HOW TO: make moroccan chicken

Back by popular demand! So I figured what good is it to show you how to roast a chicken, if you don't know what to do with it after that.

Here's what happened: Brittany made a Moroccan stew, which called for some cinnamon. We already use cinnamon sugar, but have been buying it pre-mixed. So I bought some cinnamon and used a pinch in her stew.

So I tried to find a recipe that could use up some cinnamon. It just so happened that I've got a roasted chicken on hand, so this seemed perfect.

I had to make some adaptations because the recipe is for raw chicken and I didn't have any honey or currants (or even raisins or craisins). So I sort of winged it. Here's how I did it.

I started with some chopped onion and olive oil in a skillet over medium, and added some chopped almonds. I let that sweat for a couple minutes and then added some finely chopped garlic cloves and some breast pieces from my roasted chicken, straight out of the bag. I let that cook with just some salt and pepper until it was heated throughout and browned a little.

Then I hit the whole pan with a generous coating of cinnamon and cumin. I flipped the chicken pieces and seasoned it some more.

I was ready to add some salsa, as it needed some sort of sauce, but then didn't think that my green tequila-lime salsa would match the intended moroccan flavor. Instead, I audibled to my Cuban-style Mojo Citrus sauce that had the right chili flavor I was looking for. I placed my chicken pieces on some garlic & olive oil couscous that was leftover from Brittany's dinner the night before. And then scraped all the little bits of chicken, almond and onion on top.

Click for HD!

I almost didn't take a picture, but I'm glad I did. It's one of my favorite meals I've ever made and I plan on making it again. The cinnamon/cumin combination is fantastic, but the best part was the chopped almonds. It added an amazing texture contrast, in addition to taking on all the flavors of the dish. I even wish I had more couscous as it added a nice layer.

Next time I wouldn't change a thing as far the sauce I used or adding honey. But I think some craisins would add a little fruit flavor that would be a nice addition.

Thanks to having the chicken pre-cooked and ready to go, the prep-time for this dish is the time to chop some almonds and onion. And it cooks in about ten minutes. Making the couscous from the box mix, takes about that same time too. And it's healthy. Good times.

interesting

On the 1/27 B.S. Report, Aaron Schatz of Football Outsiders picks a team to watch out for in 2009 (at the 56:14 mark). Very interesting.

(it's not who you think it is)

HOW TO: roast a whole chicken

These are tough times. I've discovered a culinary delight that would please the most expensive palate: homemade roast chicken. I've purchased a PERDUE® OVEN STUFFER® Extra Meaty Whole Roaster.


As you can see, this particular bird weighed 7.88 pounds. At 75 cents a pound, it cost a mere $5.91, perhaps less than you would pay for a chicken sandwich at Boston Market. It's very important to get a brand with a pop-up thermometer, as it looks done about an hour into it. Also, considering the price here, I think it's worth going with Perdue (or Tyson if that's what's in your store) as opposed to settling on a store brand bird.

Preheat the oven to 350 and prepare your stuffing and seasoning. For the inside, I just cut up a granny smith apple, used a little lemon juice, and some salt and pepper. I used a toothpick to seal up the rear cavity. On the outside, I just used a generous coating of salt and pepper. On the leg and wing on one side, I tried chili powder. On the other side, I went Moroccan: a mixture of cinnamon and cumin. (Last time, I just went salt and pepper all the way, but realized I could have kicked it up a notch on the wings/legs, since I eat those with the skin on. I'll have to report back on these spices.)



Add a half cup of water to the pan, and you're ready to go. I set a timer for 2 hours, 15 minutes, and then start checking on the thermometer every 5 minutes. This one took 2 hours, 25 minutes.

(remember to click on pictures for crispy HD detail)

This is perhaps the most important step. Let the bird rest for AT LEAST 15 minutes. I let it sit for an hour and a half, and it's still hot. But this way it's cool enough to handle with my bare hands. To carve, I just cut straight down the middle, separating the breasts into two massive chunks. Then I just grab what I can. Don't forget to flip it over and get the meat under the carcass.

When you're done, I end up with legs and wings and a gallon bag pretty full of beautifully roasted meat. I spooned some of the juices bag into the bag, but the meat was already moist and juicy.


I think I got about 10-15 meals out of one chicken. A favorite was making spicy-sweet paninis with garlic mayo, bread & butter pickles, jalepeno slices, and honey mustard, pressed in my george foreman. I'm also a fan of the Culinary Circle sauces. I've gone through a bottle of the Jamaican Jerk sauce, and tonight just picked up a bottle of Cuban-style Mojo Citrus and Garam Masala sauce.

There's really not that much work involved, and now I can come home, grab some chicken out the bag, heat it for a minute in the microwave with some sauce, and I've got a delicious, healthy main course for about 50 cents.

Previously in How To: cook a steak on a george foreman grill

monday diversion

provided by flash-gear.com

CHIEFS FIRE MORE GARBAGE

he gone!

LIONS HIRE MORE GARBAGE

In the Lions never ending quest to hire tossed aside assistant coaches, it is being reported that the Lions have hired Scott Linehan as the new offensive coordinator.  He was recently the head coach of the Rams, fired early in the season.  Players were not sad to see him go.

Actually, I like this hire.  He was a good enough OC to get a head coaching job.  Maybe it's the position that suits him best. . . just like Mike Martz(?).  As for Gunther, I like the garbage analogy.  But whatever.  We suck.  We can't be worse than this last season.  Besides, I think the Cardinals have the NFC locked up for years to come.

I hope this Schwartz fella knows what he's doing.

teasing the novel

So I made this teaser animation. I have no idea if I'll be able to stick to this date, but whatever. Of course, I'll keep updating stuff as I get closer.

more chiefs & lions

BREAKING! The Detroit Lions have hired a new Defensive Coordinator to right the ship on the league's worst defense. And they hired...Gunther Cunningham, former DC of the Kansas City Chiefs, the second worst defense.


Way to aim high, Lions. The problem here is that the Chiefs and Lions are like dumpsters. The GM looks in and they see trash, and they're like anything is better than this trash. But here's the key, you can't just go and replace it with trash from another dumpster. See Drummond, Eddie.

Oh, and I want Herm out. We got a new GM and we need to be thinking new, and I want a coach that's not afraid of the internet. Collinsworth expects Arizona's OC Haley to become the Chiefs next coach. Good move? I have no idea.

quick thoughts on chiefs/lions/draft

So the Lions have a new coach and the Chiefs have a new GM.

It seems that the Lions already are committed to taking Stafford #1. Which means that if the Chiefs wanted to take a QB with the 3rd pick, they only guy might be USC's Sanchez. Now Sanchez could be good, or he could be a bust, I don't really know enough about him. But, what I do know is that Pioli could judge talent in New England, and I think that he's going to make the right decisions at the QB position. All my life the Chiefs were under the same GM. Now we've got a guy who allegedly knows how to build a team. Let's see it happen.

As for Herm's fate, I like what he says. I liked that he was going to rebuild and focus on defense. Except that our defense still stinks. So I haven't seen anything that makes me think he knows how to deliver on what he says. He's not a Super Bowl winning coach. So let's get someone who can be.

Update: Hilarious tidbit from Mark Schlereth when asked if the new Detroit head coach was the right guy for the Lions: "Vince Lombardi isn't the right guy for the Lions. Nobody's the right guy for the Lions."

pictures from our trip to espn studios

the life of a '09 gator

I considered myself pretty lucky that the Illini football team went to a BCS Bowl our freshman year, and the Illini basketball team was #1 and went to the Championship game our senior year. (And that I got to attend both in person). Anyone a year before our after us only got to be there for one of them.

So I can only imagine what it would be like to have enrolled in the University of Florida in the fall of 2005.

Freshman Year

This was Urban Meyer's first year as head coach. The 2005 football team went 9-3 and beat Iowa in the Outback Bowl in Tampa on January 2nd, 2006. Quite a good season.

At the same time, the basketball team started 17-0, the best in Gator history. The entered March Madness as a #3 seed and beat Georgetown, Villanova to advance to the Final Four. They then beat UCLA to win the first title in school history. The only downside, the tournament was in Indianapolis. National Champion.

Sophomore Year

In the fall of 2006, went 13-1, including a SEC Championship victory over Arkansas. Then in Glendale, Arizona, Florida beat Ohio State 41-14, for only the second football championship in school history. National Champion.

In the spring of 2007, the basketball team started 24-2, won the SEC tournament and entered March Madness as the #1 overall seed. In the Final Four, they beat UCLA and Ohio State to win back-to-back titles, the only team ever to do so with the same lineup. This time the Final Four was in a much more road-trip friendly Atlanta, Georgia. National Champion.

Thus, for a '09 Gator, they won 3 national championships in 4 opportunities, in their first two years on campus. That's inconceivable.

Junior Year

With Tim Tebow as the starter, the football Gators only went 9-4 including a Capital One loss to Michigan 35-41. Although he did win the Heisman trophy.

Without any starters from the championship team, their basketball team only went 24-12, missing the Big Dance and ending the year losing in the semifinals of the NIT.

Senior Year

Uh, they got over Junior Year. Tebow lead the Gators to a 12-1 season. They faced Alabama in the SEC Championship when Alabama was #1 in the country. Florida was favored by 10 and they covered. Then in the BCS Championship, they played Oklahoma who was now #1. Florida was favored by 5.5 and they covered yet again. National Champion.

The basketball team is currently 14-2. Even if they don't do anything that's still, two basketball titles and two football titles in 4 years. Also, they got to win titles in their freshman year and senior years, nice times to have them.

let's check the ol weather

How's Robin doing?


What about Mark?

What about where I'll be in two months?

Or where we just were?

What about where I just walked to work?


So that's why my toes fell off in my shoe. A wind chill warning? Ugh. The only solace? At least we're not in Minneapolis.

So Was Week 5 Make or Break This Year?

In September I wondered whether your record after 5 weeks could predict if you would make the playoffs. Here are the results from this year.

Week 5 Record - Made Playoffs?

Titans 5-0 - Yes

Panthers 4-1 - Yes
Steelers 4-1 - Yes
Giants 4-1 - Yes
Cowboys 4-1 - No
Broncos 4-1 - No
Bills 4-1 - No
Redskins 4-1 - No

Cardinals 3-2 - Yes
Patriots 3-2 - Yes
Colts 3-2 - Yes
Bucs 3-2 - No
Falcons 3-2 - No
Jets 3-2 - No
Bears 3-2 - No

Eagles 2-3 - Yes
Ravens 2-3 - Yes
Chargers 2-3 - Yes
Dolphins 2-3 - Yes
Vikings 2-3 - Yes
Saints 2-3 - No
49ers 2-3 - No
Browns 2-3 - No
Jaguars 2-3 - No
Packers 2-3 No

Seahawks 1-4 - No
Texans 1-4 - No
Chiefs 1-4 - No
Rams 1-4 - No
Raiders 1-4 - No

Bengals 0-5 - No
Lions 0-5 - No

Conclusion

Not really. The only thing for sure, if you're 5-0, you're in. If you're 1-4 or worse, you're out. Teams that were 4-1, three made it, four didn't. Same for 3-2. The surprising thing about this year? Five teams were 2-3 and still made it to the playoffs. And two of them are still alive.

So no, week 5 is not make or break. Unless you're 1-4.

more nfl

For the first time since the new division alignment, in a conference championship we'll have two division opponents. The two last teams standing in the AFC, are from the AFC North.

The last time this happened was when there were only 3 divisions, making it more likely to happen. The 1999 Jaguars lost to the Titans (after the Titans had beaten the Bills two weeks earlier via Music City Miracle) in the AFC Championship. From wiki: The Jaguars finished the 1999 season 15–3, with all three of their losses coming against the Titans. Not surprisingly, this was the only time in NFL history that a 3-loss team met all of its losses at the hands of only one team.

But also looming, is an All-Pennsylvania Super Bowl. In fact, I think that's exactly what's going to happen. Simmons mentions this possibility at 22:15 in today's 1/12 B.S. Report, and says "obviously that's never happened before."

It's unclear to whether he's referring to All-Pennsylvania never happening before, or both teams from one state. But of course, Hoagie Central takes you deeper.

Super Bowl XXV on January 27, 1991 featured the New York Giants and the Buffalo Bills.

Super Bowl XXIX on January 29, 1995 featured the San Diego Chargers and the San Francisco 49ers. Since the Giants play in New Jersey, this could technically be called the first.

playoff betting

So both the Sports Guy and I went 0-4 this weekend.

Cousin Sal on the 1/5 B.S. Report that suggested you could bet the underdogs on the money line in all four games, thinking that at least 2 underdogs would win. Well, now that 3 underdogs won, that looks like sage advice. How much would it have paid off?

Starting with $400, putting $100 on each money line.

Ravens +130 = $130
Cardinals +330 = $330
Eagles +165 = $165
Chargers =240 = $-100

That's a profit of $525.

Of course, if you had $4000 to put on these games, you could have made $5,250. In fact, just the Cardinals win alone, would have been enough to make money under this system.

Pigskin Pick'em 08 Wrap

Here's where we stood about halfway through the season:

Weeks 1-7
Mark: 54-48 = Up $120
Sports Guy: 52-47-3 = Up $100
Sports Gal: 50-49-3 = Up $20
Dave: 50-52 = Down $40

Here's how we finished down the stretch:

Weeks 8-17
Sports Guy 80-69-6 = Up $220
Sports Gal 78-71-5 = Up $140
Dave 61-58 = Up $60
Mark 59-57 = Up $40

which means...

2008 Season
Sports Guy: 132-116-8 = Up $320
Sports Gal: 128-120-8 = Up $160
Mark 113-105 = Up $160
Dave 111-110 = Up $20

So Mark finished with the same record as the Sports Gal, truly a noble feat. And I barely eeked out a positive record.

So would the Sports Guy's advice actually win you money with a Vegas commission?

Putting $20 on every game, you would win $2399.76. And you'd lose $2320.
So after betting every game of the NFL season, you'd come out about 80 bucks ahead. Sweet.

As for me, even though I was right more often than not, I would have lost $180 this year, due to commission.

The Top Ten of 2008

2008 came and went with 222 posts. Considering there are 260 weekdays, then factoring in holidays, vacations, carry the one, and it's about a post every work day. But alas, some are better than others. Here was the best 4.50% of Hoagie Central in 2008.

Oh yeah, and I redirected the top tens from previous years, so you can click on the "best of" tag and see all the best posts ever on this site.

Honorable Mention:

Mark's Offensive Pictures from Tel Aviv

I'm throwing Mark a bone here. It was his only post in 2008. Maybe next year he'll crack the top ten.


Top Ten of 2008

10. XLII Ultimate Multi-Meat Crockpot

Gotta love hi-res meat pictures.

9. Paying Off a Wager

I'm a man of my word.

8. Beach Volleyball

This was fun, and a funny post.

7. Rose Bowl Recap

From New Year's day to almost New Year's Eve...

6. How To Cook A Steak on a George Foreman

Gotta love hi-res meat pictures.

5. Music

A look back at why we like what we like.

4. Muck Fichigan

Although Illinois had a disappointing year, this made up for it.

3. Da Colbert Code Bracketology: Part One and Part Two

These still crack me up. Also notable as they were part of my London series that was futureblogged.

2. Memphis Recaps: Part One and Part Two

An amazing trip with lots of pictures to bring back the sights and sounds and smells.

1. Hoagie Central's Political Coverage

2008 was a special year and I did my best to capture what I was feeling and thinking throughout the year.

• Political Playoffs
• Wasilla Main Street
• Relevancy
• Endorsement
• Election Eve
• Election Day
• Point/Counterpoint
• The World Reacts
• History In The Making
  
• What It Was Like To Be There

top ten george w bush ice cream flavors

Upon hearing that Ben & Jerry's renamed Butter Pecan in honor of Obama's inauguration (Yes Pe Can!) the reddit community came up with flavors to honor the current president.

I didn't create these, simply organized this list from this source.

Honorable Mention
Grape Depression
Freedom Vanilla Ice Cream
Guantana Mo' Chocolate
Wiretapioca
Impeach Cobbler
Nut'n Accomplished
Weapons of Mass Delicious
Misunderestimated Mint

Top Ten George W. Bush Ben & Jerry Flavors
10. Constitution Crumble
9. Irocky Roadside Bomb
8. No Chocolate Left Behind
7. Marshmallow Accomplished
6. George Bush Doesn't Care About Dark Chocolate
5. Heckuva Job Brownie
4. Frozen Dog Shit
3. Can't Fool Me Twice Cream
2. Good Riddance You Lousy Motherfucker... Swirl
1. Cluster Fudge

little plays that make a big difference

Ravens @ Titans

Of course the Titans turnovers were killer. But there were other plays that made a difference.

1. The Ravens were trailing 7-0 and had a 3rd and 18 at their own 47. Then Vanden Bosch goes offsides making it 3rd and 13. The ensuing play: Flacco goes deep to Mason for a 45-yard touchdown. I think it's likely that on 3rd and 18 the Ravens would have been conservative, as they had been to that point.

2. Early in the 2nd, it's 7-7 and the Titans have a 3rd and 3 on the Ravens 25. They complete a 5-yard pass and on 4th and 8 from the 30 they decide to go for it, apparently because they were kicking into the wind. But I wonder if Fisher knew the game was going to be 10-10 in the 4th, if he would have rather had a 47-yard field goal attempt instead of a 4th and 8 attempt.

3. Still 7-7 in the 3rd when the Titans appear to complete a 5-yard pass to the Ravens 28, which would have brought up 4th and 2. Even though it wasn't a first down and it appeared to be a completion, the Ravens challenge it--they were right, he was juggling the ball. That made it a 51-yard field goal (with the wind) and Bironas missed it wide left.

In a 13-10 game, every little thing counts.

Cardinals @ Panthers

The game started with an opening touchdown drive by the Panthers, and then their defense forced the Cardinals into 4th and 23 at the Panther 39. At this point it seemed like this was on it's way to be a blowout. Here are some sample comments from Deadspin:


1. Then Graham punted 30 yards pinning the ball inside the Panthers 10. This led to a 3 and out on 3 runs, a Panther punt, which gave the Cards good field position.

2. Up 17-7 with 5 minutes left in the 1st half, the Cards had a 4th and 1 on the Panther 13. They sent out Rackers for the figgie. A guy (I think it was Daryl Johnston) on Fox thought this was a terrible decision saying that "everything is going their way, and it'll be 21-20 right away if they kick the field goal." While normally I am pro-going for it, I though kicking was the right call. You have all the momentum and 20-7 is a good place to be with 35 minutes remaining.

As it turned out, kicking looks pretty smart. If they go for it, and don't get it, the Panthers are only down 10 with the ball and some momentum in the 2nd quarter.

Oh yeah, and Delhomme's 5 turnovers, no wait 6, didn't help either.

songs stuck in my head from commercials

Watching football all day, two songs got stuck in my head.

Geico commercial: "Somebody's Watching Me" by Renald Francoeur. (Cover of a Rockwell song, produced by Mysto & Pizzi for Geico and available for free download here.)

24 commercial: "Let It Rock" by Kevin Rudolf feat. Lil' Wayne.

I'm sure I'm not the only one.

awful announcing

I just heard a guy (I think it was Daryl Johnston) on Fox say these two sentences, referring to the Arizona Cardinals: "I really think that this offense fuels the entire team. Including the defense."

it doesn't get much better than this

Here I am enjoying the last minutes of a great playoff game, and it's the first of four this weekend. I've got my spicy chicken oven-baked nachos. (You do have oven-safe plates, right?) Life is good.


Here's a better view of the TV and helmets, unobstructed by my spicy chicken oven-baked nachos.

home team 08 in the books

The overall Home Team winner ended with 1925 points, over 113 a week.

After getting to 1598 over 16 weeks, I produced 52 points in week 17. That leaves me as the 5th best Chiefs' fan after being at the top for nearly the whole season.


Here's who let me down:

playing out the BCS playoffs

Well, college football is over. And it's so obvious that Florida is the best team in the country because they only lost once and because of the way they won their last ten games in a row in dominating fashion, including beating Alabama in a major game 31-20.

There's no way that Utah who went undefeated and beat Alabama in a major game 31-17 should be considered the best team in the country.

And there's no way that USC who only lost once and won their last nine games in a row in dominating fashion should be considered the best team in the country.

I'm sure glad we have the BCS to settle things on the field!

/sarcasm

So now that the bowl season is over, I'd like to guess how things would have shaken out in a playoff, based on their bowl performances.

This will be based on the current Fymbo Formula: 1.1a

Fiesta: #1 Oklahoma (Big 12) vs #8 Boise State (non-BCS)

Boise played TCU tight and lost by 1, Oklahoma played Florida tight and lost by 10. It wouldn't shock me if Boise pulled the upset in this rematch, but I think that BS doesn't have the defense of Florida. Oklahoma advances.

Sugar: #2 Florida (SEC) vs #7 Penn State (Big Ten)

Florida crushes Penn State. Duh.

Orange: #3 Texas (Big 12) vs #6 Utah (non-BCS automatic)

Texas needed a miracle to scrape by a Big Ten team, Utah has no trouble with former #1 from the SEC. Utah advances.

Rose: #4 Alabama (SEC) vs #5 USC (Pac-10)

Alabama loses to Utah, USC beats Penn State. USC advances

Semifinal #1: Oklahoma vs USC

Based on OU's performance last night, I have to think that USC has no trouble with Bob Stoops.
USC advances to Championship.

Semifinal #2: Florida vs Utah

This is where our simulation ends. My brain thinks that Florida is probably better than Utah, but how will we know unless they play it out? My brain also would have said a few years ago that Boise State had no shot against Oklahoma. I also thought Utah would lay an egg against Alabama, just like Hawaii did last year.

And this is exactly why we need a playoff. Because there are a bunch of teams that could argue they are the best. And they don't get to settle it on the field.

And one last point, how come the presidents and networks and everyone in the world doesn't see that a BCS Playoffs + Existing Bowl Schedule = More Money. This year we had 34 bowl games, including a 4 regular BCS bowls and 1 National Championship. We could have 36, 4 BCS bowls, 2 semifinals, and a championship game. We'd be adding two must-see games to the schedule. That's more money and I don't need a crazy guy in a suit of question marks to tell me so.

my favorite players in the league

These are not the best players on each team. These are the guys that play the game the right way, or that I like for some stupid reason unrelated to football.

AFC East
Dolphins - Ronnie Brown. I like his style.
Pats - Almost went with Welker, but you have to give it up to Mr. Construda: Maroney.
Bills - It sure as shit aint Lee Evans. He never shows up. Moorman is the toughest punter in the league.
Jets - Leon Washington. I like the fast running backs.

AFC North
Ravens - Easy. Ed Reed. Plays the game the way it should be.
Steelers - Also easy. Polamalu. See Reed, Ed. These two guys were the inspiration for this post.
Browns - Josh Cribbs. When in doubt, go with the good special teamers. Definitely not Braylon Eddrops.
Bengals - Ocho Cinco. Call me sentimental, but I long for the days when he would actually get in the end zone.

AFC South
Titans - Haynesworth. Even when he's not stomping faces.
Colts - I would pick Bob Sanders but he's never healthy. Dwight Freeney.
Texans - Steve Slaton. See Washington, Leon.
Jags - MJD. I like the way he blocks.

AFC West
Chargers - Gates and Sproles are good. I like Cromartie.
Chiefs - Dwayne Bowe - A spark on an otherwise lackluster team.
Broncos - Brandon Marshall. I like anyone who can survive McDonald's wrappers.
Raiders - Apparently Nnamdi is good. Whatever, I'm not picking a favorite Raider. Fuck them.

NFC East
Giants - Osi Umenyiora. I don't think I need to explain.
Eagles - Westbrook. He does it all.
Cowboys - DeMarcus Ware. I like pass rushers. He's good.
Redskins - Portis aka Southeast Jerome.
NFC North
Vikings - Purple Jesus. He runs through people.
Bears - Forte. He's old school. So is Urlacher, but eh...
Packers - Jordy Nelson. For a while I thought he might be a Chief. Local guy.
Lions - Megatron. How he didn't win them one game is beyond me.

NFC South
Panthers - Julius Peppers. He's awesome. So is Steve Smith, but Peppers gets the nod.
Falcons - Michael Turner. Both him and Brees were good at San Diego, and I'm glad they're not there anymore.
Bucs - As of 12/8/08, it's Antonio Bryant.
Saints - Brees. The only QB on the list. He's as tall as me.

NFC West
Cardinals - Boldin. I like the way he plays through face injuries.
49ers - Singletary. I like coaches that drop their pants.
Seahawks - This division's terrible. I can't even remember, do I like Julian Peterson?
Rams - Shit, I don't know. I guess S-Jax. My least favorite player in the league might be Richie Incognito. He sucks.

Did I forget anyone? Let me know who your favorites are in the comments.

nfl playoffs thoughts

So when the playoff teams were set, I started thinking about the teams in the NFC, and I thought that it was entirely possible that the two best teams were the Giants and the Eagles. Which got me thinking about a possible division rivalry in the NFC Championship.

So I looked it up. The 4-division alignment was created prior to 2002. So there have been 6 complete postseasons, meaning 12 conference championship games. And none of them have featured division opponents.

Of course, once I realized the Eagles were the 6th seed, and the Giants were the 1st, I realized it was impossible for them to meet next week. But in the AFC, it could happen, as the Steelers and Ravens are still alive in separate games this weekend.

Here's a quick recap of the divisions left:

NFC East
NFC East
NFC South
NFC West

AFC South
AFC North
AFC North
AFC West

So much for the AFC East which had 2 teams finish 11-5.

Last week, even though I can't prove it, I was dead right on the Cardinals, Eagles, and Ravens. But the one I was most confident about, the Colts, didn't come true. So I'm 3-1 so far.

This week, I'm going with the Titans -3, Panthers -10, Giants -4, as home favorites. And I learned my lesson on the Chargers +6.

Although even though I know Carolina wins, I don't like giving 10 with Jake Delhomme.

national champs

As soon as the line opened, I knew I wanted Florida -3.

And yet right now, it's as high as -6. Heck, I'd take the Gators -9.5. Oklahoma's offense is overrated.

UF 23, OU 14.

Sunset Highway (Route 26 to Portland)

So considering this was recorded without a proper camcorder, and edited without proper software, and YouTube wouldn't let me use "Night Drive" by Jimmy Eat World, I suppose this turned out pretty good. YouTube let me choose some copyright-free music. This is "Destination Nonspecific" by Colin Mutchler.

Update: I've used Vimeo to upload the original video I created with the Jimmy Eat World song. Please vote for which one you like better in the comments below.


Sunset Highway (Route 26 to Portland) from dave fymbo on Vimeo.

puget sound panorama

Update: Here's a link to the full gallery.



Okay, so technically a better description would be Elliot Bay, but that doesn't roll off the tongue. It was taken using 5 photos from Alki Point in West Seattle. And yes, you owe it to yourself to click on the pic for high-res detail.

The Board recap

Week 2: Bulger & Royal (Mark) vs Big Ben & Ginn (Dave): Mark wins this wager 22-13.

Week 8: Thomas Jones 100 yards -- Under (Mark) vs Over (Dave): Mark wins this wager at 54.

LT a top ten RB?: no (Mark) vs yes (Dave): Dave wins this wager (6th).

Peyton a top three QB? no (Mark) vs yes (Dave): Mark wins this wager (6th).

More TD: Colston (Mark) vs Croyle (Dave): Mark wins this wager 5-0.

Chiefs/Lions wins at 7.5 -- under (Mark) vs over (Dave): Mark wins this wager at 2.

Portis (Mark) vs any rookie RB (Dave): Dave wins this wager with Matt Forte and Slaton (226, 210 vs 205)

Total: Mark 5, Dave 2