I'm trying to catch up on some things I have been told about or directed to.

Here is a month-old snippet from Cleveland Magazine on the guy we call "Pink Hat". Mind you, I am not a fan. He has no philosophy about wearing hats, except "Look at me! I'm an Attention Whore!"

Catching up with Guy Lafleur. His son is in trouble, but they really love Guy in Quebec.

Tim Goodman talks about whittling his satellite channels to a workable number. He got it down to 284.

We all know Barack Obama bowled a 37. But I did not know that his bowling partner, Sen. Bob Casey, threw a 71. How did he escape scrutiny?

The Collegiate Nationals Eating Champion is a Canadian. Smoked meat was not on the menu.

Mick Jones wrote a tune called "Don't Tase Me, Bro". I hope he puts those "Whoo!"s in there like "The Globe".

Meal of Links

Chef Ramsay stops yelling long enough to cook the perfect scrambled eggs. Hey, where's the bacon fat?

TV's Best 50 Comedies. "Green Acres" yes, "Beverly Hillbillies" no? Idiots.

David Blaine holds his breath again for a try at a world record. This time, he made it! Unfortunately, he didn't explode.

Exercise Yard

The Cavs suffered through another game they could not close at home and lose to the Wizards. The fact remains, bravado aside, Washington has now played the Cavs tough in Games 1 and 5 here, and Game 4 there, winning only one of those games. Toss the blowouts. If they somehow win at Washington on Friday, things will get dicey for the return trip on Sunday. Poor shooting and rebounding killed the Cavs tonight.

Visitor

15 Across: Onetime Astaire partner (3 letters) Answer: Mop (I think they meant Gene Kelly)

As the Rev. Jeremiah Wright continues his spotlight tour, Obama finally cuts him off. If you get a chance, check out the extended versions of some of Wright's appearances over the last several days. The guy has one massive ego and is telling everyone he isn't going anywhere.

Meal of Links

Sometimes these lists I run across are really good for argument's sake, while some miss the boat entirely. I think I have a couple of examples today. This list on the Worst Candy of All Time duplicates my own personal hate list, it's scary.

Conversely, this list is sorta lame. It's the best opening credits of '80s action shows. I think there were 25, so most of them made the final cut.

If you dislike "Idol", Example A is here. Ratings are down this year, but it's still a popular show.

Those Miley Cyrus photos have caused quite the stir. I think everyone sees their individual franchises threatened. But interesting theories abound on why she shot them in the first place.

Thank goodness. Roger Waters found his inflatable pig. I've seen the remote-controlled pig. I like that pig.

Exercise Yard

Lee Elia's rant, 25 years later. Still the classic blowup of any manager or coach ever.

Visitor

25 Across: Ed and Mel of baseball (4 letters) Answer: Otts (Fact: Ed Ott can sign an autograph 3 times faster than Asdrubal Cabrera.)

I was at yesterday's Yankees-Indians game and the Tribe got a 9th-inning win to make it two in a row over New York. I may be missing something, but I saw the words "playoff atmosphere" and "September" being used. Puh-leeze. I understand this is the Yanks only visit, but if you were there, that atmosphere was not even close to those descriptions. Of course, the food I had after the game (Salisbury Steak) at Sokolowski's was definitely post-season caliber.

If you look at the game objectively (I know, for some, that's a chore), the Indians really hit in only two innings, the 2nd and the 9th. Their lack of baserunners was so apparent, that when Grady Sizemore led off the 7th with a single, I insisted to my Dad that he had to steal. Many in the crowd were mumbling the same thing. Finally, after two were out, he was caught stealing, but it was absolutely worth the risk, due to frozen bats.

As for pitching, I thought Jeremy Sowers looked pretty good, before giving out in the 6th inning. He scattered a lot of hits, but the Yanks weren't scoring...until Borowski-Lite, Jensen Lewis, came in. Seems to be giving up the big hit this year, this Mr. Lewis, and Jorge Posada obliged with a line drive triple to left that knocked in three. David Delucci dove for it, but he missed. Uh-oh, tie game.

And Eric Wedge got tossed on a really subpar call at second base. Robinson Cano fumbled a relay at second and there were pretty clear doubts as to whether his foot was on the bag, while simultaneously juggling the ball. He got a big pop from the fans on his departure, which was kind of strange. He's not the most loved guy around here. Oh, I guess he is, as an upcoming giveaway is an Eric Wedge t-shirt. Ay carumba!

Anyhow, a big Domo Arigato to Masa Kobayashi who looked good in the 8th and 9th for the win. He pitches fast and has some pop. I noticed in the game notes, the Indians are using him more now that the weather is warmer. Someone may want to remind the front office of our zip code. I also noticed Masa was not wearing a jacket in the dugout between innings. I need to make a note of that and see if it's SOP with him.

Regarding "playoff atmosphere", there were only 35,000 in attendance. Hard to figure. Nice day, Yankees in town, national TV (again today on TBS), but the NFL has its claws in so many sports fans, the Draft may have actually cut into attendance. Rather tame lot yesterday, with towel waving kept to a minimum, because of the lack of action. No wave though. After the 4-3 victory, we'll see how the Indians continue, as this was their best week of results this season.

Only four hits in today's 1-0 loss, so it continues.

Meal of Links

OK, Carly was voted off of "Idol" because she sang "Jesus Christ Superstar"? Huh? Did anyone sing "I Don't Know How To Love Him"? That may have been a better choice because Jesus wasn't in the title. Either that, or the conspiracy theorists have way too much time on their hands.

Another musical primer, this one on Elvis Costello, someone I know a bit about. I was so obsessed with E back in the day, I wore out all of his records. I even got to the point of memorizing lyrics to some of his obscurities like "Clean Money", "But they won't take my love for tender...". Anyhow, many terrific choices amongst the ones put up for listening.

"Pump It Up" and "Oliver's Army" need to be in the discussion and they're in with some other good early selections. Good to see "Man Out Of Time" represented, a wonderful song that was massively underplayed, then and now. "B Movie" from "Get Happy" is an interesting pick (great bassline), but "I Can't Stand Up For Falling Down" remains my favorite from that record. Excellent selection with "Lovers Walk". "13 Steps Lead Down", very inspired stuff and listen how everyone gets involved musically on the track. Then it's one of my Costello favorites. I would put up "Shipbuilding" against any song ever written. It's that good. "With all the will in the world. Diving for dear life. When we could be diving for pearls." Who doesn't wish they could have been the one who wrote that? And over Chet Baker's trumpet, my God, what a tune! Nice tip of the hat to "Taking Liberties" ("Clean Money" is on that album) with the solo version of "Hoover Factory" a nice surprise. Listen to the crowd, that's a different time, eh? No "We love you"s, whistles, or anything else during the song. The five albums they choose at the end are the ones you need to own, although "My Aim Is True" could be added. As always, the comments are pretty smart.

I thought this was cool. Early color (or colour) photos of Britain. A much simpler time, it seems.

There's that phrase again. "Global Food Crisis".

Who kicked ass at Coachella, thus far? Why, it was The Raconteurs on Friday,















and Prince on Saturday. Prince even covered Radiohead by playing "Creep". Check out the Ginobili/Nash or Nash/Kidd commercials for the NBA playoffs. That's "House of Cards" by Radiohead in the background.

John McCain's foreign policy. I am beginning to wonder if he's gone bats. The media's free pass with McCain needs to stop. And soon, I might add. Hopefully, these things are not ignored and will not be forgotten by the time of the presidential campaign.

50 Ways to Cook Your Bacon. Make a new plan, Stan.

"Smoke On The Water" (The Japanese Version)



Exercise Yard

Who knows how the Browns draft will work out? Two fourth-rounders with Beau (not Bing) Bell about to become the most scrutinized fourth-round pick ever, and a couple of sixth-rounders and a seventh-rounder. Truly a crapshoot and hopefully not a crapfest. We also gave up a third and fifth-rounder next year. Gee, we are getting awfully cocky in giving up picks.

Not much to say about the Cavs win today. Only that I yelled at Paul's TV on Delonte's West's game-winner, "Why is LeBron passing it that guy...who made the shot...what a great decision."

Visitor

None, it's NFL Draft Sunday (well, at least the Browns start today).

I think I need to declare this...I love vidalia onions.

I'm taking my Dad to the Yankee game on Saturday, which led to this exchange:

Him: "Are we sitting next to the Steinbrenners?"
Me: "No. I think we're sitting next to the David Brenners."

But the main thing today is I'm calling bullshit on the cancellation of this evening's Alicia Keys concert at the Bart. How do I know this? A couple of weeks ago, a friend of mine expressed interest in going to see this show. Of course, my interest level was not that high and I think it was actually zero. Mainly, because I thought the concert had been announced for a while and the seat selection would be awful. Several days later, on a whim, I thought I'd check. To my amazement, you could get 5th row on the floor ($97) and tickets in the first sections from the stage in the lower level (I think these were in the $57-$67 range). So, you can see, she wasn't selling ANY tickets. Don't know if it's price, opening acts, her statements that "Gangsta rap was a government invention" or what. Jordin Sparks was one of the openers, but had to bail on illness, as well.

Imagine my non-surprise then, when I saw in the morning paper, Keys had cancelled her show in Pittsburgh last night and in Cleveland tonight. However, her people claimed she had "swollen vocal cords". That is quite the excuse for someone who just started their tour on Saturday! Of course, you can't say, well there was no interest. But the proof that she didn't sell many tickets was in a statement from her own website which read "Ticket holders in both cities may contact the respective venues for instructions and fans with tickets for the Cleveland concert will be able to have them honored at the upcoming show in Columbus, OH".

I have never seen that in the history of attending shows locally. If there is trouble selling tickets, they usually look for a smaller venue. It's rare, but it does happen. Second of all, she's admitting they haven't sold that many tickets in Columbus, because they can also accommodate the crowd from Cleveland or they sold virtually no tickets in Cleveland and can easily squeeze those folks into Columbus. Now, I must say, that's a pretty long drive on short notice to get nowhere near the seat you had locally, so I'd probably opt for the refund and watch the NFL Draft or something.

I don't know why that irked me, because I wasn't going. Hell, I'm watching the Cavs tonight anyway, but that reeked of bullshit so bad, I had to say something.

Meal of Links

If Sam's Club is rationing rice purchases, is it time to panic? Uh, no. But wouldn't that be about a 52-pound size there or at Costco anyhow? I don't buy a lot of it, but I guess rice prices are going through the roof.

Matt Taibbi visits an "Encounter Weekend" sponsored by John Hagee's church. You get some behind-the-scenes info and one funny made up story.

I don't watch "Idol" and even I was shocked. Aw, two guys in the final anyway.

Have you heard about Hard Rock Park? Get Freddy "Boom Boom" Cannon and start writing a song. OK, when I opened up the Entertainment Schedule, I was secretly hoping Eddie Money was on it, you know, for grins. He's not scheduled. Yet. But George Clinton is!

It's Coachella this weekend and you get video via the AT&T Blue Room. The Raconteurs get a late Friday night viewing.

Laurie Anderson finally got married. To Lou Reed.

A long, but fascinating read about elevators. Sometimes, a rather mundane topic intrigues.

Exercise Yard

A profile on Manny Ramirez. I still love Manny and he remains the best hitter I've seen.

Visitor

31 Across: Claudius' grandnephew (4 letters) Answer: Nero

Amidst all of the Hack-a-Shaq, the Indians finding some offense and catching some EPL Fan Zone, I am watching the results of the Pennsylvania primary. Once again, toss the polling. I saw an MSNBC poll early on with Clinton having a 46-43% margin. I'm not sure what that means, except the Undecided skew toward Clinton. It's becoming fairly obvious, those that consider themselves "late deciders" go for Clinton. I'm reading "late deciders" as "those who can't vote for a black president". So the vote totals climb toward that magic 10% margin.

83% polled on MSNBC said race wasn't important. I'm not sure most of white America would go on the record honestly about that, in person or over the phone. I think most of those polled think that somehow it'll catch up with them if they go negative on that question. It just bugs me, when the country is ripe for change, we seem to want status quo. So, it's off to Indiana and North Carolina, where those folks could not have imagined the spotlight turns to them. And, unlike Poland, don't forget about Guam before them.

And one other thing. Why so long for beginning results to trickle in and coincidentally, no network willing to call the race early either way. Seems strange for a 10% result, there was so much drama at the start of everyone's coverage.

Meal of Links

16 burning TV questions. Hey, a "Twin Peaks" question (which, as always, is WTF?), and "Sledge Hammer" gets a mention.

Bruce Campbell sits for a chat. He remains one of my favorites.

The real story about gas prices. The last refinery built in the U.S. was in 1976. That seems to be a contributing factor.

Exercise Yard

S. and I went to the Cavs game last night. Hey, I got my "Raisinets" shirt, this time sponsored by FirstMerit. Everything you read or saw about the game was true. Certainly the best game since the big trade and LeBron is certainly making a mess out of the Wizards, who proved they aren't very good. Be prepared for the "whiteout" for Game 3. Doesn't matter much, because of the blowout in Game 2. BTW, the audio from that Alltel commercial, you know "Wizard!", is being played quite a bit during the game and it remains funny.

Visitor

26 Down: "The Dresser" director Peter (5 letters) Answer: Yates

I wish someone could do a timeline of Jim Belushi's weekend. He was in Vegas for the Calzaghe-Hopkins fight last night (and I thought I espied Catherine Zeta-Jones there, but wasn't sure. I guess it was her.),






















then he was at the Laker game this afternoon with Spider-Man.
















Dude!

And, no, I am not stalking him. I am just observing him from afar during various sporting events.

Meal of Links

Hey, a new premium channel! Since I have Time Warner Cable, I'll bet I won't get it.

The words "coming global food crisis" are being uttered more often. Take your pick out of biofuels, increased oil prices, cost of transport. It shows the connection between energy and food in this economy.

A chat with Eddie Izzard. Wiki plays a role on his new tour.

Combat global warming with bamboo. Panda not included.

It's the new Obama ad for PA:



Exercise Yard

Baseball is up to 103 exemptions for ADD. Let's see if this number continues to grow or if baseball places this in the category of performance-enhancing drugs.

Visitor

None, it's a 4/20 Sunday.

I was at the Polkaless Polka Happy Hour last night at the Happy Dog. But, as usual, the food was good. I opted for the pork chops and they are always quite tasty.

But today was chock full o'stuff to do. I started this morning by heading over to the Farmers Market at Crocker Park. Always a good way to finally say adios to winter. It's not very big, but they have some good things out there. And they moved it from the Trader Joe's lot closer to that parking garage. Some syrup purveyors, bread bakers, some pastry types and some potted plants, of course. Someone was selling mushrooms, and there were some meat sellers there, too. I picked up some breakfast sausages from Chef's Choice Meats. He had a nice selection of sausages, including andouille and chorizo, and brats. I got some raspberry squares from a woman who also had really good kolatchy that I sampled. I like those, except for the nut and prune. And I think I found a new cheese pusher, Ohio Farm Direct. I tried a cheddar that was awesome, and then sampled a sharp cheddar that knocked me out even more, so I grabbed that.

Meal of Links

Then it was back home to take in Game One of the Cavs-Wizards series. Just a few observations:

I hope Washington coach Eddie Jordan gets to say, "You gotta harvest your nuts right now, man."

Three words: "Towel waving. Ugh!" There is not a building big enough if they held Dollar Hot Dog Wrapped in Towel, Shooting Fireworks Night in this town.

Why do the Cavs always get that first Saturday game to kick off everything? I think this is three years running.

Were those "Rise Up" or Raisinets t-shirts that Key Bank sponsored? Looks the same to me.

















Wally Szczerbiak cannot defend anyone.

Hey, the WNBA tips off May 17th!

I'm a fanboy for LeBron, but that dunk he had in the second quarter on a toss from Daniel Gibson may have been his best one ever. Incredible display of flexibility and power. Awesome.

Nice scrap at the end of the first half. But if you're gonna get a technical, make it count on a hard foul or something, not bodies getting tangled up.

Can't say it enough, Varejao and Wallace should not be on the floor at the same time. Really limits your offensive options.

Day after the trade was made, some clown sat next to me at the Winking Lizard in Lakewood and we debated if it would work. This guy insisted the opponent would not get any layups against us, as I tried to gently indicate this is not the Ben Wallace of three years ago. I like a good debate as much as anyone, but that guy needs to check a shot chart.

Sharon Reed has nice seats behind the Cavs bench.

How can you not like Gilbert Arenas? The guy is funny ("chrome is the new white") and he can shoot. His long-range three at the end of the first quarter was only about a 40-footer.

Cavs are really shooting bad through three quarters, but are making hay at the line.

Antawn Jamison came to play for the Wizards. Very active on both ends. But had a disastrous stretch in the final five minutes where he missed four shots, keeping the Cavs in it, allowing LeBron to hit two shots to grab the lead.

As the Cavs made a slight run at the start of the fourth quarter, someone actually had a sign, "Zeveland 11". Bah!

I guess all of those 4th quarter comebacks helped the Cavs win today or perhaps, the Wizards are not that good. That was a winnable game for Washington and they didn't seal the deal.

At the end of the Cavs game., I hustled over to Cinemark to catch "Shine A Light". This is the Rolling Stones concert filmed by Martin Scorsese. Geez, for the first 10 minutes, I thought this movie was about Marty. This was filmed at a benefit that Michael Phillip Jagger and the boys did for the Clinton Foundation at the Beacon Theatre in NYC. I dunno, this was a pretty so-so effort. I thought the actual filming had way too many cuts between the participants. And not a lot of old interviews interspersed. Some, but not really too many. Jagger is OK these days (although he was great on "Knights of Prosperity"), but he does border on self-parody. But for some reason, I find Keith Richards very compelling.

He'll probably outlive us all, but as he mentions in the film, he really loves what he's doing. And no matter how many times he says, "It's good to see you tonight. Hey, it's good to see anybody." or whatever variation he does, it makes me smile. Keith gets to sing lead on a couple of tunes, the first being "You Got The Silver": "You got my heart, you got my soul. You got the silver, you got the gold. You got the diamonds from the mine. Well that's all right, it'll buy some time" and it's a nice little ditty. But when he finishes he gets a big grin on his face and says, "Cool, huh?". That about sums it up, he gets a kick out of being on stage. Still.

Special guests include Jack White (billed as Jack White III), Buddy Guy and Christina Aguilera. Jack performs "Loving Cup" with acoustic guitars everywhere. He has this grin that appears to be, "Gee, I'm singin' next to Mick Jagger." The great Buddy Guy plays on "Champagne and Reefer". Keith gives him his guitar after this effort and tells him to keep it, it's his. Mick refers to him as "Buddy Mother Fuckin' Guy", but the F-word is bleeped out in this movie. Very strange. Aguilera performs on "Live With Me", which is part of the encore and she can sing, even with Mick grinding on her.

Setlist:

"Jumpin' Jack Flash"
"Shattered"-Virtually unrecognizable, an awful version.
"She Was Hot"
"All Down the Line"
"Loving Cup"(with Jack White)
"As Tears Go By"-Richards beautifully on acoustic.
"Some Girls"
"Just My Imagination"
"Far Away Eyes"
"Champagne & Reefer"(with Buddy Guy)-Buddy kicks major ass on this one.
"Tumbling Dice"
"You Got the Silver"-Lead vocal by Richards, my personal highlight.
"Connection"-Lead vocal by Keith Richards
"Sympathy for the Devil"-Boy, this was a tired version.
"Live with Me"(with Christina Aguilera)
"Start Me Up"
"Brown Sugar"
"(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction"-I kept thinking of Devo's version.

I'd wait for cable on this one and probably skip the soundtrack, too.

I was mentioning food earlier. I don't eat a lot of microwave popcorn, but have you tried Cousin Willie's Popcorn? Marc's has this and I don't know who Cousin Willie is, but the man makes pretty strong popcorn. I opted for the Theater Butter kind and I liked it and it's got a good price.

Good Presidents hang out with the Rolling Stones. Dumb ones go on "Deal or No Deal" on Monday.

The Top Deserted Beaches in the world. Sorry, Mentor Headlands didn't make it.

HBO needs a new hit. Badly.

Exercise Yard

I finally closed the day with some boxing on HBO. The highly anticipated Joe Calzaghe-Bernard Hopkins fight at Light Heavyweight. This actually brought out celebrities. I spotted Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Simon Cowell, Jeremy Piven and Jim Belushi. Hell, even Tom Jones sang the Welsh national anthem. Someone named Ray J. did the honors for America. But it would be a clash of styles and potentially, heads. Calzaghe comes in, Hopkins is the best counterpuncher ever. Both guys getting up there in years. Joe is 36, the Executioner is (gulp!) 43.

Early on, the clash of styles made it difficult to score. Hopkins got lucky and put an off-balance Calzaghe down in Round 1 to get a quick 10-8 round. But after the third round, it was clearly Calzaghe's bout. Not a lot of power, but he was the busier of the two fighters, as Hopkins was throwing a measly amount of counterpunches.

Calzaghe hit Hopkins low twice. Once early and once in the 10th, where it looked like a tap, but Hopkins took almost the entire five minutes to recover. It may have been a cagey move, because he did looked fired up for the rest of the round, but maybe an indicator the gas tank was on E. Hopkins tried it again in the 11th, but no one actually saw it and the ref urged Hopkins to continue, he wasn't buying it.

This led to one of the best trainer/boxer exchanges I've heard in a while. Joe's trainer is his Dad, Enzo, whose language might be considered a bit salty. Joe decided to duke it out with Hopkins after the faux low blow. After the round:

Enzo: "Why the fuck did you do that?"
Joe:' "Cause he cheated me!"
Enzo: "Fuck, he cheated! My ass! Don' worry about cheatin', what he's doin', what the fuck are you doin'? You should have done that a long time ago. That's all you gotta do. Why wait til Round 11?"

Well, it went to the cards and surprisingly it was a split decision to Calzaghe. Not bad for his first trip to fight in the States.

Visitor

62 Across: Edmund Randolph was the first in 1789 (15 letters) Answer: Attorney General

Looks like Joe Borowski's replacement has arrived, it's...

Big Popi
































A couple of days ago, a topic of discussion was do you call the Pope "Your Holiness"
or "Your Eminence"? I always liked Eminence or perhaps Padre, but you're supposed to call him "Your Holiness" . When he was a Cardinal, you called him "Your Eminence". Bishops get the "Your Excellency" treatment. Just don't call them late for dinner.

Meal of Links

Ryan Adams posts interesting things.

I did not watch last night's Democratic debate in Pennsylvania. Gee, if you're still undecided, knock yourself out. But was it that bad?

Common myths and misconceptions about evolution. There are 24, so take your time.

Exercise Yard

Heroin addicts get free tickets to EPL matches. Maybe the Browns could...naw.

Visitor

5 Down: Lead singer in the band Heart (9 letters) Answer: Ann Wilson

It's probably too soon to panic regarding the Indians, but certainly not too early to become a bit concerned about how they have been playing. Gale and I happened to be there for Dollar Dog Night against the Red Sox and to see it up close and then continue tonight against Detroit has me wondering how they can correct some things.

Starting Pitching:

C.C. has been awful and got pounded again by the Tigers today, who have found their hitting stroke after a bad start. Paul Byrd was a train wreck until last night's start. Fausto Carmona has had the A's lay off that sinker and walk a lot in two starts against them. Cliff Lee looks in fine form, as does Jake Westbrook. Last year, the starting five had an uncanny ability, especially late in the season, to string together some nice winning streaks and kept winning series after series. This year, it's been very inconsistent.

Relief Pitching:

Thank God, Joe Borowski was hurt. If they had found nothing wrong with him, I'm not sure how useful he could be. Of course, this may be a phantom injury to pull him aside and work on things, but he was horrible. Sure, the guy was a roller coaster, but statwise, he had many 1-2-3 innings last year for saves, more than people realize. It will be tough to match his 45-save total from last year.

My concern here is there seems to be no pattern as to who enters the game. Rafael Perez, Rafael Betancourt, Jensen Lewis have appeared in innings 7 through 9, seemingly on a random basis. Wedgie also has started the annoying habit of bringing back a reliever to pitch a second inning. On many occasions this year, they have been nicked for runs in that second inning. It happened again with Perez and Lewis last night. Kobayashi? Did we get sold a bill of goods with this guy? The all-time Japanese saves leader, who on signing day, was regarded as a possible replacement for Borowski, if he slipped. This guy can't even get into games that are on the line, because he is still adjusting to AL batting? That's nuts.

Hitting:

Same old, same old. Victor Martinez carrying us, but not hitting for much power and hadn't drawn a walk through Tuesday. Travis Hafner, again not driving the ball like he used to, thus far. Several guys below .200 including Blake, Cabrera, Gutierrez. Jason Michaels came into Tuesday's game and people can't even muster the strength to boo him at .103. He pinch-hit and the crowd ignored him. That's a bad sign.

Garko and Delucci not bad so far. Give Delucci credit, his OBP is way up this year, so I think we may see more of him in the lineup. Garko is maintaining a .300 average. Peralta is doing what he normally does, but his range at short cost us a run on Tuesday.

So, it's been a mixed bag. We'll see if the inactivity of the front office has cost us this year.

Meal of Links

Do you have enough time for social media? Uh, that would be negatory.

Slate talks about Jungereality. That is, reality shows with the really tough jobs, like "Deadliest Catch".

The Worst No. 1 Songs of the '80s. Oh yes, there are some bad ones here. Good job, if only to dredge up horrific memories of Mr. Mister. NKOTB...ouch! "We Built This City" could easily be Number 1. "Kokomo" and "Physical" round it out.

As Robert Palmer used to sing in reply to "Physical", "Sister, don't you jog it all away."

Bruce Springsteen endorses Barack Obama. Where's Bon Jovi?

Exercise Yard

Baseball's worst free agent signings. Surprisingly, no Tribe deals made it. Because they never really risk major coin.

Visitor

26 Across: '80s title sitcom role for Soleil Moon Frye (13 letters) Answer: Punky Brewster

I was dreading the ride to work this morning, because 480 is being reconstructed on the eastbound side. I'm not sure if it was a mistake or temporary, but they actually had two spots you could bail out on to get to 77 and all of the Rockside mayhem.

I saw a truck exit ahead and then a bunch of cars followed. At first, I thought we may have been cheating, but it was a legitimate exit that forced you off. This was about halfway between the normal 77 exit and the Jennings entrance. But, it also appeared that if you missed that exit, they gave you another chance and it'll probably keep the traffic flowing better. Hopefully, they keep it this way.

All of our other local construction.

Meal of Links

Has Billy Bragg mellowed? Seems the new album might offer some proof.

All about Bob Dylan's XM show. A nice collection of his themes (his one on Dogs was great), quotes, jokes, even recipes. Why just last week I heard him intro that great Porter Wagoner song, "The Cold Hard Facts of Life":

"I left the store two steps behind the stranger
From there to my house his car stayed in sight
But it wasn't till he turned into my drive that I learned
I was witnessing the cold hard facts of life"

Tim Goodman talks about the CBS comedies. And how they compare to NBC and why certain people won't watch them.

President Bush chats with Jon Stewart.

Dexter is dating his sister. Well, they did live together.

Exercise Yard

Herschel Walker is starting to talk about his multiple personalities. This old article from the SI Vault mentions most of his quirks. The daily 2,000 situps, ballet, FBI, bobsledding, his bread and water diet and most everything.

Visitor

50 Down: Trumpeter Armstrong (5 letters) Answer: Louis

The Masters finished up today, and it was kind of a ho-hum affair. Tiger Woods had plenty of opportunities, but couldn't putt. The winner, Trevor Immelman, shot 75 and led wire-to-wire. Nobody was scoring as the conditions were awfully windy. But it still remains "a tradition, unlike any other".

Perhaps the U.K. was the place to be today as they ran the London Marathon...



























...And Manchester United beat Arsenal and gets ever closer to another EPL title. Owen Hargreaves with the game-winning free kick:



Meal of Links

Bracket alert! The Collegiate National Eating Championship is this Saturday.

Treasury Secretary Paulson says those $600 economic stimulus checks that you get will result in 500,000-600,000 new jobs. He's obviously on some new sort of drug.

Pepto Bismol: Laundromat". They may want to check those eating championships.

Last week, we stunbled onto this video clip. I'm not sure the protocol of congratulating a teammate after he makes a foul shot. I'm not even sure if each team or player has his own rules on if he even wants to participate. But one NBA player doesn't care. It's Andrew Bogut high-fiving mystery Milwaukee Buck teammates (actually himself) after a made foul shot. I like the part where he goes up top.




Exercise Yard

Both cable outlets showed boxing, I will catch up with the Showtime card, but I got around to watching the fights that HBO broadcast last night. In the first, Antonio Margarito whipped up on Kermit Cintron, KOing him with a body shot in the sixth. Kind of a weird fight, in that Cintron was throwing some good punches, it was just that Margarito threw more. Tons more, and completely dominated the power punching stats. It's a shame that both fights proved incompatible.

Especially the Alphonso Gomez-Miguel Cotto fight in the main event. Gomez had whipped up on Gatti two fights ago, but should not have even been in the ring with Cotto. Lamps even mentioned how "Cotto was slowly, inexoriably rearranging his face." Cotto basically stopped fighting near the end of Round 4 and the doctor told Gomez if he didn't do anything in the fifth, it was done. He called it after that round. It's been a while, but that was a tough one to watch. Clearly a mismatch. An interesting sidebar is that three of the last Cotto opponents never fought again, due to the punishment he dishes out. Interesting to see where Gomez goes after this one.

Looks like Cotto and Margarito will duke it out in July.

Visitor

None, it's Sunday.

Bobby Clampett should know "Chinaman" is not the preferred nomenclature. Asian-American, please.



Speaking of The Masters, did anyone notice Jim Nantz actually said a funny on the air yesterday. As Tiger Woods was hacking up 18 and found himself in front of the 8th green, Nantz said, "I've been coming here for 23 years and have seen only one other person in that same position...Me!" Where did that come from? Great par by Woods, though.

Tiger has had kind of a normal Masters for him. Still in it halfway through, with several holes to play. As I was watching though, I think he's treated rather unfairly by the TV schedule. They always want him on late in the day on Friday at Augusta. I thought if he had the early tee time like some of the leaders yesterday, he could have improved significantly on his score. I guess the trade-off is he already has seen some of the harsher conditions where the others have not, which may work to his advantage over the weekend.

Meal of Links

Defamer asks "What the hell is this?" regarding the DVD release of "There Will Be Blood". Not many extras, it would appear.

Cheap wine. All under $10 and allegedly good.

Catching up with Liz Phair. the last time I saw here was on a Bob Costas show on HBO a couple of years ago. Honest. Still thought that was odd, don't know why.

I'm assuming boxing is taking another blow from MMA with the cancellation of "The Contender". It's actually a good show that has produced some decent challengers, but I'm not sure the interest is there.

Exercise Yard

Bryant Gumbel is no longer the play-by-play guy on NFL Network. That is really a good move, but let's hope they come up with someone better. If it's Tom Hammond (Someone I know referred to him years ago as "the white Don King"), that's not bad. His Notre Dame duties, for the most part, would be over, by that time.

Visitor

47 Across: Law enforcers since 1947 (10 letters) Answer: Dynamic Duo

If you haven't watched "South Park" lately, it's probably a good idea to check in on the boys to see what is happening. I think this year has been kind of hit-or-miss, but when it's good, it has made me laugh as much as any time during its run. For instance, a Britney Spears-induced episode and a "Heavy Metal" tribute were kinda lame.

However, last night's episode, titled "Eek, A Penis!", was very funny. In one of the major plotlines, Mrs. Garrison wanted her penis back. OK, that was hilarious in itself, as they grafted his DNA onto a mouse to grow a new one. However, the part where Cartman channeled Edward James Olmos from "Stand and Deliver" was absolutely killing me. He was Mr. Cartmenez and he decided that in order for the inner-city kids to get ahead, they needed to cheat like white people. They used Bill Belichick as the prime example. And each time Cartman met resistance from a student, he kept saying, "How do I reach these keeds?". Put me on the floor. He eventually had the class reciting, "I misinterpreted the rules." Bwah!



Meal of Links

The 50 Greatest Comedy Sketches of all time. Really choice stuff in here, most with accompanying video. SNL, Mr. Show, In Living Color, Dave Chappelle, Monty Python, Kids in the Hall, SCTV are all represented nicely. Hard to quibble with these choices.

I've been on this Errol Morris kick lately, anxiously awaiting his new doc "Standard Operating Procedure" about Abu Ghraib. In a long discourse on his NYTimes blog, he writes about the use of re-enactments in documentaries. Very good "The Thin Blue Line" references in Part One, one of the best documentaries ever done. Several excellent comments, as well. I see he put up Part Two this evening, so read Part One (dated April 3) first.

I didn't know there were any "Cheers" mysteries. But they are cleared up here.

I always like to see older movies on the big screen. Kind of disappointed with the Regal at Middleburg, which had a series on Wednesday nights this past winter that looked pretty good, but barely advertised. In fact, I didn't find out about it until it was over.

But there is currently a series at Shaker celebrating the 90th anniversary of United Artists. Looks like this week, the weather will cooperate, so spending time indoors isn't an issue. Because it's a double feature of "In the Heat of the Night" and "Night of the Hunter". If you haven't seen "Night of the Hunter" recently, trust me, it's still scary.

Exercise Yard

Got some extra Masters time on the four-letter today. Tuned in just in time to see Phil Mickelson spray the ball all over the back nine. Yep, the first shot I saw FIGJAM strike, it should have gone in the water on 13. The bastard actually made birdie to spite me. Then he continued to scramble. BTW, it figures he would hook up with ExxonMobil. Talk about sleeping with the enemy, but the people love him cause he's a regular guy, just like them.

Boy, those last couple of groups were making a mess of things to finish in the dark, didn't they? They better hope that decision to continue doesn't come back and bite them later in the "toonament", as they say at Augusta.

Jason Sobel has a rather entertaining blog from the press room at Augusta, if you can't wait for the TV coverage.

Visitor

15 Across: Mrs. Robinson's daughter (6 letters) Answer: Elaine

The happiest songs of the '80s. Lots to hate on this list, but there are video links. My personal hatred for "Walking on Sunshine" knows no bounds. And The Hooters...Ugh! But the good stuff includes some Rush on there and there's "Fascination". I can handle all the leads on that one. I always thought that dark-haired one was hot. Not Phil Oakey. The chick!

Page Two gives us "She's Tight" by Cheap Trick. What a great tune that is. I maintain Robin Zander has one of the best rock voices ever, he can sing anything. And they are in town later this summer at Blossom. Jee-zus. Also, "It's Tricky" by Run-DMC. Hey, there's Penn and Teller!

Page Three is pretty strong. Sparks! Flesh for Lulu! "Tesla Girls"! I actually heard an unplugged live version of "Lawyers in Love" yesterday. I always liked that one, "Am I the only one who hears the screams and the strangled cries of lawyers in love?". Of course, there's "Down Under"...ooh yeah.

Page Four. Scritti Politti! That's a scary-lookin' dude in Level 42's original video, but a good tune. Good song to sing backup on. Remember when they used to play "One Vision" by Queen at the Cavs games? "One man. One goal. One mission. One heart. One soul. Just one solution." Hah! "Mickey", the song where she says, "I'll take it up the butt." "Strip"! Don't forget those claps on "Europa and the Pirate Twins".

Meal of Links

Historians declare Bush the worst President ever. Rates around this select group: A. Johnson, Pierce, Buchanan and Fillmore. Yikes.

"The Office" returns tomorrow. Thank goodness. Looks like Ed Helms may get the spinoff. I would say that would work quite well. Menawhile, it's a Jenna Fischer chat. She says a regular cast member will leave the show at the end of this season. So, I would think it would be Helms. Also, a talk with John Krasinski.

The secret lives of grocery shoppers. Even though I make a list every week, I am not in this book. My current notepad for the lists: "It's five'o'clock somewhere".

Which Keanu character are you? I am introspective, yet curious. I yearn for answers in a confusing world. Hi, I'm Neo.

Keith Richards talks about toy syringes. He gave up cocaine after he fell out of the tree, but he still smokes the hippy lettuce "all the time".

Exercise Yard

Greg LeMond gets dumped by Trek. His outspokenness against doping...er...Lance Armstrong apparently fed up the bigwigs at Trek.

Visitor

43 Across: Jazz at Lincoln Center artistic director (14 letters) Answer: Wynton Marsalis

Gib Shanley died over the weekend. A really terrific radio broadcaster for the Browns. He had that knack of telling you how far the receivers were from the interior line. As in, "Collins out 12 wide to the left, Warfield split 4 to the right." Carried Browns fans from the Jim Brown era through the Kardiac Kids. Also, in the era of no cable sports or sports talk radio, he hosted "The Quarterback Club" on Wednesday nights, where they would show a recap of the Browns game. With home TV blackouts, you had to watch these shows to see the games you missed.

And, as I've repeated millions of times, my favorite Gib line was one that was unintentionally funny. Steve Cox was a punter with the Browns, and he was sidelined a lot during the 1983 season, because of some sort of brain injury. So, each week, Gib would utter this line (imagine us playing the Bengals): "The Bengals have 49 players, the Browns have 48 without Cox." OK, when you're immature, that's funny.

Meal of Links

Turner comes up with a 15-hour marathon for Charlton Heston. Wow, outside of "Ben Hur", pretty crappy. Speaking of cable, HBO seems to have gotten the short end of the writers strike, as their series won't be on this summer. Good opportunity for "Weeds" on Showtime, back June 16.

Bob Dylan wins a Pulitzer. He joins George Gershwin and Duke Ellington, amongst others, who have won a special citation. OK, some other citation winners for the arts: Rodgers & Hammerstein for "Oklahoma!"; Scott Joplin; Thelonious Monk; Ray Bradbury: John Coltrane. Dylan makes it three years in a row (Monk in 2006 and Bradbury/Coltrane last year), so, maybe it's an annual prize these days.

Lollapalooza lineup is here. Looks pretty cool. What Made Milwaukee Famous and The Gutter Twins are two of the lesser-known acts I like. Austin City lineup comes out next week. And very disappointed that Radiohead is coming to Blossom, of all places.

That Olympic Torch relay is proving not to be welcome in Paris and London. It's actually getting extinguished along the way. On to San Francisco. Uh-oh.















Exercise Yard

Eric Snow has looked more like a coach than a player the last few weeks. The future is still in doubt, however.

Visitor

17 Across: "The Twilight Zone" host (10 letters) Answer: Rod Serling

Spring must be coming. My thermostat, without prompting, inched up to 66 degrees yesterday and again today. Whoo hoo!

But, sadly, that means March Madness is ending (and it seems to be creeping evermore into April, doesn't it?). Therefore, I bid farewell to all of the commercials that have been embedded in my brain the past three weekends. So, "Let's put on the lawyer pants and walk down that path" and say so long to:

The weird guy with that huge Travelers umbrella.

The Asian chick frightened by the honking VW.

The word "With".

"Well, Tony, you're pretty comfortable with that."

The letter "H".

Porsches revving.

Killer apps from Applebee's. Seems like the same old neighborhood to me.

The Peter Gunn theme from Pontiac.

Jared and his "anniversary fat pants".

All those student-athletes going pro in something other than sports.

Creepy Coke Zero Guy.

Howie Long, in his truck, picking up gasless strangers.

100 lbs. of feathers vs. 100 lbs. of bricks.

LT.

UPS guy and his whiteboard.

"I am so in there."

Sven from AT&T.

"My agility is CEO of the Global Agility Corporation."

Dude!

We'll miss you all. See you next year.

Meal of Links

A guide to Rolling Stones songs used in Scorsese films. Obviously, "Gimme Shelter" shows up a lot.

Is it really a surprise that Mark Penn finally got the boot from the Clinton campaign as chief strategist. I mean, when was the last time you heard his name associated with anything positive?

Pick a location and find hotel availability for that area. Gives a pretty quick rundown.

Exercise Yard

A tradition unlike any other starts this week and will be pimped big-time during the NCAA game tomorrow. Masters questions linger.

Visitor

None. A (gulp!) sunny Sunday.

The latest Gallup Poll has 12% of Americans believing Obama is a Muslim. If I see a poll saying 12% of Americans thought "Leatherheads" was a good movie, well, I think we may have a link to outing these people. My fear going ahead with this movie was that it would be a "sports flick disguised as a chick flick", similar to "Jerry Maguire". I never thought it would be "wretched flick".

This was a movie so bad, I mentally gave up on it during an interminable scene involving a raid on a speakeasy. My mind was hoping "The End" would flash at any subsequent moment. Up to this point, they tried (Oh, how they tried!) several subplots to see what might stick. All of a sudden, during this raid, it attempts to become a slapstick movie. Can't we just play football? Wasn't there a love story in here? Hey, what about that football?

They tried to show the foibles of hero worship, the birth and growing pains of the NFL via a Red Grange-like character, football as a business, agents can be good and bad, old athletes fading away, power of the press, a salute to troops everywhere (especially "Over There"). Mix in a little romance, some football, no laughs, and there's your movie. Bah!

It's the worst movie George Clooney has directed. I mean scenes were blocked in a pedestrian manner, really a slapdash effort. For Clooney to attempt to remove himself from the Writers Guild, in an attempt to get a writing credit for this dreck, is unconscionable. Scenes to draw laughs, drew none. Characters were introduced seemingly from nowhere to further the plot. I mean, a commissioner of football was named without any cry from an owner, just so he can tell Clooney there was gonna be new rules in HIS league. He mysteriously shows up at a press conference in the back, then commandeers the microphone. Between yawns, I mustered a WTF?

(Actual "Leatherheads" Viewer)





















And I still can't tell you if Clooney was an owner, de facto player-coach, or what he was. He seemed to know the agent, played by Jonathan Pryce, as they alluded to some past experience together, but they never said how! Or maybe I was in a coma when that went down. The disappointing thing it wasn't even one of those "so bad it's good" movies. I had to agree with the Westlake ute, who shouted, "That movie sucked!" as the closing credits started to roll. Seems like a soon-to-be-hit on airplanes.

Knowing how Hollywood is, Clooney will come out of this unscathed. Most big-time actors have at least a couple of these they can joke about. This is one for him. Renee Zellweger played a character we've seen a hundred million times. To be tough in the '20s in a man's world, you had to smoke and talk like you're at the Algonquin Round Table. And probably work at a newspaper. Cue Katharine Hepburn, Rosalind Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh, et al. They did it much better. But she'll come out OK. John Krasinski is so likable, but he's got two bad starring credits already, and maybe he ultimately winds up as "Office Boy".

As Leonard Pinth-Garnel would say, “Wasn’t that perfectly dreadful?”. Word must have spread fast, as it didn't hit its box office projections and probably come in second for the weekend.

I gotta see me some Stones. And quick.

Meal of Links

As if "Leatherheads" wasn't bad enough, I stopped in at Brueggers before work yesterday and encountered this nutjob. It was one of those deals where you have two people in the lot heading for the same door simultaneously, and as I look over, me dreading every step. Now, I'm at the door.

Her: "Are you going to buy a sandwich?"
Me (mustering my best WTF? tone): "Uh...a bagel?"
Her: "Oh, because I'm going to buy more than one."
Me (mustering my best why are you talking to me tone): "Well, there shouldn't be a line."

She proceeds to buy a half-dozen poppy seed bagels, I order a rosemary olive oil with cream cheese. I see the light bulb go on over her head when I said, "cream cheese". She already had her bag, then asked the guy for some. He pointed out the tubs. Next thing I know, he has to open a lid on one to prove there is foil still on it! I shoot a look to the guy prepping mine and we were both amazed. I then politely ask God that she has money, preferably U.S. currency, to pay, so I can move on.

How to dine out for less. We've seen these before.

You know, a personal pair of 3-D glasses had crossed my mind. I guess it's now a reality.

The "Mike Wallace Interview" has his 1957 and 1958 shows online. "My name is Mike Wallace, the cigarette is Philip Morris." Here is one with Bob Feller from 1957. You know, "Philip Morris has a man's kind of mildness." Lots of early talk about the reserve clause. Pretty good stuff and Mike sure does push the heaters.

Exercise Yard

That was some NASCAR crash yesterday. And Michael McDowell walked away.



Visitor

20 Down: 1952-53 A.L. RBI leader (7 letters) Answer: Al Rosen

While trying to determine if HBO plays "John Adams" in a continuous 24/7 loop....

Aah, parking meters back in the news today. I consider myself somewhat of an expert in the art of parking Downtown, not in lots. My hide is particularly chapped this week, because I had to cough up the 20 bucks and park in the Hanna Garage for Opening Day. So, when I hear there are new meters in town, well, I become a concerned citizen.

It seems the spot they picked for the new installation is good old Franz Pastorius Boulevard. Most people would say, huh? to that. However, I know that this is that street that connects Saint Clair to Lakeside, between Ontario and East 6th, west of Mall B. This is an excellent spot to park for Browns games on Sundays (if you get there really early) and probably a good spot to do county business on a weekday. However, these new meters do not show how much time is left on the meter. So, of course, the city can now double or triple dip on meter payments.

Uh, that's not right. There is no better feeling than moseying up to a meter that has time left on it. And I'm not even talking lots of time. But I've had two-hour meters with over 40 minutes of time left and that's pretty cool, but rare. Sometimes 10 or 15 minutes can make a difference. My other concern is the increase in No Parking areas, which makes access to these meters even more valuable. There are more bagged meters, No Parking zones and valet zones Downtown than ever before. It would be nice if this practice stops, as well.

Meal of Links

Our men's bathroom library at work is notorious for some of the most unhip reading material out there. For some reason, we do have Radar though. A very funny interview with Will Arnett was in this month's issue. The back page is also hilarious once again.

Must see the new Stones movie. Jack White makes an appearance.

There ain't no thing called a gas shortage. Don't believe what you hear.

OK, what could "The Office" spinoff possibly be about? I'm thinking Creed Thoughts. From what I've heard, that's not the case. Totally new characters that would be introduced on an "Office" episode.

U2-"Pride (In the Name of Love)"

It is the 40th anniversary of the death of MLK tomorrow. I'm sure U2 will be blasted over the airwaves. I always liked this Eno-less version of the video.



Exercise Yard

I now have STO in HD. Rick Manning looks 10 years older in HD. And they also need to work on that sound. It rivals Channel 5's HD channel in pukiness.

It was good to see Fenerbahce, coached by Zico, dump Chelsea yesterday in the Champions league. And how can you not like a single-name coach like Zico? Oh, I guess we have Wedgie. But Zico is one of my all-time favorite Brazilians.

You don't see many events from Turkey, but that place was insane. A terrific goal by Deivid for the winner. The Gus Johnson of Turkey with the call.



Visitor

31 Down: Mrs. Addams, to Gomez (4 letters) Answer: Tish

The Bigass Flag can only mean one thing...Opening Day 2008!

















As you enter Progressive Field, we received a cap and the Schedule Magnet, a favorite of mine. They weren't too concerned about the magnets, I ended up with four of 'em.

















Gale and I are so high. Yes, we are above the foul pole which is not sponsored by Farmers Insurance anymore, for obvious reasons.

















To go along with Bigass Flag and the traditional bunting, it's the balloon release at the end of the National Anthem, once again not sung in Spanish.

















As we locate our seats, a big waste of money.

















Further down, an incomprehensible waste of money. Unless you are family or friend, you can't purchase/wear the jersey of the hitting instructor. Unacceptable. Note the Progressive Field caps.

















The AT&T building looked ready for a monster to climb it yesterday.


















Opening Day Notes

Beer is still $6.75. However, it is back to pounders from the vendors, down from the 24-oz. size from 2007. Either fans complained about the warm beer at the bottom of those pours or the Indians had an epiphany about sending drunks home.

Somewhere, a few people obtained the Arby's hat, as in "I'm thinking Arby's!". You just have to laugh when you see someone wearing it.

The Miller Lite girls hardly wear anything these days. However, through some extreme bottle shifting, we obtained Indians Jersey Sleeves for our beers from them.

Circle K now sponsors each strikeout. With their logo.

Topps Baseball Cards sponsors the starting lineup.

Jim Thome still gets booed. After his second homer, I said, "He's slugging 8 Thousand!" a la Gomer Hodge.

Grady Sizemore uses a Rage Against the Machine song for his intro.

Asdrubal Cabrera seems oblivious to picking a song for his intro.

They asked several Indians a promo what their name would be if they were an American Gladiator. Jason Michaels said, "Malibu.". WTF? C.C. answered, "Chocolate Thunder!" and proceeded to laugh out loud. Actually, it was funny. BTW, the statute of limitations on basking in his Cy Young lasted all of three batters after the first Thome home run. Then the catcalls started. I love Opening Day!

Hot dog tasted good.

Men's room ran out of towels.

The game turned a bit boring as the Indians failed to hit in innings three through seven. Of course, Casey Blake, you know, the snippy stat hater (according to today's PD), won the game with a three-run double in the eighth.

Bad pattern. Rafael Perez got belted around the park in his appearance. Jensen Lewis looked good when he came in during an inning, then got belted around the park. Rafael Betancourt looked good when he came in during an inning, then got belted around the park. Joe Borowski! Well, JoBo gave up a homer and a really bad walk in his inning. Whew!

Got some good hitting from Tortuga Nino, Hafner got everyone excited about his hitting early, then looked bad. Sizemore homered. Victor Martinez injured himself on a bad slide...er...tumble.

It looked like the White Sox suffered three really questionable calls. A play at first where Garko seemed to pull his foot. A play at the plate, where Shoppach appeared not to tag Crede, and an interference call on a double play to end an eighth-inning rally. From my not-so-close viewpoint, the ump appeared to have "balls the size of church bells" to give the Indians the DP. Upon looking at a replay last night, it was the right call.

All in all, a nice 10-8 win to start the season.

Meal of Links

Periodic Table Quiz. Things I should have learned in fifth grade. Hey, how 'bout a show?

Today is the 45th anniversary of "General Hospital". Don't get me started on that Scotty Baldwin. I've mentioned this before, but I can't listen to "Behind Blue Eyes" by The Who without thinking of him. They played that when he was behind bars, I think, when they thought he killed Susan Moore, his wife. But she was killed by Crane Tolliver, a name which should make the Fake Soap Name Top Ten.

I happen to like The Raveonettes. They show up here once in a while and I am determined to see them next time.

Exercise Yard

Since it's April 1st, what better time to look back at what might be the greatest prank a magazine has ever pulled. It's George Plimpton's classic, "The Curious Case of Sidd Finch". My God, that piece is now 23 years old. A much simpler time, when an unknown could sneak into a major league camp without hoopla. And without fantasy baseball, sports talk radio and the Internet.

Courtesy of the Vault at SI, one of the best things on the Internets right now.

Visitor

53 Down: New Wave band Depeche ____ (4 letters) Answer: Mode