Thursday, August 09, 2007

Going to California

Greetings and Salutations to all.

Just trying to keep up with this and work too. I just ask that you bear with me. Work has been crazy lately. With this vicious heat and torrential rains the jobsite has become a complete mess of flood puddles, and a dank, black, sweaty dead air. I go in fresh, dry and clean and I come out sweaty (to the point where I can ring my shirt out), nasty, dirty and disgusting. No rest for the wicked I guess.

Hey all from an earlier post if you can help – Rob and I appreciate it:

Speaking of work, my good buddy Rob (his blog “Exit 55” here: http://steelyankee.blogspot.com/) is looking for work. He has recently been laid off and is looking for employment. His specialties are Marketing and Radio. If you can help him out or would like his resume, email me and I will send it to you. Thanking you in advance……

Will someone please update K-Rock’s playlist? It’s getting really bad!!!

Now Sports – Look out here come the Yankees. Closing the gap on the Sox and only a half game out of the wild card. It’s August and that traditionally brings the undoing of the sox. We shall see. Football mini-camps are open and this coming weekend is Week 1 of the Pre-season. Ahhh, football, can’t wait till the season starts.

Ok so here are my two so called rants this week:

Belt wearing – can someone tell me which way to wear a belt? Do you thread it to the left or to the right or it doesn’t really matter? I tried to look this up on the Internet but nothing significant.

Spare Tires – and no not that thing (beer belly) hanging around your waist. Why do some SUV’s have to have the spare tire under the car? Can someone tell me what practical purpose this serves? Why don’t you just make a wheel well in the rear and set the tire in there. Why make the consumer who is going to get dirty changing the tire, dirtier by crawling under the car to loosen a nut which is probably covered in road dirt and rusted. Can someone make sense of this? Anyone?

Playing poker tomorrow night and looking forward to some coin. I will keep you posted on how I do as well as my buddy T.

This week’s money tip: Five Steps for Ditching Credit Card Debt
http://finance.yahoo.com/expert/article/millionaire/40724

Sorry no funny clip this week.

Last but not least, this week marks the 1st anniversary passing of my friend Dave. He was one of my closest friends and we had shared many a drink, a laugh, a good time. He hated the Yankees with a passion but always would go out of his way to help me with anything I ever needed. He would spend his last $20 to make sure you were having a good time regardless of how he was doing. I stop by his grave this week to pay him visit; first time since his funeral a year ago. Eerie, but surreal to see his name on the gravestone. I went with 2 Heineken’s. I drank one while talking/pondering/reliving some great times, the other I opened and left it on top of the gravestone for my friend. Enjoy it my friend, Rest In Peace…..

Tonight's post brought to you by Sounds of the 70’s Volume 7.
Tonight's post brought to you by Sam Adams Cherry Wheat.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Letter D.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Number 9.

Nuff Said!!

Thursday, July 19, 2007

Wearing and Tearing

Greetings and Salutations to all.

Missed last week – sorry I was working last Thursday night (umpiring) and got home late and had no time to write the blog. Have no fear I’m back for this week and hopefully next week. Speaking of work – yesterday was a blast (no pun intended). Starting off at 7am till 9am, in no particular order, we had a lightning strike hit the ground in the parking lot (missed someone’s car), torrential rains which flooded the entire jobsite. We had standing water issues of up to 9 inches. Power went out and “Tornado Warnings” were being issued. Needless to say, we were sent home at 10:30am but paid for the whole day. Sweet!

Speaking of work, my good buddy Rob (his blog “Exit 55” here: http://steelyankee.blogspot.com/) is looking for work. He has recently been laid off and is looking for employment. His specialties are Marketing and Radio. If you can help him out or would like his resume, email me and I will send it to you. Thanking you in advance……

Let’s have a warm welcome to me brother Rufus and his blog “Lite Fire To Your IT Guys Scotch” (http://drunkitrant.blogspot.com/). Check it out and I will warn you now the game he has posted is very addictive. I played it for like 4 hours the other day. He too has been crapped on lately in that his VOIP provider went belly up and his phone service was askew for a few days. Back to Verizon I’ve been told. Ouch!

Jack is dead and the oldies are back – how ironic don’t ya think? Sorry I was never a big fan of 101.1 CBS-FM Oldies, I loved Jack and I do miss it. I know people weren’t crazy about it – but where can you get the German version of 99 Red Balloons and then segue into CCR. Gotta love it and only 2 DJ’s plus acoustic sunrise on Sunday Mornings. Shame on CBS for going back.

Speaking of radio – K-Rock is still rolling along but that playlist needs some updating? I am getting sick of hearing the same 3 GNR songs every 4 hours. That new Tool song as well as the new Linkin Park song have to go as well. How about some of The Cult?

I’ll keep the sports to a whisper. Yankees lost a close one to Toronto today. Some new pitcher they have – last name McGowan – has beaten them twice this year. Go figure! Islanders have had some pickups in the last week – something to fill the voids but not on the same par with the talent that left. We shall see come October. Mini-camps are opening in the next 7 – 10 days, did someone say Football?

Exhaust system is fixed and working normally. Thank god for the internet.

Craving poker and just in time ESPN is showing the opening satellite rounds to the World Series of Poker. I’ll get there one day……

Been watching “The World Series of Pop Culture” on VH1 this week and last week. Some good stuff, knew a lot, questioned some and in the end, I am still watching it from the couch. But mentioned in an earlier blog post this year, I did get a tryout for the show. Two friends and I tried our best but alas failed in our quest to be the NYC team. There is always next year!!! Till then….remember this song playing while Daniel-San is fighting his way through the Karate Tournament is “You’re The Best”. Not in my dojo……….

This week’s money tip: Time for a Midyear Financial Checkup
http://finance.yahoo.com/expert/article/moneymatters/37906

This week’s funny clip: Sex List Game
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDRcsdr_Y_Q

Tonight's post brought to you by Reservoir Dogs Soundtrack.
Tonight's post brought to you by Leinenkugel’s Sunset Wheat.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Letter X.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Number 0.

Nuff Said!!

Thursday, July 05, 2007

Bring It On Home

Greetings and Salutations to all.

Sorry for being away so long. As many of you know I started a new job in the electrical construction field 4 weeks ago. It’s been challenging to say the least. It’s more physical then the previous electrical work I’ve done. I’ve been carrying large stack of material (pipes, wires, ladders, etc.) as well as going up and down the ladder at least 20-40x a day. The hours are good from 7a-3p. I’m going to bed much earlier but I am home from work everyday before 3:30. Enough about work……

So how about those Yankees? Hot and cold, hot then cold. Jeez, will they ever stay at least luke-warm? Well 3 out of 4 is not bad against Minnesota. I wish we could play the AL Central more. That would be nice. On to Hockey….Look!! Do you see it? Oh my……it’s coming. Yes, it is…….the big dark cloud cover….Where is going? It looks like it’s settling on top of the Nassau Coliseum. Man o man did the Islanders get fucked (for lack of a better word!). Blake, Smyth, Kozlov, Poti, Zednik – gone, all via free agency. Damn, who ever said “Free Agency will kill sports was sure right!” OK, so let’s just drop the cup from Anaheim into midtown for the Rangers. Scored two major pickups in Gomez and Drury. Then again, having a talented roster and a big payroll doesn’t always make you the champion of the sport. See Yankees.

I-phone – who needs it? I’ll keep my razr – thank you very much!

Bad news (two-fold) the other day -- I had the misfortune of bottoming out in my escort at the job site and in the process cracked the exhaust pipe. Broke it in two. Since it was Friday and I didn’t need the car the rest of the day besides going home from work, I figure I would get it fixed/repaired on Saturday. Drove to Queens on Saturday to my mechanic (been using these guys for over 12 years), to find out that they went out of business the day before. Man, was I in shock. These guys did excellent work and had good prices. I was at a lost, it was like my dog died or something. I ended up returning to Nassau and did a little research on the project itself. Well how hard can 4 bolts be? Man, was I wrong!! 13 years of rust, 2 sawzall blades and 2 grinder blades, 3 hours, 5 beers and the exhaust was off the car. I ordered the parts from Advance Auto Parts (highly recommend) and they are currently sitting in my kitchen awaiting install this coming Saturday. I will keep you posted.

This week’s money tip: Figuring Out Your Credit Score (FICO)

http://money.cnn.com/2007/06/28/pf/credit_score_confusion/index.htm?postversion=2007062908

This week’s funny clip: Irish Girl wants her school demolished.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3fT-jX11poU

Tonight's post brought to you by U2’s Rattle & Hum.
Tonight's post brought to you by Long Trail Blackberry Wheat.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Letter M.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Number 7.

Nuff Said!!

Thursday, June 07, 2007

Out On The Tiles

Greetings and Salutations to all.

First thing first, I have a nasty backache. It’s my annual week long backache that’s the result of a blast of cold air hitting my backside. Usually happens when we go from a real warm spell to a cool spell. My back seizes up on me and I hurt like a motherfucker for a week. See how grouchy I am?

Congratulations to the Ducks on winning the Stanley Cup. I would of rather seen the Islanders there but alas they were dispatched by the Sabres who then were dispatched themselves by the Senators who last night look liked flat, like my tire ($10 later for a nail removal/patch and new valve stem). See what happens when you’re no longer control by Mickey Mouse – you win the Stanley Cup. Good for you!

I did have the luxury of watching the break-In on ESPN of Curt Schilling’s almost no-hitter. I got one thing to say here. GOOD!! YOU SUCK – YOU PIECE OF SHIT!!! I like baseball and I like a no-hitter, even against the Yankees, but I loathe this individual and to see him derived of pleasure brings me pleasure. Thank You Shannon Stewart!

As I mentioned in my previous blog the Sunday night matchup was the marquee game with A-rod (sans blondie) hit the GW HR in the 9th to beat Boston. Ahhh. Let’s not forget Mr. Wang’s little gem on Wednesday night. Nothing like a 5 hit/1 run complete game to lift a team and rest the BP. You Go Mr. Wang!

Ok, onto music. My Section 5 buddy Rob posted on his blog last week “Your Best Album Ever” to coincide with the 40th anniversary of Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. I have to say I have many favorite albums over several genres of music. Some of my favorites are:

John Coltrane – Blue Train
U2 – Joshua Tree
The Cult – Sonic Temple
Songs From The Big Chair – Tears for Fears
Lay It Down – Cowboy Junkies
Live in NYC – Counting Crowes
Nevermind – Nirvana

And the list goes on and on……

Back in the day I believe on K-ROCK (if it was K-Rock back then) there was a show called “Desert Island Discs” in which people would call/write-in with the 3 albums that they would need if stuck on a deserted island. A great premise with some really interesting choices. I never called/wrote in but always had my 3 ready on the tip of my tongue.

Well my 3 are:

U2 – Joshua Tree
The Cult – Sonic Temple
Songs From The Big Chair – Tears for Fears

I little of this and little of that and I’m happy. Fact: I use to have the cassettes (remember those) to all 3 of these albums in every car I owned till my Ford Escort got stolen and they were gone forever….sniff sniff.

My favorite album: Joshua Tree – simple a masterpiece from the opening sounds of “Where The Streets Have No Name” till the end of the haunting, chilling guitar sounds of “Mothers of the Disappeared” (my favorite U2 song)

Not one back apple in this whole album. I can listen to this album over and over and over and never get sick of it.

2 interesting facts:

- The “actual” Joshua Tree from the album art is sadly to say, dead. You can google it and check it online. The debate from old age to human vandalism rages on.

- A friend’s wife once told me that U2 were “Overrated” and this was before the Joshua Tree was released. I still crack up when I think of that. You go girl!

So there is my choice take it or leave it.

Speaking of my friend Rob again (his blog: Exit 55), I leave him and you all with this:

What is the shortest Interstate in New York State? Give me the name, the #, its other name, location and length.

This week’s money tip: Getting In Touch With Your Money Style:

http://finance.yahoo.com/expert/article/moneyhappy/34992

No funny clip this week – Sorry!

As for Paris Hilton: GO BACK TO JAIL AND SERVE YOUR TIME BITCH!!!

Tonight's post brought to you by U2’s The Joshua Tree.
Tonight's post brought to you by Long Trail Hefeweizen.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Letters C,W
Tonight's post brought to you by the Number 40

Nuff Said!!

Thursday, May 31, 2007

Communication Breakdown?

Greetings and Salutations to all.

Where do I start? K-Rock is back or A-Rod duping the left side of the Toronto infield?

Ahh, start with A-Rod. I got to say, that watching the ball drop in between the third baseman and the shortstop to allow some Yankee runs was very nice. Now did he say “Hah”? or was it “Mine”? We’ll never know. I will admit that I will have to try it out during Sunday Softball. Now here is the debate that I was thinking. Is it legit to call for the ball (i.e. interference?). I always took interference to be bodily contact with the player and/or ball. I’ll let the baseball aficionados here start the debate or invoked MLB’s rules. Let the debate begin – you know who you are.

Ahh, K-Rock is back and Free FM is dead for now. I understood the concept of the “Free FM” with Stern going to Sirius, but to have talk all day is just crap. Can we just get music and leave talk radio on the AM dial. Jeez, didn’t Free FM learn their lesson with WNEW-FM 102.7? No one wants it, no one needs it, and we have enough of it on AM. Go there and listen to it you stupid schmucks. I wish I could some how kill Opie & Anthony as well as the Radio Chick. These have to be the worst personalities on the radio. We should either be DJ less like K-Rock is now or have DJ’s that do there job without too much chit chat. I hate DJ’s that talk and talk and talk (somebody shoot me). Give me Jim Kerr or Pat St. John. How about Rob Adams, he’s got a good voice and can read the sports pages as well, plus he’s looking for a job as well. (Rob – if you get a job out of this you owe me some beer!!!)

Moving on…..Ducks are 2-0 and hopefully can go to Ottawa and sweep the Senators. Go Ducks!

Yankees are off tonight which means 1 thing, they can’t lose. Hopefully with this A-Rod mouth thing, the Yankees can build on it and reel off some wins. Sunday night is the marquee match-up on ESPN. Check it out!!

This week’s money tip: Beat Back 5 Financial Fears. Check it out!

http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2007/pf/0705/gallery.money_fears/index.html

This week’s funny photo:
Sorry lame this week - no linking. Bastards!!!
http://www.hetemeel.com/haha/104903.I+wiped+my+ass+with...%20Your+toothbrush!.jpg

Last and certainly not the least I want to devote this week’s entry to John Gibbons. Mr. Gibbons was my Earth & Science Teacher in Senior Year of HS. He kicked ass. I goofed off and on the flip side learned so much that he would get my vote for Teacher of the Year. As a member of the Three Amigos with Joe Smith and Jim Kinnear, he redefined drinking and having a good time. I recalled the Senior Trip where he and the 2 other two gave a stern lecture on bringing/drinking alcohol on the trip. Suspension/Termination, yadda, yadda, yadda…. Anyway, we managed to get tanked drinking Peach Schnapps (Don’t Ask). Mr. Gibbons knock on our door at 11pm to make sure we were in for curfew. He asked us if we we’re drunk. We said “No Sir.” His reply, “I am, goodnight men!” We laughed our asses off. We’ll miss ya Mr. Gibbons. This Bud for you!

Tonight's post brought to you by I Remember You by Skid Row on K-Rock.
Tonight's post brought to you by Harpoon Summer Beer.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Letters K,R,O,C,K.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Number 92.3

Nuff Said!!

Thursday, May 24, 2007

That’s The Way....

Greetings and Salutations to all.

Well, well, well – school is done for now. Final Exam score – 92. Shame not a 100, but he I’ll take it figuring it covered over 180 hours of learning over 2 subjects. My averages were the same – 96 in both Shop and Theory.

Low and behold I receive a phone call from the director of the school on Monday night. I’m thinking he is congratulating me on having a good year. Nope, I got accepted into the exclusive 5-year program which over 875 people applied to and only 30 were accepted. I was floored to say the least. Perks: more money (a 50% raise) and a new set of tools. I sit here and write to you and I am still flabbergasted.

Well at least one team is going to win the Stanley Cup this year that has never won it before. Hmmmm, who should I root for? Ottawa or the Ducks. Tough call here. I really miss the Disney ducks and the purple/green with the duck mask jerseys. I really don’t care for Ottawa – maybe it’s a Canadian thing – so I’m rooting for the Ducks. Go Ducks!

Yankees, Yankees, Yankees.... Lost 2 out of 3 the cross-town Muts. Who by the way helped another Yankee pitcher onto the DL. Thanks Muts! Sunday night the National game on ESPN was the gem with the debut of Tyler Clippard. What was going on there. That ball had some movement. Even David Wright agreed. Hopefully he can spark the Yankees to some more wins. 2/3 from Boston and things are starting to look good. We shall see…….

My good buddy Rob (read his blog: Exit 55) commented on last week’s post about not commenting on the guitar riffs. I apologize if I was harsh. I just thought it was a good thing to discuss as well as to open each other to new and different music. I think the classics are fine but we all know them and can go blue in the face over which is better, should be #1, etc. Hence the idea of having the songs from “off the beaten path”.

BTW – who is the mystery guest for tomorrow’s game? I’ll have Steve, making his 1st appearance this year.

Sorry no new money tip this week.

This week’s clip – and yes the guy walked away…..WOW

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLvpE3HHtEw

On the day I was born in 1971 the #1 song in the USA: "Family Affair" by Sly & the Family Stone

Go figure!

And yes “B” Train for BITCH!!!! – You heard it here first!

Tonight's post brought to you by Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers Greatest Hits
Tonight's post brought to you by Red Newt White Wine.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Letter M.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Number 28.

Nuff Said!!

Thursday, May 17, 2007

Ramble On.....

Greetings and Salutations to all.

Sorry to have been away – with school taking over my life for the past 2.5 weeks, I’ve been hunkered down in the books studying for 2 section tests and 2 final exams. I can and will report that I did score 100 on each of the 2 section tests. Scores for the final exams will have to wait till Monday.

So the Sabres are finally feeling some pressure – nothing from the NY teams, but hey Ottawa comes to town and puts the squeeze on. Down 3-0, they squeak out a victory and are down 3-1. Only 2 teams have come back in NHL history from being down 3-0. That’s right the Islanders and well…who cares about the other team? I hope the Sabres come back and win – they deserve it. More importantly I think the town NEEDS it. Moving onto baseball….

How about those Yankees? Man is there a team that needs to find itself. I love my Yankees but they are a mess. Yeah, the injuries have taken a toll on the pitching but where’s A-Rod lately? Hopefully they’ll turn this ship around and get back to their winning ways. Some bright notes: Wang’s almost no-no, and as of 5/17 – the leader in the AL batting race – Jorge Posada – yes, I said Jorge Posada. Insert Dan Patrick: Simply Enfuego!

This coming weekend we got the annual Mets/Yankees at Shea and Saturday brings Game 5 of the Ottawa/Buffalo series. Let’s go Yanks/Sabres!!

I was little ticked off that no one commented on the guitar riffs from the last post. I was hoping that would be a good back and forth piece to discuss with the readers of this blog. I guess NOT!!!


This week’s money tip is how not to ruin your credit score (FICO):

http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2007/pf/0705/gallery.credit_score/index.html

Good stuff here so please folks, follow it!


This week’s clip – If you love the ladies and you love poker than check this out:

http://www.stuffmagazine.com/girls/shana_hiatt2/shana_hiatt_l8.jpg

Thank you God, thank you for giving me eyesight!


Tonight's post brought to you by Elvis #1 Greatest Hits.
Tonight's post brought to you by Sam Adams Summer Lager.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Letters DC.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Number 100.

Last but not least the whole debate about radio and “Free Speech”. We all know that free radio is censored and controlled to some extent by the FCC. Hence Don Imus being fired for his “Nappy Headed Ho” comment. This past week shock jocks “Opie & Anthony” (who I will never ever forgive for destroying WNEW-FM 102.7) were suspended for 30 days for their comments about Condoleezza Rice, Queen Elizabeth and Laura Bush. Wait a minute aren’t they on Satellite radio and free to say what they want. Correct but their employer is looking for congressional approval to merge with its rival.

So I ask thee – what happen to “Free Speech”? What’s next? Television? Magazines? ……Excuse me who are you? Why are you wearing that white shirt, black suit, mirrored sunglasses? I’m doing nothing Sir, just typing my weekly bl………………………………….

Thursday, April 26, 2007

Nobody's Fault But Mine

Greetings and Salutations to all.

All right I know when to stick my tail in between me legs. So allow me to do it now. (Tail being stuck between my legs.) Ok, happy now?

Yes, Buffalo prevailed and the Islanders went down in 5 even though I predicted a win in 7 games. Ya know, if you don’t have faith in your team then why even bother rooting for them at all? Buffalo was definitely a powerhouse but I will said this in the Islanders defense, they weren’t the lay down and die dogs that everyone made them out to be. They played some good hockey, got robbed on some bad video review calls from the officials in Toronto (didn’t the Islanders pushed them out of the playoffs on the last day of the season?). Up next the Rangers fresh from beating Atlanta’s team. Wait was that a team or some bunch of senior citizens – hey there’s grandma. Guess I was right. Good luck Rangers – another prediction Sabres in 4. Yes, sweep, da sweep, da sweep. Hear me now BITCHES!!!

Speaking of Bitches, in my last post (see comment section) my good friend Rob (his blog -- http://steelyankee.blogspot.com/) questioned why I am so fascinated with the word “Bitch”. Hmmm, I don’t really know how it came to be favorite word. I do love to say shit and fuck but something about Bitch….I know that during the “The Great Subway Race” at the Yankees game I should be picking the “4” train (since it’s the only train to stop at 161st Street/River Avenue/Yankee Stadium stop) all the time. The “B” and “D” stop during rush hours, home games and during the week – check the nyc.gov page for more info. If I had to trace it back, it would probably be during some drunken Friday night at the stadium when all other have picked the “4” and the “D” leaving me with the “B” train. B for BITCH! My Friday night is not complete unless the B train wins, I pick the right hat for which the ball is under (I do very well at this when I’ve been drinking, playing sober is no fun) and last but not least the sack of nuts have been blessed by the “High Priest of the Sack of Nuts”. Would you me rather go around yelling “Nappy heady ho!” I would need an egg timer to see how long I would last at Yankee Stadium screaming that! LOL!

Guitar songs, not necessarily classics or hits, but in theory songs that have a good guitar riff and when you hear the song – you rock out, get goose bumps, play air guitar, etc. I think you get the point. Let the debate begin….

So in no particular order was I thinking about these 5 songs:

1) Circle – Big Head Todd and the Monsters from the album Sister Sweetly
http://www.amazon.com/Sister-Sweetly-Head-Todd-Monsters/dp/B000002L12/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/002-8836823-1836003?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1177633937&sr=1-1

2) I Walked – Wanderlust from the album Prize
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=180548638

3) Millennium – Killing Joke from the album Pandemonium
http://www.amazon.com/Pandemonium-Killing-Joke/dp/B0009QZ4LU/ref=sr_1_10/002-8836823-1836003?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1177634324&sr=1-10

4) Pure Massacre – Silverchair from the album Frogstomp
http://www.amazon.com/Frogstomp-Silverchair/dp/B000002B86/ref=pd_bbs_sr_3/002-8836823-1836003?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1177634757&sr=8-3

5) Keep Hope Alive – Crystal Method from the album Vegas
http://www.amazon.com/Vegas-Crystal-Method/dp/B000002RBV/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/002-8836823-1836003?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1177635082&sr=1-1

Win the prize if you can tell me where #5 is from……

This week’s money tip is the top 50 BS jobs:

http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2007/bing/0704/gallery.bing_50jobs.fortune/index.html

I know at least 2 of the jobs that no one I know has…hmmm what could they be – why don’t you tell me Martha & Donald.

This week’s funny clip – don’t play at work (for home use only):

http://www.glumbert.com/media/wiggles

(Courtesy of Rufus) – Thanks Rufus!

Bloody Sock – Yeah ok, I think it’s ketchup, red ink, tomato sauce, red marker, etc. Can’t wait till the Red Sox send Mirabelli out of town…….

Off to watch the Season Finale of “October Road”….

Tonight's post brought to you by Allman Bros. Greatest Hits.
Tonight's post brought to you by Guinness.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Letter S.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Number 4.
Nuff said!!

Friday, April 20, 2007

Good Times, Bad Times

Greetings and Salutations to all.

Yeah, yeah yeah, I know – it’s Friday morning and no fresh Thursday night post. Enough you bitches – I was tired and didn’t feel like sitting down and thinking for an hour or so plus I wanted to watch October Road. Good Episode last night. Season finale is next Thursday. Moving on........

Well, well, well – my Islanders didn’t get swept under the ice but I’m sorry some glaring moments especially at the Nassau Coliseum. I want to know if the owner of the Sabres Tom – “I have so much money – I could buy a small country – did someone say Iraq?” Golisano has the refs/officials on the payroll. Some very controversial calls against the Islanders. I hate to rag on the refs but being one in softball, I know we’re human and make mistakes but this is the playoffs and you need to have your “A” game, if not go home. Late in the 3rd period the Islanders crash the net and seemed to score a goal, the ref blew the whistle and deemed no goal. A video review which showed the puck in the net was waived off. Bitch Please.........That was a so a goal. I’m still holding to my prediction that the Isles will win in 7, otherwise a 12 pack of beer - Rufus’ choice will be purchase. So what should I pick if I win....hmmmm have to think about that.

Game 5 is tonight in Buffalo tonight. Well listen here again – I’ll tell you what Bitches – ISLANDERS IN 7 – You heard here it First AGAIN!

My wife approached me the other day and asked a question about A-Rod. She asked “Is A-Rod on steroids?” I said I doubt it, with MLB’s drug policy and its poster boy Barry Bonds. Well nice to see that A-Rod is on a tear this Spring. Reasons why, let me count the ways:

1) Friendship with Jeter out in open and beyond repair
2) Walk year of contract
3) Finally woke and realize that he is being paid $25m a year
4) Sick of the beat writers and fans cursing him out
5) Dom Imus off the radio
6) Wearing socks “El Duque” style.

Honestly – I think a little of all the above is in play (Ok, maybe not #5). The walk-off GS HR against Baltimore in the 1st week really helps get the monkey off his back and rebuild his confidence. He seems more relaxed than usual. But let us not forget his playoff debacles. He could hit 80 HR’s this year and come October the beat writers will be hounding him. We shall see……

Next week’s post I’ve been thinking about for awhile. Guitar songs, not necessarily classics or hits, but in theory songs that have a good guitar riff and when you hear the song – you rock out, get goose bumps, play air guitar, etc. I think you get the point. But alas that’s next week’s topic. Let the debate begin….

Off to poker tonight – hopefully to win some coin. The weather is finally getting nice. I'm sick of this Nor’easter rain and gloominess. Thank god for the sun this weekend.

This week’s money tip is about having a good job, making big plans, but no money in the bank:
http://money.cnn.com/2007/04/17/pf/retirement/planning_to_save.moneymag/index.htm?postversion=2007041711

Another great article – Some good solid tips.

Condolences and prayers to the VT students and families – what a senseless tragedy. Who’s to blame on this? A bunch of people – the University, the police, the state of Virginia. Just very sad that this occurred. So many warning signs were ignored. If I was a student there, I don’t even know if I could ever go back..........

Tonight's post brought to you by License to Ill.
Tonight's post brought to you by Hawaiian Coffee.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Letter B.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Number 9.
Nuff said!!

Thursday, April 12, 2007

The Crunge

Greetings and Salutations to all.

”Never tell me the odds” – Han Solo

That should be the mantra on the New York Islanders Hockey Club. And YES – I’m been a fan long before the 4 Cups. A week left in the season, in the midst of the doldrums of a really bad losing streak, the Islanders had an outside chance of making the playoffs. I think the percentage was 1.67%. The coming week would require 4 wins, several wins and losses by certain teams and they would be in. This, my friend would have to be accomplished without their #1 goaltender (Mr. 15-year contract) Rick DiPetro. Nothing against the guy just seems that the contract was a little overrated. No way near A-Rod money, but something about a contract that long irks me.

Moving on….With Ricky hurt, the Isles went with the backup Mike Dunham. A backup journeyman who’s been around the league and the tri-state area playing for now all 3 teams. Dunham was unimpressive leading up to the last week of the season. With this enters Wade Dubielewicz, our #3 goaltender who spent most of the season in the minor league. Well to our surprise Dubie went on a tear for the final week and posted 4 wins against The Rangers, The Flyers, The Mapleleafs and The Devils.

Speaking of the Devils – Easter Sunday, the Islanders are 1 win from the playoffs. Win and in as they say. Did anybody see the last 5 minutes of this game? I did and I’m still having heart palpitations. I decided since I was going to be at my parent’s house, I would be polite and not watch it until the end. This way, no one would bother me; I would socialize with company and yadda, yadda, yadda. After dinner I stole a peak with about 15 minutes to go and Isles up 1-0. Came back with 5 minutes to go and the Isles up 2-0. Turn it off and came back with 2:30 left the Isles up 2-1. I was watching the clock and just hoping that the clock would wind down and the Islanders would keep the pressure on offensive end so the Devils would/could not pull the goaltender. Easier said then done. 20 seconds to go for the Devils with a man advantage and they are scrambling, so are the Islanders for this much. 10 seconds – puck is loose and everybody wants it. 5 seconds to go puck is near the goal mouth. 1 second from the playoffs and Dubie is on his back swiping at the puck. 0.09 ticks and Madden from the Devils scores. Now at this moment it appears that time has run out and the Islanders won. Review shows otherwise and I start screaming “FUCK! FUCK!” in the middle of Easter company. Gotta love couth!

The 4 on 4 OT proved fruitless with no team scoring. I did manage to scream “Satan” every time he touched the puck – just to spruce up the Easter Cheer at my parents house. Of course someone from the peanut gallery had to chime in with “Maybe he needs an exorcism” Yeah thanks Aunt Gladys. We all know it's pronounced ‘Sha-tan”

Now for the dreaded Shoot-Out. I thinking; we’ll it's a coin-flip since both goaltenders are no-names and haven’t played that much. 3 on 3. The Isles scored twice and the Devils once. One more Devil player and he has to be stopped. Brylin comes in;looks to fake on Dubie and he poke-checks the puck away. Islanders Win BABY!!!

Life is good as I sing Dubie, Dubie, Do!!

Game 1 is tonight in Buffalo tonight. The Sabres are the league’s top team and are expected to sweep the Islanders under the ice. Well listen here – I’ll tell you what Bitches –
ISLANDERS IN 7 – You heard here it First!

This week’s money tip is about controlling debt:
http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/money101/lesson9/

A great article – Some good solid tips.


As for this Imus crap - move along - NEXT!


Sorry no fun clip this week – got a hot tip on a video and checked it out but it was a dud. Sorry!

Tonight's post brought to you by Pepsi (Sorry it’s 2:30pm in the afternoon).
Tonight's post brought to you by the Letters JR.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Number 42.
Nuff said!!

Thursday, April 05, 2007

Celebration Day

Greetings and Salutations to all.

At about 4 am this morning, I was lying in bed and what should I be doing? Sleeping, right but no, I was thinking about tonight’s blog. I had a list of things to write and talk about but somehow they escape me right now. Note to self: Self, leave pad and pen on night table to jot down ideas in middle of night. Also, if you think of the winning lotto numbers, jot them down, tell no one and run, don’t walk to 7-11 to get a lotto ticket.

Ok, now I remember something I wanted to talk about: Television.

What a week for television. Two of my favorite shows are back:

- The Shield on FX
- Deadliest Catch on Discovery Channel

As I have previously mentioned on this blog – this is the show to watch. Simply Awesome. It shows the inner-workings and corruption of a LA police precient (In reality it was based on the Rampart Division of the LAPD). I beg you to watch this on FX only. Watching it on any other channel is just a waste. Rent the DVD’s if you can. Season 5 rolled out on DVD this week.

Deadliest Catch for those not in the know is a documentary style account of the King/Oplio Crab Season on the Bering Sea in Alaska. It shows the accounts of 5-7 ships and their crews during the 2-6 week season. Vicious waves, rain, snow, freezing temperatures and other obstacles bombard the boats. Enthralling action keeps you glued for the full hour.

Last but not least – I started watching a new show on ABC. It’s called “October Road” loosely based on the 1996 movie “Beautiful Girls”. Three episodes have aired with the 4th one airing tonight. All I can say is that I’m hooked. The storyline is focused on a small town in Massachusetts called “Knights Ridge”. Great writing, great acting (has Laura Prepon from “That 70’s Show”) and the best thing about it some really great music. The music is not just background noise; it’s poignant to the storyline. I guess you just have to watch it for yourself. Repeats on the 1st three episodes can be found here on abc.com

http://dynamic.abc.go.com/streaming/landing

This week’s money tip is about budgeting and saving:

http://finance.yahoo.com/banking-budgeting/article/102671/Budgeting-and-Saving-Tips

A great article – Who doesn’t need to budget and save? I love the tip about the water and block of ice. Read it for more info…..

The Hawaiian coffee arrived this week and I tore into it. I am currently drinking a flavor called “Kona Coffee Cake”. Imagine smelling/tasting your coffee and it reminds you of your favorite coffee cake. Well this does. Yeah I know, some of you are going gack, whooh, yuck, well you’re missing out. Oh well!

For those interested:
http://www.hawaiianisles.com/


This week’s fun clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pb7tf3iyFA0

-Before I sign off-
Pint of Guinness: $5
New York Yankees Irish Shirt: $20
Pic of Rob wearing NYY Irish Shirt making love to his pint of Guinness: Priceless

Image Hosted by ImageShack.us
Enjoy It My Friend – See You Tomorrow!

Tonight's post brought to you by Otter Creak Copper Ale.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Letters JT.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Number 6.
Nuff said!!

Thursday, March 29, 2007

In The Light

Greetings and Salutations to all.

Well, well, well what a difference a week makes. Tuesday was 75 degrees and what did I do? You got it - Drinking in the front yard with the neighbors. I think this should be a rite of passage for every home owner. Nothing more special than drinking beers, shooting the shit, rocking out to some fine tunes, sitting in your favorite chair with feet up…..ahhhhh – Now this – This is Miller Time!

And no we weren’t drinking Miller – not that I don’t like Miller Genuine Draft, but we were consuming Imperials from Costa Rica.

Sunday, I was able to take to the field and umpire for the 1st time this year. The day started crappy as the field I was suppose to work was soaked. After calling the league and moving to a nearby field, I got underway about 30-45 minutes later than I wanted to. The 4 teams that I umpired were so-so. Two were horrible and the other two were better than average. My problem was that the better than average teams had chances to finish off the weaker teams and in turn, screwed up and let them back into the game. A ploy perhaps? I doubt it; these guys need to tune-up their “A” Game and had no time for “Tom Foolery”.

This week’s money tip is about cleaning up your financial house:
- Six Steps for Financial Spring Cleaning

http://finance.yahoo.com/expert/article/moneyhappy/27005

A great article – I follow all these rules and they have helped me and I hope they help you. Numbers 2 and 6 I feel are the most important. In this day of ID theft and scams – nothing beats being on top of your credit report. Check it every year regardless if your credit is perfect or not.


I made a web purchase this week that well if you drink coffee you’ll understand. Back in 2005 on my honeymoon, my wife and I had the pleasure of visiting Hawaii. I highly recommend visiting the 50th State. The people, the culture, the way of life, the language are unto themselves. It’s almost like visiting a new country. A good laugh here – while on vacation there – it happened to be the 4th of July (America’s Birthday). We ate and drank from the balcony of our hotel room while watching the fireworks. Earlier I had ordered room service and the voice on the other end wished me a Happy 4th of July. I wished the person the same and hung up. It then hit me. First – it’s very rare that someone in NY would say that exact phrase. At most you would get “Enjoy your holiday!” Second and I think the most relevant was that Hawaii has only been a state for 46 years, unlike the original colonies who had been a state for over 225 years. Just weird, I guess you had to be there.

Anyway, I purchased some Hawaiian coffee and look forward to drinking it in the next few weeks. I will post about after I open it. You can order here at:

http://www.hawaiianisles.com/

How about this for fun:

http://img341.imageshack.us/img341/6260/100960ireplacedyoursistvq1.jpg

Tonight's post brought to you by Guinness.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Letter J.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Number 80.
Nuff said!!

Thursday, March 22, 2007

And So It Goes....

Greetings and Salutations to all.

Well, it’s been a crappy week since last Thursday. As I put thought to post last week, we had (and I hope) the last snow/ice/sleet storm of the season. It’s officially Spring now, and I hope it stays that way. Ahh, I should be happy, we’ve only had about 7 inches of crap this winter, a lot better than in year’s past. Nothing puts a damper on things than snow – mix it with ice and sleet and you just add more fuel on the fire. What a hack it was to remove more than an inch of ice off the cars. Standing there pounding away with the $3 scrapper just to get some small little space on the windshield so you can see out of it.

I’m just glad it was 70 degrees today, bring on the warm weather. Bring on the sun! Bring on softball! Bring on drinking in the front yard with the neighbors…..ahhhh!

Saturday as we all know it was Saint Patrick’s Day. Usually a great day to celebrate and enjoy but because of the ice storm, the day was drab to say the least. Besides the aforementioned ice chipping, the rest of the day was boring in food shopping and chores. Dinner was Kentucky Fried Chicken. Yes, KFC for dinner. What? No corn beef and cabbage? That would be on Sunday. I think the luck of the Irish was with me when ordering/picking up my food at KFC, in that upon unpacking at home, I had more food than I purchased in my bag. So be it; we enjoy it for dinner on Saturday and leftovers on Monday.

Sunday was at Mom’s and we dine and feasted on the world’s best corn beef! MMMMMM mmmmmm good. Potatoes, cabbage and authentic Irish soda bread to boot. Washed it down with some Guinness. Ahhhhhh! Sorry all no leftovers to be had.

This week’s money tip is more about protecting yourself from Identity Theft. Here are 2 websites that will help you:

https://www.optoutprescreen.com/

Here you can delete yourself from getting those annoying pre-approved Credit Card offers in the mail. Just follow the instructions, print the form, sign it and mail it back. Trust me it works – takes from 8-12 weeks from processing to stop the offers, but it does work.

The other site is:

http://www.dmaconsumers.org/

This is the Direct Marketers Association website where you can delete yourself from getting all that junk mail. If you like junk mail or have a purpose for it, (i.e. burn it in the fireplace) then you can just skip this site.


A NEW BLOG!

Yes! (In the Marv Albert voice) – My friend Dennis has just started his blog:

http://frakkintalos.blogspot.com/

He is into sci-fi (Hugh trekkie!) and other things of the same genre. So let’s show him some love and visit his blog from time to time. I’ll post the link in my links section so it will be easier to visit.


Alas with the warm weather we head into softball season. Last year was a transition year in that we lost some key members and had a managerial change. The new manager (Dennis from above) was great but our downfall was attendance by some members, some key injuries and of course the missing players. Hopefully this year, our old manager Bryan is back at the helm and we’re adding some new powerful Bats into the lineup – we’ll make it back to Championship Game like we did 2 years ago!!

Check us out on the web at:

http://www.freewebs.com/roguessoftball/

And in closing I leave this “Classic” and I mean classic video of Duque on the diamond:



Photo Sharing - Upload Video - Video Sharing - Share Photos


Finally to the person who emailed me and told me not to blog anymore (you know who you are!) I say and do the following:

Cross hatch of my arms above my genitals and say “SUCK IT!”


Tonight's post brought to you by Red Stripe (Jamaican for Beer Man!)
Tonight's post brought to you by the Letter M.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Number 28.
Nuff said!!

Thursday, March 15, 2007

Rock and Roll Hall of SHAME!

Greetings and Salutations to all.

Jeez, write 1 sentence about the Yankees and I still get grief. Ok, so we’ll talk about the Mets. “How about those Mets?” – The popular phrase always used to change subjects.

Example: You’re talking about the Fuzzy Green Rash on Grandpa’s ass and all of sudden someone blurts out -- “How about those Mets?”

Well, all I can say about the Mets is they are 5-10 in Spring Training. My point here is this – check out the video on my friend Rob’s blog (Exit 55). It’s the March 12th entry. You can go to the links page on the upper right side of this page or click the link below:

http://steelyankee.blogspot.com/

Like Rob says, hits the nail on the head!


Moving on….

“The Outlaws” came and went and basically all I did was play hostess and clean up after them. Oh Yeah – they slept in my bed and I had to sleep on our crappy sofa bed. Ok, not crappy but let’s say uncomfortable for 2 people. The loved “Spamlot” and recommended it. When I have some scratch, I might venture into the concrete jungle to check it out. We never made it to the German restaurant. We tossed all sorts of cuisines around, from German, Irish, Chinese, Thai, Japanese, Cajun and American. We ended up at “Charlie Brown’s Steakhouse” in Garden City. Nothing like a 9oz Filet Mignon with melted blue-cheese on top…mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm….yum.

Here is this week’s financial tidbit:

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/business2/business2_archive/2007/03/01/8401032/index.htm?postversion=2007030106

This is a real good website to get a gauge on what your worth in the marketplace. A lot better than Salary.com – which I thought sucked. By no means is to offend those who are not working or are working below what their designated value is.

Ok, did anyone watch the live broadcast of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction? I did and plain and simple – Van Halen – lame!!! Yes, you read it correctly. Don’t get me wrong, I dig Van Halen and have almost all of the albums but when singer #2 shows up and the bassist (who from recent reports is no longer the bassist) are the only 2 people to represent – it’s sad. Where was Alex? I cut Eddie some slack for whatever ailment/treatment of the month is. He couldn’t pull a Britney and check out and then check back in? Do I even dare ask about Wolfgang? And last but no least “Diamond Dave” – he boycotted. Boycott the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? That’s like not showing up for a Purple Heart from the President. His reasoning – he wasn’t allowed to pick a song of his choosing to jam with Velvet Revolver. Cry Baby! Pathetic!

Hey – at least Gary Cherone saved face and didn’t bother to show. Did he even get an invitation?

As for the rest of the show – REM – great to see Bill Berry behind the skins again. He did by my estimate look sickly. Is it me or are Mike Mills & Peter Buck getting younger while Michael Stipe & Bill Berry are getting old and sickly. Just a weird perception. Hey – the highlight was Keith Richards inducting the Ronettes while still in costume for “Pirates of the Caribbean 3”. I was waiting for the talking parrot and a swashbuckling Johnny Depp to appear. Watching the Ronettes – all I kept doing was flashing back to 1986 to the Eddie Money video “Take Me Home Tonight” with Ronnie Spector and her reprising her vocal from her earlier hit.

Ok – so here is my rant. WHY THE FUCK HAS RUSH NOT BEEN INDUCTED??

Can someone at the R&R H of F tell me why? They can’t because it’s full of idiots who don’t the first thing about Rock and Roll.

Here is a list of notables sitting on the sidelines waiting for induction:
The Zombies, John Mellancamp, Chubby Checker, Mary Wells, King Curtis & The Clovers, Junior Parker, Junior Wells, Jeff Beck, Dick Dale, Linda Ronstadt, Heart, Leonard Cohen, Moody Blues, Paul Revere & The Raiders, Chicago, The Searchers, The Hollies, The Monkees – ok maybe they don’t deserve to be in.

Just Very, Very Sad that all of the above are not in yet. The problems facing them are the acts that are up for 1st time nominations in the following years:

2008:
Madonna, Beastie Boys, Sting, Metallica, Tears for Fears, The Bangles

2009:
Run-DMC, The Smiths, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Slayer

2010:
Red Hot Chili Peppers, Cyndi Lauper, Nick Cave, Pogues, The Cult

2011:
LL Cool J, Flaming Lips, Enya, Simply Red, My Bloody Valentine

2012:
Guns n’ Roses (maybe they’ll do a Van Halen!)

Sign the Petition – due note it was writing several years ago before he infamous New Year’s Eve debacle with Alex.
http://www.petitiononline.com/xanstar/petition.html


In honor of Saint Patrick’s Day this Saturday. Pòg Mo Thòin
If you don’t know what it means – go ask an Irishman!
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=beer

Something I always wanted to do ----
http://emuse.ebaumsworld.com/video/watch/16474

Tonight's post brought to you by Guinness (in honor of me Holiday!)
Tonight's post brought to you by the Letter G.
Tonight's post brought to you by the Number 7.
Nuff said!!