tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59539152011-06-13T09:14:44.124-04:00Pop culture gone horribly awry.Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.comBlogger10851100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-31705798297295703552009-03-12T23:10:00.002-04:002009-03-12T23:14:32.171-04:00

We're already almost halfway through March? How the hell did that happen?Michelle gave me my birthday present early: the first two seasons of Quantum Leap. Man, I loved that show. I still kinda wanna be Dr. Sam Beckett.And holy crap, I'd forgotten how '80s Al's outfits truly were. Seriously, what the hell is up with the coats he wore all the freakin' time? It's like they cut up some of those

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-33677564901938136862009-02-24T23:23:00.002-05:002009-02-25T00:00:17.671-05:00

So last week was sorta the week from hell.First, had a meeting at school where I was essentially told I was a crappy teacher, but was not told exactly why (still not really sure on that count). Then, was told at the tutoring job that part of my job was now housekeeping: we have to clean the tutoring center at the end of the day each day, which kinda lame.The worst bit, though, was on the way

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-47905264761992320022009-01-13T12:46:00.002-05:002009-01-14T12:54:49.596-05:00

Two years ago today, Michelle and I got married. Hard to believe it's already been two years.So yeah, that's pretty awesome.~chuckSong of the Moment: Glen Phillips, "Easier"

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-18762102151068656562009-01-02T15:43:00.002-05:002009-01-02T18:44:54.262-05:00

We managed to survive the holidays, though not without casualties: Michelle's been sick since the day after Christmas, which caused our New Year's celebration to be cut short (apparently vomiting up lots of mucus is cause for concern? I dunno).Regardless, it's been nice to have some time off. I actually feel rested, which is a unique treat. I'm sure this feeling of ease and restfulness will

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-72397341830740320542008-12-23T14:01:00.000-05:002008-12-23T14:01:58.137-05:00

Another year has come and gone, which means it's time to bring you that time-honored tradition of telling you what I thought the best stuff of 2008 was. Sure, it's pretentious to assume that I know better than, well, every single other person with a blog and the ability to type just what the best albums of the year were, or even to assume that my list is somehow more important or worthwhile than

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-81851826552601538412008-12-21T20:29:00.002-05:002008-12-21T23:24:46.587-05:00

Just what the hell have I been doing with myself?1. Teaching. Apparently it's something that can be time consuming. Who knew?2. Tutoring. Two to three nights per week and Saturdays, I'm sitting at a table surrounded by knee biters, tutoring the crap outta them. It's different enough from my day job to keep me at least halfway interested, though it does make some of my days rather long.3.

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-85030804099396954652008-12-04T22:27:00.002-05:002008-12-04T22:43:06.613-05:00

Heading up to New York for a three-day weekend tomorrow (hurray for taking the day off from school!), but before I left the science teacher here at school asked me to put together a playlist for the Science Fair tomorrow. Being the music nerd that I am, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to foist my musical tastes on other people, even if (especially if) I wasn't going to be there to do it in

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-54376412005215121162008-11-26T20:01:00.003-05:002008-11-26T20:37:14.750-05:00

It's nice to finally have a break, though it's not nearly as long a break as I'd like. It also seems as though, given all of the social obligations Michelle and I have this weekend, we'll be even busier on our days off than we would be going to work. I think I'll need a vacation from my vacation.A Wednesday afternoon nap and a nice, relaxing evening here at the house have done wonders for my

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-57479870408767325862008-11-16T19:34:00.003-05:002008-11-16T19:46:15.422-05:00

I completed my first week of actual tutoring yesterday. The more I do this, the easier it seems to be. The system they've put in place is pretty straightforward and easy to follow, it turns out, and for the most part I enjoy what I'm doing (when I can get past my nervousness at jumping into a new, if only part-time, job). Working with elementary school students is very different than working

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-43312854063052300112008-11-15T16:59:00.004-05:002008-11-15T17:03:46.422-05:00

So it turns out my apartment complex is just full of giant nerds. Nerds even bigger than me, if you can believe it.Don't believe it? Take a look...A Star Wars reference and a Superman reference? Side by side, even! Truly, this is a wonderful complex to live in.~chuckSong of the Moment: Donovan, "Sunshine Superman"

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-17425743923986059302008-11-04T06:29:00.002-05:002008-11-04T06:36:30.393-05:00

I'm out voting early this morning because I have tutor training later today and wanted to make sure I still had the chance. It really is strange being in such a place as Northern Virginia, where people take politics so seriously and so many of them are willin to stand in line at the crack of dawn to vote.Regardless of which candidate you favor, I encourage everyone who can to get out there and

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-83220526200460306372008-10-25T19:28:00.004-04:002008-10-25T19:46:00.459-04:00

Michelle's been a wee bit sick this weekend, having actually taken off part of Friday from work to get some sleep and try to fight off a more serious illness. She seems to be doing better, and will hopefully not miss anymore work because of this malady.As a general rule, I try not to discuss politics with my family. I used to think I was a political moderate, but my time here in Virginia has

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-41485601732325928552008-10-14T19:06:00.002-04:002008-10-14T19:25:35.313-04:00

We finally set up the new fish tank over the long weekend. As I'd suspected, setting it up didn't take more than an hour, it was just difficult for us to find the time and energy to spend that hour getting things up and running.The tank looks great, though. I'll try to post a picture of it when I think about it.Spent a lot of time last week listening to the latest in Dylan's Bootleg Series (

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-91022132050232618372008-10-05T15:03:00.002-04:002008-10-05T15:08:06.534-04:00

So a pencil company, Mirado, makes a pencil called the Black Warrior.Personally, when I think of the term "Black Warrior," I think of this:That's totally not what you get in the store, though.~chuckSong of the Moment: Jenny Lewis and Elvis Costello, "Carpetbagger"

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-57005803242076953772008-09-30T08:46:00.003-04:002008-09-30T09:01:33.288-04:00

We've made it through the first month of school. Michelle's settled into the reading position pretty well. In a way, it seems like it's what she was always supposed to do. She also knows she'll be teaching at the school at least a year past the time it takes her to earn her degree, so there's an element of job security there which is nice.We've been celebrating her new position by updating our

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-74682748081278034842008-09-13T14:22:00.002-04:002008-09-13T14:39:04.743-04:00

I have only become more of a geek as I've aged. I mean, I wasn't really sure it was possible, but compare me ten years ago to me now, and it's pretty clear that the geek quotient has risen considerably.Me Ten Years AgoPlayed Magic: The Gathering (25 Geek Points)Watched anime, including Dragonball Z (50 Geek Points)Owned all the Star Wars films on VHS (10 Geek Points)Read sci-fi/fantasy books for

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-69938881847150312142008-09-06T18:36:00.003-04:002008-09-06T19:26:05.223-04:00

Another school year has started. I'm pretty content with my classes this year. I've got U.S. History and World History II (as usual), and I'm teaching Civics and Humanities again. I haven't taught Humanities since the 2006-2007 school year, and I haven't taught Civics since my first year (2005-2006, for those keeping score). I'm also doing a Geography independent study for three students.

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-28203521030728976462008-08-07T09:35:00.002-04:002008-08-07T10:41:30.814-04:00

For someone like me who is of the, shall we say, larger persuasion, clothes shopping can be an exercise in frustration and humiliation. It's either difficult to find clothes in my size (if it's big enough for my torso, the arms are often too short on a shirt...as though I'm some rolly-polly with stub arms or somesuch) or difficult to find something worth wearing. The only thing I can figure out

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-66735304772967869972008-07-31T11:38:00.002-04:002008-07-31T11:47:35.624-04:00

Only a little over a week to go in summer school. Lord knows I'm ready for the break now (and I have to spend my weekend writing progress notes. AND I have to attend a wedding. Mine is truly a charmed life).Michelle and I have been sucked into a few new things over the past week:(1) Twitter. It's like instant messaging with lots of people, which is groovy.(2) Eureka, the quirky, whimsical

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-48576087759686692762008-07-25T11:12:00.003-04:002008-07-25T11:21:53.370-04:00

I find myself becoming increasingly frustrated with some of my students in summer school. Their lack of effort or motivation, their willful disregard of rules and instructions, their tendency to just do...well, nothing. It's all getting to me. I'd say I need a break, but I know there's only two weeks left and that I can make it that long.Still, it's difficult some days during summer school to

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-47880528284377571362008-07-24T13:00:00.003-04:002008-07-24T13:10:37.795-04:00

Michelle pointed me towards this article about a recent diatribe by syndicated whackjob Micahel Savage. Calling autism a "fraud" just reveals how ignorant the man actually is.And while we're at it, what's with the whole rant about gender essentialism? Seriously, teaching young men to actually give two tugs about how other people feel makes them weak? What? How is not treating everyone like

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-18820237080138210122008-07-08T23:48:00.003-04:002008-07-08T23:57:08.214-04:00

Without Michelle around, it's too quiet. I'm starting to get kinda lonely, and it's only been a day.It's gonna be a long week.~chuckSong of the Moment: My Morning Jacket, "I'm Amazed"

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-25106832784884093652008-07-08T09:04:00.002-04:002008-07-08T09:09:00.731-04:00

Chrono Trigger? Chrono Trigger.Looks like it's coming out in Japan in Winter 2008, so we can expect it sometime next year? God, I hope so. A port of the Trigger would be glorious.I know SquareEnix is just trying to profit off our nostalgia by repackaging games that're over a decade old, but I think it says something about how high the quality of those games was that I still shell out the cash

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-14395394492100077772008-07-07T22:27:00.003-04:002008-07-07T22:42:06.869-04:00

Michelle's out of town for the week up in New York City, visiting her family. I'm thus left here to my own devices. The house is rather dark and quiet, just me and the cats. I've only got one light, my computer, and the TV/DVD on.Next week I head out to Oklahoma for a few days. I really need to play the guitar quite a bit before I head out, because otherwise my fingers are not going to make

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-50015538417932747582008-07-03T09:44:00.000-04:002008-07-03T09:45:09.984-04:00

I have some rather unpleasant heartburn this morning. It woke me up at 4:30 and never really let me get back to sleep. That sucks.~chuckSong of the Moment: Charlie Sexton, "Burn"

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-81252033089711630882008-06-19T11:54:00.001-04:002008-06-19T11:56:41.370-04:00

I woke up to find Michelle watching a Doctor Who marathon on TV.So yeah, today is the day we prove our geekiness and just watch Doctor Who all day long, apparently. Summer vacation rocks.~chuckSong of the Moment: The Beatles, "I Feel Fine"

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-82743647311861394332008-06-11T13:14:00.002-04:002008-06-11T13:34:08.333-04:00

So I came one step closer to becoming suburban middle class scum yesterday: Michelle and I got a Costco membership.I've resisted places like Costco for years. Hate them. Hate the idea of purchasing a palate of breakfast cereal because it was "on sale cheap." I feel kinda like I've sold out, even if the only reason we got it was so we could purchase stuff for the school.Oh, and a case of

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-9912431583515382782008-06-09T16:13:00.002-04:002008-06-09T16:18:49.611-04:00

My boss announced that she's leaving midway though the summer. Part of it is the possibility of her husband moving midway through the next school year, and part of it is exhaustion.This job wears people to the bone. The burnout rate is ridiculous, though it's better this year than last (when we had 9 of our 22 staff leave, including the director).Just three and a half days to go, then I get a

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-20858443434939164882008-06-02T23:45:00.002-04:002008-06-03T00:03:20.949-04:00

You'd think that, after more than a decade, an argument like this would be over and done with. You'd be wrong. Most people, to my knowledge, still say OK Computer is the best Radiohead album. The usual counterproposal is that it's actually Kid A. Me, I've always preferred The Bends.Don't get me wrong, I recognize the importance of OK Computer and Kid A, I really do. But I think, for my money

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-55780875913039970342008-05-29T22:50:00.002-04:002008-12-10T05:23:15.316-05:00

Well, I got a haircut.The last time I got it cut was August of last year, and that was really just a trim to keep things even. It had become long enough to pull back into a ponytail in the past month or so, though some of the hair in the front didn't always stay in the ponytail.Which is pretty boring to you, I'm sure. What the hell do you care about my hair issues?Anyway, it's now the shortest

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-10885776629842216492008-05-26T18:06:00.003-04:002008-12-10T05:23:15.567-05:00

Thank God for Memorial Day Weekend, that's all I'm saying.The last month or two has been busy as all hell. Between events at school, activities taking up every weekend, and trying to get the last little bit of knowledge crammed into our students' heads before they close up for the summer, it's been crazy. Not to mention we haven't had a short week at school since Spring Break in the middle of

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-16840452156940079532008-05-04T23:01:00.002-04:002008-05-04T23:48:23.587-04:00

For the past week, we've been playing an awful lot of MarioKart Wii. Let me tell ya, it's a hell of a lot of fun, though the cursed Blue Shell seems to pop up way more than it really should. I've seen it hit three times in the same lap, which is a bit much, I feel.I was sad to see that they'd dropped the cooperative element of that made Double Dash so much fun. However, that being said, it's

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-81118795349749020652008-04-23T10:42:00.002-04:002008-04-23T10:48:59.130-04:00

Dear Gas Stations,Hey, I'm glad you're around. Really. It is endearing that we're paying $3.50 for fuel now (didn't we invade the Cradle of Freakin' Civilization so oil prices will stay down? How's that working out for us?). I mean, honestly, I'll apparently continue to pay the prices, since I kinda need my car and all.But seriously, why did you have to go and install the damn tvs?The gas

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-75142832437488830772008-04-14T22:17:00.003-04:002008-04-14T22:28:18.698-04:00

Michelle's wedding ring is missing.We have no idea what happened to it. Sometime earlier last week, it disappeared off of her nightstand. We think the cats stole it. They tend to like things that're shiny and small enough to bat around.So we've been turning the apartment upside down all week trying to find the damn thing. It's been very upsetting for the both of us. We haven' given up hope

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-30338775369759274132008-04-13T23:16:00.002-04:002008-04-13T23:34:03.163-04:00

Friday was the school's annual talent show, Soap Box. As per usual, I was dragged up on stage quite a few times. One of my students (the only one left in my Thursday afternoon Music Club) and I worked up a song that we recorded for the show, and that went over very well. The whole thing worked out pretty good; the students all performed well, the crowd was appreciative, and everyone left very

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-80169750136618581462008-04-01T20:32:00.002-04:002008-04-01T20:39:37.952-04:00

We got the cats spayed today. They're kinda groggy but still pretty crazy (Cecilia apparently slipped out of the spare room when Michelle went to check on them, ran down the stairs, around the living room, back up the stairs, into the main bedroom, then back into the spare room. The pain killers are really screwing them up). We have the Wellness Protection Plan thing for the cats, so the

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-84269062007835817602008-03-30T20:30:00.002-04:002008-03-30T23:15:42.842-04:00

I was originally rather skeptical about the whole Heroes thing. "Sounds kinda like X-Men," I commented on more than one occasion. "It's a TV show on a major network, how good could it actually be?" When I picked up the show on DVD late last year, I became a believer.So when I saw a Heroes soundtrack, I was excited. Especially when I saw the tracklist: Wilco? My Morning Jacket? Huzzah!

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-27569757781689056182008-03-23T11:57:00.004-04:002008-03-23T12:12:10.729-04:00

Another Spring Break is drawing to a close, and I have to say I wish it'd last another three or four days at least. Time off is nice, y'know? And there's really not another break until the end of school in June. It annoyed me the last couple of years, but having Spring Break in April makes more sense when the school year ends that late.This week is my birthday, though. So it's got that going

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-42487405041645809642008-03-14T09:29:00.002-04:002008-03-14T09:50:44.638-04:00

Where to start?1. The Department of Education came to the school last week for what basically amounted to an audit. They visit every three years, and God only knows it put everyone into a bit of a tizzy. The visit was fine, we'll have no trouble getting re-accredited, but it was a tense couple of weeks.2. Michelle's parents are giving us their old van, making us a two-car household again. The

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-42465542245469246682008-02-16T11:14:00.004-05:002008-02-16T11:35:35.977-05:00

Living in the Washington, DC area, you tend to get a higher dose of politics than is probably healthy for anyone. Everyone's got an opinion, everyone thinks they know the way to solve the nation's problems.As a result, I've been watching stuff on the primaries the past month or so. It's made for less than exciting television, but without new episodes of The Office or Heroes to keep me

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-45091450914269312902008-01-28T23:47:00.000-05:002008-01-28T23:57:04.516-05:00

I may just have to give up on music, I tell ya.See, just when I think I'm starting to catch up and get a bit ahead of the curve on music, either some previously-unknown-to-me band comes along that I have to now catch up on, or they re-release an old album that I love that's either remastered or has added bonus tracks (or, often, both).Take, for instance, that the Van Morrison catalog is being

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-31029987315610009322008-01-24T09:07:00.001-05:002008-01-24T09:16:29.190-05:00

I have come to hate driving on the East Coast, and by extension, every single person who lives here.It took us an hour to get home from work last night. It's a drive that, even with traffic, shouldn't take more than 30 to 35 minutes. On top of that, I had some asshole pass me on a windy, hilly two-lane road. And all it got him was just ahead of me. That's it. Not like he got miles and miles

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-89210506090563524572008-01-19T08:55:00.000-05:002008-01-24T09:06:46.938-05:00

Spent most of the past week up in New York. The trip was sudden, and the reason for it rather sad: Michelle's grandmother passed away on Tuesday. We left early Wednesday and didn't come back until Saturday afternoon.Her family's taken it rather hard, understandably. But man, they come out of the woodwork for funerals up there. There must have been over 200 people at the wake Wednesday night,

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-84349357094899620152008-01-12T10:49:00.000-05:002008-01-12T10:52:32.151-05:00

A year ago tomorrow, Michelle Branco and I got married.So this weekend, we're heading out of town to celebrate. We're going down to Fredericksburg, where she'll get a massage and a facial (her anniversary present from me). We're also probably going to see a movie to kill time between the end of that and the beginning of the next part of her gift: a big dinner at one of her favorite restaurants

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-7117981900120193602007-12-28T18:41:00.000-05:002007-12-28T19:07:22.970-05:00

We're finally back in Fairfax after a week on the road. In that time, we drove some 2800 miles, visited eight states, and spent way too many hours in the car.The worst driving day was definitely Wednesday, despite it not being a tremendously long day. We went from my grandparents' house in Ponca City to Memphis, Tennessee. It damn near killed us. It snowed, rained, or sleeted the entire day,

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-76305798352173369052007-12-23T08:42:00.000-05:002007-12-23T08:51:18.878-05:00

Michelle and I are currently in St. Louis, Missouri, visiting her aunt and uncle. It took us about 14 hours to get here yesterday, so today we're probably going to take it easy and only drive as far as my father's house (he lives about five hours from here).We noticed some oddities on the trip over yesterday. I'll post those when I have access to a full computer rather than my iPhone. Let's just

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-52436447840118273572007-11-23T23:53:00.000-05:002007-11-24T13:45:06.962-05:00

The past year has been, I have to say, a fantastic year for music. Most of my top albums this year came from bands I hadn't really listened to before. Without further ado, here's the list:10. The White Stripes, Icky Thump: This is a solid set of the old-school blues-inflected, muscular rock we've come to know and love from Jack and Meg White. The addition of occasional organ work and the use

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-49135093459077947842007-11-23T10:40:00.000-05:002008-12-10T05:23:16.049-05:00

In that post-Thanksgiving lull (oh, glorious, glorious tryptophan!), I find myself watching Stargate (the movie, not one of the series) and vegging out on a Friday morning. Good times.A lot of the commercials I saw this week indicated that some stores are opening up as early as 4.00 am. I'm pretty certain it wasn't that ridiculous last year or any previous years. I always thought the earliest

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-41793296657923332562007-11-01T22:17:00.001-04:002008-12-10T05:23:16.514-05:00

Halloween came and went.I went as Johnny Cash, though it was mostly because that's all I could think of at the last minute. Michelle went as the ol' standby, Static Cling (always a great costume, I feel).Dunno how much I actually looked like Johnny Cash, but hey, what can you do.We're already at the end of the first quarter at school. Hard to believe it's already November.~chuckSong of the

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-13275355598484754872007-10-28T21:06:00.000-04:002007-10-28T21:26:07.457-04:00

So, long time no see. A lot's been happening since last I posted:1. We're nearing the end of the first quarter at school, thank God. Michelle's been run almost ragged by all the stuff on her plate, but she still seems to enjoy the job well enough.2. The weather's been yo-yoing back and forth all month. The first half of October felt more like June, but the past week has been nothing but cooler

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-22239084537860380132007-09-30T22:54:00.000-04:002007-09-30T23:40:45.590-04:00

On Saturday, we saw Julie Taymor's Across the Universe, a musical featuring a soundtrack composed entirely of Beatles songs re-recorded by people who are most definitely not the Beatles and Bono.My friend Emily firmly believes (and I'm inclined to agree) that certain bands/musicians should be off-limits when it comes to covers. Among these are the Beatles, Bob Dylan, Led Zeppelin (do we really

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-11890201818252335312007-09-25T12:41:00.001-04:002007-09-25T12:46:50.159-04:00

I've been receiving mail at school addressed to the "Chair of the History Department."I am so getting business cards with that printed on them.My cellphone has been declared braindead. Pushing the button that increases the volume was instead dialing the number 4 every time. Not really all that helpful. So you can kind of understand why I was in need of a new cellphone this weekend.Michelle got

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-55225895666789761712007-09-22T13:12:00.000-04:002007-09-22T13:24:36.076-04:00

Michelle and I went to see Superbad last night. We were quite surprised at just how good a film it was and at how well it portrayed that gawky awkwardness of being a teenager. It was a great coming-of-age type of story, one filled with self-realization and personal growth tempered by the reality of being 18. Plus, the fat kid was actually the main character and hero, which is unusual and

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-23567757433696529112007-09-09T23:28:00.000-04:002007-09-10T00:19:11.073-04:00

It's been a hell of a weekend.Michelle and I spent most of Saturday relaxing and not really doing much of anything. We cleaned up the apartment and watched the Riff Trax for the Mariah Carey abomination Glitter.Let me explain.See, Riff Trax is the thing the guys from Mystery Science Theater 3000 do now. You download an MP3 of the commentary, sync it up with the movie (generally a well-known

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-27710628103673154742007-09-01T20:26:00.001-04:002007-09-01T20:36:32.407-04:00

It's been a gorgeous day in Northern Virginia. I sold my Epiphone beater guitar earlier this morning to a guy just learning to play. Sold the crappy electric on Thursday. This frees up space in my collection for a 12-string. I am happy about this prospect.Started getting my grade book in order for the coming school year this afternoon. I'm trying to plan things ahead this year and do stuff

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-48416273531705617112007-09-01T00:44:00.000-04:002007-09-01T00:49:29.928-04:00

So Pete Seeger has apparently written a song bashing Josef Stalin.Which would've been nice about, oh, fifty years ago.Don't get me wrong, I dig Pete Seeger. The man did more to bring folk music into the popular culture than just about anyone (except maybe Woody Guthrie or Bob Dylan, but there are those who would argue the point). His music remains as elemental and relevant today as it did fifty

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-61371937479641577102007-08-28T20:51:00.000-04:002007-08-28T20:52:44.120-04:00

...are recounting stories from their childhood.I am amazed they survived to adulthood.~chuckSong of the Moment: Rilo Kiley, "The Moneymaker"

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-91790688755341912862007-08-25T22:51:00.000-04:002007-08-26T00:16:45.771-04:00

Michelle was offered and accepted the job at Accotink on Friday. She'll be the Event Coordinator, PTSA liaison, and a co-teacher in three English classes. She's very excited but also very nervous about it. We both head in to get ready for the new school year on Monday.It means a lot of changes for us. We'll be commuting together, so there's a good chance I'll be selling my car. This actually

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-15868451406278699322007-08-23T10:45:00.000-04:002007-08-23T10:47:14.011-04:00

The trip to Oklahoma was...well, it was. Michelle finally got to meet my family (most all in one go over at dad's house), and everyone seemed to like each other. The whole traveling thing was a rough experience, though. We barely made our flight out to Oklahoma, and then we almost missed the (much too early) flight back to DC yesterday (that's due in large part to my inability to navigate and

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-21204729320701145042007-08-14T09:00:00.000-04:002007-08-14T09:09:00.788-04:00

We're only a few days away from the trip to Oklahoma to meet all the family. Michelle's kinda nervous about meeting them all in one go, but I'm sure it'll turn out fine. My family's just excited a got married; as long as she's breathing and has a pulse, my family will like her.We got a Nintendo Wii over the weekend. The thing is freakin' awesome. The Wii Sports game is great for a group (as

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-12878889844738446642007-08-06T23:20:00.000-04:002007-08-07T00:30:54.490-04:00

Michelle and I embarked upon a great and noble quest to find a Wii tonight.It didn't go so hot.Discouraged and distraught, we drowned our sorrows in The Simpsons Movie. I definitely recommend it. It manages to recall the glory days of seasons 4 and 5 without seeming too nostalgic for those early halcyon days. Good times.Only four more days of summer school left to teach, then I get a two week

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-83934994911106882472007-08-02T09:25:00.000-04:002007-08-02T09:40:35.918-04:00

Things I have accomplished in the last twenty-four hours:1) Started feeling much better (still kinda don't have much of a voice, though).2) Bought groceries.3) Vanquished the Evil Smell in the Kitchen (it was something in the fridge, which had to be purged of its contents, purified with fire and bleach water, and consecrated by members of the local religious community before we could restock it

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-8725572045015898222007-08-01T10:53:00.001-04:002007-08-01T10:57:24.315-04:00

Apparently the former Mr. Britney Spears is gonna focus on being a parent.Which is great and all, really. Lord knows the world needs another so-called "celebrity parent" talking about how hard it is to raise kids with all that money. And hired assistants. And did we mention the money?I'm really not sure who would make the worse parent here: Britney, with her crazy partying and inability to

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-37765243826417042752007-07-29T21:46:00.000-04:002007-07-29T22:31:52.472-04:00

I am currently watching Music and Lyrics with Michelle. It's actually not a terrible movie. I admit a certain fondness for Hugh Grant movies, though I couldn't tell you why.I've been sick all weekend. Whether it's allergies or whatnot isn't really clear to me, but Lord knows I hate not being able to breathe. And God, the phlegm...so much phlegm. It's made it tough for me to sleep through the

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-54614515802790179202007-07-21T15:46:00.000-04:002007-07-21T16:18:44.614-04:00

My wife is waiting anxiously for her copy of the seventh and final Harry Potter book to arrive at our doorstep. Her sister got it for Michelle for her birthday (which is this coming Wednesday), and all I've really heard about all week is "Harry Potter this" and "Harry Potter that." Nevermind spoilers or controversies over copies released early or reviewed by newspapers before the book was

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-23928407700136647202007-07-19T00:56:00.000-04:002007-07-19T01:08:17.078-04:00

My vacation is at an end. Hafta return to work in the morning. I can't say I'm particularly thrilled to be heading back to work, but the money's good and I do enjoy my job to a large extent.And, as I said, the money's good.Michelle, of course, gets the rest of the week off still. Lucky.We spent the first two days of the week doing a whole lot of nothing. Wednesday we went to Luray Caverns,

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-10452832812801479692007-07-13T14:03:00.000-04:002007-07-13T14:11:41.553-04:00

Today is my six month-iversary. That's right, Michelle and I have made it six whole months without her killing me! This is truly a cause for celebration.And we are, kinda. Next week, she's got the week off and I'm taking a few days off myself. We're looking on going on a little mini-vacation to just get the heck out of town and relax for a couple of days. God knows we could use the

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-86314635593762912392007-07-04T23:52:00.000-04:002007-07-05T00:04:26.433-04:00

Happy Independence Day, folks. We here at Casa de Branco-Cottrell spent it grilling burgers and watching Moonstruck and Seinfeld. Good times, good times.Summer school's started up, and the students are not particularly happy about it. I can't say that I blame them: summer school isn't the most fun possible for a bunch of kids who really just want to relax and forget everything they've spent

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-59678652455158470652007-06-29T10:57:00.000-04:002007-06-29T11:17:17.195-04:00

So the iPhone comes out today. I have to admit, I'd really like to be able to buy one (so would Michelle), but it just ain't gonna happen. For one thing, I don't have the time or patience to stand in line all day for the chance of maybe getting one. For another thing, it's damned expensive. Seriously, $400 or so dollars is a lot of money to shell out. And who gets one first, me or Michelle

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-20913080937710357842007-06-26T11:50:00.000-04:002007-06-26T12:07:16.744-04:00

Apparently even former supporters of No Child Left Behind are finally seeing the light and speaking against it.As a teacher, I've had to contend with this steaming turd of a piece of legislation for the past couple of years now, and I don't think it's actually accomplished anything. The thing about government initiatives in education is that it takes the better part of a decade before they're

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-57660138154153930852007-06-25T12:44:00.000-04:002007-06-26T11:34:58.090-04:00

One week of vacation down, one to go. I've enjoyed not having to go to work all week, but it'll be nice to have structure to my day again.Admittedly, I've got plenty of things to do around here. I need to clean up again downstairs, the upstairs still cries out for attention and organization, Michelle's car needs to be taken in for inspection, and I need to work on some personal projects. All

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-24441104513059313572007-06-22T17:29:00.000-04:002007-06-22T17:31:08.271-04:00

Rob Sheffield, you are a freakin' moron who wouldn't know good music if it walked up and started insulting your mother.~chuckSong of the Moment: The Traveling Wilburys, "Handle With Care"

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-47770654085248161472007-06-22T17:07:00.000-04:002007-06-22T17:24:35.541-04:00

Vacation is a great time, though I find the unstructured nature of it to be a bit problematic. See, as much as I hate being constantly busy with something-or-another, I also need structure to keep me focused. The time I was most productive was when I was in my first year or so of graduate school. I was taking a full load of classes, writing and researching papers all the time, working 30+

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-29922850244860470412007-06-20T14:15:00.000-04:002007-06-20T14:39:38.079-04:00

With the school year officially over now, I've got time to focus on a few things that I've wanted to do for awhile. One is work on getting the comic on a more regular updating schedule, which means drafting out ahead of time so I can just draw and go. There's also, oddly enough, a rather academic paper I want to work on about Bruce Springsteen's use of the road as a metaphor for salvation and

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-35120655127415801522007-06-20T01:24:00.000-04:002007-06-20T01:42:56.841-04:00

So on Sunday I attended the True Colors concert with The Denton and Laurmo. Michelle was supposed to go, but she got a deathy migraine and was down for the count.The first half of the show was fantastic: The Gossip, Dresden Dolls, and Rufus Wainwright each put on a hell of a show. The Gossip had fire and punky chutzpah, the Dolls had quirky minimalism, and Rufus had...lots and lots of stripes.

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-46570624217182189182007-06-17T02:58:00.000-04:002007-06-17T03:26:55.296-04:00

I'm still of the impression that the Boss's We Shall Overcome is one of the best albums of last year. His reinterpretations of old traditional and folk songs were phenomenal and made for some of the most vital music Springsteen (or anyone else, for that matter) has put out in quite awhile.The live souvenir album from the subsequent tour is a rather different beast than the loose, shambolic

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-18037702122316701532007-06-17T02:20:00.000-04:002007-06-17T02:51:39.056-04:00

I admit a weakness for Paul McCartney albums. Ever since Flaming Pie, I feel like the guy's been on a good streak. And yeah, there are certain caveats with any McCartney record--you know there's gonna be filler, there's a good chance it'll dip into sugary-sweet, sappy love songs at some point--he's generally a very reliable songwriter. Honestly, if you take his body of work as a whole, he's

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-58400129054307584182007-06-15T23:46:00.000-04:002007-06-16T00:11:26.086-04:00

I never saw the first Fantastic Four movie, just as I never saw the Daredevil or Electra or Ghost Rider flicks. I haven't really ever been all that impressed with most of Marvel's main heroes or teams (okay, I dig Spider-Man and the X-Men), and the movies based on those properties have been (with the Spider-Man flicks and the first two X-Men flicks aside) pretty damn horrible. Sure, people go

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-73804732406828022922007-06-14T13:46:00.000-04:002007-06-14T14:02:10.052-04:00

Graduation yesterday was good, aside from the commencement speaker's oratory turning into a recruitment speech for the military industrial complex. The school seems rather empty today, what with those eight seniors gone and a handful of underclassmen absent. Seems the end of the year apathy has gripped the student body in its icy, careless hand.I woke up feeling vaguely ill today. For most of

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-22044746301256866502007-06-11T20:20:00.000-04:002007-06-11T23:12:28.420-04:00

We're down to one week of school. Wednesday is graduation, and the students are basically done learning as far as I can tell. A week from now, I'll finally be free...for a couple of weeks, anyway.Michelle and I have been watching the Bruce Campbell series Jack of All Trades. We really don't know why the show didn't last longer than it did (about a season and a half). Sad, really.I also

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-74225716354323974022007-06-02T20:42:00.000-04:002007-06-02T20:52:33.708-04:00

Things that have happened today:1. My in-laws' planned visit was pushed from this evening to tomorrow afternoon, which gives us more time to prepare the apartment for their arrival.2. I finally went to to the eye doctor and got contacts and new glasses. I'd almost forgotten what it was like having peripheral vision and not having to clean my damn glasses every ten minutes.3. My knee (the one I

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-91043531004439476102007-05-31T18:25:00.001-04:002007-05-31T18:26:30.260-04:00

Dear Reality,Please stop dumping storms of shit on my friends now, 'kay? I'm married to a woman with mob connections, and I will not hesitate to have them take out your kneecaps. Thanks.~chuck

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-79927965934601549552007-05-29T15:47:00.000-04:002007-05-29T15:53:48.378-04:00

So much happens in 24 hours.The barbecue at the in-laws' place was good. Friends, family, and food are always a great combination as far as I'm concerned. We had Michelle and her sisters, Emily, Lauren, and myself all crammed around the dining room table with Michelle's parents. Good times.Chad was supposed to have joined us, but someone decided to steal his car, so that became problematic.

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-62572222943430917822007-05-27T12:13:00.000-04:002007-05-27T12:28:43.858-04:00

Three-day weekends are arguably the best weekends.It's been hectic around here, what with trying to get all the end-of-the-school-year stuff crammed into students who have already checked out mentally, Michelle getting sick every other week, and the dozen or so other commitments we have placed on our meager free time.That, and we've been watching a heckuva mess of Scrubs. All five season sets,

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-67126626260939407302007-05-20T23:01:00.000-04:002007-05-21T00:27:47.200-04:00

Michelle decided she wanted fish.So now we've got fish. Lots of fish. Though they do seem to be dying quite quickly.See, we started out yesterday just buying a betta (kinda like the Greek letter, only spelt differently) and stuff for that, but she decided she wanted more. We found a 30 gallon aquarium on Craigslist for less than $100, so this afternoon we drove out, picked up all the stuff (

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-83559535850187565032007-05-18T20:52:00.000-04:002007-05-18T21:15:21.502-04:00

Sky Blue Sky is an album of dichotomy and tension, it's just all buried underneath some of the mellowest music Jeff Tweedy and company have ever put to record.The music, which blends the sonic template of A Ghost is Born with tunes that sound as though they could have been written during Being There, is straight-forward and eschews the arch artiness of the band's more recent work. The songs are

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-26117465808158440872007-05-18T00:18:00.000-04:002007-05-18T00:36:48.896-04:00

Virginia is officially off it's damn nut.The thing started when New York City started prosecuting several gun shops (six of which are in Virginia) over illegal and shady sales of guns later used in crimes in New York City. A sting operation in Virginia revealed that there's are plenty of ways to get around gun restrictions, and that Virginia's lax laws are especially easy to circumvent.So the

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-16778662302901868012007-05-14T19:28:00.000-04:002007-05-14T19:56:14.599-04:00

I am, as I'll be the first to admit, a pretentious, elitist ass. Mostly it's that I think my taste or choice is superior to someone else's: music, movies, books, comics...I'm under the impression that my choices have more weight or validity than another person's.But even I balk at Pitchfork.Their recent review of the new Wilco album (out tomorrow!) is the perfect example of what I'm talking

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-72221659476496710832007-05-14T18:12:00.001-04:002007-05-14T18:21:43.354-04:00

Things of note:1) I hyperextended my left knee on Friday playing kickball with the students at field day after our camping trip. It hurts like all get-out, and kneeling is currently almost as painful as listening to an Avril Lavigne song (zing!).2) Speaking of painful musical experiences, who in the hell let Green Day cover a John Lennon song? And why oh why did it have to be "Working Class

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-71752249714458812652007-04-26T11:25:00.000-04:002007-04-26T11:27:32.837-04:00

Well, looks like New Hampshire is going to allow broad same-sex civil unions, making New England (as the Washington Post article points out) the first region in the U.S. to have every state grant some measure of the right to gays and lesbians.I really hope the New England tourist board (if there is such an organization) makes New England's new slogan "New England: it's okay to be gay."~chuckSong

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-1060519729054343212007-04-24T13:56:00.000-04:002007-04-25T00:11:58.155-04:00

So Michelle and I have been watching Season 5 of News Radio this past week or so, and I've reached several conclusions (spoilers below, but I figure a TV show that ended almost 10 years ago is beyond the statute of limitations at this point).1) The lose of Phil Hartman hangs over the final season like a tangible thing. Honestly, every time Jon Lovitz opened his mouth, I found myself thinking, "

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-89709626846742551932007-04-23T18:59:00.000-04:002007-04-23T19:16:25.919-04:00

It's been a crazy week and some. Lots of interesting things to share:1) Michelle is totally alive still. She's still a little weak and gets worn out easily, but she's on the mend and went back to work today.2) I found out I'm teaching summer school, so that's groovy. Extra income, hurray!3) I caught a mouse at the school Saturday night while Shirley and I were working on a project for class.

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-58506938545651404292007-04-18T23:52:00.000-04:002007-04-18T23:56:08.714-04:00

My home state is just freakin' weird.Granted, Oklahoma is the state where the state bird is migratory, the state song is a show tune, the state plant is a parasite, and the state fruit won't even grow there.Now that I think of it, the watermelon as state vegetable makes perfect sense (though I always assumed the state vegetable was your average OU Sooners football fan).~chuckSong of the Moment:

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-43443415629433969252007-04-16T19:39:00.000-04:002007-04-16T20:09:38.884-04:00

Michelle's came down ill this morning, feeling dizzy and faint and feverish with a sore throat and tightness in the chest. She went home immediately after reaching her office, and I came home after second period to take her to the doctor's office. Turns out she's got tonsillitis and bronchitis, which is loads of fun. So we both took the rest of the day off, her to rest and me to take care of

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-54070697157032367412007-04-15T12:08:00.000-04:002007-04-15T12:15:37.929-04:00

So the Great Music Exchange of '07 (pronounced "Aught Seven") was fantastic. We ended up with over 3700 new songs from Chad and Emily, which is a hell of a lot of music to now try to assimilate. We got everything from Morrissey and the Smiths to David Bowie, Jesse Malin, and everything in between. Sooo much music.We also discovered I'd been charged for an extra month on eMusic, so I had 75

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-68648647608805032042007-04-14T22:01:00.000-04:002007-04-14T22:15:16.829-04:00

Yesterday was Soap Box Night, the annual school talent show. It went pretty well: there weren't any glaring technological issues, most of the acts went off without a hitch, and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves pretty well. I did three acts: a song with my co-teacher, Jeremy, another song with a couple of students and a couple of teachers (the song was in Turkish; luckily for everyone

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-36614379584889288622007-04-13T10:37:00.000-04:002007-04-13T10:48:35.417-04:00

Happy Friday the 13th, folks. It's pretty quiet here at school, despite the impending Soap Box Night tonight (our annual talent show). I'm participating in a couple of acts, mostly playing my guitar (once for myself, once for a fellow teacher). The students are excited, but it's still pretty low-key.Weekend's gonna be full of stuff and goings-on. We're helping Michelle's father set up an

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-39982474789917158242007-04-06T15:54:00.000-04:002007-04-06T15:56:21.014-04:00

So my federal income tax refund this year is going to be a little over $900.This is, I should say, rather groovy.And almost makes up for all the money I've had to spend on my car since last week.Almost.~chuckSong of the Moment: The Traveling Wilburys, "Nobody's Child"

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-62332139864209262462007-04-06T12:33:00.000-04:002007-04-06T13:26:06.456-04:00

I only started listening to the Decemberists a couple of months ago. I started with their first record, Castaways and Cutouts, I've started kinda working my way forward.'Cept I kinda skipped ahead a bit and picked up their latest record, The Crane Wife, last week.Sometime between that first record and the latest one, the Decemberists discovered a couple of things: 1) an electric guitar, and 2)

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5953915.post-50523036895341502302007-04-06T09:01:00.000-04:002007-04-06T09:04:16.066-04:00

So apparently someone didn't get the memo that it's spring now, 'cause it was snowing in Kansas yesterday.My car is once again in my possession. Let's see if we can't maybe keep it there and running for awhile now, shall we?Time is fast running out on the remainder of my spring break. Seems like it used to last longer when I was a child.Got the new Kings of Leon CD yesterday. Thoughts on that

Chuck Cottrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03274730761093035372noreply@blogger.com0