Nana, me and Mom during Thanksgiving in 2005 (Uncle Westin an Cousin Ethan are in the background)
My Nana passed away recently. Last Tuesday. My Mom called me, catching me out at dinner with Carrie. She sounded upset, but she had also seen this coming for years. I guess you never know how you’re going to feel until it actually happens.
Nana was 99 years old and was matriarch of a large, diverse and wonderful family. I never got to know my Nana very well. I grew up in Virginia (for the most part) and was kind of a summer grandchild to her. But I was always impressed by how she carried herself. She had a deeply ingrained dignity that you were careful not to offend. And you could see bits and pieces of her in her grandchildren, especially my cousins Matt, Ethan and Ben.
Carrie and I will be flying to Boston on 10/31 to attend her service. I wish she was meeting people under better circumstances, but that’s life sometimes.
Hey, how ’bout some dude on the Browns named Massaquoi slapping up a monster fantasy day in Week 4, followed by millions putting in a Week 5 waiver request without knowing how to spell his name, or even what his first name is. Love when that happens. He should just drop his first name and go by “Massaquoi.” And by the way, when you’re saying the words, “Man, I hope I get Massaquoi” (like I did last night), and it’s Week 5, it’s probably not a good sign for your fantasy year. -Bill Simmons
Today’s game was about as painful as possible given that we “won” the game. I saw won loosely, because in reality the Rams lost the game when they turned the ball over on our 5 yard line.
This was our home opener. This was a team we lost to at home last year, and it generally regarded to be one of the worst teams in the NFL. This is a game we should have won handily.
At the point, start the clock. Jim Zorn and Jason Campbell won’t be here next year. At don’t think I’m blaming JC, I’m not. I just recognize that the new coach will bring in a new system and they’ll probably want to draft or acquire a new quarterback. That’s just how the NFL works (see Josh McDaniel / Jay Cutler).
I was just listening to Mediocre Poker, and it made me think: are there other decent poker podcasts out there? God knows there are dozens of greatpokerblogs, but I don’t have any podcasts on my list.
I am terribly sad right now. I don’t recall where I was when Carrie told me. Probably in our room at the hostel in Budapest. Anyway, she’s peering at her iPhone and say something like “WJFK is switching formats to sports.” My head jerks up and I say “says WHO?” Because, after all, I know she’s not reading the Washington Post or anything. She’s scanning her Facebook news feed as usual. Anyway, she replies “Stevie-D.” My mind raced. Was this a credible source. Could this possibly be true. Could talk radio truly be dying the same way alternative rock radio did?
The answer, of course, is yes. You can see the stream of thoughts on Twitter. You can listen to the fairwell postcasts on WJFK. All I know is that I moved all the way to Austin, Texas a couple of years ago and still managed to listen to the Junkies. I spent last summer in Seattle and always found a way to tune in to Big O and Dukes. I had been listening to Don and Mike (and Howard Stern before he screwed-up and went to satellite) since I was 13 years-old. My mom would pick us up from school sometimes and she would have the radio tuned in to WJFK.
There is something almost absurdly familiar about the people that you listen to for a few hours a day, 5 days a week, for over a decade. I started listening to the Junkies when I was in college, and I’m sure at this point it has been over 10 years. I know these people better than I know most of the people that I am currently friends with, simply on the brute basis of cumulative time spent listening to their lives unfold over the ether of radio.
I would say that WJFK is making a huge mistake, except that they probably aren’t. Ratings are ratings, and advertising money is what makes the machine go. Much as when WHFS became El Sol, it’s clear that the world is changing, even if I am not. But I’m still allowed to be sad. I miss my friends already.
If you’d like to keep up with me and Carrie as we amble across Europe this summer, please check-out CarterHeartsCarrie.com. We’ll be posting trip updates and photos there!
My abuelo passed away this past Friday (4/24/09). Despite the distance (he lived in Miami) and the language barriers (he spoke mostly Spanish) I felt very loved by him. He taught me how to play (and cheat) at dominos and was clearly the formative influence on my father’s gregarious sense of humor. I’ll miss him dearly and send all my love to my family in Miami.
