James Franco is Bombing

Seriously, I'm sitting here watching the Oscars, and he is just doing an awful job. Anne Hathaway is kicking his ass and completely overshadowing the guy. He just posts up like this block, facing forward reading off the projector with little emotion, while Hathaway is having the time of her life. She's dancing around, smiling spontaneously, making jokes on adlib.

Franco just doesn't seem like he's having fun. I know he's probably very nervous about the nomination, but - I mean honestly - he's not going to get it. Colin Firth has swepped all the awards leading up to this. The only dark horse who really has a chance of contending is Javier Bardem. He's the only one new to the race.

The Brix: Cupid Who?

I have to call this before they get too famous, and I'll only ever then get to see them on tv. Okay first off, the singer in this belting it out like he's Bruno Mars (except way better) is Charlie Davis (CHUCK D), a senior Biochemical, Cellular and Molecular Biology major (yeah, he's smart) right here at Drake University. FURTHERMORE, I grew up with all three of them right out of S-Town Salina, KS.

KICK ASS!

If there are any music producers that check out this blog, these are the guys you need to be signing before they ride Youtube all the way to the top Justin Beiber style and you can't even get ahold of them.

Okay I realize the chance of some big shot music producer hanging on my every word, regularly frequenting this blog, waiting to see when I post next or even them just stumbling across it on some late night Google pass through is pretty slim. BUT! Should that happen, you sir (or ma'am) should seriously get these guys a $Ga-Zillion contact and fast!

Rick Santorum's "Google Problem"

HAHAHA! Google this "santorum". I'll explain it later, but seriously just go google that (Except you Mom and Dad. DO NOT follow that instruction, just skip to the explaination below). Here I'll even make it easy and offer the link to the google first page Google Santorum

Okay did you google that .... HAHAHAHA! Disgusting right!?! Now this is no ordinary, unfortunate, double entendre of name like Marcus Butts, Jordan Dykes, or Jeff Faggot (those last two are actually real). What happened was conservative Senator Rick Santorum was quoted as equating gay sex to a man having sex with a dog. In retort, Dan Savage, an acclaimed California sex-columnist amongst many things and regular contributor the PRI radio series This American Life, which, on a completely unrelated plug, is the most amazing work of journalism and entertainment out there, lead a grass roots campaign amongst his listeners to create the leading internet definition of Senator Santorum to be the disgusting, crass, vile thing you saw there (Mom I know it's getting really tempting to find out what that is, but DON'T)

What is worse is Senator Santorum made the matter more public by complaining about the whole issue as his "Google Problem." Now, everyone start's wondering, 'Well what Google problem? I better Google his name to find out.' And the whole thing just perpetuates itself further.

LIU: Closing Session

We finished our last season of Leadership Iowa University this weekend. We ventured out to Waterloo, IA, this go around and got to stay in the very nice Isle Casino Hotel. Of course with March 8th having not yet come and gone, I was only able to enjoy the Hotel part of that title, but it worked out. Those who did play just walked away really pissed about losing money at Black Jack.

Having gone through this whole thing, I have to say it an amazing program to experience in college. The program is pretty small as far as the number of kids they take in, but because of that they really take vested interest in getting you everything you need to succeed in your career. The networking and professional opportunities are amazing, but even more so, the whole experience really opens you up beyond your campus bubble. Often with college you are kind of isolated just to the world of your campus and the people there. With this meet kids from all over the state of all different studies and backgrounds.

If you are college student in Iowa or someone about to enter into their studies in Iowa, then this is definitely a program to get involved with.

Apply Today

Gym Replace Church?

There has been a significant decline in the number of people attending sunday service over the years along with a significant up tick in the number of people signing up for gym memberships. What's more, the direction in which gym's are going with their format is changing. Gym's are no longer a large room with weights and machines with individual's aimlessly passing by one another. With the new emphasis on the classroom setting, it is becoming a community. Should these patterns continue we may very well see the gym developing into a societal institution that rivals the church.

The idea that such a thing could occur might seem quite unimaginable. The church has existed as a major institution since the conceptual development of a society. Gyms are only a recent phenomenon of the last couple hundred years or so. But so much of the defining aspects of the church are now being seen in the gym. In both the idea of self-restain and discipline, these are tempered with the idea of some tremendous reward down the road and internal well-being; suffer now, perfection later. The church aims to purify its followers of sin; the gym purifies of toxins. At the head of the room there is an instructer/priest, who through his intense training and study has reached a level beyond the parishioners and devoted himself to leading them towards a similar level, although they will likely never achieve it.

With all of these new programs, Yoga, Zumba, Kosama, Crossfit, you hear practioners speak of it as not just being a workout, but "a lifestyle." They may go so far as to even calling it "a religion," and they do attend it religiously. Many of these exercises, though, claim to actually be founded in some, usually Eastern-based religious. In fact, with many Eastern religions, more specifically the various Budhist disciplines, a form of exercise was used to compliment religious study; training both the body and mind.

What does this mean. While the gym is able to substitute much of the superficial aspects of the church, it lacks the deeper offerings. The promise of Jesus abs, is not the same as Jesus's eternal love. However, at the same time, many are no longer finding truth in those deeper promises. The church can offer something more than any other earthly institution can, but does it always? There is no denying that the church has failed its members many times throughout history. The idea of some higher reward that can never be had or seen or known while on this plane can be terribly frustating. There is comfort in seeing the tangible rewards of exercise, but once that perfect body has been achieved, what do you have? Are you necessarily any happier once you have achieved that physical peak? Perhaps there is something to have a goal that is forever just beyond your reach; room to always grow and move beyond.

Movie: Take Me Home Tonight

Topher Grace is really great; like a young Matthew Perry only more self-deprecating; not in a pathetic way, but in a way that makes him more likeable and less of an asshole. One of the comments on the Youtube page was pretty good: "dude who was made a star by being in a tv show about the 70s is starring in a movie about the 80s."

Then you have Dan Fogler complimenting him. Fogler is a fat, load funny type, but still keeps from relying too heavily on these to the point of being overly obnoxiously and crass i.e. Jack Black.

These highschool redemption, party of the century, all night long suburban odyssey movies usually work out pretty well. Most recent example would be something like Super Bad.

Man vs. Emmenecker

I was challenged to eat that. All 70,000 Calories of it. I feel absolutely disgusting right now. SOOO much grease, and meats, and cheese. Aghh ... my head hurts. I did not finish, but I beat the guy who challenged me.

The Knights of Columbus from UNI came down for the basketball game (which we also won I might add). The Grand Knight, Paul Lee, from the UNI council contacted me before hand and challenged me to this grease mound. The guy's got 50 lbs. on me but I whooped him! Dude totally puked. Some people just can't handel it. Honestly though I wish I could puke. I need to get this crap out of me.

Movie: Cedar Rapids

This is just silly. There's nothing high brow or intellectual I'm going to make out it. It is just ... silly. It reminds me Little Miss Sunshine or something of that genre. It is just good silly fun.

Now there are many ways for silly to go sour. It can become too safe and soft and overall candy-assed, or it can be overly crass dropping the brow as low as it can reach. When you have that right balance you liberate the audience. They don't restricted by puritan morals or forced into anything that leaves them feeling dirty and unnerved.