Category: Sports

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Inter Regnum

Doldrums between holidays. Lip-synched Christmas carols. Regem angelorum. Glimmer of a glow. James Franco. Best SNL in years. Nicki Minaj killed it. Bieber impression surpassed the Beebs himself. Unusually funny show. Homeland’s homage to Benghazi. Really?

Will & Kate. Duke & Duchess’ first date in Manhattan with mAdBen’s top boss. WPP’s Sir Martin Sorrell. Mad Men rule. Reigning American couples compete for regal photo ops. Barack & Michelle. Chelsea & Hill. Grandma-in-waiting.

NFL playoffs shaping up. Niners need spanx. Bye bye Harbaugh. Smart matters. Chargers’ Eddie Royal fell short of plucking Pats off their throne.

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Saturday Matinée

NBC’s Peter Pan Live! More like Walken Dead. Christopher’s zombie impression of Cyril Ritchard’s brilliant preening and prancing original Hook. Allison Williams’ creepy Pan surrounded by fabulously made-up rejects from Broadway chorus lines. Very gay and boring all at the same time. We could see the wires.

Tiger’s back on the course. Not Lily. A little rusty still. Spieth impressive. Florida looking good on a rainy cold day. Shrimp Fra Diavolo by the fire instead.

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Post Stuffington 2014

Scattered family this year. KrankyKristmas will reunite all factions.

It is complicated to be a young American man anything other than white. Unless you’ve lived it, you can’t understand it. Charles Blow makes it clearer. But, still. We never will. Author Harlen Coben’s familiar experience at a Barnes & Noble in Holyoke 2005 . Take our blessings as they come.

Unusually interesting football games on Thanksgiving. Too bad they were all lopsided. Mark Sanchez had a resurrection. More like Easter. Kaepernick is stu…not smart. Harbaugh lousy time manager. Seahawks sleazy. Go Green Bay.

Winter Header Photo: G. Levine. Shelburne, Massachusetts
Snow: WordPress

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Gladwell v. Gladiators

Author Malcolm Gladwell calls American Football a moral abomination. Likening it at one point to dogfighting. More like modern Gladiators. Armed combatants fighting to the delight of huge arena crowds. In Football, arms are the arms. Larger bodies, muscles, enhanced artificially as well as physical drive. Defensive ends gain speed and brute brawn. Hits are becoming close to lethal.

Universities pay football coaches far more than professors. Stadiums continue to be funded by alums in staggering amounts. Behavior of players has deteriorated more with each year on and off the field. Cloistered, covert, cult of silence surrounds these transgressions. College courses for hallowed warriors unattended with no grades. And then there are the Pro’s. Gladwell v. Goodell.

As a lover of the game, it’s getting scarier and more difficult to watch. Plus. Niners v. Giants today. Which to root for? A safe game.

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Side Posto

Marathon weekend. Dr.Husband’s birthday always overlaps with New York’s longest race. Breaking news. A Kenyan won! High winds almost blew runners and farmers market away. Kevlar and squash prevailed.

Del Posto dining experience surpasses. Freshest food with creativity chiave. Lidia Bastianich matriarch of Gotham’s tavola Italiana. Cacciucco di Livorno. Another version of seafood stew. Sauce sublime. Meaty pasta with lamb neck ragù.

Peyton Manning v. Tom Brady. Stats aligned. Discordant score. Niners out. Tomorrow Stray honored. Giants #92.

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Side Trek Joe

Happy Birthday to SideTrek’s loyal and prolific fan. Joey3Sticks. JoeyPants.

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This year’s Quotable Joe Quotes:

Pat’s are done. Season is over. (after first game)
Shortest summer ever! Please god no snow this winter.
Would kill to spend a day with Anthony Bourdain… in Paris or San Francisco.
I just got off the throne!
They cut all the trees. Call the fence company at the end of your street now!
It’s only a matter of time before a tragic event happens during an NFL game.
Oh my holy lord. Did you see auntie Lillian and May?
That leaf storm is staged!! I see a mysterious hand in the bottom right corner.
Just call them anchovies and get over yourself!!

 

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Autumn in August

OK. It’s Fall. Low sun. Chill nights. Last roses. DSC_0016-1Goldenrod. Ragweed. Football. Matt Weiner previewing last 7 episodes of MadMen on Morning Joe. Kids going back to school. College. Whew. Porch-friendly summer. Lots of books. So.

Civilized communication exhumed in the heartland. Bloodless coup in Iraq. Todd takes over MTP from Gregory. No Curry-esque humiliation on-air. Another Sunday surprise. Holder nominated to replace Ginsberg on the Supreme Court? Tiger gives Watson cover. Takes himself out of Ryder Cup. Euro-year anyway.

photo-25Black cherry tomatoes. Neighbor’s novel garden treat.
Bon weekend.

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Foto Finish

Rory took the reins and galloped to the finish line in the dark at Valhalla to win the PGA. If he could have played through, he would have. Then, after he trampled the field, he thanked them for their sportsmanship. Cunning, tough, smart. Have to admire Mickelson’s class. He could have complained about being rushed. He was. But, note to golfers. Play faster! Works for Rory.

During rain delays at the PGA, read a disturbing psychological novel. Hell hath no fury like a daughter scorned. Hell too cool for Harriet Lane’s horrible Nina in Her.  Personification of veiled hatred and evil. If only Joan Crawford were around to play the lead. She is the only one who could. Chilling read.

Great Ray Donovan tonight. Sweet tableau of familial bliss. Ha!

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Royal Roar

A tiger cub roared at Royal Liverpool. Rory ruled wire-to-wire. Sergio accepted well-earned accolades. Rickie lost the orange pants. Right direction. Solid round. Young guys stepping up and taking the shots. No hinking or dinking. Love it. Old Tiger finished British Open at the bottom of Hoylake.

I am probably the only one watching Ray Donovan last night to have recognized Ann-Margaret. Elvis the King’s former squeeze. Will she hook up with Mick? Gritty great episode.

Happy birthday shouts out tomorrow to a Prince and a Queen.

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Daddy Bag

41 is 90 today. Sky dived. Yay. Bid Daddy had it right. Go into Iraq and get out quick. 43 the Inferior took advice from Neo-Con nuts. Now we are left with al Baghdadi and his ISIS monsters. I say let them fight Al Qaeda to the death. We can save money and lives. Stay away. Who are the good guys anyway? U.S. Army allowed an unstable kid like Bergdahl to serve. Sad for so many.

Speaking of evil. Fargo. Who is worse? Malvo or Lester? I say Lester. Finale next week. Game of Thrones, too. What will we do? U.S. Open Golf at PineHurst. Snooze.

Father’s Day. I have a radical opinion on that. Dads are as important as Moms. Bon weekend.