FAN: Randy Pausch = Good Dude

Back when it was viral, people sent me the link for Randy Pausch's The Last Lecture. I never watched it. For Christmas two years ago Mrs. Fan gave me the book. I never read it. I put it on the shelf and planned to, but never got around to it. I don't read much fiction at all and almost everything I read is about business or autobiographies. This was kind of a gray area for me for books. Hard to classify. Probably should be under self help!

I found myself out of reading material last week so I went to the bookcase and picked it out. I read it in 3 days and I'm glad I did. Very inspiring. Some of the chapters hit a little too close to home. Another cool aspect of reading the book was realizing that he worked on ALICE at CMU. My daughter currently uses ALICE in TEC Club. Cool stuff...you learn about programming without knowing you are learning about programming. It allows you to create a virtual clip about anything you want. It's very impressive but what else would you expect from CMU?

A friend of mine from high school went to CMU and majored in CS so it would be interesting to look her up and see if she knew him or had a relationship with him at all. Looking back and reading about his time in school and teaching there, it makes me kind of wish I went somewhere where it was a bit more creative and hands-on. I get it though, that's why you're paying the big bucks and I don't even know if I would have been accepted. I think grade-wise and SAT wise I may have been slightly below CMU standards, but I learned from the book that the interview process can change all of that and I may have excelled there. Who knows?

Anyway, I don't need to go over who the man is or what happened to him. You probably already know. If not, point your browser over to Wikipedia and key him in.....maybe pick up the book if you get a chance.

FAN: Fraud Perps

Very few things have happened to me fraudwise in my adult life. I'm pretty lucky considering I've probably made a purchase a week or more online since about 1996. Just to feed my 3 collections alone I've probably made 300 online purchases. I was an early adopter of this here Internet thing and I've never come close to slowing down when it comes to buying things online. I wouldn't be surprised if I made two a week this year or more when you factor in Christmas. I shop IN my underwear FOR underwear my friends.

Let me see if I can recall the things done against me. In 1996 when we bought our first house - during the first week while we were moving in, somebody called about 10 sports betting lines. My first phone bill came with over $300 worth of sports hotline calls. I got out of that very easily since I had my own phone line since 1987 and never once placed such a call. They think very brave people who know houses have just sold roll right up to the box on the side of the house, plug a phone in from there into the box and make the calls. Thank God it wasn't to a sex line, but maybe since the box is right by a flower bed and it was summer the flowers would have germinated faster. I don't even know if that's scientifically correct but it sounded funny to me so I'll stay with it.

>

One time when going over my phone bill, I noticed a charge at the bottom for like $1.76 that didn't make any sense (well...it made less sense than the 10 legal charges) to me. I looked up the company online for the acronym that was given and it seemed extremely bogus. I called the phone company and they said it was there for 3 months and wouldn't go away unless I called. The company claimed I checked a box somewhere on a website to add their service but the phone company received about 100,000 calls in this area attributed to the fraud.

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Around 2001 or 2002 I started selling on Ebay and I got a flurry of emails about a truck I was selling. I got online and from my ID, I was selling a commercial 18 wheeler type cab for $27,000 and it was worth about $150,000. A guy bought the truck off of me (lol) for the buy it now price and now he was pissed off that he wasn't getting it. I know he was in on some kind of scam so I called Ebay and they took the sale down and acted like it never happened and closed his account down. They think he was going to try to convince me that he paid the $27k and to wipe the sale off my account I was going to pay him his money back. Ummmmm, hey junior, I didn't fall off the turnip truck yesterday. Maybe you want to set your sites a little lower....like $270. People might fall for that. What an assclown he was to talk to. He tried to intimidate me but he obviously didn't know what he was dealing with. I have an MBA in asshole and I'm not afraid to use it.

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Well tonight, I got an email from AMEX around 4:30 stating they had a security fraud alert on one of our 2 cards. I didn't even open the email. I deleted it and will continue to do so when I see a subject like that. Around 6 pm the phone rang and it was AMEX. Hmmmmm, I better pick this up. Yes, I screen. If you call me, I won't pick you up either. I'll pick up Still A Dad and Dog and precious few others. Dog and I communicate 99.9% of the time via email anyway. They asked if we had both cards in our possession. I got Mrs. Fan on her cell as her and Stroke were off getting their hair cut. We have both cards. Did Mrs. Fan make a $47 purchase online at USPS or download a song on iTunes today around 4:00 PM? Um, no. I was told I could hangup on Mrs. Fan that we were done with her. Click. He He He. That felt good!

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So she proceeded to tell me not to use that card that they actually shut it down around 4:30 anyway. A new one will be coming out. Comb my next bill for anything suspicious (Maaaaaaaan, we ain't found sheeeeeeit). Do I have any more questions? Are you kidding me? I'm in software QA. I used to wonder if I could trick the Ebay algorithm and have a friend bid stuff up. People get into fights all the time on Conquest Club (online Risk) about 2 players in a 4 person game being the same person. One of the moderators fulltime interogates ISPs and locations for people doing just that. They boot you if caught. I left years ago because of that. And RISK is NOT just for geeks. Huh Huh. The only thing she would tell me is that it was from Virginia.

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So I start guessing....and since it's usually my card online, the fact that it was my wife's card and out of state you flagged it. Maybe. We can't say anything because our methods cannot be made public. Since we have both cards, the person just guessed? Silence. We really don't talk about our methods other than to tell you it happened in Virginia. Did they spend less than $50 thinking they wouldn't be flagged? Do you put 10 suspicious ones together and then call one at random? How? How? How do you do it? I must know!!! I live for stuff like this! I'm sorry sir, can I help you with anything else? Is it because she made another charge today from our zip code? Is it because she maybe hasn't made a purchase for a few days before this happened? Why? Can you tell me?

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No. (Rats)

FAN: Favre Retiring Again...No Wait

Great. It's January 24th. Favre threw a pick which cost the Vikings a chance at the Super Bowl. With their front 7, the Vikings had a better chance in my opinion of beating the Colts than the Saints do. Oh well.

Now all we have to look forward to is Brett retiring and unretiring all spring and summer. We have about what, six months now of "will he" or "won't he"....which is six too many for yours truly and I like the man.

I was going to write a sort of parody of him already retiring and un-retiring 3 times since the game ended around 10:30 but what would be the point? I'm not sure it qualifies as a parody. He was brought there specifically to win this game and even though he had a spectacular season with only 7 picks, his never say die attitude which plagued him at times in the second half of his career came shining through today. If he takes off running with that ball and steps out of bounds they kick and win.

I think he's going to want that one back tomorrow. Next week. Next month. 10 years from now. In the end, he couldn't stop himself from being Brett.

FAN: I Finally Saw Tyson

Mike Tyson has always been fascinating to me. I loved watching him fight when he was "The Baddest Man on the Planet". He was unbeatable. As unbeatable as he was in the ring though, that's how beatable he was out of it. I wish a professional could watch the documentary and assess his IQ. If an IQ of X is mentally retarded, I truly believe he is X + 2. I don't think he's evil, I just think he's so easily manipulated that he doesn't even know who he is sometimes.

The thing I took away from watching this is just how fast he was when he was young. There is a 3-4 minute piece of him shadow boxing when he's probably 18 or so and I backed up the DVR to watch it twice. He was moving so fast I couldn't even see his hands. It was boxing gold. I was in awe. It must have been a god damn nightmare for other boxers to see him coming at you, gloves together, bent forward, head bobbing sideways, lats like a cobra...... that's how I'll always remember Iron Mike. I saw the end of the greatest heavyweight era of all time with Ali, Frazier, Foreman, Norton and Shavers. I think at their primes, Tyson wins. Foreman's size may have been too much, but I see Mike killing his body. I don't know, I don't know much about boxing and haven't watched much since Buster Douglas took Mike's lunch money - but he was a monster in the ring, a ferocious monster.

FAN: Helene Yorke is Wicked Good

For Christmas Still A Stroke wanted tickets to Wicked so of course Daddy obliged. We try to get her to a show every 6 months or so and she really enjoys them. I must admit - it's a fun night out for the whole family to get a little dressed up, head into the city, have a nice dinner and check out a show. The thing is, it's stupid expensive. As soon as tickets went on sale I did what I always do - head online and try to find a date with front row balcony available. I got one, dead center to boot, but on a school night. The tickets were still $60 each to sit in the 3rd balcony front row. For dinner we went to a nice casual place that I used to eat at every once in a while for lunch when I worked in the city - The Italian Bistro. They have 20% off your entire check when you have theater tickets. Parking was $18. Princess wanted a program and since she got a 96 on her math test that day, she was again obliged at a price of $20.

I really enjoyed the show and found myself humming Defying Gravity the next day at work. I fixed that by throwing in the earbuds and playing Maylene and the Sons of Disaster. Nothing like Southern Metal to get the showtunes out of your head. That being said, Marcie Dodd who played Alphabet, the Green Witch had an amazing voice. She had the best voice in the cast, but Helene Yorke as Glinda with a "Guh" clearly stole the show. She is hilarious, and quite a serious little hottie. It's hard to see all the facial expressions from the balcony, but I did come home and check out the leads web site's. I was enjoying looking at Helene's pictures until I saw her with Ace, that idiot poser from American Idol. I guess he was in Grease with her. The most uncool Zuko ever. When Yorke's character first arrived in the school scene, I leaned over to tell Stroke that she seemed like Sharpay from High School Musical. Perfect comparison as she played her as well. She's really talented. I hope to see her again in something in the future. Like a bikini, in an HD movie.

Yes, I can go see the arts and appreciate them, but I'm still a bit of a swine. Lastly, I appreciated the venue as much as the show - The Academy of Music on Avenue of the Arts. I've probably been in it 10 times and it never ceases to amaze me. I think I could spend an hour just looking around from my seat. There is a lot of history in that building.

DOG: Bluesin' On The High Seas!

Thought I'd take this opportunity to let you all know I'll be taking a little leave of absence for a while. This will be my last post for probably a little over 10 days. But I'll be accumulating material for an upcoming What Are You Listening To post. Except I'll be listening to live music by some of the folks I've mentioned in previous WAYLT articles.

Tomorrow I embark on my journey into Earthquakeland, otherwise known as the Caribbean Sea, aboard the ms Eurodam for the 2010 Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise. The party starts at 4 on Saturday with a BBQ (right up my alley!) and continues non-stop for 7 more days. And when I say non-stop I mean the first gig starts at noon plus or minus an hour and the last gig starts at 1:30am the next day, EVERY day. It is not unusual for live music to be emanating from some parts of the ship at 5:00 or 6:00am!!

These are the coolest cruises ever. You never have to "play dress up" and go to dinner with the same folks at the same time every night. There's no such thing as a Captain's Ball. No dumbass magicians pulling a rabbit from a hat, or half-assed comedians, or torch singers trying to replicate old Broadway hits. The entertainment is strictly high-grade Blues all the way.

This time out I am really looking forward to seeing Duke Robillard and Johnny Winter. But everybody booked is good. And what the hell, it beats working for a living. See ya in a couple weeks with pictures and stories!

FAN: Pat Robertson Responds To 6.1 Aftershock - Shakira's Fault

Pat Robertson continued his hate tirade this morning. After learning of Haiti's 6.1 Wednesday morning aftershock, Robertson was quick to study the latest media trends and came away from it with a new revelation. "Shakira Caused This!" Robertson has declared.

Robertson's sleuthing methods have been uncovered. He dove headfirst into the world of social media to see who has been helping the Satan saved Haitians. After absorbing the information Pat decided that Shakira appearing on Oprah and pleading for help was the swizzle stick that stirred this particular drink. Let me repeat, it had nothing to do with yours truly wanting the hottest picture to post here. This was the work of Pat Robertson.

Robertson equated Shakira's hips with Beezlebub and admitted that he himself has been in a Shakira induced "hip trance" which he saw "on the YouTube". The trick uncovered was that Shakira helped send aid to the area and then unleashed yet another earth quake while the aid workers were there. He likened the plot to 9/11 where the first plane striking the towers brought the crowds in to see the second one happen live.

"Shakira needs to be stopped. It's that simple" said Robertson. Asked what you can do to help, he continued "Bring her to me. I can help her. It would be good if you could restrain her first." Asked how he can help Pat explained how he could give her a religious experience that would change her ways and make her act and dress more like "a lady" instead of "the damned devil". He explained his methods further - "it's a three step process, first the prayers, then what they call chloroform and if she still resists, the Holy roofies will be administered." Roberts claims a night alone with him will make the devil hips jump right out of her.

We can only hope.

FAN: Checks And Balances

Seriously folks, I don't care if you're Republican or Democrat, left wing nut job or right wing religious zealot - Scott Brown winning that election was good for the country. 47 years is bout 37 too long for me personally to like anyone sitting in a Senate seat. I wish we could go back in time and have people from every profession filling these seats like a jury. Do your voting and lobbying in a 2 week period every 6 months and do the rest online from the comfort of your own house. Career politicians suck. If people were swapped in and out, there would be no time or use for political favors. Everyone would hopefully just do what makes sense for their city, state and country. It tells me people in that area were ready for change and most of them probably just never headed out to vote because they assumed Ted was going to win anyway. This is good, trust me.

FAN: From My Cold Dead Hands

I absolutely love reading stories like this.

The kid is badass. He's 11. He's like "Yeah I shot him, now get me a juicebox before you're next".

FAN: I Protest

Still A Stroke is in 5th grade. Every day they do 4 math problems on a math maintenance test which gives them 20 questions for the week and then it's graded. The math maintenance tests then become a quarter of their trimester math grade. It's a good way to keep using things you've learned in the past. Full disclosure, I was half a math major.

I took exception when I saw her results for last week's test. She missed two questions in a section where you are supposed to select THE BEST way to solve a problem. The choices were Mental Math, Estimation, Paper & Pencil and Calculator.

My daughter has always struggled with estimation and her school pushes the concept hard. When they want you to estimate they always say "About how much is 4312 + 2698". She is like me - black or white, not a lot of gray. She frequently puts the exact answer for estimation problems which leads to the teacher correctly marking them wrong. She's young. Her feelings are "but why get close when I know how to solve the problem?" It's a hard concept to explain.

Anyway, I get the idea of mental math. She got that question right because it was something like 200 * 20. However, the next question was something more like the first example I used: 4312 + 2698. The teacher wanted "estimation" for the answer. I've trained my daughter to look for the words "close" or "about" when doing estimation problems. When those words don't exist and you ask a 5th grader what's the BEST way to solve it, I'm not sure "estimation" is the correct answer. She said "calculator". I asked her the thought process she used. She said that she thought they wanted to know the best way to get the exact answer and even though she could do it with paper & pencil, why wouldn't you use a calculator if you had one. That makes sense to me the way the question was worded.

I don't even need to explain the other one she missed because again she used "calculator" and the correct answer was pencil & paper. If you think like a kid (which I do) and you're thinking "ok, I have paper & pencil, a calculator and two methods in my head" and you're presented with something and asked which is the BEST way to solve it, it's very subjective. Math is not subjective. Words like "Best" you have to be careful with. You can get your point across without "Best" being included and without "calculator" included in the list. Maybe have a matching of 1, 2, 3 with A, B and C. Then you see the kid knows that 500 + 400 is mental math, 6710 - 688 is estimation and so on.

I did send the teacher an email because I need it explained to me when pencil & paper is better than a calculator if you have both with you. The only reasonable answer I see is if you want to draw a picture of a doggy or a horsey.

I "get" these concepts and I like that they are being taught. I just want the problems worded a little more carefully for those kids that might think too much. When you add a calculator to the mix and then ask for the BEST way to solve.......that's an email.

FAN: Juice Box

Well, the second bash brother came forward today to say that he did indeed do steroids. I'm sure he just wants to be left alone as the new hitting coach and just wanted to admit and move on. He should have done it years ago. I once went up to Boston with a group of friends to go to a game at Fenway against the A's. We were amazed at batting practice as McGwire and Canseco hit ball after ball completely out of the park. I wonder if they were juicing then? They didn't seem as big but it was probably right in the middle of the steroid era. It was before I was married so I'm guessing it was around 1993 or 1994. Whatever. The steroids story is so old news in baseball. Even A-Rod couldn't bring it back full force. Mac prolly knew it was safe and time to just admit it. Those were good times. Six dudes, two cars and one hotel room for two nights. If I remember correctly, it was me, Vailler, Kooz, Belly, Gratz and I want your soul, Miller.

DOG: Haluski - Dog Style

Long back when I first started contributing my nonsense for this here blog I wrote a story about Haluski. Well, today I made my first batch on my own.

Not much else to do when the temperature barely crept above 20 degrees and I was relegated to watching the Shitbirds vs. Bill Belicheat. So I moved into the kitchen and created. Don't get me wrong, I totally embrace grilling in the winter. But I see no need to punish myself to do it.

So I mixed up a batch of noodles and cabbage and supplemented it with onion, a little crushed garlic and a few mushrooms. I know it's not the classic Haluski. But I try to make use of whatever is lying about the pantry and fridge when I cook and that's what I had to work with.

It came out real good and I served it with a smoked pork chop. But of course Mrs. Dog whined about having onion in it so guess what? I get to eat the rest of it. No buying lunches this week!

Anybody who would like my recipe, just say so in the comments. Which, by the way, Still A. While, how did my recipe for the maple glazed ham work out for you at Christmas?

DOG: The Irish Cougar

Iris Robinson

In case you haven't heard, Iris Robinson, the 60 year old wife of the head honcho of Northern Ireland had been banging a 19 year old lover for a couple of years. That is until the British Press got wind of her solicitations from Irish and British business men to pay for her affairs by giving the young stud enough money to start his own business!

She was also some kind of Parliamentary representative in London for Northern Ireland. A position from which I understand her political party had demanded that she resign.

On top of all that, her other claim to fame is gay bashing on the floor of Parliament where she said (in so many words) that Child Molestation is as bad as Sodomy and Homosexuality. Then she tried to defend her words by claiming that Chile Molestation is in fact worse than Sodomy and Homosexuality. And furthermore claimed that Homosexuality can be cured!!

Apparently the young boy-toy wasn't getting any back door action from Mrs. Robinson. She wouldn't judge herself to be as bad as a homosexual! But I guess it's OK to screw around behind the First Minister's back.

So here's to you Mrs. Robinson. Jesus loves you more than you will know... 'cause I'm pretty sure your husband don't love you anymore.

FAN: Cleveland Chooses Holmgren's Mediocrity

Thank You Cleveland Browns. Thank You, Thank You....Thank You. Why? For hiring The Walrus of course! This hyped up pile of steaming poo is the poster boy for NFL mediocrity. I can't believe (actually I can) the way the press is all over every move the man makes. Where are the graphics showing the man's credentials to take over a franchise? Without knowing the facts before writing this I think his credentials suck monkey balls.

So, off to Wikipedia I go, in search of why Cleveland is all gaga over this guy. Holmgren coached 7 years in Green Bay with a record of 75-37. Very good. He began with 3 9-7 seasons in a row while Brett Favre learned how to play the game and then while Brett was in his prime he road his horse for a 48-16 record and playoff success and a Super Bowl win (and a SB loss). He had great success at Green Bay when tethered to Favre and his waistline, I mean legend, grew.

This is where it gets fun. Mike's ego wanted to run his own team. He wanted to buy the ingredients and cook the meal. Seattle offered him that opportunity and he jumped at the chance in 1999. He went 9-7 in his first year there. Decent enough but it takes time to turn a program around, right? He got worse in 2000. Much worse. His record was 6-10. Ask Bill Belimort, it's hard as Hell to win games without a star quarterback. In his third season as Seattle's football czar, Mike went 9-7 again. Ok, Now he's back on track and is set up to succeed in season four - except he didn't. He went 7-9. So, the genius Mike Holmgren was brought in to win and so far as the man in charge of everything, he's posted a 31-33 record. How did ownership react? They stripped him of his GM role and said "Just coach please". He couldn't run the organization. He failed at the thing he wanted most.

Without running the organization he had immediate success going 10-6 but lost the first playoff game. Like most of his tenure, he failed to put together back-to-back good seasons and went 9-7 followed by another first round playoff loss. Maybe Mike should change his name officially to "Nine Wins Holmgren". He finally delivered in 2005 going 13-3 but lost the Super Bowl (he he he) to a far superior team and then blamed the referees instead of being a man. Nice character there, Niner. You can only guess that he went 9-7 in 2006. He showed a little promise going 10-6 in 2007 but he lost in the playoffs to.......Brett Favre. Sigh. That must have really rocked his world because he ended his Seattle stint with a 4-12 record. Let me repeat that....a 4-12 record. In totality, in Seattle, the genius was 86-74 and 4-6 in the playoffs.

Cleveland wants a football czar. Hmmmm, who should they seek out? How about a coach who has 7 seasons with 10 wins or more out of 17 seasons. Out of the other 10 campaigns, 7 of them were 9 win seasons. Yawn. And don't forget he got shit canned as the GM after only 4 years. He hasn't had back-to-back 10 win seasons since 1998 and that was with Favre. The fact that this man is so sought after is mind boggling to me. I read once where he wanted to go open a coffee shop or a B&B and retire. He should have followed his dream.

What has Cleveland gained since employing Mike? Well, they decided to keep a coach with a career NFL record of 28-36 because he had a 4 game winning streak. I'm impressed. The fact that Mangini went 10-6 in his first year with the Jets and 4-12 in his second tells me he went 10-6 with somebody else's team. Whatever. So what do I read this morning? Holmgren is close to hiring Seattle's Pro Personnel director to be Cleveland's GM. He's worked with him before in Green Bay and Seattle. Super! Steeler fans rejoice! Mike is going to bring his amazing streak of mediocrity to the Browns by surrounding himself with cronies from the old days who have already failed with him at other locations.

People, People, People.....please pull back the curtain and take a good look at your wizard. Your wizard isn't a wizard at all. Your wizard, is a walrus.

FAN: Satchmo Cash

Cool YouTube video.

DOG: Is It April Yet?

Bobby April

Just heard that former Stillers Offensive Line coach, Larry "Porn" Zierlein, and Special Teams coach, Bob Ligashesky have been fired by the team.

This is outstanding news when combined with the retirement of ex-Bengals QB and former Stillers QB coach, Ken Anderson.

*Note: Steel City Slant holds itself to a higher standard than the Post-Gazette and WTAE who prematurely have reported the departure of Bruce Arians. We would be happy to see that fiction become reality. But until it's fact we aren't running it as news.

I am officially casting the Steel City Slant vote in favor of hiring Bobby April as our new Special Teams coach. April coached Steeler special teams back in 94-95. Most recently he was the baby that got tossed out with the bath water when the Buffalo Bills fired their entire coaching staff Monday. April waived a later offer to remain with Buffalo so he could begin interviewing/negotiating with another team. He was the Special Teams coach of the year in the NFL in 2008 and 2004.

If he isn't already in Pittsburgh I would help subsidize his plane fare to fly him in from Buffalo before any worse weather gets him stuck up there. We need this guy badly.

The calendar might say January but I'm hoping it's APRIL!!

FAN: Steeler Contracts & Free Agents

Yes, it's a picture of a door.....as in "don't let the door hit you in the ass on your way out." It's time to reflect on the season and what better way to start than to talk about starting to clean house a little bit. Before that though, in general it was an entertaining season to say the least. Crazy entertaining. My friends and I have just been discussing how Ike Taylor seems to shy away from contact instead of sticking his nose in there sometimes so what does he do yesterday? He handed out a "Check Please" type hit that makes Steeler Nation salivate. I still can't believe that a man his size can inflict that much damage. I guess when the guy you're hitting is smaller than most Quad A HighSchool players - you've got a shot. It was still nice to watch. I'm glad the dude is OK. In the end I don't blame the other teams for not winning - I blame our guys for falling down and not rallying around Polamalu's absence. Aaron Smith was missed as well but we got to see flashes of the future there. We saw nothing with Troy out but the back of Tyrone Carter's jersey taking yet another poor angle.

Let's discuss the Restricted Free Agents first. We would get compensation if they leave and a chance to match any offer they get. LB Patrick Bailey. Who? He plays for us? He doesnt need a contract tendered. T Willie Colon. I believe we will most definitely tender him a contract. I don't complain about the line as much as I used to. Both RBs showed they can run behind it and the sacks Ben took are mostly of his doing. Early in the season the line caused a lot, but not recently. Carey Davis I like, but nobody is going to offer him a contract so he is safe to not sign and wait and see what happens. William Gay. I am dead serious when I say I hope we've seen the last of him. He is not an NFL starter. Not even close. The bad news is, we don't have any other alternatives right now. Townsend is washed up. I would seriously vote for drafting a CB first and signing a classic Steeler type above average FA to start next year in Gay's spot. Sepulveda will be offered a contract. Spaeth will be offered a contract. Darnell Stapleton is a question mark. My gut says "no contract". Now let's take a look at the unrestricted Free Agents.

Charlie Batch will most likely be asked back but will also be asked to take the hometown discount. On the other hand, I don't think there is much interest out there for a fragile backup. He's more valuable as another "coach" for Ben. Dixon proved to me he can play so we'll see what happens to Charlie. Rocky Boiman is supposedly a LB on the team. No contract. Tyrone Carter is hopefully gone. Yes, he knows the defense, but what did that get us this year? There has to be a better backup safety available. Has to be. Ryan Clark I would have back in an instant. He got some bad press this year but I like him and what he adds. I wish he wrapped more people up rather than just hit them - but he is absolutley in people's heads as they roam around in our secondary. He is much better when Troy is out there. Nick Eason can play a little and with the age on our DL, we need to get younger there. Is he the person to help? I don't know. The only upside is that he knows the system. Hood will start soon. A rookie is cheaper. However, a lengthy injury to one of the grandpas and some experience would be nice. I say "no contract" right away. We need to see what happens. If all else fails, bring him back. Casey Hampton will not get a reward contract. He's a 2 down player who has no wind. Not sure how much interest he'll even generate. I say offer him a real contract for 2-3 years at market value. Kirschke is most likely gone. We need to get young. He doesn't fit that bill at all. Willie Parker can stay if he takes backup money. The Ravens are nice at RB with their dual approach. Parker showed a burst yesterday. They can't give him big money though. Will he remian a Steeler for less? I think not. I think he's this year's Antwaan Randel El and somebody will overpay for him. Should Mendenhall get hurt, Moore can fill in. Jeff Reed is crazy but he's also usually money. Bring him back but potentially see if somebody else can kickoff for next to $0. Townsend is GONE. I love the guy but he can't play anymore. Did you WATCH yesterday's game? Galloway is gone unless ridiculously cheap.

For the players under contract, will any be let go? Limas Sweed seems likely to me. James Farrior is also a possibility here. Again, I love him, but his play really dropped off this year. He's slow. We pride ourselves on side to side speed. Can't do that when slow in the middle. We also need to resign Santonio Holmes and Lamarr Woodley this offseason as they are up after 2010 and you know we won't do any deals after the season starts. They are core players and will absolutely get nice deals this year. They could both break the bank on the open market. I hope both work something out this offseason and I see no reason why they wouldn't. We've been very good at this recently.

FAN: Geddy Lee is a WHAT?

Mark Dent of MLB.com wrote this article and I'm not sure if anyone with a clue edited it.

If you asked me to describe Rush's music or force me to put them in a genre - without looking at Wikipedia (which I'll do in a minute) I'd classify them as a few things...Progressive Rock first and foremost. Art Rock second. Hard Rock...meh. Back in the day maybe. I should know this stuff as when people ask me who my favorite band of alltime is I take turns answering Rush or Led Zeppelin. Anyway, let's see what Wikipedia says.....

Wikipedia states: Musically, Rush's style has evolved over the years, beginning in the vein of blues-inspired heavy metal on their first albums, then encompassing hard rock, progressive rock, and a period dominated by synthesizers. They have influenced various musical artists, including Metallica,^[1][2] and The Smashing Pumpkins^[3] as well as progressive metal bands such as Dream Theater,^[1] Primus,^[3] and Symphony X.^[4]

Why on Earth this idiot decided to call him a "Punk Rocker" is a mystery to me - other than the dude doesn't know dick about music and thinks "Punk" is somehow interchangeable with "Progressive". He probably cringes when people don't know about double switches, designated hitters and how far it is from the rubber to home plate. Don't jazz stuff about things you don't know anything about, Skippy. Makes you seem ill-informed to the informed.

FAN: New Year's Eve

We went to a party that had this many kids on Thursday night. Wow. A little loud I must say.
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FAN: Steelers Home Crowd and Renegade

I had my camera ready in the 4th quarter and when the scoreboard went blank, I taped the crowd. You have to turn your volume up to actually hear the song as the crowd is pretty much drowning it out.