Neil Young Fork in the Road

Got to love this new song from Neil. Very appropriate for me given the recent Staples lay offs.....

Lyrics to "Fork in the Road"

Got a pot belly. 
It's not too big. 
Gets in my way 
when I'm driving my rig.
 Driving this country
 in a big old rig, 
things I see
 mean a lot.


My friend has a pickup.
 Drives his kid to school.
 Then he takes his wife
to beauty school.

 Now she's doin' nails.
 Gonna get a job.
 Got a good teacher.
There's a fork in the road ahead.
 I don't know which way I'm gonna turn.
 There's a fork in the road ahead.
Forgot this year, 
to salute the troops. 
They're all still there
 in a fucking war. It's no good.
 Whose idea was that?


I've got hope,
 but you can't eat hope. 
I'm not done. 
Not giving up. 
Not cashing in.
 Too late.
There's a bailout coming but it's not for me. 
It's for all those creeps watching tickers on TV. 
There's a bailout coming but it's not for me.
I'm a big rock star.
 My sales have tanked,
 but I still got you.
 Thanks!
 Download this.
 Sounds like shit.
Keep on bloggin' 'til the power goes out,
 and your battery's dead.
Twist and Shout. 
On the radio.
 Those were the days.
 Bring 'em back.
There's a bailout coming but it's not for you.
 It's for all those creeps hiding what they do.
 There's a bailout coming but it's not for you.
 Bailout coming but it's not for you.
Got my new flat-screen.
 Got it repo'd now. 
They picked it up.
 Left a hole in the wall.
 Last Saturday.
 Missed the Raiders game.
There's a bailout coming but it's not for you.
 There's a bailout coming but it's not for you.
 It's for all those creeps hiding what they do.

Jets @ Pats 12/16/07 - Tailgate in the snow

Concert Report

Had a great time at the show on Monday night!

Things started out strong with the MBTA green line providing door to door service from our hotel in Cambridge to the Park Street station right next to the Orpheum. We were early so decided to stop into No. 9 Park for a drink before dinner.

The bar at No. 9 Park quickly filled up with Neil fans grabbing dinner before the show. After a couple drinks and making friends with the other fans, we decided to stay there for dinner. A bit more expensive than we were originally planning on, but well worth it.

At just about 7:30 we left the restaurant and headed down the hill to the Orpheum. You had to love Neil's bus parked right out front! I've got to do some research on what the story is with this bus. I've heard in the past that he had it made custom with the vintage car welded to the roof!

The show was great. The best of acoustic and electric. Just enough of the well known songs to go with the deeper cuts that only the harder core Neil fans would know:

Acoustic: From Hank To Hendrix / Ambulance Blues / Kansas / Sad Movies / A Man Needs A Maid / On The Way Home / Harvest / Journey Through The Past / Mellow My Mind / Love Art Blues / Love Is A Rose / Cowgirl In The Sand

Electric: The Loner / Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere / Dirty Old Man / Spirit Road / Bad Fog Of Loneliness / Winterlong / Oh, Lonesome Me / The Believer / No Hidden Path

Encore: Cinnamon Girl / Like A Hurricane

Countdown to Neil Young show begins!

Let the countdown begin!

While the sky high ticket prices are a bit disappointing, my excitement has begun to build for the show on 12/3 in Boston. I was able to use some Hilton Honors points for a free one night stay at the Hampton Inn in Cambridge for the night of the show. No need to drive the Mrs. and I all the way home to the sticks after lots of eating and drinking and enjoying Neil. A short subway ride is much better!! Made reservations at Grotto for pre-show dinner. Never been there, but the menu sounds good and the Phantom Gourmet gave it an 87. Grotto is right next to the Orpheum so we can mangia then head over to the show.

The set list is yet another Neil fantasy fulfilled for me. A 2 hour show...half acoustic, half electric. CLICK HERE to go to the Sugar Mountain set lists site to get a feel for what Neil has been playing this tour.

I'd love to hear from anyone heading to the 12/3 Boston show. Comment to this post, or email me at tdecoste@gmail.com

That's it for now. Next priority this weekend is the Pats. I'm hoping for 60+ points this week....

NFL Rumormill

Found this site that does a great job pulling together NFL news and all rumors that are circulating out there. Interesting read this week given videotape-gate. It's obvious that the Pats are now the Yankees of the NFL. Hated by everyone except us here in New England

http://www.profootballtalk.com/rumormill.htm

Prediction

I realize it is one game into the season, but since I couldn't log in before I am going to make my regular season prediction now...

1. Pats 27 Jets 14...I was off by a couple of scores on this one. 1-0
2. Pats 30 Chargers 27 I expect a steady Pats O and a decent D, with a late score by the Chargers making it look closer...2-0
3. Pats 31 Bills 13. Home rules! 3-0
4. Pats 37 Bengals 31. Late score wins this tough one on the road. 4-0
5. Pats 41 Browns 10. Outmatched Brows bow to Pats. 5-0
6. Pats 27 Cowboys 24. Romo is better and Cowboys at home, but we pull it out. 6-0
7. Pats 21 Dolphins 20. Another tough road game, and Phins D is tough, but...7-0
8. Pats 24 Redskins 17. We defeat my favorite NFC team by a TD. 8-0
9. Colts 27 Pats 24. At Indy, a tough close loss. 8-1
10. Pats 24 Bills 17. Bill are better at home, but we prevail. 9-1
11. Pats 27 Eagles 20. No taping, no crying, just a win at home against Philly. 10-1
12. Ravens 17 Pats 16. Tough D of Ravens pull it out at home. 10-2
14. Pats 19 Steelers 16. More Tough D, but we win the FG fest...11-2
15. Pats 27 Jets 10 Roll again...now shut up Mangini! 12-2
16. Pats 24 Dolphins 16. Another home win, but closer. 13-2
17. Pats 30 Giants 17. Blow out at half, we rest starters in 2nd half for playoffs. Final Regular season record 14-2.

Pats new logo

Scary

Chargers @ Pats - What's the plan??

Time to make the plans!!! I've heard rumors of lobster?!?!?

Bowie Dream, Bowie in Space

Ooooh!!! Can you say 16-0!!??

Ken Weber rest in peace

Thanks to Section215 for the heads up. We need to plan a memorial hike of the Narragansett Trail....
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ken Weber, outdoor writer, dies at 63
Ken Weber
SMITHFIELD _ Longtime Providence Journal columnist Ken J. Weber, whose eloquent nature essays were a widely-read feature of the paper’s commentary pages, died unexpectedly yesterday at Our Lady of Fatima Hospital in North Providence. He was 63.
“For many years, Ken Weber was a beloved institution here, bringing deep knowledge, acute observation, and charm to his weekly explorations of the world of nature,” said Robert B. Whitcomb, Journal vice president and editorial pages editor. “We will greatly miss his columns and his quiet, affable, good-humored and cooperative personality.”
Weber is survived by Bettie J. (Hoorman) Weber, his wife of 42 years; four children, and nine grandchildren. Weber and his wife lived on Deerfield Drive in Greenville.
Weber began his career at The Journal in 1971, when he was hired as a copy editor; he retired as a section editor in 1996. His nature columns ran for years in the Sunday Magazine, and when the magazine ceased publication, in 1995, his columns continued on the commentary pages of the Saturday paper.
Weber was also the author of several popular books, including Weekend Walks in Rhode Island: 40 Trails for Hiking, Birding & Nature Viewing, now in its fourth edition, and Paddling Southern New England: 30 Canoe Trips in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut, in its second edition.
A Mass of Christian burial to which relatives and friends are invited will be held Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. in St. Philip Church, 622 Putnam Pike, Greenville. Burial will be private. Visitation Monday 4-7 p.m. in the Anderson-Winfield Funeral Home, Route 44 at Greenville Common, Greenville. In lieu of flowers, donations in his memory may be made to the Audubon Society of Rhode Island, 12 Sanderson Road, Smithfield, R.I., 02917. For messages of condolence, visit www.andersonwinfield.net
-- Journal staff writer G. Wayne Miller

Time to BLOG again!!!

OK, I'm ready again. We're into August and the Pats season is right around the corner. Plus we've got Flickr photos. And since we'll have a consistent team this year at all the Pats games, we can coordinate things from the blog.

Jimmy - No ignoring the blog!! Join in!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nd5-ZTyaMMs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nd5-ZTyaMMs

Is this the year?

http://www.repriserecords.com/neilarchives/

Colts Super?

League Admits One Blown Call in AFC Championship

By tommasse
Posted on Sat Jan 27, 2007 at 12:16:36 PM EST

Injustice For All, Part II
Replay Ref: Hobbs Penalty Was Wrong

As first reported on the Jacksonville Jaguars website by senior editor Vic Ketchman, the pass interference call on Ellis Hobbs in the AFC Championship game was completely wrong.

That penalty gave the Indianapolis Colts a 1st-and-goal at the New England Patriots 1-yard line instead of a 3rd-and-long from the 19. It amounted to free points for the Colts who were nearly out of the game and was a major cog in the Indy's comeback.

To give credit where credit is due, the Boston Herald's Albert Breer mentioned Ketchman's posting in his own blog and The Boston Globe's Mike Reiss has a more extensive piece in today's Boston Globe.

From Reiss:

"There is no such thing as face-guarding," Greg Aiello, the NFL's vice president of communications e-mailed yesterday. "There must be contact to have a foul."

While referee Bill Carollo did not mention face-guarding in his on-field announcement, there can be no question that was the call. Replays showed Hobbs jumped straight up, never touched Reggie Wayne, and the ball drilled him in the back.

"Face-guarding," said CBS color "analyst" and well-documented Patriots-hater Phil Simms. "Easy call."

After the game, Hobbs told it like it was.

"I never touched him and the ball hit me in the back of the arm," Hobbs said, as reported by Reiss.

Pass interference? Easy call?

Photo Courtesy: Getty Images

Ketchman posted his comments on Jan. 25, and that came only after Ketchman called the game's replay official, Dean Blandino, who works in the league office, and that came only after "Jacob from Weymouth, Mass." called Ketchman on it.

My question to you: Where the heck was the Globe and Herald before that? (Not to mention Bob Lobel, Butch Stearns and the rest of the TV sloths.) Why weren't the local newspaper guys calling the league the day (or two) after the game?

And just because the league has only now admitted that one call was wrong doesn't mean that many of the others were wrong, too.

And for those of you who question the impact these calls have on the game, I refer you to Protrade.com and a post by Mark Kamal, Colts vs. Pats: 5 Game-Changing Plays. Kamal provides a statistical probability analysis of those plays and how they impacted the odds of either team's impending victory.

After the five plays, Kamal delves into "What Could Have Been ..." where all his examples are based on the calls by the officials.

Kamal also charted the entire game and referenced specific points on the chart where key plays occurred. It's easy enough to locate the "questionable" calls and figure things out for yourselves from there.

Who needs the Super Bowl when the Patriots are going to the...

Will Peyton go to heaven?

Peyton Manning, after living a full life, died. When he got to heaven, God was showing him around. They came to a modest little house with a faded Colts flag in the window.

"This house is yours for eternity, Peyton," said God. "This is very special; not everyone gets a house up here."

Peyton felt special, indeed, and walked up to his house. On his way up the porch, he noticed another house just around the corner. It was a 3-story mansion with a blue and red sidewalk, a 50 foot tall flagpole with an enormous Patriots logo flag, and in every window, a Patriot towel.

Peyton looked at God and said "God, I'm not trying to be ungrateful, but I have a question. I was an all-pro QB, I hold many NFL records, and I even went to the Hall of Fame."

God said "So what's your point Peyton?"

"Well, why does Tom Brady get a better house than me?"

God chuckled, and said "Peyton, that's not Tom's house, it's mine."

Pics from the last 3 Games I went to:

vs. The Bears:


Pics from the last 3 Games I went to:
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

I had to make individual posts because blogger wasn't uploading my pics. ..enjoy!

Tony's chillin'

Tony's chillin'
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Harry and I

Harry and I
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Look at my gut! Think its time to get in shape...

Lobstah Tails

Lobstah Tails
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Yeah I'm a Pig...

Yeah I'm a Pig...
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Oh yeah, we won! Next up: Houston pics...

Harry Eating a Chip

Harry Eating a Chip
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Tony Laughing

Tony Laughing
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Jimmy and Harry

Jimmy and Harry
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Nice Face by Me think I really had to Go...

Nice Face by Me think I really had to Go...
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

The view from 215

The view from 215
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Harry and Jimmy

Harry-Jimmy
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Stand Up!

Stand Up!
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Goofy

Goofy
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Yeah we won

Yeah we won
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Three Times in Four Years Baby

Three Times in Four Years Baby
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Could this be the 4th in 6?

Post Game

Post Game
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Singing Tony

Singing Tony
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Up next, Playoffs vs. The Jets!

Bearded Fellow

Bearded Fellow
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Tony chatting with Jeanne

Tony chatting with Jeanne
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Grilling Away

Grilling Away
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Salting the Lamb

Salting the Lamb
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Leg O Lamb

Leg O Lamb
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Veggies with the Meat

Veggies with the Meat
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Weird but Cool

Weird but Cool
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Jimmy hates the B-52's

Jimmy hates the B-52's
Originally uploaded by fpharpua2002.

Playoff Picture

Time to get things going again for the winter

OK...I haven't been much of a blog administrator lately. But we're just about past the holidays now and we all should have a bit more time for blogging now....

Plus blogger has been updated with some more features. It's much easier to customize the way things work and look. So let's get it started again

Tony

Pics from Week 3

Tony in his new Green Monster Shirt. Maybe I should move my finger next time?



MMM cerviche and beer...

Ominous clouds roll in...

Time to get ready for the main course...

These clouds didn't change my demeanor...

Chipotle chicken time!

TV on the Radio "Wolf Like Me" on Letterman

Check these guys out. I just bought their new CD, I highly recommend it.

New look for NeilYoung.com - Living With War Today

Neil seems to be continuing the LWW theme through the summer (and the CSNY tour). The official site has quite a different look to it! Click the link to the right to check it out.

Letter to the Seattle Times

Harry forwarded me this email from Bob. As he said to me this morning, it's very well written. Let's hope the Seattle Times prints it...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From: Cathy Henkel [mailto:chenkel@seattletimes.com] Sent: Wednesday, September 13, 2006 9:04 PMTo: rmeyer@trimarkusa.comSubject: RE: Deion
Thank you for your e-mail. Steve Kelley passed it on to me. Would you like us to consider it for publication in our Sunday's letters section? If so, just hit reply to this email, so that you include a copy of the original email. We also will need your name and city of residence.
We appreciate the feedback. Thanks for taking the time to write us. Cathy Henkel, sports editor, Seattle Times

-----Original Message-----From: Bob Meyer [mailto:rmeyer@trimarkusa.com]Sent: Wednesday, September 13, 2006 9:57 AMTo: Steve KelleySubject: Deion
Steve,

I read your article this morning on line about Deion Branch. As a New Englander and lifelong Pats fan I can say that the Seahawks are getting a quality receiver and quality man. However, at $39 million he is by no means a "steal" as you stated. While T.O. is a pain in the rear, he is a difference maker on the field. He can catch balls that no other in the league (beside Moss) could catch. He can even make Drew Bledsoe look good (when Drew isn't throwing to the guys wearing the other jersey's). T.O. should be paid the big bucks. Deion is not that receiver, not even close. Deion is a younger Troy Brown whose mode is to find the seam in the defense and gets open. If Troy Brown were 27 he would never command $39 million on the open market today. Deion gets dinged up frequently because of his size and is even less effective at the goal line because of his short stature, barely 5'8". Look at his (lack of) touchdown production in his career. That's not worthy of $39 million. That's why all of us in New England are ecstatic that the Pats stole a first round draft choice for Deion, who not many here really thought would stay after he bucked the highly successful Patriot's winning way of "team first mentality" and refused to honor his contract. We figured he would play with the current contract this year and then walk away next year with no compensation to the Pats like David Givens did. Considering Donte Stallworth only was worthy of a conditional 4th rounder and 30 year old backup linebacker just over a week ago, the talk of even a second round pick seemed pie in the sky. The airwaves are full of people this week that are grateful that that Seahawks played so poorly on Sunday and then panicked into agreeing to a first round pick.

Don't get me wrong, we all would have loved to see Deion stay here and play and wish him no ill will. He was a solid player, but he isn't nor will be ever be a "top" receiver in the league. THAT is the crux of the issue as to whether to pay him as such. The Pats said no way and the Seahawks panicked and said yes. He is a product of the Patriots system and of Tom Brady. But even Tom couldn't force him the ball where it really counts, at the goal line. Scoring points is the key, not a high number of catches or 1000 yards (which Deion has had neither even though Brady had his highest yardage of his career last year and led the NFL in yards passing.)

Some facts.

1. The most prolific passer in the NFL in 2005 couldn't get his #1 receiver to gain 1000 yards in a season or even catch over 80 balls (less than 5 catches per game) in his 4 year career.

2. Deion was ranked 21st in yardage by receivers in 2005 although that was his best year by far in the pros.

3. Donte Stallworth is one year younger, 4 inches taller, caught only 8 fewer passes and 50 less yards in 2005 on a HORRIBLE New Orleans team and garnered a conditional 4th round pick and 30 year old backup linebacker only days before Deion was traded for a 1st rounder.

4. Of the 20 players higher in receiving yardage in 2005, only two had less TD's than Deion's five. In the top 30 receivers, only three had less than Deion.

Again, you will enjoy watching Deion as we all have here in New England but as Jim Donaldson said in yesterday's Providence Journal, "good riddance" for that kind of money. The Pats will be just fine this year without their former #1 and #2 receivers (Branch and Givens) as it's all about the team and not one individual here. Doug Gabriel and Chad Jackson will share the catches of Deion and Givens and who knows, maybe 4 years from now someone will trade a first rounder for Chad Jackson!

Thanks for your time. GO PATS! (see you in Miami?)

Bob Meyer

In Bob, Scott and Bill We Trust...but?

We will all miss Deion Branch, he is a Super Bowl MVP and will remain a New England sports legend for it. The Patriots have gotten to where they are by being shrewd in their business dealings, but it seems to me that the management's dealings with the local press and fans is simply inhuman. Obviously the Pats don't want to talk about certain decisions for the simple reason of not giving player moves and their game plans away. But...why so dry about how you feel about players as people, why not just come out and say how much Deion will be missed, and like-wise Willie and Adam. Not as players, as people. Bill Belichick said "We tried. It didn't work out. What more can I say? We tried." How about "We love Deion... he is a great guy. Has given his best, but we just don't agree about the contract." The way they act now, the Pats might as well send a robot out to announce to the press about their business dealings. Then maybe we can get some robots to manage, coach and play the games. As much as I love the Pats for what they have given us as sports fans, this demeanor (or lack thereof) is such a turnoff.

I am not debating the trade, the Pats will surely get a good draft pick for Branch, and no doubt Tom Brady will turn Doug Gabriel and Chad Jackson into better players. Our running game is going to be very good, and the receiving core will be adequate enough to compliment Tom, Ben, Corey and Lawrence. There is little question whether we will score or not.

I just would appreciate a little more humanity and honesty about the team and the individual players. After the deal is done, not during. We know you're human Bill, why not act like one once in awhile? For the fans. For the team. For the humanity.

The End of an Era: Parking Lot 9 appears to be no more

from Patriots.com

Parking Enhancements:

Due to the ongoing development of the property surrounding Gillette Stadium over the next couple of seasons, fans can anticipate changes to our entrances and parking lots beginning in 2006. The new entrances and traffic plan are intended to improve access and egress for all our patrons. The P5 and P9 parking lot entrances have been eliminated as we continue to enhance the efficiency of our parking operation. In our newly configured parking plan, we encourage fans to follow the recommendations listed below.

Arriving from the north (P2, P4 or P10 north)

Please use Route 1 south (exit 9 off I-95). As you approach the stadium, use the left lane to enter P2 or the right lane to enter either P4 or P10 north.

Arriving from the south (P8, P6, P10 south)

Please use Route 1 north (exit 14A off I-495). As you approach the stadium, please use the right lane to enter P8 or the left lane to enter either P6 or P10 south.

Can Tom Brady Get Better?

From Yahoo! Sports:

Aug 26 Brady, who finished first in the NFL with 4,110 passing yards and third in the league with 26 touchdowns last year, continues to refine his game and has made improving his results on long throws -- those of about 30 yards or more -- a priority, the Boston Globe reports.

I -for one, would love to see Tom Brady have a great season like last year, but can he actually get better? Already one of the top clutch QB's in the history of the game, it appears the Pats are about to enter the season without a bona fide #1 receiver. If Brady can pull out a performance like last year with this WR core (Troy Brown, Bam Childress, Reche Caldwell, Chad Jackson), it will surely be the greatest season of his career. With the emergence of Big Ben Watson and newcomer Lawrence Maroney taking weight off the long game, he might just be able to do it. The short to midrange threat should be the best we have had since Big Ben Coates and Curtis Martin in 96-97 that spread the defense out, opening up the bombs to Glenn, Jefferson, Brisby and Brown. Troy Brown is still here, but has lost a step, and we haven't got Terry Glenn. We still need Deion Branch or a comparable #1 to go deep in the playoffs, but if Tom Brady can hone his skills and hit some deep throws, this WR core just needs to run the pattern, put their arms out, and it's TD after TD after TD...

NFL QB's - Best and Worst decision makers

Guess who the best decision making QB is???

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`

Roethlisberger among worst decision makers
By KC Joyner
ESPN Insider

Editor's note: This is an expanded version of a passage that appears in Scientific Football 2006.

I track more than 100 metrics in every NFL game, but the most misunderstood and controversial of these has to be the bad decision metric for quarterbacks. The bad decision metric is the method I use to track a quarterback's mistakes. Simply put, if the quarterback makes a decision with the ball that either could have led or did lead to a turnover, he is debited with a bad decision on the play.

The most common types of bad decisions are:
1. Forcing a pass into coverage
2. Staring at a receiver
3. Throwing the ball despite being tackled
4. Misreading a zone defense and not seeing a defender in the passing lane.

On each of these types of plays, the quarterback is noted as having made a bad decision. There are game situations that can force a quarterback to throw the ball into coverage (e.g., on fourth-and-30, Hail Mary plays, etc.) that will not be ruled as bad decisions.
If the quarterback's mistake did not lead to a turnover (e.g., a dropped interception, a recovered fumble, etc.), the mistake is given only one bad decision point. If the mistake led to a turnover, however, it is given two mistake points and also is subject to a graduating scale of points based on how damaging the turnover was (e.g., an additional point for an interception killing a scoring drive, another additional point if the interception led to the opponent's being set up in scoring position, etc.). The scale has an upper limit of five points for any single bad decision.
Bad decision rankings are based on two percentage bases. The first is the standard bad decision percentage. To calculate this, I take the number of bad decisions a quarterback generated and divide it by the total number of attempts. The second percentage rating is the weighted bad decision percentage. This is calculated by taking the number of bad decision points and dividing it by the total number of attempts.
So, which quarterbacks were the best and worst decision makers in the NFL in 2005 according to Scientific Football 2006? At the bottom, I'll list the top five and bottom five in each category. But first, I'll analyze some of the more interesting QBs and where they fell as good or bad decision makers.

Good decision makers:
• Tom Brady: The best decision maker in 2005 was Tom Brady, and it wasn't even a close race. Brady made only four bad decisions in 549 attempts, which equates to a ridiculously low 0.7 percent bad decision percentage. No other quarterback came close to falling under the 1 percent mark in that category. Brady also had only nine bad decision points, and his 1.6 percent weighted bad decision percentage was also easily the best.
• Drew Bledsoe: The perception of Bledsoe is that he makes a lot of mistakes, but the metrics tell a different story. Bledsoe did rank next to last in the NFL for most interceptions thrown last year (17), but he had just 10 bad decisions. His 1.9 percent bad decision rate was the fourth best in the league, and he was only 0.2 percentage points behind Peyton Manning in that category. Bledsoe did have 21 bad decision points (tied for 28th worst in that category), but his high number of pass attempts meant his weighted bad decision percentage barely missed making the top 10.
• Byron Leftwich: Leftwich often is lauded for a number of his positive traits but his good decision making isn't normally one of them. It should be, as Leftwich ranked in the top seven in both bad decision and weighted bad decision percentage. That he did this despite throwing the second-highest percentage of deep passes (nearly 20 percent of his pass attempts were deep) is a testament to his ability to be aggressive while simultaneously protecting the ball.

Bad decision makers:
• Aaron Brooks: Brooks had a number of problems last year, but his biggest by far was his decision making. His 4.9 percent bad decision percentage was the fifth worst in the NFL, and his weighted bad decision percentage was almost into double digits (9.8 percent). Those percentages were nearly twice as high as his 2004 totals, so he is certainly capable of performing better.
• Matt Hasselbeck: Hasselbeck had a fantastic season last year almost across the board, but his 17 bad decisions and 26 bad decision points were both tied for the seventh-highest total in their respective categories. The West Coast offense operated by the Seahawks is not a high-risk offense, and that makes Hasselbeck's performance in this metric a bit more perplexing.
• Brett Favre: It should come as no surprise that Favre had the highest number of bad decisions and bad decision points in 2005. To put his 53 bad decision points into perspective, one could add the totals of nearly any two other quarterbacks in the NFL last year and they still wouldn't surpass Favre's total. Favre's saving grace from a percentage perspective was his extremely high number of pass attempts (he was the only quarterback to top 600 attempts in 2005), but he still ranked in the bottom 10 in both bad decision percentage categories. Green Bay will need a dramatic improvement from Favre in this aspect of his game if the Packers want to be competitive in 2006.
• Ben Roethlisberger: Big Ben's 2005 season provides proof that you can win despite having high bad decision percentages. Roethlisberger ranked dead last in the bad decision percentage category and had the fifth-highest weighted bad decision percentage. He was able to get away with those elevated percentages because he had by far the highest yards per pass attempt in 2005 (9.1 yards, the only QB to top the 9-yard mark). If the YPA number drops at all in 2006, Roethlisberger's bad decision percentages will need to show improvement.

Cam Neely Tribute on youtube

Pics from Tony's Cookout (that came out clear enough to post)

Good food...

and conversation...

The host and his lovely new summer hat...

awww...

The Phil-ster. 2006 Wiffleball Homerun Derby Champ...

The boys are tired...
there must be more pictures out there...who's got'em?

ZIDANE a new way to solve problems.. do it like zidane...

Please see my July 9 post if you haven't already

Syd Barrett has died.

Remember when you were young,
you shone like the sun
Shine on you crazy diamond.
Now there's a look in your eyes
like black holes in the sky,
Shine on you crazy diamond.
You were caught on the crossfire of
childhood and stardom,
blown on the steel breeze.
Come on you target for far away laughter,
come on you stranger,
you legend, you martyr and shine!













http://www.schizophrenia.com/stories/sbarrett.htm

World Cup

Did you guys see the final. Wow, that was an insane ending.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1i_l0OeeMc

Schilling snubbed by All-Star committee!

Let's compare the selections...

SP Mark Redman 5-4, 5.59 ERA, 30 K, 30 BB, 1.51 WHIP

Ok 5-4, for KC, not bad...5.59 ERA, pretty high. Keep in mind pitchers stats like ERA, K's and Walks tend to be independent of his teams record, it's the pitcher vs. the batter for the most part. Look at Johan Santana's stats for the past few years-bad team, yet good stats. Redman also boasted a 1 to 1 walk to strikeout ratio- that's pretty...umm, good?

or...

SP Curt Schilling, Boston 10-2, 3.54 ERA, 102 K's, 14 BB, 1.08 WHIP??? Not only a great record, low ERA, but an insane strikeout to walk ratio- against (hands down) the best division in baseball. Maybe those all those batters Schill fanned lost their memory...



Guess that at least one player for each team rule is a good idea after all. Oh, well! Let him rest for the 2nd half!

Concert Review: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers- 30th Anniversay Tour (with Stevie Nicks), Trey Anastasio

6/21/2006 Great Woods! Mansfield, Mass.

Trey Anastasio opener:

I have seen Trey his new band 70 Volt Parade twice, and both times they were very enjoyable. I was one of the few people in my section- which contained less Trey fans than I expected, cheering loud for the band from the outset. Trey's guitar work and his love of playing always brings a smile to my face. This set was mostly made up of songs from his recent release "Shine". The band was loose, the songs were tight and the jams were concise. As expected not much exploratory jamming, but then again, I haven't seen or heard much of that since Phish's second hiatus. I'm sure the casual listener might have found a few of the songs a bit long, but they never went out of the stratosphere like many Ph jams. However, it seemed some of the Petty fans who were there for the opener may have known the new single, or just enjoyed the talent of the band and energy of the show. As more people showed up, the noise level got louder, as (naturally) did the cheering. "Come As Melody" from the recent CD was particularly good, and I was lovin the bouncy, upbeat "First Tube" (from Phish's Farmhouse) closer. Great set for an opener, one of the better warm-up sets I have seen.


Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers:

I can now take Tom Petty off my must see list, and every artist behind him moves up a spot. I have been a Heartbreakers fan since I can remember, and maybe the "You Got Lucky" video (from1982's "Long After Dark") is what really got me into them. I didn't realize exactly how much I liked him until a few of years ago, when downloading his songs, I saw just how many great songs he has in his repertoire. The thing about Tom Petty (like Neil Young) is he has stood the test of time, writing and playing great songs throughout his career that have transcended age, and the times. Every three or four years that pass, he comes out with a record with at least a few really cool songs that many people can relate to. Sure, he hasn't had any radio "hits" in a few years, but as we all know here, recent hits don't always make great rock 'n' roll shows. Great bands do.

Although Tom Petty did play 14 of his greatest hits, it was the energy of the show that made it so entertaining. Every song was played very well, from beginning to end- with some jamming . The show started out with a few hits, from the early release "Listen To Her Heart", (from 1979's "You're Gonna Get It!"), for the faithful veterans, followed by a nice long version of "You Don't Know How it Feels" (from 1994's "Wildflowers") , which got a big cheer for the now famous lyrics "Let's get to the point, Let's roll another joint". Ironically, there was very little smell of the cheeb in the air, in fact, most folks in my section seemed sober. Personally, I was sticking to a few beers. The show plowed along with the duo of "I Won't Back Down", and "Free Fallin" (from 1989's "Full Moon Fever"). Even the new songs, including the single "Saving Grace" were very good. Later on, there was a nod to Bo Diddley on his "I'm a Man", then Stevie Nicks came out to lend her vocals to a handful of early Petty songs, including her the powerful duet "Stop Dragging My Heart Around" and "I Need to Know". The singles were all great, but the best song all night may have been "Don't Come Around Here No More" (from 1985's "Southern Accents"), which was build up and jammed out very nicely. As the night went along, the energy stayed high, and I was happy to get "Refugee" (from 1979's "Damn The Torpedos"), and "Runnin Down a Dream" (which I always have felt the guitar sounds a lot like "Chalkdust Torture") , before the encore. The boys quickly came back for the rocker "You Wreck Me", then covered Them's "Mystic Eyes". I knew Petty's "American Girl" had to be the opener or the closer, and it turned out to be the latter, and the crowd was lovin it! Great show!



Trey: B+
Tom Petty: A- (I wanted to hear "You got Lucky!", and Trey should have played along in a song or two)
Crowd: A
Overall: A-


Setlist:

Listen To Her Heart
You Don't Know How It Feels
I Won't Back Down
Free Fallin'
Saving Grace
Last Dance With Mary Jane
I'm A Man (Bo Diddley)
Oh Well
Handle With Care
Stop Draggin' My Heart Around
I Need To Know
Fooled Again (I Don't Like It)
Square One
Insider
Learning To Fly
Don't Come Around Here No More
Refugee
Runnin Down A Dream
You Wreck Me
Mystic Eyes
American Girl

Big Papi Does it Again!!!

The Legend grows and grows. A Grandslam on Wednesday...





Celebrating a homer with Manny on Friday...





...then another walkoff homer Today





I haven't seen a clutch player like this on the Sox since...somebody help me out, EVER???




Papelbon ain't too bad either...

Joe Thornton Wins NHL MVP along with the scoring title.

WISH WE HAD A GUY
LIKE THAT ON OUR TEAM!?!?!?!?!!!

Bands I Missed, Bands I would like to see...

An ongoing conversation with Harry, and Tony's EC post has got me thinking about these two categories. What if you could go to those shows you missed, just before the artist died or the band broke up? In my case it would be the former, since I just missed three of the most influential musicians of their generation. Who would your top choices be?

Part 1: Bands I Missed (who toured when I was old enough to see them):

1. The Grateful Dead: Man, oh man, the horror! I think this has set in more in the past 5 years since I went to all those Phish shows, because it wasn't only the music, but the community that they and The Dead had following them that made their live shows so unique. This community- in numbers and in nature (for the most part), made the experience unique. A great party, a great show, onto the next venue! The only experience close might be Jimmy Buffett, but then again, how many times has he played three to four quality shows in a row without repeating one song? Of course in their heyday, The Dead were one of the best live bands, and I realize if I were to see them fom 87-95, they wouldn't have been quite as great as in the 70's. But who cares really? One mediocre show would have been good for me. We all know that a mediocre Dead show is better than many bands good ones. R.I.P. Jerry, wish I coulda been there. Maybe in the afterlife...




2. Nirvana: Even hanging out at Babyhead in the early 90's somehow didn't allure us to this show, only weeks before Nevermind blew up. Great band with a lot of energy live, who -as evidenced in Unplugged, could play as well acoustically as electric. Here's the setlist from Live Nirvana!

09/25/91 - Club Babyhead, Providence, RI, US

Set:

• Jesus Wants Me For A Sunbeam
• Here She Comes Now
• D-7
• Drain You
• School
• Floyd The Barber
• Sliver
• Smells Like Teen Spirit
• Come As You Are
• Aneurysm
• Vendetagainst
  
• Dirt Jam [Stooges cover]
• Blew
• Negative Creep

3. Miles Davis (and whomever he brought along): To think how many times he played at the Newport Jazz Fest. Now given I wasn't into jazz until I was 20, and Miles died a year later, but if I could go back I would go see him at least once... One of the best songwriters ever, who created styles of jazz- including fusion, which had many bands copying or morphing into their own styles. Miles influenced jazz bands from the 70's like Herbie Hancock and Headhunters, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Weather Report, and rock bands who incorporated jazz elements like Frank Zappa, Pink Floyd, The Allman Brothers, ELP, Yes, and The Grateful Dead.




Part 2, Bands I would like to see...




1. Flaming Lips: We're in the process of getting tickets to this show, which apparently was rescheduled.

2. Eric Clapton: I missed him last time around, I have wanted to see him for years.

3.. Bruce Springsteen: Ditto

4. George Clinton and P-Funk All-Stars: Ditto.

5. Herbie Hancock: Ditto again.

6. Wilco: I have wanted to see them last year, hopefully next time around.

7. My Morning Jacket: Ditto.

8. The White Stripes: Yet another Ditto.

9. Modest Mouse: Just started listening to them in the past year, a show is definitely needed.

10. Beck: Missed him last year, need to see him, too...

More bands I would like to see: Counting Crows, Peter Gabriel, Weezer, Ween, Rush, The Allman Brothers (who are left?), Pink Floyd (WITH Roger, will this ever happen? If not I wouldn't mind seeing Dave Gilmour!) I'm sure I forgot someone...

Eric Clapton Tour

Just heard that EC is coming around in October to the Gaaaahden. He's always been on my list of people to see before they (or I) kick the bucket. Shows are 10/3 and 10/4 and go on sale this Monday. We'll see how much they are. If your possibly interested, let me know.

After that it will just be Dylan. I should have listened to Harry and went when he was at URI!

Another new blog template

As Harry put it, that other template seemed to single handedly kill our little blog. Well, let's try this one. The blue is inoffensive enough and the links don't seem to get pushed down to the bottom. Let's try to get things started again. Training camp starts next month!

New Blog Template

Trying a new template (format) for the blog. The old one kept bumping the links down to the bottom of the page. Plus this one seems a bit wider and allows more text left to right. Let me know what you think.

Big Unit Implodes!

Washington Post article

This guy is obviously a Bush supporter...but I can't disagree with everything he says. The whole album does seem rushed....and for no good reason. There was no specific recent event (like with "Ohio") that he was trying to capitalize on. Why not take the time to refine the songs a bit?

And one more thing....there will be no attending the CSNY concert....$200 a ticket?? Forget it. The pre-sale has just become a way for them to market the big $$$ seats to suckers (like me).

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Neil Young's Antiwar Howl

By J. Freedom du Lac Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, May 3, 2006

Neil Young is mad as hell and wants you to know it. Immediately. Having knocked out a ragged collection of antiwar, anti-Bush songs in about two weeks, Young is now rushing the recording into the marketplace."Living With War," which Young calls a "metal folk protest" album, has been streaming on http://neilyoung.com since Friday, and just yesterday the 10-song set was made available for purchase as a digital download. The CD will arrive in stores Tuesday, having been hurried through the manufacturing process.Forget the typical, months-long ramp-up; Young and his label, Reprise, are treating this thing as though it's some sort of breaking news bulletin. This just in: Neil Young is "looking for a leader to bring our country home." ( And yes, by "our country," the singer, a Canadian citizen, means the United States, where he's lived for decades.)But the urgency is somewhat strange, given that the album doesn't appear to be inspired by any recent events.Was Young not paying attention during the 2004 presidential election, or during September's antiwar protest on the Mall? Did he only recently realize his contempt for Bush and his outrage over the war in Iraq? Where ya been, Neil?Young, of course, has a long history of singing topical songs, most famously including "Ohio," the Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young single that was rushed to radio shortly after four students were killed during a peace rally at Kent State University in 1970."Living With War," however, seems to be a couple of years behind the curve, coming across like a series of stale, somewhat superficial lefty blog posts set to fuzzy rock as Young attacks (and mocks) the Bush administration while declaring war on war.On "After the Garden," in that inimitable warble of his, he sings of a time when we "won't need no stinkin' waaaaaaaaar."On "Shock & Awe" he observes, over his own howling electric guitar, that "history was a cruel judge of overconfidence" while referencing the president's "Mission Accomplished" declaration of 2003. And on another song, over yet another outrage-underscoring distorted guitar line, Young leads a 100-member choir (which appears frequently on the album, to annoying effect) on a sloganeering singalong: "Let's impeach the president for lying/And misleading our country into war." He also suggests that spying is grounds for impeachment and then goes all Michael Moore by stringing together a bunch of contradictory Bush sound bites.So much for Young's quiet and reflective phase -- the one that resulted in last year's sentimental country-rock album, "Prairie Wind."This album is all about venting, and it's accordingly noisy and discordant. It also sounds unfinished, as Young opted to work in the moment and plow through the writing and recording process rather than refining the material. Thus, it has the rough-draft feel of "Mirror Ball," Young's hastily recorded 1995 collaboration with Pearl Jam.But "Living With War" is way more about ideology than music, with Young's political statements standing front and center. Let's just say that you might like this album if you have Daily Kos set as your Internet home page. If your daily routine begins with Michelle Malkin or Power Line, "Living With War" is going to make you mad as hell. Which is pretty much the point.

Mirabelli returning

Who would have ever thought a back up catcher would receive a standing ovation at Fenway?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


By Chris Snow, Globe Staff

Johnny Damon won't be the only player making his return to Fenway tonight.

The Red Sox today re-acquired Doug Mirabelli from the Padres in exchange for catcher Josh Bard, minor-league pitcher Cla Meredith, and either a player to be named later or cash (which figures to be in the six-figure range). The Yankees were also trying to acquire Mirabelli.

Mirabelli, who is flying to Boston from the West Coast, is expected to be in the starting lineup (and catch Tim Wakefield) for tonight’s Red Sox-Yankees game at Fenway.

The Sox had dealt Mirabelli to San Diego for second baseman Mark Loretta in December.
Bard had filled Mirabelli’s role as Tim Wakefield’s personal catcher, but had struggled catching the knuckleball. He leads the majors with 10 passed balls.

The 35-year-old Mirabelli batted .182 (4 for 22) in 14 games with San Diego this season in five starts.

CSNY Tour - Tweeter Center 8/16

Just wanted to consolidate the tour info in one post.

CSNY will be at the Tweeter Center on August 16th. I know the CSN portion of the show is not what they used to be, but Neil will be there! And with the all the hub-bub around Living With War, I'm sure they will make it interesting. And more importantly than anything else, it will be a chance to get together for some mid-summer tailgating! So start saving...book the babysitter!

I got this link of pre-sale info emailed to me last week from "Neil Young". The password is "CSNY". I think you may need to register on the site first.

Living With War

Boston Herald

Young drops bomb on prez: New album rips Bush, war on Iraq

from Pitchforkmedia.com: Neil Young Embraces Blogging, Streaming

Kati Llewellyn reports:

News on Neil Young's upcoming protest album, Living With War, hit the Internet at a rate of approximately 100mph over the weekend. With a Living With War blog to track details on the release, a bare-bones official website to run lyrics, and a load of reporters on their toes, Young certainly has the Reprise Records new media department working overtime.

The tracklist features the previously reported "Living with War" and "Let's Impeach the President", as well as eight other not surprisingly titled songs.

For your eyes, restless consumers:

01 After the Garden
02 Living With War
03 The Restless Consumer
04 Shock and Awe
05 Families
06 Flags of Freedom
07 Let's Impeach the President
08 Lookin' for a Leader
09 Roger and Out
10 America the Beautiful

Living With War will be posted on Young's website for free streaming starting April 28 (that's this Friday, folks). The record will then be made commercially available for digital download on May 2, and is slated to be well-stocked at yr local record store shortly afterwards.

Oh and this just in! According to Billboard.com, Young will join David Crosby, Stephen Stills, and Graham Nash on the Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young "Freedom of Speech" tour this summer. Smart planning, guys: hit the kiddies with the free music and the blog, and the old folks with the expensive concert tickets. Got your demographics covered.

* Pitchfork Review: Neil Young: Prairie Wind
* Pitchfork News: Neil Young Disses President Bush on New Album
* Neil Young: http://www.neilyoung.com/

Brady's Take

From Boston.com

Quarterback Tom Brady co-hosted a two-hour show on SIRIUS NFL Radio on April 15, and touched on a few Patriots-related topics.

The following excerpts were passed along from SIRIUS NFL Radio:

Brady on free agent losses: "[Adam Vinatieri] is a great teammate. The most clutch kicker in NFL history. A future Hall of Famer. He’ll always be a good friend. I hate to see him go to the Colts. I hate to see him go anywhere other than kick for us but that’s part of what this league is built on. We’ve just got to try to regroup, try to fill that void and obviously we wish him the best of luck. Everybody wanted David Givens back and everybody wanted Willie McGinest back and Tom Ashworth. ... But I think those guys had great opportunities in other places and they decided to explore those opportunities. That’s their right and that’s what they’ve earned and it is hard for me, as a player, to say, ‘Guys, you shouldn’t do that. You should have stayed with us.’ Because they wanted to go on. They wanted to test the free agent market and hopefully they are happy with where they’re at.”

Brady on Rodney Harrison: “I don’t think there’s any player on our team that works harder than Rodney and Rodney was out there the other day running and cutting. It’s been a tough injury for him but if there’s one guy who can come back from that injury it's Rodney Harrison. ... He’s the best defensive player I’ve ever played with. When we beat the Eagles [in Super Bowl XXXIX], Rodney Harrison was the MVP of that team, he was the MVP of that Super Bowl. I know Deion [Branch] won it and believe me there’s nobody who loves Deion more than me but Rodney Harrison, if you were a Patriots fan, you knew who the best player on the team was. It was Rodney Harrison, without a doubt.”

Brady on Richard Seymour: “I think Richard has more respect from everybody than any other player on our team. He’s such a young man in age but he’s so mature and so professional. He’s had a lot of tough things happen in his life. ... I know how thrilled I was [about his contract extension]. He’s one of my closest friends on the team.”

New Neil Young album?

Thrasher (and I guess many other sources) is reporting a new album from Neil coming out very soon.

It is supposedly titled "Life in War" and only took three days to finish. It reportedly is very critical of the Iraq War. A quote from Jonathan Demme:

“It is a brilliant electric assault, accompanied by a 100-voice choir, on Bush and the war in Iraq…Truly mind blowing. Will be in stores soon.”

Always up for more Neil, but the "three days to finish" thing scares me. Reminds me of "Are you passionate?"
http://www.videocodezone.com/videos/n/neil_young/rockin_in_the_free_world-2.html

Sox Looking Good So Far

I just got a video capture card with a tv tuner on it. The quality is good, but not like cable tv. It has some great features like video desktop, still capture, and channel guide. You can record up to 125 channels. Not a bad deal for 60 bucks.





No more yankey my wankey, the donger need food!

Patriots 2006 schedule is out

	Sun 9/10/2006	1:00 PM	vs	Bills
	Sun 9/17/2006	4:15 PM	@	Jets
	Sun 9/24/2006	8:15 PM	vs	Broncos
	Sun 10/1/2006	4:15 PM	@	Bengals
	Sun 10/8/2006	1:00 PM	vs	Dolphins
	Sun 10/15/2006		vs	Bye
	Sun 10/22/2006	1:00 PM	@	Bills
	Mon 10/30/2006	8:30 PM	@	Vikings
	Sun 11/5/2006	8:15 PM	vs	Colts
	Sun 11/12/2006	1:00 PM	vs	Jets
	Sun 11/19/2006	1:00 PM	@	Packers
	Sun 11/26/2006	1:00 PM	vs	Bears
	Sun 12/3/2006	1:00 PM	vs	Lions
	Sun 12/10/2006	1:00 PM	@	Dolphins
	Sun 12/17/2006	1:00 PM	vs	Texans
	Sun 12/24/2006	1:00 PM	@	Jaguars
	Sun 12/31/2006	1:00 PM	@	Titans

What Next???

19 days till opening day

What we need.

So now we have lost David Givens. Adam Vinatieri and Willie McGinest are free agents. Rodney Harrison may not come back. Corey Dillon lost a step last year- was it because of injury, or age? In any case there are several holes that the Pats need to fill before the 2006 season starts. Here, in my opinion, are the most important areas of concern:

1. Wide Receiver: Even with the depleted defense last year, we managed to score our way to the playoffs. But with only one legitimate wide out, and a medocre running game, how are we to score? I'm not saying we need TO (headache), but a decent #2 to replace Givens is in order. I definitely think the Tight End position is solid, and I'm sure you heard me call out my opinion that we need to utilize this position more. This is our chance, but a #2 WR is needed big time.



2. Secondary: It looks like we will take Ashton Youboty in the first round. That will help, but a veteran CB or Safety will also be needed since the invaluable Duane Starks is now gone(!) Seriously, though, we need a defensive backfield.

3. Running Back: Although we have three solid backs, none of them are going to be #1 backs in a couple of years. Dillon is on his downside, Faulk is a solid #2, and Pass a good receiving back. A draft pick will help for '07.















4. Linebacker: With the core getting older, and Willie on the fence, a free agent signing is key for the defense. Julian Peterson would be a great addition, but it would be a shame if Willie didn't finish his career here. I say take em both, make it impossible to run or pass against us.
















5. Kicker: I never would have thought it would come to this. Mr. Clutch is being assessed instead of signed. The same way we agree has made the Pats one of the best franchises by not overspending has come back to haunt. How do you let the guy who made it possible for us to win a Superbowl (twice!) go? I dunno. I mean you don't want to give him 3 million, but if the difference is only 250,000, how do you let him go? I think this is one case where you gotta bend the rules, and bring him back. In any case, don't sign Vanderjerk.

Let's see how it pans out...

Random Pats Pics

After not checking the blog email address for a while, I just did and found these pictures taken by SF's brother. I'm ready for the season to begin already...

Rust Radio

With thanks (again) to Thrasher's Wheat, here's another discovery from the web. Rust Radio streams Neil live shows every weekend. Just click on one link and the stream begins (at least with Itunes). Right now I'm listening to Neil with the International Harvesters recorded in Michigan from 1985. There's very little info on the site, just a link to start the stream and a listing of the weekend's shows.

And if you missed it, Thrasher was nice enough to mention Parking Lot 9 on Thrasher's Wheat again....Check it out

Heart of Gold Movie - Review

The Mrs. and I ventured into Cambridge on Sunday to see "Neil Young Heart of Gold". Here's the review of our night...

First of all, the only theater within 100 miles of us showing the movie seems to be the Kendall Square Theater in Cambridge, MA. This is the same theater we went and saw Jerry Seinfeld's limited release "Comedian" a couple years ago. Cambridge sounds like a hassle, but all in all not bad, the theater was only about 10 minutes off of the Mass Pike and was easy to find.

After parking the car in the garage at the theater (fee was only $2.70 with validation from the theater) we started looking for drinks/dinner. Every place serving food was not open until 5:30 so we found a pool hall (forget the name) where we sat at the bar and had a couple. At about 5:30 we moved across the plaza to the Cambridge Brewing Company. Great brew pub, and one of the stops on the now famous "Tony and Harry's Boston brew pub crawl" from many years ago. I had the seared tuna and Jeanne had the maple pork chop. Both were just OK. Had dinner and more drinks there and it was time to head back to the theater.

The theater was pretty empty. Only about 20 people total out to see Neil on a Sunday night. The movie was all concert with only limited band member interviews prior to the start of the show. They played about half the songs on Prairie Wind then went into a great mix of Neil classics. I'm sure I'm forgetting some (if not a lot) and the order is not right, but here goes (classics only):

1. Four strong winds
2. Harvest Moon
3. Comes A Time
4. Heart of Gold
5. Old Man
6. Needle and the damage done
7. Old King
8. One of these days
9. The old laughing lady (ending credits)

During the Prairie Wind portion, I couldn't help think it was like many Neil concerts we've seen before. Everyone was politely interested in finding out what the new songs were all about. Then he went into some very emotional versions of the classics, he had a quick story before each one...about his father, old band members that were not there that night and ones that were there..including his wife Pegi.

It was a great show. Wish we could have been there. But I must admit, Neil looked his age...it has never hit me more than on Sunday night. He's 60 and suddenly looks it.

I first thought that we've seen our last Crazy Horse show, or maybe even our last Neil show period. Then I remembered it was Neil. I'm sure he'll suprize us yet again.

We'll have to start planning our "Neil Young Heart of Gold" watching party as soon as the DVD comes out!

Next vehicle

OK I think I've found the next vehicle. I've always wanted a Jeep CJ/Wrangler. Now my trusted Toyota says they are coming out with the second coming of the classic Land Cruiser, the "FJ Cruiser". When I say classic, don't confuse this one with the current incarnation of the Land Cruiser which is plushed out and certainly out of my price range.

Don't get thrown by the ugly blue shown here. Don't know why they insist on showing only this blue on their site. I'll go with either the black or the maroon. And I'll make sure I get the roof rack so we can still carry ALL the tailgating gear!

FJ Cruiser info on Toyota.com

Rocket Return?

Don't know what you guys think, but this is a sight I could deal with sometime this spring...

Blue Ginger

We hit Blue Ginger in Wellesley, MA tonight with a couple of Jeanne's friends. It was great as usual. While I was tempted to try one of the many exotic sounding items on the menu, I stayed with what I've ordered the past couple times; the smoked salmon and beef carpaccio and the garlic pepper lobster for the entree...tremendous!! More detail to follow...but here's the link:

www.ming.com/blueginger

Cafe Milano

I bought one of these today with some "Mokha Java Espresso Blend" from Majik Coffee, http://www.majikcoffee.com/index.htm.

It makes one kick ass cup of coffee.
http://www.bonjourproducts.com/product_display/BJX01451.asp

All you need to make great coffee and espresso at home is one of these, a french press, and a grinder. You can get all three for under $50 total. Forget the fancy coffee and espresso makers that can cost you over a $1000, this is all you need.

Broken Flowers

I just watched Jim Jarmusch's (Dead Man, Year of the Horse) new movie "Broken Flowers". There is a character in the movie called Sun Green. Just thought you guys might be interested.

Analysis by Bob M.

Last night I watched the second half of the Pats/Bronco's game in real time on my Tivo and I'm sick to my stomach. The Pats dominated the game, the announcers were GUSHING over the Pats ability to: 1. stop the run, 2. stop the Bronco's offense altogether (1 first down in the third quarter), 3. tune out the crowd, 4. handle the pressure of the situation, and most of all 5. handle the constant blitzing of the Bronco's. Brady wasn't touched in the entire half except for one time when he was clearly hit late (I didn't remember this when I was watching live). On that play they showed it from the end zone, it was a long completion to the left sideline to Givens (actually Givens was interfered with on the play to but it wasn't called). Brady threw and a Bronco hit him, picked him up and drove him backwards into the ground. While a textbook tackle on a running back in the open field, a penalty on a quarterback when the ball is long gone, but again, they swallowed the whistle on this one.

Anyway, the Bronco's got the ball first in the 3rd quarter and went 3 and out. The Pats were very pumped and were smacking into each other high fiving over the 3rd and 10 sack of Plumber. They punt to the Pats 20 and Brady takes over and drives them right down the field. I think they only had two 3rd down plays. Very quick, very efficient and most notable, LOTS of time for Brady. It was obvious and Simms kept saying it over and over that "at halftime, the Pats figured out how to handle the constant blitz of the Broncos." Brady had great protection rolling out from one side or another or simply moving in the pocket. That drive went to the Bronco's 35 with a 3rd and 5 and Branch picked up first down with a 10 yard completion. Now at the 25 they gained 5 on first down on a pass, 3 more on second on a run by Dillon which gave them 3rd and 2 at the 17. Brady then threw a one hopper to Branch on one of those wide receiver quick passes when the receiver doesn't go off the line of scrimmage and Brady throws him the ball right out of the snap. He only needed two yards and with a completion they probably would have gotten that, but not much more as the defender came up quickly. Simms said, "that was going to be a run but Brady checked off to the pass." Now with 4th and 2 at the 17 they kicked the field goal. With the way they dominated the play you would hope for a combination of Dillon and Faulk running on 3rd and 2 and 4th and whatever if need be. They were getting the line surge and I feel pretty confident that in 2 plays they could get 2 yards. Remember the Pats like to pass on short yardage situations so Watson and Graham would have to be watched by corners with the linebackers up in the line of scrimmage to defend the more obvious run. Either way, good situation for the Pats but Brady checked out of it and threw the one hopper. So now it's 10-6.

Bronco's get one first down on 2nd and 10 but then punt again. Now the Pats get it again at the 25 yard line for their second turn with the ball in the 2nd half. They run one play and complete a big one to Branch for a first down at the Bronco's 45. Again, no pressure on Brady and they are down to 3rd and 2 at the 10. Dillon runs off the left tackle and gets to the 5 yard line, first and goal. The crowd gets quiet. On first down the Pats jump for a false start and now it's 1st and goal at the 10. On first down Brady throws to Branch at the 5 so it's now 2nd and goal at the 5. Dillon runs for no gain straight up the middle for no gain so it's now third and goal at the 5. Now the crowd gets back into it a little. The Pats are planning on max coverage as Watson is on the left side staying in to block. The ball is snapped and both Watson and Ashworth, playing left tackle, go to block the outside rusher, who doesn't rush and instead the corner/safety blitzes inside. Ashworth lunges but he's past him but Brady is rolling right anyway and definitely sees him coming and moves further to his right. The Pats had Brown on the wide right just run a down and out to the front pylon. I didn't see who was on the other side but I'm pretty sure that it was two tight end set and Dillon in the backfield so there was only one other receiver running a route. Watson was supposed to hit someone rushing and release as when his guy didn't move he stood there for a count of two and then was heading out to the left flat basically alone. His guy was moving to the offense's right following Brady so Watson was going to be free and clear on the left. Had Ashworth blocked his man (why didn't he stay tight to the left guard?) Brady's slide to his right would have been less pronounced meaning that Watson would have been a possible receiver. As soon as Brady was forced to move way to his right to avoid the unblocked blitzer, Watson was negated as there is no way you throw across the field back to a receiver. Again, someone else was running a route but I didn't notice but it came down to Brown with Bailey covering him. He wasn't open. Brady saw Bailey there. It's not like Baily magically appeared and confused Brady. Brady simply threw the ball to a bad spot, which was behind Brown. Had Brady thrown it to the front pylon in the end zone there were only two results possible: Incomplete pass or touchdown. Instead the ball was over Brown's right shoulder as he was cutting for the front pylon. This was more poor pass than poor decision. Bailey gets the pass and we know what happens next.......touchback. Oh that's right, the ball somehow squeezed between Bailey and the pylon when Bailey's left foot was 2 feet from the end zone and the ball was in his right hand, which he had lowered to his thigh, and the ball ended up near the back of the end zone only about 10 feet out of bounds. Simms, although a moron, was right on with the "if I could draw a straight line" comment as that straight line drawn from where the ball landed to where the ball left Bailey's hands would show that the ball would HAVE to have gone thru the end zone. It was like the Kennedy magic bullet turning in midair if it didn't go thru the end zone as it would have had to have gone straight left, and I mean 90 degrees, to the left out of Bailey's hands, then taken another 90 degrees right turn to go as far forward as it went to land 20 feet further than where Bailey was hit while only 10 feet wider. Anyone say Pythagorean's Theorem? They give it a 20 second review, remember where they are, wink at their cousin Mike Shanahan, and say the call stands. Ballgame, right? Nope. Major mistake #1 though. This was AT LEAST a 10 point swing if not a 14 point swing.

The Pats didn't give up though. They get the kickoff and go right down the field AGAIN getting to a 1st and 10 at the 35 yard line of the Bronco's. On first and 10 Brady throws a short pass to Faulk crossing right to left and he's wide open. Instead of cutting right up the middle of the field however he runs to the sideline to get around the corner. The cornerback catches him from behind but he's gained 8 yards so it's 2nd and 2. If he did cut up he may have gotten the first down. Now on 2nd and 2 Dillon goes for no gain. Now on 3rd and 2 on the Bronco's 27, Brady has the time and floats a ball towards the left side of the end zone and Brown has beaten Bailey by 4 steps and is wide open at the goal line and pulling away but the ball goes deeper into the end zone incomplete. Branch was also wide open about 5 yards behind Brown already in the end zone running the same pattern but 5 yards deeper. The ball lands 2 yards in front of Brown and about 2 yards deeper than he was. This ball lands about 4 yards in front of Branch but right where he would catch it if he was 4 yards closer to the sidelines. Basically the ball was equidistant to both open receivers. Simms attributes it to the "thin air making the ball sail" but that's a load of crap on such a short throw, especially one thrown as a soft pass. I hadn't noticed Branch wide open live but clearly saw it last night that Branch was there and open as well. I'm thinking that Brady, although again with tons of time, saw both receivers wide open and "threw it in the middle". Like in the Pittsburgh/Bengals game two weeks ago on the Randel El run right and throwback to Rothlesberger who threw towards two wide open receivers at the goal line, Ben's throw was awful, a wobbler that the guy who caught it juggled before catching even though NO ONE was around him. The easy wide open ones are always the tougher as you take something off the throw. Ben did in that game and Brady did on Saturday night. He "short-armed it". Think one hopper back to the pitcher where the pitcher has all the time in the world and he throws it in the dirt to the first baseman. THAT is what Brady did. Tighter coverage would have meant a harder throw and a harder throw would have been on line and in Brown's hands or Branch's hands. No touchdown. Vinatieri comes in and misses by about 3 feet. No points. Still 17-6. Ballgame, right? Nope. Three point swing. Major mistake #2.

Bronco's take over, now in the 4th quarter with about 9 minutes left in the game, and get one first down and AGAIN have to punt. The Pats send in 9 guys but they get blocked so Brown, who was on the wing, has to run back and field the punt. No excuses though, he was set when it came down. He screwed it up, which then Belichick threw his playsheet to the ground in disgust. This actually was a "muffed punt" which by rule means that Brown was the only one that could recover it in the air and no one was allowed to touch him because he called a fair catch. He waved his arm, the ball hits his hands, the ball bounces up, Brown gets smoked by a Bronco, the ball shoots forward and the Bronco's recover. Muffed punt, unreviewable, and Bronco's ball. The right call on that gives the ball back to the Pats. This is a weird rule but I've seen it called many a time. The fair catch means that the returner has all the rights to catch it until it hits the ground and then it's fair game. It is interference on the kicking team exactly like when the returner calls a fair catch and is hit but makes the catch. The refs missed this call. I heard this WEEI and saw it myself last night. They read the rulebook on the air and according to the rules this should have been the Pats ball at the 35 with the penalty down still 17-6. Nope, Bronco's at the 25 and they get one first down and then a 10 yard pass for a TD. 24-6. All 24 points coming off of Pats turnovers and now all 24 were disputable points due to officials missed calls. Sour grapes? Maybe but look at this game until this point. The first 7 points for Denver are on a "pass interference" call in the end zone that the head of NFL officials didn't confirm was actually interference on the NFL Network show this week. He sidestepped it but had the chance to say, "he made the right call" but didn't. He knew it wasn't and the Bronco's are given their first 7 points. Their next 3 points are after Faulk's fumble on 2nd and 2 at the 30 when he gets 5 or 6 and coughs it up before he is hit. The Bronco's again can't get a first down so on 4th and 5 they kick a 45 yarder that makes it by literally 2 feet. On the snap several Pats point at the left side of the offensive line as they jumped but no call. If that's correctly called, it's moved back 5 yards and it's a punt. Bronco's are given another 3 points. The next 7 points are on the "magic bullet" football with Watson and Bailey that went out of the back of the end zone. They are given another 7 points. The next 7 are on the non-called muffed punt. They are given another 7 points That's 24 points and every one of them is off of a Pats questionable turnover and directly up to the opinion of the refs, and of which their boss can't verify is actually the right call. Ballgame now? STILL NO!

The Pats get the kickoff out to the 30 yard line and on first and 10 Brady hit Branch at the 50 and gets pushed out at the 2 yard line. Now first and goal and Brady hits Givens right away for the TD. Two plays. 10 seconds off the game clock. 70 yards. 24-13. Now there are about 5 minutes left in the game. Ballgame? STILL NO!!

Bronco's get the ball on the kickoff and have one long run to the 50 and then another pass to the 20. This is their ONLY drive of the game. They get to the 20 and stall so they kick the field goal. Now it's 27-13 which keeps the score at 2 TD's down with 3 plus minutes left. The way the Pats went up and down in the entire second half, actually they didn't even punt in the second half, 2 scores were possible. First and 10 after the kickoff and Brady throws a long one to Dwight. The ball is under thrown and Dwight has to slow up for it. Lynch barrels OVER Dwight and makes the interception, no pass interference (I think the rule is you can't touch a receiver trying to make a catch but they forget that rule, for godssakes WE'RE IN DENVER!! That's my COUSIN!! HEY MIKE!! WE WON!!) Now, game over. The Bronco's get two first downs and pick up about 30 yards in rushing on this drive. They finish with 96 yards for the game rushing and when you take away garbage time running, that's 66 yards for a team that averages something like 170 yards a game. Do you think that if Brady doesn't throw the pick and it is a TD instead putting them ahead that Denver would have been able to come back? NOTHIGN in the second half worked offensively for Denver. Everything offensively worked for the Pats. The total yardage was like 460 to 260. Total domination.

Bottom line is the score and the Pats blew it. The ref's calls DID effect the score. The Pats turnovers DID effect the score. Denver's offense was non existent. I heard Michael Felger of the Boston Herald say that "well of course the Bronco's numbers were low they didn't need to go far each time to score" but while a true statement, there were MANY drives in the second half, when they got the ball on a kickoff or the missed field goal, where they needed to get a drive from their offense and couldn't. The Pats D dominated them, while the entire second half the Pats offense did whatever they wanted to do whenever they wanted to do it. Watching the tape by myself with no emotions running while it was live and listening to the announcers AS IT WAS HAPPENING, this was complete domination by the Pats. Honestly, watching it makes me feel WORSE. You listen to the national media and even the local media and they mostly have deemed that the "better team on that night won". This is true when you consider the MISTAKES by the Pats, which were accelerated by the refs, made them NOT the better "team". I can live with that description but overall the Patriots are a better "machine" than the Broncos. They play 10 times and the Pats win 8 of them. FRUSTRATING!!!

Why we should have won

1. Defense:

All I have been hearing and saying all week proved to be completely wrong. Stop Denver's run and we win. It didn't happen. They only got 96 total yards on the ground. Make Plummer throw the ball and he will turn the ball over. IT happened. So what? We didn't win despite our strongest asset last night. Assante Samuel (3 tackles, 3 put downs, 1 Int) was the defensive player of the game for the Pats, as he only gave up one big play, and that was for like 25 yards. We had some pressure (2 sacks) on Plummer, and it should have been enough. Our front 7 played a very good game and set the table for some Tom Brady heroics. The offense simply lost it on dropped balls and turnovers.

2. Ok here it comes : BAD CALLS!

You can file this under WHAAAA? When the refs look at the replay of Ashley Lelie hanging all over Assante Samuel, I hope they swallow their own tongues. What a give away. That's home field for ya, and I bet the NFL wants a new team in there this year. Now the great play by Ben Watson on Chimp Bailey was another important call that the Broncos got. It was tough to determine whether the ball went out of the end zone because of the angle and the seeming lack of shots of the play. How convenient. A make up call for the blown non-penalty on Samuel would have been welcome, and may have turned the game back around. Either way, we got the big shaft once, if not twice on crucial plays. Not the way I would like to win, but I'm sure the Denver Broncos will take it.

3. 420 total yards to 286:

You got it. We outplayed them on Offense and Defense. Unfortunately, we forgot the sticky gloves at home. Our offense was on when it was on, and off big time when it was off. Inconsistent like San Diego or Atlanta, not like the Pats- usually. We even out gained then on the ground by average 3.8 to 3.0 per carry, but you can't run much when you are behind.

Now for the reasons why we lost:

Why we lost.

1. Whining from the onset (Psychological Preparation):

Tom Brady wasn't very Brady-esque from the opening play, where he felt the officials made a mistake. The officiating was B-A-D. Rotten. However, Brady is supposed to be the calm, cool leader. Where was that guy? Eventually everyone was losing it (i.e.McGinest on Izzo), and that first play set the tone. The whole team was in a funk psychologically from the opening drive. This set up the next reason why we lost.

2. Mental errors leading to turnovers (Bad Execution):

It seemed as though everyone was trying to do too much. The pressure was there, but not like we haven't seen it before. Faulk has been known to throw one at the ground once in awhile, and he wasn't gripping the ball tight enough on his fumble. Hobbs was reaching too much with the ball. Troy Brown just misplayed the ball on the punt return, and is also at fault on the interception return by Bailey. If you run a route inside the 10, you don't stay in the middle of the enzone. That play was designed for a catch right at the goal line. Brown let Bailey get in front of him. Now the pass was high, and forced in there, and that is where Tom Brady was trying to do too much.

3. Where the F was Ben Watson??? (Coaching):

I know one player doesn't a team make, but all week on WEEI, I have been hearing that sound clip about "one of the greatest plays I have ever seen". Well ya know what? It was one of the greastest plays by a tight end I have ever seen, too. So where was Ben Watson in the game plan? I have to admit it, Obi Wan was off his game. We need an offensive co-ordinator. No catches for Watson. I don't think they even looked at him, and who makes the play of the game? Ben Watson. On D. That play displayed heart, which is what most of the team lacked all game. I hope Champ Bailey has multiple fractures in his arm for being a showboat. Hats off to Ben Watson. I give Bill Bellichick a mulligan, but he needs more help on the sidelines. We all knew Charlie Weiss and Romeo Crennel would be missed, and their absence let to part of our demise. Bob Kraft needs to hire some help, Obi Wan can't do it all by himself!

Bling

Housekeeping

Just a few random notes:

• What happened to the bone in rib eye pictures?
• A big Parking Lot 9 welcome to SF. Took you long enough to accept the blog invitation!
• Mark your calendars for the annual Super Bowl party at our place. No jinxing going on here, we'll have the party no matter who's in the game. But it of course will be more of a party if that team from Foxborough is in it..
• We all seem to be big fans of lamb and Iron Chef. Don't miss tomorrow night's Iron Chef America. Secret ingredient....Lamb!

NFL Playoff Picks - Round 2

Just thought I'd throw out my picks for this weekend. Odds taken from Yahoo at 12:15p today

Washington @ Seattle (-9.5)
Washington seems to be the last pretender left in this years tournament. Seattle is definitely the winner and should cover.

Carolina @ Chicago (-3)
Most of the experts I have heard seem to be going with the Panthers, but they've been inconsistent all year. Plus you've got the Bears playing at home, back at Soldier Field. Those Chi-town fans must be going nuts after not having a playoff football team in so long. I'm taking the Bears to win and cover. If I'm right and the Bears win, then it will be a defensive game. In that case take the under (30)

Pittsburgh @ Indy (-9.5)
It looked like Indy's year early on, but circumstances certainly have changed. While a bye week is certainly a good thing going into the playoffs, they've had somewhere between 4 and 6 weeks since they have played a meaningful game. Who knows how the whole thing with Dungy's kid will effect them, could be a plus or a minus. Pittsburgh like the Pats are peaking at the right time. I'm going with the Steelers to win. At the very least, Indy won't cover all those points.

New England @ Denver (-3)
Trying to take the homer out of me, I see the Pats keeping the Denver running game in check. If that happens it comes down to the QB's doesn't it? You have to give the nod to Brady. The Pats win.

Important game analysis.

Here's some great analysis of the Pats-Broncos game from the guys at FootballOutsiders.com. Check it out:

http://www.footballoutsiders.com/2006/01/13/ramblings/game-previews/3523/

Prediction for Saturday Night

It's not gonna be easy. The Broncos are tough to stop on the ground, and as we saw in week 6, can be dangerous in the air if the ground game has its way. Dever's D can be fiesty, and downright nasty at times, with Champ Bailey and John Lynch in the secondary ready to pick off errant throws. In the last meeting with Denver at Mile High, we were a depleted team, without Corey Dillon, Kevin Faulk, Richard Seymour, Tedy Bruschi, and we lost Rodney. That, and a bad game for Joe Montana (woops sorry- Tom Brady) led to a decisive victory, yet not a blow-out, in the previous meeting. However, most of our players are back, and the secondary has tightened up quite alot since week 6. The real game will be in the trenches. If we can win the tough battles vs. Denver's Offensive line, it will create a forced passing attack which can be taken advantage ala the Jacksonville game. Jake Plummer will not be able to stand in the pocket and pick us apart no matter how mediocre our secondary is, and if we can hold their running game to around 100 yards, we will win.

New England's running game gets no respect, and it hasn't deserved it based upon the numbers this season. Yet, with Corey Dillon well rested after a less than average amount of carries in the Jags game, a healthy and dangerous Kevin Faulk, and Patrick Pass in the mix, the Pats suddenly look like a good running team. I believe we will run the ball a lot. That and short passes to control the clock, keeping the Broncos O off the field, will not allow the amount of carries Denver needs to get their running game going. Ben Watson will be a factor again. Weather will also be a factor. If it snows, the wet field will slow Tatum Bell and Mike Anderson down, and force Plummer to throw more often. This will lead to a decisive victory for the Pats. Either way, I predict a win, with Plummer throwing more interceptions than touchdows, and Brady leading the team to a close victory. Bill will outcoach Shanahan in a classic matchup.

Pats 24 Broncos 20, unless it snows, then Pats 20 Broncos 10.

We have a visitor

"Her" name is Pinkie, and apparently she is better than all of us here at Parking Lot 9. In fact she seems to think she is better than mostly everyone else out here in blogoshere without any actual views of her own on her blog. She reports erroneously about people and judges them based up her own transparent belief system. I quote her from her first post on her blog.

"Pinkie is going to set things straight...
Pinkie is new on the scene, and girl is going to set things straight about the blogs out there on the blogosphere. Through deft (or shall we say daft?) wielding of the "Next Blog" button that Blogger provides its users, she is going to sift through the dredges of the blogosphere, sorting the cream from the curds. With a "pinkies up" for the former, and a "pinkies down" for the latter she will proceed, at her convenience, to the next blog, making no appologies along the way.Make way for Pinkie, girls!"

Check it out guys, we have the real second coming of the messiah here, ready to send everyone to either heaven or hell with her absolute and biased opinions about human nature. Good luck Pinky, I am sure you will make LOTS of friends. Pay her a visit if you care to opine.

http://pinkiesuppinkiesdown.blogspot.com/

Playoffs!!!

Wish I could've made it to the game last night, but the Holiday Party at Horizon is a big deal, and I got to meet some of the founders of the company. The food was unbelieveable. They had sushi with tuna, salmon, eel in sashimi and maki rolls, california rolls, raw bar with littlenecks, oysters, shrimp cocktail, assorted cheese and crackers, pasta station, fajitas, a chocolate fountain, and last but certainly not least, open bar! I only had 5 drinks because I wanted to remain sober for when I met the higher ranked managers and sales reps. My mentor Skip from Cape Cod finished at #1 in the Northeast in sales.

So I caught a little of the first half last night, and the word was Tom Brady was injured. We left at halftime, and decided not to put the radio on to catch the 2nd half on the DVR. The ride home was rough, all I wanted was another drink because I didn't take in enough to carry my buzz all the way home. The wait was worth the while. As I was soon to realize, not only did we have a bottle of shiraz, Brady wasn't hurt much, and (as you guys are well aware of) the Pats dominated!!!

I was particularly impressed with not only the record-setting D, but Ben Watson, who after fumbling, came back ala another Ben (Coates), shaking and breaking tackles then dashing into the end zone. Andre Davis was also key, recovering the aforementioned fumble and contributing on offense and special teams. He is definitely an asset going into Denver or Indy. Kevin Faulk has got to be remembered as two different players when he retires. Not only has he gotten stronger as he gets older, but he is so much better in the playoffs than the regular season. He averaged about 10 yards a touch last night, and with all the talk about Dillon being hurt or slowing down, it is so important to have someone else to go to. Oh, also Tom Brady (MVP, not best offensive player- voters, Most Valuable Player to his team) did exactly what we need him to do. He took care of the ball.

Now on the the D. I mean where do I start? I know this was Jacksonville. Rusty QB, no real star receiver, but what a domination on the line! Six sacks (4.5 for Willie), a forced fumble and recovery, 5 put downs, and a pick for a TD (Samuel). How about Troy Brown at DB? I have been calling for that move all year, and he finally got the call made 4 tackles, and he adds a TD receiving taboot. Ballsy move by Bill going into the playoffs.

Now we are forced to root for the Steelers.

Let's keep it going next week Pats!

Heart of Gold movie

This is looking pretty good.....Opens Feb 10th. The site has a trailer and you can sign up for updates.

www.heartofgoldmovie.com

Boston Sports Massacre Podcast is no more

See the comment added to my Dolphins @ Pats post. Brian at BSM reports the podcast is no more. As I don't have his email address, we can communicate here.

Brian - What happened?

Geez, they mention our blog and then they go out of business....Seems about right...

Dolphins @ Pats

Here's one quick photo from the game. We've gotten through the Holidays now. Time to get the blog back up and running everyone!!

Holiday Greetings

Here's some holiday sillyness from the Barenaked Ladies....You'll need to down load the MP3....

Deck The Stills

The Horror

I guess the Johnny Damon stencils are OK now.

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/story/253565p-217098c.html

Good Luck to Mr & Mrs Section 215!

We've just received word that Mr & Mrs Section 215 are off to the hospital. She will be induced sometime tonight!! Good Luck!

Sportsman of the Year

Where would we be without him!

A Few Pics from Sunday

After setting up base camp, a few brewskis are in order...


After a trip to the "mens room"...




"Hello this is section 215 calling section 215..."

Section215 misses his 1st game of the season, Richard Seymour can tell the difference and is unhappy about it.

from the Boston Herald:

Seymour gives fans an earful
By Michael Felger
Monday, December 5, 2005

FOXBORO — Richard Seymour ripped into the quiet Gillette Stadium crowd yesterday, saying the Foxboro faithful were “spoiled” and that they made more noise for a visiting Victoria’s Secret model than the three-time Super Bowl champions.
“It’s really disappointing,” said Seymour following the Patriots’ 16-3 victory over the Jets. “The loudest they ever got was when there was a Victoria’s Secret model (Gisele Bundchen) on the scoreboard. They don’t know when to cheer. You look up and you see half of the stands empty.”
Seymour offered the remarks without being asked, indicating a level of frustration that went beyond the words. Several times during the game, the defensive lineman could be seen exhorting the crowd, only to be greeted by relative silence.
Seymour’s complaint has been echoed by other Patriots players over the last few years, as the open ends of Gillette and the close proximity of the club-level seats (where many fans opt to stay inside) have conspired to give the Pats one of the worst home-field advantages — in terms of crowd noise — in the NFL.
There was one occasion during the 2003 season when a game against Tennessee coincided with a Red Sox playoff game. That led to a weird happenstance where the crowd erupted just after a Steve McNair touchdown run (at the same moment, David Ortiz had doubled in the winning run).
“They all should have been at the baseball game then,” said Seymour, recalling the story.
“Coming from Arrowhead (Stadium in Kansas City) last week, it’s obvious how important the 12th man is,” added Seymour. “That stadium is probably the loudest in the league. So to come from that to this . . .”
When asked why the Gillette fans were so quiet, Seymour said: “They’re spoiled.”
Linebacker Rosevelt Colvin took a more diplomatic approach.
“They pay to see us,” he said, “So they have the right to do what they want.”

Jets @ Pats

In a nutshell:

• Harry's out...it's time to nest
• Tom, Tara, Tony and Dave (Tony's neighbor) are in
• We'll meet up at the train station at 1pm
• I'll bring the fire pit, grill, some food and beer
• Tom & Tara - Bring some food and drinks of choice
• Dress warm....it will be a cold one....maybe even snow.....
• Tom - Call me to confirm the plans!!

We'll dedicate this one to the soon to be born Brady Harrington.....

Links!

With thanks to Thrasher, I've figured out how to add links to the blog (see them to the right). I've added the basics already. Let me know your thoughts on what else should be added to the link list. Please keep in mind that only the creme-de-la-creme sites should make this list.

Sad Day in Boston Sports History

Mike O'Connell made another bonehead move. Since the offseason, he couldn't get Forsberg. He couldn't get a top defenseman (unless you count 37 year old Brian Leetch). The players he did bring in- Zhamnov (perennially injured), McEachern (sent to Providence), Scatchard (traded for a mediocre Tanabe), have been busts. So who to blame? Joe Thornton. The Captain. He was averaging nearly 1 1/3 points per game and was even +/- on a team that was 5 games under .500! Makes sense to me. The players they got are all good players, but not one of the top centers in the league. The reason this deal sucks, is that they should have had the depth they needed ALREADY. The reason they had to deal Thornton, is because O'Connell couldn't get HIS job done and make the big signings in the off-season. Then when the new players were a bust, they had no choice, they couldn't get the depth they needed with any other player. Hey NHL franchises! How about Mike O'Connell for a bag of used pucks? Tell ya what, we'll throw in Harry Sinden and Jeremy Jacobs and you can have the pucks back!!! Take them all, just give us Joe Thornton back!


This may go down as one of the worst trades in B's history...




or, it may go down as one of the best (doubt it!!!)...



but either way, Joe Thornton ranks up there with some of my favorite B's of all time...
















and he although he won't bring the cup back to the B's, he will be missed...

Nobody is untouchable when your looking for a scapegoat.

Can Thorton really be blamed for the Bruin's woes? Isn't it more likely that O'Connell, Sinden, & Jacobs did a terrible job planning for the new NHL? Should Laviolette been named head coach instead of Sullivan?

Thrasher's wheat

FYI: We just got mentioned on Thrasher's Wheat, good stuff. I thought I'd throw up the above scan for anyone who might be visiting the site for the first time. Too bad about the game today.

Here's the link to Thrasher's Wheat:
http://www.thrasherswheat.org/wheatfield.html

I love scotch. Scotchy, scotch, scotch. Here it goes down, down into my belly...

I went to Legal Seafoods for my birthday tonight. My mom took Tara and I out for dinner. The food was great, but a bit pricey for what you got. When the dessert and after dinner drink menu came, I noticed that one could order the "Single Malt Extraordinaire". This consisted of a 1 oz. glass of Macallan 12 year old, a 1 oz. glass of Macallan 18 year old, & a 1 oz. glass of Macallan 25 year old. After consulting with myself for several minutes I decided to order it. It was well worth it, all 3 scotchs were wonderful, and being able to compare each side by side was a great experience. I'll probably never get to try the 25 yo again. It cost $14.95 for the suite. Not a bad deal considering:
Macallan 12 years 750ml
The Macallan 12 years 750ml
$41.99
Macallan 18 years 750ml
The Macallan 18 years 750ml
$139.99
Macallan 25 years 750ml
The Macallan 25 years 750ml
$439.99

Sunday

Hey guys, just a reminder about Sunday vs. the Chiefs. Should be a great game! Meet at our place at 12:15-30. Pre-game munchies and cheers. Game at 1:00. Tara and I will provide food (we are keeping it simple- finger food like pizza, maybe some sandwiches, chips, etc.) Feel free to bring an app, some beer, or other drinks of your choice, and some music for halftime and post game. I'd like to hear that Born to Run CD, or some of that Neil compilation...

C'Ya on Sunday!

Walk The Line

Jeanne and I saw the Johnny Cash movie "Walk The Line" Wednesday night. Good show, excellent performances by Joaquin Phoenix as Cash and Reese Witherspoon as June Carter. I was very suprized to learn that they did their own singing for the movie. I thought I'd check out the website and they have an interesting "Cash Family Tree" with all the people who have covered his songs and performers that Cash covered. Of course, there was Neil....

Check out the site - Walk The Line

Photos,thought forgotten, found

Tara found a disposble camera the other day and we had no idea what was on it. We got prints made up and some of the pics were from the String Cheese Incident show from Haloween 2000, Portland, ME. Here's a couple of pics from that night.

Brian at BSM drops by to discuss Greendale

I am pasting this post from a comment by Brian on the Pats vs. No Pics post. I thought everyone would want to see it and put their .02 in. I added a few comments to my initial comments.

Anonymous said...
Hey fellas. I know this particular post is not the most appropriate place for me to ask this question, but I'm too f'n lazy to find a better way to ask. I notice you are big Neil Young fans. I am a fan of average size. I wouldn't win a trivia contest but I know enough to know he has a thing for model trains. Anyway, I got free tix to see him on the Greendale tour and had no clue what I was watching when I got there. I know it was a concept album and the show was like an opera but I just didn't get it. Can somebody comment on this? Anybody have a clue what the whole Greendale thing was all about? Like it? Hate it? Hit me with some knowledge. Thanks,
Brian at BSM

4:33 PM


Tom R said...
Hey Brian.

Neil Young has (for the greater part of his life) been pro-environment and anti-media. Greendale was Neil's commentary on these issues, set in a typical American family setting.

There is the issue of technology taking us over, and Granpa represents all folks who fight this notion. This could be Neil commenting on the "big brother" aspect of the government. Eventually the media takes Granpa down. It is too late for him.

There are other things going on in Greendale, such as the cop Carmichael's murder by Jed, on a drug bust gone wrong, and some anti-war rhetoric. Granpa's grand daughter, Sun Green, becomes an environmental activist by the end of the film/play and our future in trying to save ourselves from extinction. We have messed up, but there is hope for the future. This, I believe, is the main statement Neil is making.

I thought the live show Neil put on was great. Of course I knew the story for the most part when I went, and this was impotant because I could appreciate the interplay between the characters and the band, and how Neil staged it, etc. without trying to "get" the story. I really enjoyed "Be the Rain" with the whole cast, and then after Greendale was over, Crazy Horse came back for a mini-set of classics to cap things off.

Pats vs. Saints- more pics

Pics from Week 11

These are my pics from Sunday. Some came out blurry, and got deleted. Sorry if you weren't in any shots...Rich should add his pics to complete the set.


Apparently my camera pics up precipitation in clouds. Weird...

Harry and Rich.



Tony fires up his grill then relaxes...




Some of the food...



I should have skipped breakfast, so I could have eaten more...




Clean up time...









The view from our seats.......................





To the left....










center,



and the right...











Hey I got in a pic! It's good to get in one once in a while...





Real nice sunset on the way out...





Tara in a "night vision" tungsten pic...





This day went to fast, and ended rather abruptly...I would've taken a pic, but you guys drove away too fast...

Of course we are FUNNY.

What was that? Oh yeah. Let's not let this thing we have here spread TOO fast. We should enjoy this thing before it blows up on us. Then we will let Comedy Central come CRAWLING to us for our great writing...hahahaaaaaaaaa!!!

Our blog mentioned on latest Boston Sports Massacre podcast

Our little blog was mentioned on the latest Boston Sports Massacre show (Show #37 from 11/17/05). Quite a little suprize as I listened today!

Brian the co-host talked about how he was cruising the net and came across the blog. He talked about how we seem like a "bunch of regular guys who are Patriots fans" and how we are "funny". Check it out when you get a chance. The latest show is available now on Itunes but has not been posted to their site yet.

Boston Sports Massacre

Born To Run

Harry, you did it to me again. Loved the Born To Run podcast. Went ahead and downloaded the 30th Anniversary Edition of the album. I'll burn you a copy. Great to listen to it after hearing all the details in the podcast.

The Famous Chicken Wing Incident

Hey! Where's My Buffalo Wings Pic???

Shameless plug

OK. I know this is another shameless plug for Staples, but this is actually pretty funny. They sent us this at work today.

Staples Holiday TV

I'll take two 20oz Sam Adams.

OK, this is better. I couldn't keep the last post up, I kept getting grossed out.

Boston Sports Massacre - A visit from one of the hosts

Just wanted to make sure everyone noticed the comment by Brian from Boston Sports Massacre on my Podcast post (he's one of the hosts). Who knows, maybe they will be making fun of our little blog during their next podcast!

Parking Lot 9 Invitation- Game 11

Everyone is invited (well not the whole lot, but the lot of us)to our apartment on November 27 for the Pats game vs. the Kansas City Chiefs! We will provide the food, if you want bring some beer, gin, scotch, etc. Of course apps will be welcome.

Podcasts

Podcasts - I've been enjoying a couple of podcasts since getting the Ipod. I think anyone can download these as long as they have the right software (even if no Ipod). I subscribe to the following two casts:

• Boston Sports Massacre - This is a couple guys just talking Boston Pro Sports. They both seem to be great fans but not "experts" on any of the sports (somewhat like myself). Uncensored and pretty funny at times.
• Morning Becomes Eclectic - Harry actually turned me on to this show/site when Neil was featured. I then found the podcast on Itunes. Lots of very obscure acts, but occasionally someone more famous. Listening to the show on Robbie Robertson now. I know they did My Morning Jacket recently too.

Pics from Monday Night Football

Doesn't have the prescence of Parking Lot 9, but the price, proximity and view was great...



Ahh, the Salmon...tremendous! Harry's new grill! Wish I got shots of the chili, the portabellas, and the beer!

I will make sure I get the whole spread next time...



When did Jimmy Get stoned? I missed that. Must've been in the men's room...

Fear Not, Weary Travellers

Well that was a deep title. More like Reflections on the 1st half, and Predictions for the 2nd half.

Anyway, as I see it we could all chalk the season up as a disappointment compared to the past couple. We are 4-4, which looks mediocre on paper, and our defense (at times) doesn't seem able to stop a slug from going up a hill in January. We all have experienced Belichick orchestrated runs, and although it seems improbable to close out the season better than 9-7, I feel we will. The obvious main reason for this is strength of schedule. Yeah, we have the worst overall schedule of any team in the league. Yeah we are depleted, and our ground game is terrible. No Weiss, No Crennel. Blah Blah Blah. Excuses aside, we just played 8 teams who are (in one way or another) in contention for the playoffs. We played .500 ball. Yeah we got blown out twice at home. Yeah we almost lost to the Bills (3-5) at home. We also beat Pittsburgh (6-2) and Atlanta (6-2), teams who many predicted to go to the Superbowl, in their own backyards. The culmulative record of first half teams we faced: 43-22. Six out of 8 had winning records, two of them were 3-5. Our record at midseason, 4-4. Not too shabby, all things considered.

Now lets look at who we got in the second half. In contrast to the first half, we face 4 teams with losing records, and 2 of them twice, for a total of 6 out of 8 games vs. sub .500 records. Only one of these teams (Bills) has faced us already. The two other teams are 5-3, not exacty cream of the crop. Also, hopefully we will be getting healthier as the season goes. The addition of Bruschi is huge, and no doubt he will only get stronger as the year progresses. Randall Gay is in, Duanne Starks is out. Enough said there. Richard Seymour will also be back soon which strenghthens both the line and secondary. I also heard rumours of a possible T.Buck return to add depth to the secondary. On the other side of the ball, Corey Dillon is getting more caries, Patrick Pass will be back soon, and Kevin Faulk is also only a few games away for a return. All of this makes our offense "crazy, insane, sick" Put it any way you want, we can score points, and Tom Brady will make sure of that.

Here are my game-to-game second half predictions:

At Miami (3-5): They will bive us a real test. With Rickey Williams and Ronnie brown as a 1-2 punch, they will be tought to stop. But who is their QB? Gus Frerotte? 8 TD's, 9 Ints. Our seconday will hold up with Gay back and Starks (C'Ya!) gone. They will score, but so will we. Remember, even though Indy (8-0) lit us up, we still got in the endzone on their defense 3 times, and I feel the TD's will continue.

Prediction: Pats 27-20. Record: 5-4.

New Orleans (2-7): I see a romp and a defensive turning point. Seymour will most likely be back, Gay is working his way into the slowly strengthening seconday, and Bruscchi gets stronger game to game. New Orleans is an indoor team who has been displaced by Katrina, they are tired and don't stand a chance.

Prediction: Pats 34-10. Record: 6-4.

At Kansas City (5-3): This is gonna be another challenge, as KC has a strong running game. But Priest Holmes is out for the season with shoulder and back problems. Larry Johnson is really good, without question we know they are going mostly to him, and we know who is going to stop him. #54. Close game, but we pull it out.

Prediction: Pats, 27-20. Record: 7-4.

NY Jets (2-6): Old QB, sad D. We roll.

Prediction: Pats, 34-13. Record: 8-4.

At Buffalo (3-5): Gotta pick one loss on the road, and the Bills D is good. They got the run game going with McGahee and Holcomb has been a surprise off the bench.

Prediction: Bills, 21-20. Record: 8-5.

Tampa Bay (5-3): Another good team that has lost its QB. It will hurt. Excellent D, but they face Carolina the week before, and will get banged up pretty good all around. We will score enough to get the job done at home.

Prediction: Pats, 20-10. Record: 9-5. We clinch East and make playoffs for 3rd year in a row.

At NY Jets (2-6): See home Jets game, but minus a Pats FG, and Jets get a TD instead of a FG.

Prediction: Pats, 31-17. Record: 10-5.

Miami (3-5): Patriots close out the season again in typical New England fashion, stiffling the Miami attack. We win decisively, but in another low scoring snow game.

Prediction: Pats, 13-3. Final Regular season record: 11-5.

Thats it for me, I can't begin to predict playoff scenarios, or all playoff teams. It sure would be great to get Denver or San Diego back into Gillette for rematches, though. Hopefully we get at least one home game. What do you guys think???

Neil Young Tribute Band

Saw this on Thrasher's Wheat. Looks like a local Neil tribute band......

http://www.rustneversleeps.net/home.html

North End dinner

Ate here last night with a group from work. Pretty good. Classic north end stuff.

http://www.luciaboston.com/

Tough night at Gilette.

Tom, I think Peyton is laughing at you.

Tom Brady on 60 Minutes Tonight

(CBS) Many players spend an entire career wondering what could be better than winning a Super Bowl. But Tom Brady, the New England Patriots quarterback who has already won three of them before turning 30, is convinced there must be something better than reaching the pinnacle of his sport three times.

Brady discusses this and other aspects of his career with 60 Minutes correspondent Steve Kroft, Sunday, Nov. 6, at 7 p.m. ET/PT. “Why do I have three Super Bowl rings and still think there is something greater out there for me?” he asks Kroft. “A lot of people would say, ‘This is what it is. I reached my goal, my dream …’ Me, I think, 'God, it’s got to be more than this.' I mean, this isn’t … what it’s all cracked up to be." “I wish I knew the answer,” says Brady, who also wishes he could have a little more privacy than his superstar status allows for. “Well, the problem is you can’t have one without the other. You can’t have football fame and not the other stuff. So in a lot of ways, I’ve created this myself.” He seems to find at least part of the answer to his conundrum when he was asked by Kroft where he would be if he could do anything and be anywhere.
As tough a competitor as he is, there’s no contest between football and family. “Probably in Scotland playing golf with my mom and dad,” says Brady. “I’d probably take my mom and dad (over leading the Patriots). They’re some of the happiest times of my life." The rest of the answer to his soul-searching question may be found in this reply to Kroft’s question about which of his three Super Bowl rings is his favorite: “The next one is the best,” says Brady.

Neil Young on Conan - Audio & Video

I downloaded the audio files for this past week's Conan appearances. I put them on the Ipod and I'll bring them to the game tomorrow. I'm in the process of downloading the video and hope to have it burned to DVD by tomorrow. Don't worry, if I get it downloaded and converted in time, I'll make copies for everyone.

Colts @ Pats - Salmon is the choice

Just returned from Whole Foods. Purchased a 3 pound filet of farm raised salmon for Monday night.

Going with a recipe from Bobby Flay:

Basically I'll will oil, salt & pepper the salmon then grill it medium rare. Once it comes off the grill, it will be lightly covered with the following vinaigrette.

Recipe:

• white wine vinegar
• lemon juice
• lemon zest
• fresh dill
• honey (Bobby loves his honey)
• salt & pepper
• olive oil
• capers

Jeanne has stepped to the plate with an orzo pasta salad for us too:

Recipe:

• eggplant
• red & yellow bell pepper
• red onion
• garlic
• olive oil
• salt & pepper
• orzo pasta
• lemon juice
• olive oil
• scallions
• pine nuts
• feta
• basil leaves

And there's talk of her making a dessert too. More to follow there....

Let me know what you think of all this...

Harry...didn't you have this dream?

Did a blog search on Neil and came up with this....It sounded familiar.....

http://paradisecircus.blogspot.com/2005/11/neil-young-rip.html

We should have a party on 11/20 - Neil Young's 60th b-day

Neil turns 60 on 11/20...This happens to be a Pats home game vs. the Saints. Another excuse to have a very big tailgate. I'm sure Neil's got at least another 15 years in him, but we must celebrate him while we can!!

http://www.rockinfreeworld.135.it/

The last time I saw Elvis....

...he was rockin on the back of a flatbed truck...He was the King....

Copper Ale

Enjoying the leftovers from last Sunday's tailgate right now......good stuff

http://www.ottercreekbrewing.com/home/otter_creek/brews/copperale.html

The Duel

Colts at Pats Tailgate

I posted this comment on October 31st, I'm not sure if you guys read it or not. I changed the BJ's part to Sunday, as I didn't hear anything back and as it turned out, I went in to work for the day.

As for the tailgate, of course I am going to recommend (for cold temps) a nice hot hearty chili, gumbo, or fish stew. I am heading over to BJ's on Sunday, maybe I can get a small tenderloin strip for filets. For sauce- mustard caper? Au poivre? Peppered Chutney? Chipotle? Cabrenet? I could use the scraps for the chili. Grilled asparagus and portabellas? Or stuffed portabellas as an app?

I have Monday totally off, so I can cook a storm up all day. I recommend that we head up there nice 'n' early so we beat the traffic and get a nice long tailgating session in, and leaving the lot late after the game sounds good. That way we don't sit in traffic, get another bite in, and come down a bit. I haven't seen a game since game 1, so I am pumped, and since its the Colts, it multiplies exponentially!!!

Colts @ Pats

Time to officially start the Indy game discussion. At least from a tailgating perspective....

All of this is my opinion, fully up for discussion....

Attendees: Tony, Harry, Tom, Jimmy

Meeting time: 5pm at the train station. This puts us in the lot by 5:45 and gives us approx 3 hours of eating and drinking time. And this might get us more in the front of the lot this time. Or should we do a bit earlier?

Food:

I think we all agree that the food needs to be special for this very big game. But I will bring up my usual warning. Too many options brought by too many people can be a hassle (too many containers, lots of clean up, we'll end up with too much food, etc). I say we have one or two of us concentrate on the food, choose one app, one entree, one dessert, maybe a post game snack of some kind and go with it. Everyone else can chip in to help pay or buy beer. Sounds like Tom is ready to bring food. Maybe he can be in charge of the app and the post game snack and I can handle the main course. Let me know what you think.

Some options that have been thrown out there:

• Lobster (always sounds good, but too much of a hassle at a game?)
• Chili
• Coffee for post game
• Rice crispy treats
• Rack of lamb
• Tenderloin (I could get a whole one again from BJ's)
• Salmon

Beer/Liquor: Harry and Jimmy's turn here?

Fire: What does everyone think here? The fire ring worked out well at the Bills game. But it sounds as though it will be a bit warmer this Monday night. I'm leaning towards no fire this time. But I could easily be persuaded to go in the other direction.

Post game: As stated above, I am for hanging for a bit to let the traffic go, have a snack, etc. Harry had the right call last week. Should have had some coffee or something to help wake us up. Damn night games go too late!!

Have I forgot anything?

Next year's Haloween Party

Since we couldn't have a party at my house this year, I'm already thinking about next year. I think I want to be Carl Spackler, I could go around just eating Baby Ruths all night and nobody would queston it. It would be part of the costume.

This is a no Theo zone

From boston.com

Theo Epstein wasn't asked anything about Patriots quarterback Tom Brady during his news conference yesterday, but Brady was asked a question about the former Red Sox general manager.

''I have no idea what's happening with the Red Sox, nor do I care," Brady said.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tom, I couldn't agree more.

Have you seen this table?

We are offering a generous reward for any information leading to the capture and execution of the thieves that stole our tailgating table!!

May the bastards rot in hell!!

Patriots vs. Buffalo Tailgate- Meal Recap

It was an almost perfect night for a football game, the only thing missing was 2 feet of snow and subzero temperatures. The pregame meal consisted of a smoked salmon, caper, cream cheese, red onion, & cracker appetizer. Second course was bakery pizza warmed on the grill. The main course was grilled leg of lamb that had been marinated in yogurt for 48 hours and served with a fresh english mint sauce. The side dish was oven roasted potatoes, onions, mushrooms, and carrots, reheated on the grill in a grill wok. Beer choices consisted of Otter Creek Copper Ale, Samuel Adams Boston Lager, Dogfish Head Chicory Stout, Dos Equis Amber & Harpoon IPA. Dewars White Label Blended Scotch Whisky was available, as was water. The Weber Q turned out to be more than capable of handling the leg of lamb, which was cooked rare, with a crispy but not overdone crust. I'm already looking forward to the meal at the Indy game in one week. Anyone have any ideas?

I'm in!

Thanks Tony. I have wanted to join or create a blog for awhile, so this is great! Sorry I couldn't get together with you guys this weekend, I had to work late Friday and Saturday and early on Sunday. I only have one more week until my vaca/layoff!

So anyway, great comeback last night. Tedy looked real good and in good shape as well. Finally made some big plays on D. Mike Vrabel has been HUGE without Seymour and now that Brus is back, he will be able to make more big plays. Assante Samuel was all over the place, and WOW what a hit by Eugene Wilson. They just seemed to be hitting harder out there last night (with few exceptions- freakin Starks!)

I was nervous/angry about the offense all game until we scored the first TD. It was awesome to see Corey Dillon back in there, I was starting to wonder how serious his injury was up until he got a few carries. I think Charlie Weiss is definitely missed out there, as they seem to be going to similar plays quite often. We have four good WR's and two good TE's, yet the ball seemed to go to Givens almost every passing down. Don't get me wrong, I like Givens, but CMON! Deion Branch didn't seem to get a look until the second half. Not to mention the lack of throws to Watson and Graham. They need to spread it out to have a chance against Indy this week...

Happy Halloween Y'all.

Photo of the day

Photo of the day

Welcome back Tedy!