Monthly Archives: October 2011

Best Bills in Toronto Series game ever!

Posted by gruesomegreg on

Now that the hangover has mostly worn off, I feel that I can report on the events of yesterday afternoon/evening with some clarity.  Much like last year, I was seated in roughly the same section in the 500 level, on the 50-yard line, which is arguably the best view of the action you can get for 140 dollars or less.  When I had bought the four-game pack initially, I was seated up behind the end zone in the 500s, which wasn’t that great a vantage point.  Mind you, the action was never that great, either…

This is what a 140-dollar view in Toronto looks like.  If there’s no one in stands, it’s cuz this was taken during warmups.

But this year, things were different.  The Bills came into town with a winning record, and surprise surprise, Buffalonans came out in droves–or at least the Torontonians dusted off the Bills jerseys from deep in their closets, as did yours truly.  While past crowds were skewed almost equally between fans of the “home team” and the visitors, this time, I’d say Bills fans outnumbered their opponents at least three-to-one.  (Of course, it didn’t hurt that the Redskins had little hope with their MASH unit offence, which likely kept some of their supporters from making the trip…)  If anything, last year’s game against the Bears was the opposite…

This time, I was not only surrounded by Bills fans, but almost shocked to hear some noise for the defence–Buffalo’s defence, that is!  Well okay, the noise died down considerably once the Bills took a big lead, even if the City TV promos on the Jumbotron didn’t.  But it’s hard to fault the fans for letting up a bit when their team cruised to a 23-0 victory, moving into a first-place tie in the AFC East in the process.  It seemed that whenever John Beck got the Redskins within scoring distance, he got picked off–and how bout those nine sacks by the front seven!?  I guess they just needed that extra encouragement, after all.

It was also nice to see that even during an NFL game, the Rogers Centre isn’t solely sponsored by Budweiser anymore, and while they were running outta Stella in the upper deck by halftime, I got a couple $10.25 Keith’s in me after pre-drinking during the Calgary-Montreal CFL game.  Speaking of games last Sunday, that matchup at Percival Molson was everything this one wasn’t, but hey, I’m just happy to see the Bills win one up here during the regular season.  Besides, it kept me away from that ugly-looking egg the Seahawks laid against Cincy last evening…

Sadly, I can’t say I’m surprised by Seattle’s shitastic performance.  If there’s one positive looking forward, its that their next opponent, Dallas, was equally embarrassed yesterday–and that Tony Romo’s holding for the Cowboys again.  Oh, and also that we get the Redskins in Week 12. ;)

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It’s a Hard Knock Life for Raffi Torres…

Posted by gruesomegreg on

I didn’t really need another reason to hate a guy who played most of his career with Vancouver and Edmonton–my two least-favourite cities, not to mention hockey teams–and is a known cheap-shot artist (or a “hard-nosed, scrappy player,” as Don Cherry would say).  But after pictures from a Phoenix-area (where his career is currently languishing) Halloween party came out, you can now add “racist honky” to the list of Reasons Why I Hate Raffi Torres.

Apparently, Torres and his wife are supposed to be Jay Z and Beyonce.  He’s kinda got the look down, but she looks a lot more like JWoww.  That said, neither of them are normally that dark, which has such media luminaries as Bomani Jones (who?) and the anonymous news writer for Global up in arms.

Now, I know what he was thinking.  “Man, if I don’t make myself look darker, people will think I’m Eminem!”  But getting a spray tan doesn’t solve anything.  Sure, it’s a far cry from Al Jolson in black-face, but it’s about as funny to most people as this impression of Bill Cosby.  (Well okay, that sketch is pretty good…)

Don’t get me wrong, Torres is an idiot for going out as Jay Z for Halloween (among other reasons), but if people are so offended by bad spray tans, then why hasn’t the NAACP tried to take Jersey Shore off the air, yet?

COMMENT OF THE DAY: Is the alimony shoe on the other foot?

Posted by gruesomegreg on

From: http://content.usatoday.com/communities/entertainment/post/2011/10/kim-kardashian-filing-for-divorce-from-kris-humphries/1

In a move that didn’t even shock the vapid airheads who watched their wedding on TV (91 per cent of respondents to a USA Today poll weren’t surprised), ex-Raptors reserve power forward Kris Humphries and sex tape reality star Kim Kardashian have announced their divorce after less than two and a half months of marriage.  Considering that Humphries and his fellow NBA players are locked out for at least the next month, one commentor on this useless piece of trash news wonders whether she’ll be paying him in the settlement.

 

(How Kim Kardashian is worth more than a pro basketball player is beyond me!)

URBAN EATERY ODYSSEY DAY 20: Crepe de licious

Posted by gruesomegreg on

A healthier alternative to the burger joint next door, Crêpe de licious makes its crepes right in front of you when you order them, pouring the batter onto a round element, then stuffing it with a selection of toppings.  I went with the chicken Cesar, which also included lettuce, tomato and fresh mushrooms, a nice added touch.

The warm, flaky pastry was a tasty alternative to the traditional tortilla wrap, though I could still taste a hint of sugar, remnants of many dessert crepes made on the same grill.  Probably worth heading back there for dessert some time…

NOTE: Although we’ve reached the end of October, I still have two weeks’ worth of food stalls to visit, so I’ve decided to continue on my quest to its natural conclusion.  Bon appétit!

The Bills are in TO today, and they’ve actually got a good shot at winning!

Posted by gruesomegreg on

Although I haven’t really been a Bills fan since they benched Doug Flutie, I’ve been to every Bills in Toronto game since they started hosting ‘em here in ’08.  There’s something special about seeing NFL football in person, even if the Toronto crowds–an even split between Bills fans, fans of the opponent, and impartial Torontonians–aren’t an exact replica of a real NFL environment.  Alas, after a few ugly losses to the likes of the Dolphins, Jets and Bears, Buffalo comes into this game four-and-a-half-point favourites and thus, I am hoping for a home-away-from-homefield win today.

I gotta say, this is the first time since the days of Dougie that the Bills have had a team worth watching.  They stormed out of the gate, lighting up opponents like Kansas City and Oakland, and pulling off impressive nail-biting wins over New England and Philadelphia.  Despite two last-minute losses to the Giants and Bengals, they sit at 4-2, just a game behind the Patriots for first place.  Harvard man Ryan Fitzpatrick has led a team of mostly no-name receivers to the tune of 12 TD passes and almost 1,500 yards through six games, while RB Fred Jackson has put up some of the best numbers at his position of any back in the league (880 total yards, 6 TDs).  Their defence has been known to give up its share of points, but that shouldn’t pose a problem against the anemic Redskins offence.

Just how bad are the Skins this season?  Well, they started the year with Rex Grossman as their starting quarterback, and haven’t scored more than 20 points in a game since the first two weeks of the season.  Grossman was so bad two weeks ago that he’s been benched for John Beck, a guy who last played for Miami–in 2007.  Adding injury to insult, they’ve lost starting running back Tim Hightower and superstar tight end Chris Cooley for the season, and Santana Moss, arguably their best receiver, fractured his hand last week.  But even with those three players healthy, they barely squeaked out a 17-10 win over the shitty St. Louis Rams.  My bet is that they don’t even cover the spread.

Speaking of spreads, did you know that the Cincinnati Bengals are three-and-a-half-point favourites in Seattle this afternoon?  When I bought my Bills ticket, I figured the Bungles to be an easy win for the Hawks.  Now it almost looks like the opposite.  It’s probably just as well that I won’t be watching that game…

LET’S GO BUFFALO!

Moneyball is worth the price of admission!

Posted by gruesomegreg on

Well, after going on a rant about salaries in baseball last nite (see post below), I finally went and saw Moneyball in theatres today.  I know, it’s been a while since it premiered at TIFF, and I’d been meaning to see it for a while, just never got a round tuit.  Alas, it seemed like a fitting way to cap off the baseball season, and there were still a couple theatres screening it in town, so I made it over the Varsity Cinema just in time for the early matinee.

Now, you wouldn’t expect to see Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill and Philip Seymour-Hoffman in a movie about baseball, though it was reasonably well-acted, particularly by Pitt, with Hill also turning in a solid performance in a non-comedic role.  That said, as much as I like the guy, Seymour-Hoffman’s portrayal of Art Howe reminded me too much of some of his past performances, and he didn’t really convince me as a baseball manager.  It was also amusing to see actors portray such mediocre major-leaguers as Scott Hatteberg, Chad Bradford and David Justice.  Incidentally, Ron Washington, the current Texas Rangers manager, was the A’s third base coach at the time, and his character is afforded some screen time in a couple scenes, notably telling Hatteberg that playing first base is incredibly hard.  Also, kudos to rookie actor Nick Porrazzo for making Jeremy Giambi look like a dick!

Obviously, the story, based on Michael Lewis’ book, is pretty true-to-life, with some notable exceptions.  For example, in the 2002 season, Giambi and Carlos Pena were traded a month and a half apart, whereas in the movie, Pitt deals them within minutes of each other.  (There’s no mention of the latter being part of a three-way trade in the film, either.)  That said, the dramatic moment where Hatteberg hits a walk-off homer for the A’s 20th straight win really did happen.

In the end, you really come to admire Pitt as Billy Beane, even though Beane isn’t quite as good looking in real life.  On the other hand, Jonah Hill’s Peter Brand was a fictionalized composite character based loosely on Paul DePodesta, though the circumstances of Brand joining the team differ slightly from DePodesta’s in reality.  DePodesta would later become GM of the Dodgers, though he only lasted two seasons in a role where a couple of L.A. Times writers referred to him as “Google Boy.”  Beane remarkably turned down a massive offer from Boston to remain where he is today, and is currently under contract till 2014.  Judging by this recent New York Times profile, he’s no longer optimistic about Oakland’s chances of competing with the big spenders.

In which case neither the movie nor reality offer a happy ending.  Mind you, moving the A’s to San Jose could really give the team a big boost…

Game 7 of the World Series goes tonite, and I’m all geared up for baseball!

Posted by gruesomegreg on

I must admit that I’m not the biggest baseball fan, though I have spent many a lazy Saturday or Sunday afternoon watching the Jays, including a couple at the ballpark.  I’ve also been a part of a fantasy baseball dynasty league that dates back seven years, and took a trip to Cooperstown back in August.

But, like I said, I’m not the biggest baseball fan.  In fact, it’s easily my least favourite of the four major sports.  Why, you ask?  Well, unlike the NFL–my favourite league, FWIW–where teams can go from worst to first in their division from one year to the next, there is no parity in baseball, because there is no salary cap.  Thus, a great divide exists between the teams that have money (New York, Philly, Boston) and spend it by the boatload, and those have-not teams who can only hope to parlay their high draft picks into solid young players that’ll lead them to a Wild Card spot or two before leaving for greener pastures.  Unfortunately for Toronto, they’re stuck in a division with two of baseball’s biggest spenders, so despite having a pretty decent young team–admittedly, with some holes to fill–their chances of making the playoffs amount to Bob Rae’s settings for Ideas, Leadership and Charisma–zip, zero, zilch!

That said, I do make a point of watching baseball’s postseason, particularly its last two rounds.  And as an anti-baseball-establishment fan, I tend to root for those underdog Wild Card teams over the Yankees, Phillies and Red Sox.  Thus, this year I was big on the Cardinals and Brewers–two teams that’ll likely lose their star first basemen to the big spenders–while in the AL, I was all for the Tigers beating the Yankees after the Devil Rays, who effectively knocked the Red Sox out of the playoffs, went down in the first round.  That said, I have no particular sentiment towards the Texas Rangers, who meet the Cardinals for all the marbles tonite.

The Rangers have a total payroll of 92 million, which puts them at 13th in the league, two spots and 13 million dollars lower than the underdog Cards–but well ahead of the Jays, who spent just 62 million this season.  It’s worth noting that Tampa Bay made the playoffs with the second-lowest payroll in baseball–a mere 41 mil–which is why I’ll always root for them in the playoffs, even though they’ve knocked Toronto down to fourth place in the AL East.

Texas won its division, the mediocre AL West, with relative ease–and solid pitching, on a squad that’s overseen by the great Nolan Ryan.  They also haven’t won a World Series in franchise history, which dates back to the early 60′s, although they lost in the finals last year.  On the other hand, St. Louis has had more recent success, winning in all in 2006.  That said, they’re a compelling underdog story, 10.5 games out of the playoffs at the end of August, and winning on the final day of the season to secure a spot, much like Tampa did.  The Cards then went on a run, knocking off the heavily-favoured Phillies and Brewers en route to their 18th NL pennant.  So, who does an impartial fan cheer for–the team that’s never won, or the true underdog story?

I must admit, I was undecided as the series swung back and forth, the two teams alternating wins over the first three games, with the Rangers gaining an edge by taking Games 4 and 5.  That said, if I was only casually following the Series up until now, catching a couple outs between commercial breaks of whatever football game was on, I was fully captivated by Game 6, an all-time classic.  With the Cardinals trailing by two and down to their final out–make that their final strike–local boy David Freese delivered a two-run triple to tie the game, sending it to extra innings.  Rangers slugger Josh Hamilton, a true comeback story himself, playing with an injured groin, delivered a two-run homer in the top of the 10th to take the lead.  Then, with the Cardinals down to their final strike again, Lance Berkman drove in the tying run with a seeing-eye single.  Bottom of the 11th, it’s Freese at the plate again, and he delivers a walk-off homer to win it.  Amazing!

After that performance, I know who I’m rooting for tonite, and it’s not the Texas Rangers.  I mean, could you imagine if the ’86 Mets lost to Boston in Game 7, then lost Keith Hernandez to free agency the following season?  Well, I wouldn’t wanna see it happen to the Cardinals, either!

That’s why, for just the second time, I’m putting everything else aside to watch baseball.  I’ll be heading out to a bar, where I can’t see the Flames on my laptop, and I’m even giving up my lingerie football ticket for the occasion.  (It was an 18-dollar purchase on Groupon, so no biggie.  I can think of several shitty albums that cost me more than 18 bucks, some of which had scantily-clad women on the cover…)

Although the sport of baseball is run with the same set of morals and ethics as Wall Street, I believe that the long-dormant baseball gods are smiling on St. Louis.  It is ironic that they’d have Texas, the heart of God’s country, come so agonizingly close for two straight seasons, but perhaps they’re sending ‘em a message: Thou shalt not kill with unconcealed firearms!

LET’S GO CARDS!

URBAN EATERY ODYSSEY: Week Four Recap

Posted by gruesomegreg on

This week, I ventured out to the Urban Eatery’s Centre Island where I sampled cuisine ranging from stir-fry to salad to burgers.  And no Virginia, this one doesn’t have a clothing-optional beach…

Though I went to Bourbon St Grill on Monday, not Tuesday, I still consumed plenty of gras.

Teriyaki Experience didn’t quite sizzle like Hendrix, but still had plenty of kick.

Liberty Noodle was right up there with Noodle Life and the Pursuit of Happy Noodles.

Next time I go to Urban Herbivore, I’m having the carrot juice, instead!

And finally, where there’s Big Smoke Burger, there’s fire–and horseradish mayo!

31% of Globe and Mail readers have probably never been laid, either…

Posted by gruesomegreg on

According to this recent Globe and Mail poll, almost 40 per cent of respondents said they’d provide full disclosure to their kids about past drug use—while almost a third said they never did drugs.  Would love to see what these poll results would look like over at the National Post. ;)

In the accompanying article, a Vancouver hippie lawyer(!) says he has spoken frankly with his 11-year-old about his drug use, adding “If it’s out there, I have probably consumed it.”  Meanwhile, a Toronto adman was puzzled as to why his daughter wouldn’t ask about his past drug use, until his spouse set him straight:

“You were a musician,” his wife told him. “Of course, she knows you were a stoner.”

COMMENT OF THE DAY: A modest proposal for a new national animal…

Posted by gruesomegreg on

From: http://www.vancouversun.com/technology/Senator+feted+beaver+months+before+dismissing+toothy+tyrant+national/5621897/story.html

Unintentionally making a strong argument for why the Senate should be abolished, Senator Nicole Eaton, who once called the beaver “an animal that fittingly occupies a prominent place on (our) coat of arms,” quoting historian Harold Innis, now feels that it’s a “toothy tyrant” and a “19th-century has-been,” which is ironic, considering that the same language could be used to describe her family, the once-proud owners of a now-defunct department store chain.

Apparently painfully aware of the beaver’s association with longtime nemesis HBC, Eaton instead suggests the polar bear as our new national animal.  (It seems the once-proud Canadian family has now stooped to receiving kick-backs from Coca Cola!)  That said, in the national debate brought up by this pointless outbreak of Bieber beaver fever, one Postmedia commentor has come up with a novel idea for a new national symbol:

 

Hey, if we ship ‘em off to the Mint, it means we won’t hafta pay their salaries anymore, right?

 

UPDATE 3:20 PM: In a cheekier article than one would expect from a syndicated news organization, this Reuters piece on Beavergate reveals Eaton’s true motives.  It seems that beavers destroyed the dock at her waterfront cottage.  How dare they!  Then of course, there’s the other unmentionable issue that’s revealed in the article:

 

“Eaton said the ever-busy dambuilders are now nuisance, but avoided mentioning another gnawing problem with the emblem: In modern times, its name is slang for female genitals.”

 

They even give Greenpeace an assist on this parting shot:

 

“You have a Conservative senator proposing to replace the beaver with the polar bear as the symbol of Canada, yet her government’s climate policy would appear to do everything possible to wipe our polar bears by the end of the century.” (I’m assuming he actually said wipe out.  Two minutes for poor typing!)

Final Score: Reuters 3, Eatons 0