Letter Meme: O

So work has been crazy since I returned from Chicago and I apologize for the silence here at PBK. Heck, this simple post took me two days to finish. Hopefully things will get back to normal soon, though that is somewhat in doubt since I can't remember what "normal" is. With my brain fried from looking at tiny numbers all day and taking in vast amounts of new information that is neither a) interesting or b) making a whole lot of sense to me right now, my capacity for original ideas to write about is not doing so well. Instead, I present you with this meme.

The idea is that someone you know (on the internet) gives you a letter and you pick 10 words beginning with that letter and write a short bit about what it means to you. If you (the reader) want to get in on this meme action all you have to do is leave a comment and I will assign you a letter to post about in your blog.

Thanks to Ms. L of Ms. Prolix and Indie Rock Tournament fame for my letter.

Ohio -- The obvious one. My place of residence from 1976-1999; 2002-present. I suppose like a lot of Ohioans its a love/hate relationship. I spend a fair amount of time lamenting the lack of opportunity here, the poor urban planning, the crappy sports teams (Cavs excepted for the moment), the scary radical right wingers that control (or want to control) state government, the mind numbing sameness of a state that has been relentlessly suburbanized and just the overall decline of a once great location that people flee from in droves every single day. But if an outsider or a former resident tried to bring us down, I will jump to be one of Ohio's staunchest defenders. I don't know how much longer I can stay here, but no matter where I go, it will always be where I'm from. Ohio has molded me in ways both good and bad and provides me the foundation from which to build upon.

Oates, Hall and -- The first record I ever bought was the blue-eyed soul duo's 1984 LP Big Bam Boom I guess I must have been about 8, despite the regrettable title, the album contained the song:

"Out of Touch" -- I don't care how overblown the production is or how diverse and sophisticated my tastes have since become, this song features one of the greatest basslines of all time.

Obama, Barack -- Senator from Illinois. When I lived in Chicago, he would occasionally appear on Channel 11's "Chicago Tonight" roundtable show (think of it like "Feagler and Friends", but without the cranky old guy running things) and he always seemed to have impressive character. He's public property now and bloggers love to quibble over whether he's a savior or a sucker. When I read stories like this though, I still say he's on the good guy's team.

Ocelot -- Certain words I just like the sound of and this is one of them. Others include cucumber, celery and sumac. Fun fact: One of the few times that I was able to answer one of those puzzlers on NPR (can't remember which show, it might have been "Car Talk") the answer was "ocelot". I believe the question had to do with taking the name of a major American city spelled backwards with the second to last letter switched to the one before it in the alphabet (Toledo=Ocelot). However, they didn't pick my entry from among the winners. And hey, ocelots are kind of cute:




Other Music -- A record store in NYC where I could easily bankrupt myself.

Otani -- This is a Benihana-style Japanese hibachi restaurant in the valley. We had lunch there last weekend and with our coupon it was only $7. The sukiyaki steak is delicious!

Office, The -- Perhaps one of the greatest TV shows of all time. I got hooked on the DVDs of the UK version early on. Ricky Gervais is a comic genius, a very original comedic talent in an age of copycats. When I heard they were making an American version, I braced myself for the worst, but after a few lackluster episodes at the beginning that merely parroted the scripts of the British version, the American Office has grown into a truly great show in its own right. I think this is partly due to the fact that unlike the UK show, which was limited to telling a story over two short seasons, the US version can go into further depth with its characters and really let the writers loosen up and take the stories in a more natural arc. In addition, the American cast works really well as an ensemble (Jenna Fischer=swoon), whereas across the pond Gervais' immense personality overshadowed the rest of the show. I only wish the show was an hour, 30 minutes is not enough!

One -- As in one more of these to come up with. I never realized that it would be so hard to pick 10 meaningful words that begin with the letter O.

Olive Oil -- Things taste better when you cook with extra virgin olive oil.

That's 10. If you want your own letter, leave me a comment!