Al Sharpton! and Ouch!

I was loitering without intent at Union Square in New York City when suddenly Rev. Al Sharpton, resplendent in a Sean Bell protest T-Shirt, parted a gaggle of bike protesters and emerged, graciously posing with hordes of supporters, fans and curious onlookers, in the process giving me the opportunity to make the first-ever use of my cellphone camera -- although for some reason I couldn't send the picture to my friends. Nevertheless, it was a good Motorola MOTOSLVR L7 moment for me :-).

Later, I kicked a soccer ball around with a bunch of guys and pulled a muscle in my upper leg trying to avoid being the monkey in a casual game of monkey-in-the-middle and will now have to miss tomorrow's league game with my new team in the NYC Metro Soccer League.

Liverpool's raging summer of transfers

It's been a while since Liverpool (albeit as a sideshow to Cristiano Ronaldo) has featured so centrally in summer transfer talk. There's the ongoing Gareth Barry war with Aston Villa -- O'Neill's financial (wants GBP 16M for Gaz Baz) and verbal backlash against Rafa's attempts to prise away his star player and the Liverpool boss' reflexive (and dare I say, over-the top) inflation of his own players' values: Scott Carson is now worth over GBP 10M and Peter Crouch is at GBP 15M. This is on top of the GBP 16M Benitez has earmarked for Xabi Alonso's potential move to Juventus (which would be a good bit of business for Liverpool :-)). And who knows how much Rafa wants for John Arne Riise, who's likely headed out as well.

There's also talk of Chelsea F.C. (established ca. 2004) coveting Fernando 'the lad from sunny Spain' Torres with a potential bid of GBP 50M. Insanity! And Madness! Plus Calamity! I swear, if Rafa accepts Chelsea's overtures I am going to start clamoring for his head too! Bring in RIjkaard already! :-)

In terms of incoming players, Liverpool have already brought Swiss international defender Philipp Degen onboard and are rumored to be targeting Italian youngster Andrea Dossena.

I'll admit this as a footnote: although it is exciting to see my Reds linked with world-class players, I am somewhat wistful for days of stability and tangible, continued identity within the team.

No. 2 fade, short on top ...ver 2.0

Updated...

On my way to and from the barbershop this evening, I began compiling a list of things to do this summer (subject to my procrastination index and obligatory summer indolence :-)):

(i) Classes. I'd like to learn how to cook (I'm at the beginner-can't-distinguish-your-okra-from-your-eggplant-level), maybe learn a new language (French?)
(ii) Read. Eileen has lent me The Life of Pi and The 4-Hour Workweek that I'm taking forever to finish. I'd also like to pare down on New York Times' list of "1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die."
(iii) Movies. Just came back from an enjoyable evening with The Iron Man. Truth be told I expected little more than a ferrated version of The Fantastic Four but the film delivered quite a punch. It wasn't exactly Spiderman but there was a seriousness to the plot and the characters that had me curled up in my seat and glued to the screen. The tie-in with current affairs added to the element of drama and realism. Plus one superhero makes things a little more believable than four :-). Bring on The Incredible Hulk, The Chronicles of Narnia, Batman, Rambo, The Love Guru, Indiana Jones.
(iv) Sports. With the 2008 European Soccer Championships coming up and the Summer Olympics in Beijing, there should be significant bonding with my 21-inch Insignia television set. I'd also love to kick a soccer ball around, maybe get in shape, etc.
(v) Buy stuff. I want new glasses, a soccer replica jersey (Gerrard - England/ Torres - Spain/ Messi - Barcelona/ Totti - Italy/ Ballack - Germany, in order of preference), new Stanford stuff

Nothing like the rumble of a semi-crowded F-train to provide the backdrop for your thoughts :-).

By The Numbers

3685/7505 - My portfolio ranking this week in TheStreet.com's "Beat the Street" fantasy stock market game.
$330 - The cost of three 3-hour Cooking 101 introductory-level cooking sessions at the Institute of Culinary Education in NYC.
23 - Books read from The New York Times list of "1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die.'

Patriotized Inebriation

From victims of neocon chickenhawks' swindling of the country...to props for selling Midwestern made-from-genuine-American-soul beer.

The US Army. Taking it up the a** since forever.



Just bring the troops home.

Edible Monologues

(i) Snapple fact, "Real Fact" #327": Chewing gum was in invented in New York City in 1870 by Thomas Adams.
(ii) Taco Bell "Fire" hot sauce: "I collect straws"

I have a crush on Larissa!

Jeopardy! girl, marry me! :-)

Barack Obama VP choices

Of the candidates that MSNBC's political team was speculating about yesterday, I would agree that, with the sole exception of Bill Richardson, any of them would make good candidates as Barack Obama's running mate. Bill Clinton's shadow would loom large if Obama picks Hillary and Chuck Hagel is a Republican but by and large any of them would bring credibility and strength to his candidacy.

Liverpool squad ruminations

I know it's strange to say this but I'm somewhat elated that Rafa Benitez has been told to sell if he wants to buy this offseason. Rafa's history in the transfer market has been mixed at best (Momo Sissoko was his best signing up until recently -- a tall, lanky, hard-tackling player who was good at winning balls in the midfield but had little idea what to do it once he had possession) and given Liverpool's stature and expensive wage structure, it becomes difficult to offload substandard players to other clubs. However, since Rafa has already been given an ultimatum this season, he has no alternative but to get rid of non-contributing players and replenish the quality in the squad.

That said, here is my categorization of the current level of talent in the Liverpool squad:-

Fixtures: Reina, Carragher, Gerrard, Torres, Mascherano, Finnan, Agger, Skrtel, Babel, Benayoun, Hyypia

Out: Kewell, Pennant (simply not Liverpool quality), Crouch (not a fit), Riise (good make-weight for potential trades), Alonso (I know news of his potential sale to Juventus emerged today but I've always felt this should be his last season re: his rift with Rafa before the Inter Milan game in the Champions League and the competition for places in the midfield)

Wishlist: Gareth Barry, an overlapping full-back to help widen the field of play, a quality striker to sub for Torres, no South American players unless they are established in their respective national teams

Summer boredom-aversion list, cont'd...

(iii) Adding The Chronicles of Narnia and Rambo to my enrich-Hollywood, pay-inflated-movie-ticket-prices summer program.
(iv) Play sports. Would love to kick a soccer ball around, play a bit of softball, get in shape, etc.

No. 2 fade, short on top

On my way to and from the barbershop this evening, I began compiling a list of things to do this summer (subject to my procrastination index and obligatory summer indolence :-)):

(i) Classes. I'd like to learn how to cook (I'm at the beginner-can't-distinguish-your-okra-from-your-eggplant-level), maybe learn a new language (French?)
(ii) Read. Eileen has lent me The Life of Pi and The 4-Hour Workweek that I'm taking forever to finish.
(iii) Movies. Just came back from an enjoyable evening with The Iron Man. Truth be told I expected little more than a ferrated version of The Fantastic Four but the film delivered quite a punch. It wasn't exactly Spiderman but there was a seriousness to the plot and the characters that had me curled up in my seat and glued to the screen. The tie-in with current affairs added to the element of drama and realism. Plus one superhero makes things a little more believable than four :-). Bring on Indiana Jones and The Incredible Hulk.
(iv) Sports. With the 2008 European Soccer Championships coming up and the Summer Olympics in Beijing, there should be significant bonding with my 21-inch Insignia television set.
(v) Buy stuff. I want new glasses, a soccer replica jersey (Messi - Barcelona/ Totti - Italy/ Ballack - Germany, in order of preference), new Stanford stuff

Nothing like the rumble of a semi-crowded F-train to provide the backdrop for your thoughts :-).

Britain's Got Talent

Very entertaining display and great skill by ex-Arsenal apprentice Jeremy Lynch.

Political tidbits

1) I am not surprised that John Edwards endorsed Barack Obama today and at one time I even felt Obama would pick Edwards as a running mate. However, given Obama's struggles with older White voters, especially in the Heartland, he may need a stronger VP candidate. Is an Obama - Clinton ticket on the cards? Or could we see something like an Obama - Daschle ticket?

2) Chris Matthews calls Hillary Clinton "The Al Sharpton of White people" after her strong showing in 97% White West Virginia. Personally, I think Hillary is still in the race because she is chasing her lost sense of entitlement. Democratic Party "royalty" is being upstaged and the Clintons are willing to drag the entire Party through very public angst to demonstrate their "displeasure" at having their restoration ambushed. I am still a big Bill Clinton fan but surely it's time to rally behind Obama and heal the Party.

The New Yorker Crossword Challenge Series

Just submitted my first puzzle. One down, five to go.
Deo volente I'll win :-).

Gareth Barry transfer saga

So the tug-of-war for Gareth Barry ('Gaz Baz') is degenerating into a he-said, he-said between managers Rafa Benitez and Martin O'Neill, with some especially tough words by the Villa manager for the Spaniard. O'Neill has the upper hand in the public bickering given Rafa's lack of cultural nous and his limited English skills. Nevertheless, there should be no doubt that a move to Liverpool would best serve Gareth Barry's interests -- what with the Liverpool cachet, the promise of regular top-level European football, and the opportunity to play with the best players in the world. The wage packet shouldn't be too shabby either. And while I understand his reluctance to part with his best player, surely O'Neill has to accept these realities. In my view, the Villa boss should make the best of the situation and finagle the best possible deal for his club -- Rafa has offered GBP 10M in cash, as well as a possible player exchange involving, apparently, John Arne Riise and Peter Crouch. Let's also not forget Liverpool loanee, goalkeeper Scott Carson, who also features regularly in the England lineup and could become part of the deal since he has indicated in the past he would welcome a permanent move to Villa

Al Gore joins Kleiner Perkins

I just stumbled upon this old story from FORTUNE magazine about Al Gore joining top Venture Capital firm, Kleiner Perkins, as a partner to help invest in "green" companies. KP is a top-tier Silicon Valley VC that has previously invested in Netscape, Amazon, Sun Microsystems and Google.

How will KP's traditional focus in IT translate to energy-related invesments?

http://money.cnn.com/2007/11/11/news/newsmakers/gore_kleiner.fortune/?postversion=2007111208

Liverpool transfer hubbub

With the Reds in the thick of transfer speculation, with talk of players moving in both directions, I thought I'd chip in with some thoughts:

(i) Gareth Barry - Must-buy. Liverpool probably have the weakest squad of the "top four" and I'd like to see some improvement in quality as well as some added British steel in the team. Plus at GBP 10M he would be a relative bargain. 

If we can engineer a part-cash, part-player exchange deal to send Riise or Crouch to Villa Park (and perhaps get a discount on the price), even better!

(ii) Peter Crouch - A bit of an unfortunate situation. Rafa has slapped a GBP 15M price tag on him that I am sure has scared of any potential suitors. Crouch is unlikely to find a spot in Liverpool's starting line-up and if he is to entertain any chance of playing in the English national team, he needs to find another club where he sees regular action on the pitch. Portsmouth or Aston Villa would be ideal destinations but for that to happen Rafa needs to ease up on the rhetoric. Personally, I think somewhere in the range of GBP 9M, what Liverpool paid to acquire him, would be fair -- a market reflection of the limited tactical advantage he brings to any team, plus thanks for his service and loyalty to the club. I mean, it's not like Liverpool really need the money and a move to a different team should allow a decent individual like Crouch a fair professional opportunity to express his talents.

I'm bored

I am mired in a job search for the ages, Hillary Clinton refuses to drop out of the Democratic Primary race, my beloved Liverpool are enduring another season without a Premier League title, and I can't bring myself to finish The Life of Pi. Result? This, my own little speed bump on the internet. 

So sit back, relax and enjoy the musings of an idle mind :-).