Fans are dumb

This week I've had trash talking from Cardinals fans. As weird as it is that there actually are Cardinals fans, these same people talked to me before the game. None of those fans trash talked before the game, in fact they were very humble and saying the Steelers would win. Now the Steelers lay an egg and the Cardinals play well and they defeat the Steelers. Now the fans want to trash talk, weird. I guess even trash talking hindsight is 20/20.

Then I spend time with some Seahawks fans giving me shit, which I don't mind. This just in guys, if you win today you don't get the Lombardi Trophy from two years ago. So I've had to relive the complaining that Seattle actually beat Pittsburgh but the refs took it away. Um, really. The Steelers only had three good offensive plays, all game. With only three good players you still lose by 11 points. Did the refs cause you to miss two field goals, give you the worst clock management in the history of the Super Bowl, cause you to not even come close to talking Willie or Hines, cause you to allow Ben to complete a 3rd and 25, or the inability for you to convert a 3rd down. All of those penalties were valid save the Hasslebeck penalty on the interception. Get over it, move on, and try to win this game.

Silly Desert

I traveled to the desert and saw my beloved Steelers lose to the Crimson Herbivores. I had a feeling all week that they were going to lose on their trip to Arizona. It was a tough feeling to explain since I had no real evidence to back it up. The Steelers are a better team than the Cardinals, in almost all aspects in which you can compare a team. All aspects save desire to win the game. The Cards just wanted to win it more than the Steelers. That is almost all that matters in the NFL, who wants it more. Talent means a lot when you're the Patriots or Colts but for the other 30 teams in the NFL emotion plays a big part and the Steelers just didn't have that. Hopefully we can win the Super Bowl XL rematch.

Still Around

Sure I've taken over a week off but I have an excuse. Well I don't really have an excuse, I just didn't use my computer at home all week. I was out sick for a day and out of commission. That mixed with being out of town for a few days meant I wanted to spend time with the Little One at night, so I did. But have no fear, your daily useless facts about the Steelers, Braves, TV, or some dumb thing I find interesting is back!

Off to Arizona

I'll be in Arizona for a few days, see you on Monday.

One is a bad number

Well damn. The margin for error by the Braves is down to one. One more loss by the Braves or win by the Padres and the Braves are done. Well there is always next year!

Go Dodgers, Giants and then Nationals!

Oh yeah, go Braves as well. Two games out with five to play. Should be an interesting few days.

Four Months Later

And what a painful four months it was. I do like me some Heroes and having it go away for the summer wasn't any fun. I'm guilty of wanting more out of the premier than was delivered last night. It wasn't bad, I was just expecting more, which is typically your own fault. I've found with movies and sometimes TV that keeping your expectations in check will really change if you like or dislike something.

To go from saving NYC from the brain eating, evil guy who was going to nuke it to dealing with bad paper store managers and the in-crown cheerleards, a little bit of a let down for the Bennets.

So far I'm not a fan of the Wonder Twin storyline.

I do like that Hiro was read stories about himself.

I think the British Kensei is going to be a fun character.

I'm really shocked that someone hasn't commented on the impeding addition of Kritsen Bell. More hot blondes can never hurt a show.

I wish I would have remained spoiler free. When they kept spoiling that an older Hero would die I just knew it was Sulu. I wish it was Lady McBeth instead.

The virus storyline, I haven't read an X-Men book in a bit so this isn't old news for me. The virus storyline happens every other month in X-books but on Heroes I'm sure it will be refreshing.

Repeat powers, you knew it had to happen sooner or later.

So when you blow up you end up in a container in Ireland? I would say you get $10 if you guessed the end of the show reveal but you should have guessed the end of the show reveal.

I know it sounds like I really didn't like the episode but I did. It is almost the perfect geek show, this episode just didn't live up to expectations is all.

The Race Card

Eagle's Quarterback Donovan McNabb was quoted a few times last week, all from HBO Inside the NFL (which is the one show that makes me miss having HBO) saying basically that black QBs face tougher criticisms than white QBs. Um...duh?

I would think it is painfully obviously that black QBs face tougher criticism than white QBs. An NFL Quarterback is the face of the of multi-billion dollar corporation that is owned by a white man. That corporation relies on millions upon millions of dollars in sponsorship money from other corporations that are run by white men. Those 32 corporations and its parent corporation really need the mega-billion TV deal by TV networks run by white men. The money to pay that mega deal comes from advertising dollars paid by, you guessed it, corporations owned and run by white men. This just in, most of the wealth in the US is controlled by white men which means all of those people list want to appeal to those dollars and those white men. People tend to gravitate towards things that are familiar and the same and that makes it easier to appeal to other white men by promoting your star white players. That means teams would prefer not to have a black QB if they can avoid it. They'd obviously want to win more than anything else but all things being equal would take a white QB over a black QB.

The media is no different. The sportswriters are white men, their news directors are white men, the station manager/editor are white men, and their owned by the same above corporations. It is easier to attack something that is different than something that is familiar. Tom Brady gets a pass because he knocked up a super model. Everyone above wouldn't mind knocking up a super model so they sympathize with Tom Brady. Shawn Kemp doesn't get a pass because none of the above people understand having seven children with six different women, nor would they probably want to.

Brett Favre is passing all-time QB records. When Dononvan McNabb or Vince Young does something it is the first time a black QB has done something. We make sure to get that point out to us. Warren Moon is the all-time best black QB, Steve Young, Peyton Manning, Joe Montana, Dan Marino, Johnny Unitas are just all time great QB. Doug Williams was the first everything for a black QB in the Super Bowl, nevermind he played an incredible game by any standard. The week New England upset Pittsburgh (Kordell Stewart) and St. Louis beat Philadelphia (McNabb) there was significant talk about the first match up of black QBs in the Super Bowl. Steve McNair was the second black QB in the Super Bowl, not the first QB for a storied franchise.

Michael Irvin, Deion Sanders, Stephen A. Smith, all jump to Jevon Walker's defense when he is playing for a less than ideal contract. Chris Mortensen, Peter King, Brett Favre, and Steve Young all tear into Jevon Walker. Asante Samual, Michael Strahan, and Lance Briggs should shut up and get to camp or their teams should pay them the long term money they are owed, just depending your side of the fence. Tony Romo is playing in a less the ideal contract and his owner/GM said they will just franchise him if they don't work out a deal. Len Pasquarelli and Peter King wrote how bad that is, John Madden commented on it last night. Tony Romo should be paid his money!

It is dumb that I can't write a certain word in my blog because I'd be a racist. It can be played on the radio just as long as it is someone like 50-Cent shouting out the lyrics and not someone like Sting, that would be racist. Having Sting sing some gansta rap would be funny. There are many things that both sides of the race card complain about that are absolutely silly. But to pretend there isn't a race divide is absolutely dumb.

3-0

Not much better than starting the season 3-0. The Steelers didn't look incredibly good but they still demolished the 49ers. I take that back, their defense looks incredible. The offense needs to be a little better for the Steelers to be an elite team. Right now they're offense is making too many mistakes for them to be as viewed as good as the Colts or Patriots. I'm really enjoying the season so far. Bring on the Cardinals.

49ers Come to Town

This is week three of five in the Steelers incredibly easy early season schedule. They actually don't have a tough schedule the entire year but the first five games are very easy. The 49ers are 2-0 but they don't seem like they've figured everything out yet. The Steelers other than converting a few more TDs in the endzone as opposed to field goals have figured most of it out, at least so far. The Steelers should win this game, hopefully they aren't overlooking the 49ers too much. A 3-0 start would sure make getting into the playoffs much easier.

Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday Little One. Having an eight year old sure feels weird. I mean I still play games at work, I'm supposed to be responsible?

Enough about me, she loves her birthday. Every year she is so happy about it that Pretty Bird and I get a kick out of it. Her joy and excitement probably makes us spend too much money on her birthday but hey who can blame us, she is such a great child. This year is a slumber party tomorrow and a bunch of her friends coming over. It should be a great time.

TiVo Cleanup

With the new season starting up it is time to make sure your TiVo has enough room so you catch all the shows you want to watch. I know we're already here at the TMac household.

60-10

That is the Steelers and their opponents combined point total for the first two games. Most NFL games end within 7 points so the Steelers defeating their opponents by an average of 25 points is pretty good. Here are some more numbers that make me feel good.

392.5 Total Yards Per Game (#6 in NFL)
195.0 Rushing Yards Per Game (#2)
197.5 Passing Yards Per Game (#22, okay not so good but not bad since they throw like 5 times a game in the second half)
30 Points Per Game (#5)

222.0 Yards Allowed Per Game (#3)
74.o Yards Rushing Per Game (#5)
148.0 Yards Passing Per Game (#3)
5 Points Per Game (#1)

That are some good numbers. This mixed with the 6-2 finish has things looking up for Steel Town. Three bad things though. One and most important is that last year doesn't count for shit. Second is that even if you could last year, the 8-2 record only has them beating one team with a winning record. Third is that the Browns and Bills are probably two of the five worst teams in football, you're supposed to beat them.

The Steelers however don't make the schedule, they only get to play who is on it. This week is the 49ers who are 2-0 but have the worst offense yardage wise in the NFL. They are averaging less than 100 yards a game passing which is really not good. Since they switched to the 3-4 zone blitz I've only ever worried about the passing game. The scheme requires them to have physical corners over cover corners. That hurts them against either a great line or short, quick passing games if the QB is really on. It appears the 49ers don't have that passing thing down yet. Hopefully the Steelers can stay on and the 49ers can stay off for one more week.

The return of Heroes

I'd just like to remind everyone that a week from today is the return of Heroes. I know Pretty Bird and I can't wait.

Thanks but no thanks

After I put The Little One in the Mustang and walked around to the driver's side.

Some woman in the parking lot- "I like your car"
TMac - "Thanks"
SWITPL - "It's real pretty"
TMac - "Thanks"
SWITPL - "I'd really like to ride in a car like that"
TMac - "Well, good luck"

I obviously bought the Mustang to pick up chicks. Too bad I couldn't have it when I was 16.

Screw Carson Palmer

Cleveland beating Cincy is great. Carson Palmer having like 5458923 yards and 60 TDs in the game isn't. Of course I'm playing two people who have Carson Palmer this week, so sad.

Bring on the Bills

It is very hard to keep expectations manageable. The Steelers have a very winnable first part of the schedule. It isn't hard to believe they will be at their bye in week six at 4-1 or even 5-0. Sure the NFC West is improved but they are still in the NFC. They play the 49ers and Seahawks at Heinz Field. Heinz Field hasn't exactly been a home field advantage the last two years, at least not to the level of something like the Broncos or Chiefs. Hopefully this year they can change that and get a nice 6-2 or 7-1 record at home. Then you have today's game with the Bills. The Bills look to be on the right path rebuilding and I'm sure they'll play fired up but the Steelers are just a better team.

Like I said, hard to keep expectations manageable but the Steelers will probably be favorites in every game leading up to the Denver game in week seven. I wouldn't be upset with a 3-2 start but a 4-1 or 5-0 start would go a long way towards making the playoffs.

Radio Disney

It is a very bittersweet feeling that my soon to be eight year old little girl is now into the tweener stuff. She has been since around March or so but it got much worse when the new school year started. She still wants to like the cartoons and what not but the High School Musical/Hannah Montana things are now more popular. With HS Musical being the highest rated show in cable TV history, including things like Monday Night Football and Bowl games, and Miley Cyrus selling out in a matter of hours all over the country, The Little One isn't the only one.

My only request is that pop stations and Radio Disney up their rotation. You listen for an hour and you've heard only five songs about three times each.

Checks

The Little One and I went to the grocery store today. We only had to pick up two items so it should have been a quick trip. We got our stuff and headed to check out. There were five lanes open plus the girl at the service area was checking someone out. All five lanes only had at most two people in line, it should have been real easy. All three of the self check out lanes were buying alcohol and needed the person at the service area. The two other lanes were writing a check. The person at the service area was buying money orders so it took a little bit of time, oh yeah, she was also using a check. I only know this because we were at the grocery store for at least fifteen minutes extra minutes. I was able to walk to all five lines. Who the hell writes checks anymore? I haven't used a check outside of paying a bill in years.

Cheating

I'm not going to try and justify cheating. Actually I think cheating really stinks. But I do believe the media is dramatically overreacting to the Patriots sign stealing story. I would not surprised to find out the entire NFL tries to steal signs. I'm sure the Patriots are better at it than some but I'm sure everyone of the 32 teams tries. I think the NFL did the right thing if they are trying to curb it, losing draft picks really stings. My problem is the media however, they are just making a huge deal of it, like the Patriots are the only ones that do it. They just got caught.

Would someone please tell me again why I should buy shoes Shawne Merriman is pimping? He is also a cheater, uses something that really can hurt a teenager trying to play football, and now Nike wants him to pimp their shoes. Nice.

TV Time Yet?

Is it the new season yet? I'm ready for some new shows, new Heroes, new Earl, new Robin Sprinkles. Hell I'll even try some of the newer shows for an episode or two unless their good, then I'll watch them more. Well a little over a week isn't too much to wait.

34-7

There are two good things that can happen every week in the NFL. First and foremost is the Steelers winning. A distant second but second nonetheless is a Browns loss. When the Steelers beat the Browns both things happen at once.

The Steelers looked pretty good. The defense was awesome, special teams (which was a huge issue last year) looked good, and the offense outside of the second quarter was great. Not a bad start to the season. They say you need 10 wins to make the playoffs so the Steelers just need 9 more.

Kevin Millar Night

Since KO and I are in Baltimore we figured we'd take advantage of some connections and see an Orioles game. This is step seven in my quest to visit all of the stadiums (Turner Field, Fenway, Phillies, DBacks, Padres, Rangers, and now the House that Cal Built). Yeah I know I'm not that close but it is fun to knock a few off every now and then. This also brings me only to only needing to see the Royals, Mariners, and A's till I see all of major league teams.

As you can see we got great seats. Nice 8th row on the third base side. Here is future Hall of Famer Vlad Guerrero.














We miss you Leo!














Oh yeah, I caught it mid pitch baby!

Coolest Plane EVER

Yes that is the coolest plane ever.

Live from Baltimore

Or should I say Old Cleveland. I do love visiting the inner harbor area in Baltimore every year. What great food, so many places to eat. It is weird to watch a Ravens MNF game in Baltimore, lots of fans for the Ravens. I just wonder if both teams playing tonight can get a loss.

Good for the Steelers to get a win in the first game. Other than the offense in the second quarter they looked really good.

Game Time!

Today is Mike Tomlin's debut as the third Steelers coach since the Lyndon Johnson era. Hopefully he starts his career the same as his two predecessors did, with a win. The Steelers are still fielding essentially the same team that went 15-1 and then 11-5 with a Super Bowl win. Out of 24 starters from the Super Bowl team they will start 17 of them and two of the others are still on the team but got beat out. They had a little bit of bad luck last year, mixed with a ton of bad execution, and only finished 8-8. They did finish in the top 10 in offense and defense and finished the year 6-2.

I think in 2007 they will pass a little more, blitz a little bit less, and rebound from an 'off' year. How long have you been winning when 8-8 is an 'off' year. Some NFL teams would view an 8-8 year as a huge improvement. Not in Steeltown.

Here's to a good year. Go Steelers.

Are you ready for some football?

I know I sure am. Three hours until the Steelers kickoff the '07 season. Man I love me some Steelers football!

Three in a Row

Three in a row, four out of five, is a good start. There is still plenty of work to do but it is a good start.

Baseball Gods

The Baseball Gods allow you to talk about a no-no after the 7th inning. Anything before that and you aren't allowed to talk about it. Today Smotlz had a no-no through 7 and I talked about it to Pretty Bird. Sure enough he loses the no-no with the first batter in the 8th. I think it isn't because of talking about it but more because the Baseball Gods are mad that I talk about the Football Gods more often. Either that or there really isn't a Braves fan amongst the Baseball Gods. Who knows, either way, well pitched John.

Football Baby!

Man I love me some NFL. I actually have my picks for the year and I will write them up and post them. Tonight's game should be a lot of fun, hopefully high scoring and entertaining. Are you ready for some football?

Another reason not to fly Southwest

Sure they are cheap but they aren't the most on-time airline in the world. They don't have a good frequent flier program, which is key to a business traveler and they don't have free First Class upgrades, another key business traveler requirement. There is also their stupid first come, first serve seating, wtf. Now there is this.

What the hell? If they stocked their planes with more girls that looked like her and wearing the same outfits then maybe I'd fly Southwest more often.

Inbred

I really think our new cat is inbred. She is the dumbest living thing I've ever had to deal with on a regular basis. Tonight she did something I've never heard of a cat doing, she jumped into the bath tub with the Little One. She is like all other cats, she hates water. It is really funny to see her run around all wet like an idiot, other than her getting everything in the house wet. Stupid animal.

College Football

A few of my friends are incredibly excited about college football, I however am not. The college I went to didn't have a football team, I kept up with teams from where I lived and who most of my friends rooted for. I think my main problem is that it has been a long time since I lived where there was a big college football push. In Florida, Atlanta, and Athens there was a ton of college football push, in Virgina Beach and here in Charlotte, not so much.

Let's face it, without the excitement college football isn't that much fun. Oh sure there is usually a good game every week but not involving the same team. Most of the good teams just destroy the other teams every week. It is hard to be a casual fan of a specific team, the games aren't entertaining. You have to be hardcore fan to put up with those boring games. I guess I live college football the game, just not the specific teams anymore.

Over

It is all over for the Braves. They have been so awful for the past three weeks or so, I should have stopped having hope a little while ago. The pitching has been so bad and you can't win in baseball with at least some pitching. I guess there is always next year.

Goodbye Jason

Today was Jason's last day at Press Pass. He decided he had enough designing games and wanted to try something else. Not really much else to say other than to wish him luck and say it has been a really good two and a half years. Of course Jason will be at my house a good bit this fall/winter because he isn't moving and I get NFL Sunday Ticket. Good luck Jason.

First NFL Game

Tonight was the first NFL game for both of the girls. Sure it was only a preseason game and we only stayed a half but they both had a good time. The Little One love that she got to see Polamalu, her new favorite player. I'll have pictures later but it was good time.

Crystal Meth

I've been fighting a head cold for more than a few days now. We ran out of cold medicine recently and it was time to get some new stuff. It has been so long since we bought any medicine that I've never had to fill out a form, show them ID, and waste a huge amount of time just to fix my cold. I don't mind laws and I really think drug use/abuse is a problem, I however can't stand assuming your law abiding public is breaking the law. Just silly, like I'm going to make crystal meth, I just want to get rid of my cold.

Fantasy Football 08 Team #2

This is the team with players from my job and previous jobs. I completely drafted this team on my own, which is usually not a good idea. I think I'm okay with the team, although I'm a little weak at QB and I'm not very happy with my WR depth. Like the other team this one has a flex spot that RB is eligible so it basically means you need 3 starting RB, if you can get three decent ones. I think my 3 backs are pretty good provided that Clinton Portis bounces back from his injury and Frank Gore is actually as close to good as the hype.

The weirdest part of this team is the first seven picks were from the U, which is just wrong. I hate Miami but man can they recruit NFL level talent.

Starters
QB Philip Rivers
WR Reggie Wayne
WR Andre Johnson
WR Santana Moss
RB Frank Gore
RB Willis McGahee
W/R Clinton Portis
TE Jeremy Shockey
DEF Philadelphia
K Stephen Gostkowski

Bench
QB Matt Leinart (I always wanted a lefty)
RB Tatum Bell
WR Bernard Berrian
WR Mike Furrey
WR Derek Mason
TE Benjamin Watson

Fantasy Football 08 Team #1

This team was almost completely auto-drafted, I forgot about the draft until about round 9. I was smart enough to change my order a little bit and ended up with some players I like.

Starters
QB Matt Hasselbeck
WR Marques Colston
WR Hines Ward
RB Willie Parker
RB Travis Henry
W/R Thomas Jones
TE Kellen Winslow
DEF Baltimore
K Jeff Reed

Bench
QB Vince Young
RB Warrick Dunn
RB Rueben Droughns
WR Bernard Berrian
WR Issac Bruce
TE Jason Witten

Out of It

I've been so out of it since returning from the Midwest Death March. I was fighting a stomach thing mixed with fatigue. Now I seem to be fighting a potential head cold, man cons really can knock you out. I should be mostly recovered except for the weird head cold thing.

So Awful

Good lord the back end of the rotation for the Braves is just awful. They don't have to be good they just need to be a little bit better.

Life sure is weird

I'm finally home after 12+ days on the road, man did I miss my family. I recover from very little sleep and some con funk and figure I'd watch some MNF pre-season.

I was just at the RCA Dome and spent 7 days in Indy but right before that I spent 5 days in Chicago. So weird.

She's Only 17

Well she's 17 until Tuesday. I only know this because like 50 people over the weekend have told me once Hayden Panettiere was annouced as a guest. Of course I get a freaky picture with her standing next to Peter Adkison. Not really sure what she has to do with the Bella Sara booth but I'm also not questioning a gift from God at this show full of 99% men when I've been away from my wife for 12 days.

Convention Blues

Today is only day six on my twelve day trip through the midwest. I'm already missing home and ready to go. Maybe I'll feel better after my three hour drive to Indianapolis. More updates to come, maybe.

Damn Bullpen

Can't hold a lead but hey it is baseball. There is another game tomorrow and one after that, can't get too down.

Convention Time!

I'm off to Wizard World Chicago and Gen Con Indy. Jdub and I get to spend 12 days on the road, it should be interesting to say the least. I will miss the family but it should be a good time.

Isn't equality supposed to be equal?

When I first started at Toys R Us the best department, the one everyone wanted to be in, was Ticket. Ticket was named because of how product was sold, it was on a ticket system. It included Big Ticket, items that were too large to keep on the sales floor, stuff like bikes, swing sets, above ground pools. It also included Security Ticket, stuff too expensive to be stolen, things like video games, high-end Barbies, v-tech computers, whatever. They had different hours, a smaller department, never had to deal with seasonal employees, first to get overtime, and rarely had to run register. About a month into my tenure there I was moved there and worked there off and on until it changed.

The front page of the employee guide for Ticket include the job expectations, stuff that was different than regular TRU, stuff like you must pass a background check, take car seat safety class, and lift a 50 lb bike on a ladder. It said it right there, on the front page of the guide. Before you can do anything in the department you see that you must be able to lift 50lbs while on a ladder.

There was this girl in the department for my first two years, an okay person on most days. She was very much into equality, at least to the point that she brought it up all the time. "You know Store Director X we don't have enough women building bikes", stuff like that. That is all good and probably has a place. However every year during Christmas season she would be the Department Head of the Big Ticket section and I'd be in the Security Ticket section. One of the closing jobs of Big Ticket was to refill the bike rack. Every single time she closed she would throw a fit, not ask for help filling the rack, but throw a fit. "I'm a woman, a man should be filling the bike rack," similar statements like that over and over again. Equality works when it is convenient I guess.

There is a person at my current office who makes "women get the shaft" comments all the time as well. Again I don't mind if you the conversation is that "women get the shaft", they probably do, I mean we deal with NASCAR companies, it is the south. But today I almost lost my temper. Jdub and I had to ship things for WW Chicago and Gen Con Indy. It was about 10 to 12 boxes, most normal size, under 15 lbs, but still 12 boxes. One of the boxes was pretty big and weighed about 80 lbs and another one probably 40 lbs. So Jdub and I prepare them to be shipped and have them set up for the UPS person.

Our UPS person is now a small woman and apparently has been for a few weeks. Well the Equal Rights for Women person absolutely flipped out. "I can't believe you left all that for that little woman", "you're a man you should have come up and helped her", "it is too hot to do that to a poor woman", and something else while I was walking away. The UPS driver knows that they can pick up packages weighing up to 125 lbs, I know this because anything bigger than that and we have to call them. The UPS drivers know it rains, snows, gets hot, cold, other various things that make life suck. They know this before they take the job as UPS driver but UPS drivers also make really good money. Again the pay doesn't matter because they know the job before they take it.

Again I guess equality is only important when it is good for you.

Larry!

Man fans in NY really don't like Chipper Jones do they.

Bad Customer Service

We all get it, we all get it a lot. Working a CS based job for 10+ years made me very unsympathetic. If I'm paying my hard earned money for something then I expect to get the service I deserve. I still understand there are times when bad service happens and I can leave it alone. Today was not one of those days.

I called our upcoming hotel in Chicago to try and make some changes. The lady at the front desk was not very helpful, which happens and then she followed it up with "we're very busy right now" and then she hung up on me. Yeah, that doesn't work for me.

It turns out that you shouldn't hang up on someone who books hundreds of nights of hotels a year at your chain, they give a nice preferred card and a special 800 number to call for help. I ended up getting three email apologies and two phone calls about it today.

When I worked CS based jobs an actual call/mail complaint to a higher up was really bad for someone. I've seen people get fired or get on the "one more fuckup and you're fired" list based on a complaint like that. And these were places that didn't give out a "you spend five figures a year with us" card. I'm sure the lady at the front desk had a really good day. When the hotel general manager has to make a personal phone call to a guest because you fucked up, it can't do wonders for your raise potential.

Are you ready for some football?

What a great day. Some nice steaks on the grill, some cold beer, and a Steelers game on TV. Sure it was a pre-season game but who cares, Steelers Football was back. They say the Steelers have a new coach but it looked like the same Steelers team I've seen for years. They passed early to get a lead, then ran the football, and ran the football, and ran it again. They were more physical than the other team and held onto the ball about 10 minutes longer than the other team. The could describe almost every Steelers win I can remember.

Sure it was pre-season and sure none of this shit matters. But it sure is better to win and look good than it is to lose and look like crap.

A Win!

I didn't see the game, JDub came over and we watched 300. I did see the score and Tim Hudson pitched well and the Braves won. The Mets and Phillies lost so all is well, at least for today.

Tomorrow is also the first Steelers pre-season game, good times.

Entertaining at least

Man was today's game, well yesterday's game, entertaining. Every position player, every pitcher from the bullpen, Willie Harris playing third base, Chipper playing shortstop, a few pitcher pinch hitting, one of them with the game winning hit. Too bad the Braves didn't win but it sure was entertaining. I love baseball.

Holidays

Given the day we've had and the fact the women are asleep I guess it is weird I can't sleep and I'm feeling very open to being insightful about myself. I am watching a incredibly entertaining Braves game but I'm exhausted, I should be sleeping. Anyway, onto my personal insight.

I really don't like holidays, almost any of them including my birthday. About the only one I do like is the commercial American version of Christmas. I take that back, I really do enjoy the Little One's birthday. I don't really like any of them, for various different reasons. But I'm talking about birthdays mainly now.

It isn't that I mind getting older, I don't care about that, although last year was tougher than I expected it to be. I just don't have found memories of birthdays. I only remember a few that didn't go well so I assume the others went well but like most things you remember the poor more than the good. I also remember poor experiences with other family member's birthdays as well.

This just causes me to hold birthdays in poor regard. This really hasn't effected how I treat The Little One but it has unfortunately caused Pretty Bird to have some blah birthdays. It also causes me to forget or at least do a poor job with other family member's birthdays. I feel bad for them but I also don't see myself changing despite any efforts I try to put forth. It isn't because I don't love them but I'm sure on their birthdays they don't care. Sorry about that.

When it rains it pours

It actually isn't the bad, at least we'll both be okay. But I took today off because I had a appointment with my doctor to check up on issues. I'm supposed to see him every six months and it is has been seven. Now that I'm over thirty I guess I should pay more attention. Prior to last year I only visited the doctor every 18 months or so, which made my wife, mother, and doctor very upset. So now I'm a good patient. The appointment since it is only a checkup was only going to take a 30 minutes or so and my doctor is on the south side of town.

I took the whole day off because Pretty Bird was off and we've been promising The Little One for over two years now we'd take her to Carowinds, the local Paramount themed amusement park. With me traveling four out of five weeks and her going to start school during that time I really wanted a little family time. Sure we didn't need to spend the money but we figured what the hell, let's do it.

The park in most cases would have been a good day. However today was not meant to be a good day. Apparently the Little One hasn't been feeling well for a day or two and been hiding it because she really wanted to go to the park. She didn't eat breakfast but hide it from us so we wouldn't know and be upset/make her eat/not let her go to the park. She does fine for the first 90 minutes or so at the park and then she doesn't want to eat lunch. She does drink a decent amount and we're able to get her to eat a little bit. At first we thought it was just her not liking the food. Well another hour or so and we can really tell she isn't feeling well. It only gets worse from there, partly because she hasn't really eaten all day, it is 95 or so, and she really doesn't want to leave the park. Leaving the park early, a few calls to the doctors, and some nervous temperature watching and we almost end up taking her to the hospital. Obviously it is some sort of stomach bug but now probably combined with dehydration and/or heat exhaustion. Then she up and starts eating everything she can see. She is still slated to go to the doctors tomorrow but it seems things are better.

Pretty Bird almost always, eight years now, gets sick when The Little One gets sick. It is obviously just nerves/stress but sometimes she gets herself really sick. Today was almost one of those days, again probably mixed with the heat. She was doing pretty poorly but of course hid it from the Little One. She is actually doing much better, probably due to eating and the Little One eating.

Me, I think I'm okay. I visit my doctor today, my condition really hasn't bothered me much in months and then today about 5:30, bam. It was a very mild one but none of them are fun. I get about six different types of attacks and this one was almost the easiest to deal with. It really isn't much pain, just knocks the wind out of me and sometimes a pretty bad migraine follows it, like today. I'm writing this with the lights off because it does hurt but it is much better than my chest hurting. Yes, my condition is almost always brought on by stress and I have a good bit right now. Hopefully I don't get a real attack in the next few weeks, Gen Con and WW Chicago are big deals for us.

Which brings me to my other source of stress, not that work or an almost trip to the hospital aren't enough. I knew to call my dad today early in the day, I even reminded Pretty Bird to tell me while we were at the park. It is his birthday, so Happy Birthday Dad. With all of the craziness I just forgot to call him. I knew something was bothering me at the back of my mind and I didn't put my mind on it until I remembered about 15 minutes ago. With my mom fighting her stuff they go to bed earlier than 10pm. So of course I'm a bad son and didn't call him. I will call him tomorrow and fell like a deadbeat. Hopefully he'll understand.

Well both the womenfolk are asleep. The Little One kept her food down and doesn't have a fever. Pretty Bird should be okay but will probably still be stressed tomorrow about The Little One and stressed over me being stressed about my dad. Still a good day, the womenfolk appear to be on the way to recovery, all is good.

Good start

Well 12 runs is a good start. Of course they scored 11 runs last night and 14 runs on Sunday. Welcome to Atlanta Mark, it is looking like a good summer.

Demo?

With this group of sad looking mofos I'm surprised we got a single demo.











Of course, as a reminder we did get a demo or two :)

Nice Ride

I so missed my Mustang last week. I had to drive a huge Lincoln Town Car, wtf man that thing was a boat. At San Diego Comic-Con I did find a few alternatives to the boat town car. I love Batman but I think I'd take the Mach 5.

Welcome to Atlanta Mark

He'll look much better in a Braves uniform. This is the first good first baseman we've had since El Gato Grande. This guy is one helluva ballplayer. Good times.

Good bye San Diego, see you next year

This is such a bittersweet show. It is so much work, so expensive, on the other side of the country, all sorts of random things that appear bad. But I absolutely love the show. There is so many good things to see and do, I wouldn't want to miss it if I could avoid it. See you next year San Diego.

Done!

We're done with San Diego Comic-Con. What a great and tiring show. This is the first time since I left Decipher that I broke down this show, I forgot how much waiting was involved. I will post a complete after the show write up sometime this week. Less than two weeks until our next show, Wizard World Chicago. I doubt I'll see as many celebrities much less talk to them like I did at this show. It was pretty cool to talk to Ali Larter, Levar Burton, some guy from Kyle XY, and Andre 3000. I love Comic-Con!

The Simpsons San Diego Comic-Con Style

Who knows who the person is in the picture. But the Simpsons were walking around SDCC all week to promote The Simpson's Movie. They stopped and had a huge queue line for pictures, I just grabbed one.

Happy Simpsons weekend

San Diego Comic-Con Hotties

There is quite a few hotties at San Diego Comic-Con. From the before mentioned Jessica Alba to Hayden Panettiere and Ali Larter to just people who dress up. Some of them even stopped by our booth.

A naughty nurse taking a demo.














Another person taking a demo who kept readjusting her pants to make sure her thong showed to whole world. Hey if she is going to readjust to show it then why not take a picture. It turns out she was a model looking for other booth modeling jobs. She did like 24 TCG though.














Probably the best looking Slave Girl Leia I've ever seen. I couldn't bring myself to take a picture of her rear even though she was showing a good bit of it off.














Black Cat.














Jean Grey.














Batgirl and Supergirl.














The coming of 50 girls, yes 50 of them all right in front the booth, for the new Resident Evil movie.














And the going of 50 Resident Evil girls.














And of course Ali Larter's backside after her security realized I was trying to take a picture of her after talking to her for a few seconds. Sadly no lacy thong with her either.

Masi Oka and more!

I know that isn't Masi Oka but I can't figure out how to get pictures from my phone to my computer at this late hour. I have plenty of other pictures to upload but I am exhausted and ready to crash.

I will tell the Masi Oka story later. Unlike Jessica Alba I actually got to talk to Masi, well for about 5 seconds.

Jessica Alba

Our booth at San Diego Comic-Con is apparently near the celebrity entrance to the floor. Most celebrities do not even attempt to visit the show floor. However Jessica Alba does. There was a huge crowd of security and people when she came out onto the floor and most people didn't know who she was, because she is only like 5 foot flat and you couldn't see her.

On the way back however, you definitely could tell it was her. Man is she attractive. Of course I was in the middle of a demo to Dr. Heimlich with my camera in my bag, no picture for me. However I was able to find this nice piece of eye candy on the internet, enjoy!

Thursday San Diego Comic-Con Update

Some more pictures from Thursday at San Diego Comic-Con. I didn't get to see stuff as much today as I could on other days, stupid work getting in the way. The one Batman was huge and the Dark Knight Batman is almost a must own. I know the Little One and Pretty Bird will like the Emily the Strange picture.

More San Diego Comic-Con

Here is just a few pictures. I've got more on my 24 TCG blog, they mostly have to do with 24 TCG though.

Some Disney stuff for The Little One and Pretty Bird.













Some Heroes stuff for everyone else. Actual props, so sool. HRG's actual HRGs! They also had the Tim Sale paintings at the booth, I love Comic-Con.

Live from San Diego!

Man I love this show, what an over-the-top experience. In addition the best geek show in the world we have great weather, incredible seafood, real Mexican food (featuring my favorite, corn tortillas), and some pretty good eye candy. I will post some pictures here and on my 24 TCG blog.

This is for Pretty Bird. It is about a 1/3 or 1/4 scale Black Pearl. Pretty cool.












This one is The Little One. She really loved the talking polar bear in the Golden Compass preview and this one is life size. Well if there were talking polar bears the wore armor.










This one is for me. Indiana Jones and The OMG Trevor Can't Wait To See It.

Who's Now

I have no idea, I know "Who's Now" means change the channel on ESPN. I also know that "Now" I'm getting ready for San Diego Comic-Con. I should update some, I might not. If you're going stop by the booth and demo 24 TCG. If you're not going, well then why the hell not, it is San Diego Comic-Con!

Barry Bonds can suck it

I don't care about the steroids/HGH issue, I think it sucks ass but I also think a ton of players did it as well. I just don't like Barry Bonds, he is an ass, I don't like players who act like a dick. The Braves had to deal with Barry in 91 and 92 with Pittsburgh and then in 93 with the Giants. They did had to deal with the fucker a few years later when the Giants got good again. Sure I wasn't going to bitch about the steroids/HGH thing and I won't. The think that bothers me the most about Barry, how the hell is he allowed to wear that armor? It allows him to stand on the plate with no fear of getting hit, it shouldn't be allowed. Anyway, enough bitching about Barry Bonds, what an ass.

To quote a song from the now defunct 96Rock in Atlanta during the great summer of 1993

"...strike out Barry Bonds..."

Polamalu Facts

Two thirds of the earth is covered by water, the rest is covered by Troy Polamalu.

Some days has good news, other days have great news. Emily's favorite Steeler, real close to mine, and probably their best player for another five years. Not bad, not bad at all.

San Diego Comic-Con

Yes, I'm going to San Diego Comic-Con. We have a very small booth and we're doing demos for 24 TCG all week. I've had about 15 questions if I was going and I wanted to make sure everyone knew. If you need that exclusive Transformer or The Dude just let me know.

Reading Material

Some book came out today, I heard some people might want to buy it. Pretty Bird got it of course, I will read it when I return from San Diego Comic-Con. I'm sure there will be some people there, at least a dozen or so total, that have read the book. Hopefully it won't get spoiled.

Freddy Krueger

We have a new kitten and should have named her Freddy Krueger. She both is psychotic and has a fetish towards clawing up people. If she ever gets over either of those things I think she might be cute, well for a cat.

Weekend

Man I need a weekend. What a long week at work. At least I get 2.5 day weekends still, good times. Plus next week is only one day in the office so the turmoil that is causing extra stress won't apply to me as much. Something to look forward to I guess.

WTF!?!?!

Being swept by the Reds, wtf is up with that.

Some days

Some days are just better than others, today was not one of those days. Long day at work, some family stuff, and I miss the Little One. That is the nice thing about days though, there is always another one tomorrow.

Chinese Food

Pretty Bird and I got back late-ish from ATL yesterday and didn't want to cook dinner. What is a couple minus child to do but order Chinese food. The food was good but the best part was the copy on the chop sticks.

Welcome to Chinese Restaurant. Please try your Nice Chinese Food With Chopsticks the traditional and typical of Chinese glonous history and cultual.

Tuk under tnurnb and hold firmly

Add second chcostick hold it as you hold a pencil

Hold tirst chopstick in original position move the second one up and down Now you can pick up anything:

Good reading.

Baseball is Back

Time for the second half, hopefully the Mets can keep floundering and the Braves can win a few games at home. I'm on my way down to ATL this weekend, maybe we'll check out a game.

Sneakers

Pretty Bird and I wanted to watch a movie and since we own over 200 of them we figured we could find something to watch out of our collection. Sneakers is a movie I love but Pretty Bird had never seen it. If you haven't seen it, it is a great heist film with an incredible cast, I highly recommend you check it out.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

To say I'm a huge Harry Potter fan would be wrong. I enjoy the books and the movies are pretty good. I liked this one a good bit. The pacing was off and montage scenes were boring and way overdone. Still the movie was pretty good and had everything I was looking for. It sure is fun to watch these kids grow up on screen and the adult cast is wonderful. Good times.

Origins Awards

The Origins Awards used to mean a lot in the hobby gaming industry. Hell it used to be THE award you could. I've worked on some Origins Award winning games designed by some Origins Award winning game designers. I've worked with some other game designers that were great as well but that isn't my rant.

My rant is that the Origins Award, along with the Origins Game Fair, has had a huge fall from grace. Some would argue that it was never that graceful but I liked Origins and I was proud of the awards our games won. Now, who cares.

As you can see here the winner for the best TCG in 2006 was a Pirates expansion by WizKids. Now I like the Pirates game and I like the people I know at WizKids. Pirates however is NOT a TCG. This is only the most recent example of how the award has got to the shitter in the past few years.

Issues

If you want to talk about issues then maybe we can actually talk about the issues. Using some made up crap and useless propaganda only preaches to the converted and will do nothing to convince the opposition. There is an episode in the West Wing when Josh is trying to get polling data on specific districts about gun control, if the data comes back good then they can push their agenda, if not gun nuts win! Joey Lucas tells him that is a load of BS, if the data is bad then that means you haven't convinced them yet. I want leaders to lead, there are things I believe strongly about same as most people. However a lot of people with most issues would be willing to change their opinion based on someone actually leading and convincing them otherwise. It would really help if you didn't cloud your statement with crap though.

Pollution. If you have a problem with pollution then let's talk about it. If you want to disguise that with global warming fear tactics, I'm going to tune you out. I've seen polluted rivers and streams, I've been to Los Angeles, I've seen thousands of pictures of too much waste. That is enough for me, I'll help you clean up. I know others feel the same way. However when you waste your time talking about man-made global warming I'm just going to have to ignore you.

For every study some institute that says global warming is man made there is another study by an equally accredited group writing a report saying it isn't or that we just don't know. The globe is getting warmer, you can't argue that. But it has been getting warmer since the 1600 or 1700s. Those aren't exactly man induced reasons there if it has been doing it well before there were billions of people and their oil burning machines.

You want to convince us poor hating, xenophobic, gun-loving rednecks that we should treat the environment better? Then spend your time talking about how awful pollution by itself is, which is pretty awful. Talk about how there is only a finite amount of resources, which is true and somewhat problematic.

I would be good to me if you didn't spend time shoving hybrids and millionaires with $3000+ a month power bills down my throat doing it. Hybrids are the biggest crock of shit, they don't help the environment and most of them don't save you any money. Go look up the pollution output for plants that make the batteries in those things, holy cow. Sure you might help on the local level with pollution because you're using less gas but on the global scale you're probably creating more pollution, batteries are incredibly nasty to make. Hybrids outside of an actual hybrid like the Prius don't save you any money.

Let's do a little math. Regular Honda Accord, 30 mpg for $25,000 and the Hybrid Honda Accord is 36 mpg for $32,000. A 28% price increase for only a 17% increase in fuel economy. That is a If I drive 15,000 a year, the new national average, then I save about about 84 gallons of gas with the hybrid. At $4.00 a gallon, which were not at yet but will before a new car loan would wear off, I save myself $336 a year in gas with the hybrid. In about 21 years I will make up the difference in the different sticker prices. Good luck driving a hybrid for 21 years, talk about cars that need a lot of work, which would cost you even more money. What a good deal, man I need to line up and get a no power, lot of work car that in 21 years I can start saving money using.

Next I'll ramble about health care :)

Transformers

Man was this movie cool and a helluva good time. The theater was packed (the only way to see a huge popcorn movie, in a packed theater), everyone was enjoying the movie, it looked and sounded great. I didn't mind the changes, I mean they were changed from a 1980's cartoon, or the product placement. The Michael Bay-ness did take over the movie from time to time, man is that guy a hack. Even despite that the movie was well worth my $6.00. Indiana Jones Jr. was good, Megan Fox was pretty hot and the Transformers looked incredible on the screen. It was the perfect popcorn movie and right up there with 300 as my favorite movie in 2007. Hopefully the sequel will have Soundwave but I wonder if Grimlock, my favorite as a kid, will show up? Doubtful, a giant robot dinosaur probably won't work.

This now gives Hugo Weaving the trifecta in dork movie trilogies, you know Megatron will be back and you know there will be at least a third one.

Knocked Up

Pretty Bird and I have heard multiple good things about this movie but we were reluctant to see it. Neither of us are a fan of the current 'in' comedy, the uncomfortable physical pain comedy that usually stars Ben Stiller. Obviously this doesn't have Ben Stiller so that was a plus. However the whole new 'frat pack' all have the same style of comedy and this one has Paul Rudd and was made by the people who made 40 Year Old Virgin, definitely a frat pack movie. Sure there are some good movies in this style but most of them are just crap.

Knocked Up sure is that style comedy but it was pretty good. Seth Rogan was good, Katherine Heigl was hot as usual. We both enjoyed the movie and laughed a lot. There was some of the gross out or overly physically painful things but not too much. We sure weren't expecting to see any crowning, not sure how I feel about that. Either way it was good, not a bad waste of money.

Good, Bad, Ugly

Good - Braves Game on TV vs. Greg Maddux

Bad - Joe Morgan calling the game.

Ugly - Jon Miller and Joe Morgan in HD.

Oceans 13

I'm not sure if this movie was bad or if I was expecting it to be much better. I really disliked Oceans 13 a lot, more than when I first saw Oceans 12. Now the second time I saw Oceans 12 I hated it so I know it wasn't very good. But with Oceans 13 it was just shit the first time. I'm upset I spent money to see it, just crap. The acting was obviously good but the movie was just junk. I guess the gimmick doesn't work the third time at all, even if it was in Vegas.

One cool thing if it was done on purpose is the location of the casino, it changes every time you see it. I'm not sure why you would do that but if it was on purpose then I think it was cool, if not then that is just sloppy.

Return of the Little One

I just got back from picking up the Little One. She was visiting Grammy for the last two weeks. I like that she enjoys spending time with my mom but two weeks seems way too long.

Reno 911!: Miami

When Pretty Bird and I were in NYC one night we had to stay in to watch the two little ones. We decided to watch a movie and Reno 911! Miami was the choice. Pretty Bird watches the show a lot, I watch it from time to time when it is on, the show is hilarious. The movie was also quite hilarious if just more of the show without the censorship that comes with being on TV. I don't think we'll own it and I'm glad we didn't pay to see it. It was funny though and a nice waste of 90 minutes.

Live Free or Die Hard

The original Die Hard is one of my all-time favorite action movies, maybe even my favorite. I loved when I was younger and first saw it, later when my college buddies and I watched, and now with Pretty Bird and I liking it as one of our two Christmas movies. The second Die Hard is enjoyable if not trying too hard to be more over the top than the first one. The third Die Hard is just awful and that is painful for me to say, it had a great cast. Sam Jackson and Jeremy Irons along with John McClane can't help it be good, oh well.

The fourth installment didn't bring back my favorite element, him being trapped somewhere, of the original one. It didn't however bring back all of the 80's action movie craziness, you know the Die Hard, Lethal Weapon, Beverly Hills Cop, craziness. The movie is about as believable as Star Trek but it is fun to watch. I really like Timothy Olyphant and he was pretty good in this movie. John McClane gets to drag a Mac around, who uses a PC, shows how versatile Macs are. Kevin Smith is good, the action is lots of fun, and of course good one liners. Good times.

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer

Pretty Bird and I went to see it before I went away last week. Neither of us were a fan of the first one although we do like the FF comic books. We do like the cast, she likes Sir Lancelot, everyone likes Michael Chiklis, and obviously I like Jessica Alba. So both of us went into this one with very low expectations. And with low expectations comes a good experience. We enjoyed the movie, it was a good bit of fun, which when the Fantastic Four comic is on it is a lot of fun as well. The everyday stuff involving their lives is good stuff, the Johnny vs. Ben stuff is great, another nekkid (almost) Jessica Alba is always good. I was really impressed with how good the Surfer was, he easily could have looked like shit but he looked pretty good. In short, we liked it, it was a decent comic movie and a good way to waste two hours.

American Made Baby

I'm a Chevrolet Corvette!

You're a classic - powerful, athletic, and competitive. You're all about winning the race and getting the job done. While you have a practical everyday side, you get wild when anyone pushes your pedal. You hate to lose, but you hardly ever do.

Take the Which Sports Car Are You? quiz.

I guess I couldn't ask for a better sports car, one of my favorites :)

Happy Fourth Of July

I'll pre-date this post for the 4th of July. I actually didn't turn on the computer once yesterday so i wasn't able to wish everyone a good 4th. I hope everybody was able to grill up some good food, lay back and enjoy the country's birthday.

Transform and roll out!

Oh yeah, I know it is going to be an awful movie but it should be a blast to watch. Tonight is Transformers on a digital screen, good times will be had by all.

West Coast Trip

I really dislike when the Braves are on the west coast, stupid late start times.

Back to the Office

I've spent so little time in the office the past two weeks I'm not sure if I'm ready to spend four days there this week. Well we have a lot of deadlines so I'm sure it will go pretty quick.

Pirates of the Caribbean: At Worlds End

I realized I haven't really written about the movies I've seen in the past month or so. Being married to Pretty Bird obviously meant we were going to see Pirates when it was released. I really don't remember much about the movie, at least to separate it from the second Pirate movie. Don't get me wrong I enjoyed both movies I just think neither one of them are even close to the first Pirate movie. We'll own it and I'm sure I'll see it again, maybe it be more memorable the second time.

Home!

From last Friday until last night I've been from NY to NC to IL to WI to IL to MI to IN to MI to IN to KY to NC, needless to say I'm a little tired of traveling. Last night was only the third night I've spent in my own bed, I'm so happy to be back. The work trip while being exhausting was incredibly productive. The personal trip while again being exhausting was incredible. Now that I'm back for a few weeks I should be able to fill all the fun details I haven't written about in the past few weeks.

A win!

It seems the Braves do remember how to score runs and get a win. We'll see if they can win two in a row now.

Back from NYC

After a long travel day we're back in Charlotte after a few days in the Big Apple. We had a great time and I will post more about it later.

Beauty and the Beast

Tonight, while we're in NYC, we're going to see our first broadway show. With Pretty Bird and The Little One's love of Disney of course it was going to be a Disney show. Pretty Bird has heard incredible things about Beauty and the Beast and it is both of their favorite Disney cartoons so it should be a great time. See you on Monday.