Duck Football:

In the last post, I was pretty exercised about how the loss to USC came down.  Lack of focus by the Ducks courtesy of coaches allowing pseudo-celebrities to take over the warm-ups, Big Balls Chip suddenly being neutered in the last 2 plays of the game and a doomed-from-the-start field goal attempt all contributed to a USC win.  Well, somebody was reading, as the run through the rest of the schedule was pedal-to-the-metal Duck football, including the annual Civil War beat-down of Oregon State and a win in the inaugural Pac-12 Championship Game against a dubious south division winner-by-default UCLA.

As a result, next up was the Rose Bowl in Pasadena against Big-10 Champion Wisconsin.  And the Lama’s were headed south.  In our never ending quest to do things on the cheap, the closest we could fly for free was Sacramento, then drove our free rental car to Calabasas.  Yes…the same Calabasas where the Kardashian family is domiciled.  I made it a mission to spot Bruce Jenner, the emasculated faux-patriarch of this misfit clan…if for nothing else than to see a Decathalon Gold Medalist.  And to possibly inquire as why he went Michael Jackson with his beak.  But – no luck, although Mama Lama did stand in line with Mrs. Kardashian-Jenner at the neighborhood Starbucks.  But I digress…

Rose Bowl Day was awesome in every sense of the word.  82 degrees, party limo from West Hollywood to Rose Bowl and back, and the discovery of a musical phenomenon one can only find while riding in a limo at 8:30 in the morning with a couple dozen 25 year olds who viewed our transportation as a tailgate on wheels.  The discovery…?  House Music!!  It defies description other than to say (1) go to iTunes, download music by Swedish House Mafia, Flo Rida, Levels; (2) turn the volume up to the equivalant of having a 747 land in your tile shower.  While you are in it.  But…absolutely the most fun I’ve had in a long time.  If I’m lyin’, I’m dyin.  And I can show you where the first aid station is in the Rose Bowl.  Long story.

Anyway, there was a football game amidst the lunacy.  A football game that will go down in the books as the highest scoring Rose Bowl ever.  Badgers score.  Ducks score.  Rinse. Repeat.  Mrs. Lama left to hit the head and missed two scores!  The game was not decided until the clock ran out…literally.  The Ducks Win!!  THHHHEEEE DUUUUUCKS WIIIIIINNNN!!!  High-fiving of strangers.  Trophy award ceremony. Back to the limo.  Back to Hollywood.  Back to Calabasas and the continuing, if futile, search for Jenner.  An outstanding 4 days.  Go Ducks.

However…and there is always a however…one fallout of success is the inevitable act of the coach considering “higher-paid” pastures (note I didn’t say “greener”).  The NFL came sniffing around for the old Chipster…well, not the NFL per se – the Tampa Bay Buccaneers – and evidently he was listening.  Rumors were rampant that he was gone.  This 24 hours of suspense was represented by one tweeter as the equivalent of the Cuban Missle Crisis.  Only worse.  All is well that ends well – BB Chip is staying.  For now.  But I fear his rent is being paid month-to-month.  He wants the NFL, and college coaches taking over big league head coach jobs seems to be coming into vogue.  We shall see…but next year it’s all about USC and the Ducks.  Should be good.

Other Stuff:

• Occupy Portland seems to have run most of its course…except for the 10′s of thousands of dollars it is costing to clean up their mess.  A good thought at the beginning, but as expected, it went over the top and the message was lost.  So…thanks for nothing.
• Who exactly is Seal Team 6?  They take down bin Laden and now they are kicking Somalian pirate ass. ..and that’s just the stuff they choose to tell us about.  Is this the same 10 or 15  guys doing their black ops thing over and over or are there, like, hundreds of these bad-asses doing what they do?  I’m a lefty, isolationist-loving, pacifist wienie who believes in fossil fuels and thinks recycling is a fad, but I gotta say…I’m glad these commandos are around.
• Newt Gingrich has declared he will be the Republican half of the presidential election in November.  On behalf of the Democratic party, I hope he’s right.  Even Barack can beat that douche-bag.  Not that it matters.  We could elect me and get the same results out of this grid-locked, special interest protecting, ineffectual bunch of self-important, photo-op seeking windbags we got now.  There is no hope.  It’s every man (and family) for themselves.  Steve Jobs for President…yeah, I know.  He’s dead.  Still couldn’t hurt.

Wine of the Day:  Been giving Malbec’s a go.  If you’re gonna drink it, do it right and go Argentinian.  Currently slurping Pascual Toso 2010 Malbec.  From Mendoza, Argentina.  Bought purely by price (inexpensive), but very nice.

Book of the Day:  Just finished the just released Elvis Cole/Joe Pike thriller diller.  Page turner called “Taken”.  Goes with Malbec while reading.  But not House Music.

Tiger Woods:  Folks are back on the Tiger bandwagon saying he will win a major or three this year.  Okay, I admire the enthusiasm, but he got outplayed by a former club pro today to lose a lead and a tourney.  I’m rooting for him myself..but a little perspective, people. There is a ton of talent out there, and El Tigre doesn’t have it all anymore.

Thought of the Day:  If Jim Morrison were alive today, he’d be collecting social security.  Don’t know what made me think of that…

I got nothing else.  Peace.

Go Duckks.

Charles:  You and I are both old enough to remember when being called by your full given name meant a couple of things…best case scenario was you were going to get a scolding and worst case scenario was you were getting the scolding and a whippin’.  I’ll dispense with the whippin’ as it’s simply not practical (once again, alluding to our ages…) but here comes the scolding. 

What in the hell was that circus you allowed to happen Saturday night that was supposed to be a football game between the University of Oregon and University of Southern California?  Okay…the Ducks lose 38-35 to a very talented USC team featuring Matt Barkley at QB and some outstanding recievers.  The Duck offense had some untimely turnovers (are any turnovers really ever “timely”?).  Fine. I get that…you win some, you lose some.  But make no doubt about it, Charles, this one is on you. 

What are you thinking about when you  created your own “Occupy Autzen” by having a bunch of unemployed celebrity basketball players warming up on the sidelines right up until kickoff??!!  As if your players weren’t going to notice Lebron, D-Wade and whoever else in the same vicinity as them?  Snoop Dog?  Please. Were you thinking that this side-show wouldn’t deter from any focus these 18 to 21 year-olds might have on the task at hand…mainly beating USC and clinching the Pac-12 North title?   

USC coach Lane Kiffen brought his team into Autzen prepared to play a football game.  You brought your team into Autzen prepared to …what?  Be rock stars instead of football players?  Well, it showed.  The Ducks weren’t any more ready to start that game than Obama is to balance the budget.  And don’t expect any slack if the whole “hoopsters on the gridiron” fiasco was not your idea but that of Uncle Phil Knight, the czar of all things Duck.  If that were the case, you needed to tell him to get his bought and paid for buddies the hell off YOUR football field.  Either way, you screwed up.  Football fields are for football, not the latest edition of Entertainment Tonight.  And trust me, watching the #4 team in the nation lay an egg in an important game because they were provided the means to lose focus by their head coach is not very entertaining.

After three quarters of going through the motions, the Ducks finally woke up and started playing like they should have from the opening kick.  Defenders started defending, lineman started opening holes, special teams started special teaming, USC started to wear down and turn over the ball, etc., etc., etc.  It came down to the last minute of the game with the Ducks knocking on the door to score and win.  And then…Big Balls Chip turns into Mike freakin’ Reilly.  Eight seconds left, ball on the USC 20 yard line, and you have Darron Thomas slide step to the left to set up a field goal and then overtime?  For a field goal kicker that has about as good of a chance of making a game-winning, division-clinching 37 yarder as you and I do?  Let me tell you what was happening in Autzen Stadium when that poor kid trotted onto the field…people started packing up their stuff and heading for the exits.  That game was lost when Darron Thomas took a knee with 8 seconds left…not when the kick was wide.

Everyone is entitled to lapses, Charles, and you had one last night.  Duck fans are a loyal and forgiving bunch and we all look forward to next week’s Civil War and another attempt to clinch the North Division crown.  But to quote Tom Petty:  ”Even losers get lucky sometimes…”.  And by that, I’m talking about the OSU Beavers…who were winning yesterday while the Ducks weren’t.  They will come in prepared to play football.  Let’s hope the Ducks are as well.  Go commando next week, Charles…let the balls swing free.  Become Chip again…unpredicatable and hyper-focused. 

And make the celeb’s buy a ticket like the rest of us.

I got nothin’ else.  Peace.  Go Ducks.

Now…back to the whole Oregon being undefeated in the Pac-12 thing – they are only half of all the undefeated teams in the league. Stanford has the same credentials. And Oregon plays Stanford next Saturday in the land of the late Steve Jobs…Palo Alto, CA. The Farm, if you will. Bring your laptops, tape your ankles, put on the eye-black and tee it up!! Excluding Oregon’s opening game with LSU, this is the first for-real opponent either team has faced this year. USC? Washington? C’mon now. Stanford has QB Andrew Luck and a higher team aggregate SAT score. Oregon has RB LaMichael James, RB Kenyon Barner, RB DeAnthony Thomas, QB Darren Thomas and a higher team aggregate arrest record. And, evidently, a nasty defense that had a coming out party against the Washington Huskies this past Saturday.

While I wouldn’t pretend to hype it as the “real” GOTC (as the century is not quite 11 years old…), nor would I call it the “game of the decade”. But I would certainly call it the “game of the season” and will be far more entertaining than the SEC snooze-fest we had rammed down our throat Saturday night. The scoreboard will be smokin’ and points will be scored. The outcome? Well, the absolute unabashed Duck homer in me says Oregon wins. But Stanford is at home, has A. Luck and is a scary good team. Don’t know what the betting spread is and don’t care. But this I know…Stanford will suit up in white helmets and red or white jerseys. The Ducks will suit up in…? And that’s what it’s really all about, isn’t it? As the great White Sox/Dodger/Phillie Richie Allen (above) once said (roughly…): “It’s worth 50 points to my average if I know I look bitchin’ in my uniform”. Dress right, test right. Therefore, a prediction…Ducks in a close one and look snappy doing it.

WINE: The Mama Lama and I did a little back road wine tasting (she did the “little” wine tasting…I took up the slack) coming back from Eugene one Sunday and, on a sunny fall day, it reminded me of why I live here. And trust me, I need lots of reminders during the gray and rainy majority of the year….

We hit several spots off Hwy. 99 going through Monmouth and Rickreal and they were all great. I was on a mission strictly for Oregon Pinot Noirs and tasted several good ones. Van Duzer Winery and Left Coast Vineyards offer the most scenic venues, with Firesteed Winery having zero view and ambiance but a really good Pinot. The photo above was taken from the patio at Left Coast, which also has a nice cafe offering red wine absorbing comfort food. Nice view, eh?

Naturally, I tasted enough that I was in a buying mood. Paid under $20 for several bottles at the aforementioned spots except for Left Coast. However, I saw the Left Coast Pinot Noir 2008 (?) at Costco for under $20. Anyway, if you want to kill a nice fall day, I highly recommend making the drive and enjoying some very inexpensive yet scenic and tasty wine tasting venues.

OCCUPY WALL STREET, OAKLAND, PORTLAND, ETC: Thankfully for everyone, I am getting tired of typing so I will make this segment short and sweet. I had a very brief post a week or two ago that was not totally fair to the intent of Occupy Wall Street, but it was more of a vent than anything of substance. After seeing the “movement” evolve, I offer the following thoughts:

As I understand it, the movement started to primarily protest the abuse of the federal bailout funds by senior management of financial institutions receiving these funds. (note: it should be noted that a number of financial institutions had these funds forced upon them without ever requesting them and were paid back at the first opportunity.) The focal point of these abuses is large personal monetary bonuses taken by the senior management while their stocks were falling, the institutions (in some cases) were failing and homeowners were being foreclosed upon because, through their own measure of greed, they accepted loans for which they weren’t qualified. I get that.

I assume, like the beginning of all protests, that the original folks were committed to their cause and were trying to bring attention to what they perceived as a problem. But as with all things of this nature that get past its shelf life, things have gone badly. A violent fringe has emerged, causing vandalism, civil disobedience and huge taxpayer burden caused largely by having to watch over and deal with what the occupations have evolved into. I have seen firsthand the shithole these “occupiers” have created in Portland’s public parks downtown. This particular “occupation” is right across from the jail, and as crooks/criminals/sociopaths are released, they simply walk across the street and take up residence. Acts of vandalism are occurring with windows being broken in banks downtown in the middle of the night by these self-righteous cowards. Public sanitation issues, drug dealings and other assorted issues are becoming commonplace in the encampment.

I’m seeing placards demanding that the 1% pick up the tab for the remaining 99%. Well, I’m one of the 99% and I don’t expect to have things handed to me. Public assistance in time of need is most definitely what our tax dollars should be focused on, and most definitely not to line the pockets of those fortunate enough to access these funds for personal gain. But to condemn those that take advantage of what our government is not only allowing them to do, but providing them the funds to do it with is wrong. IT’S THE MORONS IN OFFICE YOU WANT TO GO AFTER, NOT THE 1% THAT YOU SOMEHOW HAVE IDENTIFIED AS THE ROOT OF YOUR PROBLEMS. Refocus and move forward. Right now you are only pissing off 99% of the 99%. Get rid of the losers who are only there for the free food and take back your original mission…but go after the right people.

Capitalism is not for the weak of heart. It’s dog-eat-dog and some are better at it than others. Obviously, those currently occupying the blue-tarp compounds in our cities weren’t that good at it and want the rest of us to suffer for their shortcomings. I’m afraid their 15 minutes of fame is over and its going to come to an unfortunate and ugly (yet predictable) end. And that’s too bad…

Final comments:

1. I’ll be the first to admit that its a distinct possibility I don’t have a firm understanding of all of the components of the “Occupy” movement. But I will tell you that my comments represent the discussions I hear amongst the folks at the gym I belong to that I pay for with my money from my job and while I’m having my $4 lattes that I buy with my money from my job. And we are a greater percentage of the “99%” than the “occupants”.
2. And as for your patron saint, movie maker Michael Moore, I’m just curious if he has now disallowed Goldman Sachs from financing his movie efforts that have made him one of the 1%. Oh…did anyone ask him about the progress of his lawsuit against Goldman because MM didn’t get a big enough piece of the pie in previous dealings?

I guess that wasn’t so short. Or sweet.

Peace.

The Oregon State Beavers chalk up yet another loss this past Saturday to the (then) #4 ranked Stanford Cardinal (memo to the OSU sign holder shown on the telecast: ”Cardinal” is singular, not plural.  No “s” at the end. Just trying to help…)  Really no shame in the loss as the last time Stanford lost a football game was last year to -wait for it- The U of O Ducks.  So the loss was expected.

But here is where the Bevos show their true Halloween colors:  as the team that just kicked their ass is walking off the field, the Beaver Nation is chanting “Beat the Ducks! Beat the Ducks!”  So that’s how pathetic y’all have become…instead of being upset by the continual losses of your team, you jump on the bandwagon of those who just added to your list of dismal failure by encouraging them to keep winning.  Is the thought that your self-image would be bolstered by rooting against better programs rather than improving your own team?  God almighty…that is so pathetic.

Using that logic, I don’t remember hearing any “Beat Portland State! Beat Portland State!” chants after Sacramento State embarrassed you and the Pac-12 with an early season victory.  Oh…by the way…Portland State just beat Sacto State yesterday.  Based on that outcome, an irrefutable argument can be made that OSU wouldn’t even be competitive in the Big Sky conference. 

Yeah, yeah…let me beat you to it Beaver fans.  Oregon fans are arrogant, cocky and classless.  I acknowledge it and I fly my asshole flag proudly.  To the victor go the spoils and all that.  And while none of the above mentioned traits are particularly admirable, they are light years above “pathetic”. 

Enjoy the fact that your program is so respected that the rare act of OSU actually winning a football game costs the losing coach his job.  That post-game comments by opposing coaches concentrate on everything they did wrong – and yet still won. Revel in another Bowl-less post season, a sub.500 record and the lower depths of the Pac-12.  And don’t forget to cheer for the next team that beats you. 

Go Ducks.

And don’t get me started on how in the world Brent Mussberger still has a job…

Go Ducks.

And by the way…is that Occupy Portland thing downtown just a skit utilizing the cast of “Portlandia“? But hey…Portland is attracting those big events it’s been seeking.  Hence, the loser trade show happening in the Park Blocks across from City Hall.  Come one, come all…plastic blue tarps are optional.  Note to Occupy Portland “occupants”: your point was duly noted and pondered by all of us the first few days.  But your continued “occupancy” is simply removing the focus from your “mission” to just being a nuisance.  Portland’s attention span has run it’s course on your efforts.  Move along…

Sheesh.

Now, before I continue, it needs to be known that I am totally in favor of any declared holiday that takes down a day of work…no matter how misguided.  If we want to shut down the government, banks and anyone else that has a hankering for a day off in honor of an Italian explorer who, while sailing to Japan on behalf of Spain (an explorer-mercenary, if you will…) mistakenly landed in the Americas but thought it was the East Indies, refused to own up to the fact that he was NOT in the East Indies, named the inhabitants “Indians” and claimed this part of the “New World” for Spain, its cool by me. A day off is a day off.

It does raise a couple of points in my mind, however: (1) the whole “New World” thing was probably news to the people already there - one would imagine they didn’t think their world was all that “new’… especially since they had been through this drill about 500 years earlier when Leif Ericson set foot in the same place, and (2) what with Chris landing in the wrong spot and all, naming the inhabitants “Indians” when they weren’t, etc. – how come everybody is so convinced that all this happened precisely on October 12th?  I would be impressed if they simply got the month and year right as one would think the days run together on a sea voyage that lasts years.  But somehow they have nailed the exact day using only a compass, the stars, a sextant and a map that showed the world as flat.

Whatever…as long as we always have the 2nd Monday of October off, I’m not going to push it.

Duck football:  Another “pulling away” win for the Ducks, even though they did the usual “no defense in the first half” strategy against Cal on Thursday night.  LaMichael James gains well over 200 yards in 3 quarters and then has his elbow dislocated early in the 4th.  This injury was made even more gruesome by seeing it on the gigantic DiamondVision screen at Autzen Stadium.  The best way to describe it is that it appeared LaMike had two elbows.  On the same arm.  For a total of three on his body.  Which is one more than necessary.  Word has it that he “re-located” it himself while laying on the field.  OW!! Surprisingly, it appears he will miss 2-3 weeks at the most.  I’ll tell you what…it looked like a season-ender from where I was sitting, but the little dude is tough.  We’ll see how it goes against ASU this week without him.  I’m thinking D.A. Thomas runs wild, Barner has his usual productive day and QB Thomas takes off a few more times.  Just need the defense to play 4 quarters.  And Cliffie has paid his penance, Chip.  Time he played every defensive down. Eventually the opposition’s receivers that are running free in the Duck secondary are going to hang on to the ball and it could get messy.

Footnote: the OSU Beavers win a game over University of Arizona.  Good for them, but with all due respect to the Beavs, what has happened to Arizona football?  I blogged last year that the Mike Stoops circus act could only go so long before players start tuning him out…it appears the Wildcats are in full tune-out mode now.  They’ve got a premier QB in Nick Foles and they literally can’t beat anyone.  Stoopsie may be applying with brother Bob for an assistant’s job next year, which would be disappointing…I had hoped that when his eyeballs inevitably projectile out of his head while indiscriminately screaming at someone, they would be landing on a Pac-12 field.  We’ve earned the right to see it happen…

Movie Review:  Saw “Moneyball” last night and really liked it.  But, as we say in the commercial real estate biz, it’s a “single-purpose” view.  I mean, Brad Pitt is his usual cool self and an understated Jonah Hill is great, but this is most definitely not a date-night flick. Nothing blows up, nobody has sex and you already know the ending.  But for the baseball fan like me and someone who read Michael Lewis’s book on which the movie is based, it was a fun couple of hours.  And as a line in the movie by Billy Beane (Pitt) says: “How can you not be romantic about baseball?”  Didn’t make me an A’s fan though…  And I can’t figure out why one of my favorite actor’s, Philip Seymour Hoffman is cast as manager Art Howe.  Kind of a waste of talent.  Here’s a bonus movie tip…see PSH and Tom Hanks in “Charlie Wilson’s War”.  He was great in that one.

Wine of the Day:  I got this one at Whole Foods…a mecca of wine deals.  It’s a Oregon Pinot Noir called Rascal, bottled by The Great Oregon Wine Company in McMinnville with grapes from the Evergreen Vineyard.  There seems to be an implied  ”user tax” on Pinot Noir’s that make them a little spendy, but for under $12 (on sale), this one was pretty tasty.

That’s all I got.  Peace.

It was always my impression that the Big Three were trying to change how the world operated and happened to become incredibly rich as a by-product. Now the bright young people are trying to become incredibly rich and bettering the world is inconsequential in their efforts (see Mark Zuckerberg).

Anyway, it was cool sharing the planet with Steve Jobs. The place won’t be the same.

Peace.

Football highlight today is #7 Wisconsin v. #8 Nebraska from Camp Randall Stadium in Madison.  Red v. Red.  Coach Bielema v. Coach Pelini.  Both teams 4-0.  Nebraska making its Big Ten debut.  Camp Randall crowd going nuts to “Jump Around” by House of Pain.  Smash mouth football.  Slobber knocker hits. In a word…FOOTBALL!

By the way…anyone see a resemblance?  Saw this suggested on a Game Day sign, so thought I’d do a little research -

LORD VOLDEMORT

BO PELINI

Anyway, couldn’t be more excited about Football Saturday.  The college game is so much better than the NFL from a watchability perspective.  It doesn’t mean the NFL isn’t a great product and that the Lama doesn’t watch…the college environment is simply more free-wheeling and fun to follow.  Several observations why:

1. College coaches are allowed to have a personality and individuality while NFL coaches are pretty interchangeable.  Throw out Rex Ryan’s schtick, Pete Carroll’s rah-rah, albeit pointless, enthusiasm and Bill Belichick’s cut-off hoodies and you are left with a corporate America roll-call.  Conversely, the NCAA gives you wack-jobs Pelini, Mike Stoops and Mike Gundy; smart-ass cockiness from Chip Kelly and the recently departed Jim Harbaugh; geriatrics JoePa and, until last year, Bobby Bowden; nurturing lovable losers like Mike Riley and deranged sadists such as the coach from Texas Tech who liked pirates and locked kids with concussions in equipment sheds.  Personalities, I tell ya, are rampant and encouraged in college football.  Button down, politically correct types only need apply as head coaches in the “No Fun League”.  Now, NFL assistant coaches…thats another story.
2. Colleges have bands, fight songs and mascots.  NFL has in-stadium courts and jails.
3. College cheerleaders are less silicone-enhanced than their NFL counterparts.
4. College player’s crimes seem to be less violent than NFL player’s crimes.
5. College cheerleaders practice in a gym.  NFL cheerleaders practice on the pole.
6. NFL has Oakland Raider fans.  NCAA doesn’t.  Enough said.
7. No one player can dominate in the NFL…they are all great.  NCAA teams can have a guy or two carry your season (see LaMike James, Andrew Luck).
8. In college, upsets are more reality than hype.  In the NFL, upsets are rare (but they occasionally beat a point spread).
9. In the NFL, owners try to get by on the cheap and still win.  In the NCAA, boosters can’t spend money fast enough to buy cool uniforms, impressive facilities and good players.
10. ESPN’s College Football Gameday on a college campus vs. countless and mindless studio based NFL pre-game shows.  No contest.
11. The NFL wins big in one category…they don’t have the NCAA administrative nitwits to deal with.  And that, Lamalettes, is huge!

Enough…you get my point.

A Public Service Announcement from Dr. Doogie Lama:  I just had (for the second time) a skin cancer biopsied and then removed.  The skin cancer itself was a basal cell carcinoma (BCC), a relatively harmless affliction.  My understanding of the BCC is that it wouldn’t be fatal to a gerbil even if left untended for a decade.  So if you’re going to get a skin cancer, BCC is the route to go.  However, they can get pretty gnarly looking and, I suppose, if totally ignored, could be harmful.  Anyway, the point is, these things don’t just happen on short notice.  They are in your body percolating over the years from you being less than mindful in your youth of frolicking in the sun without benefit of sunscreen, shade, etc.  (and don’t get me started on tanning beds…).  If you don’t want to be carved on later, take it easy now.  The skin cancer you mindlessly cultivate today could be the much worse melanoma of tomorrow.  And just so you know, while it isn’t exactly open heart surgery, the procedure to remove the BCC involved a deep, long incision and 19 stitches with the accompanying discomfort.  Guess the Lama is going to find out if chicks truly dig scars or not.  Lecture over…class dismissed.

Your Thoughts, Please:  Those of you who are faithful readers have seen mention of the backbone of the Lama clan, Mrs. Lama.  Being the naturally publicity shy sort that she is, she is not enamoured with the title of Mrs. Lama and, for that matter, not particularly interested in being mentioned at all in my blog or any other.  To possibly bring her out of her seclusion, I have decided to retire the title of Mrs. Lama and replace it with something else.  But out of respect for y’all, I thought you might want some input.  So..take the poll and let me know.  Just keep in mind that I may not pay any attention to the final results and simply choose the name I like best.  Not to influence your input, but  how about the cheer as she goes to work each day: Boom Shockalocka-Go Mama Lama.  Or not…

Vote early and often!

Wine of the Day:  The Lama has wandered out of the Willamette, Napa and Sonoma Valleys for this one: 2005 Domaine Des Chanssaud.  Yup – a Rhone Red french wine from the Chateauneuf-Du-Pape appellation.  Quick overview is it is 86% Grenache, 8% Syrah, 5%  Mourevedre and 1% Cinsault and aged 8-10 years.  My critique: It was awesome!!  No idea of the cost, as it was a gift.  But unless it is ridiculously priced, I strongly suggest buying a bottle.  Had it in Sunriver with a fantastic filet after a round of golf, so it was the capper on a great day.   May have to explore that part of the wine world for awhile.      

Quote of the Day:  ”Success is only a matter of opinion.  Failure is a cold, hard fact”. - Peter Gent from “North Dallas Forty”

Song of the Day:     Boys of Fall  by Kenny Chesney.  Only meaningful to old farts as we get older…

Back to the games.  Remote is smokin’…

Peace.