Incomplete Pass

Mood: Polar bear's toenails
A pretty relaxed, lazy day today, to be sure. With little on the go, perhaps now just a few random notes to pass the time.

The San Diego Padres have won four in a row (currently 1-1 with the Milwaukee Brewers in the bottom of the ninth) and are one of the hottest teams in baseball. Now, I know it's the American pasttime and there's countless people out there that are crazy about the game, but even I as a fan of the Padres admit whole-heartedly I don't know how fans, at this time of year, can be jazzed about the MLB when their teams are already essentially out of playoff contention.

One hundred and sixty-two games, and not even a third of the way through the season you would be hard-pressed to convince me of a good reason why people in Houston, Kansas City, Colorado, Tampa Bay and Seattle haven't just given up. This is coming from the most die-hard of fans, remember. Still, since the Padres were swept by the New York Yankees in the 1998 World Series — that year's Yanks being one of the greatest teams in the history of the game — my fandom for the Friars has been little more than seasons of frustration highlighted by firesales and records of the sub-.500 variety.

So this year I'm reacquainting myself with the Pads and it's been enjoyable. They are atop the NL West by a couple games and have put together a couple of win streaks that has led to them being the hottest team in the month of May. The tingling sensation in the back of my brain, however, tells me: "Pump your breaks." It's not even the All-Star Break yet.

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Update: Pinch-hitting catcher Miguel Ojeda just doubled in the bottom of the ninth to drive in Geoff Blum. Padres, 2. Brewers, 1. Five straight.

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So hey, if you've got a roto team or follow a winner, then this MLB thing all makes sense. If not, ... well some of the empty parks around the league should give you that answer.

Other Notes:
• On the Jersey Wishlist are a couple of Padres entries. This Tony Gwynn throwback from the Nike Cooperstown collection and this Padres roady, which isn't retro but has the look of it.
This Lakers shooter is exactly what I need to remember the days of Yore (McAdoo, Coop, Worthy, Magic and Kareem); And my goodness, Mean Joe. I don't need to say anymore. I'll also be interested in a Louisville basketball jersey, FYI.

• Furtherto my assertion that female stand-ups simply aren't funny, allow me to present to you the ongoing career of Elvira Kurt. It's my blog, so yes I am standing up and making statements for the world on what is funny. She, is not. Not even close. And yet, there she is with a Jon Stewart-meets-Dennis Miller-style half-hour travesty called popcultured on the Comedy Network that brings her and the never-ending crop of 'budding' Canadian comedians to the fore in a laugh track-riddled piece of garbage that airs weekly.

It sometimes wows me that Canada has this rich history of comedians when I look down the list of what we have going on now. I guess the measuring stick is, if you're a comedian and you're still in Canada, you suck. For every Jim Carrey, Mike Myers, John Candy, Eugene Levy or Martin Short there is the likes of Red Green (Steve Smith), Aurora Brown, Jen Goodhue, Gavin Crawford, Roman Danylo, Terry McGurrin and the grandaddy of all the suckwads, Mike McDonald. Here's a guy who is revered as one of Canada's great stand-ups, yet can't get his ass any other gig other than the road shows he's been doing for the past two decades.

And don't tell me that the likes of Brown and Goodhue are Toronto Second City alumni. That doesn't cut it. That's the same as putting me in the same category as James Cameron because we both hold degrees from Brock University, although mine wasn't honourary.

Now CTV has gone and put the lot of them together for another run of Comedy, Inc., another example that Canadian comics that stay in Canada are the ones that can't make it elsewhere.

Keep the canned laughter close at hand.

Lyric of the day:
Sometimes you gotta dig deep, when problems come near
Don't fear things get severe for everybody everywhere
Why do bad things happen, to good people?
Seems that life is just a constant war between good and evil
The situation that I'm facin, is mad amazin
to think such problems can arise from minor confrontations
Now I'm contemplatin in my bedroom pacin
Dark clouds over my head, my heart's racin
Suicide? Nah, I'm not a foolish guy
Don't even feel like drinking, or even gettin high
Cause all that's gonna do really, is accelerate
the anxieties that I wish I could alleviate
But wait, I've been through a whole lot of other shit, before
So I oughta be able, to withstand some more
But I'm sweatin though, my eyes are turnin red and yo
I'm ready to lose my mind but instead I use my mind
I put down the knife, and take the bullets out my nine
My only crime, was that I'm too damn kind
And now some skanless motherf---ers wanna take what's mine
But they can't take the respect, that I've earned in my lifetime
And you know they'll never stop the furious force of my rhymes
So like they say, every dog has it's day
And like they say, God works in a mysterious way
So I pray, remembering the days of my youth
As I prepare to meet my moment of truth
GangStarr, Moment of Truth