Super Bowl 48 (2014)

Good morning everyone.  Very, very early in the morning...  It's Super Bowl Weekend, as the end of another very crazy week comes to an end here in Austin.  My workplace (the University of Texas at Austin) was closed last Friday and on Tuesday due to the weather (2 out of 3 workdays). Tomorrow the forecast here calls for a high of 75 degrees, while the weather gurus are expecting a high of 45 on Sunday...  I didn't solicit Super Bowl predictions as planned due to my hectic schedule, and if I do move to Las Vegas 26 weeks from now (yes, it's exactly 6 months - end of July, do the math), you can expect my blog to be a little different.  I enjoyed putting everyone's score predictions in here, but I discovered that it was very time-consuming.  That time will surely be spent watching and studying sports and/or studying and playing poker if I do indeed make it back to the Mojave Desert.  Okay, I have twenty-six more weeks to whine and talk about Las Vegas (before even being there), so let's get on with the show.  Live from the Palace Station sportsbook, here's Joey...

Joey's College Hoops Parlay Card (Last weekend 4-1/Overall record 27-23-1 on the 13-14 season)


Hello - here with the last edition of the parlay card where football is still going on.  The Super Bowl is the main feature this weekend, and I'll have my pick coming up shortly, but hoops is in full swing and now is the time to take advantage of Super Bowl distractions.

The Ohio State Buckeyes travel to Madison, Wisconsin to take on the Wisconsin Badgers.  Both teams suffered losses on Wednesday night, but Wisconsin is in a big funk, losing 4 of their last 5 contests.  Ohio State is out for revenge after a last-second buzzer-beater.  I see Ohio State coming out focused and ready to play.  Final score:  Ohio State 68  Wisconsin 62

Oklahoma State has been shooting nearly 47% from the floor in Big 12 conference play.  Baylor has lots of speed and likes an up-tempo.  If Baylor is able to push the ball up the floor, maybe they can make Oklahoma State take some bad shots.  I have Baylor being victorious by a final score of 87-72.

The UNLV Running Rebels are finally starting to play as a team.  Bryce Dejean-Jones is leading the team in rebounds with nearly 12 per game.  The Rebels are playing great on the road.  For the last home game, head coach Dave Rice has his team stay in a hotel, trying to keep the feeling of being on the road.  I heard Rice wants to do that again, and it's a great strategy for a young team. UNLV 72  Boise State 67

Daniel Mullins had a career-high 32 points for my New Mexico State Aggies last Saturday night. The Aggies get to return to the friendly confines of the Pan American Center to take on the Utah Valley Wolverines.  Utah Valley leads the WAC in most statistical categories, but once again, NMSU will have a height advantage.  Both teams like to slow the ball down and play a half-court game.  I think the Aggies win on a last-second shot.  New Mexico State 59  Utah Valley 57

Finally, #1 Arizona travels to the University of California.  Arizona is number one for a reason. Right now they are doing everything right, and I can't see this being very close.  Arizona wins 86-68.

That's it for this week's parlay card.  Good luck and come see me at Palace Station as you cash your winning tickets.


Ohio State (+5 1/2) @ Wisconsin - (Under 130 1/2)
Baylor (+11) @ Oklahoma State - (Over 145)
UNLV (-2) vs. Boise State - (Over 138)
Utah Valley/New Mexico State -
Arizona (-5) @ California - (Over 133 1/2)



And now it's time for the SUPER BOWL!!!


Joey (17-13-3 during 2014 NFL Playoffs)
Straight Up - (7-4)
Against The Spread - (5-4-2)
Over/Under - (5-5-1)


Final NFL pick of the year.  Super Bowl 48.  Best offense versus best defense.  Everybody wants to say defense wins championships.  Sometimes, experience beats defense.  Peyton is too tough for the Seattle D.  Peyton won Super Bowl 41 in the rain beating the best defense of the Chicago Bears.  I think he does it again.  Denver 31  Seattle 10


And now it's my turn...

If you happen to know this cocktail waitress, let her know that she's semi-sorta-not-really-that-famous now...  ;)


Coach (12-18-3 during the 2014 NFL playoffs)
Straight Up - (5-6)
Against The Spread - (2-7-2)
Over/Under - (5-5-1)



Sunday, February 2nd
Denver (13-3) vs. Seattle (13-3)   5:30 p.m. CST   FOX
Broncos (-2 1/2)   Over/Under (48)
Final Score:   Seahawks 43-8



I've been just a little bit under .500 here on my picks this football season, but I've picked the winner of the last couple of Super Bowls outright.  Both of those teams (Giants and Ravens) happened to be the underdogs.  Let's see what's going on East Rutherford, New Jersey this weekend...  The forecast now calls for a high of 50 degrees and a low of 28 Sunday for the Super Bowl.  Since the game will kick off at 6:30 p.m. EST, I would expect the temperature to be closer to the 28 mark. You can see just above that the Broncos are now 2 1/2-point favorites, and that the over/under on the game currently stands at 48.  Seattle opened as 2-point favorites in this match up, and the over/under was set at 47.  Given Peyton Manning's history playing in cold weather games, I think that the Broncos have been extremely fortunate in this season's playoffs.  Denver's two home games had "mild" weather compared to other winters in the Rocky Mountains.  The wind is forecast to top out at about 7 m.p.h. during Sunday's action, so the weather may not be as much of a factor as most people (definitely including myself) might have anticipated.  These teams did not meet in the regular season (although they both did lose to Indianapolis).  Look at me doing my research after midnight...  ;)  Seattle's roster has ZERO Super Bowl experience (for those of you who want me to keep throwing out facts while I'm literally deciding my score for the game on the spot)...  :D  Manning is the known entity and has tons of experience (as Joey mentioned), but I think that the wild card in this game will be Russell Wilson.  Wilson showed Houdini-like escapability in the NFL Championship Game, and I think that he'll HAVE TO make big plays for the Seahawks in order for them to win this game.  Wilson has shown in the past that he is capable of ripping off big runs, and I believe that will be a must for Seattle in this match up.  If my hedging to this point hasn't given you a clue, I think that this game will be close, and I wouldn't be betting a lot on it if I was in Las Vegas.  Although an upset wouldn't shock me, I also have to go with the experienced quarterback in this one...  I'm going with Broncos 31  Seahawks 21

I'm going with the public, both on betting the Broncos, and on betting the over/under total higher, so that can only mean good things...  :P  Have a very safe and outstanding Super Bowl Weekend, and I'll see you again next week!            

I Fell

"I just want to go home and watch John Wayne films in my pajamas with my cap gun pistol belt on..." -Francesca Welsh-

"I take people at their word.  It's both my best and worst quality..." -Abby Bland-

"If you don't like our wings, we'll give you the bird." -Sign at Pluckers-

"Mommy, what kind of bird, and how big is it?..." -Allison Juarez-

Good evening everyone.  Just a short post for you tonight with random things ("WOW, that's news Coach")...  Let's start with another obligatory Las Vegas photo...

This is a shot of myself and some lucky cocktail waitress that was taken about 100 years ago...  I believe this was at the Four Queens (based on her dress), but I could be wrong...  Oh, look..., another Vegas photo...

  

No freakin' way...  This is a ride at the top of the Stratosphere (yeah, the big tower that overlooks Las Vegas).  I recently 'liked' or 'followed' A BUNCH of Las Vegas casinos and related pages on facebook and Twitter, and this photo was posted by the good people at the Stratosphere.  Do you have any idea how high up these people are?  #reallyreallyhigh

So yeah, I fell on my way into work today.  We had the strangest day (in relation to closures) here in Austin.  I checked the University of Texas at Austin website RIGHT UNTIL I left for work at 7:15 a.m. (which would get me there a few minutes late, but I knew that wasn't going to be a problem, BECAUSE...  Yeah, we were under another Winter Weather Advisory (if you'll remember, I didn't work last Friday, due to the weather)...  Well, the thing today was that the precipitation wasn't due to begin until about 5 a.m. (which it did, but just a little north of Austin).  Long story short, schools and businesses seemed reluctant to close up shop today after so many did so on Friday, so off to work we went.  The temperatures were already below freezing when the light precipitation began, so accidents started happening, EVERYWHERE..., especially since there was so much traffic on the roads compared to Friday, when the city was shut down to a much greater extent.  Looking at the KXAN website tonight, Austin police reported over 270 accidents since midnight - YEAH...  Okay, so I'm still walking to work, and I'm walking carefully, but not carefully enough...  On a bit of sidewalk with a little downslope, my left foot slid out, causing my knee to bend inward as I fell down (like a baseball slide), while the outside of my right let (shin) also hit the ground, at which point my right hand caught my body from completely pancaking onto the sidewalk.  INSTANTLY, I laughed out loud, as if to say, "of course that was going to happen..."  So at 8:12 a.m., the University of Texas decides to close the campus until noon.  Well, our boss let us continue to work if we had already shown up, although we had the option to go home.  My attitude was, "I fell down already, so I'm getting paid today..."  Then at 11:18, just as we were about to go to lunch, UT closed the campus for the rest of the day.  Countless people were furious, having already had to fight LONG TRAFFIC LINES (remember the over 270 reported accidents?) to get to campus, only to hear that the opening had been delayed, and then that the campus had been closed (whichever respective boat they were in, depending on when they left their homes).  In response to the UT facebook page (which was reporting the university updates), several students had also reported that they had either fallen or had seen other students fall...  So yeah, it's been that kind of day around here...  Oh, and I'm fine (from my fall) - don't worry about me...  ;)

Oh, just one more photo for you tonight...  I saw this one a day or two ago, and it made me smile...

  

Now that's my kind of calamari, AND it's with my FAVORITE - Kraft Mac & Cheese...  :D  Have a good one, and I'll see you on Thursday or Friday...  ;)

Addicted

"Date night....first time here (Red Lobster).  We came for the biscuits... :)" -Bianca Flores-

"Find something worth dying for, then live for it..." -Unknown- (via Francesca Welsh)

"A little hatred can cause big problems..." -Doug Fox- (via Brandie Kirby Raney)

"About to watch the Pro Bowl...  #addict" -Chris Wyatt-

Good evening everyone.  There's your obligatory Las Vegas photo for tonight, two "showgirls" (I think that they just got paid to dress up like this on Fremont Street, and probably weren't a part of any actual show) and myself downtown at the Fremont Street Experience, and yes, I'm actually watching the Pro Bowl as I type this...  #addict  As I continue with my plans to move back to Las Vegas, I've been posting new pictures like the one above and the one below as my profile and cover photos on facebook and Twitter.

Somehow the photo of myself with the showgirls was 'liked' 19 times, while that photo of the downtown area (Fitzgerald's, Four Queens, Fremont Street Experience, etc...) tallied a whopping ZERO likes...  And YES, I realize that I gave you TWO obligatory Las Vegas photos - deal with it...  ;)  I know that the Las Vegas Strip is popular, but ZERO???

Anyway, the Pro Bowl (Neon Bowl) is on right now, and I'm feeling remorseful for sleeping most of the day away.  As I say down to type this, I clicked on the Weather Channel website to see what's in store for tomorrow.  I learned that it is 70 degrees right now here in Austin, and that we've been put under a WINTER STORM WATCH as another cold front is expected to move in tomorrow, one that will very possibly give us more precipitation (with temperatures below freezing) than we had on Friday, when work at UT (among SEVERAL other places) was cancelled...  HMMMMM...  So yeah, I just woke up from my nap, and will have the joy of being on a campus tomorrow where the winds are supposed to be blowing more than 20 m.p.h. all day long, with the very distinct possibility of having a shortened workday on Tuesday, at the very least...  Oh, and in spite of all the closings on Friday, there were traffic accidents GALORE here in the ATX on Thursday night and Friday morning...  Okay, I was about to move on, but evidently my friends Keri and Liz want to get into the blog...  Being the team player that I am, I often post what I believe is helpful information on facebook and Twitter as statuses and tweets.  No sooner had I reported on our weather predicament, Keri "barges in" and says that it's supposed to be -20 in Minnesota tomorrow (just to one-up me).  THEN, my friend Liz chimes in that she "sees no Watch, just a special weather statement..."  #punks  And if I were a betting man, I'd bet that we'll have a Winter Storm Watch by Tuesday morning...  #PUNKS  ;)

So, memo pads you ask...  As I continue going through all of my personal belongings (and make no mistake, earlier when I missed out on today's gorgeous weather, I was fast asleep, accomplishing nothing) in preparation for my anticipated move, I have found about TEN MORE memo pads...  For those of you who might be new to the blog, I have A LOT of memo pads, having bought them on several occasions in the past when one wasn't in sight before I went shopping.  Hey, they're like (or were) 4 for $1.00, which explains THE STACK on the bookshelf beneath my t.v...  Anyway, I'm ONCE AGAIN trying to whittle down the amount of STUFF that I own, more than sick of carrying unnecessary possessions back and forth across the country...  It's so ironic, because with the recent (with the exception of this weekend) cold weather here, I've spent a lot of the past few months inside/at home, but in Las Vegas I go "out" (to the sportsbooks and poker rooms) on an almost daily basis, interacting with and seeing hundreds of strangers on a daily basis...

Okay, we're not done with the weather yet.  The statuses that you don't expect anyone to say anything about...  :)  Fellow blogger (sometimes) Linda Lou made the comment "wacky weather."  Linda Lou probably has more of a right than anyone I know to make comments about this winter's weather, having been delayed in returning from New York state to Las Vegas for like, ETERNITY...   Okay, it was probably closer to a week, but still...  :)  Then my friend Kelley just remarked that she's gonna end up having to make up all of these days when the weather is actually nice.  Oh, and Kelley said "nice!"  Spoken like a true teacher...  ;)

Some pretty good hits in this game so far - maybe I shouldn't have been so quick to knock it...  :)  My brother Pete was quick to comment that some coaches and G.M's are going to want to do away with this new format...  Speaking of football, the numbers on this year's Super Bowl opened with the Seahawks being a 2-point favorite, and the over/under sitting at 47.  The Stations Casinos (you're welcome Joey) still have the over/under at 47, but now have the BRONCOS as a 2 1/2 point favorite.  I've openly told my friends that I'll wait to see the weather forecast before making my pick.  The last time that I checked, there was an 80% chance of wintry mix during the day next Sunday in East Rutherford, with highs in the 30's...  Logistically, the NFL could really end up regretting this decision, holding the Super Bowl in New Jersey in February.  Then I've heard that there's the possibility of moving the date of the game due to inclement weather, which wouldn't inconvenience anyone...  HMMMMM...

Well, I guess that's all for now.  I'm such a RABID Pro Bowl fan, I better start paying closer attention to some of this...  ;)  Have a great day, and I'll see you Tuesday (maybe REALLY EARLY Tuesday)...

Joey's College Hoops Parlay Card

Good afternoon everyone.  I'm getting these picks of Joey's to you later than I had anticipated, but I guarantee their authenticity.  I ended up sleeping from 11:30 last night until about 8:30 this morning, which isn't all that unusual, except for the fact that I had already taken an early evening nap.  I had intended to post Joey's picks after that nap, but I got tired pretty quickly once again, and BAM...  #zzzzzzzz  Here's Joey and his picks for today...

Joey's College Hoops Parlay Card (Last weekend 3-4/Overall record of 23-22-1 on the 13-14 season)


Welcome to the basketball only version of the parlay card.  As most of you know, I'm a big Denver (Broncos) fan, so I'm betting Denver moneyline while I still get good value.  I'll give my score next week.

For now it's hoops action.  We'll start with a great ACC match-up, Duke and Florida State.  The Seminoles are a faster team, but Duke is shooting 42% from outside the arc.  It's bombs away for the Blue Devils, and they win tonight.  It's Duke 82  Florida State 70.

In the Big 12, Texas plays at Baylor.  Baylor lost last week to Kansas, has lost three in a row, and must not hang their heads or it's lights out on a good season.  Baylor uses the home court and escapes with a narrow 77-75 victory against Texas.

Kentucky has lots of underclassmen on the court.  The game against Georgia won't be much of a problem as long as Kentucky does not look ahead to their next game.  I have Kentucky 83  Georgia 62.

New Mexico travels to Colorado State.  The defense of UNM is really starting to get exposed.  Colorado State pulls away late, 62-55.  Good luck this week and may all your tickets cash.


Duke (-8 1/2) vs. Florida State - (Over 144 1/2)
Texas (+5 1/2) @ Baylor -
Kentucky (-14) vs. Georgia -
Colorado State (+2 1/2) vs. New Mexico -


That's it for right now, but I probably be back sometime tomorrow night to bother you some more...  Have a good one!

I'm Not Going Anywhere...

"I'm not even tryyyyying to wake my son up to see this snow... he's gonna drag me out there with him, I know..." -@b_jai2012- (via Twitter)

"Rain, sleet, snow, hail, tornado, tsunami...doesn't matter!  The damn mall never takes a day off!  Ugh!" -Marissa Garcia-



Good afternoon everyone, and yes, I'm not going ANYWHERE...  Winter has found the Lone Star State once again, and work (the University of Texas at Austin) is closed today.  The title of today's post came from a conversation that I had earlier with my friend Rachael via facebook.

Rachael (pictured far left) earned her Master's Degree back in December, and I believe that all of the different colors on the graduation cords that she's wearing mean that Rachael is REALLY SMART...  ;)  I'm posting this photo as a reminder that I have neglected to recognize all of the December graduates that I know here.  I'm not even sure if doing a "facebook all-call" will be enough to round all of them up at this point.  Also, I meant to mention in an earlier post that Rachael was a weekly winner in the Bobcat Nation Sports Bar & Grill football pick 'em contest that I mentioned often here during the fall.  I found out that Rachael purposely tried to pick an upset or two every week, which explains why she selected the Vikings (to beat the Eagles I believe) during the week that she won the contest...  :)  Congratulations again Rachael (on both accomplishments)!  ;)

Speaking of this weather (okay, that was a pretty roundabout segue for me), my friend Kristen posted this on facebook with the caption, "The obligatory Texas snow pictures."  I only downloaded one people, so sue me...  ;)

Speaking of snow (kind of), my friend Brandie posted this shot with the caption, "Our version of the U.S. Bobsled Team..."

Speaking of the Olympics (partial credit), the winter version will be starting in the next couple of weeks.  It seems strange that you haven't read more about that here in a blog that claims to touch on the happenings in the sports world, so there ya go..., a photograph of this year's U.S. Bobsled Team...  #gousa  ;)

Since we're talking about sports, I have no idea what I'm going to do for this year's Super Bowl (and since the Super Bowl is a week away and I'm not going to give any credence to the Pro Bowl, this will be our football talk for today)...  Last year I made my way to my (then) workplace Harper's for the Super Bowl, and ended up having a great time watching the game.  Unplanned, I ended up sitting with my friends Alyssa, Chelsea, Castelluccio, Lindsey, and Sam.  You already know Alyssa (our favorite Texans fan).  Looking back at my Super Bowl blog post from last year, I'm just remembering that this was the day that I officially met Castelluccio for the first time, and of course I'll never forget Chelsea exclaiming, "I'm so happy right now!" when Destiny's Child took over the show...  :)  This excitement was only rivaled by Lindsey's pure bliss with Beyonce's Victoria's Secret commercial.  I have no idea how Sam and I would have made it through the Super Bowl's power outage (do you remember that?) without these young ladies, and then, there was a football game...  :)  And so now I'm back to this year, with one week to figure out what I'm going to do next Sunday (having to get up for work at 6:30 the following morning, which WAS NOT the case last year)...

Speaking of the Veranda (kind of - you can find it at the very top of Harper's), this is a photo that my friend Floyd posted earlier in the week...

That's a great shot of the rooftop bar that overlooks much of the beautiful city of San Marcos, America (which reminds me, you're not getting an obligatory photo of Las Vegas today).  For any of you keeping score at home, the countdown is now at 188 days...


Speaking of the Amish (okay, I definitely wasn't), this is a conversation that a friend of mine had recently with someone that he routinely sees at the bus stop...

Guy at bus stop:  "My friend is from Pennsylvania."
My friend:  "Is he Amish?"
Guy at bus stop:  "Do you have cows?..."

I cannot tell you how many times I've laughed about this conversation during the past week at work, and how many times in conversations that we've randomly brought back up, "Do you have cows?" and "Are you Amish?" (yeah, we've altered that part just a bit)...  My friend had some questions that he was going to ask the bus stop guy about the Amish, had his friend been Amish. The bus stop guy obviously took offense to the Amish question, and asked my friend if he had cows, because he lives in Texas (trying to make some point, because evidently, you cannot ask about the Amish).  Note to self:  Do not talk about Fight Club, and do not ask about the Amish...  ;)


Speaking of cats (cows, whatever...), this is the "cat condo" that my friend Jasmine erected, six hours after construction was completed...

I desperately hope that Jasmine's cats are eventually able to make the adjustment...  ;)

I did this entry really early for me on a Friday (remember, no work), so I'll be back tomorrow with an entry that will include Joey's basketball picks.  In reality, because those college games will take place tomorrow, I'll probably be back to see you very late tonight...  Have a great day, and drive safely if your weather resembles what we experienced in the Lone Star State this morning...











    

Contractually Obligated

"People will question all the good things they hear about you, but believe all the bad without a second thought..." -via Jessica Johnson-



Could you take us back to the days of your rambles Coach?...  Good morning everyone (yeah, REALLY EARLY in the morning)...  I'm basically doing this entry for ya because I'm contractually obligated (though not really).  You'll find this post to be incoherent and nonsensical for the most part (which would put it in a league with all of my other posts)...  ;)  Oh..., right - your obligatory photo of Las Vegas, where I plan on living 190 days from now...

I'm not saying that I like this particular shot, but it's currently my cover photo on facebook and my whatever they call the same thing photo on Twitter.  I normally post my 'Football Friday' entry on Thursday night, but because there is no real football game this weekend, I'm going to make my weekend post on Friday night.  You'll still have Joey's college hoops picks in time for Saturday (although Joey is usually really mediocre in his predictions - he had Denver beating the Patriots 27-17, and the final score actually had the Broncos winning 26-16).  WAY OFF...  ;)  Speaking of football (never happens here), I saw a total stranger in the parking lot at my apartment complex tonight.  She was wearing a Peyton Manning jersey, so I said, "it's two more weeks, C'MON..." She laughed and we went on our way.  I like when people get it...  ;)

Speaking of Peyton Manning jerseys, I came across this photo on facebook Sunday...

The young lady wearing the big smile would be my friend and former student Valerie, and the girl wearing the genuine disappointment would be her sister (and my new friend) Veronica.  WOW - neither here nor there, but I just realized that two songs that I really liked along the way were 'Valerie' by Steve Winwood, and 'Veronica' by Elvis Costello (make sure that you look those up on YouTube ladies)...  :D  Anyway, this photo caught my eye because of the complete contrast in the expressions of these ladies.  The funny thing that happened when I asked their permission to post this photo was that Veronica said that I couldn't say anything bad about Tom Brady - Veronica said nothing about making fun of her (which I wouldn't), but she was looking out for her quarterback...  :)

Speaking of something that I would bet on that isn't football, my blogging friends (punks) Pete P. Peters, Lightning36, and Grrouchie all met up in Vegas last weekend to play some cards.  The links to their blogs are listed on the right, and you can read their accounts of the hoopla (punks), but Pete Peters reminded me of a little story in his blog.  Pete and a friend had dinner at the Circus Circus Steakhouse during this visit.  If you've never been there, Circus Circus is ABSOLUTE CHAOS, with young screaming children running around EVERYWHERE...  However, in the midst of all this crazy, there is an AWESOME steakhouse.  Speaking of all this crazy (I need to use the phrase 'speaking of' less often, speaking of speaking of...), when I initially moved to Vegas in 2005, I REALLY NEEDED a job.  After completing dealer school and working at the World Series of Poker, I saw that Circus Circus was in need of a poker dealer.  I walked in the front door, found the poker room, noted all of the CHAOS, and walked RIGHT BACK OUT the front door, although I REALLY NEEDED a job...  :P  #chaos  #crazy

Talking about the weather (was I?), I saw earlier that after having a forecast high of 79 yesterday, we are expecting freezing temperatures and "wintry mix" later in the week here in the ATX and in San Marcos, America.  This reminded me that I neglected to post this beautiful photo from my friend Jo-Ann a while back...

I asked Jo-Ann if this is a photo of her children, and she said that indeed it is (taken "9-ish years ago").  I'll be the first to tell you that this weather is exponentially more beautiful when you don't have to live in it, but being completely serious, this really is an AMAZING photo...  #scenic

And speaking of photos that aren't so amazing, my brother suggested that I might want to put this masterpiece in the blog...  I was trying to watch the NFL's Conference Championship Games on Sunday, but in the meantime, Pete was tagging me in photos on facebook...

That would be a San Antonio Spurs Silver Dancer and myself (yes, 100 years ago, of course)... You've got your "Throwback Thursday" a day early - what more could you want?  ;)  Have a great day and I'll see you on Friday!

Clever People

"When I was five years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life.  When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up.  I wrote down 'happy'.  They told me I didn't understand the assignment, and I told them they didn't understand life..."
-John Lennon- (via Sandra Dever)

"If a man wants to bet he's got a dog, he's usually got a dog..." -Doyle Brunson-

"There comes a time when you have to stop crossing oceans for people who wouldn't jump puddles for you..." -Dr. Laura- (via Lex Sauceda)



Good afternoon people.  Tom Petty says that the waiting is the hardest part, and he knows what he's talking about.  I've been working on the notes for a substantial blog entry for a while now, trying to pass the time until these football games kick off today...  If you missed my post a few days ago, Joey has Denver 27-17 and San Francisco 20-17, while I have the Broncos 38-35 and the 49ers 24-20.  If I hit my scores, the nationwide response will probably be...

My friend Connie's daughter (Brooke) was kind enough to represent a thousand words...  :)  My brother Pete was kind enough to weigh-in with his expectation of a Patriots/Seahawks Super Bowl, so there's that.  It's beyond me why the NFL didn't make the Brady/Manning match up the primetime game, but we're about a half hour from kickoff now...

I have no Las Vegas photo for you today, but you'll be hearing plenty about that city in the near future (as you may have already guessed)...  A friend of mine at work told me that he hates it when I talk about my plans, because he's married, and has children, etc..., and he doesn't have the flexibility that I do.  While I dream, my blogging buddies Pete P. Peters and Lightning36 are currently visiting the desert, so yeah, they basically suck...  ;)  Good luck out there guys!  The good news (for Miletus at least) is that once football ends, the content here will focus significantly less on sports.  Fridays will still be mostly dedicated to sports, but as we all know (Miletus surely knows), football tends to kinda/sorta seep into the other days of the week here during football season (just a little bit)...  ;)  Predictably, the poker content here will increase leading up to and including my return to the Mojave Desert.  The quote above from Doyle Brunson came from Season 7 of High Stakes Poker (which I have been watching on YouTube, 11 episodes worth since yesterday)...  :P  And yes, I know that I still have that MASSIVE Bovada score to blog about - I promise that it's coming...

We're going to forget the football and Las Vegas and poker right now as we take a few minutes to focus on several of my clever friends (and their friends).  I came across this little gem on facebook a few days ago...


"Finished up this badboy today!  Don't pollute in the storm drains, guys!  This awesome project is intended to promote awareness of the effects of storm drain litter/pollution on Galveston Bay wildlife." -Charli Judith Reno-

Isn't that incredible?!  Art is in the same category as music for me:  I can't sing or draw (even stick figures) to save my life, but I know talent when I hear and see it...  AWESOME JOB Charli!  :D


And then I heard a nickname for this girl the other day, and it's FREAKIN PERFECT...

This is my friend Jennifer, and I've posted a small sample of her photos so that you'd totally get the nickname that her friend Jason gave her (which is still her "all time favorite nickname of all time")...  :D  Jennifer Pompa..., and Jason tagged her with... (can you guess it?  combine her last name with an adjective...  time's up...) POMPADORABLE...  Is that not perfect?!  :)  Jennifer has been involved in several different ventures (you know how I like to plug the things that my friends are doing) and she is currently in the process of forming her own media company (company videos, photography, copy/content, etc...), but she doesn't have anything for me to link to yet, so we'll be hearing back from her in the future...


And THEN I came across a photo this morning (speaking of hearing back from people).  This snapshot includes my friend Carrie, her sister (and my new friend Brittany), and two of their friends ("sisters"), Hailey and Briana.  I moustache you if you remember Carrie from football season...

Again, I usually HATE the fake moustache photos, but not this one...  :)  Anyway, this is the photo that I happened upon this morning...

Now the best part of this photo is the caption that accompanied it in the facebook status...

"They may not be blood, but I still consider these girls my sisters!  God just knew we'd be too much for one set of parents to handle!..." -Hailey-


Is that not awesome?!  Who even thinks like that?!  "We'd be too much for one set of parents to handle..."  Very nice Hailey...  :)  And we're not asking Brittany ANYTHING ABOUT FOOTBALL because she showed me up on facebook during Florida State's comeback win over Auburn in the BCS Championship Game...  ;)


AND THEN there was this...

This is our friend Jennifer (Texas Tech, "Big Hair" Jennifer - you remember her)...  Jennifer (the Jennifers are just taking over the blog today, aren't they?) has some of the best hashtags that I've come across on facebook (or Twitter), and when she posted this photo, she called this creation #falloffthebonecake...  Pretty clever Jenn...  :)

You're probably wondering why I didn't title today's post 'Clever Ladies' as opposed to 'Clever People', but when the Broncos and 49ers both end up winning today, you'll see..., you'll see I tell ya!  ;)  Have a great football Sunday my friends!