Why Bonnie missed the Hammers

Sorry I've been away, but we're smack dab in the middle of scheduling at work, which is the busiest time of the year.

I just wanted to share a couple of pictures that Bonnie sent me taken from her vacation that should be of interest:





Oh yeah...Happy Birthday Bonnie!

Dear Pierre

Well, Monday's game certainly had its ups and downs. In the last regular season game, we managed a 14-14 draw against Big Hammers, the 2nd-ranked team on Monday. Now, I missed the last game against Big Hammers, but I believe this was a vast improvement. Well done!

After a slow start (down 6-2 I believe) we went on a tear, taking half 9-8. We played through our initial struggles and asserted ourselves on O and D. Good use of a timeout somewhere in there. That being said, we started poorly, and struggled to the finish. We need to be focused right from the start, and not tense up near the end. I felt that we lost some of our aggression on offense near the end, and that cost us.

I think Simon summed it up pretty well in a note on Pierre's blog, which he has been updating a lot so far (I wonder if he can keep it up...tee hee..."keep it up"...):

Pierre!
Your place looks awesome - very nice. Just wanted to give you the update about last night's game since you didn't show up. We drew 14-14 with Big Hammers.

The same Big Hammers that placed 7th in the country?

Yes Piere, the very same.

That note is almost as good as this letter:

David vs Goliath

Big game tonight against Big Hammers. No insider info on this one...however, we do know they finished 7th at Nats, have only lost to Mandrew this year, and will likely play a zone d. It's going to be a very tough game, but let's see if the good guys can win this one.

Since it just wouldn't be a post without some sort of video, here's a classic Gravey and Jobriath episode:

Really!?!

Even though we are called "Release the Hounds", I believe that none of us actually own a dog. Even so, Michael Vick's actions just boggle the mind, and I have to say something.

Now that Vick has plead guilty to all those dog-fighting charges, one just has to wonder what in Scooby Doo's name was he thinking? Even if you ignore the sheer cruelty of dog fighting (and executing the losers...WTF!), how did he think that in the Internet era this was not going to come out? Britney Spears can't even get out of a car without everyone seeing her naughty bits, so how did Vick think he'd keep this quiet?

I mean, he's one of the highest-paid and marquee players in all of the NFL...did he think that taking part (or running, as it's appears) in dog-fighting wasn't going to be made public some time? I mean, if Brad Pitt was to start his own real-life Fight Club, how long until someone breaks the first two rules? A week? A day?

Of course, Michael Vick has never really proven himself to be a man of good judgement (and that has nothing to do with his 49/38 touchdown to interception ratio over the past 3 seasons...zing!). This whole situation reminds me of what he did back in January, which was summed up best by Seth and Amy of Weekend Update.



So, what was he thinking? That's the problem...he just doesn't think.

Bring Da Ruckus

On Monday we play the final of the 'Big 4" Monday night teams: Ruckus. Considering they have only lost to Mandrew and Big Hammers this season, it's going to be quite the challenge. Of note, this team has a Hound connection in Rob Camp: TUC team-ranker extraordinaire and Hound on Saturday at TUF.

As the Wu-Tang Clan says..Bring da Ruckus (and your A game):

It's never good when it goes bad

I find that performace videos are pretty lazy: usually they're done while the band is on tour and their record company realizes "Crap, we need to get them a new single in rotation down at MTV (or MTV2 now, since MTV doesn't actually show music videos anymore)." Rarely is there anything that hasn't already been done in thousands of previous music videos. And the band always says lame things like "We just wanted to express our live energy in video form." Zzzz...

Well, Local H's video for "All the Kids are Right" brings the concert experience alive, but uses only two people (band members Scott Lucas and Brian St. Clair...there are only 2 in the band) to act out the parts of everyone at the concert...definitely different than the usual tripe.



This video reminds me of my high school days, going to concerts at the Hideaway (a basement dive in St. Catharines), and seeing all those characters throughout the night at a concert. From the scalpers and bouncers outside, to the roadies and T-shirt vendors inside, it kinda makes me want to check out the next Alexisonfire show.

Considering Local H never really made it big, it's impressive that they were able to give this video the same treatment as The Matrix. When released, this video (and album for that matter) received little fanfare, and is typically ignored when people make a Best Videos list. But any video where the lead singer gives himself "come-f*ck-me" looks...well, how can you exclude it?

Nat and Tien beat me to it

While we're on the subject of video-taping awesome plays (or not, as was the case on Tuesday), I believe Nat and Tien have the honour of being the first Hounds to appear on the "Clip of the Day" on UltiVillage. Click here to see their shining moment (look behind Lugsdin).

Now I'm bitter that UltiVillage wasn't at my league game on Tuesday. Or at the game where I skied (skiied? No, that one's for downhill...I think I got it right) our favourite opponent Mad Dog (what an awesome feeling that was). Or at the game where I pulled the disc into the end zone and then caught the first pass for a Callahan. Or...um...ok, that's all I got for 4 years-worth of playing ultimate. Dammit...I suck.

Memo to UltiVillage:

You can be boring and follow the tournament circuit...sure, Furious and DoG will make great plays from time to time. But if you want some real footage, you should follow me around to capture the one highlight-worthy play I manage to pull off each year. I think it'll be worth the investment.