The Frogurt Is Also Cursed

Slender

I'm calling the debate a draw, so here's a reward for Dems and Republicans alike.

8:41 PM

Muzzled Simpson's

I got tired of waiting for MSNBC to bring in Frank Luntz's focus groups like they always do at political events, so I switched over to the Simpson's.

It's the episode where the Simpson's spend the 4th of July weekend at the Flanders' beach house. Homer goes out to buy some illegal fireworks. An Apu-like character at the local Quickie Mart offers to sell him a large firework.

He says, in his Indian accent, "Celebrate the birth of your country by blowing up a small part of it."

The "blowing up a small part of it" was muted! They erased those words!

I don't know what I think about that, but I found it odd.

8:20 PM

The Debate

Started out very slow and incoherent.

Bush stepped it up for the balance of the debate, owning about half of it. It's winding down now, the questions are friendlier and that seems deliberate.

I think that the blows Kerry landed were answered well, for the most part. Bush's shots, however, were not easily and convincingly answered.

But I don't have much credibility here as I just cannot see Kerry as president. I don't believe it can happen, ...and I can't honestly take him seriously.

I'd call it wash. Kerry supporters are probably happy with what Kerry said, and Bush supporters will be happy with what he said. For that reason, I will call it a draw.

Ten minutes left ...

Frankly, Bush just killed him on the North Korea issue and on the "rush to war" and "go it alone" issues. But that probably has to do with my personal opinion, which is aligned with Bush on those issues.

Yeah, it's a wash. They seemed to be talking to their supporters, and I doubt this will change anything.

7:14 PM

Are These People Real ...

or just Will Ferrell-style parodies of a local news crew?

You decide.

1:00 PM

A Puzzle for Me

The house hunt simply has to come to an end.

You've all heard of post-partum depression. Women get it to varying degrees after delivering a baby.

My sister lived in a small apartment at the time of her first child. She didn't work after the birth and became very depressed sitting in that apartment all day with no one but the baby to talk to.

The wife isn't working right now, and she does not yet have a US drivers license (I don't have an extra car for her anyway). So, she's basically confined to our small flat every day. She's not suffering depression at all, she seems very happy and is not excessively emotional. I think she actually loves spending all the time with the little monkey, she just needs more space, a brighter, cheerier atmosphere, and stability.

We've been planning on moving for a long time now, so we've not decorated or bought new furniture or even unpacked all her things. Our rooms are full of boxes and debris. Everything is crowded and disorganized. It's no way to live.

For some reason, I am able to live in this type if atmosphere for long lengths of time. It's somewhat comforting, being surrounded by your own clutter. Maybe it's because I was born in the year of the dog, ...dogs being happy as clams living in their own filth (at least my dog is).

This type of life is not for her. It's not really fair of me to force this on her, but it's not like we haven't tried to buy a house. The last house I blogged about was officially taken off of the market yesterday. It's no longer for sale, so any hope I had of waiting them out is gone.

Meanwhile, we missed out on some great houses.

Right now the market is fairly dead, but we're still having trouble finding a suitable place to live for a reasonable price. Home prices jumped significantly while we searched, forcing us to raise our budget limitation twice. I simply can't raise it anymore, and the quality of houses that we could afford in June are unaffordable in September.

My parents offered to help us get to a 20% deposit on a house, filling in any shortfall we had. I agreed to this because we were looking for a much cheaper house back then, and their contribution would have been pretty small.

Prices are coming down a bit now that the summer rush is over. But it is still competitive because fewer houses are on the market.

My quandary is this:

The parents offered to further help me purchase a more expensive home. They said they talked it over and determined exactly what they could offer us without touching their retirement money.

It's a very large sum.

My parents never buy anything and never go anywhere. They've gone on one vacation in the last 20 years. They don't buy new clothes or expensive appliances. My mother does buy furniture very often, but she sells what she has at the same time. They are very frugal, and have been all their lives. So, I guess it shouldn't surprise me that they have so much cash available.

I don't want to take it, but the alternative is to sit and wait and hope we get lucky on another house soon. I don't know how long that could take.

I honestly don't know what to do.

9:18 AM

An Open Letter to the New Brewers Owner

Since the Journal’s open letters to the new Brewers owner were overwhelmingly lame, I’m doing my own:

Open Letter to Mark L. Attanasio, New Owner of the Milwaukee Brewers

First, congratulations on your new purchase. As you probably already know, this town has longed for a new owner for some time. We’ve endured 22 years since our last whiff of post season play.

And it hasn’t been easy.

In the years before the Wild Card, teams like the Brewers had to win their division to make it into the post season. Though our teams had talent and good records in the 80’s, they usually finished behind someone else.

Each season of hard effort seemed to always end in heartbreak as the Brewers solemly trailed off like late autumn leaves. As a child, Uecker’s sign off at the end of each season (“Until next year, …so long everybody!”) poured sadness into my heart. I grew to know a dreary acceptance that a long, cold winter (and lot’s of schoolwork) sat between October and April.

But this town loved that team, and adopted its players.

From Gorman Thomas, Milwaukee’s prodigal son who found nothing but trouble and debt in his post-playing years, is always welcomed back for another chance.

When a popular ballplayer leaves his home team for bigger money and more success as a free agent, the home town usually sees that player as a traitor, but not for Paul Molitor. When he left Milwaukee, the town turned on the team’s GM, Sal Bando, and has never, even for one second, seen “Molly” as anything but a Brewer. The bitterness towards Bando and the Seligs is still palpable after all these years.

Milwaukee does not have an official saint, but if took votes for one, Robin Yount would even beat out Vince Lombardi.

When these players left and team fell further in stature, the fans looked at their stadium and fought to build a new one. Why? Because we wanted to help the team to become a success again. We did the political equivalent of passing a hat around town and voted to tax ourselves for the cost of Miller Park. It wasn’t an easy fight, and some of the wounds from it still sting, but we did it for the team.
We filled the stadium, cheering on a team that was 2 games out of first place at the all-star break and went on to lose 21 of 23 games, finishing in last.

My point is, that you have walked into a situation where the community has suffered for a long time, but has never (I repeat NEVER) failed or let down their team. And I don’t think they ever will. This year over 2 million fans came to see another disappointment.

I think you need to understand this as you walk in.

There will be lots of calls for you to spend, spend, spend, …but no one really believes that you will come in and give us an 80 million dollar team. Most smart estimates say you will spend about 50 million and play it cautiously.

It’s a step in the right direction.

But I will throw this out to you to think about.

Any city will back a winner, but how many cities build statues of players who never won a championship? How many cities put 2 million people in the stands for one of the worst teams in baseball?

Imagine what they would do for a winner?

The upside to winning in Milwaukee is far higher than you, or anyone else in baseball realizes.

Just keep that in mind before you put your checkbook away and pass on a deal.
And finally, you haven’t so much bought into a team, as you have walked into, and been embraced by, a new family.

Welcome.

11:34 AM

A Nice Treat for the Beginning of the Week

Enjoy

11:26 PM

Thoughts

On Saturday my brother-in-law (a Vikings fan) asked me how I thought the Packers would do today.

I said I thought they would lose, but that it would be closer than most people think. He informed me that the spread was 5 points, and I thought that sounded about right.

Sunday morning I read that McKenzie and Carrol were out of the game due to injury, and I thought to myself "they should double the spread".

Thought #1 - I didn't know Indy's defense was so bad. Had I known that, I would have given the Packers a better chance to win.

Thought #2 - There is only one question to ask at the end of this game, ...how high of a building should we toss Bob Slowik off of? And, should we stab him first? My answers are - at least 40 stories, and yes, GOD YES, PLEASE LET ME PERSONALLY DO IT.

Thought #3 - One of my very favorite pastimes is finding fault with professional sports officiating. This game had bad calls on BOTH sides. Yes. The Packers got some calls. However, 3 calls at the end of the game went against the Packers and had a direct impact on the game. The false start call against the Packers that was actually caused by the defense put the Packers in a first and 20 hole. The non-call on the play where Indy defensive back wiped out a Packers receiver while the ball was in the air. They said it was uncatchable, but that just negates pass interference. It DOES NOT negate illegal contact. Finally, the illegal contact call against the Packers on the Indy goalline at the end of the game. If I remember it right, it was 3rd down. The Packers had stopped Indy. They would have kicked the FG, and the Packers would have had almost 3 minutes to mount an almost impossible comeback. There was no illegal contact on that play, AND THE BALL WAS UNCATCHABLE!!! I guess that rule only applies when it goes AGAINST the Packers. Seriously, it was an outrage.

Thought #4 - Javon Walker had a great game. The Indy DB made a nice strip. I don't put the blame on him.

Thought #5 - Could Bob Slowik have a more appropriate name? SLOW. Slow to react. Slow to analyze. Slow to adjust. Slow to admit mistakes. Slow slow slow. I guess his name could be more appropriate if it was "OverHisHead StupidMotherFucker DumbshitAss-For-Brains".

Thought #5 - The defense proved that given an opportunity, it could play with the Colts. Not all the time, but enough to win. Barely. But Thumb-up-his-ass Slowik waited until Manning had tossed up 35 fucking uncontested points!!!!! before he made an adjustment. We would have had a good (GOOD) chance to win or put the game into overtime if the second-coming of Mike Shula wasn't calling our defenses. It took Troy Aikman about 72 seconds to figure out that the Packers were playing the wrong defensive scheme. Suck-shit Slowik? It took him 30 minutes of game time, an hour and a half of realtime, and did I mention 35 fucking uncontested points!!!!!

Had the defense not put in a better second half, I would seriously consider firing him on the spot. Fire him before he gets back to the locker room. Let him find his own transportation out of the stadium and out of Indianapolis, and make him pay his own hotel bill. Five straight touchdowns.

FIVE
STRAIGHT
TOUCHDOWNS

It does NOT get worse than that. How can it?

In my mind, he's on the chopping block. And Sherman, the genius who hired him? He's next.

6:20 PM

House Snooze

The heavily fortified compound I attempted to acquire has fallen out of my grasp for the moment.

The current king of that castle must have befallen a nasty case of Viper's Dance because he's been out of work.

No work = no mortgage loan
No mortgage loan = no ability to buy the house they put an offer on
No ability to buy house = no desire to sell house
No desire to sell house = Mr. Frogurt goes up into the watchtower with a sniper rifle rather than start looking for houses again

The summer is over. Cold weather is coming.
The Packers lost to the cocksucking Bears, and will lose again this week, albeit to a really good team.
The house we wanted and held out hope for is now taken from us by an odd twist of fate.
I ran over a squirrel today.
Two weeks ago was my neice's 10th birthday, last week was my wife's birthday, this week is my dad's birthday ...as a result I'm near overdrawn on my checking account (if not overdrawn already).
The Call of Duty expansion is out but I cannot afford a computer upgrade to play it, nor the game itself.
The Pacific Assualt demo is freely available online, but I cannot play it (see above computer upgrade problem).
And I'll be stuck in my crowded, ugly flat for the foreseeable future with no good, affordable house prospects on the horizon.

Oh, but one good thing did happen today, ...everybody meet Alexia.

9:19 AM

Friday Quiz

I would say this is mostly inaccurate. While at times I can be a loner, I wouldn't place myself squarely in that category.

9:17 AM

This Cheered Me Up

Senator Sourpuss is channeling C3P0!

from the professor

1:15 PM

And Finally, What Should We Do?

Well, it's too late to get a good receiver for this year, but if we are going to trade McKenzie, we should think about getting a receiver who could be an actual threat.

We should cut Bawah Jue right now. He should be re-treading tires in Trenton by the end of the week.

Bob Slowik and Mike Sherman should be bound together with bailing wire and affixed to a large pole that is attached to the front grill of a pick-up truck. They should be driven around the state so that fans can pelt them with rocks and cans and occasionally stab them with pencils. Afterwards, then should be wrapped in bubble wrap and used a human bobbers for sturgeon fisherman on Lake Michigan. Next, I'd encase them in Firestone tires and threaten to set them on fire if they continue their incompetence. Then I'd release them by kicking them down a steep hill (still encased in tires) and shooting them with paint guns until they managed to run out of range.

8:10 AM

So, What Does This Mean?

Well, I'm not sure it means anything. And by that I mean that the Packers look to be the same "good but flawed" team they were last year.

It's a division loss, so that hurts, but they had an unforgivable division loss to the lowly Lions last year and survived.

The Packers tend to play better towards the end of the year each year, these upsets generally take place in the first half of the season. And this is no different, which is partially what makes it so maddening.

They'll lose next week to high-powered Indy and be 1-2, just like last year. After that they'll get the struggling Giants and "good but declining" Titans at home. After that, Lions (away), Cowboys, Redskins (away), and open date, and then the Vikqueens.

So, it doesn't look so bad in the long run. I mean, it could get bad, but more than likely we'll be right where we were last year. A good record, some dissappointing losses, and a tight race for a playoff spot.

8:02 AM

Fingers That Need to Be Pointed

The last 18 and a half hours have been a slurry of mumbled profanity, violent revenge fantasies, stomache-crushing repressed rage.

Many things went through my mind, most of them quite unrepeatable, but what is important now is, Who to blame? What does this mean? and What should we do?

First, the blame.

I put it mostly on Mike fat-ass Sherman. Every fucking year he loses to shitty teams that come in and play their hearts out. Arizona and Detroit last year, ...Chicago this year. When a team-wide collapse happens every year in similar situations, it's the coaches fault.

But there is more specific blame to spread.

It would be really keen if we had a receiver who could, you know, catch a football. These guys get paid a lot of money to do one thing, CATCH THE FUCKING BALL. And these weren't difficult passes either, these were balls that hit them in the chest.

I guess Bob Slowik hadn't quite thought out his blitzing strategy all the way through. I guess he had designed it on Madden '92 where the offences don't adjust to your calls. Did he have an answer for this? No. Did he have a plan? No.

I cannot believe Sherman went for it on 4th and 8 at the end of the game. They needed two scores, a TD and a FG. He could have kicked the FG right there and came back to get the TD. Sure, you like to get the TD first, but was going to be very difficult from their position. Like an idiot, he went for the TD, failed, and lost the game right there. He did not put his team in the best position to win the game, he made it more difficult for them and that is the worst thing a coach can do. Sheer idiocy.

I also have a finger pointed at the refs who called a particularly curious game. First, Rex Grossman fumbled the ball and the Packers recovered. On the replay, the ref said that "his arm was in motion" and thus called it an incomplete pass. The only problem is that THE FUCKING BALL WASN'T IN HIS HAND WHEN HIS ARM WAS MOVING FORWARD ASSHOLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Secondly, a Packers receiver was dragged down by his facemask at the end of the game. The ref missed it. Had he called it, the clock would have stopped, the ball would have been near the 5 yard line, the Packers could have regrouped and benefitted from the additional momentum. As it was, the ref missed the call, and the Packers failed to score. And lastly, the Bears first TD took place only because the refs gave them a new first down after they failed to convert on 3rd. The refs called someone (Jue, I think) for illegal contact for reaching out and touching a Bears receiver. The defensive back did not hit him and did not alter the route, but the flag was thrown. If you believe that no Bear defensive back touched a Packer receiver ALL DAY, then you must be a Bear fan, which means you are an idiot.

And finally, I have one finger left for all the Bear fans out there. It's the middle finger. It symbolizes the number of times you will beat the Packers this year, and symbolizes the number of division wins you will have this year. So, try not to drop too many cheese fries out of your mouth with your boastful predictions of a Bears revival. Your gimmicky team pulled out every stop to win that game, and still almost blew it. That shit doesn't work for more than a game or two. So, Fuck You!

7:26 AM

This Happens More Than You Think

The stories about Democratic union thugs beating up Republican protesters or vocal Republican supporters are widespread and numerous. But it's not just union members who partake in it.

This photo is really sad.

This report has more thoughts on the new climate of fear in America.

And just to show these are not isolated cases ...

7:37 AM

Like I'm Not Going to Mention THIS Story

The MSM had been mostly ignoring Kerry's many many many stupid gaffes over the past year. Hilariously, most of them occured when he tried (it was excruciating, I'm sure) to portray himself as a "regular guy".

Now WaPo has written an article about some gaffes that happened weeks and months ago, ...the media loves to pile-on.

The article centered around Kerry thinking Lambeau field was actually "Lambert" field, but used it as a jumping off point to discuss Kerry's bigger image problem.

His other funny sports gaffe, which I mentioned before, was going to Michigan and talking about how great "Buckeye football" was. The problem is that the Buckeyes play at Ohio State, one of the Wolverines most hated rivals. Reports from the event said a chorus of audible "Boos" informed Kerry he had made the gaffe.

The point is not that you should not support Kerry because he's snooby, out-of-touch, European-wannabe (or maybe it is), ...it just speaks to his phonyness.

The article also has some interesting tidbits, ...Richard Nixon considered Vince Lombardi as his running mate in 1968, and in 1955 Ted Kennedy was a talented pro-prospect that was of high interest to the Packers.

Also this:In the end, it's the Packers' score -- more than the Packers vote -- that could determine Kerry's fate. In the past 18 presidential elections, if the Redskins lost or tied the last game before the election, the party in the White House lost, too. The Redskins' opponent Oct. 31: the Packers, but not at Lambert, er, Lambeau Field.

I think the outcome of the election is already decided, so (as always) I'll still be pulling for the Pack on Oct 31.

11:56 AM

Initial Thoughts on the Packers Opener

I had figured on this game as a loss, but during the day today I read that NFL.coms analyst predicted a Packer victory and illustrated his reasons why. They were somewhat convincing.

The most convincing part was that Delhomme is really (so far) a one-year wonder. He wasn't gangbusters last year until the very end of the season. Also, Carolina's offensive line is banged up and some players are missing from last year. Also, they lost key people in the secondary.

That got me thinking, but I STILL thought the Pack would likely lose in the highly-charged atmosphere of opening night on MNF.

Early on, the Packers demonstrated that Carolina could not stop the Green Bay running attack, and sure enough, they did not. GB ran 47 times.

The blitzing seemed to work tonight, but I'm not sure that it will work all season like this. Like I said, Delhomme may turn out to be an average at best QB.

If not for a questionable facemask penalty against Diggs (or what is Barnett?), Carolina would not have scored their first TD. Also, if Carrol does not blow a coverage late in the game, Carolina doesn't score at all.

The defense rattled Delhomme, making him throw off-target often, leave the pocket early, and generally panic. Peyton Manning won't be so easily intimidated. The two turnovers they forced were huge, they got 14 points off of them.

I'm suprised and happy. We're at mid-season form (mostly). I'm thinking that Carolina is not as good as I thought, in which case I would have called this game as a toss up.

But let's face it right here and now, ...while they don't air it and get yards in big chunks, their offense is awesome. There seems to be nothing they can't do, ...they can run, go deep, and most of all - control the ball.

This is a big win, but it comes at a price.

Grady Jackson - knee sprain
Najah - hamstring

9:08 PM

This Really Burns Their Canoli

The Order Sons of Italy in America are upset that DeNiro's movie roles stereotype Itallian Americans.

8:09 AM

No Complaints Here

1:19 PM

Another Packer Dream

I don't remember much about the game, but the Packers lost 17-3.

I don't have specific memories as to the opponent, the date, or the time, ...but I did have the feeling that this was the opening day game. So. I'm not sure how much I want to stand behind this dream. My memory was not specific enough.

I expect them to score more than 3. When was the last time they were held under 10 points? 1996, maybe.

1:16 PM

Thursday Night TV

Lots to try to watch tonight. Fortunately, I've been able to see most of the NBC premieres, the US Open, and the NFL opener.

Joey was suprisingly OK. I'd even say it was good. I wasn't expecting much from it, so I was pleasantly surprised. The new characters seem to work well with the exception of the love interest, but we'll see where they go with it.

The Apprentice was good. It's not as good as it was at the end of last season, but it would be almost impossible to match that. Things are just getting underway. The candidates mostly seem like dim shadows of the first season, but I guess they need time to develop. The first season is usually the best because no one knows what they are getting into. All these people watched last season, and that colors the way they behave. Obviously. Anyway, Rob deserved to be fired. He sucked. Chris wasn't much better. And what was with that chick with the wild hair? The one that freaked out, I forget her name. She's gotta go.

7:00 PM

More Confusing House News

There is not a video game violent enough to help me release all the aggressions that I have built up in my home buying experience. I hereby vow to remake my gaming system into a machine of terrible power so I can crush terrorists and innocent bystanders alike with realistic sight and sound.

I’ve often wished a game would consist of a finite number of citizens and cops in a fully accessible, 3-dimensional city. Then, let me loose in an effort to kill every person in the city. I wonder how far I could get? Most games thwart this by spawning new citizens and cops continuously throughtout the game. Some day we’ll be able to create a full city with real families that go to school, work, dinner, …just like normal people. A fully functioning virtual city, …and then they will unleash it to me, bwahaha!

Anyway, …to recap:

1. We made a good offer.
2. They did not respond to the offer.
3. We asked, “Hey fucko, what’s up?”
4. Their agent continually talks about “problems” they are having. She continually says “they want to sign your offer” and “they have to close at the end of the month”. Yet, the do not sign the offer, have not let anyone else see the house, refuse to tell us if and when they will sign it, and refuse to tell us much of anything.
5. Their agent agrees to deadlines with us, then breaks them. Last Tuesday, Thursday, this Tuesday, and finally, yesterday.

The listing agent said we would get a response by 3pm Wednesday. Guess what, we got nothing. She asked us on Tuesday if we could close SOONER than September 30. This was an odd request, because if they are in such a fucking hurry, why are they waiting to sign the offer and not telling us what’s going on? Also, anyone who has bought a home knows it take about 30 days to close on a house. They are requesting the impossible.

So, my agent tells me they are planning on responding to our offer on Wednesday, asks me to talk to my financial people about closing in under 30 days, and asks me to find an inspector who can come out in 1-2 days. I do all of these things.
We get no call.

My agent calls her during the day, …nothing. At night, …nothing. They next day, …nothing. Finally, she gets through to the listing agent this afternoon and the listing agent just talked in circles.

“They have to close by the end of the month.”
“They want to sign the offer.”
“They are moving as fast as they can.”
“I can’t tell you anything else.”

How the fuck are you going to close at the end of September when today is already the 9th? Plus, they haven’t signed anything. If they signed it tonight, I wouldn’t see it until tomorrow, which means an inspector can’t come out until next week and the appraiser won’t see it until late next week. It can’t be done.

If they are so concerned about the time frame, why don’t they at least work on accepting an offer for their house?

Meanwhile, we are spinning our wheels. Our lives are put on hold, we’re not sure what to do, and we can’t make any plans for the future until these dumbshits get it together.

1:35 PM

NFL Prediction Time

Our long wait is over.

The last NFL game I watched without interruption was the Packers heart-annihilating loss against the classless and undeserving Eagles in the second round of the playoffs last year.

As long time readers may recall, I was getting married in Tokyo during last year's super bowl, so I was only able to read about the final score on my wife's cell phone while we tooled around Shibuya on our way to the Fussa-shi hall to sign the marriage papers.

But now we're back. As is tradition, I will try to predict the Packers final record for 2004.

The last two years I foresaw the downfall of the Packers. If I remember correctly, I predicted 9-7 and 8-8. I was grossly wrong both times.

The Packers have continued to surprise me. By the fourth game I usually have a really good feel for the Packer's chances, but a real prediction must come before the season starts.

In the past few years I have been too pessimistic because I based a lot of my opinion on the way they finished the previous year (always a loss), and their off-season moves (always shitty). I also factored in a small decline in Favre's ability, the ineffectiveness of the receivers, and poor pre-season results.

So, I have tried to learn from my mistakes this year.

I say 10-6.

They are basically the same team as last year, but they are a little worse on defense. Also, the new rules for covering receivers will hurt the Packers more than they help them.

The division is going to be better this year. The Lions will suck a little less and may actually win a game on the road. The Bears may actually have a competent coach this year. They are tired of losing to the Packers, and eventually they will beat the Packers again.

The Packers play at Philly, at Carolina, and at Indy. 3 losses right there.

They also play second tier teams on the road, Minn and Washington. I say they split there.

Two more losses will put them at 10-6, and those two losses could come from a lot of places, ...at Detroit, at Chicago, Tennessee at home, Giants at home (in an upset), Cowboys at home, Jacksonville at home, or even at Houston.

If they can run the table on those teams, they could reach 12-4, but I would consider that a huge longshot.

10-6 seems safe to me, if anything, they could go 11-5, and I would consider that a very good season, even though it may not get them in the playoffs.

At 10-6 I don't think they will make it, which will force us to talk about Sherman's moves as GM. But there will be time for that later.

More predictions ...Saints will again be the Ain'ts. New England will fall a bit, but still make the playoffs. Dolphins are sushi, again.

Dallas can survive with Vinnie, but will not make the playoffs. Indy to the super bowl by beating KC at home for the AFC championship. Philly to the super bowl beating Carolina.

Surprise team, Jacksonville.
Biggest disappointment, everyone in the NFC north. One and done for the Vikes in the playoffs.

8:15 AM

This CAN'T be HAPPENING!!!

Oh no oh no oh no oh no

Mafia 2 Delayed or Cancelled????

Yes, it's a rumor at this point, but it doesn't look good at all.

The rumor started here, in the GamersHell.com forums on August 12.

The reputible Gamespot.com commented on the rumor as the fourth item in their Rumor Control column on August 21.

Excerpt:
The official story: Gathering did not comment.

What we heard: According to the post, internal strife at Mafia developer Illusion Softworks has led to the firing of head programmer Daniel Vavra--and to Mafia 2 being "indefinitely postponed." The post also quotes Petr Vochozka, founder of the Czech studio, as saying, "It is a shame that the game won't be finished anytime soon." That sounds like an open-and-shut case--except Mafia 2 hasn't even been officially announced yet, and neither Illusion nor Mafia publisher Gathering are commenting on it.

Bogus or not bogus?: Technically bogus, though given the disappointing sales of Mafia for consoles, it's likely the game will be stillborn.

These magazines and online sites are really console centered in some ways. That's how the GTA games get rated higher than Mafia, which is quite possibly the best video game of it's time.

There are a lot of tragedies in media that we can't do anything about, music that doesn't get enough support, tv shows cancelled before their time, movie scripts that sit on studio shelves for no apparent reason. If the rumor is true, this would be right up there.

It's enough to make me want to chuck gaming altogether.

3:49 PM

Bye Bitch

Couch is gone.

Good for Sherman.

The only odd thing about this story is the way the local dorkscasters have handled it. Jason Wilde (who appears to be the newest "insider" in Packerland) called the move "suprising", which cost him a lot of credibility with me.

Tom Pippins, demonstrating yet again that he knows nothing, called the move "wrong".

In general, Sherman's final roster cut-down was panned as perplexing. I agree that keeping two punters is moronic, but I don't expect that situation to last throughout the year. In fact, I wouldn't be suprised if Sherman cut Barker before the season offically starts on Sunday (yes, I know it starts on Thursday, but for salary purposes, the day is Sunday).

I was suprised that they cut Holmes so quickly. I wonder what they expected to see in him if they were only going to give him 10 days to make the team.

I was a little suprised they cut Kevin Kight, but they did add him to the practice squad. I was even more suprised they didn't give him a better shot at returning punts. They should not be using Ferguson in that capacity.

7:56 AM

The Verdict is Not So Clear

The punter situation is tougher.

After 2 punts each, Barker had delivered nice consistancy and Sander had delivered a 38 yarder and a 5 yarder. Yes, a 5 yard punt.

I know you are thinking, "well, I bet it's only measured at 5 yard because there was a nice run back by the other team."

Nope. The punt traveled a total of 5 yards.

However, his punts in the second half were excellent. They were long and had great hang time.

It's a tough call. It really is.

The kid won't get outright cut, ...at the very least they will place him on the practice squad and work with him for a year. That may actually be best, because we can't have him making 5 yard punts the week before the regular season starts.

Prediction?

He makes the team.

6:27 AM

The Verdict is Pretty Clear

Couch has not done enough to even win the 3rd string QB spot.

He had another mediocre night, dumping off most of his passess to runing backs near the line of scrimmage. He had a number of passes batted down at the line, AGAIN. He looked weak, again.

He failed to move the team, to make good decisions, or make any good passes.

Let there be no doubt, ...if Couch ends up on the Packers roster, Sherman should be immediately fired.

Not just because Couch is no more qualified to be a QB than John Kerry is to be president, but because (like the presidential race) there is a much better candidate.

Craig Nall has a nice game. He looked motivated, sharp, confident. He dropped back quick, got the ball out on rhythm, and made accurate, decisive throws. He moved the team into the red zone, only to toss an int in the end zone.

But it's not like he's gunning for a spot as starter. We're talking 3rd string here. If we need to start our 3rd stringer at some point, we're toast anyway. Nall at least gives us a chance to compete in a game where Favre and Peterson may have gone down.

Couch does not.

At this point I can't imagine why anyone would even consider giving him the 3rd slot.

If I find out later this week that Sherman cut Nall for Couch, the sheer density of explitives on this page will get my website shut down.

Only a fool would go for Couch at this point. Sherman is now on the clock.

6:15 AM

The Family II

The wife and I mostly agree on how we would like to raise our daughter, but there is one large, meandering issue that we cannot agree on.

The wife did not want our child to be given American citizenship. Babies born to American citizen and foreign citizen parents can be given “dual citizenship” status. They can have this status until they are 18 or 21 (can’t remember), at which point they must chose a country. This is the type of citizenship that my daughter has.

My wife also wants to raise our daughter so that she speaks both English and Japanese natively. Apparently this requires my wife to speak to our child only in Japanese for her entire life.

She continuously says that our daughter is not entirely American, she is half Japanese, which I supposed is true. But my wife has no real concept of what it means to “be an American”.

There is no “American ethnicity”, so her statement is nonsensical in that way. Our daughter is actually half Japanese and half Hispanic, to get technical.

You can be born anywhere in the world and still become an American. Being an American is not exclusive with regards to race or origin or lifestyle, it is inclusive based on your desire to take part in our young democratic society and all that it offers you.

The wife is a proud Japanese citizen. She did not come here for a better life, …she came here for me. While her life is and will be better in this country, she will not admit it.

Once while arguing about this, she incredulously said, “It’s like you think the US is the best country in the world!?”

“Of course I do,” I replied. “What other country would it be?”

Of course, I can prove my point and win the argument, but she will never concede and my life will be living hell until she calms down about it (2-3 days), …so I did not press the point.

I know my daughter will generally have better opportunities here. This society is much more accepting of women in powerful roles. This is changing in Japan, but they are not there yet. The best schools in the world are here in the US and in England, so it’s highly likely her secondary education will be here anyway. I tend to think that this will all shake out in the end.

My daughter will be raised here and have a strong exposure to all things American. What worries me is that 18-21 year olds make foolish decisions. What if she turns her back on this country based on the results of an election or to impress her America-hating college buddies.

But what really worries me is the language thing. If she speaks exclusively Japanese to my daughter, that basically prevents us from having a family discussion because I cannot speak Japanese. This also excludes me from all of their conversations, as if a father and daughter needed another communication obstacle. I just imagine sitting in the living room watching tv and listening to them speak to each other in the kitchen in another language. Without realizing it, they would be locking me out of part of their lives, and I don’t want that.

I’ve explained this to her, but she completely fails or refuses to even entertain my concern.

I can be a good debater, but I learned long ago not to unleash my skills on women. They just can’t handle it. They feel it’s personal and insulting when you take their own words and use them to destroy their arguments. And they make you pay for it. Trust me. They make you pay. They may not be right (usually are not), they may not be informed enough to prove their ever-changing point, …but you (as the man) will ALWAYS feel like you lost even if you have won.

Knowing all this, I may go ahead and do it anyway. The end result may be worth it.

1:52 PM

HA! Take that, bitches!

How evil are you?

8:58 AM

Family

I got a call the other day from my mother. Her sister, who lives in Madison, has fallen ill and is in the hospital.

She has had strong neck pains for several years and had chalked it up to work, stress, and bad posture. She's been going for weekly massages to help relieve the situation, but nothing has helped. They even installed a hot tub to help relax her muscles.

Well, the doctors took x-rays of her neck area and found some disturbing problems. They said that the bones in her spinal column resemble something between swiss and cottage cheese. Something has been eating away at those bones for some time. They are very weak and degraded.

Whatever is eating away at it has not spread to other areas of her neck and body, so that's good.

The doctors are performing some tests today and will have some preliminary results very soon. If it's not cancer, then they will fuse her bones together late next week. I don't know how this surgery will limit her movement, but I'm sure it will. If it is cancer, ...then they obviously have to get rid of the cancer before doing anything else.

We're all hoping it's not cancer. No one on her side of the family has ever had cancer, so she would be the first. We've all been remarkably healthy, with my father's father the only person to die early, ...from cancer.

It's odd because she was just in town a few weeks ago to see a Brewers game. She got a chance to see my daughter for the first time, and everything seemed normal. She goofed around and laughed and held the baby, ... all the while something was slowly eating away at her.

One day the pain is too great, you go to the doctor, and your whole life changes.

These are the times when you realize how important life is. I feel fortunate that there is a chance she will survive and only have reduced mobility. As long as she survives, as long as she is there tomorrow and the day after ...then it's ok. When faced with the prospect of losing someone, the superficial things quickly go out the window.

8:33 AM

Dream

My Packer dreams have always been accurate. Twice I've dreamed the score and/or result of an upcoming Packer game.

The other night I dreamt about the Packers winning in their opening game against a team that was not that good but had a few good players. A team like Buffalo. Also, the game was on a Sunday afternoon.

The Packers actually open the season on Monday night against a Super Bowl team, the Carolina Panthers.

So, I'm not sure how accurate my dream will be. Also, they have a final pre-season game tonight. Perhaps I dreamed the outcome of THAT game. The score was something like 27-15, with the losing team scoring late to make it look closer than it actually was.

Last night I dreamt about playing on the Packers. Naturally, I did well, and it seemed like we were winning. I remember at one point a defensive back that I had beaten put his arms around my neck and collared me so that I couldn't make an over-the-shoulder catch. No flag. Figures.

Anyway, in last night's batch of dreams I was also on a huge ship, carrying out some sort of espionage or military endeavor, ...but more importantly, I saw they that the Vikings would lose on opening day. Again, this could be a dream about the last pre-season game and NOT about opening day. I don't know. But in my dream the Vikes were shut out. The score was something like 28-0.

8:27 AM

The Speech

Wow.

The speech started slow. Very slow. He looked nervous, the speech lacked emotion, and the crowd looked a little bored.

Then it started to build momentum.

For the last 20 minutes, GWB had the convention hall on the edge of their seats.

He was humble, smart, hilariously funny, poignant, honest, self-affacing, emotional, and powerful.

He choked up while talking about his conversations with the families who had lost members in 9/11 and in the wars. He had us in the palm of his hand.

The shots in the crowd showed faces that were rapt, teary-eyed, and moved.

I choked up. My eyes watered and my heart rose.

This was a home run. This was an amazing, amazing speech. Liberal and conservative pundits alike are scoring this speech as an A+.

If you didn't see it, you really missed something. Analysts are saying that this speech was the best he's ever delivered. They're wrong. The speech he delivered to this country and to the world after 9/11 was the best speech I've ever heard or read at anytime in history. Perhaps I feel that way because I lived through it, but that's what I feel.

THIS speech, was close.

The text will be available online, go read it.

8:21 PM

Some Info Comes In

We finally heard from the home owners today, about 40 hours late.

The listing agent returned my realtor's call and said that she is taking our offer over to the home owners right now.

She said that they "appear to be going through with the transactions."

Also, she said that their attorney has too see all the papers.

I don't know what is going on, but I have some thoughts:

1. They are idiots that, for some reason, feel they need to hire an attorney to handle these simple transactions.
2. They are idiots that, for some reason, signed a contract to buy a house and sell their existing house when they are not prepared financially to do so.
3. They are getting a divorce.

My bets are on #3.

This latest experience has been annoying and disheartening, but it will all be OK if we can get the deal we want. We should hear something within 24 hours. I'm hoping we hear something within 8 hours.

But I'm not optimistic. I'd be a fool to have any optimism at this point. I'm half-expecting to not hear from them right away, and then find out they are letting other people see the house in hopes that they can get a higher price for it.

11:04 AM

Slam Dunk

Benjamin Ginsberg defends himself in a WaPo column that leaves little doubt about today's state of affairs.

Kudos to the Posties who published it.

2:28 PM

…The Incompetence

Some days you feel like Mr. Burns suffering through the clodish ineptitude of simpletonian scallywags.

I’m taking a new programming class online through MATC. I need to get the book for the class. So, I go to the West campus (where I went to get the book for my last class) and gave the bookstore employee my class information.

They do not have my class listed. They have a similar class listed with a similar book.

What about my book for my class?

“Go to the North Campus.”

The north campus is in Mequon, …waaaay out of my way. So. I’m thinking, perhaps this book is the correct book after all. I mean, the classes are very similar, in fact the only difference seems to be that my class is online while the other class occurs in a classroom.

So, I ask the bookstore employee if they could look up the ISBN number for my class. They do, it’s the same, but the computer tells me I have to go to the north campus to get my book. It’s possible that the north campus has a different version of the book, who knows. They cannot look up my class schedule info, so I seek out the library and look it up myself. The ISBN numbers are indeed different for my class.
It’s my lunch hour, so I go back to work. Later, I decide to call the downtown campus to see if they have book. The downtown campus is more conveniently located very near my house.

“Hello, MATC bookstore.”

“Hi. I’m checking to see if you have a book I need for my online class.”

“What’s the book?”

Now, I know she’s not going to scan all the bookshelves for my book title, so I help steer her along. “How about if I give you the class number and section?”

“OK”

“Ok, it’s xxx-xxx, …”

“Ok, hold on.”

“Wait, I didn’t –“

CLICK

I didn’t get a chance to give her the section number which would identify my class as the online class. Well, let’s she what she comes up with.

…5 minutes, …10 minutes, …the muzak ends and the phone rings again. An automated voice suggests I leave a message. I decline. Back on hold. …5 minutes, the muzak ends and the phone rings again.

“Hello, MATC bookstore.”

“Yes, I’m checking on a book –“

“Hold on.”

CLICK

…5 minutes, ...10 minutes, …the muzak ends and the phone rings again.

“Hi, hold on.”

CLUNK. The phone has obviously been placed on the counter. She picks the phone up again.

“Are you waiting for Michelle?”

“I don’t know, I’m checking on a book.”

“OK, hold on.”

CLUNK. In the background I can hear her say, ‘I’m going to have to call down there again.’

…5 minutes …”Are you still waiting?”

“Yes.”

“Ok, hold on.”

…5 minutes, …in the background I hear a lot of chatting, gossiping, and occasionally someone wondering where Michelle is.

I would have liked to have hung up long ago, but I really need this book and don’t want to wait another day. After another 5 minutes it becomes apparent that they have forgotten about me. I hang up.

I call the North Campus. My hopes are not high.

“Hello, …uh, …um, ….MATC bookstore.”

“Hi, I’m checking to see if you have a book for my online class.”

“What’s the book?”

“How about if I give you the class number?”

“OK.”

“Ok, it’s xxx-xxx –“

“OK, hold on.”

“Wait, I –“

CLICK

ARRRRGH!

…5 minutes. “Ok, uh, …what is the class again?”

“The section number is xxx.”

“OK, hold on.”

Minutes later …”OK, you need to contact the Mequon campus.”

For crying out …

“Uh, you ARE the Mequon campus.”

“No, you need the North Campus.”

“You ARE the North Campus.”

“Wait, where am I?” I fucking kid you not. ”Am I in Mequon?”

“Yes.”

“Oh. Hold on.”

…5 minutes.

“Yes we have it.”

No way do I trust that this person actually has my book. “If you don’t mind, can you read my the ISBN number?”

Now this bitch takes a shitty tone with me. “Um, OK, you see …you need to give me all the information you need right up front, ok?” Said in the tone you would use with a 7 year old. “I’ve got a store full of people here.”

Goddammit you fucking ignorant bitch! You’re the one who put me on hold before I could even give you my section number and explain what it was I needed! Stupid fucking whore! “OK.”

“The number is xxx….”

“Ok, thanks.”

CLICK

Long story short, THAT number was also wrong. I wanted to bludgeon someone. MATC has two versions of the same book listed for my class. I made my best guess as to the correct version and ended up buying the one at the West Campus after work.

Next time, I buy online.

12:14 PM

Weirdness

So, we're expecting to hear some word about our offer by 8pm last night. That's the deadline we set.

Around 8:30 I hear from our realtor that we have not heard anything from the home owners. This is puzzling because we made a very good offer.

She then tells me that something weird is going on. When she dropped off the offer at the listing agent's office, she talked to the listing agent. The listing agent said that she had just talked to the home owners and that they had cancelled all upcoming open houses. She said they "didn't want anyone in the house".

They would not elaborate, they just shut everything down and that was it. No further word.

The listing agent attempted to call them that night and the next day to tell them about our offer, but they home owners did not pick up the phone and did not return her calls. The listing agent has been completely shut out of the situation.

Also, my realtor found out that they have to close on a new house they are buying in about 10 days!

So, these people waited to put their house up for sale two weeks before they had to close on a new house! That really doesn't make any sense. The listing agent is also involved in their deal to buy the new house, so she's really worried that something strange is going on.

Also, we were supposed to see the house on Saturday morning, but they called at the last minute and cancelled, saying that couldn't have anyone in the house that day at all. They pushed the appointment back until Sunday afternoon, which is when we went to see it.

The family that lives there is small. A young daughter, about 5, a wife (Mexican), and a husband (Puerto Rican). The family was in the house when we saw it. The wife was very nice, she showed us some features, smiled a lot, and was very friendly. The husband was not. He didn't look happy. In fact, he looked really put out.

This home buying experience has been really bad. We've been close on two houses, only to find extensive damage that the owners were concealing in one house, and a problematic oil tank buried at another house. Also, we've found some great houses that were sold out from under us before we had a chance to do anything.

So, we just took all those experiences as lessons. We found this house early. Got in to see it before any open houses. Placed a very good offer the next day, ...and then this happens.

No one knows what is going, the listing agent, our realtor, and us. It's a mystery.

My theories are:

1. They are idiots that, for some reason, want to sell the house to a family member or friend. BUT, they signed a contract with the listing agent before they thought of this, so they are stuck and trying to somehow get out of their contract with her.

2. They are getting a divorce. They cannot live together, so maybe the husband is thinking to stay in this house while his wife gets the new one.

3. They are idiots that, for some reason, want to move out of the house before selling it.

4. There is something drastically wrong with the house that they are concealing.

5. The husband snapped and we are talking murder/suicide.

I drove by on my way work today. The house is completely shuttered, blinds drawn, windows closed. Two cars were in the driveway, a mini-van (which I've seen before) and a big Chevy thruck (of course). So, apparantly they were both home.

Either way, this totally sucks. I've wasted every goddamned weekend tooling around town desperately searching for houses. It's a chore and it sucks.

And it looks like it's going to continue.

8:53 AM