The Morrison Hotel Annex

A New Day is Here for America

2008-11-05T20:03:00.000-05:00

No hablo español...

2008-02-24T20:07:00.003-05:00

mi sobrina lo hablará. Espero aprender bastantes para hablar con ella. Pronto espero ser introducido a ella y puedo decir "hola, yo soy su tío Guillermo"

Leaving Friday morning for Dallas

2008-01-23T16:18:00.000-05:00

Gonna spend the weekend with my brother... including a Saturday night show of...

The Reds need to be aware of the Steroid connection

2008-01-13T11:40:00.000-05:00

With the announcement that Walt Jockerty has joined the Reds as a Special Advisor to Bob Castellini has everyone talking about Wayne Krivsky's job security. Because of that, they're missing much more disturbing signs.

This off-season, the Reds hired Dusty Baker as their manager. Ignore the debate over his managerial skill and focus on what happened on his watch in San Francisco. At best, he was woefully ignorant of steroid usage by his players. At worst, he turned a blind eye in exchange for wins. Now, I don't think Baker was anywhere close to as involved in the steroid problem as someone like Tony LaRussa (more on him in a minute), but I have little doubt he knew a good number of his players were using steroids. That gives us a manager that is willing to look the other way while his players cheat to help the team win.

The San Francisco Bay appears to be one of the focal points for the steroid problem in baseball. Both the Giants and Athletics benefited from this on the field to extraordinary proportions. The Giants had a GM who knew what was going on and ignored it. The A's seemed to encourage use to help them overcome their payroll constraints. From Barry Bonds to Mark McGwire, the bay was a haven for steroid users. In fact, another manager from the bay seems to have been more involved then Baker - Tony LaRussa.

Look at a list of players who careers blossomed under LaRussa - Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, Jim Edmonds, Albert Pujols, etc. I'm not going to get into the details here, but just do a search for Tony LaRussa and Steroids. Shortly before the Reds hired Dusty Baker, there were reports of the Reds were interested in talking to LaRussa about the manager job. At best, LaRussa was an enabler. At worst, he was intimately involved in usage by his players. Not the kind of person you want to be associated with your club.

Now, from the same team, the Reds hird Walt Jockerty. A GM who directly benefited from hiring a steroid-enabling manager and watching LaRussa and McGwire spread steroid usage to players Jockerty acquired off the scrap heap to turn them into superstars - Jim Edmonds, Albert Pujols, Chris Carpenter, etc.

In short, the disturbing trend of the Reds hiring or talking to people whose backgrounds are filled with HUGE question marks in the steroid controversy. Doesn't that scare you as a Reds fan? What do I tell my nieces and nephews? What do we do if Matt Belisle goes 24-4 with a 1.73 ERA?

Were the Cincinnati media not totally incompetent, Castellini would have a developing PR problem. As it is, the media is gushing over his moves and, once again, ignoring the steroid question.

I think I made a Wal-Mart manager cry

2008-01-08T18:13:00.000-05:00

On New Years (hungover), I stopped by Wal-Mart looking for a new Lego set my nephew wanted. I saw a cart full of boxes of the new Lego product and assumed they'd work it onto the shelves that day. I walked in the next day after work and no Lego. ANYWHERE. Going through all the aisles, you would think it was a garbage dump, not a retail store. Product just thrown on the shelves or pegboards with no attention paid to where they should've been. I looked for some help and there were no associates to be found. So I left. I was a little frustrated, so the next day I called instead of going - let them run around that mess. I was put on hold for half and hour. THAT is a mistake. I asked for a Manager. I was put back on hold for an HOUR AND A HALF!!! BIG MISTAKE. I went corporate on their ass and lo and behold, the toy manager called me the next day.

After explaining my issues, he started using every excuse in the book. Unfortunately for him, I was in a mood.

"We just got slammed by Christmas"

"So did everyone else and yet their stores don't look like a tornado hit them"

"Our toy associates were both out sick"

"And you didn't think to pull one of your 600 other associates to cover?"

"We're in the middle of a re-set"

"Which should take a day per aisle and we're here almost a week later with ZERO improvement"

"I don't know who was in last night"

"That's the first thing you should check when you have a customer service call to make"

"We've had some problems in that department"

"A reflection of your management success, or lack thereof"

To be honest, I was surprised he kept going when I was shooting down everything he said. After the excuse round, I started a ten minute lecture on management, taking pride in your department, and accountability. It was after this that I think I heard him fighting back the tears. So I added one final thing to drill it into him - "I'll be coming by in about a week to see if you're going to take this seriously or if you're going to be an incompetent dolt."

If it was anyone else other then a Wal-Mart employee, I'd feel really bad right now. But it was and I don't feel bad in the least.

Choices

2008-01-05T17:00:00.000-05:00

Read my new book or Drink tonight?

Pre-game or draw?

Go downtown to drink or to Mason?

Take my phone or leave it?

Beer or shots?

Blame myself for things I can't control or drink until I forget about it?

Pass out on the couch or risk climbing the stairs?

Drink tomorrow or draw?

QB1 or drink and draw?

Call someone to drink/play QB1 or just go old school and go by myself

Coming into Los Angeles or Walt Whitman's Niece?

OSU or LSU... wait, there's no need for a choice there....

Shoes or sandals in 30 degree weather?

Shave or let it go?

Laundry or Video Games?

Call or Ignore?

I Sit at My Table and Wage War on Myself

2008-01-02T20:47:00.000-05:00

Gonna go random here... I hate Wal-Mart with a passion... I didn't get my comics today... I had a shitty day at work... I hate women... I'm drinking WAY too much, although that's par for the course this time of year... I do like this video chat thing, it's cool to be able to see people like my brother and my buddy Justin who live a ways away... Got to talk to Justin and his kid today, pretty cool... Been playing guitar a lot recently... but that's just a sign that I'm stressed out... If I hadn't blown a nice chunk of change on this new computer, I would've left Ohio for good today... I'm still laughing about a couple things from New Year's like Three Hundred Dollar Shirt Guy... That dude was so unintentionally funny... Got to see a couple cats I hadn't seen in a while at New Year's like Ian, Billy, Kevin, etc... Got crap from Ian because I wouldn't hit on this pretty damn hot girl... why the hell didn't I??? Damn it... My buddy Tim is going to the National Championship game, I'm a little jealous... Bengals fired a couple coaches and I'm not sad to see them go... Insomnia is winning right now... What to do this weekend... a guy I know is playing at a bar on Saturday, so I'll probably go to that... That snow storm this morning came outta nowhere... I must be insane not wearing socks around the house... I need a vacation... Going to Dallas in a couple weeks to spend a weekend with my brother... That'll be pretty cool...

How am I feeling right now?

2007-12-26T17:27:00.001-05:00

At night I drink myself to sleep and waiting I don't care that you're not here with me...

Song lyrics that resonate with me at the current time aside, I've come to the realization that I've always been true to the following: The drunker I get, the lonelier I am. The less I drink, the more I want to be alone. This simple appraisal of my personality explains all my relationships. The more I drink, the more I need to be around people. The more I stay away from booze, the more I frequent solitary activities like guitar, video games, and art. That why you'll notice that my relationships tend to last longer if I'm drinking more. Hell, my longest relationship was basically just half a year of two people drinking until they passed out every single night. I can't remember ever doing anything with her that didn't involve booze. Back on point, the reason I've (finally) noticed this is that the current object of my frustrations has blown this theory to bits...

...

2007-11-18T07:53:00.000-05:00

We're going to miss you Joe!

DC Minimates

2007-11-05T23:25:00.000-05:00

Seeing as how 1) I can't sleep and 2) I haven't updated this blog in a LONG time, it's time for a long, pointless post reviewing something my niece, nephew, and I have spent a lot of time with recently - miniature action figures based on DC superheroes called Minimates.

My nephew and I have messed around with them before, but with 1) my strange obsession of having a minimate Justice League for my shelf, 2) my niece's recent upsurge in interest in them, and 3) the huge improvement in quality and availability of DC characters, we've collected every figure from the first five waves (8 figures in each wave).

Overall, the quality among them is outstanding compared to the original try and even when compared to the Marvel minimates (something I'll probably post on later). The biggest disappointment I've had so far was one of the choices of DC Direct made in their pairings - If you're going to do a "Battle-Damaged" Superman, doesn't it make sense to pair him with Doomsday? You know, the villain who actually KILLED him? Especially since DC just released an animated adaptation of the Death of Superman? While I'd hate for DC Minimates to go the way of Marvel and have entire waves based on movies/cartoons/comic stories, it wouldn't hurt to keep stuff like that in mind. For example, they just released the sixth wave this month... how many people who don't normally buy them might have picked up a Sinestro Corps pack?

On to the reviews... (rating of 1-5 after each character, 1= terrible, 5=just about perfect)

Wave 1

Superman (5) - Armored Lex Luthor (5)

Superman was very well done. Probably as close to perfect as you can get. The Armored LexLuthor might be a favorite. I wish Marvel would do Iron Man in a similar way. With the chest piece, gloves, and boots, it feels like old Lex is actually wearing armor. This pairing was a given - you can't do Superman without Lex Luthor. The green Kryptonite accessory was a nice touch.

Modern Batman (1) - OMAC (4)

I've got some gripes with this one. The first one would have been the pairing, but it seems an attempt to tie into Infinite Crisis, so I'm alright with it. The second one is Batman's mask. I hate it. Instead of having a cut-away mask, we get a SUPER HARD TO TAKE OFF fully covered mask. It took me a week to get the mask off. Even then, with some help, I thought we were going to destroy the mask to get it off. It looks like crap too. Too much trouble, not enough reward. The OMAC was pretty good, however.

Joker (3) - Harley Quinn (5)

Harley Quinn, however, is a character that works with the fully covered mask. It came right off and allowed for her face to be white with her mask on and flesh-colored with it off. The big hammer is a great accessory. The Joker is alright. I don't like the smile or the hat, but I like the gun and overcoat.

Green Lantern - Hal Jordan (4) - Star Sapphire (3)

My small issues with the Hal Jordan minimate stem mostly from the outstanding job on the later Green Lanterns. They have a Green Lantern symbol on their hands to represent their rings while Jordan only had a dot. Not to mention he's in the "classic" costume. Those two things aside, it's a great figure. It comes with his power battery. The Star Sapphire... Never a big fan, so... but my niece loves it

Wave 2

Battle-Damaged Superman (4) - Brainiac 13 (1)

I've already covered my disgust with this pairing, so... I wasn't crazy about the whole Battle-Damaged version thing going in, but once I actually got it, my disdain for the concept softened. However, it made me that more upset that the BD Superman wasn't with Doomsday. Hell, the BD Batman should have come with Bane instead of Killer Croc.

Blue Beatle (5) - Booster Gold (4)

Perfect pairing. Blue Beetle couldn't have been done any better (although, the mask could've used some fine tuning). Booster Gold, even with the annoying high collar, is also great, although - would it have been too much to ask for a hairpiece? Most every figure with a mask comes with one, why not Booster Gold? We did get Skeets, however, and that more then makes up for it.

Power Girl (4) - Doctor Fate (5)

Not a big fan of either one, but their figures are great. I like the hairpiece on Power Girl and the mask on Doctor Fate (if their were an Elongated Man minimate, we could have some 52 fun...)

Robin (2) - Penguin (1)

It just doesn't work to have Robin as tall as Batman. I don't know how they could fix that, but it needs to be done. Robin's the first one we run into with what I call the Pixie Boot Problem - his feet don't attach right. No matter what you do or how hard to push, there is always a gap. The goofy grin on Robin also bugs. Penguin... the less said about him, the better...

Wave 3

Battle-Damaged Batman (4) - Killer Croc (4)

Should've been Bane... Both figures are well done and the larger body for Killer Croc adds to the figure. Why could they use a smaller body for Robin?

Aquaman (5) - Ocean Master (5)

Surprisingly, Aquaman is one of my favorite minimates. I don't know why. I don't like the character and have made fun of him as often on the next person. It's a well done figure - the feet having his fins attached look great. I don't know anything about Ocean Master other then he's Aquaman's brother, but the figure is also well done. A hair piece for him would've been nice.

Wonder Woman (4) - Ares (5)

Wonder Woman would be perfect if her hair didn't fall off every five seconds. Hopefully we'll get a modern Wonder Woman where they correct this problem. I like how they handled the lasso. Ares has turned out to be one of my favorites. You have to hold it to see why. It's awesome.

Green Arrow (5) - Deathstroke (5)

Holy crap, this might be the best two pack. Green Arrow looks perfect and comes with a bow that you can attach one of three arrows to (Boxing Glove, Handcuff, and Diamond). I like it so much I won't let my niece and nephew play with it. Deathstroke has always been one of my favorites and his minimate is the same. Not only is the paint job and detail superb, but he comes with a rifle, a pistol, his staff, and his sword. Oh, and the pistol fits in his holster and the sword fits nicely into his bandoleer. If you get the chance to buy this, don't pass it up.

Wave 4

Batgirl (4) - Bane (5)

While I still think Bane should have come with the Battle-Damaged Batman, at least we get one of Bane. Where's the Doomsday? Bane is extremely well done. They even have his venom injection thing. I do like that they didn't give him a hair piece and instead painted the hair on the head. It looks good and is true to the character's closely-shaved haircut. Batgirl is pretty good, but did they have to put the purse on the utility belt?

Deadman (3) - Spectre (1)

There are some problems with these two. First, both have the dreaded Pixie Boot Problem. Second, the Spectre's hood just doesn't fit right. The paint jobs and detail on both are great (and have a great Neal Adams vibe), but they problems just ruin what should be great figures.

Flash - Jay Garrick (1) - Wildcat (5)

Oh my god, they could not have had a two pack of varying quality if they tried to. Wildcat is perfect and Jay Garrick sucks. It all comes down to the helmet and they missed badly with it. It doesn't look right no matter what you try. I'll try and get some photos of it to show how badly they screwed this one up.

Steel (5) - Cyborg Superman (5)

They really did a good job here. As they did with Armored Lex Luthor, they gave Steel the right touches (separate S-Shield, bulky boots, belt, wrist-things) to make it feel like he's armored. (Hey Marvel, please take note for any future Ironman minimates!). I confess I had no idea how they could do the 1/4 flesh face of Cyborg Superman and make it look good, but they did. It looks great!

Wave 5

Guy Gardner (4) - Kilowog (5)

Seeing as how Green Lantern has transformed into one of DC best books, it's nice to see some more Green Lanterns. These two are so well done that they make the earlier Hal Jordan figure look terrible. The only glitch with either is Guy's hairpiece, but that's a minor complaint. I'm glad they went with the bigger chest piece for Kilowog to help emphasise his bulk. The Green Lantern symbols on their hands to represent their rings is perfect.

Hawkman (5) - Hawkgirl (5)

I don't like this Hawkgirl's costume. I've never like it. As much as I liked what they did with the character in the Justice League cartoon, I still hate the costume. Now, they modern one for the Kendra Saunders Hawkgirl? THAT is a good costume for Hawkgirl. I want to see that minimate. All that personal preference stuff aside, this is an amazing two pack full of accessories and great detail. If you're looking for a little bang for your buck, this is the two pack for you. Hawkman, Hawkgirl, hairpieces for both, a mace, a shield, another mace...

Captain Marvel (5) - Mary Marvel (4)

Not much to say, both are well done, although, is it too much to ask for minimates that wear skirts to come with a flesh-colored pelvic piece? Seriously. Mary Marvel looks like she's going commando. I might buy a cheap minimate just to change out parts.

Red Tornado (5) - Ma Hunkel (1)

Red Tornado is well done (love the cape), but Ma Hunkel has to be the worst minimate made since the split Peter Parker-Spider-man figure. So awful, in fact, that it ends my review...

...

2007-09-10T16:16:00.000-04:00

WHO DEY!!!

Since the Reds fired Jerry Narron...

2007-08-25T14:26:00.000-04:00

The have the best record in the National League. How about dem apples?

It's mother-flippin funny how...

2007-08-09T23:20:00.000-04:00

UC football's new coach complains and attacks the local media and they've responded by giving UC Football more attention then the Bengals or Reds... despite the fact that the interest in UC football is the same as before - non-existent.

So, if you're a sports team in the area other then the Reds or Bengals and you want more coverage from the Enquirer or sports talk shows, just have your coach attack them and blame them for the lack of interest....

Should've been Junior....

2007-08-05T00:58:00.002-04:00

I guess it's time to start rooting for Pay-Rod...

GET OUT OF MY HEAD!!!

2007-08-04T01:31:00.001-04:00

I need some sleep! Seriously!

If the Reds trade Adam Dunn

2007-07-31T15:02:00.000-04:00

They are the Pittsburgh Pirates.

A star player, a couple good pitchers, and a whole lotta losses.

And enough with the "The Reds can't afford him" talk. If the Reds had a $40 million payroll like they did a few years ago, I would agree that $13 million is too much to spend on one player... but the Reds have a $70+ million payroll this year. There's a good possibility that it'll go up to around $80 million next year. That leaves $67 million for 24 other players...

Not only that, but WHO would you spend the 'savings' from Dunn on? Have you looked at this year's potential free agent pitcher class? It stinks. Just because you have the money doesn't mean there are players in free agency worth spending it on.

Me, I'd rather take another year of Dunn then trade him to spend money on Elmer Dessens....

How was Buffett?

2007-07-29T11:20:00.000-04:00

Well, the show was awesome... I think... I kinda ended up here:

INSOMNIA STRIKES BACK

2007-07-25T02:42:00.000-04:00

That's what I get for complaining about getting too much sleep the last couple nights...

When I’m down to my socks it’s time for business, That’s why they’re called business socks!

In other things, July has flat out sucked at work which is pretty much why I've been a bit slow in updating this... cheers to insomnia for those of you who have been who have been dying for an update... Here's July for you - Work, watch Flight of the Conchords, work, think about Flight of the Conchords, work, read Harry Potter 7, work, put Flight of the Conchords episodes on my ipod, work... etc

Is that Hey Jude? Flip it over! FLIP THE BLOODY TAPE OVER!

My rhymes are so potent that in this small segment
I made all of the ladies in the area pregnant
Yes, sometimes my lyrics are sexist
But you lovely bitches and hoes should know I’m trying to correct this

My Aunt Jean is turning 80 in a week or so and my mom just told me about the party today... I don't think I can get off work... Kinda bummed as Aunt Jean is one of my favorites

Ran into a couple buddies of mine at work today. That was cool.

Buffett's on Thursday and my big sister is going. That's cooler.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was awesome. That's the coolest.

Not in a Strokes mood tonight... or (dare I say it) Arlo... Robert Johnson? Yeah

I really, really want to shave off the beard right now and have some kick ass sideburns for Buffett... but I have to wait until I get off work on Wednesday...hey that's today!

word association - smithwick's - killians - irish - redbeard - pirates - han solo - chewbacca - dogs - mogs - dark helmet - dolls - zinny - wonder woman - terry dodson - hot women - cigarettes and alcohol - buffett - margaritas - tequila - 20th birthday party - headfirst slide - pete rose - westsiders - ex - professor x - cyclops - wolverine - cerda - darth vader - field of dreams - iowa - road trip - key west - southern cross

I've decided that I'm going to ask the next woman to buy me an irish beer to marry me. Seems as good a way as any other.... if only I had some tape...

Love is like a roll of tape
It’s real good for making two things one
But just like that roll of tape
Love sometimes breaks off before you were done
Another way that love is similar to tape
That I’ve noticed
Is sometimes it’s hard to see the end

Bored? Me too...

2007-07-16T00:08:00.001-04:00

It's pretty rare, but it does happen

2007-07-15T23:46:00.000-04:00

Vary rarely do I get frustrated with anyone and by rarely I mean NEVER... except I'm pretty damn frustrated with someone right now... I don't know why it's getting to me and I don't like it... I like being laid back and living life one day at a time...

I'm hooked...

2007-07-14T00:37:00.000-04:00

Flight of the Conchords is frickin funny...

Watch this one first

Can't believe I missed this annoucement a month ago...

2007-07-12T09:31:00.000-04:00

Indiana Jones Legos in 2008! I really must have been busy last month to miss an announcement like this... My nephew is beyond excited... He'll probably be watching the following everyday until they come out to get himself ready...

The Violent Femmes

2007-07-08T22:02:00.000-04:00

They bring all their equipment on the bus.... and you can't fuck with the Violent Femmes, you cannot fuck with this band!

All-Time Home Run Leaders

2007-06-17T00:24:00.000-04:00

TWO REDS ARE IN THE TOP FIVE!!!!

Hank Aaron - 755
Babe Ruth - 714
Willie Mays - 660
Frank Robinson - 586
Ken Griffey Jr - 581*

*active

The Flash is Dead?!?

2007-06-16T14:21:00.000-04:00

I'm calling it - Bart Allen lives and Wally West dies in Flash #13!!!!!