Random Thoughts Pt. I

Has anyone ever noticed that Michael Smith, from 'Around The Horn', kinda looks like Sharif Atkins, Dr. Michael Gallant from ER? Take a look for yourself.

There's this one Mountain Dew Commercial where a guy and his friend discover the guy's key entry thing transforms his crappy car into whatever he wants. Then, when he gets it to be this gold "bling-bling" truck, he subsequently turns his friend, part by part, into this hot chick in a short skirt, asking for a Mountain Dew. Now, here's my thing - first of all, oh, my God, that chick is HOT ... But, here's the point - I can understand changing your car. But, this is one of your male friends, that you just transformed into the hottest chick you've ever seen in your life. Just think about it - that hot chick is still your friend. What do you plan on doing with her? Does that seem just a bit creepy to anyone? Here - take a look for yourself:

Mountain Dew - Change

I don't get why people don't like 'ER' anymore. Sure, they got Parminder Nagra, Mekhi Phifer, Shane West ... but I think they're doing a good job. It's interesting. I dunno - it doesn't match up to the old school 'ER': George Clooney, Juliana Marguiles, Anthony Edwards, Eriq LaSalle ... But, hell, if you compare old-school to new-school all the time, I don't know if anything will ever truly match up with the other. It's apples and oranges - acquired tastes, each, I'll say.

Mmm ... Piper Perabo ... you know, she's not credited as being in "The Rocky & Bullwinkle Movie" on Netflix - they think Monica Potter played Agent Karen Sympathy (place dry laugh here). Hmm, interesting ... anyway, her movies aren't that bad - even 'Coyote Ugly' ... Mmm ... Tyra Banks ... excuse me. Anyway ...
Mmm ... Jessica Alba ... Yeah, I don't think I need to say anything else ...

Stupid News Stories

I heard this story on "Armstrong & Getty" this morning, and I couldn't believe it. Then, I read this story on the Associated Press, and I still couldn't believe it. Not that it happened, but that it's even news!

Apparently, a doctor by the name of Terry Bennett is being investigated by his Board of Supervisors because he told a woman, who happened to be obese, and I quote, "You need to get on a program, join a group of like-minded people and peel off the weight that is going to kill you." Now, the woman, obviously, was offended by this remark. Truth hurts, right? But, hey, if you're fat, you're fat. If you're obese, you're obese, and your doctor should be the person who tells you that. Dr. Bennett insists that he just wanted to get his point across, that she needed to lose weight.

Now, here's my thing - first of all, this situation has gotten completely out of control. His board of Supervisors is threatening reprimand, even revokation of rights to practice medicine, pending investigation. All because he told some fat person the truth! In the words of Jack Armstrong: "Get over it. People need to be heartier."

Look, I, too, am an overweight, medically obese guy, so I kinda know how bad it feels when someone tells you you're fat. Or, at least I can relate. But, the point is, this girl needs to face facts - she's obese, and if she wants to continue living, she should work on losing some weight! What's so wrong with that? Like I said, Truth hurts. Deal with it. Don't turn on the doctor who finally spoke up about it. It's a simple case of killing the messenger. It's stupid. Lose some weight, woman, and leave the good doctor alone!

And, another thing ... WHY IS THIS NEWS?!!!! For God's sake - "Woman offended by Doc's obesity advise?" Why do we need to know this? What the hell makes this National news? Seriously, to me, this isn't news - it's an office anecdote. It's something your co-workers bring up at the water cooler to break the ice. It's ridiculous. Get it outta here.

Hindsight: the 49ers' Draft Picks

The Niners have a problem.

Number 1 pick Alex Smith isn’t panning out the way everyone would have wanted him to, and now he has lost his starting job to resident 49ers QB Tim Rattay. Being a number one pick comes with great scrutiny - especially if you lose the starting job to one of the men who got the 2-14 record in the first place. That’s just a bit troubling to me, as a Niners fan. It makes me question the decision to take Alex Smith, considering the plethora of options we actually had with that first pick.

If I were in control of that pick, I would have gone about it differently. Right or wrong, here’s what I would’ve done –

I would play to the rest of the league, just like Nolan did, and would shop around to see if anyone wanted to trade for the pick. I would take an offer of multiple picks and an impact player – most likely a long shot, if not a stupid trade for the other team. If I was left with the pick, it would be one of two players – and neither of them would have been Alex Smith. Weighing the pros and cons, draft day would have gone something like this:

“With the first pick of the 2005 NFL draft, the San Francisco 49ers select … Mike Williams, wide receiver out of the University of Southern California.”

My other option would be Braylon Edwards, but I would take Williams over him, basically on upside. Plus, it’s a primer for next year’s draft. I liked Frank Gore as our third round pick this year, so I would probably do the same thing. Overall, it was a good rebuilding draft. But, I would also figure that we would, by no means, be that good of a team no matter who we took at number one. I’m not suggesting that the 49ers would throw this season away – it would be a learning experience for Gore and Williams. They would have a year under San Francisco’s system before next year. And, it’s not like Rattay’s a terrible QB – just not good enough to lead San Fran’s offense. Nonetheless, we probably wouldn’t win more than four games.

In any case, I would assume that we would have a top three pick. That would entail one of four choices in the 2006 draft – D’Brickashaw Ferguson, O-lineman out of Virginia to strengthen the running game and give Rattay more protection; Vince Young, QB out of Texas, could prove to be the next Michael Vick, with a cannon arm, if he decides to enter the draft next year; Reggie Bush, should Gore not work out, to add a much needed multi-faceted weapon to the 49ers’ O; or, the most coveted pick in the NFL draft next year: Matt Leinart. It would make perfect sense, with his offensive game, and a rapport with Mike Williams.

But, hey, I could be totally jumping the gun. I probably am – Alex Smith could be our guy for the next 5 or 10 years. He could just be having an Eli Manning-type of rough start. What could happen next year would be to pick up a Reggie Bush as a Running Back-slash-Wide Receiver. ‘Cause, let’s face it: no matter how good Alex Smith could be, it doesn’t look like that will show up any time soon. Give him time, but don’t expect a good season from him this year. Not with the team we have.

After all, the Niners do have a problem ... lots of them.

Dreams & Regrets of Italy

I was rummaging through a bunch of stuff in the house the other day, and I stumbled across a bunch of papers pertaining to a trip to Italy back in 2001. See, I was supposed to go to Italy with my choir, the Davis High Madrigals. Oh, man – we were going to sing for the pope at the Vatican, we were going to travel to Rome, Venice. The papers for the flight, the Kingway Tours criteria, including tags for my luggage, were in those envelopes. It just brought back the momentary bitterness I sometimes feel whenever the subject is brought up.

I mean, I was very fortunate, so, looking back, I really can’t dwell on it. After all, I did go to Prague, helping the Madrigals win the Choral competition there. Then, we went to Vienna, and lived the night life in Austria. That was a great time. Just seeing Europe, realizing I was there, actually there. At the time, it didn’t seem to be like such a big deal, but it really was.

That really was the experience of a lifetime – but, then again, so would have been singing for the Pope. And, it’s not like I can do it now – Pope John Paul II died in April. That choir got to sing for Pope John Paul II a few years before he died. And, I can’t imagine the things they did over there. It must have been so cool.

The reason I couldn’t go was because of some stupid immigration issues – I’m a resident, not a citizen, of this country. I need a number of visas in order to re-enter the country, should I ever leave. I’m a Filipino citizen, so, if I were to leave the U.S. without the proper visas, I’d be automatically shipped to the Philippines.

I blame the lawyers on that. They dropped the ball, in my opinion – my parents started the process in September, and they had ten months – TEN whole months – to get the visas processed. They couldn’t do it. I’m still a little bitter about that.

I probably wouldn’t have looked back on it with such regret if it wasn’t for the alternative I was forced to choose. Since I couldn’t go, I wasn’t going to waste my entire summer. So, I joined up with a music camp up in the mountains for a week. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the greatest experience – I was surrounded, mostly, by people I didn’t know, given the responsibility of counselor, and I was thrown into a situation I wasn’t entirely comfortable with. I won’t get into it, I’ll just say this – there were more bad moments than good, and I broke down at some points during the week.

But, hey, what can you do? I now look at that as a Nitschze experience – what didn’t kill me, made me stronger. How it did, I’m still not sure. But, hey, I like to look at the positives in the situation.

Protesters vs. Supporters: What's The Point?

So I was reading the paper this morning ... well, actually, I was watching "Armstrong & Getty", and they were reading the paper this morning ... and they pointed out this story about that lady waiting for Dubya to protest the war, 'cause her son died in Iraq. What was her name again? Right - Cindy Sheehan. Apparently, there's a group forming of soldiers' families and loved ones that support the troops and the war, who don't agree with Sheehan's stance.

Those two, God love 'em, exclaimed they were sick of the story, but that's not the point. My whole thing is ... well, there's a picture on the front page of the paper of supporters of the "You Don't Speak For Me, Cindy" Movement "squaring off" with anti-war supporters of Cindy Sheehan. Opposite sides of a huge social issue yelling at each other for hours on end. Two completely different viewpoints going at each other.

Do you see a problem here?

I'm sorry, I don't know if I'm the only one who sees it this way, but, DAMMIT! I don't see the point in these "confrontations"! This goes for religious groups and the Catholic Church fighting Same-Sex Marriage supporters on the streets of San Francisco, or any other conflict of the sort.

I just don't see the point at confronting each other - what's their ultimate goal, on either side? It's as if they yell at the other side enough, they'll, all of a sudden, out of the blue, go, "Oh, my God, you're absolutely right! My viewpoint is completely wrong!" and concede on the spot.

In my naive opinion, all these confrontations really are, are shouting matches, and it makes both sides look irrational, stupid, crazy or all of the above. Now, don't get me wrong - both sides certainly have perfectly valid points. All I'm saying that shouting matches and heated confrontations in public forums are no way to rationally present them. Most of the time, you guys just look like kookulas. (Thank you, Joe Getty, for that term.)

The Kings: Look At Them Now ...

I thought that I'd throw in my two cents on this one:

You know, it was only three years ago that the best Kings team ever assembled took the floor, an Horry 3-point miracle and more than a few missed free throws away from an NBA Championship. We had acquired Mike Bibby from the Vancouver/Memphis Grizzlies that past offseason, and with him, Chris Webber in his prime, Doug Christie's defensive presence, Peja Stojakovic's deadly 3-point shot, and Vlade Divac's versatility at Center, they were poised to knock off the two-time defending Champion Los Angeles Lakers. Bobby Jackson, sixth man of the year, Scot Pollard, Lawrence Funderburke, Hedo Turkoglu off the bench. It was their best shot at an NBA title. Boy, were those the days.

Fast-forward to the end of this past 2004-2005 season. Our starting lineup consisted of Mike Bibby, Cuttino Mobley, Brad Miller, Peja Stojakovic and Kenny Thomas. See, Chris Webber was traded to Philadelphia with two other bright prospects for what seemed to be "scrub players" at the time, in Corliss Williamson, Kenny Thomas and Brian Skinner. Doug Christie was traded to Orlando for "the cat", Cuttino Mobley. The Kings rumbled and stumbled their way to finish 50-32, and were subsequently pummelled in the first round by a resurgent Seattle Supersonics team, led by Ray Allen and, surprisingly, Jerome James.

Now, the thoughts crossed my mind as a Kings fan, as I'm sure it did for many Kings fans - "Geoff Petrie has finally lost it," "we're officially on the downslide," "Oh, God, we're reverting back to the 'glory days' of 1985." Basically, we were gonna suck.

O, Ye of little faith ...

All it took was a boot in the ass, in the form of former King Jerome James, the Kings defense and all-around play transforming him into Shaquille O'Neal incarnate. The Kings, as they were at the end of the 2005 season, looked like a perennial low-seeded team, and needed some changes, as they would soon lose more prospects to free agency. Needless to say, Petrie had some work to do. Work, most say, Petrie does best.

In the course of the offseason, Petrie has made some ingenious moves that, if all works out, will only add to his legendary wheeling and dealing that brought us Webber, Bibby, Peja and Miller in the first place. First, after letting go of current shooting guard Cuttino Mobley to the L.A. Clippers, Petrie paid the small price of former sixth man of the year Bobby Jackson to acquire the services of emotionally erratic, yet extremely talented, Bonzi Wells from the Memphis Grizzlies. Next, Petrie spent the low price of a second-round draft pick for, what many consider, the best backup point guard in free agency, Jason Hart from Charlotte, to fill the void left by Bobby Jackson's departure. Finally, after a deal with the New Jersey Nets fell through, Petrie pulled the trigger to acquire free agent power forward Shareef Abdur-Rahim. With the additions of players like Ronnie Price and Jamal Sampson, the Kings now experience a bench depth that rivals that of the 2002-2003 season, which included the likes of Damon Jones, Scot Pollard, Keon Clark and Hedo Turkoglu.

With the current starting lineup of Mike Bibby, Bonzi Wells, Shareef Abdur-Rahim, Peja Stojakovic and Brad Miller, the Kings, on paper, are a force to be reckoned with in the Western Conference. Should their latest acquisitions pay off, just as so many of Petrie's moves have, they have the potential to become ... dare I say it? ... Championship contenders within the next two years.

Thanks to Geoff Petrie and the Kings organization, great things are possible when it comes to Sacramento basketball. (P.S. - Congrats to Ruthie Bolton for her retirement ceremony tonight, and the Sacramento Monarchs on the regular season Western Conference Title.)

Fantasy Football Drafting: My Take

Now, I've been listening to a bunch of radio guys, reading a bunch of websites, and hearing a bunch of people and their takes on how to have a successful fantasy draft. Everyone has their opinions on how to win at Fantasy. "It's all about running backs," "take a good QB", bla bla bla.

Look. I've only been drafting for three years, and I don't presume to know everything - anything, rather - about putting out a successful draft, but let me tell you something. In my experience, it's all about planning at first, then drafting on the fly.

Some of the things you hear are true - like, when planning your draft, you want to gun for the best RB's on the board. It's based on common sense - the way most leagues are set up, RB's get owners the most points. 2nd comes the quarterbacks - field generals. Why these two, some ask? The answer's quite simple - both positions touch the ball the most. Common sense, right? Two offensive games - Running, and passing.

Nonetheless ... I know that everyone drafts different. I realize that. I'm just going to be giving you my perspective on how I usually draft for a fantasy team. So, here we go.

First of all, you have to understand which players you want. The obvious ones are the first ones you actually overlook - in my opinion, if those players are on the board when it comes to you to make your first or second pick, more often than not, you're going to take them. It's the not-so-obvious standouts that will make or break your team. For me, whenever I draft, I look at the obvious picks, but I look forward to which second-tier position players will be there when I pick again, or, if I'm lucky, other first-tier position players that fall to me.

Second of all, have a draft strategy, but be flexible with it as the draft goes on. For me, it really changes depending on which pick you have. This is important: have the knowledge to predict which players will be available when your pick comes up. For example, if you have the ninth or tenth pick out of ten, Priest Holmes is most likely NOT going to be there when your pick comes up, so don't count on him being there. At nine or ten, the real stud RBs will most likely be off the board. If not, take a stud RB; if they are, switch it up - go for a top-tier QB.

Third of all, be wary of bye weeks. I know this is an obvious point, but when owners build their teams, they tend to go for the best available. Look at it this way: You'd be crying tears of joy if you could grab a fantasy team with Daunte Culpepper, Priest Holmes, Tiki Barber, Randy Moss, Plaxico Burress and Tony Gonzalez. But, you'll be just plain crying come week 5. Trust me - if you don't pay attention, it'll hurt you during the season.

The way I see it, most of the time, I spend my first three picks on, what I call, my "triumverate" of players - a stud RB, QB and WR. After that, it's all about strengthening player depth. Now, that main goal can change if, in the second or third round, I see another RB or WR on the board, that I think will be gone by the time I have my next pick.

After establishing a base of stud players, the next objective is to gun for depth. Other owners will most likely go for elite TE's, kickers and Defenses at this point - between about the 6th and 8th rounds. I suggest you don't fall into that trap - deepen WR and RB depth here. For every Antonio Gates, Tony Gonzalez, Mike Vanderjagt or Ravens Defense that flies off the board, there is an Anquan Boldin, Brandon Stokley, LaMont Jordan or J.J Arrington that they neglected to take, available for you to steal. Trust me - even in the late rounds, there will be a Marcus Pollard, Alge Crumpler, Jermaine Wiggins, Ryan Longwell, Jason Elam or Eagles Defense available for you.

Finally, as an essential rule, be on your toes when it comes to live drafts. I say this for two reasons. First, there will be times when your pick is about to come up, that a player you covet will be off the board either the pick before yours or a couple picks before. If that happens - and trust me, it will; it's happened to me a few times, don't think it won't happen to you - have a standby player you are ready and willing to draft. For example - in the first round, you want Priest Holmes, and he is taken the pick before yours. What do you do? Take an Edgerrin James or a Willis McGahee. It doesn't even have to be in the same position - level 1: Tomlinson; level 2: Manning; level 3: Holmes. Just be prepared for anything.

Second, it has to do with draft etiquette. No one likes a guy (or girl) who takes the full 90 seconds to decide on a pick. Couldn't get more annoying. If you have an idea of the player you wanna take, and he's there, take him. You have a good five minutes to decide on your next pick - don't waste them.

Oh, one more thing - if you do a live draft, SHOW UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can't tell you how many live drafts I've shown up to, and at least half of the owners don't bother to show up. If you care about fantasy football, and the feelings and respect of the other owners, don't sign up for a live draft league unless you are going to be at the live draft. You know? Why bother? It's also more fun that way, if I do say so myself - at least if you're there picking, we can laugh at you for a bad pick, or applaud a good pick.

Anyway ... that's my philosophy to drafting for Fantasy Football, in a nutshell. I don't know if that'll help anyone who reads this, but that's how I roll.

Hines Ward & The Thing About Holdouts

Now, I like Hines Ward. Dude was on my fantasy team three years running. I always like the way he played - one of the most reliable receivers in the league. He'll catch the long ball, he'll catch the screen pass, he'll get you first downs, he'll get you touchdowns. He'll block, he'll run, he'll do just about anything for the Pittsburgh Steelers in order for them to win.

And, remember - this man was one of Steeltown's rocks at WR. 80 Receptions for over 1,000 yards each of the last four seasons. Four straight pro bowls. Three different QB's. On a self-proclaimed "run-first" team. You look at the numbers compared to other elite wideouts in the league, and it doesn't take a genius to know that Ward is one of the most valuable players in Pittsburgh, and the NFL. He's up there with Terrell Owens, Marvin Harrison, Randy Moss, Torry Holt, Chad Johnson, in just about every single statistical category.

With the exception of one - Salary.

Now, Ward is expected to see $1.66 million in the final year of his current contract. $1.66 million! Now, you compare that to a WR like Amani Toomer, who is expected to see around $6 million, and you gotta ask yourself a question - how can somebody with one-fifth the talent get paid five times more? I'm sorry ... does that make any sense?

Now, in the case of Hines, you can bet your ass I'm on his side. All-around, arguably, one of the best in the game. That's "players", by the way - not just "wide receivers". Yeah, I said it. And he's gettin' paid five times less than some less talented players. It just isn't fair.

Now, let me get to my point. Hines Ward is currently in the middle of a holdout. OOH ... the dreaded word. Holdout. Lately, it's been looked at as a bush-league tactic set up by greedy players and agents to get $5 or $10 million more than the millions they already make. Now, let me be the first to say ... well, not the first, but, anyway ... I beg to differ. This deals with a much more troubling issue in this league.

This has to do with guaranteed money, and equalizing power between front office and player. That's all this really boils down to. Now, people can say that players demanding more money is greedy and selfish. "You make millions of dollars - stop whining about more money!", or "You signed a contract - see it through!" I can hear them say, in various ways.

What some people don't understand is, the contracts that players sign aren't guaranteed. NBA, MLB - the money they sign for is the money they get. The money that NFL players sign for - even those like T.O., who just signed a 7-year, $49 million contract - can be restructured, cut down, or even yanked from under them sooner than you can say "Torn ACL". The minute any player becomes expendible is the minute they lose their contract money.

Now, explain to me how it's fair that front offices, GMs, Owners can restructure, or even outright cut, expendible or expensive contracts whenever they feel like it, and players are looked at as the bad guy when they feel like they deserve more money. All of the power, in this case, is clearly with the owners. So, does anybody think that's fair?

Players should have the right to negotiate for more guaranteed money. The problem here is that they don't have that right. NFL players deserve the same right to future security as much as any blue-collar worker. In the world of professional sport, talented players should get the money they deserve - end of story. And that money should be guaranteed: otherwise, they're completely screwed if they get cut, for whatever reason.

I'm not saying that players should have the power to renegotiate their contracts whenever they feel like it, for extreme amounts of money. If that happened, people could see players renegotiating contracts after every play week down the road, for ridiculous sums of money. All I'm saying is that players deserve more guaranteed money, based on their play on the field. Guys like Ward put butts in seats, and give their heart and soul for the team. The least his team can do is give him the money he deserves.

Raffy, Raffy, Raffy ...

What a shame.

Look, I tried to give him the benefit of the doubt. That's just my way of thinking when it comes to these issues - probably to a fault. I mean, I still think that Barry Bonds isn't guilty of anything ... but I digress. After what I heard today, there's no wiggle room anymore.

Apparently, this stuff he took - Stanozolol? Potent stuff. And it looks like he couldn't have possibly taken it "mistakenly" or "without his knowledge". Down the gullet or in the ass (by needle, not depository) are the only ways to take it. The latter - you gotta be unconscious not to know. The former - you really don't look at your vitamins before you take them.

But, hell, that's not the half of it - dude found out he was slapped with the violation in May - TWO MONTHS AGO! Just one month after he basically screamed at Congress that Jose was lying his ass off in "Juiced". Granted, I realize he was spending all that time appealing the press release. But, seriously - he knew the steroids were hovering over his head about a month later, when we were lauding him for his 3-K. We celebrated this future hall of famer, and he was thumbing his nose at all of us.

I was on the fence until today - Fool Congress once, shame on you. Fool us twice - Shame on us. You aren't gonna fool us again. Sorry, Raph - I, for one, can't believe you anymore. And that's hard for me to say.