While his style was very much made to get your attention, there was something admittedly everyman about him.  Of course, khaki pants, dress blue shirt, and beard became his signature style.

Of course, I have enjoyed the recent series of advertisements he was doing for ESPN360, ESPN’s online venture.  The ads poked fun at Billy Mays’ style, but it was even more entertaining considering he was pitching the service in an ad that clearly spoofed his style.

“Now my job is way less soul-crushing!” Yes it is, all thanks to Billy and the miracle of live sports surrounding me wherever I go.

“Hey we all make mistakes. That’s what you told those Yakuza businessmen, but they did not want to hear it.” The most priceless part of this clip is Billy smiling after the sound of glass breaking outside of his motel room.

So, the next time you come across a clip of Billy Mays exhorting you to “TAKE THE HARD WORK OUT OF YARD WORK” with the Awesome Auger or to “FIX, FILL AND SEAL VIRTUALLY ANYTHING FAST AND MAKE IT LAST” with Mighty Putty, reflect on how much better Billy was then Vince Offer (the Sham-Wow guy).

• Friday Evening
  • A farewell happy hour for a contractor becomes a longer evening of conversation and beverages.  A good time was had, but I wound up staying out much later than expected.
• Saturday
  • Early morning errands following a quick workout.  Groceries from Wegmans, some house-sitting to check in on my friends’ cats, picking up some dry cleaning, and other miscellany.  I am convinced to come out for a CD release party at the 8×10, and I wind up having a nightcap.  While heading to my usual location, I ran into a high school friend of mine I have not seen for some time–near 15 years.  I now have his business card, and I will be getting in touch with him soon.
• Sunday
  • Some local folks I know from the Internets convinced me to participate in a “Sunday Funday” duck tour.  Prior to meeting everyone in Fell’s Point, though, I stop off at the Farmer’s Market beneath the Jones Falls Expressway for some essentials–vegetables and coffee.  It is then that I realize that even 8:30 AM is not early enough to avoid the onslaught of slow-walking and stroller-wielding shoppers.  Clearly, I am not one for large crowds where I shop.

Sunday evening was spent in relative solitude, and I wound up napping on my couch for a little bit before going to bed.  I am, however, looking forward to this holiday-shortened week.  It will also help that I will be taking a couple of days off this week in addition to the company holiday.

Anyone who is a child of the late 1970s and the early 1980s recalls both Fawcett and Jackson as icons in their own right.  I can recall older friends of mine who had the red swimsuit poster on their wall. The blond hair, the white teeth, who doesn't remember that poster?

As for Michael Jackson, you could not turn on a radio and not hear a song from "Thriller" in the early 1980s.  I remember my sister had a special commemorative album of Thriller that had a picture of Michael Jackson on the actual LP.  I remember the Jacksons Victory Tour and the ill-fated live Pepsi commercial.  Later in that decade, "Bad" was the next hit album.  I would not call myself a fan of Michael Jackson, but I do have him to thank for "Weird" Al Yankovic.

Here is a YouTube video of the only Michael Jackson tune I actually own in my music collection.

Of course, there is also the infamous long version of the Thriler video that anyone who has watched an MTV Countdown of the greatest videos of all time knows, as it was always the video ranked #1.

And, I would be remiss in not memorializing Johnny Carson's sidekick.  To enjoy his signature expression from "The Tonight Show," bookmark this link.  As for McMahon doing his usual thing, here is a classic clip featuring Ed, Johnny, and Don Rickles.

Click here to view the embedded video.

As I was reviewing my bill, I came across the following charges.

I had to scratch my chin here, as I had no idea why my bill had a charge for $16.28.  I clicked on the link in my online bill, and I was shown this:

I now find it quite interesting that I am being billed for Cheap2Dial Telephone, a service for which I know I have not signed up.  Thanks to Google, I find their website and start poking around.  I see that this service offers Domestic Long Distance plans.  I clearly have no need for this plan, as I have the Verizon Freedom plan which covers all my needs.  While reading further on the Cheap2Dial website, I see the following statement:

How am I billed for using Cheap2Dial?
Although Cheap2Dial is not affiliated with your local telephone company, the monthly recurring charges for the plan you choose will appear on your local telephone bill on the USBI portion of your bill on behalf of Cheap2Dial Telephone, LLC. You will continue to receive the monthly recurring charges on your local telephone bill until you cancel the plan.

It is now pretty clear to me that I have fallen prey to "slamming."  I immediately call Cheap2Dial to have this service turned off.  I also inquired as to when this change was made, and it was made on 7 May 2009.  I find that interesting as I was in the office all day long, and the only person who could possibly have made the change was my houseguest.  I inquired as to if she changed it, and she did not.

My next call will be tomorrow morning to Verizon to have this charge reversed.  I will also be making sure that this does not happen again on my phone bill.  My landline is not going anywhere anytime soon, but I expect to change my calling plan to the cheapest one once my houseguest is no longer here.

Cheap2Dial and USBI have gained a reputation for slamming customers. I can only advise you to ensure you look at your phone bill and are not a victim of slamming.

Keyboard Cat playing off Leo Laporte was pretty good.

My most recent favorite Keyboard Cat (via Twitter), though, has him performing with 80's pop sensation Daryl Hall and John Oates.  The fun truly starts at 1:40 into the video.

Yes, Keyboard Cat, you are making my dreams come true!

I have to agree with most people that I think this is a bad idea.  The coverage has focused on the effort to better enforce existing Baltimore City Code around waste.  To me, the only way this works is with strict enforcement of the code around the proper receptacle, its placement when trash is not picked up, and its placement on pickup days.

In my area of Pigtown, the biggest problem I see is the improper or poor use of trash cans in my neighborhood.  As garbage trucks cannot maneuver down the alley, trash pickup occurs in the front of my house.  Most of my neighbors, in what I think is both a combination of laziness and cleanliness, keep their trash bins in front of their homes.  A few of my neighbors, however, have completely eschewed the trash cans for a, shall we say, dirtier aesthetic. Thus, I have uncovered trash cans, overflowing with trash.

Today was a scheduled trash day under our current two day schedule.  Here is what my street looked like on my way to work this morning. 

I am even more concerned about this after getting my oil changed this weekend.  While paying for a new battery, I was informed that a rodent had nested near the engine in my car--specifically, the PCV tube.  I know that this is partly the result of my car not moving much during the day, but I also know that the relatively unkempt conditions on my street have contributed to the rodent population on my street.

With this scene on the first day of a twice-weekly trash pickup, imagine what it is going to be like on my street one day a week.  Enforcement of the code is, unfortunately, going to be critical for this law to work and maintain a cleaner city.  In the meantime, though, I think I will be spending some time with the online 311 system to get the trash code enforced.

The house was pretty full, and there was no opening act before the main event.  Given the careers of both artists, it made perfect sense.  Our seats were in the upper level, but even at that distance, I was able to snap some pretty good photos.

Thanks to the Internet, I was able to find out the complete set list.

1. Had To Cry Today
2. Low Down
3. After Midnight
4. Presence of The Lord
5. Sleeping in the Ground
6. Glad
7. Well Alright
8. Tough Luck Blues
9. Pearly Queen
10. No Face, No Name, No Number
11. Forever Man
12. Little Wing
13. Georgia On My Mind - Steve Winwood solo
14. Driftin' - acoustic
15. Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out - acoustic
16. Layla - acoustic version
17. Can't Find My Way Home
18. Crossroads
19. Voodoo Chile
20. Cocaine
21. Dear Mr. Fantasy - Encore

The big news at WWDC, of course, was the coming new version of the iPhone--or, as I call it, the JeebusPhone.  Now, the iPhone will have all the following features :

• Cut, Copy, and Paste!
• Video!
• Voice Control!
• Improved Battery Life!
• MMS!
• Compass!

Now, mind you that a number of current smartphones on the market have had these features for some time.  Heck, even my old Motorola e815 had these features before the iPhone.  Admittedly, the compass is something most phones do not have, but I am struggling to come up with a true need-case where my phone must have a compass.

Of course, however, with the typical Apple upgrade comes the price one pays.  All the fanboys are atwitter--literally--over the upgrade pricing fiasco. All of this reminds me of one of the better recent Simpsons parodies in some time.

DudeFest was a Wii bowling contest, a costume contest, and viewing party all rolled into one.  Music bands played, and everyone enjoyed the Dude's favorite beverage--the caucasian.  I had a good time, and I unexpectedly ran into some friends.

As for the costume contests, there were Dudes, Walters, Maudes--in their Viking gear, and Nihilists. I was even able to get a photo with one of the Viking Maudes.

The night ended with a viewing of the movie on the big screen with a large number of similar-minded fans of the Dude.  I, much like the Dude, abided.  (I abided so much, I bought a print of one of the posters created for the event.)

I will again be running the 5K during the 2009 Baltimore Running Festival this year.  I enjoyed running it in 2008, and I look forward to running the race this year as well.  Much like the Shamrock 5K, I believe I will be a repeat offender running this race.

I added a new 5K to my repertoire, however.  I registered for the Right Side Foundation 5K Run at Patterson Park this year--16 August 2009.  The Right Side Foundation is the new charitable foundation started by Baltimore Orioles outfielder Nick Markakis, and the 5K is the first of (presumably) a long line of events to help the foundation raise money.  I have to admit that I am a bit wary of running a race in the late summer in Baltimore, but the run is for a good cause.  Besides, I need a race between the other two races I run, and this is the perfect fit.

Now that you know, come along and cheer me on.