ESPN.com: Page 2 : Do yourself a favor: Watch Landis

Jim Caple of ESPN is with me... Landis and the Tour are THE biggest thing going on in sports right now, BAR NONE.

Especially with the World Cup over.

The New American in Paris

For those who were amazed at the exploits of Floyd Landis in yesterday's stage of the Tour De France, check this out. The man is simply an animal.

Fitting Fitness Into Your Life

On a message board that I frequent, one of the contributors brought up a very interesting point: the people who talk about wanting to get fit but "not having time for it," or "not being able to fit it into their busy schedule" are going about this all wrong.

Fitness is not just a process of trying to look good and lose weight. It is a process of life improvement. To truly get fit is not just hitting the weights once in a while or going to the gym to stare blindly at the TV screens while trudging on a treadmill, but actually taking steps to make yourself healthy inside and out. It includes lifestyle changes like diet improvements, regular full-body exercise, and goal-setting.

By full-body exercise, I don't just mean making sure you hit all your major muscle groups with weight routines, or doing the Nordic Trak because it hits all your muscle groups at once. I mean getting down and doing some very basic bodyweight exercises - nothing that isolates a muscle group, but rather working your body as a system from top to bottom. And I also mean exercises that hit not only your muscles, but those that massage the organs and increase the flow of oxygen into and out of the body. And most importantly, exercise that makes you wake up and take notice of what your body's real condition is.

People who listen to music or watch TV while exercising are on the wrong track. You don't want to try to distract yourself from your body while exercising, you want to pay MORE attention to it. You should be feeling every single breath that comes into your lungs, and feel every single muscle that expands or contracts as you go through the motions of the routine. If something doesn't feel right, work it till it does. Or go to the doctor to find out why it feels wrong if it's REALLY wrong.

I see infomercials with those silly ab exercisers that isolate your abs so that you don't hurt your neck while doing situps, and think "that's ridiculous. If your neck is sore from doing situps, then your neck is weak and you need to exercise that part of your body too."

But I'm getting off an a bad tangent here. The most important thing of all to keep in mind about exercise is that you shouldn't be trying to fit it into your life. You should be trying to fit the rest of your life around your health. If you aren't healthy, then the rest of your life doesn't mean jack. If I'm not healthy, I'm no good to my family, no good to my employer, no good to my friends.

And most importantly I'm no good to myself.

So the next time you think "I don't have time to exercise," turn that around and think "how can I fit my life around my health?"

Who is More Gangsta? You be the judge!

Parking: A HUGE Non-Issue

Where I work, there's a big furor going on over the fact that people are being asked to park somewhere that isn't convenient for them. And to that I respond: "Huh. Really."

Here's the situation: the area of OSU Medical Center where I work is a good distance from the rest of the Medical Center - so far that there is a shuttle service to get people around between our section of the campus, the main medical campus, and even the other two areas that require it (put it this way: one of the areas' shuttles goes once an hour because it's that far away, up at Polaris for those who know Columbus). So parking is a big deal for some people here.

Our area has free parking - one of the few places on the OSU campus where parking is free (and not just the Medical Center campus - the WHOLE CAMPUS). So people have been getting used to parking here and then taking the shuttle to wherever they work to avoid the parking pass fee.

So in an attempt to combat this dishonesty, the Medical Center brass has decided to increase the areas of our parking garage that are for patients only, as the effort is being made to ensure that patients get most of the parking. And to me, that makes good sense.

But the practical side of this is that the employees all over the Medical Center are up in arms about it, because they're being asked to park somewhere that's inconvenient for them. And at that, I mock them openly.

I take the bus to work every day. And I get dropped off RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE BUILDING. Every day. And my bus pass costs about half of what it costs for parking passes, plus I don't have to worry about parking too far away from my office because I don't PARK ANYWHERE. OSU is the easiest employer to service with the COTA bus system as there are more routes toward campus than just about anywhere else in the city.

But to suggest to folks that they take the bus to work, you'd think that someone suggested that they crawl to work with a skateboard strapped to their stomach. They just don't get it!

But let's do the math:
Jamie:

• $40 per month, all the transportation he needs. Total: $480 per year.

Everyone else:

• According to AAA, in 2005 it cost $8,410 per year to own and operate a car. Add the $960 for OSU parking passes (I think it's $80/month). You're looking at around $9370 for operating a car as an OSU employee.

Is that an easy decision for anyone else to make? Yet for some reason, people just have it in their heads that they MUST drive to work. And I'm not going to be so bold as to say that EVERYONE could take the bus... some people don't have that luxury due to other constraints.

But I'm going to say half the employees here could get away with it, and enjoy not having to drive, not having to put up with road raging morons, not have to get frustrated by traffic, not having to shell out money every time someone decides to try to take the easy way and ends up ramming your back end, and most of all not have to lose almost $9000 a year just because you think you have to drive.

I laugh at those of you who choose to drive to work, particularly at OSU. It's really a no brainer.

Tommy Z Will Win Over All

I'm not normally a boxing fan, but I had to post this bad boy!

US Open Cup Redux

I've said before and I'll say again: One of my favorite sporting events in the country is the U.S. Open Cup. Even more than the NCAA basketball tournament, the Open Cup is the ultimate test of sporting dominance in the US. It's comprised of teams from every level of U.S. Soccer from amateur beer-league sides to MLS champions, and they all have to play each other.

For the first year in a long time, though, I'm nervous about our first game. We have to go and play the Mid-Michigan Bucks in Michigan... and this team is still trying to get its head out of its ass offensively. There's no reason that the Bucks should score on us, as we have a good defense. But we have NO forwards of note. Jason Garey and Kei Kamara are both forwards of the US model, which means they run around trying to set up the perfect shot instead of being strong off the ball and being in the right place at the right time. If it goes to PKs, which I think it will, then they have as good a chance against Noah Palmer as we will against whoever their keeper is.

So, yeah. I'm nervous. But perhaps a loss in the Open Cup is exactly what our boys will need to galvanize them to turn things around. Let's put it this way... it can't get too much worse.

Post World-Cup-Final Rehash

Well, this wasn't quite the final I was expecting... I figured it'd be a dive-fest by the Italians. Instead, the ref wasn't having it and the Italians adjusted admirably to the situation. And I had just found this video online, too...



Oh well. I was definitely for the French in this game, as I am not a big fan of defensive soccer. The French were playing an attractive speedy game, and the Italians were holding back. The insertion of Iaquinta and De Rossi made it pretty obvious after a while that they were playing for overtime and PKs. And the late insertion of Del Piero confirmed that for me as they'd definitely want his touch out there for the shootout.

But it was a good, solid hard-fought game, and both sides showed admirably. All in all, I was pleased with the attacking by the French (particularly in the second half) and you can't fault the Italians for their defense under such heavy fire at times. All in all, I'd say the better team won the day.

You can't go on, though, without commenting on the horrible finish by Zidane. It was pretty clear from the replay of the head-butting incident that the Italian player said something to Zidane, and Zidane was provoked to react. But in the World Cup Final, as the captain of your team, you need to show a little more control than that. As it stands, this is what people are going to remember about Zidane, and it's a shame. I like the man and his play, but that action is going to leave a bitter taste in my mouth as I recall his career.

Duct Tape Prom

Stuck At the Prom

I almost wish I was back in high school again so I could do this! Lots of creativity here!

Saddam On the Firing Line

From the Celtic FC List I belong to:

In Iraq, Saddam Hussein is found guilty and sentenced to be shot.

His last request is to name his own firing squad.

He chose Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard, and Jamie Carragher from 12 yards....

World Cup Fact and Fiction

SI.com - Writers - Gabriele Marcotti: Debunking the myths about this Cup - Monday July 3, 2006 9:37AM

Wow... this guy is dead on. He has nailed every one of these myths.

And the truth is that CONCACAF does stink. If we were to join CONMEBOL today, we wouldn't see a World Cup berth till 2022. We're that far behind.

Tour De France versus The World Cup

I'm a sucker for international sports - especially the ones you don't get to see too often in America. Obviously soccer falls less and less into that category as time goes on, but the Beautiful Game will always have my attention (even when it's not that beautiful, like the Germany/Italy game yesterday). And as the World Cup is drawing near a close, I'm getting sucked into another event that I've grown to love: the Tour de France.

Now let's start out with that last word: France. I don't share most of my countrymen's dislike of France, as basically all the reasons people give for France being hated are the reasons America is hated - we only think about ourselves, we only act in our own self-interest, etc. To me, that's just hypocritical. Most people don't even know WHY they hate France, they just know that they do because "everyone else does." Well, I have never been one to do something just to keep up with the Joneses, and I'm not going to start now.

To sit back and watch the Tour is, to me, an exercise in loving the purity of sport. Now, to folks who know anything about pro cycling, that's going to sound weird. Pro cycling is, without a doubt, one of the dirtiest sports in the world as far as performance-enhancing substances are concerned. But once you get past all that crap, the actual event itself is simple. Cycle as fast as you can for three weeks and you win. No referee judgment calls, no time outs, no time wasting, etc. Get to the finish line in once piece.

After watching Totti flop around like a displaced smelt for 120 minutes on Tuesday, to watch a bunch of guys just cycle as hard as they could throughout the beautiful European countryside was very refreshing, soothing, and exciting. And getting caught up in all the nuances of the tour - the roles of domestiques, the activity in the peloton, the excitement of the breakaways, and the final mad dash to the finish - was just fun.

And possibly my favorite thing about the Tour is the land they're riding through. Whether they're in France or making their way out of France on one of their jaunts through Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Belgium, etc. you get to see small-town Europe at its very best. The pride the Europeans take in their towns is so refreshing. Houses that have stood for hundreds of years are still being used. Narrow streets that were never made to handle automobiles are carefully maneuvered by cyclists as fans of the sport come out to cheer on the competitors and show off the pride they have in their communities. Ruins of old churches, castles, etc. dot the landscape. And the beautiful scenery of Northern France, the Alps, the Pyrenees, and the Languedoc (among other places) just make me want to visit even more.

Lance may not be there this year, nor are Basso and Ullrich (again, due to a doping scandal), but the Tour is doing just fine without them. There's more of a feeling of a lion sitting in wait as the peloton looks for someone to make a move to be the new big dog. Will it be Floyd Landis? George Hincapie? Tom Boonen? Or will some other upstart come along and start a new legend in this event? Only time will tell. But I'll be watching and enjoying every minute of it that I can.

Negative Soccer Wins Out

I think I've figured out exactly what the Italian soccer style is: wear down the other team with diving and histrionics until they finally have had enough and then hit them hard at the end. It's boring, annoying, and ultimately frustrating.

I absolutely hate watching the Italian team. And to watch them win over a clean playing team like Germany has been in this tournament is almost too much to bear. Watching Totti writhe around and plead with the referee is like claws on a chalkboard, with the chalkboard attached to my head.

But the fact remains that Germany, for all its success so far in this tournament, couldn't put the ball in the net. And if you can't do that, you can't win. The Germans had been playing flowing soccer with lots of great movement, but with the constant diving of the Italians the game kept getting dragged to a halt, and I think that screwed up the German flow.

Well, at least with today's games I will be happy with either team winning. France is playing attractive soccer, Portugal almost always does, and Zidane and Figo are a couple of my favorites. As long as the winner here beats Italy I'll be happy.

France/Spain: What a Game!

I'm a big fan of the underdog. Hell, I couldn't survive as a Crew fan if I didn't have that hope leading me on all the time. And as France has won a World Cup in the past, I wanted to see Spain move past them, since they have never won the Cup and especially since they were playing such attractive soccer. I could rant all day about the negative soccer of teams like Italy, etc. but you really don't need to put up with that. If you pay attention to my blog enough, it'll come up again, I promise you.

So I sat at my desk yesterday here at work and watched the ESPN GameTracker for the match. And as the game went on, the announcer/writer who was updating us on the match kept talking about how patient the Spanish were being. And as the game went on more, I kept thinking "all this patience is great, but at some point you gotta lash out and go for the net, guys!"

When I got home and finally got to watch the match (though I knew the outcome), I had that thought reinforced. Spain led in possession for the entire overwhelmingly, but they seemed content to bat the ball around in back while looking for openings. If they had played a two-forward front instead of one, they might have had more success. But the French clogged up the middle and didn't allow the speed of Torres to be a factor. So that possession stat was very misleading. And their number one goal-scorer Raul decided not to show up for the game at all, which was disappointing because normally I love watching Raul play.

Their midfield was working hard, trying to get the ball through, and on occasion Barthez was forced to make great saves to keep things alive for the till-now struggling French. Xavi and Ramos were doing everything they could to spring Torres, and it just wasn't working well enough.

France, for their part, was playing a fast passing game, led by their general Zidane. This guy still looks great. Thierry Henry was having a devil of a time with the Spanish offside trap, but his struggles with it sort of tricked the Spanish into focusing on him, because their first two goals all came from the midfield speedsters Ribery and Vieira. And at the end, when Spain was finally forced to open it up to try to get the equalizer, that allowed Zidane to take advantage of their abandonment of the offside trap and score a beautiful goal of his own.

This was such a great game to watch, though... patient, fast, hard but clean... everything you could want in a World Cup match. After watching some of the hack-fests that have taken place so far, this was a real breath of fresh air. And, of course, it sets up a rematch of the 1998 final between France and Brazil.

So... Allez les Bleus!

Childhood Is Fleeting

Last night I disassembled my son's infancy and put it in the basement. I brought his childhood upstairs and assembled it in his room.

Okay, actually, I took apart his crib and brought in his toddler bed. But that's not how it seems.

Anyone who knows me knows how nostalgic and sentimental I can get. So last night, when I was putting away Duncan's crib, I was feeling a sort of loss. I have absolutely no regrets with him, so don't get me wrong. But I'm going to miss all the fun he had in that crib. I loved to come into his room when he was awake and playing in his crib, hide behind its headboard, and then peek around the corner through the railing and watch him till he noticed me. Then he'd hop up and look over the headboard with his usual enormous smile.

Or you'd put him down for the evening and go back downstairs, and then for whatever reason you had to come back upstairs for something. And no matter how quiet you'd try to be, he'd hear you, and you'd start to head back downstairs and see him staring at you over the headboard, and he'd quietly smile and say "Hi."

But even more than that, that crib is a symbol of so much about him - in fact, if you think about it, it's a symbol of all I know about him. He's always been my baby boy, and I have a picture of him on the first day we put took him from his bassinet and put him into his crib. I'll always remember him struggling to pick his head up, trying to crawl, learning the "E-I-E-I-O" part of "Old McDonald Had A Farm" before he learned anything else, and most of all the smiles that he always had for Jenn and I when we came in to get him from his crib.

Tonight, we'll get a picture of him from his first night in his new toddler bed. And we'll start a whole new section of his life - the childhood years. I can't wait, and I wish they never had to come.