Hall of Fame Pitches Another Shut Out...

...and one of these days they may just vote themselves right into hell. Ron Santo missed it again, this time by five votes. (Click here for the full story.) Santo played third base for the Cubs in the 60's & 70's, including several seasons while suffering from untreated diabetes. His career is highlighted by an impressive offensive output, superior fielding percentages, and great leadership on the field.

More than just a Chicago icon, Santo represents the old guard of baseball and he has has been the very picture of poise and determination in the face of tremendous adversity. There are several players with lesser numbers already in the Hall, and Ron is arguably the best third baseman not in. "To me it is clear and unequivocal that Santo is a Hall of Famer . . . Putting guys like George Kell, Freddy Lindstrom, and Tony Lazzeri in the Hall of Fame while you leave out Ron Santo is like putting Dalmatians, Palominos, and Siamese in the zoo while you let the lions roam the streets," said Bill James, Red Sox senior operations advisor and voting member of the Veterans Committee. It looks like this old Cub will just have to wait 'til next year. Again.

(Actually, it'll be two years before the committee votes again).

It's better to burn out than to fade away...

Poor Britney Jean, you can take the trash out of the trailer park, but you can't take the trailer park out of the trash . . . er um, ahem, something like that. Anyways, to get to my point: IT'S THE KURGAN!

There can be only one, Highlander!!

A nod from NewsAskew

In an email to the guy from ViewAskew.com last week, I shared with him my Focus Factor picture of Walt Flannagan. He enjoyed it and gave me a mention in the Feb. 11 entry on their website's news page. Hooray for me and my clever observation.

(click to enlarge)

Faster than Walt Flanagan's dog...

Have ya'll seen those commercials for Focus Factor? It's some sorta multi-vitamin marketed as speed that probably doesn't work, but the interesting thing about them is C.E.O. and spokesman Rob Graham. Rob's sporting some sweet, molting mullet-tude in this spot. He looks familiar, mmm... Then it hit me the other day - it's Walter Flanagan! None other than Fan Boy himself. If you don't know, Flanagan is the manager of Jay and Silent Bob's Secret Stash in Redbank, NJ. Once called the "Lon Chaney of the 90's," Walter has appeared in several ViewAskew productions, including 1994's critically acclaimed Clerks.

Tell 'em, Steve Dave!

On a related note...

...We get Milk-Bone dogbiscuits for our dogs, and there's this dude on the back that looks familiar. Ever seen any Happy Madison production (i.e. Adam Sandler movie)? It's Allen Covert, who has appeared films such as The Wedding Singer and Big Daddy. He recently starred in Grandma's Boy. I guess the Milk-Bone gig is just supplemental income...

What I'm saying is all I really want is someone to hold me and tell me that everything is going to be all right.

She was the one. I know that now...

They say it's supposed to get better over time. I guess that's so, but occasionally, at least in my estimation, one is bound to have a bad day. Or week.

You know - you try your best to put her out of your mind, keep your thought process occupied. Watch a movie, read, go out. Sooner or later, you're going to be alone with your thoughts. Close your eyes and she's there. Eventually you fall asleep in the hopes that tomorrow will be better, easier.

Then someone mentions her in an anecdote or shows a picture with her in it. The cycle repeats. Thoughts flood - what it was like, what it would've been like. You've been down that road before, you know the end: bitter realization. But like a junkie aching for a fix, you choose to travel that road anyway, just to capture a moment of the bliss that once was.

You look at the calendar and automatically (and pathetically) you know how long it's been. Three days shy of one year and five months. You'll never get over her. She's always there, in the back of your mind. Every time you get in your car, go to the store, fill up your gas tank - some things will always be different.

She was the one. You know that now. And ever since you've been chasing 'Rosa.
The only thing you can do is take a shot and say a prayer.

Aspen Apostle's Creed

I believe in a Dodge, the Aspen - one of the coolest cars in all the earth
and in Joseph Schell, its one of many friends
who brought it to L-Town and bore it for all to see
who suffered under Pontius James Todd, data structures, then left and married
he has the power to make Aspen ride again
I believe in the Aspen's spirit,
the HondaRosa too,
the laying on of hands,
the resurrection of the Aspen,
and its life everlasting,
Amen.

Perhaps I can best express myself through a monologue from the film Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, starring the great Bill Shatner:

"We are gathered here today to pay final respects to our honored dead. But it should be noted that this death takes place in the shadow of new life, the sunrise of a new world; a world that our beloved comrade gave [her] life to protect and nourish. [She] did not feel this sacrifice a vain or empty one, and we will not debate [her] profound wisdom at these proceedings. Of my friend, I can only say this: of all the souls I have encountered in my travels, [hers] was the most... human."