Good Morning, Starshine.

The Good:

I'm wide awake on a Saturday morning, having already played 3 games of ball and well-fed from a home-cooked Bacon x Pancakes combo for breakfast. Participant database and Neuroscience exam, I'm coming for you two next!

The Bad:

Thanks to this fucking rhino at basketball this morning, I'm sporting a headache and a slight bump on the bridge of my nose. Got cold-cocked with an elbow straight in the face when I went to double him. Now it kinda smarts around the bridge of my nose. Euch! Dirty motherfucker! But maybe he was just mad 'cause I got him with a clean block on a fast break.

The Ugly:


Felt something weird on my hand halfway through the first game. Looked down and saw this. HA! I tried to get a good shot of it on my phone, but this was the best I could do (thanks, Nokia N95!). Gruesome, ain't it?

Over and out.

- marty..

END COMMUNICATION.

Lessons Learned

Things I've learned in the last 18 hours:

• I have a predilection for changing the topic of a conversation without telling the person I'm actually talking to that I've changed topics. Case in point:
  
  Mart: [referring to Angels and Demons] Have you read the book yet?
  
  Mart: [quickly changes topics before Crisa can answer] Oh, I've got a new vampire book!
  
  Crisa: The Vampire Lestat? Twilight? Queen of the Damned? Those are the only vampire books I've read!
  
  Mart: What are YOU on about? I was talking about Angels and Demons!
  
  
• Mexican food is awesome. But only in small, controlled doses. And definitely not as part of the following combo: Enchiladas + Rice + Nachos + Sour Cream + Salsa + Quesadillas + Chicken Caesar Salad + Heineken + Popcorn + Starburst + Brandy Alexander. My stomach was destructificated after last night.
  
  
• Angels and Demons is a pretty good movie. I was initially averse to watching it 'cause my recollection of The Da Vinci Code went a little something like this:
  
  

• I'm part of the X-Men. I'm Professor X because I can use my mutant powers of high-level telepathy to manipulate such things as automatic doors and electronic boomgates. But sometimes, when the mood strikes me, I can also be Wolverine. Fear my adamantium claws, bub.

• If you drink beer and pass out in your bed, you may end up accidentally giving your friend, also asleep on your bed, a brutal knee to the face. What a way to wake up, right RD?
  
  
• But hey, if you think "blunt trauma to the face" was a nice wake-up call, how about the house alarm going off 'cause Fonz didn't think I was at home, so he armed it before he left? That's a MUCH better way to get woken up! Nothing like annoyingly loud blaring sirens to rouse you from your morning slumber!

Okay, back to real life. Participant database, here I come!

- marty..

P.S. Let's go, Lakers!

END COMMUNICATION.

LAL-DEN Game 2 notes - We don't need no steenkin' home court advantage!

This is my first attempt at taking down notes while watching a game. I'm not lobbying for a job on SLAMonline or Forum Blue and Gold, but I always wanted to do one of these things.

I gave Mike a buzz and asked him if I could drop by to watch Game 2. Just before I left, I looked at my laptop, and the thought of taking notes popped into my head, so I brought it along out of impulse.

(Sidebar: If I was this dedicated to taking notes at Uni, maybe I wouldn't be so worried about my exams...but hey, that's neither here nor there.)

Let's go, Lakers! *clap* *clap* *clap clap clap*


First Quarter –

• Nuggets miss a free throw early. Thoughts of Game 1 proceed to flash through my head.
  
• Michael: "Derek Fisher is a shitty point guard." I proceed to defend Fish.
  
• Ariza with a three! If he gets hot early, then we can put this away by halftime.
• Dahntay Jones with 3 fouls. Awesome. I’ll see you in the 2nd, dude.
• Let’s go Drew! If you have a breakout game, I’ll buy a Bynum jersey. (But probably not.)
• Laker bigs rebounding. More active. Big smiley face goes here.
• Dahntay Jones with 4 fouls, 6:12 left in the game. I'd love to read Basketbawful's Lacktion Report on this game later!
• Michael asks me why the fuck I’m writing right now. I tell him I’ve been blogging for five years. But this actually would be the first time I tried my hand at taking notes while watching a game.
  
• Ad for Kobe Doin’ Work comes on. Even as a Kobe fan, I can’t find myself getting amped for this. =| I know Mamba works on his image and everything, so I don’t know how much faith I can put into it. Let’s hope I get proven wrong when I actually go to see it.
• Doris Burke – Why do you sound older than you look?
• Gasol with the closeout! And the tip in! ACTIVE!
• I don’t hate Billups as much as I used to when he was in Detroit. I think it was just a Piston thing.
• Third putback for the Lakers in the first.
• Oh wow, we’re not starting a game with lethargy for once. This bodes well. But I have a sinking feeling this’ll be offset by the usual “Fuck it, we’re up by double digits. What are we doing after the game?”
  
• Birdman sighting, 3:23.
• Wonder how Spanish Marshmallow reacts once things get chippy? Let’s hope he does the same thing he did against the Celtics on Christmas Day: SHOW SOME ANGER! GASOL USE ELECTRIC! YOUR ELECTRIC, PAU, USE YOUR ELECTRIC!

(Image from YAYsports!)

• ‘Multiple “My bads” get you beat.’ – JVG
• Kobe with a runner off the glass. B-e-a-utiful.
• Home cookin’. Tastes delicious.
• MACHINE INITIATE TERMINATOR MODE. RUN FOULBILLUPS.EXE.
• Kobe has 12 with 40 seconds to go.
• Kleiza with a three to stem the tide. Back down to 6. When are we gonna start ripping their hearts out?
• MACHINE INITIATE ALMOSTDAGGER.EXE
• Lakers by 8, end of 1. Looking good, but I’ve had my heart broken by the Lakers’ complacency way too many times.

Second Quarter –

• George Karl is red as hell in this interview. Anyone else curious about what he said to the Nuggets during the break?
• Nuggets are playing sloppy as hell.
• Six offensive boards for the Lakers. See what getting pushed around by Houston does to you?
• Couple of trips back and forth without a bucket. Until ShanWOW! gets a tough floater in the lane.
• Mark Jackson suggests replacing Jerry West with MJ on the NBA’s logo. I love Mike, but you can’t disrespect The Logo like that.
• Melo can’t get going (1-6, so far). Adjustments are a bitch. He even misses a freebie!
• We’re seeing some movement and passing from LA. Crisp and slick. This is the pretty shit I’ve gotten spoiled with over last two years!
• Nice elbow to Birdman’s face, Drew.
• Melo with another. Getting hot?
• And another.
• And another! Hot it is.
• Mike: “I reckon [Kenyon] was high when he got [the Neck Lips] tattoo. Had to be.”
• The Nuggets fall asleep on the break and Drew gets an easy dunk, + the foul. In. Ex. Cusable.
• I don’t know if it’s our defense or just the Nuggets being sloppy but they can’t keep a handle on that ball out there. If I had an Internet connection, I’d check the box score for the turnover count so far.
• If we close this quarter out STRONG, then I think I might guarantee a victory early.
• Damnit, who gambled on that play and left a man open?!
• Fuck, down to 8. 1:42.
• 5. 1:09. 8-0 run. COT DAMNIT.
• Stupid explosive Nuggets offense. Nuggets cut it down to 3.
• “How does a kid from Lithuania who lives in Maryland go to college in Missouri?” – More JVG.
• So. How’s that “closing the quarter out STRONG” going?
• Aaaaaand down to 1. Last 30 seconds.
• After Lamar wets a J, he blocks Billups to close out the half.
• ...Or so it would seem. With three seconds left, Billups banks the inbounds pass off Kobe’s back and hits the layup. Sonofabitch. Los Angeles, 55. Denver, 54.

Third Quarter –

• Can we respond, get back to basics? Or are we gonna fold under Denver’s newfound intensity?
• Get up, PAU!
• Melo ties the game with a J over Fish (FISH! WHY IS HE ON MELO?).
• Okay, maybe a little bit TOO unselfish on the floor. Passing the ball around too much leads to the 24-second violation.
  
• Dahntay with five fouls in eight minutes.
• Mike warns me not to throw my thongs around if the Lakers start slipping, as I tend to do whenever I'm losing in NBA 2K9. I hope it doesn’t get down to that point.
• TREVOR ARIZA! Attacks the rim and finishes strong.
• Ahh, fuck. He just went down hard. But he’s back up on his feet. Great work out there, kid.
• Hopefully Kobe uses the end of the first half as fuel for the second.
• Kobe Bryant just got away with murder on that rebound! RIVERSIDE, MOTHERFUCKER!
• Chauncey’s pull-up three on the break. You see it coming, and all you can do is cringe as you hear the splash.
• Kobe. Baseline. Jam.
• Gasol’s brought it this game, effort-wise. The dirty hustle side of basketball only ever looks pretty when it’s your team doing it.
• Uh-oh, 10% battery life left. I’m switching to blogging via my phone. This does not bode well for me. 71-75. 2:47 in the 3rd.
• MVP chants as Mamba steps to the line. Wishful thinking sucks, but thanks anyway, Staples!
• Nice effort, but the refs fucked up on that call. Maybe it's to make up for Kobe's rebound/Push of Doom earlier.
• Good board! Now, let's get a good last shot.
• Or, an ugly-ass jumper from Shannon. That too. 81-80, Lakers.

Fourth Quarter -

• Damn, Kobe's got 4 fouls with 11:23 left. Gulp.
• Obvious quote of the day: "1-1 and 2-0 are two VERY different scorelines."
• Denver regains the lead on a Kleiza trey. Let's not give this guy a chance to get his confidence back, shall we?
• The bounces start going the Nuggets' way.
• Officially scared. Down 7 with just over 9 minutes to go.
• Kick ball? FUCKING SERIOUSLY?
• Back-to-back threes to bring us back to 1 takes the edge off a little bit. Whew.
• This looks like it's going down to the wire. As a basketball fan, I couldn't be more amped. But, as a Lakers fan, I'm shit scared right now. But I'm guessing the players are coping with the pressure a lot better than I am.
• Mike: "Walton's all over the place!" That he is.
• Pau + Electric = ELECTRIC PAU.
• Penalty already? Are we even halfway through the fourth yet?
• Whew. If we win, Trevor gets the game ball. For real.
• Free throws. Might wanna make those, team.
• Kobe with a three to tie. He's fairly good at this basketball thing, especially in the last few minutes.
• Crafty move by Chauncey to draw that foul.
• Another shot by Kobe to tie. Ho-hum, do something else you bum.
• NECKLIPS with a two for the lead. Ergh. Of all people!
• And Trevor loses the ball. What an unlucky way to lose. Bad non-call by the refs to miss the JR Smith violation. Damn.
• Chauncey misses a free throw to make things interesting, but good ball denial from the Nugs ensures that the only look we get is Fish for a contested three from the corner, with Nene all up in his personal space.
• Dunzo. 106-103, Nugs.
• Remember all that stuff about the Lakers always breaking my heart by blowing a big lead?

- marty..

END COMMUNICATION.

And the birthday streak comes to an end.

One of the craziest things about having friends in so many different circles is that for two months of every year, from the middle of March up until the middle of May, there's at least ONE birthday celebrated each week. It's a pretty hectic streak, when you think about it.

Let's get this started, shall we?



Kate's 21st - March 19, 2009. Zachary's, Kings Cross.


Loves to smile!


Groupthink.


It's the sleazy look!


Happy birthday, Kathleen!




Teresa's 21st - March 27, 2009. Trinity Bar, Surry Hills.


Oh, it's the guys.


One of these guys decided to coat my car door with vomit. Guess who?


Oh! Harro Patrick! Would you like to play "Drink 'til you sleep?" Loves to get the high score!




Jessymica's 21st - March 28, 2009. Narnia!


I don't know how many of these costumes were actually from the 90s...but damn, Cristian's costume is awesome!


This photo weirds me out. Whoa, Nelly.


Jessymica and some of her loyal subjects.




Kaeann's 20th - April 3, 2009. Casa di Nico, King St. Wharf.


...Okay, so this is the only photo I have from Kae's. HAHA.




Katrina's 21st - April 4, 2009. The Croft!


ROFL. To be fair...I was drunk. Look at Kate, though, wishing she were somewhere else right about now!




Pat & Ian's 21st - April 9, 2009. Mounty County!


The twins, plus their folks.


Got arrested by Officer Sukit!


Dirts McGirts. Hectus magectus!




Mattitude's 21st - April 11, 2009. Albion Palace Hotel, George St.


ROFL. It's the infamous Party Scowl!


Almost a complete group shot!


Umm...Vogue?


Party, p-p-p-party people MATT!




Angie's 21st - April 14, 2009. Hog's Breath Cafe, Blacktown.


Cristian, you seem to have an RD growing on your head.


My giant ice cream, MINE!




John's 18th - April 18, 2009. Rooty Hill.


Hey, it's the Mart ghost!




Karl's 21st - April 26th, 2009. Braza Churrascaria, Leichhardt.


World's luckiest cake. Gets mouth particles from Karl John Valdez!


Always guaps, that Karl!


Ice cream cake! Destroyed by sugarlust from a couple dozen diners.


Most accurate drawing ever.




Jes' 21st - May 2nd, 2009. Wagaya Restaurant & PJ O'Brien's.


"Hey dude! There are people trying to get through!"


Guaps McPogs Squared.


Love, right there.


"TWENTY-ONE! TWENTY-ONE! PDA! PDA!"


Patrick uses Headbutt! ...It's super effective!




Mart's 21st - May 8th, 2009. The Croft. [Umm, let's skip this one. I've talked about it enough.]



Cristian's 21st - May 15th, 2009. South Hungarian Club, Glendenning.


There's that Party Scowl again!


Is it just me, or do my cousin and I look alike?


SB Twin sandwich!


Trendsetters, baby!


All three Jesses in the one photo. May God have mercy on us all!


I think this one was taken in my cul-de-sac. Maybe. Possibly. Details are hazy around this point!



...Aaaaaand, DONE! Can't wait until we do this again next year, guys. I'm so used to partying with everyone on the weekend, but now it's time to buckle down and get some serious Uni work done.

That, or catch up on sleep. Both options sound good!

Let's get these exams out of the way, and hopefully we'll all see each other again for Julz' birthday!

- marty..

END COMMUNICATION.

Sound arguments are definitely my forté.

Suburb names that sound like they belong in the outback:

• StrathFIELD
• AshFIELD
• BurWOOD
• FOREST Lodge
• Surry HILLS
• LilyFIELD
• Summer HILL
  
• YOWIE Bay
• Terrey HILLS

I'd go on, but I can no longer be bothered. Basically, if it has HILLS or FIELD in it, it sounds like it's from the outback. The funny thing is, these places are all close to the CBD.

Mart Logic thus dictates that as judged by their names, these places count as part of the outback. BUSH TOWNS!

Okay, back to my regularly-scheduled insanity.

- marty..

END COMMUNICATION.

These are the sounds of not being able to sleep.

Infusion of new music into my iTunes to keep me entertained, awake and alive.

"Third time's a charm, baby! After two classics, another stripe up on my arm, baby!"

Clipse - Kinda Like a Big Deal (feat. Kanye West)

"Right now, if looks could kill, you'd be a killer. A sexy f*cking killer, babe."

Black Eyed Peas - Boom Boom Pow (Remix) (feat. Kid Cudi)

"'Cause I'll pull down a cloud for you. I'll circle the stars and bring you one back. I'll walk through the sun for you. 'Cause there's somethin' you do that's got me walkin' on the moon."

The-Dream - Walking on the Moon (feat. Kanye West)

"Stop, pop, jumpshot. So sporty! Yo, I tried bein' average, it's just not for me."

The Cool Kids - Pennies (Remix) (feat. Ludacris & Bun B)



- marty..

END COMMUNICATION.

kidcatastrophe Presents: Twentyone, Bitches.

Selected happy snaps from both parts of my amazing twentyfirst. Much love to everyone who made it down and made it special, by the way!


Part 1 - Tuesday, May 5, 2009. Angemaline took me out to Bondi/Vaucluse for lunch, hanging, good views, walkabouts and general happy snapping of photographicals.


I remember this place! =D


Looking good in a bib since 1988.


The lighthouse. We managed one good shot out of about...a billion?


View from a random bench.


Got the Harbour Bridge in a shot!


If I ever decide to become a musician, at least I'd already have my album cover taken care of.


"This is where they keep the deformed babies!"


Got special assistance from PAM, the Toyota Starlet. Who says we aren't resourceful?


Final shot of the night, while PAM was taking us back home.



Part 2 - Friday, May 8, 2009. Partying up in The Croft. All of my family and friends under the one roof. And an awning. And the stars.


The greatest banner ever made in history. Hyperbole aside.


My brother, and my *big* sister. I call this one "DOOMside Style," with the ciggie and drink for the unborn child.


Oh, new Kobes, courtesy of my big brother? Yeah, that one took me by surprise.


Okay, now show me "Unbridled Joy!" That's it, now just stay still!


Ankle insurance.


Mart + Mum + Fonz.


I can just picture what they're plotting in this photo. Sheils' smile gives it all away.


Someone snapped me trying to open Jimbo's present. Everyone stuck to the Purple and Gold theme, I see.


One of these is Fonz, and the other one is Jim. If you can tell which is which, I'll give you...respect and admiration. Valid in all states and territories of the Commonwealth!


All Hail Team Villareal.


Hiding underneath my table, clutching a bottle of Karloff. What, you guys don't do that on your birthdays? Well, maybe YOU'RE the weird ones, then!


Hiding in my laundry room, clutching a bottle of Karloff. What, you guys don't do that on your birthdays? Well, maybe YOU'RE the weird ones, then!


3/4 of the Awesome foursome of the night! Kae + Jess = combination I'm very, VERY afraid of.


First one there! And first one to actually fall asleep...before any of the other guests even got there. Haha!


Ahem. I won't put up any pics that actually have Maddison in 'em, but let's just say...BOOM BOOM POW.


View from the best seat in the house. Sans the stripper.


Sother and Mon.


My niece and my little cousin. Prim and proper. Until the sugar kicks in.


Oh, surprise Sheils! It was your birthday, too! =D


OH! It's the guys! (Minus a few.)


My alcoholic cousins!


So many things wrong with this photo. When did this happen, by the way?


"If Wilden strips, WE RIOT!"


Finally! Oh, and there's a penis on a red hat. Umm, okay.


T-Pain and Timbaland showed up to my party. Beat that!


Somewhat subdued, still.


That's what big sisters are for! Getting drunk and taking crazy photos on your birthday!


Last-minute leavers. Of course, I was asleep by this point and missed out on the fun. =( Not cool!


Never understimate how much I love each and every single one of you awesome homo sapiens.

- marty..

P.S. By the way guys, thanks. I did have a Happy 21st. I did enjoy my night. You guys do love me. HAHAHA. And to whoever came up with writing that a billion times over on the painting, thanks! ROFL. Cracked me up the next morning.

END COMMUNICATION.