Michael Hopcroft

It bothers me, tho, because it IS changing the rules midstream.  Anyone who treated the science at all seriously would have recognized this state of affairs was likely, but the rule was in place.  
 
If they were gonna do that, then why did they not let Nebraska create a matchup?  If I'm Indiana, I'm also RIGHTEOUSLY POd by this power play;  my team's ONE SUPERB YEAR in *how* long?  Hint:  they tied for 2nd in 1987.  They had a winning season last year at 8-5;  7-6 in 2007.  You have to go back to 1993 to find another winning season.  
 
And it's pure money.  OSU has by far the best chance to crash the CFP, and thus rake in 7, 8 mill or so;  more if they win, MUCH more if they win the championship.  It completely fits with the narrative that the big schools will do anything to accommodate the big-money sports...well, except acknowledge that they have real, even *essential* workers by and large, but they refuse to pay them appropriately.  Yeah, college football is in many ways more fun to watch, but don't peel back the covers on it.  It's a cesspool back there.

This was a very informative video. Esports has their legends like any other sports and this video lists ten of them. I found it fascinating.
 
Becoming elite-level gamers requires the same dedication and commitment required to play professional football or basketball. You have less chance of a concussion playing Madden, obviously, but there are hazards too. Makes me think I was born too soon.

I remember my mother telling me a little of the context of Maurice Ravel's La Valse when I was too young to truly comprehend it.  Knowing when it was written -- 1920 -- gives an idea of what the French composer was trying to say. And since we seem to be waltzing off the same cliff a century later, it made sense to share this performance with you.
 
 
I wonder if there was any top-flight orchestra in Europe that did not have Leonard Bernstein as a guest conductor at least once? (By top-flight, I mean national-scale ensembles like the Vienna and Berlin Philharmonics, the Concertgebow in the Netherlands, and the like.)

Liberty University has a medical school. I have a nephew who's studying there right now. 

To follow up briefly, I just received a posted note from my property manager at my apartment building. The only visitor I will be allowed for the duration of the surge is my care assistant, plus whoever delivers groceries and the like. This applies to everyone in the building, regardless of underlying health conditions.
 
It may not practically change much (and I still haven't heard whether I need a COVID test), but it did strike home the sort of situation I'm in. I don't know whether I should be upset for being put under all these restrictions, or relieved that my management actually gives a damn whether residents get sick.

This surge is indeed biting us hard. When I picked up some sort of digestive bug this past week (low appetite, strong localized headache, certain other GI symptoms that are impossible to discuss politely) the first thing I asked my primary clinic is whether I needed a COVID test. I have yet to be told I do, but I have this sneaking suspicion in the back of my mind.
 
I have had two COVID tests this year, one in about May and one in July prior to a procedure. Although both turned out negative, that means absolutely nothing now. Instead of getting better at self0-isolating, I've been getting worse. The cabin fever is getting to me, and in general I am not faring well at all even though I'm not showing true COVID symptoms.

I immediately thought of the '80s comedy Ruthless People when I saw that listing.

I haven't finished writing my latest bestseller yet.

New episodes of Animaniacs.

Breakfast cereal. I just buy them for the toys...

A full bottle o0f Earthquake Pills that are not effective against roadrunners.
 
NT: Subtle signs your relatives don't give a **** whether you catch Covid this thanksgiving.

All the turkeys they didn't sell by Thanksgiving, two days after the power outage.

And that is why I will not put up with jokes about the "Cowardly French."
 
Rest You Well, Mon Frere.  Vive La France.

Detonating artillery shells falling on Dunkirk echoed in the distance. It was late May, 1940, my father was only eleven years old. He was in a small restaurant with my grandfather, the two of them perplexed by the French soldier sitting next to them having a feast. The soldier's meal was lavish, far in excess of what virtually all Europeans were used to in those days of rationing.

My grandfather struck up conversation with the soldier. "Excuse me, but you are using up all your ration coupons on this one meal. What will you eat later if you spend them all like this?"

The soldier smiled forlornly and explained, "Tomorrow the Germans will attack."

He would have no further use for his coupons. He had no intention of retreat. This was his last supper.

For that soldier who died protecting my father and all the rest of us. For all the others I could never begin to name or even know of. For all those who stand the wall. Thank you. 

Second to both Foglios.

My college theater director was an extra on that film. That's not the only reason I feel it was underrated, but it's an interesting side note. The filming was on location in Central Oregon. He recalled himself and a group of fellow extras in need of groceries (and probably beer as well) going to the local Safeway en masse without having changed out of their shabby, smelly, muddy costumes.  Even though it was 1969 and anybody could dress like anything without attracting undue attention, the clerks must have freaked at the sight (even though they knew there was a film location nearby).
 
This is one of my favorite songs from that show (along with "They Call the Wind Mariah") and while Lee Marvin is no John Raitt this was the time of Dylan and Janis Joplin where a technically bad singer could still carry a song by sheer emotional heft or lyrical clarity. In that context Marvin's rendition makes perfect sense.

I hope Geoffrey Holder is remembered for more than this ad. He was also a great dancer and choreographer, and a pioneering theatrical director (he directed the original production of The Wiz and was a major influence on its getting to Broadway, where it smashed records and barriers).

I'm kind of disappointed that Jack Ryan's bad back was dropped from the future (and prequel) films. Without it he is a generic action "hero" (that depends, of course, on how you felt about Tom Clancy's politics). Harrison Ford was a heroes figure, but he wasn't nearly as interesting without the battle against his flaws.

The Bucs pulled it out by two points. Which indicates that they may be turning into a truly special football team.
 
Tom Brady is certianly telling the naysayers (who included myself) that he's not done. Of course, it helps that the Bucs assembled a lot of weapons around him.
 
I wouldn't sleep on the Eagles, though. This year's playoffs will be a crapshoot even more than usual, and the Eagles have a good chance of getting in as NFC Least champions. Once they're in, who knows what will happen in this crazy, mixed-up year.
 
Bucs-Saints this year could be epic. Two warriors who are determined to show that their twilight is better than everyone else's mid-day, with solid teams around them. The only shame is that Chris Collingwood is calling the game and not Tony Romo.

Sean Connery's greatness as an actor is hard to overstate. He would have been a fantastic Lear had he been given the opportunity. As it was, he was a master at transcending his material.
 
His legacy is worth celebrating. His passing is worth mourning.

We had a full other day of 2020 before all **** broke loose.

If the King (Louis XIII, if you're counting) had tried to govern "on his own", he would have run France into the ground fairly quickly. None of the Bourbon kings, even the "illustrious" Louis XIV, were near the front of the line when they handed out brains.

Your concern for the children of your neighborhood in the midst of your own struggles is an inspiration to us all.
 

We had bought our candy before I got hit and hid it in the freezer to prevent us from devouring it all.  Well, we can't endanger the kids even more in our neighborhood by allowing them to come to the house...