Wow, we haven’t heard from ol’ Ginger in quite a while. Seems she was inspired by some dining she did on the 4th and wants to talk about it. Here goes:
I grew up always hearing about the fireworks spectacular on the Fourth of July. I am not a big fireworks person in general, but there wasn’t anything too spectacular about the Fireworks this year. It literally rained on our parade and if I didn’t have a bottomless keg of Yards to drink, I would have been even more disappointed. Hall and Oates sounded decent, but Darryl looked a bit cracked out. I am not certain if this is a result of his diagnosed lyme disease, but he was a bit buggy.
Willie Gee Lists his 10 favorite all time athletes
Here’s the latest from your favorite sports writer. Willie reveals his ten favorite athletes of all-time. His #6 is downright hilarious.
Every athlete who finds his name on this list should be truly honored to be among such elite company. This is a top 10 list of the athletes who have brought me the most enjoyment and happiness throughout the course of my life. I may not even like some of the athletes on this list that much at the moment, but this list is a reflection of the journey of Willie G the sports fan. The lists go as follows:
1) Dennis Rodman-I was a huge Rodman fan. Talk about a rebel without a clue! I first remember Dennis as a shy young man in his Pistons days, but when you really looked at him you could tell he was crazy even then. I always loved his energy out there. However, I really began to take notice of him while he played for the Spurs. That is when he really came into his own. As a sports entertainment personality, Rodman was bigger than life. I loved the fact that he was a rebounding specialist. He pulled down like 17 boards a game, but he did not even want to score, which he said in his book. Something else I vividly remember him saying in his first book (and only one I read, although A Walk On the Wild Side sounded interesting also), “Greg Popovic can kiss my ass!” At the time I was reading it, I was like “Okay,” but I have always hated Greg Popovic partially as a result of that. I get the impression Pop ran the Worm out of San Antonio because he had too much of a personality. Sadly, his career remains incomplete because he never got to play his last game naked.
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Local Food Notes
*Looks like things are gonna get real interesting at Reading Terminal Market. Rick’s Prince of Steaks is getting kicked out and Tony Luke’s is coming in. And Rick isn’t exactly pleased, saying that he’s getting the boot in retaliation for always sticking up for his fellow vendors. His lawyer says that Rick will refuse to move out at the end of the month. This is gonna be fun to watch.
*Have you checked out the Foobooz “Philly Mag Best Of…” Map? Trivia Art really shows what a computer he nerd he is by putting this thing together, but it is pretty damn cool.
*The dude from Philafoodie goes to a giant foie gras farm (Ok, so it’s technically a duck farm) and discovers that it’s really not that bad. In fact, not nearly as bad as the protesters who are going over the line to protest it. Very interesting and informative article. Of course, someone used the comment section to leave a fairly well written rebuttal. The debate continues. Having worked with animals in the past in a controversial environment, I will say this: If you are going to do story on a controversial animal treatment, you can’t just take the company at its word. In the captive dolphin environment, there was a massive propaganda campaign that was used on the public and the press, much of it true and some of it not true. To do a comprehensive story on it, you do have to dig a little deeper than what that camp would want you to know.
This weeks Metro column
Just in case you missed it yesterday, here’s the legend of Lawn Chair Larry. I think this is what being an American is all about.
The Race
A thrilling race in my native Nassawadox (population 572) on the morning of July 4th. I had a little much to drink the night before, and didn’t get much sleep, but that’s when I race my best. The bets were as follows: $20 on whether I could do the 2.5 mile race in under 21 minutes, and $5 each on the two girls (above, with my gambling buddies dad). I started slow, but that’s how I always start. With just over a half mile to run, I made my move, and found myself catching my buddy Gerald, a small forward on my high school b-ball team. We turned the corner neck and neck and headed down the homestretch. With about 100 yards to go, I tried to put it in overdrive. Bad move. Gerald was a track star in high school, and looks exactly the same now as he did then. He blew by me and beat me by about fifteen feet. However, that little burst at the end brought me in at 20:50, and I won the $30, though my buddy Frank says he needs to make some phone calls before he gives me the money.And the postscript: I am gonna be on Ibuprofrin for th erest of the day. I can barely move.
Still No Baby
My sister’s due date was June 27, but most people were betting that she wouldn’t make it that long. But here we are on July 5, and still no baby. I’ll keep ya updated.
Quizzo at the Constitution Center
More on this as it develops, but I just wanted to let you all know that I will be hosting a U.S. History quizzo at the Constitution Center next Friday, July 13. Yeah, a first ever quizzo at an esteemed local institution on Friday the 13th. What could go wrong? There will be a lot more details in the coming days, but be sure to mark your calendars.
Worthless info
It’s beautiful outside, and I’m sitting here coming up with questions for quizzo. It’s a damn shame. Anyway, here’s a few worthless nuggets to get you through the day:
*Want to hear the worst voice ever? Here is former Philly resident Florence Jenkins’s Myspace page (she’s apparently still going strong at age 139), where you can hear her sing. Here is her wiki entry.
*Men are struck by lightning four times as often as women.
*Read about Poon Lim, who survived at sea by himself for 133 days.
Big Announcement Coming Tomorrow
We’ve got another fun “bonus quizzo” coming up in the near future. This is gonna be really cool. Details coming manana, on the 4th of July. Also coming manana will be my 5K race, the Brownsville Fun Run. I will be running for the first time since the mid 90s, and am sure to do terribly. I have not run 5K in probably 10 years, but I ran this race every year from 1983 until the mid 90s, so since I’m home I’m gonna run it for old times sake. Plus one of my buddies girlfriends, who is a runner, is racing and my friends have all bet on her beating me. I will not let that happen. Details coming after the race.
Quick note
You can only play one place this week. I’m “on a vacation from my problems” (name that movie), so I ain’t gonna be coming up with a million questions.
UPDATE: Actually, if you’re jonesing, you may play Mike’s quizzo at the Black Sheep on Wednesday night and one of the others on Tuesday or Thursday. His questions will be completely different, and to be honest, a bit more difficult.