Saturday, September 06, 2014

Dutch snake attacks, 99 packs of beer and The Boss on Norwegian TV


- There really isn't a time of year when the average sports fan gives a damn about women’s college basketball, but that lack of interest is even more pronounced in the months ranging from January to December and that makes the curious case of University of Connecticut women's basketball coach Geno Auriemma and his secondary recruiting violation all the more of a yawn. As the world looked on and enjoyed the tale of pitching star Mo'ne Davis as she led her Philadelphia team to the Little League World Series, one of the story lines to emerge was Davis’ prowess as a basketball player and her dream of some day balling for Auriemma at UConn. She said at one point during the World Series that her dream was to play point guard for the nine-time national champion Huskies and when Auriemma heard that news, he made what appeared to be a fairly innocuous call congratulating the 13-year-old Philadelphia girl at Little League headquarters. If it were a sport that people really cared about like college football, the resulting “scandal” might have been more than a footnote in the week of sports. Instead, the tale made just a ripple in the pond when UConn began looking into the issue after a school filed a complaint with the American Athletic Conference. The unidentified school decided to whine because Auriemma called and reportedly told Davis he was impressed by the way she was handling the pressure of the Little League World Series and to make sure people were treating her like a baseball player and "not like, 'Oh, look at this girl playing baseball.'" UConn athletic director Warde Manuel and his staff looked into the matter even though the coach was incredulous that someone would file a complaint and determined that the call constituted a secondary rules violation. "There's guys playing college basketball driving around in cars that cost more than my house and we're worried about a phone call that I made?" Auriemma said. Well said, G………


- Austin Beerworks knows what college students are looking for and they also know when the college semester starts. The Texas brewery is like any business looking to grow its brand and boost its bottom line and as a maker of cheap beer, there is no better demographic to pander to than the bros and chicks who are hoisting funnels and cooking up the perfect theme for their next kegger. In anticipation of the new semester, Austin Beerworks recently debuted the first 99-pack of beer to hit the market and the effort to "keep Austin weird" was an unquestioned success in admittedly limited form. It wasn’t as if the company cranked out hundreds and hundreds of 99 packs to store shelves around the city, but the 20 packs it did ship out went over like gangbusters, selling out on the first day. Frat dudes and soror-stitutes cobbled together their beer money and paid $99 for the new invention, realizing it as a great way to purchase a massive quantity of beer without having to put down a deposit for a keg and find guys strong enough to hoist said keg in and out of a car and down the stairs to the basement of their off-campus house. "Since you can drink it anytime, you're going to want to have more than a few on hand," the brewery said in a video on its website. At first, some wondered if the 99 pack was a joke, as the idea of a case of beer measuring approximately 7 feet long and weighing in at more than 80 pounds does seem like a ridiculous beer-bonger’s pipe dream. But the offer was real and the results so positive that the brewery is going to produce another run of the 99-packs soon, according to its Facebook page. Maybe this time, aim big and churn out 100 cases, as that should be enough to expand the idea while keeping the supply chain limited and thus, the public clamoring for more……….


- The Dutch are generally viewed as chill, laid-back folks who embrace a liberal approach to life and may supplement that outlook from time to time by smoking some quality hippie lettuce. Some of that stereotype may be on point, but there are situations in life that even top-notch kush cannot remedy and one such situation unfolded over the past day in the village of Made. Residents of the Dutch village were warned to live carefully after learning that a highly poisonous cobra could be slithering its way around their charming neighborhood. Authorities warned the locals to keep all doors and windows shut after the snake's owner reported it missing Thursday morning. If there is one thing worse than the creepy weirdo that is Snake Guy, it’s Snake Guy Who Can’t Keep Track of His Scaly Friends. With public concern high, authorities refused to say whether the snake had been kept legally. There was no order to vacate the streets and citizens were allowed to leave their homes, but vigilance was the mandate because a bite from the 27-inch Cape cobra — usually found only in Africa — can be deadly. "Don't approach the snake. The animal could become aggressive,” an official statement on the situation said. In the event of a bite, the municipality, 60 miles south of Amsterdam, says an antivenin is available if somebody is bitten. An easier solution might be getting a bowl, packing it with the best ganja around and smoking that snake into satiated submission before taking it to an animal sanctuary to live out its day, but being prepared for any possibility is a nice option as well………


- Bruce Springsteen has a well-known affinity for Scandinavia. One of his most legendary concerts took place in Gothenburg, Sweden, where his fans were so loud and created so much energy that they literally forced the city to make structural changes to the stadium. He sometimes visits Sweden even when he’s not on European tours and for that reason, it makes sense that he has reportedly agreed to guest star on the Norwegian TV show “Lilyhammer.” The Boss will star alongside his E Street Band member Steven Van Zandt, who plays a recurring character on the show, Frank Tagliano. Van Zandt also co-writes the series and acts as executive producer, so it was only a matter of time before he dialed up Springsteen and got him involved in the process. Van Zandt appears to be in search of some heavy hitters for the next season of the series, as his former “Sopranos” co-star Frank Sirico will also join the cast in a recurring role. “Lilyhammer,” is based on the story of Frank Tagliano, a New York mobster who relocates to the town of Lillehammer in Norway under the Witness Protection Program after testifying against the new mafia head. Lillehammer famously hosted the Winter Olympics in 1994, but hasn’t really been thought of around the world since then. The show shoots in New York and Lillehammer and Springsteen’s parts will reportedly be set in New York, where he will play the owner of a mortuary. The Boss hasn’t exactly done a lot of acting, although he did have a small cameo in the 2000 John Cusack movie “High Fidelity,” playing himself……..

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