I'm sitting here writing this as I vaguely watch the opening ceremonies of the Olympics. Notes:

- How many hot Olympians are there? ESPN had a bunch of things this week about female Olympians and whether or not sex appeal should be used to market smaller sports. Whatever. I didn't realize other countries were so hot. Of particular note are the delegations from Argentina, Brazil, New Zealand, Australia, Greece, Romania, and Italy. Ah giddyup...

- At first I thought there were a lot of old fat Olympians, but then I figured out coaches and shit walk as well sometimes.

- You'd think country pronunciation would be practiced by the broadcasters. Well, Bob Costas seemed okay, but Katie Couric definitely pronounced Niger as "Nigh-Jer". It's French, Katie. I'm disappointed I missed Qatar, which until the invasion of Iraq I had thought was pronounced "Kah-TAR" but which is evidently pronounced more like "KAH-ter." So if Qatar had missed the Sydney games, you could have said "Welcome back, Qatar" this time around.

- There were a couple times during the opening ceremonies where I started laughing aloud at the over-the-topness of it all, but eventually I got into it a little bit. There's definitely something to be said for all the bullshit they coordinate for these things.

- I like Arab countries that allow women athletes much more than ones that don't.

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Ali G (and Borat and Bruno) is back with a vengeance. The Season 1 DVD comes out August 17, but in the meantime check out perhaps the funniest, most shocking, and most incisive bit he's done so far--his country music bar rendition of the Kazakhstani folk song, "Throw the Jew Down the Well." So good it even has its own website.

It almost completely overshadows the idiocy of James Broadwater, a Mississippi Congressional candidate whom Borat also bamboozled. Here's what he had to say after he found out what really happened.

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Curiosa was quite an event--see the music pictures folder for details. A huge freak show, mind you, but some great music as well. Mulldoggey and I went to see Interpol, the Rapture, and Muse, so all the Cure fans were kind of a trip to see. The sets were all fairly short, but Interpol and the Rapture played pretty much all the good stuff. The Rapture were on first in the Tweeter amphitheater, opening a little after 6 pm with "Olio" and then adding "Out of the Races...," "Sister Savior," "The Coming of Spring," and of course "House of Jealous Lovers." They also played a new song called "I'm So Lowdown"...or maybe it was called something else, but it was quite good. They must have played something else as well, but I can't remember.

Interpol was the last band before the Cure on the main stage, and they played a pretty optimal mix of Turn on the Bright Lights and Antics. The kicked off with the brilliant "Obstacle 1," before also hitting Roland, Evil, PDA, NYC, Say Hello to the Angels, Slow Hands, Narc, and Leif Erickson. Paul Banks looked like he'd let himself go a little, but the most amusing character was the keyboard dude. Now, Interpol have the rep for wearing suits and shit, but only guitarist Daniel Kessler wears something resembling a business suit, and for whatever reason that works. Well, the keyboardist looked like he had just flown in from London for a business meeting...he was just *too* well dressed and groomed. So it goes.

Muse played right after, but on the second stage, which was in a fenced-in part of the parking lot. The funny part was that most of the normal people had funneled out to see Muse and were really into it. They saved all their softer shit and just ripped it. People were really going nuts, which was cool to see because I didn't know that many people liked them. Matt Bellamy also had a cool red blazer on which Mulldoggey at least momentarily thought he would like to have. I then pointed out this was retarded.

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If you're keeping score at home, the following current and former HHSers (Homestead High Schoolers, aka my alma mater) have kicked the bucket:

Scott Hokanson (drugs)
Todd Ewald (suicide)
Ben Hayes (epilepsy+drugs)
Matt Sheridan (police brutality)
Anne Stover (car accident, not her fault)
Brian Felhofer (Carly is reporting this was a suicide)

Jesus Christ. Not bad for one of, if not the most, affluent school districts in Wisconsin.