Sunday, February 7, 2016

The Stupor Bowl

The best thing about the NFL championship is that it will be over very soon and baseball can again take center stage.




Whether you spend it eating and drinking in front of a big screen or fleeing to someplace mercifully free of television, enjoy yourselves. And be careful on the roads afterwards!

--M.C.

11 comments:

Ron said...

RIP Dan Hicks (& thanks to Zo for kindling my fan-dom). I was lucky enough to see him play in 2003 in Seattle (both the early & late shows on the same evening) & with Susana at the Aladdin Theatre in Portland in 2014. Aside from a great musician who surrounded himself with really talented people, what an entertaining showman, too. I'll miss the dude - he was one-of-a-kind.

M.C. O'Connor said...

I remember my college roommate sophomore year had a "Hot Licks" record. Must have been 1978. That was the first time I'd heard of Dan Hicks! Man, seems like we've had a slew of guys go--Bowie, Glen Frey, Maurice White, now Hicks. Are we really that old?

Ron said...

Paul Kantner, too.

Ron said...

Yulieski & Lourdes Gourriel have apparently defected. Yulieski Gourriel is quite a player & a big hero in Cuba. I've watched both of them for a few years on Latin American Sports Channel. Lean, but muscular, Yulieski is 31-year old 3B with big-time power. Lourdes is younger (28), more versatile defensively, but has not been the hitter that his older Brother is. This could be interesting.

M.C. O'Connor said...

Yeah, Kantner too, I forgot!



So I assume because the Gourriels are Cubans they are not subject to the draft, that is, they are free agents. What kind of crap is that? Why do American kids have to enter a draft but foreigners can go to the highest bidder? I don't understand. I think, as I've said before, the draft is an anachronism. So is the arb process--it is a vestige of the reserve clause. All players should be free agents and able to sign with whatever club they want. The internationalization of the game will ultimately force some kind of change, I think.

Zo said...

My observations on the Stupor Bowl:

I don't think giving a 205 mph Audi to a catatonic, senile old man is a particularly good idea.

I thought that Super Bowl babies thing was creepy. Really creepy. Doesn't the Super Bowl produce a spike in domestic violence, like, including marital rape? So that, plus drunks forgetting to grab condoms. The NFL celebrates unwanted pregnancies?

So that's Coldplay. Now I know (has already forgotten).

And speaking of advertising, ever notice how many advertisements on major sporting events are for tv shows on the same network that is carrying the event? On Fox, it seems like they mostly advertise themselves. I'm sure that is booked as revenue because it is a "different business unit" but that's bullshit.

And that Mountain Dew product that had a pug head on a lemur on baby legs - I am never buying whatever that product is, that ad was disgusting. Remember O Lucky Man? Also the intestine walking around. Hey, mine is out there somewhere, but I doubt it is acting that idiotically.

And Quicken Rocket Mortgage. Wasn't everybody getting a mortgage (whether they could afford one or not) a good part of the reason that the entire financial system almost melted down in 2008?

I liked the singing sheep though. And Christopher Walken with a sock puppet.

Ron said...

Brilliant, as always, Zo. Didn't see any of it, but your description conjures up an adequate image.

Lourdes Gourriel is actually 22, not 28. Also, Yulieski is an instant FA, while Lourdes, due to his age, is subject to that odd posting system.

It is important to note that Yulieski supposedly defected 10 years ago, but that turned out to be incorrect. So, it would be advisable to wait to verify that this has actually occurred.

M.C. O'Connor said...

I think that "spike in domestic violence" thing is BS, one of those recycled memes that won't be killed. I know of no reliable source showing data that Super Bowl Sunday is any worse in that department than any other Sunday (or other day of the week). I would love to be corrected if I am wrong about that.

I, too, am disturbed by how much hype the network has to do about itself. And those "NFL is Family" or whateverthefuck were truly vomit-inducing. If something is good, do we really have to holler and jump and point and say "look, this is good!"? If something can't stand on its own it must not have much to it. The whole essence of advertising is to take shit and put a coat paint on it so it doesn't smell like shit and then wave it around and tell us it ain't shit any more. Do any of the products or services promoted on TV actually make anyone or anything BETTER? And even the "public service" ad, the Helen Mirren anti-drunk driving thing, was repulsive. No one buys that crap. Being British doesn't give your words any more weight. It would be more effective to play it straight, and remind people to get rides, call a cab, spend the night, etc. Most people just need encouragement to do that stuff, not pompous preaching. I wanted to kick the goddamn television. Good thing I was at a friend's house!

"O Lucky Man" was something else. I haven't thought about that movie in years! Yeah, I don't get the walking and talking body parts either. Or the talking animals. I realize I'm in the minority here, but why does everyone want animals to talk? Why can't we appreciate them for just being what they are? I don't think singing sheep are cute! Beyonce is pretty damn cute. (Hell, she's gorgeous.) How about more of THAT kind of cute?

M.C. O'Connor said...

So now we get a Gaylord statue? Will it have Vaseline under the cap? That'd be cool! Pretty soon they are going to run out of places for all the bronzes. Maybe they can build a little submerged island in McCovey Cove for a Barry statue that pops up when someone gets a splash hit. Kayakers would now have a hazard to contend with.

I really should stop watching the Stupid Bowl. It's bad for my brain.

Zo said...

I think the ball has to be a water feature. Sort of like this thing.

obsessivegiantscompulsive said...

The Gaylord statue has has HAS to be sponsored by Vaseline, if not paid for and erected by them! Should be a big plaque on the backside of the statue stand, like all the other ads across the stadium.

I wonder if they will ever put up a Christy "Big 6" Mathewson statue up? Or a John McGraw (though Bochy should be up before the Little General).

OT: I was thinking about maybe Disney with it's Big Hero 6 movie, might sponsor that statue, and when I searched to verify I got the title right, found out that the screenwriter for that movie (and for movies like the Monster Inc. series) passed away a couple of days ago. RIP Dan Gerson!