SB Nation User Blog: pdb

OTFPOTD - No mimosas this morning

pdb — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 17:17:07 -0000

It's annoying going back to work for one day between a holiday and a weekend. This time yesterday, I was cracking open a bottle of champagne and making delicious mimosas, and now I'm back to bottled water and a granola bar. Why didn't I just take today off? Because I'm super-dedicated to my job? Nope, that ain't it....uh, because I love my coworkers dearly and the thought of spending eight fewer hours with them makes me sad? No, not it either (although my coworkers are all very nice people).

Is it because I'm a contractor and don't get paid if I don't show up? THAT'S THE ONE! Anyway, it snowed again this morning. Since I live in the NW, I think it's fair to say that I have snow fatigue, even if all my New England friends mock me for saying it; instead of being excited when I saw snow this morning, all I thought was OH GODDAMIT NOT AGAIN. At least it's stopped now and probably won't start up again.

Anyway. It's Friday. Any plans for the weekend?

OTFPOTD 12/22/08 - Dashing Through The Snow edition

pdb — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 15:47:46 -0000

Am I the only idiot in the PNW that's at work today? I'm certainly the only idiot on my floor of my building, at least so far. I don't know what it's like up in Seattle, but Portland's got about 7 in of snow, and a layer of ice on top of that. Despite all that, the bus ride in was pretty straightforward, once the bus showed up.

Anybody do anything fun in the snow? We tried to make a snowperson, but the snow yesterday was too powdery and dry so it just ended up being a snowlump. Not quite what we had in mind.

Apart from that, I got nothin'. Coach promised us a birthday FanPost yesterday, but nothin', so happy belated birthday, Coach.

12/16/08 OTFPOTD - Schizophrenic Weather edition

pdb — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 15:44:21 -0000

Sunday in Austin, it was 82 degrees - I was in shorts, sitting in Ginny's Little Longhorn, playing (and losing) Chicken Shit Bingo and drinking many beers. Monday morning in Austin, I took my wife to her office, and it was 34 degrees, with the wind chill making it feel like 18. Then I get back to pdx last night, and it's 20-something and there's a sheet of ice in front of my house.

I want to go back to Sunday. 82 degrees was nice. Austin was awesome, I want to go back there again (preferably during SxSW some year). Now I'm bracing for the next Class 5 Killstorm to barrel down on Portland like a shotgun full of snow.

What'd I miss? Except the turnover of seemingly half the Mariner roster?

Last minute Seattle meetup, tonight

pdb — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 18:09:32 -0000

I'm about to head out the door to head up to Seattle for a weekend of rock n roll debauchery - Supersuckers/Green River tonight, AC/DC tomorrow night. This brings up two things.

First, drinks. Tonight. Canterbury. 15th & Mercer. 6pm-ish. We'll probably be there from 6-9 or so then head to the Showbox Sodo for the Supersuckers - we have tix already but I don't think it's sold out if you want to attend. Which, if you like rock and roll, you should.

Second, AC/DC. I have an extra ticket. If you want it, let me know - it's not a giveaway, unfortunately, it's an $80 ticket. But it's AC/DC. Email me if you want it and we'll figure out the details.

I may also have a line on a spare Metallica ticket, but that's not a guarantee. Anyway. Hope to see you tonight.

OTFPOTD: Two days in a row edition

pdb — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 17:03:14 -0000

So it appears I'm the only one around, which means that this could be the lowest-attended fanpost in a while. But I'll put one up anyway, because, well, because it's a day.

And because it's the day before Thanksgiving, the standard questions apply:

1. What are you doing for the holiday?
2. What is your favorite food of the Thanksgiving feast?
3. Does your family have Thanksgiving post-dinner plans? My family used to eat early and bowl at night.
4. What are the odds that you get too drunk and embarrass yourself in front of your family?

So, there we are.

OTFPOTD, Midwest travelogue edition

pdb — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 15:44:43 -0000

No offense to the fine Mr. Corcoran, but Cincinnati is ASS. It's really boring, there's no good food there, and the bars downtown all close at 11PM. WTF? Oh, and that famous "Cincinnati chili" you've heard so much about? ASS. At least the Skyline Chili version. Skyline's a local chain that all my wife's coworkers said she had to try. We did yesterday. It was one step above toxic waste. At one point, my wife looked at me and said "This wouldn't even make good drunk food!" which is the worst indictment I can think of.

Indianapolis proved to be quite cool, however. Didn't spend much time there but I'd love to go back and see it in more depth.

OTFPOTD 10/16/08 - Stupid question edition

pdb — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 15:00:53 -0000

So the Phillies are in. if the Rays close out the series today, there will be no baseball until next Wednesday, at the most important time of the year. How is this acceptable? I know Fox drives the postseason schedule, and I know there's not really a way around that; it just amazes me that in this day and age, when baseball teams all have their own stadia and thus no scheduling conflicts, the league can't say "OK, the LCS's are over - you get a day off then the World Series starts".

I just don't get that the entire baseball season is predicated on playing every day, and then somehow in the playoffs that doesn't matter any more. Seems a bit counterintuitive to me.

Slightly Hungover OTFPOTD for 10/4

pdb — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 18:05:09 -0000

Nobody's going to read these weekend ones anyway, so I can just freestyle. If only I wasn't hungover, I could do such a thing. Oh beer, why must you treat me so badly when I'm always so nice to you?

Music questions ahoy!

Husker Du's Zen Arcade: Alternative rock masterpiece or unlistenable wall of noise? I love Husker Du but I tend towards the latter opinion of this particular album.

David Bowie's Heroes: Most brutal love song ever? It sounds so inspiring, but the people in the song are so broken; they want to be so whole, it hurts.

The New Bomb Turks: Best band you've probably never heard of? You really need to check these guys out.

Also, I might mention how awesome it is to go to a little dive bar and hear a random, anonymous punk band do a great cover of my favorite Groovie Ghoulies song.

The 9/10/08 Nobody's Done It Yet Half-Assed Off Topic Fanpost

pdb — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 16:03:44 -0000

Nobody has put one up yet so here one is. I don't really have any time to look up interesting or relevant links, but I will say that Lance Armstrong's comeback is official, which...hmmm. I am not a fan of athletes that "retire" only to come back a couple years later; either stay retired or, when you leave, call it a "break" and intimate that you'll be back in a couple years. Retirement is final.

The Lookout Landing Style Guide, 2008 edition

pdb — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 18:13:12 -0000

Despite all appearances to the contrary, Lookout Landing actually doesn't mind new posters. The problem comes when new posters don't understand how we do things around here. So, consider this a style guide for the newly-registered and first-posting LL person; hopefully these tips will help you become a contributor that brings something to the table, and will hopefully allow your entry into the admittedly high-standards world of Lookout Landing to be as easy as possible.

So, here's the basics - and they're phrased as absolutes intentionally:

1. If you've never posted here before, always lurk before posting. The "regulars" at this place have been here a long, long time, and most of them have forgotten more about baseball than you or I will ever know. I would recommend reading everything (EVERYTHING: comments, FanPosts, main posts, everything) that's written here for 2-3 months before posting, and when you do post, try to reflect the tone of the posts you've read over the past few months.

Don't make your first post an insult. Let people get to know you before you let your inner snark monster out.

You will be OK as long as you, as the new person, don't assume you know more than the people that have been here a long time. Respect the knowledge that's here, ask questions of it, and don't assume it's wrong because some dude at your office/bar told you that Derek Jeter's the best shortstop ever. Which leads to...

2. If you think something that someone said is wrong, feel free to challenge it - but if you do, do so intelligently, with an argument backed up with more than "YOU SUCK OMG WHAT DO YOU KNOW'. That approach will get you hounded out of here fast, and not just by the mods.

3. Don't be afraid to be wrong; most of the non-analysts on here are proven wrong about some of the things they say. If you are proven wrong, accept it with grace - you don't have to agree with it, but don't start a flame war because someone comes up with a refutation of something you said.

3a. Corollary to #3 - There's nothing wrong with being wrong. Where some new posters have problems is when they don't accept that they're wrong (even when shown beyond doubt that they are, in fact, wrong) and then insist on keeping the argument going, for whatever reason. Please don't do this. If you say things that can be proven wrong, and are then subsequently proven wrong, accept it with dignity and move on.

4. Always use the subject line when making a comment. Even if it's one word that leads into your post.

5. Always make sure you format your sentences properly. "Properly" means capitalized first words of sentences and using commas, correct spelling, and correct punctuation. It also means using paragraph breaks, so that your long discourse can be readable (this rule may seem overly pedantic, but it's pretty non-negotiable; if it does seem pedantic, you're probably in the wrong place). It's easy to do, and it makes the place a much better resource. And, last but not least, no text-speak.

6. If you post pictures, make sure they're small - large pics suck up resources and cause slow load times for those of us on antiquated work networks. At the end of an image link, add the text "width-200>", without the quotes.

7. Don't be lazy in your assumptions. That guy at the office that told you Jeter's the best shortstop ever? He's wrong, and anyone on here will point you towards concrete reasons why. If you make an assumption based on the guy in your office, and are then shown why that assumption is wrong, see #3.

8. Be open minded about what you don't know.

9. When replying to a comment, please use the "Reply" button instead of starting a new comment thread. This makes conversations much easier to follow.

10. FanPosts have a minimum word count of 75 words. If you have something to say in a FanPost, make sure that it contains 75 words pertaining to the topic which you want to discuss - a FanPost should not be "We should trade Ichiro" followed by "75 words" repeated over and over again to hit the 75 word limit. or any other random text as filler after your five-word FanPost. Make your FanPosts count. You get one free as a warning, then you're gone.

11. Dissenting opinions are welcome, and should be encouraged, at Lookout Landing.

HOWEVER.

If you have a dissenting opinion, BE PREPARED TO PROVE YOUR POINT. All-caps yelling and repeated expression of distaste for the people with whom you are arguing do NOT constitute "proving your point". If you believe in something strongly enough to assert it at LL, be ready to demonstrate why you believe it, be ready to defend yourself logically, and keep #3 and #3a in mind at all times.

12. Please stay on topic in the baseball-related threads. During the season, and I assume this will continue in the winter, there's a thread created every day called OFFTOP or Off-Topic Post Of The Day or some such thing - use those threads to discuss bands, movies, food, anything that doesn't directly relate to baseball. The off-topic posts are pretty free-form, but there are guidelines as to expected behaviors in this here thread.