Category: Personal

Liverpool 2-0 Charlton

What a beautiful win, just a week after the Reds mounted a massive second half comeback to defeat Fullham 4-2. The team’s place in the standings will have to wait for games tomorrow and Monday to be sorted but, despite lots of moaning and groaning and complaining over changes in the side, Liverpool has taken five more points this season than they did last year after the same number of games.

We utterly domominated the Addicks though looking at a 0-0 halftime score line that would not be clear. The Reds had more than a half dozen beautiful chances to score but couldn’t finish any. Ex-Liverpudlian Danny Murphy chested a Sammi Hyypia header off the line for one stop and Dean Kiely made a couple of acrobatic saves but mainly Milan Baros, Djibril Cisse and John Arne Riise just couldn’t get the ball on frame. Defensively the half, heck the whole game, was a gem and Charlton really never came close to scoring or troubling Chris Kirkland.

The second half opened much as the first, no substitutions and all forward for Liverpool. After winning a corner seven minutes in, the ball got cleared back but only as far as Riise on the left side just top of the box and he buried it in the left side of the net going away with no chance for Kiely. Lots of optimistic, aggressive play for the boys; Harry Kewell and Florent Sinema-Pongolle even made nice showings after coming on for Riise and Baros, respectively. Sanz Luis Garcia put the game away in the 74th minute with a 30-ish yard blast that took a wicked curve to end up in the top right netting.

One can only take great heart if the Reds’ style of play the last game and a half shows that Rafa Benitez has finally got the squad playing the way he intends. The next few weeks may be key to the year as matches in the Carling Cup, Champions League and Premiership all crowd together and endurance will be at a premium. Three thumbs up for today!

Questions for the future: We currently have three major injuries, or perhaps two major and two mid-level is a better assessment, and so who will get the bulk of playing time when Steven Gerrard, Josemi, Vlad Smicer and Nunez all heal up? Then there’s Kirkland versus Jerzy Dudek; as Kirkland is now injury-free and getting his first length run of starts since winning the starter’s jersey a couple of seasons back, is he Benitez’s preference for the remainder of the year?

$136B

This is so politics as usual someone asleep for the last three years and 42 days would be surprised by the fuss. Did that day really happen, or will I wake up from my shower dream? [via]

Injunctions

I was sitting in a room full of people

Everyone faced front, listening to the Man

Hearing his words, mesmerized by the tone

When I felt the room waver before me

My feet felt the floor swaying under me

I looked around the room but everyone

Was still intent on the speaker and no one

Seemed to have felt the earthquake as I did

This morning I woke up, coughed, and saw silver

Sparks in the air in front of my face

Little bits of airborne lint, silver, not truly

There though I watched them pop here and there,

For ten seconds at a time before they disappeared

Dramatic lines are drawn on the cavern walls

Ancient images of massive animals and the

Loved ones of the hunters, hunted all the same

The Man spoke volumes about his experience

Facinating stories about battles and conferences

Brave warriors fighting with financial instruments

Facing off with great legal minds protecting the

Flanks, enjoining the enemy stratagems

Gray suits may have replaced animal skins now

Computers and Mont Blanc replacing flints and lances

I don’t care, they’re all the same to me

No one else felt the Earth shake and I did

Just doing Thursday

ConservationFilter: Soon cars, factories and other major users of oil for lubrication may never need to throw away their oil again thanks to the Miracle Boy.

ThingFilter: Michael Chiklis on the ‘costume’ challenges of playing The Thing in next Summer’s release of The Fantastic Four.

BandwidthFilter: I have a feeling that unless Comcast does something I haven’t read about yet, SBC’s plan to bring fiber and much higher speed Net access to homes over the next three years will have me switching providers. Assuming they don’t fuck up the pricing, which is altogether possible.

CocoaFilter: Tonight’s JHTC meeting will feature Pete Slosberg. Originally a rocket scientist, Pete decided to take on the world of beer and created Pete’s Wicked Ale. Having scratched that itch, Pete’s now bringing the same idealism and insight to chocolate with his new company, Cocoa Pete’s Chocolate Adventures Company.

More…

Snarkfilter: Does Jack Black have the smug look on his face because he just did the Kerry daughters?

YaleFilter: From the school that gave us George Bush and John Kerry, in the same year no less, Porn for Progress.

GonzoFilter: Hunter Thompson unleashes his nasty, visceral fountain pen on George Bush’s ass in Fear and Loathing, Campaign 2004. If you’re familiar with his style, HST does not disappoint here.

Not that I’m much of a baseball fan, I didn’t even watch Game 7, but how the fuck did the Yankees lose this series! A day that will live in infamy in New York, for sure. Where’s Tony Soprano when you need some legs broken?

Flight of the unheard

Rough metal shapes hover over tall trees

Reflecting light from cars driving on a highway

Off in the distance, drivers making their way

Home and elsewhere in the early morning hours.

I can see them looking out the upstairs window,

Missing a yellow Beetle that’s normally a landmark

Parked out on the street that tells me my home is

Just a few normal breaths and wheel turns away.

Momentum carries those cars up and over the

Rise, beyond the green, out of my sight, though

They aren’t of much concern to me, I’m looking

For something they don’t carry, something in the night.

In front of my eyes, into my eyes, in through my eyes

Come complete signals carrying information

Not meant for the likes of you or me, not ready,

Released too soon and there will be a breakdown

The darkness is dotted with those shapes,

Barely visible messages painted in barely visible

Colors in barely understandable scrabbles

And they twist and turn in the midnight wind

Dangerously a paradox whispers from the nightstand

Radio, trying to reinforce the metallic messages

Trying to break through the filtering screen

No words no teeth no mouth no freedom.

Bushinations: The New York Times: John Kerry for President

The New York Times has endorsed John Kerry for President. While this comes as no surprise to anyone, I think the simple straightforward wording (their summary: “John Kerry has qualities that could be the basis for a great chief executive and we enthusiastically endorse him for president.”) used combined with substantive, detailed explanation makes for a very powerful roundhouse to the Bushinator. I’m particularly moved by the next to last paragraph:

We look back on the past four years with hearts nearly breaking, both for the lives unnecessarily lost and for the opportunities so casually wasted. Time and again, history invited George W. Bush to play a heroic role, and time and again he chose the wrong course. We believe that with John Kerry as president, the nation will do better.

I’m proud to join the New York Times in endorsing John Kerry and I ask you to join me in voting for him on November 2. The last four years have been increasingly shrill, divisive and mean and believe John Kerry is the only choice if we wish to truly reunite this great country.

10/29/04: Enblogments for Kerry.

Truth? They obviously cannot handle the truth

Jon Stewart goes on CNN’s Crossfire, with hosts Paul Begala and Tucker Carlson expecting him to promote his new book America: A Citizen’s Guide to Democracy In Action, and instead Stewart rips them and the other cable political pundits a new asshole. This is one show I wish I’d seen; if you are torrent-literate you can grab a copy or perhaps even through more mere mortal means here thanks to MeFi’s User #1. [via MeFi]

So, probably great fun to see a comedian more respected for reporting current events than just about any CNN employee get up and tell the clowns to their faces that the job is just not getting done, that their shows are hurting Americans and not helping, but Stewart does not really give a straight answer on what he expects would be better. That is always the big question but, as here, one rarely answered. Granted, the hosts didn’t really try to get to that point given that they were trying to work through the shock of Stewart’s confrontation and trying to move him back to the pet on display book promotion normalcy but would sure have been nice.

Later: Okay I just watched the download. Stewart comes across ever more harshly than in the transcript. Carlson, the right wing representative on Crossfire, simply cannot deal with what he hears. I really wish they left the cameras running when the program took a short break in the middle to let Wolf Blitzer plug his show, one can only imagine what was being said on the set.

The shame is that Stewart was trying to have a serious discussion with guys who are supposed to be serious, about a topic on which they should be experts, and the hosts could not get past their personal discomfort to join Jon and perhaps make something meaningful. I could see the frustration in Stewart’s eyes though the director never gave us matching closeups of the hosts for comparison. I felt like Carlson and Begala were seeing at their pretty machinery breaking and looking everywhere and anywhere for a tool to fix it. Fortunately for them the show ended but with any luck Stewart will not drop this–election season may be the only time enough energy can be summoned to make any changes.

To my fellow blog types, are you getting spam comeons from some guys at RSSCache that apparently have little to no clue?

Sorry? You’re sorry?

Thank you for your patience during this process. Providing outstanding service is our top priority at PayPal. Although we didn’t meet your expectations — or our own — in the past few days, we look forward to the opportunity to regain your faith in our service.—Meg Whitman, President and CEO eBay

So that’s it. People and businesses lose their potentially primary PayPal payment service for up to five days and the best the most powerful American businesswoman can, or will, do is apologize. Wouldn’t want to offer some kind of financial remuneration, that would impact the bottom line and imply some ongoing liability. There’s a rock solid non-starter. Kind of puts a stick in Matt’s idea, until they get much better on reliability.

Pre-debate trash talk

I had hoped to post the following comment to the MeFi thread but the server developed an issue and blocked me:

xmutex, patriotic Americans are cheering the US Men on against Panama in tonight’s 2006 World Cup qualifier. A goal from my boy Landon has them up 1-0 at the half and a win today means the US clinches a spot to move forward to the next round.

More: 10 minutes into the second half Donovan takes a beautiful through ball from Zavagnin, jukes the keeper and dives to push the ball off his knee through two defenders into the back of the net. Wearing the captain’s armband for the second straight game, Number 21 is taking his game to a whole new level.

Last: Beautiful second half for the Americans. Eddie Johnson, a 20 year old Dallas Burn forward playing in only his second national team game, came on in the 64th minute and proceeded to put three balls in the net (70th, 84th and 87th minutes); the first two came on passes from Carlos Bocanegro while the third was begun by a corner from Landon. Johnson scored at the end of last Saturday’s game giving him four, wow! The third was a true team effort, with three other players taking touches in the goal box. We got a sixth goal just before the end of regulation time, initially announced as an own goal against Panama though it might have been off the head or chest of Brian McBride from a free kick taken by, who else, Donovan.

So that clinches the qualifying group for the US. Last game of the round is Nov. 17 against Jamaica in Columbus. Next year we’ll be part of a final round of six teams with the three top going on to Germany 2006. The commentators were saying to expect Coach Bruce Arena to deploy an experimental, younger side next month, to give these players a look and a chance to shine. Maybe Johnson and Brian Ching starting up front with Landon roaming behind?

Interesting matchup on Saturday will be Landon’s Earthquakes against Johnson’s Burn in Dallas. If the Quakes win or the teams tie, the Quakes go on to the playoffs; if the Burn win, the Quakes stay home. Uh oh.

Mirage

Judas… hung himself with his own rope

The heat caused him to lose control

Everything he wanted was just out of reach

Just think of him, that poor poor soul.

I know that you can spend days out in the sun

Work a picket, work a shovel, work a ‘hammer

Walk the line up and down, wipe the sweat away

Whatever you do remember to drink your water

There’s a shock of green over the horizon

Further away than you can get tonight

Try and sleep, try and rest before you go

That mirage will still be there at morning light

The heat makes you tired, so tired of moving

So hard to keep going, lifting your legs

Too tired to lift your head at the cry of a bird

So hot that you stumble wiping sweat from your brow

Weeks ago you sat by an ocean and the breeze

Kept you cool under a thatched roof, seated

On a bright white lounge drinking iced cold

Rum and fruit juice, no worries even over the horizon

Circumstances change, the world spins you over

That horizon comes closer, then is suddenly seen

In your rearview mirror, those deep blue and green

Waters and the tourists laying in the sand

Off in the distance now a buzzing sound, louder then

Softer, whirs and whorls shorter and longer but no rhythm

Machine sounds but no machine to be seen

Heat tempers the volume in waves of sand

There is no tablecloth on which to eat your meal

To keep your food and forks and dishes clean

Only the heat to make you sweat, no napkins to wipe

The beads away, to make you forget everything ever seen.