Friday, March 28, 2008

RE:Fishing Trip Lost

Tuesday, I was supposed to go deep sea fishing with my Dad. I was going to take him on a head boat (party boat) out of Saint Augustine, Florida. Reservations were made. I was happy about the chance to catch some snappers, groupers, red fish and cobia. Spending time on the water with my dad would be nice too. Going through the waters he probably passed through on his Navy days. I was ready to go. Had it all planned out, figured we would grill our catch in my Dad's backyard. Monday, I got the call. A cold front had gone through the area and the boat was not going out on Tuesday.

Some day I might get another chance. I'll probably wait a month or so and take a trip out on the bay. However, spot and croaker won't quite be the same.

Thursday, March 20, 2008

RE: Spring

The rain storms have passed, blue skies have returned! I'll be heading south for a little while, going to Florida. It will go by quick and we are driving. So the R&R part might not be that great. I'm trying to work out some plans to make the trip pretty fun. However, I'm not going to mention them since I don't want to jinx it. I'm driving since I'm a family of 4 now and it should be more economical then flying. This may not be the case for long as gas prices keep going up and up!

Monday, March 17, 2008

RE: Happy Saint Patrick's Day

Today is the day everyone loves to drink green beer. I'm sure Guinness sales are up across the world today. I prefer Smithwick's. Today is the day everyone is a little Irish. Shamrocks are in today! Wearing green is for self defense so you don't get pinched. Everyone has the luck of the Irish today. Notre Dame has more fans today.

U2, the Corrs, the Cranberries are the music on the radio. Maybe all these things are just an illusion.

However, Happy St. Patty's day to all!

Friday, March 14, 2008

Introduction to Mr. Jack

The great thing about the Internet is access to samplings of different music. There are social networks like myspace and websites to promote musical groups (and about everything else).
But I also hear about bands by fellow writers on the web. I heard about Mr. Jack from an article written by John Gugie. I know John through his Yahoo Groups, some forums, and his writing on Associated Content. Here is a link to his AC page.

John did an excellent interview with Mr. Jack and you can read it here. Another resource to find out more about them is there myspace page.

It is interesting, the two song writers live in two different countries one in Japan and one in Michigan, USA yet via technology they are able to produce an album. Mr. Jack is a grunge sounding band that rocks. They also do an updated version of JJ Cale's Cocaine. MF Demo has some foul language, but the band is worth a listen. They have some dates scheduled for this summer, opening for the Yardbirds and ZZ Top in Michigan.

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

NFL Draft Previews!

The Super Bowl was a little more than a month ago!

Those people who need a little fix of football to keep you going you may want to check out some of my draft preview articles:

Dan Conner LB

Phillip Merling DT

Limas Sweed WR

Fred Davis TE

Kentwan Balmer DT

Kenny Phillips S

Calais Campbell DE

Derrick Harvey DE

and one about Spikes being released by the Eagles

I know a shameless plug, but I do that from time to time. Plus I was too busy cranking those articles out the last couple of days to write a blog.

Saturday, March 8, 2008

4 Spots Filled 61 more to go!

It's March, and the madness will soon take center stage.

Three teams have reserved their spots in the Big Dance!

Belmont defeated Jacksonville to win the Atlantic Sun Championship 79-61.
The Belmont Bruins are 25-8. Belmont obviously is a mid-major team. However they did beat the Cincinnati Bearcats (Big East) and Alabama (SEC) this season. They also got routed by Xavier (Atlantic 10). Belmont will carry a 13 game win streak into the NCAA tourney.

The Austin Peay Governors (24-10) won the Ohio Valley Conference tourney with a win over Tennessee State 82-64. Austin Peay is another mid-major. Looking at their schedule I didn't see any big name wins. They did beat the fore mention Belmont Bruins twice. The lost to Vandy and Memphis. Memphis is likely to be a pretty high seed.

Winthrop will also be in the big dance. The Eagles (22-11) defeated UNC-Asheville 66-48 to win the Big South tourney and NCAA bid. Winthrop did beat Georgia Tech and Miami from the ACC. They defeated Old Dominion and East Carolina from the Colonial. Lost to Baylor, Ole Miss, West Virginia and Marshall.

Cornell won the IVY league which does not have a conference tournament. The Cornell Big Red are 21-5. The lost to Duke (ACC) and Syracuse (Big East) in notable games.

These 4 teams are all Mid-Majors, the small teams, that are not expected to do anything in the Big Dance. But every year their are upsets. Many time the small teams are the ones who ruin brackets. Look at the George Mason Patriots who made it to the Final 4 two years ago.

Monday, March 3, 2008

RE:Jeff Healy R.I.P

The world lost another guitarist way to soon last night. Jeff Healy died of cancer Sunday evening. Jeff was only 41. He has been battling cancer all his life, he lost his eye sight at the age of 1 due to it. He is probably best remembered for the 1988 song "Angel Eyes." He recorded in rock, jazz, and blues. He will be missed by his fans and peers.

He should be remembered as an inspiration to anyone who is blind, that they can do anything they want to do. Playing guitar is difficult enough with eyesight, I can't imagine how difficult it would be to play and learn when you are blind. He should also be remembered as an inspiration for anyone suffering from a life threatening disease. He fought the fight for 40 years!

Saturday, March 1, 2008

The Lull Before The Madness

March is coming in like a Lion cub here! It's probably about 40 degrees, breezy. Some snow flurries here and there, but really a pleasant day. Lot's of March Sunshine breaking through the clouds.

The NFL gets ready for April's draft. The NBA and NHL continue on their epic seasons. Baseball starts to stir in Florida and Arizona. Not much of a big deal, unless your a rookie or some forgotten player trying to make a name for himself. It's just a prelude to a marathon season. However, like the robins and woodchucks Spring Training is a sign of spring. Soon the ice and snow will be just a memory.

Thankfully, there is college basketball. March is their month. Meaningful games everywhere! Conference tournaments, the NIT, and the big dance. I know the tournament stretches into April now. People gather around the water cooler, discuss how their team is doing, or talk about their brackets or the big upset. It's a bridge to baseball season, and the playoffs(NBA and NHL).