Saturday Scattershooting

April 24, 21010

Good Saturday morning world!

It’s the best day of the week for me. I have time to sit down with a cup of coffee and collect my thoughts that get stored in my head throughout the week, but I never have time to write about at that time.

Thanks for stopping by, I know there are millions of things to read, so I’ll get right to the point with my thoughts.

How bout those Cowboys huh? Dez Bryant and Sean Lee. Everyone keeps asking the question “what about left tackle?” I would imagine Jerry already has that question answered. The Cowboys already have Doug Free, but remember, this is an unrestricted cap year in the NFL, which means Jerry can go buy anyone he wants in the free agent market place. Owners can spend as much as they want, there is no cap. Watch what happens after this draft is over. The fun will just be starting.

I’m starting a new group to see if there is an interest by writers who want to network and exchange ideas. The group is called “Starving Writers” and I have started a page on Facebook for the group. I find it hard to really think of myself as of writer, but the fact is, I’ve been doing this blog for a few years now, and I like writing, so I guess I can consider myself as a writer. Pretty sure there are tons of folks like me out there so we’ll see how this group goes. Let’s hope we can get some people interested in it but I’m somewhat sceptical as I haven’t seen many people comment on this blog, but we’ll see. I’m sure there are people out there that write poetry, short stories, interest in many things, so let’s see if we can stir that interest in joining a group. The reason I call the group Starving Writers is most writers that are starting out and are passionate about writing, very seldom get paid. We do it because it’s interesting and it’s like a second nature to us. It’s like a starving artist kind of thing. There is talent and desire, we just don’t get paid for it. That’s ok, we don’t need the money to do what we like to do. So, we’ll see how it goes.

I’m very thankful my stress test came back ok. It was huge in fact for me to realize I’m ok. I hadn’t realized how worried I was about myself that I caused myself more harm than good. The plain truth is, I worried too much and dwelled on it too much. After the stress test, I went out last night and had some chicken wings and boy, were they good. It was a far cry from the rice and beans I had been eating to make sure I hadn’t been eating any fat.

Some other rambling thoughts:

Will Tiger and his wife get divorced?

Will the Texas Rangers ever get sold?

How will the Dallas Mavericks feel if they lose in the 1st round to San Antonio?

How long will it take before Deadspin.com to get sued?

I’m about to go do some Saturday chores. Thanks for reading my blog, and come back soon!

Who dat beat dem Saints? Dem Cowboys are!

I’m sure everyone in the free world knows by now how the Cowboys managed to make their season by beating the Saints last night. It was a fun game to watch as a Cowboy’s fan for a change. But having lived in Louisiana for a time in my life and even attending college there, I like that team too. So for me, even though the Cowboys needed this win more than the Saints, I was kind of amazed at the general take on the Saints’ season by the general populace.

Sunday Morning thoughts

It’s been awhile. Sometimes it takes time for me to conjure up enough things to write about. I get writer’s cramp occasionally and can’t seem to buy a thought worth writing about. Other times, I think I see all kinds of things worthy of writing about, but by the time I can get in front of my computer, the thoughts have escaped me. So at any rate, let’s see what we can come up with this Sunday morning.

1)  Bob Hayes makes it in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. It’s about time huh? A darn shame he couldn’t get in while he was alive. Imagine the only person to have won an Olympic gold medal and a Super Bowl ring taking this long to get in? On top of that, he changed the way defenders had to defend him. He changed the game of football due to his skills and abilities.

2)  According to autopsy results, cocaine contributed to Billy Mays death. 

While heart disease was the primary cause of death, a report released Friday by the medical examiner listed cocaine as a “contributory cause of death.” The medical examiner “concluded that cocaine use caused or contributed to the development of his heart disease, and thereby contributed to his death,” the office said in a press release.

What gets me about this story is the Mays family wants a second opinion here. My question is why? Isn’t it embarrassing enough to find out ol Billy sniffed Coke? Why embarrass your family any further?

The Mysterious Keith Norfleet Keeps Popping Up (Update)

Forgive me being interested in this story

From Deadspin.com

So this doesn’t look great for cuckolded ex Keith Norfleet: “never let anyone or anything come in between you and the one you love because when you do you lose everything.” I can’t wait for this guy’s alibi.

Obviously, you can’t implicate someone based on a few newspaper quotes and a MySpace message, but dammit, that’s a little eerie considering the circumstances. He finally closed his page to the public, but this guy doesn’t seem too eager to keep his name out of this mess.

The only hard evidence police have at this point is that McNair was definitely murdered. Ballistics test are still being conducted to see if Kazemi fired the shots at McNair and herself, but police are adamant that there’s still plenty of work and wacky scenarios to sift through before they’ll be able to figure this out: “We can’t be close-minded,” [Police spokesman Don] Aaron said. “All scenarios are on the table.”

Florida Kid Uses YouTube For Good, Not Evil

It’s a cold world out there in these hard economic times, especially in the world of hockey. But meet Ben Gullett, who whipped up a unique scheme to help find his dad a new job.

Mark Gullett, the marketing director with the Tampa Bay Lighting, knew that he was in danger of being laid off. So his son, Ben, 14, came up with the idea of producing a YouTube video touting his dad’s employment credentials. When Mark was laid off on Thursday, Ben posted his video. And the result has been pretty amazing.

Terrell Owens wears out his welcome in Dallas

Terrell Owens is through in Dallas. Done, kaput, and that’s all folks.

Let this serve notice. If you are an owner of the Dallas Cowboys and you are about to move into a 3 billion dollar stadium, you can’t have a player causing a stir in the locker room. Your players have to be on the same page as the team and the coaches. T.O. was controversial and therefore, Jerry had to cut the problem in the locker room.

I for one think this is a great move by the Cowboys. It proves several things, and the most important is there are people at Valley Ranch that still have a back bone. The Cowboys have too much tradition and pride to give it away to any player, especially to a player that loves him some him so much, he claimed Romo and Witten had a thing going on.

In late February, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones did not deny the team was discussing the possible release of Owens. Owens’ future was brought up again in meetings Wednesday, but Jones had not made a final decision when most people left the building, a source at Valley Ranch told ESPN.com’s Matt Mosley.

I’m sure we will have T.O.’s story coming out soon as soon as he can. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Redskins sign T.O. just to further poke fun at the Cowboys. I say good luck to any other team that signs him. They’ll need it.

 

Sources: Cowboys cut T.O. (ESPN)

David Wells On Joe Torre: ‘When You Break The Code, You’re A Punk’

Here’s the thing about telling all about your former players, as Joe Torre did in his book, “The Yankee Years.” In the war of words that follows, you’re always going to be outnumbered.

Former Yankee and Country Buffet enthusiast David Wells gets his licks in on Tim Montemayor’s show on Sporting News Radio recently. Let’s listen to the fun.

Joe Torre should be called J-Fraud. He managed guys like Jeter — guys that were very easy to manage — those everyday players. But when there were guys under the bubble that were struggling, or basket cases like me I guess, he didn’t want anything to do with us.

Joe, he wasn’t tough on guys, he just treated you like crap. If you weren’t in his little circle — the circle of trust — then he could care less about you. I’ve had quite a few confrontations with him. It’s like guys get to fly early … I had to fly with the team — it’s stuff like that. If you’re going to do it for one guy, you might as well do it for the rest, and that’s what he didn’t do with the majority of guys.

Among Torre’s boys, according to Wells, were Paul O’Neill, Andy Pettitte, Mariano Rivera, Derek Jeter and Roger Clemens.

Then, on “The Mason & Ireland Show,” 710-AM ESPN Radio in Los Angeles, Wells talked about the line in the Torre book in which he wrote “The difference between Kevin Brown and David Wells is that both make your life miserable, but David Wells meant to.”

“I’m kind of like blown away because of the fact that he’s coming out and he’s bashing,” Wells said. “I found out last night that he was bashing me and Kevin Brown. He bashed Kevin Brown as a player, when he said he tried to make his life miserable. Nobody tries to make anybody’s life miserable out there on the diamond. You’re there for one reason and one reason only, and that’s to win. If I was trying to make his life miserable, I would have succeeded.

“What we do as athletes, that’s our problem, our business, and a lot of guys have come out and destroyed that,” Wells said. “That’s why they don’t have any friends. You just don’t do that, and that’s what Joe did. When you break the code, you’re a punk.”

No telling where this will end; I’m just hoping it doesn’t end soon. Any bat boys or security guards who have a Yankee story they’d like to relate? New York cabbie: “Torre was a lousy tipper.” That book, co-written by me, will be out in May.

David Wells on Joe Torre (Deadspin)

Aubrey Coleman Steps on Chase Budinger’s Face, Gets Ejected, Laughs

Houston was leading Arizona at the McKale Center by a score of 63-51 when Aubrey Coleman decided to stomp on Chase Budinger’s face. As it turns out, that’s just the wakeup call the Wildcats needed.

 

As you can see from the video his actions were pretty blatant, and Coleman didn’t seem all that upset with himself when he was sent back to the locker room. Arizona captured the momentum following the ejection of the Cougars’ second leading scorer, and Jordan Hill propelled the home team to a 96-90 comeback win in overtime. Hill scored 30 to pace Arizona who also got 23 from Nic Wise and 15 from the stompee himself.

In today’s college basketball action Louisville traveled to eighth ranked Syracuse and came away with a big 67-57 victory. The win moves Louisville to 15-3, and could mean a promotion into the top ten when the new rankings are released. It was the Cardinals 6th straight win, and their second over a top ten team in just over a week. Elsewhere 14th ranked Georgetown fell at Seton Hall while number 21 Minnesota picked up a win over Indiana.

 

Aubrey Coleman steps on Budinger’s face (Deadspin)

Their Youth Sustains Him

How does Jerry Jones unwind after a stressful season? By hanging out with the young people at John Legend’s after party, of course. The unbuttoned shirt just screams youthful and hip.

In other NFL news…well it’s actually pretty slow on that front.

I just want to mention that I am very grateful to everyone who visits the blog. We have just set a record for clicks and almost 5100 views for this month so far! Thanks so much for your continued readership. It just motivates me to do more! Thanks!

Their Youth Sustains Him (Deadspin.com)

Dallas Academy Bulldogs gain national attention

I’m pretty sure everyone knows this story by now. Dallas Academy girls basketball team loses a game to Dallas Covenant 100-0. That in itself is a pretty amazing story considering how it got Christian parents from two different schools into a pretty heavy discussion about sportsmanship and what should have been done about it. It’s almost like a discussion on politics. And oh by the way, I kind of subscribe to my mom’s old idea of never discussing religion or politics in public, but then I wouldn’t be writing this article right now if I did (didn’t) do that now would I?

At any rate, the story got loads of attention, and the bottom line is now the Dallas Morning News is taking full credit that they are the publication responsible for this amazing story that was brought to light. That’s ok, I’m just a blogger and I’m not sure how all of the media hype works anyway. But in this day of crunching numbers and newspapers scratching to exist in today’s economy, I understand it when they need to pat themselves on their backs. But the truth of the matter is, the reason the story became so popular is because the story was on Deadspin.com . And let me just take a moment to thank Rick Chandler, the Associate Editor of Deadspin for his putting the story up at Deadspin to begin with. Deadspin is a great blog and was considerate enough to post this story from my blog and it also referenced the Dallas Morning News story which people clicked to read about anyway. That’s fine with me, my blog got a tremendous amount of hits and I guess everyone can come away happy, but I do think the story got publicity and national attention because of Deadspin.

The story unfolded on Jan. 13, when The Covenant School’s team overwhelmed Dallas Academy, 100-0, keeping the pressure on until it reached 100 points. The game was played in an old North Dallas gym with few fans other than parents as witnesses. No media were present. But the score appeared in The Dallas Morning News the following day. It wasn’t until a story about the game appeared in The News that the world took notice.

Well, I congratulate the Dallas Morning News, but I still contend the story got national attention because of Deadspin, but that’s ok, the story got national interest and it really got people to thinking about sports and what’s fair, even in a girls basketball league. I’ll go back to writing now and see if I can find another story to go national.

 

Dallas Academy Bulldogs, 100-0 Losers, Gain National Attention (Dallas Morning News)

Principal of School That Administered 100-0 Beating Offers to Forfeit the Win (Deadspin)