Month: January 2006

During Theo Epstein’s excellent adventure, a couple very young guys have been running the Red Sox baseball show. As of this evening, it appears the Sox will sow their oats on a deal for Indians outfielder Coco Crisp. Since Crisp doesn’t have the same power numbers of the departed Johnny Damon, the Sox also discussed a trade to add more Pop to their line-up, but Kellogg’s insisted the Sox also take Snap and Crackle. Ex-Co-GM Jed Hoyer tersely dismissed that scenario as “untenable.” Other possibilities being considered are Captain Crunch, All Bran, who has a reputation of clearing the logjam on the bases, and Tony the Tiger, although he’s considered a bit long in the tooth and commands a salary unlikely to be assumed by John Henry and Co.

The club continues to look for pitching, this week bringing in free agent Count Chocula for a physical. Unfortunately, after thousands of innings, an MRI confirmed Chocula indeed has a dead arm. While not as important as run production or pitching, the departure of clubhouse favorite Kevin Millar has some concerned about the team chemistry for 2006. Ex-Co-GM Ben Cherrington is said to be leaning toward veteran Corn Flakes, while Fruit Loops, although tainted by the 2005 steroid scandal, remains a possibility.

Last night when I heard that Jay Farrar lyric while doing sit-ups, I just stared at the ceiling awhile and wondered what the hell it meant and how he came up with it. Maybe it’s a metaphor for dancing…

So it’s 2006. At this early point in the year, I try to assess my financial position and consider my “asset allocation” in retirement funds and other investments. Two stocks I own have been showing signs of life lately, Avanir Pharmaceuticals and Cortex Pharmaceuticals Inc. Avanir markets a cold sore medication called “Abreva,” and has a drug in clinical trials. They also are working on a cholesterol reversing molecule and own a technology platform that develops human antibodies for infectious diseases like um, anthrax. Cortex develops “Ampakine” (cognitive amplifiers) drugs for the treatment of neurological diseases like alzheimer’s, mild cognitive impairment, hyperactivity disorder, autism, and fragile X, among others. They caught my eye a few years ago with an article in Slate. It cited a test of an ampakine compound on some Swedish med students. “After taking the drug, the students improved their performance on tests requiring them to identify smells, navigate mazes, and make visual associations.” I remember thinking how this could really help change lives. Note: I am not recommending you buy these stocks. As early-stage biotech companies, they are very high-risk.

Finally, my own cognitive freak show gave me a head shake this past weekend. As I was flipping channels on the new plasma and being amazed at the quality of movies in HD, I thought, “Contact” would be really cool in HD. Two channel flips later, there it was. It’s not as good as the Carl Sagan book, but it has its moments. In one scene, an alien describes human existence to Jodie Foster’s character, “You’re an interesting species, an interesting mix. You’re capable of such beautiful dreams, and such horrible nightmares. You feel so lost, so cut off, so alone, only you’re not. See, in all our searching, the only thing we’ve found that makes the emptiness bearable is each other.” So call an old friend… or make a new one.

Finally, after months of research, analysis paralysis and nagging doubt, I have an HDTV.

Words cannot describe the image produced by my new NEC 42XR4A plasma HDTV. I’ll try, but first a sincere thanks to Chris at Cleveland Plasma. He is professional, courteous, and informative. Most importantly, he executes. I placed my order last Saturday, and the only thing Chris didn’t deliver that I asked for was a Patriots win… All week, Chris kept in touch with me via email and provided tracking information on Wednesday (everyone lost a day to the Monday holiday…) and I was called Thursday to schedule delivery… for Friday between 12-3.

Like a ten year old the night before Christmas, I tossed and turned with visions of tiny pixels dancing in my head. After a quick morning in the office, I sped home wondering what time the “big boy” would arrive. As I pulled up, I wondered no more, for there he was, right at my door! It took me about an hour to set up the stand, position the panel on it and connect cables for a Comcast DVR, LG LDA-511 DVD and Yamaha receiver. If possible, I suggest attaching cables with the panel flat on a soft surface. In particular, the HDMI cables were tough to attach as they are underneath the panel. fyi, I ran digital optical audio from the DVD to the receiver and digital coax from the Comcast box. With all systems go, I turned on the DVR, receiver and panel. Wow. Like Dave, the astronaut at the end of “2001 – A Space Odyssey,” I’m sure my face was full of wonder as this amazing image overwhelmed my senses…

When I finally came to, I wanted to test every DVD I owned… I did check out “Batman Begins,” “Austin Powers – Goldmember,” and “Jaws” when my son came home. All looked very good, but I think the “upconverting” feature of the DVD is somewhat hype. I couldn’t tell much difference between 480i, 480p, 720p or 1080i… I think I’ll be investing in a higher-end DVD like a Denon. Any suggestions? Anyway, HDTV is what really rocks this panel. The INHD channels on Comcast show stunning images made for HD. I felt like I was there as the cameras raced through the canals of Venice and slowly toured the great museums of Europe. I’ve seen HD on a 42″ LG panel and on a 42″ Samsung DLP set. To my eyes, they simply do not compare to the 42XR4A. Colors are vibrant and lifelike. Black is black. Resolution is crystal clear. The glass reflection is really not noticable. Even SDTV looks great! That surprised me as I’ve seen it look less than stellar on the other sets.

All that aside, I got this thing primarily for sports and movies. Unfortunately, the biggest drawback is the lack of HD content available, even with the premium channel feeds Comcast threw in for a free teaser. I mean, ESPNHD was broadcasting a late game and it wasn’t in HD! What’s up with that? As I headlined, the Celtics game was amazing! It was like I had a seat looking out the window of a luxury box, except there was no window on the box because I could hear every sneaker squeak. I don’t think it was the HD, but the young Celtics beat the Nets, 99-96. It was the first game of the season I really paid attention to. The image is that good. Anyway, I’m hopeful HD content will increase rapidly and I can’t wait for the NFL conference championships tomorrow.

Until then, it will be last season’s “24” on DVD, “Million Dollar Baby” in HD that I recorded last night at midnight, “Son Volt in Concert” that I recorded while watching “Sideways,” and finally, shopping for a Harmony remote. Any suggestions for that?

So, after an exhaustive search, I’m extremely satisfied with my decision. Now I have to go watch TV…

I went to the gym tonight. I’ve been working out on a regular basis since high school. Back then it was to build bulk for football, but now it’s more for vanity and survival. Sure, I want to look good, but lately I’ve been thinking more about just living. Sometimes I lie awake at night or in the early hours of the morning and worry about what will happen to my children if I die. It’s not a pleasant um, exercise, so I do what I can to live right and stay healthy. A big part of that is going to the gym after work.

I often have conflicts that pit the gym against social activities, often work-related. “Thirsty Thursdays” are a weekly event that provides some stress relief toward the end of the workweek. Many Thursday’s I’ve opted out and instead gone to the gym. Why? See above. You see, drinking a couple beers is easy; doing 300 situps isn’t. Eating buffalo wings is easy; lifting weights isn’t. Chatting and laughing is easy; 150 flights of stairs in 30 minutes isn’t, but I go. It’s a commitment I made to myself a long time ago and one that is more important now than ever.

“Live in perfect harmoneeeeeeeeeee.” Uh, sorry.

On the day I finally order a plasma HDTV, the Patriots actually lose a playoff game and make tee times. Yeah, the Panasonic turned out to be backordered potentially for months, so I cancelled my order and opted for a 42” NEC 42XR4A. Even without the Pats, I’m looking forward to the Conference Championships this weekend. Based on what I saw this weekend, look for the Steelers and Panthers to meet in the big copyrighted game.

I’m not sure what it is about us New Englanders, but sometimes we take as much pleasure in the failure of other teams as we do with the success of our own. Case in point was my glee in seeing Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts fail once again. After being compared to the ’72 Dolphins while tearing up the regular season, the “Dolts” returned to form and spit the bit in the playoffs. If they couldn’t win it all this year, they may never… EVER! I mean, the football gods conspired with the referees to personally escort Indy to the Sup… uh, big game, and they still lost! First, their nemesis, the Patriots lost, then the refs take away a Steeler interception (today repudiated by the NFL)… Finally, the football gods intervened and Jerome Bettis coughed up the pig on the 2 yard line with Pittsburgh trying to put the game away. Only a saving tackle by Ben Rothlisberger saved a winning Colt touchdown. Ah, whatever. The Colts choked big time. After the game, Manning took it like a man and blamed his offensive line, “I’ll give Pittsburgh credit for their blitzes and their rush, but we did have some protection problems.”

As for the Patriots, there’s no reason to believe they won’t contend for another championship next season. The fires still burn. After the loss, Tedy Bruschi was asked by a Denver reporter if the Patriots still had the ability to be “competitive” next year. “Are you kidding me? Are you kidding me?” asked Bruschi. “Think about what you just asked me, man. Think about who we have in this locker room. Take that question and get out of my face.”

It’s been a good year so far. Better than the end of 2005 for sure, which was, um, a trip… Recently someone posted a comment to a June post that read, “I think that misery should not be a pre-requisite for great art. Many great artists never new great misery, and many miserable people never do great art.” I don’t think I’ve ever suggested misery is a prerequisite, but it has been associated with many artists considered great. Van Gogh and Hopper are two that come to mind. In those cases, it seems art was the escape from the misery. Get lost in the creative “zone” and the demons are kept at bay for a time. I’ve been unable to channel my misery into creativity lately… at least here. Oh, I’ve created some effective visuals to convey information at work, but the old fifteenkey has been neglected. Other than my demon, who’s bound to end up in jail or dead, a couple other obsessions have really consumed huge chunks of my time. They are internet forums devoted to the Palm Treo and Flat-Panel HDTV’s.

I own a Treo, affectionately known as the “LeoTreo,” and I lust for a Plasma HDTV. This past Monday I set up a new 42” LG Plasma for my pal Barb. Man… Those things are just made for football. The Fiesta Bowl happened to be on and the picture quality was stunning. “Star Wars – Revenge of the Sith” also looked sweet playing on her new “upconverting” OPPO DVD player. Franky I’m surprised Barb even came back to work after getting that bad boy set up. Actually, with 4 new remotes to navigate, I think Barb thought work would be a safer place…

At this point, I pretty much know everything I need to know about pixels, contrast ratio, 720p, 1080i, component, DVI, HDMI and the fallacy of plasma burn-in. If you have any questions, just ask. My plan is to wait for the Christmas-SuperBowl feeding frenzy to end and then grab one of these after the 2006 models start coming out. That is unless someone makes me an offer I can’t refuse. Until then, I have to suffer the indignity of watching the Patriots on my puny 32” Sony in oh-so-ordinary standard definition. Talk about misery…