January 2010 Archives

The Kansas City Chiefs of the AFL versus The Minnesota Vikings of the NFL. It was the last game before the AFL/NFL merger. The game was played January 11, 1970, at old Tulane Stadium in New Orleans. The Saints were the host. It was cold and rainy and blacked out locally because it wasn't sold out. My dad was a Saints season ticket holder and had a Super Bowl ticket through them. He paid $15 for it. That was face value for an endzone ticket. Because it was cold and rainy and because the game really didn't have the interest that it does today, he was able to round up three more tickets on game day for free from people who decided they just didn't want to go. Mom, my sister, and I got to go, too. Dad's total outlay on tickets was $15 that day for all four of us. Not bad even in 1970.

I was 12. My sister, Sue, was 11. The two of us sat together in the endzone. Dad and Mom could watch us from the other endzone with his binoculars but we were pretty much on our own. Imagine two kids that young on their own in a big city, at a big stadium, at a big event these days. There's no way it happens. It was a different time.

During the pre-game activities, there was a program that was supposed to show AFL/NFL unity and cooperation. There was a man dressed in full American Indian regalia representing the Kansas City Chiefs and a man dressed in full Viking regalia representing the Minnesota Vikings. My memory is fuzzy on what was supposed to happen next but I think both of those guys were supposed to leave the stadium via hot air balloon. I finally found some footage of that event. Our 15 seconds of fame, if you will. The balloon got about 3 feet off of the ground and headed straight for the endzone where we were sitting. Sue and I are in here somewhere. When the balloon goes into the stands, we're just to the left of it. We were maybe 12-15 seats over and at about the same level as the balloon's basket. I was wearing a black overcoat. I don't remember what Sue was wearing. The resolution isn't really good enough to make us out. This is the only Super Bowl I've ever attended and probably ever will attend. Sue and I were in that endzone, Mom and Dad were in the other, and I'm not sure where my cousin, Ann, and her husband, Bob, were but they were there, too. They were Minnesota Vikings season ticket holders and had flown down for the game. It was a lousy day to be at a football game. It was a lousy game. I'm so glad I got to go.

I offer two from the CrabAppleLane Backyard on this sunny and cool Sunday. When the chipping sparrows land on the feeder, they have to flit and fly and squeeze their way in. When the blue jays land, they just slam into the feeder and every bird that was there flies off.

CrabAppleLane Backyard - January 31, 2010

CrabAppleLane Backyard - January 31, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Treat Her Right 3:31 George Thorogood & The Destroyers The Baddest Of George Thorogood & The Destroyers
2. Can't Buy Me Love 2:12 The Beatles 1
3. Two Out Of Three Ain't Bad 5:27 Meat Loaf Love Bites: More Romantic Power Ballads
4. The Road 4:46 Jackson Browne Running On Empty
5. Pigs On The Wing (Part One) 1:25 Pink Floyd Animals

Quote of the Day

Bud Selig says baseball's Steroid Era is over. A shame. If anyone in the game could have used steroids, it was the commissioner. They must be good for development of the spine. ...

Nick Canepa, San Diego Union-Tribune

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "As a former player who proudly wore the fleur de lis for 13 years, I am happy and proud for the team, city, and its wonderful fans."

I loaded Doom3 on my current desktop. I had abandoned it on my old desktop five years ago because it was an unsatisfactory experience. I think this newer PC can handle it better. I am ridiculously out of practice and I doubt my fingers work as well as they once did but I'm going to give it a try anyway. Not much of a gamer but I always loved Doom. It absorbs me. The thing I'm mostly worried about is getting totally engrossed in the game and having my wife tap my shoulder or turn on the lights to get my attention. I'm quite sure I'll have a heart attack.

I don't know when the world got so trend-oriented but we can't seem to get out of it. In finance circles, the standard disclaimer is "Past Performance is No Guarantee of Future Results". If past performance means nothing, why keep track of it at all? Today's QOTD brings this silliness into full view. CBS-Sportsline's Clark Judge uses this year's past performance to let us know what the expectation should be; that the Saints and Colts will be in the Super Bowl. Then, he uses last year's past performance, which he calls a history lesson, to let us know that it won't happen. If you didn't know yet, you will surely know by sometime next week that his history lesson was wrong. I always thought the best job in the world was to do the weather on TV because you don't need to know anything, can be wrong about half the time, and still get paid. Sports pundit has overtaken that job in my view. You still don't have to know anything but you get to do sports.

When the Oakland Raiders' Pete Banaszak, one of the old AFL's original colorful characters, was asked before the Vikings-Raiders Super Bowl what his keys to the game were, he said he "would look at the scoreboard after the game. I have an idea of who won when I do that." Exactly. Beforehand, everyone is just flipping a coin.

I'm very happy for Kurt Warner. He retires healthy and on his terms. He's played many, many times against my team and has always given his best. He's a class act. As for the Hall of Fame, he has my vote.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Comfortably Numb [Live] 8:57 Pink Floyd Delicate Sound Of Thunder [Disc 2]
2. Eraser 4:54 Nine Inch Nails The Downward Spiral
3. Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down) 2:40 Nancy Sinatra Kill Bill, Vol. 1 Soundtrack
4. Warning Sign 5:31 Coldplay A Rush Of Blood To The Head
5. Caught In The Middle 4:26 Red Rider As Far As Siam

Quote of the Day

There are no better teams today than New Orleans and Indianapolis, so, naturally, the expectation is that they meet in the Super Bowl. Only I'm here to tell you they won't. One of them won't make it, and maybe neither gets that far.

That is not an opinion. It's a history lesson ...

Clark Judge, CBS Sports Pundit

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Note: Yes, I think the BCS system is horrible, just not the place for government to stick its unwanted nose..."

Couldn't agree more. -Rob

John Gonzalez of the Philadelphia Inquirer had a piece yesterday that devolved into who he'd like to Tase. Some of them are pretty funny, particularly the one about Derek Jeter. This sounds like fun. I have a list, too, although I'm going to try to limit mine because I don't know if its healthy to hang onto that much animosity but a little bit is fun.

• To the lady in front of me the other day who came to a complete stop and still made a diagonal left turn which only annoyed me but scared the hell out of the oncoming traffic on both the street she was on and the street she turned onto. Two Tases.
• To ALL sports pundits. You have the best job in the world. You get to watch sports, talk to the great athletes, and write about it for a living. I'm giving the whole lot of you One Tase because so many of you are so bad at it and so wrong too much of the time.
• To ALL Reality Shows for taking up entirely too much network air time. One Tase.
• To Mike Florio of NBC Sports for some of his idiocy yesterday. He got one Tase with the group of sports pundits but I thought I needed to pile on for his take on Kurt Warner. It is widely believed that Warner will announce his retirement today. Is Florio waxing poetic about the accomplishments of Kurt Warner during his quite amazing, quite compelling career? No, he's concerned about whether Warner will give back a portion of his signing bonus. Two additional Tases for you, Florio.
• To Tiger Woods for that spectacular belly flop off of the high dive. Three Tases.

Got any of your own?

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Wild West End 4:42 Dire Straits Dire Straits
2. Antique Angelina 3:22 Status Quo STATUS QUO The Collection
3. Final Meeting (North and South) 2:29 Bill Conti The Right Stuff / North and South Soundtrack
4. Annie Moore 6:24 Melanie O'Reilly Celtic Woman
5. The Fool And Me 3:55 Robin Trower Bridge Of Sighs

Quote of the Day

Stretching on out and feeling fine
The fool and me
Two fools dancing on the hands of time, yeah
The fool and me

Robin Trower, The Fool and Me

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "It's hard to compare teams from different conferences, but this season the Colts and Saints both crossed with the AFC East, meaning we have a few data points on which we can compare the two teams. Of course, the Colts tanked two of those AFC East games, so tighten things up slightly."

Not a big fan of these types of comparisons but they're unavoidable and enticing. -Rob

CrabAppleLane Power Line - September 1, 2008 8:40AM

CrabAppleLane Pines - January 27, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Ophelia 3:31 The Band The Best Of The Band
2. Cursum Perficio 4:09 Enya Watermark [Bonus Track]
3. Distance 5:27 Karsh Kale Realize
4. Nothin' But Time 3:37 Jackson Browne Running On Empty
5. Down To You 5:39 Joni Mitchell Court And Spark

Quote of the Day

I live my life from day to day
Cause I wouldn't have it any other way
Whether I'm twelve or whether I'm sixty-four
Spend my time like there ain't gonna be no more.

Montrose, Make It Last

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Of course, Mister's cuteness alone was all I needed to see to get me over there with my camera, but he also presents a challenge I felt I had to take on - he's deaf, which made him even more precious to me."

This is my last mostly football entry until Super Sunday. There are other things going on here, too. From the Indianapolis Colts Bill Polian:

Well, we'll come back to practice on Wednesday. We'll practice Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. They'll have off Saturday. If it weren't for the Pro Bowl disruption, they would have the weekend off, but they can't because we have to send those players to Miami to do Lord knows what. We'll come back and practice on Sunday, and the Pro Bowl players will go and do whatever they have to do, and then the team will leave on Monday.

I totally agree with him but I'll be surprised if he doesn't get a fine for that. The NFL likes their people to give full-throated support to ALL of their endeavors. The Pro Bowl doesn't need to be played any more. It's a bit of a joke anyway. Too many can't play and too many don't want to play.

About the QOTD: Shrimp cocktail? Shrimp cocktail? To the mayor of New Orleans? No one in New Orleans is ever going to be impressed with an Indianapolis shrimp cocktail. In fact, I'd avoid food altogether, Mr Mayor. Maybe Indianapolis 500 tickets or Final Four tickets ...

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Starstruck 4:07 Rainbow Rising
2. Ripples In The Rockpools 3:34 Rita Connolly Celtic Woman
3. Miles from Nowhere 3:33 Cat Stevens Tea for the Tillerman
4. I'm Gonna Crawl 5:30 Led Zeppelin In Through The Out Door
5. She Brings Me Love 4:42 Bad Company Desolation Angels

Quote of the Day

Ballard -- as he did with Mayor Michael Bloomberg in New York before the AFC Championship Game -- will ship shrimp cocktail with plenty of horseradish from a Downtown restaurant to Nagin if the Colts lose.

Indianapolis Star

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Unless you have been living in a cave for the past 24 hours or deprived from any connection with the sports world, you are aware that the Indianapolis Colts will be heading to the Super Bowl to face the New Orleans Saints. This will mark the Colts' second trip to the Super Bowl in the past four years, coincidentally both of which have been held in Miami. Both of these teams staggered into the playoffs on multiple game losing streaks, and neither were the sexy choices to win the Super Bowl. Teams like the Chargers, Jets, Vikings, and Cowboys were being chosen left and right as favorites to make it to the Super Bowl, but all stumbled along the way. Ironically the two teams playing the worst football at the end of the season were the two that would ultimately represent their conferences."

My cousin, Laura, sent me an email yesterday that contained the image below. No explanation necessary. It's been my experience that the football gods are cruel. My heart aches for my Minnesota friends and relatives. The Vikings have sent the Saints home from the playoffs twice but they were a lot more merciful about it. The Vikings crushed the Saints both of those times. It was over quickly both times. That kind doesn't hurt as much. Vikings fans are a classy lot.

Why?

I feel I've been rather harsh in my commentary here about Brett Favre and I feel bad about that. I have always liked him. He has a great sense of humor and gives great interviews. His quarterback play has never been my cup of tea. Too much sandlot to suit me. The retirement-unretirement thing never bothered me. I always thought it was great, fun theater ... from here. If it had any other impact on me, I might have felt differently. That said, I'm worried about him coming back for another year for the same reasons most of his fans are worried. He can still play. On the right team, like the Vikings, he can do a whole lot more than just contribute. The guy can make plays. That's not at all why I'm worried. I'm worried because, unfortunately, he'll also be in more games like he was in Sunday night.

The QOTD kind of startles me. The game I saw was very physical. The beating Brett took wasn't just the result of a team determined to hit him hard and often, it was also because the Viking game plan chose to attack more than they chose to protect. Gus Frerotte took the same kind of beating last year against the Saints and the Saints had a different defensive coordinator then. I think the offense they run puts their QB at more risk than most other offenses. The Saints did the opposite on offense. They chose to keep their tight ends and backs in more often to protect Drew Brees from the even more fierce Viking pass rush. It limited their offense but the alternative was no bargain, either. It's a violent game and I don't know if more flags could or should be thrown. I thought one should have been thrown Sunday night against the Saints and one should have been thrown against the Vikings in overtime. I also thought one of the two that were thrown against the Saints was iffy but I'm not complaining about that. I also don't have a solution to offer. I just don't want to see guys like Brett Favre and Kurt Warner take that kind of punishment any more and they surely will if they keep playing.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. If I Ever Lose My Faith In You 4:31 Sting Ten Summoner's Tales
2. Blues Power 3:11 Eric Clapton The Cream Of Clapton
3. Dennis 5:19 Badfinger The Very Best Of Badfinger
4. Drummer Man 4:11 Cowboy Mouth Mercyland
5. Lightning Crashes (Live) 5:44 Live Live: Live At the Paradiso - Amsterdam

Quote of the Day

I've felt better. It was a very physical game ... probably more so than people think.

Brett Favre, Minnesota Vikings Quarterback

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Um, Gregg. Listen, I know you have a reputation as a clueless pundit, and that the only reason CBS bothers paying you is because you write "controversial" crap that gets linked to by blogs like mine. But, seriously Gregg, this is pretty elementary. It's so elementary even you should be able to pick it up."

I'm not the only father's son who wishes Dad was here to see this. After 43 mostly forgettable years following mostly bad Saints teams, we're a large club. It was all I could think of last night. Dad would have liked these Saints. The Times-Picayune's Pete Finney put it this way:

Suddenly on Sunday, there's a confetti shower inside the Superdome and you're thinking of those melancholy Sundays gone bye.

This Saints fan never missed a single one of those "melancholy Sundays". They've left scars on my soul as this game will leave scars on the Vikings fans' souls. I know their pain. That pain and I have been intimate. I wonder if the word "bye" was intentionally used in that Finney quote or if it was a typo. Have they gone bye? I'd like to think so.

That was the hardest-fought, most physical game I've seen in a long time. It was intense. It was a tough game for either team to lose. If stats are your thing, the game was fairly lopsided in favor of the Vikings. Stats don't ever tell the whole story. Neither team could shake the other. Both were intent on being around at the end. The Saints didn't so much steal the game as they were around to accept it from the generous Vikings. They needed every one of those five turnovers and they needed the crazy home crowd. Some might say they needed some dubious officiating but this observer thought the officiating was dubious all night and didn't favor either team. My feeling is that they should let those guys play or don't let them play. Call nothing but procedure penalties and the most grievous personal fouls or call absolutely everything. I'll probably say more about this game as I have time to digest what I saw. To an impartial fan, it had to be a wildly entertaining game. It was much too entertaining to us partial ones, though.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Treat Her Right 3:31 George Thorogood & The Destroyers The Baddest Of George Thorogood & The Destroyers
2. Stick It Out 4:31 Rush Counterparts
3. Distant Early Warning 4:59 Rush Chronicles [Disc 2]
4. From Now On 6:12 Supertramp The Autobiography Of Supertramp
5. Daniel 3:52 Elton John Greatest Hits 1970-2002 [Disc 1]

Quote of the Day

We just had a fullback in there and we changed up and broke the huddle with 12. You can't call back-to-back timeouts either. I thought we slipped up there.

Brad Childress, Minnesota Vikings Head Coach

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Is this how I envisoned the season to end? No, no it is most definitely not. This was the last, best chance that Minnesota had to win the Super Bowl before my Dad leaves me. He might hang around a few more years; I hope he's here 10 or 20 more years, but that's not the point. He won't be. He knows it, and I know it. And we both knew, that once Favre signed, we were all in for this season, and our fortunes rode as far as the magical arm of #4 would take us."

New Orleans Saints by knight1357.

I mentioned to my friend, Hyde, who is also a long-suffering and lifelong Saints fan, that if there will be a celebration tonight after the NFC Championship Game by Saints fans, it will be equal parts joy and relief. He thinks more relief than joy. I don't think Saints fans have ever had as much of themselves invested in a game before. To use the popular Texas Hold 'Em declaration, we're ALL IN. It's entirely too much of a burden to put on the team but they've said all along they want to win it for us. Good Luck to the Vikings and their excellent fans but

I offer one from the CrabAppleLane backyard. I was facing west from my back deck. Except for some whispers amongst the CrabAppleLane backyard bird flock, it is All Quiet on the Western Front. They must be gearing up for the game, too. :)

CrabAppleLane GoldFinch - January 24, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Mainstreet 3:42 Bob Seger Greatest Hits
2. Rollin' And Tumblin' 4:12 Eric Clapton Unplugged
3. I'm The Fool 4:28 Mark Knopfler Golden Heart
4. It's Money That Matters 4:08 Randy Newman Land of Dreams
5. Penny Lane 3:00 The Beatles 1

Quote of the Day

We are New Orleans

Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints Quarterback

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Remember who we are."

I hope Saints fans will be nice to Vikings fans at the game and around town today and tomorrow. I'd bet that 99% of them will be but we will surely hear about the few idiots that every town has. Saints fans complained about the treatment they got in Chicago a few years ago on that NFC Championship weekend. Set a better example, Saints fans. A little razzing is OK, violence and vandalism isn't. Besides, this is a tough economy and these people are in our town spending money.

You may not know it if you're in New Orleans, Minneapolis, Indianapolis, or New York City but there are things in the world more important than football. I didn't get to see much of the Hope for Haiti fundraiser last night but below is Dave Matthews and Neil Young performing Hank Williams' Alone and Forsaken. I did get to see that. Fantastic. They are great together. Please help if you can.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. This Night 3:30 Black Lab Passion Leaves a Trace
2. Maybe Not 4:16 Cat Power You Are Free
3. Nothing Is True 3:18 Earlimart Mentor Tormentor
4. Fat Bottomed Girls 4:16 Queen
5. A Song of Simplicity 3:46 Elijah Bossenbroek Harmony In Disarray

Quote of the Day

The darkness is falling
The sky has turned gray
A hound in the distance is starting to bey
I wonder, I wonder
What she's thinking of
Forsaken, forgotten
Without any love

Hank Williams, Alone and Forsaken

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Preparation is one thing. Playing is another. Nothing can quite duplicate the environment the Vikings and Saints will experience Sunday."

It's pretty well known what Saints and Vikings fans want from their teams this Sunday. The Vikings fans want their defensive line to harass Drew Brees all game. Saints fans want the offensive line to provide solid protection for Drew. Vikings fans want to get off to a good start on offense and get the Saints crowd settled down. Saints fans want to get off to a good start and keep the crowd involved all game. I don't think fans of either team will entirely get their way but the ones who get more of their way will likely be happier Monday morning. I think we can disregard the injury reports. There's no tomorrow. Everyone will play. No one is 100%. Matchup-wise, it will be more like Is-this-guy's-78%-going-to-be-effective-against-that-guy's-86%? I expect both teams to have a good plan for the other. It will be all about execution. Both looking forward to it and dreading it at the same time. Don't bother to call during the game. The ringer will be off.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Humdinger 2:29 Old Crow Medicine Show Tennessee Pusher
2. Don't Shoot Shotgun 4:27 Def Leppard Hysteria
3. Don't Stand So Close To Me 4:01 The Police The Police Greatest Hits
4. Tears In Heaven 4:36 Eric Clapton Unplugged
5. Still The Same 3:20 Bob Seger Greatest Hits

Quote of the Day

While Shiancoe gets high marks when it comes to cooperating with the media, Shockey is the opposite.

Sid Hartman, Minneapolis Star Tribune

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Drew Brees called it, "the weirdest game I have ever played in," and it certainly seemed like it. The Saints missed two field goals, one of which was returned for a touchdown, and they committed 11 penalties for 102 yards. Said Vikings coach Brad Childress: "This is as good a win as it gets. I don't know if I've ever been involved in one that went that way.""

It was a Friday afternoon in September. I was leaving my office and heading toward my truck to head home for the weekend. My office was next to an overpass and most of the employees in my department parked under it. There was also a u-turn lane underneath that overpass and traffic was always too fast there. We saw lots of accidents. On this Friday, I encountered a little gray and white kitten in the street. She was tiny and about three weeks old we were told later by the vets. There was no mother in sight and she kind of stayed with me. I tried to walk her out of oncoming traffic but I couldn't shake her. She went wherever I went. She would not have made it through the night. I couldn't abandon her.

OK, we'll bring her home, feed her, get her through the night, try to find someone to take her, and if that fails, take her to a shelter. We can't keep her. We're dog people. We have two dogs who love to chase and bark at cats. We have parakeets. A kitten will surely upset the balance. We fed her some bologna that we had in the fridge and stayed with her as the dogs barked at her incessantly and she hissed back at them. At 3 weeks, she had a hiss that was pure evil. We bought a few things to get us through however long we were going to keep her and we put her up for the night isolated from the dogs. After a good night's rest and a full belly, she was ready to put on her charm offensive. She was a purring, jumping, galloping, trilling, bundle of energy. She still hissed a little at the dogs but she could run circles around them and wasn't in the least concerned with them. We couldn't find anyone to take her but we also couldn't take her to a shelter. She found her suckers. We referred to kitty cats as KCs when we didn't want the dogs to know what we were talking about because they knew certain words and would get excited. We named our new kitten Casey.

She repaid our act of love and kindness by tormenting our dogs and parakeets, biting us, scratching us, bouncing on our heads at all hours of the night, and turning her nose up at just about any kind of food we tried to feed her. She liked oysters, though. She could eat them until you ran out. She mellowed some as she got older but not much and we added two more cats after the dogs and parakeets were gone.

Below is my favorite picture of her. It was taken at an apartment we were living in while our house was being built. It was the happiest time of her life. That apartment had a two part stairway that she could gallop up to the first landing and peek around the corner at unsuspecting humans. She loved that place. We used to call her "belly girl" when she would get on her back like this. It meant she wanted someone to rub her belly a secret number of times or it meant she was ready to play. If you went over the secret number, she'd go into kill mode and would clamp down on your appendage with her teeth and front paws and start kicking you with her back claws. It was more than a little unpleasant. Here, she is baiting a trap for our dog, Duncan, to walk into because, really, who can resist that belly? Claws were always retracted for Duncan. She hurt his pride but she never hurt him physically.

Casey took her final ride to the vet this morning and I miss that bouncing, biting, and scratching already. She was 16. R.I.P., Casey girl.

Duncan and Casey - October 1994

It never ceases to amaze me how management and labor cannot set aside their differences during the season. They both want fan support. They will both get fan disgust.

A league official said the players' time would be better spent negotiating with the owners than lobbying Congress.

The league, in the form of New York Giants owner, John Mara, is busy talking to the New York Times. Their time would be better spent negotiating with the players. Practice what you preach, clowns ... but wait about three weeks, please. No one wants to hear this crap now. Aside from that, in this tough, tough economy, I can't imagine how either side thinks they stand to gain by taking their case to the public. Let's see, do we take the billionaires' side or the multimillionaires' side?

Right now is time to talk about pass defense, running games, quarterbacks, and offensive/defensive lines. The lawyers will get their turn. They always do.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Your Wildest Dreams 4:51 The Moody Blues Moody Blues Greatest Hits
2. Mojo Pin 5:42 Jeff Buckley Grace
3. Snakeskin Cowboys 4:30 Ted Nugent Ted Nugent
4. Do You Feel Like We Do 14:16 Peter Frampton Frampton Comes Alive! [Disc 2]
5. Carrie 4:33 Europe Love Bites: More Romantic Power Ballads

Quote of the Day

Just hangin' around with your fancy pants on
Aint got nothin' on me
Thinking you got it right here on the stage
Stick around boys
Maybe I can set you free

Ted Nugent, Snakeskin Cowboys

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Lawyers like to ask questions based on completely unrealistic hypothetical situations because they allow us to locate the outer limits of a rule. Figuring out to what situations a rule of law would not apply helps lawyers determine where it does. The Justices in the American Needle argument spent much of the time trying to locate limits. They took turns asking the lawyers for each party about football leagues playing on Saturday, rogue non-sanctioned games between NFL teams, Red Sox fans wearing Yankees' shirts, and purchases of office stationery by NFL commissioners. No matter how far-fetched and silly the Justices' questions appeared, they couldn't find a limitation to the rules proposed by the litigants. The lawyers blithely insisted that antitrust law would (or would not) apply to everything."

I've been thinking about the upcoming Saints-Vikings NFC Championship game since Sunday afternoon. I have a lot of thoughts and concerns about how the game might go. I can say one thing with some degree of certainty and that is that most of the experts will be wrong about how the game will unfold. They couldn't have been more wrong about the two games that gave us this matchup.

I just don't know how any Buffalo Bills fan can be happy about them hiring yet another coaching retread. That's not the way to go and is certainly not the way to excite your fans. They just got rid of one of those guys. New direction was called for. The AFC has two rookie head coaches in the championship game. There are a lot of fresh, young, energetic guys out there dying for a chance. They should have found one of them.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. For Those About To Rock (We Salute You) 7:08 AC/DC AC/DC Live
2. Words (Between The Lines Of Age) 6:40 Neil Young Harvest
3. Randy Lynn Rag 1:47 The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band Uncle Charlie & His Dog Teddy
4. The Fuse 5:38 Bruce Springsteen The Rising
5. I Can't Wait Much Longer 5:21 Robin Trower Essential

Quote of the Day

One bourbon, one scotch, one beer
No I ain't seen my baby since the night before last
Gotta get a drink, man
I'm gonna get gassed
Gonna get high man
I ain't had enough
Need me a triple shot of that stuff

George Thorogood - One Bourbon, One Scotch, and One Beer

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "The Vikings may have talked softly during the last week, but on Sunday they carried a very big stick. And, they used it to beat the Cowboys silly."

Thankfully, an explanation is given in why Gaines Adams' and other athletes' enlarged hearts were never detected. That had puzzled me and it's good to know.

From SI's Don Banks:

In my 20 seasons of covering the NFL, and in another 20 years of watching the game prior to that, I've never seen a punt return break open as wide and as early as Bush's 83-yard back-breaker in the third quarter. It looked like Arizona only had about six players on the field, and none of them thought Bush had the ball.

I don't think I've ever seen that, either, and I've been watching football even longer than him. With the directional punting that's all the rage these days, half of the coverage team can get sealed off on the sideline, which leaves the rest of the field wide open. If the returner gets past that first guy ...

I think the Vikings will avoid kicking to Reggie much like the Saints will avoid kicking to Percy Harvin. Hopefully, the Saints will be kicking off a lot and the Vikings will be punting a lot. :)

A note of amusement from CrabAppleLane: All of this "Will Wade Phillips be back?" and "Is Tony Romo the guy?" talk on sports sites throughout the internet is kinda cute, because all Cowboys turmoil is kinda cute to this somewhat but not really indifferent observer, but I think it would be a little more timely and appropriate to talk about the Colts, Jets, Vikings, and Saints because those teams are still playing. There will be lots of time and pages to fill after the season, which I think is a better, more appropriate time to talk about the Raiders, Cowboys, Bears, Dolphins, Rams, etc...

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Satan 3:46 Orbital & Kirk Hammett Spawn Soundtrack
2. Hold On My Heart 4:38 Genesis We Can't Dance
3. Turn The Page 5:04 Bob Seger Greatest Hits
4. The Perfect Drug 5:15 Nine Inch Nails Lost Highway Soundtrack
5. Mountain Jam 33:41 The Allman Brothers Band Eat A Peach

Quote of the Day

Later in the evening
As you lie awake in bed
With the echoes from the amplifiers
Ringing in your head
You smoke the day's last cigarette
Remembering what you said

Bob Seger, Turn The Page

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Even without help from the crowd, the Minnesota pass rush is difficult to block. Jared Allen against Jermon Bushrod is a mismatch, which means Bushrod will get help -- although probably not from Jeremy Shockey, even if his leg allows him to play."

Was going to post an entry titled something like Ruiner of Firsts about the Saints sad playoff history with their upcoming opponent in the NFC Championship Game, the Minnesota Vikings. The thoughts of Anthony Carter, Wade Wilson, and Keith Millard in that first Saints playoff game in 1987 still get me down a little. I was there. The thoughts of Daunte Culpepper, Robert Smith, and Randy Moss in that divisional game in 2000 after the Saints had finally won a playoff game also get me down a little. Didn't even have the courtesy of winning the Super Bowl either time. Lost in the NFC Championship game both years. Losing to the eventual champion is a little more palatable but not much. Now, the Vikings have a new roster littered with All-Pros and a Rookie of the Year and they're coming to New Orleans to break our hearts again. Man up.

A word about Gaines Adams: First, of course, my sympathies to his family. I am amazed that his enlarged heart had never been detected considering the batteries of tests all NFL players are subjected to every year, all year. An enlarged heart is not all that rare and is not an unheard of cause of death in athletes.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. I Think It's Going To Rain Today 3:32 Bette Midler Beaches
2. Promises 3:00 Eric Clapton Time Pieces - The Best Of Eric Clapton
3. Destination: Anywhere 3:10 The Commitments The Commitments
4. You Shook Me 6:28 Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin I
5. Ripples In The Rockpools 3:34 Rita Connolly Celtic Woman

Quote of the Day

The Saints and Vikings were the dominant NFC teams all season in a top-heavy year. They validated their regular seasons with Divisional Round blowouts. And both organizations know nothing is guaranteed in the future.

Gregg Rosenthal, MSNBC.com

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "He's right. This is the NFL, not high school or college. The Dallas Cowboys don't get sympathy. Throwing that pass may not have been the greatest sportsmanship, but it also wasn't an affront to decency. If Brooking didn't want Minnesota to score then maybe he and his 10 teammates on the field should have done something about it."

It's a pretty dreary day here at CrabAppleLane but it is a great day to be a Saints fan. They played a pretty good game yesterday. Spotted the Cards 7 on the first play from scrimmage and I'd like to see a whole lot less of that but they stepped up pretty good in all phases afterward and I loved seeing that. The Cards, particularly their defense, looked tired to me. Injuries are part of this game but fatigue increases your susceptibility to them. On a pretty nifty Drew Brees to Devery Henderson catch and run, Devery broke several tackles and Saints tight end David Thomas blocked one Cardinal defender into two others and sent all three to the ground. I think fatigue was at least partly responsible for the missed tackles and three defenders getting blown up like that. Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, one of their best players, was hurt on the play. I think the Cards are better than they played yesterday. The Saints will play the winner of today's Cowboys-Vikings game next Sunday night in the SuperDome. It will be a great, but very long, week here.

Naturally, it was fun to see the Saints bashers, and there were lots of them in the media, backpedal. Jamie Dukes at the NFL network just couldn't bring himself to give the Saints credit for anything but creating the turnovers. Claims the Saints defense lives and dies by the turnovers. Not true. The Saints defense, like all defenses, lives and dies by making stops. A turnover is grand but a punt or a turnover on downs will do just fine, thankyouverymuch. They scored 14 points off of turnovers yesterday but they also scored 31 off of punts and kickoffs.

Speaking of the sports media, the game couldn't have been over more than 10 minutes and Kurt Warner was already being inundated by questions on whether he will come back next year. I suppose it's a fair question to ask but I can't imagine how anyone expected an answer that soon. Personally, I think he should retire before he gets another concussion or another big hit like he got yesterday from Bobby McCray. He's a great quarterback. Every defense he faces will have to get after him and he is not that mobile. He will surely get knocked around a lot if he comes back. Good Luck, Kurt, in whatever you decide to do.

As a Saints fan, I have no rooting interest in today's Vikings-Cowboys game as far as who would be a better matchup for the Saints, for fear I may get exactly what I ask for. As a guy with lots of friends and relatives in Minnesota, who are Viking fans, I am rooting for my friends and relatives. I'm sure they'll understand that said rooting will cease next week should they advance. :) (Update - 3:15PM: It's the Vikings. Congrats to them. The only thing I have to say now is that I'm glad the game is in the SuperDome. :)

I offer one from dreary, but happy, CrabAppleLane:

CrabAppleLane Backyard - January 17, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Bargain 5:34 The Who Who's Next
2. In Love [Instrumental] 3:56 Carly Simon Working Girl Soundtrack
3. First And Last Waltz 1:54 Nickel Creek Why Should The Fire Die?
4. One World 3:41 Dire Straits Brothers In Arms
5. Come Sail Away 6:07 Styx The Grand Illusion

Quote of the Day

So much for being rusty

Sean Payton, New Orleans Saints Head Coach

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Too late. Jared Allen just inadvertently guaranteed a Cowboys victory when he declared "we kick butt.""

The Saints signed Deuce McAllister yesterday. He'll be an honorary captain at today's Saints-Cardinals playoff game. I have no idea how much it cost them to do that but the good will it created is immeasurable. Deuce is a fan and team favorite. He'll get a very warm reception today from everyone.

There was a time when LSU's Early Doucet played against Ohio State's Malcolm Jenkins and Beanie Wells and fans in this area cheered for Doucet. That was in the BCS National Championship Game in 2007. Now that Doucet and Wells play for the Cardinals and Jenkins plays for the Saints, it's a whole different thing for Doucet and Jenkins. All three of those players played a prominent role in that BCS title game. Wells and Doucet both scored touchdowns and Jenkins had an interception. We won't mind another Jenkins interception but would be OK if Wells and Doucet stayed out of the end zone.

This whole area is buzzing and ready to explode over the game today. I have a friend heading down to the SuperDome neighborhood just to be around the excitement. He doesn't have tickets and will be home in time to watch the game. He is not the only one doing that. It is a fairly common occurrence here. It surely doesn't take place in too many other NFL cities.

Drew Brees has asked the fans to "black out the Dome". I hope they do.

4 hours until kickoff ...

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Island Of Domination 4:24 Judas Priest Sad Wings Of Destiny
2. In The Heat Of The Jungle 6:20 Chris Isaak Heart Shaped World
3. Underway 2:54 Fleetwood Mac Then Play On
4. So Far Away 5:12 Dire Straits Brothers In Arms
5. Sarah Lee 4:36 Foghat Foghat

About today's QOTD: That's one of the problems with out-of-town media in New Orleans. They focus on some of the most ridiculous things. That is most emphatically NOT "just the way it is in this town". Crime is a serious problem in some areas of town like it is in most American big cities but it's not anything that the average sports reporter needs to comment on. I'm sure the Green Bay Gazette sports reporters didn't feel the need to dwell on Arizona's kidnapping problem last week.

Quote of the Day

Both of my dishwashers have gunshot wounds. One still has a bullet in his ankle. That's just the way it is in this town. There are really, really rich people and really, really poor people. But the one thing we all have is a Saints' T-shirt. We all love the Saints.

Aaron Burgau, Chef/owner of Restaurant Patois

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Life would be much different for the Cardinals and Saints if their divisional-round playoff game were outdoors Saturday.

Winds were blowing so hard downtown Friday night that I nearly lost my balance trying to walk through it."

If you're looking for late night TV, I recommend Craig Ferguson. NBC doesn't know what to do with Jay Leno and Leno doesn't seem to know what he wants to do, either. He's the Brett Favre of late night. Conan O'Brien is an acquired taste I never acquired. I think he's more than a little condescending. None of the late night talk show hosts are good interviewers but I enjoy Craig Ferguson so much that I TiVo him. He's on way too late for me to watch when his show comes on.

It's Black and Gold Friday in the Greater New Orleans area.

33 hours until kickoff ...

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Lines On My Face 7:03 Peter Frampton Frampton Comes Alive! [Disc 2]
2. Caleb Meyer 3:05 Gillian Welch Hell Among the Yearlings
3. Bell Bottom Blues 5:04 Derek & The Dominos The Cream Of Clapton
4. The Lemon Song 6:20 Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin II
5. Flyingdale Flyer 4:32 Jethro Tull The Best Of Jethro Tull [Disc 2]

Quote of the Day

In my youth, I wanted to change the world. Now, I want my DVR to record stuff without a glitch and I want to be regular.

Norman Chad, Washington Post

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "So yeah Saints, if you could replace the quote on the bulletin board with the corrected version that would be great."

Damn. The Saints were not motivated for this playoff game at first, then motivated after the Antrel Rolle quote was published, and they're back to not motivated again now that it has been retracted. Could someone in Arizona please tell them and us whether to be motivated or not? It's confusing. Your help in this matter is greatly appreciated. Thanks. -Rob

The slide guitarist wearing glasses is Louisiana treasure, Sonny Landreth. Below is a fun version of an old blues classic that I stumbled across while looking for a live version of Landreth's Creole Angel. Sonny is finally receiving a little recognition but he's still largely the best guitarist no one ever heard of. Enjoy.

Sorry, Saints -- you're the weekend's lone upset

Sports Illustrated's Don Banks has the Saints rated as the 8th best team of the 8 playoff teams:

8) New Orleans -- Any way you cut it, three straight losses to enter the playoffs is your textbook case of reverse momentum. Time to get it cranked back up in the Superdome, but can the Saints do it?

Not getting much love from CBS-Sportsline, either.

Unless there's a late comeback, it looks to me like the Saints are going to lose the opinion game. Damn. Maybe I'll go to the movies Saturday afternoon. Yeah, right.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Don't Shoot Shotgun 4:27 Def Leppard Hysteria
2. A Gypsy's Kiss 5:14 Deep Purple Perfect Strangers [Bonus Track]
3. Daylight Katy 4:20 Gordon Lightfoot Complete Greatest Hits
4. (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman 3:50 Carole King Tapestry
5. Creole Angel 4:16 Sonny Landreth South Of I-10

Quote of the Day

Bottle rocket combo
Got a corner on the crowd
Under her old balcony
Above a bar called
The Black Cat Prowl

Sonny Landreth, Creole Angel

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Southwest Louisiana-based guitarist, songwriter and singer Sonny Landreth is a musician's musician. His blues slide guitar playing is distinctive and unlike anything else you've ever heard."

A FlickR friend added one of my photos to his gallery, "Pubs that have been locals of mine". The Columbia Street Tap Room fits a lot of categories. Pub works as does tavern as does bar and grill as does honky tonk.

Lane Kiffin leaves Tennessee holding an empty bag ... and the Vols are better off. I'd feel for Tennessee fans a little more if they hadn't unceremoniously dumped the previous head coach, Phillip Fulmer, who did want to stay. Tennessee will be fine. That's a terrific job. Great candidates will be lining up this morning.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Howlin' Moon 5:20 Sonny Landreth From The Reach
2. Faith, Hope And Love 5:55 Wishbone Ash Bona Fide
3. Budget Meeting 9:43 Hans Zimmer King Arthur Soundtrack
4. Vicki 2:24 Nazareth Close Enough For Rock 'N' Roll
5. Highway Star 6:29 Deep Purple Machine Head (Roger Glover Remixes) [Disc 2]

Quote of the Day

And when your looks are gone and you're alone
How many nights you sit beside the phone
What were those things you wanted for yourself
Teenage ambitions you remember well

Asia, Heat of the Moment

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Because you'll have "unfaithful" written all over your face and not even have a song to explain yourself."

R.I.P, Miep Gies. I read Anne Frank's Diary as a teenager. Most teenagers my age did. It's powerful in every sense of that word. Saddens me that Miep has passed on. Have always loved that unusual name.

Also a sad day for Mark McGwire and baseball yesterday. It's not nearly up there with "Say it aint so, Joe" because I can't think of anything in baseball sadder than that. Baseball's legion of purist snobs and their attendant asterisks are jumping for joy, though. I find that sad, too.

A laugh from the Minneapolis Star Tribune saves my morning news stroll:

Realizing they have no chance, Vikings forfeit divisional playoff game to Cowboys

Thank you, Paul Glynn. Excellent.

Finally, we have Arizona Cardinal Antrel Rolle on Aaron Rodgers:

I don't ever want to face him again in my life. I am dead serious. I'll face Drew Brees any day of the week before I face him again.

He's getting his wish this week. The NFL is generous that way.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Lights Out 4:32 UFO Essential UFO
2. Red Barchetta 6:10 Rush Chronicles [Disc 2]
3. Carefree Highway 3:44 Gordon Lightfoot Complete Greatest Hits
4. Pony Boy 5:51 The Allman Brothers Band Brothers And Sisters
5. Cat Scratch Fever 3:38 Ted Nugent Harley-Davidson Cycles: Road Songs [Disc 2]

Quote of the Day

Wind blows back
And the batons charging
Winds all the way
Right to the butt
Of my gun
Maybe now your time has come

UFO, Lights Out

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "With that, I just wanted to thank the guys for all of their hard work and for the victory so Cowboys fans like myself won't have to listen to the usual BS for another year. But, I like this team's makeup and this team's attitude. So let's come into Minnesota, play with intensity and play smart and we'll stack up our talent against any other team's talent."

We went to see Avatar 3D yesterday. Patsy didn't want to see it at first. She finally relented probably only because I said I wanted to see it so many times. The 3D part is pretty cool and 3D glasses have come a long way since those cheesy cardboard versions of the 50s and 60s. Avatar 3D is glorious CME. It is a special effects extravaganza and all James Cameron fans will recognize the Aliens influence. There's a standard Cameron didn't follow, though. In films that have heroes and villains, the quality of the film is always directly proportionate to the quality of the villain. There was no villain here that compared to the creatures in Aliens. That's its only shortcoming. See it on the big screen or in IMAX, if you can.

The only thing any football fan can say about the Cardinals-Packers playoff game yesterday is WOW. Those two teams put on a great show. Looking forward to a great game this Saturday in the SuperDome, too. The Cards are a tough opponent for the Saints. Both defenses will be tested. If either team can play any, that will be the difference.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. I Can't Believe That You're In Love With Me (1983 Satchmo Version) 3:31 Louis Armstrong Sings - Back Through The Years/A Centennial Celebration (Disc 1)
2. You Know Who You Are 4:50 Survivor Greatest Hits
3. Oh Well 9:02 Fleetwood Mac Then Play On
4. Bomb 3:23 Bush Sixteen Stone
5. My Sharona 4:03 The Knack Rock Of The 70's

I don't agree with today's QOTD. The Packers have a terrific offense with Aaron Rodgers.

Quote of the Day

Now, the saint of Arizona football must face a team of Saints. The New Orleans offense makes the Packers look dull. Buckle up, folks. The fun has just begun.

Dan Bickley, The Arizona Republic

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "One of the most exciting games in recent memory ended amid controversy Sunday evening. Karlos Dansby's fumble return for a touchdown gave the Cardinals a 51-45 victory over the Packers, but Packer Nation is up in arms with two specific no-calls."

I'm usually a fan of letting the players play but I think there were way too many non-calls in that game. Larry Fitzgerald should have been called for offensive pass interference on both of his touchdowns. he knocked his defenders down to the ground. -Rob

Not quite as cold today as it was yesterday but still icy by CrabAppleLane standards. The power held up this time and the stove has been burning non-stop. Our cat, Crispin, likes that. See photo below. He alternates between lying in the chair, the blanket beneath the chair, and that rug between the chair and the stove. No idea how he can stay that close to the stove for so long but he gets comatoasty (Patsy's word).

Looks to me like the Bengals were built to play well with the kids in their sandbox but can't play well with other kids. 6-0 against the teams in their division, 4-7 against teams outside of it. They're done. The Jets turn back into a pumpkin next week. I don't care what Rex Ryan says. They're no match for the Colts or Chargers.

The Cowboys continued their hot play and will play the Vikings next Sunday in Minneapolis. That's a terrific matchup. The Vikes have a much more balanced offense, a better defense, and they'll be playing at home, where they haven't lost this season. Andy Reid has got to find some balance on his Eagles offense next year. They throw too much and depend too much on big plays. Not only does that make them more predictable but it also doesn't afford his suspect defense much rest.

The Saints will play today's Packers-Cardinals winner next Saturday. I have no hopes for either team to win for fear that I may get what I want. They are both excellent teams and the winner will be very confident next week. It will be a tough assignment for the Saints either way.

Crispin - January 10, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Save Me A Place 2:42 Fleetwood Mac Tusk
2. 20th Century Boy 3:42 Placebo Velvet Goldmine Soundtrack
3. Thank You For The Feelin' 4:07 Bachman-Turner Overdrive The Anthology [Disc 1]
4. A Farewell To Kings 5:53 Rush Chronicles [Disc 1]
5. Heaven 4:04 Bryan Adams Reckless

Quote of the Day

America's Team is headed to the Metrodome

Judd Zulgad, Minneapolis Star Tribune

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "This is getting out of hand."

We knew it was going to get cold last night. Down in the teens we were told. My outdoor thermometer tells us it went below that. Adding to the cold and misery here, our power went out at 7:15AM and wasn't restored until 2PM. Without power, we have no heat or water. Hasn't been a fun day to this point. Currently, we are waiting for the water tank to refill, the water heater to refill and heat up, and the house to warm up from the 54º it was when power finally came back on. How's your day going?

My take on today's playoff games:

Bengals-Jets in Cincinnati: The Bengals looked like a decent team earlier in the year but I just don't see them doing much business offensively against the Jets. I don't see the Jets doing much offensive business, either. This figures to be a pretty dull game in the icy cold of Cincinnati. I give a very slight edge to the Jets.

Cowboys-Eagles in Dallas: These two teams played last week but only one of them showed up. I don't expect that to be the case this week. I think Andy Reid can probably come up with a winning game plan if you give him three shots to do so. The Cowboys are playing well right now but the Eagles know them as good as anyone and I just don't think the Cowboys can sustain this level of play. The Eagles are a potential Saints opponent next week. The Saints will have to win one and the Cowboys will have to win two before we get a Saints-Cowboys rematch. I am not wishing or hoping for anything ... for fear it may come true. I like the Eagles in a close one.

Good Morning, CrabAppleLane - January 9, 2010

CrabAppleLane Backyard - January 9, 2010

CrabAppleLane Backyard - January 9, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Bitter End 2:13 Paul Kimble & Andy Mackay Velvet Goldmine Soundtrack
2. Handbags And Gladrags 4:25 Rod Stewart Unplugged... And Seated (LIVE)
3. Sweat It Out 6:39 Elton John The One
4. Come On, Come On 2:06 Cheap Trick Original Album Classics
5. What It Is 5:28 Mark Knopfler Live From The Ryman

Quote of the Day

I'm a completely different player and this is a completely different team. Those past games have absolutely no bearing on anything going forward.

Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Everyone's broken their own right wings & we go 'round pretendin' impossible things"

Drew Brees pens an Op-Ed to the Washington Post. It's dated January 10, 2010. Not sure what to make of that but I'm going back to that site now to get the Powerball results.

Dave and I were just discussing NFL owners and players.

Not sure where the relationship between players and owners is going when the current collective bargaining agreement expires but everything I've read so far indicates to me that both sides are mobilizing for a protracted fight. I would be eternally grateful to be wrong about that.

Congratulations to the Alabama Crimson Tide. Texas got a tough break when Colt McCoy had to leave the game with an injury early but they made a game of it in the 4th quarter behind their terrific freshman quarterback, Garrett Gilbert. They just made too many mistakes and penalties but, to be perfectly honest, it was an almost impossible situation for a freshman getting his first meaningful playing time. It would not be a surprise to me to see these same two teams in the BCS Championship next year. Garrett made some mistakes but he made some plays, too. His teammates could have helped him a little more if they had made some of those plays ... making some of those catches and bringing that tackling that runner after the interception at the end of the half come to mind immediately. I tip my cap to the Longhorns on a great effort against considerable adversity.

A word about the SEC: There are some who are tired of hearing about SEC football supremacy. I get that and you won't hear it here. I have considerable loyalty to the SEC, though, because it was all around me growing up. The SEC, for most of my life, was the ugly stepchild that was kept in the closet. When #1 Notre Dame and Ara Parseghian was playing for a tie against #2 Michigan State, Bear Bryant had an undefeated Alabama team with Kenny Stabler at quarterback that I think would have beaten either one of those teams. They never got the chance. That was 1966 and when I started to disdain polls and sport punditry. I was 8. I also had some serious disdain for the Rose Bowl that is just now starting to wane. The self-titled, self-important "Granddaddy of them ALL" was a gated community, reserved for USC and the Michigan-Ohio State winner. If any of those three teams finished a season undefeated, the polls crowned them champions and the battle was for second because it was understood that the best football was played in the Big Ten and Pac Ten. That sentiment was so prevalent for so long that the BCS, the very organization that was created to prevent sentiment and opinion from determining a national champion, almost ordered a Michigan-Ohio State rematch for the BCS title just four years ago.

The SEC, already stronger than most people knew, was getting even stronger all this time. They were playing great football but beating each other up so bad that their champion almost never got through the schedule undefeated and, quite often, had more than one loss. Because records mattered most to those polled, the teams that had soft conference schedules had an inherent advantage. Enter the almost ordered Michigan-Ohio State rematch mentioned above. The undefeated Buckeyes beat the undefeated Wolverines that year in a terrific game and it was thought that those were the two best teams in the country. The BCS somehow resisted the rematch that a lot of people wanted and sent Florida to play Ohio State for the BCS title while Michigan had to settle for the Rose Bowl and USC. Florida trashed Ohio State and that started this four year run of SEC Champions winning National Championships. It was a different team every year, though. Florida, then LSU, then Florida again, and now, Alabama. The SEC is deep and competitive and will get back to beating each other up next year but their stock has rightfully gone up the last few years. With Alabama, Auburn, LSU, Arkansas, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, and Ole Miss all having National Championships in their histories, the recognition shouldn't have taken so long.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Take It Like A Man 3:44 Bachman-Turner Overdrive The Anthology [Disc 2]
2. Native Stepson 3:37 Sonny Landreth South Of I-10
3. Posthuman 4:18 Marilyn Manson Mechanical Animals
4. Wild Is The Wind 6:04 David Bowie Station To Station [Bonus Tracks]
5. Lakeside Park 4:10 Rush Chronicles [Disc 1]

Quote of the Day

I was like, 'Oooh, that kind of hurt.' Then somebody told me he was running off holding his shoulder.

Mark Ingram, Alabama Crimson Tide

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Remember the infamous Diaper astronaut? Well Nasa has found a new way to get extra money for next years budget, by taking advantage of her new publicity. We here at Funny Stuff Blog, are glad Lisa Nowak career has not been destroyed."

Cute cartoon. -Rob

More NFL Los Angeles talk. This idea that some ownership group is going to build a stadium AND THEN lure a team is nonsense. They cannot break ground on or line up financing and other needed commitments for that type of project, which will run in the neighborhood of $1 billion and require considerable infrastructure, until they have a team sewn up and announced. The Jaguar franchise is in trouble and I feel somewhat for Jacksonville but it's a total bummer to me that the Bills are also considered to be in trouble. Their fans have been loyal despite very little joy on the field and despite the ridiculous weather they play about half of their games in up there in Buffalo.

Remember when businesses would try to improve their revenue by improving their products and services? It's not about that any more, is it? It's all about leverage and who has it these days.

I give Texas a chance in tonight's BCS Championship game because they have a good, experienced quarterback and because Alabama doesn't have anyone like Nebraska's Ndamukong Suh to get after him. If I'm the Rams, my people are talking to Suh's people right now. I digress. I can't pick the Longhorns, though. I still like the Tide because they just have too much talent across the board. The SEC will make it four in a row.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Universe 3:38 Sonny Landreth From The Reach
2. Woad To Ruin 11:32 Hans Zimmer King Arthur Soundtrack
3. Se A Cabo (Live) 3:48 Santana Abraxas
4. Bleed Like Me 3:59 Garbage Bleed Like Me
5. Benjamin 3:30 James Taylor October Road [Bonus Disc]

Quote of the Day

Building a bigger stadium for Jacksonville football fans would be like building a bigger public library for high school drop-out crystal meth tweakers. It's just not going to get much use.

MJD, Yahoo Sports

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "It's 4am and the forecast is still a little uncertain but the children of Helena dont care because it is a Snow Day!"

Randy Johnson is calling it quits. I remember Randy when he came up. He was a left-handed version of Nolan Ryan. 1) He had a very live fastball in the high 90s. That's pretty intimidating to most hitters. 2) He was an imposing figure at six feet ten inches tall. Also intimidating. 3) He was very wild when he came up and he never really reigned that in. For most pitchers, that's a career-breaker. It made Johnson. The hitters faced a guy who was big, threw very hard, and was almost as likely to hit them as he was to throw a strike. Not easy to dig in against a guy like that, particularly for left-handed batters.

Randy is notable to me for another reason, though. I was channel-surfing one summer night when I ran across an Atlanta Braves game on TBS. Johnson was pitching for the Diamondbacks that night against the Braves. My plan was to catch the score and then surf on. It was the 5th or 6th inning and the announcers were jabber, jabber, jabbering but not giving a score. Johnson struck out the side and they showed the box score. All zeroes for the Braves. Randy was working on a perfect game. I stuck with it to see how far he could go. When the ninth inning arrived, Braves fans were cheering him, too. He was still throwing 99mph. That's simply not fair. He finished the perfect game and it's the only one I've ever seen. I count it even though I didn't see it in its entirety. It was amazing and I am so glad I stuck it out. Perfect games are so rare that I may never see one again. Thanks and Good Luck, Randy.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. This Train Don't Stop There Anymore 4:41 Elton John Greatest Hits 1970-2002 [Disc 2]
2. The Revenge Of Vera Gemini 3:51 Blue Öyster Cult Agents of Fortune
3. Principles Of Lust [(A) Sadeness, (B) Find Love, (C) Sadeness (Reprise)] 11:44 Enigma MCMXC a.D.
4. Anyone's Daughter 4:45 Deep Purple Fireball
5. Prettiest Star 3:31 David Bowie Aladdin Sane

Quote of the Day

I'll see you at the weighing in
When your life's sum total's made
And you set your wealth in godly deeds
Against the sins you've laid

Jethro Tull, Lick Your Fingers Clean

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "
Bears May Hire the Naked Fast Food Drive-Thru Coach"

From Don Banks of Sports Illustrated:

Playoff-bound teams not playing all-out to win when they're facing playoff contenders is much worse for the image of the league than the hit the NFL takes every August when those meaningless preseason games stir a similar debate. Goodell knows that, and wants to find ways to give teams incentives to legitimately play out their regular-season schedules, be it extra draft picks or another such carrot at the end of a stick.

Gonna give the teams at the bottom of the barrel incentive to play all out, too? The only way to fix this, if indeed this is broken, is to have competitive, economic balance throughout the league so that there are fewer meaningless games at the end of the season. Unfortunately, balance of any kind is something that Jerry Jones wants to eliminate. He puts more time, money, and testosterone into his franchise than all of the other owners and he doesn't want to finish in the middle of the pack any more. I get that. He wants the NFL to become more like Major League Baseball. I get that, too. His team is the closest the NFL has to baseball's Yankees. In the NFL, the San Diego Chargers can sign and keep Phillip Rivers. If the NFL was more like MLB, Rivers would be playing for the Jets when his contract is up. This NFL fan prefers the NFL the way it is. Don't know if the NFL is big enough for Jerry and me.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Just My Imagination 3:41 The Cranberries Bury The Hatchet
2. High & Dry 2:30 Gordon Lightfoot Gord's Gold Volume II
3. Soul Of The Sea 6:33 Heart Dreamboat Annie
4. Maria Maria 4:23 Santana Feat. Product G&B Supernatural
5. Free Ride 3:08 The Edgar Winter Group Hard N' Heavy: 70's Greatest Rock Hits, Vol. 1

Quote of the Day

Sports interest survives and thrives on the second guess

Jim Henderson, WWL-TV

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "I contend that this was all part of Ken Whisenhunt's master plan."

The Saints and Carolina played yesterday like they wanted to just get it over with. Once Carolina built their 23-3 lead against mostly Saints backups, they were content to hand the ball off the rest of the afternoon. The Panthers are the most boring team in the NFL. They're always tough on the Saints but there were plays all over the field yesterday that the Saints just simply missed. Keeping their key players out of a meaningless and very physical Week 17 game was the right move. My sense is they'll be healthy and ready to play in two weeks. They're due for a big game and the "smart money" will undoubtedly be on their opponent because the Saints have now been "exposed". We'll see.

Speaking of keeping key players out of meaningless games, another Bill Belichick decision will be called into question this week; the one that had Wes Welker playing yesterday in a game that had little significance. They were going to be playing next week at home as the 3 or 4 seed and there is very little difference in that distinction. The oddsmakers were positive that Belichick would also see it that way and installed the Texans as 8-point favorites. I suppose injuries can happen any time but I am certain that Welker's injury will put a chill on the idea of playing starters unnecessarily. So much for New England's momentum next week. Welker is their spark plug and they're not all that great without him. I don't see them getting past the Ravens.

I don't follow the NHL so this came as news to me. The Boston Bruins recently signed someone named "Satan". When a deal is made with Satan, it usually means something else and I am certain that reference has been noted before. The guy is 35.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Never Before 4:00 Deep Purple Machine Head 25th Anniversary Edition [Disc 2]
2. Cans And Brahms 1:43 Yes Fragile
3. Every Hungry Woman 4:16 The Allman Brothers Band The Allman Brothers Band
4. I Wish My Love Was A Red Red Rose 3:32 Meav Méav
5. It Ain't Enough 3:29 Corey Hart Love Bites: More Romantic Power Ballads

About today's QOTD: I've heard mostly positive reviews of the new Cowboys Stadium and it looks pretty spectacular on TV. I suppose it's a little gaudy but I think Sheridan's description comes from somewhere else.

Quote of the Day

The Eagles tried to walk a shaky tightrope here today and they made a spectacular splat when they fell. They left a stain that's going to be tough to ignore on their return trip to this hilarious shrine to bad taste.

Phil Sheridan, Philadelphia Inquirer

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Put simply, the Steelers need what all consistently good teams need once in a while -- a simple reset. They have one of the NFL's most able front offices, and a great young coach in Mike Tomlin. They're nowhere near rebuild mode just yet, but it's shocking just how quickly that can happen. If they don't get nimble in a hurry, the Steelers will be on the outside looking in, and this season will look less like a fluke and more like the beginning of the end."

The Saints are in Charlotte today for a game that means absolutely nothing. The Panthers will try to win but I don't know why. Maybe to lower their draft position and save the owner a little money? The Saints will try to win with mostly second, third, and fourth stringers on the field. Both teams will say lots of silly things about how much the game means. Saints fans are more concerned about who their first playoff opponent will be and the team probably will have advance scouts at the Packers-Cardinals game, the Eagles-Cowboys game, and the Vikings-Giants game. The Eagles, Cowboys, and Vikings figure to be playing hard. Not so sure about the Packers and Cardinals, though. If the Vikings beat the Giants in the early game as expected, the Packers and Cardinals will know they'll be playing each other in the playoffs next week. Why play hard or show anything this week? One other thing:

I offer one today that was taken on yesterday afternoon's bike ride.

Whippoorwill Grove near CrabAppleLane - January 2, 2010

Pulp Fiction was on the Independent Film Channel last night and I found myself watching it while Patsy was doing something on her laptop. I love that movie. Dusty Springfield's Son of a Preacher Man is on the soundtrack. As soon as it came on, Patsy sang right along with it. I don't think she could resist if she had to. I wish we had gotten to see Dusty live in concert. She's one of our faves.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Son Of A Preacher Man 2:28 Dusty Springfield Pulp Fiction Soundtrack
2. Crazy Train 4:56 Ozzy Osbourne Blizzard Of Ozz
3. Terminal Frost 6:17 Pink Floyd A Momentary Lapse Of Reason
4. Rock Is Dead 3:10 Marilyn Manson Mechanical Animals
5. Tvc15 5:34 David Bowie Station To Station [Bonus Tracks]

Quote of the Day

Being good isn't always easy
No matter how hard I tried
When he started sweet talking to me
He'd come and tell me everything is alright
He'd kiss and tell me everything is alright
Can I get away again tonight?

Dusty Springfield, Son of a Preacher Man

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Blue Cornbread with Pineapple Ingredient List"

The rains of 2009 are gone and 2010, so far, looks like this:

CrabAppleLane - January 2, 2010

The Clearing Project - January 2, 2010

I'm OK with this. Hope you're having as nice a day.

The argument, of course, is that both teams had to play in it and on it. They had to play in the rain and on that horrible turf. When the Saints played at Wembley Stadium last year, I never thought I'd see a turf less suitable for football. I have now. This was no fun for the players. It was also no fun for the fans who paid substantial money to see a football game. It wasn't even fun for the fans watching at home. Not taking away from Penn State's victory. They deserved the win. Penn State tailback Evan Royster:

When you would try to make a play, you'd be slipping and stumbling all over the place. I didn't think the field was going to have puddles like that on it.

Score one for indoor stadiums. Players should be talking about the game afterward, not the field.

The Saints will sit Drew Brees tomorrow. It's the smart play. Some are worried about a potential 3-game losing streak. I'm not. With nothing to gain, there is no point in having Julius Peppers audition for his new team by getting after Drew. The Saints handle normal Peppers better than anyone else but looking-for-a-big-payday Peppers is a different animal.

True.

About the QOTD: Tusk is 30 years old. Where did the time go?

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Misery Machine 13:11 Marilyn Manson Portrait Of An American Family
2. Rock Candy 5:05 Montrose Montrose
3. It Was A Good Time 3:03 The Mike Curb Congregation Greatest Hits
4. She Moved Through The Fair 4:10 Meav Méav
5. Lightning Crashes (Live) 5:44 Live Live: Live At the Paradiso - Amsterdam

Quote of the Day

Why don't you ask him what's going on?
Why don't you ask him who's the latest on his throne?

Fleetwood Mac, Tusk

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "My theory: This is nothing more than an allergic reaction to the concentration of acerbic liberal/progressive presence or it could just be gas. Nevertheless, if they wanted to off Rush they should have brought over the third part of the unholy triumvirate, Harry Reid."

From CrabAppleLane

CrabAppleLane Backyard - January 1, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. On The Road Again 3:24 Canned Heat Harley-Davidson Cycles: Road Songs [Disc 2]
2. All Right Now 5:29 Free Harley-Davidson Cycles: Road Songs [Disc 2]
3. Black Magic Woman/Gypsy Queen 5:20 Santana Abraxas
4. Gone Fishin' 2:32 Louis Armstrong w/ Bing Crosby Back Through The Years (Disc 2)
5. Heaven 4:18 Better Than Ezra Deluxe

Today's QOTD is about another squabble between a network and a cable company. I think everyone loses if they can't reach an agreement. The network, the cable company, and all of the subscribers. An agreement undoubtedly would mean higher subscriber fees.

Quote of the Day

The Fox television network pulled back from the brink on Friday, allowing its signals to continue for millions of cable subscribers beyond a midnight deadline as it continued to seek higher fees for its programming.

USA Today

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Here are the latest articles and postings about New Year's and New Year's Eve from our holiday blog site Holiday Rap"