How does it feel to rest at 98.6% in the ESPN.com tournament challenge, you ask? Pretty damn good.
Kids, it pays to play it safe. Stay in school.
It is a little surprising that all four 1-seeds made it this far, the first time it has ever happened. I was counting on two, maybe three, but not four.
Even though I have UCLA in the final, I will be rooting for Memphis in that game, just to stick it to the man. I think they're going to win too.
The thing I don't like about MSNBC.com's First Read is that there is too much information in each post. Not too much substance, per se, but too many different topics being covered. It's very un-blog-like. I don't mind the effort -- the NBC political team does do a good job -- but don't call it a blog if it isn't one.*
There is even a video segment. This blog is simply too over-produced.
* I now realize that there is no mention of "blog" on the First Read website, but it is published as a blog.
I am not sure why this film was nominated for an Academy Award. In retrospect, I think the Academy may have had an off year. It was a different type of story, which is welcome, and my wife liked it. I think this is a film that must be watched more than once (which I didn't).
(Returned 03/31/08.)
I guess playing it safe pays off. I have landed six out of eight Elite Eight teams, and none of my Final Four teams have been eliminated. I currently stand at 93.9% in the ESPN.com challenge. Not bad.
The president is adamant that the Iraq war is going swimmingly...
There seems to be a distinct baseball theme to this hotel. The internet costs $10 here each day, but it is free in the lobby. Some more thoughts of the greatest city in the Midwest, after Chicago...
I had a local pale ale -- Schlafly -- and it was very good. Well, more than one. Great beer is made all over this country, waiting to be discovered, by me at least.
The new ballpark is nice, a retro-style ballpark with a large opening directed towards the city. There is a lot of room on the Mississippi River for the stadium to be constructed, but I guess the likelihood and presence of flooding conditions made that infeasible.
Speaking of flooding conditions, the river stage was easily six or seven feet higher than the banks, flooding the lowest street along the river. There is a statue of Lewis & Clark near an old bridge, but only Lewis (or Clark) was visible as the other was completely submerged.
I dipped my hand in the Mississippi, just a part of my initiative to touch every major waterway in America. The water was cold, and the river is silty.
Blog later.
Reflecting on the city of St. Louis before I head home tomorrow.
Flying from SFO into STL, I had the pleasure of sitting in the first aisle of coach, immediately adjacent to the restroom. This is my story.
- While waiting for takeoff, background music played over the speakers in the airplane cabin. One song was "Rainbow Connection," minus Miss Piggy and Kermit.
- One flight attendant gave me attitude when I wasn't fully aware of the snack choices (aright, I admit, I had no idea she was going to ask me, "would you like anything?" I was caught off-guard). She agitatedly informed me that the choices were previously announced over the speakers. I told her I only listen when a Spanish translation follows. If it doesn't, I do not retain.
- The in-flight movie was Dan in Real Life, which I have already seen through Netflix, meaning that I could follow along without buying the American Airlines earphones.
- The flight was less than four hours. And even though the first twenty minutes and the final twenty minutes requires all passengers to be seated, more than a couple handfuls of people found the need to go to the bathroom more than once. At least two people went three times. In three hours. What is the cause of this phenomenon? Is the lure of the airplane bathroom so enticing, one cannot resist to make just one more quick trip before the plane lands?
Paying for internet access is so primitive. I mean, what is this, 2002? Saint Louis, from my initial perspective, complete with San Francisco liberal elitist bias, is classic mid-west, blue-collar. A lot of open space.
The downtown is up and coming, and the new ballpark is gorgeous (it is right across the street from my hotel). There are large downtown blocks dedicated to ten- and twelve-story parking garages. Un-cool move: the new ballpark is named the same as the old ballpark. Come on, liven it up. Stan Musial Field, or Cardinal Park. Something, anything is better than Busch Stadium (the second, or the third, or whatever).
There is a lot of white people. And I mean a lot. The only minorities I saw were workers at the airport. Welcome to middle America.
Blog later.
The death toll of Americans in Iraq has eclipsed four thousand.
A mosaic has been created to commemorate the continuing tragedy...
Image: Nico Pitney / Huffington Post
