Da Vinci Codeless

The gf and I decided to bust out of the house for a few hours last night and watch the Da Vinci Code. First impressions? Man my ass fell sound asleep, even in the new and improved grandstand seating at the cheap seats. This is not a short movie, nor does it play as excitingly as the book reads. The codes that seem so tricky and cool when they are solved? Not so much on screen, where they just seemed to easy. Tom Hank's hair? Weird. Audrey Tautou? Cute.. But not as cute as Amelie. The weird looking Albino guy? He was weird looking and white, and overacting to boot. The old guy was good enough, as was the policeman.

But as for the movie itself? It resembled more than anything a vague outline of the book without any of the details that made people like it. Some people in the audience seemed to find humor in the movie, as they kept laughing out loud. The gf and I apparently missed those jokes. To be honest, the movie seemed a bit too, well, talky for me.

The movie as a whole? Harmless, and more or less entertaining. Not worth a trip to the theatre though, as there was nothing about it that screamed big screen. Save your money and go see X-Men when that comes out instead.

Blogging replacing talking???

I'm siding with Goods here. And Johnson. I do use this as a means of communication a bit. I still try to make the occasional phone call, especially as I have no real grasp as to who is actually reading my blog (unless I say something snide about the gf and she smacks me..) For me, I use the blog to talk some smack to friends, or to vent a bit, or to get my thoughts about things down in writing so that when I say the opposite a few weeks later people can prove I'm an idiot. That's fun. It's also fun when Goody tries to correct my spelling.

I am glad to see that Goody and Johnson are back on their game, we'll see how long it is before John's in jail and Goody has to actually start working at his new job.

To steal from Sports Illustrated, This week's sign of the appocalypse.

tired... so tired.

I've never slept well. Ever. My entire life I've had a hard time falling asleep, and a harder time waking up in the morning. It seems that no matter how much I sleep I'm still exhausted in the morning. This has pretty much always been the case, so I've adjusted to it. This last few weeks though? Ridiculous. I'm not even getting the normal around of sleep that I used to get. I wake up now, which is nice, except for the fact that it's 3 in the morning, and then I can't fall back asleep. This despite the fact that I only finally fell asleep a couple hours earlier. By the time I finally fall back to sleep, it's time to get up. Good times.

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For all of you who don't watch basketball anymore.. You're missing a hell of a playoffs. The second round had 3 game 7's, with some great storylines and performances. Next round is looking pretty good as well, with an even matchup in the East of Miami and Detroit. Of course, these two teams will just bludgeon themselves to submission, so that might not be fun to watch. But Dallas and Phoenix? There's a matchup that's going to involve very little defense, and a ton of fast-break, fun to watch games.

Of course, it helps to have insomnia so that you can watch the West Coast games, maybe it'll be better this round.

Free for the week

The GF is off camping with a bunch of 7th graders until Friday (her birthday), so I have the house to myself and the dog for the rest of the week. Could be messy. I'm gonna go out on a bender! Tie one on! I'm gonna...

Work on projects around the house.

Yup. This is what my life has come to.

With the forthcoming prospect of the gf being off for the summer, I need to get my office finished. Right now the office/guest bedroom/my closet/library is a bit of a mess. OK, it's a huge fucking mess, a mix of power tools and books, sweaters piled on a bed, and a couple of desks piled high high high with old bills. In fact, I get a little claustrophobic just going in. The closet part is key, as I started that early last fall, full of motivation. Some time this winter, mixed in with grant writing, business trips, and boredom, I lost motivation. So the next two days will be filled with filing of papers, sanding of corners, and hopefully, with some luck, a clean desktop or two.

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FYI, while one Goody has been slacking, just a bit, in the blogs, it appears that another has stepped up to take over. Now if only there was someone to take over for the slacking of Robinson and Tomazin.

Monday Morning Blahs

Had a good weekend, relaxing, relatively productive. Got some mulch down, and some potatoes planted. Stopped by the Marden's in Brewer, and they had a whole bunch of Lawn Games on sale, so we picked them up for camp.

Unfortunately, I woke up today and it was Monday. Which means, back at work. I wrote a blog on Friday complaining about my job, but didn't send it out, because who wants to hear whining about a job. But seriously? Fucking sick of my job right now.

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ESPN has a good article about a group of guys that play basketball together. Used to have a group like this when I lived in NJ, I've never heard of anything like that here. The closest I have now is my poker game on Tuesdays, which is, at least recently, more expensive.

Best Books of the last 25 years

I'm assuming the title of this blog is scaring off at least one person (Goody, I'm looking at you.) A.O. Scott of the NY Times has written an article about a survey conducted of authors to find the best books of the last 25 years. They are:

1. Beloved by Toni Morrison
2. Underworld by Don DeLillo
3. (tie) Rabbit Angstrom by John Updike
3. Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy
5. American Pastoral by Philip Roth

I was kind of surprised by this list, not for the reasons Scott discusses in his article, but because these are relatively accessible books. I've read something by each of these authors, and was able to grasp it. Three of the five definitely have similar themes involving athletes and the world events they grow up in. Also interestingly enough to me, Updike and DeLillo were introduced to me in my Sports Literature class. Guess that really wasn't as much of a blow off class as some thought.

Anyways, the article is good, and the books that are mentioned within are all worth reading if you haven't already. (Sorry Goody, no pictures.)

That's all for today.

Quick hits and wild cards

Anyone not watching the NBA playoff is missing out on some great games. Most recently, the Cleveland/Washington Game 6 in Cleveland, where Lebron and Gilbert Arenas combined for 86 points in a duel that was a ton of fun to watch. Both of them were actually passing, trying to involve their teammates, and then taking the ball to the hoop when that didn't work, throwing themselves around like rag dolls. Lebron made the game winning shot on a baseline drive with .9 seconds left. Fun stuff.

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Papelbon gave up his first run of the year yesterday, and now everyone wants to know how he'll do now. Seriously? I think he's given up runs before. If it was the 7th game of the World Series, that might involve some scarring. He'll be just fine.

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On to the pics:

NL Wild Card

There's a few contenders here, mainly from the Central division: The Astros, Brewers, Phillies and Braves. Note that there's no teams from the west, they're just lucky that they're division winner automatically makes it in. I want to pick the Brewers, but I have a feeling they're last year's Cleveland, and will choke down the stretch. Astros? Not with the team they have right now, but maybe if Clemens comes along. Phillies? Not enough pitching. Braves? Not enough, well, anything. So I guess I will pick the Brewers after all, and then be pissed when they choke.

AL Wild Card

Really this comes down to three teams, one from each division: Red Sox, Indians, and Angels. To be honest, whichever of these teams does end up winning the Wild Card might be the favorite to win the American league as well. This year, I just think that the Angels are a little too injury prone to pull it out. Red Sox? They're going to be good this year, no doubt about it. Indians? Same.

So which of the two is it?

Offensively, the Indians are a much better top to bottom team.
Starting pitching? Red Sox have a better top two, but the Indians have a better 5, so I'd call it a push.
Defense? Both teams are pretty good defensively, but the Sox might be a bit better this year, at least up the middle.
Bullpen? Edge goes to the Red Sox due to depth.

So who wins? It's a tossup, but here's my guess. Towards the end of the season, the Indians call up Andy Marte, and he provides the momentum they need to carry the Wild Card.

Good thing too, because if the Sox won the Wild Card, I might have had to pick them to win the World Series, and that might have killed me.

I swear to god I'm not biased.

Look. I'm starting with the NL East, because I want to. I happen to think that this could be a great division to watch, but I'm going to make it quick anyways.

1. Mets - Yup, this is the year the Braves finally lose it. I like to pick track records, particularly 14 consecutive years worth of track records, but not this time. The Mets are just too good. Assuming, of course, that Pedro can hold up. If they lose him for any extended amount of time, all bets are off. Oh, and David Wright and Jose Reyes? The real deal.

2. Phillies - The question here is, is Ryan Howard the next David Ortiz? If so, then the Phillies are a legitimate threat for the Wild Card. If Howard is more like the next, oh, I don't know, Cecil Fielder? Phillies don't have a chance.

3. Braves - They may have fallen a bit, but they're still not worse than Washington or Florida.

4. Nationals - Maybe when they have an owner they can compete. Until then? Not so much.

5. Marlins - Actually, if I was a Marlins fan, I think I would be alright with the way this team was put together. Think Cleveland a few years back. If the team's going to lose, and the Marlins are definitely going to lose, they might as well have potential. In five years though? The Mets and Marlins will be fighting it out for this division.

AL East

1. Yankees - Look, I know the Sox have Beckett and Schilling. And I know Papelbon is the Second Coming of the Rocket. But.. This isn't a question of who would win a short series. This is a question of who would win the Division. And right now, the Red Sox have too many questions to think that they can win the 95 games necessary to win it. The Yankees lineup is just too good. Say what you want about the Yankee's pitching, but Randy Johnson, as much as I hate him, has won 5 Cy Young's. Mussina? Known factor. Over the course of the season, these two are going to pitch well enough to win the division.

2. Red Sox - If they win the Wild Card, which they might, then they would be my favorite to win the World Series. But they have so many question marks, that anyone who picks them to win the division is ignoring quite a bit. If either Manny or Ortiz is out for any period of time, then the Red Sox have, quite simply, no offense. Even with the the two of them playing like the best two hitters in the league (Which, in the AL, they might be) The Red Sox simply don't have enough pitching. Schilling may or not hold up, but at least he has in the past. Beckett? Big game pitcher, yes. But he's won 45 career games!!! Every other Sox starter? Iffy as well. Papelbon has great stuff, and seems to have the right personality. Personally I think they are wasting him in the bullpen, but that's just me. With him closing, the Sox bullpen should be strong enough. Would I be shocked to see the Sox win the division? No. Do I think it's going to happen? No.

3. Blue Jays - I'm a little tired of hearing about how much better they got. Seriously? Compare them position by position to the Red Sox or the Yankees. They might have two players that would start for either team. Vernon Wells is better than either Damon or Crisp, maybe. Their pitching? Unproven. No way the Blue Jays win in September in either Boston or New York, but they could make it interesting until then.

4. Orioles - Only the wizadry of Leo Mazzone (former Braves pitching coach) keeps them out of the basement in the East. And Miguel Tejada, who is the best shortstop in baseball, unless his bitterness over playing in Baltimore takes over and he starts pouting. Which could happen.

5. Devil Rays - A much improved team, Tampa could be the best last place team in baseball, but their pitching still makes them a last place team. Carl Crawford? Maybe this will be the year he gets some pub for being one of the best overall players in the game.

Tomorrow? Wild Card Picks, and maybe the playoffs if I'm in the mood.

The Return of the Anti-Christ

Johnny Demon returned to Fenway Park, and walls are still standing, the sun came up, and civilization as we know it has continued. Red Sox fans demonstrated everything that people love and hate about them last night. They should have applauded Damon when he came back for the first at bat, and then booed him every at-bat after that. That would have shown that they hated him for going to NY, but hadn't forgotten everything that he did while playing for Boston. That would have been fine. As it was, he got booed, pretty much incessantly, the whole game. I think he handled it ok, but whatever. Some thought the tipping of the hat was a sign of delusion, others thought it was handled perfectly.

On the other hand was the reaction to the return of Doug Mirabelli. Some say that the ecstasy over the return of a backup catcher is a sign of insanity. As much as it goes against my instincts to stick up for the Red Sox, I do think that it is a sign of the knowledge and passion of Red Sox fans that they recognize the importance of Mirabelli. In all reality, Wakefield is a crucial part of any chance the Red Sox have for success. With Mirabelli, he has a better chance of success.

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On to the picks. Today, I'll work my way through the AL and NL Central. Some years, this is a meaningless pick. This year? Not so much.

AL Central

1. White Sox - I hate picking the White Sox to win. It bores me, and to be honest, I just don't like them. Since they picked up right where they left off last year, and they are the defending champs, and they only seem to have improved themselves last year... Well, it's hard to pick against them to win their division at least.

2. Indians - Rememeber a few years back, when Cleveland traded some fat shlub (Colon) and got a ton of prospects in return? This is why. The Indians are absolutely loaded offensively, and their pitching might be just good enough to win. They have a couple top of the rotation type pitchers in Westbrook and Lee, and Wickman can play the role of the fat veteran closer with no fear with the best of them. This might be their year, but the White Sox are going to have some injuries for that to happen.

3. Tigers - It's amazing what happens when you hire a real coach. Leyland has his boys playing hard, and they have quite a bit of upside. Chris Shelton may be a good player, but he's not keeping up this pace. Also, their Ace? Kenny Rogers. In another year, they could be a dark horse to win the division, but the Central is crazy good this year.

4. Twins - I can't believe I'm picking the Twins for 4th in the division, but I am anyways. Things don't seem to have come together for the Twins this year, but their pitching is good enough so that they could make a run at it. Santana may not have started that well, but he's the real deal, and will be in the running for the Cy Young by the end of the year, again. Honestly? Any team in this division could win it, and I wouldn't be surprised.

5. Royals - With the exception of Kansas City. If they win more than 60 games this year, I'll be surprised. Seriously, can you fire an entire organization?

NL Central

1. Cardinals - Look, until St. Louis doesn't win this division? It's theirs. They might be aging a bit, but they still have two legit top of the rotation starters, a solid closer, and the best lineup in the NL. (If only because of Pujols.) Even though this is a much improved division, the Card's are still the class of the division until someone proves otherwise.

2. Brewers - This is the year that Milwaukee makes a run at it. They've got legitimate pop in their lineup, as well as possibly the best top three starters in the NL. They have the brother of Maddux coaching the pitching, so the bullpen will be solid again. They also have a deep bench. Can they take the Wild Card? I think they can. And no one in the NL will want to face Ben Sheets, Doug Davis, and Chris Capuano in a short series.

3. Astros - Eventually, the Astros are going to be too old to compete in the Central. Look, if Clemens comes back and is as good as he was last year? Maybe they can compete for the Wild Card. Maybe. But I just don't think that's going to happen.

4. Reds - I know the Reds are in first right now. But seriously, they've got nuthin. Their best pitcher may also be their best singer is Bronson Arroyo, and he's going to come down to earth. They're going to hit some home runs, but they'll give up more. Still, they're improved since last year.

5. Pirates - This pick is for Joey only. At this point in the season, it will be a major success if the Pirates don't lose 100 games. I don't understand why they're not better, but they're not. They have decent pop, young pitching with potential, and good defense. Still, the reality is that the Pirates will be hard-pressed to stay out of the Central in an improved division.

6. Cubs - Improved, that is, except for the Cubs. They just suck. Maddux is carrying them right now, and while I'm sure he'll get his 15, and Zambrano will probably get his 15, I don't see where any others are coming from. This team is just not good.

Tomorrow: AL East and NL East
Thursday: Wild Cards
Friday: Playoffs

Bumstock? Not any more.

This past weekend marked the end of Bumstock, and to be honest, if anything it was too late. Bumstock used to be a weekend of music surrounded by partying. Now? Bumstock field was plowed under to make a parking lot while ago. Somehow, partying in the parking lot just didn't have the same ring to it. It used to be, that come Friday afternoon you could hear bands playing. The last few years? I've found out about Bumstock after it happened. This year? The last year? Bumstock was held in the Field House. They should have cancelled it years ago.

Maine Campus Story

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I've decided to amuse myself and pick the baseball season standings. I'll start with the AL and NL Wests.

AL West:

1. A's - Pitching wins, and the A's have more of it than anybody else. I know Zito's not what he has been, but by the end of the year, he will be, and the A's will be in the playoffs.

2. Angels - Mike Scoscia is one of the best managers in baseball, and he'll find a way to make the Angels contend for the West and the Wild Card, but in the end I just think the A's are better. That said, if the Ervin Santana and Casey Kotchman turn into impact players, then I think the Angels could make a run at it.

3. Rangers - Great position players, but you need at least some pitching to compete.

4. Mariners - I would be shocked if Seattle even came close to a .500 season.

NL West:

1. Diamondbacks - Young, young, young team. But seriously? The NL West sucks. The Diamondbacks have two potential stars that could be called up mid-season, and just enough pitching. If either Stephen Drew or Justin Upton is ready, they could make a run at it. They might be a year away, but I like this team.

2. Padres - Another young team, but San Diego has the one thing that a team needs to succeed: An ace. Jake Peavy is a great pitcher, and the rest of their team.. Well, is old or young. Piazza? Old. Anrian Gonzalez? Young. Barfield? Young. It goes like that around the whole team. It's possible that San Diego doesn't have one position player in their prime, and only one pitcher. Still, that makes them better than most teams in the NL West.

3. Giants - The one thing that could change everything in this division which Barry Bonds is playing for San Fran this year. I'm betting on whiny, gimpy, fat-headed Bonds, which makes the Gints into a mediocre, aging team overly dependant on a pitcher (schmidt) with a history of arm problems.

4. Dodgers - See above on Giants, only without any potential upside of Bonds. Oh, and their best starting pitcher is Derek Lowe.

5. Colorado - I know they've started off the season strong, and blah blah blah. Look at their roster. They're not finishing over .500.