Bandwagon space available

The Heels officially hired their new football coach on Monday. To commemorate the day you can order season tickets online right now. I can't think of a better way to eliminate the taste of a 3-9 season than to profess your unbridled optimism of next year in $240 increments. I'll see you at the James Madison game on Zeptember 1st.

Radio Obituaries

I was aware that newspapers often have their obituaries pre-written, but I heard the obituary for Milton Friedman on the radio the other day and started wondering if they pre-tape those things too. If they don't they should. And they should also get somebody w/ a voice that reminds you of death to read all of them too. The closer the reader is to death the better. Too bad Vincent Price is already dead, but I guess in that case I'll nominate Charlton Heston.

KISS book

We've had this KISS book on our coffee table for a while, but I didn't start reading it until this week. I was kind of just thumbing through it looking at their memories of their records and Paul and Gene talking about the Psycho Circus stuff, but I started reading it pretty seriously when I found their memories of the first KISS gigs. At one point it described Ace passing time on the road watching movies on his betamax, and I checked the publication date (2003) and just figured he was eccentric. Then it started talking about KISS never being photographed w/o their makeup. I looked a little more thoroughly at the table of contents and realized the first 11 chapters were from a book published in 1979. I kept thinking about how awesome it was that there was a book that captured a time when KISS had never been photographed w/o their makeup. Here's a little of that magic.

NASCAR Dads

I'm not sure if this is what politicos mean, but it hardly seems like this is the personification of family values.

A couple of sports things

I was listening to the pregame for the Tar Heels game against Winthrop the other night on the radio. They interviewed Winthrop's coach Gregg Marshall and asked him about taking the College of Charleston job and then changing his mind the next day and coming back to Winthrop. He said he realized that it wasn't about money and he and his family were happy in Rock Hill, SC. I understand the part about it's not all about money, but I can't imagine anyone being happy in Rock Hill, SC.

The GD Heels website is really irritating me. I know they are a mouthpiece of the University's athletic department, but that doesn't mean I have to believe the nonsense they write. Here's a quote from the Wake Forest game guide (you might remember this is after being shutout on national television by Virginia and the announcement that the head coach will be fired at the end of the season) "Bunting termed the passing offense last week at Virginia 'anemic' and 'imprecise.' The trouble was, Carolina got down to an early 9-0 deficit and were forced to abandon a successful running game for said passing game." I realize 9 points is more than one score, but if the running game is successful and the passing game is anemic I don't see any reason why you would abandon the running game. Then today reflecting on John Bunting's tenure as coach another commentator cites the Heels difficult schedule during the past few years. Here's another quote "Tar Heel fans wished for a more challenging schedule back in the early 1990s when Army, Navy, Ohio, UTEP, SMU, TCU, Miami (Ohio), Furman and Tulane dotted the schedule. What is they say about being careful what you wish for?" Maybe if you measure a successful program based on wins and not quality wins, this is what you want. However, nobody w/ any sense thinks undefeated Boise St is a threat in the national championship picture and undefeated Rutgers despite playing in a BCS conference is generally regarded as an outsider to the national championship game. I want UNC to build a program that can compete w/ any football team in the country, and you do that by playing quality opponents. I also want UNC's official website to stick to parking updates, game times, and quotes from players and coaches and leave the analysis to people who aren't employees of the athletic department.

Finally, while I'm looking forward to the Ohio St/Michigan game tomorrow and I can even live w/ the hyperbole that calls it "Judgment Day," to call it the biggest rivalry in all of college football is ridiculous. There are any number of games (Army/Navy, Auburn/Alabama, Oklahoma/Texas, Notre Dame/USC, etc.) that mean just as much to the fans of the school as this game does. Sure they may not have national championship implications this year, but that doesn't make it less of a rivalry. I guess I'm asking for the impossible when I say sports media should remember something from more than 10 minutes ago, but next year when another big rivalry has national title implications I won't buy the hype that it somehow has become bigger than any other matchup in the history of college football.

Why yes I am him

I've moved passed googling my own name and decided to see what I've been up to at IMDB. Obviously, you know I played the role of the Shape in El Intoxico, but I hope I can become the next food network star too. If you have any recipe ideas for me, well unless you are on the Food network also they aren't good enough.

Holiday Party

If you are reading this blog, mark your calendar for our holiday party on Saturday December 2. We'll have food and booze for you and a special performance by rock legends Marijuana Wolf. It is certain to be the event of the evening, so I hope you will be there.

Larry King's Ghost

If you would humor me and imagine Larry King saying these next few sentences...

Of all the creatures it is socially acceptable to hit w/ your car, I feel the most guilt after killing a butterfly. The moment the polls closed on Tuesday, gas stations across the nation began raising the price of all fuels except diesel. Only a commanding presence like Larry King could have a ghost w/o even being dead.

Lame Duck?

I know people have said George Bush was a lame duck since his social security reforms went nowhere. Now that the election has taken place I'm sure that talk will heat up again. I still think he can wield some power w/ executive pardons. He might decide to pardon anyone who professes their loyalty to him in some kind of godfather like ritual. Maybe he'll pardon all the Enron dudes at Wrestlemania XXII. I see a lot of entertaining possibilities for this.

Proud Parent

First, Desmond spelled Red and Black w/ refrigerator magnets. He claimed to not know who Blue Oyster Cult is, but I think that's just the rebellious side that all children exhibit as they grow up. Then, he had me read the advertisement that is now considered the prize inside his Cracker Jacks. It was for a movie character who "believes that dreams can come true if you don't give up." Desmond responded w/ "that's funny." I had to agree that it was pretty funny, but maybe not for the same reasons that he thought it was funny.

Thanksgiving Cards

For some reason Thanksgiving cards make me laugh. Not the message inside but just the idea that they sell greeting cards for the occasion. I spent a solid 15 minutes today reading them in Target and laughing. I also realized that the intended recipients are loved ones who couldn't make it to the family gathering. I felt guilty about laughing at this for about 2 seconds. Then I found one that had a picture of George Bush on the front and started giggling like a schoolgirl. If I keep it up, I should be banned from the new Target before Christmas.