Michael Wojciechowski

Okay.  Here we go again.  So opponents to gay marriage keep reciting that the "sanctity of marriage" will no longer be preserved if homosexuals are allowed to wed.  Hmmm.  I hate to burst anyone's bubble, but marriage hasn't been sanctified for years.  What is sacred about a drunk man and drunk woman that hardly know one another and on a whim decide to get married at a drive through wedding chapel in Las Vegas?  What about the guy and girl that marry only because he knocked her up after the first date?  Where is the sanctity in that?  Is something only sacred if it occurs between two people of the opposite sex?  Proponents of same-sex marriage keep arguing that if two men or two women that love each other want to get married, then they should have that right.  Yes, they should.  But it would be a fault to assume that only people in love get married, because obviously, with the divorce rate higher than 50%,  heterosexuals don't really view marriage as a sacred union.  Opponents to same-sex marriage need to formulate a stronger argument than "preserving the sanctity of marriage."  Maybe heterosexuals could learn something from same-sex couples: they're getting married because they want to, not because of an unwanted pregnancy or a booze-fueled impulse.  Isn't it hypocritical that a straight man or woman who has been married half a dozen times gets to vote on preserving the sanctity of marriage?  Straight people have ridiculed the holy union of marriage for years.  Maybe it's time to see if homosexuals can do a better job at preserving something that used to be holy.         

With summer quickly approaching, I'm compiling my summer reading list (Atlas Shrugged is at the top).  It gave me the idea to post the top 10 books that I feel are the best ever written (throughout the summer I will post different top 10 lists).  Feel free to disagree, tell me I'm an idiot, or even recommend your own.  Here they are:
1. Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier
2. The Road by Cormac McCarthy
3. A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole
4. The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand
5. 1984 by George Orwell
6. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
7. Slaughterhouse-Five and Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
8. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
9. Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates
10. A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis
Honorable Mentions: The Crucible, Huck Finn, Les Miserables, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Brave New World, Walden, The Giver, Inherit the Wind, Catch-22, Lolita, Catcher in the Rye, The Count of Monte Cristo, The Life of Pi, Siddhartha, Songs My Mother Taught Me: The Autobiography of Marlon Brando.

Those of you who enjoy good, original music you need to check out a song by Alexi Murdoch called "All My Days." I first heard the song on the trailer of the new Sam Mendes film, Away We Go.  Check it out.  This guy should be recognized.  If you like Damien Rice, you'll like this song. 

I need to wish my dad a happy birthday.  He turned 57 today.  My dad is one of the smartest people I know.  He's a Civil War buff, a Woody Allen fanatic, and a self-proclaimed Steve Martin look alike.  Some of my fondest memories are when I would go to my dad's on the weekend.  We would go to the Pizza Hut in Roy, and then walk down to Blockbuster Video where he would let me pick any movie I wanted.  As a kid I remember watching Malcom X, Quiz Show, The Unforgiven, Schindler's List, Dead Man Walking, Fargo, and other classics with my dad while eating greasy pizza.  It's because of my dad that I was able to understand that movies could work as an avenue to knowledge instead of just mind-numbing entertainment.  At the age of 12 my favorite movie was In the Name of the Father followed closely by Shawshank Redemption.  I guess my father is a large part of why I'm such a movie snob now.  I'm of the belief that if a movie isn't original, then it shouldn't be made.

My dad always suspected that I would "make" it as a writer.  I can still remember when I graduated from high school, he gave me a card that read: "I'm excited to see where your writing takes you."  I'm not insinuating that I've made it as a writer, but needless to say, my dad wasn't the least bit surprised when I told him my novel was being picked up by a publisher.  I think if anything, he was surprised that it had taken me so long.  Happy Birthday, dad.  I love you.   

Michael Vick is out of Jail! Lock up your dogs, but unlock your wallets so you can get his latest replica jersey and season tickets to wherever he ends up. 

I just caught Yusuf on the Colbert Report.  For those of you who don't know, Yusuf used to go by the name Cat Stevens.  And for those of you who don't know who Cat Stevens is, well, you probably like really bad music like Maroon 5 and Katy Perry.  I was fortunate to have a father who introduced me to Cat Stevens at a young age.  Mr. Stevens decided to convert to Muslimism--hence the name change--and in true American fashion, the government placed him on the terrorist watch list.  Why are we so afraid of anyone who substitutes their tie for a turban?  When Mr. Colbert interviewed Yusuf, he (Colbert) admitted to being confused by Yusuf because Colbert has been taught by Western Journalism to hate anything or anyone Muslim, yet Yusuf appeared unassuming and empathetic to Colbert's ignorance.  I would even go as far as to say Yusuf came across very . . . Christ-like.  Hmm . . . interesting.  The program concluded with Yusuf singing a song.  It was simple.  Just him and a guitar.  I become so confused with such docile behavior exhibited a Muslim, that I quickly flipped over to VH1 and caught a rap artist rapping about putting a cap in a fellow brotha's ass.  The rapper sported a diamond encrusted crucifix.  The Muslim sang about tolerance, the "Christian" sang about violence.  Go figure.     

My sister in law pointed out to me that on the previous post I said my brother Brad came in around 4 hours and 52 minutes.  My mistake.  He came in around 3 hours and 52 minutes.  I made the correction, but I wanted to clear it up here too.  I also need to congratulate Kirsten Rasmussen for completing her 10th marathon.  She did Salt Lake last month, Ogden this month, and now she's planning on another one next month in Alaska.  Kirsten is an amazing person.  She is actually a big reason why I started running in the first place four years ago and--more importantly--she was my muse for Cameron's Road.  Ever since I received the news that my book was going to be published, people have asked me how I did it.  You need two things to get published:a muse and a stroke of good luck.  Both are hard to find, and somehow I managed both.  Thanks, Kirsten.   

Yesterday I ran and completed the Ogden Marathon.  I've ran five marathons and yesterday was the best one so far.  I never hit the "runner's wall" so I was able to just enjoy one of the better marathon courses in the nation.  It was a Great experience.  My brother, Brad, also ran.  He finished around 3 hours and 52 minutes, giving him the fastest first time marathon in the family.  Now it's up to Ryan or Jen to dethrone him.  Congrats to Brad and to all other finishers.  I've been told only 1% of the world's population can claim they've finished a marathon.  I've dedicated my whole life to be granted entrance into an elite group.  Now, well, mission accomplished.  Oh, yeah, there is a photo of Brad, Mia, and myself taking it easy after the race in the "around the world" link.  Check it out if you have a second or two to kill. 

Tool is coming to Utah July 19th at Energy Solutions Arena.  Get your tickets now.  It's going to be a great summer.  Trip to Maui with my brothers to see Eddie Vedder and now Tool.  For those of you who still can't grasp the genius that is Tool, check out their lyrics to Lateralus.  Don't just read them, study them.   

Why do we care about the NBA playoffs?  Why are the most popular sports in America also the easiest ones to play?  Football is not a hard sport.  It's just marketed as one.  Basketball is not hard.  Baseball's hard, well, it used to be and then everyone decided to get on steroids to make it easier.  Why do we worship professional athletes?  Why do we place them on pedestals and buy replica jerseys bearing their names.  Kobe Bryant rapes a woman--no, wait he didn't do it, right?  My mistake.  He did, however, admit to cheating on his wife and the next year his jersey sold more than any other player's.  He even got a new tatoo--go figure--showing how much he loves his wife.  The lesson: we'll support adulterers as long as they have a good jump shot.  MIchael Vick is getting another shot in the NFL.  Go figure.  Manny Ramirez, well, he's just being Manny, as they say.  Why do we embrace mediocrity?  What do you think is harder: playing football or mastering the piano?  Hitting a jump shot or learning the violin?  Catching a fly ball or reading Shakespeare?  Yes, there are some hard sports.  Mountain biking is hard.  Mountain climbing is hard.  Water polo is hard.  Chess is hard.  Tennis is hard.  But for every water polo player someone could name, someone else could list 20 football players.  I guess all of this just validates Larry Lorenzoni  famous quote: "The average person thinks he isn't."  GOOOOOO Lakers!!!