Month: August 2006

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Subway again

A while back I went to Subway in search of a sandwich (duh). Upon seeing they were out of lettuce, I left. Cursing off Subway until further notice. Well, a few days ago, I finally go back to Subway. I was craving a ‘spicy Italian’. So, I walk into a completetly different Subway at about 7:00pm. Nobody behind the counter… hmmm. I get up to the sneeze guard and what do I see? A printed 8 1/2 x 11 sheet of paper taped to said sneeze guard stating “We are out of bread until 7:30”.

WHAT!?!

I thought there was no way it would ever be more pathetic than to run out of lettuce. How wrong I was. Run out of bread? Pardont me if I’m wrong, but isn’t this a SANDWICH SHOP?! How do you run out of bread? Seriously. Explain that to me. At least, if you run out of lettuce, you can still sell some of your wares (meatball sub, for example). However, I’m pretty sure that when you sell sandwiches, if you run out of bread, you are done.

What the hell sort of 3 toed sloths do they have running these restaruants? At this point I’m pretty sure a drunken orangataun could probably be more successful. Not to mention, if they can run out of lettuce and run out of bread IN SEPARATE RESTARUANTS, what does that say about the people they have running the show? I don’t know about you, but I seriouly doubt I want these people handling anything I might ingest. And you thought ‘forgetting’ to wash your hands after using the restroom might be the worst… there is no telling what these people are capable of. “Uh… I spilled drain opener into the hot peppers? Is that bad?” Assistant Manager: “Nah… I think thats fine. The peppers are spicy anyway, right?”

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Moral Dilemma

Yes, this is another sports related post. But, before you go scurrying off to your US Weekly, hang here for a sec. I guarantee that even if you aren’t a sports fan, know a baseball from a hockey puck, or even give a damn, you will have an opinion on this story.

In Sports Illustrated, Rick Riley wrote about an event that happened in Utah. You can go read his account, but I’ll give you the thumbnail version.

Basically, here is the deal. 9-10 year olds little league game. Actually, this is the championship game. The league is a non-competitive league (everyone bats, no stealing, etc.) Why they’re having a “championship” game in a non-competitive league is something that doesn’t make sense to me, but I digress.

Yankees lead the Red Sox by a run in the bottom of the last inning. Red Sox are down to their last out, with the tying run on 3rd. Their best hitter is coming to the plate. Yankees coach has a decision to make. Pitch to the best hitter (who already has a home run) and possibly lose the game, or intentionally walk him? Behind him in the lineup is a kid who is a cancer survivor with a shunt in is brain and the worst hitter on the team.

Well, the coach does walk the power hitter in order to pitch to the weak link. Predictably, he strikes out and the game is over, Yankees win.

Now, I can see many different angles in this story. First that comes to mind is that that is a bush league thing to do to that kid. You know he’s weak, and you are deliberately targeting him to fail. He’s already been through hell with the cancer and you’re using that to your advantage. Do you really want to win like that?

On the other hand, I’ve long held the opinion that people coddle kids WAY to much. Way too much not keeping score and giving every kid in the league a trophy just for playing all to make sure that some kids don’t feel like ‘losers’. Kids have to learn, sometimes you win. Sometimes you lose. When you grow up, life is not going to try to protect your feelings. It will kick your head in (trust me, I know). If you have never lost anything in your life, how do you know how to deal with it? Parents think a loss is going to destroy their kid’s self esteem. It’s cliche at this point, but everyone always learns more about them self in a loss than they ever do in a win. Life is all about how you deal with adversity. Kids sports is a small way to add some ‘positive losses’ to a kid’s life.

However, does a move like this send too much of that message? Does it teach his players that its ok to ‘win at all costs’? If it does, is that a positive or a negative? Does this teach his team strategy? Constructive thinking? Compassion is important, but the kid was playing in the game just like everone else. He knew the rules. Would he want the rules changed for him or shown special treatment because he’s not as strong or as good as everyone else? What message does that send him?

It is an interesting dilemma. As you can imagine the adults are all taking sides and screaming at each other. Adults have a knack for taking a situation and blowing it all out of proportion. Who knows how long they will argue about this. Weeks? Months? I’m quite sure of one thing. Every kid involved in that game was already feeling better and moving on once the pizza party was over.

If I was the coach, I would have taken my chances and pitched to the power hitter. Kids sports is not simply about winning or losing. As long as you go out there, spend some time with your buddies, have some fun, learn a thing or two… then its worthwhile. There is always the silver lining of a loss… you’re going to learn something about yourself.

I love what the kid told his dad the next morning. It wraps up what this is all about and what I’m telling you. “I’m going to work on my batting. Then maybe someday I’ll be the one they walk.”

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Draft – Post Mortem

Ok… most of you won’t give two shits about this post. However, a couple of you (I’m looking at you Adam and George) might find it interesting. Besides, this is my deal. If you don’t like it… well, you get what you pay for.

Base rules for our league. We start 1 QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, 1 TE, 1 K, and 1 Def. and have 5 Bench players of any position. Pretty standard. We’re also a keeper league, meaning we had to keep 3 players from our last year’s team. This means that right off get go, the top 30 players are already gone (we have 10 owners). So, this makes it a little more interesting (and difficult). I had 2 guys that were easy keepers, Tom Brady and Marvin Harrison. After that it was a little dicey. I had to decide between Willis McGahee or Brian Westbrook. All of the top ten running backs were ‘kept’ so getting a somewhat top RB was imparative. I don’t think Westbrook will survive the season, so I went with McGahee. I’ll probably regret that.

Adam, when we started drafting, all of the players you told me about were kept, Ronnie Brown, Chambers and Culpepper.

My first pick, which was fourth pick in what was essentially the 4th round, I took Willie Parker. Best running back available. I’m not terribily thrilled with that pick either.

Next round: Darrell Jackson. Decent pickup for the 5th round. Provided he can stay healthy. I owned Hasselbeck 2 years ago when Jackson dropped probably 5 touchdown passes. Killed me. Time for him to pay me back.
6th round: Joseph Addai. Went with Adam’s advice on that one. Go rookie running back!

7th: Jeremy Shockey. I’m really surprised he fell that far. Ranked #2 TE on my sheets.

8th: Carolina D. I like that pick. They’re supposed to be good.

9th: Donte’ Stallworth. Could have a big year with Brees in town. Especially if Horn is double covered.

10th: David Carr as my backup QB. Only need him for one week, but if Kubiak can get him in the right direction, might be interesting in the keeper league.

11th: David Givens now in Tennessee. Pretty decent pick at this point

12th: Lawrence Maroney, rookie running back in New England playing behind 2 well worn backs who probably won’t stay healthy. Might be another good keeper pick.

13th: Brandon Lloyd. Did well in SF on a terrible team last year. Wash. should be able to boost his stats a little.

14th: Kicker time… Jason Elam.

15th: Flyer on Greg Jones. Probably won’t see much of the field, but he’s mainly a place filler.

All in all, I’m not horribily disappointed. I would much rather have had a top 10 running back. Somehow, Commisioner Hedges has 2 top 4 running backs, Tiki Barber and Larry Johnson. He’ll probably win again. Bastard.

One thing you always like to hear when you’re drafting is after you make a pick, is a guy or two giving a dissapointed grunt. Meaning, they were sitting on that guy planning on drafting him. So, its just a little confirmation that you’re NOT crazy for taking him. Plus, its always good to get the “that is a strong pick” comments when they’re being serious. We’re pretty friendly, so there isn’t a whole lot of backstabbing or anything.

So, we’re done drafting. Everyone thinks their team can win if they catch a few breaks. Optimism is at an all time high. Of course, after week one and you get 2 players injured, and 3 others do absolutely nothing you’re damn near hari kari.

If anyone wants to see the other teams makeups you can go to our league homepage.
http://football.fantasysports.yahoo.com/f1/255026

Commish said he’d have the teams entered either tonight or tomorrow.

Feel free to critique my complete lack of knowledge of the NFL if you so desire. I’m just happy football is back around.

On a completely unrelated note, there was a huge windstorm that blew through town this evening. Apparently, 16,000 homes in the North End are have no power and there is no estimate of when they’ll be back up. Is it wrong that I take just a slight bit of glee in this? It’s not that I wish hardship on anyone, but power outages is just an inconveinece. Couldn’t happen to a nicer bunch of people( /sarcasm ) Stupid and petty I know, but still…

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Fantasy Football Draft

Ugh… it happens tonight. I cannot tell you how UNprepared I am. We ususally do it later in the month, but our commissioner had to do it today to fit all 10 guys schedules. He informed us of this 2 days ago. I just really haven’t had enough time to get into the nitty gritty of what’s predicted and so on.

Then again, it could well be argued that I don’t really know what I’m doing even when I have plenty of time to prepare. And to those people I say…. well… you’re right. In 7 years I’ve never won. One year I lead most of the season, only to be bounced in the first round of the playoffs. That was my one flirtation with glory.

The rest of the time, I’ve been ending careers. Hence, my team name has been CareerEndingInjuries. It all began back in the first season we were playing. I had drafted Vinny Testeverde as my #1 quarterback. (This was back when he was supposed to have a huge season for the Jets). Week one. First quarter. He drops back to pass… nobody touches him… and ruptures his achillies tendon. Done for the year. Since that time, I have decimated guys. It has gotten to the point that the other guys in the league beg me not to draft players from their favorite teams. I wish I had kept a list of all the players that went down for the season when I had them. There are usually at least 2 or 3 on my team every year. I got Marshall Faulk a couple years ago… I think he ended up playing like 5 games. I’ve had ‘fragile’ Freddie Taylor (twice) and he got hurt both years. I had the Carolina backfield the season that both Stephen Davis and DeShaun Foster had their seasons ended.

I’ve had ACL’s, I’ve had Turf Toe. I’ve had broken collar bones. I’ve had drug suspensions. You name a way to lose a guy for the season, I’ve managed to own those very guys. I’ve had guys get injured, then the guy I replace him with get injured. I’m the NFL’s grim reaper.

So, if there are any teams or players you specifically want to see gone for the year, just let me know. Maybe I’ll draft them and put my curse on them.

I’ll write up a post-mortem of my draft when its finished. Not that anyone really cares about your fantasy team, but dammit, this is my space and I’ll use it how I see fit.

“I’m going to go get directions to our next huge embarassing failure” – Richard Hayden, Tommy Boy

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Flying Solo

One thing that I’ve been doing a little bit of the past several weeks is something new for me. In the past, when dining out alone, I always got food to go and brought it back home. Always. Never even considered doing otherwise. However, you always see people in movies dining out alone. Of course, they always meet the chick while doing so, but that’s not what interested me.

I recently subscribed to ESPN the magazine (which is terrific, by the way). It comes biweekly. So, every time I get a new issue, I’ll take it with me and hit a sports pub somewhere. I’ll order dinner, have a beer or two, and pretty much read it cover to cover. Watch a little sports on TV. Just get out of the house.

Granted, I’m not meeting anyone, or even talking to anyone for that matter, but I’m enjoying it a little bit. So far I’ve gone to Busters in Eagle a couple times, The Ram in Eagle, The Ha’ Penny, and Cheerleaders.

Last night I was at the Ram having dinner. Watching a baseball game, and reading the magazine. I noticed that most defintely I wasn’t the only guy doing the same. There were 3 or 4 other guys who were either reading the paper or whatever, and having dinner and beers. Nice to have a little psuedo-company. Plus, the Ram is always kinda fun since they have the NTN trivia which I enjoy. I really wish I could find someplace that did old fashioned pub trivia one night a week somewhere… a place where I could perhaps get on a regular team. I think that would be fun.

It’s all part of the process of being comfortable doing alone that which I like doing while coupled. I just gotta find new ways to do things.

On a side note, I had the club sandwich. I really like those things, however there is the one downside. Good lord to they shred the inside of your mouth. That damn toast combined with the thickness of the sandwich, its kinda like rubbing sandpaper inside of your teeth. Unfortunately, I can’t really come up with a solution… its gotta be toasted. Plain bread is a dud. I guess you could go not as thick, but there’s a lot of stuff on a good club. Oh well, sometimes personal sacrafice is necessary for things you love, right?

I’m excited for NFL this season, because George has said that we need to find a regular place somewhere to go every Sunday to watch some games. Preferably somewhere with HD, where you can hear the game, and decent food. It will be fun to hang out with my boy, watch some football, and just catch up every week.

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My Ad

I thought I would post my personal ad from match.com on here… who knows, some beautiful, single, independently wealthy woman lookin for a red-headed introvert might read this…

For those not familiar with match ads, there are a few sections. First is the big ‘about me’ section, then there are a few prompted sections (“favorite things”, “my education”, etc.)
—————————————————————-

About me and what I’m looking for

Ok ok, something different… something original. Damn. Hmmmm.. Well, nothing is coming to me. I’ll just wing it.

Divorced, successful, friendly, optimistic, loyal, sensitive, happy-go-lucky guy with a full head of hair, looking for a partner, a best friend, that “go to” person in my life. Companionship is very important.

About me. I enjoy all kinds of things. Everything from dressed up dinners out w/ wine to dressed down dinners in with a new recipe. Heading out for a vodka-tonic or cold beer and some good conversation can be very relaxing. Sometimes you wanna go where everyone knows your name, suck some suds, and argue with Cliff… wait…

I have the usual biological need to watch and care about sports. Its in my genes. I have season tickets to Boise State football and basketball, and have had Steelhead hockey season tickets. Fall weekends are the best. I also enjoy a nice round on the links. Not that I’m any good, but golf is still something I enjoy.

I’m not much of an outdoor guy. I grew up camping and fishing, somehow now it just seems like an awful lot of work you have to put in before you can relax. Thats not to say I wouldn’t enjoy it again. I’ll give ‘er a go. I do enjoy going for long walks (again, especially in Autumn… can you tell my favorite season?) and roadtrips just about anywhere are always fun.

I own a tuxedo and know how to use it.

I am a total animal lover (no… not THAT way), and can’t help but be a goof when around them. I am also a ‘computer guy’. Both as my profession as well as my hobby. Ever since dad took a 6 year old me to my first arcade, I’ve been hooked. Blame him. You may be thinking “geek”. Au contraire mon frere. Couldn’t be farther from the truth. Give me a shot.

Everyone says they want to meet “the nice guy”… well, here’s your chance. I’m the epitome of “nice guy”.

I have few requirements as to what I’m looking for. Some are non-negotiable. Most importantly, you must be intelligent. Nothing makes me more crazy than stupid people. You don’t have to be a rocket surgeon or anything but at least know who you are, what you’re doing, and what is going on around you.

I would like someone who is laid back, easy going, low maintenance. Someone who doesn’t need to be together every second. Someone comfortable in their own skin. Someone who can equally veg out in sweats on the couch, or get dolled up for a night on the town, or anywhere in between.

I’d like someone with a sense of style… who can help me stay current on my stuff, as well as knowing how to keep herself fresh. If you’re sporting a circa 1983 ‘Flashdance’ perm, we’re probably not going to work out. (although, the leg warmers are negotiable).

You should not be afraid to laugh. Be yourself, have a good time. Everyone always thinks that they have a good sense of humor, but statistically, that is simply not possible. Really, I just want your sense of humor to jive with mine. Difficult to define, but easy to spot. Nothing wrong with goofy once in a while.

Friends and family should be important to you. Not only yours, but mine as well. I think every effort should be made by both sides of a relationship to incorporate the other person’s “people” as much as possible. However, you must also realize that sometimes you can’t be everywhere at once. Figuring out that balance is important.

Hmmm.. that sounds like a lot of requirements… I’d say just about everything is flexible. Everyone is far more interesting and complex than can ever conveyed by a simple personal ad. I don’t pretend this ad is the sum total of me. I’m sure your ad is only a small portion of who you are. Let’s find out if we click.

Two is always more fun than one… which is why we’re all here.

for fun:

I love trying new and old restaruants . Getting dressed up for no reason. Staying home & trying a new recipe (I’m a reforming former picky eater). Getting drinks with friends. Love movies. Cultural events – (theatre, music, events)

my job:

Currently doing web development for a major corp, as well as freelance web design on the side. Terrifically flexible schedule. Spend a lot of time on the computer. I enjoy having a somewhat creative job. I also have some entrepreneurial ideas as well

my ethnicity:

Ye olde German Irish. aka: SPF 75 and a goofy lookin hat.

my religion

Technically catholic, but not exactly a regular participant, much to my parents chagrin. Pretty much Christmas and Easter are the extent of it

my education

Boise State alum… Got me a BBA in CIS… uh… WXYZ…
(thats a bachelor of business administration in computer information systems… aka. “geek”)

favorite hot spots:

Downtown… hyde park… anywhere with a cool shaded patio. Live music at a volume where you can still converse. Relaxed atmospheres. Love to travel. Vegas regularly but will go anywhere. NY & DC are on my list. Europe someday.

favorite things:

I need to have pizza once a week, its just a rule. A double-feature at Edwards is a terrific way to spend an afternoon especially when its really hot out. I love Costco and enjoy just browsing stores. Big sports fan & everything that entails.
—————————————————————-

There it is. If you’ve read my blog, you know I like to write a little bit. Well, they have these character limits for each section and I had to edit my thing down by about half to get it to fit. Took me forever to get it small enough to fit. I guess people don’t really want to spend 40 minutes reading a single personal ad, huh? Who knew?

Since the ex took a veiled shot at me in her ad, I kinda took one back. Can you guess which section that was?

Dating in 2006… here we go again… *sigh*
I just wish someone would bring the ‘strong, silent type’ back into vogue. Gary Cooper, where are you when we silent types need ya? Where is the next Clint Eastwood or James Coburn. Now, everyone loves the loud, outgoing, funny, mile a minute extroverts (Vince Vaughn, anyone?), even me. I wish I were one. But, I’m not and never will be.

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Weekend

Here’s my question. When you spend an entire weekend doing absolutely nothing, how do you know when you’re finished? I guess technically, its when your alarm goes off Monday morning, eh?

Apart from Friday evening, I did nothing, nada, zip, zilch, zero this weekend. I guess I should be happy that I at least did something on Friday (dinner & movie). Here are the relevant events of the past 2 days. Woke up Saturday morning… watched NFL Preseason game Sunday night. That’s it. That’s the list. I didn’t go anywhere. I didn’t do any work. I didn’t see anyone.

Of course, I’m not necessarily complaining. I mean, I enjoy alone time. It gets my head right. But, thats not to say I wouldn’t have liked a distraction or two.

Oh, Chris, here is your requested box score: 21-38, 247 yards, 0 TD, 0 INT. (solid effort, decent performance. No scores, but no turnovers either).

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Russia?

Ok, while we’re on this dating and match.com thing I’ve got one thing to say. Aparently, I am HUGE in Russia. I mean, I am in some serious demand over there. Who knew?

So, I guess if I ever get desperate enough, I can always find some hot, blonde Russian woman who thinks I’m the cats pajamas. Perhaps a mail-order bride is in my future?

I get many responses like the following:

“Hi. I am very much interested in you. If you will have a free time, please answer my letter. Your profile liked me. I would like to know you better. “

Or

“Hi I was interested by your structure we could speak with you write to me on mine e-mail the address and I shall write to you 100 % ******@yahoo.com or leave by an owl e-mail the address and we with you shall be closer gets acquainted.”

I really wish I had made those up…

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Game On!

In the immortal words of George Costanza, “I’m back, Baby!”

That’s right. I’m taking this opportunity to officially declare myself re-eligible for the draft. No more nursing the bruised emotions on the sideline. No more standing around watching the game. Strap on a helmet, get in there and hurt somebody for christ’s sake. A former first round pick who was selected by a team where he was playing out of position, he was given his outright release and has now cleared waivers. Now, being a free agent, I’m looking to ply my trade with a new team. My agent tells me that I still have a lot of game to offer the right team.

Sorry… For those of you not down with football analogies, I am ready to begin getting on with my life. Yes, specifically speaking, that means dating again. Fall is coming and it is the best time of year… hands down. So, why spend it alone?

Granted, I’m not looking to get married tomorrow. But there is nothing that says I can’t go meet some people and see what happens. So, I guess if anyone out there knows any terrific single women, let me know. I don’t know what I’m looking for, but I guess it makes sense to start looking anyway.

I’ve had the ad on match.com for a couple weeks now, and have gotten a couple responses. As a matter of fact, I have spoken to one on the phone and we are actually going to meet for a drink Wednesday evening.

Of course, this brings up an interesting situation. How exactly do I handle all this with the blog? I mean, I would expect any woman worth her salt would be smart enough to google me. When she does, this blog is the first result. Not that I really have anything to hide. The past is the past. I can’t change it. I can’t hide it. However, it does make me wonder how to handle blogging about any future activities. Perhaps I’ll have to be a little more guarded in what I write about. I mean, if she could get a complete post-mortem of every date here, that could be a bit awkward.

Wow…Talk about dating in the 21st century… Didn’t think I’d be here, but what can ya do? Like was said in Risky Business, “sometimes you just gotta say, what the fuck.”

I’ll be interested to see what happens. I’m sure you will too.