I bought a ball. It's pretty large... six feet tall. I call it a man ball, as I recall having heard that once, but it's also known as a push ball or earth ball. I've been looking to get one of these for a long time, and it turns out that one of the pastors from my church had ordered a couple, so I got a catalog from him, and scored a ball. Dave (my housemate) and I spent a hour blowing into it (we knew it was stupid, but we couldn't help it), and after nearly passing out, we got it maybe half a centimeter high. So I went to REI and got a bike pump, and after four hours of pump pump pump pump pump, it got to about a foot before I had to take a shower and go to bed. So I went back to REI and got a good foot pump (for matresses), and that only takes an hour or so to get it all the way full. Phew.

You might think that's tiring. But then try playing a game of man ball. I invited a few folks over and we played a game with four to a team. Two minutes into it, we had to take an eight minute break. It's like arm wrestling with your whole body. Nuts. We need a lot more people, I think. Also: don't eat burgers right before playing.

Kevin Smith's latest movie, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back will be out soon. I caught the preview at the local AMC and it was pretty cool. Gotta go watch all the other Askew films first though, if you haven't already. It's an insider's movie.

Burning Man is next week. Last year, I went fairly unprepared (first time, went on a week's notice). This year, I'm all set. Dave is coming along, and we're bringing a trampoline to lounge on and a blender and fruit for making smoothies. Yum. And I'll bring a man ball just in case. :-) If you're there, look me up with Play Information... might even bump into me there; I'll be working at Checkpoint Salon Wed afternoon and I'll be working with the Black Rock Rangers early in the week and again during the burn. Should be a hoot.