Let's kick things off with an important Public Service Announcement:

As you know all to well by now, the editorial staff of the All You Can Nate Special: $5 Cover really digs martinis. And with good reason. We've sampled a number of different recipes, but always come back to the vodka martini described in the previous entry.

Until now. Right now, this very night.

For you see, after the remnants of our bottle of vodka were unceremoniously quaffed by a roommate whilst we were in Wichita, it was time to replenish the reserves. Now, the AYCNS:$5C can't allow itself to become a one-act show, so we decided to pick up a bottle of Tanqueray gin in place of the garden variety vodka. 'Twas an educated guess, for in the intemperate days of our youth, we would enjoy an occasional cocktail of tonic and gin. And among the various and sundry gins, Tanqueray shines like a city upon the hill.

So, following the advice of my good friend Juanito Seis (Johnny Six para ustedes no se hablan espanol, or Shawn, as he is sometimes called), we mixed a truly classic martini. Deviating from his recipe a bit, though, we added just a nosh of extra dry vermouth and three olives instead of one. Because, you must understand, we like the olives.

The end result? Merely a smooth, smooth (smoove, even) martini which we even now are enjoying.

Now you know, and knowing is half the battle.

OK, I'm going to try to stop referring to myself as "we," because I'm afraid it could be a bit confusing.

Did you do your homework and review that Fair Tax information to which I linked last week? If you haven't, do so. You may dig it, and you may not, but at least it'll get you thinking. I'll also set up a permanant link to it amongst my favorite links.

Of course, if you're actually a fan of the convoluted system that currently deprives you of 30% or so of your hard-earned income each year (and promises to nail you with fines or incarceration if you set a toe out of line), don't bother reading it. There are plenty of lobbyists and pork-barrel politicians out there who will be happy to keep it just that way, and probably moreso.

In sporting news, the Huskers played the University of Southern California in Los Angeles this weekend past and was defeated 28-10. I'll be honest with you. . .I had picked us to win that game. But I also knew it was a longshot. A lot of people out there are really frustrated with the gameplan we employed (which consisted almost entirely of running the ball) but the fact is, it gave us a real chance of stealing the game. Unfortunately, some costly mistakes on our part kept that from happening.

On Saturday, though, the guys will have an opportunity to regain some swagger in a home game against Troy. They took Florida State and Georgia Tech down to the wire, but were ultimately defeated. I don't doubt that they'll come at us with both barrels blazing, but let's be real. They're no USC, and while I don't doubt that they'll be competitive, this Husker team is not one that will overlook any team, nor will they overlook any chances for redemption. Nebraska 35, Troy 14.

Have any of you ever watched the program Dog the Bounty Hunter? Basically, the eponymously named show documents the adventures of Dog Chapman and his crew as they pursue wanted criminals. Dog is a flamboyant character (to the point of being ridiculous, sometimes), but also a dedicated Christian who has brought justice to a lot of folks who may never have found it otherwise. A good many of them are rape victims. Say what you want about his character, but you can't help but respect his track record.

A few years back, Dog and his crew pursued the heir of the Max Factor cosmetics company, Andrew Luster, to Mexico after he fled the U.S. Luster had been charged with several counts of rape. Dog eventually captured him, and brought him back to the U.S. Mexico demanded that the Chapman turn Luster over to them, and arrested them when they refused to do so. They posted bail and left the country without going to trial.

Now, the U.S. government has decided to appease the Mexican government and arrested Dog and two of his associates. That's what this is. Appeasement, not justice. Instead of appeasement, what the U.S. government really needs to do is give that of Mexico the middle finger. Maybe two.

Seriously. Maybe if they'd do something about the flood of ex-nationals that are constantly making their way from Mexico to the U.S. (and illegally, I might add), then we could talk about the situation with Dog. Until then, and I say this from the bottom of my heart, the Mexican government can sit and spin.

So, yeah. Keep Dog Free!!!

In other news, the rabid, psychotic wing of Islam is up in arms against Pope Benedict XVI. Long story short, he recently quoted a Byzantine emperor who made disparaging remarks about Islam some 600 years ago. Muslim rage ensued (like there was any doubt), and the Pope has received everything from demands that he convert to Islam immediately to garden variety death threats.

Now, as we all know to well, Muslim rage just simply isn't Muslim rage without rioting, waving the bloody shirt of the Crusades, and the shedding of innocent blood. And sure enough, an Italian nun in Somalia is murdered just days later. They shot her in the back.

They shot a nun in the back.

Shame on anyone who makes excuses for this.

Really, if the whole situation wasn't so horrifying, Islamic Rage would probably make a great drinking game. I'll leave it to intrepid frat guys out there to come up with that one. "Bro! They just declared a fatwa on another writer! Drink up, freshman!"

Blech.

This past weekend was a pretty good one. Angie and I visited her sister's family down in Wichita, and watched the NU-USC game on Saturday evening. On Sunday, we went to my uncle Pete's church and had lunch with his family afterward. On our way back up to Lincoln, we swung through Fairbury to wish my mom a happy birthday while she was at work. It was a whirlwind tour of family, I guess. Good times.

It has really started cooling off around here. Which is logical, of course, as autumn officially begins in just a few days. When I go for my walk in Pioneer's Park, I can see the leaves threatening to turn. The geese that gather at by the ponds are also getting that itchy look, as though they're ready to get their migration underway. The days are markedly shorter, too. I have to leave for the walk almost immediately after I get home from work, or else it'll be dark before I get home. Dark and chilly.

Now that I think about it, I wrote about the same sort of thing almost a year ago. That's about when I started this blog. I'm glad I've been able to keep it up since then.

Here's a site one of my co-workers sent around yesterday. It's rather macabre, but plain funny, too. The humor is in the captions. Take a look, and you'll understand. If only all cats couldn't be more like Jeff. Or the cats of Ulthar. But that's another story altogether.

Well, it's time to call it a night. Getting up early to work out isn't easy, you know. But I won't leave you without a haiku.

It is Wednesday.
But my heart rests with Friday.
A glorious day.

Keep the hope alive.

Sincerely, Cordially, Affectionately, and Irrevocably,
Nate

Here's an amusing story. I was walking in the park with Angie over the Labor Day weekend, and we were about at the halfway point for our trek. This particular part of the park is marked by a flat, grassy area with several tall trees spread throughout. Usually it's an elegant and serene location--except for that particular day. What did we find instead of serenity and elegance?

In a word, nerds.

Specifically, we found some Dungeons & Dragons/Dragonball Z film nerds. One pencil-necked dude and a fat guy (both wearing some kind of fur over their jeans and t-shirts) were doing several takes of a sword fight in which the fat guy's line was "Now you shall know my true power!". They were observed by a guy who looked like he was trying to be some kind of hybrid beatnik, Mexican, and Japanese deity, as he was garbed in attire reminiscent of each.

I had to suppress my instincts, which screamed at me to find rocks and start hurling them at the "actors," for Angie's sake. So I settled for just snorting derisively as we walked by. I guess that's just the way these things go.

You know, I've really come to enjoy martinis over the course of the past several months. I got into them when I went to the State bar down in Houston with Matt, Renee, and their wedding party when we went there the night of their wedding rehearsal. You know, that was a fun night. I went out on the town with Matt's friends Aabir and Mike after everyone turned in for the evening. One of Aabir's friends from his days at the University of Texas, a really sweet gal, drove us around to a few different bars. We got back to the hotel at a pretty late hour, and I stumbled into the hotel room Matt and I were staying in the night before the wedding. It was dark, and as I walked toward my bed to pass out, I walked smack into the sharp corner of a wall that sort of blocked off the vanity part of the room. It hurt. Matt and I laughed about it, and then I passed out. That next morning, I woke up and just casually felt my forehead as I got my bearings.

In doing so, I felt dry blood. I asked Matt if my forehead was bloody, and he said "Uh, yeah, it definitely looks like you split your forehead open." My heart pretty much stopped at that point, because it was Matt's wedding day and I thought for sure that a bloody gash across my forehead was going to ruin their wedding pictures.

I scribbed of the blood, and it turned out that I had just been bleeding from a tiny, shallow laceration right in the middle of my forehead. You could barely even see it. We got a good laugh out of that, and Matt of course told his mom the whole story when she called him that morning. She showed up at our room as I was getting out of the shower, and of course, she immediately looked at my forehead and started laughing.

The moral of the story? Don't drink a lot the night before your best friend's wedding and then bust your head open.

Damn. I really miss Matt and his family.

When they were in the area back in January, Matt's brother-in-law, Pablo, made some excellent martinis for us. I like most martinis anyway, but developed a particular taste for the classic vodka martini.

That very same night, I set up my first date with Angie. Those of you out there who have been reading this blog for a long time will recall that we stopped at a martini bar, the Starlight Lounge, for a drink after dinner that night. That remains one of my favorite things to do when Angie and I go out: getting a good drink at "our" bar and talking and enjoying each other's company. I'd do so every week if we could get away with it, but time is rarely on our side.

Anyway, I'm curious as to what everyone else's favorite martini recipe is. Mine is pretty simple: In a shaker, mix crushed ice, 3-4oz. vodka, and extra dry vermouth to taste. Shake it until the shaker turns frosty, and then pour it into a marini glass with three olives.

Of course, it should go without saying that my beverage of choice for tonight's blog is, in fact, just such a martini.

In other news, the new season of Nip/Tuck started last week. I've been watching a new episode as I type this. As usual, the events that transpire are pretty messed up. In tonight's episode, Kimber convinces Matt to join the "Church" of Scientology, complete with an auditing session. That was just the tip of the iceberg, obviously, as I can't recall many more of the episodes events here without blushing. To say the least, it didn't play out like a "Family Circus" comic strip. It's also worth noting that they've been using a lot of music from Gotan Project.

Want to see something funny? Run a Google image search for "Family Circus The Nameless Horror" or "The Cthulhu Circus." If you're not a fan of H.P. Lovecraft, you probably won't get it or find it amusing.

So, how familiar are you all with the Fair Tax movement? If you're not, you should be. After all, it deals with something near and dear to everyone: their hard earned money, and the way it is taxed. It's a pretty simple theory, and you should check it out because it's a grassroots movement that has really picked up some steam. I've been observing it for about two years now, and has started gaining a lot of attention. There were even folks handing out bumper stickers for it at the Nebraska State Fair, and just this morning, an official from the FairTax.org non-profit group was on 1400 a.m. here in Lincoln. Pay attention; this is something that could literally change your life if it goes into effect. How, you ask? Decide for yourself.

Would you like to know more?

At long last, the college football season is here! And not a moment too soon. This is an absolutely glorious time of the year. The Huskers have started out really strong, too. We beat Louisiana Tech 49-10 in the season opener, and then beat tiny Nicholls State 56-7. The latter was a Division I-AA school, but the game went exactly as it should have. We really did a good job of establishing the running game, and the defense has been good, too. (Although, the secondary does make me a little nervous.) Our first great test of the season, perhaps the biggest game we've played with Bill Callahan as coach, comes around this Saturday. We play the University of Southern California Trojans in L.A. on Saturday evening. It'll be a really, really tough game to win. USC has won two of the past three national championships and is loaded with top notch talent.

That said, they're not the invincible monolith of athleticism that some would make them out to be. I think we can beat them. We'll have to play an excellent game to do it, but something about this year's Husker team is really special and I think they can pull it off. Nebraska 35, USC 28.

That's it for tonight.
Look for the secret haiku.
It won't be too tough.

Fight the good fight, and keep hope alive.

Love,
Nate