Eternal Sunshine

I don't have much time but I did want to say I couldn't be happier with Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind winning Best Original Screenplay at the Oscars last night. It is by far the best movie I have seen in years. It is great to see originality awarded and Charlie Kaufman's story was definitely unique alongside much of what Hollywood has to offer us these days.

Countdown to Selection Sunday:
13 days

A Pianist, a Cellist and a Violinist Walk Into a Bar...

I went to go see Antony and the Johnsons last night at the Beachland Ballroom. It was such a treat, though a little weird to sit for a concert in the ballroom at the Beachland. The decision to attend the concert was a last minute decision but I am glad I decided to go. It turned out to be a completely different night than what I had expected. I thought it would have had more of a Scissor Sisters feel even though I was told the man sounded like Nina Simone. It was much more of the latter--much, much more. The concert itself was very subdued but poetic and intriguing. Antony was accompanied by the Johnsons which on this particular evening were a violinist and a cellist. Also foreign to me now is to hear the violin and the cello without being plugged into an amp (thanks to Ember Swift and Bitch and Animal). I highly recommend his music to anyone who is willing to listen to something new and provocative. I found a review from a show he did in Massachusetts, which I wish I could claim as my own because of how true it is to how I felt:
“Saturday night's concert by Antony and the Johnsons at Mass MoCA was a bit like a dream -- that is, if your dreams are directed by David Lynch, with his typical undercurrent of subterranean, sublimated anxiety, sexual or otherwise. Singer Antony, who writes most of his own material, cut an exotic figure with his heavenly heartbreaking tenor and his effeminate mien. He sang of the pain of love (and vice versa) in an inordinately heightened, emotional state intended to resolve itself through a kind of soulful transcendence or catharsis. If you closed your eyes, you could have been fooled into thinking you were hearing the voice of a black soul singer a Smokey Robinson or Otis Redding, say, suddenly struck with an exaggerated vibrato and a plaintive streak."

http://www.antonyandthejohnsons.com/

I must thank Terry, Maura and Tim for a laughter-filled drive to the Beachland. Sorry we made you get off at four different exits Terry—you would think one of us would have remembered what exit to get off at for a venue in our own city, which we have all frequented over the past two years (five times for me so I may be the most guilty).

I just had to buy this shirt. As soon as I saw it, I knew I had to own it. I am such a sucker for pop culture and right wing religious values mixing. If anyone out there is actually familiar with the equivalent of third base, it seems funny this would be used as a stopping point for teenagers. Is that really considered abstinence? What exactly is the point after that? Not a whole lot, especially in my case. This is why I love this shirt so much. If you ever come across anything like this, please feel free to send it my way.

Getting Hacked...thats definitely Not Hot!

I Shouldn't Feel Bad for Paris Hilton, Should I?

I must admit my initial reaction after reading through all of the stuff hacked from Paris Hilton and put on the internet, is that I do feel a little bad for her. Her writing is atrocious and she doesn’t really have complete thought processes but I still feel a little bad. If I had those problems, I wouldn’t want everyone reading my notes. You just know even though it wasn’t her fault, her friends are still a little pissed off they have to get their numbers changed. I can just imagine some of her B-List friends sitting around cursing her for this blunder. It is almost like the internet was invented to single-handedly torture this one human being. Yes, I think she is a moron. Yes, she doesn’t deserve even the fifteen minutes of fame she is enjoying. Yes, I think she is spoiled and has no idea how much good she could actually be doing with her time and money. Somehow though we have all been there. We have all had somebody read our journal or find a note we had written that was definitely not intended for them or anyone else for that matter. Now just imagine if somebody took all of that information and put it out there for everyone else to see. Don’t get me wrong, I checked it out--it’s kind of like I have turned into a Paris Hilton Rubbernecker--I don’t want to look but I just can’t help it. And yes, I do feel bad for her.

"You Let Your Parents Read Your Blog?!?"

A student in the office where I work was surprised that I let my parents read my blog. Why not, I thought. I am very close with my family and my blog is a great way to keep in touch and express myself in terms that may not always seem to fit in at family functions. I know my dad enjoys the articles (sounds like I am describing him reading Playboy or something….no seriously he actually reads it for the articles). He is the reason I started watching sports in the first place, so in a way this blog is sort of the fruits of his own work as well. I think my mom likes keeping tabs on my life. The other day I got a phone message from my mom saying: “I know you are there, I saw you just posted to your blog.” It’s definitely a new generation of family dialogue taking place and I love the fact my family is reading what I am writing. Plus its not like they are going to ground me for anything I write about on here. At least I hope not.

In other news, the new diet is going really well. I have been sticking to my goals. I must admit the temptations are there but my willpower is really coming through hard and strong. I have more energy and I feel a lot better. It’s just good to have that first day in the books. Seriously its been about a week now and I am looking forward to seeing how this goes. I must take a moment to say goodbye to some good friends: cheesecake, that new beer I just found that I really liked a lot (Dos Equis Lager), the Market Fresh Sandwich at Arbys, Blue Cheese, Coke, The burger at both the Flying Fig and the Old Angle, wings, Ohio City Pizza and fried food. Now I can still eat these things on my new diet just not all in the same day like I used to do.

Go Cougars!

I think it is so cool a friend of mine, who also happens to be Mormon, just called me a Godsend. I must admit it gave me a short-lived Brigham Young complex. Of course I had to call my very very good friend Mindy right away. This is the stuff I bother her with on a daily basis as she tries to work. I am sure her boss thinks she is crazy when she is on the phone with me because he is usually hearing one of two things: her boisterous laughter or her asking me when I am going to counseling again because whatever I am talking to her about is just that absurd. Thanks for letting me interrupt your workload for my silliness Mindy. For those of you reading my blog, I should direct you to hers because I have mentioned it as one of my guilty pleasures--and its not just because she talks about me--her writing is incredible and thought provoking:
http://www.mindychildress.com/blog/

Jumping on the Bandwagon

Now ESPN has jumped onto the coronation of the King before his first All-Star Game start bandwagon as well:

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/allstar2005/columns/story?columnist=stein_marc&id=1993387

Symbiotic

Lately I think Sports Illustrated and I have been on the same wavelength. Yesterday they put LeBron on their cover and I wrote an entry about him. Today, Steve Rushin has answered the call from my first blog entry. I asked for a sportswriter, specifically Rushin, to help me name this sports time period we are currently in and his weekly article is just that: renaming the sports calendar. http://premium.si.cnn.com/pr/subs/siexclusive/2005/writers/steve_rushin/02/14/rushin0221/

Next thing I know Rick Reilly will be writing about my girlfriend.

Picture taken January 19, 2005. Lebron James' first professional triple double vs. Portland.

The King and I

Dear LeBron,

Its just a few days before the first of many of your All-Star Game starts, and I would like to take this opportunity to say a couple of things to you as an admirer, a CAVS fan, a sports enthusiast and a Clevelander.

First and foremost, I never thought a ping pong ball could make me well up and cry but on May 22, 2003, this was exactly what happened. When that little ping pong ball went the CAVS way and gave them, deservedly so after only 17 wins, the number one pick in the upcoming draft, I am sure I felt the same way as many Clevelanders. I remember Austin Carr crying as well. Here was a grown man, the all-time career scoring leader at Notre Dame, the number one pick in the 1971 draft, crying over a teenager. When the card flashed up on the screen indicating the CAVS would indeed be picking number one and in return keeping you in Northeast Ohio, I ran and called everyone in my family. My brother Mark, handling business in California, thought there was some sort of family emergency so he picked up his phone. The only thing he said he could make out was me saying: “We got LeBron, We Got LeBron.” I have a feeling Jim Paxson may have been making similar calls at the same time.

I am too young to remember the impact of Jim Brown on the city and I hardly remember Bernie Kosar requesting to play in Cleveland, though I am sure that was a glorious day as well. This however was the biggest Cleveland sports event in my life. I have followed Cleveland sports for all of my 29 years and this surpassed the 1986 Browns overtime win over the Jets to make it to the AFC Championship game, John Stollmayer winning Rookie of the Year in 1987 for the Cleveland Force and the 1995 and 1997 Major League baseball seasons for the Tribe. When you were drafted you said you were going to light up the city and that is exactly what has happened. Draft day parties were just the beginning, I personally saluted you with a cheap bottle of champagne that evening, and the excitement has yet to cease. You have made people want to come out and see the CAVS play. Let me reiterate that last statement: people are paying big money to get into Gund Arena. The public address announcer sounds better, the lights seem brighter, Gund Arena seems more comfortable. You have added excitement to this small market professional organization deprived of history, which is illustrated by Shawn Kemp making the All-CAVS first team next to Carr, Price, Daugherty and Nance.

We know we are small-market. We have heard the supposed rumors you would have rather played in Los Angeles, Miami, New York or Chicago. Rumor also has it there is a clause in your Nike agreement ensuring you would make more money working in a big market city. Let me just say we will all be watching over the next two summers to see what kind of moves you make in preparation for free agency. We will also watch to see what moves the CAVS will make to keep you here, such as signing Michael Redd to get you another running mate.

The people of Cleveland don’t want you to stay just because of what you do on the court. You have class and you are so humble for a superstar your age. More times than not, you have done the right thing, at least in the public eye. When Carmelo Anthony made a comment about not winning Rookie of the Year over you I felt insulted. You didn’t. He said he didn’t care about the award and all that mattered to him was being in the playoffs, an obvious biting remark to you about not making the playoffs. You did the right thing though. You flew to Denver and watched your buddy play in those playoffs. You never said anything back, as you could have, because he only averaged 15 points a game as the Nuggets bowed out in five games. Instead you lobbied the United States Olympic Committee to get Anthony on the Olympic team with you. You have worked as an ambassador for basketball and for the city of Cleveland and for this I am thankful. You appreciate sports in general and you have shown respect to the legacy of the game. The summer you got drafted, you went to watch the Rockers during their home games and you wore several different jerseys including your Austin Carr throwback jersey. What Cleveland sports fan, of any gender, wouldn’t have been excited to see what you had to offer this city, as you supported the Rockers and Cleveland’s historical sports icons.

Whenever I watch you play, I feel proud, though I hardly know you. We have never met and the only connection we share is that we had the same high school principal, Dave Rahtz, at two different times, at two different schools. However, before your first All-Star Game start, I wanted to say thank you. Thank you for what you have done for me and for the city of Cleveland.

P.S. It is a little ironic (and completely conincidental) that both Sports Illustrated and myself are honoring you on the same day. Congratulations on your fourth cover by the age of 20.

What the Heck am I Eating?

On Sunday my parents came up to Ohio City for lunch. They wanted something simple like a burger but unfortunately Sunday afternoons and Monday evenings are a hard time to get something fun to eat in Ohio City. I wanted to take them to the Old Angle but it wasn’t open yet and the Flying Fig was closed. This left me with Heck’s.

For those of you not familiar with Heck’s, people drive into Ohio City just to get a burger at this place. As we walked there, my mother noticed I only lived a block away and she asked if I went there all the time. I said actually we don’t really care for the place and contrary to popular belief, it’s the third best burger on the block. Every year, the annual awards come out for best burger in Cleveland and every year Heck’s wins this award. Is this one of those awards that just keeps going to the same place because of the name and how long the restaurant has been there? To get the best burger in Ohio City, you must go to the Flying Fig for happy hour (Tuesday through Thursday until 7:30). The burger there is incomparable. A very healthy serving of beef, cooked exactly the way you want it, topped with a mound of blue cheese, sitting on top of bacon and carmelized onions. During happy hour, this burger is less than five dollars and worth every single penny. Can’t make it to the Flying Fig in time for happy hour? Walk down to the Old Angle. A very similar burger, sans the bacon. We have walked through snow and freezing rain for this burger when we had plenty of food at our house. . Can’t make it to these three places? Then I would personally recommend the hot dog stand on Randall and Lorain but Heck’s is always a viable choice as well.

Speaking of burgers….when did McDonalds become party food and brain food? They advertised their McDonalds fish sandwich as brain food this morning. “Studying late? Get some brain food with the fish filet at McDonalds.” This doesn’t make me chuckle as much as the guys who go out and get Chicken McNuggets for their rockin party. If I walked into a party and saw McNuggets, I would do a double take especially if they also had quarter pounders as an appetizer like the other commercial. If there is one thing I feel like doing after eating a quarter pounder, its gotta be dancing and mingling, though usually I just lay down with a stomach ache.

Great News!

I just found out my best friend from college is going to have a baby and I couldn't be more excited. I haven't been that close to her since graduation, but damn I love this girl so much and I may be more excited than she is. I just hope I am not scaring her with my reaction. She and her husband took a lot of care of me in college and they are such good people. Its amazing to think back about all the crazy stuff we did together for four years and now she is going to be a mom. Not just a mom, she is going to be a great mom. What also makes this so exciting is that she is the only person from any peer group I have ever had to get pregnant. Congratulations Donna and Fred!

The Biggest Save All Season

Spring Training just started yesterday but the Cleveland Indians have already recorded their biggest save of the season. It is no secret the Cleveland Public School System is in serious dire straits. A levy that would have helped to alleviate some of the financial burdens failed by a large margin back in November and sports are coming up on the chopping block. Yesterday the Indians gave $250,000 to the school district to save the baseball and softball seasons this year for ten area schools. High school sports should be a rite of passage, not a privilege for the wealthy and I am glad the Indians came to the rescue.

A Room of all Trades

On Saturday, Liz walked in the door with a big box. A big box that contained one of those fun 9-in-1 game tables. The 9-in-1 is a table used for cards, chess, checkers, backgammon, shuffleboard, bowling, fusbol, ping pong and air hockey. Our spare bedroom is almost ready to challenge Dave and Busters with this fun new addition along with the vintage Atari 2600, the Nintendo 64 and the magnetic dart board all housed in that room. Not to mention the treadmill. We had such high hopes for our spare room, a second living room of sorts. However, it is looking like that room will be turning into: an office, a tv room, an art room, a work-out room, a game room and the cat's room (also this is the room where Liz has agreed to hang some of my movie and sports posters that I am not ready to part with at the moment--posters she doesn't want anywhere near our living room and dining room). Back to the 9-in-1 table, so far it is a blast but it is a little small for the two of us. It is only four feet in length, so ping pong proved to be a little frustrating at first and my arm usually reaches over the halfway mark in air hockey. However, it is a great way to relieve pent up frustration. Forget counseling, every couple should own one of these tables. I see a lot of future arguments being handled over the noise of our air hockey fan and the sound of the little white ball from the ping pong and fusbol tables. Here is yet another use for that spare room: therapeutic and counseling room.

Pleasant Surprise

I went to the Dove body soap web site today to sign up for my free sample of the Dove Cool Moisture Body Soap (I am such a girly girl sometimes) and I was pleasantly surprised at the options available to me as I filled out the demographics form. They had the usual suspects: single, married, divorced, widowed but then they also had: living with partner and equivalent of married as options. I have to give credit to Dove. When a company does something even a little different I think its important to let other people know.

Guilty Pleasures

Marlboro Reds, People Magazine, Page Six, The Bachelorette, Arbys Market Fresh Sandwiches, Sleeping Past Noon, A Beer and a Cigarette After Working Out, Salad Bars with Lots of Fatty Toppings, Two-Buck Chuck, Elaine Benes, Dave and Busters, Doing My Taxes, Word Problems, Mindy’s Blog, 50 Cent, Athens Ohio, March Madness, Happy Hours, Cooking Unhealthy Meals, The Nineties, Getting my Chest Autographed at Bitch and Animal Concerts, Cheap Champagne, The Episode Guides to Seinfeld and Six Feet Under, My Blonde Highlights, Weekends Spent on the Couch Watching Bad TV with Liz, Carbs, Weddings, Wearing Neck Ties, Cable Television, Personal Calls at Work, Getting Tattoos, Pirated DVDs…My Blog.


Speaking of guilt, there is this store two blocks away from me in Ohio City called Hope Unlimited, Inc: A 12-Step Store. While that is funny enough to me, the best part is the sign hanging next to the door which reads in bright red letters: Under New Ownership. A fun game here is to try and figure out what happened to the last owner: could only help people make it to ten steps, fell off the wagon, etc….(feel free to add your own in the comments section).

Number 97 On The Field, Number One In Our Hearts

I had an interesting run-in last night. My brother Mark and I were sitting at the Old Angle having some drinks with his friends after the CAVS game and this guy came up beside me and muttered something I couldn’t quite hear. Then he just kept asking if the Old Angle served steak and finally he turned to me asked me if I recognized who he was. He said he played for the Pittsburgh Steelers. I was a little skeptical at first and asked him his name. I turned to Mark and asked him if he thought this guy was legit because I knew there was a Kendrell Bell that played for the Steelers. He said, all slurred, he was originally from Georgia where his mom lives now.Apparently he was in Cleveland to visit his sister who lives on the East Side.

How he happened upon the Old Angle, not being from the area and for being so high on alcohol or drugs, is a miracle to me. The Old Angle is this small bar that sits on West 25th and Bridge Avenue. Nonetheless he ordered two flank steaks, one after the other, and proceeded to make poor conversation with us at the bar. My brother started talking to him about playing at Syracuse and playing in the Fiesta Bowl and at this point he seemed to be going along with what Mark was saying. We had some drinks with him, it was fun toasting to his 15-1 season this year. He gave the bartender his credit card and we had the bartender check it out. It was some sort of corporate card, so Mark thought he was most likely telling the truth because professional athletes tend to use those which are given to them from the team to pick up expenses on the road. The funniest part is that whenever he looked up on the screen and saw another Pittsburgh Steeler playing in the Pro Bowl he pounded his chest and said: “That’s my boy, that’s my boy right there. I'm gonna talk to you tomorrow boy. That’s my boy” He seemed especially enamored by Hines Ward which I thought was funny. Nonetheless that’s my story.

Oh by the way he was nice enough to buy us a round, after we bought him one I might add, but he left no tip for the server after eating two steaks and drinking for an hour. He also acted like a jerk to our friend Dusty after Dusty asked him a question about the Heinz Field Scoreboard. At that point Kendrell said something like, “What are you talking about man—I don’t even know why I go out and talk to people asking stupid questions.” (Keep in mind he was the one who introduced himself to me and its not like Dusty was questioning defensive schemes from the New England game they lost) That was funny. Oh wait, also this morning we found out he played college ball at Georgia, which makes more sense than Syracuse. No wonder he looked confused when Mark started talking to him about playing in the Fiesta Bowl with Syracuse. That guy was out of it.



Happy Valentines Day to all of you romantics. I have never been a huge fan of the holiday and luckily I have a girlfriend who feels the same way. Though it was sweet for Mindy to give me a mention on her blog.

There Goes That Lovin' Feeling

Yesterday I was so excited about completing my taxes and receiving my refund, but today I have lost that feeling completely. On my drive home yesterday afternoon, I started thinking about what I would do with this money. I realized I actually NEED this money and am lucky it is coming as soon as possible. Maybe I will keep fifty dollars for myself but the rest is going toward bills, bills and more bills.

Tax This!

I just did my 2004 taxes in 15 minutes flat and will have my return sent to me in one to two weeks. The free tax agencies on IRS.gov are such a great service and Turbo Tax is the greatest invention in the world!

MID-Life Crisis

Before I begin this entry I would just like to thank, in no particular order, the following people: Jack Lambert, Mike Schmidt, Ron Harper, Sally Northcroft, Ben Rothliesberger, Randy Moss, Dwight Smith, Troy Brown, Wally Szczerbiak, Brad Maynard, Margo Junker, Earl Boykins, Dan Majerle, Antonio Gates, Chester Taylor, Chad Pennington, John Vanbenschoten, Byron Leftwich and so many more who have brought pride and recognition on both the professional and international levels to schools in the Mid-American Conference (MAC), a conference that is considered a “mid-major conference.”

Here is my perspective on the so-called mid-major athletic conference. When I graduated with my Masters degree in Athletic Administration, I worked for the MAC for 15 months. I grew up in a family full of MAC graduates, including myself (I got both my degrees from Ohio University), so working for the MAC was the opportunity I had been waiting for after college. Working in Division I collegiate athletics is a dream job if you love college sports. Working for the MAC is a dream job if you love Division I college sports AND if you care about the student-athlete. I fell into the latter category. I loved everything about working in college athletics and I think in a conference like the MAC you get the real picture. I will not disagree that the MAC isn’t out to get notoriety or to make money for its member institutions but there is something different in this conference that goes along with those things. There is a familial feeling intertwined with the business. (I can only speak personally of the MAC but I have talked to people who equally enjoyed their time at the Missouri Valley Conference for the same reasons.) There is closeness and familiarity spread throughout the conference from Northern Illinois to Buffalo. The conference and the schools look out for one another and keep tabs as one would in a family and not just because it is their job to do so. Take a look at the compliance issues at these schools compared to other programs in the country. The so-called mid-major programs don’t have the scandals (sans St. Bonaventure in 2003 and the annual investigation at Fresno State) that the likes of Michigan, Ohio State, Minnesota, Alabama, Baylor and Colorado have all gone through the past couple years. In this sense mid-major may not be the worst title in the world when you put it into different terms. The schools in the Big Ten, SEC and Big 12 have had some MAJOR compliance infractions and some MAJOR probation issues to deal with for as far back as I can remember.

I am writing this today because the ESPN Bracket Buster games are coming up next weekend. ESPN has decided to give airtime to mid-major programs which could be on the bubble for an at-large birth into the NCAA Tournament in March by breaking into the tournament bracket. Hence the “Bracket Buster.” For those of you not familiar with the NCAA Tournament, there are 31 automatic bids and 34 at-large bids. An automatic bid is when you win your conference championship outright. An at large bid is when you don’t win your conference championship but several other variables, such as strength of schedule, and for the purpose of this entry, strength of conference, play a part in the committee’s decision. In the top conferences, a team that is 17-9 would have a solid chance to get into the tournament. A team with the same record would have to win its conference championship in the MAC to get into the tournament. This is the way it goes. The ACC will always get at least five teams, The SEC will always get at least four teams in, The Big 10 will always get at least three teams and so on. The MAC hasn’t had two teams make the NCAA for five seasons. While it is great ESPN is giving face time to teams such as Kent State, Western Michigan and Miami this year, in the end it just makes viewers like myself more confused when they play great basketball and still don’t get an at-large bid.

On an extremely positive note, congratulations to Laing Kennedy who will be representing both Kent State University and the Mid-American Conference on the NCAA Division I Selection Committee effective September 2005.

For further reading on the mid-major basketball program breaking into the NCAA tournament, Andy Katz wrote an excellent article in January of 2004 before last year’s tournament began: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/columns/story?columnist=katz_andy&id=1710512

Running on Empty

As I rode into work today, my gas light came on. This might be the second time in over five years I have allowed this to happen. I can be a little anal sometimes. Nonetheless there is that weird adrenaline rush from seeing that little light come on. Makes you want to see how far you can go. It completely reminded me of Episode 167 (The Dealership) from Seinfeld when Kramer takes the car salesman out all day to see how far they can get on one take of gas. In the beginning the car salesman is freaking out but by the end the two of them turn into Thelma and Louise. (I have a small obsession with Seinfeld.)

Why Lesbians Hate LeBron James

Last year I was sitting at a bar having drinks with some friends, when somebody mentioned they hated LeBron James. I am making a definite assumption here she had never met him, but nonetheless he disgusted her. Since I have a sincere love for the man (as you will soon find out in my All-Star Game preview letter), I had to question this. She believed he was the reason the Cleveland Rockers were disbanded.

The Rockers were Cleveland’s Womens National Basketball Association (WNBA) and like all WNBA teams they were funded by the NBA team in that city. Keep in mind the WNBA has been around since the summer of 1997 and has yet to make a penny for any of the investors. If you have ever been to a WNBA game, it is a very similar feeling to being at a minor league baseball game. If the team was lucky they would get half capacity, the marketing tactics would make you cringe at times, and to be honest, these games had no flair. Put simply, there was no excitement. Also for this story to make sense you have to understand the fan base for the Rockers was lesbians and small children. I am yet to hear from the children on this issue but I have heard from several women who would identify themselves as lesbians and boy were they mad and some of them apparently still are for the loss of this team.

Now this particular friend of mine felt like the owners of the Cleveland Cavaliers had given up on the Rockers to promote LeBron James, as if he needs anyone’s help to promote himself. They felt Gordon Gund, the owner of the Cavaliers didn’t care enough to promote women’s sports in Cleveland. Here is my opinion on that: It is not Gordon Gund’s job to support a failing sports league. He is a business man. Sports is a business. Also for anyone familiar with Gordon Gund, then I am sure you are familiar with the Gund Foundation, an organization started by his father in 1952 to support the city of Cleveland. The Gund Foundation is synonymous with philanthropy and last year alone gave away close to 28 million in grants to fund the arts, economic development, the environment and human services. Plain and simple, the man and his family care about people bettering themselves but he wants to win on the court. Now I want to make a comment to all of those women that felt like the CAVS gave up on the Rockers to promote LeBron and a new era in CAVS history, get over it. I am the strongest proponent of Title IX I know (keep in mind it ONLY has to do with educational institutions), I have spent the past ten years either working in women’s sports or researching women’s sports. However, why we would we want to rely on men to support our women’s sports leagues in the first place? Yes, in many historic battles for women's rights, men have served as allies but women were not solely dependent on these men, especially for ten years without gaining anything for either gender in return.

The reason I find this issue relevant today is that I still hear people talk about LeBron as if he is the reason the Rockers disbanded. Gund just sold the CAVS at the beginning of this year and I feel his legacy as a person who wanted to better people should remain strong. Women should not blame LeBron or Gund for the failure of the Rockers, they should blame themselves. Oh...and yes, I am a lesbian.

A New Job...Well Kinda

“As a new shopper ... Congratulations and Welcome! We don't assign shops, rather, you pick them yourself. You are allowed a maximum of 2 shops per month (to allow others a chance to shop locations in yourarea). Also, you cannot shop the same location twice within a 90-day period(some of our clients request that shoppers not return for even longer periods).”

How fun is that? I applied and took a test and now I am a real bona fide mystery shopper. (Insert Mission Impossible theme music here)

Put Another Dime in the Jukebox

Last night was one of those nights when we thought we would just be going out for a quick bite at the Winking Lizard and we would be home in time to catch Medium. In typical fashion, we strayed from our original plans and left Union Station at 1:30 am after doing karaoke to Joan Jett. I also got challenged to a rap contest by some guy sitting next to me. Boy was he surprised when I broke it down. My only disappointment of the evening was that I didn't get to sing "Ruby Don't Take Your Love to Town" by Kenny Rogers. It is one of my favorite childhood songs and also serves as the namesake for my car. I turned in the card but it was too late. Perhaps I will try again next Monday....

I saw her dancin' there by the record machine
I knew she must a been about seventeen


In other news, it is often hard to imagine some of the things people your own age are accomplishing as you sit through the same episode of Sportscenter for three hours in a row. Today, I tip my hat to Ellen MacArthur. The 28-year old set an extraordinary record yesterday in a sport I know very little about: sailing. http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/news/story?id=1986217

Boston Sports

What an incredible year for the City of Boston and its sports teams. First the Northeastern field hockey team captured its fourth-straight America East Championship with a 2-0 victory over cross-town rival Boston University, then former football coach and athletic director at Brandeis University Benny Friedman is elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame and finally lets not forget about what an incredible season Boston College is having as one of only two undefeated teams in college basketball. I believe all of this makes up for the Bruins taking the season off.

(As a side note in history, it will also probably be mentioned that this city won the super bowl, world series and then super bowl again in the span of one year.)

Me trying to look tough..don't be fooled, I am just a big baby. 

The Beginning

I can't believe I am doing this. I can't believe I actually have a blog or at least the beginnings of one. I guess I just think I spend a lot of this time of year reflecting and now these reflections have led to this brainchild. I read an article just a couple weeks ago that said January 24th is considered the saddest day of the year due to the winter and a lack of follow through with New Years Resolutions. This blog is inspired by what I usually consider to be my saddest day of the year: the day after the Super Bowl.

I guess they try to prepare you for it with the two week hiatus in between the conference championship game and the big game but that really doesn't help. Now I am stuck in between this time of the Super Bowl and the beginning of March Madness. If only I could get into Arena Football or regular-season college basketball games. I mean seriously...Arena Football...I wouldn't care if Jon Bon Jovi and Jon Elway actually played on the teams they owned, its just not the same. The regular season in college basketball is just like one long pre-season. Do these games really matter? If a team enters the tournament in March with two losses or seven losses, does it make them less of a team? (Unless of course your team is from the Mid-American Conference and you watch yet another team not get an at-large bid, but more on that when I write about the "mid-major" athletic program.)

So now I am stuck in this time period without a name. All the millions of crafty sports writers and I still haven't come across a name for this time of year. Hello Bill Simmons? Excuse me Don Banks? Hey Steve Rushin? Can anyone hear me? I suppose it is this lack of a label that has drawn me to creating this blog. I want this space to be fun. I will introduce you to myself and share the daily comings and goings of my life with you but I will always try to integrate some good tidbits on the sports world. I think it was what I was meant to do. I have a degree in journalism and a Master's degree in Athletic Administration, yet I don't currently work in either of those fields. Obviously I need some sort of an outlet or I may explode. Thank you for patronizing me and sharing this outlet with me