Fake Express

For the past couple of weekends, the MTA has been doing massive track work on almost all of their lines. I was in the Times Square taking some friends around and we had so much trouble finding a train that didn't have a changed schedule. Track work often screws some people, but helps others. Some lines were going express only, which could be an improvement if you're trying to go far fast. We hopped on an express thinking we'd get there fast, but this series of repairs is only yielding fake express trains. These are trains that run on the express track, but aren't operating at normal express speeds. They're slowing down and stopping at almost all of the local stops... just not opening the doors. So the fake express trains ended up being slower than the rush hours locals!

At least the tracks are being repaired and our money is going somewhere!

Home Opener

The Bulls started their season last night with a strong win against the Spurs. It was a typical victory with spread out scoring. Derrick Rose, coming off a preseason ankle injury looked like he was in top shape as he pulled off some impressive ankle breakers. The seasoned Tony Parker looked bad against the future great point guard. They outrebounded and outdefended one of the best in the West. On a night like that, there was no need for Ben Gordon.

However, right now, they're getting killed by the Celtics. Last year when the Bulls had a big halftime deficit, I wasn't worried at all. They always made an amazing run, usually behind Gordon's hot shooting. He's the best 4th quarter player in the league and proved it in last year's playoffs. I guarantee that they're not going to make a run tonight. Who would do it... Salmons? NOT!

Who's Your Daddy, Pedro?

The Yankees dropped Game 1 behind a pretty good performance by CC Sabathia. Game 1 ia always the most painful loss because both teams throw in their best pitcher. In this case, both CC & Cliff Lee were former Cy Young winners... both guys were supposed to win the first game. It felt like a missed opportunity as a Yankees fan because Game 2 was a toss up with AJ Burnett not being very consistent.

Game 2 was actually the same type of game with both pitchers doing well. Pedro Martinez, in his return to NY continued where he left off with the Sox. But AJ Burnett was that much better. Pedro had his typical strong innings, but the Yankees got his pitch count up... something they failed to do against Lee the day before. Like with the Sox, Pedro was strong, but tired out and gave up a lot of hits in his last inning. Much to the delight of Yankee fans, he was tagged with the loss as Tex & Matsui went deep.

Now it's off to Philly for Game 3. If the Yankees win one more game, Jimmy Rollin's fat mouth prediction will be wrong!

October Sports

One of the great things about the Yankees getting into the World Series besides a chance for a 27th Championship and all of the Yankees baseball aspects of it is that there's more to watch during the dead month. Especially this year because I'm still pissed at the Bull's organization for letting Ben Gordon sign with Detroit. I've been ignoring all preseason basketball and Bulls news headlines. I honestly don't know what's going on in basketball right now. The other day, I was on YES and saw part of a Nets game. I was surprised to see Rafer Alston on the team as I haven't paid attention to any player movement. The past couple of years when the Yankees were eliminated early, October was so boring and I was looking forward to the NBA season. There were like 3 weeks with no sports to watch!

CC = ALCS MVP

I posted last night just before they announced the ALCS MVP. It was no surprise that CC Sabathia got the MVP. He had 2 of the 4 wins in the series and they weren't just wins. He pitched like a Cy Young winner. A-Rod & Mariano Rivera had to have been considered also for their clutch play as well, but I felt CC deserved it. He's had an amazing year and has adjusted better than any other star making the move to the city. He may have had a slow first month, but finished the season with 19 wins and put himself in position for another Cy Young. He came into the playoffs with no jitters and pitched great games in both rounds.

Usually a pitcher with 2 wins secures it as long as he didn't give up too many runs. If there's no pitcher with 2 wins, it usually goes to a position player.

ALCS Champs!

The ALCS was probably one game longer than it should've been, but at least the Yankees are finally back to the World Series again. They were able to bounce back and win Game 4 convincingly 10-1. It was another great outing for CC. A-Rod homered again. So those are the 2 guys that could likely get the ALCS MVP. Game 5 should probably have been the last game of the series as the Yankees had a 6-4 lead into the 7th, but AJ blew it and gave it all back in the bottom of the inning. Game 6 was mostly a close game. Pettitte was solid again. He should be the #2 guy in the World Series... not the shakey Burnett. The Yankees took a 3-1 lead into the 8th with Rivera set to pitch 2 innings. The Angels actually scored one off him to make it 3-2... still winable for either team. But the Angels definitely got the jitters in the bottom of the 8th, committing 2 errors and allowing 2 insurance runs for the Yankees... very uncharacteristic as they've been a solid defensive team all year long. It was a terrible time for them to break that pattern.

They did it... got past their nemesis! It was also fitting that they finished off at home with the familiar Pettitte/Rivera combo.

Going Yard... Stick

Luckily it wasn't rush hour for this woman I saw on the train today. She clumsily walked in and her stuff was all over the place. She had 2 bags, a yard stick and was fumbling around a hardcover book. As she tried to sit down, all of her items just dropped and took up a span of 2.5 seats. She struggled mightily to put her yard stick down, but it kept sliding all over the place. She tried to multitask and failed miserably. She was attempting to balance the yard stick on top of her bag (genius), which was on the seat next to her, but it kept sliding off. She wasn't looking because she was flipping through her book. She caught the yard stick a few times, swinging it around aimlessly. If it had been a crowded train, she would've taken out at least 3 passengers. Of course she acted calm the whole time like she was in control.

It's been well documented that those who are overly confident are more likely to screw up. They just never see their own actions as screwing up.

Take-On New York Showdown

Evolution 19 (Australia)

Muay Thai Heroes
November 28, 2009 @ 19:00


This one will be highlighted by John Wayne Parr as usual. This time, he's returning from a loss and missing the Evolution 18 because of an eye injury. His opponent will be Eli Madigan, a rising Australian star. It should be interesting... experience vs. energy. There's also a Contender Asia matchup as Soren Monkongtong will face off with Preacher... the 2 guys that got KOed by JWP!

New Train Tantrum

I was taking the B/D train this morning and also on the platform was a mother and 2 children. An F train passed by on the opposite side of the platform. It was one of the new cars... bright lights and shiny metal. The younger kid... maybe 3 years old really wanted to ride the new train. They would never make it to their destination if they took the shiny new F, but that wasn't important. The kid starts throwing a tantrum and shouting "new train... new train!" The B arrived... one of the old, dirty trains! We all got on and the tantrum continued. In an effort to calm him down, his mother said they were going to switch to the new train. It didn't matter. He wanted it now... even if he had to jump off the B! I had never seen anything like it. Since when did kids get sensitive about what train model they ride!?

Same Length... Different Result

Game 3 of the ALCS was another extra inning marathon... better weather and not quite as long. It just felt long because the game started during the work day at 4pm. It ended about 8:30pm! The outcome was just the opposite though as the Angels pulled off the walkoff in the bottom of the 11th. Posada tied the game in the 8th with a homer. Then they used up Hughes and Rivera. Robertson came in in the 11th to get the first 2 outs. Then Aceves gave up 2 hits to lose the game. It was a weird decision by Ghirardi because as the commentator said, there was no history to backup using Aceves over Robertson. Both were first year players with no data against the opposition. Robertson did a great job with the first 2 outs and showed no signs of bad stuff. Aceves was shaky in his last appearance. But the broadcast showed Ghirardi looking at a binder just before he made the decision. So he must've has a reason for it... it just didn't work this time.

Pie for the Other Team?

Last night's game was really an improbable victory. It was a close game all throughout... the whole 5 hours. I was following it on the radio as I watched the fight event and was still able to catch the extra innings on TV whe I got home!

Ghirardi took a chance by bringing in Rivera to get 7 outs... and unusually long outing for the ace closer. In a game this important, it was the right decision. Bring in the closer and try to win the game. It didn't play out as planned though as the game extended into extra innings. The Angels took the lead in the 11th off Aceves. Things looked grim at that moment since the rest of the bullpen is worse than Aceves... after Mo, Aceves was the only hope. But A-Rod, who has been clutch the whole year hit a game tying homer to right. Both clubs threatened with hits in each inning, but nothing happened until the 13th. Hairston got a leadoff base hit. They walked Cano. Melky hit a ground ball and the 2nd basemen took a chance and went for the force at 2nd, but over threw it. Hairston scored on the play and earned the pie. It was the first walkoff coming from an error, so I was wondering who would get the pie. Hairston got the hit and did some great baserunning, but the opposing 2nd baseman deserved some pie too!

Take-On New York Showdown Results

It was a little out of the way this time, but there was a pretty good Muay Thai event in Queens. Sitan NY hosted a loaded fight card at the 7 Train Theater in Flushing. It consisted a lot of regular Friday NIght Fights names and was of course regulated by the WKA. Here are the results.

- Mike Manousakakis def Chad Fitzgerald (TKO - 1st rd.)
- Greg Lachaga def Nicholas Hainea (unanimous dec. - 3rd rd.)
- Marcus Fisher def Mike Lavera (unanimous dec. - 3rd rd.)
- Turan Hasanov def Arthur Sorsor (unanimous dec. - 3rd rd.)
- Gaius Ebratt def Elijah Clarke (split dec. - 3rd rd.)
- Matt Embree def Clifton Gross (unanimous dec. - 5th rd.)
- Hiro Perera def Pascal Jean-Michel (TKO - 2nd rd.)
- Jay Matius def Mohammed Lemjerdine (unanimous dec. - 5th rd.)
- Eddie Martinez def Tony Flores (unanimous dec. - 5th rd.)
- Omar Ahmed def Borzoo Honorgohar (unanimous dec. - 5th rd.)

Details & photos coming soon!

Yankees Take Game 1!

Both teams sent out their best pitchers... CC vs. Lackey. If you really analyzed the game it was the pitcher's duel that was expected. The score was 4-1 because the Angels made 3 errors. CC was the ace, pitching 8 innings and looking strong. The Yankees pretty much had the win in the first inning already with a couple of base hits from Jeter & Damon. A-Rod got a sac fly that scored Jeter (who was at 3rd because of the first error). Matsui hit a fly ball that drew another error, scoring Damon. Without the errors, the score would've been 2-1. So this game was really a lot closer than it turned out to be. Which means the Yankees can't let their guard down. The Angels will bounce back in Game 2. Hopefully AJ can control his nerves the way CC did. It's his first ALCS, so he's going to have butterflies.

Dodging Flails

I've written before about walking to the right in subway stations if you're slow. Some people get their bodies to the right correctly, but still take up the left lane with their flailing left arm. It's very frustrating to have one of these in front of you when you're trying to go up the steps. It's like there's enough space visually to pass, but it's being blocked by that swinging arm. There is a way though! You have to treat it like a video game and time your dash correctly. Wait until the left arm is at its forward most point and make a run before it starts swinging back again. It takes practice, but keep trying!

Evolution 18 Results

There was another Muay Thai event in Australia over the weekend. I couldn't watch any of it, but have an idea of some of the fights based on message boards and photos. Angie Parr had a draw against Nicole Brolan. From what I read, it was a close match that most people thought Parr won. I guess a draw is OK. She lost her last 2 on her road back to fighting (from being pregnant). Hopefully she can keep it up. Parr looked like she was in great shape for this one. She really got herself back to a few years ago. Naruepol fought Soren and that one wasn't hard to predict... KOed him in the first round with a roundhouse to the head. Soren is a good fighter, but I don't think he can beat any Thai fighter.

Other Results:
- Paul Slowinski def Ben Edwards (KO - 3rd rd.)
- Prasert def Dane Daddy Cool (KO - 2nd rd.)
- Super Boi def Andy Colgrave (TKO - 4th rd.)

It must've been a short event with all of those KOs. Only Angie's fight went the distance!

High Volume Car

Subway cars are always loud with people talking, but I was on an extra loud one this morning. There was the usual person on the cellphone at the end of the train. Then another guy did the same thing at the opposite end. If the stereo effect wasn't enough, another guy was playing music on his cellphone without headphones. It seemed like he was under the impression that no one was hearing it either. There's nothing in the rules against any of this, but something to keep in mind when turning up the volume is... what if everyone did that?

Round 1 Complete

The Yankees answered the Angels sweep of the Red Sox by wrapping up their series against the Twins last night. The game started out as a pitcher's duel between Andy Pettitte and Carl Pavano. Neither one gave up a run until the 6th inning. The Twins scored first, but the Yankees came back in the same inning with a couple of homers from A-Rod & Posada. They added 2 more insurance runs in the 9th.. off Nathan again to secure the victory. So the 1st round curse is gone! No it'll be a tough series against the Angels.

Conflicting Feelings

The Angels wrapped up their ALDS series against the Red Sox this afternoon to complete the 3-game sweep. As a Yankees fan, I wanted the Red Sox to win just because historically, the Yankees have had an easier time with them while the Angels are like their kryptonite. However, because I hate the Red Sox, I found myself getting excited at times as the Angels mounted a comeback from 5-0. They slowly chipped away and were down 6-4 in the 9th with 2 outs... no one on base. Aybar hit a single. Figgins got walked and then former Yankee, Bobby Abreu brought LA to within 1 with a double. Hunter was walked to get to the slumping Guerrero... big mistake. We hit a 2-run single to put LA in the lead for good. This was all off of the hated Papelbon, who never given up a postseason run before. He gets tagged with a blown save, the loss and a fishing trip for his team! See what I mean? It's hard not to get excited!

I'm watching the Yankees game now. Hopefully they can wrap it up today also... don't want to give LA extra rest time.

Tech Deals of the Week (10/11-10/17)

Flash Sales
- 8 GB PNY @ BB for $24.99
- 4 GB HP @ ST for $9.99
- 8 GB HP @ ST for $17.99
- 16 GB HP @ ST for $ 29.99

Samsung Blu-ray Player @ BB for $199.99 + $50 Gift Card
This is even better than the Sony deal from a couple of weeks ago because of the $50 gift card.

HP Wireless Laser Mouse @ ST for $9.99
There are no fancy features on this model, but $9.99 is a great price for any wireless laser mouse. So if you have a small business and would like to go wireless on multiple computers, stock up on this one!

Photo Paper @ ST for $1
This is a pretty rare deal as you can see it's the first time I have photo paper in this series. You can't beat $1! It's a 50 pack of matte finish paper. The in-store price is $12.98 with an $11.98 rebate.

1st Postseason Pie

As usual, the Twins had the lead, but I was never worried in this game... not even down 3-1 in the 9th. You have to factor in how well the Yankees played this year under pressure. Also, the way the Twins were stranding runners all night (17 I think)... I just never felt they would win. The first Yankees run was another Jeter-A-Rod combo like in Game 1. Hughs got into trouble in the 8th. Rivera came in and held things together. Teixiera got a hit in the 9th and A-Rod homered to tie the game. This was all off Joe Nathan, one of the best closers in the league. Aceves pitched a pretty good 10th.

I thought the Yankees would win it in the 10th because Jeter was up 3rd. Cabrera got out. Posada got a hit, pinch hitting for Molina. Naturally, Gardner pinch ran for Posada, stole a base and made it to 3rd on an error. To my disappointment, they walked Jeter. Damon got a good hit, but the Twins played it well defensively and doubled up Gardner. Ghirardi gambled for the win and lost... can't blame him for that. It was the right decision. The Yanks got into trouble in the top of the 11th... bases loaded and no outs, but great defense by Teixiera got them out unscathed. Then in the bottom of the 11th... a walkoff homer by Tex! It's nice being up 2-0!

A Good MTA Post

If you've read enough of this blog, you know that I don't have much to say that's nice about the MTA, but what I experienced today was totally different. It felt like I was in the Twilight Zone. I ran into some bad luck. As I was packing up to go out, I must've grabbed an expired MetroCard sitting on my desk instead of the fresh new one. It was a rare occasion that I had to use the bus (so I couldn't swipe on the test machine). Anyway, the driver let me in anyway.

I thought that was a rare act, but today was really weird. On the subway ride home, I witnessed another kind act by an MTA employee. A passenger was trying to get into a train that he just came out of because the conductor kept flip-flopping the signs. The passenger missed the train because they changed the sign, changed it back and shut the doors on him. After the train left, the customer was visibly upset. Another conductor came by and listened to what happened. Instead of fighting back or ignoring the customer, she went to the control room to file a complaint. I was shocked by that! Maybe some recent cuts really weeded out the crap!

Strong Start

The season record is long forgotten, just days after its ending as the Playoffs began last night. The Yankees had a winning record against both the Twins and Tigers, but none of that matters now. The Twins defeated the Tigers the day before in a tie-breaking 1-game playoff for the final spot. That was one of the most exciting games of the season, filled with great plays, awesome defense and extra innings. I win like that pumped up the Twins.

Although they had little rest, they played great against the Yankees early on, scoring first with a 2-0 lead in the 3rd. That was quickly quieted by a 2-run homer from the Captain. CC settled in nice after that and became dominant. He didn't give up any more runs. The Yankees kept tacking on runs they way they've done all year long. Swisher doubled in Cano in the 4th. A-rod singled Jeter in twice. Matsui ripped a 2-run homer in the 5th. It was a good combination of the Yankees offense.

Though it was a 5-run lead, Ghirardi would take no chances with the very important 1st game. He had Joba come in from the bullpen. Hughes & Coke came in as well and Rivera closed it out. Correcting the previous 1st round exits, the Yankees did not take the Twins lightly at all.

Coffee and Piss

It's probably all psychological, but I've always thought it was gross to bring food and beverages into the restroom. People in the office seem to do it all the time though. Today, I went to use the urinal and noticed a semi-circular coffee puddle right on top of it. There's a ledge by the door where we can put stuff down. Bringing coffee in is bad enough, but to place it right on top of the urinal. I think that juxtaposition of coffee and piss is too close for comfort! I hope the coffee drinkers aren't the same people who don't wash their hands afterwards!

Repeated Survey ?'s for 2009-10-03

A repeat of 2009-02-20, but with new answers...

1. When was the last time you took a nap? yesterday
2. Who was the last person you talked to on the phone? Tim
3. To text you? UNIX server
4. What are you doing tonight? surfing & shopping
5. What are you listening to? Bernie Williams
6. What did you do over the weekend? catch up on DVDs
7. What did you have for breakfast? whole grain cereal
8. Last book you read? a science dictionary
9. Last thing you bought? parts for Batman gauntlets
10. Last movie you saw: X-Men Origins: Wolverine DVD

Maria vs. 5 Japanese Players

This is a funny video of an exhibition match in Japan with Maria Sharapova facing off with 5 players at once.