Monday, November 07, 2005
I'll Never Be Your Beast of Burden
The Dunkin Donuts out here on Wisconsin Avenue is the worst in the country. And since there are only like five in the state, as opposed to home where they are five on every block, I have to deal.
Everyday - EVERYDAY - I go in there. Everyday I order the same thing. Large coffee, skim milk, one sugar.
Everyday - EVERYDAY - they screw it up.
It's gotten so that I say it slowly, emphasizing the size, quantity and style. LARGE...coffee (dramatic pause), SKIM milk...(sitting, waiting, wishing)...ONE (look at the barista, make eye contact so he/she understands the singularity of the sugar in the coffee) sugar.
And everyday - EVERYDAY - they repeat is back to me wrong. "Large, cream and two sugars?" "Light with skim milk?" "Iced frappochino latte?" It's like they're purposely doing it to piss me off. Guess what? They're highly successful.
Yesterday morning, I snapped. I told the cashier guy, who took it upon himself to take all the orders and then tell others to do it, my order. Not the most efficient system of food service, but far be it for me to say anything.
He told the braindead lady next to him, "largecoffeeskimmilkonesugar" and I knew - KNEW - this was getting shampooed up.
She puts decaf in the large - doesn't fill it up even remotely to the top - and starts shoveling in sugar like she has to dig her car out after the plows came by.
"NO, NO, NO..." I yell. "Large - and fill it up; coffee - with caffeine; and one - ONE - sugar." And then I may or may not have growled.
Today was no different. Back in the days on North Ave., I'd walk into the store and by the time I got to the counter, I had my coffee as Katrina or Liz knew this how I do (makin' moves and act a fool while up the club) . Out here, there is another lady who thinks she know...but she don't know. She tries to be slick and act like she remembers me, my face, my coffee. Today, she put 1.5 sugars in - I didn't complain, she was in the ballpark and at least midway through dumping the second sugar, stopped - and said sorry. But still.
Ok, enough whining. Here's today's stuff:
According to Jeff Horrigan's article in the Boston Herald this morning, Kevin Millar is resigned to the fact the he would not be re-signed by the Red Sox.
Whew. That's news. Just like I'm resigned to the fact I'm not going to quit my job and join the AND 1 Tour.
Although, if Steve Burtt Sr. had a spot on the bus for a slow white kid with no hops and no handle, I'd be there with the Professor, A.O., and the Main Event.
My AND 1 nickname(s): Per Stumer, aka Ryan Satalin, aka Justin Farley. And if you get those jokes, you've seen a whole lot of
ball, bunky.
-----
Congrats to Cam Neely on being enshrined in the Hockey Hall of Fame.
When Neely stopped playing, due to the rash of injuries he suffered, I stopped watching hockey. Same thing with Magic and the NBA, although Jordan brought me back.
But now, and maybe I'm biased, but Dwyane Wade and the new-look Celtics might bring me back. Let's start with D-Wade first.
Have you seen the new commercial? How many professional athletes in ANY sport give their alma mater as much love as D-Wade?
In all the print and tv commercials, he gives mad love to the home office here. You can see a slice of the playing floor in ESPN the Magazine and you can see he and Travis Diener in the :30 second spot.
On top of it all, he's wearing Converse: the shoe that WAS basketball in my formative years. Mad dap for that.
And this past weekend, as the Heat were in town to play the Bucks, MU honored #3 in their annual tip-off dinner. Not only did he stay for the whole thing, but he took photos with and signed for everyone in attendance. As luck would have it, I had a prior engagement.
As for the C's, well, they have two of my favorite college players in the last few years - Ryan Gomes and Dan Dickau - on top of Delonte West, Paul Pierce and a slew of others. Including Mark Blount...
And gotta give some love to the Milwaukee Bucks - who are 3-0 early on and also who credential fools like me - and the Big Melburnian Andrew Bogut. If he has any pull in this town, he needs to figure out a way to get Carlton Draught imported. Or even Boag's. Because I like Miller Lite and all...but that stuff kicks ass.
-----
The New York City Marathon. For my money, it's overrated. I mean, it's still 26.2 miles, but if I had to pick one, I'd be the Boston (shocker, I know).
And to qualify for the Boston, I'd pick either Burlington or Hyannis. But again, I digress.
But this year's New York Marathons had several reasons why I was watching. I wanted to see how Mark Carroll would do, as well as the AMERICANS Meg and Abdi. (for all you distance runner haters out there, they are as American as apple pie, Chevrolet and breast implants. stop hating on them because they weren't born here.) I also had two friends in the race, one trying to make a splash and one just happy to be there.
But the finish was re-gosh-darned-diculous. It had always been the Beardsley/Salazar duel that people would mention as the penultimate fight to the finish over the grand-distance. Then, in 1998, it was the two Mexican standouts Paradis and Silva, who were separated by just two seconds - despite Silva taking a wrong turn.
But Paul Tergat - for my money, the most versatile distance runner in my lifetime - outkicking Henrick Ramaala, and having to lean at the tape like it was the 1,500m...amazing. It's amazing to see what modern training - and if you're a cynic, that means drugs - has done to distance running. You run 26.1 miles only to outkick someone.
And for Tergat to hold on for the win, after Ramaala was surging with everything he had, was outstanding. And it was fitting, considering the times that he was outlegged by Haile in the 10k.
Distance running is back, I hope. And with the long-time five-mile record at Van Cortlandt Park going down...the number of Americans in the top 5 of yesterday's race, and the renewed interest by prep and college runners to try to make a go of it out there, well, it'll be fun to watch. It won't be long till an American is on that medal stand.
-----
Patriots 27, Colts 24. Vinatieri, set up by a remarkable Tom Brady two-minute drill, boots a 38-yard field goal to win it.
Seymour and Bruschi layeth the smackdown on Peyton. Randall gay makes a key pick. Mike Cloud scores a important TD.
-----
More blurring the lines of news and entertainment and, well, ethics.
WTF is Steve Phillips doing making a mock Red Sox G.M. press conference? Apparently, they're doing a bunch of teams and tackling the big issues and questions of the Hot Stove League.
Look, two-points for creativity, but if we want to talk Hot Stove, put Peter Gammons on, not some hack who gave Mo Vaughn too much money and now wants back in the biz. SportsCenter should not be a forum for giving Phillips an open audition.
Ah, whatever. I'm done with ESPN. Jump the Shark, table for one.
-----
And if this Boston Herald business article is close to being accurate, which more than one person with semi-decent knowledge of how things operate at 4 Yawkey Way says is, then I'm done with the Red Sox, too.
-----
Ok, onto the business of the week. Talk to y'all crazy kids later.
One.
Everyday - EVERYDAY - I go in there. Everyday I order the same thing. Large coffee, skim milk, one sugar.
Everyday - EVERYDAY - they screw it up.
It's gotten so that I say it slowly, emphasizing the size, quantity and style. LARGE...coffee (dramatic pause), SKIM milk...(sitting, waiting, wishing)...ONE (look at the barista, make eye contact so he/she understands the singularity of the sugar in the coffee) sugar.
And everyday - EVERYDAY - they repeat is back to me wrong. "Large, cream and two sugars?" "Light with skim milk?" "Iced frappochino latte?" It's like they're purposely doing it to piss me off. Guess what? They're highly successful.
Yesterday morning, I snapped. I told the cashier guy, who took it upon himself to take all the orders and then tell others to do it, my order. Not the most efficient system of food service, but far be it for me to say anything.
He told the braindead lady next to him, "largecoffeeskimmilkonesugar" and I knew - KNEW - this was getting shampooed up.
She puts decaf in the large - doesn't fill it up even remotely to the top - and starts shoveling in sugar like she has to dig her car out after the plows came by.
"NO, NO, NO..." I yell. "Large - and fill it up; coffee - with caffeine; and one - ONE - sugar." And then I may or may not have growled.
Today was no different. Back in the days on North Ave., I'd walk into the store and by the time I got to the counter, I had my coffee as Katrina or Liz knew this how I do (makin' moves and act a fool while up the club) . Out here, there is another lady who thinks she know...but she don't know. She tries to be slick and act like she remembers me, my face, my coffee. Today, she put 1.5 sugars in - I didn't complain, she was in the ballpark and at least midway through dumping the second sugar, stopped - and said sorry. But still.
Ok, enough whining. Here's today's stuff:
According to Jeff Horrigan's article in the Boston Herald this morning, Kevin Millar is resigned to the fact the he would not be re-signed by the Red Sox.
Whew. That's news. Just like I'm resigned to the fact I'm not going to quit my job and join the AND 1 Tour.
Although, if Steve Burtt Sr. had a spot on the bus for a slow white kid with no hops and no handle, I'd be there with the Professor, A.O., and the Main Event.
My AND 1 nickname(s): Per Stumer, aka Ryan Satalin, aka Justin Farley. And if you get those jokes, you've seen a whole lot of
ball, bunky.
-----
Congrats to Cam Neely on being enshrined in the Hockey Hall of Fame.
When Neely stopped playing, due to the rash of injuries he suffered, I stopped watching hockey. Same thing with Magic and the NBA, although Jordan brought me back.
But now, and maybe I'm biased, but Dwyane Wade and the new-look Celtics might bring me back. Let's start with D-Wade first.
Have you seen the new commercial? How many professional athletes in ANY sport give their alma mater as much love as D-Wade?
In all the print and tv commercials, he gives mad love to the home office here. You can see a slice of the playing floor in ESPN the Magazine and you can see he and Travis Diener in the :30 second spot.
On top of it all, he's wearing Converse: the shoe that WAS basketball in my formative years. Mad dap for that.
And this past weekend, as the Heat were in town to play the Bucks, MU honored #3 in their annual tip-off dinner. Not only did he stay for the whole thing, but he took photos with and signed for everyone in attendance. As luck would have it, I had a prior engagement.
As for the C's, well, they have two of my favorite college players in the last few years - Ryan Gomes and Dan Dickau - on top of Delonte West, Paul Pierce and a slew of others. Including Mark Blount...
And gotta give some love to the Milwaukee Bucks - who are 3-0 early on and also who credential fools like me - and the Big Melburnian Andrew Bogut. If he has any pull in this town, he needs to figure out a way to get Carlton Draught imported. Or even Boag's. Because I like Miller Lite and all...but that stuff kicks ass.
-----
The New York City Marathon. For my money, it's overrated. I mean, it's still 26.2 miles, but if I had to pick one, I'd be the Boston (shocker, I know).
And to qualify for the Boston, I'd pick either Burlington or Hyannis. But again, I digress.
But this year's New York Marathons had several reasons why I was watching. I wanted to see how Mark Carroll would do, as well as the AMERICANS Meg and Abdi. (for all you distance runner haters out there, they are as American as apple pie, Chevrolet and breast implants. stop hating on them because they weren't born here.) I also had two friends in the race, one trying to make a splash and one just happy to be there.
But the finish was re-gosh-darned-diculous. It had always been the Beardsley/Salazar duel that people would mention as the penultimate fight to the finish over the grand-distance. Then, in 1998, it was the two Mexican standouts Paradis and Silva, who were separated by just two seconds - despite Silva taking a wrong turn.
But Paul Tergat - for my money, the most versatile distance runner in my lifetime - outkicking Henrick Ramaala, and having to lean at the tape like it was the 1,500m...amazing. It's amazing to see what modern training - and if you're a cynic, that means drugs - has done to distance running. You run 26.1 miles only to outkick someone.
And for Tergat to hold on for the win, after Ramaala was surging with everything he had, was outstanding. And it was fitting, considering the times that he was outlegged by Haile in the 10k.
Distance running is back, I hope. And with the long-time five-mile record at Van Cortlandt Park going down...the number of Americans in the top 5 of yesterday's race, and the renewed interest by prep and college runners to try to make a go of it out there, well, it'll be fun to watch. It won't be long till an American is on that medal stand.
-----
Patriots 27, Colts 24. Vinatieri, set up by a remarkable Tom Brady two-minute drill, boots a 38-yard field goal to win it.
Seymour and Bruschi layeth the smackdown on Peyton. Randall gay makes a key pick. Mike Cloud scores a important TD.
-----
More blurring the lines of news and entertainment and, well, ethics.
WTF is Steve Phillips doing making a mock Red Sox G.M. press conference? Apparently, they're doing a bunch of teams and tackling the big issues and questions of the Hot Stove League.
Look, two-points for creativity, but if we want to talk Hot Stove, put Peter Gammons on, not some hack who gave Mo Vaughn too much money and now wants back in the biz. SportsCenter should not be a forum for giving Phillips an open audition.
Ah, whatever. I'm done with ESPN. Jump the Shark, table for one.
-----
And if this Boston Herald business article is close to being accurate, which more than one person with semi-decent knowledge of how things operate at 4 Yawkey Way says is, then I'm done with the Red Sox, too.
-----
Ok, onto the business of the week. Talk to y'all crazy kids later.
One.
