Happy Holidays to everyone.
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!
Friday, December 24, 2004
Tuesday, December 14, 2004
This Is Crap
Shutout: EA Sports corners NFL video market
I used to be a Madden junkie. It was the only football game I would play. Until this year. I bought the NFL 2K5 from ESPN and loved it. It is better than Madden. Unfortunately, this will be the last year for this game. Stupid bullshit from EA Sports to eliminate competition. Now what really sucks is that I will have to go back to the $49.99 price to play a good football game. The $19.99 price tag for this game was too great and the gameplay was incredible. EA and Madden couldn't stand the competition. I may not buy another Madden football game because of this now.
EA's motto: Don't join'em. Don't beat'em. Just buy'em.
I used to be a Madden junkie. It was the only football game I would play. Until this year. I bought the NFL 2K5 from ESPN and loved it. It is better than Madden. Unfortunately, this will be the last year for this game. Stupid bullshit from EA Sports to eliminate competition. Now what really sucks is that I will have to go back to the $49.99 price to play a good football game. The $19.99 price tag for this game was too great and the gameplay was incredible. EA and Madden couldn't stand the competition. I may not buy another Madden football game because of this now.
EA's motto: Don't join'em. Don't beat'em. Just buy'em.
Monday, December 13, 2004
Holy Shit!?!?!
Local Woman Diagnosed With 66-Pound Tumor
She had this removed over the weekend.
How did she not know this was causing her pain? Did she not realize that this growth was unnatural?
Glad to see she is ok though.
She had this removed over the weekend.
Grace Radtke said she knew something was wrong, but had no idea it was a 66-pound tumor that was causing her pain.
How did she not know this was causing her pain? Did she not realize that this growth was unnatural?
Glad to see she is ok though.
Friday, December 10, 2004
Reaching a New Low
From the Akron Beacon Journal...not sure if you need to subscribe or not so I posted below.
Rock, Paper, Scissors Comes to TV
FSN Ohio has old game in its grasp
By R.D. Heldenfels
A new show on FSN Ohio has everything you need for a modern sports event.
There's a controversial call, and a slow-motion replay to see if it was right.
The crowd often boos one of the best players because of his questionable tactics.
There's plenty of jargon.
You can bet on the game.
You can drink -- a lot -- while watching. Probably while playing, too.
And there's a fat, loud guy screaming a lot.
OK, that guy is Tom Arnold, who is co-hosting the telecast.
But as you can see, it's now possible to make anything look sort of like a major sport. Even a Rock Paper Scissors competition.
Yes, Rock Paper Scissors -- that game you played as a kid -- has come to television. At 8 tonight (with a replay at 11), FSN Ohio will carry an hour of highlights from the five-hour, 600-player, 2004 RPS International World Championships. The tournament took place in Toronto in October, with a top prize of 10,000 Canadian dollars (about $8,100). You can find out more about it, including the winners, at www.rpschamps.com.
You might think it's impossible to turn two people waving their arms into compelling television.
You would be right.
FSN coverage of the tournament walks the tightrope between straight presentation of matches and mockery. Arnold is crucial to the latter, although the show is pretty much self-mocking.
Some players wore the cheesiest hand-made costumes to be found outside a Star Trek convention, and the quality of the video is almost as high as what you see on public-access programs.
Making this a bit sad is RPS's determination to be seen as a legitimate sport. Players sport colorful names (Bonecrusher, Bloody Knuckles, Supergirl). RPS has its own terminology -- like ``prime,'' referring to a pump of the fist before you throw your rock, paper or scissors -- and strategies like the ``toolbox,'' when you repeatedly throw scissors.
One of the longer segments in the telecast involves a player's repeatedly engaging in an ``illegal prime,'' which antagonizes the crowd but also disorients his opponent.
But I'm sure the people behind RPS think they deserve to be in the big leagues -- to have contract disputes, drug scandals, lockouts and brawls leading to felony charges.
No doubt they looked at the TV poker phenomenon and thought, ``Hey, at least our guys have to stand up when they play!''
So the FSN telecast is less of a test of the people who play the game than of the people who might actually watch it.
I flunked the test. Even knowing who won -- since I had checked out the results on the Internet -- I managed to get through the entire hour of RPS without dozing off or running away.
Of course, I also went through a bad period when I more than once watched an infomercial promising to teach me how to play the piano in a few easy lessons.
Never bought the lessons. Still can't play the piano. But I watched the show. The TV was on, and there it was.
And the people behind RPS can find plenty of evidence that people will watch -- and like -- any sport, no matter how odd.
Poker has indeed become a phenomenon through television, with local stores peddling lots of chips, cards and other gear to holiday shoppers. (Yes, I watch poker, too.)
Before ESPN got rights to major sports, it tried to woo viewers with tractor pulls and darts. ``Ever do replays on darts?'' ESPN's Chris Berman once lamented. ``Ooh, nice wrist action.''
There are still nostalgic tributes to the short-lived XFL on the Internet.
So RPS has scored a hands-down victory just by getting on TV. No matter how long or short its video run, years from now, someone will have a Web site celebrating it.
-----------------
Somebody please tell me this isn't real.
-----------------
Also, a small write up coming about my play with the blogger community on Party Poker earlier this week. Most of them are in Vegas this weekend. Glad they could have a little of my money.
Rock, Paper, Scissors Comes to TV
FSN Ohio has old game in its grasp
By R.D. Heldenfels
A new show on FSN Ohio has everything you need for a modern sports event.
There's a controversial call, and a slow-motion replay to see if it was right.
The crowd often boos one of the best players because of his questionable tactics.
There's plenty of jargon.
You can bet on the game.
You can drink -- a lot -- while watching. Probably while playing, too.
And there's a fat, loud guy screaming a lot.
OK, that guy is Tom Arnold, who is co-hosting the telecast.
But as you can see, it's now possible to make anything look sort of like a major sport. Even a Rock Paper Scissors competition.
Yes, Rock Paper Scissors -- that game you played as a kid -- has come to television. At 8 tonight (with a replay at 11), FSN Ohio will carry an hour of highlights from the five-hour, 600-player, 2004 RPS International World Championships. The tournament took place in Toronto in October, with a top prize of 10,000 Canadian dollars (about $8,100). You can find out more about it, including the winners, at www.rpschamps.com.
You might think it's impossible to turn two people waving their arms into compelling television.
You would be right.
FSN coverage of the tournament walks the tightrope between straight presentation of matches and mockery. Arnold is crucial to the latter, although the show is pretty much self-mocking.
Some players wore the cheesiest hand-made costumes to be found outside a Star Trek convention, and the quality of the video is almost as high as what you see on public-access programs.
Making this a bit sad is RPS's determination to be seen as a legitimate sport. Players sport colorful names (Bonecrusher, Bloody Knuckles, Supergirl). RPS has its own terminology -- like ``prime,'' referring to a pump of the fist before you throw your rock, paper or scissors -- and strategies like the ``toolbox,'' when you repeatedly throw scissors.
One of the longer segments in the telecast involves a player's repeatedly engaging in an ``illegal prime,'' which antagonizes the crowd but also disorients his opponent.
But I'm sure the people behind RPS think they deserve to be in the big leagues -- to have contract disputes, drug scandals, lockouts and brawls leading to felony charges.
No doubt they looked at the TV poker phenomenon and thought, ``Hey, at least our guys have to stand up when they play!''
So the FSN telecast is less of a test of the people who play the game than of the people who might actually watch it.
I flunked the test. Even knowing who won -- since I had checked out the results on the Internet -- I managed to get through the entire hour of RPS without dozing off or running away.
Of course, I also went through a bad period when I more than once watched an infomercial promising to teach me how to play the piano in a few easy lessons.
Never bought the lessons. Still can't play the piano. But I watched the show. The TV was on, and there it was.
And the people behind RPS can find plenty of evidence that people will watch -- and like -- any sport, no matter how odd.
Poker has indeed become a phenomenon through television, with local stores peddling lots of chips, cards and other gear to holiday shoppers. (Yes, I watch poker, too.)
Before ESPN got rights to major sports, it tried to woo viewers with tractor pulls and darts. ``Ever do replays on darts?'' ESPN's Chris Berman once lamented. ``Ooh, nice wrist action.''
There are still nostalgic tributes to the short-lived XFL on the Internet.
So RPS has scored a hands-down victory just by getting on TV. No matter how long or short its video run, years from now, someone will have a Web site celebrating it.
-----------------
Somebody please tell me this isn't real.
-----------------
Also, a small write up coming about my play with the blogger community on Party Poker earlier this week. Most of them are in Vegas this weekend. Glad they could have a little of my money.
Thursday, December 02, 2004
No Really?
While I'm sure that most MLB players aren't on the juice, there are plenty out there who are. Again, this gets to the root of the problem I have with MLB. The MLBPA (Players Association for those following along at home) refuses to do anything. Giambi finally admits to something that we all knew for a long time.
Oh well, guess I will continue to focus on the only professional sport that matters to me...NFL. Thank God College Basketball is on now too!
Oh well, guess I will continue to focus on the only professional sport that matters to me...NFL. Thank God College Basketball is on now too!
Wednesday, December 01, 2004
My Post of Substance - Debatable
Finally Proof That You Are No Better Than Any Other School in the Country
“In a lot of ways this program hasn't been this healthy in a long time.”
“From Sunday through Friday our football program has exceeded all expectations, in every way. But on Saturday, we struggled. We've been up and down and sideways a little bit.”
“We simply have not made the progress on the field that we need to make. Nor have we been able to create the positive momentum necessary in our efforts to return the Notre Dame program to the elite level of the college football world.”
The three quotes above are from Notre Dame Athletic Director Kevin White. With that, thank you Kevin for finally exposing what Notre Dame truly stands for. You are just trying to be a football factory like everyone else, so stop proclaiming the bullshit about academics and history. It is all bullshit.
For anyone that knows me, I absolutely despise Notre Dame and revel in their misery. I take great pride in revving up my Notre Dame friends because they still “believe” that Notre Dame will “Return to Glory.” I’m sorry ND fans, you are sadly mistaken, as long as you continue to play the game you do. You want to sit on your high horse and chant things about class, dignity, institution of higher learning, academics are important for our athletes, and all the other crap. If that were true, then you wouldn’t have fired Ty Willingham. And oh yeah, if football weren’t that important, why in the fuck are you the only school in the country with a national television contract (that forces me to watch your shitty teams) and doesn’t share any bowl money with the other schools? Fuck off!
Fuck – I remember stirring up shit for ND fans when they hired Willingham. Hell, you would have thought he was the next coming of Christ! One good fucking year at Stanford was all he had under his belt. People were predicting National Championships and undefeated seasons. What a bunch of shit. Do you even know what Notre Dame is anymore?
I’m not taking away the history…can’t do that. Notre Dame does have a proud tradition. But face it, that is long over. Now all the talk is on Urban Meyer at Utah. Another great coach out there yes. Is he ready for Notre Dame? Absolutely not. No coach is. Hell you eat your young out there. Three seasons for this guy and he’s done? He didn’t even get one recruiting class through the university you schmucks!
Talking with my friends last night about all the talent that is at Notre Dame and with Urban Meyer, they’ll win a National Title in the next five years. Keep dreaming dumbasses. Face it…Notre Dame will never compete on the level they once stood. They will never compete with the USC’s, Oklahoma’s, Auburn’s, Miami’s, and Texas’ of College Football. Not with the standards you “believe in.”
Go ahead and hire Urban Meyer. At the same time, show what your school “stands for” and reduce your requirements. That is the only way ND will ever compete again.
Courtesy of Ivan Maisel of ESPN.com:
Now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, on to other matters.
Sirius Satellite is Kicking XM's Ass
Sirius Satellite Radio to Air Men’s NCAA Tournament
As if I need any more reason to stop listening to regular radio. Given the landscape of satellite radio, I am leaning more towards Sirius than XM. Could be some of the Howard Stern stuff, but mostly now for the NCAA Tournament and NFL games, maybe a little because of Eminem’s station and Radio Bam (Bam Margera from Viva La Bam on MTV) too. XM took baseball --- ok you can have it. Can’t listen to baseball on the radio anyways. I’m sure Iggy would disagree. Maybe that is my ADD coming out.
I would love to buy Sirius right now, but until we get back to generating two incomes, it will just have to wait.
Bill Simmon's At It Again
There are plenty of great writers out there, but I’m not sure any of the top Bill Simmon’s. He is simply the best. After the BoSox World Series victory, I feared that Bill wouldn’t be able to summon up the demon’s of the past for future stories and essentially, his aura would be no more. Luckily for us, over Thanksgiving, he threw his back out again, and we were treated with a nice write-up of crappy television. Enjoy if you haven’t already read it.
Finally
HALO 2 will receive it’s own post. Sadly, I haven’t been able to play much lately. Quickly though, the graphics are incredible and the gameplay/on-line play is awesome. Doubt I will beat this game anytime soon either. I like to play on the hard levels from the get-go.
I do have much more to say and will prolly finish my rants tomorrow night.
“In a lot of ways this program hasn't been this healthy in a long time.”
“From Sunday through Friday our football program has exceeded all expectations, in every way. But on Saturday, we struggled. We've been up and down and sideways a little bit.”
“We simply have not made the progress on the field that we need to make. Nor have we been able to create the positive momentum necessary in our efforts to return the Notre Dame program to the elite level of the college football world.”
The three quotes above are from Notre Dame Athletic Director Kevin White. With that, thank you Kevin for finally exposing what Notre Dame truly stands for. You are just trying to be a football factory like everyone else, so stop proclaiming the bullshit about academics and history. It is all bullshit.
For anyone that knows me, I absolutely despise Notre Dame and revel in their misery. I take great pride in revving up my Notre Dame friends because they still “believe” that Notre Dame will “Return to Glory.” I’m sorry ND fans, you are sadly mistaken, as long as you continue to play the game you do. You want to sit on your high horse and chant things about class, dignity, institution of higher learning, academics are important for our athletes, and all the other crap. If that were true, then you wouldn’t have fired Ty Willingham. And oh yeah, if football weren’t that important, why in the fuck are you the only school in the country with a national television contract (that forces me to watch your shitty teams) and doesn’t share any bowl money with the other schools? Fuck off!
Fuck – I remember stirring up shit for ND fans when they hired Willingham. Hell, you would have thought he was the next coming of Christ! One good fucking year at Stanford was all he had under his belt. People were predicting National Championships and undefeated seasons. What a bunch of shit. Do you even know what Notre Dame is anymore?
I’m not taking away the history…can’t do that. Notre Dame does have a proud tradition. But face it, that is long over. Now all the talk is on Urban Meyer at Utah. Another great coach out there yes. Is he ready for Notre Dame? Absolutely not. No coach is. Hell you eat your young out there. Three seasons for this guy and he’s done? He didn’t even get one recruiting class through the university you schmucks!
Talking with my friends last night about all the talent that is at Notre Dame and with Urban Meyer, they’ll win a National Title in the next five years. Keep dreaming dumbasses. Face it…Notre Dame will never compete on the level they once stood. They will never compete with the USC’s, Oklahoma’s, Auburn’s, Miami’s, and Texas’ of College Football. Not with the standards you “believe in.”
Go ahead and hire Urban Meyer. At the same time, show what your school “stands for” and reduce your requirements. That is the only way ND will ever compete again.
Courtesy of Ivan Maisel of ESPN.com:
The unique quality of which Notre Dame has been so proud of for so many years -- that it doesn't do things the way the typical “football factory” does -- became a lot less visible around 1:15 ET Tuesday afternoon. Sending a coach on his way three years into a contract is what any school would do. Florida and Stanford come immediately to mind.
Now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, on to other matters.
Sirius Satellite is Kicking XM's Ass
Sirius Satellite Radio to Air Men’s NCAA Tournament
As if I need any more reason to stop listening to regular radio. Given the landscape of satellite radio, I am leaning more towards Sirius than XM. Could be some of the Howard Stern stuff, but mostly now for the NCAA Tournament and NFL games, maybe a little because of Eminem’s station and Radio Bam (Bam Margera from Viva La Bam on MTV) too. XM took baseball --- ok you can have it. Can’t listen to baseball on the radio anyways. I’m sure Iggy would disagree. Maybe that is my ADD coming out.
I would love to buy Sirius right now, but until we get back to generating two incomes, it will just have to wait.
Bill Simmon's At It Again
There are plenty of great writers out there, but I’m not sure any of the top Bill Simmon’s. He is simply the best. After the BoSox World Series victory, I feared that Bill wouldn’t be able to summon up the demon’s of the past for future stories and essentially, his aura would be no more. Luckily for us, over Thanksgiving, he threw his back out again, and we were treated with a nice write-up of crappy television. Enjoy if you haven’t already read it.
Last Tuesday was a new low: The nympho (Sarah) was so horny and frustrated, she ended up seducing one of the gay friends of one of her two gay roommates -- that's right, two -- then complained afterwards because he "wasn't that into it." Throw in a set of male genitals and she would have been right back in that thing. I may have hallucinated this show because of the Percocets, but I'm at least 70 percent sure it actually happened.
(How can MTV save this show? They can't. It's a train wreck. Why hasn't HBO ripped off the idea, thrown seven wannabe actors in a Hollywood Hills house and pushed the nudity/partying/swearing envelope? How many times do I have to keep floating this out there?)
Finally
HALO 2 will receive it’s own post. Sadly, I haven’t been able to play much lately. Quickly though, the graphics are incredible and the gameplay/on-line play is awesome. Doubt I will beat this game anytime soon either. I like to play on the hard levels from the get-go.
I do have much more to say and will prolly finish my rants tomorrow night.
I've Been A Bad Blogger
I realize I haven't posted anything of substance in a while. I will have a big post in another day or two. Will cover plenty of stuff.
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