OK, I missed the boat, pretty much entirely, on the whole Harry Potter phenomenon. Never been a big fantasy reader anyway, and it all seemed a little too. kids-y for me. However, after seeing the movies, I may find myself lugging around one of the 5,000,000-page tomes someday. I promise you now, though, that I will never reach the level of obsession reached by this guy. Far be it from me to make fun of the dead, but this is just pathetic. Oh, and I'm absolutely burning in hell for it, but you have to love the last line in the story, the quote from the guy's friend. I won't spoil it for you, but don't feel bad about laughing out loud.
By the way, the story mentions what many already know about the newest Potter book: one of the more recognizable characters dies. But it doesn't say who (I know! I know!), so don't worry about ruining the surprise for yourself.
Wednesday, July 20, 2005
Tuesday, July 19, 2005
See ya, Jay
Holy crap, two posts in one day! I think, until I get a reliable internet connection at home, and am thus stuck with only posting from work or occasional visits back to civilization, that this blog will feature a lot of shorter, one-link posts, sometimes from the same day. This would be one of those times.
Jackpot Jay Lovinger says goodbye to his ESPN Page 2 readers. This brings the number of must-read columns on Page 2 down to ZERO for me. I haven't mentioned a lot of poker on here, because of several reasons. One, I'm not full-on into poker enough to research links about it. B, I really do enjoy poker, but I get very sick of the attention it's getting very rapidly, on TV, the internet, in newspapers, and from people who have no business talking about the game until they understand it. Thirdly, poker writing has its own lingo and rhythm, and I don't know that it really fits in on this blog. However, Jackpot Jay was always interesting to read, and realized that sometimes, stories about how he learned cards from his father are just as fun and just as telling as lingo- and technical detail-filled stories abotu good and bad hands. Poker (as a mainstream pop culture phenomenon) may not have jumped the shark, but I think we can all see the ramp somewhere up in the distance. Jay got out just in time.
Jackpot Jay Lovinger says goodbye to his ESPN Page 2 readers. This brings the number of must-read columns on Page 2 down to ZERO for me. I haven't mentioned a lot of poker on here, because of several reasons. One, I'm not full-on into poker enough to research links about it. B, I really do enjoy poker, but I get very sick of the attention it's getting very rapidly, on TV, the internet, in newspapers, and from people who have no business talking about the game until they understand it. Thirdly, poker writing has its own lingo and rhythm, and I don't know that it really fits in on this blog. However, Jackpot Jay was always interesting to read, and realized that sometimes, stories about how he learned cards from his father are just as fun and just as telling as lingo- and technical detail-filled stories abotu good and bad hands. Poker (as a mainstream pop culture phenomenon) may not have jumped the shark, but I think we can all see the ramp somewhere up in the distance. Jay got out just in time.
The Knights of the Keyboard
To paraphrase a profoundly horrid song by Savage Garden, I knew I'd link this before I read it. David Ropeik, formerly a very good reporter for WCVB-TV in Boston (the ABC affiliate), takes a look at what it's like to cover the Boston Red Sox on a day-to-day basis. I generally think that the "how the press does its job" stories can be boring, but this one was pretty good, and it's about the Red Sox beat writers. So, as a hopeful future aspiring (sprinkle in a few more trepidatious adjectives) Sox/Bruins beat writer, I enjoyed reading this one. Here's the lede and nut graf, which say pretty much all I've ever wanted to say about being a reporter.
"Imagine attending every Red Sox game, home and away, for free. You have a front-row seat, and it's free. The airfare to the away games, and the nice hotels when you get there ... all paid for by your newspaper or television station. You get to be around the players, talk with manager Terry Francona every day, hang out in the dugout and the clubhouse. Sounds pretty good, huh?
"Now imagine that starting with spring training in February, and running into October if the Sox make the postseason, you are rarely home. You don't get to see your friends, your spouse, your kids, or sleep in your own bed very much. You work 12-hour days, sometimes 18- and 20-hour days, with no overtime. Some of the people you work with are friendly, but a lot of them are competitive and constantly looking to outdo you. Oh, and the players? Yeah, you get to be around them a lot. But many of them are kind of wary of being around you.
"Welcome to the life of a reporter covering the Boston Red Sox."
"Imagine attending every Red Sox game, home and away, for free. You have a front-row seat, and it's free. The airfare to the away games, and the nice hotels when you get there ... all paid for by your newspaper or television station. You get to be around the players, talk with manager Terry Francona every day, hang out in the dugout and the clubhouse. Sounds pretty good, huh?
"Now imagine that starting with spring training in February, and running into October if the Sox make the postseason, you are rarely home. You don't get to see your friends, your spouse, your kids, or sleep in your own bed very much. You work 12-hour days, sometimes 18- and 20-hour days, with no overtime. Some of the people you work with are friendly, but a lot of them are competitive and constantly looking to outdo you. Oh, and the players? Yeah, you get to be around them a lot. But many of them are kind of wary of being around you.
"Welcome to the life of a reporter covering the Boston Red Sox."
Friday, July 15, 2005
What did you do on Saturdays when you were 12?
Tom Hadfield was creating arguably the most comprehensive soccer site on the web. I personally dislike a lot of what ESPN does, both on TV and the web, but Soccernet is always reliable, and chock full of information on a sport for which the network seems to care only slightly. This story, written as part of the 10-year anniversary of Soccernet, traces the websites roots to a one-man-band of soccer knowledge in southern England.
Tuesday, July 12, 2005
The stars are out tonight...
Here's a few excellent reads
Red Sox profiles in Boston are tough, because except for recent acquisitions, Boston fans seem to already know everything about everyone on the team. Even kids who haven't made it to the majors yet are household names (Hello, Messrs. Garciaparra, Nixon, and Vaughn). So Gordon Edes had a pretty good challenge in trying to paint a picture of Sox Skipper Terry Francona that hadn't already been painted, re-painted, photographed, and made into a mass-market print. This story, though, is a fine look at how Francona manages a clubhouse like the one in Boston.
Bill Plaschke gets you about as close to The Royal and Ancient as you can be without buying a plane ticket.
Gold Cup Stuff:
Mike Biglin of the MetroWest Daily News has a good preview of Tuesday night's U.S. - Costa Rica CONCACAF Gold Cup match in Foxboro.
Also, John Powers looks at Landon Donovan's role in the future of the U.S. side, especially now that he's become a marked man for other squads' best clutchers.
Red Sox profiles in Boston are tough, because except for recent acquisitions, Boston fans seem to already know everything about everyone on the team. Even kids who haven't made it to the majors yet are household names (Hello, Messrs. Garciaparra, Nixon, and Vaughn). So Gordon Edes had a pretty good challenge in trying to paint a picture of Sox Skipper Terry Francona that hadn't already been painted, re-painted, photographed, and made into a mass-market print. This story, though, is a fine look at how Francona manages a clubhouse like the one in Boston.
Bill Plaschke gets you about as close to The Royal and Ancient as you can be without buying a plane ticket.
Gold Cup Stuff:
Mike Biglin of the MetroWest Daily News has a good preview of Tuesday night's U.S. - Costa Rica CONCACAF Gold Cup match in Foxboro.
Also, John Powers looks at Landon Donovan's role in the future of the U.S. side, especially now that he's become a marked man for other squads' best clutchers.
Monday, July 11, 2005
Quick non-sports stuff
Just wanted to mention a link real quick, though I may have some more stuff later on.
Sally Ride said she heard "echoes" of the Challenger problems when she was on the Columbia Accident Investigation Board. As NASA prepares to go back into space, a shuttle mission that, for its parameters, would otherwise be ignored profusely by most of America is getting tons of publicity and attention, and will probably lead most newscasts over the next week or so. It's far too early to predict that this level of attention will continue for future shuttle missions (though I doubt it), but perhaps one of the small bits of benefit that have come out of the disaster in Feb. 2003 is that now people have at least a little interest in one of the country's finest and most important endeavors.
The space program has always been battling for front pages and government dollars, even when it reached out to goals we thought weren't possible. It will likely always have to fight this battle in a country more concerned with oil prices and red state/blue state skirmishes. However, as NASA tries to get back on its feet in a truly remarkable way - let's remember, there really is very little that is routine about shooting people into space - perhaps the resultant curiosity, whether it is highway rubbernecking or true, intelligent interest, will last a little longer, and honor some of the bravest and most ambitious people that the United States have ever produced. I'm certainly not insisting that we stay glued to our television sets for pre-arranged orbit corrective burns, the way we did for every step of the moon race in the late 1960s. But perhaps, with a little good timing, some quality marketing, and a very successful mission this week and next, we can finally begin to realize the true value of NASA and its admirable personnel.
Sally Ride said she heard "echoes" of the Challenger problems when she was on the Columbia Accident Investigation Board. As NASA prepares to go back into space, a shuttle mission that, for its parameters, would otherwise be ignored profusely by most of America is getting tons of publicity and attention, and will probably lead most newscasts over the next week or so. It's far too early to predict that this level of attention will continue for future shuttle missions (though I doubt it), but perhaps one of the small bits of benefit that have come out of the disaster in Feb. 2003 is that now people have at least a little interest in one of the country's finest and most important endeavors.
The space program has always been battling for front pages and government dollars, even when it reached out to goals we thought weren't possible. It will likely always have to fight this battle in a country more concerned with oil prices and red state/blue state skirmishes. However, as NASA tries to get back on its feet in a truly remarkable way - let's remember, there really is very little that is routine about shooting people into space - perhaps the resultant curiosity, whether it is highway rubbernecking or true, intelligent interest, will last a little longer, and honor some of the bravest and most ambitious people that the United States have ever produced. I'm certainly not insisting that we stay glued to our television sets for pre-arranged orbit corrective burns, the way we did for every step of the moon race in the late 1960s. But perhaps, with a little good timing, some quality marketing, and a very successful mission this week and next, we can finally begin to realize the true value of NASA and its admirable personnel.
Friday, July 08, 2005
Pucks, Baseball, and Bikes...
Just a few links I wanted to mention...
Kevin Paul Dupont had a pretty good story about the state of the NHL. I like how Dupont can put together a long story about a situation that has been marked by little other than stagnancy, and make it informative. I'll generally read anything KPD writes at this point.
Sticking with the Globe...
Jackie Mac's got a good piece on the plight of Keith Foulke, and really delves into how tough it is to be a Sox closer with quotes from Eck and Bob Stanley. Foulke's getting a bad rap, despite his idiotic statements from a few days ago, and I'm hoping he comes back after the injury to prove why he was so important to the 2004 championship team.
Predictably, the Austin American-Statesman has good in-depth coverage of the Tour de France. So, to help you get there, I'm linking to a fun (if silly) thing: Lance Armstrong's Bike, yes, his BIKE, is blogging about the Tour, answering questions and such. Enjoy.
Kevin Paul Dupont had a pretty good story about the state of the NHL. I like how Dupont can put together a long story about a situation that has been marked by little other than stagnancy, and make it informative. I'll generally read anything KPD writes at this point.
Sticking with the Globe...
Jackie Mac's got a good piece on the plight of Keith Foulke, and really delves into how tough it is to be a Sox closer with quotes from Eck and Bob Stanley. Foulke's getting a bad rap, despite his idiotic statements from a few days ago, and I'm hoping he comes back after the injury to prove why he was so important to the 2004 championship team.
Predictably, the Austin American-Statesman has good in-depth coverage of the Tour de France. So, to help you get there, I'm linking to a fun (if silly) thing: Lance Armstrong's Bike, yes, his BIKE, is blogging about the Tour, answering questions and such. Enjoy.
Thursday, July 07, 2005
London Calling...
I had hoped to return to work on this blog with something cheerful, an account or two of my best friend's wedding. But with the incidents in London that took place early Thursday morning, I can't really focus on anything that happy at the moment.
One link, for now.
Barry Lorge provides a gripping, insightful account of one tourist/reporter's experience just outside London as all hell broke loose.
The world is not fair, and the easy, common, and understandable reaction to this will be hatred. Not only for those responsible for the heartless, gutless killings in downtown London, but also for anyone who comes anywhere near such a person, whether it is in race, political leanings, or religious beliefs. However, hatred is precisely what the terrorists who commit such crimes are trying to incite, and to become irrationally infuriated only rewards the deeds of cowardice committed by such people. Here's hoping that we can find a way to gain better knowledge and acceptance of those around us, and perhaps one day give such radical extremists no reason to terrorize. God bless and save you, London, and may the whole world see a true testament to your courage, resilience, and splendor when you put on the greatest show on earth in 2012.
One link, for now.
Barry Lorge provides a gripping, insightful account of one tourist/reporter's experience just outside London as all hell broke loose.
The world is not fair, and the easy, common, and understandable reaction to this will be hatred. Not only for those responsible for the heartless, gutless killings in downtown London, but also for anyone who comes anywhere near such a person, whether it is in race, political leanings, or religious beliefs. However, hatred is precisely what the terrorists who commit such crimes are trying to incite, and to become irrationally infuriated only rewards the deeds of cowardice committed by such people. Here's hoping that we can find a way to gain better knowledge and acceptance of those around us, and perhaps one day give such radical extremists no reason to terrorize. God bless and save you, London, and may the whole world see a true testament to your courage, resilience, and splendor when you put on the greatest show on earth in 2012.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)