Hello,
Due to time constraints I'm not going to be able to finish this blog today, but I'm going to do as much done as I can. Although I do have today off from work I do have time constraints. I will be spending time with my kids this weekend. Also I have football games to watch this weekend! I'm sorry but my kids, BYU and Dallas do come before this blog! I'll start with the two opening acts first.
Before I get to that, let me get some whining out of the way. Concerts at the Energy Solutions Arena are never the best. The sound isn't very good. Also it seems that there's something wrong with the air conditioning. After sitting though my own personal sauna for 3 hours they should change the name of arena to Energy Savings Arena.
Also I'm for all people to get in a concert and have a fun time, but does the about 13 year old in front of me really need to screech every few seconds. I think that early teen screech is the most annoying sound in the world, especially when it's repeated several times. Also to her parental unit, did you really need to have your phone out most of the concert. Are you that important that you just can't put your phone down for a couple of hours, or maybe even leave your phone at home. Again the cell phone remains the most annoying invention ever! And it's not that the phone itself is so obnoxious, it's the obnoxious people who use the phone. Heaven forbid you miss one of your 600 Facebook friends every status update. Of course these people left before the concert even ended.
The first act that took stage almost right at 7:00 was Charlie Worsham, he was accompanied by two other musicians. They played 5 songs. Their set was highlighted by his country inflected cover of the 80's classic "I Want Candy" and Worsham's original "Mississippi in July". Worsham seems to be a cool guy, fighting against the obvious difficulty of being an opening act that most people just aren't interested in. However he was a pleasant surprise. Also I know that artists feel like they must say that they are having a great time, but it still cracks me up every time I hear it.
The next act up was needtobreathe. Now this isn't a band that's widely know, however they are a very good band. I don't know how to classify their music. About the closest I can get is a rock band with strong country influences. I'm not sure why but they were only allowed to sing 6 songs. WIth their very limited time, they kicked as much butt as they could. The highlight of their set was their second and sixth song. Their second song "Girl Named Tennessee" is my favorite of all their songs. They then closed out with a rompin' stompin' rock song. It's a song I've heard before, but I'm not sure of the title. They very good although the ESA sauna and the obnoxious people in front of me were in full obnoxious mode.
Then after about a half-hour of sauna like conditions and more waiting the lovely Taylor Swift took the stage. To be continued.
themusicaddict
Friday, September 30, 2011
Random thoughts
Hello,
Yes I'll start working on the Salt Lake City Taylor Swift concert review soon. I just have some random thoughts that I want to get out of the way first.
With two of my MLB teams having history making collapses, I felt like I just couldn't ignore it like nothing happened. Needless to say I was extremely disappointed that both Boston and Atlanta choked up such big leads. Out of my five teams I think Atlanta is set up the best moving forward. They have a lot of great young pitchers and a fairly young offense. Also with Chipper Jones possibly playing his last season next season, they have extra motivation. Just some quick thoughts about my other teams.
First of all I suggest Boston bring back both Theo Epstein and Terry Francona.
Boston desperately needs some starting pitching. I can't believe with how much money they spend on their roster they don't have a better pitching staff. And the depressing thing is they still over $20 million total to the ineffective Jon Lackey and injured Daisuke Matzusaka next season. I wish contracts were non guaranteed like in football. The Red Sox could put Lackey, pay his guaranteed amount money and get rid of the bum.
Here's their players that are up for free agency. David Ortiz, who earned $12 million dollars last year, I'm 50/50 on whether they should bring him back next season. Jonathan Papelbon will probably be too expensive to bring back, besides they have Daniel Bard already. I don't know if Bard will be able to shake his late season struggles though. J.D. Drew and Erik Bedard: Escort both injury prone players out of asap. J.D. Drew was a terrible signing.
The Red Sox paid Drew $5,645 per at bat this season. As usual the injury prone Drew missed too many games, only playing in half of Boston's games. For $14,000,000 shouldn't the Red Sox received more production than 4 home runs, 22 RBIs and .222 batting average? I would like to use Drew as an example that Boston's collapse isn't either Terry Francona or Theo Epstein's fault. Should Epstein known that Drew was so injury prone? Sure, but did he know how worthless of a player he would end up being? No. Then it's not Francona's fault either, he can only do the best he can with the players he's given. There's not a whole lot he can do with a washed up player who can only give you a half of a season. Also Jon Lackey and his 6.41 ERA isn't Francona's fault. Both Lackey and Matsuzaka vastly underplayed their contracts so far and little hope that anything will change next season.
For Jason Varitek they should plan a huge retirement party. And if they can get Tim Wakefield back for $2,000,000 again, I would say that Boston should go for it. He was a huge innings eater and possibly their least injury prone player.
For the LA Dodgers they need to make sure they can keep Clayton Kershaw and Matt Kemp around for the next several seasons. They are two solid pieces to build their foundation on. For having such a mediocre season, I'm glad the Dodgers have solid contenders for both the Cy Young and MVP awards. Also they need to get rid of Frank McCourt asap and I'm grateful for MLB helping that process along. With all the McCourt nonsense and injuries, Don Mattingly did a very good job given what he had. The nice run at the end of the season gives Dodgers fans some optimism for the future. Also Albert Pujols would look great in a Dodgers uniform!
Pittsburgh off season needs include getting another bat to help Andrew McCutcheon. I realize with how cheap the Pittsburgh ownership is, that might not be very likely. McCutcheon also needs to work hard in the offseason to become at least a .300 hitter. If the Pirates are ever going to be a great team, they need more from him than .259 BA, 23 Home Runs and 89 RBIs. Other than that things seem to be heading in the right direction.
Now for the Cubs, sigh!, they just need to blow their whole team up and start over. Getting rid of Jim Hendry is a good first step. Step two, get a decent manager. Mike Quade isn't the answer, but either were Dusty Baker or Lou Pinella. I don't have a recommendation for them, but they desperately can't mess up when they get their next manager. Chicago also needs to get rid of all their malcontent players starting with Carlos Zambrano. It's also time to start working on finding the replacements for the overpaid Aramis Ramirez and Alfonso Soriono. Carlos Marmol obviously isn't the answer as their closer. Although he did have 34 saves, more importantly he had 10 blown saves. That's not much of a closer. Those blown saves always seemed to be at the worst time possible as well. I'm glad they traded Kosuke Fukudome away.
Other news: David Stern is threatening to cancel the NBA season, which he obviously is using as a negotiating ploy. To David Stern I say: You are threatening to cancel the season and...? In other words don't let the door hit you in the butt on the way out. I would love to see this NBA season cancelled. Not only does NBA owners and players need a shot of bracing reality, but it would be fun to see all these NBA players to play in other countries.
Also BYU plays tonight for their second Friday in a row. I'm having a hard time believing I'm writing this, but I'm scared of USU. No matter how BYU has been in the past, they almost could guarantee a victory over USU each season. That is when USU beat BYU in Logan. I expect another tough game tonight. I would feel much more comfortable if Jake Heaps was more experienced and looked a lot better than he did in the first four games. If I was Brandon Doman, first of all BYU would be in real trouble. But anyway I'd emphasize the run as much as possible again. BYU was much more effective when running the ball than passing the ball. Again I suggest BYU hides Jake Heaps as much as possible.
TV update: So far I've watched the first 18 episodes of Season One of "Lost". I'm still enjoying the show although the middle of Season One is a bit slow. However I find that I need to keep myself from falling completely into the "Lost" universe or it might suck away my entire life. I also must say that John Locke is one of the most interesting characters ever. I love everything that he knows, how many people can tell you about Nigerian money? Some of the flashbacks have been cool, although they are starting to wear out their charm now.
I also watched the first episode of "Pan Am". I know it's the same period, but this show reminds me so much of "Mad Men". I keep on waiting for Don Draper to show up. This show had a good premiere, although a bit formulaic. I'm excited to find out more about the French woman, Collete. Is it a coincidence that two of the most interesting characters on "Lost" and this show are French women?
Episode 2 of "Revenge" was better than I expected, another show with a lot of beautiful women. Also I'm surprised how little I've cared about the "X Factor". I haven't seen a second of it so far this season and I'm not even sure what nights its on.
Here are some great songs:
A great country song by Anne Murray:
The great and under appreciated Linda Ronstadt. Back in 1989 Linda Ronstadt released a CD titled "Cry Like A Rainstorm, Howl Like The Wind". Quite simply it's an amazing CD. This is one of my favorite songs on the CD, "Still Within The Sound Of My Voice":
One more from that amazing CD "Don't Know Much":
"Danger Zone":
I also like this Kenny Loggins song from "Top Gun". Warning you are about to see a very corny, unintentionally hilarious 80's video. But I love the chorus of this song, "Playing WIth The Boys":
Ashes Remain's "On My Own":
Prepare to get your butt kicked, Metallica's "Through The Never":
While exercising this morning I was thinking about life and I started thinking about the whole fubar experience of dating. This song isn't directed to anyone, it's just directed to the frustration of dating:
themusicaddict
Yes I'll start working on the Salt Lake City Taylor Swift concert review soon. I just have some random thoughts that I want to get out of the way first.
With two of my MLB teams having history making collapses, I felt like I just couldn't ignore it like nothing happened. Needless to say I was extremely disappointed that both Boston and Atlanta choked up such big leads. Out of my five teams I think Atlanta is set up the best moving forward. They have a lot of great young pitchers and a fairly young offense. Also with Chipper Jones possibly playing his last season next season, they have extra motivation. Just some quick thoughts about my other teams.
First of all I suggest Boston bring back both Theo Epstein and Terry Francona.
Boston desperately needs some starting pitching. I can't believe with how much money they spend on their roster they don't have a better pitching staff. And the depressing thing is they still over $20 million total to the ineffective Jon Lackey and injured Daisuke Matzusaka next season. I wish contracts were non guaranteed like in football. The Red Sox could put Lackey, pay his guaranteed amount money and get rid of the bum.
Here's their players that are up for free agency. David Ortiz, who earned $12 million dollars last year, I'm 50/50 on whether they should bring him back next season. Jonathan Papelbon will probably be too expensive to bring back, besides they have Daniel Bard already. I don't know if Bard will be able to shake his late season struggles though. J.D. Drew and Erik Bedard: Escort both injury prone players out of asap. J.D. Drew was a terrible signing.
The Red Sox paid Drew $5,645 per at bat this season. As usual the injury prone Drew missed too many games, only playing in half of Boston's games. For $14,000,000 shouldn't the Red Sox received more production than 4 home runs, 22 RBIs and .222 batting average? I would like to use Drew as an example that Boston's collapse isn't either Terry Francona or Theo Epstein's fault. Should Epstein known that Drew was so injury prone? Sure, but did he know how worthless of a player he would end up being? No. Then it's not Francona's fault either, he can only do the best he can with the players he's given. There's not a whole lot he can do with a washed up player who can only give you a half of a season. Also Jon Lackey and his 6.41 ERA isn't Francona's fault. Both Lackey and Matsuzaka vastly underplayed their contracts so far and little hope that anything will change next season.
For Jason Varitek they should plan a huge retirement party. And if they can get Tim Wakefield back for $2,000,000 again, I would say that Boston should go for it. He was a huge innings eater and possibly their least injury prone player.
For the LA Dodgers they need to make sure they can keep Clayton Kershaw and Matt Kemp around for the next several seasons. They are two solid pieces to build their foundation on. For having such a mediocre season, I'm glad the Dodgers have solid contenders for both the Cy Young and MVP awards. Also they need to get rid of Frank McCourt asap and I'm grateful for MLB helping that process along. With all the McCourt nonsense and injuries, Don Mattingly did a very good job given what he had. The nice run at the end of the season gives Dodgers fans some optimism for the future. Also Albert Pujols would look great in a Dodgers uniform!
Pittsburgh off season needs include getting another bat to help Andrew McCutcheon. I realize with how cheap the Pittsburgh ownership is, that might not be very likely. McCutcheon also needs to work hard in the offseason to become at least a .300 hitter. If the Pirates are ever going to be a great team, they need more from him than .259 BA, 23 Home Runs and 89 RBIs. Other than that things seem to be heading in the right direction.
Now for the Cubs, sigh!, they just need to blow their whole team up and start over. Getting rid of Jim Hendry is a good first step. Step two, get a decent manager. Mike Quade isn't the answer, but either were Dusty Baker or Lou Pinella. I don't have a recommendation for them, but they desperately can't mess up when they get their next manager. Chicago also needs to get rid of all their malcontent players starting with Carlos Zambrano. It's also time to start working on finding the replacements for the overpaid Aramis Ramirez and Alfonso Soriono. Carlos Marmol obviously isn't the answer as their closer. Although he did have 34 saves, more importantly he had 10 blown saves. That's not much of a closer. Those blown saves always seemed to be at the worst time possible as well. I'm glad they traded Kosuke Fukudome away.
Other news: David Stern is threatening to cancel the NBA season, which he obviously is using as a negotiating ploy. To David Stern I say: You are threatening to cancel the season and...? In other words don't let the door hit you in the butt on the way out. I would love to see this NBA season cancelled. Not only does NBA owners and players need a shot of bracing reality, but it would be fun to see all these NBA players to play in other countries.
Also BYU plays tonight for their second Friday in a row. I'm having a hard time believing I'm writing this, but I'm scared of USU. No matter how BYU has been in the past, they almost could guarantee a victory over USU each season. That is when USU beat BYU in Logan. I expect another tough game tonight. I would feel much more comfortable if Jake Heaps was more experienced and looked a lot better than he did in the first four games. If I was Brandon Doman, first of all BYU would be in real trouble. But anyway I'd emphasize the run as much as possible again. BYU was much more effective when running the ball than passing the ball. Again I suggest BYU hides Jake Heaps as much as possible.
TV update: So far I've watched the first 18 episodes of Season One of "Lost". I'm still enjoying the show although the middle of Season One is a bit slow. However I find that I need to keep myself from falling completely into the "Lost" universe or it might suck away my entire life. I also must say that John Locke is one of the most interesting characters ever. I love everything that he knows, how many people can tell you about Nigerian money? Some of the flashbacks have been cool, although they are starting to wear out their charm now.
I also watched the first episode of "Pan Am". I know it's the same period, but this show reminds me so much of "Mad Men". I keep on waiting for Don Draper to show up. This show had a good premiere, although a bit formulaic. I'm excited to find out more about the French woman, Collete. Is it a coincidence that two of the most interesting characters on "Lost" and this show are French women?
Episode 2 of "Revenge" was better than I expected, another show with a lot of beautiful women. Also I'm surprised how little I've cared about the "X Factor". I haven't seen a second of it so far this season and I'm not even sure what nights its on.
Here are some great songs:
A great country song by Anne Murray:
The great and under appreciated Linda Ronstadt. Back in 1989 Linda Ronstadt released a CD titled "Cry Like A Rainstorm, Howl Like The Wind". Quite simply it's an amazing CD. This is one of my favorite songs on the CD, "Still Within The Sound Of My Voice":
One more from that amazing CD "Don't Know Much":
"Danger Zone":
I also like this Kenny Loggins song from "Top Gun". Warning you are about to see a very corny, unintentionally hilarious 80's video. But I love the chorus of this song, "Playing WIth The Boys":
Ashes Remain's "On My Own":
Prepare to get your butt kicked, Metallica's "Through The Never":
While exercising this morning I was thinking about life and I started thinking about the whole fubar experience of dating. This song isn't directed to anyone, it's just directed to the frustration of dating:
themusicaddict
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
I miss the mid 80's Eddie Murphy, Baseball's season finale, The great Darth Vader/ Volkswagon Commercial
Hello,
Eddie Murphy has a new movie coming out and this movie has a return to Eddie Murphy of the good old days.
That made me think some of some of his earliest movies when he was the funniest man on the planet by far.
"48 Hours"
But his funniest work is his stand up masterpiece "Delirious". Thanks to youtube.com I watched the first four 10 minute clips of "Delirious" hoping there was one segment that wouldn't offend a great many people. However I didn't find that SFW segment. While the language is atrocious I laughed many times. Another thing that's so funny and refreshing about "Delirious" is how politically incorrect it is.
Tonight is MLB's season finale. Most teams know whether they are in the playoffs or not. There are 4 teams that don't know whether they are in the playoffs or not. Honestly we shouldn't even be having this conversation now. Both Boston and Atlanta seemed to build up near insurmountable leads in the AL and NL Wild Card chases respectively. However since the first of September both teams have lost nearly 2/3rds of their games.
What it comes down to tonight is the 4 teams are on a precipice. Four games will determine who of those 4 teams will make the playoffs. All four games start within a hour of each other. At 7:00 EST Philadelphia-Atlanta, Boston-Baltimore and New York-Tampa Bay all start. Then at 8:00 EST Houston and St. Louis start their game.
I was listening to the Will McDonaugh and Orel Hershisher radio broadcast of Atlanta-Philadelphia last night. They said that the Braves looked both listless and like they had given up. Mind you Atlanta had a game lead and were playing at home in that game. Granted they were playing the Phillies, who perhaps have the greatest starting pitching staff ever. To back up the assertion of the Braves looking like they had given up, they only managed one run in this game. Thank you Martin Prado for still showing some spirit and life. After Houston jumped out to a 5-0 lead over St. Louis, the Cardinals scored 13 of the next 14 runs.
Altanta again plays against the dominating pitching of Atlanta as St. Louis plays the worst team in the MLB again tonight. It doesn't look good for the Braves.
The Red Sox look like they could be in trouble as well. Thankfully to an unheralded rookie, Ryan Lavarnway, the Red Sox scored just enough runs to win the game. Lavarnway hit the first and second home runs of his MLB career. Talk about clutch hitting. The Red Sox were able to beat the woeful Orioles 8-7. And Tampa Bay held off the Yankees 5-3. Those two teams are tied going into tonight's games. I say you would have to give the edge to the Rays.
A much more barren than it should be Red Sox starting pitching staff has been badly exposed. When Jon Lackey pitches critical games for you, what does that tell you? Tonight the Red Sox do have the very good Jon Lester pitching, unfortunately he's pitching on only 3 days rest. If Boston and Tampa Bay tie there would be a one game playoff tomorrow in Tampa. That means that Boston would have to travel whereas the Rays are already in Tampa. Who would the Red Sox have pitch that game? They probably would go with Josh Beckett, who also would be pitching on 3 days rest. It looks like the AL Playoffs start on Friday, who should pitch Game One? The terrible Jon Lackey or Erik Bedard, the old Tim Wakefield or the struggling to return from injury Clay Buchholz.? (Even though they need starting pitching, no I don't miss Daisuke Matzusaka at all.)
Even if Boston and Atlanta somehow stumble into the playoffs, how effective will they be?
The two things Boston needs to work on in the offseason, which looks like it may come sooner than later, is upgrading their starting pitching and keeping Jacoby Ellsbury.
Here are some great videos for you if you are a Red Sox or Braves fan and the news is bad tonight.
"Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not":
Here's some motivating music for you Boston and Atlanta, this is Muse's "Resistance":
Will you be my "Dirty Little Secret":
My current favorite song. The live version seems to be a little funkier than the studio recording. I asked the 16 and 17 year olds in the Sunday School class I teach if they had ever heard of Arcade Fire, they said no. But they know Enimem and all that emo rock crap though. Tragedy!
I still love this commercial that originally debuted during last year's Super Bowl.
Sometimes the best things about the videos on youtube.com is the comments by other people. Some smart alec wrote this about the above video, and I completely agree with diamondjack75.
"I heard Lucas was happy with the ad when it 1st aired during the SuperBowl but now wants to go back and tweak it a little. Nothing major, just replace the baby doll with a CGI one. Replace the pb&j sandwich with a few CGI cookies. Give the mom a few lines of dialogue, so we can fully understand the emotional bond the two of them share. He also wants take out the sound effect of the VW Passat and change it to that of a Bugatti Veyron's engine." diamondjack75
themusicaddict
Eddie Murphy has a new movie coming out and this movie has a return to Eddie Murphy of the good old days.
That made me think some of some of his earliest movies when he was the funniest man on the planet by far.
"48 Hours"
But his funniest work is his stand up masterpiece "Delirious". Thanks to youtube.com I watched the first four 10 minute clips of "Delirious" hoping there was one segment that wouldn't offend a great many people. However I didn't find that SFW segment. While the language is atrocious I laughed many times. Another thing that's so funny and refreshing about "Delirious" is how politically incorrect it is.
Tonight is MLB's season finale. Most teams know whether they are in the playoffs or not. There are 4 teams that don't know whether they are in the playoffs or not. Honestly we shouldn't even be having this conversation now. Both Boston and Atlanta seemed to build up near insurmountable leads in the AL and NL Wild Card chases respectively. However since the first of September both teams have lost nearly 2/3rds of their games.
What it comes down to tonight is the 4 teams are on a precipice. Four games will determine who of those 4 teams will make the playoffs. All four games start within a hour of each other. At 7:00 EST Philadelphia-Atlanta, Boston-Baltimore and New York-Tampa Bay all start. Then at 8:00 EST Houston and St. Louis start their game.
I was listening to the Will McDonaugh and Orel Hershisher radio broadcast of Atlanta-Philadelphia last night. They said that the Braves looked both listless and like they had given up. Mind you Atlanta had a game lead and were playing at home in that game. Granted they were playing the Phillies, who perhaps have the greatest starting pitching staff ever. To back up the assertion of the Braves looking like they had given up, they only managed one run in this game. Thank you Martin Prado for still showing some spirit and life. After Houston jumped out to a 5-0 lead over St. Louis, the Cardinals scored 13 of the next 14 runs.
Altanta again plays against the dominating pitching of Atlanta as St. Louis plays the worst team in the MLB again tonight. It doesn't look good for the Braves.
The Red Sox look like they could be in trouble as well. Thankfully to an unheralded rookie, Ryan Lavarnway, the Red Sox scored just enough runs to win the game. Lavarnway hit the first and second home runs of his MLB career. Talk about clutch hitting. The Red Sox were able to beat the woeful Orioles 8-7. And Tampa Bay held off the Yankees 5-3. Those two teams are tied going into tonight's games. I say you would have to give the edge to the Rays.
A much more barren than it should be Red Sox starting pitching staff has been badly exposed. When Jon Lackey pitches critical games for you, what does that tell you? Tonight the Red Sox do have the very good Jon Lester pitching, unfortunately he's pitching on only 3 days rest. If Boston and Tampa Bay tie there would be a one game playoff tomorrow in Tampa. That means that Boston would have to travel whereas the Rays are already in Tampa. Who would the Red Sox have pitch that game? They probably would go with Josh Beckett, who also would be pitching on 3 days rest. It looks like the AL Playoffs start on Friday, who should pitch Game One? The terrible Jon Lackey or Erik Bedard, the old Tim Wakefield or the struggling to return from injury Clay Buchholz.? (Even though they need starting pitching, no I don't miss Daisuke Matzusaka at all.)
Even if Boston and Atlanta somehow stumble into the playoffs, how effective will they be?
The two things Boston needs to work on in the offseason, which looks like it may come sooner than later, is upgrading their starting pitching and keeping Jacoby Ellsbury.
Here are some great videos for you if you are a Red Sox or Braves fan and the news is bad tonight.
"Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not":
Here's some motivating music for you Boston and Atlanta, this is Muse's "Resistance":
Will you be my "Dirty Little Secret":
My current favorite song. The live version seems to be a little funkier than the studio recording. I asked the 16 and 17 year olds in the Sunday School class I teach if they had ever heard of Arcade Fire, they said no. But they know Enimem and all that emo rock crap though. Tragedy!
I still love this commercial that originally debuted during last year's Super Bowl.
Sometimes the best things about the videos on youtube.com is the comments by other people. Some smart alec wrote this about the above video, and I completely agree with diamondjack75.
"I heard Lucas was happy with the ad when it 1st aired during the SuperBowl but now wants to go back and tweak it a little. Nothing major, just replace the baby doll with a CGI one. Replace the pb&j sandwich with a few CGI cookies. Give the mom a few lines of dialogue, so we can fully understand the emotional bond the two of them share. He also wants take out the sound effect of the VW Passat and change it to that of a Bugatti Veyron's engine." diamondjack75
themusicaddict
"Terra Nova": Cliche Heaven , Taylor Swift tonight!
Hello,
I'd just like to welcome the lovely Taylor Swift to Salt Lake City. I hope you have a good time here and my kids and I are looking forward to a great show. I felt I had to "Speak Now". Hopefully I'll be having my concert review tomorrow sometime.
With a slight amount of anticipation I watched the series premiere of "Terra Nova" last night. I have to admit I'm a sucker for big sci fi type shows with a smart, evolving story line. Unfortunately "Terra Nova" isn't that show, in fact it's a bloated mess. From the multiple executive producers, how would that not make for an incoherent mess? Let's put it this way if counting how many executive producers was a drinking game, you'd be drunk in the first couple of minutes of the show. For those who don't want to count there are 12 executive producers. 12! Too bad they didn't have one of these producers in charge of quality control. That would probably be too much work for one producer though.
What this show needs is more executive writers. This show is so cliche it's embarrassing. We don't just have one father-son conflict, we have two. The Shannon father son relationship feels very 50s, it reminds me of the father-son conflict that powers "Rebel Without A Cause" The Shannon son Josh, is a very boring character, skips out on a mandatory orientation. His Dad tries to stop him but is unable. Josh magically had already met up with Skye, how Utopian is her name? Cue the upcoming cliche. Of course she's rebellious and on his first day in Terra Nova he agrees to go OTG (Outside the gate) with them. The Taylor father-son relationship is so contentious the son has left the Terra Nova compound. Of course he has. The Taylor son also is a rebel, drawing mysterious geometric designs. He's using the geometry to figure out something and to piss his father off at the same time. Those two father-son conflicts involve the two main male characters. Obviously that ground is going to be tilled throughout 13 episodes, don't worry it won't last longer than that. As with everything else on this show, those two story lines are extremely boring and a convoluted mess.
Terra Nova, which means "new earth", isn't exactly what it seems. Does that shock you? Of course the camp commander Taylor has an ulterior motive for running the camp. There are dinosaurs running around, ranging from the peaceful to the dreaded slashers. Perhaps one of the Executive Producers, Steven Speilberg, is trying to limit the comparisons to his own "Jurassic Park". For some reason the few dinosaurs here aren't called by their actual names. For instance, the Slashers are really velociraptors. Both are intelligent and hunt in packs. Also while they are smaller than many other dinosaurs, they are the most lethal. It seems someone got the idea to make their tails really dangerous, hoping that would make them different enough from velociraptors. Too bad Steven Spielberg wasn't the director as well. I'm sure these different named dinosaurs will be explained away by Terra Nova being in a different time stream than they came from. Don't even start me on the stupidity of that idea. And no it doesn't make more sense if you watched the first episode.
What this show really needs is one coherent viewpoint, not the mishmash of views they have now. For villains we have the so called Sixers (not to be confused with Dr. J), Taylor's son, perhaps even Taylor himself. Also I was getting a creepy vibe from Taylor and Skye, it appears that they live together. He helped her after her parents died. She thanks him for taking care of her since that tragic occasion. But they feel more like lover talking to lover (ew!) than a father daughter relationship. The vibe feels like they are in a romantic relationship. I don't know if that's just my imagination or are the producers preparing for that as an evolving story line? (The producers of "The Killing" I'm sure are watching this show and thinking hey we may not be the dumbest show on TV.)
Those are just some of the many flaws in this show. Other flaws include the Jim Shannon character. While I like Jason O'Mara as an actor, his earnestness doesn't work well for his character here. Being a square character in a messy world as in "Life on Mars" worked for him. But it doesn't work for JIm Shannon in this show. After all Jim Shannon is a convicted felon who broke out of a maximum security prison. The biggest disappointment of this show is how dreadfully boring it is. The alleged exciting finale is when (cliche alert) Taylor and his security men have to go rescue the OTGers. Of course, the kids get in trouble that they can't get out of on their own. And of course both Shannon parents go out on the rescue. Of course they rescue the kids without any fatalities. The security teams get back to the compound. Then Jim and Josh Shannon hug and it seems as if all is forgiven. Of course they do and of course it is. Really? Can you see me rolling my eyes? There wasn't one original idea that was injured in the making of this series.
I'm sorry like the show "Terra Nova", this blog is also all over the place.
themusicaddict
I'd just like to welcome the lovely Taylor Swift to Salt Lake City. I hope you have a good time here and my kids and I are looking forward to a great show. I felt I had to "Speak Now". Hopefully I'll be having my concert review tomorrow sometime.
With a slight amount of anticipation I watched the series premiere of "Terra Nova" last night. I have to admit I'm a sucker for big sci fi type shows with a smart, evolving story line. Unfortunately "Terra Nova" isn't that show, in fact it's a bloated mess. From the multiple executive producers, how would that not make for an incoherent mess? Let's put it this way if counting how many executive producers was a drinking game, you'd be drunk in the first couple of minutes of the show. For those who don't want to count there are 12 executive producers. 12! Too bad they didn't have one of these producers in charge of quality control. That would probably be too much work for one producer though.
What this show needs is more executive writers. This show is so cliche it's embarrassing. We don't just have one father-son conflict, we have two. The Shannon father son relationship feels very 50s, it reminds me of the father-son conflict that powers "Rebel Without A Cause" The Shannon son Josh, is a very boring character, skips out on a mandatory orientation. His Dad tries to stop him but is unable. Josh magically had already met up with Skye, how Utopian is her name? Cue the upcoming cliche. Of course she's rebellious and on his first day in Terra Nova he agrees to go OTG (Outside the gate) with them. The Taylor father-son relationship is so contentious the son has left the Terra Nova compound. Of course he has. The Taylor son also is a rebel, drawing mysterious geometric designs. He's using the geometry to figure out something and to piss his father off at the same time. Those two father-son conflicts involve the two main male characters. Obviously that ground is going to be tilled throughout 13 episodes, don't worry it won't last longer than that. As with everything else on this show, those two story lines are extremely boring and a convoluted mess.
Terra Nova, which means "new earth", isn't exactly what it seems. Does that shock you? Of course the camp commander Taylor has an ulterior motive for running the camp. There are dinosaurs running around, ranging from the peaceful to the dreaded slashers. Perhaps one of the Executive Producers, Steven Speilberg, is trying to limit the comparisons to his own "Jurassic Park". For some reason the few dinosaurs here aren't called by their actual names. For instance, the Slashers are really velociraptors. Both are intelligent and hunt in packs. Also while they are smaller than many other dinosaurs, they are the most lethal. It seems someone got the idea to make their tails really dangerous, hoping that would make them different enough from velociraptors. Too bad Steven Spielberg wasn't the director as well. I'm sure these different named dinosaurs will be explained away by Terra Nova being in a different time stream than they came from. Don't even start me on the stupidity of that idea. And no it doesn't make more sense if you watched the first episode.
What this show really needs is one coherent viewpoint, not the mishmash of views they have now. For villains we have the so called Sixers (not to be confused with Dr. J), Taylor's son, perhaps even Taylor himself. Also I was getting a creepy vibe from Taylor and Skye, it appears that they live together. He helped her after her parents died. She thanks him for taking care of her since that tragic occasion. But they feel more like lover talking to lover (ew!) than a father daughter relationship. The vibe feels like they are in a romantic relationship. I don't know if that's just my imagination or are the producers preparing for that as an evolving story line? (The producers of "The Killing" I'm sure are watching this show and thinking hey we may not be the dumbest show on TV.)
Those are just some of the many flaws in this show. Other flaws include the Jim Shannon character. While I like Jason O'Mara as an actor, his earnestness doesn't work well for his character here. Being a square character in a messy world as in "Life on Mars" worked for him. But it doesn't work for JIm Shannon in this show. After all Jim Shannon is a convicted felon who broke out of a maximum security prison. The biggest disappointment of this show is how dreadfully boring it is. The alleged exciting finale is when (cliche alert) Taylor and his security men have to go rescue the OTGers. Of course, the kids get in trouble that they can't get out of on their own. And of course both Shannon parents go out on the rescue. Of course they rescue the kids without any fatalities. The security teams get back to the compound. Then Jim and Josh Shannon hug and it seems as if all is forgiven. Of course they do and of course it is. Really? Can you see me rolling my eyes? There wasn't one original idea that was injured in the making of this series.
I'm sorry like the show "Terra Nova", this blog is also all over the place.
themusicaddict
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Taylor Swift SLC Concert Preview, "Terra Nova" and "A Gifted Man" Rascal Flatts Great Songs, Gorgeous Rihanna
Hello,
For those of you who don't think Rihanna is gorgeous, let me ask you a question. Are you crazy. In this slightly NSFW picture, his photo proof that she is.
On my previous blog entry I got the football out of my system. Now I want to write about other things. I'm looking very forward to the Taylor Swift concert tomorrow night. I'm not real excited by her having two opening acts though. Although one of those opening acts is the very enjoyable needtobreathe. I love their singer's voice. This is my favorite of needtobreathe's songs, "Tennessee":
Taking two of my kids to see Taylor Swift reminds me of my first few concerts that I went to with my parents. Those included Tanya Tucker, Statler Brothers and others. I've loved going to concerts ever since. Then my first "rock" concert was Rick Springfield. He was very hot at that time and was very good. Then one day my Mom came home with AC/DC tickets. How cool of a Mom is that? That concert was an amazing experience. Brian Johnson banging the Hells bell. The cannons going off in "For Those About To Rock". Angus Young's mooning. I'm glad I can take one of my boys to his first concert. This is my daughter's second concert, she also saw Justin Bieber about a year ago. We all are looking forward to a fun night.
This is her setlist from the last concert she preformed at in Arrowhead Stadium on September 24th. (I'm glad someone is performing in Arrowhead Stadium because the Chiefs certainly aren't.)
Sparks Fly (This is a very catchy song, a good song to start her concert with.)
Mine (I really love this song too.)
Story of Us (This is a great, but very bitter song.)
Our Song (This is one of my favorite of all her songs.) I realize I featured this song the other day. I obviously get these songs from youtube. I have to go to the video on youtube. When I did I just kept on playing this song over and over again. I played it about 7 times in a row. This is just a great song.
Mean (Not my favorite song.)
Back to December / Apologize (OneRepublic cover)
Better Than Revenge (It sounds like Taylor is trying to expand her sound and lyrics. As she grows into adulthood, she's only 21, her lyrics are also maturing:
Speak Now
Fearless
Superman (According to people on youtube.com, in Kansas CIty is the first time she played this song.)
You Belong With Me:
Dear John (otherwise known as John Mayer is a d bag song. I don't think that surprises anyone. What does surprise me though is how does he continue to sucker all these beautiful women in. Taylor, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jennifer Aniston, it's just not right.)
Enchanted
Haunted
Long Live (this isn't one of my favorite of her songs) I really think if she closed the first part of her show with "Should've Known Better" would be much more effective.
Encore:
Fifteen (Not one of my favorite of her songs.)
Love Story: (Just say yes.)
Apparently she's also performing songs from a local act on each of her tour stops. For instance in Detroit she sang an Emimem song. I wonder who'll she cover in Salt Lake? It's not like Salt Lake has produced a lot of great singers. The Osmonds? Double Hell No. The Used? Please no? David Archuleta, run to the hills. Maybe she can sing a Gladys Knight song. While she wasn't born in this area, we have adopted her. I also think she lives in Salt Lake most of the time. Other than Gladys I hope she doesn't sing any other local performers tomorrow knight :)
I do wish she would sing this song. Although this is one of her earliest songs, it's also one of her best songs.
I would also love to hear this old favorite:
Did anyone else watch "Terra Nova" last night. I'm sorry that seems to be one of the dumbest shows debuting this year. If it's on Comcast On Demand i will give it a chance. But at this point I'm not going to go out of my way to watch it. Also I do like Jason O'Mara as an actor. I really loved his "Life On Mars", RIP. Also watched the first episode of "Revenge" and it was okay. It seems like it will be an okay show for the first 13 episodes, although I don't know if I will stay with it that long. But going forward the show runner said that future story lines will resolve around revenge. To me it seems that will get old very quickly.
One show I was pleasantly surprised by was "A Gifted Man". That was a very good show. It seems like it could get a little maudlin, but in the first episode they kept a nice balance. Also nearly unrecognizable is the gorgeous Julie Benz. Thankfully she was rescued from "No Ordinary Family", when it wasn't renewed.
So the whining won't fully overwhelm this blog, all I'm going to say about the Red Sox and Braves meltdowns going on is sigh!
Let's close on a much happier note:
K's Choice "Not An Addict":
Again yes I know I featured this song the other day. But I heard it again this morning exercising and this version kicked my butt. This is much better version than the version I featured the other day.
I like that Jethro Tull song so much, here's a bonus Jethro Tull song, also at Montreaux. "Locomotive Breath":
One of the greatest songs about the loss of love ever. Both the song and video captures all the feelings that go with that. That leads to the next question, why are unhappy songs so much better than happy songs?
If the above song reminds you about a relationship that you can't let go of, this needs to be your new song:
Here's another heartbreaker by Rascal Flatts, "What Hurts The Most". Dangerous question by the girl, "Do you ever think about the future?" I thought he answered the right way with "you", it seems I was wrong.
Here's the chorus from the very powerful above song:
What hurts the most
Was being so close
And having so much to say
And watching you walk away
And never knowing
What could have been
And not seeing that loving you
Is what I was tryin' to do
Damn you Rascal Flatts, you are making me very sentimental. This song is to my future wife in hopes that I find her, "God Bless The Broken Road":
This is what passes for a happy Rascal Flatts song, "My Wish":
This song is a little happier although it's about something not so happy, "Prayin' For Daylight":
After "These Days", this is probably my second favorite Rascal Flatts song:
Q-Feel's "Dancing In Heaven": I don't know what scares me more is these guys are being serious or that this video is still allowed to be shown to impressionable children? It's a great song though.
Another great song by Black Stone Cherry, hey dudes isn't it about time to come to Salt Lake City? Your music is "In My Blood": (Yes I know I should go to the punitentiary.)
If you get rid of anger through catharsis, rather than letting it linger, this is the song for you. I know I've featured this song several times before, but it's just a great song. I listened to "Nevermind" the other day and it's a lot better than I gave it credit for. Nirvana is still extremely over rated, but they do have a few good songs. Although this Leadbelly song is "their" best song:
themusicaddict
For those of you who don't think Rihanna is gorgeous, let me ask you a question. Are you crazy. In this slightly NSFW picture, his photo proof that she is.
On my previous blog entry I got the football out of my system. Now I want to write about other things. I'm looking very forward to the Taylor Swift concert tomorrow night. I'm not real excited by her having two opening acts though. Although one of those opening acts is the very enjoyable needtobreathe. I love their singer's voice. This is my favorite of needtobreathe's songs, "Tennessee":
Taking two of my kids to see Taylor Swift reminds me of my first few concerts that I went to with my parents. Those included Tanya Tucker, Statler Brothers and others. I've loved going to concerts ever since. Then my first "rock" concert was Rick Springfield. He was very hot at that time and was very good. Then one day my Mom came home with AC/DC tickets. How cool of a Mom is that? That concert was an amazing experience. Brian Johnson banging the Hells bell. The cannons going off in "For Those About To Rock". Angus Young's mooning. I'm glad I can take one of my boys to his first concert. This is my daughter's second concert, she also saw Justin Bieber about a year ago. We all are looking forward to a fun night.
This is her setlist from the last concert she preformed at in Arrowhead Stadium on September 24th. (I'm glad someone is performing in Arrowhead Stadium because the Chiefs certainly aren't.)
Sparks Fly (This is a very catchy song, a good song to start her concert with.)
Mine (I really love this song too.)
Story of Us (This is a great, but very bitter song.)
Our Song (This is one of my favorite of all her songs.) I realize I featured this song the other day. I obviously get these songs from youtube. I have to go to the video on youtube. When I did I just kept on playing this song over and over again. I played it about 7 times in a row. This is just a great song.
Mean (Not my favorite song.)
Back to December / Apologize (OneRepublic cover)
Better Than Revenge (It sounds like Taylor is trying to expand her sound and lyrics. As she grows into adulthood, she's only 21, her lyrics are also maturing:
Speak Now
Fearless
Superman (According to people on youtube.com, in Kansas CIty is the first time she played this song.)
You Belong With Me:
Dear John (otherwise known as John Mayer is a d bag song. I don't think that surprises anyone. What does surprise me though is how does he continue to sucker all these beautiful women in. Taylor, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jennifer Aniston, it's just not right.)
Enchanted
Haunted
Long Live (this isn't one of my favorite of her songs) I really think if she closed the first part of her show with "Should've Known Better" would be much more effective.
Encore:
Fifteen (Not one of my favorite of her songs.)
Love Story: (Just say yes.)
Apparently she's also performing songs from a local act on each of her tour stops. For instance in Detroit she sang an Emimem song. I wonder who'll she cover in Salt Lake? It's not like Salt Lake has produced a lot of great singers. The Osmonds? Double Hell No. The Used? Please no? David Archuleta, run to the hills. Maybe she can sing a Gladys Knight song. While she wasn't born in this area, we have adopted her. I also think she lives in Salt Lake most of the time. Other than Gladys I hope she doesn't sing any other local performers tomorrow knight :)
I do wish she would sing this song. Although this is one of her earliest songs, it's also one of her best songs.
I would also love to hear this old favorite:
Did anyone else watch "Terra Nova" last night. I'm sorry that seems to be one of the dumbest shows debuting this year. If it's on Comcast On Demand i will give it a chance. But at this point I'm not going to go out of my way to watch it. Also I do like Jason O'Mara as an actor. I really loved his "Life On Mars", RIP. Also watched the first episode of "Revenge" and it was okay. It seems like it will be an okay show for the first 13 episodes, although I don't know if I will stay with it that long. But going forward the show runner said that future story lines will resolve around revenge. To me it seems that will get old very quickly.
One show I was pleasantly surprised by was "A Gifted Man". That was a very good show. It seems like it could get a little maudlin, but in the first episode they kept a nice balance. Also nearly unrecognizable is the gorgeous Julie Benz. Thankfully she was rescued from "No Ordinary Family", when it wasn't renewed.
So the whining won't fully overwhelm this blog, all I'm going to say about the Red Sox and Braves meltdowns going on is sigh!
Let's close on a much happier note:
K's Choice "Not An Addict":
Again yes I know I featured this song the other day. But I heard it again this morning exercising and this version kicked my butt. This is much better version than the version I featured the other day.
I like that Jethro Tull song so much, here's a bonus Jethro Tull song, also at Montreaux. "Locomotive Breath":
One of the greatest songs about the loss of love ever. Both the song and video captures all the feelings that go with that. That leads to the next question, why are unhappy songs so much better than happy songs?
If the above song reminds you about a relationship that you can't let go of, this needs to be your new song:
Here's another heartbreaker by Rascal Flatts, "What Hurts The Most". Dangerous question by the girl, "Do you ever think about the future?" I thought he answered the right way with "you", it seems I was wrong.
Here's the chorus from the very powerful above song:
What hurts the most
Was being so close
And having so much to say
And watching you walk away
And never knowing
What could have been
And not seeing that loving you
Is what I was tryin' to do
Damn you Rascal Flatts, you are making me very sentimental. This song is to my future wife in hopes that I find her, "God Bless The Broken Road":
This is what passes for a happy Rascal Flatts song, "My Wish":
This song is a little happier although it's about something not so happy, "Prayin' For Daylight":
After "These Days", this is probably my second favorite Rascal Flatts song:
Q-Feel's "Dancing In Heaven": I don't know what scares me more is these guys are being serious or that this video is still allowed to be shown to impressionable children? It's a great song though.
Another great song by Black Stone Cherry, hey dudes isn't it about time to come to Salt Lake City? Your music is "In My Blood": (Yes I know I should go to the punitentiary.)
If you get rid of anger through catharsis, rather than letting it linger, this is the song for you. I know I've featured this song several times before, but it's just a great song. I listened to "Nevermind" the other day and it's a lot better than I gave it credit for. Nirvana is still extremely over rated, but they do have a few good songs. Although this Leadbelly song is "their" best song:
themusicaddict
Dallas Cowboys Rule?
Hello,
First of all welcome to Blog #979 of themusicaddict.
I'm an ardent Dallas Cowboys fan and have been for as long as I can remember. That's even through the scandals of Hollywood Henderson, the so called White House, Michael Irvan's "Do you know who I am?, Charles Haley's penis and signing Pacman Jones even after all the dumb things he's done. As someone who believes all people should act with civility, I also expect the same of the teams and organizations I cheer for. The last few years I've considered cheering for another team, but it would probably be very hard to give my heart completely to another team after so many years. Although I do follow the Bucs and 49ers as well? It seems all three teams have bright futures.
I also expect those organizations to perform at a high level on the field, whether it's a playing field or a business field. The last few years have been rough for the Cowboys. They've had a few off the field issues haven't played very well on the field. They only have one playoff win in the last 15 years, another reason why I haven't jumped on the Tony Romo bandwagon.
The Cowboys troubles reached the nadir last season when Wade Phillips was the coach of the Cowboys. I never knew why Jones stuck by him for so long. I would have never hired him in the first player and definitely wouldn't have let him stick around for so long. He may know a lot about defense, but he knows very little about dealing with players. When his defense faltered so badly, what reason did the players have to listen to him. His seemingly lack of discipline really cost him last season when the season started out horribly and he lost his players. Without that discipline the players seemed to have given up to a certain degree. Then Tony Romo had that season ending injury, which may have been a benefit for him. Finally the Cowboys gave up the most points in their proud history.
Obviously some changes needed to be made. Jason Garrett had the interim taken off his head coach status. Hiring him was a much smarter move than hiring Wade Phillips, Garrett brings discipline to this team, see Marion Barber ignoring the rules last season and now no longer with the team. I'm still not 100% sold on him. Sometimes he acts like he's not sure what he's doing and I'm not 100% sold on his offense and play calling. While I'm glad he's not the next Wade Phillips I also don't think he's the next Jimmy Johnson or Tom Landry.
Another much needed change was the Cowboys lured Rob Ryan from the Browns (guess he wanted a better chance to win) and he installed a new more aggressive defense. After 3 games the defense still seems a little rough, but it's making an impact. Then once the lockout was over the Cowboys cut several high price, past their prime players. Players such as Roy Williams, Marion Barber and Andre Gurode. Those decisions look very good as those players have gone on to do absolutely nothing so far. The only other move I wish they could have made was to sign Nnamdi Asomugha. He would have cost about $15 million, but he would have complimented the extremely fragile Terrance Newman and Michael Jenkins at the crucial corner back spot.
The Cowboys came into this season with a lot of youth, but also a lot of motivation. I think they really wanted to prove how last season was an anomaly. So far Dallas is 2-1 on the season and they've played 3 fairly good teams so far. Dallas plays another good team this weekend when 3-0 Detroit visits Dallas. This game will be a good measuring stick for both teams. There were a lot of good things for the Cowboys last night, but a lot of things that were very concerning as well.
Now on to last night's game. Dear NFL, I would like 3 hours of my life restored for watching that game last night. That was one of the ugliest games I've seen in a long time. I'm glad Dallas found a way to win. Sarcasm alert: look for another thriller next Monday night as the Manningless Colts visit Tampa Bay. Other than the Cavaliers losing LeBron James, I can't think of a team losing one player that has made such a difference. It's possible the Colts won't win a game this season. Although they do play fellow doormat Kansas City on October 9th. How much does the NFL not want this to be the MNF game do you think? I don't think the Kerry Collins show coming to town is going to bring a lot of walk up tickets.
Anyway let's start with the good from last night's game first. For the second straight game, Tony Romo played a very gutsy game. Not only that but he played a very smart game. He's finally learning when to throw the ball away instead of trying to force it into coverage. Although the Cowboys didn't score any touchdowns, they were able to score enough to win. Also the running game is finally able to gain some traction. Felix Jones rushed for 115 yards on only 14 carries. Also in their fourth game of the season, Dallas had their first 10+ yard rush.
Which leads to the next good thing. Dallas' defense has a few holes in it. But Rob Ryan's constant pressure defense kept the Redskins off all night. The Cowboys defense bent all night long but never completely broke. Also Demarcus Ware is a pleasure to watch. They play with more heart and intensity under intense Ryan than they did for lackadaisical Phillips. The corners continue to be soft though.
Now on to the bad things: Those soft cornerbacks, Jenkins and Newman sure seem to be injured a lot. Also I'm not sure why Dallas wasn't able to get a very good pass rush until late in the fourth quarter. Thankfully Dallas found enough defensive players from other positions to stop the Redskins enough. Demarcus "Wrecking Ball" Ware got that huge sack, the sack where it looked like he jumped offsides. Also I loved when Anthony Spencer tracked down Rex Grossman, as Spencer tackled him he forced the fumble. Sean Lee had another good game, getting yet another interception and recovering the fumble that Spencer forced. Although Grossman looked decent in the game, it's always good when he's playing for the other team. He's got to be the worst quarterback ever to start a Super Bowl game.
(Side note: while exercising this morning I was thinking if I bought a new Cowboys jersey, which Cowboys player jersey would I buy? I need to see more of these tough kind of performances from Romo over the next several weeks for me to fully jump on his bandwagon. So no I wouldn't buy his jersey. Dez Bryant seems like he might be the next obvious choice. However he seems he's injured as much as he's healthy. He also reminds me of a little kid playing in a soccer match, more intent on catching a butterfly than playing. Jason Witten is solid but unspectacular. Felix Jones has brief flashes, but needs to have more sustained excellence. I would probably get a Demarcus Ware, Sean Lee or Miles Austin jersey at this point. I've bought two Cowboys jerseys before. Those of the great Emmitt Smith and also Roy Williams. No not the wussy wide receiver, but the stud defender.)
Other bad things, this team seems like it needs to improve it's coaching. How many times was Phil Costa going to mis snap the ball? I know he's a first year starter, but it seemed like he was snapping the ball completely random. I know that the Cowboys don't have a lot of depth at wide receiver. With Miles Austin injured and Dez Bryant, well who the hell knows what he's doing? That left the Cowboys with Jesse Holley, who's more notable for winning a reality show contest. Also they have Laurent Robinson, who just barely resigned with the team. However he showed some shiftiness once he caught the ball. Also there's Kevin Ogletree, who shows why he's never moved up the depth chart very much. (Since I'm talking about only wide receivers I'll only briefly mention the salary sucking Martellus Bennet. He showed little effort in that terrible attempt of Romo's pass into the end zone. What was that hold on the nice Felix Jones run? And one catch for 6 yards. As with Roy Williams and Marion Barber, it's time to send this waste down the line. One of those players who tempts with potential but always chokes in performance.)
If I was Jason Garrett I would go back to basics this week. I can't believe I'd be writing that about a NFL team, but a lot of these players are very young. Phil Costa also needs some more work and so does Dez Bryant and the other young wide receivers. (I hope that Bryant doesn't turn into a doesn't work hard enough player like Martellus Bennett.) Also I know a lot of their problems in not scoring touchdowns are due to their youth. But they desperately need to figure out how to turn some of those field goals into touchdowns. Scoring 18 points in the NFL isn't going to win you enough games to have you be a strong possibility of winning the Super Bowl.
That being said do I think this Cowboys team is really going to challenge for a Super Bowl title this year? Um no, did you watch that game last night? Dallas had ugly stretches of both offense and defense. Besides Costa's random snapping pattern, there were too many other mental errors. I have a feeling the wide receivers and cornerbacks are going to be question marks all season. (Jerry cornerbacks looks like it will be the #1 off season priority.) After 6 years Tony Romo looks like he's ready to take on the quarterback mantle previously held by Danny White, Troy Aikmen and my favorite Roger Staubach. He has learned to throw the ball away and he's showing some leadership. It's hard to tell if he was showing leadership last night or just doing a lot of screaming. That's not the kind of thing you can discern watching the game on TV.
Both Dallas and Detroit have a great measuring stick game next week when they play each other. I can't believe I'm writing this sentence: I'm scared of the Detroit Lions. They seem to be a legitimate 3-0 and feature defensive monster Ndamukong Suh, After what promises to be a very physical game thankfully Dallas has their bye. That's a great time for a bye for Dallas. It will give some of their injured players time to heal, especially Austin and Romo. It will also give them two weeks to work on the much needed basics.
themusicaddict
First of all welcome to Blog #979 of themusicaddict.
I'm an ardent Dallas Cowboys fan and have been for as long as I can remember. That's even through the scandals of Hollywood Henderson, the so called White House, Michael Irvan's "Do you know who I am?, Charles Haley's penis and signing Pacman Jones even after all the dumb things he's done. As someone who believes all people should act with civility, I also expect the same of the teams and organizations I cheer for. The last few years I've considered cheering for another team, but it would probably be very hard to give my heart completely to another team after so many years. Although I do follow the Bucs and 49ers as well? It seems all three teams have bright futures.
I also expect those organizations to perform at a high level on the field, whether it's a playing field or a business field. The last few years have been rough for the Cowboys. They've had a few off the field issues haven't played very well on the field. They only have one playoff win in the last 15 years, another reason why I haven't jumped on the Tony Romo bandwagon.
The Cowboys troubles reached the nadir last season when Wade Phillips was the coach of the Cowboys. I never knew why Jones stuck by him for so long. I would have never hired him in the first player and definitely wouldn't have let him stick around for so long. He may know a lot about defense, but he knows very little about dealing with players. When his defense faltered so badly, what reason did the players have to listen to him. His seemingly lack of discipline really cost him last season when the season started out horribly and he lost his players. Without that discipline the players seemed to have given up to a certain degree. Then Tony Romo had that season ending injury, which may have been a benefit for him. Finally the Cowboys gave up the most points in their proud history.
Obviously some changes needed to be made. Jason Garrett had the interim taken off his head coach status. Hiring him was a much smarter move than hiring Wade Phillips, Garrett brings discipline to this team, see Marion Barber ignoring the rules last season and now no longer with the team. I'm still not 100% sold on him. Sometimes he acts like he's not sure what he's doing and I'm not 100% sold on his offense and play calling. While I'm glad he's not the next Wade Phillips I also don't think he's the next Jimmy Johnson or Tom Landry.
Another much needed change was the Cowboys lured Rob Ryan from the Browns (guess he wanted a better chance to win) and he installed a new more aggressive defense. After 3 games the defense still seems a little rough, but it's making an impact. Then once the lockout was over the Cowboys cut several high price, past their prime players. Players such as Roy Williams, Marion Barber and Andre Gurode. Those decisions look very good as those players have gone on to do absolutely nothing so far. The only other move I wish they could have made was to sign Nnamdi Asomugha. He would have cost about $15 million, but he would have complimented the extremely fragile Terrance Newman and Michael Jenkins at the crucial corner back spot.
The Cowboys came into this season with a lot of youth, but also a lot of motivation. I think they really wanted to prove how last season was an anomaly. So far Dallas is 2-1 on the season and they've played 3 fairly good teams so far. Dallas plays another good team this weekend when 3-0 Detroit visits Dallas. This game will be a good measuring stick for both teams. There were a lot of good things for the Cowboys last night, but a lot of things that were very concerning as well.
Now on to last night's game. Dear NFL, I would like 3 hours of my life restored for watching that game last night. That was one of the ugliest games I've seen in a long time. I'm glad Dallas found a way to win. Sarcasm alert: look for another thriller next Monday night as the Manningless Colts visit Tampa Bay. Other than the Cavaliers losing LeBron James, I can't think of a team losing one player that has made such a difference. It's possible the Colts won't win a game this season. Although they do play fellow doormat Kansas City on October 9th. How much does the NFL not want this to be the MNF game do you think? I don't think the Kerry Collins show coming to town is going to bring a lot of walk up tickets.
Anyway let's start with the good from last night's game first. For the second straight game, Tony Romo played a very gutsy game. Not only that but he played a very smart game. He's finally learning when to throw the ball away instead of trying to force it into coverage. Although the Cowboys didn't score any touchdowns, they were able to score enough to win. Also the running game is finally able to gain some traction. Felix Jones rushed for 115 yards on only 14 carries. Also in their fourth game of the season, Dallas had their first 10+ yard rush.
Which leads to the next good thing. Dallas' defense has a few holes in it. But Rob Ryan's constant pressure defense kept the Redskins off all night. The Cowboys defense bent all night long but never completely broke. Also Demarcus Ware is a pleasure to watch. They play with more heart and intensity under intense Ryan than they did for lackadaisical Phillips. The corners continue to be soft though.
Now on to the bad things: Those soft cornerbacks, Jenkins and Newman sure seem to be injured a lot. Also I'm not sure why Dallas wasn't able to get a very good pass rush until late in the fourth quarter. Thankfully Dallas found enough defensive players from other positions to stop the Redskins enough. Demarcus "Wrecking Ball" Ware got that huge sack, the sack where it looked like he jumped offsides. Also I loved when Anthony Spencer tracked down Rex Grossman, as Spencer tackled him he forced the fumble. Sean Lee had another good game, getting yet another interception and recovering the fumble that Spencer forced. Although Grossman looked decent in the game, it's always good when he's playing for the other team. He's got to be the worst quarterback ever to start a Super Bowl game.
(Side note: while exercising this morning I was thinking if I bought a new Cowboys jersey, which Cowboys player jersey would I buy? I need to see more of these tough kind of performances from Romo over the next several weeks for me to fully jump on his bandwagon. So no I wouldn't buy his jersey. Dez Bryant seems like he might be the next obvious choice. However he seems he's injured as much as he's healthy. He also reminds me of a little kid playing in a soccer match, more intent on catching a butterfly than playing. Jason Witten is solid but unspectacular. Felix Jones has brief flashes, but needs to have more sustained excellence. I would probably get a Demarcus Ware, Sean Lee or Miles Austin jersey at this point. I've bought two Cowboys jerseys before. Those of the great Emmitt Smith and also Roy Williams. No not the wussy wide receiver, but the stud defender.)
Other bad things, this team seems like it needs to improve it's coaching. How many times was Phil Costa going to mis snap the ball? I know he's a first year starter, but it seemed like he was snapping the ball completely random. I know that the Cowboys don't have a lot of depth at wide receiver. With Miles Austin injured and Dez Bryant, well who the hell knows what he's doing? That left the Cowboys with Jesse Holley, who's more notable for winning a reality show contest. Also they have Laurent Robinson, who just barely resigned with the team. However he showed some shiftiness once he caught the ball. Also there's Kevin Ogletree, who shows why he's never moved up the depth chart very much. (Since I'm talking about only wide receivers I'll only briefly mention the salary sucking Martellus Bennet. He showed little effort in that terrible attempt of Romo's pass into the end zone. What was that hold on the nice Felix Jones run? And one catch for 6 yards. As with Roy Williams and Marion Barber, it's time to send this waste down the line. One of those players who tempts with potential but always chokes in performance.)
If I was Jason Garrett I would go back to basics this week. I can't believe I'd be writing that about a NFL team, but a lot of these players are very young. Phil Costa also needs some more work and so does Dez Bryant and the other young wide receivers. (I hope that Bryant doesn't turn into a doesn't work hard enough player like Martellus Bennett.) Also I know a lot of their problems in not scoring touchdowns are due to their youth. But they desperately need to figure out how to turn some of those field goals into touchdowns. Scoring 18 points in the NFL isn't going to win you enough games to have you be a strong possibility of winning the Super Bowl.
That being said do I think this Cowboys team is really going to challenge for a Super Bowl title this year? Um no, did you watch that game last night? Dallas had ugly stretches of both offense and defense. Besides Costa's random snapping pattern, there were too many other mental errors. I have a feeling the wide receivers and cornerbacks are going to be question marks all season. (Jerry cornerbacks looks like it will be the #1 off season priority.) After 6 years Tony Romo looks like he's ready to take on the quarterback mantle previously held by Danny White, Troy Aikmen and my favorite Roger Staubach. He has learned to throw the ball away and he's showing some leadership. It's hard to tell if he was showing leadership last night or just doing a lot of screaming. That's not the kind of thing you can discern watching the game on TV.
Both Dallas and Detroit have a great measuring stick game next week when they play each other. I can't believe I'm writing this sentence: I'm scared of the Detroit Lions. They seem to be a legitimate 3-0 and feature defensive monster Ndamukong Suh, After what promises to be a very physical game thankfully Dallas has their bye. That's a great time for a bye for Dallas. It will give some of their injured players time to heal, especially Austin and Romo. It will also give them two weeks to work on the much needed basics.
themusicaddict
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Jake Heaps: The Second Coming of Kevin Feterik?
Hello,
Last night I watched a very good game between two evenly matched opponents, that isn't a compliment to either BYU or UCF. BYU QB Jake Heaps had another Romoesque (before last Sunday that is.) Again when Brandon Doman and BYU fell in love with the pass, they looked downright pathetic. Jake Heaps leads D1 QB's in bad decisions, including that horrendous pick that he tried to force into an area where there were 3 Knights defenders. BYU is very lucky that play and the ensuing touchdown didn't come back to haunt BYU.
I know BYU got to where they are today by the pass and I love the pass as much as the next BYU fan. I also would never suggest BYU commit fully to the run, after all BYU isn't Oklahoma or Nebraska. However when BYU can use the running game as much as possible they look like a much better team, especially with the beleaguered Jake Heaps is the quarterback. Last night they looked so much better when they used the pass to compliment the run and not the other way around.
I know Heaps is still a true sophomore, but he hasn't looked even that polished this season. Heaps stats last night: 16 of 34 in passing with 133 yards. He threw no touchdowns, had that awful interception and had several bad decisions. Again BYU is very lucky some of those bad decisions didn't turn into interceptions. WIth BYU finally having success in the running game, BYU was able to hide Heaps. It's not a coincidence BYU looked better when Heaps was less involved in the offense.
At this point he's just not living up to the hype, and that is exactly what it is is hype. Remember hype is used to cover up a person's, or anything else's, deficiencies. If Jake Heaps doesn't show immense improvement over the remainder of this season, it's time for BYU to move away from him. Actually if Heaps doesn't improve vastly he should go on a mission. Sorry Jake you are not the second coming of Ty Detmer. No Jake you are the second coming of Kevin Feterik.
Kevin Feterik like Heaps, is a quarterback who played for BYU. He came with much hype but could never deliver on all of his alleged potential. Feterik caused me many a heartbreak with his horrendous choices when playing. Then in his senior season, I thought that he had finally turned it around. I thought he was ready to assume the role of yet another preeminent BYU quarterback. But it was not to be. Kevin Feterik has left so little impression on BYU and college football fandom than he doesn't have a wikipedia page. What relatively unimportant D list celebrity doesn't have a wikipedia page now days. Besides Kevin Feterik, no one!!
Again if you look at Feterik's stats you would say not bad, but that only covers up how many bad decisions he made. He was Jake Heaps before Jake Heaps was. His BYU stats thanks to totalfootballstats.com
Year Lge Team Age # GP Comp Att % Yds TD INT TD% INT% Y/G Y/A RAT
1996 BYU 6 5 8 62.5 26 1 1 12.5 12.5 4.3 3.3 106.1
1997 BYU 8 125 208 60.1 1767 11 5 5.3 2.4 220.9 8.5 144.1
1998 BYU 11 202 336 60.1 2718 16 6 4.8 1.8 247.1 8.1 140.2
1999 BYU 11 277 452 61.3 3554 25 15 5.5 3.3 323.1 7.9 138.9
themusicaddict
Last night I watched a very good game between two evenly matched opponents, that isn't a compliment to either BYU or UCF. BYU QB Jake Heaps had another Romoesque (before last Sunday that is.) Again when Brandon Doman and BYU fell in love with the pass, they looked downright pathetic. Jake Heaps leads D1 QB's in bad decisions, including that horrendous pick that he tried to force into an area where there were 3 Knights defenders. BYU is very lucky that play and the ensuing touchdown didn't come back to haunt BYU.
I know BYU got to where they are today by the pass and I love the pass as much as the next BYU fan. I also would never suggest BYU commit fully to the run, after all BYU isn't Oklahoma or Nebraska. However when BYU can use the running game as much as possible they look like a much better team, especially with the beleaguered Jake Heaps is the quarterback. Last night they looked so much better when they used the pass to compliment the run and not the other way around.
I know Heaps is still a true sophomore, but he hasn't looked even that polished this season. Heaps stats last night: 16 of 34 in passing with 133 yards. He threw no touchdowns, had that awful interception and had several bad decisions. Again BYU is very lucky some of those bad decisions didn't turn into interceptions. WIth BYU finally having success in the running game, BYU was able to hide Heaps. It's not a coincidence BYU looked better when Heaps was less involved in the offense.
At this point he's just not living up to the hype, and that is exactly what it is is hype. Remember hype is used to cover up a person's, or anything else's, deficiencies. If Jake Heaps doesn't show immense improvement over the remainder of this season, it's time for BYU to move away from him. Actually if Heaps doesn't improve vastly he should go on a mission. Sorry Jake you are not the second coming of Ty Detmer. No Jake you are the second coming of Kevin Feterik.
Kevin Feterik like Heaps, is a quarterback who played for BYU. He came with much hype but could never deliver on all of his alleged potential. Feterik caused me many a heartbreak with his horrendous choices when playing. Then in his senior season, I thought that he had finally turned it around. I thought he was ready to assume the role of yet another preeminent BYU quarterback. But it was not to be. Kevin Feterik has left so little impression on BYU and college football fandom than he doesn't have a wikipedia page. What relatively unimportant D list celebrity doesn't have a wikipedia page now days. Besides Kevin Feterik, no one!!
Again if you look at Feterik's stats you would say not bad, but that only covers up how many bad decisions he made. He was Jake Heaps before Jake Heaps was. His BYU stats thanks to totalfootballstats.com
Year Lge Team Age # GP Comp Att % Yds TD INT TD% INT% Y/G Y/A RAT
1996 BYU 6 5 8 62.5 26 1 1 12.5 12.5 4.3 3.3 106.1
1997 BYU 8 125 208 60.1 1767 11 5 5.3 2.4 220.9 8.5 144.1
1998 BYU 11 202 336 60.1 2718 16 6 4.8 1.8 247.1 8.1 140.2
1999 BYU 11 277 452 61.3 3554 25 15 5.5 3.3 323.1 7.9 138.9
themusicaddict
Friday, September 23, 2011
"Person of Interest", BYU, Funny thing of the day
Hello,
Last night with great anticipation I watched the series premiere of "Person of Interest". It's from Executive Producers J.J. Abrams and Jonathan Nolan (Christopher's also very creative brother.) Recently I've got into "Lost", so far watching the first 16 of 25 episodes. I've absolutely loved the first few episodes of "Lost". I know we should never base a new series on what someone has done previously. Although the reason I wanted to watch "Person of Interest" is because of J.J. Abrams involvement with "Lost".
Anyway I watched the "Person of Interest" series premiere with a great deal of anticipation. As I was watching it though I realized that I was bored. "Lost" does have a few flaws, but one thing it wasn't was boring. I almost didn't finish watching "Interest's" first episode. I did finish watching it though and probably will watch it one or two more weeks at least. I know that Michael Emerson played a critical role in "Lost", he won an Emmy for his role as Benjamin Linus. However is his character suppose to be so wimpy in this series? After all the great actors in the first few episodes of "Lost" I expect a lot more from people that appeared in "Lost".
But thinking about it this morning, I realized this is essentially a detective show. It has a bit of a sic fi sheen to it, but it's Law and Order with a sci fi twist. After the first week I'd have to give this show a thumbs down. Also I know we live in a world where we have Big Brother watching every move we make. (Don't fool yourself by thinking that making a few changes on Facebook that some of what you do there will be hid from enquiring minds.) While I'm well aware of that I just don't want to see it play such a big role in my TV viewing experience. It just doesn't make for good TV.
With so many detective shows, it's easy to lose any one of them in TV universe. I wouldn't be surprised of "Person of Interest" gets lost and then cancelled in the next few weeks. I like a good detective show as much as the next person. But how many times can you kill a person before everything starts feeling the same? While watching "Person Of Interest" last night, it felt I had seen that episode many times before. That's because I had, it had just been on a different show. If you really must make a detective show now, the best ones have a sense-of-humor. That's why I love "Castle" and "Rizzoli and Isles" so much. Also that sense-of-humor when "Law and Order" had Jerry Orbach were some of the best episodes of all it's series.
Speaking of a person of interest if BYU loses tonight, the pressure on Bronco Mendenhall is going to increase. In what looked like could be a promising season, the wheels of this vehicle are beginning to spin off. This is what I wrote in my pre season BYU preview: "Sticking with the 50-50 theme I'm predicting BYU will be 2-2 after their first four games of the season". Now with BYU at 1-2, and very lucky in getting that first win, I'd be very happy if BYU is 2-2 after tonight's game.
What has gone wrong for BYU so far? Quite a few things. The worst thing about last week's loss was Utah dominated them so thoroughly, that BYU completely quit. Utah's a better team, fine. But giving up, that's extremely unacceptable. Is BYU completely quitting Bronco Mendenhall's fault? No! It's his job to coach them and give the players the tools to succeed. But at some point that responsibility falls completely on the players. I expect so much more effort from a BYU team.
Since he's the head coach he's going to get most of the blame anyway. BYU is never going to be known for their defense but it has looked good enough. Another problem is the preseason hype was more than what BYU and Jake Heaps could deliver on. Heaps is looking like Tony Romo, before Romo's courageous performance this last weekend, a lot of good stats but choking in the most crucial times. Heaps has an above average quarterback rating, but in the most crucial times he hasn't looked sharp. And Jake if you are going to say something please think it through first. Some of your inane comments following the Cougars demolition at the hands of Utah were off putting to say the least. He's someone that really could have used the humility he would have learned on a mission.
Another major problem for BYU is their offensive line, which I thought was going to be the strength of the group. They have looked very average. They cannot get a running game going. Yes I realize the yards BYU loses on a quarterback stat count against the rushing yards. BYU has rushed for 91, 43 and 11 yards in the last three weeks. Those rushing yard totals are almost so paltry that I almost didn't need a calculator to figure out they are only averaging 48 yards rushing per game. Not only that but did you notice the rushing totals are going down each week? Each week they played a team from one of the 6 BCS conferences. They played teams from the hallowed SEC, the faltering Big 12 and the over rated Pac 12.
BYU plays the University of Central Florida Knights tonight, the game is in Provo. The Knights are 2-1 but they've played some pretty mediocre competition. From their stats it seems like they have a pretty stout rush defense. They gave up 49 rush yards to 0-3 Charleston Southern. They gave up 84 rush yards to 0-2 Boston College. They were 2-0 at that point before suffering their first loss last week to the 3-0 Florida International Football team. They have up 111 rush yards to Florida International. They are giving up more yards per game each week. Of course they also increased in schedule strength.
So a big stat tonight might be rushing yards that BYU gains, the more they gain the more they are likely to win. That's true of every team, but I think even more true of the game tonight. Also it seems the tendency for BYU is when their run game gets stuck to fall in love with and over rely on their passing game. I hate when BYU has a three and out possession and all 3 plays were pass plays. Also please everybody can we please give Brandon Doman a break. He has been an offensive coordinator for a total of three games. Let's at least give him a whole season before we start criticizing him.
Also where is Josh Quezada? I realize he's only a true sophomore, but I was really expecting him to have a break out season. Quezada has only rushed for 28 yards on 14 carries this year. An average of two yards per carry isn't going to be the offensive cure all. BYU's offensive line needs to open up bigger holes and BYU's backs need to get through those holes quicker.
BYU has a lot of young players and I think BYU is going in the right direction, but this is the time those young players need to start breaking out. And for Jake Heaps it's getting to be put up or shut up time, although him shutting up either way wouldn't be a bad idea. And also when a ball is fumbled by you, would it hurt you to go after it?
Funny thing of the day. The greedy NBA and their players have long been in negotiations on trying to reach a new collective bargaining agreement. The movement in negotiations has been slow, if at all, and many people think that there might not be a season. I think that would be great. The NBA had a great season last year, with one of the best playoffs in memory. But with both sides using corporate America thinking, they have decided due to greed to not play. That kills the momentum last season built up. So it's too no one's surprise that the NBA came out with the following announcement today.
"The NBA postponed training camps indefinitely and canceled 43 preseason games Friday because it has not reached a new labor deal with players. All games from Oct. 9-15 are off, the league said. Camps were expected to open Oct. 3.
NBA.com's schedule page, which has a banner across the top listing the number of games on each day, was changed Friday morning to read "0 Games" for each date until Oct. 16, when there are four games.
"We have regretfully reached the point on the calendar where we are not able to open training camps on time and need to cancel the first week of preseason games," deputy commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. "We will make further decisions as warranted."
I like the NBA, but I think some humility of a lost season would be good for both players and owners.
My one music related note of the day. Dear Spotify I'm ready to go steady. I've been listening to needtobreathe and Blondie all day. However can you stop playing that commercial for the new Demi Lovato song? If not we are going to have to break up.
themusicaddict
Last night with great anticipation I watched the series premiere of "Person of Interest". It's from Executive Producers J.J. Abrams and Jonathan Nolan (Christopher's also very creative brother.) Recently I've got into "Lost", so far watching the first 16 of 25 episodes. I've absolutely loved the first few episodes of "Lost". I know we should never base a new series on what someone has done previously. Although the reason I wanted to watch "Person of Interest" is because of J.J. Abrams involvement with "Lost".
Anyway I watched the "Person of Interest" series premiere with a great deal of anticipation. As I was watching it though I realized that I was bored. "Lost" does have a few flaws, but one thing it wasn't was boring. I almost didn't finish watching "Interest's" first episode. I did finish watching it though and probably will watch it one or two more weeks at least. I know that Michael Emerson played a critical role in "Lost", he won an Emmy for his role as Benjamin Linus. However is his character suppose to be so wimpy in this series? After all the great actors in the first few episodes of "Lost" I expect a lot more from people that appeared in "Lost".
But thinking about it this morning, I realized this is essentially a detective show. It has a bit of a sic fi sheen to it, but it's Law and Order with a sci fi twist. After the first week I'd have to give this show a thumbs down. Also I know we live in a world where we have Big Brother watching every move we make. (Don't fool yourself by thinking that making a few changes on Facebook that some of what you do there will be hid from enquiring minds.) While I'm well aware of that I just don't want to see it play such a big role in my TV viewing experience. It just doesn't make for good TV.
With so many detective shows, it's easy to lose any one of them in TV universe. I wouldn't be surprised of "Person of Interest" gets lost and then cancelled in the next few weeks. I like a good detective show as much as the next person. But how many times can you kill a person before everything starts feeling the same? While watching "Person Of Interest" last night, it felt I had seen that episode many times before. That's because I had, it had just been on a different show. If you really must make a detective show now, the best ones have a sense-of-humor. That's why I love "Castle" and "Rizzoli and Isles" so much. Also that sense-of-humor when "Law and Order" had Jerry Orbach were some of the best episodes of all it's series.
Speaking of a person of interest if BYU loses tonight, the pressure on Bronco Mendenhall is going to increase. In what looked like could be a promising season, the wheels of this vehicle are beginning to spin off. This is what I wrote in my pre season BYU preview: "Sticking with the 50-50 theme I'm predicting BYU will be 2-2 after their first four games of the season". Now with BYU at 1-2, and very lucky in getting that first win, I'd be very happy if BYU is 2-2 after tonight's game.
What has gone wrong for BYU so far? Quite a few things. The worst thing about last week's loss was Utah dominated them so thoroughly, that BYU completely quit. Utah's a better team, fine. But giving up, that's extremely unacceptable. Is BYU completely quitting Bronco Mendenhall's fault? No! It's his job to coach them and give the players the tools to succeed. But at some point that responsibility falls completely on the players. I expect so much more effort from a BYU team.
Since he's the head coach he's going to get most of the blame anyway. BYU is never going to be known for their defense but it has looked good enough. Another problem is the preseason hype was more than what BYU and Jake Heaps could deliver on. Heaps is looking like Tony Romo, before Romo's courageous performance this last weekend, a lot of good stats but choking in the most crucial times. Heaps has an above average quarterback rating, but in the most crucial times he hasn't looked sharp. And Jake if you are going to say something please think it through first. Some of your inane comments following the Cougars demolition at the hands of Utah were off putting to say the least. He's someone that really could have used the humility he would have learned on a mission.
Another major problem for BYU is their offensive line, which I thought was going to be the strength of the group. They have looked very average. They cannot get a running game going. Yes I realize the yards BYU loses on a quarterback stat count against the rushing yards. BYU has rushed for 91, 43 and 11 yards in the last three weeks. Those rushing yard totals are almost so paltry that I almost didn't need a calculator to figure out they are only averaging 48 yards rushing per game. Not only that but did you notice the rushing totals are going down each week? Each week they played a team from one of the 6 BCS conferences. They played teams from the hallowed SEC, the faltering Big 12 and the over rated Pac 12.
BYU plays the University of Central Florida Knights tonight, the game is in Provo. The Knights are 2-1 but they've played some pretty mediocre competition. From their stats it seems like they have a pretty stout rush defense. They gave up 49 rush yards to 0-3 Charleston Southern. They gave up 84 rush yards to 0-2 Boston College. They were 2-0 at that point before suffering their first loss last week to the 3-0 Florida International Football team. They have up 111 rush yards to Florida International. They are giving up more yards per game each week. Of course they also increased in schedule strength.
So a big stat tonight might be rushing yards that BYU gains, the more they gain the more they are likely to win. That's true of every team, but I think even more true of the game tonight. Also it seems the tendency for BYU is when their run game gets stuck to fall in love with and over rely on their passing game. I hate when BYU has a three and out possession and all 3 plays were pass plays. Also please everybody can we please give Brandon Doman a break. He has been an offensive coordinator for a total of three games. Let's at least give him a whole season before we start criticizing him.
Also where is Josh Quezada? I realize he's only a true sophomore, but I was really expecting him to have a break out season. Quezada has only rushed for 28 yards on 14 carries this year. An average of two yards per carry isn't going to be the offensive cure all. BYU's offensive line needs to open up bigger holes and BYU's backs need to get through those holes quicker.
BYU has a lot of young players and I think BYU is going in the right direction, but this is the time those young players need to start breaking out. And for Jake Heaps it's getting to be put up or shut up time, although him shutting up either way wouldn't be a bad idea. And also when a ball is fumbled by you, would it hurt you to go after it?
Funny thing of the day. The greedy NBA and their players have long been in negotiations on trying to reach a new collective bargaining agreement. The movement in negotiations has been slow, if at all, and many people think that there might not be a season. I think that would be great. The NBA had a great season last year, with one of the best playoffs in memory. But with both sides using corporate America thinking, they have decided due to greed to not play. That kills the momentum last season built up. So it's too no one's surprise that the NBA came out with the following announcement today.
"The NBA postponed training camps indefinitely and canceled 43 preseason games Friday because it has not reached a new labor deal with players. All games from Oct. 9-15 are off, the league said. Camps were expected to open Oct. 3.
NBA.com's schedule page, which has a banner across the top listing the number of games on each day, was changed Friday morning to read "0 Games" for each date until Oct. 16, when there are four games.
"We have regretfully reached the point on the calendar where we are not able to open training camps on time and need to cancel the first week of preseason games," deputy commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. "We will make further decisions as warranted."
I like the NBA, but I think some humility of a lost season would be good for both players and owners.
My one music related note of the day. Dear Spotify I'm ready to go steady. I've been listening to needtobreathe and Blondie all day. However can you stop playing that commercial for the new Demi Lovato song? If not we are going to have to break up.
themusicaddict
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Songs and memories
Hello,
I was talking to my friend the other day and we were talking about songs that are associated with memories. She was at the school she attends and they play songs. One of the songs that came on was the Sugarland song "Stay". She said it reminded her of the last couple years of her marriage.
How brutal is it that song would remind one of a marriage, especially after all the fairy tales involved with marriage. For me I have a song that for the longest time reminded me of my marriage that was dissolving at the time. I couldn't listen to the below song for a long time after it came out. I can listen it to now, but it still makes me a bit sad.
Thankfully not all songs bring back bad memories. I remember hearing this song on the way to the hospital for when my daughter was about to be born. A great song by one of my favorite singers, the amazing Nelly Furtado. Over 10 years later I look forward to taking her and one of her brothers to see Taylor Swift on Wednesday.
Not that this is the happiest song ever, we did hear this song on that long ago wintry April morning.
Surprisingly thinking about the connection between songs and the memories they evoke, I can't think of a whole lot of songs. This song reminds me of going to BYU football games.
and so does this one:
Now that I think about it, it's a really strange selection of songs they play at BYU games. Finally so does this song:
themusicaddict
I was talking to my friend the other day and we were talking about songs that are associated with memories. She was at the school she attends and they play songs. One of the songs that came on was the Sugarland song "Stay". She said it reminded her of the last couple years of her marriage.
How brutal is it that song would remind one of a marriage, especially after all the fairy tales involved with marriage. For me I have a song that for the longest time reminded me of my marriage that was dissolving at the time. I couldn't listen to the below song for a long time after it came out. I can listen it to now, but it still makes me a bit sad.
Thankfully not all songs bring back bad memories. I remember hearing this song on the way to the hospital for when my daughter was about to be born. A great song by one of my favorite singers, the amazing Nelly Furtado. Over 10 years later I look forward to taking her and one of her brothers to see Taylor Swift on Wednesday.
Not that this is the happiest song ever, we did hear this song on that long ago wintry April morning.
Surprisingly thinking about the connection between songs and the memories they evoke, I can't think of a whole lot of songs. This song reminds me of going to BYU football games.
and so does this one:
Now that I think about it, it's a really strange selection of songs they play at BYU games. Finally so does this song:
themusicaddict
Appropriate Songs for Choking Red Sox and Braves
Hello,
As I watch the Atlanta Braves and Boston Red Sox choke and continue their unprecedented meltdowns I was trying to think of a song that's appropriate. So far this is the closest I could find to describe my feelings about that. Although this song is about the Cubs, it seems appropriate to the Braves and Red Sox.
Here's Bowling For Soup's "Choke" song.
Other songs that seem to apply to Boston, Atlanta and yes the Cubs. Sadly I claim all three teams as my own.
Listening to me it made me wonder why doesn't Linkin Park have a song about choking? It seems it's a topic they would have a song about. The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus "Choke":
themusicaddict
As I watch the Atlanta Braves and Boston Red Sox choke and continue their unprecedented meltdowns I was trying to think of a song that's appropriate. So far this is the closest I could find to describe my feelings about that. Although this song is about the Cubs, it seems appropriate to the Braves and Red Sox.
Here's Bowling For Soup's "Choke" song.
Other songs that seem to apply to Boston, Atlanta and yes the Cubs. Sadly I claim all three teams as my own.
Listening to me it made me wonder why doesn't Linkin Park have a song about choking? It seems it's a topic they would have a song about. The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus "Choke":
themusicaddict
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Just some great songs. Thanks music for my mental health.
Hello,
I work at a school and we are in the process of getting ready for a new quarter in about 3 weeks. There are a lot of preparations for that. Instead of chilling I actually had to work today. I have a lot of thoughts including sadness about R.E.M. breaking up. But since they've done so little recently it seems they already had broken up. Other thoughts: from the Red Sox choking to Clayton Kershaw getting his 20th win for the Dodgers to the gorgeousness of Hannah Storm and the greatness of Southern women. But I've decided to spare you of that today and just have videos for some songs that are rocking my world now.
I also will say a week from tonight I'm looking very much forward to seeing Taylor Swift in concert. It should be fun seeing her and needtobreathe.
One more thing: The American version of "X-Factor" premieres tonight and I find myself not caring. I'm worn out of reality shows, especially those that like to manipulate our emotions. Also is it only me but doesn't L.A. RIed look like Randy Jackson. WIth Simon, the ditz and Randy lookalike it seems this show is trying to hearken back to the glory days of "American Idol".
I'd like to dedicate this song to the amazing Southern woman I talked to on the phone with last night. This song, "Southern Girl" is one of the last good Incubus songs before they faded into irrelevance. To you know who:
If things don't work out with the Southern Girl, which honestly it probably won't, I hope that special someone is out there. This is my dedication song to her, yet another song that seems like it was written about my life.
One of my all time favorite Black Eyed Peas song. Not only a great song by them, but also another great "don't" song.
I love, love, love Arcade Fire, this is one of their amazing songs. "Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)":
Yes I know this song is a song by a so called boy band. But how can you deny the enjoyment of this song?
A few more songs that aren't as happy but are fantastic. Um Ben Folds where did you go? This song is not dedicated to anyone! Language in this video will offend many, be careful.
When one thinks of Barenaked Ladies, most people think of "If I Had $1,000,000 Dollars". While that's a good song, I usually think of this much better song. This song kicks butt completely, the singer's voice is perfect for this song.
This is a newer song with a similar theme that also rocks. Ashes Remain "On My Own":
themusicaddict
I work at a school and we are in the process of getting ready for a new quarter in about 3 weeks. There are a lot of preparations for that. Instead of chilling I actually had to work today. I have a lot of thoughts including sadness about R.E.M. breaking up. But since they've done so little recently it seems they already had broken up. Other thoughts: from the Red Sox choking to Clayton Kershaw getting his 20th win for the Dodgers to the gorgeousness of Hannah Storm and the greatness of Southern women. But I've decided to spare you of that today and just have videos for some songs that are rocking my world now.
I also will say a week from tonight I'm looking very much forward to seeing Taylor Swift in concert. It should be fun seeing her and needtobreathe.
One more thing: The American version of "X-Factor" premieres tonight and I find myself not caring. I'm worn out of reality shows, especially those that like to manipulate our emotions. Also is it only me but doesn't L.A. RIed look like Randy Jackson. WIth Simon, the ditz and Randy lookalike it seems this show is trying to hearken back to the glory days of "American Idol".
I'd like to dedicate this song to the amazing Southern woman I talked to on the phone with last night. This song, "Southern Girl" is one of the last good Incubus songs before they faded into irrelevance. To you know who:
If things don't work out with the Southern Girl, which honestly it probably won't, I hope that special someone is out there. This is my dedication song to her, yet another song that seems like it was written about my life.
One of my all time favorite Black Eyed Peas song. Not only a great song by them, but also another great "don't" song.
I love, love, love Arcade Fire, this is one of their amazing songs. "Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)":
Yes I know this song is a song by a so called boy band. But how can you deny the enjoyment of this song?
A few more songs that aren't as happy but are fantastic. Um Ben Folds where did you go? This song is not dedicated to anyone! Language in this video will offend many, be careful.
When one thinks of Barenaked Ladies, most people think of "If I Had $1,000,000 Dollars". While that's a good song, I usually think of this much better song. This song kicks butt completely, the singer's voice is perfect for this song.
This is a newer song with a similar theme that also rocks. Ashes Remain "On My Own":
themusicaddict
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Tony Romo mans up, The Boston Red Sox Have No Chance of Winning the World Series
Hello,
My appreciation for Tony Romo continues to increase. Originally it was thought that he had two fractured ribs, now it has been determined he had one fractured rib. But along with the fractured rib, he has a punctured lung. I'm not a doctor, but it seems a fractured rib would hurt a lot and that a punctured lung could cause so many issues. He was offered pain medicine during the game Sunday, but turned it down. Again if you are a Tony Romo fan or not you've got to have a great deal of admiration for him. He really stepped it up on Sunday. It reminds me of the players of old that seemed to play through almost any injury.
I'm still not a humongous Romo fan, but I love the Cowboys. I'll be cheering for them and him on Monday Night Football. The Cowboys play the hated Redskins Monday night. I'm not too scared of the Redskins, although they are 2-0. They've won both of their games thanks to smoke and mirrors. It's possible that Romo isn't going to be able to play that game on Monday. If he can't go due to his injury, you won't hear a negative comment out of me. The player's health now and long term should always be the paramount concern. The Cowboys have a fairly able backup quarterback in Jon Kitna, he was 6 of 10 for 87 yards this past Sunday.
It's going to take several more gutsy and clutch performances by Romo before I completely have confidence in him. When I'm about to think he's ready to take that next step two words come to mind. Those two words are Kevin Feterik. He played for BYU and always seemed to be on the verge of being a solid quarterback, but he never made that next step. Romo is obviously playing on a much bigger stage. When he's mentioned in the same breath as Roger Staubach and Troy Aikman in terms of clutch play, then I'll believe a Tony Romo believer. But as of now this comment from Jerry Jones still scares the hell out of me: "We are going to rise and fall based on what Tony Romo's about over the next several years, and I'm excited about that.”
I'm a big Boston Red Sox fan and I've been following their meltdown over the last few weeks. Needless to say it has not been a pleasant experience for me. Although Boston only leads Tampa Bay by two games in the AL Wild Card, I still expect the Red Sox to crawl into the playoffs. But once they are there, they are really going to struggle with their depleted pitching staff. They are especially thin in starting pitching.
Their first two pitchers that they will start in the playoffs, that is if they don't need them at the end of the regular season, are Josh Beckett and Jon Lester. Josh Beckett (13-5) raises his game when the playoffs start, he's the ultimate clutch post season pitcher. Then Jon Lester (15-8) is a young and upcoming pitcher for the Red Sox. With those two pitchers I feel good about Boston's chance in the first tow games of any series. However after that there are a lot of questions marks. I'd love to have Clay Buchholz (6-3 in limited duty) in that third spot, that would give me a lot more confidence in Boston's playoff chances. However he's been battling injuries all year. Today he's suppose to pitch a simulated game. There's two more weeks until the post season starts, hopefully he can gear up and help Boston. Obviously there's no guarantee that he'll be even able to pitch for Boston.
If Buchholz can pitch effectively for the Red Sox, then the hope would be that there's a long enough break for Josh Beckett to start the next game. Possibly Boston sweeps their first round series, while the other AL series goes 4 or 5 games. That would push back the start of the ALCS. Of course that's assuming a lot. It assumes the Red Sox can sweep a series against a team that's playing better than them. It's assuming Boston can win the first two games on the road. It assumes that Buchholz is healthy enough to be effective etc. etc.
Frighteningly the more likely scenario for Boston is that Boston wil have to have a 4th pitcher. Who would that be? Would it be Jon Lackey, he of the 12-12 record and 6.49 ERA? I think last night's game is a perfect representation of a Jon Lackey game. In 4.1 innings he gave up 11 hits, 8 runs but received a no decision. That's due to him having one of the MLB's best offenses behind him. Imagine what would his record would be if he had the Mariners offense behind him. His record would obviously be much worse. This isn't a Jon Lackey rant. I have nothing personal against him and I know he has been having personal issues this season. He also seems to be a gamer.
However he just no longer has A stuff and is more of a liability as a starting pitcher. Along with Daisuke Matsuzaka they will wind up as two of the worst free agency signings in Boston Red Sox history. Although Matsusaka is signed through the end of next season, hopefully he'll never pitch another game for the Red Sox. He currently is recovering from Tommy John surgery. Jon Lackey is getting paid almost $16 million dollars this season. He's making close enough to $16,000,000 that I wonder why they just didn't pay him that. With at most two more starts in the regular season and whatever happens in the postseason, he'll be paid over $1million dollars per win. Let that sink in for a minute.
Two more pitchers that may or may not be in Boston's post season plans are Tim Wakefield and Erik Bedard. I know the mid-40's Wakefield, who just earned his 200th career win, is a nice story. Also thanks Tim for all those innings you pitched this season when so many pitchers were injured. Unlike other Red Sox pitchers Wakefield has definitely earned his pay, $2,000,000 this season. But do you really want him pitching for you when the Red Sox needs a big playoff win? His record is 7-7 for a reason. Boston could also use Erik Bedard who came over at the trading deadline from the Mariners. Bedard is 5-9, Jon Lackey look at what your record might be if you had pitched for the Mariners all season. Bedard has also been battling injuries all season. In fact he's suppose to pitch today after coming off a minor injury. Do you really want him pitching a big playoff game for the Red Sox?
Boston also has other options, but they are too depressing too discuss. I just don't have much hope for the Red Sox this postseason unless one of those end of the rotation starters really steps up. The Red Sox have been battling inconsistency and injuries to their pitching staff all season. I'll leave that article to someone else about why the Red Sox didn't act earlier.
I was done with this blog then I heard this song. Do you ever have a song that sounds like it's describing your life. Hearing this song makes me think that Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers have been following me around.
Here's the video:
Here's the lyrics (the words in parenthesis really ring home):
She was on fire and wild and American
She burns it out probably just because she can
And if I had a dollar for every thing I should've said
I'd prolly still be busted, I would throw it all away again (my divorce and how I don't regret the divorce)
The lightening bugs light up all across the southern sky
Some guys get it all and they don't even need to try
I watched you roll away but you didn't even say goodbye
And now I hate the night, I'm guessin' that's the reason why
And this, this is my life
On the 4th of July
It isn't much, but at least it's mine
Got in my van, ended up in Boston
Thought about my friends and how easily I lost them
I'd do it all again, I'll leave everyone exhausted
Some folks get a break, me I never got one
I thought of you at night when I would drink too much (instead of drink too much, it's eat too many Doritos)
If you thought about me too, you'd never tried to get in touch
Went back to school and I ran into some guys I knew
We started up this band but we couldn't seem to get it through
We got some gigs, evetually lost that too
Did you ever think that if you're not happy it's because of you (this feels appropriate for my marriage.)
And this, this is my life
On the 4th of July
It isn't much, but at least it's mine
I got a job selling ads for magazines
At night when I'd play, I'd think about her constantly (not any moore (purposely misspelled)
Everything I loved somehow got away from me
And suicide, I talked about it openly (no that would be too dramatic, I hate drama)
I finally quit, or maybe I got fired, I don't know
It doesn't matter just as long as it happened though (this applies to my last job. It just doesn't matter if I quit or got fired as long as I didn't have to work there any more. Getting fired cleared a lot of things out of my life that needed to be cleaned out.)
Added up the fears and the doubts I've been living with
Songs of lightening bugs, school, work, and all that shit
And this, this is my life
On the 4th of July
It isn't much, but at least it's mine
I lost a girl sometime and a couple friends
Small talking parties I could never stomach it (ain't that the truth)
I'm old enough to say that I remember when
But I dont have the time for your nostalgia and criticisms (ain't that the truth again)
You live and learn, me, well I learned to let go
Parents and bosses and people who don't want you to grow
I think that anything that you want to you can do
And no one is going to tell me just who the hell I should sing to (this whole paragraph hits really close to home)
And this, this is my life
On the 4th of July
It isn't much, but at least it's mine (at least it's mine)
(x2)
(This mine and nothing, nobody is going to ever take this away
It's a blue print of your life
I'll see ya when it's over
It's a journey)
themusicaddict
My appreciation for Tony Romo continues to increase. Originally it was thought that he had two fractured ribs, now it has been determined he had one fractured rib. But along with the fractured rib, he has a punctured lung. I'm not a doctor, but it seems a fractured rib would hurt a lot and that a punctured lung could cause so many issues. He was offered pain medicine during the game Sunday, but turned it down. Again if you are a Tony Romo fan or not you've got to have a great deal of admiration for him. He really stepped it up on Sunday. It reminds me of the players of old that seemed to play through almost any injury.
I'm still not a humongous Romo fan, but I love the Cowboys. I'll be cheering for them and him on Monday Night Football. The Cowboys play the hated Redskins Monday night. I'm not too scared of the Redskins, although they are 2-0. They've won both of their games thanks to smoke and mirrors. It's possible that Romo isn't going to be able to play that game on Monday. If he can't go due to his injury, you won't hear a negative comment out of me. The player's health now and long term should always be the paramount concern. The Cowboys have a fairly able backup quarterback in Jon Kitna, he was 6 of 10 for 87 yards this past Sunday.
It's going to take several more gutsy and clutch performances by Romo before I completely have confidence in him. When I'm about to think he's ready to take that next step two words come to mind. Those two words are Kevin Feterik. He played for BYU and always seemed to be on the verge of being a solid quarterback, but he never made that next step. Romo is obviously playing on a much bigger stage. When he's mentioned in the same breath as Roger Staubach and Troy Aikman in terms of clutch play, then I'll believe a Tony Romo believer. But as of now this comment from Jerry Jones still scares the hell out of me: "We are going to rise and fall based on what Tony Romo's about over the next several years, and I'm excited about that.”
I'm a big Boston Red Sox fan and I've been following their meltdown over the last few weeks. Needless to say it has not been a pleasant experience for me. Although Boston only leads Tampa Bay by two games in the AL Wild Card, I still expect the Red Sox to crawl into the playoffs. But once they are there, they are really going to struggle with their depleted pitching staff. They are especially thin in starting pitching.
Their first two pitchers that they will start in the playoffs, that is if they don't need them at the end of the regular season, are Josh Beckett and Jon Lester. Josh Beckett (13-5) raises his game when the playoffs start, he's the ultimate clutch post season pitcher. Then Jon Lester (15-8) is a young and upcoming pitcher for the Red Sox. With those two pitchers I feel good about Boston's chance in the first tow games of any series. However after that there are a lot of questions marks. I'd love to have Clay Buchholz (6-3 in limited duty) in that third spot, that would give me a lot more confidence in Boston's playoff chances. However he's been battling injuries all year. Today he's suppose to pitch a simulated game. There's two more weeks until the post season starts, hopefully he can gear up and help Boston. Obviously there's no guarantee that he'll be even able to pitch for Boston.
If Buchholz can pitch effectively for the Red Sox, then the hope would be that there's a long enough break for Josh Beckett to start the next game. Possibly Boston sweeps their first round series, while the other AL series goes 4 or 5 games. That would push back the start of the ALCS. Of course that's assuming a lot. It assumes the Red Sox can sweep a series against a team that's playing better than them. It's assuming Boston can win the first two games on the road. It assumes that Buchholz is healthy enough to be effective etc. etc.
Frighteningly the more likely scenario for Boston is that Boston wil have to have a 4th pitcher. Who would that be? Would it be Jon Lackey, he of the 12-12 record and 6.49 ERA? I think last night's game is a perfect representation of a Jon Lackey game. In 4.1 innings he gave up 11 hits, 8 runs but received a no decision. That's due to him having one of the MLB's best offenses behind him. Imagine what would his record would be if he had the Mariners offense behind him. His record would obviously be much worse. This isn't a Jon Lackey rant. I have nothing personal against him and I know he has been having personal issues this season. He also seems to be a gamer.
However he just no longer has A stuff and is more of a liability as a starting pitcher. Along with Daisuke Matsuzaka they will wind up as two of the worst free agency signings in Boston Red Sox history. Although Matsusaka is signed through the end of next season, hopefully he'll never pitch another game for the Red Sox. He currently is recovering from Tommy John surgery. Jon Lackey is getting paid almost $16 million dollars this season. He's making close enough to $16,000,000 that I wonder why they just didn't pay him that. With at most two more starts in the regular season and whatever happens in the postseason, he'll be paid over $1million dollars per win. Let that sink in for a minute.
Two more pitchers that may or may not be in Boston's post season plans are Tim Wakefield and Erik Bedard. I know the mid-40's Wakefield, who just earned his 200th career win, is a nice story. Also thanks Tim for all those innings you pitched this season when so many pitchers were injured. Unlike other Red Sox pitchers Wakefield has definitely earned his pay, $2,000,000 this season. But do you really want him pitching for you when the Red Sox needs a big playoff win? His record is 7-7 for a reason. Boston could also use Erik Bedard who came over at the trading deadline from the Mariners. Bedard is 5-9, Jon Lackey look at what your record might be if you had pitched for the Mariners all season. Bedard has also been battling injuries all season. In fact he's suppose to pitch today after coming off a minor injury. Do you really want him pitching a big playoff game for the Red Sox?
Boston also has other options, but they are too depressing too discuss. I just don't have much hope for the Red Sox this postseason unless one of those end of the rotation starters really steps up. The Red Sox have been battling inconsistency and injuries to their pitching staff all season. I'll leave that article to someone else about why the Red Sox didn't act earlier.
I was done with this blog then I heard this song. Do you ever have a song that sounds like it's describing your life. Hearing this song makes me think that Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers have been following me around.
Here's the video:
Here's the lyrics (the words in parenthesis really ring home):
She was on fire and wild and American
She burns it out probably just because she can
And if I had a dollar for every thing I should've said
I'd prolly still be busted, I would throw it all away again (my divorce and how I don't regret the divorce)
The lightening bugs light up all across the southern sky
Some guys get it all and they don't even need to try
I watched you roll away but you didn't even say goodbye
And now I hate the night, I'm guessin' that's the reason why
And this, this is my life
On the 4th of July
It isn't much, but at least it's mine
Got in my van, ended up in Boston
Thought about my friends and how easily I lost them
I'd do it all again, I'll leave everyone exhausted
Some folks get a break, me I never got one
I thought of you at night when I would drink too much (instead of drink too much, it's eat too many Doritos)
If you thought about me too, you'd never tried to get in touch
Went back to school and I ran into some guys I knew
We started up this band but we couldn't seem to get it through
We got some gigs, evetually lost that too
Did you ever think that if you're not happy it's because of you (this feels appropriate for my marriage.)
And this, this is my life
On the 4th of July
It isn't much, but at least it's mine
I got a job selling ads for magazines
At night when I'd play, I'd think about her constantly (not any moore (purposely misspelled)
Everything I loved somehow got away from me
And suicide, I talked about it openly (no that would be too dramatic, I hate drama)
I finally quit, or maybe I got fired, I don't know
It doesn't matter just as long as it happened though (this applies to my last job. It just doesn't matter if I quit or got fired as long as I didn't have to work there any more. Getting fired cleared a lot of things out of my life that needed to be cleaned out.)
Added up the fears and the doubts I've been living with
Songs of lightening bugs, school, work, and all that shit
And this, this is my life
On the 4th of July
It isn't much, but at least it's mine
I lost a girl sometime and a couple friends
Small talking parties I could never stomach it (ain't that the truth)
I'm old enough to say that I remember when
But I dont have the time for your nostalgia and criticisms (ain't that the truth again)
You live and learn, me, well I learned to let go
Parents and bosses and people who don't want you to grow
I think that anything that you want to you can do
And no one is going to tell me just who the hell I should sing to (this whole paragraph hits really close to home)
And this, this is my life
On the 4th of July
It isn't much, but at least it's mine (at least it's mine)
(x2)
(This mine and nothing, nobody is going to ever take this away
It's a blue print of your life
I'll see ya when it's over
It's a journey)
themusicaddict
Monday, September 19, 2011
The heroics of Tony Romo!
Hello,
I know that I've been very critical of Dallas Cowboys' quarterback Tony Romo for all his failures in the past. I still stand by that. But I feel if I attack him I should also given him praise when he does something well. Tony Romo really manned up last night. He was battling the San Francisco 49ers pass rush as well as what was later to be found out was two cracked ribs. All without taking a pain shot. Not only that but he didn't have any of his Romoesque like meltdowns. Also Felix Jones and Miles Austin gutted out through injuries.
No meltdowns and in fact he performed spectacularly in the clutch. On Dallas's first offensive possession in the overtime Romo connected with Jesse Holley for a 77 yard pass. Holley was tackled at the one yard line, Dan Bailey came on and kicked the chip shot field goal. Dallas now goes to 1-1 on the season thanks to the very heroic and gutsy work of Tony Romo.
As much as I would like to say this was Romo's time where he finally learned how to step up in the clutch, at this point I don't believe it. He's going to have to perform near or at this level all season long in order to make me a believer. From watching way too many football games, I've learned that if a player doesn't have "it" after a couple of years, that he never has "it".
Felix Jones continued to play with a separated shoulder. Jesse Holley may get a lot more chances with the extremely fragile Dez Bryant missing yesterday's game. Also Miles Austin might be out for 2 or 3 weeks as well. If Bryant can't play next week, they play on Monday Night Football, the Cowboys will be very challenged. Maybe Romo's heroic effort can inspire others to play through the pain. That is only if they are able though.
Thanks Tony Romo. If you keep up this level of play, I'll be very glad to eat my words about all the negative comments I've made about you over the years.
themusicaddict
I know that I've been very critical of Dallas Cowboys' quarterback Tony Romo for all his failures in the past. I still stand by that. But I feel if I attack him I should also given him praise when he does something well. Tony Romo really manned up last night. He was battling the San Francisco 49ers pass rush as well as what was later to be found out was two cracked ribs. All without taking a pain shot. Not only that but he didn't have any of his Romoesque like meltdowns. Also Felix Jones and Miles Austin gutted out through injuries.
No meltdowns and in fact he performed spectacularly in the clutch. On Dallas's first offensive possession in the overtime Romo connected with Jesse Holley for a 77 yard pass. Holley was tackled at the one yard line, Dan Bailey came on and kicked the chip shot field goal. Dallas now goes to 1-1 on the season thanks to the very heroic and gutsy work of Tony Romo.
As much as I would like to say this was Romo's time where he finally learned how to step up in the clutch, at this point I don't believe it. He's going to have to perform near or at this level all season long in order to make me a believer. From watching way too many football games, I've learned that if a player doesn't have "it" after a couple of years, that he never has "it".
Felix Jones continued to play with a separated shoulder. Jesse Holley may get a lot more chances with the extremely fragile Dez Bryant missing yesterday's game. Also Miles Austin might be out for 2 or 3 weeks as well. If Bryant can't play next week, they play on Monday Night Football, the Cowboys will be very challenged. Maybe Romo's heroic effort can inspire others to play through the pain. That is only if they are able though.
Thanks Tony Romo. If you keep up this level of play, I'll be very glad to eat my words about all the negative comments I've made about you over the years.
themusicaddict
Saturday, September 17, 2011
BYU chokes!
Hello,
Attention BYU you are playing in a game, no this isn't a practice. BYU looks horrendous tonight, how many stupid mistakes can one team make. Utah didn't cause many of the turnovers but they took full advantage of them. I hang my head in shame as a BYU fan. Thank goodness I didn't go to this crappy game.
Then if I had to hear the asinine ESPN commentator say one more time "BYU's big guys are getting tired", I would want to throttle him. Doesn't Utah have equally big guys.
With Notre Dame winning, Boston choking and being a Dallas Cowboys fan, it has been a crappy couple of weekends in sports.
thepissedoffmusicaddict
Attention BYU you are playing in a game, no this isn't a practice. BYU looks horrendous tonight, how many stupid mistakes can one team make. Utah didn't cause many of the turnovers but they took full advantage of them. I hang my head in shame as a BYU fan. Thank goodness I didn't go to this crappy game.
Then if I had to hear the asinine ESPN commentator say one more time "BYU's big guys are getting tired", I would want to throttle him. Doesn't Utah have equally big guys.
With Notre Dame winning, Boston choking and being a Dallas Cowboys fan, it has been a crappy couple of weekends in sports.
thepissedoffmusicaddict
BYU-Utah preview, Go Michigan State
Hello,
At 7:15MST tonight BYU and Utah will resume their annual battle, known as The Holy War. The game tonight is at Lavell Edwards Stadium in Provo, Utah. I always feel a bit conflicted when this game is played. On one hand I've been cheering for BYU as long as I've been following football. But on the other hand I'm a proud alumnus of Utah, I couldn't get into BYU because my grades weren't good enough. I didn't blame them for that, my poor grades were my fault. Although I will be conflicted, when it comes down to it I'll be cheering for BYU to destroy the Utes. Not so much against them, but against all the hype that the Pac 12 has received locally. The hype is so nauseating, especially as a football conference the Pac 12 is meh.
To show how fluid a person's allegiance can change, the three main decision makers on Utah's football coaching staffs all have extensive BYU ties. Kyle Whittingham used to play at BYU and his father spent several years there as well. Norm Chow was the offensive coordinator for several years at BYU, he was Lavell Edwards right hand man. (I can't wait to see his offensive packages when his former employer UCLA comes to town.) And defensive coordinator Kalani Sitake was a stud defender for BYU. He also has one of my favorite names to say.
ANYWAY tonight's game should be a classic. Although Utah is a member of the supposedly superior Pac 12 conference both teams should be evenly matched. The Cougars have home field advantage, but that hasn't really mattered for several years in this rivalry. They are two teams that have a lot of similarities. Both teams have defensive minded head coaches, Whittingham and Bronco Mendenhall. So no one should be very shocked that the defenses are the best parts of both teams. Both teams also have struggling quarterbacks that are under performing the hype they came into the season with.
Utah quarterback junior Jordan Wynn had off season shoulder surgery for his throwing arm. Earlier in the year, it was reported that he had fully recovered, many of his passes would indicate otherwise. His balls look like ducks and I'm not sure why he has had so few intercepted. And on BYU's side is heralded sophomore quarterback Jake Heaps. He has a fairly good offensive line in front of him and he usually throws the ball on a tight spiral. However I can't quite put my finger on what he and BYU's offense is missing. (Brandon Doman you are the man, but I wish you would stop calling that damn fade route, I don't remember that ever working at BYU. As Bill Simmons pointed out in his ESPN column yesterday, the fade has 4 results but only one of them is good.) The quarterback that wins the position battle, it's more likely their team will win the game.
Honestly BYU should be 2-0 coming off of victories over SEC team Ole Miss and Big 12 Texas on the road. BYU plays Pac 12 Utah today. After playing 2-0 UCF next Saturday in Provo, BYU will close out the season with a string of cream puffs. Their schedule from week 5 on is so bad, it's embarrassing. That is except for the always tough TCU team. Their match up against Oregon State doesn't look so exciting after OSU's two ugly losses. OSU gets a bye today, although their first two weeks should also count as byes. Oregon State then welcomes UCLA on the 24th in what may be the least exciting Pac 12 game of the season.
So anyway who is going to win today's game? I'm not going to make a prediction as I can see this game potentially playing out in so many ways. I think it will be a close game. If one of the teams offenses get in gear I would give that team the edge. But that doesn't mean you should discount the defenses either. Utah had 3 takeaways against USC last week. And the main reason BYU has a victory this season is because Kyle Van Noy forced a fumble which was returned for a touchdown. Also you never can discount the special teams, especially with the threat of rain for tonight's game. Both kickers have been shaky, not exactly inspiring a lot of confidence in me.
Other college football games of note. The big game of the day is #5 Florida State vs. #1 Oklahoma, the game is being played in Tallahassee. FSU is trying to regain their former preeminence in college football. They also have the revenge factor on their side, as Oklahoma handled them fairly easily last year. Also I'll be loudly cheering for #15 Michigan State to go into South Bend and knock off the Irish. A loss would send the Fighting Irish crashing to 0-3. I'm waiting for Brian Kelly to get so mad, his head will explode during a game. Future potential coaches of Notre Dame, start polishing up your resumes. I have a feeling there will be an opening in the next couple of years. Who's going to be their next alleged football savior?
Idaho goes on the road to play #9 Texas A&M, A&M you should be ashamed of yourself for playing such a wimpy team. What kind of school would schedule such a lightweight? Wait what's that BYU is playing Idaho later this year? Um. After UCF BYU should be giving out cream puffs to their fans entering their stadium.
I'm also predicting that the Pac 12 will suffer at least one or two more out of conference black eyes. The 2-0 Huskies go on the road to play 2-0 and # 11 Nebraska. By manhandling the Huskies today, the Pac 12 will continue to show how overrated their conference is. Another Pac 12 non-conference black eye for the Pac 12 is when Texas beats UCLA in LA. While Brian Kelly's job isn't even in trouble as of yet, it's only a matter of time before Rick Neuheisel gets fired. After losing today the Bruins will be in ruins and 1-2 on the season. I'm not sure their win over SJSU should even count as a victory, it's quite possible SJSU won't get a victory this season. (SJSU, yet another cream puff BYU will be playing today.) I'm looking forward to watching the Utes destroy the Bruins later on this season. The Ruins would be a better name for UCLA as that will be representative of the game they play against Utah. Will Neuheisel still be UCLA's coach when they visit Utah? Another potential final black eye for the Pac 12 is Colorado could lose to MWC Colorado St. today. If that game is on the MTN, don't expect to be able to see it, as I think the Mtn is now in about 12 homes. Not that many people will be making an effort to do so. It will be a good thing when the MWC and the MTN both dissolve in a couple of years.
themusicaddict
At 7:15MST tonight BYU and Utah will resume their annual battle, known as The Holy War. The game tonight is at Lavell Edwards Stadium in Provo, Utah. I always feel a bit conflicted when this game is played. On one hand I've been cheering for BYU as long as I've been following football. But on the other hand I'm a proud alumnus of Utah, I couldn't get into BYU because my grades weren't good enough. I didn't blame them for that, my poor grades were my fault. Although I will be conflicted, when it comes down to it I'll be cheering for BYU to destroy the Utes. Not so much against them, but against all the hype that the Pac 12 has received locally. The hype is so nauseating, especially as a football conference the Pac 12 is meh.
To show how fluid a person's allegiance can change, the three main decision makers on Utah's football coaching staffs all have extensive BYU ties. Kyle Whittingham used to play at BYU and his father spent several years there as well. Norm Chow was the offensive coordinator for several years at BYU, he was Lavell Edwards right hand man. (I can't wait to see his offensive packages when his former employer UCLA comes to town.) And defensive coordinator Kalani Sitake was a stud defender for BYU. He also has one of my favorite names to say.
ANYWAY tonight's game should be a classic. Although Utah is a member of the supposedly superior Pac 12 conference both teams should be evenly matched. The Cougars have home field advantage, but that hasn't really mattered for several years in this rivalry. They are two teams that have a lot of similarities. Both teams have defensive minded head coaches, Whittingham and Bronco Mendenhall. So no one should be very shocked that the defenses are the best parts of both teams. Both teams also have struggling quarterbacks that are under performing the hype they came into the season with.
Utah quarterback junior Jordan Wynn had off season shoulder surgery for his throwing arm. Earlier in the year, it was reported that he had fully recovered, many of his passes would indicate otherwise. His balls look like ducks and I'm not sure why he has had so few intercepted. And on BYU's side is heralded sophomore quarterback Jake Heaps. He has a fairly good offensive line in front of him and he usually throws the ball on a tight spiral. However I can't quite put my finger on what he and BYU's offense is missing. (Brandon Doman you are the man, but I wish you would stop calling that damn fade route, I don't remember that ever working at BYU. As Bill Simmons pointed out in his ESPN column yesterday, the fade has 4 results but only one of them is good.) The quarterback that wins the position battle, it's more likely their team will win the game.
Honestly BYU should be 2-0 coming off of victories over SEC team Ole Miss and Big 12 Texas on the road. BYU plays Pac 12 Utah today. After playing 2-0 UCF next Saturday in Provo, BYU will close out the season with a string of cream puffs. Their schedule from week 5 on is so bad, it's embarrassing. That is except for the always tough TCU team. Their match up against Oregon State doesn't look so exciting after OSU's two ugly losses. OSU gets a bye today, although their first two weeks should also count as byes. Oregon State then welcomes UCLA on the 24th in what may be the least exciting Pac 12 game of the season.
So anyway who is going to win today's game? I'm not going to make a prediction as I can see this game potentially playing out in so many ways. I think it will be a close game. If one of the teams offenses get in gear I would give that team the edge. But that doesn't mean you should discount the defenses either. Utah had 3 takeaways against USC last week. And the main reason BYU has a victory this season is because Kyle Van Noy forced a fumble which was returned for a touchdown. Also you never can discount the special teams, especially with the threat of rain for tonight's game. Both kickers have been shaky, not exactly inspiring a lot of confidence in me.
Other college football games of note. The big game of the day is #5 Florida State vs. #1 Oklahoma, the game is being played in Tallahassee. FSU is trying to regain their former preeminence in college football. They also have the revenge factor on their side, as Oklahoma handled them fairly easily last year. Also I'll be loudly cheering for #15 Michigan State to go into South Bend and knock off the Irish. A loss would send the Fighting Irish crashing to 0-3. I'm waiting for Brian Kelly to get so mad, his head will explode during a game. Future potential coaches of Notre Dame, start polishing up your resumes. I have a feeling there will be an opening in the next couple of years. Who's going to be their next alleged football savior?
Idaho goes on the road to play #9 Texas A&M, A&M you should be ashamed of yourself for playing such a wimpy team. What kind of school would schedule such a lightweight? Wait what's that BYU is playing Idaho later this year? Um. After UCF BYU should be giving out cream puffs to their fans entering their stadium.
I'm also predicting that the Pac 12 will suffer at least one or two more out of conference black eyes. The 2-0 Huskies go on the road to play 2-0 and # 11 Nebraska. By manhandling the Huskies today, the Pac 12 will continue to show how overrated their conference is. Another Pac 12 non-conference black eye for the Pac 12 is when Texas beats UCLA in LA. While Brian Kelly's job isn't even in trouble as of yet, it's only a matter of time before Rick Neuheisel gets fired. After losing today the Bruins will be in ruins and 1-2 on the season. I'm not sure their win over SJSU should even count as a victory, it's quite possible SJSU won't get a victory this season. (SJSU, yet another cream puff BYU will be playing today.) I'm looking forward to watching the Utes destroy the Bruins later on this season. The Ruins would be a better name for UCLA as that will be representative of the game they play against Utah. Will Neuheisel still be UCLA's coach when they visit Utah? Another potential final black eye for the Pac 12 is Colorado could lose to MWC Colorado St. today. If that game is on the MTN, don't expect to be able to see it, as I think the Mtn is now in about 12 homes. Not that many people will be making an effort to do so. It will be a good thing when the MWC and the MTN both dissolve in a couple of years.
themusicaddict
The Daniel Davis Band, Prospect Mali
Hello,
In my 17 years working at Dicks Market in Centerville, Utah I met many people and made many friends. Many of these people still have an influence on me even though I haven't worked there in 5 years. Anyway one of these people was Josh Terry, he and I shared a love of music. However whereas I have no musical talent, he seems to have an ample amount. Last night Josh Terry played the drums for both bands. He also took lead vocals one time, more on that later. I wish Josh and his bandmates the best but I was so jealous of him being able to get his rock star on last night.
Last night my oldest son and I went to the Layton (Utah) Amphitheatre to catch the twin billing of local bands Prospect Mali and the Daniel Davis Band. I saw them last year when they were using the name Groove Theorem. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by both acts, they were better than I expected.
Prospect Mali opened up the night, they played about 7 or 8 songs. They mixed originals and covers. Two of their originals include the songs "Something Deeper" and "Your Time Is Out". Both songs are available on their 2007 debut CD, "Something Deeper".
This is "Something Deeper" live:
This is "Your Time Is Out" live:
They also did a rocking cover of this song (man is this song depressing):
Then after only a couple of minutes the Daniel Davis Band took the stage and they also played 7 or 8 songs. As far as I can tell they only played covers. They like to play classic rock and blues songs. They are a tighter band than Prospect Mali and they have two excellent guitarists.
They started off their show with a sizzling cover of ZZ Top's "Sharp Dressed Man" and effortlessly moved to The Black Crowes "Hard To Handle". Other highlights include Josh Terry coming from behind the drum kit and singing Neil Diamond's "You Got To Me". That's not the rockingest song ever, but they rocked it out.
They also sang Tonic's "She" offering a free CD to anyone who could guess the artist. However no one knew. Tonic was one of the many disposable 90's bands, their biggest hit was the annoying "If You Could Only See".
In addition the band continued to wear their blues rock influences on their sleeves with a take on the Jimi Hendrix classic "Red House". (Yes I know many other people have performed the song as well, but to me it will always be a Jimi Hendrix song.) Anyway they've evolved as musicians and they played this song so much better last night. But they don't sound terrible here:
Here's a selection of their previous live performances. The crowd egged on the Daniel Davis Band for an encore last night and they covered this blistering Eric Clapton track:
I've requested a set list from the band, I'll add details if and as they come.
themusicaddict
In my 17 years working at Dicks Market in Centerville, Utah I met many people and made many friends. Many of these people still have an influence on me even though I haven't worked there in 5 years. Anyway one of these people was Josh Terry, he and I shared a love of music. However whereas I have no musical talent, he seems to have an ample amount. Last night Josh Terry played the drums for both bands. He also took lead vocals one time, more on that later. I wish Josh and his bandmates the best but I was so jealous of him being able to get his rock star on last night.
Last night my oldest son and I went to the Layton (Utah) Amphitheatre to catch the twin billing of local bands Prospect Mali and the Daniel Davis Band. I saw them last year when they were using the name Groove Theorem. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by both acts, they were better than I expected.
Prospect Mali opened up the night, they played about 7 or 8 songs. They mixed originals and covers. Two of their originals include the songs "Something Deeper" and "Your Time Is Out". Both songs are available on their 2007 debut CD, "Something Deeper".
This is "Something Deeper" live:
This is "Your Time Is Out" live:
They also did a rocking cover of this song (man is this song depressing):
Then after only a couple of minutes the Daniel Davis Band took the stage and they also played 7 or 8 songs. As far as I can tell they only played covers. They like to play classic rock and blues songs. They are a tighter band than Prospect Mali and they have two excellent guitarists.
They started off their show with a sizzling cover of ZZ Top's "Sharp Dressed Man" and effortlessly moved to The Black Crowes "Hard To Handle". Other highlights include Josh Terry coming from behind the drum kit and singing Neil Diamond's "You Got To Me". That's not the rockingest song ever, but they rocked it out.
They also sang Tonic's "She" offering a free CD to anyone who could guess the artist. However no one knew. Tonic was one of the many disposable 90's bands, their biggest hit was the annoying "If You Could Only See".
In addition the band continued to wear their blues rock influences on their sleeves with a take on the Jimi Hendrix classic "Red House". (Yes I know many other people have performed the song as well, but to me it will always be a Jimi Hendrix song.) Anyway they've evolved as musicians and they played this song so much better last night. But they don't sound terrible here:
Here's a selection of their previous live performances. The crowd egged on the Daniel Davis Band for an encore last night and they covered this blistering Eric Clapton track:
I've requested a set list from the band, I'll add details if and as they come.
themusicaddict
Friday, September 16, 2011
Dating For Old People!
Hello,
From the lovely Taylor Swift: "Wondering why we bother with love if it never lasts?" I've often wondered that myself.
I've been happily divorced for over a year now, although the process of getting divorced isn't happy. There really should be shirts that say "Survivors of the Divorce Club". With marital instability so high now, it might be the largest group in the world. Dating is bad enough, but post divorce dating is even worse. Not only do you have to work around each others schedule, but you also have to work around all the collective children's schedules. And I'm a Mormon, so the total kids sometimes can reach double figures! I know that even if I do find a woman I really like, every other weekend is reserved for my kids. Obviously spending time with my kids is the priority on those weekends.
Not only are there time constraints, but how many divorced people have a lot of money to date? I know I don't as over half my check goes to child support related things. Again that's fine and I'm not asking for anyone's sympathy. As veteran divorced people learn quickly some things are "It is what it is". Actually I'm quite glad to still have a significant financial role in my kids lives.
Al third factor is that everyone heals from divorce at different rates. Although I don't think people ever truly fully recover from divorce, there are some days I feel healed as I ever will be. Then on those days I feel I'm ready to move on. I'm ready to date! Unfortunately that weight of a divorce is never completely gone. And there are certain triggers that can bring all those emotions back. For instance, I talked with a girl and we seemed to have a lot in common. We agreed to go out. However when I officially asked her out she said she wasn't ready to date. And I thought why didn't you tell me that when we were in the getting to know you stage. That experience precipitated about a two month stretch where I completely stayed away from dating. Also sometimes dealings with an ex spouse, a spectacularly bad date or life's challenges can also destroy desire to date. Also while I do want to get married again, one of my biggest fears is what happens if we get divorced. That's always a consideration for people who've been previously divorced.
Okay so let's say you have the money, time and an actual desire to date. Now how do you meet people? For me thank goodness there are dating websites. Other than that I don't meet a lot of single people. There aren't any single people I'm interested in at my church or at my job. And I'm not one of those people that can walk up to someone and start a conversation. Also so many people don't wear rings showing they are married. So a lot of time that is crap shoot. I wouldn't want to start to talk to a hottie and then her 6'5 husband walks around the corner. My only hope would be is that he's a nice and understanding man. Because I know I couldn't beat him up or outrun him. So again thank goodness for dating websites.
However everyone goes on these sites with different expectations and goals. Some people want friends, some want marriage and some just want sex. So there begins a getting to know you process through chat, iming, forums and telephone calls. If all that goes well then you might actually might to get to meet the person in real life. Again this is where the time and money constraints come in. You've finally met, now was the other person honest on their profile. Most people I've met are honest, but of course their profile is usually them at their best. Okay even if both sides are honest, that opens up a whole other set of questions. Is there any attraction? Is there any chemistry? Do both parties really want to be there? etc, etc, etc
One of my dating rules is that first dates should only be about a hour long. That way if there is no chemistry no one is embarrassed and both sides can move on. Now while I think that is a good rule, I've never actually followed it:) I don't date very often due to money and time constraints. If I'm on a first date with someone I really like I would like to be with them for a few hours at least. But how about if she isn't into me and just being nice to not hurt my feelings. (BTW that's one of my dating pet peeves, if you don't like me just tell me. I'm 44 and I've survived a divorce. One girl that I barely know not digging me is okay.) For instance, this girl I took out the other day. She was cool, cute, smart and sassy and shares my religious values. I'm glad our date was longer than one hour. I've asked her out again (via e-mail how impersonal is that?) and now I'm doing the waiting thing. Will she say yes or no? Will she even respond? If she doesn't I feel that is more honest than trying not to hurt my feelings.
So the first date ends, what's the next step? Obviously it's a second date. Except that isn't so obvious. One person usually likes the other person more or had a more fun time. So when one person tries to initiate the second date, what's the best way to do that? Should they call the person, e-mail them. What if they've never talked on the phone before? Most potential mates I meet I've never talked to on the phone before we meet. Again it is what it is.
Even if the second date is agreed on, both sides probably still aren't on the same page. Then that process repeats over and over again until marriage or the relationship ends. Then the process starts over again. You are now probably poorer and more scarred by life. Also you are older and more hesitant to put yourself out there. Dating is the ultimate example of ramming your head against the wall.
Now that I've scared and scarred you here are some great songs!
This is Daughtry's new song "Renegade". When I first read about it, the tag line was something like the new song from Daughtry's third CD. I was so hoping it was a new song...
and I was so glad it wasn't a remake of this song. This is also a good song. I just think if you advertise a song as new, it shouldn't be a remake of a 30 year old song. Although this song kicks butt too. Can you believe Styx is still touring, are they rolled out on their wheelchairs now?
This video is from 1983, when they were much younger and only using walkers.
Jethro Tull's "Aqualung":
I think these guys were one of the least appreciated groups in country music:
themusicaddict
From the lovely Taylor Swift: "Wondering why we bother with love if it never lasts?" I've often wondered that myself.
I've been happily divorced for over a year now, although the process of getting divorced isn't happy. There really should be shirts that say "Survivors of the Divorce Club". With marital instability so high now, it might be the largest group in the world. Dating is bad enough, but post divorce dating is even worse. Not only do you have to work around each others schedule, but you also have to work around all the collective children's schedules. And I'm a Mormon, so the total kids sometimes can reach double figures! I know that even if I do find a woman I really like, every other weekend is reserved for my kids. Obviously spending time with my kids is the priority on those weekends.
Not only are there time constraints, but how many divorced people have a lot of money to date? I know I don't as over half my check goes to child support related things. Again that's fine and I'm not asking for anyone's sympathy. As veteran divorced people learn quickly some things are "It is what it is". Actually I'm quite glad to still have a significant financial role in my kids lives.
Al third factor is that everyone heals from divorce at different rates. Although I don't think people ever truly fully recover from divorce, there are some days I feel healed as I ever will be. Then on those days I feel I'm ready to move on. I'm ready to date! Unfortunately that weight of a divorce is never completely gone. And there are certain triggers that can bring all those emotions back. For instance, I talked with a girl and we seemed to have a lot in common. We agreed to go out. However when I officially asked her out she said she wasn't ready to date. And I thought why didn't you tell me that when we were in the getting to know you stage. That experience precipitated about a two month stretch where I completely stayed away from dating. Also sometimes dealings with an ex spouse, a spectacularly bad date or life's challenges can also destroy desire to date. Also while I do want to get married again, one of my biggest fears is what happens if we get divorced. That's always a consideration for people who've been previously divorced.
Okay so let's say you have the money, time and an actual desire to date. Now how do you meet people? For me thank goodness there are dating websites. Other than that I don't meet a lot of single people. There aren't any single people I'm interested in at my church or at my job. And I'm not one of those people that can walk up to someone and start a conversation. Also so many people don't wear rings showing they are married. So a lot of time that is crap shoot. I wouldn't want to start to talk to a hottie and then her 6'5 husband walks around the corner. My only hope would be is that he's a nice and understanding man. Because I know I couldn't beat him up or outrun him. So again thank goodness for dating websites.
However everyone goes on these sites with different expectations and goals. Some people want friends, some want marriage and some just want sex. So there begins a getting to know you process through chat, iming, forums and telephone calls. If all that goes well then you might actually might to get to meet the person in real life. Again this is where the time and money constraints come in. You've finally met, now was the other person honest on their profile. Most people I've met are honest, but of course their profile is usually them at their best. Okay even if both sides are honest, that opens up a whole other set of questions. Is there any attraction? Is there any chemistry? Do both parties really want to be there? etc, etc, etc
One of my dating rules is that first dates should only be about a hour long. That way if there is no chemistry no one is embarrassed and both sides can move on. Now while I think that is a good rule, I've never actually followed it:) I don't date very often due to money and time constraints. If I'm on a first date with someone I really like I would like to be with them for a few hours at least. But how about if she isn't into me and just being nice to not hurt my feelings. (BTW that's one of my dating pet peeves, if you don't like me just tell me. I'm 44 and I've survived a divorce. One girl that I barely know not digging me is okay.) For instance, this girl I took out the other day. She was cool, cute, smart and sassy and shares my religious values. I'm glad our date was longer than one hour. I've asked her out again (via e-mail how impersonal is that?) and now I'm doing the waiting thing. Will she say yes or no? Will she even respond? If she doesn't I feel that is more honest than trying not to hurt my feelings.
So the first date ends, what's the next step? Obviously it's a second date. Except that isn't so obvious. One person usually likes the other person more or had a more fun time. So when one person tries to initiate the second date, what's the best way to do that? Should they call the person, e-mail them. What if they've never talked on the phone before? Most potential mates I meet I've never talked to on the phone before we meet. Again it is what it is.
Even if the second date is agreed on, both sides probably still aren't on the same page. Then that process repeats over and over again until marriage or the relationship ends. Then the process starts over again. You are now probably poorer and more scarred by life. Also you are older and more hesitant to put yourself out there. Dating is the ultimate example of ramming your head against the wall.
Now that I've scared and scarred you here are some great songs!
This is Daughtry's new song "Renegade". When I first read about it, the tag line was something like the new song from Daughtry's third CD. I was so hoping it was a new song...
and I was so glad it wasn't a remake of this song. This is also a good song. I just think if you advertise a song as new, it shouldn't be a remake of a 30 year old song. Although this song kicks butt too. Can you believe Styx is still touring, are they rolled out on their wheelchairs now?
This video is from 1983, when they were much younger and only using walkers.
Jethro Tull's "Aqualung":
I think these guys were one of the least appreciated groups in country music:
themusicaddict
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Why are "Don't" songs so good?
Hello,
I was researching something on my iTunes today and I noticed that many songs with the word "don't" in the title are great. That's especially true with songs that start with the word "Don't". Do you have an explanation for this, I certainly don't :) I think Billy Joel says it best "Don't Ask Me Why". Here's a selection of some great don't songs:
I didn't agree so much with Greg Kihn when this song first came out, but I agree with him today. He's so right that "They Don't Write Them Like That Anymore".
One of the most heartbreaking songs of all time is a don't song, which I guess makes sense. This is Gwen Stefani's song of heart break:
But on the opposite side is a love and sex song that Michael Jackson sings. I think I'm just going to start referring to Michael Jackson as the legend. Here's one of the legend's early songs. This is such a great song and this was before Michael Jackson hit his songwriting peek. Over 43 million plays speaks for itself. Rest in peace Michael.
This next video only has over 23,000 plays. Next let's go really old school with Blue Oyster Cult:
This song might not be up the quality of the other "don't" songs, but this is still a great song. I don't know why but I've really been into Morrissey lately as a solo artist. As for his more famous band, I'm always into them.
This might be my favorite of all the don't songs. I love the Peas, except for when they play the Super Bowl halftime:
Fergie liked the don't craze so much, she made her own don't song. Again Fergie it's time to make another amazing solo CD. She has an amazing voice.
One of my favorite R.E.M. songs:
One of the most beautiful "don't" songs from our friend Andrew Lloyd Webber:
Even fake artists jumped in on the don't craze, here's Milli Vanilli. This is early 90's so please forgive them for how corny this video is now. I think Villi Manilli's "Girl You Know It's True" is the best CD ever made by a fake artist. I love at least 7 or 8 songs on their debut CD. This is one of my favorite of their songs:
I love the above video for so many things. If this video was remade with basically the same storyline now, the girl would be longingly looking at a computer waiting for a new e-mail to pop up. Now it isn't like the old days when you actually had to call someone to ask them out!
That doesn't even capture all the great don't songs that are out there. Let's play a game, I'm going to name an artist and you name the song. If you don't know the answer, google it. Tom Petty? ELO? Muddy Waters? B.B. King? (I got to give shout outs to the Blues masters when I can.) Elvis Presley? Bobby Brown? Guns N' Roses? Crowded House? Kenny Loggins? Charley Pride? Elton John and Kiki Dee? Motley Crue? Styx? Cinderella? James Taylor? Pink and Richard Marx, both of which have great don't songs.
Two more don't songs. This may be the greatest rap song of all-time:
And a more obscure country song by Danielle Peck:
Don't (there's that word again) worry, my next blog won't be built around songs with the word badonkadonk in the title.
themusicaddict
I was researching something on my iTunes today and I noticed that many songs with the word "don't" in the title are great. That's especially true with songs that start with the word "Don't". Do you have an explanation for this, I certainly don't :) I think Billy Joel says it best "Don't Ask Me Why". Here's a selection of some great don't songs:
I didn't agree so much with Greg Kihn when this song first came out, but I agree with him today. He's so right that "They Don't Write Them Like That Anymore".
One of the most heartbreaking songs of all time is a don't song, which I guess makes sense. This is Gwen Stefani's song of heart break:
But on the opposite side is a love and sex song that Michael Jackson sings. I think I'm just going to start referring to Michael Jackson as the legend. Here's one of the legend's early songs. This is such a great song and this was before Michael Jackson hit his songwriting peek. Over 43 million plays speaks for itself. Rest in peace Michael.
This next video only has over 23,000 plays. Next let's go really old school with Blue Oyster Cult:
This song might not be up the quality of the other "don't" songs, but this is still a great song. I don't know why but I've really been into Morrissey lately as a solo artist. As for his more famous band, I'm always into them.
This might be my favorite of all the don't songs. I love the Peas, except for when they play the Super Bowl halftime:
Fergie liked the don't craze so much, she made her own don't song. Again Fergie it's time to make another amazing solo CD. She has an amazing voice.
One of my favorite R.E.M. songs:
One of the most beautiful "don't" songs from our friend Andrew Lloyd Webber:
Even fake artists jumped in on the don't craze, here's Milli Vanilli. This is early 90's so please forgive them for how corny this video is now. I think Villi Manilli's "Girl You Know It's True" is the best CD ever made by a fake artist. I love at least 7 or 8 songs on their debut CD. This is one of my favorite of their songs:
I love the above video for so many things. If this video was remade with basically the same storyline now, the girl would be longingly looking at a computer waiting for a new e-mail to pop up. Now it isn't like the old days when you actually had to call someone to ask them out!
That doesn't even capture all the great don't songs that are out there. Let's play a game, I'm going to name an artist and you name the song. If you don't know the answer, google it. Tom Petty? ELO? Muddy Waters? B.B. King? (I got to give shout outs to the Blues masters when I can.) Elvis Presley? Bobby Brown? Guns N' Roses? Crowded House? Kenny Loggins? Charley Pride? Elton John and Kiki Dee? Motley Crue? Styx? Cinderella? James Taylor? Pink and Richard Marx, both of which have great don't songs.
Two more don't songs. This may be the greatest rap song of all-time:
And a more obscure country song by Danielle Peck:
Don't (there's that word again) worry, my next blog won't be built around songs with the word badonkadonk in the title.
themusicaddict
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