- There was no better party in sports over the weekend
than the 16th hole at the Waste Management Phoenix Open. Yes, the Super Bowl
was going on just across town and there were all sorts of high-end, fancy
shindigs going on, not to mention the hundreds of thousands of get-togethers
across the country to watch the big game, but if you weren't on the 16th hole
on Saturday then there really was a better party out there and you weren’t at
it. Even though two of golf’s biggest names, Tiger Woods (missed cut by sucking
exponentially in the first two rounds) and Phil Mickelson (didn’t play in the
event), weren't there, it didn’t matter for the bros hanging out at a hole
known as a frat party on a golf course. It didn’t matter because Italy's
Francesco Molinari aced the par-3 hole, setting off arguably the best
celebration on a golf course since the Americans went bat-sh*t insane on the 17th
green after sinking a key putt at the 1999 Ryder Cup. When Molinari’s ball
dropped into the cup and he responded by strolling to the green, picking it up
and chucking it into the crowd, fans responded by hurling dozens of beer cans
onto the course. The hail of cans forced tournament volunteers to scramble to
clear the fairway and green so, you know, the even could continue and other
players didn’t have to worry about bouncing their tee shot off a couple of
Coors Light cans. It was just the ninth hole-in-one to occur on the 16th hole
since the tournament moved to TPC Scottsdale in 1997, but it received the best reaction of any
of those shots. If only the Masters would take notice………
- Some jobs drive a person to drink. Unfortunately, most
jobs don’t allow those people to drink before they drive. Thus, Fargo, N.D.
resident Steven Anderson finds himself in a tough spot right now. See, Anderson
is the man tasked with driving the zamboni around the ice at the
Southside Arena in Fargo to keep the playing surface smooth for local hockey
games. Driving a zamboni is a gig that sounds like a lot of fun to a lot of
people, but maybe not so much for Anderson. If he really enjoyed his job, he
wouldn’t have downed a six-pack of cheap beer or whatever hard liquor he
ingested prior to showing up for work at the high school girls hockey game
between Davies High School and Williston High School. Yes, high school girls
sports can be unwatchable at times, but being hammered enough that those around
you can virtually smell the alcohol seeping from your pores is problematic.
Subsequently, Anderson was arrested just before the end of the second period
around 8:15 p.m. on suspicion of driving under the influence. . “I’ve been here
for 22 years and we have not had an incident like this before,” said Jim
Larson, director of finance and human resources for the Fargo Park District,
which operates the arena. According to Larson, fans and school officials
noticed the erratic manner in which Anderson was driving and a Fargo Public
Schools employee called police. Anderson was booked into Cass County Jail on
suspicion of DUI, with Larson insisting this was an isolated incident. “I don’t want to in any way dismiss how
serious this is,” Larson said. “We’ll review the situation to determine how this happened and what we can
do to make it even more fool proof.” Another zamboni driver – you know they’re
virtually growing on trees in North Dakota – was called in, but both coaches
decided to play on the rough ice rather than wait for the other driver to arrive………
- It was “American Sniper” and then everyone else for a
third straight weekend at the box office. “Sniper snagged another $31.9 million
in its sixth official weekend of release, boosting its soaring domestic total
to $249 million and counting. “Paddington” rose one spot to a distant second,
earning $8.5 million for the frame to up its total tally to $50.5 million in
three weeks. The first newcomer on the list was “Project Almanac,” which was
made on a modest $12 million budget and earned most of that back with an $8.4
million frame. Fellow new film “Black or White” slotted fourth with $6.5
million in its debut, edging out the bomb-tastic “The Boy Next Door,” which
tumbled three spots in its second weekend to fifth place and banked $6 million.
Jennifer Lopez’s latest has managed just $24.6 million domestically in two
weeks of release. Sixth place went to “The Wedding Ringer,” which took in $5.7
million and has secured a total of $48.1 million through its first three weeks.
On its heels was “The Imitation Game” at $5.2 million and in seventh place this
time around. In 10 weeks in the top 10, “Imitation” has earned $68 million and
counting, with is the result of steady, unspectacular work for two and a half
months. “Taken 3” managed another weak showing in its third weekend, taking in
a mere $3.7 million, to up its unassuming tally to $81.3 million domestically. “Strange
Magic” was next in ninth place thanks to $3.4 million to make its two-week
domestic bank roll $9.9 million. Rounding out the top 10 was newcomer/outright
bomb “The Loft,” which adulterated its way to $2.9 million in a weak debut. “Selma”
(No. 11), “Into the Woods” (No. 12) and “Mortdecai” all dropped out from last
weekend’s top 10……….
- It’s time for this week’s edition of “How is Pope
Francis Trying to Make The Vatican A Bit More Presentable.” The common man’s
pontiff has put plenty of work in trying to spruce up his holy city, mostly by
enacting programs that help with sanitation and hygiene issues involving the
roughly 3,700 homeless people who dwell there. That’s the target for the next
round of papal changes, which will piggyback nicely with a plan to install
showers to allow the indigent to clean up their act. Now, there will be a new
Vatican barber shop where Rome’s homeless will be able to get free haircuts and
shaves. No word on whether those will be straight razor shaves with hot towels,
but a free trim and shave is a great way to make a man look more presentable.
Back in November, the Vatican announced plans to install three showers for
homeless men and women in the public restrooms off Bernini's Colonnade in St.
Peter's Square and that facility will open Feb. 16, to be joined by the new
barber shop. That’s the good news. The bad news is that this barber shop is
going to be a holy mother to try and get an appointment at because it will only
be open on Mondays. It will be staffed by professional barbers who have agreed
to donate their time on the day of the week when they typically do not have to
work. Bishop Konrad Krajewski, the pope’s alms-giver, was behind the idea for
free haircuts and he also conjured up the plan for the showers after having
dinner with a homeless man while celebrating his birthday. During that meal,
the homeless man pointed out that he and his street friends could always find a
place offering a hot meal, but couldn’t find a place to clean up. “Our primary
concern is to give people their dignity,” Krajewski said. “When a person has no
means of washing themselves, they are rejected by society and we all know a
homeless person cannot enter a public establishment such as a bar or a
restaurant and ask to use the bathroom because they are told to go away.” With
those 3,700 people in need of a shower, shave and cut, it’s going to be a long
line outside the barber shop and shower every Monday, but making a small dent
in a bigger problem is still a solid way to start…………
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