MANITOU SPRINGS, CO - For the past five weeks, Internet Personality Steve Garufi has attended each weekly Manitou Springs City Council meeting as an act of penance.

A born-again Christian for ten years, Steve believes periodic fasting is a necessary and integral part of his spiritual life, and decided to relinquish fun and pleasure by sitting through and paying attention to all of the proceedings.

"Oh my, you did some really bad things, didn't you?" asked A.S., a local merchant who insisted on anonymity.

"Well, I'll say this ... (in) the first few weeks the novelty of it all was fun," explained Steve, "...but after a few weeks it just gets painful sitting through them."

"But let's face it, the days are longer, it's warmer and there's sunlight out when the meetings start, which makes it a huge sacrifice to attend." he said.

In the past, the city government has had a reputation for producing lengthy, time-consuming meetings. After talking to some locals, Steve learned meetings that began at 7 p.m. would sometimes surpass Midnight.

"In some ways, the meetings haven't been so bad and they've kind of interesting," affirmed Steve, "…and I've been impressed with the friendliness and professionalism of everyone involved. It looks like Mayor Marcy is keeping (the meetings) shorter too."

Steve, who doesn't have a girlfriend, a television, any new clothing, or even a job (despite recently earning his Master's degree), wanted to test his fortitude by observing his city government in formal action and has committed to attending them throughout the spring.

"You know Steve, I think it's great to be informed about things," said Hair Consultant candidate Donna Ward, "but I really think you should get a girlfriend."

"Listen, this has nothing to do with my lame romantic life. There are thousands of sorry people who vicariously live their lives through me, and I'm here to show them what a local town meeting is like." Garufi replied impatiently.

Speaking of girlfriends, local Manitou Springs resident Sonnie B. confronted Steve about his true motives for attending the meetings.

"Steve, are you going there every week because there's a girl you're trying to meet?" she asked.

Garufi emphatically denied her allegations and to the best of his knowledge, claimed there are no dating potentials who regularly attend the meetings.