|
Other Blogs:
|
Saturday, June 01, 2002
Good to see someone agrees with me about the demise of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? I suppose fans who were contestants or knew people who were contestants under the old format have a better understanding of this.
posted at 9:12 PM
Damn New Jersey-centric media
I guess all of those New York-phobic sports fans can continue gnashing their teeth as the nearby New Jersey Nets are in the NBA Finals! OK, so the Nets are to New York like Cousin Oliver was to the Brady Bunch, but it's still fun to see the Nets finally getting some respect. They're actually getting me to watch the NBA again -- a very remarkable feat. All I need is a t-shirt or hat with the old logo with the map of New Jersey, and I'm set.
posted at 3:08 PM
Make me laugh
It's often weird what things you discover about people you know. For instance, I know of at least three people who have dabbled in stand-up comedy. One of my classmates at Northwestern went into the business right after graduation, although I'm not sure what he's up to now (the fact that he could pass as a young version of Michael Richards probably helped his cause). Recently, my friend Steve has been doing regular gigs in New York City when he's not miserable at his day job. From what I've heard, he's pretty decent -- although that doesn't surprise me. The oddest of the three is chronicled here -- a journalism professor that really helped me get interested in the business even before high school.
posted at 2:27 PM
Thursday, May 30, 2002
While I figure out if/how/etc. to publicize this blog, there is a cool site that organizes blogs in New York City by borough and, even cooler, by subway stop. For instance, there are a bunch of bloggers living along John Rocker's favorite subway line.
posted at 5:19 PM
Wednesday, May 29, 2002
Playoff ramblings (yes, I'm going nuts tonight blog-wise) ...
The Avs can't play a series without it going seven, except this time it's very acceptable agains the Wings. It's unfortunate that it'll be going up against potential clinching games in the NBA on Friday night. Nice scheduling by everyone, geez. And especially since I'll be working Friday night, having to deal with all of these big things. For my hockey friends, this could remind me of a time my freshman year in college that a handful of us went to the now-defunct Yesterday's to watch Game 7 of Devils-Rangers Eastern Conference finals. My friends Elliott and Sanjay running around like maniacs after the Devils tied the game with seven seconds left and then me just stunned when Stephane Matteau scored the game-winner in double OT. (At the same, my friend Arnab watching the Rockets playoff game elsewhere in the restaurant.) This time I'll have two TVs on me -- one watching hoops and another watching hockey.
I still it find very strange that the Kings and Nets are both on the brink of the NBA Finals. Granted, the Lakers and Celtics will be on their home floors Friday night, but to think that two perennial lottery teams are this close to the finals is amazing. And maybe more impressive is that they're doing it with full-court play reminiscent of the '80s. Remember when teams regularly scored 100 points? They do.
posted at 11:42 PM
Couple of ad-related notes while watching the NBA playoffs ...
The Keith Jackson-narrated ad for Gatorade is one of the better ones out there in a long time. Having Keith narrate it is a huge asset, giving more credence to the history of college football, etc. And the Spurrier-era clips were outstanding. But I think I figured out why I liked the ad so much -- the way they used "Gimme Some Lovin'" in the ad. The awesome, rocking instrumentals play in the background without any lyrics, allowing everyone to talk. And just as the commercial is about to end, there is singing. Thus, the commercial seems to entertain you for 30 seconds, as opposed to most ads, where there's a lot of pad at the beginning and end. This commercial really feels like it's using the whole 30 seconds.
I guess George Lucas realized what got the most cheers at "Attack of the Clones" and thus the most recent ad shows off lots of Yoda's light sabre battle with Count Dooku (who looks good after all those years on "Family Ties). Kick much ass I will.
posted at 11:26 PM
Well I guess it's about time someone blew the whistle on steroid use in the majors. That would explain a lot about Ken Caminiti's outburst in 1996 and his subsequent injuries that aggravated many fantasy owners after that. And while we're at it, we'll go guessing about everyone else. In the office, we're already targeting Steve Finley and Brady Anderson -- among all of those 1996 power hitters. Maybe they were all on the juice, eh?
It's about time they test for the stuff, although the players continue to throw up the privacy thing. Yet another reason that there won't be an agreement and why there'll be a strike sooner or later. If it's as bad as Caminiti (50 percent) or Jose Canseco (85 percent) say, then there could be a huge problem. Even worse are those folks who don't know how to control their dosage (like Cammy that year). Unfortunately, we'll probably see instances like Lyle Alzado or Superstar Billy Graham.
And if you think that's bad, just look at a bunch of the pro wrestlers who have died early like Davey Boy Smith just a couple of weeks ago. There are just as many stories like him as there are about old vets like Lou Thesz and Wahoo McDaniel, who passed on at much older ages.
posted at 10:49 PM
The hammies are still sore after yesterday's long walk. That either means I did a lot of walking or I'm woefully out of shape. Maybe a little of both. Maybe that means I'll do a little more long walking in a day or two. Speaking of walking, they say Atlanta is one of the worst cities for pedestrians. Of course, if they ever saw people trying to cross Marietta and Centennial Olympic Park Drive, they may think the opposite. Today, I saw two guys walking across the street with traffic coming at them. I know we're supposed to yield to pedestrians, but it's like they started their walk as the light turned the opposite color (which isn't unusual in downtown). Despite this, I've seen just one person -- an older Hispanic gentleman -- ever flagged for jaywalking and that's because a cop nearly ran him over. Atlanta isn't pedestrian friendly to be sure, but use some common sense, people.
posted at 10:40 PM
Tuesday, May 28, 2002
Well I finally decided to try out the Silver Comet Trail today, after a lot of delay because I ended up sleeping in. The trail was pretty cool -- a converted rail line paved over to become a long trail for walking, running, rollerblading, cycling, etc. I was pretty daring and ventured out 5.3 miles walking before turning around and heading back. Thus, I did 10.6 miles in a little over three hours -- although that trip back was hellish since I hadn't done that much walking in a long while. The scenery was nice -- it was primarily shaded by all sorts of trees, and you could see some nice homes in the distance. I'll probably make occasional trips in the future, although I'll likely not do the 10 miles again, unless I'm with someone. Thankfully I had my MP3 CD player to keep me occupied this time.
posted at 11:05 PM
Oh yeah, stopped in yet again at Distant Replays and got myself a cool hat with a retro Milwaukee Bucks logo (either that or an old Denver Nuggets ABA logo or Atlanta Hawks Pac-Man). It's hard to believe such an amazing store (albeit really expensive if you want to get yourself an old-school jersey) is hidden away among a bunch of Buckhead bars. Funny thing is that it has become one of the few places I take guests when they visit, mainly because they're sports fans who would appreciate such stuff that you wouldn't see anywhere else.
posted at 12:51 AM
Excuse me for asking, but what does "An Officer and a Gentleman" have to do with music (and thus appear on VH-1) other than that one song?
posted at 12:00 AM
Monday, May 27, 2002
Not much going on here, other than a little shopping here and there. However, I was amused to see Craig Sager (Turner Sports sideline guy with the funky suits) outside an ice cream stand in a Buckhead strip mall. Actually, he just dropped off his girlfriend then sped off in his convertible (a Corvette maybe) then came back a few minutes later. I doubt he'd remember me when he bought drinks for a bunch of fellow Northwestern grads while watching a football game last fall.
|
|
