Updates galore!

House - we had our home inspection on Thursday, and it was pretty much what we expected. The vast majority of problems are related to age and lack of proper maintenance. So while there's a pretty significant list of repairs, none of them were unexpected.

We're hammering out the financial things at a reasonable clip, still on course for our closing.

Work - we're registering incoming students, getting ready to graduate a bunch of seniors, and working with a pretty large group who are still getting financing in line. Today marks my one-year anniversary at the job (the actual date is tomorrow, but I started on this Monday last year), and I'm finally getting used to the rhythms of the office's combined missions. And as busy as it will get, I'll still get home at a normal hour most nights, which was pretty much unheard of when I was working in residence life.

Not that I don't miss certain aspects of that work, but I like getting home and finding my wife is still awake, or that I can actually celebrate my nephews' birthdays with them, rather than by proxy.

Life - speaking of the wife, spent the weekend with the in-laws in Maine. Got a couple of presents, had a family cookout, and went to the annual yard sale of my father-in-law's American Legion post. Most of the items purchased there will be given away in November to a few unlucky trash players, though I am keeping this word game.

Ephemera - my fantasy football league's annual draft is coming up on Sunday, and I'm woefully underprepared. Which is pretty much the way it's been the last couple of years. I find myself putting less effort into fantasy sports in general now than in the past, not sure what that means. Were it only in my league I'd assume it comes from the added work in running the league. But it also includes all the free games at ESPN and Yahoo (mostly the former), so I don't think it's that.

I've also not wanted to be on the computer as much when I'm home, given the heat we've had and how it tends to linger in the front room. That's a partial lame excuse for not blogging as frequently as usual.

Not too much else going on. Trying to keep up with a few summer series, missed on recording Life on Mars from the start and now don't know if/when I'll start it.

Which reminds me, head on over to Mike Burger's blog and follow the link to the Alison LaPlaca Open, his annual TV dead pool. I'll be defending my "I can't pick the rating for the Super Bowl" streak of picking 10 shows that get cancelled but losing the tie-breaker.

You should also point yourself to Craig's blog for his sidekick tournament, and to the Bruce's blog for a link to a tournament seeking out the wussiest song ever.

We finally got back to bar trivia last night, and cruised to a pretty solid victory, even though I almost gave it away by doing the math wrong on the final question. Good thing Allyson asked me to check the math, otherwise I'd have hosed us.

Your questions:

In what movie does Madonna make her acting debut, playing the lead singer of a band? Vision Quest (Greg) - At least that's the answer that was accepted as correct. I checked IMDB, and A Certain Sacrifice is there, but there's no release date given. They list Vision Quest's US release date as February 15, 1985. So it still could be correct. Maybe.

For what country can you add two letters to the end of its capital's name and come up with the name of the country? Tunisia or Brasil (OTC and Greg) - OTC is right if we're only talking English, while Greg is correct if I'm taking other languages. I don't think the original question made a difference, but they were looking for Tunisia. OTC, if the question sounds familiar, it could be because it was a Final Jeopardy a week or two ago. At least that's where we remembered it from.

What actress, born in New York City in 1949, derived her unusual first name from The Great Gatsby? Sigourney Weaver (Greg) - we had no idea, and never came within yelling distance of Weaver. We wound up guessing Stockard Channing, whose name is unusual, but perhaps not as unusual as Sigourney. For those who care, it's the name of Jordan Baker's aunt.

Which of the Ivy League schools was founded the latest? Cornell (Mike B.) - Founded in 1865, it's the only Ivy League school founded in the 19th century. We were kicking around Brown for a while, but it's not even the second-youngest Ivy. Dartmouth beats it by four years.

What sport is played according to the Cartwright Rules? Baseball (Chris) - His comment pretty much tells you what you need to know here. I think this was the only sports question all night. Round seemed pretty geography-heavy, which seems to work out for us. There was even another question on New Zealand, a country which has come up the last four or five times we've played.

What brand of car is named for the daughter of Emil Jellinek? Mercedes (Paul) - According to Wikipedia (FWIW), Jellinek not only gave his daughter's name to the company, but he later appended it to his own last name, becoming Emil Jellinek-Mercedes. I wonder at what point his daughter went from being flattered to being a little scared?

What US state capital is named for a boundary marker used to mark off territory for two Native American tribes? Baton Rouge (Mike B.) - The boundary marker, which separated hunting areas for two different groups of the Houma nation, was apparently red thanks to the blood coming from the animal and fish heads that decorated the stick. Yum.

This was the final question of the night (seemingly much easier than the Sigourney Weaver question, given the relative number of teams that got each correct), and had I not been reminded to check my math, we'd have lost by four points. There was some call to bet the maximum, which I might have to heed next time just in case.

OK, more radio silence, but there's a good reason this time.

The wife and I are on the road to being home-owners.

We found the house accidentally - we went to look at a house, found out the listing was actually for a condo (the ad didn't mention that), and as we left we noticed a house across the street was for sale. We'd not seen anything about it in any listing, so we did a little checking. We found a listing, but it was pretty vague - one exterior picture, almost no description, and an asking price.

After mulling it for a while, we requested a showing. We figured that if it was bad - and the lack of information had us thinking in that direction - it was just a little time out of our evening (this was the house I mentioned a post or two ago).

I was still pretty dubious as we got to the house, but we were pleasantly surprised. The rooms were of good size, and had good ceiling height (more important to me, I suppose). There were three bedrooms that were actual rooms, not two OK rooms and one closet with a futon. There's bonus space in a back room and in a front porch.

Of course, it's not perfect. There's no parking, the yard is small, and there's a fair amount of updating required. But street parking is generally available, I don't like to mow that much, and most of the updating is work even I can do - taking down wallpaper and paneling, mostly.

We've got a ways to go on this, and there's any number of things that could pop up and cause problems, but if everything pans out we'll be closing in six weeks. Keep your fingers crossed, think happy thoughts, and pray to whatever god(s) you're tight with for us!

The wife and I are going to see a house tonight (our first foray past open houses, though if this house had ever had one we'd have just done that), which makes this an opportune time to comment on a recent Forbes article which named Essex County, Massachusetts - which is where we live - as the most overpriced region in the country. Go us!

The primary reason for this is the gap between real estate prices and income, which they see as a legacy of the dot-com boom, which they say fueled building (and tearing down and rebuilding), which elevated property values just in time for the bubble to burst. Incomes fell faster than prices, resulting in a lot of houses for sale and/or empty with no one to buy... at least at prices that would allow current owners to break even.

I will say that the house we're seeing tonight doesn't appear to have gotten any dot-com money thrown at it. At least based on the exterior, which is all we've seen of it.

Of course, buying a place and continuing to commute is getting more tenuous, as the commuter rail system is proving incapable of keeping up with demand - and the heat. Equipment shortages - engines in for repairs and coaches lacking air conditioning - were blamed for widespread delays out of North Station yesterday, including the transit version of hitting for the cycle - trains on all four lines delayed at the same time.

Even better was the announcement asking that riders waiting on the platforms return to the concourse "for safety." Only problem being that had they crammed into the concourse area (which is tiny), we'd likely have broken some sort of fire code.

Delays have become endemic, and the Globe reported today that the consortium that runs the commuter rail system is over quotas for both tardy trains and equipment out of service (in some cases at double the maximum allowed by their contract).

Given the increased need for public transportation in the face of the Big Dig problem - which is a whole 'nother topic - it's an incredibly poor time to appear - or actually be - incompetent. Especially when there's a fare increase afoot. Those should be fun public hearings.

Book Log 2006 # 31: Bad Twin by Gary Troup

Bad Twin is a mystery novel whose author died in the crash of Oceanic Airlines flight 815, as seen on the TV show Lost. For those playing along, the book has been published posthumously, and while it claims to be a work of fiction with no basis in reality, it does mention the Hanso Foundation (among other people and entities that exist in the Lost universe), which has put together a negative advertising campaign against the book.

So we have a fake foundation taking out real ads to trash a real book by a fake author that claims all of its contents are fake but makes several mentions of the fake foundation.

And that's all outside of the actual book, a pretty standard mystery where a downtrodden PI is hired to track down the missing son of an extremely wealthy industrialist. But in the course of his investigation, many of the people he's talked to wind up dead, and he fears that death might catch up to him before he can complete the task at hand.

As far as the writing goes, it's adequate. I don't think I'd have picked it up were there no tie-in with the TV show. As far as that tie-in goes, you have the mentions of Hanso et. al, and it definitely shares some themes. And those numbers keep showing up. But even with all that, I don't know that I actually got any sort of insight or clues towards where the show will go next season, which I assume is the motivation for many people in reading the book. Then again, given how slowly the show is developing story lines, stuff from the book may become pertinent later. I just hope it's before, say, season five.

Book Log 2006 # 30: Brandenberg Gate by Henry Porter

You don't get too many Cold War thrillers any more - what with the fall of the Soviet Union and all - but that doesn't mean the genre is dead. Witness this book, in which an East German professor has to re-establish contat with a woman who lives in the West - a woman he knows to be dead.

The professor, like so many East Germans, has ties to the Stasi, and they want him to meet the woman to see what she's offering. He's reluctant, but when the Stasi throw his brother in jail, he's off to meet the dead woman. But is he working for the Stasi to get information, or for the West as a double agent?

Things unfurl from there, and with the story taking place in the fall of 1989, you get to play the story of the knowledge of what happened in real life. The two play out really well, proving that there is room in the current day for a trip down espionage's memory lane.

If you're a fan of LeCarre or the like, this should be right up your alley.

Seeing Cooch's post reminded me that there's been an odd divergence in coverage of the tropical storm. Some news folks are pronouncing it "BER-ill," while others are going with "BURL." Unless we're talking about a singing snowman, I think the former pronunciation is better.

Not quite as momentous as "KA-tar" versus "GUT-er," but still.

It's not been easy to watch the Tour de France this year, what with so many major riders getting bounced and the lack of organization that made it look a little like the Pan-Mass Challenge at times. Throw in having to dedicate pretty much your entire night to watch the stage and even someone as normally addicted as me won't tune in.

Well, if you get the chance to watch tonight I'd suggest you do, as you'll apparently catch one of the great comebacks of the year, at least. You can read up on the details at any sports news outlet, but from following the stage on-line I think this one may need to be seen.

OK, which of these is oddest?

1. Jose Canseco pitches in the Golden Baseball League all-star game, gets one out gives up four runs.

2. Buck O'Neil - at 94 years of age - gets 2 at bats in the Northern League all-star game, and walks twice.

3. Garth Snow, backup goalie for the New York Islanders, retires - to become the team's GM.

Really, on any other day I'd be able to pick out the strangest of the three, but when they all come at once I lose perspective.

Book Log 2006 # 29: Garbage Land by Elizabeth Royte

If you've ever wondered where your garbage goes once you set it out on the curb, this book will give you the answers. Royte spends her time tracking down where her waste goes, from riding with her local "san men" (workers from the NYC Department of Sanitation) to checking out landfills, recycling facilities, incinerators, compost sites, and even sewage treatment plants (for that waste that goes under the curb).

It's a pretty interesting trip, though it's pretty clear that most waste management execs would rather not talk to her (or any writer). It's pretty fun to see Royte's reaction to her own waste, from the ritual weighing of garbage to her increasingly futile attempts to recycle and compost.

At the end, the book somewhat negates itself by noting that, for all the work and concern that goes into addressing residential waste streams, the vast majority of waste (upwards of 98 percent) is commercial, which gets less public notice. So I was wondering a bit why Royte spent so much time following her pelletized poop when she could have been meeting with manufacturers who over-package products, but it didn't take too much away from the actual work.

I was also amused at times by Royte's reaction to the people she met - she seemed surprised at the coarseness of the san men, and seemed a bit too confused by why execs wouldn't want to talk to her.

Anyway, it's not a bad read.

Book Log 2006 #28: Doing Nothing by Tom Lutz

The lack of effort his 18 year old son puts into finding work, coupled with his own history of slack, leads Tom Lutz to take a tour through history to put those who mostly don't do anything into perspective. While the opening chapter is personal and quite specific, the following chapters take a broader historical perspective, giving examples of famed idlers through time and how they, as a class, we percieved by
their peers.

There's a pretty rich history of doing nothing, but I can't really tell you much about it after the 18th century, because that's where I stopped reading. I never really felt engaged with the book, and I'm not sure why. The material is interesting, and Lutz can certainly write. Maybe I just didn't find the historical material interesting enough. Or maybe it just didn't work with the start and stop pattern of commuter reading.

Anyway, if the topic sounds interesting it's worth a look. Let me know if you encounter similar problems with getting into the book.

Two things that have struck me over the last couple of days:

1. There's an interesting parallel between Mitt Romney taking over the Salt Lake City Olympics and using that as a springboard to becoming governor and his stepping in to oversee the whole Big Dig mess, which could clearly be a springboard to something else.

Not sure if anyone else has made that connection yet - I have to think so - but if not, I'm claiming it.

2. On a less serious note, from seeing the trailer for Cars it struck me that it's really an animated remake of Doc Hollywood. Think about it - a hotshot from the "civilized world" finds himself stuck in a town that got passed by when the interstate came through, falls for a local woman who's had some experience in the world but returned home, and learns from an elder the beauty of small-town life.

Consider as well that Michael J. Fox gets stuck in his town when he has an accident with his red sports car - which, coincidentally (or not) is what Owen Wilson voices in Cars.

I'm also not sure if anyone's made this connection yet, either, but with my luck both movies were written by the same person.

Finally got around to seeing The DaVinci Code tonight, and it was as expected - a mediocre movie of a mediocre book. Not much to say in its favor, though I thought Jean Reno and Ian McKellen did pretty well in their supporting roles. The movie does allow for a more sceptical view of the "facts" around the whole Grail/Prior of Sion (Langdon is more skeptical, and we don't get Holy Blood, Holy Grail referenced as a scholarly work), and Opus Dei... well, they still don't come off too well, but there is some recognition that not all members practice mortification or shoot people. Even so, there's enough in the movie to engender the same complaints as the book in regards to both themes.

And while I wasn't all that intrigued by the character, I do have a greater appreciation for Audrey Tautou.

The previews were kind of a mixed bag. Saw the Miami Vice preview again, and had a few for movies already in release (which makes some sense, as if we've waited this long to see this movie, we're probably not going to get around to Cars or Click for another couple of weeks, if ever.

For upcoming movies, there were trailers for Casino Royale and World Trade Center. I'm more excited for the Bond movie than I suspected, I think based on the idea of it being a bit of a reset. Just as long as they now don't go back and remake the other movies; I don't think we really need another take of Moonraker. The World Trade Center trailer was pretty emotional, though I think it may be more approachable as a movie than the one on Flight 93 (mostly because the trailer says it's a movie about survival, so you know that someone's going to make it out). Nicolas Cage stars, so that could be an issue for some people.

Book Log 2006 #27: The Demon in the Freezer by Richard Preston

The man who made Ebola a household name in The Hot Zone brings dire warnings about a possible return of smallpox in The Demon in the Freezer, melding bioterror and the "eradiction" of smallpox into a pretty worrisome look as to what could be coming down the pike if we're not both careful and lucky.

The book uses the anthrax by mail attacks just after 9/11 as a jumping off point to discuss smallpox, which makes a certain kind of sense, but seemed a little forced to me. It's not the smoothest transition, at any rate.

If you've read The Hot Zone then you'll find this book pretty familiar, as it uses the same mix of past outbreaks and current research to paint its deadly picture.

I will admit that I was a little disappointed at the start that the book wasn't going to be about the research that went into trying to track down the anthrax mailers, but the story that did unfold was certainly interesting enough. It's probably not for the squeamish (which shouldn't be surprising if you know anything about how the disease progresses), and if you went out and bought six months worth of Cipro during the anthrax thing you may want to steer clear, as the book might put you back over the edge. Otherwise, I'd recommend it.

Went to a sneak preview of You, Me and Dupree last night, and for going into the movie with no expectations I found it reasonably enjoyable. Glad I didn't pay money to see it, but didn't wish for the 2 hours of my life back, either. That's not something I expected to say about a movie starring Kate Hudson and Owen Wilson (Matt Dillon and Michael Douglas are also in it, but I have fewer reservations about them).

The wife even managed to win a hat and t-shirt for the movie by knowing that Owen Wilson has a brother named Luke. Which isn't much, as far as trivia goes, but it was better than the two questions asking you to name Hudson's mom (the preview was hosted by two radio stations, and their street teams apparently came up with their questions independently).

There was one preview before the movie - for Miami Vice. While I've not enjoyed the trend to remake TV shows into ironically-bent movies, I don't necessarily think that a remake that takes itself more seriously than the show is such a good thing, either.

Plus, there was no hint of the show's original theme music. And neither Farrell nor Foxx were wearing white suits with pastel t-shirts. So sad.

OK, this weather thing has to get under control. The National Weather service has issued a tornado warning for my home county. The warning even noted that a funnel was spotted less than 10 miles from where I live.

I know, that's hardly worth mentioning in some parts of the country, but a tornado in coastal Massachusetts is about as common as a hurricane in Kansas.

I'll never win a Photoshop competition, but I had to get this one out of the way.

Thoughts from the weekend:

* I managed to put thoughts of rooting for France away when they flopped their way to the penalty kick goal that gave them their brief 1-0 lead (though I did savor the irony that Italy had their specialty used against them). I can't say I exactly rooted for Italy, though. Let's just say their win left me less conflicted.

* For those of you who did root for Italy, you may want to invest in Fox Soccer Channel now, as many of those players will wind up in the English Premiere League next season, given how match-fixing scandal will cause many of their current teams to get demoted all the way down to Serie C. To put this in US terms, it'd be like the Yankees spending 2007 playing in the Eastern League, but with most of their stars going to play in Japan.

* Do not taunt Surly Mean Zizou.

* I was somewhat surprised at the size of the crowd that assembled on City Hall Plaza in Boston to take in the final game. Not so much that there'd be people - showing the game on the plaza was a smart move to keep the North End from total gridlock - but that anyone would willing stand in the concrete-and-brick desert that is City Hall Plaza for 2+ hours in the middle of July. Better them than me.

* ABC has four years to find a better "A" team of broadcasters than Dave O'Brien and Marcello Balboa. It can't be that hard, can it? Seamus Malin isn't dead, is he?

* So it was an up and down weekend for France, sports-wise. Mauresmo wins Wimbeldon, and Frenchman Sylvain Calzati won stage 8 of the Tour de France. Unfortunately, Calzati was favoring Italy (as you might imagine from his last name). I'd say the odds that he gets pelted with rotten eggs and overripe wheels of brie during tomorrow's stage are about even.

* Unrelated to the World Cup, bug spray is often a good idea when you go picking your own berries. It couldn't have hurt this weekend. I still have bites that itch two days after the fact.

* On the same berry-picking trip I ran into two of my high school classmates, which was interesting given that they live in New Orleans and (I think) Florida. Also interesting is that both are married and have children. The things you learn after not seeing people for a while.

* I've now seen two houses in the same development in Beverly where the garage was converted into a beauty shop. Both were in ranch houses built in the early '50s that have the furnace in the kitchen and some of the more garishly-colored bathrooms I've ever seen. I will say the house we saw yesterday was probably the best of the bunch - it didn't smell like cat pee and had an in-ground pool in the back yard. Or, rather, the pool was the back yard.

Cuts down on the mowing, I suppose.

* With the renewed looking, you'd think we might actually be closer to buying a house. We're not. We did see a couple of places that were interesting (the ranch included, which is funny as neither of us are fans of the style), but prices still seem a little high given that most of the places will need work (in some cases considerable work). At this rate we'll be in a place in 2008.

* Not much else to tell from the weekend. Caught a bit of the New Hampshire PBS station's re-broadcast of The Civil War, which is always good TV. Otherwise, quiet across the board.

I'm running into a problem trying to develop a rooting interest for the coming World Cup final - inasmuch as I don't want to root for the French, based on what I've seen of them and Italy in this tournament, I feel like I kind of should. I base this on being more entertained by France's play in games I've seen them in than those involving Italy.

If they just weren't going to be so insufferably French about it if they win...

Book Log 2006 #26: 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus by Charles Mann

I'd long since given up the idea that the Americas "discovered" by Columbus were some sort of pristine wilderness, but I was still somewhat unprepared for the information Mann presents to show that the pre-Columbian Americas were highly populated and pretty sophisticated. There's a lot of information here, and for a commuting read it can require a little time to get back up to speed.

Mann does spend some time in the post-Columbian Americas, both to demonstrate the impact of "discovery" and to use contemporary accounts to work back towards what areas would have been like prior to 1492. It's useful, but at times felt like it was going on too long.

While I wouldn't call the thesis of the book controversial, there are controversies in some theories and interpretations put forward by archeologists and other academics, and good time is given to those on the opposing side. This not only provides balance, but at times helps to underscore why the opposing side may be waning.

Overall, it's a very interesting book, but it was certainly more work that the usual fare I have on the train.

I was thinking about recapping the holiday weekend, but before writing anything went back to see what I'd written about July 4ths past. Turns out that, with the exception of last year's trip to New Jersey, my Independence Day was more like Bill Murray's Groundhog Day. Parade in my hometown, cookout at my sister's. All I need is "I've Got You Babe" on the alarm clock.

This year was no exception. And, really, I could re-post my 2002 entry pretty much verbatim. It wasn't as hot, and the parade had some minor changes, but by and large I spent America's 230th birthday doing the same thing I did when she turned 226, 227, and 228.

Like last year, though, we did get to go to a wedding over the weekend, this one for the couple whose engagement I learned of the previous July 4. The wife got to sit this one out, but I made the cut and was in the wedding party. No sari (or whatever the male equivalent is), but rather a tux with lilac vest and bow tie. I felt a little bit like Oscar Wilde. That aside, it was a festive and joyous occasion!

Not much else to add, other than I could get used to this three day work week.

Is it wrong to feel annoyed that "Kenny Boy" Lay isn't going to spend any time behind bars? I realize death is pretty much a permanent sentence, but I can't help but feel like he should have had at least one day in the pokey before checking out.

We were coming up on a bit of a sporting harmonic convergence, as the World Cup quarterfinals start today, and the Tour de France starts tomorrow. But while the top footballers in the world get back into the swing of things after a couple of days off, the Tour will miss at least two of its top contenders thanks to a new doping scandal.

Jan Ullrich and Ivan Basso, the other two riders on the podium with Lance Armstrong last July, were suspended by their teams based on a Spanish-led investigation that has implicated almost 60 riders in a blood doping scheme. One team has already been dropped from the race, while another - featuring Alexandre Vinokourov, another top contender (but not implicated) - is pretty heavily implicated, but will still race.

This has shades of the 1998 Festina scandal, when a team-wide doping bust nearly stopped the Tour cold. The race will still go on this time, but with none of the podium finishers from last year competing, it's not going to feel right.

As bad as this news is, it does benefit the top Americans - Floyd Landis, George Hincapie, and Levi Leipheimer - none of whom were implicated. Let the conspiracy theories commence.

Book Log 2006 #25: The Baseball Uncyclopedia by Michael Kun and Howard Bloom

Is the Metrodome really the Homer Dome? How does David Aardsma mess up the symmetry of baseball record-keeping? And is Cal Ripken, Jr. over-rated? All of these questions and more are tackled in this humorous work, which mixes the opinionated viewpoints of its authors with some hardball analysis (statistical and otherwise) to give us answers.

This is the sort of book whose entertainment value is inversely proportional to the level of baseball knowledge held by the reader. The humor generally works, but there are a few occasions where I thought the jokes may have sounded better than they worked on the page (though now being nearly two months in my rear-view, I don't have any examples).

So it's worth a look, though you seamheads out there may get bored with it.

I had the great misfortune yesterday to hear that Paris Hilton song. OK, I'll admit to some liability in the matter, as I tuned back to it after originally tuning away. Unfortunately, it was not the sort of Kevin Federline rapping apocalypse that I'd hoped for.

It was, rather, a completely forgettable and typical pop song. I wouldn't have known it was her if they didn't say so beforehand, but neither would I have cared who the singer actually was had I not known.

The song is kind of like what I think would have happened had No Doubt started off as 14 year olds on a Disney Channel show. The music is reggae-lite (very lite), and Hilton's vocal is Gwen Stefani wannabe (very wannabe). Lyrically it's similar to the generic American Idol songs that the finalists get stuck with. In fact, I can't swear that it wasn't one. Maybe Diana DiGarmo sang it?

Anyway, that's several more pixels than the song is worth. Though I did read a Boston Herald piece that called Hilton an "heirhead," which wins hands down against "celebutante." So that's something.

For those of you who don't know, ESPN360 is available for trial use. Which means that you can stream World Cup right to your desktop. As much as I think that's a great idea for March Madness, I don't know if we want to go from increased sick days to bandwidth use taking down the Internets wholesale.

Getting back to the beautiful game, I can't claim Cooch's level of performance in picking the preliminary results, but I did OK. I tabbed 12 of the 16 teams that went on, though I only had eight in proper position. As for the four I missed:

* Ghana over the US - I prefaced a US trip to the second round as blatant homerism. Those who picked Ghana instead either did the same thing, or were drunk when they made their picks. Don't try to deny it.

* Australia over Japan - I work with a guy from Liverpool, and he warned me ahead of time about the Socceroos. I looked at their 30 year disappearing act from the Cup and figured that their tournament would be like the US visit to Italy in 1990. Clearly, I was wrong. I still think people who called this were fondly thinking of Foster's and Nicole Kidman when doing so, but I do know at least one reasonably knowledgable fan who saw this coming.

* Ecuador over Poland - OK, proabaly should have taken 2002 to heart, but that was a tough group.

* Ukraine over Tunisia - I actually spent a fair amount of time on this one, but went with Tunisia based on having been to the Cup before and the questionable health of Shevchenko. I also figured one African team would advance, and really, they seemed like the best candidate.

OK, I'm back. The short and not wholly accrurate story for my absence can be found here. A fuller account will hopefully be forthcoming.

Hola, amigos. I know it's been a while since I rapped at ya, but I've been too busy to get to the computer much. More later, of course.

Book Log 2006 #24: Chasing Lance by Martin Dugard

The title of this book plays on the multiple ways the author chased Lance Armstrong during the 2005 Tour de France - in cars while following the race, in person trying to get some interview time, and in the more metaphorical sense of chasing an ultimate goal. Each of these gets a reasonable and balanced amount of page time - the first two get most of the print, while the final chasing theme lurks throughout before coming into focus at the end. This makes for a pretty well-composed book, though one that doesn't give the race or Armstrong the sort of total focus that one might expect going in (which I didn't find problematic).

It's also a good perspective on Armstrong that isn't from his camp or further innuendo about doping. The perspective is realistic and even a bit optimistic, which given the default to cynicism in cycling is a bit refreshing. I just hope it doesn't turn out to be naive.

Recommended, especially as the first Lance-free Tour of the millenium will kick off in less than a month.

Book Log 2006 #23: Edison and the Electric Chair by Mark Essig

Thomas Edison was not a nice guy. Nothing makes that clearer than his involvement in promoting the use of the electric chair in executions. While he stood against the death penalty, Edison didn't let his scruples stand in the way of using capital punishment as a tool for doing damage to his main business rival, Westinghouse, and their use of alternating current.

To be fair, the Westinghouse folks weren't exactly charming, either. In fact, it's hard to find anyone in this book who inspires positive emotion. It's enough to make you want to go back to whale oil.

That all being said, the book is an engaging read and a nice introduction to the "battle of the currents" and this particular skirmish. The author makes an interesting point at the end - that Edison's involvement in the electric chair may have allowed capital punishment to persist in the US while it faded from use in other Western democracies - that could have been expanded. I'd recommend it, though.

In his blog coverage of the World Cup, Michael Davies laments that US fans don't have a song to sing. He's got a point; songs are an integral part of soccer fandom, and when done right can be pretty darn impressive.

In one of his entries, Davies suggests 10 songs, but he misses what I think is the obvious choice: My Country 'Tis of Thee. Most Americans know the first verse, and its tune is easily recognizable to a variety of Europeans.

This does take a page from English fans who sing "God Save the Queen," but it's a good start until we can find the right song. Or until everyone learns the words to "America, #$!&* Yeah!"

OK, well, that wasn't exactly the way the US wanted to start its World Cup campaign. Losing is bad enough, but the -3 goal differential just adds insult to injury. Looking more like we'll need to knock off both Italy and Ghana to get through. Which is doable, I suppose, though it'll require better play than what we saw today. Now if only Claudio Reyna didn't hit that post...

And looking at my own picks, I see that I made some typos. Every time you see the word "Italy," replace it with "Czech Republic." It's what I meant. Really.

Picking Japan to advance over Australia also looks a little fraught now, given how the Socceroos stormed back to take their game over Japan. Socceroos just may be my favorite team nickname in the entire tournament.

Book Log 2006 #22: Everything Bad is Good for You by Steven Johnson

Split into two parts, this book begins by making the argument that things like video games, movies, and TV are actually making us smarter (video games by requiring us to figure out rules and requirements as we play, TV and movies thanks to increasingly complex narrative). The second half makes the linkage to your brain and its development.

Or at least I think it does, as I didn't actually read the second half. For whatever reason, I never really fully engaged in this book. I like the premise, and the first part was certainly well-written enough, but it didn't click.

So I suppose I'd recommend it, though I'd be interested to see if other people can't quite get into it either.

Blogger ate my first attempt at providing you with my World Cup picks, and while that's a pretty clear karmic "don't tell me about your picks," I'll persevere.

First Round (in finish order)

Group A: Germany, Poland
Group B: England, Sweden
Group C: Argentina, Netherlands
Group D: Mexico, Portugal
Group E: Italy, USA
Group F: Brazil, Japan
Group G: France, Switzerland
Group H: Spain, Tunisia

Yes, I'm a homer for picking the US. If I had to make any one change (outside of the Czechs over the US) I'd go with Ukraine over Tunisia.

Round of 16

Your winners: Germany, Argentina, England, Mexico, Italy, France, Brazil, Switzerland

Round of 8

Winners: Germany, Italy, England, Brazil

Semis

Germany over Italy, Brazil over England

Finals

Germany keeps serve and wins it all, while Italy keeps England off the podium

There they are, the picks that will guarantee a Togo-Iran final. Enjoy!

It's primary election day in several states today (we here in Massachusetts don't get ours until September), and the two most interesting races (to me, at least) are in California.

One is to replace Duke Cunningham, who recently went to prison for taking bribes. Or, as the AP article put it, "for taking bribes on a scale unparalleled in the history of Congress."

Which, when you think about Congress, is something.

The other notable race is for governor. The Governator is running unopposed, but I find it interesting that his likely opponent is the Duff Beer VP for calendars and fake IDs. An endorsement from MADD is out of the question, I think.

And while there's no election there today, sad to see Bill Weld abandon his run at the New York governorship. A sad day for the Carrot Topped WASP.

One of the things I meant to mention about going to Maine last week was the gas prices. From Augusta to Stockton Springs, I don't think we saw a price over $2.80, which was interesting given that there are very few places around home that were below $2.95. Even now, prices at the stations we most usually pass aren't down significantly from the last two weeks, even though the price of gas is supposed to be down a bit.

That we could fill up in Augusta for $2.72 (and discover a place down the road for $2.69) a gallon, yet the best we can do now at home is $2.95 is a little odd. We did come up with a couple of explanations, though:

1. At least one company has tanks on the coast, where deep water and cheap land made an ideal location for a tank farm. This might explain lower prices for that company, but not a consistent range in the $2.70s.

2. Wages are generally lower, so the price of gas is, too. Not sure if I buy into this, as the cost of most other consumer goods are about the same between here and there (based on my observation, though the wife may have a keener eye for this).

Anyway, the difference does make me feel like we're getting a bit of the gouge. Though I shouldn't complain based on the gas station across the street from work, which is charging $3.19 a gallon for regular unleaded.

No bar trivia last night, but rather the start of the Colleges of the Fenway intramural softball league. We apparently equalled last year's win mark with the 12-9 victory we posted over a team from Emmanuel College. I credit all of us new hires who weren't on the team last season.

It was nice to do something physical for once, though with the number of people it wasn't too physical - I traded off innings in the field and at bats with another player. I even managed a hit in my first "official" at-bat in a couple of years, which was just icing on the cake.

Sorry for the radio silence, but up until the weekend a combo of work and not much to say conspired against posting (at least here). The work thing was kind of a surprise, though I should have seen it coming. Between the end of the school year and the start of our busiest graduation cycle (Wentworth's main graduation is in August), there's been no shortage of things to do. We may also have a significantly larger graduating class than last August, which just adds to the fun.

We spent the weekend in Maine, and didn't do too much of interest. Made our usual pilgrimage to Bangor for some shopping, and I hit the links with my father in law on Sunday. This may be the first time I've golfed before Memorial Day. If the results were any indication, I'm better off waiting. It was just a horrid, brutal outing. Good thing we only played 9 holes.

We also learned that there are now piglets for sale at my in-laws' house. Well, not really, but there's a sign saying so in the front yard. You see, some guy is developing condos on some neighboring land, and he's been yanking my father-in-law's chain over various issues. The latest thing he did was rat on the town for a trailer that's on my in-laws' property, and has been for years. But they apparently need a permit for it, which is interesting given that it's been on the property in a very obvious location and no one from the town has said boo about it. So my father-in-law had to pay a nominal fee to get a permit.

In return, though, he decided to put up this "piglets for sale" sign, theorizing that potential buyers may not want to live so close to swine. My father-in-law is expecting the sign to disappear one night. As you might expect, though, he's got plenty of paint and material for future signs.

Anyway, in our travels today we did get to see three things we'd never seen before:

1. An almost-fully skeletonized animal at the side of the road. Not sure what sort of animal it was; I'm thinking small deer.

2. A combo ice cream drive-in and flowers store. We didn't stop, but I'm sure their azalea ripple is tasty - when it's in season.

3. A dog wearing goggles riding in a motorcycle sidecar. No helmet, which I suppose isn't required. And unless there's a little leather doggie jacket involved, the helmet probably wouldn't do much good, either.

Went back to bar trivia last night, and at every score check, we were tied for first with the same team. This includes a post-final question score check. We were not tied after a tie-breaker, and sad to say we came out on the short end. Though as we soon learned (and as you shall, too), there was a good reason for this.

There was a substitute host for the night, and he was a little too efficient. Game ended right around 8, to late to catch the train that leaves at that time and well in advance of the 9:30 that was my next option. I got a lot of reading done, though.

Part of the reason for the surprising at the constant tie is that the questions were harder than normal - at least we missed more than the 1 or 2 we usually do. In any case, the questions (with added hints where I think they may help):

What single-named singer is married to Marissa Ribisi, the twin sister of actor Giovanni Ribisi? Beck (Greg) - she was actually called "actress Marissa Ribisi," though her career isn't quite measuring up to her brother's. In any case, we were stuck on Moby. Who isn't married. We were pretty sure he wasn't right, but couldn't come up with a better answer, never mind the correct one.

In The Naked Gun, Frank Drebin and Jane Spenser are seen laughing hysterically after seeing what decidedly non-comedic movie? Platoon (Scott) - we thought this or Apocalypse Now, but given the time period the newer movie made more sense.

A. C. Gilbert, the creator of the Erector Set, won an Olympic gold medal at the 1908 games in what event (hint: it's in track and field)? Pole vault (Scott) - we had no idea. We went with "swimming" hoping to get credit for being vague. The wife suggested tug of war, which we didn't go with, but wouldn't that have been great?

What Red Sox player holds the major league record for being the youngest player to reach the 100 home run mark? Tony Conigliaro (Greg) - Allyson came up with Tony C. immediately. I was dubious, based on the shortened nature of his career. Clearly, it wasn't that shortened. We threw around some of the obvious names, and went with Conigliaro based on Allyson's quick recall.

In Japanese, "tora" is the name for what animal? Tiger (Scott) - again, no real idea, but we tended towards predatory birds and went with eagle. We did talk about land animals for a bit, but went with birds based on the nature of the Pearl Harbor attack. Clearly, I've not seen Tora! Tora! Tora! recently enough.

Two elements are liquid at room temperature: mercury and what element whose name starts with the letter 'B'? bromine (Scott - who clearly would have had a big night last night) - we jumped at barium given the gag-worthy stuff you have to drink before whatever scan that is (CAT? PET?), as did most of the other teams, apparently.

What conflict was the first one fought on three continents, and was called the first world war by Winston Churchill? Seven Years' War (Paul) - We got this, and of course the team we'd been tied with all night got it. So we move on to a related tie-breaker: what year did the war start? For some reason 1763 pops into my head, but that seems too late, and we wind up going with 1758. The other team goes with 1756, which is exactly right. Turns out one of their members just finished reading the companion book to a PBS special about the war. Fortuitous timing.

(As for 1763, that of course was the year the war ended. Had we caught that and done the math...)

Sorry for the lack of posting - work is very busy, and home life has pretty much been TV and sleep, except for weekend errands which just weren't that interesting outside of planning our upcoming vacation. That was interesting, but not exactly worthy of extended discussion here. Besides, you know I'll bore you to death about it here once we're back.

But while I'm here, might as well continue to play catch-up:

Book Log 2006 #21: Prayers for the Assassin by Robert Ferrigno

The premise is pretty good, if requiring a fair amount of suspended belief: the US has split more or less along Civil War lines, with the Union now an Islamic state and the South a fundamentally Christian one. All of the action takes place in the north, as a former spy and assassin becomes involved in the search for the mother of all cover-ups. Along the way he is battled by a rival who is working at the behest of those who'd rather keep things covered.

As a work of historical fiction, it's missing some of the background and 'factual' material that would normally round out how the world got to be the way it is. There is an explanation of things, but more detail would have given added depth. It's also a little disappointing that we don't get to see how life is in the "Bible Belt," given the stories mentioned along the way by the main character.

For a book whose title, cover, and plot are provocative, the story tends more towards the standard thriller. Which is fine as far as it goes, but I think there was an opportunity missed in tying the book in to our current situation. OK at best.

Doug Flutie retired from the NFL earlier this week, and while it is my sworn mission to deride anything related to that school in Newton, I have to admit some grudging admiration in how he was able to build a 21 year career in pro football after being widely dismissed when he came out of college.

I attribute this to four things:

1. Flutie's tenure in the CFL. I love the CFL and its wide-ass (and long-ass) field. He gets points by association, even if he did get to spend another stint playing for BC (the Lions this time).

2. The drop kick. That was cool.

3. The whole fiasco in Buffalo where he was replaced because someone had a bee in their bonnet about Rob Johnson being the future of the franchise. Then Johnson proved what most of us knew - he was sadly indicative of the future of the Bills - and Flutie got to work on his tan in San Diego. I'm not sure why he gets bumped up in my estimation from this, but he does.

4. His non-football work, most notably with autism.

He's still on the hook for how the Hail Mary pass got that school into the national spotlight and its resultant position where the local media can't give them enough positive coverage, but outside of that, I think I'll miss him a little. Which is probably an appropriate amount.

So I'm in the market for a new cell phone.

I didn't care for my old one, but was too cheap to buy a new one given how infrequently I use it. That all became moot last night, when I dropped it from a height of about 4 feet on to a tiled floor. While the battery was easily put back in (the cover popped off on impact), I also had the face plate buckle. I can now peer into the phone though a little gap, which I could live with if all the buttons worked.

This was not the most sturdily-built phone to begin with. For starters, it appears that lint managed to find its way from various coat pockets to between the display and the plastic that covered it. The bits of plastic that make up its case also felt like they were moving when I'd slide my finger along the side of the phone. All in all, it is not a testament to the art of engineering at Nokia. In their defense, though, I'm sure it was made with an eye towards being replaced by a better-made, more expensive Nokia product.

Not quite bait and switch, but certainly a testament to the capitalist heart that beats beneath Finland's socialist exterior.

Now I just have to figure out if I'll buy new or give eBay another shot. That didn't work so well the first time, but my cheapness may win out again.

Still here, even though we're closing in on an even foot of rain (with some areas already above that). We're still in good shape, just a few manhole covers popping off due to the volume of runoff. Our trip to Rockport yesterday for hot dogs (Top Dog on Bearskin Neck, highly recommended in any weather) was a bit more perilous, as we had to navigate a "vernal pond" that had spilled over on to the roadway and a detour (with one or two more in the making) in our travels to and from.

You may be seeing some shots of downtown Peabody, which as of this morning had a good yard of standing water in it. That's a couple towns over from us.

Rivers are expected to peak tomorrow in many locations, and the forecast for the week looks to continue wet. Hopefully without the ferocity of the weekend past, though.

Getting back to my BU commencement reference from yesterday, they did persevere and have the outdoor ceremony, but managed to get it down to an hour. Les Moonves was the speaker, and he gave a pretty good truncated address whose main theme was to keep yourself open to the unplanned. Not a bad message to young people who've been more scheduled as five year olds than I am currently.

And speaking of water...

Book Log 2006 #20: The City of Falling Angels by John Berendt

Everyone will look to compare this book to Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, the book which put Savannah on the map thanks to a racy murder trial and some truly colorful characters. And there's something to that, as this book presents Venice using the Fenice fire and aftermath as its frame, with a liberal sprinkling of colorful locals throughout.

In direct comparison, this book isn't quite as successful as its predecesor. The trials and scandals in the wake of the Fenice fire are interesting but perhaps fit into our stereotypes of Italy as a country with a fair amount of corruption and mismanagement (doubled with the stereotypes of such practices in construction and related trades here in the US) too much, and thus seem a little familiar. The locals, while colorful, also play into some archetypes: the bankrupt nobles, American expats who live off of the local social and cultural scene, etc.

If you don't try to compare the books, though, the newer work stands a little better. The material is still interesting, and the book well-written. It paints an engaging picture of Venice as a city whose culture and beauty is at risk, and not just from the waters that both define and erode the city.

Recommended as long as you go in judging the book on its own merits.

Back when the Braves were still in Boston, there was a saying regarding their pitching staff that went, "Spahn and Sain and pray for rain." Apparently, God just got to all the rain prayers, and is answering them all at the same time.

We've had 6 inches of rain in the last hour, which is actually a little less than some neighboring towns. The good news is we don't have to shovel rain. The bad news is that you can't shovel rain - or more accurately, the flooding water that covers the roads and gets into basements.

Nothing too serious so far, though the rivers will of course lag a bit in getting to their highest points. That shouldn't effect us too badly, though it's going to be interesting through Tuesday.

Even with the rain, we managed to graduate about 100 students at Wentworth yesterday (our main ceremony is in August due to co-op). Our ceremony is outside, but thankfully under a tent. The getting to and from the tent provided some adventures, but all in all it went pretty smoothly.

I fear that it is not going so well for the alma mater, whose main ceremony is outside rain or shine. On what used to be Braves Field.

Not to put anyone off their lunch, but there's an odd juxtaposition at work between the Boston police commissioner resigning and the discovery of a baby's arm in the wastewater at the Deer Island water treatment plant.

Not that there's much of an actual connection; the material being treated came from outside of Boston. But in a year where the commissioner has faced rising violence and declining finances, there's something symbolic here, I think.

What it is I don't know, which may be a clue that it's symbolic of something only to me.

In case you were looking for a time suck for the afternoon, may I humbly suggest Pendulumeca. My high score so far is 1086 meters. I have no idea if that's any good.

Book Log 2006 # 19: The Third Translation by Matt Bondurant

The latest in the string of books trying to capture the thunder of The DaVinci Code by combining scholarship with thriller, this book features an American Egyptologist as he tries to provide the title third translation of some heiroglyphics before his contract to study them runs out. This becomes very difficult when a young woman gets him to bring her to the museum after hours, and she steals a papyrus that may be linked to his translation.

To be fair, this book has less in common with The DaVinci Code and is more in line with The Rule of Four or Lev Grossman's disappointing Codex, where the story is more about the main character and his relationships than it is in the mystery. To that end, I'd say that this book is better than Codex (which isn't saying much) but may fall a little short of The Rule of Four. I say this based on that book's more complete resolution of plot elements. I don't need things wrapped up in a nice package, but the loose resolution of The Third Element made it feel like I was left holding the bag a bit.

All of that being said, I'd recommend the book if you're into this sort of thing.

New link to mention - Paul Crowley, fellow Sleeper Hall RA and the US Navy's finest representative to the Royal Canadian Navy (or is it just the Canadain Navy? Their website never makes it clear, at least to this stupid American). You'll notice that Paul's not posted in a while, but apparently this letter meme is going to get him to post again. Which could make it the most successful blog meme ever.

Book Log 2006 #18: Annapolis by William Martin

Martin writes multi-generational historical fiction that usually pits one family against another as they sqabble over some sort of historical artifact that may have a secret attached to it. Most of his books take place in this neck of the woods (such as Back Bay and Cape Cod), but here Martin goes down the coast to tell the story of two Maryland families who are squabbling over a house. The secret is now related to the families rather than the house itself.

Inasmuch as this book uses the same formula as the ones before it, I was not as able to get into this one as the others. I assume setting plays a role, as I live in Massachusetts and can picture the locations in the other books. I've never been to Annapolis, and thus don't have that hook.

But I also found the mystery and the squabble over the house less interesting than the mystery and conflicts in the earlier books. Maybe it's familiarity with how Martin's books work, or maybe I just didn't think that the people involved were worth taking interest in. It fit the bill for the commute, but I was as much reading to finish the story as I was out of interest in it (though some of the subplots about naval life were pretty good).

If you've been reading Craig or Greg's blogs of late, you know the drill: comment on the following list of 10 things starting with the letter 'H' and I'll give you your very own letter, for which you have to come up with 10 words that have some sort of personal meaning to you, which you will then post on your blog/journal/precious memory book, and so on.

Ham - I like ham. I like pork and bacon better, but ham is still mighty tasty. It was a significant part of one college bowl trip where every meal featured a pig-based meat. I didn't do that on purpose, though I assume my future cardiologist will thank me for it nevertheless.

Home - I've never thought of myself as a homebody, but I kind of am. Not in an agoraphobic sort of way, but rather I like having a place that's more than just where I sleep. This will hopefully extend into actually having a house.

House - the TV show, not the domicile. Not sure if it's my current favorite program, but it's on the short list.

Harry Potter - teen wizard and publishing phenomenon. I was pretty skeptical when adults I knew started reading and liking the books - they were written for 10-year-olds! - but I eventually broke down and found the books pretty enjoyable. Now I wonder how the 10-year-olds are supposed to get through 900 pages.

Harry Agganis - college sports phenom and tragic hero, whose name adorns the spiffy new area at Boston University. Best "fact" about Harry - he hit a home run for the Red Sox the same day he received his diploma from BU. There's some speculation that this isn't completely true, though I've seen a photo that suggests it is. Regardless, there's an ESPN movie waiting to be made here.

Henrik Hudson High School - purveyor of secondary education in New York where I once participated in a debate tournament. Nothing stands out about this trip, so I assume I had my usual middle of the pack performance.

Harpoon IPA - my favoritest beer and the official beer of my pre-wedding bachelor outing. We drank a lot of it that afternoon. Do yourself a favor and get a pint the next time you're tempted to get some mass-produced swill (those of you who don't live in an area where Harpoon is available should feel free to sub in something appropriately local and hoppy).

Harriman - I am not an in-law of the branch with the private banks and wealth and such. It's still turned out pretty well.

Hank Scorpio - the man who invented wearing a sportcoat with jeans and the mastermind behind Project Arcturus. Voiced by Albert Brooks, he appears in "You Only Move Twice," which might be the greatest episode of The Simpsons. I've heard the argument, and there's something to it.

Health disparities - this was the first page whose subject begins with 'H' to come up based on clicking the "random page" function on Wikipedia. I was hoping for something more fun - if I had "B" you'd have gotten a page on some sort of fruit bat - but there you go.

I don't know what it says about the NHL that the bottom four seeds in the Western Conference won their opening round series of the playoffs. It could be a sign of parity. It could be a quirk of nature. Or it could underscore the relative meaninglessness of the regular season. It's probably bits of all of these, but whatever it is, it's one more oddity than the NHL needed.

That being said, I am now firmly latched on the Buffalo Sabres bandwagon, in no small part thanks to the point explosion from former Terriers Chris Drury and Mike Grier in the series-clinching game against the Flyers.

(It should be noted that all the higher seeds won their quarterfinals series in the Eastern Conference. Go figure.)

Hey, back after a few days in Texas for sightseeing and TRASHionals. I won't go into the gritty details now (there's a theoretical trip recap that'll combine this trip with the long weekend in Houston from a couple years back), but I will note some basics:

* Austin and San Antonio are worth a visit, if you're looking to go to Texas and want to avoid the big hair and oil crowd while still getting some of that Lone Star jingoism.

* That being said, the combination of Austin as state capital and the location of the state university makes for an odd mix of bohemian and conservative. We were often reminded to support local business so as to "Keep Austin Weird," but what passes for weird there isn't that strange, really.

* The Alamo is smaller than you'd expect. It's also interesting to note that most of what you'd consider the Alamo today wasn't part of it at the time of battle.

* Texans are really proud of the Lone Star. Just don't expect them to give you a cogent explanation of its origin.

* The region's influx of German immigrants back in the day left two great influences: a love of good beer and an affinity for daschunds.

* It is possible to get lost on the top level of a parking garage. It is also possible for Yahoo Maps to get you lost before leaving the airport.

* The Chevy Cobalt is deceptively small.

* The Brazilians make a nice moderately-sized jet aircraft, and I will happily take any JetBlue flight that uses them.

* I am not good at navigating where roads are divided into directional segments (such as North Main Street and South Main Street). I need paved cow paths that have one name only.

* Please, for the love of God, if you have a child who constantly cries for one parent while being held by the other - even though both parents are within the child's field of vision - don't fly. Do us all a favor and take driving vacations until the kid is older. Say, 15.

Last night we had the opportunity to defend our bar trivia Tournament of Champions win, and in grand fashion came in third. We were tied for first going into the final question, and made the classic move of coming up with two possible answers and guessing the wrong one. So rather than getting five Sox tickets and a $200 gift certificate to Eastern Standard, we got a post-work event at the Harpoon brewery and a hat each (summarily dubbed the Hat of Shame).

Still, it's a better prize than the Bruins tickets we won previously. As if I needed another reason to sing the praises of Harpoon, what with all their great beer. Yup, Harpoon is awesome. Seriously; I would not kid about beer.

We were pretty lucky to even be tied going into the last question, as we performed a fair amount of ass-finding in getting correct answers. Anyway, your sampling:

What country's national symbol is a white elephant?

What novel begins, "Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, Colonel Aureliano Buendía was to remember that distant afternoon when his father took him to discover ice." One Hundred Years of Solitude (Matt B.) - there was some talk of this being Hemingway, until the point was made that it's not exactly his style. One of our semi-educated guesses that paid off.

What country's flag bears the motto "Ordem e progresso?" Brazil (Mike B.) - It's a little harder when it's spoken, as you can assume the 'e' is actually a Spanish 'y'. "Ordem" should be a pretty good clue that it's Portuguese, though. I put this down immediately and went with a full 10 point bet. I then got to second guess myself during "Where the Streets Have No Name," thinking that it may be El Salvador or Honduras or wherever that song is about.

What is the capital of Hell in John Milton's Paradise Lost? Pandamoneum (Paul) - if memory serves, the Wikipedia entry has one of those mashed "ae" things where the second 'a' is here. We missed this, as the best we could come up with was "Mayhem." I think that was a suburb.

Name four countries who (going back to pre-Euro days) used the lira/lire as their unit of currency. Italy, San Marino, Vatican City (Cooch)

Gymnophobia is the fear of what? nudity (Jack) - we went with something plant-based due to memories of gymnosperms. None of us had recall of Tobias Funke and his cutoffs, sadly enough.

What music group's early names included The Pendeltones, Kenny and the Cadets, and Carl and the Passions? The Beach Boys (Greg) - I knew there was a Carl in the Beach Boys, which we combined with a hint that it was an older group to make our guess.

What "color" star has the highest surface temperature? blue (Paul) - we thought of both blue and white, but went with white as none of us could think of blue stars. Should have thought back to high school science and talk of how the blue part of a flame was hottest. We didn't, and so no Sox game for us.

Book Log 2006 #17: Oak: The Frame of Civilization by William Bryant Logan

From food to ink to the material used to build bigger and better ships and buildings, this book details the integral part oak played in the development of modern civilization. And it does a pretty good job at that, though I wish the book was actually a little simpler at times, most notably when talking about the new jointing that oak allowed builders to use in building. Having little to no experience in this area, I wasn't always able to follow as well as I'd have liked. The drawings didn't help as much as I'd hoped, either, as they were fairly complicated (to someone like me). The few basic drawings were much more helpful.

I did lose focus as the book went on, I think because so much time was spent on the naval and building uses of oak. I'd have liked more on the balanocultures, groups of people who used the collection of nuts as a primary source of food, for example.

Overall, the book had a good concept but only satisfactory execution. If the topic is of interest, or if you are the type to get suckered in by books about the major impact a particular item had on the world, it's worth a browse I suppose.

I was doing some cleaning at my desk (which is kind of like shoveling against the tide), and came across a coffee mug I was given when I first started at WIT. Nestled below all the pens and such were a pack of Dentyne and a box of Tic-Tacs.

What were they trying to tell me?

Book Log 2006 #16: A Sense of Where You Are by John McPhee

Coming off of The Game I was inspired to read this profile of a Princeton-era Bill Bradley. While addenda cover Bradley's senior season and turn with the Olympic team, the bulk of the book is an extended magazine article that McPhee wrote examining what made Bradley the sort of player - and person - he was at the time.

The tone of the book is kind of off-putting, more of a piece written by someone who is familiar with sports writing for folks who aren't (it's kind of the written equivalent of a piece from NPR's Only a Game). That's not a problem generally, but coming so close on the heels of The Game it was a little distracting. This is pretty easily offset by the great snap-shot of the period in college basketball, and in the life of a college athlete who actually has to concern himself with the college part of things. There are some good pictures at the end, too. So it's worth a look.

In the course of having a Diet Coke with lunch every day, I've been entering codes for the My Coke Rewards program, amassing 72 points to date (you get 3 for every code from a 20 ounce bottle). The assorted prizes for that number of points isn't particularly interesting, so I've taken to browsing what's available for higher point totals.

One high-end prize that caught my eye was the week-long RV vacation, which includes a rental, campground fees, money for gas and mileage, and so forth. To claim this prize, I'd have to amass 28000 points. Taking away my current total, and assuming my current rate of consumption (1 bottle per day, 5 days a week), it would take me approximately 35.8 years to earn enough points to earn this. Sadly, the program's published end date is in 2007, not 2042.

This is where you come in.

All I'm asking is that you email me your cap codes. Once I get 28000 points, we'll start planning the Great Blogalicious RV Extravaganza, to take place at a site central to all of you who donate codes. We'll figure out what to do then - fish, hike, swim, drink, fight crime, whatever. But you have to donate codes first, so get crackin'!

Back after a holiday-and-work-related radio silence. Had the in-laws down for Easter, and celebrated the father-in-law's 65th birthday at the Kowloon, a large Chinese restaurant on Route 1. I didn't watch any of the marathon or the Sox game on Patriot's Day, which I think means I can be legally deported to New Hampshire.

Yesterday was my day to come in early during registration, and we were pretty busy with phone calls and the like. Some students were surprised to learn that when 900 students try to register at the same time, not all of them are going to (a) get access to the registration system, and (b) get into all of their first-choice classes. For the most part, though, students were good-natured about things, which is refreshing.

Getting back to the Easter, the whole Lent thing was a mixed bag this year. My decision to pass up "salty snacks" was doomed from the start, as I'd not done a good job defining my terms. While the words suggested anything salted and snack-like, in my head I had a more limited scope focusing on potato chips and pretzels. Those I managed to avoid, at least.

As for the "saint a day" thing, it didn't do much to increase my faith in the idea of sainthood. Each day I had a choice of anywhere from a half-dozen to a dozen to choose from, and the amount of information available on those choices was mostly underwhelming. When you couple that with the occasional saint who we know nothing about other than that they were on a list somewhere, you can see where it's hard to buy into the system. A little roster-trimming couldn't hurt.

No relation - and even if he was, his choice of schools would keep him from getting invited to the family reunion.

Lentorama 2006 Saint of the Day: St. Peter Gonzales

Also known as St. Elmo or St. Telmo (but not the St. Elmo with the fire), in his life Gonzales served as the canon of a cathedral, the chaplain to the court of King St. Ferdinand III, and evangelized throughout Spain.

He was apparently "famous for his penances and mortifications," and hopefully this wasn't connected to his "special fondness for sailors."

Gonzales died on Easter Sunday, so it seemed fitting to mention him on Good Friday.

For what might be the first time ever, I attended a second game in a given Bruins season. A coworker got tickets for last night's home finale through his wife, and so a bunch of us got to see the latest chapter of the Bruins-Canadiens rivalry. We entered a few pages in, though, arriving just as Montreal scored their second goal halfway through the opening period.

It looked like it was going to be bad, and the level of play didn't do much to inspire confidence. Thankfully, Montreal let us hang around, and the first unit played well enough for Patrice Bergeron to net a couple of goals. But the poor play of the other units, and the mediocre goaltending of Tim Thomas, led to a 4-3 final. On a lighter note, we did also see Yan Stastny score his first NHL goal.

The Bruins do have a few guys they can build on, but there's no depth. They need to totally rebuild their second, third, and fourth lines, and there's very little on the blue line to be happy about. I have hopes for Hannu Toivonen in net, and wish they hadn't shut him down after he recovered from an injury earlier in the season.

What I have the least hope for, though, is competent management. Getting rid of Mike O'Connell helps, but until Harry Sinden retires (and, wishful thinking, Jeremy Jacobs sells the team to someone who is actually interested in hockey), I don't see there being a full turn-around. I think they'll get better, but then again, they can't fall much farther. Can they?

First lawn darts, now the fumblerooski.

Following in the footsteps of the NFL and NCAA, the football rules committee of the National Federation of State High School Associations has apparently banned the fumblerooski, where the quarterback intentionally puts the ball on the ground and a lineman (usually a guard) picks it up and runs with it.

Not much mention of it on their website, but I have a feeling it was a modification to rule 7-2-8, which they removed some option to use a "planned loose ball." Sadly, their rule book is only available to members, so I can't confirm this (and no one seems to have posted a copy online, so much for piracy).

The official interviewed on this said removing the fumblerooski would eliminate "confusion" when officials have to rule on the legality of the play. While it's not a common weapon, I don't know how much "confusion" it really creates. The QB puts down the ball. Another player picks it up. That player tries to advance the ball. If that's confusing, wouldn't that make all fumble recoveries confusing? (OK, in a way they all are given the bodies that tend to fly around, but I don't see how the fumblerooski is more confusing).

I'm not sure where legalizing the fumblerooski will be on my platform for public office, but it'll be there.

Lentorama 2006 Saint of the Day: St. Caradoc

"Welsh hermit and harpist." I suppose if you're going to be a hermit, having an instrument will help kill some of the down time.

Not much to tell about Caradoc. Early on he was in service to a local king, and one story says he left after losing the king's greyhounds. He turned to the hermit life at that point, moving at one point due to an invasion by King Henry I. I saw one source suggesting that Caradoc had been martyred, but usually that's something Catholic Online would mention, and their entry had not a peep.

There was also a source (which I think was the same one that mentioned the greyhounds) that said Caradoc had never been canonized, but was held as a saint by the rank and file since his death in the 12th century. Not sure how that works, but if I were Valentine or Christopher I'd be pissed.

It also seems that Caradoc originally hails from the same part of Wales as one of the wife's uncles. He doesn't play the harp, though.

Lentorama 2006 Saint of the Day: St. Tetricus

A Benedictine abbot, he was made bishop of Auxerre by popular acclaim (so he was voted bishop?), and served well "until his murder by his crazed archdeacon." Method of killing was angular blocks dropped from a height; no word if the archdeacon was Russian.

Sadly I can't find any actual information on the death of St. Tetricus. If you're going to use a phrase like "crazed archdeacon," the least you can do is give some detail.

Well, my big Opening Day adventure has come and gone, and it was great fun. I do wish I'd spent more time in and around the park to soak up the atmosphere and see some of the changes made to Fenway, but I did get to see all of the pre-game and the ripping 5-3 victory over the Jays.

Both anthems were done well (ours by a 5 year old who'd been helped by the Jimmy Fund, Canada's by a local youth choir with an assist from Adam Stern - or as he was called on Sunday's TV broadcast, "Canada's DiMaggio"), and the ceremonial first pitch by the living members of the 1946 pennant-winners was something to see - although the oldest member almost took a tumble afterwards, a problem given that he's 93.

The game itself was reasonably well-played if a little nerve-wracking given the general dearth of scoring after the one big inning. I've gotten a little too used to the 11-7 sort of scores, I think. Beckett pitched very well after a 36 pitch first inning (from where I was sitting it was hard to tell if he was getting squeezed or legitimately missing), and I got to see some accidentally great defense (a DP turned after the ball ricocheted off of Mark Loretta's glove) and accidentally bad defense (Willy Mo Pena riffing on Jose Canseco by having a ball bounce off of him for a home run). Sad to think this will likely be the only game I see in person all year, what with the scarcity (and price) of tickets.

And while I don't have Cooch's gig, I do have my own useless stat of the day: Bronson Arroyo has more home runs right now than Manny Ramirez. He's also tied with David Ortiz. I know that will work itself out, but how could I pass up a mention?

Lentorama Saint of the Day: St. Domnio

He is "possibly" the first bishop of Salona, and was sent by St. Peter as part of a group to spread the word in Dalmatia (there's a joke in here somwhere about dominos, Dalmatians, and black-and-white coloring, but I can't find it, and it would probably stink). May have been one of the many, many saints created by Diocletian, which shows you the long-term effects of a persecution. He'd have been better off showing a haughty disdain.

Book Log 2006 #15: The Game by Ken Dryden

The jacket bills this as the greatest book ever written on hockey, and Sports Illustrated has touted it as one of the greatest sports books. I'd agree on both accounts.

The hockey parts are very interesting, especially when it comes to Dryden's own ambivalence about being a professional hockey player. Given the near-mythic status professional athletes have today - even those who play hockey - it's surprising, and a bit refreshing, to get this point of view. It's also entertaining to read Dryden's reflections on his teammates and how Howard Ballard killed the Maple Leafs.

When Dryden talks about the influence of money on the game, and the failure by the NHL management to get a network TV contact, you'd think you were reading something written in the last year or two, not 20 years ago. Dryden also has a section on the ills of structured play time which, in a world where kids have busier schedules than some CEOs, means as much now as it did when it was written.

Highly recommended.

Lentorama 2006 Saint of the Day: St. Paternus

An Irish or Scottish hermit, he joined a the Abdinghof Monastery in Westphalia and lived as a hermit in one of its cells. He liked this arrangement quite a bit, as evidenced by his refusing to evacuate when the monastery caught fire. Paternus died in the blaze. He was honored for his devotion to the enclosure rule, which seems a little extreme to me, but that's probably why I'm not headed towards sainthood.

Lentorama Saint of the Day: St. Mary Cleophas

Mother of St. James the less and Joseph. She was one of the "Three Marys" who served Jesus, and went with Mary Magdalen to Jesus' tomb. There are various traditions surrounding Mary, from who exactly was related to her (one legend suggests she was the mother of St. Jude) to how she spent the latter part of her life (missionary work to Spain or France). Regardless, she seems like a good choice for Palm Sunday.

Now that Wisconisn has (thankfully) taken the men's divison 1 ice hockey crown, it's time to give the (expected) offical results to the Frozen Four pool:

Hight: 27
Barker: 25
M. Coen: 24
Crowley: 22
S. Coen: 17
DeVeau: 12
Sorenson: 12
Boggie: 6
Harper-Nixon: 3

Congrats to Brian, and to all who put their best skate forward.

Lentorama Saint of the Day: St. Julie Billiart

The founder of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, Julie had a life-long interest in education. As a teen she taught workers Bible parables during their lunch hour, and she would develop her order into one dedicated to the education of young Catholic women.

In her lifetime, Julie was also involved in hiding priests during the French Revolution and aiding the wounded and dispossessed during and after the Battle of Waterloo. She did much of her work while in poor health, including a 22 year span where she was completely paralyzed.

The Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur run Emmanuel College in Boston. They are a member of the Colleges of the Fenway (as is Wentworth), and when I worked at BU my office was in a building we were renting from Emmanuel. So it seemed fitting to go with Julie on her feast day.

Lentorama Saint of the Day: St. Celsus

A layman, Celsus became bishop of Armagh in 1105. This was apparently a hereditary see; so much for celibacy. Celsus implemented many reforms in his see, and mediated with warring Irish tribes. He also ended the hereditary succession in Armagh by naming St. Malachy as his successor.

He is not the patron saint of the metric system.

Lentorama 2006 Saint of the Day: St. Paul Tinh

Paul was a Vietnamese martyr who served as a priest before being beheaded by "anti-Catholic forces" (according to Catholic Online) in 1857. John Paul II made him a saint in 1988.

I'm curious as to what these "anti-Catholic forces" were. All I've been able to find is that they were political in nature, which isn't helpful.

We finally got back to bar trivia on Tuesday, managing to pull out second place on the second tie-breaker. We had the closest guess to the number of head coaches the Boston Bruins have had in their 77 year history (we answered 16 to the other team's 15; the correct answer is 25).

We lost the game by one point, frustrating as we talked ourselves out of two correct answers (though they were pretty much guesses anyway). Your questions:

Name either of the words in the English language that use all five vowels in alphabetical order. - facetious (Scott) - we got the other one, abstemious, meaning marked by restraint, especially in the consumption of food or alcohol. Which is kind of what I thought it meant, but I more or less knew it as one of those trivial things rather than from using the word.

In what city did the first 24 hour convenience store open its doors in 1963? - Las Vegas (Scott) - we were debating between NYC, Vegas, and LA. I argued for NYC based on people being more likely to walk to a store at odd hours. This made sense compared to LA - who walks? - but we underestimated the needs of folks wandering down the Strip at 3 am. For those who care, the store was a 7-11.

In what country would you find the Southern Alps? (Hint: it's not in Europe.) - New Zealand (Salome) - early discussion took the southern part literally, and we considered various mountain regions in Africa. This didn't seem right, so we turned our attention to South America. We then tossed in New Zealand, but thought it wouldn't come up again after a question on the mountains of New Zealand came up a few weeks ago. It did. We went with Argentina, based on the Andes being pretty big and Argentina having a fair number of former Europeans.

What team beat the Chargers to win the first AFL title in 1961? Houston Oilers (Sly) - For some reason the Dallas Texans popped into my head (we were given a clue that the team was still in the NFL, but under a different name). They actually beat the Oilers for the 1962 title. It didn't help that I was also thinking of the original Dallas Texans, who were so awful in their 1952 debut (1-11) that they folded - but became the new Baltimore Colts. Which worked out for the people of Charm City, at least. Can't remember if Hyph or me came up with Houston, but Hyph got me to go with it, thankfully.

In what movie did Dustin Hoffman play a character named Bernie Laplante? Hero (Chris) - we were pretty stuck on this, and went with I (Heart) Huckabees based (I think) primarily on the song clue ("Heart and Soul" by Huey Lewis and the News). Looks like the song was in homage to an earlier question on Huey Lewis (had to name him based on his real name). Hero never entered into the discussion, and thus Chris can keep his shame all to himself.

What name is shared by a Klimt painting and a Rodin sculpture? The Kiss (Anthony) - Both of the wives knew this right off. I only heard them say "The" over the music, and wrote "Thinker" as a matter of habit. Thankfully, with the final question I tend to show it to make sure it's correct. This was the final question, and we bet the max. So did the team that beat us and the team that was tied with us.

What is the fewest number of states you can travel through to get from the east coast to the west coast of the US? Seven (Cooch) - we just worked out this route when the call went up for answers, and we hadn't really counted. But we did have enough basic math that I was able to put down 7 in haste. This was our tie-breaker question, which the other team also got, which led us to the question on the Bruins coaches.

Had an interesting day at work - we inaugurated our fourth president, which is something given that we've been around for 102 years (in its earliest days Wentworth was more or less a trade school that had a principal). Pretty good crowd of dignitaries, including Mayor Menino, state senate president Robert Travaligni, and the lieutenant governor. Natalie Jacobsen was emcee, fitting as all of her grandparents came to the US from Serbia, as did our president.

Earlier in the day at a breakfast we heard that an alum was donating $1 million, and he spoke briefly about how he used everything he learned at Wentworth in building his businesses. He was very genuine in his love for the school and the role it played in his success, which was nice to hear. Given that he is a 1937 graduate, it was also nice to actually have him there in person.

The only interesting personal note is that the recessional music for the ceremony was the same recessional music the wife and I used for our wedding. They followed that up with something sound like the Liberty Bell March, which would have been pretty funny given how most people are familiar with it.

And as we celebrated a president of a school that educates builders and other tradespeople, we might as well keep the theme going.

Lentorama 2006 Saint of the Day: St. Vincent Ferrer

A scholar and preacher, Vincent Ferrer spent most of his life trying to bring new people into the fold. He refused a variety of offices while asking to be given a missionary role, and once he got it he didn't let the dust settle. He preached from Ireland to Germany and pretty much everywhere in between, including Grenada - while it was still in the Islamic camp. He also worked hard to end the schism that saw the pope move to Avignon and the occasional seating of two popes (or pope and anti-pope, I suppose). It ended shortly before his death in 1419.

The connection to the above is that Ferrer is the patron saint of builders and other tradespeople given what he did to "build" the church.

Lentorama Saint of the Day: St. Benedict the Moor

Not actually a Moor (he got the name from the Italian il moro, the black), Benedict was born a slave near Messina, Italy. Once freed he became a solitary, eventually becoming the superior of the community of hermits he lived with (this seems kind of contradictory, a community of solitaries). Pope Pius IV disbanded such communities, and Benedict became a Franciscan lay brother.

He started out as a cook at a friary, eventually becoming superior and novice master even though he couldn't read or write. He would later re-assume the cook position, which he apparently preferred. Benedict was renowned for his holiness, miracles, and as a confessor, and was widely sought out by strangers.

Benedict is the patron saint of African-Americans, African missions, and Palermo (where the friary he cooked at and led was located).

Lentorama 2006 Saint of the Day: St. Richard of Chichester

A 13th century lawyer who studied at Oxford, Paris, and Bologna, he was named chancellor of Oxford in 1235 and chancellor to the archbishop of Canterbury Edmund Rich. Ordained while in France with Rich, he served Rich's successor, St. Boniface of Savoy, until Boniface made him bishop of Chichester. Only problem there was that King Henry III had already named someone to the post, a move Boniface invalidated.

Pope Innocent IV confirmed Richard's nomination, but Henry interfered with his taking office until the pope threatened to excommunicate Henry (it must be something about King Henrys). Richard served in the post until his death in 1262, after which his shrine was a noted location for miracles - until the Reformation. Take that as a sign, though of what I've no idea.

Book Log 2006 #14: 1776 by David McCullough

America's favorite historian (at least based on the power of John Adams) takes on the most critical year in colonial American history in 1776, which passes on covering the year in wide context, but rather focuses on three battles that shaped the revolution to come - the siege of Boston, the Battle of Brooklyn, and the Battle of Trenton.

The focus of the book is almost solely mililtary, with just enough politics and social history to bridge the gaps. From what I could tell the intention was to show how these battles shaped the colonial army and its leader, George Washington. There's a little light cast on some of the second-tier players, but the focus is on Washington's development as commander in chief.

All that being said, I liked the book for what it was. It's been quite a while since my last US history class, so there's not much I can give by way of critique on how the history is presented. Folks who can speak more to the veracity of the text are more than welcome to comment.

I'm following the Sox-Rangers game on-line (missing the first "WAY BACK! WAY BACK!" of the season), using the MLB.com game tracker. I think I like the ESPN.com one better, but the MLB one has a place where they show pitch location and result during an at bat, which I like.

What's funny about it is that the rectangle for the strike zone is drawn right from the book, armpit to knee. That makes it look like every high pitch is coming in at about chin level. That might make the game more interesting, but I don't think it's reflecting reality that well.

Lentorama 2006 Saint of the Day: St. Mary of Egypt

A hermitess discovered in the Jordanian desert by St. Cyryacus and his companions, she said that she had been an actress and singer who was doing penance for her sins. The next time Cyryacus came through, she was dead.

And there it would have stood, except that in the Middle Ages someone appended a legend to Mary's story, relating a history where she was an actress and courtesan in Alexandria who realized her sins while looking at an icon of the Virgin Mary. The Virgin directed Mary to the desert, where she lived for 47 years without seeing a single person. She still managed to face several temptations with the help of her namesake. Mary would be discovered by a man named Zosimus, who would later find her dead.

A lesson on the importance of a well-written back-story. TV and movie writers take heed.

Saw V for Vendetta yesterday, and it was satisfactory. I expected more explosive stunts given that its from the Wachowskis, and instead got more slo-mo fountains of blood than I really cared for. The most exciting part of the movie was when Steven Fry's character said there was nothing to worry about from the fascist government - and then the power in the theater went out. Given the timing, I thought for a second that it was the government cutting the power to the character's house. After a few minutes we were able to re-start the movie and finish without incident.

Got 5 previews, none of which were particularly compelling:

Posideon is the big-screen remake of The Posideon Adventure, following on last year's made for TV remake. The only interesting thing of note is that Andre Braugher is in it. I may just have to see it in spite of myself.

X Men III would be of interest if I'd seen the first two. Nice makeup job on Kelsey Grammer, though.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest is also something that might be of interest if I'd seen the first movie.

Silent Hill, where a girl dreams of some West Virginia town that's been having an underground fire for years. The girl disappears, and the mom has to search the town to find her. Not surprisingly, unspeakable evil may be to blame for the fire.

Take the Lead, a combination of Dangerous Minds and Swing Kids, as Antonio Banderas teaches neglected inner-city high schoolers ballroom dancing with a side of dignity (but not in defiance of the Nazis). One of the co-stars is Yaya from season 3 of America's Next Top Model, for the three of you who may care.

Lentorama 2006 Saint of the Day: St. Macarius the Wonder-Worker

An abbot banished twice by Inconclast emperors of Constantinople, he earned the name "Wonder-Worker" for his penchant for miracles. I don't have much else to say, but how could I pass up someone with this name?