I Went Green . . .

. . . and I liked it. As a result of some Friday night plans with the Better Half (which help to kick off my third "Weekend of Awesomeness" in the last five weekends . . . man I need to slow down), it was advantageous for me not to have a car in Downtown Los Angeles today. So, I devised a plan whereby my Better Half would drop me off at a Metro station (which, as it turns out, is not place where a lot of metrosexuals hang out . . . who knew?), and I would take the train into work and then also after work to meet up with her at our destination. So I rode the train (just like the Quad City DJs told me to), read a book along the way, and got to work surprisingly refreshed. Now, I can not say I plan to make a habit out this little adventure (and, if you know the route I had to take, it certainly can be an adventure), but I might have to start doing it every now and then for a nice relaxing morning.

So, we were conspicuously absent last week, and we apologize. For those of you who have been following this site since its early days, you know just how big of UCLA fan the Chief is. So the Chief closed down the office, packed his bags, and flew off to Austin, Texas for the UCLA-Texas game. He swore up and down that he would "finalize the Link Dump from his hotel room Friday morning." Well, that was about as likely as us winning the Mega Millions, retiring, and doing this full time. And who suffered? You, our avid readers. Rest assured, the Chief punished himself severely the rest of the weekend, and was still paying for it through about Tuesday night. And we had absolutely no intention of leaving you hanging for a second week in a row, especially when I am feeling so good.

What has got me feeling so good, you ask? Well, for those of you who have been following this site since its early days (is there an echo in here?), you know how important music is to the Chief. I have an extensive CD collection, spent more money on iTunes than I care to admit, performed for a former-President of the United States and the last General Secretary of the Soviet Union, performed in a nationally-ranked show choir, and, perhaps most importantly, met my Better Half while singing in the Glee Club at Occidental College (this one time, at choir retreat . . .). And tonight, for the first time in many years, I get to revisit where it all began . . . The Phantom of the Opera!!!!! Okay, stop laughing . . . Seriously . . . You are just being rude now . . . Finished? . . . Go ahead, get it all out . . . Okay? Good. Nearly twenty-two years (22?!?!?! Yikes!), my parents took me to see The Phantom of the Opera for the first time; tonight, I see it for the fifth time. Having all-but minored in music in college, I will be the first to admit that Andrew Lloyd Weber does not exactly write the most complex musicals. However, as a young eight-year-old boy, seeing Phantom at the Ahmanson Theatre, was my first exposure to music outside of Mom "rocking out" to oldies around the house and in the car. The lights, the performers, the costumes, the pyrotechnics, and, most of all, the music, left an indelible mark on my soul and introduced me and art form in which I could excel. And tonight, I get to sit back, relax, and enjoy that feeling once again. Only, this time, I get to share it with the person I might not have met but for that performance twenty-two years ago.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa . . . cup check (*clearing throat . . . adjusting pants*). We got a little carried away there with the personal stuff. Sorry about that. You come here for funny anecdotes, a fresh perspective, and stories about sports, not musicals and love. So let us get to the goods:

• First, we ask that you join us in a moment of silence for teenage boners around the world. . . . Thank you.
• Since he is officially divorced, it is no longer cheating. Also, can you blame him?
• YES! We are officially one step closer to ESPN8, "The Ocho".
• Speaking of Ocho, why am I not surprised something like this would happen with Ochocinco's cereal?
  
• Payback is a . . .
  
• Is it mere coincidence the number one recruit in basketball commits to Duke . . .
• . . . the same day this hits the internet?
• A case of "he-said, she-said" where he said the same thing as she said, but the prosecutor has decided to do nothing. In this case, "numerous prosecutors of both genders" ranks right up there with "don't be offended, but . . .".
  
• The hippies win again.
• "Sports don't build character, they reveal it." Well said.
• Our Little Snowflake got hurt playing football. What should we do? Sue the league and coaches of course.
• [*Dialing American Airlines reservations line*] Yes, when is your next flight to Australia? I would like to see what the Gold Coast has to offer.

Since we dropped the ball last week with the Link Dump, and since The Chief is all fired up for Phantom tonight, we decided to give you a double dose of videos this week. First up, we have the usual collection of entertaining clips you have grown to love her at GameTime, TBD©:

• This is one fall release you definitely should not miss.
• I have a feeling it will be a little while before Doug Gottlieb gets a chance to interview Jim Mora (the younger version, not the "Playoffs?" version) again.
• Jamie Pressly can clean my golf balls anytime she wants.
• So, since we dropped the ball last week [Editor's Note: must have been dirty], we have not one, but two "This Week in Unnecessary Censorship" for you.
• I waited a long time for this moment: "The Greatest Reality Television Screw Up Ever".
• Three words: Mike. Tyson. Dancing.

Second, we thought we would drop some musical numbers we recently came across:

• Okay, we did not really come across this one "recently". In fact, it has been here before. But we still love it. [Editor's Note: if you're a Star Wars nerd, raise your hand (*raises hand*).]
• This one too.
• Prep school girls rocking a Dr. Dre classic.
• Yes, I was in a college a cappella group; no, we did not rock out like this. [Editor's Note: language NSFW, so close your door.]
• You want to know why I love music? People like this.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Where Do We Go From Here?

Actual work (sucks) is going to keep the fine folks at GameTime, TBD© from getting a full Link Dump out to all you fine individuals today. We apologize. But the Chief had a few things he wanted to say real quick before giving you a few videos to at least make your Friday afternoon a little more bearable.

Had we been able to compile a complete Link Dump for you today, undoubtedly fifty percent of the articles would have been related to Tiger Woods and his inability to keep his drives from going down the wrong fairways. Yes, Weiss and (Body by) Mangino were fired; yes, AI is back in Philadelphia; yes, the BCS still sucks; yes, T.J. Simers proved, once again, he is the only Los Angeles Times writer with a brain; and yes, my Better Half and I did watch Marisa Miller and the 2009 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show together (your honor, we offer into evidence defense exhibit #1,420,693 as proof my Better Half is awesome: "Alessandra Ambrosio? I certainly wouldn't kick her out of bed." The defense rests). However, I am estimating that three out of every five sports articles written this week were about Tiger. As my parents always said, "Nothing good happens after midnight", and when that nothing good happens to the first billion dollar athlete, people seem to take notice. Look, I love that I can make a Tiger Woods' joke now and it brings down the house (did so 3 times last night alone), but I am not about to attack a man's personal problems on the World Wide Web. Yes, I am in the, apparent, minority that believes Tiger is right in requesting we respect his privacy.

But here is what I did want to say: it can not be easy growing up these days. I was a lucky kid in that I had to great parents that I can proudly call role models. But many kids (is that divorce rate still hovering around 50%?) are not that lucky. Instead, they turn to athletes, musicians, and celebrities. Last time I checked, there are not that many good ones out there either (though, to all you ladies age 18-and-over, I strongly recommend Rihanna [*wink*]). And now, perhaps the one man we thought was a good role model, is about to shell out another fifty-five million dollars just to convince his wife to stick around for at least five more years (Elin, take the $30 million and the 3-iron and just tell him to have a nice day). The folks at IMG had done a pretty nice job of packaging Tiger as the perfect man: the best in his sport, generous, and a great family man. And yes, we all make mistakes and no one is perfect (except my Better Half). Yet, while I am still a fan of Tiger Woods the golfer, it is sad to see what has become of him as a person in one week: someone I would not want my yet-to-be-conceived son looking up to.

Sorry to get all heavy there on you for a moment, but like I always say (and it's good to know DP feels the same way): if you need to have a pre-nuptial agreement, you probably should not be getting married in the first place. And with that, here are some video clips to help make at least part of your afternoon a little better:

• Just your average lunch break around the BCS offices.
• Tuts my barreh. [Editor's note: that's what she said!]
• Still debating whether the Slap Chop is the perfect holiday gift for that special somebody? Maybe this will help you decide.
• Looks like he zagged when he should have zigged.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Some People Have All the Luck

As this edition of the weekly GameTime, TBD© Link Dump goes to print, O.J. Simpson sits in a Nevada courthouse awaiting sentencing for his recent conviction on robbery charges. Regardless of whether "The Juice" is actually guilty of the charges he faced in Nevada, we all knew he was going to be convicted before a jury was even impaneled. Having gotten away with what he did all those years ago (has it really been 13 years . . . man, I was a freshman in high school and my Better Half was in 6th grade . . . ewww), everyone knew his next screw up was going to be his last. He is just unlucky like that (destined to screw up that is). [Update: O.J. to serve no less than 15 years, which, of course, means he'll be out in 6.]

But let us talk about someone who is lucky: my Dad. When Dad's number shows up on my caller ID at work, the conversation is usually going to involve one of three things: (1) whether I will be attending whatever sporting event it is he has tickets for, (b) I probably owe him some money for something, or (iii) I will never guess who he just met. Well, his name showed up on my cell's caller ID on Wednesday afternoon, and it was a category (iii) conversation. Now, you have to realize that my dad has flown well over five million miles in his career . . . and he is not a pilot. So most of his chance encounters with the rich and famous occur on airplanes. And Dad is the type of person who will recognize someone famous, but can not tell you who they are or why they are famous. Most famously, he sat across the aisle from Cindy Crawford on a flight, and it was my mom, of all people, who had to point this out to him. So when Dad said "BAP, you'll never guess who sat next to me on my flight to Austin (Austin . . . Austin, Massachusetts?)", it meant that he recognized the person and, therefore, the famous person must be sports-related.

Dad spent the 4-hour flight from Los Angeles to Austin breaking down game film and having a general discussion about life with Ben Howland. That is right, THE Ben Howland; the same Ben Howland that has coached UCLA to back-to-back-to-back Final Fours; the guy that has brought the magic back to Westwood (wait a sec, maybe I should be blaming Dad for UCLA's loss last night . . . maybe he was giving bad advice, or he distracted Howland from doing his job . . . nah, that's just silly). While poor Alfred Aboya was cramming his legs into his coach seat, Ben and Dad were talking about commutes, property values, and why Ben was concerned with the tough match-up Texas posed at almost every position in first class; I mean, he got to share a meal with this man! I mean, sure, I once flew on the same airplane as Andy Murray, and when I was in sixth grade, Tupac sat in front of me on a flight to Florida (and one of his bodyguards sat next to me . . . that was a treat). But it was not like I could spend the whole trip talking hockey with Murray (we were about 15 rows apart and he had, of course, just been fired by the Kings) and at the age of twelve, I was not a big rap fan, so I did not even know it was Tupac until I heard the stewardess (they're called flight attendants now) say his name. Dad, on the other hand, now gets to say that he has studied game film with one of the greatest game planners in the game.

Some people, like Dad, have all the luck. So, while I figure out a way to get Dad to Vegas (gotta strike while the irons hot), here are some things you might have missed to help you get through the rest of your week:

• I forgot to record the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show on Wednesday night, but I was not too concerned because I knew some perv would provide us with a Power Rankings of the models by Thursday morning. I was, of course, 100% correct in this assumption (though, I don't know if I can trust a guy who finds 11 VS models hotter than Miranda Kerr . . . at least his Top 5 is spot on).
• Speaking of Victoria's Secret models, the people at Rumors and Rants would like to remind us that Marko Jaric has clearly out kicked his coverage.
• And since we are talking about attractive women, a Hamburg soccer star intentionally disqualified himself from an upcoming match to attend his wife's 30th birthday. I would say he had two pretty large . . . . er, I mean . . . good reasons why.
• Usually an attractive female athlete is all it takes to get me interested in an article (hey, you too? Weird). But when you add talk of free cows . . .
• GameTime, TBD© fun fact of the day: the first event hosted at the Scociabank Place (home of the Ottawa Senators) in 1996 (when it was called The Palladium) was not a hockey game; it was a Bryan Adams concert. This article has nothing to do with that.
• I have not figured out how, but I am sure the inadvertent whistle can somehow be blamed on Ed Hochuli.
• Parents sue school after their daughters are kicked off of cheerleading squad for being awesome . . . no, actually, they are suing the school because they suck as parents. These articles frustrate me to no end.
• In 2004, Michael Vick signed a $130 million contract with the Atlanta Falcons. So, how than is he bankrupt?
• Rod Marinelli guarantees at least one win this season for my Detroit Lions. His motivating tool? The 2008-2009 team photo.
• The most amazingly-awesome (awesomely-amazing?) hunting story you may ever read. It is about time the animals start fighting back.
• For some stories, the witty tag lines write themselves. For others, like this one, a witty tag line could not be further from my mind.

It was quite a week for ridiculously entertaining videos. I have a reserve of unused clips that appreciate weeks like this because they remain unused, waiting for the right moment to be unveiled. I was even able to add a few clips to the bank, saved for a rainy day, because I was able to put together this cornucopia of entertaining (and perhaps slightly disturbing) clips for your viewing pleasure:

• Kenny Mayne, perhaps one of two enjoyable hosts remaining at the Evil Empire, has his own webisode series called Mayne Street. If you have not seen any, this one is sure to get you hooked.
• The scene: SUNY Geneseo (that's State University New York, at Geneseo) hosting SUNY Oswego (that's State University . . . eh, you get the point) in a powerhouse Division III matchup. Geneseo (in white) trails by two with 10 seconds left. Take it away boys . . .
• Apparently, this is the perfect holiday gift for all your co-workers. [Bonus: for an extra laugh, clicked on the related video of Ellen.]
• Some of my best workout secrets have been caught on tape.
• Prop 8 - The Musical (yes, you read that right).

Have a great weekend everyone!

Counting Down

As you know by now, I am heading to the Los Angeles Kings draft-day party this afternoon to see how Dean Lombardi manages to screw things up even more. You are right, I should be more positive; good things are going to happen. It is hard to stay positive out in Los Angeles right now, however, because every local talk show has spent the last three days talking about what the Lakers are going to doing next season after getting waxed by Boston in game six. Seriously, I think have of Los Angeles is on suicide-watch right now. Get over it people. You lost in game six of the NBA Finals. There is no reason to feel bad. If the Kings had lost in game six of the Stanley Cup Finals I would be sad, yes, but at the same time I would be celebrating the fact that my team was two wins away from winning the championship. Ugh, I hate Los Angeles fans, their bandwagons, and their gross overreactions (okay, I'm heading to a dark place . . . breathe . . . breathe . . . 3, 2, 1 . . . and we're back).

Moving on to happier places, seven weeks from tomorrow my Better Half will be making an honest man out of me. I have learned that a lot goes into planning a wedding, and I commend my Better Half for all the work she has put in; it is going to be an amazing day. But when we were deciding what date we wanted to get married, trying to avoid various sports scheduling conflicts, we managed to overlook one thing: the Olympics. Now, I do not know about all of you out there, but I am one of those people who ramps up my national pride for the Olympics. I love that NBC has 24-hour coverage across its various channels. I can got to bed with the Olympics on, and wake up to the Olympics. But the opening ceremony for this year's Olympics is the night before our wedding and our honeymoon spans the first two weeks of events. I certainly will be spending most of my honeymoon (in Tahiti) indoors . . . but for a different reason than all of you are thinking (perverts). Obviously, I will be watching NBC's "coverage" (telephone call from Better Half in 3 . . . 2 . . . 1).

Now that my Better Half knows that I am CLEARLY joking, here are some things you might have missed:

• While she is no Briana, a congratulations goes out to UCLA's Elise, SI On Campus's "Cheerleader of the Week" (I was going to make a joke about her shockingly white teeth, but my Better Half said it might give her a complex).
• Speaking of UCLA and my Better Half, when she heads off to grad school in September you can rest assured she will be well dressed.
• I know I am giving her free publicity by linking to this article, but Ms. Knapp just took Tiger bashing to a whole new level.
• Vigilante justice . . . caddy style.
• "You go gangster on me, I'm going to have to get you."
• When faced with the possibility of missing their flight, some people tend to overreact.
• Dick Ebersol, 2008 graduate of the "Dean Lombardi School of Making Bad Decisions".
• I am officially kicking of my bid to be the 2009 R-P-S champion. Training will be intense, but I think I can handle it.

After last week's Link Dump, I was "shocked" to discover that people enjoy laughing at the expense of other people's . . . shall we say . . . "unfortunate" injuries. So for your weekly viewing pleasure, I have found a plethora of accidents for you to delight in:

• Karate teaches you how to take a kick.
• A little rough on the landing, she might have to settle for the bronze.
• Ever wonder why Major League Lacrosse has cheerleaders? Now we know.

Have a great weekend everyone!

When the Cats Away . . .

It has been an incredibly long week for the authors . . . well, I guess that would actually just be author . . . of GameTime, TBD©. As yesterday (that would be Thursday I think) changed from morning to afternoon, I discovered that I had already billed fifty hours this week and still had a day and a half to go. My obvious first thought was to say F-U job and take Friday off, but I was busy for a reason and those deadlines were not going anywhere. Plus, My Better Half left yesterday afternoon to go visit her older sister in Virginia for the weekend, so playing hooky today would not have been all that fun . . . ah, who am I kidding, it would have been great. I would be writing this from my couch (couch, c-o-r . . . are you going to the mall today? That's what I was going to ask.), probably still in my boxers and taking a break from playing BioShock for hours upon end.

Let us face the facts, with My Better Half gone for the weekend, that is what my Saturday is going to be like: ten hours of uninterrupted BioShock time while still in my boxers (there's a nice image for everyone . . . ladies, feel free to stop by and check out the sexiness). I would say my Sunday would look much the same, but there is that little thing called the Super Bowl on Sunday afternoon. I guess I will have to settle for only five hours on Sunday then. It is nice when the cat is away, this mouse gets a chance to be the king of the castle for a few hours. But now I am getting ahead of myself; I still have a half of day of work and a post to finish. So, here are some things you might have missed this week:

• If you had the choice of bringing Gisele Bundchen or your hair stylist to the Super Bowl, which one would you choose? A VICTORIA'S SECRET MODEL . . . or . . . some "dude" with scissors? That is what I thought.
• Excuse me, but do you know if your neighbor beats his wife? No? Well, he is a member of the KKK, right? Well, I am just trying to make sure he is qualified to be a MLB umpire.
• The New England Patriots have nothing on the Trinity squash team, who have won . . . wait a sec, does that say squash team?
• The fall of the Evil Empire has begun. Keep up the good work.
• Without a liquor license for the big game, why would anyone want to go to Hooters to watch the Super Bowl?
• Starbucks to close 1% of its stores in 2008. Hopefully I will still be able to get coffee from the 99 other Starbucks within walking distance of my home.
• When I read that the school was having problems with her "kinky twist", I was really expecting this article to go in a different direction. Bummer.
• Boyfriend moving in at the same time ex-husband is moving out. What could possibly go wrong?

For your afternoon viewing delight, I have two fun clips for you. Both of them come in at over 5 minutes, so they should keep you entertained for a little longer than normal:

• Fox Sports Net provides us with scientific proof that, yes, watching someone getting hit in the nuts is still damn funny.
• I have got to be honest, if given the opportunity, I would too.

Have a great weekend everyone!

This Is Harder Than It Looks...

Like learning to ride a bike, or taking the California Bar, or sharing an "intimate" moment with your lady friend for the first time, maintaining a Weblog (or "blog" for short) is harder than it looks. I understand how people can make it a full time job . . . though I still do not understand how they are able to make a decent living off of it. I do my best to find the time to keep you all entertained, and it is hard. I apologize for not having anything new for you this week, but this holiday season is kicking my behind. There I was watching the Kings beat up on the Buffalo Sabres last night (at one point in the game, midway through the second period, the Kings had 7 goals and the Sabres had 8 shots), and all I could think about was work, getting presents for people, the Victoria's Secret fashion show (average at best; though I did learn that Marisa Miller's nickname is "The Bombshell" . . . see banner picture above for visual proof or just go here), and writing a new post for you all to enjoy. It will come, I promise, but I cannot say when unfortunately. For now, I hope you enjoy the brief break from reality that I can provide you every Friday afternoon. Here are some things you might have missed:

• Stephen A. Smith says bloggers are unqualified to disseminate information. Anyone who has watched ESPN within the last three years says Stephen A. Smith is unqualified to think and speak at the same time. I would like to take this opportunity to introduce "Screamin'" A. Smith to the 1st Amendment, you know, the reason he has a job and all.
• Hillary is melting down faster than the Baltimore Ravens in the 4th quarter. Blame it on the officials Hillary.
• I demand a recount.
• I guess we should be glad that Congress is even planning to work at all in 2008.
• The Writers' Strike is still going on? I did not even notice that all the shows I watch have stopped running new episodes. I am glad it will not have any affect on next years schedule.
• Milli Vanilli may have told you to blame it on the rain, but when that fails you might as well blame it on . . . the Spice Girls?
• Protecting "the twins" since 1907.
• Dodgers are looking to sign her to a 5-year, $65 million contract.

Today we have a triple feature for your viewing pleasure, all public service announcements to prepare you for the new year:

• Parents, do NOT let your children play in youth soccer leagues. They are getting entirely too dangerous.
• Apparently mine fields are a bigger problem then I realized. (YouTube account required . . . do yourself a favor and get one).
• Some familiar faces would like to remind you to go green.

Have a great weekend everyone!

I Think My Clock Stopped Moving...

It is just one of those days here in the City of Angels. It is dark, cold, and rainy . . . but it is also Friday! Thank goodness. I know I have not been able to provide you with any original material lately and I apologize. Every time I think I am going to have time to write something up, life or work gets in the way (of course, by life I mean sports and by work I mean planning my honeymoon). I have two posts in various states of readiness and I hope to have them both up sometime next week. But I have been getting a lot of positive feedback from my avid readers about the weekly link dumps, so this letter to my client is going to have to wait (okay, I'm actually on my lunch break, but I'd put aside a letter for you guys). I hope you all have fun weekends lined up, I know things can get pretty crazy around the holidays. Me? It is rivalry week so you know where to find me. But I am sure you all need a little entertainment to help get you to the weekend; here you go:

• The Catholic Church seeks to make The Golden Compass the highest grossing film of the holiday season.
• Congratulations to South Dakota . . . so sorry to the Mormons.
• I am not sure is Jessie Spano knows this, but nudity is not allowed on television.
• In Australia, "chimney climbing skills" and a "gentle nature with children" gets you a prize. In America? Probably three to nine.
• Sabotage, pepper spray and a bomb threat . . . I am not talking about season 7 of 24 silly; it is the Miss Universe pageant.
• Man becomes one with nature (warning: kinda freaky).
• Who would have thought that children ages 2 to 12 could be so right?
• There go the mannequins, objectifying and assaulting the dignity of women again.

In honor of UCLA's four-point upset of USC last year, I bring you not one, not two, not three, but FOUR video clips for your viewing pleasure:

• I love the books and all, but really? REALLY?
• Nothing like a good, old-fashioned "Poon" fight with play-by-play.
• Think ACC official Ron Cherry is the first person to call this penalty? Think again.

Have a great weekend everyone!