekend Wrap-Up! No Sleep, No New Satellite, No Jon Bovi, No Oprah Caroling, but Yes Movies.

By:

The Dude on the Right
For this edition of our "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast I’m tired and Stu Gotz is grumpy, but we do our best to get past that and keep the energy up without dragging you down. I explain to Stu about my tiredness, mostly because I couldn’t sleep because of some songs stuck in my head (and there is some singing about dradles and butcher boys involved), while Stu is grumpy not because of the cable guy, but because of the satellite guy. As we get through our various issues, our weekends come into play because Stu got to see some Christmas music being played after driving for nearly an hour and a half, while I got to witness, first-hand, how kids react differently to Santa Claus.

On the movie front, Stu is recommending "Inkheart" which is now on cable, while I’m not recommending "Duplicity," but if you have kids we both think "G-Force" will be good for you on Blu-ray. We are both disgusted with the Chicago Bears, I relate the utter disappointment that my BFF had because Saturday Night Live seemed to have dropped the ball on a seemingly obvious skit involving Jon Bovi and Bon Jovi, and Stu’s finding creepiness didn’t seem to translate to my BFF and I watching the series finale of Monk.

Stu does bring some grumpiness back to the podcast as there was some bizarre Christmas gifting at a Taekwondo party, and because I tweet and follow Oprah, I’m still waiting to see some video of her caroling with her friends, and both of us are looking forward to "Avatar," while the ladies in their lives might be more likely to want to see "Did You Hear About the Morgans." That will have to wait until next week.

Thanks for listening!

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the
Right!! L8R!!!

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I Became a Person Who Came to Downtown Chicago to…

By:

The Dude on the Right
I put a little post on Facebook: I’m doing something I said I would never do only I can’t say exactly what it is until Monday. How’s that for a tease?

Hundreds, okay just a few of my friends, tried to figure out the mystery, and the guesses ranged from hitting a nudie-bar (I have been to one of those before, so that couldn’t be it), to a spa treatment complete with a pedicure. I will say that all of the guesses were wrong, although from my fiance’s descriptions of her pedicure experiences, well, that may not be ruled out in the future, but in any case, what I did astounded me.

You see, for years, living in Chicago and visiting downtown quite often, there is a tradition I witnessed yet couldn’t understand. The people would be there, in the freezing cold, in a line that sometimes would stretch down the street and around the corner, and you would think it was either the day after Thanksgiving and they were waiting for the season’s hottest gift, or that some store was giving away a hundred dollars just for standing in line. With my friends I would mock these people, laugh at them as they were bundled in their parkas, shivering, yet with shear anticipation on their faces, and in an orderly fashion they would file, one by one, into the little storefront that housed a treasure people far and wide would stand for hours, or at least a bunch of minutes, to secure. The years would go by and I would wonder, "Is it really that good?", and prior to this weekend I had already found out and well, it is good, but "stand-in-line" good? It didn’t matter, I suppose, because there I was, standing in line, in the freezing cold, to get a bag of Garrett’s Popcorn.

Yup, hours of my weekend downtown, okay, maybe about 20 minutes, were spent, in a line, waiting for a bag of popcorn (okay, actually two bags of popcorn), something I made fun of for years, something I told myself I would never do, yet as I witnessed a group of girls try to cut in line, as I saw two women become nearly orgasmic as they sampled a little cup of fresh Chicago Mix, and as a tourist, in the freezing cold, wearing sandals, jumped for joy as he walked over a sidewalk grate venting warm air, I patiently waited, moving ahead one person by one person, with my order in my head: "One large bag and one medium bag of Chicago Mix please." I would then pay the man, step to the side, and hope not to screw up the process and have someone yell "No popcorn for you!", yet this wasn’t like a Seinfeld episode because people ahead of me kept changing their minds, and the people behind the counter were patient through every person. There were the newbies, still staring at the menu unsure of what they wanted when it was finally time to order, and then there were the experienced folks, rattling off their popcorn tin requests like they were trading stock, and there I was, bewildered in myself that somehow I was actually the person who suggested this gift for my future in-laws, and if it weren’t for my fiance, I would have forgotten to get a bag for us.

And so I have become a statistic in this world of Chicago, someone I would question if it was really worth it, someone I would mock, someone I always thought must have better things to do when visiting Chicago.

I became a person who came to downtown Chicago to stand in line to buy popcorn.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

A Tiger, A Reunion, A Bed, A Toilet Paper Holder, and Getting Old(er).

The Dude on the Right and Stu Gotz got together for a fraternity reunion weekend, so their “Weekend Wrap-Up!” podcast deals with a lot of that. They also discuss beds, getting older, and improperly designed placement of toilet paper holders before getting to other fun stuff, like new shows on Hulu (21 Jumpstreet, The Commish, and The Greatest American Hero.) Neither of them have yet to see “The Blind Side,” Stu saw the “Monk” finale but tried not to ruin it for The Dude, and sure, this week there is some Tiger Woods talk as the boys jump on the “Bash Tiger” bandwagon.

Stu & The Dude’s Weekend Wrap-Up! A Tiger, A Reunion, A Bed, A Toilet Paper Holder, and Getting Old(er).

By:

The Dude on the Right
It was college fraternity reunion weekend for Stu Gotz and I, so during our “Weekend Wrap-Up!” podcast there is ample talk about friends who get together, year after year, for over 20 years. We talk about the nice dinner at “Cyrano’s Bistro and Wine Bar” in Chicago, about the difference between dudes getting together and dudettes getting together, about getting older, about bed sizes, and about improperly designed toilet paper holders at the Dana Hotel & Spa.

Now, as much as we talk about friends getting together, it’s also a weekend, and Stu saw the “Monk” finale while I did not. Stu doesn’t really ruin the episode but does clue me in to see if I find some creepiness when I decide to watch it, and even though everyone else seems to be going to see “The Blind Side,” somehow we, two movie-seeing dudes, have yet to catch the film.

Yes, we do talk a bit about the Tiger Woods goings on, or at least a funny Jimmy Kimmel bit, and finally, Hulu has some shows for you to watch, shows that you might remember if you are old, like us, namely “21 Jumpstreet,” “The Commish,” and “The Greatest American Hero.”

Thanks for listening!

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the
Right!! L8R!!!

Download and Listen

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I Think I’m Done with Playboy

By:

The Dude on the Right
Playboy sent me my renewal notice, and I hate to say it, but "Playboy, it might be time to leave you." I can hear my buddy, Stu Gotz, bashing me already, he will say that my fiance wants me to get rid of it and that I am caving into her will, but the fact of the matter is that Playboy just isn’t that interesting of a magazine anymore. Sure, it’s got naked women, and yes, they are pretty, but lately too many of the women are covering up so for that aspect it’s kind of like "What’s the point?", and I hate to say it, but I haven’t even been finding myself reading it for the articles that much anymore, because, well, the articles haven’t been all that enlightening, engaging, or groundbreaking. Also, as my budget is tighter than it used to be, what with a wedding to plan and all, I’m looking at the yearly renewal rate they are offering me and I’ve got to say that my $32.97 might be better spent elsewhere.

So I tried to analyze what I was getting for my $32.97, and I used their list of "benefits" I get as a guide. If I renew before December 17th I get the following:

Renewal discounted for another year at their absolute lowest price: $32.97

Okay, this is nice, but I do wonder if it is their "absolute" lowest price, and if someone else out there is getting a better deal.

Preferred Subscriber Savings of 52% off the cover price: 52%

Kind of a redundant with the renewal discount they described in the first benefit, but I guess it’s just to reinforce the fact that if I went to the newsstand every month it would cost me $68.89, but then again, one month is a double issue (nice cost-cutting measure for them, huh?).

Special Bonus: One-Time-Only-DVD – Playboy’s "Uncensored Home Videos" with your paid renewal FREE

Come on Playboy, aren’t we up to the Blu-ray generation yet? And really, I do read Playboy mostly for the articles, and Stu tells me there are much better "Uncensored Home Videos" out there on this thing called the internet.

Special Annual Issues: Playmate of the Year, Holiday Anniversay Issue, MLB, NBA, NFL Previews, Sex in the Cinema, Gala Christmas Issue: Included

Umm, are these really special? Haven’t you been doing these for years and aren’t these more "expected" than "special?"

Convenient home delivery: Included

Okay, that’s nice, and it is pretty convenient. I’m glad they aren’t thinking of billing me extra to deliver it at home.

Money-Back Guarantee: Included

If I’m not completely satisfied with my subscription I can cancel at any time and receive a full refund on all unmailed issues. What I would rather have, I think, is if I could maybe go online every month and say something like "I only liked 50% of this issue, can I get a credit on my account for the part that sucked, but keep sending me the magazine because I did like the 50%".

The crappy part, and maybe crappy is the appropriate word, is I used to be able to gauge how engaging an issue of Playboy was because, well, I admit that most of the time I would find myself reading it on the crapper while taking my daily constitutional, and if it was a good month of stuff, well, I would find that before I was done reading everything in said month there, thanks to the Convenient Home Delivery, would come the next month’s issue having me cramming in some final reading, or spending a few extra minutes on the Mighty Ferguson. Lately, though, I’m finding that I’m pretty much done with the issue well before the next issue arrives, leaving me time to just sit and ponder rather than shit and wonder.

My problem now is what to replace the magazine with. See, I already subscribe to Rolling Stone, Maxim, and somehow I get this Small Business Magazine, and they all pretty much keep me in tune with things in the entertainment world and high finance, although I do like a decent interview, and that’s what Playboy used to really give me. While listening to the radio I was thinking GQ might be a nice replacement because I heard there was a great article with Clint Eastwood recently, but really, me and GQ?

So, I’ve got around $33.00 to spend, maybe on a magazine subscription, but then again, it would pay for like 1/5thish of a person at our wedding. Any suggestions would be well appreciated.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!