- at brickside, I leaned back and the green plastic lawnchair exploded underneath me in front of many friends who found it quite hilarious
- at a baseball card convention, the folding grey tube-steel chair gave way and folded in half
- the plastic adorondack chair on my Aunt and Uncle’s deck over 4th of July in Stone Harbor made a loud snapping noise but did not collapse
- the kitchen sink faucet at my friend Scott’s posh parent’s house on New Year’s Eve (admittedly, I shouldn’t have been sitting near the kitchen sink)
- at my friend Chris’ pool party, the webbing of one of those lawn chairs gave way with a horiffic rending shriek and my ass popped through
Blog
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Times that my chair has failed
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The Hold Steady “Separation Sunday”
2005 has been a great year for music so far. One of my favorite albums to come out this year is the fantastic sophomore release from the Brooklyn band The Hold Steady. This album works in a big way. Lead singer Craig Finn talk-sings compelling stories of sex, drugs, and strung-out self-mutilating hoodrats all in front of a fat rock guitar-driven soundtrack. This record will invariably draw comparisons to Bruce Springsteen – and with good reason. In addition to a clear Boss musical influence, the songs are anthemic in the tradition of Thunder Road and Born to Run. Finn and at least one other member of the band were formerly of Lifter Puller and thus, not surprisingly, there is also a tasty punk rock flavor to this album. I give it a solid A-for-Excellent.
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Miller High Life Light is my favorite shit beer.
At the local tavern:
Me: “Do you have Miller High Life Light?”
Waitress: “Miller Light, yes”
“No, Miller HIGH LIFE Light”
“Yes, that’s called Miller Light or just Light”
“No, it’s not. They’re different beers. Do you have Miller High Life Light?”
“No.”
“Do you have Miller High Life?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll have one of those then.”It’s like restaurants that try to serve Pepsi instead of Coke. “Pepsi OK?” No, it’s not.
She makes it different. -
Nodding Head Royal Stumble
Tomorrow brings the annual “Royal Stumble” beer event at Nodding Head in Philly. It is always a really fun event, but don’t take my word for it — read these testimonials:
Local Beer Expert J. Wisdom says:
This wacked-out event pits brewer against brewer in a wrestling-style smackdown! Brewers dress in pro-wrestling garb and compete to see who can drain their kegs the fastest – awwwwwww yeahh! Always a blast and come hell or high water I’ll be there. (ed note: the 2005 theme is superheroes)
Regional Beer Expert Lew Bryson says:
“Best Local Beer Event”: The Royal Stumble at Nodding Head. Brewers dress up in silly outfits and chase you with beer. Sometimes they even bring along pretty young women to chase you with beer. Everyone brings their best session beer…unless they decide to just be crazy and bring something else, and they chase you with it. Why the chasing? Because whosoever’s keg kicks first, wins. It’s fast, it’s furious, it’s funny… Mothers, hide your children.
Mike from songoose.com says:
This event is a lazy man’s dream! Grab a booth and sit back while brewers bring you their beer and try to convince you to have more. Of course, if you like to get up and mingle, I suppose you can do that too.
Sorry, but this event is sold out. Still, if it sounds like something you’d like to attend, keep an eye out for a beer festival near you. They are great events to try new specialty beers that you wouldn’t find at your local watering hole or distributor. Plus, since there is a reasonable cost and no American Light Lager (i.e. Miller Lite) to be found, the crowd is a bit different than that of a regular bar. These people are out to have fun, but also to do something different and expand their culinary horizons. Although typically a wine event would get higher “snob” points, it is quite easy to get caught up in the world of specialty beers and the mini-culture that surrounds it.
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Marvin Williams — Long Term Project
Marvin Williams is sure to be one of the top three picks in this year’s NBA Draft, but whoever does this will be making a huge mistake. Sure, Williams is an enormous raw talent who will probably become a good NBA player, but he still shouldn’t be drafted this high.
One thing NBA scouts don’t look at often enough is the players actual performance at the previous level. Wait a second — of course they do, you’re thinking. They do, obviously, but not enough. Too much is spent looking at the guys body, his individual skills, his length, speed, quickness, etc. All important things, but if you can’t put them together, they are useless. Marvin Williams was a bench player for UNC last year. Yes, I know — they were an incredible team and he filled his role nicely. He did, not, however, dominate. At all. How is a guy who could not dominate at the college level going to do so in the pros? There is not a chance. If he was really the best player in college, how did he not crack the starting lineup? Because Roy was being loyal to 4-year starter Jawad Williams? Come ON, if Marvin was really that good, he’d have been starting. This guy has talent, no doubt, but it is raw and he clearly has a lot to learn.
Which brings me to my next point — by the time Marvin Williams is ready to become a star in the NBA, (probably about 3-5 years based on his current age), his initial contract with whoever drafts him will be up. If they aren’t happy with his development, they will have traded him or will just let him go, and if they like him they’ll have to compete for him on the free agent market. Obviously the cap will favor them, but the circumstances for this to work out for the team that actually drafted him seem to get slimmer and slimmer as the years go by.
From all accounts, Marvin has a good head on his shoulders and a great work ethic. If things fall right for him, he may very well become a great NBA all-star someday. I just doubt it’ll be with the team that drafts him tonight.
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NBA Draft Analysis
For some reason the NBA Draft is one of my favorite sports events of the year. Last night I stayed up late watching the ’86, ’88 and ’89 draft replays on NBATV — It’s hilarious to watch moments such as when the announcers lambasted the Heat for taking Glen Rice while Stacey King was still on the board, because “in basketball size is the most important thing”. (Rice became arguably the best player in this draft.)
Tonight’s draft looks to be one of the weakest in recent memory — without one “can’t miss” prospect. Last year we knew that Emeka Okeafor and Ben Gordon were destined to be solid NBA players (and thus far they are), and the year before brought us LeBron and Carmello. This year the two big names are Andrew Bogut of Utah, destined to be the next Will Purdue, and Marvin Williams of UNC, a raw talent packed with “P” — potential, but who didn’t even start in college. This year actually reminds me a bit of the ’89 draft I watched last night, where there was not a clear cut top player. (Pervis Ellison was picked first by the Kings over Danny Ferry and Sean Elliot.) The Spurs clearly got the best player in Elliot, but he dropped to #3 because of questions about his knee.
Looking back at the ’89 draft today, the most notable players showed up in the late first and even second rounds — Tim Hardaway at #14, Shawn Kemp at #17, Vlade Divac at #26, Cliff Robinson at #36 and Doug West at #38. I predict that the same trend will occur with the ’05 draft — only trick is picking which players will have an impact.
Since I really don’t know anything about the international players or the high school players, I’ll have to stick with college players. My sleeper picks:
– Hakim Warrick, Syracuse: As long and atheletic as Marvin Williams, with experience carrying a quality team on his back. Warrick is a sick athelete who could become a great NBA player if he develops his jumper. Should go around #15.
– Nate Robinson, Washington: Once again NBA scouts will be turned off by Nate’s diminutive size, but this guy is quick and strong enough to overcome it. He reminds me a bit of Iverson: not quite as quick but much stronger (played free safety for one year at UW), so he’ll be able to respond better to the nightly grind of the NBA. Should go early second round.
– Jarret Jack, Georgia Tech: Everyone called Chris Paul the best point guard in the ACC the past two years, but I’d rather have Jack. He is clearly a pass first player who understands how to run a team and get everone involved, but who also isn’t afraid to take and make the last shot. Jack probably won’t become a standalone superstar, but I do see him quarterbacking a championship squad. Should go late first/early second.
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Eurotrip: Destined to be a Cult Favorite (for me at least)
The Sports Guy recently discussed the lack of inherently re-watchable movies released in recent years. After some thought, I think Eurotrip warrants consideration. It isn’t exactly a “good” movie, but it is surprisingly entertaining, even upon repeat views.
Basically, you’ve got a bunch of idiot kids on a debaucherous journey that involves quite a bit of sex, drugs and rock n roll. Plus,
– loads of unnecessary breasts (80’s style)
– a catchy theme song that comes into play throughout (again, 80’s style)
– a completely improbable plot that somehow does not detract from the movie
– a ton of great cameos, including perhaps the greatest one of my lifetime (I won’t ruin it in case you haven’t seen it yet)
– a night in Amsterdam
– and of course, plenty of soccer fan bashingscotty doesn’t know, that fiona and me…