Okay, so I'm up at 12:40am because I had another coughing attack, so here's my post:

Bowling kicks ass. Jack In The Box should never be out of any kind of food. I'm trying hot citrus tea as a last resort (I don't care for tea all that much). I'm probably going to the LL bowling on Friday. My cat forgot how to pee in the litter box and I'm pissed. You all don't get no tags because I'm coughing too much and have to be to work tomorrow.

Good luck finding me on Facebook, you have until Friday to figure it out, because if I show up for bowling, I'm sure I'll give up my true identity.

Also, I have a sweet south endzone ticket to the Seahawks game this Sunday, anyone interested at face value ($65.00)?

Screw it, I'll try some tags.

Have at it folks.

Okay, so Fantastic Contraption now rules my life. Feel free to post your triumphs, tribulations, and disasters here (I still can't make a suitable catapult, but my tanks kick ass).

Also, y'all are invited to my local pub for Halloween. Big costume contest and cash prizes if any of you are in the north end (also a chance to meet Thingray and Jeanuts). Details to follow if anyone is interested (I won't advertise for them unless someone is interested).

Please reference LL bowling night. I haven't read the post yet, but I'm already excited!

BTW, I didn't jump the gun this time, I was just the only one up late enough to post this thing this early in the morning! HA!!

Lame tags to follow:

Thingray's turn, damnit!!

Yes I'm early, but I've never been able to do one of these before, and Jeanuts (my fiancee) and I were looking at the LL history to try to find Smegmalicious's name, because we remembered him from the LL softball game we attended, but forgot his screen name.

Anyway. MY TURN!!

Topics up for discussion:

Why do women try to pick fights in bars more than men do?

Is it wrong that I jumped the gun on this, just to be able to finally post one of these things?

Blown Away: Good movie?

Halloween Costumes (Tis the season)

Favorite kind of tequila?

Favorite Canadian musicians (mine are Mark Curry and the Crash Test Dummies).

I had i bit too much Jeager and Rumplemiz tonight (not really a topic, just a statement).

Discuss.

(EDIT: I don't know how to do tags)

Did anybody else notice the new bar on 2nd, right by the stadium called the Hawk's Nest?

It's decor is 100% Seahawks, and I heard the food was pretty good. I only went in for one beer after a preseason game, but it's nice to see some places opening in Seattle that actively embrace our sports teams and their history, instead of trying to be a catch-all "sports bar".

I probably should have kept it as my own little "secret", but oh well.

I found their website: http://www.hawksnestbar.com/index.html 

Where do I even start? I know that there are only a few basketball fans here, and even I rank basketball pretty far down my list of favorite sports (especially since the whole Sonics/OKC thing started). But a classic matchup like Celtics vs. Lakers in the Finals has had me watching for the past week or so.

I don't know NBA history well enough to say for sure, but last night had to have been a historic comeback by the Celtics (not too mention a knife in the soul of the Lakers). Eddie House and Ray Allen (who looked washed up earlier in the playoffs) leading the comeback? KG hitting a big shot in crunch time? Paul Pierce refusing an MRI on his knee because he just wants to play?

This has been epic so far, and I missed a good portion of last night's game during my commute (I knew I should have just stopped at the bar to watch the game).

If you're not a basketball fan, I apologize for taking up space with this post. But if you thought last night's game kicked some serious ass, feel free to post your thoughts.

Besides being off to a hot start, the kid seems like a really cool guy. From an Si.com article:

No surprise, Bruce is getting the last laugh. Heading into this season, in many circles he was considered baseball's best positional prospect. Yet, a start that included 16 hits in 30 at-bats is an attention grabber, no matter what the expectation.

Asked to explain his Red-hot start, Bruce said simply "Sample size."

Link to full article: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/jon_heyman/06/06/heyman.bruce/index.html

Don't know if anyone else is interested, but if any one wants to chat about the NBA finals game one, here's a spot for you.

I'm rooting for the Celtics, but I'm really not sure I like their odds of winning. KG and Ray Allen deserve a championship IMHO (especially KG).

On a related note, James Taylor doing an acoustic guitar version of the national anthem? That seems like a reach to me, and I like James Taylor.

So I played in the softball tournament down in Olympia this weekend.

First the good news:

The Mukilteo Fire Department team won, which is good, since that was the team I was playing for. I scored the winning run in the championship qualifier as a "courtesy runner" (those of you that play organized softball know what that is) in extra innings, and we won the championship game by one run (also in extra innings).

Bad news:

I completely removed all the skin on my left knee (from one side of the kneecap to the other) sliding into third base on a force play, which means every time I move my left leg even slightly it hurts like hell. I also tore the entire palm out of my new batting glove on the same slide.

The horrible news:

I wasn't able to make it to any of the places you guys suggested due to the combination of our extended playing schedule (four games each day plus extra innings and breaks between games) and the "team" wanting to go watch the UFC fights. We ended up at a place called "Charlies" and hung out there all night. Try as I might, I couldn't convince anyone to wander around downtown looking for any of the other places you suggested, even though it was a beautiful evening. Charlies wasn't horrific for the most part, but after the fights ended and the "dance club crowd" moved in, that was when I really regretted not being more pushy about seeing some of the other places that were suggested.

Side note: The Red Lion in Olympia is in about the weirdest place I've ever seen for a hotel. Really off the beaten path. Plus they have a parking lot the size of a postage stamp. Also, the Applebees about 2 blocks from Yauger Park has the worst service I've ever experienced, and the food sucked too.

Hey guys, I'm playing in a charity softball tournament this weekend in Olympia at Yauger Park. It starts early Saturday morning and ends Sunday afternoon.

I'm staying overnight Saturday at the Red Lion (looks like it's a little east of the park) rather than driving back and forth from Everett. I'm looking for ideas on good places to eat and/or hang out in the area that night (any good microbreweries?).

Any suggestions from people familiar with the area? I haven't spent any time down there since my brother was attending Evergreen State about 18 years ago, and I wasn't 21 at the time, so my experiences were geared more towards underage stuff then.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Odd info note: Yauger Park was designed not only as a park, but also to serve as a stormwater retention pond during storms. I always thought it just flooded everytime it rained. 

This just reminded me how dissapointed I am in the M's right now, c/o Jason Stark on ESPN.com:

(Mariners get Erik Bedard from the Orioles for CF Adam Jones, LHP George Sherrill, RHP Chris Tillman, RHP Kam Mickolio and LHP Tony Butler.)

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Bedard

Here's another trade that's tough to measure. Outside of a short DL stint, Bedard has been terrific, allowing a total of only seven earned runs in his five starts. But maybe this deal proves there's only so much of an impact one starting pitcher can make. His team is 11-19 when he doesn't start.

Meanwhile, Sherrill is second in the league in saves; Jones is working his way toward stardom; the upwardly mobile Tillman is limiting the Eastern League to a .198 batting average against him. And maybe the biggest impact on the Orioles, said an official of one club, was the culture change: "After 10 years of being stuck in a short-term mind-set, just the commitment to trade Bedard and [Miguel] Tejada, and to bring back some young talent and finally rebuild, is a really important step they had to take."

Scout's View: "I love Erik Bedard. But honestly, I thought Baltimore kicked [Seattle's] butt in this deal. Sherrill has done an unbelievable job. Adam Jones has star potential. And Tillman … I mean, wow. Now if they take Sherrill and move him at the deadline and turn him into something else that can help them, the Orioles made a tremendous deal."

Link to the full article: http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/story?columnist=stark_jayson&id=3386182&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab2pos1