Aug
31
2009
You Colt Brennan fans out there may have noticed that Colt has been performing pretty poorly this preseason. He’s thrown interceptions in 3 straight games and has only tossed one TD. Rumor has it that Brennan is close to losing his third string backup role as well, and if so, will probably get cut pretty soon.
What could be the cause of Colt’s poor performance, especially after a promising training camp?
Jessica Simpson.
Apparently Colt has been pursuing Simpson since July, going even as far as webcamming with her online. There are also rumors that Colt sent Simpson one of his jerseys – a sure sign that his play is in for a rough patch.
Sounds like bad news for me. The Jessica Simpson curse was disastrous for the Cowboys, who knows what it will do for a QB struggling to make the roster.
And why would Colt even entertain the bloated Simpson, possibly forever throwing away his chance to be an NFL starter? I don’t get it. Why not first earn a starting role and then try start fishing? Now he’s dealing with Tony Romo’s castaway, while his NFL stock takes a hit.
In any case, we’ll see next week when the Redskins play their final preseason game. You can bet that Simpson’s webcam won’t be so warm to Brennan if he’s cut from the roster. Sure, she’s gained a few pounds but there’s no chance she’s dating someone on the practice squad.
Aug
31
2009
Yesterday Jay Cutler and Kyle Orton met for what is likely to be the only game between the Broncos and the Bears this season. And even though Cutler was welcomed back to Denver with boos, he led the bears to 17 points in the first half – not bad compared to the 3 points Orton put up.
It’s not that Orton played poorly…he was 12 for 16 for 96 yards with no picks. But many of Orton’s incompletions came on third downs, mostly keeping the Broncos on their own side of the field.
Greg Olsen, Devin Hester and Matt Forte were standouts for the Bears along with Cutler. For all the talk about the Bear’s limited receiving options, Cutler put up 144 yards in just one half of work.
In any case, Denver and Chicago won’t meet this year unless it’s in the super bowl, so the head-to-head matchup doesn’t mean much. But it does appear that the Bears got the better end of the Orton/Cutler trade.
Aug
26
2009
Here’s an interesting photoshop gaffe. Microsoft’s US picture had the first picture on their website. The company’s Polish website used the same picture, but opted for a little less diversity. They photoshopped out the black guy and put in a while guy, and it seems like they lightened up the asian guy a bit too.
Look, I get it – Poland is 97% Polish. And from a marketing standpoint you really do want to cater to your clients. But come’on, Microsoft has the cash to take a different picture, no?

Aug
24
2009
We all know that certain businesses cater to specific races. Sure, that’s not PC, but it’s reality.
But few actually have a separate website just for a different race. And I’m not talking about adjusting the language here – I’m talking about a whole separate website.
Well, McDonalds has a website for blacks called 365Black. On it you learn that McDonalds does a lot of things for blacks, like celebrate black history every day, not just during black history month.
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Aug
23
2009
There have been a ton of blockbusters out this summer, but the previews for Julie and Julia really piqued my interest. Cooking and blogging sounds, well, right up my alley.
Julie and Julia is two stories in one. The first is about how Julia Child got started with her first book, Mastering the Art of French Cooking. The second is about Julie, who pledges to make every recipe in Mastering the Art in just 365 days.
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Aug
21
2009
As all japas know, Zojirushi makes the best rice cookers out there. You are probably familiar with fuzzy logic cookers that are great at producing near perfect rice due to their ability to precisely adjust cooking temperature for a variety of rice types. But fuzzy logic is sooooo two thousand and late…now we have induction rice cookers.
Induction cooking is also very precise. Instead of suing direct heat, induction cooking uses magnetic fields to produce an electrical current within the rice cooking pan itself. This means the whole pan is heated, and since the currents can be changed instantaneously the cooker can quickly adjust to the doneness of your rice to cook to perfection.
That sounds like a lot of science for rice, but apparently it works wonderfully.
Neweggmall is offering a Zojirushi induction heading 10 cup rice cooker for $268 + tax and shipping with promo code “5025320OFF082009”. That’s a great deal on this model. Take a look if you’re using one of those old models you had in college with the single button. These things can cook a wide range of rices, from white to brown to sushi. It even cooks GABA brown germinated rice which apparently is rich in nutrients. Check it out.
Aug
19
2009
Ok, I promise this is my last Favre post for at least 24 hours. But really, this is an incredible story.
Only hours after landing in Minnesota, Favre had signed with the Vikings and was on the practice field. I mean, how awesome is that if you’re a Vikings fan? One hour you’re planning to endure a year-long QB battle between Sage Rosenfels and Tarvaris Jackson, and the next hour you have Brett Favre in a purple jersey.
Sure, sure, he’s old and he throws tons of interceptions. But Sage Rosenfels has only thrown for 30 TDs and 29 ints in his career – not much of an upgrade there. And there isn’t any need to start looking at Jackson’s stats – they’re horrible.
That’s probably why over the last day the Vikings have sold 3,000 more season tickets, and 10,000 single game tickets. And TJFKAK, if you want to replace that Cutler jersey with a purple ‘4’ then you can preorder them here as well.
And how happy must Michael Vick be that he isn’t the lead story anymore. Man, you have to love preseason!
Aug
18
2009
It seems like all the Favre re-unretiring rumors were correct. Favre made a trip to Minnesota today, and was picked up at the airport by coach Brad Childress. I’d imagine that Favre will join the team shortly with a one year deal for eight figures.
I’m kind of divided with this latest Favre saga. I mean, by now it’s almost comical. I think we’re all getting used to it…or tired of it.
But really the only reason why this is news is that Favre still has talent. Vinny Testeverde did the same thing, and he didn’t catch nearly as much shit as Favre.
At the end of the day, Favre will be a huge upgrade to the Vikings over Jackson or Rosenfels, and he gives them a great shot at reaching the playoffs. Last year the Vikings were 31st in the league in terms of passing yards – a figure Favre will surely improve upon.
And although Favre wasn’t great with the Jets last year – particularly late in the season – he did help the Jets win 9 games. That’s a substantial improvement over 2007 when the Jets went 4-12.
As much as these offseason antics distract players, coaches and the media, I think Favre is still worth it, particularly for the Vikings. And he’s great for the NFL - you can bet the two Vikings games against the Packers will get enormous numbers this year.
Aug
18
2009
We’ve dealt with Brett Favre finding a new team in the offseason, and we’ve dealt with Brett Favre retiring…but both, in a two month span? Some of the press in Minnesota thinks so.
There is speculation in Minnesota that the Favre saga is not yet over. According to some reporters and analysts, Favre is likely to start talking again with the Vikings about a possible return.
This is likely due to a poor performance of last year’s starting QB Tarvaris Jackson in the week 1 preseason game. And, while Sage Rosenfels looked okay, going 10 for 13 for 91 yards, no NFL team really wants Sage Rosenfels as their #1 QB.
We’ll see how this plays out in the coming weeks. My guess is that if the Vikings continue to struggle on offense, Favre will rejoin the team. He’ll be able to set his own terms, since even at age 39 he’ll be an upgrade for the offensively struggling Vikings.
There’s no indication of when Favre will be able to join the Vikings. Most likely he’ll be a mid-season addition. But still, the way the Vikings are looking he’s the best chance they have at making anything out of the 2010 season.
Aug
17
2009
Tiger Woods has never lost a major tournament when going into the final round with the lead. Today, he headed into the final round of the PGA Championship with a two shot lead – huge, in terms of Tiger.
Well, he lost. By three stokes. To a virtually unknown player, Y.E. Yang, who is ranked 110 in the world.
Yang shot a 70 today, tied for the best score of the day. He made some incredible shots, including a gutsy hybrid shot on the 18th hole that cemented his victory.
And Tiger…well…Tiger was off today, but only by a few inches. He missed several putts that would have changed his day by inches or less. And on 17 and 18, Tiger well, just missed his shots, ending up in the rough, and making any comeback nearly impossible.
Yang becomes the first Asian-born male to win a major PGA Championship. More importantly, Yang has chipped away at Wood’s mystique by catching up to Tiger and beating him by 3 strokes on the final day.
It was a remarkable final round, and I have to say after years of thinking golf is deathly boring, I have really started to love watching the game.
Aug
16
2009
This was the week of the Zune HD. Specs, pricing and a release date emerged along with a bunch of photos and videos.
Verdict? Sweeeeeeeeet.
This is the thing: The Zune HD is beautiful. From the metal exterior, to the glass screen to the seamless interface…beautiful.
There are a few videos of the interface, and it looks smoooooth. Video looks good, transitions are excellent, and touch seems to work great.
The Zune HD will be released on September 15th, and will run $290 for the 32 GB version and $220 for the 16 GB. Cheaper than the iPod touch, but a lot of cash for very little storage.
I’m on the fence here. I’d love to have one, but with an iPhone I don’t think I’d use it very much. But most likely, after playing around with it for a few minutes I’ll be hooked…it looks that good.
Aug
16
2009

You gotta love all this Vick news! Today he had his first practice with the Eagles, and things were uneventful.
In practice Vick mostly watched starting QB McNabb. He only threw four passes, but according to spectators his arm is still solid.
There are a lot of open questions out there – will Vick see any playing time? How will he be used? What impact will he have on starting QB McNabb?
I guess the third week of the preseason will answer many of these questions. One thing to consider though, is that McNabb made a case for Vick to be signed with the Eagles, so there is not going to be any ill will between McNabb and Vick…for now at least.
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Aug
15
2009
The Broncos had a busy offseason. They traded away their star QB, Jay Cutler, who was 3rd in the league in yards and 7th in TDs, to Chicago. What’d they get? 2 first round picks – you know, a pick that maybe would get them someone like, say a Jay Cutler. Oh, and did I mention they also got Kyle Orton, who hasn’t thrown for over 3,000 yards in a year and whose QB rating hasn’t passed 80.
But really, all those stats are moot if Orton took the starting QB job and drove the Broncos to victory, right?
Not so fast.
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Aug
14
2009
Out of this year’s crop of summer movies, I was most excited about District 9. The previews were vague, but they suggest a completely new take on the aliens-arrive-on-earth genre that is quite realistic.
I went to the premier last night and I have to say, District 9 is a must see.
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Aug
14
2009
Guess what folks, Michael Vick has found a team. Any guesses?
This evening Vick has reportedly signed with the…wait for it…Philadelphia Eagles!
I don’t know anyone who expected Vick to go to the Eagles. However, Philly recently lost backup Kevin Kolb to an MCL sprain, so it makes sense that they would pick up another backup QB for insurance.
One thing I don’t get though, is that Vick will be out the first six games, so he won’t be able to backup McNabb for some time. Kolb is expected to be back by the regular season, so Vick may be a third stringer.
I’m interested to see how the Eagles use Vick. I’m assuming that he can play some role in trick plays. But as long as Kolb is on the roster, I’d rather go with Kolb than Vick if McNabb gets injured or plays poorly.
In any case, I’m kind of glad that the Vick waiting game is over and we can finally see if he still has the chops to make it in the NFL. He has a tough road ahead of him in any case, and I doubt he’ll see any playing time until the 3rd preseason game.