New Episode of JTTTC - Tonight at 9PM EST

Here we go now!


The MLB trade deadline is at 4PM EST today, so join us in the Cornfield tonight as we discuss the deals that went down as well as the deals that should have gone down.  Or maybe even the deals that shouldn't have gone down.  We'll also pile into the way-back machine to look at deadline deals from the past and their eventual outcomes.

Oh, and we are going to be announcing the winner of our nickname contest tonight as well.

In other words, it's a can't miss show.  Do it to it!

Too much to think about...

Just some quick music for ya on this Friday at the end of July.  Todd Snider with Statistician's Blues.  I feel ya, Todd.

"Now I don't know what you believe, but I do know there's no doubt...I need another double shot of something 90 proof, I got too much to think about."- Todd Snider

Contest from the Cornfield

As you probably already know listening to our latest episode of Just Talking to the Cornfield, ahem, we are having another contest/giveaway.  What are we giving away?  Why it's another jar of Midnight Moon Apple Pie Moonshine from Piedmont Distillers.  Huzzah!

All you have to do is come up with some nicknames for several current MLB stars who really need one.  Those MLB stars are:

• Andrew McCutchen - Pittsburgh Pirates
• Prince Fielder - Milwaukee Braves
• Joe Mauer - Minnesota Twins
• Jose Reyes - New York Mets
• Joey Votto - Cincinnati Reds

Sure, some of these cats already have nicknames.  But they suck. So we want to come up with some fresh ones.  And we think a jar of booze is just the right amount of impetus to get your creative glands secreting.  Ewww.

So send your submissions for all 5 players to the Colonel at zantall at aol dot com.  Don't leave them here in the comments because he is going to run them all by my blindly before the next show.  The deadline for submissions is this coming Sunday at Noon EST. 

Do it to it, kids!

To Kindle or not to Kindle

That's the question that I'm poising to you today.

I'm still not 100% comfortable with e-readers.  I'm trying, because e-books just seem to be more environmentally sound than paper books.  I say "seem" because not everyone is convinced that e-books are any greener than regular books.  That's a subject for some far more intelligent than I.

But just as my instincts shout that they "seem" to be greener, those same instincts also shout that e-books should be cheaper.  A whole lot cheaper.  And that just isn't true at all.

I've been tearing through the Jack Reacher books from Lee Child recently.  The first few I purchased from the Kindle Store on Amazon for $9.99 apiece.  Like I said, I'm still not 100% comfortable with e-readers.  We own a Kindle, an iPad and I have a Kindle application on my laptop.  The Kindle itself is the only one I kinda like, but even that doesn't feel as good as a real book in my hands.

So the next volume I went on Amazon to purchase, I wound up in their Books section rather than the Kindle department.  And you know what I found?  They were selling paperback versions of the same books for $9.99.  The SAME PRICE as the Kindle edition!!!  And I'm an Amazon Prime member, so I don't pay anything for 2-day shipping. So it really is the same price.

That makes absolutely zero sense to me.  To repeat, it should be cheaper.  A whole lot cheaper.  I don't get it. Do any of you?  Are any of you as pissed as I am about this pricing structure?  It really is infuriating.

And before any of you suggest it, I know...I could borrow the book for free from my local library.  Yes, that is the best solution of them all.  I get it.

But in the specific question of buying books new or buying the Kindle edition, where do you stand?

Something New

UPDATE - Yeah, so I screwed up. Apparently Blogger is a little clunky (go figure) when starting a new blog. They automatically set it to invite only.  Who knew?  It is now fixed.  And I am humbled. - Earl

So, several months ago I announced that I would be starting a food and drink blog and I was looking for contributors.  Well, laziness happens folks.   But now it's here!

Simmer, Sip, Share



What's the content going to be about?  Well, just about anything and everything that has to do with food and drink.  Recipes of the food and drink variety, restaurant and bar reviews, product reviews, great food and drink experiences...whatever.  I'm leaving it up to the discretion of the contributors. 

Contributors? Yeah, it's gonna be a collaborative effort too, if you will. I sent out the invites to those of you who requested it, even if you've forgotten by now.  But we want to invite anyone (cool enough) to join.  So shoot me an email or leave a comment if you want to be part of the fun, and I'll send you an invite.


In the meantime, check out the site and add it to your feed reader or follow it the way you follow other blogs.  Or not. I'm not the boss of you.

Yet.  Hehehe.

So...how have ya been?

Yeah, I know...it's been some time now.  Did you miss me? I missed you.

Maybe that's a good thing every once in a while.  It's been several weeks since I was posting regularly here on the ole Verdant Dude.  Lots of reasons for that.  Vacation was the reason for at the beginning, but then life intervened in ways that I don't really want to talk about here. Because that's not what I use this space for.  I did, once upon a time.  But I've since decided to keep this site mostly free of my personal life.

But I'm still kicking, don't you worry about me.

So what can I talk about here?  Let's see...BULLET STYLE!!!

• We've done three new episodes of Just Talking to the Cornfield since the last time I've regularly blogged.  The Colonel and I have discussed all kinds of fascinating baseball-related topics.  OK, fascinating to some people.  Pure Hell for others.  Different strokes and all.  Oh, we are on iTunes as well, so look for us there.
  
• There was that vacation I mentioned above. Block Island off the coast of Rhode Island (which isn't really an island at all). That was some fun shit right there. Mostly.  I heartily recommend that place to anyone who enjoys the island life...without having to go all the way to the Caribbean.  
• I've seen a bunch of new stuff on Netflix Instant. Namely French zombie movies.  That's right...French zombie movies.  That would be "zombi" en francais. The Horde was excellent.  Mutants a little less so, but still entertaining.  Oh, those French...
• Saw the new Captain America flick. Man, oh man that was a shitload of fun.  If you like well-done war movies or well-done superhero flicks, then you should check it out.  If you like both...well, run to the theater.  It's that good.  Seriously.
• I've discovered that the best possible use for Catdaddy Carolina Moonshine is to mix it with a splash of OJ and some seltzer.  A Catdaddy Orangina, if you will. It...is...sublime.
• I've read three more Jack Reacher books from Lee Childs.  I'm still having a hard time believing that Tom Cruise might wind up playing him in a feature film.  ::shivers::
• Speaking of Tom Cruise, before the Cap film we saw a trailer for the next Mission Impossible movie. I certainly have issues with Cruise (can he fly yet?), but I did love the first and third entries in the series.  And since JJ Abrams is involved again in this one, along with Jeremy Renner, I'm all in.  Entertainment!

Ugh...that's all I got. Seems I haven't been doing much of anything at all.  Well, anything I want to share with y'all here anyways.  A girl's gotta keep some secrets.  Shhhhhh.

JTTTC New Episode - Tonight at 9PM EST

Back to our regularly scheduled day and time.

Tonight we are gonna get all kinds of nerdish.  Statistically speaking, that is. It all started with a simple question that Rob Neyer posted on his blog.  Given their performances and makeup, would you rather have Tim Lincecum or Clayton Kershaw as your staff ace for the next 3 years. I picked Kershaw because of his stuff, age (23 vs 27) and the fact that he is a lefty.

The Colonel disagreed, and he said he would prefer a top-tier right-handed starter over a top-tier lefty any day.

That's the gist of it, and we are each gonna dive into the stats to try to prove why each of our choices was the proper one.  I'm totally gonna win.

So join us tonight on Talkshoe, or listen to the show tomorrow on iTunes. You know you wanna.

JTTTC - New Episode tonight at 9PM EST

Just because I'm on hiatus from blogging (hey...then what's this?), doesn't mean the radio show can't go on.

So listen in tonight at 9PM EST to hear the Colonel and I discuss the first half of the season that was, and some famous second half meltdowns from the past.  Something all those front-runners this year are going to hope to avoid.

Oh, and then there's this:  

THE PITTSBURGH PIRATES ARE IN FIRST PLACE!

Seriously.  There's no punchline to that statement. Hard to believe.

Join us tonight, won't you?

Still on hiatus

Except for this brief note to tell y'all I'm still on hiatus.  Get it? Got it? Good.

Big laughs? Um....

On a boat

Heading out for vacation, so I may not be around much the next 5 or 6 days.  I know, your loss.

Gia and I are gonna be spending some time with my sister and brother-in-law on their boat over on an island somewheres. Drinking boat drinks, reading trashy novels, getting sun-burned and fishing look to be on the agenda.  And who knows about the wifi situation at the marina we are staying at.

All that's gonna be missing is the pony.

If I Had a Boat

by Lyle Lovett

If I had a boat

I'd go out on the ocean

And if I had a pony

I'd ride him on my boat

And we could all together

Go out on the ocean

Me upon my pony on my boat

If I were Roy Rogers

I'd sure enough be single

I couldn't bring myself to marrying old Dale

It'd just be me and trigger

We'd go riding through them movies

Then we'd buy a boat and on the sea we'd sail

And if I had a boat

I'd go out on the ocean

And if I had a pony

I'd ride him on my boat

And we could all together

Go out on the ocean

Me upon my pony on my boat

The mystery masked man was smart

He got himself a Tonto

'Cause Tonto did the dirty work for free

But Tonto he was smarter

And one day said kemo sabe

Kiss my ass I bought a boat

I'm going out to sea

And if I had a boat

I'd go out on the ocean

And if I had a pony

I'd ride him on my boat

And we could all together

Go out on the ocean

Me upon my pony on my boat

And if I were like lightning

I wouldn't need no sneakers

I'd come and go wherever I would please

And I'd scare 'em by the shade tree

And I'd scare 'em by the light pole

But I would not scare my pony on my boat out on the sea

And if I had a boat

I'd go out on the ocean

And if I had a pony

I'd ride him on my boat

And we could all together

Go out on the ocean

Me upon my pony on my boat

New Episode of JTTTC Thursday night - 9PM EST

Phew!

So we took a little hiatus there.  You missed us, you REALLY missed us!

Geez...you could at least pretend.

Join me and my highly-ranked buddy, the Colonel, as we discuss baseball and its often inter-connected history with alcohol.  A subject suggested by our first (and only, so far) contest winner 2 weeks ago.  Baseball and beer...they go together like baseball and beer. 

C'mon...it's Thursday night in Summertime and that stupid baby-killer trial is over.  What else ya gonna do?

You can listen in live on Talkshoe (you really should) or you can catch the download over there anytime after the show is finished.  Or on iTunes shortly thereafter. 

My Juliet

Happy Birthday to the bestest woman in the world.  I love you, Gia!

Bonus: That video encompasses everything I love and hate about the 1980's. Solid!

The Fog

Had the oddest/coolest Independence Day yesterday.

Woke up early to some iffy weather.  We were supposed to head out to the beach on my sister's boat, but we chilled out for a while until we heard from them since we weren't sure if they were actually going to go.  Turns out they decided to head out early.  And once they got out onto the bay, they encountered a daytime fog that is truly rare around these parts.  Especially during a warm summer day.  Took them forever to get to Davis Park (a beach community on Fire Island).  They were planning on getting a dock slip and then coming back to the mainland to get us, but since it was dangerous boating with all that fog they asked us to take the ferry across and meet them there.

No problem.  Actually met some nice folks on the ferry.  A couple in front of us wanted to pay with their debit card, but the ferry only took cash.  So we gave them the money for the ride and they found a cash machine over at Davis Park to pay us back.  Good karma, I always say.  Then I gave up my seat to an elderly couple because the ferry was standing room only at that point.  Turned out to be my brother's ex-neighbors.  Really nice folks.

But the ride over to the beach was weird.  Total pea soup.  And it was already 11AM at that point.  Never saw a fog like that didn't burn off in the late morning/early afternoon.  It was like those fake clouds/fog that the alien ships used in the film Independence Day to mask their arrival.  Welcome to Earf!

But there was a bit of a breeze and the surf was pounding.  So we headed out to the beach.  I had a bit of a sunburn from lounging in the pool on Saturday, so I was covered up and sunscreened up. Even with all that fog. And the fog just kept on sticking around.  From the beach, you could see the first set of breakers.  But beyond that?  Nothing.  It was really eerie.  And really cool.  My niece and nephews (and Gia) didn't care, they just played in the surf like normal.  They said all they could see of the next wave was a great big shadow in the fog.  Nice!

Finally, around 4:30PM, the fog lifted. And the clouds mostly cleared too.  Excellent.  Because that meant the big fireworks show over the bay would happen as planned.  So we had a bite to eat back on the boat and headed out for the show.  I'm not a big fireworks guy, but the kids (and Gia) loved it.

All in all, a really cool, freaky, weird, eerie, fun day.

Diggin' the scene with a gangster lean...

...woo-ooh-ooh!

Be Thankful For What You've Got

by William DeVaughn

Though you may not drive a great big Cadillac

Gangsta whitewalls

TV antennas in the back

You may not have a car at all

But remember brothers and sisters

You can still stand tall

Just be thankful for what you've got

Though you may not drive a great big Cadillac

Diamond in the back, sunroof top

Diggin' the scene

With a gangsta lean

Gangsta whitewalls

TV antennas in the back

You may not have a car at all

But remember brothers and sisters

You can still stand tall

Just be thankful for what you've got

Diamond in the back, sunroof top

Diggin the scene

With a gangsta lean, wooh-ooh-ooh

Diamond in the back, sunroof top

Diggin the scene

With a gangsta lean, wooh-ooh-ooh

Diamond in the back, sunroof top

Diggin' the scene

With a gangsta lean, wooh-ooh-ooh

Though you may not drive a great big Cadillac

Gangsta whitewalls

TV antennas in the back

You may not have a car at all

But remember brothers and sisters

You can still stand tall

Diamond in the back, sunroof top

Diggin' the scene

With a gangsta lean, wooh-ooh-ooh

Diamond in the back, sunroof top

Diggin' the scene

With a gangsta lean, wooh-ooh-ooh

[Instrumental Interlude]

Diamond in the back, sunroof top

Diggin' the scene

With a gangsta lean, wooh-ooh-ooh

Diamond in the back, sunroof top

Diggin' the scene

With a gangsta lean, wooh-ooh-ooh

Diamond in the back, sunroof top

Diggin' the scene

With a gangsta lean, wooh-ooh-ooh

Diamond in the back, sunroof top

Diggin' the scene

With a gangsta lean, wooh-ooh-ooh

Diamond in the back, sunroof top

Diggin' the scene

With a gangsta lean, wooh-ooh-ooh

Diamond in the back, sunroof top

Diggin' the scene

With a gangsta lean, wooh-ooh-ooh

Friday freaky shit

That's Zappa and Beefheart doing what they do. The freaky animation thingy is just a bonus.

Enjoy your holiday weekend, everyone!

Willie the Pimp

by Frank Zappa

I'm a little pimp with my hair gassed back
Pair a khaki pants with my shoe shined black

Got a little lady ... walk the street
Tellin' all the boy that she can't be beat

Twenny dollah bill ( I can set you straight )
Meet me onna corner boy'n don't be late

Man in a suit with a bow-tie neck
Wanna buy a grunt with a third party check

Standin' onna porch of the Lido Hotel
Floozies in the lobby love the way I sell:

HOT MEAT
HOT RATS
HOT CATS
HOT RITZ
HOT ROOTS
HOT SOOTS
HOT ZITZ
HOT MEAT
HOT RATS
HOT CATS
HOT ZITZ
HOT ROOTS
HOT SOOTS

Another year, another Bag

Paper Bag, that is.  If you don't feel like following that link, or if you don't remember my post from past years, I figure I would give you a quick rundown.

The Paper Bag is an annual local music event.  A revolving 70+ person band filled with local musicians of the professional and amateur type.  A lot of them, so it happens, are also teachers.  So the concert is always set for the last day of school here in New York. A kind of "hello Summer, goodbye urchins" deal, if you catch my drift.

They run through a practice session the night before, and then they get together for a few hours before the gig starts.  But that's it.  Well, some of the sub-groups get together to practice here and there.  And some of them play in bands with each other all year long. But actually practicing the songs that happen in the show with all those performers?  Yeah...it happens pretty quick.

Gia is a part of a cheesy backup singer girl-group, fittingly called the Cheese Calzones.  For the past four years, she's also been getting her own solo with the rest of the Calzones backing her up.  So much fun.  This year, she did a version of Pink's "U + Ur Hand" which was awesome.  I'm not crazy about the song itself, neither is she.  But she doesn't have a ton of input in choosing the setlist, so she just goes with the flow.

This year the flow meant ripped jeans, funky jacket and these long dreadlock things that she wrapped into her hair.  She looked awesome.  I would post a pic or the video of her performance here, but she doesn't want me to.  But trust me, she looked and sounded awesome.  And the crowd loved her.  Always does.

The one thing that I would have preferred is if she went on a bit earlier in the night.  The show goes from 10PM to 4AM, and in years past she has usually performed in the first 2 hours.  Last night she went on around 2ish in the AM.  There were actually some songs on the setlist after she went on that I really wanted to stick around for, but we decided to get going around 2:45.  We didn't get home until after 3:30, and the sun was threatening to come up before we actually fell asleep.

So Wednesday was a sleepy day, but a good kind of a sleepy day.  Ready for the rest of the Summer.

Reading assignments

First, read this article about misleading sabermetric statistics on the new Grantland website by Jonah Lehrer.

Finished?

Okay, now read this article on Fangraphs by Joe Pawlikowski as a response to that stupid argument.

That is all.

PS - Gia performed in the Paper Bag concert last night (or as you are reading this), so we are gonna be out late and sleeping in most of the morning on Wednesday. 

We the people

I was pretty proud of my home state this past Friday when our state lawmakers decided that same-sex couples should have the same legal right to marriage as traditional couples.  And really...what's traditional these days?  Most of the folks I know are happy with the decision.  Even those who are against it, aren't "the world is gonna end" against. it.  They just would have preferred that government stay out of it, and I'll get to that point in a moment.

My mother is one of those that I know who are against the decision. She believes that a marriage is defined as being between a man and a woman.  But she also believes it to be a sacrament of the Church.  And that's where it all begins and ends for some people.  How about a man and a woman married by a Justice of the Peace?  Or a ship's captain?  Or anyone legally allowed to do so?  Is that the same kind of marriage as a couple married in a church by a priest?  The lines and the argument that marriage is a religious joining get a bit blurred in those sitiuations.

My deal is that I don't think our government should have a say in who chooses to spend their life with someone they love.  In our out of marriage.  And if a same-sex couple wants to marry under the eyes of the law of our land, then so be it. All rights should be the same for all people.  Period.  The institution of marriage isn't being harmed.  Nor are the opponents of same-sex marriage losing anything.  Except for the right to impose their will on those with different beliefs. 

But I try not to get too heated about it, because generally the other side of the aisle doesn't make a whole heap of sense to me in this particular argument.  And there is no way that little ole' me is gonna change their minds on the subject.  Hey, I'm stubborn in some of my opinions too.

Like the idea of separation of church and state was something that our founding fathers deemed to think pretty important.  Yeah, I know the term wasn't coined until after The Constitution was drafted and made law by our founding fathers.  But it was one of those founding fathers that coined the term, so there's that. And if you read The Constitution, I mean really read it, the only mention of God, gods or religion is in the following two areas:

Article I

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Article VI

1: All Debts contracted and Engagements entered into, before the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be as valid against the United States under this Constitution, as under the Confederation.


2: This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding.


3: The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.

That's it.  Just those two mentions of religion.  Oh, they signed it with a "in the Year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and Eighty seven", so I'll give ya that.  A mention of "our Lord". Very nice. 

I included all of Article VI in there, but it's section 3 that states that there shall be no religious test required to serve public office in this country.  But equally important is Section 2 which states that the laws and treaties enacted by Congress shall be the "supreme Law of the Land".  Because there is that tricky Treaty of Tripoli that was ratified in 1797 that stated the following:

Article 11

As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion; as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquillity, of Mussulmen; and, as the said States never entered into any war, or act of hostility against any Mahometan nation, it is declared by the parties, that no pretext arising from religious opinions, shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries.

Seems pretty clear to me. "As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion...".  Those were our founding fathers who wrote and ratified that treaty, right?  I mean there can't be any argument about what that sentence means, right?

Anyway, I dig that folks live their lives by the Bible.  Or the Quran.  Or the Torah.  Or The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.  Makes no difference to me.  In fact, I find it pretty commendable.  Most of the really religious folks I know are excellent people, and they will point to their faith as the reason behind that.  That's awesome.  There are times I wish I shared their faith.

But our Constitution wasn't written by God or his prophets or whomever.  It was written by people for people.

The evidence is in those first three words in the Preamble.

No JTTTC this week

Taking a week off from the radio show.  The Colonel is away on a scouting trip. Or he's drinking rum drinks and tanning his belly on a beach somewheres.  Either way, we are using that as an excuse to take a break from the show.

But don't you worry...we'll be back next week with more of our patented stupidity.  It's how we roll.

Cheers, kids!

XM or naught

I listened to FM radio today for the first time in just about forever.  It still sucks.

Our Mini was in the shop, so we had a loaner Hyundai Sonata for the day from the dealership.  And our XM reciever was still in the Mini, so I had to deal with FM radio for a little while as I did some running around in the afternoon.  There is one station on the dial that I kinda like, but whenever they hit a commercial break I play with the dial.

I landed on a station that has played the same music since I was in junior high.  I'm serious. THE SAME EXACT FUCKING MUSIC ON THE SAME EXACT FUCKING STATION. It's so bizarre. Right before I hit the station, I said to myself "Self, what's it going to be on WBAB? Bad Company? Boston? Journey? Maybe some Pink Floyd?"

And the absolutely obvious roulette wheel landed on Boston. "More Than a Feeling"...and it really couldn't have surprised me less.

Does anyone out there get jazzed when a song like "More Than a Feeling" pops up on the radio?  Do ya really? I think you're lying, because the real answer is that no one gets jazzed about that.

Listen, I don't mind and I kinda love 70's music.  We listen to the 70's channel all the time on XM.  But they don't play the super-obvious hits like "More Than a Feeling." They usually play stuff that makes you go "Oh yeah...I remember this song...", or something to that effect.  I just don't get stations like the one I happened upon yesterday, though.  Makes no sense. 

Do you still listen to FM radio?  Is there anything decent out there on the freewaves?