more whiskey sours, please

me doing some idiotic dance...ashamed to say I believe it was the cha-cha....Jenny M made me do it!!!


Jenny and I before enough trips to the bar


Jenny and I after enough trips to the bar


Brandon and Jenny just happy (annoying huh?...jk)


me...looking thrilled to be at a wedding without a date (felt like I was in the corner at a high school sockhop again)


Chief's best drunk smile and my best fake smile

Luke and Leia Tharpe

here are some ultrasound pictures of my brother Justin and sister-in-law Jane's twin babies on the way. forgive me, I'm not usually all that ga-ga over babies, but these ones are family! because they yet to have names I have taken to calling them Luke and Leia. (I'll be offering my suggestion of John and Abigail soon)
its a boy and a girl which is good....no chance of them growing up to look like Danny Devito and Arnold

baby Luke- the force is strong in this one


Luke's arms and legs, all still attached and no mechanical hand


baby Leia from the side, no chance for bun hair yet


Leia's legs, soon to be used for outrunning Stormtroopers

now all I have to do is to keep Justin from turning evil and tempting his son to join the Dark Side...otherwise I might have to hide Luke in some desert community and Leia with some European royal family

you're an All-Star, go play

oh dear god, did I just quote a Smashmouth song?
my sincerest apologies...

just a quick recap of the events around the Triple-A All-Star game that was played here at Fifth Third Field in Toledo, Ohio!

Welcome to Toledo, bitches!

Monday night was the Home Run Derby which was pretty cool...and no doubt the only home run derby I'll ever see in person. there were 2 local high school kids, 2 former major leaguers (including former Cub all-star and goat Leon "Bull" Durham who is Toledo's hitting coach), and three players each from the International League (including Mud Hen Ryan Ludwig) and the Pacific Coast League. The Hen made it to the final round but lost to a Buffalo guy who had almost 30 I believe in three rounds and could have gone all night. Bull Durham had a couple but the cool story is one of the high school kids tied him and beat the other former All-Star, Howard Johnson of the Mets.

"Bull" Durham...best nickname in coaching and can still hit better than 2/3 of the current Cubs

Tuesday was only fireworks over the city (*yawn) and a fancy red-carpet Bash at the ballpark that was basically closed for anyone who makes under $500,000 a year...

Today Brandon, Pop and I started by going to the Seagate Centre across the street from the park for the Triple-A Fanfest...which was really cool. it was mostly interactive things, I guess mainly for the kids (though we all got in line for the throwing booth). but it also had historical exhibits, display lockers for each team in the IL and the PCL with info about them, a stage (no music today), food, autographs (though we missed them), and lots of cool stuff. there was even a couple of girls dressed up like players from the All-American Girls Baseball League like in A League of Their Own...and they were cute (though looked underage when they changed back into real clothes).

Chief action shot (I won't tell how slow my pitches were or how sore my arm was)

I'm not in Cooperstown, NY...just Toledo, OH

Chief liked this logo, for some reason

after tooling around for a couple hours we headed back across the street and into the ballpark for the game. of course Toledo's Own Jamie Farr was on hand to throw out the first pitch, along with Mike Farrell who played B.J. Hunnicut on M*A*S*H (apparently Alan Alda was busy) the skies were very ugly when we were waiting for the game and we did get poured on for 10 mins or so....looked like the tarp might even go on but we lucked out. great game was played (hoped you watched it on ESPN2 and looked for me!). the IL won 6-0 and a Mud Hen even had a home run. the crowd was a bit on the quiet side for me, and there was a breakout of the ever-annoying wave but despite that it was a great experience and a great thing for this city.

Iowa Cub (and PCL MVP Rich Hill)..yet another good young arm in the Cubs system that will soon be on the DL every season

the guy in the middle and kneeling is Tony Gwynn Jr., son of the Hall of Famer

Mike Farrell of M*A*S*H fame (no snide comments, probably my fav show ever)

Toledo's Own Jamie Farr (sure, Katie Holmes looks better in a dress but she's actually the crazy one now)

The Man of Steel vs. the Caped Crusader

ok...at the risk of sounding like a comic book geek (which I am really not), I just saw the new Superman movie tonight and it was pretty friggin sweet. but it did lead to a mini-disagreement with JK over the coolness of the Man of Steel...she is more of a Batman kinda girl, while I think Superman could totally take Batman....so I will make the following list of strengths and weaknesses of Superman and Batman and let you decide....(but I'll say who I think gets the advantage)

guys: who is cooler? who would you rather be?
girls: who is cooler? who would you rather do?

Superpowers:
Superman: flying, x-ray vision, heat vision, incredible strength, impervious to everythiing but Kryptonite
Batman: none (Bat suit does seem to be somewhat bulletproof)
Advantage: Superman

Alteregos:
Superman: kinda geeky, clumsy, shy reporter Clark Kent
Batman: billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne
Advantage: Batman (Wayne no doubt gets laid more than Kent

Costumes:
Superman: blue suit, red shorts and cape (JK complaint that he wears his underwear on the outside)
Batman: black Bat suit, black cape and pointed mask
Advantage: Batman (unless it was the George Clooney movie where the Bat suit had nipples...nipples!)

Love interests:
Superman: hot, feisty, though always in trouble Lois Lane (well Margot Kidder = not hot but there was Teri Hatcher)
Batman: kinda hot, though completely crazy Catwoman (and Halle Berry doesn't count)
Advantage: Superman (much better love story than anything Batman has...plus Katie Holmes as his love interest in the last movie hurts Batman badly here)

Locations:
Superman: Metropolis (a cool 1930s NYC lookalike), a Kansas farm, the Fortress of Solitude
Batman: Gotham City (a scary, run-down NYC lookalike), Wayne Manor, the Bat Cave
Advantage: Superman...I mean come on, what sounds cooler, Fortress of Solitude or Bat Cave?

Sidekicks:
Superman: none (unless you count that Supergirl chick and I'm sure most don't)
Batman: kinda gay Robin
Advantage: Superman (superhero sidekicks are lame)

Stands for:
Superman: Truth, Justice, and the American Way (yes, yes JK..he's not an American)
Batman: vigilante justice
Advantage: Superman...a bit more of a role model

Arch-enemies:
Superman: Lex Luthor
Batman: the Joker
Advantage: even...both are kinda lame (one is a clown and the other is just a rich guy with a rock)

Toys:
Superman: none
Batman: everything that makes him cool and effective
Advantage: Batman (though Superman doesn't really need toys to fight crime

Nicknames:
Superman: the Man of Steel
Batman: the Caped Crusader, the Dark Knight
Advantage: Even...but only b/c of the Dark Knight one (Caped Crusader is gay)

Role model factor:
Superman: the all-American (I know, I know, he's an alien) good guy who tries to save everyone
Batman: the tortured, kinda crazy anti-hero who is more about punishing the bad guys even if that means killing them all
Advantage: Superman...I know, the tortured thing is hotter for girls I'm sure but who wants their kid to grow up to be Batman, and what kid doesn't want to grow up to be Superman?

ok...well I think thats about it for the tale of the tape of Batman vs. Superman. Go ahead and make your own choice even though you can kinda guess which way I am leaning. and feel free to leave me a comment so we can get somekind of a consensus here.

is there anyway not to look like a geek after this post? didn't think so... Stay tunes for my blog of Cpt. Kirk vs. Cpt. Picard (just kidding...I hope)

paint fumes and blown saves

-spent most of yesterday, last night and today painting and fixing up the new WSJP house (well...Chach's new house, anyway). It was 90 degrees and I sweat more than I ever thought I could. Had an asthma attack for the first time in like 20 years chasing down J's dog who had found a way out of the new fence. But the house is a very cute place in a nice little neighborhood. Very cool living room, awesome basement (especially when Chach is done with the new paint scheme. Kind of excited...just need to find a job up there so I can move into my little blue bedroom (it is not quite the Cubs blue I was promised)

my future room (after all the work I did this weekend, I kinda have to move there)

the cool (newly painted) living room

-saw the weirdest, most random billboard on the drive home...all it said was something like (wish I could remember exactly) "Yay! I have a meat helmet." Has anyone seen like this?!! Am I even close? And what in the name of Zeus' butthole could that mean?!

-went to the Hens game with the family and Brandon's Jenny...had a good time except for the Hens blowing a 5-1 lead with 2 outs in the 9th (something rarely seen since the Hens moved into their new digs)...crowd (meaning Brandon and I mostly) got ugly. my mom was awesome when she decided she needed funnelcake and when we told her the line was too long she took off while no one was paying attention and wheeled over there and took care of it herself...Good for her! she wanted that damn funnelcake! had to wait for what seemed like 10,000 children ran the bases to see fireworks

Jenny and Brandon at the Hens game

good fireworks....completely shot to hell by Mr. Lee Greenwoood

-on this date in 1863 on the second day of fighting at the Battle of Gettysburg, Confederate General Robert E. Lee decided to stay and fight the Union army even though the men in blue held the best ground on the raised ridge southeast of the town. Lee's plan was to attack Meade's army at the northern and southern flanks of that line on undefended hills: Culps Hill, Little Round Top and Big Round Top. Because of frustrating delays that delayed Confederate attacks, the Union forces were able to place forces on the hills and repel Lee's second attack in the tiny but now infamous Pennsylvania town. A now legendary stand by the 20th Maine under Col. Joshua Chamberlain helped to turn the tide against the rebel assaults...though by no means was the 20th Maine the only unit involved. As a result of his failure to take the heights on the flanks of the Union position Lee decided that a bold stroke was needed to take the field and destroy the Army of the Potomac once and for all. His plan become known forever as Pickett's Charge.

sad day for the Three Lions, happy day for our Neighbors to the North

-England may have lost their match today to Portugal on penalty kicks after regulation and overtime....but does Portugal have lines written about it like this by writers like him:

This royal throne of kings, this sceptred isle,
This earth of majesty, this seat of Mars,
This other Eden, demi-paradise,
This fortress built by Nature for herself
Against infection and the hand of war,
This happy breed of men, this little world,
This precious stone set in the silver sea,
Which serves it in the office of a wall
Or as a moat defensive to a house,
Against the envy of less happier lands,--
This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England.

-William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616), "King Richard II", Act 2 scene 1

...I thought not, since Portugal is the size of my kitchen and has been historically insignificant for centuries.


-Happy Birthday to Canada!!! I would raise a bottle of your finest beer, Steam Whistle, in your honor...BUT YOU WON'T IMPORT IT, YOU SELFISH CANUCK BASTARDS!!!!




-today in 1863, the Battle of Gettysburg began as advance units of the Union Army of the Potomac (George G. Meade commanding) and the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia (Robert E. Lee commanding) classed in and around the tiny, previously insignificant village of Gettysburg. On July 1 Confederate forces met with early success and drove Union forces through the town and onto Cemetery Ridge....unfortunately for the Rebels because the Union the controlled the best ground on the battlefield