My Sick Mind

It's grey and rainy here today, so I hunkered in for a little TV before game 3 of the World Series - a little more TV. Over on CNN they were following the McCain campaign. Sarah Palin was in Albuquerque, New Mexico speaking in front of a crowd that was expected to be much bigger. Behind her, crazy supporters chanted "Drill, Baby Drill" and "Mine, Baby Mine". Besides the obvious reasons, I won't vote for those two nitwits because of the antiquated thinking of having to drill for our freedom and reliance on fossil fuels. It's the same reason I cringe every time McCain brings up investing in Nuclear power. Palin started screaming about "putting Americans to work" and how drilling the United States full of oil wells is a great way to do that. Ugh. Don't you have shopping to do? Then, Crazy Eyes himself came up to speak. He started in on that spiel about how he intends to create wealth and help the middle class. Whenever politicians think th...

ST. LOUIS (AP)— Blues goalie Manny Legace left after one period Friday night with a hip injury that occurred when he slipped on the carpet placed on the ice for Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin. The Alaska governor dropped the ceremonial first puck before the Blues hosted the Los Angeles Kings. A narrow carpet walkway was placed from the gate at the Blues bench to center ice for Palin, her husband and two of her daughters. Just before the ceremony , Legace was the first player onto the ice for St. Louis. A team official pointed to the carpet. But Legace said the official moved his own foot from the carpet just as Legace stepped down, causing the carpet to slide. Legace fell, then gingerly made his way to the crease. It was Palin’s second appearance at an NHL game this month. She also dropped the ceremonial puck at Philadelphia on Oct. 11. Legace didn’t blame Palin for the injury. “She’s been pretty good for our game,” Legace said. “I’m starting to like her more and...

Since there was no baseball tonight (egad) I took a break and watched a film I had meant to see in the theater, but alas, it didn't last in theaters very long. Tim Robbins stars as a sort of superhero/vigilante who tries to rid the world (or New York City specifically) of all the background noise to which most of us have either become accustomed or have accepted as the normal way of life. It starts out nicely enough and builds to something ... or so I thought ... but quickly degrades into a bit of a farce, as though the screen writer's supply of dope ran out midway through the film and he suddenly resorted to using his normal brainpower. The built-up angst eventually scatters into space as our hero winds up taking the normal route (through politics) and gives up his thrilling car-smashing and tire-slashing because (here we go) his family is ashamed of him. OK, is he a bit of a lunatic? Sure. But, in his heart you know he's right, and if you live in an area that is at l...

One of my numerous e-mail messages today encouraged me to enter the Chapeau Blog Awards contest. What is that, you ask? I didn't know either, so on I read. Dust off your shelf and make room for a Chapeau Blog Award! Be one of the first to enter the exclusive Chapeau Blog Award contest , solely dedicated to honoring the creative and inspired art of blogging . Well, I don’t actually have a shelf, but I get the point. I figured, with the depth of scope and artful writing that takes place here nearly every day [ahem] I’d be a shoo-in. I didn’t even question why a blog award would be named after a French hat, but who am I to ask? I scrolled down. Step 1 was asking me to choose one of their 12 categories. “Entertainment,” I figured. Hell, this is as entertaining as it gets, right? You betcha. Step two was to select a blog award category from “Best industry or Best opinion.” Opinion, natch. I scrolled down further to find… A special discounted rate of $195 is available to bloggers...

I don't have a laptop computer or one of those Blueberries, so it will require a little walking back and forth, but I'm going to try the live blogging thing tonight. Stop back and see how long I can keep this up (that's what she said). 7:02pm - Inspired by yesterday's post, I'm wearing my green Eagles t-shirt and underpants from 1970 when the Beatles broke up. Let's go Phils! 7:15pm - Just thinking. Manager Charlie Manuel was an unpopular choice with the fans when he was given the job. Now, he's on the doorstep of being the most beloved coach/manager in the city's history. He'll be the guy who "broke the streak" and won a championship. Either way, I think, he's in a no-lose situation. Mostly, we're happy to be here and figure this team is built for the long run. 7:55pm - They're showing the game on a big TV outdoors at Penns Landing. Presumably, for people who don't have a television of their own. It's a windy 49 degree...

This has happened before. It happened in 1980, the year after the team finished fourth and all hope appeared to be lost. It happened in 1983 when they had a team of players so old they were nicknamed "The Wheeze Kids." It happened again in 1993 with a team that went from worst to first. What is it? It’s the sudden popularity of the Philadelphia Phillies. Now I know how Beatles fans felt in 1963. They used to go see them at the Cavern Club or some little dive in Liverpool “before they was what they was.” Then, they signed a big record deal and made the trip across the pond. By then, you needed a shoehorn to wedge your way into a Beatles show and if you got in you couldn’t hear them for all the screaming girls. The people who loved them before they were popular got shoved aside in the name of big marketing and popularity. For those of us who have been with this baseball team for the better part of 5 decades, this sudden popularity is a sight to behold. Winning brings it out...

Far be it from me to figure, but I've gotten about a dozen page hits over that tiny paragraph yesterday concerning Tampa Rays' pitcher Matt Garza's penchant for spitting. It turns out that the Internet is nuts about it, and who am I to let them down? From Beyond the Boxscore : Having seen nearly each of his starts I can’t really tell you what’s more fun to watch, Garza’s stuff – absolute top level movement on his fastball and curve – or the amount of times he spits during a game. I know, I know, but some pitchers go to the rosin bag in between pitches, and some to their hat, and even some more to the brow, but Garza’s in between pitch ritual is spitting. I don’t think anyone has called him a camel or the Loogie quite yet, but it’s coming. From the Boston Herald : Garza set a new record for spitting (game 3). Tampa ground crew had to keep pumps and speedy-dri on hand with Youkilis sweating and Garza’s spitting. From The Ejected Fan : Matt Garza has my vote for ugliest creat...

Saturday night I went to see Umphrey's McGee in Philly. They're probably the best "never heard of them" band around and if you get the chance, you should hear of them. I'll spare you the details, but I lost my keys twice during the evening - once in a restaurant and again at the show later. There were bouts of mild panic followed by resolution when they once showed up at the hostess station and later with a security guard. The problem with being a single person is that when something like that happens, there is no alternative course of action. If my keys had indeed vanished, I ran several scenarios over in my head, all of which involved a locksmith to (a) get me into my car and (b) get me into my house. Getting home would have involved an expensive cab ride and sleeping outside until the locksmith was available would have been uncomfortable. I think that's why single people have shorter life spans. I'm personally boycotting the Sarah Palin appearances ...