Monday, May 30, 2005

Zoom, zoom, va-voom
Great line from some sports radio guy about Danica Patrick's impressive showing at the Indy 500: "I always wondered what happened to Winnie Cooper."

Sunday, May 29, 2005

You sure Puddy wasn't responsible?
If you're looking for reasons why we so many corporatized, bland or the singular-type team nicknames, maybe you blame this guy, who says wants the New Jersey Devils to change their name -- despite the fact that it doesn't refer to Satan, but rather a state legend that I would learn about in social studies class just after the team took to the ice.

I still remember the contest to name the team, and god forbid had the Meadowlanders been chosen as the nickname.

What is interesting is the state politician proposing the name change represents the district where the new arena will be built. Wonder if it's an early "We really don't want you here" type of talk.

Friday, May 27, 2005

A bunch more assorted thoughts and links (as I develop a pattern of not developing any regularity to these postings) ...

• The streaming audio file of The Shins mini-concert I attended at the local radio station is available for downloading.

• Is Atlanta required to have a kooky criminal on the lam seemingly every month? First, it was the Fulton County courthouse shooter, then the runaway bride and now the fugitive on the crane. Any guesses on what the next wacky criminal will be coming through here?

• With the flood of reality shows coming out this summer, I guess it's safe to say that the major outlets to catch missed episodes of favorite shows are on DVD or TiVo. Of course, many shows now lend themselves to watching it in order so as not to get confused (24, Alias, Lost); but there's still room for one-off shows that will work well in reruns and syndication, although most of them are variations of CSI or Law and Order.

• Speaking of the reality shows, there's celebrity versions of almost every TV competition, whether it be Jeopardy!, The Mole or bowling. But how in the world did they come up with celebrity ballroom dancing (featuring among others, Stacy's Mom, TV's J. Peterman and Evander Holyfield)? And what does ETC think of the whole thing?

• Saw Star Wars: Sith the other day. I'm not a big geek for the series, but I have seen them all and thought this was a good way to wrap up the prequel and lead to the trilogy we know well. It's better than the other prequels, but it's not saying much. I guess I really liked the darkness of the movie -- Order 66 was especially evil. That reminds me: How much was George Lucas inspired by real-life politics for this film?

• Now that he was dethroned in rather impressive fashion in the UToC, how well received will the KenJen board game and potential Comedy Central game show be?

• While many of us are saying that this photogenic young athletic star isn't the same thing as this one, remember that Anna seemed destined for success until we all started ogling her. We're just doing the double-admiring now to cover all our bases. That said, Indy becomes relevant for the first time in years.

Saturday, May 21, 2005

A little catching up ...
Didn't realize until recently the last post was on the third anniversary of the start of this thing. Oh well, it comes, it goes, I continue to blather on.

I was home in New Jersey a couple of weeks ago, primarily to attend a wedding of a former two-time college roommate. Good times all around, and it was interesting meeting a few more people from the alma mater (the other set of friends from school). Also good to see Gobo and wife at the wedding, as well as Steve and Melissa.

Also saw The Producers on Broadway (that TKTS booth is actually not so bad if you're going just before the start of the Wednesday matinees). I also learned why I don't drive in Manhattan when I don't have to since it took me 2 1/2 hours to get from midtown out to my brother's place in Connecticut. It also seems weird when you say you got a great parking deal when you paid $11 for an afternoon.

Oh yeah, it's way early for football, but here's one of three mock drafts I've done the past few weeks. Hopefully that's it for a few more weeks, until the next set of magazines come calling. (Oh yeah, also met the rest of our New York staff on the trip -- I guess it's a positive that I match my mugshot; something you can't say about everyone.)

Tuesday, May 10, 2005

A few notes and observations before heading home to New Jersey ...
-- If you see some of those fantasy football magazines later this summer with my picture and picks in it, just realize that I'm providing some of the information it right now. I'm in the midst of three straight weeks of fantasy football mock drafts just a month into the baseball season.
-- I followed Greg's lead and downloaded this band quiz. Without resorting to researching yet, I've gotten about 130 of the 270 bands on the test so far. Eventually, I'll look up the answers.
-- Rob has a good review of Songs for Silverman. But one thing I noticed is that the first single, "Landed," sounds a whole lot like this song. As Craig put it, maybe it's a Carolina vibe going on. On the other hand, I was really happy to hear Landed on this station driving into work on Sunday.

Friday, May 06, 2005

Maybe the reason it's taking Barry Bonds so long to come back is that he's being operated on by this guy, who may be confused with this guy.

Tuesday, May 03, 2005

It'll change your life
I guess we surprised even the local radio station with the turnout for a small concert with The Shins that will be aired on the radio (and posted online) in the near future. It was a nice little set -- running through the two songs I already knew (thanks, Zach Braff) plus a few other tunes from their albums. Nice stuff and good way to pass about an hour.

The setup for the "concert" was interesting. It was just a large conference room minus any tables and chairs, but with a few instruments in the middle, plus a mixing board to the side, and the producer in an adjoining booth. However, they found a way to get in about 100-150 people into this small room just sitting on the floor and standing against the wall -- supposedly it was the largest turnout for any of their mini-concerts at the station itself. It reminded me of an event at my dorm in college.

Sunday, May 01, 2005

Say goodbye to ...
-- Atlanta's oldies station, part two. It was a tad incongruous to hear an oldies station call itself "new," especially when it was around for two years at the time of its demise.
I'll miss the oldies station here in town, if just for a change of pace. Unfortunately, that station was slipping back to "Good Times and Eight Oldies," which is not a good sign. It's even more sadder that the station actually showed a lot more variety (for an oldies station, that is) in its final hours with their weekly "Atlanta Graffiti" show. Why does it seem that some of the most interesting and varied music on mainstream commercial radio comes on specialized shows?
You can check out more of the revolving Atlanta radio scene through my friend Rodney's radio blog.
-- Chris Candido, one of New Jersey's greatest wrestling talents who, unfortunately, is following a trend of younger performers of dying early. However, it should be said that he appears to have died from complications following an injury last week, and not from drugs, which is often the case. In fact, it makes his whole story all the more tragic.
-- My quizbowl colleagues (save a Mr. Jennings -- whatever happened to that basketball guy anyways?) in the Jeopardy! Ultimate Tournament of Champions. I was at a local bar to share in Mark's first-ever defeat, and then watched Brian's loss at home a couple of days later. Great runs by both guys, it's just too bad they couldn't advance any further.
600 and 14
Sure, the runaway bride story may have been a bit overdone, but that's what happens when you're dealing with a society-page type wedding. I'm not sure there will be 14 combined bridesmaids or groomsmen in the multitude of weddings I have attended or will go to over the past year. Still, at least we can have a bit more fun with it now.

That's where my local alt-rock station comes in. My favorite Sunday morning show went thematic to close out the show, playing these songs in honor of this week's events:

Nellie Mckay: I Wanna Get Married
Liz Phair: Polyester Bride
Collective Soul: Run
Jack Johnson: Sitting, Waiting, Wishing
Dave Matthews Band: Where Are You Going
R.E.M.: All the Way to Reno
Bethany Joy Lenz: If You're Missing (Come On Home)
Sheryl Crow: Leaving Las Vegas
Fiona Apple: Criminal
Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds: People Just Ain't No Good

Who says regular radio is a complete waste of time? Besides, it's offering me a chance to sit in on a private Shins concert next week.