Catch Of The Day

No, I mentioned the bisque.

No, I mentioned the bisque.

By The Fillerbuster

The Cast 03/03/19

SETTING:

10% written last night, 20% written this morning when I woke up (Sunday), and the other 70% written in the afternoon after shoveling snow watching the MD-Michigan game.  No theme yet, and the possible one kind of stinks to be honest.  So, maybe something will brew up as I type.  For now, I feel the need…the need for speed.

Barely edited (I actually got tired and just posted what I initially wrote, so sorry), written all at once, and hope you enjoy.  I know I enjoyed writing it.

Let’s turn and burn.

EVERGREEN (topics that don’t fade away):   

LEBRON

When I wake up and open up ESPN, I feel like it is a daily occurrence that LeBron has something to say about something.  Sometimes, it is post-game.  Sometimes it is from his TV show.  Sometimes it is on Twitter.  It is always trivial, moody, and I am tired of it.  I get that he is in a different position (OUT) than he is used to in regards to the playoffs.  I get that he is playing with youngsters.  But, YOU left Cleveland.  YOU went to LaLa Land.  You gambled on the end of your career.  I don’t want to hear your complaints.  I don’t care about your constant feedback.  Just play.  This week, he started his playoff mode apparently.  He said everyone on his team is distracted, even while being caught on tape being about 15 feet from his man doing nothing on a play.  Then, he said he likes where they are.  A 180, or 360 if he was Costanza.  You know you are important.  We know you are important.  The NBA knows you are important.  The Lakers know you are important.  But, PLEASE don’t feel the need to articulate every shifting thought in your skull, LeBron.  Going a few days without some announcement is not necessarily a bad thing.  You aren’t Jack Handy.

TENNIS

When did tennis get old?  By old, I mean, when did the older guys excel week after week?  When I was growing up, you had at least 2-3 guys around the top ten who were teenagers, and the rest were mainly in their twenties.  You retired once you hit 30 years old.  You were usually burned out by then anyway since you started so young.  Now?  Totally different.  We have a few kids we are “keeping our eye on,” but overall the Slams are ruled by older guys, and the youngsters are being weeded out by the semi’s.  Let me give you a quick fact check I did to back this up (I don’t have bandwidth to do more than a quick check).  I pulled the ages of the men’s top ten in tennis.  Here is the rundown.  31, 32, 21, 30, 32, 29, 37, 25, 33, 30.  Alexander Zverev is legit, only 21, and will win plenty.  But, look at the ages of the other guys.  ONE other guy is in his twenties, and he is about to have his 30th.  NO teenagers.  None.  You would think that technology would make kids excel faster.  The irony is what it has done is toy with the OTHER side of the curve.  It has allowed men to play LONGER.  It is amazing to me.

CARD COLLECTIONS

I bought a few baseball cards when I was kid with my allowance.  It was fun.  I had a mini-collection.  Not sure where they went, but not feeling like I gave away any big money ringers either.  Anyway, I get it.  Some people are really into baseball cards.  Then, this week, a “rare” Tom Brady card sold for $400k at an auction.  This is a football card obviously.  I didn’t really even know this was a thing.  So, if I thought that it was odd when people collected mass amounts of baseball cards, I really think oddness exists with football cards.  If you asked me to go out and buy a football card, I wouldn’t even know where to start.  Do I buy the card itself?  Do they still come with bad tasting candy?  Do I got to a sports store, or are they in the checkout line at a grocery store?  I don’t know.  I think mostly though whatever I think, I am just mostly angry that I didn’t think of keeping these pieces of hard paper with people’s pictures and stats on it, and then make it my nest egg later in life.  Ugghhh.

BRYCE HARPER-PHILS

Bryce Harper landed with my Phils, which makes me excited.  There is no salary cap in baseball, so no rules really needed to be abided by.  And, although the last 3-4 years will probably be throw away years in the contract, they provided enough flexibility to land even Mike Trout next year (which would be ironic since my brother’s favorite player and mine would be on the same team (mine is more forced now as I was trying to NOT like Bryce because of his attitude and antics)).  And this could happen, people.  Mike Trout is from the town just over from mine in South Jersey.  South Jersey is all Phillies fans.  If Mike could come back home at a lesser price, he will.

But back to Bryce, check out this.  Even before signing with ANY team, Westgate in LV still had him as the favorite to win the MVP this year…with no team.

If Bryce would have gone with the Nats, he would have been paid until he was 60 years old.

But, because he went with the Phils, luckily Bobby Bonilla will STILL be on the Mets payroll after Bryce.  That was close.  We need the Bonilla jokes for many, many more years, folks.

I find the Bryce-Phils marriage perfect.  Why?  You have one of the most unlikeable players going to one of the most unlikeable fan bases.

I think two championships make this ridiculously long contract worth it, no matter when those two occur.

ARENADO

Talk about a line in the stand, GREAT deal for both sides, the Rockies signed Arenado for a long term contract.  Opt out after three years, only an eight-year deal, and he can still say, even after Bryce’s deal, that he is the highest paid player ANNUALLY of everyone.  And, considering his defensive skills and attitude, one COULD make the argument that he IS the best player in baseball.  That statement is not outlandish.

MARCH

March is here, people.  It is the best month of the year.  The madness will begin soon.  I will save the overwhelming emotions I get before tourney time and write more then.  Just letting you know we are here finally.  Close to the greatest tournament in sports.

WEEK-FISH (current topics of interest in sports):

NFL

  • I could literally sit on my couch or at a bar/restaurant and watch the combine drills ALL DAY.  I haven’t this weekend, but just saying that if I had nothing else to do in life, I would.
  • Bob Kraft now is busted for TWO visits, including one the day of the AFC Championship game (I assume, meaning he had to fly out right after).  Anyway, at least he got some air time on SNL last night.
  • So, Oakland fans are mad at the Raiders for moving.  Oakland fans live…in Oakland.  The Raiders will play next season…in Oakland.  If that is not an interesting dynamic for a home field advantage, I don’t know what is.  Will they embrace the last year of them being there, or be bitter the whole game and wish failure on the team.  Someone get Darth Raider on ESPN pronto.
  • When your day is non-routine or you feel out of sorts, just remember there are normal things in life every day that make things ok.  For example, the sun will always rise, and Pacman Jones every so often will find a way to get in trouble.  I was actually impressed with this, since the incident initially started with him allegedly cheating.  He is smart enough, or at least thinks he is smart enough, to outsmart the casino cameras?  Stellar.
  • When I read about Trent Richardson making a comeback, it reminded me that he had gone away.
  • If I am a QB looking for a gig, my search is definitely including Jacksonville.  Yes, I think Foles would fit in nicely there, as you might have read.  Their defense isn’t going anywhere, their running game is solid, their weapons aren’t horrible, and plugging in a QB just might work for at least an entrance into the playoffs.
  • Antonio Brown says, along with “big chest” and “big checks” Twitter disputes, that he is not taking ANY blame for what is happening in Pittsburgh.  Take a little, bro.  10%?  15%  Whatever.  I LOVE how Larry Fitzgerald came out (when he talks, he is like EF Hutton, and people listen (aging myself a little there)) and said the grass is not always greener on the other side.  This is true.  AB might want out, but with little control on where he ends up, I would LOVE to see him in no-man’s land without a top tier QB wondering what might have been.
  • I don’t agree with Kyler going #1, but apparently there is a chance it might happen.  Figure in Baker’s success as a shorter QB from OU, the fact that Kingsbury LOVES him, and the fact that Josh Rosen just might be our generation’s Jeff George, lends itself to that result.
  • Kyle was 5’10” 1/8, and I just really want to be a fly on the wall when that person is measuring that 1/8”.
  • Golden Tate said he would love to join the Pats.  In other news, the grass is green and the sky is blue.  Thanks, Golden.  How adorable would that be?  Link up the guy named Golden with the Golden Boy.
  • Bell might go to the Eagles.  Bell acts like he would handle the fan base’s boos so well.
  • Jason Witten will come out of retirement to join the Cowboys.  WHY?  I guess it is good since he was marginally doing better than Dennis Miller on MNF, but that guy had NO reason to come back or anything left to prove to us, the fans.

AAF

(Just kidding)

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

  • A female player got an offer from a college as a safety on a men’s team.  Not sure about what I think of it on the field, whether I will watch any of her games, or whether she truly belongs on the field with them, but I guess I am most curious about what the locker room situation is when they travel from school to school.
  • When a QB wants to transfer from a school that is legendary for their NFL type offensive line, and wins a lot year to year, I definitely think there are internal problems that we will never hear about going on.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

  • Eight Ole Miss basketball players kneeled, and I am SO good with that.  Maybe that will filter up to the pros.  I believe I live in America, and last I heard this is a free country with freedom of speech and action.
  • I thought Nova was FINALLY on the up and up, and then they dropped a game to Xavier.  This was after perplexing losses to St. John’s and G-Town also.  The Jermaine Samuels explosion was fun to watch though.  If he starts doing that, they can be a scary 4 or 5 seed in the tourney.
  • I thought Michigan was finally on the up and up, and then they dropped a home game vs. Michigan State.
  • Then, I thought that MSU might be over the hump and they went out and lost to Indiana.
  • I thought that Iowa State would finally play like they were earlier and then they got smoked  by Texas.
  • I thought that Marquette was finally in a groove and on the up and up, and then they lost at HOME to Creighton today, in a game that they were favored by 7.5.
  • Seriously, very confusing.
  • I think Ignas Brazdeikis of Michigan should just be named Lefty.  He is like Mickelson.  Lefty on the court/course, and righty in life.
  • Gonzaga is the new #1 basketball team.  Listen, we can’t judge them in their conference.  I get it.  But, here is the deal.  Of any team in the nation, they have done their BEST to set up the beginning of their schedule to play the best teams, so let them slide during conference play.  Will it help prepare them to win six tough games?  Probably not.  But, they have made the final game once, they beat a fully loaded Duke team, and on paper they have pro prospects right and left.  I have little problem with giving them the top slot given who has fallen to whom.
  • David West will start a league out west to rival the NCAA and pay players $50k-$150k.  OK.  But, now I am losing track of things.  So, we have a developmental league, we have the LaVar Ball thing coming, this thing, Europe, and college.  I can’t take all this.  Just let the kids go straight to the pros and call it a day.
  • Semi-college basketball fans probably just saw KU beat KSU and assumed that was that.  Let’s remember, KSU didn’t have Wade in that game.  Big difference.
  • I didn’t bet it either way, but I did smell trouble in the water when Duke visited Virginia Tech.  VA Tech is a talented bunch even without their PG, and their home venue is close to the court, personal, and very much an advantage.  I WILL also say that Duke losing to them after Virginia rolled over them in the second half with Robinson also missing the game spoke volumes about what UVA is doing.
  • Fran McCaffery didn’t just get mad at the refs, but he used the really, really dirty words.
  • In the 2OT game with Wisconsin and IU, Wisconsin simply gave the one of the best guards going to the draft (Romeo Langford) too many chances to have the last word in the game, and it eventually bit them.  Well, AND they let him go right, which is baffling.
  • WVU can’t score to save their life, but the home court advantage they have is massive.  It took 3 OT’s, but they eventually beat a very good TCU team in Morgantown.
  • Very glad to hear that Boeheim was drinking, wasn’t speeding, and things were out of his control.  Too classy a guy to have something like that on his life resume, but very sad regardless obviously that someone lost their life.
  • IUP forgot their uniforms, were lent the opponents road ones, and paid back the favor by winning on their floor.
  • I had a VERY low key week and weekend, so therefore I would say that catching Bill Walton announce USC-UCLA was indeed a highlight.
  • Tennessee just really doesn’t lose on their home court.  Almost a fact.  So, after getting rocked by UK in Lexington, the fact that they not only paid back the favor to UK, but paid them back in style, had to be uplifting to the Tennessee fan base.  They are legit, folks.  The UK game was a blip.
  • Did you see GameDay this week in Houston?  They called out a fan in a trash can and asked him if he even had a sign.  He appeared out of the trashcan and brought out a sign.  No Cougar sayings or anything.  Just his phone number with a request for ladies to call him.  That guy is now a legend.
  • Maybe Houston should have put that guy on one of their player’s shoulder to guard the big guy, because UCF went into Houston and beat them…on one of the hardest home courts to win at.  Impressive.
  • I didn’t take the twelve points in Ohio State’s game at Purdue.  I would have needed a lot more than that in that debacle.  Good stay away, and not sure if Ohio State’s kids decided to pull a Warriors and lose as badly as possible all in the same game.
  • The spread was 1.  Vegas knew something.  I thought that Nevada going to Utah State’s crib would be dangerous, but on no planet did I think they would lose decisively.
  • Texas Tech is hitting stride in case you live in a bubble.  They schooled that solid TCU team also.
  • Maryland-Michigan
    • Simpson’s hook shot is AMAZING.
    • Michigan hung in this game even with Teske not being able to hit the broad side of a barn.
    • MD hung around at home as they have been tough all season there. The better team won the second half.

NBA

  • While writing this, on one of my looks at scores, I noticed that the Clippers put up EIGHTY TWO points in the first HALF against the Knicks.  Wow.
  • I said in the last blog that when the Warriors lay an egg, they do it in STYLE.  Losing at home vs. the Rockets, when the Rockets were without James Harden, was a good example.
  • Dirk is getting spontaneous ovations.  Dirk is trading jerseys with Wade.  Dirk had 15 points last week in a game.  Dirk is sometimes starting again.  Dirk is thinking about coming back, saying he never officially said he was retiring.  Dirk, I love you, man, but ride off into the sunset after this year.  Have a couple of decent games, so we always will say you COULD have kept playing, but your team isn’t winning anything for 2-3 years, and you will go out respectfully, with some skills intact, and we will embrace your departure and HOF entrance years from now.  Don’t push it.
  • I had no idea that the Knicks couldn’t even win at HOME until they beat the Spurs last week.  I didn’t realize the magnitude of their failures, I guess.
  • We hear about the ex-NBA guys failing.  We hear about the ex-NBA guys getting into trouble.  We sometimes even talk about the ex-NBA guys who are working 9-5 jobs to get by.  But, did YOU know that Al Harrington (known as being a star player on the ALMOST Pacers team from years ago) was the head of a billionaire cannabis company?  I didn’t.  Wow.
  • The Harden scoring streak is over.  He was about HALFway to where Wilt ended up in 30 pts plus games.
  • But, he DID sneak in this week a 58 point effort that made the news.  There have been plenty of players who have scored 50 plus points.  Sometimes their stat line indicates the points were forced.  Sometimes they lose those games.  But, did you look at Harden’s stat line in that game?  .500 FG percentage, .45 three points percentage, perfect from the line in 18 attempts.  Fluid, effortless, not forced by any means.  Beautiful.
  • LeBron is the first player to be in the top 10 in both assists and points.  You can love the guy, hate the guy, or stay indifferent, but regardless THAT is pretty darn impressive.
  • The Lakers blew a lead against the Bucks.  They lost at Memphis when favored by five.  They lost against the Suns, the lottery team in waiting.  If this is the playoff switch LeBron talked about, then it is not working too well.
  • When I first read the headline “Jabbar puts up rings for auction,” I was fearing the worst and that he was another athlete somehow either wanting the cash, or not realizing the meaning of the rings.  But, glad I read the article.  He is putting them up for auction to get money for kids charity.  Noble cause, and him and us know what he did.
  • HOW are the Pacers still sitting pretty in playoff contention after losing Oladipo?  Amazing.
  • HOW did Pascal Siakam suddenly become good after being just OK at New Mexico State?  And on a good team?  Also amazing.
  • Wade’s last second three was pretty cool, and if that is his last buzzer beater, then he did it against the Evil Empire and we all enjoyed it immensely.
  • Odd fact I learned.  The Wade shot was the first buzzer beater for or against the Warriors since 2014.  That is a long time, 82 games in a season.  More proof that they either win by a lot or lose by a lot.
  • I can’t imagine being on the New Orleans Pelicans these days.  So, you fight for three quarters because Silver says they have to play AD, and then he sits during crunch time and you lose frequently.  What a weird situation.
  • I broke my rule for ONE game by betting for or against the Pelicans, and, as I expected, I lost.  Stick to your rules, people.
  • The new NBA draft lottery rules occur this year.  I read them.  You don’t need to.  Basically, the fourth spot now is in play, the percentages are much more similar for those “top” four teams, and it is just another baby step against tanking.
  • He is old.  His skills are diminished.  But, as far as a locker room presence among youngsters, I LOVE the Bucks picking up Pau Gasol.  I don’t see a down side actually.
  • Iggy says Curry is the 2nd best PG of all time.  Magic, he says, is #1.  I still find that yelling from a mountain top that someone is “#2!!!” is a little weird.
  • So, when talking about NBA defense and sometimes the lack of it, the reality is shown in the Bulls-Hawks final score last week.  The teams are bad.  They will not be in the playoffs.  But, when facing EACH OTHER, they can post the third most points ever in NBA history (329).  That is a lot, but you should still try and NOT watch the game when they play against each other unless from Atlanta or Chicago.
  • I get excited when players do obvious dumb things on the court.  But, I get sad when that player is a UVA grad.  Degrades my school.  Mike Scott committed an intentional foul vs. the Warriors when down three with shot clock plus time on the clock.  Come on, Mike.  Wahoowa, bro.

MLB

  • Most of my weekly thoughts were in evergreen.
  • MLB will ditch the pitch clock this year.  Thank you.

NHL

  • The cream is rising to the top.  We all knew the Lightning would be in the mix for the Stanley Cup this year.  Being the fastest team to 50 wins is a good start before the playoffs.  That Red Wings team was pretty darn good.  They were upset by the Avs, when hockey took Denver by storm for the masses.
  • The trade deadline came and went, and some big moves were made.  Nothing so spectacular that non-hockey fans would take notice.  Basically, the ringers are still on the same teams.

MISCELLANEOUS

  • Jon Jones beat down as much as you can beat down an opponent apparently (didn’t watch fight) on Saturday in a match that went the distance.  Think about this.  He is 24-1, never gets knocked down, and if he could pull together his actions OUTSIDE the ring, we would be talking about the asterisk (illegal hit) as the ONLY blemish in his entire career.  Shame.
  • Dustin Johnson made sure to keep himself on the radar as he won last week on the PGA Tour.  With Phil, Dustin, and Rickie winning recently, and Tiger doing his thing of showing us glimpses of greatness but not for four rounds, The Masters is setting up to be more must watch than in quite a while.
  • Man, I love Masters weekend.
  • Who is Danielle Gibson?  She is a player on the Arkansas softball team who hit for a cycle last week…a HOME RUN cycle.  Ridiculous, no matter which sport we are talking about.
  • Is the AAF even going on right now?  It is?  Thank God for Johnny Manziel, whose incident of getting kicked out of the CFL has given the AAF more possible pub than they could ever generate on their own.  I am kind of tired of these makeshift iterations of the “NFL competitor.”
  • I think Johnny Manziel and Jon Jones should meet for lots of drinks.  Lots in common.
  • Even Manziel’s woman has her own cheating/bad habits problems.  If you want to read one of the most interesting marathon stories you have ever read, check out the theories of her cheating on a half marathon.  https://deadspin.com/either-johnny-manziels-wife-is-the-fastest-runner-in-re-1832967146
  • I am pretty sure that Hitler’s teachings are out of play these days, but if they had a last chance, I guess the Last Chance U coach sending Hitler texts sounds about right.
  • Royce White, the ex-Iowa State and NBA player who made headlines for not being able to fly but talented enough to be in the league, wants to try UFC fighting.  Let’s root for him, but hope he doesn’t give too many more TV interviews.  I was a fan, until I saw a special on him about his flight problems.  He comes across not very humble and very cocky.  Ambiguous rooting.
  • The top BRIDGE player (yes, cards) was busted…for DOPING.  Sign of the apocalypse.
  • Russian athletes have been banned for drinking alcohol during their urine sample testing.  They have enough problems, but they apparently can’t even have a good time with the needle in the arm.
  • A NY man fakes abduction to get out of paying out a Super Bowl square pool.  Maybe when Jon Jones and Johnny Football are having drinks, Jussie Smollet and this guy could be having drinks at the table next to them.
  • The USWNT will wear jerseys of random famous people.  Because soccer has no traction in America, I guess the marketing people are grasping at straws.

THIS AND THAT (pop culture, Fillerbuster thoughts):

  • Alpha
    • This was one I must have missed.  A boy who befriends a wolf, and proves himself at the wolf’s side through animal obstacles, nature’s obstacles, and man’s obstacles?  That is like every book I read 100 times when I was a kid.
    • My one question.  They didn’t have rope back then?
    • It was kind of like Revenant with a wolf, or Eight Below with less dogs and a man.
    • I highly recommend it.  Good watch.
  • Ralph Breaks the Internet is a great flick.  And, after watching it, I wonder how GOOD Spider Man could be that Ralph was beat out.  Clever subject of going INTO the internet, enough adult jokes to go around, good visuals the whole time, and I am fine with them finding another adventure for Ralph.  I will be there.
  • The #1 burrito at Scratch Burrito in Berkley is very tasty, and you know I already love the atmosphere (but also kind of like it more since it is one of two places within 5 minutes walk).
  • We have no separate heating for our Air BNB.  It is downstairs.  We had some people who said they were cold at our typical 71 degrees.  We kicked it up to 74 for FOUR days.  That is a little above my comfort line, no matter how cold it is out.
  • Yes.  We saw the commercial with what’s his name, were lazy, and even thought Taco Bell is about four blocks from us, had it delivered to us last weekend.
  • I can’t believe that I still haven’t tried McDonald’s cheesy bacon fries.  I might have to make a separate trip there after work tomorrow.
  • We are out of the Melting Pot magical wine-garlic condiment, and it is killing my pasta at work.
  • I still haven’t used a microwave since last June at home.  I never thought I could go a month to be honest.
  • In Pennsylvania, a mother and daughter killed FIVE of their relatives that lived in the same building.  That is disturbing.
  • In this week’s the world is going to end soon story, an iceberg broke off of Antarctica twice the size of NYC.
  • There is a beer flavored like Lucky Charms?  That is pushing it.
  • For the second year in a row, I think that Max’s Wine Dive is one of the best tasting values that is out there for restaurant week.
  • I find it funny that I had spaghetti and cheese sauce 90 minutes before I went to a place I knoew I would have mac and cheese at.
  • But, our new favorite Italian place, Trattoria Stella, was the best place I went to this year during the week.  We have had brunch there and now dinner, and that place is incredible.  Not sure I elevate it to White Pie lasagna status yet, but there overall menu is right on par with White Pie.  Highly recommend it.  When Lindsey is indecisive about a dinner place, I told her I will just default to Trattoria now.
  • John Legend is very good on The Voice, by the way.  Funny how the other three judges are petrified of him and used a block all within the first episode.
  • John Legend is an EGOT guy.  Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony winner.  EGOT.  Why did they do that?  If I had those letters available, and wanted to exalt someone, I would say GOTE.  It is like Greatest of All Time in sports, but just spelled differently.  It flows better.  EGOT sounds dumb.
  • I keep telling you that residencies are overtaking shows in Vegas.  Another one is booked at Park MGM.  I wasn’t even sure she was still performing, but I guess she is, and Janet Jackson has set up shop there now.
  • Very rarely do you play hurt in software sales, but this week I did.  I had an ingrown fingernail.  When I typed, it hurt.  I fought through it.  I toughed it out.
  • Another sign we are running out of movie ideas.  There is another Four Weddings and a Funeral movie coming out.
  • Seriously.  HOW does every other airline NOT do what Southwest is doing with free change fees.  If I am going somewhere with possible changing dates, and Southwest is going there, I don’t even look at other airlines.
  • The planned fun trips in the books this year.  Miami in April, Cabo in June, St. John/Virgin Islands in August, and Aspen in December.
  • Fiji/Australia or African safari will be 2020 barring any complications.
  • I am kind of excited.  When we go to Miami for Presidents Club for work, and since we were kind of bummed it was Miami and not anywhere exotic, Lindsey and I booked a trip to Bimini for a coupon found $133 each for the whole day on a ferry trip.  I am pumped, and I now feel like I get a little exotic beach trip out of this whole thing.
  • Love how the day after we booked the ferry to Bimini, the government released a warning about tourists in the Bahamas.
  • Given this new Bryce Harper info and the fact that I am now forced to continue to like him since he is on my Phils, I guess the tagline exit about clown question will live for another 13 years.
  • If you feel like taking a walk during work hours, keep this in mind.  In 2018, the most pedestrians were killed by cars since 1990.
  • I heard the Jonas Brothers were back together, and it reminded me that I didn’t know they were broken up.
  • Remember this when cleaning your garage or attic.  A family in France found a painting in their attic.  It was a Caravaggio (I only know what that is because our work’s conference rooms are named after artists) that was worth $171 million.
  • I hate when I am not on a group email thread that is relevant.  For some reason, I think the hours at my work have changed from 8:30am-330pm., 9am-3pm on Friday.  I am there when people get there, and I am there when people check out.
  • Not sure where it came from, but I enjoyed the random chocolate milk commercial, talking about protein drinks.
  • Oasis Brewery on Lowell and 33rd is a pretty cool spot with some pretty good beers.  They didn’t have a sour beer for Lindsey ready, so we will be returning in two months.
  • I love how this week’s SNL mentioned Cheez-It’s, the grandfather of snack food if you ask me.  Again, try all of the cool flavors you want.  I have dabbled.  If you want the CRISPIEST one that leaves the least amount of crap on your hands, go with Reduced Fat.  Not because of the “healthiness,” but because of the taste.  I am an expert.
  • Texas De Brazil never is a letdown.  Go for the meat, go for the atmosphere, but don’t forget to have the lobster bisque.  It is magical.
  • Lobster bisque also is a classic Seinfeld reference as you know.  Yada yada yada.  When questioned on skipping over the best part (sex), she says “No,  I mentioned the lobster bisque.”
  • Right now for themes, I have Trattoria in the spirit of Praetorian, Alpha, and lobster bisque.
  • Sam’s Club is jacking my OCD up.  I went in there with a list (second trip since membership), and still was overwhelmed.  We spent a couple hundred dollars, and still not sure what I got.  I know I have a parmesan cheese container that needs to be on the tall shelf with the milk, the largest box of spaghetti I have ever seen, and a container of vitamins that takes half my bathroom counter and is enough for a year.
  • We used Passbook after Sam’s Club and went to Bad Daddy’s.  The burgers are rankable, but still damn good.  Get the recommended Bad Daddy’s sauce with your fries.  It is awesome.
  • Passbook?  Not on it?  Then you are missing the boat.  You spend $45 on a night out if you are lucky.  And you won’t spend $25 to get a free entrée or drink at about 100 restaurants in the area?  Do you need a spreadsheet breakdown?
  • It snowed this weekend in Denver, meaning we are televised nationally and everyone thinks Colorado is cold and snowy all the time.  Problem is that it was SO cold that the flakes I think bottomed out in the cold air.  We got about 5-6 inches in my area.  Decent, but still not at my desired threshold.  When it snows, I either want nothing, or a foot.
  • We got enough in the mountains that they closed down the Eisenhower tunnel.  I have been out here for 20 years.  I still have dodged somehow the whole highway shutdown thing.  I kind of wish someday it would happen to me, but I want to be on the mountain side of things so I can’t make it to work.  If you get caught on the Denver side, then I assume most likely you are missing out on a good time you were going to have.
  • My wife got sucked into The Lion King on Saturday.  I forgot how good of movie that was.
  • I received my 23 and Me results back.  I haven’t had time to page through everything, but it came out 57% English/Irish, 20% German/Other European, and a mix of everything else.
  • One of my favorite things in life is when lines get longer behind me.  We went over to Illegal Pete’s for their $3.03 breakfast burritos today, and we didn’t wait a second, but that line was about 25 people deep by the time we were halfway through our meal.
  • After Illegal Pete’s, we thought it was a beautiful cold day for ice cream.  Sweet Cow is so damn good.  I had the Dutch Chocolate Acai Blueberry, and it was incredible.

THE FILLERBUSTER OSCAR NOTES:

(by the way, you should check out the SNL after the Oscars.  It has a Family Feud skit where although the plot and sketch itself isn’t the funniest, the characters alone (I believe ten of them) are worth the watch.  Google it.)

  • I don’t recognize many famous people overall.
  • The dresses everyone talks about are the ones I think are the ugliest.
  • I really can’t believe they had all day coverage of this event.
  • Ryan Seacrest is a goofball.
  • I know there was no host, but I am still confused why there was no host.
  • Queen opening the show up was pretty cool and I honestly wouldn’t have ballparked whether they were still alive or dead.
  • The SNL gals opening was pretty funny.
  • Free Solo winning was great because I read an article about the movie both in my fitness magazine and sports magazine.
  • Melissa McCarthy’s dress with animals was insane, funny, and made us all realize once again that she would be pretty cool to have some beers with.
  • I felt like Black Panther winning the early editing awards easily signaled they weren’t winning anything late.
  • It took me a while to recognize Khaleesi with her dark hair.  She seems kind of prissy.
  • I am not an expert, and she still sounded good, but Jennifer Hudson sounded a tad flat to me.
  • Serena Williams presenting a movie was pretty cool.
  • We played the Oscar mobile app game, and although I wasn’t sure how it knew the winner sometimes before the announcement, it had tidbits on each person and each winner.  Conspiracy theory dictates that I also wonder how they knew which tidbits to prepare for the app.
  • I felt bad for the other foreign film contestants since Roma was the overall favorite.
  • The app had a live look-in on the stars, and I found it interesting to watch them interact.
  • I haven’t seen the movie, but not sure how Spiderman beat some of the other contenders.  I find it impossible to believe it was better than Ralph, Ferdinand, etc.
  • I kind of enjoy when the microphone goes out on people who won and are rambling.
  • I admit the Shallow performance was pretty stellar.  The song is great, but just not a big believer that it was all that and a bag of chips.
  • When Spike Lee brought up his notes on a piece of yellow legal pad paper, it reminded me of me carrying around my old blog list, but less successful.
  • Who the hell is Ryan Kugler?  People thanked him, and made him sound like the man.
  • I was rooting for the Black Panther score because it is the same guy who busted out the killer music in Creed 2.
  • Although it is sad because it is about dead people, I find myself really enjoying the In Memoriam part each year.
  • Although the contestants were indeed a weaker group than past years, I KNEW and TOLD you that Rami would win best actor as soon as I walked out of the theater.
  • Although I haven’t seen either movie, I felt like I enjoyed Olivia winning best actress and keeping Close on the “best to never win one” list.
  • I still thought Green Book would win even after Roma won best director.
  • Green Book won, and I beat my wife at the Oscar ballot game this year.  Bragging rights for 365 days.
  • When the national ballot winners were posted on the app, I found it odd that the winner had 313 points, and then there were a million people at 304, 303, and 302.  Quite a big separation for a national game.  Cheater.
  • Come on, Spike.  You can say what you want in interviews after, but you should only have gotten mad and tried to storm out if your flick was SUPPOSED to win, which it wasn’t.

TWEETS OF THE WEEK:

THE BEST WORKOUT SONG EVER FOR THIS WEEK:

RUNNIN

DEFYING GRAVITY

BASIC NEEDS

LINK TO MY PLAYLIST:

https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLD2Mbw0Lo0WSKayzEsMHsaZpYJhdmalmM

QUOTE OF THE WEEK:

Raise your head and your eyes will follow. -Alpha

All I needed was the last thing I wanted 
To sit alone in a room and say it all out loud -Asking Alexandria-Alone in a Room

I got 130 results for “Where does my high school girlfriend live now?” -Ralph Breaks the Internet

LINKS TO SAVE YOU TIME IN LIFE:

https://deadspin.com/a-college-baseball-game-was-delayed-because-an-eagle-an-1832856745
https://deadspin.com/arkansas-danielle-gibson-hit-a-damn-home-run-cycle-1832854144
https://deadspin.com/brazilian-jiu-jitsu-fighter-fakes-injury-brawls-with-c-1832875154
https://deadspin.com/christian-hackenberg-s-aaf-career-isn-t-going-much-bett-1832868342
https://twitter.com/SportsCenter/status/1100134655003684865
https://deadspin.com/is-kyrie-irving-a-fraud-an-investigation-1832917654
https://deadspin.com/dirk-nowitzki-should-play-another-season-and-make-it-aw-1832902028
https://deadspin.com/this-beautiful-but-needlessly-complicated-goal-is-sadio-1832940237
https://deadspin.com/worlds-top-bridge-player-suspended-for-doping-with-synt-1832959247
https://deadspin.com/either-johnny-manziels-wife-is-the-fastest-runner-in-re-1832967146
https://deadspin.com/this-perfect-high-school-basketball-highlight-has-one-b-1832987729
https://deadspin.com/tacko-fall-taunts-smaller-human-with-incredible-reach-1833013956
https://deadspin.com/tacko-fall-taunts-smaller-human-with-incredible-reach-1833013956
https://deadspin.com/alex-len-momentarily-forgot-he-was-playing-basketball-w-1833009379

BY THE NUMBERS:

295

180

0

789

44

1:31

6

THIS WEEK’S LIST:

Taking a week off the weekly list. Nothing seemed like an obvious one, and ran out of time.

THE RIDDLE:

Last week’s answer:

Billy Baldwin, Jamie Lee Curtis, Donald Sutherland.  I worked on the set of Virus. My mom got two of the three, so we will give the prize to her.

No riddle this week. I ran out of time and gas.

CLOSING:

Well, Alpha and others gave it a run, but when a Seinfeld reference comes into play, it will usually win. The theme goes to lobster bisque. Go to Texas De Brazil. Eat the lobster bisque…yada yada yada…

That’s it for today.  Hope you enjoyed or are at least more informed.  Remember two things.  First, feed yourself, feed your family, but always, always remember to…feed the wolf.  Second,  if you can’t spot the sucker in your first half hour at the table, then you are the sucker.  Will I blog again?  That is a CLOWN question, bro. 

PICS BY MY PIXEL 2:

None this week. No pics from my phone. Given the events coming in the next two months, you will be overloaded anyway upcoming.

And, in case you care about what I threw back in the pond, here you go…

THROW IT BACK
LeBron questions teammates
Simmons nurkic
bell tweets interest eagles
Chelsea keeper spat
ja rule bucks ht sound problems
Peyton barber bucs tablet stolen
sharks get Nyquist from wings
Serena cartoon ruled non racist
rangers ship hayes
yanks ink hicks
falcons owner $240 mil yacht
crabtree released
mark stone Vegas knighrs
towns car accident
archie miller/sean wade subpoenaed
nfl looking at celebrations again
angels move to Long Beach?
cousins tosses shoe
ku Lightfoot does mutumbo wag
49ers franchise kicker
whitworth returns rams
Brady rookie card $400k
Bibby investigated sexual abuse
Bengals fan suing team slipping on puke
cowboys gregory suspended again
dolphins will release de quinn
Giants say Manning will be back
brandon nimmo undercooks his own chicken
cohen trump bills 4bil
jets open to trading #3
ole Miss protests loss vols
uswnt blows lead draw vs japan
McCarthy rips refs stepson hoops game
dt vehicular assault
baylor ex-de oakman not guilty
bagley injured on screen
Antoine Davis breaks curry freshman record threes
clay buchholz signs blue jays
eagles sign de graham
ravens Alex Collins car crash
senators fire coach
pats character coach leaves
Harper tells bell to come to philly
NFL ot rules
Durant says NBA won’t fulfill him
trace mcsorley declines workout with dbs
gurley arthritis knee
kelce signs extension at ups store
williams leaves game with vertigo
chiefs tag dee ford
galaxy unveil beckham statue

Tempers flare end of Nevada-utah st game

spurs get worked by knicks and nets in back to back nights
warriors lose at miami

Lawrence hurts leg

zion knee injury
Trump in n.k. wall
trump Kim no deal
20 questions fwi
Gaga Cooper not in love Gaga fooled ya
giants gm-wife phone altercation