This is a list of things I've noticed or thought about over the last few days. I'm not sure that any of them have really any importance, but since it's my blog, I get to write about whatever I feel like.
Tiger Woods:
During the interview that everybody is raving about, Tiger Woods made the statement that he started to feel entitled and that was his mistake because that isn't how he was raised. Am I the only one that could care less about what Tiger Woods does off of a golf course? Do I think he should cheat on his wife? Of course not! But, it matters just about as much to me if we soon discover (not saying we will) that he also cheats on his taxes. Neither effect me so stop shoving this Tiger Woods interview and coverage into every news broadcast. The part of his statement that made me laugh is because I don't see this as an issue of Tiger Woods feeling entitled, instead, it's the general public of America who's feeling entitled because they think he actually owes them some sort of explanation or apology or anything. News flash, unless your cutting Tiger Woods a check because of an endorsement deal, he doesn't owe you jack. And if you actively seek out the Tiger Woods coverage, make sure you don't have stuff in your own closet that you'd be embarrassed to talk about it publicly.
Health Care:
It passed the House, yay! Can anybody explain this thing to me? I have no idea what the hell the new bill even says or means. Here's a thought though, instead of the 5 minute Tiger Woods interview, why don't we have someone take 5 minutes to explain the Health Care bill in normal language so people can know what it is that we're excited about.
And don't worry Republicans, we're not quite France yet.
Commercials against raising taxes to support new energy something or another:
These commercials are pretty terrible, in general, but their main objective is to put normal people on camera saying it's always bad to raise taxes. I'm no supporter of raising taxes for the hell of it, but to be against all tax increases is just plain stupid. I have a theory that the people who are against all of these tax increases are also the ones that sit around and complain about pot holes in the road and that the snow wasn't removed fast enough. But, I guess that stuff should just happen on it's own.
NCAA Tournament:
So far I have picked ~65% of the games correctly. This gives me about a D in terms of school grades and in the 3 pools I'm participating in I'm in the top 5 (free), top 3 (money), and top 25% (there's a lot of people in that one, but it was also free). I also only turned in 1 bracket this year which I think is rare. Most people claim to be picking geniuses, but then you discover they submit 12 different brackets with almost all the upset permutations covered somewhere along the way. I think my current grade of a D and being pretty well ranked proves that nobody really knows what their doing when picking games and mostly the guy that wins is lucky. Or, maybe it doesn't.
Cycling:
Lance Armstrong and Alberto Contador are both racing Criterium International. This is basically the media's wet dream come true because they can invent this no holds barred bar fight that will obviously not take place during the race. A bit of history on Criterium International; Jens Voigt has won this race 5 years in a row. If you aren't aware Jens Voight, while a great bike racer, has no chance of winning a big grand tour like Lance and Alberto (I'm on a first name basis) focus on. Criterium International is going to be great training for both men, but my prediction is neither wins it, or is really even a factor. Another prediction is that regardless of where they place there will be a bigger story dedicated to who placed higher than who, than to the winner, which, is a shame. But, like all journalism, cycling journalism needs to sell copies and web advertisement and the way to do that is to hype up a rivalry that in reality isn't that interesting until July and even then I'm pretty sure it's going to be a let down.
Clothing choices on Metro:
Every morning and afternoon when I ride metro I am sort of blown away by what people wear to work. Not that I'm some sort of fashion expert, but some of this stuff is pretty ridiculous. I wish I could take sneaky pictures, but it's tough so often times I don't. This morning there was a guy in slacks, dress shirt and tie, oh and also a hi-vis yellow illumilite (reflective crap for night riding) wind vest on top. I get the need for this item of clothing making some people feel more safe while on their bikes, in the evening hours, but as a top layer over your other work clothes? You don't own a light jacket not meant for athletic activity? I guess if power goes out on metro that guy can lead the way? Oh, and don't let me forget the ladies that dress as if their headed out to the club. I mean if you want to dress like that fine, but don't whine and cry when nobody takes you seriously...
Dave Scott:
This past weekend I had the pleasure of participating in Team in Training's coaching certification course. It was informative and all that sort of good stuff, but the highlight was that TNT has Dave Scott as their coaching adviser and he runs all of these coaching clinics. If you don't know, this is Dave Scott, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dave_Scott_%28triathlete%29, winner of the Hawaii Ironman 6 times and pretty much all around bad ass. I'm always sort of hesitant when meeting people like this (not that it happens all the time) but you never know what kind of ego they're going to carry. Dave couldn't be a nicer guy. Within minutes on Saturday morning he was making his way around the room introducing himself, which, seemed un-necessary, however, over the weekend it became clear that he was generally interested in our stories as much as we were in his. It's refreshing when you meet someone who is so accomplished and within seconds you realize they are completely approachable. Probably most importantly, from a coaching standpoint, he's not one of these uber-successful racers who throws his name on the front of a coaching company and doesn't actually know anything. He's really knowledgeable when it comes to the physiology of training, which I found equally as impressive.
This got longer than I meant it to be. Happy Monday.
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