The Anticipation Builds......

As excited as I am for the college and professional football seasons to kick off, I am equally as excited for the new Baroness album to arrive at my door in October. In case our widget below didn't work for you, here is a youtube version of the first two cuts from the upcoming Blue Record. The first song is Bullhead's Psalm, and it leads in to The Sweetest Curse. Lie on the couch and let this thing soak in. Really really awesome.

The Podcast Returns: NFL Preview, Part 1

It's been over six months since our last podcast, and our rust certainly shows in this shaky return to action. Babcock and I called each other this afternoon to vent our mutual anger that Brett Favre was back in the news, and somehow this resulted in an impromptu podcast. We begin by bashing Brett Favre for about 20 minutes before we move on to discuss the impressive preseason debuts of the Giants and Patriots. We then break down the AFC and NFC East and make our Heisman Trophy pick. Finally, I try (unsuccessfully, although I did give him a huge hint) to stump Babcock in celebrity trivia. Here's your hint: "if you lie with dogs, you're bound to get fleas". Informative? Definitely not. But, I'd say it's certainly entertaining.

We will be back with part 2, and will bring the rest of the staff in to the fold.

(it might take a few seconds to load. If you haven't heard anything after 30 seconds, close and come back to the site and try again. This should do the trick. If that doesn't work, click below and it will feed you the episode straight from gcast).


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Check out this single from the new Baroness album (set to drop in October). It's called Bullhead's Psalm/The Sweetest Curse, and it kicks a lot of ass. It's comforting to know that soon enough (November or December according to their website), I'll be back at the Middle East and they'll be fucking blowing my face off again.





UPDATE: These are actually the first two songs of the new album. Bullhead's Psalm is the intro and leads in to track 2, which is the Sweetest Curse.

Roomofzen Fantasy Football.

What more can we say about Jeff Feagles that hasn't already been said 1,000 times on this website? The man is a fucking institution, plan and simple. At this point, I'm just enjoying every chance I get to see him punt while simultaneously awaiting the biography that I assume will be released when his career comes to a close.



I don't want to get ahead of myself, but I don't even know why we're bothering with the regular season. Let's just put the Giants and Patriots in the Super Bowl right now. The Giants defensive line rotation is unstoppable. Casten had Clint Sintim right. The guy is an animal. He would have had about 6 sacks tonight if he wasn't getting held like a bastard. How the hell are teams going to contend with him after they've already been broken by Osi, Tuck, Kiwanuka (who has given up his number to Sintim), big Fred Robbins, Rocky Bernard, Barry Cofield, Chris Canty, and Jay Alford? They won't. They can't. It's impossible. It's an embarrassment of riches. Don't even get me started on tonight's hero Tommie Hill. And then, on top of that, after Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw spent the first quarter steamrolling the Panthers, Danny Ware comes in and looks like he could go for 1,000 yards this season. David Carr and Mario Manningham both look like they're back in college. Maybe it's just me, but it really seems like the Giants could lose their entire first string (except Antonio Pierce) to injury and still win the Super Bowl.



Anyways, the reason I'm writing this post is to encourage you to join the roomofzen fantasy football league. Now, please don't be discouraged if you joined the fantasy basketball league and thought it was lame. The truth is that we all take fantasy football extremely seriously, and this league will be very competitive. It will also be covered right here on the site. Every transaction, every trade, every matchup will be covered here as if it were happening in real life. Not only will this plan finally give you that recognition you deserve for all that hard work you put in during the summer months, but it will also ensure that all players stay dedicated to their team throughout the entire season so that they can save face.

It should be awesome. The winner will receive a free roomofzen shirt that they design. Their design will also be featured in the roomofzen store.

Here are your instructions to join:

1) Follow this link to Yahoo! Fantasy Football

2) We are League #609049

3) Our password is: neclamchowder

This should bring you to our league (Boner Salad Reunion Tour) page. There, you can create your team. First come, first served. Draft will take place Tuesday, September 8th.

Speaking of the roomofzen store, we have a new item that is arriving just in time for fantasy football season:



purchase it here.

SICK!

This is Awesome.

Train of Thought

I just watched a pretty solid cameo on Entourage by Tom Brady. Notable moments that pop to mind include Turtle planning to inform Brady that he "Sucks Balls" only to be instantly won over by his charm and offering to bring the 3 time Superbowl champ wine and chocolate. (Typical Giants fan move) Then Brady tells us that Giselle cooks. Sure, Tom, sure she does.







Pretty pictures of mountains over sick guitar riff and slightly inaudible lyrics by the Heartless Bastards.






This play was pretty sick. You gotta love that they leave the punter without any blockers against what is probably eleven 3rd and 4th stringers who would literally eat a live kitten to make the roster. I would consider that a "life-saving ball fake".





Uncle Tupelo...badass.

Rashard Lewis Suspended 10 Games

Rashard Lewis has been suspended without pay for 10 games by the NBA because he tested positive for elevated testosterone levels.

Unfortunately, the Magic do not play the Celtics during the first ten games of the season. However, this is going to be a tight race in the East, and I'll gladly accept any turn of events that puts Orlando or Cleveland at a disadvantage.

Lewis says that he was taking an over the counter supplement that contained substances banned by the league, and his statement said that he hopes "every athlete can learn from my mistake that supplements, no matter how innocent they seem, should only be taken after consulting an expert in the field,".

Ordinarily, since Lewis plays for a rival team, I'd be screaming steroids here. However, Lewis has already told the press exactly what caused the positive test (DHEA). I'm much more inclined to accept the "taking a legal supplement not knowing it contained a banned substance" story when the athlete specifically states what it was that they took. It's only when they are vague in their explanation that I get suspicious.

Whoa This Shirt Is Intense

I had heard rumors that there were fans showing up at Redskins camp with "Washington Wants Vick" shirts and signs. So, I googled the shirts. I didn't find the Washington Wants Vick shirts, but I did find a whole slew of Anti-Vick shirts. Some are sort of funny ("Vick is a dick"). However, I couldn't help cracking up at the shirt pictured above, which is apparently an anti-Vick shirt and features what is hands down the most intense quote ever to be put on a t-shirt. You must have some seriously unresolved issues to wear this thing.

Just to be clear.... the quote, which lies over fire, reads:

"I am confident that the hottest places in Hell are reserved for the souls of sick and brutal people who hold God's creatures in such brutal and cruel contempt. - Sen. Robert Byrd"

What the hell do you do if you're at a cookout and there's some dude wearing that shirt? I would go with the obligatory raise of the beer can. You've acknowledged the shirt, and you can then relocate very quickly because you haven't engaged any discussion.

Baron Davis Documentary

I just took some time to watch Crips and Bloods: Made in America , which is an award winning documentary produced by Baron Davis. I won't lie, this isn't a topic in which I have ever had much interest. However, I was drawn by the fact that it was produced by one of my favorite NBA stars and because the reviews have been nothing but outstanding. Plus, I'm on vacation, so why not.

I really recommend this to anybody who is interested in American history, anybody who is interested in urban culture, or anybody who will consume anything with an NBA player's name attached to it (as I said, I fall into category #3). This is much more than your typical film that interviews gang members in hopes of dehumanizing them, keeping people at an even greater distance, and making the problem worse. Instead, this film is filled with history. It takes us all the way back to the mid-20th century, and shows us how something that began so seemingly innocent exploded to the point where there have been over 15,000 gang-related deaths over the past 30 years in Los Angeles county alone. It also paints the current gang culture in an undeniably negative and unflattering light, and in no way glorifies street violence. As an anti-gang documentary, what makes this incredibly successful is the knowledge it provides in terms of how this problem arose, how connected it is with the history and politics of America, and how deep-rooted it is in the culture of this pocket of America.

It's on demand. Check it out.

Delonte West Raps About Chipotle in the KFC Parking Lot

Via Fanhouse:

While apparently having to wait 18 minutes in the KFC parking lot for his cousin to bring him chicken, Delonte West freestyles to kill time. Our favorite restaurant chain features very prominently (around 2:20)in his rhymes:






We love Chipotle here. I'll never forget my first trip (spring of 2003, Wisconsin Avenue in DC), and my life is infinitely better since Chipotle finally edged into the Boston area in 2007. Jim took his first trip there last summer (preparations here, and then post-trip thoughts here with lots of burrito discourse in the comments section). Hearing Delonte feature Chipotle so prominently in his rap means that he must love it as much as we do. I think the recent arrival of Chipotle in the Boston area (which, ironically, was around the same time D-West was moved to Seattle) might totally change his opinion of the city, and might mean that he might be more willing to wear green again someday (something I would LOVE).

August 4th, Time To Start Hating The Chargers

I already had enough hostility for the Eagles, Redskins, and Cowboys. I didn't need another team to hate. However, I began to hate the San Diego Chargers as soon as the less than worthy LaDainian Tomlinson was given a nickname already taken by one of the NFL's all-time great players. And then, once they were already on my shit list, they made things worse. I've never seen a team act more ridiculous after a loss than the Chargers did after choking away a home playoff game to the Patriots in January of 2007. In fact, of the Patriots celebration, Tomlinson actually said, "When you go to the middle of our field and start doing the dance Shawne Merriman is known for, that is disrespectful." He and Philip Rivers are always complaining and whining. And, on top of that, Philip Rivers refuses to swear. I can't get on board with that. I can't stand this team, and I think now is the time to start the 2009-2010 Chargers Hate Train.

To get you in the mood, here is Deion Sanders ripping LaDainian Tomlinson in January of 2008:



Let me just state for the record that I have no ill feelings towards the San Diego cheerleaders, which are the most professional in the entire league.

More Ed O'Neill (Always A Good Thing)

Here is today's tribute to Ed O'Neill (something I hope to do more regularly): The final part of the Married....With Children pilot episode. Al (O'Neill) has the chance to go see the Bulls host the Lakers, but Peg forbids it because she has invited the new neighbors Steve and Marcy over. They come over happily married (and having agreed to never watch sports again), and are both infected by Al and Peggy. If nothing else, you have to watch the shot at 3:43. The face Al gives Steve after he says to Marcy about her mother "what is she coming to teach you to bury me like she buried her previous three husbands" is frickin classic.

Chad Ford On Pierce and Rondo

In this insider piece today, Chad Ford goes through the three different categories of 2010 free agents, and where things currently stand with each of them. First, Ford assures readers that Paul Pierce wants to retire a Celtic, a sentiment that is shared by the Boston front office. The Celtics will, he says, offer Pierce an extension.

However, in discussing the players who will be restricted free agents, Ford says the following on Rajon Rondo:

"Conventional practice would've had Rondo already locked into an extension by now. He was the best player on the floor for the Celtics in the playoffs, and he's just 23 years old.

However, the truth is much weirder. The Celtics actually shopped Rondo this summer, and when the shopping went public, both Danny Ainge and Doc Rivers bad-mouthed Rondo a little. It was nothing major, but talk about him being selfish and not following team rules couldn't have gone over well in his camp. I think the Celtics are afraid to give him a long-term extension right now and fully expect that, unless Rondo is traded, he'll be a restricted free agent next summer.

A number of teams, including the Heat, Knicks and Rockets, need a point guard. If the Celtics won't pay him, someone else will."


This whole thing has been very strange, and I haven't really known what to make of it. All along I've just been hoping that Ainge's intention was to have a few declined trades to use as leverage when negotiating Rondo's extension. Rondo believes he's a max contract player. The activity of early June suggests otherwise. However, if no extension is reached before the season begins, I really have to wonder how wise it was for Ainge and Rivers to open their mouths at all. If you're not going to extend him long term, then it makes no sense to open your mouth and say anything that might affect his motivation or psyche.

The one thing I keep reminding myself of is this: if no extension is reached, Rondo's motivation won't be affected because he'll have no choice but to give his team everything he has. The further he leads the Celtics in the playoffs, the bigger contract he'll be inking in the offseason.

Genius

Wayne's World was on TV last night. It's something I don't think to watch very often nowadays, but whenever I do see it I'm reminded about what a huge impact it had on me as a kid. It also reminds me how much I wish the term "mental" was still popular today.

This sequence absolutely kills me every time (everything Ed O'Neill touches turns to gold):




Excellent use of "mental":

LenDale White Stops Excessively Drinking Tequila, Loses Over 30 Pounds

Titansonline.com: LenDale White came into Titans camp this year having lost more than 30 pounds in the offseason. How did White lose the weight? He says it's because he stopped drinking tequila. My reaction to this story is twofold: first, the guy must really drink A LOT of tequila. I've never met anybody who drinks so much tequila on a daily basis that cutting it out of their diet would lead to a weight loss of over 30 pounds in six months. I can only imagine what other health benefits will come from this drastic change. The second part of my reaction is that this Tennessee running game is going to be even scarier than last year. LenDale White has been overweight ever since his last college game. This healthier weight will make him quicker, more versatile, and able to take on a larger load in terms of carries. White's weight loss and a more equal distribution of carries will lead to he and Chris Johnson both being fresher at the end of games.

Also, I had both White and Johnson in fantasy last year, and it was great. Johnson went over 100 yards seemingly every week, and White always scored TDs. This news may make White a more attractive pick, but it doesn't lower Johnson's stock any. He will get his for sure.

Embrace the Weekend: We're Finally on Twitter

What a week...Brett Favre might actually be retired, Stephon Marbury may be on the brink of suicide, we learned that our roid heads beat everyone else's roid heads twice, some people got very excited about Kevin Durant.........and in the end it all means nothing. Please, this baseball only lull has to end soon.

and: we're finally on twitter!