Saturday, December 18, 2010

Monday, December 13, 2010

Another Reason to Hate the Stinking, Classless New York Jets



We here at Katelyn's Way have been Miami Dolphin's fans since the early seventies. From that time forward a well nurtured hate was developed for the northern franchises of the AFC East.

The Colts and the Bills were always tolerated but the Patriots and the Jets, not so much.

The Patriot franchise was always dirty, emphasized by this:



That vid pretty much describes the Patriot franchise to this day for us. Cheating, dirty and unapologetic.

Then we have what the New York media is describing as a "tripping" incident.

Excuse me for saying it but tripping my ass. That coach kneed the Dolphins player and could have cost him his career. This coach should be banned from the NFL for life.

But there will be a fine and the NFL will gloss it over.

The past 20 years of Dolphin franchise history have jaded our passion for the team but the burning hatred of the Jets (and Patriots) franchise remains.

Saturday, November 6, 2010

The First Time??? I Think Not!



"He's got to FIND THAT RIGHT MOMENT".

from a July 14th, 2010 post:

“He has to find some way between now and November of demonstrating that he is a leader who can command confidence and, short of a 9/11 event or an Oklahoma City bombing, I can’t think of how he could do that.”

from Bob Shapiro, former Clinton White House official and Obama supporter, speaking to Obama's sagging polls and credibility.

They're really wanting this bad.

The Next Reagan?



One can only hope he means this. Regardless, a new wave of conservatives will be and are invading the political landscape. Along with Rubio, out of Florida comes Allen West. New Jersey fighter Chris Christie leads the charge out of the Northeast.

And not only will they face attacks from the Democrats, but from the establishment of their own party.

From this perch, cautious hope reigns.

Thursday, November 4, 2010

Friday, July 16, 2010

Ouch! But Will It Blend???

"All over the country today there were huge lines at Apple stores for the iPhone — not to buy them, to return them. Apparently, Apple is addressing problems with the iPhone. For now on, if you buy an iPhone, they throw in a Verizon Blackberry so you can make a call." —Jay Leno

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

“He has to find some way between now and November of demonstrating that he is a leader who can command confidence and, short of a 9/11 event or an Oklahoma City bombing, I can’t think of how he could do that.”

from Bob Shapiro, former Clinton White House official and Obama supporter, speaking to Obama's sagging polls and credibility.

As the debate on why the Obama Justice Dept. dropped an open and shut voter '08 intimidation case, we here at Katelyn's Way have been wondering exactly why did the Justice Dept. drop this case??? Since, several damning videos have hit the web involving the suspects in question who were video'ed standing in front of a Philadelphia polling place, one with nightstick in hand, intimidating potential voters.



The young man brandishing the nightstick is King Samir Shabazz. As a part of the settlement with Shabazz in the case, he has agreed to stay away from polling places for three years.

Since, more video with Shabazz has surfaced:



Add to this a video I posted in an earlier blog where Mr. Samir publicly rails about "killing cracker babies".

This man and this party is gasoline itching for a match. They openly speak of arming themselves against the tea party and white people. Janet Napolitano early on in her tenure as Homeland Security chief spoke of "homegrown" (caucasian) terrorism. Soldiers returning from the Middle East were singled out for attention by the feds.

After the Times Square bomber was confirmed to be muslim, the mainstream media couldn't hide their disappointment.

But they and the Obama Justice Dept. turn their backs on a group that shows up at polling places in this United States brandishing weapons and publicly advocate killing white children.

It's obvious the New Black Panther Party's looking for a fight. And they'll find one, never doubt it.

(while the Obama administration looks the other way)

“He has to find some way between now and November of demonstrating that he is a leader who can command confidence and, short of a 9/11 event or an Oklahoma City bombing, I can’t think of how he could do that.”

Yes he can.

Monday, July 12, 2010

To Katelyn:

The Governors: The Handwriting. Immigration: The Wall.

The Obama administration had to have a distraction. They were (and still are) getting killed on the Gulf oil spill. Their ties to B P and the bungling of the response were driving the President's poll numbers into the tar-balled sand. The McChrystal gaffe and replacement could carry them only so far.

But illegal immigration???

A lawsuit against Arizona for trying to do what the American people overwhelmingly think should be done???

In an election year???

Democrats running for re-election get it. From the New York Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/12/us/politics/12governors.html

By ABBY GOODNOUGH
Published: July 11, 2010

BOSTON — "In a private meeting with White House officials this weekend, Democratic governors voiced deep anxiety about the Obama administration’s suit against Arizona’s new immigration law, worrying that it could cost a vulnerable Democratic Party in the fall elections."


If you've paid attention you know that we here at Katelyn's Way aren't big fans of John McCain. In our view it's too bad dear John didn't have a more competent opponent running against him this year in the Republican primary for the Arizona Senate seat.

But give McCain credit. When he, Lindsay Graham of South Carolina and the late Ted Kennedy were trying to ram a "comprehensive" immigration package down the American people's throats, McCain backed off in the face of a public uprising against him. "I get it", he told the American people.

Some in the Democrat party don't. Others do. Speaking after meeting with the White House:

“There are 535 members of Congress,” said Gov. Brian Schweitzer of Montana, a Democrat. “Certainly somebody back there can chew gum and hold the basketball at the same time."

Hold a basketball?!?!?! Yikes!



They're "listenin'" to ya Guv, but are they "hearin'" ya???

Saturday, March 27, 2010

Things That Make You Go "Hmmmmmmmmm"


http://www.zombietime.com/zomblog/?p=621

In all this fracas about threats to Congressional Democrats after the Obama health care rape job, it's important to look back at the actions and threats during protests against Bush 43. (be sure and scroll down to see all the pictures. it's really quite enlightening)

And what's currently going on unnoticed by even most conservatives is the money being raised by Democrats in response to these supposed threats.

If the threats are as egregious as the liberals in the media would have you to believe, why are the campaign coffers of Democrats profiting from this???

We here at Katelyn's Way believe ANY threat against ANY politico is a serious matter. Too serious to be used as an opportunity to profit from a threat. We call on any politician whose campaign chest has benefited from an increase in donations due to the supposed threats to return the money.

That is if you're serious about your convictions.

(which we don't believe you are)

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Check Out Anytime You Like.....


Eagles - Hotel California
Uploaded by hushhush112. - Explore more music videos.

One of the greatest songs in rock and roll in my opinion. I'll always admire lead singers who also play the drums.

When I hear this song now I always think of Nicole Brown Simpson.

Saturday, March 13, 2010

Hygiene-less

'Price of Beauty' doesn't include toothpaste for Jessica Simpson: 'I don't brush my teeth'

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/gossip/2010/03/13/2010-03-13_price_of_beauty_doesnt_include_toothpaste_for_jessica_simpson_i_dont_brush_my_te.html#ixzz0i4uC6VFQ

"I just use Listerine - and sometimes I'll use my sweater," she added with a laugh.

"I do brush every now and again, but my teeth are extremely powerful. Fine, maybe when I'm 60 I'll be all, ‘ow!’.


Suddenly, I just gained newfound respect for Tony Romo. Yeah, he got sucked in by the blonde bimbo celebrity thing, but after waking up next to the plaque-magnet enough......he said enough!

And what does that mean for a single guy dating today? Simpson doesn't brush. Madonna doesn't shave. Sheryl Crow wipes one square at a time. These are the fashionistas for our young women today?

Monday, March 8, 2010

Ball-less

We here at Katelyn's Way were really pulling for J. D. Hayworth to take the Republican nomination for the Arizona U. S. Senate seat John McCain currently holds. No love lost here for McCain. Recently Hayworth's campaign ran an online ad featuring this picture of McCain in an obvious Avatar spoof:



The thin-skinned McCain and his camp responded:

“Ex-Congressman J.D. Hayworth should immediately apologize and and take down his latest online ad, which is an outrageous offense to John McCain’s lifetime of honorable service to our state and nation, and insulting to Native Americans here in Arizona and across America," said Shiree Verdone, McCain's campaign manager. "Mr. Hayworth is welcome to debate the challenges facing our state and nation, but this kind of character assassination has no place in the Republican Party, and Mr. Hayworth should ashamed of his campaign for running it.”

Then the equally insecure Hayworth camp responded by pulling down the original picture and replacing it with this:



This friends, is what's wrong with the Republican Party. There was nothing racist about the original picture. But somebody said it and got the Hayworth team "crawdaddin".

Gutless.

It begs the question: If you'll back down from such a childish, playground popgun, what will you do in D. C. when the Democrats come at you with the big guns?

Sheesh!

Sunday, March 7, 2010

Crazy Cooter

Bedazzling... below the belt?

Recently, on the George Lopez Show, actress Jennifer Love Hewitt gushed about "vajazzling," a new trend in ladies' intimate fashion that involves rounding out a bikini wax with the decorative application of Swarovski crystals, Salon reports. The procedure, which is offered at Completely Bare spa in New York City for $115, including the cost of the bikini wax and your choice of crystal design, takes about 45 minutes. The decoration is applied to the freshly waxed skin using an adhesive on the back of the crystals—which are applied in a large pattern or, in the case of certain detailed designs, are also individually hand-placed—and the glitzy result is supposed to last about five days.

Read more: http://wellness.blogs.time.com/2010/03/05/bedazzling-below-the-belt/#ixzz0hVFgnW8O








Saturday, February 27, 2010

Snuggie Update.....

Here at Katelyn's Way, we've decided to help mainstream the woefully mis-understood Snuggie into the American lifestyle. From this point on any reference to the Snuggie will be dutifully noted.

from Taegan Goddard's Political Wire blog:

"This is going to come as quite a shock to people up here that I can write a book, much less read one."

-- Former President George W. Bush, quoted by Mike Allen, addressing a Bush-Cheney reunion breakfast. Bush's memoir is due in November.

Read more: http://politicalwire.com

in the comments section Blue 387 responded:


"I'm amazed he could put on his own clothes.

Was he wearing a Snuggie?"


My work is done here.

Friday, February 26, 2010

Interim N. Y. Governor David Paterson......................

step on down.

After pressure from the Democrat machine from President Obama on down for New York governor David Paterson to forgo a run for the seat he currently holds, Paterson has decided he won't run for the guv. Paterson stepped into the chair after Eliot Spitzer resigned in the wake of your typical Democrat sex-with-whores scandal.

Paterson, after defiantly proclaiming he'd run, has been under a lot of pressure to step back.

from the NY Times 9/19/09:

"Gov. David A. Paterson defiantly vowed to run for election next year despite the White House‘s urging that he withdraw from the New York governor’s race."

Since there's been rumors of drug use, Paterson's own sex scandal and of late this:

"Paterson been under fire for contacting a woman who accused one of his top aides of domestic violence."

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2010/02/26/2010-02-26_gov_david_paterson_pulls_plug_on_election_bid_but_will_not_resign.html#ixzz0gfFbtWQg

Paterson's being investigated by N. Y. Attorney General (AND candidate for governor himself) Andrew Cuomo.

Paterson got the message. He saw the handwriting on the wall. He listened to the late night phone call:

'We're just getting started Mr. Paterson. These are pop guns we're firing right now. Step back before we bring out the heavy artillery.'

Think Rahm Emanuel.

Thursday, February 25, 2010

SWITZERLAND?!?!?!?!

Double Take City: I swear I just saw/read on that Fox News scrolling headline thingy, Moammar Kadafi (yeah, the chickenshit from Libya) just declared jihad on........Switzerland.

What a coward. You'd think he'd jihad something a bit more challenging like say........the Netherlands.

Sunday, February 21, 2010

Glenn Beck - CPAC Keynote

This takes about an hour of your time but is must-hear in this time in our great nation.



At about 16:40 into the speech: "but it's not enough just to not suck as much as the other side."

Translation: voting for the lesser of two evils is still voting for evil.

Hello, Republicans???

Saturday, February 20, 2010

The Future of Conservatism



hear, hear.

Happy Anniversary To Us........Edition 29



The only girl my heart beats for.......no joke.



.....and is there ever an occasion that is inappropriate for:



The ugly duckling WAYYYY over kicked his coverage!!!

(Rick Dees was an AM disc jockey in Birmingham in the early seventies. I listened to him faithfully every morning riding the school bus!)

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

BUSTED

A while back one of my buddies over at the Alabama Basketball Blog posted this about:

Stupid Inventions
I assume the readers of this blogs (thanks for the support BTW) are too smart to buy this:


(check out the old guy shivering without his snuggie bottom/left)


If you bought one I am embarrassed for you. Let me get this straight... a blanket with sleeves? Why not wear a sweater in the house if you're cold. Or here's an idea... turn the heat up. This might be the dumbest invention ever to hit the airwaves since the Flowbee. If you're too young to remember the Flowbee, google is your friend.


Posted by bobbyjack at 4:25 PM


Naturally, being red blooded American men:



We all had a little fun with it:

Mitchell said...
Hahaha. The Snuggie is horrible. Who in their right mind would buy that atrocity?

My favorite bit in the commercial is when the douchebags are at the football game cheering while wearing their Snuggies. The people around them are like, "what the hell is that?"

My old lady and I refer to the old cat sitting in the chair reading the paper as Emperor Palpatine. The Snuggie: Chosen by Sith Lords for centuries!


Your's truly chimes in: (tongue firmly planted in cheek)

finebammer said...
my job's on the line,

my 401k's toast,

and now you want to take my snuggie?!?!?!?

oh, the insensitivity of it all!!!!

what's next??? my 'listen up'??

my enzyte???

(and by the way, the red snuggie with the brown couch just ain't workin' for me, you know?)


and finally:

bobbyjack said...
One last comment about the snuggie... you know those things would sell like hotcakes if they were licensed by the NCAA. Imagine a row of Bockrath Elephant, snuggie wearing fools in your section. Joy!


the man is a prophet, I tell you. An entrepreneurial genius!



Busted! The man-card suspended indefinitely!

The Daytona 500 2010 Edition

Nascar is once again ushered in to it's new season with it's "Super Bowl" event, the Daytona 500. Lots of changes for the 2010 edition to placate the old guard in the fan base and prop up it's sagging ratings.

Most races will start at noon, central time. Lately, from week to week, no one could keep up with when a race starts. Aging baby-boomers, such as myself, often fell asleep and didn't get to see the finish of late starting races.

In response to the economic downturn, ticket prices have been reduced to get more butts in seats.

Drivers are going to get much more freedom to drive on the track. No penalties for bump drafting and the like.

There was mucho rumero of changes to the restrictor plates and the dastardly wing but I didn't see any speeds over 190 or so and the wing was still in place.

As advertised, the race started at noon. But due to a track issue, there was over two hours of red flag. The track problem can best be described this way:



Nascar just can't catch a break. A pothole develops in the track during the race. One red flag to "fix" it, (patch patrol) another to fix it again when the first fix comes apart. Combined almost two and one half hours of red flag. Fans, cold and disgusted, leave. Let the channel surfing begin.

Drivers make jokes, (Dale Jr. said put a cone on it and let's race) Nascar makes excuses.

Nascar's starting to look snake bit.

Friday, February 12, 2010

Frozen Love

With all the snowstorms of the winter of '09/'10, here's a little shoutout/tip-of-the-hat the Owl Gore, Micheal Mann and global warming idiots around the world:

Sunday, February 7, 2010

Get On Your Knees........



and thank God for our soldiers.

(h/t gottagetdrunkfirst)

The Super Bowl

While I don't have a dog in the hunt and one has to feel for the New Orleans Saints considering their franchise history of mediocrity, (and that's being nice) I'm pulling for the Colts today for one reason:

Week fourteen the Colts are playing the Jets. Not only do the Colts have a playoff spot locked up, they've got homefield advantage throughout. First year head coach Jim Caldwell pulls key starters in the second half and the Jets win the game sacrificing a shot at a undefeated season for Indy to the consternation of the mainstream sports media.

(1.) If it were his predecessor, Tony Dungy, who had done this he would have been praised for the foresight to rest his stars for the playoffs.

(2.) Had Peyton Manning been taken out with a season-ending knee injury in the second half of that game, Caldwell would have been ripped to shreds for leaving him in by the same idiots ripping him for taking him out.

For that reason alone, go Colts.

(I'm currently listening to "Queen Latifah" sing America the Beautiful. Frankly, she sucks, Carrie Underwood couldn't carry a note in a bucket singing the National Anthem. Does anyone listen to these people sing beforehand??? Did we lose Sara Evans number???)

(and the who at the half. i hope townshend understands how embarassing he looked. hang it up, bud)

(and to the alabama strength coach, you can keep your shot, bud. roll tide anyway)

It's On



As innocuous as this Focus on the Family Super Bowl ad may seem, I hope the Tebows are ready for the onslaught.

You guys ever hear of Sarah Palin? (hacked e-mail account by the son of a Tennessee Democrat)

Joe (the Plumber) Wurzelbacher had the temerity to ask the One an unscripted question. (an Ohio Democrat flunkie used government computers to dig into Joe's IRS history)

Hope you have your powder dry. You're going to need it.

If You Didn't Like This Guy Before......

Only A Matter of Time

Wishful Thinking???



Is this a classic SNL spoof or what the good folks at NBC would really like to hear??

Friday, February 5, 2010

O'Reilly v. Stewart

Towards the end of the first segment, Stewart assumes a classic liberal stance in his discussion with Bill concerning FNC.

From the beginning Stewart parrots typical Democrat thinking in his determination that Fox is the media arm for the Republican Party. He argues that the "fair and balanced" description Fox uses to promote itself is disingenuous and misleading to it's viewers.

Bill counters that there's a difference between the hard news reported on Fox and the opinion shows like his, Sean Hannity's, Greta Van Susteren, Glen Beck and (gag) Geraldo Rivera.

O'Reilly compared FNC to a newspaper, where you have "hard" news printed on certain pages and opinion on others.

This is where Jon Stewart falls into the typical liberal trap. He responded that FNC viewers weren't smart enough to tell the difference.

We're not bright enough to know that when Sheperd Smith signs off and The Factor comes on a news show just ended and an opinion show just started.

Now nevermind that everyday, in news outlets across the country, liberal opinion is passed off as hard news.

For example, this editorial was passed off as a news story by the AP and outed by the Sweetness and Light blog:

http://sweetness-light.com/archive/ap-brown-must-work-with-dems-to-survive

Nevermind that in the months before the start of the Iraq war, CNN based it's reporting operation in one of Saddam Hussein's golden palaces. How objective was the "hard" news coming out of that situation?

How objective could anything coming out of NBC or MSNBC in it's reporting of the '08 elections when NBC was owned by GE, who's CEO, Jeffrey Immelt, served as an advisor to the Obama campaign and now advises his administration? In fact, NBC was the biggest media cheerleader for the Obama camp. Who could forget this:



Objective indeed.

None other than Bill O'Reilly himself has made a career out of exposing the corrupt Immelt. He outed Immelt when he was dealing with Iran while our soldiers were dying fighting terrorists in Iraq using Iranian weapons. That aforementioned cheerleading done by NBC??? All to curry favor for Immelt and GE for the "green" industry about to be foisted on (and subsidized by) the unsuspecting taxpayers. Immelt has run GE into the ground and has to have the favor of the Obama administration in future deals to save his hide.

All of this going on over Mr. Stewart's shoulder and he's worried about what FNC viewers might think???

Or that one network, one media outlet might favor conservative thought processes in it's opinion shows.

Really Jon.

O'Reilly vs. Stewart, Pt. One



I've recently acquired a taste for Jon Stewart. It's really amazed me over the years the Democrats failure to come up with a palatable alternative to Rush Limbaugh.

Not that they haven't tried. Air America was an entire radio network created by the Democrats to respond to Rush. Didn't sell. Just declared bankruptcy.

They may have stumbled across one in Jon Stewart. (although it isn't clear they've realized it yet) Jon is clearly a liberal, doesn't hide from it. And he's funny. And smart. (very smart)

Some of my takes from this "must-see-tv" interview.

Early on the the interview O'Reilly asks Stewart how he thinks Obama is doing as POTUS.

Stewart: "I can't tell if he's a jedi-master, playing chess on a three-level board way ahead of us or if this is kicking his ass."

Stewart tells O'Reilly he likes that Obama has ramped up the regulatory function of the Executive branch (the EPA and the like) but is quite uncomfortable with Obama's failure to use the bully pulpit of the Presidency to control the political debate and therefore his party.

Stewart: "He has decided that Congress is an equal branch of government. Huge mistake."

O'Reilly: "Ignore Congress??"

Stewart: "Absolutely. Ignore Congress."

Wow! But there's more!

Stewart: "Addington and the Bush administration established the unitarian executive, they established the power of the executive, you can't just walk in there as the next guy and say let's go back to three equal branches."

In other words, Stewart is upset that Obama isn't going all Dick Cheney/left on us. So one could surmise that when Stewart and his "ilk" pulled the "change" lever for Obama in '08, it wasn't the amount of power the Bush administration had grabbed for the executive branch they wanted changed, it was whose proverbial ox being gored.

Read the above quote carefully. Remember their protestations over the Patriot Act? Warrantless wiretapping?? The "secret" prisons? Stewart is apparently upset that the Obama administration hasn't used the powers they claimed the Bush administration illegally usurped to bully Congress and force his will legislatively.

He's upset Obama's not more like Tom Delay.

Stewart is asked to opine on the Republicans opposition to the Democrat's healthcare reform (control) bill. He claims not to know. Then when cornered by O'Reilly that the Republicans are upset their ideas haven't been taken seriously by the administration he states: "that's not why the Republicans don't like it."

So Jon doesn't know what the Republicans motivations ARE for opposing the heathcare issue but he knows what it's NOT.

O K.

At about 8:30 into the interview (full length) O'Reilly confronts Stewart with a quote by Howard Kurtz of the Washington Post:

O'Reilly: "Stewart has clearly become an important cultural arbitor. He's pulled of the trick of being taken seriously when he wants to be and taken frivolously when he wants to be."

(sounds a bit like Rush, eh?? When Rush makes valid points, the left dismisses it as "entertainment". When they don't like something he jokes about, it suddenly takes a more serious tone. Kinda inverted, huh?)

While Jon uses body language (rolling eyes, bobbing head) to convey a dismissive tone toward the question, it's clear to me he's enjoying the attention of Mr. Kurtz and O'Reilly.

Very interesting. More later.

Thursday, February 4, 2010

Update???



The aforementioned pathetic excuse at Roger Daltrey hair.

(my dad was right all along)

The Who

O K, I'm on a Who jag now.

One of the silver linings to the early onset of Alzhiemer's (which I'm convinced I have)(either that or CRS) is that I re-discover old joys all over again.

I'm sitting in Hunt's Oyster Bar and Seafood, Panama City, FL last night and someone puts this on the jukebox:



Great seafood, great music, great atmosphere, great memories.

Saturday, January 30, 2010

The Bird Is the WORD!





cluck, cluck indeed.

Meet The New Boss...........

While there is NO replacing the king of conservative talk radio, Rush Limbaugh, Jerry Doyle is an up-and-comer. This guy's not just quick-witted, smart and bald, (bald is truly beautiful) but like me, he's a rock and roller. He doesn't just play rock and roll bumpers but he constantly makes public R & R references.

A clip from a Lou Dobbs interview:





(what an influence on a young teenaged Finebammer. In my early teens I had never seen The Who outside of a ragged Circus magazine and a concert poster on my bedroom wall. But I later fought viciously with my Dad for my "right" to my pathetic excuse for my Roger Daltrey hair and despite having never seen Pete Townshend play, the guitar riffs over my tiny transistor radio inspired me to remarkably similar air guitar renditions in my bedroom, miles away from the evangelical wailings of my loving Baptist parents)

Don't let 'em fool us again, Jerry. Rock on!

As I Sit In My Room..................

and make mental preparations for tonite's big, hairy, nightshift, papermill shutdown grind......

Friday, January 29, 2010

Mathews Caught With His.........Well......



Funny stuff by Stewart. Give the guy credit, he'll rip his own when necessary.

And this was sooo necessary.

If I could ask Chris a follow-up question it would be:

'Chris, what jogged your memory?'

(a shout out to my buddy, Hawk. Tanx for the kind words, buddy)

(hat tip to the jammiewearingfool)

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Thinking About Coach Bryant





Dispite all the revelry and good feelings of the '09 National Championship at the Rose Bowl, I'll never forget the greatest coach at Alabama, Coach Bryant.

R I P, Coach.

Sunday, January 24, 2010

Rammer Jammer 2010



Stolen from "bradcurfman" off the 'tube. Thanx Brad and ROLL TIDE!

Title Celebration


The celebration begins.........


and in the stands Derrick Lassic, starting running back from our '92 National Title team, and I give you a big ROLL TIDE!!!!

(in the interest of truth in advertising, I met Derrick during halftime. He was visiting with friends in the stands behind me and the rumor was floating in the crowd that he played on the '92 team. I turned and recognized him immediately. Derrick is a super guy and graciously shook every hand and signed every autograph for the duration of the half. I later felt bad about outing him and interrupting his visit but he handled it all with the patience and class one would expect of a high profile representative of the University)



(also take particular notice of that fat championship ring on his hand. That hunk of gold was a significant blip on the radar of my peripheral vision while posing for that shot. Again, Derrick Lassic, super guy)

More Pre-game


The eyes of Texas and all that.


The Rose Bowl skyboxes and press box. This is an incredibly old and storied facility. In a lot of ways it reminded me of Legion Field. The stadium is......old. The neighborhood around it (on the west side of the 210) dangerous and hard to navigate if you're not familiar with the area. (still, no gps needed) But I had absolutely no worry of my vehicle and it's contents due to the competent parking plan. And the palm trees with the magnificent mountains in the backdrop distract you from the warts.


Hard to believe just four days ago we leave the Heart of Dixie and sub-freezing weather and are now about to enjoy the Alabama's thirteenth National Championship in 70 degree temperatures.

Saturday, January 23, 2010

The Game



Pre-game warm-ups.



Tunnel Thirteen. We took this a good sign as our team was playing for it's thirteenth national championship.



I thought this was a cool concession set-up.



Susie showing off her program in front of the Rose Bowl.

Friday, January 15, 2010

Vegas To Pasadena



The gameday van. I purchased this unit summer '08 after gas prices went thru the roof and everyone was dumping their "clunkers" for new econo-box deathtraps and new car payments. (in a case of cruel irony, the bottom fell out of the economy just a few short months later and many with those new payments were on the street looking for a job) I paid cash $2800. This unit was a garage-kept piece with 72,000 actual miles. Beautiful interior and an undercarriage one could almost eat off of. Rides and drives like a Caddy. 350 four bolt main. Again, as my wife has a significant fear of flying, this unit provided us with comfortable transportation to the game and a chance at a great tailgating experience at the game.










There are no pictures that can justify these mountains between Las Vegas and Los Angeles. Certainly mine far woefully short.

Thursday, January 14, 2010

More Dam Pictures



A cool pic of the dam with the shadow of the bypass construction cast on it.




The gorge and the hydro-electric generation facility.




The base of the dam and the hyrdo-electric turbine facility.

The Hoover Dam



Susie at the dam.







The dam bypass. Currently the dam is part of Highway 93 running from Kingsman, Arizona to Las Vegas, Nevada. Tourist travel slows traffic across the dam to a crawl and I would imagine infuriates the locals having to travel 93. (I know it would me) To me, the bridge construction is as fascinating as the dam itself. I was disappointed with the photos as I could not get the afternoon sun behind me. The bridge is being built with two trolley cranes suspended on cables spanning the gorge. These cranes are operated by remote control. The bridge members are pre-cast concrete. The construction workers are hundreds of feet above the river downstream from the dam. I can't imagine a better view from a corner office.




A memorial to those who died building the dam. A different era for safety.




A floor display featuring the positions of the moon, the planets and the stars on the night of the dam's dedication. Cool.

On to Las Vegas.

Saturday, January 9, 2010

Update..........................

After the snow in Arky and my dead battery blunder, things have gone smooth. Cold as hell in Oklahoma. In northern Texas we were surprised at the lack of recognition for the Longhorns. No flags. No bumper stickers. Texas is a BIG place. Austin is a LONG way from Amarillo.

I must insert the obligatory George Strait video here:



(I've heard Strait won't appear on stage with others due to his insecurity about his height. Never seen him in concert so it's just a rumor)

Lots of windmills in Oklahoma and New Mexico.



T. Boone must be proud although talking with electrical generation techies in the past, windmill generated electricity is a long way from practical application.

One: the wind doesn't blow all the time. When the wind doesn't blow, you must have the traditional generating capacity to supply the need. Power storage (batteries) technology to save the power generated by the mills for when the wind doesn't blow is decades away.

Two: Parts. These windmills are apparently incredibly expensive. According to those I've talked to, so are repair parts.

We saw a small percentage of the windmills inoperable. Makes one wonder.

T. Boone has also been a big promoter of power generated by CNG. (compressed natural gas) As there is plenty of the stuff domestically and the technology is way more current it seems to be the more practical alternative at the moment.

On to Albuquerque. More later.

Thursday, January 7, 2010

The Road To Pasadena

Well, it's been a long but interesting drive to Pasadena but we're finally here.

The trek got interesting early as we hit snow just past Memphis on I-40 in Arkansas. After driving into the evening in the snow we decided to bed down at a Best Western in Clarksville. My daily driver has many of the modern creature comforts, one being the interior lights shut off after a period of inactivity. Not so with the Game Day van. My dumbass leaves the lights on all night and the next morning I awake to a dead battery.

Now let's take a moment to set the scene:

It's 4 am and snowing like a bitch.

I call a "24 hour" wrecker service and tell the attendant (who I can't help but believe I woke up) I need a jump. He then proceeds to run down a checklist of hurdles that will have to be crossed to get me jumped-off. Icy roads. Wake somebody to get to me. ("24 hr." ???) After about 5 minutes on the phone with the guy he finally gets around to telling me it will be one hundred and twenty five bucks to get me going.



I've got the cash, okay? Just not inclined to bend over like that so quickly. (and so early)

I'm a morning person.

I'm in Arkansas, home of Walmart. There has to be one on every corner.

Out comes the trusty I-phone. (Merry Christmas to me)

After a brief search, sure enough, right across the interstate.

I'm fortunate in that a cold blast hit the state of Alabama before we left and I was prepping things in the Game Day van wearing my thermal coveralls. Made it easy to shed them when it was time to leave and just throw them under the seat. Don the coveralls and off to Walmart.

The purchase of a 70 buck battery and an "invigorating" hike back through the snow got the Game Day van purring again and off we go into the morning darkness.

It didn't take long to discover the "24 hour" wrecker guy wasn't bullshitting me about the icy roads. About five miles into our excursion a Ford F-350 duelly with a trailer-load of equipment of some sort passes us on a rise. Dude had gotten about three hundred yard past me we he lost traction on the ice and spun out right in front of us. Off the road he goes, slams against the embankment, pointing the opposite direction he was headed originally.

Experienced drivers (such as myself - no gps needed) know that using your brakes on ice is a recipe for disaster. Less known and spoken of is the dangers of a vehicle in "cruise-control" on ice. This accident occurred while driving up a rise in the highway. I'm convinced this guy had his truck in "cruise". When the on-board computer sensed the resistance of the grade, it applied pedal and the truck lost traction. It now momentarily "over-revs" trying to regain traction and further complicates issues for the driver. I believe this happened because I never saw his brake lights until he was well around in front of us, totally out of control.

I wanted to stop and check on the guy. In fact, I did pull over. I twas at that point my beloved better-half (the street-smarts in the family) began screaming like a banshee, her contention being that another slob was going to come along and wipe out taking our good Samaritan asses with them.

(you know, no good deed goes unpunished)

A quick look in the rear view confirmed her fears. A convoy of tractor-trailers headed for us. They passed without incident but the combination of her correct thought process and that siren she was born with obliterating my eardrums convinced me to move on.

On pulling out special care had to be taken on the ice. The next thirty miles or so was driven at a snail's pace. Coasting across bridges. Judicious braking. The siren wailing.

Patsy Cline's on the radio:



There's a message here I'm thinking but too distracted to focus on it for the moment.

More later.

Sunday, January 3, 2010

On Our Way To See The Tide Play



About to pull out for Pasadena, Cali. Tailgate ready. In route I plan to re-read Stephen King's "The Stand" to commemorate Larry Underwood's trek across the country. Hopefully we can avoid Nadine, the Trashcan Man, Randall Flagg and Captain Tripps. (and the swine flu - i call it Miss Piggy)

I'd love to tell you I'm reading from a rare first edition hardback but no such luck. Just a dog-eared pb.

ROLL CRIMSON TIDE ROLL! BRING IT!