Space Oddity

     I didn’t have much advanced notice I was going to rehab, I was 16 and it really wasn’t my decision. I don’t think anyone gives it much forethought, rehab isn’t exactly a vacation. I made sure I packed my favorite shirt and pants, probably not enough underwear and a few socks. In the late 80s I only owned a few cds and had no way to play them away from home so I needed to bring whatever cassettes I could. I anticipated hours of down time and music would be a must but my vast vinyl collection would be of no use. I had no idea what to expect of rehab but I was sure I would need something to drown out my thoughts.

      If I had a few days notice I would be away from home for some time I could have made my own cassette copies of my favorite records. Pink Floyds The Wall, 4 or 5 Hendrix records, some Zeppelin and an Aerosmith or 2 but with no warning I had few options. I didn’t buy tapes. Cassettes sound awful, wear out and break; besides, I didn’t drive so there was zero reason for me to waste my money on cassettes. I left for upstate NY with the only 2 tapes I owned, The Rolling Stones Hot Rocks and David Bowie Space Oddity. I wasn’t a huge fan of either and could not recall where or how I acquired them but it was better than nothing.

     Few things arouse hope like your first rehab and my early days went quickly. My roommate Joe and new surroundings were a welcomed diversion from my typical monotonous activities. Joe was into the Stones and Hot Rocks played continuously until Joe was moved to another unit and I left alone with my thoughts. At some point I placed Space Oddity into the boom box and pressed play.

     Certainly not regarded as Bowie’s finest album Space Oddity was/is not well known other than the title tracks tale of Major Tom but the overall melancholic tone of the record provided a superb soundtrack for my dreary room and dispirited mood. Floating in space aimlessly seemed a much better option than facing my emotions and accepting responsibility for my actions. Unwashed and Somewhat Slightly Dazed was surely inspired by my social life and I swear I wrote the Letter to Hermione in all of its heart broken charm. David Bowie sang songs of old women stealing money and wild eyed children at music festivals and failed relationships…all of them delivered with a beautiful sadness that resonated with an emotionally overwhelmed adolescent. Space Oddity played steadily for the entirety of my five week stay but rarely if ever after my discharge.

      The combination of casual dating and Columbia House record club reunited me with a cd copy of Space Oddity. I was no longer an adolescent, in fact I was approaching 30 but as the songs played I sang every word. The better part of fifteen years had passed but I closed my eyes and I was lying on my bed, in that dreary room and my heart was filled with angst, confusion, heartache and all the dreadful hideousness of my youth. I could feel it, taste it…David had provided a time machine. It had been half my life since I felt this way, I was awe struck by the power of music and Bowie. I was transported completely and honestly, it was distressing to revisit such uncomfortable sorrow. So much so, that I never listened to that album again. I have resisted the urge to impress anyone else with my ability to sing every lyric of Wild Eyed Boy from Freecloud. That is, until now.

    The news of David Bowie’s death has encouraged me to listen to Space Oddity again and brave its time traveling powers. Now in my mid 40s I have settled the vast majority of any juvenile issues but David can still bring me back to that long lost time almost 30 years ago. I am not David Bowie’s biggest fan and far from his most loyal but this one record is quite possibly the most significant of my life.

    

    

Embracing Carmelo Anthony

        I was against the Carmelo trade, I didn't want him on the Knicks. A decade of irrelevant Knick basketball was supposed to end with the arrival of Lebron James but after being turned down by King James, I thought we should build around Amar'e and some of the young talent already on the team. I am not 100% convinced I was wrong but I am making every attempt to accept the clarity hindsight provides.

       The Knicks were mismanaged into irrelevance for the better part of eight years and Donnie Walsh was brought in to clean up the mess. Mr Walsh spent 2 years making trades with the sole purpose of clearing cap room, which he did expertly. The Knicks were not at all competitive for 2 years but had enough cap room for two max contracts, one of which was surely intended for Lebron. Walsh even overpaid for Amar'e in hopes of attracting James but Lebron did not have the balls to play in NYC and made the "decision" to be a wus and play with Wade and Bosh in Miami. No matter how successful the Heat are, I will always view Lebron as gutless.

       Needing more talent than Amar'e could provide to defeat the Heat and having cap space to fill, the Knicks looked for another star. In his walk year and a impending work stoppage on the horizon, Carmelo Anthony campaigned for a trade to the Knicks. Against Donnie Walsh advice the Knicks traded away all of the teams financial flexibility and at least 3 NBA starters for Anthony. The move was almost unanimously applauded by NBA media experts, who claimed Anthony has one of the leagues top 5 players.

      I admit 'Melo has never had trouble scoring but I saw a fat,lazy,selfish player that shoots entirely too many shots to achieve his average...And i wont even bring up defense.He forced the trade so he could secure a top dollar pay day before the new NBA collective bargaining agreement was to be negotiated and little to do with his desire to "come home" to New York. Selfish...as usual.

   I dreamed of the Knicks being serious championship contenders with Amar'e and some other all star player, maybe Paul or D Will playing pg, possibly Howard playing center and Galo hitting 3's with regularity. Instead the Knicks have gone 1-8 in the playoffs with Carmelo leading the way to mediocrity, a far cry from championship contention. The problem has not been Anthony alone though. Amar'e can not stay on the court, breaking down on lay up lines, losing fights with fire extinguishers and apparently tearing up his knees getting out of bed. 

    If I take into consideration the health of Amar'e, he has been as useless as the ' in his name and the state of some of the other players I would have liked on the Knicks...NY would not be better off than they are today. Chris Paul  has been excellent but to whom would he pass on the Anthonyless Knicks? D Will is a chubby coach killer. Howard is an outright mess and who has looked more selfish than he the last 18 months? Gallinari has developed nicely but is currently seriously injured. Any combination of those players does not paint a pretty picture for an NBA team in 2013.

     I do not expect a knick championship any time soon and I don't even think the Knicks can get to the conference finals this year. If I am honest, I admit Carmelo provides us the best chance to win a round or 2 in this years playoffs.   He is playing the best defense of his career, which isn't difficult to believe but he is at least trying. I am a Knick fan and Carmelo is one of us, it is time I  give him his due. It is not Anthony's fault the Knicks are not one of the 2 teams that can win a championship this year, it's not a Knick problem nor a Carmelo problem but it is a NBA problem.

      

      

     

       

        

Tough Year

I realize I have not posted anything in 10 months but 2009 has been a dreadful year. How else can I describe week after week of agonizing results? The ridiculous levels of frustration and anger I have endured this year have me searching for a new past-time. Like so many I turn to sports as a distraction from the stressful and/or the mundane but my passionate support leads to heartache and sleepless nights.
I am a loyal fan of three teams: The Mets, Knicks and Giants. I care deeply, if not illogically, about my teams. I experience actual joy when they win big games but I also hate, absolutely abhor, certain teams and players. I despise all things Philadelphia, the Cowboys, the Lakers, the Yankees and anything that has to with Jordan, Arod, Ray Lewis, Kobe, Jeter…honestly; it is an ever expanding list. 2009 may have been the worst year of my sports observing life.
The Giants lost a playoff game to the Eagles and the classless Donovan Mcnabb in January and have done little to ease the sting of that loss so far this season. The Knicks will not even try to be successful until next year and who could enjoy watching Kobe rape the NBA in June? The Mets, oh the Mets, experienced possibly the most disappointing season in team history and there are many years to chose from in a past filled with losing. Injuries ravaged what promised to be an underachieving team but at least that sparred me the heartache of another season ending collapse. The 09 Mets were dead long before the last day of the season.
Kobe Bryant winning a Shaq-less championship and being lauded as an all-time great was hideous to watch but nothing will compare to the revolting sight of a champagne soaked Arod holding the World Series Trophy. An image I only glimpsed for a second but is burned into my brain. I was so disturbed by this lying, cheating, fraud of a man being crowned a hero and champion that I avoided all media for 3 full weeks. It is still difficult to listen to the radio and hear Yankee fans babble on and on about their team or how great a GM Cashman is. I wonder how the other 29 general managers in baseball would do with another 75-125 million to spend?
With so many of my waking hours spent watching games, reading sports sections and websites, debating potential trades and future outcomes with friends and coworkers, how can I avoid these depressing emotions? How can I go on with my days completely consumed by bitterness and disappointment? The simple answer is: stop watching. Stop caring. I can no longer occupy my time with baseball, football and basketball. From this day on I will devote all of my passionate attention to Formula 1 racing. More specifically, I will embrace my heritage and pledge my allegiance to team Ferrari, whom many tell me are the Yankees of racing.

Arod and GNC or Whatever

I can not wait to watch Arod twist in the wind tomorrow afternoon as he faces the press for the first time to discuss his steroid use. That is if he can get his story straight. Arod has apparently hired a team of lawyers and public relation experts to help get him through tomorrow. I find it humorous that anyone would need help to tell the truth. Before I breakdown Tuesday's lies I want to take a minute to recap some of my favorite moments from last weeks extremely entertaining interview with Peter Gammons. A few quotes:

“Loosey goosey era”
“GNC or whatever”
“I am guilty for a lot of things”
“I have millions of fans out there…that will…will never look at me the same”
“I didn’t want to over-investigate what I was taking”
“SI pays this…this, lady to stalk me”
“Gene was very specific in 2004…he said, you might or might not have failed a test”
“I am tired of being stupid…and selfish…about myself”
“The truth will set you free”
“I was stupid, an idiot…and I think New Yorkers can relate to that”
“Everybody makes fun of me”
“I love to take it…I am a good receiver”

Ha! Thank you Alex, thank you for making this such an entertaining February and good luck tomorrow. Remember, ‘The truth will set you free’

“The truth will set you free”

Alex Rodriguez is a liar. I have known this since he was free agent after the 2000 season. All I heard about for weeks was how much Arod wanted to play for the Mets and return to his home town team. That wasn’t completely true and neither was his confession about his steroid use yesterday. I don’t blame Arod for not being completely honest but I think we should expect more truthful details from guilty athletes.
The only decision that former Mets general manager Steve Phillips ever made that I completely agreed with was openly withdrawing from signing Arod after the 2000 season. Alex and his agent spent weeks proclaiming the Mets as Arod’s first choice to continue his career. They failed to mention that he would need 25 million a year, along with a hotel sweet on all road trips, a box for his family and friends at Shea and a place to land his helicopter for this to happen. I don’t have a problem with greedy, selfish ball players as long as they don’t try to pass themselves off as team oriented individuals. I am not naïve and I can relate to guys that want to maximize their income over the short period an athlete’s career last. I am also not stupid and I would appreciate at least a veiled attempt to deceive me.
Arod’s alleged apology yesterday was a complete farce and I have found it extremely entertaining but far from truthful. Alex looked right in between the camera and Peter Gammons eyes and lied to everyone watching. He admits to taking “performance enhancing substances” but has “no idea what I took”. He goes on to mention GNC 5 times, as if Primobolan can be purchased at GNC. Primobolan is one of the most expensive and least traceable steroids that money can buy; it is not available with a doctor’s prescription and Arod claims the first time he heard of the word “Primobolan” was this past Sunday. Arod blames his cheating on “the culture of the time” as if he were a hippie of the 1960’s defending his acid habit. He did say he was sorry, really, really sorry and called himself stupid a number of times. I believe he is sorry he was caught and sorry and stupid for going on 60 minutes to claim he never even considered taking performance enhancing substances. Yesterday Arod did admit he lied to 60 minutes but he claimed he wasn’t being honest with himself so how could he possibly be honest with CBS. Ha! Please make more of an effort to mislead me.
The sad thing for me is the positive media coverage of this alleged apology. It is commonly reported that Giambi and Petite are prime examples that apologizing and admitting your mistake is the best way to handle being caught cheating with steroids. Many reporters have commended Arod for his admission of guilt and that he was wise to follow the lead of his Yankee teammates. I agree Arod took a similar route as Giambi and Petite but honesty had nothing to do with any of these somewhat informative admissions. Jason Giambi did apologize but he never said for what he was sorry. We were to assume he meant ‘roids but he never said he did steroids. As vague as Giambi’s apology was at least it came across as more sincere than Andy Petite’s condescending, back handed apology for using HGH once. Andy admitted to using HGH a second time a few weeks later which he didn’t apologize for but apparently that was his father’s fault. I am not sure if the elder Mr. Petite has apologized publicly.
Maybe I am being unrealistic but I want one of these culpable baseball player’s to be honest. I want to hear they took steroids to get better and make more money. Arod has signed the two largest contracts in the history of baseball; steroids are at least partly responsible. If we can not get more forthcoming confessions from our guilty athlete’s, can we at least stop praising them for continuing to cheat us with their lies and half-truths?

NFL Season is Over

The NFL season ended yesterday with as many disappointing performances in week 17 as there was the rest of the season. Numerous teams lost games yesterday that could have put them in the playoffs and a few teams simply continued to underachieve as they had all year. The playoffs are set and it is time to make predictions who will meet in the super bowl. I did not document my preseason playoff picks but I assure you they did not include the Falcons, Ravens or Dolphins but I did expect the Giants, Colts, Titans, Chargers and Panthers. Nothing surprises me in the NFL. Week to week and year to year anything can happen in the salary cap era of the NFL.
A few thoughts on the NFL season and week 17:
* How can the Bears and Bucs both lose to teams with nothing to play for and cost themselves playoff positions? The Bucs lost their last 4 games?!? Yesterday they lost to an awful Raider team…horrendous performance by an old team that should under go wholesale changes. The Bears are a poorly run team as well, especially offensively but I don’t think they need to make as many changes as the Bucs but how about a reasonable game plan on offense? These two teams’ failures allowed the Eagles to sneak into the playoffs.
* I hate all things from Philadelphia and Eagles more than most but I think I can fairly criticize this team. The Eagles are not clutch and not a team to be feared in the playoffs. They were lucky to get in the playoffs at all. The Cowboys are spineless and heartless, the Bears and Bucs choked and even the Redskins or Saints could have pushed the Eagles out of the playoffs. I do expect the Eagles to beat the Vikings but only because I think even less of Minnesota. Childress is even more clueless than his mentor and Jackson is prone to more mistakes than McNabb but that does not make the Eagles a good team. Philly was 3-4-1 on the road and their victory over the Giants was their only quality road win all year and that comes with the disclaimer of it being the first post Plaxico game. The eagles will not play at home again until next year and this team will not duplicate the recent road warrior playoff runs of the Giants and Steelers. Andy Reid is a fat bastard and he can’t even manage his children let alone a football team. He refuses to run the ball and also declines to invest in wide receivers, in spite of passing the ball more than any other team in the league…for a decade! I know I will have to endure listening to Eagle fans for a few more weeks but…
*…Cowboy fans can not say a word! I will not listen to a single word from anyone about the Cowboys or Romo or T.O. or any other over rated players on this horribly coached team. I don’t not want to hear from Jerry Jones or any of the other low-self esteem front running loser Cowboy fans. Just shut up! The Cowboys suck.
* As I mentioned in my last blog, the Jets suck. They fired Mangini today and I think they were right to do so but I have no confidence they will hire a better coach this time. The GM should probably be fired as well, for all the money they spent this past off season the Jets looked very old and slow the last 4 games of the year. They received nothing from the number 6 pick in the draft, nothing at all; I don’t think he even played 10 snaps this year. Tannenbaum hired Mangini, traded for Favre and signed the slow old men in the off season and did anyone notice that the Jets WR’s blow? Why does this guy keep his job?
* The Bronco’s collapsed like they are the Met’s of the NFL. I know the Chargers were robbed in week 2 but it seems unfair that anyone from the west goes to the playoffs while the 11-5 Pats stay home. I would be far more upset if it was any team other than the Pats…fuck ‘em, they have it coming anyway. It is difficult to feel badly for Belichick but New England had an impressive season considering all of the injuries they endured.
* Did anyone do a worse coaching job than Jacksonville’s Jack Del Rio this year? This team under preformed all year and never seemed to recover from Jones’ coke bust or the back up’s shooting incidents. Maybe Del Rio will be fired and he can be the next disappointing Jets coach.
* I know everyone will be talking about the Texan’s all off season, they will be the team to surprise next year after their strong finish this year but I do not buy it. I am going on record right now that they will start 1-4 again next year. They only win games when they do not matter.
* My AFC picks: Colts over Chargers. Ravens over Dolphins. Colts over Steelers. Titans over Ravens. Colts over Titans. I have been high on the Colts the second half and they should be 2 seed but they are in the same division as the Titans so they end up 5 seed. I picked Payton for MVP about 7 weeks ago and I will stick with the Colts in the playoffs even though they will play 3 road games.
* My NFC picks: Eagles over Vikes. Falcons over Cards. Giants over Eagles. Panthers over Falcons. Giants over Panthers. I may be a homer but the Giants will be a tough out in the playoffs. They know how to win close games and they have displayed the “heart of a champion” many times. They should be healthy after taking week 17 off and the bye this week. I can’t wait for the Manning brother super bowl and all of the commercials that will bring.
The playoffs never seem to go as planned and I am not sure I picked enough upsets. I will not be surprised to be wrong on all the games. Anything can happen in the NFL.

A Few Thoughts

A few thoughts I would like to share in no particular order of importance; Merry Christmas as well.

*I am feeling good about my blog, the Giants won and the Yankees agreed with me and found another 200 million for Texeria. I am off to a fine start but this will only help to further my belief that I am always right.
*Great win by the Giants on Sunday. A classic game by this team, the Eli/Coughlin era, far from perfect but they find ways to win. Over this great run in the last year they look awful at times, how bad did the Defense look in the first half Sunday?, but they hang around and make plays when they need to make them. How many third down conversions do they convert or key scores before the end of a half? This is possibly the greatest run in the team’s long history and certainly the finest consecutive seasons of my lifetime.
*The Jets suck and it doesn’t matter who is coaching or who the players are, they just blow. It is difficult to believe that the Jets won the most important game in the history of the league.
*I am waiting for the Jet fans to start begging for Cower to be hired, it can’t be long now. Mangini let this season slip away and should be fired. It doesn’t matter if Favre comes back or not. The Jets will sign Matt Cassel or some other hot free agent that will ultimately disappoint.
*Enough of the Chad Pennington revenge talk. I know the Dolphins will probably win the division on Sunday but the Jets knew Chad could take a team to the playoffs; they also know he can’t win many games once he gets there. The Dolphins and Chad will not win a game if they get to the playoffs but I guess it is a matter of perspective, being 1-15 last year a loss in the wildcard game is wonderful. I still do not believe the Jets made a mistake letting him go.
*Texeria goes to the Yankees for 8 years and 180 million…where do I begin? I like Texeria as a player. He is a solid player; he hits for average and power, plays a slick first base and seems like a decent guy but 8 years?!? I know he is not old but I am not comfortable with that long a contract. Is he that good? Arod signed a couple of 10 year deals but he puts up the best numbers ever! I know they are usually empty numbers but they are unreal. Texeria is a nice player but he is not a lock for the Hall of Fame, all-time great, super clutch deserves the second highest contract of all-time kind of player. The Red Sox and Angels are the two most successful franchises of the last 6 or 7 years and both teams passed on signing Texeria. I have to believe length of contract was the issue. The Nats offered him the same deal a month ago, so I don’t think it was money. I love the way both of those teams are run. If only the Mets would emulate them.
*I love that the only other signing of note this off-season is the Mets signing Krod at a bargain price, while the Yankees spend record amounts. Who exactly are they bidding against? Was this really the year to sign all the expensive free agents? After years of passing on center fielders and other positions of need the Yankees decide to sign every expensive guy they can to a record deal. Ha! Why stop now? They better sign Lowe for 5/75, just in case he has a good year in ’09. Can the rest of baseball be wrong? Is every other team worrying about the economy affecting them next year crazy? I know the Yankees have the most money but didn’t foolish spending cost them last year? They are the only team that pays fines each and every year, 26 million this year. Detroit also paid 1 million this season and that’s it, no one else. At some point all the money is gone and with it the flexibility to improve your team.
*I think there will be an amazing amount of players available this July as teams struggle to make ends meet. I am hoping the Mets can steal some guys from Toronto or Houston. The mid level teams will be hit hardest; the teams that try and spend with the big boys but just don’t have the revenue. The Red Sox, Angels and Mets should be able to pick up some great players for relatively nothing if they can afford to take on more payroll.
*How great is baseball? Merry Christmas