Who Dat Comes Through Like Champions

Well, big day yesterday. And if you read this blog last Friday, you knew what was coming. All Saints when it counted. I give all the credit to Britney Spears.

One final note on the gambling aspect of the game. Vegas and the offshore books needed the Saints to cover. What happened is that the public pounded the Colts by about a 2 to 1 or so margin. The bigger bets yesterday were generally coming on NOLA however. Let me explain real quick. If I put down a sizable wager on the Saints (and I did), even though many more bets were coming in on Indy, it takes 5 to 10 casual bets to match 1 big bet. There was definitely more money on the Colts overall, but I'm guessing most of the higher bets were on the Saints. The book still made their money. So, they're happy to pay Saints backers. As I've noted before, you're gonna have a hard time going broke betting against the public. As far as the total, I also predicted the Under, and it hit fairly easily. I figured both defenses would try and keep everything in front of them and not give up big plays. That's exactly what happened. It didn't hurt that Indy failed to pick up a 1st down the entire 2nd quarter either.

In my mind the MVP had to be Garrett Hartley. He was money. Brees played well and very smart, as he didn't force anything downfield. And Sean Payton has brass balls. That onside kick, I can't think of any other coach who'd try it in that situation (maybe Barry Switzer). Kudos to Payton.

As far as the other Peyton. He made a few great throws (the 3rd down pass to Clark comes to mind in the 3rd quarter). But, he was out of his comfort zone there in the 4th quarter. And when he threw that pick, for a moment I thought Brett Favre had come in the game for Indy. As far as not shaking hands at the end, I'd give Peyton a pass there. He had to be in shock and utterly devastated (or, as Geilfuss would say, devasted).

As far as The Who. Again, I was prescient there. They played a silly medley of hits. I thought they sounded pretty good though. Daltrey's voice seemed as strong as ever. And Townshend did windmill a number of times. I was a little disappointed he didn't smash his guitar at the end though. I would have enjoyed that. I'm sure Jalen Rose hated the whole thing. So, that's something at least.

The commercials - I paid no attention to them.

I watched the game at home. I was tempted to go over to Brandon's folks for a big party and that would have been fun. But, other than New Year's Eve, Super Bowl Sunday is the worst night to be out driving. Too many drunk amateurs. And last night they were angry drunk amateurs, as they were pissed about losing money on Indy and the Over. Wise to stay in under the circumstances.

It was interesting as always hearing from the football experts leading up to the game. As all of you know, avoiding sports media is hard to totally do. Even if you make a concerted effort to, as I do. Now, I missed ESPN's picks and CBS's picks in their pregame silliness. But, I did see where The Swami was on Indy. And Bill Simmons was on Indy. And almost all the other media morons I couldn't completely escape last week were on Indy as well. I'm guessing Ditka took NOLA though. He was on fire with his MNF picks this season (although granted, they don't pick against the number on that show...).

Lastly on the big game - I was extremely happy for all of Who Dat. I did cry a little, as I suspected would happen when the Saints won outright. I only wished that Andy, Beck, and I would have been on Bourbon St after the game. Because that would have been a time. I promise you that. Beck on Bourbon St has incident written all over it. And Andy trying to control both Beck and me in such a situation would be something.

Pro Football Hall of Fame announcements came out Saturday. And I have no problem with the guys they put in this year. But, just like last year, I have a huge problem with Cris Carter not getting in. He has the best hands that I've ever seen in the NFL. I don't get why the NFL is making him wait. They should be ashamed.

We've only got to wait about a month until college hoops conference tourneys start. And that should be very profitable as always.

Random 1996 Journal Entries

I was looking through a box of old stuff earlier and came across a journal I kept back in 1996. I reread it. And got exceedingly depressed. Just to give folks a bit of a taste of what things were like for me as a 25 year old in 1996, I am gonna reprint, word for word, a few random entries from that journal. For readers of this blog who know me, no context is needed. For all the folks who've found their way to this blog and never met me, I don't think much context is needed for you folks either. Why am I doing this, you may ask? Because it's my blog and I can.

7 April 1996 -

It's been almost 3 months since my last entry. Why you may wonder? Don't ask. It's too stupid to go into. However, there was a suspension from work, a total mental breakdown, trip to Las Vegas, lots of drinking, being arrested for disorderly conduct, charges dropped on some nonsensical deal, more alcohol drank, and eventual reinstatement to work. So things are back to normal in my pathetic life. Does anyone care?

I did go on an actual date with Heidi in January and she told me she was 37. Thirty-Seven! This news depressed me beyond words and even though I kind of liked her, I never called her again. Also, I went through some kind of ordeal as mentioned earlier.

I have picked up two women at En Unison. One was 35 and we fooled around in her car, but things were doomed because of her low IQ and the fact that she has a 20 year old kid, and a baby. The other woman is 28 and I slept with her 2 Fridays in a row. The first time was ok. She was fairly adventurous and really wanted to be fucked from behind, so I did, but was almost laughing at her and shaking my head in mockery, at me and her, while she was moaning, panting, etc. in some extended orgasm. The next morning we fucked again before she left , which was different for me because I was sober, hungover but sober. The next week was stupid and I haven't been back to En Unison to pick her up the last two Fridays. She seems ok as a human being but is not even remotely my type. She wants a casual fuck, but I don't want to be it. She also has a 2&1/2 year old from a marriage or something. I hope to never see her again. I haven't been on an actual date since I went out with Heidi in January. I'm not meeting good prospects right now.

My parents are bitterly disappointed in me right now and who can blame them? When they bailed my ass out of jail, it was a humiliating experience all the way around. The main thing about jail, I was there for about 21 hours, is the smell. It's foul and putrid. A mixture of feces, urine, body odor, and a general stench. I did not eat the food. I did not move my bowels. I did not shower. It was very cold and I shivered most of the time. It was difficult to sleep. The other guys seemed ok, certainly better people than you'd think. They left me alone, except they made sure I got a tray of food and a spoon. So in a way they looked out for me, these were the black guys. All the white guys tried to sleep and stayed to themselves. There were around 10 guys in my area. Each had a private cell with a bunk, a toilet, and a sink. There was a commons area with 2 televisions. I stayed in number 11, toward the end. As I said, my parents were not thrilled to have to bail my ass out. It has all worked out pretty well now. I paid a $78 fine on a disorderly conduct charge (crazy story). The charge I was brought in on was dismissed. Enough about that. It's too depressing.

Work has been stupid as it was before. Everyone seems glad I'm back, I've been back 2 weeks. I worked 49.5 and 46 hours so I've been busy.

12 May 1996 -

It's been a crazy weekend, to say the least. I woke up yesterday and went to BW3 to watch the Knicks/Bulls game with Eric , a bartender there and a friend of mine. The Knicks won in overtime. It was exciting. We then went to Eric's and got stoned out of our minds from Eric's water bong. I was completely fucked up. We went back to the bar and I sat there feeling really bad and drank one sip of my beer. I got the impulse to leave and actually drove, which was totally stupid. I decided to get food, so I went to Donato's and sat stoned while they made my pizza. I brought it home and ate it in bed, then slept for awhile. I woke up and went out drinking. Starting with 4 pints at Houlihan's. For something new I went to Rosie O'Grady's, an incredible white trash/brother dance bar. It was one of the strangest places I've ever been. I was extremely out of place. It was somewhat entertaining. I came home and watched Porky's on TV. Then fell asleep about 5 or so. Today I watched some hoops, then went to dinner with my folks and sister and her 2 roomies. I didn't eat and was unsociable. I then went and had two beers at BW3, got bored, ate wings, and left. I went to Blockbuster and rented Pulp Fiction and and Angus. I just watched Angus, which was pretty good.

I did not meet any women this weekend. Sometimes I wonder if things will ever work out for me. I am reasonably sure that I am the problem. My neighbor has not responded to my letter on Wednesday. Who can blame her? I am a 25 year old aimless slacker who hates his job, has no career in mind at my current place of employment, is a drunk, smoker, insomniac, constipated, always feeling sick, depressed loser. I am unable to get any meaningful relationship going with anyone. I have friends, but not a girlfriend to talk to in any real way. I have no one I can trust or feel like trusting. I am living a very sad life. I wonder if this will change. I am trying, I just can't get it right. I have to keep hoping that something big will happen soon in a positive way. I'm falling into new ruts to go along with the old ruts. These are not positives. I need someone to save me.

2 June 1996 -

Something happened. Finally. I'll get to that in a bit. Thursday I got a day off from work and went down to BW3 , drank for free for four hours, then went to Maxwell's. A cheesy move, I admit. I picked up some Art Ed major from Newark named Sarah. I walked her to her dorm (in the stupid stadium, a long walk). She annoyed me. Not much happened. I left after a 1/2 hour or so. I made the mistake of giving her my phone number. She called Friday, but will hopefully not again. Friday night after work, I went to En Unison and was hit on by some 40ish year old woman named Sharon. It was pretty pathetic. She gave me her number, I don't think I'll call. Saturday, I went to BW3 Bethel and hung out for about 3 hours, then went to campus to see my friend Dave Elhatton. I realized I left my ID at Bethel and went back to get it around 10:30 or 11:00. Dave left to get stoned. Anyway, at Bethel I saw Carol Matthews again. Only this time Laura Simpson was with her, and she and I talked for 2 hours or something. I hadn't seen her in 2 years, and only once in like 5 years. Anyway, she looked great and I gave her a ride to her apartment. She lives with Carol and the great Tom Wade. She had to get up for work at 7 this morning, so I only stayed about 45 minutes. But we did start kissing pretty heavily for awhile, and I realized it was the first meaningful kiss I'd had in a long time. It was pretty amazing. Things would have progressed, but Laura had to get up early, which was ok in a way. There may have been some kind of connection. I will pursue this. I promised her I would not and cannot fuck this up. I met Laura in 1st grade or something and really liked her in 4th grade a lot. She was the best looking girl by far in 4th grade. In 5th grade we had different teachers, then we quit going to the same school. I didn't see her until 1990. She became friends with Cara at school and we hung out a lot that summer. There was a group of 6 or 7 of us that did a lot of underage drinking. I saw her a few times after that, but something was always wrong as far as getting involved. Last night was the first time we kissed. It was pretty cool. Normally I hate kissing because I don't really care about the girl I'm with. Last night was different. We work incompatible hours, which sucks. Something good finally happened. I can't screw it up. Wish me luck. Today I worked. Then rented Casino. It was not as great as I had hoped. Still, pretty damn good. I've been spending a lot of time today thinking about old Laura. I must call her tomorrow.

Who Fucking Dat

More snow here in the area this morning. One of the rotund local meteorologists was giving out accumulations around the western Piedmont when I heard him say this "Bud in Elkins is reporting that he's only got 3&1/2 inches." And, wow! I'm not sure why Bud decided to share this with viewers of WXII this morning, but I felt bad for the guy - only 3&1/2 inches. I bet Bud's a lonely man...

I saw Jalen Rose earlier on some awful program on ESPN2. He was really down on The Who playing halftime of the Super Bowl. I would have simply asked Jalen who Ed Martin would have preferred to see at halftime (I believe Martin died a number of years ago). That would have done the trick in shutting Jalen up pretty fast. Because U of M basketball players still don't like to talk about Ed Martin. Damn cheaters. As for me, many of you know my great affinity for Pete Townshend - he is one bad bad motherfucker. I'm not sure what Pete is gonna play Sunday. But I'm hoping he eschews the normal medley of hits that acts tend to play for the Super Bowl. Instead, I'd like to hear full length versions of Substitute, The Seeker, or Squeeze Box. But all of those are highly unlikely. The best we can hope for is Won't Get Fooled Again. And I hope Jalen Rose hates it.

When you start to really break down the game itself, I think it's important to consider both sides. Now last year I dismissed Pittsburgh out of hand. Other than my buddy Jeff and a few other reasonable folks here and there, Pittsburgh has almost nothing going for it. This year is a little different. You can make a case for Indy. They have 2 things going for them. One, is Peyton Manning (although Peyton is from NOLA, so really that should count against Indy). The other is much bigger, Kurt Vonnegut. Vonnegut was born in Indianapolis in 1922. Now, as all of you know, I've never read a book in my life. But, when listening in on literary conversations over the years, I developed a great fondness for Vonnegut. Billy Pilgrim & Montana Wildhack - those 2 alone are strong arguments in Indy's favor. And then when you throw in Kilgore Trout - well, it's almost not fair. And, Poo-tee-weet? That should seal everything in Indy's favor. But, as that failed old coach Lee Corso says - not so fast my friend.

Because, when you start talking NOLA, they've got more going for them than almost any city possibly could. One, voodoo. Voodoo freaks me out. Two, legalized prostitution. Storyville operated from 1891 until 1917 in NOLA (shut down because of the damn first world war). Three, Lil Wayne. I love his teeth. Four, Clarence Frogman Henry. He sounds like a frog. Five, Trent Reznor. Head Like A Hole. And six, the New Orleans Jazz and my man Pistol Pete Maravich. A true wizard. Now, all of the above is awesome, but not why Who Dat is the pick. Not even close.

The reason NOLA will cover the number (it will be at least 4&1/2) is simple. It's because of that damn hurricane that hit back in 2005. I remember seeing footage of the dogs left behind. And that depressed me beyond words. Many of the folks left the city in the aftermath of the storm and have never returned. And I'm not gonna get all political here today, but I've had a certain discussion with several residents of NOLA over the past couple years about folks not being able to come back and they do agree with me on this point - that for most of the folks who were displaced, it was the best thing for them. They lived for generations in squalor with an endless cycle of poverty and a horrible public education system. And that hurricane was a very strange blessing (or at the least, some kind of do-over) for folks seemingly forever trapped by the cruel accident of birth. And anyone who didn't feel for all the folks (pets included) from NOLA when that hurricane hit (even though, as I noted, it will end up helping a significant segment of the population in the long run by them being given a fresh start in a new city), you have no soul whatsoever. And as everyone knows, if there's one person who may not have a soul, it's me - and even I am pulling for the good folks of NOLA (wherever some of them may be living now). And I'm pulling hard. Hard. I promise you this, if Who Dat covers, I will be mildly pleased, obviously. But if Who Dat wins outright (and if they have the ball last, and are within 6 points, I like their chances), I will cry. No question in my mind about that.

Plus, I was in NOLA one time for some party called Mardi Gras (this was back in like 1990 or 1991). Well, I went into this bar called Pat O'Brien's and started to drink Hurricanes with some buddies of mine. And those will get you hammered. Shit faced hammered. The whole day was a bit of a blur to be honest. But I do slightly recall stumbling around after leaving the bar for a bit and getting flashed by dozens of girls. So that's something.

As far as the total on Sunday's game, I can't bet over at 56&1/2. No way. That's 8 touchdowns. It wouldn't surprise me to see the total go over 60, but I can't bet that.

Lastly, even though Britney Spears was not born in Louisiana, I know she grew up there. So,...

Black as your soul

Tim Tebow Walks Into An Abortion Clinic...

Our favorite home-schooled, overrated, sure to be a flop as a QB in the NFL, chronic masturbating (possibly...) Florida Gator is back in the news - on 2 fronts. 1st, I didn't get a chance to watch the Senior Bowl, but everything I've read about the game and the practices leading up to the game, indicates that Tebow struggled terribly. I'm still hoping some team will try and turn Tebow into an NFL QB, but it's looking less likely now. I imagine after the combine, his stock will plummet even further. I think the best comparison QB-wise for Tebow is Alex Smith (both flourished in Urban {I might be dying of a heart attack, but might not} Meyer's offense). Now, Tebow is bigger than Smith, and possibly tougher. But, Smith is far more accurate, has a bigger arm, and a much quicker release. And he's struggled terribly in the NFL. And since Tebow is not nearly as talented as Smith, I can't see a franchise (other than the Jags - I hope, I hope, I hope...) taking a chance on Tebow as a QB. But, again, I'm really hoping I'm wrong. The 2nd thing with Tebow right now is that he's doing some anti-abortion ad that will air during the Super Bowl. And he's catching heat from all sorts of groups about it. I'm gonna defend Tebow on this one. I'm sure he deeply believes whatever about abortion being murder, or a sin, or something. While I completely disagree with the guy and all the other anti-abortion folks, I think his viewpoint should be heard. And if Tebow and his Christian cronies want to pay a couple million dollars to get his opinion out there, then cool. The left never changes. Ever. Liberals talk a big game about free speech. But, as I've noted on this blog a number of times, when someone wants to say something they disagree with, free speech privileges go right out the window. Damn hypocrites. I haven't seen this anti-abortion ad. And since I'm one of the few people who will not be paying any attention to the commercials during the game Sunday night, I doubt I'll ever see it. Now, if Tebow were doing an ad on the dangers of chronic masturbation, that I'd watch. It could feature Tebow, a tub of lube, and some kid going blind - it would be awesome.

It looks like our sputtering fake leader, Barack Hussein Obama, has done it again. He urged folks not to take vacations in Vegas. And while blowing wads of dough at the tables (by the way, my advice is to never bet on any game of pure chance - stick to sporting events and poker) may not be the wisest decision a guy with a family and mortgage could make, it's hardly Barry's place to try and regulate morality. Last I checked, the economy in Vegas was in the tank. The casinos have been pretty empty the past year or so. Unemployment there is fairly high. And the man who seems hell bent on making as many folks as possible become down on their luck and penniless, decides to discourage potential vacationers from going to Vegas. Thus further killing tourism dollars there. Way to go there dude.

Some really weird stuff has been going on with the Super Bowl betting line. Some of the most bizarre weirdness I can remember. As I noted last week, the Mafia dudes pounded the Colts when the line opened at -3. It went to 6 at one point. Then, over the last few days, the mafia guys are at it again, only this time on the Saints. Offshore, the line is back down to -4 or -4&1/2. For the uninitiated, what the Mafia guys are trying to do is middle the book. If you have Colts -3 and Saints +6, you've got a decent chance to hit both bets. I wouldn't be surprised if the same guys make huge moneyline bets on the Colts before kick off. As for Joe Uninformed, the public is about 2/3 with the Colts right now. And I fully expect them to move even more to Indy as Sunday approaches. I noted last week that I have a pretty strong feeling on how this game will go and why. I will do my annual Super Bowl write up tomorrow. And I promise that Kurt Vonnegut will be mentioned prominently. Obviously...You don't want to miss it.

Plenty of college hoops here lately and there are a couple teams flying under the radar that I think folks should keep in mind when next month's hoops tournament starts. Wichita State being one of them. Baylor being another. And UAB being the 3rd. All 3 are tough as nails and won't back down to anybody. It'll be interesting to see who these teams draw (assuming they all don't somehow collapse the next 5 weeks...).

I was flipping around the old TV last night and came across the Fight Club. And Meat Loaf and those giant man boobs, it cracks me up every time.

Lastly today, there was poll released on some web site called the Daily Kos. The poll had to do with the feelings of Republicans about Barack Hussein Obama. And the results have been shocking to many people. I don't pretend to know anything about the Daily Kos. But my assumption is that it traffics in way out leftist silliness. Which is fine, whatever. Here are some of the results of this Daily Kos poll vis a vis the GOP:

1) 21% believe ACORN stole the election - hard to define "stole" in this context, but if anyone is under the illusion that ACORN didn't make a huge difference in getting out votes for Barry, they're delusional. And the fact that ACORN signed up some folks dozens of times to vote certainly could give a slightly informed person the perception that something funny was going on.

2) 31% believe Barry is a racist who hates white people. I'm a little surprised this number isn't higher. Now, I have no idea what's in Barry's mind or heart or whatever concerning white folks. But I do know what he said about white folks clinging to guns and religion. And I do know the stuff that African wizard looking preacher of his said about white people from his pulpit. So, again I can see how an impression can be formed that Barry hates white people.

3) 23% want their state to secede from the Union. This has been tried before and if memory serves, it didn't work out too well. But, I don't really blame folks for wanting to get out from under all the big government Barry and his minions are pushing. Seceding is way misguided, but understandable.

4) 67% think the only path to heaven is through Jesus Christ. I'm stunned this number isn't higher. The only problem with the question is presupposing that heaven exists at all. It's highly doubtful, to say the least.

5) 39% think Barry should be impeached. For what, I have no idea. What an odd question.

6) 63% believe Barry is a socialist. Umm, Duh??? That's it??? They need to read this blog more often.

7) 36% don't think Barry was born in the US. Pure silliness, but if you listen to some of the nutty dudes on TV and talk radio, I can see how you'd get that impression. As always, don't watch any of the cable "news" shows (this includes all of them on the MSNBC as well as the Roger Ailes Network) for any reason other than sleazy entertainment (much like Springer and Mathis). Because if you're basing your opinions on any of them, you're crazy...

One last thing, I got a comment recently that simply said: I thought you were illiterate. Don't be fooled. Let me state for the record again, that yes, I am completely illiterate.

I know the answer but I'm asking you the question

Recruiting Silliness

Lots of stuff to get to today, but not any time to do it. Real quick though, today is signing day for college football. And the fascination with what school will get what players has always puzzled me. Until a kid starts to actually play college football, you're largely just guessing how good they might be. Let me just give a fast example of how wrong recruiting hype can be. Back in 2002, TOSU signed one of the can't miss QB's of forever. His name was Justin Zwick. They also signed another guy who they didn't even label as a QB, they labeled him Athlete (which means the guy will probably play WR or DB in college). Zwick started a handful of games and was mediocre, at best. The other guy, who was almost an afterthought, went on to win the Heisman Trophy, and more importantly, led TOSU to 3 straight victories over Michigan. That was Troy Smith. All I'm saying is don't get too excited or down based on recruiting rankings. They're about as scientific as alchemy...

I'm out-TBFH

JD Salinger

JD Salinger died last week. Now, I don't pretend for a moment to have the ability to properly address his genius, his significance to American culture, or what he meant to millions of his readers. But, if you'll indulge me for a bit, I can tell you what JD Salinger meant to me (and it's certainly possible, although admittedly disturbing on some level, that others have similar feelings about the guy's writing).

The first time I became familiar with Salinger was, like most folks, as a teenager. Catcher In The Rye was never assigned in the American Lit class I took as a Junior (although to Mr Williamson's credit, he did assign Gatsby and Huck Finn, and those are 2 of the best books ever written in the English language). I stumbled onto Salinger by complete accident. I was bored one day during a free period and killing time in the library (I'd check out the USA Today Sports Section in there most days) and saw a copy of Catcher In The Rye on a shelf. I picked it up. I remember being seduced by its maroon cover. And then I started reading it. And I couldn't put it down. What struck me then was how honest the book was. Honest about everything. Here was one messed up kid who couldn't get anything going for him, at least anything that he really wanted. And he didn't know what to do or who to turn to. He tried to get on board with the conventional things that society deemed important. But, he couldn't get any of it right. He liked the idea of lots of things, but not the reality. And that is exactly right. All the stuff that looks good, the stuff that seems too good to be true (happiness, a fulfilling job, a hot babe who doesn't drive you crazy, a close knit family, man being kind to his fellow man) - it is. Now, I had these feelings myself from who knows when, but I'd never experienced any kind of book or whatever else that expressed those feelings. Of course, Holden Caulfield is, like life itself, tragically hopeless. The best you could ever hope for is to run completely away from society and live out in the woods somewhere. But there's nowhere left to run. We're all stuck. Stuck trying to make sense of something that doesn't have any rhyme or reason to it. I reread Catcher about 10 times over the next few years and have revisited it maybe 10 more times the last 15 or so years. And my reaction to it has never changed. The thing is, I keep hoping, every time I read it, that Holden will get in touch with Jane Gallagher. And he never does. He's doomed. I'm doomed. We're all doomed...

I could also say something about Salinger's short stories. But I'll just mention one of them. And you guessed it, that story is A Perfect Day For Bananafish. My man Seymour Glass. Devastating. When you read the story, it almost makes you suicidal. But it's all true. The guy does what his family, and by extension society, tells him to. And he blows his brains out.

When I was in college, I took a class where we read a number of post WWII novels (it was taught by Lee K Abbott , a fine short story writer in his own right). And we were assigned Catcher for the class. On the day we discussed the book, I remember thinking - Oh no, I'm the only one in here who gets it. And of course, that's garbage. What I really started to fear as the discussion went along was that I was the only one who was fixated, in a not so healthy way, on Holden Caulfield. And I didn't say too much. I let the smelly, commie, hippie types talk about the book in some detached, fake intellectual way. I remember the last little thing I said during that class. It was this, "Can any of you get me Jane Gallagher's phone number?"

Of course, Salinger disappeared to a small town called Cornish, NH in the 50's. He quit publishing his stories in the mid 60's. And he never gave interviews. He didn't want to explain himself. He just wanted to be left alone. And that, I can relate to. There has been quite a bit of speculation about how many stories or novels Salinger has written the last 45 years and if they'll be published now that he's dead. And I gotta tell you, I sure hope not. I'm worried he might have backtracked from his worldview. I would be very hesitant to read anything "new" at this point. Doing so might ruin his previous work. And that would be depressing as hell. But knowing the way life works, I bet it'll happen. Just watch...

I'll get back to the normal silliness next time.

Peace

Barry And Joe Walk Into The Phone Booth...

Urgent Score Update from DC: Hoyas 89 Duke 77. That's 3 losses for the coach who resembles Hitler just in the past few weeks. Dookies might be panicking a bit, as they are not good on the road. At all. The thing about all 3 of these losses that is similar, besides coming on the road, is that all 3 squads are coached by brothers. Brothers with no fear of Coach Kry. And in watching all 3 losses, I think there is something to the notion that Hewitt, The Pimp Coat, and Lil' John Thompson instilled a take no prisoners attitude with their teams before playing Duke. All 3 teams showed no hesitation in attacking right at the nonathletic Duke front line. Not to mention the soft guard play of Duke. I know fans of Coach Kry are taking some solace in the fact that old Roy and the Heels have been awful in January themselves. Maybe the solution for UNC is hiring Phil Ford to take over, or maybe just wait for Rasheed Wallace to retire from the NBA and hire him. And the thought of Rasheed Wallace coaching the Heels is awesome. I'm not getting my hopes up though.

The other thing that struck me about the big Hoya/Duke tilt Saturday is that old Barry and Joe Biden made it out to the Phone Booth for the game. And we all know that Coach K is a huge Republican. I bet Barry thoroughly enjoyed watching a tenacious supporter of his like Lil' John Thompson take it to the coach who resembles Hitler. Hell, even I did for that matter. It had to be good for old Barry to forget all his enormous errors and catastrophic mistakes for a few hours. The only problem was that Barry was there with Joe Biden. And Joe looked uncomfortable as always, as he seemed to be constantly fidgeting in his seat trying to cope with his medically induced massive boner. And the Hoya cheerleaders didn't look interested in aiding Joe. If you get my drift...

Speaking of our friend, Barack Hussein Obama, I did something the other night I hadn't done in over 2 years - I actually watched the guy speak for an extended period of time. The last time I saw him talk in more than sound bites was back in the fall of 07 in one of the debates the Democrat Party ran in Iowa or New Hampshire. And I mainly watched that because I find Dennis Kucinich entertaining (in a pitiful, Marxist way). Anyway, back then Barry struck me as another harmless liberal. But this past Friday, at some retreat in the Charm City, old Barry struck me entirely different. I watched the whole hour plus Q&A he did with members of the Republican caucus in the House. And Barry struck me as an angry, angry dude. I'm not sure who he's mad at exactly (I'm guessing it goes way back to his childhood). He seemed to have no patience for anyone who would dare to question or disagree with him. It was very telling. It's no wonder the guy has been such a failure so far. If he treats folks like that when TV cameras are on him, I can only imagine how much of a jerk he must seem like without worrying about his perception over the airwaves. Barry had a consistent look on his face of contempt for the folks asking him questions. He should be embarrassed. But I bet he isn't. And that's one reason why things are going so horribly for him. It really is. I'm not sure when, if ever, I'll look in on Barry again for an extended period of time. But, he's gotta do better than that. Even W at least came across as cordial to guys who he had to know utterly despised him.

Big snowstorm here in NC over the weekend. And that means things come to a complete standstill. Folks race to the Food Slug and buy up all the bread and milk they can before the snow hits, then stay inside for days on end. I have no idea why. Maybe they're looking for any excuse to gorge themselves on bread and milk for an extended number of days. I got out and about some and it was actually pretty pleasant on the roads. Because they were nearly deserted.

I got a text from Geilfuss the other day. And it seems that he is actually making money from his awesome blog. Geilfuss got a check from Google for nearly $78. And good for him. He can buy several rounds of shots at Get Bent Lounge or wherever for random skanks. Now, no offense to Geilfuss, but I'm pretty certain this blog gets considerably more traffic than his (as always, if you want to check out Geilfuss, it's http://www.itcouldbekobebryant.blogspot.com/). I have never allowed Google ads on this blog. I'm not in this for a $78 check every 14 months. I'm more in it as a way to pass the time. And hopefully entertain folks in the process, at least a little.

I also got a text from someone with a 443 number asking me about trivia at Bang Hos At Lannys. I'm not sure who sent the text to me. But whoever it is, my advice is not to ever go anywhere near the Ramada on Loch Raven for any reason. Much less for trivia. That place is full of the lowest of the low (as I've noted on this blog many times over the past 14 months). And if the trivia is being run by Boobie again at the Ramada and any of the readers of this blog do wander in for the event, tell her that I send my disdain and ask if she's lost more hair lately.

I saw some movie called Becoming Jane the other night (and no Geilfuss, it had nothing to do with Tarzan). The girl from The Devil Wears Nada played Jane Austen. And somewhat surprisingly, it was pretty good. Now, I have never read any book whatsoever, much less one by Jane Austen. But, I have overheard conversations about some of her work (comes with the territory from attaining an English degree). And from what I gleaned from overhearing those conversations, the movie did an excellent job of conveying Jane Austen's angst and the etiquette and social mores of the time. Also, the girl from The Devil Wears Nada is pretty damn good (some of you might recall my fascination with her from the film Rachel Getting Married) and very charming. It's worth checking out, even if you have no interest in early 19th century English Literature (as I surely do not).

Sometimes you wonder and you ask yourself the question