a few thoughts

despite all the drug related and highly publicized violence in places like acapulco, ciudad juarez, laredo and tijuana, mexico is still a wonderful place for a vacation.
i know that most of you think i'm crazy for staying there every year but just like in the states, you just have to avoid the nasty cities.

but unfortunately, the publicity beat goes on............check out these statistics on recent violence over a 26 hour period: 41 people shot and 4 dead. who would visit that area, right? well, those deadly stats belonged to the city of CHICAGO last weekend but i don't see the state department issuing a warning to stay away from the windy city. perception is reality....unless it's in your back yard.

congratulations to the university of conneticut's womens basketball team for winning their second straight undefeated championship and winning 78 consecutive games over two years. how do you win 78 consecutive anythings?

Godspeed to actor robert culp who dared break all the rules and partner up with a unknown black actor on a weekly television series in 1965 called 'i spy' which played for three seasons. culp defied the critics and thumbed his nose at those who said america wasn't ready for an african american as an equal partner to a white man and that culp was commiting professional suicide. apparently, the critics were wrong as culp was emmy nominated all three years as best leading man in a drama but he never won the award because he lost every years to his tv partner, bill cosby. culp was 79.

tiger woods was playing around on his wife. infidelity was the primary cause of action in 1.2 million divorces last year. when do we get reports on the other million + people? let the guy and his family move on.

how brave is that 11 year old boy who helped his mother fight off the knife wielding rapist the other night? they both suffered nasty facial cuts. when does the local plastic surgeon step up and donate his services?

my buddy jim thinks our former governor is so delusional that he would pass a lie detector examination. wouldn't that be a hoot if blago was found 'unfit' to stand trial and commited to an institution?

if you're thinking about a new car, i think your best bargain is going to be ANY toyota over the next twelve months. that company is going to jump thru hoops to rebuild their reputations. they just have to learn that sticky gas pedals should not be included in the luxury package.

smile. summer is coming.

2010 WHITE SOX

the baseball excitement will be on the south side this year as the pitching rich white sox duke it out with detroit and minnesota for the central division crown.

the depending champion twins were dealt a heavy blow when all star closer joe nathan went down for the season but they're the champs until someone knocks them off and that someone should be the white sox in 2010. but, although loaded with pitching, the sox are not without question marks in their outfield lineup.

carlos quentin has never played a full season in professional ball so his health is certainly an issue. alex rios has to bounce back from that disastrous two months after being traded from toronto because hitting .199 ain't going to cut it.

on the plus side, juan pierre is a huge upgrade from scott podsednick. better hitter, faster, better base stealer, well liked in the club house and a very intelligent player. but the pearl of gm kenny williams' off season activities might be andruw jones. a ten time gold glover, he's 35 pounds lighter and pounding the ball. look for him to get more playingtime than expected.

they have a solid infield and the bullpen is lights out. jenks, thornton and putz will twist you in knots. as mentioned, the starting 4 is the best in the american league.

this is a ball club with very high expectations. if you play on the north side and stay healthy, you're still playing for second place but if the white sox stay healthy, it could be a repeat of 2005.

THE 2010 CUBS

normally spring training is the time for optimism but the chicago cubs have stumbled badly coming out of the chute without a pitch being thrown.

boo-boo lou has obviously begun his season long siesta early by not letting starlin castro start the season at shortstop. castro is the real deal and a 4 star player but simply put, boo-boo thinks that ryan theriot is the answer at short and doesn't want to hurt his feelings. totally moronic.

moving theriot to 2nd (where he better suited) and letting castro handle short (where he's a natural) would solidify the infield and the cubs desperately need that because the pickins' at 2nd have been mighty slim since derosa was traded.

but boo-boo feels that his best shot to win is having a shortstop with average range and and a below average arm. theriot would be perfect at second and the proper move would solidify the middle for ten years but what does lou care? in ten years, he'll be in the shuffleboard finals down in tampa.

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2010 will be another year of disappointment for cub fans despite the fact they play in the worst division in baseball and that you can normally win the central division being just a little over .500.

the cubs have NO chance to win the division and they better worry about hanging on to 2nd place as the reds are again improved and the brewers will score runs in bunches as everyone chases the cardinals, the class of the division. however, the reds will be hindered by little offense and dusty baker with the brewers not improving the worst pitching staff in the national league.

problems are multiple. second base by committee, a $140 million dollar disaster in left field, a drug using catcher and a pitching staff without a #1. the offensive production fell more than 15% last year and with father time and repeated injuries slowing down the 'star' core, the cubs are done.

cub fans: make second place your goal and you'll have a fun summer at urine field wearing your yosh kowano floppy hats and mock turtleneck dickies.

the white sox are next followed by the MLB yearly predictions.