The Kind-Hearted Smart Aleck

I actually read/heard some women talk about how it is their firm belief that ignoring a guy they like will get him to like her more. Sorry, but this is false. The chase may be fun for some, for a little while, but there's a vast difference between playing hard to get and downright ignoring a person. The guy isn't going to chase a woman forever if she's playing hard to get. It may drive him a little bonkers, as he's uncertain of how she really feels and the longer this goes on, the crazier he'll get until he finally confronts the woman on the matter and the end result of that is up in the air. There are very mixed results on that front. If a woman ignores a guy, he's going to simply think she's not interested and will be turned away. What's a person supposed to think if you call them day after day, send them e-mails and never receive a response? "Oh, he/she's just messing with me. They'll pick up or call/write back eventually. I'm going...

I'm getting a little tired of hearing the GOP's talking point about Democrats being about big government. They're the "tax and spend" liberals! I'm not saying this claim is necessarily inaccurate. Democrats do tend to like to spend, but guess what? So do Republicans. The Republicans of the past 30+ years are no longer those truly conservative, small-government Republicans. Spending increased by leaps and bounds under Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush. Spending increased under Bill Clinton as well, but not nearly as much as the three before-mentioned Republican presidents. The two parties just differ on how to prioritize the spending. Democrats tend to spend more time worrying about how to distribute money to social causes, like to health care, education, etc. Republicans tend to be more focused on defense-spending and cutting taxes for the wealthy. Both parties spend an extraordinary amount of money, but if anything in recent decades, the ...

I hate to sound like Mr. anti-romance or a skeptic of love, but after watching a romantic comedy last night and hearing this woman's story about how it was destiny that she ended up with a particular guy, I felt the need to write about it. She said something along the lines of, "He approached me and asked about a book I was reading and that's how it started. What if he had been late that day and we missed each other at the coffeshop? What if I wasn't reading that very book? What if he hadn't read that book? It was fate." Given Twitter and like sites where people like to believe that they are the center of the universe and even if they're just munching on a bagel while completely naked dancing in the living room to "Sunglasses at Night," they feel the world wants to know. We've become an extremely narcissistic society and I think this idea of romantic fate or destiny is a prime example of that. Perhaps it's partially due to Hollywood...

It seems as if I'm in the minority on this following Alabama's dominant 21-0 win over LSU last night in the national championship game, but I for one believe LSU deserves a share of the title - to be placed #1 in the AP Poll, while Alabama earns that spot in the USA Today/Coaches. If there were a playoff system in Division 1-A college football and Alabama beat LSU in the title game, there would be no argument - Alabama would be the sole national champion and deservedly so. However, Division I-A college football works a little differently than any other sport. No, I don't like the current system. I loathe and despise the BCS in any and every way and hope it's disposed of in the very near future, BUT with the current format we have, I believe the team teams should share the championship honors. Let me explain why. Before the wild card was implemented in baseball, each division was given one team to enter the playoffs. That was it. The first place team from each divisi...

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I remember in an episode of "Seinfeld," George Costanza just up and decided, since things had never really gone right for him, to be and do the exact opposite of what he normally would in hope that it'd bring about better results. It did. George soon had a beautiful girlfriend, a good job and was feeling great. He ended up being like Elaine and Elaine, in turn, suffered some bad fortune and wound up being like George. Now, I'm not going to go to such extremes as George and be the total opposite person in any and every situation or make the opposite decision every single time, but I'm thinking about going that direction in a couple areas - dating being the big one. I'm not sure what my deal has been over the years, but I have had rotten luck in the dating world. It's either been that I've started dating and find out the person isn't who I thought she was and wound up getting lied to and cheated on OR I pursue someone whom gives me mixed messages...

Starting tailback Rashard Mendenhall? Out. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger? Hobbled. Left tackle Max Starks? Center Maurkice Pouncey? Out. Cornerback Cortez Allen? Out. Nose tackle Casey Hampton? Center Doug Legursky? Defensive end Brett Keisel? All hurt in yesterday's game. These players and others were either too banged up to play yesterday for the Steelers or severely limited. I didn't realize how banged up the team was going into the game. I heard announcers and analysts mention it pre-game, but until game-time, I was fairly ignorant on how bad things really were for the Steelers on the injury front. However, injury-riddled or not, the Steelers came in with a poor strategy on defense, executed that strategy poorly and were burned for it time and again. Get this. Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow completed just 10 passes for the entire game, including overtime. He was 10 for 21 throwing the ball. However, those 10 completions added up to an astounding 316 yards through the ai...

So, as I tend to always do during this time of the year, I watched a bowl game last night - the Sugar Bowl between Michigan and Virginia Tech. Both were controversial at-large selections for a BCS game and they did battle last night in New Orleans. I watched the game in its entirety and I still think I'm being delusional when I look at the final score, which was Michigan 20 Virginia Tech 17 in overtime. For any unbiased person whom watched the game will say, Virginia Tech dominated from start to finish. They were the better of the two teams, without question. Let me roll off some numbers here: First downs: Michigan - 12, Virginia Tech - 22 3rd down efficiency: Michigan - 4/13 (30.8%), Virginia Tech - 6/15 (40.0%) Total Yards: Michigan - 184, Virginia Tech - 377 Passing Yards: Michigan - 128, Virginia Tech - 214 Completions - Attempts: Michigan - 10/22 (45.5%), Virginia Tech - 19/28 (67.9%) Yards per pass attempt: Michigan - 5.8, Virginia Tech - 7.6 Rushing Yards: Mi...

...and so it happened again. I'm really beginning to wonder if the football gods are pissed at me. I had 32 confidence points on Georgia Tech to beat Utah. Tech was up 14 in the 4th quarter and somehow, Utah came back to tie it and win in overtime. I had 26 points on Georgia over Michigan State. Georgia led 16-0 at one point and went up 27-20 late in the 4th, before Michigan State tied it. In the first overtime, State was intercepted and Georgia went ultra-conservative on their play-calling to set up a field goal and missed. State wound up winning in three overtimes. I had 18 points on Stanford over Oklahoma State. Stanford led 14-0 and never trailed throughout regulation. They had a chance to win the game with a 34-yard field goal with no time remaining. The kicker was Pac-12 2nd team All-American and Stanford had only failed to score once inside the red zone all season. The kicker missed and Oklahoma State ended up winning in overtime. Stanford gained 590 yards for the game...

I just wrote about this, but something else just came to mind regarding the cliche - laziness. Whenever something bad happens or whenever facing a challenge, some may utter this line - "Well, you know, everything happens for a reason." This isn't a call to action. It's, "Don't give up. Stay the course, let the chips fall where they may and let God decide." Yup, that's it. Instead of trying to do something about the problem which is staring one in the face, just don't worry about it, for it's happening for a definite reason. The abuse that child suffered? No need to fret. It happened for a reason. Don't press charges to try and put the perpetrator in jail. Don't seek counseling. It'll be for the better in the end. The individual whom was killed by a drunk driver? It happened for a reason. They're in a better place now and you will be with them again when you too shall pass. There's really no need to fight against drun...

For whatever reason, I looked up the concept of the coexistence of free will and predestination. This concept has always puzzled me. I read through many people's comments on how the two entities can be compatible with one another. Some went as far to say, "It's so simple. I don't understand how anyone could not understand it" or "It crazy that so many intelligent scientific-types don't understand this. You're making it more difficult than it needs to be." Are we? A solid chunk of the comments laid claim that God knows what we will choose to do, meaning he doesn't make the choices for us and this is how the two entities can coexist. Others suggested that our free will involves the choices we make to reach the final destination, but that destination has already been predetermined. I think many of these individuals are getting the concepts of omniscience and predeterminism mixed. It is said that God is omniscient or all-knowing. This would n...

I heard this the other day while watching a bowl game. Announcer Gary Danielson said he's not thrilled about the overtime rules in college football. His partner (not in every way, I don't believe) suggested they move the line back to the 35-yard line from where it stands now at the 25. Danielson said something along the lines of, "Why don't we just not allow field goals? Force the teams to score touchdowns." On one side of the coin, I think I'd actually enjoy watching overtimes more if the rules were changed to his. I get a little tired of teams playing it ultra-conservative in overtime and setting themselves up for a field goal. However, in the end, I think the suggested rule change is pretty stupid. Special teams is an integral part of the game of football. If you don't believe me, just watch the replay of the Florida/Ohio State game yesterday. Florida blocked a punt and ran it back for 6 and also returned a kickoff for a touchdown. Their special teams...

This has not been the year for me as far as football is concerned. In Fantasy Football, I drafted Peyton Manning and Matt Schaub at quarterback. Manning was just supposed to miss 2-3 weeks and wound up missing the entire season. Schaub suffered a season-ending injury at the midway point in the season. I replaced Manning with Jason Campbell, whom suffered a season-ending injury mid-season. I wound up with Carson Palmer and Tyler Palko/Caleb Hainie at quarterback. In the bowl games, I put quite a few points on Georgia Tech over Utah (Tech was up 14 in the 4th), Georgia over Michigan State (Georgia was up 16-0 and also 27-20 in the final minute of the game) and Stanford over Oklahoma State (Stanford led 14-0 and 38-31 late in the 4th and with a 34-yard field goal as time expired, would have won). Georgia Tech, Georgia and Stanford all wound up losing in overtime (triple in Georgia's case). I surrender. Whatever I did to piss off the football gods, I sincerely apologize. I suppose part...

Sooooo...where was this team through the first 12 games of the season? The Philadelphia Eagles, whom were pre-season NFC East favorites, with some even predicting they'd make the Super Bowl, capped off a four-game winning streak to end the season 8-8 with a 34-10 win over Washington on Sunday. The Eagles have outscored their past four opponents (Miami, the Jets, Dallas and Washington) by the score of 125-46 (average of 31.3 - 11.5). The Eagles finish the year 8-8 to finish 2nd in the NFC East. Dallas finished with an identical record, but were swept by the Eagles in the season series. The New York Giants, whom the Eagles split their two games with, finished 9-7, one game ahead of Philadelphia. The sad thing about the Eagles' season is that they had the numbers and the opportunities. They only have themselves to blame due to penalties, turnovers and poor playcalling. Philly led Atlanta by 10 in the 4th quarter before relinquishing the lead. They led the Giants going to the 4...

For the third consecutive week, the Denver Broncos lost. Luckily for them, they play in the AFC West and found a way to win the division with an 8-8 record. The Broncos, being division winners, have the 4th seed in the playoffs and will play host to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the opening round this upcoming weekend. It seems that just 2-3 weeks ago, ESPN "analysts" and sportwriters couldn't think of enough good things to say about Tim Tebow. He was magical in the 4th quarter. He was a winner. He motivated his teammates to play harder and never give up. Blah. Blah. Blah. Throughout all of this, I remained firm on my belief that the Denver Broncos recent successes were more due to the defense, running game, special teams and lack of turnovers than Tim Tebow's play. Granted, he had a lot to do with not turning the ball over much, but there's a big difference between leading a team to victory and not losing a game for a team. Tebow was more the latter than the forme...

In the Outback Bowl today, Michigan State came back to tie Georgia 27-27 to send the game to overtime. In their first possession, Spartans' quarterback Kirk Cousins was intercepted, so all Georgia needed to do was score some points, any points, to win the game. On the first play, the Bulldogs ran the ball for a yard to reach the 24-yard line. On the second play, the quarterback, Aaron Murray, centered the ball and went down. Head coach Mark Richt then sent the kicking team out to attempt a game-winning field goal of a little over 40 yards on 3rd down. The kicker had made just over 60% of his kicks on the season. For every 3 he made, he missed about 2. Yet, Richt played the ultra-conservative card, ran the ball on first down, centered it on 2nd and went for the three on 3rd, in case something wrong happened and they could attempt it again on 4th. It doesn't get much more conservative than that and it backfired. The field goal was missed and Georgia wound up losing 33-30 in tripl...

He could play football very well, but just because one can play a sport efficiently doesn't mean he or she make for a good announcer of the sport. I'm watching the Fiesta Bowl right now and it's painful for me to listen to due to Millen's commentary. On an obvious helmet-to-helmet hit earlier in the game, the referees failed to make the call. Millen's partner for the game (not partner in anything else, I don't believe) said, via replay, it looked like a helmet-to-helmet hit which should have resulted in a penalty. Upon review, Millen continued to back up his claim that it was just good defense. He's done this on a number of occasions. I have a feeling if a defender literally decapitated an offensive player, Millen would say, "You know what? That's just solid, fundamental football right there. That's old-school football. I like it." Yes, and I like to mute the television set when he's announcing.

Like the game musical chairs? If so, you'll love the fight for the Republican nomination leading up to the 2012 presidential election. I think it's become painfully obvious by this point in the primary - the Republican base does NOT want Mitt Romney as their nominee. The guy has held fairly steady in the polls, between 20 and 30% throughout this long, drawn-out process. The ultra-conservative Michele Bachmann felt the initial anti-Romney surge, reaching about 20% in polls before falling off, perhaps due to her lack of electability or being bat s**t crazy. Rick Perry was the next in line to feel this surge, until he spoke at a debate and his allure then faded. Pizza man Herman Cain felt the next surge in the polls until multiple women came forward about his alleged sexual advance unto them. Newt Gingrich was next in line before the Republican base realized just how much baggage he carries with him and his numbers have faded as well. Who's feeling the surge now? Ron Paul an...

So, I praised college football announcer/analyst Jesse Palmer the other day. Now for the other side of the coin. In the college game, there's Brock Huard. He seems to know his stuff and I have nothing against him as a person or even an analyst, but the guy's voice gets on my nerves sometimes. When he takes normal breaths while speaking, he sounds okay, even though his words sound like they're over-enunciated. However, when he speaks too much without taking those normal breaths, the guy sounds like a goat. "...and he is a great passer, a great leader and just a great quarterback There can be no questioning thaaaaaaaaaat." Another voice which is beginning to get annoying at times is Chris Berman. I've always gotten a kick out of Berman - his enthusiasm, his energy, his one-liners, his nicknames. The guy brings excitement to highlights. However, it seems as if he has trouble taking normal breaths when speaking. It's like the guy wants to set the world recor...

I'm not sure why I'm writing about this, but then again, that's how it is a majority of the time when I blog. I think icing the kicker is fine to a certain extent, but if I have one timeout left, I like to hang on to that final timeout to make the kicker wonder. If I have two or three timeouts at my disposal, I'm all about making the kicker think for a timeout or two, but with that final timeout and the kicker perhaps anticipating that final timeout being used, I like to make him wonder. A lot of times, I think kickers just assume that the timeouts will be utilized to freeze him. This is probably especially the case after a team has used 1-2 timeouts and still has one available. Just my thoughts on the matter...