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As you may know, PITB is making the California road trip this year, but we'd hate to leave you with nothing new to peruse in our absence...
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Monday, August 31, 2009
Lind Hockey File Fantasy Pool
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The Lind Hockey File is proud to present our first ever fantasy hockey pool! The pool will be managed using the ESPN system, and will feature a keeper league of 6 teams with weekly head-to-head matchups in different stat categories. You will select 6 forwards (2C, 2LW, 2RW), 4 defensemen, and 2 goalies. There are also 5 bench spots you can use to make daily roster moves with. There will be no game limits to worry about, and waiver wire transactions are immediate [...]
Each week, your team will match-up against another team and your skaters will be counted for Goals, Assists, Plus/Minus, Special Teams Points, Game-Winning Goals, Faceoffs Won, Average Time on Ice, Shots on goal, Hits, Blocked Shots, and Defensemen Points, for a total of 11 stat categories. Goaltenders will compete for Wins, Saves, Shutouts, Goals Against Average, and Save Percentage, for a total of 5 stat categories. This generates a grand total of 16 stat categories, so each week your team will emerge with a combination of 16 wins, ties, or losses. After 26 weeks, the team with the best record becomes League Champion over the summer.
In advance of the 2010-2011 season, you will be given the option to retain 5 of your players, and the rest will be put back into free agency with the new draft prospects. Rosters will be determined via live draft, scheduled for September 8, 2009 at 12:30 PM Eastern Time. You will have 2 minutes (120 seconds) to complete each pick. Do not worry if you cannot make it for that date, as one of the benefits of using ESPN is that they allow you to rank all of your players as soon as you sign up, and then auto draft for you if you aren't around. As a plus, all of your players will already be ranked according to ESPN point predictions - adjusting that list is optional. And yes, trading draft picks is allowed.
So, if you are interested, use the contact form near the bottom of the page to send me an e-mail and let me know you want in. You will receive an invite shortly afterwards. Hurry though - the entire league consists of only 6 teams, and only 5 more remain!
- Josh Lind
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Tough Enough To Wear Pink?
It’s easy to help. Just be watching and listening for Pink Party Locations and look for our TETWP Pickup Truck, courtesy of the Ryan Automotive Group.
We’ll be making stops all over town, selling our “New” TETWP t-shirts, hats, bracelets and ribbons. Or just stop by to make a donation or say hello. 100% of all proceeds will go to this program which benefits patients in our community.
Last year over $43,000 was raised, which was the 7th highest in the nation!
Best of all, your help will make you feel good in knowing that you helped make a difference in someone else’s life!
Upcoming parties include:
Tuesday, September 1 – Enerbase on N. Broadway from, 10-Noon
Thursday, September 3 – American Bank Center, Dakota Square, 1-3pm
Tuesday, September 8 – Choice Hotels, 10-12pm
Wednesday, September 9 – Affinity First Federal Credit Union, 4-6pm
Thursday, September 10 – the Flower Box, 11-1pm
Don't miss the 55th Annual Minot Y's Men's Rodeo at the State Fair Center October 8 - 11, 2009!
Saturday, August 29, 2009
10 Essential Rules for Slowing Down and Enjoying Life More
By Leo Babauta
It’s an irony of our modern lives that while technology is continually invented that saves us time, we use that time to do more and more things, and so our lives are more fast-paced and hectic than ever.
Life moves at such a fast pace that it seems to pass us by before we can really enjoy it. However, it doesn’t have to be this way. Let’s rebel against a hectic lifestyle and slow down to enjoy life.
A slower-paced life means making time to enjoy your mornings, instead of rushing off to work in a frenzy. It means taking time to enjoy whatever you’re doing, to appreciate the outdoors, to actually focus on whoever you’re talking to or spending time with — instead of always being connected to a Blackberry or iPhone or laptop, instead of always thinking about work tasks and emails. It means single-tasking rather than switching between a multitude of tasks and focusing on none of them.
Slowing down is a conscious choice, and not always an easy one, but it leads to a greater appreciation for life and a greater level of happiness. Here’s how to do it.
1. Do less. It’s hard to slow down when you are trying to do a million things. Instead, make the conscious choice to do less. Focus on what’s really important, what really needs to be done, and let go of the rest. Put space between tasks and appointments, so you can move through your days at a more leisurely pace.
2. Be present. It’s not enough to just slow down — you need to actually be mindful of whatever you’re doing at the moment. That means, when you find yourself thinking about something you need to do, or something that’s already happened, or something that might happen … gently bring yourself back to the present moment. Focus on what’s going on right now. On your actions, on your environment, on others around you. This takes practice but is essential.
3. Disconnect. Don’t always be connected. If you carry around an iPhone or Blackberry or other mobile device, shut it off. Better yet, learn to leave it behind when possible. If you work on a computer most of the day, have times when you disconnect so you can focus on other things. Being connected all the time means we’re subject to interruptions, we’re constantly stressed about information coming in, we are at the mercy of the demands of others. It’s hard to slow down when you’re always checking new messages coming in.
4. Focus on people. Too often we spend time with friends and family, or meet with colleagues, and we’re not really there with them. We talk to them but are distracted by devices. We are there, but our minds are on things we need to do. We listen, but we’re really thinking about ourselves and what we want to say. None of us are immune to this, but with conscious effort you can shut off the outside world and just be present with the person you’re with. This means that just a little time spent with your family and friends can go a long way — a much more effective use of your time, by the way. It means we really connect with people rather than just meeting with them.
5. Appreciate nature. Many of us are shut in our homes and offices and cars and trains most of the time, and rarely do we get the chance to go outside. And often even when people are outside, they’re talking on their cell phones. Instead, take the time to go outside and really observe nature, take a deep breath of fresh air, enjoy the serenity of water and greenery. Exercise outdoors when you can, or find other outdoor activities to enjoy such as nature walks, hiking, swimming, etc. Feel the sensations of water and wind and earth against your skin. Try to do this daily — by yourself or with loved ones.
6. Eat slower. Instead of cramming food down our throats as quickly as possible — leading to overeating and a lack of enjoyment of our food — learn to eat slowly. Be mindful of each bite. Appreciate the flavors and textures. Eating slowly has the double benefit of making you fuller on less food and making the food taste better. I suggest learning to eat more real food as well, with some great spices (instead of fat and salt and sugar and frying for flavor).
7. Drive slower. Speedy driving is a pretty prevalent habit in our fast-paced world, but it’s also responsible for a lot of traffic accidents, stress, and wasted fuel. Instead, make it a habit to slow down when you drive. Appreciate your surroundings. Make it a peaceful time to contemplate your life, and the things you’re passing. Driving will be more enjoyable, and much safer. You’ll use less fuel too.
8. Find pleasure in anything. This is related to being present, but taking it a step farther. Whatever you’re doing, be fully present … and also appreciate every aspect of it, and find the enjoyable aspects. For example, when washing dishes, instead of rushing through it as a boring chore to be finished quickly, really feel the sensations of the water, the suds, the dishes. It can really be an enjoyable task if you learn to see it that way. The same applies to other chores — washing the car, sweeping, dusting, laundry — and anything you do, actually. Life can be so much more enjoyable if you learn this simple habit.
9. Single-task. The opposite of multi-tasking. Focus on one thing at a time. When you feel the urge to switch to other tasks, pause, breathe, and pull yourself back.
10. Breathe. When you find yourself speeding up and stressing out, pause, and take a deep breath. Take a couple more. Really feel the air coming into your body, and feel the stress going out. By fully focusing on each breath, you bring yourself back to the present, and slow yourself down. It’s also nice to take a deep breath or two — do it now and see what I mean. :)
“Be Content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you.” - Lao Tzu
Friday, August 28, 2009
Shinedown at the All Seasons Arena
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Wilson has a card
Now Hiring for a Temporary Position!
North Dakota State Fair
Attn: Kristie Moldenhauer
P.O. Box 1796
Minot, ND 58702
Call 857-7620 with questions.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
How To Reposition People To Build Your Team
Keeping together is progress.
Working together is success!"
- Henry Ford
By John C. Maxwell
One of the traits of outstanding leaders is that they properly place people within a team. Good leaders have the ability to see their people, sense where they are and put them in the right place. So why do so many leaders place so many people in so many wrong places?
Please find below the 5 reasons I've identified.
1. Failure to know the requirements needed to make a job successful.
I'm not talking about the job description, and I'm not talking about how you do a job. I'm talking about what a particular person has to do to be successful. Make a list those qualities. It could be two or three things; it could be 10. Whatever those things are, you have to go out and find people who have a giftedness to match those qualities so that you put the right people in the right place.
2. Failure to know the skills and the giftedness of the person.
Sometimes we know what gifts and skills are required for success in a particular job, but we do a poor job evaluating the giftedness of the person we place in that position. Maybe we know a particular job needs someone who is detail-oriented, but we fail to recognize that the person we're putting in that position breaks out in hives when overwhelmed with details.
3. Failure to move people when either the job or the person is changing.
While it's common for people to get promoted out of a job that really fits their skills, it's also possible for them to stay in a position so long that they no longer do it well.
As a leader, you might place someone in a position that is a great match with that person's uniqueness and giftedness, only to look up later and realize that the person's productivity has fallen sharply. What happened? Something changed. Maybe the job changed. Maybe the organization changed. Maybe the person changed. Maybe you changed. Maybe everything changed.
I have found many people end up in the wrong place only because they stayed in the right place too long. They were in the right place in the beginning, but the right place becomes the wrong place if the job changes or if the person changes. So the right place can become the wrong place over a matter of time.
4. Failure to be patient.
Sometimes the person is in the right place, but they have to grow into it. And not only do they have to grow into it, but they also have to be trained and developed into it. You know they have the giftedness, they have the ability, they have the passion; but they need time and someone to help them. Smaller organizations often can't afford to hire the best, so they have to hire young people with great potential and then train them.
In "The 17 Indisputable Laws of Teamwork" I write about the 'Law of Dividends', which is, "Investing in the team compounds over time." As you invest in your team, especially if you have them in the right place, the team is going to compound in a very positive way for you. Of course, if you don't have the right players in the right place, time isn't going to do it.
5. Failure to prepare.
Many times we haven't done enough front-end homework as leaders, so we aren't prepared to place people where they can grow and can blossom.
When we consistently fail to place people in the right place within the team, several things inevitably infect our team like an angry parasite. Morale suffers, people lose their willingness to play as a team and confidence erodes. As a result, potential goes unrealized, progress is hindered and our competitors benefit.
On the other hand, organizations do best when the people within them are carefully put in the right places. People are encouraged and fulfilled, growth is ensured, teamwork is increased and victories are secured. And, for leaders, there is a huge reward in seeing your players in the right place, doing the right thing for the right reasons.
☺homework - smiley tag. :]
dapet PR yg harus di Tag dari missie Ariga. makasi yah ada kerjaan juga.
here we go.
10 hal yg hari ini membuat kamu tersenyum.
- bulan ini bulan Ramadhan. Alhamdulillah selalu merasa positif di bulan suci ini.
- my boyfriend. yg selalu bisa menghiburku dalam kondisi apapun. terutama bgt pas dia niru2 perilaku & perkataan gw. i didn't thought that i would look that funny in his eyes. haha ♥ you!
- my kittens. mereka lucu2 & masih kecil. menggemaskan! kitty kucing pertamaku udah mulai manja & mengelus2 kepalanya di kaki gue. lucunyaaahh!
- presentasi di kelas HI hari ini Alhamdulillah berjalan lancar. merasa lega & lepas beban membuat gw tersenyum.
- dengerin lagu-lagunya Arctic Monkeys di YouTube barusan. lagunya yg jenius & mantap membuat gw berdecak kagum & tersenyum.
- makan di restoran Thai yg favorite gw hari ini. nikmatnyaa.. kangkung goreng crispy & red curry chicken.
- hari ini status facebook gw banyak yg komenin. biasanya normal, tapi mungkin sekarang orang2 lg pada suntuk kali ye jadinya ngomenin status orang. tapi gw seneng, ada ajaa yg kasih komen positif. :]
- keingetan bahwa besok, jum'at, sabtu, ampe minggu gw gak ada kelas. yayy akhirnya bisa santaiii ploongg!
- berencana pengen beli koleksi Brushes dari MAC cosmetics. yah ini emang sebenernya treats buat gw tapi kalo semua keperluan utama gw terpenuhi & ada sisa, kenapa gak? :]
- hari ini di kampus banyak yg negor. gw kan ceritanya foreigners boow jadi gx terlalu kenal orang2 lokal. tapi Alhamdulillah udah mulai banyak yg kenal. seneeengg :]
TAG'nya karna udah pagi2 buta gini gw capee nih, jadi siapapun silahkan ambiil.
tapi ini ada beberapa list nama yg udah gw tag.. silahkaan~
noni
erin
iin
elvia
dian
echa
love.love ♥♥
Pouring Out Some Diet Coke for You, Homes....
I hate to admit this but I remember, as a child, that certain family members from a certain side of my family always made cheap jokes or openly booed and hissed when any member of the Kennedy family was shown on the news. If it was John Kennedy, there was some reference to Marilyn Monroe (the irony being that the family member in question has yet to master fidelity himself) and I dared not even speak the name Ted Kennedy for fear of the onslaught of insults and venom that would be unleashed. When I was about 10 or 11 and started becoming interested in politics and started kind of forming my own ideas, I remembered that we learned all about this John F. Kennedy guy in class and we had gone to where some mean guy shot him. So I started reading books about JFK and then RFK and eventually became interested in the sordid, tragic and compelling story of the entire Kennedy clan.
When this family member found out about my interest in the Kennedys, I was ridiculed for my admiration of any member of the Camelot. I was told horror stories about things that the family did. They drank, cheated on their wives and went to a Congressional costume parties dressed as Barney the Dinosaur with a nametag that read “Tyrannosaurus Sex”, which probably actually solidified my love for Ted Kennedy. It was the first time I actually remember thinking, “But I admire this person and he has done great things and why can’t I have a political opinion without being ridiculed for it?” I’d hear the mentions of Chappaquiddick over and over again. It was kind of a foreshadowing for the people who can negate Bill Clinton’s ability to bring Yasser Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin together to talk and shake on a peace agreement or him continuing to be able to do things like negotiate the release of two American journalists held hostage in North Korea instead of retiring to Preston Hollow by just saying “I did not have sexual relations with that woman” or mentioning a cigar and snickering.
Ted Kennedy died today and, while it wasn’t a surprise, it really made me sad. We all knew he had brain cancer. I didn’t think he would make it this long. But of all the times when we need a Ted Kennedy, of all the times when we need to put aside partisanship and fear for the sake of helping the country’s working class…well, it’s right now. With all the boogeyman talk of Death Panels and compromises on public options, I hope and pray that someone will pick up the torch that Ted Kennedy would have carried. If your memory is failing to recall all the things that Ted Kennedy championed during his nearly 50-year political career, let me jog your memory. I get teary when I start to think about the fact that, despite the progress we have made in the past year, the fear-mongering, uninformed and paranoid-email-forwarding idiots could ruin the greatest shot we’ve got at a national health care system that provides for all citizens, not just the lucky ones.
So in memory of Ted Kennedy, who was able to put aside left or right allegiance to try to help the poor, disenfranchised and disabled, I want to give major, major props to John McCain. I understand that he is following his party line and that he probably genuinely has misgivings about Obama’s health care plan. But these absurd town hall meetings have not been, by and large, about debating the pros and cons of the proposed health care program. They have been about screaming and packing heat and telling seniors to go rent Logan’s Run. So when John McCain stands up to town hall meeting attendees by reminding them that a) there is no booing in civil discourse (House of Commons being the glaring exception) and b) that Obama is the president, he is not trying to sidestep or violate the Constitution and he deserves respect, I give a hearty tip of the hat to McCain.
It’s so funny to me that this Death Panel hocus-pocus seems to really be sticking. My 80 year old grandmother would probably volunteer to go up before the non-existent Death Panel. She’s been telling us that she “probably won’t be around much longer” for almost a decade now. Every time I go to her house, she gives me yet another household item like some sort of drawn-out Estate sale. The irony is, of course, that her mother spent 20 years claiming that she wasn’t gonna be around much longer either until she passed away just shy of 100. In fact, my grandmother’s insistence in her own eminent demise is the biggest reason I haven’t had to buy kitchenware, luggage or scarves as yet in my adult life. Maybe she just voted for Obama to get in the front of the line for the Socialist Death Panels?
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Lessons Learned in Stress Management
By Marty Nemko
I am prone to being stressed. I believe I secrete more adrenaline than the average person. That scared me because I knew that high-stress people die younger. In addition, I saw that being a high-stress person was hurting my career and personal life. No one wants to be around someone who’s stressed out, let alone hot-tempered.
In contrast, I saw that most successful people appeared calm. For example, when watching C-SPAN, I noticed that most senators, among our most influential people, remain calm, even when negotiating the world's most important issues. So I figured that to get what I want, I too need to be calm.
So, I’ve worked hard to figure out how to keep my stress under control. Here is what I’ve learned. I’ll never be a laid-back person, but these strategies have helped me, and subsequently my clients.
Stop rushing. At age 20, I visited Europe for the first time. I recall standing in the Louvre at around 2 PM thinking, “If I can get through the Louvre in an hour, I can probably fit in Versailles before the end of the day.” That was typical. My addiction to adrenaline, fed by always trying to cram in as many activities as possible, kept me from enjoying whatever I was doing and made me a more stressful person. Lesson Learned: Do everything at a comfortable pace. Rarely is rushing is worth it. Even good emergency room doctors rarely rush—they proceed with focus, but without rushing.
Don’t look back. We all have reasons to be upset about things in the past. Thinking about them rarely helps. Rather, it usually increases our stress. Stay in the moment.
Live by the serenity prayer: May I have the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference. We’ve all heard of people with terminal diseases who appear unworried, seeming to fully enjoy every moment. Yet many people get upset by things we can’t change, for example, when we’re driving in bumper-to-bumper traffic or when someone cuts us off. When someone cuts me off, I try to think, “I can’t cure him so I’m not going to let him get me stressed.”
Corollary: Accept people’s fallibility. We all encounter people who are stupid, thoughtless, or even mean. We may even be married to one. People are incredibly hard to change—even PhD-toting psychologists often fail to fundamentally change their clients. If you decide you’re not cutting the person out of your life, or if its someone you’ll only meet once—a slow clerk for example--try to view the person with charity rather than judgment: “We all have flaws. He’s doing the best he can.” People who are angered by or try to fix other people usually live stress-filled lives, and rarely change them much. We can refine but rarely remold.
I look out for early signs I’m getting stressed: for example, my neck starts to feel tight. If so, I take lessons from the yogis: I make sure my posture is good and take some slow deep breaths. I also often take a walk around the block or put on some music.
Think less; act more! When I’m already stressed, I ask myself, "Is there anything I can do right now to fix the problem?" If yes, I try to do it. For example, if you’re afraid no one will hire you because you have no skills, make a list of your past accomplishments to remind you of your skills. If there’s nothing you can do about the problem—for example, you’re waiting to hear about a job you’ve applied for--immediately divert your attention by asking yourself: “What do I want to do now?”
So many people analyze a problem to death: analysis paralysis. After a moderate amount of thinking, try something, anything. It’s easier to figure out an alternative approach when you get feedback on what you’ve tried. So, for example, if you're worried you'll remain single for the rest of your life, place an ad on eharmony.com, ask friends to set you up, hang out at Starbucks, whatever. Think less; act more!
Three breaths/leave. Some people have short fuses—they go from calm to exploded in just a few seconds. So, often they find themselves looking back and thinking, “I wish I hadn’t said that.” If that sounds like you, get in the habit of-- the second you start to feel angry--taking three slow deep breaths, and if another person is the target of your anger, leaving the room. When you’ve left the room, ask yourself, "In the long run, will I be better off or worse off if I get angry about this?" If, on reflection, you conclude it’s worth exploding, fine. You’ve made a conscious choice to do it rather than letting your adrenaline dictate your behavior. But fact is, you will rarely decide it’s worth getting angry!
"The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another!" - William James
"Rule 1. Don't sweat the small stuff.
Rule 2. It's all small stuff.
Rule 3. If you can't fight or flee, then flow.
If you don't mind, it don't matter!" - Author Unknown
No Such Thing As A Good Media-Multitasker
Researchers who published the report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences said the results had surprised them. They were looking for the secret to good media multitaskers but instead found broad-based incompetence.
"Heavy multitaskers are lousy at multitasking... The more you do it, the worse you get!" said Stanford communications professor Clifford Nass. Compulsive media multitaskers are worse at focusing their attention, worse at organising information, and worse at quickly switching between tasks, the Stanford scientists wrote.
After testing about 100 Stanford students, the scientists concluded that chronic media multitaskers have difficulty focusing and are not able to ignore irrelevant information.
Nass said that multitasking is becoming more widespread -- some jobs require workers to keep an instant message window open -- and the scientists were surprised at the results. "We knew that multitasking was difficult from a cognitive perspective. We thought, 'What's this special ability that people have that allows them to multitask?'. Rather than finding things that they were doing better, we found things they were doing worse," Stanford symbolic systems professor Eyal Ophir said. A bright side to such distraction may mean that the media multitaskers will be first to notice anything new, Ophir said. Source: Reuters
Monday, August 24, 2009
Why the present-day Dallas Cowboys are an awful, ridiculous, absurd monster and alternately, why I cannot wait for football season to begin
I hate the Dallas Cowboys. Really, I do. Which is extremely uncomfortable considering that they are the team that I support. Nay, the team that I follow religiously. The team that I get depressed about missing during the summer and cannot wait until they come back in the fall to depress me with their bad football playing. The only analogy I can think of is the bad boyfriend.
The Cowboys are the boyfriend that you know, on paper, is completely awful. All your friends regularly ask with frustration all over their face why you are staying with him. They like to run down the list of things that he has done to hurt you or piss you off. He’s borrowed your car without asking and disappeared for three days with no explanation when he returns. He regularly uses phrases like “killer, brah” and “fo’ shizzle”. He doesn’t “get” the movie Idiocracy and calls is “dumb”. He wears Affliction t-shirts, jeans and flip flops most every day. Worse than all of that, when you try to defend your choice to stick with him to anyone, you cannot easily provide any reasons to justify your choice. You just, ummmm, well….you just, you know….I mean you don’t know what it’s like when it’s just us and no one else is around and…..
The Dallas Cowboys are a joke. A big, fat football joke. They used to not be. I think. Maybe I was just too young to get the joke back then. But Jerry Jones seems hell-bent on murdering any integrity the team may have. Because more than winning or playoffs or Super Bowls, Jerry Jones just wants to be really, really famous. Had he been born in a different time and not come into money (may need to re-evaluate this saying before posting) as he did, he would be a fixture of the reality show audition circuit and eventually become a staple of low-level basic cable reality programming. He’d eat monkey penises or make out with a pair of midgets or form alliances with smarter people and then throw them under the bus to avoid elimination. But mark my words; come hell or high water, he would be famous. And that’s a really bad thing for the Cowboys.
Let’s start with the most current wang measuring contest. The TV. I haven’t been to Cowboys Stadium yet but will be going soon because of the one good idea Jerry has had in a decade, the $29 party pass. Everyone that has been to the Stadium agrees that it is impressive if for nothing other than its size. Fresh Kills is also impressive because of its size, so size doesn’t always matter. I already hate the TV and I haven’t seen it. You know why I know that I hate the TV? Because at Mavs games, I hate the jumbotron. I never watch replays on it. I focus on the court instead. I sometimes realize this when I start to hear boos and remember, “Oh yeah, they show replays on the jumbotron.” But horses for courses and I do understand the appeal of the world’s largest replay screen to some people.
But when you find out that the screen is low enough that THIRD STRING punters could hit it with a punt, you eat humble pie. Not that a slice of such has ever passed between the lips of Jerry. But that’s when you take big HD lemons and make HD lemonade. You go, “oh yeah, well check this out….we can move the TV up because we have the most badass stadgeium of all time so suck it." You smile and push a button and pretend it’s as easy as that to move the screens up while simultaneously texting your assistant to get some cranes over to Arlington post-haste. You don’t, under any circumstances, claim that punters just shouldn’t, you know, hit the TV and say that the screens will not be moved as they provide “entertainment value” to patrons. You know what provides amazing entertainment value? Football. Non-dead-ball-filled football. Not that I think Jerry gives a flying anything about football. He’s the Paris Hilton of owners, great at brand building and so easy to hate
Before the football season starts each year, Deadspin runs something on each team in the NFL about why each franchise sucks. Here’s this year’s Cowboys one. I’d like to address each reason, if I could. And I can because this is my blog:
1. Their new stadium will rape your wallet multiple times over. Some of the new features of Jerry Jones' (YEEEEEEHAWWWWW!) $1.2 billion Cowboys Stadium include carpeted floors (whee!), the world's biggest LCD screen (fer watchin' all dem big plays!), and a retractable roof. Oh yeah, there's also the $60 pizzas, and the $35, standing room only Party Passes the team is selling to an estimated 35,000 people PER FUCKING GAME. In other words, any time you attend a Dallas Cowboys game this year, nearly one third of the people in the stadium will be trying to take your fucking seat.
Do not get me wrong, I hate the idea of the new stadium because all the footage I have seen of it looks like the stadium equivalent of a model home in a “starting in the $400,000’s” planned community in Southlake or DeSoto or something. Completely soulless but filled to the brim with plasma concessions menu displays, frosted glass bathroom countertops and faux-modernism. But the idea that I can finally attend a Cowboys game and stand there on a pavilion and watch my team play is genius. If you have a seat at a game and are paranoid that a third of the people in the stadium will be trying to take your seat, breathe a deep sigh of relief when you realize that if that does indeed happen, the problem can be rectified with a simple “Yo homes, that’s my seat. Cough up a ticket or back to the party zone, hombre.” Takes about 5 seconds to say and will work 100% of the time. Also, Deadspin claims that the new stadium is “a painfully expensive, unnecessary luxury stadium that replaced a perfectly useful old home”. No. No, it isn’t. It is a painfully expensive, unnecessary luxury stadium that replaces a terribly dilapidated to third-world-esque levels stadium. Texas Stadium was the proverbial “used condom stuck to a dog corpse floating down the Ganges” of NFL stadiums.
2. If I have to hear Berman say "How bout them Cowboys?" one more god damn time… Seriously, Jimmy Johnson. FUCK YOU. Just because you won the NFC title against the 49ers back in 1993 didn't give you license to coin a phrase that would stay in the football lexicon forever and ever, well past the point of tolerance.
Point taken. When I was a kid in Georgia, my dad used to say “How ‘bout them Braves?” so I think it’s more of just a good-ol-boy way to sound folksy and blue collar and possibly backwoods. On a similar note, this list of NBA franchise slogans provides many a giggle to me.
3. I'm an American, and I did not ask for this team. Speaking of annoying terms associated with the Dallas Cowboys, the phrase "America's Team" was coined by NFL Films VP Bob Ryan in 1979 because he needed a catchy title for the team's 1978 highlight film.
Duuuuuuude, we get it. The phrase was coined before I was even born. It’s not my fault. I don’t call them that. One could argue that, as the top selling franchise as far as merchandise goes, the Cowboys are statistically speaking, America’s Team. Funny story: if you watch the Mexican film Y Tu Mama Tambien, you will notice that the two main characters have a club (“charolastras”) of sorts and one of the bylaws of the club is that “Whoever roots for Team-America is a fag.” I always assumed that this was a reference to either vague anti-Americanism in Latin America or a soccer thing. Turns out, if you watch the movie with the director’s commentary on, the sentence was mistranslated on the subtitles. What the rule is actually meant to read is as “Whoever roots for America’s Team is a fag.” True story. So even Mexicans are sick of the America’s Team thing.
4. They won't even have a chance to choke away a playoff spot this year. While the rest of the division improved, the Cowboys were fit to stand pat with Wade Phillips (he of the 0-4 playoff record) as head coach. They also did virtually nothing to their roster, with the mild exception of adding LB Keith Brooking. In short, this is the exact same team as the one that shat the bed last year. Only thinner at wideout.
Again, this bullet point belongs on a list of “Why Jerry Jones Sucks”. I fully believe that Jerry purposely half-ass drafted and blatantly ignore signing possibilities to pay for his new BonerDome. Which is why all Cowboys fans should be storm the gates of Valley Ranch with torches and hastily-made nooses at the ready, calling for his head.
5. Always remember: Michael Irvin once stabbed a guy in the fucking neck with scissors.
Done. Like 9/11 and where I was when Janet’s boob fell out, I hereby promise to never forget.
Yes, our team essentially sucks. And we hear about it constantly. We hear about how egotistical and underachieving we are. We hear people bitch about us like how everyone bitches about the prom king being a total dick. And then on top of all of this chimp diaper flinging, we still have to deal with the fact that at the end of the day, we love a team that doesn’t care about us and plays poorly at least 50 % of the time. Tony Romo told us he didn’t care that we didn’t win. Jerry Jones is telling us he doesn’t care about our football performance and would probably lower the TV screens in the ultimate middle finger to the actual sport the stadium was supposedly built to host. Wade Philips, while endearingly incompetent, is still incompetent. And while I wouldn’t go as far as to say that he doesn’t care, he doesn’t seem to mind losing a whole lot either. To be a Cowboy fan is to be a glutton for punishment, shame and disappointment. We all deserve Purple Hearts.
And I can’t wait for the season to begin. Even if we go 1-15. Even if Jason Witten finally breaks in half and Martellus Bennett is taken back to his home planet mid-season and we are left tight-endless. Because it’s football and it’s my team and it sure as hell beats reading or exercising or something on a sunny fall Sunday.
Now move the fucking TV up, Jerry and stop being a prick about it.
♥ ♫ ARCTIC MONKEYS new album, Humbug.
HELL YEAA!!
The King Band of Indie.. Arctic Monkeys new album is officially released TODAY. August 24th 2009.
EXCITEDD!!
me & my bf are their HUGE fans.
my bf ordered their original CD straight from their official website & will be imported from Europe!
i can't wait.. but the package have not come yet until now. huhuu :[
well the album is Co-Produced by Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age) & said to be inspired by the albums of Black Sabbath.
so it should & suppose to be good.
as for my personal review as a BIG fan, i think this album is not as 'kicking' as their last 2 album.
maybe i'm just not used to the new songs yet or i'm not used to their new exploration either.
although, it's not a dissapointment at all.
AM is still AM with their genius thoughts of music.
for those of you that have not heard their music at all, i strongly recommend you to listen!
they are totally awesome!
:]
RECOMMENDATION TRACK : Crying Lightning, Secret Door.
Jadi, menurut kalian??
Any Thoughts??
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Battle Of The Brands
John and co-author Mrinal Ghosh (University of Arizona) investigate component branding in a forthcoming study in the Journal of Marketing Research. Various technologies that provide benefits like fuel efficiency, higher download speeds and better safety ratings all arise from component branding. But the innovation that makes these products superior often doesn't come from the primary brand, it comes from the component brand. To assure the makers of component technologies that the partnership will endure for long enough to make their investment worthwhile, visible acknowledgments of the added benefit – and which company brought the consumer that added benefit – have become common.
On 30% of the industrial products in their sample, everyday users will see at least one brand displayed in addition to the primary brand. No longer are they using a Dell or an Apple computer, they're using a Dell or an Apple with Intel Inside. "The component brand name, right there on a product, is, in a way, insurance that the company won't be dropped for a newer, cheaper, competitor next year," says John. "The co-branding is enough of a deterrent that the product brand won't switch to a different supplier. This gives the component maker the ability to put effort and resources into developing the product," says John.
Beyond simple consumer curiosity, this shift to visibly branded components should be noted by policy makers and regulators. "When an industry changes from a vertical structure with dominant primary brands to a horizontal structure with dominant component brands, suppliers become more powerful. And if the industry is in trouble, who gets bailed out? Detroit Diesel or GM? Apple or Intel? Cummins or Dodge? The right answers must depend on a deep understanding of who offers the real value," notes John.
If you like to read about how to change industries and create new markets and niches, I can highly recommend the book "Blue Ocean Strategy" - How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make Competition Irrelevant , written by W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne.
NO Comfort In Comfort Foods During Tough Times!
North Stars
In other recent North Stars news (although not necessarily inspired by one of the finest moments in their history), check out this version of Game Six of the 1991 final between Minnesota and Pittsburgh. Most impressive!
Friday, August 21, 2009
Predictions and Updates
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Pre-season Conference rankings are coming soon! I have developed what I think to be quite a scientific method for ranking teams, and while I don’t want to give it completely away, I’ll let you in on some of the factors. There are, of course, the obvious considerations – offence, defence, and goaltending – but there is much more to be measured. It doesn’t suffice to simply compare team rosters in those three categories [...]
How well a team played in the previous season is usually an important consideration, and how they’ve changed in the off-season can be even more significant. It’s always important to look at the quality of a team’s youth and prospects – while it may not seem necessary for the current season, injuries and fatigue will always be a part of the game, and they will both often result in the need for teams to call up fresh skaters, sometimes early in the season. At the same time, the quality of a team’s experience cannot be undervalued – the balance of youth and experience on a team is something you can’t ignore when ranking them.
You’ve also got divisional play. Each team plays more than one quarter of their games – 24 to be exact – against only four of the other 29 teams. A certain team may be good, but if their four division rivals are all better, then they’re going to be losing games. There are also travel considerations. Some teams travel more than others do, but this changes each season. You might be tempted to think that because Team A travels more than Team B, the strain will be tougher on Team A. But if Team A is actually travelling 4000 miles less than they did last season, while Team B will be travelling 4000 more…you get the picture. For a great resource to compare team travel, check this out: How Much Does Your Favorite Team Travel?
I tend to give important NHL updates much quicker on twitter, and wait a while to analyze the events over here. So if you’re in need of quick updates, be sure to follow here: LindHockeyFile on Twitter – just don’t forget to come back here for the analysis. For a rundown of some of the bigger stories:
Patrick Kane was able to arrange a plea bargain, whereby the larger charge of felony robbery was dropped. Now, my understanding of the way a plea deal works is that you either plead guilty for a reduced sentence, or you plead guilty to lesser charges and have the larger charges dropped. But the day after having the felony robbery charge dropped, Patrick Kane proceeded to plead not guilty to the misdemeanour robbery and theft charges. Some people think it’s all over, but I have doubts about this one…
Dany Heatley finally addressed the media Friday, via telephone conference. He reiterated his desire to be traded, but still left fans hanging as to why, citing a perceived “diminished role on the team”. He did say, however, that he was prepared to report to camp if a trade wasn’t made by that time. Don’t expect it to happen. You can check out the press conference here: Heatley Conference Call.
There have also been updates here! Aside from changing the layout to feature the expandable articles, Twitter updates are now displayed on the sidebar and updated automatically, and the site log and disclaimer have both been updated (you can find them at the bottom of either column). Social bookmark buttons have been added for Delicious, Facebook, StumbleUpon, and Technorati, so give them a click if you’re on those networks! Also, a pretty nifty animated 3D tag cloud has been added, clicking the tags allows you to find the topics that interest you most.
And more is coming! There will soon be a contact form on the page, whereby registration for the Lind File Hockey Pool will take place. I can’t give out too many details yet, but the pool will be hosted on ESPN, so make sure to sign up for a free account at ESPN Fantasy Hockey. The contact form can also be used to ask me your fantasy questions, which I will e-mail you answers to and post in fantasy mailbags. I’ve also got plans to add games, videos, and a chat system – all hopefully before the season begins!
- Josh Lind
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2009/2010 Season dates confirmed
6 Weeks Away
YES!
Thursday, August 20, 2009
☺ Admitted to The Hospital
it was suppose to be a 1 week holiday before Ramadhan.
but i had to spent most of the holiday in the hospital.
my fever was so high, the temperature were 39.9!!
plus, they won't go down for about 3 days!
ugh it was turtoring.
i hate hospital because you never know what's gonna come next.
they had to take my blood TWICE! & it hurts!
the infusion had to be injected to BOTH of my hands because my other hand was swollen.
the antibiotics that i had to took once a day it's torturing.
the injections.. the medicines.. the ultrasound tests.
they even put CUTTONBUD through my neck to checked whether i have the virus of H1N1 or not. not only once, but THREE TIMES!
Thank GOD, ALHAMDULILLAH i don't have any dangerous viruses.
just a normal fever.
unfortunately i also have Anemia & Lack of Liquid on my body.
so they gave me a bit treatment to cure those two.
Anemia has been going on on me since middle-school, i hate it.
i hope i will be totally heal someday, AMIN.
after spent 6 days at the hospital, i finally got out yesterday afternoon. (thursday 20th august).
i'd like to thank you all.. my family.. my friends.. my hney that has been supporting me, helping me & all the positive things for me.
thank you very much. :]
i ♥ you!
my advice is to keep healthy right now.
ini lagi musim sakit ya kawan, dimohon jaga kesehatannya. :)
keep your hands clean, eat lots of healthy food, drink more water than usual, etc!
love.love ♥♥
♥ Equator Prom Night 2009
since i am a guest or an outsider to the school, i have to buy a ticket for RM80 (Rp.240rb)
it was held at The G Hotel, which is a 5 star hotel in Penang. it was suppose to be held by the pool, it was all set & i even had a few sodas for starter until it rained that the party has to move to the ballroom.
the buffee was nice but i wasn't feeling well that night so i didn't take much food.
apparently, Hney hahaa (My Boyfriend) was chosen to be one of the candidate of the Prom King.
he was the candidate no.1
he had to perform some talent in order to compete.
he could have chosen football freestyle which i think is so cool but he chose to sing & play guitar instead.
he performed 'Last Request by Paulo Nutini'.
that night he was soo nervous that he was out of tunes for a little bit, but it's all good.. at least he had fun. :]
he didn't win though. :[
i'd post his video performing the songs later okkkk...............
now here's some pics from the night..
sorry because the pics are blurred & lack of quality.
i only took it with my E71 because we were so busy that we forgot to take a formal pictures.
hikss.
(Floral Corset : TOPSHOP)
(Wavy Black Skirt : Thai University Uniform)
(Thong Heels : VnC)
(Red Classic Flap Bag : Chanel)
(Accessories : JJ Market, Bangkok)
as for what i wore, the theme was FLORAL & it was suppose to be the party by the pool that's why i didn't wear any long formal dress.
i decided to go casual because it was a casual prom night.
:)
Why A Broken Heart Really Hurts
Psychologists at the University of California, Los Angeles say the human body has a gene which connects physical pain sensitivity with social pain sensitivity. The findings back the common theory that rejection 'hurts' by showing that a gene regulating the body's most potent painkillers - mu-opioids - is involved in socially painful experiences too.
Their study indicates that a variation in the mu-opioid receptor gene (OPRM1), often associated with physical pain, is related to how much social pain a person feels in response to social rejection. People with a rare form of the gene are more sensitive to rejection and experience more brain evidence of distress in response to rejection than those with the more common form.
Researchers collected saliva samples from 122 participants to assess which form of the OPRM1 pain gene they had and then measured sensitivity to rejection in two ways. First, participants completed a survey that measured their own sensitivity to rejection. They were asked, for example, how much they agreed or disagreed with statements like "I am very sensitive to any signs that a person might not want to talk to me." Then the emotions of 31 people among the group were tested when they were excluded during a virtual ball-tossing computer game.
Study co-author Prof Naomi Eisenberger said: "Individuals with the rare form of the pain gene, who were shown in previous work to be more sensitive to physical pain, also reported higher levels of rejection sensitivity and showed greater activity in social pain-related regions of the brain when they were excluded."
This is the first time that it has been proved that genes involved in physical pain are linked to mentally painful times like social rejection and breaking up with a lover. Co-author Baldwin Way said: "These findings suggest that the feeling of being given the cold shoulder by a romantic interest or not being picked for a schoolyard game of basketball may arise from the same circuits."
Prof Eisenberger said this overlap in the neurobiology of physical and social pain makes perfect sense. She said: "Because social connection is so important, feeling literally hurt by not having social connections may be an adaptive way to make sure we keep them. "Over the course of evolution, the social attachment system, which ensures social connection, may have actually borrowed some of the mechanisms of the pain system to maintain social connections."
The research is published by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.