It’s clear we have spent our evenings watching extended coverage of the Olympics. Unfortunately it’s not like four years ago when we were able to spend the days watching even more coverage, but we grew up and had to get real jobs. Though we wasted the week perusing the internet looking for Olympic coverage and in the process we found some other links about Quentin Tarantino, Roger Ebert, and some of our favorite non-Winter Olympic sports. Now position yourself on the starting block and go for the gold.

*

This week’s required reading comes from Peter Gammons. Most of the time we find Gammons to be a pompous, snide little prick, but we admit the guys knows what he is talking about. And he is finally telling everyone what we have known for years, the Colorado Rockies are legitimate contenders and should be treated as such. This kind of praise from Gammons is nothing to take lightly and we were so happy to read it. Pitchers and catchers (and Todd Helton) reported to camp yesterday and opening day is a month and a half away so we were already giddy with excitement and this article pushed us right over that threshold. So take Gammons’ advice and set your DVR to Mountain Time start and great ready for another great season.

 *

From one sports writer to another, we turn to Rick Reilly to help us prepare for the Winter Games in Canada. Reilly gives us a short list of dos and don’ts if you find yourself up north, and some of it we’ll go ahead and start using around here. Like shortening names, Dagger we’ll call Dags and since my name’s already short we’ll add an “er”, Harter, uh, or maybe not. But we will let you know that with the new snow we got, it is colder than a Newfie’s arse ‘round here.

*

Before we got wrapped up in the Olympics we watched the Super Bowl, and like a lot of people, we enjoyed seeing “Golden Girl” Betty White still making us laugh in that Snickers commercial. She is truly an asset to comedy and we loved that we found this list of things we didn’t know about her. We also love that this list includes a clip of White and Jimmy Fallon playing a game of Beirut. It’s true what they say, although dangerous behind the wheel, senior citizen can serve a purpose.

*

Over there on the right side of your screen you can find a link to Natsukashi. Have you checked out that site yet? If you have then you know how awesome it is. If you haven’t then what the hell are you waiting for? Rob Rector, the guy in charge at Natsukashi and one time guest columnist here at CJS, has podcasts about 80s movies with someone who worked on the movie and someone who is a fan of the movie. Rob has invited Dagger to do a couple of these podcast and Dagger’s latest appearance is up now. They discuss the Tom Hanks classic, Turner and Hooch. Head on over there now and have a listen. We’ll wait.

Since we’re on self promotion, let’s take this opportunity to remind you about our upcoming Monday Confessional. We’re still keeping the Olympics theme going and want to know more about your sports viewing interest. We want to know: What event do you always look forward to only to watch and be completely disappointed by and why? What is the sport that seems like a good idea in theory, but once you see it you understand why it’s only on TV once every four years? We want to hear about it so send your responses to staff@crujonessociety.com and look for them Monday morning.

*

Quentin Tarantino talks about some of the stuff he is currently working on, he appears to have a full plate. As much as we love the man’s films we have to wonder what the hell his obsession is with making everything a twist on spaghetti westerns and just how many times he’s going to use that formula. We get it; try something new, we’ll probably like it.

*

Do you hate packing for a week long trip and the hassle that comes with an oversized bag? Well, just remember, it could be worse. You could have to pack and move the UFC Octagon from Los Angeles to Australia. Suddenly that suitcase of knick-knacks you’re bringing back from Branson, Missouri doesn’t seem so bad, huh? This is a great insight into what exactly goes into transporting the Octagon around the world. On a positive note, they do have eight octagons, or octa-octagons, to work with, so it is better than it could be.

And why does the UFC need octa-octagons to ship around the world? Because MMA is growing like a California wild fire. The explanation for that growth is it is fun to watch and here is a break down of exactly why it is so fun. So if you think MMA is nothing more than new boxing or new wrestling, read what this guy has to say and keep it in mind as you check out an event. You may be pleasantly surprised.

*

NBC could take some pointers from UFC on how to put on a decent show. Let’s face it, if it wasn’t the highest level of competition being aired, NBC would be losing ratings with their awful coverage of the games. NBC’s response, “We can’t please everybody.” Everybody else’s response, “You could at least try to.” Dashiell Bennett of deadspin.com has some very simple and practical ideas NBC could use, and we vote putting Bennett in charge of broadcasting the next games.

*

Despite NBC’s poor handling of the games, there are still a lot of good things surrounding the Olympics. Mainly the athletes. As Dagger pointed out yesterday there are still some who go out there just because they love what they do. And one of those athletes who is out there for pure love is men’s figure skater Johnny Weir. Knowing he was out of medal contention he still took to the ice to put on a show and had some fun. He tells us this, and much more, in this article that makes us respect the figure skating program, or at least some of the skaters, more than we did before. Cheers to Weir and the other skaters who are taking full advantage of the large stage to have fun.

*

Let’s stay on the Olympics for one more fun piece. We are all aware that Visa is the only card accepted at the games. We see their sponsorship during every commercial break. But what we have here is a look at some of the lesser known, more quirky sponsors of the Olympics. Like Hurry Hard Condoms sponsoring the U.S Curling team, or Chums, the official lanyard of the U.S. ski and snowboard team. In this economic state, take whatever you can, right?

*

Denver Nuggets and 2010 Western Conference All Star coach George Karl has been diagnosed with cancer again. We wish him the best in beating the disease again. Karl has been a tremendous asset to the basketball program here in Denver and he will be missed while he’s out fighting off this bastard disease. To the Nuggets we want to say go out there and win one (the conference) for the Gipper. And Karl, you kick that cancer’s ass! And cancer, fuck you!

*

You are in luck this week as we have another required reading for you. This is an incredible piece from Esquire about the only film critic we bother to listen to. And even after losing his jaw and his ability to speak, we still listen to every word from him. Of course we are talking about Roger Ebert. Ebert had a long battle with cancer that finally took his jaw and his speech, but it would never take his voice. He kept writing and kept reviewing movies. Esquire does a wonderful write up about this incredible man and how very little has changed since going through this ordeal. Nothing left to say except two thumbs up.

*

Eric Mathews will you do the honors this week, please?

See ya next week…

lee.s.hart@crujonessociety.com

 cjs_final_mark.jpg