IT IS WHAT IT IS…
IT IS WHAT IT IS
SUBTITLE: B€ LOG eo
The Cast
042718
By The Fillerbuster
Been a while as I was in Vegas for a week, but don’t want to go back to strictly to numbered items. I was nice enough to organize everything in sections for you. It has been a while, so this is about as long as my blog will ever be. Sorry, if I miss a little of time, I still need to cover everything but probably should not space out my blogs so much. Read what you want. Organized and sectioned off…and threw back some topics into the ocean. Sorry for any grammatical or organizational inaccuracies, as this was a beast to put together with my random notes all over the place.
EVERGREEN (MORE TIMELESS HOOKS):
None today. This will be a current blog only. I will write an evergreen one on Tuesday when the wife is out with the girls. I guess this blog won’t go in my writing sample folder.
HOTLIST (CURRENT HOOKS):
NBA:
- What is the difference between the regular season and postseason in the NBA playoffs? Lots of stuff. But, to oversimplify it and provide you with a trivial example of a difference? On paper, the Cavs won some games with the new cast and things looked fine. In the playoffs? They are having a little trouble with the Pacers. Yes, the Pacers are not too bad of team. But, I also didn’t expect the Cavs to look like LeBron in his first 5 years EITHER. The experiment of all new players was cute before the playoffs. It is looking a little more real for them now suddenly, as the playoffs definitely bring out your flaws more. Cavs will still win it, but that will be because of LeBron.
- Pop’s wife dies. On a serious note, it is a big loss to the NBA community. And it sure isn’t going to make him happier during mid-game and post-game interviews.
- Want some new NBA players to root for? I would say that Anthony Davis and Jrue Holiday both scoring 40 plus points against a pretty good Portland team are a good place to start.
- I keep forgetting that although the Western Conference teams all got ranked in a certain way and although we are used to expecting the higher ranked teams to win, seeds 3 through 8 were separated by less than five games. That is not much and it is showing.
- I feel like Rip Van Rinkle. How long have I been asleep or been in Vegas? I follow sports religiously. When the HELL did people start calling Paul George “Playoff P????” Is this like the poor man’s Mr. October without any resume, credentials, or wins?
- I admit to not fully understanding the release of Meek Mill as incredible, awesome, big time news.
- I think the Warriors can squeeze by the Pelicans without a healthy Curry, but I don’t see them getting by Houston without him.
- You can call out how LeBron goaltended and it was a series changer and blah blah blah. But, plenty of bad calls have changed series, and it was still a ridiculous, legendary 5 seconds of him.
- Did you know that when Bama wins a title, LeBron wins a title? Not saying he will, but just giving you some useless stats to tell your friends.
- One of the funniest things I read all week was about Derek Fisher proposing to the ex of Matt Barnes. He finally got the Triangle Offense to work.
- The Rockets are kind of like the basketball version of the Pats in a way. Blink, and you could give up 50 points in one single quarter.
- I have a feeling local restaurants will be a little more aware of the Greek Freak next time he is hungry after a game.
- Scottie Pippen has a farm…with tractors…that cost $50k????
- Donovan Mitchell broke MJ’s record with 55 points in his first two playoff games…just in case you think the league is devoid of talent.
NHL:
- Coming back from Vegas, I will tell you that the town has absorbed and embraced the Vegas Knights. I had already become a fan of a team of castoffs (through expansion of course) and good guys who came in right after the MGM tragedy and helped pick up the city. But, let me tell you. Billboards, casual fans, commercials, street paraphernalia, and all other things that are a part of daily life literally have the Golden Knights in bright sparkly glittery loud letters that are easy to love.
- But, the fact that ESPN had an article about people betting ELEVEN dollars on them preseason is stretching the media coverage a little, my friends.
- That is the thing that stunk. The Vegas Golden Knights are SO good that we missed out on a chance of a home game in Vegas in the first round.
- You live in a hole in the ground if you haven’t heard about Brad Marchand’s licking of other players. I didn’t expect this to occur in HOCKEY, but entertaining regardless.
- When it is all said and done, this Caps-Pens series could be one of the best second round matchups in Stanley Cup recent history. Both are good enough to win it all.
MLB:
- Anyone else over the age of 30 and feel real lazy reading that Bartolo Colon almost pitched a no-no?
- The great thing about Jenny Cavnar being the first woman to announce MLB in a long time was that she did. The sad thing is that the Rockies have been the last two occasions. Is no one else on the bandwagon? Get in gear, folks.
- If you are not on the Ohtani bandwagon, you can still grab a seat. This is not only an amazing individual accomplishment, but having Mike Trout in the playoffs will MAKE the season.
NFL:
- Let me get this straight. Dez Bryant suddenly doesn’t have a job and is turning down multi-year offers from teams usually in contention having a QB with a big arm and no WR’s (Ravens)?
- The cheerleaders complaining about work conditions are settling for $1 (cue Trading Places) as long as they get time with Roger Goodell. Good concept actually. But, in reality, WHO really wants to spend MORE time with Roger Goodell?
- It made news this week that Gronk and Brady will play. Aside from the usual Gronk distractions, did anyone actually think either of these guys would NOT play?
- They are now doing MNF games in Mexico City???
NFL DRAFT NOTES:
- I guess when there is a little doubt on each of the star QB’s in the draft, you go for the personality, right? Well, the Browns did. I look down upon their second pick, but they now have a player that will love them back as much as they love him. And if he wins ONE game, that is more than what they had before. I love Baker, as I live in an OU household and have talked about him a LOT in this thing. I think he will be great. My only concern? NOT his personality or cockiness. It is the fact that a 4.84 40 becomes MUCH more evident in the NFL as opposed to the college ranks, and I hope he can still be nimble AND stay healthy when much bigger guys are dragging him down. But, in the end, a blue collar town gets a blue collar guy who walked on twice and then was voted the best college football player.
- That Favre pic thing he did was EPIC. Got to love the guy unless you are the opposition. I am actually kind of jealous that Cleveland will enjoy his show as opposed to Denver. Maybe Case Keenum can do a redo of that photo too?
- If there was a show of security in old QB’s, it had to be the Giants and Pats taking things OTHER than a QB. They just got them more weapons.
- Barkley is a CLASS act, people. I hope he stays healthy. He could be something really special. The masses already know this. His jersey is flying off the shelves the fastest of all of the first rounders thus far.
- Ozzie Newsome picking his old position and then trading up at the end of the night for the final pick and snagging Jackson was awesome. If his last draft is anything like his first draft, he will be more of a legend than he already is (Ogden, Lewis in first one).
- I think the Broncos were given the floor to NOT mess up with the earlier picks. Chubb is a stud. Solid pick. He is a guy you would draft whether you needed that position or not.
- He might be cocky as hell and very unlikable, but I think Rosen got a GOOD landing space even though he isn’t happy about WHEN he was drafted. Bradford is an injury waiting to happen, and his day could be sooner rather than later with Johnson in the backfield.
- I love how Goodell walks out with legends and STILL gets booed. No boo insurance for you, buddy. He makes more money than most people. He will be fine. At least when he brought out the kid in the wheelchair, they only booed inward.
- Ryan Shazier walking out on stage, focusing on his steps, was easily the moment of the draft. That is not homer Steelers based. That is HUMAN based.
- The Steelers got the Edmonds brother from VA Tech (other brother also drafted in first round, a first). Sounds like a broken record, but the LB’s they wanted were gone, any warm talented body in the secondary will work, and I guess they figured their FA signing of a CB meant they didn’t go the Josh Jackson route.
- Don’t let the door hit you in the a%^, Martavis Bryant. You wanted out? You got it.
- Somewhat of a downer that Josh Allen had high school racial tweets flagged, but another lesson that once you tweet in any way, you can’t take it back. He is a good kid. I assume it didn’t scare anyone.
- So, given the fact that the Colts went elsewhere, I assume Luck WILL play this year????
MISCELLANEOUS:
- We all only read Trump’s tweets for entertainment, and hope the hilarity hides the fact that he is our country’s leader. Him propping the USMNT and still getting frowned upon by FIFA I LOVED though.
- Blake Barnett (remember him?) is an ex-Bama and now ex-ASU QB. He is transferring. Not only will he be a heck of a pickup for a college that needs a solid QB to complete the puzzle, but he might also rival Case Keenum’s length of career at Houston the way he is going.
- I forgot in my sadness of the USMNT not making the World Cup, that I still have to deal with FOX announcing the damn thing. Insult to injury. They aren’t even sending all announcer onsite and will be doing some remotely. And, they basically have mostly American announcers, which is no Bueno when it comes to soccer in general.
- I personally was enjoying the Lakers not being in the playoffs, and therefore NO Ball family stories. Then, dad pulls kids out of the foreign country because there were two games left and they were hurt. Way to teach the youngsters to stay with their team and finish things out, LaVar. (see gutter ball reference under Seinfeld below)
- I don’t mind Bring Your Kids To Work day as long as the company orders them pizza like last year. Big miss on that one, and my pizza stomach was not happy. I did notice that two kids drew a cow farting saying “I am guilty” on our main white board.
- So, the Arkansas tennis team was close but not there for qualification for the tourney. What did they do? They scheduled Tennessee St. SIX times in one day to accumulate wins. Hell of a system. They beat the system like most bands from 1981 through 1986.
- You all are lying if you weren’t going to bet someone $5 on or against the Gronk horse in the Derby. Shame he is out of it.
- I would say the Houston Rockets analytics department would be thoroughly impressed by my wife’s analytics in her search for her Kentucky Derby derby hat.
- People at work probably wondered where my Masters vest was this week. Oh, don’t worry. It is coming back in full force. Just had to wash it after wearing it constantly in Vegas and I was waiting for the weekend. I have decided my go to look from here out is a long sleeve collared shirt with that vest, khakis, and boat shoes.
SEINFELD:
Yes, I finally got to see Seinfeld again live. I saw him by myself in 1999 in Denver, and I remember that although some of his bits were in the show, he rarely mentioned the show and that it was…different. Sometimes, it is nice seeing someone who you watch perform, and say “NOW I understand there is more to him and there is a reason why he is famous.” When I saw Chappelle a month or two ago, I said the same thing. Dave just…talked…and was ridiculously funny. And you could tell he just talked about whatever he wanted to, just with a few go-to bits. With Jerry, it was still conversational, but you could tell he had bits. It was SOLID. More importantly, I took my wife, who is NOT a Seinfeld fan. She enjoyed it. Perhaps not as much as her comedians she likes, but she liked it and that was good.
I am probably the biggest Seinfeld fan that has walked the planet. So, reading a review of Jerry by me you probably think you should write off. Wrong. I can easily step outside of my biased box and tell you the topics and presentation from a thoughtful and neutral point of view. OK. Maybe not, but given I hate most movies and over-analyze most things that are supposed to be fun, I will give it a shot. I wrote down everything he covered. Jerry and I do think along the same lines overall.
To give you a short summary, look at some of the everyday topics he covered and made hilarious:
- He opened with his “going out” bit, that was shown in the early shows. It is the one where he notes that humans are never satisfied in what they are doing, as they are just worried about the next step. When you are home, you need to go out. When you are out, you think about how to “get back.”
- When cookies try to attack humans during the day and when they are the most effective.
- How the Flex Seal infomercial is the greatest thing ever, the difference between the short and long version, how that is what he does every night when the kids go to bed, and a full breakdown of its brilliance.
- Food and sex occupy 99% of your brain’s thoughts, and what you accomplish in life is based on your usability of the remaining 1%.
- Pop Tarts are the greatest invention outside of the Flex Seal infomercial.
- Raisins are the only business 80 years old or more that has survived on being the most boring entity ever.
- People’s allegiance to their phones and what happens to someone when their cell battery starts dying.
- Shortened phrases in communications like K and TY, and I found this especially funny since someone very high in leadership at my job constantly says “TY.”
- How tough it is to hear a repeat story from a friend, and your options for listening and responding.
- How when someone says “business is business,” “it is what it is” and other short phrases using the same word twice, they have no idea what they are talking about, have nothing to contribute to the conversation, and should be punched repeatedly in the face (or some more subtle way of him saying he wanted to slap them). He is right, and I am guilty of using it occasionally too. Note to self on a life change made after a comedy show. I will only use it in jest, like the name of this blog.
- People who take too many pictures of everything.
- How ridiculous email is and things people do on it that are funny and/or irritating.
- Discussing new shows at the watercooler. Did you expect THAT last night? Well, it is a fictitious story so how COULD you really expect it? Also, he talked about people talking about how their show is the best. Like “You HAVE to see this show. It is a little slow for the first 4 seasons, but then it gets REALLY good.”
- The USPS.
- How long is optimal to spend in Vegas
- Age in his 60’s and what to expect in his 70’s.
- The end result purpose of a tuxedo.
- Female bras transitions into the female brain on the topic of hypothetical situations.
- The show Jeopardy.
- Climate controlled cars.
- Babies
- Golf
- How a helium balloon reflects the state of a man in marriage.
- How putting up the guards on the side of the alley in bowling is the worst lesson you can teach your kid. I agree. My dad blocked my basketball shot until I grew enough to shoot over him. Thanks for the lesson, Dad.
- The circus.
- Movies
- Finale: the public restroom.
VEGAS GENERAL NOTES:
- I think I fought the idea because it was my elders at work telling me something I didn’t want to accept they were right on, but I will tell you now. If you want a hidden gem to stay at in Vegas that is clean, central, fun, and gives you easy access to whatever you want to do, work or business, Vdara is the way to go.
- Building on this concept, I spent half the trip at the Vdara and half at the Bellagio. I never had stayed at the Bellagio, and was very excited about experiencing the fancy status and nature of what I had heard. I was ok, but I think I missed the Vdara room during the first night. I expected more from The Bellagio and didn’t really get it. Hence the subtitle.
- I went my first 7 trips to Vegas without even catching wind of a “show” and concentrating on gambling. I now have hit all shows aside from the Michael Jackson and Love show and probably am becoming a show snob in my own way. But, my breakdown of the shows has Absinthe #1 by a mile and O at the Bellagio was OK, but not overly refined. Actually, I would take Le Reve over O if you are looking for a water based Cirque show. Actually, O looked more FUN than refined hard acts being performed.
- Sometimes you just have to pay for things. It was pricey, but the Sterling Brunch at Bally’s (yes, Bally’s) BLT Steakhouse was probably the best meal I can remember I have ever had. I had some caviar while I was at it. I would rather have mac and cheese or lasagna than caviar but glad I got that experience out of the way. You should do it. It is crazy good.
- I am, of course, USELESS at buffets. I eat 6-7 small meals a day, so asking me to eat a bunch of things at once is like asking Tiger to put together four good Major days these days. Not happening. I actually start getting hungry again when LEAVING that same buffet. I always get hungry an hour after eating anything…less if pizza is involved.
- The fountains in Vegas still give me chills. Luckily, it gives my wife chills too. So, we saw a lot of shows is I guess what I am saying.
- Go to the Fuel Bar in Vegas, right by Bally’s and Wahlburgers. Best place to see a flare show from bartenders I have seen aside from the big time places.
- Bellagio buffet. Caesars buffet. Awesome.
- Fremont Street, the old school part of town, is definitely worth the trip these days. I recommend looking at all of the cool lights, the mac and cheese at Therapy, the deviled eggs at Smashed Pig, bisque at Maine Lobster, a drink at The Griffin (dive), and a pizza slice with snake sausage at Evel Pie. Steer clear of the monster human guy in hooves.
- Unless you are made of money, DO take the time to do Uber instead of cabs in Vegas these days. Cheap as heck in comparison to the expensive drinks you will be buying where you are going (except for Fremont of course).
SHOWS/MOVIES/ETC.
- The show, Barry, on HBO got me hooked, has now gone a little off where I thought they were going, and I need one of THOSE episodes to get me back to locked in. I feel like right now it is a non-technology version of Silicon Valley, where everything feels a bit scattered. But, if this IS similar to Silicon Valley in trend, then there is always ONE episode each year that reels me right back in for another year.
- (Silicon Valley just had that episode as I mentioned in my last blog)
- Watched the pilot episode this week. I am IN on this show.
- The Voice does this stupid thing of taking their time and eliminating everyone, and then eliminating half the 24 people all in one hour somehow. All of my favorites except for Britton/AKA Mini-Matt Damon are gone. Heck, considering I am still two nights behind, maybe HE is even eliminated. The beginning of the show is awesome. It starts to lose me after a couple of rounds though.
- Everything else is being rebooted because we have run out of ideas. WHEN is the reboot of Airwolf coming out? I need one.
- The first episode of Westworld was awesome and confusing and great. No one knows what is going on, and the great thing is that there are no books to resort to for truth, so we are all on a level playing field. No spoilers, but catch up. I will be covering it soon.
LINKS TO SAVE YOU TIME IN LIFE:
Some more as it has been a while…
I am throwing back these topics. Too small of fish. Do I have something to say about all of them? Yes. Do I need to move on and know I will have plenty of ideas for another blog? Also yes.
| THROW IT BACK |
| reds already fire manager with no good roster |
| wenger to leave arsenal |
| heat sixers garbage layups |
| ex-buckeye earle bruce dies |
| carolina hurricanes head coach bill peters resigns |
| cancun gunman on waverunner? |
| 420 on 420 in vegas |
| foles gets a raise and has the best job in the world |
| Dany snow fountains after i got a picture at show with them |
| shark tank pool nugget |
| pacers bogey |
| amnesty international honors kap |
| why not kaep |
| Mohamed Salah equals scoring record 31 in 38 premier |
| Rodgers buys in with bucks |
| chisox faquhar |
| Hardy mma debut |
| tagvaillas bro tide commit |
| Harvey loses starting spot |
| ucf given out title rings |
| Davis holiday plus 40. |
| A’s manaea no no |
| tank travel pool chair |
| would a travel pool chair be a good shark tank idea? |
| lost my sunglasses at seinfeld-loved those things |
| dirt dog hot dogs in vegas are awesome |
| the fun table in blackjack |
| rubio triple double |
| Jay feely gun pic |
| Giants Branden belt 21 ab a record |
| baked potato chips |
| waterworld opens soon |
| parrot and us curling team to deliver nfl picks |
| pelicans pick up gentry 2018-2019 |
| julio jones deletes falcons pics from instagram account |
| maple leafs hold moment of silence |
| kd accidentally likes instagram post putting down westbrook |
| anchor takes warriors staffer jacket |
| going to a city? ask me-i take notes and photos |
| ed harris mens journal article |
| john cena-mj article |
| dirty dog, joseph james ipa |
| steve jobs took away seats one day |
| toledo takes down tweet with shrek |
| uf wr antonio callaway tested positive for weed at combine |
| tiger gives lessons to 18 year old from nepal |
| kap-still seahawks plans? |
| de’andre hunter does not test draft process and there is hope at uva |
| nba early entry list at 236 |
| suddenly have to shave after one day as of last week |
| i love mock drafts even if meaningless |
| spurs out in five games after first round just feels weird |
| kawhi saga goes to offseason |
| grand big mac? i still more of a double cheeseburger guy anyway |
| jalapeno salsa cream cheese is so dope |
| vick to be OC in new AAF league for atlanta team |
| draft hs players going straight to pros again? |
| dez turns down ravens multi year deal |
| nfl says no proof of derrius guice questions combine |
| aldridge-no words at presser |
| reuben foster ex gf says she lied-he did something RIGHT, or NOT wrong! |
| not sure when i got addicted to ice cream sandwiches, but i did |
| Hawks fire budenholzer-pretty bare cupboard if you ask me |
| thunder come back from 25 down and win me a parlay in the process |
| yawkey way name changed ok’d |
| acuna called up for braves |
| house shopping |
| Pizza Locale in Denver is GOOD pizza, but of course ALL pizza is good to a degree |
| my wife watching live baker cam during draft and finding out he was picked before TV |
| jags owner bid on wembley stadium-won’t relocate-good because that would be DUMB |
| panthers owner sexual misconduct-same old, same old |
| round 2 nhl |
| nadal up to 40 wins consecutive on clay in prepping for nadal open |
| one arm fighter in ufc makes me feel like I have accomplished nothing in life |
| cosby found guilty-is it over now? |
| decided NOT talking about my betting makes me do better |
| witten may retire for analyst job |
| pats trade for ol trent brown 49ers |
| canelo out 6 months |
| us soccer to play england in friendly in november |
| double down face down |
| puddy at devils game |
| vegas-other singers singing bad 80’s songs constantly |
| sixers #3 in merchandise-highest since iverson days |
| rodgers unhappy with roster moves |
| dragic single handedly beat the over/under with less than 6 seconds left-meaningless |
| a’s free tuesday night game |
| broncos release anderson |
| widespread panic sunday-i am officially GOING |
| duke loses fifth 2017 starter carter |
| cousins another confusing situation |
| heat sixers-wade goes old school wade |
| Boston marathon-american women top 6 of 7 |
| mlb weather postponements |
| conor mcgregor next-what? |
| exit row-knees still touching |
| bautista joins braves-3b |
That’s it for today. Hope you enjoyed or are at least more informed in life. Will I blog again? That is a CLOWN question, bro. It is what it is. Business is business. Peace.
