March 2008
47 posts
NCA-Eh? Part 12: Butler-Tennessee
Seventh-seeded Butler lost to Tennessee in overtime. What did I learn from this incorrect prediction? Choosing Butler violated the rule about not picking a school if you don’t know what state it’s in. For the record, Butler is in Indianapolis, Indiana. Still, if they’d managed to hit a single one of their layups down the stretch, I would have looked like a genius. I might have...
NCA-Eh? Part 11: Davidson-Georgetown
Tenth-seeded Davidson defeated #2-seed Georgetown in a second-round game. What have we learned? My main mistake was overlooking the pedigree of Davidson guard Stephen Curry, son of Wardell “Dell” Curry, former NBA Sixth Man of the Year. I know Dell Curry better from his performance NBA Showtime, a game in which he is ridiculously dominant. I logged hundreds of hours watching virtual...
“Oh my God. Are you kidding?”
– West Virginia’s Cam Thoroughman, after being told that Duke’s Greg Paulus had been a high school All-American.
NCA-Eh? Part 10: Marquette-Stanford
Third-seeded Stanford defeated Marquette in overtime. What have we learned? I would feel worse about this choice if the game hadn’t gone all the way to OT. I thought Marquette and Stanford were equally talented; in that situation, I think you should go with the lower seed just to play the percentages. Except, I guess, when the lower seed is a school that can’t decide what their mascot...
NCA-Eh? Part 9: Oregon-Mississippi State
Mississippi State beat ninth-seeded Oregon. What have we learned? Dominant Animal Theory would have chosen the Bulldogs over the Ducks. This also continues the Bulldog revival - after some early losses, Butler, Miss St., and Georgetown brought it back. Somewhere, an overworked video editor at a local news station is cutting together a highlight package using “Who Let the Dogs Out?” I...
“For me, I would only be more embarrassed if were that sting-ray’s dad.”
– Sean, contemplating what life is like for parents of the Cornell Big Red and certain marine life. (via caffeinated)
NCA-Eh? Part 8: Siena-Vanderbilt
13 seed Siena beat fourth-seed Vanderbilt by twenty points. What have we learned? Go with Catholics on Good Friday, as long as they’re not in Philly, I guess. I did think Vandy was overrated, but I didn’t have them losing until the next round. Commodores and bricks just go together, whether we’re talking about outside shooting or the kind of house a mighty mighty woman...
NCA-Eh? Part 7: St. Joseph's-Oklahoma
Oklahoma withstood a furious comeback from 11th-seeded St. Joseph’s. What have we learned? I guess you can bet against some of the Catholic schools playing on Good Friday. Maybe Jesus has a problem with Philadelphia.
NCA-Eh? Part 6: Purdue-Baylor
Six-seeded Purdue beat the Baylor Bears handily. What have we learned? Don’t choose the worst at-large team in the tournament to beat a school that never loses in the first round.
NCA-Eh? Part 5: UNLV-Kent State
Eight-seed UNLV defeated nine-seed Kent State, holding them to just ten points in the first half. What have we learned? I didn’t put enough thought into this game, exemplified by the fact that I thought I’d picked UNLV while watching the game. The lesson is, you should never associate Kent State University with accurate shooting.
NCA-Eh? Part 4: Connecticut-San Diego
The University of San Diego defeated 4-seed UConn in overtime. What have we learned? Don’t pick against Catholic schools who are playing on Good Friday.
NCA-Eh? Part 3: Notre Dame-George Mason
Five-seed Notre Dame handled George Mason fairly easily. What did we learn? My anti-Notre Dame bias, the result of years of conditioning by my self-loathing Irishman father, blinded me to the fact that George Mason is nothing special. If anything, you should pick teams you hate more to advance, so you salvage something from their inevitable advancement. It also might just be that I have a soft...
NCA-Eh? Part 2: USC-Kansas State
11-seed Kansas State beat USC. What have we learned? USC is fundamentally evil. Win or lose, you are getting screwed over by USC. I’m sorry I still have to look at those three letters on my bracket, even when they’re crossed out.
NCA-Eh? Part 1: Drake-Western Kentucky
Here’s the first in an examination of my unsuccessful NCAA Tournament selections, to see what I can learn. First up, Western Kentucky’s overtime upset of five seed Drake. 1. Don’t ever select a school to advance to the Sweet Sixteen if you don’t know what state they’re in. For the record, Drake University is in Des Moines, Iowa. 2. Bulldogs are 0-for-3 so far. Based...
Interview with Rich Vos, by Sean Keane →
Rich Vos is at the Punchline this week. I interviewed him for SFStandup.com, a site where you can also read my interview with comedian Matt Kirshen. So far I’ve only interviewed former Last Comic Standing contestants, which means, Call me, Dat Phan!
Watch“Who’s the Attending?”: My friend Boback adapts a classic Abbott & Costello routine for medical school at the UC Irvine Talent Show. Simply fantastic. It’s a shame that he’s devoted his life to “helping people” and “saving lives” instead of performing comedy all the time. Some all-time classic Boback comedy pieces from the Squelch:...
WatchMLB Roundup, Episode 5. I dispense advice on naming your fantasy baseball team. I really did call my team the Colofraudo Suckies, and Mike B’s team is indeed Debbie Does Odalis.
WatchBlack Guys on a Beautiful Day. Direction by Alex Koll. Stunning physique by Greg Edwards.
Dolores Park Couture →
Dolores Park Couture is a new blog devoted to the ridiculous fashion on display every weekend at SF’s Dolores Park. Sunday was a scorcher, so it was the first primo park day of 2008. There were some interesting sartorial choices on display, including the toddler wearing a puffy jacket that looked like it was made out of a space blanket. Maybe his parents were trying to get him to lose...
WatchEpisode 4 of MLB Roundup is complete, featuring a snazzy new opening sequence for “Baseball Takes the Bus”. In this episode, I discuss the importance of learning how to pronounce players’ names before your fantasy draft, and I wear my cap backwards in a flashback sequence. In other words, it just keeps getting better.
Zach Galifianakis...
chrisgarcia: peterberkman: jakoblodwick: …mentioned he just told Time Warner Cable he was not going to be the face of their new ad campaign. It would’ve only been 11 days of work and would have paid him $700,000 dollars. Yes, read that again. $700,000. Via sharingtime. Integrity is fucking awesome. Of course, talking to a live audience about your integrity is extra fucking awesome. Of...
WatchPatrick Swayze has pancreatic cancer. For now, let’s dwell on the good times. The above clip may well have been the career apex for both Swayze and Farley. R.I.P., Barney. Keep fighting, Adrian!
Can Vitamin C Prevent the Common Cold? →
There’s no evidence that Airborne cures or prevents colds, but I was surprised to learn that Vitamin C doesn’t do anything to prevent colds, either, unless you’re under high physical stress (Newsweek says, “Think marathon runners or soldiers on subarctic exercises.”). Why do people believe Vitamin C fights the common cold? Because Stanford’s Linus Pauling said...
Airborne - Not Actually a Cold Remedy →
g33ts: (via bfizzle) bullshit or not, i have to say the only time i got sick last year and this year so far is when i DIDNT take airborne. gimme my placebo effect!! I was always suspicious of Airborne’s proud claim that it was developed by a schoolteacher. I personally would favor a product that was “developed by a scientist”, but that’s just me. More on Airborne’s...
