Oh, Seven, and we'll watch them fall

I promise, that is the only Prince reference.

Did I say 6 games back last night? My mistake, That should be 7 games back.

a 1-0 game Braves loss to the Mets (along with 5-2 last night) shows just how many needs this team has. Hitting is still not there, bullpen is having trouble keeping games close. The starters in both cases have done admirably, but not enough.

I think it is safe to say....uh oh.

Just finished watching 10 hours of NFL draft coverage. I'm still as mad as I was at 12:30 regarding the Jets. But, I feel much better about the Falcons. Full grades coming tomorrow night, since there are still 150 picks to go - not even halfway through the exam yet.

And now, to watch the Clippers playoff game. Which is still a weird sentence to write. Even weirder that they may win the rest of the games in this series, now that I've heard about Kenyon Martin's hissy fit and team suspension for the rest of the series.

Lakers-Clippers second round matchup? Perhaps.

NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

So Williams goes #1 (as predicted here yesterday before the deal broke.

Bush goes #2. Understandable.

VY goes #3. With McNair to teach him for a year. OK.

At #4, Matt Leinart is sitting there for the taking. He wants to play in NY, the fans want him to play in NY.....so of course he is STILL SITTING THERE when the Jets take Ferguson.

Nice and all, but who will he block for? Pennington cannot throw the ball anymore, and Curtis Martin's tires have lost a lot of tread.

Infuriating.

Same. Old. Jets.

I. Am. Done.

***UPDATE*** Surprisingly, Leinart is still out there after the Raiders picked at #7. He could end up in Detroit. I'm hoping he goes to Arizona where at least he won't get slaughtered (since he has Edge to run the ball and Bolden & Fitzgerald to throw to.)

One month down, five to go

One month into the baseball season...what do we know?

• Delmon Young is really stupid, but has really good aim.
• Greg Maddux and Pedro Martinez are both 5-0, so apparently we have returned to 1996.
• Barry Bonds is showing his age......but better than his godfather, Willie Mays, did in his last season.
• The Mets seem as good as feared when I wrote a month ago. And apparently Delgado is becoming liked as well. Whoopee.
• The Braves seem as mediocre as feared, too. Worse, even, as the hitting hasn't been there. Or the pitching. Or the bullpen. Or the coaching. Let's just move on...
• The Tigers as the out-of-nowhere team (???) though the Brewers are doing well enough, as was thought to happen. Seriously, did anyone pick the Tigers? Their big signing was Kenny Rogers!
• The NL Central and NL West are staying bunched up for a while. Except for Pittsburgh. But the Pirates' park is nice.
• The Yankees are 1 game out of first and 2 games out of last. They are behind all but Tampa Bay. I am very happy but holding my breath.
• Roger Clemens need to make up his frickin' mind already. After Monday, pick something. Please.
• Bronson Arroyo could have done double-duty for the Red Sox, having as many homers as Wily Mo Pena. Pena will need therapy by June if this keeps up and he feels more Red Sox wrath. Meanwhile the Reds have the best record in the NL?
• Albert Pujols leads the majors with 12 HR. No surprise. Second - Jonny Gomes?

I'm Larry King and we'll be right back.

Because I don't already have enough challenges in my life

We had been thinking about a trip to New Orleans, to see family and continue to help out with cleaning, fixing up, and so forth.

Imagine my surprise when, a couple of days later, I become aware of a nice litte tournament taking place during the time that we are looking to be there.

This could be interesting. I did not believe this tournament would be taking place, due to the damage and the time it normally happens (a lot earlier in the year).

I may have to just consider this "investment". Besides, when you get down to it, investing and gambling aren't too different. Do your research, look at the trends of various players/stocks compared to the rest of the market/field, and get your money in when the odds/price favors you.

Besides, who knows....I might have a good run and find myself having enough tuition for business school. Would be a nice story to tell. Wouldn't be the first to do it, either.

Reggie Bush to the....Jets?

Don't laugh. It is a possibility.

The Texans appear to be leaning a lot more towards DE Mario WIlliams, instead of Bush, given their needs and recent issues.

The Saints, at #2, do not need a QB, with the signing of Drew Brees. However, they also have Deuce McAllister. While he is returning from injury, he is signed for a lot, and if healthy is still a dominant force. Given his injury rehab has gone well, the Saints may go with line help and take D'Brickashaw Ferguson.

The Titans, at #3, are taking a QB. Whether it will be Leinart, Young, or Cutler remains to be seen, but they will definitely take a QB.

And that brings us to #4 - the Jets. With Reggie Bush still on the board. I don't think the Jets would need 15 seconds, let alone 15 minutes.

Think the Radio City crowd would boo that pick?

Me neither.

Also, consider this: If Young falls to the Titans, then Leinart could go as low as #10 to Arizona. Possibly, Cutler could fall to the mid-teens - and the Jets could make a trade to move up to get Cutler with their two picks at the end of the first round.

The Jets could get their QB AND RB of the future in the first round.

I'm just throwing it out there. Make of it what you will.

A done deal

Well, my application is now complete for Business School. Just two steps remain - upload my personal statements, and transmit to GSU.

It was a long day. Went to Emory to FINALLY get my transcripts, so that I could show GSU how lousy a student I was. I got my medical information, filled out my residency information.

And, as mentioned before, I finally sat down for the GMAT, at 1:15 this afternoon.

I think I knocked out the essay sections quite well, but I will not have the results on those for another three weeks.

I did not do as well on the verbal section as I had hoped. However, I did amazingly well on the Math/Quantitative section, scoring in the 82nd percentile.

Georgia State has publicized that the average accepted applicant has a GMAT score of 620.

As it turns out, that is exactly what I got.

I finished early enough to go to the new development across the street (where I used to live), had a celebratory cocktail or two at Cheeseburgers in Paradise, and watch Jim Rome & Around the Horn.

I'm glad the application process is now over, but now comes the anxiety where I wait to find out - is it all enough?

I don't get it...

Steve Nash will reportedly be named the NBA MVP in the next few days.

Huh?

There are at least five other people who could and should be considered ahead of Nash for MVP this year:

1) Dirk Nowitzki. See, Steve Nash wasn't even the best white player in the league this year. Nowitzki has made the leap and was absolutely lethal this year. Considering how much better Dallas has gotten since losing Nash and Michael Finley, a lot of the credit needs to go to Dirk Diggler. 90% from the line, 26.6 PPG (7th in the NBA), 40% from outside, making 1.4/game. Toss in 9 rebounds and a block per game, and this is someone that can't be ignored. At a minimum, should have won Most Valuable White Player.

2) LeBron James. Another one making the leap as expected. 31 points a game, 7 boards, 7 assists, and someone you do NOT want taking the last shot against you. Only 21, and carries a bunch of stiffs to 50 wins. Crikey.

3) Elton Brand. For Christ's sake, the CLIPPERS won almost 50 games! That has not happened since Kurt Cobain was still alive. Yeah, I know, Cassell brought a lot of improvement, but this is an unselfish player who is also great at setting up his teammates in addition to just taking over a game. A guaranteed 25/10 every night (top 10 in both categories), an inside presence with 3 blocks a game. A complete player in the early part of his prime.

4) Chauncey Billups. Hell, if you are looking for someone who is the engine of a winning team, this is the guy. Second in the league in assists, and puts up 19 points a game to boot. Defensively, much better than Nash. The two are close, but between defense and team record, I'd go with Billups.

While all four should be considered ahead of Nash, unfortunately they are all still behind....

5) Kobe Bryant. This kills me. Really. I still don't think he was guilty, but I do think him stupid for being in the situation. In the past he's been a team-killer and coach-killer. Ask Shaq, Del, and Phil (before this season).

This season.....every game is a vengeance game. He wants to do the MJ impression, well he has the "supporting" cast to do so. When Smush Parker is the third-best player.....oy vey. It makes the 81 and 68 point games understandable, and those sorts of games create some of the few WOW moments that people remember.

With NOBODY else on that team, he dropped 35 points, 5 boards, 4 assists (huh?), a couple 3's, and 2 steals per game. Can create his own shot from ANYWHERE - with this cast, he pretty much has to.

Kobe should have gotten it the same reason Iverson got it last year. In both cases, their teams would have been 20-win teams without them. The Suns would still be a 45-50 win team without Nash.

I don't think the Suns are getting out of the first round. Kobe will want vengeance on a nice, grand scale, and knocking out Nash would sure do that. Get out of Mamba's way.

Tick...tick...tick...

T-minus 39 hours and counting.

The GMAT fast approaches...and I haven't picked up a book in about 10 days what with family visits and heading out of town. I think at this point anyway I've done almost all the preparing I can for the test, so if anything more studying may make me more nervous than I already am!

At this point, I am just aiming to have a couple nights of rest so I can go into the test room refreshed and ready to rumble. Application is finished for GSU (aside from paying the fee) so this is the last part that remains.

Well, there is one more after that.... either a celebratory cocktail or a drown-my-sorrows cocktail. But that isn't part of the normal application process.

Open Oil Letter

Letter from Congress here.

You know, it was just seven years ago that I was finishing at Emory, preparing to enter the job market, preparing to start driving to work everyday from Douglasville, and the gas price for regular unleaded at the QT on Briarcliff and Clifton was at $0.739 per gallon. It was low at the time, but still stuck around a dollar per gallon.

In seven years we have now seen that price QUADRUPLE from April 1999. In April 2006, that same station is now charging $2.899/gallon, for an increase of 293%. Annualized, that is about a 40% increase per year for seven years. (Go ahead and check; I'll wait.)

A large portion of this increase has occurred in the last two years. In April 2004, this same station was around $1.49/gallon (I don't remember the exact number as clearly as 1999). This is a 100% increase from the 1999 level. However, we have seen almost another 100% increase from this point within the last two years, with a sharp jump coming after January 2005.

Now.....

Over the last ten years, we have see merger after merger within energy services, leading to only a few huge players in the field (ExxonMobil; ChevronTexaco; BP-Amoco; ConocoPhilips being the largest players).

With these mergers becoming finalized after years of local, state, federal, and international approvals and internal consolidations, we are now seeing these 800-pound gorillas learn just how much of a hammerlock they have. They control almost HALF of this country's fuel stations and, as such, have a disproportionate effect on the market through its wielding of power as oligopolies (or to put it in a meaner tone, cartels) tend to do.

Let's add on having to deal with foreign issues as well, considering how dependent this country is on foreign oil. Between terrorist attacks from Middle East nations, despotic states i.e. Iran sponsoring terror, internal strife in Nigeria, and would-be dictators elsewhere (yes, that means you Venezuela), that is another unhappy element squashing supply.

Next, let's add weather and climactic phenomena to the mix. Pollution from drilling, pollution from development, warmer climes worldwide, with an occasional weather tragedy to knock production offline (and Katrina wasn't even the worst-case scenario for knocking production offline!)

And finally, a pinch of diminishing supply. Oil is NOT an infinite resource, and in recent years it becomes harder and harder to find. I will grant that this leads to higher costs in discovering and processing to the pump, but with an economy of scale that these behemoths have, it doesn't add too much onto the consumer cost. It has a lot more to do with diminishing supply. And from economics class, we all know what happens with a diminishing supply curve.

I'm not adding in any sort of Peak Oil theory here, because that has floated around for 60 years. It will happen at some point that we will have consumed more than half the world's oil, but no one knows when or if, so it's not a truly measurable item at this time.

So, that's how we can get quite easily to a quadrupling of prices in four years. With nothing to really stop the tide at this point. Our energy policies to this date have been all talk but no action - it still focuses on oil, oil, oil, but not a lot of alternative solutions.

But is there a realistic, cost-effective solution, that could work? Ethanol and other alternative-fuel vehicles are starting to gain in popularity, but are still too cost-prohibitive to be realistic, widespread solutions. Of course, if a gallon of gas goes over $4.50, they may not be bad options. However, I don't think anyone wants that, except for oil executives wanting retirement packages worth $144,000 per day.

Purely electric vehicles? Perhaps in a few years, but again there is a cost prohibition, and as of now most fully electric vehicles don't have the power needed to go as fast or as long as people want - having to re-charge every 80-100 miles is not really a great option to filling up at the tank every 350 miles.

More drilling and refining? All well and good for assisting in domestic supply, but we still have the same environmental risks, it runs out sooner than later, and we are still beholden to foreign interests and foreign incidents. A short-term solution at best for prices, but could create more long-term problems environmentally.

I would hope that, within five to ten years, there may be more realistic alternatives to the millions of internal combustion engines that roar each day. Perhaps with further technological evolution, they may be possible to create, and could be cost-effective. I'm just hoping that happens before we see the price of oil hit $100 a barrel.

Of course, if you're a shareholder or investor in any of these energy companies, you are loving how much your stock has gone up and how much more it will probably go up based on company earnings. I'm not talking about whether one should buy stock in them or not because that would be a completely different piece.

At least capital gains from holding the stock can pay for the extra amount you need to pay to fill up your car at one of their service stations.

And that's the bell ending round 1...

Really, I'm not surprised at a runoff.

MAYOR OF NEW ORLEANS
443 of 443 precincts reporting

Ray Nagin 41,489 38%
Mitch Landrieu 31,499 29%
Ron Forman 18,734 17%

What is more telling and surprising to me is that the two main non-Nagin candidates did not garner 50% between them. And, of course, the guy I endorsed here last week came in 3rd. Well, whatcha gonna do.

If that were the case and they'd gotten 50%, I'd be a lot more sure that Willy Wonka would be packing his bags in a few weeks. It would consolidate in the "anyone but Nagin" column.

Now? I have no freaking idea. That won't be enough - thanks to votes garnered by the other 19 contestants in the race (yikes). This nutjob could seriously be re-elected.

Of course, this won't be the only race on the ballot. Most of the City Council and Ass-essor races went to runoffs. Of course, the fact that there are still seven assessor races speaks volumes again about the lack of progressive political reform since Aug. 29.

Funny thing - while Kim was driving in Douglasville, GA the other day (in the county next to us) there were signs up that said "Re-elect our Mayor - Vote Nagin."

Aargh. Blech.

I don't know if it is funny or sad that it would take just slightly more than 50,000 votes to win the keys to the mayoral mansion. I should have moved in!

For it's one, two, three bucks a gallon at the old gas pump

I can't tell you how fun it was to get the privilege of paying $3.08/gallon for gasoline.

Oh yeah, watching those numbers run up like I just hit a slot machine in Vegas.

Woo hoo!

It's now receded to 2.95 right down the street. I did see it up around 3.25 in the Keys so there's still some geographic discrepancies. Don't want o even think about what it is in the Northeast right now.

I'm just glad we rented a full-size vehicle that got good gas mileage instead of the gas-guzzling evil-demon SUV that they tried to push on us. Even more glad to be back in my car getting over 30 mpg.

Of course, while on vacation, I didn't have the luxury of clicking here to see the cheapest gas prices (which I try to check and post to myself on a semi-regular basis.

I'll hold off on a rant about gas companies' gouging over the last two years for later, as I'm fairly tired and I'm having trouble putting together a cognizant point of view.

I'll also wait until later to link to any pictures, but here's one highlight: We ended up swimming in the Gulf of Mexico with wild dolphins AND a nurse shark. Pictures to come as soon as they are developed.

Quite a bit of fun for all involved.

This concludes our occasional eco-post.

You only think he's laughing at you

Hopefully, this week, I will get this look coming out of the water.

Tomorrow, it's time to fly to Key West for a little R & R for a few days. And I have no client visits or conferences to worry about so it will be a real and true vacation.

I am sure that Alex will have a very good time - we are going out into the Gulf on Wednesday to snorkel and see some wild dolphins. Alex enjoys going swimming so this will probably blow his mind.

Adios.

Blue Dog Blues

By a local NOLA artist named George Rodrigue, whose gallery was pretty damaged but who has now returned to the Quarter:

The Longest Mass I've Ever Attended

Saturday night, 8:30 PM.

The sun sets. Dusk falls. And a bonfire is lit, to burns the palms from Palm Sunday.

So begins the Easter Vigil.

In twelve years of Catholic School this was the one thing I had never attended so I was not sure what to expect.

It was definitely different. A bit newer, as the lights were not off for all the readings - apparently, the entrance, beginning and readings are normally done in darkness, but someone flipped the lights too early. Otherwise, the first two hours of the Vigil would have been in total darkness.

After the first two hours came the moments that Kim and her class had been working to for a year. First off, about 15 baptisms. Kim got to go first - and got to be the first one completely dunked in the font. Her class went first, followed by the Spanish class.

Next off, the anointing with chrism, and then confirmations. Kim selected as her saint St. Therese of Lisieux, also known as the "Little Flower", and so when she was baptized and confirmed she was called Therese.

After that (around 11:15 at this point) was First Communion, in which we all took part. After this, the dismissal of the general audience. But, we were not done yet.

Three couples, including us, came forward to be married. Again. But this time, married and recognized by the Church. This began right after midnight, so now, we have a second anniversary date - and another holiday used as a significant date. Now, Easter as well as St. Patrick's Day is an anniversary for us.

On a related note, we're going on a trip to Key West in which Alex will come with us. Someone pointed out to me on Friday that since we were getting married that this would be a second honeymoon. I suppose that's a pretty good analogy so I'll stick with it.

It was very enlightening - not really like anything I had ever experienced before. Compared to other services at St. Joseph's, there was a lot more symbolism, mysticism, and solemnity than is normally observed. Very impressive, even though I know in other places it would probably be an even more solemn, "old-school" service.

4 hours, 4 sacraments. That's a lot faster than when I was in school and they were spread out over 6 years, or for most Catholics when they are spread out over 13 years?

Snakes on a ....highway?

What a follow-up post to last night.

What kills me is the part describing the guy crashing his car because the snake he was wearing around his neck attacked him.

Gee, I can't imagine why.

I hope I don't see any giant pythons in the road soon.

The clock ticks down to zero....

On Monday, if no agreement has been reached, Delta Air Lines' pilots will almost certainly go on strike, if their recent bluster is any indication.

Let's see:

• They are paid at the high end of the scale for pilots in this country, averaging around $150,000 per pilot in base salary.
• Delta has had cumulative losses of $13 billion.
• Delta has offered $330 billion in place of a pension plan to offset losses to pilots.
• Delta is asking for further cutbacks, which while lowering the average pay would still keep Delta Pilots in the top quadrant of salary ranges.

And in response, the pilots' union voted overwhelmingly to go on strike as early as Monday, April 17.

For those in New York, we have seen this happen before. After years of mis-management, sour relations,t, the death knell for Eastern Airlines was a pilots' strike.

Eighteen years later, after years of losses and poor management, there may be a pilots' strike....

Update: Finally, people came to their senses.

It's about damn time!

Seven and a half months after Katrina hit, FEMA is finally issuing guidelines and recommendations for re-building. Not maps, yet, but guidelines so that at least there's some kind of "plan."

The good news: For a large part of the city, flood elevations are not being changed, as improvements in flood protection and levee systems are also planned.

The bad news: Those improvements won't be done in two months when a new hurricane season begins it won't be fully implemented until 2010. The goal is to have levees back to pre-Katrina levels by June. At least for this summer, it is a major roll of the dice that another major storm won't hit.

The not-so-surprising news: Thousands of homes in heavily damaged and flooded areas will be required to build higher in order to qualify for any insurance, at least three feet higher. Any house that was damaged over 50% must be raised. Premiums will be higher on insurance (due to the higher risk) but one would have insurance on an existing, grandfathered house.

The surprising news: Also, any new housing built from this point on must be 3 feet above sea level.

Most importantly, any house that was damaged, but for less than 50% of its value, can be repaired and does not have to be raised up to 3 ft. above sea level. They are grandfathered.

I say it's surprising, because the MSM finds it surprising. Personally, I'm not surprised one bit. Hell, I could have receommended this six months ago.

We will see either plans to re-do heavily flooded areas like the Lower 9th, or convert them into greenspace or open land, as almost all buildings in that area would have to be rebuilt under the new guidelines. Honestly, I don't think putting every building on a 10-foot pier is feasible, and the land itself would provide a moderate buffer should another major storm hit.

What you will begin to see in the next few months are current residents and homeowners beginning to return in droves. Currently, the population sits around 180,000, down from 460,000 before the storm.

We will see residents return to begin repairing their homes, in areas that had moderate flooding.

We will see families return to the area for the beginning of a new school year if no major storm hits before Labor Day. Also, a recovering educational system.

We will see businesses begin functioning again thanks to the return of a consumer base.

We will see a burgeoning real estate market, as quite a few of these properties will be repaired and sold, or sold as-is to investors or other consumers. Possibly, to people completely displaced due to total damage and looking for a new permanent place to live.

We will see a recovering job market. as people will return, business owners will return looking to hire people.

I would not be surprised if the population returns to 300,000 or 320,000 - about 2/3 of the pre-Katrina population in Orleans Parish come Fall.

This is a first step. But at least it is a step.

The next step will occur April 22. A mayor will hopefully be elected, one that can build business interests, and does not have the stench of failed policies, failed leadership, or political cronyism. This city needs someone who can bring a track record of success and a visionary leader.

One can only hope that this man will be the one who can lead this city back to prominence.

Snakes. Nothing but Snakes

Coming soon to a theater near you.....


This is just dumb enough that it could really be funny in a campy kind of way. And yes, it's a real movie.

Will Snakes On A Plane
Get a better box office
take than new Superman?

Snakes don't know better.
Gonna get messed up by Jules -
He's one bad mo'fo.

Add your haiku here. Let this poster (which is a fake) inspire you:

Superman Returns

Trailer available here.

May be interesting. Then again, it may not. I'm a bit worried about so much involvement from the X-Men movies. We'll see.

What is Business Capital, anyway?

As most of you know I changed jobs last year and joined Bank of America's Business Capital unit.

Courtesy of TheStreet.com, here's an article that talks a bit about the process.

I've been lucky enough to work on some of the deals highlighted on BOA's page and actually have been given a couple of bankrupt clients to work with their servicing issues and to try to help turn them around. It's definitely more interesting work than I was doing previously.

Anyway, figured this was an interesting article to link to while I was at lunch. Besides, where else does one get to read columns by Lenny Dykstra?

More Cowbell

From the SNL Cowbell Sketch.

Because the only cure for this fever is more cowbell.

H/t to AOSHQ.

Commitment issues

For a while, I've been considering a return to school for an MBA program. Been waffling a bit on it as to the when/where/how.

I can't waffle anymore...

TESTING APPOINTMENT
Candidate Name: Francis, Michael
Test Series: GMAT
Appointment Date: Thursday, Apr 27, 2006
Start Time: 01:15 PM (13:15)
Appointment Length (minutes): 255

Deadline for Georgia State's MBA program is May 1.

So if you see me in a bad mood on April 28, you'll know why.

Hopefully the 30-60 minutes of studying I've been doing each day will pay off with big dividends.

At least we didn't end up in Oz.

As you may have heard or been witness to, we had some storms roll through here Friday night and Saturday morning.

As Alex was having a bad night and came to sleep in the big bed, I slept downstairs, as being kicked all night be a baby isn't high on my wish list.

Luckily, I was downstairs when the back doors blew open.

A low-grade tornado (but still a tornado) touched down about 3 miles away at the Big Chicken. Brought down a lot of trees, shattered a lot of windows, and so on. In our subdivision, several trees came down and landed on roofs. GA 120 was closed in both directions so we couldn't get out too easily during the day Saturday. Around 4:30 AM, our back doors blew open, but luckily, since I was downstairs, I was able to shut the doors pretty quickly. It was pretty intense.

Luckily, no damage to our house, though the house across from us was not so lucky as a large part of a tree fell on it. We can definitely be thankful that there was no damage.

Besides, now I get to make fun of Alex when he is older for sleeping through a tornado.

Those horny horny trees

Apologies for not posting in a while. One of the great things in Georgia in the Spring is the blooming of the trees and plants and the environmental beauty that accompanies the growth cycles of a diverse array of plants, flowers, and other vegetation.

Unfortunately, also accompanying such growth is a blanket of yellow pollen that covers EVERYTHING, and makes it really difficult for people who have hay fever.

With itchy eyes and constant sneezing sitting at a computer staring at a monitor hasn't been high on my list of priorities.

But the neighborhood looks nice, though.

Wear this in San Francisco or Greenwich Village

Cartman would wear this.

Courtesy of T-Shirt Hell.

WARNING: EXPLICIT CONTENT IF YOU HIT THAT LINK ABOVE.

Watch Out Baltimore....

Courtesy of CNN/SI:

Benson filed for divorce from her husband, new Orioles pitcher Kris, because he reportedly cheated on her. When Benson pitched for the Mets, Anna said that if she ever caught her husband cheating, she would retaliate by sleeping with his teammates, coaches and even the team trainers. The divorce promises to be a complex legal battle. First an arbitrator must decide whether the cheating took place before or after Benson's trade from the Mets to the Orioles, then whether those retaliatory rights also transferred as part of the trade.

Some thoughts:

1) Kris, you are a dumbass. And apparently anyone is capable of running around. In his defense, she is certifiably nutso. Not a great defense though.

2) Is it too early to make a joke about B-12 shots in the Orioles' clubhouse?

3) Will said vengeance be part of Anna's shoot for Playboy?

4) Will Howard Stern be called as witness in the divorce proceedings?

5) Will this cement her place a crazy psycho ho? (Probably.)

6) Will this stop me from putting up a picture? (Nah. I may go all the way up to six or seven readers.)

Nice.

Your name alone strikes fear into others; but maybe, just maybe, there's a little vulnerability and weakness beneath that stoic, fierce exterior of yours. Take the What Pulp Fiction Character Are You? quiz.

H/t GSB

Thank God for Opening Day!

(Originally posted at Tomahawk Chop, my other blog, which will be updated much more frequently now that the season is beginning.)

I love Opening Day.

Spring is here, the weather is warm, and it's time to play the games for real.

Already did the Braves preview, but what about the rest of the league?

AL East: This is the year it ends. As a former Yankee-fan turned Yankee-hater (Thanks, A-rod and Giambi and Kevin Brown and whole bunch of others whose names I'm too lazy to type), I'll be very happy when the year ends with the Yankees missing the playoffs. I think this is the year the Red Sox take them down.

AL Central: For once this division will produce two playoff teams. Given their close finish last year, being a year older, and signing a lot of their young nucleus to long-term deals for security, I think the Indians take the Central this year. The White Sox, though, still make the playoffs as the Wild Card.

AL West: By default, I'm picking the Angels. Seattle is still a long ways away, the Rangers still have no pitching, and the A's will trade Zito by the deadline.

NL West: Almost had a sub-500 winner last year. Will be close again, but this time, probably the Giants thanks to a healthy Schmidt and adding Matt Morris. Also assuming Bonds plays less than 50 games this year.

NL Central: Probably will be the Astros, as the Cardinals are getting older and no one else appears ready this year. 2007 could be very interesting as the Reds and Brewers could contend by then.

NL East: As much as this hurts to do, I can't overlook the Braves not strengthening their bullpen, while the Mets got Billy Wagner while also adding Delgado to their lineup. I think the Mets snap this streak, but the Braves get in as the wild-card.

Playoffs: Indians beat White Sox in the ALCS, Giants over Mets in the NLCS. IN an act of revenge for 1954 and Willie Mays, Indians claim their first championship in over half a century as another streak dies.

All is still right with the world, though, as the Cubs will still suck.

I'll never get those two hours back

I don't go to the movies much anymore. Not a really high priority unless it is something big. Not worth the time, or the money, considering most of what is put out there as "entertainment".

We had a free Showtime weekend preview, so we actually had time to watch last year's Best Picture Winner, Crash.

I suppose my best reaction would be something along the lines of.....this pretentious pile of self-serving, anti-hero crap was the best picture put out by Hollywood last year?

Aside from being a generally disjointed plot, having no characters one can sympathize with, and the crappy liberal sentiment of everyone should just get along and hug, it wasn't too bad.

I ought to sue Lions Gate to get back the two hours of my life wasted on such an annoying piece of pretentious dung.

On the bright side, at least this confirms my decision not to give Hollywood money for the pleasure of viewing their self-serving hooey.

***UPDATE 4/3: Considering how bad I think his columns are, I'm not surprised that Peter King on SI talks about how it was a great film, since his columns also tend towards self-serving hooey - such as last week's colonoscopy column. TMI to the nth power.