Bad Form #$@!%#$

The 1991 Guiness Book of World Records has a category of Board Games in which they list records for Backgammon, Chess, Checkers, Monopoly, Scrabble and Goose.

There is no mention of Parcheesi.

NFL Playoff Predictions

NFL Playoff Round 1 predictions:

Chiefs defeat Colts
Seahawks defeat Cowboys
Patriots defeat Jets
Eagles defeat Giants

Weigh in with a comment or your own post.

Oh..My..God!

Some years ago, a good friend of mine advised me that "the Big 10 is first and foremost, a basketball conference". I'd never viewed the Big 10 in such a light and wasn't convinced at the time of the significance of the declaration.

This morning, however, my friends' words came back to me in haunting fashion when my father announced "Penn State is undefeated in the Big 10! They're on their way to the Big Dance!"

Penn State (10-4 overall, 1-0 Big 10) defeated Northwestern (10-4 overall, 0-1 Big 10) 83-57 last night in a basketball contest.

Now, my father competed in high school football and wrestling and was an All State performer in both sports. In my entire life, he has held any contest other than football, wrestling and baseball in some degree of disdain. The fact that he even knows Penn State plays basketball is unsettling, let alone expressing optimism that the roundballers are going to have a good season.

Coming off a 20-10 Outback Bowl victory over Tennesee on New Year's Day, all expectations would be that the discussion around here would center on how well the football team played and how this performance would bode well for the 2007 campaign.

But just 3 days after a big victory by the football team, my father is crowing about the Penn State basketball team.

And I'm blogging about it.

The basketball team.

The Debate Is On

Boise States' thrilling OT victory over Oklahoma has initiated the following debate amongst the talking heads on ESPN:

Is it "Hook and Ladder" or "Hook and Lateral"?

NCAA re-classification?

The Boise State Broncos won an 43-42 OT thriller over the Oklahoma Sooners last night in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. Boise State did the same thing they've been doing for several years now in football games. They blocked, they tackled, they moved the sticks, they won the game.

The pre-game hype of "David" (BSU) vs. "Goliath" (OU) was always just hype. The notion that the non BCS conference team (BSU) wouldn't be able to "hang" with the BCS conference team (OU) was disproved. Again.

The BSU victory invokes cries of "We deserve a chance for a National Championship" from the BSU faithful. Alas, it is not to be.

For the distinction of being classified a "BCS" or "non BCS" conference has nothing to do with quality of football play and everything to do with the number of television sets in a conference' regional viewing area.

There simply are not enough television sets in Idaho for the Boise State Broncos to have done anything other than "catch lightning in a bottle".

O('s)ffseason

The O's have been busy wheeling and dealing this offseason and I have become hopeful for a winning 2007 campaign.

The acquisition of SP Jaret Wright and RPs Scott Williamson, Jamie Walker, Danys Baez and Chad Bradford mildly aids the starting rotation and almost completely revamps one of the worst bullpens in the AL.

Pitcher	W	L	ERA	WHIP	Saves
Jaret Wright	68	57	5.07	1.55	0
Scott Williamson	27	28	3.32	1.29	55
Jamie Walker	15	16	3.95	1.26	5
Danys Baez	31	37	3.79	1.31	111
Chad Bradford	27	18	3.40	1.4	9

There is hope that the addition of Wright will be more valuable than his career stats indicate. In his one full season under Mazzone (O's pitching coach) while with Atlanta, Wright posted a 15-8 record with a 3.32 ERA and 1.27 WHIP.

The corp of acquired relievers is stellar when compared to recent O's bullpens. The fact that this group has 180 Saves among them, means that O's closer Chris Ray should not have to carry the entire late inning load. In 2006, Ray was a dominant closer when rested. He was hittable when pitching for the 3rd or 4th day in a row.

The offense has been bolstered with the addition of Jay Payton (OF, .284 BA, 10 HR, 42 RBI career averages) and Aubrey Huff (1B/3B/OF, .285 BA, 20 HR, 70 RBI career). Both Payton and Huff have been solid bats throughout their careers as well as versatile defenders. This should provide O's manager Sam Perlozzo with valuable flexibility in crafting a starting lineup on a day-to-day basis that keeps hot hitters in the lineup, removes cold hitters from the lineup and provides favorable matchups against the opposing starting pitcher.

Of course, as with any baseball team, starting pitching will primarily decide a winning or losing campaign. Erik Bedard, Kris Benson, Daniel Cabrera, Adam Loewen and Jaret Wright provide 5 talented arms. If this group can realize its' potential, it will be happy days on the Chesapeake once again.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

Perhaps I'll pass on the wakeup call......

Mentzer College Football Rankings (Top 25) - After 12/03 Games

With the season finished and prior to the bowl games, here is the Mentzer Top 25. USC lost moving them down to 9th, and Notre Dame, who lost to USC moved in front of them. The fan favorite Penn State comes in at number 16 and the 4 teams they lost to are in the top 7. Boise State should be playing the Buckeyes for the National Championship, but the BCS struck and annointed Florida as the 2nd best team in the nation. If Ohio State wins, they will have beaten the #2 ranked team in the nation 3 times this season, Texas at the beginning of the year, and Michigan and Florida at the end of the year. I'll post my picks to the Bowl Games later based on my rankings.

Rank	Team	Percentile
1	Ohio State	1.0000
2	Boise State	1.0000
3	Michigan	0.9926
4	Wisconsin	0.9829
5	Florida	0.9700
6	Louisville	0.9683
7	Notre Dame	0.9607
8	LSU	0.9429
9	USC	0.9359
10	Auburn	0.9245
11	Arkansas	0.9208
12	Rutgers	0.9111
13	Tennessee	0.9102
14	Oklahoma	0.9093
15	West Virginia	0.9042
16	Penn State	0.9000
17	Wake Forest	0.8932
18	TCU	0.8726
19	California	0.8600
20	Virginia Tech	0.8571
21	Texas	0.8528
22	Texas A&M	0.8494
23	Oregon State	0.8485
24	Nebraska	0.8243
25	Hawaii	0.8144

Progress?

Today, we let the gals play.

Mentzer College Football Rankings (Top 25) - After 11/18 Games

Rankings after The Big Game and all others that occurred this past saturday. The beloved Nittany Lions climbed 3 spots for beating Michigan State, and the 4 teams that beat Penn State are in the top 5. Ohio State took over the top spot followed by Boise State and Michigan. Rutgers dropped 10 spots to number 13.

1. Ohio State 1.000
2. Boise State 1.000
3. Michigan 0.992
4. Wisconsin 0.982
5. Notre Dame 0.982
6. West Virginia 0.972
7. Arkansas 0.970
8. Louisville 0.964
9. Florida 0.961
10. USC 0.954
11. Auburn 0.932
12. LSU 0.927
13. Rutgers 0.927
14. Penn State 0.909
15. Tennessee 0.906
16. Georgia Tech 0.896
17. Wake Forest 0.892
18. Oklahoma 0.892
19. Virginia Tech 0.886
20. Texas 0.869
21. California 0.865
22. Maryland 0.854
23. Nebraska 0.850
24. TCU 0.832
25. Texas A&M 0.829

Mentzer College Football Rankings (Top 25)

Being the week that it is in Columbus, OH I thought it good time to publish my rankings for 2006 season. In case you don't know what week it is in Columbus, the FRONT PAGE of the Columbus Dispatch had a full blown picture of Ohio State vs. Michigan. Not the front page of the Sports section, but the front page of the entire newspaper. People around here seem to think that this game is a big deal.

It is the first time ever that the two teams have met ranked #1 and #2 and I'm pretty sure the first time they have met since 1934 with both teams undefeated. This may actually turn out to be a good game. Anyway, here are the rankings as I have put them together.

As for the rankings, note that Penn State is ranked 17th. This is because they have lost to #1 Michigan (0 losses), #2 Ohio State (0 losses), #5 Wisconsin (1 loss to Michigan), and #6 Notre Dame (1 loss to Michigan).

Team Points

1. Michigan 1.0000
2. Ohio State 1.0000
3. Rutgers 1.0000
4. Boise State 1.0000
5. Wisconsin 0.9868
6. Notre Dame 0.9864
7. Louisville 0.9851
8. West Virginia 0.9702
9. Arkansas 0.9630
10. Florida 0.9551
11. USC 0.9440
12. Wake Forest 0.9182
13. Auburn 0.9150
14. LSU 0.9132
15. Maryland 0.9123
16. Oklahoma 0.9048
17. Penn State 0.9007
18. Tennessee 0.8927
19. Georgia Tech 0.8916
20. Texas 0.8809
21. California 0.8762
22. Virginia Tech 0.8503
23. Nebraska 0.8469
24. Clemson 0.8315
25. Texas A&M 0.8253

Orioles Mailbag: should Hernandez DH more? Will big Russ Ortiz and Rodrigo be back?

Mailbag: Should Hernandez DH more?
Beat writer Spencer Fordin answers Orioles fans' questions

Would Ramon Hernandez have had a better season if he caught less games or spent more time as the designated hitter during the hot summer months?-- Walter B., Las Vegas

Hernandez just had the best offensive season of his career, so it's hard to say whether he would've been able to do even better. The backstop went into 2006 as Baltimore's most heralded acquisition, and he justified the acclaim by handling his job behind the plate and setting career highs in home runs (23), RBIs (91) and hits (138). Hernandez also set personal bests for a full season in both on-base percentage (.343) and slugging (.479).
The veteran managed all those numbers despite a wicked midseason slump that dropped him from the middle of the batting order to the bottom. Hernandez hit .260 or better in every month except July, when he hit .180. His power numbers dropped in the second half, but he finished the year with three homers in his last five games. In Baltimore's anemic offense, Hernandez ranked second in homers, RBIs and extra-base hits (54).
The Orioles are counting on Hernandez to produce a similar year in '07 -- preferably without the midseason swoon. And his bat is just an added benefit. The former All-Star was signed for his ability to work with young pitchers, a trait he showed in prior stops in Oakland and San Diego. If Hernandez can coax the best possible results out of pitchers like Erik Bedard, Daniel Cabrera and Adam Loewen, the O's won't care how he hits.

What are the Orioles going to do about Rodrigo Lopez? As a starter, he had the most losses in the Major Leagues. Is he going to stick in Baltimore as a reliever?-- Joshua S., Centreville, Va.

Lopez might be a lost cause. Baltimore gave him every chance to succeed, but he became just the third pitcher in franchise history to lose more than 17 games. Lopez had an ERA under 5.00 in just two months -- August (4.85) and September (3.97) -- and both came way after his season was beyond redemption. Despite all that, Lopez is still under contractual control, and the O's will likely try to trade him in the early part of the winter.
That's really the only recourse. Lopez, who holds a career record of 60-61, is a year shy of free agency. The Orioles will likely decline to offer him arbitration, because the process would all but guarantee a raise. In this case, that would mean a salary of $4 million or more. If a trade proves unlikely or impossible, Baltimore's only other option is to refuse to offer him a contract. In that case, Lopez would become a free agent.
What would be the point of losing him without compensation? In this case, it would mean saving $4 million or more. Baltimore isn't going to pay a reliever that much, and Lopez has pitched himself out of the rotation permanently. The Orioles will shop for a starting pitcher to take his spot -- even if it means paying more money. Lopez would do well to land with a National League team, where he could miss some of the game's biggest bats.

Angel Chavez, who came to the Orioles in the Jeff Conine trade, appears to be Baltimore's best shortstop in the Minor Leagues. Is he the fall-back option if the O's opt to trade Miguel Tejada?-- Jeffrey B., Camden, Maine

Chavez is an interesting player, but he can't fill Tejada's cleats. The infielder showed some pop last season -- which he split between Double-A and Triple-A -- but his true purpose in the organization is to add depth. Think of him as a supercharged Brandon Fahey, but without the ability to play left field. Tejada is the team's most indispensable player, and if the Orioles trade him, they'd likely need to land a replacement in the deal.
Chavez, meanwhile, may fit into the team's plans as a future utilityman. Second base and shortstop are the team's two strongest positions -- thanks to Brian Roberts and Tejada, respectively -- but Baltimore sorted through its utility options last season. Ed Rogers, Howie Clark and Fernando Tatis were all given chances to stick as reserve infielders, but none grabbed the job. If he ever gets the chance, Chavez may fare better.

What's the deal with Russ Ortiz? Will he be back next season?-- Emmaleigh O., Clay, W.Va.

Ortiz recently filed for free agency and most likely won't be back in Baltimore next season. The veteran went winless in 26 appearances last season and lost starting jobs with both Arizona and the Orioles. He allowed 18 home runs in 63 innings and may never regain the form that made him a strong starter with San Francisco and Atlanta. Ortiz doesn't have much velocity anymore and can't fool hitters with his breaking stuff.
Another Oriole, infielder Chris Gomez, filed for free agency at the earliest possible moment. Gomez spent two years in Baltimore and proved that he can still field adequately at every infield position. The 35-year-old does most of his damage against left-handed pitchers and will be searching for a utility job. Two years ago, Gomez signed as a Minor League free agent. This time, he may have to look for the same kind of deal.

O-R-I-O-L-E-S: Millar & Hawkins are now free agents

BALTIMORE -- Kevin Millar and LaTroy Hawkins filed for free agency on Monday, rounding out Baltimore's list of eligible players. Both veterans played with the Orioles for one season, and both may still be in the team's plans for next season.
Millar signed with Baltimore last winter and started at first base for most of the season. He surged in the second half and finished with the second-highest on-base percentage (.374) of any Baltimore regular. Millar had spent the previous three seasons with division rival Boston.
Hawkins, meanwhile, was one of the only veterans in a youth-laden bullpen last season. Baltimore leaned on him heavily late in games, and he responded with a 3-2 record and a 4.48 ERA. Hawkins served as a role model for many of his younger teammates and was popular inside the clubhouse.
Three Orioles filed for free agency over the weekend, which was the earliest possible time under the league's basic agreement. Utilityman Chris Gomez and reliever Russ Ortiz filed Saturday, the first day after the World Series, and backup catcher Chris Widger followed suit on Sunday.
Gomez spent two seasons with Baltimore, but the other two were relative newcomers. Ortiz joined the Orioles after getting released by Arizona, and Widger was a late signing after Baltimore traded Javy Lopez to Boston. Neither player contributed much in their brief auditions.
Widger got just 17 at-bats with the Orioles before a pinched nerve cut his season short. Ortiz, on the other hand, made five starts and 15 relief appearances for the Orioles. The right-hander went all season without a win and allowed 18 home runs in 63 innings as an Oriole.
Gomez missed two months with a broken bone in his right hand and only had 14 hits when September started. But he had a huge month, batting .437 (31-for-71) and finishing his season with a career-best 18-game winning streak. Gomez can still play all four infield positions.

"L-O-U-S-Y"

'Lousy' most fitting word for performance

Joe Paterno needed just six words to perfectly describe his team's performance during a 26-12 win against Illinois on Saturday.

Lousy, lousy, lousy, lousy, lousy, and for good effect, lousy.

"We're just lousy," Paterno said for the sixth and final time during a brief postgame press conference. "Can I get that across? It's spelled L-O-U-S-Y."

A graduate of Brown University's English program, Paterno probably has other words in his vernacular to sum up the Nittany Lions' effort.

Disgusting, horrendous and miserable come to mind.

"We struggled a little bit today," senior running back Tony Hunt said before reconsidering. "Well, a lot."

For the second straight week, Penn State's rushing attack faltered behind a porous offensive line. The last two games, Penn State has rushed for 26 yards on 49 attempts.

"I didn't feel like most guys out there -- including myself -- were making the second effort to get on blocks and things like that," All-America tackle Levi Brown said. "You can't have that if you want to win games."

The lack of effort was clear, as the Lions had just 184 offensive yards.

"[Paterno] used the word lousy for our offense, and I have to totally agree," said sophomore wide receiver Derrick Williams, who finished with 26 receiving yards and seven rushing yards. "Everybody needed to pick it up everywhere."

But nobody did. For Penn State's offense, momentum was nonexistent. Even after sophomore safety Anthony Scirrotto intercepted a Juice Williams pass on the Penn State 17-yard line and returned it to the Lions' 47-yard line, the offense started with no drive -- literally.

The next three plays, Penn State moved three yards, all on a run by Hunt on first down. Two incomplete Anthony Morelli passes later, Jeremy Kapinos punted, his fourth of eight eventual punts.

Subtract Dan Connor's safety, Tony Davis' fumble return for a touchdown and Scirrotto's kickoff return for a score, and Penn State's offensive production was nine points.

And while it's easy to credit Penn State's defense with the win, Juice Williams constantly confused the Lions' defense with the option, helping his team to 202 total rushing yards. Over and over again, the Illini ran the option to defensive end Tim Shaw's side, usually with success.

This week, Mike Hart, Brent Bracket and walk-on wide receiver Patrick Mauti all tried to play Juice Williams' role on the scout-team offense. Defensive end Josh Gaines even said Mauti broke a few runs for touchdowns in practice. With that said, it's not so surprising the defense couldn't stop Illinois.

If Penn State hadn't had a few timely defensive plays and a solid special teams performance, Illinois would have easily spoiled a perfect homecoming weekend in Happy Valley. In fact, the Fighting Illini should have. Penn State didn't deserve a victory Saturday, and the alumni didn't deserve an abysmal performance.

And at the end of the day, Paterno didn't even need six words to accurately judge the Lions' play. He could have done it in one -- lousy.

Arthur Rhodes files for free agency (10/29/06)

(10/29/06)

NEW YORK - One day after the World Series ended, baseball’s business season began Saturday when San Francisco’s Barry Bonds, Oakland’s Frank Thomas and the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Nomar Garciaparra headed 59 players who filed for free agency.

Oakland pitcher Barry Zito and Washington’s Alfonso Soriano are the biggest names available in this year’s free-agent class. Approximately 200 players are eligible to file by the Nov. 11 deadline, and free agents can start talking money with all teams the following day.

Under new rules this offseason, free agents do not face any deadlines to re-sign with their former teams. In the past, players had to re-sign by Dec. 7 (or Jan. 8 if offered salary arbitration) or else could not return to their former teams until May 1. The deadlines were eliminated in baseball’s new labor contract.

Among pitchers, the Chicago Cubs’ Kerry Wood and Houston’s Andy Pettitte could attract some interest. The Astros’ Roger Clemens also is eligible, but the 44-year-old hasn’t indicated whether he wants to pitch in 2007 or whether he’d consider leaving his hometown team.

Outfielder Luis Gonzalez, not wanted back by Arizona after eight seasons with the Diamondbacks, plans to play next year.

Bonds completed a $90 million, five-year contract with the Giants. He has 734 homers, 21 shy of Hank Aaron’s record, but it isn’t clear whether the Giants want him back. After missing most of 2005 because of a bad knee, Bonds batted .270 with 26 homers and 77 RBIs in 367 at-bats this year.

“A lot of players are somewhat nervous or apprehensive about becoming free agents because of all the uncertainty,” Bonds’ agent, Jeff Borris, said Saturday. “Barry has nerves of steel. That’s also evident in the way he plays baseball.”

Five players filed Saturday from the New York Mets: outfielders Cliff Floyd and Ricky Ledee, pitchers Orlando Hernandez and Steve Trachsel and shortstop Chris Woodward.

Five players also filed from Philadelphia — catcher Mike Lieberthal and pitchers Arthur Rhodes, Rick White, Randy Wolf and Aaron Fultz — along with five from San Diego.

Three players filed from the New York Yankees: infielder Miguel Cairo, reliever Octavio Dotel and outfielder Craig Wilson.


© 2006 The Associated Press.

Insight

Weaseling out of things is important to learn. It's what separates us from the animals ... except the weasel.
-- Homer Simpson

Gettysburg Times (10/23/06: Officials pestered by pigeon population

BY SCOT ANDREW PITZER
Times Staff Writer

Gettysburg leaders are pestered by pigeon droppings peppering the rooftops of borough buildings.
For years, Gettysburg Borough Council has explored methods of ridding the municipality of the havoc-inducing winged pests.
The borough has budgeted $2,000 in past years for poisoning related purposes.However, that method doesn’t appear to be working.
Borough officials discussed the pigeon matter during a budgetary workshop Thursday evening.
Officials want to invest in a better population control option.
“We’ve been paying to poison the pigeons for a long time,” said finance director Ramona Overton. “It’s not working.”
The pigeon problem is frequent in at least five or six quadrants of the borough.Particularly, the burgeoning population flutters through the heart of town — Lincoln Square.
The birds frequently deposit waste products, which decay buildings, vehicles, and destroy property.
“They’re bad at my house,” said councilman John Murphy, a Long Lane resident.
The birds are also spotted regularly atop the roof at the historic Gettysburg Railroad Station on Carlisle Street.
Overton suggested investing in a method that would permanently address Gettysburg’s surging pigeon community.
“We should spend it once, and then we’re done,” Overton told borough officials, “insteadof paying for it again and again and again.”
Permanent deterrent methods — such as roof top metal spikes — could replace the present day pigeon control poison.
The borough finance director said ample funds are poured out of the municipality’s wallet,year after year, and it might be financially prudent to invest in a permanent solution, instead of temporary relief.
“Has the previous method not worked?” asked councilwoman Holly Giles.
Overton replied: “Don’t you see the pigeons? There doesn’t seem to be many solutions.”
Councilman Marty Qually suggested another solution.He said he was in favor of creating a municipal policy that would require property owners to help dispose of the unwelcome feathery creatures.
Contact Scot Pitzer at 334-1131, ext. 247 or spitzer@gburgtimes.com.

Pumpkin Carving

Happy Halloween!

P.S. My friends and I did this!

Your hangy ball...

...has a purpose! You've seen it. It dangles in the back of your throat like a piece of jewlery. I've always wondered, but I've never really known what its good for.

Somewhere along the way, I learned that the hangy ball (uvula) serves as a barrier against bacteria and other sources of infection along with the tonsals. This turns out to only be partially true. Interestingly, the tonsals and uvula aren't very good at this job and get infected themselves regularly. Their removal is one of the most common surgeries in all of medicine.

The uvula actually serves its most important purpose in newborns! It turns out that in newborns, the back of the throat is still developing, and these newborns haven't quite mastered the skill of breathing and eating separately and getting everything down the correct holes in the back of the throat. In these newborns, the uvula is positioned so that as they nurse they can drink milk and breath at the same time! As we grow, the back of the throat becomes elongated, so that the uvula no longer can hang in such a position, and thus we have to choose between swallowing and breathing, and can no longer do them simultaneously.

Election Season

The 2006 national election season is well under way. The most notable twist so far, the Republicans have sex scandals and the Democrats have money scandals.

Go Team!

It's been a treat to follow the Vikes so far this season. Although the offense has been anemic, the defense has been solid. In their worst effort of the first 5 games, they surrendered 19 points to the Bears, who lead the NFL in scoring thru 5 games.

Of course, the Vikings have produced respectable defensive efforts in September and October of past seasons, only to falter in the stretch.

This is a new team, though, with a new owner, a new head coach, much new personnel and a refreshingly new attitude. They have some young receivers on the offense that could develop into a reasonable offensive threat.

The Vikings are currently 3-2. If the defense stays tough and the offense comes around a little, they've got a shot at the post season.

Irony

Here is a little irony for you. I just took my second medical school examination (this one only lasted 7.5 hours, rather than a full 8 hours like the first one)on thursday. This examination was on the abdominal and pelvic cavities. Included in that is the large and small intestines, and at the junction of the large and small intestines is the appendix (also known as the veriform appendix (meaning "worm-like" appendix)).

Here is the irony. After three weeks of intense study on that region of the body, one of my classmates had to be rushed out of the exam on thursday to the emergency room. She had appendicitis, and needed an emergancy appendectomy!

After visiting her in the hospital yesterday I found out that she believes her appendix became ill to spite her. When we dissected out the intestines and appendix two weeks ago, she had made fun of the appendix that her cadaver had, calling it "small and stupid."

I suppose her appendix didn't want to stick around where it wasn't appreciated...

A Patriot's Tale

"I have a big ass flag! But I can't remember how I got it."

- Rudy the Patriotic American

Tradition

The Orioles traditional season ending swoon has hit full stride. The O's are 6-13 in September with 10 games remaining in the season against the Tigers, Twins, Yankees and Red Sox. Even the mighty Markakis has succumbed to tradition, hitting .221 thus far in September.

Eric Bedard has continued to pitch well notching his 15th win of the season in his last start to go with a 3.62 ERA. Well...., he's Canadian and I suspect he doesn't give a damn about tradition.

Adam Loewen has pitched well enough since returning from Triple A to post a winning record at this point (6-5). Loewen hails from Canada as well.

Hayden Penn finally managed to post a good start (against the Devil Rays) going 6 2/3 IP while allowing 2 ER, lowering his ERA from 27.00 to 15.43 since being called up at the beginning of September. He's from California.

The O's magic number for securing their traditional finish in the East is 3.

Ditka

Stuff from the last two weeks...

The past two weeks have been a whirlwind here at PSU College of Medicine.

First, I took my very first medical school exam on Aug 31st. It was a 7 hour exam (starting at 1pm and ending at 8pm) with two breaks. The first break was at 3:30 and it last 15 minutes and the second break was taken at 5pm and lasted approximately 5 minutes. I have gotten my scores back and although my grades weren't as high as I have experienced in the past, they were passing, and as the saying goes, "P = MD"

On Sept 5th, I dissected a man's testicles... Gentlemen, you can take pride in the overly-complicated system you manage to maintain down there. It's really not just a "ball sac." Enough said.

Today I had to purchase a opthalmascope and an otoscope... cost: $598. I realize these are fancy names, but these tools are basically magnifying glasses with attached light bulbs. The costs are really outrageous!

Over the past few days we have been dissecting out the long and short intestings, the stomach, the liver, spleen, kidneys etc. A few points of interest:
-the liver is the largest organ in the body
-your gall bladder is a seaweed green color and all the organs, tissue, fasia, and viscera surrounding it are also seaweed green from bile stains... I've seen it first hand! Please understand that the rest of your "insides" are some shade of pink (despite how text books draw them), so the gall bladder really, REALLY sticks out!
-there are three portions to your small intestine, all having goofy names: duodenum (do-odd-in-umm), jejunum (Jay-june-num), and ileum (ill-E-umm, okay this one isn't that goofy).
-your colon starts at your right hip, then ascends up to your right rib cage, then transversus the abdomen following the path of your ribs (you can trace it out with your finger), and then descends down the left side to your left hip, and then travels to the back of the pelvis where it forms the rectum. Despite taking the toughest biology classes Biglerville High School had to offer and 3 biology classes at F&M I was never aware of the length of the colon. I always just assumed it was a short intestinal organ right inside your anus. That ain't true at all! It's big and it goes places.
-here are some funny medical school words that I've run into: gubernaculum (goob-er-nac-you-lum, a ligament that pulls the testes into the scrotum right before birth), lunule (loon-you-all, there are a bunch of these in the body), appendixes applicae (mall fat globs hanging of the large intestine),and lienorenal (lean-no-ree-nal, a ligament extending from the spleen to the kidney).

Sports Column (Gettysburg Times): "Superstitions"

(This Gettysburg TImes sports page column is running this weekend. Enjoy. SAP)

BY SCOT A. PITZER
Times Staff Writer
__________________

Believe in jinxes?
What about superstitions?
Of course not.
I don’t either.
Unless the Pittsburgh Steelers are playing.
I know, it’s silly to think that fans actually have an influence on the outcome of a game.
I’ve heard stories about hardcore sports fans who — in fear that they might snap a winning streak, or harm their team’s playoff chances — go weeks without showering, changing their socks, or shaving.
(Don’t worry. I shower every day.)
Such superstitions are silly.
But whenever your team is 7-5 in December, and must win-out its regular season schedule just to BARELY qualify for the NFL playoffs, fans will resort to anything.
Count me as one of those fans.
Two close friends of mine married one another last fall, so naturally, I bought them the perfect wedding gift: football jerseys.
The female is a Steeler fan, while the male is a passionate Philadelphia Eagles supporter (I know — quite a combustible relationship, is it not?).
As I was forking over the $100 for the two custom jerseys, I figured heck, if I’m going to spend this kind of cash, I might as well buy me one too.
So I did.
A #7 Roethlisberger jersey.
I wore it for the Dec. 11 game versus Chicago.
Pittsburgh won, 21-9.
The next weekend, the black-and-gold ventured to Minnesota.
Again, I wore the #7 jersey.
We won that game, 18-3.
Dumb luck, perhaps, but the Steelers were 9-5.
Playoff hopes remained alive.
The next week, I again wore my new jersey, and we shellacked Cleveland 41-0.
Why ruin a good thing?
I dedicated myself to wearing that black home jersey for the rest of the season.
In Pittsburgh’s 16th and final contest against the Detroit Lions, the Steelers won 35-21, and earned the sixth and final AFC playoff berth, a Wild Card spot.
During the work week leading up to the first playoff game, a clash in Cincinnati against the Bengals, I recall a conversation with Times sport editor Josh Martin.
“There is no way we’ll beat the Bengals,” asserted Josh, also a die-hard Steeler fan, “and then go up to Indianapolis and beat them, and then beat Denver or New England in the title game. It just ain’t going to happen.”
The chances, yes, were slim.
But the Steelers won three road playoff games in a row and, of course, culminated their spectacular post-season run with a Superbowl win against the Seattle Seahawks.
And I watched it all wearing my Roethlisberger jersey.
You can only imagine my fear in June when I learned Big Ben was involved in a motorcycle accident that almost claimed his life.
Miraculously, he recovered, and was slated to play Thursday in the Steelers’ 2006 season opener.
But more trouble materialized.
Last weekend, the franchise quarterback was hospitalized, and doctors performed an emergency appendectomy.
The surgery prompted coach Bill Cowher to announce that Ben would not play against the Miami Dolphins in the season opener.
Great.
Ben’s not playing, so do I (a) wear his jersey for Game #1 — the same uniform i wore when we won eight games in a row last year to close out the regular season — or do I (b) scrap the good luck charm, and dress myself in other apparel?
If I choose option (a), I risk jinxing my own superstition.
Can’t do that, now can I?
Furthermore, if I wear the jersey, and we lose to the Fish, I taint the shirt’s legacy.
When the clock ticked its 11th hour, even though backup Charlie Batch was at the helm, leading the Steelers’ charge, I wore my Roethlisberger jersey.
Pittsburgh beat the Dolphins Thursday night, 28-17.
But I don’t believe in superstitions.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Scot Pitzer is a Times staff writer.

NEWSPAPER COLUMN: Mentzer Family wiffleball bash

Saturday, 090906

My sister’s unforeseen appearance at Grandma Mentzer’s holiday picnic Monday stymied the entire family.
Unfortunately, her wide assortment of knee-buckling pitches didn’t fool anybody.
When the dust settled at Mentzer Field, the Aunts-and-Uncles Team had scored 18 runs off of Jamie Lynn’s right arm.
Somehow, the Nieces-and-Nephews Team scored 19.
As always during these clashes, the unexpected materialized:
• Aunt Vicki and Aunt Sharon each had two hits;
• Dad belted two homers, including a grand slam;
• cousin Megan brought her new boyfriend to the picnic, so of course, the Aunts-and-Uncles Team recruited him. During his first at-bat, he lined one into the shortstop hole. I lunged to my right, barehanded the ball, and fired it across the diamond to Megan, our first-baseman. As she caught the ball, her boyfriend plowed into her. Pappy Mentzer, the umpire, called him out;
• Aunt Patti, the second batter of the game, cleared the vehicle-lined outfield fence for her first career homer, prompting Pappy to say at game’s end, “There were a lot of highlights, but Patti was the one I didn’t expect;” and
• the game went into extra innings. Pappy remarked during the post-game handshake, “I’ve watched these games for a lot of years, and I don’t remember the last time it went extra innings.”
Our statistician is currently looking that one up.
Truly, it was a game our family will never forget.
— Scot A. Pitzer

Labor Day Whiffle Ball Results

(Click on image to enlarge)