All Right Stop, Collaborate and Listen

Vanilla Ice is coming to DC! That’s right, Rob Van Winkle will be at McFadden’s in Foggy Bottom hosting the Back to School bash tonight. According to the event description, “he'll be spinning tunes on the mic, passing out shots at the bar, and of course signing autographs and posing for pictures.” Of course!

The flyer states that the Vanilla Ice experience starts at 10:00pm. Although I haven’t been out in a DC bar past 10 in years, I’m actually considering it. Thanks to ordering tickets to the Washington Capitals-Pittsburgh Penguins games last year, the Capitals offered me, as a group leader, complimentary tickets to a preseason game. So, I’ll be at the Capitals-Flyers game tomorrow night in DC not too far from Foggy Bottom. With the hockey game ending around 9:30, I should be able to make it to McFadden’s in time.

This all sounds like a brilliant plan, but the chances of me actually going to see Vanilla Ice is probably about 5%. You see, I’m old. Bars just aren’t my scene anymore. After working a full week and then going to a hockey game on a Friday night, knowing that it will probably take me an hour to get home from the arena, I’m not going to be up for going to a bar. I would also like to catch the end of the West Virginia-South Florida college football game if possible, and I’m guessing McFadden’s does not want people watching the game over Vanilla Ice. Plus, I’m refereeing three soccer games on Saturday morning, so I have to up fairly early.

And no one else is interested in going with me.

Hypothetical Scenario

Let’s say that I have an engagement party to attend on Sunday afternoon from 1-5. Let’s also say that the Steelers are playing at 4:15, and the game is scheduled to be on the local DC and Baltimore television stations. I am expected to be at the party the entire time and there is also a chance that there will also be a dinner after the party.

My question: what are my options? I’m not positive if the hosts are football fans, but if they are, the team of choice is probably the Baltimore Ravens, not the Steelers. Is it a major party foul to suggest turning on the game at 4:15? Would it be inappropriate to wear Steelers gear to the party? (It would be a golf shirt not my #83 jersey with “Lipps” on the back – I’m guessing most of the guests are not familiar with Louis Lipps.) If I wear a Steelers shirt, people may consciously or subconsciously think about turning on the game. Of course, I may be insulting many of the Baltimore guests and not making such a good impression. I guess I need to hope that someone turns on the Ravens game at 1:00 and leaves the television on for the 4:15 game. This could work perfectly in that I can be social for the first 3+ hours of the party before the game starts. The problem with this scenario is I’m not sure how or where I can watch the second half. I don’t think I can watch the entire game, which will end around 7:15 (2 hours after the party finishes) at the hosts’ house. Any suggestions on any of this?

Since some of the folks attending the party may read this, I want to let everyone know that I am not being serious about choosing between the party and the Steelers. (Or am I?) This entire post is all in jest. (Really?) Yes, really. (Are you sure?) End post now!

Do You Understand the Words That Are Coming Out of My Mouth

Over the past few weeks, we have had trouble getting the key into our car’s ignition. Instead of going to our trusted mechanic, we thought it might be something simple with the keys, so we took the car to the dealership. We’ve already had trouble with this “rhymes with Maturn” dealership before (see this experience from March), but again, we hoped it could be something easy to fix. Not quite. You’ll have to excuse me since I’m not exactly a car person. If I get some terms wrong here, well you can make fun of me, but it’s not unexpected. The “Maturn” dealership said that the whole cylinder needed to be replaced. Approximate cost $500. They also found some type of water pump leak even though we asked them only to look at the ignition. When the dealership gave all of this news to us, we said no thank you. They even asked if we wanted an oil change. We said no thank you since the car just had an oil change and inspection last month from our dealership. Seems like the end of story.

Until the beginning of this paragraph! Around 3:30 this afternoon, I received a call from Maturn saying that they made the repairs. Apparently, they called my wife who told them to call me. I was a little shocked and wanted to make sure that they received the message earlier when we said that we didn’t want the repairs done. They apologized and said that due to their mistake, they would only charge us $500, half of the $1,000 overall cost for parts and labor. This was an interesting proposal seeing that it was $500 more than I expected to pay. I said I would call him back. After quickly venting to a co-worker, who fortunately had a stress ball, which I found very useful instead of throwing things or swearing at the Maturn guy, I called back. He suggested $279, which would only be $179 for the parts and labor and $100 for the initial work of looking through the car. I’m not sure if he expected me to jump at that offer, but after more silence and perhaps a little stuttering on my part trying to remain calm, I told him I would call him back again. As I talked to my wife about what we should do, the Maturn guy called me saying that he would eat the costs. He apologized again (I think I said “OK”), and we picked up the car. Oh, while they performed an oil change, they did not give the courtesy car wash as stated on the receipt.

Needless to write, we’re not going to the Maturn dealership again.

Songs With Alcohol in the Title

Inspired by Lionel Richie performing “Say You, Say Me” on The Simpsons last night (but replacing the lyrics with “Say You, Beer Me”), I’ve attempted to come up with a list of songs with a type of alcoholic drink in the title. Here’s what I’ve got so far:

Gin & Juice – Snoop Doggy Dogg (that was his name when this song was released)
Tequila – The Champs
One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer – John Lee Hooker or George Thorogood
Alcohol – Brad Paisley
Margaritaville – Jimmy Buffet
Tequila Sunrise – Eagles
Red, Red Wine – Neil Diamond or UB40
Champagne Supernova – Oasis
Tear in My Beer – Hank Williams
Whisky River – Willie Nelson

I feel like I’m missing dozens of songs, but I can’t think of anything else. If you can help, please feel free to add other songs with an alcoholic drink in the title in the comments. Songs with drinks as part of the lyrics don’t count. For example, Chumbawamba’s "Tubthumping" features the lyrics, “He drinks a whisky drink. He drinks a vodka drink. He drinks a lager drink. He drinks a cider drink.” This song DOES NOT count since the title is Tubthumping, which to my knowledge is not a drink. It would count if the title was “He Drinks a Whisky Drink,” but it is not. We’re looking for song titles only. I do have one other rule: only one song per artist.

I hope this is a productive way to start your week!

Sean’s Sports Update

While the Pittsburgh Steelers are my primary sports focus this time of year, there are other teams that I also closely follow. Unfortunately, most of them are not doing very well. Yesterday, Ithaca College’s football team lost 37-16 against #6 St. John’s Fisher. This loss coupled with last week’s defeat against Hartwick (the Bombers first loss to Hartwick since 1946!) leaves the team only 2-2 and 0-2 in the Empire 8 conference. Things need to change quickly if the Bombers have any chance at reaching the postseason.

Another team that has virtually no chance to reach a bowl game is the Pitt Panthers after losing 34-14 at home against the University of Connecticut. Pitt still needs to play West Virginia, Rutgers, South Florida, Virginia and Louisville, so a winning record does not seem likely. With Syracuse’s win over Louisville, Pitt may very well be the worst team in the Big East.

Finally, the Woodland Hills High School football team, whose alumni include current NFL players Jason Taylor, Shawntae Spencer, Steve Breaston and Lousaka Polite, is 0-4 for the first time in 21 years.

The one bright spot is Ithaca College’s women’s tennis team. They are 5-0 and look at these scores against their biggest rival, Cortland State:

Singles competition
1. Melanie COHEN (IC) def. Meg Cole (CORT) 6-2, 6-1
2. Rachel GUNDERSON (IC) def. Amanda McElroy (CORT) 6-0, 6-0
3. Alyssa JAFFE (IC) def. Merchon Brower (CORT) 6-0, 6-0
4. Devra REIMAN (IC) def. Ariel Kelner (CORT) 6-0, 6-1
5. Sarah HOLLIS (IC) def. Katie Freeman (CORT) 6-0, 6-1
6. Natalie JENERESKI (IC) def. Lauren Funes (CORT) 6-0, 6-0

Doubles competition
1. Alyssa JAFFE/Devra REIMAN (IC) def. Meg Cole/Amanda McElroy (CORT) 8-2
2. Melanie COHEN/Melissa NUNEZ (IC) def. Merchon Brower/Ariel Kelner (CORT) 8-1
3. Rachel GUNDERSON/Natalie JENERESKI (IC) def. Katie Freeman/Jennifer Carlisi (CORT) 8-1

The scores from the singles matches are similar to what would happen if I ever played Roger Federer, (we’ll just assume that Federer is off the court shooting Gillette commercials with Tiger Woods and Thierry Henry for games that I win).

Three hours until the Steelers-San Francisco game!

No Truth In Advertising

Thanks to winning free tickets by signing up as a designated driver during a Nationals game earlier this season, I went to Busch Gardens Europe in Williamsburg, Virginia over the weekend. I know that I shouldn’t complain since I received two tickets at $55 each for free, but why do amusement parks, in this case Busch Gardens, charge $10 for parking? It’s not like you can take public transportation to the park; you have to drive there. A family of four is going to spend hundreds of dollars on tickets, food and merchandise, so why the need for the parks to take even more money for parking?

Anyway, while I enjoyed the weekend, I have a little problem with the park’s name, Busch Gardens Europe. The park itself has several different sections: England, Ireland, Scotland, France, Germany and Italy. Last time I checked, Europe has a lot more countries than those represented at the park. So why not an area for Spain, Portugal, Poland, Denmark, Greece or The Netherlands? At a minimum, Busch Gardens could name different sections of the parking lot after the various countries. For example, I parked in Italy 38 (or Italy Tim Worley, so that I could remember it). Well, there’s already a section inside for Italy. Therefore, why not Slovenia 38? Maybe they could name a Dippin’ Dots stand for smaller countries like Monaco and Liechtenstein. The Budweiser Clydesdales seem like neutral horses, so they could be Switzerland. The possibilities are endless!

I guess I should just be happy that I didn’t need to convert my dollars to euros since I don’t think the exchange rate is very good.

Concert Game

Here's how this works: Copy the list, leave in the bands you've seen perform live, delete the ones you haven't, and add new ones that you have seen until you reach 25. An asterisk means the previous person had it on their list. Two asterisks means the last two people who did this before you had that band on their list.

1. Dave Matthews Band*
2. Goo Goo Dolls
3. Counting Crows*
4. Billy Joel*
5. Rusted Root
6. Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
7. Santana
8. Neil Diamond
9. Debbie Gibson
10. Better Than Ezra
11. The Rolling Stones*
12. Christina Aguilera
13. Tenacious D
14. Smash Mouth
15. Sugar Ray
16. Brian Setzer Orchestra
17. Anna Nalick
18. Spin Doctors
19. Barenaked Ladies
20. Ben Folds Five
21. The Four Tops
22. Guster
23. Pat Benatar
24. Corey Glover (lead singer of Living Colour)
25. Blue Oyster Cult

26. Adam Sandler (I felt like I should add him since he played guitar a lot during the show.)

I got this idea and list from Beelog. As you can tell, I have not attended many concerts over the past few years.

2007 Emmys - The Morning After

I thought I was pretty good connoisseur of television, but I successfully picked only two of the nine categories. While I thought last night would be all about The Sopranos, it really was all about Tony Bennett. "Tony Bennett: An American Classic" won three awards in the aired version of the show, plus he performed with Christina Aguilera. Tom Shales of The Washington Post has a real recap of the Emmys.

So maybe I'm just a connoisseur of bad television shows. In case you were wondering, here are my picks for shows that will be cancelled during the 2007-2008 season for the Alison LaPlaca TV Death Pool:

Scrubs (NBC)
Cavemen (ABC)
According to Jim (ABC)
Viva Laughlin (CBS)
Carpoolers (ABC)
The Return of Jezebel James (FOX)
Reaper (CW)
Online Nation (CW)
Nashville (FOX)
Big Shots (ABC)

I finished in sixth place last year out of over 100 entries. There looks like even more competition this year, and I'm a little worried about some of my picks. While I feel confident that my first six shows will not make it to the 2008-2009 season, Reaper may turn out to be decent, which means CW will keep the show, and I have no idea what will happen with the last three on my list.

2007 Emmys Live Journal

Welcome to my live comments and thoughts on the 2007 Emmys! I am live from my couch in Northern Virginia and will be here all night (or at least until I get bored or tired). Like “Everyone Loves Raymond” in 2005, I would be shocked if “The Sopranos” does not dominate tonight and receive its lifetime achievement award for Best Drama, actors, etc. I also expect to see at least three commercials tonight for the season premier of "Prison Break" (Monday night at 8:00 pm Eastern) and series premiers of "K-Ville" and "Back to You," the new comedy featuring Kelsey Grammer and Patricia Heaton. The Washington Post’s Tom Shales wrote that the show should be titled, “Frasier Goes to Pittsburgh.” In my book, that’s an endorsement! Anyway, feel free to post comments or predictions throughout the evening.

Enjoy the show... (I'll be back soon.)
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- Fox started the broadcast by having cartoons, specifically Stewie and Brian from the Family Guy. Fox has been a network for almost twenty years now, but is still best known for cartoons such as The Simpsons, Family Guy and King of the Hill.

- Ryan Seacrest’s monologue was fine since he really doesn’t have much talent. He was able to get a lot of applause just by introducing famous people and the most popular shows.

- Since Seacrest didn’t have much of a monologue, they let Ray Romano do a stand-up act before presenting his award.

- Did Ray Romano say something inappropriate? We didn’t hear his joke about Frasier, and I have a feeling that it wasn’t a technical difficulty.

- Supporting Actor in a Comedy: Jeremy Piven. I really thought Neil Patrick Harris had a shot, but I think Piven really carries Entourage more than Doogie carries HIMYM.

- I don’t really like this award show in a round thing they’ve got tonight.

- Supporting Actor in a Drama: Terry O’Quinn for Lost. He’s really good, but I thought Michael Emerson was better during the past season. Personally, I really believed Michael Imperioli was going to win. I’m now 0 for 2.

- Supporting Actress in a Comedy: Jaime Pressly for “My Name is Earl.” I didn’t have a pick for this category.

- Thomas Hayden Church has had an amazing career recently. He was on Wings about 15 years ago and then seemed to be gone for a while. Now, he has an Oscar nomination for Sideways and an Emmy win. Tim Daly will be on the Grey’s Anatomy spin-off this fall and Stephen Weber was good on the now cancelled Studio 60. What ever happened to Roy?

- Surprised that I made it forty minutes without mentioning that the Steelers won today?
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- Best Supporting Actress in a Drama: Katherine Heigl. I’m terrible in making predictions for this year. I actually thought that Rachel Griffiths would win as the three Grey’s nominees and the two Sopranos’ nominees would cancel each other out.

- Last Sunday: Britney Spears looked a little disheveled (that’s a nice way of saying it) while lip-syncing her new song on MTV’s VMAs. This Sunday: Christina Aguilera sings beautifully with Tony Bennett. Christina is clearly the winner between the two.

- Dammit! Benjamin Watson has a TD catch for the Patriots. My fantasy football is now tied in one of the two leagues I care about (I’m up 40 points in my other league; thank you Jake Delhomme!) In other Boston news, the Yankees and Red Sox are on ESPN. I’m SHOCKED that these two teams would ever be on national television.

- Anchorman is on ABC.

I might as well share my other picks for the night:
Drama Series – Sopranos
Drama Actor – James Gandolfini
Drama Actress – Edie Falco
Comedy Series – Two and a Half Men
Comedy Actor – Alec Baldwin
Comedy Actress – America Ferrera

- I just heard the best line from an NFL official after a flag was thrown. There was not a foul on the play. There was not a hold. The defender was just overpowered.

- Back to the Emmys. The Daily Show just won Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series. Did I miss anything else?
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If there is an award show, but Al Gore is not in attendance, can you call it an awards show? There is no way Al Gore is running for President. We need him at the Oscars, Emmys, etc.

The “Don’t Forget the Lyrics” bit with Wayne Brady, Kanye West and Rainn Wilson has been the best part of the show. Kanye West was terrific.

Time for bed. Good night!

Ladies Love the Black and Gold

Maybe you saw the story that Pittsburgh has “more football-loving women than any other city in the country.” If you’re one of these female Steeler fans, check out the following information about the 2007 Ladies Night Out Event:

For $95, ladies can pamper themselves as their evening will include a Prime Rib dinner in the spectacular East Club Lounge overlooking the skyline of the city of Pittsburgh with two current Steelers players as special guests giving insight on their weekly lives. Everyone will also receive a tour of Heinz Field as well as having an opportunity to be part of the audience in a live taping of the PNC Hines Ward Show in the Coca-Cola Great Hall. Finally, everyone will receive a commemorative 75th Season long sleeve ladies t-shirt, 2007 Steelers Yearbook, 2007 Steelers Value Book and a 2007 Team Photo signed by the two current players appearing at the East Club Lounge. The even is scheduled at Heinz Field on Wednesday, October 24 from 4:00 – 10:00 pm.

This sounds like a much better offer than “Purple: Just for Women” perfume for female Baltimore Ravens fans.

P.S. The picture is from Cites & Bytes @ Bailey, a library newsletter, a compendium of interesting tidbits, a communication tool....from Bailey Library @ Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania.

P.P.S. I expect to be back live on Sunday night for a live journal of the Emmy awards.

Steelers-Browns: No Longer a Rivalry

When I wrote about the best sports rivalries a few months ago, I received several comments both publicly and privately questioning why I failed to include the Browns and Steelers on the list. Sunday’s game clearly provided the answer. The Steelers have now won eight in a row against Cleveland and 14 of the last 15. Simply put, the Steelers-Browns series is not a rivalry anymore, and really hasn’t been since the Browns returned in 1999. A true rivalry is one where both teams have success against the other. The Yankees-Red Sox rivalry has only been a true rivalry since 2004. Before then, it was just a series of Yankees victories. Similarly, the Browns have to win a few games this decade in order for the rivalry to return.

In addition, I really don’t sense a hatred between Steelers and Browns fans and players anymore. Well, the rivalry still exists from the perspective of many Cleveland fans, but not for Pittsburgh fans. If you ask most Steelers fans who is the team’s biggest current rival, the answers will probably be the Baltimore Ravens or Cincinnati Bengals. Cleveland may even be the fourth choice after the New England Patriots. Gone are the days of Frank Minnifield, Bernie Kosar, Hanford Dixon, Ozzie Newsome, and the scariest player to ever face the Steelers in my lifetime, Eric Metcalf.

To me, the rivalry ended when Art Modell moved the Browns to Baltimore. The fact that a team with the history and fan support of the Cleveland Browns was taken away from such a passionate football city was inconceivable. There’s very little difference between Steelers and Browns fans, so Steeler fans stood in solidarity with Cleveland against Art Modell. We hated the fact that the NFL allowed the Browns to leave Cleveland. We actually felt empathy for Browns fans, and were happy when the new version of the Browns returned. In terms of a rivalry, how can you hate a team or fan base that had its franchise ripped away?

With all of this written, all the Browns need to do is hire Bill Cowher as its next head coach, and the rivalry will be back.

2007 Steelers Predictions

Welcome to the start of the NFL season! The Colts defeated the Saints last night and the first full slate of games begins on Sunday. With the new season, I thought I would share my predictions for the 2007 Pittsburgh Steelers.

- The team will finish 10-6 and earn a Wild Card playoff spot. They will win the first playoff game but lose in the second round.

- Clark Haggans will lead the team in sacks. Ike Taylor will lead the team in interceptions.

- Ben Roethlisberger will have more touchdowns than interceptions. He will also not be involved in a motorcycle accident or have an appendectomy this year.

- Mike Tomlin will not publicly kiss any players. He will also spit considerably less than his predecessor.

- Nate Washington will have at least six touchdowns.

- Chris Gardocki will not have a punt blocked this season (or any other season).

- At some point during the season, there will be some type of incriminating picture of kicker Jeff Reed at a bar.

- Fast Willie Parker will have another 200-yard game rushing.

- I will end up watching Steelers games in at least four states: Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and possibly New Mexico and Washington DC.

Feel free to leave your own predictions about the Steelers season, and we’ll check back in four months to see how we did.

US Open Questions

Why did last night’s match between Roger Federer and Andy Roddick start after 10:00 pm? It was almost 11:00 when Federer won the first set tie-break, which was also the same time I turned off the television to go to sleep.

Federer is, obviously, the #1 seed at the US Open; Roddick was the #5 seed. So why were they meeting in the quarterfinals? Shouldn’t the #1 seed face the #8 seed in the quarters with the #4 seed playing the #5 seed assuming that the top seeds advance? #1 should not face #5 until the semifinals.

Finally, will the US Open ever change its format so that the final set doesn’t end in a tie-breaker? This is one of my pet peeves in sports along with a shoot-out to end World Cup soccer matches. If it’s tied 6-6 in the third set in a women’s match or fifth set in a men’s match, they should keep going until someone wins by two games. If someone wins the final set 20-18, that just makes for exciting tennis. Just the other day, Venus Williams defeated Jelena Jankovic 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (7-4). I could be wrong but I don’t believe that Wimbledon, the French Open or the Australian Open end this way.

Jason Lee vs. Christopher Walken

I’m stealing an idea from the guys at Doubt About It where they match up two sports figures or teams with the winner buying drinks. Today, I’m asking the question: which actor made a worse professional decision: Jason Lee or Christopher Walken.

Jason Lee: You probably know Jason Lee from his roles in Kevin Smith movies, Almost Famous and more recently for his performance as Earl in NBC’s "My Name is Earl." Lee has earned two Golden Globe nominations in the Best Actor in a Comedy Series category for Earl. Based on his recent success, Lee parlayed his rising star power into the voice of "Underdog" and David Seville in this winter’s "Alvin and the Chipmunks." Well, I guess someone needs to be in kids’ movies. Despite a respectable opening weekend of $11.5, the movie earned less than $4 million in the third week. "Underdog" also received a whopping 13% rating (out of 100%) on Rotten Tomatoes.


Christopher Walken: You know Walken from The Deer Hunter (Oscar Winner for Best Supporting Actor), Catch Me If You Can (Oscar Nominee for Best Supporting Actor), Sleepy Hollow, Pulp Fiction, Batman Returns and Hairspray among his dozens of films over his distinguished career. Walken was also terrific dancing in a Fatboy Slim video and, of course, for his role in the “More Cowbell” sketch on Saturday Night Live. However, Walken has not always made the best career choices over the years (see Gigli, Kangaroo Jack and The Country Bears). Walken’s latest role is as someone called “Feng” in the “Ping-Pong comedy” Balls of Fury, which features the tagline, “A Huge Comedy with Tiny Balls.” The previews look silly (not in a good way) with Walken dressed ridiculously (again, not in a good way). The movie looks great if you’re a 14 year-old male. Balls of Fury earned $14.3 million this weekend and I’m guessing will end up earning approximately the same as Underdog give or take a few million. The movie also received a 26% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.


So who made a worse professional decision? Walken has made some questionable decisions throughout his career, but you always know he’ll be back with some good movies down the road. Jason Lee can always point to the fact that new episodes of My Name Is Earl will be back soon. However, two movies in a row that look terrible makes Lee the winner (or loser, I guess) of this game. Therefore, Jason Lee, buy Christopher Walken a drink and get his dog (and Underdog?) one too!

(I may have botched the ending here.)

Steely McBean Cut, Signed To Practice Squad

Over the weekend, the Steelers finalized their roster by cutting, among others, Ryan “Steely” McBean, the team’s fourth round draft out of Oklahoma State. McBean was one of the eight players signed to the team’s practice squad.

In other Steelers news, none of the other cuts seemed to be a major surprise. The biggest names cut by the team were Verron Haynes, who I like and hope makes it back to the NFL soon, and special teams ace Chidi Iwuoma. I tend to agree with Mike Prisuta of the Tribune-Review in that the Steelers should have kept Iwuoma, but I am not at the pay grade to decide who should have been left off the roster in his place.

Steelers mascot Steely McBeam is still around and should be available for birthday parties and Bar Mitzvahs.

Tennis Uniforms

I watched a few hours of the US Open on Saturday and was really impressed with the young Americans John Isner and Donald Young. Isner took a set from Roger Federer, which is nearly impossible to do unless your name is Rafael Nadal. The 18 year-old Young also played very well in a tough four-set loss to Feliciano Lopez. It looks like there are finally some quality American players besides Andy Roddick and James Blake.

The one part of the matches that has bothered me is the fact that Isner, Young and Lopez all wore the same Nike shirt and shorts (check out the pictures below). It’s like they are all on the same high school tennis team and were required to wear these uniforms by team rules. Do the players have any say into this or are they just happy that Nike is provided them with the clothing? I guess they do have the option of wearing a hat or headband.