Listen to all of you: mac and cheese this, mac and cheese that! An entire generation stood and asserted that the name was indeed inverted; that it should be cheese and macaroni. And yet the conservative-based, good ol boy system squelched these voices and continues to traipse on the desires and wishes of the people. I anticipate the day when an inevitable social attrition allows those with broader minds to assume your authoritative roles, allowing me to walk confidently into Threadgills and order CHEESE and MACARONI with my 5-vegetable plate.

But having said this, I can't help but wonder: how is it you can get cheese and macaroni on a vegetable plate. And why do I suddenly have an old Greezy Wheels tune stuck in my head?

Bravo for that rant, R.W.!

You see - that's what I was talking about: I got that line stuck in my head and wanted to blame AATW. I know it's the CDB (remember "I was making my way out to L.A., crusin' along in my Chevrolet..."?) but my right brain went off on a macaroni tangent, and I messed up. I beg your indulgence and Newell's as well.

My first car was a '63 Chev Biscayne. I got it in '73, when it was still new enough that no one noticed that 6,000 pounds of chrome on it. It had 3 on the tree, but no 8 track player. It didn't even have FM. But it did have a back seat the size of the bridal suite at La Quinta El Dorado.

A quick trip to www.thecheesiest.com will allow you to enter a contest for an astronaut adventure at the Kennedy Space Center.

1 GRAND PRIZE
* Put YOUR name on the rocket
* Push the LAUNCH button to blast it into space
* Train like a real Astronaut in a two-day training program
* Defy gravity on Shuttle Launch Experience
* Go on a private, guided tour of Kennedy Space Center

RTC, if you won the grand prize, what name would NASA put on the rocket?

"Ground control to Major Tom, take your protein pills and put your helmet on
Ground control to Major Tom: commencing countdown, engine's on..."

OK, I had to go back to RTC's posts. The wasn't unlawful (as it appears the gentleman admitted he didn't signal his turn). Maybe it was not a very good idea, but that doesn't make it illegal. (See Atwater) Many law enforcement agencies have policies on when an officer should arrest for a fine-only misdemeanor such as a traffic violation. Perhaps Melissa PD will implement a similar policy as indicated by its police chief.

Janette A

I have to admit, I read the article before I started the Hijacking. The following quotation was telling:

"I can't discuss the specifics of the case. The officer was in his right to arrest the person, which he did," said Chief Smith.

So, because Chief Smith is properly not discussing a criminal action before the trial of the cause before the JP court, the whole thing makes perfect sense. But, because certain posters like to throw a monkey fit any time a news agency 'reports' something that can be construed as a mistake by Law Enforcement, I figured I'd rather talk about Cheese and Macaroni.

'Cause that's 'quit your job good.'

[Non-parenthetical shout out to my peeps at the Journal meeting. {Why isn't Gretchen on that committee?}]

Gretchen who?

Is there any other?

Our 18 month old is a carb fiend. I have sampled the goodness that is hot dogs in mac and cheese, but had forgotten about it until its mention in this thread. I will make this dish, it will be good, and she will likely inhale it, thereby attaching magical worth to this thread - it feeds the children..

Amen to that brutha.

Garden Party

- Artist: Rick Nelson
- peak Billboard position # 6 in 1972
- inspired by Rick's experience at a Madison Square Garden concert
- Words and Music by Rick Nelson


I went to a garden party to reminisce with my old friends
A chance to share old memories and play our songs again
When I got to the garden party, they all knew my name
No one recognized me, I didn't look the same

CHORUS
But it's all right now, I learned my lesson well.
You see, ya can't please everyone, so ya got to please yourself

People came from miles around, everyone was there
Yoko brought her walrus, there was magic in the air
'n' over in the corner, much to my surprise
Mr. Hughes hid in Dylan's shoes wearing his disguise

CHORUS

lott-in-dah-dah-dah, lot-in-dah-dah-dah

Played them all the old songs, thought that's why they came
No one heard the music, we didn't look the same
I said hello to "Mary Lou", she belongs to me
When I sang a song about a honky-tonk, it was time to leave

CHORUS

lot-dah-dah-dah (lot-dah-dah-dah)
lot-in-dah-dah-dah

Someone opened up a closet door and out stepped Johnny B. Goode
Playing guitar like a-ringin' a bell and lookin' like he should
If you gotta play at garden parties, I wish you a lotta luck
But if memories were all I sang, I rather drive a truck

CHORUS

lot-dah-dah-dah (lot-dah-dah-dah)
lot-in-dah-dah-dah

'n' it's all right now, learned my lesson well
You see, ya can't please everyone, so you got to please yourself

Don't ya think Brumley sounds more than a little like little Ricky Nelson?

You see, ya can't please everyone, so ya got to please yourself

Ricky Nelson? Here I am trying my best to sound like some of my heroes like Stevie Ray or Glenn Frey or even Wilson Pickett, but I wind up with this. Jeez. And, for the record, my parents did not look or act like Ozzie and Harriet. My dad looked more like Grizzly Adams.

But this is par for the course. During a recent speaking gig in Austin, a member of the audience came up to me shortly before I took the dais and said, "you know, I watched you last night on John Adams." I almost didn't go on. (Based on that and the fact that they didn't bring me a trash can full of M&Ms with the brown ones picked out as I had demanded.) That's probably the third or fourth time someone has said I remind them of Paul Giamatti. Don't get me wrong. He's an actor of the first order. It's just that most guys my age would rather not be reminded of their likeness to an actor who consistently gets roles not only because he's very proficient at his craft, but also because he blends in like the balding, dumpy accountant next door. Or the balding, dumpy government lawyer next door.

BTW, my clan really goes for the Velveeta shells and cheese ... or cheese and shells, for which the iconoclast R.W. cries out. And I hope our PD doesn't start arresting for failure to signal a lane change, but I won't call them out in this forum if they do so.

There. My life and my opinions are like a second-tier music career. Like Ricky Nelson's.

Them's fightin words...I think. Let me go look it up.

[This message was edited by R.W. Dickson on 05-13-08 at .]

I will beat myself with a velveeta covered noodle for not seeing that Giamatti thing myself. It's genius, and I missed it!

I feel like Chandler without his nubbin...

Take comfort in the fact that Giamatti had a great role in the recent release "Shoot em up" where he plays a dastardly hitman.

You mean you weren't in John Adams? Now I've got to tell the wife I really don't know that actor from Amarillo...

I cannot believe you people are discussing mac & cheese! Everyone knows that chili con queso is much healthier! It is best to cook some homemade chili & mix it up with some velveeta in a crock pot.