---
Posted Wednesday, March 30, 2011: Sure
Sign of Spring No. 2 -- (or is it?) ... drove past a youth baseball
field the other day and saw green grass, a seemingly smooth and dry
infield, and bases in place ... when I said something to a Little League
coach in the town about having a field ready for play, I was told the
bases "... were left there over the winter." ...
---
Posted Tuesday, March 29, 2011: Sure Sign of Spring No. 1 ... The "No Skating" signs at Park Lakes in Rockaway have been taken down. ...
---
Posted Monday, March 28, 2011: What
if they gave a Final Four and there was nobody left in the pool? ...
the office pool in which I participated had 139 entrants ... only five
people have Kentucky winning it all; one person has UConn as the champ;
but not one of us college hoop geniuses picked either Virginia
Commonwealth or Butler to even reach the Final Four ... three people out
of the original 139 are in the running for the top prize ... and, while
no No. 1 seeds and no No. 2 seeds reached the Final Four ... not too
many reached in it our pool, either! ...
---
Posted Sunday, March 27, 2011: While
not quite admitting to brainwashing the grandkids on sports, Cooper (8)
and I were watching state TV the other day when they started showing
temperatures of towns two at a time in the weather crawl at the bottom
of the screen ... when "West Orange 41" and "Morristown 37" appeared,
Cooper turned to me and said, "Hey, Grandpa ... Morristown lost." ...
---
Posted Saturday, March 26, 2011: Sergio
Mitre, 3-6 with a 5.03 ERA in 39 games in two seasons with the Yanks,
has been traded to the Brewers for outfield help in the person of Chris
Dickerson ... maybe it was the TV camera angle, but I always admired the
movement Mitre had on the ball and would wonder aloud at times just how
he could be hit so hard ... but he was and, like the long ball he gave
up the other day against the Orioles, he is gone. ...
---
Posted Friday, March 26, 2011: March
Madness coverage in my favorite state newspaper has been awesome,
especially the "Visitors Guide" and "Guide to the Games" sections the
past two days ... although it was interesting seeing where you could go
to eat, sleep, dance, etc., in and around Newark, I choose to opt for
the well broken-in couch in our rec room where tonight I'll be joined by
two little fans because the bride and I have sleepover rights for two
of the grandkids ... just hope they root for my still-alive pool picks
Ohio State, UNC and Kansas ... especially Kansas, if you catch my drift.
...
---
Posted Thursday, March 24, 2011: The
only "sounds of spring" I've heard so far on my block are 1) sleet
hitting the windows; 2) snow blowers being fired up for yet another
frozen run; 3) the town snowplow sloshing up and down the street; and 4)
me "thanking" the driver for putting that nice pile of snow neatly
across the front of my just-cleared driveway. ...
---
Posted Wednesday, March 23, 2011: We
were watching one of those doo-wop shows on Public TV the other evening
and they cut off to a commercial for a set of CDs featuring 50s and 60s
groups ... a clip here and a clip there later I remarked to the bride
that at least "... we could understand all the words they were singing."
... I had to swallow my own words almost immediately because just then a
clip of the Crew Cuts came on singing their "Sh-Boom" (Life Could Be a
Dream) song that went: "Sh-boom sh-boom Ya-da-da Da-da-da Da-da-da Da;
Sh-boom sh-boom Ya-da-da Da-da-da Da-da-da Da; Sh-boom sh-boom Ya-da-da
Da-da-da Da-da-da Da, sh-boom!" ... I looked up the lyrics and also
found this: "Hey nonny ding dong, alang alang alang; Boom ba-doh, ba-doo
ba-doodle-ay." ... so now I guess I'm gonna have to apologize to every
rapper and every screamin' metal head I see for making fun of their
singing because I couldn't understand a word they sang. ...
---
Posted Tuesday, March 22, 2011: Now
that the state has given the approval for certain factilities to grow
and dispense marijuana for medical purposes, I'm toying with the idea of
submitting an application to the state to get subsidized for not
growing the weed in my backyard ... i'd call it my "Not for Pot Spot,"
or something like that. ...
---
Posted Monday, March 21, 2011: The
over-under for Derek Jeter's new batting stance is 20 games into the
new season ... and if his swing gets back to where it was when he was
driving the ball to the right side, then bat him in the No. 2 spot
behind Brett Gardner. ...
---
Posted Sunday, March 20, 2011: This
came straight from Peter Vecsey's columns in The Post and is worth
passing along ... did you know the Knicks were 7-6 in their first 13
with Melo while the Nuggets went 9-2 in their first 11 games without
their former ace? ... Peter also suggests he wouldn't be surprised if
The Heat ran the table the rest of the regular season since they face
but two formidable foes in that span. ...
---
Posted Saturday, March 19, 2011: I'm
sure he got a lecture about it from his bosses after the game, but you
have to admire Steve Kerr's honesty when doing March Madness TV color
the other night (please don't ask me to remember which game) he said -
more than once, too - that he wouldn't blame anybody for switching to
another game. ...
---
Posted Friday, March 18, 2011: I'm
sure I heard this between all the channel flipping and power naps
during Day One of March Madness ... one of the (too) many talking ex-NBA
heads was discussing the Tennessee coaching situation on whether or not
head coach Bruce Pearl would be back for another year and I'm pretty
certain I heard something that went like this: "Let's hope the Tennessee
athletic department looks at both sides of the situation before it
makes its rash decision." ... makes sense, I guess - one should always
think hard before making a rash decision." ...
---
Posted Thursday, March 17: An
online story suggested that employers just "give up" when trying to
curtail or even disallow office pools on the NCAA Basketball Tournament
... that by "encouraging" pools it would make for happier and
more-productive employees if pool players didn't have to sneak around
when conducting pool business or keeping up with scores - or, heaven
forbid, take off work to watch the games ... makes a lot of sense -
after all, they do call them "office" pools, correct? ...
---
Posted on Wednesday, March 16, 2011: The
high school football scene could be changing again if certain coaches
and ADs in the state get their way with an expanded playoff schedule
that would lead to true Group champions instead of stopping the
post-season at the sectional championship level ... extra playoff games,
however, could mean more money lost by the NJSIAA, which reported that
the lowering of ticket prices for championship games last year cut into
their finances to the extent the organization may run out of money and
go out of business ... that way, Assemblyman John Burzichelli
(D-Gloucester), who introduced the legislation that lowered the ticket
prices, would get his way and have the playoffs run by the New Jersey
School Board Association ... not sure if playing to Group championships
in football would be worth that risk. ...
---
Posted Tuesday, March 15, 2011: You
have to like the quote by NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament-bound
Rutgers basketball coach Vivian Stringer in today's Star-Ledger: "It
doesn't take much to motivate me ... just a different colored jersey."
...
---
Posted Monday, March 14, 2011: I
did what everybody and his brother did when I put down "Ohio State" as
my first winning team in the March Madness office pool bracket ... and
then I got stuck on George Mason vs. Villanova and actually had to look
up some stuff before picking George Mason ... as usual, I'll probably be
eliminated after the first weekend of play and, even when Kansas wins
it all, I'll have lost enough games on the road that it won't do me any
good -- but, one can dream, can't one? ...
---
Posted Sunday, March 13, 2011: Why
do TV directors think that it is important for us to see screaming,
painted-face fans, crowd shots of players and fans milling about on the
floor, and streams of confetti falling after a (pick one) 1) close, 2)
big, 3) upset, 4) last-second victory in a college basketball game ... I
wanted to see the Jim Calhoun-Rick Pitino handshake after UConn 69,
Louisville 66 last night but never did ... did the two rival coaches say
anything to each other? ... was it just a nod-of-the-head,
shake-of-the-hand and keep-on-walking greeting? ... did they embrace?
... pat each other on the shoulder? ... did whatever they did look
sincere? ... what happened? ... whatever happened, the feeling here is
that was a tad more interesting than having some nitwit's
half-blue-half-white face screaming into the camera (again!) while
proclaiming his No. Oneness. ...
---
Posted Saturday, March 12, 2011: With
the NFL owners and players now preparing to play their next games in
court, I feel it is my duty at a TV-watching fan to come up with a
solution ... I'll just ask the the bride to step in and deal with the $9
billion problem ... if nothing else, she'll be able to show both sides
how to make that money disappear. ...
---
Posted Friday, March 11, 2011: The
search for dry fields for spring sports programs has led teams to many
places that don't even come close to resembling the fields on which they
will eventually play ... gymnasiums, indoor batting cages, indoor
facilities big enough for full-team practice sessions, school hallways
and school parking lots are only some of the usual temporary venues ...
any place that has a dry surface ... underground parking garages,
abandoned air strips, driveways, super market parking lots ... the
search goes on. ...
---
Posted Thursday, March 10, 2011: Been
following the NFL talks between the owners and the players union? ...
when you stop and think about it, no matter what happens, neither side
will lose - the owners and players will still be rich ... now, guess
whose ticket prices and cable bill will go up. ...
---
Posted on Wednesday, March 9, 2011: Portland
authored the latest chapter of "Who Beat The Heat" last night and Miami
has now lost five in a row - three when it couldn't close on
last-seconds shots ... word has it they are looking for a closer and
have zeroed in on actress Kyra Sedgwick, star of TNT-TV's "The Closer"
... problem is, they'd have to pay her a ton of money per episode ...
that's right - "episode," and not "game" - the Heat's games and
post-game press conferences lately have earned the right to be called
"episodes.". ...
---
Posted Tuesday, March 8, 2011: Watched
a little of Mike & Mike on ESPN early this morning and got caught
up in their take on the Miami Heat Cry-Gate incident ... the one where
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said in a press conference that some of his
players were openly crying after their fourth straight loss (to the
Bulls) on Sunday ... Mike & Mike suggested the media was (again)
making more of it than it was worth and then proceeded to devote the
next six-seven minutes of air time to the situation, agreeing that
Spoelstra did his players dirty by giving up the tear-jerking info that
angered his players ... Peter Vecsey of The Post hit the nail on the
head with "... I don't recall anyone asking the question: 'Was that a
player-sobbing loss?'" ...
---
Posted Monday, March 7, 2011: Ice
is almost off Park Lakes ... not so at Mount Hope Pond, but there is
more water showing day by day around the edges ... Potbelly's fishing
contest for opening day (Saturday, April 9) is starting to shape up ...
Bob Jr. took Cooper to the batting cages yesterday ... so what if I had
to scrape a little ice and snow off my car windshield this morning, warm
weather is on its way. ...
---
Posted Sunday, March 6, 2011: I'm
not the only one in the family suffering from cabin fever ... the bride
was in the back yard yesterday checking to see if any of her flowers
were pushing starting to show (they were) when she noticed one lone
clump of ice still holding firm in a spot that doesn't get much sun ...
so she started throwing ice/snow melt granuals on the ice and today it
is gone. ...
---
Posted Saturday, March 5, 2011: Haven't
really rooted against many pro sports teams in my day, but if I had to
pick out one team I don't mind seeing on the short side of things these
days, it's the NBA's Miami Heat ... maybe it was all the preseason stuff
about annointing them the next NBA champs before King James jammed his
first jam in competition ... so it's noted here with just a tad of glee
that, in the past couple of days, the Heat have shown they can lose when
they have a 24-point lead (see 99-96 loss to Magic on Thursday) and
they can lose when they are down by 24 early in the game (see 125-95
loss to Spurs last night). ...
---
Posted Friday, March 4, 2011: Sign
in a doctor's office visited recently: "Unattended children will be
given a cup of espresso and a free puppy." ... some of you older folks
who may have seen that sign before know where it is and exactly why it's
gonna hurt sitting down for me for a couple of days. ...
---
Posted Thursday, March 3, 2011: Stopped
off for a "cup of coffee" yesterday afternoon at a place that had
several TVs turned on to sports shows ... Yanks-Astros were on two
screens and the other screens were filled with golf, a salt-water
fishing show, the weather, CNN News, a soccer game and one of those ESPN
talking head shows ... the topic of conversation? Charlie Sheen and his
troubles -- lasted about 15 minutes, too ... Honest! ...
---
Posted Tuesday, March 2, 2011: Brian
Cashman has been quoted as saying the Yankees' starting rotation is
still an unfinished product, but also said yesterday that the Yankees
"... aren't engaged in any trade talk." ... it's just a guess, but
does that mean there are no unsigned sore-armed pitchers out there? ...
---
Posted Tuesday, March 1, 2011: The
story in today's Star-Ledger about Derek Jeter's working on his hitting
should be required reading for all youth baseball and softball players
and coaches ... it shows how Jeter, an established veteran All-Star, has
to keep working at his trade in order to continue competing at the high
level to which he has become accustomed ... and it also shows the
skills needed by his instructor (Yank batting coach Kevin Long) to get
him there ... even All-Stars work at getting better. ...
---
Posted Monday, Feb. 28, 2011: Phillies
vs. Yankees on TV three days in a row ... green grass, sunshine,
75-degree weather, short-sleeved shirts, and BASEBALL ... LOVE IT! ...
---
Posted Sunday, Feb. 27, 2011: Still
trying to figure this one out -- is Charlie Sheen a real-life version
of Charlie Harper of the TV show "Two And A Half Men" or is Charlie
Harper a TV version of the real-life Charlie Sheen? ...
---
Posted Saturday, Feb. 26, 2011: You
really can't blame MSG and ESPN for touting their Sunday 8 p.m.
telecast of the Knicks and their new Big Three vs. the Heat and their
old Big Three ... too bad in the middle of it all they had to also
televise a post-game press conference last night featuring new Knick
Carmelo Anthony trying to explain why the Knicks (29-27 overall, 1-1
with Melo) lost a 115-109 decision to the lowly (11-47) Cavaliers. ...
---
Posted Friday, Feb. 25, 2011: Greg
Pankewicz, an assistant coach for the Colorado Eagles of the Central
Hockey League, was fined and suspended for the remainder of the regular
season (14 games) by the league for protesting a referee's call by
screaming at the ref and eventually throwing his jacket, shirt and shoes
out onto the ice and continuing his tirade clad in only his pants and
socks ... just another case of "... leaving it all out on the ice." ...
---
Posted Thursday, Feb. 24, 2011: It's
not the LeBron-Wade-Bosh Show, but Melo-Strou-Chauncey just could put
some bounce back onto the Garden floor ... everybody said the right
thing in all the press conferences the Knicks held yesterday and then
the 29-26 Knicks went out and beat the 22-35 Bucks, 114-108, which made
everybody happy ... well, everybody 'cept those who took the Knicks and
gave the seven, that is. ...
---
Posted Wednesday, Feb. 23, 2011: Let's
see now ... Derek Jeter builds "a mansion" in Tampa ... Yankee co-owner
Hank Steinbrenner says the reason the Yankees didn't win last year was
because they were "... too busy building mansions and other things." ...
now Mini-Boss is backing down, saying he wasn't specifically alluding
to Jeter ... wow! ... makes you want to know what he meant by "other
things." ...
---
Posted Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2011: You
have to admire Carmelo Anthony's honesty (although, you could call it
something else) ... the newest Knick, at a press conference set up to
announce his trade from the Nuggets, said: "If I had to guard myself,
I'd take the night off." ... but if he thinks all the recent trade
talk, rumors, questions, interviews have been a media circus, what he's
going to get in New York will make it seem as if it were a country
carnival. ...
---
Posted Monday, Feb. 21, 2011: Had
the bride read the story in the Ledger today about Derek Jeter cutting
down his stride as a concession to his age; namely, he can't get the bat
to the ball as quickly as he did in the past and he has adjusted his
batting stance ... after she read it, I tried to equate Jeter's solution
with the way I arrange my stuff in an organized clutter packed in all
around my desk in my home office, everything within an easy reach or, at
worst, a short roll of the chair ... the bride didn't buy it, however,
and just said (again) that I was too lazy to get up and get stuff I need
... and then she reminded me that this was the year I promised to clean
my room. ...
---
Posted Sunday, Feb. 20, 2011: With
ESPN on 24/7 ... with enough internet sports sites to drive you nuts
... and with stories changing focus with every tweet and twitter, it's a
wonder if any story out there has a shelf life of more than an hour or
two ... the Nets-Knicks-Melo story is a perfect example ... depending on
what you read, saw or heard, Melo Anthony of the Nuggets 1) wasn't
talking to the Nets; 2) did not want to talk to the Nets; 3) would not
sign a contract extension if traded to the Nets; 4) had just walked out
of a meeting with the Nets after 20 minutes ... so I guess this means
that by the time you read this, Melo will be a Net. ...
---
Posted Saturday, Feb. 19, 2011: Pitchers
and catchers are in camp ... Cabela's and Bass Pro spring fishing
catalogs are in hand ... and (knock on wood) some of this snow and ice
is melting ... the final part of the spring puzzle arrived yesterday in
the mail - the 2011 Sports Illustrated Swim Suit Issue ... sorry though,
guys - no relation to Brooklyn Decker. ...
---
Posted Friday, Feb. 18, 2011: Don't
see what all the fuss is about this so-called new two-car drafting
technique being used during SpeedWeeks at Daytona these days ... speeds
may be a big slower, but it has been like that for years on Rte. 80 East
in the early a.m. and Rte. 80 West coming home again in the afternoon
into the evening. ...
---
Posted Thursday, Feb. 17, 2011: Yankee
starter A.J. Burnett's quote: "I DON'T NEED TO BE FIXED" jumps off the
page of my favorite state newspaper in big, black, all-cap letters ...
A.J. says new Yankee pitching coach Larry Rothschild doesn't have to
"... change or fix a bunch of things," and Rothschild says it's a matter
of simplifying a few things that got out of whack last year ... such as
his 10-15 record and 5.26 ERA, maybe? ...
---
Posted Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011: My
computer's spell-check system is officially a dinosaur ... it threw
back "texting" the other day as a possible spelling error ... come to
think of it, the guy punching the keys is a dinosaur, too. ...
---
Posted Tuesday, Feb. 15, 2011: After
45 years in the business, I've finally figured out coach-speak (part of
it, anyway) ... When a coach says his opponent (before they play) is
"... well-coached" what he really means is that if he said what
he actually thought of the opposing coach it would be on their bulletin
board in 15 seconds ... when he says his opponent (after he beat them)
is "... well-coached" what he really means is that he is better than the
other guy ... when a coach says his team was "... focused in practice
all week" what he really means is that the kids stopped texting during
team meetings ... when a coach says "... you throw out the stats when we
play this tem," it usually means he doesn't keep any stats. ...
---
Posted Monday, Feb. 14, 2011: "TURN
TO THE NBA TO FILL SPORTS VOID!" screamed an internet headline on a
story promoting the NBA as the logical bridge between football and
baseball ... Okay, so yesterday's Celtics 85, Heat 82 was entertaining,
but Magic 89, Lakers 75 flattened out in the second half because - as
we were told countless time by countless analysts - the road-weary
Lakers' had tired legs ... filling a void, though? ... only if it were
playoff time ... only if it were playoff time. ...
---
Posted Sunday, Feb. 13, 2011: Sat
down this morning with the sports sections and the little temperature
guage on my whatchamacallit bar on my computer told me it was 33 degrees
outside ... read a couple of spring training stories; checked out the
thumbnails of the players in the Yankee and Met camp; glanced at the
Grapefruit League schedule; and then carefully tucked aside the pages,
saving the pages for future use ... by the time I finished, the
temperature guage had gone up to 41 degrees ... so who says baseball in
Florida doesn't bring warm weather to us frozen stiffs up here, huh? ...
---
Posted Saturday, Feb. 12, 2011: Dan
Warthen, the new Mets pitching coach, spent his first day in his new
team's Port St. Lucie spring training camp yesterday and - according to a
story in my favorite state newspaper - he said hard-throwing
21-year-old Jenrry Mejia would be better used in relief since Mejia's
slight 6-0, 180-pound frame couldn't withstand the the rigors of the
innings he would be expected to throw as a starter ... moving on in the
story, we find out the front office sees the youngster as a starter ...
Warthen's reaction? ... "That's why baseball is so interesting ... you
can have a difference of opinion and you go on from there." ... and you
thought this was stuff you found only in the other New York camp. ...
---
Posted Friday, Feb. 11, 2011:
It's nice to see all the positive stuff coming out about Rutgers'
stunning 77-76 upset over ninth-ranked Villanova, the game in which
Jonathan Mitchell's three-point heave and subsequent free throw with
seconds left to play provided the final four points of the game ...
Rutgers coach Mike Rice was quoted as saying the four-point play was a
"Pick-and-Pop-and-Pray" but didn't give details on how much they work on
it in practice ... Rutgers fan or not, it's all good stuff and makes
for a good read these days. ...
---
Posted Thursday, Feb. 10, 2011: Headline
in my favorite state-wide newspaper today reads: "Joba preparing for
anything." ... that's probably exactly what he will get again this
season so it's at least gratifying to know that someone in pinstripes
knows what Joba can expect. ...
---
Posted Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2011: This
just in ... the Yankees have joined the Knicks, Nets, Bulls and Lakers
in showing interest in Nugget Carmelo Anthony ... Cashman will change
his name to "Coba" Anthony and put him into the starting rotation ... or
maybe he'll use him as a spot starter or long man or setup man or
closer and put him in charge of headband sales. ...
---
Posted Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2011: With
all the TV cameras used on big games, you would think they would find
something better to show at the end of games than 1) confetti falling,
2) fans cheering, 3) wide-angle venue shots, 4) crowd shots, etc. ... I
want to see but two things - the coaches greeting each other and the
opposing players greeting each other ... there is more pure honest
emotion in those images than any of the other four scenes mentioned -
and too often shot ... I mean, c'mon -- confetti? ...
---
Posted Monday, Feb. 7, 2011: The
other day, I mentioned that I read that Packer TE Andy Quarless is the
third player in Super Bowl history whose last name begins with the
letter Q, but the other two weren't mentioned in the story ... 49er C
Fred Quillan (1985) and Buc LB Shelton Quarles (2003) are the other two,
e-mails Frank Vuono, the first person whose last name begins with the
letter V to look it up. ...
---
Posted Sunday, Feb. 6, 2011: Can't
think of anyone who likes to be yelled at - especially when you sit
down in front of the TV and are looking to relax, be entertained and
perhaps even learn a thing or two ... that's why I don't like those ESPN
shout-fests where the commentators feel as if they make their points
better by talking loud and louder, waving their arms and making faces
... Chris Carter and Herm Edwards had seemed to be two of the better
ex-jock commentators until I caught their latest acts on their
respective Super Bowl shows this morning ... both have been caught up in
the raised-voice, arm-waving, face-making manner of presenting their
information ... I used to like to listen to them both - but this
morning, I was so turned off by their “acting” that I can't remember a
word they said. ...
---
Posted Saturday, Feb. 5, 2011: How
much information is too much information? ... How about when they start
giving the outside temperatures (28 degrees) of a game that is being
played inside? ... Or that Packers TE Andy Quarless is the third player
in Super Bowl history whose last name starts with the letter Q (and then
the other two aren't mentioned)? ... or that Packers LG Daryn Colledge
lived on Santa Claus Lane in North Pole, Alaska? ... Clearly, it is time
to play the game. ...
---
Posted Friday, Feb. 4, 2011: First
off, the anticipation here is that Steelers vs. Packers this Sunday is
going to be a good - if not great - game to watch ... my wagering
interests, however, are confined to Steelers 7, Packers 0 (not bad) or
Steelers 8, Packers 0 (not good) or Steelers 6, Packers 9 (terrible) as
the result of entering three box pools ... you know, those friendly
"office pools" where the person who protests "But, I don't know a thing
about football!" as he or she hands over the registration fee is the
person who usually wins something ... forced to take a side, however, it
would be Steelers 27, Packers 20 - which would make "Steelers 7,
Packers 0" a nice thing to have ... enjoy the game. ...
---
Posted Thursday, Feb. 3, 2011: Grandkids
Cooper (8) and Faith (5) spent a
delightful late-afternoon/early-evening with us the other day and, as
soon as Faith had her boots and coat off, I clapped my hands and held
out my arms for Grandpa's welcoming hug 'n kiss ... the instant I
clapped my hands, the light in our living room bay window came on,
activiated by a timer ... after my hug 'n kiss, Faith walked over to the
light and clapped her hands - once, twice, three times ... frowning,
she turned to me and said: "Grandpa, you're light is broken ... I can't
clap it off." ...
---
Posted Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2011: Steeler
LB James Harrison, already $100,000 light in the wallet for illegal
hits this past season, provided some great theater at the Super Bowl
Media Day yesterday when he said: "I don't want to hurt nobody, I don't
want to step on nobody's foot and hurt their toe, I don't want to have
no dirt or none of this rubber on the field fly into their eye and make
their eye hurt, I just want to tackle them softly on the ground and, if
y'all can, lay a pillow down where I'm going to tackle them so they
don't hit the ground too hard, Mr. Goodell." ... Harrison will not be
fined for his sarcasm or poor grammar, but you can be sure that Mr.
Goodell & Co. will have a very careful eye on all of Mr. Harrison's
hits this coming Sunday. ...
---
Posted Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2011: Talkin'
to a friend of mine about the recent county wrestling tournament and he
asked me what the kids got for winning ... I told him that, as far as I
knew, each champion got a medal, the actual completed cardboard bracket
of their weight class, and a T-shirt signifying he was the county champ
... my buddy looks at me and asks: "How'd they know what size T-shirts
to buy?" ...
---
Posted January 31, 2011: Hope
you saw ESPN's recent segment on the 1985 Bears, who went 15-1 and went
on to win the Super Bowl under head coach Mike Ditka and defensive
coach Buddy Ryan ... the Bears' defense was described by coaches,
writers and the players themselves in the clip as: "Vicious ...
intimidating ... ferocious ... deadly ... violent ... devastating, etc."
... yet when you watch the show you won't see one helmet-to-helmet hit
and maybe only one tackle that even comes close to being a "spear" or
helmet-first hit ... all the hits on quarterbacks and runners were
shoulders driven into the player followed by arms wrapping him up and
bringing him down ... true, it could be the editing process, but I
prefer to see it as a brand of football where the "hits" were "tackles"
and the helmets were used for protection - not weapons. ...
---
Posted Sunday, Jan. 30, 2011: Great
story on Vince Lombardi by Steve Politi in today's Star-Ledger ... one
of the photos used with the piece depicted RB-K Paul Hornung - which
reminded me of yet another little story ... on the day after Hornung had
missed a field goal (or field goals) that would have won a game for the
Packers, a sportswriter tried to open an interview with him my asking:
"How are you doing, Paul?" ... to which Hornung answered: "Oh, I can't
kick." ...
---
Posted Saturday, Jan. 29, 2011: The Cabela's "Limited" 2011 Spring Edition of their fishing catalog came in the mail just
now
... 50th edition ... hard cover ... 1364 pages ... quick glance shows
some short stories and some stuff from their first catalog from 50 years
ago ... putting it down now, however ... this is worth
a comfortable seat on the quiet back porch away from phones and
computers ... a good cigar and maybe even a beverage will enhance the
experience ... hopefully, it won't be snowing. ...
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Posted Friday, Jan. 28, 2011: Whyinhell
do relatives, friends, ex-classmates and former teammates from warmer
climes take particular delight in asking "How's the weather up there?"
whenever we get more snow? ... my brother Jim called from Clearwater,
Fla., a few weeks ago when our temperatures were in the teens ...
"Yeah, it's cold here, too," he said. "We might not be able to go to the
pool today." ... was going to slam-dunk the phone on him until i
remembered he's getting closer to buying that bass-fishin' poonton boat
he has wanted. ...
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Posted Thursday, Jan. 27, 2011: I
have this brand new little "software program" hooked up to my computer
that indicates when it is time for me to stop working and take a nap by
putting on my screen the following message: dddddddddddddddddddd
ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff
fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;
;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;
;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;dddddddddddd