Monday, November 28, 2005
Allergic to Stockton?
My sinuses are raw and painful. I left my cough drops in the kitchen. I want to go home.
Monday, November 21, 2005
I'll sleep well tonight.
Morgan Quitno has released their annual survey of America's safest and most dangerous cities. San Jose is the safest city in America with a population over 500,000. We live in the safest city in America, so yay for us!
I guess that justifies the outrageous property values. You get what you pay for, I guess.
Unfortunately, my hometown of Stockton is the sixth most dangerous metropolitan area in America. I'm not sure what makes a metro area different from a city, but it's definitely ghetto. Things must be getting worse in Stockton (or better everywhere else), as they were 11th most dangerous last year.
Funny thing is, Rhonda and I have lived in Stockton for so long we are conditioned to lock every door, avoid eye contact whenever possible, and always look over our shoulders. It must look pretty funny to people out here.
I guess that justifies the outrageous property values. You get what you pay for, I guess.
Unfortunately, my hometown of Stockton is the sixth most dangerous metropolitan area in America. I'm not sure what makes a metro area different from a city, but it's definitely ghetto. Things must be getting worse in Stockton (or better everywhere else), as they were 11th most dangerous last year.
Funny thing is, Rhonda and I have lived in Stockton for so long we are conditioned to lock every door, avoid eye contact whenever possible, and always look over our shoulders. It must look pretty funny to people out here.
You betta axe somebody
The Bay Area has another quarterback controversy between Joe and Steve.
This time it's Cal quarterbacks Joe Ayoob and Steve Levy. Well, it's not much of a controversy anymore, not after Levy led the Golden Bears to a 27-3 rout of Stanford over the weekend in Palo Alto.
Coach Tedford showed he's not afraid of mixing it up, as he gave Levy, the converted fullback-linebacker, his first collegiate start in the pressure cooker of the Big Game. Despite only having eleven career pass attempts, Levy showed poise and composure behind center, something which hasn't been seen much this season.
There's no doubt about it - Ayoob is much more talented than Levy. However, Levy, like Cody Pickett with the Niners, won over the crowd with his heart and tougness. It's obvious his skills are limited, but he played a clean game and his moment in the suni s going to be remembered for a while to come.
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
Colorado air is like Asahi
...it's Super Dry. My sinuses really hurt today. Actually, it's a lot like Vegas in that respect, except it's like 40 degrees outside in the middle of the day.
I just found out today Broomfield is right next to Boulder. Which, as we all know, is where Mork from Ork landed. Nanoo nanoo.
I want to go home.
I just found out today Broomfield is right next to Boulder. Which, as we all know, is where Mork from Ork landed. Nanoo nanoo.
I want to go home.
I speak to you from the future.
At least, if you live on the west coast. Otherwise, I may be speaking to you from the past.
I'm out in Broomfield, Colorado for an all hands meeting. I'm a little excited, because in my six-year career at Sun, they don't let me out too often. In fact, working on an internal IT project and being low on the totem pole means I've never taken a trip on the company's dollar.
I flew Frontier, which was new for me, and it wasn't too bad. They have DirecTV like on JetBlue, but on Frontier it costs five bucks. Luckily, the DirecTV was free on my flight (compliments of the captain, they said), so I watched PTI and World Series of Poker, as well as the two episodes of Lost I had encoded for my PSP.
Brian and I had a late dinner at a place called C.B. & Potts, which was sort of a mountain version of Rock Bottom. I had a Kobe beef burger and it was pretty tasty, if not a little messy and disgusting (but in a good way). It was so juicy, my hands and plate were covered in grease. Bryan (not to be confused with Brian) met us there and we had some drinks and played Golden Tee (that part won't be expensed). It was the first time I'd ever played Golden Tee, and I'm about as good at it as I am at real golf.
I'm not really tired, since it's 11:00 to me, but since I have my meeting at 9 tomorrow MST (which is 8 California time, or about when I wake up), I better get some shut-eye.
(Before you ask me, "Chris, what is Colorado like?," let me tell you. It's effin' cold. It's like Stockton in the winter, but with ice. The windows on the rental car struggled to roll down. It's not windy, and there are 300 days of sunshine a year. But after Labor Day, you can probably put away the shorts.)
I'm out in Broomfield, Colorado for an all hands meeting. I'm a little excited, because in my six-year career at Sun, they don't let me out too often. In fact, working on an internal IT project and being low on the totem pole means I've never taken a trip on the company's dollar.
I flew Frontier, which was new for me, and it wasn't too bad. They have DirecTV like on JetBlue, but on Frontier it costs five bucks. Luckily, the DirecTV was free on my flight (compliments of the captain, they said), so I watched PTI and World Series of Poker, as well as the two episodes of Lost I had encoded for my PSP.
Brian and I had a late dinner at a place called C.B. & Potts, which was sort of a mountain version of Rock Bottom. I had a Kobe beef burger and it was pretty tasty, if not a little messy and disgusting (but in a good way). It was so juicy, my hands and plate were covered in grease. Bryan (not to be confused with Brian) met us there and we had some drinks and played Golden Tee (that part won't be expensed). It was the first time I'd ever played Golden Tee, and I'm about as good at it as I am at real golf.
I'm not really tired, since it's 11:00 to me, but since I have my meeting at 9 tomorrow MST (which is 8 California time, or about when I wake up), I better get some shut-eye.
(Before you ask me, "Chris, what is Colorado like?," let me tell you. It's effin' cold. It's like Stockton in the winter, but with ice. The windows on the rental car struggled to roll down. It's not windy, and there are 300 days of sunshine a year. But after Labor Day, you can probably put away the shorts.)
Sunday, November 13, 2005
They miss Chris
Quickly, because I have to fold laundry then sleep:
The Kings stink so far this season. They inexplicably beat Phoenix (without Amare) but lost tonight to the Knicks(!?!) to fall to 2-5.
I'm a big Shareef Abdur-rahim fan, seeing as how he went to Cal when I was actually there. But you don't think they miss Webber? Does this team have any chemistry? Have the Kings been this dull to watch in the Adelman era?
The Kings stink so far this season. They inexplicably beat Phoenix (without Amare) but lost tonight to the Knicks(!?!) to fall to 2-5.
I'm a big Shareef Abdur-rahim fan, seeing as how he went to Cal when I was actually there. But you don't think they miss Webber? Does this team have any chemistry? Have the Kings been this dull to watch in the Adelman era?
When is spring training?
The 49ers find new and unexciting ways to lose. They dropped another one to the Bears, in the middle of a tornado. It would be understandable in those conditions had Chicago not done everything in their power to give the Niners the game. However, they just wouldn't take advantage.
The line on Cody Pickett: 1-for-13, 28 yards, 1 INT. I know it was windy, but come on. So much for that quarterback controversy.
Brandon Lloyd is soft. More than once he was running a route over the middle, heard the safety's footsteps, and short-armed the ball and dropped it. One of those would've been a game-tying touchdown. It's easy to say Jerry Rice would've caught those passes and take the hit. Instead, I'll say any number of past 49ers receivers - Brent Jones, T.O., John Taylor, Dwight Clark - also would've.
Trivia fact of the day: None of the 49ers 4 quarterbacks (Smith, Dorsey, Pickett, the Bachelor guy) have thrown a touchdown this season. Dorsey has six in his career. San Francisco is last in the NFL in passer rating (52.0!) and is averaging only 110.5 passing yards per game (31st out of 32 teams).
By comparison, Joe Montana's career rating was 92.3.
When Nolan was hired and Smith was drafted, and everyone was optimistic about the Niners' chances, I said they were going in the right direction but they would be lucky to win five. After they shocked the Rams I thought maybe I had given them too little credit. Now, it's looking like I gave them too much instead.
The line on Cody Pickett: 1-for-13, 28 yards, 1 INT. I know it was windy, but come on. So much for that quarterback controversy.
Brandon Lloyd is soft. More than once he was running a route over the middle, heard the safety's footsteps, and short-armed the ball and dropped it. One of those would've been a game-tying touchdown. It's easy to say Jerry Rice would've caught those passes and take the hit. Instead, I'll say any number of past 49ers receivers - Brent Jones, T.O., John Taylor, Dwight Clark - also would've.
Trivia fact of the day: None of the 49ers 4 quarterbacks (Smith, Dorsey, Pickett, the Bachelor guy) have thrown a touchdown this season. Dorsey has six in his career. San Francisco is last in the NFL in passer rating (52.0!) and is averaging only 110.5 passing yards per game (31st out of 32 teams).
By comparison, Joe Montana's career rating was 92.3.
When Nolan was hired and Smith was drafted, and everyone was optimistic about the Niners' chances, I said they were going in the right direction but they would be lucky to win five. After they shocked the Rams I thought maybe I had given them too little credit. Now, it's looking like I gave them too much instead.
Trojans really are 99.6% effective.
Cal got a beating put on them by USC on Saturday. I was there, hoping to be on hand to rush the field following another Cal shocker against the Trojans. A repeat of 2003, when Cal was the last team to beat Southern Cal. Didn't happen. Not only is Cal a shell of the team they were last season (especially in the passing game), but USC is much, much better.
Cal has played USC tough (3 games decided by 11 points prior to Saturday), but Leinart in particular has really improved. He picked apart Cal's above-average secondary (it didn't hurt his line gave him all day to throw) and always made the right decision. I thought Cal's defense did a good job against Bush and White (the stats don't really reflect it, but I think a lot of the yardage was gained after the game was already out of hand). But it seemed like USC converted every third down in the first half, unlike last year's game, where Leinart seemed a little rattled. Aaron Rodgers outplayed him, and if Cal had won that game, Tedford would've been like Bill Belichek to Leinart's Peyton Manning.
The 49ers blew it. They needed the #1 pick this year. Matt Leinart is the quarterback Alex Smith wishes he was.
Cal really missed Rodgers this season. If Rodgers had stayed for his senior season (and stayed healthy), we beat UCLA, Oregon State, and Oregon and head into the USC matchup undefeated and probably #3 or #4 in the nation. He would've given us a shot.
It sucks to be Joe Ayoob. Not only is he playing in Rodgers' shadow, but he has been terribly inconsistent. Every time it looks like he is improving (Washington, the 4th quarter of the Washington State game), he lays an egg. In Cal's four losses (out of the last five games), he's thrown 3 TDs and 10 INTs, including 4 Saturday. Saturday he was all over the map - passes bounced three feet in front of open receivers, sailed five feet over their heads, or were targeted at a sea of white jerseys. And these were on short routes. Throwing the ball downfield has not been an option most of the season, severely limiting Cal's offensive playcalling. It got to the point where everyone in the stadium knew Cal was going to run on every play. It became eerily like watching the Niners.
Times are not good when you're being booed at home.
When Steve Levy (who, by the way, was a fullback last season) came in in the fourth quarter, there a thunderous ovation. Levy led Cal on their only touchdown drive, although he did fumble on his first possession.
It might be too late in the season for a quarterback controversy, but it's obvious Ayoob is out of his league. It was surprising when Longshore beat him out in spring practice for the starting quarterback job, but now it's painfully evident why. Ayoob is physically gifted, but he doesn't have the head or work ethic that made Rodgers an NFL first-round draft pick. I'm not even sure I've seen Ayoob throw the ball away this season. He seems to try to do too much, to create opportunities where none exists. He got away with it early in the season against weaker opponents, but against the tougher Pac-10 defenses, he can't compete.
Make no mistake, Cal is still one of the top programs in college football. Next year's squad will return most of the offensive weapons. Lynch will be a Heisman candidate and he and Forsett will make a nice combo a la Bush & White. Longshore will be healthy and either he or another player or even an improved Ayoob will improve the QB position. They should be a top 10 team, and USC should have their hands full next year.
Cal has played USC tough (3 games decided by 11 points prior to Saturday), but Leinart in particular has really improved. He picked apart Cal's above-average secondary (it didn't hurt his line gave him all day to throw) and always made the right decision. I thought Cal's defense did a good job against Bush and White (the stats don't really reflect it, but I think a lot of the yardage was gained after the game was already out of hand). But it seemed like USC converted every third down in the first half, unlike last year's game, where Leinart seemed a little rattled. Aaron Rodgers outplayed him, and if Cal had won that game, Tedford would've been like Bill Belichek to Leinart's Peyton Manning.
The 49ers blew it. They needed the #1 pick this year. Matt Leinart is the quarterback Alex Smith wishes he was.
Cal really missed Rodgers this season. If Rodgers had stayed for his senior season (and stayed healthy), we beat UCLA, Oregon State, and Oregon and head into the USC matchup undefeated and probably #3 or #4 in the nation. He would've given us a shot.
It sucks to be Joe Ayoob. Not only is he playing in Rodgers' shadow, but he has been terribly inconsistent. Every time it looks like he is improving (Washington, the 4th quarter of the Washington State game), he lays an egg. In Cal's four losses (out of the last five games), he's thrown 3 TDs and 10 INTs, including 4 Saturday. Saturday he was all over the map - passes bounced three feet in front of open receivers, sailed five feet over their heads, or were targeted at a sea of white jerseys. And these were on short routes. Throwing the ball downfield has not been an option most of the season, severely limiting Cal's offensive playcalling. It got to the point where everyone in the stadium knew Cal was going to run on every play. It became eerily like watching the Niners.
Times are not good when you're being booed at home.
When Steve Levy (who, by the way, was a fullback last season) came in in the fourth quarter, there a thunderous ovation. Levy led Cal on their only touchdown drive, although he did fumble on his first possession.
It might be too late in the season for a quarterback controversy, but it's obvious Ayoob is out of his league. It was surprising when Longshore beat him out in spring practice for the starting quarterback job, but now it's painfully evident why. Ayoob is physically gifted, but he doesn't have the head or work ethic that made Rodgers an NFL first-round draft pick. I'm not even sure I've seen Ayoob throw the ball away this season. He seems to try to do too much, to create opportunities where none exists. He got away with it early in the season against weaker opponents, but against the tougher Pac-10 defenses, he can't compete.
Make no mistake, Cal is still one of the top programs in college football. Next year's squad will return most of the offensive weapons. Lynch will be a Heisman candidate and he and Forsett will make a nice combo a la Bush & White. Longshore will be healthy and either he or another player or even an improved Ayoob will improve the QB position. They should be a top 10 team, and USC should have their hands full next year.
Ho hum.
Another week gone by. Nothing really eventful this week, unless you count the unfortunate trip we made to the emergency room. No biggie, Rhonda is okay, and feeling nearly entirely fine now.
This week brings a trip out to Colorado for me (business travel, yay), report card conferences for Rhonda, and the Big Game.
This week brings a trip out to Colorado for me (business travel, yay), report card conferences for Rhonda, and the Big Game.
Sunday, November 06, 2005
On the road.
Rhonda and I had a busy but satisfying weekend. We headed out to Chico, where my buddy from high school Bob Green and his wife Jamie renewed their wedding vows. We got to catch up with Bob's fam and the Kaminskis, including Rowyn (who we haven't seen in years) and her very boyfriend Steve. She put together a nice musical set for the ceremony, and wrote a song for them too. Good stuff.
It was a little rough getting there, I took a half day off so we could get out of Dodge but instead I had to go the classroom and laminate stuff for a couple hours. After dinner we got on the road and hit traffic (big surprise) before stopping in Stockton for dessert and (much needed) coffee with my Mom and Dad. We rolled into Chico at about 12:45.
Saturday morning was a work day for Rhonda. (Guess who got to grade all the math tests?) After the vow renewal and a pretty spectacular dinner, Rhonda finished up her assessments and knocked out, while I watched three hours of poker on ESPN Classic. After Marie Callendar's brunch on Sunday, we said our goodbyes and hit the open road.
Gas in Gridley is $2.39!!! (Sorry for that random fact, but it was unbelievable!)
We got back to the South Bay at 3:30, just in time to catch the Niners' collapse. Report cards are officially in the books, and Rhonda signed off a mountain of paperwork as she prepares to become an official employee.
So a long but enjoyable weekend comes to a close. Back to the grind for both of us, I guess.
It was a little rough getting there, I took a half day off so we could get out of Dodge but instead I had to go the classroom and laminate stuff for a couple hours. After dinner we got on the road and hit traffic (big surprise) before stopping in Stockton for dessert and (much needed) coffee with my Mom and Dad. We rolled into Chico at about 12:45.
Saturday morning was a work day for Rhonda. (Guess who got to grade all the math tests?) After the vow renewal and a pretty spectacular dinner, Rhonda finished up her assessments and knocked out, while I watched three hours of poker on ESPN Classic. After Marie Callendar's brunch on Sunday, we said our goodbyes and hit the open road.
Gas in Gridley is $2.39!!! (Sorry for that random fact, but it was unbelievable!)
We got back to the South Bay at 3:30, just in time to catch the Niners' collapse. Report cards are officially in the books, and Rhonda signed off a mountain of paperwork as she prepares to become an official employee.
So a long but enjoyable weekend comes to a close. Back to the grind for both of us, I guess.
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