Cover Me

Perfect name for an indie rock cover band? The White Strokes.

Unsportsman-like Conduct?

I had a hockey game on Sunday afternoon over at UTC. The team we were pitted against was a first year team, and most of the players had only a month or two of experience under their belts. Before the game, we had received word that the other teams in our league that had already played against this team had blown them out (e.g 21-0, 15-1, etc.). In short, we were pretty much guaranteed to win. As such, we discussed the game as a team before taking the ice and decided that we were going to just work on our passing, making plays, etc.

On my first shift out, I skated the puck fairly gingerly, just trying to get a feel for how green the other team really was. I carried the puck into their zone and haphazardly threw it on net. It trickled right between the goalie's legs; he didn't move an inch. It was then that I decided that I wouldn't shoot on net for the rest of the game, but instead try to make some nice plays/passes and just work on moving the puck around. I also toned my game down about 10 notches. I was doing my best to allow the other team to get the puck moving into our end and take some shots on goal without being too obvious about it. Every once in a while, I would turn it up and skate through a few guys and make a pretty play (I wanted to have a little fun too, afterall). Meanwhile, there were other guys on my team trying to rack up their stats by hammering their goalie with shots (even though we held a substantial lead).

At some point in the second period, I was in their zone along the boards, trying to retrieve the puck. All of a sudden, some guy comes at me from behind, cross-checks me in the back and puts me into the boards head first—a very dangerous situation. A penalty was immediately called and I just let it go. Because of the nature of the game, I was treating it as more of a practice and assumed I wouldn't need to worry about dodging checks. Fast forward to the third period, one minute remaining. Again, I'm along the boards (in almost the same spot, no less) and one of their guys takes a run at me from about 15 feet away and drills me from the back/side with a well placed hip. Lucky for him, he actually stayed on his skates and got far enough away from me before I could react. Immediately, one of the refs herded him to the penalty box while the other contained me because I was obviously pissed and ready to drop the gloves. These were the only two hits in the entire game.

After the game, I went over to the first guy and explained the dangers of what he'd done (it was obvious that he didn't really know what he was doing) and he was extremely apologetic. As for the second guy, well, I got his number. I'll be seeing you again in a couple weeks, #3.

So, my question is, did I play inappropriately? I didn't think I did, but the fact that I was the only one hit (twice, no less) tells me that I was doing something I shouldn't have. Should I have been less concerned with being a good sport and just played like some of my teammates?

I'm Going to Bovine University!

What's up with putting fish tanks in the middle of seafood restaurants? I was at Fin's (local Mexican restaurant that specializes in fish tacos) a while back and started wondering about this. After all, there I am, taking a bite of my fish taco and I look up and see a few colorful fish swimming around and staring back at me through the cold, clear glass encasing their minuscule world. Now, while my intellectual awareness may be somewhat acute at times, it didn't take much for me to realize that while I was enjoying the calming effects of Nemo and his artificial world of aquaria, I was also chomping down on one of his brethren. It was then that the sadistic nature of the situation really hit me. I mean, it's not like we go to a steakhouse that looks out on the range so we can watch what we eat as it moo's its way around the high-density feed lot. Even restaurants that serve lobster and allow patrons to pick out the very creature they'll be dining on later keep the tanks up front and out of sight of the majority of those eating. So, why is it ok to put fish on display as we consume them?

Can I Pull It?

Have you ever looked at a fire alarm and wanted to pull it? You know you shouldn't because that would be wrong, unlawful, etc., but, doesn't part of you wonder just how much force it requires to pull the handle down? Could you just move the lever a short way to find out, or would that set the alarm off?

And, what about the "break glass in case of emergency" style alarms? Is the glass designed to disintegrate with a child's blow, or does it require an adrenalin fueled, adult-sized wallop backed by all-consuming feelings of panic?

A Productive Day in the Office

I took a break this afternoon to hang out with Lord Stanley's Cup:

I asked if I could hoist it over my head, NHL style, but they wouldn't let me--something about having to earn that honor.

Top 5 Things I Ate Today

1. Sushi
2. Breakfast Burrito (could have been a contender for #1, but contained pepperoncinis)
3. Turkey Sandwich
4. Peanut Butter Flavored Granola Bar
5. Navel Orange

Three Cheers for Global Warming!

Man, summer is already here! The weather has been absolutely perfect for the last two days; clear, sunny, warm, bordering on hot. Time to break out the sunscreen…

Just wondering...

Is there a stipulation that says that all radio ads for jewelry stores (and especially engagement ring stores) have to be comprised of the most annoying 30 seconds of unadulterated crap? I mean, it's not like these stores are dealing with extremely low profit margins here; wouldn't it stand to reason that they should be able to hire at least a mediocre advertising agency to produce a commercial that doesn't make the listener want to gouge the innards of their ears out with a diamond studded broach?