Getting back to the bare essentials

If I'm thinking back, I'd say that this blog has gone through at least two major shifts conceptually.  I'd try different things - some that I liked, and some that you all didn't.  But I kept plugging away.  It's been a great outlet, as I've said, to be creative.

So lately, I've been trying, trolling around the internet, looking for articles or stories to put up on this site.  And I've been extremely unhappy doing it.  It's saccharin, really.

So I had to get back to what I'd originally had in mind for this blog - and that was to express my passions.  If people wanted to read along, that was cool.  If people didn't want to read along, well that was fine too.  But lately, there's been this rush to make our blogs EVERYTHING for EVERY reader.  And it's not plausible.

So if my blog was about what I was passionate about, then it should really just focus on the Blazers, Nicolas Batum, Murad and soccer - heavy emphasis on Everton.  And it should be sprinkled with Star Wars, sci-fi and TV cards that I'm into.  And that's it.  When I write about what I know, and about what I like, the product is better.

Nobody could give a shit about what I think about the new press release of basketball cards coming out that I really have ZERO interest in buying.  Hell, I don't even give a shit about what I think about new products.  So why should I write about it?  Because everybody else is?  No.  At least not anymore.

This blog isn't to facilitate a media agenda.  Simple.  Once I take that out of the equation, what I'm open to write about is much more appealing.

This blog isn't to review every product of every company.  That's Beckett's job.  And a fine job it is.  Their reward is that they get to price all of the free shit they get.  Lucky us, right? 

This blog isn't to repost, retweet, re-ANYTHING.  I'm much more comfortable just making my own damn articles.  Re-hashing the rest of the internets information is pretty well a damned waste of time.

So here's my call to getting back to what I was passionate about.  Some weeks there may only be four or five posts.  And some weeks there will be eight or nine.  But I'm not going to confine myself to a schedule if it means that it's less than quality posting.

But there will be quality posting!  Nicolas Batum is back in the states and Everton has nowhere to go but up.  So stay tuned....or not.  Either way, the product I turn out will be better.

Training camp has started - finally

My boy Batum playing like a pteradactyl with the wingspan of two men.  There's just something about the start to a new season that creates a shift in a person's mentality.  "Hope springs eternal," right?

So I'm pretty stoked.  No injuries yet either.  So that's good.

Although Rudy couldn't practice due to 'blurred vision'.  Such a damn shame that he's putting himself through this.  I doubt Rudy will ever find a place that embraces him quite the way Portland did.  And he shat all over it.

But what can you do?  It's a new season.  And we have plenty of pieces that are in play.  I can't wait.

Batum is back in town!

Training camp starts tomorrow for the Trail Blazers.  It's about time.  Everton, God love them, have got me depressed lately - and nothing sounds better than having the Blazers start to get this thing in gear again.

Today was media day, and Batum is back and looking refreshed.  He had a busy summer.  He played in the French team and traveled quite a bit.  He was in Asia and even made it to Dubai for vacation.  I'm glad he's enjoying what the NBA salary can provide for him.  It's still such a change of pace from the Jail Blazer era.  Instead of guys causing thug trouble in the off season, we got Batum being a world traveler and Brandon Roy hanging out with family (rap video cameo aside).  It's just a good day all around.  Now if we can stay healthy this training camp - we'll be doing real well, won't we?

I've got my eye on a new Bowman refractor on ebay.  I think I may have to snatch it up to commemorate the day.

Nicolas Batum vs. Chewbacca of Kashyyyk

I opened my mailbox and saw some manila love waiting for me - even though I hadn't ordered anything from ebay.  Let me say this, the best manila love is the manila love that you didn't see coming.  That's a great quote.  I made that up.  You can use it too.

I could see right away that Big D from Hey, That's Mine sent me a card.  We didn't have a trade set up.  So I couldn't wait to see what was inside. 

So without further ado....

A creation of Big D - of the highest caliber.  A while back Big D was asking for ideas of interesting ideas/duos for cards, and I suggested a card of my two favorites, Nicolas Batum and Chewbacca.  And he posted the result on his site, but I never expected him to actually create the card.  I'm so glad that he did.  Really, Big D, you've outdone yourself.  I'm so thankful.

Thanks again to Big D.  Check out his site if you haven't.  He's got some great customs over there, as you can see here.

Everton will drive me to drink

Well, I guess I don't need an excuse to drink, I'm a grown-ass man, after all.  But yet again, I find myself on a Saturday watching an Everton game (this time against Fullham) and I get a depressing result - again.  The game finished up 0-0.  The "glass half full" crowd would tell me that we at least left with a point.  But who're we kidding, we've only got three points this season.

PBR, coming up.

And the announcer has the stones to say at the start of the second half that there hasn't been a 0-0 draw with Everton and Fullham in 51 years.  I guess I just witnessed history. 

The one thing that I'm really taking out of this though is that I'm really genuinely passionate about this sport, and more specifically, this team.  I guess it's some consolation entering into the next decade of my life with a new passion for something.

I guess that probably puts me into the "glass half full" category.

Carmelo THIS CLOSE to allowing the Blazers to rule the division

Please let this happen.  Please let this happen.  Please let this happen.

This is now my temporary mantra.  Getting Amar'e shipped to the Empire State was great.  If we can get Carmelo to go to?  Perfect. 

Hopefully then our coach can treat Greg Oden like San Antonio treats Tim Duncan - with common sense.  If the Blazers become a lock to make the playoffs, we could save Oden and Roy for bigger games and keep them healthy.  I'm not looking for the Blazers to break the single-season record.  I'm just looking for a legitimate run in the playoffs.

Please let this happen.  Please let this happen.  Please let this happen.

It's officially Fall 2010 - weighing the pros and cons

So we're finally here.  No more summer, no more day trips to the pool, no more spending all day with the kids while trying to keep cool.  It's Fall.  For better or for worse, it's here.

But is everybody ok with it being Fall?  I don't know that I am yet.  So here's a list of pros and cons to help us figure this whole thing out...

PRO - The summer heat has passed.

CON - The new, Miami Heat are on the way.  Boy I bet I'll be tired of hearing about them by the time December hits.

PRO - Football is here.  And I mean both American Football and International Football.  Though I'm still decidedly more in the English Football camp.

CON - Who's tired of seeing Adam Schefter, Mark Schlereth, Mel Kiper and Boomer hit on the same talking points day after day after day?  Damnit I'm glad I paid for extra sports packages so as to avoid these talking heads.  It's almost as bad as political talk now.  Almost.

"Hey, look how important I am!"

PRO - I am this close to getting to see Nicolas Batum suit up in a Blazers jersey once again.

CON - Thanks Panini, Upper Deck and Topps for still not producing a SINGLE jersey card of my favorite player.  Diaw, Parker, Noah and Beaubois have jersey cards.  Guess we can't have too many Frenchmen with relic cards out there.  That would mess with the quota.

Pick a card, any card.  Somebody please just put a damn jersey into one of them already.

PRO - No big scandal about swine flu or Spanish flu or SARS or any other flu that gets marked as being from a country full of brown people.  If I had to guess, I'd say the next flu will probably be the Venezuelan Red flu - or something equally sinister that will allow our media to hype fear and our government to push an agenda.  But hey, it hasn't happened yet!

CON- Really who cares what the media will come up with later in the winter?  Right now I'm sitting here with a sore throat and achy muscles.  Seriously.  Not having a good time right now.  But hey, that's what I get for putting off the flu shot again.

Damnit, I feel like crap

End in sight - fantasy baseball is winding up

Once again, like I said before, I've completed an entire fantasy baseball season.  And if I don't mind tooting my own horn, I'm rocking it right now.  I finished the regular season in first place and my first match in the playoffs was a bit of a nail biter - but I pulled it off.

So now I'm here in the final match-up, two more weeks of a final head to head battle for the victory.  A lot can happen in two weeks, so I'll need to be on my game, in top form.  I'll need to find the starters that will be able to make a difference even when their teams are already out of the hunt.  I'll need to latch onto the call-ups from AAA that are playing on non-contenders...but playing for a future roster spot.

Really, the end of the fantasy baseball season is much harder than the start.  Aces are getting rested for the playoffs.  Regular starting lineup guys are being benched more often to give the rooks a start.  It's enought to make your head spin really.  Well, at least it is if you're going for the bragging rights of finishing first like I am.

So that's baseball.

My English Premier League fantasy is going so-so.  My Everton allegiance hasn't hurt me there.  But I'm not picking the right squad to win many head to heads.  Once baseball is over, maybe I'll have more time to devote myself to what's really important - soccer.

And then before you know it, basketball starts up next month.  So, I'm pretty sure those of us in the Sports Jambalaya squad can get some fantasy basketball going.  But what about the rest of you in blogger land?  Would anybody be willing to play in a fantasy basketball league?  I may even put up a prize if I can muster up a good turnout.

Just throwing that out there.  Just know that I devote myself as much to my fantasy sports as I do anything else.  You may win in November, but I'll have it all figured out by December.  Just saying.

Thoughts on a Sunday - 9/19/2010 edition

1)  Everton lost again.  I was too upset about the whole damn thing to even muster a post yesterday.  I couldn't even bring myself to put up a simple youtube post.  So where does this leave me?  I don't know.  I just really need them to win at this point.  They're not doing me any favors here.

2)  Working with a bum foot pretty much sucks.  I feel like an old man.  But no infection at this point, so it looks to be healing up pretty well.  An interesting side effect though - tetanus shots hurt.  Not the shot itself, but the soreness after it gets to working.  My arm feels like it's been hit by a baseball bat.  So that's cool.

3)  I'm nearly caught up on all the Dexter episodes.  I've only got 8 to go and then I'll be waiting the season premiere with everybody else.  I've got to say, I've not been so impressed by a television show in a long long time.  Quality stuff.  And Jimmy Smits in season 3 pretty much played the role of his lifetime.  Every turn in the show is impressive.

4)  I still find myself watching quite a bit of NFL football.  I haven't watched the Steelers play yet this year since I work on Sundays, but the evening games are pretty good.  How bout them Jets, TJ?

5)  I can't find any new Murad relics or minis that I need on ebay at the moment.  I've checked other sites too, but for now, the last few elude me.  But don't think that I'm not looking.

Man down! We have a man down!

Ok.  Short take today.

So I'm doing some side jobs on my weekends to make all the ends meet without having to stretch things.  You know what I mean?  Yeah, if you live in the US, there's a high probability you know what that's about.  Either way, my job today was working in a yard (weeding, trimming, etc).  Well, I stepped on a metal rake and the prong of the end of the rake went straight through my boot and into the bottom of my foot.

Hooray me!

So that sucked.  I fell pretty hard.  There's a lot of nerves in the foot.  Some of those nerves are connected to your other nerves that allow you to look cool in stressful situations.  So I pretty much yelled and fell to the ground in the most spectacular fashion.  C'mon, what the hell would you do if a three inch piece of metal went into your foot?

So, got the tetanus shot, got the bandages and the antiseptic cream and got the beer.  I could take pain killers, sure.  I prefer pain killer with some taste though.

Hooray beer!

I'll try to be back tomorrow with some sports stuff.  After all, Everton plays tomorrow, so things are already looking up.

Why don't NBA refs have trading cards?

I only ask this question because those are cards that I would gladly ding the corners, ruffle the edges and pin on the wall to throw darts at.  I think somebody should make some.  Maybe throw some crappy sticker autos on them too. 

I'm not a fan of NBA refs.  Rarely do I come away from a game thinking, "that was a fairly officiated game."  And truth be told, there are football (soccer) matches that I do come away from the game and have that very thought.  Good officiating is evident.  Bad officiating is more evident.

So when the NBA released their referee retirements this week, I was saddened not to see the worst ref of them all on the list - Mr. Joey Crawford.  Rarely has a ref made his agendas more transparent than Crawford does.

In case you were wondering, the refs that retired are Joe DeRosa, Joe Forte, Sean Corbin and Phil Robinson.

So, while we get ready for the next season, let's take another look at what we have in store for us with Joey Crawford...

A.I. Made in China?

Just got a real quick take here.  I got a new disc of Dexter in the mail...and it's not going to watch itself.  So I got some chocolate, a couple of beers and a disc of Dexter.  My night is set. 

So before I forget, there was something I wanted to bring up that has been gnawing at my common sense this week.  And that is Allen Iverson playing ball in China.

Really A.I.?  Really?

I'm not saying that he doesn't have the skills to play - he does.  His problem has always been what's in his head impeding him from having sustained success on the court.

Look, Allen has had plenty of problems behaving himself here in this league.  He just has.  Anybody who's watched the 30 for 30 special that ESPN made about Iverson can understand why.

But this is America.  You can be weird, and live outside the standard norms and get away with it.  How does this guy think he's going to handle living and FUNCTIONING in China?  If he missed his family while he was in Philly, how is he supposed to cope with a whole new society all the way across the world?  I just don't get it.

But it lends itself to the theory of entitlement that so many atheletes have these days.  Sometimes you just have to know when to say when.  It's time to hang it up AI.

The worst sports broadcasters ruin even the best games...

I don't know why, but I'm watching MNF at the moment.  And really, I'm not a fan of either NYJ or BAL, but I'm watching.

Hi, my name is Guy and I'm a sports addict.

I can't help myself.  I seek out live sports.  Even games I have no rooting interest in.

So we all know that for MLB, Joe Morgan is pretty much the worst broadcaster of all time.  Haughty, arrogant, misinformed, etc etc.

Well, I'm watching the NFL game on ESPN and damnit if Ron "Jaws" Jaworski isn't just "Captain Obvious".  I thought I hated Joe Theisman's broadcast (well I still do).  But having Jaws for color commentary is like nails on chalkboard to me.  At least Gruden was a coach.  He at least brings an X's and O's logic to the commentary.

But even so, Jaws isn't the worst in the NFL.  How about Troy Aikman working for Fox always seeming to call the Cowboys games?  Uggh.

So here it is, my worst national broadcasters for the major sports.  Feel free to disagree.

NBA - Reggie Miller.  Who the hell let him and Cheryl have mics?  Really have you heard them speak?  Have you heard them speak?

MLB - Joe Morgan.  Nuff said.  I can't even watch Sunday Night Baseball anymore.

NFL - Troy Aikman.  C'mon Fox.  C'mon Fox.  You're not even trying to hide the bias there.  Fair and balanced my ass.  It's bad enough if the Cowboys are the only game on.  It's doubly worse if I have to listen to the cheerleader in the broadcast booth.

There it is.  No I have to mute the game and watch youtube videos while keeping an eye on the score.

USA wins gold, going 9-0 in the tournament

If the Olympic gold team was the "Redeem Team", what would we call this incarnation of USA basketball?  Globally, this team wasn't given much of a chance to take the gold in Turkey.  But here we are, after the team went on a 9-0 tear to finish up beating the home team Turkish by double digits.  And really they made it look easy.

Here's the problem with naming a team now - it has to rhyme.  So from Dream Team to Redeem Team, the precedent has been set to have rhyming name.  We are so stupid sometimes.  Truthfully, the team ought to be the Kevin Durant Theme Team.  It rhymes towards the end, so I'll count it.

In what is once again probably making Greg Oden feel bad about himself, Kevin Durant showed the world that he is the future of the league  - winning a gold medal and being named MVP of the tournament kind of sets him up for that.

And we break for the ritual Blazer fan chant:

I still love Greg Oden, I still love Greg Oden, I still love Greg Oden, I still love Greg Oden....

Seriously, I do love Greg Oden.  It would be great to see him play though.

Everton vs. Manchester United - the most exciting finish of the year

I'm calling it now - this game will be the most dramatic finish that the English Premier League sees all year.  Hands down.

I'm spent.  My throat is sore from shouting.  My knuckles hurt from balling my fists.  I just went on an emotional roller coaster.

And the catch?  The game was a draw.  3 to 3.

Now American sports fan, you may ask yourself how a game that ended in a tie could be exciting.  Let me tell you about it.

So Everton came out with the first goal, a real snazzy rebound goal by the South African Pienaar (serious talent).  I shouted.  I nearly dropped my pot pie that I was eating.  It was pretty great.  But then, Man U responded with their own goal not four minutes later and the teams went to half tied at 1 apiece.  My elation plummeted to dejection.

Manchester came out and scored a second goal immediately in the second half.  I was feeling ill at this point.  And then to add insult to injury, a defensive lapse allowed Man U to score an easy third goal not long after.  And Tim Howard was playing a great game in goal for Everton.  In fact, there will be some year-end highlights that feature his saves from this game when the season comes to an end.  He played his heart out.

But Tim's great saves early couldn't save him from confused defensive schemes.  We were down 1-3 at the end of the 90 minutes.  We had lost another game - or at least that is what we had told ourselves.

But then the unthinkable happened.  Tim Cahill scored a spectacular goal in the 91st minute of extra time.  Officially, we only had 90 seconds left of playing time after the second goal.  Still, I was happy we'd finish a more respectable 2-3.

But the story didn't end there.  In a miracle that NOBODY saw coming, Everton stole a quick ball from Man U not a minute later and played it downfield where Cahill gave the headed assist to Arteta for the equalizer.  Manchester was stunned.  I think Sir Fergie crapped his pants.  Hell, my dog nearly did crap himself with my final, and most thunderous victory shout. 

It was magic.  Everton scored goals in the 91st and 93rd minutes.  It simply doesn't happen like that in real life folks.  And it certaintly doesn't happen against Manchester United.  But here I was, watching it happen right before my eyes.

It's games like this that make you proud to be a sports fan - simply for the fact that you were able to witness the human capacity for strength of will. 

Certain games stick with you for life.  I'll never forget how it felt when the US squad got railed in the World Cup and had that goal disallowed.  And I'll never forget when Everton opened the season last year and lost 1-6 to Arsenal after I'd waited such a long to see the team play again.  Likewise, I'll never forget the day we stuck it to the big boys in added time to steal the point in the greatest finish I've seen in a long time.

Just watched the first NFL game of the year

Eh......

That's my reaction.  Eh.

I'm sure there is some sort of Patriotism Police out there keeping tabs that I've officially sized up the NFL kickoff with an emphatic, "eh".  Well I'm guilty I guess.

Today was a big day for me though, so really it would've had to be a major game for me to get up for it.  Plus, this is my one and only day off this week, so I'm already in 'work mode'.  It's hard to turn it off.  But a little extra cash will feel good when it's all said and done, right?

So let me just do a quick rundown here, I've got to get to sleep to prepare for some manual labor tomorrow.

1)  The NFL really is just 'eh' for me.  I'm sorry.  I know I'm in the minority here on this one.

2)  I finally bought a movie package on my cable.  Finally.  I got Showtime to watch Dexter this year.  But it came with Encore as well.  So I just got done watching "Stand By Me" a bit ago.  Good stuff.  I've already got every sports package they offer, they should've given me a free movie package out of principle. 

3)  I'm now part of a group of six writers over at Sports Jambalaya.  It's still pretty free form, but it's another outlet to write on.  So check it out over there.  I've still not put in my first article.  That will probably be coming here this weekend.

"Hitting the wall" in collecting

Maybe I'm just more in a reflective mood these days.  Maybe it's the change in the seasons.  Maybe it's that my kids are growing older.  I don't know what exactly "it" is, but everything around me is changing.  And it's a natural change.  I accept it.

But I guess that's a misnomer.  Not everything is changing.  My hobby remains very much the same.  Sounds insignificant, right?  Not really.  Most people, when they describe themselves, will identify themselves via their hobbies right alongside the really important stuff.  Describe yourself in ten words.  I'll go first.  Father, husband, comic, writer, son, brother, collector, sports fan, latino and hard worker.  See?  Ten things in a quick list I jotted down in thirty seconds and I honestly would put that I'm a collector and a sports fan (though maybe they're combined).  But hobbies are important.  Collecting to me is important.  And yet I think I have hit the proverbial wall in collecting.

Don't get me wrong, I'm still determined to finish my Murad.  The Murad for me has trenscended hobby status and has risen to something akin to being a commission that I've given myself to complete.

And I'm still very into Nicolas Batum RC's.  But you already know about my one-way bro-mance with Nicolas Batum.....  It's well documented to say the least.  So moving on...

I just can't rise to the occasion with "new hobby" anymore.  And when I say 'new hobby' I'm referring to that collector who really focuses on the next big thing.  He's the first guy to bust the latest release.  He's the guy that actually has pre-sell purchases.

I used to want to be that guy.  Badly.  But not anymore.  I've fallen out of love with collecting football.  I can't muster up the gumption to break any baseball.  I'm left with basketball, my true hobby love, and yet I can't get truly excited about anything that's coming up.

In many ways I'm living in the past.  I understand that.  But I'd like to be a forward thinking person.  I'd like to be that guy that got in early on the ground floor of the next great collecting marvel.  But where is it?  Where is the release that came out this last year - or is slated for the coming year - that you had to have?  What release made you contemplate buying a case?  Which release made you save money and skip other entertainment to be able to purchase more?

There isn't any.  And let's be honest with ourselves.  I saw a lot of really really good stuff come out this last year.  But there wasn't anything that I couldn't really live without.  I don't know where that release is.  Do you?

If I'll say one thing about myself that I think I do better than most of my peers, it's the ability to budget.  I budget like a fanatic.  It's somethng I've grown into.  Having three kids will do that to a person.  I created a spreadsheet for myself that tracks my spending to the penny.  Literally. 

And in that budget is a meager portion that I put to a Murad piece or a Batum RC.  When I buy a card for five bucks, I buy it fully knowing that it could've been five bucks that my daughter could've used to put to a new outfit.  It could've been five bucks my wife could've put towards the food budget.  But it wasn't.  I've set aside just that small piece for me.

All I ask is where is that release that makes me want to alter my spending to have it?  And there is no answer.  Not yet.  Another year of sports is upon us.  New champions.  New storylines.  Just new.  But I have a premonition that for the time being my collecting will be based on the past.  Just a hunch.

But I'm so open to being 'new hobby'.  All I need is the right reason.

Please? 

This is why sports fans slam their heads into walls

So it turns out that Blazers GM hasn't found the right deal yet to move Rudy Fernandez.

You know, that Rudy Fernandez who wants ZERO to do with the Blazers.  Yeah that Rudy.

So when asked about Rudy's involvement this year, coach Nate responds that Rudy is definetely in his plans for training camp.  Really?

Really Nate?

Why do you even say that?  What the hell ever happend to, "no comment"?  No comment.  People use it all the time - it's pretty standard fare in the English vernacular.

So now we're entertaining the possibility that we're going to put Rudy in a position to either show up to camp or sit out and not get paid.  So let me ask the Blazers this?  What if he calls your bluff and decides to show up?  What then, oh 'hater of the fast-break'?

Why would we start the season, the real cohesion building practices, with a mal content?

Winning teams don't do this kind of crap.  If I roll my eyes any harder they'll literally fall out of my head.

And in other non-sports news - I missed a post yesterday because I'm just that busy right now.  My apologies.  Back to school and stuff.  You know how it is.

Here's looking towards better sports to come!

Maybe if I put in more exclamation points I'll feel happier.

Maybe not.

So France lost today.  Actually they lost badly enough to be equal to two normal losses.  Either way they're out of the tournament.  Which means I can't watch Nicolas Batum play live until the end of October.  So the silver lining in all of that would be that he gets a month or so of good rest before training camp starts up.  And there's no real chance that he'll get himself injured playing competetive ball.  But if I wanted a silver lining I'd go crack open a PBR.....wait for it. 

Done.

Now there's a silver lining that I feel good about.

So what do I have immediately to look forward to?  USA basketball?  Sure.  But really I don't have the same affinity for USA basketball as I do for USA soccer.  Now if Brandon Roy or Greg Oden were on the USA squad, I'd be all about that.  But as it stands, my pick is out.  So basketball for me won't fill the need that I'm looking for.  At least not on the emotional level that I need.

Hold on a second.  Maybe I do need sports addiction rehab.  But it's the damn truth.

So for now until basketball I've got my Everton squad.  And we've got Man U on the horizon.  I may need three or four 'silver linings' before that one is said and done.  But Everton always seemed to win the big games last year (Arsenal debacle excluded), so here's hoping the boys in blue get up for the big one.

So that's where I'm at I guess.  Maybe I'll go trolling for some Nicolas Batum Bowman RC's.  That always cheers me up.  But in the meantime I leave you with one of Nic's best defensive plays which came against Spain.  Vintage Batum.  The guy can nail a three, play the paint and of course, block a shot from behind. 

Until October....

Oh the agony of defeat...

Turns out I had my dates mixed up.  France plays Turkey on Sunday the 5th.  So hey, they didn't get a chance to lose today.

But my beloved Everton - they lost.  And they lost spectacularly 1-4.

Granted it was a friendly of sorts.  But it was Liverpool.  And next week we get Manchester United.  Lovely.

I'm just a bit out of it at the moment.  We'll see if Nicolas Batum can bring me some good news tomorrow, right?

In the meantime, Dexter Season 3 Disc 1 just arrived in my mailbox from Netflix.  So that's a bonus.

Can France defeat the home team?

I'm in a pickle.  Tomorrow is Saturday.  But really, it's the Monday of my workweek.  Hooray me, right?

So not only does Everton sqaure off against Liverpool, but France is in the field of 16 in the FIBA tourney - and it's down to a one-and-done NCAA type format.  And who do they have to play?  Home team Turkey.  That's who.

See?  If you didn't read my blog, you might never have known that.

So I hope Batum can have the game of his life.  I hope he can imagine that all of the Turkish players are Amare' Stoudemire aiming for his sore shoulder.  I hope so many things - but I'll miss it live.  So nothing much I can do there.

And there is that matter of Everton....

My goodness.  I'm really needing them to get a win this weekend.  I know I shouldn't let it affect me, but it does affect me on some level.  Can't fix it - and I don't want to.

So everybody wish me luck tomorrow.  I'm about to go on a sports bender...on my Monday.  My quality of Tuesday hangs in the balance...

Topps Signature winnings

Big thanks to Fuji for the contest where I scored this trio of cards.  I'm most into the printing plate.  I know a lot of folks have weird takes on printing plates, but I'm a bit partial to them.

Thanks again to Fuji for one of the most original and interactive contests I've been a part of yet. 

Completely random post day....

I've got a ton of stuff to cover, but I'm watching the kids.  So you're all getting the Cliff Notes version here.

1)  France today suffered their first loss in the FIBA championships.  I say 'suffer' because I'm suffering for Batum.  He had a team high 13 points - but my guy can't do it all by himself everyday.  Pretty much Lithuania shot 46% while France shot 34%.  It's hard to dig yourself out of that hole.

2)  I'm officially on "Dexter" overload.  Seriously.  A buddy of mine recommended the show to me.  I looked it up on Netflix and streamed the first episode on Netflix Wii.  HOLY GAME-CHANGER BATMAN!  I just watched the first two seasons in five days.  That's a lot of Dexter.  And now I have to wait for the DVD's to come in the mail so that I can watch the third season.  I'm actually debating purchasing the Showtime package on my cable to watch the new episodes when they come out. 

3)  I'm over the Everton / Aston Villa fiasco.  I'm now setting my sights on the weekend matchup with Liverpool.  It's funny.  I've never been to Liverpool (where Everton is located) but I'm so Merseyside at this point that it's not even funny.  For those of you who don't know, Everton vs. Liverpool is a bit like Yankees vs. Mets.  Same town - completely different culture.  You all know which side of the tracks I'll be arriving to when I finally achieve my dream of getting to England to watch a match.

4)  Finally, I leave you with this.  I was very close to an accident that happened at work this week.  I wasn't hurt.  But the accident was 'spectacular' to say the least.  It was numbing at first.  I didn't know how to feel.  But it's been a bit of an eye-opener since then.  People never know how they'll go out, you know.  Could be a car accident or choking on a chicken bone - or who knows how many ways there are to go (Spike TV says there are about a 1000 or so).  Point is....well, I don't know what the point is.  This is a basketball card site after all.  Even if I knew what the point was, I don't know that I could accurately share it here.  But suffice to say that this week, I'm enjoying the little things just that much more.  Even writing a post that didn't have any pictures in it....