Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder?

I have been away from my blog for weeks, but no one seems to have missed me. How tragic is that? Well I blog for me, not for all the nameless, faceless people out there.

So here after my weeks away is my new, I'm dying to vent about list...

Sanjaya Malakar - Who is this rando and how did he get a spot on Idol? It's killing me! Is he even Indian? At worst (because he is giving us such a bad name), he can only be half Indian. I swear when I heard him try to channel Diana Ross with the hair and the music, I about died. Some people can sing and some people can't. But apparently, there is this new category of people who sound like strangled geese when they sing... Sanjaya that is where you belong, now it is up to the tweeners to realize that!

John McCain - Yes, the markets in Baghdad are safe when you are in bullet proof vests accompanied by a platoon of soldiers who have cleared the market for yeah. Puhleeze. McCain better get a grip on reality if he hopes to win this election. I think that cancerous lesion on his face may have spread to his brain.

Florida - Yuck! They foiled the Buckeyes again. As a Big Ten fan, I find it tragic. I think I may have a new hated school to put right up there with UMich, Chapel Hill, USC, and Duke.

Barack Obama - I just can't stand him. I am not sure why. There is something about the way he talks. He just seems to self-righteous and patronizing.

Reasons To Be Happy

Oh! There are so many reasons to be happy today.

1. Michigan State won a 1st round NCAA game and didn't even look half inept. Actually, I didn't get to watch the entire game, so I am not 100% sure about that, but they did hold Marquette scoreless for the first ten minutes of the first half. That's gotta mean something! I really hope they don't get Chapel Hill next, but a No. 1 seed has never been knocked off before.
2. So far the Big Ten is 2-0 in NCAA games with Michigan St. and Ohio St.'s wins. Take that all you haters!
3. Did you know Duke has not lost a first round game NCAA tournament game in like ten friggin' years? Talk about crazy. But this bizzaro win streak, finally ended today! I admit to being as much of a Duke hater as the next person. But that being said, I think Duke played pretty well, but VCU played better. And more than that VCU's game just wore them down. I have never seen a press quite like that before. Pitt better watch out!
4. I had almost forgotten about the Gin Blossoms, and then I turned on the TV. And there they were...

It's That Time of Year Again

It's that time of year again... spring, flowers, and MARCH MADNESS!

So the brackets were announced the other day, and I breathed a sigh of relief when they announced MSU. After the initial euphoria though, it was back to sadness. Even if State gets past Marquette, they have to face off against Chapel Hill, and I have some bad memories of the last time that happened. I hate ACC teams from North Carolina, sigh...

All things considered the Big Ten did a decent job of placing teams in the tournament with a grand total of 5. Sure other conferences had more teams, and typically I don't mind... but the PAC-10? Come on! They (for the most part) play basketball worse than me, and while I play a mean game of HORSE, I am not sure that's saying all that much.

Not only did the PAC-10 get more teams into the tournament, they got them in at a higher average seeding. (See below.) Some of these teams came out of nowhere to earn these seedings. And while the guy who lead the selection committee may be a fellow Princetonian, I have a serious bone to pick with him!

Setting aside my PAC-10 hatred, the bracket does look interesting. I could jump on the bandwagon of those who think the mid-majors got screwed (I do think they did), but it would be rather hypocritical given that State might not have made it if Drexel and a few others had.

Here are some teams I like...

MidWest
Florida because despite Billy Donovan's used car salesman look, and the fact that OSU is rated No. 1 in the AP, Florida is still the team to beat.
Old Dominion because someone has to fight the fight for the mid-majors.
Wisconsin because they can slow down a game like no one else and make you fall asleep standing up.
Oregon because I was afraid of jinxing a team who shall not be named.

West
Kentucky because the Wildcats and Tubby have something to prove.
UCLA because they are bitter about not being a 1 seed, and because they are the only really deserving PAC-10 team.
Pitt because yeah, I don't know why. They are the 3 seed and shouldn't prove why?
S. Illinois because they are the Salukis and they got D.

East
Michigan St. because they are my boys!!
Texas because they got a big man, and I would love to see some USC ass-kicking!
Georgetown because they won the Big East, have little John Thompson, and Ewings' son.
George Washington because they have some legit wins and both Vandy and Wash St. are takeable.

South
Ohio State because Greg Oden is the man!
Memphis because they are huge, also perhaps seeded a little higher than they deserve, which should help early on.
Louisville because they can leverage the home court advantage
Long Beach St. Why not? They have a crazy winning streak, and a coach whose contract needs to be renewed.

On Sport: The Game of Lying, Cheating, and Name Calling

So apparently Ann Coulter thinks that John Edwards is a 'faggot', and she plans to endorse Mitt for President. I suppose Edwards should feel offended by this, but looking at the spectrum of those Coulter hates - liberals, Democrats, agnostics, Muslims, widows of 9/11, African-Americans, journalists, and those she likes -- Joe McCarthy (her personal hero), Newt Gingrich, Sean Hannity... maybe he should be thankful. Coulter's disdain means that you are always on the right side of virtually every issue!

Imagine my surprise when in the middle of the Mich. - OSU game, I am subjected to a painful HOOTERS commercial featuring none other than Dick Vitale. Talk about your low budget commercials. Vitale looked like he was pasted into literally every scene. You would think HOOTERS has made enough money off of truck-driving middle America to pull off a better editing job than this. And you would think Vitale has enough self-respect to avoid such tasteless promotions...

So Mich St. loses a buzzer beater to Wisconsin in the Cheese State. I am certain Michigan State would have won the game had the refs been only slightly less biased. Never have I seen so many offensive fouls called in one game, and the vast majority of them went against State. The Big Ten is all about a physical, inside game. What were these refs hopped up on? Oh well, Wisconsin has history on it's side. The Badgers have only lost 5 games at home in the past six years. But next year baby! those Badgers are going to be nothing but road kill!

Who says Michigan players are not cheaters? I watched the Michigan - Ohio St. game and I can certainly attest to the fact that Sims poked his finger into Cook's eye. That seems like a not very sporting thing to do...

Apparently, Obama's maternal relatives owned slaves. Perhaps he can win the South after all? (just kidding... I think...)

Football, Basketball, Oh My

Clearly, I am not as bright as I thought I was when it comes to sports...

I only just discovered that Andre Rison, of Left Eye fame, played for Michigan State. This is so weird to me, in large part because he made some clutch plays during the only Rose Bowl trip State made in my life time. I remember so much of that game, where I watched it, running around in circles when USC came back and it looked like State would lose, Lorenzo White, like the best running back MSU ever had. But how could I forget Andre Rison, especially since Plaxico could not break his career record, his name must have come up all the time with sport commentators. Clearly I am losing it...

I want to point out yet again how much I despise certain NBA players, who are seemingly only in the game for the money. Case in point Ben Wallace. Of all the teams to trade yourself to... the Bulls? The bloody, flippin' Bulls? It is ridiculous. Just like his hair and the new NBA cheerleader commercials airing on ABC.

Michigan State beat Indiana last night, but nearly gave me a case of heart palpitations in the process. I had not realized that IU has not beaten Michigan State at the Breslin since 1991. Wow! Talk about your droughts. I gotta say though, the fact that the sports commentators kept bringing it up really did scare me.

Apparently, Minnesota is desperately seeking a coach. Monson was given the boot a few months ago. Personally, I feel kind of bad for the guy, Clem Haskins did a number on the program. But now the Gophers want Flip Saunders to save their basketball program. I have mixed feelings about this. I was definitely not thrilled when the Pistons hired Saunders, I mean he couldn't get the Timberwolves a title with their very legitimately good players and Ben Wallace left (perhaps an unrelated event). But I like seeing some year-to-year consistency, I don't want the Pistons to be left in the lurch again.

Talk about craziness... Nick Saban, aka. the turncoat, is back to coaching college football... at 'Bama. I wonder how all those LSU fans feel about that... someone is going to be getting a lot of hate mail! Muhahahhaa!

Who thinks Tommy Ammaker is going to be fired this year? I think if Michigan does not make a serious run in the tournament this year, his job may well be "endangered".

Let The Games Begin

Fight in the lunchroom. The Democrats are at it. Again! So much for Hill - Obama ticket. Don't see that one happening in this lifetime. And does anyone honestly think, Hillary would consent to be anyone's Veep. I think not! Seriously though, David Geffen and the rest of the Dreamworks clan should just keep their mouths' shut. And poor move by Obama in not attending the Nevada forum. Who does he think he is, the Queen of Sheba?

Michigan State is back in business. Woohoo! Knocking off the boys from the Cheese State. Love it! I can't wait for some March Madness...

Brit-Brit has apparently finally realized that bald is not her best look. I am not sure that the blonde wig works for her either, but hell, hair on any sort is a step in the right direction for her.

The charade that is/was Anna Nicole Smith's life continues on. Imagine my surprise when I turned to watch Hardball on MSNBC this afternoon and found myself watching the Anna Nicole trial -- LIVE! God. She is more famous in death than in life, now this is true for many people, but in her case it is simply sad...

Nooooooo! Make Grey's stop please. No more talk of this Addison spin-off. But perhaps this does spell the demise of Addisex. One can only hope!

I wish there was a survey to figure out which Sex & the City girl are you. Lately, I find myself relating to Carrie, and it is freakin' me out.

On My Last Nerve

Lately there are a lot of things that have been getting on my nerves. Quite frankly, I am at my wits end...

• Why are idiots sometimes right? It pains me to say this especially after all his nonsense about global warming, but Michael Crichton might actually be right about something. In his op-ed piece, Patenting Life, for the NYTimes, he very clearly lays out the problem with patenting human genes. Drug companies profit off of illness which seems somewhat distasteful, but those who have patents on genes have the ability to block the development of technology to detect and treat disease. That to me is beyond wrong. Kudos to Crichton for getting on the right side of this issue.
• Mitt Romney. How dare the flip-flopper come to my state, my state, not his state, to declare his candidacy. There are no words for my displeasure. If Romney cared so much about Michigan, instead of making speeches at the Ford Museum, he would have tried to fix Ford. Why not be the Governor of Michigan? Not man enough for the job??
• Princeton Basketball. In the cellar yet again. God. How I remember the days when we played Duke, UCLA, MSU, and now... now we suck. Big Time! It's enough to make a girl cry.
• Katie Couric. I too rejoiced when a woman finally got a seat at the anchor table, but honestly did it have to be her. I grew up on CBS News, and I never switched until her. Sure Dan's Ratherisms could be a bit much, but Katie is like a cheerleader, except way older. Somehow reporting on Iraq, which incidentally does not happen much on CBS anymore, and if it does it is with stupid Laura Logan who can't seem to decide if she is a reporter or a wannabe model, does not jive well with the perky, girl next door routine. Katie belongs to talk news, like Today. Why didn't they get Diane Sawyer or Christine Amanpour or Meredith Viera?
• Alex Karev is hot? Seriously, who are you kidding? McSteamy is the only hot one on Gray's. And honestly, if you really do think McDreamy is hot?? Certainly don't admit it. He looks like a complete fop. But I am simply astonished by the number of women who think Alex is hot. For those of you who do, please take some time out of your busy schedule to watch The Wedding Planner. Sadly, it is a JLo movie, but there are some drool worthy parts with Matthew McC. (Now he is hot!) Justin Chambers is in the movie. Yeah that guy who looks mentally deranged, is always on a moped, eats nothing but macaroni in cheese, and bears a startling resemblence to Alex Karev... How the boy modelled for Calvin Klein is beyond me.
• Bad bottled blondes. Why are we still talking about Anna Nicole? She's dead. It's sad, for so many reasons. But honestly, does she really warrant having her picture on the front page of the NYTimes or CNN (although it is rather like a rag these days).

Disappointments?

This week has been thoroughly disappointing on a number of fronts.

1. NCAA Basketball - Who are the people who put together these polls? And why is the Big Ten getting like no respect? It is unbelievable. Only three teams in the Top 25. My annoyance knows no bounds!


2. ABC Drama - So I used to be a huge ABC fan: LOST, Desperate Housewives, Grey's etc. But there haven't been new episodes of LOST in months, and watching Kate and Sawyer get their groove on has scarred me for life. Personally I think LOST is going the way of the X-Files with unresolved plot lines and too many random characters. Don't even get me started on Grey's. That show just annoys the beejeezus out of me. George the "sex machine"? WTH? I thought he was gay. What was it Isaiah Washington called him? If by the end of the season every intern hasn't slept with every resident at least once I will be officially shocked. And while Prestina is one of the all time annoying couples of primetime, if Addisex happens, I think I may, to quote Addison, vomit in my mouth.


3. Desperate Housewives - Are we already on reruns? Talk about disappointing. That being said, I do rather like this episode. The Gabby-Carlos battle has just begun escalating to War of the Roses proportions. And the pre-Marcia Cross pregnancy episodes are nice, in that Bree's breasts are not bigger than her head.


4. The Super Bowl - I know it hasn't happened yet, but I am already disappointed and waiting for next year. The Bears bore me. Rex Grossman couldn't throw a football if his life depended on it. And I am so over the Colts. Every year is supposed to be the year of Peyton, but it never is. There is no reason to think this year will be any different.


5. Housing Costs - A 440sq ft apartment for $2900/mo. That's over $6.50/sq ft/month. That's like the cost of a lunch per sq.ft. per month. Talk about intense. At this rate renting a cardboard box in Manhattan will run me upwards of a $100/mo, especially in a chic neighborhood. How on earth did Rachel afford her fabulous Manhattan apartment on a Barrista's salary?


6. Bad Books - I have read too many as of late: The Last Templar, True Lies of a Drama Queen, Love, Rosie. It is time for me to return to good book reading. Next on my list is Elementals. I have faith is A.S. Byatt!


7. Baking - I actually tried to be domestic and failed! Not enough eggs to make cupcakes, so I tried cookies. But they burned. And they were hard. And it was tragic. Thank god for conversation hearts. They take the edge off things.

How I Hate the ACC, Let Me Count The Ways

ACC land of Carolina basketball has never been a winner in my book. But this years Big Ten-ACC challenge ws particularly annoying. When is the Big Ten ever going to pull this off? I am tired of getting slammed by the bloody South.

1. Stupid and dumb (yes they are both) Boston College beat MSU. I blame the Pope. Why does he not love all alike? I wish Neitzel would play better and be a bit more consistent. I can't handle simultaneously rebuilding years in both football and basketball. It is simply asking for too much.
2. Friggin' Chapel Hill. I hate Chapel Hill, and their annoying powder blue almost as much as I hate Duke, Michigan, and USC. Let me tell you, that's a lot of hate! What is a TarHeel anyway? Is it that crap at the bottom of my shoe?
3. Duke beat Indiana and just barely. I bet you they cheated. Duke always cheats. Especially when they get to play at home. And has anyone noticed how Duke automatically gets a totally overrated ranking? Hate it! Hate them!
4. Maryland beat Illinois and ended their longest even home court winning streak. Now, personally, I don't mind seeing Illinois lose every now and again. But I was rather hoping the MSU would be able to end the streak in conference play. Not some uppity ACC team.
5. Clemson *pounded* Minnesota, and now that Clem is gone I don't half mind the Gophers.
6. Georgia Tech beat Penn State. Now I would have guessed that a Lion would beat a Bee hands down any day of the week. Go figure!

If there is any reason I like the ACC its that they beat Michigan. And I *hate* Michigan. Tommy Amaker made a bad, bad decision.