Below are the 7 most recent journal entries recorded in abraveswin's LiveJournal:

Tuesday, January 30th, 2007
3:35 am	Netflix 1, Blockbuster 0 In my quest to choose one online DVD rental service, I've pitted NetFlix against Blockbuster's Total Access in an all-out head-to-head. Today, both services received a returned DVD and send me notification that my next disc was being shipped. Netflix has let me know that my new disc will likely arrive tomorrow. Blockbuster has told me I'll have to wait until next Tuesday. Now, to give Blockbuster a little credit, I did ask for a possibly-obscure Pittsburgh Pirates World Series highlight DVD, so it's possible that they only have this particular disc in an East Coast-based distribution center. But that still doesn't bode well for Blockbuster in my little competition. I've ordered similar discs from NetFlix, and most have come straight from their Tacoma-based distribution center. Except for when Sundays get in the way, that typically means a next-day turnaround. Is Blockbuster counting on their "return it immediately" policy to build slack-time into their distribution center chain? Is this an effort to cut costs - fewer nationwide distribution centers with less inventory, and fewer monthly DVDs to customers to keep costs low and profits high? Or am I overreacting less than week into my Blockbuster free trial? Time will tell... Jan 13 Update: Blockbuster today committed another DVD to the mail - with an expected delivery date of next Thursday. Every with the MLK holiday, that feels like a long ways away. Meanwhile, both of the DVDs Netflix committed yesterday arrived today. (Comment on this)
Friday, August 18th, 2006
12:17 pm	Mets in a No-Win Situation by Scott Silversten The next important game for the New York Mets does not come for 66 days. Specifically, on October 21, Game 1 of the World Series in a yet-to-be-determined American League city. Of course, that begs the question: What if the Mets do not reach the Fall Classic? And that, Baseball For Thought readers, is the problem. The Mets will be in a no-win situation when they begin the postseason. Lose in either the Division Series or National League Championship Series, and most will consider their fabulous campaign a waste. Win the NL pennant, and their grand accomplishment will seem tainted by the abject mediocrity of the competition. Fair or not, those are the facts of what the Mets face in October. Nothing short of a good showing in the World Series will be good enough. Even reaching the last week of October will not be good enough if they are easily brushed away by the AL champion. And to this I say HOGWASH! Reaching the World Series is an accomplishment in itself, especially in the era of the three-tiered playoff system. The Mets will be favored to win any NL playoff series they partake in ­ odds that would not be helped by another injury to Pedro Martinez ­ but honestly, how much of a favorite should one team be over another in a short five- or seven-game series? For those who did not notice, the Kansas City Royals recently swept a three-game set from the Boston Red Sox, while the Pittsburgh Pirates did the same to the St. Louis Cardinals. The Royals and Pirates are currently the worst teams in their respective leagues. In recent days, I've heard comparisons between the National League and the NBA's Eastern Conference of the past few years. The Eastern Conference has been incredibly weak, with sub-.500 teams qualifying for the playoffs before being quickly eliminated by the teams at the top of the conference. However, there is one distinctive difference. The bottom teams that make the playoffs in the NBA have very little chance to win even one series, let alone the championship. That is not the case in baseball, where a wild card entrant has reached the World Series in five of the last six seasons. When fans watch the Philadelphia 76ers battle the Milwaukee Bucks for the No. 8 spot in the NBA's Eastern Conference, they do so with the knowledge that neither team is long for the postseason and whichever qualifies will likely be eliminated within four of five games. With baseball, that's just not the case. Is there anyone who doubts that whichever team captures the NL wild card slot would stand a strong chance of upsetting the Mets in a Division Series match-up. Cincinnati? San Diego? Colorado? None of those teams would quake at facing an aging Pedro Martinez and Tom Glavine and the rest of the mediocre New York rotation. In this regard, the baseball playoffs are more comparable to the NCAA Tournament. All a team needs to do is qualify, and then all bets are off. Upsets are common, the best team during the regular season rarely wins the ultimate title and there is intrigue and drama along the road to the title. For that simple reason, September is going to provide an unbelievable playoff chase in the NL (people need to stop calling it a pennant chase, because a team doesn¹t earn the pennant until they win two postseason rounds). Realistically, any team that enters September within six games of the wild card lead has a shot at October baseball. All it takes is two strong weeks, much like the Los Angeles Dodgers have stormed to the front in the NL West over the last 19 days. Two good weeks! Usually it's tough to jump over so many teams in such a short amount of time, but if everyone else is grinding their gears at .500, it¹s actually easier than one might think. September in the NL should be thrilling, starting with Labor Day weekend encounters between the Dodgers and Colorado Rockies, and the Cincinnati Reds and San Diego Padres. Important games for just about every team in the NL except the Mets, who can only hope they get to play those big games in late October. Scott Silversten's column, "Age of Reason", appears every Thursday (Comment on this)
Friday, August 11th, 2006
11:41 am	At the World Series of Poker, a continuing story Yesterday I had breakfast with some of the sharpest minds in poker: Jim Brier, Barry Tanenbaum, and Dr. Al Schoonmaker. I like to get together with these guys whenever I’m in Las Vegas, and we usually meet for breakfast and breakfast usually lasts until lunchtime. Every time I think I know it all, I realize I don’t, and chatting about poker with these guys always imparts new information and reinforces what I know at the same time. It’s like going to the chiropractor and having your back adjusted, except talking to Barry, Jim, and Al adjusts my poker game and gets it back on track. After lunch I hotfooted it over to the Rio where the seniors event and the $50,000 HORSE event were slated to start. I wondered how many poker players would plunk down that kind of buy in, and I figured the number would be somewhere around 100. Word has it that one-hundred-forty-something signed up, and starting with 50,000 chips gave the entire field a lot of play. As for me, I played poker in one of the myriad side games at the Rio. It was an Omaha/8 side game that got short handed and then rebuilt again before I had to leave to attend a seminar Barry Tanenbaum gave at the Poker Stars Hospitality Suite. At the table next to me, there was a player who had won a WSOP bracelet some years ago, and was playing in a mid-limit game. He’s one of those guys who seems to have dropped from the radar screen of notable poker players. He was under funded, and judging from snippets of information I was able to overhear, is scuffling and scamming to get his head above water. These are some of the stories you don’t hear too much in poker; but they are to be found all over the poker world if you look closely enough or just overhear the right combinations. Barry Tanenbaum, my breakfast companion, gave one terrific seminar for Poker Stars. If they bring him back to give more seminars at their WSOP hospitality suite and you’re in the area, you should attend. I guarantee that whatever your level of skill, there’s something in what Barry will say to improve your game. (Comment on this)
Thursday, August 3rd, 2006
6:32 pm	UPDATE 1:23 PM What is going on? Apparently the Red Sox are about ... UPDATE 1:23 PM What is going on? Apparently the Red Sox are about to deal Coco Crisp, Craig Hansen, and prospects, and maybe Mark Loretta, to the Atlanta Braves for CF Andruw Jones? This is reported from WEEI in Boston. Then the Sox would send prospects to TB for Julio Lugo, who has yet to sign a contract extension. If this happens then give Boston the World Series favorite in the NL. This would mean the divison leaders in terms of trades: AL EAST- Red Sox POSSIBLY get Andruw Jones and Julio Lugo Central- Tigers get Sean Casey and possibly MORE West- The A's have stood pat so far WC- Yankees get Abreau and Lidle NL East- For Met,so far, nothing more than Ruben Gotay Central- Cards get 2B they need in Ronnie Belliard West- Padres are bound to make a move or two and have already gotten reliever Scott Williamson WC- Reds revamped bullpen includes Kyle Loshe and Rheal Cormier today alone, not to mention Guardado, Majewski, and others World Series Favorites-Made Moves? Yankees- Yes Red Sox- Yes* Cards- Yes* Tigers- Yes* Mets- NO Omar has to be compelled to do something, especially after players like Soriano, Lidge, and others are traded and the best teams get better. We're not trading for a playoff run, we're trading for a World Series Championship! Get it done Omar, but be prudent! (Comment on this)
Monday, July 31st, 2006
10:31 pm	World Series of Pop Cultchahhh Dammit, we really shoulda gone on this show--me and whoever. We would've at least made it through one round. I know too much worthless shit and I answer all questions in Jeopardy format: "what is...." I'm a dork. ETA: Who's in for the at-home, drinking version of the World Series at my pad some evening? We can throw together a coupla teams and play our own version along with the show! Dat'd be kinda funny. (Comment on this)
Saturday, July 29th, 2006
5:21 pm	That Time, It Counted As I watched Trevor Hoffman's improbable meltdown in the top of the 9th inning just now, I couldn't help but recall a Murray Chass piece I'd read in the New York Times earlier in the day. Here's what Chass wrote (a link to the entire article is available by clicking the headline above) when discussing Major League Baseball's policy of assigning home field advantage in the World Series to the team representing the league that wins the All-Star Game: "If there’s one viewer out there who has watched any of the past three games or plans to watch tonight because the winning league gets the World Series home-field advantage, please send me an e-mail message at mchass@nytimes.com. Include your telephone number so I can call and ask if you’re gullible about other things as well." Now I like Murray Chass' work. He's one of the best in the business, and I want to make it clear that Chass' article is not about the now 4-years-old policy. Nor is it about how nobody cares about the policy. But I couldn't help but recall this passage unfavorably tonight. The truth is that for fans like me, last night's game meant a lot more because of MLB's much-beleaguered policy. Fans like me? Yeah, you know, fans of the Tigers. Fans of the Padres. Fans of the White Sox, the Red Sox, and, dare I say it, the Yankees. Fans of teams like the Mets: teams that have a chance at the playoffs, a chance at the World Series. I am now acutely aware that the Mets will not have home field advantage in the World Series. That sucks on a couple levels. Most obvious is that we would have to go in to the opposing team's house for the first couple games. You run the risk of an early 2-0 deficit, which requires beating the opposition in 4 of the next 5 games. Always difficult. It also occurs to me that unless the Mets can win the World Series in 5 games, they won't be celebrating their first championship since 1986 in front of the home town fans. Winning a World Series is all I ever ask for, but it's always more special to win it all in front of the home town fans, when the celebration takes place in front of 55,000 screaming, elated fans rather than a sorrowful mass of "there's always next year" losers. But I should slow down. I'm getting ahead of myself here with all the Mets in the World Series talk aren't I? I'll quit it for now, but I will say that the World Series was in the back of my mind yesterday as I watched the Midsummer Classic. I used to think the "This Time It Counts" business was just a gimmick. And for about 20 teams out there it still is. But for the 10 or so teams with realistic dreams of a playoff berth, last night meant a lot more. And for the fans of the 5 or so teams in the National League with reasonable playoff hopes, well, if those fans are as much like me as I think they are, they'll remember last night's result when playoff time rolls around, and they'll be acutely aware that October got a little harder for their team one wet, soggy night in Pittsburgh back when the days were warm and the daylight wasn't so scarce. - A.F.O.M.G. (Comment on this)
Thursday, July 27th, 2006
11:27 am	You Should Be Reading... Today Otis will be following Wil ... Media Day and Fullt Tilt Gala I'm hungover again after another late night party. Last night was the Full Tilt Gala at Pure and all the biggest names in poker were out in force. CJ arrived in town and he joined Change100 and I at the gala along with several folks from the PokerStars Blog like Mad, James, and Howard. Wil snagged me an invite and I'm grateful that he didn't want to go. I hung out with the usual suspects... Friedman, Amy, Jen Leo, Caldwell, and met Howard Lederer and Annie Duke's step-mom who's a big fan of the Tao of Poker. I only took a few photos and most of them didn't come out. I guess it was one of the ten vodka and red bulls. I saw Chau Giang with a very young woman that I hoped was his daughter. Jose Canseco and Carl Lewis played in the charity tournament and I got blinding drunk with Jay Greenspan and Storms Reback at one of the twelve bars they had in the swanky club. We wanted to do shots with John Juanda! I ran into Liz Lieu who invited me to her birthday party at Pure on Sunday. Pure twice in one week? I loathe this time at the WSOP. The days before the main event are just brutally awful when hundreds of press come in from out of town (and all over the world) to set up shop all over the Rio. I'm territorial about my space in the media room. Many of us who've been here since the first week (over a month ago) have been discovering that our usually seats in the media room have been taken over by people we've never seen before. The new media reps are easy to spot versus those of us who've been here for four weeks. We have that agitated look like, "Don't fuckin' talk to me!" on our faces that are marked by dark circles around our eyes from lack of sleep. The newbie media reps are fresh off of flights to McCarran with shiny new press badges. Most of them have never been to the WSOP or a live tournament before. They go ape shit when they see Texas Dolly and rush into the ropes to take photos of the "Hot Pro du Jour." It's these same media reps who flew in the day before the main event that ruined the future of media coverage at the 2005 WSOP. In some ways, I don't blame Harrah's for placing restrictions on the media after what went down last year. Those of us who had been here for weeks were serious poker reporters and did our best to stay out of the way of the players in the tournaments. But the newbies ruined it for us. They had no experience covering a tournament and used flash photography, pestered players for interviews while they were in the middle of hands, and stood over the tables while the action went on. Even when they were told what they were doing was wrong... the still did it. What did they care? They were in town for a story and were going to get it no matter what. Harrah's was right in blocking the media's coverage during the main event on the floor last year. It was ridiculous. Gutshot had like twenty guys running around. Internet sites that I never head of before had folks running around taking photos and clogging up the aisles. Harrah's should have did a little homework this year and found out which folks are the ones who ruined the party. Those asstards who show up the day before the main event and act like idiots should bear the brunt of media restrictions... not vets like Flipchip, BJ, Otis, Amy Calistri, Dan Michalski, Mike Paulle and myself who follow poker year round on various tours like the WSOP circuit events, WPT, EPT, and UPC. It's fucked up that a small group of us that have been here since Day 1 gets punished for the actions of people we've never met before and media reps in flyover states that we'd probably never see again. Plus those idiots have been taking up all the space in the media room. I had to sit in the hallway on Monday to write because of the lack of power strips in the room. Last year at this time, I was spent and had zero energy. I tried to pace myself this year so when this time came around, I'd have some energy left in reserve to better compete against fresh troops. Last night I missed an incident in the media room involving Justin from Poker Pages. He's been here since Day 1 and working his ass off like the rest of us. Some woman came into the room and took over his seat without asking. She demanded the space. "My job is more important than yours," she barked at him. She works for the suits at Harrah's and that was the first time anyone saw her. She totally blew it too. We're not vultures like the rest of the media. If she simply asked, "Do you mind if I use your space for a few minutes until I get this done?" She would have gotten her way. Instead she was spiteful and disrespectful and throwing her weight around. She belittled the work that so many of us had been doing over the past four plus weeks. Incidents like this are growing as other media outlets send in teams of media to cover the WSOP. Last year Justin from Card Player got into a scuffle with Jesse May's camera crew. Fights among media reps are not uncommon and some of us that have been sucking down casino oxygen over the past few weeks are ticking time bombs. Harrah's is not prepared for the throngs of media circling around the tournament area like vultures jacked up on crystal meth ready to pick a part any story that they can find. As a whole, the media are like a gang of roving rapists who will force themselves onto the story even if you scream, "No!" I suggested to Nolan that the newbies get issued new badges that indicate "I just showed up for the main event" and that they should share their own media space (like in an unairconditioned tent behind the dumpster in the parking lot). It's a shame for some of my friends who had been gutting out in the trenches since Day 1 get stuck working on the floor in the hallway. Yes, I'm bitter and dealing with it. The WSOP main event is going to start on Friday and I'm going to have to adapt to these new changes in media restrictions and with the hordes of media elbowing each other to get the same fuckin' photo of Phil Ivey. I'm outnumbered and drowning in assholes. Not to fear. I'll do my best to get the story about the main event. That's why I'm really here. The first four weeks of the WSOP were just foreplay. The main event is when we all get laid. I'm better rested this year and in much better head space. I'm ready to cover the main event for several media outlets including:PokerStars Blog Lasvegasvegas.com Fox Sports and MSN Poker Player Newspaper Poker Pro MagazineOn the good news front, later today is the media/celebrity event. Last year I made the final table and took 6th place making the money. Yeah, I have one WSOP final table to my credit. I'm playing for the Charlie Tuttle Foundation... the same charity I played at last year. When I was in Nashville visiting the Spaceman and Mrs. Spaceman, we drove past the hospital on Vanderbilt's campus where the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Clinic is located. That's where my final table winnings went last year. I'm hoping to make another donation in Charlie's name this year. Yeah, I got super lucky last year and had both Glyph, Tuscaloosa Johnny, and AlCantHang on the rail for me. I won the "last longer bet" between my friends. I found A-A in back-to-back hands and busted four people including Otis. I also cracked Shannon Elizabeth's A-A with J-J and sent her to the rail. I'll do my best to return to the final table this year. In the two media events I've played in... I made the final table at both. I took 3rd at the LA Poker Classic's media event in January. Babs Enright busted me from a bad beat, one of four she issued to me that day. Stay tuned for pics and more updates. (Comment on this)