In keeping with the madness, I am posting my NCAA final 4. My picks are based on who I think would win, with a little bit of who I want to win thrown in.
That being said, my final 4 is a little biased (and has never happened before, but came close in the 80’s) an all Big East showing in Indianapolis. I have # 3 Georgetown going against # 3 Pittsburgh and #2 West Virginia playing #2 Villanova. The championship game will be Georgetown vs. West Virginia, with West Virginia being crowned NCAA 2010 Champions.
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Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
The Sorry State of My Favorite Baseball Team: The New York Mets
Imagine this scenario. You ask the really hot girl to go to the prom with you. She hasn’t been asked by anybody else yet, and she doesn’t really want to go with you, so she says “I will let you know later”. In the meantime, the attractive girl who is good in bed asks you to go with her. Any other time you would say yes. But right now, you are pinning your hopes on the Hot Girl, and you tell the attractive, good in bed girl, thanks but no thanks. So as you wait for an answer from the Hot Girl, the attractive, good in bed girl, asks your friend to go, and he says yes. Then the Hot Girl finally gets asked by someone else to go to the prom with him, and she says yes. So now, to save face, you are forced to go with the pimpled faced, dweeby girl, while the Hot Girl is now enjoying the prom with someone she really wanted to go with, and your friend is enjoying his time with the attractive girl that is good in bed. And you are stuck with a last resort choice that is just happy to be invited to the dance.
That basically is the current, sorry state of my favorite baseball team, the New York Mets. They make an offer to Jason Bay. He says that he will let the team know soon his decision. That was over three weeks ago. They also have an offer to Benji Molina to be their catcher, but he wants more years than the Mets are offering. In the mean time, Jason Marquis is on the market. He says he wants to be a Met. The Mets basically tell him, thanks, but until we find out about Bay and Molina, we can’t do anything else. So Marquis signs with the Nationals for $15M, an amount the Mets easily could have afforded. And with the best pitcher on the Market (Lackey) signing with Boston, the Mets are shutting them selves out of any chance to get a good starter to fill in as a #2 after Johann Santana. Philadelphia went out and traded for Roy Halladay, arguably the best pitcher in baseball.
That move didn’t upset me because the Mets didn’t have the chips to trade for him, so they had to focus on free agents. And they don’t even talk to Lackey. They say they were concerned about his arm. But Boston, who has an abundance of pitchers, felt they needed more, had no problem with Lackey. And they way Boston has performed lately, both on the field and their off-field moves, I would trust their evaluation more than the Mets.
The Mets stated that they would be making big moves to shore up the team, coming off of the disastrous year they just had. Their focus was, according to the team, was first pitching then the field. And they wanted to get faster and more defensive. So what do they do? They make an offer for the older, less mobile outfielder with so-so defense (Jason Bay compared to Matt Holiday) and do not even make an offer to the best free agent pitcher on the market. They are stuck in limbo waiting on an answer from bay, who doesn’t really want to be a Met, and Molina because it seems the Mets can’t do multiple things at a time.
In the meantime, the Yankees (who I do not like), after coming off of a World Series victory, go right out and make the team better. They trade for Curtis Granderson, a young outfielder whose swing should benefit by the smallish outfield of Yankee Stadium. They let go of Damon and Matsui because they don’t really fit into there plans, and it is always better to get rid of someone 1 year too early than 1 year too late. Then they go out and trade an average outfielder, who was the 4th outfielder on the team, for Javier Vasquez, the 4th runner up in the NL CY Young Award last year. An absolute steal. And I would be surprised if they swoop in and sign Jason Bay, giving him the chance to NOT sign with the Mets. And they are positioning themselves to be big buyers in next year’s free agent class, which is expected to be one of the best classes in a LONG time.
This offseason actually made me respect the way the Yankees do business, though I would NEVER switch allegiances to them. They have an eye for the future as well as making moves to win now. When they need something, they get it and usually on good terms. The Mets, total opposite. They panic, make stupid moves and bad financial signings. When they do sign someone big, they do not make any other big signings for a couple of years, so they do not back up their previous signings. They sign Santana, but do not bring in a legitimate # 2 starter.
I never thought I would say this, but my wish is for people to stop going to the games and for people to cancel their season tickets (which from the sounds of it on sports radio, a lot are canceling). The Mets ownership sees this and finally decides they have to change philosophy. They get rid of Omar and Manuel and bring in people who know what they are doing and let them do the job with no interference. The owners need to stay way in the background. My personal hope is to bring back Bobby V to manage the team. He gets the most out of his players (look at who the outfield was in the 2000 World Series against the Yankees) and he is at least entertaining.
That basically is the current, sorry state of my favorite baseball team, the New York Mets. They make an offer to Jason Bay. He says that he will let the team know soon his decision. That was over three weeks ago. They also have an offer to Benji Molina to be their catcher, but he wants more years than the Mets are offering. In the mean time, Jason Marquis is on the market. He says he wants to be a Met. The Mets basically tell him, thanks, but until we find out about Bay and Molina, we can’t do anything else. So Marquis signs with the Nationals for $15M, an amount the Mets easily could have afforded. And with the best pitcher on the Market (Lackey) signing with Boston, the Mets are shutting them selves out of any chance to get a good starter to fill in as a #2 after Johann Santana. Philadelphia went out and traded for Roy Halladay, arguably the best pitcher in baseball.
That move didn’t upset me because the Mets didn’t have the chips to trade for him, so they had to focus on free agents. And they don’t even talk to Lackey. They say they were concerned about his arm. But Boston, who has an abundance of pitchers, felt they needed more, had no problem with Lackey. And they way Boston has performed lately, both on the field and their off-field moves, I would trust their evaluation more than the Mets.
The Mets stated that they would be making big moves to shore up the team, coming off of the disastrous year they just had. Their focus was, according to the team, was first pitching then the field. And they wanted to get faster and more defensive. So what do they do? They make an offer for the older, less mobile outfielder with so-so defense (Jason Bay compared to Matt Holiday) and do not even make an offer to the best free agent pitcher on the market. They are stuck in limbo waiting on an answer from bay, who doesn’t really want to be a Met, and Molina because it seems the Mets can’t do multiple things at a time.
In the meantime, the Yankees (who I do not like), after coming off of a World Series victory, go right out and make the team better. They trade for Curtis Granderson, a young outfielder whose swing should benefit by the smallish outfield of Yankee Stadium. They let go of Damon and Matsui because they don’t really fit into there plans, and it is always better to get rid of someone 1 year too early than 1 year too late. Then they go out and trade an average outfielder, who was the 4th outfielder on the team, for Javier Vasquez, the 4th runner up in the NL CY Young Award last year. An absolute steal. And I would be surprised if they swoop in and sign Jason Bay, giving him the chance to NOT sign with the Mets. And they are positioning themselves to be big buyers in next year’s free agent class, which is expected to be one of the best classes in a LONG time.
This offseason actually made me respect the way the Yankees do business, though I would NEVER switch allegiances to them. They have an eye for the future as well as making moves to win now. When they need something, they get it and usually on good terms. The Mets, total opposite. They panic, make stupid moves and bad financial signings. When they do sign someone big, they do not make any other big signings for a couple of years, so they do not back up their previous signings. They sign Santana, but do not bring in a legitimate # 2 starter.
I never thought I would say this, but my wish is for people to stop going to the games and for people to cancel their season tickets (which from the sounds of it on sports radio, a lot are canceling). The Mets ownership sees this and finally decides they have to change philosophy. They get rid of Omar and Manuel and bring in people who know what they are doing and let them do the job with no interference. The owners need to stay way in the background. My personal hope is to bring back Bobby V to manage the team. He gets the most out of his players (look at who the outfield was in the 2000 World Series against the Yankees) and he is at least entertaining.
Monday, October 26, 2009
Mystery Google
I heard about this website, Mystery Google, where no matter what you search for, it gives you back whatever the last person who on Google searched for. Check it out. You get some pretty intersting results.
Monday, October 19, 2009
Amazing Jump Rope Video
I was e-mailed this video. This is an amazing performace by a bunch of girls with jump ropes at the Army - Navy Basketball game. You just have to watch it. Amazing. Watch as the reaction of the guys in the audience escalates. In the beginning, they were just OK, but as the girls performed.....the audience went WILD with cheers.
First blog from my BlackBerry
I just recently switched my cell phone over to a BlackBerry. I wanted to try out the e-mail blog posting, so this posting is from my BB.
I can somewhat understand why they call BB's crackberries. There is so much you can do on it. You are connected to everything.
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®
I can somewhat understand why they call BB's crackberries. There is so much you can do on it. You are connected to everything.
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Links of the week, Sept 3rd
Google Everywhere - An article by Knowledge @ Wharton (from the Wharton School of Business) about the growth of Google and future implications. I have started to become a Google Geek, loving everything they have. I use their office productivity software, to have access to all my files from any computer without having to carry a data stick; we use Google calendar to let each other know of our appointments (used in a very limited fashion right now, but soon to change). I also use AdSense on my blog. Sprint will be debuting a new Google Android phone soon, the HTC Hero as well. I also had the foresight to buy stock in Google when it decreased in price due to the economy dragging it down, which as of right now, is giving me a really nice return .
ATT kills Google Voice - Andy Kessler's view on why ATT and Apple removed Google voice from the App Store. Andy Kessler is a well respected former tech analyst.
Apple's Response
Health Care Reform Compromise - Op-Ed piece in NY Times by Bill Bradley, former US Senator from NJ, discussing President Obama’s health care initiative. He discusses how it would gain bipartisan support if it is combined with tort reform. A little give and take by both sides of the aisle, Republicans support national health care if Democrats support tort reform. I personally think that tort reform NEEDS to be done, probably more so than health care reform, as the article states, they would both affect each other, thus enabling, hopefully, some kind of change.
Health Care Reform - Article from The NYTimes discussing health care reform from the Blue Dog Democrates view, whose votes will be essential if the Democrates want to pass their reform.
ATT kills Google Voice - Andy Kessler's view on why ATT and Apple removed Google voice from the App Store. Andy Kessler is a well respected former tech analyst.
Apple's Response
Health Care Reform Compromise - Op-Ed piece in NY Times by Bill Bradley, former US Senator from NJ, discussing President Obama’s health care initiative. He discusses how it would gain bipartisan support if it is combined with tort reform. A little give and take by both sides of the aisle, Republicans support national health care if Democrats support tort reform. I personally think that tort reform NEEDS to be done, probably more so than health care reform, as the article states, they would both affect each other, thus enabling, hopefully, some kind of change.
Health Care Reform - Article from The NYTimes discussing health care reform from the Blue Dog Democrates view, whose votes will be essential if the Democrates want to pass their reform.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Links of the Week - August 18th
I decided to start a new feature. I am going to be posting my "Links of the Week". It will be websites that I found during teh week that I found interesting or useful. Hopefully I will find enough on a weekly basis to keep it interesting.
So, onto this weeks links:
100 best blogs for job search
eliminating the VM instructions on your cellphone - a posting by David Pogue (NY Times) on getting rid of the annoying VM instructions your cell phone carriers put on all outgoing greetings.
top 10 cities for careers in finance
NY'ers hate their state government - self explanatory
Amber Ready - a site to provide families with “Information”, “Education” and “Communication” to reduce the number of missing children.
So, onto this weeks links:
100 best blogs for job search
eliminating the VM instructions on your cellphone - a posting by David Pogue (NY Times) on getting rid of the annoying VM instructions your cell phone carriers put on all outgoing greetings.
top 10 cities for careers in finance
NY'ers hate their state government - self explanatory
Amber Ready - a site to provide families with “Information”, “Education” and “Communication” to reduce the number of missing children.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Disney Family Vacation
This post is pretty delayed. Hopefully I can keep on top of the posting and do it more timely.
May 24th – 31st we took the kids to Disney World for the week. It was a great time. Luckily we had good weather down there. The week before, Florida had torrential downpours. Some areas had 27 inches of rain in 1 week. We stayed at the Marriott Grand Vista vacation club complex. It was a great place. Ideal location, near all. It took 10 minutes to Disney, and SeaWorld was 2 minutes down the road. The resort had a nice pool, which Cameron did not want to leave. The pool wipes him out. He was out for the night by 6:30 the days he went into the pools.
On Monday, we spent the day at The Magic Kingdom. Cameron loved the monorail and the train around the complex. When he saw the castle, he got all excited. He knows the castle as “Mickey’s House” from all the Disney movies. He rode the Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin (and on Thursday got 5 more rides on it). We ate dinner at The Rainforest Café in Downtown Disney.
Tuesday was split between Disney’s Hollywood Studio and Epcot Center. IN the morning, I got to go on the Twilight Zone Hollywood Tower of Terror and the Aerosmith Rock 'n' Roller Coaster. The lines weren’t bad. They were both good. The best part of the roller coaster was the initial takeoff. It is one of the propulsion ones were it pushes the cars, instead of going down a hill to get speed. Later, we went to Epcot for a character dinner. Cameron and Caitlin liked it. We met Mickey, Pluto, and Chip & Dale. Caitlin was good around them. She didn’t cry (for being almost 1). Wednesday, we visited my dad at his house in The Villages , a 55 and over TOWN. The place has everything, every type of store and restaurants, both chain and independent. Cameron enjoyed the pool a lot. He tired himself out and slept from the car ride home to the next morning.
On Thursday, we went to Disney's Animal Kingdom. The park was OK. The park feels hotter than the others (and the guidebooks say that as well, so it wasn’t just me) Lisa and I rode the Expedition Everest roller coaster. I liked it, Lisa had her eyes closed the entire time. We used the “Fast Pass” ticket to ride it. The wait ended up being 10 minutes, compared to 60 minutes for walk ups. With the Fast Pass, you go to the ride earlier to get a ticket, which tells you when to come back. When you return, you go to a different line and you go right to the boarding area. It is one off the best things they have come up with, and its free (more on that later).
On Friday, we did SeaWorld. I was not that impressed. I went there when I was 8 yrs (1980) and for the most part, the park seems to not have been that updated since then. Comparing Disney to SeaWorld, just on aesthetics alone, it really is no contest, Disney is much better. Plus, SeaWorld has a Fast Pass type of system, were you can slip the lines for the older roller coaster many times and the new roller coaster once, but you have to pay extra for that option, around $25 if I remember correctly.
That night me and Lisa went out to dinner for our 4th anniversary. We went to Bluezoo , Todd English’s restaurant at The Dolphin Resort at Disney World. The food was great. I had the Florida Grouper (with black truffle spaetzle, black radish, and black truffle vinaigrette) and Lisa had Tuscan Tuna. For the appetizer we got the yellowfin tuna tartare and shrimp accompanied by three sauces. We then walked along “The Boardwalk” Disney’s area that resembles a seaside boardwalk, with stores and restaurants below and the timeshare resorts above. Very nice. They sure do know how to design the resort so you enjoy yourself.
Saturday, we spent the day at the hotel, using the pool all day long. It was the only day we used it. I took Cameron out on a boat in the lake. He enjoyed it. I ended up getting burned, because as always, I don’t put sunscreen on.
Sunday we left to go back home. When we landed back on Long Island, Cameron turns to me and says “I want to go back” We had initially planned to go again in about 3 years, but we all had so much fun, we might go sooner.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Graduation
On Tuesday, May 19, I participated in my graduation ceremony from The Fordham Graduate School of Business. I finally graduated. It had been a long time coming. I enrolled in September of 2005. The school operated on a trimester schedule, so I pretty much attended school non stop since then, save for 3 weeks a year and one trimester off. When I entered, the economy was flying and had high hopes. What a time to graduate, staggering unemployment and decreased opportunities in the market.
The ceremony was held at The Beacon Theater in NYC. The featured speaker was Joseph Moglia, the former CEO and current Chairman of TD Ameritrade. He is also Fordham alum. He spoke about what it takes to succeed, in both your career and life.
Keep an even balance in work and life. Don’t get caught up in materialistic pursuits. Take everything in and enjoy life. What ever you do in life, commit yourself to it. Don’t act halfheartedly. Dedicate yourself. And lastly, make sure you love what you do. A love of something will lead to the dedication, which in turn will lead to success.
Next up, a posting on my trip to Walt Disney World with my kids.
The ceremony was held at The Beacon Theater in NYC. The featured speaker was Joseph Moglia, the former CEO and current Chairman of TD Ameritrade. He is also Fordham alum. He spoke about what it takes to succeed, in both your career and life.
Keep an even balance in work and life. Don’t get caught up in materialistic pursuits. Take everything in and enjoy life. What ever you do in life, commit yourself to it. Don’t act halfheartedly. Dedicate yourself. And lastly, make sure you love what you do. A love of something will lead to the dedication, which in turn will lead to success.
Next up, a posting on my trip to Walt Disney World with my kids.
Friday, June 5, 2009
First Prize Winner
LAKE GROVE, NY/June 3, 2009/FPSnewswire/-- (l-r) Citibank customers Lisa Fleece, Caitlin Fleece (11 months), Cameron Fleece (3 1/2), winner Michael Fleece, and Citibank Vice President and Area Director John Delorenzo after presenting a 500,000 point prize from the Thanks-A-Million Sweepstakes at the Smith Haven Citibank branch in Lake Grove, NY on Wednesday June 3, 2009. (Feature Photo Service) I was a winner in a major contest. Citibank had a sweepstakes (called Thanks a Million) for their Thank You network, a rewards program for account holders. I won one of the first prizes, 500,000 points. they say it is equivalent to $10,000. Its one of those contests where every time you use your debit card, you enter to win. The more you use, the more chances you have to win. There were six winners in total, 2 grand prize and 4 first prize. 1 winner on long island (that would be me), 1 in NYC, 1 in Nevada, and 3 in California.
First time I ever won anything. They held a reception in our honor at our Citibank branch, where they presented me with one of those large checks, pictured above with the wife and kids. I felt like Happy Gilmore and took it home. At the reception, the one question everybody asked was, "What are you going to do with the points?" I think we may use it for travel, to go somewhere expensive and far. We never been to Hawaii yet, so that may be an option. This trip, however will be without the kids. we just got back from a week in Disney World (best trip -love vacationing and spending time with the kids, but that post is coming later)
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