Most people that know me know that Im originally from Boston and have been in Florida for almost 6 years. We Bostonians are die-hard sports fans, so when I moved I brought my sports allegiances with me. I am a die-hard Red Sox, Celtics, Patriots, and Bruins fan. Ok, so I kinda gave up on hockey altogether, but I still manage to keep up with the B's in the standings. After dealing with years upon years of turmoil as a Red Sox fan, watching my beloved Celtics transform from an NBA dynasty to an embarrassment, and dealing with crappy Patriots teams, I finally caught a break. I had began to LOATHE Drew Bledsoe during the 2001-'02 season because he was a loser. He just had this "loser funk" about him that, no matter how good he appeared, you just knew he would never win it all. I was begging for a change and didnt mind waiting another 5 years if it meant finding a winning QB. Well, I got my wish when Bledsoe got his clock cleaned against the Jets and in walked Tom Brady.
The Patriots went on to win the next 3 out of 5 Superbowls and we Bostonians FINALLY had a winner to rally around. It was uncanny what this team did to Boston Sports spirits. I felt that their model of, "no superstars, no ridiculous contracts", should be applied to every team in life. Isnt that the American way? Be typecast as the underdog, disrespected by the media, and then use that as fuel, work hard as a unit and succeed? Apparently not everyone shares the same sentiments. After the Pats went on to win another 2 Superbowls, the haters came out of the closet. Im sure that more than half of these people were rooting for the Pats to win that 1st SB, but after watching them dispel another 2 teams they began to hate on them.
I guess I really dont understand how you can hate on this team? Their QB is the ultimate role model - doesnt cheat with steriods, doesnt blame teammates for losses, doesnt whore himself out in advertisements. Their coach is the ultimate football geek. He loves the game and formulates a strategy to beat his opponent. He also keeps all the bullshit out of the media's hands, which is quite possibly the thing I love most about the Patriots and also possibly why others hate on them. For some reason, fans and the media love to hear all the bullshit. Drama like Terrell Owens causing problems on every team because of his ridicluous ego, and other guys that ridicule teams with celebration dances, trash talking, etc. when theyre losing the game. Its stuff like this that the Patriots dont stand for. They also wont pay people ridiculous contracts based on 1 year of good performance. The mentality is this - If you want to win, take what we give you and come put in 150% every day and youll achieve Championship status. Its worked with many guys so far and its awesome to see it still continue. Guys like Deion Branch and David Givens who wanted ridiculous contracts were shown the door. New guys that were total jobbers on other teams came in and whattya know, we're in the AFC Finals.
Given all of this, I just dont see how people can hate on the Patriots outside of being just plain jealous that it isnt their team winning. If Tom Brady & Co. were to start acting like assholes, Id understand the logic behind hating on this team. Until then, stop with the jealousy and stop your crying. The Pats have a good chance to head to the big dance again this year, and it would be perfect because theyll be in my (somewhat new) backyard and Id be going to the game!
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Monday, January 15, 2007
I dont wanna hear it!!!
If there is one thing I cant stand, its people that disrespect other people. One thing that really gets me fired up are the assholes who need attention so badly that they have to play their goddamn music at levels that arent even suitable for the human ear. Why? What is the point? Do you want to become deaf at age 15? Are you that much of a loser that you need people to pay attention to you even if its because they find you annoying and want to rip your jugular out? I really dont get it...
When I was 16, I had just got my license and I liked a lot of rap music. However, being from a small town that consisted of 99.8% white people with nice upbringings, .1% hispanics, and .1% jews/blacks, I never got into the whole "lets play rap music as loud as possible" thing because it just didn't fit my style and its surroundings. My friends loved to blast music in the car and I place about 99% of the blame on them as to why I always ask people to repeat themselves cuz Im not sure what the hell they said from being half deafened at an early age. Sure, I liked that music, but I didnt feel the necessity to project my likings upon people who either a.) could care less, or b.) didnt want to hear that bullshit. For me, it was a respect thing. I will respect you and not subject you to the music I feel like listening to and you respect me by not judging me based on my listening preferences. And whattya know... A few years later I really grew a large distaste for rap music, but mainly because it became a bunch of bullshit with no core to it at all. Dont get me wrong, this isnt about rap music alone. Its about all the assholes who drive around playing their music at levels that are unsuitable for most eardrums, no matter what genre it is.
Im serious when I say that Im investing in a company that develops trendy hearing aids for 16yr olds. This shit has gotten out of control. I was driving home from work the other day, getting fired up by listening to some Rolling Stones before going out to pound some brew and whiskey with a buddy. I had my recent favorite, "Cant you hear me knockin?" on the tuner at a decible level suitable for my car only, when all of a sudden Paco and his 1996 Ford Taurus rolls up blasting some latino bullshit that was making his trunk and doors rattle like a mo' fo'. Now Ive gone from fired up in a good mood to fired up in a bad mood, and I aint even drunk yet. I really dont get the whole point of this bullshit? When did it become a requisite for coolness that you had to annoy everyone in a 1 mile radius with you obnoxious music? And when did i become cool to drive a car thats worth $1000 and put a $2500 stereo system in it and make it sound like total shit? We as a society need to lose this bullshit right now.
My frustration peaked today on a flight from Miami to Charlotte. Im sitting next to some dude that feels it necessary to tell me his life story about living in South America (I dont give a shit), commuting to Washington DC (see also - I dont give a shit) and flying in general (ooh look, we're on a plane... whoop dee frickin doo!!) All things aside, he seemed like a nice guy and one that I certainly could dominate in the quest to gain the middle armrest (which I totally annihilated him on, giving him maybe a total of .5 milliseconds of comfort for his left arm...rookie). Then, as Im reading a nice article in the sky mag, he starts listening to his iPod... Not only is he listening to spanish bullshit at 7am (which I find hard to take really... who listens to salsa at 7am? Dont you kinda need to be in party mode for that music? Or at least dancing? This is something about the Latin culture that I dont understand and have little desire to actually understand...) Well, its now 8am and we've got another hour or so before we get to NC and he is blaring this shit into his ears. Im wondering if he even has eardrums left at this point. Im enraged, but not because its bothering me and my quiet time, but more because its showing a total lack of respect for everyone within a 4 seat radius. I collect my thoughts, suppress my rage, and decide its time to ask him to turn the shit down... So, I tap him and say, "COuld you do me a favor and turn that down please" while giving him the "you better do what I say or you may find out that a human as well as a small carry-on item can fit under the seat" look. He respectfully obliged and got a little red in the face from embarrassment (probably because he was listening to total pussy music at this point) and turned down the bullshit spanish crap. I felt a wave of silent applause erupt around me. One dude gave me the, "thank god you did that man, I was going insane" look. That pretty much justified it for me.
I guess the point of this whole rambling is this... If you want to listen to music, do so at a respectable level. I dont wanna hear your bullshit and neither does anyone else. Youre not going to gain any sort of positive attention from playing music loud, youre just gonna continue to look like a total asshole. Take your loud ass music and shove it!
When I was 16, I had just got my license and I liked a lot of rap music. However, being from a small town that consisted of 99.8% white people with nice upbringings, .1% hispanics, and .1% jews/blacks, I never got into the whole "lets play rap music as loud as possible" thing because it just didn't fit my style and its surroundings. My friends loved to blast music in the car and I place about 99% of the blame on them as to why I always ask people to repeat themselves cuz Im not sure what the hell they said from being half deafened at an early age. Sure, I liked that music, but I didnt feel the necessity to project my likings upon people who either a.) could care less, or b.) didnt want to hear that bullshit. For me, it was a respect thing. I will respect you and not subject you to the music I feel like listening to and you respect me by not judging me based on my listening preferences. And whattya know... A few years later I really grew a large distaste for rap music, but mainly because it became a bunch of bullshit with no core to it at all. Dont get me wrong, this isnt about rap music alone. Its about all the assholes who drive around playing their music at levels that are unsuitable for most eardrums, no matter what genre it is.
Im serious when I say that Im investing in a company that develops trendy hearing aids for 16yr olds. This shit has gotten out of control. I was driving home from work the other day, getting fired up by listening to some Rolling Stones before going out to pound some brew and whiskey with a buddy. I had my recent favorite, "Cant you hear me knockin?" on the tuner at a decible level suitable for my car only, when all of a sudden Paco and his 1996 Ford Taurus rolls up blasting some latino bullshit that was making his trunk and doors rattle like a mo' fo'. Now Ive gone from fired up in a good mood to fired up in a bad mood, and I aint even drunk yet. I really dont get the whole point of this bullshit? When did it become a requisite for coolness that you had to annoy everyone in a 1 mile radius with you obnoxious music? And when did i become cool to drive a car thats worth $1000 and put a $2500 stereo system in it and make it sound like total shit? We as a society need to lose this bullshit right now.
My frustration peaked today on a flight from Miami to Charlotte. Im sitting next to some dude that feels it necessary to tell me his life story about living in South America (I dont give a shit), commuting to Washington DC (see also - I dont give a shit) and flying in general (ooh look, we're on a plane... whoop dee frickin doo!!) All things aside, he seemed like a nice guy and one that I certainly could dominate in the quest to gain the middle armrest (which I totally annihilated him on, giving him maybe a total of .5 milliseconds of comfort for his left arm...rookie). Then, as Im reading a nice article in the sky mag, he starts listening to his iPod... Not only is he listening to spanish bullshit at 7am (which I find hard to take really... who listens to salsa at 7am? Dont you kinda need to be in party mode for that music? Or at least dancing? This is something about the Latin culture that I dont understand and have little desire to actually understand...) Well, its now 8am and we've got another hour or so before we get to NC and he is blaring this shit into his ears. Im wondering if he even has eardrums left at this point. Im enraged, but not because its bothering me and my quiet time, but more because its showing a total lack of respect for everyone within a 4 seat radius. I collect my thoughts, suppress my rage, and decide its time to ask him to turn the shit down... So, I tap him and say, "COuld you do me a favor and turn that down please" while giving him the "you better do what I say or you may find out that a human as well as a small carry-on item can fit under the seat" look. He respectfully obliged and got a little red in the face from embarrassment (probably because he was listening to total pussy music at this point) and turned down the bullshit spanish crap. I felt a wave of silent applause erupt around me. One dude gave me the, "thank god you did that man, I was going insane" look. That pretty much justified it for me.
I guess the point of this whole rambling is this... If you want to listen to music, do so at a respectable level. I dont wanna hear your bullshit and neither does anyone else. Youre not going to gain any sort of positive attention from playing music loud, youre just gonna continue to look like a total asshole. Take your loud ass music and shove it!
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Im going to shoot you and your dog...
I live in a nice area of Miami, very laid back, very informal. Another trend of this area is that everyone seems to have a dog. They even have constructed "dog parks", little fenced in areas where dogs can run around off of their leashes and play with other dogs. Unfortunately, because a lot of dog owners are the laziest assholes around, I constantly have to deal with the smell of dog shit in the neighborhood. I also have to remind myself and every friend that visits to be sure to watch out for dog shit when we walk to the bars.
This is one thing that really pisses me off. Ive gotten into near fistfights for asking someone to pick up after their dog takes a dump on the sidewalk outside my complex. If you have a dog, you better be prepared to pick up shit. That, or go live out in the middle of nowhere where no one has to smell that shit, like Nebraska. Another thing that I just dont get is how I can gorge myself for an entire day and not have to take a dump, but feed a dog a 1/2 cup of food and you get at least a pound of turds! Its unreal! I dont get how you put such a small amount of food into a dog and an enormous quantity of waste comes out?!?!
The people who piss me off the most are my neighbors in my condo complex who allow their dogs to take a crap RIGHT IN OUR COURTYARD!! Some of these dogs are big too and take massive dumps. When they get busted, they choose to be even more lazy and walk their dogs in the parking lot so they can shit there. This baffles me because the parking lot is probably further away than walking outside of the property to let the dog shit somewhere else. I just dont see why, dog owner or not, you would want shit in your yard. Now we have "No dog poo" signs all over the place which are funny, but also an eyesore. It really is a shitty situation...pun intended.
With all that said, Im buying a pellet gun and leaving a warning that if I catch anyone's dog shitting on the property, Im popping a cap in their ass. I feel that Im within my rights on this one. I love dogs and have one of my own. I dog-sit all the time. I either pick up the crap or I bury it in the ground. I wish everyone else would do the same.
This is one thing that really pisses me off. Ive gotten into near fistfights for asking someone to pick up after their dog takes a dump on the sidewalk outside my complex. If you have a dog, you better be prepared to pick up shit. That, or go live out in the middle of nowhere where no one has to smell that shit, like Nebraska. Another thing that I just dont get is how I can gorge myself for an entire day and not have to take a dump, but feed a dog a 1/2 cup of food and you get at least a pound of turds! Its unreal! I dont get how you put such a small amount of food into a dog and an enormous quantity of waste comes out?!?!
The people who piss me off the most are my neighbors in my condo complex who allow their dogs to take a crap RIGHT IN OUR COURTYARD!! Some of these dogs are big too and take massive dumps. When they get busted, they choose to be even more lazy and walk their dogs in the parking lot so they can shit there. This baffles me because the parking lot is probably further away than walking outside of the property to let the dog shit somewhere else. I just dont see why, dog owner or not, you would want shit in your yard. Now we have "No dog poo" signs all over the place which are funny, but also an eyesore. It really is a shitty situation...pun intended.
With all that said, Im buying a pellet gun and leaving a warning that if I catch anyone's dog shitting on the property, Im popping a cap in their ass. I feel that Im within my rights on this one. I love dogs and have one of my own. I dog-sit all the time. I either pick up the crap or I bury it in the ground. I wish everyone else would do the same.
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
Shocking...
Ive been making a solid effort to exercise and be more healthy. Now, if you saw me, you would probably be like most people and say, "You dont need to worry about that man..." But, I do. After 29 years of drinking beers like no tomorrow, my metabolism is finally beginning to let me down and Ive formed a little beer belly that Id like to eliminate. Lack of cardio is most likely the main reason for excess fat in my case. Its a personal thing and I like to look good. This is probably the "vanity rules" mentality of Miami rubbing off on me, but its not a bad thing in this case. So, I set out about 2 weeks ago to start running for the first time in probably about 2 years. One of the owners of my company has been training for a 1/2 marathon and said I should make sure to take my time to get the most out of it, so I followed this advice. When I originally set out, I planned on just doing a mile, but the next thing I knew I was doing a little over 1.5 miles! I was pretty pumped about that. I ran in H.S. and always used to get shin splints that would hurt like a bastard for a few days. This time, they started to hurt around 1/2 mile but I tried to power thru it and then by the time I stopped, my shins were just about numb. My breathing was money though. Thanks to 12 yrs of smoking cigarettes, I usually get winded at about 3/4 of a mile. I havent had one in 5yrs though and I think that Im finally starting to reap the benefits of that.
The next few times I went out, I ran 1mi (because I wanted to be quick so I could get to the Heat game in the 1st quarter) and then the next 2 times I ran just under 2mi. Well, last night I really surprised myself... I went out intent upon running 2 solid miles. My shins started to ache around 1/2 mile but I put a little more weight on my heels and was able to power thru it. My breathing was money and as I approached mile #2 I said to myself, "OK, Im not too tired and my breathing is good - just keep going until the end of the block..." Next thing I knew I had completed 3 miles - a personal all-time high! I probably couldve kept going another mile breathing-wise, but my calves were starting to get really sore, so I quit while I was ahead.
Im pretty damn proud of myself and am fired up to see how far I can push it next time.
The next few times I went out, I ran 1mi (because I wanted to be quick so I could get to the Heat game in the 1st quarter) and then the next 2 times I ran just under 2mi. Well, last night I really surprised myself... I went out intent upon running 2 solid miles. My shins started to ache around 1/2 mile but I put a little more weight on my heels and was able to power thru it. My breathing was money and as I approached mile #2 I said to myself, "OK, Im not too tired and my breathing is good - just keep going until the end of the block..." Next thing I knew I had completed 3 miles - a personal all-time high! I probably couldve kept going another mile breathing-wise, but my calves were starting to get really sore, so I quit while I was ahead.
Im pretty damn proud of myself and am fired up to see how far I can push it next time.
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