NYBrian120's Blog

19Sep 09

4 months ago today....I had something to say.

I'm sorry for that ^. I've been away for 4 months and I need to get back into the swing of coming up with a half-creative blog title.

But wow...has it been 4 months? Exactly 4 months, actually. That's totally coincidental...I was bored here this afternoon and just thought of my tv.com account and how many cobwebs were probably covering it.

Anyway, how is everyone? Anything cool happen since mid-May? I did a couple of things over the summer, went to Vermont for a half a week with like all 30-something members of my family and had a great time in this huge house out in the middle of a bunch of farmland. We're thinking about maybe going down South somewhere next summer since we have some family that lives in Virginia and North Carolina and it would be easier for them since they always have to come up to NY/Long Island to see anyone. Add that to three different high school graduation parties that we'll be having next summer, and it should be some good times in June/July/August. Really looking forward to it.

It wasn't all good since I was gone though. About two-and-a-half weeks ago, my little 11-year-old cousin went to the hospital with symptoms of meningitis. I didn't really know too much about the disease before this, so I did what every American does and went to WebMD to edjumacate myself. Needless to say, I was a bit distraught. I got the text from my brother at around 3:30 pm on a Thursday, and I was getting ready to go to a 4:00 class. I never left my room for the rest of the day. Not for class, for dinner, for anything. If you knew my cousin, you'd probably understand my emotions. She's this spunky little thing with a big heart and a lovable personality. She's cute to the point where everyone still feels like she's 5. I even get caught up in some of the "kiddy" things she does sometimes and she's always fun to be around. So of course everyone is beside themselves when they hear about this. Add to all of this that she's had trouble staying healthy all her life because she's pretty skinny, and everyone in my family of atheists is praying for her to make it through this. I won't lie, I was crying for a little while. I couldn't deal with not ever seeing her again, with her being just a memory and never being able to grow older and live a long, healthy life. I know a few of you on here have dealt with some unbearable loss in your lives--let me just say that I might have, just maybe, got a glimpse of what that may feel like, and I admire you all for being able to make it through something like that.

It was in the days before Labor Day Weekend, so I went home and everyone but my brother up in Plattsburgh went down to LI to see her and be with everybody. My poor aunt, who's dealt with so much loss in her life already (four miscarriages and a close friend who committed suicide to name a few), was breaking down. No one in that damn hospital seemed to know what was wrong with her for days, and the spinal tap that you do to determine whether or not the patient has meninigitis, well...the resident did it wrong the first time, and those things put you in a tremendous amount of pain. And to hear her crying (while coughing that sickly-sounding cough) because she can't even drink water and "they're taking everything away from me"....it was bad. Like you-feel-guilty-just-for-breathing bad. My mom's pretty strong and I don't see her cry too much, but she couldn't handle it. My cousin was throwing up violently when she first got to the hospital and had a severe headache, so this child went through way too much for an 11-year-old girl. And the doctors, as I said, seemed clueless for the first almost-week. First, they said meninigitis was likely, then they said it was a severe sinus infcetion, then it was a staph infection. Finally, they settled on a combination of the latter two. They gave her some strong antibiotics, and she's out of the hospital now. But she apparently made a comment upon returning home, something along the lines of wondering if this would be the last time she would come from the hospital. I guess she's seeing a child psychologist about it. But it makes me numb to hear about something like that. Why can't she just be able to live a normal life like her friends of the same age? Why has she had to deal with all this crap? She's the least deserving person that I know to have to endure as much as she has. I just hope that she's still the same kid that makes all of us smile so much.

I'll try (seriously) to be on here more. With the start of fall, I have the NFL to talk about again, so that's always fun, right? And I'm back in college of course, so there will be stuff to talk about I'm sure. Until then though, I bid thee adieu. Whatever that means.

Posted Sep 19, 2009 4:41 pm PT
Category: N/A
6 Comments

19May 09

"Everybody's got a boat upon the ocean...

...not everybody's sailing out to sea."

I'll admit, this is addicting and makes for an easy way out of coming up with your own creative blog title.

Just in case any of you haven't read Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows yet and want to at some point (what exactly are you waiting for if so?), this is a...

***SPOILER ALERT***

Two years (I wanna say about two years) after it came out, I finished the last Harry Potter book yesterday. I don't know how many of you (if any of you) read the books, but I liked them all and had read the first six all sort of right around when each had come out, but I had never gotten the seventh because I just never got around to it. That and I don't usually spend money on a lot of things. But when I saw it in a Borders up in Plattsburgh when we were visiting my bro for Easter, I felt compelled to get it. I didn't start reading it till about a week after I got it, and combined it probably took me about 5-6 days to finish it (I read it off-and-on). Having finished it, I have to say I was really surprised that there wasn't as much death and sadness as had been advertised (or as I had been expecting). A few supporting characters died, but I was half-expecting Ron and Hermione to die bravely for Harry in some way or something like that, or maybe even Harry dying along with Voldemort. And the ending was really cheesy, showing how, in nineteen years, Harry would marry Ginny and have three kids: James, Lily, and Albus (really? You couldn't have come up with names more original than that?) and Ron would marry Hermione and have two kids: Hugo and Rose. Anywho, it was a happy ending that seemed too predictable, but overall it was pretty good. My cousin said she hated it so much that it turned her off from the entire series, which is saying something, as I'm pretty sure it was one of her favorites at one time. Anyone else read it and find themselves asking, that's it?

My first day of work at the supermarket was tonight. It was actually scheduled to be tomorrow, but they needed me to cover a shift, so I worked for 5 hours. I don't know if any of you remember from last fall about a girl I liked and was at one point trying to get with, and then found out she had kind of a messed up life and was making some bad decisions and all that $hit...well, I don't know if I ever said anything, but she works there too. And since I had tried to avoid talking to her altogether since this past winter when I made the decision to break off ties with her, I knew going in that this was going to be awkward. I'll admit, me ignoring most of her texts for a few months was a huge d!ck move, but I felt like it was the only way of conveying the message of "I don't want to talk to you anymore" without actually saying it. Apparently, some people can't take a clue.

I was relieved to find out she wasn't working tonight, so I wasn't so tense for the first few hours or so. That is, until I was coming through to the front end through the bottle closet, and there she was. Except, she was checking out and had her back to me, so I slid out of there pretty quick. I felt stupid about it, but I really just wanna move on from her, and having her see me and try to strike up a conversation with me doesn't really condone that. I went outside to collect some carts, and I was half-looking for her car to make sure I wasn't near it when she left, so I sort of hung out in the cart corrals (which have roofs low enough where my face can be hidden) when she came out. I saw her leave, so I calmed down a little and resumed by menial job. I actually spent a good while literally scrubbing down kid carts (they have these seats in them that look like cars and apparently they were dirty) tonight. Anyway, an hour or so later, I go to the front podium area to see when my break is, and I turn the corner, and there she is, getting her schedule for the week. She looked right at me.

I was amiable enough and said the usual "Hey, what's up?" and we talked for a little, mostly about work this summer and how we were both pretty loaded with work. It never went beyond that, and I was pretty glad about that. She left, and I went back to whatever the hell I was doing. I was worried about her asking me about "us" and all that crap, and since I'm still not ready to talk about with her (I don't know that I ever will be), I was cool with it. We talked like two friends, nothing more. If that's what comes out of all this, fine. I won't kick and scream about it. She's kinda cool, but I've heard her stories. I'm not going back there again. I don't need to deal with that.

So I go to clock out when I'm done and I figured I'd pick up some ice cream and gum while I was there. I went to one register, but the lady there had WIC checks (for those who aren't familiar, it's one of those welfare programs to allow mothers with little to spend to buy basics such as milk, juice, and cereal for their kids), and these checks are take a while to go through and get them all straightened out, so I go to another register that didn't have such a huge wait. I go up to the girl and she rings me out, and then when she hands me my stuff, she just, out of nowhere, tells me, "[girl I'm avoiding] loves you."

I stood there for about ten seconds, with no clue what to say. I didn't even know this girl at the register and didn't know she knew that other girl either. It was so casual the way she said it too, like it was nothing and shouldn't have unnerved me the way it did. I guess I was just dumbfounded. I don't even think I made a coherent response to the girl. She added, "Not in a weird way." Maybe because she saw the look on my face. Instead of answering her, I just kinda said goodnight and left the store and spent most of the ride home shaking my head and sighing. I'm not even sure if I should believe this person, but I feel like I'm just accepting it as truth. Why would they tell me something like that? Am I naive about this? I really hope so, because I really just wish that all this hadn't happened between me and this girl. I went too far before I knew what I was getting into, and now I'm paying for it.

If there's one thing I'm confident in in all this, it's that I don't want to be with this girl. There are too many reasons why it won't work and why I'll regret it forever if I do. I'm not even attracted to her like I was when I first met her. I feel like she must have caught me at a depserate time. In a perfect world, she would have stayed in Massachusetts (she temporarily moved there when the $hit at home just got to be too much, but supposedly it's better now...I'll give it a few months) and I would never have seen her again. I'm ready to move on. I want to. So when I don't always reply to her texts or lie and say I have plans when she wants to hang out does she not understand? Why would she still have feelings for me after having not seen me for months or really even talked to me? I know she told me about how she hooked up with a guy at some point (which, before anyone says anything, I'm totally cool with and am hoping for so that she can move on like I'm trying to). I know I'm the type to kinda sit around and think about stuff and people from the past for a while, but even I can learn to forget about something that I've had virtually no contact with for months. I feel like I can't tell her flat out that I don't want to be with you and then have to say why. But short of that, there doesn't seem to be anything I can do. And I am not going to deal with this crap all summer at work. If my internship was paid (oh how I wish), I would quit my job at the supermarket on the spot. But it's not, and I can't. I can't run and hide from her forever, and I understand that. I guess if I manage to get a girlfriend then that would send a message, but I'm not getting into a relationship just to get out of another one (if you can even call it that). My best hope right now is that I can ignore her long enough and eventually she'll get tired of it and move on. But I have a feeling that could be a ways away. Oh well.

Sorry I dumped that on you guys. As I've said before, this blog is my way of getting stuff out that I'm not always comfortable talking about with people.

I should probably go to bed now. By the way, I have work tomorrow 3-7, and she's working 6-9 I think, and she'll be just two registers down from me. Great...another hour of awkward, half-assed, forced conversation just to get through 60 minutes. This place keeps getting better and better....See ya around.

Posted May 19, 2009 12:15 am PT
Category: N/A
4 Comments

9May 09

"As I dream about movies...

...they won't make of me when I'm dead."

Just a line from probably my current favorite song. No need to play the guessing game to try and figure it out; I just figured I should start off my first blog in almost 3 months with something completely unoriginal.

So yeah. I'm not really sure why I haven't blogged in so long. I mean, it's not like more of nothing started happening back in February and that I've had less time to rant aimlessly or droll on about the NFL offseason (I actually have another blog for that but I don't even use it really at all anyway). Finals were done yesterday, and if all else works out, I'll have a Masters in two years. I also had an internship interview Friday for the NYSDOT (unpaid unfortunately) and that went pretty well. But in between all that, I was busy getting laid on a weekly basis and recently took up regular drinking and smoking a joint every once in a while. Yes, that last one was a horrible pretention and you should all know me better than that. I'd be the moron who couldn't put the condom on correctly even if I was completely sober and flaccid at the same time (not really, but you get my point).

Do you ever spend those lonely nights going back and revisiting those old things you were hooked on as a kid? I know about a year or so ago my brother and I found some of those first Pokemon episodes and started watching them, and it's amazing how even still you get the goosebumps when Ash first catches his Caterpie, but now you're old enough to marvel at his stupidity when he sends it into battle against a Pidgeotto. Anyway, I (used to) enjoy the Sonic the Hedgehog video games back when GameCube was 50% of my life. I didn't get into it until about high school actually, so I never played anything before Adventure 2: Battle, but that quickly became a favorite of mine. I liked most of the characters and even wrote my college essay on how I felt like I had a lot in common with Knuckles the Echidna, my favorite character. Anyway, I had heard that they had made an anime series a few years ago called Sonic X, and it was based on a few of the games and had some original ideas to it. I started searching for it one night and found a few episodes and, as a 4Kids animated cartoon, you're expecting the immature themes and cheesy dialogue, and there was plenty of that. But still, I found myself going back and trying to find more episodes. Maybe it's because it's something I feel like I never got to see when I was younger and more into the whole Sonic thing. It's a lot like the Pokemon series (I say that because I feel like most of you can relate more to that) in that it's very corny at times but can be fun to watch if you're feeling about 10 or so years younger than you actually are. I feel like most people would privately admit (maybe only to themselves) that there's still an affection for those kinds of things that we never really let go (music is another one that I have). But because we live in a world where you're viewed as "weak" or "immature" if you still publicly like those things, people shy away from them in the open. I don't know, maybe I'm just hopeful and pretending that I'm not the only loser who still watches an episode of Sonic X every once in a while XD.

Hopefully I'll be on the site a little more often now that school's out till August 31st, but the internship and by supermarket job that just won't go away might keep me busy enough. It's not that I "moved on" or anything stupid like that. I just have almost nothing to talk about almost all the time, except when the NFL is going on, at which point I can't shut up about it. I'm even trying to get the scoop from rookie friggin' minicamps this weekend. I'll just chalk that one up to hardcore fan dedication and pretend that I do have a life outside of watching football . Anyway, I gotta go watch the martial arts tournament episode of Sonic X. Not really, but I'm kinda tired. Well...maybe just this once . Catch ya later.

Posted May 9, 2009 10:49 pm PT
Category: N/A
3 Comments

19Feb 09

Everything They Do

I don't know if any of you actually watch Family Guy anymore, but I managed to catch the latest episode online Monday. If you haven't seen it, don't worry, you didn't miss much. But one joke they did was Stewie making a music video for his new love interest, Susie (Joe and Bonnie's newborn who was finally born after all these seasons). Anyway, it was to the song Everything I Do (I Do It For You) by Bryan Adams. Now I'm gonna be honest, I like that song. I know it's incredibly cheesy and made almost solely for use as a wedding song, but if I had a girlfriend, I would play that song to her if I knew how to play the piano or guitar and I would sing it to her if I could sing without cracking my own voice.

But I didn't mind all that much when I saw Stewie doing the parody of the song on the show. Yeah, it went on far too long (everything but the first verse I think). But it was at least a shake-your-head funny kind of moment for ten seconds, which is about all I can ask for from Family Guy at this point. Maybe it was because I knew the song. Whatever. But what does bother me is when I go to watch an actual video of the song on YouTube and there are pages and pages of comments on it made in the last few days, all of them mentioning how they saw it on Family Guy or how Family Guy's version was better or, my favorite, that this song is now only famous because of Family Guy.

I understand that Family Guy has this ability to revive old pop culture articles and make them popular again with the younger generations because they saw the show use it in a joke. But the way some people think, it's as if NO ONE knew these songs/movies/actors even existed until Family Guy used them to make people laugh (or sigh when they're supposed to laugh). Don't be ignorant and desecrate these songs or movies or whatever they might be by putting Family Guy above them and saying that it was only because of Family Guy that everyone even knows about it. Believe it or not, a lot of people don't shut themselves out to everything besides Family Guy and actually know about pop culture without Family Guy feeding it to them in some twisted way. And actually, you (and Seth MacFarlane) can thank Bryan Adams and the Trashmen and any other artists that Family Guy "makes popular". If it weren't for these people who produce songs or movies didn't make things that "no one's ever heard of", Family Guy (your source of pop culture if you believe in those idiotic ideas) would not exist. So you should go ahead and put Everything I Do above Family Guy, unless you hold a belief that the world, in fact, created God, as opposed to the opposite (for the record, I don't believe in either, but it sounded like a good metaphor when I thought of it 30 seconds ago). And I thought I lived in a shell....

Isn't it pathetic that I'm blogging about some comments on YouTube, probably made by some 15- year-old whose never even heard of Bryan Adams? Oh well. I should probably get back to my HW. Later.

Posted Feb 19, 2009 5:48 pm PT
Category: N/A
5 Comments

9Feb 09

Not quite legal, but no longer a teen

As cool as it is to turn 20 years old today (the 9th in case this doesn't make the midnight deadline(EDIT: It didn't)), what does it really mean? The start of a new decade in my life, I guess.

So now that the NFL season is officially over, let's take a look back at my predictions for the season.

AFC:

East:

1. Miami Dolphins (11-5, Seed 3): I'm just as shocked as everyone else. What a great turnaround for them.

2. New England Patriots (11-5): I'm not exactly crying because they missed the playoffs due to tie-breakers, but still impressive considering who they didn't have.

3. New York Jets (9-7): Those poor, ignorant fools at ESPN....who called it? Maybe now you guys will get off Favre's jock strap.

4. Buffalo Bills (7-9): Next time I over-hype a team without a winning record since 2004, stop me.

North:

1. Pittsburgh Steelers (12-4, Seed 2, Won Super Bowl XLIII): Congrats to Blitzburgh for their sixth ring. I underestimated these guys at the start of the season.

2. Baltimore Ravens (11-5, Seed 6): Another surprise (though not quite as much) of a turnaround from a struggling '07 campaign.

3. Cincinnati Bengals (4-11-1): I saw this one coming, but didn't expect Palmer to only play four games all season.

4. Cleveland Browns (4-12): Thank God I got off that pre-season bandwagon with some credibility intact.

South:

1. Tennessee Titans (13-3, Seed 1): Impressive season from a team that didn't look that way going in. But does Collins come back?

2. Indianapolis Colts (12-4, Seed 5): The king fell from his perch this season after five years of division dominance. Still, another great year from Peyton Manning.

3. Houston Texans (8-: Started weak but finished relatively well. This could be one of those playoff sleeper teams if Schaub could just stay healthy for a full season.

4. Jacksonville Jaguars (5-11): I had Jack Del Rio pegged as the AFC's Pro Bowl coach (meaning they would lose the AFC Championship game). Unfortunately, I have to swallow this one.

West:

1. San Diego Chargers (8-8, Seed 4): My pre-season Super Bowl champions. I actually (somehow)had a shot at it holding up, but it died in western Pennsylvania.

2. Denver Broncos (8-: Had the division lead all season until the last week. Now tell me why Mike Shanahan shouldn't have been fired.

3. Oakland Raiders (5-11): In typical current Raiders fashion, they suck. How much longer will these guys be a punch line in the NFL?

4. Kansas City Chiefs (2-14): This division just keeps getting better. Oh well, they could have been the Lions instead.

NFC:

East:

1. New York Giants (12-4, Seed 1): I had that same standing as my original prediction. Too bad they couldn't do anything meaningful with it.

2. Philadelphia Eagles (9-6-1, Seed 6): One half of an NFC Championship game featuring two 9-win teams. I'd like to think the G-Men make them pay next year for the divisional round game.

3. Dallas Cowboys (9-7): I'm still laughing....

4. Washington Redskins (8-: I love how teams like this exceeded my low expectations quite admirably early on, only to try their damnedest to fulfill my predictions down the stretch.

North:

1. Minnesota Vikings (10-6, Seed 3): Someone eventually stepped forward and won this division. But unfortunately it was the team with Tarvaris Jackson at QB.

2. Chicago Bears (9-7): When you're fighting for your playoff lives against the Texans and come up short, I have no sympathy for you.

3. Green Bay Packers (6-10): So because of unusual injury and other defensive problems, Aaron Rodgers did not do as good a job as Brett Favre would have done? Gimme a break.

4. Detroit Lions (0-However many games they played): All has been said that needs to be said about this team. God help them.

South:

1. Carolina Panthers (12-4, Seed 2): I had a feeling Delhomme's return would mean something for them. Just didn't know it would eventually mean an embarrassing playoff loss.

2. Atlanta Falcons (11-5, Seed 5): Another feel-good story. But can they do it again next year?

3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-7): Jon Gruden took Tony Dungy's team to a Super Bowl victory, and then failed to win a playoff game the rest of his seven-year tenure. Coincidence?

4. New Orleans Saints (8-: Someone needs to remind Sean Payton that you need at least a respectable defense to make it anywhere in this league.

West:

1. Arizona Cardinals (9-7, Seed 4): If only they could have come to Giants Stadium for the NFC Championship game. Oh well. Nice play down the stretch from the whole team.

2. San Francisco 49ers (7-9): Impressive finish under Mike Singletary, but still work to do in the offseason.

3. Seattle Seahawks (4-12): What a way for Mike Holmgren to go out. Sort of fell back into the mediocrity (putting it nicely) of the division as a whole.

4. St. Louis Rams (2-14): Just when you thought it couldn't get much worse for them after last year. Perhaps Spags can fix what ails them.

Speaking of football (and my birthday) my mom gave me a written promise that next season we would go to a Giants game. I'm already pumped for it. Hopefully it will be earlier in the year so that it isn't unbearably cold out, and the Giants of late seem to do better in the beginning of the year anyway. Definitely looking forward to that.

Well I should be going to bed soon. See you guys around.

Posted Feb 9, 2009 9:31 pm PT
Category: N/A
6 Comments

12Jan 09

$1.5 million b!tch

I'm not gonna waste my time talking about the Giants this time. I'm upset that they lost, but I'm also looking at it in retrospect. I challenge anyone to tell me they had the Giants going 12-4 and winning the NFC's No. 1 seed after losing Strahan, Osi, Shockey, and later Plax. But they finally hit a road block and now they have to bounce back next year. Oh well. GO CARDS!!!

So as most of you know, there's an economic crisis persisting in our world. In response to that, our university decided to cut 98 jobs. While this seems like a necessary step, it looks a lot worse when you see that our university president, the sixth highest paid individual at her position in our country, does not take a pay cut, and she makes $1,500,000. There's a petition going around the campus, which I already signed. This has obviously been going in a lot of other places, but it's still disgusting to hear about it on your own college campus. We continue to fund the Clinton Foundation and send money to Kenya among other things, but our president can't take a f*cking pay cut from her $1.5 mil salary? I'd love to see how she justifies this....

Anyway, that's it for this blog. I just wanted to vent that a little. Oh and I am back at college, in case you didn't figure that out. Break was enjoyable but far too short, even if it was a month. Oh well. The countdown till summer break begins. Catch ya later.

Posted Jan 12, 2009 7:49 pm PT
Category: N/A
4 Comments

29Dec 08

Black Monday

First off, I hope everyone had a great holiday (or will, depending on your worship, time zone, etc). We made our usual trip down to the Island to celebrate Christmas with my mom's family. I didn't ask for much and didn't get much, although I did get a new cell phone (Voyager). I got it more for the QWERTY keyboard than anything else since I can't be bothered will all the other crap it comes with, until of course I actually play around with it. My life doesn't revolve around my phone, but it's still nice to get a new one after a few years. Other than that just a new winter jacket, some Giants paraphernalia, and clothes. I had a good time down there. Now I get to look forward to summer....

Anyway, the NFL regular season is over. So that means today is Black Monday--the day on which coaches around the league are shown the door after poor performances if their team's ownership deems such action necessary. Three coaches were fired today, and I wasn't surprised with any of them. Not even Mangini being canned by the Jets.

I know it isn't Mangini's fault entirely, but he made several questionable decisions throughout the season. A lot of people will point to Favre's decline in the last five games (2 TDs and 9 INTs) as the key reason why the Jets floundered. And I'm right there with those people. Favre even said himself that his shoulder has been ailing him for a few weeks. So what is the logical thing to do during the game? I'll give you a hint: the Jets had the AFC's leading rusher in their backfield, plus another back who provided numerous big plays whenever he got his hands on the ball. That, to me, is the biggest reason why I felt Mangini failed this season and deserved to go. When you ask a 39-year-old QB who has struggled with a sore shoulder the last month to throw 40 times in a game when you are never down by more than a touchdown all game long, tell me why you deserve to keep your job as a head coach. When you hand the ball off to Thomas Jones only 10 times all game against the Dolphins, tell me why you deserve to keep your job as a head coach. When your defense (the aspect of the game in which you specialize) falls apart down the stretch with big names like Kris Jenkins, Calvin Pace, Ty Law, etc., tell me why you deserve to keep your job as a head coach. I don't care that the guy had two winning seasons in three years with the Jets. His overall record was a losing one, and this season ended with the feeling of failure. Tannenbaum deserves some heat as well for kicking Pennington to the curb like a rusty tin can, not even stopping to think who might pick him up (just maybe the guy who drafted him in the first place, the guy who's running the football operations for a division rival team, the guy who's well-known for bringing in his own former players and coaches to bring success to that team). Well C-H-A-D, Chad, Chad, Chad got the last laugh on those fools. And now how are they going to be able to move forward after spending all that money last year on veteran players who are nearing the end of their peak? I saw this coming, and I remember Al saying it to; the Jets won't make the playoffs, even with Favre under center. I refuse to believe that any team that goes out and tries to buy their way into contention will go very far. Not only that, but I can't root for teams like that. It would make rooting for the Giants very hard for me if they reverted to that kind of management. All that does is raise expectations to unecessary levels. Look at the Yankees. If they don't win the World Series this year, I guarantee either Joe Girardi or Brian Cashman (or both) will be fired. Cashman probably more deservingly, Girardi maybe not so much. But when you buy that much talent, you damn well better win it all. Instead of wasting money to continue to mire yourself in failure after failure, why not try the old farm system/draft? That's how almost every champion team has been built. Look at the Patriots. Much as I hate them, they have done a Hell of a job personnel-wise. They don't make flashy free agent moves or spend huge amounts of money on players just because they have big names. They draft very well and concentrate on their depth. They worked hard for their dynasty and didn't become the envy of the NFL over night. The Giants have taken on a similar approach and have found great success with it thus far. I don't know what it's going to take to get through to owners and GMs that building your own team with your own young talent is the foundation for success, not buying the biggest names in the sport and throwing them together without a care in the world for team chemistry. It's great for fantasy sports, but they're fantasy for a reason.

Somehow I started talking about Mangini and ended up ranting about franchises trying to buy championships. About the other two coaches who got fired, I think everyone who followed the NFL at all knew Crennel was as good as gone in Cleveland and that Marinelli would never keep his job after failing to win a game all season long. I'm sure more are to come. In the AFC East, I wouldn't be surprise to see Dick Jauron of the Bills go. He's had, what, four consecutive 7-9 seasons as a head coach? That shows absolutely no improvement by his team, and Ralph Wilson would truly have to be a senile old man to keep Jauron around. In the AFC North, one would think Marvin Lewis in Cincinnati should be let go, but I wouldn't be surprised to see him stay. Carson Palmer was out for all but four games I think, and the Bengals' defense was supposedly making strides towards the end of the year. In the AFC South, Jack Del Rio down in Jacksonville surely had a miserable season after huge expectations mounted for the Jaguars after their success last year. He's probably safe, but on a short leash. In the AFC West, I can still see Norv Turner losing his job in San Diego if the Chargers are one-and-done. Someone pointed out that the longer Turner stays as a head coach for teams, the worse they have been. Remember, San Diego still finished the season 8-8. Herm Edwards is probably gone in Kansas City, where a new GM will have to take over, and new GMs like to bring in their own coaches most of the time. Tom Cable might have an outside chance of keeping his job in Oakland, as the Raiders showed they had a heartbeat later in the season. But Al Davis is unpredictable and insane, so you never know. Over in the NFC East, you'd think Wade Phillips in Dallas would be out, but Jerry Jones continues his tradition of refusing to admit his own mistakes and insists he intends to keep Phillips as his head coach. I think it's more because the man who was supposed to succeed Phillips, offensive coordinator Jason Garrett, seems to have lost his magic touch this season. The Cowboys look like a team that has no discipline whatsoever. They regularly have about 10+ penalties in a game, their offense turns the ball over as if it doesn't matter, Tony Romo sent the punting unit off the field Sunday against the Eagles and all Phillips could do was stand there with a dumb look on his face, and players like Owens, Crayton, Williams, Pacman, etc. carry themselves as if they're kings of the mountain and never take responsibility for themselves. I don't think Dallas will change until Jerry Jones takes his hands of the steering wheel and gives the keys to someone who's sober enough to drive this runaway vehicle (and those chances came and went with Jimmy Johnson and Bill Parcells). Andy Reid in Philadelphia will probably stay, and I think a victory at Minnesota next week would seal that. Jim Zorn in Washington sounds like he's safe, but that team crashed hard in the second half of the season and Jason Campbell looks as clueless as ever. In the NFC North, Brad Childress may in fact be out if Minnesota goes one-and-done, but I wouldn't bet money on it. In the NFC West, Jim Haslett appears to almost certainly be out in St. Louis, and Mike Holmgren in Seattle has already said for about a year that he will take a sabbatical next season.

I figure while I'm at it, I'll go ahead and try to call the games this weekend. The 2009 NFL playoffs kick off with Atlanta @ Arizona on Saturday at 4:30 ET. A lot of people think Atlanta will come away with a win here, but Arizona is tough at home. The Cardinals are going to throw the ball and score points--that much you can't really stop. The Falcons need to get pressure on Warner from the front seven. On offense, Atlanta can't get away from running the ball with Michael Turner. I know Matt Ryan has done very well this season, but you can't expect him to keep up with Kurt Warner, Larry Fitzgerald, and Anquan Boldin. If the Falcons offense is efficient and keeps the ball out of Warner's hands, then they have a great chance. Atlanta has the momentum, and there's something special about this team. SCORE: ATL 27, ARI 20

The second game on Saturday is Indianapolis @ San Diego at 8:30 ET. This is a game between arguably the two hottest teams in the league right now, and certainly in the AFC. Peyton Manning will almost certainly get the MVP award this season and the Colts have won 9 in a row to finish 12-4. But San Diego has been Peyton Manning's bane in the playoffs (and regular season lately), so it could be interesting. I expect this game to be a shootout since both teams have high-powered offenses and inconsistent defenses. But the Colts are finding ways to win in any game and are rolling. The Chargers are too, but I feel like this is where they meet their end. After all, no 8-8 team should ever win the division while a team goes 11-5 in another and misses the playoffs. SCORE: IND 31, SD 21

The game on Sunday at 1:00 ET features Baltimore @ Miami. I think Miami is a remarkable story. What they've been able to do this year is tremendous and no one could have expected this. Chad Pennington has given the team life and Parcells has instilled a winning culture in Miami. But the Ravens in my mind are a better team. Their defense is very physical and hard to decipher. Plus, the Ravens have already been here this season and proved why they can win this game. Baltimore is a more established team. SCORE: BAL 17, MIA 14

Finally, the 4:30 ET game will be Philadelphia @ Minnesota. Philly is coming off a ridiculous blowout of the Cowboys, and that has given this team all the momentum they need. But I know the Eagles (from playing them twice a year), and I can almost guarantee they won't play another game like that. Remember, this team went 9-6-1 and lost (and tied) some pretty bad games. I know they've been on a roll lately and have come back from 5-5-1, but they've been inconsistent on the road this season. I think Minnesota's run defense shuts down Westbrook and forces McNabb to air it out. However, I also expect Tarvaris Jackson to be rattled. This chess match between student and master (Childress v. Reid) will be a low-scoring close game, but the Vikings at home prevail. SCORE: MIN 10, PHI 6

Well I think I've filled enough blogspace for tonight. Happy New Year everyone. See ya around.

Posted Dec 29, 2008 9:06 pm PT
Category: N/A
2 Comments

3Dec 08

It's been such a long time...

No that wasn't a lyric-title from Boston's "Foreplay/Long Time". I seriously haven't blogged in over a month.

Haven't had much to blog about, and frankly I've just been too busy to sit down and force out an opinion on some random subject, although I have found time to stay involved in things like the NFL sports threads here on TV.com, but that's just single posts as compared to long and drawn out blogs. For the record, school is winding down for me. I have this week left of classes before a week with 3 finals, so I may not get a chance to blog again until I get home again.

I'm sorry if you were hoping for anything other than ANOTHER blog about the Giants, but this blog is my venue for getting out my opinion in a way just short of talking to the wall in front of me. But this blog isn't necessarily about the Giants in a football sense; this is more about pyschological stuff and people's reactions to an incident at the Latin Quarters nightclub in Manhattan. If you haven't heard about it yet, you can find it pretty quickly on espn.com or any other major football site. I won't rehash the whole story.

Of course I'm upset with Burress. This is a guy who couldn't have had it any better as far as a football career goes. He caught the game-winning TD in the Super Bowl last year, he was elevated to hero status for the way he played through an ankle injury all year long (among shoulder, thumb, knee and whatever-else-you-can-think-of injuries at various points). He signed a contract extension hours before opening kickoff that amounted to 5 years for $35 million. And he wasn't even doing too much this year (don't tell me about the run-first strategy having an affect on that; he's certainly had his opportunities, and a true #1 receiver can play well against that much attention that he was getting). So why the sudden urge to f*ck that all up?

Because "that's what makes Plaxico Plaxico." Apparently Manny Ramirez's strategy has become (or has been for a while) popular among star athletes who are far too gifted for their own good. The funny (hilarious, actually) thing is that he ACKNOWLEDGES that he has pretty much been his own worst enemy. He knows he has time management issues. He knows he is not a leader on the Giants' team. He knows he is not the most responsible individual you'll ever meet. But it's all good; in his eyes, it's the price you pay for his services. Funny, thought the Giants took care of that part when they gave him all that money.

Help him? Of course not. Why would HE need help? It's YOU who needs HIS help. Don't try to guide him to fit your rules. He can take care of himself, and by his own rules. He doesn't need to be with the team during the offseason; he's already good enough to make the roster, plus he's already got the money. Besides, he's got more important things than his job to worry about. The multi-millionaire has to personally make sure his not-yet-2-year-old son is taken to school. A pre-scheduled treatment session? Why would he need to go to a mandated session if his injury was feeling OK? All these rules, man...just let Plaxico do what he does and everything will take care of itself. It doesn't matter what happens off-the-field, that's not what he's paid for. All he needs to worry about is being there on Sundays.

No more. He played his last Sunday almost two weeks ago against Arizona, and fittingly enough (although under certain circumstance because of a hamstring injury), he did nothing. No contribution at all (again, only on three plays, but follow me on this). And the Giants won. Eli won. He won on a day when Arizona stuffed the box with extra defenders and dared him to beat them without his #1 receiver. So he did. And the team hasn't looked back.

I've said it already multiple times; I hope Burress is convicted and serves jail time. Fines haven't done anything to dent his arrogance. Suspensions haven't worked for his irresponsibility. So how about a fine, suspension, and the possibility of jail time? If he comes out of that with the same old attitude of "not gonna let it affect me", I will probably cry a little inside. I'll be mourning the death of what could have been a tremendous talent but instead will be a lax, irresponsible, arrogant, selfish individual who will constantly find ways to blow some of the greatest opportunities that many of us dream of.

I was actually planning to talk more about Mayor Mike Bloomberg's response to all of this. I agree with the man in just about everything he says, but he's making this far too personal for a public official. He sounds like an executive with serious authority that can challenge the ruling of the NFL in this matter. The fact is that he's only a mayor, and he's making comments that could have the defense request that the trial be conducted out of the state for fear of Bloomberg's influence over the ruling. But I do agree that if Burress is not prosecuted if found guilty, than a mockery will have been made of the judicial system.

The Giants put him on the NFI list (in short, you're done for the season based on some non-football injury). I would like to think that he will be gone after the season. If he was single-handedly winning any games this year, then maybe I'd think differently. Maybe. But he hasn't been doing much this year. The Giants' offense starts with the run. They have the receivers that fit the mold of a run-first team that passes when it needs to. They have survived without people that have meant far more to this team then Burress ever has or ever will. The Giants are being doubted once again because they have lost yet another star player. If the recent past is any indication, I see no reason why they should miss a beat. Nor will I excuse them if they do. If they lose it will not be because they don't have Burress. It will be because of execution.

I think I've exhausted all I wanted to with this whole thing. I'll probably be around some time before Christmas. Until then "...I think I should be going." Later.

Posted Dec 3, 2008 6:21 pm PT
Category: N/A
11 Comments

30Oct 08

The g@ys will marry your children that aren't killed by the government....

Is that the kind of country you want to live in? If you're a real American like Joe the Plumber, Tom the Teacher, Frank the Firefighter, Mark the Milkman, Donna the Dentist, Mike the Mayor, Matt the Mechanic, Nancy the Nurse, Larry the Cable Guy, or Bob the Builder, you're like me: you don't want some foreign black, Muslim, America-hating, socialistic terrorist running these great United States. Now's not the time to cut-and-run. Now's not the time to experiment with wild tax raises for more than 4.9999999 percent of our citizens. Now's not the time to expand health care expenditures when we have much more important things going on in the world, like the war in Iraq. Now's not the time to abandon our troops by bringing them home. Now's not the time to worry about petty things of the past like the Keating Five whatever and so on, but what about that Bill Ayers guy? Now is not the time to be pal-ing around with terrorists who would seek to destroy our highest-held values, but a time to appreciate the words of wisdom of our beloved Christian leaders, such as Reverend John Hagee. Now is not the time to worry about the myth of global warming while our great industries are suffering under huge energy costs. Now is not the time to question the experience of the executive leader of the great state of Alaska, but instead we must ask how some no-name senator has the power and courage to not blink in the face of great danger. Now is not the time for elitist thinking from those underhanded corrupted Harvardites. Now is not the time for Barack Hussein Osama bin Laden. Vote John McCain on November 4th, and America will keep on its steady, sturdy path of glory and fortune.

------

So how'd you like my Halloween costume?

In NFL news, how 'bout them Giants? The game played out much like I figured it would in Pittsburgh: terrific defense on both sides, and one offense came through in the clutch in the 4th quarter when they needed to. I hope I don't have to deflect criticisms concerning a certain safety that was scored, because those two points were not the difference in the game, and the Giants were getting the ball about where they did after the free kick anyway. I still can't believe we kept the Steelers' pass rush completely silent in their own place. Not so much going for us in the ground game (or any offense for the first three quarters), and seeing as the Giants pretty much started on average in Pittsburgh territory during the first half, coming away with only FGs was pretty frustrating. I still hold that Jacobs got in on the 4th and inches (after they called it back), but from the sidelines apparently they couldn't tell (why didn't they have an aerial shot?). The defense was lights out (except for a 30+ yard TD run and a 60+ yard TD pass), getting 5 sacks, 4 INTs, and plenty of pressure on Roethlisberger. This game won't settle any debate over which QB is better, because Ben was obviously playing with a shaky pass protection unit in front of him and he was missing Santonio Holmes and Willie Parker. Back to Manning though. It continues to amaze me how clutch this guy can be in the 4th quarter when it counts. On 4th and 1, Manning calls a timeout because he doesn't like what he sees on the defense. He comes back in, only to come to the conclusion that the play they were going to run had no chance of working, so he tried to call a timeout again, but NFL rules prohibit doing this, so he simply let the play clock wind down and took a delay of game penalty. At this point, every Giants fan is likely screaming at the TV, wondering what the f*ck Manning is doing out there. So now it's 4th and 6. You're against the Pittsburgh defense (best in the league). You're dealing with the Heinz Field crowd noise at its loudest. And in one snap (and with a split second of time bought by Derrick Ward's block of James Harrison), you drop back to pass and find Amani Toomer on a perfect throw and excellent catch by a reliable veteran receiver. Now you're first and goal inside the Steelers 5-yd line and Heinz Field is stunned (as is Pittsburgh's defense). This is becoming like the life and times of Eli Manning. Just when all hope is lost (and I gave up hope at least once in that game), Manning pulls something out of his @ss that just makes you wonder if you're watching some scripted cliche sports movie. He is not the most gifted QB to ever play (and isn't even right now in the current generation of QBs), but when given the opportunity, this guy performs in the 4th quarter like only some of the greats have done. With the game on the line, there is no one (not even Tom "Terrific" Brady) that I would rather have with the ball in his hands than Eli Manning.

So what to expect when the Cowpies come to the swamps Sunday afternoon? A lot of Marion Barber, a few passes to Witten, more Barber, a handful of throws to Owens, and more Barber. Let's face it: Brad Johnson is not going 50 yards down the field with Owens or Williams. And with Witten being a game-time decision, he obviously won't be at 100%, leaving Johnson less to work with. On defense, the Cowboys have a secondary without Terrence Newman, Adam Jones, Roy Williams (the safety), and maybe Anthony Henry. And it's not like this defense has played very well overall this year. But I know some how, some way, the Giants will find a way to keep Dallas around, even with seemingly half the Cowboys' starting line-up on the sideline. The game at Pittsburgh last Sunday was physically demanding and may still be felt this Sunday, and the Giants rarely bury a team that they're supposed to throttle. Plus, this is an NFC East game. I foresee a battle of the bruising RBs with Jacobs gaining the upper hand with the Giants' O-Line doing a better job than that of the Cowboys (which is also missing starting guard Kyle Kosier). Above all else, the Giants need to avoid the temptation to simply throw it up into the middle of the field against a young and inexperienced Dallas secondary, which could get going if you give them opportunities. Stick with Jacobs and Ward and mix in some passes. Don't turn the ball over. The only way the Giants lose this game is if they make mistakes. Dallas is desperate right now and will come out aggressive, so it's important to keep them honest. Stuff the line of scrimmage and force Brad Johnson to go deep. Impose your will on a lesser team. I sound repetitive right now, but you'd be surprised how easily the Giants can keep a lesser team in the game. Enough 4th quarter wins for a little while. Let's just win every quarter against a team we have no business losing to at this point.

Well I'm fresh out of blog material (right now). It's been a hectic few weeks here at school lately, but I suppose a lot of it is my own doing. Oh well. See you when I see you.

Posted Oct 30, 2008 7:05 pm PT
Category: N/A
6 Comments

23Oct 08

Black and Blue

Is it sad that after almost two weeks without a blog that I have nothing else to talk about other than the much-anticpated Week 7 matchup between the Giants and Steelers in Pittsburgh on Sunday? Not really. If you're a true fan of the game, these are the kinds of matchups you would pay to see.

I didn't comment on the Cleveland game (if you even call it a game...) since I've exhausted my feelings in other venues, and the San Fran game last week was what it was. But two games in a row the Giants offense (and particularly Manning) has looked subpar and lacking of the big play. The defense picked it up against the Niners, but they didn't have a choice going up against the team that was allowing more sacks and commiting more turnovers than anyone else in the league. Still, the numbers aren't bad overall. The Giants are a good team, but it is a little disconcerting seeing them being pushed to the brink lately against teams because of their own incosistency or whatever other reason. But those two games are in the past. If you listen to me long enough on that topic I'll start going on about how the G-Men should be 6-0....

The Giants and Steelers meet only once every four years (unless they meet in the Super Bowl at any time between then). Yet these two franchises are connected in several ways and share many similar traits that add to the intrigue of this game. Both have successful histories dating back to at least the 1930s. The Mara family, which has owned the Giants since their inception, and the Rooney family, which has held the same title of the Steelers since their founding, are very close (and, I believe, are in-laws in some way). Both teams pride themselves on the same style of football: tough, physical, and punishing. They both strive to be dominating on defense while using a power-running game to control the tempo on offense. You know, the way football was meant to be played. Between the two are 12 league championships (the Giants have 3 Super Bowls and 4 NFL titles from the pre-Super Bowl era, while the Steelers have 5 Super Bowl titles). The Steelers clearly recognize the significant subplots of this game, particularly the historical ones, because they're going to be wearing their old alternate uniforms (the yellow helmets, white pants, etc.). It truly will have the feel of one of those old classic matchups of two storied franchises going head-to-head for potential NFL supremacy.

In more modern history, these teams remain connected through people such as Plaxico Burress, who played with the Steelers from 2000-2004 before joining the Giants as a free agent in 2005. And everyone knows about the 2004 NFL draft, where Manning was taken first overall by the Chargers (who traded him to the Giants for Philip Rivers) and Ben Roethlisberger was taken 11th overall by the Steelers. Since then, both young QBs have led their teams to a Super Bowl win. Ironically, both were road playoff runs because of their wild-card standings.

So while some people will watch the game while trying to compare Manning to Roethlisberger, others may be more interested to see how Burress performs in his first return to Heinz Field since 2004. Some may be intrigued with the No. 2 offense (Giants) going up against the No. 1 defense (Steelers) in the NFL. More specfically, the Giants league-leading rushing attack against the Steelers 2nd-ranked run defense. Us Giants fans will be looking forward to exploiting some weaknesses along the Steelers O-Line, while Steelers fans want to see their team add to its league-leading 25 sacks. Some already have the Super Bowl in mind and are predicting this matchup to be a preview of the game down in Tampa on Feb 1. While that would be epic, I won't go that far. In fact, I won't be surprised if neither team gets to the Super Bowl , but that's for another blog.

IMO, the Steelers are playing better football than the Giants right now. Neither team has had much of a true test yet, so this matchup comes at a great time during the season for both teams. But the Giants offense needs to get into rhythm in the Steel City, as hard as that may sound, because their schedule gets no easier at almost any point during the season. They know if they play like the way they played against San Fran last week, they're going to get beat (they've admitted it). If the defense can stop Parker and Moore and get to Roethlisberger, it will give the Giants offense more opportunities. If not, it's going to be another long day on the road for New York. The Giants are 3 point underdogs last I checked, and I think that's about where they should be. Until they beat a team like Pittsburgh, they can't be expected to win before the game even starts. I would be surprised if either team managed to score more than 20 points. Hopefully Manning can work some of his 4th quarter heroics late in the game to secure a win. A close loss would not be horrible for the Giants, but a loss is a loss, and there could be plenty of them later on against more quality opponents. Basically, they need to play near-perfect football in order to win in Pittsburgh.

The Steelers wear black and the Giants where blue (although the Giants will be in their road white jerseys, but you know what I mean). But I think it's safe to say we'll see both colors along both sidelines once this game is done.

With that said, GO G-MEN!

Posted Oct 23, 2008 7:53 pm PT
Category: N/A
7 Comments

11Oct 08

Should we just start calling him President Obama now?

Most polls now are in agreement, and it's practically inevitable that Barack Obama will be the 44th president of the United States. I think I need to just say it already; I'm probably going to vote for him. So much sh!t has happened in the last 8 years as a result of the Bush administration that I think the Democrats at least deserve a chance to try and right the ship, although I don't believe they can do much. There are just so many things that need immediate attention that partisan bickering and corruption will distract us all from. In the last year or so, I've come to realize that Democrats really aren't any better than Republicans (although at times the right can make that hard to argue for). The only way a democracy works is if everyone can just put aside their differences and work together, not against each other, to find the best possible solution for the country (or the world). Sadly, corruption and greed are not easily avoided, and as a result, you often get the kind of mess we're all in right now.

But enough of the lesson on politics. It's almost funny to watch McCain rallies right now. Supporters (if you can even call them that) are literally booing McCain because he isn't calling out Obama and his mysterious connections to guys like Ayers, Rezko, Wright, etc. People are actually shouting out things like "terrorist", "traitor", "liar", and some even shout out things like "off with his head", and "kill him". That's where it stops being funny and you start to shake your head in disgust, knowing these primal neanderthals are going to be voting for your president. Honestly, I question some of Obama's ties with some of those people and why he chose to be at all associated with them. But I know most of it's blown out of proportion by a media enthralled in a record election year full of juicy storylines. I agree with most of Obama's ideas and policies, so I will most likely vote for him. I do feel bad for McCain though, as I wouldn't have a hard time voting for him. But when you vote for a candidate, you also vote to put their party in charge of the country, and you vote for his selection for VP, and you vote for his ideals. McCain is a good guy; he's trying to calm the idiots at his rallies by explaining to them that he respects Obama and what he has accomplished, and that he will not be mud-slinging as a last resort in a campaign that is virtually finished. But you can bet every dollar of the government's bailout plan that Republican ads will or are going to be mud-slinging, and there isn't a whole lot McCain can do about it except ask them to stop. If Republicans can't talk about the issues right before the election and instead are going to focus on underhanded, Karl Rove-style campaigning, what does that say about their potential leadership? They can't come up with a good solution that fits their ideals, so they're going to start pointing fingers and trying to dig up every last piece of dirt on their enemies? This is exactly why we can't vote the Republicans in again. They've failed miserably at leading this country for too long now (with the help of a lot of partisan Democrats as well). The Democrats may be powerless to stop it once they get into office, but at least they're still talking about the issues and trying to plan solutions. Isn't that better than seeing how many times you can say "Barack Hussein Obama" in one day?

That's really all I wanted to say. Oh yeah, and I'm looking forward to MNF. Go Giants!

Posted Oct 11, 2008 2:36 pm PT
Category: N/A
3 Comments

7Oct 08

Not a single induced false start....

That was probably the only thing I can complain about the Giants this past Sunday.

I'd like to meet someone who still has serious doubts about Eli Manning being an elite QB in this league. I don't care that it's the Seahawks. They were only allowing an average of 88 yards on the ground going into that game, which as teams sit now, is good for a top 10 run defense. We put up 254 rushing yards against them. Combine that with the 272 passing yards by the Giants (and then subtract 3 yards for the one time Manning was sacked) and you get a whopping 523 yards of offense in that game, something that has not happened yet this season. I don't care how you slice it; 44 points is a lot, even on a supposedly terrible team. Jeff Feagles didn't come out to punt until the third quarter (they scored on their first six possessions). David Carr went in for the fourth quarter and even he had a TD pass (to Sinorice Moss), one more than Seattle's Matt Hasselbeck had. Their 44-6 rout was their largest margin of victory since 1972, they got their first 4-0 start since the 1990 championship season, they've won 8 straight games dating back to last year's playoffs, and their +78 point differential leads the league right now (Tennessee is in second with +59). I'm not being a homer when I say that the Giants are the best team in football right now. Everywhere you look as a fan you can feel confident that that unit can be competitive against anybody. Mind you, this is the same team that no longer has stars like Michael Strahan and Jeremy Shockey, they lost Osi Umenyiora to a season-ending injury in the preseason, and Plaxico Burress was out for this game on a suspension. And you can also mention the fact that the guy who started in place of Burress--Domenik Hixon--left the game in the second quarter with a concussion after catching four passes for 102 yards and a TD, and his replacement, Sinorice Moss, ended up catching two TDs. Brandon Jacobs dominated in this game (15 carries, 136 yards, 2 TDs), and even backups Derrick Ward (7 carries, 40 yards) and Ahmad Bradshaw (11 carries, 65 yards) imposed their will on Seattle's highly-touted linebacking corps. It's scary to think that a guy like Hixon is our 4th WR and Moss is our 5th, and a guy like Bradshaw is the 3rd-string RB. The defense didn't get a lot of sacks (2), but that may be more attributed to Spagnuolo calling off all his blitzes since Seattle fell in such a hole so early. And Kevin Dockery got an INT and got a great return on it. And only allowing a Mike Holmgren-offense to two field goals all game is impressive.

Back to Eli. 19-of-25 (76%). 267 yards in 3 quarters of play. 2 TDs. 0 INTs. 136.6 QB rating (career high). Ever since his coming-around last year's playoffs, he's been playing like an elite QB. On the season (4 games so far), he has 6 TDs, 1 INT, 1,032 yards, and a 99.7 rating (good for 5th highest in the league behind Favre, Rivers, Warner, and Romo). The last time he's lost a game was back in Week 17 last year, when the Giants just barely lost to the Patriots 38-35. He's on pace to surpass his brother and is doing better now than Peyton was at this time in his career. He's leading the only undefeated team in the NFC after coming off a Super Bowl championship. I dare somebody to argue against me saying that Eli Manning is one of the best QB's in the league (if not playing the best right now).

I actually feel like talking about the Cowboys a little bit. For a team that seems to crave attention any way they can get it, they sure aren't handling being the popular Super Bowl pick very well. I'm not saying they're in trouble at 4-1; that's just ignorant to make that kind of claim going into Week 6. But after losing at home to your most hated rivals (Redskins), as a Super Bowl contender, you're supposed to go back out there hungry and playing as if you have something to prove. What they proved against the Bengals is that, right now, they are a good team, but not a great team. Not a championship team. They got off to an early lead before letting the Bengals get back in it and letting them make it a close game. I know the Bengals took the Giants to overtime, but there are key differences. The Giants were coming off an already dominating performance in St. Louis and were not seen by most football "experts" as the best in the league. They didn't have the huge expectations. And maybe the Bengals are really not that bad. Maybe they just can't close games when they're in position to. But Dallas was coming off a home divisional loss and lost their #1 status with the game. That is supposed to get a team fired up to go out and play to prove to everyone why they deserve to regain that #1 spot. They didn't do that in a less-than-pretty win against a team that still has yet to win a game. I, for one, haven't been impressed by their defense this season. And Romo may be dynamic, but he's also reckless with the football (5 INTs already this season). And Owens seems like he can't handle not getting the ball enough (according to ESPN.com's Matt Mosley, Owens was actually spotted weeping on the sideline with a towel over his head as the game went on and he wasn't getting the ball as much as he'd have liked). Meanwhile, head coach Wade Phillips continues to prove to me how much of a puppet and (I guess) moron he is. He's far too laid back to be a good head coach. He's just blessed to have a talented team. He acts as though his team has already earned the right to be treated like a championship team and that they can settle for less than full effort as long as they win. I really think Jerry Jones hired him because he didn't like when Jimmy Johnson or Bill Parcells came in and made the fans forget all about who was really in charge. Phillips just seems to incompetent and too laid back as if his team doesn't have to fight for anything. He never gets on players when he needs to and as a result, you see guys like Owens and Patrick Crayton and the like openly speak their minds, even (or especially) if they come across as obnoxious or provocative. If Dallas doesn't win it all this year (and more and more people think they won't now), Phillips may be gone after this year, so he needs to at least show something of a tougher side and act as though his team may not be God's gift to Earth after all, even if he truly believes that.

Well now I'm back to a decision-making stage in this on one day, off another cycle of a relationship. She told me a few days ago that she quit smoking a week prior, and she said she thought about what I told her and that kind of pushed her to stop. I can kinda tell that she's back to her old self by the way she talks. We actually got a good 3-hr convo going til almost 6 am. But I still don't know. I mean, what's to stop her from going back to it? She won't give up on the pot or alcohol (that would be wishful thinking), but at least she put a stop to one of them, and probably the biggest one. But she's also dropping out of college and doesn't know when or if she'll try again soon or ever. I want it to work. But I may not be able to make it work. I feel like I owe it to my relationship-starved self. If it doesn't work, I can always move on I suppose. But I can't keep flip-flopping on this. My last blog I said I needed to move on; now I think I should try for another chance. I need to make up my mind....

Well that's it from me. Catch you guys later.

Posted Oct 7, 2008 7:05 pm PT
Category: N/A
3 Comments

3Oct 08

"Loving you...

...isn't the right thing to do." The last song lyric-title was from "Bent" by Matchbox 20, for those that didn't recognize it. I won't make a habit of doing this; I'm just in the mood to occasionally. This title lyric is the first line in the song.

This is me attempting to rewrite the blog I accidentally deleted last time.

So it's done. Or at least it should be. It never really saw the light of day, but I'm doing my best to stifle my affection right now until I can easily forget about it. It doesn't help when I listen to music that gets me daydreaming again. But all it takes is one short, blunt conversation with her to remind me why I have to move on. Call me stuck-up, call me a d!ck, call me condescending, whatever else you wanna throw at me, but I cannot pursue a relationship with someone who so easily turns to drugs and alcohol to escape their problems. On top of that, any time I get on the subject of anything that she's dealing with, I get a quick, "I don't really wanna talk about this, I'll TTYL." She's skipping school tomorrow (again) because she flat out does not care. About anything. How can someone like me, who has a lot ahead of me, be with someone who is just blowing their life away for nothing? I still wish there was something I could do to bring back the girl I first met, and that's what's killing me. I haven't actually seen her in at least a month, which was before I learned about all this, so maybe that would help (and by help I mean it would keep me anchored to this false hope). I was afraid I'd hear stuff like this though. She lives in a trailer park (not one of those nice ones) and her home life sucks. What was I expecting? Some sort of Cinderella story? When I talked to her for the first month, I felt like I could have gotten past it. But this, this is too much for me. It'll be hard, especially since I'm not the type that gets out much, but it has to be done. What will make it harder is that I was tempted so much early on, and I think for a while I'll maintain that things could have been different had I not asked too many questions. But I would have found out eventually. To get so close and then come to this, yeah it hurts. But I have to face the fact that it's part of life. She's gone her own way, and I can't follow. Oh well.

I can't believe there are as many people as there are protesting the "bailout" of our country's banking industry. So what's their idea, let this thing run itself into the ground, taking our economy with it? It's not as if we're simply giving these banks $700 billion to play with and getting nothing for it. The government is buying bad assets with treasury bonds. Hence, once the banks are able to pay the bonds back, the government should get a profit. That means taxpayers will get a profit. That also means the economy stabilizes and jobless claims simmer. Not sure what there is to protest about.

And I know everyone's ready to blame the administration for not regulating these lenders strictly enough, but what exactly could the government have done? It's not like they can tell banks who they can and can't loan to. The banks should have known better. But now they have no money because they lent it all away to people who couldn't pay them back. And no one wants to loan money to these banks because they're afraid they won't get paid back, either. This is where the government steps in. Face it, ultra-conservative free-market advocates, this is the best way to solve this problem. The government is the only institution that has the ability right now to lend money to these bad banks. Once these banks get money coming in, lending will resume, meaning more consumers will be able to take out loans again. Hopefully everyone will learn a little lesson from all of this and not sign up for loans they will not be able to pay back. Once banks get loan and interest payments back, they can start paying the government (and taxpayers) back. Everybody wins.

For the first time since they won the Super Bowl, the Giants are being widely recognized right now as the #1 team in the NFL. But I know too well how fickle ESPN is. It's only because the revered Cowboys lost a game last week. Once they get a convincing win over Cincinnati (which they should), everybody will put them back at the top, regardless of how well the Giants play against Seattle. About the Seahawks, they're getting their starting WRs back after all these weeks, so the Giants need to be on the lookout for them. I have faith that the Giants can win at home, but this offense will have a new look, so I'm ready for anything. Almost.

I'm too tired to blog anymore, and I'm not sure I had much more to blog about. Oh well. I'll see you guys around.

Posted Oct 3, 2008 1:08 am PT
Category: N/A
8 Comments

30Sep 08

Damn it...

I was literally finishing up a pretty sizeable blog when I accidentally tapped the "bugger" on my laptop and in doing so I must have clicked something to back up a page, and my blog was deleted. Obviously I'm not going to re-write the whole damn thing, but I'll just blog now and celebrate my 1 YEAR ANNIVERSARY @ TV.COM!!!! Even though technically this blog will be posted a couple of minutes into October, I'll still celebrate sticking around here for a year and counting. I wasn't sure how long I was gonna be here for, but it's been cool enough for me to keep logging on almost every day (not saying too much ). Thanks to all my friends who have made this an awesome place to vent, argue, praise, or just talk to someone that who has no idea who I am and can be as honest as possible.

Catch you guys later.

Posted Sep 30, 2008 9:14 pm PT
Category: N/A
4 Comments

23Sep 08

"And when my smile gets old and faded...

...wait around I'll smile again."

Well I'll be going home this weekend after not having been back since Labor Day weekend, an unusually long stretch for me. Last year I would usually go home every other weekend or every third weekend, but two weekends ago my hopefully-soon-to-be girlfriend went away to Massachusetts, and then last weekend my parents went up to visit my brother, now in his first year at college. I don't want to say I've been stranded here, but I'm due for a visit back home.

I was really looking forward to seeing my not-yet girlfriend this weekend and hopefully seal the deal in some way, shape, or form, but a couple of things have transpired in the last few days that have left me uneasy and flat out pissed.

I wasn't overly shocked to hear her say that she drinks herself drunk a lot. I mean let's face it, we all know that isn't uncommon among our generation. Same goes for smoking pot. That's not to say I don't have a little problem with it. I don't know how I feel about being involved with someone who's in to all that stuff. I know that severely limits the number of fish in my sea, but it's who I am and there are some things I refuse to compromise on. Then she told me she's been smoking cigarettes lately.

Needless to say this was where I got really uncomfortable, and reading my own text messages I could see where it sounds like I was pissed to hear her say that. I went on about how "that sh!t's addictive" and "why are you doing this to yourself" and so on. To say she has problems at home is putting it nicely, so all of it is her way of coping with it all (an "escape from [her] mom" in her own words). Eventually she flat out asked me why I cared, and I told her because I care about her and I'm not gonna let her dig herself into something she can't get out of. She claims that she can start and stop as she pleases, which I don't believe for a second. If she's been smoking "for a while now", she can't just stop because she wants to. And besides, if she smokes because of what goes on at home, she doesn't get many chances to take a break from it.

I'll be honest, the thought of her being addicted to cigarettes scared me. Never mind the pot or alcohol. Tobacco isn't something you can just stop doing. It slowly kills you. I don't even want to think about this, because for all I know she could be lighting one up right now and I wouldn't have a clue. Add on to that she pretty much skips all her classes because she's getting stoned. Again, that helpless feeling sets in.

There was some good news--right before more bad news. The good news was that her parents (mom and mom's boyfriend) are going away this weekend. That's arguably the best thing that could happen for us on a weekend that just so happens to be the time when I go home. The bad news is that she told me the next night that she's pretty much working every waking hour Fri-Sun. Like literally 7am-10pm every day. I started asking questions, like "why are you working all these shifts?", and I might have been giving her a hard time about it, but at the time I didn't care. The one time I was gonna get to see her in almost a month was slipping away and, again, there wasn't a damn thing I could do about it. Apparently she's trying to get extra money to help out her sister and niece over in MA, so she's taking shifts in other departments of the store (the one we both work at). I was pretty much badgering her about it, asking what she was gonna do about it and telling her how pissed I was. So she quickly told me she was going to bed while putting together a message that made her sound just exhausted, confused, and probably a little hurt.

Of course the next day, I felt like a huge @sshole, and told her so when I sent her a text this afternoon. She took about a half-hour to respond with a simple "Yup...". We only sent a few more messages back and forth, so basically right now I feel like I can't talk to her. I know I was being insensitive, but how the Hell did she think I was gonna react? "Oh, it's OK, I haven't seen you in a month, but don't worry about it. We can always wait another couple of weeks." We shouldn't have to. I'm literally 30 minutes from home, and she goes to school right near me, but it's a community college so she lives back home. I know she wants to see me, and I need to see her, especially now that I know what she's been up to lately. And I'm sure most of you reading this who have testosterone running through you know how you'd feel if you heard your girlfriend say having you home would make things so much better while she's crying at night because she hates where her life is going right now. So when I hear that I may not even get to see her after all this time when I'm finally going home again, yeah, I'm gonna be f*ckin pissed. Whatever.

So Week 3 of the NFL was pretty good. The Giants pulled out a W when they could have very easily lost to a team I've been bad-mouthing since preseason (Cincinnati). The Bengals clearly aren't that bad, and their offense is getting in sinch again, at least it looked like it. The Giants secondary definitely needs to step up after that game, though. And B Jacobs got next to nothing all day. Thank God for Eli and his sudden knack for 4th quarter heroics. We're 3-0, so I'm not complaining much. Of course, Dallas still holds ESPN's mantle of best team in the league, which, in all honesty, they do. Right now, the Cowboys are a superior team. But I don't need to remind Cowboys fans that regular season statistics are null and void once you reach the postseason. And how about the NFC East, or better yet, NFC Beast? Combined 10-2 record, with the only losses being intra-division. The "worst" team is the Redskins, and they're 2-1 and could easily compete for the division lead anywhere else IMO. The consensus is that the Cowboys, Giants, and Eagles are the three best teams in the NFL. Someone mentioned that one team in this division may very well have a winning record, maybe even 10 wins, and miss the playoffs because only two wild cards are allowed. But at this point, it's practically guaranteed that we'll see Dallas, New York, and Philadelphia in the postseason. Who else will even challenge for a wild card? The NFC West flat out sucks (in their case, someone HAS to win that division, as opposed to the East, where someone HAS to come in last). The NFC North has Green Bay, a couple of borderline (1-2 records now) playoff teams in the Vikings and Bears, and the lowly Lions. And the South has the Panthers, the banged-up Saints, the old Buccaneers, and the rebuilding Falcons (who are 2-1 because they've played the Lions and Chiefs). To further the NFC East's supremacy, who in the AFC could challenge them? The Chargers and Broncos from the West would put up good fights but neither has had a solid defense to date, and everyone knows about the Raiders and Chiefs. Everyone thought Pittsburgh was back until Roethlisberger got to his feet in the Linc after being sacked 9 times by Philly. The Bengals and Browns are who they are, and no one really knows enough about the Ravens yet, but they are at the top of the AFC North (thanks to an early bye week after Hurricane Ike postponed their Week 2 game down in Houston, a game they could have won anyway). The AFC South, once the class of the NFL, has fallen by the wayside thanks to injury bugs on the Colts and Jags squads, and the Texans are still struggling, although Tennessee has played pretty well. And the AFC East, once controlled by Bill Belichick and the Patriots, is now seeing the upstart Bills take over while the other three teams fight amongst themselves (Dolphins beat Pats beat Jets beat Dolphins). There's no arguing anymore that the NFC East is the best the league has to offer, and it's great to be playing in this division.

I should mention the Yankees in this blog before I sign off. It was a little sad to see them play their last game in the old Stadium, but it was nice that they could go out with a win. Unfortunately for them, they were officially eliminated from the postseason today by Boston's win over Cleveland. Someone cue Hank Steinbrenner....

This blowhard never seems to take a hint. He goes on this rant today about how the playoff selection procedure is flawed in that teams with lesser records get in while those with better records do not (i.e. the LA Dodgers, or anybody from the dreadful NL West, getting in, while the Yankees are left out). While that may sound substantiated, think about it. First of all, he's only saying that because his team couldn't get in. Don't blame the system. Blame your overpaid, underperforming "All-Star" team for not putting together a good season. Just because your team is the New York Yankees, that doesn't guarantee them a free pass to October. Second, why should you be allowed to go to the playoffs when only a few weeks ago your team was sitting in 4th place in your own division? If you can't handle the teams in your division, why should you be allowed to go to the postseason? Steinbrenner made excuses all year for his team, from injuries to media bias to this now. Maybe them missing the playoffs this season was the best thing that could have happened for them. Now they know this tired strategy of bringing in old free agents and wasting the draft year after year just doesn't cut it, and now that not just the Red Sox, but also the Rays even, have passed you by, and with the Jays nipping at your heels, you need to change your ways of running your team. Look back at your own dynasty of the late '90s. It was a young team that didn't have a lot of superstars (back then they weren't known as superstars, anyway), but had a great sense of team and played hard for each other. That's what sports dynasties are built off of. You may not get the headlines with a bunch of young unknowns, but you'll get a great team that has the potential for some special championships ('07 Giants, anyone? ).

If I've left anything out, oh well. I've blogged enough. Until next time....

Posted Sep 23, 2008 11:44 pm PT
Category: N/A
6 Comments

15Sep 08

0-2 is apparently the new "Super" trend

If you haven't noticed yet, nothing else exciting is going on in my life now that I'm back at school. So I'll continue to be a football nerd and offer my input on how the season is going so far.

Week 2 was a little dose of reality in some cases, but others proved that maybe Week 1 was no mirage of what was to come. New England grinded out a tough win against the Jets, so the Pats are still 2-0, although it might seem to come as a bit of a surprise considering they lost you-know-who for the season. But Matt Cassel shut a lot of people (including myself) and proved he can do just enough to win, a task many thought was beyond him. New England won't be outscoring opponents by 30+ points this year, but their season is far from over. I still think they honestly surrender the title of the AFC's best, even though they have the better record than others like San Diego, Indy, and Jacksonville. Honestly, though, I don't think I've ever been happier to see a NY team lose. I feel like I'm growing to hate the Jets, but that should probably be more directed towards the beat writers and fans in NY. They spoke all week about how it was "Brettribution" Day and how Belichick would find that payback is a b!tch (uncensored in the NY Post article, by the way). Turns out Belichick still has it, and the Patriots still own the pop warner NY team. Face it, Jets fans, Favre will not carry you to the playoffs. He was outplayed by a guy who hasn't started since high school. Now that they've been knocked down a few pegs, maybe people will turn their attention to a real team, one who bypasses big names and embraces a "team-first" concept as well as any in the league.

I also want to congratulate Aaron Rodgers for hanging in there to beat Detroit. Rodgers is 2-0 so far, while Favre is 1-1. If we're gonna compare the two constantly to show how much "better" Favre is, I'm going to keep track of how many more games Rodgers will win than Favre. I'll be laughing when Green Bay makes the playoffs and the Jets are watching them from home again.

Buffalo, though, looks serious about taking on New England for the division crown this year. They thrashed the banged-up Seahawks at home then went dwown to Jacksonville and came from behind to win there. If the Bills don't win the division, they should at least get a wild card (barring any severe injuries, of course). Edwards looks good, the running game is still effective as ever, the defense is playing well and their special teams are one of the best units in the league. They're built to go far. Anything less than a wild card will be a huge letdown this year.

Lane Kiffin bought himself another week as Raiders head coach by having his team beat the Chiefs. I still think Oakland is too tenuous for any real success right now. The owner/GM, the head coach, and the defensive coordinator all seem to be at odds. Too much bad blood like that is going to keep this team running in circles. The Chiefs are also a young, rebuilding team, so it can't be considered a huge accomplishment.

The Giants blew open a close game in the 4th quarter against the Rams to win it 41-13. I'm holding some reservations because the Rams are looking awful after two games, but it's still rare to see the Giants actually finish a game like that. Eli looked great when he was in form (how 'bout that left-handed throw to Jacobs? ), but he did miss several open receivers. Nothing huge though, as he went for 20-of-29 with 3 TDs and no INTs. The running game looked outstanding, especially when they got Bradshaw in the mix to burn St. Louis once their defenders were tired of getting bruised by Jacobs and Ward. Together, they had 200 rushing yards, with Bradshaw scoring the only rushing (and a passing) TD. They are now to be referred to as "Earth, Wind, and Fire" . And Justin Tuck is pretty much anything you could ever want in a DE. Who needs Stray and Osi when you have this guy? Already 3 sacks on the year, and now he has an INT returned for a 41-yard TD run. He's really stepping up and looks primed for the Pro Bowl this season. The defense got to Bulger six times and only allowed one questionable TD catch (I still think Coughlin could have challenged that), but now I'm just getting picky. Great win all around by Big Blue. Looking forward to whooping the Bungles this Sunday.

How about Indy barely beating Minnesota? Something has to be said for the way Peyton's been struggling these last few weeks. Enough rust, it's time to see the Peyton Manning who made defenses shiver, the QB who made teams pay when they blitzed him. And Minnesota needs to get on track to if they even want to make the playoffs, let alone a Super Bowl, which now seems unlikely for an 0-2 team...or is it?

This past offseason, there were some popular teams thrown around as potential Super Bowl contenders. The list included Cleveland, Jacksonville, San Diego, and Minnesota (throw Seattle in there to further my point). After Week 2, none of these five teams have won, with each losing early divisional battles. I want to exempt San Diego from this, because both of their losses came down to the wire, and the Denver game was taken from them by a few terrible calls. But the other 4 have legitmate concerns, or at least they should. Cleveland's highly-touted offense has scored a measly 13 points in two games. Jacksonville's O-Line has been decimated with injuries, which hasn't allowed them to run the ball effectively and forces Garrard to throw more, which in turn has led to risky throws and 3 INTs in two games (he had as many all of last season). Minnesota's passing offense doesn't seem to have improved yet, and Adrian Peterson can only carry them so far. And Seattle has seemingly no healthy receivers and a running game that still isn't where it should be, even with new free agents in the backfield. But none of these teams have anything to worry about, at least that's what you hear some of them say. A team started 0-2 last year and looked dead going into their third road game. Five months later, they were taking the Lombardi Trophy home to New York. While I appreciate the aspirations to the 2007 Giants, realistically that happens probably once every decade. And besides, the Giants won six in a row after that 0-2 start. Minnesota will be hosting Carolina, a team that has really come back to the light and started off pretty well considering they haven't had Steve Smith play yet due to his suspension. Cleveland has to travel to Baltimore and take on a tough defense. Jacksonville has to go to Indianapolis. These teams have started shaky and are counting on a lot to bounce back. I have to admire the determination, but an 0-2 team has no right to talk about Super Bowls just yet. How about you win a game first? Don't feel too comfortable based on what happened last year.

Well I gotta get back to the Eagles-Cowboys game. Right now it's 21-20 Dallas only 5 minutes into the 2nd quarter. Not sure who to cheer for...GO GIANTS!!!!

Posted Sep 15, 2008 6:46 pm PT
Category: Sports
6 Comments

8Sep 08

The shot (to the knee) heard 'round the AFC....and NFL

Week 1 of the NFL, in some ways, is like a preseason game, but a lot more serious. It's far too early to really tell just how good a team is just based on the record they have after their first game. Half the teams in the league are undefeated, while half haven't yet won a game. To say a team is either doomed or poised for (postseason) success this early on is a bit over-the-top.

That's sort of how most people felt before this season and this past weekend. Before the kings fell (or at least slid a little) from their thrones on Sunday.

It started in Foxborough. Patriots QB Tom Brady stepped up in the pocket to launch a deep pass to Randy Moss, who caught but fumbled the ball. But the change of possession was the least of New England's worries. Everyone turned around to see Brady rolling around on the ground clutching his knee. All of Patriot Nation had fallen deathly silent upon seeing it. When Brady stepped up to throw, Kansas City Chiefs safety Bernard Pollard crawled forward to try and stop Brady. What happened was Pollard's helmet colliding with Brady's knee, and it looked like it hyperextended a little, but I'm sure the damage was worse than that. Tom Brady is now out for the season, and the Patriots, the reigning AFC champions who went 18-1 last year, came within 5 yards of going to overtime with the Kansas City Chiefs, who went 4-12 last season and have been projected by many to be one of the worst teams in the league this year.

But that was only the beginning of a rough day around the league. Rough, that is, for the AFC elite.

Down in Nashville, the Jacksonville Jaguars, who went 11-5 last season and are in the group of legitimate Super Bowl contenders, struggled mightily against the division rival Tennessee Titans. The Jags allowed seven sacks of QB David Garrard, Garrard himself threw 2 INTs, and the vaunted Jacksonville running game was held to 33 yards on the ground. They also let the Titans push them around for 137 rushing yards. But Tennessee, another good AFC team, did not escape unscathed. In fact, in addition to throwing two of his own INTs, QB Vince Young left the game with a sprained knee and could miss several precious weeks to start the season.

Later that afternoon, up in Cleveland Browns Stadium, the Dallas Cowboys and Cleveland Browns were squaring off in what was predicted to be a shootout. What occurred instead was a blowout. Dallas won 28-10, but the score is misleading in that it looks a bit like Cleveland wasn't completely hapless in this game. They were. Cowboys QB Tony Romo wasn't even touched in the first half and on some plays literally stood without moving his feet in the pocket just waiting for receivers to get open. Marion Barber and rookie Felix Jones also had great success with the running game, helping Dallas rush for 167 yards. The Dallas defense also shut down the highly-touted Browns offensive attack. Cleveland got no relief anywhere. I used to think they could win the AFC North. I'm glad I changed my mind just in time.

Meanwhile, out in San Diego, the Carolina Panthers were actually holding back the San Diego Chargers, a team picked by many (including me) to go to the Super Bowl. This game came down to a last-second TD pass by Carolina QB Jake Delhomme to win the game over the Chargers. While this game was no blowout, nor did any players suffer significant injury, it was shocking to see the Panthers, who went 7-9 last season, go into San Diego and knock off an 11-5 AFC champion runner-up from last season. Granted, Delhomme was back. But maybe that's just adding to what many are now starting to feel: the NFC is coming back.

Need more proof? How about Sunday night? On the opening night of Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, the Colts looked outmatched by the Chicago Bears, a team that went 7-9 last season. In fact, the Colts never had the lead in the game. The Bears defense looked really good against the high-power Peyton Manning-led Colts offense. For the Bears, if only their defense could have played this well two years ago in the Super Bowl against Peyton Manning.

So the Colts and Chargers lose at home to two mediocre NFC teams from last season, the Jaguars fell to the Titans (who lost their starting QB for possibly a few weeks), the Browns get blown away by the Cowboys, and the Patriots lose their most vital player in Tom Brady. Oh how the mighty are falling.

But the AFC kings didn't just fall Week 1. Their NFC rivals rose up. As mentioned already, the Bears defense looks alive and dangerous again, the Panthers look sharp with Jake Delhomme back under center, and the Cowboys dominated in Cleveland. The Philadelphia Eagles, 8-8 last season, destroyed the St. Louis Rams en route to a 38-3 win in which QB Donovan McNabb looked like his old Pro Bowl form. The New Orleans Saints put on a show for their fans against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, although it was a close game. But they look flashy on offense. And we still have yet to see the Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings play tonight, both of whom are considered in the cream of the crop in the NFC.

Was it all AFC losses and NFC gains Week 1? Not in Buffalo. Not in Pittsburgh. Not for the Jets. These three teams were more of afterthoughts than considered true Super Bowl contenders. Now they look poised to be very good teams in the AFC. But is it now enough to hold the fort against the rising stars of the NFC?

Of course, this is still Week 1. Who knows what will happen between now and the end of the season?

But that's exactly what you say before things like what happened Week 1 actually take place. For all we know, things could continue this way, or maybe even get worse.

What is certain is that the NFC is not to be taken lightly this season. Certainly Dallas, Philadelphia, and even teams like Chicago and Carolina have made strong statements for their conference. Green Bay and Minnesota look like they'll add to that tonight.

The Giants made the NFC relevant again last season by beating the Patriots in the Super Bowl. Now it looks like they and their NFC brothers are ready to add to that and make the NFC scary again.

Posted Sep 8, 2008 3:25 pm PT
Category: Sports
9 Comments

2Sep 08

Couldn't help it: Revised NFL '08 Predictions

Preseason, although everyone says it doesn't matter, opens your eyes to some things about teams, and you never know when an injury (coughcoughUmenyioracough ) can occur. I promise these will be shorter since there won't be a lot of significant changes to my original ones.

AFC:

East:

1. New England Patriots (13-3, Seed 1): Their preseason speaks volumes about how much they NEED Tom Brady. Why they even kept Matt Cassel is baffling (and let Matt Gutierrez go). Their defense also seemed to struggle at times. But how many times have the Patriots deceived everybody and still come out on top (or close to it)? Brady should be back and Belichick will get the defense under control.

2. Buffalo Bills (9-7, Seed 6): Unfortunately, LT Jason Peters is STILL holding out at this point, and he will be crucial to how Buffalo does this season (Marshawn Lynch and Trent Edwards both need their left tackle to thrive). This team is built to go far: strong special teams, improved defense, and a strong running game make this a very physical team that's gonna win in the trenches. But is it enough in the glamor-filled AFC?

3. New York Jets (7-9): I don't care how many times ESPN "experts" tell me, the Jets are not making the playoffs. I know they have Favre, Jenkins, Pace, Faneca, Woody and whoever else you want to spout at me, but depending so much on free agency has come back to haunt teams of late. They will improve and be more dynamic because of all the new faces, but the Jets still have at least another year before they start thinking "Super".

4. Miami Dolphins (4-12): They received a godsend when the Jets jumped Pennington, but who's he gonna throw the ball to? Ginn isn't a playmaker just yet. I have faith in Parcells that this team will at least get back to .500, if not a winning record, but that will take more than just one season. In fact, let me just cut to it and say Chad Pennington is the only real difference between my last prediction for this team and now.

North:

1. Pittsburgh Steelers (9-7, Seed 4): I know, I'm back-pedaling here (although I still have them finishing with the same record). This is more because of Cleveland falling back in my mind than Pittsburgh rising up. Are they talented? Absolutely. But I still want to see it first. How will the O-Line do without Faneca? Will the defense still dominate? This team grew visibly tired late last season, and the hardest schedule in the NFL will keep them from pushing harder this time around.

2. Cleveland Browns (8-: The more I've thought about it, the more I see how I've sort of given the Browns too much credit in free agency while I trash teams like the Jets, Oakland, etc. for doing similar things. I think Derek Anderson will get exposed this season as just an average QB. Maybe I'm reading too much into the Giants-Browns preseason game, but the Browns starters were just awful in that game. Time to see if this team is for real.

3. Baltimore Ravens (7-9): No real change here, and since Harbaugh likely still doesn't know who his starting QB will be, this thing is gonna probably drag into the season with Boller and Smith both dealing with injuries. Hopefully it drags on until Week 11 when they come to play us .

4. Cincinnati Bengals (3-13): I've done enough ranting on this team. If I were Carson Palmer or Marvin Lewis I would pull an "Anquan Boldin" and never sign another contract with that team just so I could get the hell off that sinking ship.

South:

1. Indianapolis Colts (12-4, Seed 3): Another team who depends far too much on their QB (see: New England). Except for the 2006 season, they seem like they can't win the big games. When was the last time they beat the Chargers? I feel like Indianapolis is slipping as a lot of their stars have begun to have health issues. Don't get me wrong, they're still a terrific team. I think they've just lost some of their spark and have taken a back seat to the Chargers in the AFC hierarchy.

2. Jacksonville Jaguars (10-6, Seed 5): Derrick Harvey finally signed his rookie contract, but all that time missed is gonna cost him and his team a little bit. Other than that, not much changes here in my mind.

3. Houston Texans (9-7): Having Chris Brown on IR is gonna hurt this team, but I feel like the Texans will surprise some people. Steve Slaton has supposedly done fairly well. Matt Schaub should come back at full strength and ready to go. Mario Williams is a beast at end. Andre Johnson is predicted to be a top receiver this year. Houston has some things going for them, but one thing they don't have going for them is a playoff berth, at least not yet in the AFC South.

4. Tennessee Titans (7-9): Unless there's something I overlooked here, I still have them going 7-9. I think their offense is gonna struggle too much and their defense will wear down towards the end of the season from being out on the field too long.

West:

1. San Diego Chargers (12-4, Seed 2): Shawne Merriman aside, I kinda like this team. They're overall one of the most talented teams in the league. Tomlinson is past his prime, but he's got another year or tow left in him. Philip Rivers can be a great QB. Antonio Gates might have problems with his dislocated toe, but that shouldn't shut down the offense. They took New England to the brink in the AFC Championship game last season, so I expect them to be in contention for the Super Bowl (maybe even favorites to win it).

2. Denver Broncos (8-: Nothing spectacular about this team, but Cutler seems to be getting a better grip of the offense as of late. Brandon Marshall can be a good wideout if he grows up a little bit. I don't know a whole about the Broncos, but I know there's isn't a whole lot that stands out, which is why they fit right in with this division.

3. Oakland Raiders (5-11): I'll give Oakland a little slack here. They do have some talented players on this team. A lot of them are overpaid though, and I wonder what's gonna happen when this team falls short and suddenly all these big contracts have to be taken care of. They still need help on their lines, moreso now because they have so much invested in JaMarcus Russell and Darren McFadden.

4. Kansas City Chiefs (4-12): I feel like they're rebuilding their team the right way (through the draft) and realize that they aren't going to be winning anytime soon. Brodie Croyle seems too shaky to just have the starting job handed to him. Their lines should improve with guys like Glenn Dorsey on the D-Line and Branden Albert on the O-Line. Brandon Flowers could contribute quickly in the secondary. They still have a lot of work to do, but they're getting there.

NFC:

East:

1. Dallas Cowboys (12-4, Seed 1): Believe me, this is not easy for me to do. Being as realistic and non-biased as I can be, I just can't see the Giants winning the division this year. Honestly, had Osi not been injured, I would probably still consider it, but not anymore. Dallas is one of those teams who has talent almost everywhere, but I know they have weaknesses that can be exploited. Behind Owens, they have no reliable/great receivers (Crayton is not that good, more of a No. 3 guy), although Witten makes up for that pretty well. I think Marion Barber will run out of gas towards the end of this season since he's not used to being an every-down back. Their defense is good, but it's not dominating. They'll probably split with the Giants, but I think the Cowboys can win more games outside of the division.

2. New York Giants (10-6, Seed 5): Exactly what they did last year. Osi's loss won't cost them the season, but my expectations of them have dropped a little bit. He was a huge part of their defense that will be missed, even with Kiwi filling in at right end. But I get the feeling they still feel like theu have something to prove, especially some of these new guys coming in. Hopefully Spags' system is the real key to their success rather than just the players. Not much changes on the offense. I think Eli will do better this season, but he won't suddenly put up numbers like his brother does on a regular basis. I hope the Giants prove me wrong. In fact, I challenge them to prove me wrong when I say they can't win the division this season. If they can pull it off, then I'll really be impressed with the heart of this team (more so than I was after the Super Bowl).

3. Philadelphia Eagles (9-7): Dr. Z of Sports Illustrated has Philly finishing 12-4 this season. I had to do a double take. 12-4?! Yes, the Eagles are a good team and can still contend for the playoffs even without a dynamic receiving corps. But 12-4 and the NFC's No. 1 seed? I think Dr. Z's been listening to McNabb too much. Everyone is hyping up DeSean Jackson. How often do rookie wide receivers really make that much of an impact when they first come in? He's also more of a shifty slot guy, so I can't see him being a terrific playmaker-type receiver. McNabb's had a great preseason, but...it's preseason. They're exhibition games where little effort goes into gameplanning for them. I think McNabb still has it in his head that this is the same dominating team of the early 2000's, but there are at least 5 better teams in the NFC right now in my mind.

4. Washington Redskins (6-10): Blame it on a new head coach (whose never even been a coordinator) and a new offensive system for Jason Campbell to have to go through. But he had something like that at Auburn, so maybe he'll do alright. But their offense has looked awful the last two preseason games. I know preseason doesn't mean too much, but when you're struggling against an opponent who probably didn't gameplan very much for you, that's not good. They have offensive weapons, but their receiving corps might rely too much on a couple of rookies who have struggled to stay healthy throughout camp.

North:

1. Minnesota Vikings (11-5, Seed 2): Just waiting to see if Tarvaris Jackson can complete the puzzle in Minnesota. They have arguably the best run game in the league, could once again have the best run defense in the league, the pass defense will be improved with Jared Allen rushing the QB. They got Bernard Berrian as a go-to wideout. All that's seemingly left is Jackson.

2. Green Bay Packers (10-6, Seed 6): I think the QB position will take a step back with Aaron Rodgers now under center, but isn't it better for him to come in now and have a chance to succeed then coming in a few years down the road and maybe come in with a lesser team? Still a playoff team, but may encounter struggles.

3. Detroit Lions (7-9): Their season really depends on how well rookie RB Kevin Smith performs. He has a backup now in Rudi Johnson, but Smith will have to produce. The O-Line is still a little shaky, and the defense will take some time to become what coach Rod Marinelli wants it to become (like that of Tampa).

4. Chicago Bears (4-12): Kyle Orton starting might give them more stability (less turnovers), but not more as far as big play-capability is concerned. An awful lot is being asked of Devin Hester this season. The O-Line is questionable, which could give rookie Matt Forte a had time of running the ball. The defense should do fairly well, but if the offense can't stay on the field, the defense will tire out and get run all over.

South:

1. Carolina Panthers (10-6, Seed 4): This still seems like an illogical pick (I'm torn between the Panthers and the Saints), but I'm going to stick with it just in case they do and I can say, "You heard it here." Having Delhomme back will certainly help this team out, but having Smith out the first two games will hurt. Muhammad is back, and Hackett's arrival gives Delhomme more targets to throw to. The running game should be solid with Williams and Stewart. If the O-Line plays well and Peppers and the defense do their job, these guys could surprise some people.

2. New Orleans Saints (8-: Good, but not good enough. They have the offensive firepower, but defense still remains a question until they prove they can be good with new additions. Reggie Bush needs to be at least reliable this year, if not dynamic.

3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-10): An aging offense and a young O-Line may be the Achilles heals of this team. The defense should still dominate, but if the offense can't produce, the defense will get tired and start to falter towards the end.

4. Atlanta Falcons (5-11): I think the Falcons will do slightly better than what people give them credit for (a lot have them finishing last in the league). Matt Ryan, although a rookie, looks confident enough. The O-Line has to protect him, though, and give Michael Turner what he needs to make big plays. Still, this team has a ways to go as far as getting back to a winning record.

West:

1. Seattle Seahawks (10-6, Seed 3): I actually had to really think about this one. Sure, Hasselbeck's a great QB, but who's he gonna throw the ball to? Julius Jones may help take the pressure off Hasselbeck, but is he that good? From playing against him the last few years, I would say he's not a great RB, just good. The defense has playmakers, and I think that'll be enough to give Seattle it's 937th division crown (an exaggeration, for those who are clueless to the NFL).

2. St. Louis Rams (8-: Shaky coming back from a lot of injuries, the Rams have a lot to prove. Steven Jackson is predicted to have an outstanding season. Marc Bulger could have his year. If the O-Line stays intact, they can win some games. Defensively they're alright, but not great. I think the 3-13 last year was largely due to injuries, so look for the Rams to bounce back, if only a little bit.

3. San Francisco 49ers (7-9): Having a guy who knows Mike Martz's system in J.T. O'Sullivan will help, but where does that leave Alex Smith, the guy who's supposed to be the future of this franchise? They have a great defense led by Patrick Willis and they should be a little better this year. It should be interesting to see how the offense does under Martz.

4. Arizona Cardinals (6-10): This division was actually really tough to predict for me, since I feel like at least the bottom three could be in any one of these spots. Having Kurt Warner start is gonna help the offense I think, since Leinart has thus far not played up to expectations. I feel like Anquan Boldin's situation is gonna be a big distraction, though.

I'm gonna try and hold to these. I kinda have to seeing as the season starts Thursday night at Giants Stadium. Can't wait for '08!

Posted Sep 2, 2008 10:13 pm PT
Category: N/A
11 Comments

22Aug 08

"Man, we were killing time...

...we were young and restless...". A bit of an "older" song, but the theme still fits.

This whole lyrics-as-blog-title thing is kinda cool. I might do it more often.

So I'm going back to college Sunday and I start classes Monday, which is both depressing and exciting. My summer's been pretty boring for the most part, but it's not like I'm thrilled at being back in the classroom. My trip to Long Island was good but the beach sucked and we never got to go out on the boat, so we didn't get to do too much. I did see The Dark Knight, which was as good as everyone else before me said it was. You can read others' blogs about it since its pretty much universal how most people felt about the movie. Too bad Heath Ledger isn't around to see how successful the movie was. He has to get a posthumous Oscar or something.

As far as my relationship with this girl I know, it's been going pretty good, but we're not dating just yet. I've taken her out one night, but it kinda sucked because practically everything was closed. We ended up going to Friendly's, which I guess isn't too bad at all, but it would have been nice if we could have done something....I've been texting her most of every day since we got each others numbers, so I guess that's good. She's going to a community college near where I'm going, so the whole distance problem for me is practically non-existent. Hopefully we can hang out one more time, though, before I go back.

Just saying the words "going back" makes me feel a little anxious. I didn't do much this summer, but it was great at least knowing I had the freedom to do almost anything because I didn't have the commitment of school. Now I'm...going back. I'm not scared or full-out depressed; I've been through this all before, and I'm only going a half-hour away from home, so it's not as huge for me as it is for other kids. Still, knowing another summer has come and gone brings me down a little. Oh well. Now I have Christmas break to look forward to.

Now on to some random NFL topics:

- I cannot believe anyone who tells me they are a Cincinnati Bengal fan with any dignity. Just when I thought this team of walking convicts was turning its act around, they go and bring back a scumbag like Chris Henry, a guy who they released in April because of his numerous arrests since being drafted back in '05. They were making a statement that they were not tolerating crap like him anymore. Even when both of the Bengals starting wideouts (Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmanzadeh (sp? )) went down with injuries at first, head coach Marvin Lewis reiterated the organization had no interest in re-signing Henry. Sure enough, one month later, owner Mike Brown gave in and signed Henry back to the team. Even though the guy must serve a four-game suspension before he can play. The league as a whole is trying to crack down and these kinds of players, and teams like the Bengals keep undermining them because they can't resist the talent when they feel they need it. The hell with the PR risk, right? I actually want this team to do poorly this year. I expect they will because they have almost no defense, but now I hope they fail. Mike Brown should be ashamed, and I would be too if I was a Bengal fan.

- Jesus Favre looks pretty good so far with the Jets, and now the pop warner football team in NY is ready to show their stuff to the Giants on Saturday. The more I hear about the Jets lately, the less I like about them. Maybe it's the people speaking for them, but I just get the sense that everyone on the Other Side of the Meadowlands thinks they can suddenly take on anything with Jesus Favre as their QB. Repeat after me, Jets fans: No one man makes a team. But then you have idiots like Peter King who criticize Jets fans for not filling up the seats at Jesus Favre's preseason debut as a Jet. Not everyone has a man-crush on Jesus Favre like all the analysts at ESPN. I'm probably going to laugh when the guy throws a game-ending interception because he reverted to the QB he always has been: a risk-taker. Understand that the Jets trading for Jesus Favre was purely to stay relevant in a city that was beginning to forget all about Gang Green in the wake of the Giants victory parade through the "Canyon of Heroes". Instead of the Jets sitting at home watching it and feeling "sick" (as Jets safety Kerry Rhodes described it) seeing another NY team marching through Manhattan, the Jets can sit at home in January and watch themselves on ESPN thanks to the arrival of Jesus Favre.

- Apparently Terrell Owens was recently commenting on the gameplan of the Cowboys back in January against the Giants. He dropped hints that the coaches didn't use him enough and treated him as if he were physically limited and instead preferred a more ground-based attack. Does anyone else feel like deja vu with this guy (Ryan might know what I'm talking about....). I understand that if asked if you could have done more to win, any player would say yes. But not just any player would insinuate that the coaches didn't use him enough. What a player should say is something like "You can always do more. I could have done more. I could have gotten open more. I could have gone out of my way to catch more passes." And then they'd probably remind everybody that the past is the past, and their focus is on the present and getting better for the next game. But not Owens. This is how it started in Philly, complaining about not being used enough. Dallas fans are denying it, of course, but for once they might want to listen to Philly. I'd hate (and by hate I mean love) for the Cowboys to go through what the Eagles went through in 2005. It all starts with minor complaints, and before you know it, he'll be giving interviews while doing sit-ups in his driveway. This guy hasn't changed, he's only mellowed a little bit because Jerry Jones gets on his knees for him. Will it happen? Who knows. But he's done this before (San Fran, Philly). Only time will tell if the Cowboys just give into his ego or save as much of themselves as they can like their division rival before them.

- I'd like to take time to honor Gene Upshaw, the late executive director of the NFL Players' Association and Hall of Fame guard for the Oakland and Los Angeles Raiders. I didn't agree with the guy on a lot of stuff. He opposed a rookie wage scale and had no problem with unproven rookies getting extravagant contracts while veterans who've been battle-tested receive less. He promised that if the salary cap expired with the collective bargaining agreement, he would not try to "sell it" to the players again, something I thought was rather foolish. But he was a very determined individual and didn't back down from much, even risking PR implications in some cases, when, for example, at the NFL Rookie Symposium not too long ago, he told the rookies that it was not the league who cared for or represented the rookies, but himself and the NFLPA, saying that the league represented the owners. This kinda miffed some league officials, but Upshaw didn't back down from saying it. Was he maybe a bit provocative? Yeah. But he cared for the players' well-being and fought hard for them, and they owe him for all the benefits like unrestricted free agency and larger shares of the profits of their teams. Again, I disagreed with him on more than one occasion, but he worked hard for the players he represented, so I have to respect him for that. RIP Gene Upshaw.

Well this is my last blog before school starts again (I just cringed a little bit). Summer was great, nice and long, but as the aforementioned song goes, "I guess nothing can last forever." See you guys around.

Posted Aug 22, 2008 6:00 pm PT
Category: N/A
3 Comments

10Aug 08

"In a world where what we want...

...is only what we want until it's ours." Good song, kind of how I'm feeling right now.

I've made some progress with this girl I like. By progress I mean actually talking to her for all of five minutes and "friend"-ing her on Facebook (and a wall-to-wall conversation). For me, that's a lot of progress. Summer's damn near over already (f*ck), so I'm trying to move faster here with this, and me going down to Long Island next week is gonna get in the way of that, but I still wanna go. We haven't been down since Memorial Day, which is unusually long for us. Hopefully we'll get to go to the beach, hang out on the boat, maybe go out and do some other stuff, and just try to enjoy our last real "vacation" week.

The thing is though is that my dad's not coming. He'll be using this week to continue his full-time job search while working his part-time job at JCPenney and doing little home improvement projects for friends and local people. I feel even worse though for him because the 16th is his 61st birthday, and he'll most likely spend it here, alone. Hopefully my grandpa will be able to fly him down in his plane or something for the weekend.

With that said, this will probably be my last blog for a week or so. I feel like I haven't made myself noticeable much lately, anyway, so you guys probably won't notice much.

Anyway, back to the girl I like. I'm hoping to see her tomorrow (technically today; it's 3 am here right now). I feel like I really need to see her too, not just because I'm going away for a week, but because I've been thinking about her too much, if that sounds right. I'm tired of just thinking about her while listening to music; I need this to go somewhere. I just hope that I'm not feeling less and less like I want her just because I'm pretty close to getting her. I get like this a lot, as I'm sure many people do (hence the blog title lyric). Fantasies may give you false hope or remind you of what you don't have, but they drive you to get what you want. Once you have what you want, you have no need to fantasize getting it or having it anymore, and sometimes you feel less inspired to want it. Pretty much greed, in a nutshell.

I figured before I leave, I'll do that survey that everybody did like a few weeks ago since I'm just pi$$ing time away anyway . Anyway, here it is...

Name : Dan
Nick Name : Danimal (I'd appreciate NOT going by this on tv.com, just warning you ahead of time), sometimes just my last name
Birthdate : February 9 1989
Birthplace: Kings Park, NY (on Long Island)
Current Location: My computer room
Eye Color: Green
Hair Color: Light brown
Height: 6'6"
Weight: 175 lbs.
Piercings: None
Tattoos: None
Boyfriend/Girlfriend: Not yet....
Vehicle: '94 Ford T-Bird
Overused Phrase: Sweet deal (first thing that came to mind)

FAVORITES

Food: Burgers and Burritos
Pub/Disc/Restaurant: Red Lobster
Candy: Reese's
Number: 10
Color: Yellow
Animal: Not sure
Drink: Probably water or root beer
Body Part on Opposite sex: Face
Perfume: ....Pass
TV Show: Family Guy (****c ones exclusively)
Music Album: Journey Greatest Hits
Movie: Star Wars (pick one)
Actor/Actress: Adam Sandler

THIS OR THAT

Pepsi or Coke: Pepsi
McDonalds or BurgerKing: Burger King
Chocolate or Vanilla: Vanilla
Hot Chocolate or Coffee: Hot Chocolate
Kiss or Hug: Both
Dog or Cat: Dog
Rap or Punk: Punk, but not by much
Summer or Winter: Summer
Scary Movies or Funny Movies: Funny
Love or Money: Love

YOUR...

Bedtime: 3 am-ish
Most Missed Memory: Travelling up and down the East Coast when I was younger
Best physical feature: I'll give it to the goatee
First Thought Waking Up: Where am I? Oh, I was dreaming.
Ambition: All the stuff I'm supposed to do: get married, graduate from college and grad school, start a family, rule the world, live a long life, and have the Giants become some sort of dynasty (like the 70s Steelers, 80s 49ers, 90s Cowboys, etc)
Best Friends: Outside of my family, Kevin, Phil, Chad, Greg, Bobby
Weakness: I daydream too much
Fears: Death, heights in some cases
Longest relationship: ....Pass.

HAVE YOU...

Cheated Your Partner: See above
Ever been beaten up: No.
Ever beaten someone up: Brothers
Ever Shoplifted: I wish
Ever Skinny Dipped: Can't say I have
Ever Kissed Opposite sex: I'm working on it
Been Dumped Lately: Nope

IN A GUY/GAL

Favorite Eye Color: Blue, I guess
Favorite Hair Color: Usually blonde, but currently brown
Short or Long: Long
Height: Hard to find girls not much shorter than me....
$tyle: Not too flashy, not too trashy (sorry about that)
Looks or Personality: Probably personality, but looks has a limit
Hot or Cute: Either one
Muscular or Really Skinny: Muscular would be weird, but borderline anorexic is also a no.

RANDOMS

What country do you want to Visit: Anywhere in Europe, probably Spain
How do you want to Die: Happy, knowing I lived a full life
Been to the Mall Lately: Today (technically yesterday)
Get along with your Parents: Absolutely
Health Freak: Not a freak, but I try to watch what I eat
Do you think your Attractive: Safe to say so
Believe in Yourself: Definitely
Want to go to College: Going back for sophomore year in two weeks
Do you Smoke: I wouldn't know what to do if someone handed me a blunt
Do you Drink: No, but I have sipped alcohol a few times in my life
Shower Daily: Yep
Been in Love: In it now, pretty sure
Do you Sing: Not good
Want to get Married: See "ambitions"
Do you want Children: Ditto
Age you wanna lose your Virginity: Soon would be good
Hate anyone: Personally, I don't think I hate anyone, but I do dislike some people.

Posted Aug 10, 2008 12:48 am PT
Category: N/A
8 Comments

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