Sunday, May 31, 2009

Vikings Update

from profootballtalk:
Minnesota Vikings rookie wide receiver Percy Harvin grabbed the spotlight this weekend, turning in a series of acrobatic plays.

As the Vikings concluded a full-team mandatory minicamp today, Harvin skied into the air in the corner of the end zone to haul in a touchdown pass from Sage Rosenfels, according to Judd Zulgad of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.

“Percy is a special athlete,” Rosenfels said. “Not only is he a good receiver, but he’s got a little bit of that tailback in him.”

Per the report, the former University of Florida standout was well-covered on the play.

The early reviews on Harvin, who also ran the Wildcat offense and returned kicks this weekend, have been extremely positive.

“He’s explosive,” linebacker Ben Leber said. “You definitely want to get the ball in his hands.”

Added defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier: “I’m so glad [Harvin] is on our team, so we don’t have to come up with a plan for him because that’s exactly what you end up having to do is game plan a guy like Percy Harvin.”

Thursday, May 28, 2009

b/w 2 ferns

Notorious

Three

from 2/2009:

Sometimes in a room I have spent a lot of time in I start to feel like the ceiling is coming down and the walls in. The place itself becoming too small for me to fit in it. As this happens I wonder if it is a metaphor that where I am I have become too big for. Then I realize it's my own mind that did it all.

I get angry or maybe it's frustrated with my friends and the people close to me. I usually feel justified. After reflection my sympathy always grows and I set out determined to do good only to lose it in the moment at the realization that my reason for anger or frustration was justified. And the cycle begins again.

When I see a woman's body I take it in and enjoy it. I imagine the way it would look if she took off what she was wearing. I think about the shape of her breasts. her shoulders and her neck. I think about the shape of her arms and the delicateness of her hands. I imagine the shape of her thigh and the smoothness of her skin. The way her curves create shadows of the light. I imagine her warm vagina. The best place for my penis. I love a woman's breasts. I love a woman's ass. I love a woman's stomach. I think about the possible shape of her nipple. I wonder whether her vagina is pretty and fit or sloppy hanging loose? Still fun but for different things and different levels of commitment. The most critical aspect in a man's relationship with a woman is her naked body.

Say What?

"God has chosen the foolish things of this world to shame the wise and the weak things of the world to shame the strong."
from Corinthians 1:27

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Hong Man Choi v. Jose Canseco

David Kahn

from the AP:
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Timberwolves hired former Indiana Pacers executive David Kahn to run their basketball operations, four days after being rejected by Portland assistant general manager Tom Penn.
The move was confirmed to The Associated Press on Thursday by a person with knowledge of the hire. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because an announcement wasn't planned until Friday.
Kahn fills the vacancy created when owner Glen Taylor moved vice president of basketball operations Kevin McHale to the bench to replace fired coach Randy Wittman in December.
Taylor had said McHale was not a candidate to return to the front office, but the owner was hoping he would return as coach. McHale has been waiting to see who was hired before deciding on coaching. The person familiar with Kahn's hire said it wasn't clear what McHale will do.
Also unclear is the status of current Wolves GM Jim Stack and assistant GM Fred Hoiberg. Both were considered in-house candidates for the position and have continued to work on evaluating prospects for the NBA draft.
The Timberwolves have the No. 6 lottery pick and two more first-round selections through trades.
The picks, coupled with ample room under the salary cap and a young star in Al Jefferson, gives Kahn plenty to work with as the franchise continues a rebuilding plan that started almost two years ago with the trade of Kevin Garnett.
Kahn worked for the Pacers front office for nearly nine years. He was mostly on the business side, but he played a big role in helping the franchise move to Conseco Fieldhouse in 1999. He served on the NBA's competition committee and was considered an expert in the collective bargaining agreement.
Kahn left the Pacers in 2004 and has been out of the league since. He has been part owner of several NBA Developmental League franchises and also led a group that tried to bring Major League Baseball to Portland, Ore.
The Timberwolves thought they had their man when they offered the job to Penn last weekend. But Penn surprised the team by taking a promotion with the Blazers.
He was the third candidate to withdraw this month, joining San Antonio's Dennis Lindsey and former Miami Heat GM Randy Pfund. Kahn came at the recommendation of commissioner David Stern and interviewed for the position this month.
As the search dragged on, Timberwolves players were starting to wonder when it was going to happen. Rookie Kevin Love said last week that it was "a little weird, not knowing who we turn to next year to make the decisions."
Forward Mark Madsen was glad to finally have the matter settled.
"It comes at a timely moment with the draft coming up," Madsen said Thursday in a phone interview from Utah. "It's a great step for the direction of our franchise."
The hire comes with some concerns, though.
Kahn's Southwest Basketball LLC owned the Fort Worth Flyers and three other NBDL franchises. When the Flyers moved to Nevada, they left a trail of unpaid bills that resulted in several lawsuits.
Local investor Gary Walker filed a breach of contract lawsuit seeking more than $80,000, while the city of Fort Worth said it was owed $25,000 in back rent.
Walker lost his initial case against Southwest Basketball LLC and is planning an appeal.
"Unpaid bills and unfulfilled promises," Walker told The Associated Press. "It was kind of a bad deal."
A spokesman for the city of Fort Worth said the sides settled their lawsuit just before the case was set to go before a judge.
Local advertising firm Concussion helped launch an ad campaign for the team when it arrived in Fort Worth, and CEO Allan Wallach complained of slow payments for those services even a year after the contract expired.
In a story that appeared in the Forth Worth Business Press in 2007 after the Flyers announced plans to leave town, Wallach called Kahn's ownership group "typical carpetbaggers, they took advantage of a number of local businesses and flew the coop."
In an e-mail to The Associated Press on Thursday, Wallach said Concussion and Southwest Basketball LLC have settled the litigation to the company's satisfaction.
"I have no opinion of Mr. Kahn and have tried to erase the experience from my memory," Wallach wrote.
Kahn was unavailable for comment on the matters on Thursday. He will be introduced at a news conference on Friday.
Original article located here.

Numnuts

from realgm:
Marko Jaric and his wife Adriana Lima are expecting their first child, according to People Magazine.
"Adriana and Marko are overjoyed that they are expecting their first child together and are excited to share the happy news and start their family together," say reps.

Supreme Court Update

from NYdailynews:
If confirmed by the Senate, Sotomayor, a Bronx native, will be the first Hispanic ever to hold a seat on the nation's highest court and only the second woman on the current bench. She would join Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who also has roots in New York. (She was born and raised in Brooklyn and attended two Empire State schools: Cornell and Columbia).
As a reader who pays attention to this sort of thing points out, both women also have a connection to the late Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan, who, along with then-Sen. Alfonse D'Amato, sponsored Ginsburg when she was appointed to the Supreme Court in 1993 by President Clinton.
It was Moynihan who suggested Sotomayor, who is known as a political centrist, to President George HW Bush in 1992 for the position of US district court judge for the Southern District. She was still in her 30s when she landed the job - the youngest person ever to do so.
She was also the first American of Puerto Rican descent to be appointed to the Federal bench in NYC. In recommending her, Moynihan enabled the president to make good on a longstanding pledge to appoint a Hispanic judge in New York.
Among those who have publicly expressed support for Sotomayor are Sen. Chuck Schumer (who will be having a post-announcement press conference), Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (who is working to shore up her support among Hispanic voters in advance of the 2010 election) and Gov. David Paterson, who was very upset he didn't have the opportunity to appoint a Hispanic to New York's own high court.
Read more: Link

Lebron

from ESPN:
Murphy recalled a particular moment from James' junior year that illustrated his passion for football. James made a one-handed grab for a 7-yard touchdown against Villa Angela-St. Joseph in the waning moments of the first half. James absorbed a hit on the play and broke the index finger on his left hand.
"He was pretty shook up at halftime," Murphy said. "He was thinking about basketball and what this was going to do. Once the trainers got him calmed down, we said 'Look, LeBron. You don't even have to play in the second half. Or we can use you as a decoy and we'll throw to the other guys if you want.'"
As the team filed out of the locker room, James turned to the coaches, three of whom had played in the NFL -- head coach Jay Brophy, assistant Frank Stams and Murphy.
"I'm no decoy," James told them.
Read the rest of the article here.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Sherlock Holmes

Walken


What I've Learned, from Esquire:
"I remember once, years ago, I was walking out a door-I'd been having a conversation and I was walking out the door, and this guy said to me, "Chris," and I stopped and I turned, and he said, "Be careful." And I never forgot that. And it comes back to me often. Be careful. That was good advice."


"When I was a kid, there was someone in my family, an adult, and whenever I saw them, they would say, "You got a lotta nerve." From the time I was a little kid, it was always like, "Heh, heh, heh-you got a lotta nerve." I always thought, What does that mean? But then when I got older, I thought that it was an instruction. If you tell a kid something, it sticks. I think I do have a lot of nerve. But, I mean, I think I maybe got it from that person who said it to me."


"My father was a lesson. He had his own bakery, and it was closed one day a week, but he would go anyway. He did it because he really loved his bakery. It wasn't a job."


"I used to love Danish. My father used to make a Boston cream pie. You never see that anymore. Very good."


"Golf. My god, that's a mysterious occupation. i know people who are-good friends-who are absolutely smitten, practicing their swing and talking about it. I can understand some sort of sport where your body got a benefit, like marathon running or bicycle racing. Thats not golf. And not only that, but the whole business of standing in the sun-my God. That's like torture."


"I love spaghetti. And I like to cook spaghetti. And i used to eat it every day. I weighed thirty pounds more than I do now. You can't-you can't do that. Ice cream-I love to watch television and eat ice cream. But that's like a ten-year-old. I can't do that anymore. Beer. Beer, spaghetti, ice cream."


"Professional dancers don't go dancing."


"It all happened when I did The Deer Hunter. Suddenly-I'd already been in show business for thirty years, and nothing much had happened. I mean, I really was laboring in obscurity, and then suddenly this movie. It was kind of infectious and I really did become rather social. Gregarious. And that lasted, I don't know, ten years."


"Sometimes I look at this watch and I think, There's some guy that puts these little screws in there? There is something about it. Im not into cars, either, but there is something about a really magnificent car."


"I don't like zoos. Awful."


"Most of the jobs I get are basically very unwholesome people. There's always something wrong with the guy, and sometimes something deeply wrong. I'm tired of that. I tell my agent I want a Fred MacMurray part, I want a part where I have a wife and kids and a dog and a house, and my kids say to me, "What do you think I should do, Dad?" and I say, "Be careful."


Bill Withers



One of the baddest dudes to grace this planet

Cliff Huxtable

IndecisionAn Indecision Exclusive!
Barack Obama Is Cliff Huxtable
indecisionforever.com
Funny Political VideoPolitical GamesJoe Biden Jokes

Monday, May 18, 2009

Three

Paul

Wes

Joel and Ethan

Favre

From Ed Werder, ESPN:
Favre discussed surgical and non-surgical options with Andrews last week, as ESPN has reported.

Citing unnamed sources, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reported that Favre was to meet with Andrews on Tuesday in Birmingham, Alabama, to discuss surgery on his throwing shoulder and that the procedure was expected to be performed later this week.

Favre, however, remains focused on non-surgical options, including cortisone injections and natural movements like light throwing and bicep curls that might cause the tendon to release naturally, the source told ESPN. If the tendon releases and the pain subsides, Favre is virtually certain to play again. If he has surgery and his arm strength diminishes or the pain remains, he will remain retired, the source said.

At 39, Favre believes the less he has to do to correct the problem the better as he believes he still possesses the arm strength he had 10 years ago. The difference now is the injury is causing pain. According to the source, Favre will return to the NFL to play for the Minnesota Vikings if the tendon ruptures and it makes him pain-free. If he submits to arthroscopic surgery and it fails to resolve the problem, then Favre intends to remain retired.

Either way, Favre is losing patience, causing the source to say the shoulder problem must be overcome soon or Favre is likely to abandon his effort to play a 19th NFL season.

Sunday, May 17, 2009

new Dangermouse album

can be streamed at npr site below. apparently it will not be released so this is the only way to hear it (as of now). Link

Saturday, May 16, 2009

Quentin Tarantino





His new movie is released August 21st .


It is starring this guy:

Banned from American Television

This would have been a commercial airing frequently if not for the fact that it was banned. The woman is Eva Mendes.


Dylan: New Video



Here's the dark, violent new music video for Bob Dylan's "Beyond Here Lies Nothin'" from the recently released Together Through Life, directed by Nash Edgerton and featuring Amanda Aardsma and Joel Stoffer.

Friday, May 15, 2009

Duet

Beat by Ronald Jenkees Featuring Malcolm Kelly of the Washington Redskins.

Sick Beat

Wolves GM Search

from ESPN:
As the Minnesota Timberwolves move closer to hiring Portland's Tom Penn as their new front-office chief, signals are growing stronger that Kevin McHale will retain the right to decide whether he stays on as the Wolves' coach.

NBA front-office sources told ESPN.com that Wolves owner Glen Taylor -- after initially saying that the new general manager would make the final call on Minnesota's coach -- has mandated that whoever is hired to take over Minnesota's basketball operations must make it McHale's choice to keep coaching or leave the organization.

Sources say Taylor would like McHale to remain on Minnesota's bench for at least one more season. McHale has not publicly discussed any of his plans since the end of the regular season.

But Penn's apparent willingness to keep McHale as coach and team with Wolves assistant general manager Fred Hoiberg on personnel matters -- combined with Penn's role in the Trail Blazers' rise to prominence in the Western Conference and solid reputation -- have established him as the heavy favorite to replace McHale as Minnesota's lead decision-maker on personnel matters.

The Wolves' GM search, sources said, is strictly focused on Penn at this point, with one source going so far as to say an offer has been made.

San Antonio's Dennis Lindsey, widely billed as Minnesota's initial No. 1 target for its GM opening, withdrew from consideration on May 1. The other known candidates besides Penn include ex-Indiana Pacers executive David Kahn and former Miami Heat general manager Randy Pfund, but Pfund contacted ESPN.com and two Minnesota-based newspapers Friday to say that he is also "moving on from the Wolves' situation" to pursue other jobs.

It's believed that both Lindsey and Pfund wanted the freedom to make sweeping changes to the organization if they wished -- including the right to dismiss McHale and hire their own coach -- with Taylor reluctant to give it.

With no formal GM hiring expected before next week, Minnesota is sending rookie forward Kevin Love to New Jersey to represent the club during Tuesday's draft lottery, when the Wolves will learn the placement of their first of three first-round picks in the June 25 draft.

Love and fellow franchise cornerstone Al Jefferson have lobbied the Wolves to keep McHale on the bench. The Wolves went 20-43 after McHale replaced Randy Wittman in December, but they posted a 10-4 record in January before losing Jefferson to a season-ending knee injury on Feb. 8.

David Kahn is interesting. Pfund and Lindsey are overrated. I think Penn is too.

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Status Check: Planet Earth

First off, I am in love with Lindsay Soto, amongst others. The reasons for the love for her are many. Her body is smoking and she looks good even in HD. Plus she works for the NFL network which is great in a way that trumps the ways in which it is not great.
I am not in love with Selena Roberts. The only good thing she has ever brought about is a minor revelation about a story that needs to be told. Somebody needs to take one of these reporters and go do to their life what so many of them have done to so many people. Going back to A-Rod's sophomore year of high school is wild. Saying that he definitively used steroids because an adolescent boy began working out and increased his overall weight and bench press numbers over a period of six months is a stretch. Especially considering that the period was the first time A-Rod ever started working out. He got big fast because he took to the activity and began to do it with regularity. On top of that he was at the age where a young man is able to start putting on muscle in a whole new way if they get into lifting and exercise at that moment in their development. Beyond that, so what if A-Rod used steroids. Fuck Selena Roberts. I want my athletes to be awesome at what they do. I want them to have access to whatever they think they need so long as it falls short of super bicep guy. I do worry about an unusual amount of men dying or breaking down before their time in sports where steroids are widespread. On the other hand I really don't think it is a stretch to think that these modern day gladiators are wearing down their bodies the same way generations before them have. Some wear down sooner than others. We are random organisms. Babe Ruth died fairly young, so did Wilt Chamberlain and Pistol Pete. If I remember correctly the historical figure who was the inspiration for the brand name 'Nike' was a runner who died at the end of his epic run.
I love the NFL draft because it makes me feel like I can predict the future. You can look at numbers and video footage and use your imagination and some set of made up guidelines to determine who is going to be the next big thing in the NFL. If chance unfolds in your favor you can allow your ego to grow, if it doesn't you can work harder and get better the next year. It seems like the kind of thing you can figure out in a world full of uncertainties. Same goes for the NBA draft and other sports drafts as well but I haven't put the time in to come close because the interest hasn't piqued yet as it has for american football. Luckily this year the Vikings got one of the guys who is a touchdown threat immediately and will not be a bust unless he tears his ACL next week.
Routine is a nice thing even if it is just comfort for all the wrong reasons.
Barack seems to be doing a good job as does the government in general. Things seem to be swaying in a favor that some view as dangerous, I view it as necessary to get things done. If not for the party line bullshit this kind of situation wouldn't be necessary. In this moment the American people have decided how things need to be to right our country. My favorite part about the last hundred days is that mistakes are apologized and accounted for and there is a new up front attitude being projected. The point isn't that I need to know what the percentage chance is that I am going to be broke or blown up today. The point is I need to know there is someone in charge working on it and not trying to bullshit and pull wool over trusting peoples eyes. One of my favorite moments in my memories of my mother has to do with a conversation we had in her bedroom. I was holding one of her dogs in the air. The dog closed its eyes and fell asleep. I got my mom's attention to point out this odd little moment. She saw no oddness. In her eyes was something completely different. She looked at the dog in my arms and said only two words, "So trusting."
Of all the different sports figures around right now I started to try and make a list of active people who will be the icons of our times. Not the names people forget but the names people remember for all the strange reasons people end up being the ones. Bill Belicheck and Bill Parcells, Mike Tyson, Lebron James, Alex Rodriguez, Phil Jackson, Michael Vick, Brett Favre, The Williams sisters...that is what is left
Guys like Allen Iverson, Kobe Bryant, Albert Pujols, Derek Jeter, LaDainian Tomlinson, Barry Bonds, Oksana Baiul, Sidney Crosby, Matt Hughes, Greg Maddux, Chuck Liddell, Randy Moss, Ronaldo, Roger Federer, Mia Hamm, Ricky Henderson...they become folk heroes who are known well within communities and areas but can easily be missed and passed on by 'the masses'.
Guys like Shaq, Peyton Manning, Terry Francona, Kurt Warner and Kevin Garnett have a chance if they have more success or become coaches or commentators or some other figure where the profile is high enough that matched with success it can take them to another level.
Guys like Chris Collinsworth and Brock Lesner have a shot if their success continues in their new positions.
A guy like Dwayne Wade has a shot if he becomes a movie star.
But at the end of the day in sports and beyond what you have left when it comes to memory is the big dogs. Warren Sapp and Deon Sanders disapear, that is why they are trying to stay in the spotlight. Because they know that if they stop that is the end and they didn't reach that level. Eddie Murphy wishes he was there, Sacha Baron Cohen could get there, someone like Bob Dylan is uncomfortable that he is and is still around to see it. Someone like J.K. Rowling really is even though half the people alive don't realize it and half of what is left would argue it for half an hour before coming to their senses. Barbara Walters won't quite but got close, Geraldo and Dr. Phil are a joke, Oprah is there and loves it. Bono thinks he is there and loves it. Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt are trying their best, Mickey Rourke barely has a shot, but Johnny Depp probably will be regardless of whatever he does from now on. Conan probably never will, although for some reason it seems like Letterman and Leno won't really either. At least not separately. Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Warren Buffet, Carlos Slim Helu, Larry Ellison, The Waltons, Michael Dell, Ingvar Jamprad, Sai Agassi, Mukesh Ambani, Lakshmi Mittal, Theo Albrecht, Amancio Ortega, Bernar Arnault, Li Ka-shing, Michael Bloomberg, Prince Alwaleed Bin talal Alsaud, Bernie Madoff, Michael Otto, David Thomson, Stefan Persson, Charles Koch, Liliane Bettencourt, Larry Page, The google guys, the youtube guys, the facebook guys, Paul Allen, Michele Ferrero...I don't know. The Queen of Britain? Simon Cowell? Kim Jong Il? Tiger Woods? Osama Bin Laden? 50 Cent and Eminem? Vladimir Putin? Rush Limbaugh or Howard Stern? George Bush? Steven Spielberg or James Cameron? Barack Obama? Cargill? Chrysler? Mars? NASA? Toyota? AT&T? ExxonMobil? GE? Shell? Wal-Mart? Volkswagen? IBM? Sony? Apple?
Is there a medium ground to find for the kids who need a spanking in a world where we shouldn't have to spank? Is there something wrong with cheerleaders? Or pornography for that matter? We have to get rid of guns and weapons because violence is bad, right? Military doesn't have to exist, right? We should go green, right? Wind turbines, solar, and hydropower? Stem cells and cloning? No to ethanol, yes to electric?
The ability to not respond or to be gotten ahold of will become essential in the instant age. We all know just how far away we are from one another, the reality that we have become so close. The ability to ignore and adjust and deal with the ignoring. We will be trained to grow thicker skin. Odd for a species that spent generations thinning our skin.
We will need clothes and shelter and food and cool and heat more than ever yet our bodies will be less ready for the temperatures and conditions and our minds will be less willing to take what would sustain us in an attempt to search for what's best, which will end up really sustaining us in a whole new way. Green will return and always reign. Waste and trash will be used to create the future. The human body will continue to become one with machines by way of science. Reality tv won't go away as long as televisions and people are around. Our windows and roofs and plumbing will harness power and create heat and energy for us.
I hate paperwork. It's gotten to that point where I have had to dive back into the world and will have to swim in it in some ways to be able to affect any change. Paperwork is terrible from the roots. Made by trees which we have already cut down too much of. The treasures lost in the woods and rainforests wiped out by being chopped down will never be recovered. They remain mysteries lost. Cures and new creatures are often found in the depths of these forests. The value of which outweighs the minor inconvenience of spending time thinking about better materials than wood to use for everything from log cabins to paperwork. Beyond environmental issues, which are instantly dismissed by nearly half the population, there is something even nastier at the root of paperwork. It represents the end of the handshake, the gentleman's agreement. In other words, it is the opposite of trust. It is a gimmick, a riddle, a trick, and an illusion. Infinitely malleable and often used with direct deceit. Paperwork is evil from the roots.
Kanye West. So much to say. He continues to be everything someone trying to be an icon should be. Brash. Trendy. Over the top. If you don't believe me look at his new girlfriend. Listen to his latest record. Somehow managing to alienate his fans and elevate him to new heights in the same breath. What is next? Who knows. But Kanye West has become more than a rapper and he has a chance to become a lot more than that. To me he seems like one of the most likely from right now to command Clapton type audiences from our generation when we are fifty years old.
I am going to go on the record saying that Peyton Manning, Michael Jordan, Reggie Jackson, Muhammed Ali and Babe Ruth all were on steroids too. Wayne Gretzky in L.A. too. Also Madonna, Stephen Hawking, Timbaland, Daniel Craig, Demi Moore, LL Cool J, Christopher Reeves, Vince McMahon and Ed Hochuli.
I reserve a special place of hatred in my heart and soul for the people who have been attempting to ruin sports for a long time now. Nerds, and not the cool kind, who don't understand the game but insist on it being clean in their image can go fuck themselves. I am so sick and tired of Tim Kurkijjan talking about how bad steroids are and how much they taint a man and a game. Grow the fuck up. This is not Jackie Robinson. It is just not that big no matter how much of a fuse you blow. I am disgusted by Bill Plaschke and his insinuations about the impact of Manny's positive test on Los Angeles. Saying Manny suckered everyone and that he should be fired is the kind of shit that should be kept to yourself. What a stupid loser, again, in the not cool way. This guy deserves a voice and a place to speak but he also deserves to be slapped for the bullshit he excretes into our atmosphere. In general I am disgusted with these talking heads and journalist fucks who are supposed to be the voice of the people but instead they are just the only people pathetic enough to spend their life doing what it is they do. They are fake judges. Wannabe writers. Mediocre human beings. I have it on good information that Bill Plashcke operates an underground mormon prostitution ring out of his home in Los Angeles. I also happen to know from photographic evidence that Tim Kurkijan likes to dress up like little red riding hood and have a huskie dog lick melted hershey bars off of certain parts of his body. What is wrong with these people? These stories pale in comparison to tales I have heard about other prominent figures in the field of journalism. These people had better get their minds right before somebody starts writing exposes about these fucks. Buster Olney is a punk loser who is just a mouthpiece for the owners and Bud Selig. The way he talks about things is a joke. He should removed from the air. These guys do nothing but bring sports down. They are the equivalent of player haters. Raised wrong and unable to be fixed because they don't want to change. Fuck every single voice I have heard on the steroids issue on ESPN. You are all weak cowards.
Otherwise things do seem to be going well on the surface at the moment. For some reason people still insist on throwing trash on the street. I can understand, I was eight years old once too. Plus, there is probably some guy doing community service on a DUI who will be there in an orange vest to clean tomorrow.
Women are still getting naked and letting people take pictures and videos of them. Men are doing the same. They do things involving bowl movements and cups and mouths and vomit and stick shifts and traffic cones and cell phones. If these things don't bring you nightmares don't worry, there are worse things out there waiting to be seen by your eyes, processed by your mind and digested by your soul.
In sports performance enhancing drugs are a big deal even though they seem to make players better at the games they play. Records are being put into question and names are being dragged through the dirt by not just the working class and sportswriters but by people inside the clubhouses. What ever happened to being an athlete? When I played sports everyone knew that what happened in the clubhouse stayed in the clubhouse. Same thing went for a dugout or a locker room or anything. The team was a team. Anything to win. I knew all the cheap shots to take in a game to make sure the advantages went our way. So did everyone else. Sports was like war. Now we have become too sensitive. War got real and bad so sports couldn't compare itself anymore. Or if it wanted to still the solution was to get clean. In comes Roger Goodell, out goes Barry Bonds. I hate that. I loved Barry Bonds type guys when I played sports. They meant you were going to be a winner if you fell in line and let them be the man. Who has a problem with being a winner? It's cool to accept losing, but to have a problem with winning?
Computers are over the top. They fit in a hand now on a screen that would be unimaginable to 95% of the population fifty years ago. Let alone what the capabilities would be.
Good thing everything costs so much money. Otherwise we would all have everything.

Wilco (the album)

Is streaming Here

Comes out June 30. Hallelujah Mr. Tweedy

Will It Blend?

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Dylan Cash

Kill The Lawyer

Fresh Moves

Wait for it, it takes about 40 seconds...

Hero

Wow

fuel to the fire

An inside source told me earlier today that Brad Childress was in an unusually good mood today at Winter Park. It seems there is an electricity in the air, so to speak...

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

This Note's For Neil


This is pre-brain aneurism

Favre, Viking

By Ed Werder
ESPN.com
Archive
Minnesota Vikings head coach Brad Childress and quarterback Brett Favre plan to meet at an undisclosed location later this week to discuss the possibility of the former Packers and Jets quarterback renouncing his retirement from the NFL to play the 2009 season with the Vikings, according to a source with direct knowledge of discussions between the two parties.
There is a mutual understanding that sometime soon thereafter Favre will decide whether to sign with the Vikings. The team would expect him to participate fully in offseason minicamps and training camps, which he missed last year with the Jets.
Favre has not been working out and declined to have surgery to repair the torn biceps tendon that plagued him the final month of last season.
Favre may believe the injury can heal on its own as did a similar problem with his left shoulder while he played in Green Bay. Favre wanted to play for the Vikings last season, but the Packers specifically eliminated their NFC North rivals as a potential destination for the Green Bay icon.
While Favre had been emphatic about not returning next season, he never anticipated the Jets would release him after drafting Mark Sanchez in the first round and could see the Vikings as the opportunity to fulfill the goal he was deprived of last season -- winning a Super Bowl.
Favre admitted to ESPN that he was motivated to play in 2008 largely because of his resentment toward Packers general manager Ted Thompson.
The Vikings had planned to have Tarvaris Jackson and Sage Rosenfels compete for the starting quarterback position in training camp. With Jackson battling injuries last season, journeyman Gus Frerotte started 11 games and led the Vikes in passing.
Minnesota finished 10-6 to capture the NFC North but lost to the Eagles in the first round of the playoffs in a game started by Jackson.

Monday, May 4, 2009

Tetro

FFC is back.
Follow the link.

Tennis Update: Rising Stars


Ernests Gulbis
Nickname(s)
The Gull, Ernie
Country
 Latvia
Residence
Jūrmala, Latvia
Date of birth
August 30, 1988 (age 20)
Place of birth
Riga, Latvia SSR
Height
1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)
Weight
76 kg (170 lb)
Turned pro
2004
Plays
Right-handed; two-handed backhand
Career prize money
$951,099
Singles
Career record:
44 - 47
Career titles:
0
Highest ranking:
38 (August 4, 2008)
Infobox last updated on: March 2, 2009.

Ernests Gulbis (pronounced [ˈærnəsts ˈgulbis], born August 30, 1988) is a Latvian professional tennis player. As of February 22, 2009, he is ranked 42nd in the world in men's singles. In 2008, Gulbis won his first ATP Tour doubles title in Houston, teaming with Rainer Schuettler. His career highlights also include a quarterfinal appearance at the 2008 French Open, where he lost a tight match to Novak Djokovic, and a 4th round appearance at the 2007 US Open, upsetting two seeds along the way.
Gulbis is currently coached by Karl Heinz Wetter. He was formerly coached by Nikola Pilić, the former professional Croatian tennis player and Croatian and German Davis Cup captain, and began training at the Niki Pilic Tennis Academy in Germany at the age of 12.[1]
Personal life
Gulbis comes from a very wealthy family. He first started playing tennis with his grandmother and considers basketball, football and hockey as his favorite sports. His father, Ainārs, is an investment businessman while his mother, Milēna, a theater actress. The second of five children, Gulbis has three sisters (Elīna, Laura and Monika) and a younger brother named Kristaps.[2] Gulbis comes from a sporting family and his grandfather, Alvils, was one of the starting five players on ASK Rīga, the Soviet Union basketball team that won the European Championships.[3] His other grandfather, Uldis Pūcītis, was a popular actor and film director.
Gulbis can speak Latvian, Russian, English and a little German.[3]

Tennis career
The highlights of his career up to 2006 include reaching the final of the Oberstaufen Challenger in July 2006, where he lost to Michal Tabara; reaching the final of the Tampere Challenger, also in July 2006, where he lost to Florian Mayer; reaching the semi-finals of ATP St. Petersburg Open as a wildcard in October, where he lost to Mario Ančić; and winning the Eckental Challenger in November, where he defeated Philipp Petzschner. In the 2008 US Open second round, Gulbis played a grueling 4 setter against Andy Roddick, yet lost. Later when interviewed, it was discovered that both he and his American opponent shared a birthday the moment the match rolled past midnight and into the early hours of the next day, August 30.

2007
Gulbis started his season as a qualifier in the Sydney Medibank International, losing in the first round to Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus.[4] He was subsequently defeated in the first qualifying round of the Australian Open.
Gulbis was relatively successful on the Challenger circuit in 2007. He reached the quarterfinals in Bergamo (l. to Fabrice Santoro) and the semifinals in Heilbronn (l. to Michaël Llodra). Gulbis won his second Challenger title by triumphing over the local favorite, Édouard Roger-Vasselin, at the Besançon Challenger in France, enabling him to break into the ATP Top 100 for the first time in his career. In his next tournament, the Sarajevo Challenger, Gulbis emerged victorious in both the singles and doubles events.
In the first week of October, he won the Mons Challenger in Belgium (d. Kristof Vliegen) as the top seed, breaking into the AP Top 50 for the first time in his career and surpassing Juan Martín del Potro as the highest-ranked player born in 1988. This win also meant a fourth, consecutive title, which drew some attention to him by tennis pundits.

Grand Slam debut
Gulbis defeated Potito Starace at the 2007 U.S. Open.
Gulbis announced his arrival on the Grand Slam stage in the 2007 French Open by defeating the British veteran, Tim Henman in straight sets to advance to the second round. It was heralded by the British Davis Cup captain, John Lloyd, as "... a brilliant performance from Gulbis, that is just pure and utter talent."[5] Gulbis' run was halted in the second round by Spaniard Álbert Montañés, with a 1–6, 2–6, 6–1, 6–7(3) defeat, in a rain-interrupted match.
At Wimbledon, his second Grand Slam participation, Gulbis again was drawn to face Marcos Baghdatis in the first round. He succeeded in winning the first set off the tenth-seeded Cypriot before succumbing in four sets.[6] Gulbis debuted in Grand Slam doubles by teaming up with Ivan Ljubičić, with whom he had reached the semi-finals of the 2007 Ordina Open.
At the 2007 U.S. Open, Gulbis upset the No. 30 seed, Potito Starace, in the first round and the No. 8 seed, Tommy Robredo, in the third round, winning by a convincing score of 6–1, 6–3, 6–2. In that match, Gulbis broke Robredo six times and had 39 winners to Robredo's seven. [7] Gulbis' fine run was finally halted by former world Number 1, Carlos Moyà, to whom he lost in four sets. [8]

2008
Gulbis serving to David Nalbandian at the 2008 Pacific Life Open.
At the first round of the 2008 Australian Open, Gulbis lost to Marat Safin 0–6, 4–6, 6–7. He reached the second round of the 2008 Pacific Life Open, where he lost a tight match to former Grand Slam finalist David Nalbandian with the score of 6–4, 4–6, 7–64. At one point he was up a break in the third set, having served out the previous game with 4 aces, but he eventually lost the match in the tiebreak. In the first round of the 2008 Miami Masters, he defeated Dominik Hrbatý, but in the second round met Nikolay Davydenko. After winning the first set 6-3, he lost the following two sets in tiebreaks.
His biggest result to date occurred when he reached the quarterfinals of the 2008 French Open. Through the tournament he beat Simon Greul, seventh seed James Blake, Nicolas Lapentti and home-favourite Michaël Llodra.[9] In the quarterfinals he lost to the third seed Novak Djokovic in a tight match with the score line 5-7, 63-7, 5-7.
In his next tournament, he reached the third round of the 2008 Queen's Club Championships, beating Kristof Vliegen and 12th seed Andreas Seppi. He lost to 6th seed Andy Murray with 7-5, 1-6, 4-6.
In the first round at Wimbledon, Gulbis defeated 6'10" American John Isner, but he lost in the 2nd round to the 2nd seed and eventual champion Rafael Nadal with a score line of 5-7, 6-2, 7-62, 6-3. Other than Roger Federer, he was the only player to take a set off the eventual champion. In a post match interview, Nadal noted how difficult the return game against Gulbis' serve was, and that he felt Ernests was going to run away with the match if it wasn't for a rain delay that transpired.
Gulbis defeated Jarkko Nieminen, Arnaud Clément, and James Blake at the 2008 Cincinnati Masters but lost in the quarterfinal to #3 seed Novak Djokovic 6-3, 6-4.
At the US Open, Gulbis defeated Thomas Johansson in the first round before losing to Andy Roddick in the second, (3-6, 7-5, 6-2, 7-5). It was his and Andy's birthday.

2009
Gulbis began the year strongly by defeating former training partner Novak Djokovic 6-4, 6-4 in the first round of the Brisbane International tournament before falling in the second round to Paul-Henri Mathieu 3-6, 4-6. He lost in the second round of 2009 Australian Open to Igor Andreev in 5 sets after beating Albert Montañés in the first round in straight sets.
Gulbis was seeded 3rd heading into the 2009 Delray Beach International Tennis Championships, but was defeated in the 1st round by former World No. 8 Marcos Baghdatis.

Davis Cup
Gulbis has played in three Davis Cup ties for Latvia this year, winning all seven of the rubbers in which he participated (4 singles; 3 doubles with Deniss Pavlovs).[10] [11] [12] His participation in the tie against Monaco in September helped Latvia to qualify for the Europe/Africa Zone Group I tier of Davis Cup for the first time in its history.[12]

Playing style
This biography of a living person does not cite any references or sources. Please help by adding reliable sources. Unsourced or poorly sourced contentious material must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (March 2009) Find sources: (Ernests Gulbis – news, books, scholar)
Gulbis primarily employs an offensive baseline playing style, although is fairly comfortable playing from all court positions. Gulbis' most consistent shot is his forehand, which has been likened to that of American James Blake's for its rapid pace and relatively flat execution; his forehand is taken with a medium swing and with high levels of wrist action, which attributes to the explosive nature of the shot. His arsenal of forehand shots is nearly complete, and thus can be extremely disruptive and turn a defensive position into an offensive one. His running forehand has a slice action, but consistently lands extremely deep in the court, allowing for adequate recoil time to regain court position. Gulbis also has a particularly excellent array of finesse shots, including the high lob and drop shot, both of which he can strike from any position, including from deep in the court. His drop shot in particular has been noted as one of his more effective shots, as the power and depth of his groundstrokes push his opponents far behind the baseline, which makes the drop shot more effective. Gulbis' primary weakness is his consistency, which has been known to break down during tough situations. Gulbis' foot speed is only moderate, although his return of serve is varied and dangerous, particularly on second serves and, due to his height, kick serves. In his televised matches in 2007 and early 2008 his serve would have been described as moderate, but has recently vastly improved in speed and variety, having served out several games with no returns against the incredible returners David Nalbandian and Rafael Nadal.
Despite having prodigious talent for his age, Gulbis can be prone to nervousness when down in a set or match, which can cause tight matches to be more mentally straining on him. Similarly to Marat Safin, Gulbis' playing style is extremely tactical and aggressive, and relies more on making winners than drawing errors, which can sometimes lead to a very high unforced error count. Gulbis excels on all surfaces. Despite playing a style more attuned to fast surfaces, his strong showing at the French Open is attributed to his powerful and flat strokes which can play through clay.




Kei Nishikori
Country
 Japan
Residence
Bradenton, Florida, USA
Date of birth
29 December 1989 (age 19)
Place of birth
Shimane, Japan
Height
1.77 m (5 ft 91⁄2 in)
Weight
68 kg (150 lb)
Turned pro
2007
Plays
Right-handed; two-handed backhand
Career prize money
US $373,793
Singles
Career record:
21–19
Career titles:
1
Highest ranking:
56 (2 February 2009)


Infobox last updated on: 19 January 2009.
Kei Nishikori (錦織 圭 Nishikori Kei?) (born 29 December 1989 in Shimane, Japan) is a Japanese tennis player. He began playing tennis at the age of five and on 17 July 2007 he qualified for his first ATP main draw event at the Countrywide Classic in Los Angeles, California at the age of 17.
Junior career
Nishikori won the 2004 title at the Riad 21 Tournament in Rabat, Morocco and was a quarterfinalist at the 2006 Junior French Open. He partnered with Emiliano Massa of Argentina to win the 2006 Junior French Open. Nishikori won the 2007 Luxilon Cup held at the 2007 Sony Ericsson Open by defeating Michael McClune.

2006
Nishikori qualified and won the title at the ITF Futures event in Mazatlan, Mexico. He began the year by receiving a wildcard to the Kyoto Challenger in Kyoto, Japan.

2007
A finalist in two USTA Pro Circuit events, Nishikori lost to Donald Young in Little Rock, Arkansas and Alex Bogomolov, Jr. in Carson, California. He partnered with Donald Young to win the doubles title at Little Rock, Arkansas. He paired with triple-French Open champion, Gustavo Kuerten at the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami, Florida where they lost in the first round. Nishikori served as a hitting partner for Roger Federer at Wimbledon. After his ATP main draw debut in Los Angeles, he qualified for the Indianapolis Tennis Championships in July 2007. He beat Alejandro Falla in the first round 6–4 6–3 to record his first ATP main draw win. He followed that up with a 3-set win over Michael Berrer, the eliminator of 7th seed Robby Ginepri, to advance to his first ever ATP quarterfinal. He lost to Dmitry Tursunov but Nishikori became the youngest player to reach the quarterfinals at Indianapolis since Boris Becker, who went on to reach the semifinals, in 1985. In his third career ATP event, Nishikori defeated Teimuraz Gabashvili in the first round in Washington, DC before falling to Julien Benneteau in the second. Attempted to qualify for the ATP Masters Series Canada and for his first Grand Slam at the U.S. Open. Qualified for the ATP event in Beijing and lost in the first round to Ivan Ljubičić. Nishikori received a wildcard to the ATP event in Tokyo, Japan where he lost in the first round to Zack Fleishman. He participated in the draw ceremony in Tokyo and received the Tokyo Sports Writers Club award. Nishikori represented Japan at the Asian Hopman Cup 2007 in Bangkok, Thailand.

2008
Nishikori started the year by reaching the semifinals of the Miami challenger tournament. He then entered the Delray Beach tournament as a qualifier ranked 244. He gained entrance to the main draw by defeating Nicolas Todero and Alex Bogomolov Jr. In the first round, he defeated Florian Mayer due to a retirement in the second set. In the second round, Nishikori defeated Amer Delic, another qualifier. In the quarterfinals he won against Bobby Reynolds. In the semis he upset Sam Querrey. In the final, Nishikori upset number one seed James Blake in three sets, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4, to become the first Japanese man in nearly 16 years to win an ATP event.[1] He lost in the first round of the Miami Masters to the Spanish player Albert Montañés. He faced James Blake again, this time at the River Oaks International tournament in Houston, Texas in the first round but Kei lost 6-4, 6-4. He went out in the third round of the 2008 Queen's Club Championships against Rafael Nadal on 12 June 2008. The final score was 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 to Rafael Nadal, who won the match in just over two hours. Despite facing the world number two, Nishikori played well in the match, and showed promise. His performance, however, faded in the final set as fatigue set in against Nadal's impressive level of fitness. His first Grand Slam appearance at the 2008 Wimbledon Championships on 23 June 2008 ended in a first round forfeiture to French player Marc Gicquel. Suffering from an abdominal muscle strain, Nishikori retired after the second set after winning the first set by 6-4, but losing the second by 5-7. In August he entered the Beijing Olympics on an wildcard place given by the International Tennis Federation.[2] There he lost in the first round to Rainer Schüttler of Germany.
Nishikori made his debut in the US Open defeating 29th seeded Juan Mónaco 6-2, 6-2, 5-7, 6-2 in the first round. He cruised to the third round after downing Croatian Roko Karanusic. On 30 August 2008 he became the first Japanese player to reach the Round of 16 at the US Open in 71 years, when he beat 4th seed David Ferrer in five sets 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 2-6, 7-5 in what was considered one of the tournaments major upsets. He lost his chance however, to compete in the quarter-finals when he was beaten by 17th seed Juan Martín del Potro in straight sets, losing 6-3, 6-4, 6-3.
In the Japan Open Tennis Championships he made it to the Round of 16 before losing to Frenchman Richard Gasquet 6-1, 6-2.
Nishikori was handed a wildcard for the Stockholm Open, where he made it to his second ATP level semifinal of the year, despite playing with a knee injury. He received a walkover in his quarterfinal against Mario Ančić, who had to withdraw due to illness. In the semifinal he was beaten by fourth seed Robin Söderling 6-1, 6-0.

2009
Nishikori made a disappointing start to the season, losing to Jurgen Melzer 7-5, 6-2, 6-1, in the first round of the Australian Open. On 25 March Nishikori was named 2008 ATP Newcomer of the Year and became the first Asian player to win the award. [3]

Personal
Nishikori lives in Florida, trains at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy, and is coached by Glenn Weiner. His parents are Kiyoshi and Eri and has a sister. His hobbies include baseball, golf, reading, and listening to music. He is represented by Olivier van Lindonk of IMG.

Equipment
Nishikori currently uses the Wilson K-Tour racket and wears the adidas Edge Group clothing and the adidas Barricade V shoes. He is also sponsored by Sony.





Marin Cilic
Country
 Croatia
Residence
Zagreb, Croatia
Date of birth
September 28, 1988 (age 20)
Place of birth
Međugorje, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina,
SFR Yugoslavia
Height
1.98 m (6 ft 6 in)
Weight
81 kg (180 lb)
Turned pro
2005
Plays
Right-handed; two-handed backhand
Career prize money
$1,256,402
Singles
Career record:
71–52
Career titles:
3
Highest ranking:
No. 15 (April 27, 2009)

Infobox last updated on: March 2, 2009.
Marin Čilić (born September 28, 1988 in Međugorje, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, SFR Yugoslavia) is a tennis player from Croatia. His career high ATP ranking is no. 15, achieved on April 27, 2009.
Junior circuit (2004-2005)
Marin began playing on the juniors ITF circuit in spring of 2004. At start, he played on clay courts, wining the La Vie Junior Cup Villach in singles, and the Dutch Junior Open in doubles. He then, qualified for the 2004 US Open, where he lost in the second round to Sam Querrey. In 2005, he won 2005 French Open title in Boys' single, beating Andy Murray in the semis, and Antal van der Duim in the final. He finished the 2005 ranked number two, behind American Donald Young. In his junior years, he won six tournamnets in singles, and four in doubles.

ATP Tour 2004-2007
In 2004, he played one Futures event (Croatia F1), at which he reached the second round; he finished the year tied at No. 1463 on the rankings of the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP Tour). He played seven Futures tournaments in 2005, winning one, the Croatia F3 event; two Challenger tournaments, in Zagreb and Geneva; and one ATP International Series tournament, on Croatia Open Umag, where he lost in the opening round. He finished the year ranked No. 587.
In 2006, he played three Futures, winning the Croatia F1 and Croatia F2 events, nine challengers, nine International Series events (reaching the semis at Gstaad), and two Davis Cup ties, against Austria and Argentina. By the end of the year, he was ranked No.170.
In 2007, he won the first and second professional tournaments of his career: the Casablanca Challenger (in April) and the Rijeka Challenger (in May). In June, at the Queen's Club tournament in London, he beat Tim Henman in the first round, after trailing 2–4 in the final set, and reached the quarterfinals, where he fell to Andy Roddick. After that performance, he reached a new career-high ranking of No. 101 on June 18, 2007.
In the World Group playoffs in the first round of the 2007 Davis Cup, he beat Benjamin Becker from Germany. Croatia went on to lose to Germany in the best-out-of-five round robin format of singles and doubles.

2008
In 2008, he has reached the semi-finals in the Chennai Open, in both singles and doubles. In the singles, he beat Viktor Troicki 3–6, 7–6(6), 6–1 in the first round, Nicolas Mahut 6–2, 6–4 in the second round, Robin Haase 4–6, 6–2, 6–3 in the quarterfinals and eventually went out 6–2, 6–3 in the semi-finals to Mikhail Youzhny who went on to win the tournament.
Čilić made it to the 4th round of the Australian Open 2008, taking out 2 seeds on his way, including 2007 Australian Open finalist Fernando González. James Blake went on to beat him 6–3, 6–4, 6–4 in the 4th round. He then already achieved his goal for the year of reaching the top 40. His 4th round result at the Australian Open put him at #39 in the ATP rankings.
Čilić also made it to the 4th round of Wimbledon, beating Jarkko Nieminen 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-7(6), 7-5 in the 2nd round and knocking off the fourteenth seed Paul-Henri Mathieu 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-4, 7-6(6). He lost in straight sets to Arnaud Clément. At the Canada Masters, he defeated Andy Roddick in Toronto in order to reach the quarter-final stage, thus making it his best performance in a Masters Series tournament so far. He lost in three sets to Gilles Simon in quarter-finals.
Čilić played the Pilot Pen Tennis in New Haven, Connecticut where he won his first ATP title. He defeated Viktor Troicki, Jürgen Melzer, Igor Andreev and 2007 finalist Mardy Fish in the final, 6-4, 4-6, 6-2.
Čilić reached the 3rd round of the US Open, losing to Novak Djokovic 6-7(7), 7-5, 6-4, 7-6(0). In the first round, he defeated Julien Benneteau in five sets, in a match that lasted more than four hours, winning the deciding set by 6-2. He then defeated Robby Ginepri in four sets, 6-4, 2-6, 6-2, 7-5.

2009
He won his first title of 2009 and second career ATP title in the 2009 Chennai Open, defeating first-time finalist Indian Somdev Devvarman.[1]
He reached the fourth round of the Australian Open after beating David Ferrer in straight sets, equalling his 2008 record. In the fourth round, he was defeated by Juan Martin del Potro in 4 sets. Cilic would later win the PBZ Zagreb Indoors defeating compatriot Mario Ancic in the final 6-3, 6-4. He helped his country whitewash Chilean opponents in the Davis Cup first round tie by winning the opening singles match and by joining forces with Mario Ancic to win the doubles rubber.




Sam Querrey
Country
United States
Residence
Thousand Oaks, CA United States
Date of birth
October 7, 1987 (age 21)
Place of birth
San Francisco, CA United States
Height
1.98 m (6 ft 6 in)
Weight
91 kg (200 lb; 14.3 st)
Turned pro
2006
Plays
Right-handed; two-handed backhand
Career prize money
$1,149,213
Singles
Career record:
61–64
Career titles:
1
Highest ranking:
No. 33 (January 19, 2009)
Infobox last updated on: February 23, 2009.
Sam Austin Querrey [1](born October 7, 1987 in San Francisco, California, United States) is a professional American tennis player from Thousand Oaks, California. As of February, 2009, he is the fourth-highest ranked American and thirty-fourth ranked player in the world. Querrey stands at 6'6" and weighs 200 pounds. His height allows him to play with a huge serve and forehand. Querrey holds the record for most consecutive service aces since the ATP began keeping records of those statistics, with ten.
Early Expectations
Many tennis experts have touted Querrey as America's next great talent, including Davis Cup Captain Patrick McEnroe. Querrey turned down a scholarship offer from USC to turn pro.[2] He cracked the top 100 World Singles rankings following his third round performance at the Australian Open. He is sometimes referred to as "The New Todd Martin".

Career
2006
On June 11, 2006, Querrey became the first player to win a challenger event in his pro debut. He claimed tournament victories in the Yuba City and Winnetka challengers. He won his first round match at the Indian Wells Masters tournament over Bobby Reynolds, before falling to James Blake in three sets. He defeated American Vince Spadea at the Countrywide Classic in Los Angeles. At the US Open, Querrey defeated Philipp Kohlschreiber in straight sets before falling to Gastón Gaudio.

2007
At the 2007 Australian Open he advanced to the third round. He defeated José Acasuso, the 27th seed, in the first round. In the second round, he defeated Frenchman Florent Serra in straight sets, but in the third round lost to 7th seed Tommy Robredo in four sets.
At the 2007 Indianapolis Tennis Championships he hit 10 consecutive aces when he defeated James Blake in a quarterfinal. This is believed to be an Open Era record[3].
At the 2007 Western and Southern Masters he defeated thirteenth seed Mikhail Youzhny and advanced to the quarterfinals after defeating Argentina's Juan Mónaco, who had defeated Rafael Nadal the previous round. He lost to #9 seed James Blake, but made his top 50 debut at #47 afterwards. At this time, Querrey was the 3rd ranked American behind Andy Roddick and James Blake.
In August 2007 at the U.S. Open Austrian Stefan Koubek defeated Querrey in the first round 7–6(1) 6–1 6–1. Querrey started the 2008 season with a loss to Joseph Sirianni, a 33 year old with no career wins on the ATP Tour.

2008
In January 2008 at the Australian Open Querrey defeated Belgian Olivier Rochus in the first round 6–3 6–2 7–5. In the second round he then beat Russian Dmitry Tursunov 7–6 (5) 4–6 6–4 6–2. He lost in the third round to the eventual champion, Serbian Novak Djokovic, 6–3 6–1 6–3.
In March 2008 Querrey won his first ATP level tournament at the Tennis Channel Open in Las Vegas. In the final Querrey defeated qualifier Kevin Anderson of South Africa in three tight sets, 4–6, 6–3, 6–4. The next month, at the Monte Carlo Masters, Querrey reached the quarter-finals, defeating former French Open champion Carlos Moyà, Andreas Seppi, and number seven seeded Richard Gasquet.
Querrey played tennis for the USA at the Beijing Summer Olympics in 2008. He advanced to the fourth round of the US Open by defeating 14th seed Ivo Karlović of Croatia, where he was defeated in 4 sets by world no.1 Rafael Nadal, 6-2, 5-7, 7-6 (2), 6-3.
Querrey was tapped to play for the US in the Davis Cup semifinals against Spain as a replacement for James Blake, who had withdrawn citing exhaustion. In Querrey's first ever Davis Cup match, he lost to Rafael Nadal in four sets, 6-7 (5/7), 6-4, 6-3, 6-4.

2009
Querrey participated in the 2009 Heineken Open in Auckland, New Zealand in January, where he was the sixth seed. Querrey made it all the way to the final, where he was defeated in straight sets by top-seed Juan Martin del Potro 6-4, 6-4. A day prior to the final, Querrey had a notable semifinal performance in which he beat the second-seed David Ferrer. Querrey was 5-2 down in the third set but managed to push Ferrer into a third-set tiebreak which he eventually won with a final score of 3-6, 6-3, 7-6.
In the 2009 Australian Open, Querrey lost in his opening round to Philipp Kohlschreiber 7-6, 6-3, 6-2.
In the SAP Open, Querrey prevailed against Cypriot wild card Marcos Baghdatis 6-3, 5-7, 7-6(5) in a challenging opener. Baghdatis jumped out to a 4-0 advantage in the third-set tie-break but failed to hold onto the lead as Querrey levelled the score at 4-all and proceeded to close out the match by winning the final three points. Querrey then rolled past Denis Gremelmayr 6-3, 6-2 in 52 minutes.

Other Information
Querrey plays with the Prince O3 Hybrid Tour, switching from the Diablo prior to the 2007 Sony Ericsson Open in Miami. He wears the adidas Competition Group as his attire.[4]
Querrey is also known for his unique fan base known as The Samurai. The group derives from Querrey's Thousand Oaks origin, and have been seen at many tournaments.
Querrey's tennis doubles partner is often 6'9", 23 year old John Isner of the United States.



Donald Young
Country
 United States
Residence
Atlanta, Georgia
Date of birth
July 23, 1989 (age 19)
Place of birth
Chicago, Illinois
Height
1.82 m (5 ft 111⁄2 in)
Weight
72 kg (160 lb; 11.3 st)
Turned pro
2004
Plays
Left-handed; two-handed backhand
Career prize money
$430,552
Singles
Career record:
10–33
Career titles:
0
Highest ranking:
No. 73 (April 21, 2008)
Infobox last updated on: October 16, 2008.

Donald Oliver Young, Jr. (born July 23, 1989) is a professional tennis player from the United States. While ball-boying at the age of 10, Young had the opportunity to play with tennis legend John McEnroe. McEnroe would later say that Young "...has hands like another lefty I know very well."[1]
Young has a career-high ATP ranking of 73. As of March 23, 2009, he has an ATP rank of 162.
Career
Young is coached by his father, Donald Young Sr., and mother, Illona, who are both tennis teaching professionals. Born in Chicago, Young now resides in Atlanta, Georgia
He turned professional in 2004, but has mostly won matches in Futures and Challenger events, lower level pro tennis tournaments. He currently has a career ATP singles record of 8-26, all 8 victories coming in the last 12 months. Due to the slow start, his handlers were often criticized for pushing him too fast during the early stages.[2]
Young was, for a period of time in 2005, ranked the # 1 junior player in the world. Young was the youngest male to win a Grand Slam Event winning the Australian Open Junior Championships in 2005. A record he held until the Australian Open in 2008, when Bernard Tomic won the event 2 months younger than Young. Young also won the U.S. Open Junior Doubles Championship with Alex Clayton

2007
In January 2007 he reached the finals of a Futures tournament on the ITF Men's Circuit, as well as winning a Futures title in April. This was his biggest success in the professional ranks.
In July 2007, Young won the Junior Wimbledon title, beating number 1 seed Vladimir Ignatic 7–5, 6–1 in the final. Shortly thereafter, Young won a Challenger tournament and his ranking rose sharply to 221.
His rank rose sharply, from 92 to 7th on the Junior ITF circuit (as of July 13, 2007), after he won the Junior Wimbledon Championships. He opted to play only some of the grand slam tournaments in 2007, and concentrate on playing professional tournaments.
On August 19, 2007, Young won his first-ever ATP Tour level singles match. In the first round of New Haven he beat fellow American Amer Delic in three sets: 4–6, 6–3, 6–4. In the following round, he lost a tight three-setter to Russian Nikolay Davydenko 2–6, 6–4, 5–7.
In 2007 Young received a wild card into the main US Open draw. On August 27, 2007, Young defeated Australian Chris Guccione 6–7(2), 6–3, 6–2, 6–3 in the first round. This was his first career victory in a grand slam match. On August 30, Young won his second round match by default. It was against heavily favored opponent Richard Gasquet of France, who had fallen ill during the procession of the tournament and officially withdrew after morning practice. On September 1, Young fell in the third round to unseeded Feliciano López of Spain in 4 sets, 3-6, 6-3, 7-6, 7-5.
Young carried the momentum into the fall, making it to the finals of 4 challenger tournaments and posting an overall fall record of 21-7 on the challenger circuit.[3] This was enough to hoist him into the top 100 on the ATP rankings.
His talents were recognized by the Association of Tennis Professionals in December, 2007, as for Young was one of eleven honored in the 2007 Century Club[4]

2008
In the Australian Open, Young lost in the 1st round to Michael Berrer in 4 sets. There were much higher hopes for Young as he made it to the quarterfinals of the tennis tournament in Memphis. Young defeated Sam Warburg and Alejandro Falla in the first and second rounds respectively, before losing in a tough 3 set match to Jonas Bjorkman.
In Indian Wells, Young made it to the third round. He defeated Bobby Reynolds. Then in the second round, he took out the 32 seed, Feliciano López in three sets. He lost to the 2007 Indian Wells champion Rafael Nadal in the third round. He lost in the first round of the French Open, then continued to lose a close four set match in the first round of the Wimbledon against fellow American Jesse Levine.
At a "Super-9" Masters Series event, the Canadian Open. Young won two preliminary matches to qualify for the tournament before dropping his first round match to Gilles Simon 6-1, 6-3.
At the Countrywide Classic in Los Angeles, he recently defeated well-known player Tommy Haas (ranked ATP 40 at the time) 6-2, 6-4.
In the first round of the US Open, Young lost to James Blake in a 5-set thriller. He came back from down a break to win the fourth set. Although the final set was tied 4-4, with the help of two key calls overturned on challenges in the last two games, Blake won 6-1, 3-6, 6-1, 4-6, 6-4.
Young won the Sacramento Challenger tournament on October 13, 2008.

Thanks to wikipedia for the information.