Hurricane Sandy Humor

After opening with acknowledgments of first responders on Wednesday night, The Daily Show shifted to "reports" from downtown Manhattan and Times Square. If you are not familiar with The Daily Show, these segments originate from a green screen inside the studio, in front of which the news team members stand (I do not know where they get the camera shots that show up on the green screens). Al Madrigal, Jessica Williams, and John Oliver combined to make light of the situation in Manhattan after Sandy.

I think this segment of The Daily Show was in bad taste; however, based on a Twitter search, I was not joined in this opinion. Madrigal joked that he was only alive because he had a machete, and Oliver described a real crisis in Times Square as Serendipity was out of mocha sprinkles. While I don't believe there are any Sandy-related deaths in Manhattan, it was out of line to make it seem like downtown was under martial law when there are much bigger problems and actual deaths throughout the region. I understand that one can make fun of people who never lost power or a loved one and are complaining about trivial matters, a la John Oliver, but I don't think that sentiment is out there right now.

When you have a dangerous situation that doesn't take lives, such as the failed Times Square and Federal Reserve bombings, it is fine to make fun of those because the terrorists failed. The Colbert Report did a great job on Wednesday sticking to what these shows do best: satirizing politicians and the news media that cover them, including two pleas to donate to the Red Cross.

On another angle, stores in the areas affected by Sandy tried to capitalize on the event and make up lost business by offering sales in Sandy's wake. American Apparel (image via Forbes) offered 20% off in nine states (what, no Washington, D.C.?) "in case you're bored during the storm" while their competitor, Urban Outfitters, offered free shipping with the coupon code "ALL SOGGY." The two companies were coming from a good place, but the execution was horrible. It is a great idea to give a price break to those who might need it, but their choice of words made them seem callous. In addition, American Apparel could have given a longer time frame than 36 hours to take advantage of the sale, so people have a chance to clean up from the storm before they go shopping. These companies would be better off trying to use the excuse that their websites were hacked. When in doubt, use language that does not relate to the storm at all.

Manning-sanity!

There are a lot of talking heads filled with hot air talking about where Peyton Manning is going to sign. This has finally become a real issue due to his release from the Colts and apparent health as shown in the Zapruder film cell phone video of his practice at Duke. From my perspective, after listening to many of the arguments, there are less than five locations that actually make sense. Let's go team by team, starting with the easy ones.

The Giants, Patriots, Packers, Steelers, Falcons, Lions, and Ravens all went to the playoffs this past season and are comfortable with their quarterbacks. The Saints could be added to that group if they signed Drew Brees to a long-term contract, but they used the franchise tag on him and will not go for Peyton. The Panthers and Bengals had great performances from their rookie quarterbacks. The Bears, Chargers, Cowboys, and Eagles had underperforming and injured quarterbacks last season that are all entrenched in their positions and are stars of their teams. And, of course, the Colts released Peyton and will most likely be drafting Andrew Luck.

The next tier of teams could be benefitted by signing Peyton, but it's not going to happen. The Rams play their home games in a dome like the Colts, but Sam Bradford is a good player and deserves the chance that they will be giving him by trading the number two pick. Ryan Fitzpatrick received a big contract extension from the Bills, and Peyton will not want to play in those elements. The Titans have Jake Locker waiting in the wings, possibly to start at the beginning of this upcoming season. And let's get this one out of the way: the Jets talk is out of control, and despite Woody Johnson's infatuation with the star quarterback (see: Favre, Brett), Mark Sanchez is a capable quarterback and Rex Ryan would not want the spotlight off of him. Kevin Kolb was injured last season and has a lot of guaranteed money still coming to him, so it will not be easy for the Cardinals to cut or trade him. The Browns would be better off with a young quarterback through the draft or Matt Flynn in their rebuild, and the Vikings will be going with second-year player Christian Ponder. The Raiders should probably try to get something out of Carson Palmer to justify that huge mid-season trade.

Another group of teams could create openings at their starting quarterback position even more easily, but will not be seeing Peyton play for them. The Texans and 49ers both have decent quarterbacks, but Matt Schaub has only one year left on his contract and Alex Smith is a free agent who had his only good season in this past one. While they will seemingly be in the running, they are focused on their defensive prowess which is complimented by decent quarterback play, meaning Peyton will not fit as a star. The Chiefs will be holding a competition between Kyle Orton and Matt Cassel, and the Buccaneers will likely want to keep developing Josh Freeman with a head coach new to the NFL. The Broncos are an interesting case, with noted lightning rod Tim Tebow at the helm, but this is not an ideal location for Peyton in the elements of Denver. Another team that the media is pushing as a favorite for Peyton is the Redskins, especially due to Dan Snyder's deep pockets. However, if the Manning brothers do not want to play in the same conference to supposedly block one from the playoffs or Super Bowl, they were certainly not be playing in the NFC East together. The Redskins should spend their time trying to trade up for Robert Griffin III instead.

That leaves three teams that will be in the running for Manning's services. The Dolphins appear to be the favorite with an owner that has shown to be crazy and willing to throw around money, but he may not be able to woo Peyton as was the case with potential head coach Jeff Fisher. The two Chads, Henne and Pennington, are not inspiring much confidence in Miami, but Pennington would be a serviceable backup. CBS would be foaming at the mouth to air at least one Peyton Manning-Tom Brady matchup, with the other likely being taken by NBC or ESPN. The Dolphins played the Giants last season, so they will not be facing each other again for four more years, in case the Mannings do not want a showdown. The Seahawks have no viable options at quarterback, but they do play in the NFC, which would make Peyton a closer competitor to Eli. Pete Carroll would love to have a star quarterback to coach in the NFL since he saw many of them during his time at USC. The Seahawks are not guaranteed to face the Giants until 2014, but could play them in 2013 if they finish in the same standings position as the Giants in this upcoming season; they are not scheduled to play each other in 2012. The Jaguars are a big dark horse candidate with a new owner who wants to sell enough tickets to prevent local blackouts even without tarps covering much of the upper-level seating. Their rookie quarterback, Blaine Gabbert, did not show much last season, and there is familiarity being in the same division as the Colts for the last several seasons. It's hard to say whether Peyton would relish the chance to play against the Colts twice per season as Brett Favre did against the Packers, but it probably doesn't make a difference to Peyton either way as the parting with the Colts was pleasant. As another AFC team candidate, this will be one to watch. Their next game against the Giants will be in 2014.

After all is said and done, I expect Peyton Manning to in fact be taking his talents to South Beach for the 2012 NFL season.

Derek Jeter's 3,000th Hit

I was thinking last night about how only regular season statistics count for a player's career numbers, and rightly so. But what if you included Derek Jeter's hits from the postseason and All-Star Games, since they count and all that nonsense, to come to the time when he really recorded hit number 3,000 as a major leaguer? We can figure that out thanks to baseball-reference.com.

Jeter has 185(!) career postseason hits and ten hits in his 11 All-Star Game appearances, including those that "didn't count" before the 11-inning tie in 2002. That means we would have to subtract 195 from his current total of 2,998 to find the true 3,000th hit in Jeter's career. This would have occurred on his 2,805th regular season hit, which was a double against Francisco Liriano in the fifth inning of a 3-2 Yankees win at Target Field on May 26, 2010. If you don't want to include the ten hits from All-Star Games, it was a single in the fifth inning against Mitch Talbot in an 11-2 Yankees win against the Indians at Yankee Stadium on May 31. Both of these hits came in games in which Andy Pettitte was the Yankees starter.

Congratulations to those of you who were there! And congratulations to Jeter on his upcoming 3,000th regular season hit.

American Idol 10 predictions

I thought I was gonna do this for the top ten, but there's shockingly a second week of the top eleven.

11 - Thia Megia - kind of boring and finally in the bottom three last week
10 - Stefano Langone - already saved once as a wild card pick but didn't come back as strong as I thought he would
9 - Haley Reinhart - sounds like she's trying too hard and not that good
8 - Paul McDonald - getting tired of his oddly raspy voice
7 - Scotty McCreery - more like McDreary, the country singer always goes too far for my taste
6 - Naima Adedapo - has some talent but doesn't put it to great use
5 - Casey Abrams - good save used by the judges, but he doesn't have mainstream appeal
4 - Lauren Alaina - shows that she can do country and pop and can be the second place woman
3 - Jacob Lusk - could win, but a little too much on the feminine side
2 - James Durbin - falls short just like his gay doppelganger Adam Lambert
1 - Pia Toscano - provided she does more than ballads, since she has the best voice

It's tough to judge after a week of songs all by the same person, but they are all strong singers. It's a matter of appealing to the crowd and what is popular today. Pia and James have got it.

Week 13 Football picks

Texans (+8.5) @ Eagles: figured their offense would be good enough and just missed
Saints (-6.5) @ Bengals: time to overpower a weak AFC opponent
Bears (-3.5) @ Lions: the Bears look real and Stanton is starting for the Lions
49ers (+9.5) @ Packers: enough talent on the 49ers to keep it close enough
Jaguars (+3.5) @ Titans: don't understand this line at all, but Collins is back for the Titans
Broncos (+8.5) @ Chiefs: keeping my policy of expecting close divisional games
Dolphins (-4.5) vs. Browns: the Browns' quarterback committee lands on Delhomme again
Bills (+6.5) @ Vikings: a one-week burst for the Vikings under the new coach last week
Redskins (+7.5) @ Giants: the Giants are like the Chargers, good on both sides, but turnovers
Raiders (+12.5) @ Chargers: I guess they forgot that the Raiders are playing well this season
Buccaneers (+3.5) vs. Falcons: a test on the road for the Falcons
Seahawks (-5.5) vs. Panthers: a long lonely journey for the Panthers
Rams (-3.5) @ Cardinals: time for the Rams to make a statement on the road and keep up with the Seahawks
Colts (-5.5) vs. Cowboys: the Colts could win by 20 or 3, probably not in between
Steelers (+3.5) @ Ravens: I think the Ravens will win outright by a field goal
Jets (+3.5) @ Patriots: the Jets are undefeated in five games on the road this season

Week 12 Football picks

Three games on Thanksgiving. Lucky us!

Patriots (-6.5) @ Lions: of course Brady is playing, forget that questionable tag
Saints (-3.5) @ Cowboys: it's time to stop the Cowboys roll
Jets (-9.5) vs. Bengals: too bad this won't be a heated rematch of last year's playoffs
Falcons (-2.5) vs. Packers: the Falcons are 5-0 at home, last two against good teams
Steelers (-6.5) @ Bills: this could have the feeling of a Steelers home game as fans travel well
Panthers (+10.5) @ Browns: I like the large spread even though the Panthers are pathetic
Jaguars (+7.5) @ Giants: strange spread with the Giants missing key wide receivers
Redskins (-2.5) vs. Vikings: watch out for the Vikings energy under new coach
Titans (+6.5) @ Texans: third QB starting for the Titans, but not against the best of defenses
Seahawks (+1.5) vs. Chiefs: two surprising division leaders at 5-5 and 6-4
Raiders (-3.5) vs. Dolphins: Thigpen did not impress in his start last week
Bears (+3.5) vs. Eagles: home team getting a lot of points for having the same records
Buccaneers (+7.5) @ Ravens: the Buccaneers are surprising but should get more respect
Rams (+3.5) @ Broncos: the Broncos laid down to a divisional rival on Monday night
Colts (-3.5) vs. Chargers: should be a fun, interesting game
49ers (-1.5) @ Cardinals: these could have been the two best teams in the division

Week 11 Football picks

I'm not feeling too good about this week, and already have a loss from Thursday. A lot of even matchups in my mind in this crazy season.

Dolphins (-1.5) vs. Bears: thought the Dolphins could hold on at home using wildcat
Bengals (-5.5) vs. Bills: similar records, but a lot more talent on the Bengals
Lions (+6.5) @ Cowboys: the Cowboys should get a close first win at home
Ravens (-10.5) @ Panthers: Brian St. Pierre will be on his back for most of the game
Browns (+1.5) @ Jaguars: Colt McCoy has been impressive, but so have the Jaguars
Steelers (-7.5) vs. Raiders: bouncing back with another home game
Redskins (+7.5) @ Titans: Vick made the Redskins look worse than they are
Chiefs (-7.5) vs. Cardinals: Cassel and Charles lead the Chiefs to victory
Vikings (+3.5) vs. Packers: I'll take Favre and the home points against his old team
Texans (+6.5) @ Jets: the Jets have just been getting by recently
Rams (+3.5) vs. Falcons: both teams are better at home and this game is in St. Louis
Buccaneers (+3.5) @ 49ers: a long cross-country trip won't slow down the Buccaneers
Seahawks (+11.5) @ Saints: too many points not to take a division leader
Colts (+3.5) @ Patriots: the Colts could break Brady's home winning streak
Giants (+3.5) @ Eagles: maybe sticking with my heart too much but it should be close
Broncos (+9.5) @ Chargers: another close divisional matchup

Week 10 Football picks

Lots of road teams:
Ravens (+1.5) @ Falcons (from Thursday)
Lions (+2.5) @ Bills: stay winless, Bills
Vikings (-1.5) @ Bears: Martz offense going down
Jets (-3.5) @ Browns: another former team for Mangini
Colts (-7.5) vs. Bengals: clearly the Colts are rolling
Titans (-.5) @ Dolphins: Pennington starting now
Buccaneers (-7.5) vs. Panthers: disappointing and injured Panthers
Texans (+1.5) @ Jaguars: close divisional matchup
Broncos (+.5) vs. Chiefs: not believing in the Chiefs still
Cowboys (+13.5) @ Giants: the Cowboys should keep it close enough
Seahawks (+3.5) @ Cardinals: the Seahawks could take the division
Rams (+5.5) @ 49ers: the 49ers' last chance to make a run
Patriots (+4.5) @ Steelers: seems like a lot of points for Belichick
Eagles (-3.5) @ Redskins: McNabb having problems with Shanahan

Week 9 Football picks

What a terrible way to lose in survivor. The Cowboys were still playing like crap and down all game to the Jaguars, ending my season halfway through it. If I was still in it, the Patriots would be the best pick, but I used them in week three. The only other logical pick it seems is the Jets, on the road in Detroit. Again, only 13 games this week, with six teams off.

Buccaneers (+8.5) @ Falcons: aren't these two teams tied for the division lead?
Bills (+2.5) vs. Bears: two consecutive road overtime losses for the Bills
Patriots (-4.5) @ Browns: McCoy has had a tough start to his career against the Saints and Steelers
Lions (+4.5) vs. Jets: while the Jets should win, these are two decent defenses
Cardinals (+8.5) @ Vikings: another strangely large spread, two equally bad teams
Panthers (+7.5) vs. Saints: just a case of taking a big home underdog
Dolphins (+5.5) @ Ravens: the Dolphins are playing well enough to keep this close
Texans (+1.5) vs. Chargers: the Chargers are leading the league in offensive yards, but turnovers kill
Seahawks (+5.5) vs. Giants: would have like the bigger line, which moved after Whitehurst was tabbed for first start
Chiefs (+2.5) @ Raiders: you wouldn't have thought at the beginning of the season that these two would be on top
Colts (+2.5) @ Eagles: a rare game as an underdog for the Colts
Packers (-7.5) vs. Cowboys: the Cowboys are so bad and look like they don't want to play hard
Bengals (+4.5) vs. Steelers: a hard-fought game on Monday Night Football

Let's have some fun with over/unders (from Bodog):
TB @ ATL: over 45
CHI @ BUF: under 41.5
NE @ CLE: over 44
NYJ @ DET: under 42.5
ARI @ MIN: over 43
NO @ CAR: over 40.5
MIA @ BAL: under 41
SD @ HOU: over 50
NYG @ SEA: under 41
KC @ OAK: over 41
IND @ PHI: under 47
DAL @ GB: under 46
PIT @ CIN: under 41

Week 8 Football picks

Maybe I should have saved the Chiefs for this week because they are playing the Bills. So I don't have Yahoo users' most popular pick this week and have to choose between a bunch of single-digit percentages of users' picks. As bad as the Cowboys have looked, they also had good moments against the Giants, some with Romo and some with Kitna against the prevent defense. Kitna was not ready last week, but he is not an invalid and should do well this week, along with their running game, against the Jaguars, so it's the Cowboys for their first home win for me.

All home teams are favored this week, including the designated home team in London, the 49ers:
Dolphins (+2.5) @ Bengals: the Bengals are a mess
Cowboys (-2.5) vs. Jaguars: the Jaguars couldn't do much for the last two weeks
Redskins (+2.5) @ Lions: the return of Matthew Stafford will be a painful one
Chiefs (-7.5) vs. Bills: heartbreaker for the Bills last week in overtime
Rams (-3.5) vs. Panthers: the Rams are chugging along winning every home game, losing road games
Packers (+6.5) @ Jets: the Packers have enough healthy talent to keep it close
49ers (-.5) vs. Broncos: a couple disappointing teams will probably put on a show in London
Titans (+3.5) @ Chargers: I see this game decided by a late field goal
Buccaneers (+3.5) @ Cardinals: the Buccaneers can slide into a tie for first place in the NFC South
Patriots (-5.5) vs. Vikings: Randy Moss can't help the Favres and his foot injuries enough
Seahawks (+2.5) @ Raiders: the Seahawks are the surprising only team to be above .500 in the NFC West
Saints (-.5) vs. Steelers: by this spread, the Steelers are the better team, but it's Halloween in New Orleans
Texans (+5.5) @ Colts: I'll take the team that won the first game with the points

Week 7 Football picks

Time to get risky with survivor. I'm going with the Chiefs this week to knock off a Jacksonville team that looks depleted after a 30-3 Monday Night Football loss to the Titans. It's a short weeks and their quarterback was injured, making the Jaguars ripe for the picking.

Falcons (-3.5) vs. Bengals: should be getting more of a point spread
Redskins (+2.5) @ Bears: the Bears are only getting the requisite points for being home in an even matchup
Eagles (+3.5) @ Titans: I should have had more faith in Kolb
Chiefs (-5.5) vs. Jaguars: the lock of the week
Dolphins (+3.5) vs. Steelers: should be a dogfight
Saints (-13.5) vs. Browns: time for the Saints to dominate again
Buccaneers (-2.5) vs. Rams: a couple of down teams with good records
49ers (-3.5) @ Panthers: I guess people still think the 49ers will be good
Ravens (-13.5) vs. Bills: the Bills' winless season continues
Cardinals (+5.5) @ Seahawks: who knew Max Hall could play?
Patriots (+2.5) @ Chargers: the Chargers are 2-0 at home but the Patriots are hot
Raiders (+6.5) @ Broncos: the Raiders could be ahead of two teams in the division if they win
Vikings (+2.5) @ Packers: the trendy Super Bowl pick has too many injured players
Giants (+3.5) @ Cowboys: if the Cowboys lose, Super Bowl talk is over

Week 6 Football picks

Luckily, I have two survivor entries, and I went with my gut in the main one that I had been making the picks posted here, so I'm still alive with the Falcons. This week, it makes perfect sense to take the Giants, who are resurgent, against the Lions, a dangerous team but still not too good. The Giants don't seem to play any easy games the rest of the way, as they have yet to start their division schedule.

Bears (-6.5) vs. Seahawks: Orton coming back to lead Martz's offense that was good before meeting the Giants
Ravens (+2.5) @ Patriots: could be the game for AFC supremacy
Giants (-10.5) vs. Lions: the Giants defense is taking over again
Falcons (+1.5) @ Eagles: tough matchup on the road, but no Vick for the Eagles
Browns (+13.5) @ Steelers: look for a low-scoring game on both sides
Dolphins (+1.5) @ Packers: Rodgers is playing, but the Packers have many injuries
Rams (+8.5) vs. Chargers: enough talent to take the home team with the points
Buccaneers (+5.5) vs. Saints: the Saints are not doing well enough to get this big of a cushion on the road, in division
Texans (-4.5) vs. Chiefs: the Texans should bounce back against a Chiefs team over their heads
Raiders (+6.5) @ 49ers: the 49ers will pick up their first win in a close game
Broncos (+3.5) vs. Jets: the Jets will not pull away on the road
Vikings (-1.5) vs. Cowboys: one team is going to be 1-4
Colts (-3.5) @ Redskins: the Colts don't look great, but Peyton Manning always is
Titans (-3.5) @ Jaguars: the Titans should be better than the Jaguars in the end

Week 5 Football picks

It came down to a choice between the Falcons on the road against the Browns or the Bengals at home against the 49ers. Coincidentally, the Bengals lost to the Browns last week. While the Buccaneers are coming off of their bye week, my pick is still going to be the Bengals. There are not a lot of wide point spreads overall this week, but maybe some should be bigger.

Jaguars (-1.5) @ Bills: the Bills are a sorry team and a candidate to go 0-16
Bengals (-6.5) vs. Buccaneers: the T.Ocho show is getting heated up
Falcons (-3.5) @ Browns: hopefully no letdown after the Falcons had to play hard against the 49ers
Rams (+3.5) @ Lions: would go with the Lions if Stafford was playing
Chiefs (+3.5) @ Colts: while I don't think the Chiefs are that good, the Colts aren't either
Redskins (+2.5) vs. Packers: taking the home points against the team with no running game
Panthers (+2.5) vs. Bears: up-and-coming Jimmy Clausen against old backup Todd Collins
Ravens (-7.5) vs. Broncos: the Broncos are going to have more problems this week
Texans (-3.5) vs. Giants: doubting the Giants ability to keep the momentum
Cardinals (+7.5) vs. Saints: almost obvious to take the home points in this matchup
Raiders (+6.5) vs. Chargers: the Raiders could do well enough to keep it close
Titans (+6.5) @ Cowboys: the Cowboys haven't looked like that Super Bowl team yet
Eagles (+3.5) @ 49ers: back to the Kevin Kolb era in Philadelphia
Vikings (+4.5) @ Jets: Favre to Moss is going to be an interesting connection

Week 4 Football picks

In my mind, there are a few equal choices for the survivor pool this week, all equally good and risky. The Texans on the road against the Raiders, the Falcons at home against the winless 49ers, the Jets on the road against the Bills, and the Bengals on the road against the Browns. I try to stay away from road teams and intradivision games, and the supposedly good 49ers are dangerous to pick against when they still have no wins. My pick is actually a team with a worse record in its matchup, the Chargers at home against the Cardinals. However, both teams could have easily had their results in the opposite column last week. Other picks:

49ers (+6.5) @ Falcons: new offensive coordinator for the 49ers
Bills (+5.5) vs. Jets: a surprising fight put up by Bills last week
Browns (+3.5) vs. Bengals: I'll believe in the Bengals the week after they start to impress
Lions (+14.5) @ Packers: the Lions are keeping it close and the Packers are coming off of a short week
Broncos (+6.5) @ Titans: Vince Young should not be given such a wide spread right now
Rams (+.5) vs. Seahawks: the Rams go for a second home win in a row
Panthers (+13.5) @ Saints: Brees, Bush, and Thomas are injured
Ravens (+1.5) @ Steelers: the Steelers can't go 4-0 without Roethlisberger
Colts (-8.5) @ Jaguars: Peyton is having the best statistical start of his career
Texans (-3.5) @ Raiders: the Texans shouldn't be derailed by the loss to the Cowboys
Chargers (+8.5) vs. Cardinals: the Cardinals are close to going down the drain
Redskins (+6.5) @ Eagles: the early triumphant return of Donovan McNabb
Bears (+3.5) @ Giants: the Giants have too many problems right now, but could win a close one
Patriots (-.5) vs. Dolphins: the Wildcat success started against Patriots, but they know it now

Good thing for the Cowboys and Vikings that they picked up their first wins last week because they are on byes and would have had to stew over winless starts during their breaks.

Week 3 Football picks

Another tough week for the survivor pool, worse than week one. The Steelers would be the obvious pick if they were not working with their fourth-string, albeit serviceable, quarterback, Charlie Batch. Otherwise, three divisional games look like the best, with the Vikings facing the Lions, Ravens against Browns, and the ultimate pick, Patriots at home against the Bills. This makes it a pick against the Bills two weeks in row, who are maybe this year's Raiders in that sense.

49ers (-2.5) @ Chiefs: think it is their time to start winning, but surprising to be favored
Browns (+10.5) @ Ravens: even on the road, think this spread is too big for this division
Cowboys (+2.5) @ Texans: they have to get over Wade Phillips's incompetence
Lions (+10.5) @ Vikings: the Lions haven't looked so bad, even with Shaun Hill at QB
Patriots (-13.5) vs. Bills: change at starting quarterback for the Bills and angry Patriots at home
Falcons (+4.5) @ Saints: the Falcons could win this game with the way the Saints have looked, even in the Superdome
Giants (-3.5) vs. Titans: the Giants looked better in losing last week, but both teams have their issues
Steelers (-2.5) @ Buccaneers: running game and defense for the Steelers
Panthers (+3.5) vs. Bengals: picking the home underdog to keep it close
Jaguars (+2.5) vs. Eagles: look for the Jaguars to ruin Michael Vick's start at QB
Redskins (-3.5) @ Rams: finally noticing that the Redskins are decent
Broncos (+6.5) vs. Colts: way too big of a spread not to take the good home team
Raiders (+4.5) @ Cardinals: Campbell is surprisingly out of the starting QB spot already
Seahawks (+5.5) vs. Chargers: the Chargers don't look good enough to get this many points on the road
Dolphins (-1.5) vs. Jets: as good as the Jets looked, Revis is out and they get killed in Miami
Bears (+3.5) @ Packers: hopefully, the Bears won't regress to their preseason and week one form

Week 2 Football picks

Simply look at the biggest point spread for the survivor pick this week: the Packers at home against the Bills. Watch out for some high scoring, even as the packers lost their number one running back.

Falcons (-6.5) vs. Cardinals: round two for Derek Anderson won't go so well
Bengals (+1.5) vs. Ravens: don't underestimate home field advantage in division
Browns (-1.5) vs. Chiefs: the Chiefs were barely good enough to beat Chargers
Bears (+8.5) @ Cowboys: big spread for a week one winner against a loser
Eagles (-3.5) @ Lions: you saw what the Lions didn't do without Stafford
Packers (-13.5) vs. Bills: should be a blowout
Titans (-5.5) vs. Steelers: both teams were impressive last week
Vikings (-5.5) vs. Dolphins: Favre will be back to making great plays this week
Panthers (-2.5) vs. Buccaneers: the Buccaneers only won against a bad team
Broncos (-3.5) vs. Seahawks: the Seahawks surprised many, but I expect Broncos to bounce back
Raiders (-4.5) vs. Rams: is it possible that the Raiders could not be the most incompetent team again?
Jets (+1.5) vs. Patriots: maybe picking too much with my heart, but Jets are tough
Jaguars (+7.5) @ Chargers: seems obvious after last week's Chargers problems
Texans (-2.5) @ Redskins: got burned picking against Redskins at home last week
Giants (+5.5) @ Colts: to large of a spread for two good teams
Saints (-4.5) @ 49ers: should be an easy one for the champions

Week 1 Football picks

I'm a little late with this post, seeing as the football season has already kicked off, but my picks remain. I had a tough time selecting a pick for survivor, as it came down to the Giants, Titans, and Bears. The Giants are opening their new stadium, but played poorly in the last game at Giants Stadium against the same Panthers. The Titans are playing a Raiders team that has come up with many survivor upsets, and the Bears are playing in division against the Lions. Since I read that divisional games do not have any more upsets than normal, I am picking the Bears. Now, on to the point spreads (based on ESPN):

Saints (-6.5) vs. Vikings: so much energy in the Superdome
Dolphins (-3.5) @ Bills: playing in Buffalo isn't too tough in the first game
Bears (-6.5) vs. Lions: the Lions are still a league doormat until proven otherwise
Titans (-6.5) vs. Raiders: the end of last season was promising for the Titans
Bengals (+5.5) @ Patriots: a close game with the home team winning outright
Panthers (+7.5) @ Giants: similar teams to last season when the Panthers won
Falcons (-2.5) vs. Steelers: tough to win in Pittsburgh, but Falcons still on the rise
Browns (+2.5) vs. Buccaneers: two equally bad teams
Broncos (+2.5) @ Jaguars: risky pick, but the Broncos should be better
Colts (-3.5) @ Texans: Colts probably start another string of wins
Seahawks (+2.5) vs. 49ers: not sure on this one; home field advantage?
Packers (-1.5) @ Eagles: a trendy Super Bowl pick with a tough road opener
Cardinals (-3.5) @ Rams: as much as the Cardinals have fallen, they are still better than the Rams
Cowboys (-3.5) @ Redskins: probably should take the home points, but going with better team
Jets (-3.5) @ Ravens: will be a close, low-scoring game
Chargers (-5.5) @ Chiefs: this could be dangerous with Chargers' new starting RB and holdouts

The Mets are still contenders?

I guess Jerry Manuel has to say that on the radio today with Mike Francesa, but nobody's buying it, not when you're putting out this lineup against one of the best pitchers in baseball and the team is a game under .500. Granted, the veterans that he is replacing are struggling or injured, but let's take a look, just for fun, since there are five rookies in there tonight.

1. Jose Reyes-SS (891 career games played, 95 games started in 2010, batting .280)
2. Fernando Martinez-RF (28 career GP, 1 GS in 2010, batting .200), replacing Francoeur
3. Angel Pagan-CF (370 career GP, 94 GS in 2010, batting .311)
4. David Wright-3B (963 career GP, 108 GS in 2010, batting .293)
5. Ike Davis-1B (97 career GP, 94 GS in 2010, batting .253), now a regular
6. Chris Carter-LF (27 career GP, 9 GS in 2010, batting .264), essentially replacing Beltran
7. Josh Thole-C (36 career GP, 16 GS in 2010, batting .323), platoon with Blanco as Barajas is on the DL
8. Ruben Tejada-2B (36 career GP, 34 GS in 2010, batting .196), replacing Castillo
9. Mike Pelfrey-P

Good luck tonight against Ubaldo Jimenez of thr 17-2 record, 2.61 ERA. He should easily be in double digits in strikeouts tonight, but, who knows, the Mets beat Adam Wainwright last week when he was the hottest pitcher in baseball.

Philadelphia Force Internship

Around March last year, I started looking for a job for the summer of 2009. After being unsuccessful searching the internet and the postings on Lehigh’s LUCIE system, I went to the spring career fair. Many of the jobs were for majors other than my own, such as sciences and engineering, but I found a few for business majors. I went to talk to a few people at the desks for their jobs and internships, but did not feel too enthusiastic about finding an opportunity, especially because most seemed to be for soon-to-be graduates.

The last company that I visited at the career fair, only because my friend was there as well, was the Philadelphia Force, a professional women’s softball team located one city over in Allentown. I started talking with one employee while my friend was talking to the co-owner. We exchanged contact information and I gave them my résumé, but, for some reason, could not see myself working near Lehigh or for this team.

After a couple of phone conversations with different people, I was offered a broadcast internship. This included trying to sell advertising space for the online broadcasts of the games and operating a small camera during the games. While it was unpaid, I was happy to be able to do something during the summer, since I did not desperately need the money and could take on another job if I had to, based on the short hours of this one.

In the end, I was unsuccessful in finding local business owners who were interested in purchasing advertising space, but I feel like I got valuable experience by walking in cold and trying to make a sale. The in-game experience was fun and taught me more about the behind-the-scenes effort needed to run a team, especially one that struggles to draw in fans and make money. It all started with me being nervous but getting my face in front of prospective employers at a job fair, which is what I have been doing again to try to find a permanent job after graduation. Wish me luck!

Lehigh Choral Union

I was supposed to write this for a Lehigh student blog, but the job never really materialized. I have one more post in the can that I will share. Enjoy!

During the summer after graduating from high school, I was recruited through e-mail to try out for Lehigh Choral Arts. I had been in a school chorus since fourth grade, so this appealed to me as an activity that I should continue once I entered college. I did not know what exactly to expect in the audition for choir, but I thought I could follow the conductor’s lead to get into the University Choir.

Unfortunately, I had a harder time than I did when entering high school singing the scales, as I usually do not like to sing on my own. My audition was short, which I did not consider to be a good thing. As I learned later from choir members, I should have come prepared with a song, similar to an “American Idol” audition. I found out later that night along with everyone else that I would be singing in the Choral Union.

At first, I was disappointed, but this meant that I got to spend the first weekend of school sleeping in my room rather than being away on a retreat with the rest of the choir. I feel like this time was crucial to developing some of my first friendships at Lehigh and experiencing time around campus. Sure, I would have made friends in choir, but it was also important to know other people in my hall and freshman orientation group, along with having the same experience of the days before classes as most other freshmen.

While I thought that I would be disappointed to not be in the “better” choir like I was in high school, it has turned out to be a good time. The Choral Union is made up of a small number of Lehigh students in comparison to residents of the Lehigh Valley. This was not desirable to me as a freshman because I wanted to meet more people around my age. However, I have always been one to relate better and have deeper conversations with my parents’ friends and other older adults. Thanks to a change in policy, Choral Union members and choir alumni were able to travel with the choir on their biannual trip outside of the country, so I was still able to experience and sing in China and Portugal at the end of my freshman and junior years, respectively.