UEFA Cup Final

Congratulations Zenit St. Petersburg. You are the 2008 UEFA Cup Champions.

I watched the match, and in all honesty, they clearly deserved the win. Just as in prior games, Glasgow Rangers played a very defensive game. They defended well, but didn't do much with their lone striker. Zenit had the majority of the possession and the majority of the chances. Actually, I don't remember Rangers having a real chance until mid-way through the second half. The Rangers defense held out well until Zenit made a superb play, consisting of a few quick passes, overlapping runs, and a final beautiful pass through the legs of a defender and the heart of the Ranger's defense. The shot was a mere formality considering the quality of the pass.

There was another late goal scored by Zenit, but it didn't matter. After their first goal, it looked bleak for Rangers considering their defensive character. 2-0, the final score. Considering they absolutely walloped Bayern Munich, the clear-cut German Champions 4-0 in the second leg of the semi-finals, Zenit has throughly convinced everyone that they were the best team in this tournament's latter stages.

Charlie!

The Tooth Fairy

Hey buddy, consider yourself officially on notice. At 5 months old, Julia is getting her first tooth. We'll be calling on you sometime in the next 5-6 years.

Google Maps Street View

If you haven't seen this yet, it will blow your mind. It's called Street View on Google Maps.

Apparently, Google started this in May 2007, but only documented 5 cities (one of them was Denver). Over the past year they have they added more cities, Spokane being one of them.

Here's what they did. They mounted a 360 degree camera on the top of a car and drove it through almost every street of the selected city, taking a picture every second or so. They then complied the pictures together and integrated it into Google Maps. The result is a virtual 360 degree interactive tour of any street in that city.

For example, go to Google Maps and search for 378 W 18th Ave, Spokane, WA 99203. Click on "Street View" underneath the thumbnail picture. You should see a picture of a green-roofed house with red steps. That's Stacey's old house! If you don't see it, grab the picture with your mouse and move it until you are facing the other way. You can zoom in and out of any location. You can click on the arrows to move up and down the street as you want. You are now "virtually" in Spokane and can take a walk through any street in town that is highlighted in blue!

Orient the camera so that you are looking down the street. Grab the picture and drag it so you are looking down at the pavement. You should see the car it was mounted on! I had fun looking up my old apartment as well as "driving" around some of the old places I used to go. If you want to know which cities have been documented, just go to the main Google Maps page (you should see the United States) and click on Street View. Cameras of the documented cities should appear.

Have fun sightseeing in your underwear.

Spurs Unveil 08/09 Kit

Personally, I love the new kit. I like the "ringed" look as well as the v-neck collar. However, my favorite part about the new kit are the hooped socks. Absolutely classic. Although it's not shown here, the away kit is completely sky blue and third kit is black with gold accents.

5 Months Old

Time flies when you're cute...

May Flowers

If April showers bring May flowers, what do May flowers bring? Pilgrims? No! Football! The month of May is a smorgasbord of football. It’s the month when the majority of top leagues crown their champion and damn the bottom dwellers to relegation, effectively banishing them to the eternal (until next year, possibly) football lake of fire! Easter usually comes a month late when squads are resurrected (promoted) to the top leagues, converting many believers after their witnessing the football-equivalent of a miracle (re: Derby County in 2007). Ok, that’s all a bit dramatic, but you get my point. It’s also the month when the cup competitions are concluded, when the Champions of Europe and the Champions of the UEFA Cup are crowned.

So, in case anyone finds this useful, here are the upcoming May games in Mountain Time. I will hopefully be watching Sunday’s action simultaneously on 2 televisions while watching the live scoring of the relegation battle online. Thankfully, after Sunday the rest of this month’s action happen one game at a time!

Premier League Championship/Relegation
Sunday, 11 May – 0800 – Manchester United vs. Wigan – Setanta
Sunday, 11 May – 0800 – Chelsea vs. Bolton – Fox Soccer Channel
Sunday, 11 May – 0800 – Fulham, Reading, and Birmingham – Live Scoring Online

UEFA Cup Final
Wednesday, 14 May – 1230 – Rangers vs. Zenit St. Pburg – Fox Soccer Channel

FA Cup Final
Saturday, 17 May – 0800 – Portsmouth vs. Cardiff City – PPV/Live Scoring Online

UEFA Champions League Final
Wednesday, 21 May – 1230 – Manchester United vs. Chelsea – ESPN 2

Coca-Cola Championship Playoff Final
Saturday, 24 May – 0800 – Teams TBD – Setanta

International Friendly
Wednesday, 28 May – 1300 – U.S. v.s. England – ESPN Classic/Galavision

My New Ferrari

I've been waiting to tell you all what Stacey got me for my 30th birthday until the right moment. Well, now is the time. Tonight I bought a 1992 Ferrari F40 for 450,000 credits...but that's only so I can complete the S-Class license test! What Stacey bought me is what I use to stop, start, and steer the Ferrari. Anyone up for a GT5 race online?

Never Cry Fox

Today was a big day at work. The mama fox that has made her den in the drainage system on campus finally put her pups on display. From what I’ve heard, there are about 9 new pups that have now turned our building’s plumbing into their own personal waterslide theme park.

Yesterday we saw them out our window. After everyone gathered to look, I decided to go down and take some pictures for everyone with my phone. Since I don’t have a zoom, I had to get close. I got down on my haunches and slowly approached them by taking a step or two every 10-15 seconds. As I got closer, I saw one of them playing with his food. Apparently, mama fox had captured a little bunny from someone’s backyard and brought it back for her little ones.

In the pictures it appears to be a cat, but that’s only because the ears are missing. There was a big “brew-hah-hah” in the office over the species of the rabbit (people thought it was a cat) until Josh went down and took another picture of it, which I had to share with everyone. It’s funny how people will only believe a picture that they see with their own eyes, and will not be convinced by an “eye-witness” photographer who was literally 2 feet away from the animal. I would hope people would at least give me enough credit that I can tell the difference between and rabbit and a cat from 2 feet away.

I find it amusing and ironic that we have a family of foxes being raised here. Considering they live underneath the building near the recording and editing areas, do you think they listen to the daily broadcast?

Champions League Final Set

What a match between Chelsea and Liverpool tonight! Well, at least for the neutral observer. For the fans it was no doubt gut wrenching. 1-1 and into overtime after 90 minutes! THREE goals scored in overtime! A supposed goal reversed! The initial go-ahead scored on a penalty kick in overtime by a man who just buried his mother. 3-2 the final score. That's what I'm talking about.

So, on May 21st one of the above teams will be crowned Champions of Europe. Coincidently, they are also tied for first place in the English Premier League with 2 games to go.

That said, I think this will be a great final. I'll be pulling for Chelsea for manager Avram Grant's sake. Wouldn't it be ironic if his side won the UCL, something his "Chosen One" predecessor couldn't do? Regardless of your opinion whether or not he has had (or will have) anything to do with it, this makes a much better story then even Manchester United winning the double....not to mention Lampard's mother, the drama that always surrounds this club, and the fact that I don't want to have to listen to a bitter Steven everyday for the week following!

In addition, considering how poor this season has been for Spurs, we will always be able say we beat the Champions of Europe in the Carling Cup final!

p.s. sorry Matt...I was pulling for Liverpool on your behalf. At least it was epic.