Sorry it's been forever since I've blogged. Life has been a bit hectic and I've been slacking.
In catching up.. After our trip to California I got assigned to cover Obama in St. Paul, Mn. It was the night he "officially" got enough delegates to become the party nominee. It was an amazing experience to watch history happen before my eyes! Here's a pic I took from the press riser w/ Obama speaking over my shoulder.
Anyhow, this past weekend Mike, Cooper and I went to the Hamptons. Our relatives Glenda and Harvey live in East Hampton during the summer and invited us to join them for a weekend to meet other relatives for the first time.
You see I have a fairly complicated family tree on my Dad's side of the family and there are a lot of relatives that I have never met before
Let me explain My Grandfather (My Dad's Dad -who died before I was born) Sam Weiss had 2 wives and 2 sets of children about 20 yrs apart.
The First wife died at a young age.... She had 2 daughters. One of those daughters is the mother to my Cousin Glenda the one we just visited in the Hamptons.
On her death bed she told Sam to send for her niece in Hungary to marry. Good thing too because this was shortly before the Holocaust. SO Serena (said niece) came to the states married Sam and then had 2 boys- my dad and my uncle art (dorie's dad - the wedding we went to in LA)
Are you following?
So my uncle Art and Glenda are the same age..and Glenda is 4 yrs older then my dad. But Glenda and I share the same Grandfather- very confusing I know. There was a lot of chart drawing and explaining going on this weekend.
Glenda and her dog cousin Cooper in the Hamptons
Now how are we related again? Was a common question being asked.
Anyhow, I've gotten to know Glenda and Harvey pretty well over the years but she is the only one on that half of the family that I have ever really gotten to know. So this weekend I got to meet her daughter Amy and her 2 boys Graham(14) and Emit (10).
Emit
Graham
Amy & her boyfriend Fred
It was really cool! It was so nice and fun to be around family. I look forward to keeping in touch with them from now on. They live in Vermont and we hope to go visit them soon since we are so close.
From Left to Right Me, Fred, Mike, Amy, Harvey, Glenda, Graham... Cooper is out of sight but standing in front of everyone!
Now, here's where it gets to be a super small world. Harvey, married to Glenda, told me back in October that he has a relative that lives in Inwood. That's where Mike and I live. So on Saturday we were all to have dinner together at Glenda and Harvey's.
So guess what? Harvey's niece Traci, her husband Jim and their teenage daughter Katie play trivia at the Pipers Kilt. They are on the Kitchen Doctor team. A team that frequently kicks our butts at Trivia night. What a small world?
Anyhow, they are great people too! They were great to get to know, they told us lots of insightful tips about the neighborhood. We look forward to spending more time with them as well.
Anyhow- the Hamptons. Everyone keeps asking me what the Hamptons are like. It's one of those places that everyone on the west coast has heard the name of, but has never actually been to.
Here's how I would describe the Hamptons... You know how in California when you drive along the Pacific Coast HWY you pass a bunch of beach towns. Each has it's on feel. Some are very chill, others are very Posh. Well that's what the Hamptons are like... except the highway isn't as windy and the towns aren't as far apart.
The Beach from East Hampton
The Hamptons are the east end of Long Island which is long and skinny hence the name. There are several towns and villages... West Hampton, West Hampton Village, East Hampton, East Hampton Village, Sag Harbor, Montauk, and several others. If you really care about the geography google it! :)
Anyhow we had a lovely time... here are some pics....
Gossman's Dock in Montauk
Dog's off leash at the East Hampton Beach on Sunday morning.
Cooper loved it!
Mike and Cooper watching the fishing boats in Montauk
Most of my long-time friends, guys like Kevin, Mike and Dave, know that I'm a really competitive person. I don't like to lose at ANYTHING. Kevin and I had Nerf basketball showdowns in our high school years that ended in pushes and shoves...in his parents' living room. On the football field with friends, if my team was losing, I'd bust out my patented "Wiggy tackle" (otherwise known as "grab the guy by the neck and drag him down) out of pure anger at losing a stupid Sunday morning game with friends. Air hockey games...board games...hell, even that NBA Jam Nintendo tournament we held back in early college that ended with Dave somehow sinking a half court shot with Mitch Richmond to beat me in the semis that I'm STILL not over (c'mon Dave, you know you had no business winning that game)....
As you can see...I don't like to lose...I'm the most competitive person I know. And I know a lot of you are asking, "Even more than Katie Neal?" Yes, even more than Katie.. (though to be fair, it was a photo finish.)
I relay this information because this past weekend I sunk about as low as you can possibly go to win at something...all in the name of claiming victory..
This past weekend we spent Saturday and Sunday with Jen's cousins Harvey and Glenda who live in the Hamptons. They are old enough to have grandchildren, and their daughter and her kids stayed at the house as well, so it was a good ol' family get together.
Jen and I had never met Harvey and Glenda's daughter Amy or her kids...14-year-old Graham and 10-year-old Emmitt...
Emmitt (otherwise known as "the victim")
Once we got there...Emmitt asked me if I played tennis. Yeah, but not in a long while, I told him. Well, he really wanted to play (10 year olds have a ton of energy) so with a borrowed racket and some borrowed sneakers from Harvey...Jen and Amy dropped Emmitt and I off at the public tennis courts for an hour or so...
Now, the whole ride over there, and for at least an hour before we got there...I proceeded to hear from Emmitt about how great he was at tennis.. How he had an "unreturnable" serve, how he played all the time and was really good, and on and on and on...
So when we got there, we warmed up a bit, and I said I'd let him serve...but then I said the words that caused the title of this blog post.
"Alright Emmitt, your serve, but be careful...I wouldn't want you to serve it into the net on your first shot...that'd sure be a bad sign..."
That's right...mind games on a 10-year-old...and, of course, it worked...he was a disaster after that. First serves into the net. After that, I made him run all over the place...when he backed up, I dinked shots in front of him...when I needed a point to keep him from winning even one game...I unleashed a fairly hard serve that he'd never be able to return...if he came in close, I'd hit a shot way up in the air over his head...etc.
The first set went quickly...6-love me...he didn't win a game. I wouldn't let him...this was tough love baby! And as it went on, and his frustration grew, he started complaining that the wind was screwing up his shots, and I was lucky and such...
Well, that just wanted to make me win more...now I wanted to shut him out completely!
Again, 10-years-old...
Unfortunately (fortunately?) my lack of conditioning caught up with me, and he actually took two games from me in the second set when I eased up a bit. But the final score? 6-0 6-2 for the supposedly mature 31 year old...
Of course, I had to talk trash afterwards, asking Emmitt where his unreturnable serve had gone, and I hoped to play him again after he found it...he took it all in good humour, but I'm sure quietly, the kid is plotting my demise..
So there you have it...for those of you who thought I couldn't sink any further than playing mind games with my wife at the bowling alley when she was about to beat my score...there it is...annihilating a 10-year-old on the tennis court...
This past Sunday was just the perfect day in my mind. Jen and I decided Saturday night that we'd go do some stuff Sunday that we hadn't gotten a chance to do in town here yet. It was a packed day, but a great time.
We got up around 9am and took the train to the Metropolitan Museum of Art (or "The Met" as its known in town...as opposed to "The Mets." who are known in town at the moment as "stinkin' losers.") We had never been before, but we only had about an hour of time there, so we flew around and saw the two rotating exhibits that we wanted to see...you know, the ones that are only in there for a few months. One was these statue sculptures made to look like balloon animals that are on display on the roof of the building. Here's a picture!
The other one was actually not what I had in mind, but was interesting all the same. It was called "Superheroes: Fashion and Fantasy." We thought the exhibit was just going to take a look at superhero fashions through the years and how the cartoonists had come up with looks...instead, it was "today's fashion designers put their spin on superhero fashion" Some wierd shit, let me tell you, but still, pretty interesting...
Sorry, no pictures allowed...the security guy even wagged a finger at Jen when she pulled the camera out...poor baby.
After that, we caught a cab through Central Park, because we had to head over to Lincoln Center for a film festival. We had bought tickets the night before for a flick being shown as part of the Human Rights Watch Film Festival. The movie was called "The Recruiter." Basically, its about this Army recruiter in rural Louisiana and some of his recruits. He's been awarded as the best recruiter in the country, and it shows how he goes about finding possible recruits, staying on them about signing up, going through the difficulties of getting people to sign up and stay on course to become recruits, and so forth. It also follows 4 of his recruits through the process, and then basic training as well.
Just fascinating stuff, and real eye-opening for those of us who wonder how they even get kids to sign up for the Armed Forces these days, considering we're in war mode and all.
The director was there for the screening and did a Q&A afterwards. Good stuff...
Anyways, I highly recommend this movie. HBO is actually going to show it sometime in mid-July, so look for it.
From there, we wandered down to Sixth Avenue, where we stumbled upon a street fair! I love wandering through these...always shit to buy, and fun to people watch...its like a mini-version of going to the State Fair...
It stretched for about 17 blocks, down past Radio City Music Hall and into Bryant Park. I got a laugh out of walking by RCMH and seeing people lining up to get into the Tony Awards (they were Sunday night). These poor people, in their tuxs and ball gowns, and they have to line up 4 hours before the show in the heat....they were sweltering...and the smell of kababs and Indian food from the street fair 50 feet away probably wasn't helping matters.
The best thing to come out of the street fair in my mind, besides the birthday gift we bought for little Anisa Huthman when she comes next month, was something Jen had wanted me to try for a long time. Its called an arepa...its basically two corn cakes, with mozzerella cheese in the middle..fried...(see? I told you...State Fair!)
Anyways, its delicious...holy Moses I could have eaten 4 or 5 of the buggers. It might have killed me, but as Dave knows, I'm willing to make that kind of sacrifice for large quantities of good food.
We came home, pretty worn out from the full day, and then had a dinner of pasta with sausage and cheese bread, while we watched Iron Chef America and the Next Food Network Star (whatever did I watch before the Food Network?? I can't remember...)
All in all, the perfect day....it trickled into Monday morning as well when Jen took me to Regis and Kelly....she had gotten tickets for us because Emeril Lagasse was filling in for Regis and she knew I wanted to see him. We sat up close, got a smidge of camera time, and he signed my cookbook for me. That's all I wanted!
A fabulous day (plus a bit) with my fabulous wife...just another day in the Big City.
...we had been slagging on the posting since our return from CA, so I wanted to post something this weekend...but it was too hot...that and the fact that I was laid up Sunday with what we now think actually WAS salmonella poisoning (thank you tomatoes!), pushed the posting process to Monday, but it was still too hot, and then Tuesday was hotter STILL...
Yep, we're having a heatwave here in the big city. But it's not a tropical heatwave. It's a heatwave where you're constantly sweating and you want to basically kill yourself. Add in the fact that we don't have central air, and you're just miserable.
Fortunately, the current heatwave appears to have ended today. We're back into the mid 80s (10 degrees higher than normal, but still not record breaking upper 90s temps like the past two days and humidity is down) and there's actually a breeze...I'll enjoy it while I can...July is right around the corner...
Other thoughts from the past few weeks:
**Took in another Jays-Yankees game at Yankee Stadium. The Jays lost, but it was amusing to me to watch these Yankees fans realize that their team isn't going anywhere this year. Big-time fatalistic, and I think we're probably due for some major baseball-related violence in the Bronx this September as the postseason slips away from the men in the pinstripes...
Having said that, my friend once said that these Yankee teams are hard to hate because they have a bunch of likeable players and aren't like the Yankee teams of old. Now, that might be the most ignorant comment I've ever heard (and please, look for my new book "18,738 Reasons to Hate the New York Yankees," coming soon to bookstores everywhere!!), BUT I have to admit, I have an absolute man-crush on Joba Chamberlain...I just like the kid...I like his ability, I like his demeanor, I like his humbleness, I like his polio-stricken father, his life story is unbelievable, I'm just rooting for Joba to do well in his big-league career (except, of course, when he pitches against the Jays)
**Lord help us, but we almost had a Mike Watts appearance on the Nancy Grace show a few days back. I know, I know, how crazy would that have been? The story is that her producer called my office last Monday (the 2nd) and wanted to know if we were covering the Tatum O'Neal drug bust story and if I could come on the show that night to discuss it. I told the producer that we were covering the story, but weren't like down at the courthouse or anything, and that it had pretty much become a non-story (she had been released without bail, didn't say anything to reporters, blah blah blah)...she thought she still might like to use me, and was going to call my boss and ask (I needed his permission to appear for Metro)...
Well they ended up using a New York Post reporter when they decided they wanted someone who had been PHYSICALLY covering the story all day (can't say I blame them there)...this is actually a good thing, because I hate Nancy Grace...she drives me up the wall...I can't watch her without wanting to shoot out my TV, so there would have been a good chance I'd have re-enacted the Sue Simmons profanity during my appearance...
By the way, my sister does a really good Nancy Grace impression...I feel like you need to know these things...
**Jen was in St. Paul last week helping cover the Obama camp for work. She hates when I talk like this, but she's becoming quite the star over there at the alphabet network. She got compliments on her producing performance from folks who rarely hand out kind words, and she's been put on a few shortlists for more producing efforts around the country, including hurricane coverage. I'll let her tell you more about all this in a later post, but I'm very proud of her!! Cooper and I sure do miss her when she's out of town though...my time at the bar goes up exponentially... =)
**More cool duties for me later this summer. My cousin Jonathan has asked me to be his MC for his wedding in Ottawa next month. Apparently he's forgotten that I have about, oh I don't know, a MILLION embarassing stories about his childhood and our summers together at the cottage, I'm sure I'll be able to tell a few of them in front of everyone he knows....should be fun! Jen and I have booked our time off to head to Canada this summer for a week of fun with the wedding at time at the cottage with my Grandma (and Mom and Master Jen, who'll also be there at the same time we are)
**And finally, if you see one movie at all this summer, see Zombie Strippers...
Nine months without stepping a foot in California was a long damn time, so you can imagine Jen and I's excitement that we were able to come home for a week and a half. It was really fun to get to see everybody and we had an action packed 11 days.
Friday the 16th was, without a doubt, the longest day ever..but it was a ton of fun. We were up early and on a plane to SF (with Cooper in the cabin underneath the seat in front of us of course) and got in around noon. Bec picked us up, and we immediately couldn't believe the weather. 95 degrees in the FRICKIN city!! We were sweating buckets! I came home for this??
Roasting aside, we had a good time hanging out in the city. Had lunch at a place across from Bec's home, then the girls went or manicures and pedicures while Cooper and I rested. Soon we were headed to Sister Jen's graduation, where we met up with Mom and Dad.
I can't say enough how proud I am of my sister for getting her master's. I remember when my Dad asked me if I thought I was interested in getting a master's in something, I just laughed. But Sister Jen (should we now call her Master Jen?) worked hard for several years and gave up her Saturdays to get her masters in theology. She's a better person than I. Now if we could just figure out what she plans to do with it... =)
Here's a picture of the happy grad and her family.
Following graduation, and a celebratory dinner at a seafood restaurant at Pier 39, we picked up Cooper from Brian and Katie's house (Katie had graciously baby-sat the Coop while we were at the graduation...see her blog for details. How's that for cross-promotion?) and then headed with Mom and Dad back to Roseville. We got in at 1:30 a.m....and realized we had been up for 24 hours. Long day...
Saturday we were up and after a quick trip to Peets (YAY Peets iced non-fat vanilla lattes!!) we were preparing for the party.
The party at Mom and Dad's house I have since compared to our wedding reception, only because we felt like we only had a few minutes with everyone. Thanks so much to everyone who came out. It was great to see everyone, and we really appreciate those who were able to make it.
It's always especially fun to see all the young ones, from little Anisa Huthman, to Gabby Palamadessi, to Brooklyn Pebbles and Emily Mae Martin. I can't believe how much all of those kids have grown in just the last nine months. THe rest of the time in Sacramento/Roseville was filled with catching up with friends. I was able to grab lunch with Dave one day while Jen was getting her hair done. Jen was able to go have dinner with Kelli and Megan in honor of Megs turning the big 30. We were able to get up to El Dorado Hills and meet Jason and Michele's little boy Dylan Smith. There's actually an amusing story tied to getting to see Michele and her son. So we're at Target and I'm trying to pick out a toy to bring to Dylan, and I'm showing Jen the two I'm trying to decide between, and some woman comes up from behind us. She's five feet away MAYBE...and she says, "You must be a nice Grandpa..."
WHAT?!?!?!?
So I turned around and faced this woman, who IMMEDIATELY saw that I was nowhere near Grandpa status, and she started backpedaling big time..."or..a nice dad, or uncle"
I was able to smile weakly and say, "actually none of those things"
What I wanted to do was slug her. I mean, are you kidding? Do I look THAT OLD??! Granted I hadn't shaved in 3-4 days but still...
Needless to say, Jen thought this whole situation was HILARIOUS, and she's still laughing about it and calling me "Grandpa"...
Wednesday morning Jen & Cooper went to News10 for a few hours andvisited with all the old coworkers.
We also got to have lunch with Kelly and Chris and check out their home in progress. It's amazing. I can't wait to come home for their house warming party next summer!! When we were planning to come home, my co-workers here in NYC asked me what I wanted to do most while home. Of course, my answer revolved around food. I wanted good Mexican food and In-N-Out Burger. We were able to get both, thank God. There is no good Mexican food out here. You need to have at least a couple of illegals in the kitchen before you know its good Mexican, and you'll only find that in California. And that's probably the most politically incorrect thing I've EVER said, but hey, it's true...
The evenings during the rest of the week were spent having dinner with Mom and Dad and catching up. It was great to be able to stay with them and we had a fabulous time.
All in all, a great trip home to Northern California. I'll let Jen tell the So-Cal part of the trip, as that had its moments of hilarity as well, including Jen injuring her hip on the dance floor at her cousin's wedding. Apparently I married a Golden Girl... =)
Thanks again to everyone who we got to see when we were home, and we can't wait for everyone to visit us here!!
When I first took media class in high school with Mr. Clark, he taught us a variety of items when it came to broadcasting, but the one that he repeated over and over and OVER again was..."the mic is always on."
In other words, when you have a microphone in your hand, or attached to your lapel, you have to THINK you are always LIVE...
We've seen journalists get fouled up before by not thinking about what they're saying while they're in the anchor chair. Former KCRA anchor Stan Atkinson managed to call Sen. Boxer a "bitch" on the air,
now, the latest incident comes right here in NYC...where WNBC's Sue Simmons, a broadcasting legend here in the Big Apple, managed to utter the deadliest of the 7 deadly words...
The backstory is it was in the middle of a live tease, and she wasn't pleased that her partner Chuck Scarborough was not paying attention...
what follows is her outburst, and then her "apology" moments later...
Broadcasters....you gotta love 'em....
Remember folks, as Mr. Clark would say, "the mic is always on"
(He also used to say, "Chew gum, lose 10 points" But I digress)
Random Thoughts as I continue this 3 week stretch of basically getting up at 12:30 a.m., going to work til 6pm, getting home at 7pm, going to bed at 830pm and then doing it all over again the next day....please pray for me...one more week to go...
- You know you're living in New York when you're wandering around Bloomingdale's and you run smack into Abe Vigoda...most people know him as Fish from Barney Miller and as Tessio from the Godfather movies...the younger of us know him from his Conan and roast appearances...well, he was with some woman who was dragging him around to look at dresses for something...and all I could do was stare...this is the kinda stuff that happens here...
- I don't know about you, but for me, nothing ruins a good Kentucky Derby like an execution moments after the race. Thank God we weren't at Katie's party for that one, Jen would have had to been taken out on a stretcher...
- Met Gordon Ramsey the other day. He was doing a book signing in Midtown and I went over after work to get him to sign for Jen and I. We are big fans of Hell's Kitchen...and I particularly enjoy his BBC shows...anyways, he was actually quite nice, though he did call me "big boy"...guess he could have called me "donkey", so I think I got off easy...
- Personally, I hope Eric or Cirie win "Survivor"...I can't stand any of the rest of them....
- Speaking of Reality TV shows, I caught the first couple of episodes of Temptation Island 2 on the Fox Reality Channel...it would be an understatement to say the show reaches a solid 97 on the Unintentional Comedy Scale...
- The more I live in New York, the more I come to hate Al Sharpton...
- Of all the things I'm looking forward to when we come back to California, the top of the list reads like this, "Lunch with Yams at Squeeze-Inn."
- Walking to the subway at 1am gives you a whole new perspective on who exactly hangs out in your neighborhood...I've seen just about everything over these last two weeks, from two guys openly swapping spit up against a store window, to a guy peeing in the corner, to two white-haired Puerto Rican grannies stumbling out of bar...good times!!
- When it gets right down to it, Baby Mama was one of the funniest movies I've seen in a long time.
- I'm in 6 fantasy baseball leagues this year, (which is driving Jen crazy), but the only one I TRULY care about is the Fox 40 league...and I'm currently in first place...keep your fingers crossed....
It's no secret. I'm fairly clumsy... usually this fault only causes problems for myself. Well, this morning it caused a problem for someone else.
The train came. I along with several others walked in and sat down. We're the first stop so everyone got a seat and sat rather spaced apart. Across from me was a grandma and 2 kids. The kids were clearly not from NY and this was their first subway ride. The woman siting one seat away from me on my side of the train looked like a nurse or a medical assistant. She was wearing scrubs.
I had my purse next to me and my travel coffee mug (filled w/ yummy Aged Sumatra Peets coffee). I was digging in my purse for my Ipod when I hear the little girl ask her Grandma if you are allowed to drink on the train. The Grandma said "Yes as long as your careful." I was thinking how nice it was to hear a kid with manners, asking if something is "ok." And that's when I did the not "ok."
My purse hit the coffee mug. My coffee mug fell to the side on the bench and the lid opened and the lady in the scrubs got sprayed w/ Aged Sumatra. She didn't get soaked... but she definitely got sprayed.
I felt awful.
She looked shocked and I kept saying "I'm so sorry."
I offered her my Tide stick. She didn't want it and she got off at the next exit/. Presumably to go back home and change.
I still feel bad.
To that random stranger on the A train - I truly am sorry!!!
If you're wondering why I've been rather quiet as of late, its because I have been slammed with pope-related coverage, and well as working 13 of the last 14 days (including today, Sunday). Poor Jen is getting her Benedict fill as well this weekend (and having to rise at 2am as well), but I think I have her beat only because I've seemingly reported on NOTHING but the Holy Father for weeks now...the whole town has been giddy with anticipation, and I was telling my co-workers the other day, "I swear, if I see ONE MORE Pope-related promo..I'm becoming a Muslim out of spite.."
Actually I was hoping I'd get a chance to meet the Pope...so I could have him bless my matza for Passover...maybe he could have come over and I would have let him try to find the Afikomen?? Just as long as he didn't sit in Elijah's chair, all would have been well...maybe next time...
Well, the pontiff leaves tonight following a mass at Yankee Stadium (if you're lucky B-Neal, maybe he'll say a prayer for the Yankees mess of a starting rotation) but the fun doesn't end for me...
No...beginning next week, I move to a new shift at work...Mondays thru Fridays from noon to 6-630pm....along with that I begin training to be a backup producer for Charles Osgood and his Osgood Files radio shows that he does on a daily basis...
For those of you who aren't familiar with Mr. Osgood, he's the Paul Harvey of CBS radio....google Osgood Files and you'll find out more...
Anyways, I'm training with the regular producer all next week, and then filling in for him the following two weeks after that...the kicker is its a morning shift, as in EARLY morning...as in I have to be up at 2am to get here by 330am...produce Osgood til 10...find a place to take a quick snooze here in the CBS building (maybe I can use Andy Rooney's couch) and then work from noon to 6....
Basically 15 hour days...for 3 weeks straight...maybe I should get the Pope to say a prayer for me!
So if you don't hear from me much in this blog over the next 3 weeks, its probably because I'm asleep...
But I will try and write every now and then should funny stories arise or whatnot...
Hope to see everyone when we come back to California next month!!
So last weekend was my first weekend of being off the Sunday overnight shift...and thank God! It was actually nice to enjoy a full Sunday without having to worry about jumping on a train at 930 at night and heading downtown...
We started off Sunday with a brunch trip to the world famous Tavern on the Green restaurant in Central Park. We got to sit in the room that looks out on the garden, and it was amazing. It was like being in the middle of a Faberge Egg or carousel...just lots of pastels...flowers all over the place...very neat experience...plus the food was great. I had a goat cheese omelette and Jen had the eggs benedict on top of pepper jack biscuits with a Cajun crawfish hollandaise sauce...both were delicious....totally neat experience...we can't wait to take Mom and Dad Weiss the next time they come out....
After brunch, we came home, changed clothes, and it was off to KICKBALL with the social networking group up in our neck of the woods known as the UME (Upper Manhattan Experience)...great group of people who are totally fun to hang out with...
yep, kickball...you remember kickball, right? Played it when you were seven, lots of running around involved?? Well about 30 of us gathered at Inwood Hill Park Sunday morning to "kick it." We had been earlier divided into 2 teams, and Jen, myself and Dawn were all on the "Low Ballers"
And you know what? We were awesome! We had Jen bat (kick?) leadoff, and I'm proud to say that not only did she NOT injure herself (maybe I need to rethink her Evel Knievel nickname)..she got a hit (kick?) every time she was up!! In fact the only time she made an out was when she was on first and I kicked a fly ball that someone caught with less than 2 outs and we forgot to tell Jen that you don't want to run on that play...she was all the way to third by the time she realized she needed to come back...needless to say she was out by 40 feet, BUT we can go over the rules another time (see, babe, this is why you need to pay attention to me when I take you to baseball games!!)
As some folks know, I'm pretty competitive when it comes to sports...any sports (just ask Kevin and our bloody indoor Nerf basketball battles...or Mike and Dave and our trash talking air hockey wars)....much like Katie Neal, I don't like to lose (unlike Katie Neal, I don't resort to cheating when I am losing)....but losing was never going to happen for the Low Ballers!! Our team rocked...and we dominated the 9-inning contest 35-to-18. Yours truly went 6-for-7 (minus the previously noted fly ball) and Jen batted 1.000.
One of the members of the group (Claudia) spent the game taking pictures, and as soon as they get posted on the group website, we'll move some over here so you can see our athletic prowess captured on digital film...
That night, after having dinner at home, we went to the Piper's Kilt for karaoke night. Most of you know I can be talked into belting out a tune or two, especially if I have a couple of drinks in me. Well, karaoke nights at the Kilt are themed, and this one was "Kamikaze Karaoke"...that meant that someone else had to pick the song for you, and you weren't allowed to know what song you'd be singing until you hit the stage...
That means I couldn't rely on my old standbys (Cover of the Rolling Stone, Family Tradition, Secret Agent Man) to get by....so I wasn't even going to sing and was just going to take in the show, when another UME friend Jay strolled by and asked if I sang...actually I think Jen sold me out and told Jay to put my name in....he was at least friendly enough to ask what genre I would like, and I said "well, I'm pretty good with country music..."
He thought for a minute then snapped and said "I know the perfect song..." and off he went to put my name in...before coming back and saying, cryptically, "I picked the song...its a song I always like to hear sung at karaoke"
What the hell did that mean?? I spent the next 30 minutes racking my brain...could it be Ring of Fire? Rhinestone Cowboy? Friends in Low Places? What would it be...
So my name is called and I stride up there and the music begins and I look at the screen...and the lyrics "Well it was all that I could do to keep from crying.." hit the screen...and I immediately start laughing....its the old David Allen Coe song "You Never Even Call Me By My Name"
First off, thats one of my mother's favorite songs...second off, I know it pretty well, so off I go, and I make it through with a half-ass southern accent and some small theatrics...
Pictures of that, I believe, were also captured by Claudia and I'll post them as well when they do.
All in all, a pretty fun way to spend a Sunday...even if we returned home after midnight to the realization that I had to be up in 4 hours to go to work....
More Sundays like that are sure to come...we can't wait!!!
Mike (hmmm..sports themed...snarky comments..could it have been anything but a Mike post?)
Since we've been out here, we've gotten to see Jen's parents and both of our sisters, but my folks hadn't been able to make the trek out here...until last week. Yep, Barb and Jack rolled in on Thursday and were here until Sunday night. Mom had never been to NYC and Dad hadn't been since the early 80s, so they (and we) were in full tourist mode.
One of the funniest moments happened right off the bat. Jen had the day off, so she had gone down to meet my parents at the airport and ride the subway back with them to Inwood. I got off work early and beat them home, so I took Cooper down to the subway station to wait for them. Well, when they came up with their luggage, he noticed Jen...noticed the luggage, backed up (probably thinking "oh my God these bags are going to kill me"...thats our dog)...then he stopped for a minute, looked at my folks, REALIZED who it was, and flipped out in joy. It was hilarious to see him recognize them and then get really excited...Cooper loves his Grandma and Grandpa Watts!!
Where did we take them first? Well OF COURSE it was the PIPER'S KILT! Gotta love that, "Hey Mom? Dad? I know you want to see a bunch of stuff, but first you gotta check out the bar that Mike spends way too much time at..."
After that on Thursday, we took them down to the World Trade Center Site, then we came home and rested before attending Thursday night's Yankees-Blue Jays game at Yankee Stadium. Unfortunately, the wrong team won that night ($#^% Yankees!) but a good time was had by all.
Friday morning I had to work my normal shift, so the folks went down towards Jen's work and she got them into the Museum of Natural History. They then proceeded to spend about five hours there (can't say I blame them, I could spend five DAYS in there) and then took themselves (look at the parents, figuring out the subway!!) to Times Square and wandered around there. They returned to Jen's work to watch George Stephanopoulous (or as Mom likes to call him, "George Snuffleupagus") fill in for Charlie on the news, then I met up with them outside of Jen's work and we headed to Carmine's for dinner. Dawn was able to join us, which was great, so Mom and Dad could see that we do have friends here in this town. All five of us had a splendid meal.
Saturday was the big touristy day. Beginning with a walk pretty much through the entire lower half of Central Park. We then proceeded down to midtown, where Mom expressed a craving for a "genuine New York deli pastrami sandwich." Not a problem...we took them to the Carnegie Deli, where we proceeded to eat about 3 cattle worth of meat. After lunch, we headed down on the "1" train to the bottom of Manhattan and rode the Staten Island ferry out and back so they could get a good look at the Statue of Liberty. From there, it was back up to midtown and the Empire State Building. Jen and I sat that one out, and we decided to go drink while Mom and Dad were up there. Jen managed to run smack into a wall mantel (I swear, that girl could get injured in a padded room) but other than that, all went well. After the folks were done, we met up again, Jen and Mom did a little Macy's window shopping while Dad and I had an extra drink, then we came home and ordered in food following a long LOOOONG day of sightseeing.
Poor Dad, I think we tried to kill his bad knee with all the walking he did Saturday. As you can see, he's getting some sarcastic sympathy from his son.
On the other hand, he'll be in great conditioning spirit for his hockey tournament in Florida later this month, so...you're welcome Dad!!
Sunday we made it easy. Brunch at our favorite place up in our neighborhood, plus a wander around Inwood Hill Park with Cooper, then we headed up the hill to the Cloisters museum, where Mom and Dad wandered around for a bit before coming back to the house, and then waiting for the car to come pick them up and take them to the airport.
All in all, a really nice time, and it was so good to see my parents after six months of not viewing their smiling faces. We can't wait for their next trip out, and we can't wait to see them when we RETURN to California for vacation (36 days and counting!!)
I have few rules in life, but one of them is this...anytime the Blue Jays are opening the season in the city I am now living in, I've gotta keep a running diary...and since I didn't feel like paying the 75 dollar minimum to get a ticket for Opening Day (the last Opening Day at Yankee Stadium), we'll do this one in front of the HD set:
1:03: We are LIVE from the Watts Mansion in New York City!! I'm joined by Cooper the dog, two slices of pepperoni pizza from the nearby pizza shack, a bag of Cheetos and two cans of Big Blue (the large Labatt Blue cans)...the Yankees are excited because its Opening Day, I'm excited because the Blue Jays are going to win this game, I can feel it, and Cooper's excited at the opportunity to grab a fallen Cheeto....everybody's fired up.
1:05: Uh oh...right out of the gate, we're in a rain delay. It is raining here in Inwood, not too bad though. Seems to be coming down harder in the Bronx (though its only 60 blocks away, how bad can it be?)...this running diary may be dead in the water before it even begins.
1:07: While we wait for the start of the game, announcers Dan Schulman and John "One-Ball" Kruk tell us that the Jay's Roy Halladay has a 7-1 record against the Yankees since 2003. Thats promising...he also has one of the coolest nicknames in sports: "Doc." Thats worth at least 2 or 3 outs...
1:10: ESPN takes us to "bonus" coverage of the Royals and Tigers while we wait out the rain delay. Let me just tell ESPN something: ANYTHING involving the Kansas City Royals should never be considered a "bonus"
1:17: The Royals go quietly in the top of the first. Leading us to our first commercial of the day: Flomax. "Who doesn't want to spend less time in the bathroom?" Is that a rhetorical question? By the way, common side effects of Flomax are runny nose, dizziness and a decrease in semen. I've got 37 jokes here and NONE of them are appropriate. Lets just move on.
1:25: Two on, two out for Miguel Cabrera in Cabrera' first AB for the Tigers since coming over from Florida in the blockbuster winter deal. Cabrera, who is supposed to be the next A-Rod, but actually looks like he ate A-Rod. He's listed at 230, but its more like 250. Do you want your supposed new franchise player looking like he just cleaned out the buffet line at Sizzler? I say no. Cabrera flies out to end the inning.
1:28: A check in from Yankee Stadium says there is a "better weather window" beginning at 2pm, meaning the game will start sometime around then, hopefully. You know what, lets put the diary on hold until then, otherwise it'll get really long and I'll get some sarcastic comment from Katie Neal about being wordy ("Hello Pot? This is Kettle. You're black). Back at the start of the Jays-Yanks game.
2:30: Well, its official...the Jays Yanks game has been rained out. And this running diary had such promise. The game is being made up tomorrow night, but I don't think Jen will let me keep the computer long enough to do a diary as she'll be playing in her 47 Scrabulous games...oh well, one of these days...
Well, it's been a rough week. Mike got me sick- and I spent Wednesday and Thursday watching cheesy movies with Cooper and a box of Kleenex.
(editorial note: Mike did NOT get Jen sick. Granted, Mike was sick the week prior, but Jen didn't become ill until 3 days later, and she had different symptoms...she has no one to blame for her illness but herself...so there.)
On Friday I turned the corner and felt better- good thing too. George, Sharon and Sammie were in the city for a visit.
Being away from everything you have ever known really makes you appreciate those that you do know and the friends that you have.
It's so so so nice seeing friends and people you know! Especially old coworkers. News10 was like a family to me in so many ways- maybe I'm just getting sappy after watching Dan Adams' goodbye pkg on news10.net http://www.news10.net/display_story.aspx?storyid=40064
But it's true- you spend just as much time with your co-workers as you do your family- if not more.
So the Warren Clan came to visit at work. Here's a quick shot. of the fam along w/ another ex-News10er Chris Spitzer.
Chris and I showed them around the network and hung out with them for a few hours and then they went on their way to enjoy the city.
On Saturday, they came up to our neighborhood - Inwood. Sammie and Cooper got reacquainted- they were good friends back in Sacramento - the hung out during News10's softball games.
We went to brunch and then up to explore the Cloisters. Owned by the Met the Cloisters is a medieval castle filled with art from all Gothic and medieval times- really cool and a great view of the city. http://www.metmuseum.org/Works_Of_Art/the_cloisters
It's about a 10-15 minute walk from our place. It was really cool.
It's a beautiful day today - the suns out and it's in the upper 40's- which is warm to me now!
Next weekend Mikes parents come to visit. Yay!! We're so excited.
When Jen said she wanted an iPod for Christmas a few months back, I thought "that'll be nice for her to have, but I don't think I'll ever get one..." I didn't think I needed one all that bad, so I bought hers for Christmas and then watched her load it up with songs and videos and games and stuff...
Suddenly, I really REALLY wanted one...iPods are essential in New York...you're always traveling somewhere, especially if you live way up north in Manhattan like we do. I've got a 30 minute subway ride to work one-way each day, and I can only read so many magazines...so a few weeks after Christmas, I used my Christmas money (thanks Mom and Grandma!!) to buy myself an iPod Nano as well...
Well as many people know about me, I'm a music afficiando, and I listen to just about anything and everything you can imagine...from Top 40 stuff to random songs I've found on sheer dumb luck or stumbled upon through my life. If you ask my friends back in the college years, it was never a stretch to climb into my car and listen as I played a mix CD that featured George Jones, Sir Mix-A-Lot, Sheryl Crow, Beck and Vince Gill all back-to-back.
There are currently 343 songs on my iPod. I like to think that I have a pretty good range of songs on my iPod, though I have some eyebrow raisers as well. We won't hit them all in this post obviously, but I'll try and give you a little peek into my musical realm, and maybe you'll find something you like as well...or maybe you'll just ridicule me for having not one, but THREE Hanson songs on my iPod. Who knows?
And by the way, I hate, absolutely HATE people who try to be music critics and slam certain types of music. My philosophy has, and always will be, if its fun and I can sing along to it, or at least enjoy the songwriting aspects of it, I'm going to like it. So there'll be no pretentious comments in these musings.
Without further ado, the first part of What's On Mike's iPod:
1. Give It Up by: Public Enemy
Look, you either like Public Enemy, or you don't like music. (well, so much for the pretentious comments promise...that lasted long....but still) While this song isn't as good as "Fight The Power," its still a damn good song, mixing political dissertations and hip-hop beats. Plus, its nice to remember Flavor Flav as only mildly amusing, as opposed to the over-the-top joke he has become thanks to the geniuses over at VH1. I keep waiting for the very special episode of "Flavor of Love" where Chuck D shows up at Flav's house and kicks the shit out of him for becoming a nation-wide joke.
2. It's Always Raining Somewhere by: Robbie Fulks
Robbie is one of those guys who is too country for rock, and too rock or at the very least alt-country for country. He's been around for years, but this song came off of his Georgia Hard album about 4 years ago. Mike Baldwin and I got the chance to interview him at KDVS in Davis when he came through to do a show and the Mike and Mike program was still alive and well. It was 45 minutes of laughter, good music, and all around fun. Robbie's a funny guy, as his lyrics show, and he's quickly become one of my top 5 favorite artists, period.
3. Secret Agent Man by: Johnny Rivers
Hard to meet someone who doesn't know this song, since its been around for 40 plus years. Its also quickly becoming my new standard for karaoke, though don't worry, I still do a mean Hank Jr. for Family Tradition.
4. The Devil Is High by: The Titanics I heard this song as my friend Emma and I drove around Australia in January 2001. I ended up buying their whole album (Love Is The Devil) and its probably one of the best all-around albums of all time. Of course, the band disbanded shortly after releasing this album and this was their only album. You can't even find it on Amazon-dot-com, but you can probably get it on eBay or maybe Australian music websites. I highly recommend it if you like guitar rock with a little psychadelia mixed in.
5. Bingo Fever by: Da Yoopers
The Yoopers are a comedy skit troupe from Michigan's Upper Peninsula. They're funny as hell and have put out some great songs. This is one of them, about a man lamenting his wife's addictive bingo habit. It always reminds me of my paternal grandma, who had a SERIOUS bingo addiction in her later years.
6. Where's The Love by: Hanson
OK, before everyone dies laughing, or begins to ask for my man card, let me explain. I....ok I have no explanation. I just like this song. Its catchy, its fun, and...you know, I'd better stop talking. Lets just move on.
7. The Right Time by: Hoodoo Gurus
More Australian rockers. That was one of the things about going to Australia back in 2001, all the great music I found out about. There are hundreds of bands over there that are awesome but of course don't get ANY play over here in North America. In fact, here's a website to one of the radio stations over there, called Triple J.
http://triplej.abc.net.au
When you have time, click over there and take a listen for about 30 minutes. You won't be disappointed.
As for the Hoodoo Gurus, they've been around forever, and actually DID get some college rock play here in the States back in the 80s. Good good stuff.
8. She'd Rather Be Homeless by: Bobby Bare
In 1998, country music legends Waylon Jennings, Bobby Bare, Mel Tillis and Jerry Reed formed to put out an album under the moniker "Old Dogs." All of the songs on the album were written by noted author and poet Shel Silverstein. This one, in particular, is one of the wryly funniest songs in awhile, and Bobby Bare sings it as only he can.
9. Picture Book by: The Kinks
I had never heard this Kinks song until it ended up playing in some commercial, I think for HP or Kodak. Very Beatles-esque. Its a hard to find song, but I think iTunes has it.
10. Guilty Conscience by: Eminem/Dr. Dre
One of Slim Shady's first songs, off his breakthrough album. A story of people getting themselves into situations, and having to deal with Eminem (as the devil) and Dr. Dre (as the angel) on their shoulders...of course, the song ends with a guy shooting his wife and her lover...gotta love happy endings in rap songs...sheesh...pretty witty though, especially when Enimen asks if these people should be taking advice "from someone who slapped Dee Barnes" (for those who don't know, Dre slapped the female rapper back in the day as retaliation for her interviewing Ice Cube and him making derogatory comments about NWA...how do I remember all this stuff??
11. Sledgehammer by: Peter Gabriel
One of my favorite 80s songs, and I know Dave likes it when I do the Peter Gabriel faces from the video.
12. Help Yourself by: Tom Jones
I used to go marlin fishing with Tom Jones in the late 70s. We'd drink, haul in 500 pound marlins, and then go turn Tampa Bay upside down. Tom wrote this next song after we made a buffet restaurant stay open at gunpoint while we ate everything they had...awww Tom...hope you like it.
(If you know the movie reference, 10 points to you)
13. Alcohol by: Barenaked Ladies
Most folks know that BNL is my favorite band. They've put out great album after great album, and great song after great song. This is one of them, all about imbibing.
14. Papa Was A Rodeo by: The Magnetic Fields
While I never heard of the Magnetic Fields until I heard them in Australia, they are a New York band fronted by Stephen Merritt, who has a great, low-tone voice that makes all of their songs interesting. This song, about traveling entertainers, is good for its down-beat feeling and great lyrics.
15. Baby Likes To Rock It by: The Tractors
Right now, Kevin, Mike and Dave are all cringing. Why? Because they've had to hear this song roughly 7,832,568 times in their life because of me. Its my favorite song. It will always be my favorite song. And they're probably destined to hear it another 7-million times.
The Tractors came out in 1994 as kind of a bluesy-rock Americana country band, which was different then what was being played on country radio at the time. Garth Brooks, Clint Black, and Alan Jackson still owned the country airwaves, but the Tractors made some noise with this song, and a couple of others. They released a few more albums, but none were as good as their self-titled debut. There isn't a bad song on the album, but this is the most well-known, and for good reason, because it rocks.
The video is equally entertaining. Take a look for yourself.
Well, thats a quick peek into my listening likings. Future recaps of my iPod will touch on my love for Johnny Cash, more songs from out of left field, especially from my days at KDVS and the Mike and Mike show, as well as my defense for having not one, but THREE Backstreet Boys in the grouping...
OK, Californians...its official...the countdown has begun to until our official return to the "Golden State"...allbeit a temporary return...
We've booked our tickets, Cooper's picked out his seats, and the three of us will be returning on May 16th.
We fly in to San Francisco that Friday to attend Sister Jen's graduation ceremony at USF for completing her masters program (yay Sister Jen!!)...
then we'll be headed to Sac-Town...more specifically Roseville, where we'll be shacking up with my parents
So save the dates, Northern Californians...we hope to see as many people as we can...perhaps we'll even hold an open house or something that weekend where people can drop by...who knows...something will take place though....
Then mid-week we head to So Cal for Cousin Dorie's wedding...it'll be a party...a festival...a great time and we can't wait!!
We hope to see as many Southern California friends as we can down there as well!
Dorie's shower was fun, it was so great to see her and fun to celebrate her engagement. It was at her friend Erica's house in Newton, MA-- just outside of Boston. The shower was a pink theme which was super cute and fun.
Here are a few pictures....
By the way... I forgot to mention - I got bangs! I went for the Katie Holmes look. :)
Do you like?
Anyhow, after the shower Mike and Cooper picked me up from the shower and we went to Peet's Coffee! As many of you know- we love Peet's. There are no Peet's in NY. Boo! There are a couple of Peets though in and around the Boston are.. Hooray!
Afterwards we went to our hotel. It was really nice the Westin Waterfront hotel. It was on the "Seaport" side of Boston and most importantly they were Cooper friendly! After relaxing for a bit we decided to grab some food. We didn't want room service, but we didn't want to leave Cooper in the hotel by himself either so we drove around the city looking for food that looked easy to get "to go." Well, Boston is a CRAZY city to drive in. It's like a circle, the streets all switch directions and then end.. Its very complicated. Anyhow, we got lost and ended up driving past the cheers bar. So, we pulled over and took a picture! :)
Anyhow, we eventually found a burger place. Mike ran in while Coop dog and I circled the circles. It turned out really good. It was a Zagat rated place that was supposed to be the number one burger in the city- who knew? We lucked out.
Anyhow, we made it back to the hotel (eventually) ate- and rested up for a big day. One of the main attractions in Boston is the Freedom Trail walk. It's a 3 hour walk at your own pace tour through all the historical Boston sites.
On Monday we drove home by way of Plymouth- like the rock where the Pilgrims landed and then onto Cape Cod where we had lunch.
It was a GREAT trip. Here's a slide show of the sites we saw
So last weekend we went to Greenwich, CT for the day. Our friends from Sacramento Will & Jen Selva now live in Farmington, CT and Greenwich is the half way point between Farmington and Manhattan. Mike and I took the Metro North train from Grand Central Station up. It was a nice ride... comfortable leather seats... pretty scenery.... only about 45 minutes. Not bad.
Greenwich is a very cute town. Very upscale, old and cute. When I say old, I just don't mean the town- the people are old too. Old and Wealthy.
We had dinner at this really great place called the Thataway Cafe. Great Food, Good Prices. Now, here's where the old part comes in.. When we got there I went to the restroom. In the stalls there is a switch - looks like a light switch- with a sign above that says in case of emergency or you need assistance. Not only do they have a switch like that in the stalls, but there is a cord attached to it that goes all the way to the floor so from any position you may find yourself in you can reach it. All I could think of were those Life Alert commercials from the late 80's or early 90's- "help, I've fallen and I can't get up!!"
I was going to go back in with a camera and take a photo of it- but Mike was making fun of me and didn't think I should go into the bathroom with a camera.
All in all it was a great time. So nice to see familiar faces and enjoy the company of good friends.
This weekend Mike, Cooper, and I are heading to Boston for a 3 day weekend. We're renting a car on Friday and driving up early Saturday morning. It's supposed to be about a 4 to 4 1/2 hour drive.
Saturday afternoon is my cousin Dorie's bridal shower just outside of Boston. Mike and Cooper will drop me off and then head into the city to find our hotel and check in. We're staying at the Westin Boston Waterfront. It's downtown and dog friendly. They actually have a special pet care package waiting to greet Cooper with once he arrives.
By the way- There's a Peet's Coffee in Boston! It's the closest one to NYC. I can't wait.
So I woke up this morning to the news I was hoping would never come, but knew that it had to happen eventually...
Brett Favre has retired...
And with that....my love of the NFL dims considerably...it just won't be the same without him.
Where to begin? I began following the Packers as my NFL team in 1988...Don "The Magic Man" Majkowski was their quarterback, and they were mediocre at best...then in 1992, Brett Favre took the helm, and began to lead the Packers on a ride that can best be described as "up-and-down"...but never unmemorable.
Sundays became an event for me. If the Pack were playing on regular TV, friends and family knew not to bother me...if the only way I could find them was on the NFL package, I traveled to a friend's house who bought the cable package just to be able to watch them (and then fight over the remote with my friend, a die-hard 49ers fan)
When they beat the Patriots in 96 to win the Super Bowl...it was one of the top five moments of my life....when they lost the Super Bowl to Denver the next year, I was devastated for days...
As Favre played on into the 2000s, and the team behind him began to crumble, it became increasingly frustrating to watch the Pack...with mediocre players around him, Brett seemed to think that he needed to gamble more often and tried to make tougher plays that his body just couldn't handle...
when Green Bay dropped to 4-and-12 in 2005, that was about the lowest you could get...at that point, I was ready for Favre to go...as far as I was concerned, his legacy was being tarnished...it was time to hang it up...
Then in 2006, with the Packers 4-and-8, suddenly, everything started clicking...the Packers won their last 4 games and just missed the playoffs...the final game, a victory over the Bears on New Year's Eve...Jen and I were watching as we got ready to go to a party in LA...afterwards, when they asked Brett if he was going to call it a day, you could see the emotion...I really thought that was going to be it...
But then, he decided to come back...as 2007 approached, my friends asked me, "are you ready for another go-round with number 4?"
And honestly, I wasn't...as I frequently told people "there isn't enough Maalox on the planet to get me through another season." Every time Brett dropped back to throw, I was ready for anything...a completion through triple coverage...an interception with no Packer in sight, hell I was ready for the pass to knock the nachos out of the hands of the kid in the 6th row...
Then the season started...and they beat the Eagles in the season opener...and then destroyed the Giants at the Meadowlands...then eeked out a win over San Diego...three wins they had no businss getting according to the "experts" ...hell, according to me! I thought they'd lose all three...
Eventually, the season became one for the ages...win after win after win...as I sat on my couch now in New York City with my mouth agape...how were they doing this? Such a young team, how was this possible...???
When they clinched the playoff spot, I was estatic. When they suddenly gained home field advantage for the NFC Championship game with Dallas' playoff loss, I thought "holy crap, this might actually happen....they could make the Super Bowl" Does anyone think the Packers wouldn't have beaten the Patriots in the Super Bowl?? Hell, the whole LEAGUE would have been rooting for that to happen, and you know the Commissioner would have made it happen...
But when the Giants upset them at Lambeau in -23 wind chill degree weather, I was upset, but it didn't last as long...actually not much more than a minute...to me, it was amazing they had gotten this far, and frankly, I just began thinking about next year...and thinking, "well they'll be good again!"
Now, all that seems pretty unlikely...Aaron Rodgers is now our quarterback, and I can't imagine another NFC Championship game appearance, much less a Super Bowl appearance, with Aaron Rodgers at the helm...
So the era ends, with Brett saying he's "mentally tired". Some have said he's angry the Pack didn't go out and get Randy Moss. Others say he could still change his mind and unretire in a few weeks...God, I hope that happens...though in my opinion its highly unlikely...
One game stands out over all the others...his performance against the Raiders on Monday night in 2003 the night after his father died of a heart attack while driving in Mississippi. He had the opportunity to go home...he decided to stay and play because, he said, his father would have wanted him to...then he went out and shredded the Raider D for 399 yards passing and 4 touchdowns in a rout...
I remember watching that game with tears in my eyes the whole time...people were crying in the stands (in OAKLAND!)...Raider fans were actually cheering whenever Brett threw a TD...those highlights come up every now and then, and I get the same tears...heck, Jen even came across them one night and started crying (though to be fair, she'll cry over a fairly mild commercial)...the point being...if you don't get a little misty watching those highlights and knowing the backstory, there's something hugely wrong with you....
So thanks Brett...thanks from a 12-year-old boy who was fortunate enough to pick the right team to follow 4 years before you came to the team...thanks from a 20-year-old man who got to see his team win a Super Bowl...thanks from a 27-year-old man who went home and hugged his own father after that Raider game...and thanks from a 31-year-old man who has spent the last 2 hours remembering all of the good memories in his life that are connected to the Green Bay Packers and number 4....
Basically, thanks for the past 17 years...you'll be missed....
Amy & her boyfriend Fred
