BSR: The Sunsets on the Daytona 500

As the sun sets on Daytona, and we have the 50th winner (Ryan Newman) of this legendary race, I couldn't help but notice that there was only one Chevy (9th place Dale Jr.) and one Ford (10th place Greg Biffle) in the top-ten finishers. When is the last time that happened?

Daytona 500 top-ten finishers:

1. Ryan Newman-Dodge Alltel car
2. Kurt Busch-Dodge Miller Lite car
   
3. Tony Stewart-Toyota Home Depot car
4. Kyle Busch-Toyota M&M car
5. Reed Sorenson-Dodge Target car
6. Elliot Sadler-Dodge Best-Buy car
7. Kasey Kahne-Dodge Budweiser car
8. Robby Gordon-Dodge Jim Beam car
9. Dale Earnhardt Jr.-Chevy AMP energy/National Guard car
10. Greg Biffle-Ford 3-M car
    

(Photo courtesy of Bushido Special Reporter B-Rad)
Posted by The Bushido

BSR SEWE: Rusty Wallace and fans at the D.U.- O.R.

What is Rusty doing at the DU Oyster Roast? Doesn't he have a race this Sunday?

BSR: Primary Election Coverage: Romney's "Don't ask, don't tell" campaign

Pick-Up the Penny Kid, It Amuses Me!

And remember, Charity is good for the Soul, Vote for Romney you peasant!
(Photo courtesy of IrregularTimes)

BSR: Super Tuesday, Mitt Romney Says, "Vote For Me You Peasants!"

Look I don't care that Mitt Romney is Mormon. I don't care that he is rich and an apt business man. But I think this country has had enough hubris of the business-style of BushCo government. And now, Romney wants to tell me that the economy is doing great, because since the Market is down, there are a lot of great (stock) buys out there. Well, that would be great to hear if Mitt was my broker on the other end of the phone, but from a presidential candidate who is trying to appeal to the masses, I don't think the message "resonates" as well as he thinks. But does Mitt really care about the "peasants" beneath him in this country? Your answer is below. (Phot courtesy of ZDNET)


from CNN.com: January 25, 2008

"Well, I'm not concerned about the voters," Romney replied. "I'm much more concerned about the other guys on this stage. And we have some competitive information that we make sure that we use for our own benefit. But I can tell you this: I've raised more money than any other Republican in this race — raised more," he added. "Friends of mine have come together, people I knew in high school and helped raised money for me."

Mitchell's Report on Steroids today at 2 pm

With just 75 days from now until spring training, Major League Baseball will issue Sen. George Mitchell’s report on steroids today at 2:00 pm, catch it on the web or on ESPN. (Photo courtesy of misunderestimation.com)

Spoiler alert: there are a lot of players doing it, probably someone all thirty teams and you shouldn’t be surprised to know, they’re not going to stop doing it. As long as multi-million dollar contracts are paid to play the game, players will find the “edge” to put them in front of other players. Case in point, baseball came down hard on anabolic steroid use, but thanks to the Bay Area Laboratory Co-operative (BALCO) the “clear” a form of undetectable human-growth hormone was developed. It’s a basic human response; if someone tells you they can make you stronger, faster and extend your career without anyone finding out, nine times out of ten, you take the drug. Baseball players might look like gods or supermen hanging on the posters in your room or framed in baseball cards, but the thing is, they are human and they (just like everyone else) will make mistakes.

The Home-Brew is done, now where do I get the bottles?

One thing I forgot to factor in was getting bottles in which to put this beer. Does anyone know of a place here in Charleston that sells empty bottles that would suite my purpose?

SABA

I am sure you could have deduced by my lack of posting (unreliable narrator) that I had taken a couple of weeks off to go on sabbatical, holiday, riding the couch reading and watching baseball, search for enlightenment-give it a name.

Things I learned on my search for enlightenment:

1. Baba Ganush is a Middle-Eastern eggplant dish and not just a cool nick-name that most guys started calling their pals after watching the movie “Wedding Crashers”.
2. Chuck Norris taught me that the symbolism in the final fight scenes in every martial arts film. Did you ever notice that in the final fight scenes the weapons malfunction, the swords are thrown to the side and the final fight is hand-to-hand-combat? As Chuck would say, “That’s how we all have to face our problems that beset us; when are hands are empty, what will decide the fight is what is inside our minds.”
3. I know that he is in Cooperstown and he’s one hell of a guy, but Tony Gwynns’ voice annoys the sh_crap out of me. Come to think about it, Gwynn’s voice is the same voice used by black comedians when they impersonate a white male’s voice.

BSR: Peach Blossom Diner

If you find yourself wanting to get off the beaten path for a home-styled meal, check out the Peach Blossom Diner at the intersection of Hwy-9 and I-85, on Hospitality Road (a frontage road) just outside of Spartanburg. Blackie and I were looking for a place for lunch on Sunday before heading to the Panthers' training camp and the big man spotted tons of cars surrounding a little diner. This of course, peaked our interests.

The full-parking lot was a sign from the Gods that we were about to have stomachs just as full. The Peach Blossom Diner offers a meat and three, with a drink and dessert for a little over $8. If you are ever near Sparkle City and feel the urge, I suggest you stop at the Peach Blossom Diner.

BSR: Carolina Panthers Training Camp

Here is a clip of the Carolina Panthers on the first day of Training Camp (7-28-07) stretching out before their practice. Sorry Maake Kemoeatu for poking fun of your stretching ability in this clip. We all know you are quite limber for a 345 lb defensive tackle.

Panther Highlight Stat: Kemoeatu’s first (NFL) career-sack was against Peyton Manning at Indy on October 13, 2002 for a Colts loss of four yards.

Yo Broseph, It's Like July, You Can Lose the Toboggan!

This is a picture of "Blackie's Brother" working his magic at the Wild Wings. As much as we would have liked to play, "Your Team", there was just too much going on in the bar that night.

For the record, the air-conditioning wasn't "blasting" on Saturday night at Wild Wings and I am just not quite sure why this dude wore a toboggan. Perhaps, Christmas in July....

Say What You Will About Sparkle City

But any town with two Krispy-Kreme donut shops across the street from one another, can't be that bad of a place to live. Full disclosure: We did actually stop for the "Hot & Now" sign as it was conveniently located on Church Street between the local watering holes and our hotel.

(Photo credits: JET/Bushido Staff)

Picking the new Miss USA, Rachel Smith...the powers of deduction and appreciation for form and pulchritude

Watching things, especially contests of sports or other competition, on DVR can be somewhat of a challenge-especially if you already know the outcome. Since I had been on an excursion in the foothills of North Carolina-my sister's wedding-I was without any knowledge of who was crowned Miss USA 2007. Fortunately, Blackie watched other events last Friday and was unaware of the outcome as well. With equal footing, (albeit, I do have superior powers of deduction and am more of a student of "form and pulchritude" than Mr. Blackmon) we watched the 51-beautiful contestants compete for the Miss USA Crown.

Forgetting any allegiance to our beloved Carolinas, due to a shortened version of the contest which commenced during the swimsuit competition, Blackie chose two contestants: Miss Rhode Island-Danielle Lacourse and Miss Nevada-the lucky lady, Helen Salas. There was but one young beauty who caught my eye: Miss Tennessee-Rachel Smith (photo from Home Watson.com). Perhaps, it was her gorgeous smile, framed by a sculpted face and 5'11" body or the fact that she graduated Magna Cum Laude from Belmont University with a B.S. in Journalism that attracted me to her. (Belmont has performed for the Bushido in my NCAA B-Ball brackets before). Then again, as you all know, I enjoy interesting people and Miss USA's path to success was golden: as a former intern for the Oprah Winfrey Show, her charity work was impeccable working with girls at Oprah's school in Africa. Finally, my sister's husband is stationed outside of Clarksville, TN-Miss Smith's hometown (bonus points).

Taking all of Rachel Smith's attributes (both physical and extracurricular), it was easy to deduce that she would be chosen as the next Miss USA. Think about it, the reigning Miss USA (Tara Conner) was caught in scandal with her "country mouse meets city mouse" adventures of booze and debauchery. The Donald needed someone who was 21, down to earth and (sorry for the cliche) the total package. Let's see, Miss Tennessee: check, check, and checkkkk!

Miss Kansas was a little bit too (pre-Vatican II) Catholic-forget 2nd chances with Cara Renee Gorges there Tara Conner, she would have said, "You're fired-now go to the warehouse for your date with old Sparky!" Miss Nevada was the type of person who sits at 3rd base on the Black-Jack table and hits on 20; thus taking the dealer's bust card. And Miss Rhode Island would ban (of all things that are dangerous in this world) cell-phones whilst driving. I must admit, the Bushido laughed "sofa-king" hard when she said cell-phones, that I dropped my drink. This left but one queen to wear the crown-the Bushido's pick, Miss Tennessee, Rachel Smith. Congrats to Miss USA and best of luck with her work towards fighting breast and ovarian cancer. And in closing, Miss Smith, if you are ever in ChuckTown-look me up, I have a big yard with a tidal creek for your chocolate lab, Zoe to play with our boy Bear and the old girl Daisy while we discuss world politics, the ever-changing dynamics of journalism and whatever else comes to mind. (Laugh now my beloved readers, but you never know)