History Detectives

This is a great show on PBS. It's only on during the summer, and it appears it wil be on this year at 10 p.m. on Monday. It starts out kind of like Antiques Road Show, but, the detectives only pick out three items per show that people have found around their house and think are valuable. The detectives (which include a socialogist and a couple appraisers) then investigate the validity of these items. Last night, this guy had a English pound note that was used in a drinking game and signed by WWII leaders like Roosevelt, Churchill, Patten, etc. Another great feature is the use of Elvis Costello "Watching the Detectives" as the theme song.

Cheers.

Ralph

Everyone's Hero

Saw that flick Everyone's Hero last night. Surprisingly good movie. Can't believe I'd never heard of it before. It was either that or Bad News Bears, as I had promised my eight-year-old, whose in the middle of Little League season. I'm quite glad we chose Everyone's Hero as a last minute replacement. My neighbor had recommended it, and I had forgotten about it until we saw it on the shelf at Blockbuster.

It's an animated flick that Christopher Reeve's directed. It's got some great actors doing voices like William Macy and Rob Reiner, and Joe Torre even makes a cameo. Fairly entertaining story about a 10-year-old that helps recover Babe Ruth's stolen bat. It's got some good family value stuff as well as baseball stuff in it. So, it made it a perfect movie to watch with my son, who loved it. I've been putting off letting him watch Bad News Bears for awhile, as that's really an adult movie about kids, and it looks like I've succeeded for one more week at least. Of course, personally, I love Bad News Bears, and I even think I saw it in the theatres when it first came out, and I was about nine or 10.

One more note: We finallycaught the vole that has been haunting us for the past few nights. Since last week, he has been sneaking into our bedroom and burrowing down into a plant pot there to get at some roots. Last week, we discovered dirt from the plant had mysteriously been spilled on the floor and none of us could recall bumping the plant. Then, a few nights ago, we heard footsteps that sounded like a ghost near the plant. We flipped on the light and saw the little guy scurrying out of the room. That night, we began setting mouse traps. But this vole was tricky. He was able to clean the peanut butter, which had historically been so effective on mice, right off of the trap without triggering it. The war was clearly on. My wife began comparing me to Bill Murray in Caddyshack. Finally, last night, I laid like five traps. I felt like one of those old French trappers setting his lines. I used an apple in one and strategically placed the peanut butter on a couple others. About 12:30 a.m., the vole's usual feeding time, we heard the snap and found him lying in a trap with his back broken. A sad end for Mr. Vole, who has been like a playmate for me this past week, as we've matched wits in a game of cat and mouse. Well, the cat has prevailed and I uncerimoniously dumped Mr. Vole into the garbage last night. What will I do to keep myself entertained now?

This may explain some of my difficulty in catching the vole. It appears they are not your average rodent...

Cheers.

Ralph

Nickel Back-Rock Star

This song continues to kill me every time I hear it:

I'm through with standing in line to the clubs i'll never get in
It's like the bottom of the ninth and I'm never gonna win
This life hasn't turned out quite the way I want it to be
(tell me what you want)

I want a brand new house on an episode of Cribs
And a bathroom I can play baseball in
And a king size tub big enough for ten plus me

(yeah,so what you need)

I'll need a, a credit card that's got no limit
And a big black jet with a bedroom in it
Gonna join the mile high club
At thirty-seven thousand feet

(Been there done that)

I want a new tour bus full of old guitars
And my own star on Hollywood Boulevard
Somewhere between cher and James Dean is fine for me

(So how ya gonna do it?)

I'm gonna trade this life for fortune and fame
I'd even cut my hair and change my name
[CHORUS]'Cause we all just wanna be big rockstars
Live in hilltop houses driving fifteen cars
The girls come easy and the drugs come cheap
We'll all stay skinny cause we just won't eat
And we'll hang out in the coolest bars
In the VIP with the movie stars
Every good gold digger's
Gonna wind up there
Every Playboy bunny with her bleach blond hairand well..

Hey hey I wanna be a rockstar
Hey hey I wanna be a rockstar

I wanna be great like Elvis without the tassels
Hire eight body guards that love to beat up assholes
Sign a couple autographs
So I can eat my meals for free

(I have a quesadilla, ha ha)

I'm gonna dress my ass with the latest fashion
Get a front door key to the Playboy mansion
Gonna date a centerfold that loves to blow my money for me

(So how ya gonna do it?)
I'm gonna trade this life
For fortune and fame
I'd even cut my hair
And change my name
'Cause we all just wanna be big rockstars
Live in hilltop houses driving fifteen cars
The girls come easy and the drugs come cheap
We'll all stay skinny cause we just won't eat
And we'll hang out in the coolest bars
In the VIP with the movie stars
Every good gold digger's Gonna wind up there
Every Playboy bunny with her bleach blond hair

And we'll hide out in the private rooms
With the latest dictionary in today's who's who
We'll get you anythingwith that evil smile
Everybody's got a drug dealer on speed dial well..
Hey hey I wanna be a rockstar

I'm gonna sing those songs that offend the censors
Gonna pop my pills from a pez dispenser
Get washed-up singers writing all my songs
Lip sync 'em every night so I don't get 'em wrong
Well we all just wanna be big rockstars
Live in hilltop houses driving fifteen cars
The girls come easy and the drugs come cheap
We'll all stay skinny cause we just won't eat
And we'll hang out in the coolest bars
In the VIP with the movie stars
Every good gold digger's Gonna wind up there
Every Playboy bunny with her bleach blond hair
And we'll hide out in the private rooms
With the latest dictionary in today's who's who
We'll get you anything with that evil smile
Everybody's got a drug dealer on speed dial well..
Hey hey I wanna be a rockstar
Hey hey I wanna be a rockstar

When worlds collide

This is the best.

Beer

My wife just went out the door and is heading to the beer distributor to re-load. Before leaving, she shouted to me through my office door, "Ralph, do you like Molson?" Well, the answer to that is a resounding "yes, I do," especially as the summer breeze caresses my neck through the open window behind me.

God Bless Erie in the summertime.

Cheers.

Daughters and Sons

My son and daughter came into my office earlier this morning. My son had a question about the golf program I brought back from the U. S. Open. Mistaking the total par for the side as the par for a hole, he asked if there was a par 35 at Oakmont. My daughter immediately followed by showing the braid her mom had put in her hair.

Cheers.

Kutztown and Mineo

Wow. I've been really busy preparing for my move to Kutztown.

Moving sucks, let me tell you, but I keep telling myself: "Short term pain; long term gain."

I'll be out of the house on July 31...moving into an apartment in Allentown. If anyone has any hot tips for food or things to do in Allentown, please let me know.

Also: My house is on the market. It's a big, beautiful house in Millcreek. Four bedrooms, central air, French doors, and a gym in the basement. The outside is beautifully landscaped. I'm asking $149,900. It's guaranteed to gain value over the years. If you know of any house-hunters out there, please steer them to me. I can be reached at 868-9719.

One of the biggest selling points of the house is the fact that so many aspects are up to date. I moved in five years ago, and during that time, I've painted almost the entire interior, hung the French doors, installed sliding glass doors, insulated the den, built the gym, replaced nearly all of the electrical outlets, installed ceiling fans, and planted all kinds of trees and shrubs.

I hate to leave it, but it's time for me to go to that tenured teaching position at a state university.

I've also been making progress on my August Wilson book. I have 165 pages completed. I'm now in the process of editing and tightening. I hope to shop the manuscript with a publisher by the end of August.

That's it for now.

DDDDDDDDDD

Some words

This is from a recent flight back from Miami:

Disconnect
Discoteque
Good Guy
Die
Cobaine
Coltraine
In the rain
pain

Biting, taking
chunks of my skin
blood mixes with rain
the train races
buy this
you consumer man.

The buzzing of a fly
nearby
puzzles the yogi
sitting on the ground

RasX

'Nawlins

New Orleans still rocks.
Interesting, though, it apparently is not as busy as it was before the 2005 Hurricane.
Had a conversation with the guy who drove me back to the airport.
He said his business is about 40% of what it used to be.
“Just the weekends now are busy, you know what I’m saying,” he talked in kind of a rhythmic sing-song thing that a lot of Nawlins people seem to have going. He had worked in the French Quarter for like 40 years, so who knows how that has affected him.
I was down there on a Monday, so it was pretty dead.
But it’s a beautiful city. You can still see that, even amongst some of the ruins.
And I think its nickname, the Big Easy, is pretty well deserved.
Everybody certainly seemed pretty laid back, you know.

On Monday afternoon, it was raining and even though it was like 70 degrees and not raining that hard, you could see people just didn’t want to get wet. Being from the snow belt, I ploughed right through it. But again, I was hungry as Hades (I’ve starting using Hades in lieu of “hell” for some unknown reason, except that I think it sounds slightly better) after flying all morning and was looking for a Po’ Boy, which is what they call their version of a sub down there. The doorman recommended Johnny’s, which was about three blocks away from the hotel, but by the time I got there, it was five after three, and they were closing—at 3 p.m. So I wandered a bit more, I was on Royal Street, a block down from Bourbon I guess, which I never made it to for some reason, I just kept turning the wrong way. But I finally found a suitable with a Po’ Boy menu and ordered blackened/Cajun catfish Po’ Boy, which I munched down with a couple local brews. The whole bill was about $18, which seemed reasonable, and the waitress was friendly and laid back, and I heard her telling the recently married middle-aged couple a few tables down that she got so depressed after Katrina, she went to live in California for a few months with friends. She also said it had been a slow day for her, but didn’t seem overly upset—as it is the Big Easy. I sat there and watched the rain come down through an open archway and made some phone calls.

Back to my driver who somehow recognized me as Italian-American and recommended a try and meatball Po’ Boy with red gravy – does that mean sauce?

There seems to be some opportunity down there in Nawlins, as the city’s drawing potential still seems to be there. At least, it was compelling enough that I’d love to go back down there again with a few days to hang out and party. But business seems to be off for some reason, at least according to my driver. Maybe it’s just a matter of time before it returns, which would be where the opportunity comes in.

The guy who manages the Superdome talked at the conference I was at, and the Superdome seems to have really bounced back – I think the Saints sold out every game last year. Granted, it sounds like the Superdome was like priority one when rebuilding the city, but the rest of the city has to follow, right? Well, that is unless it runs out of funding—which the Superdome seems to have had plenty of. But, once again, maybe that’s where the opportunity lies, in the potential to invest in something down there at a reduced rate, and if enough of these types of private investments are made, they could potentially help speed up the city’s recovery and bring it back to its former vibrant self, instead of just a weekend party town. Then again, maybe it’s a city whose time and culture have past—but then again, sometimes it’s not so bad living in the past.

RasX

Foreman drugged

How much seedier can boxing get? Even its golden era is now being tarnished, or perhaps it's always been tarnished, I mean Don King has been involved with this "sport" for a long time now. Professional boxing, cycling, or baseball, take your pick on which is the seediest. Oh yeah, then there's that whole criminal element to the NFL.... No wonder poker is doing so well these days. Professional, televised poker is actually much cleaner than the amateur game that has been played for years in dark corners across the America. Based on that theory, I wonder what the next big "sports" craze will be? (Help me out here, I can't think of one, but is there some other sport where amateurs cheat like hell, but if you were to clean it up and put it on TV, you could reduce the cheating? Thanks.)

Ralph

Greg Lemond

Has anyone been reading about this Greg Lemond thing? "I'm your uncle, and I'll be there tomorrow." Landis is hangin' out with people like this? I guess that tells you something about how competitive the cycling world is. These guys are sick. Landis, of course, is the former Amish guy who was apparently shunned for purusing a career in professional cycling, and then came back from a huge deficit to pull out the Tour a couple years ago (maybe it was last year) Anyhow, testing found this huge comeback was fueled by unusually high levels of testosterone, which makes sense, but, he's denying it.


Lemond is one of my favorite athletes of all-time; he also had an incredible cycling comeback. After becoming the first American to win the Tour, he was shot in a hunting accident, and came back and was so sucky, it seemed like his career was over and no top flight team would give him a job. He ends up with some rag-tag bunch, and proceeds to shock everyone by winning the Tour, capping it off with a record-setting time trial on the race's last day. His French rival at the time described him as "playing the chicken, when he is really a lion," as Lemond kept playing like he was shocked to be near the leaders and was just waiting for an inevitable falter, which never happened. Then, he came back and won the thing the following year as well, in a little more conventional fashion.

Anyhow, that was back when cycling wasn't quite as fucked up as it is now, or at least we didn't know as much. Now, it seems half the top riders are in trouble for doping and Lemond is being blackmailed regarding being sexually molested as a child. I would have to say cycling has now passed baseball as the most "fucked-up sport." Or, it's the European version of baseball -neither of which is a sport of course, as baseball is officially our national "pastime" and cycling's top race is actually known as a "Tour." That's what happens I guess when you get too deep into these things....

Cheers.



Ralph

Doral

This place is kind of nuts. They seem to play reggae 24/7 in the lobby. It's actually kind of nice. Right now, they're playing some version of Bob Marley's "Chase Those Crazy Baldheads out of Town." It's hot as hell down here, so it's probably appropriate I guess. Doral is located a few miles inland and you don't get that fresh breeze off the ocean that you typically get nearer to the coast in Miami. But the palm trees are nice, and as long as you don't move too fast, just kind of sway with the reggae, it's kind of relaxing.

Cheers.

Ralph

1973 continued

In 1973,

The A's won the World Series
Secretariat won the Triple Crown
The Dolphins beat the Redskins 14-7 in the Super Bowl in January....

Did anything else happen?
Yes, I was in kintergarten, Richard Nixon was president...hmmmm

George Will on China

Another great George Will column, this one on the economic awakening in China and its evolving interest in free trade. Will makes some great points, but as is typical of his columns, kind of leaves you hanging with a vague ending. Maybe that's part of his charm...

Bill-Ravens MaGahee

Haven't posted in awhile because I've been busy with other things and whatnot... a lot of whatnot, of course. Anyhow, I came across this paragraph in scholar Greg Easterbook's Tuesday Morning Quarterback column this week. As a Bills fan, it is both funny and sad, which to me makes it some kind of literature:

"Discounting to Present Value the McGahee Trade: TMQ is underwhelmed by Willis McGahee, who's a legend-in-his-own-mind type. Football pundits speak of him as a star; McGahee speaks of himself as if he were Franco Harris, but McGahee's career stats are run-of-the-mill and defenses don't fear him. Still, he's a decent back, which makes me wonder why the same sorts of pundits who praise McGahee also said Baltimore gave up too much for him. The price was the Nevermores' third-round picks in 2007 and 2008, plus a seventh-round choice this week. Because Baltimore's seventh-rounder is choice No. 239, whoever is chosen there will be a long shot to make an NFL roster. If I were the Bills, I'd offer the pick to Denver for $3 million. Because this year's third-rounder is near the end of the round, it is only slightly better than a fourth-round choice; meanwhile, the 2008 third-rounder discounts to a fourth-rounder. (Future choices discount by one round per year: That is, you'd need to trade your first-round selection in 2008 to get someone's second-round selection in 2007.) In effect, Baltimore gave two fourth-round draft picks for a starting-quality tailback; the Ravens got McGahee for significantly less than the Patriots surrendered for Wes Welker. Anyway, whose front office has done a better job on player decisions in this decade, Buffalo's or Baltimore's?"

I could read absolutely no more after that touche at the end.

Regards,

Ralph

1973

Does anyone remember 1973?

Erie Pizza

So, last night we had one of those recurring debates about who has the best pizza in Erie. We were down at Skeeter's watching the Pitt game. At halftime, with Skeeter's kitchen being closed, we decided we needed order out for a pie. Being the guy who came up with the idea, I was put in charge of making this happen, and being down the street from Dominick's, I made my call. Mind you, it was a bit of an expensive proposition, $14.25 or something for a large with cheese, pep, and sausage, but I think it was worth it. Dominick's has changed hands since I frequented it 15-20 years ago in college, and their pie recipe has also changed. One thing that has not changed is their sausage, which is still very plump, juicy, tasty, and plentiful. I would say the sausage alone saved the pizza, and actually made it very filling, so the large, which was actually pretty good size, was able to take care of 5-6 hungry drunks.

Anyways, Dominick's does not have the best pizza in Erie, but it was convenient and alright. After the pizza came in, the bartender told us that, believe it or not, The Cellblock has some of the best pie in town. "I'll stand by their pizza," was her exact quote, which led to some obvious jokes. J.B. insisted that Skeeter made a killer pie, and I have heard before he is a good cook. And then someone said their wife had been raving about a pizza shop downtown, but we weren't sure of the name. Someone said it may be Howie's, which is actually a chain, but that doesn't mean they have bad pizza...except that ordering from a chain, in a town like Erie that used to have a local shop on every other block, is a bit of shame. For a while though, I'll admit, I was hard-pressed to find good local pizza and took to going to Papa John's and Pizza Hut, which are both convenient, make decent pies, and always have coupons available. However, recently, we've turned back to Mr. Pizza, which has good solid pie and wings and is run by a really nice couple, which counts for something. Steel City has some good pie too, especially their cheese, and their crust receives high reviews.

Finally, my wife's friend highly recommends Mama Mia's, which of course, suffered the tragic loss of one of its delivery men in a notorious bank robbery a few years back. As bad as that whole situation was/is, it did put Erie's local pizza shops back on the map and I think we are seeing a bit of a resurgance in this area. Any thoughts?

Cheers.

Ralph

Smoking ban

Let's give some props to Judge Bozza for proving he is indeed no Bozo and striking down the county-wide smoking ban. Now, I'm not a smoker, so I really shouldn't care about this, but I am a big freedom and rights guy. I mean if you want to run a restaurant or bar where people are allowed to smoke, why shouldn't you be able to do it? Cigarettes were still legal, last I checked. If there is really tons of public support to ban smoking in public places, wouldn't that mean there is a huge opportunity for non-smoking establishments to open up, and these droves of people who destest smoking could just go to those?

I think it's a farce. I really don't think the majority of people in Erie County are in favor of a smoking ban. Rather, I think it's a vocal (and somewhat powerful) minority. I say we put the matter to the test. Put a proposed smoking ban on a public ballot, and if we get more than 50% of county-wide voters in favor of it, go for it. If not, then don't. We still live in a democracy, don't we? I mean if we can get stuff like gay marriage ammendments on the ballot, why not an anti-smoking ordinance? All those in favor, say, aye.

Cheers.

Ralph

What's the hang-up in Koehler project?

It has been recently reported in the Times that the project was stopped dead by some "paperwork" disagreements between Cornerstone (the acute health care guys) and the developers. Could we be more specific about this? Originally, it was reported that there was a problem specifically involving an "Estoppel Certificate" that the banks wanted Cornerstone to sign before they would finalize their loan to the Koehler developers. So, what's an Estoppel Certificate? Through some Googling, the best I could find is that it's some sort of agreement stating that terms in the lease have been agreed upon. So, was there a discrepency between the lease the Koehler developers showed the banks and the one Cornerstone agreed on? One story I heard was that the lending banks wanted Cornerstone to guarentee 20 years worth of lease payments, because that's how long the loan is for, but because Cornerstone only has a 10-year lease, they wouldn't do it. I would just like some more detail on this matter before we close the book on the project.

Cheers.

Ralph

Passan column on steroids

So, was it coincidence that a new steroid scandal broke right when I finished the compelling book about the last big sports steroid scandal. As my firend Dr. Dee likes to put it "there are no accidents." Anyways, I would be less interested in this current story if I hadn't read such an in depth and interesting account about the old one. And the title of one of the chapters in Game of Shadows rights truer than ever: "Cheat or Lose." After all, the Pittsburgh Steelers doctor is accused of spending $150,000 on Human Growth Hormone last year, which he claims was medicine for one of his patients. Yeah right. Didn't the Steelers win the Super Bowl last year?

Then there's this great Jeff Passan column. Passan is a former Kansas City Royals beat guy who now writes for Yahoo! and cranks out consistenly riveting copy. He pretty much calls Gary Matthews, Jr. and the California Angels onto the carpet for some sort of collusion in which Matthews got a $50 million contract because of one good year, which we find out was now was contributed to by some sort of "supplements." Let's see, great year out of nowhere by a mediocre player who appeared to be reaching the end of the line... haven't we seen this scenario before, like starting with Brady Anderson about 10-15 years ago, and down through the years. Anyways, Passan says if the Angels had bothered to look, they could have figured out for themselves that Matthews was juicing, but they chose instead to ignore it and pay sign him to a $50 million contract, that they're probably stuck with now, even though Matthews has been busted... Anyways, Passan's point is that if Matthews gets his $50 million, it's yet more evidence that the cheaters have won.... and just wait until Barry Bonds breaks Hammerin' Hank's home run record. Aye Carumbas!

Ralph

Honoring Fr. John "Tex" HIlbert

For many in the Erie community, the recent passing of Fr. John Hilbert was shocking and sad. "Tex" as he was known (as was his father before him) was active in the Erie Cursillo movement, the Erie CALL program, and was chaplain at Mercyhurst Erie for nearly 20 years. At the time of his death, he was chaplain to Mercyhurst North East.

Tex was a friend to my family since 1970 and I worked with him personally for the past five years. He was a great man with a great spiritual presence. His funeral at St. Peter's Cathedral on Tuesday was standing room only. Clearly, he touched many lives.

Tex and I used to have long conversations at MNE concerning politics (he did not care for the Bush administration and its rush to war) and spirituality (he believed that all of us are God's childrem, regardless of color or gender or belief system). I will miss those conversations and I will miss seeing him in the hallways of MNE.

If you have not yet see his obit on GoErie, you might want to take a look to see how many people loved Tex. It's very moving.

A great light has been taken from us, and he will be impossible to replace. We can only thank God that Tex was able to spend his entire life helping the people of Erie, PA. We need more people like him.

DDDDD

Presque Isle Downs

I've been talking to people about the new casino in Summit Township, Presque Isle Downs. As you might imagine, some people think it's a good thing, some think it's bad, and others are indifferent.

Those who support the project cite jobs and tax revenue. And although they are skeptical about the promise of Property Tax Reform (meaning that your property taxes will go away and be paid for by the slots), they believe that county-funded projects like the Zoo and the County Library System will now be able to avoid their annual funding crises.

Those who do not like the casino cite social problems. People told me that gambling "attracts the wrong crowd to Erie County" and will create additional strain on social service agencies (presumably, because gambling creates debt and debt can destroy families). In addition, debt also leads to the lending of money which quite often cannot be paid back, and this leads to Draconian Debt Collection, if you get my drift.

Those who are indifferent tend to see both sides of the issue. They agree that revenue generation is necessary; however, they're not sure that a casino is the best way to generate jobs and tax revenue.

Interestingly, the seniors I spoke with are more likely to visit the casino than people in other age groups. They said they like to play the slots because it's fun, safe, and potentially profitable...and now they won't have to travel to Salamanca or Canada to play the slots.

Personally, it seems to me that there is so much to do in this world: Helping people learn to read and write, feeding the hungry, volunteering for various local projects...making Erie a better place to live, that it seems odd that so many people have time to sit on a stool and play slots. But it's back to Bread and Circus, I guess. As long as the masses are fed and entertained, then all is well in the U.S. of A.

Heart of Darkness

Here's a great quote from Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, which I am making my way through:

"You know I hate, detest, and can't bear a lie, not because I am straighter than the rest of us, but simply because it appals me. There is a taint of death, a flavor of mortality in lies - which is exactly what I hate and detest in the world - what I want to forget. It makes me miserable and sick, like biting something rotten would do. Temperment, I suppose...."

Cheers.

Ralph

Game of Shadows

Started reading this incredible book about about the Barry Bonds' steroid scandal. It's been pretty well publicized, and I think the two authors got into some sort of trouble for being in possession of leaked Grand Jury testimony, but they really do a great job detailing the culture that led to this tremendous abuse of steroids in baseball. I'm about halfway through, and I'm pretty convinced that Sosa's, McGwire's, and Bonds' records, well they're tarnished to say the least. Should we pull them from the record books? I don't know. I guess, when you really think about it, Ruth and Mantle, for example, probably would have turned to steroids had they been as readily available back in the day as they were to these three guys I just mentioned. I'm not saying they were victims, but they were just playing the game, a big money one at that. It's the same game that track and field athletes, as well as football players (less so now I think) have been playing for years. Remember Lyle Alzado - the guy went from nobody to All-Pro defensive end, thanks to steroids and then died of brain cancer.

All in a life's work.

Ralph

Britney

I'll have to admit, I'm a Britney Spears fan. In fact, "Oops I did it again," was one of my favorite pop hits of all time. Catchy, sarcastic, and a really funny video, plus Britney was pretty sexy back in the day. Had a lot going for her. Now, it's all come apart. As Bill "Sports Guy" Simmons puts it, she's entered the Tyson Zone. Go Britney.

Here's my take: Britney is at a crossroads. He old life is gone, and she needs to make a call about what her future direction is going to be. Her days as a teen queen pop star are over, and she knows it. She's a mother of two now- a lady, not a girl, and is having a tough time figuring out how to deal with that. The shaving of the head thing - that was the external sign that she knows she's changed. But how is she going to come out of this? The best move she could me would be to pull a Demi Moore and back off everything for awhile. The other alternative is an Anna Nicole Smith and just keep running around as a has-been and deluding yourself into thinking you're not a joke. Drugs and alchohol help with that delusion.

Anyhow, I'm cheering for Britney to drop out, but I'm sure not betting that is the path she'll take. Bottoms up.

Ralph

A Clockwork Orange

Spent the last week in Belgium and previous week in Vegas and parts of San Diego. Not a huge Vegas fan, but San Diego, especially if you've got a view of the bay, can be pretty relaxing. Anyhow, the two shots posted above are from Belgium. The top is from the town square in the villiage of Brugge, which is in the Flemish (Dutch) part of the country. The bottom is the Atonium or something in Brussels which was built for a World's Fair in the 1950s. We went up in it. Nothing too great. Brugge seemed pretty cool and only reaffirmed my desire to visit Amsterdam someday... Anyways, I was pretty sick the whole time I was there, with a stomach thing and a cold. It didn't help that I didn't get my luggage until Thursday night, after the gala meeting I attended in jeans and a shirt I bought out of some shop across the street from my hotel. Did I mention that European people like to wear suits, and I had packed one for the occasion? I came across as quite the "American" in my duds...

Then there is this thing about heat in Europe. It was about 40-50 degrees during the day in Belgium, which I understand was nowhere near as cold as it was here. But, Europeans seem to have something against forced air heat, as I could never get the temperature properly adjusted except for half of one night in my hotel room. Then, on Saturday, I went out for a "coffee" appointment and the gents I was with suggested taking it in an outdoor cafe. I think the key to this aversion to heat is the fact alcholic drinks run pretty much as same price as soft drinks, so you might as well go for the internal warmth and damn the heaters. Normally, I would have had no problem with this, but with my stomach, my drinking capacity was down substantially...

Anyways, I tried to rest a bit and did manage with the help of travel time to finish Anthony Burgess' A Clockwork Orange. Quite likely, you’ve seen the movie version, which I did a number of years ago. However, for some reason, as it does from time to time, a bug had gotten into me to read the book. So, I checked it out of the Ridge Library and off I went.

Now, there appears to be a bit of a discrepancy, and maybe even a bit of controversy between the novel and movie. You see in the U.S. published book on which the movie is based, Chapter 21 is removed. Chapter 21 functions as sort of the denouement, or falling action. If you remove it, you end up with this real horror show (to use Alex’s terminology) ending, where the main character is pretty much back where he started. The extra chapter, in fact, shows him maturing a bit and growing away from this character.

Here’s what Burgess has to say about that (in the intro to the second U.S. book version.): “There is in fact, not much point in writing a novel unless you can show the possibility of moral transformation, or an increase in wisdom, operating in your chief character or characters….

“When a fictional work fails to show change, when it merely indicates that human character is set, stony, unregenerable, then you are out of the field of the novel and into that of the fable or the allegory.”

If this is the case then, it's my call that A Clockwork Orange works great as a fable or allegory, but not as a novel, because the last “extra” chapter seems forced and really doesn’t draw on the rest of the story very well. It’s like Burgess wrote 20 chapters to come to this perfect fable ending, then realized he hadn’t shown any change and tacked this last one on.

Burgess claims this 21st chapter was always planned, but it sure didn't come across as very connected to me. I’ll let the poor guy rest, as he’s probably dead now and did say in the intro he was a bit embarrassed by the novel and all the attention it garnered. He thought he had many works that were much better Poor chap.

Regards,

Ralph

1980 Browns- Cardiac Kids

Does anyone remember this team? I must have been 13 when they made their improbable run into the playoffs with an 11-5 record. I remember, we used their nickname for one of our street football teams that had a penchant for comebacks. The 1980 Browns were led by Brian Sipe, an undersize, and I believe undrafted quarterback who had beaten out first-round pick Mike Phipps a couple years earlier. He was a real underdog story, and their coach, Sam Rutigliano, was one of these rah-rah Italian guys that everyone seemed to rally around.

Anyways, the Browns met their demise in one of the coldest games in NFL history, played in January in old Cleveland Stadium. They were trailing 14-12 with time running out and had driven down the field against Raiders to well within field goal range-on a normal day. But the Browns' 200-year-old kicker, Don Cockroft, I believe, had already missed two extra points to create the deficit - correct me if I'm wrong - so they called a pass play, and Sipe threw into double coverage - for Ozzie Newsome - and it got picked off by in a great play by a Raiders' linebacker.

Maybe it's because the Super Bowl is approaching, but Sports Time Ohio has had a couple specials on this team this past week, with former WR Reggie Rucker, who was on the team, interviewing ex-players. They had the old middle linebacker on last night, and he explained that he had actually driven halfway to practice the following Wed. because he still couldn't believe the Browns had lost the game. The Raiders went on to win the Super Bowl and the Browns went 5-11 the next year. They're cursed I tell you...

Ralph

Cheever's Swimmer

Has anyone ever read John Cheever's, "The Swimmer?" Any thoughts on this disturbing piece of literature? Re-read it last night for the first time in several years. Even though I've gone though many changes since I first read it, it still came across as powerful as it did the first time I read it back in college. Maybe that's the definition of true literature - that it never ceases to have a profound affect on you, no matter when you re-visit it. (Yes, Cheever was the guy mentioned in the Seinfeld episode when Kramer burned down the cabin.)

Regards,

Ralph

Welcome Back Snow!

Finally, some snow. I must admit, I think it's wonderful. I may have told you that last Janurary I bought this beat-up toboggan off some Canadian guy in an old pick-up that looked like it had dog cages in the bed. I found it through an ad in the classifieds and the transaction took place one evening in the Home Depot parking lot. When I got the thing home, it was in worse shape than it appeared in the dark, but for $35, I definitely had a solid piece of wood I could work with. I think I invested about $10 in some screws, cut up an old belt for leather strapping material, and put a few hours worth of manpower in. After a couple test runs, I decided we needed a pad and ordered one off E-bay. A couple weeks later it arrived, and what do you know, it stopped snowing...until now that is.

I was out of town when the initial couple feet hit, but arrived back home Friday. By Sunday, we were up at Erie Golf Course. Must have been about 50 people there around sunset time, and we were all cruising down the ice covered slopes - if you remember there was some freezing rain that day. Well, we took it easy and made a few runs down one of the remedial slopes, but we were still moving pretty good. Then, last night, as we got hit hard with fluffy snow - it seemed like the perfect time to try out my new/old sled at Frontier. I figured on a Tuesday, the crowds would be sparse and the new-fallen snow would keep the track slow enough that I could still work out some kinks.

Now, as it kept snowing, it became clear that maybe one shouldn't take to the roads for something as frivilous as a sled ride, but something kept pulling at me. It was almost like that old toboggan was calling me from the garage. I kept trying to find excuses not to go, but after taking out the garbage and shoveling the walks and driveway, I found myself waxing her up with a piece from an old candle. I leaned her against the car and waited. The snow was falling heavily and thickly, and I went inside to check on my son and see if he still wanted to go. After some chaos involving him not wanting to go in the basement himself to get his coat, we headed out. I don't think the wife was all too happy, as I was leaving her with a baby and my daughter who was too tired to go out, but as I said, I was being called.

We negotiated through a near-white out to get to Frontier and found ourselves on hill with a couple drunken teenagers on snow boards. The snow was so thick, that on the first ride down, its spray blinded me, but my instincts had proven correct and we made it down at a nice cruising speed without hitting any jumps. After we wore a path, the spray decreased and we picked up speed. We just went down about four times, but that was enough for me to learn what I needed to about the old toboggan. As I get a better feel, I expect to be able to go faster and take more chances.

But, regardless of all that, it was an absolutely beautiful night at the park. I'm not sure where all the ambient light was coming from, but its reflection off the snow gave the whole place a wonderful night-time glow and the heavy falling snowflakes and peaceful setting surrounded by trees created a winter paradise. Yeah, the snow gets a bad rap, but when you haven't had it for awhile...boy, was I starting to miss it. Last night reaffirmed why. Welcome back snow! Erie in the winter is not such a bad place after all.

Colts/Patriots, Eastside/Westside, Yin/Yang

That was your Super Bowl ladies and gents. We saw it all yesterday. A real knock-down, dragum' out affair, complete with a great comeback and vindicated heros - Manning and Dungy - two guys who have always come up short in the big game, but have now teamed together to finally make it to Football's biggest stage.

Remember, last week, we got into the whole Chargers/Patriots - Eastsider/Westsider parallel. Well, here's my take on this week's outcome, in relation to that theory - with a little dressing added on top: The Patriots have gone too Westside. Tom Brady, from what I heard, is dating actresses and supermodels, in other words, he's moved to Millcreek. This is not wrong in itself. After all, the Colts are historically, a Westside, offensive-minded team. However, the Colts have been balanced out by the hiring of Tony Dungy, a great Eastside, conservative mind, to run the team. And sure enough, the Colts defense kept them in the playoff tournament through two and a half games, before the offense finally opened up and showed its true colors in the second-half yesterday. Yes, the marriage of East and West can work beautifully. And here's why it didn't work with the Patriots, who really squandered their chances yesterday, similar to the way that Dr. Dee obseved the Chargers squandered theirs a week earlier: (Note: theme shift coming) - while the Colts have achieved the perfect balance of Yin/Yang through their marriage of East and West, the Patriots now rely too heavily on the Yang...

Bill Belichick has been seperated from his wife since 2004. The Patriots last Super Bowl win followed the 2004 season. I don't think this is completely coincidence. While some may say, great, this frees Bill up to work even more than his legendary long hours, I think it has also upset his balance. The Patriots have lost their female touch, or their Yin. Brady dating super models and actresses , who probably have more Yang than most men because of the competitive nature of their professions, doesn't help the situation either. Yes, the Patriots are built for war, but football is about more than war, it's also about properity and peace. You have know how to manage the entire game. The Patriots got off to a big lead, but then didn't have the motherly instincts to properly nurse it, and therefore gave it away so they could get back to the battle and satisfy their Yang instincts. Unfortunately, being constantly at battle uses up too much energy, and the announcers noted several times that the Pats looked tired down the stretch.

Now, the Colts, have historically been a "soft" team, having too much Yin, and their quarterback may be gay, for all I know. He sure is a helluvan' actor. Dungy brought the warlike, father-figure into the picture and laid down some loving discipline on the franchise. When the Colts offense couldn't get untracked trough the first two rounds of the playoffs, and through most of the first-half yesterday, there was no panic. No, Dungy applied a steadying hand to keep things calm, and he also got his Bob Sanders-led defense to carry the load with some hard-hitting Yanglike play. Then, when the offense blossomed in the second half yesterday, it was a thing of beauty. The warline Yang of the Colts defense had laid the groundwork for the Yin to bloom. The interception on the final play (not to mentioned the three runs to slam the ball into the end zone for the winning points) were evidence of the Yang protecting what the Yin had established...

No, the Bears don't stand a chance.

Cheers.
Ralph

Troop Surge

Okay. It's time to go on record for or against the Bush Administration's proposed troop surge in Iraq.

I have been against the invasion of Iraq from the beginning for a variety of reasons:

For example, I thought the war against terror organizations needed to be fought by attacking their funding and through surgical military strikes against individually identified targets. I also thought international cooperation was critical. Declaring a costly, open land war against a country that did not attack us--without the backing of the China, Russia, France, Germany, Canada, or any Arab nation--was bad policy.

However, instead of creating coalitions, the US went against almost every major country in the world and invaded Iraq...and now we are left on an island. The deaths, the bloodshed, the $400 billion pricetag...all of it has led to this quagmire.

In addition, since this is primarily an ideological war, it must be fought for the hearts and minds of the people. Belive it or not, the Iranian demographic is fairly young and they want their iPods and blue jeans. They want to be friends with the West and we keep giving them the finger. In other words, the "war" with the Arab world is not being fought properly. Killing Arabs in Iraq, whether they be Sunni or Shiia, is not going to produce stability in the region.

Face it: The rehabilitation of Iraq has been poorly planned from the start. In other words, The Bushies planned for an easy win, but--like remodeling your bathroom--this project has been more difficult (and more costly) than expected.

That said, the US cannot simply walk away. There has been too much invested. Therefore, I support the proposal to send additional troops as long as there is a timeline. If, for example, there is no clear-cut progress by Labor Day, then "everybody out of the pool." They all come home. There's no more point in it.

I guess the thing that annoys me most is: What took them so long? Why is Bush talking about a troop surge now (four years into it)? Just because Republicans lost the elections? Is that what it takes to revise a strategy? For someone who can never admit a mistake, I guess it is. The man has mud in his ears.

So, there it is. Send in the additional troops and get the job done or get the fuck out right now. That's my position.

Sadly, I fear that more troops will be sent, more people will die, and the Iraq mess will not end until a new president takes office.

NFL Playoffs

Ralph,

Well, it looks like we both got knocked out last weekend. Baltimore and SD both lost. Of the two, the SD loss was particularly disappointing. The Chargers were not prepared for that game...and I can see why people label Schottenheimer as a "loser." His players repeatedly gave the game away.

I'm no pro football coach, but I can tell you that if I'm up against Bill Bellicheck, I'm going to go into the game with an Eastsider mentality. In other words, I would assume that the Pats are not going to be easily conquered. Therefore, every play would be contested and every advantage maximized. The Chargers, however, played like they were going to have a hundred chances at everything.

A muffed punt that the returner tried to pick up instead of just covering? Not against New England in the playoffs...they made him pay.

An interception that turned into a fumble because the interceptor tried to run directly into traffic? Not against New England in the playoffs...they made him pay. He should have focused on protecting the ball, and not on making a big return.

In my opinion, the Chargers should have won that game easily. They certainly had the chances and the talent.

However, it appears that coaching was the biggest problem. SD was not ready to beat Bellicheck and the Pats, so they didn't.

As for the Baltimore Browns, I was glad to see them lose. They are a Steeler arch-nemesis, so fuck them.

DDD

The Sp"oils" of Iraq

Ralph,

You have asked, since the beginning, "Why did the US really invade Iraq?"

One oft-repeated reason is to "bring democracy to the Middle East." Bullshit. We spend $400 billion and 3029 American lives so that Iraqis can vote? Does anyone support that kind of deal?

To fight terrorism? To depose Saddam? To find WMDs?

It's all trumped-up bullshit.

The reasons the US went into Iraq are money and oil. First, the guy who pushed hardest for the war was Dick Cheney, and the entity that has gained most from the war has been Halliburton.

Now, according to the The Independent, a British newspaper, "the Bush administration is heavily involved in writing Iraq's oil law, a draft of which the paper said it had obtained. The law would allow Western oil companies contracts of up to 30 years to pump oil out of Iraq, and the profits would be tax-free" (USA Today, January 16, 2006).

So, there you go. It is all about the sp"oils" of war after all.....and how dare we innocently wonder---after watching all of this go down---why some Arabs want to kill Americans. The US marches in with its army (under the guise of self-defense), kills thousands of their people, fails at providing adequate security, and then steals their oil on top of it.

Wow...our "leaders" are some serious assholes. All they care about is money and power. Maybe that's all there is...

I fear that, as a result of these policies, that we continue to be a nation held hostage to the interests of big business and big money. Innocent people will continue to die in the name of "national interest" while the weathy gain more wealth.

Survival of the fittest, eh, Ralph?

On it goes..........................

Al Shugart

Just to get back to Big Al for a minutue, who Dr. Dee eugligized last month. Here's a great article from his local rag in Santa Cruz that kinda sums up his life and times. There are some great lines in here:

"When Seagate company policy banned smoking indoors, Shugart would go outside and chat with fellow smokers, some of whom had no idea he was the CEO."

"In 1996, Watkins, working at Conner Peripherals, opposed Seagate's acquisition of the company. He planned to bail out of the post-merger firm and lined up a job at Maxtor, a Seagate competitor. When Shugart found out, he arranged for a conversation and showed up in bellbottoms, red socks and sandals. Shugart didn't ask Watkins to stay, but Watkins canceled his move to Maxtor to work for Shugart."

"He left every day for work before 6 a.m. driving from his home in Pebble Beach, saying someone had to make the coffee."

It's not wonder the guy the guy was named the "Most Admired Man in the Industy" by DataStorage six times. I'd say "rest in peace," but I'm not sure Al would want total peace.

Regards,

Ralph

Super Bowl Picks

OK, Ralph, it's time to go on record with your Super Bowl picks for 2006-2007.

It’s a tough call for me because I haven’t seen many teams play (other than Pittsburgh).

In the NFC, I’ll pick New Orleans. Chicago is tough, and should make it to the NFC Championship Game, but Rex Grossman makes key mistakes...he's sort of the Vinny Testaverde of The Midway.

Other NFC wannabes: Philly, Dallas, and Seattle, are all inconsistent. So, I’ll pick Chicago and New Orleans in the NFC Championship with New Orleans going to the Super Bowl on the last-minute heroics of Drew Brees.

In the AFC, I like San Diego. Although I’ve only seen them play once, LT seems very good. Plus, SD is 10-2 in the AFC! That's pretty impressive.

At the same time, New England--with Tom Brady and Bill Belicheck--are always tough at playoff time. Baltimore has the defense to win the Super Bowl while Indy does not, but can the Ravens score enough points? The AFC is more difficult to call than the NFC....better teams.

My final word on the AFC? I’ll say San Diego and Baltimore in the AFC Championship and San Diego going to the Super Bowl.

Super Bowl pick: San Diego beats New Orleans 31-17.

Now that I've put the hex on them, they'll probably both lose in the first round...

DDDDDDDDDDDD

President Ford and Iraq

It's all starting to come out. The late President Ford disagreed with the Bush policy on Iraq. I'm not surprised. Unfortunately, the current administration has typically been hostile to the ideas of other people. "BB's off a rhino," as we used to say.

Now that Rumsfeld is gone and Cheney has dropped out of sight, we might see a change in Bush. It'll be interesting to see what his new plan is going to be for Iraq. Based on past policy, it will probably lack a clear goal and call for more violence.

It's clear already to most Americans...we should not have entered Iraq. It's going to fuel violence and terrorism for at least another generation of Arabs.

There were multiple other options, as Ford suggests in the AP article, but I think Cheney is the biggest creep in this story. I think he saw the whole Iraq endeavor as a lucrative power play, and this is the proper role of a CEO, right?

Even hanging Hussein seems hollow at this point, when compared to the devastation that this war has caused to Iraq. I mean, he was convicted of killing 150 people (although it's clear that he killed many more). With all respect to the dead, 150 seems like a small number when compared tot he ~100,000 (or more?) Iraqis that have been killed as a result of the current war.

Plus, 2,900 American troops have been killed (so we've doubled the number killed in the World Trade Center catastrophe....is that what we wanted?). What a mess.

In conclusion, President Ford, rest in peace and please stand by the United States as we go through these dangerous and difficult times.

DDDDDDDD

Christmas = Family

During this holiday weekend, I have heard a lot of people talking about the meaning of Christmas. Some say it was originally a Pagan holiday that celebrates light at the darkest time of year. Others say that it originated as a Norse practice involving St. Nicholas and gift giving. Others focus on the birth of Jesus Christ as central to the holiday.

From my perspective, Christmas is all of these things. But how can this be? Here's why: No matter what your particular tradition, Christmas always equals family. Each year, people all over the world gather with family and loved ones at this time of year.

And it goes beyond that: We actually enter into a realm of spiritual selflessness at this time of year. We think about the needs of others and we open our wallets to charitable causes.

I think Joe Campbell would say that we become selfless at this time of year (in the northern hemisphere, anyway) because we have reached the nadir of our annual journey. It is at this time, a time where the sun has all but dropped below the horizon, we realize our precarious place int he universe. That's when we realize that We Are One and we turn to each other and simply say, "I love you."

Christmas is, indeed, a celebration of human love, particularly for family. Pagans understand this, the Norse peoples understand this, and Christians understand this. Everyone who celebrates Christmas or Yule or Hanukkah or Kwanzaa understands that this is the time of year for family.

In fact, my personal holy trinity is father+mother+child.

So, before we get carried away with Jesus's death and resurection (which inevitably enters into the Christmas rhetoric), let's appreciate Mary's triumph. She gave birth to a son, and that, in itself, is enough for rejoicing because it represents all "Mary's" and all "babies."

Second, let's give a shout out to Joseph, who stood by his family to complete the trinity.

My coffee is getting cold and my family is in the other room, so I need to end this entry. But the next time someone asks you about the real meaning of Christmas, you can tell them FAMILY.

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Blessed Yule, Happy Kwanzaa

DDDDD

Beat The Drum

I had the opportunity recently to see this wonderful movie - Beat The Drum. It's about a little boy in South Africa, whose whole family is wiped out by AIDS, and how he was to deal with it, and ultimately, how the whole African continent, I guess, is going to, or is dealing with, AIDS. The movie was made in 2003, so maybe a few things have changed, but this was one of the most tragic stories I've ever seen. Both his parents are dead - his father, on his deathbed gives this 11-year-old a drum, which is symbolic as the instrument used to let people know about AIDS. The theme of the movie is that Africans deny the existence of AIDS, considering it a curse, and as a result shut any preventative measures and spread the disease. Practices such as a brother marrying his deceased sibling's wife, even if he died of AIDS, and grown men suffering from AIDS raping pre-pubescent girls because they think sex with a virgin will cure them, are touched upon. The whole thing is tragic and focuses a lot on the plight of the orphans this epidemic is creating. This poor kid in the movie has to hitchike to Johannesburg and work cleaning windows of stopped cars to support himself. And he's doing better than a lot of his compatriots...

I broke down crying like six times. I think the guy sitting next to me on the plane must have thought I flipped. This was a heckuva film on many levels - although a bit preachy, but still I felt it was a noble attempt (on a low-budget) at conveying a valuable message - something rarely done in Hollywood (this, of course, was an Inde flick). Anyway, I wanted to share this art with some friends and relatives but have been unable to find anyplace locally or on-line to rent or buy this movie. According to its Web site, the movie won like 30 awards. So, why can't I find it? But, I can find 30 copies of the Legend of Bobby Whatever (a pretty funny movie actually) at my local video store. That's fucked up.

Cheers. Merry XMas

Ralph

W Cheering on the Troops

In the blog comments from Tuesday December 5, Ralph asked whether GW Bush was a cheerleader. The answer is YES. In fact, he was a letter winner in cheerleading at Andover and Yale.

According to the Information Clearinghouse: "[as a former cheerleader] the president knows how tough it is to keep spirits up when it becomes clear that his team is not winning, but the bedlam in Iraq has become the supreme test. Some of his fellow cheerleaders have quit cheering, and even the Fox News Channel is having trouble putting on a brave front. "

I'd laugh at this commentary if it all weren't so tragic.

And from USA Today: "The mistaken war and botched aftermath have created such a mess that the only credible course change must be predicated on this painful question: Is there an achievable goal that makes the further sacrifice of American lives worthwhile? With each passing day, that is looking less and less likely. ... What, exactly, is the goal that U.S. forces are fighting and dying for?"

Can anybody answer this question? Other than to reply with the tired and vague canard, "The War on Terror."

What's the cheerleader-in-chief's solution in December 2006 (3.5 years into a war that was supposed to take six months)? He's talking about sending more troops.

Can cheerleader's read? Do they have to take history classes in college? Somewhere along the line, this guy must have missed a lot of history and political science classes, because he clearly doesn't understand that Arabs will always drive the white man from Arab soil (just as Americans would drive Arabs from the North American continent, no matter how benevolent their stated goal).

He'll be calling up the National Guard soon to continue this escapade.

When is W's term in office over? That's when the war, the maiming, the deaths--and the money hemorraging from our wallets--will finally stop.

Al Shugart and the Superparamagnetic Limit

In 1956, at IBM Corporation, Al Shugart, along with Reynold Johnson and a team of engineers, invented the first computer hard drive. The first drives were large and cumbersome, but, as with all technology, the footprint was reduced and the capacity was increased.

Fifty years later, Al's legacy lives on, simultaneously enslaving and liberating millions of people around the world each day.

Alas, Al Shugart is dead at age 76 from complications following heart surgery.

During my days as a tech journalist, I had many conversations with Al. He was always willing to offer his perspective on the world of technology. One of the most interesting conversations I had with him involved the "superparamagnetic limit." In layman's terms, the "superparamagnetic limit" involves the amount of data that can be written to the surface of a magnetic hard drive.

Logic dictates that you can only write so much onto a magnetic surface of limited size, right? But what is that limit? 1GB? 10GB? 100GB? 1TB? Today, most PCs come with an 80GB HDD and the upper limit is somewhere around 320 GB. Now, I know they stack platters and use other trick, but still, the amount of data that can be written to a HDD continues to increase dramatically with no end in sight. Amazing.

So, when I think of Al, I think about infinite possibilities. He was an expansive guy and his legacy has left us with a universe of options, from word processing to podcasting to blogging.

Thanks Al, and may you rest in peace.

Dr.D.

Kipling-Alexander

So, I'm reading a biography on Alexander the Great, the Macedonian king who conquered most of Asia by the time he was like 30 or something. So-so book, but a fascinating story. Alexander seems to be regarded as a military and political genius. He was also a ruthless megalomaniac, who believed himself to be descended from gods... and maybe he was... but this posturing made me recall a wonderful story by Rudyard Kipling, entitld, "The Man Who Would Be King." You may be familiar with the movie version, a '70s flick that stars an in-his-prime Sean Connery in the title role. In the story, Connery uses his assocation with the FreeMasons to ligitimitize a link between himself and "Sandra" (as the natives call him) or Alexander, who had once conquered the land Connery is now marauding in. It's a great movie, and the story by Kipling is also great. You can find it here for free download from the Guttenberg Book Project.

Kipling is a great storyteller, and being able to write like him is one of the reasons I wanted to be a writer. Here's a line from the story discussing fake foreign correspondents making threats of blackmail on local politicos in India:

“They do not understand that nobody cares a straw for the internal administration of Native States so long as oppression and crime are kept within decent limits, and the ruler is not drugged, drunk, or diseased from one end of the year to the other.”

That gives you some idea of the style and gist of the story. It's kind of like a Heart of Darkness (by Conrad) type piece, which of course is the story that Apocolyspe Now is based on. Anyway, it's a great tale of adventure told in a humorous fashion, but also a bit of a morality tale. Yes, DoktorDee, I think it's got a lot of the elements of great mythology embedded within. There's also a couple great paragraphs discussing the lives of both loafers and journalists-two of my favorite classes of people.

Carry on,

Ralph

Berlin

As you may or may not know, I recently returned from a weeklong conference in Berlin. I was pretty busy with work most of the time, but did get a couple nights and one day to see some of the city. Some observrations:
1. Beer was good - well, you probably knew that
2. City was expensive - kind of reminded me of New York City. The area I was staying in, around the Unter Den Linden - means something like "street of lime trees" - was all lit up and had a lot of upscale stores. Plus, the dollar is at an all-time low vs. the Euro. I gave the exchange guy $200 at the airport and got back 130 Euro or something. That sucked.
3. Berliners are not afraid of the cold - It was in the '40s in the evenings (sun went down around 4:30 p.m.), but there were still a ton of people in these outdoor markets they had set up all over town. Many of these were speciality XMas gift setups, but one of them, called the Gendermenmarkt, is apparently a year 'round thing. On Friday evening, I stopped in there, drank a couple Gluweins - this hot sweet wine - and watched some dancers perform on an outdoor stage. You could see their breath, but they were still wearing tights and dancing dresses, and it was quite entertaining. Earlier that evening, at another outdoor market, I wolfed down a big plate of steaming pork and sauerkraut. Good stuff. I also saw a rock band performing outdoors in front of one of the big department stores - reminded me of like a Boston Store-type place, and it was packed. Did I mention that people in Berlin seem to like to shop.
4. Rembrandt and Boticelli are awesome artists - On Saturday I had some time to hit the Gemaldegalerie, this wonderful gallery with something like 900 paintings in 70 rooms. These paintings are from European artists from the 1200s through the 1700s. The Rembrandt works struck me first. I found myself fascinated by one of them, the facial expression really drawing me in, and then I looked down to see who it was by - and I realized why he has such a great reputation. Quickly, it seems to me Rebrandt best captures the ambiguity of human life in his facial expressions. His people seem very complex - they are not one dimensional happy or sad, but have very complex expressions, which draws you in, makes them seem real. The version of the Joseph and the Wife of Potiphar that hangs there (there's also one in Washington, DC, apparently) particularly drew me in and held my interest for a long time. Boticelli's facial expressions had an equal complexity about them, but they were all these sleepy eyed Italians, which really captivated me, based on the make-up of my own face. I really wanted to know what his portaits were thinking and felt very comfortable staring at them and trying to figure this out.
5. Prostitution is legal - Didn't know this. For some reason my tour book didn't seem to mention it. But once I got out of the posh neighborhood I was staying in and spent a bit of time on the Oranienburger Strasse, man, were they ever open for busienss. As a single guy walking down the street, I must have looked like any easy mark - and was approached by someone every half block it seemed. It was starting to wig me out, as I kept picturing myself getting robbed, my wallet and passport stolen - of course, I was kind of hung over and pretty far from home, so I was being paranoid. Now that I also know these women were just trying to make an honest buck, I feel bad that I may have been rude to them.

Hope you find this info useful if someday you travel to Berlin, or just interesting if not. By the way, a round trip airfare, because I returned to Erie on Sunday, was like $530 dollars, including tax.

Cheers.

Ralph

Should Colleges and the NFL Develop a Semi-Pro League?

According to The Chronicle of Higher Education, "More than a third of the 64 college football teams headed to bowl games this season have failed to meet academic standards set by the National Collegiate Athletic Association, according to an annual report released on Monday by the Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport at the University of Central Florida."

My question: Should the charade continue or should US colleges team up with the NFL and invest in a semi-pro league that would feed players to the NFL but would not pretend to grant degrees to athletes who have no inclination or ability in the area of academics?

NFL Football Moving Away from Low-Income Fans

I have been watching a disturbing trend lately concerning the NFL. It seems that the NFL---in order to pay astronomical player and coach salaries---has been forced to seek new revenue streams.

The solution is to televise Monday Night Football on ESPN and, now, Thursday evening games on NFL Network.

I do not have ESPN and I do not have NFL Network, so I cannot watch these games. That's the thanks I get for being a loyal fan of the NFL my entire life (and occasionally buying its merchandise...hats, t-shirts, sweatshirts).

I'm curious to hear the thoughts of Ralph's readers. I see it as more evidence of the widening gap between those with plenty of disposable income and those without.

Any thoughts?

DokTorDee

J.P. Losman

If you haven't seen it yet, check out J.P. Losman's game winning pass from this past Sunday's game vs. the Texans. This is an absolute bullet, on the money, in the back of the end zone. Yes, as a Bills fan, we haven't had much to celebrate this year, but this was one of those rare moments... of course, until I read this excerpt from DJ Gallo's column on ESPN page 2, which kind of put it in perspective:

"After Losman led the Bills on a last-minute drive to defeat the Texans, Houston cornerback Dunta Robinson had this to say: 'If that had been Peyton Manning, you'd expect it. But it was J.P. Losman. That's embarrassing. I hope he doesn't feel too good, because we just shot ourselves in the foot.' Yeah, Losman, you shouldn't feel too good. You had to resort to a last-minute drive to beat Dunta Robinson and the Texans. Most teams usually put them away long before the fourth quarter. You should be embarrassed. You're so pathetic I'm surprised you're not a Houston Texan."

Thanks.
Ralph

Erie's Dick Chaney

So, I'm sure you've all seen by now that the City of Erie is considering putting Erie Golf Course on the market. Most interesting thing about this is that the City reportedly paid almost $2 million to upgrade the course just a couple years ago, but now say the best they could hope to sell it for as a golf course is $600,000. Wow, talk about a bad investment. The story says council approved this investment - does anyone else think this should be investigated? Shouldn't council have to accept some responsibility for this.

I remember when the funds were being allocated, and I was scratching my head as to how they expected to make that money back. Apparently, someone must have sold council a bill of goods on this. On a much smaller scale, the whole thing reminds me of the Iraq War, which for the life of me never made sense from the get go.

My question is, who will benefit the most from this waste of our city taxpayers money? The waste in Iraq clearly benefits Dick Cheney and his ilk. Who is Erie's Dick Cheney?

Abe Lincoln

Here's a quote that my buddy Soup sent me last week in response to my post on addiction:

"It has been my experience that folks who have no vices have very few virtues."

It's from our beloved 16th president. It's kind of a hard one to shake. It reminds me of the old Mike Tyson, back when he was the heavyweight king of the world. He was a bad man. I remember seeing an interview with him at the time and, in his funny kind of high-pitched voice, he was bemoaning the fact that he'd be out running at five in the morning and see his buddies just getting in from being out all night. He said he wished he was with them. That said a lot about his character right there. He was also manic depressive, which in my opinion meant he had somed heightened sensibilities, which enabled him to channel the excitement of a heavyweight fight, the crowed and the moment, and really kick some ass. If you remember, he could really kick some ass. Come at you with both hands flailing like jackhammers. But then all sorts of shit started to distract him. And I don't know if he got medicated or what following his attempted suicide/murder of Robin Givens by crashing his car into the tree, but he went downhill after that.

The only other person I've come across who openly supports my theory that psychosis helps the performance of some athletes is Dr. Z. - the grizzled verteran football writer for SI.

But, like Tyson, Abe L. apparently drove his wife crazy too. Greatness is a tough thing.

Ralph

Leaf bags

Does anyone else live in the city? And is it the same in the county? Apparenlty, there has been an ordinance passed that requires you to use biodegradable bags for your leaves. Seems like a decent enough idea. Same the environment and all that. But, why is it that we are restricted to one brand of bag? I mean who voted on this? Is the company that makes these clear green biodegradable bags owned by the brother-in-law of someone in local government? These things cost $4.00 for 10 - 40 cents per bag and they're not very sturdy, so you can't stuff too many leaves in. And ther is no competition, so I can can't see prices going down or quality improving any time soon. What's behind this monopoly? Did the city sell the rights like they would a cable franchise?

I guess you have the option of using a fleet of trash cans instead, which is nice, but I have to admit the whole thing caught me kind of out of left field. One year, I've got a system down with the clear bags, and even have some saved from last year, and the next thing I'm hit with these new rules. I guess it's maybe listed on the recycling guide I got at the beginning of the year, but who reads these that closely? Did any of the local news outlets cover this? Leaf bags might not seem like a big story, but we've got some big ass trees around town, and I know plenty of people who fill 30-40 bags per year - and that was with sturdier, clear ones. We could be talking 100 of these biodegradable things. That $40 on leaf bags.

Anyway, I need to do some research on the company that makes these biodegradable bags and find out how they got legislated into my life.

Out.

Ralph

Rummy

Wow, was Bush quick to throw Rummy under the bus. Not even a moment's hesitation. This guy has been messing up for at least four years now, and Bush finally decides to get rid of him. Doesn't he see that it's too late? Or is this some sort of peace offering to the Democrats? Either way, if that's the way Bush treats his loyal followers - well, I guess the Colin Powell episode should have shown us that it is.

Funny thing is that I saw Rummy's now infamous press conference on C-Span last week. I happened to be feeding the baby and I've found that C-Span has a very calming effect on him - it almost always puts him to sleep. I used baseball for the same effect on my first born. But Rummy was in his legendary rude, condescending and obnoxious form. It was the first time I'd seen it live and uncut for such a long period of time. Boy, did he treat the press shabbily. Anyhow, if it took this last election for Bush to realize what a jack-ass this guy was...well, as I've said before, Bush's obtuseness is remarkable.

Cheers.

Ralph

Matthew Good

More politicians should have quotes like this one: "I doubt that if I cut off my right arm that they’d be satisfied with it.” Good was discussing voters dissatisfaction with him for voting in favor of that midnight pay raise last year.

Ralph

Krauthammer on elections

Speaking of voting, has anyone checked out Charles Krauthammer's column appearing in today's Erie paper? (I used the Seattle Times link because some people have complained about having trouble opening my GoErie links.) Krauty makes some interesting points about the historical dissastisfaction with sixth-year presidents and how we've seen this type of Cogressional changing of the guard before. Is it the typical Republican series of selected numbers that only tell their slant of the story? Probably, but it does seem to provide some interesting historical perspective.

Ralph

Voting, Part II

Well, I went and took care of business. I kind of surprised myself with the way I voted. I had full intentions of voting for two or even all three Republicans on the ballot, but as I stood at the voting machine, the anger in me over the Iraq War and the deficit started to swell up, and I just couldn't do it. Plus, I thought of all the money Rendell has pledged to the Kohler project and figured he couldn't be that bad of a guy, even if he does come across as an old-school, glad-handler, politician...

Ralph

Addiction and Grace

I was recently thinking about all the people I know who are addicted to something, whether that be drinking, smoking, sex, work, washing their hands, or all of the above, sometimes at once. This got me thinking about the causes of addictions. They clearly exist to fill some void, create some sort of security blanket for people to clutch to, because we all need that. So, are addictions inevitable? My theory is no -that trust can enable a person to let go. Trust in society, or fellow man, or God (the Church) or whatever you want to call it. You have to able to let go of that security blanket and allow yourself to fall into the great unknown with faith the something will pick you up....Well, that's the short of it at least. I've just launched into a book entitled Addiction and Grace - Love and Spirituality in the Healing of Addictions, that I hope will provide some more insights. It's written by a psychiatrist, Gerald G. May, M.D., and for some reason the previews just seem to connect with me and my state of mind. So I bought a used copy on Amazon.

I just finished the preface and came across this nugget: ..."major addiction is the sacred disease of our time." Not sure what that means, but I like the way it sounds. More on this topic later.

Ralph

Ralph

Voting

Don't you hate it when people rotely encourage others to get out and vote? I really don't think you should encourage anyone to vote unless they are educated on the candidates and issues. Why would you just want people to vote for the sake of voting? All that does is dilute the vote of those who take the time to make an educated decision. I wish we'd reconsider the way we market our right to vote.

Speaking of voting, this will be the first time I vote on the new electronic touch-screen machines. I guess they debuted in May, but I was out of town and missed the primaries. Let it be know, that I am staunchly against the use of these devices-at least the way they are being currently implimented. In my professional life, I've had occasion to speak with developers of alternative, more trustworthy technology. Granted, these guys had their own agenda to push... but if you need any convincing, wade through this Vanity Fair article from a couple years ago. Granted, Vanity Fair is a clearly biased, liberal rag, but still, this article is pretty damn convincing, when coupled with everything else I've heard. (When I say "wade" - it's acutally a great read, but the quality of the image viewing experience in this link is pretty low. If you can find a printed, or electronic copy of the article, it would probably be better, but I stress again, it's an eye-opening piece.)

Undercover Brother

I have to recommend this movie to you on several levels. Mainly, it's one of the funniest movie I can remember seeing since The Naked Gun: Part II - that was at least 15 years ago, and I was stoned when I saw that, so this may be even funnier, if you did an apples to apples comparison. One caveat I will insert is that it probably helps to have a 70s frame of reference to fully enjoy Undercover Brother. I was born in '67, so the 70s were definintely my formative years, but someone a little older, who was even more a part of the 70s scene, might enjoy this even more. Great kicks, I'm telling you. (And the soundtrack was just cool.)

I think I laughed out loud about 30 times during this flick. This compares to something like Ancorman, during which I may have laughed out-loud once. Interestingly, during my recent trip to Prague, a couple guys I was with insisted Ancorman was really funny - and that's the consensus I get from 90% of everyone I talk to. Well, I thought this was 10 times funnier. Has anyone else seen both flicks?

I thought Ancorman's jokes were predicable, hackneyed, and played out for the most part. This flick, even though it was made in 2002, seemed pretty fresh. And it had the special quality, that almost whenever you thought it was getting stupid, they'd throw you a curve and make you laugh and "suspend the disbelief." It's really a tightrope walk to achieve this type of effect in a farcical flick, like this one is, but in my opionion, they pull it off masterfully. Check it out if you get a chance.

Cheers.

Ralph

Harold Ford ad

Here's a link to that infamous Harold Ford Ad paid for by the Republican National Comittee. I've read and heard so much about it over the past couple days, I thought I finally had to give it a looksee. Check it out, it's really a pretty funny, well done, watchable ad. And I'm not sure I read the racism that most Dems seem to be reading. The Dem read seems to be that the flirting bimbo is there to insinuate that Harold Ford fools around with white women and therefore stir up all the Tennessee folk who believe interacial dating is wrong. If you ask me, this interpretation is just as much of an insult to white folk in Tennessee as the ad is to African Americans/black folk.

I'm from the north, so maybe I'm discounting the angst the interacial dating causes in some parts of the country, but the first time I watched it, I just thought they were trying to suggest that Harold Ford consorted with bimbos and hangs out at the Playboy mansion, which is a strategy that could conceivably be used to attack white as well as black politicians. I mean look what they did to Clinton over Monica L., and they were both white. I'd have to say that the liberal Dems are just as guilty as the Republicans here, in there efforts to make a mountain out of a molehill - but I must add, that like the Republicans have traditionally been, they seem to be succeeding with the help of the national media.

Just some food for thought.

Ralph

Verizon DSL

So, I know everyone likes to complain about bad service, but for once, I'd like to give some kudos and plaudettes for some quality service from Verizon DSL. When I first got the stuff installed, the service was great, but then is dropped off severely over the past year or so. However, it seems, they must have had a reorg or something, as I just completed a great and satisfying exchange with them. On Friday, it seems I blew out my modem. Don't know how it happened, but I suspect it had something to do with my wireless router. I didn't know what was wrong, so I just phoned tech support and believe it or not, got a person, right away. It was an Indian gentleman, and he couldn't have been more helpful. He didn't waste time, and after a couple of tries, he determined my modem was fried and transferred me to the correct person to order a new one. They told me two to three business days, and it showed up today. I plugged it in, and I am back on-line. Anyways, it was a remarkably painless service call - with the exception of the $40 for the new modem (or was it $30). Does anyone have a modem older than 4 years, because they seemed to think that was about all I could expect out of the thing?

Cheers.

Ralph

Kinksi

Has anyone ever heard of the German thespian Klaus Kinski? People my age would probably best associate him as the father of the great beauty and sometimes actress Nastassja Kinski. Klaus, however, was a great actor in his own right. Some say the greatest German actor in history. Granted, it seems he made a lot of crappy movies. Some of his better ones include the Clint Eastwood flick, For a Few Dollars More, as well as a remake of the vampire movie Nosfaratu. He also apparently made three classics with famed German director Werner Herzog. All of this might be conveniently forgotten, as well as Kinski's notorious condescending attitude toward directors, volatile temper, and lavish lifestyle, if it were not for a fabulous book he wrote, called Kinski Uncut - his autobiography. Uncut apparently refers to his member, which was uncircumcised, and if you believe half of what you read -- well, let's just say he knew how to use that thing. The book starts out fairly mildly and a bit depressingly, as he apparently had a really rough childhood, that ended up with him getting drafted into the Nazi army when he was 16 and shot by the British. Well, he survives and somehow becomes obsessed with acting and grows into this phenomenal thespian. He is an artist through and through, totally dedicated to his craft, pretty much at the expense of any normalcy in his everyday life. And part of his thing is fucking chicks. I mean all sorts of chicks, here, there and everywhere, which he recounts in lurid detail in his autobiography. I mean reading this thing is like the proverbial train wreck, you want to put it down, but you keep going back to it, mainly because it's so shocking. The enthusiasm he uses to describe his exploits is infectious. Probably, needless to say, all this fucking wasn't great for his personal relationships, and he was forever have blowouts and breakups with girls and women, but quickly then finding new ones. I don't know, as I said I think this is a great book - mainly for the straightforward enthusiasm which is poured into it, even as you know this train that is Kinski is going too fast and going to be headed off the tracks. I told my friend who gave it to me that it reminded me of a Kerouac novel. Kerouac's life, however, ended much more badly than Kinski's I think... but that's all irrelevant now. If you are interested in a vulgar, intriguing, exciting, disgusting, titillating, etc. portrait of an artist, check out Kinski Uncut.

Bye-Bye Prague

The sun sets on my trip.

Say a prayer for my safe trip home.

Evening traffic on the Charles Bridge

Absinthe

So, have you ever drank absinthe before? Apparently, it's a big drink here in the Czech Republic. I think I remember Hemmingway drinking it in The Sun Also Rises. I had a couple shots tonight. Pretty interesting stuff. Supposed to be a hallucingen. You decide. Maybe only a couple shots haven't caused me to see much.

Anyway, the way you drink it, here at least, is that you put a bunch of sugar on a spoon, you dip the spoon in the absinthe, which is really high in alcohol conent, and then you light the sugar on fire. I tried this last night for the first time and thought I was going to burn the bar down. Anyway, tonight, I managed to somewhat convince five other people to come out with me for a shot, and we were more successful. We also ordered a hookah for good measure. Anyhow, after you let the spoon full of sugar burn for awhile (it looks like you basing or something), you blow it out and plunge it into your shot glass full of blue colored absinthe. You stir it around and then down it quickly. It has a strange effect. Seems to counteract the alchohol. Anyhow, I'm.. I just thought I'd tell you about that, as I had a couple shots tonight.

Cheers from Czech Republic.

Ralph

Prague Pics

On the left is the top of a church, St. James (I believe it is called) that dominates the skyline in the Old Towne section of Prague.
On the right are some wooden carved doors at the base of the Church.





This is that crazy Kahfka statue I was talking about.


On the right is another statue in the main part of O'Town.











These last two images are of the clock that sits in the main square at Old Towne. At left is the action - at every hour, those two doors on top of the clock open up and those guys come out and the figurines on the side of the clock move. Really fun stuff.

Prague Post

So, I finally made it over here to the Czech Republic and the reason I think the movie European Vacation holds up so well, is because it's based on true stuff. For example, there's a safe in the room and I've managed to lock my camera and walkman in there with no clue how to open. For example, we spend a half hour wandering around downtown looking for "Old Towne" supposedly the big tourist attraction here and nobody seemed to know where it was. Anyways, when we did find it, we had dinner in a great outdoor beer garden with heat lamps. Drank the local brew and listen to the big stone town clock chiming behind us. Lot's of great stone buildings here. Incredible old architecture.

One of the most bizzare events of the trip ocurred at Heathrow Airport in London. They made me go through immigration/customs to check one of my two carry-on bags and then when I tried to check back in told me I had to wait an hour because I was too early... anyways, nobody's interested in travel woes... but as I'm waiting this hour, I go up to a coffee shop and log onto the Internet. About a half hour later this bald guy with tattoos on his arms who had been sitting at table nearby comes up to me and says, "Mate, do you know what day it is?" "Why, it's October 16, sir," I enthusiastically reply, but not really like that. I say something along the lines of "I think it's the 16th, let me look it up." And then I do and confirm it and he's messing around with his watch. And then he says, get this, "what month is it?" What month is it? Who the fuck doesn't know what month it is? And this guy was in the airport, and he didn't look homeless. I immediately began getting suspicious, but still haven't figured out what his game was. I told him, he thanked me, seemed to set his watch, and carry on his merry way. "What month is it?"

Ralph

Espresso and more

So, having a baby around the house seems to have caused me to develop an addiction to espresso. I may have to change the mindset of Ralph's Place from an alcohol-centric bar to a coffee bar. You know what would be great? An espresso/sports bar, in which you were able to accept bets on games. I'd love to have a bunch of wired people placing bets. They'd probably be smarter than drunks, however, or would they? Either way, if you just took a cut on the bets and let someone offshore handle the bookmaking... well I guess that's all illegal now, but it could be the beginnings of a plan.

Has anyone out there ever owned an espresso machine? I think I remember somebody telling me they had, but that it was very hard to make your own good espresso. Starbucks, for all the bad shit you can say about them, does make a killer espresso. My hat is off to them for that. I had about six cups of their ground French Roast, brewed here today, can you tell? and I'm still jonesing for a latte.

In addition to the espresso bar, I have this vision for a book I'm working on, which I've written about 50 rough draft "chapters" for. It basically involves the ramblings of an existensialist middle-class would-be poet like myself. Here's my latest. (My lyrical work is somewhat modeled after Jack Kerouac's Mexico City Blues, where he fancies himself a bluesman blowing his horn in a session - with his words being his riff:

My wife is pretty sexy...
I like to rub her shoulders
help her to relax.
Let out her deep breaths
Watch her chest heave up and down
feel the softness of her breasts.

We just had our third child.
A beautiful little boy
so strong and tough
but still a baby of course,
babies are tough like that
solid little monkies

Now I’m chasing my wife around the house
wanting to make love
grab her and bed her down
and all that kind of stuff

and she rebuffs me and I fight back
too soon she says
but I can see from the twinkle
that she wants it too

lovely little lady
long limbed, full-lipped
enveloping mine like a flower in full bloom
swallowing the pollen that my insect
mouth brings to her
breeding…
like the good Catholics that we are.

Love,

Ralph

Feeback, criticisms are appreciated.

Vikings Bills Wrap -up

Well, Dr. Dee, your Vikings and your (our) boy Brad Johnson came to life in the fourth quarter. I guess we were unjustly doubting him, based on the ugliness of the first three quarters. Like any masterful QB/field general, he was just setting the Bills up for the demoralizing last-quarter charge. Unfortunatley, his teammates weren't up to the task, as the bumbler Marcus Robinson, the guy who I said used to be real good for the Bears many years ago, stumbled and dropped a beautifully thrown bomb that should have nailed the Bills in their coffin - in a very artistic fashion, no less. Johnson was creating a work of art, a comeback masterpiece, but unfortunately for the Vikes, Robinson was not with the program....

Ralph