Welcome to Earth

I'm not really sure why my blog has decided to inflate like this. I have no idea how to code this stuff, so I don't really know how to fix it. Tblog sucks.

Yesterday (Sunday) was kind of depressing. The Patriots met the Steelers at Heinz Field for the 3rd time in the past year (it's like they're divisional rivals or something) and came out with the win. The Steelers fought hard, but they played loose. They simply didn't look like the same team that dismantled the Titans and Texans in the past two weeks. Belichick (or however the hell you spell it) seems to have the Steelers' number. It was a close game, but it ultimately came down to a Vinatieri field goal in the last few seconds.... something we've all seen too many times before.

Suddenly, we find out that the game officials completely screwed it up. Early in the fourth quarter, 52 oh so valuable seconds were added to the clock. 52 seconds that shouldn't have been there. 52 more seconds for the successor to Joe Montana to work his way down the field so that the best kicker in NFL history could do his thing.


It pisses me off. Pittsburgh didn't play that well... the defense made some big plays, the offense made some big plays... but they never found the groove that they needed to put the New England team away. Despite all this, they still had a chance to win. Most likely, if we stripped 52 seconds off the clock from the final Patriots' posession, we woulda seen overtime. Anybody's ballgame then... at least the Steelers have a chance to move it down the field and put it away. Hindsight is 20/20, however, and we have to accept the loss.

In any case, I want to give the "Player of the Game" award to Hines Ward, who pulled a leg making a catch in the final Pittsburgh drive, but quickly taped it up and returned to the line, only to make the game-tying touchdown catch moments later. This guy is what football is all about, and we here in Pittsburgh are happy to have such a classy, talented player on our side.

:arrow: Rizzo

This boy can run. Anyone watching the Tenessee/Pittsburgh season opener this past Sunday could see that. I saw it watching last season's final regular season game in Buffalo, where the Steelers' 2nd and 3rd teams beat up on a strong, desperate Bills team, and Willie Parker busted some serious moves. This past Sunday he proved that not only does he have speed, but he's strong and smart to boot. Top backs Duce Staley and Jerome Bettis are going to be fighting for a starting job now. I knew it. I just knew it. I even picked up Parker for my fantasy team at the last moment (he was undrafted) and started him... he's player of the week in just about every fantasy football organization. He had over 200 total yards in the dominating 34 -7 win over the Titans. I think Willie Parker may be this year's Roethlisberger... a young and inexperienced player fills in for an injured veteran... and blows everyone away.

Speaking of Roethlisberger, he put to rest all the fears of a "sophomore slump" by having a career day, posting the first perfect passer rating the NFL has seen in 2 years. He looks confident and talented, and with the rookie year under his belt, Roethlisberger could become a pro-bowl caliber QB very quickly. Week 3 will be the big test, though, with the champion Patriots coming to town. New England has a way of making even the best teams look bad (see last year's AFC playoffs).

I'm so happy that football is finally back. Life is good.

:arrow: Rizzo

The kickoff for the 2005 NFL season is tonight at 8 (EST) on ABC. Watch it.

Raiders vs. Patriots. It'll be a one-sided game, but it's still football.
Sunday Pittsburgh hosts Tennessee.
In other words.. my life just got a whole lot better. Bye bye, baseball, nobody's watching you anymore.

Oh man.. looks like I'm going to need a scooter or something to get around on from now on. That's not going to be fun once the snow starts up.

My car takes premium fuel, so I'll be paying anywhere from 3.50 - 4.00 per gallon until it goes down. Which might never happen. Stupid high-quality German engineering! It's pretty clear that something has to be done about our resource situation, and soon. Our dependence on oil is already hurting us, and it's only going to get worse in coming years, if recent trends are any indication.
I read about a car that BMW created a couple years ago that runs on liquid hydrogen. And it was fast... up to 200 mph or so, if I remember correctly. Liquid hydrogen, think about it. Unlimited supply, extremely cheap, and it burns clean. When you consider how much more advanced our cars are today than they were even 20 years ago, much less 60 to 70 years ago, you'd think we could've upgraded to a cleaner, cheaper, and more efficient fuel system.
Apparently, the technology for cleaner fuels (such as liquid hydrogen and other natural gases) has existed, in some form, for years. But the money hasn't been put into the development and manufacturing yet. Why? My guess is that it has something to do with the massive amounts of dough the oil companies command. Yeah, it's a bit of a cliche to point at big oil and squeal about how evil they are- but nobody seems to have a problem with talking about the evils of Wal-Mart, right?
If you buy stock (which I don't, because I'm piss poor) look into hybrid technology and motorcycles. Sales are going to go up. Meanwhile, folks like myself are going to be canceling their cable to make up for the extra strain at the pump.
What I wouldnt' give for some good news. Anything, seriously. Pittsburgh better win the damn Superbowl this year. That'd cheer me up.

All for now, I'm off to clean up after a hellish run. Never been a runner, but I'm going to have to be to pass the fitness tests, and getting into running shape after never having been a runner is proving to be very painful. It'd be easier if there weren't so many delicious beer selections at Fat Heads.

:arrow: Rizzo