I had a chance to talk with Jan Levine from rotowire.com just after noon today to break down 3 trades that happened this morning and late last night. I'm going to be logging onto the chat in about 30 minutes and looking forward to it. Here's my quick chat with Jan...
Jan Levine Blog Feb28/11
It Happens Everywhere
Earlier this week, Lee and I were interrupted by a fire alarm for a couple of minutes. It turns out a cooking segment on A-Channel got a little smoky and the culprit for the mass exodus was nothing but a slightly charred piece of fish. A similar situation happened on BBC 1 as well.
By BBC News
BBC One's The One Show was taken off air when a fire alarm went off during Wednesday's live broadcast.
Presenters Matt Baker and Alex Jones were interviewing actress Tamsin Greig at the time.
After several minutes of confusion, the 7pm show was taken off air and a recording of cooking show Simple Suppers filled in.
Later Jones revealed on Twitter: "Somebody was warming their tea up and the microwave set off the alarm!"
She added: "That's live telly for you!"
A BBC spokesman said there had been no fire at the BBC studio in White City, west London, where the weekday magazine show is filmed, but a handful of people had been evacuated.
She said: "The One Show went off air tonight due to a fire alarm. We apologise to viewers for the interruption and normal service was resumed on BBC One as soon as possible."
Stripping Hockey Coach Update
It looks like there will be additional punishment for the coach that decided becoming bare-chested and throwing his discarded articles of clothing would be a sufficient way to get his point across to the referee. The video is definitely still worth another look.
By Fox Sports
An assistant coach for a Colorado professional hockey team was suspended for the season after he became upset at referees and proceeded to strip his clothes off, FOXNews.com reported Thursday.
Greg Pankewicz of the Central Hockey League's (CHL) Colorado Eagles was angered after a referee pushed one of his players away from a series of fights that occurred during the team's 5-1 win Saturday.
The assistant coach then threw his jacket, shirt and shoes onto the ice and launched a tirade at the official wearing only his pants and socks, according to CBS Denver.
The CHL decided to suspend Pankewicz for 14 games — the remainder of their regular season.
Have $795,000 Lying Around?
Imagine having to be the salesman trying to get one of these machines off the lot? I wonder what the commission on a 795 thousand dollar car would get you. If you sold one car, would you be set for the rest of the year? So many questions that you don't really care about...here's the story.
By Jordan Chittley - Yahoo Auto
Countries like Italy and Germany may be well known for designing some of the best high-performance sports cars, but a Montreal automaker is changing all that with its
new car, the HTT Plethore.
Plethore, French for Plethora or overabundance, is the first Canadian-made supercar and it is exactly what the name suggests.
With 750 horses under the hood, a top speed of 388 km/h and a 0-to-100 km/h time of 2.8 seconds it certainly offers a lot more than the average sedan. And yes, the doors lift with a remote control.
"It's the best-balanced car that's ever been built," said HTT president Sebastien Forest, who joined company co-founders Luc Chartrand and Carl Descoteaux in 2008, in a recent Toronto Star article. "Power is pretty easy to get, handling is difficult."
Helping get so much power out of the V8, 7-litre super-charged engine is the 100 per cent carbon-fibre body and frame, which allows the car to weigh only 1,250 kilograms, or about the same as a Volkswagen Golf.
"And it is a central driving vehicle," said Forest in a Financial Post article. "This means you sit in the middle. A passenger can sit on either side of the driver. This affords advantages in weight balance."
While the car looks like a blast, Forest admits the market is small for a vehicle that costs $795,000. He hopes to one day take 50 orders per year, but as of now they have seven orders worldwide. No Canadian orders have been placed.
"We're realistic, we don't expect to take 10 or 15 orders in Canada," Forest said in the Star article. "If we get one or two orders (in Toronto) we'll be more than happy."
If the car looks familiar, it is currently making its second appearance at the Canadian International AutoShow and was featured last week on CBC's Dragons' Den.
Dragons Brett Wilson and Robert Herjavec made a deal during the taping offering $1 million plus a $500,000 operating line of credit for 20 per cent of the company and three cars. Since the taping, Robert took the car for a test drive, but ran into transmission problems so the deal is on hold.
Forest says the problem has been fixed and Robert has been invited back for another test drive. HTT plans to move forward with plans for the car with or without the Dragons.
The Plethore is on display at the Canadian International AutoShow from now until the show ends on Sunday.
Kovalev Trade: Pittsburgh Perspective
If you want to get analysis of this trade from a Senators point of view, head on over to Steve Warne’s blog as “the Church of Alfie” will no-doubt have some good thoughts on his departure and probably a couple of reflections on his short but controversial time here in the Nation’s Capital.
To be honest, I would rather look at this from Pittsburgh’s perspective anyways because it’s pretty cut and dry for Ottawa. Kovalev stayed true to form, showed up for 20-25% of the games he played for the Sens and frustrated the hell out of all Sens fans that knew what they were getting, but hoped for more.
This is an interesting move from Pittsburgh’s point of view. They have a ton of problems at the forward spot because of the loss of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, but are they so desperately thin that they would look to L’Artiste to try and boost their offensive production?
If you look inside the numbers, you’ll find that the Penguins are absolutely in need of more production. If the Penguins don’t get back Sidney Crosby this season, then god help them. They aren’t going anywhere with the rag-tag bunch that they have skating right now. If they can add Kovalev for virtually nothing, then it’s worth the minimal risk.
Crosby continues to lead the team in points with 66 after only 41 games. Meanwhile, Kris Letang is a distant second with 45 points in 62 games as a defenseman and Evgeni Malkin remains in third with 37 points despite being done for the year thanks to major ligament damage to one of his knees.
The highest-scoring forward that is healthy as of right now is Tyler Kennedy and he’s fifth on the team in points with 31 points in 61 games. Chris Kunitz is the final guy in the Top 5 of team scoring, but he’s hurt as well. Fortunately for Penguins fans, the winger should be able to return shortly.
Penguins GM Ray Shero is in a really tough spot here because he has a team that has the second-most points in the Eastern Conference, so they should be considered a Stanley Cup contender, but without his top two stars, they’re nothing but a middle of the road team.
It also has to be pointed out that the Penguins have had a long stretch of successful seasons. With how cyclical a team’s success has become because of the salary cap, there’s must be a concern of how many times the Penguins will be in this position before the bottom falls out and they have to rebuild again.
All Pens fans can hope for now is a return by Sid the Kid because despite the moves they’ve made this week, they’re a shell of themselves without the most dynamic player in the game. Let the parties begin in Ottawa. The most interesting man in the world is now going to have to learn how to fly his helicopter around the Poconos.
Girl Scout Cookie Brawl
I'm not a fan of the Mint kind myself, but give me a chance to buy a box or two of the Vanilla flavour and you've got yourself a customer 99% of the time. A Florida woman took it a couple of steps too far when someone dared to mess with her Mint-flavoured cookies.
By Brian Hamacher of NBCMiami.com
Stay away from Hersha Howard's Thin Mints!
The Collier County woman was arrested Sunday after a savage beatdown of her roommate over a box of the delicious Girl Scout cookies that were apparently off limits to her kids, according to naplesnews.com.
The brawl began when the 31-year-old cookie monster confronted her sleeping roommate and accused her of eating the box of treats, police said. The roommate told Howard she'd given the cookies to Howard's kids, who were awake and hungry around 1 a.m.
The roommate offered to pay $10 for the cookies, but Howard wasn't having it, and began fighting with the other woman, police said. The roommate's husband pulled Howard off her so she could escape, but Howard took off after her.
According to a police report, Howard grabbed a pair of scissors and threatened the woman. When the woman started to run down some stairs, Howard allegedly dropped the scissors, picked up a board and hit the woman as she ran down the stairs.
Howard caught up to the woman again and knocked her to the ground and started to hit her. When the roommate managed to get outside the house, Howard grabbed a sign and started hitting her again, police said.
Police finally arrived and arrested Howard, charging her with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
No word on what dessert was served in jail.
Stalkers Have a New Tool...Uhh, Not Anymore!
I don't know anyone that would put their life on hold to hope so much for a particular person to break-up with someone. However, for those who fit this category, Facebook catered to their needs with a new App called "Breakup Notifier". It might signify the quickest rise and fall in the history of apps.
By Adam Caparell of the New York Daily News
Want to keep tabs on your crush? Turns out there isn't an app for that.
Facebook pulled the plug on a trendy application Wednesday that allowed users to select "friends" whose relationship status they wished to closely monitor – or stalk, depending on your definition.
"Breakup Notifier," which had amassed well over 3 million users since going live Monday, was shutdown despite its gigantic surge in popularity.
The app worked by sending users an email whenever a "friend" altered their relationship status, theoretically putting an end to excessive monitoring of profiles for those anxious to find out whether a crush was finally single and ready to mingle.
But Facebook put its foot down.
"Hey everyone, Facebook e-mailed saying that they've disabled us... We are working for a fix, but ask @facebook to put is back online!" the app's official Twitter account tweeted Wednesday afternoon.
Later on Wednesday, app creator Dan Loewenherz revealed that Facebook had sent him an email explaining the reasoning behind the shutdown.
"To ensure positive user experiences on Platform, we run routine automated screens that take user feedback, machine learning and various algorithms into account and remove spammy applications," a representative from Facebook wrote to Loewenherz in an email he released to TechCrunch. "For example, if an application is making an inordinate number of stream.publish calls and receiving a large number of user reports, it may be removed by our automated systems to protect the user experience and the Platform ecosystem."
Facebook also disabled Loewenherz's personal account.
The Beverly Hills-based programmer told the News on Monday that he created the app in roughly four hours after overhearing his fiancée and her mother seeking a mate for his future sister-in-law.
"I just really hope people use it for good, not evil," Loewenherz, a Yale graduate, said. "It's really a practical thing. If you're going to refresh someone's page 20 times a day, why not have an alert on it?"
I'm Being Selfish Here
Advanced apologies for those who don't care one bit about this kind of story, but Larry King was an idol for me and I absolutely loved his style of interviewing when he was taking on the biggest news-makers and political leaders. So it was real interesting to me when King was interviewed by his successor Piers Morgan last night. By the way, Piers is struggling badly in the ratings.
By Jason Merritt - AFP News
..British journalist Piers Morgan sparred verbally with his CNN predecessor Larry King, after the US veteran criticized Morgan's talk show technique.
Morgan, who took over in January after King bowed out following 25 years as host of "Larry King Live," light-heartedly suggested he would have to punch the 77-year-old following his jibes in a BBC interview.
"I have spent the last few months saying following you is like following Sinatra. I couldn't have paid you higher praise. And you go in my back yard and say I'm... oversold, undangerous," said Morgan.
King told BBC radio last week he thought Morgan had been "oversold" when he started at CNN, saying: "He's good, but not that dangerous. I think they might have been better off starting quietly."
Damning with faint praise, King added: "He's certainly not bad. He's certainly an acceptable host. He asks good questions, maybe he interrupts a little too much at times."
Defending himself on Morgan's show, King insisted he didn't think the British host was dangerous.
Morgan replied: "We couldn't come in and undersell me. I'm following a legend. You can't follow Sinatra in Vegas and say 'By the way, I'm not very good, and this is going to be useless.'"
King, deadpanning: "Why can't you just say: 'Piers Morgan. I'm coming. Watch me.' What's wrong with that?"
After briefly squaring up for a pretend across-the-table punch -- King said he had heard that Morgan had suggested he would punch him for the BBC jibe -- the British host agreed to change the subject.
But they came back to it at the end of the interview, when Morgan presented King with a pair of suspenders -- the CNN veteran's onscreen trademark -- with a Union Jack flag pattern.
The pair then got into another pretend verbal tussle over the fact that "suspenders" in British English are an item of women's underwear, the British word being "braces."
"So I've been wearing ladies' underwear all these years?" asked King.
"That's what the Brits think," replied Morgan.
"You're dangerous," joked King.
Daily Pizza Saves a Life
Either it's the best pizza in the history of the world or there was a major pizza addiction that needed to be worked through. Don't expect the second option to be chosen any time soon. A crazy story out of Memphis. It's put me in the mood for pizza all of a sudden.
By the Associated Press
Authorities say a pizza delivery driver who was concerned about a regular customer may have saved the elderly woman's life.
Domino's delivery driver Susan Guy told WMC-TV that Jean Wilson has ordered pizza every day for the past three years.
On Monday, Guy said her boss told her Wilson hadn't called in three days. Guy insisted on going to check on the woman. When no one came to the door, Guy asked a neighbour whether he'd seen Wilson and then called police.
Police broke the door down and found Wilson on the floor. She'd fallen Saturday and couldn't get to a phone to call for help.
Investigators said it's possible her pizza-heavy diet may have saved her life.
Late Monday evening, Wilson was listed in non-critical condition at a hospital.
Facebook Has Hit a New Level
From any parents that I've heard from on the subject of naming their child, it's either been extremely easy because they already knew what the name was going to be or extremely difficult because they had no idea what to choose. I wonder which category this new baby ended up in...
By Yahoo UK Lifestyle
A young Egyptian man has decided to call his first-born daughter Facebook in a tribute to the social media site’s role in his country’s political revolution.
Proud father Jamal Ibrahim, who was swept up in enthusiasm over the revolt against President Hosni Mubarak, gave his daughter the unorthodox name to express his thanks for developments in Egypt since anti-government protests started on 25 January, according to Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahram.
The girl’s full name is Facebook Jamal Ibrahim, and family and friends have reportedly gathered around the newborn to express their continuing support for the revolution that started on Facebook.
Egypt is home to five million Facebook users - the highest number in the Middle East - and the website was instrumental in galvanising civilians for peaceful protests that eventually toppled Mubarak.
Following the President’s resignation on 11 February, graffiti artists scribed 'Thank you Facebook' on walls across Cairo.
During the uprising, thousands of Egypt-themed groups and pages appeared on Facebook, and the military government even started using the site to try and reach out to Egyptian youth.
A whopping 32,000 groups and 14,000 pages were created in this time.
Facebook has received many gifts from young people who were overjoyed by both her arrival and her inventive name, reports Al-Ahram.
(Insert Wife Joke Here)
There are hundreds of thousands of jokes about how much trouble it is for a man to have just one wife. I wonder how many jokes Ziona Chana from India would have about having multiple wives. We're not just talking about a couple of wives or even a trio. Look below and the number will make your head shake.
By Biswajyoti Das of Reuters
The more, the merrier is certainly true for Ziona Chana, a 66-year-old man in India's remote northeast who has 39 wives, 94 children and 33 grandchildren -- and wouldn't mind having more.
They all live in a four storied building with 100 rooms in a mountainous village in Mizoram state, sharing borders with Myanmar and Bangladesh, media reports said.
"I once married 10 women in one year," he was quoted as saying.
His wives share a dormitory near Ziona's private bedroom and locals said he likes to have seven or eight of them by his side at all times.
The sons and their wives, and all their children, live in different rooms in the same building, but share a common kitchen.
The wives take turns cooking, while his daughters clean the house and do washing. The men do outdoor jobs like farming and taking care of livestock.
The family, all 167 of them, consumes around 91 kg (200 pounds) of rice and more than 59 kg (130 pounds) of potatoes a day. They are supported by their own resources and occasional donations from followers.
"Even today, I am ready to expand my family and willing to go to any extent to marry," Ziona said.
"I have so many people to care (for) and look after, and I consider myself a lucky man."
Ziona met his oldest wife, who is three years older than he is, when he was 17.
He heads a local Christian religious sect, called the "Chana," which allows polygamy. Formed in June 1942, the sect believes it will soon be ruling the world with Christ and has a membership of around 400 families.
Gotta Look a Little Deeper
I’m not sure why it such a shock to me that people don’t understand how much business and office politics play into the decisions of sports franchises. I actually applaud those people for being able to walk around and think purely about the game and how decisions affect them on-ice or on-court only. Their ignorance is certainly bliss and I wish I could be at that point.
The recent trade by the Dallas Stars and the Pittsburgh Penguins made me laugh for a number of reasons. The Stars claiming that they filled a need on defense by picking up Alex Goligoski was laughable. Not because Goligoski is a bad player, but by giving up James Neal and Matt Niskanen, they paid an awful price and most likely created a need at the forward spot. Doesn’t seem to make a lot sense, now does it?
Well, here’s where the most laughable part of all comes in. Some of the online comments about the trade just floored me. A lot of online comments floor me actually at any point, but I digress. You had a bunch of people that were trying to break this trade down on paper and lambasting Stars management for what they did.
One of the more favored comments on tsn.ca was from “bird flu” who said: “Huge move by the Pens. Dont know what Dallas was thinking...Goligoski is good but is he that good?” Let me fill you in on what Dallas was thinking. They have an ownership situation that is completely up in the air. They have to clear some salary to make the team more appealing to investors while saving room for a potential re-signing of Brad Richards. Plus, the team is not really a Stanley Cup contender.
It’s not about whether Goligoski is good or not, it’s that he’s young, inexpensive and has numbers from this year to fool Stars’ fans into thinking that he could be something bigger than he is right now. Now, he may prove to be a great defenseman in the league and the Pens will kick themselves for giving up a young talent like that. But more likely than not, Pens GM Ray Shero understood what he had in his former D-man and decided to take advantage of a team that’s thinking more about survival than Stanley Cup.
Speaking of Shero, he was able to pick up a budding star in James Neal and a serviceable, and more importantly, disposable D-man in Matt Niskanen. Neal will help the Penguins as they continue to march forward without Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin and Niskanen was nothing but a throw-in that gives the Stars some cap relief and the Penguins some depth for the rest of this year.
On the surface, everybody thinks that the Penguins wound up winning the deal hands-down and just looking it from a superficial point of view, those people are correct. Go deeper into the situation and you’ll find that both teams won in this trade. The Penguins get better for a Stanley Cup run and the Stars’ roster salary becomes less of a burden for the potential white knight that comes and takes over.
Bodog Lines of the Day
San Jose Sharks vs. Detroit Red Wings
Pick: San Jose +115
Houston Rockets vs. Detroit Pistons
Pick: Houston -2 (-105)
Memphis Grizzlies vs. Denver Nuggets
Pick: Memphis +1
Communication Fail
It's funny how communication can be such a big problem in the office of a company that's trying to promote a product that's supposed to make communication much easier. Chalk this up to a good idea with a really bad execution. Terrible for Dell and hilarious for the rest of us.
By KXAN in Round Rock, Texas
The Round Rock SWAT team responded to multiple 911 calls of a suspect inside of one of the Dell Round Rock campus buildings on Monday morning, only to find it was a marketing stunt gone wrong.
A person dressed as a biker in all black with a black mask was on the sales floor of Building 1carrying two metallic objects and telling people to "go to the lobby," according to Round Rock Police.
A sales manager set up the stunt as an internal promotional event to celebrate the release of the new Dell Streak tablet, but Round Rock police ended up arresting two people for causing the disturbance, according to RRPD spokesman Eric Poteet.
Round Rock police asked neighboring law enforcement to respond to the Dell campus.
When officers stormed the place, they say one man refused to comply with officers.
"If it wasn't serious enough that elevated it to extreme risk scenario," said Round Rock police spokesperson Eric Poteet.
But 11 minutes into the situation police determined the masked man and another man were part of an in house marketing plan but told nobody about it.
"Through a series of misinterpretation, miscommunication this sent a lot of others into a controlled panic," said Poteet.
Police arrested the man dressed in the skull mask and biker outfit, 48 year old Bryan Chester and his supervisor 36 year old Daniel Rawson. Both face misdemeanor charges of Interfering with Public Duties and Deadly Conduct.
Officers say Chester was not carrying weapons but rather small metallic items when he yelled for people to go to the lobby.
"All this was intended to be was go to the lobby because we're introducing a new item," said Poteet.
Dell Spokesman, David Frink, declined our request for an on camera interview but by phone told us the incident was "an unfortunate choice" by a Dell employee. He also said they are very thankful Round Rock police responded as quickly as they did and nobody was hurt.
The spokesman would not say what the new product was but a source inside dell says it was for the new Dell Streak tablet which can interface with Harley-Davidson Motorcycles.
Police say it's a miracle none of the 400 people in the building were hurt.
"Think before you act my goodness and when police tell you to do something do it," said Poteet.
A Man and His Wallet
It's amazing how things can work out sometimes. I wonder when was the last time he actually thought about his lost wallet before he got the magical phone call. A pretty touching story to start the work week. Money and cards come and go, but pictures are worth a thousand words and in this case, maybe a million...
From ANI
A US man, whose leather wallet was stolen at his office, has amazingly been reunited with it 40 years later.
Rudolph Resta, now 77, was working for the New York Times as an art director when his wallet disappeared after he left his jacket in an unguarded coat closet, reports the Daily Mail.
The thief pulled out the cash, but left the American Express credit card, his social security card and, more importantly, cherished pictures of his beautiful wife, two young sons and his beloved late father.
The wallet was hidden behind a wall in a gap between an unused window and the masonry seal behind it on the second floor of the old Times building in Manhattan at 229 West 43rd Street.
And there it lay for 40 years until it was discovered by 46-year-old Jose Cisneros, a security guard at the building who showed it to his colleague Rafael Rodriguez.
Among Resta's documents was his Times membership card for the employees' blood bank. They decided to find him and hand over the wallet.
Resta, from Queens, who retired in 1999, was tracked down and agreed to meet at the building and share his emotional memories after getting his wallet back.
He was so overcome with emotion that he kissed Cisneros on the cheek and told the New York Times of his delight.
"I was sort of heartbroken,[at the time of the theft] I though it was gone forever. It wasn't so much the money. I had marvellous things in there. Nice pictures of my family," he said.
Resta then proudly showed a black and white picture of his wife Angela, wearing a jaguar fur stole on a trip to Brooklyn's Prospect Park in 1963.
"Just look at my wife, so glamorous that's why I married her. Still is," he said.
Canada is Awesome!
Of course, all Canadians who read this already knew that. From time to time though, we need a nice reminder of that sentiment and the world is usually quick to oblige by telling us how friendly we are or how clean our air and cities really are. Today, Canada gets a great compliment. As for the people of Zimbabwe, well...not so much
From CTV News
Vancouver has been selected as the world's most livable city, while Toronto remained the fourth most attractive place to live, according to the Economist magazine.
The Economist Intelligence Unit says Vancouver earned 98 out of a possible 100 points when judged on the city's stability, health care, culture and environment, education and infrastructure.
"(Vancouver's position) can only have been cemented by the successful hosting of the 2010 Winter Olympics and Paralympics, which provided a boost to the infrastructure and culture and environment categories," the EIU said.
"Only petty crime presents any difficulties for Vancouver, although this would be a typical shortfall of any such location."
Toronto placed fourth in the world with 97.2 points, behind Melbourne (97.5) and Vienna (97.4). Calgary rounded out the top five with a score of 96.6.
The report, which some companies use to determine hardship allowances for relocated employees, says cities that score best tend to be mid-sized and in wealthier countries. Seven of the top ten cities come from Australia and Canada.
Vancouver retained the title for the fifth straight year, while Toronto remained fourth for the third straight time. It was ranked fifth highest the two previous years.
Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe, was ranked the least most livable city, thanks to particularly poor scores in stability, health care and infrastructure.
London and New York were listed 53rd and 56th, based on poor scores for the perceived threat of terror and higher levels of petty and violent crimes.
I'm Not So Sure About This One...
After months of negotiations and waffling back and forth between either the New Jersey Nets and the New York Knicks, the Denver Nuggets were able to get the offer they wanted and ship Carmelo Anthony to Manhattan to be closer to his wife and maybe play some basketball from time to time.
It’s a complicated trade involving many pieces so I’m not going to go through each piece individually, but I did want to dissect it from both a Denver and New York perspective. But before I do, let’s get this out of the way. I don’t want to simply dissect this trade on paper. It would be far too simplistic and I think there were way too many off-the-court issues involving both teams that were in play here.
For the Nuggets, it was actually really simple. Carmelo Anthony was never going to sign to play there for another three years and they had to get something in return for the superstar.
The hard part for them over the last few months was trying to put doubt into people’s minds about Carmelo’s intentions, thus keeping his trade value as high as possible. The Knicks knew he wanted to be in New York and so did the Nuggets, but it was up to Nuggets’ management to not make it seem so obvious.
For the Knicks, the idea of being a franchise going through yet another year without making the playoffs is just sickening. In order to stay relevant in a crowded sports market, they had to make the big splash. They tried to do that with Lebron James and instead they got Amare Stoudamire. Good player, decent splash. By getting Carmelo, they finally get the splash that they wanted.
The Knicks now join the growing number of teams that are trying to win via star power and not necessarily complete teams. The Boston Celtics proved that lumping Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce could be successful. The Miami Heat have one of the best records in the NBA this year based on their Big 3 of Lebron, D-Wade and Chris Bosh. The Knicks now have the trio two thirds complete with Amare and Carmelo.
Make no mistake about it. Having two of the top 10 or 15 players in the league on the same team makes them a force, but one thing bugs me about this duo as opposed to the previous examples. In Boston and Miami, you have six players that are great individually and have found a way to interact with each other in a way where chemistry and attitude is not an issue.
There’s no doubt that Carmelo and Amare both have exceptional talent, but both have shown less than exceptional attitudes at times during their careers in the NBA. Can the two co-exist and will either of them fight to be the man? It worked in Boston and in Miami, but I’m not sure it’s going to work this time around. Let’s see how this plays out…
Bodog Lines of the Day
Boston Bruins vs. Ottawa Senators
Pick: Boston -1.5 (+175)
Detroit Red Wings vs. Florida Panthers
Pick: Detroit -1.5 (+230)
St. Louis Blues vs. Buffalo Sabres
Pick: Under (-115)
Overall Record: Can I start over? It's embarassing... :-)
Another Whopping Fine out of Montreal
The first one of over $2000 that I blogged about was absolutely warranted as a moron was caught doing 240km/h in a 70 zone. This one, well maybe not so much. I'm not one for decorating ny car either inside or out, but to each their own. They don't quite see it that way in Montreal.
By Sidhartha Banerjee of The Canadian Press
A Montreal cabbie's elaborate dashboard decor has cost him $1,300.
Arieh Perecowicz had mounted a constitutional challenge in municipal court, saying his freedom of expression was being infringed by the city's taxi bureau, which fined him four times for clutter in his cab.
The 66-year-old had claimed the items — personal and religious knick-knacks and photos — were all integral to his day-to-day job.
But a bylaw stipulates that items not necessary to operating a taxi shouldn't be on view.
A municipal court judge ruled Thursday the bylaw was in order and that Perecowicz's rights weren't infringed.
The veteran cabbie is on the hook for fines and court costs and has another four violations that haven't yet gone before the courts.
The 44-year veteran was defiant after the ruling.
Some of the items near and dear to him remained in place: two mezuzahs (parchment in a case) affixed to his car doors, a picture of his kids, and a picture of his rabbi with a Jewish prayer scrawled in Hebrew on the back.
"What I left in the car, I can't take off," he said.
While he has a year to pay the fines, Perecowicz said he intends to appeal and is ready to go to the Supreme Court of Canada if he can find someone to take up his cause.
Perecowicz now works in a predominantly Jewish area in Cote St-Luc, a separate city on the island of Montreal. He has worked all over Montreal during his career and claims he has never received a single customer complaint about the various ornaments and trinkets.
"I compare myself to a doctor, a lawyer, a dentist, an accountant, where people go to their office and their office is a public sphere ... the only difference is I'm on four wheels and he is not," Perecowicz said.
"They are allowed to keep a mezuzah on their door, photos of their families, knick-knacks, jokes and statues all over the place and it has nothing to do with whatever they're doing or the service they're providing to you."
Perecowicz said there are 20,000 cab drivers of different faiths and backgrounds in Montreal and, according to his own research, no one has ever been fined under the seldom-used bylaw.
Defending himself, Perecowicz had argued he was the victim of a vendetta of the taxi bureau for complaining about drivers who operate without permits.
Judge Dominique Joly wrote that Perecowicz didn't prove that.
The taxi bureau argued that its inspectors were only doing their job.
Computerized Monopoly?
Remember the joy you would have when you rolled the exact number in order to land on Free Parking and get the big wad of money in the middle of the board. You would pump your fist, let out a scream and then flaunt those pink and brown bills right in your friend's face. Don't expect to be able to do that in the newest edition of Monopoly.
By Stephanie Clifford, New York Times
You can still collect $200 when you pass “Go,” but not in piles of play money.
In the new version of Monopoly, the game’s classic pastel-colored bills and the designated Banker have been banished, along with other old-fashioned elements, in favor of a computer that runs the game.
Hasbro showed a preview of the new version, called Monopoly Live, at this week’s Toy Fair in New York. It is the classic Monopoly board on the outside, with the familiar railroads like the B.& O. and the development of property. But in the center, instead of dice and Chance and Community Chest cards, an infrared tower with a speaker issues instructions, keeps track of money and makes sure players adhere to the rules. The all-knowing tower even watches over advancing the proper number of spaces.
Hasbro hopes the computerized Monopoly will appeal to a generation raised on video games amid a tough market for traditional board games, a category where sales declined 9 percent in 2010, according to the market-research firm NPD Group. “How do we give them the video game and the board game with the social experience? That’s where Monopoly Live came in,” said Jane Ritson-Parsons, global brand leader for Monopoly.
With free digital games everywhere, Hasbro is hoping to revive interest among young children and preteenagers in several of its games that cost money. (The new Monopoly, available in the fall, will be about $50). Battleship will undergo a similar digital upgrade this year, and other Hasbro games will be redesigned for 2012 and 2013, Ms. Ritson-Parsons said.
But for families used to arguing over Monopoly’s rules, players who slip a $100 bill under the board for later use and friends who gleefully demand rent from one another, it may not be so easy to adapt to a computer’s presence on the board.
“It seems that there’s a computer that makes most of the decisions for you — it changes a lot of the rules, it removes a lot of the skill,” said Ken Koury, a competitive Monopoly player and coach who informally settles rule disputes for others. “With this computer, I’m wondering what’s left for the player to decide — is it they just keep pushing buttons and wait for someone to win?”
Hasbro is aiming at luring 8- to 12-year-olds back to these board games. Its executives say this age group, accustomed to video games, wants a fast-paced game that requires using their hands. To move forward on the new Monopoly board, players cover their game piece with their hands, and the tower announces how many spaces the player can move. Players also hold their hands over decals to buy or sell properties, insert “bank cards” into slots to check their accounts, and send a plastic car moving around a track to win money or other advantages (only when the tower instructs them to, of course).
Hasbro executives also say that young players do not want to bother with reading instructions and toss rules aside.
“For games, but really for anything you buy today, you need to be able to take it out of the box and play it,” said John Frascotti, Hasbro’s chief marketing officer. “You’re not ensconced in the rulebook.”
To that end, Hasbro is shortening and simplifying many of its popular games, changing the formats of Scrabble and Cranium so they can be played in five-minute spurts. Rivals like Mattel are doing the same with games like Apples to Apples. Even video games often come in bite-size pieces, like the popular Angry Birds.
"There is a recognition that people’s attention spans maybe aren’t as big as they used to be, or they don’t have the time to dedicate to this activity," said Sean McGowan, a toy analyst with Needham & Company.
Ms. Ritson-Parsons said that while some aspects of the game had changed, Monopoly Live still emphasized social interaction.
“Getting rid of the instruction book encourages a lot more face-to-face interaction,” she said. “If you’re not having to read as much, you are all chatting more.”
Hasbro has kept key social elements, like allowing negotiation for property.
The adherence to rules also speeds up the game and makes it more interesting, she said. For example, if a player lands on Marvin Gardens but decides not to buy it, the rules mandate that it be auctioned off right away — but a lot of players do not know or do not follow that rule.
“People were saying, ‘It takes me a while to get to own properties,’ ” Ms. Ritson-Parsons said. “Well, it’s going to if you don’t auction it.”
The new version tries to combat board boredom in other ways. It sprinkles in random events, like a horse race where players must bet on winners.
The computer also tracks how fast or slow play is going, and may intervene to make it lively. If, say, very little property is getting bought, it will announce an auction in the middle of turns.
Hasbro executives said that the company would continue to sell classic Monopoly once the new edition came out.
“It’s really just an extension of the brand, not a destruction of what was,” Mr. Frascotti said.
Mary Flanagan, a game designer and distinguished professor of digital humanities at Dartmouth, said that games tended to reflect the societies that they were played in. For instance, the original Monopoly, issued in 1935 by Parker Brothers, now a subsidiary of Hasbro, reflected “American ingenuity, the sense of needing to have hope, and reinforcing capitalism in the face of real economic despair,” she said.
This version, she said, seemed to be “less and less about financial awareness” — children do not need math skills in it— and more about social interaction.
Yet “when you say you can’t cheat, it means that there’s no sense of being able to socially negotiate the rules,” she said.
Joey Lee, who studies games as an assistant professor of technology and education at Teachers College at Columbia University, said cheating could actually be instructional.
“I wouldn’t necessarily even call it cheating,” he said. “In many cases a gamer’s mind-set is coming up with new and novel approaches to winning, and to a certain problem at hand. That’s exactly the kind of mind-set we need as far as 21st-century skills.”
“Being able to negotiate with others, make up your own rules, argue with other players, that, to me, is part of what makes it a successful social game,” he said. The tower is “more of that blind adherence to following orders, versus being able to figure out and learn the game for yourself.”
Though Hasbro is emphasizing social interaction with the game, some Monopoly players and academics said the new version sounded much less social — no arguing over whether a player could buy his neighbor’s “Get Out of Jail Free” card?
“It takes away from the aspect of interpersonal negotiations if you have an electronic voice in the middle of the board telling you everything to do,” said Dale Crabtree, a finalist in the national Monopoly championships in 2009. “The first thing I said was, ‘The next thing they’ll do away with is the players.’
Serene Branson Update
I happen to be a sufferer of migraines, so I sympathize with those who can't do their daily tasks because of being unable to do anything. But if this true, this is the most severe migraine I've ever heard of. It's at least a better explanation than being the most debilitating case of nervousness ever.
By the Associated Press
A TV reporter who lapsed into gibberish during a live shot outside the Grammys suffered a migraine, her doctors said Thursday.
KCBS-TV reporter Serene Branson was doing a stand-up Sunday outside the Staples Center where the award show was held when her speech became incoherent. The station quickly cut away, and she was examined by paramedics and recovered at home.
Branson's incoherence fuelled Internet speculation that she suffered an on-air stroke. But doctors at the University of California, Los Angeles where she went to get a brain scan and blood work done ruled it out.
Doctors said the kind of migraine Branson suffered can mimic symptoms of a stroke.
"A migraine is not just a headache. It's a complicated brain event," said UCLA neurologist Dr. Andrew Charles, who examined Branson.
Most people with migraines don't have any warning. But about 20 to 30 per cent experience sensations before or during a migraine attack.
The most common sensations include seeing flashes of light or zigzag patterns. In Branson's case, she felt numbness on the right side of her face that affected her speech, Charles said.
"She was actually having the headache while she was having these other symptoms," he said.
Branson told doctors she's had migraines since a child, but never suffered an episode like this before, Charles said.
Branson, a Los Angeles native and two-time Emmy nominee, worked at the CBS affiliate in Sacramento before joining KCBS. Prior to that, she was a reporter and anchor at TV stations in Palm Springs and Santa Barbara.
A telephone message left with KCBS was not immediately returned Thursday.
Branson has been medically cleared to resume activities.
"She's totally normal. She's completely back to herself," Charles said.
It's Had to Be This Way
It was such a difficult decision because no one had ever seen something like this before. There were so many questions asked during the summer of 2010. How long is it going to last? When is he going to come back down to earth? Where was all this production before? Is he on the juice? Given his past numbers, and in the case of the last question, the checkered past of baseball, these were all were valid questions.
The media were quick to ask all these questions and you have to know that Alex Anthopolous was asking these same questions to himself right up until yesterday when the signing of Jose Bautista was official. In the end, he made the right decision and the reigning home run king will be in a Blue Jay uniform for hopefully the next five years. If not, something has gone wrong.
I thought it would be foolish for the Jays to not reward Bautista for a number of reasons. The most important one of all has nothing to do with wins or losses or overall production. It has to do with the bottom line and giving Rogers Communications the best chance to make a dollar in the short-term.
Much like the situation here in Ottawa with the Senators, the Blue Jays are in a complete rebuild, but the Jays have a distinct advantage in having a superstar on their roster to attract fans. Wins and losses over the next couple of years really don’t matter for this ball club, so more than ever, the Jays have to be able to sell some star power at the Rogers Centre. Enter Jose Bautista.
There’s nothing like watching a slugger go to work and blast one out of the yard in a Major League game. The crack of the bat is totally different. The ball flight is totally different and for those 5-7 seconds that the ball is in the air, everything stops. Your eyes become fixated to the ball as you watch it eventually land into the streets, or if you’re lucky enough, see it exit the stadium and onto a street adjacent to the stadium.
Jose Bautista was able to replicate this experience 54 times in stadiums around the league last year and it’s that one moment that can draw the people of Toronto to see the guy do his work. Now, the obvious question is whether or not he can duplicate his numbers from a year ago and I’ve yet to hear anyone say “yes”, but it leads me to the second important point.
Even if his numbers drop off by 50%, he’ll still have hit 27 homeruns with 62 RBI’s. A 13 million dollar price tag would be a little bit much for a guy with these numbers, but if he can hit 30-35 homers and 90-100 RBI’s, then 13 million is a steal. The Jays are taking into account that there will be a drop-off, but they’re hoping it’s not much of one.
Regardless of how the Blue Jays do this year, by signing Jose Bautista, Anthopolous succeeded in one very important way by signing the slugger. He kept his team relevant.
Bodog Lines of the Day
Los Angeles Kings vs. New York Rangers
Pick: Los Angeles (+110)
Montreal Canadiens vs. Edmonton Oilers
Pick: Montreal -1.5 (+220)
Washington Capitals vs. San Jose Sharks
Pick: San Jose (-155)
Overall Record: 10-16-1 (I know it's bad...)
Final Watson Story
I don't know why I'm so fascinated by a computer playing Jeopardy and succeeding. I guess it's the nerd in me coming out in full force, so my apologies to those who have been annoyed by it over the last three days. I assure you though that it's the last Watson mention. I can't guarantee though that I won't talk about Tom Watson, CJ Watson or Bubba Watson...
By the Associated Press
IBM supercomputer Watson took home the winning title on "Jeopardy!" Wednesday after beating TV quiz show champions Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter.
Watson won with an impressive lead of $77,147 after two exhibition matches.
Jennings racked up $24,000 while Rutter logged $21,600.
For crushing his rivals, Watson gets a total prize of $1 million, which IBM has said will go to the charities World Vision and World Community Grid.
The vanquished Jennings and Rutter get $300,000 and $200,000 respectively, half of which each said they would be donating to charities.
Jennings of Salt Lake City offered a sense of humor along with his final Jeopardy clue in Wednesday's show, writing, "I for one welcome our new computer overlords," alongside the correct response.
Sitting on a Big Pay Day
It's funny that we were talking so much about money on the show this morning and then I read a story like this. Kudos to these two for being more worried about their state of living and the anonymity that comes with being a 9-5 worker. If it were me, I would have probably spent it all in the time that they actually waited
By Brett Michael Dykes - US News
You'd think that the news that you'd won the lottery would galvanize you to pick up the check--and probably quit your job--with all deliberate haste. Not so for North Carolina lottery winners Raleigh and Erin Hill of North Carolina who waited until the day before the ticket expired to cash on their winnings.
Even though they learned of their good fortune a few weeks after the Aug. 20 announcement of the winning North Carolina Mega-Millions lottery ticket, the Hills put off claiming the proceeds from their million-dollar winning ticket. Instead they spent the next six months or so hiding the ticket away in an assortment of places--inside a Bible, a shoebox, an envelope and a work locker.
Why the delayed gratification? It certainly wasn't the case that they live in such opulence that they could take or leave their winnings. Raleigh, who bought the ticket, is a baggage handler, and Erin works for the federal government. No, it appears that the couple was haunted by a sense of unease over the many families who've won a lottery windfall only to see it destroy their lives and relationships.
Raleigh was so fearful of "the hoopla," in fact, that he waited several weeks before telling his wife that he had the winning ticket. And then one day, when she was fretting about having an awful day, he let her in on his secret. "Things aren't all that bad," he told her after leaving the winning ticket on her computer screen.
Indeed, public reticence now seems to be the new vogue among big-ticket lottery winners. Last month, Holly Lahti, a 29-year-old single mother from Idaho, came forward to claim "a $190 million Mega Millions jackpot, but vanished just as promptly from the public eye after the nine-figure payday had passed.
However, Lahti had some distressingly concrete reasons to retire from the spotlight. According to press reports, she had never divorced or legally separated from her long-estranged husband, Josh Lahti--potentially entitling him under state law to a share of her winnings. The couple had both been arrested in a 2003 domestic dispute, and John Lahti reportedly had several run-ins with the law for alleged physical abuse of his wife.
As for the Hills, they took their money in a lump sum, each receiving $340,000 after taxes. At a press conference to announce the winnings, they hinted that they might use the money to buy a new house and take a trip to Ireland, where Erin's ancestors hail from. At which point, presumably, they will resume their lives in comparative anonymity.
Charlie Sheen Offering Advice?
I don't think I need to point out the irony in that, but I guess when you're Lindsay Lohan, you'll take advice from anyone. Whether or not she listens to it is another story, but hey, maybe I'm under-estimating what a binge-drinking, porn-star chasing ladies man can offer as advice.
From Splash News
Hollywood wildman Charlie Sheen has offered some advice to Lindsay Lohan.
During an interview on Dan Patrick's US radio show yesterday, Sheen told the 24-year-old to exercise 'impulse control' in order to stay out of trouble.
It comes after the Mean Girls star appeared in court charged with stealing a £1,500 necklace, which she has denied.
Charlie, 45, is on an enforced break from his TV show Two And A Half Men after production was closed down.
He said: "I've got some things I would recommend she consider. Work on your impulse control.
"Just try to think things through a little bit before you do them."
Talking about himself, Sheen said show producers told him: "We don't give a rat's tooey about the show, we care about your health - we have to shut it down."
Bodog Lines of the Day
Philadelphia Flyers vs. Florida Panthers
Pick: Philadelphia -1.5 (+215)
Miami Heat vs. Toronto Raptors
Pick: Miami -9.5 (-105)
Los Angeles Lakers vs. Cleveland Cavaliers
Pick: Los Angeles -11.5 (-105)
Overall Record: 9-14-1 (Not good...LOL)
How Much for a GPS?
After reading this crazy story, I'm going to the nearest electronics store and getting myself a GPS immediately. Who knew a wrong turn and a failed U-turn would turn into such a terrible ordeal. Thank goodness the man is going to be OK, but would you be able to drink windshield wiper fluid?
By Carmen Castro of the Canadian Press
Henry Morello began to lose hope after being stranded in his car in the Arizona desert for five long days in which the 84-year-old drank windshield wiper fluid, used car mats to stay warm and read a car manual from cover to cover to pass the time.
Then, he heard a knock on a window from a hiker, and suddenly his long, painful ordeal was over.
"I just kissed him," Morello said of the hiker. "He looked like an angel to me."
Morello described his ordeal at a hospital news conference Tuesday as he recalled making a wrong turn while driving home Feb. 7 from a restaurant and ending up stuck in the desert. His car and cellphone battery soon went dead as rescuers looked for him.
Morello said he became stranded when — realizing he made a wrong turn — made a U-turn and ended up in a ditch.
He tried to crawl out of the car but did not get too far and returned. He ripped a chrome piece from his car and put it on the roof, hoping someone would see the reflection.
Overnight temperatures the week he was missing were in the upper 30s to the mid-40s Fahrenheit (4 to 7 Celsius), the National Weather Service said.
The hikers who found him Saturday morning weren't identified at the news conference, but Jim Sheehan, a search and rescue leader, said they knew of the missing man.
"Nobody ever gave up" in the search, said Sheehan, who was on a search plane when he got a call saying Morello had been found.
Morello is a patient at John C. Lincoln Hospital in Phoenix, where doctors said he arrived in good condition considering what he'd been through. A diabetic, Morello, will stay in the hospital a few days while doctors treat him for kidney damage. It wasn't immediately clear if drinking the windshield wiper fluid had done him any harm.
Dr. Kevin Veale said initial reports were that Morello had consumed some antifreeze, which would have been much worse than wiper fluid.
Morello lives on his own but a caregiver visits daily. His family is in Chicago, but friends in Arizona kept them informed about the search.
About 100 volunteers passed out fliers and searched on the ground for Morello over four days, after authorities got word that he was missing. The efforts began Wednesday.
Morello won't be driving by himself for a long time, said Sheehan, who has been friends with Morello for 15 years.
And Morello says he's learned a lesson the hard way: "I'll never drive without water," Morello said.
Watson Jeopardy Update
Normally we're complaining about Americans not knowing enough about Canada. However, the man vs. machine battle on Jeopardy took a very interesting twist in yesterday's final round when Watson, the super-computer, ended up missing Final Jeopardy by mistaking Canada's biggest city for an American one.
From CTV News
Watson, IBM's quiz-master computer with the strangely serene voice, beat the humans on "Jeopardy!" tonight. But it got the final question on U.S. cities wrong, answering: Toronto.
By the end of the two-day match, Watson had $35,734.
It was up against two legendary players: Ken Jennings, who finished with $2,400, and Brad Rutter, who came in second with $5,400.
Watson uses more than 100 different algorithms, each one looking at a Jeopardy! clue, to determine the likely answer. But it doesn't actually "know" anything, in the traditional sense.
That was apparent in "Final Jeopardy!" when the clue was: "Its largest airport is named for a WWII hero. Its second largest, for a WWII battle."
Although the category was U.S. cities, Watson answered: "What is Toronto????" The correct answer was Chicago.
Author Stephen Baker, who wrote about the machine in "Final Jeopardy: Man vs Machine and the Quest to Know Everything," said Watson is the "next great hurdle for computers."
He told CTV.ca earlier this month that Watson has a "super ability to analyze things statistically."
But human quiz contestants don't have to give up hope just yet. Jennings and Rutter still have another chance to beat Watson when the second game airs.
How to Secure a Promotion
It's one of those dreary mid-week days and the day is going by so slowly. If only I could be in an awesome job where I can set my own hours, get paid a ton and do whatever the hell I want. Well, the following probably won't help you get to that point immediately, but it could start you on the right path...
By Lindsay Olson, US News/LindsayOlson.com
When are you next up for promotion?
LinkedIn released interesting data recently about the best months of the year to get a promotion. In the United States, the most popular months are January, June, and July. Since June and July are right around the corner, now's a good time to think about how to set yourself up for good news.
Of course, a promotion isn't automatic. You have to prove that you're a problem-solver who is ready to take on more responsibilities, and that you've worked hard to deserve that next step.
Here are a few areas to focus on that will help you climb the corporate ladder this year:
1. Build relationships.
Just like most job opportunities occur through referrals, your next promotion is likely to be influenced by how well your colleagues perceive you and your work. In addition to your smarts, problem-solving abilities, and an accomplished track record, your relationships within the company will help pave your way to the next level.
2. Demonstrate your value to the company.
In as much detail a possible, keep a record of how your efforts have helped the company. Take note of all of your accomplishments as they happen and quantify them. Show how you saved your company $100,000 or reduced spending by a certain percentage, and record these accomplishments regularly. If not, you risk forgetting them. These notes will not only help you build a better case for a promotion, they'll also set you up for a solid transition to a new company when it comes time to take that route.
3. Ask for it.
Don't sit around waiting for your manager to offer you new opportunities. Your career progression isn't his top priority; it's only your top priority. Make an effort to ask for more responsibility and show your company that you're ready and interested to learn new skills. And when you ask for what you want, be prepared with to make a strong case for yourself by showing your value to the company and having co-workers who support you.
4. Keep score online.
Use online tools to stay in front of your boss, mentors, and colleagues who will help you move along your career path. Experts at LinkedIn suggest one way of doing this is to document the milestones in your career by requesting quality recommendations. If a client praises you for your work on a specific project, ask if they feel comfortable writing you a recommendation on LinkedIn. Not only does it look good on your profile, but your network will be notified of your recent recommendation, which reminds them what a great job you're doing.
Bring in the Youngsters!
We’re all creatures of habit. We all have a routine when we get up in the morning. A lot of people catch the same bus every Monday-Friday and others drive the same morning commute every weekday morning. We even have workday schedules around the office and anything that takes us off course will put a huge dent into our day.
We put routine into everything from the way we eat our meals to the way to how we shower to even the way some people make love to their significant others. Routine is not thought about when it’s unaffected, but becomes a huge problem when things go differently or go wrong.
Why am I bringing up routine? Well, for Sens fans, it’s become routine for them to be cheering for a playoff-caliber team led by a couple of superstar players and a large contingent of veteran players. There may have been a couple of youngsters sprinkled here and there throughout the lineups, but they weren’t expected to be major contributors to the club. That’s all changing and in a hurry…
With the trade of Chris Kelly to the Boston Bruins last night and the trade of Mike Fisher to Nashville last week, not only has the rebuild started, but the average age of the roster has begun its significant plummet from old to young. Any other Senator that’s rumored to be moving between now and the trade deadline are 30 and over.
Despite losing two of their biggest locker-room assets, the amount of guys on this team that are 30 and over is staggering based on how putrid their record is and how close they are to being the worst team in the NHL. The bottom 5 is supposed to be reserved for the young and inexperienced.
Check the ages of the top players though. Daniel Alfredsson leads the bunch at 38. Alex Kovalev is 37. Sergei Gonchar is 36. Jarkko Ruutu is 35. Filip Kuba is 34. Chris Phillips is 32 and Chris Neil is 31. Mike Fisher and Chris Kelly are both 30 and now members of new teams.
The writing is on the wall and it says this team is OLD. Bryan Murray is right in doing what he is to this hockey club because it's time for a fresh start and you just don’t start fresh in professional sports with guys who are closer to retirement that to the day that they were drafted.
So be prepared to cheer on the youngster that closer to your son/daughter’s age than your own. It will be a huge shock to the system to Sens fans as they cheer for a team with an average age closer to 25 as opposed to one that has hovered around 30 for the longest time.
It’s yet another necessary evil that comes with re-tooling a franchise for the long-term. You have to let the young guys make their mistakes, mature and become better as they progress in their NHL careers.
The Sens Roster: Years 1-2 of the Rebuild
It’s a continuation on the thoughts I had yesterday about the Sens’ rebuild and who they should really be looking to as the cornerstones of the franchise for years to come. For those who didn’t read yesterday, I feel as though Jason Spezza, Robin Lehner and Erik Karlsson should be the Big 3 for this team.
However, I was also quick to point out how shaky it is to pick these three as the guys to be building your foundation around. After all, Spezza has become an average player in the last couple of years because of injuries and inconsistency and Lehner/Karlsson are still so young and inexperienced and have major work in front of them to be great NHL players night after night.
For the sake of the entry though, let’s just say that I choose those three guys and am completely satisfied with what they offer. What should the rest of the roster look like for the first couple years of the rebuild? It was a debate that Lee and I were getting into, but it was at the end of the show and it was too little, too late. So, let’s break it down now…
Well, we all know that the team will be relying heavily on youngsters that they feel would be NHL-calibre and ready to take on the task. Sure, there will be some growing pains with these young guys, but in order to know if they have what it takes, they’ll have to go over some bumps in the road. From most accounts, people in Ottawa have accepted that and are OK with it.
But what does the rest of the roster look like? With a lot of talk about veteran guys being moved before the trade deadline, we could see a whole different team next year as opposed to this one. Some people suggest that some veteran players need to be kept around to allow for the team to have some veteran experience. I’m OK with the experience argument, but why does that experience have to come from someone currently on the Sens roster?
The important part of the roster will be the youngsters and the older players will simply be filler. Those older players may prove to be worth keeping around for the long-term, but any older player that suits up next season will be looked upon as interchangeable and expendable.
For the first time in a long time, the Sens will go into next season not really worrying about making the playoffs (they shouldn’t anyways). Sure, they’ll tell you that it’s a goal of theirs and it would be disappointing if they didn’t make it, but let’s get real. Much like the rest of this season, it won’t be about wins and losses next season either. I realize that it’s a bitter pill to swallow for fans that have been used to seeing more winning than losing, but it’s simply a reality that many are going to have to accept and embrace.
Bodog Lines of the Day
Philadelphia Flyers vs. Tampa Bay Lightning
Pick: Over 5.5 (-125)
Vancouver Canucks vs. Minnesota Wild
Pick: Over 5.5 (-110)
Miami Heat vs. Indiana Pacers
Pick: Miami (-6)
Overall Record: 7-13-1 (Ouch!)
Mystery of Coke Revealed?
To be honest, I never really cared what was in Coke. I had heard all the same things that you have like "Drinking Coke is like drinking paint thinner." or "Why would you want to put a liquid into your body that can dissolve a car battery?", but I didn't really care. But a Chicago radio show has claimed to have uncovered the secret recipe of Coke.
By Katie Leslie of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution
It's a secret arguably as closely guarded as the President: the recipe for Coca-Cola. And it may have been outed.
"This American Life," a nationally syndicated public radio show, claims to have uncovered the ingredients to one of the world's most cherished sodas, and they found it deep within the archives of a 1979 column in The Atlanta Journal. Ingredients include coca, of course, as well as such surprises as coriander, caramel, neroli oil and cinnamon.
The story has gone viral within days of the Feb. 11 broadcast. By Tuesday morning the public radio's website was shut down due to traffic.
"I think other people are having the same reaction to this when I had when I first saw this article in the AJC. This supposedly secret recipe has been hiding in plain sight for 30 years," said "This American Life" host Ira Glass Tuesday. ’“Our website has never gone down. We’re the biggest podcast in the country and we’re used to a lot of traffic."
Coca-Cola denies that "This American Life" cracked the code to their trademark soda. Coca-Cola's historian Phil Mooney participated in the broadcast and tasted their concoctions, according to Coca-Cola spokeswoman Kerry Tressler.
"American Life, along with many other third parties, have tried over time to crack our secret formula," Tressler said. "At the end of the day, there is only one "real thing".
Beverage analyst John Sicher wasn't surprised by the frenzied popularity of the story, but says anyone can replicate Coca-Cola, but not its brand.
"Today, anybody with access to a sophisticated chemistry laboratory could analyze the formula of Coke, but no one can call a product called Coke other than the Coca Cola Company," said Sicher, editor and published of "Beverage Digest." "The so-called 'secret formula' is a wonderful story of lure and mystery, but in reality, the value today is the brand, not the formula."
Ingredients for the recipe include:
Fluid extract of coca
Citric acid
Caffeine
Sugar
Water
Lime juice
Vanilla
Caramel
Alcohol
Orange oil
Lemon oil
Nutmeg oil
Coriander oil
Neroli oil
Cinnamon oil
The Newest Sports Illustrated Cover Model
Let the internet searches for Irina Shayk commence. Unless you were a hardcore fan of soccer and knew that she was the girlfriend of Cristiano Ronaldo, you probably had no idea who she was until today. Man, athletes get all the money, all the fame and the women too. All I get to do is talk about it...ugh...
By Samantha Critchell of the Associated Press
A sun-kissed Irina Shayk in a tiny pink-and-yellow halter bikini has landed her first cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue.
The Russian-born, 25-year-old learned Monday at a taping of David Letterman's show that she won the coveted spot based on a photo shoot months ago in Hawaii. She's been in the wildly popular issue five times before.
"There were 10 models there to do the Top 10 List, and nobody knows until the last minute who the cover will be," Shayk said. "And then I saw it, and I couldn't believe it."
In keeping with tradition, the cover of the special issue is kept secret until the magazine is ready to hit newsstands.
Shayk, the girlfriend of soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, said if she were going to choose one of her photos as her favourite, the cover selection likely would be the one. She liked the push-up bra style of the suit, in a design of pink diamonds on the front of the top with yellow around the neck and sides.
"I never get to see the photos when we take them, but I remembered the swimsuit," Shayk said.
Her other photo shoot for this year's issue was in the Philippines.
She has a wardrobe of hundreds of bathing suits thanks to her Sports Illustrated work. "When I'm going to vacation on my own — I get the swimsuits after the shoots — I have so many choices!"
Her regimen to get ready for the skimpy work doesn't really change from her normal beauty routine.
"I do work out five times a week, but I'm never dieting," Shayk said. "I try to be healthy because to be happy and healthy on the inside shows on the outside." 
A Computer Contestant on Jeopardy
Even though it's being billed as man vs. machine, I think we can all agree that Watson the Computer and his two human opponents, Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter, are very similiar when it comes to trivia knowledge and personality. I'm still pulling for the computer and based off of Round 1, Watson has a shot.
From the Canadian Press
In the "Jeopardy!" battle of man vs. machine, man and machine were neck-and-neck on Monday.
Human player Brad Rutter and the supercomputer named Watson ended an initial round tied at $5,000. The other challenger, human Ken Jennings, was far behind with $2,000.
Rutter (the show's all-time money-winner with $3.25 million) and Jennings (who has the longest winning streak at 74 games) are the most successful players in "Jeopardy!" history. Watson, named for IBM founder Thomas J. Watson, is powered by 10 racks of computer servers running the Linux operating system.
"You are about to witness what may prove to be an historic competition," host Alex Trebek told viewers at the top of the answer-and-question quiz show.
No question, Watson proved to be an amazing competitor — maybe even a little creepy in the speed and accuracy it displayed.
With categories including Beatles People, Olympic Oddities and Name the Decade, the round got started with Rutter choosing the first answer, Alternate Meanings for $200: "4-letter word for a vantage point or a belief."
"What is a view?" was Rutter's correct response.
But Watson took charge with its question to Alternate Meanings for $400: "4-letter word for the iron fitting on the hoof of a horse or a card-dealing box in a casino."
"What is a shoe?" said Watson in its resonant electronic voice.
Its next selection was the game board's Daily Double, and, after wagering $1,000, it correctly named the literary character being sought: "Who is Hyde?"
Watson was dominating to the tune of $4,000, against $200 each for Jennings and Rutter. Then Rutter, giving hope to worried human viewers, began his rally.
Along the way, Watson made a few embarrassing stumbles.
After Jennings incorrectly said the 1920s was the decade in which Oreo cookies were introduced, Watson jumped in with its question: "What is 1920s?"
"No," Trebek told the supercomputer. "Ken said that!"
Rutter got it right when he responded, "What are the 1910s?"
Later, Watson slipped up on the answer "Stylish elegance, or students who all graduated in the same year."
"What is chic?" ventured Watson.
"What is class?" Rutter correctly said.
The exhibition tournament will continue with the Double Jeopardy and Final Jeopardy rounds of the first game airing Tuesday and a second, complete game airing Wednesday. The overall winner will collect $1 million.
The bouts were taped at the IBM research centre in Yorktown Heights, N.Y., last month. Both men and Watson have managed to keep the final outcome under wraps.
Bodog Lines of the Day
Vancouver Canucks vs. St. Louis Blues
Pick: Vancouver -1.5 (+210)
Calgary Flames vs. Colorado Avalanche
Pick: Under 5.5 (EVEN)
Denver Nuggets vs. Houston Rockets
Pick: Denver +2.5
Overall Record 7-10-1
The Rebuild is Gonna Take a While
I’m still getting a lot of feedback from people that were upset at me for telling them that they were foolish in thinking that the Sens could re-build and be Stanley Cup contenders in 2-3 years. I have a couple of thoughts on that. First, don’t expect me to back off of that prediction anytime soon. Secondly, be prepared for a long haul.
A lot of those people bring up the examples of the Tampa Bay Lightning of a couple of years ago or the Philadelphia Flyers from 2006-2007. On the surface, these examples look to be valid, but dig a little deeper and you’ll find that these situations have no similarity whatsoever to what’s happening here in Ottawa because of many factors.
The biggest flaw in the argument for these two teams is how much people overlook the talent level that were on both of these teams. We weren’t talking about teams relying on unproven rookies solely to try and get them out of the basement. They needed veterans and all-star calibre players to start playing up to their capabilities. Once they did, they move their way up the standings in a hurry,
The Flyers team in 2006-2007 had a putrid 56 point season. The year before, they had 90-something points and the year after, they had 90-something points. The team leaders in scoring that year were Simon Gagne, Mike Knuble, Joni Pitkanen, Peter Forsberg, Mike Richards and Jeff Carter. We’re not talking about journeymen here.
As for the Tampa Bay Lightning, they struggled back in 2008-2009 with 66 points and have since worked their way up to a top position in the Eastern Conference in only a couple of years. However, the leading scorers two years ago were Martin St. Louis, Vincent Lecavalier and Steven Stamkos. That’s not a bad trio to have to start a rebuild with.
Who do the Ottawa Senators have to rely on in order for this rebuild to happen in such a short amount of time. The guy at the top of the list would be Jason Spezza based on what he’s been able to do in the past. If it were five years ago, you would have automatically added Daniel Alfredsson’s name to the list, but he’s closer to retirement than he is as an 80-90 point guy. After those two…hmmm…this is getting pretty difficult, isn’t it?
You could say Erik Karlsson or Robin Lehner as a part of that group, but the problem with putting those two on that list is that both have major deficiencies that they still have to deal with based on how young and inexperienced they are.
Karlsson has proven that he can be an offensive threat from the back end, but he’s also proven so far to be a defensive liability despite the fact that he’s supposed to be a defenseman. Lehner just needs more time to prove himself at an NHL level with the hope that he doesn’t lose confidence or ability based on the amount of losses this team is sure to pile up over the next couple of years.
I really don’t have a vendetta against the Senators. Like I’ve said many times, I don’t care if they go 82-0 or 0-82. All I’m going to do is give it to you straight and the straight edge part of me says the Sens have a LONG way to go before they can get back to being Stanley Cup contenders.
Something Else Going 3-D
I still think the 3-D phase that everyone is going through right now is going to be a lot like the 3-D phase of the 80's and will eventually just go away and leave a lot of investors fuming, but it's news like this that makes me a little worried about my prediction.
From the Associated Press
BARCELONA, Spain - As part of the quest to add more depth to electronics, LG Electronics Inc. on Monday demonstrated a phone with a 3-D screen and a 3-D camera, set to go on sale later this spring.
The South Korean electronics company's Optimus 3D drew large crowds eager to give it a test run at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain.
The screen produces the illusion of depth without the need for special glasses, and includes a pair of five-megapixel lenses for taking 3D photos and video.
The phone must be held at the proper distance and angle in order for the viewer to perceive depth, much like Nintendo Co.'s 3DS handheld game console, which is based on a similar screen technology. Glasses-free 3-D is easier to achieve with small screens than with TV-size ones.
The Optimus 3D runs Google Inc.'s Android operating system. LG didn't announce a deal with a U.S. carrier, making it uncertain whether it would be sold in the U.S.
LG has already announced that a tablet with a 3-D camera, the G-Slate, will be sold by T-Mobile USA this spring. It won't have a true 3-D screen, so the user will need wear red-blue glasses to see depth when using the camera.
Should I Really Put This Up on Valentine's Day?
With all this talk about love, gifts, roses, chocolate and significant others, should I really put up an article about the odds of how we're going to die? Why not? I find it interesting. I don't want to dwell on it, but it's information that we can use to better ourselves.
By Michael Bolen - Daily Brew (Yahoo News Blog(
While everybody dies, the manner of passing is usually a mystery until it happens.
But a new report can give you a picture of the most likely ways to go. The National Safety Council, which works to prevent workplace injuries in the U.S., has released its annual fact sheet listing the most common ways to die in America.
At the top of the list are some of the more predictable medical causes, such as heart disease (1 in 6 chance), cancer (1 in 7) and stroke (1 in 28). Below these medical causes are motor-vehicle accidents (1 in 85), intentional self-harm (1 in 115), accidental poisoning (1 in 139) and falls (1 in 184).
Other relatively common causes include accidental drowning (1 in 1073), exposure to smoke and fire (1 in 1,235) and (common for the U.S.) assault by firearm (1 in 300).
Some of the more unusual causes near the bottom of the list are cataclysmic storm (1 in 51,199), contact with hornets, wasps or bees (1 in 62,959), lightning (1 in 81,701) and being bitten or struck by a dog (1 in 119,998). At the very bottom of the list? Death by earthquake (1 in 153,597).
According to Statistics Canada's latest report on the subject, nine of the top 10 leading causes of death were identical in Canada and the United States in 2007. There were some interesting differences though. Heart disease and cancer were the top two causes in both nations, but while cancer topped the list in Canada, heart disease was number one in the U.S. Cancer accounted for 30 per cent of deaths in Canada compared with 23 per cent in the U.S.
Homicide was the second-most common cause of death for young adults in the U.S. compared to third-most common in Canada. However, StatsCan figures put the number of reported homicides in Canada at 594 compared to 18,361 in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (both stats for 2007). So adjusted for population, the U.S. still had roughly three times the number of homicides.
How to Lose Your Job
I wonder where admitting buying your girlfriend the services of a photographer to have a bunny photo shoot would end up on that list. Seems like most of these tips are common-sense, but judging what common-sense is for the masses can be really difficult sometimes.
By Mark Swartz
Monster Senior Contributing Writer
Curious to know about the kinds of behaviours that’ll result in job loss for sure?
Stealing from your employer is one. Whether you take home a few extra office supplies, or embezzle more than $500,000,000 of company funds (as did former Chief Financial Officer of Tyco International Limited, Mark Swartz – in the U.S. back in the early 2000’s), you risk getting fired on the spot. Jail time may be an added consequence if your theft is significant.
Insubordination such as disobeying your boss or leaking company secrets – no matter if they are important to public safety – is another cause for dismissal. Just ask Jeffrey Wigand, former vice president of research and development at Brown & Williamson in Louisville, Kentucky, who blew the whistle on his company for adding more addictive chemicals to cigarettes. You may know of Wigand from the movie that was made about him in 1999, The Insider, starring Russell Crowe.
Incompetence can result in job loss as well. Like in Winnipeg when, back in February 2010, a male and female teacher were suspended for “dirty dancing” shockingly in front of a gymnasium full of students during a high school pep rally. The YouTube video of this event is memorable. It captures forever how a few moments of self-indulgence can ruin your professional reputation.
Common Mistakes That Can Also Get You Fired
Most people don’t steal half a billion dollars or dance like a couple of porno stars at work. But even if you’re super-conscientious on the job, at one point or another for sure you’ll commit at least a few of the following slip-ups:
Be late for a meeting
Show up less than fully prepared for a presentation you have to make
Submit information that hasn’t been perfectly checked for errors
Exaggerate to your boss, a colleague or your customers
Borrow someone else’s idea or material without giving proper credit to them
Forget to copy someone relevant on an e-mail or memo
Misinterpret instructions you’re given because you don’t ask for clarification
Do some of the above often enough and you put your job at risk. Fortunately much of the time these types of lapses are fairly minor.
If that’s the case then hopefully you can repair the damage by apologizing, coming up with a good explanation, or by doing your best to fix the problem you’ve created. Not every slip-up is cause for immediate dismissal. Usually it’s letting the small, more or less avoidable slips pile up that gets us in trouble.
Avoiding Career Limiting Moves
Just so we’re clear: no employee is 100% perfect. Occasionally you’ll either forget to do something you were supposed to, or you’ll end up doing something you weren’t supposed to.
With a bit of extra planning and by not rushing so quickly that you cut corners, a lot of common errors can be prevented. Make sure that you do small things well. Meet deadlines and stay within budgets. Double check any of your work that could cause problems if not mistake-free.
Of course, if you’re intent on losing your job, then by all means consider theft, insults, laziness or absence as your main routes to unemployment. Or simply do your job sloppily and act like you don’t care. Just don’t say we didn’t warn you about the outcome.
A Chat with Johnathan Duhamel
Lee and I had a chance to talk with Johnathan after he won the World Series of Poker and picked up a paycheque for 8.9 million dollars. I wanted to catch up with him a few months after to see how things are going for him, how he's handling the new pressure and fame and talk about his role as a poker ambassador for Pokerstars.
Chat with Kevin O'Brien from rotowire.com
I taped this just minutes before the trade announcement of Mike Fisher to the Nashville Predators, so this seems really out of place considering the news of the day. I figured I would still put up the interview and I'll write a little piece on the Fisher trade in a couple of hours.
Tough Day for Gamers
Red, red yellow, blue, green, red, red, red, red, red, red, red...and on and on like that. Well, not anymore. I guess all those plastic guitars will become nothing but baby toys or Hallowe'en props in a year or so. I wonder what people will do with those Wayne Gretzky hockey stick controllers...
From the Canadian Press
NEW YORK, N.Y. - Activision, publisher of such video games as "Call of Duty: Black Ops," says it will disband the "Guitar Hero" music game franchise due to a long-standing weakness in the music game genre.
Activision Blizzard Inc. said Wednesday it lost $233 million, or 20 cents per share. This compares with a loss of $286 million, or 23 cents per share.
Net revenue fell to $1.43 billion from $1.56 billion.
Adjusted earnings of 53 cents per share beat analysts' expectations of 51 cents, according to FactSet.
Revenue adjusted to account for games with online components was $2.55 billion. Analysts had expected $2.25 billion.
Activision's outlook for the current quarter is below current expectations and shares are falling in after-hours trading. The outlook includes restructuring costs.
I Wonder How Canadians Would Answer
Before you start giving the Russians some grief about this, let's think about what answers the red-light runner, the grocery shopping line-cutter and the slow walker in the middle of the sidewalk would give here in Canada. It may not be correct either...
From Yahoo News
Does the sun revolve around the earth? About one third of Russians appear to believe so, according to a survey published on Wednesday.
Thirty-two percent of Russians reject a sun-centred Solar system, four percent more than in 2007 when a similar survey was conducted, the Russian Center of Public Opinion Research showed.
The survey highlighted scientific superstitions among Russians and was released as Russian President Dmitry Medvedev called this week for national lunar and deep space programmes.
The survey also found 55 percent of Russians believe that radioactivity is a human invention.
Twenty-nine percent believe humans lived in the era of dinosaurs. Women are more likely than men to believe scientific superstitions, the survey found.
The survey was conducted in January among 1,600 people in different regions, with a 3.4-percent margin of error.
You Know You Had a Bad Day When...
...you get it by a train and don't even realize it. Now, a lot of us have had those kind of nights where we have to call around the next day to piece together what happened. However, it doesn't usually involve cheating death in a battle between man vs. train.
From the Saskatoon Star-Phoenix
A man suffered non-life threatening injuries Wednesday morning after being hit by a train, say Saskatoon police.
Around 2 a.m., a train hit a 29-year-old man near the intersection of 22nd Street West and Avenue F South. The Canadian Pacific train was traveling northeast. The man was walking on and along the tracks in the same direction. The train whistle was blown in attempt to issue a warning.
A witness saw the train hit the man, sending him in the air. The man immediately got up and proceeded to walk northeast towards Avenue E North. Police found him at 23rd Street West and Avenue E North in an intoxicated state. According to police, he did not seem to realize what hit him. He did, however, indicate he had pain in several parts of his body.
MD Ambulance arrived and transported the victim to hospital.
The train remained at the scene until approximately 3:30 a.m., when Canadian Pacific supervisors completed their investigation.
Chat with Zach Sundelius from rotowire.com
I decided to continue with the football talk today with Zach as we break down the 2010 NFL season from a fantasy perspective. We also look ahead to next year and talk about the guys that you want to have on your roster. For all your fantasy news and notes, check out the boys at rotowire.com
Bodog Lines of the Day
Toronto Maple Leafs vs. New York Islanders
Pick: Over 5.5 (-110)
St. Louis Blues vs. Florida Panthers
Pick: Over 5.5 (+110)
Philadelphia 76ers vs. Atlanta Hawks
Pick: Atlanta (-4)
Overall Record: 6-8-1
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