cars

When I was shorter and younger, one of my favorite things to do in the house was to play with miniature cars. I had a pretty awesome mat that I would unfold and put on the floor. This mat had a picture of a town on it and a bunch of roads. I can't remember too much about the mat, except that it had most small town staples like a hospital, police station, couple of houses, airport, grocery store, and an auto race track. I guess back in the mid-80s, towns were set-up in a way that you could shoot on over to the town race track and take out some much needed aggression before/after shopping for groceries. When I was make believe driving, my day usually consisted of leaving the house, heading to the race track for a couple of laps, then driving to the fire station where I worked, taking out the fire truck, and then taking that to the race track for a nice burnout session when none of the other buildings on the mat were on fire, which was often, but no emergency was that urgent that there couldn't be at least one lap done at the track.

Cars back then in my town were pretty awesome. They were a lot like Toyotas are today...tons of acceleration and breaking problems. I remember sitting there and being amazed at how many cars would all of a sudden go out of control and slam into my living room wall. Some days the cars would get serious air and disappear into the couch forever. I think it would be cool to one day find the actual town that this mat was modelled after. K?

perceptions

The snow started falling in the morning. It was early, but not too early. The only reason it was early was because it was not late. And it wasn’t on time. So by default it will be classified as early. But to be fair it was closer to on time than it was to too early. This mattered did not to Tilbin. Tilbin not matter did or give a care about when or how or what it snowed. As long as he could see his neighbor’s house across the street he was happy.

When the snow started falling, Tilbin was at his window staring at her house across the street. She was not awake yet since it was early. But when Tilbin glanced at his watch he realized that she would be awake soon. Tilbin figured he had a few moments though, and decide he did to get a cup of tea. When Tilbin turned around to go into the kitchen and away from the window, she made her move.

She knew Tilbin had been watching her. Bother her it did some but not as much as you would think. If it truly bothered her she would have closed her window or threw a bullet or called a police. But since she bothered was not by the gaze of Tilbin, she let it happen. As time wore on she began to like being watched. She had little interest of meeting Tilbin, but she looked forward to the mornings and the evenings when he was there. The time in between when work she must had to, she found herself sitting and longing for Tilbin’s presence across the street. Once she thought she saw Tilbin across from her office. She felt more confident out city in so she took a break and ran to see him. When she got there she found that what she thought Tilbin to be was nothing but a pile of rotting newspapers if newspapers rotted instead of being read.

While Tilbin was making his tea, she quickly got out of bed. She put on a bathrobe and some slippers and ran into the snowy morning. She dashed across the street and up to Tilbin’s door. Hesitantly at first she started to knock. After a minute she knocked with more purpose. There was no answer.

Upstairs, Tilbin was back at his window, drinking his tea. Across the street, a lonely bird landed in the bird feeder in her yard. Tilbin smiled the bird at the sight.

Knicks trades

Quick view on the Knicks trades:

With the moves made at yesterday’s NBA trading deadline, the Knicks have put themselves in a pretty good position to sign Lebron James when he becomes a free agent following the season. In addition, they have freed up enough cap space to sign a second max player, such as Chris Bosh or Dwayne Wade. In order to free up cap space, the Knicks got rid of all their players except four, who had more than the rest of the year remaining on their contracts. The only players the Knicks have under contract for the 2010-2011 season are Eddie Curry, Wilson Chandler, Toney Douglas, and Danilo Gallinari. While I am a fan of Chandler and Gallinari, I do not expect Gallinari to ever become a star along the lines of Dirk Nowitski, even with coach Mike D’Antoni calling him the greatest shooter he has ever seen. In an ideal situation, Gallinari would be the first or second guy off the bench. While I appreciate what D’Antoni did with the Suns, and in some respects almost saved basketball, I think his judgment with the Knicks has been questionable. His praise of Gallinari reeks of nepotism, and his influence in the decision to not bring Iverson on for the year because of how he would stunt the growth of the young talent is insane. The only player who Iverson would be in the way of is Toney Douglas, but since TD doesn’t play, what difference does it make. Instead we have to curiously watch PG Chris Duhon play 39 minutes and somehow manage 2 assists and 2 points in a recent game (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=300216004) is a more amazing accomplishment than a New Jersey Nets win.

While I would be thrilled with the signing of Lebron James, I highly doubt that Dwayne Wade or Chris Bosh would come with him. On paper this seems like a possibility, because in make-believe-land, everyone wants nothing more than to win championships. In the NBA, however, I do not think that the superstars really want to share any of their success with another superstar. I don’t think Carmelo Anthony cried when Allen Iverson was shipped out of town for ultimate team-guy Chauncey Billups. To expect that Dwayne Wade or Chris Bosh, who are both before their primes, will sacrifice a chance of basketball immortality to become a Lebron sidekick is ridiculous. And since it is unlikely that a second max guy would come with Lebron to New York, do you really expect Lebron to leave a great team in Cleveland to help a New York team with no draft picks (and 4 players-including Eddie Curry) to rebuild? I understand Lebron is the best player in the NBA, but even he can’t instantly turn the Knicks around. The young nucleus that the Clippers have is a better fit for King James. If the Cavaliers don’t win I expect he’ll re-up for max money in Cleveland who I believe can also still sign Amare Stoudemire this offseason. And if they do win, I expect that he’ll turn his sights on passing Jordan and go for 7. Staying with Cleveland next year will also give Lebron a great opportunity to win 3 straight MVP awards (he’s going to get #2 this year). With the Knicks he may end up eating vasoline like Stephon Marbury

As a Knicks fan, I am already preparing myself for a couple of desperate free agent signings this off-season and am not looking forward to Tracy McGrady and Joe Johnson leading a Lee-less Knicks team into the NBDL. After a brief conversation with Jailbait Jim last night, it is only a matter of time until we become full-fledged OKC Thunder fans.

reminder

y'all ,

As promised (or warned), here is the second email that I referenced in my previous email that would be sent in regards to the marathon that will be run by myself and a bunch of other people on March 20th. For those of you who attempted to unsubscribe, I apologize, but there have been major server issues and IT is working dilligently to solve the problem. The sole (pun intended) purpose of these emails (this is email #2 out of an expected 3) is to serve as a friendly reminder that you must donate money to the Back On My Feet program (www.backonmyfeet.org). I am a mere $41 dollars away from my goal of raising $250, so if you are feeling generous (or guilty) here is the link with the instructions on how to donate:

http://www.active.com/donate/BOMFNatlMarathon2010/safetyrope

If you are wondering how much to donate, I can make the suggestion of donating as much as you want. So far, people have generously donated as much as $50 and as little as $2. These amounts are equally appreciated. For those of you who are hesitant to donate due to financial concerns, a $5 donation is more palatable when making a self-sacrifice of one of the following regular weekly purchases:

*Justin Bieber iTunes
*Daughtry and/or Nickelback fanzines
*(almost) 2 (two) gallons of gas
*1 (one) trip to starbucks (expected purchase of Grande Cafe Mocha and one old-fashioned durnut)
*1 (one) good beer or 2 (two) crappy ones
*Truck stop trucker hat
*Truck stop INXS cassette tape (combined w/ purchase of postcard(s) or feather(s))
*Gallon of ice cream
*Peat Moss
*Pall Malls
*Novelty giant foam #1 fingers
*Bubble tape

etc...

If you have any questions about anything, please feel free to email me directly. I would like to leave you with this quote:

"I would like to live forever, because we should not live forever, because if we were ever supposed to live forever, then we would live forever, but we cannot live forever, which is why I would not live forever." -Miss Alabama, 1994

Thanks again,
Todd

Knicks-Rockets McGrady negotiations

Luge disappointment

http://sports.espn.go.com/olympics/winter/2010/luge/columns/story?columnist=bryant_howard&id=4920295

Dear Mr. Bryant,

I enjoyed your article and I thought you were right on the money when discussing the difficulties experienced by the United States women's luge team in this year's Winter Olympics. I agree that it never seemed that the promising young team would be able to adjust to the course alterations that were necessitated following the tragic death of Mr. Kumaritashvili. I have to admit that my blood boiled when I heard German slider Natalie Geisenberger state the course had a "children's start". Having an American victory in the luge would have been a fitting way to silence Ms. Geisenberger and other critics. In addition, it would have vaulted the sport into the American spotlight and showed that it was a deserving Olympic sport and not just a competition between a bunch of lunatics with a death wish.

I have been a fan of sliding sports for a long time now, and while I prefer the skeleton (the name itself and something about going down a hill face first without a steering mechanism or brakes appeals to me), I have always been respectful of the luge. At the same time, I can understand the criticism against the sport. The sport on television lacks appeal because the slight flick in the calves that is required to steer is hard for the unknowledgeable viewer to follow. In addition, watching people go down the same course one after the other can get repetitive and dull pretty quick. NASCAR, which also gets the "it's just a bunch of people driving in circles" argument, at least allows the viewer to watch some exciting passing maneuvers. Luge is also one of the few sports that does not benefit from a slow-motion instant replay. There really is not much for a commentator to slow down and emphasize that cannot already be understood in real time. The pausing at the finish line to show the exact moment a slider crosses loses the dramatic impact of a photo finish of the Kentucky Derby and also lacks the absurdity of a still from a first-time rollercoaster. I love luge because what you see is what you get. The best of the best win and if you are not in complete sync mentally and physically, you will not emerge a winner. This cannot be said of many other sports except maybe tennis. Even darts and bowling can factor in a lot of luck. Since I do not make up the mindset of the majority of America, I think it is necessary to revamp the luge. These changes should be considered to be implemented before Sochin.

To spruce up cross-country skiing, someone once suggested incorporating the shooting of guns into the event. This logic was flawless and should be considered when attempting to make luge more appealing. Since shooting a gun while flying down a hill at top speeds is not practical, I can argue that throwing a grenade is. I feel that during a course there should be a required three grenade launches, the last of which will be into an aquarium of fake dolphins. Moguls is a sport that factors speed and creative skill when judged, so as a suggestion the luge should become more about speed. In addition to the grenades, I believe that 25 giant bowling pins should be placed at the end of the course. How many a slider knocks down will be combined with the total time and the creativity of the grenade attacks. As a final suggestion, I believe that before mounting the sled a slider must first drink two pints of a higher ABV% microbrew and then spin around a baseball bat 20 times. These ideas of course are open to discussion, but I believe would bring more attention (including sponsors) to the wonderful sport.

Kind regards,
Mr. Kurpel

Very Essential