If you care at all about the awesomeness that is the birth of the United States of America, then you should really watch HBO’s John Adams miniseries. First off, the series was cast impeccably.

Paul Giamatti plays John Adams, the 2nd President of the USA, father of the 6th President of the USA - John Quincy Adams, Laura Linney plays his devoted wife, Abigail Adams, and Tom Wilkinson plays the quirky/bizarre, Ben Franklin. And the dude they got to play Thomas Jefferson is a dead ringer (I’d IMDB him, but hell, I got work to do people). 

The series starts out on the eve of the Boston Massacre - Adams’ hometown -and then goes headfirst into the revolution. It’s more than engaging. With the “real,” bumpy way it’s shot, it feels like you’re there. You feel like you’re sweating along with John Adams as he bemoans South Carolina’s royalist nature, and as he nearly dies in Amsterdam while petitioning the government for a 5 million dollar loan (which they were hesitant to do. The USA obviously had no international credit; then).

I would’ve posted this blog on or before the 4th, but I was busy getting my drunk on with inebriated Star Trek nerds at a comic book convention over the weekend. Geeks, believe it or not, party like rockstars.

- Tiff

Wimbledon requires all of it’s players to wear white. Some of the attire that these talented, young, and wealthy athletes have come up with has been some awesome eye candy. Here’s my favorite look so far:

This is obviously a pre-match look, but seriously, can one ever go wrong with a cropped white pea coat? I think not!

Click here for more wicked awesome white attire from Wimbledon 2008!

- Tiff

Tomas Young is 28 years old, sexy, well-spoken, from Kansas City, MO, and unfortunately, a T4 paraplegic. 

In 2003, he was shot and paralyzed by enemy fire (”Instantly dropping my AK 47,” he describes, after getting shot) after only 5 days in Iraq. Body of War is an amazing documentary that EVERYONE should see. Co-directed by the legendary Phil Donahue and Ellen Spiro, this film premiered at the SXSW Film Festival in March and is currently touring the country.

To learn more about this anti-war film, visit the it’s site, BodyofWar.com. Make sure to watch the trailer and to peruse it’s screening schedule; it may be coming to a city near you. I’m hoping that SOON it’ll be available on Netflix (I have the 3-disc unlimited plan), and I REALLY need to see this film in it’s entirety, instead of through dozens of various YouTube clips.

I almost had the opportunity to see it the first weekend of June here in Minneapolis at the National Free Press Conference, but due to PCA scheduling issues and my own damn fault, I couldn’t see the screening (or go to the awesome Q&A session afterwards with Phil Donahue). I’m still kicking myself over that.

ANYWAYS, Eddie Vedder (lead singer of Pearl Jam) wrote/performed a song for the film called, “No More.” It’s beautiful, poignant, and it makes me very happy to see such a high-profile musician affiliated with such an important film.

But yes, this film is great. It shows how brutal life with a SCI really is, how the VA has let Tomas down in re: to proper benefits to fully rehabilitate a paraplegic. and more importantly, how Iraq was a terrible mistake.

- Tiff

The one good thing about being “forced” to watch the US Open with the fam over the weekend was discovering the uber-sexy golfer from Columbia: Camillo Villegas. He’s 26 and is from fucking Medellin (any “Entourage” watchers will be able to appreciate that reference). So how cool is that shit? Anyways, he placed 9th over the weekend.

He’s only two years younger than me. I could totally have his beautiful half Columbian, half Swedish babies.

Just look at him! Squee! 

(They don’t call him “Spiderman” on the course for nothing)

His official USGA bio: http://www.usopen.com/en_US/bios/bio27770.html 

PS. Wasn’t Tiger amazing in this tour or what? Holy crap was that guy on fire. Totally deserved to win in the playoff round today, even if Villegas is exponentially sexier. Go Woods!

- Tiff

<—- This is where Myanmar is located.

India, China, and Thailand border this not-so-well-known country.

The reports of over 100,000 dead from the horrific recent typoon that hit this country last week, have been plain shocking.

More on the tragedy can be found on CNN, with info on how to donate.

- Tiff

I recently fell across this crazy (yet brilliant and hysterical) article written by Yasha Levine on “The Exile,” a Russia-based informations site, called “Hell On Wheels: 24 Hours Without Wheels in Moscow.” I’m not quite sure if his article was supposed to be satirical or purely informational, or shocking, or all three of these attributes, but I do know one thing - it was a HUGE wake-up call to Miss Tiffiny Carlson, in regards to how lucky I am to live in a city (Minneapolis), that is over 90% accessible (in regards to public facilities).

What Mr. Levine did was rent out a wheelchair for 250 rubles/week called “Nadezdha,” from an area medical rental place, which basically means (translated from Russian into English, of course), “Hope.” So, with the shoddy “Hope” wheelchair in his possession, which wasn’t easy to find by the way, Mr. Levine went out across the vastness that is the city of Moscow - post-Communism over 10+ years no less - to peruse the town PUBLICALLY, which in itself happens to be a big deal over there because essentially no one with a disability ever goes out in public out of both physical (lack of accessibility) and psychological (shame, embarrassment) reasons. Thanks to the extreme division of the able-bodied and the disabled in Communist-era Russia, everyone with a disability was pretty much institutionalized and never integrated into the public environment. The Russian public, still, TO THIS DAY, doesn’t know how to properly and politely handle people with disabilities (other than throw spare rubles at them or tell them they’re not wanted).

What Levine did in his 24 hours “without legs” was traverse the Muscovite subway system (via wheelies on escalators), dine on sub-par sushi at a huge (relatively new and thankfully accessibly) mall that lies on the outskirts of Moscow (fitting in a dinner date with his girlfriend, no less), and than (his biggest challenge), attempting to integrate himself into the elite Moscow clubbing scene (which was by far his biggest challenge). “We do not allow invalids into our club,” said one bouncer in the most simplistic terms possible, as he attempted to enter a certain snotty club. Undeterred, he used his friends (who were able-bodied and hip, as “clout”) he finally did get himself into another nearby high-brow club, and even got himself a few sexy (clothes-on) lap-dances from some hot Muscovite-women too. Oh the surprise that was!

To read this truly informative and mind-expanding article, and to learn to fully appreciate the accessibility of your current residence by the highest means possible, do read Yasha Levine’s article on his one-day escapade (thank ye gods) in the city of Moscow.