Well done gang. I thought this one would be a tough photo to caption, but you all came through with flying colors. Based on a team of experts, ( well, the 5 people I asked here at work) these are our finalists  for this photo:

Gerard took a minimalist approach:

Spring sprung too suddenly for Sara.

 Chris DuPre went musical:

 I told you we were playing too much Stevie Nicks!

 Cheryl apparently works out, and comments from experience?

 Since when did Jazzercize get so scary……

 Our first runner-up who was edged out by one vote, is Jollymon 1

 3 out of 4 women use the NEW Stayfree Thong Maxi Pads with WINGS!

And THIS WEEK’S WINNER, who gets the bobble heads, the Onion Book and a signed Fresh New Music Sampler is…………………… Jackie!

Trudy thought she was just releasing a small bit of gas, but embarrassingly, volume and stench lifted her sisters into the air, knocking them out…  Mom was going to be pissed.

Once again, thanks to all who participated. See ya next week!

Today would have been The Man in Black’s 78th birthday.  Johnny Cash was one of a kind and the movie “Walk the Line” is a fantastic look at this very talented and troubled performer.

However, there’s another movie that takes a rather twisted look at Johnny Cash and a few other musicians as well.   John C. Reilly stars in this film which makes fun of Bob Dylan, Jim Morrison, Brian Wilson and the Beatles as well as Johnny Cash.  There are some good cameos too.

It didn’t really do well at the box office, but I bet Johnny Cash would have seen this flick he would have liked it.  Here’s a the trailer:

Today is Wear Black for Cash Day, as we remember Johnny on what would have been his 78th birthday. I got on the Johnny Cash train a little late..I always respected him, but really started delving into his music around 15 years ago. Not only does he have a voice that can chill you to the bone, he wrote some great songs, and his life featured one of the great love stories of all time (he and June were true soulmates).

In the 1970’s, he hosted a variety show that I’m sad to say I wasn’t cool enough to know about at the time. He had great guests, like Neil Young and Bob Dylan, who weren’t what you’d call Nashville regulars. And his guests would always perform LIVE, not lip-synched as was the case on so many variety shows that were on back then. A couple of years ago a DVD set from that show was released, but you can also find many of the performances on youtube. 

Check this one out that features Johnny singing with Joni Mitchell. The song is downright haunting too…be sure to listen to the lyrics.

And just in case you ever thought Johnny Cash took himself too seriously, check him out on Sesame Street. (Watch it ’til the end for an extra chuckle!)

So today I was contacted by a reporter for the Duluth News Tribune over the whole Wilco-likes-Duluth-better thing. She had four questions. Here were my answers:

1. What does it mean to be an honorary citizen of Madison? Can you vote?

No, you can’t vote, but you can pay taxes.

2. Any idea how the resolution will play out?

It will be referred to a dozen committees. Many public hearings will be held. The Marquette Neighborhood Association and Fred Mohs will oppose it. (Sorry. Inside joke here.) I expect final Council approval in August, 2012.

3. There have been hints on line that you don’t know who Jeff Tweedy is. Is there any truth to that?

Thank you so much for allowing me the chance to clear up this scandalous rumor. Of course, everybody knows that Jeff Tweedy is the lead singer for Snow Patrol.

4. Any animosity toward Duluth for initiating this sort of honor before Madison thought of it?

No. Duluth has to have at least one thing on Madison. I guess this is it.

As I left for work yesterday morning- I told my wife that I was going to do one of 4 things after work…

1) Run – either to our house or to her Karate class (about 4-5 miles, either way)

2) Drive to her Karate class & take part in the class – I do that from time to time when they are doing core work…I hate core work, so a class makes it a bit more bearable.

3) Drive to Harbor Athletic and actually force myself to do some strength training…I hate strength training even more than I hate core work.  So I just don’t do it.

4) Drive home and sit on the couch watching TV and drinking a glass of wine.

Before I even finished with the choices, Laura said “strength training…you need to do the strength training.”  That’s how often I DON’T do strength training- my wife is telling me I NEED to do it.

So I settled on (or she settled on) strength training. 

So as I was wrapping up my workday, I asked Sarah- our promotions director and resident strength training expert- what to do.  Sarah put together a nice circuit of exercises for me – describing and demonstrating each one as best she could without weights in front of her.

So I headed to Harbor- a little scrap of paper with Sarah’s notes in hand.  And I found that it’s not nearly as intimidating as I had feared.  Sarah had me starting with some pretty light weights- she figured I could bench-press 40 pounds- and she was right- I may have even been able to do more…but let’s not get too carried away.

So I did Sarah’s circuit (hey, that’s what I’ll call it from now on- “Sarah’s Circuit”) and went out to the loby to sit and wait for my wife to get back from her Karate class.  I sat reading a magazine- my arms shaking from all the work I had just done.  Today I’m sore- but my wife tells me that’s a good thing. 

I think it’s one of those “no pain, no gain” things.

People have been making fun of me these last two weeks because I like figure skating at the Winter Olympics.  Tonight there will be great competition and if you like sports you should be watching.  Seriously.

I’m a big fan of baseball and football and basketball.  Think of a baseball player up to bat in the bottom of the ninth with the bases loaded and two outs.  Think of a quarterback fading back to pass with just a few seconds left in the game.  Think of a basketball player on the free throw line with his team down by a point and no time left on the clock.  That’s what it will be like tonight for the female figure skaters.

These skaters have been practicing for countless hours for years for this moment.  They have about 2 plus minutes to do it right.  Can you imagine working and working and working at something and then it all comes down to you doing that task perfectly one time?

Now imagine right before you have to do it someone else does it before you and they do it perfectly.  Now it’s your turn.  Don’t forget to think about millions of people watching you and your country counting on to win as well.  Did I mention that you’re probably still a teenager?

That’s pressure and that’s what the women figure skaters will be facing tonight.  Not to mention the story of Joannie Rochette.  She’s the Canadian figure skater who’s mother passed away just a few days ago.  The picture in this blog is of her performing the other night.  You can see her heart is breaking, but she managed to perform and is currently in third place.

Sure, Peyton Manning trying to lead his team to victory as they clock is winding down is a lot of pressure, but he has his teammates to help or hurt his cause.  The figure skater stands completely alone.  It’s all on his or her shoulders.

Amazing.

Let the true competition begin.

For the weekend of Feb. 26, 2010—-

Lou and Peter Berryman: Friday night at the Stoughton Opera House, 7:30pm. These beloved songsters will have you laughing and shaking your heads with songs like “When did we have sauerkraut?” and “Walking with Roget.” Never knew there were so many worlds for “walk.” $15.

Sean Michael Dargan CD release party, Saturday at 5pm at the High Noon Saloon. Early show! I’m not sure if he’ll bring the bagpipes along, but he will most likely be wearing a bow tie. Joining Jonathan and Kitty Friday morning for a preview!  The new CD is “Snap Your Fingers and Stomp Your Feet.” $10.

Scrabble Tournament: Starts at noon Saturday at Hilldale. It’s a benefit for Madison Family Literacy.  I’d give it a shot, but would probably get these letters: A A I I O L Q. 

Freaky Band Name of the Week: Enchanted Ape, at the Alchemy Cafe, 10pm Saturday. Roots/jam rock from Minneapolis. Check out the link. Their website is pretty cool..and they don’t sound too bad!  Gypsy Lumberjack opens.  No cover!

The winner of this week’s caption contest gets a whole bunch of groovy prizes.

 First, a collection of Bobbleheads, including Strawbery Shortcake, an autographed copy of a Triple M Fresh New Music Sampler ( with signatures I can’t read ) AND a copy of the Onion’s “ Our Dumb Century”..plus the Life is Good sticker for bragging rights.

Hurry, the caption deadline is Friday at 4 PM.

     It’s official…a pickle is more popular than Nickelback.  Maybe you’ve heard of this facebook face-off.  Maybe you’ve even become one of the 1,487,000 fans of the pickle.  I doubt if you’re on this website, reading this blog, that you’re a facebook fan of Nickelback (although stranger things have happened).  I’ve got nothing against Nickelback myself and neither does the user who created the fanpage.  She states upfront it’s strictly for humor.  And funny it is.  Nickelback is laughing all the way to the bank, btw.  Their latest release has sold over 2.6 million copies.

It’s been more than 30 years since the Miracle on Ice- the day the U.S. Hockey team beat the Soviets to clear the way to the Gold Medal.  Somehow I missed that anniversary- I think it was 30 years ago this past Monday.  But today is also a big anniversary- 30 years ago today the U.S. Hockey team beat Finland to win that Gold medal at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid. 

Badgers Mark Johnson and Bobby Suter were both on that team.  Mark is now coaching the women’s team which goes for Gold on Thursday against Canada.  Mark Johnson could skate away with 2 Gold Medals…30 years apart.  How cool would that be?

I very clearly remember the 1980 games.  I remember that for years after the games Bobby Suter owned a little sports/bait shop around the corner from my Grandparents home.  I remember walking down the street nervously with my poster of the U.S. Hockey team and shyly asking Bobby to sign it, which he did.

I remember being at a high school basketball game on the night of the Miracle on Ice.  I remember exactly where I was sitting when I noticed the crowd in the opposite corner of the gym start to go crazy for no apparent reason.  I remember turning to my buddy Tim and saying “do you think they got the hockey score?”  I remember how that little corner of crazy cheering got bigger and bigger until the word got to the game announcers- they gave the score and the place went NUTS!

I remember just a couple years ago- being honored by Madison Magazine on the same night that Mark Johnson recieved a similar honor.  I remember the limo pulling up to my house.  I remember climbing into the limo with my wife and being face-to-face with Mark Johnson.  I remember thinking about the 1980 Winter Olympics as I rode to the Monona Terrace. 

I remember telling my friend Susan about the experience in the middle of a long run as we trained for Ironman 2008.  I remember Susan telling me that she once walked down the aisle with Mark as they both stood up in a mutual friend’s wedding- it was just after the Olympics and she was still in high school- feeling like the luckiest girl in the world.  I remember joking that between us, we have walked down the aisle and ridden in a limo with him- between us, we might be married to an Olympic star?

I remember later in my Ironman training reading my grade-school buddy, Bobby’s blog about beating a legend.  Bobby finished the 2007 Ironman Wisconsin and while he was recovering with his family he heard Ironman announcer Mike Reilly say “Mark Johnson…you are an Ironman!”  He had to go look- sure enough – Olympic hockey hero Mark Johnson had finished just a few minutes AFTER him.

I remember finishing the 2008 Ironman Wisconsin and checking my time against Bobby’s 2007 time- I was slightly faster…not a fair comparison, I know- different conditions from year to year, but still, I somehow felt like I had also beat a legend.