I know you're pretty clueless when it comes to football, but when a team fails to convert on third down, and has to punt, it's not the same thing as the other team taking over on downs. If you're going to do this for a living (surely they can't be paying you, can they?), you should perhaps at least try to learn some basics of the game.
Ok, I didn't post last week, because we were busy moving and Christmas shopping and lots of other things, but I was 7-9, and 11-5 the week before, so my overall record going into the final week is 143-97.
New York Giants at Washington - The Giants still have a shot at the playoffs, but they suck about now, I'll take the Skins at home.
Jacksonville at Kansas City - The Chiefs play well at home, and the Jaguars suck on the road, so I'll take KC.
St. Louis at Minnesota - I'll take the Rams here for no reason in particular.
Carolina at New Orleans - The Saints are playing pretty well these days, but I like the Panthers in the upset since the Saints don't have much to play for.
Oakland at New York Jets - I like the Jets over a pathetic excuse for a football team, hopefully the Jets make the playoffs.
Pittsburgh at Cincinnati - I like the Bengals here, only because they're at home and fighting for a playoff spot.
Detroit at Dallas - The Cowboys have been playing lousy on defense lately, but I look for them to take their frustrations out on the Lions.
Seattle at Tampa Bay - I really hate the Seahawks, but I think they'll win this one.
New England at Tennessee - I'd like to pick the Titans here, since they're playing so well these days, but I think the Patriots are clearly better.
Cleveland at Houston - I like the Browns here in a boring game.
Atlanta at Philadelphia - As much as I'll be hoping for the Falcons to win, I don't think they will.
Arizona at San Diego - Good team versus bad team, good team at home. Even if the Chargers are resting people, they should win this one, 27-10.
San Francisco at Denver - I'll take Denver since they're at home, 17-3.
Buffalo at Baltimore - The Ravens might be the least publicized good team this year. I think they win here on the way to the playoffs.
Miami at Indianapolis - As bad as they've been playing lately, I still like the Colts here, at least they won't be rusty in the playoffs this year. Or won't have that excuse, anyway.
Green Bay at Chicago - I wouldn't mind seeing the Packers get in the playoffs, except for all the Brett Favre crap we'll have to hear, but I just think Chicago is that much better and should win.
First, congratulations on making the playoffs, now hopefully, you can have a better showing than last time you got there.
Second, if you don't teach your defense to cover back out of the backfield, you're not going to get very far. It cost you a game already last week, and had you way too close against an inferior team this week.
And finally, I like Julius Jones, I really do. I think when he has a good game, he's as good as anyone. However, at this point, I can only assume that he has pictures of your wife with a donkey or something, because that's what it would take for you to miss the painfully obvious fact that Marion Barber is just better. He just is, it's undeniable fact. Maybe if he gets the ball in the first quarter, you're not trailing in the third. Give him a shot, at least, he's earned it.
And another football related note, this one directed at the NFL network. Please, I'm begging you, please, please, please, fire Bryant Gumbel. He sucks. He's so bad it's hard to even remember all the shit he fucked up, so I'll just mention a couple. After the Cowboys scored the last TD, their was a personal foul on Atlanta, so Dallas kicked off from the 50, which Gumbel noted, then said "and they still can't get it to the end zone." Of course they didn't you fucking moron, in that situation, you don't want to give them the ball at the 20. You kick it high, just like they did, and get the coverage down there almost as they catch it, and get them inside the 20, which they did, and were further helped by a penalty, so Atlanta started at about the 7 instead of the 20. Another thing, a few plays later, Vick escapes the rush and fires deep downfield, Gumbel exclaims "Whide Open!" but when the receiver comes into view, he has a corner right on him and a safety closing in. They guy is just awful. I'm not a fan of announcers in general, but Gumbel makes idiots like Dierdorf and Mike Patrick look like geniuses. It's sad because he's done other things well, and he just sucks at this. Bryant, you aren't the sportscaster in the family, live with it. You're still rich and famous.
10-6 last week, for an overall record of 125-83.
San Francisco at Seattle - I'll take the Seahawks here, just because every time I pick them to lose, they don't, so maybe if I pick them to win, they'll lose.
Dallas at Atlanta - I think the Coampa Bay at Chicagpowboys rebound from that awful performance last week and beat a banged up Falcons team.
Tampa Bay at Chicago - I still think the Bears might lose again, but I just can't pick the Bucs to beat them.
Pittsburgh at Carolina - I think the Steelers have it all back together, even though it's too little too late, and I think they'll beat a struggling Panthers team.
Detroit at Green Bay - I'll take the Packers, sinc eI have to pick one of these losers.
Cleveland at Baltimore - Baltimore is better. Also, I'm not sure I've picked the Browns all year, so I can't start now.
Jacksonville at Tennessee - I think the up and down Jags could easily lose this game on the road against an improving Titans team, but I'll still pick Jacksonville because they are the better team.
New York Jets at Minnesota - I'll take the Jets here, even thought their playoff hopes were probably dashed last week.
Houston at New England - The Patriots will rebound from the asskicking they got last week.
Washington at New Orleans - I'd love to see the Saints lose a couple of more games, but it will have to be the last two because they aren't going to lose this one.
Miami at Buffalo - Both teams are improving, I'll take the Bills just because of the homefield.
Denver at Arizona - In my upset special, I'll take the Cardinals. This is the game that should win me the pool this week if all goes well.
St. Louis at Oakland - I'll take the Rams to win on the road, 21-10.
Philadelphia at New York Giants - This one is really a toss-up, so I'll take the Giants at home.
Kansas City at San Diego - The Chargers might just be the best team in the league, which is impressive since they might have lost the best QB in the offseason, I don't see them having any trouble with a Chiefs team that can't win on the road anyway.
Cincinnati at Indianapolis - The Colts have lost 3 out of 4 or something, and the Bengals are playing ok now, but I still like the Colts to win at home, 34 - 24.
I did all my picks as usual with my insightful commentary, and even included a plug for Toast's Virtual Couch. So of course, Blogger lost it, so here are my winners, because I'm not typing all that shit again:
Pittsburgh
Atlanta
Cincinnati
Philadelphia
New York Giants
Minnesota
Indianapolis
Baltimore
Tennessee
New England
Seattle
San Francisco
New York Jets
San Diego
Dallas
Chicago
I was 9-7 last week to move to 115-77 for the season.
Toast made this thing, which seems to me more trouble than it's worth, but since he went to the trouble, and tagged everyone with it, I'll go ahead and answer it.
1. Favorite Car?
I've always like Mustangs, but I've never driven one, but I think I'll go with it anyway. Maybe a '66 or one of the really new ones.
2. Favorite Car you've ever owned?
I guess the car I have now, a 2006 Vibe. Nothing special, but it's got more stuff in it than any other car I've ever had.
3. Car you would be embarrassed to be seen driving?
I drive to work everyday in a $500 Mitsubishi Mirage with no AC and windows that don't roll down. I'm not easily embarrassed.
4. Next car you plan to buy?
Something cheap, like a Versa, Fit or Yaris.
5. Next car you would buy for daily use if money were no object?
I'll go with Toast and say a 2006 Mustang Cobra. Either that or a really high end luxury car.
6. What bumper stickers or other decorations, if any, do you have on your car?
None.
7. Average annual miles you put on your primary vehicle?
I have no idea. Am I supposed to keep track?
8. Describe your driving style.
Safe. I just want to get there in one piece.
9. Average highway cruising speed.
65.
10. Fastest you've ever driven?
Somewhere around 100.
11. Do you race people at stop lights?
No.
12. Will you cross a solid yellow or double yellow to pass someone?
Not usually, but if I was sure it was safe and wasn't likely to get a ticket, I might.
13. Do you tailgate or flash your high-beams at people in front of you?
No, I'm not an asshole.
14. Worst accident you've ever been in?
It was really foggy, we pulled off some little side road onto the main road where we were slammed into from behind by some drunk punk in a rental car. The back seat ended up about 90 degrees from where it started. My wife had shoulder surgery, I had a concussion, and still don't remember the actual accident, and my stepson seriously broke his leg (way high up on the femur), and spent a few months in a wheelchair, he was stuck in the car for quite a while as they had to cut him out of it. I've got pictures of the car somewhere, maybe I'll post them sometime. The other driver got 6 years in jail (he had some prior convictions).
15. About how many speeding tickets have you gotten?
2, but they were both bullshit, cops sitting around a corner on a road where the speed limit is ridiculously low.
16. Ever gotten a DUI/DWI?
No, and there was really only one time that I can think of where I was driving and shouldn't have been, and that time I did pull over and let my wife drive.
17. What kind of car repairs and/or maintenance can you do?
Not much, an oil change maybe, but I don't do it.
18. Have you ever modified a car you own from stock?
Modified how? Why?
19. What do you listen to while driving?
Usually sports radio.
20. Favorite driving song?
I don't have one, should I?
21. Do you use an air freshener in your car, and if so, what scent?
No, what am I, a girl?
22. Messy or clean?
Outside is usually fairly dirty, but inside I try to keep at least neat.
23. When you and the spouse/significant other go out together, who drives?
Me, because I'm the man and I'm sexist like that.
That would be The Wire on HBO. Unfortunately, I made this determination as I was watching the season finale. After a great episode last week, they capped the season with one almost as good. Everytime a scene ended, I looked at the clock and tried to remember exactly what time I had started watching, worried that it would be the end. That's how I realized that it's my favorite show, because as the season ends, I'm more upset about it than I would be for any other show right now. Now, that might change, when Lost returns or if Heroes keeps getting better, but for right now, The Wire is my favorite show.
It seems everytime I talk about something on TV, someone complains about the lack of quality shows, but I have to disagree completely. I'm with Toast, I think we're in a golden age of TV. When a show as great as Battlestar Galactica is fourth on the list of shows I most want to watch, then there must be some pretty good stuff on.
SPOILER BELOW
Would someone please, please hire a writer for this show that can write a compelling football game that does not come down to the last play? Also, some knowledge of the game, its timing, and strategy would be helpful.
Oh, and are Member's Only jackets making a comeback or something?
I went 9-7 last week to put my at 106-70 for the season.
Baltimore at Cincinnati - I suppose I could lie and say I picked the Bengals, but I didn't, so I'm already 0-1.
Arizona at St. Louis - I'll take the Rams here at home in a stinker.
Detroit at New England - The Lions blow, I'll take the Patriots.
San Diego at Buffalo - Buffalo seems to be playing well lately, and with them being at home and the Chargers having to travel across the country, I'm almost tempted to take the Bills. Almost.
San Francisco at New Orleans - I'd like to see the 49ers win this one, but I don't think they will.
Minnesota at Chicago - I think Chicago might drop another game or two this season, but not this one.
Kansas City at Cleveland - For some reason, I really hate the Browns this year and can't make myself pick them, I like the Chiefs.
Atlanta at Washington - The Falcons are sucking lately, but I think they're good enough to beat the Redskins.
New York Jets at Green Bay - I think the Jets can handle a bad Packer team, even on the road.
Indianapolis at Tennessee - I'll take the Colts, I don't think the Titans have two big wins in a row in them.
Houston at Oakland - Both teams suck, but I think the Texans suck a little less.
Jacksonville at Miami - I guess this is why they play the whole season, a few weeks ago this would have been an easy pick for the Jaguars, but right now, I think Miami is the better team, so I'll take them.
Dallas at New York Giants - I look for the Romomentum* to continue as the Cowboys roll over a reeling Giants team.
Tampa Bay at Pittsburgh - The Steelers seem to be picking things up a bit even though it's too little too late, and I think they should get by the Bucs at home.
Seattle at Denver - I really don't like the Seahawks on the road against the Broncos, but I'm scared to pick the Broncos with a rookie making his first start at QB. With the homefield, though, I will go with Denver 17-13.
Carolina at Philadelphia - The Eagles suck, just as I predicted at the beginning of the season, I like the Panthers 21 - 10.
* Normally I would hate stupid made up words like this, but I'll make an exception in this case.
I see everyone else is doing this today, so I'll join the crowd. Especially since I can never find anything to post about these days.
50 Questions:
1. When you looked at yourself in the mirror today, what was the first thing you thought?
Why would anyone remember something like this? I have no idea.
2. How much cash do you have on you?
None at the moment, I don't carry much cash, but for a few hours today, I did have $1425 on me in cash.
3. What’s a word that rhymes with DOOR?
Oar.
4. Favorite planet?
I guess the trendy answer would be Pluto to spit in the faces of people who tell us it's not a planet anymore, but I'm not that rebellious, so I'll go with the fictional planet of Kobol, birthplace of humanity.
5. Who is the 4th person on your missed call list on your cell phone?
I don't have any idea, since my phone is upstairs and I'm not going to go get it just to answer this question. Odds are it's my wife, though because not too many people call me.
6. What is your favorite ring tone on your phone?
Shaggy - Wasn't Me.
7. What shirt are you wearing?
Florida State shirt, as difficult as that is to admit.
8. Do you label yourself?
No, but if other people want to, I'm fine with it.
9. Name the brand of the shoes you’re currently wearing?
Not wearing any at the moment.
10. Bright or Dark Room?
I like it light, but not bright.
11. What do you think about the person who took this survey before you?
Lots of people took it before me, and I don't know all of them, or any all that well.
12. What does your watch look like?
Like a watch. Hands, and whatnot.
13. What were you doing at midnight last night?
Watching The Wire, one of the best shows on TV.
14. What did your last text message you received on your cell say?
I have no idea, I'm sure it was from my daughter, though. Texting seems to be more popular with the kids.
15. Where is your nearest 7-11?
All of ours were switched to Gate stations several years ago, so I'm really not sure.
16. What's a word that you say a lot?
Fuck.
17. Who told you he/she loved you last?
My son.
18. Last furry thing you touched?
My dog's not real furry, but he has fur, so I guess he's it.
19. How many drugs have you done in the last three days?
I took some Excedrin yesterday.
20. How many rolls of film do you need developed?
Do people still use film? Why?
21. Favorite age you have been so far?
I don't know, 22 maybe.
22. Your worst enemy?
I don't have any enemies.
23. What is your current desktop picture?
A collage of pictures of my son.
24. What was the last thing you said to someone?
"Good Night" to my son, unless talking to the dog counts, then it was probably "good boy" or something.
25. If you had to choose between a million bucks or to be able to fly what would it be?
Assuming that being able to fly would be a pretty lucrative talent somehow, I'd go with that.
26. Do you like someone?
Like? Or like like? If it's like, I like lots of people, if it's like like, then I didn't realize this thing was for teenage girls and I'd quit right now, but I've already put so much effort into it. But I do like like my wife.
27. The last song you listened to?
Some Christmas song in the car.
28. What time of day were you born?
I ask my mom this occasionally, but I always forget, I think it was in the morning.
29. What’s your favorite number?
10.
30. Where did you live in 1987?
10260 Colonial Court South
31. Are you jealous of anyone?
I have a pretty good life, other people may have things that I'm slightly jealous of, but I wouldn't trade places with anyone else.
32. Is anyone jealous of you?
I doubt it.
33. Where were you when 9/11 happened?
When did it happen, again? Seriously, I was at work.
34. What do you do when vending machines steal your money?
Not much.
35. Do you consider yourself kind?
Not particularly.
36. If you had to get a tattoo, where would it be?
I have one, it's supposed to be on my butt, but it's actually on my lower back. I was a little drunk at the time.
37. If you could be fluent in any other language, what would it be?
Whichever one could make me the most money.
38. Would you move for the person you loved?
Probably, maybe we'll see.
39. Are you touchy feely?
Not really.
40. What’s your life motto?
This isn't a serious question, is it? People don't really have life mottoes, do they? God, I hope not.
41. Name three things that you have on you at all times?
All the time? In the shower? In bed? There's nothing I have on all the time. Someone needs to write better questions.
42. What’s your favourite town/city?
I don't really have one, we go to Orlando a lot, but mostly just because it's close and cheap fun.
43. What was the last thing you paid for with cash?
Rent.
44. When was the last time you wrote a letter to someone on paper and mailed it?
A long time ago, before writing letters on paper and mailing them became obsolete.
45. Can you change the oil on a car?
I've never done it, but I've got a good idea how to, and I don't think I'd have a problem.
46. Your first love: what is the last thing you heard about him/her?
I really don't remember.
47. How far back do you know about your ancestry?
I know who three of my grandparents were, and a couple of great grandmothers and that's it. I've never been terribly interested in that kind of thing.
48. The last time you dressed fancy, what did you wear and why did you dress fancy?I wore a tuxedo on a cruise on formal night.
49. Does anything hurt on your body right now?Not right now.
50. Have you been burned by love?
I guess, but I wouldn't change anything because I like how things ended up.
That took a lot longer than I thought it would.
I realize some people aren't too tech savvy, but if you don't realize that the PSP can hold porn, then you obviously just don't have any idea what a PSP is, and if you don't know that, what the fuck are you doing buying it for your kid? You should also be aware that your kids can get porn on their iPods, cellphones, and pretty much any other device with a display and some means to accept data from outside sources. Your kids may also hide porn under their beds, or in a fort in the woods, or any one of a million other places that existed before personal electronics were everywhere, and yes, even before the internet. Actually, as a parent, you should pretty much just assume that your kids are going to see some porn no matter what you try to do to prevent it. However, if you've raised them well enough, this probably won't really damage them at all. Unfortunately, I would guess that the parents that would freak out the most about their kids seeing porn would also have the kids that would respond to seeing it the worst.
I'm against the death penalty, only because I don't think it's administered fairly, and I think the chance of an innocent person being executed is too high, and I don't think even one innocent person being executed is acceptable. But stories like this one make me remember why I'd be in favor of it otherwise.
I don't know if this woman did this to her child, or if someone else did it, but the fact that there are people in the world who would put a baby in a microwave is evidence enough for me that some people just deserve to be dead.
Uh, we do? Great, where do I vote on that? Hopefully we can get rid of this practice altogether.
Seriously, though, this article is quite possibly the dumbest thing I've ever read. The only somewhat reasonable argument (and it's quite a stretch anyway) to have anyone put their hand on any holy book while taking any oath is for them to feel somehow more bound by that oath since they have some high regard for that book. If that isn't the case then, what's the point of the thing? If the guy taking the oath has no belief in the book he's taking the oath on, then why use it at all? Prager's point seems to be (and I'm guessing since it doesn't really make any sense) that the book is important to America, so that somehow taking his oath with it binds him to us somehow. First of all, I don't remember when we all decided that The Bible was "The official holy book of the US Government." And second, I thought the oath itself was what made him bound to do his duty to us, along with the trust that was placed in him when he was elected.
Another point of Prager's argument is that no one else has ever done this before, that other non Christians have taken their oaths on the Bible without any problem. I haven't actually checked if this is true (and I doubt Prager has either), but I'll assume that it is for the sake of argument. Of course no one else has done this, when their constituency is made up of people as stupid as Dennis Prager who will make a fuss over it when it means absolutely nothing.
Prager also points out that Ellison can get away with this because he is Muslim, and apparently, America's top priority is to avoid offending Mulsims (if that's true, we might want to work on it a little harder). I'm not sure what America he lives in, but where I live, it's perfectly acceptable to hate Muslims, because you know, they (yes, all of them) like to blow stuff up, especially American infidels. Hell, Muslim is the new Black. You can hate them all day long, and get away with it by using the excuse that they're terrorists. And because a lot of people in America are as stupid as Dennis Prager, it's perfectly acceptable.
Ellison's doing so will embolden Islamic extremists and make new ones, as Islamists, rightly or wrongly, see the first sign of the realization of their greatest goal -- the Islamicization of America.
This was pretty good. Different and funny, if a little bit predictable at times. I realized that
Maggie Gyllenhaal looks like my cousin, in the face anyway.
The funniest thing though, was what my wife overheard from some people behind us as we were leaving:
"Wasn't that Dustin Hoffman? He was in Meet the Parents."
Yeah, that was him, and it was actually Meet the Fockers, but I'm pretty sure he's been in a few other things as well. Shit like that makes me feel old.
So, I didn't bother to post my picks last week, since I've been disgusted with my performance lately and really didn't put much thought into them. So, of course, I went 13-3 and won the pool. That puts me at 97-63 for the year, which isn't so bad.
Miami at Detroit - I had originally picked Detroit here, just because they sometimes play better than expected on Thanksgiving, but now it looks like Kevin Jones is out and the Dolphins are playing better lately, so I like them here.
Tampa Bay at Dallas - Dallas could have a let down in the short week following a big win over the Colts, but that won't be enough for the Bucs to beat them.
Denver at Kansas City - Denver is doing well this year, but I think the Chiefs can get it done at home.
Pittsburgh at Baltimore - Pittsburgh might win a couple of more games this year, but I'll just have to get those wrong because I'm not picking them again, especially not against a good team like the Ravens.
Cincinnati at Cleveland - Tough year for the Bengals, but I think they're still easily the best team in Ohio.
San Francisco at St. Louis - San Francisco has been playing better lately, and St. Louis hasn't looked so good. I'll take the 49ers in an upset.
Arizona at Minnesota - Minnesota is coming back to Earth after a pretty good start, and the Cardinals may have gotten some confidence after breaking their losing streak, I'll take the upset here as well.
Houston at New York Jets - Houston has won some games they shouldn't have, but this won't be one of them.
New Orleans at Atlanta - I think the Saints are starting to realize that they're the Saints, and with the Falcons looking to get things back on track, I like them at home.
Washington at Carolina - I picked the Panthers to go to the NFC Championship game, and I think they're finally starting to play well. They shouldn't have a problem with a bad Redskin team.
Jacksonville at Buffalo - Jacksonville may have a rough time going on the road in the cold on a short week after a big Monday Night win, but I just don't like Buffalo at all, so I'll take the Jaguars.
Oakland at San Diego - I think the Chargers are really good, and determined to make sure they don't blow any oppurtunities like they did last year. They shouldn't have any trouble with a terrible Raiders team, Chargers 41-7.
New York Giants at Tennessee - The trendy pick here is to take the Titans, since the Giants have lost two in a row, but as much as I would like to, I don't see it. I like the Giants.
Chicago at New England - I think Chicago is not the best 9-1 team ever, but I think they're better than this year's Patriots. I'll take the Bears on the road.
Philadelphia at Indianapolis - The Eagles didn't have a good shot at this one before McNabb got hurt, now they have no shot.
Green Bay at Seattle - With Favre banged up, and Hasselback and Alexander back for the Seahawks, I think any chance the Packers had is gone. Seahawks 21-13.
As much as I was intrigued by this, it's a good decision. That guy has no business getting any more attention, especially by basically laughing at our justice system and rubbing it in that he got away with it.
However, what the article fails to mention is that the TV show will be replaced with one called "If we hadn't canceled it, here's what it would have looked like."
So what? First of all, there are a lot of people in the world, who aren't baby boomers, I'm not sure where this notion that everything had to cater to them comes from, but it's pretty ridiculous. And secondly, if they can't find anything good on TV these days, then they're just not looking very hard. There are a lot of good shows on now, more than I can ever remember in the past. And I'm getting tired of this concept that people have to be able to relate to a show to enjoy it. I've heard that a lot in criticism of Studio 60 in particular, that it's too insidery, and people can't relate to it. So what? My top 5 favorite shows are:
Lost
Battlestar Galactica
The Wire
Rescue Me
Heroes
I've never been in a plane crash, been stranded on an island with a mysterious smoke monster and a bunch of crazy people. I've never been in space, or on the run from a race of cybernetic robots. I've never been to Baltimore, never been a cop or a drug dealer, or a drug addict. I've never been to New York, never been a firefighter. And I certainly don't have any superpowers. But somehow, I still manage to enjoy all those shows (along with many others). Anyway, there is plenty on TV that anyone can relate to, and if you can't find something you like, you're just not trying hard enough.
And, as I'm sure Toast will point out, there is still plenty on TV that does cater to baby boomers.
Michigan just scored early, so Brent Musburger felt compelled to tell us that "somewhere, somehow, Bo Schembechler is smiling." So apparently, it only took him a day or so to get over the inconvenience of being dead, and now he's focused right back in on football.
I just hope that when Ohio State scores, he remembers to say, "somewhere, somehow, Bo Schembechler is frowning."
As if there wasn't enough already this weekend for the idiots on ESPN and sports talk radio to use to hype the game on Saturday, now we have to have the cliche added to it all where Michigan will be all fired up to win it for Bo. Oh well, I guess they were going to annoy me either way, so at least they'll have more variety to the hype now.
And on the bright side, anything that keeps the droolers on ESPN from talking about Tiki Barber for five minutes is ok.
I had another lousy week last week, going only 6-8. I'm not even getting in the pool this week, at this point it just feels like a waste of $5. I did pick the Democrats in both the House and Senate, so I'll take those 2 wins to put me at .500 for the week with 8-8. I fully expect to go undefeated this week, since I didn't enter the pool.
Cleveland at Atlanta - The Falcons are too good to lose at home to the Browns.
Washington at Philadelphia - I'd really like to take the Redskins here, but I just don't see it.
San Diego at Cincinnati - I think Cincinnati pulls this one out to keep their season alive a little longer.
San Francisco at Detroit - I'll take the Lions just since they're at home.
Baltimore at Tennessee - I think this is a special year for the Ravens, they shouldn't have any trouble with the Titans.
Buffalo at Indianapolis - The Colts stay undefeated.
Houston at Jacksonville - The Jaguars look to avenge the ass kicking they got earlier this season, and I think they get it done.
Kansas City at Miami - I don't like either of these teams, so I'll take the Dolphins at home.
Green Bay at Minnesota - I think Minnesota is ready to sink back into obscurity after an ok start, but playing the Packers gives them a week of reprieve.
New York Jets at New England - The Patriots will take out their frustrations on the Jets from their loss to the Colts last week.
Denver at Oakland - Oakland has the worst offense I've ever seen. Since I don't think Plummer is going to get picked off 8 times, I think the Broncos are ok here.
Dallas at Arizona - The Cowboys need to get their shit together if they want to make the playoffs. They need to go at least 6-2 in the second half, and they have a tough game against the Colts next week, so they have to win here, and I think they do.
New Orleans at Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh is done. For some reason they're favored in this game, and I can't figure out why. They were also favored last week which I couldn't understand. I guess they're still riding their championship. I look for them to lose again. Maybe the worst defending champion ever.
St. Louis at Seattle - I'll take the Rams here, I really don't like the Seneca Wallace led Seahawks who only won last week since they played the Raiders.
Chicago at New York Giants - The Giants are pretty banged up, and the Bears are looking to bounce back from a tough loss. I think they get it done.
Tampa Bay at Carolina - The Panthers have had 2 weeks to let the ass kicking they got from the Cowboys snk in, and I think they'll take out their frustrations on the Bucs.
I'm much happier making my picks this week now that the Cowboys are back on track and headed for the Superbowl, led by the next Joe Montana, Tony Romo. The only time I've won the pool all year was when I picked a lot of upsets, so I'm trying that again.
Houston at New York Giants - Unfortunately the Giants are on a roll, and while I hope they get derailed soon, it won't be this week.
New Orleans at Tampa Bay - The Saints are good this year, and the Bucs aren't, but they do seem to be playing much better lately, and the Saints have come back to Earth a bit, so I'll pick the Bucs in an upset.
Green Bay at Buffalo - The Packers are probably my favorite bad team this year, and I just really hate the Bills for some reason, so I'll go with the Pack.
Dallas at Washington - Well, the Cowboys are headed to the Superbowl, and the Redskins are terrible, so I like Dallas.
Miami at Chicago - Chicago is too good. They're going to lose eventually, but it won't be this week.
Tennessee at Jacksonville - The Titans are bad, the Jags are pretty banged up, but they should still be able to handle Tennessee.
Atlanta at Detroit - Detroit sucks. Atlanta is rolling, I'll take the Falcons.
Cincinnati at Baltimore - I'd like to pick the Bengals here, but they haven't been playing particulary well, I'll take the Ravens at home.
Kansas City at St. Louis - This game is going to suck. I'll take the Rams.
Minnesota at San Francisco - This game will suck worse than the last one, I like the Vikings.
Denver at Pittsburgh - Acoording to Yahoo, the Steelers are favored in this game, but I can't figure out any reason why they would be. Denver is playing very well, the Steelers look like crap, I'll take the Broncos.
Cleveland at San Diego - I don't think I've picked the Browns all year, and I'm not going to start now.
Indianapolis at New England - This should be a really good game, and I have no idea who is going to win, so I'll take a wild stab and say the Colts, 31-30.
Oakland at Seattle - Here's my big upset, though it isn't so big with Alexander and Hasselback out. Oakland is on a little winning streak, and as much as they suck, they get the Seahawks at the right time. I'll take the Raiders, 21 - 17.
Another lousy week last week, though I did squeak out .500, which still leaves me with only one losing week this season. And I'm still at a respectable 70 - 44 for the season.
I got a lot (relatively, since I only have about 3 readers left) of response from my TV posts, so I thought I might continue giving my thoughts on the shows I watch as we go through the seasons. If you're not all caught up, don't read anymore as I will probably give things away.
Battlestar Galactica - They sure don't fuck around when they execute you for treason, that looks like a tough way to go. I think Tigh is going to start feeling pretty guilty about Ellen since all the remaining collaborators got a pass.
Jericho - Please quit with the fucking small town drama. There is apparently a nuclear war going on, that's your major plot. All the other little crap should be there, but it should be the background, not the focus. Jake's relationships with everyone, horse thieves, the brother cheating on his wife, Jake's past in Jericho, these things should all be minor stuff. Jake's past after he left Jericho, Hawkins' story whatever it is, the outside world, those should be the focus. Pretty much anything they could still have in the plot if there wasn't a nuclear war should be minor points.
Friday Night Lights - Would someone please tell these idiot fucking writers that football games are not always decided on the last play. It's bad enough that this is done in just about every sports movie ever, but it can almost be excused in that case, but in a TV show, where it happens every other week, it's just too much. The rest of the show is pretty good, and I hate seeing it marred by this crap.
Boston Legal - Enough with Jerry Espensen. I really like the character, but if they wanted him to be on every week, they shouldn't have fired him.
I (along with everyone else in the fucking world) realize that Tiki and Ronde Barber are brothers. They have been brothers their entire careers, they have played against each other before. They are so deep into their careers that one of them is about to retire. So, what I'm saying is, it no longer needs to be pointed out over and over and over and over and over again that they are brothers. It is a somewhat interesting footnote that maybe deserves a mention before the game. It does not need to be mentioned every time one of them touches the ball. It is not particularly interesting that Ronde, a safety, tackles his brother Tiki, a running back. It's actually kind of expected. Maybe, if Ronde had intercepted Eli Manning, and Tiki had tackled him, I could excuse a comment to the effect that we expected to see Barber tackling Barber, but the other way around. But that's about it. They're brothers, they both play football, get over it.
Also, on the subject of football player's family members, I don't need to see them in the stands even once, but when you go to them after just about every play (or god forbid, interview them in the stands), it's extremely annoying.
Last week was my first losing week at 6-7, which could have gone the other way had I not picked the Cowboys (a mistake I won't make this week). But I'm still doing ok overall at 63-37. Nice to see this morning that Ron Jaworski has given up on those ridiculous new glasses he's been wearing lately. Anyway, I plan on being undefeated this week, but hopefully I'll lose the Cowboys Panthers game where I just can't convince myself to pick Dallas since I'm obviously picking Dallas with their QB of the future, Tony Romo.
Jacksonville at Philadelphia - Jacksonville doesn't play in Philadelphia much and they're pretty banged up at the moment. I like the Eagles at home, though this is another one I wouldn't mind losing.
Atlanta at Cincinnati - I'd like to pick the Falcons in an upset here, but I just can't quite bring myself to do it, I like the Bengals.
Arizona at Green Bay - Bad vs. bad, I'll take the home team, the Packers.
Houston at Tennessee - Both teams suck, and both have won games they probably shouldn't have, but I'll take the Texans in a mild upset.
Seattle at Kansas City - I almost picked the Seahawks here just because they win whenever I pick against them, but without Shaun Alexander and Matt Hasselback, I like the Chiefs.
Baltimore at New Orleans - I could see the Ravens winning this game, but I really like the new look Saints, I'll take them at home.
Tampa Bay at New York Giants - Another game I wouldn't mind losing so much, I'll take the Giants.
San Francisco at Chicago - Chicago will lose sooner or later, but not this week.
St. Louis at San Diego - I like the Chargers at home coming off a tough loss.
New York Jets at Cleveland - I'm not sure why the Browns are favored here, but I'll take the Jets anyway.
Indianapolis at Denver - Denver looks good so far, but I don't think they can score enough points to keep up with the Colts.
Pittsburgh at Oakland - It's hard enough to believe the Raiders won a single game, I can't see them actually winning two in a row.
Dallas at Carolina - I hope Romo comes out and wins his first start, but I just don't see it, I like the Panthers 27 - 17 Obviously, Romo is the next Joe Montana, so I'll pick the Cowboys here, 35 - 14.
New England at Minnesota - The Patriots have already been upset once in prime time this season, I don't think it's going to happen again this week. I like the Patriots, 21-13.
Apparently, Friday was the anniversary of this blog, but I forgot about it, and now since I'm lazy and can't think of what to say about it, I'll just repost what I posted last year at this time.
A year ago today, I started this blog with this post, which wasn't very interesting, but whatever. At the time I wasn't expecting anyone to read it, and I didn't really know what I was doing it for, I just knew that I had this BlogThis! button on my Google toolbar that I wanted to try out. I figured if I kept posting at all that it would become a more personal kind of journal. What actually happened was that as I read other people's blogs, I realized that I wasn't the only person in the world who didn't worship George Bush, so my frustration with the people who do really become the focus of most of my posts. Also, since it was right before the election, that magnified it for me. And of course after the ridiculous results of that election, my frustration only grew, so it was nice to share my thoughts with people who felt the same way, since at the time, there didn't seem to be enough of us. Not enough to get rid of the idiot, anyway. Now, it seems that things may be turning back towards a more reasonable, less ignorant attitude, and I like to take credit for that.
Anyway, I thought I should post something to commemorate this occasion. Please feel free to send gifts.**
* I refuse to use silly made up words like blogiversary.
** Or cash.
Way too much to cover on Sunday, I may have to split this up over several days . Also, with all the TV posts, I forgot to post my week 7 picks, but I did make them. Since the games are already in progress, I'll just run them down here without any comment:
San Diego over Kansas City
Grren Bay over Miami
New York Jets over Detroit
Pittsburgh over Atlanta
Philadelphia over Tampa Bay
New England over Buffalo
Jacksonville over Houston
Cincinnati over Carolina
Denver over Cleveland
Arizona over Oakland, 27-13
Seattle over Minnesota
Indianapolis over Washington
Dallas over New York Giants 17-13.
Now on to the TV:
Desperate Housewives - Started out as a very good show with a good mix of comedy, drama and just enough mystery. Last season it really went downhill as the new mystery sucked in comparison to the original one, and it seemed like the writers don't know what to do with the characters. I like it better so far this season, but it still leaves a lot to be desired. I particulary hate how they handle Tom and Lynette, who are good characters, but the plotlines they put them in consistently suck ass. I may follow the Toast's lead of giving up on this show if it doesn't improve.
Curb Your Enthusiasm - I love Larry David. Even listening to him on some of the bonus features on the Seinfeld DVDs is hilarious. And it's nice to have a good smart comedy where they can use the word cunt (or "beloved cunt" as it were). The only complaint I have about this show is the short, short, short 10 episodes seasons, and the long gaps between. At this point, I don't even know if it is coming back.
Rome - Having taken Latin in high school and going to competitions, where my particular field of expertise was Roman History (yes, I was a geek, but my brother was a bigger geek, so I was overshadowed), I was excited when I saw the first previews for this. Everything on HBO is good, and this had subject matter I was particularly interested in. It hasn't quite been as good as I had hoped, but it is very good. They do a good job of covering some pretty big historical moments while focusing on pretty ordinary people. The one thing I think they don't do particulary well is give a sense of how much time goes by between events.
Entourage - I didn't expect much from this show when it premiered, but per my policy of watching anything that HBO puts on, I gave it a chance. I first I didn't think much of it, but it grew on me pretty quickly. They get some good guest stars and the plots are always interesting. One thing that bugs me is it seems like these guys are living far above their means, Aquaman or no.
Big Love - I have a hard enough time understanding religous people in general, much less freakishly religous people like these who mold their entire existence around their beliefs. So I was worried that I wouldn't be able to relate to this show. However, it has done a good job of making this family interesting and likeable, despite their unusual living arrangements. This isn't quite as good as shows that preceeded it, like Carnivale and Six Feet Under, but it's defintely worth watching.
Deadwood - Excellent show. Actually, I guess it's technically over, but they're supposed to wrap it up with a couple of movies, so I included it anyway. Great, great characters, interesting plot and setting, I just wish it would continue. The only complaint I have with the show is similar to my complaint about The Shield, they spent the first few episodes making Al seem like about the most horrible person you can imagine, then they have since turned him into something different and likeable, despite his major flaws.
The Sopranos - not what it once was, but it's still a good show. As a matter of fact, I get tired of hearing this complaint about the show. No show that has been on that long can ever live up to its early days. I still think there are a lot of interesting things going on here, especially with Christopher. Hopefully, they'll be able to end it well.
The 4400 - The premise is great, but the writers don't seem to know where they're going with it. Sometimes they seem to want to be a serial drama, and others, they seem to want to be an episodic drama with a separate plotline that gets resloved each week. They introduce something one week, then pretend like it never happened a couple of weeks later. It's really annoying at times. The acting is also pretty awful, it definitely looks like a cable show. Having said all that, they ended the season with a pretty good episode, and I hope they'll be able to pick it up from there and fo a little better with it.
Seems like I'm missing something, but I can't think of what it might be. What do you guys think of these shows? Anything else I should be watching on Sundays?
Update:
The Wire - I knew I was missing something. I can't believe I left this off. I just started watching this a month or so ago, and I'm now caught up to current episodes. This is one of the best shows on TV. The characters are great, from McNulty, all the way down to Bodie, everyone has a lot of depth. The dialgue is great, though I don't know if I believe that no one in Baltimore says "the police" or " a policeman" and instead goes with "a police" or that anyone in 2006 still uses the word "mope." But I'll never know for sure, because one thing this show has made me realize is that I never want to go to Baltimore. I've heard that this is supposed to be the last season, but I really hope that isn't true. This show is excellent.
There's nothing on on Saturday, so I'm doing a few miscellaneous shows tonight.
The Simpsons - Still a great show, but I don't watch it regularly. I just put it on my DVR and watch an episode whenever. There are plenty I still haven't seen, and even most of the ones I have seen are good to watch again.
Big Brother - This is the one show I watch that I really can't give any good reason why. I've watched it since the first season and never stopped. No reason really.
The Apprentice - I've watched all of these also. Some are good, some are bad. When it first came on, I thought it would be awful, but watched the first episode just to see, and pretty immeadiately got hooked on it somehow. Should be interesting to see how it handles the move to L.A.
Real World/Road Rules Challenge - I hate all these people and their apparently jobless, no purpose lives. Who can spend weeks at a time away from home a couple of times a year like all these morons do? They're all crazy and I like to watch them argue with each other.
Everybody Hates Chris - I forgot this one on Monday. It's good, but not great. Has some really funny moments occaisionally, and is pretty solid overall. This is the only show I watch on the CW. I probably wouldn't miss it at all if it was gone, but I like Chris Rock, and the kid they've got playing him does a good job.
The Daily Show/The Colbert Report - With all the new shows on, I really haven't had time to watch these lately. I even had to take them off my DVR schedule, because they're on so many times a day they're always causing conflicts in my scheduling. But they're still both great shows, and I catch them when I can. When three or four of the shows I watch get canceled, I'll probably start watching them regularly again.
Extreme Engineering - I started watching this back when they covered imaginary stuff, like the tunnel from New York to Paris, or the Sky City or the Bering Strait bridge. I guess they ran out of those, because now they just cover actual projects. I usually watch these during commercials of sporting events or if I just have the TV on in the background when I'm doing something else.
Seinfeld - Best comedy ever, by far. I still watch reruns quite a bit. This is the only non-current show I'm mentioning, just because it's worth it.
I think that's about it. I probably missed something, but that's all I can think of at the moment. Since all the HBO shows are on Sunday (along with a few others) and I watch most of them, I've got a lot left still to cover.
Since this seems to be an all TV blog this wee...funny (as usual) article in The Onion.
Battlestar Galactica - A close second to Lost for best show on TV. I meant to watch the miniseries when it came on, but I forgot about it by the time it aired, then when I remembered, I could only seem to get my DVR to find Part 2, so I didn't watch it from the beginning. That was probably better, anyway. Since I got to watch the entire first 2 seasons all at once without having to worry about cliffhangers and stuff. Tonight's episode should be good. Whatever happens, they need to get off the planet pretty quickly, because it's a better show when they're in space. Outside of some Star Trek, space themed TV shows (Space: Above and Beyond, Earth 2, etc.) have always been pretty bad, so it's nice to see it handled well. They do a particularly good job with the space battles, realizing the different ways the ships would manuever in the zero gravity. The characters are all really good, and the plots are consistently good, except when they try to take a more peripheral subject and make it the focus of an episode. Like the one with the black market, or the hostage crisis. Also, TV shows should never, ever, ever try to make up their own sports, because they always look stupid.
Real Time with Bill Maher - I don't watch this regularly anymore, because it tends to be the same thing over and over again, but I always put it on my DVR and watch it occaiosionally. It still has some pretty funny parts now and then, and they do get some good guests.
Psych - This one is on USA, so I'm not sure how I even started watching it. It's not bad, but Dule Hill deserves to be on a much better show. If this was on another night, I probably wouldn't bother with it, but since there's not much for competition, I watched all the episodes so far. I don't know if I'll have time to keep up with it when it returns in January.
Anything else on Fridays? I don't think there is. There's also not much on on Saturdays, so maybe tomorrow I'll cover some miscellaneous shows that I don't know what night they'll be on, or that are on multiple nights, or that I don't watch regularly, but still enjoy.
These seem to be my most popular posts in quite some time. Unfortunately, I'm running out of days.
Survivor - I watched most of the first season, just because everyone was watching and talking about it, but after that, I didn't watch the next few. Somehow or other, I picked it back up and have watched ever since. It's still the best reality/contest type show, but I don't think I'd miss it all that much if it was gone. But as long as it's on, I'll keep watching. One major gripe I have about it (but not as much since I got the DVR) is that it's on Thursdays all season, then they do the finale on Sunday. I watch other things on Sunday, pick one night and stick with it.
My Name is Earl - I don't know if it's just because Seinfeld was the best show ever, or that all the comedies since have sucked ass, but I haven't watched any comedies regularly since Seinfeld ended. When this show came on, I didn't expect it to change that. And after watching the first few episodes, I didn't really change my opinion much, but somewhere along the line, this show really grew on me. It's not great by any means, but it's always funny and has some great moments. Joy and Crabman are very funny.
The Office - I had seen the British version a handful of times and thought it was great, but I didn't think they could translate it very well. I didn't like the first episode all that much, but after that, it really took off, and obviously I was wrong. This show is the best comedy on TV right now. Not that that's all that impressive. Hopefully they'll be able to successfully navigate through the sexual tension minefield without screwing it up. I wasn't sure they could do that after the finale last season, but they've done well with it so fat this season.
Six Degrees - I really hoped this show would be very good, since it's from JJ Abrams. But at this point, that's really the only reason I'm watching it. It has some potential, but I'm not optimistic that it's really going to go anywhere, and certainly won't be anywhere near as good as Alias or Lost. Also, they really need to call it One Degree based on how close these people all are after only a few episodes. I expect by next season, instead of a bunch of people vaguely connected, it will be more like Melrose Place with them all living in the same building and sleeping with each other. There is a little mystery to the plot also, with Mae's character and her past. If that turns out to be something interesting, the show could be much better.
ER - No, of course I don't watch this crap anymore. I just wanted to take a minute to point out that I think it's ridiculous that this show is still on. I hear it is having a resurgence this season. Must be new people watching that missed when they were driving tanks into the building and dropping helicopters on people. Also, I'm tired of them advertising every episode as if it is a special event, or pretending that any guest star they get is suddenly some kind of legend. Also, nothing good ever happened on this show, it was always one depressing moment after another. This has also ruined me for all medical dramas for who knows how long.
Ok, that's it for Thursday, what do you think? Anything I'm missing?
Probably my favorite night of television. Although, that's because my favorite show is on, and if it was the only thing on, it would probably still be my favorite night.
Jericho - This is the new show that I looked forward to the most. I've always liked reading post apoctalyptic type fiction, and this looked like a show that might be able to translate it to TV pretty well. So far I really like it, though it's not quite as good as I had hoped. I think the focus is too much on Skeet Ulrich, and him saving everything, when it needs to be more of an ensemble. Also, all the things they're going through so far in each week's plots aren't written terribly well. The characters are pretty good, especially the mysterious Mr. Hawkins. And I think the show will only improve as we find out more of his story.
Lost - Best show on TV. The only thing bad about it is reading all the crap on the internet from people who think it's too slow. When they answer all the questions, the show will be over, so I'm glad they're taking their time. As long as what they are putting on each week is interesting (and to me it definitely is), I'm happy. Obviously my opinion of it is subject to change if the series concluded with too many unanswered or poorly resolved questions. But currently, it's great. I started watching in the first season just because of all the hype, and because there wasn't much on that night, then really got hooked when they did Locke's first flashback. That's another thing that people need to stop bitching about. The flashbacks. They've been a part of the show since the beginning, and they're a big part of what makes it so great. I can't believe anyone thinks they take anything away from the show. I'm really looking forward to tonight's episode as it looks like we'll see a lot of Locke, who is probably my favorite character, and we'll probably find out what happened to Eko, who I also really like. I want to know all the answers as much as anyone else, but apparently unlike most everyone else, I'm really enjoying the journey to get to them.
The Nine - So far, this is probably my favorite new show. The mystery, and the connections the characters have with each other makes it very compelling. What actually happened in the bank will obviously make or break the show, but I have high hopes so far.
South Park - I didn't watch this regularly untill just recently, and I really don't know how I managed that. Obviously, it's hilarious. Missing it all these years, though, makes sure that there's usually an episode on my DVR that I haven't seen. Hopefully, though, they're not losing it, after horrible back to back episodes last season (Al Gore and Oprah). The World of Warcraft one was very good, even though I don't play any of those stupid games.
Ok, so what did I miss? What do you guys think of my Wednesday lineup?
I'll continue this series even though no one is paying any attention.
Friday Night Lights - This is still pretty new, so I don't know if it will stand up for the whole season, but so far I really like it. It has some good characters and the rabid football fans should provide some interesting plotlines. The one glaring weakness in this show so far was the horribly scripted football game. Just too much unrealistic drama and ridiculousness. Hopefully, that won't keep up during the whole season. I think there'll be another game to start the show tonight, so we should be able to find out pretty quickly. They really could have told the exact same story plotwise in the pilot without making the game so ridiculous.
Boston Legal - I'm not much for lawyer (or doctor or cop) shows these days, but this one is really good. William Shatner and James Spader are excellent, and there are a lot of other good characters as well. The dialogue is very good and the plots, though predictable, are entertaining. As a bonus, they frequently take shots at the Bush administration.
Nip/Tuck - If you're not watching any of FX's dramas, you're really missing out. This is probably my least favorite of the three, but it's very good anyway. A lot of interesting, if unbelievable, plots and some very likeable characters. The one thing that really bugs me about this show is both of the main characters, rich successful plastic surgeons, are supposedly in love with the same woman, who is in no way loveable, and horribly ugly on top of that, which makes it a little unbelievable. I didn't watch this when it first started, but I watched the end of last season, then caught up with reruns before the beginning of this season. Now, I'll watch anything FX puts on (much like HBO) just in case it's as good as what they currently offer.
Rescue Me - Another show I didn't watch from the beginning, but after watching Nip/Tuck, and having watched The Shield from the beginning, I figured this was probably pretty good also. And it is. One of the best shows on TV. All the characters are great, though I hope to god they're not realistic or represenative of New York firefighters. Because if they are, those are some horribly repressed, afraid to be themselves, bigoted, drunken motherfuckers. If you're not watching this, you really should give it a chance.
The Shield - I saw the previews for this show and meant to watch it, but completely forgot about it by the time it started. But, I happened to be flipping around and caught a rerun of the premiere the night after it started. I stopped on it without knowing what it was because it was so filthy, I couldn't believe it was on regular cable. That's one of the things that makes FX's shows so great, they curse, show nudity, and have adult situations. Not quite the leeway that HBO has, but much better then a network. The only things I haven't liked about the show are that they started in the first episode making Mackey a really, really bad guy (which was one of the reasons I liked it so much), then ever since, they've been trying to make him likeable, which they clearly showed him not to be in the premiere. Oh, and what the fuck ever happened to Tevan?
I think that's it for Tuesday. Anything I'm missing out on? Anyone have any opinions of the above shows?
I had a really long post about the TV shows I watch on Monday, as the first part of a series on all the TV I watch, but then when I tried to copy it somewhere to save it in case there was any problem posting, Blogger (which sucks) deleted it. So, if you're ever selecting a bunch of text in the BlogThis! window, don't hit the up arrow once it's all selected, because it conveniently deletes it, and apparently undo doesn't undo this particular feature. So, anyway, I'll just post a few quick thoughts about each show and if there is any discussion, I can go into the detail I had intended in comments.
Prison Break - Good show, lost a lot of steam after the LONG break last season, and relying too much on close calls. Has come back strong this season. The addition of the guy from Invasion (thank god that got canceled) was a great one. They still focus too much on the "they almost get caught, but don't" formula, but it's working well this season.
Heroes - Good show, has a lot of potential. Hiro is great. They need to make the cheeleader's story more interesting, which it looks like they did at the end of last week's episode. Hopefully, the stoty will be good enough to support a good premise.
Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip - Started great. I really like the West Wing (and Sports Night for the week or so I watched before it got the axe), so I expected to like this too. Bradley Whitford and Matthew Perry are excellent, particularly because I never feel like I'm watching Josh Lymon or Chandler Bing. I think they need to make sure they don't focus too much on the love story and they'll be ok. Oh, and make the fictional show funnier or stay away from showing it to us. Especially that joke from last week that was horrible and not at all funny. Oh, and no one gives a shit about the life of a netwrok president, no matter what skeletons are in her closet.
24 - I finally started watching this last season, and watched the previous 4 seasons during the fifth season. It's very predictable and formulaic, but still manages to be compelling. I really liked the end of last season. I can't wait to see how Jack manages to kill a billion Chinese people before saving the US from certain destruction, while dealing with personal issues at the same time. Good show.
So, what do you guys think about the shows above? Anything else I should be watching on Mondays?
I was 10-4 last week, which brings me up to 48-26 overall, which isn't too bad. However, I still haven't won the pool, so this week I'm picking some upsets.
Cincinnati at Tampa Bay - The Bengals are good, and the Bucs are bad. Homefield isn't nearly enough to close the gap, I like the Bengals.
New York Giants at Atlanta - Seems like I always get the Giants wrong, so I'll go against my gut a little and pick them to win on the road.
Tennessee at Washington - Despite their impressive performance against the Colts, the Titans are just awful, and Washington seems to have gotten things back on track a little with Portis, despite last week's loss to the Giants. I'll take the Redskins.
Houston at Dallas - Dallas needs to bounce back from a tough loss on the road, and also beat the only team in the league that they have never beaten. I don't see any problem doing either of those, I'll take the Cowboys.
Carolina at Baltimore - I think Carolina has things going in the right direction after a rough start, and I think Baltimore was exposed a bit against Denver last week. I like the Panthers in the upset.
Buffalo at Detroit - Buffalo should and probably will win this game, but for some reason, I just don't like the Bills this year. I'll take the Lions in the upset.
Seattle at St. Louis - I still don't like the Seahawks for some reason I just can't quite put my finger on, and after I was miserably wrong about them against the Giants, I meant to not be stubborn about it. But, I can't help it. I like St. Louis to win with Alexander still out (last I heard anyway).
Philadelphia at New Orleans - I would really like to see the Saints pull this one out, but I really don't see it happening, I'll take the Eagles.
Miami at New York Jets - The Jets have lost a couple of tough games. A squeaker and a blowout, this is the perfect game for them to get things back on track, I'll take New York.
Kansas City at Pittsburgh - Last week I picked the Steelers because I didn't think they could lose three in a row. So I was wrong about that, but I really, really don't think they can lose four in a row, so I'll try it again and take Pittsburgh.
San Diego at San Francisco - San Diego is looking good, and San Francisco isn't that good, I'll take the Chargers.
Oakland at Denver - Oakland sucks. How do you turn Randy Moss into a player that I have to bench on my fantasy team? I'll take the Broncos, 31-7.
Chicago at Arizona - Chicago looks really good. I don't think they can win them all, but they certainly won't stumble this week. I'll take the Bears, 32-14.
I was 8-6 again last week, which sucks. But I still have an overall record of 38-22, so that's not too bad.
Miami at New England - Miami sucks, I'll take the Patriots.
Tampa Bay at New Orleans - Tampa sucked even before they had to go to a rookie QB, give me the Saints.
Washington at New York Giants - I like Washington in an upset, though I don't really have any good reason why.
Buffalo at Chicago - The Bears really look good, I don't see them having any problem with the Bills at home.
St. Louis at Green Bay - Brett Favre is done, I'll take the Rams.
Cleveland at Carolina - I think Carolina is ready to get it rolling, and the Browns suck, I'll take the Panthers.
Tennessee at Indianapolis - Good team vs. awful team, I'll take the Colts.
Detroit at Minnesota - Detroit sucks, I like the Vikings.
Kansas City at Arizona - I'm not sure how Kansas City manages 41 points against anyone with no receivers and no quarterback, but they did, and I think they can get enough somehow to beat the Cards.
Oakland at San Francisco - This takes me back to the '89 World Series, featuring the two Bay area teams. Maybe there will be an earthquake that will swallow up these two awful teams so we don't have to watch them anymore. The coin landed on heads, I'll take the 49ers.
New York Jets at Jacksonville - Jacksonville has been playing well but still finding a way to lose. Same for the Jets. If this was in New York, I'd be tempted to pick the Jets, but here, I like the Jags.
Dallas at Philadelphia - Philadelphia has looked good, but against bad teams, and they're pretty banged up. The Eagles have lost 6 or 7 division games in a row, I'll take the Cowboys, and they'd better fucking win.
Pittsburgh at San Diego - I really should pick the Chargers at home, but I just can't see the Steelers losing three in a row, I'll take Pittsburgh, 20-13.
Baltimore at Denver - Baltimore has been impressive this season so far, I'll take them in a close one, 24-21.
If you use my picks to win your office pool, make sure to forward me a portion of your winnings. Check out this handy site which has maps showing what games are showing around the country. Notice the emptiness around my house in the vast sea of red that represents everyone else in the country getting the Dallas/Philadelphia game for the FOX Doubleheader game 2.
With honorable mention going to Frank Frangie.
I was listening to the Frank Frangie Show (with Tony Boselli) this morning, and they were talking about the Jets/Jaguars game this weekend. Frank threw out some theory about how the thought the Jets must just be spent after the emotional loss last week to the Colts. As I was wondering exactly why the Jets would be any more spent than the Jaguars, who also lost a close game at the end, Boselli chimes in to tell us exactly that. Apparently, since the Jets hung in and almost won against a team they had no business beating, but then came up short, that sort of takes the wind out of their sails. The Jaguars, on the other hand, played very well, yet still lost to a team they should have beaten, which according to the Boselli theory, just pisses them off. I'm glad he cleared that up.
This is stupid for a couple of reasons. First, both the Jaguars and the Jets are 2-2, and are trailing early in their divisions. Actually, Jacksonville is two games back, where the Jets are only 1 game back. Anyway, both teams being in similar positions would indicate to me that they would both react similarly to a loss. Second, it's stupid because, if you must advance some idiotic theory about why the Jaguars are better off after their tough loss than the Jets after their tough loss, the argument is simple to make. The Jaguars lost on the road and now get to come home. The Jets lost at home and now have to go on the road.
I occaisionally like it when the Jaguars do well, since I live here. But, it's crap like this that makes me really want to see them lose. Too many idiots on local radio. I wonder if I could still be a Cowboy fan if I had to live in Dallas, and listen to all the local idiots' thoughts on them. I think that might be tough as well.
Stupid, stupid, stupid. Why do people insist on being so fucking stupid? They put out this drink and call it cocaine, at least in part because they hope it will generate controversy and free advertising, and idiots like this councilman line up to give it that free publicity.
"We will not be silent in the face of this," [Councilman James] Sanders said. "Yes, there is a danger we're going to give him advertisement, but at the same time, what would happen to our conscience if we did not speak up?"
So long as it's not hurting anyone, I see no reason not to sell it.
At a City Hall news conference, [Councilman James Sanders] said the drink's name and claims it contains a massive amount of "energy" send the wrong message to young people, who may think the actual drug was OK to use.
So, I was 8-6 last week, not too good, but which puts me at 30-16 for the year so far which is pretty respectable.
Arizona at Atlanta - Atlanta will bounce back from the humiliating loss on Monday Night and take out their frustrations on the Cardinals.
New Orleans at Carolina - I'm very tempted to pick the Saints here, but I'm going to stick with the Panthers this week. But just barely.
Minnesota at Buffalo - I just don't like Buffalo at all, and Minnesota is better than I expected, I'll take the Vikings.
San Diego at Baltimore - I like the Ravens so far, but I think San Diego is a little better overall.
Miami at Houston - Miami looks awful, but not as awful as the Texans, I'll take the Dolphins.
Dallas at Tennessee - If TO doesn't kill himself before Sunday (well, even if he does), I like the Cowboys here.
San Francisco at Kansas City - I don't like the Chiefs much, but the 49ers suck, so I'll take KC anyway.
Indianapolis at New York Jets - As long as it's the regular season, I'll stick with the Colts until someone proves they can beat them.
Detroit at St. Louis - I think Detroit sucks, and St, Louis is mediocre, I'll take the Rams.
Jacksonville at Washington - I think the Jaguars could easily lose this game, but going on what I've seen so far out of both teams, I have to pick them to win.
New England at Cincinnati - This is where the Patriots start to fall apart a little (or a little more, I guess after last week). No matter how well your organization is run, sometimes the other team is just better. I like the Bengals.
Cleveland at Oakland - I think Oakland might be the worst team in the league, but since Cleveland isn't far behind, I'll take the Raiders in an upset.
Seattle at Chicago - I keep thinking Seattle is winning with smoke and mirrors, but they keep winning just the same. However, on the road without Alexander, I'll take the Bears, 17-14.
Green Bay at Philadelphia - When is Philadelphia going to start playing NFL teams? I'll take the Eagles, 31-13.
This thing sucks so many different ways, it's hard to even get your head around it all. But one thing that struck me a particularly odd, and scary, was the fact that legislators who oppose the bill, or at least parts of it, particularly the elimination of the right of habeus corpus, seem content that the courts will strike down the legislation.
The removal of habeas corpus came under particular criticism, from both sides, with even some Republicans who voted for the bill nonetheless predicting it likely that the Supreme Court would strike down the legislation because of its scrapping of the right of prisoners to challenge their own detention.
It's been a while since I've done this, because it took me forever to get through The Historian (review). Overall, it was pretty good, but really lacked action. There was never anything in the story compelling enough to keep me reading until right at the end.
Now, I'm in the middle of Blood Memory which is not bad and is going along much more quickly. After that I will probably re-read Pandora's Star so I can remember what's going on before reading Judas Unchained.
So, what is everyone else reading? Any recommendations?
Ok, so I know I forgot to do this last week, but you'll just have to trust me when I tell you I got 11 of 16 correct, just like in week 1. Even though my picks aren't going too badly, my predictions for the season as a whole aren't looking all that great so far. Anyway, here are this weeks picks.
Chicago at Minnesota - I should probably take Chicago, but Minnesota is one of those teams that has really been a surprise to me so far, and the Bears are one of those teams that I never like indoors, so I'll go out on a limb and take the Vikings.
Cincinnati at Pittsburgh - I think these teams are pretty even about now, so I'll give the edge to the Steelers at home, especially with the additional motivation of trying to erase that shutout from Monday Night.
New York Jets at Buffalo - I don't think either of these teams is very good, but the Jets have shown me that they're not quite as bad as I thought, so I'll take them.
Carolina at Tampa Bay - These are the two teams that my predictions really missed on so far. I liked them both to make the playoffs and Carolina to be one of the elite teams in the conference. So far, they both look awful. I still think the Panthers are better, and since I hear that Steve Smith is finally supposed to return, I'll take them.
Green Bay at Detroit - They both suck, but Green Bay has at least demonstrated an ability to score a few points, so I'll go with them even though they're another one of those teams that I usually hate indoors, hopefully they'll leave the roof open.
Washington at Houston - Both look awful, but this is just the game the Redskins need to get their season on track, I look for them to win big.
Jacksonville at Indianapolis - Jacksonville has really surprised me so far, but I still don't like them enough to take them over the Colts on the road, but if they win this week, I'll be picking them a lot more in future weeks.
Tennessee at Miami - I think Miami has a good game in there somewhere, I don't think the Titans do, I'll take the Dolphins.
Baltimore at Cleveland - The Ravens look much improved, Cleveland sucks, give me Baltimore.
St. Louis at Arizona - I expected the Rams to be mediocre and it looks like they are. Arizona has some good players, and I expect them to win these kinds of games, I'll take the Cards.
Philadelphia at San Francisco - What better way to erase the memory of a stunning loss than getting to play the 49ers, I like the Eagles.
New York Giants at Seattle - I still think the Seahawks are doing it with mirrors. I also think the Giants are pretty good, I'll take New York.
Denver at New England - Denver hasn't looked too good so far, and New England always finds a way, so I'll take the Patriots at home, 27 - 21.
Atlanta at New Orleans - An impressive start for the Saints, and as great a story as it would be if they could win their return to the Superdome, I just don't think they have it in them. I look for the Falcons 24-13.
There you have it, feel free to use these picks in your office pool, just make sure to send me a cut of the winnings.
As long as the vaccine's been proven safe, I think this is a good idea. Of course the Family Research Council disagrees -
"We don't feel using school attendance as a form of coercion to get parents to vaccinate their child is appropriate, simply because this disease is not transmitted through casual contact the way other diseases are that are subject to school mandates," said Peter Sprigg, vice president for policy at the Family Research Council in Washington, D.C.
I'd like to use my official position as Prime Minister of Australia* to condemn the killing of innocent stingrays to avenge Steve Irwin's death. First of all, the guy was clearly an animal lover, and probably wouldn't be too keen on this nonesense anyway (though I suppose he may have had a change of heart between the time the barb hit him and his death). But more importantly, are people really that stupid? Are they trying to send a message to the stingrays? Don't kill anymore TV personalities! I doubt the senseless killing of Steve Irwin was some kind of coordinated attack by the stingray population as a whole. I doubt the guilty stingray even consulted any other stingrays. Killing innocent stingrays to avenge Irwin's death makes about as much sense as attacking Iraq in retaliation for September 11th. Another point I'd like to make is that, while I watch way, way too much TV, I can't imagine any TV star whose death would affect me so much that I would be prompted to take action, even if there was some reasonable action to take, much less this crap. Maybe there are just too many stupid people in the world. Perhaps we should unleash the stingrays on them, though I'd be worried I might become an innocent victim in the human-stingray war. I like how the stingrays weren't just killed, but mutilated as well. That'll show them!
Once again, as Prime Minister of Australia*, I demand that the senseless killing of innocent stingrays stop.
* If I have to have the same name as this idiot, I'm going to take advantage of it.
With all the hype around this stupid thing, I meant to watch more of it, but with the NFL season starting and my team in town, I was focused on other things. So, I've only watched this last part, and didn't get to see all the made up stuff that's been talked about all week. But I have to say that if this is represenative of the rest of the thing, then it shouldn't have been pulled off the air for being inaccurate, it should have been pulled for being cheesy and bad. Harvey Keitel just looked up and heard a large groan as the building began to fall, and if I had turned it on at just that second, not knowing what it was, I would have expected a dinosaur to have jumped out and ate him.
Not too long ago, I watched this horrible cheesy made for TV movie about the Challenger disaster. From the way this thing ended, you would have thought the astronauts wanted to get blown up. This thing tonight reminded me of that. And I imagine if I see it again in 15 years, it will look just as bad as the Challenger movie.
The sad part about the part I watched, was that since it was the conclusion, it used a lot of real stuff from 09/11, which was by far the best part. Since the other parts would have lacked that, I can only imagine that they were even worse.
All in all, I'm glad the day is over, beacause I'm about September 11th'd out. I'm all for remembering what happened and honoring the memories of the people who died, but it often seems like everyone is trying to out tribute each other, and it gets a little old.
I do have thoughts on the NFL weekend, but the stench of the Cowboys' miserable performance is still a little too fresh for me to express them very well, so I'll save them for later.
1, Who's the wild man, now?
2. I don't scratch my head unless it itches and I don't dance unless I hear some music. I will not be intimidated. That's just the way it is.
3. Gentlemen, the hopes and dreams of an entire town are riding on your shoulders. You may never matter again in your life as much as you do right now.
4. You better watch it, Dr. Death! I'm pretty damn fast for a Caucasian.
5. Welcome to Billy Bob's. The only bar with its own indoor bull ridin' arena.
6. Ernest Hemingway once said "Every true story ends in death." Well, this is a true story.
7. U-G-L-Y, you ain't got no alibi ! You ugly! Yeah, Yeah ! You Ugly! Yo momma said you ugly, HEY!
8. You're not god, Nickerson. You're just a typing teacher.
9. Okay, what would Joe do at a time like this? He'd kill everybody and smoke some cigarettes.
10. I look like I just jacked off an elephant.
* There is no prize
Since I never seem to have anything to post about lately, I decided that I'll post my NFL picks each week. Feel free to use them in your own office pool, just make sure to send me a portion or your winnings. And if you lose, it's your own fault for trusting something you read on the internets. I'll probably do this on Friday normally, but since there's a game tonight, I should get it out of the way.
Miami at Pittsburgh - I'll take Pittsburgh. Miami will certainly be better this season, but I don't think they can be Pittsburgh on the road, Rothlisberger or not.
Baltimore at Tampa Bay - I think Baltimore will be better this season, with a real QB finally. But I think Tampa will get it done at home.
New Orleans at Cleveland - I should probably pick the home team just to be safe in this stinker, but I really don't like Cleveland, and I think the addition of Drew Brees does a lot for the Saints, so I'll take them here.
Atlanta at Carolina - I think Carolina is one of the top teams in the league, and I'll take them to beat Atlanta.
Seattle at Detroit - I don't think that Seattle will be as good as they were last season, but I don't think they'll have a problem with Detroit.
Philadelphia at Houston - Houston sucks, I'll take the Eagles.
New York Jets at Tennessee - I'll take the Jets, just because two of my readers are Jets fans.
Cincinnati at Kansas City - Cincinnati is a much better team, so I'll take them, even on the road.
Denver at St. Louis - I woory about Denver in the dome, but not enough to pick St. Louis to beat them.
Buffalo at New England - Sorry Chemist, but the Bills suck, give me the Patriots.
Dallas at Jacksonville - I'll be at this game, so it better not disappoint me. I'm clearly biased, but I just don't see any way that the Jaguars win this game. They are outmatched at every position except the defensive front, and they don't have a single proven receiver. I think Dallas wins easily.
Chicago at Green Bay - Green Bay sucks, Favre will throw three picks and one will be returned for a TD. The Bears can then cruise to victory. It'll be a long year in Titletown.
San Francisco at Arizona - I think Arizona made a lot of nice moves, and I don't think the 49ers did much of anything, so I think the Cardinals get it done in that fancy new stadium.
Indianapolis at New York Giants - The Manning bowl. Peyton is better, his team is better, he will win.
Minnesota at Washington - Minnesota might be the worst team in the league this season, I'll take the Redskins at home, 20-3.
San Diego at Oakland - I like San Diego, but I think they should have kept Drew Brees. Oakland will hit some big plays, but I don't see Brooks doing anything consistently. I'll take the Chargers 21-20.
UPDATE: 1-0. Only 15 more to go.
Are you kidding? This is ridiculous. It looks like I'll have to expand my "Stuff that isn't racist" segment to include stuff that just isn't offensive in any way that people somehow twist into something to be outraged by. NBC aired the Emmy awards with a skit that parodied LOST. And some idiots in Kentucky, perhaps trying to live up to some stupid hick stereotype, are outraged since a plane crashed there not too long before. There are a million reasons why this shouldn't bother anyone, but I'll just list a few.
First, there is absolutely no connection between a plane crash in Kentucky and a parody of a plane crash on a TV awards show. None. The only small shred of logic that can be used to be upset by it, by extension would make it impossible for TV shows to depict any tragedies that can mirror real life, since someone watching may have been affected in real life by the fictional tragedy being portrayed. So no plane crashes, certainly no automobile accidents, no cancer victims, no heart attacks, basically nothing realistic. So shows would all have to be some sort of fantasy set in Mr. Rogers' land of make-believe. Can ABC still show LOST this season? After all, they do occaisionally have scenes that flashback to the plane crash, which may trigger upleasant memories for these people in Kentucky. Maybe they can just pull it from any market where a plane has ever crashed.
Second, I seriously doubt that anyone who was seriously affected by a plane crash earlier in the day is kicking back watching the Emmys. And even if they happen to be, they can easily change the channel when the skit comes on that bothers them (much like people not involved in the American Famly Association do normally when they see something on TV that they don't like). Anyone else acting outraged about this is just being an attention whore.
Finally, the Emmys are a national broadcast, and the plane crash in Kentucky, no matter how tragic, is a much more local event. It's impossible for an event like that to cater to the myriad sensibilities of all the local markets that will see it. Again, if something on TV bothers you, just change the channel.
