
That’s right, peeps, it’s International Talk Like a Pirate Day. Therefore, any team that has at least one member dress up like a pirate (Tonight only!) will get three bonus points to start the game! Every week, there are at least two games decided by three points or less, so I would highly advise you to do this. Here are some helpful pirate terms to get you thru the day.
5 Quick Questions With…A Republican Running for Office!

The first time Lindsay Doering played quizzo, he approached me and demanded that the Big Bopper was not aboard the plane on the day the music died. He and his team, the now infamous WTF, were wrong, but I appreciated his vim and vigor, and quickly tagged him with the nickname Bopper. Well, the Boppper has decided to test the political waters, and is running against Babette Josephs to be elected State Representative for the 182nd District, which covers much of Center City. It is not my disctrict (I miss it by one measly block) but if it were, Lindsay Doering would be the first Republican I ever voted for. Why? For a couple of reasons. First of all, he’s a stand up guy who I would trust to do the right thing. Secondly, because his opponent, Babette Josephs, voted for the pay raise. And third, because he is opposing the dreadful casinos that threaten to harm our city. I recently interviewed Doering and asked him five quick questions.
Doering discusses casinos, pay raises, and Beavis and Butthead after the jump!
Continue reading “5 Quick Questions With…A Republican Running for Office!”
Local Politics
Hey, I have a couple of political things to post today. We’ll start on the Democratic side. There is a Democratic fundraiser at the Khyber on Wednesday that will include readings from Buzz Bissinger, Jennifer Weiner, and Atrios, among others. The fundraiser starts at 7 p.m. on Wednesday and you can purchase tickets here, or get them at the door. All of the proceeds from the event will go to the campaign of Democratic congressional candidate Lois Murphy.
The Road Rap n’ Rhyme Contest, OR, How Johnny’s rap career came to a screeching halt

As you guys know, I did a road blog for Traffic.com back in July. What you don’t know is that, shortly before leaving for my trip, I was asked to put together a rap about an upcoming contest they were having. Well, the contest just got underway, and there is my terrible, terrible, terrible rap on the main page. It is painful to watch, and the word coming from the streets is that my rap career from here on out should be about as succesful as Brian Austin Green’s. Whatever, the point is that you people can win a free 7 day trip to the Dominican Republic by rapping or rhyming about traffic. Seriously. You people are so lucky I am ineligible, because otherwise I would make a most triumphant return to the rap game. The press release for the contest is after the jump.
Yes, I did stumble onto Larry Mendte’s Dark Secret

A few days ago, I mentioned that a man with the name J. Robert Mendte from Philly had come up with the rumor that watching TV in the dark is bad for your eyes. Why would he propagate such a falsehood? Because he was a PR man for a lamp manufacturer. Well, the lies didn’t stop with J. Robert. It seems that he had a son who wanted to further this myth by appearing on TV at night, and be talented enough that people would watch him, even if it meant buying a new lamp to prevent the room from getting dark at night and ruining their eyes! That son’s name, of course, was Larry Mendte, who confirmed via email that J. Robert was his father. He ended his short email to me with this cryptic message: He also is responsible for the legend of the ghosts at the General Wayne Inn….. More on this as it develops.
The meltdown
Hey gang, I was able to get my hands on some video of the Eagles fourth quarter performance last night.
It was the first Eagles game I had ever seen at the Linc, and boy was I excited. The pageantry, the ability to see things that you couldn’t see on TV, the intensity of the fans. On top of that, after the 3rd quarter, I turned to someone and said, “Man, we look like the ’88 Forty Niners out there!” After three quarters, you would not have found a person wearing Eagle green who was not 100% convinced that we were going to the Super Bowl. Then, the meltdown. First, a strange forward fumble led to a touchdown. No big deal. Still a 10 point lead. Then, a Westbrook fumble. Another touchdown. It was as if God were testing a new vacuum, and had decided to see if he could suck the life out of 70,000 people at once. By the time Trent Cole kicked a guy, giving the Giants an easy field goal, it felt like we were at a funeral for a head of state. 70,000 people in a mournful silence. Overtime was nothing but a formality, and the zombies began filing out, muttering things about Andy Reid being fired and that this was worse than the Niner game. (The Eagles gave up 227 yards passing in the 4th quarter to Joe Montana in 1989 as the Niners came back to win.) It was worse than the Niner game. That was gainst Joe Freaking Montana. This was against Eli Manning. And hey, say what you will about the Oilers vs. the Bills in that playoff game. At least that meltdown happened on the road. This was a pathetic performance, and this team isn’t going to the Super Bowl. After exhibiting that they have no heart, no discipline, and no character, they’ll be lucky to make the playoffs.
Garrett got it

Garrett was the first person to correctly answer the trivia question (below). Nice work dude. I think I’ll do this at random times each week, so stay tuned. I’ll try to drum up some prizes next time.
Quick trivia question
The days September 3rd-September 13th never happened in the United States in 1752. You’ll find no records of marriages, births, or events. Why? (First one with correct answer gets their photo on the website.)
What should we do for the Eagles game?

Hey guys, this is gonna be awesome. On October 2nd, we’re gonna show the Eagles-Packers game on the enormous screen at the Trocadero, with stereo surround sound. This is gonna be unbelievable. Of course, we will also be engaging in the frivolity of Wheel of Terrific beforehand (on the big stage), and are trying to come up with ways to make this the greatest football promotion ever. What do you guys think? What ideas can you think of to help make this the best Monday night game ever? (Yes, I did use the word awesome twice.)
Better get your ice cream gloves ready
Hey, I got this press release that look like it was fun enough to pass along. Plus I know how you people like to eat. It’s an ice cream eating contest, and the winner gets a trip to Tampa to see the Eagles take on the Buccaneers. More details after the jump.
