Red Flags (In A Good Way)

It's weird. When I'm in the house I prefer beer, but when I'm on the road I prefer wine. I've had every generic red wine in each airport bar, off the room service menu, or in the hipster college town eatery.

So, much like when I watch the production of live sports events on TV I'm desensitized. A glass of wine has got to be exceptional or awful to get my attention these days. Which is why I've been so pleasantly surprised twice in the last 48 hours.

First in the Hyatt Place in Sugar Land, Texas. It wasn't even a bar, more like an upgraded pantry. I asked what reds they had seeing if they even offered Pinot Noir. I was sure I'd get a glass of Mirassou like I've had a thousand times. Sure enough she reaches up on a shelf and pulls down a Hangtime from Marlborough, New Zealand. Best glass of Pinot I've had in a while and it was only $7.

Then, surprisingly enough, the "house" red on my United Express flight from Houston to Raleigh was an Australian Fox Grove Shiraz/Cabernet blend. The bottle retails at $12.50 according to the website, but it really seemed a lot bolder than that.

Maybe I was caught off guard by these two wines since my expectations had become so low. But it was also where I received them. So now the bar has been raised in mid-level hotels and on commuter jets, and thus the bar has been raised at the bar as well.

Backtime Walkabout: Sugar Land

Staying in Sugar Land, Texas, one of the well-to-do suburbs of Houston. And you'd think like in most of Texas you can't really walk from one place to another. But here, that isn't the case.

You leave your brand-new hotel and cross a brand-new bridge over a man-made lake, and you find yourself in an upscale outdoor mall with a number of restaurants and shops.

I made the walk last night with a friend to an excellent pizza/pasta/wine bistro, called Coal Vines. The pizza was very reminiscent of John's in New York, which is the gold standard for brick oven pizza.

My colleague had to pay since he had lost our bet on the election. I would have preferred to split the tab, and just remind him every time I see him that he still owes me dinner. But like a good little Republican he didn't want to be beholden to his debt.

So the walk this morning was in search of a good breakfast joint. But no greasy spoons were to be found in Sugar Land, the one-time "fittest city in Texas." Instead I found the largest Whole Foods I had seen in my life.

I went up to the breakfast bar, and shoveled a lump of migas (when in Texas...) into an eco-friendly container, ordered a dirty chai, and got out of there spending just $6.75 - a new record.

Now it's off to work - going to go see the Harrison twins, in a possible sneak preview of Kentucky's next basketball championship in 2014.

Homeland Blows Its Cover

There’s one more week left in Season 2 of Homeland, which means there’s one week before I cancel Showtime once and for all. 

I enjoyed the first season, though I thought it was a guilty pleasure. It was a major reach to win the Emmy for Best Drama. I really do like depiction of the CIA intelligence gathering operation, and the on-the-ground stuff in the Middle East. But the hierarchal aspect is so contrived and far-fetched, it makes me cringe even in the comforts of my living room. The second season was gaining some steam but completely blew up into an off-brand version of 24.

Damain Lewis is the show’s only great character. As the tormented Sgt. Brody his performance is complicated and nuanced. With all that’s happened with him, as a POW, a terrorist, a US Congressman, and a double agent; every reaction to every situation has multiple emotions. You can see it on his face. Excellently played.

Mandy Patankin as CIA veteran analyst Saul Berenson is believable as a super-intelligent hothead. But he clashes with his superiors too often to think he’d still have a job, if not erased fro the earth. CIA assistant director David Estes is just an asshole, and Vice President William Walden (thankfully deceased) was just a bigger asshole.

Mastermind terrorist Abu Nazir was also a preposterous character. He had a nice role in Brody’s flashbacks, and how he went from being torturer to spiritual mentor. But once he showed up in the US, able to invisibly evade military TAC teams (and killing them) and move around an unlimited army of terrorists, he became farcical. I’m glad he’s dead too.

Which brings us to the show’s lead character, Carrie Mathison. Claire Danes’s portrayal transcends unrealistic and unsympathetic to absurd. Matheson, despite a schizophrenic condition that should be a constant disability, continues to be the smartest and most dogged ex-agent ever. She’s got heart coming out of her neatly tucked blouse.

She goes rogue more often than Jack Bauer and Dr. House combined, but she continues to get away with it because she’s always right, nobody can do her job as well as she can, and nobody knows the terrorists like she does.

I’m not-so-secretly hoping that everyone dies in the Season 2 finale. Then the show will have gotten it right.

MoneyBall vs CashBall

I would have plenty to comment on the Yankees postseason moves...if there were any. Usually there are transactions and plenty of distractions, but this year there's mostly inaction.

Don't get me wrong I think the brain trust knows what it's doing, but this is just boring. They re-signed Hiroki Kuroda and Andy Pettitte to 1-year deals. And just now as I write, Kevin Youkilis has signed a 1-year deal to hold down third base for a bit. And all signs point to Ichiro re-signing for one year as well. There is Moneyball, and there is Brian Cashman-brand CashBall.

This is not a calm before the storm, but rather a method to the madness - as I mix metaphors. The Yankees' over-inflated payroll has cost the team a fortune in salary cap luxury tax. Now after seeing the exponentially diminished ROI on the A-Rod investment, they are being a lot more frugal to keep their payroll in line. As opposed to teams like the Dodgers.

The 1-year deals make sense, not just for the veteran pitchers, but for Youkilis as well. Alex Rodriguez still has multiple years left on his contract and will be set back by hip surgery to start the year. It would be difficult to see him playing anything other than DH when he returns. And if he can't hit, that would make for a very ineffective DH. Youkilis is a proven hitter (though not last year) and a strong defensive 3B.

There is still a fairly large hole at the catcher position, after Russell Martin signed a free agent deal with Pittsburgh. I don't have a problem with this as I see catcher as a defensive position first, and it's not like Martin set the world on fire with his bat (.211, 21 HR in 2012). For historical reference, the Yankees replaced Mike Stanley with Joe Girardi in the mid-90s, which coincided with a dynasty. Hmm.

But the Yankees now are down to three catchers on the 40-man roster: Chris Stewart, Francisco Cervelli, and Austin Romine. We don't expect much at the plate, but which of these perennial backups and career minor leaguers will handle a venerable pitching staff?

What you do see is an emphasis on speed: Brett Gardner, Chris Dickerson, Eduardo Nunez, and Ichiro Suzuki (if he's back) are all guys that can steal 30+. So what we see here is not only a re-shaping of the Yankees organizationally, but on the field as well.

The upcoming season promises to be interesting, even if the offseason hasn't been.

Flash Backtime: It's A Wonderful Life (This Week Anyway)

It's that time of year again. Time to celebrate the holiday season, the spirit of giving and unselfishness. When we all live in Bedford Falls.

But would George Bailey's story play today? In this economic and divisive political climate?

An conservative cohort once admitted his incongruous love affair with It's A Wonderful Life, "Isn't it clear that George Bailey is a socialist community organizer?"

The Backtime archives on Barack Obama's first week in office:

January 23, 2009

I was on a plane during inauguration, so it took me a few days to get up to speed. It unfolded like a Capra film - there was Mr. Obama going to Washington to bring conscience to the DC consortium. And the masses braved the cold to see the man who came from nowhere to be the ultimate example for everyone's dreams. 

Just like George Bailey, Barack Obama is driven by a responsibility to others. His self-expression has to take a back seat while he tries to bail out the US Savings & Loan. And the supporting cast was right there to fill out the party. 

Ted Kennedy's moment of the week was something Uncle Billy easily could have pulled at the big gala. Caroline Kennedy was Violet Bick, outcast through a web of unspecific innuendo. And who was Clarence the angel? The good-natured oddball dimwit who showed President Obama how important he is to the world? I'm going with George W. Bush. And tell me Dick Cheney in the wheelchair didn't conjure up thoughts of the warped, frustrated Mr. Potter. Fortunately Potter's reign is over and Bedford Falls can thrive across America. 

If only this were a black and white film.

Tebow Issue A Non-Starter

You know the story: hometown hero takes the local team on his back, fills the stadium, pulls out victories, and propels the squad to new heights.

That was the Tim Tebow story last year in Denver, but it wasn't good enough for the hometown team. The 2-11 Jaguars could have had him too...twice. They could've gotten him from Denver in the offseason if they ponied up anything more than the 4th & 6th round picks the Jets did. Then during the season, they probably could've gotten him wholesale at the trade deadline.

You wonder what the downside would be for the Jags, unless they've decided what 31 other NFL teams including the Jets have, that Tebow can't play QB at this level.

The Jets' acquisition of Tebow has been a non-starter, as he has been. And it's not that Mark Sanchez or the Jets offense couldn't have used his jolt of energy. But ultimately, even at 6-7, the Jets must have decided that the plusses will never outweigh the minuses in replacing Sanchez with Tebow.

And at 6-7, the Jets aren't quite done. They've backed into the playoffs before, and all the way to the AFC Championship game. The two wins since the rock-bottom Thanksgiving night effort haven't been things of beauty: a 7-6 win vs Arizona and a 17-10 snoozer at Jacksonville.

Sanchez was just barely above flatline, passing for 111 yards, though 37 of them were on a crucial 3rd & 8, late. Tebow never got off the sideline even in his hometown.

Can conspiracy theorists run with this? Could Jacksonville purposefully be tanking interest in the team? Will Shahid Khan move the team after all? Or is it merely a football decision not to go for Tebow? They wouldn't be alone.

Backtime Walkabout: Clemson

It was a beautiful, crisp December morning to take a walk around one of my favorite campuses, Clemson University.

It had been a while since I got to enjoy the town. When 80,000+ invade this tiny place on football weekends, we're usually stuck out in Anderson or even Greenville. But since we're here for hoops tonight (#8 Arizona in town), we get to dig in for a bit.

It's a fairly serene setting on Lake Hartwell for the place known as Death Valley, and it's trademark football craziness.

 

All around town there are orange tiger paws on the street and IPTAY signs everywhere. It took me years to figure out what IPTAY meant: I Pay Ten A Year. It is the official fundraising arm for all Clemson athletics.  If you are a member, one of the perks is preferred parking which is essential at Clemson. Prices have risen substantially since IPTAY was founded in 1935.

One thing that disappointed me in the campus area this morning was there was no little college dive to eat breakfast. There are plenty of restaurants and bars, including one of my favorites: The Esso Club, the one-time filling station was converted into a bar and grill, and is the spot to go after a Clemson game.

But no breakfast. At least I couldn't find one. I had printed out a bunch of homework for a future game, and had hoped to sit at some subversive type liberal coffee joint, being served by a bespectacled, tattooed and over-pierced barista while did my reading. Not to be in Clemson.

I pulled up to a Huddle House in the family roadster (complete with Obama/Biden car magnet), with a Starbucks in hand and a legal pad under my arm. People must've thought I was from another planet. Maybe I should move here and bring some contrast to this place. And then maybe run for Senate? I hear there's an opening.