Y - Yogurt

Yogurt: thing, food

I had never seen or heard of yogurt until I was 5 or 6 years old and a babysitter brought some over for herself as a snack. I remember asking "What is that new food?"

I like plain yogurt the best. It is an important ingredient in all smoothies. In college I'd sometimes have oatmeal with pink yogurt for breakfast when I lived in Evans (and the Evans dining hall still existed).

SEE ALSO: Evans, pudding,

M - Metrodome

Metrodome - place

It may have been reviled by baseball purists, but I have fond memories of the Metrodome, and I'll miss it next year. I liked the Big Blue Baggie, the old plexi-glass and the wind that pushed you out of the doors at the end of the game. Outdoor baseball is nice, but when you have to travel 3 hours to get to a game, the threat of rain-out (or snow-out if it's play-off/world series season) is a real deterrent. I don't care if they're ugly, Minnesota needs a retractable roof.

I liked that it pretty much remained the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome (named to honor a person, rather than advertise a sponsor). I saw a World Series Game and an ALCS game in the Dome. I sat in a luxury box (and a press-box, but that was for football, and was a debacle). And I'm proud of the Twins undefeated-at-the-dome World Series record.

Like it or hate it, the 'Dome was the 10th man for the Twins, and, as pretty as the house that Joe Better Build is going to be, I think it will take away soem of that home-team advantage that the Twins used to have. I'm also biased, because I think that all of the new-style super-ballparks are way too theme-park-ish (all you need for food is Natchos, Frosty Malts, Hotdogs, Peanuts etc. and over-priced beer... you're going to a Baseball Game to watch Baseball, not out to a fancy dinner). I'm not big on the gimmickness of many of them. I'll reserve Judgement on Target Corporation (tm) Corporate Ball Field until I see a game there.

(I do have to say, despite being the home of the Orioles, Camden is decent for a new-style ballpark.)

SEE ALSO: Noise, Baseball, Home Shopping,

S - Sailing

Sailing: action

I taught myself to sail a Sunfish at A-camp-that-I-used-to-be-affiliated-with. They had a few boats, and my friend Carlos would always go sailing whenever he had free time and it made me jealous. I went on a few rides with people who knew what they were doing, and then eventually just decided to try it myself. I can really only manage a Sunfish, or other single-sailed boats, but that's all I'd want to do. I can't imagine sailing a big boat on big-water anyways. It doesn't appeal to me. Sunfish are easy to fix if they flip, and it's almost kind of fun to flip them.

One of my favorite things that happened while sailing was losing to Carlos in Squirt-Gun "Tag / Assasin" while dueling in two sailboats in the middle of the lake. I had a less maneuverable boat, and he was a much better sailor, but it was still epic.

As a "graduation present" for getting my Masters degree, my Mom got me a used Sunfish to add to the Pike Lake Fleet. She also helped re-finish all the wooden parts, which was awesome. It has a red white and blue sail that had a few mouse holes in that I patched with some fish-shaped patches. Now I still have access to a sailboat in the summer, even though the size and shape and orientation of Pike Lake make it kind of weird for sailing, it's still a lot of fun.

SEE ALSO: Pike Lake, gifts, tag, Fish, dates

X - X-men

X-men: people (fictional), comics

I started getting into comics in the early nineties, via my neighbors, right around the time that X-Men #1 (the Claremont / Jim Lee, multiple variant cover, top selling comic of all time one) came out. The X-men had cool mutant powers, and not only was there action, but there was also soap-operatic drama, and I liked that they were students (at one point) at a boarding school. The women were all drawn to be hot (which is par for the course for many comics), but they also kicked ass just as much as any other characters.
Then Jim Lee jumped ship to help create Image comics, so I stopped reading X-men and moved on to WildC.A.T.S.

I picked up reading X-men comics in the early 2000s, borrowing friends copies of the Grant Morrison run, and collecting X-treme X-Men (because it had Psylocke and Beast in it (though they killed her)) even though Claremont was past his prime by that point.

The X-men cartoons have all been pretty decent (Except the new one that has "Wolverine" in the title... I don't like Wolverine), and the first two X-men movies were not too bad either.

SEE ALSO: school fiction, Woodland

E - Endocrine System

Endocrine System: thing

In 6th grade we had to do an in-class project on the systems of the body. My group had the Endocrine system. We traced a body on news-print, drew the different glands, and made up a high-quality 6th grade rap song called "The Endocrine Man" (which was exactly as good as you'd expect it to be).

SEE ALSO: Nettleton, Rap

F - Fingers

Fingers: thing, body part

I was once told that I had "Neanderthal Figures," and it stung. They aren't that stubby, and the knuckles aren't that hairy, but I secretly wish that I had longer, more dextrous (or more sinister) fingers, and I'm jealous of people that have them. I feel like I'd be better at guitar, bass, trumpet, etc. with better fingers, though I make do with what I've got.

I enjoy playing finger-picked guitar (on nylon strings), I think I'm probably better at that than any other kind of guitar playing (which isn't saying much), but it's hard to play real classical pieces, or things I don't make up on my own. I like playing "Blackbird" at bluegrass speed (sorry, Beatles purists). My fingers aren't good for piano playing.

SEE ALSO: Glasses, mittens,

B - Banjo

Banjo: thing, instrument

My friend Jeremy got a banjo when we were in High School. That made him cooler than he already was. Once he got older and had some children, he let me borrow it for awhile. Then I got my own Banjo for my birthday. I don't really know how to play it like a Banjo. I fake it with some guitar finger-picking patterns that I know, and that sounds cool enough most of the time. I've tried to teach myself actual Banjo rolls, but it's frustrating and humbling. I'll never be Bela Fleck, either.

Banjos make pretty much any kind of music better if used well.

Charles Schulz once wrote in a "Peanuts" strip that every child should be issued a Dog and a Banjo at birth. It might make the world a better place.

"Frog and Banjo" is a great Mike Doughty song.

SEE ALSO: Fingers, Norway, Fat Boys, Peanuts

# - 63

63: number

When I learned my multiplication tables 7x9 was my favorite product (and it still is). I don't know why. 63 just feels like a number that shouldn't be made out of other numbers, but, obviously, it is.

If I ever ask you to pick a number between one and one hundred, it's very likely I'm thinking of 63.

Aside from being the product of 7 and 9, it is also 79-(7+9). 6+3 = 9

SEE ALSO: numbers, 7, 9, 16, 79, 97, math

G - Guacamole

Guacamole: thing, food

Guacamole rarely needs more than 3 things: Avocado, Lemon Juice, a pinch of salt. I say rarely, rather than never, because diced tomato is good every once and awhile, or maybe Lime and cilantro.

I had never had guacamole, that I can remember, until I worked at the Hacienda del Sol. Occasionally it would be my job to make the Guac (which is how I got the super secret recipe you see above), but I was often chastised for not putting in enough Salt (same criticism of my chip frying skills). If it was night time I'd often go out and throw the pits at the wall in the empty lot next-door.

SEE ALSO: Hacienda, Angry Singing Cannibal Monkeys,

C - Cheerleaders

Cheerleaders: thing, people

I was in band in high school. Part of pep band meant making fun of Cheerleaders (except the cool ones that were guys from Band (yes, I said, "cool," and "guy cheerleaders" in the same sentence).
Most of our band cheers involved milk of some kind, usually replacing key words in actual cheers.
("What about our Colors? Red/Grey" became "What about our Milk? skim/2%".


SEE ALSO: heroes, Heroes, Milk, Pi

G - Gas Station

Gas Station: place

I love pay-at-the-pump. As long as I've owned a car, I've never gone into the gas station to pay for gas.

I strongly dislike when people have to leave their car at the pump to go in to pay. I am not patient in that way (and it means I have to idle and waste gas and pollute more).

There was a "Food'n'Fuel" two blocks up from my home when I was little. It was a treat to get to walk there and get candy. Only very very rarely was I allowed to go alone. It is gone now that the city of Duluth has fixed the ridiculously deadly multi-intersection that it was a part of.

I do not like that the BP station nearest to my house advertises the Gas Price and the "Gas Price with purchase of a carwash" price on their sign. Their carwash is crappy (and not worth saving 20c per gallon). It is convenient though.

U - Ukulele

Ukulele: thing, instrument

A few years ago I bought two Ukuleles, a soprano and a tenor, with some Birthday money. They weren't very expensive. I like them because they're simple to play if you know how to play guitar, epecially since they have only 4 strings (and I have four non-thumb fingers on each hand).

My more talented brother also got a nicer ukulele and I made him be in a ukulele duo with me as we traveled halfway across the country.

It's really, really easy to play the Super Mario Invincibility Theme on a uke. I like to pretend that it's okay to run around and knock people over as long as you're playing it.

Ukuleles have been finding their way into popular culture more and more lately, and I'd like to preserve my credibility by saying that I bought my ukes before I realized this (not that it would have stopped me).

SEE ALSO: Gas stations, Video Games, Fingers

M - Milk

Milk: thing, beverage

When at all possible I drink Skim Milk. I like to drink it after a work-out, or with oreo cookies, or cereal. I rarely drink it on its own. I don't dislike the other types (people who are picky about milk type, like non-crust-eaters, are a big pet-peeve of mine (though occasionally I am that guy)), but I choose Skim 95% of the time. Whole milk is a special treat.

I also like Soy Milk and Almond Milk and sometimes buy those.

I miss referring to Milk by the color of the cap. I disliked drinking milk out of a carton because of the wet flaky paper, which was especially bad if you didn't get a good clean opening on the first try. I preferred the bag-milk because you got a straw and you could inflate them into 'footballs' afterward (though they were far more dangerous for pranks and hooliganism).

I got in trouble in Kindergarten for being vocally proud of myself for finishing my entire Milk carton for the second consecutive day. Lesson: never be proud of yourself for drinking milk.

I remember using empty Milk Jugs as swimming aids when I was very young.

At the-camp-I-used-to-be-affiliated-with, I remember going on a crusade to get some friends to drink Milk at meals instead of Mountain Dew. I even made a Milk(tm) poster of myself (with Hans' help). I'll post it if I find it.

Milk provides Calcium, which makes strong bones, including spine bones. Bones are white and milk is white, and the color white is the color of the pure-driven snow (and the color of purity, but NOT for racial reasons). Therefore it was an official beverage of the Fat Boy Society and THEOOTBSC.

SEE ALSO: secret societies, Cheerleaders

K - Kindergarten

Kindergarten: place

My Kindergarten teacher's name was Mrs. Kresky. I went to Lincoln Elementary School for half-day Kindergarten. I remember learning the difference between Paste and Glue (I ate neither, though paste smelled good). I remember getting a "Sad Face" pinned on me for exclaiming how excited I was that I finished my Milk for the second day in a row (Milk Break was silent time) and I remember I would never again wear the grey, red and blue sweatpants/sweatshirt combo that I wore when I got it. I remember that my Mom got a call from the teacher because I didn't have a set bed-time.

When I worked on an elementary school playground Kindergarten was my favorite age group. I also realized then and there that I would not want to ever be indoors with Kindergarteners. They have the potential to be the most fun, but also the most work (as I learned as a Day Camp director at the-camp-I-used-to-be-affiliated-with).

"Kindergarten" is also the title of a great Faith No More song.

SEE ALSO: arts&crafts, Faith No More, Milk

C - Cabbage

Cabbage: thing

Cabbage is one of those vegetables that, despite being awesome, gets a bad rap. I never gave cabbage much thought until I discovered how good Coleslaw can be, and until I developed a taste for Sauerkraut. Now I can't imagine life with out those things. Cabbage is also pretty great for Cabbage Rolls too. It also is a great thing to throw in to soup to give it some substance. I prefer green cabbage.

SEE ALSO: Pickles, Onion, toys, dolls

I - Injection

Injection: thing

I don't like needles, and I don't like getting shots at all. I avoid it as much as humanly possible. I don't think I would've lasted very long as the kind of Diabetic that has to take an insulin shot. That's a nightmare right there.

SEE ALSO: doctors, surgery, nightmares

D - Deck

Deck: place

Having a deck is a great thing, even more so with a nice view. Decks are great for reading and hanging out and talking to Grandpa's and watching birds and all manner of other awesome things. They're also kind of fun to stain. Staining decks is a good time to listen to Podcasts, especially Green Lantern Spotlight Podcasts.

If I ever own a house, it has to have a Deck.

W - Wolf Shirt

Wolf Shirt: thing, trend

The kids these days, apparently, are into Wolf Shirts. I'm pretty sure I had an actual non-ironic wolf shirt in the mid 90s: black, with a wolf howling at some stars with some purple aurora borealis action. Or a guy I knew did, I don't remember. It might still be in the T-shirt archives back home.

SEE ALSO: T-shirt,

P - Pick

Pick: thing, action

My favorite guitar picks used to be Dunlop Jazz III (round tip). I like them on nylon strings. I tend to horde them and rarely share them. I keep a green jazz-size tortex pick in a secret spot at my mom's house (guarded by a scorpion). I think My brother might know where it is now though, and I might have lost it over christmas break.
I'm generally opposed to using a pick on Bass, but it can sometimes be awesome.


In 7th or 8th grade I was photographed pushing my glasses up with a single finger while sitting on the top bleacher at a school social. Due to the unfortunate angle, it looked as if my finger were inside, rather than adjacent to, my nose. This picture made the yearbook. This was how most people knew me.

One would think that this was the origin of people calling me Nick-it Pick-it, (which they definiately did), but in fact I can recall my elementary school friend (I think it was either Scott or Bobby) singing, to the tune of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star":
Nick -it Pick-it picks his nose / every single place he goes / he picks it up, he picks it down / he picks it all around the town / nick-it pick-it picks his nose / every single place he goes.

SEE ALSO: Guitar, Humiliation,

S - Sweater

Sweater: thing, clothing

I have a decent number of sweaters. Most of them are blueandbrowne, including an argyle sweater-vest, a zippered sweater (gift from my sister) and one with a half-zipper (also from my sister). The zippered one, while not a cardigan, makes me feel like Mr. Rogers, because I often put it on to lounge around the house.

My sister also gave me an awesome tealandbrownandyellow sweater this year, and a sweater with Bert (of "Ernie and" fame) on it. My sister has an agenda to keep me in sweaters.

I have a heavy navy blue sweater on my chair at work. It's been there for like 3 years (just in case), I think gravity + the chair back have made it permanently deformed.

Also, sweaters (unless they are gaudy, or ironic) almost always add to (and very rarely subtract from) a woman's attractiveness (attention ladies: I don't care about your shoes, or your handbag. Glasses and Sweaters, that's where it's at)


SEE ALSO: Blueandbrowne, contingencies, hottness

P - Pokemon

Pokemon: thing, game

I never played the pokemon games. My brother did though (both the Game Boy game and the Collectible Card Game). I guess I did try the card game with him a few times. I think I liked Dodrio the best. I don't really remember.

B - Batteries

Batteries: thing

When I was little, I was scared of things that ran on the little "button" batteries, because I heard that sometimes children swallowed the batteries and died. I still don't like them, but I deal.

I have rechargeable batteries, which I like for my camera and wireless mouse, but I never seem to have charged ones on hand when I need them.

U - Umbrellas

Umbrellas: thing

I get nervous with the kind of umbrellas that could pinch your fingers as you open or close them.

Umbrellas are awkward to try to share.

On the whole, I'm not a fan of Umbrellas.

W - Weddings

Weddings: events

I try to limit myself to one wedding per year.

I was a ring-bearer at my Uncle and Aunts wedding. I think I had to be bribed with a Care Bear to do it.

I have provided entertainment and catering for weddings.

My favorite all time wedding moment so far was at my friend Brendan's wedding when they played Def Leppard's "Pour Some Sugar on Me" as they cut the cake. (though there were enjoyable moments at my other friends' weddings too).

If I were going to get married the one non-negotiable would be that there would have to be a live band for the reception. I would also like it to be not-a-huge-stressful-production, and a pot-luck, and very laid back and fun, and not crazy expensive. But I don't really have to worry about that.

SEE ALSO: Dancing, Care Bears, Cake, Fantasy

Z - Zombies

Zombies: things, people(?)

When I was six years old, on Halloween, I spent the night at my friend Chris' house. There were scary movies being played on TV. One was Transylvannia 6-5000, the other was Return of the Living Dead. It was way too scary for me. For the next 6 or 7 years I would not sleep with out my back to a wall for fear that, if the back of my head were exposed, zombies would eat my brains. I eventually got over that, but I still won't sleep in a bed without at least a sheet covering me.

I just started reading Robert Kirkman's "Walking Dead," so we'll see how that turns out.

N - Nickel

Nickel: thing, person

I own all of the Nickels in the world (by personal decree). My mother started saving them for me so I would never be Nickel-less. I have jars and jars of them hidden away. They are in my shoes (two 1979 nickels in my black loafers that I've had since 9th grade and still wear most days at work). Friends would pay me "taxes" of one nickel for every nickel they had. I have a sound file from a Peanuts cartoon of Lucy saying "Nickels, Nicklels, Nickels. The beautiful sound of clinking Nickels". They are the currency that I have probably handled the most (I used to be in charge of giving kids Nickels for the library copy machine (which only takes Nickels)). Certain important people call me "Nickel," and I like that; it's the second best nickname I've ever had. If I were ever to start getting tattoos, one of the first would be a Buffalo Nickel, though not an accurate one, because the mint-year isn't on the Buffalo side, and I'd want it to be either 1979 or 1997.

SEE ALSO: Peanuts, Tattoo, shoes,

C - Candles

Candles: thing

On the whole candles don't really do much for me, I suppose they smell nice, but it confuses me that people collect them. To each their own I guess. That said, I do have a variety of homemade crayon wax candles that people made for me at a Camp that I used to be affiliated with. One of them is Cinnamon scented, and two others are bluandbrowne.

My most important Candle related moment came at my 3rd birthday. In one of my books, Bugs Bunny had a birthday (carrot) cake with carrots for candles. This was, of course, the coolest thing in the world, so I decided that that was what I wanted for my birthday too. My mom rigged this up to make my birthday wishes come true.



SEE ALSO: Bluandbrowne, birthday, secret buddies,

P - Purpose

Purpose: thing, concept

My purpose in life (beyond, actually probably even 'before,' passing on my genetic code) is to read all 17,000+ Peanuts comic strips in order. Not necessarily in one sitting (at least I don't think so, it might be at one sitting, I'll know when I get there), but in a short period of time. A year or two after I realized that this was my reason for existing Fantagraphics announced that they were publishing The Complete Peanuts in 25 volumes, 2 per year. The Halfway mark is crossed this month. This, then, gives me a timeline for my purposeful existence: I will complete my purpose in March of 2016.

I used to think that my pupose was to listen to every version of the song "Lie in Our Graves" (by Dave Matthews Band) that featured Bela Fleck on Banjo, but the interwebs made that one too easy to accomplish (I did it last september).

SEE ALSO: Peanuts, Minnesota, Comics

P - Peanuts

Peanuts: thing

I like unsalted peanuts better than salted or flavored ones. Though flavored dry-roasted ones are an official food of my Grandpa's cupboard, so I do have some some positive associations with them. I also really like peanut soups of several varieties.

George Washington Carver is a true American Hero.

SEE ALSO: Purpose, comics, incompatibility

F - Fmaj7

Fmaj7: thing, guitar chord

F major 7 is probably my favorite overall chord. I like Major 7 chords in general, but F is the best for a variety of reasons. It spells a word (FACE). It's fun to play on the guitar (13321x). It sounds nice with Am7 (Which is also a nice chord).

C - Compact Disc

Compact Disc: thing

I got my first CD player when I was in 5th or 6th grade. It was my aunt's old one. The only CD I had was a compilation of Surf Rock that I borrowed from my Aunt (with Surfin' Bird, Wild Thing, etc.). Then I got MC Hammer's "Please Hammer, Don't Hurt 'em" as my first CD of my very own, followed, I think, by LL Cool J "Mama Said Knock You Out".

SEE ALSO: Mix tapes, Hip Hop,