Free Eric Volz!!

You may or may have not heard, but a Nashville man was just sentenced to 30 years in a Nicaraguan prison for a crime he did not commit. I haven't been following this case closely until just recently, and I cannot believe the injustice that is happening.

Here's the latest from MSN on the story. Please take five minutes out of your day to watch the video on his MySpace page and show your support. You'll be surprised as to how it will grab your heart.

I can't even imagine what it must be like for the family, let alone Eric himself. It's an awful, awful situation and he needs everyone to band together for a chance of freedom again.

A Shot of Jack

As in White, is all I needed to make my day happy.

After years of listening (okay, swooning) over his so delicately crunchy guitar riffs and his punk yet melodic voice, I finally met the boy. And Meg, too.

I first had an encounter with them on the sidewalk outside my building, then later listened to their fabulously heavy new record with them. They're as sweet as can be, and no, I'm not just saying that. Shy to the bone and spoken so prolificly, Icky Thump was introduced with a bang. Due to come out this June, it's going to keep The White Stripes' fans happy until the next we hear from them.

Jack got a haircut. And he was wearing all black with a gold belt buckle...I think Nashville has done him well. He looked quite sexy, if I do say so myself. Meg was her same cute little self with a vintage red dress and some patent leather black platforms.

To meet them is to know them. To know them is to love them.

Pet Food Recall Specifics

Turns out they've found a rat poison contamination in over 60 million cans of wet pet food. For a full list of products included in the pet food recall:

Click here for cats.

Click here for dogs.

This is all such a shame, pets are dying all over the country. So very sad. I hope all your little furry beasts are safe!!

I Hate TimeWarner Cable

And all other cable companies out there. TimeWarner, Comcast, Adelphia, whatever.

They're a damn monopoly and they cater to no one but themselves.

For example, my internet has been down for over two weeks now. I called them (two weeks ago) to report it and the soonest they could have someone out was ten days later. TEN DAYS!! However, they had to call and confirm. I never heard a word so I called them on Monday (the day they were supposed to come) and they told me that someone had already been there and I wasn't so they left.

Hello, CORPORATE AMERICA! SOME OF US DO WORK!!!

So...I set up another appointment for today. The time window was 9a to 12p. I told them I needed a call 30 minutes in advance, as I had a job to do and I couldn't just get up and run out whenever I wanted. They told me that wasn't possible, that I could only get a 20 minute advance call and that if I missed the call I was out of luck.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't I the one paying them money so that my sh*t works?!?

At any rate, I've got 10 minutes left in my window and I haven't heard a peep from them. I even called to see if they could contact the guy and give me an ETA on when he'd be there. I was told that no, they can't, and I just need to answer the call when it comes.

Again, I HAVE A JOB. I HAVE MEETINGS. I AM A WORKING AMERICAN.

So here I sit...waiting...waiting...waiting...

I hate you TimeWarner. May you burn in hell.

The Streets of Los Feliz

This story took place last week, right down the street from my humble L.A. abode...

[Courtesy of New York's very own Pop Stand]

So last night I worked late, left my office at 3 am, and the street is completely vacant at that hour - everything's closed, nobody's out. Except for the occasional stray homeless person sleeping underneath the side entrance to my office building, or underneath the awning of Monte Cristo, the Armenian banquet hall.

As I approach my apartment I see this girl walking down the sidewalk away from me toward the crosswalk at Melbourne. She's by herself, wearing really tight pants, and she has a pretty attractive figure.

Then I hear some catcalling, some whistling, and my peripheral vision registers a figure crouching by the bushes in front of my apartment. A male figure; he's the one doing the whistling. I assume it's a homeless man, probably drunk. I ignore him, purposefully refusing to make eye contact so I don't become an unwitting recipient of whatever late-night desperations are swirling through his head. He continues to yell at the girl, who responds with a girly, not-entirely-convincing, "Leave me alone."

I stop at the door and take out my keys. "Hey," he says. Shit. He's trying to engage me. I ignore him.

"Hey man."

I turn around. He's standing up now. He's not homeless. He's clean-cut. And his features are somehow...familiar.

"She's lookin' good, right?"

He wants my approval.

He's Keifer Sutherland. And he's definitely intoxicated.

"Yeah," I say, "She's got nice legs."

This is exactly what he wants to hear. "Hey!" he yells after her, "I need a fuckin' cigarette!"

He runs after the girl.

Tired, I don't bother to see how the rest of this scene plays out; I enter my apartment and fall asleep shortly thereafter.


I hope Keifer found that cigarette; apparently, that girl was his only lead.

Green, Schmeen

Another year, another St. Patty's Day. I'm not Irish, so the day comes and goes and I really don't give a flip. I don't need a special excuse to go out and party. However, I have been known to get into some trouble on the day the leprechauns come out to play. Here's a look back at one of my favorite memories of the occasion.

There's no telling what this year will bring. Suddenly I have too many options to choose from. Three parties, a bbq, a nice dinner out with close friends. After tonight who knows if I'll be up for any of it. Tonight, it's time to celebrate my German-ness at the local German pub. So look out Silverlake, you're going to have to deal with me and MSV tonight!!

You Can Take the Girl Out of the Country...

...but you can't take the country out of the girl.

Forbidden Headline

Is It Time For Big Bird To Die?

Seriously, people. It's bad enough to talk about taking Sesame Street off the air, but let's not go talking about killing off Big Bird. C'mon. What's wrong with the world these days?!?