Long Weekend Audio: Caboom!Cast

The urge struck us to do some more audio, so here we are. We had a lot of fun doing this one.

It started with me not saying go at the right moment. Woops. Welcome to me not being a good record button-pusher. Then we just rambled about the awesome weather, the Blue Jays winning again, and the coolness that is our balcony.

I don't know if you can hear what happened next, but somebody's car alarm similar to the one I described in this old post started going off, so Steve started imitating it...at which point, Trix brought us back to the reason we decided to do this audio in the first place.

Unfortunately you can't hear it, but Trix started circling us, puffing furiously. We put the mic in her face, but she did not puff hello. I described some new behaviour Trix does when there are fireworks or thunder storms, or our new term, thunderworks! The fear has been with her all along, but it has changed recently. Oh yeah? and I meant 1 a.m. not p.m. woops.

And as we finished up our thunderworks discussion, we came up with another term. Nicky Nicky Blind door: the act of a blind person knocking on the wrong door, realizing it's the wrong house, and getting the hell out of dodge, leading the person who lives in the wrong house to believe they've been a victim of Nicky Nicky 9 Door. And here's the link to the story of that blind guy getting shot in the face when he entered the wrong house. Oh yeah, and here's the story of the drunk unintentional houseguest we had one night. Before we move on, here's that car alarm bit I was talking about, a super detailed account of Shoe's surprise 40th birthday party, and a picture of the yes please burger. Holy crap, how many things did we have to mention in that short stint?

Moving on, we talked some more about the hot weather, and the plants a friend and I are planting in the Enabling Garden. Hey, anybody know where the reference "fuck this cat, and fuck this door!" came from? Go ahead and take a guess. At this point, we came up with our third invented word, Friedo (pronounced "fried o"): dog left in a hot car. We also made up some new lyrics to what would be the Frido song. And you know what? We should have stuck to that song...because I proceeded to ruin the next song we attempted. Even these people did a better job.

This led to an awesome story of how, in his CFRU days, Steve unintentionally insulted electronica. R2D2, a television and a vacuum having a threesome, you say? What a description.

Wow. This thing goes everywhere. We went from how you can't please everybody on the radio and on websites to me apologizing for not realizing that the Jonathan Sory story was more tragic than it seemed on the surface.

...which somehow led in a long and winding way to things taking on a totally different meaning if you're just listening to them, which then led to talking about screen reader users who just go by the way words sound and don't check the spelling, which can lead to some rather creative typos. Man, if you're bored, I understand.

Before we signed off, I made fun of Steve's loud phone text message noises, and Trix reappeared, looking all scared all over again.

And that about does it for another one. I think coining 3 new terms is pretty good. We enjoyed putting it together, hope you enjoy listening. Go get it in all its 1 hour and 7 minute glory.

This Program Is Brought To You By The CRTC Putting An End To The Advertising Insanity

I've said my piece on this issue before, and today I'm happy to report that the CRTC has seen fit to do something about it.

the results of the review are in, and by next September, television broadcasters in Canada will have to ensure that shows and commercials are transmitted at the same volume, rather than the ads being what sounds like 2405 times louder.

The commission apparently got a lot of feedback when they put the issue out for public comment, which is fabulous news. They say the response was way above normal, and that the number of submissions received was 10 times higher than the total number of complaints that came in in the previous 3 years.

So I guess all that's left to do now is hope that things don't get watered down to useless when the regulations are finished, and figure out to whom I owe that beer I promised.

The Trouble With Radio, Or At Least Some Of It

It should be obvious to anyone who's listened long enough that radio has lost its way. There are a lot of reasons for this, but I just read an article by Alan Cross that nails one of the major problems. All of the cost cutting by the companies that run things means less live people on air, which in turn means there's nowhere for new talent to develop. Instead of somebody who's pretty good getting a start in a small market, getting better and then moving up, you get the crap we have now.

I've said to Carin and others for years now that if you listen to the radio today vs. when you were young, you hear a lot of people who sound like they're fresh out of broadcasting school and probably never should have gotten even that far. They don't sound like they belong. They don't command, they don't engage. They don't tell you anything beyond the time and temperature or maybe when Idol is on this week. They're broadcasting, but they aren't broadcasters. There's a big difference.

It's not all their fault, of course. Management knows what it wants, and most of the time, creativity and passing on useful/interesting information don't make the list. But whoever you choose to blame, it's a real problem that's going to wind up killing the industry.

He’s correct, of course. When I was PD at 102.1 the Edge—the second largest commercial alternative-rock station in North America—finding someone to fill an opening was often an exercise in despair. Where were the stars of small-and medium-market stations of years past?  The demos I received were technically competent enough but lacking in that something which makes your ears perk up.

The art of storytelling seems to be in danger.  The jocks I grew up with knew how to hook listeners into a story or bit so that they’d have to sit in the driveway to hear the end of it.  They’d tell me why I needed to know about a song/band/album.  They’d create context around music, events and information.  They taught me cool new words and phrases.  I learned why (or why not) I should pay attention to trends.  Once he/she was done, you couldn’t wait to re-tell the story to a friend.

But now with automation, cost-cutting and the lure of other careers in media, the storyteller—the context provider—is an endangered species on music radio. And the timing couldn’t be worse.

Retirement With A Chance Of Politics

I don't watch the local CTV news that much anymore, but after this week, it won't be the same when I do tune in.

another member of the people you expect to be around forever group isn't going to be around forever after all. After 42 years, Dave MacDonald is retiring. He plans on entering politics and says he's got some other things he wants to do as well.

42 years is a long time to hold any job, especially one in broadcasting. It's a little bit crazy to think that he's been doing the weather in the same place 11 years longer than I've been alive and that not only did I grow up watching him, but my mom did, too.

I'd wish him good luck in his political endeavours, but I'm pretty sure he's running as a Conservative candidate so my brain won't allow it. But I do hope he enjoys his retirement, he's definitely earned it. We'll miss you, Dave.

Dear Bell: Thanks For Everything. Sincerely, The Underground Economy

Newsflash for those who may not know it yet. Bell Canada is a horrible company that doesn't care about its customers and has no idea how the world works in 2011.

exclusive deals to broadcast TV content on mobile devices encourage innovation and shouldn't be banned? Have you paid no attention to the internet? The best things about it were created by people independent of each other all coming together to build something, or by companies with resources building something and then opening it up to the wider community and letting them improve on it. There's a reason why traditional distribution methods like magazines, newspapers, physical music delivery and yes, even television are struggling while the internet continues to grow. That reason is openness and people's willingness to pitch in to help better a project, sometimes for little or no compensation. If you create something that people want, the money will come...eventually.

But Bell would rather drag the corpse of the old days Weekend At Bernie's style into the new age, because they don't care about what people want. Really, they don't. Mirko Bibic pretty much said so.

If companies are allowed to sign exclusive deals for content on smartphones and other devices, it could mean customers would need multiple subscriptions and multiple gadgets to see all the shows they want.

However Bibic said it is "preposterous" to think Canadians should be able to access whatever content they wanted on whatever device and whatever carrier they were using.

If Mirko Bibic worked for me, that idiocy just got him fired...twice.

Again, look at the internet. What have exclusive deals and limited access done? The answer is a whole hell of a lot...for the smart people who run pirate sites. The pirates know what they're doing. Here's an unrestricted decent looking and sounding version of whatever it was you wanted to see. Yes, all of it. Not just what this or that network thinks you should see because of where you live or who your provider is. Run it however you'd like, wherever you'd like, whenever you want. All we ask for is a donation, and you don't even have to give us that if it's not your thing.

There are a lot of people (myself included) who would be more than willing to access programming from the source for free or for a fee if it was as convenient and as free of digital locks and equipment requirements as what the good pirates are offering. Same goes for music. It's time to forget about who has rights to what in this or that country. this is the internet, and none of that matters anymore. You geoblock something, we're getting around it and watching it anyway. You won't let us buy something from the place we want to buy it from, ok, we'll grab that for free. Content creation and delivery isn't what it used to be. Rather than buying up rights and seeing who has the most bills when its all over, companies need to realize that making less money is better than making no money at all. The customer has a lot more power now than he used to. I know that doesn't matter to Bell, but it should. Without customers, there's no money at all.

By the way, if you haven't read the article I linked at the beginning, can you guess who made the quite reasonable statement about people having to buy multiple devices to access everything? In a million years I wouldn't have. It was Rogers. Yes, the company that spends most of its time racing Bell to the bottom actually made a valid point and stuck up for the ones who pay the bills. I'm almost positive they have a self-serving reason for doing so given their history, but until I find it, thank you, rogers.

ROH Just Got Bigger

So Ring of Honor, pretty much my favourite wrestling group right now, has been sold to the Sinclair Broadcast Group.

this is an interesting situation. It sounds, for now at least, like they're going about things the right way by leaving the current group in charge and adding experienced people who have a clue what they're doing to the office staff. If Sinclair stays patient with this, this could be a huge deal for wrestling and exactly what the business needs to freshen things up.

If I'm TNA, I'm a little worried right now. With this deal, ROH expands into a whole lot of homes with a whole lot of potential viewers. The only thing ROH was missing to overtake TNA was more resources, and they certainly have that now. TNA has had national TV for 6 years and millions of dollars behind them for a lot longer than that and has done next to nothing with it. Given a good chance, I can't imagine ROH making the same mistake. Then again I can't imagine most people making the same sorts of mistakes TNA has, because to be kind, the people responsible for what makes it to air in that company are completely incompetent. Yes, that's being kind.

If I'm WWE, I just got a whole lot more interested in Ring of Honor. I'm signing anybody and everybody I can to try to make sure their roster is good and gutted before things even get off the ground. ROH would likely never pass WWE, but it's always been WWE strategy to kill off any competition and absorb it when possible. The only question is how many Ring of Honor guys and girls would be willing to sign? Would they go for the money or stay loyal to ROH as it grows? I imagine a bit of both because those WWE cheques would be hard to turn down, but with ROH expanding, those cheques are probably going to get quite a bit better too.

And on the other side of the same question, how many unhappy WWE/TNA wrestlers would give ROH a shot when their contracts come up or aren't renewed? It's certain there'll be at least a few, and depending on who they are, ROH could really get a lot out of it. Somebody like John Cena isn't going anywhere anytime soon, but if a fairly popular name decides to jump, some curious fans are going to follow.

Of course there's always the chance that this whole thing could fall flat on its face. TV people aren't known for their patience or for staying a course, so there's always the possibility that Sinclair could cut them loose at any moment. If that happens, I can only hope that it doesn't spell the end of the company. Wrestling needs places like Ring of Honor. Without places where wrestling actually matters (sorry TNA or are you Impact Wrestling now?), it's going to be hard to sustain the talent pool in the coming years.

I'm interested in where this goes, and I'm most definitely rooting for ROH to succeed. More choice is always better when it comes to wrestling. It's better for the fans and it's better for the wrestlers. I think we're about due for another wrestling boom, and I really hope this is the start of it.

Coming Soon: 92.9 The Grand

This is great news. More local media options that are honest to god local is exactly what the world needs. I look forward to tuning in, provided the signal can find its way to my house.

Residents of Centre Wellington will have their own radio station !

Centre Wellington Community Radio Inc., has received notification from the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) that The Grand @ 92.9 has been approved for a broadcasting license to operate a new FM Radio Station to serve Centre Wellington. "We are absolutely thrilled with the news. We know it’s been quite a process and a long wait for the residents of Centre Wellington," said Scott Jensen, President of Centre Wellington Community Radio Inc. "I’d like to take this opportunity to thank members of the community including local businesses, residents, community groups and politicians who spoke loud and clear and overwhelmingly supported the proposal to the CRTC. Now that the license has been granted, we can approach the community, advertisers
and funders for financial support and make this a reality." The application was approved by the CRTC on Friday, April 30. The next few months will be busy as preparations for the launch of the new radio station begins. The next and critical task for the station is gathering financial support from advertisers, community organizations and funders to purchase equipment including the antenna and transmitter along with studio broadcast equipment. The Grand @ 92.9 is a not-for-profit organization and has already received approval for a loan through Community Futures. These funds can only be accessed when there are matching commitments from advertisers and others in the community. Other funders will continue to be approached, now that the station has officially received its license. As soon as the station reaches its financial goals, the Citizen’s of Centre Wellington will have a radio station of their very own. The Grand @ 92.9 will broadcast a great music mix as well as, local programming from studios in Fergus, Ontario. It will provide a quality service to listeners in
Fergus, Elora, Salem, Belwood, Inverhaugh and surrounding areas. The Station will focus on local news and information that reflects the needs of the community. Musically, The Grand @ 92.9 will offer a wide variety of music genres including Rock, Jazz Celtic, Blues, Classical, Pop, Dance and Country. The radio station will present artistic, and cultural perspectives that interest residents living in Centre Wellington and will service the community as a vehicle for creative expression. The station will provide ongoing training and development, as well as, hands-on experience for volunteers who will host a number radio shows that were committed to in the station’s application. Currently, the station is accepting applications from interested volunteers on the stations website at ww.thegrand929.com The public can keep up with the exciting developments on the web at ww.thegrand929.com or join in the conversation on Facebook by becoming a fan of The Grand @ 92.9.

For more information please contact:

Scott Jensen, President, Centre Wellington Community Radio Inc.
sjensen@thegrand929.com.
For Advertising Information please contact Vic Folliott, Sales Manager, Centre Wellington Community Radio Inc.
vfolliott@thegrand929.com

Bob Cole Calling The Henderson Goal

I don't think you can live in Canada for any length of time without seeingPaul Henderson's winning goal from 1972at least once. It's shown all the time, and Foster Hewitt's "Henderson has scored for Canada!" is one of those things everybody seems to know even if they don't know they know it.

But until now, I had no idea this existed. Bob Cole's call of The Henderson Goal for CBC Radio.

It's hard to listen to that without hearing the familiar one in my head at the same time, but it's a pretty great call in its own right.

By the way, Bob Cole is still the best hockey commentator there is. Some people like slagging on him for being old and slow to call plays, but to me he hasn't changed. He might not be flashy, but he doesn't need to be. He's a total pro who can get the excitement of a game across like nobody else.

If I could make one hockey wish, it would be for Bob Cole and Harry Neale to get together for one last run of Leaf games on Hockey Night In Canada. that would be too awesome for words. Please CBC, throw as much of our money as it takes at whoever it takes to make this happen.

Roger Abbott Takes His Final Flight

Roger Abbott, one of the stars of Royal Canadian Air Farce, hasdied of leukemia at the age of 64.

Definitely news I wasn't expecting to hear today. I had no idea he was sick, but as it turns out almost nobody did. He was diagnosed 14 years ago and kept it secret from all but a few close friends and family until about a week ago. Knowing this makes me respect the guy even more. I'm sure to him it was no big deal, but being as consistently funny and creative as he was for so long while dealing with that can't have been easy.

Thanks for all the laughs, roger. And while I'm at it, thanks for getting me turned on to so many great comedians back in the days when Comedy Classics was Air Farce's summer replacement on CBC Radio. I loved that show.

Speaking of laughs, how about a few videos?

A Politically Correct Minute.Writing a more PC version of the national anthem. Sons but no daughters is not ok, and there are a lot of other things wrong with it, too.

Sticking with that theme, here'sA Politically Correct Christmas.

Jean Chretien explains what will happen to health care if the Conservatives are re-elected.This makes me feel really old, and aside from the fact that there's no more Chretien, it's an interesting case of the more things change,the more they stay the same.

An Olympic Moment: The Two Man Luge.If you've ever wondered what those guys talk about as they're speeding down the track, now you know.

Leonard Cohen sings depressing songs for a cold dark dreary night.Glad I found this one, it's one of my favourites. Even now I'll sometimes catch myself singing "can you believe I'm singing this?"

I tried to find some News From Away clips, but I'm coming up empty. I'm also sure I left out a lot of other great stuff. I could sit here for hours and still not remember everything, there's so much.

Thanks again Roger, and enjoy heaven. A multi-denominational religion non-specific heaven, of course.

Thank You, CBSC, For Making TV Just A Little Bit Worse

This,for lack of any better way to say it, is fuckin' stupid.

The Canadian Broadcast Standards Council today released its decision concerning two episodes of South Park broadcast on the Comedy Network in March and April 2010.  Both episodes were broadcast at 5:30 pm Eastern Time.  The CBSC found that both episodes contained material that was intended exclusively for adult audiences and so should only have been broadcast after the Watershed hour of 9:00 pm.

So yeah. the Comedy Network, which is a specialty station on cable television that's supposed to be able to show all kinds of fun and edgy stuff 24/7, is not allowed to broadcast things that might upset people during the afternoon because somebody who probably doesn't know the first thing about a sense of humour and likely shouldn't be watching the Comedy Network in the first place complained loudly enough. Just...wow.

It's already damn near impossible to watch the comedy network during the day and early evening because any stand-up specials it shows are edited so much and so poorly that you can't make out three quarters of the jokes through all the mutes, and I'm sure this decision, even though it does seem it wasn't made lightly, is going to find some way to make things even worse with time.

Thank you butt hurt asshole for being the shitter onner of all things good and fun that you are, and thank you CBSC for not doing what you should have done, that being wiping your asses with the letter this person sent, stuffing it in an envelope and mailing it back to said butt hurt asshole signed with love.

TV is getting shittier and shittier and more and more things that in no way should need viewer warnings now have them, probably in what you know will be a futile attempt to avoid situations just like this. I'm waiting for the day I turn on the tube and my cable box doesn't work...intentionally, just in case something on TV might be offensive to the delicate sensibilities of somebody that might live in the same city as I do or who may have lived there at one time.

Jesus Christ.

This Program Is Brought To You By People Who Aren't Using Their Inside Voices

I said all I had to say on the topic of overly loud TV commercials whenthe United States took a step towards putting an end to them,so this post serves only to remind you of that and to answer the when is Canada going to do the same question. The answer, and thank Christ for this, ishopefully soon.

The CRTC is going to be reviewing the issue and wants public comments. When I figure out where those comments are to be sent, I'll update this post.

In the meantime, my offer of a free beer to whomever puts an end to this nightmare still stands, so lets get it done.

The Meter Might Be Stopping, But It's Not Quite Over

Well, we have a pretty sweet update to the whole stop the meter campaign. It looks like the CRTC has been quite heavily persuaded to review their whole usage-based billing decision in huge part thanks to the massive number of folks who yelled at MP's and signed the Stop the Meter petition. Now they're looking for public input. So speak up. The good folks at Open Media have made it quite easy for you. I'd recommend editing the letter to make it sound like your own thoughts a bit, but it's essentially ready to go.

If you signed the petition and/or donated, keep the barrage up. Let the CRTC know you're serious.

Stop The Meter Update

A while ago, Steve posted about the Stop the Meter Petition. Well, I got the following email from them! It looks like things are maybe moving in the right direction!

But of course, nothing moves without money, so they're looking for donations. Here's the info.

Dear Friend,

The fight to stop usage based Internet billing is gathering momentum.
Donate Now

You already know that over 21,000 people signed the Stop The Meter petition, but have you heard about the other ways we’re picking up speed? Did you know...

• …that MPs like Libby Davies have also added their names to show that they are on our side? 


• …that a motion has been put forward at Vancouver City Hall to get the City Council to call on the CRTC to reverse their bad decision?

The momentum is with us, but we need to build on it and push the issue forward into the new year. We can't succeed without your help.

Usage-based billing may very well be the greatest threat to the Internet ever, and only the CRTC can stop this nightmare. We urgently need to gather funds to buy full-page ads, and make the massive wave of public outrage over Internet metering impossible for our Media Regulator to ignore. 

In just a few days we’re already half way to our goal of raising our goal $10,000, but we need your help to get there. Big telecom companies are already moving forward with their plans to add new fees to your Internet bill and change the way the Internet works. 

Let’s raise $10,000 by the end of December to take this fight to Ottawa!

Will you make a donation to the Stop The Meter Fund today? Any amount that you can chip in will help. Who can stop Internet metering? YOU! Click here to give.

Yours Truly,

Steve, Reilly, Lindsey, Jacqui and Paul – The OpenMedia.ca Team 
OpenMedia.ca

A couple things of note. The first few PayPal buttons have pre-filled amounts, so if you want to choose your own amount, choose the last button. And when entering the amounts, apparently it gets hissy if you don't write the .00 part so $10.00, or $20.00, not $10 or $20. Gees!

And in case you're wondering, the Steve in the signature is not our Steve.

I managed to make a donation, so hope it helps. If you want to do the same, there's the info.

Naughtie Words

I feel for James Naughtie. Having done a good bit of talking behind live microphones myself I know how easy it would be to trip up on the phrase "Jeremy Hunt Culture Secretary." But feeling for him doesn't mean I won't postthe video of him doing sofor us all to have a good laugh at. Hey, bad words in live broadcasts are always good for a chuckle.

We'll Miss You...Everywhere

I just found out that Mark Dailey has died. He was only 57. He had been suffering from cancer for some time, but it was hoped that he would pull through.

A lot of people may not know the name, but I'm sure they know the voice. If you've ever heard the phrase "This is CityTV...everywhere.", you've heard Mark Dailey. He worked at City for something like 30 years, serving as the voice of the station. He did everything from bumpers to commercial voiceovers to anchoring newscasts and he was great at all of it. His career goes back even further than City, but to me City will always be what he's most famous for.

Citytv was on a lot in our house when I was growing up. We didn't have cable in the small town we lived in, but we could get Citytv Toronto even though we lived a couple hours away thanks to a transmitter that if memory serves was right near one of my friend's houses. I think I even hit a baseball off of it once. City always had the best movies before any of the other stations, they had music shows, Speakers' Corner and even SCTV reruns. There was a lot to watch, and Mark's voice was all over it. He talked to me so much that he became one of those friendly voices that you feel like you know even though you don't, one of those people you just assume will always be there. I don't watch City much anymore, but even now when I do I still get flashbacks whenever I hear that voice. It's hard to believe it's gone.

Broadcasting in this area has lost a true legend, a voice that can never be replaced. People will come along and fill the positions he held, but they'll never fill his shoes.
Here are some videos of Mark in action.

CityTV Wit & Wisdom of Mark Dailey 1986.This is one of the things I always loved about him. He wasn't just the big announcer voice, he also had a personality.

here he is plugging a movie, being everywhere and reading some news in 1993.

And since I know we have some fans reading,CityTV is your Federation Station.

This Content Is Presented At Unacceptably High Volume For The Consuming Impaired

Anybody with a TV has surely had this experience, probably several times a day.

You're relaxing, watching your favourite show. You've got the volume turned up because for some reason half the stations on the dial broadcast so low you need super hearing to be able to listen clearly. The program you're watching takes a break and suddenly, BOOM! YOU'RE HIT BY A BLAST OF EARSPLITTING AUDIO THAT SENDS YOU DIVING FOR THE REMOTE AND SCRAMBLING TO COVER YOUR EARS.

Why, many often wonder, does this happen? Well, it's an advertising trick used to draw people's attention to commercials, because marketers don't seem to think we hate them quite as much as we should. They've been doing it for years with no thoughts of how angry it makes us, and no qualms about deafening us for the sake of selling another case or two of Coke.

But relief may be in sight. The United States Congress hasapproved a bill that would force advertisers to turn that shit down and if all goes well, make sure that everything is at the same volume as everything else.

Now the question becomes when is Canada going to enact similar legislation? And if I've missed something and we already have legal tools at our disposal to control this issue, then the question is why aren't we fucking using them? I dare somebody from the CRTC to watch the Comedy Network for a few hours and tell me that this isn't a problem in this country. They're just one example out of many offenders, and it gets worse and worse by the day.

If regulation is needed, here's what I propose. Any politician who can introduce a bill in the House of Commons and get it passed into law, contact me when it's official and I'll personally buy you a beer, or whatever it is you like to drink within reason. No $400 bottles of anything, just something refreshing to say thanks for your work. I don't even care if we agree on nothing else politically and you're the type of person I'd rather sock in the teeth than have a brew with, for doing the world this solid I'm willing to give a little in return. What do you say, shall we make some laws?

Stop The Meter

I always thought it was the job of the CRTC to encourage competition in the industries it oversees rather than to kill it dead, but based on the usage-based internet billing decision it shat out recently, I guess I was wrong.

The Commission has ruled that not only can companies like Bell and Rogers bill individuals based on how many gigs we blow through during a cycle, but that they can also do the same thing to smaller ISPs who rent lines from them to run their own services. What this means essentially is that for these smaller companies, running a competitive service is now next to impossible. Not only will they be unable to offer a quality, unlimited package, but they'll have to raise the cost of offering up the same old crap that the big guys offer on a smaller scale. The small providers don't have the same abilities to undercut each other as Bell and Rogers do and can't afford to lose money providing deals, which will effectively put them out of business because honestly, how many people are going to pay more to get less. Actually make that a lot more to get less, because Bell and Rogers have made an entire industry out of raising rates while decreasing service levels.

You can read more, including the full text of the ruling, by goinghere.

And if this makes you angry and you think it's wrong,sign the Stop The Meter petition.Well over 12000 people have already done so, including me. I hope you will too.

I'd Like To Buy The Farm, Pat

I'm not a big Wheel of Fortune fan myself (the whole not being able to see thing makes it kinda hard to solve the puzzles), but I know a lot of people who are plus I often catch the end of Wheel before Jeopardy starts so I've seen a good bit of it.

One of the things I do like about the show is announcer Charlie O'Donnell. Over the years he's become such a familiar voice, plus I have a soft spot in my heart for announcers who actually sound like announcers and make it seem easy.

Sadly, Charlie hasdiedat the age of 78.

I'm sure whoever replaces him will be fine and I'll get used to it, but Wheel of Fortune will never quite be the same. It's funny how even if you don't religiously watch or listen to something parts of it can still creep into your routine. Charlie was like that for me. I'll miss him.

I Got The World Series I Wanted

I'm not entirely prepared to say that I'm not ascursedas originally feared, but a Giants Rangers World Series is a positive step in that direction. The Giants were the only team to survive my good will from beginning to end, and the Rangers, who became my favourite baseball team by virtue of simply playing the Yankees, made that team look pretty bad for the most part. They didn't look Atlanta Braves 1 guy makes 3 errors in a single game bad, but they certainly didn't look like a team worth a couple hundred million dollars.

I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to this year's World Series, and it has everything to do with it being devoid of Yankees and Phillies. I know that overnight goober on ESPN radio would passionately disagree with me because who wants to see that and good luck selling advertising for games without major teams playing, but he's a goober and I don't care what he thinks. I like it when things don't go according to plans, and if you had asked just about anybody at the start of the year who would be fighting it out come World Series time, nobody would have predicted this. By the way, is there a rule that you have to be a total obnoxious boob to be an American sports radio personality? Sure seems that way at least if you'd like a show on ESPN or worse yet, Fox. A station around here carries that on the overnights and weekend evenings and it's damn near unlistenable. It's even worse than Andrew Krystal on the Fan 590. Who's bright idea was that, anyway?

I guess all that's left to do now is pick a side and hope that doing so won't doom it. So ok, here goes. Come Wednesday and beyond, I'll be rooting for the Giants. The decision is easy. How can you not cheer for a team that has Tim Lincecum, cody Ross who turned out to be one hell of a pick-up much to everybody's surprise, Buster Posey and Pablo Sandoval on it? Besides, I still haven't forgiven the Rangers for beating the Jays on opening day, so they aren't getting my support when it's up for grabs.

In closing, come on Wednesday, go Giants, and enjoy what's left of baseball, everybody. Oh, and fuck the Yankees, just because.

Don't Forget To Get Out And Support Your Local Marathon Of Family Ties Reruns

Since it's soon going to be Terry Fox run season here in Canada, now might be a good time to inform you all that for all these years, it appears we've been doing it wrong.

If thisclip from NBC's 2010 Olympic coverageis accurate, the man who's name in which we are truly running is Michael J. Fox.

Well, at least they got the famous Canadian suffering from a disease part right.