Shit, piss, fuck, cunt, cocksucker, motherfucker, and tits

..............................George Carlin 1937-2008


The thing that sucks most about lower back injuries is that the littlest, most routine day-to-day activity hurts like a bitch.

When I was about 18, I hurt my lower back when I decided it would be a good idea to make long throws with a baseball without warming up.

And while I was in agony for the next couple of weeks, I will always remember that period of excruciating pain as when I first discovered the genius of George Carlin.

I guess I was "aware" of Carlin before that, after all, I was always the smart-mouth, no boundaries, push the envelope, cross the line kinda cat you all know and love. But one Friday night, paralyzed with pain and hopped up on God knows what, I was sitting in the basement of my father's house watching TV when I happened upon a George Carlin special on HBO.

I, literally, couldn't watch it.

I was laughing so hard that I thought I was going to drop dead of pain. No matter how hard I tried not to laugh, I couldn't, no matter what he said. And after about five minutes I had to turn the TV off or I was gonna pass out from the pain in my back.

George Carlin died of heart failure Sunday night at the age of 71.

His bits were intelligent, poignant and right on the money. It wasn't the dick and fart jokes so-called "shock comedians" are doing today. Carlin was genius. And his routines -- though often crude and littered with scatological language -- were right on the money.

Anti-establishment, anti-organized religion, anti-closed-minded stupid people -- pretty much how I live my life.

He later appeared in a couple of Kevin Smith movies, including a major supporting role in my favorite of them all, Dogma, as well as roles in several other flicks that are near and dear to my heart.

I consider myself fortunate that I got to see Carlin live, in Las Vegas in 1998, and I'm so glad I at least got that chance.

I'm not a guy who has a lot of heroes. I can count them on one hand: Mike Piazza, Kevin Smith, Neil Peart, George Carlin.

My world is a little emptier today.