FL Bound!

Well, for better or worse, we are driving to FL starting around 3 pm today. Samantha for the most part does well in a car but this is a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG time. We are driving through the night so hopefully she will sleep for most of the ride. I am sure there will be some meltdowns along the way. Pray for us...

Paying off bets - Thanks Fubar!!!

So, Dallas played Denver earlier in the year. The loser of the bet had to wear the winning team's jersey for a day of football at the Otter and buy the giant appetizer, Otter Feast for the two of us to split. Well, Denver won and Fubar was destined to wear a Bronco jersey. The bet was repaid last Sunday.

Elway looks very natural behind a bar!!!!

Time to EAT!!!!!

Since it is Christmas time, I gave him the Elway Stanford jersey to wear for the 3 o'clock games.

Here is Fubar doing his best Superbowl XXXII impersonation...NICE!

Happy Holidays!

Christmas came early!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS! I am sooooooooo happy!

Juan Pierre is no longer a Dodger. He is due to make 18.5 million dollars over the next two years. I think the Dodgers still have to pay 10 million of the contract. The Dodgers also get two minor leaguers in return. Finally, my wish has come true!

Now, Juan Pierre last year had a good year for him. It was quite unusual given his past, a 50 point blip in his OBP. Do not expect it to continue especially in the AL. His OPS might be 650 next year...maybe. Yuck.

Good bye and SO LONG! I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO HAPPY!

OTBs, Chick-fil-a, wedding and a Christmas Party

Lets just say that any weekend that I am able to eat Chick-fil-a for just one meal, there is about a 95% chance of that weekend being a good weekend. Well, this weekend was not part of the 5%.

Friday started off the weekend at Stretch Run. This is another sign that a good weekend is coming. Well, Smitty flew in Friday so a bunch of us decided to sit and gamble, drink a few beers and wait for Smitty to arrive. No one was winning. Even Smitty who had not walked in was down. He was real happy to hear that when he walked in. The night was uneventful and ended by midnight for half of us.

Saturday was Chris Phelan's wedding in South Bend. Samantha, Michelle and I all went to it. Samantha was really good overall. She didn't sit well during the ceremony but was a rock star for the reception (uh oh...did I just write that about me or her???). She was a in santa clause dress and gaining lots of attention from the crowd. We ended up leaving the reception about 9 our time and heading back home. It was a great time and it was so good to see the Phelans and the cottage crowd.

Of course on the way to South Bend, we stopped at Chick-fil-a for lunch. Samantha had a couple nuggets (chopped up of course) and some oranges from the fruit cup. As you can see below. She loved it! It is hard not too!

Sunday was a good day of resting. I am pretty sure Michelle and Samantha both took three naps. Sunday night was the Purple Otter holiday party. We went there around 6 and stayed for a couple hours. It was more socializing and Samantha was a trooper!

This Friday we head to Florida for 11 days. Consider me excited!

Biggest Loser Finale Thoughts

This one is going to be bullet point form. Next time they have a finale I think I am going to do a running diary.

1. My math was good. Danny won easily. Really, his starting weight was more impressive than anything else. 5'10" 430 lbs...wow just wow.
2. Shay looked much slimmer and she is STILL 300 lbs. Wow. Well, she should easily win 100k from the subway challenge of 1k per pound from now until the next finale.
3. BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT: Rebecca! What were you thinking???? You were turning into a hottie. Your hair was so bad. It was so short and dirty blonde. It looked terrible. Way to work out ass off for a good body and still ruin your appearance. She was too skinny too but I am sure she will gain a few lbs back now that she won the 100k.
4. BIGGEST SURPRISE: Abby!!!!!!!!!! Hello Abby! You were a favorite on the show anyway. Her story, her personality - how could you not love her? She was smoking at the finale. Her new hair looked great and she looked great as well. I thought she looked the best among the females. Good for you!
5. Another surprise - Tracy. You maybe crazy but you did a great job. Maybe a little too skinny but you had no saggy skin and had some muscle not just skin and bones. You looked great. I was shocked.
6. Antoine, Julio and Allen - I thought these were the top three guys. I barely recognized Julio. Danny (orange team) finally looks normal. Good for him.
7. Yeah John Elway!
8. It annoys me that at the beginning of the show, the weigh-ins are shirtless and the finale of the show is with a shirt on. Can we switch this???? PLEASE!
9. How many contestants have skin removal surgery when all is said in done? I am just curious.
10. I was happy to see that most people had healthy weights this season.

Tonight is the finale of Top Chef. The Neyers are going DOWN!

Biggest Loser Math

Yes, it is back. The biggest loser finale is tonight and I have to break it down.

Danny - He was 430 lbs. Last time we saw him he lost 59 lbs in 60 days at home. He was 229 lbs. Yes, he had already lost 201 lbs in total. I found out that he is only 5'10". 5'10" !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Are you kidding me? I am guessing he will be 185 at the finale. That is around a 57% weight loss. I am not 100% sure but I think that will be the biggest loss ever and he is doing it.



Rudy - Rudy is 6'4". Honestly, I thought he was taller. Good to see I would look like a giant if I were ever on the biggest loser. His starting weight is 442 lbs. If he is 190 lbs at the finale, he could have a chance of winning it. At 6'4", getting to 190 lbs is way harder than a 5'10 getting to 185.

Amanda - Lets be serious. She is getting voted into the final 3. You and I both know it. She started at 250 lbs. I didn't realize she is only 19 years old. Now I understand why she was crying all the time. Well, she is 5'6". She would have to get down t 108 to have a chance. NO CHANCE. She will come in around 125-130 which is amazing but no way.

Liz - She is 5'7" and her original weight was 267. I just do not like Liz and my guess she will be 140-145 lbs. She needs to be 115 to have a chance at Danny. I don't see it.

I am excited for tonight!

Operation 160 and Dish Network's channel NFL RedZone

Today is the best I have felt in almost a week. I am finally getting over that nasty cold I had. Woohoo. To celebrate, I went to the gym at lunch and got workout #1 of 160. I like to call this mission operation 160. That sounds a little better than December 1 resolution.

Now, I want to profess my love for the NFL RedZone channel on Dish Network. It is new this year and let me tell you I LOVE IT!

First, it has no commercials. None. I can watch from 12:15 to 6:30 without seeing one commercial. Thank God! The NFL is the WORST when it comes to TV timeouts.

Scott Hanson hosts the show and he does a good job staying on point with it. He realizes the fans don't care about him. All they care about it are the games. He runs a good point. You see, this channel does not wait for a team to get into a redzone to be show. They fly around from game to game showing different situations. If there is more than one game that is coming down to the wire or are about to score, they split the screen.

If every game is on commercial (which happens all the time because the NFL is a commercial whore), they show highlights from prior games or earlier in the game. They really do a good job of keeping you informed of every game going on.

Lets just say that I really don't ever want to watch just one regular season game on Sunday ever again.

I am not waiting for New Years!

Lets just say that the last 9 months (okay 8.5 months) have been great and hectic all at the same time. One thing that has really been impacted are my workouts. Between losing workout partner after workout partner and a new born at home, my ability and motivation to go to the gym has died down. Well, that all ends now. Starting December 1, I am challenging myself to 160 workouts over the next 12 months. I am bring back my counter on the left side of the blog to keep track. Enough is enough!

Screw you new years resolution and hello December 1 resolution!

Top 5 - Cable Channels!

Well, there were some rumbling about a top 5. Not to disappoint my readers, today is the top 5 favorite cable channels. I had to think about this one for a while. Really, ESPN is my issue. I am not really a fan of sportscenter. I usually watch ESPNNEWS for summaries of games but ESPN shows sporting events and specials like 30 for 30. Anyway, ESPN was really my hardest decision. Also, no movie channels like HBO, Showtime, etc. I think my list will be similar to most other guys. I think my female readers will have a very different list.

1. TNT - It is usually the first channel I go to. It has NBA games throughout the season. It covers golf and has a nice mix of movies. Sports, movies, I am sold.

2. ESPN - If we could bundle all of ESPN channels into one, I would have said ESPN is #1 in a heartbeat. It shows too much sports not to be in the mix.

3. USA - USA has the best tv shows of the cable channels. Monk, Psych, Royal Pains, reruns of House and NCIS - I am hooked. It also shows WWE, the Masters and some tennis.

4. TBS - Baseball playoffs, weekly sunday baseball games, good movies, and they have the best comedy show reruns on (i.e. Seinfeld, family guy, the office, etc.)

5. FX - Any channel that gave me the Shield and now gives me It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia has to be on my top 5 list.

Anyway, that is my list. As you see, I don't watch many news shows. It usually revolves around sports and movies and sometimes tv shows.

Happy Tuesday!

Thanksgiving weekend

Well, another Thanksgiving, another great year. This year was very different than every other year. In the past, my entire mom's side of the family would get together but this year was a new beginning. We went to my brothers house. When my brother says, there were 13 at the house and food for 3o, he was not kidding.

Here are some notes from Thanksgiving day.

• Cheryl made her first turkey. It was great. She is a natural.
• Joey made a cheesecake from scratch. When I was 18, I could make a can of ravioli...sometimes. Consider me impressed.
• Football was muddy. It was awesome! Muddy fields are so much fun.
• I missed Euchre. Rock band was fun but playing cards is the best.
• Samantha had turkey. My mom pureed some of the leftovers. Samantha likes turkey.
• Michelle's chocolate chip pudding cookies are always good. Always.
• I always think of a drink for Thanksgiving. This year was red neck lemonade. The first batch was great. The 2nd batch I made a little too strong. Oh well.

So the last few years, the day after Thanksgiving has turned into a golfing day with my dad and usually my uncle pete and one other person. This year was no different. I woke up on Friday not feeling well but decided to go golf anyway. It was low 40s out but no wind and sunny. I didnt golf very well on the front nine but played much better on the back 9. I am looking forward to golfing around Christamas in Florida. I wont need a stocking cap and sweater then! Mike was our fourth and I had a ton of fun golfing.

Friday night or should I say afternoon Michelle and I went to see Blind Side and then to dinner. My parents watched Samantha. Our date was over at 8 pm. I was in bed, drugged up by 8:30...man I am getting old. Blind Side was a really good movie. It is crazy to think that the kid is now rookie in the NFL, a starting lineman on the Ravens. Wow.

Saturday, we headed back into the city and went to an LU game at 3 pm. We met my dad and Jackson at Carmen's before the game for thier 5.95 all you can eat buffet. What can i say? Loyola is awesome and they won by around 40! We had another early night. I was pretty sick.

Sunday was a lot of laying around trying to recover from a stupid cold. It also felt great to do nothing.

All in all, a great Thanksgiving weekend...samantha's first!

World Cup 2010

All 32 teams have been decided. Now, they break the teams into four pots and draw for 4 team group play. Lets jsut say that group one consists of potential winners (besides the US). What I think would be a good idea is get 8 people, everyone throw in $10 or $20 each and you do a drawing. You grab one team from each pot. Winner take all. Yes. I like to gamble. Below are the pools.

Pot 1
South Africa (CAF - as hosts)
Germany (UEFA)
Brazil (CONMEBOL)
Italy (UEFA)
Spain (UEFA)
England (UEFA)
France (UEFA)
Argentina (CONMEBOL)

Pot 2 (UEFA Pot)
Netherlands (UEFA)
Portugal (UEFA)
Switzerland (UEFA)
Greece (UEFA)
Serbia (UEFA)
Denmark (UEFA)
Slovakia (UEFA)
Slovenia (UEFA)

Pot 3
Mexico (CONCACAF)
USA (CONCACAF)
South Korea (AFC)
Japan (AFC)
Australia (AFC)
Honduras (CONCACAF)
New Zealand (OFC)
North Korea (AFC)

Pot 4
Paraguay (CONMEBOL)
Ghana (CAF)
Cameroon (CAF)
Cote d'Ivoire (CAF)
Nigeria (CAF)
Uruguay (CONMEBOL)
Algeria (CAF)
Chile (CONMEBOL)

Bad blogger!

Wow. November has been a blur and I have not been blogging. Between traveling for work, traveling for fun and Samantha having an ear infection in both ears, life has been a little hectic. Samantha is feeling better. I am in town for a while now so I am going to focus on bringing this blog back to life! A few bullets if you will.

• Congrats to Bryan and Mary. Bryan asked Mary to marry him and she said yes!
• Samantha is going to her first Loyola game tonight. I am excited.
• The Broncos' offense line is injured. Orton is injured. It is not looking good but they will finish with a wininng record. I never would have guessed that at the beginning of the year!
• I really want the fireman to win biggest loser but it will not happen. He has too much muscle. I think Danny wins it. That is my guess.
• Speaking of BL, I am excited for the show that goes back to past constestants. I can not wait to see people who put all the weight back on.
• Thanksgiving is Thursday. I have always loved Thanksgiving. I am excited. Hell, I am excited for the football game. Good times! Lets be honest thought. I am taking Wednesday off. I am most excited for 5 days of no work! WOOHOO!
• I can not believe how quickly this year is coming to an end. 5 weeks....

Happy Monday!

We're Back!

Just wanted to post a quick blog. We flew back from the bahamas (kicking and screaming) late last night. We had a wonbderful time. I also want to thank my parents for watching Samantha for the 4 days we were gone!

I am sure my wife will be posting pics shortly!

Meeting Sports Guy!

Yes, my favorite sports writer is Bill Simmons or sports guy. He is not your typical sports writer and does a great job of mixing in pop culture with his articles. Anyway, I love his writings. I do not think his analysis is always great (especially with baseball) but he is very entertaining.

Well, I have always thought he is really good when it comes to basketball. Well, he recently finished writing his new book, The Book of Basketball. It is a 700 page comprehensive book on basketball. When I heard it was coming out, I was excited. I love basketball and I loved his first book.

Well, he has been travelling to various cities for book signings. He was at ESPN Sportszone in Chicago last night. He started signing at 5:30. Michelle had class but she was leaving break (7:30). Samantha and I drove down there and picked her up and Michelle then dropped me off.

The line was still out the door but wasn't bad. Once I got inside, I realized the line went upstairs around the games and then back down around the tables in the eating area. Yikes. The good thing is that it is a bar. So there are tvs everywhere and a waitress was walking around serving drinks! Well, that is a line I can wait in!

An hour later, he signed my book. He actually seemed very open/laid back. I mean I was within the last 12 people to get a book signed and he didn't seem tired or annoyed at all. He was having fun. I talked to him briefly about Kyle Orton and went on my way. I was pumped. I met Bill Simmons! Yes!

Week in Review

1. Last Friday was really really bad. First, my facebook account gets taken over. Even after changing my password multiple times, the hack continued. So I shut ti down and changed my password on a few different things just to be safe. Then a little later in the day, Orbitz called and said Delta cancelled our flight to the bahamas. So they are refunding our money. Thanks for playing!

2. Last Saturday was great but tiring. We went to Flattop for breakfast and then to a store to pick up an engagement gift. From there, we headed out to the burbs for Jeremy's basketball game. We then hit up the pumpkin farm which was sweet. It was bigger than I was expecting and a lot of fun. By the time we were back in the city, the Florida game was starting. Michelle and I then headed out to Ploth and Stacia's engagement party which was a great time. Again, great day but tiring!

3. Sunday was good but I could tell I was coming down with a cold. Sunday night I went over to Bryan's to watch a wrestling PPV and sticking with the tradition, ate popeyes during the event. Lately I have been eating really clean so Popeyes did a ton of damage to my system!

4. The week started off slow and I stayed home on Tuesday. Luckily by Wednesday I was feeling much better!

5. The rest of the week has been quiet and today I am heading to a Loyola luncheon. Consider me fired up! Also this afternoon, we are heading to Samantha's daycare for a Halloween party. I am sure Michelle will have awesome pictures on her post afterwards.

6. Loved Christie's comment on my scary movie blog. These are things I am looking for.

7. This number will forever be retired for Elway.

8. I realized recently that time change in the fall is hell on parents. We are going to move the clocks back but that just means Samantha will wake up an hour earlier. There will be no "gaining an hour". Yikes...

9. Have a great weekend and even better Halloween! Please let the Gators win tomorrow...Please...

A Truely Scary Movie

Ok, so I haven't blogged in a while and will give you a recap tomorrow. Right now, since Halloween is right around the corner I want to tackle the theme of scary movies. I was talking to a couple co-workers today and we were trying to come up with a scary movie. Now, there were movies that scared us as kids but when you back and re-watch them, they are not that scary. I would like you the reader to throw out there a couple scary movies that you have seen.

To go a little further, I really think that you need to be in the right setting for a movie to really be scary. I dare anyone to rent a log cabin in the woods, watch Strangers and not be scared out of their mind. I do not think it is possible. Then you have a movie like Jaws. Tell me that doesn't make you think twice about swimming in the ocean.

It is no doubt that the Exorcist was the scariest movie growing up in my eyes. Now, I am not so sure. I really do put Strangers up there and I think the Shining needs to be in the conversation.

Anyway, I think the movie, Paranormal (is that the name), has a chance of being really good too.

Happy Halloween!

Here is a small list to help.

The Shining, Carrie, Poltergeist, Jaws, Silence of the Lambs, Halloween, Strangers, Seven, Blair Witch Project, Exorcist, Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Saw - Just to name a few.

Sorry Thome and Thank you Vegas

1. The Dodgers blew this series in the bottom of the ninth on Tuesday. One out of away from tying the series at 2-2 the Dodgers instead go down 3-1. I feel bad for Thome. I hope he signs with us again for one more year. In other depressing Dodgers news, Colletti signs an extension. I am not a fan. Lets hope Logan White stays and keeps this team growing. He deserves more of the credit than Colletti.

2. Well, I got EXTREMELY lucky on Monday. A few of my good friends are in Vegas for an extended weekend. They were calling me early Monday morning as I was on my way to work. Honestly, as jealous as I was, I loved the calls. You can feel the energy. Well, I told Murph we he gets a minute, go over to the roulette table and put $10 on 24. If it hits, we will split the $$$. If not, I will pay him the $10 for his time. Well, IT HIT!!!!! $350 dollars later (175 each) - Murph walked away. I love it when a plan comes together! So next time I see Murph he owes me $175 and a bottle of Makers (Cardinals losing to the Dodgers).

3. Top Chef for me was a little uncomfortable last night. It was restaurant wars. The 8 people break off into teams of 4. Well, Jessica's, Michelle's and my pick were on the same team which means if they would have lost, we would have had a 75% of losing one of our picks. Luckily, they won.

Happy Thursday!

It was the best of times. It was the WORST of times!

Boy oh boy. Last night was just a great sports night for me. The Broncos were playing on Monday night football and the Dodgers were playing in the NLCS.

Lets start with the game that ended first...the BEST of times. Can anyone believe this Bronco team? We just beat SD IN SD! Wow. Just wow. Denver still has a really tough schedule left but make no mistake this team can play. Who would have thought it really after the off season we have had? I wish Cutler the best. I really do. I am really happy with this Bronco team. They are dominating people in the 2nd half of games. More credit needs to be given to Mike Nolan. This defense is playing great. Well, anyway I HATE Phillip Rivers. I know he is good but he is so cocky and arrogant. It was great seeing him get knocked around in that loss. What a great time!

Now, lets move on to the worst of times...one out away. Oh Broxton - why did you have to walk the first two batters??? You couldn't get Matt Stairs out. Really? Jimmy Rollins should have never seen the plate. The Dodgers were one out away from tying the series. Now, they are on the verge of getting knocked out of the playoffs. What a terrible turn of events! The dodgers looked decent last night. They were playing tough. That was a tough loss. I will be surprised if they make it back to LA.

What a roller coaster of sports last night!

RIP Captain Lou!!!!!!!

The WWE (formely WWF) lost one of its legends today. Captain Lou Albano may you rest in peace!




There is no question he is a legendary manager. His time as a wrestler was a little less memorable (mainly because I was not alive). I am sure Dave Meltzer will have an awesome writeup on the Captain.

My only question is the following. Why the rubber bands on the face? Where the hell did that start????

I am going to end it with the GREAT video.

MTV Shows

Great Sports Weekend!!!!!!!!

Ok, for myself and the random teams I follow it really does not get any better than this weekend.

1. The Dodgers quickly finished the series with the Cardinals. The Cardinals are a very dangerous team and giving them any momentum would have been scary.
2. The Broncos are 5-0. Who had that prediction???? Kyle Orton played great yesterday. A 98 yd drive in the 4th quarter to tie the game. Who is this guy? Again, I am shocked.
3. Iowa is now 6-0 with a big win over Michigan. Very awesome.
4. Florida won on the road by 10 pts over the #4 team in the nation. Wow. Florida is really really good.

So, it was a great weekend in general too.

1. I hung out with the fam for a little while on Saturday watching Jeremy's basketball game. He looked good out there and scored a basket.
2. Sam spent the day/night with Nana and Papa. Michelle and I hit up Frontera Grill with Team Knowles.
3. Our dinner and night after dinner was great. Frontera is very reasonably priced and delicious. I definitely want to go back.
4. Sunday was a lot of laying around. Sam and I took a 1.5 hour nap in the early afternoon.

Well, happy monday!

Random Friday!!!

Before I go into my random thoughts, I want to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY SUE!!!!!!!!!! What are you now 29???

1. Is it just me or is this whole Miguel Cabera being drunk thing blow out of proportion? How many guys have it as part of their legend that they drank like fish and played hungover? Mickey Mantle anyone???? I am not saying it is right but man, times have changed!
2. The Cardinals gave the Dodgers the game last night. For a team to win a WS, they need a few lucky bounces along the way. I hope these keep coming.
3. I do not like the trend in weather but October is an amazing month for sports.
4. Thank you Funk for sending this link...Love the initiative of this guy to rebuild the car!
5. In Top Chef, both Michelle's and my pick were in the bottom 4. Luckily, neither of them went home! That was close! Pick it up boys!
6. The Office wedding last night was hilarious. I was laughing the whole episode.
7. I love Elway! Fubar - There is no way you are wearing an Elway jersey. I have not decided yet.
8. I love Kubiak! Yes, I am bringing up random old Broncos.
9. Downtown Vegas is so much better than the Strip. It is not even close. There. I said it.
10. Have a great weekend. I am excited. We are heading to Frontera Grill on Saturday! WOOHOO!

Can the Dodgers make it to the WS???

I hope so! They may have won game one last night but they left 16 people on base! 16!!! That is not what I am looking for in a playoff team. Their lineup is deep and really does not have any holes.

From top to bottom, I really like their chances. Their bullpen is the best in baseball. If they have a lead going into the 5th inning, they can close any game. Their offense worries me. No one person has huge power numbers which means they need to be patient (which they are) and get hits in a row to score runs. In the first game, you saw their weakness as they left 16 guys on base. Another weakness they have is starting pitching but as long as we get 4-5 innings out of these guys, we can squeeze out games and series. I am not as worried about their starting pitching as most are.

I really think they get past the Cardinals. I think their next opponent, the Phillies will be tough. Hopefully, we can get by. Remember that the Dodgers led MLB in run differential which is a big sign of how good a team is. The Yankees were second. The Dodgers also have a good defense.

I really think it will be a Dodgers/Yankees WS. I hope the Dodgers can make it to the WS because then Thome gets to DH for us. A lineup with Thome in there would be as follows: Furcal, Kemp, Thome, Ethier, Manny, Loney, Blake, Hudson and then Martin. There is not an easy out in that lineup.

It has been 21 years since their last WS. Lets hope they end it this year!

The Invention of the DVR

I just am not sure how "good" the invention of the DVR really is. Now, do not get me wrong. I love my DVR and I love having a DVR. However, because I have one, it sucks me into too many tv shows. On top of that, there are TV shows that I would never even think about watching without a DVR. No way I make it through a 2 hour episode of biggest loser live. I usually end up watching that show in about 35-40 minutes tops.

Back in the day of VCR, there was maybe two to three TV shows I would keep up with. Now, there are easily 2-3 shows a night that I keep up with if not more. Here is an idea of what I watch.

Monday - How I Met your mother, House, Greek (I love this show),
Tuesday - NCIS, Biggest Loser, Flipping out, Jon and kate Plus 8,
Wednesday - Criminal Minds, The Unit, Top Chef
Thursday - office, 30 rock, earl, it's always sunny in philly, Grey's, Private Practice, Survivor
Friday - Monk, Pysch, Numbers
Sunday - Amazing Race, Mad Men, Desperate Housewives

Sadly, this is not all of them. We watch a lot more reality tv than this. Well, Michelle does for sure. I know I left off some shows but just wanted to give you an idea of my out of control tv watching. Damn you DVR! This is your fault! I love you DVR.

Alright, well I hope everyone is having a good Wednesday!

OBX

Well, Michelle had a nice wrap up of our time in the outer banks. Here are my thoughts in bullet form.

• It is a pain in the ass to get to the outer banks. However, it is worth it. It is a beautiful area. We were in Avon, NC. It is a very small area in OBX.
• That was the first time I road in an elevator in a house. I did it in two houses. The wedding party rented a house that was like four levels. It was a great house and had an elevator. How awesome is that???
• The bar next to where we were staying had the NFL ticket and $1.50 PBRS. It also happened to be right across the street from the wedding reception.
• The bar had a game around the PBRs. The bottle cap of every pbr has a playing card on it (i.e. 4 of clubs, Queen of spades, etc). Well, if you guessed the number right, the beer was free. I won it twice.
• Since this bar gets directv, I was able to watch the Liverpool/Chelsea match Sunday morning on fox soccer channel. Have I mentioned that I loved this bar?
• The wedding food was some of the best wedding food I have ever had. Everything tasted great.
• Fastest wedding I have ever been to.
• Starting at the bar at noon was not my best idea. It made for a LONG day.
• Traveling home Monday was a little painful. I might have had a headache.
• Samantha may have been sleeping for her first father/daughter dance. She was not impressed.
• Jumping into the pool at the reception was not a good idea. I was cold!
• I did make into the ocean on Saturday. The water was not cold. It felt great.

It was a great time and the wedding and reception were great. The night before the wedding was really fun too! I would go back to OBX again in a heartbeat.

Preview of the week

Ok. I was traveling all day yesterday so that is why I did not blog. I did post three times on Friday though! All right, so below is the 4 day breakdown for the week.

10/6 - Our weekend in the Outer Banks including one of the best bars ever!
10/7 - DVRs - Am I watching too much tv????
10/8 - Can the Dodgers make it to the WS?
10/9 - Random Friday!

Happy Tuesday! (I really need to take more Monday's off!)

Worst Football Play of All Time

Bare with me but this video show highlights of an amazing high school football game that ends on maybe the biggest mistake ever.

Tiger Woods!!!!!!!

Wow Tiger! I want to say congratulations! Well, it was a goal of Lebron to become the first billionaire athlete and as everyone though, you beat him to the punch.

You know the scare thought is that Tiger is only 33 (I think). He might be 34. Anyway, he will easily make it to 2 billion before he is done. That is just crazy.

Billionaire athlete. I wonder if you told someone in 1979 that 30 years from now we will have a billionaire athlete, they would think you are CRAZY.

My daughter is already over 6 months old!

Ok, this blog might be a little sappy so please skip it if you want. Please do not take my man card away.

Dear Samantha,

Before you were born, I am not sure if I have ever even kept a plant alive for 6 months let alone another human being. It amazes me how much you change even on a day to day basis. You now love to roll and roll and roll. You are finding your voice more everyday and you have two teeth. On a side note, thank God that you are over the teething temporarily because you have started to sleep for 11 hours at night. Thank you. You have become quite the little traveler and you do an amazing job with it every time. You still love hanging out at the Purple Otter and watching some sports. To be honest, you love watching sports on TV. Lets hope this stays. In this short six month period, you have added such much vibrancy, excitement, and love to our house. It is really indescribable. On days where you are not at home (staying with Nana and Papa) or on trips where you are not with us, the house/the atmosphere just is not the same. Your smile alone can light up a room. You are quite the social butterfly and do not like to sleep if people are over. I would like to take this moment to apologize for giving you my hair. I know. It is not good.

Now, on to more important details. Over the last 6 months, we have come to certain agreements. I just wanted to put them in writing so we can look back on them 14-20 years from now.

1. This is a big one. You said you would not start dating until you get a draft card (Lauren - You are not allowed to talk to her about this).
2. Michelle and I will pay for college or a wedding but not both.
3. When you go away to college, it will be in a warmer climate than Chicago (south or west) (unless you go to Loyola).
4. For every year before the age of 16 that you want a cell phone, take that many years and add it to 16. That is the year you can start dating. For example, if at 13 you want a cell phone, then you can start dating when you are 19.
5. Makeup follows the same rules as a cell phone. I glad we agree on this.
6. If you bring a boy to my house that has a popped collar, I get to pop him in the mouth.
7. We agreed to talk about clothes at a later date. You allowed me to have veto power on any outfit.

Those are the things so far. I am sure there will be more. Even after 6 months, it is hard to imagine a world without you and hopefully, I never will see one. I love you with all my heart and I am looking forward to the months, years, decades ahead. Happy 1/2 birthday!

Love,

Your Father

P.S. Yes, I know. I am like two weeks late with this.

Reality TV - Always a game

I want to talk about two shows, Top Chef and Biggest Loser. These are two "reality" shows I do love watching.

Let us first start with Biggest Loser. Before I get into this season , hat scares me the most about Biggest Loser is that people think the show is about showing healthy living. All reality tv is a GAME. This is not different. Coach Dos actually wrote a great blog about this. I highly recommend reading it. I enjoy games. I enjoy these reality tv shows.

After the first few episodes, I have come to realize that these trainers have a HUGE EGOS. Get off your high horse. You are working with people that are ridiculously obese. You have them 24/7. You have them eating 1,200 calories a day. You are not the world's greatest weight loss trainer Jillian. You happen to work in a very unique environment. I was bummed the Red team left. I thought both guys had a great chance of winning. Tracey is crazy. I really have no other way of putting it. She is CRAZY. I really do not have a favorite yet. Red team was my fav. It will be interesting to see how this season plays out. After a couple more weeks, I will form a better opinion on the 5 minutes I see of each of their lives because that is what I do!

Top Chef - Now this is a reality tv show that embraces the game. Quickfires are at the beginning for prizes and main meals are done usually at random places for the elimination each week. On a side note, we have a bet with the Neyers (also avid watchers of this show). Each of us picked a chef to win it all. The losing family has to send a food from their city (i.e. Chicago style pizza if we lose) to the winning team's house. I love gambling. Lets just say that Neyer is already out (never trust the French!!!! I tried to warn you). I am not far behind probably. The final episode could come down to Michelle and Jessica's picks (the brothers).

As for this season, I really like the brothers and either of them could win. I really think the final four is going to be Michael Voltaggio, Bryan Voltaggio, Jennifer Carroll and Kevin Gillespie. My pick, Eli, has floated in the middle since the beginning. Eventually, he will be gone. Anyway, there could be a slip up between now and then but it would not surprise me if that is your final four.

Another reason I like this show is that it gives us ideas of restaurants to check out. Top Chef Master's winner was Rick Bayless. His specialty is Mexican and he is from Chicago. Well, Michelle and I went to one of his restaurants, Topolobampo since the show and are heading to Frontera grill in about 10 days! Spike who was a contestant on the show a few years ago has a eatery in DC. We headed there last weekend with Kathryn. Loved it! The show really does give you good ideas for places to eat. How can you not love that?

Anyway, I really hope Bryan (Jess' pick) gets knocked out on a screw up soon so we can celebrate our victory over the 'Nati folk but I do not see it.

Yeah reality tv! Happy Thursday!

Underrated TV Show

I am pretty sure I have written about this show before but if you are not watching "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia", you are missing out. It is on FX and is one of the best comedies on TV right now. I may rank it #1. The show is so overboard that it is funny. I have no idea how they talked Danny DeVito into being part of the show but I am sure glad they did. He is great.

So, for those of you who do not know the show, it is about a few friends (the buddies and one of the buddies' sister) who own a hole in the wall bar in Philadelphia. Danny DeVito plays the father of the brother/sister. Outside of Devito's character, they are all in their 20s and each show is a different adventure.

Sorry for the pitiful summary but if you want to check out an episode or two, check out the last episode of season 4 or the one from last week involving the road trip (on hulu.com). If you do not like those, you will not like the show.

Happy Hump Day!

DC/Arlington

So, Michelle had to go to Baltimore for a work meeting. Since Kathryn lives there, we decided to make a long weekend of it with Samantha. Out flight out there was on Thursday night after Samantha's bed time. She slept from before take off until after we landed. It was impressive.

It was both Michelle's and my first time into Dulles airport. I never want to go back. Please put in Reagan every time. We did not know you could walk to baggage and ended up on those weird buses. Well, it took FOREVER. Anyway, we finally made it to Kathryn's place and crashed.

Friday - Michelle had to work. Kathryn worked in the morning. I worked some and we entertained Samantha (or did she entertain us???). For lunch, Kathryn, Sam and I hit up a local joint and then after lunch we picked up Michelle. Since none of us got much sleep, we decided to stay in Friday. However, Michelle and Kathryn made this GIANT cheese fondue for dinner. It was enough to feed 8. We also had taco dip and hummus. I am pretty sure we all had food coma afterwards.

Saturday day - Samantha slept great...woohoo!!!. I started the day with a shotgun with all the boys who were tailgating in Happy Valley for the Penn State/Iowa game. Thirty minutes later, I hit the Gold's gym a block away from Kathryn's. Yes, I am a walking paradox. We had plans to go to the Nationals game on Saturday. It was cold and raining so we decided beforehand to only stay a few innings. The metro stops really close to the stadium (closer than the "EL" to The Cell). The stadium is fairly new and I loved it. I did not have much expectations. There is a great bar in right center that is open and has an amazing view of the game. We never made it to our seats. Check this view out from the bar area! (Side note: Sam is not impressed)

Here is a couple of the ladies sitting at the bar. Even sam was enjoying the Coors light.

We stay for about 6 innings and took off. I would definitely go back! We headed home. Once we got home Sam and I took naps and Kathryn and Michelle got pedicures. We were pretty beat that night but we made it to Good Stuff Eatery. Spike from a previous season of Top Chef is the main chef. It is a burger place were you stand in line to order. I got a toasted marshmallow shake and spike special burger. Both were delicious. We capped off the night by watching Iowa beat up on Penn State!

Sunday - Kathryn got us tickets to the Washington Monument. We checked out the views from the top for a little while. Again Samantha was not impressed.

Afterwards, we headed to brunch and then the airport. The plane ride home was the first flight were Samantha was a bit of a terror. She was over tired and would not fall asleep. We were in the way back so hopefully we didn't bother too many people.

Anyway, it was a great trip and Kathryn was a great host. Next weekend in the outer banks of NC for a wedding. I am looking forward to October when I do not have to go anywhere for a month!

Happy Tuesday!

Blogging

Quite frankly, I have been letting my blog slip for months. Over the next 6 weeks, I am going to put my blog back on track. Of course, I am not sure what track that is....

I pledge to you that I will put up 10 blogs (one daily) for the next 10 business days and this one does not count. Also, I am going to put up a preview of topics.

Monday - 28th - Fantasy football/Denver Broncos (monday's blog is below this one)
Tuesday - 29th - Our weekend in DC
Wednesday - 30th - Its always sunny in Philadelphia
Thursday - 1st - Biggest Loser and Top Chef
Friday - 2nd - How the hell is my daughter already over 6 months old!

Happy Monday!

Fantasy Football / Denver Broncos

I think people play fantasy football for various reasons but it is a clear one for me. It is easily for the camaraderie of it. Honestly, once the actual season starts, I am not that into the whole thing. I mean I keep my roster up and look for trades or players to pick up. However, the best part of fantasy football is the draft. I am in two leagues and I will stay in those leagues for sure.

The first league I have been in for 14 years. The draft is always the Sunday of labor day weekend at my brother's house. People travel from all over such as California, North Carolina, and Oklahoma. These are guys I literally see once a year. We eat too much, drink too much and have a great time doing it. It is always one of my favorite days of the year.

The second league I am in started a couple years ago and is mainly friends from college. Now, we do not get together in a single location but it is a giant conference call that last for hours. This year a few of us that are in Chicago got together at my house. We did the draft from my rooftop with some beer and pizza. It was a great time and hopefully we will do it again next year.

I would never be in a fantasy football league whose draft is done by the computer. The best part of fantasy football is the draft!

Now, let us move on to the 3-0 Denver Broncos. They have a really tough schedule but opened with an easy few games (although Cinci is looking like a really good team). Denver needed to go 3-0 and they did. They needed to dominate bad teams and they have. I mean they have done everything that has been asked of them. Their defense is looking so much better this year. Their next 5 games are ridiculous but even if they can go 2-3 I would be happy. I also love Moreno. He is a good young running back! As much turmoil as the Broncos has in the off season, I am happy the season is here. I also LOVED that Shannon Sharpe parachuted into the first home game this year. Of course, he is not in the hall of fame because Broncos are not allowed but that did not stop Pat Bowen from retiring his number for the Broncos. It is much deserved! You can consider me cautiously optimistic. I mean if the Broncos can sweep the Raiders and the Chiefs, that would put them at 6 wins. Even if the go 2-8 the rest of the games, that is an 8-8 record. Who would have guessed them not to have a losing record at the beginning of the year? Not me!

Happy Monday!

Top 5 - Patrick Swayze

RIP Patrick Swayze. In honor of his death, I am doing a top 5 movies for the myth, the man, the legend, Patrick Swayze. He was in a few movies that I love. My list will look VERY different than any female that posts her top 5 in my comment section.

Before I post my top 5, here are a few interesting facts about the man.

1. In 1991, he was chosen as People magazine "sexiest man alive". Of course, this is one year after Ghost came out.
2. He attended Joffrey ballet school.
3. He first met his wife when she was 14 years old. He was 18. She was taking dance lessons from his mother.

On to my top 5...

1. Road House - Any movie that also involves Terry Funk is going to be high on my list! This really was a no brainer for me.
2. Point Break - The funny thing about this movie is that I can not turn it off these days. Every time it is on, it sucks me in.
3. The Outsiders - This is just an amazing movie. There are so many talented actors in this movie including Tom Cruise, Swayze, Ralph Macchio, Matt Dillon, Rob Lowe, C. Thomas Howell and Emilio Estevez. If you have not seen it, rent it.
4. Red Dawn - WOLVERINES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
5. Dirty Dancing - Nobody puts baby in the corner.

RIP Swayze.

Editor's Note: I have never seen Next of Kin. I know...shocking.

Happy birthday to 2 Legends!

Arnold Palmer turns 80 today and CFunk turns 35!

Here are a few interesting facts about both individuals.

1. Arnold Palmer is a legendary golfer. CFunk is a legendary karaoke singer.

2, Arnold Palmer invented the drink, half lemonade/half ice tea (the arnie palmer). Funk invented the poop bomb (half PBR with a shot of malort).

3. Arnold Palmer has endorsement deals with Wyndham Hotels, Rolex, Golf Channel, Callaway - to name a few. Funk has endorsement deals with Malort, Casual Male XL, Chicago White Sox - to name a few.

4. They share the same birthday! Happy birthday Arnie and happy birthday Funk!

McDonalds $1 Menu

I need to give some credit to McDonalds. With their dollar menu, I am not sure I will ever eat one of their meals again. McDoubles which are double cheeseburgers are only $1. Hello!!!!!!! This is ridiculous. I mean a whopper with cheese is $4 at Burger King.

Lets do some more digging. The McChicken is $1. It is not a bad sandwich and a good change of pace if you ever want to get something other than a burger. Where most of these places make their money is on drinks. Well, a large drink is $1. So, if I don't pack my lunch, I am grab two mcdoubles, a large drink and walk out paying $3.32 (thank you Chicago tax rate). Hell, if I drink water, it is $2.21.

Anyway, they have dessert on the dollar menu (apple pie or cookies). If you are a fry guy, small fry is on there. Basically, their dollar menu is a nice assortment of choices for any meal. I just wanted to give it some love. Thank you McDonalds!

Lunch today!

So a couple weeks ago, Rick Bayless won Top Chef Masters. He happens to be a Chicago chef whose specialty is Mexican. April and Michelle met him at the conference they went to about a month ago.

He has two restuarants in Chicago: Topolobampo and Frontera Grill. Well, we heard that after he won Top Chef Masters, he put his winning dishes on the menu at Topolobampo for two weeks. Michelle and I were super excited to hear that. So we made reservations and Michelle, myself and April are going there today for lunch. On a sidenote, dinner reservations were booked until end of September. Yikes!

I love mexican food. I just hope my stomach can handle it. Last weekend, I got some food poisoning (no Chipotle for a long time) and I have slowly been building myself back up.

We are also going to his other restuarant, Frontera grill, with the Mike and April in October. We need to give Rick Bayless some love for bringing home the Top Chef Masters to Chicago!

A quick did you know

So, last weekend was the Solheim Cup. I wish my weekend wasn't already busy. That would have been a fun tournament to go see. Congrats to the ladies for keeping that cup where it belongs in the USA!

Anyway, did you know that the cup is named after Karsten Solheim, a Norwegian-born engineer. Not only is Karsten known for inventing the rabbit ear antennas for televisions but also for inventing the irons. Thank you Karsten. Without you, my golf game would be EVEN worse! I didn't think that was possible!

Happy Thursday! QUIT RAINING CHICAGO!

Weekend Wrap-up

So, last weekend I was camping and thank god I was. I am pretty sure I had one of the worst sports weekends ever. The Dodgers lost 2 out of 3 to Arizona. Kyle Orton looked like Kyle Orton on Friday. Tiger blew the PGA. Liverpool opened the season with a loss. Boooooo.

Here are some random thoughts from the weekend.

1. After listening to nothing but Brooks & Dunn both ways to and from the camp grounds, I am even more upset about the breakup.
2. Kix Brooks is easily my favorite of the two. His songs are the best.
3. In my opinion, the top three albums of B&D in order are Brand New Man, Steers and Stripes then Hard Working Man.
4. We had perfect weather camping (i.e. no rain).
5. The trails that I did at Turkey Run State Park were pretty good.
6. It has been a while since I slept in a tent but I had no problem. Thank you Tylenol PM.
7. Samantha did great. I think she was on sensory overload between the 5 dogs, the new environment and being outside all the time.
8. I think that was the first time Samantha had seen an open fire.
9. Driving down Rt 41 is so much better than I65. There is so much less traffic.
10. It was fun to enjoy the outside for a couple days but my bed sure did feel good last night!

Happy Monday!

Kix and Ronnie - Say it ain't so!

After 20 years of producing music together, Country's greatest duo of all time is calling it quits. Consider me devistated. They are making a greatest hits album and going on tour one more time next year. You can bet Michelle and I will be there for sure!

B&D are my favorite band in country music history. I always say that B&D opened the door to country music for me and George Strait shut and locked the door behind me. It was 20 great years. Selfishly, I was hoping for 40.

You will be missed B&D.

Samantha's Saturday

Here is rough idea of Samantha's timeline on Saturday.

6:20 - Wake up
6:30 - 8:50 - Play with dad.
8:50 - Wake mom up.
8:50-9:45 - Play with mom while dad sleeps.
9:45 - Eat again
10:00 - Take a nap
11:10 11:50 - Wake up and watch the end of Point Break with daddy.
12:00 - 12:30 - Car ride over to the zoo.
12:30 - 2:30 - Chill at the zoo and have another meal while there.
2:30 - 2:50 - Head home
3:00 - 3:30 - Play with mom while dad sleeps.
3:40 - Eat more.
4:00 - 6:00 - Take a long nap with mom.
6:30 - Meet the Fedeas at Frasca for dinner. Have a bottle there.
8:00 - Head home for the night.
8:30 - Take a bottle and go to bed.

Not a bad day kid!

RIP John Hughes - And a top 5!

John Hughes is easily one of my favorite writer/directors ever. Most of his movies also gave love to Chicago. Any person growing up in the 80s knows his movies, has been influenced by his movies. Here are my top 5 favorite movies that John Hughes wrote. I am also attaching an awesome montage tribute to the myth, the man, the legend.

1. Ferris Bueller's Day Off - This is not even close. What a great movie.
2. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
3. Breakfast Club
4. The Great Outdoors
5. National Lampoon's Vacation (the original)

I want to give a shout out Wierd Science. I can not believe I left you off the top 5. Also, I want to tell everyone to watch Career Oppurtunities. It is a very underrated movie with a young Jennifer Connolley.

Anyway, here is the montage. What is your top 5?

Happy Birthday Dad!

Today my father turns 70! My wife has a write-up on how we celebrated on Saturday.

As someone recently told me "he is 70 going on 40. That is for sure". That is a very true statement. A few facts about my father.

1. He is an ex-marine.
2. As I write this blog, he is on a golf course. Later today, he will be playing cards with friends. Tough life...i know.
3. He is going on being retired for 10 years!
4. In those 10 years of retirement, he has managed to go through all 32,000 combinations of free cell that are on the old computer downstairs. There is one he can not do. Although with a little research, I found out that #11,982 is not solvable. No one can do it. I think it is time for a new version of free cell.

Anyway, I hope you have a great birthday dad! Hit them long and straight! Ok, just keep them straight!

I can not make fun of her.

She undoubtedly got these eating habits from me. I can be seen eating like this on a weekly basis.

Click here to view this video

RIP Gidget

Another link from CFunk.





At the old age of 15, Gidget has passed away. I think I will eat some taco bell this weekend in Gidget's honor. Who knows? I might even Legally Blonde 2....probably not.

RIP Gidget. RIP.

Do not mess with this guy!

Thank you CFunk for the link.

So, an ex-Marine is camping with his family when a bear comes up to camp. Well, very quickly the bear turns on the kids. The marine then throws a log at the head of the bear and KILLS IT! Wow.

Moral of the story: Do not mess with Marines.

Restaurant Crawl - Do's and Dont's

So, if any of you read my wife's blog, you already know that last Saturday, Kathryn, Michelle and myself went on a restaurant crawl in Roscoe Village. It will come of no surprise that the crawl was my idea. I have a short attention span and am up for anything that keeps me moving! I heard about a restaurant crawl on the radio as a date idea and loved it. I digress.

I learned a few things while planning this crawl. Here are my observations.

1. Be flexible. Pick a location that has other options. My biggest fear in doing this was that the places would have long waits. Amazingly (and I think sadly), most of these places were empty.

2. If you really want certain places, call them and set up reservations. We got lucky.

3. Check menus before going. Places must have good appetizers. Otherwise, the crawl will be one restaurant long.

4. Keep an eye on the clock. Don't lolly gag. Most crawls die because you lose track of time. I allotted 45 minutes per place and it worked out well.

5. Stay away from food that has lots of volume. Let me explain. Chicken tenders are good because they usually come on a plate with 3 or 4 of them. Sweet potato fries usually come in a giant mound. Now, they are good but they fill your belly quickly. In this regard, Volo was great. Trying five different cheeses with some wine was a great way to start us off. The sweet potato fries and then later the chips and salsa, even though they tasted great, killed us from getting dessert.

Happy crawling!

Random thoughts

First, softball last Thursday did not turn out so well. We just did not play well and lost 10-3. This week is a bye and I expect the team to bounce back nicely.

I watched UFC 100 on Saturday and have a few thoughts about the event.
1. It was a great card, well worth the $55.
2. I loved Brock Lesnar's post interview. He is playing the role of villain nicely.
3. I also loved Dan Henderson's post interview. How packed was the Monte Carlo bar?
4. Speaking of Dan Henderson, keep me away from his right hand. WOW.
5. With Lesnar's skill set now, it will be really hard for him to lose.
6. The cheeseburger cupcakes Michelle made looked amazing and tasted even better!
7. GSP needs to go up a weight class and take on Silva. He is too good at his current weight!

Sunday, we went up to Milwaukee to watch the Dodgers/Brewers game. The weather was perfect. Highway 94 was the opposite of the weather. It took close to 2.5 hours to get back to my house. There is construction everywhere!

Happy Tuesday!

Free Stuff!

I have seen too many free things not to summarize them right here, right now. I owe my readers (or reader, I am pretty sure I am down to one) that much.

First off, my boys, my favorite fast food place, White Castle turns 88 this year. WOOHOO! I heart you! Anyway, the actual birthday is in September but they are running a promotion of 10 slyders for 4.88 all summer and there is this coupon. One FREE sylder!

Secondly, I just received this in an email from a co-worker. From now until end of day monday, if you buy a soft drink from Arby's, you get a free BBQ bacon and cheddar roast burger. Cheese, bacon, BBQ...can't go wrong there.

Thirdly, next Wednesday McDonalds is running the 0.49 hamburger campaign. Limit 5. Always a good time.

Last but not least, tomorrow is July11 which means free slurpees at 7-11! Woohoo. Here is a link of some fun slurpee facts. Thanks Ahow for the link and reminder.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Best Idea for a basement....

Thank you Steve for sending me this link.




So, for 15k, "You get four TVs, a 1200-watt Panasonic 5.1 home theater, DVD player with 5-disc changer, iPod docking station, a keg-o-rator, microwave oven, two cigar humidors, 32-bottle wine rack and — get this — a 7-foot long sports ticker with its own computer built into it."

Wow just wow. I would like to add a little more if I could. I want to expand the main frame so the TV could be a little bigger. Can we put a shelf for hard liquor and hard liqour glasses? That way we could have a full bar. Other than that, I think this wall is PERFECT.

Softball - Game 3

So last Thursday we had a LATE softball game, 9:40 start. We were missing a lot of people so we pulled in three subs. On a sidenote, thank you subs!

So, our defense as usual was playing strong. This week Mary subbed for us and played 2nd. She played great. That is now two weeks in a row we had a sub play awesome at 2nd. We could not get our bats going. We were losing 5-2 going into the bottom of the 7th. Well, our bats finally starting producing. We scored 3 runs and forced extra innings.

In the top of the 8th, we gave up a run. In the bottom of hte 8th, we end up scoring 2 and getting the win!

Since Friday was a holiday for most and there was a broken down paddy wagon by our field, we decided to head to our roof top to celebrate the win.

We are now 2-1 with a plus 10 run differential through three games!

Dodgers and Softball.

Matt Kemp owes me an apology. The dodgers lost to the white sox in 13 or 14 innnings last Thursday. I do not even remember now. Matt Kemp who is usually our best hitter went 0 for 7 and cost us the game defensively. ARGH! He blew a routine fly ball to start the inning and cause the final run to be scored. You owe me a jersey!

Softball last thursday was awesome. We won 12-2 in 5 innings. We were winning 12-0 in the 5th but gave up 2 runs. We were only playing with nine people and we had to take an automatic out at the bottom of the lineup because we only had three girls.

Michelle who had not played softball in almost 2 years played great. Her first two at bats she got timely hits. She was playing 2nd base and had a lot of action. I think she had 5 put outs during the game. She looked like she had been playing 2nd her whole life. She was worried about playing so it was a nice surprise to play that well. Our team really came together and I think we will be a force to reckon with this year. Our defensive is good which will keep us in every game. Should be a great year.

The Bet!

Funk and I made a bet on today's White Sox/Dodgers game. If the Dodgers lose, I have to buy a Pierre Dodgers jersey. I then have to wear it out one night and get heckled. Lets just say I hate Juan Pierre in many ways. If the White Sox lose, Funk has to buy a Podsednik jersey. He then has to wear it out one night and get heckled. Big bet!

Well, right now the score is tied and we are in the top of the 8th! AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

Transformers....

was AWESOME. Of course you are going to like the movie if you are a transformer fan. Here are a few random thoughts without giving away the movie.

1. Watching it on the IMAX helps. It is big, intense, loud - the movie and the screen!
2. The movie was funnier than I was expecting.
3. Much like an action movie, not too much developement but lots of action.
4. Not as good as the original
5. I still loved it and was glad I went to the opening night.

Now, go out and watch this movie!

More Random Comments

1. "Cheese is said to have been discovered by an Arab nomad travelling across the desert during the Neolithic period with milk in a container made from an animal’s stomach. The enzymes in the stomach curdled the milk." Now that is one extra treat for making your way through a desert!
2. The rematch of the 1959 World Series starts tonight. Even though I like both teams, lets hope the outcome is similar.
3. Transformers opens at 12:01 am tonight. Lets just say I am going and I am watching on the IMAX. Yes, I am VERY EXCITED!
4. No. Really. Transformers. Tonight. TONIGHT! EXCITED!
5. RIP Ed McMahon. The true definition of a wing man. Dare I say the best Wing man ever. RIP.

Have a good Tuesday!

Randomness

1. The weekend was good. My wife did a great job of summarizing the last four days on her blog.
2. Sunday was great. It was a lazy day of watching golf, playing Wii, and taking naps.
3. Watching little league is fun but it can really drag on. Three hours for a game is too long. Both of my nephews are better players than I ever was. That is not saying much though.
4. I love little league concession stands. So cheap and so good.
5. Now that summer is finally here, the family needs to hit the pool at Hamlin park.
6. Heading this Friday to Minneapolis for a wedding. Lets just say June was a very busy month!
7. Love the #7. Elway!!!

Happy Monday!

Softball - Game 1

Last Thursday, we started our 16 inch co-rec softball team. For the most part, the team is the same. Last year, due to our defense, we were able to make it to the final 4.

This year, we started off rusty. Our offense was okay but our defense was giving up outs. We ended up losing 10-9. We were the home team and had a guy on 3rd when we got our third out. reat close game but if we were in mid-season, we would have smoked that team.

I played ok and I think we have a decent team. Should be a good year!

Gran Torino

I watched Gran Torino last night. I loved this movie. It is not an action packed movie or just your random enjoyable movie. This movie will make you think and Eastwood pulls off just an amazing character that has many layers. I actually was also a big fan of the priest in this movie. I thought his role was quite good. Now, the movie was a bit of a slow burn but well worth it. Plus, Eastwood's character's beer of choice was Pabst. Now that is what I am taking about!

I love how Ebert started off his review of the movie.

"I would like to grow up to be like Clint Eastwood. Eastwood the director, Eastwood the actor, Eastwood the invincible, Eastwood the old man. What other figure in the history of the cinema has been an actor for 53 years, a director for 37, won two Oscars for direction, two more for best picture, plus the Thalberg Award, and at 78 can direct himself in his own film and look meaner than hell? None, that's how many."

Well said Ebert.

Now, go rent it and tell me what you think!

NOOOOO!

Oh poor beer and a miller truck on top of it. Today is sad day, a day of mourning.

The driver should be fired!

Why did they not call me? I would have helped "clean up" (drink right? That is what clean up means)

A picture is worth 1,000 words.

This one maybe worth more!

Janice Dickinson is crazy

So more write-up I am celebrity. Get me out of here. Janice Dickinson is on the show and in true celebrity fashion does not want to do anything and is actually quite manipulative. Here is my take on her.



Either she forgets that the cameras are EVERYWHERE or she is insane. I am just not sure which one it is. Let me explain.



So the girls won that infamous math problem challenge. Part of the winning prize was four granola bars, one for each girl. Well, Janice swipes a bar, goes away from camp and stuffs her face with the bar. Then everyone is upset because it appears somone stole the bar. They look around for it and can not find it. Well, Janice then eats ANOTHER bar. Fine. Whatever. She then goes to the confessional room to talk to America and says she has no idea where the bar went and explains that it is missing!!!!!!!!!!



Janice - we can see everything! Cameras are everywhere! Are you insane?



Another story - So camp is out in the open. They do have a outhouse to do business and there is a river pretty close by. Well, at night Janice will wake up. Take one step away from her cot and go #1. This happened enough that the producers sent a warning that this has to stop. If it persists, rats will come and then snakes. She again denies this in camp but people are on to her and then in confessional denies it. JANICE - WE SEE YOU!!!!



She is insane.

I am a celebirty. Get me out of here. MATH.

Last night's episode had quite the interesting challenge in it. Let me paint the picture.

Think of a two man saw that lumberjacks use to cut through giant logs. After you are through the log, you free a scroll that contains a long math problem. Basically the math problem consists of around15 number 2-4 digits in length. The only mathmatical functions within the problem are addition and subtraction. The final answer will be a four digit number that is a combination for a lock. The first team to open the lock wins the challenge.

It is guys vs girls. John Salley and Stephen Baldwin vs Torrie Wilson and Patti Blago.

In what I thought was going to be the shock of the night, the girls saw through the wood faster than the guys. I am still not sure how this is possible. Maybe since Salley is so much taller, the blade keep getting stuck. I am just not sure. Anyway, the women start working on the math problem....

After 7 minutes of working on the problem, the guys are through. This math problem is not complicated and there are TWO people there. This math problem is something like this.

267-84+456-124+784-76+390+91-23+211-543+832-211+112-34

After 36 minutes, the women finally crack the code. 36 MINUTES! ARE YOU KIDDING ME! Two people. TWO. Listen. You take this problem one step at a time and make the second person remember where you are at. Is that hard? NO! This should have been complete in under 5 minutes.

Here is what I mean..
267-84 = 183. You tell the 2nd person to remember 183. Now add 456. 639. Tell that person to keep 639 in their mind. And so forth.

I am completely amazed at how terrible they were at math. Addition and Subtraction. I am willing to bet that my nephew Jackson and I could have solved this math problem in under 10 minutes without even breaking a sweat.

What a show.

I am celebrity. Get me out of here.

Ok, Sorry for the lack of blogs. I promise to pick it up. I really need to let off a little steam here. The commute to work every day this week has been 54 and rainy and this celebrity show is blowing my mind.

I will do an overview of the show tomorrow but right now I want to talk Patti Blagojevich.

I can not BELIEVE the angle she is taking. Woe is me and my family. My husband is a great man. We have done nothing wrong. ENOUGH.

Your husband is a crook and so are you. Your real estate company has been in business with Tony Rezko for over 10 years. After getting big lump sums of money from Rezko, he then sends Rod, our ex govenor, a list of candidates (19) that Rezko wants to be put on nonpaying boards. Our govenor appoints 10 of them to to a state board or commission.

Last night she had the audacity to defend their decision to live in their house in Chicago. They didn't want to uproot their kids and move to springfield. Well, guess what, then DONT RUN FOR GOVENOR. I really dont care if you and your kids stay up in Chicago but for Rod to commute every day to Springfield is $5,800. That is right. He was costing the tax payers $5,800 a day to commute. Sounds pretty silly considering our budget is so far in deficit. She said on tv "The people of springfield felt slighted." REALLY! As a tax payer of Illinois, I feel slighted! AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

On one of the wire taps, Rod was asked about this high commuting charge and was basically asked what do you think the citizens of Illinois think about it. His response "F*&K them." Real nice.

What is even worse is that the other celebrities are taking it hook, line and sinker. Are you kidding me? I can only imagine that national audience is too.

I am going crazy. They should have put an informed citizen of Illinois in camp too.

I keep watching to see what she will say next. She is UNBELIEVABLE. I guess she is a good match for Rod. Both are just out of this world.

Back home.

Sorry for the lack of blogs recently. As you all know, I was in Florida for the last 8 days with the family. It was Samantha's first vacation and she met a lot of new friends and family. It was a great time and I have a couple blogs to post about the trip. However, here is quick overview of a few things that happened.

1. Michelle's dad started off hot on the golf course. Then the rain came in. Think Caddyshack and the priest going for the course record. Luckily after hte 6th hole we talked him into stopping.
2. I saw Star Trek and Terminator Salvation. Star Trek was amazing. It was so good. I was never a big trek fan but I loved this movie. It is no surpise that the rotten tomatoes rating is so high. Just a great movie. Terminator was good too but not in the same league as Star Trek. I would recommend seeing both in the theater.
3. Vic and I went to game 4 of the Eastern conference finals . WHAT. A. GAME. That place was rocking! I will blog more about this later.
4. Samantha liked hanging out in the hottub. She had a little floatie that she would sit in and chill. It helped that the water temp was 92-94 degrees.
5. Food. I am pretty sure I gained more weigh down there than if I was on a cruise. Man, there was a lot of food.
6. I finally beat Super Mario Galaxy on Wii. This is no easy feat. Collecting 120 stars takes a long time. Now I opened up Luigi and have to do it all over again...yikes.
7. It was a fun and relaxing time down there but I am sure glad to be home.

Preakness Win

So another horse race and another win for me at the Preakness. I made a few exacta bets for the race. Lucky me because one of them was 13/2. The funny thing was I also bet 13/1 and at the beginning of the race, this was looking really good. Once I saw 1 fall behind, I was bummed out and then when they showed 13/2, someone yelled at me "Hey, you won." $2 bet was turned into $40. Nothing too special but fun none the less.

Have a great week!

Thank you Turf Paradise

I am a little behind on my blogging. I apologize. Let me tell you about one of my great gambling moments. They are few and far between so I have to bask in them when I can.

The day of the Kentucky Derby, the Fedeas were having a few people over to watch the race. Well, without gambling, how interesting is the race? Really? So, Steve already made a few bets for us but we wanted to make a few more. So, we headed to the OTB across from Joe's bar.

Now we got there about 3.5 hours before the derby. However, the place was filling up. That place was hopping. I was shocked at how many women were dressed up walking around an OTB!!!

Anyway, we make our bets but of course we do not leave right away. There is too much action going on. Steve asks me for $4. He then makes a exacta bet on a random race. We watch it. One of the horses he bets comes in last.

We decide I need to pick one and then we will leave. I see a course is named "Turf Paradise" and there is a race in 4 minutes. Is there really a course names Turf Paradise? I was thinking maybe I misread it. Turf Paradise...really. Anyway, it is race 2 and I decide on two horses that are middle of the pack (3 and 7). The odds for both of them are floating around 10-1.

I walk up with $8 dollars and say "Turf Paradise, race 2". I paused thinking there is no way Turf Paradise is the correct name. The guy looked at me and said "what do you want to bet". I bet an exacta box on 3-7. That means we need 3 and 7 to come in first and 2nd. We don't care who gets which one just as long as they are 1st and 2nd.

The race starts and 8 jumps out to a big lead. #8 is 50 to 1. 3 and 7 are in 2nd/3rd. We are just hoping that #8 will slow down. After the 2nd turn, both the 3 and 7 start gaining on the #8 horse. AS they come into the final turn 3 and 7 are in the lead but now #5 horse is starting to pick up. Steve says it looks like 3 and 7 are wearing ankle weights. 3 and 7 hold off #5 and finished in 1st and 2nd. Steve and I are freaking out a little. The race is still unofficial. 5 minutes go by...still unofficial. If one of those horses get disqualified I was going to fly off the handle. Finally, it was official. We had won!

How much? $372 dollars on a $4 bet. We got our money and bolted out of there like we just robbed the place.

Not a bad way to start the Kentucky derby day.

Biggest Loser Finale

Let me explain a exacta bet. In horse racing, this means that you pick what two horses you think will finish first and 2nd. That is it. Usually the payoff is pretty good because picking the two horses in the right order is no small feat.

Anyway, at the beginnning of this season of biggest loser, if you were to make an exacta bet on who would win the 250k and 100k and you bet Helen and Jerry, well, on a $2 bet, you would have made thousands. On this note, is there a place where we can bet on the biggest loser? I feel like there should be.

I digress. My math a couple weeks ago was spot on. My predicitons were not. I thought Mike would be down to 180. He was at 181. I thought Tara needed to be 135 but could not make it. She didn't. She was at 135. I thought Helen needed to be 118 to have a chance. She was 117. I thought there was no way a 5'6" 48 year old would make it down to 117. Well, she did and congrats to her. Shame on Mike. All he had to do was make it to 176 and he wins everything.

Who had Tara getting third place? Hahahahaha. Suck it!

The story of the night though was Jerry. Holy crap! Way to go old man. He is 64 but is it just me or does he look a LOT older than that.

America screws over another one. If Ron went to the final three, Mike would have won the 100k. GO USA!

The finale was WAY TOO LONG. Thank you DVR. MVP of the night. We watched the finale in under 60 minutes.

Is it just me or was there a lot of people that did not care about 100k? Kristin - this was yours to lose. I mean Ron came close to winning it!

I can not wait for next season. I love watching fat people!

Under Siege

So, after we brought Samantha home, over the next few days, I quickly showed her my favorite spots to lay in the house. Over the course of the last 6 weeks, she has gotten more and more comfortable in my favorite spots. I can see the writing on the wall and it looks like I may have to find new spots. Too bad one of the is my side of the bed. I mean look below.

This looks like an impersonation of me more than anything else right now to the shirt half up.

Sometimes, in the morning, Samantha likes to join us for a few extra minutes of sleep. I find that she goes to my side and then start elbowing me off. Uh oh...

Well, there is always the floor...

Consider me excited to see a bald and toothless Tara tonight in the biggest loser!

NOOOOOOOOO!

Consider me crushed. Consider me shocked. Odd day has turned truly odd.

Manny Ramirez has tested positive for "performance enhancing drugs" and will be suspended 50 games. The Dodgers are off to an amazing start and have set a new record of most wins at home to start the season.

Manny is one of my favorite players. He comes across so much different than any other star athlete. Plus, I truly think that he is top 5 greatest right handed hitters of all time.

Boston fans love to complain that Manny does not try or does not care enough. Well, I guess that complaint is gone. He is willing to risk his career to be a better player.

It just doesn't make sense. Manny is so aloof. Steroids are not just about popping a pill or shooting yourself. It takes time and patience to cycle these in and out of your body not to mention discipline.

Well, as I write this, we are finding out it is not steroids but some banned substance that was given to him by a doctor. This sounds more like Manny, Manny being an idiot! Check that damn list of banned substances.

Anyway, for the next 50 games, Juan Pierre is going to get more playing time....
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

See you around July 4 Manny. You will be missed!

It's time to Celebrate!

Happy Odd Day!!!!!!!!! (thanks Sue for sending me an email about it)

Today's date 5/7/09 is one of only six this century that will feature three consecutive odd numbers.

New years happens every year. St. Patrick's Day...every year. This is the true time to celebrate!

Have an odd Thursday!

A Marathon...really...stupid.

First off, a 5'11" 18 year old who weighs 224 lbs only lost 10 lbs in 30 days. What? How did this happen? I went on a diet for 31 days which I did not follow 100% and drank alcohol once a week. I lost 13 lbs. I did it without even trying hard. He only lost 10.

I am handing Tara the championship. She is about one nervous push away from turning into a bulimic person. I wouldn't be surprised if she shows up at the finale 105 lbs with no teeth because she has been throwing up every meal.

Now, let me get to the worst idea I have seen on biggest loser since the half marathon. I know this is going to sound crazy because running is a very natural thing BUT here goes.

You should not run to get into shape. You should get into shape to run.

I know that sounds a little crazy. In all actuality, running is a fairly advanced form of exercise. Within any given mile, there are about 1500 foot strikes. Ask any personal trainer or strength coach if they would EVER allow an elite athlete (let alone these BL contestants) to perform a plyometric protocol that calls for 1500 foot strikes on a daily basis consistently, and I am willing to bet you will get some perplexed looks.

Running is very hard on your body when you are in shape. When you have extra weight, trying to run 10-15 miles at a time is putting unwanted stress on your body. Mike hurt his hip. No surprise here. That is number 2 for the show this year in which they have now run 13.1 miles and 26.2 miles.

You want them to do an endurance event. Fine. Have the ride the bike distance of ironman. Or better yet, put them in kayaks and have them race around. Rowing would be a great event. Forcing them to put that many miles on an overweight body is just stupid and it cost Mike more than anyone else. A hurt hip puts you on lockdown.

Tara running it in under 5 hours was impressive but if she would have tried any harder, I think that would have been stupid/dangerous. I have to admit that Ron pushing himself no matter what to finish was inspiring to me. I got caught in the moment. I am a sap like that sometimes.

That challenge should have never happened. That was a terrible decision by NBC.

RIP Captain Chaos!

Dom Deluise died on Monday at the age of 75. He was in many good comedies in his time but he stands more for Cannonball Run than any other movie. I loved the original and actually, I like the 2nd one too. He also played a great Emperor in History of the World Part I and the director in Blazzing Saddles...I digress.

Here is a big chunk from Cannonball Run. RIP Captain Chaos.RIP.



You can also watch Jackie Chan in his first movie kicking some arse during the fight.

Biggest Loser Math

So, now that it is down to the final four and Ron has no chance of winning, I wanted to take a closer look at the final three contestants.

Mike - 5'11", 18 years old. Original Weight - 388 lbs. Wow...he is only 5'11". He has lost 164 lbs so far and weighs 224. At 5'11" he could easily get to 180 lbs. Lets say he ends at 180 flat. That is a loss of 53.608%.

Tara - 5'9", 23 years old. Original Weight - 294 lbs. She is pretty tall. She has lost 125 lbs. She weighs 169. To keep up with Mike, she needs to lose 33 more lbs. That would be a loss of 53.74%. That also puts her at 136 lbs. I dont think she can get that skinny. That is really light but who knows.

Helen - 5'6", 47 years old. Original Weight - 257 lbs. She has lost 103 lbs. She weighs 154 lbs. She needs to end at 118 lbs to have a chance I think at winning this. That would put her at 54.08% loss. Can she do this? I think no way.

Now to put it a different way, Mike has to lose 44 more lbs to get to 180 or 19.6% of his weight. Tara has to lose 19.5% of her weight and Helen has to lose 23.4% of her weight. Helen is basically out too.

I personally think Tara is out too. Cutting down to belwo 140 will be much tougher I think than a 5'11" guy cuting to 180.

That is why they play the game!