And now a word from our sponsor

This is called the Anti-Post, so it's time to give a report card to the Saint Louis Post-Dispatch.
Overall the paper is still mediocre at best. I would say it is the worst daily in Saint Louis, but then I would also have to say it is the best daily in Saint Louis. (Get it, it's the only daily in the city). It's too bad the Riverfront Times isn't a daily paper. At least it would keep the Post honest.

Design and layout D. The paper changed it's layout and graphics this year to try to boost sagging circulation. But, now the paper looks like a Suburban Journal. (If you don't know what that is...it's not a good thing. The journal is a twice weekly throw away. But, you do have to give the post a B for effort.

News Reporting B-. It seems to do a pretty good job of handling local news and several of it's columnist really do know what is happening. Bill McClellan is excellent!

News Editing B. The editing desk seems to be trying to stop the stupid and careless mistakes it has made in the past. But, there are days of sheer stupidity. It appears as if they are short staffed but that's no excuse. Hire some people. You certainly have the cash flow!

Sports Reporting D. The sports staff seems to believe it is operating in a vacuum. The paper leaves much to be desired in game day reporting and layout. The biases of the sports staff persist. As an example the University of Missouri has more alums than all other institutions combined in Saint Louis but it still seems to be enamored with running other colleges game stories above the fold. The Missouri game coverage is then relegated to an internal page. I have written letters to the Post's management complaining of this, but they have yet to reply or explain the bias. Finally, the local columnists seem to take delight in running inside jokes or attempting to be humorous. Believe, me the only thing funny about the Sports section is that management lets these bozos get by with their un-professional efforts.

Sports editing D. The sports editors seem to be in a world to themselves. They have made too many errors too many times. In the Friday paper the editors invented new radio frequencies on which to hear local broadcasts. ACtually, the did not include the whole frequency of a radio station. One mistake is not a big deal. But twice in two lines. Please!!! Not enough attention to detail and too much inconsistency.

Editorials, Entertainment, and the rest of the paper C The editorials are frequently inane but they reflect a management that at times seems confused about what it is doing. You really can't screw up the funny page and the rest of the paper is mediocre.

Final grade C. Like I said it's a really mediocre paper so a C is the perfect grade for it.

Back to Reality

Happy New Year to you! It was a fine New Years. Nothing crazy. In fact I heard the New Year come in while dozing off when some neighbors shot off fireworks. And then for the first time in years I went to church on New Years morning at eight in the morning on top of it. In the afternoon J&L P and I got together at their house to watch football. Oh yeah, they have the NFL Sunday ticket so I was in hog heaven. I could get real addicted to it. But, that will have to wait until next season now. L cooked up a big old pot of vegetable beef soup and it was awesome! I had three cups of it and then chased it with a sandwich. She can really cook!

The second was bowl game day, so after taking down the exterior lights and working on my car, I watched a lot of football.

And today it was back to reality. I had to go into work again after 17 days off. What a bummer. But, then after all of last months departmental layoffs it was good to be able to go to work. And I also started my weight reduction plan today. No beer for a couple of weeks, a daily workout or walking and very small food portions. And lots of water. It has worked in the past when I have lost in excess of 40 pounds and another time when I shed over 35 pounds. It will work again too (or I will have to go out and buy new clothes). And that aint going to happen. So stay tuned and I will let you know how it is going.

How Bout Them Tigers!!!

My beloved Tigers won the Independence Bowl this afternoon. They beat the South Carolina Gamecocks 38-31! But what makes it even more impressive is the Tigers coming from a 28-7 deficit to win the game!

Brad Smith the Tigers QB was awesome! He had over 400 total yards of offense but even more impressively was his performance in the second half. He threw for a touchdown and ran for two more as the Tigers won their first bowl game since 1998.

As a Tiger Fan I am willing to give coach Gary Pinkel another year at the helm. He and his staff certainly adjusted at halftime today to win the bowl game. And with 17 of 22 starters returning I can hardly wait for the new college football season to begin! Yes, Mizzou will lose Brad Smith but Chase Daniel will get er done against the rest of the Big 12.

So to wrap this up congratulations to the Tigers, Gary Pinkel and Brad Smith and the defense that played one heck of a game in the second half!

MIZZOU-RAH TIGERS!!!

How was your Christmas?

I can't believe it but Christmas has come and gone. I had a great time at my sister and brother in law's home and playing with the little ones. The two two-year olds make me feel young and had me on the floor romping with them. And then add in my four year old great nephew Nate and we had a ball with all of his new Christmas toys.

Christmas day was still good even though I got sideswiped by a little 19 year old bimbo who thought she owned the road. Good thing there's insurance, because her insurer is going to pay to buy me a new side view mirror.

And today was a legal holiday, but it could have been a regular day. (You know, no mail or any other services, but still a good day). This evening I went to Southpaw's to watch MNF and it was kind of bittersweet. Now, you know how much I love football. But, it was the last game of the season, but also the final game of ABC's 36 year run. I can remember being in high school in 1969 when MNF first started. I am sorry to see it go, but then, life goes on.

I hope you had a great Christmas and hope you got everything you wished for!

HOW MUCH?

I thought about posting this in huge type face, because that is what I have become. I stepped on a scale this afternoon and it topped out at 285 pounds. I about crapped. Just six months ago I was right about the 262 level.

I know how it happened but didn't pay much attention to it. I have been eating most everything I want and drinking most everything too without much regard for my weight. And boom it's like, hey fat-ass guess how much you weigh? Two Hundred and Eighty Five freakin pounds!

I guess you will see this fatso walking around the neighborhood quite a bit. So, what have I done since seeing this startling number? I have had about five chocolate chip cookies and a couple handfuls of peanuts. Real Healthy stuff, huh? Man, I hate losing weight, but after the holidays are over I will do it because I have to. I am not real happy right now!

P.S I just ran the spell checker on this and guess what work it wanted to use for "freakin". It suggested "foreskin"! :-)