Sunday reading

The stories and the headlines that caught my eye this past week ...

World & Politics ...
a The Two Obamas
a Dept. of Cheap Shocks
a Iraqi orchestra finds harmony amid war

TV & Entertainment ...
a Silverman calls Spears VMA joke ‘innocuous’
a 'Grey's Anatomy' spinoff 'Private Practice' in need of surgery

Music ...
a The album: Obsolete to whom? ... Um. Not me!
a Amazon takes a stab at iTunes market ... very interesting.
a Will.i.am goes solo for 'Songs About Girls'

Baseball ...
a These guys didn't live up to expectations
a Yost’s Bad Week Leads to the Brewers’ Elimination

Life & Other stuff ...
a Kids must run, not clop along in Crocs
a Long wait at the license bureau: "Jenny, I've Got Your Number" ... I remembered this story from several years and stumbled across it again this week. It's still a good read.
a There Are No Gray Areas

... And finally check out this video. Very cool ...

Images from the weekend

So Tad got hitched this weekend. If that doesn’t illustrate how much we’ve grown in the last 10 years …

Some answers to what are sure to be frequently asked questions in the next few days, as well as a few lingering thoughts and nuggets ( … well, at least the ones that are appropriate for this blog …) from a weekend that was -- to steal a descriptive word I read last week -- fantasta-magical …

The flights were fine. Maybe a little rough on the take-offs. But everything was on time, and we didn’t lose any luggage.

The wedding rehearsal dinner was wonderful, elegant. Excellent eats -- chicken, mashed potatoes, noodles, salad. Great conversation … Lots of emotion.

Afterward, back at the accommodations, we watched the news and kept our eyes peeled for the Brewers and Cubs scores. The Brewers lost; the Cubs won. And just like that it was over. The Cubs had won the division …

Then we watched Paris on the Letterman show (watch the video here). My oh my … Could she have looked more perturbed and embarrassed with Dave!? It was so awkward it was funny. It was Dave being Dave and poking fun at Paris after all …

Get this dynamic: There were seven groomsmen in the wedding, who included a writer/journalist (me), a pastor, a doctor, an assistant district attorney and a police officer who’s done three tours in Iraq. It had all the makings of a great TV show, right!? …

Speaking of the groomsmen. Tad was making phone calls to all of us about 2:30 Thursday afternoon, asking about our middle names and whether we rooted for KU or K-State … It wasn't surprising that he had put off another thing to the last minute. But Tad. Seriously, buddy. You know us better than that … The payoff: Each of us received cuff links with our initials engraved and Titleist golf hats with the KU or K-State emblems (depending on who you root for …) emblazoned on their sides … nice.

As we waited Saturday afternoon for the ceremony to start, we had a TV showing the K-State-Texas game … Hey, for this group, that was a big game. And after the ceremony, there were scores being checked on cell phones every five minutes … K-State won, and that made the beer taste even sweeter ...

The ceremony was beautiful. And everything went off without a hitch …

Except for the part that included the wedding party being picked up from the church by a trolley. The trolley had broken down, so our 18-person wedding party smashed into the three cars we had available and hit the town for pictures … A replacement trolley eventually picked us up at The Nelson, and we would have a jolly and bubbly good time riding it to the reception hall, if you know what I mean …


The new couple shared their first dance to Ben Folds’ “The Luckiest” -- a smart and wonderful choice that spawned an amusing conversation about first dances and reception music … The wedding party was introduced to Van Halen’s “Right Now” (excellent choice! … ) … I got props when I mentioned Kates and I first danced to Edwin McCain’s “I’ll Be,” as did my cousin who recently danced with his new bride to Queen’s “Best Friend.” Also thrown out was Dave Matthews’ “Steady As We Go.” … And we agreed Frank Sinatra is way overplayed at weddings …

…And oh, the baby talk. There was a whole lot of it, and I’ll leave it at that … It was fun stuff.

The best thing about the weekend? Not only being a part of the new couple’s lives and seeing them so happy together, but looking around the table Saturday night and seeing the faces of the people with whom I've experienced so much. And being awestruck that 10 years later, with hundreds of miles separating our daily routines, we can still laugh and dance (... man, we had a good time dancing ...) and talk as though nothing's changed. We’re all happy, we all remain dear and close to each other … and I take an awful lot of pride in that. Even better, now our significant others have joined the fold and it’s almost as if they’ve been there for the last 10 years too …

Flying. And going down fast.

I’m on a plane, flying somewhere over Illinois, and guzzling a Pepsi -- something I’m now regretting because the crew gives you like five minutes to enjoy your beverage before the plane starts its dissent and they order you to put everything upright …

We’re on our way to Kansas City for the weekend. Tad’s finally settling down and getting married.

I’m thumbing through this week’s Sports Illustrated and the cover story about the faces of this year’s postseason ...

Man, will I be making runs to check the baseball scores at the bar room TV this weekend, or what!?

Forget the American League. It’s over. Done. All my teams got in -- minus the Tigers. Dang Yankees.

But the National League -- geez! All three division titles are virtually any team’s to win. The analysts I was listening to last night drove the point home even further by pointing out that all the NL teams could win more than 70 games this year, and few will reach the 90 loss mark. That's unheard of. The teams are so evenly balanced that no team will win or lose 100 games this year …

Exciting? Uh, yeah! Love the balance.

Last night, the Phillies caught the A-fadin’ Mets (They’re on my short list of teams I enjoy rooting against -- behind the Yankees and Devil Rays. Sorry Matt.)

Then there’s the matter of those Brewers and Cubs. And it hasn’t been good for my heart.

In all honesty, I thought the Brewers were done when they lost two games they should’ve won and left Atlanta on Sunday.

Yet, most of the analysts I heard and read pointed to the schedule, which had the Brewers returning home, where they had one of the best records in baseball, and the Cubs going on the road to play tough teams in the Marlins and Reds …

So I held hope.

Kates and our friend Tiffany and I went to Monday’s series opener against St. Louis. The Brewers had cut ticket prices in half to try filling the stadium (genius!) and slapped a “Raise the Roof!” tag on the series … It was a wild game, and the crowd was electric. Prince hit his 48th home run of the season, and Ryan Braun hit a bomb to left field for his 33rd. The Brewers dominated, and picked up a half game on the idle Cubs. Things were looking good.

Tuesday. We watched from our living room and it was like watching a rerun of Monday’s game. The Brewers dominated again. Prince hit Nos. 49 and 50. The Cubs lost, and now the Brewers were just two games back with five to play.

Then Wednesday came. Good lord. I still have a bad taste in my mouth from that one … The Brewers had left something like nine runners on base in first four innings and were down 3-2 in the eighth inning. Then Seth McClung throws at Pujols, which gets McClung and Ned Yost tossed -- and suspended. The Cardinals nailed Prince earlier in the game, and both teams were warned. But I find it hard to believe that any pitcher or manager in his right mind would risk throwing at a batter when your team is one run behind and this deep in a pennant race. Then again, that pitch flew at Pujols head like a magnet; McClung couldn’t have been that lucky. I’m thinking Tony LaRussa knew exactly what he was doing by throwing at Prince first and manipulating the game so that the Brewers couldn’t retaliate without consequence … Then Turnbow comes in and gives up four runs. Don’t even get me started on Turnbow’s woes …

Then last night's game, too. Ugh … I got home from work in time to watch the Cubs manage a come back and then fall to the Marlins again. I still held hope, especially while I drove to a meeting and listened to the pregame on the radio -- Tony Gwynn, who was broadcasting the San Diego side of the Brewers-Padres matchup, said on paper the series was Milwaukee's to win. (It was also amusing to listen to Gwynn talk about his enjoyment with watching his son play for the contending Brewers this year, and his commitment to removing his headset whenever his son steps to the plate ... ) ... But the Brewers failed again to grasp any opportunities to get ahead ...

A Brewers loss and a Cubs win tonight, and it's all over ...

Ay yay yay.

A look back at the live action ...
April 11: Angels-Indians ... at Miller Park!
April 22: Brewers-Astros
May 8: Cubs-Pirates ... and extra innings during the train ride home.
June 5: Brewers-Cubs ... at Wrigley Field North.
June 16: Cubs-Padres ... The weekend the Cubs finally got hot, literally.
July 21: Brewers-Giants ... The Bonds watch.
Aug. 10: Royals-Blue Jays
Aug. 14: Brewers-Cardinals ... with the legends.
Aug. 17: Cubs-Cardinals ... AND Brewers-Reds.
Sept. 2: Cubs-Astros
Sept. 5: Brewers-Astros
... and Monday night, Sept. 25.

No. 756 going into Hall with asterisk

This is awesome ...

No. 756 going into Hall with an asterisk

... And seriously. If I have to watch Sportscenter run one more montage of Bonds' most memorable home runs, I'm gonna ...

Hide and Freak

... So I skipped out on Sunday night TV shows last night ...

And watched "Hide and Seek" instead.

That's one freaked-out movie. And I liked it.

Robert De Niro is scary good in the film. It's always good to see Elisabeth Shue. And the wonder that is Dakota has turned out yet another good one.

Now I want to watch it again just to see if I can pick up more of the clues that lead to ol' Charlie's big reveal ...

A little fall ball

… So today I put on the ol’ baseball uniform one more time.

And boy was it worth it.

C’mon you knew I was going to find a way to play some fall ball even after I said I wasn’t interested …

We took our Cubs show on the road today to Milwaukee to play the Angels of that city's league.

First, let’s look at the factors as we headed into this game…
1) None of us had picked up a bat since the last time we played nearly a month ago … and I had been slumping.
2) There were only eight of us today … which meant we would have to grab a player from the other team.
3) We were taking on a much more experienced team in a much more established league.
4) The field we were playing on had a sandbox for an infield.
5) Our starting pitcher, Jimmy, was still rehabbing the ACL he tore early in the season.
6) It seemed like there were more factors playing into today’s game, but I can’t think of them … You get the idea, though -- the odds weren't in our favor.

After arriving at the field, we warmed up, took some quick batting practice and got ready to play. I was penciled into play shortstop and bat in the sixth spot …

For the first four innings we battled. We had base runners, they had base runners. But neither team was getting a run across. A good sign for our team, though, was that Jimmy was not only throwing strikes, he was well above his game …

My first at-bat: I walked on five pitches in the second inning, then got moved over to second on the next batter’s single. But that’s where I’d end up …

My second at-bat: I got a pitch to drive … and drive it I did, roping a pitch that was low and away to the gap in right center field. It bounced off the fence and I was well on my way to second base with a stand-up double. And I’d like to think I could’ve ended up at third had I not been running in the quicksand that was today’s infield … A few pitches later, though, I got the hit-and-run sign and broke for third, only to watch the batter line out to the shortstop; he threw to second base and I had been doubled up to end the inning. We were still tied 0-0.

My third at bat: Finally in the fifth we got the first run on the board and took a 1-0 lead. That same inning I came up again and got jammed on a 1-1 pitch but managed to turn it around for a bloop single into centerfield. I’d knocked in the runner on third base, and now we were up 2-0 … I stole second, and then stole third, and then scored. We finished the inning with a 3-0 lead.

My fourth at bat: I led off the seventh inning and hit a hard, high chopper down the third base line. It skipped into the outfield, and I was on first base once more. I promptly stole second ( … by this time, I was starting to get the better of that quicksand infield), and when I popped up from my slide, the second baseman looks at me and scowls, “You again!” … “Yep!” I answered with a grin. Then I got moved over to third on a base hit and scored. We finished the inning ahead 4-0.

My fifth at-bat: I walked on four pitches to lead off the eighth … and then got put out at second base on the front end of a double play attempt. I say attempt because the runner beat the throw at first base … But we ended the inning with a 7-0 lead.

My sixth at-bat: I came up in the top of the ninth with two outs and runners on second and third … I took the first pitch for a called strike, though I thought it was low and outside. Then the pitcher got me swinging at a nasty curve for strike two and a high fastball for strike three. I flipped my bat and turned to walk back to the dugout, only to hear a guy in the opposing dugout yell, “All right! We finally got No. 8!” … That’s my number. Guess I earned their respect. I'd ended the day 3-for-4 with two walks, an RBI, two runs scored and stole three bases …

So we rolled into the bottom of the ninth with Jimmy still on the mound and trying to nail down the shutout. He’d only given up like three hits, and struck out about eight or nine. As a team, we’d been playing as relaxed and comfortably as we had all season long …

We’d been playing flawless defense, too. And I was taking a lot of pride in the fact I hadn’t let a ball get by me all day at shortstop -- I snared a hot ground ball to start a double play, caught a line drive that was hit hard to my right side and tracked down a pop fly that was hit over my head in shallow left-center.

But in the bottom of the ninth it started to unravel …

Jimmy walked the first batter …

The next batter hit a ground ball straight up the middle. Both Mikey (the second baseman) and I charged after it, Mikey made the grab behind second base, and I was backing him up, leaving no one to cover second base and start the double play. Doh! …

Another single and the bases were loaded. Then, another ball up to the middle -- this time Mikey was covering the bag, but the ball skipped high over my outstretched glove. Two runs scored and we’ve still got runners on the corners, with no outs …

The next batter hits a ball that drops in shallow right field between Mikey and the right fielder. The right fielder made a heads-up play by flinging the ball into me and I got one of the runner on a force-out at second base, but one more run scored. Now we’ve got a runner on first base with one out, the score is 7-3, and Jimmy’s losing his cool, which prompts a settle-down-and-focus meeting with the infielders on the mound …

They managed to push one more run across the plate, but Jimmy finally did settle down, got back to striking out batters, and we hung on for a gratifying 7-4 win.

Now, our season is officially over. Nice way to end it.

(For our regular season, go here)

Sunday reading

The headlines and stories that caught my eye this past week ...

Politics ... and the Internet ...
a On Wikipedia, Debating 2008 Hopefuls' Every Facet

Sports ...
a Cubs would be about ready to clinch had they not lost 10 killer games
a NFL Spy Games: The Biggest Loser
a CSN ignores Cuban, but Lee likes his style
aRecalling king of Cub fans: Mike Royko

TV ...
a How do you spell Emmy miscue? S-P-A-D-E-R

Other stuff ...
a Students Can Rest Easy Now: Demand Has Colleges Ditching Twin Beds for Doubles
a A family slows the pace for a tour of London
a Logo gets star treatment

Not ready for primetime

It can’t start. I’m not ready yet.

For the fall TV season that is.

There’s still too much good baseball left, dang it.

( … and it’s not looking good for the Brewers right now, folks. Stayed up and watched ‘em blow an extra innings affair against the Astros on Wednesday night. Then Kates and I hooped and hollered watching the come-from-behind thriller on Friday night. And we endured the heartbreaker yesterday during which they came from behind once again and went up in the top of the 10th on a Corey Hart home run, only to see the Braves tie it up again in the bottom of the 10th on a Scott Thorman home run, and then we watched the Brewers lose it in the bottom of the 11th …All the while, the Cubs have kept on winning, and as of this evening, the Cubs are 3.5 games up with six left to play … Ah well. The Red Sox are in. The Angels are in. And at least all is well in Packer country … )

On Wednesday night, Kates and I caught the premiere of “Back to You.” ... Not bad. It is a change from Fox’s usual style of programming, and Patricia Heaton's and Kelsey Grammer's and Fred Willard's comedic chops will be enough to keep me watching for awhile … Though I’m not betting on this one. Frankly, it reminds me too much of “Good Morning, Miami.” And we all know how long that one lasted ... On the other hand (and I'm disagreeing on this one with my cohorts who also watched the show) there could be some strong possibilities with Kelly Carr's daughter Gracie and the idea that Chuck Darling is her father. It could be fun to watch how Darling adapts to the news, which Carr broke to him at the end of the premiere, and then how the parents raise her while serving as co-anchors of the Pittsburgh news station.

Then on Thursday night, only because we couldn’t find anything else to watch for the time, Kates and I ran through the DVR and watched the “Grey’s Anatomy” Addison Montgomery lovefest that originally aired on Wednesday night … Seriously. That thing featured everyone on the People Magazine staff, including the janitor, (and probably paid them handsomely) gushing about how strong and smart and vulnerable and dignified Addison is …. And blah, blah blah … bleh!

Whatever. I’m boycotting “Private Practice.” (see why here.) I wish I could predict that it will barely last a season, but the reality is that Grey's has such a strong fan base and PP has such a cast of TV stars that it will probably stick around. And before we know it Grey's is going to be ABC's version of "CSI" ... bleh!

Still, the premiere of "Survivor" remains on our DVR, unwatched. And tonight “Desperate Housewives” and “Brothers & Sisters” come back.

I’m not ready yet.

But here’s what I do plan to watch during what looks like an otherwise disappointing year for new shows …

a Pushing Daisies ... This reviewer, and the fact it has Kristin Chenoweth was enough to pique my interest ...

"... Chenoweth calls this show "fantasmagorical," and when you see it, you’ll know precisely what she means. Pushing Daisies is bizarre and strange and wonderful and vivid and has all the makings of a great new TV love affair."

a Samantha Who? ... Same reviewer.

a Cavemen ... which I'll bet doesn't make it past a third or fourth week. But, hey, the commercials make me laugh ...

Good TV reads ...
a CBS aims to be the talk of the Web
a The joke's on sitcoms as dramas get the laughs

Movie night

Some Applebee's takeout. Another heart-wrenching Brewers loss and Kates and settled down last night to watch some movies ...

We started with Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest ... Um, yeah. Not nearly as fun as watching the first one. Johnny Depp was just as comical (particularly HA-larious was the bit with Capt. Jack becoming a native god on Pelegosto), but the plot soon got tiresome with almost too many details to guage. Kates and I were all but tuned out after the first hour ... And that whole Kraken thing? ... I hate watching movies with special effects that are so fake-looking and laughable it's gross.

Finally, Pirates ground to a halt, and we flipped through the channels ... and landed on TBS for its 1 millionth and one showing of "Serendipity" ... Yes, Serendipity, a movie that Kates and I saw in the theater. One of those that I might shamelessly consider one of the most charming movies of all time. A movie that we willingly watch over and over again. A movie for which we own (and adore) the soundtrack. It's one of those movies that tends to make us well up at the end ... And so we watched it again.

And finally ... we watched the "The Wedding Date," which we'd caught on the DVR earlier in the day ... Not exceptional; your typical cute little chick flick, starring Dermot Mulroney and Debra Messing -- who by the way I want to add to my list of famous people I'd like to have lunch with ... And the best line: After Messing, playing Kat, tears down an Air Supply poster to hide her apparent admiration for the '80s pop duo, she mutters under her breath, "Everyone knows their greatest hits but some of their lesser-known ballads are surprisingly poignant." ... nice!

Onion reads

Peyton Manning Apologizes For Cheating One Time When He Was 5

TERRE HAUTE, IN—Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning was barely able to compose himself as he apologized to his family, friends,...

Roger Clemens Officially Earns His $20 Million

NEW YORK—After a half-season plagued by inconsistency, injury, and general disappointment, Roger Clemens finally earned the almost $20...

Barry Zito: 'My Dad Says I Shouldn't Throw Curveballs Anymore'

SAN FRANCISCO—In an interview concerning his upcoming start against the Nationals, San Francisco Giants ace Barry Zito announced that he...

Best "Out of Office" Automatic e-mail Replies

This was sent to me today by a cohort -- via e-mail ...

It's a HA-larious collection of automatic "out-of-the-office" replies ...

1. I am currently out at a job interview and will reply to you if I fail to get the position. Please be prepared for my mood.

2. You are receiving this automatic notification because I am out of the office. If I was in, chances are you wouldn't have received anything at all.

3. Sorry to have missed you, but I am at the doctor's having my brain and heart removed so I can be promoted to our management team.

4. I will be unable to delete all the emails you send me until I return from vacation. Please be patient, and your mail will be deleted in the order it was received.

5. Thank you for your email. Your credit card has been charged $5.99 for the first 10 words and $1.99 for each additional word in your message.

6. The e-mail server is unable to verify your server connection and is unable to deliver this message. Please restart your computer and try sending again. (The beauty of this is that when you return, you can see how many in-duh-viduals did this over and over.)

7. Thank you for your message, which has been added to a queuing system.You are currently in 352nd place, and can expect to receive a reply inapproximately 19 weeks.

8. Hi, I'm thinking about what you've just sent me. Please wait by your PC for my response.

9. I've run away to join a different circus.

10. I will be out of the office for the next 2 weeks for medical reasons. When I return, please refer to me as 'Lucille' instead of Steve.

Streaming my pop culture consciousness ...

Don't mind me. Just rambling about some of the other things I've been doing / watching / listening to the last few weeks in between all the pennant races ...

(What do you think I'm doing as a I write this post? Watching the Brewers, of course ... I'd be watching the Cubs too, but that game's on ESPN, which means it gets blocked out in our region. Idiot cable ... By the way, the Cubs and Brewers are all tied up atop the NL Central heading into tonight. The Brewers just went up 2-0 on homer No. 47 from Prince, and last I checked the Cubs were scoreless ... There's still a solid week left, but judging by the last few nights, I'm really liking the Brewers chances right now ... )

... So I was holding out as long as I could, but over the weekend Hotmail made me change over to Windows Live. Me and everyone else I know who uses it agrees: We hate it ... but then again -- we agree on this too -- we've hated it every time Hotmail makes a change, only to wind up getting so attached to it that it's inevitable we'll hate the next change ...

* * *

... With the fall TV season starting up, Kates and I have been pressing ourselves to clean up all the movies that have stacked up on our DVR over the summer and on our entertainment cabinet ... Most of them have been put off for a good reason -- we weren't that interested in seeing them, but we kept hearing good things about them and there comes a time when you feel like you have to see them whether you want to or not ...

And so we watched ...

Pirates of the Caribbean? Even with all the hype surrounding the third installment this summer, never really interested in seeing it ... But it was pretty darn entertaining. Funny. And I've enjoyed the last few Johnny Depp movies I've seen so much that it's getting to a point where I'll watch just about anything he's appearing in ...

Spiderman 2? Again, with all the hype surrounding a third installment this summer, I couldn't care less about this movie -- because I thought the first one was horrible (and I saw it in the theater ... ) ... Turned out, I liked Spiderman 2 enough to actually want to see Spiderman 3. I still thought the barage of computer graphics were so fake-looking and poor I laughed, but the action (and watching Kirstin Dunst) kept me interested ...

The Cat in the Hat. Ok, so I've never heard good things about this movie. But c'mon, it's got Mike Myers, Dakota Fanning and Spencer Breslin, and it's based on a Dr. Seuss classic. How bad can it be right!? ... Started watching it, and was happy to see Alec Baldwin, Kelly Preston and Sean Hayes too. Thought it wasn't too bad, but then again, it was being held up by Dakota, as usual, stealing the opening scenes as the primped and proper Sally, poking around on her palm pilot and making her to-do list ... Then Myers broke in as the cat, and the movie just started going from bad to worse. Kates and I fell asleep and woke up after the movie was long over. And I don't care to go back and watch what we missed.

And last night, I stayed up after the baseball games to watch Dodgeball. Yeah ... I'm going to liken this one to my experience watching Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle: A movie that starts out so silly and juvenile you want to turn it off ... but you can't keep from getting attached to the characters, and by the last 30 minutes you're rooting for them and you're glad you stayed on the ride ...


* * *

... I've gotten hooked on watching FX's "It's Always Sunny in Phladelphia." I'd never heard of the show until I ran across a preview for the premiere a couple weeks ago. So I tuned in, and enjoyed it ... In the premiere you had a guy infiltrating a group of enviro-hippies and then sleeping with their leader's girlfriend out of revenge. Two guys (one of them is Danny DeVito's character) become so addicted to digging through trash bins they turn into bums and don't realize it. And a couple ends up painting a baby (which they found in a Dumpster and named D.B. for Dumpster Baby) brown so he might appear Latino and have better odds of appearing in a commercial ... It's good old-fashioned silliness -- almost like the kind you'd find at Second City, or any other improv comedy club. It's funny stuff.

* * *

... I recently got a hold of Kelly Clarkson's new album. Right now, I can hardly stand to listen to it; it's too dark ... But I'm open to the possibility it could grow on me ...

... In the meantime, I've really been getting into The New Pornographers, Feist and Mates of State (Lawrence, Kan., baby!) -- who, by the way, all appeared together in a smashing performance on Letterman a couple weeks ago ... I've been clicking on "Fraud in the '80s" almost every time I've turned on my iPod for the last month ... I'm mesmerized by Kori Gardner's organ playing and the duo's punchy pop harmonies ... Check out the video ...

Hey, let's go to a game!

(Updated 08.22.210)

... So my good friend Matt -- and fellow baseball fanatic -- posed this question to me ...

What’s the best “Hey, let’s decide to go to a game
at the last minute, why not” payoff you had?

Here's what I'd tell him ...

No. 1: My double-header during the 2007 season ... The day I already had tickets to a Friday day game at Wrigley and then got tickets for that night's Brewers game too. Two games, two stadiums and four teams in one day.

No. 2: Aug. 21, 2010 ... The night we caught two extra inning games for $9 and watched baseball until past 1 in the morning.

No. 3: June 29, 1996 ... My family is vacationing in Colorado and we spend a couple nights in Denver. My 17th birthday was one night earlier and the Dodgers are in town to play the Rockies, and that's a big rivalry in Denver's eyes. We walk down to the stadium and walk around it, marveling at the complex. But my parents nix going to the game that night ...

But the next day ... We return to the stadium for some more investigation. We learn Coors Field has a general admission section high up in center field, called The Rock Pile. Tickets are $5 and the clerk we talk to explains the lines sometimes stretch for blocks, especially with the Dodgers in town; "You'd better get in line early," she says. It's about noon ...

I think we went to get some lunch and came back around 3. Sure enough, the line was getting long and my parents tell me, "If you want tickets, you're going to have to stand in line to get them."

"Fine," I say. They bring me a copy of the latest Sports Illustrated and go back to the hotel for some swimming. I proceed to wait in line for two hours with complete strangers ...

By the time my parents come back and the gates open at 5:30, the line stretches as far as you can see. And I'm in the front quarter of it... We get our four tickets for seats in The Rock Pile and enter ...

It turned out to be one of the most exciting games I may ever witness live. The Dodgers wailed on the Rockies. Mike Piazza hit three home runs, including a grand slam. And Eric Karros hit a home run of his own on the second pitch after that grand slam. There were nine home runs hit in the game, including three by the Rockies, which at the time, I think, was a National League record ...

Heading into the eighth inning, the Dodgers were up 13-0 -- and then the Rockies came back! As the Rockies mounted their come back, it was the loudest, most raucous crowd in which I've ever been involved. And I'll never forget the scoreboard flashing "Make some noise!"

The Rockies scored eight in the bottom of the eighth and two in the bottom of the ninth. But the Dodgers finally shut the door to win the game, 13-10.

A couple other circumstances surrounding the game: Bill Russell was the interim manager because Tommy Lasorda was hospitalized after suffering a heart attack ... Rockies manager Don Baylor was thrown out of the game in the top of the eighth for arguing a pitch ... Mike Piazza, just three years removed from his Rookie of the Year season, was leading the league with a .352 average ... The Dogers possessed a talented lineup at that time -- including Piazza, Karros, Raul Mondesi, Todd Hollandsworth, Greg Gagne and Delino DeShields -- that went on to, unfortunately, get swept out of the division lead by the Padres and lost the first round of the playoffs ... Then a phenom, Hideo Nomo pitched the next day, and the entire weekend series was a run-scoring, record-breaking bonanza that I remember being all the rage on Sportscenter that Monday.

No. 4: Sept. 2, 2003 ... The Cardinals came into Wrigley for a Friday afternoon, a makeup of an earlier rainout. ... Just a few days earlier, I bought a single ticket and got a seat several rows behind the third base dugout ...

The Cardinals took an early 2-0 lead with help from a solo home run by Jim Edmonds. Then the Cubs tied it in the bottom of the fifth...

Both teams battled like the playoff race they were in. There were several great defensive plays, including the spectacular game-saving catch catch Orlando Palmeiro made in the bottom of the ninth. Ramon Martinez had hit a ball to the wall with the bases loaded, Palmeiro leaped against the vines and snatched it to send the game to extra innings ...

It was a quintessential afternoon at Wrigley. The sun was shining, and I was keeping score, sitting next to two elderly ladies who were equally enthralled with the game. Every time it looked like the Cubs or the Cardinals were finally going to break the tie -- only to see the scoring chance fail -- a bunch of us looked at each other, rolled our eyes and sighed. I'll never forget the rush to get bathroom breaks between innings and fans trying to get back to their seats before missing anything. It was a marathon of a game ...

Finally, in the 15th inning, Sammy Sosa stepped to the plate -- when Cubs fans still adored him -- and hit a home run into the left field bleachers to give the Cubs a 4-2 win ...

Those Cubs included Aramis Ramirez and Kenny Lofton (coming over in a mideason trade), and Eric Karros (then in the twilight of his career) ... They, of course, won the NL Central and rode into the postseason only to have their dreams shattered by Steve Bartman, future Cubs Juan Pierre, Derrek Lee, that rookie phenom Dontrelle Willis and the Florida Marlins ...

No. 5: June 11, 2005 ... Cubs-Red Sox ... Some buddies and I went to Wrigley on that Saturday morning, determined to get tickets for the game -- but we doubted we had a serious shot. And if we did get a shot, we figured we'd have to pay dearly to get in. After all, it was, arguably, the series of the year ...

We hung around the stadium for about an hour before the game. Then, just as the game was getting underway, out of the blue, a guy steps in front of us outside the right field bleachers and offers two tickets in the 200 level behind home plate. Face value. $35.

... It was almost too good to be true. We took 'em. Had a great time. Got to see the defending World Champion "idiots", and the guys sitting behind us paid $100 for their tickets. We mused repeatedly, How interesting would it be to ask everyone in this stadium how much they paid for their tickets?

No. 6: Aug. 5, 1994 … The Seattle Kingdome, where the Mariners and Royals were supposed to play, was falling apart. So the series was moved to Kansas City … The Royals opened the entire stadium for general admission seating. Tickets were like $4 or $5. It was first-come, first served.

I remember my family getting there early and staking our place in line for a chance at good seats. Then, when the gates opened, my brother and I raced down the aisle … And ended up claiming a group of seats about three rows back from the Mariners dugout on the third base side.

The Mariners were hitting their mid-90s prime with Ken Griffey Jr., Jay Buhner, Edgar Martinez and Randy Johnson; Lou Piniella was their manager. But the Royals -- whose roster was loaded with steady veterans like Gary Gaetti, Greg Gagne, Wally Joyner, Vince Coleman, Jose Lind, Brian McRae and that season’s Rookie of the Year Bob Hamelin -- were hot, too …

That night, the Royals put on a hitting display and shut out the Mariners 8-0, to win their 14th straight game. The crowd was, arguably, as loud as I’ve ever heard at Kauffman Stadium ... I also remember Piniella going into one of his tirades with the homeplate umpire, and we had a front row seat when a fan got into it with Piniella as he huffed and puffed back to the dugout ...

That win was the last the Royals had during that streak. And the 1994 strike ruined the season a few days later.

... And it's not over yet.

So I finished watching the Brewers dominate the Astros, knowing all along the Reds were leading the Cubs ...

I switch over to try catching the end of the Cubs game ...

And I watch the Cubs score three runs in the bottom of the ninth to come from behind and beat the Reds ...

The Wrigley crowd is roar-ing.

Go Cubs Go is blasting through the PA

And Len & Bob are so giddy it's sending chills down my spine.

Bob screams "So you like pennant race baseball or what!?!"

Sh-yeah. Chills.

Oh. And by the way, today I passed up tickets for tomorrow night's Cubs game ... Doh!

There's only one September ...

I'm feeling like I've said this before, but how great of a weekend was this for baseball!?!

And I know I've said this before: This is the most exciting baseball season we've seen since at least 1998 ...

Kates and I spent our weekend making the rounds to each of the parents' houses, and the baseball was always on. Going in, we knew this was going to be a make-it-or-break-it weekend...

Friday night was Applebees takeout with Kates' parents. And then the Brewers-Reds game ... When we turned it on, the Brew Crew already was down 5-0 and Ben Sheets had been plucked from the game in favor of Chris Capuano (Chris Capuano!?! ... ugh...). We got to see Prince Fielder tie the franchise home run mark, and Capuano actually pitched better than he had in months, but the comeback fell short ... The Brewers lost. The Cubs had beaten the Cardinals. The Brewers fall 1.5 games back from the Cubs, and the Cardinals -- thankfully -- lose their eighth straight to go six games back ...

I switch channels ...

To the Red Sox-Yanees game. It was 10:30 at night and that game was in the eighth inning. We had just missed a Jason Giambi home run, but with a 7-3 lead the Red Sox appeared to be cruising ...

Right ... Robinson Cano homered for the Yankees. Melky Cabrera walked. Johnny Damon doubled. Derek Jeter singled. Bobby Abreu doubled. And Alex Rodriguez singled to give the Yankees a 8-7 lead ...

Kates was already asleep on my shoulder. And I went lights-out for the ninth, only to make up to the postgame highlights.

That was Friday night.

* * *

On Saturday, it was off to my parents' place ...

For lunch, I brought Culver's; Kates brought Arby's (... hey, we were road trippin' ...). We had some sit-down time with Mom & Pops ... and then it was time for another Cubs-Cardinals game. The first of a doubleheader, actually ...

The Cardinals were looking good ... Then Alfonso Soriano whacked a two-run homer to win it. Alfonso!!

On to the Red Sox-Yankees game ... What started out as a captivating pitcher's dual between Josh Beckett and Chien-Ming Wang turned into a Yankee-drubbing (lovely!) in the blink of an eye ...

We watched until the eighth, and then it was time for Kates and I to hit the road again ... Flipping between the Cubs-Cardinals nightcap and the Brewers-Reds games all the way home ...

I figured the Cardinals couldn't keep losing the way they had been; they took their game. And I figured the Brewers couldn't let themselves slip any further; they took their game too with Prince hitting another home run to become the single-season record holder for the Brewers.

So the Cubs still lead. But the Brewers are just one back. And the Cardinals are all but done at six games back.

* * *

On Sunday, Kates and I threw the Packers-Giants game into the mix as we did some shopping and worked around the house ...

To be honest, I didn't watch the Packers that closely. But they looked good enough to me. And a 35-13 win can't tell me anything less ... I'll take it.

Didn't catch any of the Brewers game. But they won, and I'll take that too.

I did, however, listen to almost all of the Cubs-Reds game. And the Cubs won ...

Driving to the hardware store for some supplies and listening to the jubilee of Pat and Ron celebrating the fact the Cubs were heading back to Wrigley in first place, I couldn't keep the smile from leaking on to my face. It was then then it hit me: Hey, it's either going to be the Cubs or the Brewers winning this thing, this has been one HECK of a pennant race and I'm going to be having a ball no matter which one makes it ...

Of course, I wasn't done yet. The Red Sox and Yankees were on Sunday Night Baseball (lovely!) ...

And it was a classic as usual.

... Curt Schilling against Roger Clemens (no two pitchers had gone against each other with more wins in the history of Fenway Park ...)

... Game is tied 1-1 heading into the eighth. Then Derek "Mr. Clutch" Jeter launches a 3-run homer over the Green Monster to silence the Red Sox nation ...

... Jeter had fouled off pitch after pitch, and Jason Varitek went to the mound after almost every one to talk with Schilling. Jon Miller offered up an interesting stat that put to rest one of the thoughts swirling in my head all weekend long: The average American League game lasts about 2 hours and 53 minutes. The average Red Sox-Yankees game lasts 3 hours and 33 minutes -- because there's so much strategy and thinking that goes into each pitch.

... The Red Sox start mounting a comeback in the bottom of the ninth ... Against Mariano Rivera (... Need I say again how horribly overrated I think Mariano Rivera is!?! Every time a broadcast team starts gushing about him I want to run to throw a baseball at the TV ... He's not invincible people = 2001 World Series.)

... Then Rivera loads of the bases for (insert dramatic music here) David Ortiz. (More dramatic music here.) ... A couple weeks ago, Matty and I were discussing who we thought the three most exciting players were in baseball right now. I answered Vladimir Guerrero, Prince Fielder and David Ortiz. Prince had come through for me this weekend, I hadn't been paying much attention to Vlady, but surely Big Papi was going to come through here, I thought ...

He struck out ... oooooooooooooooh! I sigh with the Red Sox Nation ...

And so ends my latest baseball weekend.

* * *

... So I caught this story on MLB.com today ... and once again, I'm wondering, how much more fun can this get!?

What in the world has happened to the standings everywhere else? Five minutes ago, it seems, it was two Wild Card races and a pair of National League division races. Now every division but the AL West has a race, half of baseball is still alive, it looks like a seventh straight year with a new world champ, tiebreaker-scenario talk will soon be all the rage and someone will be crying more tears of joy than Jamie Pressly.

Uh. Yeah!!

A week ago I figured my ultimate postseason was out of reach. Now, anything could happen ...

If the Red Sox and Yankees meet again, it would be in the AL Championship Series. You know what those are like, and it could happen again. Any wild guess will do. The Cubs and Indians could meet in a battle of the two teams with the longest world championship droughts in the Majors, and the Cubs could win it all for the first time since 1908. The Brewers could win it all for the first time, and so could the Padres or Rockies. It could be another Subway Series, it could be 1986 revisited with Mets-Red Sox, or Grady Little could come back to Fenway with the Dodgers.

I might pee my pants.

That is, if it's a Cubs-Indians world series. Or even a Cubs-Red Sox World Series. Or if the Brewers or Dodgers even make it to the World Series.

The Rivalry never seems to disappoint when it comes to drama. Fans who went to sleep Friday night assuming the Red Sox had won the opener easily awoke on Saturday to hear about an epic Yankee comeback. Saturday was the day Josh Beckett one-upped Chien-Mien Wang, and then Sunday was a fabulous Roger Clemens-Schilling pitching duel (representing the most-ever combined victories by two starters at Fenway) that Jeter broke up. And what an amazing finish, with Big Papi just loaded up for a grand slam walk-off against a closer he had beaten before. This time, Rivera won.

Like I said -- I watched every one. And no, I was not dissappointed.

Last year, the Tigers basically gave away this division at home on the final weekend, their hopes spoiled by Kansas City while Minnesota clinched. Of course, Detroit took advantage of its Wild Card berth instead, making it to the club's first Fall Classic since 1984. Those Tigers seem determined to do things different in 2007, and now it remains to be seen whether their momentum will stretch across an entire fortnight ...

Guess where Cleveland plays on the final weekend of the season? Kansas City. The Royals won at the Jake on Sunday to avoid a three-game sweep, but if the AL Central is still a race on the last weekend, it would be too ironic.

Too ironic.

There's only one October. There's only two weeks left in the regular season.

And I looooooove this commercial ...

Sunday reading

Some of the good reads that caught my eyes this past week ...

Entertainment ...
a Letterman Appears on Oprah's Talk Show ... I'm sorry I missed it.
a Kennedy Center Announces Honorees
a Emmy Awards: The bland and the clueless ... not in our office.
a In Defense of Nude Celebrities
a Fans don't have to wait to see new fall shows
a Devastated Britney bawls at VMAs
a We expected Britney to maintain a sad ideal
a The Britney brand is busted

Other stuff ...
a Use time wisely -- by slacking off
a Typeface Designers Mix Art, Engineering
a Popcorn Lung Patient Inhaled Fumes Daily

Onion reads

These Onion reads are dedicated to Matt ...

Lovable Prankster Pedro Martinez Admits He Was Never Really Hurt

NEW YORK—Following another impressive start Monday, enigmatic but lovable Mets clubhouse joker Pedro Martinez informed reporters that he was...

Michigan Drops To Division III In Polls Following Second Loss

ANN ARBOR, MI—Coaches and players reacted philosophically Tuesday to the news that Michigan, which fell out of the USA Today polls'...

Best office prank ever

Six years later

It's hard to believe it's been six years since Sept. 11.

Maybe it was just me, but the media and even our office seemed oddly uninterested in the the issues surrounding the anniversary today ...

For me, it still remains one of the most life-changing days in my mind.

As usual, there's a lot of good cartoons at Cagle's, like the one above.

Also ...
a Along With Grief, 9/11 Survivors Find Resolve
aNear Ground Zero, Much Is Changed on 6th Anniversary
a Thousands March To Mark Anniversary Of Sept. 11, Honor The Troops and Spread A Message of Peace

Good-bye summer

It it wasn't over already, today officially signaled the end of summer ...

The weather was so cold and rainy, it felt -- and looked -- as though it could've started snowing at any moment (which didn't help my crappy day at work either ...)

And mark this one down: Tonight, for the first time in about four months, I changed out my work clothes and into sweats.

* * *

It seemed everywhere you looked today, it was Britney, Britney, Britney and her awful performance at last night's VMAs ...

Sorry I missed it. But it sure was good reading ...
a What happens in Vegas ... hurts my eyes
a So much for the Britney comeback
a The Britney Spears disaster at MTV's Video Music Awards

The High School Musical

... Sooooo Kates and I jumped in this weekend on the craze that's sweeping America's youth ...

This might be my most shameless post yet.

Yes. We watched "High School Musical" and "High School Musical 2" ...

Yes. Now we know all about Troy and Gabriella, Sharpay and Ryan, Chad, Taylor, Kelsi and the whole Wildcat gang ...

See, I got my first real whiff of the ol' "High School Musical" last fall when I wrote a story about the tour swinging through the city. And then, all the hype and talk surrounding the premiere of No. 2 a few weeks ago was just too much. I wanted to see for myself ... I caught one of the million showings of the first one on the DVR and recorded the premiere of the second one later that night. But it wasn't until Friday night that Kates and I made time to sit down and watch 'em ...

It's no wonder the movies are so popular ... Seriously. They star good-looking, energetic, model youth (I say that and then one of the movies' biggest stars gets a nude photo of her published on the Internet ...).

If you can get over the awful lip-synching, the music (see: "Breaking Free," "We're All In This Together," "What time is it?" "All For One" and "You Are The Music in Me") is fresh, catchy and Disney-style uplifting -- and that's just a bonus to some of the amazing choreography (Who knew you could dance like that with basketballs!?). The scenery, the clothing, everything is so coloful it's hypnotizing ...

It's infectious, contagious, youthful energy. It's charming. It is Disney after all ...

I liked it.

Just don't expect me to go hanging the movie posters on our bedroom wall.

Sunday reading

The week in review ...

Technology & the Internet ...
a Apple Puts Wi-Fi in iPod Touch, Revamps Other iPods
a Apple credits iPhone buyers ... What a croc. If I was Steve Jobs I would've said "Sorry, folks. That's what you get for being idiots who stand in line all ga-ga over a phone ... " People should know better ...
a Shutting down big downloaders: Comcast cuts Internet service to bandwidth hogs
a Blogger wrote the book on driving a cab in Manhattan

Politics ...
a The Magic Touch? Winfrey Lends Her Brand and Her Empire in Support of Obama's Presidential Bid
a Watergate Bares All: Hotel to Sell Everything to Prepare for Face-Lift. Will the Deals Be Scandalous?
a Presidential Politics Roil Observance of Sept. 11

Entertainment ...
a Your Anniversary? Here's To You, Mrs. Robinson.

Baseball ...
a Report: Ankiel received shipments of HGH ... Uh-oh ... Not such a Hollywood story anymore now are we, Mr. Ankiel.

Other stuff ...
a Guilty in the Duke Case
a Thrown off plane for outfit deemed too skimpy
a The Flop Heard Round the World: When the Edsel Debuted in 1957, It Became America's Most-Hyped Failure ... I gotta admit, until coming across the Ugly Cars last week, I'd never heard of the Edsel ...

A Tribute to the Internet

... I stumbled across this video on MySpace today. Nice!

It's an animated tribute to some of the best videos, gaffes and spoofs to come across the Internet the last couple years ...

I recognized quite a few of them, and hopefully you will too ...

The magic of baseball

… So I got out of bed yesterday, started getting ready for work and thought, How cool would it be to go to the Brewers game tonight on a whim? …

My answer came about two hours later when Kates' dad called me, saying he had two tickets to the game and invited me to go with him. I’d love to, I said.

For the rest of my work day, the hours couldn’t pass fast enough. I was out by 4:30 and cruising to the in-laws place. I dodged rush hour traffic and arrived there within an hour. Chloe, of course, was there to pounce on me at the door and bouncing off the furniture ready to play … though she quickly figured out I wasn’t staying and went into pout mode on the couch. We had a quick supper of egg salad sandwiches and off we went …

I think it’s official now -- there isn’t a spot in Miller Park I haven’t occupied. I’ve spent numerous nights sitting in the 200 level seats in front of the press box and behind home plate. I’ve watched games from both the left field bleachers and the right field bleachers. We’ve watched from box seats on the first base side and the third base side. I’ve sat in the first rows of the upper deck, and about as far away as you can get from the field without standing on the retractable roof …

Last night, we sat in the front row of the cushy club box seats along the third base side. Entering the elite section through the large oak doors was like entering the first class deck of the Titanic, with an usher to welcome us and all. The concourse was carpeted like the lobby of a corporate office, although it had a bar area in the middle that looked like the set of “Cheers.” And vendors not only offered peanuts, hot dogs and soda, but cakes, fruits and other delicacies …

At game time, the weather was clear and breezy. It couldn’t have been more perfect.

The Brewers opponent last night? The Houston Astros. A team I’ve seen and learned more about this week than … well, at least the Brewers and the Cubs. Saw them Sunday in person at Wrigley. And then watched them closely against the Brewers in that awful game on Monday and last night’s key Brewers win …

Tonight, it was the Astros who looked awful and the Brewers who finally looked like the team that was sure to make the postseason back in April …

Astros pitcher Matt Albers walked the first two Brewers batters he faced, Ryan Braun hit into a fielder’s choice for the first out and then Prince Fielder made Albers pay by hitting his 41st home run to center field. It was a ball that center fielder Hunter Pence actually got a glove on before knocking it over the wall. Had Pence not made the catch, it looked as though the ball still would’ve gotten over. 3-0, Brewers at the end of one.

Then in the second, the Brewers pitcher, Yovani Gallardo, who pitched seven innings of brilliant shutout ball, doubled and Gabe Gross took a walk. Next up, Ryan Braun launched a home run to left field. I shot up from my seat, fist in the air and watched it sail into the seats; it was a no-doubter. 6-0, Brewers at the end of two.

In the third, Corey Hart doubled and then scored on Johnny Estrada’s double to make it 7-0. And in the fourth, Hart homered after walks put Rickie Weeks and Prince Fielder on. And Geoff Jenkins followed with a home run of his own to make it 11-0, Brewers.

The Brewers just recently placed a huge gas pump in right center field, sponsored by Citgo, to keep a count of the Brewers team home run total this summer. When the game started, its bright red letters were set on 187. After Jenkins home run, a guy behind us says, If they keep going like this, we’ll see 200 by the end of the night! Seriously …

After the fourth, Ned Yost smartly started yanking the starters, and by the eighth inning, only two remained in the game … Bill Hall, pinch-hitting for Hart in the sixth inning, knocked the Brewers fifth and final home run of the night. And a double by call-up Vinnie Rottino brought home two runs in the seventh inning …

The Brewers led 14-0 heading into the ninth, but newcomer Ray King, who’d literally just stepped off a plane to get to last night’s game couldn’t nail down the shutout. He walked Eric Bruntlett and gave up the two-run home run to Luke Scott … and then struck out the next three batters to end the game …

Brewers win, 14-2.

And the other scoreboards? Oh yeah, we kept a close eye on those throughout the game, too. St. Louis lost, but the Cubs fended off the Dodgers to keep the Brew Crew a half game back …

At least for last night. Tonight the Brewers are idle and the Cubs loss this afternoon to put the Brewers back in first baby!

So the magical summer of baseball continues ... Let's face it, I haven't had the best of times at work this summer, but all this baseball stuff has sure been fun ...

Let's review ...
April 11: Angels-Indians ... at Miller Park!
April 22: Brewers-Astros
May 8: Cubs-Pirates ... and extra innings during the train ride home.
June 5: Brewers-Cubs ... at Wrigley Field North.
June 16: Cubs-Padres ... The weekend the Cubs finally got hot, literally.
July 21: Brewers-Giants ... The Bonds watch.
Aug. 10: Royals-Blue Jays
Aug. 14: Brewers-Cardinals ... with the legends.
Aug. 17: Cubs-Cardinals ... AND Brewers-Reds.
Sept. 2: Cubs-Astros

And tonight.

... And here's hoping there's more to come in October.

Do we really have to start the football season?

Go Colts.