Circling the Drain

I rarely talk politics. I rarely follow politics. Honestly, I don't understand enough of it and I get too bored by politics to really try to learn, but lately things have been happening that are scaring me a bit. To be honest, I fear that our country is going into the crapper big time. There is the money black hole that is the wars in Iraq and Afganistan, the soaring oil costs making it hard to travel, and now the proposed government buy outs of the banks ond mortgage companies that are in trouble. All in all, 'little guys' in this country, like me, could be looking at some financial issues in teh future. As it is, I have a hard enough time paying all the bills and having enough left over for any 'me' things (movies, bowling, poker, etc.) Now, I don't really know as much as I should to judge the government, but it seems to me like the current administration and the Republicans are in large part at fault. If all of the Democratic commercials stating that this Republican and that one give tax breaks to rich folk (who can afford taxes) and have allowed gas companies and the medical fields to over charge us middle class Americans all these years, I say it is time for a change. When Clinton was president, I broke my arm and paid no money for hospital bills. Noah broke his arm this year (under Bush's reign of terror) and I had to pay over $2000. Oil companies are allowed to break records with their earnings while I am forced to put a quarter of a tank of gas in because I can't afford a fill up. Billions of our tax dollars are going to Iraq, where they have billions of dollars in oil reserves. Seems to me that we should have stuck some kind of deal where they give us some oil for all of the help we are giving them.

I went to my aunt & uncle's house a while back and we saw a political commercial. My dad was there and said he didn't think much of McCain's choice in running mate and my uncle said Obama scared the hell out of him. I have no idea why, seeing as how he has been the only candidate that has said what he is going to do to help America. McCain's adds are all about bashing Obama. I think that my uncle is worried about all of the governemental regulations that Obama would put into place to help regulate big companies and keep them from screwing us poor folk. Well, isn't this govenement buy out of these banks the same thing? the government is trying to get up to pay for the banking blunders of these monster companies. At least Dubya is. Maybe the economy will fall apart, but I feel that these companies and their shadey practices caused this problem. If I lost all my money, would the government writeme a fat check to pay for all of my needs?

I really hope that the rest of America is tired of the Republican shenanigans and vote Obama. I don't see that McCain is going to help us middle class people. Wee need someone that is actually going to change things for the better.

A Few Things

Last night Jessica and I went with our friends, Barb and Brian, to the Movie Tavern to see Tropic Thunder. It has Ben Stiller, Jack Black, and Robert Downey Jr in the main roles, with Tom Cruise and Matthew McConnahay in bit parts. Basically, it is about a group of actors that are kind of has beens and primadonnas shooting a war movie that is about to be shut down. The director gets the idea to put cameras in the deep jungle and maroon the actors in the middle of nowhere to try to get them in the moment. Hilarity insues. It was kinda dumb in some parts, kinda silly in others, and down right hilarious in other parts. It has some fowl language and adult comedy, so it is not a kid movie. Pretty good though.

Ohio State looked good Saturday. They beat Minnesota. Beanie Wells was back and looked good and Terrelle Pryor looked like he is getting comfortable in the starting QB roll. The defense held Minnesota pretty much all game. The Gophers scored twice in the fourth quarter making it seem like the game was close, but the defense was rotating its starters out. It was a fun game to watch.

The Browns won their furst game today. woo-hoo! They beat the Bengals in a battle of the bad. I mean a battle for Ohio. this was not a good game to watch. Yes, the Browns won, which pleased me, but they looked terrible half the game. The Bengals looked terrible the whole game, so it worked out.

Oh Golly. We must REALLY suck

I haven't talked about it, because it makes me a little pissed, but after Ohio State got their asses kicked by USC, I thought to myself, "Wow. Either those guys are REALLY good, or OSU is really not good this season." It was total domination by USC over Ohio State. The dreams of the returning 18 starters dashed in one night. I was able to get over it, eventually, and started looking towards the Big Ten Season. Maybe Ohio State could salvage their season with a trip to the Rose Bowl. Now that the offense seems to be working a little better, maybe OSU is still top of the Big Ten. Maybe. Let's face it though, Ohio State's wins were hard fought and against opponents that they should have dominated. Now, last night happened.

Last night I watched the USC Oregon State game. You remember, USC that kicked OSU asses by 32 points. Well, they lost to Oregon State 27-21. You remember, Oregon State that lost to Penn State 45-7. Guess what, OSU and Penn State meet later this year. If the numbers say anything, OSU should lose to PSU by about 72. This is what I want to know. Did OSU play their worst game and USC their best game and then USC play their worst game and Oregon State their best game? I can only hope that is the case. I think the Buckeyes are on the rise. My only fear is that they win out, got to the Rose Bowl, only to meet USC again for another ass kicking.

Best Star Wars Game Ev'

I went out and got Star Wars: The Force Unleashed last week. I wish, at first, that I hadn't. I was pretty busy and was itching to play. I finally got the chance Tuesday, and IT IS AWESOME!!!! I have played all sorts of Star Wars games on all sorts of gaming systems. I have all three games for the super Nintendo and I have both Knights of the Old Republic games for my Xbox, the Legos Trillogy for my 360, and a few more here and there. I loved the KOTOR games, but my one complaint was that it was not very fluid play. It was like playing Dungeons and Dragons. You get one attack, they get one attack. Then you hope you do more damage than your enemy. TFU lets you tear into sll sorts of Storm Troopers and other bad guys. Even Rancors and AT-STs. FUN. Plus you get to duel with other Jedi and Sith. FUNNER. I am even able to Force grab TIE Fighters and slam them into other TIE fighters. FUNNEST!! Currently I am stuck at a spot in the game, so I may need to get the guide book to see what I need to do. Plus, there are bonus things hidden all over the place. I want to find them.


Even if you are not into Star Wars games, this is one that you should at least rent for a little while. It it the most fun I have had with a single player game since Fable. Oh, but the way, Fable 2 is out in October. Just in case you want to buy it for me.

Got Some Peanuts and Cracker Jacks

Yesterday was a pretty fun day. For a Father's Day/Birthday present, I took my dad and the boys to see the final home game for the Indians. I know I have stated that I am not really a huge baseball fan, but I have been trying to follow the Indians more this season. Of course, like most Ohio teams seem to be of late, they have not done too well. They are one game over .500 for the first time since some time in April or May. Not good. At least not play offs good. Oh well. Anyway, the crowd was pretty big, even for the meaningless game: 36000+.

It was a great day to go to a baseball game. It was sunny, not too hot, and there was a nice breeze coming off the lake. Our seats were pretty good too. We were in the outfield, just down the first base line. It would have been nice if we were a little closer to the field, but we could see everything pretty well and we didn't have to climb into the nose bleed sections. The boys really seemed to enjoy themselves. I think Gabe got a little bored after a while. The best part about it is that the Indians won. They were lighting up the Detroit pitchers. The final score was 10-5 Tribe.

One thing I did NOT like about the game is the same thing that keeps me from going to most sporting events: the insane price of refreshments. A pop = $4, a hot dog = $4.50, beer = $6.75. Luckily, I won playing cards last week, so I had plenty of cash. I am, however, considering suing the Indians for large head discrimination. Adjustable hats don't fit me and I need a large sized fitted hat for me melon head. The souvenier shops did not have my size. Since I was planning on buying a hat at the game, I did not bring one of my own, and now have a bit of a sun burn on my forehead. Still, good times.

The Best Night of the Week is BACK!

Ahh Thursday. How I love thee. Let me count the ways. First, it is the day before Friday, so that is all good. Second, poker is played almost every Thursday at my firend Hasan's house. Some nights are good, some are bad but usually a night out playing cards is fun. The main reasons Thursdays are back on top of my favorite days of the week? You guessed it! My bowling league started up again this week. LOVE IT!! I bowled OK. Pretty average for me, actually. My first game was a little frustrating. I missed some easy spares and ended up with a 150+. The second game was better, a 190+ and my last game was a 200. So, I am starting the year off with about a 180 average. I would love to carry a 200 average, but after years of bowling and not improoving, I don't see that ever happening. Still, I have a blast on bowling nights.

Poker was good too. I started out really rough, going from $30 to $10 in about an hour. I was getting terrible cards and playing even worse. I started getting good cards though and ended up with $130. It was mostly due to getting good hands, but I started playing better too. We play mixed games now, so instead of just playing Texas Hold'em, we play Omaha, 7 card stud, 5 card draw (like in the movie Maverick), and Pineapple (like Hold'em, but you start with three cards. After the flop you discard one). The best hand I got was four threes in a hand of five card draw. I was dealt three 3's, so I discarded my other two cards and was dealt another three and a king. It was hard not to jump out of my skin. The best part about the hand it that someone raised before me. I re-raised, got called, and raked a good sized pot. Fun stuff.

Ike treated us like Tina

Sorry. That is a rather crude way to say that the remnants of Hurricane Ike swept through our area and did a lot of damage. Our house seems to be OK. I need to check out the roof a little better though. I think we may have lost a shingle or two. I'm just not too keen on climbing up there. Our neighborhood was pretty banged up though. Our next door neighbors had a tree knocked over and several other trees in the area were down. Plus, we lost power and our cable services. We were lucky enough that our power came back on after a day. some areas of Columbus are still without power. My cable access is still down though. This means I have no internet and can't work from home. That's right! I'm coming to you like from Nationwide's Rings Rd building. I had to bring my PC to plug into some extra monitors. Fun stuff. I lucked out and found two working monitors with an active ethernet port nearby so that I didn't have to hunt around forever. Hopfully I will be able to return to my work from home status shortly.

Big Game today

Ohio State is a big question mark for tonight's match up against #1 USC. Will Beanie Wells play? As of last night, the answer is 'no'. Will the defense be able to stop a powerhouse offense like UCS? Considering it could barely stop Ohio, I am not sure. Will the offense be able to function without it's #1 running back? Well, this is the kind of game that twenty of last years starters returned to play. They came back to win a National Title. I think that the emmense about of experience will win out here. The veteran defense will shut down the young USC quarterback and Boeckman will pick apart the defense. GO BUCKS!!!

I hate Carson Palmer

I was watching Sports Center yesterday and I heard something that made me hate Carson Palmer. I already didn't like him much sonce he is on the roster of the Browns' in state rival, the Bengals, but now I just down right hate the guy. I would say hate is a strong word, but in this case, it really isn't. Being a UCS quarterback now playing in the state of Ohio, I guess someone interviewing Carson Ass-Plumber abouthis thoughts on Ohio State. His reply was something to the point of his hating OSU and not understanding why Ohioans are so gung ho about the Buckeyes. Hmm...maybe because they are the most talented ans successful football team in Ohio? Yes, I say that the Buckeyes are the most talented team in Ohio, even with two NFL teams in the state and being a Browns fan. OK. that may be a strong statement, but Ohio State has certainly had more success latey than the Bengals or the Browns. That point asside, my message to Carson Palmer is this:

Mr Ass-Plumber, you play for a team in the state of Ohio. Do you thing that, perhaps, maybe some of you fans might also be fans of Ohio State? Stop showing the state that you are a fuck-o and show a little tact. Or at least start winning some titles before bashing the only team in Ohio that has been playing in any title games lately. Oh, AND OSU wins their conference.

PS. You are a dick.

Rough Weekend

It was a rough weekend for my football teams. True, Ohio State won, but they looked like crap and could have easily lost against MAC school Ohio. If it weren't for a fumble recovery and a punt return for a touchdown, we would we talking about the slim chance of a Big Ten title, rather than another shot at a National Title. The defense was pretty good and only allowed OU one score, but the offense without 'Beanie' Wells was pretty pathetic. Honestly, I think that it was a case of the Buckeyes looking ahead to USC and not taking OU very seriously. In the fourth quarter, when the game was in doubt, the Buckeyes turned it up and took over the game. They played like they should have the entire game. The main problem was OU's mobile quarterback. I just hope that USC's guy is a slow pocket passer. One thing about the game that suprised me didn't happen in the game. Lou Holtz was talking nice about the Buckeyes after the game. I am so used to commentators OSU bashing. Lou said they would be fine against USC. Maybe he remembers the but kickings the Buckeyes gave to Norte Dame back when he was coach. Anyway, thanks Lou.

The Browns looked awful yesterday. They let Dallas move the ball at will and the offense was ineffectual. This is supposed to be a good year for the Browns, but if they can't hang with the NFL elite, there is really not much point in going to the play offs. I guess they have a bunch of injuries right now, but their schedule isn'y going to get any easier.

Glad no one esle I know is single...

OK. I'm not going to name any names, but I am most likely going to a wedding this fall. If you are a regular reader and read the blogs of other people I know, you may be aware of this upcoming wedding. In October. The fourth, to be precise. If you are not aware, let me say that I went to school with this person and he is a big sports fan. At least I THOUGHT that he is a big sports fan. I guess could be wrong though. A true sports fan wouldn't plan their wedding on a football Saturday. Would they? Especially on a day that #3 Ohio State plays #11 Wisconsin. Not to mention #1 USC and #18 Oregon. I have dealt with this before. Back when my friend Ben got married, it was on a football Satarday and I think OSU played Illinois. The reception was at a country club and all of the OSU fans were in the bar crowded around the TV. Yes, I will DVR the game and will probably find some way to listen to it on the radio or something, but people should really take into account the Ohio State Football season when planning their weddings, birthdays, baptisms, etc. It is a late game, at least, so I will be able to avoid being one of those guys at the wedding with a mini TV, cheering at an OSU touchdown during the 'I-dos'. Ahhhh. The things one does in the name of friendship.