Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Carbonated Beverages + Computer != Fun

Posting to this blog is obviously going to slow down a little now that the Angels' season is over, but with college hockey, the NFL, the NHL, and soon the NBA, I really don't have a good excuse.

First, a casual note about playing with racquetballs indoors: it's dumb. I tried to swat a ball away from my roommate, hit the open, full Coke on my desk, and knocked it directly onto and into my PC through the conveniently located fan grille on top. The machine instantly hanged, and naturally the vent holes were directly over my PCI slots, dousing my video card, TV tuner card, and motherboard with delicious syrup.

Amazingly, all that really got destroyed was my network port. Everything else works, so I've installed a PCI network card and everything seems to be working fine. While I was cleaning the residue off the board, you could see where the acidic Coke etched away parts of a few traces near a chip. Unbelievable. This is why I can't have nice things.

Anyway, here's some brief recaps before I start looking at some homework.


Northeastern 4, Alaska-Anchorage 2

I'm in a little pool with the guys over at DHD, with my sponsored players being Ryan Ginand and JP Maley. For every game the Huskies win, I donate $5 to the program for each goal one of those players scores, $2 for an assist, and a $5 bonus for the gamewinning goal. Naturally, Ginand had two goals, including the gamewinner, in Northeastern's second and final game in Alaska.

The game had online video, so I got to watch the Huskies in action for the first time. Joe Vitale had a quiet series, which is unusual for him, but Ginand and McCauley had two goals each for the weekend, Thiessen looked solid between the pipes, and the freshmen, Quailer in particular, didn't look lost and seemed to fit into Cronin's system. The first home game is Saturday vs. BC, so I'm both excited and nervous.


Patriots 10, San Diego 30

Look, the Patriots can't win if they don't have an effective pass rush, and they didn't. Phil Rivers had hours in the pocket to go deep to a few different receivers, so the loss here doesn't surprise me. Frankly, one of these two teams needs to make it to the Super Bowl, so I'm not opposed to the Chargers beating the Pats.

Matt Cassel looked like crap, which is generally what happens when the other team knows how to pass rush and your team doesn't. This game, again, not Cassel's fault.


Rays 9, Boston 1

The Rays, America's new favorite team, took a 2-1 series lead by beating Jon Lester. Finally. I don't care what the statistics say. Jon Lester is not a #1 starter, and that he's pitched like one all season just shows how novelty can affect opposing lineups. This is the first year Lester's really had the opportunity to show himself to the whole league, and he introduced a new pitch. His stats will regress next season, and I look forward to it.

Also, I think Lester believes this more than anyone: He's not just a kid who beat cancer anymore. Cancer shouldn't define him. He's past it, it's done, respect the guy for his accomplishments and stop talking about his cancer every time he shows up on TV.

Evan "Wunderkind" Longoria and BJ Upton both had homers in the third, and it just kept piling on from there. I thought the Rays were dumb when they gave a rookie a big, long contract, but clearly they knew what we all now know. Go Rays.


Phillies 7, Dodgers 5

The Dodgers have no chance in this series after losing the first two, but I'm not sure I really care anymore. It's hard to root for a team whose fans threw full beers at me at a Dodgers/Angels game. It's also hard to root for the Phillies, since I hate Philly fans (at least Eagles/Flyers fans), and a small part of me still likes the Mets.

Either way, Cory Wade, who's really been quite good lately, gave up a 2-run dinger to Victorino to tie the game, and it was pretty much all-Phillies from there. The Dodger bullpen is looking like a very soft spot in the neck of the franchise.

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