Thursday, March 20th - Thursday Musings

This is an odd week. After the festivities of Monday night, drinking away most of the day on Tuesday (but staying solidly on diet....well, except for the alcohol), and then tending to my apartment yesterday, I am finally ready for a normal day at work, just in time for the weekend!

• The Speech - Yes, I've been avoiding the "MAJOR SPEECH ON RACE" that Barack Obama gave on Tuesday mainly because I think it has been well covered by other people. I will say I am annoyed that we kept getting inundated with news of the "MAJOR SPEECH ON RACE." When was the last time a politically expedient stump speech was given this much hype? And yes, while I agree race in America is a conversation worth having, the fact of the matter is that Barack Obama would not have given the "MAJOR SPEECH ON RACE" if the videos of the good Reverend Wright hadn't been released and not fallen out of the news cycle as David Axelrod assumed they would. I will give him props for the sentiment, but it would have been a lot more meaningful if it was not an avenue to staunch the bloodletting of Wright. Additionally, if I stood up and delivered a wonderfully nuanced speech defending Don Imus (assuming I had listened to him for 20 years), would I be considered a visionary leader?
• Hillary in Indiana - Hillary Clinton is stumping in Indiana today, and I have to say I'm excited just that she is here. I was on the bike at the gym today at 5:45 am, and the news was broadcasting live from the Saratoga Restaurant in Terre Haute, where Hillary will be at 10:30 today. There was already a very long line outside nearly 5 hours before the event. It is exciting to see Hoosier's involved in the process, and I hope this means we will see an uptick in turnout come May 6th. As I expected, Hillary's first visits in the state are in mostly white, blue collar areas, such as, Terre Haute, Anderson, and Evansville. While I hoped she would stop in Indianapolis, so I could see her, the fact of the matter is that the 7th District, which covers most of Indy and just elected Andre Carson to fill out the term of his grandmother, went for John Kerry in 2004, and I would expect will be a heavily favoring Obama. I'll have to see what I can do about that...
  
• Fitness - In the past 16 days, I have worked out 13 of them, and despite being a bit tired from getting up early to do it, I have to say I feel pretty good. While I have not started to shed the pounds that I hoped I would on the Metabolism Advantage diet, I have started to feel that initial shift in the body composition that comes from eating well and working out. It would be nice to see some weight loss though and my clothes fitting better, but I just need to be patient and continue to hit the gym. I want to keep this torrid pace up until my birthday on May 17th.
  
• American Idol - I am beside myself pissed at all the little girls across this country. I am not going to say Amanda Overmeyer is the best singer in the world, but at least she brought something different to the competition, and to think that Carly Smithson, who is by far the best vocalist in the competition, was in the bottom three, well, it just makes me wonder why I actually get excited for this infuriating show every season. Ugh!
• Beefcake of the Week - Robert Buckley. This, my friends, is really the only reason I watch Lipstick Jungle, though I do have to say that Kim Raver is pretty fierce as the older woman getting schtuped by this hottie. Go her!
  

Well there you have my scattershot musings of the week...