Terrell Owens
Since sports seems to drive my blog readership more than anything else I might as well chime in on the Terrell Owens. For those of you who don't know him, he is a controversial wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys.
Last night, he shocked the world again by allegedly overdosing on pain pills and some reports claimed that he attempted to commit suicide. He denied it and said the rumor is ludicris and that he is a happy man.
It's hard to imagine why he wouldn't be a happy man. Fame, fortune, women, and whatever else he wants is in his pocket. But since everything in life is relative, I would guess that when you have everything and still have a nature of "wanting more" it can be rather depressing when you find there is nothing left to get. But, if I may borrow from U2, "He still hasn't found what he's looking for."
I'm really not into gossip, but when someone so clearly invites and seeks it, the temptation is difficult to resist. He didn't try to commit suicide. He's too scared. It's the rush he seeks and in this case it was a loosely couched exploration of death.
Death is the ultimate curiousity and potential stimulant. How else can we explain the popularity of shows like CSI, Homicide 101, 102, and 103??? People are arrested by murder, death and suffering.
People die when there is nothing left in life. We are on a continuum from birth to death. It's that simple. Some people cling to the former, others lean toward the latter. Many just accept and enjoy life at the moment. Terrell Owens is struggling with who he is. With "being." And I'm not saying that is bad or stupid or anything, because most of us struggle with the same thing.
I've said many times that I'm glad I don't have fortune and fame because I don't think I could handle them. It's about dealing with stimulants in a way that is healthy and productive. T.O. would probably better off seeking good friends and a spiritual connection rather than attention and money for his bank account.
Baseball doesn't need Wild-card
Most things change because people get bored or think they have a better way to do something, but the truth is many changes are bad decisions. Major League Baseball's decision go to the Wild-card wasn't necessary and will eventually hurt the game. Here's why.
First of all, I am a lifelong Milwaukee Brewer fan, so it has nothing to do with my team and everything to do with me being a fan of the game. Commissioner Bud Selig owned my team for years and screwed that up, too. He's a car salesman at heart and I think that explains a lot.
Let's look at this year's play-off races. We'll start with the American League.
The Yankees have clinched the division. Detroit and Minnesota have clinched play-off births. And Oakland is 6 games ahead of the Angels with 6 games left. The play-offs are basically set with a week to go in the season.
If we still had the two division, winners only get into the play-offs the AL would shape up like this.
The Yankees and Detroit would be tied in the East. One week of gutsy play and thunderous crowds in both stadiums. 156 games in, there would be a tie for first in the AL East.
In the West, it would be shaping up like this.
Minnesota would have a 3 game lead on Oakland (Oakland plays later tonight and could be within 2 1/2 of the Twins in the old division standings. That race would be for all the marbles.
As it sits, the only race left is between the Tigers and Twins for the stupid wild-card. Who cares? They're both already in.
In the National League East, The Mets are in, while the Phillies claw for the wild-card.
In the Central, Houston is making a run at St. Louis, but they are still three back and have won 6 straight. St. Louis has lost 5 straight. The odds of Houston overtaking St. Louis are very slim.
The National League West is a dog fight between LA and San Diego. The Padres lead by a game and a half.
So, basically, the Phillies, LA, and San Diego are fighting it out for the WC.
If it were the the old division layout we'd have the Mets in the East and LA and San Diego battling in the West. And it would be for a birth, not some tainted division run with a wild-card option on the side. And that is the main argument.
Face it, St. Louis isn't that good this year. They shouldn't be in. Neither should Houston, but they might have had a better shot (not to mention record) if Clemens would stop acting like a little bitch and play from the start of the season like everyone else.
In both leagues there would be the same amount of teams alive and far better races. The Yankees and Tigers tied with a week left? The Twins and Oakland battling to play the winner of the East? The Padres and Dodgers fighting for keeps in the West. That's three intense races with 6 teams and that doesn't include the teams they play who want to be spoilers. Don't think the White Sox wouldn't like to knock the Twins out in the last series of the year? Now, that is a meaningless set.
More proof? Let's look at last year.
The Yankees and Red Sox TIED in the American League East. Is there anything better than a one game play-off??? No. And they didn't even play it last year because of the new rule and the wild card. Anyone remember the Bucky Dent homerun at Fenway Park? Yeah, great moments happen in one game play-offs.
The White Sox fought tooth and nail to outlast the Indians last year and with the old divisions they would have had to outlast the Angels, too. It would have been heated.
In the NL West Atlanta won one more game than Houston. That would have been phenomenal. Houston ended up winning the wild-card and eventually knocked out St. Louis before going to the World Series and getting pummeled by the White Sox.
St. Louis won the East going away and would have played Atlanta in the NLCS in the old layout. Either team would have fared better against the White Sox in the series.
2004. The Yanks outlasted Boston by 3 games, but Boston was safely in the wildcard slot so that race lost its usual zeal.
In the West it would have been Minnesota, the Angels, and Oakland all separated by one game. Same amount of teams in the race, but with far higher stakes. Boston may not have gotten in and back-doored their way to the Championship, which would have been just fine with me. Not because I don't like them, I do, it's just that they won a World Series out of a wildcard slot.
In the National League East (2004) , St. Louis ran away.
In the West it would have been Atlanta, LA, and Houston down the stretch all separated by four games. History shows, they all got in. There were no races. Who cared?
The last three years would have been better WITHOUT the wild card. Same holds for 2003 and while 2002 leans wildcard there is no solid proof. Especially when you throw in the "it means something" factor. When my Brewers held off Baltimore to win a legitimate American League East title in 1982, it was the best feeling of my sports fan life. While I would like to see it, I genuinely don't care if they get there again. I don't think someone should get a rush out of a .500 team slipping in the backdoor then knocking off a team that was 40 games over in a shortened series. It's just not right.
I know we have to move forward, change is good, and it probably makes more money for someone, but the wild card cheapens the game. I can only pray that this is as bad as it gets and that someday soon we get rid of interleague play as well.
I once knew a blogger...
Some of these bloggers are banking serious cash now... I stumbled upon a
celebrity gossip site that charges 25 grand a year for a banner ad. Not to mention they get media passes to the big fashion events, etc. It's a very simple idea that people have latched onto and it makes me jealous.
I wonder what I could blog about that would garner that kind of interest? They are getting like 500 comments per post. It's more like a freight train than a little cultural network. How sweet would it be to make some good extra cash blogging?
The potential is there, but it's up to you to help me find the good topic. Below I have listed prospective areas of interest. Please feel free to vote and vote often. (All ideas are copyrighted by me).
1. Homeless blog - take pictures of and get comments from people on the street about how we can solve the problem.
2. Pictures of me in the shower blog - the public could gauge the effectiveness of my night's rest and if I have been working out or not.
3. Poetry blog - I could sit in the park every morning and right in iambic pentameter for the ladies and well-dressed gentlemen.
4. The blog about potential blog topics blog- Writer's block? Come to my site where I will kick off a firestorm of creativity.
5. The bachelor's recipe guide blog - creative ways of making what's left in the fridge come together in a glorious form of feast.
6. The drummer's guide for how not to drum blog - my unorthodox style could be a yardstick for creating new and innovative patterns.
7. The man's guide for restoring shoes blog- I would have to research this one a little.
8. Romantic short stories blog - I would pick one random person each day and make up a rendevous story about their life.
9. Baseball rocks, football sucks blog - the amunition would be endless
10. The blogger's guide to getting action on the computer blog - a virtual search engine for key phrases that make panties wet.
I'm feeling pretty good about the options here. Please help me nail it down or offer other suggestions.
