the parade lasted about a year-and-a-half

So I've had a while to digest the big Inauguration day hoopla. Leading up to Obama's speech, commentators were preparing for a soundbite on par with "We have nothing to fear but fear itself" or "Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country." Instead, we got a President Obama who was very matter-of-fact about what we were facing. Instead, we got a speech whose tone wasn't looking to cap off the historic moment but rather focused on the task at hand. And that's what I'm always going to remember about the speech. Not any of the words, not even the subtle jabs at the Bush administration. I'll remember that Obama's Inauguration speech could be summed up simply with "Okay America, let's get to work."

i'm sure there's something in the revelation about this

Zack, my little brother, is in his second semester of Divinity School. So I'm certain that, by now, he's well trained in identifying the end times. I mean, that's got to be the very first thing they cover there. You know, just in case the signs start showing up in a time and manner that suggest you might not need to take exams seriously. All I'm saying is that if the end is near, Zack knows it.

After yesterday's NFC Championship game, I got the following text:

The Cardinals are in the Super Bowl. This is an unmistakable sign. Get your ass to church.

So, if you guys need me, I'll be getting right with Jesus. Zack thinks it's a good idea.

you know how hard it is to find a graphic that stays still?

By now, boys and girls, you should be checking How RDU Doin'? on an obsessive basis. But on the off chance you're not, behold my first stab at video editing since I was an undergraduate messing with Media 100 in my field production class. I'm pretty pleased with how it came out.

Special thanks to Chris Mayo, who encouraged me when it was at first difficult getting strangers to speak into a camera about a store that sells "sex helpers."

nothing is more american than jamming a pencil under somone's finger nails

As far as I'm concerned, the politics of 24 have never really gone down smooth. I always tune in for the over-the-top badassery and things that blow up, but there's always been this creepy little undertone to each season. Last season's lesson was that if you hit enough brown people, eventually one of them will be a terrorist. This year, after having seen roughly 45 minutes of the season, I can already tell that this is going to be a great big love-in for the virtues of torture.

The "do whatever it takes to keep people safe" message, delivered from a heroic Jack Bower to a smug Senate that wants him to know the US doesn't torture, has already been echoed three times either directly or indirectly. It's clear what they're driving at, and it's making my stomach a little queezy. Then again, it's on FOX.

Really and truly, it's the return of Tony Almeida that has me intrigued enough to keep going...but if that payoff isn't huge, I may finally be done with 24.