The People in Charge

I don't get very political here, unless ranting about the Mets and their inability to do anything correct qualifies.

Anyway, we had a BIG SNOW EVENT in NJ, which resulted in a state of emergency being called by Senate President Steve Sweeney (D-Gloucester)who was in the role of acting Governor.

What?

We have a Governor, Mr. Chris Christie. And we have a Lt. Governor, Ms. Kim Guadagno. And both decided to take vacation at the same time. What?

Simple terms - it doesn't take a genius to know if you run a store (or a state), the manager (or Governor) or asst. manager (or Lt. Governor) has to be in the store (or the state) to run things. If both managers are away, then the store is closed.

So you are telling me that the Lt. G couldn't take vacation the week after the Gov went on his? What?

Bad management. Good job by Mr. Sweeney.

At least we're not in NYC!

Achy Breaky Back

Not so much, but I was wiped like a counter last night. Got a sweet night's rest and I'm in the office today. Slow-time says it best. Still a lot of unplowed areas that I can see. Everybody is telling SoulSlam that his neck of the woods got 30" or so. I didn't measure.

Going to Hershey for the New Year. The family is heading out Thursday and coming back Saturday. So we've got that going for us.

Anyhow, the New Year is approaching. 2011. That Mayan calendar thing better not be right.

Snow What?

We had the snowpocalypse event that all the highly coiffed weather-speakers predicted. BLIZZARD, no doubt.

Go out last night about 7:30PM to do a lap with the snow-thrower and...no snow being thrown. Hold on, I just changed out the shear pins, oiled and gassed this behemoth up, what gives?

Belt snapped. The belt that turns the good stuff. So since it was late, dark and cold, I thought I would give it a valiant effort in the AM.

MacGuyver'd the belt around 7:30AM, got it running and away we go. Throwing snow as far as the eye can see. For about 8 feet. Then nothing. Belt is wasted.

Let me 'spain something. The House of SoulSlam doesn't have one of these 50 ft straight driveways. We have a circular driveway that circles the house with the 50 ft part going off to the Garage of SoulSlam. Big job.

So it was some shovelling to get the Tahoe of SoulSlam unburied, then over to my parent's to get them out from under. Borrowed my pop's snow-blower after that. Total time outside in this mess -about 6 hours. Little sore right now. But my driveway is done.

Snow.

Day After

Christmas is always a whirlwind and by 6PM (or earlier) you can't wait to relax.

Boys got a lot of stuff, games for the systems, baseball gear, cash and giftcards, etc. It's all for them.

Now we wait on a blizzard coming up the coast. Got my Ariens Snowthrower ready, picked up 50lbs of salt, been cleaning out a storage room and now I'll take my Mrs. SoulSlam to the Christmas shop so she can walk the aisles. 'Cause I'm good like that.

Check you later.

BTW, saw this a couple of nights ago. Can't wait for the invasion:

US vs. the Aliens!!!

Ready Time

So Christmas Eve is here and I'm as ready as I'm gonna be. Will be pretty low-key here I think...dinner and church tonight, boys ripping open the gifts tomorrow and some family here for dinner tomorrow. Nothing to crazy. Told my wife to tell Santa I wanted nothing this year. Let's see if Santa listened.

Merry Christmas to all from SoulSlam.

Eve of the Eve

Day off, office closed. Ran some errands, gotta finish up shopping tonight or tomorrow. At least I'm 90% good.

Hiding Behind Your Mascot

So I got an electronic holiday card from the NY Mets...


And I opened it (virtually I guess when I think about it). And what was inside? Just a happy holiday message from Mr. Met. I guess that way Met fans couldn't rip the team a new one. How can I hate Mr. Met? He's one of the only people who hasn't let me down in this organization. Here's what he looks like in the card...


Merry Mr. Met. A man's man. Greatest mascot of all time. Happy Holiday to you sir.

---

BTW, word is we still haven't offered a contract to any of the pitching re-treads available. I guess we're gonna wait until the bitter end.

Travel Hoops Update

So you longtime followers of all things Slam know I coach a little basketball know and again.

I have a 4th grade team - first time on the travel circuit for these guys. Played our first game last Saturday - lost 20-13. Considering tow kids on the other team scored 15 of their total, we were in it for the most part. A couple of rebounds go our way and maybe we pull it out. We play some tough D.

I also assist on a 7th grade team that is playing in a league open to 8th graders. Played a team from a local town/city last night. We looked like a midget-festival. These guys showed up (probably in their own cars!) with facial hair including a pretty grown-in goatee. Our boys never gave up and played hard for 32. Lost 37-18. Whatever they do this season against older comp will be a benefit next year. At least that is what I keep telling myself.

Reggie

Caught a great sports movie/documentary on ESPN last night:

Winning Time: Reggie Miller vs. the New York Knicks

Guess it's been on before, but last night I finally saw it. Great stuff. Makes you remember the way the Garden used to be.

Best line - "Reggie looked like Mr. Potato Head on a stick!"

Do I Look Like A Moron, Sandy?

OK. I might have been born on a Saturday, but it wasn't last Saturday.

This really pisses me off. As a Met fan. Especially since we DO NOTHING!


I'll tell you where my MLB dollars are going next season:
Camden Yards
Whatever that ballpark in DC is called
Pittsburgh maybe

So I'm sure I'll go to CitiField once or twice. But I won't be killing myself to get tix.

yin yang

Pretty simple. Put a Phillies uniform on it and what do you get. The finally-over Cliff Lee saga.

In 80's teen flick terms, the Yankees wanted to take Mr. Lee home from the prom, but ended up alone. And the Phillies get their date, errr man.

So as a Mets fan, one has to feel a little ambivalent here. So he doesn't go to Yankees (YAY!) but ends up on Phils (BOO!) Anyway, not like we are in this thing to win in 2011.

Which leads me to point #2 - so it looks like (and sounds like) Mr. Alderson is prepping us for the inevitable, namely a looooong season. But the light at the end of the tunnel is a cool $60MM coming off the books for 2012. So who's available then? Lets see (just the studs):

Pujols (unless St.L locks him up first)
Fielder
Phillips
Cano (never gonna happen)
Oswalt
Wilson, CJ
Broxton
Papelbon
Carpenter
Reyes

So unless I'm missing something...what exactly are we waiting for? I would take a Cliff Lee or Carl Crawford over anybody on this list (except the Machine). So we'll have a king's ransom to spend on...nobody.

Can't Keep a Good Man Down

Back and talkin'! I missed this veritable fountain of blabber.

How about this one with regards to Cliff Lee (use your Frog from Courageous Cat voice here):

“For somebody of that stature, it would certainly behoove him to be a Yankee, which would probably be for the rest of his career.”

Behoove. You don't get to use that word everyday. Nice work, Mr. Webster.

I'll bet he's a freakin' killer at Scrabble.

Head Down Stupid

Have smartphones and the like begat the latest in disassociated mortals?

I'm talking about people who shuffle along, head-down while they check their communication device like some Harvard scholar inspecting the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Are you that shallow and insignificant that you have to constantly be in contact with your BFF so you can tell them about how your day is crap OMG LOL!

You will be the first to go when the Apocolypse comes. 'Cause you wont see Death riding up to you!

Dirt Pile

Mets signed Boof Bonser.

Way to go. Are you effin' kidding me?


To Mr. Met - you've done your duty big fella. Go get a job as a mascot for a real franchise!

Plus Minus

What?

Sitting in the man cave with the laptop on my lap (wow). And watching MLB Channel from the Winter Meetings. Rumors swirling about Mr. Cliff Lee. Trades being discussed, little movement. But it's baseball, and that makes it great.

So some random thoughts:

I guess the Jets and that fat**s Rex Ryan showed the Patriots something, huh?

I see the Mets signed Ronny Paulino to a one year deal. Playoffs here we come!

The Walking Dead season finale was awesome. And now we wait.

Rec-level basketball is terminally frustrating.

LeBron might be the bad man, but he's a bro to us all.

Christmas will be here soon. I am getting all my shopping done early this year.

SoulSlam loves Conspiracy Theory with Jesse Ventura.

I am addicted to this website...and made to know it!

I'd like to see the Yankees leave empty handed.

Surprise, Surprise, Surprise

In the immortal words of one Pyle, Gomer USMC -

Jeter is a Yankee!!! Hallelujah.

Go away. Your shortstop sucks. No range. Dead stick. You'll be killing the guy by Memorial Day.

The Mullet Equation

I'm sure I don't have to explain that the mullet is the hairstyle of the gods, but what the hey.

And the folks that wear their 'dos that way deserve our applause. Because if you're stylin' the Tennessee Tophat, the Wisconsin Waterfall, the Camaro Cut, the Seven, the Canadian Passport, the Barry Melrose - you are a righteous bro. As they say, business in the front, party in the rear. So what's the point here, SoulSlam?

It's a weekend to fund raise for our basketball program. Shake the can at a local market. Great place that has been there since forever. Got everything. Not one of your super deluxe markets. Local flavor. Friday night, the YSSS (Youngest Son of SoulSlam) has a shift with a pal, with me being the parent on the premises/bouncer. Little bit cold, but it's an hour, we tough it out.

So I've done this enough to rate the customers - most guys generally give 80% of the time, and it's usually a buck or more. Ladies are fickle, some do, some don't. Probably 50-50. Younger ladies are usually a yes, older a no.

But back to the guys - the ones with mullets rarely dip in and give. They come out with a couple of six-packs of tall boys and a half pint of rum and can't drop a quarter in the basket. I know times are tough, but maybe if you got a real haircut, there would be a little upside to your Friday night.

The Heel

Do you watch pro rasslin'? The "real" kayfabe type where you had faces and heels?

I was always rootin' for the heel. Superstar Billy Graham, Legion of Doom, The Four Horsemen, to name a few. Not the neo-heels like HBK and HHH. The heels of yesteryear. I had no time to root for the good guys.

So now we have the new heel, the bad guy. LeBron is his name, and outside of Southern FLA he's vilified, despised, cursed. So he's now my go-to guy. Expecially since everybody is pilin' on the rabbit, so to speak.

Heat come to Cleveland tonight. Them Cavs fans want blood. LeBron's blood.

Time Management

Got my basketball schedules for travel teams this morning. The next four months kind of look like this:


But keep in mind it doesn't include the in-town team my 10 year old will play on, nor reflect that we start winter training on Fridays for baseball beginning January 7.

Time is a state of mind I guess.

Ch - Ch - Ch - Changes

Clicking around and trying some new designs. SoulSlam was thinking his blog 'o' wisdom was so 2008. So we'll try this for awhile until I come up with something I like better.

I wuz gonna put a little Bowie up, but this is way cooler!

Happy Turkey

Townsfolk...eat hearty, be merry and watch football!

And a Close Second

...and Third, and Fourth and Fifth is this montage from the NY Daily News.

It's all about choices Derek!

Best Picture Ever

Always the leader in Photoshop journalism (well except for the Weekly World News) - the NY Post ran this today. I say BEST PICTURE EVER.


Wouldn't Jeter in a Red Sox uniform be sweet?

MVP

Mr. Josh Hamilton. Congratulations.

I will listen to Michael Kay on ESPN 1050 on the way home rail against this travesty of justice and how Robbie Cano, don't ya know should won. BBBBRRRRRP!

Decision

Looks like the newly appointed college of cardinals, errr, I mean Mets management have made their choice. All reports say Terry Collins is the new manager. Yay.

Look, they can pick whoever they want, but if the choice came down to somebody who has MLB managerial experience, give me a break. This guy last managed in the century before the one we are in now. We might as well have dug up Billy Martin. And how exactly does somebody get that experience if they never get a chance.

Anyway, now it's that time of year again; the time of year where the Mets disappoint their fans by sitting on their hands and do nothing. We'll be running out Ollie P. and Luis on Opening Day 2011.

C-Ya.

Blah Blah Blah

"uhhh, that's gonna leave a mark"

You can't turn the page of NY rags or listen to the local airwaves without running into the biggest story coming from the Bronx, namely the NYY-Jeter negotiations/contract/life partnership.

Fact - Jeter is not really worth much to anybody but the Yankees. Except maybe the Red Sox, who would love to stick it to the Bombers.

Fact - Jeter is older and slower. He's 37, lost a lot of range (A-Rod* has to almost play in the hole so Jeter can cheat towards 2B!), and has seen his best days behind.

Fact - The Yankees rarely overpay for their own free agents. Reference R. Jackson, B. Williams, J. Damon.

Fact - 3 years at $45m is not gonna get this done. If you were the Capt., wouldn't you want money in the A-Rod* stratosphere? I would. He's Jeter.

So we wait. Could get done. Could get bloody.

Finish Line

Apparently the end is almost near for the manager search...as it's been reported that SNY has been told to be at CitiField on Tuesday for a press conference.

Word/rumor/innuendo is that Backman has moved up the depth chart, but Melvin and Collins may still be around.

Rootin' for Wally, SoulSlam is.

OK, I Get It...

The Mets are still looking and interviewing and doing their best...

I know because I get an e-mail just about every other day like this:


I guess to compensate and try to re-connect with the fans, some Marketing Genius inevitably came up with sending out e-mail letters all the time. Well how about an e-mail letter about what we are going to do to MAKE THIS FREAKIN' TEAM BETTER!!!!

I'm waiting patiently.


PS - Anger update: 6 on a 10 scale today.

Calming Effect

Still looking for it. Still livid.

And now I have a headache. Great.

Seething

Can't get into the reasons why, but that is the word that describes me best right now.

Best that some people stay clear of SoulSlam for awhile. Fair warning.

Sagacious

Definition:
1. wise, sage, discerning, clever, intelligent, judicious, acute, sharp, keen, perspicacious

Sagacious. The type of word most mortals do not use. But there is one who uses it with regularity. I'm talking, of course, of Clyde.

Got the Knicks on tonight vs. the Rockets...and Clyde does not disappoint. Like a pimpin' Dr. Seuss, he rhymes with abandon.

My favorite player when I was just learning the art of the dribble. Tribute to you, gangsta (OG - no doubt).

Hoops In Season

So youth travel basketball is in full swing...my other coaching assignment.

This season, I am coaching two teams; asst. for a 7th grade boys team, wear the footwear is very expensive, and head coach for a brand new 4th grade team. I have some attention issues there that need to be corrected.

So tonight I had back-to-back 90 minute sessions. And now I sit here scouring the internet for interesting nuggets. Friday is so nice.

Weekend is pretty much off. Thinking about bringing the boys to the cages. We'll see.

D-Bag!

SoulSlam is not a Jets fan. So I have a lot to say about Mr. Rex Ryan.

What is funny about a 475 lb. loudmouth slob wearing a disguise?

NOT A THING!

This guy is a fool. Learn to manage a clock you bloated bag of wind.

Best New Show

Gotta get to JFK in a few...killing a little time.

Last week, AMC premiered a new show, The Walking Dead.

UN-FREAKIN-BELIEVABLE GOOD. Really.

I'm not a huge zombie fan - but this is kind of a cross between the best of zombie-vision and the 28 Days/ 28 Weeks Later movies (which are great).

Check it out Sunday nights.

DST

Today is DST, and SoulSlam feels a little logey.

Have to fly to the Windy City manana for a couple of days. Yippee.

Did the Mets hire a manager yet?

Managerial Decisions

Sandy A. has a daunting task in front of him, namely picking a new manager for the intrepid heroes of Queens.

I don't get any input but like most fans I'd like to see somebody with a little fire. Wally Backman fits that description - but he might be a little too incendiary and the Mets may want him to manage above Short Season A ball to show his mettle.

Clint Hurdle is another name being thrown about. Not sure my feelings there, since he seemed to lose the Rockies in the middle of the season last year.

Other names I see that get me nowhere: Hale, Oberkfell, Collins, Tuefel, etc.

Gonna be interesting...

Reyes

Jose before the Bob Marley look

Jose got his, namely the p/u of his 2011 option for $11M...nice piece of change.

Time to get over the hump and put up the big numbers, Boyo.

My Cliff Lee - Bad Yankee Fan Story

Lots of yakkin' on the NY airwaves about Cliff Lee's impending free agency and coming to the Yankees; Chuck Greenberg's comments; and the nice people who inhabit the stadium that George conned the city of NY out of.

So I have a story to tell.

A couple years back, my bro-in-law got some tix to the real Yankee Stadium, aka the House That Ruth Built. Good opportunity to take my sons to a baseball mecca. Great.

Drive in (not my van since I have a big Mets logo on the back) - get to the stadium. Indians in town and one Mr. Cliff Lee on the mound. Threw a 3 hitter and won the game 3-0. He was dealin' that night. So that's the Cliff Lee part. While seated in our section, at least two fights break out about 10-15 rows away, since some of the Yankee fans decided that a couple of guys wearing Cleveland jerseys shouldn't be allowed to watch the game.

And the piece of pie that really rocks is this: while waiting for my (then 7 year old) son at the men's room, a loaded fella (20-something) walks up to me (his pal walking into the john) and sees I'm wearing a brick red Majestic pullover. Plain jane model, no team affiliation. So he says "that better not be a Red Sox shirt turned inside out!". To which I respond "so what if it was. What are you and your 'girlfriend' gonna do about it?" He looks at my quizzically. I then say "let me take my kid to his seat and I'll give you guys a good ass-kicking."

He declined my offer.

See. Bad fans. All it takes is a little push back though.

But I'm scary.

Champs

Congrats to the SF Giants on the WS win..wasn't who I was rooting for, but it's fandy-tastic to see a team win that hasn't been there in forever.

GREAT PITCHING!!

And is Wilson channeling his inner Al Hrabosky or what?

Football Watchin'

Fox and Cablevision made up so I can watch channel 5 again. So I got to see the last inning and a half of the WS last night. Feliz was throwin' some Texas Smoke!

Anyway I'm watching Packers-Jets and I just heard Tony Siragusa chime in. What a fat tub o' goo that guy is. Pathetic. Just a loudmouth with a mike. Saw him a couple of years ago at a youth wrestling match, he looked like an absolute tool. Which he apparently is.

Anyway, it's half past and I have NO FF points yet. I'm 3-4, need a win or I'm behind the proverbial 8-ball. Which is not the position I would like to be.

500

So like MLB, I'm guessing 500 posts on a blog is a milestone, so today I hit that number. Is the Blogging HOF far away?

It all started as a tryout. See how easy (or not) it was. Since that time we (that's you and me) have discerned the truth, raged at inequity and lamented my poor NY Mets (and blasted the NYY!).

Anyhoo, here's ten of my favorites since I started, no particular order.

ATM Lethargy

Self Serve Coffee for Dummies

Lettuce Story

The Curse of Ryan

Funny Guys in Pizza Parlors

Der Vogel

The Bad Guy

Being Mickey Rourke

Room 510

But Is It a Sport?

So cheers to SoulSlam and another 500!!!!

The Hole

In two games the SF Giants have scored 20 runs. That pretty much equals their run total for the month of July!

Since I can't watch the games (thanks Fox, thanks Cablevision), I check the web, listen on radio, etc. I am challenged. I'll try to re-group this weekend. Like the Texas Rangers, who are still gonna pull this thing out.

Modern Tech

Antenna didn't work out like I planned...it actually picked up the cable signal so I was getting the same dead channel/ propaganda that comes across the cable signal.

Cable company is offering a $10 discount so customers can buy the mlb.com feed. Nice gesture I guess.

Anyway, Fox sucks. Cablevision sucks. Two for two.

Prediction

Rangers in 6.

Since Cablevision and Fox still can't figure it out, I purchased an antenna to hook up to my TV. Let's see if that works, otherwise no WS to see in North Jersey!

The Big 1-0

Today is the YSSS (Youngest Son of SoulSlam) birthday. 10 years old. My buddy. Clean-up hitter. The Freight Train.

Happy Birthday Bro-Hammer. Dad Loves You.

Poor Superstar

Man, life must be tough.

New Blood WS Style

Rangers & Giants. New blood in the World Series means something for the rest if us. Congrats to the SF Crew; they will need to do something great to quell the offensive onslaught of Texas.

In FF update - I am 3-3 and playing the KISS fan again...I need a little vengeance here. BTW, we bet on GM6 of the ALCS so I get a free lunch, sweet.

Hopefully some of my players can come up big.

Sorry Yankees

YOU BLEW IT!

Funny, listening to WFAN yesterday afternoon, all I hear is confident NYY fans looking to Game 7 and Cliff Lee. Problem for them: Game 6 and Colby Lewis.

Lewis threw 8 stellar innings with the Yankees scoring their lone run (in the Lone Star State) on a bad call on HBP. So he gave up 3 hits, 3 BB, 7 K's and got a BIG WIN. And Neftali Feliz comes in in the 9th and strikes out 2, including A-Rod* to end the game. Sweetest of Sweet.

Go Texas!!

That Other CS

Since Cablevision and Fox have been so kind to take the local station off the airwaves, SoulSlam cannot watch the NLCS between the Phillies and Giants. Shame.

Giants went up 3 games to 1 last night with a 9th inning win of Roy Oswalt in relief. WOW. Wish I could watch these games, but corporate piggery is depriving me and millions of others in the Jersey area.

Anyway, not front-running here but since I hate the Yankees and Phillies, I'd like to see the Giants-Rangers in the WS. But if this dispute doesn't end, I will not see anything apparently.

Almost

Wow. I actually thought the Yanks would take last night's big game. Burnett pitched pretty well, can't get on that guy. B. Molina goes deep after they IBB David Murphy. That's baseball. Since their offense is a bunch of wet noodles, the blame can't be on AJ.

Sabathia goes today, and hopefully (for the Yanks, not for SoulSlam) he does better than he did in GM1. Even so, they gotta then go to Tejas for the 6th and 7th. Tough.

Nice. Enjoy some ZZ Top from about 30 years ago!

Money For Nothing

Well this almost escaped my ranting, yet it will not. Saturday morning here in the land of pizza, Cablevision, the cable monopoly in my area stopped broadcasting Fox 5. They are in a contract dispute that, depending on which side of the proverbial fence you sit, is about equity or greed. Whatever.

So no NLCS for me! No NFL football for me! And if this keeps going (now in day 3) then the World Series will be listened to, not seen.

No pity. No quarter. They are all miserable corporate scum.

---

Tonight, Cliff Lee goes against the winning-est (and losing-est) pitcher in playoff history, Andy Pettitte. Can't wait.

Where It's Always Sunny

No doubt, the COBL (City of Brudderly Luv) is a pleasant place. Filled with very nice people. Who are no doubt kind to visitors and Santa.

Wonder what kind of signs they would scrawl if they weren't so nice?

Spot Check

Somebody better check Colby Lewis' lid - he might be throwing some wet junk too!

HYSTERIA

So while I was away this hit my inbox from a pal (courtesy of PROrumors.com:

New York Yankees television announcer Michael Key is insisting that Texas Rangers pitcher Cliff Lee is using a combination of resin and sweat to produce a “tackiness” to grip the ball, according to The New
York Daily News’ Bob Raissman.
“I would think that’s illegal,” Kay said. “If I’m Joe Girardi,
I’m telling the umpires he (Lee) has got to wear another hat.”
Video evidence (yes, we’ll see if we can find it) shows one shot where Lee is touching the bill of his cap and another shows Lee licking his fingers as he walks off the mound towards home plate.
When TBS announcer Ron Darling was asked if the Yankees should use
gamesmanship and make him change his hat. “Yeah,” Darling said. “Usually you will see umpires, if they are approached by the manager, they might make him change his hat.”
If this situation begins to get bigger, it’s possible that an act of gamesmanship could backfire on the Yankees should they decide to pursue Lee in the off-season. They could anger Lee to a point where he decides to take his services elsewhere when he becomes a free-agent.
Tread lightly.

Anyway, I was just in the car and some Yankee-loving dope was going on and on how he noticed CJ Wilson going to his cap repeatedly last night and that he was putting something on the ball. He even said "it's definitely something black under the bill of his cap". Well genius, that's because the underside of the bill of an MLB cap is black. What an idiot.

I guess when the modern-day Murderer's Row couldn't get any hits against Wilson., it must be because he's throwing spitters.

Good to be back by the way.

Food Critic (Osaka Report)

The Sausage McMuffin at McDonalds tastes better in Japan. Since it is the only edible thing I have had all week.

Got a wake-up and I'm on my wayyy!

T Is For TEXAS!

Next step: Lay a can o' whoop-ass on them sassy NY Yankees!!!

Hello Osaka!

This place is ponderous.

Here's me trip so far.

Sunday - leave my house at 8:30AM EST, go to EWR and take an 11:00AM flight. Fly in the air for about 13 1/2 hours. Get to Tokyo at 1:30 Monday afternoon, which is just after midnight back home. Pass through customs and wait three hours for a flight to Osaka.

Fly to the airport that is sinking into the sea, and for some reason I have to pass through customs again(I look shady).

Take a 40 minute bus ride to the hub of Osaka, then walk about 1 mile to take a subway train. Take a subway one stop and walk another 1/4 mile to hotel. All the while dragging my bags.

Hotel is OK. End up there at 9:00PM, 8:00AM at home. Door to door almost 24 hours!

Go to sleep. Wake up, and proceed to upchuck and upchuck. Nice.

Did find Vitamin Water here, so I got that going for me.

Autumn Finally and FF Update

Pool's covered. Summer over.

Going to Japan again tomorrow. Not my idea. I have to get in the zone. That's the zone that keeps me from committing murder.

FF - lost last Sunday to the KISS fan. Most of my players decided to lay down. Hope we can right the ship since I'm now 2-2 and I don't like to have a losing record.

A Certain Fella Named Roy

Simple name for a simple guy by all accounts.

Got into his first playoff game yesterday and threw the be-jesus out of the ball for only the 2nd no-hitter in playoff history. Roy's da man in the City of Brudderly Luv. Yowsa!

Rangers look like serial killers. After yesterdays a-kicking of the Rays, they are up 6-0 in the 7th today. They are rough trade. My team throughout.

The Whammy?

Not my hands. SoulSlam has manly hands.

Maybe I'm a mush, but here's the predicts for the Division Series' -

BRAVES over GIANTS

PHILS over REDS

RANGERS over RAYS

TWINS over YANKEES
(You didn't think I would pick the empire did you?)

Bittersweet

So the Mets go out with a 2-1 loss in 14 innings. Fitting. Just like the last couple of season, frustrating and less than we expect.

And guess what? Ollie P. got in the game and got the loss. Pitched to five batters, walked three, K'd one. And gave up the run that lost the game. Sayonara OP.

Tomorrow or the next day the Wilpons will put away the Grey Poupon to come out and say they are making changes. Stay tuned. Of course they will not have made any, but you know, good intentions count for something...


Mr. Met will be on Intervention later this season. Poor guy. He's had it tougher than the rest of us.

LDOS

= Last Day of Season..at least the regular.

Yankees get one in the DH, Tampa wins, so they are all even and today is decider on the division winner. Fact is, Yankees will probably be better served as the Wild Card so they can go play the Twins. Texas is probably too tough for them, even if they have home field. And watching yesterday's Ranger game, it seems like Hamilton is back to ready. MVP!

In the NL, the 4PM game between the Giants - Padres is the must see game on MLBTV. Giants. Should be a burner. Wow.

Last, Happy Birthday to Mrs. SoulSlam. Love of my life, my best friend, Mom of the millenium!

SoulSlam couldn't be the man he's become without you.

Day Off

October 1 = day off. And do I need it!

Busy weekend though. Rain (and lots of it) is really cramping my style, closing the pool-wise. Longer I wait, the colder it gets, and you know what that means:

Shrinkage

---

Just a couple of days left in reg season. Hamilton back tonight. SoulSlam is rootin' for the Texas Rangers, y'all!

On the Win

So after a first week loss and a second week win to get even, I laid a whoopin' on my opponent this weekend, winning by 40+ points. I think my reserves actually outscored the other guy.

So now SoulSlam is 2-1 and looking to take this weekend's game against a certain KISS fan (no that is not a typo) who likes to talk trash, fantasy-wise. Good luck, Starchild.

Oh, AJ

I'll bet the Yankee faithful have a nice warm and fuzzy for the enigmatic Mr. Burnett after last night,s hitting clinic...I mean game.
In a game that could have clinched a playoff spot, AJ came up less than big.

2.1 INNINGS PITCHED
7 HITS
7 RUNS
7 EARNED RUNS
2 HOME RUNS

Which makes him 10-15, with an ERA of 5.33 on the season. Worth every penny he's getting.

So what does this do to the Yankees rotation during Rd1 of playoffs? CC for GM 1, Pettitte for GM 3, who knows everywhere else. I'm sure Hughes will be in the mix, but that will be a lot to ask of a kid.

Sold Out

So let me get this straight. I'm watching the Bosox put a 10-spot on the Yankees last night, and since they can't hide the fact that the royalty section behind home and extending past the dugouts cant be more than 40% full, that huge, bloated bag of wind, Michael Kay has the absolute balls to say that the game is sold out again. Huh?

Maybe that works if I was listening on the radio, but my eyes don't deceive. Yankee Propaganda. Get yours.

So today the Sox smack the Yankees around again. And now the Yanks look less like a lock to win the division and more likely the Wild Card. And since they cant beat up on the Royals or Orioles in the playoffs, they better hope they can beat somebody, cause I don't see it.

And guess what? Yankees have to play three to end the season at Fenway. It's a longshot but here's to Boston making a week to go run. Now that would be sweet. Like Jeter striking out in the big spot.

Even Steven

That means my FF Team is 1-1. After week 1's dismal showing, I took the game over the aforementioned Gym Tan Laundry (with the league's high score I might add) to even it up.

Week 3 is crucial. So says a geek of FF.

Did I mention I have to go to Japan again. Not happy.

Officially Done

Mets are out of playoff contention with last night's loss to the fish. That's the official, mathematical point. Unofficially, they were done in early August. Funny, the team was 10 games over .500 around the All-Star break, then we get Beltran and Castillo back and the air came out of the balloon.

So what's next? Lots of rumblings about shaking things up, gettin' creative...whatever.

Early predictions:
Beltran is traded. The team attempts to trade Perez and Castillo, but that's a tough one.
K-Rod (who's gonna be going to jail, no doubt) is dropped. Like a hot rock.
Mets will explore trade for Reyes. 50-50 he's on team next season.
Outfield next season is Pagan, Duda, and somebody else.
Mets will go after Lee, but won't land the big fella.
They will once again try to sign a #3 or #4 starter. Again. A vicious circle.
Look for a deal with Boston. Maybe for Ellsbury and Papelbon (I am not kidding).
Manager will not be Joe Torre.
Mets fans will still complain not enough is being done.
Citi Field will be a little empty until this gets turned around.

Hambone

Word is Josh Hamilton has broken ribs from the crash a few back. I guess that will quiet the rubes who say he's sitting out to ensure the batting title.

Anyway, I'm sure the AL Teams in the hunt are breathing a sigh or two. Texas is good, but they are a juggernaught when he's in the lineup.

Hope he can come back and make some hay during October.

Audi.

Sunday Sunday

Had some open gym for basketball today, now I'm just flippin' the channels watching the NFL and the Mets. Might turn on the Yanks to see what's what in Bodymore, Murderland - they gotta play three against the Rays this week, so they need to sweep the O's now!

My fantasy team is up 60-12 right now, but I'm sure we'll be coming back to Earth in the later games. Aaron Rodgers is really chapping my a#$ though. Mr. Cover Boy.

Back to hoops. Looking to start a 4th grade travel team, got some talent there. See what we have a couple of weeks from now at the tryout. Should be fun. Combined with the 7th grade team I help coach - I should be busy 'til baseball.

Lucas!

This poor kid was hitting about .032 before yesterday's game and no that is not a typo. Then he hits a couple of doubles last night, drives in a couple, scores two. Now tonight he's 2 for 2, with a single and his first home run (no cheapo either), and has raised his BA almost 100 points.

He kept going out and doing his best and he's gettin' paid now.

I Like this kid.

Unemployed?

A (former?) pal (just kidding!) sent this to me. It is funny.

METS ARE HIRING!

0-1

That's me. At the bottom of my division (DIVISION 1!) in the fantasy football league I got roped into.

Had our draft, acted like a dork. Thought I drafted a pretty good team. Then game day. Here's how I feel about these guys:

Aaron Rodgers - ESPN the Magazine cover boy. Scored me 15 points. Week 1 Grade: Loser.
Marion Barber - maybe if that fat-a Wade Phillips let him run a little instead of splitting his time 3 ways I could have had something. Week 1 Grade: Incomplete.
Rashard Mendenhall - scored a TD late with P'Burgh's anemic offense. Week 1 Grade: A
Wes Welker - Two TDs. Week 1 Grade: A
DeSean Jackson - what can you say when your QB goes down and the dog killer comes in and can't do anything but run. Week 1 Grade: Loser (by no fault of his own).
Brent Celek - see DeSean Jackson. Week 1 Grade: Loser (by no fault of his own).
Adam Vinitieri - I guess when Indys O can't go, he suffers. Week 1 Grade: Bum.
CJ Spiller - "Oooh, great pick". 7yds rush, 6yds rec. Sucky. Week 1 Grade: Rookie Loser.
Steelers DST. Week 1 Grade: C.

Next up a team called Gym Tan Laundry. I better win that one.

Bad Juju

Does the glorious NY Yankees getting swept by the mighty Texas Rangers count? And the Rangers were without their best player...

(So somewhere the Red Sox Nation is smiling.)

Batting a .261 hitter at leadoff may end up being the undoing of the Yankees. Especially since his OBP is about .329.

---

About three weeks left in regular season, so time for the Rockies to turn it on full again. So San Diego and San Fran better watch out.

Votto is MVP in the NL. Hamilton in the AL, no matter what flavor koolaid NYY fans are drinking over Cano.

Did I mention the Mets are done?

Absolution

So the Mets are 69-71 with 22 games left and going nowhere. Johan Santana is having season-ending surgery for the 2nd year in a row. The Mets best pitcher is a 35 year old knuckleballer. We have a kid playing 2B who can't hit his own weight (a sweet .188 so far!). Jason Bay went on the DL and has been apparently kidnapped by aliens, cause nobody knows where he is. The team goes to Walter Reed to visit the troops and three of the players don't show, the three that the fans hate most it seems. And who knows who's running the team next year. Maybe Bozo the Clown is available.

A mess. Again. And again. And again.

So SoulSlam has done the only thing a father of two boys can. I have given them absolution and told them they can be fans of another team. There is absolutely no reason they have to go through a lifetime of heartache and heartbreak that I have.

So I will turn on the games this weekend vs. the Phillies (who look like they will go far into the October season) and begin hoping for 2011.

Collector Heaven

Got a sweet new item for my collection. Check it out.


All in honor of my man Ike.

Let The Geekness Begin

Fantasy Football draft tonight. On-line.

I feel like a dork.

BACK!

Vacation over, get a couple extra days before work and school. It always seems long but then it seems short at the same time, whatever that means.

Caught Red Sox - Rays in Tampa (actually St. Pete) the Friday we departed. We took Jet Blue for the first time, so I was watching the 36 channels of DirectTV on the flight and saw chance of rain, thought the game might be cancelled and then realized (DUH!) the park is indoors. Anyway, it was a little strange, SoulSlam has never seen a baseball game indoors before. Great experience, and they have a mini-HOF inside that the boys and I could stroll through. Nice.

Took a cruise to the Western Caribbean - Grand Cayman and Cozumel. Super time had by all. Then came back to Tampa for a couple of days spent at Busch Gardens and Adventure Island, the best waterpark I've ever been in.

All in all, one of the best family vacations ever. I'll get to the Mets downward spiral later.

In 24 Hours...

The House of SoulSlam leaves on vacation. Flight to Tampa, night there, then a five day cruise through the Western Caribbean, then followed with two more days in Tampa.

Need it. Can't wait. Hopefully I don't crack any ribs this year!

Check back around Labor Day!

Simple Math

The Mets are 9.5 GB in Division, and 7 GB in Wild Card. Time for a math lesson.

In the last 10 games the Mets are 5-5. In the last 10 games the Braves are 5-5. In the last 10 games the Phillies are 5-5.

So that means in the last 10 games the Mets have gone nowhere in the division. If they win just one more game, they make up ground. But NOOOOO. Can't do that.

The Wild Card problem is even more of an issue. They are the 7th team in WC standings. That's a lot of teams to hurdle. Once again, put another W or two on the board and we look pretty good with 36 to go.

Arduous.

Vacation Plans

Got tix to Red Sox-Rays at Tropicana Field for Friday night, then we leave on a cruise out of Tampa on Saturday. Sweet. Right now it looks like Dice-K vs. David Price.

Baseball Sunday Thoughts

Mr. Strasburg is scheduled to have an MRI after he grabbed his shoulder during a Phils game. I would bet big money everybody in the Nats front office did not sleep at all Saturday night in scary anticipation.

Caught some of the LLWS yesterday, and some kid that was pitching had a custom glove with the word "Phenom" on it. I think that giving yourself a nickname like that only leads to other people calling you "Shorty" and "Chubby" and 'Stinky" later in life. Let the world call you a "Phenom" kid.

Speaking of the LLWS, the Jersey team from Toms River (South Jersey FYI) got shellacked by a team from Ohio. So the local message board is interestingly quiet - funny how that happens.

Mets have won two in a row! and had some offensive prowess. Against the Pirates. So I'm not jumping for joy. I like the kid Alvarez, but he's had a horrific time of it in the games I've seen.

And for all you Yankee fans: Cano is having a great season, but let's not get all uptight in the pants when he doesn't win the MVP. Hamilton in a walk. No question.

Pants On Fire!

LIAR, LIAR...

But seriously, did anybody think the US Govt was gonna let the Rocket slide after he testified in Congress that he never did PEDs?

If I was Mr. C, I would look for a new shyster mouthpiece but quick, since his guy would give Mr. Haney a run for his money when he speaks.

And apparently ol' Rog has a Twitter account, so he's tweetin' instead of laying low. GOOD STRATEGY.

NOT.

A Week Away

From vacation...I need it.

Anyway a few things:

1. Mets are 60-60 (.500), meaning they have 42 games left. Jerry (uhhhh...) Manual was on his weekly spot and said he thinks that they have a run left in them. Well Jerry, when do you think you will get it in gear? You will need to go 32-10 bare minimum so put that in your "dickey pipe" (thanks Evan Roberts) and smoke it!

2. Mid-August gets me down. I can feel summer dwindle away. Next thing you know, it's leaf-peeping time!

3. I joined a Fantasy Football league. I am officially a fantasy dork.

4. Will this ever catch on? I would watch it.

Hidden Agendas

So how happy do you think LL Baseball and ESPN was when the starting pitcher for PA was sporting a mustache?! It's a 12U tourney, so you get your 5/1 thirteen year olds, but this kid looked like a mechanic at Jiffy Lube. All about the "kids".

Anyway, they seemed to be coming up with new ways to describe curveballs. Because they have no doubt gotten a lot of sugar over "kids" throwing the hook. Even commissioned a study saying it was OK. But it's not.

And speaking of pitches, if those guns that they use aren't juiced, I'll eat my size 7 5/8 hat! There is absolutely no way these kids are throwing 65+.

Lot of chatter about rolled bats, kids from out of district, etc. It's LL Baseball!

---

And could things get any better with K-Rod? What a guy!

Overlooked By You All

Question - What do movies such as Slumdog Millionaire, Titanic, Schindler's List. Forrest Gump, The English Patient all have in common (besides the Oscar I mean)?

THEY WOULD OF ALL BEEN BETTER IF DOLPH LUNDGREN STARRED IN THEM!!!


It's pretty fitting that Mr. L would be in The Expendables, since his incredible acting ability and stature in the industry has been under someones thumb forever. Keepin' the man down. Way down.

Some facts about the incredible Dolph:

Wikipedia calls him a Swedish actor, director and martial artist. If he practiced the Hebrew religion would they call him a Jewish actor? I think not. Anti-swedites!

He's a 3rd degree black belt, so he has the whole Hollywood goliath afraid he could kick their collective asses!

He speaks 57 languages.

He invented the iPod for Apple. He's a genius.

The character of SpongeBob Squarepants was loosely based on Mr. Lundgren's life.

He has advised most world-leaders in matters of socio-economic importance.

He is 8 foot tall.

He originally turned down the Matt Damon role in Good Will Hunting.

The Dolphin was named in honor of the great man.

DOLPH!!!!

PS - SoulSlam made up all those facts. But they could be true, maybe.