UngsungBlog: A (Fantasy) Sports Blog

I’m still…um…somewhat shaken by the earthquake from earlier this morning.

(BTW, this earthquake is a precursor of quakes to come?  Really?  And raindrops are a precursor to more raindrops, right?)

Quick-hitters:

- The Los Angeles Angels nowhere near Los Angeles got 1B Mark Teixeira from Atlanta, eh?  And all it cost them was Casey Kotchman (who will be a fine pro, but isn’t going to be THE guy to push the Angels to the World Series) and a middling prospect?

As much as it sickens me to admit this, the Angels seem to be the clear favorites now to win the World Series.  They have everything it takes to win:  outstanding starting pitching, lockdown relievers, dangerous middle-of-the-order hitters, and an experienced coach.

Oh well…at least the Dodgers got Casey Blake!

- It looks like the Lakers will not be getting Ron Artest, as the Sacramento Kings have agreed to trade Artest to the Houston Rockets for Bobby Jackson, the rights to Donte Greene, and a 2009 #1 pick.

That’s a pretty heavy price to pay for Artest, if I’m the Rockets.  Also, does Artest and Shane Battier both play SF?  And what if T-Mac and Yao miss a ton of games, and the Rockets miss the playoffs next year?

(I’ll have to check to see if the pick is lottery-protected.)

- Current rebate-o-meter:  $1,400, and falling rapidly.  I should be getting somewhere along the lines of $500 in rebates real soon.

- The 5.8 magnitude earthquake, centered near Chino Hills, CA, was one of the more brief and sudden quakes that I’ve ever experienced in my life.  Five brief seconds of shaking—similar to what you would feel if a big truck drove by your house—was followed by a good 20-30 seconds of my building swaying back and forth.

It was certainly a strange experience—I had never been in a multi-story building during a serious quake—and one I’d like to not have to experience again for a while.  And consider this:  I am a good 45-60 minutes away from Chino Hills.  If we ever get a repeat of the Northridge quake around here…

- I got a package from DHL a few days ago, and noticed this peculiar sticker on the box:

(I’d scan it for you all, but I’m too damn lazy.)

DHL Signature Service Options

Signature Preferred:  Attempted Delivery Notice release or Signature On File agreement is acceptable when an in-person signature cannot be obtained.

Signature Required:  In-person signature only…blah blah blah

Adult Signature Required:  In-person signature only…21 years of age…blah blah blah.

Krunk noticed it immediately, and I must also ask:  isn’t the “Signature Preferred” option nothing more than the default shipping option?

Gosh, I love it when companies pretend to give customers something, when in reality, they’re not!

- Very quickly:  dinner tonight was Chinese delivery food from California Wok.  We ordered a full plate of Kung Pow Chicken, and I was surprised how very full the little tray was!  It was so full that the lid nearly popped off when we opened it!

I also ordered the Beef Chow Mein, which was not-terribly-greasy good as usual, though the beef pieces looked like they were peeled off larger pieces of beef.  Good stuff, nonetheless, and not terribly pricey for a highly-rated restaurant.

zzzzz…

Tags: anaheim angels, atlanta braves, casey blake, chino hills, earthquake, los angeles dodgers, mark teixeira by Peter
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I have not yet recovered from Saturday’s Pig Roast.

(More on that later.)

Quick-hitters:

- You know that your blog is pathetic when a simple blog entry about a spammy caller-ID number doubles your blog traffic.

Not that I’m complaining…

- I didn’t get to play much Shot-Online over the weekend, mostly due to yesterday’s affairs.

I did, however, absolutely steal a win on a nine-hole match earlier tonight.  I was playing Hela, tied with my opponent on the final hole (a par 3), when I seemingly drove my ball into the water (my ball rolled on to the brown perimeter of the water, and not actually in it).

Even though it said I hit it into the water, I was not accessed a penalty stroke (apparently, you get relief if this happens, without being accessed a penalty).  On my next shot—just off the green—I thought I putted the ball much too hard, and the darn thing went in!

Needless to say, my opponent was incensed.  She got so mad that she didn’t even attempt her tying birdie putt, as her shot clock ran out!

- Quick thoughts about Diva Favre:

1) “‘It’s pretty clear — and this is what I told the commissioner — that they want me to go away, stay retired.’”

Do you blame them if this is true?  If you hadn’t jerked around with the team for three consecutive off-seasons, and the Packers still did this to you, then we have a different story.

2) “‘They would much rather see me in a Packers’ uniform, paying me $12 million to be a backup — which you know they really don’t want — rather than see in another uniform, no matter what they say.’”

The Packers wouldn’t mind seeing you in Packers’ gear, had you not jerked around with them a third time!

3) “‘Roger is willing to help but he has to be careful,’ said Favre. ‘I told him I could easily send in this letter [of reinstatement] but they really don’t want me there and it’ll be a big circus.’

Um…too late!

4) “According to Favre, Thompson asked him if he was interested in a trade. ‘Yeah, but not just to the teams you want me to go to,’ Favre said, relaying his conversation with the Packers’ GM.”

WTF?  If the Packers get a good offer, and he shoots the trade down, then that is his own damn fault, isn’t it?  Seriously, I would pay good money to see Favre in Oakland or Miami.  And for the record, I’m 99% sure that the teams the Packers don’t want him to go to are the Vikings and the Bears.

Somebody please call this guy a WAAAAAAAAAmbulance.

- So the Woodland Hills Kiwanis Pig Roast was this past Saturday, and my sister (still a proud Kiwanian!) and I arrived at the festivities at about 5PM.  About half an hour later, my partner in crime, Mr. Don Doner, showed up.

I call Mr. Doner my partner-in-crime because, for the past three years, we have been responsible for selling tickets to buy booze from the bar.  Every year, sales have gone up, and I think alcohol sales went WAY up this year, despite the cooler-than-expected temperatures.  More importantly, though, I attend this Pig Roast every year because I get to spend 2-3 hours with Mr. Doner.

You see, he is a counselor, and at the ripe old age of 1,000 (:P), he’s forgotten way more than I will ever learn.  Every year I’ve attended the pig roast, we talk about life, business, and philosophy, so much so that I treat the Pig Roast as a paid life lecture with a complimentary meal.

(Watching Mr. Doner charm the ladies—and the gentlemen too!—out of their money for booze tickets is pretty awesome too.)

As for the food:  roasted pig, roasted chicken (some people were complaining that the chicken was undercooked; my piece was cooked perfectly), potatoes, cole slaw (w/celery?), salad, beans, and a slice of cake for dessert, and I was stuffed.  The best part was, I got to take tons of leftover food home!  Too bad there was no left over pork…

(The chicken I took home turned out to be undercooked, unfortunately.)

I can’t wait for next year’s Pig Roast, and I’ll see you there, Mr. Don Doner.

- So the Dodgers got Casey Blake?  Awesome!

(Not really.)

So we traded a future catcher prospect (Carlos Santana) and a good pitching prospect (Jon Meloan) for a 35 year old 3B who can’t defend, hits only decently (though, compared to the rest of the Dodgers, he’s an All-Star!) and is a free agent at the end of the year?  Worse yet, speculation is that the Dodgers had to throw in Santana to get the Indians to pay the rest of Blake’s $2 million salary.  Really?  You’re doling out $118 million, and $2 million more is a problem?

That being said, I can’t fault Colletti for having to save money, even at the expense of an extra prospect.  What I CAN fault him for is EVERY OTHER FREAKING STUPID MOVE HE’S EVER MADE!!!  Juan Pierre for $44 million?  Jason Schmidt?  Andruw Jones???

(And I’m fully aware that I actually ENDORSED the deal late last year.  I must have been drunk that night.)

If I hear that Colletti traded away Kemp, Kershaw, and Billingsley for Mark Teixeira and money to cover his contract the rest of the year, I better hear about 200,000 Dodger fans chasing Colletti out of town.  Then again, Colletti doesn’t trade his best prospects, so I better expect an Andy LaRoche-Andre Ethier for Jack Wilson swap, with a third prospect being thrown in for the money issues.

Speaking of Andy LaRoche…what the hell did he do to get treated so poorly?  Did he make a pass at Mrs. McCourt?

Until next time!

Tags: andy laroche, blog traffic, brett favre, caller id, carlos santana, casey blake, diva favre, jon meloan, los angeles dodgers, pig roast, woodland hills kiwanis by Peter
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