I always get excited for the Vernal Equinox. An extra hour to do WHATEVER you want on a random fall Saturday night/Sunday morning. I remember The Adventures of Pete and Pete when the elder Pete kissed Ellen while sitting on top of the car at the drivein. Yep. That was pretty cool (too bad that show killed everyone's career. Except for Little Pete who starred in the first Mighty Ducks film, but not the second two. Oh, yeah he appeared on All That....).
But that is just an extra hour of watching football highlights or drinking/partying or whatever.
Once every four years you get Leap Year and Leap DAY. THAT'S TODAY. I feel like I get a free day of rent (except for the fact that the month is still only 29 days instead of 30 or 31, so actually, I only LOSE one day, instead of two, but let's move on)
YEP, a free day. Too bad this isn't a national holiday. Would it REALLY be that bad to declare this a national holiday? It is once every four years?! Come on. We observe Columbus Day which honors a guy that couldn't find where he was going. We honor this dude EVERY year. Leap Year is once every FOUR years. And this year, it happened to fall on a Friday. We could have had a three day weekend. It would have been cool.
But moving on....what to do with this extra day. Should you do something you wouldn't normally do? Should you go skydiving? Learn to play the flute? Eat at Medieval Times?
Or should you just take it easy and chillax on your extra day. After work go and hit up a happy hour or something?
Or should you follow in the footsteps of Pete and kiss your Ellen.
I say live like there is only one of these days every four years. Do something new, fresh and fun! Have a ball.
Or go to a birthday party for someone that was born on this day. It has been four freaking years since his/her last birthday. Buy them a phat present. They deserve it. It is finally their day.
Friday, February 29, 2008
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Idol thoughts and the team that could beat the Gauntlet3 Vets
Last night watching American Idol only confirmed what I had already thought. This is a coronation for David Archuleta. NONE of the women that sang last night could beat him. The Irish chick that the judges love (like they loved Jordin Sparks last year) gave another "strong" performance according to the judges, but again, I didn't think so. I guess they HAVE to say that stuff, because otherwise we turn it off
The other girls...Syesha or whatever apparently changed the gender of a song and did it, but she bothers me when she plays TOO much to the camera. There was one side shot that she ackwardly stared at the camera for 6 seconds at a funny angle and you could tell the director was yelling "LOOK AWAY SO WE CAN CHANGE ANGLES!" Just weird. I don't like the pandering.
Brook did "You're so vain" and it was pretty good. She played her guitar and looked A LOT like Sheryl Crowe. She did with the hair and the guitar and whatnot. (I know Sheryl Crowe has hair, that is not what I meant. The hairstyle is what I meant) She didn't really add anything to the song and I think she goes home in 7th place or so. Also in her video she says she "found music right around the middle of her beauty school program." I was wondering how long the beauty school training program takes. I just figured you could learn how to cut hair in about a day. Roomie, how long did it take you to learn how to cut my hair?
The Asian chick was next and apparently she is Polynesian. My bad. She is a Chick-fil-a sauce. How could I be so dumb. She did a boring song because she didn't want to do a slow song because she was afraid people would nickname her Lullaby or something. Stupid. Do a song that gets you praise. How about a nickname of "that good girl."
Kristy Leigh Cook aka the first blond country singer (or maybe the second if you count Brook) went out and did a lunge workout while singing. I guess she was worried she wouldn't get her aerobics in for the day, so she just did the lunges on stage. She also wore two odd clothing fabrics: a shiny shirt and a velvety-leathery looking pants. Not complaining mind you, but just saying weird. That is like peanutbutter and alfredo sauce. I like them both, but together? I dunno. She WAS showing off the twins though
Amanda the freak was next. Apparently she likes to read and she was reading about the "music business side of things, JUST IN CASE." After that performance, DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT. What was with the hair? The dancing? The outfit? Just a freak on a leash. If she was MY nurse, I think I'd rather die.
17 year old Blond country singer. Don't know her name. Don't care. She gets cut next week. Moving on.
Alexandrea Lushington went next, and let me start off my negative comments by saying this pains me to have to hate on an Atlanta rep, BUT that said...First off, the name? Alex-andrea? You know that is now how is it SUPPOSED to be pronounced. Come on. Number two...you said that you were the poster girl for Altanta Area Fire Departments. REALLY? Did the Fulton COunty/Sandy Springs branch get to vote? Did the stations in DeKalb area get to vote? Or did you just DECLARE yourself that? Number three when you went to Ground Zero "like, two months after 9/11" and you just randomly started singing patriotic songs (like the national anthem?) "not on a stage or anything, just in a crowd" did people tell you to shut up? I would have. That is annoying to have a young girl (Because you are in high school now-17 maybe. 6 years ago you are 11? No 11 year old is a good singer. Trust me.) just wailing away, no doubt butchering the National Anthem. And I KNOW you butchered it, because I have seen you sing LAST NIGHT and last week. You are safe this week, but next week, pack your bags.
Kady Malloy. Hey lookout! You nearly fell coming down the stairs in your Christmas tree sweater. Listen, you have talent to do voices and whatnot, but YOUR voice...not so good. Sing it like Britney or Christina or whatever. Because your voice isn't working.
Asia'h went last and nearly PULLED a Britney when she crouched in that dress. I am sure the folks in the front row learned what color your underware was. I think you did ok, except for that one note RIGHT at the beginning, and I don't think the judges needed to rail you. You are staying on, but I don't think you have a chance against Archuleta. Sorry
None of the girls do. The final 4 I am thinking is DA, Michael Johns, the Irish chick and the future frat party singer. After that...who knows.
NOW ON TO THE GAUNTLET 3
So the Rookies lose ANOTHER challenge aka pushing the other team out with a pole. It was impossible for the Vet guys to throw this challenge so they HAD to win and thus the Rookies were forced YET AGAIN to go into the gauntlet. And Melinda was chosen by the group (MUCH TO Blinky's chagrin) to enter. Melinda THEN threatened the entire group and DEMANDED Jillian, though the group decided to put Tori in because she complained during the challenge. Then Melinda announced to her team after Miss VA went up to face her "way to put the two strongest girls up here!" Melinda, were you strong when you were faking a concussion so you wouldn't go home last episode? (And hey Melinda, you said you didn't want Johanna up there and Rachel was safe. You wanted Jill, but Tori was the ONLY other choice) Surprise Surprise Beach Brawl is what the wheel stops on. (TJ sucks at spinning!)
Then Tori announces she won't compete and will just go home. AND MELINDA talks her into staying, but a kiss from Brad clinches it. Tori then says in an aside, "Brad showed me my character and my character isn't as a quitter." UMM YOU JUST QUIT! That IS YOUR CHARACTER. But turns out Tori stays, WHY? Because she is bigger than Melinda and easily beats her in Beach Brawl. DUH! If I was Melinda, I would have let her go. Quit all you want. That way you could have stayed. I guess that concussion you faked I guess was real.
Then Blinky is obvie upset and he takes it out on Johanna. He says she should have fought harder and even after he watches the tapes and sees Johanna DID fight, he will still be upset because he is a crazy person AND YOU CAN'T FIGHT WITH CRAZY PEOPLE. I know from personal experience. He also screws himself over with the comment of "oh shut up I don't speak Spanish" Umm Danny you work in construction. Well at least you used to. Now you will probably TRY and become a RW/RR lifer, but No one really likes you. I guess you could be the male Beth.
Well a buried alive challenge is brought out to try and screw the Vets. The Rookies only have to rescue 7 people while the Vets have to save 14. Yeah. Nice work MTV you have come up with a way to get at least ONE vet guy to go home....BUT WAIT. Neimaiah (or Neydermeyer) can't figure out the true false questions and the Vets SOMEHOW get their crew out one-by-one faster than the rookies. And then, after Frank is thrown into the gauntlet and he requests Neydermeyer for being an idiot, the group puts MJ in because I guess Neydermeyer's arguement of "I give 175% in every mission" is so persuasive. Umm giving 175% of STUPIDITY hurts your team man. Just saying.)
Well Frank and MJ go one-on-one in "ankle breaker" which is just Force Field, except you are attached at the ankle instead of a waist and Frank ultimately beats MJ by just waiting him out. And MJ, the BEST player goes home
So the Rookies have Frank, Ryan, Neydermeyer, Fat-Rachel, Johanna, Tori and Jill still there.
The Vets still have EVERYONE.
The producers are going to either have to cut the show by a few episodes so the Rookies still have someone competing in the Finals, or just give the money to the Vets and say...Our bad. too good of a team.
But I would like to see this Vet Team against a team featuring Derrick, Wes, Alton, Abram, Jamie (from New Orleans), Isaac (of Sydney) Randy, Landon and Ruthie, Kina, Jodi, Tina, Tonya, Svetlana, Jillian and Montana/Genesis (which ever is still under 40) I think my crew is a good mix of athlete PLUS drama, MUCH LIKE THE Current cast of Vets.
The way I see it shaking out
CT-Alton Evan-Abram Kenny-Randy Brad-Derrick Danny-Wes Johnny Bananas-Jamie Adam-Landon Eric-Isaac match-ups for the guys with
Ev-Kina Robin-Tina Coral-Jodi Paula-Ruthie Katie-Tonya Diem-Jillian Casey-Svetlana Beth-Montana/Genesis
To be honest, MY CREW WINS HANDS DOWN!
The other girls...Syesha or whatever apparently changed the gender of a song and did it, but she bothers me when she plays TOO much to the camera. There was one side shot that she ackwardly stared at the camera for 6 seconds at a funny angle and you could tell the director was yelling "LOOK AWAY SO WE CAN CHANGE ANGLES!" Just weird. I don't like the pandering.
Brook did "You're so vain" and it was pretty good. She played her guitar and looked A LOT like Sheryl Crowe. She did with the hair and the guitar and whatnot. (I know Sheryl Crowe has hair, that is not what I meant. The hairstyle is what I meant) She didn't really add anything to the song and I think she goes home in 7th place or so. Also in her video she says she "found music right around the middle of her beauty school program." I was wondering how long the beauty school training program takes. I just figured you could learn how to cut hair in about a day. Roomie, how long did it take you to learn how to cut my hair?
The Asian chick was next and apparently she is Polynesian. My bad. She is a Chick-fil-a sauce. How could I be so dumb. She did a boring song because she didn't want to do a slow song because she was afraid people would nickname her Lullaby or something. Stupid. Do a song that gets you praise. How about a nickname of "that good girl."
Kristy Leigh Cook aka the first blond country singer (or maybe the second if you count Brook) went out and did a lunge workout while singing. I guess she was worried she wouldn't get her aerobics in for the day, so she just did the lunges on stage. She also wore two odd clothing fabrics: a shiny shirt and a velvety-leathery looking pants. Not complaining mind you, but just saying weird. That is like peanutbutter and alfredo sauce. I like them both, but together? I dunno. She WAS showing off the twins though
Amanda the freak was next. Apparently she likes to read and she was reading about the "music business side of things, JUST IN CASE." After that performance, DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT. What was with the hair? The dancing? The outfit? Just a freak on a leash. If she was MY nurse, I think I'd rather die.
17 year old Blond country singer. Don't know her name. Don't care. She gets cut next week. Moving on.
Alexandrea Lushington went next, and let me start off my negative comments by saying this pains me to have to hate on an Atlanta rep, BUT that said...First off, the name? Alex-andrea? You know that is now how is it SUPPOSED to be pronounced. Come on. Number two...you said that you were the poster girl for Altanta Area Fire Departments. REALLY? Did the Fulton COunty/Sandy Springs branch get to vote? Did the stations in DeKalb area get to vote? Or did you just DECLARE yourself that? Number three when you went to Ground Zero "like, two months after 9/11" and you just randomly started singing patriotic songs (like the national anthem?) "not on a stage or anything, just in a crowd" did people tell you to shut up? I would have. That is annoying to have a young girl (Because you are in high school now-17 maybe. 6 years ago you are 11? No 11 year old is a good singer. Trust me.) just wailing away, no doubt butchering the National Anthem. And I KNOW you butchered it, because I have seen you sing LAST NIGHT and last week. You are safe this week, but next week, pack your bags.
Kady Malloy. Hey lookout! You nearly fell coming down the stairs in your Christmas tree sweater. Listen, you have talent to do voices and whatnot, but YOUR voice...not so good. Sing it like Britney or Christina or whatever. Because your voice isn't working.
Asia'h went last and nearly PULLED a Britney when she crouched in that dress. I am sure the folks in the front row learned what color your underware was. I think you did ok, except for that one note RIGHT at the beginning, and I don't think the judges needed to rail you. You are staying on, but I don't think you have a chance against Archuleta. Sorry
None of the girls do. The final 4 I am thinking is DA, Michael Johns, the Irish chick and the future frat party singer. After that...who knows.
NOW ON TO THE GAUNTLET 3
So the Rookies lose ANOTHER challenge aka pushing the other team out with a pole. It was impossible for the Vet guys to throw this challenge so they HAD to win and thus the Rookies were forced YET AGAIN to go into the gauntlet. And Melinda was chosen by the group (MUCH TO Blinky's chagrin) to enter. Melinda THEN threatened the entire group and DEMANDED Jillian, though the group decided to put Tori in because she complained during the challenge. Then Melinda announced to her team after Miss VA went up to face her "way to put the two strongest girls up here!" Melinda, were you strong when you were faking a concussion so you wouldn't go home last episode? (And hey Melinda, you said you didn't want Johanna up there and Rachel was safe. You wanted Jill, but Tori was the ONLY other choice) Surprise Surprise Beach Brawl is what the wheel stops on. (TJ sucks at spinning!)
Then Tori announces she won't compete and will just go home. AND MELINDA talks her into staying, but a kiss from Brad clinches it. Tori then says in an aside, "Brad showed me my character and my character isn't as a quitter." UMM YOU JUST QUIT! That IS YOUR CHARACTER. But turns out Tori stays, WHY? Because she is bigger than Melinda and easily beats her in Beach Brawl. DUH! If I was Melinda, I would have let her go. Quit all you want. That way you could have stayed. I guess that concussion you faked I guess was real.
Then Blinky is obvie upset and he takes it out on Johanna. He says she should have fought harder and even after he watches the tapes and sees Johanna DID fight, he will still be upset because he is a crazy person AND YOU CAN'T FIGHT WITH CRAZY PEOPLE. I know from personal experience. He also screws himself over with the comment of "oh shut up I don't speak Spanish" Umm Danny you work in construction. Well at least you used to. Now you will probably TRY and become a RW/RR lifer, but No one really likes you. I guess you could be the male Beth.
Well a buried alive challenge is brought out to try and screw the Vets. The Rookies only have to rescue 7 people while the Vets have to save 14. Yeah. Nice work MTV you have come up with a way to get at least ONE vet guy to go home....BUT WAIT. Neimaiah (or Neydermeyer) can't figure out the true false questions and the Vets SOMEHOW get their crew out one-by-one faster than the rookies. And then, after Frank is thrown into the gauntlet and he requests Neydermeyer for being an idiot, the group puts MJ in because I guess Neydermeyer's arguement of "I give 175% in every mission" is so persuasive. Umm giving 175% of STUPIDITY hurts your team man. Just saying.)
Well Frank and MJ go one-on-one in "ankle breaker" which is just Force Field, except you are attached at the ankle instead of a waist and Frank ultimately beats MJ by just waiting him out. And MJ, the BEST player goes home
So the Rookies have Frank, Ryan, Neydermeyer, Fat-Rachel, Johanna, Tori and Jill still there.
The Vets still have EVERYONE.
The producers are going to either have to cut the show by a few episodes so the Rookies still have someone competing in the Finals, or just give the money to the Vets and say...Our bad. too good of a team.
But I would like to see this Vet Team against a team featuring Derrick, Wes, Alton, Abram, Jamie (from New Orleans), Isaac (of Sydney) Randy, Landon and Ruthie, Kina, Jodi, Tina, Tonya, Svetlana, Jillian and Montana/Genesis (which ever is still under 40) I think my crew is a good mix of athlete PLUS drama, MUCH LIKE THE Current cast of Vets.
The way I see it shaking out
CT-Alton Evan-Abram Kenny-Randy Brad-Derrick Danny-Wes Johnny Bananas-Jamie Adam-Landon Eric-Isaac match-ups for the guys with
Ev-Kina Robin-Tina Coral-Jodi Paula-Ruthie Katie-Tonya Diem-Jillian Casey-Svetlana Beth-Montana/Genesis
To be honest, MY CREW WINS HANDS DOWN!
Top TV Cartoon characters continued 80-61
Our next installment. I know you are excited. Again, if you don't see your favorite, chillax, we still have 60 to go, and then we can vote on possibly which one I left out that should have been included and which I included that should have been omitted.
And a quick recap of the rules
First of all, the characters HAD to be from television, Also, no Disney. Adult cartoons ie the Simpsons, Family Guy, will also not be featured on the list. My final rule is that if a character is always with another and they depend on each other, they will be grouped together but counted as one
With no further gilding of the Lilly...
80 Animal This Muppet Babies regular was actually a bit of an annoyance as he ONLY stirred up trouble, but he seemed to be the youngest of them all as he crawled and never used words. In fact, most times he was carried or “left behind” on their imaginary journeys. But he was loud and played the drums, and was PRETTY COOL as a grown up Muppet, so he gets bonus points.
79 Captain Caveman- the cool thing about Captain Caveman was he was featured in several cartoons, not just the Flintstones:Next Generation. He was also featured in Scooby Doo, The Jetsons, and if I am not mistaken Heathcliffe. The guy had range and in the Laff-a-lympics, he was a loose cannon, but so is CT on the Gauntlet. Captain Caveman sometimes STEPPED IT UP! Other times he screwed it up, but still his outreach was HUGE. If the guy can go on several shows, that is STRONG!
78 Scrappy Doo Scooby’s nephew who was not as big as he thought he was. That goodness his Uncle Scooby looked out for him because he would have gotten his BUTT KICKED. Nevertheless I liked his spunk.
77 Nermal Ahhhh the sweetest Villain you will EVER meet. Nermal annoyed Garfield and even John Arbuckle to the point that Garfield would try to mail him to another continent. Ouch. This self-proclaimed “sweetest cat in the world” was quite vexing and a sharp contrast to Garfield. But we loved the hero Garfield, thus we had to hate Nermal. Not a problem, since I hate cats.
76 Patty Mayonnaise The love of Doug’s life had a VERY annoying accent, and to be honest, I know she was the “girl next door” but I thought she hung out with the fat chick only to improve her own feelings and if Doug LOOKED around, he could have found MUCH better looking girls at that school. I don’t like it when semi-hot chicks try and buck the system by hanging out with unattractive fat chicks to BOOST their stock in their potential suitors’ eyes. It is an optical illusion that needs to be pointed out. Allie did it in Newport Harbor. Kristin did it in Laguna Beach. I know it is done, but I think it is wrong. For the record!
75 Huey Dewey and Louey These three little squirts got their own show. Good for them. But don’t ask me which one was which. I could never get a system down.
74 Bobo and Cindy Bear I liked Bobo’s tie and soothing voice and I always thought Cindy Bear was hot, for a bear-you know. But I had to group them together, because I feel they were a bit of a package, and I don’t think they could stand on their own in this list.
73 Piglet Obviously people liked this character (myself NOT included) because he/she got his/her own movie. Did this piglet really wear a turtleneck sweater or am I misremembering that? (Thanks Roger for the new addition to my vocabulary lexicon)
72 porkchop I think Porkchop was the second best sidekick dog ever, behind Brain on Inspector Gadget. Snoopy and Scooby were the leads, if you ask me. Actually if you look at Porkchop and his outfits (he was never afraid to cross-dress) and mannerisms, I think he was probably BASED on Brain. His igloo dog house was nice inside, to the point that I would have rather stayed there than in Doug’s room. The one thing that always bugged me was how the size seemed off. From the outside, it looks like it might have enough room for Porkchop to enter and MAYBE turn around, but if we look at scenes from inside the igloo, there is a TV, lounge chair, kitchen, bathroom and shower. HUH?
71 Odie the braindead dog was always a target of Garfield and he reminds me of that friend that you keep around to be your punching bag, but he is YOUR punching bag and if someone else tries to mock them or mess with them, you want to fight THAT person, because he is still your friend. But once that situation is over, he goes right back to being your punching bag.
70 Daphne Here is the thing about Daphne. She was hot. OF COURSE Fred would always send Velma and Shaggy and Scooby in another direction. He was trying to GET IT ON with her. Too bad he was dressed as a freaking sailor. But Daphne, named after the character in Greek Mythology I am sure who was chased by the Sea God Poseidon (maybe THAT’S why Fred was wearing the sailor outfit. Some writer was REALLY stoned and reading Edith Hamilton’s Mythology while writing the show. INTERESTING), was straight up hot in that little purple dress, but she never seemed to help solve the cases. Just the eye candy. I would have liked to have seen Shaggy get his shot with Daphne. Just once. Never happened to my knowledge. But then we ARE talking about a cartoon here. (Actually upon further review, Daphne was chased by Apollo and she turned into a laurel tree. Would have been cooler had it been Poseidon, that would have helped my case)
70 Betty Rubble. Her dark hair and blueish-gray dress started the “girl next door” hot phrase I believe. She was the first girl next door, if you ask me. Anyways, she supported her man Barney, even when Barney was hopeless. Devotion and Loyalty. Ask Jerry McGuire and he will tell you that Loyalty is a pretty good thing to base a marriage on. It’s not sexy, according to Rod Tidwell, but then again, he was the spokesman for a waterbed warehouse, so why should I listen to him?
69 Mr, Peabody and his boy Sherman The R & B show’s sideshow had a genius dog that built a “way back” machine and HE had a BOY. That’s right. Mr. Peabody was a genius dog, capable of time travel and he had a pet boy Sherman. I think it is great that sometimes Mr. Peabody walked on his hind legs, other times all four legs. He was a conflicted genius, king of like Earnest Hemmingway. Thank goodness Mr. Peabody didn’t off himself like EH did. Most likely he just went deaf and blind and Sherman had to put him down. Then does Sherman get sent back? If he is old enough, is he allowed to be on his own? I just think it is cool that Mr. Peabody could go through history and make sure things turned out as they should have. For instance, I am sure he went back to when Al Gore invented the internet and made sure it could show porn for Gore’s boss Clinton. Yeah, Buddy!
68 Animaniacs Yackoo Wacko and Dot. These three were Warner Brothers’ attempt to get BACK into the cartoon field and I just think they fell flat. Where they outcasts that were living in the watertower? Was the living situation a punishment? Or was the WB simply ashamed of these animaniacs?
67 Pinky and the Brain Two mice trying to take over the world. Or at least one, and another just being stupid and ultimately messing up what the smart one did. I think these two were actually more popular than the actual Animaniacs, but that’s just me. I would be interested to maybe read the writings of Brain, simply because, even as a mouse, he was no doubt smarter than I am. But then again, HE was the one in the cage now wasn’t he. HAHAHAHAHA Dominance scale BABY!
66 Astro The Jetsons’ dog could nearly talk and on several occasions he saved Elroy and George from falling off the house into Orbit. I would be a little scared to live just floating in space like they did, but I digress. The only bad thing about that is, at least with MY DOGS, I like to sometimes just send them out into the backyard and not have to worry about them for 3 hours. Where the Jetsons lived, it was kind of like an apartment for Astro. I know he had that little treadmill, but that was only a straight line, and I know I have run off a treadmill before. Again, if he does that, he is floating in orbit. A little scary.
65 Dino The Flintstones dino-dog, I could never understand if he was a brontosaurus or what, but he was a happy pet. And he DID NOT like to go out, unless Fred was with him, see final credits. He jumped through the window to lock Fred out. Not nice, but what are you going to do. I think Chimer(my dog) would do the same thing to me if he could. The only thing that bothered me about Dino was when he laughed. Kind of weird looking.
64 Velma Clearly the Brains of the Mystery Machine gang, she always had the ideas, but because she was a little homely, Fred always chose to go off with Daphne and Velma was stuck with Shaggy (who never appreciated her) and Scooby (a freaking DOG). I think if Velma got one of those “What NOT to Where” Makeovers or one of those TBS “Makeover and a Movie” (Which I would enjoy more because then I could watch Maid in Manhattan while randomly looking in to see the progress) I bet she would end up kind of hot. Still a little chubby, but hey, you can work some of that off, and I imagine that some of that was just from the outfit she wore. Just saying.
63 John Arbuckle This poor guy needed to put his foot down, but he never did, in letting Garfield run the house. At some point just put the cat in the closet and eat your lunch or something. Also, I am glad that John and the Vet finally hooked up. Good for him, after all those attempts, the nerd finally got the girl. It gives hope to all those nerds out there that MAYBE one day, a guy CAN get a girl WITHOUT having to ruffie her.
62 Skeeter Valentine Doug’s best friend and a loyal trouper. How did HE feel towards Patty? We may never know because he let Doug pursue her. While I question his fashion choices (the orange sweat suit?) This guy was THERE for Doug. I think he ranks RIGHT up there with all-time second bananas.
61 Ranger Smith How could this guy CONSTANTLY be duped for pic-a-nic baskets time after time? He really makes me question the competence of Forest Rangers across the country. And PS, I bet the forest rangers NEVER get tired of the Yogi voice asking if Ranger Smith is working today they surely get from maybe 18 people per day.
There we go, our next 20. Tune in Monday for another batch. I am going to let this one stew for the weekend.....
And a quick recap of the rules
First of all, the characters HAD to be from television, Also, no Disney. Adult cartoons ie the Simpsons, Family Guy, will also not be featured on the list. My final rule is that if a character is always with another and they depend on each other, they will be grouped together but counted as one
With no further gilding of the Lilly...
80 Animal This Muppet Babies regular was actually a bit of an annoyance as he ONLY stirred up trouble, but he seemed to be the youngest of them all as he crawled and never used words. In fact, most times he was carried or “left behind” on their imaginary journeys. But he was loud and played the drums, and was PRETTY COOL as a grown up Muppet, so he gets bonus points.
79 Captain Caveman- the cool thing about Captain Caveman was he was featured in several cartoons, not just the Flintstones:Next Generation. He was also featured in Scooby Doo, The Jetsons, and if I am not mistaken Heathcliffe. The guy had range and in the Laff-a-lympics, he was a loose cannon, but so is CT on the Gauntlet. Captain Caveman sometimes STEPPED IT UP! Other times he screwed it up, but still his outreach was HUGE. If the guy can go on several shows, that is STRONG!
78 Scrappy Doo Scooby’s nephew who was not as big as he thought he was. That goodness his Uncle Scooby looked out for him because he would have gotten his BUTT KICKED. Nevertheless I liked his spunk.
77 Nermal Ahhhh the sweetest Villain you will EVER meet. Nermal annoyed Garfield and even John Arbuckle to the point that Garfield would try to mail him to another continent. Ouch. This self-proclaimed “sweetest cat in the world” was quite vexing and a sharp contrast to Garfield. But we loved the hero Garfield, thus we had to hate Nermal. Not a problem, since I hate cats.
76 Patty Mayonnaise The love of Doug’s life had a VERY annoying accent, and to be honest, I know she was the “girl next door” but I thought she hung out with the fat chick only to improve her own feelings and if Doug LOOKED around, he could have found MUCH better looking girls at that school. I don’t like it when semi-hot chicks try and buck the system by hanging out with unattractive fat chicks to BOOST their stock in their potential suitors’ eyes. It is an optical illusion that needs to be pointed out. Allie did it in Newport Harbor. Kristin did it in Laguna Beach. I know it is done, but I think it is wrong. For the record!
75 Huey Dewey and Louey These three little squirts got their own show. Good for them. But don’t ask me which one was which. I could never get a system down.
74 Bobo and Cindy Bear I liked Bobo’s tie and soothing voice and I always thought Cindy Bear was hot, for a bear-you know. But I had to group them together, because I feel they were a bit of a package, and I don’t think they could stand on their own in this list.
73 Piglet Obviously people liked this character (myself NOT included) because he/she got his/her own movie. Did this piglet really wear a turtleneck sweater or am I misremembering that? (Thanks Roger for the new addition to my vocabulary lexicon)
72 porkchop I think Porkchop was the second best sidekick dog ever, behind Brain on Inspector Gadget. Snoopy and Scooby were the leads, if you ask me. Actually if you look at Porkchop and his outfits (he was never afraid to cross-dress) and mannerisms, I think he was probably BASED on Brain. His igloo dog house was nice inside, to the point that I would have rather stayed there than in Doug’s room. The one thing that always bugged me was how the size seemed off. From the outside, it looks like it might have enough room for Porkchop to enter and MAYBE turn around, but if we look at scenes from inside the igloo, there is a TV, lounge chair, kitchen, bathroom and shower. HUH?
71 Odie the braindead dog was always a target of Garfield and he reminds me of that friend that you keep around to be your punching bag, but he is YOUR punching bag and if someone else tries to mock them or mess with them, you want to fight THAT person, because he is still your friend. But once that situation is over, he goes right back to being your punching bag.
70 Daphne Here is the thing about Daphne. She was hot. OF COURSE Fred would always send Velma and Shaggy and Scooby in another direction. He was trying to GET IT ON with her. Too bad he was dressed as a freaking sailor. But Daphne, named after the character in Greek Mythology I am sure who was chased by the Sea God Poseidon (maybe THAT’S why Fred was wearing the sailor outfit. Some writer was REALLY stoned and reading Edith Hamilton’s Mythology while writing the show. INTERESTING), was straight up hot in that little purple dress, but she never seemed to help solve the cases. Just the eye candy. I would have liked to have seen Shaggy get his shot with Daphne. Just once. Never happened to my knowledge. But then we ARE talking about a cartoon here. (Actually upon further review, Daphne was chased by Apollo and she turned into a laurel tree. Would have been cooler had it been Poseidon, that would have helped my case)
70 Betty Rubble. Her dark hair and blueish-gray dress started the “girl next door” hot phrase I believe. She was the first girl next door, if you ask me. Anyways, she supported her man Barney, even when Barney was hopeless. Devotion and Loyalty. Ask Jerry McGuire and he will tell you that Loyalty is a pretty good thing to base a marriage on. It’s not sexy, according to Rod Tidwell, but then again, he was the spokesman for a waterbed warehouse, so why should I listen to him?
69 Mr, Peabody and his boy Sherman The R & B show’s sideshow had a genius dog that built a “way back” machine and HE had a BOY. That’s right. Mr. Peabody was a genius dog, capable of time travel and he had a pet boy Sherman. I think it is great that sometimes Mr. Peabody walked on his hind legs, other times all four legs. He was a conflicted genius, king of like Earnest Hemmingway. Thank goodness Mr. Peabody didn’t off himself like EH did. Most likely he just went deaf and blind and Sherman had to put him down. Then does Sherman get sent back? If he is old enough, is he allowed to be on his own? I just think it is cool that Mr. Peabody could go through history and make sure things turned out as they should have. For instance, I am sure he went back to when Al Gore invented the internet and made sure it could show porn for Gore’s boss Clinton. Yeah, Buddy!
68 Animaniacs Yackoo Wacko and Dot. These three were Warner Brothers’ attempt to get BACK into the cartoon field and I just think they fell flat. Where they outcasts that were living in the watertower? Was the living situation a punishment? Or was the WB simply ashamed of these animaniacs?
67 Pinky and the Brain Two mice trying to take over the world. Or at least one, and another just being stupid and ultimately messing up what the smart one did. I think these two were actually more popular than the actual Animaniacs, but that’s just me. I would be interested to maybe read the writings of Brain, simply because, even as a mouse, he was no doubt smarter than I am. But then again, HE was the one in the cage now wasn’t he. HAHAHAHAHA Dominance scale BABY!
66 Astro The Jetsons’ dog could nearly talk and on several occasions he saved Elroy and George from falling off the house into Orbit. I would be a little scared to live just floating in space like they did, but I digress. The only bad thing about that is, at least with MY DOGS, I like to sometimes just send them out into the backyard and not have to worry about them for 3 hours. Where the Jetsons lived, it was kind of like an apartment for Astro. I know he had that little treadmill, but that was only a straight line, and I know I have run off a treadmill before. Again, if he does that, he is floating in orbit. A little scary.
65 Dino The Flintstones dino-dog, I could never understand if he was a brontosaurus or what, but he was a happy pet. And he DID NOT like to go out, unless Fred was with him, see final credits. He jumped through the window to lock Fred out. Not nice, but what are you going to do. I think Chimer(my dog) would do the same thing to me if he could. The only thing that bothered me about Dino was when he laughed. Kind of weird looking.
64 Velma Clearly the Brains of the Mystery Machine gang, she always had the ideas, but because she was a little homely, Fred always chose to go off with Daphne and Velma was stuck with Shaggy (who never appreciated her) and Scooby (a freaking DOG). I think if Velma got one of those “What NOT to Where” Makeovers or one of those TBS “Makeover and a Movie” (Which I would enjoy more because then I could watch Maid in Manhattan while randomly looking in to see the progress) I bet she would end up kind of hot. Still a little chubby, but hey, you can work some of that off, and I imagine that some of that was just from the outfit she wore. Just saying.
63 John Arbuckle This poor guy needed to put his foot down, but he never did, in letting Garfield run the house. At some point just put the cat in the closet and eat your lunch or something. Also, I am glad that John and the Vet finally hooked up. Good for him, after all those attempts, the nerd finally got the girl. It gives hope to all those nerds out there that MAYBE one day, a guy CAN get a girl WITHOUT having to ruffie her.
62 Skeeter Valentine Doug’s best friend and a loyal trouper. How did HE feel towards Patty? We may never know because he let Doug pursue her. While I question his fashion choices (the orange sweat suit?) This guy was THERE for Doug. I think he ranks RIGHT up there with all-time second bananas.
61 Ranger Smith How could this guy CONSTANTLY be duped for pic-a-nic baskets time after time? He really makes me question the competence of Forest Rangers across the country. And PS, I bet the forest rangers NEVER get tired of the Yogi voice asking if Ranger Smith is working today they surely get from maybe 18 people per day.
There we go, our next 20. Tune in Monday for another batch. I am going to let this one stew for the weekend.....
GA State B-ball AAAA post-second round/pre-third round thoughts
As for the women, No. 1 Southwest DeKalb is looking stronger by the game. The record now stands at 28-2 after taking down Northwest Whitfield 68-53 behind once again Charenee Stephens’s 17 points and Eboni Mitchell’s 16. Kayla Lewis will also look to pitch in when the team next faces Region 8 Champion Clarke Central in the quarters. Meanwhile, in the top of the bracket, No. 3 Westlake moved past Americus-Sumter behind the efforts of Sharnae Boykin’s 33 points and Tamika Willis’s 22. Dalia Robinson will be an excellent third spoke of Westlake’s triumvirate when the Lions take on Baldwin. Tessah Holt is one Fayette County player that Northside-Warner Robins will want to try and contain. Holt scored 21 in the Bainbridge blowout and she gets help from Anma Onyeuku. But The Eagles can counter with Tai Brown, who can score in bunches. Finally, Mays senior Sade Means hit for 24 points in the second round and is looking to take down No. 7 Courtney Freeman and Madison County in the quarters.
PS, this blog will also appear on gpb.org/basketball a little later on today.
PS, this blog will also appear on gpb.org/basketball a little later on today.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
GA AAAA Boys B-Ball second round updates
The second round is in the books and only 8 teams remain on eight on the guys’ side. Overall No. 1 Westlake, behind another strong showing from Oklahoma-bound Raymond Willis, is set to go against Rashad Hassan and Riverdale, the Region 4-AAAA champion. Willis netted 38 points in Westlake’s 74-69 second round win and he has 56 points in the first two games. Elsewhere No. 2-yet still a 3-seed Columbia struggled from the free throw line, hitting only 15-32, but still advanced to face Tony Woods and Rome in the quarter-finals. On the other side of the draw, Noel Johnson recorded 28 points, one game after hitting for 30 and Fayette County survived to face Jonesboro, who eeked out a one point win over Statesboro. The final quadrant finds No. 4 Lithia Springs facing No. 3 Miller Grove and the key match-up will be Lithia Spring’s Jeremy Flagg against Miller Grove’s Mfon Udofia, who struggled to find his shot in the second round. Miller Grove was averaging 70 ppg before only tallying 59 in the win over Cherokee.
I'll have more on the girls' side of the bracket tomorrow, as they play tonight.
I'll have more on the girls' side of the bracket tomorrow, as they play tonight.
Midweek Entertainment report
Goldberg making Whoopi, an Idol coronation and time for the Neverland Ranch to grow up? Yep, let's jump right in to the midweek entertainment report
The Oscars were this past Sunday and apparently NO one watched them, if you believe the overnight ratings. But one person WAS watching No Country for Old Men win over There Will Be Blood and Juno and she was upset that she wasn't featured in a montage. That's right. Whoopi Goldberg on The View Monday was upset that she was not featured in a montage that covered the history of the Academy Awards. Apparently she wasn't watching when she got her OWN montage later in the show, but that's beside the point. Whoopi has hosted several times (and I went back, NONE of the times were ever funny. It's true) and was miffed that she and Steve Martin weren't featured and her View buddies were quick to her back. "Why weren't you featured? I don't know!" Ummm, Whoopi, How long has it been since you won an award for Ghost? Yeah. It isn't all about you, girl. You weren't the host (thank goodness) and you weren't nominated for anything, like say Eddie 2 (THANK GOODNESS). Were you even there? Whoopi, quit trying to be Rosie O'Donnell by blowing hard bring ratings to that dying show. Get over yourself. And PS, I didn't realize you were on The View. I guess you realized you hadn't been in a movie in a while and decided, why not appear on here with Joy and Bah-brah and that hot little Lizzy Hasselbeck from Survivor.
Last night's male night of American Idol was a bit of a letdown, until the end, when David Archuleta turned this competition into a coronation. Yep, Michael Johns was weak, Jason will be appearing at a frat house near you, Robbie is a faux rocker and the judges called him out on it after David Cook "rocked" the house, but the real story was 17 year old David Archuleta. Everyone stands NO chance. Actually the best chance they have is somehow talking David into dropping out, so he can sign a deal with HIS CHOICE of companies at the top dollar, instead of being locked into the winner's contract. That is everyone else's ONLY CHANCE. The dude is AMAZING and he did Imagine by John Lennon. It was pretty sweet. He is probably the next Josh Groban or something, but this dude can straight up sing.
-As for everyone else, Luke Menard is a former a capella singer who did a song I've never heard of, and I think this dude is GONE. -Robbie tried to do Hot Blooded, but failed (not really, but to me he did because I was thinking of how Chris Daughtry would have OWNED that song whereas Robbie did not). I thought it was funny how the judges still think he is a fake rocker. I agree.
-Danny Noriega was in a former gay punk band, was that right? No, just a punk band. Whatever. But his song was slow and boring, but he will stick around because he is "this year's Sanjaya" or whatever the Votefortheworst.com is calling him.
-David Her-Nan-DEZ I thought was pretty lame until the last 8 seconds of the song. He did enough to stay, but not to be as excited as he was. DUDE YOU'RE GOING TO LEAVE EVENTUALLY!
-Jason Yeager-meister was pretty terrible AGAIN and this time he tried to dance. Thank goodness he didn't break out the "I have a kid" card. I was afraid he would do that.
-Jacuzzi did well, but he should have. The 70s were filled with songs this guy should have owned. He did well
-David Cook was the real rocker here, he even threw picks into the crowd after he played. He is the guy Robbie WISHES he could be, and when the judges said as much, I SO wanted Robbie to just scream out "F YOU GUYS! I AM A ROCKER TOO!" I think we might see Robbie come out in a sweatervest next week.
Finally David came out and he is so sweet. Or if he is faking it with all of the "Thank you"s and what not, then he is a great actor, but the bride-to-be noted last night, and I agree, he seems embarassed to be getting all of that attention. Very humble and VERY talented.
(and one final note...to the child molester and Amy Tone-deaf Davis, both voted off last week, but now complaining, STOP IT. Dude with the molestache, you said the producers MADE you sing Breaking up is hard to do, because your first two options were already selected, YOU HAD AN ENTIRE DECADE'S WORTH of songs to choose from. You probably hadn't made a decision and they told you what to do so you wouldn't HOLD UP THE SHOW. Also, if you took too long the band wouldn't have been ready for you. Get a grip dude. Maybe you should have embraced the razor, and you'd still be there. That and left your brother back at home in the Ohio Trailer, so he wouldn't scare off potential voters. As for YOU Ms. Davis, you are blaming being off key on the fact you didn't have an ear piece? None of the other girls had one, yet they managed to stay on key. Excuses? Yeah. SHUT UP)
And is Neverland Ranch going to grow up? Well documents say that Michael Jackson's playarea will be foreclosed as he has a balance of $24.5M on the Neverland ranch. According to the kid in About a Boy, Michael Jackson makes One million Pounds a minute. Couldn't MJ just wait 25 minutes, then pay this thing off? Where did all of his money go? Certainly not to employees, since there was that lawsuit where he hadn't paid them in forever... But all of the animals have been taken away from his zoo, and he rarely goes there anymore, after the charge that he supposedly got a little boy drunk and felt him up a few years back. But he was acquitted of that charge, so he must not have done that. But really, this is a sad day. The state will apparently auction it off to the highest bidder if Jackson doesn't come up with the money. Here is the real question....who buys this place? Uncle Vito perhaps from Viva La Bam?
Finally... Mischa Barton aka Marissa of The OC was finally charged with four misdemeanors related to a drinking and driving arrest last year. (I blogged about it, you can go back and check.) The charges include driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, driving while having a 0.08 percent or higher blood alcohol level, driving without a valid license and possession of 28.5 grams or less of marijuana, according to court papers. And her lawyer was happy about this. Well, happy they were only misdemeanors. According to yahoo, her lawyer Anthony Salerno said, "The D.A.'s office is to be commended for treating this case the same as it would any other matter; Ms. Barton has received no special treatment."
No word yet on if the community service or 3 hour jail sentence (as is the norm apparently for these celebreality stars) will affect her filming in the upcoming "Virgin Territory." Marissa was scheduled to be arraigned on Thursday in Beverly Hills Superior Court.
The Oscars were this past Sunday and apparently NO one watched them, if you believe the overnight ratings. But one person WAS watching No Country for Old Men win over There Will Be Blood and Juno and she was upset that she wasn't featured in a montage. That's right. Whoopi Goldberg on The View Monday was upset that she was not featured in a montage that covered the history of the Academy Awards. Apparently she wasn't watching when she got her OWN montage later in the show, but that's beside the point. Whoopi has hosted several times (and I went back, NONE of the times were ever funny. It's true) and was miffed that she and Steve Martin weren't featured and her View buddies were quick to her back. "Why weren't you featured? I don't know!" Ummm, Whoopi, How long has it been since you won an award for Ghost? Yeah. It isn't all about you, girl. You weren't the host (thank goodness) and you weren't nominated for anything, like say Eddie 2 (THANK GOODNESS). Were you even there? Whoopi, quit trying to be Rosie O'Donnell by blowing hard bring ratings to that dying show. Get over yourself. And PS, I didn't realize you were on The View. I guess you realized you hadn't been in a movie in a while and decided, why not appear on here with Joy and Bah-brah and that hot little Lizzy Hasselbeck from Survivor.
Last night's male night of American Idol was a bit of a letdown, until the end, when David Archuleta turned this competition into a coronation. Yep, Michael Johns was weak, Jason will be appearing at a frat house near you, Robbie is a faux rocker and the judges called him out on it after David Cook "rocked" the house, but the real story was 17 year old David Archuleta. Everyone stands NO chance. Actually the best chance they have is somehow talking David into dropping out, so he can sign a deal with HIS CHOICE of companies at the top dollar, instead of being locked into the winner's contract. That is everyone else's ONLY CHANCE. The dude is AMAZING and he did Imagine by John Lennon. It was pretty sweet. He is probably the next Josh Groban or something, but this dude can straight up sing.
-As for everyone else, Luke Menard is a former a capella singer who did a song I've never heard of, and I think this dude is GONE. -Robbie tried to do Hot Blooded, but failed (not really, but to me he did because I was thinking of how Chris Daughtry would have OWNED that song whereas Robbie did not). I thought it was funny how the judges still think he is a fake rocker. I agree.
-Danny Noriega was in a former gay punk band, was that right? No, just a punk band. Whatever. But his song was slow and boring, but he will stick around because he is "this year's Sanjaya" or whatever the Votefortheworst.com is calling him.
-David Her-Nan-DEZ I thought was pretty lame until the last 8 seconds of the song. He did enough to stay, but not to be as excited as he was. DUDE YOU'RE GOING TO LEAVE EVENTUALLY!
-Jason Yeager-meister was pretty terrible AGAIN and this time he tried to dance. Thank goodness he didn't break out the "I have a kid" card. I was afraid he would do that.
-Jacuzzi did well, but he should have. The 70s were filled with songs this guy should have owned. He did well
-David Cook was the real rocker here, he even threw picks into the crowd after he played. He is the guy Robbie WISHES he could be, and when the judges said as much, I SO wanted Robbie to just scream out "F YOU GUYS! I AM A ROCKER TOO!" I think we might see Robbie come out in a sweatervest next week.
Finally David came out and he is so sweet. Or if he is faking it with all of the "Thank you"s and what not, then he is a great actor, but the bride-to-be noted last night, and I agree, he seems embarassed to be getting all of that attention. Very humble and VERY talented.
(and one final note...to the child molester and Amy Tone-deaf Davis, both voted off last week, but now complaining, STOP IT. Dude with the molestache, you said the producers MADE you sing Breaking up is hard to do, because your first two options were already selected, YOU HAD AN ENTIRE DECADE'S WORTH of songs to choose from. You probably hadn't made a decision and they told you what to do so you wouldn't HOLD UP THE SHOW. Also, if you took too long the band wouldn't have been ready for you. Get a grip dude. Maybe you should have embraced the razor, and you'd still be there. That and left your brother back at home in the Ohio Trailer, so he wouldn't scare off potential voters. As for YOU Ms. Davis, you are blaming being off key on the fact you didn't have an ear piece? None of the other girls had one, yet they managed to stay on key. Excuses? Yeah. SHUT UP)
And is Neverland Ranch going to grow up? Well documents say that Michael Jackson's playarea will be foreclosed as he has a balance of $24.5M on the Neverland ranch. According to the kid in About a Boy, Michael Jackson makes One million Pounds a minute. Couldn't MJ just wait 25 minutes, then pay this thing off? Where did all of his money go? Certainly not to employees, since there was that lawsuit where he hadn't paid them in forever... But all of the animals have been taken away from his zoo, and he rarely goes there anymore, after the charge that he supposedly got a little boy drunk and felt him up a few years back. But he was acquitted of that charge, so he must not have done that. But really, this is a sad day. The state will apparently auction it off to the highest bidder if Jackson doesn't come up with the money. Here is the real question....who buys this place? Uncle Vito perhaps from Viva La Bam?
Finally... Mischa Barton aka Marissa of The OC was finally charged with four misdemeanors related to a drinking and driving arrest last year. (I blogged about it, you can go back and check.) The charges include driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, driving while having a 0.08 percent or higher blood alcohol level, driving without a valid license and possession of 28.5 grams or less of marijuana, according to court papers. And her lawyer was happy about this. Well, happy they were only misdemeanors. According to yahoo, her lawyer Anthony Salerno said, "The D.A.'s office is to be commended for treating this case the same as it would any other matter; Ms. Barton has received no special treatment."
No word yet on if the community service or 3 hour jail sentence (as is the norm apparently for these celebreality stars) will affect her filming in the upcoming "Virgin Territory." Marissa was scheduled to be arraigned on Thursday in Beverly Hills Superior Court.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Top 100+ TV Cartoon Characters of ALL TIME
I have thought about this long and hard, (sad but true) and I tried to come up with the 100 greatest cartoon characters of all time. Now this is only my opinion and I decided to enforce several rules in order to make this work. First of all, the characters HAD to be from television, so therefore you will not see Beast from Beauty & the Beast on here or the crab from The Little Mermaid or even Dopey from the Seven Dwarf crew. (And anyways, all of those little side characters in Disney movies are all the same anyways. The Crab was the candlestick from B&tB, was the Skunk from Bambi, was the mouse from Cinderella, etc.) Also, since neither the Bridge-to-be nor I could recall an ACTUAL tv series featuring Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse or Goofy, those guys aren’t in the list. Sorry Disney fans. Though it should be noted that Donald Duck DOES make an appearance, based largely on his cameos on Duck Tails, but again, they were Cameos, so he isn’t very high on the list. Adult cartoons (ie the Simpsons, Family Guy will also not be featured on the list, because, well COME ON. This is a childhood-revisited thing, and if you were 6 and watching the Simpsons, then well, you grew up too fast and most of the humor went over your head.) My final rule is that if a character is always with another and they depend on each other, they will be grouped together but counted as one (For example the Coyote and the Road Runner. But in some cases like Rocky and Bullwinkle, they can stand alone and will be counted separately.)
I will present this list the way VH1 does their countdowns 100-81, 80-61, 60-41, 40-21, and 20-1. I will post the next segment every other day, that way you can digest and think about the list, even offer opinions if you'd like. And I even threw 5 extras in. You are welcome!
Now, with no further ado. . . . . . .
105 Kim Possible-points deducted because it’s Hillary Duff and this was after my time. This cartoon though is really to blame for both Hillary’s and Hayley’s careers. Hayley may be RIGHT up there on unless siblings that mooche off their much more famous sibling’s popularity. Credit to ESPN’s The Sports Guy’s Frank Stallone Theory.
104 Johnny Bravo I am not sure if this cartoon actually entertains children or if it was just a joke that a bunch of artists came up with one night when they were stoned. “Dude, you are ‘Johnny Freaking Bravo’ right now. Ohhhh you brought baked Cheetos!”
103 Power Puff Girls Our Countdown is ON like the break of DAWN baby! I can’t really pull off the Baby, can I? Oh well. These Power Puff girls gave hope to both young girls and those weirdo chicks in colleges (as well as Asian chicks) that wanted to wear cartoon thongs, why? Because they are messed up. But the Power Puff Girls picked up the Girl Power! slack when the Spice Girls broke up the first time. PS, speaking of Spice Girls….is their reunion tour over with yet? Can I still buy their CD? I need to know these things….
102 David the Gnome OK, so this is a favor to the Bride-to-be since she really liked this show back in the day. Personally, I was freaked out by these little people. I thought at some point they might come out of the TV and start crawling on me like at the end of Mulholland Drive. PS, that movie, I was told was supposed to be a show on HBO or Shotime, but it was cancelled after three episodes were shot, so they just combined them into a REALLY messed up movie….with a cool lezbinen scene. Good work David Lynch. But back to David the Gnome. He rode on a Fox to travel on land. He rode a swan to get across water and to go long distances. And at NO point did the fox or swan think, “hmmm I have a treat on my back. Maybe I should take advantage?” Did the gnomes have a spell over them?”
101 Wally the Gator He gets docked points because he is a Gator, and I am a Dawg, but other than the Laff-a-lympics, I don’t really remember this guy. I vaguely remember his waterskiing on some dolphins, but I could be wrong.
100 Klondike Kat. This ripoff of Dudley Do-Right never sat well with me. I hated the fact that the Underdog people so openly ripped off the R&B folks, but at least Klondike Kat was obviously inferior so people NEVER openly rooted for him. But I believe he was the second best thing on the Underdog show. Much better than that stupid Penguin. That tells you how poor that show was, OTHER than Underdog.
99 Scooby Dum. This was Scooby’s slow-witted cousin or something? Most of the time he accidentally helped catch the bad guy (which is all Scooby ever did either, but hey, at least Scooby Doo was funny. I am not amused by making fun of stupid animals. Those America’s Funniest Animal shows that come on WGN…. I don’t laugh. Because if those animals were at animals shelters, they would be put down. And that’s not funny. Visit PAWS Atlanta, they are a no-kill shelter, even if the dog is stupid.)
98 Nanny’s Legs I think we all know I am a leg man and this character is JUST legs with stockings on. How much sexier can you get? And she was a NANNY! At the time I thought she was like my grandmother, but if I go back now and rethink it all, MAYBE she was a sexy young lady that just liked animals and was looking out for these Muppet Babies to save up money for grad school. Could be. I like to think that she was a little sex pot. Yeah, I have too much time on my hands…..
97 Quick Draw McGraw-This Cowboy Horse was a staple on the Laff-a-lympics. He was a HORSE, that was a COWBOY. How cool is that? Plus he had a cool accent.
96 Snaggletooth- this pinkish cat beats out the Pink Panther because of his “exit, stage left,” catchphrase. This guy was cool AND he actually had a snaggletooth, hence the name. A cool customer without trying, and he could talk. Therefore HE gets my vote over the Pink Panther that just moved to music. Though that was a cool song.
95 Grape Ape He OWNED the Laff-a-lympics and he had a little hat.
94 Bunsen and Beaker I loved it when these two visited the rest of the Muppet Babies. Bunsen didn’t have any eyes and Beaker was such a lovable wuss, it was great. Me-me-mememe-me and that hair for Beaker. And Bunsen Honeydew, you can’t go wrong with a name like that. These two were great part-times. Actually it was better that they were part-time as I might have gotten a little tired of them, but instead they had the right amount. And I liked that they always wore their PJs. The normal crew had outfits, but these guys ONLY had PJs.
93 Mumbley-laff-a-lympics Rscally-Rottens captain also appeared in the New Tom and Jerry Adventures. I am not certain why he was thrown into the “villains” category of the Laff-a-lympics, as he never seemed to be all that bad a guy on the New T & J show. But he gets credit for leading his team to 2 wins and 1 tie in the L-A-L contest, even if kids NEVER wanted bad guys to win. (This keeps the kids watching though, if sometimes they don’t get what they want. That is what the WWF/WWE does. Sometimes the face loses to the heel so folks will tune back in to see the heel get his comeuppance! Plus you can’t always give kids what they want. What is that teaching them? That’s why I support dodgeball in schools. Teach the kids that in life there WILL be losers)
92 Marvin the Martian- I had a tough time deciding whether or not to include this guy, but he won out over that stupid frog on the WB as well as the TMNT. I thought their real action movies were WAY better than the cartoon tv show, and after seeing the movies, you can’t go back to silly cartoons. So Marvin won and got on the list. His high pitched voice made me think that, if there really were aliens out there, maybe they wouldn’t be so bad. Then I saw Cloverfield. And I was scared all over again.
91 Skeeter & Scooter The twins that I don’t remember as grown up Muppets, but that’s OK. Skeeter and Scooter were a computer nerd and Sports freak, the yin and yang. Pretty interesting commentary the writers came up with on society. I also liked it when they took their glasses off, they HAD NO EYES!
90 Chief Quimby our first Inspector Gadget Character. You probably thought Penny might make the list? NOPE. That loser! Uncle Gadget should have sent her back to her mother. She was ALWAYS bringing him down. I know she saved him a bunch, but I choose to give Brain that credit. BACK TO QUIMBY. He was the one tracking Dr. Claw and the M.A.D. team and he always got blown up, but showed up for work the next day. You’ve gotta respect that commitment to stamping out evil.
89 Rolfe a piano-playing dog. I never knew how he learned to play the piano, maybe that SEXY Nanny taught him. But he could tickle a mean ivory. And a pretty good singing voice for a dog, defying the stereotype. What does his name mean though. Could never figure that one out.
88 Judy Jetson- This chick, George’s daughter NEVER got enough air time. She was pretty hot, had an interesting hairdo. I think she could have had a FEW episodes based on her, but NOOOOOOO. The writers chose to overlook her, like they did Taylor Townsend in season 3 of The OC. Maybe if they had killed off Jane and been stuck with Judy as the main lady (like The OC did with Marissa, after they spayed Summer Roberts with that stupid Green storyline) the show would have REALLY taken off, before they cancelled it. I am still upset about the shortening of Taylor Townsend. But I will move on.
87 Bam Bam This Rubble was super strong and was liked so much, he was given a spinoff with Peebles. I think BamBam was cooler than Peebles, but I rank him one notch below her because his name wasn’t Flintstone.
86 Peebles Peebles Flintstone…did Fred and Wilma WANT her to grow up and work at the Rock Hard Strip Club? Come on! Peebles? Why not just nickname her Crystal Meth!
85 Donald Duck-in cameo form Again, he makes the list ONLY because of his cameos, and to be honest, he was never the squeaking, spitting, Duck he was in all of the movies in the show. He was strictly there for Huey Dewey and Louey. Which I can respect. He didn’t want to steal the spot light…what am I talking about? He was a freaking cartoon.
84 Roger Klotz The Doug Funny Villain that was the opposite of Doug in how he dressed (jeans and a black leather jacket opposed to khaki shorts and a sweater vest) his animal (mean cat v charming dog) and his hair (wavy and unkempt v washed and combed). This guy terrorized Doug’s life in a non-threatening way, and we even got to see a softer side of him when he was scared to go from Middle to High School, also when his cat disappeared. Roger came from the wrong side of Bluffington, so we shouldn’t fault him for that. His tough front was just a defense mechanism for the problems he was facing. Sometimes kids express themselves in different ways, Roger just tried to be a bully.
83 The Rugrats Here is one where I had to group them together because even Tommy was pretty cool and Chuckie was an interesting character, the same with the Phil and Lil (two of the ugliest babies EVER!) I just don’t think that separately they would be worthy of top 100 inclusion. I didn’t like how the parents let them have a screw driver in Tommy’s diaper. DID they NEVER notice it when they changed him? And how many times will you discover them outside before you realize, Hmmm, how do they keep opening the gate AND the door? As for Angelica, I knew kids like her so I hated her even more, but that was the point I think. For us to hate her. She wasn’t that great of a villain on her own, the producers were banking on us recalling someone like her in our lives. I guess you have to give them credit for making us think, but I only thought of that a few minutes ago, not 15 years ago when I was watching the show. But I also want to point out that I didn’t like the lack of parenting going on there. They would just drop the kids off and then go into another room and it would be seemingly ages before they would return to check on the kids. And the kids knew this too, that’s why they would go off and have adventures. PS, were they supposed to have big imaginations like the Muppet Babies, or were they just supposed to only imagine SOMETIMES?
82-Elroy Jetson The son of George got WAY much more attention than Judy, but what are you going to do. The cartoon came out, probably in China where boys are valued moreso than girls, so of course Elroy got more play. But can we at least acknowledge that his name was Leroy, just spelled more spacey-like? Thanks I don’t think George liked Elroy as much as he liked Rast-ro though. The fact that Astro could talk I think put Elroy in #2 status with Judy dropping to #3. If I knew Elroy at school, I would give him an atomic wedgie because of the way he dressed. Actually that isn’t true. I am not a bully. I’m a lover, not a fighter.
81 Huckelberry Hound- a blue dog with a southern drawl that seemed at peace with everyone. I think it was an act though. I believe he was HIGHLY intelligent, he just used his slow nature to his advantage so people would underestimate him, and he would then use their lowered expectations to take control and by the time they realized the jig…it was UP!
coming Thursday....80-61
I will present this list the way VH1 does their countdowns 100-81, 80-61, 60-41, 40-21, and 20-1. I will post the next segment every other day, that way you can digest and think about the list, even offer opinions if you'd like. And I even threw 5 extras in. You are welcome!
Now, with no further ado. . . . . . .
105 Kim Possible-points deducted because it’s Hillary Duff and this was after my time. This cartoon though is really to blame for both Hillary’s and Hayley’s careers. Hayley may be RIGHT up there on unless siblings that mooche off their much more famous sibling’s popularity. Credit to ESPN’s The Sports Guy’s Frank Stallone Theory.
104 Johnny Bravo I am not sure if this cartoon actually entertains children or if it was just a joke that a bunch of artists came up with one night when they were stoned. “Dude, you are ‘Johnny Freaking Bravo’ right now. Ohhhh you brought baked Cheetos!”
103 Power Puff Girls Our Countdown is ON like the break of DAWN baby! I can’t really pull off the Baby, can I? Oh well. These Power Puff girls gave hope to both young girls and those weirdo chicks in colleges (as well as Asian chicks) that wanted to wear cartoon thongs, why? Because they are messed up. But the Power Puff Girls picked up the Girl Power! slack when the Spice Girls broke up the first time. PS, speaking of Spice Girls….is their reunion tour over with yet? Can I still buy their CD? I need to know these things….
102 David the Gnome OK, so this is a favor to the Bride-to-be since she really liked this show back in the day. Personally, I was freaked out by these little people. I thought at some point they might come out of the TV and start crawling on me like at the end of Mulholland Drive. PS, that movie, I was told was supposed to be a show on HBO or Shotime, but it was cancelled after three episodes were shot, so they just combined them into a REALLY messed up movie….with a cool lezbinen scene. Good work David Lynch. But back to David the Gnome. He rode on a Fox to travel on land. He rode a swan to get across water and to go long distances. And at NO point did the fox or swan think, “hmmm I have a treat on my back. Maybe I should take advantage?” Did the gnomes have a spell over them?”
101 Wally the Gator He gets docked points because he is a Gator, and I am a Dawg, but other than the Laff-a-lympics, I don’t really remember this guy. I vaguely remember his waterskiing on some dolphins, but I could be wrong.
100 Klondike Kat. This ripoff of Dudley Do-Right never sat well with me. I hated the fact that the Underdog people so openly ripped off the R&B folks, but at least Klondike Kat was obviously inferior so people NEVER openly rooted for him. But I believe he was the second best thing on the Underdog show. Much better than that stupid Penguin. That tells you how poor that show was, OTHER than Underdog.
99 Scooby Dum. This was Scooby’s slow-witted cousin or something? Most of the time he accidentally helped catch the bad guy (which is all Scooby ever did either, but hey, at least Scooby Doo was funny. I am not amused by making fun of stupid animals. Those America’s Funniest Animal shows that come on WGN…. I don’t laugh. Because if those animals were at animals shelters, they would be put down. And that’s not funny. Visit PAWS Atlanta, they are a no-kill shelter, even if the dog is stupid.)
98 Nanny’s Legs I think we all know I am a leg man and this character is JUST legs with stockings on. How much sexier can you get? And she was a NANNY! At the time I thought she was like my grandmother, but if I go back now and rethink it all, MAYBE she was a sexy young lady that just liked animals and was looking out for these Muppet Babies to save up money for grad school. Could be. I like to think that she was a little sex pot. Yeah, I have too much time on my hands…..
97 Quick Draw McGraw-This Cowboy Horse was a staple on the Laff-a-lympics. He was a HORSE, that was a COWBOY. How cool is that? Plus he had a cool accent.
96 Snaggletooth- this pinkish cat beats out the Pink Panther because of his “exit, stage left,” catchphrase. This guy was cool AND he actually had a snaggletooth, hence the name. A cool customer without trying, and he could talk. Therefore HE gets my vote over the Pink Panther that just moved to music. Though that was a cool song.
95 Grape Ape He OWNED the Laff-a-lympics and he had a little hat.
94 Bunsen and Beaker I loved it when these two visited the rest of the Muppet Babies. Bunsen didn’t have any eyes and Beaker was such a lovable wuss, it was great. Me-me-mememe-me and that hair for Beaker. And Bunsen Honeydew, you can’t go wrong with a name like that. These two were great part-times. Actually it was better that they were part-time as I might have gotten a little tired of them, but instead they had the right amount. And I liked that they always wore their PJs. The normal crew had outfits, but these guys ONLY had PJs.
93 Mumbley-laff-a-lympics Rscally-Rottens captain also appeared in the New Tom and Jerry Adventures. I am not certain why he was thrown into the “villains” category of the Laff-a-lympics, as he never seemed to be all that bad a guy on the New T & J show. But he gets credit for leading his team to 2 wins and 1 tie in the L-A-L contest, even if kids NEVER wanted bad guys to win. (This keeps the kids watching though, if sometimes they don’t get what they want. That is what the WWF/WWE does. Sometimes the face loses to the heel so folks will tune back in to see the heel get his comeuppance! Plus you can’t always give kids what they want. What is that teaching them? That’s why I support dodgeball in schools. Teach the kids that in life there WILL be losers)
92 Marvin the Martian- I had a tough time deciding whether or not to include this guy, but he won out over that stupid frog on the WB as well as the TMNT. I thought their real action movies were WAY better than the cartoon tv show, and after seeing the movies, you can’t go back to silly cartoons. So Marvin won and got on the list. His high pitched voice made me think that, if there really were aliens out there, maybe they wouldn’t be so bad. Then I saw Cloverfield. And I was scared all over again.
91 Skeeter & Scooter The twins that I don’t remember as grown up Muppets, but that’s OK. Skeeter and Scooter were a computer nerd and Sports freak, the yin and yang. Pretty interesting commentary the writers came up with on society. I also liked it when they took their glasses off, they HAD NO EYES!
90 Chief Quimby our first Inspector Gadget Character. You probably thought Penny might make the list? NOPE. That loser! Uncle Gadget should have sent her back to her mother. She was ALWAYS bringing him down. I know she saved him a bunch, but I choose to give Brain that credit. BACK TO QUIMBY. He was the one tracking Dr. Claw and the M.A.D. team and he always got blown up, but showed up for work the next day. You’ve gotta respect that commitment to stamping out evil.
89 Rolfe a piano-playing dog. I never knew how he learned to play the piano, maybe that SEXY Nanny taught him. But he could tickle a mean ivory. And a pretty good singing voice for a dog, defying the stereotype. What does his name mean though. Could never figure that one out.
88 Judy Jetson- This chick, George’s daughter NEVER got enough air time. She was pretty hot, had an interesting hairdo. I think she could have had a FEW episodes based on her, but NOOOOOOO. The writers chose to overlook her, like they did Taylor Townsend in season 3 of The OC. Maybe if they had killed off Jane and been stuck with Judy as the main lady (like The OC did with Marissa, after they spayed Summer Roberts with that stupid Green storyline) the show would have REALLY taken off, before they cancelled it. I am still upset about the shortening of Taylor Townsend. But I will move on.
87 Bam Bam This Rubble was super strong and was liked so much, he was given a spinoff with Peebles. I think BamBam was cooler than Peebles, but I rank him one notch below her because his name wasn’t Flintstone.
86 Peebles Peebles Flintstone…did Fred and Wilma WANT her to grow up and work at the Rock Hard Strip Club? Come on! Peebles? Why not just nickname her Crystal Meth!
85 Donald Duck-in cameo form Again, he makes the list ONLY because of his cameos, and to be honest, he was never the squeaking, spitting, Duck he was in all of the movies in the show. He was strictly there for Huey Dewey and Louey. Which I can respect. He didn’t want to steal the spot light…what am I talking about? He was a freaking cartoon.
84 Roger Klotz The Doug Funny Villain that was the opposite of Doug in how he dressed (jeans and a black leather jacket opposed to khaki shorts and a sweater vest) his animal (mean cat v charming dog) and his hair (wavy and unkempt v washed and combed). This guy terrorized Doug’s life in a non-threatening way, and we even got to see a softer side of him when he was scared to go from Middle to High School, also when his cat disappeared. Roger came from the wrong side of Bluffington, so we shouldn’t fault him for that. His tough front was just a defense mechanism for the problems he was facing. Sometimes kids express themselves in different ways, Roger just tried to be a bully.
83 The Rugrats Here is one where I had to group them together because even Tommy was pretty cool and Chuckie was an interesting character, the same with the Phil and Lil (two of the ugliest babies EVER!) I just don’t think that separately they would be worthy of top 100 inclusion. I didn’t like how the parents let them have a screw driver in Tommy’s diaper. DID they NEVER notice it when they changed him? And how many times will you discover them outside before you realize, Hmmm, how do they keep opening the gate AND the door? As for Angelica, I knew kids like her so I hated her even more, but that was the point I think. For us to hate her. She wasn’t that great of a villain on her own, the producers were banking on us recalling someone like her in our lives. I guess you have to give them credit for making us think, but I only thought of that a few minutes ago, not 15 years ago when I was watching the show. But I also want to point out that I didn’t like the lack of parenting going on there. They would just drop the kids off and then go into another room and it would be seemingly ages before they would return to check on the kids. And the kids knew this too, that’s why they would go off and have adventures. PS, were they supposed to have big imaginations like the Muppet Babies, or were they just supposed to only imagine SOMETIMES?
82-Elroy Jetson The son of George got WAY much more attention than Judy, but what are you going to do. The cartoon came out, probably in China where boys are valued moreso than girls, so of course Elroy got more play. But can we at least acknowledge that his name was Leroy, just spelled more spacey-like? Thanks I don’t think George liked Elroy as much as he liked Rast-ro though. The fact that Astro could talk I think put Elroy in #2 status with Judy dropping to #3. If I knew Elroy at school, I would give him an atomic wedgie because of the way he dressed. Actually that isn’t true. I am not a bully. I’m a lover, not a fighter.
81 Huckelberry Hound- a blue dog with a southern drawl that seemed at peace with everyone. I think it was an act though. I believe he was HIGHLY intelligent, he just used his slow nature to his advantage so people would underestimate him, and he would then use their lowered expectations to take control and by the time they realized the jig…it was UP!
coming Thursday....80-61
Monday, February 25, 2008
Georgia State AAAA basketball playoffs
Score Atlanta has asked me to keep tabs on the Georgia State AAAA basketball state playoffs for the weekly magazine and to blog about the rounds on the state basketball website. I will also be doing a live blog during the championship games on March 7th, but more details will come out closer to that date.
But I figured I would also let my loyal reader know what is going on in the tourney RIGHT HERE! So here we all go...this is the 1st Round review/Sweet 16 preview that can be seen in this week's Score Atlanta, due to hit newsstands this Wednesday.
SPOILER ALERT!!!!
Boys
The star power of Class AAAA is certainly nothing to scoff at this season as multiple players with Division 1 scholarships in hand have led their teams into the second round of the state playoffs. Wake Forest commit Tony Woods scored 21 of his team’s 41 points in an opening round win over Hillgrove, who was making its first appearance ever in the playoffs. Elsewhere Shawn Kemp Jr, poured in 22 as Cherokee knocked off Dalton 63-51 and Kemp will have a tough matchup against Miller Grove’s Mfon Udofia in the second round. Udofia, a state all-star selection showed why as he netted 26 in a victory over Cedar Shoals. Other key match-ups in the second round include 26-3 Columbia at Peeblebrook and Dacula, having just knocked off defending champion Tucker behind a tight defense, traveling to 26-3 Lithia Springs.
But expect the star players like Fayette County’s Noel Johnson and Brandon Boykin and Westlake’s combo of Gideon Gamble and Raymond Willis to carry their teams through the tournament. Johnson went for 30 in Fayette County’s first round win and Boykin’s athleticism earned him a scholarship to play football at UGA. Oklahoma-bound Willis scored 18 points in No. 1 Westlake’s win over Forest Park.
Surprises from the first round included Tucker’s exit at the hands of Dacula. The Tigers had their chances, but teams facing the Falcons down the line must watch out for Senior Trent Kammerer and Junior Brian Cole, as they went for 21 and 16, respectively against the defending champs.
Girls
The first round featured fireworks galore as four games pitted Score Atlanta ranked teams against each other. No. 5 Clarke Central knocked off No. 8 St. Pius X in a classic dual and No. 3 Westlake, behind Da-Lee-La Robinson took down No. 10 Jonesboro. Courtney Freeman led No. 7 Madison County past Tesia Davis and No. 2 Marist, and No. 6 Rome lost at home to No. 4 Hillgrove, the four-seed out of Region 5.
The No. 1 team entering the state playoffs, Southwest DeKalb features two outstanding players in Kayla Lewis and GACA All-Star Charenee Stephens. A future South Carolina Gamecock, Stephens pulled down double-digit rebounds in SW DeKalb’s first round win over Heritage, which is no surprise. She had 26 in the team’s regional semi-final. Southwest DeKalb is seeking its first ever state title, but the road will not be easy. A second round match-up with Northwest Whitfield awaits and an Elite Eight tilt against either Clarke-Central or Osborne would make any team sweat.
On the other side of the bracket, Bainbridge ended Greenbrier’s season in the first round, after Greenbrier had spent most of the season without a loss. Tai Brown and her Northside Warner Robbins team sit atop that bracket after beating Northgate.
Finally the tournament has lost one of its brightest stars in Courtney Hurt as Salem lost to Sade Means and Mays in the first round. Mays now faces Hillgove in what could be a game for the ages. The winner faces the Cherokee/Madison County winner.
But I figured I would also let my loyal reader know what is going on in the tourney RIGHT HERE! So here we all go...this is the 1st Round review/Sweet 16 preview that can be seen in this week's Score Atlanta, due to hit newsstands this Wednesday.
SPOILER ALERT!!!!
Boys
The star power of Class AAAA is certainly nothing to scoff at this season as multiple players with Division 1 scholarships in hand have led their teams into the second round of the state playoffs. Wake Forest commit Tony Woods scored 21 of his team’s 41 points in an opening round win over Hillgrove, who was making its first appearance ever in the playoffs. Elsewhere Shawn Kemp Jr, poured in 22 as Cherokee knocked off Dalton 63-51 and Kemp will have a tough matchup against Miller Grove’s Mfon Udofia in the second round. Udofia, a state all-star selection showed why as he netted 26 in a victory over Cedar Shoals. Other key match-ups in the second round include 26-3 Columbia at Peeblebrook and Dacula, having just knocked off defending champion Tucker behind a tight defense, traveling to 26-3 Lithia Springs.
But expect the star players like Fayette County’s Noel Johnson and Brandon Boykin and Westlake’s combo of Gideon Gamble and Raymond Willis to carry their teams through the tournament. Johnson went for 30 in Fayette County’s first round win and Boykin’s athleticism earned him a scholarship to play football at UGA. Oklahoma-bound Willis scored 18 points in No. 1 Westlake’s win over Forest Park.
Surprises from the first round included Tucker’s exit at the hands of Dacula. The Tigers had their chances, but teams facing the Falcons down the line must watch out for Senior Trent Kammerer and Junior Brian Cole, as they went for 21 and 16, respectively against the defending champs.
Girls
The first round featured fireworks galore as four games pitted Score Atlanta ranked teams against each other. No. 5 Clarke Central knocked off No. 8 St. Pius X in a classic dual and No. 3 Westlake, behind Da-Lee-La Robinson took down No. 10 Jonesboro. Courtney Freeman led No. 7 Madison County past Tesia Davis and No. 2 Marist, and No. 6 Rome lost at home to No. 4 Hillgrove, the four-seed out of Region 5.
The No. 1 team entering the state playoffs, Southwest DeKalb features two outstanding players in Kayla Lewis and GACA All-Star Charenee Stephens. A future South Carolina Gamecock, Stephens pulled down double-digit rebounds in SW DeKalb’s first round win over Heritage, which is no surprise. She had 26 in the team’s regional semi-final. Southwest DeKalb is seeking its first ever state title, but the road will not be easy. A second round match-up with Northwest Whitfield awaits and an Elite Eight tilt against either Clarke-Central or Osborne would make any team sweat.
On the other side of the bracket, Bainbridge ended Greenbrier’s season in the first round, after Greenbrier had spent most of the season without a loss. Tai Brown and her Northside Warner Robbins team sit atop that bracket after beating Northgate.
Finally the tournament has lost one of its brightest stars in Courtney Hurt as Salem lost to Sade Means and Mays in the first round. Mays now faces Hillgove in what could be a game for the ages. The winner faces the Cherokee/Madison County winner.
The NEW First Family of Sports
A father finishes a College football Hall of fame career and is selected with the second overall pick in the NFL draft, leading to a 13-year pro career, that included two Pro Bowls. He then sires three sons worthy of attaining SEC football scholarships. Two of those sons then go on to be selected as top overall picks in separate NFL drafts and the youngest recently won the Super Bowl MVP, one year after the elder captured the same prize. Archie, Cooper, Peyton and Eli Manning are true NFL royalty, the modern day version of Football’s Camelot.
Meanwhile, the new First Family of Sports resides in Ivy, Virginia. After finishing his college career at Villanova, Howie Long was selected in the second round of the NFL draft by the Oakland Raiders, and with the Raiders he would spend a 15 career harassing Quarterbacks with his Rip move to the tune of 93.5 sacks. Over his career, he earned 8 trips to the Pro Bowl and he received 6 All-Pro nods to bookend his Super Bowl victory. But while the Mannings are currently ruling the NFL, his lineage is just about to get started.
His oldest son Chris has just finished up an award-winning career at the University of Virginia, where like his father he was an All-American. Chris captured the Dudley and Ted Hendricks trophies and could be selected the No. 1 or 2 overall pick in this April’s draft and at worst No. 4. Chris’s elder younger brother Kyle is certainly not his little brother. While Chris stands 6-4 279 and is the prototypical size for Defensive End, Kyle is even bigger at 6’7 280. Despite dominating on the gridiron for St. Anne’s Belfield School in Charlottesville, Kyle has committed to Florida State, to play baseball. But here is where it gets interesting for the family. Kyle may never step foot in Tallahassee as major league baseball scouts love the southpaw’s arm Reports indicate the projected closer lights up radar guns upwards of 96 mph. Kyle could be the second member of the Long clan to be selected in the first round in as many months. Though Seminole message boards are begging the pre-season collegiate baseball All-American to come pitch the school, first round money might put Kyle on the fast track to the majors.
The youngest Long, Howie Jr., recently committed to play college lacrosse for Dom Starsia at traditional powerhouse UVA. Though Howie Jr., is smaller than both of his brothers, he still has earned his way into the sports spotlight and he dominates the sport that both his older brothers once played at StAB.
While the Mannings have a stronghold on football, the Long’s diversity gives them the edge when it comes to the title of “First Family of Sports.” Surely both patriarchs beam with pride when discussing their next generation, but only one still looks the part. A UVA insider revealed that, during a game this past season he ran into Papa Long in one of the Private Suites at Scott Stadium, and Long certainly impressed. “He looked so sharp, like he could probably strap on the pads and have played that day.”
The Mannings with Eli and Peyton may be the football’s present, but the Longs, led by Kyle, Howie, Jr., and Chris, are the sports’ world’s future. And that future is nearly here
Meanwhile, the new First Family of Sports resides in Ivy, Virginia. After finishing his college career at Villanova, Howie Long was selected in the second round of the NFL draft by the Oakland Raiders, and with the Raiders he would spend a 15 career harassing Quarterbacks with his Rip move to the tune of 93.5 sacks. Over his career, he earned 8 trips to the Pro Bowl and he received 6 All-Pro nods to bookend his Super Bowl victory. But while the Mannings are currently ruling the NFL, his lineage is just about to get started.
His oldest son Chris has just finished up an award-winning career at the University of Virginia, where like his father he was an All-American. Chris captured the Dudley and Ted Hendricks trophies and could be selected the No. 1 or 2 overall pick in this April’s draft and at worst No. 4. Chris’s elder younger brother Kyle is certainly not his little brother. While Chris stands 6-4 279 and is the prototypical size for Defensive End, Kyle is even bigger at 6’7 280. Despite dominating on the gridiron for St. Anne’s Belfield School in Charlottesville, Kyle has committed to Florida State, to play baseball. But here is where it gets interesting for the family. Kyle may never step foot in Tallahassee as major league baseball scouts love the southpaw’s arm Reports indicate the projected closer lights up radar guns upwards of 96 mph. Kyle could be the second member of the Long clan to be selected in the first round in as many months. Though Seminole message boards are begging the pre-season collegiate baseball All-American to come pitch the school, first round money might put Kyle on the fast track to the majors.
The youngest Long, Howie Jr., recently committed to play college lacrosse for Dom Starsia at traditional powerhouse UVA. Though Howie Jr., is smaller than both of his brothers, he still has earned his way into the sports spotlight and he dominates the sport that both his older brothers once played at StAB.
While the Mannings have a stronghold on football, the Long’s diversity gives them the edge when it comes to the title of “First Family of Sports.” Surely both patriarchs beam with pride when discussing their next generation, but only one still looks the part. A UVA insider revealed that, during a game this past season he ran into Papa Long in one of the Private Suites at Scott Stadium, and Long certainly impressed. “He looked so sharp, like he could probably strap on the pads and have played that day.”
The Mannings with Eli and Peyton may be the football’s present, but the Longs, led by Kyle, Howie, Jr., and Chris, are the sports’ world’s future. And that future is nearly here
Friday, February 22, 2008
Where there's smoke, there's kids looking to get rich quick!
Duke lacrosse players, NOT involved in the sex scandal of a few years back have recently decided to sue the school and the town for emotional distress, according to reports.
This is CRAZY.
I love the black eye that Duke got out of this, but SERIOUSLY, what emotional stress did the Duke PLAYERS suffer that they didn't bring on THEMSELVES?
Did I miss something where the PLAYERS decided to throw the party that ended so poorly? It wasn’t like they went to this party and got trapped. They PLANNED the party.
I am curious how the conversation among the party planners went:
Duke LAX player one: "Hmmmm, hey guys, maybe we SHOULDN'T have a party with a black stripper invited to “dance” for a bunch of aggressive white guys."
Duke LAX player two: "Don't worry about it. I am SURE we will act like gentleman and not make her feel threatened at all to want to FAKE being sexually assaulted/raped"
Duke LAX player three: "You are TOTALLY right. We WILL be on our best behavior, no doubt! We are all responsible and no player on the team underage will consume alcohol either!"
I know ultimately they were found NOT guilty or the charges were dropped or whatever, but you DON'T SET YOURSELF up for that stuff. I recently had a conversation with a former college athlete about scholarship players and he tried to defend these stupid athletes. The ones that receive a scholarship (that, true, they work hard for), and represent the university they attend.
In my opinion if you have something to LOSE (like a scholarship), BE EXTRA CAREFUL. You aren't afforded the opportunity to be a normal student because you are on scholarship. You are representing the school! Don’t walk down the street drunk and possibly get suspended and let down your team, coach and school. Don’t throw a party you KNOW is maybe not the right thing to do. You want to see strippers, go to a strip club.
And to top it off, The SCHOOL AND THE NCAA both were going to let the guys NOT charged transfer, with ZERO penalty, to another school. If they did that, they could STAY ON SCHOLARSHIP. OR, lest we forget they were allowed to STAY at Duke ON SCHOLARSHIP.
COME ON!
If you are one of the players and you didn't want to have that stigma, YOU SHOULDN’T HAVE GONE TO THE PARTY! Or if you went and you see stuff happening, try and end it. Or at the very least you could have LEFT. And when you leave, have WITNESSES SEE you leave. Call the coach when you get HOME and without telling him what happened, you still let him know you are in for the night. Then when this story breaks the next day, he will know YOU weren’t involved.
These players at Duke are looking for easy money. Who doesn’t have emotional distress? I think EVERYONE does at some point in their lives. Now having to live through being wrongly accused in a rape case is a little more than the average person, but remember... the people suing are the OTHER members of the team that WEREN’T accused. Their stress is something that I believe they could have avoided AND I believe they were offered a chance to avoid it by transferring out WITHOUT having to sit out a year before being able to play. (And PS, the team didn’t look all that distraught as they advanced to the NCAA championship game before losing in the finals.)
Guys, quit looking for a payday. The guys accused, I can believe, but you other fellows? PLEASE!
And to top it all off, as I am ALLOWED to have my own opinion about the matter.. where there is smoke there is fire. Just because the charges were dropped, that doesn’t mean you were completely innocent. You did throw the party. I remember OJ was found not guilty, but does that mean he was innocent?
This is CRAZY.
I love the black eye that Duke got out of this, but SERIOUSLY, what emotional stress did the Duke PLAYERS suffer that they didn't bring on THEMSELVES?
Did I miss something where the PLAYERS decided to throw the party that ended so poorly? It wasn’t like they went to this party and got trapped. They PLANNED the party.
I am curious how the conversation among the party planners went:
Duke LAX player one: "Hmmmm, hey guys, maybe we SHOULDN'T have a party with a black stripper invited to “dance” for a bunch of aggressive white guys."
Duke LAX player two: "Don't worry about it. I am SURE we will act like gentleman and not make her feel threatened at all to want to FAKE being sexually assaulted/raped"
Duke LAX player three: "You are TOTALLY right. We WILL be on our best behavior, no doubt! We are all responsible and no player on the team underage will consume alcohol either!"
I know ultimately they were found NOT guilty or the charges were dropped or whatever, but you DON'T SET YOURSELF up for that stuff. I recently had a conversation with a former college athlete about scholarship players and he tried to defend these stupid athletes. The ones that receive a scholarship (that, true, they work hard for), and represent the university they attend.
In my opinion if you have something to LOSE (like a scholarship), BE EXTRA CAREFUL. You aren't afforded the opportunity to be a normal student because you are on scholarship. You are representing the school! Don’t walk down the street drunk and possibly get suspended and let down your team, coach and school. Don’t throw a party you KNOW is maybe not the right thing to do. You want to see strippers, go to a strip club.
And to top it off, The SCHOOL AND THE NCAA both were going to let the guys NOT charged transfer, with ZERO penalty, to another school. If they did that, they could STAY ON SCHOLARSHIP. OR, lest we forget they were allowed to STAY at Duke ON SCHOLARSHIP.
COME ON!
If you are one of the players and you didn't want to have that stigma, YOU SHOULDN’T HAVE GONE TO THE PARTY! Or if you went and you see stuff happening, try and end it. Or at the very least you could have LEFT. And when you leave, have WITNESSES SEE you leave. Call the coach when you get HOME and without telling him what happened, you still let him know you are in for the night. Then when this story breaks the next day, he will know YOU weren’t involved.
These players at Duke are looking for easy money. Who doesn’t have emotional distress? I think EVERYONE does at some point in their lives. Now having to live through being wrongly accused in a rape case is a little more than the average person, but remember... the people suing are the OTHER members of the team that WEREN’T accused. Their stress is something that I believe they could have avoided AND I believe they were offered a chance to avoid it by transferring out WITHOUT having to sit out a year before being able to play. (And PS, the team didn’t look all that distraught as they advanced to the NCAA championship game before losing in the finals.)
Guys, quit looking for a payday. The guys accused, I can believe, but you other fellows? PLEASE!
And to top it all off, as I am ALLOWED to have my own opinion about the matter.. where there is smoke there is fire. Just because the charges were dropped, that doesn’t mean you were completely innocent. You did throw the party. I remember OJ was found not guilty, but does that mean he was innocent?
With the third pick in the NFL draft, the Atlanta Falcons select
Yep. The Falcons secured the No. 3 overall pick by virtue of a coin toss. Earlier today, the Falcons called tails and beat out the Oakland Raiders for the No. 3 pick, then Oakland beat Kansas City for the No. 4 pick and the draft order will look like this...barring trades...
1 Miami
2 St. Louis
3 Atlanta
4 Oakland
5 KC
In the second round Oakland will pick 3, KC 4 and ATL 5, with the 3rd round KC 3, Atl 4, Oak 5, and so on. But with ATL owning Houston's 2nd round pick (in the top 10 of the second round) the Falcons have 3 of the top 41 picks. And here is the kicker for Falcons fans. They may get one more. For weeks we have been hearing that the Chiefs have expressed interest in trading that now #4 second round pick for one DeAngelo Hall, the lunatic Falcons CB. Well, today, rumor has it that the New York Football Giants have offered its 1st round pick (No. 31 overall) to the ATL for DHall.
One thing I have to say to the Falcons...TAKE IT. I would have fallen all over myself for the KC pick, but now the Giants are giving you a pick 4 spots better? DO IT!(remember the Patriots don't have a pick, so you ARE getting #31 not #32!)
So if Atlanta takes that, they have 4 in the top 41. NICE. Way to rebuild.
Listen, it makes NO sense to have DHall around when he is complaining about a new contract. So if you pay him, you are still 3 years out of really doing something. You have to pay him 8M a year to fo 4-12,6-10, 9-7? No! If you DON'T pay him but keep him, he will be even MORE of a cancer in that lockerroom. Ship him out and draft a Lineman-o or d, doesn't matter.
How do I think things break down? I am glad you asked, even if you didn't...
1Miami, IF they keep the top pick, grabs QB Matt Ryan, but I think they trade the pick to Dallas and move down. Dallas then grabs Run DMc
2 St Louis grabs Howie Long's little boy Chris with the #2 pick(a huge blog from THIS GUY is coming about Chris Long and his family on Monday. stick around)
3 Atlanta will be tempted by Jake Long, but I say take Glen Dorsey. His arms may be a little short, but he is a PLAYER. A dominator! As I have said in previous posts, give me PROVEN talent over great potential any day.
At the end of the first round, if Felix Jones (or Mendenhall) is there, take him and pair him with JNorwood (since I think Warrick Dunn is headed to Seattle-the Atlanta of the West). I would also, in the second round look for an O-Lineman and then with the second pick, take another Dlineman or a quality Defensiveback, but only if the "best available tag" applies. Don't reach here.
The Falcons may want to consider Chad Henne in the 5th, if he is there, but I still say DJ Shockley and Red-Man can hold the fort until you get a high pick and take one of the FANTASTIC qbs coming out next year (Matt Stafford, Tebow, Colt McCoy, Sam Bradford, Rudy Carpenter, John Parker Wilson, Mitch Mustain, Stephen McGee, Chase Daniel will all be draft eligible next April). Another thing you could do is pluck John Navarre from Arizona, I believe, and plug him in for one or two years until your QB from NEXT year's draft is ready.
The Falcons got LUCKY today. And I believe that with this Thomas Dimitroff, of late Patriots' fame, the team will make smart draft moves. And just a word to Tommy Boy, DON'T TAKE A RECEIVER, and you will be fine.
Now as for my Redskins....take DeSean Jackson with the No. 21 and be happy. QUITE TRYING TO GET CHAD JOHNSON. The price WOULDN'T be worth the headache.
*****************************
So I have decided to include this as a BONUS for those loyal folks out there getting their NFL knowledge from this blog. (And if you are what is WRONG with you? Go to ESPN.com.) I exchanged my thoughts with my radio partner Paul “The Body” Mack. He is a die-hard Falcons fan and I was going over scenarios with him, mainly to get under his skin, but also to get him into a tizzy, which can and DID happen. Once The Body threw his wallet at my TV. It’s ok though, I went out and got an LCD HDTV as a result. Anyways, here is what I said to The Body:
I would take Dorsey at #3 (where the Falcons have the pick…see above) because I think Miami either takes Matt Ryan and then the Rams take Chris Long. Miami may also trade the #1 to Dallas, but they would take Run DMC. That would leave Dorsey (and his small arms that will FREAK out scouts, even though he is a beast on the field.) The only nightmare scenario you should worry about is if Dorsey is #1 and CLong at #2. I am just afraid for you the Falcons will take Ryan.
But if that is the case, call Dallas and see if they want to send you the #22 AND #28 for that #3 IF DMC is still there at 3. Think hard though because Darren McFadden will sell tickets, but so does winning. Of course we are assuming that the Falcons will send DeAngelo Hall to the NY Giants for that #31 overall pick (as has been rumored) or at least to KC for the #4 2nd round pick, you have the #22 (Take the Kansas CB Talib to replace DHall) and take Felix Jones at #28
OR maybe Quentin Groves at #22 then Mendenhall at #28 or Ryan Clady, OT from Boise State, but he will probably be gone. Then you have the wonderful problem of what to do at #31...maybe Kentwahn Balmer the DT from UNC?
In the second round I’d go with another CB (Antoine Cason of Arizona maybe) with your pick in the second round. Or CB Leodis McKelvin.
Bottom line if DMC is there, take him, UNLESS you can get two #1s from Dallas, then do THAT
AGAIN, this is ONLY if Dorsey and CLong are gone!
The Body weighed in with his Falcons thoughts…Cason is a guy I like, but Mckelven is gone as the Saints will take him. I think they can get Cromartie lower in the draft. I think they'll try to get run stuffers and a "name" player like Mcfadden/Dorsey early to be able to sell some tickets. I think they go for a ton of picks and don't package and move up. I think they want as many picks as they can get to build and maybe allow for mistakes.
They need 2 OT's... 2 DT's 1RB, likely at least one MLB, One CB, one WR, and probably one OG. QB is lower on my totem pole really.
Yeah there isn't anyone really good on the team but I don't see it as imperative as people make it out to be. We can't stop the run. That's my #1 priority followed closely by Offensive tackle. I think strong DT's help the pass rush which helps everything else.
I've decided I don't want Baker. I'm ok with Jake Long but I don't think he'll be "great" which is what I consider in a top 5. Mcfadden is a safer pick there. Like Ryan, not so much I take him at 3.
1 Miami
2 St. Louis
3 Atlanta
4 Oakland
5 KC
In the second round Oakland will pick 3, KC 4 and ATL 5, with the 3rd round KC 3, Atl 4, Oak 5, and so on. But with ATL owning Houston's 2nd round pick (in the top 10 of the second round) the Falcons have 3 of the top 41 picks. And here is the kicker for Falcons fans. They may get one more. For weeks we have been hearing that the Chiefs have expressed interest in trading that now #4 second round pick for one DeAngelo Hall, the lunatic Falcons CB. Well, today, rumor has it that the New York Football Giants have offered its 1st round pick (No. 31 overall) to the ATL for DHall.
One thing I have to say to the Falcons...TAKE IT. I would have fallen all over myself for the KC pick, but now the Giants are giving you a pick 4 spots better? DO IT!(remember the Patriots don't have a pick, so you ARE getting #31 not #32!)
So if Atlanta takes that, they have 4 in the top 41. NICE. Way to rebuild.
Listen, it makes NO sense to have DHall around when he is complaining about a new contract. So if you pay him, you are still 3 years out of really doing something. You have to pay him 8M a year to fo 4-12,6-10, 9-7? No! If you DON'T pay him but keep him, he will be even MORE of a cancer in that lockerroom. Ship him out and draft a Lineman-o or d, doesn't matter.
How do I think things break down? I am glad you asked, even if you didn't...
1Miami, IF they keep the top pick, grabs QB Matt Ryan, but I think they trade the pick to Dallas and move down. Dallas then grabs Run DMc
2 St Louis grabs Howie Long's little boy Chris with the #2 pick(a huge blog from THIS GUY is coming about Chris Long and his family on Monday. stick around)
3 Atlanta will be tempted by Jake Long, but I say take Glen Dorsey. His arms may be a little short, but he is a PLAYER. A dominator! As I have said in previous posts, give me PROVEN talent over great potential any day.
At the end of the first round, if Felix Jones (or Mendenhall) is there, take him and pair him with JNorwood (since I think Warrick Dunn is headed to Seattle-the Atlanta of the West). I would also, in the second round look for an O-Lineman and then with the second pick, take another Dlineman or a quality Defensiveback, but only if the "best available tag" applies. Don't reach here.
The Falcons may want to consider Chad Henne in the 5th, if he is there, but I still say DJ Shockley and Red-Man can hold the fort until you get a high pick and take one of the FANTASTIC qbs coming out next year (Matt Stafford, Tebow, Colt McCoy, Sam Bradford, Rudy Carpenter, John Parker Wilson, Mitch Mustain, Stephen McGee, Chase Daniel will all be draft eligible next April). Another thing you could do is pluck John Navarre from Arizona, I believe, and plug him in for one or two years until your QB from NEXT year's draft is ready.
The Falcons got LUCKY today. And I believe that with this Thomas Dimitroff, of late Patriots' fame, the team will make smart draft moves. And just a word to Tommy Boy, DON'T TAKE A RECEIVER, and you will be fine.
Now as for my Redskins....take DeSean Jackson with the No. 21 and be happy. QUITE TRYING TO GET CHAD JOHNSON. The price WOULDN'T be worth the headache.
*****************************
So I have decided to include this as a BONUS for those loyal folks out there getting their NFL knowledge from this blog. (And if you are what is WRONG with you? Go to ESPN.com.) I exchanged my thoughts with my radio partner Paul “The Body” Mack. He is a die-hard Falcons fan and I was going over scenarios with him, mainly to get under his skin, but also to get him into a tizzy, which can and DID happen. Once The Body threw his wallet at my TV. It’s ok though, I went out and got an LCD HDTV as a result. Anyways, here is what I said to The Body:
I would take Dorsey at #3 (where the Falcons have the pick…see above) because I think Miami either takes Matt Ryan and then the Rams take Chris Long. Miami may also trade the #1 to Dallas, but they would take Run DMC. That would leave Dorsey (and his small arms that will FREAK out scouts, even though he is a beast on the field.) The only nightmare scenario you should worry about is if Dorsey is #1 and CLong at #2. I am just afraid for you the Falcons will take Ryan.
But if that is the case, call Dallas and see if they want to send you the #22 AND #28 for that #3 IF DMC is still there at 3. Think hard though because Darren McFadden will sell tickets, but so does winning. Of course we are assuming that the Falcons will send DeAngelo Hall to the NY Giants for that #31 overall pick (as has been rumored) or at least to KC for the #4 2nd round pick, you have the #22 (Take the Kansas CB Talib to replace DHall) and take Felix Jones at #28
OR maybe Quentin Groves at #22 then Mendenhall at #28 or Ryan Clady, OT from Boise State, but he will probably be gone. Then you have the wonderful problem of what to do at #31...maybe Kentwahn Balmer the DT from UNC?
In the second round I’d go with another CB (Antoine Cason of Arizona maybe) with your pick in the second round. Or CB Leodis McKelvin.
Bottom line if DMC is there, take him, UNLESS you can get two #1s from Dallas, then do THAT
AGAIN, this is ONLY if Dorsey and CLong are gone!
The Body weighed in with his Falcons thoughts…Cason is a guy I like, but Mckelven is gone as the Saints will take him. I think they can get Cromartie lower in the draft. I think they'll try to get run stuffers and a "name" player like Mcfadden/Dorsey early to be able to sell some tickets. I think they go for a ton of picks and don't package and move up. I think they want as many picks as they can get to build and maybe allow for mistakes.
They need 2 OT's... 2 DT's 1RB, likely at least one MLB, One CB, one WR, and probably one OG. QB is lower on my totem pole really.
Yeah there isn't anyone really good on the team but I don't see it as imperative as people make it out to be. We can't stop the run. That's my #1 priority followed closely by Offensive tackle. I think strong DT's help the pass rush which helps everything else.
I've decided I don't want Baker. I'm ok with Jake Long but I don't think he'll be "great" which is what I consider in a top 5. Mcfadden is a safer pick there. Like Ryan, not so much I take him at 3.
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Gauntlet 3 ponderations
I know I haven't been posting my thoughts on the past two episodes of The Gauntlet3. Well, the truth is, I didn't watch last week's episode until yesterday. I know, what sort of pop culture moth can I be if I don't actively keep up with it. Well, I was watching West Wing on DVD. Sorry
Now though you sort of get a treat. For today's music industry blog I will discuss a show on Music Television. How about that?
OK, let's go......
Last week the Vets and the Rooks go up in a race where a car is stuck in the sand and you must get it across the finish line. To be honest, this would have been the perfect chance for the Vet guys to "trim the fat" as they have been wanting to do, especially since the Rooks got out to such a big lead. But they called the audible "sandbox" and literally just PUSHED the car through the sand, instead of using the boards. I have another question though...why didn't they just turn the boards longways and get more push per board? Was the board not long enough? Things I wonder to myself. But that would have been the perfect chance to cut the fat.
But instead the vets won and the Rookies had to go into the Gauntlet AGAIN
And it was Frank and Jill v the rest of the Rookies. I thought it was funny when Frank said "Jill ISN'T Going into the gauntlet" but she totally did. That was funny. She ended up winning against Janelle (who thought she was big stuff, but clearly not. I guess that degree in personal relations isn't all it is cracked up to be) and I ALSO thought it was kind of crazy that the Rookie girls lost and would have to send someone home and Melinda was HURT, but they wouldn't just send her home with a concussion. That would have been the perfect situation, but oh well. And I did think it was funny when Danny carried her away, then you see Melinda strapped to a board entering the ambulance. Did she REALLY need to be carried to the board Danny? The EMTs couldn't have just picked her up and strapped her in over where she was sitting? Good work Blinky! also, speaking of Austin people, I thought it was funny that Rachel was taking offense to people mentioning her for the gauntlet. "They don't want to mess with me." she said. I have to believe MTV edited out the part where she, for the 98768th time said, "Because I was in the army."
So Janelle goes home and Frank and Jill decide to make out in a shower, which everyone can see. HUH?
ANyways in the next half hour the Vet guys CARRY the vet girls, even though Rachel says she got a battle wound from the rope. Well, Melinda doesn't want to help her team out (EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE SERIOUSLY DOWN) because if she hits the water at a funny angle, because of her concussion, she could die. Well, MEL, if you hit the water at a funny enough angle you could die ANYWAYS. ALso, while you are standing beside, watching the event, the crane could suddenly collapse and crush you to death. Also, you could get hit by a car as well. I mean, IF we are talking about VERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRYyyyyyyyy small freak accident chances.
Well the Vets crush AGAIN and this time Frank has to go up against Zack. Frank wins the puzzle (because that is all we have seemingly seen of late for guy gauntlets. can't we see a beach brawl with guys?) and Frank again makes out with Jill and the entire Vet team once again HATES FRANK
On to last night's show. The Vet guys decide to throw the girl mission and it is clearly obvious they are doing so, but the Vet girls, I guess don't see it? Whatever. They lose the pyramid building contest and Corral gets dumped into the gauntlet. she says, "anyone but Beth." even though she hates Beth and has said NUMEROUS TIMES she wants her gone. And to be honest, Ev and Corral are probably the only ones that COULD beat her. Well she FREAKS out when Beth is selected to go against her. But Corral wins and sends Beth packing. Corral pretends to be angry, but come on....you wanted Beth gone. Don't ask OTHER folks to do your dirty work. You want it done....do it yourself. You did. Now be happy.
On to the guy mission, the Vets rock and roll to a win as people don't understand about how to avoid swinging medicine balls with no time running. JUST WAIT! NOT A HARD CONCEPT!
So the team puts Derek into the gauntlet and EVEN THOUGH he says no to Ryan and the team always lets the person pick and he pretty much said Frank, Frank says no and Ryan goes in.
Well Ryan springs the upset in a PUZZLE over meathead Derek and sends the Rookies best player home. Frank is pissed because Ryan stayed, but if HE had gone up against Derek, he would have wanted to win and then Derek would have been going home too. I guess Frank is angry Ryan won? I don't know.
All I know is the Rookies are in trouble and unless MTV screws the Vets like they did with the Blind Man challenge earlier, they may not even be a need for a final mission. Unless the final mission is changing a tampon, the Vets will win because they will still have all of their guys with the fat that is the ladies trimmed. The Rooks will have very FEW guys left with apparently their ladies, because the Vets will lose the women's gauntlet challenges.
Again, this Vet team was STACKED like the 1996 Olympic Basketball team. Not quite the 1992 dream team, but the 1996 dream team part 2. (actually part 3 since #2 was the goodwill games in 1994, but i digress)
But one thing I would like to see is more of these hookups they keep talking about. We saw Paula and Derek sucking face last night, but then D-Rock left, so we lost out on that. Same with Johnny Bananas and Casey. We didn't see that until it was gone. Oh well. MORE HOOKUPS MTV! Please!
Now though you sort of get a treat. For today's music industry blog I will discuss a show on Music Television. How about that?
OK, let's go......
Last week the Vets and the Rooks go up in a race where a car is stuck in the sand and you must get it across the finish line. To be honest, this would have been the perfect chance for the Vet guys to "trim the fat" as they have been wanting to do, especially since the Rooks got out to such a big lead. But they called the audible "sandbox" and literally just PUSHED the car through the sand, instead of using the boards. I have another question though...why didn't they just turn the boards longways and get more push per board? Was the board not long enough? Things I wonder to myself. But that would have been the perfect chance to cut the fat.
But instead the vets won and the Rookies had to go into the Gauntlet AGAIN
And it was Frank and Jill v the rest of the Rookies. I thought it was funny when Frank said "Jill ISN'T Going into the gauntlet" but she totally did. That was funny. She ended up winning against Janelle (who thought she was big stuff, but clearly not. I guess that degree in personal relations isn't all it is cracked up to be) and I ALSO thought it was kind of crazy that the Rookie girls lost and would have to send someone home and Melinda was HURT, but they wouldn't just send her home with a concussion. That would have been the perfect situation, but oh well. And I did think it was funny when Danny carried her away, then you see Melinda strapped to a board entering the ambulance. Did she REALLY need to be carried to the board Danny? The EMTs couldn't have just picked her up and strapped her in over where she was sitting? Good work Blinky! also, speaking of Austin people, I thought it was funny that Rachel was taking offense to people mentioning her for the gauntlet. "They don't want to mess with me." she said. I have to believe MTV edited out the part where she, for the 98768th time said, "Because I was in the army."
So Janelle goes home and Frank and Jill decide to make out in a shower, which everyone can see. HUH?
ANyways in the next half hour the Vet guys CARRY the vet girls, even though Rachel says she got a battle wound from the rope. Well, Melinda doesn't want to help her team out (EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE SERIOUSLY DOWN) because if she hits the water at a funny angle, because of her concussion, she could die. Well, MEL, if you hit the water at a funny enough angle you could die ANYWAYS. ALso, while you are standing beside, watching the event, the crane could suddenly collapse and crush you to death. Also, you could get hit by a car as well. I mean, IF we are talking about VERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRYyyyyyyyy small freak accident chances.
Well the Vets crush AGAIN and this time Frank has to go up against Zack. Frank wins the puzzle (because that is all we have seemingly seen of late for guy gauntlets. can't we see a beach brawl with guys?) and Frank again makes out with Jill and the entire Vet team once again HATES FRANK
On to last night's show. The Vet guys decide to throw the girl mission and it is clearly obvious they are doing so, but the Vet girls, I guess don't see it? Whatever. They lose the pyramid building contest and Corral gets dumped into the gauntlet. she says, "anyone but Beth." even though she hates Beth and has said NUMEROUS TIMES she wants her gone. And to be honest, Ev and Corral are probably the only ones that COULD beat her. Well she FREAKS out when Beth is selected to go against her. But Corral wins and sends Beth packing. Corral pretends to be angry, but come on....you wanted Beth gone. Don't ask OTHER folks to do your dirty work. You want it done....do it yourself. You did. Now be happy.
On to the guy mission, the Vets rock and roll to a win as people don't understand about how to avoid swinging medicine balls with no time running. JUST WAIT! NOT A HARD CONCEPT!
So the team puts Derek into the gauntlet and EVEN THOUGH he says no to Ryan and the team always lets the person pick and he pretty much said Frank, Frank says no and Ryan goes in.
Well Ryan springs the upset in a PUZZLE over meathead Derek and sends the Rookies best player home. Frank is pissed because Ryan stayed, but if HE had gone up against Derek, he would have wanted to win and then Derek would have been going home too. I guess Frank is angry Ryan won? I don't know.
All I know is the Rookies are in trouble and unless MTV screws the Vets like they did with the Blind Man challenge earlier, they may not even be a need for a final mission. Unless the final mission is changing a tampon, the Vets will win because they will still have all of their guys with the fat that is the ladies trimmed. The Rooks will have very FEW guys left with apparently their ladies, because the Vets will lose the women's gauntlet challenges.
Again, this Vet team was STACKED like the 1996 Olympic Basketball team. Not quite the 1992 dream team, but the 1996 dream team part 2. (actually part 3 since #2 was the goodwill games in 1994, but i digress)
But one thing I would like to see is more of these hookups they keep talking about. We saw Paula and Derek sucking face last night, but then D-Rock left, so we lost out on that. Same with Johnny Bananas and Casey. We didn't see that until it was gone. Oh well. MORE HOOKUPS MTV! Please!
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
The Midweek entertainment report-Dancing with Fletcher
The Dancing Lineup is announced, the Boys sing on American Idol and Lindsay Lohan is seen nekked! Oh, the midweek entertainment report is HOT, Baby!
(I can't really pull off the BABY, can I? I didn't think so)
I see where Dancing with the Stars has released the cast of this season's show. (Note, I don't watch this show, but I do love me some So You Think You Can Dance. I like SYTYCD because it ISN'T b-list celebs trying so hard not to slip to C or D status.)
Anyways, Priscilla Presley has signed on because Naked Gun fame is Fleeting, I guess.
-Also Mario is on board. I am assuming it is the R&B singer and not the game guy. Because he is a cartoon.
-Penn Jillette will hope his moves are magically on the floor...get it? Magically? He is a magician? HA! Not really
-Kristi Yamaguchi has already won gold on the ice skating rink, but how will she do OFF the skates? I would have preferred Tonya Harding. Or Nancy Kerrigan, then if she got voted off, we could have seen her go, "Why ME? Why NOW? WHY?" Or maybe Tonya could have clubbed someone else going into the final two. Endless
-Monica Seles, who just RECENTLY retired from tennis. I certainly hope not for THIS! I wonder if she will grunt while dancing?
-Steve Guttenberg. Yeah. I am actually surprised he qualified as a "star"
-Marissa Jaret Winoker is apparently a Tony award winning actress. So she does musicals for a living? Hmmmmm I wonder how fair that is.
-Adam Carolla will be one of the first voted off, but he should be funny. Actually, I wonder how his Man Show audience feels about his doing a dancing show?
-Shannon Elizabeth is officially making the circuit of Post-topless movie debut. Let's see......Celebrity Poker Tour, Dancing with the Stars, I can see her doing Hollywood squares soon, followed by a reality show on VH1, before going to Cinemax and doing softcore porn. Yep, that's what happens when you peak too soon. and by peak, I mean take your top off in a teen movie.
-Marlee Martin-the deaf actress from West Wing and Seinfeld. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? This show brings on a chick with only one leg, now a deaf woman? CAN SHE HEAR THE MUSIC? HOW WILL THIS WORK?
-Christian de la Fuente-WHO?
-Jason Taylor is a football player with a HOT wife. Let's hope he sticks around, so they will show a shot of HER in the audience.
I am sure this show will get big ratings, but I am SURE I won't be watching. Instead, I'll be hooked to .....
American Idol's first semi-final round was held last night. we have 12 boys and 12 girls that we will winnow down to 6 each for our Final 12. Well the Boys went last night, and if I can quickly recap....
-David Her-Nan-DEZ went first. Kind of boring
-Jacuzzi-terrible suit, boring song. I thought you were gone, but
-Daniel Noriega did Elvis. Terrible.
-We also had a 28 year old dad go and we KEEP seeing shots of his 8 year old kid. He will get a pitty vote here.
-Also the Other gay guy went and ALSO did Elvis, but his wasn't as bad as Daniel's.
-The 17 year old kid that Smiled a bunch (David Archuletta?) was REALLY good. He has a HUGE voice for being 16/17. but after a while, all the smiling was a tad annoying.
-ANother guy did a "forgettable song" but he promised that folks would be talking about it today. DUDE, I DON'T EVEN KNOW YOUR NAME.
-We also had a wanna be rocker that did a pretty good version of One is the loneliest number. pretty good.
-A 17 year old "hippie" complete with Child molester mustache then would have put me to sleep, except I was afraid his brother would come to my house and challenge me to a knife fight. I guess Ohio DOES have trailer parks
-Lastly Dredlock went and did a REALLY good job with a guitar, until it fell apart at the end. At first, it was REALLY good, but then towards the end, when he stumbled, it sounded like he was singing at a frat party social
-Oh, And Michael Johns the Aussie from Atlanta, now living in LA brought the house down with Light My Fire. My pick to win it all.
I know I am missing someone. Obvie very memorable (rrrrrrrrrrright) but I don't think he is in danger of going home. I think the child molester crustache and Danny the Gay Elvis are both seeing the exit.
Finally Lindsay Lohan was recently photoed recreating the famous "Last Photos" of Marilyn Monroe, a few days before she killed herself. Lindsay wore a blond wig and was mostly nekked, except for some jewels and hair and sheets. Here is the strange thing though....Lindsay didn't know it was an official shoot. She just thought it was a typical Tuesday. Just kidding. Maybe.
(I can't really pull off the BABY, can I? I didn't think so)
I see where Dancing with the Stars has released the cast of this season's show. (Note, I don't watch this show, but I do love me some So You Think You Can Dance. I like SYTYCD because it ISN'T b-list celebs trying so hard not to slip to C or D status.)
Anyways, Priscilla Presley has signed on because Naked Gun fame is Fleeting, I guess.
-Also Mario is on board. I am assuming it is the R&B singer and not the game guy. Because he is a cartoon.
-Penn Jillette will hope his moves are magically on the floor...get it? Magically? He is a magician? HA! Not really
-Kristi Yamaguchi has already won gold on the ice skating rink, but how will she do OFF the skates? I would have preferred Tonya Harding. Or Nancy Kerrigan, then if she got voted off, we could have seen her go, "Why ME? Why NOW? WHY?" Or maybe Tonya could have clubbed someone else going into the final two. Endless
-Monica Seles, who just RECENTLY retired from tennis. I certainly hope not for THIS! I wonder if she will grunt while dancing?
-Steve Guttenberg. Yeah. I am actually surprised he qualified as a "star"
-Marissa Jaret Winoker is apparently a Tony award winning actress. So she does musicals for a living? Hmmmmm I wonder how fair that is.
-Adam Carolla will be one of the first voted off, but he should be funny. Actually, I wonder how his Man Show audience feels about his doing a dancing show?
-Shannon Elizabeth is officially making the circuit of Post-topless movie debut. Let's see......Celebrity Poker Tour, Dancing with the Stars, I can see her doing Hollywood squares soon, followed by a reality show on VH1, before going to Cinemax and doing softcore porn. Yep, that's what happens when you peak too soon. and by peak, I mean take your top off in a teen movie.
-Marlee Martin-the deaf actress from West Wing and Seinfeld. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? This show brings on a chick with only one leg, now a deaf woman? CAN SHE HEAR THE MUSIC? HOW WILL THIS WORK?
-Christian de la Fuente-WHO?
-Jason Taylor is a football player with a HOT wife. Let's hope he sticks around, so they will show a shot of HER in the audience.
I am sure this show will get big ratings, but I am SURE I won't be watching. Instead, I'll be hooked to .....
American Idol's first semi-final round was held last night. we have 12 boys and 12 girls that we will winnow down to 6 each for our Final 12. Well the Boys went last night, and if I can quickly recap....
-David Her-Nan-DEZ went first. Kind of boring
-Jacuzzi-terrible suit, boring song. I thought you were gone, but
-Daniel Noriega did Elvis. Terrible.
-We also had a 28 year old dad go and we KEEP seeing shots of his 8 year old kid. He will get a pitty vote here.
-Also the Other gay guy went and ALSO did Elvis, but his wasn't as bad as Daniel's.
-The 17 year old kid that Smiled a bunch (David Archuletta?) was REALLY good. He has a HUGE voice for being 16/17. but after a while, all the smiling was a tad annoying.
-ANother guy did a "forgettable song" but he promised that folks would be talking about it today. DUDE, I DON'T EVEN KNOW YOUR NAME.
-We also had a wanna be rocker that did a pretty good version of One is the loneliest number. pretty good.
-A 17 year old "hippie" complete with Child molester mustache then would have put me to sleep, except I was afraid his brother would come to my house and challenge me to a knife fight. I guess Ohio DOES have trailer parks
-Lastly Dredlock went and did a REALLY good job with a guitar, until it fell apart at the end. At first, it was REALLY good, but then towards the end, when he stumbled, it sounded like he was singing at a frat party social
-Oh, And Michael Johns the Aussie from Atlanta, now living in LA brought the house down with Light My Fire. My pick to win it all.
I know I am missing someone. Obvie very memorable (rrrrrrrrrrright) but I don't think he is in danger of going home. I think the child molester crustache and Danny the Gay Elvis are both seeing the exit.
Finally Lindsay Lohan was recently photoed recreating the famous "Last Photos" of Marilyn Monroe, a few days before she killed herself. Lindsay wore a blond wig and was mostly nekked, except for some jewels and hair and sheets. Here is the strange thing though....Lindsay didn't know it was an official shoot. She just thought it was a typical Tuesday. Just kidding. Maybe.
There's the RIGHT way, then the Sampson way
I know Kelvin Sampson is under a LOT of stress right now. He violated his NCAA probation by illegally calling recruits when he was personally banned from doing so, then he lied to the NCAA about it. His school is being proactive by conducting its own investigation and the decision will be announced Friday, which means last night COULD have been his final game as Indiana's Head Basketball coach. The team will play again Saturday.
Following last night's big home win against in-state Purdue, Erin Andrews asked him what the win meant, then started to ask him about the Greenspan (The school's investigator) decision coming on Friday, to which he rudely brushed Erin Andrews aside, curtly saying, "I'm not talking about that." And then he left the interview to join his wife and team in the tunnel.
Now, up until that interview I had actually been a fan of this guy. I was secretly HOPING Indiana would fire him, so GEORGIA could hire him. This is was one HECK of a coach, taking Oklahoma to the Final Four a few years back, when they had NO business being there. His worst crime is calling kids too much. He likes to build relationships with his potential players. Oh, NO. Let's punish a guy for wanting to build a bond with a kid. He wasn't GIVING THEM CARS, TVs, or MONEY, he was CALLING them. I did NOT have a problem with this. But I DO now have a problem with how he handled that interview.
I remember when Jim Harrick was embroiled in his situation at UGA and after the Florida game (that UGA won with a game winning shot from Jarvis Hayes with less than 10 seconds remaining, Harrick gave an interview with the sideline reporter, then 4 days later he gave ANOTHER interview after the Dawgs took care of South Carolina in Columbia. The interviewer asked about the Tony Cole allegations and instead of being an ASS, which he could have been, he stood there, semi-smiled and said, "That is out of my control right now. I am just so happy for these kids to get a great win and I really hope we can make it to the finish line. I want to lead these kids because they deserve good things."
Well, we all know now that the school pulled the #6 team in the country out of its own conference tournament and banned itself from the Big Dance, less than one week later. I truly believe, having watched that team play, it could have made the Final 4, much the same way Syracuse did and eventually won.
Then UGA decided to give itself the Death Penalty, ala SMU back in the day. Wait, the NCAA didn't give UGA the Death Penalty you say. No. Georgia did it to itself when they hired Felton and they have NOT fired him yet. Basketball at UGA has not been relevant since 2003 when Jarvis Hayes hit that shot over Matt Walsh.
Do I think Florida would have won the last two championships if Harrick were still at UGA? No, I don't. I think UGA beats Florida at least once a year and cost Florida a No. 1 seed. Maybe a harder schedule puts Florida in another area of the bracket...
But back to Sampson. He COULD have gone the same route as Harrick, but he didn't. He curtly ended the Andrews interview when he COULD HAVE REALLY helped himself by saying "I just want what is best for these kids. I think we have a chance to REALLY be special and I hope I can get them to the finish line." Make the investigator and the school think about the kids and not Sampson. That is what Harrick did, and that's why it hurt so much, because maybe he was trying to use the kids, but he MADE THEM the victim and the school shot the hostage. I hope Indiana AT LEAST lets Sampson finish the season, then they can fire him if they want. Learn from UGA's mistake. I know Georgia hasn't yet.
PS, speaking of UGA hoops...
I saw this in today's ajc.
Two Atlanta-area players were named to the 2008 McDonald's All-America East team: Norcross' Al-Farouq Aminu and Dunwoody's Chris Singleton.
Aminu, a 6-foot-9, 215- pound forward, has signed with Wake Forest. Singleton, a 6-9, 225-pound forward, is bound for Florida State.
HEY GOOD JOB FELTON! Way to NOT keep two McDonald's talented kids in state......wait. No, you DIDN'T. AND PS, FLORIDA STATE? WAKE FOREST? And you wonder why Felton should be out of a job! Did you see his chokefest last night? Kentucky was ripe for the picking, but the coach couldn't get it done. And it pissed me off the Jimmy Dykes and Brad Nessler kept saying "Dennis Felton is not playing with a full complement of scholarships. Only 7 active tonight with 2 more out with injury."
Well, nothing you can do about the 2 injured, but the other three YOU KICKED OFF THE TEAM. Mercer, Brown and Singletary are OFF the team BECAUSE OF FELTON.
Nessler, quit feeling bad for him!
My favorite part of last night (actually the saddest part...) was when Bradley of UK, an 83% FT guy, MISSED two free throws and UGA was down 3 and Swansey brought
the ball up the court and was looking at Felton for a play call, and Felton just stood there.
You could SEE he didn't call a play unless "Stand motionless and say nothing" is the call for set a pick and wildly throw up a three.....which is what happened.
Terrible coaching.
At this point I am ROOTING for UGA to lose out so Felton WILL get fired.
In his UGA career he has gone 15-14, 8-20, 15-15, 20-14, and now 12-11 with a remaining schedule that I predict he will go 1-6. That's not good. Again, Gregg Marshall (Wichita State), Anthony Grant (VCU), or Chris Collins (Duke Assistant)
PLEASE DAMON!
Following last night's big home win against in-state Purdue, Erin Andrews asked him what the win meant, then started to ask him about the Greenspan (The school's investigator) decision coming on Friday, to which he rudely brushed Erin Andrews aside, curtly saying, "I'm not talking about that." And then he left the interview to join his wife and team in the tunnel.
Now, up until that interview I had actually been a fan of this guy. I was secretly HOPING Indiana would fire him, so GEORGIA could hire him. This is was one HECK of a coach, taking Oklahoma to the Final Four a few years back, when they had NO business being there. His worst crime is calling kids too much. He likes to build relationships with his potential players. Oh, NO. Let's punish a guy for wanting to build a bond with a kid. He wasn't GIVING THEM CARS, TVs, or MONEY, he was CALLING them. I did NOT have a problem with this. But I DO now have a problem with how he handled that interview.
I remember when Jim Harrick was embroiled in his situation at UGA and after the Florida game (that UGA won with a game winning shot from Jarvis Hayes with less than 10 seconds remaining, Harrick gave an interview with the sideline reporter, then 4 days later he gave ANOTHER interview after the Dawgs took care of South Carolina in Columbia. The interviewer asked about the Tony Cole allegations and instead of being an ASS, which he could have been, he stood there, semi-smiled and said, "That is out of my control right now. I am just so happy for these kids to get a great win and I really hope we can make it to the finish line. I want to lead these kids because they deserve good things."
Well, we all know now that the school pulled the #6 team in the country out of its own conference tournament and banned itself from the Big Dance, less than one week later. I truly believe, having watched that team play, it could have made the Final 4, much the same way Syracuse did and eventually won.
Then UGA decided to give itself the Death Penalty, ala SMU back in the day. Wait, the NCAA didn't give UGA the Death Penalty you say. No. Georgia did it to itself when they hired Felton and they have NOT fired him yet. Basketball at UGA has not been relevant since 2003 when Jarvis Hayes hit that shot over Matt Walsh.
Do I think Florida would have won the last two championships if Harrick were still at UGA? No, I don't. I think UGA beats Florida at least once a year and cost Florida a No. 1 seed. Maybe a harder schedule puts Florida in another area of the bracket...
But back to Sampson. He COULD have gone the same route as Harrick, but he didn't. He curtly ended the Andrews interview when he COULD HAVE REALLY helped himself by saying "I just want what is best for these kids. I think we have a chance to REALLY be special and I hope I can get them to the finish line." Make the investigator and the school think about the kids and not Sampson. That is what Harrick did, and that's why it hurt so much, because maybe he was trying to use the kids, but he MADE THEM the victim and the school shot the hostage. I hope Indiana AT LEAST lets Sampson finish the season, then they can fire him if they want. Learn from UGA's mistake. I know Georgia hasn't yet.
PS, speaking of UGA hoops...
I saw this in today's ajc.
Two Atlanta-area players were named to the 2008 McDonald's All-America East team: Norcross' Al-Farouq Aminu and Dunwoody's Chris Singleton.
Aminu, a 6-foot-9, 215- pound forward, has signed with Wake Forest. Singleton, a 6-9, 225-pound forward, is bound for Florida State.
HEY GOOD JOB FELTON! Way to NOT keep two McDonald's talented kids in state......wait. No, you DIDN'T. AND PS, FLORIDA STATE? WAKE FOREST? And you wonder why Felton should be out of a job! Did you see his chokefest last night? Kentucky was ripe for the picking, but the coach couldn't get it done. And it pissed me off the Jimmy Dykes and Brad Nessler kept saying "Dennis Felton is not playing with a full complement of scholarships. Only 7 active tonight with 2 more out with injury."
Well, nothing you can do about the 2 injured, but the other three YOU KICKED OFF THE TEAM. Mercer, Brown and Singletary are OFF the team BECAUSE OF FELTON.
Nessler, quit feeling bad for him!
My favorite part of last night (actually the saddest part...) was when Bradley of UK, an 83% FT guy, MISSED two free throws and UGA was down 3 and Swansey brought
the ball up the court and was looking at Felton for a play call, and Felton just stood there.
You could SEE he didn't call a play unless "Stand motionless and say nothing" is the call for set a pick and wildly throw up a three.....which is what happened.
Terrible coaching.
At this point I am ROOTING for UGA to lose out so Felton WILL get fired.
In his UGA career he has gone 15-14, 8-20, 15-15, 20-14, and now 12-11 with a remaining schedule that I predict he will go 1-6. That's not good. Again, Gregg Marshall (Wichita State), Anthony Grant (VCU), or Chris Collins (Duke Assistant)
PLEASE DAMON!
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
A rose and a gun means Season 4
Last night was the season 3 finale of PRISONBREAK. Now I consider myself a huge PB fan, as I have watched all the episodes as they air, plus I own the first two seasons on DVD and once got bored and watched seasons 1 and 2 all in a row over a holiday weekend.
That said, I think this writers' strike was the worst thing to happen to this show. I think season 1 was great as they got out, and though most people said, "where are you going to go now?" I was excited for season 2 because they would CLEARLY be on the run. But I think the producers maybe thought season 2 would be it, but when it was clear the show would get picked up for season 3, I think the writers sort of wrote themselves into a corner.
But then season 3 came around and it started off well enough, with Michael AGAIN in jail looking to break out. The Company angle though sort of rubbed me the wrong way in #3. Where was the bald dude from Season 2? This Susan B Anthony/Gretchen girl, what was her story? I guess we will get to see more of that in Season 4.
That is my problem though. I feel that maybe THIS should have been it. I have ALWAYS said, leave the folks wanting more, opposed to having it cancelled in the middle of another story. And the writers' strike I think shortened the story and now, the writers of the show will be forced to come up with a FULL 24 episodes instead of being able to wrap up the series with 8 additional episodes that this season would have afforded, if the writers' union had not been so STUPID. I think 8 or 9 more episodes would have been perfect to wrap this up, but I just hope the writers can spin their gold for 24 more installments.
Season 1 was so good, and I did love season 2. Even season 3 had some intrigue, but the strike screwed it up and may have screwed up the entire rest of the show. I certainly hope this show gets picked up for season 4 and we get a resolution, but I hope Fox doesn't cancel it midway through for lack of ratings for reruns of The Loop and we never find out what would have happened. OR, if the writers/producers say "11 episodes, that what we need, that's what you'll get!" and keep the story really tight and not stretched out. That would be fantastic. But maybe the writers will surprise me with a whole new set of twists and whatnot. Sucre is in jail with Bellick and T-Bag, maybe they get out and someone finally kills T-Bag. Whistler and Gretchen and Mahone will be on the run, so we get to see Michael being the hunter, rather than the hunted, and he doesn't seem to mind going back to jail. This should be fun, rooting for the badguy.
So I am putting my support behind the writing team, hoping they will surprise me and keep me entertained for the full season. And this should be it, too. No more after season 4. Please. Like I said, I'd rather want more than wish it dead........see The OC:Season 4. Unless Prisonbreak brings in Autumn Reeser aka TAYLOR TOWNSEND to save the Prisonbreak just like she saved The OC that last year.
That would be cool.
That said, I think this writers' strike was the worst thing to happen to this show. I think season 1 was great as they got out, and though most people said, "where are you going to go now?" I was excited for season 2 because they would CLEARLY be on the run. But I think the producers maybe thought season 2 would be it, but when it was clear the show would get picked up for season 3, I think the writers sort of wrote themselves into a corner.
But then season 3 came around and it started off well enough, with Michael AGAIN in jail looking to break out. The Company angle though sort of rubbed me the wrong way in #3. Where was the bald dude from Season 2? This Susan B Anthony/Gretchen girl, what was her story? I guess we will get to see more of that in Season 4.
That is my problem though. I feel that maybe THIS should have been it. I have ALWAYS said, leave the folks wanting more, opposed to having it cancelled in the middle of another story. And the writers' strike I think shortened the story and now, the writers of the show will be forced to come up with a FULL 24 episodes instead of being able to wrap up the series with 8 additional episodes that this season would have afforded, if the writers' union had not been so STUPID. I think 8 or 9 more episodes would have been perfect to wrap this up, but I just hope the writers can spin their gold for 24 more installments.
Season 1 was so good, and I did love season 2. Even season 3 had some intrigue, but the strike screwed it up and may have screwed up the entire rest of the show. I certainly hope this show gets picked up for season 4 and we get a resolution, but I hope Fox doesn't cancel it midway through for lack of ratings for reruns of The Loop and we never find out what would have happened. OR, if the writers/producers say "11 episodes, that what we need, that's what you'll get!" and keep the story really tight and not stretched out. That would be fantastic. But maybe the writers will surprise me with a whole new set of twists and whatnot. Sucre is in jail with Bellick and T-Bag, maybe they get out and someone finally kills T-Bag. Whistler and Gretchen and Mahone will be on the run, so we get to see Michael being the hunter, rather than the hunted, and he doesn't seem to mind going back to jail. This should be fun, rooting for the badguy.
So I am putting my support behind the writing team, hoping they will surprise me and keep me entertained for the full season. And this should be it, too. No more after season 4. Please. Like I said, I'd rather want more than wish it dead........see The OC:Season 4. Unless Prisonbreak brings in Autumn Reeser aka TAYLOR TOWNSEND to save the Prisonbreak just like she saved The OC that last year.
That would be cool.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Left Turn, then ANOTHER left turn, then ANOTHER left
For reasons I am STILL not quite sure about, I decided to watch some of the Daytona 500 yesterday. Maybe it was because the Bride-to-be and her mother were out doing wedding stuff, and I was stuck at home in the rain. Maybe it was because Murder at 1600 was over and I had already seen John Q on TNT. Maybe it was because I was trying to take a nap, and what better way to fall asleep than listening to the rain and watching cars go around in a circle to put you to sleep. Who knows, but I turned it on yesterday and I STILL don't get it.
All the drivers do is make left turns. Left, Left, Left, Left....over and over for 200 laps. It is crazy. And this track was 2.5 miles long, but if a car crashed, even if it was in the back of the pack, nowhere NEAR the leaders, a caution flag came out and made everyone sort of stop racing, so the wreck could clear up. Ummmmm, are you telling me a tow truck couldn't race out there and pull the car down to the "infield grass" before the cars got around the TWO AND A HALF mile track? Come on.
Other questions I had included the term "teammates". Really? Teammates? Just because you race for the same owner that makes you teammates? Let me ask you, if Tony Stewart got help from his "teammate" Busch, if Stewart had won, does he split the check with his teammate? Does the Teammate get part of the trophy like teammates in other sports do? NO! It is like Ricky Bobby and Cal from Talladega Nights. Cal wanted to finish first once, but Ricky never let him. Having a teammate "help" you means he gives his OWN finish up for your finish. I wouldn't do it personally, but I guess I would not be a good teammate. I'd want to win. You can't have two #1s!
Also, there was a lot of "bumpin'" and "rubbin'" in the race yesterday, especially at the end. I know that Robert Duvall once said rubbin' is racin', but come on. In the last 16 laps there were three cautions. Totally zapped the "Excitement" out of a finish. When the cars "restarted" with about 3 laps left it took a good lap for the cars to get going 192 again. The track is 2.5 miles around, maybe the "wreckt" cars could just motor down to the grass and let the rest keep going. I mean they probably have a good two minutes or so to get out of the way.
Finally, Kyle Petty has now gone 26 Daytona 500s without winning the "Great American Race." It MAY be time for Kyle boy to stop trying. Has this guy ever accomplished anything besides being sired by The King Richard Petty? He has or had a bad ponytail and was VERY annoying on the Days of Thunder simulator at the King's Dominion ride in Richmond. Can SOMEONE stop paying him just because he was Richard's son? PLEASE? At least Dale Jr has won 6 races or something. Kyle, stop. You are entering Colin Hanks territory here.
I also wanted to touch on something from 790 The Zone from this past Saturday's Zone Sports Saturday show with my boys BA and Woolvey. They were asking about NASCAR and mainstream sports. They asked folks to call up if they were NASCAR fans to see if they were also mainstream sports fans. The reasoning was, they never received any email about the "country's largest spectator sport" and wondered why talk radio never really touched on it. Of course about 5 or 6 NASCAR folks called up and said they were mainstream sports fans too. The callers all sounded like their combined IQ was maybe 38, but that is beside the point.
Anyways what Brandon and Jeff should have been asking was for "mainstream" first sports fans to call up and ask if THEY were NASCAR fans too, and where it ranked on their heirarchy. Of course the NASCAR first fan will say he is a mainstream guy too; the key is is the mainstream a NASCAR too. Like a square is always a rectangle, but a rectangle is always a square.
And ps, The Zone also has a show on Mondays that is the Speed Zone with Mike Bell. So any Nascar fans out there, go to www.790thezone Mondays at 7:09 PM and you'll hear Bell talk about NATCAR.
But if I boil it all down, I still don't get it.
I don't understand why real NATCAR fans hate Jeff Gordon. Is it his hot wife? Is it that he broke all of those Dale Earnhardt records? Or is it that you can understand him when he talks? I've got a little piece of info for you.....very few are "good ole boys" anymore. Most are born with the silver spoon in their mouths and unless you hate them all, you guys are hypocrites.
I don't understand why they always go left (except on road courses. I know there are a few, Watkins Glen, etc). Could they just go right ONCE. Maybe if there is a race on leap year day?
And I don't understand teammates. I would want to win. Plain and simple, not help out a teammate and sacrifice myself. Whatever.
All the drivers do is make left turns. Left, Left, Left, Left....over and over for 200 laps. It is crazy. And this track was 2.5 miles long, but if a car crashed, even if it was in the back of the pack, nowhere NEAR the leaders, a caution flag came out and made everyone sort of stop racing, so the wreck could clear up. Ummmmm, are you telling me a tow truck couldn't race out there and pull the car down to the "infield grass" before the cars got around the TWO AND A HALF mile track? Come on.
Other questions I had included the term "teammates". Really? Teammates? Just because you race for the same owner that makes you teammates? Let me ask you, if Tony Stewart got help from his "teammate" Busch, if Stewart had won, does he split the check with his teammate? Does the Teammate get part of the trophy like teammates in other sports do? NO! It is like Ricky Bobby and Cal from Talladega Nights. Cal wanted to finish first once, but Ricky never let him. Having a teammate "help" you means he gives his OWN finish up for your finish. I wouldn't do it personally, but I guess I would not be a good teammate. I'd want to win. You can't have two #1s!
Also, there was a lot of "bumpin'" and "rubbin'" in the race yesterday, especially at the end. I know that Robert Duvall once said rubbin' is racin', but come on. In the last 16 laps there were three cautions. Totally zapped the "Excitement" out of a finish. When the cars "restarted" with about 3 laps left it took a good lap for the cars to get going 192 again. The track is 2.5 miles around, maybe the "wreckt" cars could just motor down to the grass and let the rest keep going. I mean they probably have a good two minutes or so to get out of the way.
Finally, Kyle Petty has now gone 26 Daytona 500s without winning the "Great American Race." It MAY be time for Kyle boy to stop trying. Has this guy ever accomplished anything besides being sired by The King Richard Petty? He has or had a bad ponytail and was VERY annoying on the Days of Thunder simulator at the King's Dominion ride in Richmond. Can SOMEONE stop paying him just because he was Richard's son? PLEASE? At least Dale Jr has won 6 races or something. Kyle, stop. You are entering Colin Hanks territory here.
I also wanted to touch on something from 790 The Zone from this past Saturday's Zone Sports Saturday show with my boys BA and Woolvey. They were asking about NASCAR and mainstream sports. They asked folks to call up if they were NASCAR fans to see if they were also mainstream sports fans. The reasoning was, they never received any email about the "country's largest spectator sport" and wondered why talk radio never really touched on it. Of course about 5 or 6 NASCAR folks called up and said they were mainstream sports fans too. The callers all sounded like their combined IQ was maybe 38, but that is beside the point.
Anyways what Brandon and Jeff should have been asking was for "mainstream" first sports fans to call up and ask if THEY were NASCAR fans too, and where it ranked on their heirarchy. Of course the NASCAR first fan will say he is a mainstream guy too; the key is is the mainstream a NASCAR too. Like a square is always a rectangle, but a rectangle is always a square.
And ps, The Zone also has a show on Mondays that is the Speed Zone with Mike Bell. So any Nascar fans out there, go to www.790thezone Mondays at 7:09 PM and you'll hear Bell talk about NATCAR.
But if I boil it all down, I still don't get it.
I don't understand why real NATCAR fans hate Jeff Gordon. Is it his hot wife? Is it that he broke all of those Dale Earnhardt records? Or is it that you can understand him when he talks? I've got a little piece of info for you.....very few are "good ole boys" anymore. Most are born with the silver spoon in their mouths and unless you hate them all, you guys are hypocrites.
I don't understand why they always go left (except on road courses. I know there are a few, Watkins Glen, etc). Could they just go right ONCE. Maybe if there is a race on leap year day?
And I don't understand teammates. I would want to win. Plain and simple, not help out a teammate and sacrifice myself. Whatever.
Bibby to the Hawks-hey a GOOD trade!
When you wait long enough a bad situation finally turns good. Coal turns to diamonds. Catepillars turn to butterflies. Sweater vests are popular again. But for long suffering Atlanta Hawks fans, Billy Knight FINALLY did something right.
After years of enduring poor draft pick after poor draft pick, and Speedy Claxton-like signings after Lorenzen Wright-like signings, the team’s GM aka self-proclaimed basketball expert made a trade over All-Star weekend, sending spare parts to Sacramento for former All-Star point guard Mike Bibby. The Hawks FINALLY have the point guard they have been lacking. Plus, this is a guy that OTHER teams wanted too. Atlanta beat out Cleveland and the Lakers for this guy. He nearly took the Kings to the title back in 2002, had it not been for a miracle shot from the Lakers to sink Sacramento. Bibby took the Kings to the playoffs five straight seasons and he is money with the ball. For his career Bibby has averaged 16.7 ppg with 6.2 assists.
I just wish the Hawks could have pulled this off a few years back. Bibby has had some injury problems the last few seasons and this year he missed the first 36 games while he rehabbed from thumb surgery to repair a torn ligament. But Bibby has started 12 games this year and has averaged 13.5 points with 5 assists and nearly 4 rebounds per contest. The injury history may be the reason Bibby was available, but hat doesn’t mean Bibby is done. He can still add to a team, put a certain team over the top. That’s why Cleveland was after him. LeBron wanted this guy. Maybe if Bibby was on the floor with the Cavs last June, the team isn’t swept by the Spurs. Bibby is the type of player that rises when the stakes are highest. I want the ball in his hands with the score tied and 8 seconds left in the game. He is a big game player and a proven winner. He took Arizona to the NCAA championship and upset powerhouse Kentucky in the process.
And that is what he will do for the Hawks. He will find J-Smooth in the first half, he will feed Joe Johnson in the third, and he will make sure Marvin is involved from the start. But once crunch time descends upon Philips Arena, it will AND SHOULD be Bibby-Time. HE should be the one firing threes as time is winding down.
Bibby will be the one to break the Hawks playoff drought. He MAY be the one that finally puts the Hawks into the promised land. Billy Knight FINALLY did something right and he may have FINALLY finished his 90 year rebuilding plan. Thank goodness. I am excited now for Hawks basketball, that is unless Billy Knight returns to being Billy Knight.
I remember he once traded for Rasheed Wallace, let him play for one game, before sending him to help the Detroit Pistons win the NBA title. I certainly hope BK isn’t doing the same thing this year by keeping Bibby for one game then trading him to Cleveland for Larry Hughes and a bunch of other trash. Knight finally pulled off the right move. Another thing that Knight did with this trade was prevent himself from making two more mistakes this August. He realized that those expiring contracts that he sent to Sacramento got him something, instead of just another Speedy Claxton signing. No major free agents have come to take Atlanta’s money in recent offseasons. Instead of signing Keynon Martins and Kobe Bryants, the Hawks have settled for Claxtons and Wrights. Well not this off-season. Free agents might want to come play with Johnson, Bibby, Williams and Smith. We had better be careful, Knight is starting to make sense. I think I read somewhere that when Billy Knight starts making intelligent decisions, frogs start to fall from the sky. This could be bad, but in the meantime, I’ll take the Hawks in the playoffs.
After years of enduring poor draft pick after poor draft pick, and Speedy Claxton-like signings after Lorenzen Wright-like signings, the team’s GM aka self-proclaimed basketball expert made a trade over All-Star weekend, sending spare parts to Sacramento for former All-Star point guard Mike Bibby. The Hawks FINALLY have the point guard they have been lacking. Plus, this is a guy that OTHER teams wanted too. Atlanta beat out Cleveland and the Lakers for this guy. He nearly took the Kings to the title back in 2002, had it not been for a miracle shot from the Lakers to sink Sacramento. Bibby took the Kings to the playoffs five straight seasons and he is money with the ball. For his career Bibby has averaged 16.7 ppg with 6.2 assists.
I just wish the Hawks could have pulled this off a few years back. Bibby has had some injury problems the last few seasons and this year he missed the first 36 games while he rehabbed from thumb surgery to repair a torn ligament. But Bibby has started 12 games this year and has averaged 13.5 points with 5 assists and nearly 4 rebounds per contest. The injury history may be the reason Bibby was available, but hat doesn’t mean Bibby is done. He can still add to a team, put a certain team over the top. That’s why Cleveland was after him. LeBron wanted this guy. Maybe if Bibby was on the floor with the Cavs last June, the team isn’t swept by the Spurs. Bibby is the type of player that rises when the stakes are highest. I want the ball in his hands with the score tied and 8 seconds left in the game. He is a big game player and a proven winner. He took Arizona to the NCAA championship and upset powerhouse Kentucky in the process.
And that is what he will do for the Hawks. He will find J-Smooth in the first half, he will feed Joe Johnson in the third, and he will make sure Marvin is involved from the start. But once crunch time descends upon Philips Arena, it will AND SHOULD be Bibby-Time. HE should be the one firing threes as time is winding down.
Bibby will be the one to break the Hawks playoff drought. He MAY be the one that finally puts the Hawks into the promised land. Billy Knight FINALLY did something right and he may have FINALLY finished his 90 year rebuilding plan. Thank goodness. I am excited now for Hawks basketball, that is unless Billy Knight returns to being Billy Knight.
I remember he once traded for Rasheed Wallace, let him play for one game, before sending him to help the Detroit Pistons win the NBA title. I certainly hope BK isn’t doing the same thing this year by keeping Bibby for one game then trading him to Cleveland for Larry Hughes and a bunch of other trash. Knight finally pulled off the right move. Another thing that Knight did with this trade was prevent himself from making two more mistakes this August. He realized that those expiring contracts that he sent to Sacramento got him something, instead of just another Speedy Claxton signing. No major free agents have come to take Atlanta’s money in recent offseasons. Instead of signing Keynon Martins and Kobe Bryants, the Hawks have settled for Claxtons and Wrights. Well not this off-season. Free agents might want to come play with Johnson, Bibby, Williams and Smith. We had better be careful, Knight is starting to make sense. I think I read somewhere that when Billy Knight starts making intelligent decisions, frogs start to fall from the sky. This could be bad, but in the meantime, I’ll take the Hawks in the playoffs.
Hemochromatosis - look into it.
I found this article on the web while tooling around like I usually do. This is the disease that claimed my dad and maybe he could have let on that he was in more pain, but he thought it was just kidney problems that he had had seemingly forever. Just putting this out there because I had never heard of it before. Just be on the lookout I guess. Hemocrhomatosis is aka'ed the "Broze diabetes." Gives the skin a sort of bronze look.
Hemochromatosis is a common inherited illness. Our bodies have a gauge that measures how much iron we absorb daily. People with hemochromatosis don't have one. They absorb way too much iron. The excess is deposited in organs. If nothing is done, the iron wreaks havoc with these organs.
In the liver, it causes cirrhosis. In the heart, it can bring on heart failure. In the pancreas, it causes diabetes. It gives the skin a bronzed tinge. In joints,it leads to arthritis. When the illness is discovered early and treated, none of this happens.
Both parents contribute a gene to this illness. If only one parent has the gene, affected off-spring aren't at risk of organ destruction;they're carriers but do not suffer major consequences.
The easiest treatment is to periodically remove blood. Dietary changes don't have to be made, and medicines don't have to be taken.
Hemochromatosis is a common inherited illness. Our bodies have a gauge that measures how much iron we absorb daily. People with hemochromatosis don't have one. They absorb way too much iron. The excess is deposited in organs. If nothing is done, the iron wreaks havoc with these organs.
In the liver, it causes cirrhosis. In the heart, it can bring on heart failure. In the pancreas, it causes diabetes. It gives the skin a bronzed tinge. In joints,it leads to arthritis. When the illness is discovered early and treated, none of this happens.
Both parents contribute a gene to this illness. If only one parent has the gene, affected off-spring aren't at risk of organ destruction;they're carriers but do not suffer major consequences.
The easiest treatment is to periodically remove blood. Dietary changes don't have to be made, and medicines don't have to be taken.
Friday, February 15, 2008
The Pac-Man gets MORE probation
What a week it has been for sports. Roger Clemens goes to Capitol Hill to speak with Congress about his Steroid/HGH use (I guess Congress got tired of talking about Iraq funding OR trying to bring the boys home, fixing the unemployment problem, the homeless issue, the interest rate stuff....), BUT I HATE talking about steroids, so we will move on.
Also, a typo on a court document caused ESPN to post that Barry Bonds failed a drug test in 2001, instead of 2000. I think that is JUST AS BAD, but whatever. Again, it is steroids, so let's move on.
Vince Dooley's supporters that UGA President Michael Adams wants to honor him. Give me a break. It is an honor. A lot better than the honor he has RIGHT NOW....which is NONE! I have blogged about this on myspace, and I might bring that one over here, but to boil it down, if we name the Stadium after him, what happens if/when Mark Richt wins a national title. What if he wins two? Will it be Sanford-Dooley-Richt Stadium? If you call it Dooley Field at Sanford Stadium, again, what about Richt? Will it be Richt's Goalposts on Dooley Field at Sanford Stadium? UVa has that problem right now with George Welsh Field at Scott Stadium (featuring the Ford Expansion) at the Charles Smith Sports Complex. It is freaking crazy. Dooley is scheduled to get a SPORTS Complex named after him. It is a few miles away from Sanford, but it is STILL ON CAMPUS. If you want to put a statue of Dooley up near one of the gates, fine. But don't hate the idea of naming an ENTIRE sports complex after Dooley. That is PLENTY honor since he was the athletic director, which means he oversaw ALL sports. (And PS, I am pretty sure he didn't recruit one H. Walker. It was his assistant coach that did. Walker has admitted this.)
Indiana basketball coach Kelvin Sampson is in trouble AGAIN. While he was the head man at Oklahoma he got into some hot water by illegally calling recruits and over texting them too. He was put on probation by the NCAA, even though he had taken the job at Indiana. HE was on probation and now HE is in trouble, and Indiana is too, because they got into bed with this guy. Sampson may get fired, which is a shame since he is a pretty good coach. He can sure recruit for his system, maybe illegally, but it isn't like he is PAYING people-that we know of-but he is just calling the kids to build a rapport. Talking to kids too much? I don't really have a problem with that, but that's just me. He has also taken a team to the Final Four. The guy is a good coach and he may end up unemployed after this, but (aside from wishing UGA had this guy over Felton) he may end up in the Pros since he has ability. We shall see.
Finally PacMan is back in the news after he pleaded Nolo to his final charge pending from Georgia. He got more probation. The question I have is, didn't this arrest affect his probation from the case in Las Vegas. Wait, it didn't because it happened BEFORE he received probation from that case. This guy is a bad egg. He just has good timing to NOT have gotten arrested after his probation was issued, but before it. He was involved in a shooting that left a guy unable to walk for the rest of his life in Vegas. Now he bites a person at a strip club in Georgia. The guy is bad news. I would have LOVED for the judge to have turned DOWN the agreement and said, "Adam Jones, I REFUSE to call you Pac Man. Pac Man is a cartoon, but Sir, there is NOTHING funny about what you have done with your life. You are extremely talented, but you seem to want to waste your talents by living at strip clubs at 3 in the morning." Sentence him to house arrest of something. Put him in jail for being arrested 6 times since he graduated high school. But at the rate now, he is just on probation until 46 years AFTER he dies. He has a great lawyer that is now a regular on 680 The Fan (which is a joke, but regardless). I just think at SOME point, one of these arrests should have violated his probation, but whatever. Pac Man, I certainly hope you can turn your life around, but QUIT going to strip clubs. You seem to get into trouble when you go to those at 2 in the morning.
I won't bring this argument back up, but if I had an opportunity like Pac Man or Tripp Chandler at UGA, I would go OUT OF MY WAY NOT to screw it up. But that's just me.
Also, a typo on a court document caused ESPN to post that Barry Bonds failed a drug test in 2001, instead of 2000. I think that is JUST AS BAD, but whatever. Again, it is steroids, so let's move on.
Vince Dooley's supporters that UGA President Michael Adams wants to honor him. Give me a break. It is an honor. A lot better than the honor he has RIGHT NOW....which is NONE! I have blogged about this on myspace, and I might bring that one over here, but to boil it down, if we name the Stadium after him, what happens if/when Mark Richt wins a national title. What if he wins two? Will it be Sanford-Dooley-Richt Stadium? If you call it Dooley Field at Sanford Stadium, again, what about Richt? Will it be Richt's Goalposts on Dooley Field at Sanford Stadium? UVa has that problem right now with George Welsh Field at Scott Stadium (featuring the Ford Expansion) at the Charles Smith Sports Complex. It is freaking crazy. Dooley is scheduled to get a SPORTS Complex named after him. It is a few miles away from Sanford, but it is STILL ON CAMPUS. If you want to put a statue of Dooley up near one of the gates, fine. But don't hate the idea of naming an ENTIRE sports complex after Dooley. That is PLENTY honor since he was the athletic director, which means he oversaw ALL sports. (And PS, I am pretty sure he didn't recruit one H. Walker. It was his assistant coach that did. Walker has admitted this.)
Indiana basketball coach Kelvin Sampson is in trouble AGAIN. While he was the head man at Oklahoma he got into some hot water by illegally calling recruits and over texting them too. He was put on probation by the NCAA, even though he had taken the job at Indiana. HE was on probation and now HE is in trouble, and Indiana is too, because they got into bed with this guy. Sampson may get fired, which is a shame since he is a pretty good coach. He can sure recruit for his system, maybe illegally, but it isn't like he is PAYING people-that we know of-but he is just calling the kids to build a rapport. Talking to kids too much? I don't really have a problem with that, but that's just me. He has also taken a team to the Final Four. The guy is a good coach and he may end up unemployed after this, but (aside from wishing UGA had this guy over Felton) he may end up in the Pros since he has ability. We shall see.
Finally PacMan is back in the news after he pleaded Nolo to his final charge pending from Georgia. He got more probation. The question I have is, didn't this arrest affect his probation from the case in Las Vegas. Wait, it didn't because it happened BEFORE he received probation from that case. This guy is a bad egg. He just has good timing to NOT have gotten arrested after his probation was issued, but before it. He was involved in a shooting that left a guy unable to walk for the rest of his life in Vegas. Now he bites a person at a strip club in Georgia. The guy is bad news. I would have LOVED for the judge to have turned DOWN the agreement and said, "Adam Jones, I REFUSE to call you Pac Man. Pac Man is a cartoon, but Sir, there is NOTHING funny about what you have done with your life. You are extremely talented, but you seem to want to waste your talents by living at strip clubs at 3 in the morning." Sentence him to house arrest of something. Put him in jail for being arrested 6 times since he graduated high school. But at the rate now, he is just on probation until 46 years AFTER he dies. He has a great lawyer that is now a regular on 680 The Fan (which is a joke, but regardless). I just think at SOME point, one of these arrests should have violated his probation, but whatever. Pac Man, I certainly hope you can turn your life around, but QUIT going to strip clubs. You seem to get into trouble when you go to those at 2 in the morning.
I won't bring this argument back up, but if I had an opportunity like Pac Man or Tripp Chandler at UGA, I would go OUT OF MY WAY NOT to screw it up. But that's just me.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Fastest Swimmer in GA may be most humble
Note, the following piece was the cover story in this week's Score Atlanta-Cobb Prep edition. To read the rest of the issue, find the link at the bottom of this page
To watch Kennesaw Mountain high school senior swimmer Michael Arnold practice is to watch Tiger Woods play putt-putt. The artist is applying his skills, but not quite unleashing his mastery of the game. Arnold is truly a master when put in the pool and against a clock. He has already won the 50-yard freestyle state title. He has already set multiple school and county records. He already won the 50 long freestyle at nationals and competed as a member of the United State National Junior team. And he already qualified for the Olympic Trials. And that was BEFORE he entered his senior year.
But the best quality about Arnold may be the fact that he is so humble. Some Olympic swimmers seem to have a sense of arrogance about them (see: Gary Hall and Ian Thorpe), but that is not the case with Arnold. He began swimming year-round in eighth grade and last weekend at state championships he was set to defend his state title in the 50 free. Before the race Arnold burned to defend his state title. “It would be the perfect cap to my high school career to win it back to back.” Cap it he did. Again he took home top honors in his best events as he set two pool records with a 20.67 in the 50 freestyle and was once again hailed as the “fastest swimmer in the state.” Arnold admits that sometimes he will peak into other lanes while swimming to check out his competition. “I guess technically I am the fastest, but it is against a clock. I like swimming against others.”
Arnold is gearing up for swimming on the next level, as he will attend the University of Georgia, but first comes the Olympic Trials. Though he is quick to point out that his chances are slim of making the team, he very well could surprise himself. This past January he competed in the Victorian Championships in Australia as a member of the US Junior team and he finished eighth in the 100m fly. He was also ranked seventh in the world among 17-and-unders in the 50-free as of late November. In order to qualify for the Olympic trials, male swimmers must beat a 23.49 time and Arnold squashed that by swimming a 23.35. In swimming time, .14 is an eternity. He says even if he does come up short for the Olympic team, it still will be fun trying. “I am looking forward to the experience. I don’t weight train that much, so I am at a disadvantage, but you never know.” Arnold predicts that his best swimming may be ahead of him, once he has started lifting weights in college.
At Georgia, he will look to help the Swim Dawgs become national players on the sprint level. When he signed on with Georgia, he knew that his second choice Auburn has the better sprint program-for now, but he hopes he can help the team improve. “I hope that my going in there and pushing those guys, and them pushing me, I know we will get better. But Georgia just felt like family when I went there to visit.” Georgia will certainly be able to use Arnold, who is a member of the No. 1 ranked relay team in the country. His Chattahoochee Gold Swim Team offers him the competition he seeks, but he still loves swimming for Kennesaw Mountain Coach David Reason. “Club swimming is good, but the meets are sometimes three or six months apart. Coach Reason lets me swim whenever my schedule lets me with Club [swimming] and homework. And I like the crowds and the pride with school swimming.”
The Mustang coaches all believe Arnold to be a team player and he proved how much of one he was recently in the County Championships. He swam in, and won two events that weren’t necessarily his specialty and he did it to help the young Mustangs earn enough points to finish third. “It is important for me, as a senior to be a leader, emotionally and physically. Some of the younger guys come in and sort of know who I am. That pushes them to work hard and get better.”
After he said that, again the humble Arnold reappeared. He tried to rephrase his answer because he felt that one was too cocky. For a kid with Olympic-sized talent, it is nice to know Michael Arnold still has a kiddie-pool sized ego.
To watch Kennesaw Mountain high school senior swimmer Michael Arnold practice is to watch Tiger Woods play putt-putt. The artist is applying his skills, but not quite unleashing his mastery of the game. Arnold is truly a master when put in the pool and against a clock. He has already won the 50-yard freestyle state title. He has already set multiple school and county records. He already won the 50 long freestyle at nationals and competed as a member of the United State National Junior team. And he already qualified for the Olympic Trials. And that was BEFORE he entered his senior year.
But the best quality about Arnold may be the fact that he is so humble. Some Olympic swimmers seem to have a sense of arrogance about them (see: Gary Hall and Ian Thorpe), but that is not the case with Arnold. He began swimming year-round in eighth grade and last weekend at state championships he was set to defend his state title in the 50 free. Before the race Arnold burned to defend his state title. “It would be the perfect cap to my high school career to win it back to back.” Cap it he did. Again he took home top honors in his best events as he set two pool records with a 20.67 in the 50 freestyle and was once again hailed as the “fastest swimmer in the state.” Arnold admits that sometimes he will peak into other lanes while swimming to check out his competition. “I guess technically I am the fastest, but it is against a clock. I like swimming against others.”
Arnold is gearing up for swimming on the next level, as he will attend the University of Georgia, but first comes the Olympic Trials. Though he is quick to point out that his chances are slim of making the team, he very well could surprise himself. This past January he competed in the Victorian Championships in Australia as a member of the US Junior team and he finished eighth in the 100m fly. He was also ranked seventh in the world among 17-and-unders in the 50-free as of late November. In order to qualify for the Olympic trials, male swimmers must beat a 23.49 time and Arnold squashed that by swimming a 23.35. In swimming time, .14 is an eternity. He says even if he does come up short for the Olympic team, it still will be fun trying. “I am looking forward to the experience. I don’t weight train that much, so I am at a disadvantage, but you never know.” Arnold predicts that his best swimming may be ahead of him, once he has started lifting weights in college.
At Georgia, he will look to help the Swim Dawgs become national players on the sprint level. When he signed on with Georgia, he knew that his second choice Auburn has the better sprint program-for now, but he hopes he can help the team improve. “I hope that my going in there and pushing those guys, and them pushing me, I know we will get better. But Georgia just felt like family when I went there to visit.” Georgia will certainly be able to use Arnold, who is a member of the No. 1 ranked relay team in the country. His Chattahoochee Gold Swim Team offers him the competition he seeks, but he still loves swimming for Kennesaw Mountain Coach David Reason. “Club swimming is good, but the meets are sometimes three or six months apart. Coach Reason lets me swim whenever my schedule lets me with Club [swimming] and homework. And I like the crowds and the pride with school swimming.”
The Mustang coaches all believe Arnold to be a team player and he proved how much of one he was recently in the County Championships. He swam in, and won two events that weren’t necessarily his specialty and he did it to help the young Mustangs earn enough points to finish third. “It is important for me, as a senior to be a leader, emotionally and physically. Some of the younger guys come in and sort of know who I am. That pushes them to work hard and get better.”
After he said that, again the humble Arnold reappeared. He tried to rephrase his answer because he felt that one was too cocky. For a kid with Olympic-sized talent, it is nice to know Michael Arnold still has a kiddie-pool sized ego.
Our Generation's Rolling Stones
This past Saturday (or was it technically Sunday morning) a group of us got into a discussion of the lack of long-sustaining bands in today's industry and one of my friends bemoaned that today's musicians will not last twenty, thirty or forty years like bands of the olden days. He brought up The Rolling Stones for an example and how they have been at it for over 40 years and how Panic! At the Disco prolly won't make it past spring. That is why we are subjected to such crap at the Super Bowl in Tom Petty because 10 years from now we can say, "Oh yeah Tom Petty played!" opposed to "FallOut Boy? Who was that?"
After trying to figure out who our generation's long sustaining band was, he chose U2, as they have been together for a while, but I thought they were just a bit older than me, but U2 is a good argument. u2 might be for the Generation X folks, but I am Generation Y or whatever follows X. I thought Dave Matthews Band, but he has kind of fallen a bit. When he started, he REDEFINED music as we all knew it. He spawned so many knockoffs(Pat McGee, John Mayer, Hootie & the Blowfish). He made college music cool to all ages. And the key is, like U2, he keeps reinventing himself. But I think maybe he has painted himself into a corner. I haven't really liked any of his new stuff in quite a while, in fact Grace is Gone is REALLY an old song, he just finally released it on an album. Same with Bartender.
Then I found the 90-2030 version of the Rolling Stones.....Matchbox Twenty. Don't laugh. Both have been VERY solid in their first ten years, and if we give MB20 the chance, they may just go 30 or 40 years and become the Stones part 2.
Matchbox Twenty started in 1996 and released Yourself or Someone like you in 1997 and it had 5 top 10 hits. The album sold 12M copies in the US alone and earned Diamond status (12X platinum is diamond). Long Day reached #8, Push #1, 3AM #1, Real World #3, Back 2 Good #4. All top40 hits, all good and the album reached #5 in the US. (In comparison, the Stones' first album to reach #1 in the US was in 1965, 3 years after they started and came to the US)
Then Rob Thomas picked up 3 Grammys for his work with Santana on Smooth for writing, Album of the Year and Song of the Year.
The Band followed up Yourself with Mad Season, which peaked at #3 and went 4x platinum. Bent and If You're Gone both reached #1 with Angry at #5 and Mad Season and Last Beautiful Girl at #20.
More than you think you are came out in 2002 and peaked at #6 with 2X platinum. The songs included Disease #4, Unwell #1 and Bright Lights #2. After this album, the band was touring and Rob Thomas decided to release an album of his own to play while the band toured, and some of the band played backup on the tracks.
His album went to #1 on the US Billboard chart IN ITS FIRST WEEK. Songs included Lonely No More, This is how a heart breaks, Streetcorner Symphony (both of which the NBA used for it NBA basketball promos) and Ever The Same. He also released Little Wonders for a Disney movie. Needless to say his solo career could have really gone on to something special but he chose to go back to the band. (Meanwhile when Mick Jagger released his 4 CD, they topped out at #13 in 1985 (The Boss) #41 in 1987 (Primitive Cool) one only released in the UK then another one in the late 1990s (Goddess in the Doorway) that was killed by critics. He went back to the band to repair his reputation)
Finally Matchbox Twenty recently released their 4th album which is currently Gold and has reached #3 on the charts. How far we've come was #3 and These Hard Times (just released) debuted at #21.
Matchbox Twenty has been doing it for 12 years, more or less without a break as they were touring and writing the whole time. On the other side, the Stones achieved such success because they were releasing one sometimes two albums PER YEAR. The records only had about 8 songs per on them. From 1984 until 1994, the band had no group releases as the band was apart seeking solo glory-and NOT getting it. Then after releasing an album in 1994 and another in 1997, it was 8 more years until another new album came out in 2005. The Stones have been living off older songs, so I could argue that they haven't been strong for 40 years, even though they recently celebrated 40 years as a band. Take away 18 years, if you ask me.
I think Matchbox Twenty COULD certainly make it as they are producing hits on several different formats: rock, top 40, A/C. And they have their own Mick in Rob Thomas.
Who knows what the future holds for MB20, but I think they have staying power. I just hope the band breaks up before Rob Thomas is 73 and jumping up and down at the Super Bowl singing Push. But hey, that song is catchy.
After trying to figure out who our generation's long sustaining band was, he chose U2, as they have been together for a while, but I thought they were just a bit older than me, but U2 is a good argument. u2 might be for the Generation X folks, but I am Generation Y or whatever follows X. I thought Dave Matthews Band, but he has kind of fallen a bit. When he started, he REDEFINED music as we all knew it. He spawned so many knockoffs(Pat McGee, John Mayer, Hootie & the Blowfish). He made college music cool to all ages. And the key is, like U2, he keeps reinventing himself. But I think maybe he has painted himself into a corner. I haven't really liked any of his new stuff in quite a while, in fact Grace is Gone is REALLY an old song, he just finally released it on an album. Same with Bartender.
Then I found the 90-2030 version of the Rolling Stones.....Matchbox Twenty. Don't laugh. Both have been VERY solid in their first ten years, and if we give MB20 the chance, they may just go 30 or 40 years and become the Stones part 2.
Matchbox Twenty started in 1996 and released Yourself or Someone like you in 1997 and it had 5 top 10 hits. The album sold 12M copies in the US alone and earned Diamond status (12X platinum is diamond). Long Day reached #8, Push #1, 3AM #1, Real World #3, Back 2 Good #4. All top40 hits, all good and the album reached #5 in the US. (In comparison, the Stones' first album to reach #1 in the US was in 1965, 3 years after they started and came to the US)
Then Rob Thomas picked up 3 Grammys for his work with Santana on Smooth for writing, Album of the Year and Song of the Year.
The Band followed up Yourself with Mad Season, which peaked at #3 and went 4x platinum. Bent and If You're Gone both reached #1 with Angry at #5 and Mad Season and Last Beautiful Girl at #20.
More than you think you are came out in 2002 and peaked at #6 with 2X platinum. The songs included Disease #4, Unwell #1 and Bright Lights #2. After this album, the band was touring and Rob Thomas decided to release an album of his own to play while the band toured, and some of the band played backup on the tracks.
His album went to #1 on the US Billboard chart IN ITS FIRST WEEK. Songs included Lonely No More, This is how a heart breaks, Streetcorner Symphony (both of which the NBA used for it NBA basketball promos) and Ever The Same. He also released Little Wonders for a Disney movie. Needless to say his solo career could have really gone on to something special but he chose to go back to the band. (Meanwhile when Mick Jagger released his 4 CD, they topped out at #13 in 1985 (The Boss) #41 in 1987 (Primitive Cool) one only released in the UK then another one in the late 1990s (Goddess in the Doorway) that was killed by critics. He went back to the band to repair his reputation)
Finally Matchbox Twenty recently released their 4th album which is currently Gold and has reached #3 on the charts. How far we've come was #3 and These Hard Times (just released) debuted at #21.
Matchbox Twenty has been doing it for 12 years, more or less without a break as they were touring and writing the whole time. On the other side, the Stones achieved such success because they were releasing one sometimes two albums PER YEAR. The records only had about 8 songs per on them. From 1984 until 1994, the band had no group releases as the band was apart seeking solo glory-and NOT getting it. Then after releasing an album in 1994 and another in 1997, it was 8 more years until another new album came out in 2005. The Stones have been living off older songs, so I could argue that they haven't been strong for 40 years, even though they recently celebrated 40 years as a band. Take away 18 years, if you ask me.
I think Matchbox Twenty COULD certainly make it as they are producing hits on several different formats: rock, top 40, A/C. And they have their own Mick in Rob Thomas.
Who knows what the future holds for MB20, but I think they have staying power. I just hope the band breaks up before Rob Thomas is 73 and jumping up and down at the Super Bowl singing Push. But hey, that song is catchy.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)