Something caught my eye today when I was reading an article about the Madrid bombings from a few years ago.

The three lead suspects convicted of murder and attempted murder each received sentences ranging from 34,000 to 43,000 years in prison, although under Spanish law the most time they can spend in jail is 40 years. Spain has no death penalty or life imprisonment.

They were sentenced to 34,000!!!!! years in jail, but the most they will serve is 40 years. What exactly is the point of sentencing anyone to more than 40 years then?

Thirty four thousand years in jail. That's a really long time.

Forty years. Still long, but not long enough in my opinion.

Basically what Spain has said is that if you murdered ten million people, you would spend 40 years in jail. Yay Spain. Cue sarcasm.

Deviating from the norm for a moment, allow me to comment on this stupid Seinfeld controversy.

First came "The Sneaky Chef: Simple Strategies for Hiding Healthy Foods in Kids' Favorite Meals"

Then came "Deceptively Delicious: Simple Secrets to Get Your Kids Eating Good Food"

Hmmm. Interesting. Certainly seems suspicious at the very least. Sneaky / deceptive. Simple strategies / simple secrets. Same recipes. Something smells rotten in this deal and it isn't the big salad.

Verdict: guilty.

Sentence: forfeit your money to me.

Two of my three group members didn't bother to show up for class tonight. Hooray! It's not like our project is due on Tuesday and we haven't really started or anything...

Went to Cedar Point on Saturday with Lindsay and my brother and sister. I rode the new ride, Maverick, for the first time. It's MUCH more wild than it looks. I had no clue where I was at any given time and no idea what to expect next. After the first ride I'd have to say that I didn't like it. I need to give it a few more shots though before I confirm that.

Reason number 1 why I'm upset that the Indians lost game 7.

If they had won that game, they would've had about an 85% chance of winning the World Series.

Instead, they got my hopes up, then walked up behind me and pushed me down the stairs and started throwing knives at me.

Totally random thoughts:

We saw Little Miss Sunshine a week or so ago. Hilarious! Starts slow, but definitely worth it.

I didn't even realize that the World Series started yesterday. I'm still in a sports-induced daze.

Bye weeks in the NFL are stupid, if only because they screw up my fantasy team.

I'm not ready for the NBA season to start in less than a week. It seems like it should be 2 or 3 months off still.

School work is starting to hit high gear now and is thus constantly reminding me of how much I hate it.

I would like to have $500K of disposable income right about now.

Why don't I ever get bags of crap when there is a Woot-off?

Purdue has 4 games left. 3-1 would be a great step. It's possible that they could go 0-4 though... or even 4-0. It would be nice to see a consistent product from week to week.

Someone should start a company that just writes wedding thank you cards. Pay them $2 per card or something and it's all taken care of for you.

We had an earthquake here last week. It was only a 2.9, but it was Lindsay's first earthquake, and for some reason she was excited about that. Apparently it shook the house for about 4 seconds. I was on our street coming home right when it happened and she thought that either a tree had fallen onto the house or that I had driven into the living room. When I was in the condo I actually did see someone drive into their living room. They were just a tad bit intoxicated.

A woman who stabbed her tied-up lover so she could drink his blood has been sentenced to 10 years in prison. She said that she was sorry for the incident and that she never meant to hurt anyone.

Interesting. She never meant to hurt anyone? Okay, I can see her point. I mean, I know tons of people that love to get stabbed. Perhaps my favorite part of this non-violent tale was when the guy escaped and she lovingly chased him with a pick ax.

The news of the day started ominously with Paul Byrd and HGH the talk of the day. My first thoughts were in conspiracy theory mode. Why wait until the morning of game 7 to bring these out? Did MLB prefer Boston the World Series (of course) and did someone want to distract the Indians? We'll probably never know, but the timing is certaily coincidental. It would be the same thing if David Ortiz was found to be using steroids and the media held onto that information until the most important game of the season.

Anyway, that ultimately had nothing to do with the Indians losing - distraction or not.

Game 7 of the ALCS ended when Joel Skinner stopped Kenny Lofton at third base. While replays clearly showed that Lofton would've scored easily, the brakes were put on not just Kenny, but any momentum the Indians would've gained.

Had Lofton scored, the game would've at least been tied at 3-3 and the Indians would've had the momentum from scoring the last 3 runs of the game. Who knows how the next half-inning would've went. Maybe the Red Sox still would've homered and taken a 2 run lead. I suspect the entire Indians team would've been energized though, and it really would've been a good game.

Instead, Lofton was stopped at third, Blake hit into an inning ending double play, I was really really really not happy, and the game was essentially over. The Indians were completely deflated. It really sucked. A lot.

You can argue that the terrible pitching of Sabathia and Carmona doomed the Indians, but I don't think so. I think a bad call by a usually aggressive third base coach doomed them last night. Granted, CC and Fausto sucked and sucked bad, but even after their horrible performances, the Indians still could've won.

Such is life as a fan of Cleveland sports. They will occasionally take you to the brink of something really spectacular before deciding to stab you in the eye.

This just in. In case you haven't heard, the Indians sucked last night. I wasn't terribly confident before the game and tried to cover that with bluster. Well, that just doesn't work. I wanted them to clinch a World Series berth at home as they haven't done that in my lifetime. Well, enough about that crap job last night.


In other news, I bring you the worlds most ridiculous car chase. Click on the picture to watch it.

It's Tribe Time Now!

Yeah, it's a stupid slogan, but whatever. Suck it Boston!

The Indians will win tonight. C.C. Sabathia will pitch like he is capable of. It will be a hard fought close game, but the Indians will prevail.

On to the lowest rated World Series in history! I'll be loving every minute of it. Maybe we can get a few games snowed out and end up playing into December. Not to take for granted that the Indians have to win one more game, but I'm taking that for granted.

People around here have finally stopped talking about the Browns, but I'm fairly certain that's only because they have a bye this week. In the mean time, the Indians have certainly succeeded in capturing the town. They are hitting ridiculously well in the clutch. The bullpen is pitching great. The Eddie Harris' of the team (Westbrook and Byrd) and handling the Red Sox lineup. ESPN has finally recognized that it just might be possible that neither the Red Sox nor the Yankees will make the World Series. What could be better?

I don't have any particular strong feelings about tonight's game. For some reason I wasn't the slightest bit concerned about last nights game. As for tonight, I don't have any glaring concerns either, but I do think that it will be close. I think the Indians will win, somewhere in the area of 6-5.

I was surprised (not shocked) at Borowski's perfomance in the 9th last night. I was very pleased with the way that Rafael Betancourt pitching to the middle of the Red Sox order in the 8th. That was really the game -- if you ask me anyway.

The Indians will win tonight in game 3 of the ALCS. You can put it on the board.... yes!

The final score will be 8-4.

You heard it here first. There is no longer any opportunity for you to change the future. It is what it is. Sorry about your luck Boston.

There's headline for the ALCS on ESPN.

It reads "Cleveland Clashes With Another Titan"

It might as well read "Lil' ole' Indians try to play a few competitive innings against the GREATEST TEAM IN THE KNOWN UNIVERSE THAT ONLY EXISTS ON THE EAST COAST!"

Give me a freaking break. This is the same coverage that existed AFTER the Indians beat the Yankees. What'd you hear about then? Is A-Rod leaving New York? Was that Joe Torre's last game as manager? Mo Rivera is a free agent now. Who cares! How about you talk about the winning team?

This is how the teleprompter read:

Hello and welcome to ESPN.

In unexpected and disappointing news, some team from Cleveland beat the powerful New York Yankees last night.

How'd that happen?

I have no idea, but did you hear that Joe Torre might retire?

Why, no. I didn't hear that. Tell me more.

Okay, but wait just a minute. Breaking news that Alex Rodriguez might opt out of his contract.

Wow. I love the Yankees.

Me too, but that's not all. Mariano Rivera is now a free agent.

Say it ain't so! Not the Hammer of God!

He might sign with the Boston Red Sox though.

Oh? That'd be great! I love the Red Sox too! Yay!

I don't know what to make of the Indians - Red Sox game tonight. I think the Indians need to win the game in order to win the series (basically meaning that Sabathia and Carmona need to win all 4 of their games.) I just have an uneasiness about it.

The last time I felt that way was in game 3 of the Indians - Yankees series, and we all know what happened there. Even when Jake Westbrook was leading, I never felt comfortable. That's, unfortunately, the same type of feeling I have heading into this game.

I think the Indians will win the series 4-2, but I'll be much more confident about that pick if they win tonight.

I just don't think the Diamondbacks are very good. I don't care that they tied for the best record in the NL. They were outscored for the season. That's just not good. I think the Rockies have a chance to go through them like a hot tamale through my intestines.

Rockies in 5, and I don't even think it will be that close.

Wait, you say. They swept the Cubs. Seriously? That's your argument for them being good? They swept the Cubs? Come back when you have a real argument.

I don't really understand how people are talking about how great the Red Sox offense is and how it will handle the Indians pitching. Did they not watch the Indians - Yankees series? Last time I checked, the Yankees had a better offense than the Red Sox, and the Indians did pretty well slowing them down. Why wouldn't they be able to do the same against the Red Sox?

My prediction for the ALCS is Indians in 6 games.

What do all of these things have in common? They show a human foot. Why would I have pictures of a foot?


Well, because this is my foot now. Notice the nice blue tint? How about the swelling? It's pretty nice! This picture was taken in the doctors office just before the x-rays came back. It really doesn't do it justice either.



How did this happen you might ask? Well an eighty pound ladder was jack-hammered into my left foot. The ladder (gorilla variety - the type can that go in all kinds of different positions) was set up as a 10 foot step ladder. The pins were pulled to lower the legs down and down they came. Rather rapidly I might note. Right onto my foot. It hurt like a master falcon. Literally, no exaggeration, within 1 minute, it looked like there was a golf ball under my skin. Ice was immediately applied and held for 45 minutes and I laid there with my foot up over night. The next day -- yesterday -- I went to the doctors office for x-rays.

The doctor walked in and said "Am I in the right room? I looked at some x-rays and they look fine, but your foot definitely does not look fine." They proceeded to check my foot and found that it probably is not broken and that I still have good circulation in it, but that I get to wear a special boot for a while. Let me tell you... it is GREAT looking! I'll be a fashion trend setter for sure with this thing.

Moral of the story? Don't drop 80 lb ladders on your bare feet.

For reasons that will be revealed in my next post, this recap of Friday's game has been delayed.

Before the game I saw John Adams - he that bangs the drum during the games - standing outside of Gate C. I walked by, commented to Lindsay about how I should get a picture, then went back and got a picture. I'm glad I did. I'm aware that it's ridiculous, but I'm still glad I got a picture. Also, as you can tell (or not, because the number is hidden), I'm sporting my #99 Rick Vaughn jersey, as promised. While we were walking in I saw someone else wearing a #43 Roger Dorn jersey. He wouldn't have been my first choice from the movie, but hey... whatever floats your boat.



The Division Series playoff game between the Indians and Yankees on 10/5/07 is one of the greatest games I've ever attended. It was filled with drama, clutch situations, abnormal circumstances, and overtime.

There were a lot of chances for the Indians to put some runs on the board, but at every turn, Andy Pettitte shut them down, much to my chagrin. He and Fausto Carmona each pitched extremely well. In fact, all the pitchers that night pitched well. Even Joba Chamberlian, he of the plague infested variety, pitched well. He was clearly bothered by the bugs, and I truly believe it got into his head. He wasn't the same pitcher after being doused with gallons of bug spray. The bugs, while clearly in the face of the Indians players as well, didn't seem to affect the Tribe the same way. The Yankees players appeared in general to be much more distracted by them. As a fan in the stands, I wasn't bothered by them at all... mainly because they were nowhere near the stands. Lindsay said one flew into her eye, but I never noticed any.

It is, as you can see, Tribe Time Now! Apparently. I'm not sure who came up with that slogan, but meh. Whatever. They handed out towels with the It's Tribe Time Now! saying on it also. It will join my sports towel collection, perhaps in a to be determined place of honor.

Pandemonium set in after Hafner's game winning hit. Cowboys were hugging Indians. Dogs were hugging cats. It was just like at the end of the movie Major League. We stayed in the stands for a good 10 minutes after the game just releasing all of the pent up emotion of the game. It was a really great game, and a perfect example of why baseball is such a great sport.

Fans need to realize that game 1 is over. Sure, it's great to win it, but it's not a 1 game series. The Yankees have a terrific offense that is capable of scoring a lot of runs, and the Indians would have a hard time winning a slug fest. That said, the Indians have better starting pitching, and with the exception of closers, the Indians have better relief pitchers also.

In the playoffs, pitching and defense wins games, but it doesn't hurt to score 10+ runs.

I think, in general, if the Indians are going to win games, they're going to tend to be close, somewhat low scoring games. Something like 5-4, 4-2, etc. The Yankees have the ability to blow a game wide open though, which could lead them to victories in the 9-3 area.

I'll be at the game tonight and will be cheering for Carmona. We were at a game two weeks ago and saw him pitch well against the A's. I think he can do it again. I look for him to go 6 innings and give up 3-4 runs. If the Indians bullpen trio of Perez, Lewis, and Betancourt can shut down the Yankees in innings 7 and 8, it could get interesting in the 9th if they call on Borowski.

I was upset last night that they wasted Betancourt with a 9 run lead. That's the perfect situation for Borowski to come in, because even he would have a hard time screwing that up.

Tonight I'm officially predicting a score of 7-4 Indians.

Yay. It's only one game. Tomorrow it doesn't mean much of anything.

We'll be at the game tomorrow. Hopefully we can play hard. Give it 100%. Insert cliche here.

The Indians need to win tonight in order to have a chance in the series... in my opinion. I'm already marking down games 3 & 4 as losses as Westbrook and Byrd will be pitching those. It's possible to win, I just don't think it's likely. CC needs to win both of his games, which I think is possible. If he can get past three innings tonight, I think he'll be fine. That said, he could come out throwing darts from the beginning, but I think he'll be amped up and will be a bit wild. Hopefully I'm wrong.

If the Indians are to win tonight, I think it will be close... 5-4.
If the Yankees win tonight, it could get ugly... 9-3.

If you returned a Thomas & Friends toy to RC2 recalled for lead paint, you probably received an apology and a "bonus gift." Guess what? it contained a "special surprise" for your child: more lead. The replacement toy for the lead recalled toys has now been recalled for lead. Maybe the apology toys for these ones will contain polio.

Test in Knowledge Management? Check.
Presentation in Strategic Management? Check.
Unplanned visit to the emergency vet? Check.

What's the verdict? Okay, good, mineralization on a vertebrate.

Hopefully it's not chronic. For now, Max is on a steroid anti-inflammatory, a narcotic pain killer, and a muscle relaxer. Sounds like a good night to me... or something.

Cleveland's Regional Transport Authority (bus lines and light rail) was voted the best transit system in North America.

If nothing else states it, I'm pretty sure that that means that North America is full of horrible mass transit. I've been on the RTA here and it's nothing special.