This and that ...

Just a few more random thoughts creeping and crawling inside my head.

* The Jonas Brothers? Seriously?
* Where about 2 months from the NFL draft ... why is there so much news about it now?
* Can someone please give me some good news about the economy? Go ahead and lie to me if you have to.
* I updated my quote list - check it out here: http://losrulz.tripod.com/quotes_10.htm
* After seeing highlights of the NBA all-star game, I realized that I was not part of the target audience.
* I went to Mardi Gras in New Orleans 11 years ago ... someday, I'll return.
* I'm thinking about getting my freshwater fishing license and going trout fishing this year ... it's been too long.
* For those of you who think all Germans are evil, check out the show on "Valkerie" The Plot to Kill Hitler" on the History Channel, and then get back to me.
* I think if Liverwurst had a better name, more people would like it ... same goes for blood sausage.

Weekly Assignment

Lots of tempting assignment prompts from Mama Kat. I chose a tricky one - What made your childhood bearable? Write about it.

I guess it's tough to write about one thing that made my childhood bearable - in retrospect, I had a very good childhood. I was lucky enough to grow up with good friends and cousins - many, many memorable times. I probably could've posted a hundred blogs about the good times we had. But, truthfully, I can credit another "source" for making my childhood bearable.

My parents always gave me opportunities to have fun and grow as a person. In the summertime, my mom took me to the public pool we were members of almost every day. I learned to be a very good swimmer at an early age. I also made friends with lots of people because of the pool. So many great memories - playing underwater tag, drain tag, basketball, wiffleball ... pre-teen and teen splash parties. My summers were never boring.

My parents always made time for me with sports - My father often took me outside and had a catch with me, even after a long day of work. It was important to him to spend quality time with me, and it meant a lot to me. My parents spent much of their free time taking me to my boys club soccer, baseball, and basketball games. I never realized the investment they made at the time, but I am so grateful for these sacrifices.

Also, my parents made sure I was immersed in the German culture - taking me often to German clubs, teaching me German as a little tyke, and taking me on multiple trips to Germany throughout my childhood. Sure, at times, I would've rather have hung out with my friends, or watched tv, but I'm so glad they made me learn about my heritage.

I've never thanked my parents enough for all they've done for me as a child, and all they continue to do for me to this day. I love them so much, and they have been a huge influence in who I am today.

Vielen Dank, Mama und Papa! Ich liebe dich, beide!

Song of the Week

If you like the band Scissors for Lefty, you can probably be my friend. Most knowlegable people have probably heard their hit (in the UK) Ghetto Ways, which is chocked full of cool hooks, and catchy choruses. And don't get me wrong - I love that song. But a song I found more intriguing is their lesser-known song, "Lay Down Your Weapons." As a fan on amazon.com stated - the band has a great balance between a "cool retro sound and a modern, up-to-date style."

It has some interesting kazoo-sounding instrument that weaves artfully throughout the song ... my guess is that it is supposed to symbolize a police car. Just a fun band that doesn't seem to take itself so seriously, and is more concerned the audience is having fun. Refreshing.

You can find out more about them here.

Fast Food Corner

The Slider craze is here, folks. You see sliders on the menu everywhere from Chili's to Appleby's, to even Burger King ... and I can't deny it - I LOVE me some sliders. For those not in the know, sliders are really only tiny burgers ... sure, there are some "gourmet" sliders around, with toppings like anchovies or even salsa ... but really, their just dressing up the mini burger.

Here's my question - shouldn't White Castle be pissed about this? Didn't they come up with the slider idea first? I mean, this is all they really had on the menu ... and man, do I love White Castles! We had a White Castle about 10 minutes from my house for a few years ... and I visited the restaurant several times. In fact, one time, a group of us tried to eat 100 of the White Castle burgers - I think it was 7 of us. Sadly, we failed.

Before White Castle restaurants opened in and around Philly, a friend of mine and his parents would travel to New York just to get White Castles ... either that's dedication, or sheer lunacy (or more likely, a little of both).

Unfortunately, the White Castles in the Philly area have all disappeared. The only way we can now "enjoy" White Castles is to get them in the supermarkets ... but something just isn't the same about it ... is it the taste? Maybe. Could it be the "experience" of going to White Castle to get these mini burgers from heaven? Probably. I miss you, White Castle!

Beatles - Stones comparisons

You've probably heard some comparisons of musical groups to the Stones and Beatles. For instance, how about this one - "Nirvana is the Beatles to Pearl Jam's Stones." Basically, it defines musical groups who were the biggest (and most influential) in their eras. For instance, you could probably draw the reference that "The Killers are the Beatles to The Bravery's Stones." Usually, the "bigger" or more popular band gets the "Beatles" reference, while arguably the more talented band (my opinion, of course) gets the "Stones" comparison.

I'm wondering if we could do these comparisons with other areas. I came up with a few, just to test this:

* Ketchup is the Beatles to Mustard's Stones.
* Emeril is the Beatles to Rachel Ray's Stones.
* Hulk Hogan is the Beatles to Ric Flair's Stones.
* Hamburgers are the Beatles to Hot Dogs Stones.
* The Three Stooges are the Beatles to The Marx Brothers Stones.
* The Cubs are the Beatles to the White Sox Stones.
* The Yankees are the Beatles to the Red Sox Stones.
* Howard Stern is the Beatles to Man Cow's Stones.
* Judas Priest are the Beatles to Iron Maiden's Stones.
* The Big Mac is the Beatles to the Whopper's Stones.

You guys and gals have any comparisons like this?

Movie Reivew - The Wrestler

The wife and I were finally able to see The Wrestler last weekend - I've been looking forward to seeing this flick for months now because (a) I heard Mickey Rourke's performance was excellent, and (b) I still like professional wrestling (for some reason). I figured I'd give a quick review without giving too much away.

First, Mickey Rourke was awesome - he really worked on the part of this broken-down wrestler, and his performance made me really "believe" he was a wrestler. It seemed like he took a bunch of real bumps for the flick - which really added to the authenticity of the movie. The co-stars were excellent - Marissa Tomei was great as a stripper (plus, you got to see her boobies almost the entire movie). Evan Rachel Wood played the scorned daughter perfectly. Plus, the supporting cast was very believable.

My wife almost walked out of the theater during the one wrestling match - it was reminiscent of the classic ECW hard-core matches, complete with a power stapler ... I'll leave it at that.

But, the one thing I didn't like about the movie was the lack of closure at the end. Additionally, the movie pulled a Sopranos on us by fading to black abruptly, leaving the rest of the "experience" to the audience's imagination. Look, I'm a simpleton. I don't go to a movie to "imagine" what would happen next. I want to KNOW what happened - I want to see it with my own eyes. Indie flicks always seem to pull this crap, just to be "different," and to get people talking. Sorry guys - I'm not talking about what I think happened - instead I'm talking about how lame you are for pulling that crap.

All in all, a good movie - may not be worth the trip to the theater, though.

Ahhh ... memories

Mama Kat's recent post about playing basketball as a child reminded me of my own trials and tribulations in my early years of sports. I figured I'd share some of these with you.

The first "team" sport I played for the local youth club (at the time, it was called boy's club), was tee ball. I remember it well - my team was sponsored by Reeser's Auto Body - a local establishment. The team color was yellow, and our team started off absolutely terrible. I remember our first game - it was a 12-6 loss, and probably could've been worse. I could barely hit the ball past the pitcher's mound. And, worst of all, I remember being so upset when we lost, that I cried. You see, my parents really never introduced me to losing - in the back yard practicing with my dad, I thought I was the next coming of Babe Ruth. This, unfortunately, didn't translate to the tee ball field.

In the fall, I played soccer. Again, I was fantastic in the back yard - scoring goals against my dad like I was Pele. Again, this didn't transfer to the pitch - I couldn't crack the starting lineup - mainly because I was more concerned about stepping on bees. Our team didn't win a single game that year.

In the winter time, I played intramural basketball - I was the only kid on the team that didn't score a single point. I was so close that last game - I had a layup that went off the rim, and I had a wide-open shot that hit the backboard and then the rim before falling to the ground.

No, it didn't seem like I would excel at sports at all. Thankfully, as time went on, I got better, and became semi-decent in most games.

Steroids and Baseball

I'm sure most of you are just as tired of hearing about A-Rod and steroids at this point. You can't swing a dead cat without hitting a television set with an A-Rod story. Everybody has his/her own opinion about baseball and steroids - should asterisks be put next to the "records?" Should these players be suspended for life? Should we not even care at this point?

I've heard quite a few players in the media say things like, "Well, just because this and that guy did steroids, doesn't mean everyone did steroids," or "I'm so upset with these players who admit to using steroids, because now everybody thinks I did steroids too."

Here's how I react to this - if those players who haven't been "cheating" have a problem with this, why not step up to the plate (no pun intended)? Seriously, stand up to the union that allowed this to happen, and have protected these players for years, even though they knew for a while about it. This union is for all players, right? It's not just for juicers, is it?

Better yet, why not put together a group of non-cheaters who voluntarily take blood tests to prove they are clean? This way, you guarantee to everyone that you haven't taken steroids of human growth hormones, right? Seriously, why isn't this happening? If indeed the majority of players are not "cheating," then why aren't they banding together to make sure nobody else cheats? Something isn't right.

Weekly Homework Assignment

I had a tough time choosing an assignment from Mama Kat this week. Everybody knows I hate American Idol. I'm too lazy to take a picture of myself. It would be too easy to write about my negative feelings about the NBA allstar game. I have way too many pet peeves to figure out my number 1. And since I'm a great brother, I never di anything bad to a sibling (cough-cough).

I decided to take on the American Idol prompt - what song would I sing if I were on American Idol. Let's see, I don't have a great range with my vocals ... and I love the Rolling Stones ... the choice of band was easy, but what song? There are so many to choose from, and I love just about all of them.

Should I go with an old classic like Honky Tonk Woman? It's a toe tapper, sure. But, it's a bit short, and the vocals aren't that tricky.

What about a newer song, like Mixed Emotions? Probably not popular enough.

Maybe a "war horse," like Start Me Up? Don't get me wrong, I love that song ... but I think it may have been a tad overplayed.

No, I think I'd choose a classic with some bite to it - Sympathy for the Devil. First, it's kind of edgy, even to this day. Second, amazingly it does allow Mick to stretch his vocal chops a little. Third, the ending of the song really gets the crowd going. Yes, I think this would be the song I'd choose ... although if you asked me next week, I'd probably choose a different Stones song.

Story-time

My wife and I went to my friend Ray-Ray's this past Saturday for a "Mexican and Bowling" themed Valentine's Day get-together. Of course, we had a great time ... I mean, how couldn't you ... beer, margaritas, tacos, enchiladas, and bowling ... it's really a no-brainer, right?

So, because we had so much fun, Schue and I did the right thing ... we decided to stay over Ray-Ray's. Now, here's the problem - Schue loves having the tv on at night, but Ray-Ray doesn't have a tv in his guest room (why would he - he's never in there). So, I usually have to tell Schue funny (boring?) stories to get her to sleep in those occurrences.

The story I told her Saturday night almost made her puke ... not because it's disgusting, but she just couldn't stop laughing. I'll give you the shortened version of it. My mom used to cut my hair ... hey, it saved money, right? Here's the thing, though ... she used to cut my hair in the kitchen ... with the door open ... and I had to (get ready for it) .... sit on my younger brother's high chair ... I was in 6th grade, mind you! Hey - I heard ya snort!

I believe I let my mom cut my hair until I was in about 9th grade ... I started going to a "professional" barber for many reasons ... the one down the street had Playboy magazines; I couldn't fit in the high chair anymore; and my mom did an absolutely terrible job that last time - I looked like a monk.

Song of the Week

I've been following this band called "The Automatic" (or The Automatic, Automatic in some circles) for about 3 years now. They have a distinctive sound, some cool guitar riffs, interesting lyrics, a talented singer, and some sort of screaming rapper in the background (not nearly as annoying as the overdone voices from some of the newer emo bands).

Anyway, their album "Not Accepted Anywhere" will probably make you want to get up and dance, and play a lick or two of air guitar. The song that I've been focusing on most has been "Monster." The lyrics are a little weird, but the tun itself is just way too addicting. You'll probably wake up in the middle of the night with this one in your head and won't know what to do to get it out of your head.

You can find more information on the band here.

Fast Food Corner - KFC Popcorn Chicken Review.

If you love fried batter with just a touch of chicken, then KFC Popcorn Chicken is a perfect match for you. I am that person. I love popcorn chicken. In fact, I'd probably be ok if KFC did away with the chicken, and just served fried batter balls (FBBs).

The colonel certainly caught lightning in a bottle when he came up with his secret recipe for fried chicken. And whoever came up with the popcorn chicken idea probably should win the Nobel prize, a pulitzer, probably a grammy, and just about any other award out there.

Sadly, I'm pretty sure this fried batter (probably inspired by angels in heaven) is not very good for you. If someone could come up with a way to make it good for you, that person would probably be deified.

This and That ...

Here comes another round of random thoughts that I have creeping and crawling in my head:

* Where did Mr. Rogers go at the end of every show? He would just change his shoes and sweater, and leave. I mean, seriously, wasn't that his house? He would show up, hang out for an hour, and then leave ... like we were his bitch or something like that.

* Who is faster, Speedy Gonzalez or the Road Runner?

* Brett Favre probably wishes he would've just retired before last season ... The Jets probably wish the same thing.

* A-Rod did steroids? I wouldn't be more surprised if I woke up with my face stapled to the carpet. At this point, I get the feeling everybody was (is) doing steroids in baseball.

* I really, really hate the new Amtrak radio ad ... the "choo-choo" one. It annoys me about as much as that new Geico commercial.

* Thank goodness that baseball season is here again ... go Phils!

Really?

So, a story was released by Sports Illustrated on a supposed anonymous drug test that was conducted by Major League Baseball in 2003, in which more than 100 players tested positive for steroid use. Apparently, the federal government (having solved all the other problems of the world) had seized the results of the drug test for use in upcoming cases against Major League players who lied under oath.

First, let me say that at this point, I'm not shocked by anybody on the list. In fact, NOBODY'S name on this list would surprise me. Baseball encouraged the use of steroids (even if they don't admit it) to increase the popularity of the sport in the 1990's after the lockout. Everybody's guilty in my opinion - the players, the owners, the union, the agents - all of them.

The sad part is that part of the charm of baseball was always the stats ... moreso than in any other sport. Even a casual fan knows the main numbers - 714, 755, 61, 56 ... it was always fun seeing players get close to these "unachievable" records, only to fall short (the fun was in the chase). Then, steroids ruined it all - first McGuire shattering the season home-run record ... then Bonds breaking the all-time home-run record ... all thanks to juicing up. Those numbers and stats mean nothing anymore.

But, the popularity of the sport has never been bigger ... apparently, most fans could care less, as long as they see action. And action equals home runs and lots of scoring ... it's kind of like Arena football ... but in a good way (I guess).

A-Roid's admission that he took steroids in a 3-year span should surprise nobody. Not sure how his image will be affected by this ... he'll probably be better off than Clemens and Bonds because at least he admitted it, while the other two knuckleheads vehemently denied juicing, despite mounting evidence. What will this do to the relevance of the stats, or even more importantly - the Hall of Fame? Will they have a wing dedicated to the juicers? Who knows.

Roller Derby!

A coworker of mine and I were briefly conversing about our weekend, and he mentioned he went to a roller-skating rink with his daughter (I think). Anyway, this spurred on a discussion ... actually, probably more like a walk down memory lane. Do you remember when roller rinks were all the rage? I do.

There was this rink near my house called "Skate Oddyssey," and I went there many times as a youngster ... usually for either birthday parties or school functions. No, I wasn't a very good roller skater, but it didn't matter. I remember vividly (for some reason) skating around the rink in a pair of rented roller skates (I think they were blue with red stripes), my blue corderouys (from the Gap), and a blue and red striped shirt (no, I wasn't retarded), skating to "We've Got the Beat" by the Go-Go's (ok, maybe I was a little retarded).

The funny thing about this roller rink was that it had a "beginners" area set aside from the actual rink ... this beginner's area actually had columns sprinkled throughout the middle of it ... kind of an odd place for columns ... I saw many a kid uncontrollably crash into these columns ... and I probably did so as well on a few occasions.

Also, this roller rink had a fantastic arcade that featured Pac Man, Donkey Kong, and Defender ... I was not good at any of these games sadly, so I stuck with Space Invaders. The cool older kids hogged up Defender and must've had 8-10 quarters on the top of the machine (these signifed "next game").

I also remember the "slow skates." The DJ (located in the center of the rink) would play slow songs, like "Faithfully," and "All Out of Love" and the couples would go out and skate around the rink holding hands ... I was always nervous/anxious about this for some reason ... would a girl ask me to slow skate (probably a long shot, considering that I didn't skate well, and the clothes I was wearing)? Should I ask a girl to skate? Should I stand on the side and tell fart jokes? The possibilities were endless ... ah, to be young again!

Weekly Assignment

Mama Kat's weekly assignment is here! This week, I chose the following prompt: What was the first CD (or record or cassette) you ever purchased? Write about the way that particular album made you feel then. Write about how it makes you feel now?

I grew up in a time when albums were still the most popular music "medium" around. Cassettes were out, and they were just supplanting the 8-track as the second-most popular music "medium." My parents had bought me quite a few albums, but the first one I really remember is a Sesame Street album. Sadly, I don't remember the title anymore, but I do remember the album art consisted of all of the Sesame Street humans (you know, Luis, Mr. Hooper, Linda, Maria, Gordon, Bob) in the playground area of the street. I listened to this album (along with other Sesame Street albums) a lot ... until I got my first cassette player ... I think I was around 5.

I remember going to the Mac Dade Mall with my mom all the time, and asking her to go to Radio Shack. I REALLY wanted a cassette player, but my mom was convinced that I was too young to have one. I took her to the store to show her that I indeed knew how to use this player ... I knew the play button, stop button, eject button ... heck, even rewind and fast forward. I guess after a bunch of times, my mom finally believed me and agreed to purchase said cassette player. She even got me "The Muppet Show" on cassette. I swore that this was the funniest cassette ever. I couldn't get enough of it, and practically knew every bit on the tape by heart (along with the Chipmunks Christmas tape ... which I played even when it wasn't Christmas).

I guess these early experiences played a large part to my love of music ... sometimes, I think about those cassettes and records, and wish I could have them again ... just to listen to one more time.

Baltimore Blast

The title of this post is actually the former team name of an MISL (indoor soccer) team in Baltimore ... but the title seems fitting. Slant and I visited our college roommate Mung in Baltimore this past Saturday. Slant usually gets very excited by these trips, because he enjoys the constant banter between Mung and me ... we usually have some sort of arguments regarding music or women, and these arguments become louder and less coherent as the night goes on.

Even though this weekend was no exception, deep down, Mung and I really enjoy each other's presence (in small doses). Mung drove us down to the Harbor, and we ended up touring many old haunts (eating something in just about every one of these places), admiring the changes done to the city's infrastructure, and reminiscing about funny stories from our past.

We basically closed down the bars ... something I don't do very often anymore, and on the cab ride home, Mung threw beer on me (for old-time sake, I guess). Thanks for the great time, guys.

Fast Food Corner

We're getting close to St. Patrick's Day, which means we'll be overloaded with McDonalds commercials promoting the Shamrock Shake ... I'll be honest, I've probably never had a Shamrock Shake before ... which means I'm probably breaking some sort of moral ethics code or something.

Since I've never had the Shamrock Shake, let me go into other McDonalds shakes ... I personally love the Vanilla shake ... but one thing I can't stand is how unbelievably thick the shake is ... almost impossible to suck out with a straw without damaging one's brain. Still, this helps to lengthen the experience, which I'm very much in favor of. You see, if this was easier to eat/drink with a straw, I'd be done it in 30 seconds, and probably have a massive brain-freeze experience.

Wendy's now has some sort of signature shakes ... I'm thinking about giving those a try. Has anybody had these?

Song of the Week

I've never really gotten into Bloc Party all that much ... I bought the first cd, and it was ok, but it never got me excited enough to buy anything else from them. However, one song that I absolutely can't get out of my head (or MP3 player) is Banquet - arguably their most popular song.

It starts off with a swooshing sound, kind of like a helicopter ... followed by toe-tapping drumming prior to actually jumping into the song. To me, the song sounds like a blending of The Police, Joe Jackson (think Steppin' Out), and Men at Work. The band is often compared to the Cure and the Strokes.

Here's some more information on the band from Wikipedia, in case you are interested:

Bloc Party are a British indie rock band, composed of Kele Okereke (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Russell Lissack (lead guitar), Gordon Moakes (bass guitar, synths, backing vocals) and Matt Tong (drums, backing vocals). Their brand of indie rock has been compared to bands such as The Cure, Gang of Four and The Strokes.[1]

The band was formed at the 1999 Reading Festival by Okereke and Lissack. They went through a variety of names before settling on Bloc Party in 2003. Moakes joined the band after answering an advert in NME magazine, while Tong was picked via an audition. Bloc Party got their break by giving BBC Radio 1 DJ Steve Lamacq and Franz Ferdinand's lead singer Alex Kapranos a copy of their demo, "She's Hearing Voices", which was later released as a single.

In February 2005, the band released their debut album Silent Alarm. It was critically acclaimed and made NME's Album of the Year list.[2] The album was certified platinum in the UK a year later. The band built on this success with the release of their second studio album, A Weekend in the City, in 2007. The album reached a peak of number two in the UK and number twelve in the Billboard 200. In August 2008, the band released their third album, Intimacy.

Game Night

My brother and his wife invited us over for game night this past Saturday. Usually, we skip game night, because we either have other plans or we make other plans - game night sometimes doesn't sound that fun. Saturday night will make us reconsider that thought. We had an absolute blast sitting around the table, playing a variety of board and card games, and just conversing, joking, and making fun of each other.

The first game we played was Turbo Uno ... for the most part, this game is the same as Uno, but there is some sort of "mechanical" card dealer that you must hit when you need to take a card ... the twist is that this dealer can give you anywhere from 0 cards to 8 cards (I think). It adds a fun, and sometimes frustrating twist to an already fun game. One game took us about an hour to play ... so, we only played one game.

The second game we played was Apples to Apples ... I've heard a ton about this game, but never actually played it. I now know why so many people love this game. Basically, each person gets 7 red cards - these cards are nouns. A green card is drawn, and it's an adjective. Each person has to use one of his/her cards that "works the best" with the green card. One person chooses the best match. The first person with 5 green cards wins. We played a few rounds of this, and laughed the entire time.

We finished the night playing some good old fashioned drinking games - games like Circle of Death, and Up the River, Down the River. In my opinion, this is a perfect way to end a game night.

Next time, we'll probably try some games like Quip It, or maybe Cranium, or Balderdash ... I just love those games.

Weekly Homework Assignment

It's time for Mama Kat's weekly assignment - please stop by her site sometime.
I decided to do the following assignment: Write a list of ten things on your mind this week.

10. What if the Iggles played the Stillers in the Super Bowl?
9. I really hate tax season.
8. I can't wait for the Baltimore trip this weekend.
7. When will the economy finally make that turn-around?
6. I'm still wondering what the Angry Whopper tastes like.
5. Seriously, these "little" snow storms are just plain annoying ... when will I be able to wash my car again?
4. I wonder if anybody commented on my Facebook message.
3. After we're done with the basement, the wife wants to redo the upstairs bathroom ... is this all just a vicious circle?
2. I wonder why The Wrestler isn't playing anywhere near me.
1. Let's Go Flyers .... please?

Song of the week ...

I know the Killers are probably way too mainstream at this point and time ... that doesn't mean that I can't like their music, right? Sam's Town was their second album, and overall it was pretty good - probably not as complete as Hot Fuss was, but still. (And I haven't heard much from the newest album yet).

However, there is a hidden gem on Sam's Town that many people seem to overlook (or worse, ignore). My favorite song is not the main release, "When You Were Young." Don't get me wrong, it's a great song, but I tend to find deeper cuts to like on albums (that's just me, I guess).

The song "Bones" is the one I tend to gravitate to most. Maybe it's the way the horns are mixed into the main chorus ... or maybe it's the words themselves (obviously, talking about hot passionate "kanoodling"), or maybe it's the infectious hooks ... probably it's a combination of all of these. If you've skipped over this song, maybe you should give it another try. I think you'll see what I mean.

Fast Food Corner

Do any of you remember Burger King's "Yumbo" sandwich from the 1980's? It was basically a hot ham and cheese on a sesame seed burger bun. I hear the cheese was really kind of like the hot cheese you put on nachos. Now, since I can't stand the taste of ham, I never touched this sandwich - so I can't really review it. I wanted to see if (a) any of you ever tried it, and (b) why Burger King chose the name "Yumbo." Isn't there a better name they could've used?

Stoppage Time ...

Here are some more random thoughts ...

* I'm trying to get into eating turkey bacon ... it's just not the same, though.
* I'm finding it hard to get excited about the Super Bowl.
* Great ... the NASCAR season starts again ... ugh.
* Will it be a trend for presidential candidates to create an entire marketing plan complete with fancy logos?
* Merril Hoge really gets on my nerves ... in a similar way that Michael Irvin used to.
* I used to like watching tennis, back when McEnroe, Connors, and Borg played ... I don't think I can name more than 2 players now.
* Both Lost and 24 have been excellent so far.
* Wait, Barry Bonds was lying? Really?
* Sports Soup is pretty funny ... not anywhere near as funny as The Soup, but still pretty good.
* The NHL all-star game was awful ... the skills competition was cool, though.