Cup O' Fiz: The Mourning Edition 12/15/12

It can't be said enough, the sorrow that we feel for this community is insurmountable.  We are so sorry for the people of Newton, CT and all of ancillary individuals and families that were affected.   When one child dies, a village is ripped to shreds and there is an overwhelming grief that hovers over its people.  I can attest to this personally (RIP Jerica).  The sheer number of children that faced their end is unfathomable.  Also, don’t forget the adults; they are someone’s mother, father, sister, brother.  Their loss also has an exponential impact.  People search for answers and solutions and I’m afraid there are none.  What is done, is done.  Any answer or solution would have been better off had it happened BEFORE December 14, 2012.

I was going to write a reaction/update piece to the gun control column I wrote three years ago, Weapons of MinorDestruction.  However, out of respect, I don’t think it’s time for that quite yet.  We need to take action quickly, but we need to reflect right now.  Let the horror sink in; cope with the sorrow that this brings.  I leave you with a quote from The West Wing that seems pertinent and always touched me:

The streets of heaven are too crowded with angels tonight. They’re our students and our teachers and our parents and our friends. The streets of heaven are too crowded with angels, but every time we think we have measured our capacity to meet a challenge, we look up and we’re reminded that that capacity may well be limitless. This is a time for American heroes. We will do what is hard. We will achieve what is great. This is a time for American heroes and we reach for the stars.  God bless their memory, God bless you and God bless the United States of America.

Stuck in the Moment

50,497 people walked through the turnstiles on 161^st Street in the Bronx on October 11, 2012 hoping to see something special and I was one of them.

Fast forward about three hours.  It was a crisp autumn night in the Bronx.  As the pitching duel continued, Yankee fans were crestfallen.  For nearly two full games the Bronx Bombers lively bats had been silenced by the Orioles no-name pitching staff.  Other than a RBI triple by the Captain (Derek Jetah, numba 2), the scoring column for the Yankees was dormant and a loss seemed inevitable.  The 2-1 deficit felt like it was a dozen; questions like “will they start CC tomorrow to try and prevent elimination,” became commonplace.  Defeatist attitudes flooded the stadium.  Dull chatter ruled the air waves as fans had the feeling this would be another year where a great regular season was overshadowed by meekly bowing out in the first round of the playoffs.  The mood was solemn.   

Then came the 9^th inning.  What’s Jason Nix doing at shortstop? Jeter’s out?  Jeter LET Girardi take him out?  As people fumbled with their phones trying to get information on what could lead to this unfamiliar occurrence, the viewpoint went from bad to worse within the stadium.  The end was near.

The Ruler's Back

The long awaited return of Mr. Smoove has finally arrived. I would like to take the time out and thank my fellow colleague Bryan Fox for his tremendous work on the site. Cup O'Fiz will continue to offer insights into the sports junkie mind and make for intriguing banter.

It has been an eventful sports year thus far to say the least and it's mind-boggling to think that we only have 3 months remaining. The Fall is a great time of year for Sports Enthusiasts, we have the return of America's Game the NFL, the pending arrival of the NBA fresh off it's new anti-flopping rule instituted this past week (we wiil address that at a later time). The culmination of the WNBA Finals (Let that sink in for a moment)and the Race for the Cup in the Sprint NASCAR series. Finally the Fall brings forth America's favorite pastime, the Fall Classic. I for one am very excited this season as two of my favorite teams have managed to secure posteason berths (Oakland Athletics and Washington Nationals.) It will be very interesting to see who are the final two teams left standing at the end. I for one can surely say if its both of my favorite teams I will be present front and center for the festivities.

Cup O' Fiz 10/05/12

First ever Morning Delight Cup O' Fiz (name changed 3 hours later).  Here are some thoughts of a mad man while he was watching Thursday Night Football last night (with a hiatus).

Has anyone ever told Michael Irvin that he is not Deion Sanders?  Must be the money!  

So the NFL Network commercials for Thursday Night Football lets me know I’m exactly what demographic they are appealing to.  Balding white men.  Hairclub.com, hairclub.com, hairclub.com, hairclub.com, hairclub.com.

Statement you will never hear: “Cee-Lo gets me so pumped for Thursday Night Football.”

Danny Amendola…that white boy catches everything.

First drive seemed like St. Louis hit the Staples “That was easy” button.

It’s cool whenever you play Madden online this week they have the pink accessories, video games have become amazing.

Afternoon Delight 09/27/12

Something led me to this video on YouTube.  You know how YouTube is.  It’s the Black Hole of the internet.  You go to watch a video, next thing you know, it’s two hours later and you’re light headed.  Quick musing; you know you have made it when your product becomes a verb.  I’m gonna GOOGLE that (Happy bday Google btw).  I’m gonna FACEBOOK that.  I’m gonna YOUTUBE that.  I’m gonna TWEET that. These words didn’t start as verbs, but they got there from being so influential.  However, what about non-internet related items?  The only one I can think of that had that kind of clout is Xerox.  I’m gonna XEROX this paper.  Anyone know any more?  Someday you're gonna BFOX that...I just hope it involves being conscious.

About the video, I know Doug Flutie is always a sentimental favorite, but how is Kordell Stewart not #1?  Did you see that pass?  He threw it 75 yards, that’s ridiculous.  Anyway, short day on Afternoon Delight because “it be like that sometimes.” 

Afternoon Delight 09/26/12

****SONS OF ANARCHY SPOILER BELOW****

Whose idea was it to bring out DVR and Social Networking around the same time?  As I checked my Facebook timeline, which seems to be as regular a daily occurrence as eating or sleeping these days, numerous people spilled the beans on Sons of Anarchy.  Opie’s dead.  Come on, really?  You can’t wait even an hour to post something about a TV show.  Ever heard of a spoiler alert?  I, along with most people these days, enjoy the fact that I don’t have to sit through commercials and can watch something on DVR after it airs.  Look I’m cool with sports posts, that’s actually happening live.  These shows have been filmed months in advance, and are not occurring with people in attendance like a sporting event.  Therefore I propose a new rule for all in the Land of Make Believe (Facebook, Twitter, etc…); Three Day moratorium on posts with specifics about television shows.  Anything after three days is fair game.  If your thumbs are chomping at the bit to start tapping that mini screen on your cell phone keep the posts general.  “Sons of Anarchy was shocking tonight” is accepted.  “Opie is dead,” obviously, is unacceptable.  I said sports are ok, but there is a caveat.  If the event occurs in a different time zone and is not televised in the local time zone until later in the day, you cannot reveal the results.  This is especially important for the Olympics.  This goes for you too news outlets.  I knew the results of everything that happened in the London Olympics about 5 hours before NBC aired it, what kind of bullsh*t is that?   From henceforth the 3 day moratorium on specifics of a TV show is in effect. Get it?  Got it? Good!   

Afternoon Delight 09/25/12

For months and months I say to myself, "I wanna write about that or that, but alas, I do not have the time."  Therefore, I've decided to create a recurring column where I can throw my thoughts at you with the furor of an Aroldis Chapman fastball.  I will sometimes update it multiple times a day or maybe not at all, it's up to me.  It is my column.  It will not always be posted right away, it may be posted later on in the day so I can make adds and changes as I see fit.  Upon making this decision, I wondered what to call it.  I kept coming back to the title Quickies with the date.  However, I believe I have seen someone title their highlights of the day as Quickies (Buster Olney perhaps?).  Also, I feel a veiled, well thought out reference to quickies would be perfect for a column that is not well thought out and is simply my RanDumb thoughts, which brought me to the title…Afternoon Delight.  Sit back and enjoy the show.