My 4/20 Post

Good Morning Ladies & Gentlemen,

Well, as most of you may know, today is April 20th...and for some reason, a lot of my friends think it's a big deal. Not exactly sure why...but they were a lot of shirts with these green ferns on them and listen to Bob Marley all day...so it's kinda cool. Then I was also informed that it's the birthday of a great military leader and a man ahead of his time. True, history has given him a less than positive appearance...but you can't deny his impact on the human race. Of course...I'm talking about Mr. Sulu (George Takei). Also, that assburger Hitler apparently seeped out of his mother's glory hole on this day...but who cares? Carmen Electra, Joey Lawrence (Wo!!!), Don Mattingly, Jessica Lange, Luther Vandross, and Joan Miro also celebrate birthdays today.

Also, yesterday was my buddy Russ' birthday and we celebrated by...well, trying to surprise him at Piper Down. We all showed up early to surprise him...and apparently, as he was walking through the parking lot, he recognized a LOT of the cars...but he was still surprised to see how many friends he had. It was a great night. Captain Monty, Brooklyn, Erica & Ruben, Nikki came in from Denver, and I even saw my buddy Quinn for the first time in about three years. I don't think she'd ever seen me without glasses...but apparently I'm still recognizable (height). Everybody had a great time...and as usually, I was one of the first in and last out (my own designated driver and people kept buying me shots for some reason). You know me, I'm not going to drive drunk...so I had to wait a long time...and drink a lot of water. By the way, they have TVs in the urinals...which is really convenient if you're semi-interested in the Spurs or Jazz score...yet you're having too much fun with your friends. Anyway, happy birthday again Russ!!!

Note to Self - A judge sentenced defense attorney Adam Reposa to 90 days in jail on Tuesday for making a lewd gesture and simulating masturbation while standing before a County Court-at-Law judge in March. At a contempt hearing Monday, Judge Jan Breland said Reposa, 33, rolled his eyes and looked at her while motioning with his right hand. Reposa said the gesture came from near his hip and was aimed at a prosecutor while discussing plea negotiations in a drunken driving case. Reposa's attorney asked for a sentence of one day in jail. Visiting State Judge Paul Davis, however, said it was his "honor to uphold the integrity of the judicial process" and sentenced Reposa to 90 days. The attorney was led from the courtroom in handcuffs. Today's lesson - Don't simulate masturbation in a judicial setting. Honestly, it probably would be less of a sentence to actually masturbate…then to simulate it. Ninety days may seem a little harsh…but you have to look at the situation. It was in Texas, before a female judge, and the appeal was handled by a gentleman judge defending her honor, and the guy apparently used offensive language in court on a regular basis…so there's a little context in there. Still, just don't do it. Wait until you're in the privacy of your own home…or do some other gesture that would simply confuse the judge.

For STARING??? - An Italian man was given a suspended jail sentence for staring too intensely at a woman sitting in front of him on a train. A judge sentenced the man in his 30s, whose name was not revealed, to 10 days in prison and a 40 Euro ($63) fine after a 55-year old woman filed a complaint for sexual harassment. The two met on two separate occasions in 2005 on a commuter train going from Lecco, a town in northern Italy, to Milan. The first time, the man sat next to the woman but she felt he had moved too close for comfort. The next day, the man sat in front of the same woman and according to her complaint, stared at her for the whole journey. The two did not even speak to each other…and the sentence is being appealed. Wow!!! Is this what it has come to? Ten days for allegedly staring at a woman? Maybe he was just sitting there thinking about something and zoned out…because he was on a train. It happens. All the time. Who is this 55-year old woman? Sophia Loren? She doesn't seem to mind. I'm sure she's gorgeous and all (being Italian) but you can just say something like "Scusi, would you mind not staring at me? You're making me uncomfortable." "Oh scusi principessa. I have a lot on my mind." Situation over. Nope, we're taking it to court. I thought it was just America where frivolous cases were opened.

Psychics Didn't See It Coming - Fortune-tellers, mediums and spiritual healers marched on the home of the British prime minister Gordon Brown on Friday to protest against new laws they fear will lead to them being "persecuted and prosecuted." Organizers say that replacing the Fraudulent Mediums Act of 1951 with new consumer protection rules will remove key legal protection for "genuine" mediums. They think skeptics might bring malicious prosecutions to force spiritualists to prove in court that they can heal people, see into the future or talk to the dead. Psychics also fear they will have to give disclaimers describing their services as entertainment or as scientific experiments with unpredictable results. "If I'm giving a healing to someone, I don't want to have to stand there and say I don't believe in what I'm doing," said Carole McEntee-Taylor, a healer who co-founded the Spiritual Workers Association. The British Humanist Association, a charity which campaigns against religion and supernatural beliefs, said stricter regulations were overdue because the current laws don't work. Chief Executive Hanne Stinson said, "It is misleading for spiritualists to claim that, as religious' practitioners they should not be regulated under consumer laws. The psychic industry is huge and lucrative and it exploits some very vulnerable, and some very gullible, people with claims for which there is no scientific evidence."

So who's right in this argument? Sad to say it…but in my opinion, the government. Why? Even if I don't think that most psychics are hustlers, I recognize that they provide a service. They provide a different way for their customers to view the world, offer some treatments to help them with their ailments (whether mental, physical, or spiritual), and a gamut of other things…but so does a hospital…or a brothel for that matter…and regulations are there to make sure that nobody gets hosed. Yes, I expect many frivolous lawsuits brought against them because…well, it's really hard to prove spirituality and the cosmos and other dimensions and all that stuff in court. However, there's a simple phrase that provides an ample solution - "For Entertainment Purposes Only" and it's up there in my book, like allegedly. As far as being a religious practitioner and not being under consumer laws, that's not going to work either…because all churches are regulated unless their in a backwoods area of Kentucky charming snakes or something…and even then, once they're found out, the government steps in. Oh…and they're selling crafts & cookies & crucifixes and stuff like that…not one-on-one conversations with the late great JC. I'm down with psychics for the most part…because I understand that they provide a much needed service to help many people find closure and gain hope for the future…but I also know that a lot of people are swindled by con men (and women) posing as psychics. I don't like to see people getting taken advantage of. With a few of my friends & family members being really into this stuff, I'm a little skeptical…part of being protective, I guess…but as long as it makes them happy, I'm happy. You'll never hear me claim to know everything about everything…so I'm respectful of other people's beliefs…but just respect my belief that Karma comes back around. Just remember, for entertainment purposes only.

GO JOE!!! - There's a bunch of character photos out now for the upcoming "G.I. Joe" movie coming next year. These shots include Rachel Nichols as Scarlett, Channing Tatum as Duke, Karolina Korkova as Cover Girl, Marlon Wayans as Ripcord, Byung-hun Lee as Storm Shadow, Sienna Miller as The Baroness, Ray Park as Snake Eyes, and Dennis Quaid as Hawk. I like the form-fitting black on redhead look…and I almost didn't even see the Czech Victoria's Secret supermodel playing Cover Girl. Damn camouflage!!! Anyway, here are some pictures to satisfy your inner geek...

Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlett Leather

Duke...with Step Up grip

You put Karolina Kurkova in this role...

then dress her in camouflage?

What's next? Jessica Alba as the Invisible Woman?

"Aaaah sh*t, son!" It's Ripcord.

Unless there's a fight in the Great White North,

he'd better be a damn sneaky ninja.

Baroness is hot!!!

Ninjas with AK-47's

Gotta watch this movie

Hawk gives his mean look

Anyway, that'll do it for today. Hope you're all having a great weekend with a minimum of hangovers. I'm gonna go see my nieces & nephew...and get a physical tomorrow. Yay me!!! Have a great day!!!