BOSTON, BADGERS, BUSINESS AND BANTER

How you can help me at work in 2011

2011-01-02T17:03:00.002-06:00

In June of 2009, I wrote a blog post hinting that NESN.com -- my employer at that time -- was about to launch a new version of its Web site. Days later, my boss stumbled upon the post, which led to a mild scolding of me, warning me to be careful about divulging internal, easily-accessible information to the public. Needless to say, I'm going to be more cautious this time.

My current employer -- Coyote -- is a Third-Party Logistics firm; in other words, a "freight broker." We serve as a middle-man between customers with freight and trucking companies that can move that freight.

My job as a customer sales representative is to get freight from clients (clients that I must acquire myself) so we can effectively move that freight for them, based on our relationships with carriers (trucking companies, essentially) across the country. "Freight" is basically anything that can be moved on trucks. (I'd rather not give examples in order not to hint at any of our current clients. Yes, I'm being super safe here for aforementioned reasons.)

That said, I've realized a few things about business over the past few years. In order to be successful, you have to network as much as you physically can and you have to market yourself, which is what I'm doing now.

In 2010, I spoke to longtime friends Ryan Fannon and Danny Sullivan about moving freight for their respective companies, and I've been in touch with Missy Owens's company as well (I'll keep them anonymous for obvious reasons). I've also been in contact with several leads given to me by family members, one of which turned into my best customer in the fourth quarter of last year.

I've thought about posting this for a long time now, but figured that the first business eve of the new year was the most appropriate time for it.

In the past, I typically get 100-200 readers per blog post when I post it on Facebook (thank you, Google Analytics and Mark Zuckerberg), so I figured there was no better way for me to network and self-market than here.

So I ask you, if your employer, family friend, uncle, brother's neighbor or cousin's college buddy knows someone that moves freight, please let me know. Warm leads are always the best kind of leads.

In the same light, I'd love to help people with their own businesses, portfolios or job situations. Contrary to semi-popular belief, I'm actually a pretty selfless guy; I've hooked several people up with jobs at Coyote and have helped others with their business as well (the name Sean Goldfaden comes to mind).

I have a good feeling about 2011, especially for young people in the business world. I think there will be many places for hard-working, motivated young people fresh out of college.

So I ask for each of your help with my current, personal portfolio as we head into 2011. And if there's anything I can do to help you, please let me know as well. You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours. Sounds like a fair deal to me.

Thanks, guys. Happy New Year!

Week 7 Picks

2010-10-23T09:22:00.003-05:00

Last Week: 7-6-1

Overall: 49-37-4

Simmons Last Week: 7-6-1

Simmons Overall: 47-39-4

Pretty sure I screwed up the math somewhere before this week, so I'll trust that Simmons' overall numver of games is right, considering his picks are edited and posted on ESPN.com and mine are done here when I'm usually hungover. Simmons and I tied last week, so I hold a two-game lead over him heading into Week 7. What a matchup.

Steelers -3 at DOLPHINS -- The Steelers are the best team in football. They'll show why on Sunday.

FALCONS -3.5 Bengals -- If the Bengals weren't coming off a bye, this line would be Falcons -6. Do byes really help that much? We'll find out.

CHIEFS -6.5 Jaguars -- I normally hate -6.5. And I hate betting against teams that sucked on national TV the week before because everyone wants to bet against them. But the Chiefs are for real and after blowing it in Houston last week, they're on a mission. KC by 13.

TITANS -3 Eagles -- Short week for the Titans. Good thing they have that short running back who's faster than Brett Favre's decline from popularity. He sucked last week and had over 100 yards rushing. Isn't this about the same time he started averaging 278 yards and three touchdowns per game last season?

BEARS -3 Redskins -- Are they really going to lose two straight home games to the Seahawks and Redskins?

SAINTS -13 Browns -- Drew Brees and Co. finally found their rhythm last week against the Buccaneers in Tampa. The Browns at home shouldn't hinder that progress.

Bills +13 RAVENS -- Ryan Fitzpatrick has played relatively well since being inserted into the starting lineup. The Harvard boy has to keep it within two touchdowns coming off a bye, right? Definitely not, but I'll take the Bills here anyway.

49ers -3 PANTHERS -- Can the 9ers make the playoffs after starting 0-5? It's possible in the NFC West. Let's find out.

BUCCANEERS -2.5 Rams -- Dome team on grass with a rookie quarterback against a team who just got blown out against the defending champs. Duh.

Cardinals +5.5 SEAHAWKS -- Max Hall, anyone?

Patriots +3 CHARGERS -- No Vincent Jackson. Antonio Gates is banged up. No more LT. Dei0n has the game-winner in the 4th quarter. I think we've seen that one before.

Raiders +8 BRONCOS -- Eight points in a divisional game with Darren McFadden coming back from injury? I would have said 6.5 and still taken Oakland.

Vikings +3 PACKERS -- This is why they flew down to Mississippi to get Favre back. For this game alone.

COWBOYS -3 Giants -- NFC East road games are so tough. Can the 'Boys really go 1-5?

Week 6 Picks

2010-10-17T17:16:00.002-05:00

Last Week: 6-8

Overall: 42-29-3

Simmons Last Week: 9-5

Simmons Overall: 40-33-3

Simmons smoked me last week, but I still hold a three-game edge heading into Week 6. I didn't have time this week to write out a column, but I did email myself picks on Friday so I could post them late today, Sunday. Right now, the late games are in the second half, so I'll write what I was thinking (if anything) when I made them, then what actually happened in the games that are finished in italics.

Chargers -8 RAMS (L) -- Rams suck; Chargers don't. Uhh, turns out the opposite is true.

Chiefs +4.5 TEXANS (W) -- Part of me thinks this is a sucker bet; the other part thinks the Chiefs are for real. I'll go with the latter half. Thank god for that half-point.

PATRIOTS -2.5 Ravens (W) -- Never bet against Bill Belichick after a bye. Uhh thanks for the half-point. Again.

Saints -4 BUCCANEERS (W) -- The Saints have to click at some point, right? Yup.

EAGLES -2.5 Falcons (W) -- Kevin Kolb is better than he's getting credit for. Man, he has something to prove. Yup again.

GIANTS -10 Lions (L) -- Lions haven't won a road game since the Red Sox won the World Series in 2007. Yes, that's a fact, brought to you by none other than Jeremy Hyman. What a second half for Calvin Johnson. Lions cover, but still a goose egg since '07.

BEARS -6 Seahawks (L) -- NFC West teams can't win on the road out of the division. Uhh, yes they can.

PACKERS -3 Dolphins (L) --Packers don't lose at home, as long as A-Rod's healthy. Apparently they do.

STEELERS -13.5 Browns (W) -- Prediction: 38-3. Close enough.

Jets -3 BRONCOS -- You know I love home teams against teams on short weeks. Maybe if I pick the Jets and use reverse psychology, it will actually happen. Nah, I just think the Jets are that good.

Raiders +6.5 49ERS -- Have you ever seen an 0-5 team favored by 6.5 points? Ever?

Cowboys +1.5 VIKINGS -- Favre's toast.

Colts -3 REDSKINS -- Am I really supposed to bet against Peyton on primetime? Really?

Titans -2.5 JAGUARS -- I also love home teams +2.5. But I think I love Chris Johnson a bit more.

Week 5 Picks

2010-10-10T12:11:00.003-05:00

Last Week: 9-5

Overall: 36-23-3

Simmons Last Week: 6-8

Simmons Overall: 31-28-3

Slowly but surely I’m digging Simmons into a deeper and deeper hole. A blowout performance last week gives me some breathing room here for Week 5. But I show no mercy; time to bring the heat!

RAVENS -7 Broncos – Kyle Orton has looked more like John Elway than Kyle Orton through four weeks. Kyle, this is Ravens defense. Ravens defense, this is Kyle.

BILLS -1 Jaguars – The 0-4 Bills are favored at home after the Jags took down the Colts in Jacksonville. Love it!

COLTS -7 Chiefs – Never bet against Bill Belichick after a bye week. Oh wait, the Chiefs have Romeo Crennel, Charlie Weis, Scott Pioli, Matt Cassel, Mike Vrabel, but no Belichick. I’ll take Peyton Manning coming off a loss to the lowly Jaguars.

LIONS -3 Rams – Another 0-4 team favored? Wins against fellow NFC West teams don’t count in my book. Lions roll and Megatron leads my fantasy team to another victory, this time over Matt Magnani in my Framingham FAM keeper league.

Falcons -3 BROWNS – The Browns can’t win back-to-back games against winning teams, can they? Prove it!

Buccaneers +7 BENGALS – Man that’s a lot of points for a 2-1 team coming off a bye. Remember the name: Mike Williams.

PANTHERS -2.5 Bears – This line has shifted five points since Monday. Todd Collins at quarterback on the road? No thanks.

Packers -2.5 REDSKINS – Man I hate -2.5 on the road. But the Packers looked shitty against the Lions at home last week and the McNabb took down the Eagles in Philly that afternoon. Packers roll; that’s just how the NFL works.

TEXANS -3 Giants – Just like he did with “Shutter Island” for Tyler Fishbune last semester, Brian Walesa ruined Simmons’ Texans pick by posting it on my Facebook wall. Unfortunately, I agree with him. Playing the Bears after a Monday night battle with the Packers was a gift for the G-Men. This week, not so much.

Saints -7 CARDINALS – The Super Bowl champs haven’t quite clicked yet. A little dose of Derek Anderson and the Cardinals should do the trick. And by the way, Drew Brees, how about throwing the ball to Marques Colston, your best receiver? Could that help, perhaps? Jesus Christ, you’re killing my Bro Haus fantasy team! (That and Andre Johnson and Ryan Grant’s ankles, respectively).

Chargers -6 RAIDERS – For some reason I hate betting against the Raiders on late home games. I have no stats to back it up, just a gut feeling. But the Chargers are rollin’, and Darren McFadden is out. Go Phillip, go! Did I really just say that?

Titans +7 COWBOYS – The Cowboys Line Inflation Theory, brought to you by Jordan Russum. I mean, he did patent the Sucker Bet Theory with me in 2007. Seven points? I like it.

49ers -3 Eagles – Three 0-4 favorites at home. No more Michael Vick for Philly, at least for now. I’m calling it; Kevin Kolb actually poops in his pants when Patrick Willis stares at him at the line. Just remember where you heard it first.

Vikings +4 JETS – Ugh, I have to root for Randy Moss THIS week? Scratch that, I’m rooting for a 0-0 tie.

Week 4 Picks

2010-10-03T21:00:00.007-05:00

Last Week: 9-7

Overall: 27-18-3

Simmons Last Week: 10-6

Simmons Overall: 26-19-3

Once again, it came down to Monday night, but this time Simmons got me, taking the Bears at home over the Packers. What an impossible game to take, as the Pack shot themselves in the foot with 18 penalties on the road, never a recipe for success, especially away from home. I still have Simmons by a game overall, though. Now on to Week 4.

Broncos +6.5 TITANS – I love +6.5 lines, as most people think, “They’ll win by at least a touchdown.” Such an enticing line to take the favorites, but I won’t bite. Kyle Orton seems to have found a new weapon in Brandon Lloyd. Horses cover on the road. And don’t be surprised if Laurence Maroney has a significant impact either.

STEELERS -1.5 Ravens – Kind of weird they’re not -3 here; a little scary. But how can you bet against that defense right now? At home!

Bengals -3 BROWNS – Hate this game. Just can’t bet on the Browns getting only three.

Lions +14.5 PACKERS – Short week for the Pack. Too many points. I think?

Panthers +13.5 SAINTS – New Orleans hasn’t clicked yet. Pierre Thomas is banged up, Reggie Bush is out and Mike Bell is gone. That might just be enough for the Panthers to cover two touchdowns. Maybe.

49ers +6.5 FALCONS – 49ers were on a short week on the road last week. Falcons are coming off a huge win over the Super Bowl champs. Watch out for Frank Gore.

Seahawks -1 RAMS – Can the Rams really win two games in a row? I’ll take the under.

Jets -5 BILLS – Mark Sanchez actually looks like an NFL quarterback. That’s scary.

Colts -7 JAGUARS – I know they always play them tough. But I told you I refuse to bet against Peyton Manning.

Texans -3 RAIDERS – Ugh what a trap. You might find me at the bottom of the ditch.

CHARGERS -8 Cardinals – Phil Rivers doesn’t seem to be missing Vinny Jackson much. Can you say blowout?

Redskins +5.5 EAGLES – Can you say “Chip on your shoulder”? Does he get booed or cheered? That’s the million-dollar question.

GIANTS -4 Bears – Short week on the road. All day baby!

DOLPHINS pick Patriots – Obviously picking with my head here, not my heart. Pats never play well when they take their talents to South Beach.

Week 3 Picks

2010-09-26T16:28:00.003-05:00

Last Week: 10-5-1
Overall: 18-11-3
Simmons Last Week: 9-6-1
Simmons Overall: 16-13-3
For the second straight week, Senor Simmons and I were tied going into Monday night. And for the second straight week, I came out on top, after the 49ers covered at home against Drew Brees and the Saints. What a pick. Now, on to Week 3.
GIANTS -3 Titans – Gmen looked terrible last week against Big Brother Peyton. They bounce back with a win at home over Chris Johnson and Tennessee.

SAINTS -3.5 Falcons -- Brees and Co. take care of business at home.

PATRIOTS -14 Bills – I’d probably take the Pats -20 here. 31-3, homies. I swear that’s a partial opinion.
Browns +10.5 RAVENS – Too many points for a defensive-minded team in a heated rivalry game. Am I really betting on the Browns?
Steelers -2 BUCCANEERS – It’s a simple formula: when Troy Polamalu is on the field, the Steelers win.
Bengals -3 PANTHERS – Ugh, -3 on the road. The line is really only three with Jimmy Clausen making his first career start? Something’s fishy here, but I’ll take the cats, of the orange and black variety, that is.
CHIEFS +2.5 49ers – Love the Chiefs here. 9ers just impressed everyone at home against the Saints. Now they head to Arrowhead on a short week. No brainer.
Lions +11 VIKINGS – Detroit will be 0-3 leaving Minnesota, but 3-0 against the spread. Here, that’s all that counts.
Cowboys +3 TEXANS – The sucker bet of the week. The 0-2 Cowboys visit the red-hot 2-0 Texans. And the line’s only three. Vegas knows what’s up here. I’ll take “America’s team.”
Redskins -3.5 RAMS – Donovan McNabb looks refreshed in a ‘Skins uniform. I just can’t get myself to take the Rams getting less than four points against anyone. Although that didn’t serve me very well last week.
Eagles -3 JAGUARS – Man I’m taking a lot of road teams. I hate that. But Michael Vick will prove why he deserves to be the starter in Philly. He’s just got too much to play for.
Colts -5.5 BRONCOS – Every time I bet against the Colts, they cover. I just can’t do it anymore!
SEAHAWKS +5.5 Chargers – Do I have to take this game? Fine, Seattle is a much different team at home versus on the road. I’ll take the home dogs.
Raiders +4.5 CARDINALS – Ew. I’ll take the points.
DOLPHINS -1.5 Jets – With Revis out, Brandon Marshall goes off. Fins win at home and there’s a three-way tie atop the AFC East.
Packers -3 BEARS – Man this is a tough one. A-Rod for MVP. And I’m not talking about Alex Rodriguez.
Ugh, I took 10 away teams, six away favorites. Damn, I’m screwed.

Week 2 Picks

2010-09-19T13:16:00.003-05:00

Couldn't post this until my pool picks were in, obviously.

Last Week: 8-6-2

Bill Simmons Last Week: 7-7-2

It feels good to beat my nemesis who knows nothing about our heated rivalry in Week 1. We were tied at 6-6-2 heading into the Monday Night slate, but The Sports Guy took the Jets at home while I had faith in Joe Flacco and the Ravens on the road. We both had the Chiefs covering at home over the Chargers, so after Ray Lewis and Co. made Mark Sanchez look like Ryan Leaf, I had Week 1 locked up.

Now it’s Jay-Z time: On to the next one (man, I’m a dork)…

Chiefs +1.5 BROWNS – This smells like a serious sucker bet. Browns lost to Tampa. Chiefs beat the Chargers on Monday night, now heading on the road on a short week. Still, can’t bet against Patriots West until they prove me otherwise.

PACKERS -13 Bills – Not scared about laying 13. Not scared about no Ryan Grant, even though I’m pissed I drafted him in the 2nd round of my Bro Haus fantasy league. Pack in a blowout.

BENGALS +2 Ravens – Bengals didn’t even show up in Foxboro last week. Ravens on the road on a short week. Home team wins this tight division matchup.

Steelers +5 TITANS – Best defensive player in the league (not named Revis) against the most explosive offensive player in the league. I’ll take the points and Rashard Mendenhall; Big Ten love.

LIONS +6 Eagles – Calvin secures the ball with two hands this time. Lions lose another close one, assuming former Badger DeAndre Levy relatively successfully QB-spies Mike Vick.

Bears +7.5 COWBOYS – Over a touchdown? Are the Bears really that bad? Are the Cowboys really that good?

PANTHERS -3.5 Buccaneers – Bucs on the road getting less than four points? I’ll take the Panthers, with DeAngelo Williams at quarterback and Jonathan Stewart at tailback. Matt Moore can rest up for this one.

FALCONS -6.5 Cardinals – Cardinals barely escaped the Rams last week. And now they’re getting less than a touchdown in Atlanta. Roddy White goes off with 185 yards and two scores in this one.

VIKINGS -5.5 Dolphins – Lot of rest for ol’ Brett. This time they’ll let their best player touch the ball in the 2nd half. And I’m definitely not talking about No. 4.

RAIDERS -3.5 Rams – The Rams are really getting less than four on the road? Wow.

BRONCOS -3.5 Seahawks – Last week was a fluke. Let’s see of Pete Carroll can win on the road in the altitude.

TEXANS -3 Redskins – Texans score 34 points and Matt Shaub and Andre the Giant barely contribute. I’m scared to see them actually try.

CHARGERS -7 Jaguars – No way they go 0-2. Jags get jet-lagged in So Cal.

Patriots -3 JETS – Is LT really going to lead the Jets over the Pats? I’ll believe it when I see it.

Giants +5.5 COLTS – Big brother squeaks one out against lil’ bro on national TV.

49ERS +5 Saints – I took the 49ers against Arizona last year on Monday (or Sunday?) night after the Cards demolished the Vikings the week before. History always repeats itself.

Diarrhea of the Mind, Episode 5: Thoughts From Week 1

2010-09-13T19:54:00.004-05:00

This week is my last week of training at Coyote, meaning it’s the last time I can justify fucking around during lunch instead of trying to book hot loads of freight (perhaps I’ll cue you in on some industry jargon in a future post).

So since all I can think about it football, now seems like an appropriate time for Diarrhea of the Mind, NFL style…

Jesus Christ, Arian Foster. I just drafted in two new keeper leagues; how the hell did I not draft him in either? God damnit, Tyler Fishbune and Jeff Park.

At least I drafted Matt Forte in the fifth round of my Bro Haus league.

Speaking of the Bears, as much as I wanted them to lose, Calvin Johnson’s “catch” was not a catch. It’s like the Tuck Rule; it’s a shitty rule and it should have been a touchdown (and eight more fantasy points for me against Danny Sullivan), but based on the rule that’s written, it was the right call. How hard would it have been to keep two hands on the ball? Come on, man!

Are the Redskins for real or did the Cowboys just suck? Didn’t watch; I was too busy getting my wallet, credit card, debit card, license, cell phone, boxers and new Coyote t-shirt stolen from the gym. Yeah, awesome night. At least he spared me my iPod.

Along those same lines, what the hell happened in Seattle? Are the Seahawks actually going to contend in the NFC West? Sure looks that way after 60 minutes of football.

Man the Pats looked good. The Bengals didn’t even show up, but boy Tom Brady reminded me of his 2007 version. Jets next week; oh baby!

Speaking of the Patriots, does Randy Moss really need to go on a 16-minute rant about his contract after embarrassing Cincy at home? Just play, Randy; your agent will take care of the rest. That’s why he gets a percentage of your salary, homie.

The Texans really scored 34 points and Matt Schaub only threw for 107 yards? Oh yeah, Foster.

How much did Vegas clean up on that game, by the way? Colts -2 at Houston. Is this the year of the Sucker Bet?

I’m tied with Bill Simmons (6-6-2) heading into the Monday Night games. Come on, Ravens!

OK, Michael Vick. As much of a thug as he is, man is he fun to watch.

Twelve-of-25, no touchdowns, two picks, one fumble for Mark Sanchez tonight. Did I mention I was rooting for the Ravens?

Zet vs. Simmons/Vegas: Week 1

2010-09-08T21:18:00.009-05:00

Allow my sports dorkiness to continue. For years I have studied football not just from a win-loss perspective, but against Las Vegas' odds. I've dabbled with some mild gambling, hovering around even. Throughout college I discussed ad nauseum weekly lines with my roommates, while helping Danny Tuckman with his picks with Uncle Howie and Russell Thaw with his weekly teasers.

Now it's my turn, for no money. I will pick each game each week against the odds and see how I fare. I'll compare it to Bill Simmons of ESPN's picks, for I am him, 15 years younger in a world where New Age Journalism just doesn't make any sense.

So here we go; Week 1. Let the games begin:

SAINTS (-4.5) Vikings – If it weren’t for his Cal Ripken games streak, Favre would be sitting on Thursday. His ankle + no Sidney Rice + Percy Harvin’s headaches + banner being raised = blowout. Saints by 13.

Panthers (+7) GIANTS – Too many points for a team that can rush for 250 yards and control the clock. I think the Matt Moore/Steve Smith combo will turn some heads this year, too.

Dolphins (-3) BILLS – Ugh, I hate -3 on the road in a division game. That being said, the Bills might not win five games this year. And one won’t come against the Dolphins, at least while Ronnie Brown is still healthy.

STEELERS (+2) Falcons – Dome team on the worst turf in football. Rashard Mendenhall controls the time of possession for Pittsburgh. Steelers win ugly by a field goal.

Lions (+6.5) BEARS – Welcome to the Jahvid Best Show. Ndamukong Suh also makes Jay Cutler his bitch with a pair of violent, blood-curling sacks.

Bengals (+4.5) PATRIOTS – Terrible matchup for the Patriots’ corners who have a combined five career starts between them. Bill Belichick knows that. Pats play possession ball and win the chess match by four.

BUCCANEERS (-3) Browns – Why not? Are people in Cleveland and Tampa even going to watch this game?

JAGUARS (-2.5) Broncos – Who is Kyle Orton going to throw the ball to without Brandon Marshall? I’ll take the home team with the best player on the field: MJD.

Colts (-2) TEXANS – Texans always play the Colts tough, right? I thought so, too, until I saw that the Colts are 9-1 against the spread in their last 10 against Houston. I bet against Peyton Manning too many times last year and got burned. Fool me once, shame on you…

Raiders (+6.5) TITANS – No one was watching, but the Raiders sneakily kept games close in the second half of last season. I’ll take the points.

Packers (-3) EAGLES – Ugh, another road favorite -3? Packers are too explosive not to cover.

49ers (-3) SEAHAWKS – Wanted to take the Hawks at home with the points. But Mike Singletary vs. Pete Carroll? Really?

RAMS (+4) Cardinals – Again, why not?

Cowboys (-3.5) REDSKINS – My roommate, Mike Clair, says the Redskins always suck on national TV. That’s good enough for me.

Ravens (+2.5) JETS – Too many weapons. Mark Sanchez sucks. Darrelle Revis is rusty. No Santonio Holmes. I swear that’s a non-biased opinion.

CHIEFS (+5.5) Chargers – Patriots West cover at home against the Vincent Jackson-less Chargers.

Commissioner's Analysis

2010-09-01T18:13:00.003-05:00

Before I get started, I want everyone to know that I am aware that I am a huge nerd. I love fantasy football, but even more than that, I love to write, make fun of my close friends and compete against them. Fantasy football allows me to do all of the above. So I spent my free time (of which I've had little since I now wake up at 5am and don't get home 'til 7pm most nights) analyzing "The Real Keeper League's" fantasy draft from Sunday night. Hey, I admitted I was a nerd.

Jerry Po

I thought Jerry drafted the best out of everyone. He has depth for this season and legitimate keeper options for the future. Three legit starting running backs plus C.J. Spiller makes him a favorite this season.

Solid Picks

Pierre Thomas (Round 3, Overall Pick 25) – With Mike Bell gone, that means more touches for Thomas and Reggie Bush.

Arian Foster (4, 48) – The Texans seem to hate Steve Slaton and Ben Tate is out for the year. Huge value for a No. 1 back in round four.

C.J. Spiller (5, 49) – Huge upside in our keeper format. Too good to pass up here.

Santana Moss (8, 96) – Still a No. 1 wideout with a huge upgrade at quarterback in Donovan McNabb. Could Donovan make him this year’s DeSean Jackson? Definitely worth finding out in round eight.

Mike Williams (13, 145) – Having himself a solid preseason. The better Josh Freeman gets, the better Williams’ value becomes.

Sketchy Picks

None

Brooksie

Chris Johnson could single-handedly make him a contender this year. Especially if Brett Favre has half the season he did in 2009.

Solid Picks

Miles Austin (3, 26) – One of the best route runners in the NFL. Can’t believe he fell to No. 26 overall.

Visanthe Shiancoe (7, 74) – Without Sidney Rice and Percy Harvin’s migraines, who is Brett Favre going to target in the endzone? Has to be Shiancoe.

Vincent Jackson (12, 143) – Should he play at all this season, this is a steal. Regardless, there’s huge sleeper value here for 2011.

Donovan McNabb (11, 122) – Good backup to Favre, after stretching for No. 4.

Sketchy Picks

Brett Favre (4, 47) – Bum ankle makes this pick a stretch. Plus Rice and Harvin’s question marks. Can he really repeat his performance from last season?

Mike Sims-Walker (5, 50) – Has "one-year wonder" written all over him.

Garrett Hartley (9, 98) – Everyone knows you don’t pick a kicker until the 14^th round at least. What the fuck were you all (not just Brooksie, as you will see) doing drafting them this early?

Mateo

You’d think he grew up down the street from my new apartment. Jahvid Best, Jermichael Finley, Matt Forte, Sidney Rice in consecutive picks. What, was the NFC North blogger your homepage?

Solid Picks

Jermichael Finley (4, 46) – Once Killer Mike took Vernon Davis, this was a gimme.

Eli Manning (10, 118) – I like the strategy. Huge value here in round 10.

Alex Smith (14, 166) – Good value with Davis and Michael Crabtree, especially as a keeper. Plus he plays in the worst division in football.

Darrius Heyward-Bey (15, 171) – Al Davis has to try to justify taking him before Crabtree, right? Maybe Jason Campbell gets him the ball. Why not in the last round?

Sketchy Picks

Jahvid Best (3, 27) – Kind of early for an unproven rookie coming off an injury on the Lions. But there is a lot of keeper potential.

Sidney Rice (6, 70) – Out at least six weeks. Better hope you’re no worse than 3-3 when he comes back.

Nate Kaeding (9, 99) – Really? In round nine?!

Sully

Your two best wide receivers are Hakeem Nicks and Robert Meachem. That's not good.

Solid Picks

LeSean McCoy (4, 45) – If he’s half the man Brian Westbrook was, this is a great pick.

Braylon Edwards (12, 141) – Who else is Mark Sanchez going to throw to with Santonio Holmes out four weeks? Assuming he can hold onto the ball, that is.

Anthony Gonzalez (15, 172) – Huge value here. Solid route-runner. Just has to beat out Austin Collie and Pierre Garcon. That could be tough having not played in two years. Still, why not?

Sketchy Picks

Hakeem Nicks (5, 52) – Kind of early for a No. 2 wide receiver. You wouldn’t rather have Crabtree? Or Wes Welker?

Robert Meachem (6, 69) – Also kind of early. Would way rather have Dwayne Bowe or Pierre Garcon.

Lawrence Tynes (11, 124) – Need I say more?

Gordo

Decent overall draft. I love Joe Flacco this year. Now you just have to pay the league entry fee and you'll be all set.

Solid Picks

Joe Flacco (6, 68) – The addition of Anquan Boldin could be huge for him. Plus, every time Ray Rice runs a screen pass for a touchdown, that’s four points for Flacco.

Carson Palmer (10, 116) – Good value here with the addition of T.O.

Darren McFadden (11, 125) – Tough to pass up on this much talent this late. They’ve invested so much in him, if he can stay healthy.

Todd Heap (14, 164) – Solid for the sole purpose that Owen Daniels is coming off an injury. Good filler ‘til the ex-Badger is back at full strength for the Texans.

Sketchy Picks

None

Benji

A lot of questionable picks, but that's why there's a waiver wire.

Solid Picks

Chad Henne (12, 139) – Brandon Marshall could help him put up solid numbers.

Chester Taylor (14, 163) – Should Matt Forte suck again, Taylor is a solid backup. Plus he’ll get some goal line touches.

Leon Washington (15, 174) – Pete Carroll has been raving about him all preseason. Can’t be a bad thing.

Sketchy Picks

Joseph Addai (3, 30) – Jonathan Stewart, McCoy and Foster were all still on the board. Not to mention both Steve Smiths, Jennings and Marques Colston.

Stephen Gostkowski (8, 91) – Hmmm, Santana Moss or a kicker. Come on, Benji!

Clewbakers

Beanie Wells in the fifth round was a gift. Love Frank Gore this year, too.

Solid Picks

Beanie Wells (5, 55) – Can’t believe he fell this late. One more pick and I had him!

Malcolm Floyd (7, 79) – No Vincent Jackson. Philip Rivers needs a new weapon.

Terrell Owens (10, 114) – Maybe Palmer resurrects Owens with Ocho streaking deep.

Sketchy Picks

Mason Crosby (9, 103) – At this point, I could do nothing but chuckle.

Ben Tate (13, 151) – Never good to draft players who are out for the season.

DZet

Really wanted Frank Gore, Michael Turner or Andre Johnson at No. 8. Took Shonn Greene by default. I like my running back/wide receiver depth. Wish I had one more real solid running back, but maybe that will emerge from my bench or a trade.

Solid Picks

Greg Jennings (3, 32) – Has to have more touchdowns than last season. He’s the No. 1 fantasy quarterback’s No. 1 receiver.

Dez Bryant (8, 89) – Figured there was good keeper potential here. Jerry Jones wouldn’t have wasted a No. 1 draft pick on someone he wouldn’t use.

Zach Miller (10, 113) – ESPN's Matthew Berry said he loved Miller if he was around in the tenth round. So that’s what I did.

Tim Hightower (11, 128) – Still might be the starter in Arizona. He’s a platoon at worst for this season, with Beanie on the horizon.

Bernard Berrian (13, 152) – Should be Favre’s No. 1 wideout ‘til Rice gets back.

Sketchy Picks

Shonn Greene (1, 8) – May have been a stretch here, but who else would I have taken? Had to show my Big Ten loyalty.

Philip Rivers (4, 41) – No Vinny Jackson may hurt his numbers. But he has to perform with a rookie running back behind him. May have been a stretch, though.

Justin

Team rides a lot on Knowshon Moreno and Kevin Kolb. If they perform, you will contend.

Solid Picks

Kevin Kolb (8, 88) – Good value here. Andy Reid loves to throw the ball.

Sketchy Picks

Percy Harvin (6, 64) – The migraines are a legitimate concern.

Skybox

A bunch of decent picks. If Justin Forsett and Jerome Harrison play like they did at the end of last season, you will definitely contend.

Solid Picks

Nothing out of the ordinary.

Sketchy Picks

Rob Bironas (10, 111) – I wanted him. But in round 14.

Kevin Smith (12, 135) – With Donald Brown on deck, this was an interesting pick. At least he knows it.

Killer Mike

A lot of question marks but a lot of upside. You better hope Donald Driver plays like he did in '09.

Solid Picks

Ahmad Bradshaw (5, 59) – Brandon Jacobs is toast. I like it.

Demaryius Thomas (13, 155) – Huge upside for the first rounder in Denver.

Sketchy Picks

Vernon Davis (4, 38) – Not terrible, but can he really have 11 touchdowns again? I’ll tell you who could: Jermichael Finley, who was available here.

Sameer

Very solid mid-round drafting. I wanted The Rapist and Santonio Holmes when you took them.

Solid Picks

Wes Welker (6, 61) – Seems to be healthy. If that’s true, he’s a Top 15 wideout in the Pats’ offense.

Reggie Bush (7, 84) – He’s running hard this preseason without Mike Bell ahead of him.

Ben Roethlisberger (10, 109) – Good insurance for A-Rod. Lots of keeper potential here, too.

Santonio Holmes (11, 132) – Should be a solid No. 2 fantasy wideout after his suspension. If so, what a keeper for ’11.

Sketchy Picks

None

A Tribute to My Second Home

2010-08-17T18:05:00.002-05:00

Oconomowoc, Wisconsin.

Two things immediately came to my mind as I read the name of that town in June of 2006, accompanied by the name, “Samuel Stapleton,” my new college roommate who didn’t have a Facebook page at the time so I assumed he was probably a weirdo.

1) “Where the fuck is that?” and 2) “Who the fuck could possibly live there?”

(Many of my readers – and by “readers” I mean family members and their peers – have complained about the language usage of recent posts. I promise I will work on that, but I’ve had this introduction in my head for weeks now, and for some reason I need the F-bombs for emphasis and self-satisfaction. I’m sorry).

Little did I know that that crazy-sounding town with an “o” after every consonant would become like a home away from home for me.

As you can probably tell, I’ve been doing a lot of self-reflection over the past several months, leading up to and following graduation. And what I’ve realized, among many other things, is just how important Oconomowoc has been to me.

As many college students are well aware of, your freshman roommate can make or break your first few weeks of school, perhaps even one’s whole first semester. Needless to say, the roommate-choosing gods were on my side when they selected Sam to sleep across from me in room 472A of Sellery Hall.

Sam and I instantly became best friends, doing virtually everything together, from lifting to eating to playing basketball at the SERF. Not only that, but his buddy, Martin, also from Oconomowoc, lived on our floor. Martin – a baseball aficionado even more than myself – and I also became instant friends, which made my transition to Madison infinitely easier, setting the tone for my subsequent four years there, I now realize.

I remember Sam and Martin inviting me to play volleyball during Welcome Week with them and some other Coonies (the Oconomowoc High School mascot) down the street at Witte Hall. Right then and there, almost upon arrival, I had a new circle of friends, several of whom I currently consider some of my best friends, like Conor Farley (my sophomore year roommate, whom I also spent all of sophomore spring break with, with just him and his family at Big Sky, Montana), Jake Silkey and Drew Olson (who wasn’t present at that particular volleyball game, but I still consider one of my better friends from the past four years). Much of the difficulties in transitioning from high school to college revolve around the friend-making process. And because of Sam and Marty, I never really had to exert much effort doing that. And for that I am eternally grateful.

Not only that, but Sam’s parents, “Papa Stapes” and “Megadoo,” according to Sam, became my pseudo-parents, telling me that anything I needed, not to hesitate to call. You can’t really imagine the kind of comfort that gives an 18-year-old kid 1,100 miles away from his real parents. For that, I am also extremely grateful, lucky and humbled.

I spent July 3 of this year in Oconomowoc skiing behind Conor’s boat and watching the fireworks at night. In between those events, we went to Bergie’s (another Coonie) house for a few adult beverages, where I was greeted by all the Coonies and several of their parents. It didn’t hit me until hours later what that truly meant to me.

As Conor drove us back to shore after the fireworks celebration, I sat at the front of the boat by myself, realizing what had just happened, not only that day, but the entire four years that had just flown by. I went to a party in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, and was greeted by dozens of friends and parents who knew and recognized me. Yes, I now have dozens of friends from Oconomowoc, Wisconsin. How many kids from the Boston suburbs can say that? I think it’s pretty cool.

Like I mentioned earlier, Oconomowoc has been my home away from home for four years, solely because of the selflessness of the people that live there, people who welcomed me to their state with open arms when I arrived not knowing what a brat (the sausage-like food, not the spoiled kid) or a cheese curd was. For that, I can never repay any of you.

Stapes, Marty, Drew, Conor, Bergie, Fron, Nate, Hydro, Stevo – I’m sure I’m missing some names, and for that I apologize – you guys have been like brothers to me for four years. Thanks for making me one of the guys. It has meant more to me than you guys realize. I didn’t wear purple and yellow in high school, but when I’m with you guys, I feel like I did. Real friends like that are hard to come by, but they’re impossible to ever forget.

Oconomowoc, Wisconsin. Who the fuck could possibly live there?

I know dozens. It’s my home away from home. Thanks, fellas.

Chronicles of Chile

2010-08-08T10:19:00.002-05:00

As I walked down what I believe was the second fairway at Belmont Country Club on Thursday, July 22 at 7:15am, my uncle turns to me and says, “Being a member of a private golf course is one of the greatest luxuries of life.”

“Yeah, no shit,” I thought to myself, “so is having a Lamborghini and a personal masseuse,” but I only chuckled instead.

“I’m serious,” he said.

“Yeah, I know,” I replied, the only thing I could muster out of my mouth in response to one of the most obvious statements ever uttered before 8am on a weekday.

Of course he was right; belonging to a private golf course is fantastically luxurious; it doesn’t get much better than that. Except perhaps belonging to a private ski club in the middle of the Andes Mountains. This came to my attention last week, as my experience at Portillo, Chile was comparable to being part of exactly that: a private ski club in the middle of the Andes Mountains.

Let’s start this story off properly: How the fuck did I end up skiing in Portillo, Chile in the middle of the summer? Good question.

After coming back from the Dominican Republic for Spring Break, my roommate Jordan and I started thinking about going on a sweet trip before starting work in August. At first Thailand was the destination of choice, but after some unstable social settings in Bangkok, Thailand was soon crossed off the list. The next best option, we decided, was South America. So I started frantically perusing Orbitz.com for flights to Lima, Rio, Buenos Aires, Santiago, La Paz, you name it.

“Rio would be fuckin’ sick,” we decided. “Let’s do it.”

Fast-forward to June. To make a long story less long Jordan found a super-cheap ticket to Costa Rica and decided to go on a gnarley surfing trip instead. I wasn’t mad at him for ditching me, but I don’t surf, so I wasn’t going.

“Fuck it,” I thought. “If he’s going surfing then I’m going skiing.”

Four weeks later I found myself ascending into the Andes.

I arrived in Santiago, Chile on Saturday morning, July 24 at 8am. While waiting in line to pay the country entrance fee (who knew?), I started talking with a 30-year-old French-Canadian guy from Montreal named Jean-Philippe (JP), whom I could tell was also going skiing. The conversation went something like this:

“Where are you going skiing?” I asked.

“Portillo,” he replied.

“Nice, me too. Are you on the 12:00 shuttle?”

“No I’m renting a car. Want to come with me?”

I could either wait four hours for my shuttle to come pick me up, or I could hop in the car with a complete stranger 5,200 miles away from home. Naturally, I chose the latter.

That decision turned out to be of the crucial variety. See, the road from Santiago to Portillo is a narrow, windy one as you get through the Andes foothills. When the weather is questionable, they close down the road from both directions (which connects Santiago to Mendoza, Argentina, for the record). And literally minutes after JP and I arrived in Portillo, it started snowing. Had I waited for my shuttle, the road would have been closed until Sunday morning. Snow was accumulating on my head as I sat in the hot tub before dinner. Tomorrow was going to be a good day.

Most people dream of winning the lottery or getting invited to the Playboy Mansion or going on a date with Jessica Alba. Skiers dream of a truckload of snow overnight and cloudless blue skies in the morning. That was Sunday.

We got about eight inches Saturday night and Sunday, the sky was a shade of blue I thought only existed in pictures. JP and I got face shots on the Condor and El Caracara lifts – four-person poma-like surface lifts that access steep, expert terrain – all day long. What was insane about Portillo, as I alluded to earlier, was that there were no more than 20 of us skiing the expert terrain all week. My group (to be explained later) and a telemark camp were some of the only ones shredding the steep stuff, which made it seem like a private resort. It was Brazilian family ski week (I felt right at home), so the Brazis bombarded the intermediate runs while a select few of us skied the steeps until we could barely walk up stairs at 3pm. Every day for seven days.

See, Gabe (a 22-year-old kid going to Northwestern med school in Chicago; small world, tell me about it) and I decided that Portillo is like a cruise ship with skiing. And Wednesday afternoon I opened Snow magazine and read the same description. At the Portillo Hotel (I stayed at the hostel-like Inca Lodge across the street, but the amenities were the same), you get four meals a day and access to the hot tub and gym at your pleasure. There’s a bar and a discothèque in hotel, too. You see the same people everywhere and there’s nowhere to go but the mountain or the hotel. Like I said, a cruise ship in the Andes.

Monday was a similar day. They opened Lake Run for the first time all year, so Gabe, JP and I skied that four times before lunch, making tracks each time while looking up at that same fantasy-like blue sky. Lake Run is a steep run that funnels into Inca Lake. It looks like you’re going to ski into the lake, before you have to traverse through a narrow path through a several-hundred foot cliff to get back to the lift. The traverse sucks, but the terrain is worth the trek back to civilization.

More on Portillo. You can stay in one of three lodging options. The mountain capacity is 400 people (thus the private feel). It’s a small mountain but for experts, the lines are virtually unlimited because of the expanse of the expert runs. Everything funnels back into the Hotel area, so walking is minimal from the lodge to the hotel to the lifts. It’s a very unique place, unlike any other ski resort I’ve ever seen.

For some dumbass reason, JP left Portillo on Tuesday to continue his Chilean ski tour, leaving Gabe and I to shread alone. Tuesday, the ski patrols opened Roca Jack – a very steep run accessed by a five-person surface lift – for the first time all year. So we made tracks all morning once again with the telemarkers and once again I couldn’t feel anything below the waist by lunch. Another incredible, cloudless powder day.

That eight inches Saturday night really could not have come at a more opportune time for me. Not only did it make the skiing that much better during an otherwise dry season, so I was told, but it allowed ski patrol to open several areas for the first time that winter. So we were literally getting first tracks of the season for four days on mornings of nothing but blue skies. I literally could not have come at a better time.

Wednesday, the patrol opened several areas to the skier’s right of Roca Jack, which you had to traverse along rock faces to access. Gabe and I made first tracks on Kilometro Lanzado and El Estadio all day long. Another epic day.

Though Gabe and I skied mostly by ourselves the rest of the week, we hung out with some pretty cool people. We mostly hung out with Felipe, a 20-year-old kid from Sao Paulo, Brazil and a 30-year old Argentinean lawyer named Victor. Victor told me that he was a tax attorney in Buenos Aires and that the nickname for that profession is “crow” in Spanish because they pick up all the pieces. I thought that was pretty funny. Anyway, Felipe is the man and I told his mom that I’m coming to visit them in the next 24 months, before Felipe moves to Washington D.C., or so he says. I’m serious; I’m going to visit them.

Thursday and Friday were excellent ski days. Gabe and I skied hard, but the weather wasn’t quite as nice as Sunday-Wednesday and the conditions were, well how skiing gets five days after the last snowfall. For purposes of this story, let’s fast-forward to Saturday.

For many years, it has been my dream to board a helicopter, get dropped off at the top of a mountain and ski down ridiculous terrain. To most, this is referred to as “heli-skiing.” Heli-skiing was available in Portillo. On Wednesday night, I decided I had to do it. Gabe concurred.

We signed up Wednesday night, but the weather didn’t cooperate Thursday or Friday. They only take people in the chopper if the weather is perfect. We were going back to Santiago on Saturday at noon, so Saturday morning was our last chance.

I woke up Saturday morning at 7:45am and rushed to the window of my jail cell-like (OK I like to embellish a little) room. Sun. My heart started racing. At that point I knew I’d be in a helicopter within a few hours.

We had a 9am avalanche briefing in the hotel. Our crew was myself, Gabe, a woman named Natalie whom I skied with on Friday while Gabe was still sleeping, our guide named Craig and of course our ex-Chilean military helicopter pilot named Victor. We were each given an avalanche beacon, which we practiced using before takeoff and macho man Derek was given the backpack with a shovel and probe. Yes, I was the caboose, in charge of saving people’s lives in case of an avalanche. No pressure or anything.

To be honest, the ride may have been cooler than the actual run itself. We were bobbing through the Andes and dropped off at 14,000 feet. The views were insane and the oxygen was scarce. After a few pictures we began our heli run, the culmination of my Chilean ski adventure. That’s where it got interesting.

Craig went down first, followed by Natalie, Gabe and then me, the avalanche life saver. We can only ski one at a time because of the chance that a slide does occur. Craig waves on Natalie and she goes: one, two, three, boom. Face plant. “Fuck!” she screams. Pretty sure Natalie blew her ACL on the fourth turn of the run.

Somehow she makes it down the first face but we still have 3,000 or so vertical feet left in the run and she’s toast. So Craig, Gabe and I stomp out a landing for the helicopter to come pick her up. About an hour after the incident occurred, Victor (the ex-military pilot, not the Argentinean “crow” lawyer) comes back for her, but the chopper can’t land in the unstable snow. So Victor hovers three inches from the surface and Craig basically throws Natalie into the chopper and they’re off. One of the more interesting scenes I’ve ever seen, as I’m half-peering up as the snow whips around in blizzard-like conditions caused by the helicopter.

So Gabe, Craig and I finish the run, carving new tracks with every turn we make. Craig fucked up using my Blackberry video camera so he only shot Gabe and missed me. The run wasn’t super challenging but the overall experience of heli-skiing was incredible.

Victor came to pick us up after our 4,000 vertical foot run. My shuttle was waiting for me at the hotel when I got back to the hotel. Goodbye, Portillo.

Now, Gabe studied abroad in Santiago in the fall of 2009, so he knows the city like a native. So I basically rode his coattails for the next 48 hours until my flight back to Boston (through Atlanta on Delta, in case you were wondering).

Santiago, in my opinion is relatively uninspiring. Granted, it was 40 degrees and raining and I was feeling a little under the weather, so perhaps my point of view is a bit unfairly biased. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the city, met some of Gabe’s Chilean friends and did a bit of site seeing Monday morning before my flight home. What a week. A trip I will surely never forget.

Closing Thoughts

As most of my Facebook friends are aware of, I was constantly posting pictures from Chile on Mark Zuckerberg’s life-changing site. To be honest, I was hesitant to do so; I didn’t want to be obnoxious or come off as bragging or boating about the time I was having, an opportunity that the vast majority of people will never experience in their lifetimes. I was given that opportunity by my family as a graduation present, a gift that I will be forever humbled and grateful for receiving.

But like I said, I was hesitant to post pictures and updates because I didn’t was to come off as bragging, as if I were saying “look what I get to do while you’re at home working.” I knew I was in an extremely fortunate position, but I posted those pictures for what I hoped to be inspiration and motivation for others. I was lucky enough to have the majority of my trip paid for by my selfless family, for the last time in my life. So for me, seeing the world is motivation to work hard, so that I can afford to continue doing it as I grow older. I hope this story and pictures have that effect on people, too.

I was especially concerned about my good friend named Ben, whom I thought of several times while on the chairlifts in Portillo. I knew Ben was struggling in the hospital as I was having, well to put it bluntly, the time of my life in Chile. For that, I felt extreme guilt and discomfort literally every day. But I posted pictures anyway, in hopes of lifting his spirits. Everything but boasting.

I spoke to Ben via Facebook chat on Sunday night when I was back in Santiago and explained to him how I was feeling. He told me that the pictures were in fact inspiration to him and that it indeed was motivating him to get better so that he can one day shred Chilean powder with me, he said. That’s all I needed to hear. Even if everyone else saw my postings as boasting, I was able to lift the spirits of a friend in the midst of a serious health quarrel.

So here’s to Ben. My Chilean adventure is dedicated to you, my friend. And one day let us shred pow together in Chile, Argentina, New Zealand, France, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, Colorado, Utah, Vermont or wherever you choose, my man. The opportunities are endless; never forget that.

Wherever you choose.

Inspiration From The Land of Oz

2010-07-19T09:06:00.002-05:00

I never realized how much Dorothy was right, when she clicked her heels, begging to go back to Kansas. There really is no place like home.

I’ve called Madison, Wis. home for four years now, but you come to realize just how important your real home is. I hadn’t been in Framingham, Mass. since January, and the more I’m away from home, the more refreshing it is to be with the people with whom I grew up. You just can’t substitute home for anything, and new friends can never replace old ones.

What’s been even more inspiring for me has been the energy and excitement that has been radiating from some of my friends over the past few days, energy that I haven’t experienced before in Framingham, energy that can only come from maturity and motivation to succeed in the real world.

I’ve already had some great talks with friends in the mere 103 hours since landing in Massachusetts. Becky Abrahams is psyched about her new job with Coupme.com. It seems like she’s in a great spot, earning some valuable experience at a small startup in Needham, Mass.

Missy and Kristy Owens like working for Puma and are talking about moving to the Los Angeles office in the future. To be honest, I never would have expected that out of the homegrown Boston sisters. But I love the mindset; we should all experience as much as we can while we’re still young and damage our livers way too much on the weekends.

Sam Osborn’s got a good actuarial internship in Connecticut. To be honest, I wasn’t worried (not that I necessarily was about anyone else) about her; I knew success loomed in her future a long time ago.

My dad's got the entrepreneurial juices flowing these days, too, which is also awesome. Check out his new venture, which revolves around a 400 horsepower 2000 red Ferrari. Yeah, I whipped it on the Mass Pike last week. No big deal.

What’s really made me pumped over the last 36 hours is the pair of conversations I’ve had with two of my best friends, Danny Sullivan and Justin Martino. Danny just landed his dream job on Friday, a supply chain management gig in Fall River. The kid’s energy, excitement and motivation rival mine, which at this point is pretty difficult to achieve. To be honest, I don’t think even he, nor his mother, for that matter, could have envisioned this four years ago. But the kid’s worked his ass off and deserves everything he gets. No one gave him anything; he earned it all on his own. That shit makes me pumped more than anything in the world.

Of course Justin and I had a two-hour conversation about life, coupled with stogies and a bit of Admiral Nelson’s on the side. Anyone who knows us shouldn’t be surprised about that. But the kid just gets it. His perspective on life is spot on, and that’s coming from someone who’s been to Iraq and has a stint in Afghanistan on the horizon. But expect big things from him when he gets back. And expect us to co-write a book in that general timeframe. You think I’m kidding.

People sometimes speak of Framingham as if it’s a black hole, a place to waste time and underachieve. False. I just gave you multiple examples against that theory. Success flourishes in Framingham!

Dorothy was right. There’s no place like home.

Does Michael Lewis Motivate You Like He Does Me?

2010-07-15T10:57:00.000-05:00

If you’re remotely interested in economics or finance and haven’t read Michael Lewis’s The Big Short, you’re behind in the game. Actually, I’m currently 50 pages from the end on a flight from Minneapolis to Boston, but my mind is forcing me to write this as opposed to finishing reading at the moment. That tends to happen to me. I hear it happens to all prodigies in every facet of geniushood, but I’m not sure.

The Big Short is a phenomenal description of the economic collapse of the past four years, through the eyes of several Wall Street investors who saw the financial Armageddon on the horizon, shorted (bet against) basically the whole market and ended up, well, I guess I’ll find out when I finish the book, but I essentially know the ending. Only one scenario makes sense.

I will warn you that if you don’t have a decent economic/financial background, it does get relatively technical, even though Lewis (hands down the best nonfiction writer of this generation of authors) does make it as easy as possible for the “average” reader to understand. Nevertheless, credit default swaps, collateralized debt obligations (CDOs) and asset-backed securities get a little confusing if you barely understand the principle of an interest rate. Then again, even the CEOs of Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and AIG probably still couldn’t explain to you today what they mean, so it’s not exactly fair to feel stupid while turning the pages utterly confused.

To me, the economic collapse is both terrifying and encouraging at the same time. The main lesson I took from the book is to always do your homework; educate yourself so that you can trust yourself and don’t have to rely on others.

The collapse occurred largely because of a combination of ignorance and greed, but more of the former than the latter, in my mind. Among several others, the bond rating agencies, Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s fucked up. Bad. These two agencies – as far as I understand from the book – mis-rated billions of dollars’ worth of mortgage-backed securities in these CDOs. It’s another language, I know. As Lewis explains it, it’s basically a roulette game, except with odds that would put the casino (in this case, a company like AIG played the role of the casino) out of business after losing just a couple bets.

According to the book, shorting (betting against) these CDOs was the equivalent of a 200:1 bet on something that was almost certain to happen. Lewis describes it as buying multiple claims of fire insurance on a house that was already bursting in flames, all because of these mis-ratings by the agencies. And only a handful of people saw it like that.

The real problem was that the bond traders at firms like Goldman, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup trusted these agencies like Mother Teresa without doing their own homework on the securities in which they were investing. They assumed that the ratings were accurate; and we all know what happens when you assume. Except that these assumptions didn’t just make asses out of them, it ended up costing their firms hundreds of billions of dollars and subsequently, millions of Americans their jobs.

See, what I’ve come to realize is that the U.S. economy is extremely top-heavy. For example, Tom Brady, manager of Bro Haus Hedge Fund, trusts the S&P rating of Camp Cedar CDO, invests in it and loses billions when 10 percent of the houses in the “obligation” default on their mortgages. Smith no longer takes his stretch limo to his Wall Street office in Manhattan and he no longer goes to that steakhouse uptown every other Friday with the boys. Now the limo driver and the server at the steakhouse, middle-class Americans make that much less, so they cut back on their expenditures. And the employees at the places formerly consumed by those two individuals begin to struggle more, and so on; it’s the epitome of the domino effect. In my mind, that’s our economy in a nutshell. Please let me know if you think otherwise – I mean that in the least cocky way possible.

So what this collapse should have taught us is to check, double-check and do your homework before making any financial or business decisions. It’s terrifying because what essentially happened was that the greed and ignorance of money managers and rating agencies in this country led to the collapse of recent past. Because of poor judgment on the part of people like Brady at Bro Haus, hard-working cashiers everywhere lost their jobs, many of whom probably couldn’t spell “collateralized debt obligations.” To me, that’s terrifying and terribly unfair. Well, we’ll call it “unfortunate.”

What we’ve also learned is that people – even some of the most educated and well-paid individuals in the world – make mistakes. Like you and I, they fuck up. But I see other people’s mistakes, ignorance and laziness as personal opportunities for business, not just in the trading world, but for all businesses. A lot of businesses are based off at least one of those three premises. Perhaps it’s just the competitive nature in me (scratch that, that’s definitely what it is) but I see businesses and people who run them all the time and quite frankly, I think I could do a better job than many of them. Or at least I know I have a better work ethic than them and would therefore generate more profits.

That’s essentially what equity trader Steve Eisman did, which is not only refreshing but downright inspiring for hard-workers everywhere. He worked hard, did his homework, lost countless amounts of sleep over seeing a life-changing opportunity, traveled the world seeking smart (and rich) individuals to back him and he made a killing when everyone else thought he was off his fucking rocker. He realized he understood things that almost no one else in the world understood, put his money where his mouth was and said, “I’m the best,” to himself, “fuck what everyone else thinks.” And now he’s billions of dollars richer.

That’s why I play poker. No, playing $1-$2 No Limit Texas Holdem isn’t going to make me billions of dollars wealthier. But I play to win, because I’m confident that I can outplay the other stiffs at the table. And to be honest, I often do.

I played 23 hours of poker at Ho Chunk Casino in Baraboo, Wis. this summer (no, I never made the 45-minute trip alone and yes, I know my grandfather is rolling his eyes at the computer right now). In those 23 hours I made about $400 – and it would have been more like $1,000 if I didn’t lose KK to QQ on the river for a $400 pot. For those of you non-poker players, that’s about a 96 percent chance to win $400 at 1:1 odds. In other words, unless you’re shorting CDOs (apparently), it doesn’t get any better than that. But the queen came and fucked me. That’s poker.

But the point I’m trying to make is that if you do your homework, you know your shit and you’re confident about it, the opportunities out there are endless. That’s how I see it. Many aspects of life aren’t all that different than No Limit Texas Holdem. That’s essentially why I get up every morning – to see how I can better myself and what new challenges lie ahead.

I may never make billions. Odds are, I won’t. But with that mindset, I feel like success lies in my future. And if you think like that, I’m pretty confident that it will for you, too.

But it won’t come easy; it didn’t for Eisman and friends. He put the time and effort in to make his billions. Plus he had the balls to actually pull it off.

Sweat equity, my boy Mark Cuban likes to call it. After reading Lewis’s (the second person I’d like to meet in the world behind Cuban) bestseller, I’m ready to pour out a little sweat equity to begin my professional career five weeks from now. Let me know if it motivates you that way, too.

Classless Effort Given By the Artist Formerly Known as 'King'

2010-07-13T06:25:00.004-05:00

It’s been five days since the self-proclaimed ‘King’ “decided to take [his] talents to South Beach.” And instead of continuing to voice my opinion on the phone, in bars, walking down the street, on the bus, in my house, on the dock, on the tee, in the fairway and on the green, I’ve decided to shut my mouth, stop arguing and write everything down. And being the retired writer (or perhaps just in hiatus?) that I am, it only makes sense to do so.

Essentially, LeBron James decided to “Bro Out” instead of compete. ESPN’s Bill Simmons may have put it best:

"Michael Jordan would have wanted to kick Dwyane Wade's butt every spring, not play with him. This should be mentioned every day for the rest of LeBron's career. It's also the kryptonite for any "Some day we'll remember LeBron James as the best basketball player ever" argument. We will not. Jordan and Russell were the greatest players of all time. Neither of them would have made the choice that LeBron did. That should tell you something."

It’s true. If LeBron truly wanted to be considered as one of the greatest, he would have stayed in Cleveland and won there. If he truly was “The Chosen One,” as stated in ink on his back, he would have won at least a couple championships there. And if he couldn’t get it done, then he shouldn’t be considered one of the greatest of all-time. It’s as simple as that.

After the nauseating “Decision” (actually I didn’t watch it, thank God) Thursday night, I initially thought that Cavs owner, Dan Gilbert’s letter was an act of sore losership. But after much thought and debate over the last 108 hours or so, I’ve realized that Gilbert’s furiousness toward James is indeed justified.

Let me make one thing clear, however. Before Thursday, James owed nothing to the Cleveland Cavaliers, their fans, the city or the state of Ohio. If he wanted to leave the Cavs for Miami, New York, New Jersey, Chicago, Dallas, wherever it may have been, I had no problem with that. Quite frankly, he did enough for the Cavaliers, making a doormat of a franchise relevant literally on his own, taking them to the NBA Finals with Anderson Varajao as his sidekick. Jordan, Russell, Bird and Kobe all had better help than that, I’ll give that to LeBron.

But it was the way he handled this whole “Decision” that makes me want to puke up my breakfast sandwich (that and the eight Natty Lites I drank hours ago). Let’s be real here. James did not wake up Thursday morning and decide he was going to Miami; he knew well before that. In which case, why couldn’t he have flown to Cleveland and told Gilbert – like any classy businessman would do – and tell him "thanks but no thanks?"

It’s simple. Because he wanted Thursday to be all about him. He even told that to ESPN’s Rachel Nichols in a subsequent interview. But why should you and I find out about LeBron’s (or MeBron, as the Boston Globe’s Dan Shaughnessy so elegantly calls him) “Decision” at the same time as Gilbert?

Again, it’s simple: We shouldn’t. No, James owed nothing to Gilbert. If anything, Gilbert owes James years worth of thanks. But MeBron could have looked Gilbert in the eyes, like a man. Five days later, he still hasn’t, like the true coward that he is.

Again, I have no problem with LeBron’s choice to go to South Beach. He’ll have more fun there and probably win more there than he ever could have imagined. Good for him. But let the following words haunt “The Chosen One” for the rest of his career:

Classless. Coward. Pussy. Arrogant. Egotistical. Needy. Star.

Notice how “competitor” wasn’t included.

Diarrhea of the Mind, Episode 4: Talking Sports, Business Style

2010-07-07T11:52:00.003-05:00

Let’s begin this post by giving a well-deserved shoutout to Allie Seymour for asking if the 4th of July was a national holiday. It’s OK, she’s an engineer.

Madison was pretty dull on Sunday. Wish I were home to celebrate the birth of our great nation in The Ham.

What the hell is with this Red Sox lineup? I worked for NESN for Christ’s sake and I don’t know anyone batting after Beltre. It will be a miracle if they can stay within five games of the Rays and Yankees with the entire squad limping around the clubhouse as they trot this JV team between the lines every night. Thank god for the All-Star break.

Speaking of baseball, the Stephen Strasburg All-Star game debate needs to be settled. So I’ll do it. Of course if you ask the players, they’ll say he doesn’t deserve to be voted in after making just six starts. Of course there are players more deserving of him. But baseball, as you should have learned over the past decade, is a business through and through. And what will entice the most eyeballs toward the Midsummer Classic, you ask? Strasburg pitching to A-Rod, Ichiro, Jeter and the like. He doesn’t deserve it over, say San Diego’s Matt Latos, but shit, this is entertainment and at the end of the day, it’s all about marketing and revenue. So Bud, once again, you’re an idiot (not the first time I’ve called out Selig in an article, by the way). Let the fans vote for Strasburg, and watch the ratings/buzz go through the roof after he strikes out the side against the AL’s best. It’s a no brainer. Unless of course you have no brain…

If LeBron goes back to Cleveland I may just boycott the NBA for a few years. But boy would it be funny for the Knicks and Bulls to both get screwed. Until ‘Melo’s on the market, that is.

Who would be dumber, Selig for not promoting Strasburg in the All-Star game, or David Stern for letting LeBron go back to the state of Ohio? And these are supposed to be business people?

If Bosh, Dirk and Amare are all spoken for, who’s going to play with LeBron anyway, David Lee? What a disaster. OK, enough about the NBA.

If you don’t have a Groupon account for your current city, get one; it’s pretty legit and saves you money on pretty much everything you’d want to do. And no, I’m not getting paid to promote the company.

Just locked up an apartment in Lincoln Park, Ill. (pending our application; keep your fingers crossed) and a flight/hotel to Portillo, Chile in one morning. All while “working.” What a day!

Back to Framingham in a week. Getting pretty sick of Madison, to be honest. Boy I’m going to regret that statement.

Diarrhea of the Mind, Episode 3: Clearly Being Productive at Work

2010-06-30T12:32:00.004-05:00

Definitely can't continue this when I start my full-time job in eight weeks.

Thinking about changing this column name to “Cubicle Relief,” but gonna stick with DOM for now.

The more I try to eat healthy and stay in shape (not that I couldn’t lose a few pounds, but at least the effort is there), the more I realize the obesity epidemic in the United States, especially in the state of Wisconsin. Last night was bacon night at a bar called Wando’s on University Ave. in Madison. You’ve got literally obese people eating mounds of bacon, slurping down Miller Lites at midnight, a few hours after they put down a couple bratwursts and beers for dinner, probably followed by some frozen custard for dessert. It’s actually disgusting. Look around; you’ll notice it if you begin to remotely look for it. Go to Europe and you don’t see that kind of nasty shit.

Good talkin’ NBA basketball with Pat Sofen at Wando’s last night, who got to experience all three Finals games in Boston as well as a Red Sox game at Fenway all for the first time. Good to know he enjoyed the city. Unfortunately he’s been working for the Lakers for a few years now. Thankfully he only modestly rubbed it in my face while we were slurping (that’s a mild verb for what was actually happening) a fishbowl at the bar.

Monster shoutout to my longtime friend Ben Camiel after his bone marrow transplant. Kid’s tough as nails. Stay up, my man, we’re all pullin’ for you.

Shoutout to Henry Aschauer – one of my roommates in Prague – for waking me up at 3am, almost breaking my bed, just to say goodbye. Have a safe trip home kid. We’ll go heli skiing together before 2017 for sure.

Mark my words: Yanni Hufnagel will be a Division I NCAA basketball coach before 2018. Just remember that you heard it here first.

Wow, people in Detroit are actually miserable. I’ve been calling that area for work for a few hours now, and either the number doesn’t exist anymore, or people have no interest in a FREE service that could help their businesses. It’s actually pretty sad.

OK so I think I’ve got it figured out. LeBron and Chris Bosh go to Chicago. Amare and Joe Johnson go to New York and wait for Carmelo to come a year from now. Pierce, Ray Allen and Doc Rivers re-sign with the Celtics. But who plays with D-Wade in Miami? Dirk? Nah, he’s staying in Dallas with my boy Mark Cuban. Shit…

But if the Nets move to Brooklyn, LeBron has to play there. God damn it.

Will Uncle Eric join me to shred pow in Chile next month? Tik, tok, tik, tok [insert Jeopardy theme music here].

Shoutout to longtime friends Jeremy and Alex Hyman on their journey to see all 30 Major League Baseball stadiums this summer. Check out their blog here. Too bad I’m going to be home while they’re in Milwaukee and Chicago.

Another shoutout to longtime friend Mike “Mikey V” Vinci doin’ his radio thing in Ithaca, N.Y. Kid’s as motivated as anyone I know (behind Yanni, that is).

Can’t wait for Entourage Sunday.

Gotta have a going away party in August. Wanna go back to New York one more time. Gotta book this flight to Santiago, Chile. Most important of all, gotta get an apartment sometime in the next 25 days.

This is how my brain works. I know I’m fucking crazy.

Diarrhea of the Mind, Episode 2: Back from New York

2010-06-29T15:09:00.005-05:00

For those of you who aren’t aware or simply forgot, New York is fucking nuts. Chicago, the third largest city in the U.S., seems big, but the Big Apple makes the Windy City look like me next to Dwight Howard; granted, it is over four times the size (and so is he). But still, you forget just how big it is until you’re standing on 34^th Street, surrounded by monstrosities that make you wonder how the hell anybody every built this massive place.

New York is awesome, but it revolves a bit too much around money for my liking, being the 22-year-old recent graduate that I am. People are packed like sardines into tiny little apartments for a quarter-million dollars a month and every conversation somehow alludes to Franklin or Jackson, or at least Lincoln, if you’re only taking a three-block cab ride.

Ok enough about New York; time for Diarrhea of the Mind (DOM), Episode 2:

What the hell is LeBron James worried about a max contract for? The majority of his future bankroll will come from endorsements and appearances, not his NBA salary. In which case, doesn’t he and Chris Bosh have to play for the Knicks? Geoff Thaw, Russell’s dad is certain he’ll be a Knick within a few weeks. The flatlanders out here seem to disagree…

It’s funny how our Camp Cedar crew remains so close, even though we haven’t really spent more than a weekend together in seven years when we were 15. I guess that’s what you get for spending over a year’s worth of your gambling (kidding, sort of) and playing sports with the same people while aged 9-15. That said, great seeing Russell, Danny Tuckman, Josh Dembling, Glenn Alterman, Eric Cohen, Harry and Jared Freid and Keith Benjamin in Manhattan over the weekend. Oh the friendships the Hackers have created…

Shoutout to my boy Zubair (also known as Pooh Bear, thanks to Jeff Shocket) for just being a boss.

Anti-shoutout to Shocket for being absent this weekend and not answering any of our 73 calls during that time.

As obnoxious as New York can be in regards to money, it does get your business wheels spinning. Although, maybe it’s just hanging out with Tuckman that does that for me. We’d talk business in Fargo, N.D., too. But it is extremely motivating to see everyone working so hard in the city, as I wait on deck for my Aug. 23 start date at Coyote.

I thought I said enough about New York?

Quote of the Weekend: “Mother, I’d like to have dinner with you; would you like to have dinner with me?” – Tuckman. Kid’s just a businessman.

Shoutout to Jared Freid for following his dream of being a comedian in New York. Keep it up kid; don’t anyone discourage you. Until you're broke. Kidding, I thought you were fuckin' funny.

Did Dustin Pedroia, Clay Buchholz and Victor Martinez really all get hurt in one weekend? God damn it.

Great seeing Tessa Drake in New York, too, even though she didn’t go to Cedar. Keep workin’ hard, Tess. If I ever need a project translated, you’re my girl.

Also very nice to meet Glenn's girlfriend, Anne Michael Langguth, also known to the general, plebeian public as "Miss Iowa." Attaboy, Glenn.

On second (more like ninth or tenth) thought, maybe it’s better if LeBron and Bosh go to Chicago and Carmelo goes to New York next year after Eddie Curry’s contract expires. I just don’t want the Bulls to dominate while I’m living there. I hate Chicago fans, maybe even more than New York fans.

Whoever invented the stock market never intended for this kind of ridiculous volatility.

Speaking of markets, if you have any interest in economics whatsoever, you have to read Michael Lewis’ The Big Short. Not only is he the best writer of this generation, but the book is insane. Man AIG, Moody’s and S&P really fucked up bad (not to mention pretty much everyone else on Wall Street, except for a select few). More thoughts on the book in DOMs to come, since I'm only 120 pages in…

Wish I had enough money to invest in real estate right now. My real estate professor told us he took loans out to invest when he was 22. I think I’m all set, but thanks.

Will anyone be able to throw against the Jets this season? Damn I hate (but modestly respect) Rex Ryan.

For work, I just called a farmers’ market called “Famers’ Market.” The lady answered the phone, “farmers’ market?” It’s like naming your supermarket, “Supermarket.” Only in Detroit, I guess.

American sports need to adopt the rigid regulations that FIFA has on its referees. You fuck up, you’re gone. No more Joe Crawford T-ing up Tim Duncan for smiling from the bench and no more Jim Joyce fucking up perfect games. As Trump would say, You’re Fired!

My friends from Dublin, Eric and Alan Flanagan, make fun of Americans for saying “PKs,” as in Penalty Kicks. Apparently the rest of the world just calls them “penalties.” Who knew?

Thought about flying back to Barcelona for the Spain-Portugal match today (and by “thought,” I mean, “dreamed”). Atmosphere’s got to be insane. Extremely jealous of Kristine Chau for being there right now.

The FIFA Final Four could be full of South Americans after Saturday. Spain should be there, but if Paraguay can come up with a miracle, it’s very possible.

Can you tell I’m into the World Cup? My money’s on (not really) Brazil. Glad I won’t be in Framingham yet for that nonsense.

Should I go skiing by myself in Portillo, Chile next month? I know no Spanish. Still thinking about rolling the dice…

My comeback: Diarrhea of the Mind, Episode 1

2010-06-24T15:36:00.006-05:00

As relaxing of a summer as I am having out here in Madison, there’s definitely a void in my life that’s been eating away at me for quite some time now.

Last night, an old Camp Cedar friend of mine named Billy said he stumbled upon my blog and was impressed with what he read (without realizing that the last post was several months old). Thanks, Billy, not only for reminding me how awesome I am, but for reminding me how much I enjoy writing, venting via keyboard and being an all-out dork.

But after a senior year inundated with interviews, 32 credits and way too much Ron Diaz, NHL ’09 and time-wasting on the Brownge Lounge Couch, in the spirit of Eminem’s comeback “Recovery” album, it’s time for the revival of “Boston, Badgers, Business and Banter.”

I changed the name of the blog in the fall from its original title, “From Boston to Badgers” because I wanted to write about more than just sports. And I did. I wanted to implement the “Zetcast,” a podcast radio-like show that I would post weekly on my blog. The first episode debuted on Sept. 15, 2009 with my longtime friend Frankie V as the show’s first guest. The show went well, but unfortunately it was not only the first episode, it also happened to be the last to date.

I do plan on continuing the Zetcast because I think it’s not only fun and easy to broadcast, but because I know too many interesting people that deserve to be heard en mass.

However, in the mean time, it’s time for me to pick the pen (well, keyboard) back up and get back to writing; I have way too much time to waste at my summer job not to. Though I won’t be writing professionally, as I had envisioned myself doing 24 months ago, I enjoy it too much as a hobby to rid it from my weekly routines.

That said, I’m going to switch my game up just a bit, hopefully for the better, or at least for the more enjoyable. This morning, my grandfather sent me a Bob Ryan column from the Boston Globe, which was basically a bunch of disconnected thoughts thrown onto a page. Though traditionalists scoff at such “journalistic” endeavors, in the age of Facebook and Twitter microblogging, I thought it was pure genius.

“But I need a title,” I thought…

So without further adieu, I bring to you the first edition of “Diarrhea of the Mind”:

Speaking of Eminem, “Recovery” is one of the best albums to hit the (virtual) shelves in a long time. He’s back, and hip hop – riddled with mindless emcees and bullshit auto-tone hooks – needs him, too. Lyrics you can relate to are always refreshing; that’s why he’s the best. Not to mention his ridiculous verbal talents.

Is John Wall really as good as Derrick Rose? Is DeMarcus Cousins the next Kendrick Perkins? Would that even be a good thing if he was?

This whole BP mess in the Gulf Coast is beyond describable. Do the words “catastrophe” or “disaster” even do it justice? Whatever happened to accountability?

Would the Red Sox dare trade Jonathan Papelbon in the midst of another playoff run? No way he’s back next year, but could they really do that?

How big of a nerd am I if I’m already thinking about fantasy football?

Answer: Not at all ‘cuz our draft’s gonna be in Vegas.

I’m tired of 22-year-old graduates using the “job market” and the “economy” as excuses for not finding a job. There are jobs out there. Get off the couch and go find them. Check that; stay on the couch and use the 724 different Internet resources to find them.

If I could meet one person in the world it would be Mark Cuban. Although Mikhail Prohorov is closing in on a close second. And I don’t even like the NBA that much.

Speaking of the NBA, I typically begin to hate topics that the media tend to overhype, but this NBA offseason is everything but a turnoff. Wouldn’t LeBron + Jay-Z + Prokhorov = International Dynasty?

I wonder what Dana Lampert is up to with Wiggio.com. I owe him a phone call, or at least a BBM. When I reintroduce the Zetcast, he’s going to be my first guest. A true entrepreneurial pioneer indeed. Is that redundant?

Shoutout to JD Lawson’s RapAddicts blog. Getting me excited about rap again. I’ve missed it since moving to the Midwest four years ago. Huge after losing all my iTunes.

Isner vs. Mahut was absolutely incredible, but despite what everyone else keeps saying, I definitely think it could happen again. The service game will evolve faster than the return game. Serving 150 mph will be easier to reach than returning it, right?

Anyone who doesn’t appreciate the World Cup because they don’t like soccer is a fool. Don’t call yourself a sports fan if you fit into that category.

The United States, among other things, needs to work on its education system. Too much ignorance in this country for how powerful we are and how much money we have. That YouTube video that Julie Swiderski posted on Facebook about the lady who thought Obama paid her welfare checks out of his “secret stash” (verbatim quote) made me cringe.

Time to catch the bus. Off to New York tomorrow. See you next week.

Nine tips for studying abroad

2009-12-10T12:23:00.006-06:00

As I prepare to say goodbye to my junior friends who will be studying abroad during my last semester in Madison, I felt it was appropriate to send them off with a few tips. Of course, you can view my entire blog from Prague here, but to make things more efficient and concise, here goes (in no particular order):

1. Use banks, not the currency exchange booths or airports to exchange currencies. Those booths kill you when you exchange both foreign and local currencies. If you're traveling for the weekend when you'll be using a different currency, take out enough money in advance where you don't have to exchange it more than once while you're gone.

2. Take out large sums of cash at a time from ATMs. And make sure you hide it! ATM fees will also kill your wallets. Taking out the equivalent of $40 makes no sense when the

ATM fee is worth $8. I took out 6.000 ,00 (that's how they write it there) Czech crowns at a time, the equivalent of about $300. Just make sure it doesn't get stolen or you drunkenly lose it or spend it on ridiculous things. But if you trust yourself, minimize the ATM fees.

3. Meet locals. Don't be those snobby Americans who only hang out with themselves. Meet some locals and go out with them. It will make your experience much more exciting, I promise.

4. Along those same lines, assimilate. Try to learn the local language if you don't already know it. Dress relatively similar to the locals, if you can. In other words, try not to perpetu

ate the "obnoxious American" stereotype, or else it's not just a stereotype, it becomes reality.

5. Travel as much as your bank account allows. You won't regret it when it's time to come back to the States.

6. Go out almost every night. You don't have to get belligerently drunk every night, but don't sit around on your computer watching "Lost." The kids who did too much of that

regret it now.

7. Walk outside your comfort zone. That's what studying in a foreign country is all about. Try new foods. Do things you'll never be able to do again. Don't try to Americanize your experience. In that case, you might as well just stay here.

8. Meet other Americans, not just the kids you live with or knew before. The more people you meet, the better.

9. Have a blast. Honestly, studying abroad was the best experience I've ever had. You should experience the same.

Exactly why I came to Wisconsin

2009-11-09T23:34:00.003-06:00

Last month I wrote a column for The Badger Herald expressing my displeasure with the existence of the private dorms known as Statesider and Towers at the University of Wisconsin. I explained that the “Coasties’” inabilities to assimilate and live with those unlike themselves created unnecessary tension and stereotypes on this campus. At that time, I found it obnoxious, but upon further review I merely feel bad for those that choose not to live with people in between Boston and San Diego, as opposed to finding their decisions annoying.

Last night my roommates plus three others got back from a weekend in Las Vegas, a 48-hour span I will never forget. But what I realized is that what makes my group of closest college friends to cool, is its geographic diversity, kids who live in the private dorms, join Sammy or SDT and go to City bar every Tuesday and Saturday will never experience. Of the 13 of us in Vegas last weekend, we come from Wisconsin, Illinois, Massachusetts, Washington D.C., California, Arizona, Colorado, Pennsylvania, Minnesota and Ghana; yes Ghana, the small country in northern Africa, not Ghana, Wisconsin – which doesn’t exist, by the way.

People have asked me why I came to Wisconsin from the Northeast. That’s why. If I wanted to meet kids from Newton, Sharon and Brookline, I would have gone to UMASS. Instead, I was in Vegas with a group from literally all over the world. In a year, I can be in any of those locations and know somebody. Those who choose not to assimilate can’t say the same thing; they’re simply choosing not to take advantage of the resources presented to them in a place far from home.

Too bad for them.

A necessary change for national high school curriculums

2009-11-02T20:56:00.002-06:00

I’ve been thinking about this for a while, but my recent application for the Teach For America program makes this a perfectly relevant time for the unveiling.

This idea really took shape while I was studying abroad in Prague, Czech Republic, as I realized that it’s cool to be worldly, knowledgeable about different facets of life. I was learning about issues that were changing every day. Which countries were being considered for the European Economic and Monetary Union; how exchange rates would be affected by countries’ switch to one currency, the Euro; the importance of Turkey being considered for admission into the European Union.
These were real issues being discussed as I learned about them. It was cool.

What I realized was that those kind of learning experiences rarely happen below the collegiate level in this country, but the opportunities are unlimited. I was learning about the economic crisis last fall in my money and banking class, but my sister, a high school senior, probably couldn’t have told you what TARP was. Nor could she explain the fundamental differences between Barack Obama and John McCain’s platforms. Why? Because those issues weren’t being discussed in school.

For me, that’s a problem; high school curriculums are too rigid. In my mind, learning about current events is just as – if not more – important than learning about history. Why should kids learn about Chinese foot-binding in lieu of learning about the principles behind the government bailouts? Why is learning about the Korean War more important than learning about the War in Iraq? Why is understanding Nixon’s platform more important than that of Obama’s? The fact that there aren’t textbooks written about current events isn’t an excuse. Neither is standardized testing. Seventeen- and 18-year-old American students should understand what’s happening in the world around them, because you better believe their European counterparts do.

Learning about current events – both national and international, watching the news – should be mandatory for high school juniors and seniors. It’s an embarrassment that they all know who Paris Hilton is, but none know who Ben Bernanke is.

But it’s not the kids’ faults; they just follow the rules. A current events class, where students bring in articles to discuss and debate on a variety of topics would solve the problem. Fifty minutes a day discussing politics, economics, Google vs. Microsoft, stem cells is all I ask. I guarantee they would think learning is cooler than they do today. And they’d be that much better equipped for life after high school.

My Badger Herald non-sports debut:

2009-10-19T16:17:00.000-05:00

Blame buildings for coastie image

Badger Herald guest column:

2009-10-06T09:48:00.000-05:00

UW molds Clay into better running back

Week 4 sucker bets: Time for Vegas to turn it on

2009-10-01T16:12:00.008-05:00

Last week: 1-2
Overall: 2-5

Vegas is losing. There's no doubt about it. Don't expect that to continue.

The Bears should have lost in Seattle, but thanks to a Jeff Reed-esque performance (just ask Jim Mora) by Seahawks kicker Olindo Mare, Chicago survived their Northwest excursion. The Jets also came back to beat the Titans, but, as my headline stated last week, the Texans couldn't take care of the Jaguars at home.

Now on to this week:

Buccaneers +7 at Redskins
Seems like an awfully big spread for a team that beat the lowly Rams by only two points at home a week before losing to the Lions. Apparently the bookies have no faith in Raheem Morris or Josh Johnson. You probably shouldn't either, unless those dressed as pigs start cheering for Tampa, which is a definite possibility.

Giants -8.5 at Chiefs
I personally like the G-Men in this one. They're easily the best team in the NFC. But why isn't the line at least 10? The worm is just bobbing, waiting to be bitten. Seems too easy. Probably is.

Bengals -5.5 at Browns
The Browns look like the worst team in football after losing to the Ravens (who might be the best), 34-3 last week. Cinci is coming off a huge win against the Steelers.

Re-enter Derek Anderson; exit Brady Quinn. This is a rivalry game at home. Expect the pound to be loud. If the Bengals win, it's got to be by less than five.

Also expect SBT to have its first winning week of the season.

If only we could protect Zlinger

2009-10-01T16:02:00.001-05:00

Over the summer I changed the name of this blog from "From Boston to Badgers" to "Boston, Badgers, Business and Banter" to expand my horizons from sports to other areas of interests. I'm not a one-dimensional person, but my writing had been so since I started writing for the MetroWest Daily News four years ago (until I went to Prague). I wanted to change that.

Still, I find myself writing about NFL sucker bets and Scott Tolzien, essentially eliminating the "Business and Banter" aspects of the blog.

This time, let's talk business.

For my entrepreneurship class in Prague, I came up with an idea that I thought could change the Internet. It was a class project, but as it progressed, I realized just good my idea was. I started getting really into it and promised myself that I would pursue it further when I got back to the States in May.

Everyone I explained it to thought it was a great idea. So I pitched it to my lifelong friend, Glenn Alterman. Glenn was the kid reading "PC World" when we were 10, while the rest of us were trading baseball cards. When I have a problem with my computer, I don't call Dell or Best Buy, I call Glenn. And he always fixes it. So when Glenn gave an enthusiastic approval, I knew I had something to work with.

So I talked to another friend (from Camp Cedar, ironically) of mine, Dana Lampert, CEO of Wiggio, a growing online social network that he started in the Cornell Business School. I essentially wanted to follow in Dana's footsteps, so we met over the summer at Starbucks in Sudbury, Mass. He explained to me about angel investing and what I wanted was a technical co-founder to develop my site, among other things.

I started getting really excited. I brought a notebook to my sister's high school graduation and drew what I wanted to site to look like while she gave her speech as class president (that's a lie, I put the notebook down while she spoke). Glenn and I spoke every day while driving to our respective internships about monetization and marketing ideas. We figured we needed to draft a business plan before we went searching for a technical co-founder. Here's what I wrote:

Zlinger is a revolutionary Internet social media outlet designed to organize online reading content for users. The Internet combined with the blogosphere is simply too vast to manage on one’s own. Zlinger eliminates the isolation of Internet reading, as it creates an interactive media platform for all of its users.

Zlinger is free, and allows users to become their own media outlet, an interactive online personal newspaper. Each user’s profile page is organized by sections, marked as tabs at the top of the page. These tabs are personalized based on content preferences. User A may have Sports, YouTube, Economics and Politics tabs on his page; User B may have Red Sox, Technology, Music and Sports Columnists on his. Tabs can be as general or specific as the user chooses.

These tabs are designed to organize read material. Users then add links (called “Zlinging”) to material from around the Net, using personalized headlines, under the respective tabs, creating an archive of links to articles within the same genre. User C has now created a personal Web newspaper with personalized sections. The next step is the interaction. Other users can now access User C’s account and Zling links using their own headlines that they think User C may like. Now the network is in place. Users Zling links on their own pages, as well as on others’. Users can also view others’ pages, to see what has been posted in order to take them to links that they may have not otherwise found.

Privacy settings are extremely important for Zlinger. Users “Follow” each other, like on Twitter, as opposed to “Friending” them, as on Facebook. This enables users to view anyone’s page without refusal. To prevent clutter and spam, users must approve followers to be able to post on their page, but it can be viewed by anyone. Like Twitter, followers need not be approved by the followed user. This allows User D to view Shaquille O’Neal’s Zlinger account without Shaquille knowing, although User D count not post on Shaquille’s page unless previously approved.

For example: User E is a sports fanatic, but is recently interested in Ben Bernanke’s monetary policy. User E is not familiar with many economic blogs or sites, but his friend, User F reads dozens of related material every morning. So instead of searching the Internet aimlessly for accredited economic content, User E goes to User F’s Zlinger account, because he knows that User F posts the best economic material every morning before work. Zlinger allows users to specialize in certain content areas, then reap the benefits from others’ expertise in different areas. Zlinger is designed to inform the eager, yet uninformed Internet reader. Zlinger’s target market is Internet readers of all ages and demographics. If you read any kind of Web content, you will benefit from using Zlinger.

Not only is Zlinger revolutionary in organizing Web content, its monetization plan is state-of-the-art as well. Typical Web advertisements include a picture thumbnail and a brief description of a given company or site, which brings you to the homepage. Today, most content-driven sites have automated Twitter accounts that tweet links that are posted on the site to generate more traffic. This Twitter accounts will are the basis of Zlinger’s monetization plan.

When users sign up for Zlinger, they are asked to fill out a quick and easy questionnaire about their different demographics, such as age, hometown, university, favorite sports teams, political views, religious views, occupation, etc. This information’s privacy is guaranteed by Zlinger – in order to persuade those users reluctant to divulge that information – and essential for marketing purposes. This anonymous information is used to attract clients to buy ad space on users’ Zlinger pages. Clients will buy space on specific user pages based on demographic. Clients do not choose space based on users’ names, which keeps the demographics separate from the users’ real names. For instance, NESN can buy space on all Red Sox fans’ pages. NESN’s ad will show up on User G’s Red Sox (or sports, should NESN choose to pursue that, too) page, but not his Finance page.

Prospective ad-space buying clients are predominantly content-driven sites. They will be charged on a per-click basis, much like Google Adwords. But instead of having generic ads that links to a company’s homepage, the ads will be the company’s automated Twitter account, with direct links to articles. So as the company’s Twitter account updates with new linked material, so does the ad located in Zlinger. This way, related content can be found inside users’ accounts, generated by the users themselves, and by external companies and sites that pay for space. Zlinger has just become a premier destination for organized Web content.

The final unique feature Zlinger offers to its users is its homepage, which works similarly to Facebook and Twitter feeds. But instead of being updated as followed or friended users update their pages, Zlinger’s main feed is made up of newsworthy topics of the day. Users then Zling links into topic pages for other users to view. For example, Manny Ramirez gets suspended for using steroids. Countless media outlets and blogs write their perspective. It becomes a hot topic added to the Zlinger homepage, where users can Zling content in from around the Web, allowing users to find content they normally wouldn’t find on a topic that interests them.

Zlinger has now created a win-win network for content-hungry users and content-driven sites anxious for traffic. It allows formerly unknown sites to be found, while organizing material all over the Web in all fathomable genres, created by the users. Zlinger is 100 percent user-driven.

Zlinger has just organized the unorganized.

The frustrating thing is that I still think Zlinger could be the next Facebook. Like international trade, it allows people to specialize in their content expertise, while relying on others' in different realms. That, or it would be a perfect addition to Twitter, as people could tweet content to one another and keep it organized under the appropriate tabs.

The problem is that there's no way to protect the idea. Conglomerates like Google would evolve Google Reader into our idea and put us out of business. Twitter would never sign an NDA to listen to our idea. And if we pitched it to them without one, they'd take the idea and run with it.

That's the issue with the Internet; protection is very hard to come by, just ask MySpace.

So although I still believe the world needs Zlinger, our efforts have all but stopped since August. It's just too risky to spend all that time and effort into creating something that can be essentially stolen overnight.

Still, Internet content needs to be organized better. Hopefully Google Reader evolves into what I wanted Zlinger to accomplish, for society's sake.

All I'll say is, "I told you so."

And for the record, this will not be my last entrepreneurial attempt. One day I'll strike gold, mark my words.

(On a related note, I've been slacking on the Zetcasts, mostly because my Internet is less than useful in my room. Hopefully I'll fix that this weekend so I can produce more shows. The first one with Frankie V went decently well.)

Week 3 sucker bets: Beware of the Texans

2009-09-23T20:29:00.004-05:00

Last week: 1-3
Overall: 1-3

It was a tough start to 2009 for the Sucker Bet Theory (SBT), as it went a dismal 1-3 in Week 2. To be honest, it should have gone 1-4, seeing that Colts -3 at Miami fit the SBT mold pretty perfectly. And it easily could have gone 0-5, if it weren’t for Jeff Reed’s pair of missed field goals in Chicago.

The Chiefs couldn’t hold of Darren McFadden and the Raiders; likewise for the Lions with Adrian Peterson. And the Falcons covered by two at home against the now-0-2 Panthers.

One of three conclusions (I like Nos. 2 and 3) can be made from last Sunday. 1) SBT is false. 2) The bookies are a bit rusty and still gauging just how good each team is. Or 3) What I like to call SBTII, a sub-theory, if you will. SBTII says that the bookies screw up on purpose early in the season to entice more gambling as the season progresses. If you bet on Indianapolis Monday night and thought, “Hey, this is easy,” you should probably quit while you’re ahead, according to SBTII. Trust me, it’s not that easy. Vegas lost a lot of money Monday night. After all, who bet on the Dolphins? Don’t expect the bookies to continue making those mistakes.

Three games stick out to me as sucker bets in Week 3. So without further ado:

At Jets -2.5 Titans
New York is coming off of an emotional win over the Patriots. Mark Sanchez looked great. The defense looked great. They’re 2-0 and Tennessee – whose defense had no answer for Matt Schaub, Andre Johnson & Co. – is 0-2. The Jets should be able to cover at home, you think.

But this is a must-win game for Jeff Fisher’s Titans. Call it the hangover effect in the Meadowlands, if you must. The Jets still have a rookie coach and a rookie quarterback, no matter how good they looked against New England. Bet on the team that needs the win the most. That’s Tennessee.

At Texans -3.5 Jaguars
Houston’s offense just torched Tennessee for 34 points on Sunday. Jacksonville is 0-2, coming off of a blowout at home to the hands of defending NFC champion Arizona.

My question: Who in the world is betting on the Jaguars in this game?

Exactly. All the money will be on Houston. People would bet on the Texans at -6, so why is the line only 3 1/2?

No way Vegas screws this one up. If the Texans cover, the bookies will lose a lot of money (unless SBTII is still in effect in Week 3, which is a possibility).

Biggest sucker bet of the week. Bet on Houston at your own risk.

Bears -2 at Seattle
Matt Hasselbeck is hurt and probably out, leaving Seneca Wallace at the helm once again. Jay Cutler and the Bears are coming off an impressive win against the defending champs. And the line is only two.

Do not underestimate home field advantage in the NFL. Or Lofa Tatupu, for that matter.

You love Chicago. Don’t grab the trapped cheese. The bookies love the Hawks at home.

The Zetcast premiere

2009-09-18T15:14:00.003-05:00

Derek talks to Frankie V (click here), Los Angeles/San Diego DJ, host of Frankie's Neighborhood, about his journey to stardom and the future of the media industry.

Check out his site at frankiesneighborhood.com.

The Sucker Bet Theory: Beat the bookies by being the bookies

2009-09-16T15:43:00.003-05:00

The sports gambling industry is a multi-billion dollar sector and football season is center of the sports gambling universe, no doubt, as gridiron fanatics try and beat Vegas every Saturday and Sunday all fall.

My roommate Jordan and I have been working on a theory for about two years now, called the Sucker Bet Theory (SBT). It’s time it becomes unveiled.

What gamblers must realize is that in the long run, you’re not going to beat the bookies. I’ve given up. You’re not going to outsmart the bookies and they didn’t overlook the line you think is a gimme. Ever thought, “I can’t believe that line is so low, no way they can stop Adrian Peterson; the Vikings will definitely cover 6 1/2”?

Heed my warning: extinguish that thought process from your mindset. But look on the bright side: there is money to be made during football season. I invite you to continue reading.

In order to beat the bookies, you must think like a bookie. Typically, bookies make money on juice. Think of juice like a tax, which is usually 10 percent. In other words, you bet $110 to win $100, or $55 to win $50. In most cases, the bookie’s job is to set a line to initiate even money on both sides, his profit then being the juice from the losers. Think of it like the casino’s rake in poker.

(This is why I hate when people credit the bookies for making a line equal to or close to the eventual score, as if they get more money for being accurate. It’s actually quite the opposite: if they nail the score exactly, everybody pushes, gets their money back and the bookies make no money.)

But SBT exists in a different environment. SBT is when the bookies are so sure that one team is going to cover a spread, that they bait gamblers into choosing the other side with an enticing line. In this case, more money is on one side than the other, and the bookies profit off of losing bets rather than the juice.

Sucker bets come in all forms, but are most prevalent in road teams, teams coming off big weeks or whose opponents had uninspiring weeks. “Wow, Mark Sanchez tore it up Sunday. He’s definitely going to do it again next week, I’m taking the Jets.”

You and everyone else. 70/30 bets are in favor of the Jets. Jets don’t cover. Bookies clean up. Behold: you are a sucker. Does your cheek hurt? You just ate the worm.

It was hard to recognize sucker bets in Week 1, seeing that no one really knew what to expect. But there are some obvious ones for Week 2. Let’s take a look:

Raiders +3 at Chiefs
The Raiders played the Chargers, one of the AFC’s best teams on paper, down to the wire. The Chiefs lost by 14 points to the Ravens.

“If they Raiders almost beat San Diego, they can definitely beat the Chiefs,” you say.

You’re not alone. The Raiders are playing on a short week and traveling from Oakland to Kansas City. Arrowhead Stadium is always a tough place to play, not matter how good or bad the Chiefs are.

Bet Kansas City. Whether Matt Cassel plays or not.

Vikings -9.5 at Lions
Adrian Peterson looked unstoppable against the Browns. The Lions got smoked against Drew Brees and the Saints. Looks like another blowout, right?

Not so fast. The line is an enticing one, a half-point below 10. In other words, the bookies want you to think, “Minnesota can definitely win by 10.”

But 9 1/2 points is a ton to cover in the NFL. I’m not necessarily saying bet on Detroit, but don’t fall in love with the Vikings. That’s what they want you to do.

At Falcons -6 Panthers
Matt Ryan was impressive against the Dolphins in Week 1. Jake Delhomme threw four picks against the Eagles. Looks like a no-brainer.

Need I throw another fake quote in here? You get it by now. Under a touchdown is enticing. But it’s a division game and I’m not sold on that Atlanta defense just yet. Expect DeAngelo Williams to show why he was a consensus first-round fantasy pick.

Steelers -3 at Bears
Speaking of four picks. Steelers coming off a good win against a solid Titans team. Jay Cutler looked like Brett Favre in last season’s finale, only worse. Game’s on national TV in Soldier Field.

Everybody and their brother like the Steelers. This will be Vegas’ biggest Week 2 win.

Granted, SBT is not 100 percent accurate. One or more of those teams will probably cover on Sunday. Just be hesitant in choosing any of them. They bookies saw Cutler’s performance in Green Bay. They know what they’re doing and they realize that more than 50 percent of gamblers will likely take the Steelers laying only three points. If the Steelers cover, they will lose money.

Most bookies aren’t in the money-losing business.

This week's "Student Section" show:

2009-09-16T14:44:00.003-05:00

September 15, 2009 show:

Plenty of Wisconsin football talk, plus some Big Ten scheduling and bowl discussion. Jeremy Hyman (aka Jimbo from Ann Arbor) calls in just after the halfway point, plus Tom Henson informs us all about the Wofford Terriers, Wisconsin's next opponent.

Zetcast coming very soon

2009-09-15T11:33:00.004-05:00

I've had this idea for a while, just haven't found (or made) the time to execute it. But now that school is in full swing and I'm not working 14-hour summer days, the Zetcast podcast will be starting very soon. Allow me to explain.

The Zetcast will essentially be my own "radio" show that I record via Skype from my bedroom on my laptop. I will make outgoing calls to guests via Skype and record them using an application called Pamela Recorder. Pamela records the entire conversation -- myself talking, the dialing, the ringtone and when the guest picks up. Skype enables me to make conference calls, so I can call several people at once during any given show. Shows' time lengths will vary.

I will post each show here, on my blog as an individual post, as well as on Facebook and Twitter (derekztlin) as a direct link to my UW webspace (the host of the MP3 file, which has streaming capabilities) and on iTunes, so listeners can upload each show to their iPods and listen to it in the car or on the way to class. I also encourage listeners to post the link on their Facebook pages, to help spread the word of the show and attract more listeners.

(Each two-hour Tuesday "Student Section" show on WSUM Student Radio will also be posted here each week and can be streamed at any time, as you can see below from last week's show.)

More about the Zetcast: The reason for it is simple; I know too many interesting people whose stories, ideas and opinions need to be shared to a variety of listeners. Though my expertise revolves primarily around sports, the Zetcast is not a solely a sports-realted broadcast. Topics will vary from sports to politics to finance to technology to business to travel and college life, depending on the guest(s) of each show.

I have a long list of guests whom I plan to invite onto the show, all of whose dialogues should be worthwhile to listen to for all. Guests will include anyone from my lifelong friends to professional writers to people perhaps I've never met before.

The Zetcast is designed to teach people about things they may not know anything about, as well as provide entertainment to listeners. Its direction will be entirely based on listers' ideas and interests. If you have a topic or guest you'd like to hear, comment on this blog. All (well, most) ideas will be taken seriously.

I'm very excited to get the Zetcast up and running as soon as possible, maybe even tonight. I hope you enjoy listening. Feedback is highly encouraged.

First "Student Section" of the Year:

2009-09-10T19:28:00.007-05:00

September 8, 2009 show

Lots of Badger talk plus some NFC predictions. Listen live on Tuesdays from 4-6 p.m. Central (5-7 Eastern) on wsum.org.

Badger Herald guest column:

2009-09-04T14:09:00.000-05:00

Tolzien comes out of nowhere to win starting job

The 1,000-word freshman guide to college

2009-08-24T13:28:00.005-05:00

I entered this essay for a Wisconsin convocation contest this summer. I didn't win, but I still want people to read it. All I would have won was a $100 gift card to the book store and a chance to read it in front of UW's new freshman class anyway. Hope you like it:

People say that college is the best time of your life. They’re right; if you do it properly. As a senior here at Madison, I’ve taken some mental notes along the way, things that I’ve either learned from experience or wish I had done during my first three years at UW. If I could start over, I’d do it in a heartbeat; I’ve already tried, but my sister who’s going to be a freshman at Michigan wouldn’t switch places with me. Honestly though, I wouldn’t want to be a Wolverine anyway.

Perhaps the most important aspect to success in college is meeting people. Networking really is the key to life. You’ve heard the phrase, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.” It’s entirely true. Madison provides you with incredible opportunities to meet people from all over the world, with different areas of interest and diverse backgrounds. Expand your horizons. Force yourself out of your comfort zone; that’s how you grow as an individual. If you see someone sitting at a table by themselves, go talk to them. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Create as many contacts as you can; they’ll come in handy some day, believe me.

Along those same lines, keep in touch with your contacts. In today’s world, you have no excuse not to. With Facebook, G-chat, E-mail, instant messenger, text messaging, BBMs, Twitter, you can keep in touch with everyone with just a simple click or two. Do it. You’ll never know when that person can come in handy down the road. Make contacts and keep in touch with them. It’s the key to life, I’m telling you.

Don’t be afraid to self-promote. Facebook, blogs, other forms of social media provide a great way for you to show the world what you can do. It’s not bragging; it’s merely self-marketing. You never know who stumbles upon your work or ideas and likes what you do. That too can come in handy some day.

I have a theory, it’s called: Finding the Dork in You. This is no longer high school. The “uncool” things to do no longer exist. If you were a math wiz but never would have been caught dead at a math club meeting, times have changed. Find what drives you. If you like biology, real estate, biochemical engineering, poetry, go explore your options here at UW. If there’s not already a club, start your own. It’s no longer uncool. Find the dork in you. Mine was writing. I wrote for The Badger Herald for my entire first three years here, skipping football pre-games to cover the team from the press box. I had to make sacrifices, but it’s opened some pretty cool doors for me down the road. Trust me, it’s worth it.

Diversify your skill set. You are like a stock portfolio; you want to diversify your assets. Gather as many skills as you can. If you’re a writer, take an economics class. If you’re into business, take computer science. You’ll never know when different skills will come in handy for you and it’s important to be well-rounded and not narrow-minded. Imagine if you devoted all your time to newspaper design or VCR production. Those industries don’t last forever. Become well-versed in many areas, and you’ll be an asset to any future employer you encounter.

In order to be as knowledgeable as you possibly can in as many areas as possible, you need to teach yourself. The best way to do that is to read. Not necessarily books either. Read online. Read about politics, economics, chemistry, if that’s your thing. Just understand the world in which you live. I can’t tell you how valuable that is. Learning in class is one thing, but the kids who are best equipped to succeed outside the classroom are the ones who went above and beyond, reading, learning on their own time. Remember, you don’t fill in multiple choice bubbles in the real world.

Aside from learning on your own and in the classroom, talk to your professors. Not just your TAs, either, I mean professors. This is my biggest regret of my first three years of college; I rarely talked to my professors. Not only could it potentially help you go from a B to an AB or an AB to an A, but you’ll understand the material tenfold, which could perhaps spark a future interest that you may not have originally thought of.

I’ve come up with another theory, that 94 percent of success in all life activities stems from confidence and experience. All right, 94 is an arbitrary number, but so much of success in all endeavors comes from those two things. Practice really does make perfect and confidence in yourself breeds others confidence’ in you.

In order to stay confident in yourself, you want to stay in shape. This is overlooked by so many college kids. Use the SERF, eat right, stay healthy. If you look good and feel good, your confidence will stay high and you’ll take yourself to new heights. It’s easy to drink too much beer and put on that proverbial freshman 15. It’s avoidable; you just have to be proactive and smart.

And lastly, have some fun. Go out on Tuesdays if you want, assuming you have no Wednesday exam. I told you this is going to be the best four years of your life. I wasn’t kidding. I’m pissed I only have two semesters left.

Final day at NESN:

2009-08-19T14:35:00.002-05:00

Sheffield Doubts He'll Be a Met By Month's End

Nate Robinson Arrested, Tweets Roadside

Ahh, I'm a pioneer in Wisconsin student radio

2009-08-19T14:33:00.001-05:00

In the history books forever. First live football broadcast in school history. Pretty cool.

Damien Woody Throws Former Coach Mangini Under the Bus

2009-08-19T06:03:00.009-05:00

Now that former Jets head coach Eric Mangini is roaming the Cleveland Browns’ sideline, the cat is starting to be let out of the bag in the Meadowlands during the newfound Rex Ryan era, something Jets guard Damien Woody, for one, is relieved about.

"Here I am 31 years old, I've got my own kids, and I'm married, and here's someone that's not that much older than me -- or whatever the case may be -- telling me what I can and can't do," Woody told the Los Angeles Times in reference to Mangini. "It's so regimented where the game is just not a game anymore. It's not fun. Even when you win it's not fun."

Ryan seems to be bringing the fun back to the green and white. "I think they realized, 'Wow, this is different [than before],'" Ryan told the Times. "But it is going to be different. I think they understand who I am. I'm just being myself, and I think they know they can trust that. Where before, guys were just a little bit tight.

"I just want to make sure they knew that this is still a game."

Apparently Mangini never reminded the Jets of that during his three- year tenure – in which he compiled a 23-25 record.

"[That] was great to hear,” Woody said. “I'd never heard that in my whole career, for a guy to say that. He wants things to be enjoyable, where you have fun but get your work done."

The Jets have some work to get done. They sit behind a pair of division foes that finished 11-5 in 2008 that only seem to be getting better.

This was written for NESN.com, but was already posted by another writer.

Tuesday's NESN links a day late:

2009-08-19T06:01:00.003-05:00

Wildcat Fever Spreads Through Jets Camp

Lee Frustrated, Duhon Open-Minded About Knicks' Current Situation

Written Friday, posted Saturday on NESN:

2009-08-16T08:45:00.001-05:00

Westmoreland and Kelly the Budding Youngsters of Sox System

Friday's NESN links:

2009-08-14T20:56:00.002-05:00

Rangers Are This Season's Rays

What to Do With a Slumping Ortiz?

Wednesday's sole NESN link a day late:

2009-08-13T09:58:00.000-05:00

Rumors Swirling Around Jets Backfield

Tuesday's NESN links a day late:

2009-08-12T09:58:00.002-05:00

Rookie Receiver Barden Filling Void in Giants Receiving Corps

Rex Ryan Leaves Open the Possibility of Mark Sanchez as Starter

Yankees' Kennedy Returns to the Mound After Surgery

Glastonbury National, Conn., Edges Portsmouth, N.H.

Sox Minor League Notebook from Friday:

2009-08-09T09:00:00.002-05:00

Inside the Reported Failed Deal for Felix Hernandez

Sox hope Byrd can fly them to October

2009-08-08T08:47:00.003-05:00

This was supposed to run on NESN.com but was already posted by the time I wrote it.

With the pitching staff sputtering just a week after baseball’s non-waiver trade deadline, the Red Sox added a familiar face to their rotation late Wednesday night.

Sox GM Theo Epstein dug deep into his bag of tricks, signing the retired Paul Byrd to a minor league deal.

The Red Sox traded for Byrd after the July 31 deadline last season, when he went 4-2 with a 4.78 ERA with the club.

"I'm excited," Byrd told mlb.com. "I think I can be back in shape and help them out in whatever role they need me to help them out in September. Maybe I can get that World Series ring."

According to the site, Byrd has been staying in shape all season long, in anticipation of a possible return to baseball. He will start out at the team’s Spring Training complex in Fort Myers, Fla.

"I am in shape, I have been throwing," Byrd continued. "It's not like I haven't picked up a ball. I have been throwing, I've been off a mound twice in the last three days, six times in the last two weeks. There's a difference between pitching in a game and throwing a bullpen. I would need to start out at one or two innings and build up arm strength."

With Clay Buchholz, John Smoltz, Brad Penny struggling and Tim Wakefield and Daisuke Matsuzaka on the disabled list, the Red Sox are in desperate need of a consistent arm to guide them toward the postseason.

They’re hoping Byrd has enough left in the tank.

Thursday's NESN links:

2009-08-06T18:57:00.002-05:00

Hartford to Host Celtics-Raptors Preseason Tilt

Ocean Spray Seeking Top Tailgater in New England

Young Celtics Impacting Boston Community

Roy Inks Contract Extension in Portland

Wednesday's NESN links:

2009-08-05T20:42:00.002-05:00

Leading Off: Red Sox, Penny Hope to Split Series, Cool Off Rays, Price

Sanchez Feeling More Comfortable in Jets Camp

Lugo Unleashing His Midwest Swing in St. Louis

Busy Tuesday at NESN:

2009-08-04T21:13:00.002-05:00

Yankees Should Still Be Shopping For Arms

Manning Eyeing New Receiving Targets in New York

Clemens Leads Sanchez Early in Jets' Quarterback Competition

Monday's sole NESN link:

2009-08-03T20:46:00.001-05:00

Nomar Could Manke Sense For Red Sox as They Push Toward Playoffs

Disappointing, but not surprising

2009-07-30T23:22:00.003-05:00

Disappointing, but not surprising is the overall sentiment circulating Red Sox Nation Thursday, as news of Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs in 2003 seeped across New England and beyond.

A fair sentiment indeed.

Where to start? Shame on you if you’re actually surprised by the New York Times report. We already knew about Manny. And Papi’s quest from mediocrity to superstardom in the span of one earth rotation was a bit fishy, wasn’t it? It crossed your mind, you just didn’t want to believe it.

The first question is: Does this tarnish the 2004 and 2007 World Series won by Manny and Papi in their primes? A difficult question, the answer being yes and no.

Yes because one day we’ll have to explain to our kids how exciting the end of the drought was in 2004. And they’ll laugh in our faces and tell us that that was when everyone was cheating so it doesn’t count. And they won’t be entirely wrong.

I want the answer to be no, but quite frankly, it isn’t. I want to say, “it’s not a big deal,” but it is. Because it was. Remember how important it was? No seriously, do you? Because I follow the Red Sox probably more closely than you do and I had to think hard to remember.

Remember the “here we go again feeling” when Bernie Williams ripped that double down the right field line, then Posada hit that blooper and stood on second clutching both fists, with Pedro’s head staring at the Yankee Stadium infield?

Remember choking back the tears when Aaron Boone sent Tim Wakefield’s knuckler into the night in the bottom of the eleventh?

And choking back the same tears when Gary Sheffield dented the Monster with the 15th double in a row off Bronson Arroyo in Game 3 in 2004?

And your dad yelling at you to “go to fucking bed, they’re toast” at 12:30 during Game 4.

Remember your heart racing in your throat when Dave Roberts slid in safe at second by the width of your hair?

And Bill Mueller.

And Papi. Twice.

And the grounder to Pokey Reese.

Then the final grounder to Foulke?

It mattered, so don’t say it doesn’t now. It mattered to us like no one else can ever imagine, except maybe Cubs fans. My roommate from L.A. told me recently, “Boston is crazy. High school girls know when Jonathan Papelbon is pitching.”

Good example, Jordan. He’s the closer. But you get the point.

Of course, there were at least 102 others, including Alex Rodriguez who were cheating in 2003, too. It’s not as if the Red Sox were the only ones breaking the rules en route to champinshipdom. It wasn’t an equal playing field in relation to other eras, but if as many players were doping as we think there were, the playing field was equal, just artificially raised to a new level.

Still, the purity of reversing the curse is all but gone, along with Roger Clemens, Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire’s dignity.

Aside from that, there are two other subplots that bother me as much as the now-tainted banners that sit in Fenway Park.

One is “the list.” Why is it OK that A-Rod, Manny, and Ortiz’s names get leaked and no one else’s? To their defense, this list was supposed to be confidential, created by Major League Baseball to find out how big of an issue steroids were in order to clean up the game. I think that the confidentiality of the list is utter bullshit in the first place, but a deal is a deal, and that was the agreement. But as soon as A-Rod’s name was leaked, it instantly became unfair – as much as I despise him – that he was singled out, merely because of his name and $252 million contract.

It’s only fair to see the rest of the list. Time to make it public.

Second, I fear hypocrisy about to reek in Red Sox Nation. We laughed at the “Mannywood” signs and how the LaLa Land dwellers accepted Manny back so quickly, so easily. We thought it was a joke. “What do they know about sports, in L.A.?” we thought. “He cheated!”

Now what? We’d be hypocrites to forgive Papi in an instant after scoffing SoCal for doing so with No. 99. But you know what’s coming. Look what happened when he hit the game-winning homer Thursday.

Irony? You couldn’t have scripted it any better.

And now we’re left feeling empty once again, with 101 unknown names left to uncover. Are Damon, Pedro, Schilling, Trot Nixon included? Does it even matter anymore?

Thursday was another sad day for baseball. Sad because we can’t turn the page and even worse for Red Sox Nation, as 2004 and 2007 will forever be tarnished, at least in the minds of the objective ones.

We suspected but we never knew for sure. We wanted David Ortiz to be the one clean one, as he’s insisted so frequently and so adamantly. Nope, we were wrong.

But don’t say you didn’t see this day coming. You did. We all did. We just never wanted it to be true.

Thursday's NESN links:

2009-07-30T23:20:00.002-05:00

NFL Notebook: Will the Giants Reign Supreme in the NFC -- or Will the Cowboys Finally Get it Together?

Jones Reports to Jets Camp, Washington Doesn't

Wednesday's NESN links a day late:

2009-07-30T10:45:00.001-05:00

Wherever He May Go, Halladay Changes Playoff Picture

Patriots Ready to Go Camping

Yankees Have New Hole to Fill in Center

2009-07-28T18:59:00.003-05:00

Note: This was written to view on NESN.com, but I essentially forgot about Melky Cabrera. But I thought I'd show it here, in case Cabrera catches the swine flu and this somehow becomes relevant before Friday's deadline.

Brett Gardner’s broken thumb has opened up a spot in the Yankee outfield, specifically center field. The question now, is: how do they fill that void?

The first option is that the Yankees could do some shifting from within. Both Johnny Damon and Nick Swisher have center field experience, but neither has played there since September of last season. Damon used to be an everyday center fielder, but his range isn’t half what it used to be when he was in a Red Sox, Royals or A’s uniform. And Swisher can play just about anywhere on the diamond, including the pitcher’s mound.

"I could do it," Swisher told LoHud.com, in reference to playing center field. "I don't know about every day, but I could do it."

If the Yankees were to move Damon or Swisher to center, it would then open up either left or right field, respectively. That spot could either be filled by recently acquired Eric Hinske or the aging Hideki Matsui. Neither seems like an ideal everyday solution fort Joe Girardi’s first-place club.

The Yankees currently have eight pitchers in their bullpen, but one could easily be replaced by a Triple-A outfielder to take Gardner’s place in order to keep Damon and Swisher in their respective corners. Shelley Duncan, Ramiro Pena, John Rodriguez and Austin Jackson could all be promoted from Scranton to play center field in the Bronx. Jackson is Scranton’s current everyday center fielder and one of the Yankees’ top non-pitching prospects. He is hitting .313 with four home runs, 39 RBIs and 17 stolen bases with Scranton this season.

Or, of course the Yankees could trade for a center fielder before Friday’s trade deadline.

There are no obvious center fielders on the trade market that could immediately be worthwhile for the Yankees to acquire in the next three days. But, because of the team’s financial situations, Rays left fielder Carl Crawford’s name has come up as possible post-2009 trade bait. But it is unlikely that Tampa Bay will unload the league’s stolen base leader in the midst of a pennant race.

However, while the Yankees are in Tampa Bay, CC Sabathia is joining Crawford on Wednesday in an event aimed at encouraging young African Americans to play baseball.

But even if CC convinces Crawford that he’d look good in pinstripes, he’ll have to coax Rays GM Andrew Friedman that Tampa Bay can still compete without Crawford and his .308 BA, 65 runs and 47 steals, not to mention his gold glove-caliber defensive skills.

Don’t count on it.

Tuesday's NESN link:

2009-07-28T18:57:00.000-05:00

Could Mets Really Be Buyers at the Deadline?

Monday's NESN links:

2009-07-27T21:56:00.002-05:00

Report: Theo Still Looking to Deal After Indians Reject Offers

Minaya to Blame for Mets' Struggles

Like Red Sox, Yankees Could Be Buying Pitching at the Deadline

Thursday's NESN NFL Notebook a day late:

2009-07-24T10:19:00.000-05:00

Breaking Down AFC Contenders

Wednesday's NESN links a day late:

2009-07-23T09:25:00.001-05:00

Like Boston's Buchholz, Mitre Impressive in '09 Yankee Debut

Reports: Yao Undergoes Successful Surgery

Tuesday's NESN links:

2009-07-21T16:17:00.001-05:00

Giants Already Cutting Costs for New Stadium Tickets

New York Owners: Vick Will Not Be a Jet or Giant

Monday's NESN links a day late:

2009-07-21T05:39:00.002-05:00

Jets' Backfield Depth Gives Team Leverage, Options

Manningham Ready to Prove His Worth

Nash Agrees to Two-year Deal With Suns

NESN relaunched!

2009-07-17T12:41:00.003-05:00

After months of preparation, NESN.com finally relaunched today at noon! Go check it out and let me know what you think.

Thursday's NESN links a day late:

2009-07-17T12:38:00.002-05:00

NFL Notebook: Time for Cassel to show if he's a franchise quarterback

Jets' Sanchez could be money-making ambassador for NFL

Church, Francoeur set to battle former teams

Wednesday's NESN link a day late:

2009-07-16T05:48:00.001-05:00

Joba proving to be human after all

Tuesday's NESN links a day late:

2009-07-15T09:44:00.002-05:00

Honorary Red Sox Rob Dixon could be 'All-Star Among Us'

Boozer on Knicks radar if unable to sign Lee, Robinson

Kupchak 'not hopeful' about re-signing Odom

Jets' tight end spot now Bubba-less

Legion baseball: Shrewsbury 4, Milford 2

2009-07-14T07:29:00.001-05:00

Post 59 pushed to the brink

Monday's NESN link a day late:

2009-07-14T07:27:00.001-05:00

Yankees' stumble could point to a troublesome trend

Thursday's NESN links a day late:

2009-07-10T09:29:00.003-05:00

NFL Notebo0k: Rookie quarterbacks facing early pressure to perform

Report: Marion dealt to Dallas in four-team trade

After losing Wallace to Celtics, Pistons may be seeking revenge

Legion baseball: Sudbury 6, Chelmsford 0

2009-07-09T05:57:00.001-05:00

Lowe-ded guns

Busy compiling new blogroll for the NESN relaunch

2009-07-08T14:39:00.001-05:00

Hence only one link again today:

Kraft on board to bring World Cup back to U.S.

Tuesday's NESN links a day late:

2009-07-08T07:09:00.002-05:00

Garden to change names again, Wonka-like promotion ensues

Conflicting reports: LeBron denies urge to stay a Cavalier

I need your help

2009-07-06T14:36:00.008-05:00

I'm compiling a list for NESN of sports blogs and sites that cover teams in the same divisions as Boston sports teams, especially New York teams. So if you read about the Yankees, Orioles, Maple Leafs, 76ers, Senators, Knicks, Blue Jays, etc. send me the best destinations via comments here. Thanks for your help.

Busy preparing for the NESN relaunch

2009-07-06T14:35:00.002-05:00

Thus only one link today:

Even after win, Tiger in queue behind Federer

Thursday's NESN links a day late:

2009-07-03T13:10:00.002-05:00

NFL Notebook: Small ball: Short, quick receivers might be key to NFL success

Chiarelli's getting down to Bitz-ness

Papelbon now stands alone as Red Sox saves king

Tuesday's NESN links:

2009-06-30T19:28:00.001-05:00

Trade tools: What are former Red Sox prospects doing now?

Papelbon ties Stanley's Red Sox career saves record

Legion baseball: Sudbury 12, Tyngsboro 1

2009-06-30T05:47:00.000-05:00

Post 191 stays perfect

Busy Monday at NESN:

2009-06-29T19:29:00.003-05:00

What if Michael Jackson were a major league baseball player? (posted late Monday night)

Imagine life without Lester

Is interleague play worth it?

The Red Sox present a one-of-a-kind auction at Fenway

Friday's NESN links:

2009-06-26T21:34:00.001-05:00

NFL Notebook: Ends game: Football outcomes decided between the trenches

Sox, Smoltz still optimistic after rough debut

Wednesday's NESN links a day late:

2009-06-25T08:16:00.002-05:00

Manny being Manny may be a thing of the past

Test your John Smoltz knowledge

Tuesday's NESN links:

2009-06-23T14:34:00.001-05:00

Smoltz can only improve already solid Sox staff

Source: Spurs snag Jefferson in four-player deal

Monday night's NESN feature story:

2009-06-22T18:58:00.000-05:00

Could the Red Sox stand pat at the trade deadline?

How should UWBadgers.com conduct football ticket sales?

2009-06-22T08:31:00.003-05:00

Obviously UWBadgers.com does not have the server power to withstand the current rush to sign up for football tickets. I still think this is better than last year's lottery, but the athletic department obviously needs to work out more kinks for next year.

What do you suggest? Leave your comments here.

Friday's NESN links:

2009-06-19T21:25:00.002-05:00

NFL Notebook: Trade tradition: Demands to be dealt don't have to be part of NFL

Back-to-back: Ovechkin takes home MVP hardware

Thursday's NESN links:

2009-06-18T14:13:00.001-05:00

Donate baseball gear at Fenway to benefit a good cause

Manny headed to minors

Ryan Leaf arrested on burglary charges

Slow Wednesday night at NESN:

2009-06-17T22:42:00.001-05:00

U.S. Open likely end of Lefty's major streak

Start being a regular NESN.com visitor

2009-06-17T22:34:00.007-05:00

You're a New England sports fan. You love the Sox, B's, C's and Pats. You read ESPN.com, check The Boston Globe and the Boston Herald for some stuff. Maybe you hit up SI.com and Yahoo.com for some national stuff too.

NESN.com should be your first visit for sports info every day.

It has up-to-the-minute Boston info from news to rumors to opinion, including content from Tom Caron, Heidi Watney (top left), Kathryn Tappen and the rest of NESN's friendly faces -- all of whose stuff I edit and post on a daily basis.

We're launching a new version of the site very soon and it's going to make NESN a must-stop site to quench your sports thirst. But no need to wait until then, start becoming a regular now. You won't regret it.

Plus I write stuff there, too. Isn't that enough incentive to go?

Jets get even 'Greene'-er

2009-06-17T22:31:00.003-05:00

The New York Jets signed their third-round pick, former Iowa running back Shonn Greene on Monday.

Greene is someone that I had the pleasure of witnessing live last season, from the friendly confines of Iowa City’s Kinnick Stadium’s press box. Greene tore up Wisconsin, rushing for 220 yards and three touchdowns on 25 carries (Mike Ackerstein wrote the gamer, but I wrote the creative headline Sunday night for Monday’s print) en route to a 38-16 romping of the feeble Badgers – their fourth straight loss at the time.

But Greene’s numbers (1,850 yards, 20 touchdowns in 2008, his junior season) are only half as impressive as his story. Greene failed out of school in 2007, forced to move furniture at a store down the street from Kinnick Stadium to stay afloat financially. To make a long story midget-sized, he made the most of his second chance, leading the Big Ten in rushing, and landing with the Jets in April’s draft.

When I saw the Jets landed both Mark Sanchez and Shonn Greene in the first three rounds, I remember nodding my head from Krakow, Poland. “Well done,” I thought. Greene has the speed, strength and tackle-shedding abilities to be a successful NFL running back. I hate the Jets, but I’m a fan of Greene. I enjoy comeback stories, kids who taste the real world before signing for millions. I think that experience will serve him well for what his NFL future has in store for him.

He’ll make the Pro Bowl some day, too. And remember, you heard that here first.

In touch with my feminine side

2009-06-17T16:14:00.004-05:00

Jealousy breeds hate, anger. So does ignorance.

Monday I was listening to Bill Simmons’ podcast, “The B.S. Report” in the car. ESPN’s Erin Andrews was his guest and at one point she started talking about the difficulties about being a female sports reporter, one of which being that some males simply don’t want accept sports information from a woman, Ron Burgandy style.

Put down your newspaper, take the tape out of your VCR, finish paying your bills via checks and get with the program. It’s 2009.

Guess what? Women feed our sports info hunger, and they’re damn good at it, too. Ever watch Jackie MacMullen on “Around the Horn” or read Amalie Benjamin in The Boston Globe? Andrews may be the best in the business. They know their shit.

Face it guys, Andrews is smarter than you, more articulate than you, more professional than you, much better looking than you and she knows more about sports than you. People see her blond hair and assume she’s a ditz. Well, we all know what happens when you assume.

I know the counterargument: “I want to hear it from someone that’s been there, someone that played.” That’s reasonable, but there’s a place for ex-players, like pre-game shows and in-game color men, like how NESN’s Jim Rice complements Tom Caron and Jerry Remy (get well soon, RemDawg) complements Don Orsillo in the booth. And the Heidi Watneys and the Andrews’ dig for stories and give us the dirt.

More and more women are entering the sports world, which – no matter what you say – is a good thing. They bring a new perspective to the games dominated my testosterone for decades. They’re not going to tell you how to hit a 95 mph fastball or wrap up LaDanian Tomlinson, but that’s not their job. Rick Reilly, Bill Simmons and Mike Greenberg don’t either, and you still read, watch and listen to them. The three of them together couldn’t bench press the bar. It’s called media, becoming the bridge from teams to fans. It’s a skill, and some women do it damn well.

Go upload Simmons’ talk with Andrews and tell me I’m wrong.

Wait, you don’t know how? And you’re still pissed that she’s on ESPN? You’ve got bigger things to worry about, pal.

Only one NESN link today:

2009-06-16T16:08:00.000-05:00

Report: Phelps to ink first deal since weed incident

Rumor: Perkins' name added to Ainge's ongoing trade list

2009-06-16T16:03:00.003-05:00

Celtics center Kendrick Perkins’ name is the latest to be added to Danny Ainge’s growing list of potential pre-draft trade pieces.

According to Michael Felger on Comcast Sportsnet’s “Sports Tonight” Monday night, “We heard a rumble today, just a little rumble. Danny’s throwing a bunch of stuff against the wall as he likes to do. Memphis sitting there at No. 2. Perk and… [Bill Walker].”

In this situation at No. 2, the Celtics have three apparent moves. The first, and perhaps most sensible would be taking UConn’s Hasheem Thabeet. If they were to deal Perkins, they immediately lose a young, defensive-minded starting center to complement Kevin Garnett, who still has three years left on his current contract. If they were to take anyone else here, they’d have a huge hole to fill at the five spot, which is essential in making a championship run, especially for a defensive team like the Celtics. At seven-foot-two, Thabeet can immediately contribute on the defensive end as a natural shot blocker and rebounder next to Garnett.

If Ainge values upside over need, he may take either Spain’s Ricky Rubio or Memphis guard Tyreke Evans, whom he reportedly has interest in. Either would create a crowded Boston backcourt, assuming the team keeps Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo, which at this point, are big assumptions .

Of course, this is all speculation, but it seems as though Ainge is exercising all potential trade options before the June 25 draft. The only names that haven’t come up over the past few weeks are Garnett and captain Paul Pierce.

The Grizzlies originally drafted Perkins in 2003 with the 27^th overall pick, then immediately traded him, along with point guard Marcus Banks to the Celtics for Dahntay Jones and former Boston College guard Troy Bell, who were taken by Boston in the same draft. The Washington Wizards selected Walker in the second round in 2008 before shipping him to the C’s for cash.

This story was written to run on NESN.com, but was not posted.

Monday's NESN links:

2009-06-15T14:55:00.001-05:00

Bowden willing to wait longer than Buchholz

Ainge, Celtics lusting after Tyreke Evans?

Has Epstein learned from past mistakes?

Sunday's NESN links:

2009-06-14T14:35:00.001-05:00

One-cent decision time: Save a Penny, or spend it?

Shaq to join LeBron in Cleveland?

McDaniels: Orton will start in '09

Pedroia not in Sox' lineup Sunday

Thursday's NESN links:

2009-06-11T18:20:00.002-05:00

NFL Notebook: Double trouble: Tandem backfields sweeping NFL

Real Madrid nabs Ronaldo from Man U

Girls lax: Westwood 15, Framingham 6

2009-06-11T12:19:00.001-05:00

Flyers bottled up, bow out By Derek Zetlin

Wednesday's NESN links:

2009-06-10T13:58:00.001-05:00

Epstein burying Cashman since turn of the century

Montana's son commits to University of Washington

Tuesday night's NESN links:

2009-06-09T20:31:00.002-05:00

Who could Celtics take with Grizzlies' No. 2 pick?

Favre's family anticipates move to Minnesota

Floyd leaves USC amid O.J. Mayo scandal

Monday's NESN links:

2009-06-08T14:44:00.001-05:00

Red Sox struggling to solve the Matsuzaka mystery

Purple could be Favre's next favorite color

Friday's NESN links:

2009-06-05T13:51:00.002-05:00

NFL Notebook: League follows Pats, Steelers' lead

Willis can't find plate against Red Sox

Vinatieri goes under the knife

Yahoo, NFLPA in heated fantasy dispute

Girls lax: Framingham 18, Reading 12

2009-06-05T05:40:00.000-05:00

Flyers go full throttle by Derek Zetlin

Thursday's NESN links:

2009-06-04T14:06:00.002-05:00

Dungy questions Bears trade for Cutler

Burnett's high heat lands him 6-game suspension

Lowell reaches personal milestone

Unqualified: Americans fall to Costa Rica

Magic think Nelson will play in Finals

2009-06-03T20:36:00.010-05:00

Orlando Magic point guard Jameer Nelson was said to have season-ending shoulder surgery on his torn right labrum back on Feb. 19.

That was before the Magic’s season extended into June.

Now, according to ESPN.com, Nelson’s teammates are optimistic that their backcourt quarterback will return to play in the Finals, which start Thursday in Los Angeles.

“I expect to see him out there at some point in the series,” backup point guard Anthony Johnson told ESPN.

Orlando GM Otis Smith, however, is not completely buying the optimism.

"It's still no in my mind," Smith said about Nelson’s possibility of returning this season. "There's a very smidgen of a chance he can play."

Nelson has been playing in full-court games and participating in non-contact drills for two weeks.

“I've been known to do some amazing things sometimes," he said, hinting at his possible return.

With Nelson on the shelf for what was supposed to be the rest of the 2009 season, the Magic traded for then-Rockets point guard Rafer Alston in part of a three-team deal on Feb. 19, the same day Nelson went under the knife.

In the deal, the Magic sent Brian Cook to the Rockets, while Adonal Foyle, Mike Wilks and a 2009 first round draft pick were sent to the Memphis Grizzlies.

Alston averaged 12 points and 5.1 assists per game for Orlando during the regular season, and his postseason numbers (12 and 4.1) have been just as consistent.

This post was originally intended to run on NESN.com, but never did.

Today's work from NESN:

2009-06-03T14:47:00.001-05:00

Where does Ellsbury belong in the order?

Francona wins No. 500 as Red Sox skipper

What Papi's decline means to Boston

Man U changes jersey sponsor for 2010 and beyond

Girls lax: Framingham 10, Concord- Carlisle 9

2009-06-03T05:35:00.001-05:00

Super stall By Derek Zetlin