MattZ

Will Oldham may not be as prolific as Robert Pollard was, but he did more than most of these jokers you people are suggesting.

Well, he's not a very good MLB quarterback, that's for sure. I am not even passing judgment on him. Just that last offseason, Bears fans couldn't stop talking about how great he was, then the beginning of the season how bad he was, and now how great he is. Nothing earth shattering about it. All fans do the same. Just that this is VC. And this is the NFL thread.

ETA: hey, I say it with love. You are talking to a Jets fan doing the same thing with the Sanchise.

I look forward to a long offseason of Bears fans re-convincing themselves that Jay Cutler is awesome.

Pujols' pending free agency is not a surprise to the Cards. I am certain they've either made a decision that they can afford both, or that there's no way they can afford Pujols irrespective of Holliday. No way the Cards would let Matt Holliday stand in the way of resigning Pujols. The guy is to the Cards as Jeter is to the Yanks.

there was so much joy in this thread that I purposely held off on saying this. Didnt want to be the guy to rain on parades, and I am really happy for everyone, especially the Florida folks. But that being said, where's the NYC dates??? I have to go to New Jersey?? New Jersey?! P.S. New Jersey?!

I dont know much about gear porn (does one thing have to go into the other?), but I do know that if my wife were to tiptoe out of our bedroom late one night and find me sitting in my boxers staring at a computer screen in the living room, odds are pretty good she'd roll her eyes and be disgusted with me. And that I'd be looking at something like this:

If I had a budget of 2k, I'd probably end up spending 3k. Wouldn't you?

Huh. It just occurred to me where I was ten years ago today. Ten years ago. Yowsers.

Every time I listen to it I wonder how I could have possibly forgotten how remarkable it is. Kenny Burrell is great on the title track, too.

For holy fuck's sake, my new year's resolution is to listen to more Jimmy Smith. NP:

bjorn, Bay being better than the dogshit the Mets have put in LF is hardly a reason to sign him to a 4 yr contract with an option for a 5th yr. That's a really long time.

It's a fine line and a tough balance. I don't have any answers, but there's got to be a middle ground. You say there's no such thing as a single-payer healthcare system. There's also no such thing as pure capitalism. And since there isn't, govt has to get involved to help the employees too. The tough part is doing it in a way that incentives the Jules' of the world to keep running their businesses.

No way, dude. You and I agree on virtually everything. We had one falling out over how much to blame Obama about campaign promises. We agree on the substance.

No, I get you. I guess I don't really see much of a distinction between the government telling you that you have to pay minimum wage, or medicare taxes. I get why you have no interest in paying a dictated X% of health benefits, but it strikes me as a $$ issue. That seems to be a different issue than a principled "govt should butt out" issue. Maybe this is all semantics, though. If I were you, I'd be frustrated too.

For what it's worth LouieB, I don't disagree with you. I think futureage1 is way off base, and of course I think Obama is governing as a pragmatist and is doing a good job in many areas. He certainly can't be blamed for the fact that the Dems don't have a backbone and/or don't beat their members into submission on health care. But the fact remains that Obama set a very high bar, and I am disappointed in as many areas as I am pleased. And Jules, come on. Just cut through the white noise. You don't want to pay. It's as simple as that. Government is in the business of setting up rules fo

You know, I've got to admit that out of nowhere, American Central Dust probably became my most played album of the year. I found it paralyzingly boring for the first few spins. But for some reason, I kept coming back to it. And now it's like this slow burning groove. Nothing mindblowing. Just really solid, and really hits the that one spot that I didn't know I had. other stuff I liked/loved this year (not big into rankings or lists): Bill Callahan Yo La Tengo Bob Pollard Jim O'Rourke Califone Bonnie Prince Wilco Eels Bobby Zimmerman Everything else that I am forgetting

As a Jets fan, I just feel filthy. I am comforted by the fact that they will lose this week to miss the playoffs.

I think the chances of a Peyton Manning or analogous injury need to be weighed against the chances of a pissed off locker room. I don't know the chances of the former, but I know the chances of the latter are 100%. Not sure that's the best way to ensure your team is best prepared for the playoffs. I can't argue with the decision, but this was far from a no brainer (to me).

There's more going on IRDB than just the health care bill (and lets ignore for the moment where it comes up short -- it is certainly a step in the right direction). The idea that you aren't disappointed in issues of torture and detention centers and Dont Ask Dont Tell and Afghanistan (etc) means you are ignoring the issues. I dont think the two parties are the same. I just thought that, at this point, we'd be talking more about the good things that Obama had done. On his own. Without reference to how much worse off we'd be with a President Palin.

I never believed that Obama could change much of anything, but I wanted to believe. And the fact that we now praise Obama by comparing him to what is worse is quite simply devastating.

Yeah, I think I was drinking too much of it. Not an insane amount compared to real heavy users, but then, isn't that how all addicts rationalize it?

Yeah, I drink my beer and my whiskey straight. In the interests of full disclosure, I didn't include Seltzer in my definition of soda. This isn't some vegetarian who eats chicken type scenario, though. Seltzer is the only thing that got a pass because it's just water with bubbles. No coke, no sprite, no ginger ale, nothing with bubbles and other crap. EDIT: this was so much harder than I ever thought it would be. I want a coke almost every day. And just as badly as I wanted one on Jan 2, 2009. It's scary how addictions work. Proof that I needed to give it up, I think.

I am nine days away from my goal of "No Soda in 09." I may chug a Coke at midnight on NYE. I'm jonesin'.

People who influenced Matt (the Z) (in order of importance): 1. Mom 2. Dad 3. Bill Watterson