Now annoying the neighbors via rumbling bass Playing:

Those Who Tell The Truth Shall Die, Those Who Tell The Truth Shall Live Forever – Explosions in the Sky

America’s Boy – Broadcast

Every year, local free indy paper Nashville Scene holds a contest called “You Are So Nashville If…,” inviting creative readers to fill in the blank. Gems from this year’s contest include:

• Your recording contract lasted longer than your marriage.
• You wonder what the Northern Baptist Convention is like.
• If he had his way, the headliner at your Fourth of July celebration would have half of the crowd deported.
• You didn’t know Nashville had a hockey team until the lockout.
• Your weatherman spends 45 minutes of prime airtime describing a five-minute storm.
• Your new guilty pleasure is circling the new Hustler Hollywood in your car because the Musica statue just isn’t doing it for you anymore.
• You wish Jack 96.3 would just shut up.
• You’re still wondering how to buy stock in E-Cycle.
• You’ve been dropped from TennCare, gas prices are too high, you can’t pay your rent, but you can still afford to buy a state senator.

But what was voted second place was actually the best:

• You used to like Bill Frist

Inspired by, well, my own comment in this Straight Dope thread, I took upon the task of making our newly appointed U.N. ambassador smile about something. He does seem ever so dour.

Maybe if he was somewhere sunny…

Ahh… much better.

[EDIT 8/9/05] My old man has called into question whether this is a genuine photograph of John Bolton, or perhaps a Photoshop or an imposter. Take a quick Google Image Search on ‘john bolton’ and see. (I’ll leave it up to you whether to leave ‘SafeSearch’ on or not. Let’s just say the trip could be somewhat more interesting with it off.) Anyway, the gentleman above shows up a few times, but his hair is darker and parted in the opposite direction. No other picture of him looks quite like this one.

The part direction’s no big problem (photos can get flipped easily) The bushy mustache may be trimmed slightly differently, but the chin’s right on:

But even allowing for those something’s not quite right, either with the color or the way it hangs over his forehead.

With all the shadowing and the blue background, what this photo looks like is a bad passport/driver’s license photo. And perhaps it was taken on a day when the future ambassador was in the midst of an unfortunate experiment with a bottle of Grecian Formula. Who knows? ‘Tis a mystery.