Beating Bill Simmons 2008: Super Bowl Edition

Ok. Here's the moment no one has been waiting for: my Super Bowl pick (Bill's pick is in red)!

Cardinals (+7) over Steelers
I just don't understand why some people think Pittsburgh is going to blow out Arizona. They claim Pittsburgh's defense is just too tough, but Arizona had absolutely no problem scoring on Philadelphia last weekend, a team with a defense comparable to Pittsburgh's. Let's crunch some numbers:

Total yards allowed per game
Pittsburgh: 237.2, Philadelphia: 274.3

Passing Yards allowed per game
Pittsburgh: 156.9, Philadelphia: 182.1

Rushing yards allowed per game
Pittsburgh: 80.2, Philadelphia: 92.2

Points allowed per game
Pittsburgh: 13.9, Philadelphia: 18.1

Total sacks
Pittsburgh: 51, Philadelphia: 48

Total interceptions
Pittsburgh: 20, Philadelphia 15

The Steelers defense is only slightly better than the Eagles defense. The same Eagles defense that gave up 32 points last week to Arizona.

Some people say that Pittsburgh's going to get to Kurt Warner. Warner was sacked 28 times this past season. Only 10 teams' QBs were sacked fewer times. In my opinion, Pittsburgh's the team that needs to be concerned about sacks as Ben Roethlisberger was sacked 49 times this season.

A lot of people have been talking about Pittsburgh having Super Bowl experience. Want to know how Roethlisberger did in Super Bowl XL? 9-21 for 123 yards with 0 TDs and 2 INTs. They won that game in spite of him, not because of him. If that's what you call Super Bowl experience, maybe Arizona is better off being Super Bowl Virgins.

Here's how the game's going to go down: Arizona is going to come out throwing and do little running. They've got three 1,000-yard receivers, three running backs that can catch the ball, and a QB that averaged nearly 300 passing yards a game this season. Dance with the girl you came with, you know?

Here's the important part: there is simply no way Pittsburgh's offense can keep up with Arizona. While Arizona's defense is below average, Pittsburgh's offense is just as bad.

For Pittsburgh to have any success on offense, they're going to have to pound Willie Parker all day while Roethlisberger completes short passes to Heath Miller (just look at the success Philadelphia's TE, Brent Celek, had against the Cardinals last weekend). But I don't think it will be enough. Not only will Pittsburgh fail to cover the spread, but Arizona will win this game outright.

By at least seven points.

Last Week

Me: 1-1
Simmons: 2-0

2009 Playoffs

Me: 6-4
Simmons: 4-6

Song of the day: Arizona by Mark Lindsay

The Boss

I'm sure you're all aware that Bruce Springsteen and his eighteen-piece band will be playing during halftime of Sunday's Super Bowl XLIII. While I'm somewhat disappointed that the NFL is trotting out yet another dinosaur for their halftime festivities, I'm still excited because I like Bruce Springsteen. At least everything up to and including the Born In The U.S.A. album.

I'm sure he'll play Born To Run during halftime. As long as he doesn't play a set of all-new material (or the song Born In The U.S.A.), I'll be happy.

But Bruce, if you really want to make me happy, can you please play the following song? Thanks!

Song of the day: Glory Days by Bruce Springsteen

Grace In Small Things: Part 29 of 365

I'm a little late to the game. As usual.

  1. Friends who know how to get rid of dead bodies.
     
  2. Bathing in Cristal.
     
  3. Lesbian vampires.
     
  4. Throwing stars.
     
  5. Rainbows.
Song of the day: New Orleans Is Sinking by The Tragically Hip

Oh, The Places You'll Go!

On Tuesday night, I did another one of my Nameless Twitter Radio Shows. This week's theme was songs with places (cities, states, countries, etc.) in the title. Here's the playlist:

  1. Ohio (Come Back To Texas) by Bowling For Soup (me)
  2. New York Groove by Ace Frehley (me)
  3. Dani California by Red Hot Chili Peppers (FlipFlopsChels)
  4. Get Out Of Denver by Bob Seger (Whiskey In My Sippy Cup)
  5. City Of New Orleans by Arlo Guthrie (Triple Venti)
  6. No Sleep Till Brooklyn by Beastie Boys (Her Bad Mother and Dereksmommissy)
  7. California Girls by David Lee Roth (Junk Food 4 The Soul)
  8. Going Back To Cali by LL Cool J (Coffeequeen)
  9. Angel Of Harlem by U2 (For A Different Kind Of Girl)
  10. Folsom Prison Blues by Johnny Cash (We're Not In Kansas Anymore, Toto)
  11. Sweet Home Alabama by Lynyrd Skynyrd (Temporarily Me and Cosby5)
  12. America by Simon & Garfunkel (The Shambleyqueen)
  13. New Orleans Is Sinking by The Tragically Hip (Left Coast Floyds)
  14. By The Time I Get To Arizona by Public Enemy (Where Am I Going… And Why Am I In This Handbasket?)
  15. (Don't Go Back To) Rockville by R.E.M. (The Weirdgirl)
  16. Twin Falls by Built To Spill (Down With Pants)
  17. Streets Of Philadelphia by Bruce Springsteen (Cool Zebras)
  18. A Little Bit South Of Saskatoon by Sonny James (Gaming With Baby)
  19. Private Idaho by The B-52's (GoHskrs)
  20. Galway Girl by Steve Earle (Gamerbabe360)
  21. One Night In Bangkok by Murray Head (Motherhood Uncensored)
  22. Walking In L.A. by Missing Persons (Hegemom '08)
  23. A New England by Billy Bragg (Mr. Big Dubya)
  24. Speedway At Nazareth by Mark Knopfler (ClumberKim)
  25. London Calling by The Clash (Seriously Mama)
  26. (I Don't Want To Go To) Chelsea by Elvis Costello (Citizen Of The Month)
  27. Istanbul (Not Constantinople) by They Might Be Giants (Mom-101)
  28. Detroit Rock City by Kiss (Father Muskrat)
  29. China Girl by David Bowie (That's What I Thought)
  30. Tennessee by Arrested Development (me)
I'd like to thank everyone who came out to listen and/or request songs. Sorry I couldn't get to everyone's requests.

Next week, we'll be playing songs that mention movies. Hope to see you there!

As always, if you have any suggestions for upcoming shows, please leave them in the comments.

Programming note: The next two shows will be on Mondays due to our anniversary and my birthday falling on the next two Tuesdays.

Song of the day: A Little Bit South Of Saskatoon by Sonny James

Like We Didn't Have Enough Crap To Worry About

Study Finds High-Fructose Corn Syrup Contains Mercury

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to puke.

And start a farm.

Song of the day: Opus 40 by Mercury Rev

Follow Me Or Perish, Sweater Monkeys

Have I mentioned my daughter is a cheerleader this year? No? That's probably because I'm still coming to grips with it. More on that later.

They have this particular cheer where they take turns introducing themselves and then do a little jump, split, cartwheel, or, in the case of this one little girl who may very well be made of rubber or taking steroids (or both), a backflip. I've begged my daughter, even gone so far as to offer her five dollars if she yelled, "I'm still Big Red!" when it's time for her introduction.

No luck.

Song of the day: Mickey by Toni Basil

Conversations With Charlie

I like to do crossword puzzles, Sudoku, and just about any other puzzle out there. On Friday, I was doing a crossword puzzle when one of the clues sent me hurtling back to my childhood to a time I had blocked due to embarrassment had long forgotten.

I had a ventriloquist's dummy when I was little.

Not only that, I had asked for that dummy.

What can I say? I was a weird little bastard. Still am.

I had a Charlie McCarthy dummy. I don't know what made that thing stand out from the rest of the toys in the pages of the Sears catalog. Maybe it was the top hat. Maybe it was the monocle. Whatever it was, I had to have it and my parents made my wish come true that Christmas.

For months, I would sit in my room, carrying on conversations with Charlie while trying to keep my lips from moving. I would hold shows for my family. In my little mind, I was a damn fine ventriloquist. But eventually, our relationship grew stale. I became more and more distant, choosing to pass the time with other friends and toys, until Charlie sought permanent residence in the back of my bedroom closet.

But what if?

What if I had not exiled Charlie McCarthy to the Closet Of Forgotten And Broken Toys? What if I had continued to practice my ventriloquism skills and had become quite good at it?

This is how I would believe an average day would play out had I become a professional ventriloquist:

I see myself, thrice-divorced, waking up in a seedy motel, my head still foggy from spending last night's earnings from the Shriners Club banquet on paint thinner. I would spend my days hanging out with clowns, mimes, and other ne'er-do-wells. I would be constantly on the move, running from creditors and people who want more than just my money, taking on odd jobs between gigs in order to survive. As a result, I would be unable to keep any meaningful relationships.

Sounds like a terrible existence, doesn't it? Thank God I didn't get trapped in the evil downward spiral that is ventriloquism.

So parents, if you're reading this, heed my warning before your children venture down this dark path. Keep all ventriloquists' dummies out of their reach. If they already own dummies, confiscate them.

Act now.

Before it's too late.

Song of the day: A Million Miles Away by The Plimsouls

One Of These Days, Everyone Will Listen To Me

Remember how I revealed my plan to fix the MLB playoffs? Well, tonight I'm going to tell you how to fix the NFL.

To be fair, the NFL doesn't need much help. Of all professional sports, it offers the most excitement and best playoff system. As a result, it receives the highest television ratings.

But as I mentioned in yesterday's post, there is one slight problem with the NFL: the two-week layoff between the Conference Championships and the Super Bowl. This week without football isn't going to go away anytime soon, so what should we do with it?

Easy. Have the Pro Bowl played on the Sunday between the Conference Championships and the Super Bowl.

No one purposely watches the Pro Bowl. You might be home, flipping through the channels, notice that it's on, and watch a quarter or two. But no one circles that date on his calendar and wakes up that morning thinking, "YES! It's Pro Bowl Day!"

By the time the Pro Bowl rolls around, The Super Bowl has already been played. We have little interest in football at this point. So wouldn't it make more sense to move it to that vacant weekend when we are all still interested in football? You would get more viewers if the Pro Bowl were played on this date and -- this is the important part -- more advertising revenue.

The only people that would get screwed with this plan are the Super Bowl players that were selected to play in the Pro Bowl. A week in Tampa is not comparable to a weekend in Hawaii, so just use give ALL the Super Bowl players an all-expenses paid, three-day vacation in Hawaii on the weekend after the Super Bowl.

Everyone wins!

Song of the day: Bela Lugosi's Dead by Bauhaus

Lazy Friday Night

You may not have realized this, but I have been blogging daily since November 1st, 2008. For someone with not much of a life and even less to say, that's a hell of an accomplishment. As a result, some days you're going to get posts like the following. Deal.

Five Things That Suck, Vol. 8,321,107

5. The new U2 single
It's official. I hate it. I tried and tried to like it. But I'm now ready to move on.

4. My site
I'm still having troubles with this site. While the comments are now working properly (your URL will show now when you leave a comment), my site still takes F-O-R-E-V-E-R to connect. And my feed? Ha! According to my feed, I haven't posted anything since my review of the new U2 single on Tuesday. That was four days and four posts ago. I give up.

3. Idiots
No explanation necessary.

2. The two-week layoff between the Conference Championships and the Super Bowl
The only thing worse than having to wait two weeks to watch the Super Bowl is listening to sports people trying to fill two weeks with facts and storylines that pertain to the Super Bowl. We don't need two weeks of hype.

1. Top five lists in lieu of actual posts
I should've just posted a music video or something.

Song of the day: You Get What You Give by New Radicals

Famous People

On Tuesday night, I did another one of my Nameless Twitter Radio Shows. This week's theme was songs that mention famous people. Here is the playlist:

  1. High School Never Ends by Bowling For Soup (me)
  2. Grace Kelly by Mika (me)
  3. We Didn't Start The Fire by Billy Joel (Cool Zebras)
  4. Abraham, Martin, And John by Dion (Mr. Big Dubya)
  5. Hurricane by Bob Dylan (Father Muskrat)
  6. Buddy Holly by Weezer (FlipFlopsChels)
  7. Every Ghetto, Every City by Lauryn Hill (Mamma Loves)
  8. Rock Me Amadeus by Falco (Seriously Mama)
  9. Levi Stubbs' Tears by Billy Bragg (Her Bad Mother)
  10. Vincent by Don McLean (Mmpotter)
  11. Biko by Peter Gabriel (ClumberKim)
  12. I'm Fucking Matt Damon by Sarah Silverman (Motherbumper)
  13. I'm Fucking Ben Affleck by Jimmy Kimmel (Attack Of The Redneck Mommy)
  14. It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine) by R.E.M. (Connecticut Mom)
  15. You Get What You Give by New Radicals (Chunkybumble)
  16. Mrs. Robinson by Simon & Garfunkel (Parentopia)
  17. Bela Lugosi's Dead by Bauhaus (Mom-101)
  18. The Real Slim Shady by Eminem (Mommy Is Moody)
  19. Just Like Jesse James by Cher (Tell Me About It)
  20. Californication by Red Hot Chili Peppers (The Edge Of Insanity)
  21. Cock Mobster by MC Paul Barman (Whiskey In My Sippy Cup)
  22. In Love With The '80s (Pink Tux To The Prom) by Relient K (The Shambleyville Chronicles)
  23. Punk Rock Girl by The Dead Milkmen (The Weirdgirl)
  24. She's Madonna by Robbie Williams (For A Different Kind Of Girl)
  25. Bette Davis Eyes by Kim Carnes (Triple Venti)
  26. God Save The Queen by The Sex Pistols (Hegemom '08)
  27. Sympathy For The Devil by The Rolling Stones (Coffeequeen)
I'd like to thank everyone who came by and listened or requested songs. Sorry I couldn't play everyone's requests.

Next week, we'll be playing songs that have the names of a city, state, or country in the title. As always, if you have any ideas for upcoming shows, leave them in the comments.

And if any of you musicians out there would like to write a theme song for my show, please let me know. I'm vain enough to think I need a theme song.

Song of the day: She's Madonna by Robbie Williams

A Norman Rockwell Moment

We don't get much snow where I live. As a result, we often find ourselves ill-prepared when faced with the white stuff. Schools are closed. Supermarkets are pillaged. Nerves are tested. People panic.

On Tuesday morning, we awoke to find a light dusting of snow on the ground. School had been canceled and Ella's boss had called to tell her to stay home due to the "nasty" road conditions, so we decided to bundle up the kids and let them play in the half-inch of snow.

Remember that part in the beginning about being ill-prepared? Foreshadowing, folks. Writing Clichés 101. Next class will be on similes.

Anyway...

As we were dressing the kids, we realized that Zed didn't own any boots. So we let him wear his sister's boots. Which in turn, left Zoey without any boots. So we put her in Ella's NotUggsButTheyKindOfLookLikeUggs (or whatever the hell those boots are that women wear now (which are probably not Uggs (because this ain't no fashion blog))), which covered her knees.

We scrounged up a pair of mismatched gloves for Zoey to wear (one pink, one back). Zed wasn't so lucky. He doesn't own any gloves or mittens, so we put two pairs of tube socks on his hands.

Yes. Tube socks.

And then we went outside to play!

We were quite the picture:

  • A little girl in mismatched gloves, lumbering about like Frankenstein because she was unable to bend her knees due to the height of her boots that were ten sizes too big and whining about the whole ordeal
  • A little boy ignoring everyone around him because he was madly flinging snow in the air, while looking like a burn victim with gauze covering his hands
  • A mother trying to make a snowman with her children from half of an inch of snow
  • An extremely attractive, witty, and intelligent father documenting the whole freak show with his camera
Put that on the cover of The Saturday Evening Post, Rockwell!

Song of the day: Everything I'm Not by The Veronicas

44

Today is a very historical day. Barack Obama was officially sworn in as President, becoming the first African-American President in the history of the United States. He's taking the reigns of the country at a very difficult time.

Congratulations, man! I wish you well.

So now what?

In this month's While Mom's @ Work column, I write a letter to Obama and tell him what I'd do if I were president (I even tell him how to fix the economy!).

Song of the day: Time To Change by The Brady Bunch

Disappointed

The new U2 single, Get On Your Boots, hit the web today. I've listened to it numerous times, trying to get myself to like it.

I just can't do it.

The song is a mess. It's all over the place. It sounds like they're trying to do too much with it.

And so help me, the verses remind me of The Escape Club's Wild, Wild West.

And that's not a good thing.

So give it a listen and let me know what you think.

Something New

We are on the cusp of something B-I-G here in America.

I never thought it would happen in my lifetime.

Hell, I never thought it would happen in my grandchildren's lifetimes.

The playing field has officially been leveled.

Change is in the air!

I cannot contain my excitement any longer: the Arizona Cardinals will be the Super Bowl Champions this year!

Song of the day: Total Eclipse Of The Heart by Bonnie Tyler

Beating Bill Simmons 2008: Conference Championships Edition

Guess what? I beat Simmons in the playoffs this year! I currently have a three-game lead over him. There are only three games remaining and since we picked the same team in one of the matchups this weekend, there's no way he can beat me. BOO-YAH, bitch!

In fact, only one of ESPN's thirteen so-called experts has done better than I have during the playoffs this year. So if anyone at ESPN is reading this, I'm available for Sunday Countdown. Have your people call mine.

Now that I have the gloating out of the way, here are my picks for the Conference Championships (home teams in CAPS, Bill's picks in red):

CARDINALS (+4) over Eagles
Arizona has stopped Michael Turner and the DeAngelo Williams/Jonathan Stewart juggernaut in consecutive weeks. With the way Westbrook has been running lately, he's liable to end up with negative yards. With Boldin back, Arizona will win this one by at least a TD.

Ravens (+6) over STEELERS
The Ravens lost five games this year. Only two of them have been by more than six points. While the Ravens have lost to the Steelers twice this year, it has only been by a combined seven points. Baltimore's defense will show up big in this game, keeping Parker in check and putting the game in Roethlisberger's hands (or arm, actually). I believe the third time's the charm and the Ravens will win this one.

Last Week

Me: 2-2
Simmons: 0-4

2009 Playoffs

Me: 5-3
Simmons: 2-6

'Bout Damn Time

In honor of the second greatest rap band of all time being inducted into the Rock 'N' Roll Hall Of Fame, let's get a little Run-DMC in the house!

Crank your speakers, pick your poison, and get ready to dance:

Beats To The Rhyme
Dumb Girl
It's Tricky
King Of Rock
Mary, Mary
My Adidas
Peter Piper
Run's House
Tougher Than Leather
You Be Illin'
You Talk Too Much

Women Of Rock

On Tuesday night, I did another one of my Nameless Twitter Radio Shows. This week's theme was Women Of Rock. Here's the playlist:

  1. You're No Rock 'N' Roll Fun by Sleater-Kinney (me)
  2. Twist Barbie by Shonen Knife (me)
  3. Supernova by Liz Phair (For A Different Kind Of Girl)
  4. Hit Me With Your Best Shot by Pat Benatar (The Stiletto Mom)
  5. I Want You by Fiona Apple and Elvis Costello (Daddy Dan)
  6. I Touch Myself by Divinyls (Fusspot)
  7. Cannonball by The Breeders (Mr. Big Dubya)
  8. Kiss Them For Me by Siouxsie & The Banshees (Coffeequeen)
  9. Edge Of A Broken Heart by Vixen (5 Minutes Till Normal)
  10. Doll Parts by Hole (Seriously Mama)
  11. Proud Mary by Ike & Tina Turner (Cool Zebras)
  12. Barracuda by Heart (Connecticut Mom)
  13. Drunken Butterfly by Sonic Youth (Where Am I Going… And Why Am I In This Handbasket?)
  14. Total Eclipse Of The Heart by Bonnie Tyler (Father Muskrat)
  15. Everything I'm Not by The Veronicas (The Shambleyville Chronicles)
  16. C'mon Billy by PJ Harvey (Deb On The Rocks)
  17. Only Happy When It Rains by Garbage (Chunkybumble)
  18. Piece Of My Heart by Janis Joplin (Triple Venti)
  19. Andres by L7 (Down-To-Earth Mama)
  20. Mandinka by Sinead O'Connor (Spellweavers)
  21. Gravel by Ani DiFranco (Sashalyn)
  22. Brass In Pocket by Pretenders (Mamma Loves)
  23. Kiss Me Deadly by Lita Ford (Mommy Confessions)
  24. Hotel Song by Regina Spektor (Kirtsy)
  25. What's Up? by 4 Non Blondes (The Weirdgirl)
  26. Past The Mission by Tori Amos (Domesticated White Trash)
  27. Somebody To Love by Jefferson Airplane (The Gratton Grapevine)
  28. You Oughta Know by Alanis Morissette (Gaming With Baby)
  29. Make You A Believer by Sass Jordan (Left Coast Floyds)
  30. All By Myself by Babes In Toyland (me)
A big thanks to everyone who came out and listened to the show! Next week, we'll be playing songs about Famous People. And as always, if you have any suggestions for future shows, please leave them in the comments. Thanks!

Song of the day: Gravel by Ani DiFranco

Sports Fans Are Freaks

The mayor of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania has changed his name (but not legally). For the next week, Luke Ravenstahl will be known as Luke Steelerstahl. For those of you who don't follow sports, Ravenstahl's hometown team, the Pittsburgh Steelers, will play the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday and the winner will represent the AFC in the Super Bowl.

Apparently, Dumbasstahl was already taken.

But I can't talk; I can be a bit of a fanatic when it comes to sports. After all, I did burn my Jake Delhomme Commemorative Thong after Saturday night's debacle.

But at least I remembered to take it off first.

I learned a lot from the Mariano Rivera Commemorative Thong Incident of 2001.

Song of the day: All By Myself by Babes In Toyland

Broken

This site is broken. I think I pissed off the Internet Gods or something. Or maybe the Gods Of Good Taste are trying to tell me something.

When I try to view my site, it sometimes takes at least fifteen seconds to connect to my site (not load my site, CONNECT to my site).

Most of the time, my feed is about two posts behind my actual site (and yes, I've tried pinging it).

The company I used to use for commenting was bought out by another company and now I can't get the new commenting system to do what I want (like post people's URLs). At least one problem is solved! Your URL will now show up when you leave a comment.

I'm about ready to throw the whole damn thing into the trash bin.

Song of the day: Twist Barbie by Shonen Knife

The Vigil Is Over

I'm sure some of you saw my family on MSNBC, CNN, or FOX News over the weekend. Or maybe you heard us on NPR. For those of you who may have missed our interviews, you'll be happy to know that the long national nightmare is finally over: Tooth Watch '09 has officially ended. Zoey finally lost her first tooth!

Yeah, I know. Your kids have all lost teeth. It's no big deal.

Tell that to my daughter. You would've thought she was the first person EVER to have lost a tooth.

When she first discovered it was loose, we all had to touch it approximately 18,326 times a day to see if we could feel it wiggle. She's spent the past week flicking it back and forth with her tongue, alternately disgusting and wowing us with the little strand of whatthehellever that holds the tooth to the jaw.

But now that it's out, what the hell do we do with it? Right now it's in a plastic baggie in my underwear drawer. Part of me thinks I should keep it for nostalgia's sake (and probably not in my underwear drawer), but another part of me feels that keeping any body part is the first stop on the journey to Dahmerville.

But then again, you never know when you might need to whip up a voodoo spell that calls for a tooth.

Song of the day: Crooked Teeth by Death Cab For Cutie

U2 on YouTube

On Tuesday night, I did another one of my Nameless Twitter Radio Shows. This week, I played nothing but U2 songs. Here's the playlist:

  1. Stay (Faraway, So Close!) (me)
  2. Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses (me)
  3. Sweetest Thing (FlipFlopsChels)
  4. Out Of Control (Mr. Big Dubya)
  5. Trip Through Your Wires (For A Different Kind Of Girl)
  6. The Three Sunrises (Mamma Loves)
  7. In God's Country (Daddy Dan)
  8. Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me (Cool Zebras)
  9. Kite (A Smeddling Kiss)
  10. All I Want Is You (The Edge Of Insanity)
  11. Silver And Gold (Phenom's World)
  12. Running To Stand Still (Down-To-Earth Mama)
  13. One Tree Hill (The Shambleyville Chronicles)
  14. Where The Streets Have No Name (Attack Of The Redneck Mommy)
  15. One (Father Muskrat)
  16. Bad (Coffeequeen)
  17. Beautiful Day (Connecticut Mom)
  18. Desire (Left Coast Floyds)
  19. Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own (BaltimoreGal)
  20. October (Left Coast Mama)
  21. An Cat Dubh (Spellweavers)
  22. Ultraviolet (Light My Way) (Sashalyn)
  23. Electrical Storm (For A Different Kind Of Girl)
  24. Sunday Bloody Sunday (We're Not In Kansas Anymore, Toto)
  25. I've Got You Under My Skin by Bono and Frank Sinatra (me)
I'd like to thank everyone who came out and listened to the show. Next week's theme will be Women Of Rock. As always, if you have any suggestions for upcoming shows, please leave them in the comments. Thanks!

Song of the day: Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses by U2

Beating Bill Simmons 2008: Divisional Playoffs Edition

I went 3-1 for the Wild Card round. I like to think I'm much better at picking the playoffs than I am the regular season. We'll see.

Here are this week's picks (home teams in CAPS, Bill's picks in red):

Ravens (+3) over TITANS
I believe Baltimore will be representing the AFC in Tamp Bay on February 1st. This will be a low-scoring affair, but I see the Ravens winning by at least three.

PANTHERS (-10) over Cardinals
Ugh. I went back and forth on this one. While I think the Panthers will win this one, ten points seemed like a lot to give up, you know? Screw it. Panthers by two TDs.

Eagles (+4) over GIANTS
The Eagles are H-O-T right now. As long as they can get some semblance of a running game going, they will win this game outright.

Chargers (+6) over STEELERS
This was the hardest game on the board for me. I don't see Sproles running that well against Pittsburgh's defense. Pittsburgh's own running game has been largely nonexistent this year. Who knows what kind of condition Roethlisberger is in? So when in doubt, take the points.

Last Week

Me: 3-1
Simmons: 2-2

2009 Playoffs

Me: 3-1
Simmons: 2-2

DISCLAIMER: This is provided for entertainment purposes only. If you follow my advice, you are a fool.

Seriously, if you ever spend money based on something I say, have your head examined.


Song of the day: Lonesome Loser by Little River Band

Coda

Cool! I've got my site back again.

But that's probably not a good thing.

Anyway, I'd like to thank everyone who came by the past few days and read the roast of Tanis. Hope it was good for a few laughs. I had a lot of fun putting it together and I hope everyone involved in the roast had a good time as well.

I'd also like to thank the nine exceptionally clever bloggers that were involved in the roast. Each and every one of you did an excellent job!

Chicky Chicky Baby
Gaming With Baby
Her Bad Mother
Mom-101
MotherBumper
Motherhood Uncensored
Tales From The Dad Side
Temporarily Me
Undomestic Diva

And finally, I'd like to thank Tanis. She took a lot of crap from us but she gave it back in spades. She was good-natured about the whole thing and I think she may have even enjoyed it in some perverse way.

And I've heard she's looking into hiring an editor.

Once again, thanks everyone!

So who's next?

Song of the day: Step On by Happy Mondays

The Roast Of Tanis, The Redneck Mommy (Part Four)

Missed the previous installments? Here are Part One Part Two, and Part Three.

*****

Chag: Ok, folks. Here's the moment you've all been waiting for. I hope her ego's not too badly bruised. Ladies and gentlemen, here's Tanis!

Everybody duck!

Tanis: Thanks, Chag. I want you to know you would make a fine hoser if you ever decide to move north. I mean, anyone who loves hair bands the way you do would fit right in where I live.

Liz, you were one of the very first blogs I ever read and I was thrilled when you popped my comment box cherry. I'm glad you stuck with me through the cheesy puns and bloggy growing pains and embraced me in your ginormous bosom of blog love. If you hadn't, I never would have met... your mother. She's one cool chick.

Another thing I'm thankful for? Being able to picture you in a Wonder Woman costume whenever you morph into the Etiquette Bitch. Otherwise, you'd scare me. And then you'd have to hold me.

Wait. I'm starting to see a glint of brilliance in that plan...

Kristen's Motherhood Uncensored was the very first blog I read when I was hip deep in fresh grief. She made me laugh and cry and then she made me want to try writing my own blog.

Because you know, I was sure I could do it better.

Kristen, I understand how you could have a problem with the length of my posts. It must be difficult for you to read a post that consists of more than one sentence. After all, you often confuse a tweet for a blog post.

But it's kind of laughable to take heat over the boob talk from the woman who calls herself the Mominatrix and writes about her pretty petaled cooter more than any other woman on the net.

Thanks for blazing that trail for me, though. I'm totally taking notes. Wink.

There is no person on Earth I'd rather have talk about my Sugar Bush than Her Bad Mother. She is one of my dearest friends after all. She has to be for all the times she's tried to stick her tongue down my throat.

Catherine inspires me as a parent. I mean, the woman trained her daughter to pee in a cup. That earns a shiny gold star in my book. Heck, I was just happy when my son would finally hit the cheerios in the toilet. I never even thought to use the family dishes to inspire potty training. Catherine is always teaching me to think outside the box.

And Catherine, don't worry, I'm working on that pillow I promised you. It'll be something Bush Owners everywhere will covet.



SciFi Dad, I generally never regret writing and publishing any of my posts. That was before one of my favourite daddy bloggers tosses my words at my feet and makes me realize I may need to start wearing adult diapers at any moment. I am now realizing the value of discretion.

Thanks for that SciFi Dad. Expect that autographed pic in the mail at any time as a thanks.

I found Will on the net after googling 'large hairy Alabama boys' and I'm glad I did. He's morphed into one of my closest internet friends and someone whose opinion I cherish. He's got an evil streak I admire and a talent with Photoshop that I like to abuse. But dude, the mental image of you sitting at home in your maid outfit stroking yourself with a feather duster as you blog will haunt me forever. Thanks for that, Will. You're a peach.

I find I'm having a hard time coming up with anything witty to say about Will because I'm too distracted with the knowledge you practice your Kama Sutra moves with your Lego Collection. Your wife is a lucky, lucky woman. Just as I am lucky to call you my friend. Not every gal can say she has a friend with a mind of a ninja and the body of a manatee.

But seriously dude. Lay off the Legos. It won't end well. For anyone.

Megan, I find it amusing that you call me cheap and easy when you practically throw yourself at the feet of every daddy blogger around. You bat your pretty eyelashes and quip your quick-witted barbs and you are totally stealing my act.

Stop it, beyotch. This mommy doesn't like to share all her bloggy boys.

I adore you Megan and I'm glad I discovered you in the blogging world this year. You are fun, smart and hot as hell. I'll totally make out with you if we ever meet. Just leave the video camera at home because you NEVER shut up while you film things and the sound of your constant chatter kind of ruins the effect.

Just so ya know.

Tania, I'm still stumped over the fact you did not see my boobs. How in the hell did that happen? I mean our bathroom had a giant hole in the wall and you kept trying to peek in whenever I had to go pee. (Just so you all know, she's a closet pervert, dear internets.) How did you miss the glint of my sparkly nipple rings when they were practically on display for three solid days? Weird.

Then again, maybe you did see my bewbs and you just don't remember it. You were rather intoxicated. All I really remember from our stint as roomies is the lovely sounds of you yakking into the porcelain throne and then moaning for me to bring you a blanket as you shivered the night away on the bathroom floor.

Perhaps that is the real reason you and I get along so well. It's not because I secretly use you for your doggy expertise. No, it's because in your heart you are as classless and redneck as I am.

And I wouldn't have it any other way.

I've got to be careful about what I say about Sam. She's taller than I am and meaner. She could rip a strip off my hide and would smile as she did it. She is my type of lady. A pitbull trapped inside a sexpot's body.

But her constant fascination with my boobs is rather odd since she herself is sporting a set of guns that any Playboy Bunny would covet. Not to mention her hair makes Jessica Simpson's look like Britney's bad weave. Sam has it going on.

For a chick who frequently likes to shoot milk from her breasts just to see how far she can spray.

Sam, you are a dear friend and a brilliant site designer and a hilarious craft critic and my life is richer for having you in it. Especially after you gave me that wicked vibrator recommendation.

Like Chag, I consider Katie a good friend. However, unlike Chag I'm not scared of trash talking Bumper. (I'll refrain from pointing out that Chag being afraid of Katie is like a Rottweiler being afraid of a teacup Poodle. However, to each their own... )

When Bumper speaks, I listen. I mean, I try to listen. I have to make sure to bend down really low and cup my hands around my ears to catch the sound of her dwarfish voice as she practically shouts up at me. She's a wee one, my Bumper. Which makes it really easy to ignore her when she irritates me. All I have to do is look straight ahead and I'll miss her completely.

Katie likes to talk about my boobs, because let's face it, she has none of her own. That's okay. I was once in her shoes. When I was about ten years old. Besides, I have no problem showing mine off to her. Lord knows I think she's seen them more times than... well, the mailman at the very least.

Katie, I love you. You are a dear friend whom I cherish. I just wish you had never told me that baseboards are supposed to be washed because now I spend even MORE time on my hands and knees.

I wouldn't have thought that possible before meeting you.

And finally Chag, thank you so much for putting this together. I have worshiped you from afar, secretly following your blog while hanging on your every word. Many times I thought of introducing myself, but I was a little intimidated by your clever posts and your girlish love of Ben Folds.

You are my musical Jedi master, and I've come to value your friendship very much. You play my song requests on your weekly Twitter radio show and you never publicly mock me for my craptastic taste in music.

Even if you do swing a bat at my head to beat your musical knowledge into me. It's just too bad you have to jump up so high to reach my skull.

I will always love and admire you.

Despite the fact you steadfastly and wrongly refuse to consider Heart a hair band.

The Roast Of Tanis, The Redneck Mommy (Part Three)

Missed the previous installments? Here are Part One and Part Two.

*****

Chag: Our next guest is a Red Sox fan, which means you should probably discount everything she says. She was probably one of those that yelled "YANKEES SUCK!" as a toast at her wedding. But since she just had a baby not too long ago, let's extend her the courtesy and pretend we're listening to what she's saying.

Ladies and gentlemen, here's Tania from Chicky Chicky Baby!

Tania: Thanks, Chag. I couldn't ask for a better introduction from a man who has a life-size naked picture of Derek Jeter on his ceiling. And may I commend you on your upgrade from the anatomically correct Joe Torre blow-up doll?

Tanis. What can I say about Tanis that hasn't already been said? It's no surprise that the woman loves to run around in the buff. In fact, when she's not running around the Great White North shaking her lady parts at unsuspecting hunters and assorted wildlife, she's showing off her breasticles to female bloggers. Female bloggers that are not me, that is. Despite sharing a room with her at Blogher '07, I think I'm the only person who hasn't seen Tanis naked. Am I upset about this? I don't know, I'm kind of torn. On one hand, it's kind of like being the only person in 50 billion that hasn't tried a Big Mac. You want to know what all the fuss is about even if you know it's only going to give you heartburn. But on the other hand, my mama always told me, "If everyone was having breasts thrown in your face would you want to see the boob rings and nipple hair, too?" Touché, mom. Touché.

But it's far too easy to pick on the woman for her love of all things naked. It's also too easy to pick on her for her predilection for 12-inch plastic love swords that go whhhrrr in the night. Or for her amazing power to get strange men to hit on her and offer to be her love slave.

(The woman was in the States for all of 15 seconds and she had some random cab driver's phone number, for chrissake. Now that's power. Then again, no one actually saw this cabbie. Hmmm.)

Yes, it's all too easy. So I'll leave it to another person who possibly got more than 2 hours of sleep last night. And if her Boo was home yesterday, we know that person is not Tanis since she was probably hanging from the ceiling with her legs pinned behind her ears.

Heh.

Instead I'll close by saying that Tanis has got a bigger heart than anyone else I know. If she considers you a friend, there is almost nothing she won't do for you. My only complaint is that she insists on living out in the Canadian wilderness and is so far away from me. But it's probably for the best. In the woods no one can hear you scream.

And we all know what I mean by that, don't we?

Bow-chicka-bow-wow!

Chag: If you're going to expose my fetishes, at least get your facts straight! It's a Don Mattingly picture, not Derek Jeter, Tania.

Hmm... Tania. Tanis.

Tanis. Tania.

Tania... Tanis.

Ok. That Uma Oprah shit didn't work for Letterman, so I don't know why I thought I could pull it off.

Up next is another woman who has recently given birth. Good thing I decided to wear a condom tonight because we've got some fertile fillies in this joint. Ladies and gentlemen, here's Sam from Temporarily Me!

Sam: My dear Tanis, what's left to say that hasn't already been said? She's a whore in her own right, and not afraid to tell her throngs of fans about it.

Tanis has managed to ooze sexuality to the point where she's gotten a beautiful set of front-loading laundry machines. Not just a washer and dryer, but gorgeous machines worthy of sitting at the dinner table with the family.

Wait, who am I kidding? Unless Fric and Frac are making dinner, there is no table involved. Well, unless Tanis is dancing on it.

Back to the whoring: She's given enough blow jobs to pay for a brand spankin' new ride and revealed herself to delivery men to get them to do her dirty work, so I'm not surprised that she's been given phone numbers as soon as she's walked across the border.

No wonder the woman never keeps her tits in a shirt. Hell, if my tits were able to hypnotize like hers, I'd be constantly naked too.

Maybe her children would be more apt to take her seriously if she'd put on some damn clothes while scurrying around the house searching for escaped rodents, if she put her sex toys away when she's done with them, or if she stopped pissing on their toys and fed them a decent meal once in a while. No Tanis, you cannot add hot dogs to the macaroni and call it a well-balanced meal. Cereal is better; at least there's more milk.

I don't know if the woman is out to set a world record with her eloquently written 10,000-word essays that Kristen mentioned. Seriously, write a fuckin' book already! At least then I could put it down and get on with life for a moment. The pictures are a good way to gauge where I've had to leave off in order to close my eyes for a moment to prevent the screen from deteriorating the remaining vision I have.

When I met Tanis last spring, I wasn't the least bit surprised by her outgoing nature, just by the fact that she had a shirt on. Though, I'll give her credit - it was cold and I didn't crash with her that night, but MamaTulip did let it slip that Tanis begged to spoon after whipping out her boobs. (HAHAHA! Before I spellchecked, it said whipping gout: I'm sure Tanis and her boobs could whip gout too!)

In all seriousness. I love Tanis and wish her nothing but the best in her ventures. She is a warm-hearted and beautiful woman that I am privileged to know. Though, I bet her neighbours are glad to be a few acres away from their house.

Chag: Thanks, Sam! But I've got to disagree with your comment about Tanis's neighbo(u)rs enjoying their distance. I know I'd want to be as close to the action as humanly possible!

This isn't the first time I've shared the stage with our next guest. She's been kind enough to live-blog the Oscars and the Scripps National Spelling Bee with me.

I consider her a good friend and since she knows too many of my secrets, I don't want to say anything bad about her. I will say I'm happy to see that she seems to have ended her obsession with Chuck Norris. But like a junkie, she's moved on to another drug: she's now into cat pornography.

Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Katie from Motherbumper!

Katie: Hi my name is Katie and I'm a blog addict. I go by the name motherbumper, or bumper, or trixie up on google and tenth. When I first started my addiction I swear it was only quick little peeks when I was feeding Gigi or while she was napping. Then it quickly spiraled out of control and soon I was regaling my husband with the sometimes boring minutiae of strangers I read online, as if they were our neighbors. Next thing I was hiding in the bathroom with the laptop.

Anyhow, when I first started developing my insatiable need to read about other insane people out in the interwebz (look Ma, they are as fucked up as me! I FIT IN!), I kept seeing this Redneck Mommy name all over the freakin' place. I obviously succumbed to peer pressure easily (just ask my juvie officer) and I finally clicked over.

And since I'm really f'ing lazy, it took me four days to read one of her posts. But I loved what I understood between all the references to her rack (the love for that rack came later) and I was hooked.

Oh wait... this isn't a blogger anonymous live-blog meeting? Oh sorry, let me start again. (Shit... this is embarrassing.)

So um... yah, I know Tanis. She's one of those writers that spin posts that inspire me to hug my family more often and help me justify my lack of demonstrating prowess as a haus frau. In fact, based on her in da haus frau prowess, she makes me appear downright Betty Crocker and June Cleaver. Compare that to Pamela Anderson and Peg Bundy and I come out on top (albeit frumpy). (Oh I kid, my friend. More Pam than Peg, I swear.)

And when it came to her posts, sometimes I needed a dictionary, sometimes I needed a stiff drink, and sometimes I needed a smoke after reading one but they were all worth the ride. That's why I keep her around in my imaginary world of Bloggarista, where the alcohol runs free and everybody knows your made-up name.

Oh and in case you are wondering why she makes me hug my family more often, I have to ask: have you read her blog? It's a combination of "damn this woman is full of love" and fear that she might just whisk me away from my peeps on a Thelma and Louise-style adventure, possibly involving full-frontal nudity in dirty water and I'd probably enjoy it and beg for more.

Anyhow, it seems I can't escape a conversation with Tanis on Twitter or elsewhere without having her making some totally inappropriate sexual come-on or innuendo. In fact, some statements are so titillating that if she was a man, I'd have her arrested. But she's a woman and besides the pillow fights we ALWAYS have when the men folk aren't around, I know that she really isn't coming on to me.

Wait.. she's not coming on to me, right? Oh gawd. You don't think she's coming on to me, is she? Oh gawd, seriously you don't think she is, do you? I'm sharing a room with this woman soon and holy fuck.

This is going to be awk-ward.

Chag: Thanks, Katie!

Read Part Four

The Roast Of Tanis, The Redneck Mommy (Part Two)

Missed the first installment? Part One.

*****

Chag: Up next is a guy who uses a Star Wars Stormtrooper for his avatar. Which is pretty cool... if you're eleven. And if it was 1981. Ladies and gentlemen, here's Tales From The Dad Side's SciFi Dad!

SciFi Dad: I just got zinged by a guy who listens to hair metal and whose only photo I've seen made him look like Chuck Mangione. Maybe that's why he thinks it's still the eighties.

So far everyone's gone off on how Tanis is or isn't (or would it be ain't?) a redneck, which is all well and good. Except that she's Redneck Mommy. Ergo, her blog is a mommy blog.

Mommy blogs are characterized for stories about kids saying embarrassing things, or wetting themselves, or ones involving poop shit. Tanis's blog is no different.

Except that it ain't her kids.

Poop? Shit? She blocked her toilet and then, while plungering it out, somehow got it to back up into her bathtub.

Wetting themselves? She did that too, on a trampoline, in front of her horrified kids.

Saying something embarrassing? (Oh man, how do I pick just one here?) How about going bowling with her husband's (very Christian) family, getting drunk, and then announcing that Boo loves her nipple rings at an improbably silent moment.

In all seriousness, Tanis is a great blogger: entertaining, funny, and willing to laugh at herself. That's why people read her and that's why I do, too. (Well, that and her promise of an autographed photo of her in the famous purple shirt.)

Chag: Thanks, SciFi Dad! Hope we didn't keep you from your action figures too long!

Up next is a guy I'm kind of afraid to make fun of because he looks a lot like this asshole bouncer that once kicked me out of a bar and then kicked my ass. Never tell anyone bigger than you to shove his head up his ass, folks. He might just end up doing it you.

Here's Will from Gaming With Baby!

Will: Thank you for the warm introduction, Chag. You know, had I known you'd be turned on when I attempted to shoved your head up your own ass, I would have rethought things. Who would've known you'd consider it foreplay?

I'd like to take a moment to just ask how in the fuck am I thrown in this mix? I mean really, here I am a fat dad just sitting on his ass all day, playing the party of horny housewife (maid outfit and feather duster included), and I'm asked to write about a woman that is a legend among parent bloggers? How in the wide, wide world of sports did you scrape the bottom of the barrel and come up with me? This has to be what Sarah Palin felt like getting the call from John McCain.

But I am not here today to wax lyrical as to the confluence of events that brought me here, no, I am here to roast one of the best, the Redneck Mommy herself, Tanis Miller.

Tanis is naked outside her home so much that the government of Canada added her likeness to maps in case pilots become lost and need a reliable navigation point. Here is a woman that doesn't send her kids off on the first day of school with a wave and a kiss goodbye; oh no, she instead flashes her twins to the entire bus as it pulls away, forever giving young boys something to fantasize about burning the retinas of the children who bore witness to her tatas. Hers is probably the only community in the province of Alberta where you'll ever receive directions that include "when you see the naked lady on the trampoline, you've gone too far." Garmin now lists her as a waypoint in their GPS units.

And to listen to me, one would think that all Tanis does is flash her tits to whomever happens by, but Tanis is more than that. Tanis is a kind and thoughtful person. A wonderful mother to her children, a devoted wife and friend. And she is also a raging pervert.

Now, I'm not saying that Tanis is the kind of woman who'd tie you up and proceed to do things to you that'd make a Singapore prostitute blush (a boy can dream can't he?), but this is a woman that harbors a lust for breasts not unlike Hugh Hefner after a bottle of Viagra and a case of Red Bull. If her musings from BlogHer this year are any indication of her wanton desires, then Frac is going to have to keep stealing his Playboys back from his mom in a few years. I'm solidly convinced that I could wrestle Tanis's affection away from her beloved Boo with little more than a case of PBR, a promise to take out the trash, and a couple of nudie magazines.

But despite the shots that I have taken against you here Tanis, like so many others, I respect, admire, and adore you. You put yourself out there for the world to see unapologetic ally. You're unabashedly honest and direct. We've come to know you through your openness and willingness to share not only the hilarity that is your life, but also the unimaginable sorrows and tragedy that you've faced.

So in parting I'd just like to say that thank you for allowing me the chance to get to know you. You are truly an inspiration to me and I am certainly not worthy of the honor of roasting you here today.

But I still want to see you naked.

Chag: We all do, Will. We all do.

Actually, I think most of the people involved in the roast have seen Tanis naked. Maybe I should go to BlogHer next year.

Please excuse our next guest if she seems a little wired. I think she downed 10 cups of Starbucks backstage. But what intrigues me the most about her is that she lists me on her site under "Pretend Friends." I hope that doesn't mean she has a Chag doll lying around her house. Although it would be cool if she stuck it with pins.

Ladies and gentlemen, here's Megan from Undomestic Diva!

Megan: Thanks, Chag for using the code word "Starbucks" instead of mentioning the empty bottles of Southern Comfort... makes me look more together.

Wait... Shit!! IS THIS THING ON? Oops.

Anyway, all of us narcissistic fools have gathered to take a break from talking about ourselves (what we bloggers do best) to talk smack about our fellow blogger (what we do second best), Tanis of Attack of the Redneck Mommy.

Easy.

And I'm not suggesting how easy it is to talk smack about Tanis, I'm referring to how easy Tanis is, in general. It's true. Send her a tweet that says "Wanna make out?" and the bitch is virtually dry humping your leg in less than 5 seconds flat. Dress up as the UPS man delivering a "package" and you're guaranteed to see yourself some Canadian boobies. FOR FREE. Tanis is making $2 hookers damn near unaffordable in Canada. Why buy the milk, eh?

Many people don't know this, but Tanis has actually been deemed Canada's Best Natural Resource. She generates enough electricity between the sheets to power every home in her province. Of course, very few people actually want to live in Canada so this isn't especially hard to do, but whatever, good for her.

Clearly I'm not the only roaster who has picked up on Tanis's love of all things battery powered and sexual in nature. This can be a bit intimidating for the sexually stunted like Chag, but I assure you nothing will get you more cocked and loaded than hearing of Tanis's other passion: guns. The fact that Ms. Canada herself can stand on her front porch with a loaded .22 and a titty hanging out of a robe that's too short to cover her bare ass is enough to send every 2nd Amendment lovin' American up north to apply for dual citizenship and that famous Canadian bacon ham they're always yapping about.

And am I the only one who finds it a little wee bit ironic that Tanis lives in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by wood? What's that saying? If you build it, they will come? WHOLE NEW MEANING when we're talking about Tanis.

Tanis, the truth is, I'm just jealous. You're successful, talented and deserving. You're the perfect mix of snarkiness and compassion, of humor and love; a survivor of life's injustices and a leader in life's purposes. My love to you.

Chag: Thanks, Megan! Now run backstage and get your Southern Comf-- I mean Starbucks fix.

Read Part Three

The Roast Of Tanis, The Redneck Mommy (Part One)

Chag: We're here today to honor Tanis, the author of the extremely popular blog, Attack Of The Redneck Mommy. But while Tanis is a mother, she's most certainly not a redneck. I live in the South and come into contact with rednecks everyday – at the grocery store, at Wal-Mart, and in the mirror. Tanis is not a redneck; she's Canadian. This means instead of Budweiser, she guzzles maple syrup and instead of NASCAR, she watches hockey.

Sorry, but everything I know about Canada comes from Bob & Doug McKenzie.

I caught Tanis on CNN the other month. While I think she did a great job, I couldn't help but think the entire time, "What is she doing on here? Is it a slow news night? Was Dooce busy?"

For those of you who are unfamiliar with her site, Tanis writes about boobs, her children, boobs, her husband, and boobs. On second thought, maybe that's why she was on CNN.

All kidding aside, Tanis is a very funny and talented writer which is why there was no problem getting a few equally funny and talented writers involved in her roast. Up first is probably the only person I know with worse musical taste than I have. Here's Liz from Mom-101:

Liz: I take issue with your characterization of my musical tastes Chag. Let he who is without Quiet Riot on his top 100 albums list throw the first stone.

It's an interesting coincidence that I was chosen as T's first roaster, as I have the dubious distinction of being the very first commenter on T's blog. Yes, it's true; there was a period in which I actually had time to comment on other people's blogs.

My first thought was that I don't know what this woman is talking about with this redneck thing. I don't see any cars up on blocks on her front lawn. I don't see any links to Dolly Parton songs. I don't see any tramp stamp tattoos on her body.

Those things would come later.

What I did see was this mousy brunette making a lame Brad and Angelina reference with some gratuitous use of CAPITAL LETTERS and a few wayward apostrophes—since edited, I'm convinced of it. I commented back that I couldn't wait to hear how her story unfolds but really I was thinking, "Never come back again, Liz. Run, run away before you feel obligated to eat up your free time every day devising something nice to say about her groan-inducing editorial cartoons and puns that made me certain she was in actuality an 82-year-old Jewish man from Boca.

I'm glad that I gave Tanis a chance to evolve as a writer and find her voice, because as it turns out I was mistaken in my knee-jerk assumptions about her abilities simply from her blog's title. And all those caps.

In time she grew to offer far more by way of erudition and literary accomplishment than I could have imagined. In fact, she had turned into a veritable auteur introducing me to such phrases as "love taco," "waxing my grass," and "I'll be your soda jerk and drink from your fountain of love, darling." Although in retrospect, I think she plagiarized that last one from Capote.

The blog is her canvas, and words like "boobs" her masterful brush strokes.

And now, T's hard work and commitment to her craft has paid off, with national TV appearances, a Bloggie award, and an envious fan base. Most bloggers only dream of having just one comment from readers like iwillpray4usinner@saviour.com and yet Tanis's posts often top 100.

I'm proud of you Tanis and honored to be able to call you my friend. You inspire me, you make me laugh, and you make me want to be a better... a better... well, something better. It might have to do with masturbating. I'm not entirely sure.

Thanks folks, try the chicken. Tip your waitress. I'll be here all week.

And yeah, I know – don't quit my day job.

Chag: Thanks, Liz! Try the chicken? I think everyone's hoping for one of those "love tacos" instead.

Before we get to our next guest, let me tell you two things I've learned in life: never make fun of a pregnant woman and never make fun of someone who knows where you live. Ladies and gentlemen, Kristen from Motherhood Uncensored!

Kristen: And you, and your family's real names. You forgot that part. Well, at least you know how to serve one mean boxed pizza, right Chag?

But, now back to Tanis. The Redneck Mommy. I realize that Chag already pointed out that Tanis is hardly a redneck, or at least in the way that we think she is one. But what he failed to mention is that Tanis is a Canadian Redneck.

Big difference.

They try to appear "fancy" -- like all the extra damn "u's" that are apparently "cultural" or something, you know as in "colour" and "favourite." Really, they just don't know how to spell.

And while she's got the porch, the "lemonade," and bears attacking her car, instead of overalls and a straw hat, she's enjoying the muggy summer Canadian air in her birthday suit.

Very "art student meets the rugged outdoors." I'd almost buy it as artistic freedom but the fact that people aren't painting her but rather driving by in their pick-ups hooting (or is it houting?) sort of blows that theory.

Now Mom-101 mentioned Tanis's huge fan base, many of whom happen to love Jesus. It's not a coincidence, people. They love her because reading one her posts is like reading a damn book of the Bible.

Can her posts be any fucking longer?

No wonder she's got 100 comments from Evangelicals. They all suffered through Genesis, Job, and whatever other long ass scripture that only gets interesting every now and then when "homosexuality" and "man laying with a woman" gets tossed in so the idiots keep on reading thinking something good is going to happen and it never does.

So, it makes perfect sense that a long ass post broken up by goofy comics and her boobs displayed 400 different ways in the same fucking shirt is like Playboy.

In fact, Tanis's blog IS Playboy. Everyone reads it for the "interesting articles."

Right.

So congratulations Tanis for making it big the good old-fashioned way -- distracting people with your boobs so much that they think you're smart and funny.

Damn Canucks. Always stealing our ideas.

Chag: Thaunks, Kriusteun! Greaut joub!

Liz, Kristen and our next guest have a tendency to write about their boobs and vaginas from time to time. Is that the secret to becoming a popular blogger? Maybe I should write about my penis. Anyone in the mood for a short story?

Everyone, here's the proud owner of the Frankenpussy, Catherine from Her Bad Mother!

Catherine: Hey! Don't you all be disrespecting Canadians. Canada is awesome. Canada rocks. Canada has bacon and Leonard Cohen and universal healthcare. And me. And Tanis. And maple syrup, which is to say: SUGAR BUSH. (I'll leave it to you to decide whether there is a possible relationship between those last few things.)

Because, seriously, there's no bush like Canadian bush, as Tanis will be the first to brag. (Hasn't Tanis bragged about her vast, sprawling bush before? Doesn't she have special equipment for trimming that bush? YEE HAW.) What does sugar bush have to do with the Internet? About as much as Tanis's boobs do. Fun to talk about, fun to poke at.

(PS: Tanis? Weren't you going to stitch me up a memorial to our ravaged bushes? I'm still waiting on that.)

(Where was I?)

(Right. Pokin' fun at fun parts.)

I can say this stuff about Tanis. Because it's true, and because she has given me special permission to discourse at any length about any topic pertaining to bush, especially the lady-bit kind. She did, after all, dub me the Vagina Whisperer. Which is awesome, even though it sounds more than a little bit dirty. Which is also a pretty good way to describe Tanis: Awesome, But More Than A Little Bit Dirty.

I joke. I adore Tanis. I consider her one of my dearest friends. I'd do anything for her. But don't tell her that I said that, because she'd probably want me to do something lewd.

Chag: Thanks Catherine!

*****

Read Part Two

I Was Beginning To Think This Would Never Happen

Guess what? I'm going to start posting the Roast of Tanis from Attack Of The Redneck Mommy tomorrow!

What? You have no idea what I'm talking about? Some time ago, I got a group of bloggers together to roast Tanis. How long ago? In the roast, I mention Kristen from Motherhood Uncensored being pregnant. Not only has she given birth to Margot since we started the roast, but the kid just started kindergarten.

I kid. It hasn't taken that long. But Margot is three now.

Here's the publishing schedule:

Monday: Me, Mom-101, Motherhood Uncensored, and Her Bad Mother
Tuesday: Tales From The Dad Side, Gaming With Baby, and Undomestic Diva
Wednesday: Chicky Chicky Baby, Temporarily Me, and Motherbumper
Thursday: Attack Of The Redneck Mommy

I do hope you'll come back and read the roast. There are some very talented individuals involved in the shindig. I think you'll find that it was well worth the wait.

Song of the day: My Oh My by Slade

Weekend Music Earworm

I heard today's Song of the day this morning on one of those BOB FM stations (the ones with the schizophrenic playlists) and it has been stuck in my head ever since. Allow me to stick it in yours!

That sounded much dirtier than I intended.

Song of the day: Genius Of Love by Tom Tom Club

Beating Bill Simmons 2008: Wild Card Edition

I won't lie. I did horrible picking the regular season games. I finished eleven games below .500 for the season. But guess what?

A new season starts today. Or Saturday, actually.

And I did go 8-2-1 during last year's playoff games.

So here are my picks for the Wild Card games (home teams in CAPS, Bill's picks in red):

CARDINALS (+1.5) over Falcons
A rookie head coach with a rookie QB goes on the road against a team with a high-octane offense that seldom loses at home AND gives up a point and a half? Please. While the Falcons, especially Michael Turner, will be able to move the ball and score with relative ease, Kurt Warner's passing game will prove to be too much for the Falcons.

Colts (-1) over CHARGERS
The Colts have won nine games in a row. N-I-N-E games, people. The Chargers, meanwhile, barely won the pitiful AFC West. Manning just won the MVP. Tomlinson's gimpy. And, um, Norv Turner is still the coach of the Chargers. Indianapolis will win this one by at least 10.

Ravens (-3) over DOLPHINS
I really think this game has 16-3 written all over it. Baltimore gets the edge in both offense and defense, so I don't see any way Miami can keep this game close.

Eagles (-3) over VIKINGS
Philadelphia looked awesome last week in their dismantling of the Cowboys and until Adrian Peterson discontinues his pregame ritual of slathering his hands in butter, I just can't get behind Minnesota.

DISCLAIMER: This is provided for entertainment purposes only. If you follow my advice, you are a fool.

Seriously, if you ever spend money based on something I say, have your head examined.


Song of the day: (Just Like) Starting Over by John Lennon

Chag's New Year's Eve's Rockin' Eve

On Tuesday, I did my final Twitter show of 2008. It was a Top 40/Dance show mixed in with live performances every fifteen minutes. It was meant to be like one of the New Year's Eve shows the big networks put on every year, with the only difference being I'm just a loser with an Internet connection and they all have millions of dollars. And talent. And, in the case of ABC, zombies.

I even passed out champagne at midnight and did a countdown to New Year's Eve (not New Year's Day). Because I'm a dork.

Anyway, here's the playlist in case you're interested:

  1. Womanizer by Britney Spears (me)
  2. Hot N Cold by Katy Perry (me)
  3. Pump Up The Jam by Technotronic (Dirt & Noise)
  4. Live Performance: Bohemian Rhapsody/Radio Ga Ga by Queen
  5. Tubthumping by Chumbawamba (Cool Zebras)
  6. Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go by Wham! (Connecticut Mom)
  7. The Power by Snap! (Mr. Big Dubya)
  8. Live Performance: Stan by Eminem and Elton John
  9. Paper Planes by M.I.A. (Undomestic Diva)
  10. U And Ur Hand by Pink (Attack Of The Redneck Mommy)
  11. Live Performance: Radio, Radio by Elvis Costello and The Beastie Boys
  12. Speed Racer by The Alpha Team (The Weirdgirl)
  13. Bad Girls by Donna Summer (Mamma Loves)
  14. Live Performance: Where Did You Sleep Last Night by Nirvana
  15. You Spin Me Round (Like A Record) by Dead Or Alive (Father Muskrat)
  16. Jump Around by House Of Pain (Gaming With Baby)
  17. Sing A Song by Earth, Wind, & Fire (Connecticut Mom)
  18. Live Performance: Free Fallin' by Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers and Axl Rose
  19. Groove Is In The Heart by Deee-Lite (Mothergoosemouse)
  20. Bizarre Love Triangle by New Order (The Weirdgirl)
  21. Live Performance: Better Be Home Soon by Crowded House
  22. This Is How We Do It by Montell Jordan (Cool Zebras)
  23. Love Shack by The B-52's (Chunkybumble)
  24. It Takes Two by Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock (Daddy Dan)
  25. Live Performance: Tonight, Tonight by Smashing Pumpkins
  26. Dancing Queen by ABBA (Kimblahg)
  27. Something Good by Utah Saints (Mr. Big Dubya)
  28. Live Performance: Enterlude/When You Were Young by The Killers
I'd like to thank everyone who dropped by to listen. I'd also like to thank For A Different Kind Of Girl, Motherbumper, and TwoBusy for helping me compile my list of live performances.

Next week, we'll be playing all U2 songs. Hope to see you there!

As always, if you have any suggestions for upcoming shows, please leave them in the comments. Thanks!

Song of the day: Speed Racer by Alpha Team