Recently in CrabAppleLane Sunday Category

Happy Birthday, Mom

Love,
Rob&Patsy

Picked up a few songs at iTunes last night, including one that Marie and Kim recommended from Marc Cohn. Lissie also has a new album of covers out. Was cheap enough. From her, I love Nothing Else Matters but I think I like Pursuit of Happiness, a new song to me, even better.

Tigers keep rolling. They still have two or, possibly, three tough games ahead, though. They need to focus on them, not on who they might face in a potential BCS Championship game.

Tough game in Atlanta today for the Saints. Kickoff. Will have to finish this entry later. Hogshead cheese and a Saints game await.

Today's QOTD from yet another professional journalist.

I offer a little color from the CrabAppleLane backyard. Very little.

CrabAppleLane Backyard - November 13, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Pursuit of Happiness - Lissie - Covered Up With Flowers
2. Walking In Memphis - Marc Cohn - Marc Cohn
3. Early Bird (Bonus Track) - Mark Knopfler - Get Lucky (Bonus Track Version)
4. Boulevard of Broken Dreams (feat. John Gallagher Jr., Rebecca Naomi Jones, Stark Sands & Company) - Green Day - American Idiot (The Original Broadway Cast Recording)
5. Everybody Wants You - Billy Squier - Billy Squier: Absolute Hits

Quote of the Day

When Mike Smith first decided to go for it on fourth-and-inches in overtime, I liked the call. I thought it was gutsy and ambitious. After watching Michael Turner get stuffed, I changed my mind. Smith should have punted and taken his chances with his defense.

Pat Yasinskas, ESPN NFC South Blog

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Prepare yourself for this epic battle of NFC South heavyweights. The team that wins this game will have the early upper hand for the division. As Falcons fans, we do not want to get stuck in this wild card race. This is the first big step toward winning the division, and the Falcons must take care of business as home in divisional games."

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Hard, hard fought game last night in Tuscaloosa. Didn't look like much if you're a fan of pretty football but it looks fine this morning to this Tiger fan.

Saints are up, 17-3, at the half over a tough Tampa team in a pretty chippy game so far. They need to not let up. Update: Saints, 24-9, with 11 minutes remaining.

Think I have everything back to normal here. I think. Everything that was giving me trouble before seems to be working now. We'll see. Your patience is appreciated.

I offer one image of what passes for color changes here at CrabAppleLane. No comparison to what my northern friends get to see.

CrabAppleLane Backyard - November 6, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Tyrant (Live) - Judas Priest - Living After Midnight
2. Armageddon It - Def Leppard - Hysteria
3. Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head - B.J. Thomas - AM Gold 1969
4. All Mixed Up - The Cars - The Cars
5. I Know You're Out There Somewhere - The Moody Blues - Moody Blues Greatest Hits

Quote of the Day

LSU still rules. Not because someone said so, but because it came here and took what it wanted.

Scott Rabalais, Baton Rouge Morning Advocate

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "We Need to Talk About Kevin is powerful, visceral cinema. It’s the kind of movie that makes you want to take a nice long, hot shower after coming home."

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The Saints were being embarrassed by the Rams, 24-0, when I started this entry. It was hard to watch. Gonna be a long plane ride home. Leave left tackle, Charles Brown, in St Louis, please. Rams win. It's the second time in Sean Payton's tenure that a winless Rams team has beaten them. Neither game was a fluke. Tip of the cap to the Rams for a solid effort. Drew Brees got a garbage TD at the end to keep his streak going of consecutive games with a TD pass so there's that. No one should be happy about this performance. Must win game next week against Tampa.

Gearing up for LSU-Alabama next Saturday. If you're a college football player, coach, or fan, a game like this is what you live for. No excuses, no quarter. Man up, Tide. The Tigers are coming.

I offer one today from the CrabAppleLane hearth. Patsy bought Crispin a new bed. He approves of the new bed and its placement.

Crispin - October 30, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Stealin' - Uriah Heap - Sweet Freedom
2. A Light In The Black - Rainbow - Rising
3. I Hear Them All - Old Crow Medicine Show - Big Iron World
4. I'm Shipping Up to Boston - Dropkick Murphys - The Warrior's Code
5. Sweet Dreams - Marilyn Manson - Smells Like Children

Quote of the Day

Fighting
Killin'
Wine and women
Gonna put me to my grave
Runnin' hidin'
losin' cryin'
Nothing left to save
But my life

Uriah Heep, Stealin'

Blog of the day is here.

here">Quote from said blog: "With Footballageddon a mere six days away, perhaps it would be instructive to pick where Alabama and LSU left off a year ago in Baton Rouge as a way of gaining some perspective for this upcoming Saturday."

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Game 3 to the Cards, 16-7, or as Zak Schmoll rightly predicted, "There will be a lot of runs scored during this World Series unless strong pitching is able to triumph". A lot of runs. Schmoll is 3 for 3. It was the Albert Pujols Show and baseball fans will be talking about it for years. If you didn't see that first home run he hit, this is it and you don't see many like that. After Game 1, Lance Berkman said he didn't think the Cards wanted to get into a gorilla ball game with the Rangers. The Cards have the biggest, baddest gorilla in baseball. Why not? I see tonight as a must win for the Rangers. If they go down 3-1 and have to face Chris Carpenter in Game 5, it's going to be very tough.

The LSU Tigers dispatched the Auburn Tigers yesterday easily and set up one of the most anticipated games in college football history. This is Nebraska - Oklahoma 1971 or Michigan State - Notre Dame 1966. It is LSU-Alabama. Both teams are 8-0. Both teams have two weeks to prepare. For the fans, the wait will be almost unbearable.

Saints take on the Colts tonight in a rematch of Super Bowl XLIV. The game has no luster without Peyton Manning. It's a shame that Peyton's last chance to play in his hometown will only come if he gets the Colts to the Super Bowl next year. I don't see it. That team is much better when he is quarterbacking them but I don't see them as a Super Bowl contender.

The CrabAppleLane TV will mostly watch the Saints tonight but will also keep an eye on the Cards. This is what a DVR is all about.

About today's QOTD: 26 for 26 is amazing. I don't think many people can go 26 for 26 playing catch in their backyard. Doing it with a pass rush in your face and tacklers being near the receivers is phenomenal. Quite an achievement.

I offer one from the CrabAppleLane backyard.

A little privacy, please?

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Tusk - Fleetwood Mac - Tusk
2. Eagle - ABBA - The Album
3. 2112 - Rush - 2112
4. Caleb Meyer - Gillian Welch - Hell Among The Yearlings
5. Blowin' Free - Wishbone Ash - Live Dates [1973]

Quote of the Day

In one of the more amazing statistical performances you’ll ever see, East Carolina quarterback Dominique Davis completed all 26 of his pass attempts for 251 yards in the first half against Navy.

CollegeFootballTalk

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Pontchartrain Beach"

Pontchartrain Beach was a landmark and institution on the New Orleans lakefront for a long time. Cool pictures of Elvis. -Rob

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More on the banking industry's fee scam scheme schedule from the New York Times:

Customers frustrated by banks’ controversial new fees are finding out what industry insiders have known for years: it is not so easy to disentangle your life from your bank.

It all started when Bank of America announced they'll be charging their customers a $5/month fee for using their debit cards. The notion is they're secure in the knowledge that customers won't leave them because it is too inconvenient to do so. I've got news for those who think that. It's not that hard. I do all of the online stuff with my bank. I bank online, pay bills online, have direct deposit, automatic bill paying, etc. I could change all of that fairly easily. Someone who really knows what they're doing, such as a banker, could do it even easier.

The surest sign yet that ALL banks want to charge these nuisance banking fees is that banks are not offering to make the transition for new customers. Word needs to get out that switching banks is not any harder now than it ever was. Businesses switch banks all the time. As soon as someone offers them greener grass their current bank won't match, they jump. Individual consumers can do the same thing. Word to my bank: I have no reason to switch right now. Don't give me one.

I played neighborhood football in an empty corner lot at 15th and Compromise in Kenner, LA when I was a kid. Easy walking and bike distance from where we all lived. Passed it yesterday. The lot is still empty now some 40+ years later. Someone still cuts the grass, though. Wonder if kids still play football on it, too. I hope so.

Saints have a date with the Bucs this afternoon. I'd like to know why this game had to be scheduled with the late games. Games between Central and Eastern Time Zone teams don't ever need to be late games unless there may be some national interest. I just don't see it here. If the Saints take care of the ball, they'll take care of the Bucs. Halftime Update: They've already turned the ball over three times. This is how they always lose.

LSU and Alabama have one more game next week to get through. Then, they'll each have a bye week. That means they'll both have two weeks to prepare for each other. WOW. The schedule-maker couldn't have done any better. It will easily be the most anticipated college football game of the season.

About today's QOTD: Who didn't see that coming? The first edition of Charlie's Angels was pretty bad in a campy sort of way. At least, it had the camp. The second edition was just pretty bad.

I offer two from CrabAppleLane this afternoon. Bird feeders don't come with squirrels but they might as well. My back deck is still in lazy hurricane mode.

CrabAppleLane Backyard - October 16, 2011

CrabAppleLane Back Deck - October 16, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. She Was Waitin' For Her Mother At The Station In Torino And You Know I Love You Baby But It's Getting Too Heavy To Laugh - Shawn Phillips - Second Contribution
2. Tell Me There's A Heaven - Chris Rea - The Road To Hell
3. Time Was - Wishbone Ash - Argus
4. Like The Weather - 10,000 Maniacs - MTV Unplugged
5. Ride The Tiger - Jefferson Starship - At Their Best

Quote of the Day

Sorry, angels. You've been axed.

Ann Oldenburg, USA TODAY

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "And did I mention that the Angels are able to find the bad guy's whereabouts because HE TWEETS?"

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Tough win today for the Saints over a determined Panthers team. Carolina is going to be pretty nasty down the stretch. They're young and have a lot going for them. They just haven't quite learned how to finish. Cam Newton is a terrific young quarterback. Carolina fans should be excited about him. Saints have a lot of work to do. They're winning but they can definitely play better.

My thoughts on Al Davis passing.

I offer one on this typical fall CrabAppleLane Sunday. It is a partial view from my back deck, where I'll probably be grilling in a few minutes while watching the wildlife and the sunset. Enjoy the rest of the weekend.

CrabAppleLane Backyard - October 9, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. The Fox - Nickel Creek - Nickel Creek
2. Candidate (Bonus Track) - David Bowie - Diamond Dogs
3. Electric Eye - Judas Priest - Living After Midnight
4. It's Too Late - Johnny Rivers - Johnny Rivers - Anthology 1964-1977
5. O' Come All Ye Faithful - Trans-Siberian Orchestra - The Lost Christmas Eve

Quote of the Day

Davis' moves opened the gates for what was termed "franchise free agency." The owners were helpless to block the Baltimore Colts from moving to Indianapolis; the Houston Oilers from moving to Nashville, Tenn., and the Cleveland Browns from moving to Baltimore.

Gordon Forbes, USA TODAY

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Well once again the Carolina Panthers got close but couldn’t close the door against the New Orleans Saints as the Panthers lost 30-27. With the loss the Panthers move to 1-4 on the season. The game as a whole wasn’t bad and honestly the Panthers should have probably won this game. They had opportunities but just couldn’t ever put the Saints away."

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Happy Birthday, Crispin. 15 and still going strong.

Crispin - 15 years old - October 2, 2011

The sun seems to find him wherever he lies in our house. Patsy gave him an oyster treat for his birthday but I'm guessing he's going to want some of my grilled chicken, too.

It's Hyde Week here at CrabAppleLane. Some memorable fantasy football games played between us over the years. By far, the most memorable.

Ran across the video below yesterday on FaceBook. Love everything about it.

Entries here from September 7 through September 16 and all of their comments are being restored slowly but surely. 14 entries total. Invest in ibuprofen.

I'm expecting a tough, physical game in Jacksonville today.

About today's QOTD: It's not just the quarterbacks who are complaining. The fans and head coaches also complain when their quarterbacks don't get the calls. Drew Brees got speared on the ground last week. No call. I don't give a rat's ass how all of these officiating crews call a game as long as they're consistent. They're anything but.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. We Owned the Night - Lady Antebellum - Own the Night
2. This Ol' Cowboy - The Marshall Tucker Band - Greatest Hits
3. Knight In Rusty Armour - Peter & Gordon - The British Invasion: The History Of British Rock, Vol. 8
4. Alabama High-Test - O.C.M.S. - Tennessee Pusher
5. Somewhere In America - Survivor - Greatest Hits

Quote of the Day

I mean Tom Brady begging, Michael Vick begging. I mean, you guys have it easier than quarterbacks at any time in the history of the NFL. You get paid more. Just be quiet and play hard.

Mike Mayock

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "WR
Start: Santonio Holmes, Percy Harvin, Lance Moore, Denarius Moore, Sidney Rice
Sit: Nate Washington, Anquan Boldin"

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3:55PM: Today's Saints-Texans game was a blast. I'm glad the Saints don't mind being behind because they surely find themselves there a lot. Enough of that, please.

Congrats to the Buffalo Bills on their big win over New England.

Thoughts on a five year anniversary.

Entries here from August 13 through September 16 and all of their comments are being restored slowly but surely. Invest in ibuprofen.

One thing about the QOTD:

One non-original image offered on this gorgeous CrabAppleLane Sunday.

Reflections - September 25, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Beethoven: Missa Solemnis In D, Op. 123 - Kyrie Anne Murray, Bryn Terfel, Etc.; - Georg Solti: London Symphony Orchestra, London Voices - Immortal Beloved
2. My Sweet Annette - Drive-By Truckers - Decoration Day
3. Sorrow - Pink Floyd - A Momentary Lapse Of Reason
4. Me & Bobby McGee - Janis Joplin - Janis Joplin's Greatest Hits
5. Why Aye Man - Mark Knopfler - The Ragpicker's Dream

Quote of the Day

Another decisive victory away from home pushed LSU to No. 1 in The Associated Press college football poll for the first time since 2007.

Associated Press

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "I’ll be blogging updates throughout the Texans’ Week 3 game against the New Orleans Saints at the Louisiana Superdome. Posts will appear in chronological order; scroll to the bottom for the most recent entries."

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It's 9/11. Please say a prayer, observe a moment of silence, ring a bell, or something else to honor the memory of those lost today 10 years ago. No Saints game today so the day, to me, is mostly about fantasy football and remembrance. More here if you like.

After I refilled the primary CrabAppleLane hummingbird feeder and hung it back out, I was buzzed by 12-15 hummingbirds. They are really swarming right now. They're about to head south. I held out my hand near the feeder and several came by and fanned me. Decided to see if I could capture that image. Thanks, hummingbirds. Today, I needed that kind of joy.

CrabAppleLane Hummingbirds - September 11, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. The Galician Waltz, Breton Dances - Maggie Sansone - Music In The Great Hall - Instrumental Music From The Ancient Celtic Lands
2. Sweet Lorraine - Uriah Heep - The Best Of Uriah Heep
3. O Can Ye Sew Cushions? - Joemy Wilson - Dulcimer Lullabies
4. Back In The Saddle - Aerosmith - Rocks
5. In The Light - Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti

Quote of the Day

Ten years ago, it was just another morning — a Tuesday, a day when ordinary people did the most ordinary of things: Scrambling to work, hurriedly kissing their families goodbye, running for the train. And then there was the dark gash and the ball of fire high up in one of the buildings, and a few minutes later, a second gash, a second ball of fire and a plume of smoke visible for miles.

James Barron, The New York Times

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "It is far above our poor power to say anything that can encompass the events of that day. But in bringing together bloggers from New York, we thought it fitting to provide a place for us to share our writing from that time. This page is linked to the subway stations now closed after the destruction of the World Trade Center."

I started noticing blogs on the internet after 9/11. -Rob

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This Labor Day weekend may go down as the dreariest of all time. It has not stopped raining here for more than a few minutes since Friday. The ground is thoroughly soaked. Please just do something, Lee. Move through or just go off and die. Just sitting out there is annoying.

About today's QOTD. I have a brother, David, but he does not work for the Press-Register. That David is no relation as far as I know. :)

4 days until football season ...

I offer two from the yard today. The hummingbird feeder is well-protected from interlopers. Last Sunday, he was guarding from the watchtower. This week, he's on the battlefield. The Big Leaf Magnolia is now a No Leaf Magnolia. Lee knocked off the one remaining leaf. Hope that's not the end of it but I think it may be.

CrabAppleLane Hummingbird - September 4, 2011

CrabAppleLane Big Leaf Magnolia - September 4, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Vas Dis - Wishbone Ash - Time Was- The Wishbone Ash Collection
2. Sail Along Silvery Moon - Billy Vaughn - 40 Instrumental Hits (The Big Hits of The 50's Era)
3. It's A Man's Woman's World (Pt. 1) - Irma Thomas - Sweet Soul Queen Of New Orleans: Irma Thomas Collection
4. Baby, Now That I've Found You - Alison Krauss & Union Station - Live
5. Twilight - The Band - The Best Of The Band

Quote of the Day

The National Weather Service predicted Lee could dump more than a foot of rain in some areas of the northern Gulf Coast.

David Ferrara, Alabama Press-Register

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "At 8:30 a.m. CDT, the center of Tropical Storm Lee was located just South/Southeast of the New Iberia airport in southcentral Louisiana."

Pretty much where it was yesterday at this time. -Rob

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New DirecTV receiver installed. Sometimes, it goes smoothly. Then, there was today. Sometimes, tech support gives you some insight. Then, there was today. Sometimes, I truly need their help. Then, there was today. I knew this was something simple. Their troubleshooting protocols couldn't find it. I found it but I'm not entirely sure what I did because I did so many things. Normally, that would concern me. Then, there was today. I'm declaring victory.

Glad my friends in Joisey and Philly are OK today. Irene did considerable damage. If you're in that area and you want to start cleaning up, be very careful. If you hurt yourself with a chainsaw, some other power tool, or just manage to cut yourself on something, you may not have a clear path to an emergency room because trees are down in the roadway. Even if you can reach an emergency room, it may be without power, understaffed, and overwhelmed. I recommend you get the immediate debris out of your way and leave the rest of the job for another day or two until things settle down and return to normal. This procrastination advice is no charge to CrabAppleLane readers. Be safe.

The CrabAppleLane Fantasy Football team for 2011. Also my thoughts on tonight's nationally-televised Saints-Raiders game.

I offer one today from the CrabAppleLane Hummingbird flock.

CrabAppleLane Hummingbird - Guarding his feeder from all comers - August 28, 2011

11 days until football season ...

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground - The White Stripes - White Blood Cells
2. Head Like A Hole - Nine Inch Nails - Pretty Hate Machine
3. Spawn - Silverchair & Vitro - Spawn
4. American Woman - The Guess Who - AM Gold 1970-1974
5. Killer - Alice Cooper - Killer

Quote of the Day

If you can hear a piano fall
You can hear me coming down the hall
If I can just hear your pretty voice
I don't think I need to see at all
I don't think I need to see at all

The White Stripes, Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Saw them at ID Fest on Jones Beach this last weekend, and this song was bonkers."

"Bonkers" is probably not a bad description but I don't mean it the way he does. -Rob

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From the Communication-Is-A-Wonderful-Thing Department: The Saints-Texans game was broadcast on the NFL Network last night. If you don't get the NFL Network, you missed some first half offense but that's about it. I get the NFL Network on DirecTV. The game was also broadcast on the local Fox affiliate in New Orleans. When someone in the New Orleans viewing area tuned to the NFL Network, though, they got a DirecTV message saying they were not subscribed to this channel, which is a whole different thing than "this broadcast is not available in your area". That "not subscribed" message undoubtedly prompted a ton of unnecessary "Hey, I DO subscribe" phone calls. Why didn't anyone at that multi-billion dollar corporation see that coming?

Got the yard done yesterday but it cost me a lawnmower. It was on its last legs anyway but I wasn't expecting it to throw a rod. Clear through the case. Will be spending less on the next one. My yard just has too many lawnmower booby traps. Big rocks and stumps hidden by tall grass and tree roots, lots of tree roots, are the main culprits. I've gone through three lawnmowers in the last 20 years or so. I really shouldn't complain. It's just that they weren't cheap lawn mowers. A Snapper and two John Deeres.

I offer three from the CrabAppleLane yard on this hot and sunny Sunday. 1) The Big Leaf Magnolia is still alive but is struggling with the Bush summer. I keep a black mesh over it. No more leaves have been burned but growth has also slowed. 2) The hummingbirds have started coming to this feeder because wasps are hovering around the one they prefer. I can't find the wasps' nests. 3) As I was watching the wasps hovering around the other feeder through my camera lens, a terrible racket occurred right in my ear. Startled me (Actually, it scared the hell out of me). A Twelve-spotted Skimmer dragonfly hit the ground with a thud. It was struggling for a moment and then it stopped. I thought a wasp had attacked it. As I approached it, it flew away with something on its back. I was shooting pictures by the CrabAppleLane backyard pond when I heard the same loud racket. It wasn't as close this time but they landed and I got a shot of it. What you see there is Eastern Pondhawks in the "wheel position", which only goes to show what I know. I thought it was dragonfly porn.

CrabAppleLane Big Leaf Magnolia - August 21, 2011

CrabAppleLane Hummingbird - August 21, 2011

CrabAppleLane Dragonflies - August 21, 2011

18 days until football season ...

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane "Recently Added" playlist:

1. Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) - Green Day - Nimrod
2. Steady As She Goes - The Raconteurs - Broken Boy Soldiers
3. Bring On the Wonder (feat. Sarah McLachlan) - Susan Enan - Bones (Original Television Soundtrack)
4. Music Box - Phillip Glass - Candyman
5. Broken Boy Soldier - The Raconteurs - Broken Boy Soldiers

Quote of the Day

Psychologists have often remarked that reality shows tend to attract people who thirst for fame or are otherwise damaged in some way.

Sharon Waxman and Tim Molloy, TheWrap.com

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Eventually a cartwheeling pair of darners pitched down onto a rotting stump. He was off smartish but she stayed to lay eggs and pose, the first Variable Darner I’ve managed to photograph."

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Seems we're headed into a new era of the sanctity of free speech versus the sanctity of public safety. Most of us acknowledge that free speech doesn't allow us to yell "FIRE" in a crowded theater. Are some of the events being planned via wireless devices and social media websites the equivalent of that? The answer surely depends partly on where you stand when the event occurs. If you're in on the planning, you might have a different view of the person who just happens to be near where your event is to take place. If you're the police on the scene and you have no idea what the purpose of the event is, you may have an entirely different view. And if you're writing from the relative safety of your desk, like I am, you may have another view. No purity to be found here, folks. It's a tough, tough call. A few years ago, a flash mob decided to hold hands at a specific time at a train station in Europe. It was a large group of people. If I miss my train because I had to go around that huge mob, I'd have been pretty upset about it. It's one thing to have your say in the public square, it's something else altogether when you take it over and deny it to others.

I offer two from the CrabAppleLane Backyard. The birds like the new feeder but they're very cautious during the day because of its exposure. They eat all of the seed Patsy puts on it, though. Cautious, at first, and then, all in.

CrabAppleLane Cardinal - August 14, 2011

CrabAppleLane Cardinal - August 14, 2011

25 days until football season ...

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Lights Out - UFO - Lights Out
2. Sons Of Scotland - A Shot At Glory Soundtrack - Mark Knopfler
3. Rockin' In The Free World - Neil Young - Freedom
4. Copland: Billy The Kid - Rodeo - Aaron Copland: London Symphony Orchestra - Copland: Greatest Hits
5. God Put A Smile Upon Your Face - Coldplay - A Rush Of Blood To The Head

Quote of the Day

The prosecutor also confirmed Norwegian media reports that police received several phone calls from Breivik himself during the terror attack, but wouldn't say how police had reacted to the calls.

Associated Press via MSNBC

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Despite a few generic moments, Lights Out is probably the best studio document of what elevated UFO above the '70s hard rock fray."

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Just a few items on this beautiful, but hot, CrabAppleLane Sunday.

Happy Belated 100th Birthday, Lucy.

My office soft drink machine is out of quarters and gives all nickels and dimes for change. Got a 1936 "Indian Head" nickel the other day. If there's a politically correct way to describe it, consider it described. These were still in circulation when I was a kid as were wooden nickels but both were somewhat rare. Even more rare today. Doubt it's worth much more than a nickel but I'm keeping it.

We've been looking at furniture lately. We're just browsing now but might pull the trigger if something we see is too good to pass up. One of the stores, where we saw stuff we like, has their own credit card and special financing deals on certain selections. I started to apply for it today and was cruising along until I hit the line below.

Annual Percentage Rate (APR) for Purchases and Balance Transfers 29.99%

Even though everything I was interested in was 0% interest for X number of months, I could never agree to any terms at 30% interest. By the way, that X number of months thing is a trap. If you make the last payment on the day it's due, you'll be over the X number of months and they charge you interest for all X number of months. Pretty severe if X is 24 or 48, like it was on some of the furniture we liked. It's still a good way to get things but you have to be aware of the trap and pay it off a month or two early.

I don't think anyone can ever improve on the original Rolling Stones studio recording of Gimme Shelter but this live version from Grand Funk Railroad's Caught in the Act Album is the best live version I've ever heard. Better than any Stones live version I've heard. Not a big fan of the Stones live. I have Caught in the Act on vinyl and CD. GFR was one of the great live bands of the 70s. Their two live albums are better than any of their studio albums. The QOTD is from The Railroad, one of my faves off of that album.

School starts tomorrow here. Shortest summer ever.

32 days until football season ...

I offer two from the CrabAppleLane yard. The Big Leaf Magnolia suffered its first really hot Bush summer day about a week ago. Burned the leaves a bit. I've since covered it with a black mesh. Seems to be keeping it alive. The backyard is green all over thanks to relentless rain followed by relentless sunshine.

CrabAppleLane Big Leaf Magnolia - August 7, 2011

CrabAppleLane Backyard - August 7, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. The Railroad - Grand Funk Railroad - Caught In The Act
2. Loco-Motion - Little Eva - The Ultimate Rock & Roll Collection: The 60's
3. Somebody To Roll - Nazareth - Play 'N' The Game
4. Reptile - Nine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral
5. How Many More Times - Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin I

Quote of the Day

Dirt and sweat
Running down my back
Work all day long
Up and down the railroad tracks
I'm a God fearing man
And with many I stand
And with God we've been working
All hand in hand

Grand Funk Railroad, The Railroad

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "I really haven’t formed my final opinion on the whole coal port topic. I’m somewhat of an environmentalist when it comes to burning coal but I also see that it can be burned in a friendly manner."

Spectacular photography. -Rob

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I offer three from around the CrabAppleLane yard on this hot and steamy CrabAppleLane Sunday. The CrabAppleLane Spring Vegetable Garden is done. It was actually done a few weeks ago but this week was my first opportunity to remove it. Haven't decided if there will be a CrabAppleLane Fall Vegetable Garden yet. The Big Leaf Magnolia got its first taste of the all day Bush summer sun yesterday. There are some burned spots on the leaves but I think those were caused by the hot bricks they were laying on when they wilted. Moved the bricks out a little further and put some grass clipping mulch around it for now. Wish I had thought about that a little more before it happened. There is not a single fig on either of those trees but they are spectacularly healthy. No idea when figs appear on new fig trees. Or old fig trees for that matter. :)

CrabAppleLane Spring Vegetable Garden - July 31, 2011

CrabAppleLane Big Leaf Magnolia - July 31, 2011

CrabAppleLane Fig Trees - July 31, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. The Ripper - Judas Priest - Sad Wings Of Destiny
2. Because The Night - 10,000 Maniacs - MTV Unplugged
3. Alegria - Cirque du Soleil - Alegria
4. Let's Live For Today - The Grass Roots - 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: Best Of The Grass Roots
5. Paper In Fire - John Mellencamp - The Lonesome Jubilee

Quote of the Day

There's a good life right across this green field
And each generation stares at it from afar

John Mellencamp, Paper In Fire

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "You know the old story about how someone invented a light bulb that would work forever and never need replacing? Good for people, yes indeed, not so good for light bulb companies – people would only need to fit out their house with light bulbs once, then no more sales. So the companies got together and put a stop to it. True? I don’t know, but there have been a lot of stories of a similar kind over the years, and they do reflect reality."

Since the weather wasn't cooperating with my intention of doing lawn work, we went to see the last Harry Potter yesterday ... in 3D. About the 3D: There are enough 3D lollies in the film to make it worth your while and a few extra bucks to see it that way. Someone who remembers the book better than I do could probably point out where the film strayed but I think they maintained the story well enough. I liked it but Harry Potter doesn't quite hold the same magic he had a few years ago. Of course, we had to see it because we read all of the books and had seen all of the movies but this cultural phenomenon was running out of steam. It had a great run, though.

I thought the first book was better than its film. Films 2, 4, 5, and 6 were better than their book. Film 3 and Book 3 were equal. Book 7 was better than these last two films.

For the third weekend in a row, yardwork has been rained out. We were dying for rain just a few weeks ago. If it would stop raining now for the rest of the day, I could probably do something in a couple of hours but I doubt I'll be able to finish. On that note, I offer a few from around the yard today. 1) The garden would have been pulled up today. I'd sink up to my knees in the garden soil if I tried now. 2) Those two crepe myrtles have never bloomed at the same time like this. Never mind the embarrassing clumps of tall Bahia grass you can see. Anyone have a horse they want to feed? 3) The stairway has been exposed to the rain and the relentless southern exposure for 16 years. It needs to be replaced. It's a project I'm going to try but I'll let someone else do it if I'm not happy with my results. I need the weather to cooperate, though. 4) The tallow tree roots have sent up a jillion sprouts, some of them a good 75 feet away. 5) After ten days, one green leaf turned brown but there is growth on the stem. It's still early but it's looking like this is going to be a painfully slow-growing tree.

CrabAppleLane Garden - July 24, 2011

CrabAppleLane Front Yard - July 24, 2011

CrabAppleLane Front Stairway - July 24, 2011

CrabAppleLane Front Yard - July 24, 2011

CrabAppleLane Big Leaf Magnolia - July 24, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Allman Brothers playlist:

1. Trouble No More - The Allman Brothers Band - The Allman Brothers Band
2. Les Brers In A Minor - The Allman Brothers Band - Eat A Peach
3. Ramblin' Man - The Allman Brothers Band - Brothers And Sisters
4. Little Martha - The Allman Brothers Band - Eat A Peach
5. In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed - The Allman Brothers Band - At Fillmore East

Quote of the Day

And his name is Voldemort, so you might as well use it, he's going to try to kill you either way.

Professor McGonagall, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "The Harry Potter books are done. Should J.K. Rowling write some new books that also involve the world of Harry Potter? Or, in the words of the Beatles, should she Let It Be?"

Let it be. It's over. -Rob

First things first. Game is about to start here.

Update: It's halftime now and it's a scoreless tie or should I say the score is nil-nil? The US team needs to hit one or two of those shots on goal. The second half just started and the US team missed another opportunity.

Update:

Update to the update: Japan just tied the game. Out until it's over.

Quite anxious to see where Marie's story goes from here. Love the way she writes.

Finished the team-by-team fantasy football review for 2011. Started on players today.

Some story about August Busch IV and the Anheuser-Busch Corporation. I always thought the Busch family was St Louis royalty but, apparently, there is much more to it. WOW.

I picked a watermelon today. It's a Sugar Baby variety and was a bit overripe. As soon as I cut into it, it started breaking up. It's in the refrigerator now ... jes chilling. :)

CrabAppleLane Watermelon - July 17, 2011

CrabAppleLane Watermelon - July 17, 2011

Patsy took the one below a couple of weeks ago at my request. This is a sign at St John's Coffee House in Covington.

St John's Coffee House - Covington, LA

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Led Zeppelin playlist:

1. Ten Years Gone - Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti
2. In The Evening - Led Zeppelin - In Through The Out Door
3. Hots On For Nowhere - Led Zeppelin - Presence
4. Immigrant Song - Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin III
5. Communication Breakdown - Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin I

Quote of the Day

Team Destiny, meet Team Destiny.

Ravi Ubha, ESPN.com

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Your Friday afternoon dose of cute has arrived..."

Picked my first homegrown watermelon ever yesterday. In fact, it was this very one. I had no idea what to expect once it was cut into but I suspected it was ready. It was very, very heavy for such a small watermelon. It was most definitely done. I would have liked it a little sweeter but it was very good and I'm pleased with it. I have three more on the vines.

Just ordered a tree online. It's a big leaf magnolia. They're difficult to find in the stores around here so I thought I'd give this a shot. I've been wanting to replace a Bradford Pear tree we lost to Katrina but I wanted to also put it in the exact same spot so I waited while the roots decayed. The site is ready to go now. I've had some success with mail order trees. I ordered some hybrid poplar trees about 25 years ago when we lived in Metairie. Every time I pass our old house, I marvel at how well they're still doing. I also marvel at how ugly they are now but that's another story. :) I tried a big leaf magnolia a few years ago that my sister gave me but it didn't survive. I think that's because I chose too shady a spot. I've since seen a few healthy ones around here in full sun. That's where this one will be going. I'm taking a bit of a chance that it will arrive here viable. There is no guarantee.

I offer one from the CrabAppleLane backyard and one from the CrabAppleLane vegetable garden. The grape tomatoes are still going to town. They're ripening faster than we can eat them. I built a bird feeder with some scrap wood I had in the garage. It doesn't look like much but I find the patrons around here prefer function to form. The pole was already there. The satellite dish used to be on it. The raccoon thinks greasing that mounting pole is dirty pool.

CrabAppleLane Grape Tomatoes - July 10, 2011

CrabAppleLane Homemade Bird Feeder - July 10, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Raised On Robbery - Joni Mitchell - Court And Spark
2. Why Aye Man - Mark Knopfler - Live From The Ryman
3. Never Before - Deep Purple - Machine Head (Roger Glover Remixes)
4. X-Girlfriend - Bush - Sixteen Stone
5. Bron-Y-Aur Stomp - Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin III

Quote of the Day

Quite simply, we lost our way

New of the World Final Editorial

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Our Magnolia macrophylla is in full flower, with its large citrus-scented flowers striking in the evening light."

I'd like to give kudos to Target for using Pictures of Matchstick Men in their ad. Great choice. It is one of my faves since I was a kid. I had it on 45 at one time. I'm sure some of the readers here don't even know what that means.

The hot summer is here. The hydrangeas have given way to the Texas Star Hibiscus and Crepe Myrtles. The red ones below are the Texas Star and the purple ones are Crepe Myrtles.

CrabAppleLane Sunday - July 3, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Lonely You - Badfinger - The Very Best Of Badfinger
2. Total Eclipse Of The Heart - Bonnie Tyler - Love Bites: More Romantic Power Ballads
3. Pictures Of Matchstick Men - Status Quo - STATUS QUO The Collection
4. The God That Failed - Metallica - Black Album
5. The Gypsy - Deep Purple - Stormbringer

Quote of the Day

Pictures of matchstick men and you
Mirages of matchstick men and you
All I ever see is them and you

Status Quo, Pictures of Matchstick Men and You

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Cherry jam and pound cake ... Makes for a good breakfast."

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The blogs here have been offline since early Friday morning. My host, Network Solutions, was the victim of a series of DDOS attacks a few days ago and they've been scrambling ever since to put out all the fires. Apparently, the hacker community is pissed off at them or one of their clients. As a result, my host is doing extra maintenance and who knows what else but it’s damned inconvenient to me and thousands of other users. These guys fancy themselves as rebels but they're really not. They're just vandals and what they're doing is not just harmless fun.

Today was time to give tomato sauce another go. Last week, I used a cast iron pot. This week, I used a ceramic-coated one. Patsy and I both think the cast iron pot imparted unwanted flavors into the sauce. I also adjusted the recipe. I cut down on the tomatoes because this week's batch of tomatoes were quite a bit bigger than the ones I used last week. I upped the celery, carrots, garlic, bell pepper, and basil. I also removed all of the sauce from the pot as soon as I was finished. This batch is definitely better. We'll find out how much better tomorrow night or Tuesday night.

26 red tomatoes
1/4 cup olive oil
1 Medium onion
4 stalks of celery
4 small carrots
12 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon salt
Some black pepper
10 leaves basil
1 bell pepper (I used another orange one from my garden)

CrabAppleLane Tomato Sauce - June 26, 2011

About the quote from today's BOTD: I always thought a botnet was something a cyber-criminal had to create. Apparently, you can rent one from other cyber-criminals. I wonder what they charge.

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star Playlist:

1. Warrior - Wishbone Ash - Argus
2. The Mighty Quinn (Quinn The Eskimo) - Manfred Mann - Rock 'n Roll Relix 1968_1969
3. The Way - Fastball - All the Pain Money Can Buy
4. Prairie Wedding - Mark Knopfler - Sailing To Philadelphia
5. Doctor Doctor - UFO - Phenomenon

A suicide bomber in a wheelchair blew himself up at the entrance to a police station north of the capital Baghdad on Sunday, killing three people and wounding 18, officials said.

Qassim Abdul-Zahra, Associated Press

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Last week, a DDoS extortionist got arrested for renting a botnet and attempting to blackmail German betting sites during the World Cup."

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Happy Father's Day

Dad

CrabAppleLane Tomato Sauce - June 19, 2011 - Father's Day

I used about 30 of my reddest tomatoes for today's sauce. Seemed appropriate to cook this today. My sauce uses fresh tomatoes but I doubt it will be as good as my Dad's or my wife's and they don't use fresh tomatoes. Dad was a great cook. So is Patsy. It's now about an hour since that photo was taken. The wonderful aroma is filling the kitchen and spilling out into the rest of the house. I may have gotten it right this time.

Whatever happened to those little three-pack boxes of garlic? All I could find was the two-pound sacks and individual jumbo garlics, which I'm not wild about.

Speaking of cooks, Mr B appears to be a pretty good one. I had a New York Strip last night at one of our favorite restaurants. It wasn't bad but as far as my favorite cuts of steak, it ranks about last. Give me a filet, porterhouse, T-bone, or rib-eye, please, before you give me that lethal injection.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Roll Tide (Includes Hymn 'Eternal Father Strong To Save') - Hans Zimmer - Crimson Tide
2. Father And Son - Mark Knopfler - Cal
3. Dance With My Father - Luther Vandross - Love, Luther
4. My Father's Eyes - Eric Clapton - Pilgrim
5. Father And Son - Cat Stevens - Tea For The Tillerman

Quote of the Day

I will take care of my niece and nephew. I will feed them and take them to day care. I will give them a stable home. I know them. And I love them like no one else can.

Adrian McLemore

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "It’s Father’s Day!"

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We're enjoying a free "Premium Movie Channel" weekend on DirecTV. Good thing I don't pay for these channels normally because my trees really block their transponders. Everything I've watched so far has a few moments of digitizing or fails because of a lost signal. If you have DirecTV or the Dish Network, you know what I'm talking about. I recorded Takers Friday because I wanted to see it when it originally came out. Unfortunately, it had a really short theater run and I just never got around to it. Takers is another in an increasingly long line of Tarentino-influenced caper movies. The strength of these kinds of movies are the cast and the dialogue. The plots are fairly predictable. Check reason and sense at the door and take the ride. Takers gives you a nice one.

I offer a few from around the yard on this beautiful CrabAppleLane Sunday. I had just finished the yard and gone inside when the rain came. I love it when that happens and it seems to happen a lot for me. We're having salads for lunch today. Patsy makes great salads. My bell peppers are turning orange. I have seen that kind at the market but have never bought them. I guess we'll see if they're any good. I've got a few watermelons in the garden and one of them has bite/scratch marks. Thinking the same enterprising raccoon that destroyed my corn crop is responsible. I removed a whole lot of Chinese privet in the back yard. Will remove quite a bit more next weekend. I'm thinking fruit trees in the cleared area but I don't want anything I'll have to protect from the cold.

About today's QOTD: I buy that. It explains a lot in my life. Please, let it be that.

CrabAppleLane Lunch - June 11, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star Playlist:

1. Deceiver - Judas Priest - Sad Wings Of Destiny
2. Welcome to the Machine - Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here
3. One Way Out - The Allman Brothers Band - Eat A Peach
4. White Wedding - Billy Idol - Billy Idol
5. All Mixed Up - The Cars - The Cars

Quote of the Day

A recent Australian study showed a link between heavy coffee consumption, stress -- and auditory hallucinations.

Melissa Dahl, MSNBC

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "This weekend is the Ithaca Festival, which marks the beginning of summer in our lively college town. The students are gone, causing the locals to rejoice at the amount of on street parking and reclaim the best swimming holes!"

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Delight all around as I watching the Cubs and Cards play yesterday. Good to see two former LSU Tiger National Champions again in the Cards' Ryan Theriot and the Cubs' DJ Lemahieu. Ryan scored the winning run in the bottom of the 9th against Stanford in the 2000 College World Series and DJ hit a two out, two run double in the bottom of the ninth to send Game One into extra innings against Texas in the 2009 College World Series. The Tigers won that game in the 12th and won the CWS. DJ was in the middle of just about everything in that series. Besides the LSU stuff, it was a great game won by the Cards with a walk-off homer by Albert Pujols in the 12th inning.

From yesterday's inbox:

This year we're going to experience four unusual dates. 1/1/11, 1/11/11, 11/1/11, 11/11/11 and that's not all. Take the last two digits of the year in which you were born - now add the age you will be this year. The results will be 111 for everyone in the whole world. (Snopes explains it as basic math, which I assumed to be the case - but it's still neat.)

About today's QOTD: I've been listening to The White Stripes a lot lately. I knew of Jack White mainly through the trailers for It Might Get Loud. I never bothered to check at the time why he was chosen as the third generation guitarist. I downloaded a few of their songs last weekend. I know now why he was chosen. He is an enormous talent. The White Stripes are no more and that kinda sucks for someone who is way behind the music scene and just discovered them. I love that old New York Times review. If you ask me, "rude and unhinged" is high praise for any rock band.

I offer a few for a lazy, hot CrabAppleLane Sunday afternoon. It should be noted that Patsy will adulterate her share of the lunch fixins with bologna or liver cheese, oatnut bread, and mustard while I will glorify my share with rotisserie turkey, swiss cheese, and toasted french bread. Two more below the jump.

CrabAppleLane Early Tomatoes - June 5, 2011

CrabAppleLane Lunch Fixins' - June 5, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Offend In Every Way - The White Stripes - White Blood Cells
2. Treat Her Right - George Thorogood & The Destroyers - The Baddest Of George Thorogood & The Destroyers
3. I Ain't Superstitious - Jeff Beck - Rock: The Train Kept A Rollin'
4. Limelight - Rush - Moving Pictures
5. The Fuse - Bruce Springsteen - The Rising

Quote of the Day

They still sound as rude and as unhinged as ever, especially compared with the emo and alternative bands with whom they share the modern-rock radio airwaves.

Kelefa Sanneh, New York Times

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Based on personal experience (many instances of eating watermelon and drinking beer), I can attest that I’ve never experienced any ill effects from combining these two delicious barbeque staples."

I'd surely be dead if that was true. -Rob

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Hope everyone is enjoying their Memorial Day weekend. It's gorgeous here. Leftover pizza is a perfect lunch. Green onion sausage, black olives, feta cheese, and Canadian bacon from Isabella's Pizzeria. Enjoy the rest of the day and the weekend.

Just offering a few from around the yard today. Started picking grape tomatoes in good numbers yesterday. Still no Creoles ready yet, though. Beginning to believe the pepper plants I bought were in the wrong containers or were mislabeled. One was supposed to be a green bell pepper and the other was supposed to be an Italian pepper. These both look the same and they don't look like they're going to change color. I have no idea what I have.

CrabAppleLane Peppers - May 29, 2011

About today's QOTD. It cost me $70 and change to fill my gas tank the other day at $3.64 per gallon. It's sickening.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Seven Nation Army - The White Stripes - Elephant
2. Ballad of Dwight Fry - Alice Cooper - Love It to Death
3. No Easy Road - Wishbone Ash - Wishbone Four
4. Wedding Bells - Lissie - Why You Runnin'
5. No One's Gonna Love You - Band of Horses - Cease to Begin

Quote of the Day

There's less money this summer for hotel rooms, surfboards and bathing suits. It's all going into the gas tank.

USA Today

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "How Will I Tell Him?"

Fabulous painting. -Rob

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We are experiencing a pretty substantial drought here at CrabAppleLane. I broke down yesterday and watered the vegetable garden. We're not expecting any rain here until Wednesday or Thursday and even that's only a slight chance. While I was tying tomato bushes yesterday afternoon, it was obvious from the wilted leaves at the tops of the bushes that they were very, very thirsty. Watered at the roots at about 4 in the afternoon but then sprinkled the whole garden for an hour at about 8PM. They've had about 12 hours of soaking up moisture with no sun bearing down on them and they look fantastic this morning. I'm pretty sure we'll be eating bacon-tomato-avocado sandwiches next weekend or very soon afterward. Got quite a few green tomatoes, some of them are getting pretty big. I've been less inattentive this year than years past. It had better pay off. Pictures below the jump.

I offer one from the CrabAppleLane front yard below. The Vitex is next to an oak tree stump and this is its 3rd summer here. The oak tree was lost during Hurricane Katrina. We planted two just over two years ago. Patsy had been seeing them all over town and wanted some. The other one we planted didn't do so well. It really didn't have a chance. I've tried several things in that same location with zero success. The ground is just too hard. I've since transplanted it to another spot in front of the vegetable garden. It looks like it likes that spot much better but it is way behind its yardmate. The green you see is Bahia grass and other assorted weeds. The brown you see is my pitiful centipede grass.

CrabAppleLane Vitex - May 22, 2011

Great caption.

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star Playlist:

1. Centerfield - John Fogerty - Centerfield (Remastered)
2. Rock 'N Roll Widow - Wishbone Ash - Wishbone Four
3. White Wedding - Billy Idol - Billy Idol
4. Temptation Eyes - The Grass Roots - 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: Best Of The Grass Roots
5. The Way - Fastball - All the Pain Money Can Buy

Quote of the Day

The end of the world is nigh — ever notice how the only time anyone ever uses the word "nigh" is in stories about the world ending?

I guess that's because "World Goes Belly Up," "World Outta There," "World Bites the Big One," "World Doesn't Make Playoffs," "World a Goner," "World Takes a Hike," "World Goes Bye Bye," "World: 1 Creek, No Paddle," "World Takes Gas," "Turn Out the Lights, the World is Over," "World Toast" and "World Screwed" sound too informal.

John Kelso, Austin Statesman

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Over at the American Express OPEN Forum, I posted instructions for how to enchant people with Facebook. Please check it out if you want to use Facebook for marketing purposes. If you want to be enchanting in general, check out my new book: Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions."

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Too pretty a day to let go to waste. Grilling is in order and, then, after lunch, a bike ride. Less blogging from me is probably a good thing for all. You may be eating in a better restaurant today but you aint eatin' better. Patsy and I like pork chops thin and a little on the crispy side. Our cat prefers them a little on the medium rare side. He'll eat crispy, though, and he'll steal it right off of your plate if you take your eyes off of him for a half-second. Before you say soil, sunshine, or genetics are the cause of that hydrangea's unusual purple color, you should know that there are only two blooms on that bush that are purple. The rest are blue. More images below the jump if you're interested. Enjoy the rest of your weekend. I have some pork chops calling out to me.

CrabAppleLane Sunday Lunch - May 15, 2011

CrabAppleLane Sunday Lunch - May 15, 2011

CrabAppleLane Hydrangea - May 15, 2011

Today's QOTD is a from a haunting song I heard the other night on Bones. Fever Ray is new to me. Memory comes when memory's old here, too.

Blog geek stuff below the jump ...

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Keep The Streets Empty For Me - Fever Ray - Fever Ray
2. I Will Think of You - Laura Browne Sorenson - Marilyn Drive
3. The Times They Are A-Changin' - Bob Dylan - The Times They Are A-Changin'
4. Tear My Stillhouse Down - Gillian Welch - Revival
5. How You Remind Me - Nickelback - Silver Side Up

Quote of the Day

Memory comes when memory's old
I am never the first to know
Following this stream up north
Where do people like us float

Fever Ray, Keep The Streets Empty For Me

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Karin Dreijer Andersson and her live band members have written a new track for upcoming film, Red Riding Hood, the new offering from Twilight director Catherine Hardwicke."

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Happy Mother's Day - May 8, 2011

I offer one more from the backyard and some time lapse below the jump. Enjoy the day all you mothers. :)

CrabAppleLane Hydrangeas - May 8, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Mother's Little Helper - The Rolling Stones - Hot Rocks, 1964-1971
2. Mother And Child Reunion - Paul Simon - Negotiations And Love Songs 1971-1986
3. Mother - Pink Floyd - The Wall
4. Mother Dear - Styx - Equinox
5. Mother's Daughter - Santana - Abraxas

Quote of the Day

Morally and operationally, this was counterterrorism at its finest.

We have nothing to apologize for.

Maureen Dowd, New York Times

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Well as we noted in another post, we don’t typically mention books, movies, etc. This is the book that made us temporarily suspend that rule."

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File this under so you want to be a homeowner. I decided to cut down a tree in my front yard that's been bothering me for a while. All homeowners face the same dilemmas so there is no startling revelations here. The main dilemma is do I do it, myself, or do I pay someone else to do it?

The problem with this tree is that the roots were extensive and above ground causing problems. The tree leaned in the direction I wanted it to fall. All I had to do was accommodate it. Halfway through the cut, the chainsaw quit running. While frantically trying to get it started and running again, a north wind came up and pushed the tree back into my garage. No real damage done but, naturally, it was a concern. After borrowing a neighbor's chainsaw and getting the tree off of the garage, I had to bend some flashing on the garage roof back into place and that was a time-consuming and tiresome chore. Would have been easier to replace it, assuming I could find the exact same kind, but it would have taken a long time for the patina on the new flashing to match the rest of the roof. To say I was thoroughly disgusted with myself, the chainsaw, and the homeowner gods is an understatement. I'm still sore this morning from yanking on the chainsaw rope, getting up and down on the two ladders I was using, and from just picking up and moving the mountain of debris aside. Not done with the cleanup yet and I suppose I should be thankful that it wasn't worse. It would have cost $300-$500 to have that tree removed professionally so I guess I'd better fix that chainsaw. I'll have this experience in my bag the next time this comes up so I guess there's that.

Hard for Saints fans to not to be excited by their 2011 draft. They seem to have gotten very good players at positions they needed to improve. They'll be younger this season if there is one and I think they'll be better. More here if you're interested.

I offer one image from the CrabAppleLane Garden from this afternoon, three from yesterday's fiasco, and some time lapse below the jump:

CrabAppleLane Blue Ginger - May 1, 2011

CrabAppleLane Garage - Before - April 30, 2011

CrabAppleLane fiasco - April 30, 2011

CrabAppleLane Garage - After - April 30, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Don't Crash The Ambulance - Mark Knopfler - Shangri-La
2. Sisters Of The Moon - Fleetwood Mac - Tusk
3. Hey You - Pink Floyd - The Wall
4. Wind Beneath My Wings - Bette Midler - Beaches
5. Sara Lee - Foghat - Foghat

Quote of the Day

Whether that mattress was stuffed with corn-cobs or broken crockery, there is no telling, but I rolled about a good deal, and could not sleep for a long time.

Ishmael, Moby Dick

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "There’s discussion on the influence of Jules Verne and H.G. Wells and how the ‘Steampunk’ term was coined K.W. Jeter."

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Happy Easter

What does the Easter Bunny get for making a basket?
Two points just like everyone else.

I had Legos when I was a kid. I made some cool stuff, mainly buildings but I did mechanized stuff, too. Watch the video below. I am in awe of the amount of tweaking that had to take, particularly the one point along the way where the basketballs and soccer balls are separated. I wonder how many times he wanted to take a baseball bat to it.

About today's QOTD: I'm guessing the "magical" part of that lame-brained idea is going to wear off about 3 hours in. Getting your kicks on Route 66 is not really something you should do on a whim.

So I wanted some impatiens. They like shade and I have lots of shady areas. I wanted a couple of six packs of the small ones and I wanted a variety of colors. They're cheaper that way and I wanted quite a few. The place only had cases. Instead of shopping somewhere else (The smart play), I ended up with a 24-pack, all the same color, and not enough places to put them so I invented a few places. I offer a few from around the yard on this gorgeous, but a bit hot, CrabAppleLane Easter Sunday.

CrabAppleLane Cinder Block Garden - April 24, 2011 - Easter Sunday

CrabAppleLane Vegetable Garden - April 24, 2011 - Easter Sunday

CrabAppleLane Iris - April 24, 2011 - Easter Sunday

CrabAppleLane Pond - April 24, 2011 - Easter Sunday

CrabAppleLane Garden - April 24, 2011 - Easter Sunday

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Night Flight - Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti
2. Living With Me - Coyote Shivers - Shivers, Coyote
3. Ready, Steady, Go - The Meices - Empire Records
4. The Way It Always Starts - Gerry Rafferty, Mark Knopfler, Alan Clark, Neil Jordon & Steve Jordon - Local Hero
5. I Can't Hold Back - Survivor - Greatest Hits

Quote of the Day

Belitsky said they wanted to do something "magical." When they decided on a cab ride to California, they found Alam at LaGuardia Airport and brokered the deal.

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "After you’ve gone to church, consumed the Easter ham and the children have filled their baskets with decorated eggs and mounds of chocolate, treat yourself to an alternative Easter tradition."

Not really my cup o' tea but ... -Rob

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Just some stuff on a beautiful CrabAppleLane Sunday.

Your 2010 Federal Taxpayer Receipt - Pretty cool.

As a kid, I didn't care much for Neapolitan ice cream, which we had at almost every birthday party, mainly because of the strawberry. Now, I do care for it, mainly because of the strawberry. Embrace the change, I suppose.

A 9yr-old balloonist prepping for his first solo flight. Is this a record that needs to be broken?

Nothing special about someone drunk and disorderly in New Orleans. You have to be pretty spectacularly special to get arrested for it ... or just another Hollywood twit.

I offer three from the CrabAppleLane backyard and one from last night's dinner outing. I suspect we'll be having some little Red-Bellied Woodpeckers chirping in a few weeks.

CrabAppleLane Red-Bellied Woodpecker - April 17, 2011

CrabAppleLane Red-Bellied Woodpecker - April 17, 2011

CrabAppleLane wren and chickadee - April 17, 2011 - Splish splash

Columbia Street Tap Room - April 16, 2011 - The Taps

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Fall Like Rain - Eric Clapton - Pilgrim
2. I Done Got Over It - Irma Thomas - Sweet Soul Queen Of New Orleans: Irma Thomas Collection
3. Sunset Road - Béla Fleck & The Flecktones - Greatest Hits Of The 20th Century
4. I Heard It Through The Grapevine - Marvin Gaye - Am Gold 1968
5. Iron Man - Black Sabbath - Paranoid

Quote of the Day

Cookie is a "Little Penguin" and the mascot of the Zoo Bird House.

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Tour the crumbling brick ruins of a sugar mill built in 1829 by Bernard de Marigny de Mandeville then tour the visitor center and museum located directly behind."

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We have a pair of cardinals nesting in our hydrangeas. I have mixed feelings about it. When we lived in Metairie, a pair of cardinals nested in one of our apple trees. They were as sweet as could be. Mama Cardinal would sit on the eggs and Papa Cardinal would serenade her from the top of the nearest tree. Unfortunately, they also caught the attention of something else, probably a rodent. Both of their eggs were eaten. At CrabAppleLane, we have any number of mammals and reptiles that like to eat eggs ... and birds. Our hydrangeas are every bit as vulnerable as that apple tree was and Mama Cardinal likes to chirp, chirp, chirp while she's working to build that almost finished nest. Captured an image of the proud Papa but Mama was a little too skittish to pose for a picture and way too noisy to suit me. I think I'm just going to let them take their chances, though. Cardinals tend to build nests 3 to 8 feet off of the ground. They're vulnerable pretty much wherever they nest.

So far, so good on the vegetable garden. The CrabAppleLane bunny population has, so far, ignored the corn, even the unprotected stalks. Not sure if we'll have figs this year but both of our trees are doing well after a full year.

I offer five from the CrabAppleLane yard.

CrabAppleLane Cardinal - The Proud Papa - April 10, 2011

CrabAppleLAne Hydrangea with Cardinal Nest - April 10, 2011

CrabAppleLane Vegetable Garden - April 10, 2011

CrabAppleLane Bottle Brushes - April 10, 2011

CrabAppleLane Fig Tree - April 10, 2011

The entry from today's BOTD defends Amazon.com's practice of sometimes pricing their Kindle books higher than the print version. I'm not sure Amazon is entirely responsible (The publisher bears some responsibility) and I'm also not sure it's intentional. I think it could be an anomaly of the website. It is not unusual to find several different prices at Amazon for the same product depending on how you arrived on it. If you arrived at a product via a site that Amazon pays a higher commission, it's conceivable that it's priced accordingly. That said, I will not purchase a Kindle book that is not substantially cheaper than its print version.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Inside Of Me - Eric Clapton - Pilgrim
2. Final Meeting (North and South) - Bill Conti - The Right Stuff / North and South
3. Lookin' Up Lookin' Down - Shawn Phillips - Second Contribution
4. Motor City Madhouse - Ted Nugent - Ted Nugent
5. Seasons Of Wither - Aerosmith - Get Your Wings

Quote of the Day

Call me Ishmael. Some years ago never mind how long precisely having little or no money in my purse, and nothing particular to interest me on shore, I thought I would sail about a little and see the watery part of the world. It is a way I have of driving off the spleen and regulating the circulation.

Herman Melville, Moby Dick

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "From a utility point of view, charging more for the Kindle version seems quite reasonable considering that Kindle books are delivered instantly and for free, that they take up no additional space or weight, that they can be read on any computer, and that they come with handy bookmarks and highlights of what other readers find interesting."

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Short one today because I have plans.

The LSU Tigers and Ole Miss Rebels split the first two games of the weekend series. LSU winning a tight one, 7-6, Friday night and Ole Miss winning a laugher, 16-3, last night. Game 3 today. GEAUX Tigers.

About today's QOTD: First, read it. Then, go to the link and see what the quote is about.

I offer three from the yard today. Love when the Irises bloom. We have two shades of purple that bloom first. The dark reds we have will bloom later. No idea why.

CrabAppleLane Pond - April 3, 2011

CrabAppleLane Iris - April 3, 2011

CrabAppleLane Vegetable Garden - April 3, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. A Song of Simplicity - Elijah Bossenbroek - Harmony in Disarray
2. Scarborough Fair/Canticle - Simon & Garfunkel - Simon & Garfunkel's Greatest Hits
3. The Fool And Me - Robin Trower - Bridge Of Sighs
4. Bron-Yr-Aur - Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti
5. Beggars Day - Nazareth - Hair Of The Dog

Quote of the Day

Geoff Rezek, 69, flew in from New York to see what he believed was going to be "history in the making."

msnbc.com staff and news service reports

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "If you're a website or blog owner, you'll need to increase traffic volume to your webpages."

This website and blog owner has never been interested in increasing traffic artificially. The only traffic I want is that which finds its way here on its own. -Rob

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To Angela, Christina, & David

Something here on the blog stopped working yesterday for no apparent reason. After spending an hour tinkering around the edges, it started working again ... also for no apparent reason. I dare not say out loud what it was. It might hear me.

Major League Baseball opens Thursday afternoon. Says here the National League is a two team tussle between the Phillies and Giants because of their great pitching and their experience. The junior league is wide open in my view. The Yankees, Rays, Rangers, Twins, Tigers, Red Sox, White Sox, A's, and Angels are all playoff contenders.

I offer three images from yesterday and one taken last Saturday night. I have a date with some crawfish this morning. Rain rain go away.

Moon peeking through the CrabAppleLane dormer window - March 2011

CrabAppleLane Tung Nut Blossoms - March 26, 2011

From the bike ride - March 26, 2011

Vista from the bike ride - March 26, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. It's Not My Cross To Bear - The Allman Brothers Band - The Allman Brothers Band
2. Lazy - Deep Purple - Made In Japan
3. Help Me I Am In Hell - Nine Inch Nails - Broken
4. Change - Tears For Fears - Tears Roll Down
5. Baby Mine - Bette Midler - Beaches

Quote of the Day

I stand before you to proclaim tonight: America is the land where dreams can come true for all of us.

Geraldine Ferraro

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Honey - This is what I want for my birthday this year"

Great pic. Not sure what the meaning of the quote is, though. -Rob

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Yesterday was tomato planting day here at CrabAppleLane. Started at about 1PM with nothing and had it done by about 6:30PM. There's a two hour break in there for a shower, lunch, and a feed store run. Got down 20 tomato plants and two sweet pepper plants. Sister-in-law got us two grape tomato plants and I'll pick those up later today. This garden plot is a little bigger than I usually do. I have room for more. I'll hit the garden center some time during the week.

One last thing from our road trip Friday. Have you ever bought anything truly frivolous? I present le petit bâton rouge. They sell them in the Tabasco country store for $3.50. Not sure where it will be a year from now but we do have one and I love it. :)

I offer the progression of my garden project yesterday in five images below.

What's left of the CrabAppleLane 2010 Winter Garden - March 19, 2011

Finally ready to go - March 19, 2011

First deep pass - March 19, 2011

After some soil amendments and a second deep pass - March 19, 2011

Done just before sundown - March 19, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Belfast To Boston - James Taylor - October Road
2. Daytona - Chris Rea - The Road To Hell
3. Downed - Cheap Trick - Cheap Trick/In Color/Heaven Tonight
4. United We Stand - The Mike Curb Congregation - Greatest Hits
5. California Dreaming - Mamas and Papas - Andrea's Gift Mix

Quote of the Day

The comparatively affluent can withstand the adverse moral effect of being subsidized and supported by government, not so the poor.

John Kenneth Galbraith

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "I was frazzled after my experience of passing through Istanbul Airport. My friend Elaine who turned up not long after I checked into my hotel was frazzled too from the harassment she had experienced in the Central Market."

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We watched Morning Glory last night. I was in the mood for a light comedy. This one fits that bill to a T. Morning Glory is formula film. Person gets fired from a job, gets a job that's even worse, endures all of the things that make it worse, and transforms it through boundless energy and will power. We see everything that's coming from a mile away. Morning Glory works because of Rachel McAdams. She is in almost every scene and she simply carries it. Harrison Ford and Diane Keaton are on hand to lend box office but this one belongs to Rachel and it's a star maker. Well worth your time.

With the events that are going on in Japan and Libya, with no end in sight to a difficult economy, and with spring and tomato season upon me, I find it impossible to take the current NFL labor strife seriously. As someone once said, "I've got more important things to do than spend my time growing old with you". Get it done, don't get it done. If you're here in September, fine. If you're not, I'll do something else.

Congrats to the LSU Tigers on their sweep of the Cal State Fullerton Titans this weekend.

Two CrabAppleLane spring indicators below:

CrabAppleLane Red Tops - March 13, 2011

CrabAppleLane Gum Tree - March 13, 2011

About today's QOTD: There are lessons here for all of us. The Japanese are managing or trying to manage an epic emergency without blaming citizens, government agencies, or leadership. The first person who snipes publicly should go straight to jail. DO NOT PASS GO. Hopefully, FEMA is helping or, at least, watching and learning.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. The Needle And The Damage Done - Neil Young - Harvest
2. Polk Salad Annie - Tony Jo White - iTunes Download
3. From This Moment On - Shania Twain - Come On Over
4. Sussudio - Phil Collins - Hits
5. Miracles - Jefferson Starship - At Their Best

Quote of the Day

Japan races to prevent nuclear reactor meltdowns

NBC, msnbc.com and news services

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "California Olive Ranch sent me this bottle. Hey ranch guys? Thanks. It’s fantastic. Bottom line? I will be buying this product in the future. Took my midday arugula and tuna salad up a whole notch. I save your oil for dipping bread, making sandwiches and on salads—not for cooking. The flavor is worthy of straight consumption."

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New Orleans' two biggest Mardi Gras parades, Endymion and Bacchus, will ride back-to-back tonight. Endymion was rained out last night. Fantastic, but it figures to be a late night for parade goers and an even later night for parade participants. Tempted to go but I have to work tomorrow and late Sunday nights away from home conflict with the weekend wind down Patsy and I cherish at CrabAppleLane.

Caught part of a Tigers/Braves spring training game Thursday while I was at lunch. The sound was down and I couldn't read the graphics onscreen from my seat without my glasses. After a few minutes of searching just now, I discovered it was Brennan Boesch, who launched a tape measure homer. Even without sound, you could tell by his swing that the park wasn't going to contain it. They replayed it about 5 times. Awesome. I'm ready. Play Ball.

I'm back to putting two hummingbird feeders out again. The CrabAppleLane Ruby-Throat Hummingbird flock is due back any day now. Our Rufous Hummingbird is still here but I'd be surprised if he didn't yield to the shear size of the incoming flock.

Happy Birthday, Tree Hugging Sister

I offer a few from around the yard today. Nothing new about any of them except that they're today's versions of them. Enjoy.

CrabAppleLane Front Yard - March 6, 2011

CrabAppleLane Robin - Just Passin’ Thru - March 6, 2011

CrabAppleLane Yard & Driveway - March 6, 2011

CrabAppleLane Trail - March 6, 2011

It’s that time again. I’m asking for guest blogger volunteers for this week starting now and running through Friday, March 11. If you’ve never blogged before, here’s your chance to see what it is all about. If you use different blogging software, here’s your chance to see what Movable Type does. If you already blog, here’s a chance to do something different and shamelessly plug your own blog to maybe some different readers. If you’re interested, email me for details. It's definitely not too late. If you don’t already have my email address, leave a comment here and I’ll respond with the details and login information. I’m not going anywhere. I’m just taking a break from daily blogging. I’ll be around to lend technical support for anyone who wants or needs it. Enjoy.

About today's QOTD: Not really sure what the "web ecosystem" is. To me, an ecosystem is only a portion of something. What would a web ecosystem be a portion of? Also, aren't we tired of telling people what browsers to use?

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Wild One - Faith Hill - Take Me As I Am
2. Someday - Henry Gross - One More Tomorrow The Best Of Henry Gross
3. There Is A Reason - Alison Krauss & Union Station - Live
4. Ally Bally - Joemy Wilson - Dulcimer Lullabies
5. The Bug - Dire Straits - On Every Street

Quote of the Day

Frankly, we're happy to see Microsoft take the time to push for the death of IE 6. It's a long time coming and the faster we can move on to more modern browsers, the better the web ecosystem as a whole will be.

Christina Warren, Mashable

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "I’m trying that weight loss thing again. Today has been a success. Not sure if I should write about it or not - will this time be different from all the other times?"

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Priscilla came to us when she was 8. She took her final ride to the vet yesterday just 7 weeks short of her 22nd birthday. She lounged in the CrabAppleLane sun by the pond for about an hour before we got in the truck. Good pet owners always struggle with "Are we too soon or too late?" and it probably won't mean much to any good pet owner but I think we all do it at the exact right time. Priscilla had been frail for a few weeks but she was still eating, still moving around, still grooving on pets and scratches, and still had a bit of a twinkle in her eye. She stopped eating and became dehydrated. Patsy took her to the vet Thursday and he gave her an IV drip to administer twice a day to rehydrate her but she still wasn't eating and had some other issues related to her arthritis that led us to the conclusion that she was unhappy and just did not want to go on. She had a good, long run and we'll miss her terribly. She was a sweetheart.

Mardi Gras got into gear in the Greater New Orleans area Friday night. We ran into unexpected parade traffic in Abita Sprigs yesterday coming home from the vet's office. We diverted ourselves to Slidell (25 miles away) for lunch. The inconvenience was acceptable because a good ride and diversion helped us, I think, in the state we were in.

It’s that time again. I’m asking for guest blogger volunteers for the week of March 7-11. If you’ve never blogged before, here’s your chance to see what it is all about. If you use different blogging software, here’s your chance to see what Movable Type does. If you already blog, here’s a chance to do something different and shamelessly plug your own blog to maybe some different readers. If you’re interested, email me for details. If you don’t already have my email address, leave a comment here and I’ll respond with the details. I’m not going anywhere. I’m just taking a break from daily blogging. I’ll be around to lend technical support for anyone who wants it.

I think today's QOTD is right. I was originally hoping they'd go for a big, durable running back in the first round but I think finding one of those is more a matter of luck than research.

I offer two from the CrabAppleLane yard this morning. Spring is almost here. Plan to do first yardwork this afternoon, weather permitting. I had hoped to do some work on The Clearing Project every winter but this winter was colder than most. Poor excuse but it's the one I have at the moment.

CrabAppleLane Redbud - February 27, 2011

CrabAppleLane Clearing Project - February 27, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Fade To Black - Dire Straits - On Every Street
2. Wearing The Inside Out - Pink Floyd - The Division Bell
3. From Now On - Supertramp - The Autobiography Of Supertramp
4. Old Love - Eric Clapton - Unplugged
5. Driving The Last Spike - Genesis - We Can't Dance

Quote of the Day

One doesn't have to be Ron Wolf to know the Saints desperately need to add fresh legs and burst to their defensive front seven.

Jeff Duncan, The Times-Picayune

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Weekend Update Bloopers: Bloopers 09-10"

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I offer one today from the CrabAppleLane backyard, which was pruned yesterday within an inch of its life. I have the blisters and sore hands to prove it. Althea, dwarf crepe myrtles, lilac, blue ginger, Bradford pear, nothing was spared. Pushing away from the computer now and I'm off to do other things.

CrabAppleLane squirrel-proof feeder - February 20, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. You're So Vain - Carly Simon - The Rolling Stone Women In Rock Collection
2. The Trees - Rush - Chronicles
3. Ain't Misbehavin' - Louis Armstrong - Back Through The Years
4. Reptile - Nine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral
5. Maggie May - Rod Stewart - Unplugged... And Seated

Quote of the Day

As Louise Reichenbach lay trapped and dying in a crashed car yesterday, she asked friends to tell her younger sister Tammy she was sorry for a fight they had had the previous day and that she "loved her very much".

Elizabeth Binning, New Zealand Herald

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "The Selby x Dockers"

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Dear New Orleans Food & Spirits,

Thanks,
Rob

Speaking of pork chops, it mystifies me why more non-Chinese restaurants don't serve them. Good pork chops are not expensive, they're not hard to find, and they're not particularly difficult to prepare. For instance, New Orleans Food & Spirits has several dishes that include chicken of some sort, steak, catfish, shrimp, and oysters. Why not a few dishes that include pork? Are Chinese Restaurants the only ones that get it? See QOTD.

I offer three from CrabAppleLane on this glorious Sunday. The first is of the Rufous Hummingbird that has been wintering here. We named him Roofie but that was before I decided he was a male. He is quite unlike the Buff-Bellied Hummingbird that wintered here a couple of years ago and nothing at all like the Ruby-Throated CrabAppleLane flock. He is much quieter, shyer, and not nearly as hungry. He doesn't stay around the feeder for long. The second one is just something I took so I can compare later. I usually don't prune the crepe myrtles that extensively or severely. I'm curious to see how they react. The third is of last night's sunset.

Roofie - February 13, 2011

CrabAppleLane Crepe Mrytles - February 12, 2011

CrabAppleLane - February 12, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Top 25 Most Played List:

1. Praan - Garry Schyman & Palbasha Siddique - Where The Hell Is Matt? - 19 Plays
2. The Calm Before - Elijah Bossenbroek - Harmony in Disarray - 18 Plays
3. Firefly - Main Theme Song - Joss Whedon - Firefly - 14 Plays
4. Lookout Mountain - Drive-By Truckers - The Dirty South - 7 Plays
5. A Song of Simplicity - Elijah Bossenbroek - Harmony in Disarray - 11 Plays

Quote of the Day

Bacon tastes gooood. Pork chops taste gooood.

Vincent Vega, Pulp Fiction

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Ninety employees from Tennant Co., a provider of floor maintenance equipment, hit the streets, patios and floors of City Park on Wednesday to help sweep, clean and paint."

Excellent. There really is no substitute for manpower. -Rob

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I offer two images on this CrabAppleLane Super Sunday. One is from the other day, though.

A leaf falls in Covington - February 2, 2011

CrabAppleLane - February 6, 2011

One thing is certain about Super Bowl XLV. It will be at the top of the list of Super Bowls that had logistical nightmares. I think they even topped the one held in Pontiac at the SilverDome, where most of the ticket holders had to commute an hour to the stadium. Not to brag much but New Orleans is still, by far, the best city to host the Super Bowl. The SuperDome, the hotels, the great restaurants, the French Quarter, and the New Orleans night life are all within walking distance or a 10-minute cab ride from each other. It's a no-brainer. It should be held here every four or five years. A great time for all is guaranteed. One more thing.

Bet any house you have to lose. Lest you think I know nothing about predicting football outcomes (You'd be right), I offer the QOTD. It is an expert prediction on last year's Super Bowl.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. You Won't Change Me - Black Sabbath - Technical Ecstasy
2. Chest Fever - Three Dog Night - Captured Live At The Forum
3. Somebody - Bryan Adams - Reckless
4. My Wife - The Who - Who's Next
5. She's Gone - Eric Clapton - Pilgrim

Quote of the Day

It says here: Indy in a blowout.

Frank Deford, Sports Illustrated

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "What is the role of these platoons exactly ?? Is there any fear on the U.S embassy !!? I do not understand this provoking news for real."

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Wonder how nervous the tin pot dictators in the Middle East are at the moment. My guess is very. Remember when Hungary removed their border fence with Austria? Europe was transformed and all of their tin pot dictators were ousted, some quite violently. The events in Tunisia feel the same. The Middle East is changing before our very eyes. Next up? China, North Korea, Iran? China is trying to keep their citizens in the dark about the unrest in the Middle East ... with good reason.

I offer one from the CrabAppleLane Backyard on this dreary Sunday. Kinda like misty days, though.

CrabAppleLane Backyard - January 30, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Calling Elvis - Dire Straits - In Every Street
2. The Way It Always Starts - Gerry Rafferty, Mark Knopfler - Local Hero
3. Slip Slidin' Away - Paul Simon - Negotiations And Love Songs 1971-1986
4. If This Is Goodbye - Mark Knopfler & Emmylou Harris - Real Live Roadrunning
5. Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen - A Night At The Opera

Quote of the Day

But I'm a superstitious man, and if some unlucky accident should befall him, if he should get shot in the head by a police officer, or if he should hang himself in his jail cell, or if he's struck by a bolt of lightning, then I'm going to blame some of the people in this room.

Vito Corleone, The Godfather

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "In the evening the Lakefront in Mandeville is a time to get out and away from the house. Walk the dog, fish, sit and watch the sunset or just contemplate."

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Not knowing what The Reader was about was the only way I would have watched it. The collective guilt of a generation of Germans over The Holocaust and the various degrees of moral outrage later generations of Germans feel towards that generation, except for maybe their own parents, grandparents, and great grandparents, is something I really have no desire to understand and the shame the two main characters felt over the choices they'd made didn't reach me. I don't care.

The performances in The Reader were OK but one casting choice was curious. David Kross as young Michael Berg speaks with a pronounced German accent and Ralph Fiennes as the not much older Michael Berg speaks with a posh British accent. I stayed to the end but it was all pretty depressing. Not what I'm looking for on a Saturday night.

Pulling for the Packers today and just ever so slightly for the Steelers. Don't really care about the AFC.

Caught the tail end of an Austin City Limits show featuring Band of Horses. I came in during the middle of the finale. It was a song called The Funeral. Fantastic. Enjoy.

Got rid of the smilies here. What a pain that was to accomplish. I may install a better version of them at some point or might install the version I have in a better way.

I offer a few from the CrabAppleLane Backyard.

CrabAppleLane Backyard - January 23, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. The Funeral - Band of Horses - Everything All the Time
2. I'd Love To Change The World - Alvin Lee - A Space In Time
3. Tears - Rush - 2112
4. Crossroads - Cream - The Cream Of Clapton
5. Walk The Line - Live - Live At The Paradiso

Quote of the Day

What we feel isn't important. It's utterly unimportant. The only question is what we do. If people like you don't learn from what happened to people like me, then what the hell is the point of anything?

Professor Rohl, The Reader

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Here's some of what you'll see if you take a look at A Fire in My Belly, the video by David Wojnarowicz that the National Portrait Gallery removed from Hide/Seek, its current exhibit about "sexual difference" in American portraiture: a legless beggar dodging traffic on his stumps, a mouth being stitched shut with a needle and thread, a bowl of blood, and fire ants on a crucifix."

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Political, religious, social commentary in this space ... deleted. Didn't like the way it was going and didn't care to deal with whomever may have stumbled upon it. Not what I like to do here.

The Kids Are All Right is the kind of movie, well, let's just say that I didn't pick this one last night. It is appropriately named but there's another part to the title. The Kids Are All Right ... The Adults Are Screwed Up. Movies that tend toward characters over stories get an extra star in all reviews. Bear that in mind if you're perusing them looking for a movie to rent or go see. This one had everything a critic wants but almost nothing an audience wants. Movies that want to make me think lose a star in my eyes unless they're very good. The Kids Are All Right does not reach that level.

After watching the Falcons get pummeled last night by the Packers, my guess is the Saints and their fans are seething even more this morning about that lousy defensive effort the team put forth last week. I know I am. They'd be playing the Bears in cold and snowy Chicago today and a tough win there would have sent the NFC Championship to the SuperDome. The Saints hung 51 points on the Packers the last time they played in the SuperDome. None of these would have been givens, of course. Sean Payton's Saints have never won a game in Chicago and the Bears are currently kicking the Seahawks asses, 28-0. These are fun ifs and buts and they're all moot because the defense DID put forth that lousy effort last week. Grrrr.

Homer alert: Today's QOTD comes from Jeff Schultz of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. It is quite an admission and he's right. I commented on the Saints mental toughness earlier this season. It goes into remission once in a while but they do have it and they'll be stronger next year because of it. The Falcons don't have it and their fortunes will still be tied to which way the ball bounces. The two playoff teams out of the NFC South next year (If there is a next year) will be the Saints and the Bucs.

I offer one from our lazy Sunday afternoon. The plan is to read a little or watch some TV and then go find an inexpensive place to eat.

A Lazy CrabAppleLane Sunday Afternoon - January 16, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle from a CrabAppleLane iTunes "Genius" mix:

1. Harry's Game - Clannad - Anam - New Age
2. The Mummers' Dance - Loreena McKennitt - The Book Of Secrets - New Age
3. Miss Clare Remembers - Enya - Watermark - New Age
4. Christmas Eve (Sarajevo 12/24) - Trans-Siberian Orchestra - Christmas Eve And Other Stories - Holiday
5. Sacred Ground - Craig Chaquico - Harley-Davidson Cycles: Road Songs - Rock

Quote of the Day

They’re not as close as we thought they were.

Jeff Schultz, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Well, ladies and gentlemen, it's game day, and I'm sure you'll be in agreement with me when I say that this game makes me really nervous. We could easily win or lose this game based on just a few plays, so here's to hoping we bring our A game this week. Specifically our (A)aron Rodgers game. Har har har, see what I did there/shazam/etc."

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Thoughts and sympathies to ALL of the victims and their families of the shooting rampage in Tuscon yesterday. In the coming days and weeks, you will see some trying to blame others for inciting the violence. You will see some blaming others for trying to make political points out of the tragedy. You will see some blaming guns. You will see others defending guns. You will see some say the gunman was simply deranged and it's just a tragedy. If any of them are counting on me to listen, though, they're wasting their breath and their time. I'm sick of all of them.

Congratulations to the Seattle Seahawks on a great win yesterday. They deserve to advance. They outcoached and outplayed the Saints. Matt Hasselbeck and Marshawn Lynch were brilliant and Pete Carroll's game plan was terrific. I'll talk more about the Saints below the jump.

Once again, the weather was gorgeous on Friday so we had lunch in the park. We didn't have the park entirely to ourselves, though. There had to be two or three other people there. I offer one below from that day.

Bogue Falaya Wayside Park - January 7, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star playlist:

1. Crazy Train - Ozzy Osbourne - Blizzard Of Ozz
2. Peaceful Easy Feeling - The Eagles - Their Greatest Hits
3. Snakeskin Cowboys - Ted Nugent - Ted Nugent
4. Wicked Game - Chris Isaak - Heart Shaped World
5. Misty Mountain Hop - Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin IV

Quote of the Day

If this was Matt Hasselbeck's Seattle swan song, he nailed it.

Seahawks Blog

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Thud. That is the sound of our 2010 season hitting the ground against the cold fieldturf of Qwest Stadium."

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Today's QOTD uses a little more vivid imagery than I would have but it's absolutely true. The Saints mauled the Bucs the first time out. Their offensive line simply manhandled the Bucs defensive line. They had no chance. How much chance they have today depends entirely on the Saints level of interest in winning the game. Carolina and Atlanta are hooking up in the Georgia Dome. As soon as that game gets out of hand in favor of the Falcons, Sean Payton will start yanking his starters ... despite his claims to the contrary. It would be idiotic to risk getting important players injured in a meaningless half of football if your team is heading into the playoffs.

I offer one from the CrabAppleLane Backyard. We are being overrun by Goldfinches and Chipping Sparrows. We're OK with that. :) Wish we could find some relatively inexpensive, fresh thistle, though. Goldfinches prefer that to the white millet they're getting here. They won't touch stale thistle and the fresh thistle around here is ridiculously expensive.

CrabAppleLane Seed for a Song Feeder - January 2, 2011

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Top 25 Most Played List:

1. Firefly - Main Theme Song - Joss Whedon - Firefly - 13 plays
2. On Every Street - Dire Straits - On The Night (LIVE) - 8 plays
3. Further On (Up The Road) - Bruce Springsteen - The Rising - 8 plays
4. Lookout Mountain - Drive-By Truckers - The Dirty South - 7 plays
5. Locked Within the Crystal Ball - Blackmore's Night - Secret Voyage - 8 plays

Quote of the Day

The Saints beat the Bucs 31-6 on Oct. 17 at Ray Jay and it was basically a seal-clubbing.

Joe Henderson, The Tampa Tribune

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "This Buccaneer team has had an impressive season, but it still hasn't beaten a team with a winning record."

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About the CrabAppleLane Sunday image: What you see is the CrabAppleLane Bike Carrier and License Plate Bracket. We were going places and riding bikes. Mostly just me but Patsy sometimes, too. It is not that tedious to install and uninstall the carrier but I'm lazy and just left it installed. When installed, it blocks the view of the license plate. It's illegal but most people just take their chances. Not me. I paid $30+ for a bracket that not only relocates the license plate to make it visible during the day, it is lighted to make it visible at night. It came apart last night on my way to or from our family gathering. It was very windy. Several things surprise me about this. 1) I didn't get stopped even though the license plate was blowing all around dangling on the two wires. 2) The two wires held and I still have a license plate this morning. 3) The light still works.

The Vikings-Eagles game has been postponed to Tuesday. I think the Vikings are entering into uncharted waters when we start talking about seasons of high expectations going awry. I think their bizarre 2010 season tops the Saints 2005 Katrina season. We have a new lead standard. Sorry, Viking fans.

About today's QOTD: It disturbs privacy advocates that the police were able to find that guy using their CCTV. It might have saved his life, though, and don't we want the police to be able to find people they're looking for? Yeah, the big brother aspect of it bothers me, too, but if that was my dad ...

CrabAppleLane Bike Carrier and License Plate Bracket - December 26, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. You Make Loving Fun - Fleetwood Mac - Rumours
2. Scotch & Chocolate - Nickel Creek - Why Should The Fire Die?
3. Woodstock - Joni Mitchell - Ladies Of The Canyon
4. The Becoming - Nine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral
5. Pieces Of The Night - Gin Blossoms - New Miserable Experience

Quote of the Day

A grandfather who fell victim to the airport snow chaos while trying to take his wife to catch a Christmas holiday flight, spent three days driving around the M4 motorway trying to find his way home.

Daily Mail

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Hanging up mistletoe is a practice that dates as far back as the time of the ancient druids"

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Today figures to be a tough game for the Saints. I know the Baltimore Ravens pretty much by reputation only. I don't get to see them that much. I watched some of their game Monday night versus the Texans. The Ravens defense did not live up to their reputation in that game. I expect them to revert to form today but they're going to see a Saints offense who can do everything the Texans did and I expect they'll try to do just that. They'll play up tempo, run personnel groups in and out, and make the Ravens pass rush a lot and chase receivers, tight ends, and running backs all over the field. It figures to be a slugfest but if the Saints take care of the ball, they'll take care of the Ravens. Just one more thing

I offer one from the backyard today. Hope it's this nice where you are, especially if you're in Baltimore. :)

CrabAppleLane Backyard - December 19, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star playlist starting with "N”:

1. Natural Thing - UFO - No Heavy Petting
2. Never Gonna Change - Drive-By Truckers - The Dirty South
3. New Slang - The Shins - Oh, Inverted World
4. No Easy Road - Wishbone Ash - Wishbone Four
5. Not Fragile - Bachman-Turner Overdrive - Not Fragile

Quote of the Day

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "When the Ravens have the ball: The Ravens don’t likely want to engage in a shootout with the Saints. With that in mind, I think they are going to come out running the ball with Ray Rice & Willis McGahee this Sunday. The Saints only have 9 interceptions so far this year so Joe Flacco should have plenty of time to throw the ball. Flacco will likely take some shots down the field to Anquan Boldin, T.J. Houshmandzadeh and Derrick Mason."

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I'm convinced that the only difference between me and professional mechanics, aside from the knowledge, training, and experience, is that they always know where their tools are and I don't. I spent a good 20 minutes today looking for my grease gun. Speaking of grease guns, the manual has pretty explicit step-by-step instructions for how to load the grease gun for the first time but no instructions whatsoever for how to replace the old cartridge.

I offer two images from the job. The axle shaft in the first image should be straight.

Old - December 12, 2010

New - December 12, 2010

About today's QOTD: The Giants-Vikings game was already under duress because the Minneapolis weather had shut down air travel. The Giants were diverted to Kansas City yesterday. Now, because of the Metrodome's roof failure this morning, they will play this week's game in Detroit ... assuming the Vikings can get out of Minneapolis. It will be a road game for both teams. I'm wondering what kind of attendance it will generate. I doubt it will be much of a home crowd for the Vikes or a hostile crowd for the Giants. If you don't mind an short ad, FoxSports has some quite remarkable footage of the collapse.

I tend to agree with Chicago Bear Quarterback Jay Cutler and you won't often hear me say that. Normally, I think he's a big baby. Soldier Field in Chicago has the worst playing surface in the NFL.

The Saints and I get our first good look at Sam Bradford in a Rams uniform today. Still not sure why this game was scheduled for 3PM instead of noon. St Louis and New Orleans are both on Central Standard Time. I hope the Saints are not taking the Rams lightly. Steven Jackson is a great player by any standard and would probably be a Hall of Fame candidate had he been playing somewhere else for his entire career. They'll have to contain him at least a little and get the Rams in some 3rd and long situations. I'd like to see 60 minutes of football out of the Saints today. It would be a first for 2010. Broken record time. If they take care of the ball, they'll take care of the Rams. And one more thing:

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Everywhere I Go - Lissie - Catching a Tiger
2. Hey Jealousy - Gin Blossoms - New Miserable Experience
3. Yukon Railroad - The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band - Uncle Charlie & His Dog Teddy
4. Run Baby Run - Garbage - Bleed Like Me
5. The Sounds Of Silence - Simon & Garfunkel - Simon & Garfunkel's Greatest Hits

Quote of the Day

Shortly after 5 a.m. [Sunday] it appears that three panels of the Teflon roof gave way to the pressure

Roy Terwilliger, Head of the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "On Sunday, December 12, the Minnesota Vikings will square off with the New York Giants. The Minnesota Vikings are coming off of a 38-14 win over the Buffalo Bills and have won 2 straight."

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Man, I must be old: When I started working and I first had to see someone's driver's license, I remember thinking this person is "really old". He had a 4-digit Louisiana license number. I had a low 7-digit Louisiana license number at the time so the number of people that got their license between him and I was in the low seven digits. I thought that to be a fairly good indicator of age. I saw a high 8-digit Louisiana license number the other day. I don't care to think about it any more.

New discovery: Stopped at the local Winn-Dixie grocery store yesterday to pick up some ham and turkey for po-boys for lunch. When I asked for a pound and a half of smoked turkey, the nice lady at their deli counter asked me if I'd like to try their in-store rotisserie turkey. Sure, why not? I have always loved to make sandwiches with leftover turkey. It was the best part of Thanksgiving dinner and Christmas dinner. Store-bought sliced turkey is just not as good. This rotisserie turkey is. Thank you, Winn-Dixie deli lady.

NCAA: Congratulations to the Auburn Tigers for their SEC Championship. I expect them to take care of Oregon, too. TCU at 12-0 is odd Horned Frog out. They did everything they could do and it wasn't enough. Nothing fair about it and, once again, the NCAA and BCS will have to explain themselves. That part is good.

NFL: Saints are in Cincinnati today battling the Bengals AND the elements. Expecting wind, bitter cold, and snow flurries. Advantage: Bengals.

Images: I offer two from the backyard. One was taken this morning and the other was taken about 8 months ago. That bright green grass you see in the garden is rye grass. I haven't planted rye grass in many, many years. It typically doesn't come back on its own in this area. I think tilling the garden in the spring for tomato planting protects the rye seeds from the hot Bush summer sun.

After - CrabAppleLane Backyard - December 5, 2010

Before - CrabAppleLane Vegetable Garden - April 3, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Ballad of Dwight Fry - Alice Cooper - Love It to Death
2. Feelin' Bad Blues - Ry Cooder - Crossroads
3. She Came In Through The Bathroom Window - Joe Cocker - Joe Cocker!
4. Bargain - The Who - Who's Next
5. Come Sail Away - Styx - The Grand Illusion

Quote of the Day

I think I lost some weight there
And I'm sure I need some rest
Sleeping don't come very easy
In a straight white vest

Alice Cooper, Ballad of Dwight Fry

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "When Portland designer, filmmaker, and photographer Lubosh Cech was ready to build his own chicken coop, he wanted it to be a work of art."

The blog features about 1001 ways to build a chicken coup ... with pictures. Awesome. -Rob

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We went to see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 yesterday. I won't put any spoilers in this entry. The comments, if I get any, may have some so beware. This Harry Potter film is, by far, the darkest and most grownup of the franchise so far yet there is still something truly wonderful that stirs when the lights go down and that opening scene music starts. Very rarely does a 2½-hour movie not seem like a 5½-hour movie to me but this one pulls it off. Part 1 did its job. It built strong momentum for a big finale. I hope the filmmakers are up to it.

Two matinee theater tickets, two large drinks, and a large, semi-scorched popcorn: $36. Pretty amazing, isn't it? We had two little girls in front of us at the concession stand. I'm guessing twelve and fourteen. Twelve paid with a Mastercard. Don't know who or how many they were buying for but the two of them could barely carry it all. It was $65-$70 worth of candy/popcorn/soda. Might have been just for them, though, and I'd kinda like to know what the final tally was for their afternoon. :)

I saw bits of NFL Films' tribute to Bill Parcells and I agree with the Tampa Tribune. He's a great coach and he did a great job with the Giants. They left one thing out, though. He's a quitter. Bit of a commitment-phobe, too. He quit on the Giants, Patriots, Jets, Cowboys, and now, the Dolphins. He also bailed on a few teams before he even got started. Read somewhere that he wants to get back in the game as coach. He'll have suitors, too. I'm just glad my favorite team won't be one of them.

About today's QOTD: Ever get the impression that the question AND the answer are fairly obvious? Question: Why are the dogs dysfunctional? Answer: If someone thinks spending $3000 to housebreak their two dogs is normal, it kinda tells me the dogs aren't the main problem here. I think I could have successfully housebroken them for about half that :)

I offer one from the CrabAppleLane Baockyard.

CrabAppleLane Wildlife - November 28, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Sick And Tired - Eric Clapton - Pilgrim
2. Help Me - Joni Mitchell - Court And Spark
3. Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts I-V) - Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here
4. Back To Tupelo - Mark Knopfler - Shangri-La
5. Don't Damn Me - Guns N' Roses - Use Your Illusion I

Quote of the Day

NO RUSH TO WALK DOGS They go inside, on paper. I think I have the only two dogs in the world who cross their legs when you take them outside; they’re dysfunctional! We spent $3,000 trying to get them trained to make outside, and the trainer finally told us, “I’m afraid there’s nothing else I can do.” But they’re such sweet dogs.

Dr. Patricia Wexler

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Fail to scoop your dog’s poop in the English borough of Walsall, and you could be fined a whopping £1,000 ($1,573) if the local Council approves proposed new rules. Let your dog off leash, and it would be another £1,000. Ouch. Leashless poopetrators beware!"

That's ridiculously excessive and will have horrific consequences. Dog owner about to receive a citation that carries a £1,000 fine: "He's not my dog". Off to the pound he goes and the family pet is adopted by someone else or put down. I'm OK with the former, especially if the new family is better for him, but not OK so much with the latter. -Rob

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I'd like to talk to the networks about the NFL Sunday schedule here. We get the Jets-Texans on CBS for the early game and the Saints-Seahawks on Fox for the late game. No Colts-Pats in the late game and no Vikings-Packers in the early game (This one looks like it will result in some bloodletting this week).

I offer a couple of images from the CrabAppleLane weekend.

About the first image: I bought one of those hose attachments that is made for washing debris out of your gutters mainly just to see if I can do it. The verdict is that this will work fine as a maintenance tool but I think I'll need to have them professionally cleaned the first time. After an hour of backbreaking hosing and serious equilibrium strain, I think I only cleared about 3 feet of gutter.

About the second image: Earlier in the afternoon, I got up on the ladder and dusted the dormer window. This window was not well thought out on our part. It is impossible to get to without scaffolding on the inside. I can't open the window to clean it with the ladder I have. The lovely spider you see is manning the web in the peak of the window on the outside. Can't imagine what kind of meals she gets up there but she must be getting something. Bon appetit.

CrabAppleLane Back Deck - November 21, 2010

CrabAppleLane Living Room Dormer Window - November 21, 2010

About today's QOTD: I'm thinking Britons prefer William succeed the throne mainly because his old man is a twit.

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star playlist starting with "R”:

1. Rock 'n Roll Soul [Live] - Grand Funk Railroad - Caught In The Act
2. The Real Me - The Who - Quadrophenia
3. Romeo and Juliet - Mark Knopfler - Live From The Ryman
4. Rock The Nation - Montrose - Montrose
5. Roll Tide (Includes Hymn 'Eternal Father Strong To Save') - Hans Zimmer - Crimson Tide

Quote of the Day

Charles is seen by some as too old to inject vitality in the monarchy should he eventually succeed his mother.

Reuters via MSNBC

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Well, dearie me, the X Factor is riven with discord once again – and once again it is Brazilian showman Wagner who appears to be at the centre of the problem."

Who writes like this? -Rob

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I thought I had spotted our Buff-Bellied Hummingbird friend, whom we had nicknamed Buffy, last weekend. We missed Buffy last winter. As it turns out, I don't think this one is Buffy. The one visiting us right now (Pictured below) does not have as much green and does not chatter, chatter, chatter like Buffy did. Wish I'd had better light today. I think this new visitor is a female Rufous Hummingbird. She's quite welcome here and I will keep nectar out for her as long as she wants to stay. We've decided to name this one Roofie (Original, I know).

CrabAppleLane Rufous Hummingbird - November 14, 2010

CrabAppleLane Rufous Hummingbird - November 14, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star playlist:

1. A Light In The Black - Rainbow - Rising
2. Rock 'n Roll Soul [Live] - Grand Funk Railroad - Caught In The Act
3. '39 - Queen - A Night At The Opera
4. You're The One - Maire Brennan & Shane McGowan - Circle of Friends Soundtrack
5. Won't Get Fooled Again - The Who - Who's Next

Quote of the Day

Goudie said the Honda passed the motorcycles, but a Dodge Avenger swerving to avoid hitting the Honda struck the motorcycles head on.

Rick Martin, CNN

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Since Great Horned Owls start nesting in January — one of (if not the) first nesting birds of the year — the winter doldrums are helped when I can find a nest to watch and photograph."

Love the fuzz. -Rob

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Russell Crowe and Ridley Scott give us a slightly different and slightly gritter version of Robin Hood. I don't think the title character is called Robin Hood even once in the film. Fair enough. It's not all grit and dirt and this-is-what-it-must-have-been-like, though. It's quite fanciful in its own way. The Sheriff of Nottingham is only a minor, whiny character in this tale. The real villain in this film is a double agent and that makes for an interesting twist. Crowe is fine as Robin Hood and Cate Blanchett is fantastic, as always, as Lady Marion. The legend of Robin Hood never really gets old with me but this particular film did. It was way too long ... but not at all bad. Thumbs up.

What an exciting game yesterday in Baton Rouge. Excellent win for the Tigers. Les Miles has been coaching in the shadow of Nick Saban since he's been at LSU. People, including a fair number of Tiger fans, were even somewhat skeptical of his national championship. Those skeptics say he did that with mostly Saban players. Well, yesterday, a team of his players beat a team of Nick Saban's players and he thoroughly outcoached Saban in the second half. Miles loves his team. His team doesn't always give anyone good reason to believe in them but he always does ... and just what the hell is wrong with that?

About today's QOTD: Someday, Tiger fans are going to miss Les Miles.

Carolina is not a very good team but they always play well against the Saints. I expect a tough one today in Charlotte.

We fired up the wood pellet stove for the first time yesterday. Winter is around the corner at CrabAppleLane. I was very pleased with its performance, which is a relief if it continues. I had a lot of trouble with it last year. I have a better understanding of its operation today than I did yesterday thanks to a visit to The Woodstove Shop.

While cleaning the stove yesterday, I had to stop midway through the job due to a Buffy sighting. I'm not absolutely certain it's Buffy but it's definitely not a ruby-throated hummingbird. I washed my hands immediately and filled her feeders with fresh nectar. I didn't see him/her at all last winter. We don't know if Buffy is male or female but Patsy gave her the name so we're just referring to her as Buffy until we have conclusive proof that she should have a different name. No sign of her this morning, though, and that kinda bums me out. I was hoping for another winter with her. I'm keeping an eye out for her and I'll be keeping the nectar fresh. I offer one from the CrabAppleLane backyard.

CrabAppleLane Backyard - November 7, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star playlist:

1. The Boy Who Wouldn't Hoe Corn - Alison Krauss & Union Station - Live
2. Victim Of Changes - Judas Priest - Sad Wings Of Destiny
3. Clocks - Coldplay - A Rush Of Blood To The Head
4. Communication Breakdown - Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin I
5. You Really Got Me - Van Halen - Van Halen

Quote of the Day

It wasn’t just that the Bayou Bengals came back twice from fourth-quarter deficits, or that they once again used some slight-of-hand trickeration to stay in the game, or Jarrett Lee‘s improbable 47-yard completion on third-and-13 with under 2:40 left and clinging to a three-point lead, or that… well… yes it was all of that, every damn bit of it that inexplicably worked in symphonic concert with that horseshoe the Mad Hatter has shoved somewhere on/up his person in 2010 that crushed the Tide’s hopes in Nick Saban‘s second return trip to the Bayou.

John Taylor, NBC Sports

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "It is a rich and ancient legend, the popularity of which is no doubt sustained across the decades because of its fascinating links with contemporary affairs. Green issues? Environment? Recession? Banker’s bonuses? It’s all in there. Even, sadly, issues concerning East / West wars."

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Happy Halloween

Got plans? You might think mine involve the game tonight. You'd be right. :)

Steelers (5-1) v Saints (4-3) tonight in the SuperDome. Turnovers will be the key tonight like they almost always are for the Saints. When they take care of the ball, they win. When they don't, they usually lose. Turnovers killed them in all three of their losses. The opponent doesn't much matter. Every single team the Saints have faced this season has had some fire in their belly. They need to return fire tonight. I'd like the Saints chances better if they were healthier but no excuses, no quarter. Play your game, Saints. Take care of the ball and you'll take care of the Steelers.

As of this writing, the Jaguars are up on the Cowboys, 28-3, in Dallas. Big Trouble brewing in Big D. Someone may get fired DURING that game.

I offer three from the CrabAppleLane Backyard. If you're keeping score, it goes no maintenance, maintenance, no maintenance. The maintenance is the bent axle. It needs to be replaced. I always bend the right front axle on the finish mower. This is the third time I've done it. It happens when I don't lift the mower when I'm cutting near my driveway. You ever try to merge onto the interstate when they're resurfacing and the interstate is higher? Finish mowers aren't built for that sort of thing.

CrabAppleLane Blue Ginger - October 31, 2010

CrabAppleLane Required Maintenance - October 31, 2010

CrabAppleLane Trail Flowers - October 31, 2010

About today's QOTD: If you've ever read anything about Vlad the Impaler, you will know he is much scarier than the Dracula in Bram Stoker's novel. Bram Stoker's Dracula is very loosely based on Vlad. For what it's worth, Dracula is my all-time favorite book. Love it. There is a passage in that novel that still sends shivers down my spine. Anyone who has read the book knows the exact passage I'm talking about.

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star playlist:

1. Only Happy When It Rains - Garbage - Garbage
2. Til I Hear It From You - Gin Blossoms - Empire Records
3. Wind Up - Jethro Tull - Aqualung
4. Sultans Of Swing - Dire Straits - Alchemy
5. All Mixed Up - The Cars - The Cars

Quote of the Day

I think it's really clever to bring tourists in with the Dracula myth. But it's our duty to share real stories with tourists.

Mark Tudose, Transylvania

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "The Saints are thin at running back and banged up in the secondary while the Steelers are banged up on the defensive line. Both teams can be really dangerous on offense and through the air. The Saints certainly miss what Reggie Bush adds to the offense and Brees has played very un-Brees like thus far in 2010. I think you could see some high scoring in this game and quite a few big plays. I think the Steelers are the deeper of the two teams still and are better coached as well. Steelers get a late defensive or special teams touchdown to win this one. Final Score: Steelers 34 Saints 31"

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So much for what I think. LSU was lucky to be in that game at all. Cam Newton had his way with the LSU defense. He ran on them and he passed on them. LSU had no answer for him. Nothing fancy about it, either. They had good defenses called most of the time. He just broke the tackles. He's this year's Heisman Trophy winner. They can start engraving his name now.

Congratulations to the

On their way to World Series to face the Texas Rangers. The networks weep. Good. :)

Oh, and Ryan Howard, how do you not swing at that pitch? Down to your last strike for the season, you have to protect the plate. I don't think it was a strike, either, but the "swing at anything close with two strikes" philosophy applies to the big leagues, too.

On paper, the Saints-Browns game today in the SuperDome should be no contest. They don't play the game on paper, though. The Saints will be playing without their two starting cornerbacks and their two starting running backs. They'll be OK at running back because of Chris Ivory. Don't know what to expect at cornerback (Update: It has already cost the Saints a touchdown). The Browns play decent defense and I'm not sure what to expect out of Colt McCoy. Last year's Saints players, Scott Fujita and Mike Bell, will be on the field today for the Browns. I hope they get a warm reception. They contributed their share to the Super Bowl team last year. As usual ... if the Saints take care of the ball, they'll take care of the Browns (Saints are down, 0-10 already. I hate slow starts.).

I offer one on this mild CrabAppleLane Sunday.

CrabAppleLane Grilling - October 24, 2010

About today's QOTD: Are the photos now going to be compared to the ... oh, never mind. There's no way this isn't going to be a distraction for him or his football team. It may have had a chance to go away at one time but not now.

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star playlist:

1. Poison - Alice Cooper - Alice Cooper Classicks
2. Live Wire - Starz - Starz
3. My Parties - Dire Straits - On Every Street
4. Because The Night - 10,000 Maniacs - MTV Unplugged
5. Already Gone - The Eagles - Their Greatest Hits

Quote of the Day

Brett Favre admitted to the NFL this week that he did leave voicemails for Jenn Sterger, but denied sending the former sideline hostess any lewd photographs when he was a member of the New York Jets, Fox Sports reported Sunday.

ESPN

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "They estimate that 66 million pounds of sheep’s cheeses are imported to this country every year, yet very little sheep cheese is produced in the United States."

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Yet another pissing match between a network affiliate and a cable company with the viewers/customers stuck right in the middle. There is no doubt that cable and satellite companies would like to bypass local affiliates. They'd like to find agreeable affiliates somewhere, anywhere and transmit their network broadcasts nationwide. By law, they can't. There is a good reason for this. Local affiliates, along with the local news and other local programming, would die. There is also no doubt that your local affiliates know the law protects them and that gives them a bargaining advantage. The loss of viewership in the market doesn't seem to bother either side much. Until the two sides have equal positions and equal motivation for a resolution of differences, we can all expect more contentious negotiations. Coming to a market near you ... .

Much like last week, I don't know what to expect from the Saints in today's Saints-Bucs game. The Saints offense has yet to put up a big game. There is no reason for them to be playing the way they are. They're dropping passes, they're turning the ball over, they're not blocking very well. They're just not playing smart. They absolutely can play better. The defense is playing OK. They're not the problem. Tampa is playing well, though. If the Saints play their C game today, they're going to come home with a loss. Time to pick it up, guys.

About today's BOTD: The only thing I care to say is Good Job, Tim. I'm no lip reader but there are times I can make out what someone is saying. After the umpire called a ball on yet another pitch Lincecum wanted, the camera zoomed in just in time to see him mouthing, "Ball, my f@cking a$$". I like that kid. :) I'm pretty sure the Fox cameraman will have different instructions for his next start. :)

CrabAppleLane is in the midst of a drought. One of the by-products is succulent broccoli plants are vulnerable to disease. The two images below offer evidence of the almost always fatal disease known as rabbititus. Don't think we're going to have a successful fall garden here.

CrabAppleLane Broccoli plant - October 17, 2010

CrabAppleLane Broccoli plant - October 17, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star playlist:

1. Won't Get Fooled Again - The Who - Who's Next
2. Back On The Road Again - REO Speedwagon - Arch Allies: Live at Riverport
3. Christmas Canon Rock - Trans-Siberian Orchestra - The Lost Christmas Eve
4. Smoke On The Water [Live] - Deep Purple - Made In Japan [Disc 1] [Live]
5. Rock Bottom - UFO - Phenomenon

Quote of the Day

I am impatient because the world is not getting better fast enough, or for enough people.

Melinda Gates

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "We expect nothing less, Phillie fans. Now, don't you have preteen girls to vomit on?"

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Today's date is pretty cool: 10/10/10

Great win for the LSU Tigers against Florida last night in The Swamp. Wild finishes have become commonplace for the Tigers. They are not boring. I may have been wrong about them. Last night, both Tiger quarterbacks made plays when they had to. That's been the missing ingredient all season. They have a good SEC defense. They have a great running game. They have terrific wide receivers that are a mismatch against just about everyone. What they have lacked is a quarterback who can get them the ball enough to keep defenses honest. They also have Head Coach Les Miles. There is not a soul anywhere that knows what's going on in his head. It makes opponents crazy. It makes LSU fans crazy, too. He's consistent. :)

It's not surprising that the Yankees won their series over the Twins. What is surprising is how easily they did it. I don't think the Rangers or the Rays can beat them right now, either, but I'll be rooting for one of them next week. Now that the Twins are gone, I'm rooting FOR the Phillies and AGAINST the Yankees.

Would like to say I captured the image below as it was happening. Would also like to be able to say it is what it looks like. I did ... almost. It's not what it looks like. The leaf was not falling to the ground. It was suspended by an unseen spider web.

Going down?

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Transformer Man - Neil Young - Trans
2. Iron Hand - Dire Straits - On Every Street
3. So I Need You - 3 Doors Down - The Better Life
4. Helpless Dancer - The Who - Quadrophenia [Disc 1]
5. That Evening Sun - Old Crow Medicine Show - Tennessee Pusher

Quote of the Day

Logic dictates that the Saints should win this game. But something in the gut tells me the Cardinals are going to pull the upset.

Kent Somers, The Arizona Republic

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Brees and the Saints offense hasn't looked the same as their magical 2009 team, but remains deadly nonetheless."

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The LSU Tigers are 5-0 this morning after a bizarre game in Tiger Stadium yesterday. Despite lopsided statistics in LSU's favor, I think Tennessee outplayed them. The Tigers will probably move up in the polls but they are frauds. The Tigers have fantastic athletes all over the field and that has made up for horribly undisciplined play at times. It has also made up for very poor play at quarterback. The meat of their schedule is here now and that won't continue. The calls for Les Miles' head are getting louder every week. The SEC is loaded with great athletes and great coaches. One or the other is not enough. If LSU wants to contend, they need both. They have the athletes.

No turnovers the first two weeks: Two wins. Three turnovers last week: Loss. The Panthers have never been an easy out for the Saints. They have been in the same division since the Panthers came into the league. There is a lot of history to draw from. Both Saints starting running backs, Reggie Bush and Pierre Thomas, and Saints strong safety, Roman Harper, are out for this afternoon's game. Even as short-handed as they are, there is no way Carolina should beat the Saints today without generous help ... from the Saints. Don't be so generous this time. Take care of the ball, take care of the Panthers.

I don't give much of a darn about the Ryder Cup but it did make for a spectacular image.

I offer two from the back deck on this gorgeous autumn CrabAppleLane Sunday.

CrabAppleLane - October 3, 2010

CrabAppleLane Backyard - October 3, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Music Box - Phillip Glass - Candyman
2. Not That Funny - Fleetwood Mac - Tusk
3. Love Is All Around - The Troggs - The British Invasion: The History Of British Rock, Vol. 8
4. Sea And Sand - The Who - Quadrophenia [Disc 2]
5. The Courier - Randy Edelman - The Last Of The Mohicans

Quote of the Day

May the undertaker bury you, your table and your body, which has soiled the world.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "It's times like this the Panthers has risen up in their history to take an opponent by storm. Will it be today?"

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How to describe The Good Guys? It's kind of a buddy cop show. Jack Bailey, played by Colin Hanks, Tom Hanks' son, is a decent cop. They've partnered him with Dan Stark, played by Bradley Whitford. Stark is an old school cop who doesn't do anything by the book. He and his former partner solved a big case many years ago and the department is pretty much forced to keep him on even though they think he's washed up. Stark is a loose cannon and Bailey is basically his babysitter. They've been assigned to the property crimes division aka cop purgatory mainly to keep them out of trouble. From there, they stumble and bumble their way ala Inspector Clouseau into bigger crimes. It galls their superiors and their colleagues. It's ridiculous and it will absolutely make you cringe sometimes but I dare you not to smile. The Good Guys will grow on you.

The Saints take on the Falcons today in the SuperDome. The two teams are old rivals. It figures to be another tight one and it also figures to be very physical. Both teams are pretty good and know each other very well. I expect the Falcons offense to have some success against the Saints defense. I'm very interested to see how the Falcons defense handles the Saints offense. They've played well in the first two games but Drew Brees is a few rungs up the QB ladder from Dennis Dixon and Derek Anderson. That will be the key today. The Falcons are a popular choice to upset the Saints today in the SuperDome and they seem to be a very confident bunch. It's a good test for the Saints.

I offer two images from CrabAppleLane taken just a few minutes ago.

From the CrabAppleLane back deck - September 26, 2010

CrabAppleLane hummingbird heading back to her perch - September 26, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Black Sabbath playlist:

1. Snowblind - Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath Vol. 4 (Remaster)
2. Dirty Woman - Black Sabbath - Technical Ecstasy
3. Paranoid - Black Sabbath - Paranoid
4. Wheels Of Confusion / The Straightener - Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath Vol. 4 (Remaster)
5. Symptom Of The Universe - Black Sabbath - Sabotage (Remaster)

Quote of the Day

I guess in this world, we don't have a lot of people with backbones. Just because somebody pay you money don't mean they'll make you do whatever they want. I mean, that means everything is for sale. I mean, I'm not for sale. Yeah, I signed the contract and got paid a lot of money, but just because, that don't mean I'm for sale or a slave or whatever.

Albert Haynesworth, Washington Redskins

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "This game is a proving grounds for the Falcons."

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My camera is not well-suited for video but it was worth a try. Looks a little digitized. A sampling of the CrabAppleLane Hummingbird Flock. Enjoy.

The CrabAppleLane tractor and tiller put up their usual good fight yesterday but, once again, I prevailed. The fall garden is ready for planting. After about an hour's worth of hitching up the tiller in the September sun and 15-20 minutes of actual tilling, I was a little more beat than I expected. Think it was tractor/tiller revenge. I offer the two images below, before and after.

Before - CrabAppleLane Spring Garden - September 18, 2010

After - CrabAppleLane Fall garden - September 18, 2010

For the second Sunday in a row, NO Saints game. Hate it.

Vikings fans can thank me later for their win today over the Dolphins. I benched Brett Favre this morning on my fantasy team in favor of Kyle Orton. Just have no confidence in the Vike passing game yet. This pretty much ensures a 450yd-6TD performance.

About today's QOTD: Thanks, Mike.

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane May 22, 2010 #2 playlist:

1. Sultans Of Swing - Dire Straits - Dire Straits
2. On The Turning Away - Pink Floyd - A Momentary Lapse Of Reason
3. Worlds Apart - Bruce Springsteen - The Rising
4. Time Stand Still - Rush - Chronicles [Disc 2]
5. Bron-Y-Aur Stomp - Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin III

Quote of the Day

We will not try to stop Drew Brees, we will stop Drew Brees.

Mike Singletary, San Francisco 49ers

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Storm Clouds and Late Day Sun"

Lovely photoblog. -Rob

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Glad the Saints have one in the win column this morning but not wild about the disruption to my Sunday game routine. Only have 8 Sunday noon games this season. It is the one downside to last year's success. I have a free weekend of NFL Sunday Ticket this week but I doubt I'll be watching much football today or tomorrow. Although the game didn't live up to the hype Thursday night, I am very pleased with the outcome and the effort. I love the Saints' mental toughness in the fourth quarters of close games. That's the major difference between 2009-10 and 2006-07-08. They'll have their share of blowouts this season but that mental toughness will be what separates them from most of the teams in the NFL. We have a serious Super Bowl contender here in New Orleans, folks.

I offer one from the CrabAppleLane front yard on this hot Sunday afternoon.

CrabAppleLane Crepe Myrtle - September 12, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Principles Of Lust [(A) Sadeness, (B) Find Love, (C) Sadeness (Reprise)] - Enigma - MCMXC a.D.
2. Blossom - James Taylor - Sweet Baby James
3. Time In A Bottle - Jim Croce - AM Gold 1970-1974
4. Posthuman - Marilyn Manson - Mechanical Animals
5. Mama Told Me (Not To Come) - Three Dog Night - AM Gold 1970-1974

Quote of the Day

The head was getting a bit loose, so we worked together and figured out how to stabilize things. I think he will be good for awhile.

Bioanthropologist Ron Beckett

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Checking the mail has never been so much fun. One by one, Postcards from the Gulf are returning from the studios of artists on three continents."

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Got plans? It's a spectacular Labor Day weekend here at CrabAppleLane. I offer one from the back deck.

CrabAppleLane Blue Skies - September 5, 2010

Got a city fix yesterday. Lunch at Liuzza's with Mom. It was her first time there. Have always, always loved their Shrimp Remoulade. When I first got it many years ago, it wasn't on their regular menu. It was a periodic special and I would get it automatically if I saw it on their daily specials chalkboard. They serve it on a po-boy now and I had been dying for one since Patsy told me how great hers was last December. That's also what the Great White Shank had when we hooked up for lunch there. Still love their Shrimp Remoulade but it's a bit messy on a po-boy. I think I'll stick to having it served on a plate when I go there. :) We had some fabulous onion rings. One order was enough for all three of us.

My friend, Marie, is famous now. :) It's a delightful turn of events. Congrats, Marie.

It's Fathers Day down under. Happy Day to all of them.

My good Samaritan from yesterday. I expect a few more from him in the next few days. According to him: "Should you be interested in this name - I'd be glad to consider your offer.". It's not his to sell but I suppose that's a minor detail. He included a link this time. Wouldn't touch it with a 10ft pole.

With a new NFL season on the near horizon, it looks to me like the Saints will enter 2010 much like they did 2009: They have an excellent offense but they have questions on defense. On the bright side, no team is without questions.

The offensive line is big, talented, and deep. Best in the NFL. The tight ends are versatile and dramatically different from each other. They all bring something different to the table. The wide receiver corp is deep, talented, and physical. Best in the NFL. The running backs feature Reggie Bush and Pierre Thomas. Both can make plays. In the quarterback league that the NFL has become, the Saints have the very best of the best. I would take Drew Brees over anyone else.

I still just don't know what to make of the defense, though. I expect the defensive line will have good games and bad. They stepped up in the playoffs last season but they had some pretty bad games during the regular season. They're inconsistent and only have one decent pass rusher in Will Smith. They usually don't generate much of a pass rush on their own and they get moved around and sealed off way too much in the running game. The linebackers are a mixed bunch. Jonathan Vilma is a terrific linebacker and signal caller for the D but Scott Shanle is ordinary and we don't even know what other linebackers are going to play yet. The secondary is strong even without Darren Sharper. They're not particularly durable, though. All of them missed time last season.

On special teams, the Saints have a money placekicker and a great punter but I expect them to be a feast-or-famine bunch this year. They'll make a handful of big returns and give up a handful of big returns. They got better during the playoffs last season because Sean Payton sprinkled some starters into those return teams. That was one of the many great calls he made last season.

Finally, the Saints have a great coaching staff. Sean Payton is bright and aggressive. Not a conservative bone in his body. He attacks. How do you not love a guy who has the stones to call an onside kick in a Super Bowl? Defensive coordinator Gregg Williams does not own a conservative bone, either. He also attacks. The defense is going to give up plays but they will make plays, too. I think Curtis Johnson will be a fine head coach some day. Most of the Saints staff is young. Love everything about what they're doing.

The season opener with the Vikings looms large. No excuses. No quarter.

4 days until football season ...

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Mark Knopfler playlist:

1. On Every Street - Dire Straits - On Every Street
2. Lions - Dire Straits - Dire Straits
3. Back To Tupelo - Mark Knopfler - One Take Radio Sessions
4. The Fish And The Bird - Mark Knopfler - Kill To Get Crimson
5. Tunnel Of Love - Dire Straits - Making Movies

Quote of the Day

It's Sunday morning, but it's the start of the work week for the Vikings, who return to practice to begin preparations for their season opener against the New Orleans Saints on Thursday night.

Chip Scoggins, Minneapolis Star Tribune

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Minnesota @ New Orleans - Sept 9 (Thursday Night), 8:30PM on NBC
Minnesota Vikings at the New Orleans Saints is a rematch of the thrilling 2009 NFC Championship Game. This is the first game of Vikings quarterback Bret Favre's 20th season. Meanwhile, the Saints start the defense of their Super Bowl championship. Prior to last season, I never thought I would ever have to write, "the New Orleans Saints are the defending Super Bowl champions.""

Whenever I think of Hurricane Katrina and I certainly don't as much now as I once did, I keep ending up on one thing. If the levees hold, we're not talking about Katrina now. It was a substantial hurricane but Louisiana can handle that. There would be no horrific images, no politicization, no second guessing. New Orleans, Slidell, and Chalmette would have been on the same recovery pace as St Tammany and most of Mississippi. The damage would have been repaired in a few months and we would have be on to other things in no time. If only the levees had held ...

Another morning after a fantasy football auction. Feel as good about this team as I do my other one. Not very. Death on Two Legs - 2010 version:

QB Brett Favre - $7
RB Joseph Addai - $18
RB Jamaal Charles - $37 -- My transition player - Overpaid by a lot. No one knew anything about him until I tagged him - Could have gotten him for half this or even less
RB Cadillac Williams - $3
RB Donald Brown - $3
RB Tashard Choice - $1
WR Marques Colston - $22
WR Reggie Wayne - $26 - Franchise player
WR Chad Ochocinco - $9
WR Lee Evans - $3
WR Dexter McCluster - $2
TE Jason Witten - $14
TE Justin Keller - $1
PK Jeff Reed - $1
D/ST Dolphins - $1

I offer one from just outside my kitchen window this wet CrabAppleLane Sunday morning.

CrabAppleLane Althea - August 29, 2010

11 days until football season ...

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star playlist:

1. Miss Misery - Nazareth - Hair Of The Dog
2. San Francisco (Be Sure To Wear Flowers In Your Hair) - Scott McKenzie - AM Gold: The '60s Generation
3. Roundabout - Yes - Fragile
4. Star Spangled Banner - Dixie Chicks - Super Bowl XXXVII
5. Easy Lover - Phil Collins - Hits

Quote of the Day

President Obama had lunch at Parkway Bakery today. As usual for well-known folks in NOLA, he was just another customer. Voice on loudspeaker said, "Barack, pickup." He got a shrimp po-boy.

Fleurty Girl

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Across the states, the general first estimate of cost to insurers sits at $16 billion."

Ended up being in the neighborhood of $125 billion. -Rob

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This Whitest Kids U'Know skit made me laugh last week. Some, maybe most, of their shtick is crude for crude's sake and gets old rather quickly and some, like the one linked, are too long and don't finish well. It's like they needed to fill some air time. If they'd do less, they'd do better.

I offer two from the CrabAppleLane yard this morning. The two bushes below were the same size when I bought them. One thrived, the other not so much. I transplanted the one not doing so well. I'm hoping that a change of scenery is all it needed.

CrabAppleLane - August 22, 2010

CrabAppleLane - August 22, 2010

Still only preseason but I think most Saints fans are a little more upbeat after last night's game with the Texans than they were after last week's game with the Patriots. A few thoughts:

I have to wonder what the Saints are going to do with Adrian Arrington. I doubt they can trade him but he's too good to release. I hope they can keep him as insurance if one of the other four (Colston, Meachem, Henderson, Moore) in front of him gets hurt.

Ladell Betts had better get his butt on the field. Chris Ivory and P.J. Hill both look like they can run the ball. Don't know if I trust either of them to protect Drew in the passing game, though.

About today's QOTD: The Redskins are stuck with Haynesworth. That much is pretty clear. If they release him, they eat his ridiculous contract and he plays somewhere else. A trade is unlikely because no one wants to assume that contract.

Mario Williams is Julius Peppers. He plays a monster game two or three times a year and then disappears the rest of the time. There's money in that. I don't think his name was called once last night. I'm glad the Texans chose him and passed on Reggie Bush. Reggie's name was called quite a few times last night.

18 days until football season ...

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Mark Knopfler playlist:

1. So Far From The Clyde - Mark Knopfler - Get Lucky
2. Golden Heart - Mark Knopfler - Golden Heart
3. Whistle Theme - Mark Knopfler & Alan Clark - Local Hero
4. Whoop De Doo - Mark Knopfler - Shangri-La
5. In The Sky - Mark Knopfler - Kill To Get Crimson

Quote of the Day

I don't know. I guess make yourself look good, I don't know. Make me look bad for not going to their offseason conditioning program. But, I mean, next year I'm not coming either. I'll be on my trainer again, and I'll get back in the same shape I'm in, and feel good about myself.

Albert Haynesworth, Washington Redskins

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "The Texans kicked the Saints' butts on kickoff returns. They averaged 32.8 yards on six returns. The Saints averaged 21 yards on five returns."

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Love the story they tell before the song below. It's cut out here. They were talking about setting up their equipment in a gigantic bar in Texas. If you've never been inside one of those, you absolutely cannot appreciate it. I've been in a few of them. The Rusty Keg in Houston could have easily fit two football fields inside of it ... end to end. Anyway, they're in one of those bars setting up and there are only three people in the whole place besides them ... and a fight broke out. My favorite song of theirs. Enjoy.

Tried to find a link to a performance of Road Fever by Foghat for the QOTD. All I could find was a version from the current incarnation of the band. The lead guitarist is an adequate replacement for the late former lead guitarist, Rod Price. He even bears a slight resemblance. There's no replacing Lonesome Dave, though. The current incarnation is not much more than a tribute band. Save your money.

Preliminary bill for an afternoon at the emergency room: $10,141.00

For that paltry sum, we spent about 20 minutes total with the physician, tied up a hospital bed for about 5 hours, had IV saline, was given some pain medication and some medication for nausea, and had a CT scan performed. $10,141.00 ... so far. We can and should debate/argue about what needs to be done but anyone defending the status quo should be summarily dismissed as a participant in that debate/argument. We're spending more on health care than anyone and we aint healthier. We're not getting our money's worth.

I offer one from the CrabAppleLane sunny back deck. I thought I had accidentally killed it.

CrabAppleLane Mirliton Vine - August 15, 2010

From the Here Nor There Department: No matter how slowly and carefully I sip a Sonic slush, I get a freezer brain headache that takes at least a minute and a half to pass. Dumb, Rob.

Time to start researching my fantasy football auctions. Have one a week from today and have another one a few days later. I started to move some names around yesterday but couldn't finish. Hope to have a preliminary spreadsheet done today. I haven't used a magazine in years.

The Minnesota Vikings walloped the Rams in St Louis last night and they did it "without Brett Favre, Adrian Peterson, Sidney Rice, Percy Harvin and Visanthe Shiancoe.". I'm sure someone in Metairie took notice.

25 days until football season ...

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Road Fever [Live Version] - Foghat - Live
2. Selling the Drama - Live - Throwing Copper
3. Crime In The City (Sixty To Zero, Pt. 1) - Neil Young - Freedom
4. Sad Lisa - Cat Stevens - Tea For The Tillerman
5. She Don't Love Nobody - Nick Lowe - Andrea's Gift Mix

Quote of the Day

I'm back on the road and I ain't gonna stop
Gonna roll 'til I'm old, gonna rock 'til I drop
Out of the smog, headin' into the sun
I'm goin' to New Orleans
Bourbon Street here I come

Foghat, Road Fever

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "When the new version of the old blog bit the dust I took it as a sign and as a result, this blog has a new name. I decided to retire Pitcherlady and move on to a page that’s a little more refined in its subject matter, (she said)."

I hope not too refined. Refinement has its place but there are times when it should step aside. :)

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Grilling on Sunday again. This time, it was Tony Chachere's Smoked Sausage with Green Onion just to kick up Patsy's excellent red beans and rice. Took a few snapshots on this afternoon's bike ride, too. The bike rides around here may have panoramic vistas or silly goats. Sometimes, both. They're below the jump.

CrabAppleLane - August 8, 2010

Have a Great Weekend.

With apologies to Neil Diamond, the title here refers to last night. Even though I had been out running errands in the morning and for a bike ride in the afternoon, I still found myself with a case of cabin fever last night. We decided to hit the Tap Room for dinner and head out somewhere and tinker with night photography. I'm still fairly awful at it but these didn't turn out too bad. There was an outdoor movie playing last night in Abita Springs. I've never seen any of them so I can't be sure but I'm guessing it was one of the Toy Story movies. I suppose this is about the closest thing you can have to a true, old time drive-in movie experience these days ... except there weren't any cars. It had to be 85º last night with nearly 100% humidity. I remember nights in the station wagon just like that. The heat, humidity, and the bugs didn't seem to be bothering anyone, though. These free events are a nice novelty, a curiosity for the kids, maybe some nostalgia for some of the older parents and grandparents, or just something to do on a Saturday night. Nice turnout. More below the jump if you're interested.

Abita Springs - August 7, 2010

The first preseason (Don't call it an exhibition) game is tonight. Why on Earth the NFL or NBC wants to broadcast this game in Primetime is beyond me. Bengals v Cowboys would be a good match except that most of the guys you'll see in the game tonight won't be Bengals or Cowboys in a few weeks.

The Saints are heading to New England tomorrow to work out with the Patriots for a few days before their game Thursday night. They'll stop at the White House along the way. Would love to be in on the meetings the two head coaches are having with their teams leading up to this. Both teams fancy themselves as contenders and I think it's fair to say they are. "This is what you can talk about with them and this is what you can't". I expect both teams will be holding back a lot. The game Thursday night will be nothing like that Monday night game they played last November, which the Boston Globe's Adam Kilgore described like this:

The Saints attacked the Patriots defense in every manner. They scored on long drives. They scored on a 75-yard strike. They scored on screen passes, on long post patterns, on a dump to their third tight end. They emptied both barrels.

32 days until football season ...

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Angel - Fleetwood Mac - Tusk
2. Boulder To Birmingham - Mark Knopfler & Emmylou Harris - Real Live Roadrunning
3. Changin' Times - Nazareth - Hair Of The Dog
4. Photograph - Def Leppard - Pyromania
5. Romeo and Juliet - Mark Knopfler - Live From The Ryman

About today's QOTD: Ricky Jackson is maybe the worst public speaker of all time but there is nothing phony about him. You'll find profound nuggets in what he says if you can bear the rest of it.

Quote of the Day

We need to keep football going. Can't let football get away. I mean you can get where the product can be so good, you can lose sight and let it get away.

Ricky Jackson, Saints Hall-of-Famer

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Riders making their way through the mist, across the hay field. I am well behind this pack....somewhere...."

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I started watching The Last Waltz last night. I've never been a great fan of The Band. I like some of their songs but that's about it. I have seen this film before and I didn't think much of it but I kinda got hooked on watching it again last night while waiting for something better to come on. Seeing it again after all these years and on a better TV with a better stereo has made a world of difference. Could be also that I'm a little older and more mature than I was the first time I saw it and it could also be the sound quality has been dramatically improved. The second part is certain. The film I'm watching now is fantastic in both sound and picture quality.

The film is not just about their music and that may have also contributed to why I didn't think much of it the first time. I didn't care about the interviews then. Just get on with the music. I appreciate what Martin Scorsese was doing now. The film is more about the guys being a band and being on tour for 16 years. I can't wait to finish watching it this afternoon. Just fantastic. Didn't even mind the 70s leisure suits. :) I still only like a handful of their songs but I have a new appreciation for The Band this morning and much greater appreciation for the film. Enjoy the little taste below and see The Last Waltz when you can, particularly if you have a good TV and stereo.

I usually don't care for tight-fitting clothes. Unfortunately, a lot of my clothes fit tightly these days (Be nice). Anyway, I do wear tight clothes while doing yardwork. Too many spinning objects and too many sharp blades can grab. After 2½ hours in the heat here, though, you pretty much have to cut them off of me. I offer a few today in the order I took them from around the CrabAppleLane backyard, where I spent 2½ hours ... yesterday and today.

The garden is resting

The fairway - Water trap on the left - Par 2

The view

The branch had turned and followed the sun until it was brushing against the bluebird house

CrabAppleLane Hummingbird - August 1, 2010

Enough with the NFL training camp injuries already ... and stay the hell away from here. There are still ...

39 days until football season ...

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star playlist:

1. Already Gone - The Eagles - On The Border
2. Kryptonite - 3 Doors Down - The Better Life
3. Madame Geneva's - Mark Knopfler - Kill To Get Crimson
4. Mississippi Queen - Mountain - Hard N' Heavy: 70's Greatest Rock Hits, Vol. 1
5. '39 - Queen - A Night At The Opera

Quote of the Day

In the winter of '65
We were hungry
Just barely alive
By May the tenth, Richmond had fell
It's a time I remember, oh so well

The Band, The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "One of the reasons that I hadn't ever seen The Last Waltz, was because I wasn't a fan of The Band."

Just like me except with a better reason. They weren't before my time. -Rob

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It's been raining off and on all weekend. The sun is out now and it's more than a little steamy. If the rain is still gone in an hour or two, I'll be on the tractor. I started doing yardwork yesterday but couldn't finish.

Between the rains Saturday afternoon, I was able to pull up the 2010 CrabAppleLane spring vegetable garden. The tomatoes have been done for a a few weeks but I wanted to let the peppers fill out a little more. I'm not a big fan of bell peppers normally. They're usually a little too thick when you buy them at a store, when they come on a pizza, or when they're in a dish at a restaurant, particularly Chinese dishes. Homegrown bell peppers are a whole other thing. Commercial bell pepper varieties have a much thicker skin because they've been developed that way so they can travel better. Homegrown peppers are thin-skinned and have a much lighter and sweeter taste. In the bowl below: "Big Early" bell peppers. On the rail: "Italia" sweet peppers. There is almost no difference in taste, texture, or size between them. They're both delicious. We haven't decided what to do with them yet. We may stuff them or we may add them to some scrambled eggs but we're most likely to add them to a huge batch of Patsy's sausage rice casserole. I'm fine with any one or more of those options.

Last of the CrabAppleLane 2010 spring crop - July 25, 2010

It was an average year for CrabAppleLane tomatoes and peppers. It got too hot too early and there was too much rain toward the end of the season. I don't think the eggplants did well at all. I haven't done a fall garden in many years but I think I will this year. Patsy and I both love homegrown baby Brussels sprouts so there will surely be a lot of those planted. I'll throw in a row of broccoli and maybe some red and green cabbage, too. Patsy makes good coleslaw.

I like to rate the songs in my iTunes library. I haven't done it with all of them yet but I've got a substantial number of them rated. Five stars is the highest. Today's iTunes shuffle is from the Four Star list.

There are probably a few funnier things about the upcoming NFL season but the New York Times Fifth Down Blog picking the brash, loudmouthed Jets to finish third in their division behind the Patriots and Dolphins is pretty good. The QOTD plugs into that. Thank you, Judy. :)

46 days until football season ...

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Four Star playlist:

1. Mean Mistreater - Grand Funk Railroad - Live Album
2. Heartless - Adrien Reju - A Million Hearts
3. Space Truckin' - Deep Purple - Machine Head (Roger Glover Remixes) [Disc 2]
4. Behind With The Rent - Mark Knopfler - Kill To Get Crimson
5. Boogie With Stu - Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti [Disc 2]

Quote of the Day

Is there enough oxygen in Cortland, N.Y., to sustain all the Jets’ talk?

Judy Battista, NY Times

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "I wrote about this soup two years ago when I first found the recipe in the New York Times. Since then, I've made it many times, making a few tweaks here and there. It's definitely remained a favorite – in fact, it's one of two soups that I constantly go back to. You know, the ones I know I can really nail."

Looks like a lot of work. Also looks fantastic. I've never heard of smoked paprika. Might have to try it. -Rob

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Patsy had a gift coupon or certificate for two free movie passes and I talked her into Inception last night. I owe her the next 8 or 10 movies now. Inception was much more my type of movie than hers. Director Christopher Nolan also did Memento. The two films share two traits. The first one is that they are both utterly bewildering for the first half and Nolan never slows down. Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) leads a team of dream invaders. They insert themselves into peoples' dreams to discover secrets or intentions and there are all sorts of rules and techniques that are explained throughout. Once the rules have been established for the audience, the team embarks on a mission of "inception", thought to be impossible and dangerous. They plan to plant an idea into someone's head without that person's knowledge or consent. Check your ethics at the door, please.

The rest of the film is about that mission. It is very well done and here is where I started to catch up but Nolan still has a few twists up his sleeve. The subject has built up defenses against people doing what Cobb and his team wants to do and Cobb has demons of his own that only Ariadne (Ellen Page), the newest member of the team, has discovered. The other trait Inception shares with Memento is that its worth your time. It's a whale of a ride. Loved the ending.

I offer the only relevant image from the CrabAppleLane Backyard, where the yardwork was canceled this week due to rain. The mirlitons are loving it, though.

CrabAppleLane Backyard - July 18, 2010

Some other tidbits for a CrabAppleLane Sunday:

So far, the oil cap is still holding but no one is calling it a success yet. A delightful and heartbreaking series from the Times Picayune told from a Brown Pelican's point of view. I cannot look at any more real pictures or video of Brown Pelicans covered in oil. It kills me.

Joe Montana's son was arrested for underage drinking and, somehow, that passes for news. Nate Montana is 20. I'm shocked, shocked to learn that underage drinking occurs amongst college students. Come on. Besides the kid and his parents, who else should care about this?

The Saints finally signed a draft pick this past week. Training camp starts next week. What's the hurry?

53 days until football season ...

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star playlist starting with "L" :

1. Long Distance Runaround - Yes - Fragile
2. Love To Love - UFO - Essential UFO
3. Locomotive Breath - Jethro Tull - Aqualung
4. Love, Reign O'er Me - The Who - Quadrophenia [Disc 2]
5. The Load-Out - Jackson Browne - Running On Empty

Quote of the Day

Long distance runaround
Long time waiting to feel the sound
I still remember the dream there
I still remember the time you said goodbye

Yes, Long Distance Runaround

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Christopher Nolan's 'Inception' hits theaters today, and with glowing reviews it's poised to become this summer's intellectual blockbuster -- a mind-bending experience that will dazzle you as much as it will make you scratch your head. (In its review, Entertainment Weekly called the film "brainiacally engaging.")"

"Brainiacally engaging"? See, this is why I can't review movies professionally. I don't have the necessary vocabulary. -Rob

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Congratulations to Spain on their World Cup victory today.

I didn't really comment much on "The Decision" this past week, mainly because I don't care that much. If you don't even know what I'm talking about, I envy you. The Boston Globe's Dan Shaughnessy pretty much sums it up.

I'll only be in one Fantasy Football League this season. Kinda sad to see the league I founded discontinued but it was for the best.

60 days until football season ...

I offer one from the CrabAppleLane backyard. The summer weather pattern has set in. At CrabAppleLane, it goes like this: Blistering heat in the morning, scattered thunderstorms, and then, steamy, blistering heat until dusk. Rinse and repeat. As the sun was peeking in and out of the clouds, I saw one 5" X 5" sunny spot on my backyard trail. It found the little toadstool below. The sun went back behind the clouds about 5 seconds after I took this.

CrabAppleLane Backyard - July 11, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star playlist:

1. California Dreamin' - The Mamas & The Papas - The Best Of The Mamas & The Papas: 20th Century Masters
2. Another Brick In The Wall (Part 2) - Pink Floyd - The Wall [Disc 1]
3. You've Got Another Thing Comin' - Judas Priest - Living After Midnight
4. The Jean Genie - David Bowie - Aladdin Sane
5. Back On The Road Again - REO Speedwagon - Nine Lives

Quote of the Day

Well I've loved you since the day I met you
And I'll love you til the day I die
But we both know the life I'm livin'
And we both know the reason why

REO Speedwagon, Back on the Road Again

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Best photos of the week (50 Photos)"

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Happy Independence Day

Got plans?

We're having jambalaya at CrabAppleLane. It is a Louisiana staple and a favorite here. There are a million recipes and everyone has their own variation. Jambalaya is a poor folks' dish. You brown rice and throw in whatever meat or seafood you have. Traditional jambalaya has sausage, chicken, and shrimp or crawfish. Shrimp is expensive now but it was once cheap in Louisiana before some traitor first shipped some up north and demand started outgrowing supply. :) Just chicken and sausage today ... and then maybe the siesta. :)

About today's BOTD: He and I have a different view on the oil drilling moratorium. I'm not opposed to it. I'm not really for it, either. I just don't think it will do much good. It doesn't work as punishment and it doesn't allow enough time to find scientific, practical solutions.

In unrelated BP news, the QOTD is about the Lockerbie terrorist. 270 lives were lost in that act of terrorism. He was given a "compassionate" release from a Scottish prison and allowed to go home to a hero's welcome in Libya because he only had "3 months to live". Turns out he may live 10 years or more.

I offer two from the CrabAppleLane backyard on a spectacular and very hot Independence Day. The fig trees have found some elements in their environment they like because they have taken off. They have tripled in size in the last month or so. Found the whirligig in a corner of the garage I hadn't seen in a few years. Yes, there was quite a bit of clutter in the garage.

CrabAppleLane Fig Trees - July 4, 2010

CrabAppleLane Whirligig - July 4, 2010

Well, it's been money for muscle
On a .. another whirligig
Money for muscle
And a ... another girl I dig
Another hustle
Just to ... just to make it big
And rock away rock away
Oh rock away rock away
Dire Straits, Tunnel Of Love

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star playlist:

1. Walk The Line - Live - Live At The Paradiso
2. Just What I Needed - The Cars - The Cars
3. Going Home - Theme From 'Local Hero' - Dire Straits - Alchemy: Dire Straits Live [Disc 2]
4. Lick Your Fingers Clean - Jethro Tull - Aqualung
5. Mississippi Queen - Mountain - Climbing!

Quote of the Day

According to an earlier Sunday Times report, a former British justice secretary wrote to his counterpart in Scotland that it was "in the overwhelming interests of the United Kingdom" to make it possible for al-Megrahi to return to Libya.

The letter was written in 2007 during stalled negotiations over a BP oil exploration contract worth billions of dollars.

msnbc.com staff and news service reports

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Part of the rationale for the deepwater drilling moratorium is that we've not identified the cause of the failure. We know that the drilling crew attempted to activate the shear rams of the blowout preventer."

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It turns out that Group C at the World Cup was a disappointment. The US team went down to Ghana yesterday and the UK team was trounced today by Germany. Won't be much English spoken at the World Cup this year. :)

Seen in a documentary last night: Somewhere in the south during World War II, nine black US Marines watched as white Army prison guards escorted German POWs into a restaurant that the Marines were told they couldn't enter. My guess is the restaurant owners probably fancied themselves as patriots, too. Enemy troops welcome, our own troops not? Patriots isn't the first word that comes to mind here.

LSU football and baseball star, Chad Jones, was injured in a horrific automobile crash in New Orleans Friday morning. He is one of two student athletes to play on a National Champion in both baseball and football. The other is his teammate at LSU, Jared Mitchell. The future was really bright for Chad. He was drafted in the 3rd round by the New York Giants to play safety. He's a fantastic athlete. He's a more polished football player at this point but I really thought his career was going to be in baseball. Although he's shown below playing right field, he surprised his teammates and head coach while throwing some pitches one day last year just horsing around. He's a left-handed pitcher that throws very hard (Low 90s). He's very raw and had almost no formal pitching instruction. I thought he was a great prospect. All of that is in jeopardy now. Good Luck, Chad.

Outfielder Chad Jones at Alex Box Stadium

Just for fun, I offer the "Girls with Glasses" below. The sound is great but the person who shot the video fooled around a little too much to suit me. I don't know much about them but I think they're four individual artists that collaborated for one tour. They are fantastic together. Enjoy.

I offer one from the backyard that I took just before the thunderstorm came.

CrabAppleLane Texas Star Hibiscus - June 27, 2010

74 days until football season ...

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star playlist starting with "S" :

1. Sunshine Of Your Love - Cream - Disraeli Gears
2. Skateaway - Dire Straits - Making Movies
3. Sucker Row - Mark Knopfler - Shangri-La
4. Stone Cold Crazy - Queen - Sheer Heart Attack
5. Soldier Of Fortune - Deep Purple - Stormbringer

Quote of the Day

Jones was drafted in the third round by the New York Giants in April, and signed his contract with the team last week. He was also drafted by two Major League Baseball teams, the Houston Astros and the Milwaukee Brewers.

WDSU.com

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "We do a handful of things – create music, paint, dance, watch “The Biggest Loser” – that are not “productive” or “useful.” They’re the things we do out of sheer joy or fear or boredom."

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Happy Father's Day, Dad - Miss you

Just a few tidbits on a hot CrabAppleLane Sunday.

• The CrabAppleLane Award for the kid who had to have had one of the most awful times in school goes to Clement von Franckenstein. Do you think there are any Frankenstein jokes he hasn't heard? He was in a movie we watched yesterday.

• Just say NO to a longer NFL season. There ought to be a "No Tinker" rule in the NFL. They should only be able to tinker with the game, except for issues regarding player safety, at 10 year intervals. Let the game evolve naturally.

• 16381 spam comments on this blog have been blocked since I activated TypePad AntiSpam (June 2008). That's a ridiculous number for an obscure place such as this, don't you think?

• When I close an ad on Facebook as "uninteresting", I get the following response:

  Thanks for your feedback. Over time, this information helps us deliver more relevant ads to you.

  For the record, I don't find that to be a particularly desirable result, either. I suppose I should just ignore them.

• What ever happened to those "Baseball Fever: Catch It" commercials? I used to love those. This play by Minnesota Twins catcher, Joe Mauer, would definitely make a good one. I meant to link that awesome play last week but I forgot. I saw it on a show I've been recording off of the MLB channel called the Plays of the Week. If you love baseball, I highly recommend it. They count down the 100 best plays of the week. It's nothing but clutch hits and defensive gems. That they can find 100 in every week's worth of games is part of baseball's magic

• About today's QOTD: I commented on that when I read about it but I didn't add the great zinger. I have serious issues with the Irsay family for moving that team out of Baltimore and I have issues with the way Bill Polian runs the team but those 53 players deserve better fans than they've got considering what that team has done not only in the last 8-10 years but pretty much the majority of their time in Indianapolis. The Saints would have had more than 11 fans welcoming them home even if they'd have lost the Super Bowl by a hundred. One other thing on that. A Colts fan had this to say in the Indianapolis Star:

  But we were so out-numbered in the stands by these "poor down-troddened'' New Orleans Saints fans that we could not even be heard. It seemed to be that the Saints fans either were given more tickets or given better deals that kept all of us hard-working, middle class true-blue Colts fans home.

  Setting aside the silly notion that ALL Saints fans are "down-troddened'', what she's saying is not an indictment of New Orleans. It's an indictment of Indianapolis. Colts fans had the exact same opportunities for tickets Saints fans had and, still, the "down-troddened" outnumbered the "hard-working, middle class true-blue". It wasn't better deals. It was better fans.

I offer two from the same area of the CrabAppleLane backyard six months apart. Love the contrast between drab January and sunny June. Prefer the weather in drab January, though. It is miserably hot outside.

The Clearing Project - January 2, 2010

CrabAppleLane Clearing Project - June 20, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star playlist starting with "H":

1. Happy Home - Garbage - Bleed Like Me
2. Highway Star - Deep Purple - Machine Head 25th Anniversary Edition [Disc 2]
3. Headlong - Queen - Innuendo
4. Hocus Pocus - Focus - Moving Waves
5. How Many More Times - Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin I

Quote of the Day

While New Orleans residents may never stop celebrating the Saints' Super Bowl victory, Colts fans jumped off the bandwagon quicker than it took Tracy Porter to return a Peyton Manning interception for the final touchdown.

Eleven fans greeted the Colts at Indianapolis International Airport on Monday afternoon.

Chicago Breaking Sports

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "He remotely activated the software, which grabbed screen shots of the thief’s online activities, while the Mac’s built-in camera shot pictures of him. After eight months of activity on the Mac, the software had given police enough information to identify the thief and put the MacBook back in Mr. Sienna’s hands."

8 months? -Rob

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Congrats to the USA World Cup team on a draw? I've tried it a few times now and I am simply not getting why the entire world goes cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs over soccer. Carry on.

ESPN.com has taken a big lead in my search for a new fantasy football website for 2010. Many thanks to my friend, Dave, for helping me get past the obstacle I couldn't get past on my own. It offers most of what I'm looking for and only has a couple of minor drawbacks. I'm about 99% committed.

It's hot at CrabAppleLane today. Love the shade our backyard trees provide. I planted two of them, myself. They're the tow you see here, Bradford Pear in the foreground and Chinese Tallow in the background. They're getting big and starting to block the satellite signal. They're also keeping grass from growing in areas where we always had grass. Not sure what I want to do about it yet. Hate the thought of cutting one or both down only slightly less than I hate the thought of moving the satellite dish. I offer one from the shady, but still very hot, CrabAppleLane backyard.

CrabAppleLane Backyard - June 13, 2010

I just can't do anything but shake my head at the quote from the Blog of the Day.

88 days until football season ...

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Bonaparte - Mark Knopfler - Live From The Ryman
2. A Passage To Bangkok - Rush - 2112
3. Rock The Nation - Montrose - Montrose
4. What Do You Want From Me - Pink Floyd - The Division Bell
5. Runnin' With The Devil - Van Halen - Van Halen

Quote of the Day

You are a murderer of love

Cara, Dana in Real Life

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Jets fans who want season tickets in the lower bowl of the New Meadowlands Stadium are required to buy the seat licenses, which cost as much as $30,000 per ticket."

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I offer two from the CrabAppleLane backyard on this hot and humid first tomato harvest Sunday. That rain water you see in the rain gauge is the weekend's worth but easily could have been the sweat that poured off my nose this afternoon. The larger tomatoes are Creole tomatoes and the smaller ones are Sweet 100 Hybrid Cherry Tomatoes. The first Creoles to ripen are usually medium-sized. The larger ones don't start coming in for another two weeks or so. Size has zero bearing on flavor. Variety and degree of ripeness are all that matters. I have my eye on one of these for supper tonight. Not hard to figure out which one. I like them red RED RED.

CrabAppleLane Tomatoes - June 6, 2010

CrabAppleLane Tomatoes - June 6, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star playlist starting with "B":

1. Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen - A Night At The Opera
2. Bad Company - Bad Company - Bad Company
3. Baby I'm Amazed - Paul McCartney - McCartney
4. Badge - Cream - Goodbye
5. Bron-Y-Aur Stomp - Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin III

Quote of the Day

Ahhhh, caught you smiling at me
That's the way it should be
Like a leaf is to a tree
So fine

Led Zeppelin, Bron-Y-Aur Stomp

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "ELVIS PRESLEY"

Fabulous poster. -Rob

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I was sad to hear about Dennis Hopper yesterday. He had an enormous body of work. There is a little something there for everyone, I suppose. I liked him in most of the movies I saw that had him in it. Like a few other excellent actors, though, I just wish he had done more movies I cared to see. His signature film, Easy Rider, seemed a bit amateurish to me when I finally saw it and I thought one of his other famous movies, Blue Velvet, was awful. He was easily the best thing in both of them so there's that. He was fantastic in Waterworld, True Romance, and Speed ... all CME that I liked. Yes, I liked Waterworld. R.I.P., Dennis.

The LSU Tigers, who stumbled played their way into the SEC Tournament on the last weekend of the regular season, have turned in three excellent games and are playing for the SEC Championship today. Because they're playing in Alabama against Alabama and because both teams have great fans, there figures to be a very large crowd. GEAUX Tigers.

I offer a few from around the house on this hot and muggy CrabAppleLane Sunday and then we're off to a barbecue.

CrabAppleLane - Sunday, May 30, 2010

CrabAppleLane - Sunday, May 30, 2010

CrabAppleLane - Sunday, May 30, 2010

CrabAppleLane - Sunday, May 30, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Hide In Your Shell - Supertramp - The Autobiography Of Supertramp
2. 20th Century Boy - Placebo - Velvet Goldmine
3. Gotta Get To Know You - Foghat - Foghat
4. Heartbreaker [Live] - Grand Funk Railroad - Caught In The Act
5. Never Before - Deep Purple - Machine Head (Roger Glover Remixes) [Disc 2]

About today's QOTD: Welcome to the NFL, rookie.

Quote of the Day

The first-round pick, Florida State cornerback Patrick Robinson, got torched on the first route he defended Thursday

James Varney, The Times-Picayune

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Dennis Hopper, whose portrayals of drug-addled, often deranged misfits in the landmark films “Easy Rider,” “Apocalypse Now” and “Blue Velvet” drew on his early out-of-control experiences as part of a new generation of Hollywood rebel, died at his home in Venice, Calif., on Saturday. He was 74."

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First things first. Only an idiot would spend over an hour in the stifling Bush heat this morning tying off tomato bushes ... and not finish. He's soaked and more than a little irritated. They reacted to the rain last week like Popeye reacts to spinach. They're starting to get bushy and also starting to outgrow their stakes. I'll be picking soon.

CAN NOT WAIT

The LSU Tigers barely made the SEC tournament this year after winning a National Championship last season. They were playing OK early in the season but they disintegrated once SEC play got underway. They lost a few important players from last year's squad but everyone thought they had enough talent and experience to make another deep postseason run. They have been a major disappointment. If they get invited to the NCAA tournament, they'll have to hit the road. I suppose anything can happen in baseball once everyone is 0-0 again but the Tigers look more like the team that will go quietly into the good night than one that will make any noise.

We know New Jersey is going to get the Super Bowl in 2014. The commissioner wants it. There are some fans who want it, too. The new home stadium of the Giants and Jets is an open air stadium. There is a potential for really bad weather for the most important game of the season. The few regular readers here know that I prefer perfect conditions. The only thing the teams should have to contend with is their opponent. I want to remember the game for the onside kick, the interception return, the touchdown pass in the corner of the endzone, the hook and trailer play, etc. I don't want to remember it for the weather. During Super Bowl week, the focus should be on football and football only. That game, in particular, should be about football and football only. This is a bad idea.

On a different note and for the record, I have nothing but contempt for Floyd Landis and anyone who gives him a microphone. He's a cheat, a liar, and a gold digger. His image and reputation cannot be restored so he is trying to take down as many people as he can with him. He's a loser. Go away, Floyd.

Inspired by the iTunes Shuffle, the incomparable Alison Krauss & Union Station. I have the DVD this performance is on. I can't recommend it highly enough. Phenomenal musicians, particularly Jerry Douglas on the dobro.

I offer three images from the CrabAppleLane Backyard on a very hot and humid Sunday in Bush, LA and I'm off for a cool shower and lunch.

CrabAppleLane Hydrangeas - May 23, 2010 - Chose this morning to explode

CrabAppleLane Tomato Garden - May 23, 2010 - Cherry tomatoes

CrabAppleLane Tomato Garden - May 23, 2010 - Starting to outgrow the stakes

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Choctaw Hayride - Alison Krauss & Union Station - Live [Disc 1]
2. Gone, Gone, Gone - Bad Company - Desolation Angels
3. Locked Within the Crystal Ball - Blackmore's Night - Secret Voyage
4. All Mixed Up - The Cars - The Cars
5. Little Green Bag - George Baker Selection - Little Green Bag

Quote of the Day

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "i became a
pro shoplifter

are
invisible."

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The well overdue CrabAppleLane yardwork is done. There are tire tracks from either the tractor or the mower pretty much all over the yard. There are clumps of grass in some places, clumps of pine needles in others. Don't care. After yesterday's fiasco with the lawn and yard equipment, I'm just glad it's over. It's time to fire up the grill. Say goodnight, Gracie.

CrabAppleLane Backyard - May 16, 2010

CrabAppleLane Fig Trees - May 16, 2010

The Clearing Project Area - May 16, 2010

CrabAppleLane Backyard - May 16, 2010

CrabAppleLane Vegetable Garden - May 16, 2010

116 days until football season ...

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star Playlist today:

1. Miss Misery - Nazareth - Hair Of The Dog
2. Lunatic Fringe - Red Rider - As Far As Siam
3. Pigs (Three Different Ones) - Pink Floyd - Animals
4. Heat Of The Moment - Asia - Then & Now
5. The Saints Are Coming - Green Day & U2 - Saints-Falcons Pre-Game Show

Quote of the Day

Living like birds in the magnolia trees
Child on a rooftop
Mother on her knees
Her sign reads, "Please, I am an American"

Bono, Saints-Falcons Pre-Game Show 2006

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "The writer wanted to know what sort of fish a “jack salmon” is. When I was a kid, that’s what we called a walleye. However, an internet search revealed that this name also is applied to various members of the salmon and cod families. Cod, it turns out, also are called “whitefish.” The name “whitefish” is variously applied to whiting, haddock, hake, pollock, sturgeon and ghost sharks, not to mention beluga whales. Don’t get me started on all the fish that go by the name “whiting.”"

Fishing has never been my thing but the wide variety of names various regions have for the same fish has always puzzled me. -Rob

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Happy Anniversary, Patsy
Love,
Rob
Hope the next 29 are as grand as the first

Happy Mother's Day, Mom
Love,
Rob

Did you see Betty White on SNL last night? WOW. Home run. Touch 'em all, Betty.

Speaking of baseball, a CrabAppleLane Tip-O-The-Cap to Jamie Moyer. Pitching a two-hit shutout against a major league baseball team at age 47 is ridiculous.

CrabAppleLane yardwork this weekend postponed due to battery failure. Bummer.

I offer three images from the backyard on this glorious Mother's Day. The first two are images of some of the CrabAppleLane mothers. Like most mothers, they really don't take a day off, either. Mother bluebird got that worm out of the pesticide-free, chemical-fertilizer-free CrabAppleLane vegetable garden. She's tending to at least two babies but it sounds like 10. The downside about the vegetable garden: Chemical fertilizers (Miracle Grow, Ortho) smell a whole lot better than the organic fertilizer I used yesterday. It's wafting a little bit this morning but it was a whole other something last night.

CrabAppleLane Bluebird - May 9, 2010

CrabAppleLane Cardinals - May 9, 2010 - Happy Mother’s Day, THS

CrabAppleLane Vegetable Garden - May 9, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. I Love You Anyway - Tanya Tucker - Soon
2. I Wish That I Could Tell You - Reba McEntire - Read My Mind
3. Hit Me With Your Best Shot - Pat Benatar - The Rolling Stone Women In Rock Collection [Disc 2]
4. Heartbreaker - Pat Benatar - Rock Of The 70's
5. I'm Sensitive - Jewel - Pieces Of You

Quote of the Day

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Pity the poor woman who tried to deny me a library card because I was only 4-years- old. “But she can read,” my mother insisted, making it clear that she would stand there until that magic license to borrow books was mine. Saving face, the librarian made up a new rule: If I could write my name, I could have a card. Mamma had won, as she always did, and I could now officially enter the sacred world of readers."

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As A Moment In Time approaches, it is raining and dreary here at CrabAppleLane. I have a few ideas and am heading out the door now (9:45AM). Below is my 10AM image. I am more than a little disappointed that the rain came down relentlessly while I was outside. I'm disappointed with my choice of subject, which I put in the "Nature and the Environment" category. I had other ideas but the light was no good and my subjects were no good after being pelted with rain for 36 hours straight. I digress. I offer this one from the backyard. It's not much but it's what I have.

CrabAppleLane A Moment In Time submission - May 2, 2010, 10AM

The BOTD mentions the Top 13 Live albums. For fun, I thought I'd do mine. Here they are, in no particular order because that would require entirely too much thought. Had to leave a few off like Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band Live 1975-1985, Grand Funk Live Album from 1970, and probably a few others because 13 is just not enough.

1. Deep Purple - Made in Japan - 1972
2. Wishbone Ash - Live Dates - 1973
3. Pink Floyd - Delicate Sound Of Thunder
4. Dire Straits - Alchemy
5. Dire Straits - On The Night
6. Alison Krauss & Union Station - Live
7. Led Zeppelin - How The West Was Won
8. Foghat Live - 1977
9. UFO - Strangers In The Night
10. Grand Funk Railroad - Caught In The Act
11. Three Dog Night - Captured Live At The Forum
12. Rush - All The World's A Stage
13. Uriah Heep Live - 1973

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Fall Down - Toad the Wet Sprocket - Dulcinea
2. Allison Road - Gin Blossoms - New Miserable Experience
3. Selling the Drama - Live - Throwing Copper
4. Like The Weather - 10,000 Maniacs - MTV Unplugged
5. Good - Better Than Ezra - Deluxe

Quote of the Day

There's indecision when you know you ain't got nothing left

Toad The Wet Sprocket, Fall Down

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "The folks at The Top 13 posted a list this week of their picks for the top 13 "essential live albums." Being a list lover, The Top 13 website has become a recent favorite of mine, even though the thought of assembling my own personal top 13 list of essential live albums sends my head spinning. Where to begin?"

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Happy Birthday, Patsy

Love,
Rob

Also, Happy Anzac Day.

If you're an NBA fan, you've probably heard about the Lakers yesterday but I'm guessing the Saints own Jonathan Goodwin sums it up better in 7 words:

Okc beating snot bubbles out the lakers

I offer one from the backyard today. It rained most of the day yesterday. That did wonders for the vegetable garden. On days of sunshine that follow days of rain, you can almost watch the tomato bushes grow. The rain and sunshine are doing wonders for the lawn, too, but I'm not as wild about that.

CrabAppleLane Backyard - April 25, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Praan - Garry Schyman & Palbasha Siddique - Where The Hell Is Matt?
2. Wasted Sunsets - Deep Purple - Perfect Strangers [Bonus Track]
3. Mother - Pink Floyd - The Wall [Disc 1]
4. Shotgun In My Soul - Cowboy Mouth - Mercyland
5. Not That Funny - Fleetwood Mac - Tusk

About today's QOTD: Yes.

Quote of the Day

At the combine, a Bucs rep reportedly asked Myron Rolle about "deserting" Florida State by attending Oxford for a year. No NFL official would ever accuse a junior who was leaving school early to jump to the NFL of "deserting" his college. But Rolle left football for a year to do nothing but study at a college -- this sort of thing must not be tolerated!

Gregg Easterbrook, ESPN.com

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Here is a beautiful Bengali song sung by the lovely and talented Palbasha Siddiqui. It was used in the making of the dance video "Where the Hell is Matt", featuring Matt Harding dancing around the world with the people of each locale he visited."

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Today's QOTD only touches on what a great game baseball is and it also shows why I prefer National League baseball. I watched parts of that 20-inning game last night between the Cardinals and Mets in St Louis. What I saw was amazing. Of the 50 players on the two rosters, 46 of them played. Position players pitched, pitchers played the field and pinch hit. That doesn't happen much in the American League because there's no need. They have the DH.

There was a bang bang play in the 19th inning at second base that most Card fans are probably complaining about but not this one. I'd use it to illustrate perfect design. It's 90 feet from first to second base. The Card runner was trying to steal second and got a great jump off of the pitcher, the catcher made a great throw ... low and to the first base side of the bag, and the shortstop made a really quick sweeping tag. The perfectly-positioned umpire called the runner out. It was so close that even after 10-12 slow motion replays, I couldn't tell if he was safe or out. The ball, the runner, and the tag converged on the exact same place at the exact same moment. Sports just doesn't get any better than that.

Speaking of sports, the Saints begin their offseason conditioning program tomorrow. 144 days until football season ...

I offer three from the CrabAppleLane Backyard on this sunny Sunday.

CrabAppleLane Lemon Tree - April 18, 2010

CrabAppleLane Backyard - April 18, 2010

Basking in the sun

5 song iTune shuffle from the CrabAppleLane Five Star Playlist today:

1. Cracker Jack Jingle - Unknown - Download
2. The Weight - The Band - The Best Of The Band
3. You Really Got Me - Van Halen - Van Halen
4. On Every Street - Dire Straits - On The Night (LIVE)
5. Gallows Pole - Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin III

Quote of the Day

St. Louis left the bases loaded in the 10th, 12th and 14th and stranded 22 runners, including 14 in extra innings. Molina caught the whole game and went 3 for 9.

Associated Press via ESPN.com

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Hollywood has always abbreviated long titles — Gone With the Wind became known as GWTW, and For Whom the Bell Tolls as FWTBT.

One Jane Russell picture was tentatively titled Tall in the Saddle until an RKO publicist pointed out this trend."

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Spring is here. The first hummingbirds have arrived and just about everything in the yard is in full bloom. Photographic evidence below and also below the jump. Hope it's as spectacular where you are. The area where the pictured azaleas are is overgrown with vines, unwanted tree saplings, weeds, etc and I really need to get out there and get after it while the weather is still bearable. That's one of my projects for today. I'd rather be at the French Quarter Festival, though ... or one of 41859416867456 other places. Enjoy the day.

CrabAppleLane Hummingbird - April 11, 2010

CrabAppleLane Tung Nut Blooms - April 11, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Beethoven: Symphony #9 In D Minor, Op. 125, "Choral" - 4. Presto, Allegro Assai Georg Solti: London Symphony Orchestra - Immortal Beloved Soundtrack
2. Chain Of Fools - The Commitments - The Commitments Soundtrack
3. Crazy Life - Toad The Wet Sprocket - Empire Records Soundtrack
4. Ezekiel 25:17 - Dialogue - Pulp Fiction Soundtrack
5. Under The Boardwalk - Bette Midler - Beaches Soundtrack

Quote of the Day

Anyway now
It don't seem right
He's in there and you're on the outside
Over Pine Ridge to Wounded Knee
Blood on the ground as far as you see
Crazy life

Toad The Wet Sprocket, Crazy Life

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "It is appropriate that I am doing this song today. I really had a “Crazy Life” kinda day, where I ejected only my 2nd coach in my 2 year umpiring career. It takes a lot to get to me, and if you go onto my ejection list, you must’ve done something wrong. Baseball coaches, if you are reading this, do not argue balls and strikes – unless you’re looking for an excuse to go home."

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Happy Easter

What does the Easter Bunny get for making a basket?
Two points just like everyone else.

As the rain came down ruining my outdoor plans and nothing else was on TV, we sat through Spellbound yesterday afternoon. As a rule, I'm not a big fan of old movies. I'm afraid all of Alfred Hitchcock's movies are dated. That's not necessarily a bad thing every time. In good, old movies, I can set aside the film's technological shortcomings (Example: Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman driving in Paris in Casablanca). When the film doesn't hold my interest, those shortcomings become distractions to me (Ingrid Bergman and Gregory Peck skiing down the mountainside in Spellbound). I suppose filmmakers can't concern themselves with what their movie will look like to an audience 50 years or more later but I'd have to think some of Spellbound's scenes looked cheesy even by 1940s standards. Hitchcock's strength was his characters and themes in films like North By Northwest, Vertigo, and Rear Window. Those movies hold up because of it. Spellbound doesn't. During Spellbound, I was looking at the clock.

I love the quote from the BOTD. It made my morning.

I offer one from the CrabAppleLane kitchen garden. We don't use that much basil in our cooking here but Patsy likes to hit the plants with the hose during her morning outings. When she does, it fills the air with a strong and delightful basil scent. Well worth the 99¢.

CrabAppleLane Basil - April 4, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. (Can't You) Trip Like I Do - Filter & The Crystal Method - Spawn Soundtrack
2. Texarkana - R.E.M. - Out Of Time
3. Mean Mistreater - Grand Funk Railroad - Live Album
4. Crossroads - Ry Cooder - Crossroads Soundtrack
5. Helpless Dancer - The Who - Quadrophenia [Disc 1]

Quote of the Day

Albatrosses can live to be 60 or 70 years old and typically mate with the same bird every year, for life. Their “divorce rate,” as biologists term it, is among the lowest of any bird.

Jon Mooallem, New York Times Magazine

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "And after the iPad, what's next for Man to achieve?"

Love that. -Rob

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Glorious Sunday at CrabAppleLane. It's always fantastic when the yardwork is done but the sunshine and cool temps today make it even better. Probably makes you wonder what I'm doing here at the computer. Well ,there was this thing and it's taking a while to fix. It won't deter me much longer, though. I'll be out in the yard this afternoon tilling up the tomato garden and I hope to be on the bike sometime after that. In the meantime, I offer photographic evidence of a spectacular CrabAppleLane Sunday.

CrabAppleLane Crabapple bloom - March 28, 2010

CrabAppleLane Tiller - Ready for today's action - March 28, 2010

CrabAppleLane North-South trail - March 28, 2010

CrabAppleLane Eastern Redbud in full bloom - March 28, 2010

CrabAppleLane tadpoles - March 28, 2010

Once again, inspired by the iTunes shuffle, Spirit of Radio. It is one of my favorite Rush songs.

• Day 9 of CrabAppleLane PC recovery ...
• Less annoyed today than yesterday ...
• CrabAppleLane iTunes library recover & rebuild stands at 2138 songs, 6.7 days, 18.49GB ...
• 165 days until football season ...

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. The Spirit Of Radio - Chronicles [Disc 1] - Rush
2. A Light In The Black - Rising - Rainbow
3. Midnight Confessions - 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: Best Of The Grass Roots - The Grass Roots
4. One Of These Days [Live] - Delicate Sound Of Thunder [Disc 2] - Pink Floyd
5. I'd Love To Change The World - A Space In Time - Alvin Lee (Ten years After)

Quote of the Day

All this machinery making modern music
Can still be open-hearted
Not so coldly charted
It's really just a question of your honesty
Yeah, your honesty

Rush, Spirit of Radio

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "1999: The “Melissa” worm makes a sudden appearance, screwing up specific e-mail programs by clogging them with infected e-mails issuing from the worm. It is the first successful mass-mailing worm."

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I got to spend most of the day yesterday and a good bit of today restoring programs (Including Windows Vista twice), files, and settings after Bit Defender, an anti-virus program, hosed my computer. A faulty update is to blame. It hit a lot of computers and did a lot of damage. See BOTD. I don't use Bit Defender but my anti-virus program, PC Security Shield, uses the Bit Defender engine. Apparently, Bit Defender is the engine of choice for many AV programs. Gee, thanks. It's going to be a long and tedious road back but I don't think I lost anything major, except for my weekend and a little more hair.

I offer one from the CrabAppleLane Backyard this cool Sunday. I'm starting to get concerned about the CrabAppleLane Hummingbird flock. They're later than ever this year. I'm worried they might have missed their bus.

CrabAppleLane Hummingbird Feeder - March 21, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. When A Blind Man Cries - Machine Head 25th Anniversary Edition [Disc 2] - Deep Purple
2. The Goin' On-(w Vince Gill) - From The Reach - Sonny Landreth
3. Shoot To Thrill - AC/DC Live - AC/DC
4. Uberesso - From The Reach - Sonny Landreth
5. Space Truckin' - Machine Head (Roger Glover Remixes) [Disc 2] - Deep Purple

Quote of the Day

Today (morning PST) we had an update for 64-bit systems (available on our servers between 8 AM and 11 30 AM PST) that caused multiple Windows and BitDefender files to be quarantined.

Raluca, Bit Defender

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Just how many people were recently affected by the trojan.fakealert.5 software issue with BitDefender 2010? Right now this is the 11th most popular search term on Google, so many people have obviously been affected by this."

Bush Fire Station No. 2 - March 14, 2010

CrabAppleLane Front Yard - March 14, 2010

Hadn't been on the bike in a while. My legs noticed.

The Hurt Locker is pretty much everything I thought it would be. It's a glimpse into the everyday lives of soldiers doing their jobs in combat. The film follows a team whose job is disarming IEDs in Iraq. One guy disarms the bombs while the other two keep people away and watch for bad guys. Since this is urban warfare, the enemy, including the bomber, himself, could be anywhere ... watching from a window, an alley, or a rooftop. The opening scenes shows the audience what that's about. How those guys function day to day, both on the job and away from the job, when the job demands sharp focus that's fueled by danger, anxiety, fear, and adrenalin, is what this film is about. I don't know how accurate the portrayal is because I can't know. The film, itself, is flawless. Kathryn Bigelow's Academy Awards are well-deserved. This is a great film.

I offer one from the CrabAppleLane Backyard this gorgeous almost spring Sunday. The Bradford Pear trees are in full bloom and are covered with honeybees. Everyone has watched a honeybee go about her business from flower to flower. Ever wonder who is going to harvest the honey she's working on? I wondered that this morning. Not sure why. I must get out in that sunshine and mild temps this afternoon. Enjoy.

CrabAppleLane Bradford Pear and blue sky - March 14, 2010

CrabAppleLane is trying Twitter again but it is already frustrating me.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Hoedown - Béla Fleck & The Flecktones - Live At The Quick
2. I Wanna Go To The Sun - Peter Frampton - Frampton Comes Alive! [Disc 1]
3. Somebody To Roll (Edit) - Nazareth - Play 'N' The Game
4. White Lightning & Wine - Heart - Dreamboat Annie
5. Lady Double Dealer - Deep Purple - Stormbringer

Quote of the Day

Well, the uh, guy over there with the red thing on his head, he threw it at someone.

Contractor Team Leader, The Hurt Locker

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "I figure they did that to please the masses, whatever the reason I feel it was a huge mistake."

Says here that Avatar will win more awards than it should. It will win because of its box office more than its worthiness. Up In The Air is getting lost in all of the hoopla. Patsy and I both thought this was the best movie we saw last year. George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, and Anna Kendrick were all fantastic. On another Oscar-related note, I am dying to see The Hurt Locker.

Pissing matches between networks and cable/satellite carriers are becoming a little too common. Yet another one. I'll bet there is a resolution of sorts before the broadcast.

The Saints lost linebacker Scott Fujita to the Cleveland Browns today. Scott is a good guy who has strong ties in the New Orleans community and was a great ambassador for the city and the team. He was an unrestricted free agent. I'm not surprised that it happened so much but I am surprised that it happened so quickly. He scheduled his visit for today and signed today. Terms haven't been released yet but I'm guessing the Browns threw a lot of money at him. This makes next years Saints-Browns game in the SuperDome a little more interesting. Good Luck, Scott.

I doubt I'll upgrade to Movable Type 5.0+ any time soon or ever. It looks like a major pain. I'm coming up on the 7th anniversary of the CrabAppleLane Blog in a about 3½ weeks and my activities haven't changed much over the years. Growth is not important to me. What I'm using now is fine and will probably serve me until I decide to move on to something else ... hopefully, more productive.

I offer one from the backyard. Spring is almost here.

CrabAppleLane Backyard - March 7, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Homeward Bound [Live] - Simon & Garfunkel - Simon & Garfunkel's Greatest Hits
2. Polk Salad Annie - Tony Joe White - Unknown Album (5/7/2005 4:20:15 PM)
3. Heavy Fuel - Dire Straits - On The Night (LIVE)
4. Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In - The 5th Dimension - AM Gold: The '60s Generation
5. Rudiger - Mark Knopfler - Live From The Ryman

Quote of the Day

When the moon
Is in the 7th house
And Jupiter aligns with Mars
Then Peace will guide the planets
And love will steer the stars
This is the dawning of The Age of Aquarius

The Fifth Dimension, Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "Or maybe it's because of the one I saw the other day wearing a men's suit two sizes too big for her and bad flat hair that made her look like she was trying to look like a man. Or maybe it's the opposite, the ones who look all sexy and pretty and I gotta wonder if men watching and listening to them are watching or listening to them. I don't know, I just have disharmony with the whole women sportscaster thing and then I have shame and disharmony for feeling that way."

We started Irma LaDouce yesterday. I have never seen it but I have known about it forever. We're about halfway through this 2 hour 37 minute film and I don't know if I want to plow through to the end or cut my losses and delete it. I'm sure I have some profound defect when it comes to movies because I have never been a fan of Billy Wilder or Jack Lemmon. They've done a few together but they just don't do much for me. I'm about 100 minutes into Irma and it had better get better soon.. There has been about 15 minutes worth of interesting or funny stuff and the rest has been repetitious filler. Disappointing.

Off to watch some hockey now.

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. 30 Days In The Hole - Humble Pie - A&M Records Classics Vol. 14
2. Hannah - Robin Trower - Essential
3. The Show Must Go On - Queen - Classic Queen
4. Cajun Song - Gin Blossoms - New Miserable Experience
5. Word On A Wing - David Bowie - Station To Station [Bonus Tracks]

I offer a few on this lovely CrabAppleLane Sunday. Not wild about still needing heat here on the last day of February but our cats don't seem to mind.

Priscilla enjoying the stove - February 28, 2010

CrabAppleLane End of Winter Textures - February 28, 2010

The Clearing Project - February 28, 2010

The Clearing Project - February 28, 2010

Quote of the Day

If you live on the road
Well there's a new highway code
You take the urban noise with some Durban Poison
It's gonna lessen your load
30 days in the hole
That's what they give you now
30 days in the hole
Oh, yeah

Humble Pie, 30 Days In The Hole

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "When the debate about great leaders in sports comes about, Mark Messier's name is almost always given. His glare, as seen on the cover to the left, is legendary, and the stories of his leadership make him sound more like a Greek god than a mortal hockey player."

Crawfish are magically scarce and expensive right now in Louisiana. It's because of cold weather, the position of the moon, too much rain, not enough rain, or the price of gasoline. It has nothing whatsoever to do with people's desire to eat seafood during Lent. The seafood industry would never, ever take advantage of religious beliefs. It is sheer coincidence that they have benefited from this consistent phenomenon for 30-40 years in a row.

New Orleans held a jazz funeral yesterday for the "Aints". Good riddance. Now, if they could just do the same with that Who Dat cheer. This Saints fan has always hated it.

Know what a Fibonacci spiral is? Neither did I. Further study may be required.

I have not watched a single event or even a single report on the 2010 Winter Olympics. One might say that because I was born and raised in the south, I have no knowledge of or interest in winter sports. I loved the 1980 USA Hockey team and watched all of their games but that really wasn't about sports. I don't watch the Summer Olympics any more, either, although I did watch the Gold Medal game in basketball last time. The Olympics just don't do it for me any more. My sports world these days is limited to football, baseball, and just a little basketball. In that order.

Speaking of football, the Minnesota Vikings are sending 60 representatives to the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis this week. Geez, do all teams do that? 32 X 60 = 1920 people to look at maybe 200 players? All of that time, energy, and money devoted to evaluate talent and I think they still miss as much or more than they hit.

Speaking of baseball, spring training opens today for most Major League Baseball teams. Not sure why most clubs make the pitchers and catchers report ahead of the rest of the team. I witnessed some pretty horrific fielding and base-running last year. It bothers me a great deal that some players have reached the top of the sport without sound fundamentals. Is it too much to ask that the guy who hits 30 homers also hit the cutoff man once in a while? A little extra practice and instruction wouldn't hurt those guys. Make them report, too. The big question this season, of course, is: Can anyone keep the Yankees from repeating?

Speaking of basketball, the Hornets, our local team, are struggling. With superstar guard Chris Paul, they're fairly ordinary. Without him, they're less. They've been without him for a few weeks now. I haven't kept up with them much this season because there was another sports team in New Orleans having a year that was a lot more exciting.

I offer one from the CrabAppleLane Backyard this dreary Sunday afternoon. Hopefully, things will brighten up around here next weekend when the real yard work starts up.

CrabAppleLane Backyard - February 21, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Cajun Waltz - Sonny Landreth - South Of I-10
2. Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting - Elton John - Greatest Hits 1970-2002 [Disc 1]
3. It Was A Good Time - The Mike Curb Congregation - Greatest Hits
4. 30 Days In The Hole - Humble Pie - A&M Records Classics Vol. 14
5. Paranoid - Black Sabbath - We Sold Our Soul For Rock 'N' Roll

Today's QOTD is from Scott Fujita's diary. What a treat that was to read.

Quote of the Day

I was quite popular with the reporters from Japan. They came an awfully long way to meet the big white guy with the Japanese name.

Scott Fujita, New Orleans Saints Linebacker

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "It's beautiful here at home, but only if you like snow!"

Make sure you click on the picture. Just gorgeous. -Rob

Happy Valentine's Day

Got plans?

There are so many interesting tidbits about Valentine's Day that I thought I might share a few. My favorite tidbit comes courtesy of Wikipedia (From a few years ago. The entry may have been edited since):

In Slovenia, a proverb says that "St Valentine brings the keys of roots," so on February 14, plants and flowers start to grow. Valentine's Day has been celebrated as the day when the first works in the vineyards and on the fields commence. It is also said that birds propose to each other or marry on that day.

I think that last sentence a bit fanciful but who cares? It's harmless fancy and I like it. Another tidbit comes from The History Channel (Also from a few years ago. The entry may have been edited since):

According to one legend, Valentine actually sent the first 'valentine' greeting himself. While in prison, it is believed that Valentine fell in love with a young girl -- who may have been his jailer's daughter -- who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter, which he signed 'From your Valentine,' an expression that is still in use today.

Also a bit fanciful. When I was a kid, people used to route their Valentine cards by mail through Valentine, Nebraska so they'd have a Valentine postmark. I don't remember how to do that and I'm not sure that it can even still be done.

They celebrate it a bit differently in Saudi Arabia. Had to include that because it contains a committee with my all-time favorite title: The Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice.

Watch out for these guys and have a Happy Valentine's Day. Have a red Rose on me

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Dance to the Music - Sly & The Family Stone - Dance to the Music
2. One Vision - Queen - Classic Queen
3. Poor Butterfly [Instrumental] - Sonny Rollins - Working Girl Soundtrack
4. Beethoven: Violin Sonata #9 In A, Op. 47, "Kreutzer" - 1. Adagio Sostenuto, Presto - Pamela Frank, Emanuel Ax - Immortal Beloved Soundtrack
5. Upon A Golden Horse - Page & Plant - Walking Into Clarksdale

The Krewe of Bacchus is a Mardi Gras organization that has had an illustrious list of kings over the years starting with that first year's king, 1969's Danny Kaye. It's a list that includes Bob Hope, Jackie Gleason, and Kirk Douglas. This year's king will receive the warmest reception of them all. All hail King Bacchus 2010, Drew Brees.

I offer three from the backyard. They offer signs of spring, signs of winter, and signs of neglect. I'll be planting tomato bushes in a few weeks.

CrabAppleLane Backyard - February 14, 2010

CrabAppleLane Backyard - February 14, 2010

CrabAppleLane Backyard - February 14, 2010

Quote of the Day

I'm not greedy, I'm not asking for 80 years, just 60 from the time of the diagnosis. So pretty soon that goes down to 59.

Sally Ainley, 20

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "She lives a life of scrumdillydilly and loves to share."

Today has been a long time coming for Saints fans. Dad and I were at that very first Saints game in old Tulane Stadium. It started with a Saints kickoff return for a touchdown but ended in a loss. It was the first of way too many. We knew then it would take time to build a team that could win a championship but no one expected it to take this long. Dad didn't get to see this day. I'll be thinking about him a lot as the day wears on. We went to a lot of games together. Most of them were awful losses but there were a handful of great moments, too. We saw Tom Dempsey kick his 63-yard field goal. We saw Archie Manning's first game for the Saints. We saw a lot of great players for the other side, too. We saw The Fearsome Foursome of the Rams, Gale Sayers and Brian Piccolo of the Bears, Sonny Jurgensen of the Redskins, Fran Tarkenton of the Vikings, and Roger Staubach of the Cowboys just to name a few. Today will be a bittersweet experience for a lot of New Orleanians.

By now, everyone, including Saints players, has heard all about Peyton Manning, the Colts offense, and how the Saints can't stop them. Everyone has also heard how the Colts defense is fast, better than they get credit for, and that they have players who are banged up and may not be full speed. I don't buy that last part. They're going to play, play well, and play "courageously". The conventional wisdom says the Colts will be all business and the Saints will be all emotion and nerves.

What chance do the Saints have? I don't know. If the moment doesn't swallow them, I think they can play with the Colts. The Saints defense figures to have a lot of trouble slowing down the Colts offense but the Colts defense figures to have trouble with the Saints offense, too. It will be all about confidence. To me, the toughest game they will play this year was the one they just played. If stats are your thing, the Vikings were better than the Colts offensively AND defensively. Stats never tell the whole story ... except when they do. Just one more thing:

I offer one for this CrabAppleLane Super Sunday. Boudin has been good luck for me this year.

CrabAppleLane Super Bowl Pre-Game Meal - February 7, 2010

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Big Brother - David Bowie - Diamond Dogs
2. Copycat - The Cranberries - Bury The Hatchet
3. Lazy [Live] - Deep Purple - Made In Japan [Disc 1] [Live]
4. No Matter What - Badfinger -The Very Best Of Badfinger
5. I Dont Want To Gone On Without You - Nazareth - Play 'N' The Game

Quote of the Day

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "This will be a running blog by quarter. Sorry, I won't be paying much attention to the pre-game. Rarely do. But I can still synopsize everything you'll hear:"

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."

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.""

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."

So we saw Sherlock Holmes yesterday. My hope is this film is merely the setup for the next one because that's pretty much all it seemed to be. Director Guy Ritchie was introducing us to Sherlock Holmes and his world as Guy Ritchie sees it or wants it to be. There were two stories running throughout ... one for this movie, one for the next. The one for this film was only barely discernible amongst the stuff being thrown at us. The one for the next film was tantalizing and mysterious. Robert Downey Jr's Holmes is as physical as he is cerebral but we knew that from the trailer and Ritchie's turn-of-the-century London is industrious, gritty, and very dusty. This movie was only OK, a little too frenetic to suit me at times, but introductions are now out of the way and the next installment, assuming there will be one, will determine if Sherlock Holmes is the blockbuster franchise it should be.

Pictured below is an album cover that contains a bootleg album I spent about $5.99 on in 1975 or 1976. That was about $1 more than the record store charged for their regular albums. I blogged about this album a few months ago. I just finally got my USB turntable hooked up where it's usable. More on that another day. Hearing the jabber on this album now some 30+ years later is the only thing I like about it. Click on it to hear it. Bootlegs were ripoffs even in 1976 but more for the consumer than the artist. There's about 30 seconds of music in this clip. The recording quality is not very good. It was probably done by someone who sneaked in an old time cassette recorder. Added to that quality issue is the normal quality issue of a 30+ year old album that's been moved around more than a few times. If you don't recognize the hissing and popping of a vinyl album that's been mostly sitting around, then you're just too young and I envy you a little. :)

The Saints are playing for the top seed in the NFC playoffs today. They're at home against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and are 15pt favorites. I'd like to see them win the game this afternoon like they're 15pt favorites. It would give them a chance to start gearing up for the playoffs in three weeks. They'll be able to rest people who need rest, work people who need work, and give some of their banged-up starters a chance to heal.

I offer one today from the CrabAppleLane backyard. We're gritty and dusty here today, too, and the birds are industrious.

CrabAppleLane Chipping Sparrows - December 27, 2009

5 song iTune shuffle:

1. Whole Lotta Love 5:34 Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin II
2. Scotch & Chocolate 3:08 Nickel Creek Why Should The Fire Die?
3. Under The Boardwalk 4:18 Bette Midler Beaches
4. Sunny Cellophane Skies 2:43 Status Quo STATUS QUO The Collection
5. At The Dance 3:33 Various Artists Closer You Get, The - Soundtrack

Quote of the Day

You've been learnin'
Baby, I been learnin'
All them good times, baby, baby
I've been yearn, yearnin'
Way, way down inside
Honey, you need I
I'm gonna give you my love
I'm gonna give you my love

Led Zeppelin, Whole Lotta Love

Blog of the day is here.

Quote from said blog: "So, I found out yesterday afternoon that a whole bunch of new people are discovering this site on a regular basis. Understand when I tell you that there was an annoying amount of "Whoop Whooping" when I heard. Sometimes it can feel like one is simply pressing the publish button and sending stuff out into the ether and in actual fact NOBODY knows it's out there and NO ONE is reading."

I know that feeling very well. -Rob

Tip of the cap to the Cowboys on a great game last night. They put together an excellent game plan and executed it. It was an inspired effort on their part and their quarterback, Tony Romo, played a great, mistake-free game. Disappointed here in the loss but it's just one and I know the Saints can play better than they did last night. Back to work for our guys. It's a tough loss but I expect them to put this one behind them and move on to the next one. No time to wallow in sorrow.

After the Saints game last night, I was only up for some CME. The new Star Trek fit that bill nicely. For what it's worth, I was done with the whole Star Trek franchise after the last New Generation film (The one where Commander Data died). I thought they had nothing new to offer until I saw the trailer for this one, which looked like a special effects extravaganza, except for the costumes. Nothing like super advanced civilizations that still dress like cave people.

Chris Pine did a pretty nice job with his James T Kirk in a mostly thankless role. William Shatner is so intertwined with that character that anyone else playing him will almost necessarily have to border on parody. Pine walked to that line without going over it and I give him lots of credit for that. There are holes in the story so big you could drive a starship through but I don't think anyone watches a Star Trek movie for the story any more. I surely don't.