Select a Presidential Candidate Quiz

With so many candidates running for President, wouldn’t it be easier to choose one who is most aligned with your views and opinions in a quiz format? Well, this 11-question quiz is designed to do just that! (Actually, the disclaimer states that “this quiz is not meant to pick your candidate for you; it is designed to inform the public of the various stances candidates make.”)

The candidate ranked highest by how much I agree with their stances is John Edwards. In last place: Tom Tancredo. I have no idea who Mr. Tancredo is unless he is related to Sara Tancredi from Prison Break.

I hope this quiz is a nice distraction for your Monday. Feel free to share your pick in the comments section.

Michael Clayton

By now, there is a good chance that you have seen commercials or trailers for the movie Michael Clayton, opening nationwide today. If you are debating whether or not to see it, I’m going to give an excellent reason to go to the theater. It’s not because of the 89% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the talk of an Oscar nomination for Best Picture or for the great acting of George Clooney and Tom Wilkinson. No, I recommend that you see the movie because of the major motion picture debut of Jason Strong starring as First Year. Not only is Jason an experienced stage actor and Pittsburgh native, but he’s also my opponent in fantasy football this week. There is no truth to the rumor that he will get bonus points if Michael Clayton makes over $25 million this weekend. If you do see Michael Clayton this weekend (the Steelers are on a bye, so you don’t have to worry about missing the game), get to the theater on time since Jason is in the opening sequence.

Jason also has a blog, where he wrote about his experiences at the Michael Clayton premier.

Life Insurance

This is an extremely random topic, but I’m looking for some advice. I’m interested in getting additional life insurance above what my company provides. I’m not planning on dying or anything; just looking for some information. Does anyone know of good companies to contact or of reputable insurance agents, preferably in Northern Virginia? I really have no idea where to start.

Eastern Promises Movie Review

Welcome to the first ever movie review here at Sean’s Ramblings. I’ve written about movies numerous times in the past although it generally involved movie quotes, the Oscars or a debate about the genius of Kevin Costner. Anyway, over the weekend, I saw the movie “Eastern Promises” starring Viggo Mortensen and Naomi Watts. Although this movie has been out a few weeks, I have heard very little about it except for positive reviews from BDK on the Junkies and my friend Chris. According to the October 5-7 box office numbers, "Eastern Promises" finished 11th this weekend with slightly less than $2.1 million. Compare that to "Mr. Woodcock" that finished in 9th place earning $2.3 million. Now in its fourth week in theatres, Eastern Promises has only made about $14.5 million in cumulative gross, so this is obviously not going to be Titanic or even The Kingdom (that’s the current movie where The Rock is a quarterback who learns he has a daughter; the daughter grows up to kidnap approximately 100 Dalmatian puppies for their fur, or something like that).

Since I don’t feel like writing a summary of the movie (I’m great at this movie review thing), here’s the plot outline “borrowed” from IMDB: “The film follows the mysterious and ruthless Nikolai (Viggo Mortensen), who is tied to one of London's most notorious organized crime families. His carefully maintained existence is jarred when he crosses paths with Anna (Naomi Watts), an innocent midwife trying to right a wrong, who accidentally uncovers potential evidence against the family. Now Nikolai must put into motion a harrowing chain of murder, deceit, and retribution.”

So here’s my review: “Eastern Promises” is a fantastic movie. The acting is terrific, particularly Mortensen and Armin Mueller-Stahl (I had to look up his name), who plays the head of the Russian crime family. I think both of them will earn Academy Award nominations for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor respectively. The story certainly kept me intrigued following Watts enter this completely different world and watching Mortensen just being a bad-ass. I’m not going to give away anything regarding the plot, but I just wanted to give a warning: there are a few scenes that are extremely violent. There were audible gasps by most of the audience on one or two occasions, and one woman ran out of the theatre appearing to suppress vomiting. You really could just close your eyes or look away for five seconds. So because of her, I’m writing to highly recommend Eastern Promises, but if you are against strong brutal violence, you may want to pass.

Steelers Seahawks Recap

On February 5, 2006, the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Seattle Seahawks 21-10 in Super Bowl 40 (sorry, I don’t feel like using Roman Numerals today). There was great celebration throughout the land! Well, except from Seahawk fans, the one Washington football fan that watched the game at my house and thought Seattle winning would make the Washington team look better for losing to them in the playoffs (I’m not friends with him anymore) and especially Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren. According to Holmgren, the Steelers did not defeat the Seahawks, the referees defeated the Seahawks. I wrote much more about this in the days following the Super Bowl here and here.

What really bothered me at the time and still does a little now is that Holmgren’s complaining somewhat muted my joy and elation at the Steelers’ Super Bowl victory. Instead of stories and news about the success of the Steelers, much of the post-Super Bowl coverage focused on the officiating and Holmgren.

On October 7, 2007, the 3-1 Steelers met the 3-1 Seahawks at Heinz Field in a regular season game. There have been a lot of stories this week leading up to this game about revenge or at the very least that the Seahawks would use that Super Bowl loss as motivation. In a conference call with Pittsburgh reporters, Holmgren said that people on the street talk about the Super Bowl, and now he says that it’s time to move on. However, the loss still haunts some fans as displayed in this The Olympian article (I’ll get back to this momentarily).

So what happened today? The Steelers, playing without Pro Bowlers Casey Hampton, Troy Polamalu, Hines Ward as well as Bryant McFadden and Santonio Holmes, overcame the loss of these players and six penalties for 64 yards and crushed Seattle 21-0. Pittsburgh dominated both sides of ball as the Steelers out-gained Seattle 342-144 and had over 40 minutes in time of possession. What Holmgren did not or could not say after the Super Bowl loss is that great teams win even when facing adversity. Maybe there were some questionable calls that went against the Seahawks in the Super Bowl, but there were also some calls that went against the Steelers today (were those really holding penalties on Wilson and Miller during the Steelers' third quarter drive?).

So to Mike Huston, president of the Snohomish County branch of the Sea Hawkers Booster Club, who desparantly wanted the Steelers to lose and said, “Steeler Nation and their stupid yellow towels…I’d like to see the Seahawks slap them down,” maybe next time! And never call the Terrible Towels stupid. And what kind of name is the Sea Hawkers Booster Club?

Burritos, Penguins, Madden and Umbrellas

I have received a few questions about the status of the free burritos for a year from California Tortilla. I am now through seven burritos with 45 to go. My first three burritos were my favorite, the Blackened Chicken Caesar burrito. Then, I started to realize that maybe going for a burrito bowl would be healthier than the tortilla. Since then, I’ve had three varieties of the burrito bowl: Veggie, Blackened Chicken Caesar and Thai. I did have a regular Blackened Chicken Caesar burrito as my last meal before the Yom Kippur fast though. I’m now at the point that I’m not sure what burrito to try next. Any suggestions?

In honor of the first Pittsburgh Penguins game of the season tonight, I have added a new link on the side. Visit the best Penguins blog out there, fittingly titled, The Pensblog.

I finished my first season of Madden ’07 the other night with a horrifying defeat. I, as the Pittsburgh Steelers, lost in the Super Bowl to the Dallas Cowboys 24-17. Trailing 17-14, I got the ball to the Cowboys 1 yard line with 9 seconds to go and used my final time-out. It was third down, and I decided to trust the Ask Madden button, who told me to kick a field goal. In hindsight, I should have tried to throw a pass to Heath Miller, but I took the safe choice (thanks to Ask Madden) to make the field goal to get into overtime. After the kick-off, the Cowboys got the ball on their own 30 with 5 seconds to go. On the final play, Drew Bledsoe launched a pass to Terrell Owens. Playing a Quarter Man zone (I think), I accidentally switched from a defensive lineman to Ike Taylor making Taylor run about 10 yards towards the line of scrimmage. All alone, Owens caught the pass and scored the Super Bowl winning touchdown. What a terrible way to lose. I may fire Bill Cowher.

Finally, listening to Yahoo! Music today, I heard two versions the Rihanna’s song “Umbrella,” but neither one was by her. One was by Mandy Moore and the other by someone named Marie Digby. Why are there two remakes of this recent song so soon?

Mission Accomplished

After 11 years, I submitted my final undergraduate college loan payment last night. I feel like I should write something about how I never thought this day would come or how this is such a great accomplishment. Well, I certainly am happy about this, otherwise I would not be announcing this on my blog. So today’s question, what is the bigger accomplishment?

1. Paying off my student loan,
2. Earning free burritos for a year,
3. Finishing sixth out of over 100 entries in a TV death pool,
4. Winning a fantasy football or baseball league (which hasn't happened yet, but it will - I hope) OR
5. Making it through the entire episode of "Cavemen" last night.

Discuss.

Weekend Review

I promised a thorough review of the weekend, so here you go. For non-sports fans, I promise some good stuff at the end of this post. I’ll start with the Steelers, who lost their first game of the season, 21-14, against the Arizona Cardinals. First, thanks to everyone for giving their comments and suggestions about how and where I could watch Sunday’s game during the engagement party. I was able to watch much of the first half at the party and most of the second half at a house. The Steelers obviously did not play their best, and I’m worried about the health of Troy Polamalu, Casey Hampton and Bryant McFadden. I was also disappointed by the offensive line as Willie Parker only had 37 yards rushing, the Cardinals had 4 sacks and it seemed like the line had about a half dozen false start or holding penalties. Ben Roethlisberger’s interception in the end zone while the team was on the Arizona 2 certainly did not help.

However, to put this in perspective, it’s not a terrible loss. Arizona has a decent team, and the Steelers were playing on the road. Let’s be honest, this was the Super Bowl for former Steelers coaches Ken Whisenhunt and Russ Grimm. I’m sure they have been preparing for this game since they got hired by the Cardinals. Plus, if the Steelers are going to lose a game, losing to an NFC team is much better than a defeat against a division rival or even against an AFC team. Conference wins and losses are factored into playoff tie-breakers. So now, let’s see how Mike Tomlin and the team respond to their first loss.

Two final notes from the game. Actually, two Arizona players. I had mixed reactions watching Larry Fitzgerald make incredible catches and seeing Steve Breaston return the punt for a touchdown. I really, really like both of those guys. Fitzgerald was amazing to watch when he was at Pitt, and I hope he turns out to be one of the best wide receivers in NFL history. Breaston is from Woodland Hills High School, so I’m glad that he’s representing his alma mater well.

I also had the opportunity to watch my first Pitt game of the year. After seeing Pitt get crushed by the University of Virginia, let’s just say that I am not planning on re-arranging my schedule to see another game this season. At the end of the first quarter, Pitt trailed 27-0 and had seven penalties, a botched on-side kick and a fumbled kick-off return. The offensive couldn’t move the ball and the defense couldn’t stop Virginia. The best part of the first quarter may have been ESPN’s interview with the Virginia Cavalier. With the game out of hand, the announcers also discussed how Thomas Jefferson was an anti-Federalist.

Overall, I had a lot of problems with the coaches in this game. Pitt ran this “Wildcat” formation where the running back lines up at the quarterback position about a dozen times. Maybe you run this formation once or twice a game to throw off the defense. Pitt has a freshman QB; let him try to pass the ball and run the offense. Don’t put the QB out as a wide receiver when the running back is never going to throw the football. Virginia knew this and stopped Pitt every time. On 3rd and 8, let the quarterback play quarterback! I also was not happy with Virginia coach Al Groh. Virginia was leading 37-14 with only a few minutes remaining and ran a fake field goal for a touchdown. That is simply running up the score, and my opinion, was classless. I guess Virginia was still upset losing to Pitt in 2006. Pitt Blather has much, much more on this game.

I’ll write more about fantasy baseball (damn you Dontrelle Willis) and fantasy football (damn you Brian Westbrook; actually damn you gametime decisions!) another time, but I wanted to finish with Vanilla Ice. As expected, I did not see him on Friday night; however, Arjewtino’s friends did. Great story and pictures!

Click for Cans 2007

This was a huge sports weekend, and I plan on writing about the Steelers, Pitt, Steve Breaston, fantasy football, fantasy baseball and much more later today or tomorrow. In the meantime, Campbell’s Chunky soup is again having its Click for Cans to fight hunger. Visit the Chunky website and vote for your favorite NFL team everyday (there’s a limit of one vote per day). The Green Bay Packers seem to win every year, so let’s help the Steelers win this year!

The site currently says that Click for Cans is coming soon and to come back on October 1, 2007. Well, today is October 1, so I expect the voting to begin soon.

Update 7:00pm - The site is now up and running. The Packers already have over 500 clicks; the Steelers are in 3rd with 91 clicks. Congrats to the Patriots, Chargers, Falcons, and Giants for having ZERO votes. Click for Cans runs until mid-December. Vote early and vote often!

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.

Fantasy Football Draft Recaps

I know that no one cares about other people’s fantasy football teams, but I’m posting the results of my drafts anyway.

League #1 - 10 teams; #10 pick in a serpentine draft:

QB Donovan McNabb (Round 5, #50 pick overall)
RB Brian Westbrook (1, 10)
RB Rudi Johnson (2, 11)
Flex Carnell “Cadillac” Williams (6, 51)
WR Torry Holt (3, 30)
WR Reggie Wayne (4, 31)
TE Kellen Winslow (7, 70)
DEF Miami Dolphins (11, 110)
K Josh Scobee (16, 151)

Bench
RB Fred Taylor (8, 71)
WR Jericho Cotchery (9, 90)
WR Vincent Jackson (10, 91)
QB Eli Manning (12, 111)
WR D.J. Hackett (13, 130)
WR Reuben Droughns (14, 131)
TE Tony Scheffler (15, 150)

I really like this team, assuming that McNabb stays healthy and Holt’s knee is OK. If not, I have terrific depth at the wide receiver position, so I may be able to upgrade my team later in the season through a trade.

League #2 – 16 teams; #15 pick in a serpentine draft:

QB Eli Manning (6, 82)
RB Brian Westbrook (1, 15)
RB Willis McGahee (2, 18)
Flex LaMont Jordan (5, 79)
WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh (3, 47)
WR Greg Jennings (7, 111)
TE Tony Gonzalez (4, 50)
DEF Minnesota Vikings (11, 175)
K Mike Nugent (15, 239)

Bench:
WR D.J. Hackett (8, 114)
WR Drew Bennett (9, 143)
QB Jake Delhomme (10, 146)
WR Derrick Mason (12, 178)
TE David Martin (13, 207)
RB Brian Leonard (14, 210)

I don’t like this team nearly as much. This is my fifth year in this league, and 16 teams are just insane. Part-way through the middle rounds, you see names that you don’t recognize. There is very little depth, especially at the QB and RB positions. Plus, waiting 29 spots before my next pick is painful. Quarterbacks go way too early in this league, so when I drafted Eli Manning, he really was the best QB available. I also selected Tony Gonzalez much sooner than I would in other leagues since there are receiving bonuses for tight ends at 50 yards receiving and a point per catch for wide receivers and tight ends. Overall, I am really relying on Brian Westbrook this season.

I was also invited to participate in a 14-team fantasy league through Mondesi’s House, but I won’t post my team here. (The draft took place last night; I did not have the #2 pick, which "Raul" mentioned in today's post.) Any regular reader of that site may find it funny that my first week match is against Adam, the Penn State fan. I really want to win, even though I've established that I can never win an argument with him.

My final draft for a league run by Pav at Scribbled Noise takes place over the weekend. I think I need to auto-draft that one.

For those of you who have made it this far, thank you. I’ll try not to write too much about my fantasy football teams over the next few months. I will, however, post my television death pool picks over the next few days.

Obsession

This is my busiest time of year, but has nothing to do with work or social activities. I am currently spending any free time with fantasy sports. My first of four fantasy football league drafts took place last night (Gobo has a brief recap), and I’m gearing up for the final month of the fantasy baseball league season for my two leagues. While four fantasy football leagues are probably a bit excessive, I only truly care about two of them. Actually, I take that back; I can be competitive so I care about all four, but I’m only really focusing on two of the four. As for baseball, I’m currently in third place out of twelve teams in both leagues. It does not look promising for a championship in either league. Have I mentioned that I hate Dontrelle Willis?

Over the past few days, I also spent time researching television shows for the upcoming season for the Alison LaPlaca Open TV Death Pool. I’ve selected my ten shows, which I will share here soon. As a reminder, the deadline to sign up for the LaPlaca Open is August 31, 2007 at 11:59 PM EDT.

Finally, I was recently interviewed for an article about the business of fantasy sports, which should be available any day now. While I’m not going to link the article here (if you want the link, e-mail me at seanramblings at yahoo[dot]com), I’m a little scared to see how my fantasy obsession is portrayed in print by someone who has never met me.

Joe Chiodo 1918-2007

The owner and operator of the historic Chiodo’s Tavern in Homestead, Pennsylvania died earlier this week. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has a thorough obituary, but I just wanted to share the story of my one and only visit to Chiodo’s. In the summer of 1996, after just turning 21, I interned at my Congressman’s office. When not handling phone calls from angry and/or crazy constituents, I played on the office softball team. We split two matches against the local fire department’s softball team in preparation for the big match against the Senator’s softball team. (As a complete tangent, a few of the firemen hated playing against me. Even though I was the smallest guy on the team and had no power, I consistently reached based on bloop hits, “seeing-eye” singles and errors. This is one of my proudest post-high school athletic accomplishments.) When we finally faced the Senator’s team, we were prepared and completely dominated them 17-6. (Unfortunately, it took about ten years until this Senator lost this badly again.)

This is a really long story just to write that we all went to Chiodo’s after the game. What a cool place! I avoided the “Mystery Sandwich,” but remember having good food and relatively inexpensive beer. Actually, I think the losing team paid, so that made the food and drinks even better. Chiodo’s closed over two years ago, and I never made it back after my first visit. There are/were not many bars with as much history and character as Chiodo’s.

Delaware

I’m calling you out Delaware! Well, note the entire state, just the small portion on Interstate 95. Even though the highway only goes through the state for about 10 miles, why is there always traffic and construction? Plus, why are the prices in the Delaware House Travel Plaza so high? Over the weekend, I bought a 7 oz. bag of Combos plus a 25 oz. bottled water. While the $1.79 price for the water is not too bad, the $3.99 cost for Combos is extravagant. Even worse is the fact that the store didn’t label the Combos price, so I didn’t know the cost until check out. With a line of a dozen people behind me, I really couldn’t exchange the Combos for a $2.50 small bad of Cool Ranch Doritos, which I already decided against because of the high price. As a comparison, an 8.8 oz bag of Combos cost $1.99 at CVS.

I’m heading back through Delaware on 95 in a few weeks, so I’m going to give the state a chance to redeem itself.

As a side note, how many millions of dollars does Delaware earn through tolls on 95? It seems like that could be a significant part of the state’s economy.

Worst Song Ever?

Whenever there is a discussion about the worst song ever, two songs are generally involved: “We Built This City” by Starship and “Achy Breaky Heart” by Billy Ray Cyrus. Personally, I have pretty good memories for both songs. When I was in elementary school, a friend and I thought the title should have been We Built This City on Rotten Rolls (this was very funny at the age of 10). Plus, I’ll always have a soft spot for Achy Breaky Heart because Myron Cope did a parody of the song. Anyway, I’ve gone off topic. I have a new nominee for worst song ever: “I Did Yo Boyfriend” by Melody.

Haven’t heard the song or the artist? You’re not alone, and I hope that you never do. I happened to hear this song on the radio last night, but through my internet search have had difficulty finding the lyrics or anything about the song. The artist is Melody, who has a MySpace page encouraging people to call radio station to request the song. As for the song, take the tune of “I Heard It Through the Grapevine,” change the lyrics, and there you go. Here’s the chorus:

Oooh, I did yo boyfriend
She didn’t know how to please him
Shorty, Oooh I did yo boyfriend
And you won’t ever get him back again.
Shorty, Shorty oooh

I did yo boyfriend, now your boyfriend’s goin be my baby


It gets worse. Here is part of the non-singing part of the song:

“Some things just ain’t meant to be
Like Bobby and Whitney
Like J-Lo and Diddy
Live Vivaca and Fifty
Like Kevin and Britney”

”I look better than you
I cook better than you
I dress better than you
And I sex better than you"

If you really, really want to hear this terrible song, it’s playing on Melody’s MySpace page. You have been warned!

Seeking Book Suggestions

Every few months, I ask for new book suggestions since I tend to go through books rather quickly during my bus and Metro commute. Today is one of those days. If you have any suggestions, please leave a comment or e-mail me at seanramblings at yahoo [dot] com.

Of course, asking for book suggestions can be vague since you probably have no idea what I like to read. Therefore, here is a list of books I have read over the past few months, which I hope will help:

- The Harry Potter series
- “Can I Keep My Jersey? 11 Teams, 5 Countries, and 4 Years in My Life as a Basketball Vagabond” by Paul Shirley
- "Chuck Klosterman IV: A Decade of Curious People and Dangerous Ideas" by Chuck Klosterman

Actually, I can't remember what I read before I started to re-read the Harry Potter series. I'm also a big fan of David Halberstam, Kurt Vonnegut and Nick Hornby. Thanks for your help!

McCormick and Schmick’s Gift Certificate

Make an online reservation at the McCormick & Schmick’s website before Friday (August 24) and receive a $25 gift certificate to any of the M&S restaurants. There are more details on the website, but this is a real deal. The only catch I have found is that only one coupon can be used per table.

In other food news, I used my first free burrito coupon at California Tortilla last night. Only 51 coupons left!

Jenna Bush Wedding Plans

You probably heard the recent news that Jenna Bush got engaged to University of Virginia graduate student Henry Hager. For no apparent reason, I thought it would be fun to see how the wedding planning is going:

Laura Bush: For an event this big, we need a wedding planner who can coordinate so many aspects of the big day while making sure that this stays a private affair.

President George Bush: I know the perfect person, Karl Rove. Now that he’s resigned, I know he is looking for something to do. He is the architect, so he can put together a great wedding at a decent cost.

Jenna Bush: That’s fine as long as he doesn’t dance or try to rap at the reception.



Laura: I’ll talk to him, honey. We really need to discuss the guest list. Do we need to invite ALL of these world leaders?

George: Well, Tony Blair is a must. He was fantastic in The Simpsons episode a few years ago.

Laura: I agree, but since he’s not the Prime Minister anymore, do we also have to invite Gordon Brown?

George: Yeah, I guess so, but he’s not as much fun as Nicolas Sarkozy. I really had a great time with him in New Hampshire, and I can’t wait to ride our bikes together in France.

Jenna: He was so cute on the boat too.



Laura: Do we also need to invite Jacques Chirac? You did work together for over six years.

George: Let’s put him on the list for now, but if we need to make cuts later, he’s the first to go.

Jenna: Can we invite Colin Powell? He was always so nice to me.

George: Well, we haven’t talked in three years, so he’s a no for now. Rummy is a must, and so is Paul Wolfowitz, even though that World Bank gig didn’t really work out for him.

Jenna: We can’t invite Wolfowitz. He’s weird!

George: I’m the deciderer! Wolfowitz gets invited.

Laura: Jenna, we can put him in the table in the back corner. You won’t even see him.

Jenna: Fine. Daddy, to celebrate the engagement, Dick [Cheney] wants to take Henry out quail hunting. I don’t want Henry to go with him.

George: I’ll see what I can do. I wonder if we can get a government contract for Halliburton to arrange the flowers. That could solve the problem.


This discussion will probably continue for the next few months. I wonder if President Bush can get arrange for Jenna to get first dibs at Filene Basement’s Running of the Brides.

Steelers-Redskins Recap

The Steelers defeated the Washington Redskins 12-10 in an almost meaningless preseason game last night. There are two reasons why I wrote the word almost before meaningless. First, the Redskins suffered injuries to two of their key players, quarterback Jason Campbell and linebacker Marcus Washington. The headline to this morning’s Washington Post article states “Redskins Escape with a Bruise,” so it sounds like Campbell’s injury is not too serious. Second, and more important for me, I got stuck in pre-game traffic on the Beltway on my drive to Baltimore. The traffic added at least 30 minutes to the trip.

As for the rest of the game, I only watched a few minutes. As I’ve written before, I really don’t care about the preseason. It sounds like I didn’t miss much as neither team was particularly happy with their performance. The Redskins have concerns about their running game and offensive line. The Steelers offense struggled and the defense had difficulty stopping the Redskins on third down. Just let me know when the real season starts.

Brand New Links

The Steelers have a 17-page rider for their hotel stays (from The Smoking Gun courtesy of the Post-Gazette’s Blog ‘N’ Gold). I have a few observations:
- For meeting space, the offense requires a 100 person theater style seating room with widely spaced chairs. Meanwhile, the defense requires a 50 person theater style seating space with widely spaced chairs. Why does the offense need double the amount of seats?
- Two omelet chefs for the pre-game meal. I love omelet stations!
- Each table must include Heinz Ketchup. Personally, I completely agree with this. Who likes Hunts over Heinz?
- The night of arrival “snack” includes pizza, hamburgers, chicken wings, linguini, ice cream (vanilla, chocolate and sherbet – what if someone wanted Mint Chocolate Chip?) and cookies. A nice light snack before bed.
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When I wrote my Israeli baseball preview last month, I mentioned a recent graduate of Haverford College named Ben Field. Well, the Director of Communications of Haverford contacted me to inform everyone that Field is now blogging about his experience. Interesting stuff.
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My favorite fantasy celebrity league website, Fafarazzi.com, has a “Rock of Love” fantasy game based on the VH1 dating show starring Bret Michaels of Poison. From the site, “The Rock of Love fantasy game lets you pick your favorite trainwrecks girls from the show to your ROL team -- then your team scores points when they do crazy stuff during the episode.” My personal favorite is Lacey, although I can’t see her winning on the show because she is, how can I say this, a little bit crazy. My guess is Mia or Madgalena will be Bret's pick. (Yes, I have a problem and it’s called VH1 TV shows.)
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Speaking of fantasy leagues, a Ph.D. candidate at Kent State University is doing a study about playing fantasy sports and why people play fantasy sports. I haven’t completed the questionnaire, but I’m all for helping a completely worthwhile project, assuming it doesn't take time away from my fantasy football league draft preparation. (Courtesy of Deadspin.)

California Tortilla Journal

As I wrote this morning, I left home around 5:40 am in an attempt to be one of the first 10 people in line at California Tortilla’s grand opening. Here are my notes from the adventure:

5:45 am – What the heck is wrong with me? I am up way too early just so I can stand in line at California Tortilla in Reston. My wife thinks I’m crazy, and maybe I am…crazy like a fox! The first ten people in line receive a free burrito every week for a year. I arrive outside the store and am the eighth person in line! I brought my comfortable folding chair, my walkman (yes, a walkman), which although I have not used in years still had working batteries much to my surprise, Sunday’s Washington Post Magazine and the book “Can I Keep My Jersey? 11 Teams, 5 Countries, and 4 Years in My Life as a Basketball Vagabond” by Paul Shirley.

The seven people in front of me are all teenage boys. (I wrote this at 5:50 am; I will amend this statement later.) There were chairs, a cooler and someone brought a tent. One of the seven is completely covered by a blanket on a hard steel bench. They camped out all night waiting for the grand opening. Apparently, they were not alone for the first part of the evening. About 30 people waited for the midnight release of Madden 08 at EB Games located next door.

6:30 – #9 arrives. I could have slept an extra 40 minutes.

6:45 – Four kids ride in on their bikes. They can’t be older than 12. According to California Tortilla’s official rules, you must be at least 18 years of age or older to win the burritos for a year.

6:50 – Four more people arrive, all much older than 18. Between the kids and the new folks, we now have more than 10. This could get interesting. I wonder if a fight outside of California Tortilla for free burritos would trump a fight at a chess tournament. I should also mention that the people numbered 11-30 in line receive a free burrito every week for a month, so there is a consolation prize.

7:10 – I’m not even sure that I want burritos for a year. I could get sick of them by week #2. If that’s the case, look for free burrito coupons on eBay.

7:30 – The card game Quems (sic) has just broken out among some of the teens. I didn’t know that this game existed anymore. I used to play Quems at EKC over 15 years ago.

7:55 – Six California Tortilla employees appear. Two of the four kids ask them if you really need to be 18 to win. They are told yes (again).

8:10 – There are now about 20-25 people in line. Cartoon Cuts and Parcel Plus are not going to be happy with all of the loiterers outside of their businesses.

8:30 – A woman asks me to sign a petition to allow for a referendum on Reston town status. I agree every though she’s a little annoying. Meanwhile, the dispute for the #10 spot continues. There is also a little controversy for spots #5-7. It turns out that these guys are only 15 (and are not part of the first group of guys) and are holding the spots so that their parents can claim the prize for them.

8:50 – I use the California Tortilla restroom. There are no prizes for being one of the first ten customers to use the bathroom.

9:05 – The guy on the bench woke up. He’s also not a teenager. The guy is probably in his late 40s and looks a little disheveled, which is completely understandable since he slept on a metal bench for at least 4 hours.

9:15 – The petition lady is getting on my nerves. I am tempted to ask her to remove my name from the petition, but I really don’t want to talk to her again.

9:30 – The property managers tell everyone that the chairs must go. While I would like to blame Cartoon Cuts for this demand, I think this is coming straight from the man/men.

10:00 – The Junkies radio show on 106.7 is done for the day. I definitely would not have made it the past four hours without listening to them. I’m so excited that my walkman still works too!

(Nothing really happened over the next 50 minutes. I stood and read my book and California Tortilla founders arrived to say hello.)

10:50-10:59 – Every minute on the minute, the kids yell how much time remains until the doors open. The sad part about this is I was probably just as annoying with my friends at that age as I was recently reminded of by Messiah in the Steely McBeam comments section.

11:02 – The first ten people, which includes me, are called inside and handed a stack of 52 coupons. I am really impressed that someone handwrote the dates on each coupon. I then reach the register and order a Blackened Chicken Caesar burrito and lemonade to go.

In case you were wondering, I took a half-day off from work but worked the entire afternoon. The parent for 15-year-old swap turned out fine. They were all very nice. I don’t know what ended up happening to #10. One of the four kids had that number, but I’m not sure whether or not they actually received the coupons. When I left the restaurant at about 11:10, there were about 75 people in line for a free burrito. I predict great success for California Tortilla in Reston and that I will not wake up at 5:20 for free food again.

California Tortilla Opens Today

Today is the grand opening of the California Tortilla in Reston! Stop by for free burritos and a beverage for everyone who visits for lunch (11:00 am to 1:30 pm) and dinner (5-7:30). I'm heading over now in hopes of being one of the first 10 people in line. I'll write more about my adventures (or lack thereof) later today.

With the recent additions of California Tortilla and Mama Lucia, which just opened a few weeks ago, Reston’s North Point Village Center is becoming the place to be (this may be a slight exaggeration).

Update 11:20 am - I was #8 in line and now have 52 coupons for a free burrito, one for every week over the next year. Much more later.

Damn You Chuck Klosterman

A few weeks ago, I was planning on sharing my thoughts on the classic single, “Bust a Move” by Young MC, but I thought I would wait until a better time. While I was going to write about the fact that I love this song (it was huge when I was in junior high), there was one specific part that has bothered me for some time now. However, in Chuck Klosterman IV: A Decade of Curious People and Dangerous Ideas (the book I just finished), Klosterman wrote what I have been thinking about:

“Bust a Move is confusing for the following reason: The last verse states, ‘Your best friend Harry / Has a brother Larry / In five days from now he’s gonna marry / He’s hopin’ you can make it there if you can / Cuz in the ceremony you’ll be the best man.’ Now, why would anybody possibly be the best man in a wedding where the groom is your best friend’s brother? Why isn’t your best friend the best man in this ceremony?”

Did he plagiarize my thoughts? I doubt it (I don't think we have the same mind connection as Harry Potter and Lord Voldermort did), but I’d still like to give myself credit for this observation.

Follow Up on Steely McBeam

Apparently, the nickname Ryan “Steely” McBean has been catching on for the Steelers’ rookie defensive end out of Oklahoma State as I have received scores of hits today from people searching “Steely McBean” on Google. Of course, there is a slight possibility people are just typing the name of the new Steelers’ mascot incorrectly.

I’ve thought about starting an online petition (if there isn’t one already) to stop the existence of Mr. McBeam. However, I realize that in the grand scheme of things, the addition of a new Steelers mascot, while silly and unnecessary, is not really a big deal. If the purpose of the mascot is to get the home team fired up at games, that’s not going to happen. In reality, while you can name the Pirate Parrot or San Diego Chicken, how many people know NFL mascots? Therefore, if the purpose is to have the mascot visit schools or attend community functions to benefit non-profit organizations, then I’m completely OK with the mascot.

The only recent mascot experience I have to compare with Steely McBeam is the debut of Screech for the Washington Nationals. Screech is an ugly part-owl, part-eagle that needs to lose a few pounds. In my mind, Screech is useless. With that written, I attended a Pirates-Nationals game earlier in the season and sat next to a father with his son who could not have been older than four. When Screech came to the section, the kid was thrilled and gave Screech a huge hug. I just hope that kids don’t get too attached to McBeam.

All About the Steelers

I have not written about the Steelers for some time, so I wanted to share my thoughts about the preseason and the new mascot. As all Steelers fans already know, the team won their first preseason game on Sunday night against the New Orleans Saints. woo-hoo. I seriously could care less about preseason games. My only hopes for a typical preseason is that the first team plays decently in the few series they are actually in the game and, more importantly, that no one gets hurt.

This year is a little different since Mike Tomlin is in his first year as a head coach, so I care that he’s getting “game” experience in that position. However, I still vividly remember Steve Spurrier’s debut as the head coach for the Washington Redskins. The team was very impressive in his first preseason going undefeated. Over the next two seasons, the Redskins went 12-20 and the "ball coach" returned to the SEC. While I truly believe that Tomlin will have much more success as an NFL head coach than Spurrier, this just goes to show that the preseason means little. Therefore, I’m done writing about it...except for this:

The Washington Redskins are promoting a “Preseason Special Package” for the August 18th game against the Steelers. Here’s the details:

Purchase the Preseason Special Package and receive the following for only $499.00...over a 50% savings:
• Two (2) Prime Sideline Seats
Enjoy the best sightlines in the stadium plus access to the club level concourse where you find wonderful amenities including hundreds of flat screen TVs, two sports bars, Club Macanudo - Washington's largest cigar lounge, Hooters, Johnny Rockets, Phillips Seafood & much more.

• Two (2) Tailgate Club Passes
o Opens three (3) hours prior to the game
o An all-you-can-eat BBQ
o Meet & greets by Redskins Alumni and Cheerleaders
o Receive a complimentary Redskins Yearbook
o Games for all ages

• One (1) on-site Parking Pass
o Park close to the stadium and be a few steps away from FedExField

If you're interested in this wonderful opportunity to spend $500 to watch back-ups and practice squad players for three quarters, call (301) 276-6800 and order the Preseason Special Package today!


Finally, the Steelers announced the name of the new mascot. I already wrote about this atrocity when the mascot was revealed suggesting “Unnecessary” as the name. Instead, the mascot will be called Steely McBeam.

I hope I'm the first person to give Steelers rookie defensive end Ryan McBean the nickname Steely McBean!

What American City Are You?

Here's another online quiz. This is an easy five-question one to determine what American city you are.

You Are Austin

A little bit country, a little bit rock and roll. You're totally weird and very proud of it. Artistic and freaky, you still seem to fit in... in your own strange way.

What American City Are You?

I don't understand how I'm Austin. While I acknowledge being a little weird, I don't think I would ever be classified as artistic or freaky.

I found this quiz from A 'Feel Good' Production.

Television Death Pool

Do you watch television shows and wish that they get cancelled (thanks Fox for getting rid of “The War at Home”)? Have you viewed previews for television shows and wondered how in the world did they get approved? If you answered yes to either of these questions or if you just like watching TV, this is for you. The 2007-2008 Alison LaPlaca Open Television Death Pool is here! From now until August 31st, “enter the web’s premier TV death pool.” It actually says that on the website, so it must be true! In all seriousness, I finished tied for sixth out of over 100 entries for the 2006-2007 season, which may be one of my life’s greatest accomplishments!

Simply select ten shows that you think will not make it to the 2008-2009 season. Click here for the entry form.

Is this the year that “According to Jim” is finally cancelled?

Thank You and Sorry

I want to thank the hundreds of visitors from across the globe for stopping at this little place over the past few days. I have received way too many visits from people searching Google for "Spider Pig" lyrics. I'm very excited to see so many Simpsons fans everywhere, particularly from the dozens of visits I have received from the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand.

I really wanted to write more than this tonight, but since it took 3 hours to get home courtesy of a Metro delay at Rosslyn, I'm a little tired. I'll try to write more over the weekend.

Bathroom Story

In celebration of an undefeated regular season, my ultimate frisbee team went to Rio Grande Café, a local Mexican chain, last night for food and drinks. I wish I could take credit for leading my team to victory, but in reality, I’m just lucky to be on a really good team. Anyway, after finishing my manly frozen strawberry margarita, I went to the restroom to relieve myself. As I washed my hands, I noticed someone come out of the stall, walk behind me and immediately exit the restroom. This person was a woman! I couldn’t tell if she was surprised to see me or even embarrassed. She just quickly exited the restroom, barely made eye contact and did not wash her hands. My initial reaction was maybe I was in the wrong place. However, while I have never been in the women's restroom at Rio Grande, I’m pretty sure that they don’t have urinals. Even when I left the restroom, I double-checked that the door said men (well, it was in Spanish so that could be confusing for some people – like me), but clearly the character on the door was a guy.

I don’t have a punch line here but am just wondering if there is something I should have said/done and has this ever happened to you?

Separated at Birth?

ESPN's Page 2 used to have a feature where they would have pictures of an athlete and celebrity next to each other to show a resemblance. Usually, the two didn't look very similar. Well, I think I found a pairing that actually works. I am proud to present actor Donal Logue from the "The Tao of Steve" and the recently cancelled (unfortunately) "The Knights of Prosperity" and NASCAR driver Tony Stewart.

Spider Pig Lyrics

I saw The Simpsons Movie this weekend, and now I can’t get the “Spider Pig” song out of my head (not that this is a bad thing). Therefore, I thought I would share the lyrics with everyone else.

Spider pig
Spider pig
Does whatever a spider pig does
Can he swing
From a web
No he can’t
He’s a pig
Look Out
He is a spider pig

Feel free to sing this song throughout the day!


(Sorry that I couldn’t find a larger picture. It was difficult just finding any Spider Pig picture.)

Woo-Hoo

The Simpsons Movie is out today!!!

Shorts Suit

Longtime readers already know that I am on the cutting edge of fashion through my writing of Burberry scarves and a suggestion of what to wear to a Steelers game. Therefore, when I see a fashion trend, I am quick (or a year behind) to report it. Today’s subject: the Shorts Suit. I have noticed several women wearing this outfit, which pairs a jacket with shorts, over the past few days. I don’t get it. A woman’s suit should be a jacket and either pants or a skirt. This look does not seem professional. Would you actually wear a shorts suit to an interview or important meeting? I think not. For the other fashion gurus out there, am I alone on this or do you agree with me?

Random Stuff

* Harry Potter is still on my mind, and while there are no spoilers here at Sean’s Ramblings, I like being able to read people’s thoughts about the book. Gobo has some good thoughts and links to a terrific post on Brooklyn Arden, plus, The Washington Post held a live HP discussion.

* My next book after reading HP7 and re-reading the other Harry Potter books over the past month or so: Chuck Klosterman IV: A Decade of Curious People and Dangerous Ideas.

* I’ve had Lou Bega’s Mambo #5 in my head all day. What a great song! (I am completely serious about this statement.)

* I received Madden 2007 for my birthday and played it for the first time last night. I’m still learning the controls, but in the easy mode, I led the Browns 40-0 as the Steelers when I turned off the game at halftime. Fast Willie Parker had only 200 yards rushing. Playing in the regular mode as the Steelers tonight, I squeaked by the Washington Redskins 9-6. I need to learn how to consistently run and pass the ball, and hope by defense and special teams can continue to carry me until then.

* Big day for live discussions on The Washington Post. Poison singer Bret Michaels was online, although I was personally hoping for more details about VH1’s “Rock of Love” show. However, this was my favorite question and answer:

Germantown, Md.: Here we go Steelers, here we go!

Bret Michaels: You said it, my brother!

In addition, this was in Dave Sheinin’s baseball chat:

Arlington, Va.: As a Pirates fan, how bad are they going to be next year? I think the Nats will give them a run for their money.

Dave Sheinin: Wow, the Pirates. What a terrible franchise. I know GM David Littlefield quite well, having covered the Marlins when he was the assistant GM. But I can't for the life of me figure out how he has kept his job in Pittsburgh.

* Finally, I received an e-mail from Baskin-Robbins for a free 8 oz. Fruit Blast Smoothie on Wednesday, July 25th from 3PM to 10PM at participating Baskin-Robbins®! Although I cannot find any information about this on the Baskin-Robbins website, the only asterisk on the e-mail is a limit of one per customer.

Iran So Far Away

When I was looking for a job several years ago, I signed up to receive e-mails for positions at colleges and universities. Even though I’m not on the job search anymore, I still receive these weekly e-mails since I like seeing if there are open positions at schools where I used to work or attend. (In reality, I’m just too lazy to unsubscribe from the list.) Generally, I simply delete the messages, but a recent e-mail got my attention. The Iran University of Science and Technology (“IUST” – doesn’t this sound like a branch of Indiana University) in Tehran is looking for Assistant Professors in Fluid Mechanics and Thermal Sciences; Solid Mechanics- Dynamics and Control; Aerospace; Biomechanics; and Manufacturing. It seems a little odd that IUST is seeking candidates from the United States. Anyway, if you're interested in teaching at IUST, the complete job description is here and you may need to speak Farsi.

I really hope that the mascot for IUST is an iguana!

Finished (No Spoilers Here)

I just finished the seventh and final Harry Potter book. While I really want to talk or write about it, I realize that many folks have not yet finished, so I won’t do either. Therefore, as I am typing this, I am listening to a Podcast from MuggleNet.com with five people discussing the book. It’s helping a little, but I have my own questions and observations.

One story from Barnes & Noble on Friday night that Harry Potter fans may appreciate. There were some people dressed as Harry Potter or wearing wizard hats or robes. I decided to dress like a character that I knew would not be duplicated, Dean Thomas. To do this, I took a small piece of paper, wrote Dean Thomas on it, and taped it on my shirt like a name tag. I thought it was funny even if it probably wasn’t.

If you want to leave any Harry Potter comments, please feel free to do so. For those who have not finished the book, you may not want to read the comments in case there are spoilers there.