Like many here, I was following SMA's P90X adventure, but he hasn't updated in awhile, so I thought I'd ask how those of us who made the commitment to healthier living were getting along.  I didn't go the full P90X route, but, starting on January 3rd I made a real commitment to exercising more and eating better, and I'm very happy with my results.  I've gone from 225 to 203 (I'm 5'11), gone from wearing size 38 pants to size 36s being generally too big (although 34s are still usually quite tight, it's too bad 35s are so hard to find), and I've gone from being winded after about two flights of stairs to being able to go up 6 or 7 and recover almost instantly.  I can do 40 push ups (up from about 15), can run 3 or 4 miles after work, and I feel fantastic.  My blood pressure is down.  My goal is to get to the 190-195 range by the time of my 40th birthday in August, which would be the lightest I've been since my junior year at Iowa in the spring of 1992 when I was on the crew team for a year.  I still eat and drink just about everything I did before (although I try to snack on fruit more), but I mainly just keep preaching "moderation, moderation, moderation."  A handful of chips doesn't have to be 7, a beer after work doesn't have to be 4, a slice of pizza doesn't have to be 3.  When I slip (and believe me, I do), I just try really hard to start up again the very next day rather than feel defeated.  Changing mindsets isn't easy, but if you keep preaching the same things to yourself every day, sooner or later the new ways of thinking start to take hold and I no longer miss the bowl of chips or slice of leftover pizza I'd eat before bed while watching the Daily Show or Sportscenter.     

So again, how about everyone else?  I'd be eager to hear your stories.  I know there were a number of us on board.
Seems like as good a topic as any during the slow off-season.

...exactly what time does your deal with the devil expire?   If you'll permit me what's admittedly nothing more than a jealousy-fueled rant, but my god. 

First, your favorite college football team goes 11-1 in the regular season, ties for the Big Ten title, makes the Rose Bowl, and experiences a prime-time, once-in-a-lifetime-if-you-were-there win over the #1 Ohio State Buckeyes at home. 

Then, just as you're recovering from the disappointing Rose Bowl loss (but hey, you were there), your favorite pro football team rattles off 6 straight wins at the end of the season and WINS THE FREAKING SUPER BOWL, a game my favorite team (the Chiefs, yeah I know) haven't even played in once in my LIFETIME (I'm 39). 

As if that weren't enough to tide you through the next several years, although obviously it would be, your favorite college basketball team, in addition to having their usual solid season, experiences a nationally televised, once-in-a-lifetime-if-you-were-there win over the #1 and previously undefeated Ohio State Buckeyes at home.  

Obviously Iowa has had some fun moments over the years, especially on the gridiron.   But for the love of god Wisconsin, knock it the hell off.  Three things that would be on my all time top-10 as a sports fan, maybe top 5, in the span of SIX DAMN MONTHS.   It hardly seems fair.  OK, jealousy-fueled rant over.

On the bright side, my wife is in Chicago this weekend, and did snag me two more bottles of the good stuff, finding it at the liquor store across from her hotel.  So there's that.

I was sitting at home watching the game today with my wife, a lady who knows her pro football.  We live in Minnesota.  She is a huge Vikings fan who likes and appreciates the Chiefs, mostly as the result of 10 years of marriage to me, but sees them with a far more detached eye than I, a lifelong, diehard fan.  After the Matt Cassel scramble where he got a first down and got all pumped afterwords I made a comment to the effect of "I'm really starting to love this guy, I could see him being my team's QB for the next decade."   Her sarcastic reply was "yes, let's talk about your promising young QB.  Then lets talk about all the other ways your team is getting nothing but better while mine is going nowhere."

I replied, "well, we could talk about our promising young RB, or our promising young WR, or our promising young TE."  To which she replied "or your promising young coach, or your coordinators who might be the league's best, or, hey, I have a good one, how about your sparkling new stadium as opposed to the one with the hole in the roof?"  This conversation really got me thinking, and rolling, and I continued -- "how about our tandem of young corners, or our all-pro safety in waiting, or even our pro-bowl caliber kicker and punter?"  At this point, about ready to cry, she added "or your respected GM and clear heiarchy of decsion making?  How about the fact that you have a young roster that's just about the envy of very team in the league and you are one or two more good drafts and offseasons away from perrenial contention?"   

At this point I'm thinking, man, she's right.  This thing is on the doorstep of being UNREAL.  Yes, they need another WR, another run-stuffing DL, another stud on the OL, a little more pass rush, there are still some holes.  But, a little more tweaking, a few more upgrades, a few more positions get improved, and this is a team on the verge, a team without a glaring weakness.  This is a team that might win the division this year, and might contend for the Superbowl as soon as next year, and might contend for the foreseeable future.  My wife, a Vikings fan, sees this.  She sees in her team an aging roster, major questions at QB, OL, DL, CB, and looks at the Chiefs with envy. 

I'm not used to anyone looking at the Chiefs with envy.  She does.

I know there have been similar fanposts already, but I feel the need to let this out, so here goes:

It's been about 48 hours since Iowa lost to Northwestern.  AGAIN.  It sucks.  The mood amongst the fanbase and surrounding the program right now is about as bad as it's been since sometime in 2007, or at least after the 3-3 start in 2008.  Another season of great expectations has failed to live up.  Having said that, I think a tremendous opportunity exists on Saturday.

Saturday is senior day.  This has been a special, special group.  The 2008 win over PSU, closing out the dome at 55-0, double block, Clayborn's punt block in Happy Valley, 7 got 6, and a BCS bowl win that was far more one sided than the 21-10 final would indicate.  Iowa has a chance to add one more incredibly special memory.  Stanzi has a chance to leave a legacy greater than admittedly flat performances at IU and NU.  Iowa has a chance to end a 5-year stretch of Big Ten titles, against one of the most marquee programs in college football, with every college football fan in the midwest tuning in.  9-3 (6-2) wouldn't be what the fanbase hoped for entering the season, but, you know what?  It's pretty damn good.  It would get them the Capital One Bowl against a big-time SEC school and another shot at 10 wins.  Iowa has only won 6 or more conference games 6 times in 20 years ('90, '91, '96, '02, '04, '09).  Let's make it 7.  A win over big, bad Ohio State could salvage a lot of joy from a largely depressing season.  And I mean a lot.

It will be tough.  They are solid on both sides of the ball.  Pryor is a tremendous athlete.  But, if the team that showed up against Michigan State shows up, if the offense that showed up for large stretches of the Wisconsin, Michigan and first half of the Penn State games shows up, Iowa can play with these guys.  They could give OSU a game.  And maybe, just maybe, this is the week where it's IOWA that makes the big play in the 4th quarter with the game on the line.  It can happen.  And if it does, it's going to feel good, no, it's going to feel AWESOME, and I'm going to dance around my living room (I really wish I could make it down) and sing In Heaven there is no Beer with my kids.  And I'm going to celebrate breaking a ridiculous streak of conference titles.  And beating a team Iowa almost NEVER beats.  And exacting revenge for last year's heartache.  And I'm going to break open a really expensive bottle of alcohol of some sort Saturday night. 

Because, as much as last Saturday hurt, a great, great chance still sits in front of this team.  Face it, once AZ and WI happened any BCS dreams were on life support anyway.  And I have the strangest feeling, despite all evidence to the contrary, that they might just make the most of it.  LET'S FORGET ABOUT THE DAMN WILDCATS (until 10-15-11, when they are going down), and BEAT THE MIGHTY OHIO STATE BUCKEYES.  OK, that was my "was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?!" Bluto speech.  Make of it what you will, but, we beat OSU, and this is still a damn special season.

A winning record has been elusive thus far in 2010.  The Cubs have come tantalizingly close, 3 times reaching the .500 mark, at 5-5, again at 10-10 and facing two more against the Nationals, and at 13-13 going into a series against the Pirates.  Each time, facing a seemingly (on paper) weaker opponent, the Cubs have stopped hitting, a recurring theme this year.  The offensive statistics only look decent because the Cubs either seem to score 10 runs or 2, with no consistency.  So, the question is, will this team ever actually topple the .500 mark and have a winning record this year?  I thought so, but after this series against the Bucs, I'm truly beginning to wonder.  If it's not the bullpen, it's A-Ram and the offense.  The starting pitching is about the only thing that's been respectable, but even that has been a little more shaky the last few weeks. 

I know they started slow in 2007.  I know other teams, such as the '05 Astros, have started slowly and turned it around.  I just don't know if I see it with these guys though.  What say you?

So, after the Cubs' big win over the Brewers Sunday, I was out for a walk with my 4-year old and dog on a lovely sunny day in Duluth, MN, and wearing my favorite Cubs T-shirt.  I was a couple blocks from my house when a 50-ish woman working on her lawn got all excited -- "Hey, you're wearing a Cubs shirt!  My Dad played for the Cubs!"  She asked if I was a fan.  After confirming I was, she proceeded to tell me her Dad, a guy named Bob "shorty" Raudman, played outfield for the Cubs from '61 to '68 before being traded to the Reds.  Said he hit behind Ernie Banks.  After chatting for a minute or two we ended our brief and pleasant exchange and I moved on.   Of course, being the skeptical sort, I did a little research when I got home.

Shorty Raudman

Turns out he was signed in '61, although he only saw time with the parent club in '66 and '67, and only played in 16 games.  His rights were traded to Cleveland in '67, and immediately re-traded to Cincy.  Despite barely having a cup of coffee in the majors, I thought it was cool that I live two blocks from his daughter and that she's still a Cub fan.  So, any long-timers (I went with that rather than "old" timers) remember Shorty Raudman?  Any stories?  Like I said, very brief stint with the team, but still cool.

I'm a long-time reader and very infrequent poster, but I thought this story was worthy of sharing.