Posted by
ChrisR on Thursday, August 21, 2008 12:41:25 PM
Seriously, this has been a ridiculously slow week. Lots of speculation about VP picks. Honestly, I think it is going to be Pawlenty and Biden, although neither excites me. Romney, Palin, Ridge, and others all bring interesting aspects to the table. For the Dems, I think Bill Richardson or Wesley Clark would make the most sense. Not to get too political, those are just my quick thoughts. Barack announces tomorrow, McCain shortly after that.
Now, onto the standard stupidity.
Mets won last night again, and it made me feel good. Mike Pelfrey threw a complete game, which is awesome. I really like where we stand right now, especially with Ryan Church about to come back. Wagner is still hurt, and that's bad, but on the bright side we just picked up 2 not-too-exciting guys that will, at the very least, give some tired arms a rest - Al Reyes and Luis Ayala, welcome. Funny note - I got a text message from my mom about Reyes - "I think the Mets set a new record for most guys named Reyes on one team" - Jose, Argenis, and now Al. She is definitely right. What's stranger: my mother sending me text messages, the fact that she sends me texts about the Mets, or the fact that she sends me texts about pretty obscure stuff about the Mets? All weird, but not nearly as weird as the times she will call me and ask me if I caught PTI that day becuase she wasnts to discuss some of the topics. Oh well. My brother's friends used to joke that my household should be a reality TV show, and honestly, I can't disagree.
Super excited
about this. I am SO going. Just add it to the list of ridiculous things I do with my time.
Penalty shots in handball just aren't even fair.
Speaking of wacky things to do - Friday I think I am going to go see a band at the
Native American museum at 5:30, then head over to the Sculpture Garden for some jazz when I get bored. This first group is actually pretty funny - they describe themselves as "tradition-infused electronica." Nice, right? We'll see how it goes.
I think Sunday I will go check out an exhibit about the Negro Leagues and another one about how the 1968 DC riots helped shape the city. Although the Washingotn Historical Society really isn't very good, it's close to me, free, and at the very least, somewhat interesting.
Saturday is a crazy, bang-up madness housewarming party for Andy. I have been designated Toastmaster General, and I will hold the office to the highest of standards.
This band was featured in the Express today and is so weird, it is worth checking out. Scandinavian Folk Music with metal? Interesting.
I hate to be a conspiracy theorist, and I really really don't like those who are, however, this needs to be addressed. In case you are a regular reader, you know that I love the Olympics. But things are a little sketchy. Yes, China has far and away the largest team and the biggest talent pool to derive its athletes. However. Have you noticed that any event involving judging automatically is going to the Chinese? This is not to say that the Chinese are not the best at, say, Gymnastics, because they are, but they win everything with judging. They won the bronze (along with the gold) in the women's vault despite the girl FALLING. There was a chinese floor exercise in the all-around that the commentators outright said should have deductions here here and here, then received 10s. I have been watching quite a bit of diving over the last few days, and the same thing happened - "ok notice the knees are apart, the feet are not perfect and the entry is not perfect." Then a 10. Seems awfully strange. Then, beyond that, as my roommate noted - do you ever see an American judge in those competitions? I saw one Americna judge in the women's 10M platform last night, but that was the first one I have seen. The point that really made me raise a red flag was inlast night's track competition - Wallace Spearman, the American, was DQed for stepping on the line. That's fine - a clear-cut rule. His 3rd place finish was erased. Strange, then, that this incident was caught by the judges but the guy 2 lanes over, who finished 2nd and was not American, was not identified as having stepped on the line until the US filed a complaint. Eventually, and guys who originally finished 2nd and 3rd were DQed, and Americans filled those spots. I am not crying conspiracy necessarily, but it smells a little fishy. Not even the anti-american stuff, but the pro chinese? It wouldn't hurt to have the Chinese become an Olympic powerhouse. Just some food for thought.
Some really funny junk before the Journey countdown...
Now, Journey countdown continues with another non-Journey song. I know I've posted this before, and no, it isn't Journey. But it is an excuse to get Steve Perry into this blog, and considering how awesome he is, I think it is only appropriate.