What's been goin' on?

It seems that this time of year is rough on me with regard to keeping up my blog. I don't know if it's a function of my job picking up, football, or what, but the August/September/October stretch was rough on me last year.

Granted that you know I will be weighing in on the elections, Browns football, my own five (yes, five) fantasy football leagues, my band, and all things Dan.

In the meantime, here are some quick hits to get you caught up:

• After all of my posturing, the Browns have started out a blistering 0-3, and except for their game effort on Sunday against the Ravens, they've looked bad doing it. Sunday was the first time I saw the team I thought I'd see in the preseason: using Winslow and Edwards as offensive weapons, a game defense putting pressure on the QB and doing decent against the run (in spite of many injuries), and close games that the Browns have a chance of winning. If they win 4 games, I'll be impressed, but at least they played hard and looked like a team that might have a chance to be good next year. Until they all get the bubonic plague, in true Cleveland Browns fashion.


• My Wolverines have started out fairly well, avenging losses to Notre Dame (in grand, on the road, punking them up fashion) and Wisconsin on consecutive Saturdays, and showing some spunk on defense for a change. They also get a chance to avenge a third loss from last year as well this Saturday on the road at Minnesota. I still don't think they have the secondary to keep up with Ohio State, but there's a pretty good chance they won't go 7-5 again with their current run defense, front 4, and a rejuvinated offense. Mario Manningham looks like the next coming of Braylon Edwards, both in spectacular catches and in occasional drops, but I would take another B.E. at Michigan this season. Mike Hart looks healthy, which is a huge upgrade over last year's rushing attack. They get Iowa and MSU at home this season, as well, which means there might be a date looming in November in Columbus with two undefeated top-5 teams duking it out for a BCS birth. Having said that, watch them both lose this Saturday.


• House of Cards is keeping on keeping on. We played this past Friday to another good crowd at the Newport Music Hall, though we were not headlining this time (which helped us steal a little draw from the other bands). It wasn't our best show (we weren't as tight as we were over the summer when we were playing a few shows a month), but the crowd seemed to enjoy it and we broke out a new song (one of four we're working on). We also have appointments at the studio on 9/27, 10/1, and 10/2 to finish the mix on our 9-song album. The demo in the post below is hardly representative of how good this album will be in terms of recorded quality. Better studio, more takes, mixing the best takes of each instrument together, etc. Once finished, I will have a link to a new single for all (two) of you.


• Melissa and I had the priviledge of meeting (hopefully) future governor Ted Strickland a couple of weeks ago at an education event. It's good to know people, hehehe. Strickland really seems to "get it" about education in this state, and would hopefully do two things if elected: 1) fix the funding issue in the state of Ohio for education, which has been declared unconstitutional at least four times by the state supreme court, and 2) close the charter school loopholes that steal tax money from public schools and allow people to make a profit on education using public money. Example: currently, if my wife ever does an evaluation of a kid who needs special ed, and then that kid goes to a charter school, the Columbus Public School system has to pay for ALL of the services that kid gets at the privately-run charter school. Guess where that moeny comes from: your property taxes. If Strickland can do something about those two things, his term would be successful.


• Strickland leads significantly in most polls I've seen. So, how much of a cynic am I when I think that Blackwell is owed a Kathrine Harris-style "favor" for the 2004 election, he currently is in charge of our elections as secretary of state, and I don't trust the voting machines? Stay tuned.


• Took my first trip to Seattle last weekend for a wedding. I must say, I enjoyed visiting, although I don't know that I would like to live there, due to the cost of living and the overwhelming abundance of hipsters. I'm neither rich nor hip enough for that. The Experience Music Project was fairly cool, though. The Hendrix retrospective was very enjoyable. Melissa and I also witnessed some enjoyable fish-tossing first-hand at the famed Pike Market. Good times.


• Check out the latest from Mono: You Are There. Six tracks. 63+ minutes. You do the math. If you love instrumental, crazy-dynamics, soft-then-loud Mogwai-style rock, then this album is for you. It picks up right where their last album ("Walking Cloud and Deep Red Sky, Flag Fluttered and the Sun Shined" - say that five times fast) left off, and takes it a step further.


• And, from the "NO FUCKING SHIT!" files: U.S. report says Iraq war has fueled terror threat. Really? You think? Weren't there people saying that before you started the war? Oh, yeah, I forgot. You fired them all for insubordination. Nice work, chief.

I promise, I'll endeavor to do better in the coming days and weeks. Thanks for bearing with me.

Our (Pre) Single

As we wait for the damn studio guy to call us back so that we can mix our final, really awesome recordings, I'll send this your way to tide you over. We originally recorded this back in November of 2005 at a crappier studio with a crappier engineer. Our fearless Justin, however, has some new computer tools at his disposal and was able to clean this file up immensely.

So, here's our single:

If at first you succeed...

DO IT AGAIN!

Apparently, we did well enough at the Newport back in July (~125 people that bought OUR tickets) that we've been able to confirm ANOTHER date there in September. To all of you out there that supported us for that first show, give yourselves a pat on the back... and then get ready to come out to the Newport AGAIN.

We will be playing there on Friday September 22nd. This date is important for two reasons: 1) we HAVE to draw as well as we did last time, and 2) it's the first week of school for OSU. How might those two things be related, you ask?

We've (using our one remaining OSU student) created a student group for local musicians to network and promote shows. We will be setting up shop on the Oval on September 18th as all of the incoming freshmen get oriented to the student groups available to them. The Newport is basically across High Stree from the Oval. We will be playing the Newport the Friday after this HUGE opportunity to network ourselves to a huge class of people looking for something to do, many of them potentially musicians looking to get into the local scene.

Between this and finishing our album sometime in the next six weeks, this is probably our best shot at growing our fan-base exponentially, and taking this little act somewhere.

Also, in the coming months, we're looking to take our show on the road, now that we've essentially played every place there is to play in C-bus. Athens, Dayton, hopefully Cleveland and Bowling Green (up in Steve's neck of the woods).

So, the Autumn-That-Is-Spring of House of Cards is coming upon us. It begins this Saturday night with a show at the Scarlet and Grey Cafe down on campus with Deco Halo. Come share the music.

The Champagne IS Korbel

So, it's been awhile. You may be asking yourself, "Where the hell have you been?" Well, allow me to attempt to show you.

We just got back from an Alaskan cruise, compliments of my mom and step-father, to commemorate their 20th wedding anniversary.

If you have never been to Alaska, GO. SOON. It will blow your mind. We:

• Saw an abundance of bald eagles - We visited a temperate coastal rainforest in Ketchikan. We probably saw north of 20 bald eagles, just at this site alone, in their natural habitats. I can see now why they're the national bird of this country. Probably one of the most amazing animals we saw. I'll have some more pictures soon; the eagle I shot in this video was probably about 30 feet away from me, and I was told it's body is 3 feet tall and wing span is 6 feet across. Amazing.


• Fed reindeer - granted, these gals were in a pen, and they're technically not native to Alaska (Russia, in fact), but how often do you get to hand-feed a reindeer in the lower 48? Their antlers were the softest velvet that you've ever felt, and they were fairly adorable animals.


• Witnessed a black bear mother tree her cub to protect it from us. She is, seen here, strolling away from the park path that we were on, but to see her chase the cub up the tree to get it away from the humans was pretty cool. We also have soe good photos of brown (grizzly) bears that we saw at a wildlife refuge that I will try to post soon as well.


• Went out to sea and watched many humpback whales - this was quite possibly the most amazing wildlife that we saw. These whales were about 40 feet from our boat, and we were told they were about the size of the tour bus that we rode in on, and weighed at least 45,000 pounds. The video from our digital camera doesn't have a zoom, so this won't really do them justice. They were mind-blowing.


• And, most completely stunningly of all, parked about a quarter or half mile from a fuh-reaking glacier! Like Al Gore will tell you, glaciers are probably a disappearing species on this earth of ours, thanks to our friend global warming. However, we suspended our dislike of global warming while watching the calving of the glacier (video clip), because it was just so amazing to watch. The glacier in this video clip is 300 feet tall, which makes the piece falling into the water about 50 feet tall. The sound on our camera didn't do it justice, because it sounded like thunder rolling in. It was the most amazing thing I think I've ever seen in nature. The Harvard Glacier is a mile and a half across, and 300 feet tall, and it actually advancing (as opposed to the many, many retreating glaciers that we saw, thanks to global warming).

Other glacier shots:


This shot shows about half of the glacier from closer to a couple of miles from it. Gives you an idea of how massive it is.


This is a nice close-up of part of the glacier. It doesn't have any of the glacial till that you can see in the other shot and also in the clip. The ice is so amaizing, though, when you get a close look at the colors. And again, not to beat a dead horse, but the ice is 300 feet from top to water-line.


This is a great shot of two of the glaciers up in the mountains that feed the Harvard Glacier. This shot also gives you a good perspective of how the glacier grinds out the rock particles and deposits them as it all merges together. The black striations seen in the glacier come from the points where the glacial moraines meet and cram together.

All in all, it was an amazing trip, and we didn't want to come home. Jet lag and a red-eye flight from Anchorage to Detroit didn't help either. But, we'd do it again in a heartbeat, and we'd consider moving to Juneau if the right opportunity ever presented itself.

In other news, we rocked the Newport. I was also bummed to come home from vacation to find that LeCharles Bentley had apparently knocked himself out for the year. But, then, he was a Browns fan growing up and should have known the franchise is jinxed.

Also, much to my wife's chagrin, the Indians traded Ronnie Belliard away, as well as Broussard (her favorite player was Ronnie B.). I wasn't sure about the deals, but it sounds like we got some decent returns (I think Hector Luna will be a valuble player, and watching Choo hit a grand slam tonight as well as showing off his arm in right field makes me feel OK with giving up Broussard). Tonight was the first Tribe game I've watched in over a week, so I don't know if Marte got called up at all or not, but Boone started tonight. At least he went yard tonight.

So, back to work this coming Monday, and our anniversary is this weekend. It's been quite a week!

There're ass whoopins....

AND THEN THERE'RE ASS WHOOPINS!

So, let's recap. Two of the three worst beatings the Yankees have EVER received have come at the hands of the Tribe.... in the last two years.... and the Tribe sent the SAME STARTING PITCHER to the hill both times. Weird.

19-1 last night. 22-0 back in August of '04. Good times, both.

Hafner is hitting like a man who wants to be voted onto the All Star team. Victor Martinez has been awesome since June 1. The bullpen has been *better*, but still can be an achilles heel (see the two games they lost in the bottom of the 9th on Wednesday and Friday).

Granted, this team isn't making the playoffs (14.5 games out of the WILD CARD, and six teams to catch/pass), no matter what heroics they attempt to pull off. But, it IS nice to see them playing better (6 of 8, should be an 8-game win streak - see above re: two games lost in the 9th) heading into the break. They're 4-under .500 with six to play. It'd be nice to see them at .500 by the break, even though they're still 7 games out of THIRD place in the toughest division in baseball.

Even still, they're playing better.

Now, if LeBron would only sign his extension, I could breathe easier.

Your Name in Lights

There's just something about seeing your band name on a Ticketmaster ticket, no matter what the occasion. Anyone reading this blog that's interested in a ticket, please let me know.

We finished recording all of the parts for a nine-song CD this past weekend, and I have to say I'm very excited by what I've heard so far.

We'll need to go in and mix everything down at some point, but between taking our time, doing everything part-by-part and having an engineer that really knows how to use the tools at his disposal, I think we'll have a good product to show for this endeavor.

We have three more shows before the BIGGIE, and then hopefully that springboards us to some degree of name recognition in this fair city.

Some updates

I've been very busy with work, and thus haven't spent as much quality time here as I would have liked. But, I feel as though I owe whomever is reading this a few updates. Here goes nothin'...

Another year older...
I turned 29 last Wednesday. Nothing wrong with that on the surface, other than it means that I turn 30 next summer. Not good times. Melissa did plan a very nice birthday for me, including surprising me with a 30-gig iPod video player. I'm probably the last person on the planet to get an mp3 player, and when I was lugging around my CD player at the gym and what-not it was always evident. No longer!

Wife's another year older...
Today. Happy birthday, baby! While I don't know if I can top an iPod, I will do my best!

Birthday weekends are fun!
For our collective birthdays, we ventured down to the New River Gorge in WVA to do some river rafting. I had never been before, and so it was an enjoyable first experience. I hope some of the pictures I took with our underwater camera (still left over from our honeymoon in Jamaica, no less) turn out OK. It was a fun time, not real expensive (thanks to my little bargain hunter), and not a long drive (we stayed in Charleston to cut down on the driving hunks). Seeing the 975-foot arch bridge from the water level is pretty impressive.

Cleveland Indians "baseball"
See: Stick a fork in them; they're done. 3-10 in their last 13, 4th place, 14 games out, just got swept by the Brewers, including two losses in the bottom of the ninth inning. Of their last 9 losses, 5 have come in the eighth inning or later. Injuries, lack of ANY quality bullpen pitching (even Wickman has struggled in his last few outings), and a streaky offense that only seems to score runs in bunches when they're blowing someone out. I'm not going to blame this on the Coco Crisp trade and or on losing Howry, but the latter certainly would have helped in the bullpen. This team looks lost right now, and doesn't show any signs of coming out of it. People compared this year to last year, but this time last year they were going on a 12-1 tear through interleague play that vaulted them back above .500 to stay, and were moving into second place. They're doing the exact opposite right now this year. Unless some magic light switch comes on and they get back above .500 by the All-Star break, they can essentially start making their October tee-times.

Speaking of which...

My Golf Game
See: It sucks. After all the talk in my last entry about how good I thought I could be this summer, I've found it to be a little tougher sledding. I've played two rounds of 9 holes since then, and put together I shot a 102, I think. There's been some good (decent pitching and putting) and some bad (I seem to have lost the ability to hit any shots straight off the tee), but overall I'm right about where I've always been. Meh. I still enjoy playing, though. I just won't be joining the pro tour anytime soon. Oh well.

Band news
I spent five hours in the studio last Thursday recording my parts for nine of our songs. The session went very well, thanks to the help of our guitarist Justin (ears, support) and a very good engineer. The guys will be going in on Saturday and Sunday this weekend to finish up their parts for those tracks, and then we'll need to spend some time mixing soon after. A full-length, nine track album should be done sometime in mid-July, I would guess. Just in time for our big show on July 21st.

Browns Football
As a Cleveland sports fan, I have to have something to look forward to, and right now this is it. Minicamp was this past weekend, and some of the things to report are that Kellen Winslow claims to be at 90% (and claims to have been humbled by not playing last season), and supposedly caught everything and anything thrown to him in camp. He's still shaking some rust off, but a healthy Winslow with his head finally on straight will be a dangerous weapon for this team. The prelminary indication is that no Browns draft picks will be holding out this year, which would be a breath of fresh air. I'm sticking by my thinking that 9 wins isn't out of the question.

Work
Busy. And back to it.

Long Overdue

Not only am I long overdue for a blog update, but I had been long overdue for a golf game. So, thankfully, I got to play with my Dad over the weekend. It was nice to play with him, and also to take him out to play for Father's Day, since I won't get to see him on Father's Day itself.

We got out to play Thunderbird Hills South, which is a nice course (and fairly forgiving, since it's only 8-10 years old and the trees haven't matured yet) that I always seem to shoot well on (keep in mind that "well" for me is anything below triple-digits).

We were tied at the turn, both under 50. I was killing the ball off the tee, but struggling mightily with my pitching/chipping. I got new irons this year, and am still trying to find the swing for them, but have made great strides. On the round, I hit three of the four par-3 greens, and missed the fourth 10 yards left, but pin-high. My dad was killing me around the greens. He saved about four shots with great 50-foot chips close to the hole.

The weather was beautiful, the time well-spent with Dad. On 10 and 11, he stole three strokes from me. Then another one on 13. Down four, I needed to rally, and I had sub-100 in my sights. I needed to finish with 5 bogeys to hit a 96, which would have been fine with me. Bogey, bogey, bogey, par, bogey. 95. I stole two back from Dad, but he cruised in with a 93.

I suppose since it was our observance of Father's Day, I can let that slide. :-)

As for my golf game, I've finally bought into the strategy of trying to bogey every hole instead of par every hole. I finally see what playing the safe shots instead of trying to make up for every mis-hit on the next shot can do. I'm no longer trying to do things I know I simply can't do. Some positives:

• I hit my driver about as well as I ever have. I hit at least five drives over 250 yards, and actually got some in the fairway.


• I was just KILLING my 5-wood off the deck. I hit a few at least 200+, to which my Dad gave me many kudos. It bailed me out more than once when I was not good off the tee, and on the par-5's.


• My wedges improved toward the end of the round. I still don't have the distance control that I want (I'm often short when I get it up in the air, and WAY long when I don't), but I was better at getting them up in the air and throwing them at the green instead of swinging and hoping.


• I putted well. I almost sank a 40-foot birdie putt on a par 3. In truth, I only read one break and thought I hadn't given it enough room. To my surprise, it broke back toward the cup at the end, and stopped about two inches short of a birdie.


• As I said above, I hit my irons well off the tees on the par-3 holes. I need a little more work with hitting them off the deck. It's coming along. A bucket or two at the range, plus trying to play a lot more on my half-day Fridays with work friends will hopefully help.

All of that adds up to my goal of hopefully breaking 90 this year at some point. Lowest I've ever shot is a 94 (incidentally, also at T-bird South), and on my 95 this past weekend I know I left at least 3-4 BAD shots out there. With a little improvement and better game/course management, I should be able to break 90.

At least, that's the goal.

In other news, House of Cards at C.B.R.'s this Saturday with a nice lineup, including Ladyfinger who's in from out of town. Come and check it out.

My Kingdom for a Rebound

All it would have taken to give the Cavs a legitimate shot to win game six: one stinking defensive rebound. They just couldn't get one when they needed it. I had no delusions that the Cavs would win Game 7 in Detroit, but any Pistons fan that doesn't admit that, after going up by 13 early, they were a little nervous to see Detroit with only a 2-point halftime lead is LYING. Give the 'Stons some credit; they played defense when it mattered, and played smart.

At any rate, the Cavs gave the best team in the conference--and possibly the league--all they could handle. As a Cavs fan, I can't ask for anything more than that. They gained valuable experience, they learned what it takes to win tough games against tough teams; they just didn't have enough depth. LeBron played as well as he could yesterday, but when no one else on your team makes any shots, you're going to see a lot of triple teams; hell, even LeBron is human.

In the end, I can harbor no disappointment with the Cavs' season. They won 50 games, beat a game Washington team in round 1, and took the defending conference champs to 7 games. I was happy that they got out of the first round. Hopefully this loss makes them that much more hungry for next season, and they come out and play defense like they did against Detroit for the whole year. If they do, 55-60 wins wouldn't be out of the question.


Tribe has won 5 out of 6 to climb back to .500 for the season. This year could not mirror last year any more. Now that the pitching has been good all week, the hitting is struggling. If the whole team can lock in like they did most of last summer, it could get interesting. They're treading water about 7.5 games back of the division leaders, so as long as they can keep it closer than last year, I like their chances to get back into it. But, they need to get going soon.


House of Cards has two shows coming up this week: Thursday at Ruby Tuesday's (the campus bar, not the restaurant) and Sunday night at The Lodge Bar (anyone who wants a ticket, let me know). Only two months to go until the big Newport show.

Also, we will be recording on June 15th, 23rd, and 24th. We're hoping to have a finished master by early July. We're doing it the right way this time (spending more time in a better studio, doing all of the parts individually), so we hope that the finished product is good. We've got the songs; hopefully we can get 9-10 done for a full-length.


Alias finale is tonight. It will be sad to see the show go, but it's definitely time. Melissa is still cursing Ben Affleck, as she blames him for all the ills the show has suffered over the past two years. While (as any religious WttMH readers can attest) I admit that his sperm did put a big monkey wrench into this season, I countered with, "Sweetheart, Ben Affleck didn't write all of the crappy episodes they had in season 4." She did make a very good point, though. He's responsible for the decline in chemistry between Michael Vartan and Jennifer Garner, which in turn makes Sydney and Vaughn much less believeable as lovers. As the shows two main characters, that definitely hurt it.

At any rate, I'm looking forward to the ENDGAME, and to see who goes down. I suspect the Prophet 5 people will meet with an untimely demise, to set up a final showdown between Sydney and Sloan. I'm wondering what other characters will get the axe, as you have to imagine this has "bloodbath" potential. You can't wrap up a series with this many super-criminals and super-criminal organizations without some carnage. I suspect Ms. Derevco will have a role to play in tonight's finale as well.

Should be a busy week; I hope to be able to update as frequently as I have been.

Pronk-itude: It's Contageous!

PRONK-ITUDE: to the tune of a Grand Slam! Couple that with Westbrook pitching a complete game, 6-hit shutout, and the Tribe cruised to a 5-0 victory. Finally, some signs of life. Speaking of signs of life:




Holy mother of all that's holy! The Cavaliers, in the face of my (and many others') constant nay-saying, have put themselves in the driver's seat in their series with the Pistons by going into Detroit and winning. Simply unbelievable. Cavs up 3-2 in the series, Game 6 on Friday in Cleveland.

Their defense has been intense and has set the tone for the last 3+ games, and LeBron, while not dazzling last night (had 8 more turnovers and only shot 13 of 30), still managed 32 points. Donyell Marshall was strong off the bench with 14 and 13, not to mention a HUGE blocked shot in the final 20 seconds, and Rasheed Wallace was again a non-factor in the second half and most importantly down the stretch (having been benched after his bitchy technical foul):

When Chauncey Billups fouled out with over 2 minutes to go, I had a feeling the Cavs would win it. I just didn't believe they won it until it was over.

I remember saying that any games that the Cavs won in this series were going to be gravy for me; they'd already accomplished what I'd wanted to see in the playoffs. That's still true: even if they lose the next two games and get eliminated, I saw what I needed to see. They played hard; they didn't roll over. They hung with the best team in the conference and/or league, and gave them everything they could handle.

And, with Friday's game 6 at home, who knows?

(TV SPOILERS AHEAD)

Well, Lost took an interesting turn. We found out what many suspected: Michael's working for The Others (though, who could blame him after seeing Walt again?) and the Others want a large chunk of our Lost-aways for whatever reason. Considering all other lists we've seen have involved people who are "good," I don't quite know why they'd want Kate and Sawyer. Since Sayid (and now Jack) seem to understand that Michael is desperate and probably has been comprimised, it will be interesting to see how they approach the trip to the Others' camp... that is, if the writers even let us see that much next week and don't draw it out until next season. With Lost, there's always a chance that even the writers don't know where the show is going.

The new sailboat rolling into the beach presents an interesting new piece leading into the season finale next week. I get the feeling that either no one is on that boat, or whomever is on the boat is dead.

As for Alias, you knew the Sloan knew it was Sydney from the first moment he saw her. Who knows what this magical amulet really will unleash, but I suspect there will be lots of carnage and dead main characters in next Monday's 2-hour finale. Thankfully, Prison Break has already broken for the season so there isn't a conflict of interest on Monday.

That said, all of my attention is on the Cavs. They have a good shot to end it in 6 at home on Friday, but I'm afraid that if they don't, they probably won't win a game 7 on the road in Detroit. As I told a friend this morning:

This series is reminding me of two past playoff series:

2001 MLB playoffs: Tribe goes up 2-1 on Seattle (they of the 116-win regular season) with game 4 at home and Bartolo Colon pitching (following his game 1 CG shutout). I thought for sure that series was over and the Tribe was going to eliminate the Mariners. One bad managerial decision later (pitching to Ichiro in the 7th inning with a base open), the M's forced game 5 in Seattle and won it handily.

2004 NBA playoffs: The Pistons go up big on the Lakers in the finals, and everyone keeps saying, "Oh, OK... that's cool. You know the Lakers are going to turn it on in the next game and just smoke the Pistons and win the series." Well, we all know how that turned out.

The question is: which result will happen here? As a Cleveland fan, I'm predisposed to thinking it will mimic the 2001 baseball playoffs.

Good God, I hope not.

At any rate, I scanned the papers and Internet services, and didn't see a single word attributed to Rasheed Wallace. I think maybe he got the hint.

Pronk-itude and LeBron-itude... together at last.

Pronk-itude: It's Not Just a Name, It's a State of Mind

I invented a new word: Pronk-itude. I started calling Travis Hafner "Pronk-itude" at some point in spring training. It was a mixture of his natural nickname ("Pronk" meaning "part-project, part-donkey") and Hanz and Franz saying the word "pumpitude" back in the day on SNL ("Pronk-itude" must be pronounced with the Hanz and Franz Austrian accent). It got to the point that whenever I'm watching a game by myself, I would say things like, "Come on, Pronk-itude!" whenever Travis came up to bat. So, you can imagine my wife's surprise (who had never heard this name before) when, after Hafner's home run to win the game in the bottom of the 9th last night, I yelled "PRONK-ITUDE!" at the top of my lungs.

Originally it was just my nickname for him. But, after seeing his face as he rounded the bases and went into the dugout after the game winner (see below), I've decided that it's not just a name, it's a state of mind!

Note to Buddy Bell: sometimes lefty-lefty matchups don't always work... especially in the face of:

PRONK-ITUDE.

Goodbye, baseball. Goodbye, losing streak. Some notes:

• Byrd and the bullpen actually kept us in the game. When the Tribe tied it at 3 in the third, it looked as though Byrd was going to give the lead right back to KC in the 4th after he threw a probable double play into center field. He was bailed out by a good throw from Michaels and a great tag by Martinez to turn a sac fly for KC into a double play for the Tribe. Byrd's only mistake the rest of the night was the tater to Matt Stairs.


• Along those lines, Betancourt looked sharp last night. Hopefully he can bring some stability to the pen. They pitched 3 scoreless innings last night to keep the Tribe in the game, which allowed the offense to ultimately win it in the 9th.


• Hopefully the game-tying dinger by Sizemore followed by the walk-off bomb by Hafner was the spark that was needed to ignite the team. "It usually takes something dramatic like this to end a streak," Indians manager Eric Wedge said. Couldn't agree more. As he rounded the bases and was mobbed by his team at the plate, Hafner had the same look on his face that LeBron James gets when he's starting to take over a game. If a picture is worth 1,000 words, THAT look was the best definition I can give you for what PRONK-ITUDE actually is. Hafner is starting to look locked in again. God help the pitchers if he is.


• If the offense can get going again and the bullpen can calm down finally, perhaps the Tribe can right the ship. And not a moment too soon.

In other news, second-to-last Alias tonight, new Lost, AND Cavs/Pistons game 5. God bless the DVR, because otherwise I don't know how the hell I would watch all of that riveting TV. Monday night was tough enough with Prison Break, Grey's Anatomy, and the Cavs. Melissa and I had to sit down ahead of time and formulate a plan of attack, no thanks to the President fucking the whole thing up by talking some nonsense about how working and paying your taxes is a "meaningful penalty" or some such garbage. But I digress....

I think we'll find out tonight whether Michael has gone bat-shit on Lost, or whether he's one of the Others. I think on Alias we'll get some clue as to what the final Prophet 5 ENDGAME (woo!) is. And lastly and most unfortunately, I think the Pistons will probably beat the Cavs, and we'll be forced to hear more of Rasheed Wallace's douchey ramblings about how great he is/they are.

The Big Break(?)

So, wow, I don't know where to start with this one.

I've been in my band now since roughly September or October of 2004. I played my first show with them on February 22nd of 2005. We played on a Tuesday night at the High Five club, which is a shithole south of campus. It was just Justin, John, and I. Our backing track wasn't mixed. I was wearing big doofy headphones. Who knows if we were any good? I was nervous.

Since then, we've played 33 shows all over Columbus. I've only really been nervous one other time: Little Brother's. And then, this happened:


We found out we're headlining THE NEWPORT.

This, coupled with Little Brother's, is my Columbus Band Dream. I've seen a ton of my favorite bands here (Cave In, Dada, Helmet, Built to Spill, Guster, Filter [though they sucked], Matthew Sweet, Chevelle....), and now, we're getting to play there. And, we're headlining. As in, our names are on the marquis.


Alright, enough of the drivel. Anyone and everyone that reads this blog: your mission, should you decide to accept it, is to clear your schedule on Friday night, July 21st, and get to Columbus any way you can. Come see my band AT THE FREAKIN' NEWPORT.

You won't regret it. And I will thank you thusly.

Rasheed should probably Rashut the hell up.

Now, I know in my heart that the Cavs probably aren't going to win this series, but if you were a Pistons player or fan, wouldn't you want Rasheed Wallace (he of the 7 points in game 4) to shut his freakin' mouth?

"Even the sun shines on a dog's [behind]," Wallace said. "There ain't no way . . . they're going to beat us in no series. They beat us tonight, which is good for them. . . . But, nah, they ain't going to beat us in the series."

That may be true, but if I were Flip Saunders, Richard Hamilton (who is a stud, by the way), or Chauncey Billups, I'd be cornering Sheed in the locker room, ripping his water bong out of his hands, and telling him to shut his fucking cake hole.

James wasn't great, but wasn't terrible. He was only one assist and two rebounds shy of a triple-double, but he also turned the ball over a lot and had a pretty miserable night shooting the ball (his sick step-away three at the halftime buzzer and fourth quarter cross-over J right in TPrince's mug notwithstanding).

What we've discovered is that if the Pistons don't shoot fucking 8000% from three-point range (and, really, in general) and can't establish an inside offensive presence (after hurting his ankle, I'd venture that Rasheed was maybe at 40% at best), the Cavs can stay close. And, when you can stay close into the late stages of the game, having the best player on the floor gives you a chance to win.

At any rate, the Cavs "guarateed" themselves at least one more home game. And, if they can force a Game 7, things will probably get really tight around the throat areas for all of those Pistons.

Even you, Rasheed.

More Big Business Garbage

More proof that anything and everything is for sale, and that corporations run this country:

Net Neutrality. From savetheinternet.com:

Congress is pushing a law that would abandon the Internet's First Amendment -- a principle called Network Neutrality that prevents companies like AT&T, Verizon and Comcast from deciding which Web sites work best for you -- based on what site pays them the most. If the public doesn't speak up now, our elected officials will cave to a multi-million dollar lobbying campaign.

Sound familiar? Money talks, and bullshit walks.

Why you should care:

Net Neutrality allows everyone to compete on a level playing field and is the reason that the Internet is a force for economic innovation, civic participation and free speech. If the public doesn't speak up now, Congress will cave to a multi-million dollar lobbying campaign by telephone and cable companies that want to decide what you do, where you go, and what you watch online.

This isn't just speculation -- we've seen what happens when the Internet's gatekeepers get too much control. Last year, Telus -- Canada's version of AT&T -- blocked their Internet customers from visiting a Web site sympathetic to workers with whom the company was having a dispute. And Madison River, a North Carolina ISP, blocked its customers from using competing Internet phone services.

How would the gutting of Network Neutrality affect you?

• Google users—Another search engine could pay dominant Internet providers like AT&T to guarantee the competing search engine opens faster than Google on your computer.


• Innovators with the "next big idea"—Startups and entrepreneurs will be muscled out of the marketplace by big corporations that pay Internet providers for dominant placing on the Web. The little guy will be left in the "slow lane" with inferior Internet service, unable to compete.


• Ipod listeners—A company like Comcast could slow access to iTunes, steering you to a higher-priced music service that it owned.


• Political groups—Political organizing could be slowed by a handful of dominant Internet providers who ask advocacy groups to pay "protection money" for their websites and online features to work correctly.


• Nonprofits—A charity's website could open at snail-speed, and online contributions could grind to a halt, if nonprofits can't pay dominant Internet providers for access to "the fast lane" of Internet service.


• Online purchasers—Companies could pay Internet providers to guarantee their online sales process faster than competitors with lower prices—distorting your choice as a consumer.


• Small businesses and tele-commuters—When Internet companies like AT&T favor their own services, you won't be able to choose more affordable providers for online video, teleconferencing, Internet phone calls, and software that connects your home computer to your office.


• Parents and retirees—Your choices as a consumer could be controlled by your Internet provider, steering you to their preferred services for online banking, health care information, sending photos, planning vacations, etc.


• Bloggers—Costs will skyrocket to post and share video and audio clips—silencing citizen journalists and putting more power in the hands of a few corporate-owned media outlets.

Blocking Innovation

Corporate control of the Web would reduce your choices and stifle the spread of innovative and independent ideas that we've come to expect online. It would throw the digital revolution into reverse. Internet gatekeepers are already discriminating against Web sites and services they don't like:

• In 2004, North Carolina ISP Madison River blocked their DSL customers from using any rival Web-based phone service.


• In 2005, Canada's telephone giant Telus blocked customers from visiting a Web site sympathetic to the Telecommunications Workers Union during a contentious labor dispute.


• Shaw, a major Canadian cable, internet, and telephone service company, intentionally downgrades the "quality and reliability" of competing Internet-phone services that their customers might choose -- driving customers to their own phone services not through better services, but by rigging the marketplace.


• In April, Time Warner's AOL blocked all emails that mentioned www.dearaol.com -- an advocacy campaign opposing the company's pay-to-send e-mail scheme.

This is just the beginning. Cable and telco giants want to eliminate the Internet's open road in favor of a tollway that protects their status quo while stifling new ideas and innovation. If they get their way, they'll shut down the free flow of information and dictate how you use the Internet.

(again from savetheinternet.com)

Wow. So, in other words, if you're losing business to smaller companies, don't make a better product. Use your muscle and political influence to make it legal to shut them out of the marketplace.

And, I suspect they could call this the "Move On" law in part, because I'm sure the influence of sites like Move On is a large part of what's driving this push to block sites on ISPs.

Get on board to save Net Neutrality. If you're reading this blog, it directly affects you.

Did I say 4-1? Try 5-1

Updating yesterday's numbers:

Kansas City Royals:
record vs. Indians: 5-1 (.833)
recrod vs. rest of the AL: 5-21 (.192)

Kansas City Royals:
team batting average vs. Indians: 76-206 (.369 avg.) w/ a .549 slugging percentage
team batting average vs. rest of AL: 187-849 (.220 avg.) w/ a .346 slugging percentage

Kansas City Royals:
team ERA vs. Indians: 4.83
team ERA vs. rest of AL: 5.65

At least John Buck didn't play. And, in truth, their average and ERA numbers went down (slugging did go up).... and they still won 10-8. Tribe sucks.


(Spoilers ahead)
As for the Alias/Lost parade last night, Alias annoys me just a bit. First of all, Melissa and I made up a new drinking game: take a drink anytime a character says the word "endgame" (with two drinks if it's "Rambaldi's endgame"). You'll be passed out by the end of the episode. I guess my problem is that the main characters of this show always seem to escape death (really, would the brutal, heartless Anna Espinosa go through the trouble of blowing up Syndey's car, or would she just shoot Sydney and get it over with? I think the latter, myself), and then the other characters just die off. I know they're wrapping this show up in two more episodes, but I find it hard to believe that Anna would go out like that. At any rate, gear up for many ENDGAMES!!

As for Lost, it finally looks like they're going somewhere in a fairly linear direction: Michael's driving the bus. Our fair DUI maidens are both gone now; let that be a lesson to the rest of you lost-aways. As for Eko and Locke, Locke's shoes are now on the other feet, so to speak, and I find it interesting that now he's the one with doubts and Eko is the one trying to convince him of faith. A sort of passing of the torch, if you will.

As for the "?" hatch (a.k.a., "The Pearl"), red herring or truth? It certainly affected John. And really, any time I can see another one of those creepy orientation films, bring it on.

And, for the record, when Libby spit up blood, I jumped like a teenager at a slasher flick.

It's Official: I HATE the Indians this year

Okay, okay, so HATE is a strong word. That said, let's throw out a few numbers:

Kansas City Royals:
record vs. Indians: 4-1
recrod vs. rest of the AL: 5-21
Do the math.

John Buck, Catcher, Kansas City:
2006 stats vs. Indians: 7-12 (.583 avg.), 2 HR, 6 RBI in four games
2006 stats vs. rest of the AL: 9-51 (.176 avg.), 0 HR, 4 RBI in 21 games
Ridiculous.

Kansas City Royals:
team batting average vs. Indians: 64-171 (.374 avg.) w/ a .526 slugging percentage
team batting average vs. rest of AL: 187-849 (.220 avg.) w/ a .346 slugging percentage
Seeing a trend here?

Kansas City Royals:
team ERA vs. Indians: 4.20 (best of any Indians opponent)
team ERA vs. rest of AL: 5.65
Will it ever end?


The Tribe is 17-17. Since their 6-1 start, they're 11-16, and their pitching has been streaky. They're in third place, 3.5 games behind the Tigers, and already 7 games behind the White Sox. Did they not learn anything last year? It would be nice not to have to try to make up 15 games in July and August. I'm off the bandwagon for the year. They're still my team, and I'll still follow them; don't get me wrong. But if they don't shore up their pitching soon (another 10 runs to the lowly Royals last night), though, the season will be over before they know it.

Sigh.

Baby Steps

Well, as amazing as the Cavs/Wizards series was (Cavs won, 4-2, with a last-second shot in overtime by the venerable Damon Jones), it's safe to say that the season is effectively over for the Cavs. It's alright. Important steps were taken: they made the playoffs, they won ugly in the playoffs, they won their first playoff series. They're just going to get bounced in the second round by the best team in the league.

After a drubbing at the hands of the Pistons on Sunday (113-86, and it wasn't even that close), the Cavs got a good measuring stick for how far they really need to go. And, also, the Pistons really are the best TEAM in the league. LeBron may be the best player, but he can't beat an entire team on his own.

Some anomolies in this game: I hope to God that the Pistons won't shoot 10-11 from 3-point range for an entire half ever again. They shot 65% as a team in the first half. No team in the NBA can withstand that.

I've made my peace. Any games the Cavs win in this series are basically gravy for me at this point. I think the Cavs will win one game, but I'd be hard-pressed to give them more than 1.


In other news, the Tribe keeps floating along... 3-2 on their mini west coast swing. Here's the stat of the day: In the Tribe's 17 wins this season, the starting pitchers have a 2.78 ERA (33 earned runs, 106 2/3 innings). In their 15 losses, they have an 8.60 ERA (71 earned runs in 74 1/3 innings).

They have three in Kansas City this week, and it would be nice to see them just crush the Royals. The Royals have the best luck, though: they get the Indians twice at home at the end of long road trips. Seems fair to me. Again, though, if the Indians can go in and lay the smack down, it would be nice momentum going into a big weekend series with the Tigers at home.


The Browns traded Trent Dilfer to San Francisco for Ken Dorsey and a draft pick. The pros: apparently, Dilfer was not the consumate pro/mentor we all thought he'd be. Apparently, he didn't like sitting at all behind a rookie. Great move. He gets a trade to SF, which is close to his hometown. Good for him. We get Ken Dorsey (he of the great college career, but no arm strength) and a seventh round pick in next year's draft.

I don't care much for Dilfer myself, but I'd still rather have him than Dorsey, in terms of veteran experience. At any rate, Dorsey has said all of the right things since the trade (i.e., works hard, doesn't care about backing up Frye, etc.), but you'll pardon me if I say I've already heard those. Plus, that means that Ken Dorsey is a knee injury away from being our starting quarterback. I think I just threw up in my mouth a little bit.


I hope to have a little more this afternoon, as I'm going to be calling Safe Auto again today. Dirty bastards.

10,000 Days

Run--don't walk--to your nearest music dealing store and purchase this album. Holy fuck.

Pick up the phone / the call is free

Free indeed.

I always wondered how certain car insurance companies could afford to be so much "cheaper" than other companies, and then I found out. With apologies to any WTtMH readers who may have this company...

FUCK SAFE AUTO.

There. I've said it. Pick up the phone... the call is free. Then just pray to God you never, ever hit someone (or get hit by someone who has Safe Auto).

Two weeks ago, I had the misfortune of being rear-ended while waiting to get on the freeway. The woman that rear-ended me basically ended both of my bumpers (by pushing me into the car in front of me). Estimate: $1500+ to get both bumpers fixed. According to the police officer at the scene, I was not at fault at all, because the woman behind me hit me and pushed me into the car in front of me. No big deal, right?

Not so much. Her Safe Auto insurance guy called me the Monday after the accident to tell me that they were "conducting their own investigation" into the accident. Investigation?? Of what? She hit me. It doesn't take a team of MIT scientists to conduct physical experiments to figure it out. There's a yield sign. There were cars coming with the right of way. The car in front of me stopped to yield. I stopped behind him. She fucking hit me square in the center of my bumper, going at least 25 or 30 MPH (enough to pop one side of my bumper off of the back quarter panel, at least).

Then, the answer was: "Well, the car she was driving wasn't on her policy, so we may not be covering the accident damages." EXCUSE ME? Duely noted. And allow me to retort: FUCK YOU. Insurance covers the driver, and any other drivers on the policy. That's how it's always worked, since the dawn of time. Otherwise, no one's insurance would ever pay for any accident they had in someone else's car, and someone who had no fault in the accident would get stuck with a higher premium. I know that if I wreck my wife's car, MY INSURANCE is paying for it, and MY RATE is going up... not hers.

What's worse is that, if I didn't follow up with Safe Auto, they'd be content to ignore this claim. He told me to "give [them] a week to finish [their] investigation," and now I can't get the jabroni on the phone anymore. Nor has he called me to update the investigation.

And, of course, I could have the good people at my State Farm office go after Safe Auto, except that then I have to file my own claim and pay my $500 deductable. To which I reply with: BULL SHIT.

The light at the end of the tunnel is that 3-C Body Shop (they also of the annoying commercials) are pretty good at going after insurance companies themselves, since they're the ones that get the money for the repairs at the end of the day.


In summary: Fuck Safe Auto. Fuck their commercials. Maybe it's just me, but you can't put a price tag on customer service. Maybe my State Farm insurance costs more, but I also know that I can call or walk into my agent's office any time of any day and speak to him within 15 minutes, and get a satisfactory answer to my question. Sure, Safe Auto gives you the minimum coverage allowable by the law, thus making you "legal for less," but as Stan said in Office Space, "What do you think of someone who just does the bare minimum, um kay?"

With respect to anyone who has Safe Auto, I personally think they suck. My insurance company told me they suck. The body shop told me they suck. And in this case, I'm the Decider.

The Legend Grows...

Sometimes pictures are worth a thousand words.

121-120. Cavs up 3-2. And, just a reminder: he's only 21. What else needs to be said?

Well, I was half-right...

The Browns did take Kamerion Wimbley with their first pick, and Ngata was off the board, but the reason he was off the board was because we traded our #12 pick with Baltimore, and THEY took him. We only got a 6th round pick from the deal which seems a bit light, but with that pick, we took a nose-tackle from Stanford. It became clear that the Browns never had any intention of taking Ngata. Whatever.

I don't know what to think about Wimbley as our first pick. If he comes as advertised, he should make a nice transition to outside 'backer in our 3-4 defense and bring some pressure from the outside. The combination of Wimbley and McGinnest should solidify our pass rush greatly, assuming Wimbley does what he's supposed to do and doesn't flip a motorcycle or anything stupid like that (see: Winslow, Kellen).

Overall, I think the Browns did well. Most publications I read gave them a solid B+ or A- grade (or, in the case of USA Today, 3 out of 4 stars).

The Good:

• Trading Jeff Faine to the Saints (whose previous Pro Bowl center we just stole in free agency) to move up and take D'Qwell Jackson in round 2. He was only the ACC Defensive Player of the year, beating out 3 NC State and 4 FSU defensive players taken in the first round ahead of him. He's a bit smallish for inside 'backer in a 3-4, but his football instincts are supposed to be tremendous, he's very versatile, and he's a tackling machine. The Browns don't always tackle well, so anyone that can improve that is an upgrade. I could forsee him unseating both Matt Stewart and Chaun Thompson to play inside next to Andra Davis. Good pick.


• James Hamilton - this guy was picked in the fifth round, and is a running back from Washington State. He's small, but is shifty, versatile, and only ran for 1900 freakin' yards last season. He'll be a very good change-of-pace back to Reuben Droughns and on third downs.


• Lawrence Vickers - fullback from Colorado, widely regarded as one of the best fullbacks in the draft. He can do it all: run, block, and catch. Our current fullback, while a good blocker, can't run or catch all that well. Vickers fits better into the scheme our offense plays, and should be immensely valuable on thrid-and-short situations and goal-line situations. And all of this for a sixth round pick. Stealing.


• Overall, the Browns primarily drafted based on need: three linebackers, a backup offensive guard, a nose tackle, a change-of-pace running back, a versatile fullback, and a possible second wide receiver. They also drafted a safety and a cornerback whose talent translates well to a nickel back, which as we saw last year when Baxter, Bodden, and McCutcheon all battled injuries, is a valuable commodity. The Browns got much deeper on Saturday, and added people who could potentially start for them in a few years with almost every pick. That's the mark of a winning draft.

The Bad:

• Trading the rights to Ngata away to a hated division rival, and only getting a sixth round pick in return. Now, granted, it's apparent that Savage never really wanted to take Ngata, but you can still milk the other team for more than that. The draft chart says that switch should merit a fourth round pick. Getting at least a fifth would have been nice.


• I'm still not 100% sold on Wimbley. He only cracked the starting lineup as a senior. He's supposed to be an athletic marvel, but you'd like to see more dominance from a guy taken 13th overall who's supposed to completely revamp your pass rush. You're also projecting him from defensive end in college to an outside linebacker in the pros, which is always risky. He's being compared to the next Peter Boulware and/or Willie McGinnest, but he could just as easily be the next Kenard Lang at outside linebacker.


• Another safety? Justin Hamilton from Va Tech. He switched positions three times in college (RB -> WR -> RB -> S) and only played safety one year. He did, however, call the signals for the #1 defense in the country last year. However, being that we already have a potential logjam at safety, this pick left me scratching my head. Special teamer, perhaps.

Overall, though, I can't complain too much.

Since I last wrote, the Tribe has gone 2-3. Until they get their pitching back settled, it's going to be a bumpy spring. Sabathia did come back yesterday and pitched well. They just need to get the bullpen in order.


In other news, Melissa and I "foster cared" for a black lab puppy this past weekend:

Simply beautiful animal, but much, much too big and hyper for our small house and our current dog. We gave in and named him ("Grady") and he did play fetch with me, which is probably the one thing I've always wanted in a dog. I threw his toy, and he brought it back every single time. I loved that.

It was hard to see him go, but he went to the no-kill shelter. He needs to go to a home with kids that can play with him more than we can, and probably to a home without an older dog who: a) doens't want to play as much, and b) already has staked his claim as top dog bad-ass of the house.

Godspeed, Grady.

All you other Slim Gradys are just imitating...

Won't the real Slim Grady please stand up? Please stand up? Please stand up?

Seriously. Tribe. What the fuck? Will the real Cleveland Indians please stand up? They are 5-5 in their last ten games, and let's be honest... when I turn a game on, I never know if the starting pitcher is going to go 6 or 7 innings and give up one run, or if the whole team is going to give up 10+ runs. Here are the scores of their last 10 games:

Tribe - Opponents
win, 10-2
win, 15-1
loss, 9-18
loss, 4-9
win, 6-5
loss, 5-11
loss, 1-5
loss, 6-8
win, 7-1
win, 15-3

Seriously, what's going on, here? The offense (with the exception of the 10th game of a 10 day, 10 game road trip in which they only scored 1) has not been the problem. Look at the pitching numbers, though:

5 wins: 12 total runs allowed. 2.4 runs a game. A great number.
5 losses: 46 total runs allows. 9.2 runs a game. NOT a great number.

I know the bullpen has been in flux with Miller, Betancourt, and Cabrera not there. They should be getting Cabrera back soon, and apparently his extended spring has been very beneficial. Betancourt won't be on the DL too terribly long. Miller's done for the year. I also know that C.C. Sabathia is set to come off the DL any day now, and that will only strengthen the starting rotation.

But still... how about a little consistency??


Some other Tribe notes:

• I think it's safe to say you don't ever want to pitch to Ben Broussard with the bases loaded. Last night, he was 2-2 with a grand slam and 6 runs batted in with the bases loaded. That brings his career numbers to: 14-38 (.368) with 4 doubles, 4 grand slams, and a total of 47 RBI. Bases loaded? Call Ben Broussard, that's my name... that name again is Ben Broussard.


• Travis Hafner walked 4 times last night. In his last at bat, he'd been up 4 times previously, but was still 0-0 with 4 BB. How's that for patient, especially when your team is up by 10+ runs?


• Victor Martinez has picked up right where he left off last summer/fall. To have that kind of production in your catcher's spot... wow.


• Paul Byrd has an 8.03 ERA in five starts. If I told you he was above .500, you wouldn't believe me, right? Well, he's 3-2. Mainly, because of the fact that--even though his ERA is north of 8--his run support has been 50 runs in 5 games. Wow.


• Speaking of runs, the Tribe leads baseball in runs scored. They've scored 142 runs in 22 games, good for a clip of 6.45 per game. Only one other team in baseball (Cincinnati, in the NL, with 136) is even over 124 runs. If the Tribe can get any kind of pitching at all, watch out.

In other news, the NFL Draft is tomorrow. Finally, all of the coverage and speculation will end! Some things, to wit:

• The Texans WILL take Reggie Bush at #1. Anyone that tries to convince you otherwise is: a) high, b) completely stupid, or c) the GM of the Texans trying to leverage his contract negotiations with Bush.


• Not being an OSU fan, I'm still not ashamed to say that I support any plan that involves a trade up to get A.J. Hawk, or a trade down to get Bobby Carpenter.


• My gut says the Browns will end up with Haloti Ngata at #12. I have no complaints with that pick. His stock is falling for some unknown reason, and enough people in the top 10 will take guys like Jay Cutler and Mario Williams who inexplicably are the talk of the draft. I'm fine with Ngata at 12.


• My gut also says that if Ngata isn't there, Kamerion Wimbley is our pick.


• My gut (yes, it's getting quite large) also says that if we get Ngata in round 1, we'll take Manny Lawson in round 2, and offensive lineman in round 3, and a change-of-pace running back in round 4.


• Speaking of Lawson (and of Mario Williams) I have this question: if we're to believe that THREE guys from NC State's defense are good enough to be taken in the top 50 or so (Williams is the concensus #2 pick in the draft, Lawson will go in the late 1st/early 2nd, and supposedly John McCargo will as well) HOW THE HELL IS IT THAT I NEVER HEARD ANYTHING ABOUT THEIR DEFENSE LAST COLLEGE FOOTBALL SEASON? They finished 6-5, 3-5 in the ACC. Fourth in their own division. They gave up just under 20 points a game. So, what are the odds that these guys are simply workout-warriors? I personally think that whomever takes Mario Williams in the top 5 will be sadly let down.


• But, then again, that's why douchebags like Mel Kiper make six (hopefully not seven) figures a year and never run out of hair gel.

I'm meeting up with some cronies for the draft tomorrow morning/afternoon, and then House of Cards is rocking Skully's later that evening. Should be an action-packed day.

Parker Out.

As if right on cue...

So, all I wrote was one thing about: "...if the Tribe's pitching continues to be there..." and BOOM! I undercut this team... AGAIN.

The offense hung up 9 more runs last night against the Orioles. Should have been more than enough, right? Well, too bad the pitching staff GAVE UP 18 FUCKING RUNS.

And lost two members of its bullpen.

Perhaps I should just hide myself under a blanket until October.

Flight 23...

OK, so all Michael Reghi bashing aside, Steve recently touched on a very large and pressing sports debate.

I read a very good article this morning about the importance of shining in the playoffs for LeBron with respect to securing his legacy over the years, and the writer made a very good argument (perhaps without intending to) for LBJ to be the MVP of the league:

Will LeBron make a big splash in his postseason debut? Could he dazzle the nation the way Jordan did when he hung up a playoff-record 63 points in the Boston Garden exactly 20 years ago this week? Could he lead his team on a deep run like Magic and Larry did in 1980?

It's possible. As of Tuesday, the Cavs still don't know if they will face the Wizards, the Pacers, the Bucks or the Bulls in the first round. But they are hot right now, and LeBron just might be good enough to win a series on his own.

In the long run, however, it really doesn't matter.

Win or lose in this year's playoffs, he is already well on his way to joining Jordan, Bird, Magic and the all-time greats in some other areas.

James is about to become just the fourth player in NBA history (and the first since Jordan) to average 31 points, seven boards and six assists in a single season. But what really should open eyes is the way he picked up the Cavs and carried them down the stretch this season. James ran off nine straight games of 35 or more points, helping Cleveland win 11 of 12 games to secure the No. 4 seed in the East and home court advantage in the first round. On the night his streak ended, James had "only" 32 points and hit the game-winning jumper to knock out the Hornets in Oklahoma City.

That's the kind of thing Jordan, Bird and Magic did.

That's a pretty glowing endorsement right there, even if he doesn't come right out and endorse him.


In other news, the Tribe hung 15 runs on Baltimore last night, a day after hanging 10 on the new-look Tigers. God help the AL if our pitching continues to get right (4 runs in the last three games). This offense is built to mash.

Browns are drafting defense. No big surprises there. It will be interesting to see how the first 11 picks pan out, as to whether a QB will be there at 12 or not, and whether then the Browns would trade down. Though Savage says he projects Bobby Carpenter as an inside 'backer in the 3-4 (he's either way off, way smarter than everyone else, or playing the best poker face I've ever seen), I still wouldn't mind a trade down to #20 or so and a selection of Carpenter. The next 10 days should be fun and speculative. Mel Kiper, Jr., has come out of his hole, seen his shadow, and put on 6 pounds of hair gel.

Something... anything...

So, I've been so busy with work that I have been putting off updating this blog. I put it off, and put it off some more, and then it's gotten to be a month. Let's do a quick-hitting update, just for the sake of updating:

• If you've got a couple of hours to waste being mesmerized by the simplest thing, then I suggest you go here. Use your mouse to move him if he gets stuck.


• On the subject of that guy, a rhetorical question, if I may: So, we now know that he leaked classified information for personal political gain, and the White House hasn't denied it. We know he's spying on Americans. Clinton got impeached for getting a BJ. Why, exactly, is GWBush still president??


• Browns added Willie McGinnest as their outside pass rushing threat, and will probably draft a linebacker or defensive tackle at #12. Their schedule is fairly favorable this year. Look out, 10 wins.


• Tribe lost on Opening Night, and hasn't lost in 5 games since. Just reporting the facts. Not trying to jinx anything.


• In other baseball news, remember how much I complained about the Coco Crisp trade? He's on the DL. Jason Michaels is hitting .346 so far. Shows you what I know.


• The Cavaliers are in the playoffs. They've secured home-court in the first round. All of the nay-sayers that said LeBron couldn't finish games and couldn't carry his team have had to eat their words repeatedly as he has become (in my opinion, at least) the MVP of the league over the past month. And hey, you bitches, he hit another game-winner last night. Between that and the just fucking sick play he made in ending New Jersey's 14-game win-streak, those nay-sayers can all go to hell. Sure, ESPN's BJ Armstrong... the Wizards can win the first round series. Gotcha.


• House of Cards is in the middle of a jam-packed April. And we re-designed our website. Holla if you love frames... I know I do! I can't take credit for the art design, though.

Other than that, more of the same. Hopefully it doesn't take me another month to update this thing.

So THIS is what it feels like....

...to have hope for one's football team for the coming season.

Free agency started on Saturday, and already the Browns addressed some HUGE holes from a 6-win team:

LeCharles Bentley - Pro Bowl center
No more will we not be able to pick up 3rd and fucking 1's! This moves Jeff Faine either to guard, or to depth. I'm fine with either, as long as Bentley is playing somewhere in the middle of our line. What's more, he's a Cleveland native, and *gets* what it means to be a Browns fan. When he appeared at his press conference and whipped open his suit coat to show off his Browns 00 jersey (I hope he wins his league petition to wear that number!)... man... goosebumps. He wants to play here. Wow, what a concept!

Kevin Shaffer - Left Tackle
Not the best left tackle ever, but a two-year starter on a team that notoriously runs the ball very well. See above. Supposedly he has trouble with speed rushers (i.e., Dwight Freeney), but who doesn't? At 26, he has promising upside, a mean streak, and a notable work ethic. Browns senior vice president and general manager Phil Savage said he feels, at this point, Shaffer is an upgrade at left tackle over last year's starter, L.J. Shelton. He probably cost less, too.

Ted (Mount) Washington - Nose Tackle
This guy redefines "mammoth." He's listed at 6'5", 365 pounds, but I suspect he hasn't sniffed 365 in the last decade. He's easily 380-390. Weakness #1 on the Browns defense last year was at nose tackle. Our nose tackle consistently got driven off the ball at the snap. By the time anyone could make a play on a running back, he had already gained 6-7 yards. No more. Washington COMMANDS a double-team each play. Sitting him next to newly re-signed Orpheus Roye should free up our middle linebackers to actually play the run, instead of trying to shed the guards that blew past the nose tackle and blocked them. Washington is old (37), but he's a 4-time Pro Bowler, which is more than the entire FRANCHISE of the new Browns can say (seven seasons, exactly 1 Pro Bowler).

Joe Jurivicius - Wide Receiver
This guy is not a prototypical #1 receiver, but what he is is consistent and excited to play in Cleveland (his hometown, see Bentley, LeCharles above). He's a true professional, and has played in 3 Super Bowls in the last six seasons. Surely some of that veteran leadership will rub off on a guy like Braylon Edwards. When these two line up together with Northcutt in the slot, this team will have three dangerous receivers, all of them different types of receivers. Put Kellen Winslow in the mix, and look the fuck out.

Dave Zastudil - Punter
Our punter last year was ho-hum with some stretches of HORRIBLE. This kid is young, had a 43+ net punting average, and ALSO is a Cleveland native who loves the Browns and the weather up on Lake Erie. Since this team lost at least two (maybe three) games with its previous two punters that involved kicks of less than 20 yards, this can only help. For a team that needs to play field position to be successful, this can only help. For a team that needs to educate its players about the plight of Browns fans, bringing in as many guys who were die-hard Browns fans and have been dreaming of playing for the Browns can only help.


It's been rumored that they may go for Kalimba Edwards next. He's a smaller defensive end from Detroit. He would not be able to play every-down defensive end in the Browns 3-4 scheme, but that doesn't matter. The Browns would play him at outside linebacker. He's a pass-rushing specialist. The outside 'backer in a 3-4's main job is to rush the passer and to be a down lineman (defensive end) on third down passing situations. The Browns had a deplorable pass rush last season. As Pee Wee Herman used to say, "Connect the dots! Lala Lala La!"


So, let's review:
Cleveland in 2005: 6-10
Holes in Cleveland's team: run defense, pass rush, offensive line depth, receiving depth, field position
Aquisitions: nose tackle, two good offensive linemen, punter, wide receiver (and possibly a pass-rushing specialist line backer)

Is it unreasonable to think that this team could go 10-6 or 11-5? Who knows. Is it unreasonable to expect that they will have a chance to win every game they play this season? Absolutely not.

Color me: excited.

And the draft is still seven weeks away. This team is a good 3-4 DE and a draft of Bobby Carpenter away from being a defensive juggernaut. OK, maybe not. But, still, maybe so.


In other news, the Tribe is having a great Spring Training, which means that their farm system's depth is better than most other teams' farm system depth.

And, as my colleague Lars pointed out today, Time Warner will be picking up the Tribe's home games in HD. I think I might have just passed out.

The Large Elephant in the Room

Wow. I just got done reading an article that basically confirmed everything I basically already knew, but wow. This book is going to make this year's baseball season very interesting. Especially if the Giants win the NL West as many think they will.

Morally Reprehensible: A Sliding Scale

As some of you probably noted yesteday, my esteemed colleague Justin Neme deftly switched out my Built to Spill mp3 file that was streaming with a note about how distribution of copyrighted materials without permission is morally reprehensible.

While I don't disagree that there is some merit to this claim, I think we should keep this in perspective. My take is that, since only 10 (if I'm lucky) people actually read this blog, and since I'm not actually providing a link and encouraging people to download and steal music but instead am simply embedding a file into my code to allow someone to listen to a tune whilst reading my blog, I'm not exactly "distributing" copyrighted material. I think of myself more like a one-song-per-week radio station with a listening area of ten people on the web.

What I DO find morally reprehensible is how our Chimp in Chief can consistently lie to the Ameircan public, and moreso how a chunk of that same public continually buys into the shit that he says simply because of the fact that he's scared them silly or because of some religious belief he claims to practice.

With the possible exception of Harry Truman, I can't think of another president with more innocent blood on his hands than this one. And Truman gets an asterisk because of the whole WWII thing.

As Lars points out here, so many people seem to forget why we sent troops to the Middle East to begin with. For the president to gloat about how the most wanted man in our country's history being still at large helped his re-election bid makes me want to do a combination of cry, vomit, and punch a lot of people in the face.

Now, THAT'S morally reprehensible.

Ten Random

Based on an idea I've read in some other blogs, I turned on my iTunes here at work, went to the complete library (3850 songs), and played it on shuffle. The object is to document the first ten songs that play and, if other blogs have taught me anything, attempt to come up with some witty banter about each. Here goes...

1. "Candy Man" by Vertical Horizon
One of the worst songs off of their otherwise very good album "Running on Ice," this song feels like filler on the album, with Keith Kane doing his "I wish I was David Gray" vocal stylings, instead of the more-soothing Matt Scannell. The harmonies and great acoustic guitar work are still there, however.

2. "Drag Me Down" by God Lives Underwater
Ahh, yes. Two teenagers in 1993 with a Power Mac created a six-song EP of quasi-industrial/electronic music about 5-7 years before recording everything onto a computer/Pro Tools became the norm. Very washed out and crunchy-sounding. Not quite the best thing they ever did, but not quite the worst either.

3. "Heaven Beside You" by Alice in Chains
My best college friend Tyler and I used to argue about whether or not this was a good album/song, with no resolution ever really coming. I was more firmly entrenched in the "Dirt" AiC camp, and he in the "Jar of Flies" camp. That said, we still played a lot of Super Mario Kart (the original, head-to-head, Ghost Valley 1, over and over) and drank a shit-load of beer.

4. "Depends" by Blink-182
Wow. This is ooooooold. From their first ever album "Cheshire Cat" which was when they were actually a real punk band. The thrust of this song is that they truly can't control their bladders/colons, and the chorus is:
voice 1: "Well, I guess it all depends"
beat
voice 2: "Undergarments!"
The song itself is only about 90 seconds long, followed by 70 seconds of banter, including Mark Hoppus doing a version of the jive-talkers from "Airplane!" and ends with the phrase: "Who taught you how to throw the dick down the stairs?" Good times. No wait, bad times. I'm not sure.

5. "Renholder" by A Perfect Circle
Mysterious sounding acoustic riff with eastern-feeling vocals over it, from their first album "Mer de Noms." A great album from top to bottom. Everything Maynard James Keenan touches turns to gold.

6. "Faces in Disguise" by Sunny Day Real Estate
Wow, I'd forgotten how much I used to fucking LOVE this song. The F-major/D-minor/A-major chord progression on the keyboard to begin it just melts me. I used to tell my friend Rob that if I was ever a movie director, this is the song I would use for any and all love-making scenes, because it has the ambiance and also the chorus "Faces in disguise / not a trace of desire" in it. Perfect movie sex scene music, I'd say. In a totally un-related matter, I believe I was single at the time I hatched this theory. Creepy overtures aside, it's still a bad ass song, especially when Jeremy Enigk's super-falsetto kicks in about the 2:45 mark. And, when listening to the album, it leads right into "The Rising Tide," which is the best ending to an album I've ever heard in recent memory. Well, except for the Blink-182 "dick down the stairs" thing I mentioned above.

7. "Big-Eyed Fish" by Dave Matthews Band
Classic "careful what you wish for" song about the grass being greener on the other side of the fence. Except that, in true Dave fashion, once on the other side of the fence, all of his subjects die. "Oh God, under the weight of life / things seem so much brighter on the other side." Indeed. From the "meh"-inspiring "Busted Stuff" album, this is one of those songs that has its moments, but on the whole pales in comparison to what we've come to love about DMB. The live version on "Live at Folsom Field" is a little better, if only because of the extended pan flute solo and the adaptation of the monkey story in which Dave relates to us that "every monkey should know / stay up in your fucking tree." Indeed, Dave. Another second-to-last song on an album that moves seamlessly into "Bartender," which is actually a song I do enjoy from the BS album.

8. "High Hopes" by Pink Floyd
Wow, iTunes must know I'm doing something special with this listening session. When this album came out in the spring of my junior year of high school, I put this song on so many mix tapes for so many people. And, interestingly enough, it continues with the DMB theme of "grass is greener" (although much more explicit). This song is about Pink Floyd's break up, so you can imagine the mix-tape-power I wielded with this song as a 16-17 year old teen-angst sufferer convinced that no girl would ever like/understand me. But, the true Pink Floyd guitar solo at the end always gave me hope. Maybe that's the point of the song.

9. "Best of What's Around" by Dave Matthews Band
It figures that even with 3850 songs, 2 DMB songs would show up. I guess that's what happens when 234 of those songs are DMB songs. This is a good tune, and leads in to one of the best albums of the 90's, in my opinion. It was just the perfect time for DMB to break big when they did, and this album is the reason. There isn't a bad song on the record. And, for once, Dave has a seemingly uplifting message: your friends are important; no matter how much shit comes around, you can make the best of it with the right people. So not about weed, Jesus, sex, or death. So NOT DMB.

10. "Another Know It All" by Chevelle
Finally, something heavy. One has to remember that I listened to a lot of heavy, heavy music as a younger man (I won't say metal, because I can't claim to like the serious metal). This isn't the best Chevelle song ever, but it is on an album ("This Type of Thinking [Could Do Us In]")that has some political overtones here and there, which I dig. Not quite as good a song as "Breach Birth" on the same album, but a nice way to wrap up my 10 Random.


Anyone else want to give it a go?

Be there. Or I will hunt you down.

If you're in Columbus tonight and are not at Scarlet and Grey Cafe to see my show, change your address and phone number. I will hunt you down.

Blogger finishes book; reaches out and hugs own dog

So, I just finished reading Marley & Me by John Grogan. I'd been plugging along through it until last week when I got to the point where the dog started to get older. I had a pretty rough week last week, so I really wasn't ready to go there.

Last night I finished the book, and it made me reach down to the end of the bed and hug my own pooch.

I recommend this book to anyone who is a dog-lover, has had (or currently has) a dog that was (is) the world to them, or really anyone who has a pet in general. It's a beautifully written book that perfectly illustrates how something as small and seemingly unimportant as a pet can really impact your life and really become part of the fabric of a family.

Not good times. Bad times.

Thanks, Sony. Way to get my hopes up and then dash them.

Blogger Stumbles Across Best Blog Ever

Thanks to my friend Rob who writes so maniacally well for the East Bay Express for posting this in one of his articles.

I give you, the best blog ever.

(Takk...) About Excited...

So, we are going to see Sigur Ros tonight here in Columbus at the (formerly known as Promowest) Pavilion. Having never seen them before, I could not be more excited, as I've heard they are simply mind-blowing live. Melissa and I plan to meet up with some guys from my band, and make an evening out of the whole thing. From everything I've heard and read, this should be an amazing evening.

In the meantime, enjoy a little snippet.

A Win and a "Lost"

I believe the Curse of the Blog has been lifted! After giving up a goal 35 seconds into the game, and being down 3-1 at the end of the first period, it looked as though Lars was right: my blog had again cursed a hot sports team. They were headed for a second straight loss.

Five unanswered goals later, the Jackets again emerged victorious. This time, they didn't give the other team the freebie point for the shootout loss. And, they got two points from the team in the 8th playoff spot. They're now 17 points back with two games in hand above the Kings, who are reeling. For the sake of any playoff argument, you have to assume the Jackets win those two games in hand, and thus for all intents and purposes can be 13 points back. That's doable over a two-month span.

We also learned on "Lost" last night that Sawyer, despite all of his experiences with all of the people on the island, is still at his root a bad mothaf-shut yo mouth. Just talkin' bout Sawyer.

Then we can dig it.

And, even though my previous Lost post bashed the Charlie episode, last nights ep at least shed some light on why it was there.

There's a new sheriff in town!

Say hello to hockey, the other white meat!

Seriously, I love hockey, and I love to follow the Blue Jackets. But, until Christmas, they looked content to just roll over and die and have one of the worst seasons ever. But then, my boy Rick Nash (above) came back, and essentially the whole, original roster finally got healthy. Since Christmas, they've played 19 games and have gone 13-5-1 (equalling 27 points in 19 games... not bad for at that time the second worst team in hockey). They've gone from 19 points to 46 points in a little over a month.

Columbus is finally getting behind their team again, and the way the Jackets are playing, they have a legitimate shot at making a run at the #8 spot in the playoffs (and thus, the right to get smoked by Detroit in the first round).

But, I think it was Shakespeare who said, "It's better to get smoked in the first round of the playoffs than never to have been in the playoffs at all." Or something like that.

At any rate, this team is on fire. 8-2 in their last 10, including a 5-game winning streak (4 of which were against playoff teams, the last 2 on the road).

Stay tuned.

Our Big Break + State of the Union Scorecard

So, tonight could be the biggest show my band has ever played. We are again headlining Little Brother's which we first did back in December. That night, we probably had 70 people there.

Well, for the show tonight, we've passed out almost 2000 free tickets all across campus and other parts of the city. Our estimate was that maybe 1 in 10 tickets would show up at the door. Even at that rate, that's at least 200 people, which in this town for a Wednesday night show, is pretty damn good.

Some semi-important people (from some bigger bands in C-bus, one of which is signed I believe), are rumored to be at this show. Godspeed, House of Cards.

On to more pressing matters:

State of the Union Address Scorecard

Number of Minutes Actually Watched: ZERO. That's right. I can't stand to watch that man speak. It makes my blood pressure rise. My wife and I consider ourselves to be steeped in traditional moral values, but I believe at one point she said, "I hate that man with every fiber of my being." And I couldn't agree more.

Best Analysis: Tim Russert. Seriously, I love Tim Russert when it comes to things like this. He seems to be the only reporter these days who doesn't lob softballs at interviewees, and his assessment last night of what will actually be done in Congress in the coming year was fair, and probably accurate. I wish Tim was in the daily White House Press Corps sometimes, because you know he wouldn't let Scott McClellan get away with a quarter of the douchey dodging answers he gives essentially every day.

Brightest Political Future: Barrack Obama. He was only on NBC for about 45 seconds to a minute after the speech, but in that minute he said more of substance than most politicos can do. "He talked about the things that I think need to be talked about. Health care, education, energy independence, but there wasn't any beef there. There didn't seem to be any serious proposals that would call America to action." No spin. Thank heavens. I think it's too early in 2008 for any Presidential aspirations, but good God, they need to get him involved in that campaign.

Number of Times I Would Punch Bill Frist in the Face, Were it Legal: Cannot be Measured by Existing Technology. Seriously. He couldn't even properly recite the bullet points on NBC's post-speech coverage without messing up.

Most Unexpected Democratic Response: Tim Kaine of Virginia. Dude's been governor for all of a month, and he's the choice for Democratic response? At first I was like, "Wha?" but then I came to like the decision. Fresh blood. That's what the Dems need. They need to parade guys like Kaine (who, as Lt. Governor of Virginia has worked with a lot of actual bipartisanship to accomplish good things in that Republican state, and who has connected with white, rural, middle-class America) and Obama (who connects with people unlike any politician I've seen other than Bill Clinton) around early and often going into the 2006 and 2008 elections. To quote Agent Smith from The Matrix: "You've had your time. It's... OUR time... now."

Best Sarcastic Canned Response: The Democrats Giving a Standing-O to Bush's Caustic Remark about Not Passing His Social Security Privatization. Seriously. Brilliant. Hearing about that makes me almost wish I'd watched the speech.

Thing I Missed Most about Not Watching the SotU Address: Ted Kennedy's Eye-Rolling. Ted's always good for at least one big sigh and one big eye-roll while on camera when Bush says something he doesn't like. Melissa and I agreed: that's the only reason we would have watched the actual speech.

All in all, I really don't know exactly what the President said, as admittedly, I didn't watch his speech. But, much like David Letterman, I have a feeling that at least 60% of what he said is crap.