A Great Sports Weekend...Finally!

Rooting for your sports teams can be schizophrenic. Witness my teams the last 3 months. The Dodgers went from looking horrible in August to making the NLCS in October (Before breaking my heart). The Cowboys started 3-0, then lost 4 of 6. Penn State went from 9-0 to losing a winnable game last weekend. So I had little hope for PSU and the Cowboys this weekend. We were at the Penn State game, thanks to Jason and Megan, and even with a shaky 1st half against an inferior team, and pouring cold rain, we had a great time and Penn State demolished Indiana, 34-7.



Then the first Cowboys game I've seen in a month (thanks to living in Eagles-land) led to a 14-10 win over the hated Redskins. My boy Romo looked decent in his return and Marion Barber ran all over the place. We are now 6-4, and probably saved our hopes for the playoffs.

Yes, sports are schizophrenic, but weekends like this remind me why we put ourselves through the torture.

Something To Believe In

"Any people anywhere, being inclined and having the power, have the right to rise up, and shake off the existing government, and form a new one that suits them better. This is a most valuable - a most sacred right - a right, which we hope and believe, is to liberate the world."- Abraham Lincoln

"This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment. This is our time — to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth — that out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes We Can. Thank you, God bless you, and may God Bless the United States of America."- Barack Obama

To say I'm still coming down from last night's exhilarating Obama victory is an understatement. After so many horrible things that have happened in the last eight years, including 2 elections that were questionable at best and fraudulent at worst, I was cynical that people would do the right thing yesterday. I was afraid that people would either believe the ridiculous lies that have been spread, or decide that they could not deal with a black president, or think the world would literally end if they voted for Obama. The American people proved me wrong. They decided they, too, were ready to take their country back, that they wanted financial security, national security, and health care that could protect them and their loved ones. I have never been more happy to be wrong.

There are many challenges ahead of us, and President-Elect Obama will make mistakes, as he freely admitted last night in his speech. But true leadership will be restored, and perhaps most importantly, the world may look at us with a little more favorable light, and nothing bad can come from that. And for those who still don't believe in Barack Obama, who will never admit that this great man will bring this country back from the depths of Hell, well, you will benefit from this new administration as well. And isn't that what America is all about?

For my wife's take see here.

Vote!

No matter who you are voting for, make sure you vote today! There are few things that compare to being able to vote in a Presidential Election. This is my fifth, and the feeling of excitement and pride are the same today for me as they were in 1992. Should be a very exciting night, more tomorrow right here on BBBP.

Monday Funnies

Once again, SNL and Family Guy delivered the best comedy of the weekend. SNL skewered Keith Olbermann, imitated fairly well by Ben Affleck. I'm sure Keith will have a good take on this tonight.



Sometimes, an obscure movie reference that you and your friends have been quoting for years shows up on Family Guy, and you can revel in the fact that there are others out there who get you. Here's FG's take on Planes Trains and Automobiles:

The Game That Will Not End

The World Series was headed in the same direction as every Series since '04- boring, predictable, one-sided. Then, Monday night during Game 5, Mother Nature stepped in. Torrential rain, 25 MPH wind, a tie game in the sixth, and the Phillies and Rays could play no more. Yesterday was worse, and tonight may not happen either. So, the first suspended game in World Series history may not be played till Halloween. And suddenly, the dead-to-rights Rays have the momentum. If they can pull off a win in a game they were losing until the sixth, and get back to the indoor friendly confines of The Trop, then who knows what might happen? At the very least, we have an interesting Series again.

Literal '80's Videos

Hilarious takes on two classic videos- "ever wish songs just sang what was happening in the music video?"- from FunnyorDie.com.

Tears For Fears- "Head Over Heels"

See more funny videos at Funny or Die

A-Ha- "Take On Me"

See more funny videos at Funny or Die

DEVIL-Free Series

Tomorrow begins the '08 World Series, and while it's lacking my Dodgers, it does have the best worst-to-first story since the '69 Mets. I will be rooting for Tampa, though it is a shame that they no longer have the Devil in their name. This has the makings of a great 6 or 7 game series, with two evenly matched teams with power and pitching. This is the last 10 days of the '08 baseball season, so let's make it count, boys!

And Boom Goes The Dynamite

The Dodgers' dreams ended last night, as they lost game 5 of the NLCS to the Phillies. And while I am still bummed, I am less suicidal than I was last night. In retrospect, this is further than I had hoped for the Dodgers to make it this year. As late as 3 weeks ago, it didn't even look like we'd make the playoffs, so our 1st NLCS in 20 years ain't too shabby. Plus, I got to end my own baseball season by seeing my first Dodgers playoff game last week. And congrats to the Phils, who have waited a long time as well. Though I will be rooting for the DEVIL Rays from here on out.

NLCS Notes- 10/13

It was good to finally put a Dodger win in this NLCS, as they won 7-2 last night. The first 2 game sin Philly, they looked flat, not scoring enough, not fighting the same way they have the last month and a half. Last night, the Dodgers finally looked up to the task, as Hiroki Kuroda pitched wonderfully, and also gave a little retaliation for the head-hunting that wife beater Brett "Boom Outta Here" Myers and Clay Condrey have engaged in. And for all the talk of Manny being a carefree goofball, he had to be held back by numerous teammates when the benches cleared. At least this looks like a series again, and hopefully we'll continue to see great baseball from the Dodgers the next few nights.

'83 Revisited

It's hard to imagine a significant rivalry for teams that are 3000 miles apart. But once upon a time, the Dodgers and the Phillies were that rivalry, which they will renew in the NLCS tomorrow. This will be the fourth time these two team have faced each other for a chance to go to the World Series, but the first time in 25 years.

The first two times, in 1977 and 1978, LA and Philly were unquestionably the two best NL teams of the late '70's. And both times, the Dodgers came out on top. Unfortunately, those aren't the ones I can recall.

In 1983, my love for the Dodgers continued to grow. A World Series in '81 and a near-miss in '82, the '83 Dodgers looked like the real deal. A great pitching staff with Fernando Valenzuela (above), Rick Honeycutt, and Jerry Reuss; a bullpen with Tom Niedenfuer (2 years before the meltdown); and a starting lineup that included Pedro Guerrero, Steve Sax and Dusty Baker. The Phillies were solid as well, with the likes of Steve Carlton, Mike Schmidt and Juan Samuel. But this was the Dodgers to lose. They had beaten the Phils 11 out of 12 times during the regular season.

Unfortunately, the Phils came to play. Except for a great win by Fernando, the Dodgers were completely dominated and lost in 4 games. I can remember listening to the games on the radio, as we were moving at the time and didn't have cable. It was brutal, as I had become spoiled into thinking my team would always win. 25 years later, the Dodgers have let me down more times than I can count. 20 years between playoff victories, for one. Now, for at least 4 games, I can pretend I am 10 again, with optimism that my Dodgers can beat the Phillies. At the very least, I can watch in on TV this time.