Christmas List 2010

I find myself sitting on the couch tonight with Katy watching a documentary, Objectified, I'm reminded of Christmas because we're in our warm comfortable clothes with one blind open watching the snow fall from the sky.

(Objectified, turns out, is a very very interesting documentary about products and the design and thought that goes into each and every product-from your alarm clock, to your bowl for breakfast, to technology and more.)

It's been going for six hours by now and is accumulating to a few inches already. It'll continue through tomorrow morning.

But, I don't think I've mentioned much of a Christmas list and if I did I said I was going to expand on it.

Here's a quick outline of things I'd potentially like for Christmas 2010.

The Boring List-Gift Cards

1. Banana Republic
2. Gap
3. J. Crew
4. Express
5. Herberger's
6. Macy's
7. Nike
8. Sports Authority
9. Dick's Sporting Goods
10. The North Face
11. Columbia
12. Ralph Lauren
13. Thomas Pink
14. REI
15. Tommy Hilfiger
    
16. Martin Patrick (Minnesota only)
17. BlackBlue (Minnesota only)
18. Run N Fun
19. Target
20. Timberland
21. Levi's
22. Club Monaco
23. Aw heck, Marshalls
24. Land's End
25. Asics
26. H&M
    
27. Brasa (Minnesota only)
28. California Pizza Kitchen
29. Old Chicago
30. Chipotle
31. Oh, let's just make it an even 30.
    

Things I'm into right now

1. Shawl collar sweaters-merino wool, cotton, cashmere
2. Flannel shirts-Target, Club Monaco, J.Crew, Gap, Timberland, Banana Republic
3. Socks-J.Crew calls them "Camp" socks I believe. They're very textured, marled looking. (meaning ex. black and white fibers woven together creating what could be tv fuzz looking)
4. Thin ties-3" or less-wool, textured, herringbone or tweed in blacks, grays or browns. Maybe even some plaid textured ties.
5. Bow Ties-Pierrepont Hicks at Martin Patrick
   
6. Coffee-I've been looking for a higher quality four to six cup coffeemaker. They're hard to find, most are pretty cheap. (Black, stainless steel)
7. Cashmere-not so much the normal v-neck or crew neck but a shawl collar or cardigan or hoodie--J. Crew cashmere
   

Specific Items

1. Banana Republic-straight fit corduroy pants-Acorn color-31x32 (hopefully quality is consistent-tried one pair of 31x32 on in store and they actually worked. Normally BR 31x32 are too short.)-SALE NOW
   
2. Banana Republic-Tailored fit Italian wool two button navy suit-38R, 31x34
3. Banana Republic-Tailored fit charcoal herringbone suit-38R, 31x34
4. Express-Flannel two button light gray suit-38R, 31x34 or 32x34-SALE NOW
   
5. Express-Button down collar fitted shirt-either gray heather or heather gray-medium-SALE NOW
6. Express-Button down collar fitted shirt-gray plaid-same as above-just those two shirts combined into a plaid.
7. Run-N-Fun-wind briefs, Nike quarter length dri-fit running socks
   
8. Gap-hooded toggle sweater-navy/carbon blue-medium
9. Mentor Leader-Tony Dungy
10. Run to Overcome-Meb Keflezighi
11. Pre-
12. Sub 4:00 Alan Webb and the quest for the fastest mile-Chris Lear
    

iPhone shots...just giving you ideas and real life examples of things I'd like.



















REI
Marmot softshell track jacket
$175.
Uber-expensive but I just might have it for the rest of my life.



















REI
Marmot Zeus Vest
$130, have seen it on sale



















H&M
Shawl collar sweatshirt
Navy blue
Casual, warm, everyday/night use



















H&M
Outerwear vest
Grey herringbone
I like puffy vests. This one is great because it's got a herringbone pattern.



















H&M
Nordic Shawl Collar Sweaters
Ah, different. Just like 'em.



















H&M
Hoodie
Navy, Brown
A very inexpensive but warm and comfortable piece of clothing. *Something Mark would probably like. Simple, good colors, cheap enough to wear to work if he needed.



















H&M
Short sleeve graphic tee
Cheap and fun.



















H&M
Charcoal or black button up cardigan with hood.
Wear it casual, wear it dressy with a patterned dress shirt and skinny tie.



















H&M
Long sleeve blue and white striped woven
Wear it to work or wear it underneath the previous button up cardigan.



















H&M
Button up cardigan
Brown
Different, warm, fun.



















Macy's
The North Face
Denali hooded fleece
Wanted it in brown.
$179



















Macy's
Club Room cashmere plaid scarf





































Target 3 Pack Socks
$5, if I remember correctly.



















Target
Merona Thermal Henley-Medium
$15ish



















Target
Merona Duffle Coat
$75ish



















Gap socks



















Marshalls-snow shoes! I need another way to get some cardio this winter. Snow shoeing might be fun!

General Ideas

1. Banana Republic-you'd be very very safe there going there and getting just about anything.
2. J. Crew-you're pretty safe here as well.
3. Herberger's-I work there. We carry lots of stuff from men's to home to women's I'd buy for me or Katy
4. Macy's-I work in the mall. I wander in there alot. I can find something Club Room or Timberland boots or Ralph Lauren or some cheap trendy stuff or expensive fashion.
5. Twins, Timberwolves, Vikings tickets
6. Home improvement money?
   

Things I'm staying away from

1. Quarter zip sweaters-things that zip or button near my neck and don't lay down on my shoulders-rubbing on the back of my neck/head causing a headache
2. Western shirts
3. Skinny jeans

THAT'S ALL I'VE GOT FOR NOW

WATCH FOR UPDATES

Cashmere for Christmas

I like this. Not that anyone will get this but it's cashmere and it's wonderful.

Although, today is cyber Monday, where deals abound! My sister Emily might be able to coupon the heck out of this day!

Charles Tyrwhitt Cashmere Button Neck Sweater



























This is better.

Charles Tyrwhitt Chocolate w/ Blue Stripe Cashmere Sweater






























This is the best, brought to you by J. Crew.

J.Crew Cashmere Henley Hoodie
























That is all, thank you for listening and have a great day!

Quick Column: NFL Thinking

I've worked the weekend and didn't see much of Sunday's football action but I still have some thoughts about the results.

The difference a year makes, huh?

At the end of last year the Vikings were one running play (rather than one pass) from getting to the Super Bowl.

One year ago, Brett Favre was having the "best" season of his career and Minnesota fans were praising him like he was a career Viking and Viking HOF'er. People were ultimately loving Brett Favre's stats; 33 TD's vs. 7 INT's. They loved 4,202 passing yards and the best passer rating in his career, 107.2. They happened to lose in the NFC Championship game with a chance to win it and wanted Brett Favre back.

I don't blame fans, Viking fans, NFL fans, friends or family at all for that. The Vikings had it going on last season. The got numerous bounces within games leading them to win games.

However, I had a different opinion. I do love Brett Favre and what he did for the Packers all of those years. Though I have seen him throw so many interceptions, have my childhood best friend Will, make so much fun of me because my favorite player did that, that I knew it was a one year wonder.

Favre's TD % is one half the number than it was last year and his INT % is five times higher than last year. His 10 TD's and 17 INT's are 11 TD's fewer and 14 INT's more than at the same point last season.

CHILDRESS FIRED! As I sit here at 11:15am, listening to KFAN and watching the old Twitter feed, Childress is gone and Leslie Frazier is in.

Again, what a year makes for Brad Childress too. A year ago his job was safe and Brett Favre kept covering him for, what I believe, his mediocrity as an NFL head coach. In his four seasons as head coach he's gone from 6-10 to 8-8 to 10-6 and then 12-4 last year before deteriorating so much this season, 3-7 before being fired today. The lifespan of a coach; stop winning and you stop coaching.

Here's a Tweet from Vikings write on ESPN1500.com Tom Pelissero.

Brad Childress' firing comes 368 days after #Vikings signed him to a contract extension. What a difference a year makes.

But it's interesting what changes in a year. Last season the Packers were killed by the Vikings. This season the Packers took it to the Vikings, twice.

Last season the Cardinals beat the Packers in the playoffs with Kurt Warner and this season they are no where to be found.

Last season the Bucs were no where to be found and were one of the worst teams in the NFL. This season they are 7-3 and in the strong NFC South.

Last season the Jets were on the brink of not making the playoffs and were borderline average. But they got on a roll and played well in the playoffs. This season, it seems, they are capitalizing on every single break, just as the Vikings did last season.

What a difference a year makes.

First Snow 2010

The snow has arrived. Forecasts said there was a possibility of 1-to-4 inches of snow but if it was cold enough, soon enough, it could be as much as 5-to-8 inches. Well, I snickered at that, I didn't think there was any chance the rain that was scheduled to come first would yield much snow at all. I was wrong. Good thing I'm not a meteorologist and have no tools of the trade.

I woke up at 7am and took a peek outside. Like a young kid, I still love looking outside to see if it snowed like the forecast said, often getting excited when it did snow. I woke up to a couple of heavy inches of snow and it has been coming down for the last four hours.

Katy and I enjoyed some breakfast and got ready to go to Costco before I work this afternoon. I got outside and cleared my car off, twice, in a matter of ten minutes. By that time, the car had four inches on it, I'd estimate. And it was that heavy wet snow too. I ended up helping a car out of our lot before we went, good thing it still had performance tires on.

Well, we were off after a bit and on highway 36. Before we even got a mile down the road there was a car completely off the road in the ditch no where even close to the road, I'd say 25 feet from the road. Coming westbound there was three cars off of the road and people were playing with their brakes too much so I had enough. We ventured off on Dale Street, where I used to live, and went on home.

I now sit watching the Wisconsin-Indiana college football game with Northwestern and Iowa on ESPN and Tennessee and Ole Miss on CBS. Too bad I can't just sit here all day watching the snow and football.

Language Vimeo I found Interesting

I find language, speaking, fonts, video, production, creativity very interesting.

Therefore, I found this interesting, not only the written speech but the content as well as the visual piece that was created.

If you have a couple minutes, give it a watch. If not; carry on.

Stephen Fry Kinetic Typography - Language from Matthew Rogers on Vimeo.

Car Repair Victory!

Anyone impressed? I am; with Katy!

After taking the truck back to J&B Eurotech for the second time in a couple weeks, with a dead alternator, a blown serpentine belt and an old tension pulley and idle pulley we needed to fix it, sell it or pay for it.

Saturday morning, I went to breakfast with college roommates and friends for our usual monthly gathering. Katy busted out the alternator and was on her way to Hugo to get the replacement for free since it was under a lifetime warranty by the time I got back.

Upon returning, we got the new alternator in a jiffy. Though, it took us a while to nail down a piece of one of the pulleys and it took a couple of trips to find the right length serpentine belt. After a while of playing with the serpentine we knocked it out and got all the parts back in order. It took us a few hours, but I don't think that was terrible at all. We had to run to Target twice to get the right tools and to an auto repair store twice to find the right length serpentine belt.

And we won. We saved a huge chunk of change fixing it ourselves and I can't lie, that felt great. I also had a good time telling a manager at work about it too, as he's a friend and was interested. He was thoroughly impressed! (again, with Katy)




















The truck arriving from J&B Eurotech. Even with the towing cost we saved a ton!




















Katy hard at work. I think we were working on bolting the alternator back in.

Don't believe me?

Here's the proof.

Finger Photos

Here's an update on my finger.

My nail is starting to come in though it still looks a bit rough. Hopefully it continues to come in properly so I don't have to be reminded about it.

Auto Annoyance

Yesterday was a fun day in the auto world for us yesterday.

I got up for work early and was at work at 9am. Katy was off yesterday and I thought about taking the truck because I'm kind of nice once in a while and let her take the car on her errands and activities. But as usual, I only leave 7 minutes to get to work and just rushed to my car. I got in it and reminded myself I needed air in my tire on the drivers side.

At about 2:15 I went to lunch to chat with Katy for a few minutes and find her stranded, luckily, in the mall parking lot. Her serpentine belt blew out; oh great. Didn't we just take this truck in not more than 10 days ago and fill it with $380 dollars of hard earned, unexpected money? Well, we're due for more and that was pretty frustrating. It sits at J&B Eurotech at this moment with a bill due soon, once they get a look at it tomorrow. She saw the truck off as it was towed away and took my car home, only to pick me up later.

Well, at 5:30pm another adventure ensued. Katy picked me up and somehow I had been driving what would be a screw in my tire for a few days. I noticed it slowly deflating but just figured it was just time to fill them up again. Great! Another how much money down the tubes? Ugh. Well, luckily Katy was off today and took it in to be repaired. Luckily it was only about $30 to repair it and we're 1/2 way back in business.

Those autos, no wonder why my dad never spent much money on cars. One moment it's the last thing on your mind and the next they're at you again for half a thousand dollars.

So Dad, does anyone have a good car for sale at Elim Park? I'd like to start the looking.

An Expensive Christmas Present

I have been interested in this DVD set of the World Series Film Collection since last year. It is a 20 disc set of Major League Baseball World Series' over 105 years.

It might be a Christmas idea for me. Or maybe you get it for me and Eric. (Yeah, I'm going to throw Eric under the bus/nominate him for a potential gift he didn't ask for and say he'd like this.)

Here is the link to take a closer look at it.

Official Major League Baseball World Series Film Collection

(It happens to be on sale now too.)

The Ultimate Winter Coat? Columbia's Carabineer Parka

I enjoy going on a quest to find the best and most useful winter coat in town. Last year, I went on a quest to find what I wanted: a down filled jacket I can use most of the time on its own while also providing a shell if I'm out in the snow or sleet or just outside for a long time.

I searched and searched last year-went to Columbia stores and anywhere that sold Columbia. I went to the North Face store on Grand Avenue and any number of Macy's stores all around the metro. I explored Land's End and any number of websites that sold winter jackets.

This year, I jumped onto Columbia.com from an email and started to dink around the website. Well, I found what I was looking for last year.

Only a year too late since I bought a down jacket last year.

It is the Carabineer Parka II. It's a down jacket with a shell over that. The down jacket is a 700 fill of down (the higher the better) and the shell is weatherproof, meaning it's breathable and waterproof.

Carabineer™ II Parka

$280.00

This super-lightweight yet warm down parka is a study in both technology and value. The Carabineer keeps the pounds down with a sleek 2.5-layer shell and a 700-fill goosedown insulated liner. Despite its ultralight weight, it's a master heat retainer thanks to Omni-Heat® thermal reflective technology.more

An attention-grabbing jacket in its own right, the liner also features Omni-Shield® advanced repellency to keep you dry from trail to slope to campfire. It’s armed with Omni-Tech® waterproof breathability, and every seam is sealed against the outer elements. Barely-there security pockets at chest and lower torso feature Invizzip™ technology for cleaner, more refined style. Underarm vents can be zipped open to disperse excess heat. Also, down makes this jacket extremely packable, just roll it up into a pint-sized package and slip it the side pocket of your backpack.

FEATURES:

• Fabric: Shell: 100% nylon 2.5L enthuse riptstop. Lining: 57% recycled polyester/43% polyester mesh. Liner: 100% Tactel® nylon ripstop. Lining: 100% polyester taffeta. Insulation: 90% goosedown/10% feather
• Omni-Tech waterproof-breathable and fully seam sealed
• Omni-Heat thermal reflective
• Omni-Shield advanced repellency liner
• Zip-in Interchange system
• Underarm venting
• 700 fill power down insulation
• Pocket zippers feature Invizzip
• Zip-closed hand and security pockets
• Interior goggle pocket
• Center back length: 29.5”
• Imported

Restaurant Review: Axel's Bonfire

Photo Credit

Katy and I went to Axel's Bonfire last night on Grand Avenue for Deb's birthday dinner. We were also joined by Bob, Josh and Laura.

Who: Joel and Katy, Bob and Deb, Josh and Laura
What: Dinner
When: Saturday October 16 6:30pm
Where: Axel's Bonfire, Grand Avenue
Why: Deb's Birthday

I ordered Cioppino for $21.95.

I saw Throwdown with Bobby Flay on the Food Network where the challenge was who made the best cioppino, Bobby Flay or local San Francisco guy he visits out of the blue to have the challenge to make the signature dish.

Well, that's been on my mind since that episode months ago, about how I wanted to give that dish a try so I finally did since I saw it on the menu.

Cioppino is a fish stew that originates from San Francisco, California. It is derived from various regional fish soups and stews from Italian cuisine. It was usually a bunch of seafood that was the catch of the day; any sort of combination of crabs, clams, shrimp, scallops, squid, mussels and fish. That combines with fresh tomatoes and a wine sauce and paired with a baguette or bread.

Axel's version was shrimp, scallops, walleye, clams, mussels and crab claws in a spicy tomato broth. I asked the server if it was truly spicy, and if it was asking if it was feasible to back off of it some. He said that it was not too spicy so I didn't ask for them to back off any of the heat, though once I put it on my mouth I wish I had! It was plenty spicy, I wish I knew what was actually causing the heat. What were the spices and was it made more prominent because of the acid from the tomatoes?

However, the seafood in there was outstanding. There was a ton of shrimp, the walleye was delicious and the bits and pieces of chopped up crab, clams and mussels was awesome with plenty of nicely sized scallops. The heat from the dish stayed there for the whole meal so after every bite I washed it down with some Coke or water and put down the roll that they gave with it as well.

Overall, the dish was hot. Too hot for my taste so if they could have backed that down a few notches my palate would have enjoyed it a little bit more. However, the amount of seafood in there and the tomatoes made it a delicious meal. There was also a leftover effect; without being able to eat it all because of the heat I saved some of it and made it for lunch today.

Cioppino, give it a try and I'll keep you updated when I get to taste test it again!

Quick Column: Twins Territory

Photo courtesy of Joel Dischinger





















Photo courtesy of MinnPost.com





A number of topics to come in no particular order and none will come to real fruition. It's just the times. Essentially, it's just that I have to get a long tweet out without researching too much further.

As we all know, a Minnesota favorite, Randy Moss was traded back to the Vikings. That stomped all over the air waves and the print media and the broadcast media all morning and afternoon; squashing much of the productive and intelligent Minnesota Twins vs. New York Yankees playoff chatter. Well, that's the second time an NFL story has put the hammer to a significant day in Minnesota Twins history. The first, back in the middle of August was Brett Favre coming back via private plane in handcuffs with Ryan Longwell, Jared Allen and Steve Hutchinson. That was the same day that Jim Thome (is my homey) drilled a game winning home run, defeating the White Sox and making a statement in the American League Central versus the White Sox.

So, let's bury the "lead" story. The Minnesota Twins are the lead story, it is just that this American society needs something newer than a game that hasn't even happened yet! That is amazing, when talking about Americans.

I'm here to say to Minnesotans that they best get their priorities straight. These guys coming from New York are giants! They have taken you out in the playoffs three straight times. They are not afraid of you. The Twins can't have the state overtaken by Moss talk. Not on game one of the ALDS vs. a historical giant in the game of baseball. It takes huge amounts of focus to beat these guys, just ask the Boston Red Sox. So, all of you Minnesotans and media members; please refocus your energies to put the Twins in the lead story.

It was just surreal listening to the Twins get buried all day long as I listened on my KFAN app on my phone. And granted, I was listening to play-by-play man for the Vikings, Paul Allen. However, Dan Cole was all over football too. However, once I flipped it to 1500 ESPN Radio with Patrick Reusse and Phil Mackey, most of the conversation centered around the Twins. Though they happened to be broadcasting live from Gate 29 at Target Field.

You have the rest of the NFL season to talk about an aging superstar and a guy who plays when he wants to. Minnesota, and Minnesotan sports fans, the Twins need you! Don't drop out of the marathon at mile 23 when there's a good chance of finishing and finishing 26.2 miles well!

Twin Cities 10 Mile v. 2010

Well, Twin Cities 10 Mile v. 2010 went off without a hitch Sunday morning.

Katy and I were up and heading to Minneapolis at 6:00am with the start time coming at 7:09am. It was chilly, about 40 degrees, but clear with a high of about 60 degrees expected. We arrived downtown and I just sat in the car near the start line for a half hour or so before heading into the dome, using the bathroom before running a half-mile warm up before the start. By the start of the race it was getting lighter and I was ready to race in my tights, sleeveless shirt, arm sleeves, gloves, watch and hat; and of course a pair of socks, my silicone or rubber toe caps and a new pair of Nike Lunarglide +2's.














As always the first couple miles of competition requires some mental fortitude to hold back and be sure you're not breaking the bank so mile one and two were 6:09 and 6:14.

I must have been concerned about pace at that point as I slowed to a 6:28 for mile three, though there was a small hill at that point. I regained some pace and tempo going through four miles in 25:03, running 6:14.

Now, miles five, six and seven; I wish I could have those back. I do remember feeling a bit tired but more so, I think I wondered about my ability there. I thought to myself "this is only half way, I'm kind of tired, let's stay consistent and be conservative." Well, I sure was tired and too conservative. On the flip side I was pretty consistent as those miles were 6:32, 6:38 and 6:29. Sheesh. That was coming off of Cretin Avenue and onto Summit Avenue where there is a long gradual hill; but I should have kept moving better.

At that point, I knew I had three miles left, processed that as just at 5K race and thought about how short that really was. I clicked off a 6:12 and 6:19 while maintaining some contact with a couple people who were moving pretty well. I pushed but I didn't over exert myself. Maybe I should have pushed just a little bit more in those two miles. I went through eight miles in 50:53, was at nine miles at 57:12.

Mile 10 was 5:39 and my best mile of the morning though I didn't go crazy at any one point during that mile. I kept accelerating as steadily as I could, clicking off each tenth of a mile while waiting for the Cathedral so I could see Katy, Bob and Deb and Laura.

So, Twin Cities 10 Mile v. 2010 had me finish in 1:03:16.

That's good for 90th out of 7017 runners. I was 32nd of 458 in the 22-29 age group and 86th out of 2708 males.

I was satisfied, but as always thought there could have been more in the tank with a drop in time. I am happy with staying consistent in time for the last two years and always hope for more next year.





































This is me going by the Cathedral with a quarter mile left.














Josh finished in 1:24:33, 8:28 pace for the TC 10. Good job Josh! (We were both just a few seconds slower this year vs. last year. Darn. We'll do better next year.)













Just us. :) Too bad this was the best shot of us. We must improve on that.













And Segways!! I really wanted to see who brought these to the course so I could go ride up and down the course. Right Eric, Dad and Katy? That would be awesome!

Twin Cities 10 Mile v. 2010

TWIN CITIES IN MOTION

Twin Cities Marathon

Well, tomorrow morning is the Twin Cities 10 Mile. And I'm finally nervous. I would like to do sub-60 minutes but that's not going to happen judging my mileage and workouts.

*It appears that you can follow me run online now too via the website or texting. This link will take you there...

I've put in a decent amount of miles over the summer without getting a great deal ahead with workouts. So, decent mileage but a lack of workouts and even lack of mileage lately, doesn't give me too much confidence with the morning run. Not that I ever really have a huge amount of confidence. (Can't get a job, not a great (fast) decision maker, never really stand for what I believe or want...)

So, tomorrow morning might be a challenge. I'm putting alot of pressure on myself to get back to 1:02:54 like I did last year but at the same time I'm not sure that's going to happen. I'd love for it to happen though. Somehow, I've got to find a spot in my mind, maybe just for a few hours where I'm confident and feel good for the run.

I'm aiming for 1:05:00 this year with the chances of hitting that. Last year I had 1:08:00 in my head so we will see how that matters. I'm not sure that I'll be able to do 1:03 this year but I didn't think I would do that last year.

Anyway, last year I ran 63 minutes on a goal of 68 minutes. This year I'd like to hit 65 minutes on a goal of 65 minutes. I'll have to feel it out as they miles come, it's just that I haven't been all that confident with sub 6:45 pace nor has my stomach been cooperating with me for quite some time on longer or more workout type days.

Who else do I know that's running...

Josh, Nick, Rachel Karel in the 10 mile.

Dan Greeno, Brian Anderson, Amanda Ericson all in the marathon.

We'll see how it goes...this sappy blog is over. Maybe I will call this blog just "for my records." (Right Em?)

638 Terrace Street House Update

The bank countered with $160,000 on our offer of $145,000. That is full sticker price on a home that is going to be foreclosed on in the coming days.

That is laughable. The bank is laughable.

Ah well, on to a better house for us!

Maybe we will have to put an offer in on 150 Shuttle Meadow Avenue.

(Man, not many addresses have such a cool street name either)

Quick Column: Top 5 Sports Thoughts for Today

This is five sports thoughts for today, Sunday September 26, 2010.

1. I really like watching football. Working on Sunday's is a real cramp in my sporting life. (might as well second that for Saturday too)

2. Did the Twins win the Central Division early and then go home and wait for the playoffs? Their losing streak is at three games and they are one game behind the Tampa Bay Rays for the best record in the American League. The New York Yankees are hot on their tail as well; if it was not for my beloved Boston Red Sox taking two of the first three games from the Yankees (who lead 2-1 in the top of the 8th at this moment at Yankee Stadium) they could also be ahead of the Twins for the best record in the league.

The Twins own the best home record in the American League at 52-25 (New York is second at 51-29). So, I know the Twins clinched first, long ago, and I know some guys need some rest. But why start playing 'sprint' (thinking they can turn it on with the flick of a switch) with a baseball season when they've been playing 'marathon' all season long. I think they need to keep winning, winning now, to claim the best record so they have home field advantage the whole way through.

The Yankees won the World Series in the first year of their new stadium, now why can't the Twins?

They only will if they can grab home field advantage throughout the American League Playoffs.

Though, I'm not sure they can without Justin Morneau's bat either. But that's a whole Top 5 Sports Thoughts for Today on its own.

3. I saw a quick, in-game highlight package of today's Lions vs. Vikings game. It was a montage of all of the hits Brett Favre took in the game. If the Vikings let him get hit like that every week or every other week, he could be in for a longer season than it already feels like for him. It only takes one hit for him to go down, especially at his quadragenarian status.

4. Shannon Rowbury won the NYRR Fifth Avenue Mile this afternoon in New York City with a time of 4:24.12. She edged out Sara Hall who was just under a quarter second behind in second place, 4:24.34.

Alan Webb, who's had an average running career, finished fourth in 3:53.72 but is coming back from Achilles tendon surgery this season. Now that it's over, we'll have to see more from him next year, but I'd love to see him fill his potential that he established in high school at the Prefontaine Classic where he set an American record for the mile run for high schoolers.

5. A big rivalry: Green Bay at Chicago tomorrow on Monday Night Football.
Prediction: Green Bay 27 Chicago 20

Finger Photos

Well, most of us know that I had my finger smashed in the mall door two weeks ago. I was helping Pam slide the doors open on Sunday morning; I'd slide them in the section in the wall and she'd pass me the ones from further away. Well, that got a little hasty and as I had my hand pushing behind the door the next one arrived at my right middle finger nail, and smash! A pretty good sized door coming pretty quickly took out my middle finger nail bouncing the lower part of my nail out underneath my cuticle.

I got my hand out from between shook it hard twice, actually trying to "shake it off." The throbbing quickly started blood started pooling and I walked downstairs. Long story short, I got dizzy, nauseous, had some blurred vision and ringing in my ears before it all faded to a muffle, started sweating profusely and ended up having my boss call an ambulance because I didn't know what to do, nor did she. I laid down and by the time they got there I was feeling better. They took my blood pressure, which if I recall correctly was like 100/70, which is low for me. If I remember correctly at the couple doctor visits after it was about 115/75 or 80. The ambulance man didn't even look at it closely to maybe have a suggestion to take care of it right then and he just slapped a band aid on it before I worked the rest of the day.

I worked with it throbbing on Monday, Labor Day, and thought I should seek a second opinion as I wasn't sure how my nail would miraculously settle back into my nail bed. Well, that ended up having me annoyingly, oh so annoyingly, spend my three days off in a row that I had because of Labor Day spend a couple hours at Allina, Summit Orthopedics on Wednesday and going back to their Landmark Center in St. Paul for the finger surgery.

That's right, surgery. Minor surgery and all but that's what it was. For the first time I entered a flat out surgical center room with the huge lamps overhead, hook ups for anything you'd ever want, enough blue covering to make a Smurf the size of a skyscraper and enough air conditioning to go hypothermia.

The worst part was that I had to spend all of that time, my own time, getting this garbage fixed. And how many times do I get three days off in a row, just because that's how the schedule is? Well, this might have been the first time in five years of working there, surely not more than a few times.

Anyway, I'm going to post some pictures. Take a look. Or shield your eyes and stop reading now.