Random thoughts

--> When you read Bill Simmons’s excellent and entertaining columns on ESPN.com, you assume they’re written by a man’s man. Someone who watches football in a tricked-out man cave. Someone who speaks in a deep baritone. Then you hear his podcast, and he’s got this high-pitched, nasal voice. It’s both jarring and hilarious. It’s like taking a sip from a cup that you assume is filled with orange juice, and it’s milk.

--> NBC aired a “Women of Saturday Night Live” special this week, and it reminded me that Rachel Dratch is easily the most underrated performer in SNL history. Take that hyperbolic statement for what it's worth - I’m too young to remember a lot of the old-school SNLers. But during my era, Dratch was, to steal a poker phrase, the nuts. Only thing keeping her from proper recognition: She’s kinda funny-looking. But that’s part of what makes her hilarious! Do yourself a favour: Go to YouTube and type in “Debbie Downer” in the search bar. You're welcome.
--> I was looking at a print ad the other day that made reference to “faves.” As in, “My faves include skinny jeans and cargo pants.” It occurred to me that the only place I’ve run across the word “faves” is in ads. I’ve literally never heard anyone use that word in conversation. Granted, I’m not exactly hip to all the slang kids are using these days, but I figure I would have come across it once or twice if this was a word people used. To quote a venerable cinema classic (Zoolander), I feel like I’m taking crazy pills!
--> So the other day I was listening to the soundtrack for the movie “Magnolia,” which mainly consists of tracks by the understated-yet-excellent Aimee Mann. It occurred to me that it would rule to hear the White Stripes cover Mann’s “Save Me.” Super-weird mix of artists, but a good song is a good song. I want to hear it with a metal/blues twist. Get it done, Jack White.

--> A couple months ago, on this very blog, I went on the record with a prediction that Joseph Cheong (pictured right) would win the World Series of Poker main event. With the final table set to play out next week, I stand by that. I also stand by my offer to wager even money on Cheong (third in chips) and Michael Mizrachi (seventh in chips) against the rest of the final table field. ESPN.com’s Gary Wise recently wrote a really insightful feature on Cheong. Here’s the URL: http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/poker/columns/story?columnist=wise_gary&id=5757063
--> Speaking of poker, October was quite literally a grand month for me. I turned a $1,000 profit on PokerStars, marking the third four-digit month in the past year or so. I was just playing aggressive, trusting my reads, and crushing folks. My ROI, roughly calculated, was around 45 per cent – just plain sweet. Bankroll = $6,000.