Just back from France, where Laura and I took in several stages of the Tour de France and spent more than a little time swimming, biking, running, eating and  drinking.

After about 10 days in France, I realized that there is more than just a little “ugly American” in me.  For instance, I would like to know why…

- I can’t rent a decent road bike in France.  The damned Tour de France takes place there- you would think I could get a decent bike!

- Two of the three hotels I stayed in didn’t have showers in the bathroom- just a tub and one of those hand-held shower heads (like in 40 Year Old Virgin)

- Waiters can’t even pretend to act like decent service is important to the dining experience.  I am truly all for the “slow food” movement- I can’t remember the last time I ate at a fast-food joint, but this was closer to NO service than SLOW service.

- Beer (excuse me- bier) and wine is served in those little tiny glasses.  The price is right- just a couple bucks, but you barely get a swallow and then you have to wait another half-hour for the bartender to serve you again.

- Road signs marking bike routes just disappear when you actually get out on the route.  I’m riding along on my beat up old mountain bike- I find what looks like a great bike route, start following the signs pointing me up the mountain and suddenly they’re gone- do I turn right or left up here?  Impossible to tell.  The damn signs disappeared.

- The soda selection is pathetic!  This translates to read “I can’t find caffeine free diet Pepsi or Diet Lipton Green Tea.”

- The French hair-dryer technology has yet to catch up with us here in the US.  Not a big deal to me- I shaved my head before we left, but for my wife, this was a real problem.

I know I sound a little negative, but believe me- I had a GREAT time! 

Next time- “The Euro-Snob In Me”

You probably know I love to go to yard sales, flea markets and second hand stores. I really need to narrow down my collecting…because I collect lots of stuff in lots of different categories. For some reason, I thought you might like to see some of it.  Watch and enjoy. And there’s more where this came from. A lot more.

Have you thought about on-line dating?  Here are some tips from Doug and Dan…

For the weekend of July 31

Iguanas, Friday night at Harmony Bar. Roots rock from New Orleans!

Africa Alive–Kidlinks World Benefit for aids orphans, Saturday from 2-8pm at the Capital Brewery Beer Garden.  Entertainment from Atimevu, West African Dance of Madison, kids activities and more. $10.

Phat Phunktion, Saturday at 9pm at the Memorial Union Terrace. Free. Phat is back!

Freaky Band Name of the Week: We Are Country Mice, 5:30pm Sunday at the Frequency. Country flecked indie pop. Now based in Brooklyn, they have members from  Kansas and Wisconsin.

Today’s blog is not about the following topics: Brett Favre, health care reform, Michael Jackson, Harvard professors, America’s Got Talent, the future of Paula Abdul, the Jonas Brothers, killer rabbits,  today’s tough economic times, Swine flu, or road construction.

Crap. I don’t believe there are any other topics.

Gee, what are the ladies of The View  talking about?  Oh my God have I reached the bottom of the well?  I can’t even blame it on the summer heat.

Okay..maybe this will do for now. It’s kinda cheesy.

Here are the songs plyed on Tuesday July 28.

White Rabbits ” Percussion Gun”, album title It’s Frightening, available now. This 6 piece Indie band is based in Brooklyn NY, where a lot of  young bands live because it’s  a lot cheaper cheaper than Manhattan. This is their second album, produced by Britt Daniel of Spoon. Check out a video of this band later on this blog.

Leah Andreone “Never Stop Trying” album title Avalanche, available Sept 1. Leah’s debut album came out in 1996 and she has workd with all kinds of artists over the years including 9 Inch Nails and David Lowrey of Cracker. This lady can rock.

Scott Miller and the Commonwealth ” Wildcat Whistle” album title For Crying Out Loud, available now. Scott used to be the house band on Blue Collar TV. This latest album is produced by Steve Earle.

OK.. Here’s that video of White Rabbits!

Here are the songs played on Monday, July 29

Five for Fighting” Chances” album title Slice, available Oct 20. This is a project by John Ondraski who goes under the name Five for Fighting. This is his first  studio album since 2004!

Gomez ” Little Pieces” another song from A New Tide

Brendan Benson ” A Whole Lot Better” album title My Old Familiar Friend, available August 18. Brendan took time from producing and working with the Raconteurs for this project.

So the Princeton Review is out with another list of party schools, and oh joy, oh rapture, UW Madison is in the Top Ten. A few years ago we were on top of the list, fell off for a while, and now we’re at #8.

Now I know there are a lot of colleges out there that probably fit the parameters of the title “Party School,” but because of their size or location, don’t show up on those big time lists.

So, thanks to the help of the inimitable and irrascible Joe Thompson, who filled in for Jonathan today, here’s a list of things to look out for when you’re trying to determine if your school is a party school.

1. A question on your calculus final starts this way, “There are 100 bottles of beer on the wall…”

2. A popular class is entitled “Beer terminology in Modern American Lexicon.” (Prerequisite: “Wine Coolers 101″)

3. Philosophy 100 question: “Tastes Great or Less Filling? Explain.”

4. You can get phy. ed. credit for Beer Pong.

5. Keith Richards gave your commencement address, and 3 months later, he still hasn’t left.

What’s the smallest space you ever lived in? I came across a news story today about a new apartment complex in Seattle where all the rooms are extremely small.  Apparently it’s the newest thing in affordable housing…and they’re marketing these $500 apartments to people who make crappy wages, like folks in food service or other introductory jobs.

Nice idea, right? Well, some of these apartments are only 90 (ninety) square feet..about the size of a parking space. But on the up side, they’re cable ready!

The smallest place I ever lived in was on East Mifflin Street. It was the second floor of a two flat..and all the rooms were the same size, since it was an older house and had previously been a single family home..so originally they were all bedrooms.  When I moved in, they had the refrigerator wedged into a pantry. And I could practically reach the TV from the couch.

And I knew a girl in grade school who wanted her own room so bad they shoved a twin bed into a walk-in closet.

You can read more about the tiny tiny apartments here.