Fun in the sun ...and on skis

Today I went skiing at Snow Summit up at Big Bear Lake. It was awesome. Okay, well it wasn't awesome skiing; the ease of just driving up there, renting equipment and hopping on skis for the day: that was awesome.



Yesterday morning a friend of mine IMed me and asked if I wanted to go skiing today. At first, I didn't want to because - quite frankly - I didn't have my skis out here in California, I didn't want to drive that far, I didn't have any clothes for skiing. It just didn't seem like something I would be able to do on one day's notice.

We left Los Angeles at 5:00 a.m. and the highways were empty. The drive wasn't nearly as bad as I thought. We flew down 10 and made our way to 330. Today was the first day the main roads from LA to Big Bear were open, and we were taking full advantage of them.



We were in Big Bear by 6:30 a.m. I borrowed ski pants, gloves and goggles for the day. I had my rental skis, poles and boots by 7 a.m. This was happening - and it was easier than I thought possible.

After spending $12.50 on the rentals and under $30 for the lift ticket (after using coupons, of course), we hit the mountain. It was 7:38 a.m. We skied for about five hours before calling it a day.

I'm glad my friend convinced me to take this day-trip because now that I know just how easy it is to find decent snow at an even better price, it'll be tough to keep me away.

Hitting the nail on the head - or vice versa

Here's a crazy story. A construction worker complaining about a toothache went to the dentist to get checked out. The X-ray revealed a four inch nail in his head!


Here's a crazy story you have to hear about.

HOLY CRAP!

That is a huge nail, and it's in his head. The most interesting thing about this story is not that the nail not only missed his eye and didn't kill him, but the man did not actually know there was a nail in his head. He just thought he had a toothache.


(photo courtesy of CNN.com)
This is almost too painful to look at.

Here's what I don't understand:

How do you get a shoot a nail into the roof of your mouth and not feel it? How does that get mistaken for a toothache? The story explains how this man got the nail in his head in a nailgun mishap. And - oh by the way - the nail had been in his head for six days before it was discovered at the dentist's office.

Maybe I have a nail in my skull. Maybe you do. I just can't fathom how this is even possible. Just looking at that X-ray gives me goosebumps. I'm glad this guy turned out to be okay after a four-hour surgery, but - wow - what a weird story.

The best part is the quote from the surgeon as told by the man's wife at the end of the cnn.com article:
"The doctors said, 'If you're going to have a nail in the brain, that's the way you want it to be,"' she said. "He's the luckiest guy, ever."

My response to a comment asking why I cared about Prince Harry dressing up as a Nazi

Wednesday I posted a blog entry about Prince Harry dressing up as a Nazi. I said I thought it was a stupid act. (READ THAT POST) In response to my post, I received the following comment:

anonymous said...
you only say that because:
a) you don't know him
b) your jewish
c) you are so interested in the private lives of in your words is "third in line for the position of England's figurehead monarch"

So my question is why do you care?
Also: don't use race or ethnicity as a shield; for a journalist(even a sports journalist) its unbecomming and prejudiced.
4:29 PM

In response to the above anonymous comment:

You ask the question why do I care. You answered your own question when you said I was Jewish. Why would me being offended by Prince Harry's actions be related to anything other than my religion?

You say "Also: don't use race or ethnicity as a shield" but that is really the only reason to be upset with this. The guy dressed up as a Nazi. If you cannot understand why that would offend a Jewish person, then you are just as bad as Prince Harry. In this situation, race and ethnicity are not shields. They are reasons! I'm Jewish. What should my reaction to this be, if not outrage?

Also, you say that I'm being prejudiced and unbecoming (which, by the way, has only one 'm'). By definition unbecoming means "not appropriate, attractive or flattering" according to dictionary.com. How are the actions of Prince Harry not unbecoming either? My feelings about his actions are reactionary. I had no problem with this guy until he dressed up as a Nazi.

There is a reason that his father Prince Charles has ordered him to visit Auschwitz. There is a reason that Jews around the world are outraged. What I fail to see is your reasoning as to why I am not allowed to be upset about it.

All people have some degree of personal bias. As a result of my own personal biases, I dislike on those who choose to dress up as Nazis. Harry did. If I wasn't offended and I didn't express a prejudice of dislike anti-Semitic references, then what would that say about my own convictions and my own beliefs?

Don't ask why I care. You said it yourself: I'm Jewish. It's a big deal to me. I don't need to get into the whole history of why Jews don't exactly smile when they see a swastika or hear someone mention Hitler's name.

Figure it out. He dressed up as a Nazi. I'm Jewish. I didn't like it. I wrote about it on my blog. Any more questions?

Fight On, Matt!

Earlier today USC's Heisman-winning quarterback Matt Leinart announced he will return to USC for his final year of eligibility in search of an unprecedented third straight college football national title. As a big USC football fan, the only words that truly come to mind are hell yeah!

Think about this:

With Leinart's return, the offense will remain intact. This was an offense that, behind Leinart, had 34 passing touchdowns (33 thrown by Leinart) and 27 rushing touchdowns. The only senior on the offensive side of the ball is tight end Alex Holmes, and Dominique Byrd has proved he's ready to fill that spot (if you don't believe me, go back and look at the highlight reel from the Orange Bowl where he made a diving one-handed catch to put the first of many points on the board for USC).

Let's take a look those who will be returning on the offensive side of the ball along with some of the numbers they put up this season:

QB - Matt Leinart, Heisman trophy, 71 career TD passes
RB/TB - Reggie Bush/Len Dale White, 2011 yards and 21 rushing TD's combined
WR - Dwayne Jarrett, 55 rec 849 yards 13 TDs
WR - Steve Smith, 42 rec 660 6 TDs
TE - Dominique Byrd, 37 rec 384 yards 3 TDs
OL - Sam Baker, John Drake, Ryan Kalil, Fred Matua and Taitusi Lutui are all returning to not only protect their Heisman-winning QB but also to create monster gaps for Bush and White.

What part of this offense would you say is the weakness? Maybe it's the fact that they aren't on the field in the fourth quarter. Although by that time, USC is usually up by at least 30.

While on the defensive side of the ball, the Trojans are losing some great players, the defense will be - at worst - serviceable. Their primary job will be to maintain the lead this juggernaut offense quickly generates.

---------------------------

When it comes to Leinart's decision, I can't say I totally agree with it. As a Trojans fan, I love it, but to turn down the opportunity to play on football's greatest stage (the NFL) stay at 'SC says a lot about what's important to Leinart. If money was an issue here, Leinart wouldn't bother attending classes, he'd be finding an agent and working on endorsement deals. He would have chose to go to the NFL - a choice that brings with it the status of instant-millionaire.

Instead, Leinart chose the road less traveled, a road lined with screaming fans covered in cardinal and gold, praising their hero who has decided to lead them to glory once again.

We're lookin' forward to 2005, Matt. Fight on for the three-peat!

The little things...

Yesterday when I went with Brad when he bought his first legal alcohol, I saw something on a nearby shelf that I didn't want, I needed.


It's the little things that make college so great!

I got a little root beer party keg, and I must say it's pretty good. One gallon of root beer makes me happy.

Argument against online dating

Is this a joke? Did this really happen? I know that this Romanian couple didn't really name their newborn son Yahoo! The couple met online, and naming their son Yahoo! was their way of showing their gratitude to the online world.


Stupid Romanians.

Melting pot, I think not

There is a general notion that I'm sure you've heard whenever the subject of diversity is brought up about the United States of America being a big melting pot of all races, ethnicities, religions, etc. All of these different cultures and identities go into the pot that is America, and I have a serious problem with that.

By definition, this melting pot would mix together all types of cultures, all types of races, all types of religions into one homogenization of uniformity. Instead of clear-cut black and white, there would be a gray mixture of everything that was thrown into this pot. That doesn't seem right. Where is the individuality? Where are the unique cultures? Where are divisions? Not violent, discriminating divisions between people, rather differences that make everyone unique and place a certain value on each type of culture.

America is not a melting pot. America is a place where you can be an individual and can cherish your own unique culture. This is no melting pot. Instead, I like to think of this country as a tray of assorted deli meats.

Each is unique. Each has it's own texture and taste. And when they come together on a sandwich, they don't lose the qualities that make them individual by melting together with the others. There's pastrami, turkey, ham, salami, corned beef, roast beef, and don't even get me started on all the cheeses.

There are so many different styles, races, religions and cultures that should be able to co-exist in this country and to generalize them by saying that this country is a melting pot is ridiculous. I really hate that metaphor because when you think about, it's not true at all. The fact that America isn't a melting pot is what makes this place great.

In discussing diversity, I seriously think we shouldn't use that metaphor. It just doesn't make sense.

Stupid royals

Oy veh. Did this really happen? Did Prince Harry really do this? Oh wow. Prince Harry, third in line for the position of England's figurehead monarch, dressed up as a Nazi and went to a party not knowing this would offend people. Excuse me?

Is this guy fucking kidding me?


CLICK TO READ STORY
Only British royalty could do something this dumb.

And now he's sorry. Oh, okay that's okay. It's okay everyone, he's sorry. How about no. Or hell no maybe. This isn't like Randy Moss' pretend mooning at Lambeau Field. That was playful; this is hateful.

How dumb is Prince Harry? Could he really be dumb enough to dress up as a Nazi and go to some party? Apparently. What a moron. If I need to get into why I think him dressing up as a Nazi is at best a fucking terrible choice of costume and at worst anti-semetic, then you the reader are also a moron. Stupid Brits.

Lawyer joke-telling deterent

I didn't believe that this was a real story when I first got word of it, but apparently two men were in fact arrested for telling a lawyer joke.

Oooooooooooooooook. Why not?


This story is just plain funny.

Matt Heisman's time has come

Matt Leinart,

You've been a great quarterback these past two seasons here at 'SC. You led the Trojans to back-to-back titles, 25 victories in your 26 starts, and two BCS Bowl wins. It's been fun watching you sling TDs left and right and lead one of the most explosive offenses in the nation.

So what I am about to say, I mean with the utmost respect toward you: Matt, in regards to your decision of declaring for the NFL's 2005 draft, get the fuck out!

It is clearly time for you to move on. You will have your degree at the end of this semester. You can graduate without coming back next year. Your stock will never be higher. You have nothing left to prove at the collegiate level of football. It has become evident to not only myself but to anyone who has watched you play for 'SC over the past two seasons that you are a man among boys in this game.

The NFL is waiting for you. You'll see familiar faces there: Carson Palmer, Troy Polamalu and even your favorite target from last season Mike Williams.

I - along with countless other Trojans fans - will be sad to see you go, but what else could you possibly show us? Anything else you feel you need to prove to the football-watching-world can be done on football's greatest stage: the National Football League.

But you say that this decision is tough. You still haven't made up your mind and only have until January 15 to do so. It's time for you to follow in the footsteps of Carson Palmer and go to the pros. It's time for you to move on.

Thank you for some of the greatest memories of my life that I've experienced while watching you play for 'SC. What greater high-note could you go out on than a five-touchdown performance at the Orange Bowl? It's time for Paul Tagliabue to call your name.

Enjoy the NFL, Matt.

SoCal smarts

The weather here in Southern California has been less than pleasant recently. It's been cold, rainy and gray. Not your typical Los Angeles weather.

This morning, Brad pointed out that while we might think it's cold here in LA, people in Alaska lost power when a storm dropped temperatures to -60*F. MINUS 60!!! That's insanely cold. Not to mention how cold it would be without the power of heating.

But as bad as the cold weather in Alaska, the next words out of Brad's mouth were much, much more disturbing.

"That's double freezing!" he said.

I thought, "Yeah...what?" What did that mean, "double freezing"? I didn't understand it. So I asked him what he meant by that. "It's double freezing," he reiterated. "Minus 60. Freezing is minus 30."

WHOA WHOA WHOA WHOA WHAT?

So as it turns out, my diminuative friend from Orange County believed freezing was -30*F.

"Try 32*F!" I told him. But it was Brad who made the most profound statement of the morning:

"I'm from Southern California. Why would I know what temperature freezing is?"

Banned book back

Yesterday I talked about a book that was banned from a Mississippi Library in the post Dumb News. Daily Show host Jon Stewart's book "America (The Book)" had been banned reportedly for nude depictions of Supreme Court Justices.




Today, looking at CNN.com, I found that the ban was reversed. Good! Apparently the library's Board of Trustees received numerous emails from out of state disagreeing with the ban which prompted Monday's 5-2 vote to put the book back in circulation.

When it rains in LA...

...bad things happen. Take a look at some of the damage from the rain around USC.

Annenberg Auditorium was flooded after weeks of rain in Los Angeles.


The weather roughed up Cafe 84 as well.

Heritage Hall's basement was also flooded...

...not to mention the computer lab.

And some of the streets on and around campus turned into rivers.


To see more pictures of rain damaged buildings around 'SC, click here.

01/04/05 Miami Herald

Check out the front page from January 4's Miami Herald. While I was in Miami at the Orange Bowl, I went to the Beach Bash the day before the game. I ended up making the page one the next morning along with two of my friends.

This was the front page of the Miami Herald on January 4, 2005, the day of this year's Orange Bowl.


Look who's on the right of the picture. Yes, that would be me, and I ended up catching that football after extending my arm high above that of any other hopeful fan. The ball turned out to be signed by former University of Colorado running back Eric Bienemy. Once he gave his prediction that OU would beat USC in the next day's game, I considered throwing the ball back.

Dumb News

Here are some of the stories of the day that I found particularly interesting because they were - for lack of a better word - stupid. These stories are about stupid people or ideas.

First, this gem from CNN.com:


You've gotta read this.

The principal at a California high school cancelled the rest of the school year's dances after students failed to stop freak dancing at other school-sanctioned dances. I couldn't believe this story when I first read it. Wow.

Personally, I don't think that freak dancing is such a big deal at the high school level. Had this been a junior high, then perhaps the principal's dance-cancelling would seem more reasonable. It's still a funny story.

------------------------------

Next, a Mississippi library banned Daily Show host Jon Stewart's "America (The Book)" citing nude depictions of Supreme Court Justices. Something tells me that the "nude depictions" aren't the only thing keeping this book out of the library.




Jon Stewart is a strong liberal, and he has never tried to keep this a secret. Mississippi isn't exactly a moderate state. In fact, I'm pretty sure that Stewart's political views are keeping his book out of this library. Granted, I haven't seen the depictions, so maybe I'm out of line here, but I'm sure there are worse things in books in that library.

-------------------------

Finally, a story I found on ESPN.com about a woman who got hit in the face with a hockey puck at Madison Square Garden three years ago.


OUCH!

A judge is allowing a woman hit by a puck to sue the New York arena. She can now proceed with an $11 million lawsuit. The puck broke her nose in three places and caused other severe facial injuries.

Here's my problem with this lawsuit and why I don't think she will (or want her to) win this case now that it's going to trial. Anyone who has ever been to an NHL hockey game (back when they still played) has had a ticket to get into that sporting event. On the back of all hockey tickets for any arena that hosts an NHL team is a warning. This warning says that pucks flying into the stands can cause serious injury or death. Anyone in attendance is warned on the back of their ticket about the possibility of injury.

While I'd be pissed if I got hit in the face with a puck, I'd know that I couldn't sue because the warning is on the back of the ticket. The fact that a judge is letting this case go forward pisses me off. Stupid lady. I'm not saying it's her fault for getting hit by the puck, but she shouldn't be allowed to sue.

No, Auburn, it's not your title

I would like this entry to serve as a response to "Rob" the person who posted the following comment about why I thought Auburn didn't deserve a share of college football's national championship (10 things I realized in Miami).

1 Comment:
Rob said...
Reasons why Auburn is the NCAA National Champion
* Beat then-No. 5 LSU, the undefeated defending national champions.
* Beat then-No. 10 Tennessee, in Knoxville by 24 points.
* Beat then-No. 8 Georgia in 24-6 slaughter.
* Beat, for a second time, the SEC West champions Tennessee in the SEC
Championship.
* Beat No. 9 Virginia Tech, a team on an eight-game winning streak, in a
pressure-packed, everybody's watching bowl game.
* Proven they are the best team in the SEC and the ACC, the NCAA's top
football conferences.
* Has the 5th best total defense in the NCAA, ahead of No. 6 USC and No. 7
Oklahoma.

Comment away at http://f1fe.com/blogRob

Rob

First of all, that's great that they beat four then-top-10 teams. Georgia did finish the year sixth in the USA TODAY/ESPN Coaches Top 25 poll and seventh in the AP poll and BCS standings. Other than that, Auburn's other tough opponent that Rob pointed out was ACC champ Virginia Tech, who USC also beat this season (and by more than just three points, might I add). And to say that Auburn beat them in a pressure-packed, everybody's watching bowl game: hey Rob, ALL BOWLS ARE PRESSURE-PACKED FOR THE TEAMS INVOLVED!!! And who defines "everybody's watching" when the Sugar Bowl rated below the Orange Bowl this year?

As for Tennessee, they finished the year at 15 in the BCS after ending their season with a win the Cotton Bowl to a Texas A&M team that quite frankly wouldn't have beaten most junior high teams. They were also 15th in the Coaches poll but did manage to earn the 12th spot in the AP poll.

Then there's LSU, who Rob identified as the undefeated defending national champions. While they did finish 11th in the BCS, both the Coaches and AP polls had them at 16. And one key reason they had decent season they did was in large part thanks to Oregon State place-kicker Alexis Serna, who missed three extra points - the third would have tied the game instead of giving LSU the slim 22-21 victory.

Good for Auburn for beating those tough teams. In all seriousness, that's tough to do. But what about those "week's off" they took when they played teams like Louisiana Monroe (5-6 in the Sun Belt conference), Louisiana Tech (6-6 in the WAC), the SEC's red-headed stepchild football team Kentucky (2-9), and let's not forget The Citadel (a Division I-AA team). National champions don't beat up on "little brother" teams. Why not schedule a game against a local high school instead?

By the way, are we talking about the same Auburn that lost to USC (at home) in last season's opener 23-0? Just checking.

And yes, Auburn does have a good defense, a better statistical total defense than both OU and USC according to Rob, but let's look at the offense of 'SC compared to Auburn and see what we find, shall we?

This is a USC offense that has put up at least 35 points in 20 games over the past two seasons. This is an offense that finished No. 7 in the nation scoring 38.2 points per game, compared to Auburn's 32.1 (they finished down the list at No. 19).

Auburn was a good football team this year. They won their conference. Good for them. That's it. They didn't win the BCS title nor the AP title. They didn't win. Tough. I'm not saying I love the BCS, because I don't. I think it sucks. I think there should have been a way for 'SC to prove to any and all doubters that they would have beated Auburn if given the opportunity.

Auburn didn't exactly crush Virginia Tech in the Sugar Bowl, either. If it weren't for several crucial Virgina Tech mistakes, we wouldn't even be having this argument. Auburn was lucky to get out of New Orleans with a win. After squeaking by Virginia Tech 16-13, don't come begging the AP voters for a share of the title. I don't care that you had a 16-00 lead. It was barely enough. You didn't see USC give up 30 more points to OU after taking a 55-10 lead just because they had the points to spare. The Trojans closed them out. Auburn almost didn't.

And, honestly, do any Auburn fans truly think that the Tigers would have pulled it off, especially after watching what was considered a dynamite OU team get absolutely destroyed by the Trojans in what Rob could truly call a "pressure-packed, everybody's watching" game. It was 55-19, and the last nine points OU scored were pity points given up by second and third stringers.

55-19, Rob. After the game, every announcer in America described USC as being in a league of their own. Last I checked, Auburn wasn't included in that league, a league of national champions.

Fight on, 'SC!

Oh, and Rob. I am responding to your comments on my blog because the link you left me didn't work, so I do hope you get a chance to read this and understand that I'm happy Auburn had a good season, but I have absolutely no sympathy for them.

Stand up!

When I read about the parents of a 13-year-old girl spending detention with her because they felt responsible for her constant tardiness, I realized that I would probably have done the same thing. Even though this girl said it was a little embarrassing to have her mom and stepdad in detention with her, I think it's pretty cool of them to take the punishment along with their daughter.

After six tardies, the school gave her a detention which her mother argued, saying that because the family's van wouldn't start, the tardies weren't her fault. The school rejected the mother's objection to the punishment, so she decided to do the time for the crime with her daughter.

That's pretty cool of the parents. As dumb as I would probably feel sitting with my parents in detention, I like the idea that they stood up for the fact that their daughter's tardiness wasn't her own fault.

Listerine lied!

It was hard not to laugh when I read this.

A judge ordered Listerine to stop running ads saying the mouthwash was just as effective as flossing at fighting gum and tooth decay. Duh! Yes, I've seen these commercials, with the swooshing mouthwash, and NO I didn't buy it - not the product, but the slogan.

If I want something to do the job of flossing, I'll use floss. If I want something to rinse my mouth out while adding minty-freshness then I'll grab the Listerine.

Here's a helpful hint for the American public:
USE BOTH!

C'mon now. Flossing takes all of 60 seconds. Add another five seconds for using mouthwash. That's only a minute and five seconds extra in addition to brushing. Not that hard to do, I must say.

Still, it was hard for me not to laugh when I saw the headline on cnn.com that read Judge: Listerine not same as flossing.

Super Sunday not as great in February

Last year the NFL has let me down, and this year it looks to be more of the same. When the Patriots faced off against the Panthers in Super Bowl XXXVIII in Houston, something about the game didn't feel right. Not the fact that the Panthers lost. Not the fact that people talked about the halftime show more than the great game the teams played. Super Bowl Sunday lost its luster because the game was played on February 1, 2004.

February 1.

February!

COME ON, PAUL TAGLIABUE! FIX THIS INJUSTICE!

For the past 20 years, the Super Bowl has been primarily played on the final Sunday in January. Before that the game was even earlier in January. The one exception came when the entire NFL season was pushed back one week in 2001 after the September 11 attacks.

This year, however, is the second consecutive year the Super Bowl will be played the first weekend in February (what used to be the ProBowl weekend). Super Bowl XXXIX will be held in Jacksonville on February 6, 2005. Next year will be more of the same as Super Bowl XL will be in Detroit on February 5, 2006.

That just makes me cringe (no, not the fact that it's in Detroit, but that doesn't really help). Since its inception, the Super Bowl has been in January, but with the season expanding from twelve to 14 to 16 games in a season, the post-season would start later and later until finally NFL schedulers agreed to hold the Super Bowl on the final Sunday in January with the adoption of the 16-game schedule.

Now the season has been starting later and later, so the regular season extends into January with the Super Bowl in February. I hope this problem gets fixed soon. And it is a problem. The Super Bowl's place is the last weekend in January. Any other time just doesn't feel right.

BACK TO BACK

Watch USC do it's thing against OU, scoring their highest point total for the season against the Sooners in the FedEx Orange Bowl.


Click the photo to watch 'SC dominate OU in what was billed as the game of the (five-year-old) century.
(photo courtesy of ESPN)