Go, Cards!!!

61 years, people! Arizona has waited 61 years to get to the NFC Championships. The bird has matured--it might have lost that insane "That's it, now you've gone too far" glint in its eyes, but it is replaced by a reasoned determination.

OMG! TOUCHDOWN CARDINALS!!



UPDATE:











(artwork by Nonny Nu, copyright 2009)

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Chinese Swan Lake

Wow! You guys have to watch this (courtesy of Mr. and Mrs. 3-Fish! It's the Chinese Circus doing their rendition of Swan Lake. They should have used this chick in the Olympics instead of the infants. I bet it really hurt when she stood on that one guy's skull. I know this because whenever Skillet or Kash stand on me with their little pointy feet, all of their weight is supported on four points and it's like having someone stab you with a dowel. Can you imagine how much pressure she's putting on that guy's head?? Ouch. Of course, only the Chinese would come up with something so artful, incredible, and ridiculous at the same time. Hey, I wonder how it will look if I stand on one toe on the top of your head? Let's try it!

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Is it so wrong?

Okay, folks, I have a confession to make. I have very little experience dancing. In fact, I would categorize myself in the "don't know how to dance" category. Sure, I have my little "moves" that I do around the house, but it's not really something that people should be exposed to. But, ever since I got the Richard Simmons DVDs, I think I've really improved! I am now proficient at the Cha Cha. I can do the stir and the rumble. I am okay at doing the X's. So, here's the question I have for you: Is it so wrong to learn to dance from Richard Simmons?? I think I look pretty good.

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Was ist das?

Over the weekend, I have been doing the Rosetta Stone German lessons. So fun!! But, was ist das?
Why, it's a before and after photo of the teriyaki dove that Cl. Panic gave to me to sample last week. Yum! You know that it's a rare treat when someone gives you something to eat and says, "Watch out for the bb's." When asked how the dove was de-feathered, Cl. Panic drew a diagram of a dove on my whiteboard:
(emphasis added in red). He explained that doves are not so much de-feathered as they are just skinned. There's a "soft spot" on the dove right below the breast. All you have to do is grab it and pull its skin right over its shoulders (like when humans take off a t-shirt--except someone is doing this for you and it's a skin t-shirt). Once the "t-shirt" is removed, everything else seems to go along with it except the wings and the breast. So, what you do is chop one wing off so that you can identify it as a dove when you transport it. These birds are so accommodating! Their bodies are so easily converted into a carry-out version!

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Richard Simmons

I really love this guy. Richard Simmons is so genuine and so caring. He has a show on Sirius on Sundays and I love to drive around town on errands and listen to him call up people and cheer them up. I just ordered "SuperSweatin': Party Off the Pounds" and "SuperTonin': Totally Tonin'" (with the rings, of course). The only thing that is bumming me out is that it will take 2-4 weeks for delivery! I will be sticking with Yoga for Beginners until then.

Here is Richard testifying in front of Congress (can you believe he is 60 years old?). I know that this may come across as a bit over the top to some, but I think it is coming from the heart. And, I think his idea is great.



Here is the link for Richard's Fit Kids Bill. And, here is Richard talking about the bill on David Letterman:

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Is it just me?

You may all already know about the age controversy brewing over in Beijing about the possibility that the Chinese female gymnasts are not quite 16 years old (the age requirement for this year's Olympics). So far, there have only been allegations based upon documents that were not created by the Chinese government. Now, Stryde Hax has found what appear to be official Chinese documents indicating that He Kexin is not 16 years old. The IOC has finally ordered an official investigation into this issue.

But, my beef is not with her age. My beef is with her last name--"He." In reading these articles about He, I find myself re-reading sentences because my first reading misleads me into believing that "He" is used as a pronoun. Halfway through the sentence, I realize that they are talking about "her," so I have to retrace my steps and re-read the sentence again. Is it just me?

Stryde Hax's investigation is definitely quite juicy. He may be stripped of her medals.

SEE??

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Rowing? ROWING???

Geez, Louise. Hours of rowing coverage and yet they only show the last half of the last set of the gold medal match of Badminton?? Cripes. What elitist jackass planned the weekend coverage? We are bored out of our minds on the Olympics right now, but can't turn the channel because track is coming on "any minute now." What a crock.

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Nastia Liukin: "Take that, underage bitches!"

Okay, maybe she didn't really say that, but you know she was thinking it. Congratulations to Nastia Liukin, my new go to girl (after Svetlana retired), for winning the All-Around gold medal! I know that Shawn Johnson was the favorite, but I have been cheering for Liukin since the qualifications. The team competition the night before had left a bad taste in my mouth, but I was really glad to see Nastia stick her vault and then kick ass on the uneven bars. Her balance beam and floor exercise routines were the most graceful of all the competitors.

Here is the video of all of her routines.

Yay, Nastia!


P.S. OMG, the Nus are watching track right now and there's a Chinese guy, with glasses on, getting ready to run the race. The conversation is as follows:

NN: "So, is he going to run with glasses on??"
Mr. NN: "Well, he's going to run with Blacks on. That's his real problem."

Sure enough, dude comes in last.

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Boston (Day 1)

MonkeyPig and I are each others' favorite sister. It's true. We love to hang out with each other even more than we love to hang out with our other sisters, if that is even imaginable. It has been a while since we went on a road trip, so we went to Boston for a 6 day, 7 night, Thelma and Louise-style extravaganza. I even got a brand new camera. It worked out great!

MP arrived in Boston late Saturday night and I arrived early Sunday morning (around 5am). But, even though MP was only in Boston for a few hours, she had already located Chinatown. Our first stop, in fact, was at a Chinese bakery (since it was so early, that was the only thing that was open. We got a few "Big Baos" (they really were big), and we went on our way back to the hotel for a couple hours of sleep before the festivities began. That's MonkeyPig to the right, refreshed from her beauty sleep.

So, first things first, right? Yes. We went back to Chinatown to get some breakfast. Of course, we wanted to go "yum tsa" (literally, "drink tea" meaning eat dim sum). So we walked around trying to figure out which restaurant to choose. Along the way, we found a Chinese McDonalds and a Dunkin' Donuts (left) and a fresh produce stand (bonus points to anyone who can identify this spiny fruit). Finally, we decided on Empire Garden. It was less than MMD--they couldn't even get the veggies right! Very disappointed.

OH, this might be a good time to introduce "Hermie." Hermie is a GPS device we call Hermie "Hermie" because Hermie is smart like Hermione in the Harry Potter series, but also because Hermie can be both female or male (Hermie has two voice options). MP just LOVES and TRUSTS Hermie. Here they are having a meeting to discuss plans before we head out from the Chinese restaurant.

We decided to take The Freedom Trail, which is a 5 mile long trail through the city of Boston where you can see a bunch of historical landmarks. It was very informative, but I believe a large part of it was due to our guide being awesome. Our guide played the role of James Otis. Yeah, that name didn't ring a bell with me either. Our guide told us all about him, though. Otis was the a lawyer in Boston in the 1700s and advocated that taxation without representation is tyranny.
He was a part of many of the discussions that formed the basis of the Declaration for Independence and Constitution. However, in an unsuccessful assassination attempt, Otis was bludgeoned on the head and he was never the same afterwards. Very unfortunate. But, his ideas and goals remain. So, off we went on the tour (you just follow the red line or the double bricks)...


Boston Commons We started at the Boston Commons, which is a plot of land set aside by Boston long ago for public use. Back in the day, anyone could just start making speeches here and lively debate would ensue.







Boston City Hall
Boston shows support for its home team. Of course, now that we are in the championships, Go Lakers!







Park Street Church
Built in 1809, this church is one of the oldest in the nation.











Historical Cemetary
This cemetary included the graves of many patriots and historical figures, including John Hancock, James Otis, Paul Revere, Mother Goose, Robert Paine, Sam Adams, and the "victims" of the Boston Massacre (more on that later).






North Church
This was the church where the lantern hung indicating that the British were attacking by land ("one of by land, two if by sea"). Also, there is a nice plaque in the sidewalk explaining the historical significance of the church (I was standing next to the plaque when I took the photo to the left). When we got there, there was another tour guide with his group. There was also a display for the current soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.




The Latin School
This was a very old school founded in the 1830s. Here's the front view and a close up of Benjamin Franklin's statue.










The Old Corner Bookstore
This is an old bookstore. The structure was built in 1711, and became a bookstore in 1829. Hawthorne, Longfellow, Stowe, Emerson, and Thoreau was published out of this bookstore.










Old South Meeting House
This is the meeting house where the Boston Tea Party idea was hatched.











Old City Hall
This is the old city hall building. Back in the mid-1900s, Queen Elizabeth came for a visit and stood in the balcony waving to people. At that time, she was presented a check for 33,000 pounds, the tax owed on all the tea that was dumped into the Boston Harbor (no interest). The check was never cashed.








Site of the Boston Massacre
Just across the street (not even, really, this is on a median in the middle of the street) from the old city hall is the site of the Boston Massacre. The Boston Massacre described by the American (or, Colonial) press of the day as being a massacre of 6 children by British soldiers. According to the press, the British soldiers came upon the children and just mowed them down. But, fact is even stranger than fiction. The 6 children were really teenagers who were throwing snowballs laced with rocks and glass at three British soldiers. Soon, a mob of over 300 colonists arrived and were taunting the soldiers with shouts of "shoot, shoot, shoot." The soldiers raised their rifles to defend themselves but did not shoot. Unfortunately, at the same time, a fire had broken out at a nearby homestead and some people in the mob yelled "fire." That's when the soldiers, mistaking the colonists' screams of "fire" for a command from their commanding officer opened fire. The soldiers were later acquitted of murder, but this, of course, was not widely reported.

Paul Revere's House
Just around the corner is Revere Mall (and then the Old North Church). Here's MP serving as a frame. What was neat was that the sun was going down at this time, and we noticed that this area had working gas street lamps.






Old Ironside










Bunker Hill













We ended the tour and said goodbye to our wonderful tour guide. But, we were tired so we rested for a bit in a small park. MP, being the slut that she is, started flirting with some dude there. However, when he mentioned something about being a Starbucks fan and a huge discussion ensued. Eventually, they kissed and made up.

By this time, I almost lost my appetite, but not quite (it takes a lot for me to lose my appetite). So we headed to a Malaysian food restaurant (Layang). This place was AWESOME!

...there's more to this story--click me!

Yay, Suns!!

Awesome game today against the Spurs!! Final score was 87-94. Despite the assclowns commenting on the game it was a very enjoyable experience. They were neck and neck practically the whole way through, but it looked that Shaq is starting to "get it." The last time I watched him play, he always missed the passes. But, he got a few this time. Also, he was great with the boards, both offensive and defensive.

The worst thing, though, is that the Suns have dropped from number one to number 6. I am hoping that we will pull through this year and get through to the finals. *crosses fingers*

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Don't Stare at The Sunsby Man from U.N.C.L.E. (guest blogger)

The Phoenix Suns (Mr. NN's favorite team) made a big trade right before the NBA trade deadline that was supposed to secure the top spot in their Western Conference playoff run over 2006-07 chumps San Antonio, the Dallas Mavericks and the hated L.A. Lakers. When I say big, I mean man mountain big. All 340 pounds of Shaquille O'Neal, all 340 pounds squeezed into his little Suns uni, all 340 pounds brought in to Phoenix to add strength and toughness to the formerly run and gun Suns. And after Shaq's first 6 games, it appears that all those 340 pounds do is to block out the Suns. The Suns have a 2-4 record with Shaq in the line-up and have fallen out of the top spot in the Western Conference.

Is this a case of the rich getting greedy? Was it worth the sacrifice to get a formerly great player that had been slowed in recent years by injuries sustained from the constant pounding he had taken over a 15 year playing career, one that really could never fit into the system that had been successful all these years? Was Shawn Marion, the main player let go by The Suns, such an unsettling force in the locker room that Suns G.M Steve Kerr had to get rid of him even if it destroyed the magical chemistry that The Suns seemed to have on the court? Marion (who was my favorite player on the Suns) has such a unique combination of outside shooting touch, the ability to fill the lane on a fast break to be on the receiving end of all those miraculous Steve Nash passes, and is capable of defending all five other positions of the opposing team's line-up. Shaq, by comparison, is just a huge immobile mountain of - yes, I'll say it - fatness, and it has completely changed the Suns game.

Have you ever thought something looked so good you had to have it, but then when you got it home it just didn't fit with the rest of your stuff? Has something seemed so desirable until you had a chance to try it out, and discovered that what you had before was better? I think the Suns are finding that out the hard way.

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My Favorite Gymnast

This morning, Mr. Nonny Nu and I watched the Tyson gymnastic competition on TV. Even though there were quite a few excellent gymnasts there, none of them really caught my eye. Nobody had any distinctiveness to them. Right now, a mere three hours later, I can't even remember what I saw. But, one gymnast I will always remember is Svetlana Khorkina.

Svetlana is the tallest female gymnast I've ever seen. Here she is as a child with her teammates (she's the one on the left). At an early age, all the coaches said she was too tall and wouldn't work with her, except for coach Boris Pilkin. He stuck with her through it all, and what a treat they've given the world. Svetlana isn't just a pretty face. She has been described as the Anna Kournikova of gymnastics, but this is a complete insult to Svetlana, since Svetlana is actually GOOD at her sport. But, because she is really so talented, I felt very bad for her at the 2000 Olympics. She and her teammates were just completely failing at the vault, but it wasn't until after her entire team had warmed up and done their first runs (scored) did they discover that the vault was 5 cm too low. Unfortunately, the whole team had either messed up their landing, if not outright hurt themselves:


Svetlana has a huge number of fans all over the world, and what happened to her at the 2000 Olympics only won her more fans. She is an innovative gymnast (there are 8 gymnastic moves named after her, more than any other gymnast) who never gave up her dream, even though all the "experts" told her she couldn't do it.

Transworld interview (including historical info):



Vault:


Uneven Bars:


Balance Beam:


But, BY FAR, my favorite is her floor exercises. She always has the best choreography and she is always completely into her routine. Her expressions are fantastic. This is my all-time favorite routine (especially the toe taps at 1:06 and the end):


Sorry about the commentators on this one. The lady is saying that Svetlana is too skinny and isn't womanly. Um, that's her signature, genius. The wondrous thing about Svetlana is how old she is and how tall and skinny she is. How she doesn't knock her head on her routines is a mystery:


At her last Olympics in 2004:

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Going Home to Phleger

Ah...it was nice to go home. Stillman and I hadn't gone hiking since last July when MonkeyPig visited HQ. Part of the reason was that Stillman had knee surgery, and part of the reason was I was too busy eating on the weekends between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Now that Stillman's knee is ready to face the wild again and I am face to face with my New Year's resolution, we have begun our hikes again. And, what better place to start it all off again than the Phleger Estate? Yes, it was like coming home again. There were so many little nooks and crannies that became familiar again once we came across them.

One thing that was unusual was the packed parking lot. Turned out that there was some sort of foot race being run out of the park, but not on the trail. So, off we went into the forest.

There were so many things that I had forgotten but was reminded of again when I went into Phleger! We went past the spot where I had first met the kung fu master. She wasn't there today, though. But, you know who was there? The Banana Slug Welcome Back Parade! Sometimes, when we think about trees and shrubs standing still or the banana slugs living solitary lives since they move so slow, we forget that they really are a community together. I mean, look at the parade they organized for us, right? And, look at the trees and their vine entourages. These are not solitary things, after all.

It was really nice to walk along the trail under the overhanging tree trunks. The heavy canopy kept the rain off, but when we got to the part with the chaparral, we felt a bit of the rain on our heads. We were struck with a sense of nostalgia as we encountered our first switchback:



But, there were so many new things! Since, I only started hiking last April, I have never seen the trails in Winter. There was a lot of fresh, new moss. This was the most mossed single-standing structure. And, since it was so soon after the rains, the brook was REALLY babbling:



And, the birds were really chirping:



We also saw a whole bunch of new mushrooms sprouting up:
Clump 1
Clump 2
Clump 3

Also, we witnessed one of the first blooms of the season. Stillman and I thought it was an iris, but Professor Know-It-All says that it's a Slink Pod (of the Lily Family). But, it was a day of learning for me. Stillman explained that, if you look carefully, you will see a dead tree in the middle of a ring of new trees. This is because the dead tree in the middle (the parent) sprinkled acorns from its branches around their trunks. Then, when a fire goes through and burns through the forest, the parent tree dies, but the fire helps the acorns to start growing into trees. We saw quite a few examples of large burnt out tree stumps surrounded by new growth on our hike.

Speaking of old and new growth, any one want some nice fungus? Check this out. They're fresh and there's plenty for everyone! The soft orange puffy ones seem to be new fungal growth that will mature into the harder looking ones. (I left them in high resolution so you all can see what I'm talking about.) These guys are also glow-y. Here, take a closer look.

One last thing that was new was a real live lizard! I've shown you guys lizards in still-life format before, but here is one on the move:



At the end of the day, we were bid farewell by our old friend, The Graffiti Rock. As you can see, the graffiti others had left was erased by the moss' regrowth. Of course, I had to leave my mark. (YAY, GIANTS!)

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I feel like crap, but I hope the Giants win!

Went hiking today with Stillman. I thought that the canopy of the trees would keep the rain off, and I really didn't feel that much rain on me. Stillman, being the mother hen that she is, kept telling me that I was going to get soaked. I thought my sunny disposition would prevent all that. Again, I was wrong. I felt fine throughout the hike and when I got home. Then, I went grocery shopping, and I think I might have gotten further soaked at that time. When I got home, I had a headache. I couldn't even eat my Chicken McNuggets. Now, that should tell you how sick I was. So, I called it a night pretty early, and right before I showered, I barfed. Yeah, it's been a long time (I'd say over a year) since I barfed. I'm generally a healthy rabbit. Never even had the flu.

Anyhow, it's kinda fun being sick. Plus, SuperBowl will be on tomorrow!! I don't really know these two teams. I really only started watching football during the finals. But, Tom Brady? NO THANKS. (No, I'm not a Bridget Moynahan fan.) And, that 18-0 record? It must be vandalized...

Go Giants!!

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I TOTALLY CALLED IT!!

As some of you might know, Mr. Nonny Nu is partly from Phoenix, AZ. That's why we are a Suns and Cardinals household. I am more a basketball fan than a football fan, so I only watch football sporadically. But, for a little over a year now, I have noticed a marked difference in the Cardinals' logo. The bird has lost something. It used to look like a righteously indignant bird, pushed past the point of no return by repeated unprovoked injustices. Its lips were pursed and the glint in its eyes told me that there was no way this bird was going to take it anymore. NO WAY. Now, the new logo looks, well, a bit less annoyed. More evil and more proactive, but something was missing.

Well, we are at halftime during the San Francisco Forty-Whiners v. Arizona (New) Cardinals, so I just looked up the logo change. SURE ENOUGH, this change has been documented (here):

Arizona brushes up logo of outdated bird
45-year-old Cardinal image gets first, meaner makeover

updated 4:09 a.m. ET Jan. 29, 2005

TEMPE, Ariz. - The Arizona Cardinals have given their old bird a makeover.

The Cardinal head that has served as the team’s logo since 1960 — when the franchise moved from Chicago to St. Louis — has been subtly transformed into a sleeker, meaner creature. The updated version was unveiled with great fanfare at Cardinals headquarters on Thursday.

“A tough bird,” team owner Bill Bidwill said. “Hopefully it will be worn by tougher and faster and meaner players.”

Yet to come is what Cardinals vice president Michael Bidwill called “a revolutionary” change in the team’s uniforms, to be shown this spring.

Defensive end Bertrand Berry will wear the new logo on his helmet in next month’s Pro Bowl.

The old Cardinal logo was a roundhead bird derisively referred to as a “parakeet.” The new version has decidedly more evil eyes and a menacing expression.

“The outline is in black,” Michael Bidwill said. “We’ve made the beak much more predatory and much more aggressive. The face is much more streamlined. It’s faster looking. The eye has been described as mean, we’ll say tough. We’ve taken tail feathers and given them speed, as well.”

The new beak is gold, while the old one was yellow.

“As they say, it’s not the size of the bird in the fight, it’s the size of the fight in the bird,” coach Dennis Green said. “The cardinal is a small bird, but it can be a very aggressive bird. That’s the idea.”

Several prominent Cardinals — including Josh McCown, Larry Fitzgerald and Leonard Davis — modeled apparel with the new logo.

With his rural Texas background, McCown was asked if he was something of an expert on birds.

“The only birds I know about are the duck and the dove and the quail, birds that you shoot,” the Cardinals quarterback said. “You’re not really supposed to shoot cardinals. I don’t know if I’d shoot this bird. It looks pretty mean. This bird might pull a gun out and shoot right back at you.”

The changes are part of the team’s preparation for its move into a new stadium, set for completion by the 2006 season opener.

Okay, so do I know my dear Arizona Cardinals logo or what? Anyhow, here, take a look:The one on the left is the old one, the one I have known all these years. It has lost its pursed lips, and the "Why, you son-of-a-bitch!" look in its eye. It used to look like a bird who was trying to live in peace with the world, but the world just kept pushing and pushing, and now, it had finally had enough. It would not be talked out of its decision to fight back. There was an irrational but explained stubbornness in its eye. Now, the cardinal is just evil. It's like he's on the attack rather than righteously defending. In other words, he used to be John McClane, but now he's Hans Gruber. He used to be Aragorn, but now he's Saruman. He used to be Stan, but now he's Cartman. I guess that's fine if you are trying to be tough, but come one. There are all sorts of toughness, right? I like the righteous indignation, John McClane-style toughness more.

I mean, I get what the management is trying to do. I really get it. They're trying to make this little bird more dangerous and more aggressive. But, they've lost something along the way. They lost that inconsolable, crazy ass anger that the old bird used to have. Oh well, I guess that's "progress" for ya.

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El Paso's Chile Pepper Challenge

Did I ever tell you about MonkeyPig and her competitiveness? Well, if you ask her directly, she will deny it until the cows come home.

"Noooooooo..., I'm not competitive...." *shit-eating grin*

But, 9 out of 10 people who know MonkeyPig personally, including her BFF and Mr. Nonny Nu, will bear witness to her competitiveness. Of course, I will also bear witness to her competitiveness, as you can see I am doing now, and will always willingly take time out of my full life to provide supportive evidence of said competitiveness to all who wish to know about it as well as to anyone else who has a spare moment and has not been alerted to it. Yes, dear citizens of TWoNN, MonkeyPig is competitive.

How competitive, you ask? Well, she's a runner, and is addicted to endorphines (this will also be denied by her upon direct questioning). She runs about 2 times a week for about 7 miles. Yes, she's fit, but marathon fit? Well, we didn't know she was marathon fit until she decided out of the blue to run the El Paso Marathon--on the morning of the marathon. She didn't train for it. She just did it. I know, I know. You're thinking that Nonny Nu is just exaggerating because it sounds like MonkeyPig is just superfit. Well, no. You see, if she trained for the marathon, then it wouldn't be as big a deal as she would like it to be. So, she purposely didn't train for it just to see if she could do it on a whim. What a bitch, right? I told you so.

Then, there was the memorial of the Bataan Death March. Every year around BDM time, the march is re-created in El Paso (or somewhere around there) by the military and people run a marathon in commemoration of the march. The idea is to commemorate the event, you know? It's not really a race. And, those who don't start early enough can just do the half-march. Now, MonkeyPig wanted to participate but couldn't get there early enough, and had a problem with doing the half-march. Why? BECAUSE IT WASN'T A MARATHON AND WOULDN'T GIVE HER BRAGGING RIGHTS. Yes, she denied this, but her BFF told me it's true and I concur. When confronted with this, MonkeyPig looked like this so we know it's true.

There is nothing that MonkeyPig won't be competitive about. She even bragged to me once that she has a bigger bladder than I do. Wow. I'm so bested. I must train my spleen to become larger than hers. Oh, wait, someone doesn't have a spleen after her splenectomy. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!!!! I win!!!

Now, she joined the El Paso Bicycle Club and she's going to participate in the Chile Pepper Challenge. As you can see, there are several length options: 10mi mile, 34mi mile, 50mi mile, 62mi mile, and 100mi mile routes. (Deptarment of Redundancy Department is going to die after reading this...) Guess which route Ms. Competitive is taking?

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Screwed over, ONCE AGAIN...

I regret to inform you that the PHOENIX SUNS have lost to the DIRTY, ROTTEN BASTARDS San Antonio Spurs. It's really true. I saw it with my own two eyeballs. The San Antonio Spurs have won!* So, whoever said that cheaters don't win is dead wrong.

We have suffered quite a few injustices this week. It all started with Goldie (real name "Courtney") being kicked off of Flavor of Love: Charm School because *drumroll please* she didn't get into arguments! Then, Melinda Doolittle got voted off American Idol. Now this. What is this world coming to? Am I going to have to root for the Jazz, who some have referred to as "The Utah Momos"?? I really never thought I'd have to stoop so low, but maybe that is the ticket. I don't know. Will it hurt San Antonio to win the Western Conference title and then lose the Championship? Or, will it hurt them more if they didn't even win the Western Conference title? These are all questions that I am juggling at this point in my life.

Suns, boy did we get screwed. I'm proud of you guys, though, especially Bell (he's cute!). No, I'm kidding. I'm REALLY proud of Nash. Sure, some say he could have played better and that the Spurs shut him out completely, but give the guy a break. Did you see the bruise on his left leg? He's taken a beating, much more severe than anything any NBA player should have to take. After all, this is not ghetto ball we're playing. In some sense, it would've been easier to play ghetto ball if everyone was playing that. But, when you have a team that shoves players into the scorers' table, or kicks players in the nuts, and they aren't treated in the same way, how exactly is that special kind of evil to be defeated?

Now, it is late, and I have many orange tears to cry into my purple pillow...

* This big red asterisk will FOREVER hover over all references of the Spurs' win.

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Goings on at the ranch...

Tonight is the big game and the Nus are all ready for it. Mr. Nonny Nu's Friday night apparel will include this shirt. And, as some of you may know, Nonny Nu has her game face on ALREADY with her awesome T-shirt and her awesome bracelet.

Go PHOENIX !!

Also, we are moving today at Nu Nu & Nu, LLP, so I will soon be ensconced in my new cubby hole. I have a new idea and will debut it on the blog as soon as I have all my ducks in a row.

Finally, I do the grocery shopping at home and wanted to give Mr. Nonny Nu more input into what I buy, so I put a notepad on the refrigerator. Look at the first entry.

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DIRTY, ROTTEN BASTARDS !!!

See those guys to the left? Those are some DIRTY, ROTTEN BASTARDS!! It's the last minute of the PHOENIX-San Antonio game. Nash is bringing it in, he's running along the sideline, Horry slams him right into the announcers' table. BODY CHECKS HIM. I watched this in real time and I could NOT believe my eyes. Of course, the PHOENIX bench heads onto the court. Raja Bell (he's cute!) gets in Horry's face and Horry tried to elbow Raja in the neck. A couple games ago, Amare Stoudamire made a comment that the Spurs play dirty. I was sorta iffy on that, because I haven't really been watching the Spurs this season. But after tonight, there is NO DOUBT that the Spurs are some DIRTY, ROTTEN BASTARDS.

Good job, Suns!

104 98 -- PHOENIX.

P.S. Dudes, I really hope the NBA accepts that Amare and Diaw were going in to check in. If not, and they get suspended for the next game, I don't know what I'm going to do.

[EDIT] People are NOT happy about this situation: read this.

Suns-Spurs injuries here.

And, I can't believe Nash didn't win MVP. Nowitzki??? Blech. Watch this folks:

And this:

But, Nash is most famous for his passes. In this last season of college basketball, the kids seemed to be imitating Nash's passes. It helps that he's ambidexterous and has those crazy wide set eyes that look in separate directions, too. Here's Nash talking about his passes:

I leave you with this:Nash's Top 10 Plays of 2006...

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My Trip to San Diego

Sorry, guys, but I haven’t updated the NBA bracket or my plant pictures today because I wasn’t in the office. Stubbie’s Godmother had to take care of him today as well as water the plants.

This morning, I got up BEFORE the crack of dawn to catch a flight to San Diego. I usually fly out of San Jose, but I had to fly out of San Francisco today because I had to make a meeting at 9am sharp. Anywho, before I was even awake, I was boarding the plane. To my pleasant surprise, United upgraded me for free to first class! I was super excited, but it turned out to be just okay.

Anyhow, I was too busy boning up on the meeting material to take any photos on my flight out, but now, I’m on my way home and the only thing I have to bone up for is tonight’s Game 2 of the series between PHOENIX and San Antonio. Since the middle of last week, I’ve been working like a dog (weekend included) and I am really looking forward to being home and relaxing with Sushi and the hemlock-resistant mister. Have you guys ever been so dog tired that you can’t wait to just get home and see your family for a few hours? I only have a hubby and a cat and am already this way. I don’t know how people with kids do it.

So, that’s why I’m sitting excitedly in the waiting area, reading and re-reading my ticket. I’m almost there! They’re boarding my flight now. Ah, here is my seat. Sure, it’s roomier, but it’s just a one and a half hour flight. People don’t really need a first class section on these flights. We take off and people start getting their drink on. No joke. Some dude and his chick sitting across the aisle are imbibing. GMAB already. (Ha! Word says that “GMAB already” is grammatically incorrect. Well, I’m keeping it as is. Take THAT, Bill Gates!)

Seeing as how I’m not some rich I-drink-wine/martinis-on-my-one-hour-flights-in-first-class stuffed shirt, I make myself useful and finish reviewing MonkeyPig’s contract. (Can you believe the quality of her fax?) After that, I took a little break and read an article about Ferrari and Lamborghini in the United Airlines Hemispheres magazine. Dudes, Lamborghini CEO Stefan Winkelmann is kinda cute! Here’s what they say about him in the magazine:

“Lamborghini S.p.A.’s striking CEO, Stefan Winkelmann, a convincingly romantic German (who has spent his life in Italy), encouraged us to drive with brio. You just know he’ll set the best example.” Ken Gross, “Dream Drives,” Hemispheres Magazine, May 2007, p. 61.

That's just like Mr. Nonny Nu! Except Mr. Nonny Nu doesn't have brown hair, isn't German, didn't grow up in Italy, doesn't head up Lamborghini, and doesn't set even a good example! But, that's it--everything else is exactly the same...

Oh, gotta go! We’re landing!

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