What I’m…

… Reading .
On Truth by Harry Frankfurt- My first year of college I came in knowing I was going to be a journalism major. Of course then I got exposed to many things and my focus changed. My favorite short term major idea was philosophy. I loved the idea of sitting around and picking apart how real things are and so on. In the end of course, I went with a more practical major (film) and left philosophy behind. However, in the last two years, Mr. books have rekindled my interest. His best seller On Bullshit was a great treatise on the difference between lies and BS and the insidious nature of the later. His latest, On Truth, is almost a prequel as he delves into truth and why it is an essential function to society. His writing is simple, he keeps the reader engaged, and he publishes them in pocket sized editions with shiny covers which really is what attracted me to philosophy in the first place.

…Renting.
Thank You for Smoking- If you’re looking for a film that sheds light on big tobacco go rent The Insider. If you’re looking for a film that skewers our PC culture then rent Thank You for Smoking. While it certainly does not promote smoking, you certainly can’t call this an anti smoking film. I’ve gotta believe it’s also the first film that makes you cheer for a lobbyist. Aaron Eckhart has made a career out of playing the charming evildoer and here he excels again. The ever reliable JK Simmons (best known as JJ Jamison in the Spidey flicks) also steals the show.

…Surfing.
Bump’s Blog- Dan Barreiro is probably my favorite sports columnist of all time. The only problem is that he stopped writing his column in the Minneapolis/St Paul StarTribune about 4 years ago. Faced with the decision between his successful radio show and his column in a dying media, Dan chose to go with radio. As someone who at the time lived outside of Minnesota I was crushed that I’d be missing out on his musings. Thankfully, about a year ago, Dan discovered blogging and ever since has been publishing a column with about the same frequency as he did in the paper. He is cynical, sarcastic and seems to view the world in shades of grey. He’s never afraid to rip on the home team or anyone else for that matter, he gives praise where deserved, and everyone gets equal treatment. One benefit of the blog is that he’s not handcuffed by editors who want him to stick to local stories so he offers up plenty of takes on national stories as well. Once in a while his politics come into play and while I don’t always agree with his views he certainly presents them in an entertaining and logical way. I firmly believe that if he was in a bigger market we’d have seen Dan achieve the same type of notoriety as the folks on PTI and Around the Horn.

…Watching.
The Hills (MTV) - Last spring I covered this show intensely on the blog much to the chagrin of some readers. At the time I couldn’t wait for the second season but perhaps due to time or the lackluster new season of Laguna Beach , my excitement faded. Still I was there Monday for the second season premiere and now I’ve got my groove back. I know it’s just one episode but it appears that in many ways our girls are growing up. LC lamented her idiotic move to pass on an internship in Paris , Heidi got promoted to her dream job at the event planning office, and Audrina scored an even better reception job. Of course there is still drama. Heidi has downgraded in the boyfriend department trading in her nice guy idiot from last year to a bad guy idiot for this year. She and Audrina are on the outs because said boyfriend is pulling their strings and playing them against each other and of course neither of them are smart enough to figure that out. The joke may be on the boyfriend in the end though as one of them closed out episode 2.1 by taking a pregnancy test.