It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas

That might seem strange given that the date on the calendar is April 27th. But it is, my friends, and it isn't the teenage Christmas where you know you're going to get a bunch of clothes and probably some stuff you don't like from your relatives. It's the 5-year old kid, "there's so many cool new toys this year" Christmas. Yes, if you're a Green Bay Packers fan, and even a fan of football in general, it's a good week to be a fan.

First off, came Tuesday's breaking news from 1265 Lombardi Avenue that Brett Favre had indeed informed the team that he was coming back to play for the Pack in 2006. This is great for several reasons: a) it gives the Packers a fighting chance; b) new coach Mike McCarthy has a more talented team to work with; c) it's another season of watching Brett Favre. To sweeten things, on Wednesday the Packers made their big free agent splash by signing veteran Cornerback Charles Woodson to a seven-year deal. This move increased the Packers offseason focus on shoring up its defense, adding a much-needed playmaker to a defensive backfield. With Al Harris and Woodson, the Pack could now hold one of the best CB duos in the league. Let's just hope Woodson can stay healthy this year - knock on wood.

As if the previous news wasn't enough to put fans into a state of Green and Gold euphoria, the 2006 NFL Draft still awaits us two days from now. Holding the fifth overall pick, Packers GM Ted Thompson has kept the team's intentions close to vest, though most mocks have them taking either Ohio St. LB AJ Hawk or the draft's most talented receiving playmaker, TE Vernon Davis, whom I must mention is a physical freak running the 40 yard dash in 4.38 seconds at 250 lbs. Either way, I'll be happy and I would expect the like from most of the Packer faithful.

Besides the Packers top pick, the entire first round looks to be quite a roller coaster ride with no picks seemingly set in stone except Reggie Bush at #1. There could also be an unprecedented number of first round trades this year with speculation running rampant about teams wanting to move up to get a player as the days to the draft grow shorter. It's going to be an exciting ride. I don't know what you'll be doing for the draft, but if you're looking to spice things up a bit, this will do the trick: The Official 2006 NFL Draft Drinking Game, courtesy of Deadspin.

To keep the football theme going, I have one more great tidbit to share. For all you '80s kids and other fans of Tecmo Super Bowl, there are emulator versions of the game (replica versions for your computer) floating around various sites on the web, with some even adding updated rosters. So yes, not only can you relive the joy of zig-zagging your way to 80-yard touchdown scampers, but you can do it with Edgerrin James or Antwaan Randle El. See this for more.



Have a great weekend. I know I'll be enjoying mine with the help of some cold brew, NFL draft coverage and tons of random fun via the University of Minnesota's annual Spring Jam celebration.

CURRENT LISTENING: ESPN Radio Podcast

Return of The King

Of course you already heard. But there had to be a post in honor of the news.

Are we in store for a record year? Only 24 touchdown passes needed to tie Marino, 25 to pass him.

Sometimes you just need to go home

For the third consecutive year in a row, I attented the Minnesota Twins home opener at the Metrodome on Tuesday. While every baseball fan gets excited for the home opener, the enthusiasm was a little bit tainted going into the game after the Twins started the season 1-5 on the road. Well, proving that the homefield really can provide a strong advantage, the Twins beat the Oakland A's after staring out the game down 3-0. It was a good time made even more exciting by a strong finish. The only thing that was lacking was the half day of tailgaiting which I missed out on due to not taking time off from work. I did end up sneaking in a few before the game with some friends who were out there all day doin' it up for the rest of us.

Proving that they weren't a one day home field fluke, the Twins won again yesterday after another disappointing early lead by the A's. It was done in dramatic fashion as Justin Morneau came through with a 3-run dinger in the third inning. The Twins never looked back. The funny thing about the start is they've actually got the bats going moderately well but their pitching has left a lot to be desired, which is exactly the opposite of preseason prognostications. Things came together today though as the Twins won 8-2 to complete a three game sweep. Maybe they're headed in the opposite direction of my other team - the Brewers - who have seemed to simmer down after a 5-0 start.

Speaking of going home, this weekend I'll be back in the homeland - visiting family in Wisconsin for Easter. I look forward to getting away from work and Minneapolis for the weekend. It's a quiet, small town environment and although that's quite far from my preferred situation for everyday living it's a nice one to be in a couple times a year. And even though the visiting routine is the same, it's easy to enjoy as I only see the relatives a few times per year. Plus, that side of the family makes the BEST bloody marys after mass on Sundays.

Almost two weeks until the NFL draft.

CURRENT LISTENING: Bob Dylan - The Man in Me

Sometimes you need this kind of validation

Some days I get really bored at my job. Whether it's not having enough to do, not being challenged or thinking about how I'd rather be concepting/writing copy all day, it happens. All there is to do is try to make the best of it and some days that's pretty damn hard. Especially the days when I have to call VPs of corporations ("soft" cold-calling) or put together another powerpoint presentation. Others it's easy, when I'm putting MY ideas into action, working on a B-2-B execution or online marketing initiative. Today has definitely fallen into the category of the former. Luckily, either myself or Mark Cuban had great timing because he wrote a post on his blog, Blog Maverick, about "getting paid to get experience." Cuban (Mavericks owner/billionaire) outlines the story of himself right out of college. Working at jobs he wasn't crazy about and having to cold call and do some things that you despise early in your career. The moral of his story is that in the end, doing those things on a regular basis will be better experience is sales and other types of skills that almost every career requires at some point than going back to school and learning in the classroom.

While I'm convinced I never want to work in a full-fledged sales career, it's easy to see what he means by this because in any creative career you'll always have to sell your ideas to people. I'm still convinced that I'll only be truly happy as a writer, brand manager or best of all - running my own business, but it's a bit inspiring to know that a billionaire who is incredibly passionate about his work was in the same situation in their young career and can illustrate how it benefitted them.

I don't know why I write about so much serious stuff.

Opening day and the comfort of new socks

One of the most awaited days of the sports calendar arrived today: the opening day of the MLB season. Baseball has lost much of it's luster for me since my childhood: big market teams can buy their roster due to a lack of collective bargaing system (what makes the NFL successful) and in general, I usually don't have much interest in watching a full game. But, I'm still a casual fan - attending a few games and watching the highlights of the rest on Sportscenter - and Opening Day still stirs my interest. There's nothing like the start of baseball to signal that spring is here and we have the warmth and fun of summer to look forward to.


This year, my Twins and Brewers are both being touted to be surprise teams in their respective divisions. For some reason the Twins were one of the only teams not to open today, taking the field tomorrow against Toronto (was today a Canadian holiday or something?). But the Brewers played in front of a sold-out field in Milwaukee and I'm sure the sausage was good and the tailgate lots were rockin'. In what hopes to be a sign of good things to come the Brew Crew won 5-2 on a two-run single by pinch hitter Jeff Cirillo, a former Brewer who returned this year facing the twillight of his career.

On a completely unrelated note, I bought some new socks this weekend. I needed them badly as it seemed every time I did laundry the number of socks diminished and the ones that remained gained more holes. After today I gotta say that wearing new socks has to be one of the most underrated comforts out there.

That's all for now. If you're bored this week round up a bunch of conservative friends and take them to see V for Vendetta.

CURRENT LISTENING: T.I. feat. Pharrell and Common - Goodlife