One of the more fascinating periods in U.S. history is the era bookended by the beginning of the enforcement of the 18th amendment in 1920 to the Constitution and the ratification of the 21st amendment repealing the 18th amendment in 1933. The 21st amendment still stands as the only amendment to undo a previous amendment. … Continue reading BOOK REVIEW: “Last Call: The Rise and Fall of Prohibition” by Daniel Okrent
BRIDGE: The One Percent Solution
I played in the Sunday Swiss at the Lansing Regional today with Kevin (what’s the deal with seven seven-board matches for the final Swiss?). Things were going swimmingly at 4-0 with 64 VP’s (20 point scale), when… ♠ ♠ KQxx ♥ A9xxx ♥ Q10xxx ♦ Axx ♦ xxx ♣ KQ10xx ♣ J 1♥ 3♣ *… Continue reading BRIDGE: The One Percent Solution
BRIDGE: New Orleans NABC – Thank you, New Orleans!
Back from New Orleans to the “real” world. This NABC was the best ever bridge tournament for me. For those that weren’t following, I was on the team that won the Mini-Spingold (0-5000 MP’s). The masterpoint award for that was 100.00, which is the first time I’ve ever won 100 masterpoints at an entire tournament,… Continue reading BRIDGE: New Orleans NABC – Thank you, New Orleans!
BRIDGE: New Orleans NABC – Gonna Make You Sweat
I am having a great time in New Orleans. My first and only trip to New Orleans before this was the 2003 Fall Nationals. The weather that time was surprisingly cold. The clothes I brought with me to that tournament were not suitable for the chill, so I did not venture out too much during… Continue reading BRIDGE: New Orleans NABC – Gonna Make You Sweat
BRIDGE: Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans?
Up early. Always happens on the day that I am scheduled to leave for a nationals. I have a flight this afternoon into New Orleans. It has been a bit nerve-wracking over the past two days to watch the progress of tropical depression, nee tropical storm, Bonnie as it crossed the Atlantic, Florida and the… Continue reading BRIDGE: Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans?
I write like…
The newest Internet meme is the “I write like…” machine. It takes a sample of your writing and compares it to various authors to find the closest match to your writing style. I have no idea of the algorithm involved, but I was overly flattered to find out that… I write likeDavid Foster Wallace I… Continue reading I write like…
BOOK REVIEW: “Soccernomics” by Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski
“Freakonomics” for Soccer. “Moneyball” for futbol. If you remember nothing else from this review than that, you will have the major point. “Soccernomics” is a book that applies economic principles to the game of soccer. While European soccer is the main focus of the book, Americans will find something of interest since the authors make… Continue reading BOOK REVIEW: “Soccernomics” by Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski
THEATER REVIEW: Performance Network’s “The Seafarer” by Conor McPherson
It’s an old tale told many times – a man (almost always a man) battles with the devil for possession of his soul. This time the man is James “Sharky” Harkin, and the setting is Baldoyle, North Dublin, Ireland on Christmas Eve. Sharky opens the play by coming into the living room area of what… Continue reading THEATER REVIEW: Performance Network’s “The Seafarer” by Conor McPherson
World Cup Quarterfinals
I first “discovered” the World Cup back in 1982. Spain was the locale, and PBS was showing the matches in the US. On my bookshelf is a book by Franz Beckenbauer recapping that event. I knew nothing about soccer at the time, but I was fascinated by the passion and the spectacle. The story of… Continue reading World Cup Quarterfinals
BRIDGE: USBC Quarterfinals – A new sponsor strategy?
Yesterday marked the completion of the US Bridge Championships (USBC) quarterfinal round. The quarterfinals were 120 hands conducted over two days in eight sessions of fifteen boards each. In two of the matches, the trailing teams conceded before the end. The other two matches went the distance. Of the four teams in those two matches,… Continue reading BRIDGE: USBC Quarterfinals – A new sponsor strategy?
Apropos of Mark 