I'm back, bitches (thought it appears most of you are gone)

I haven't posted anything in awhile...mostly because I'm quite certain no one reads this anymore. But I need an outlet to vent, because there's just so much to talk about right now, so here goes...an incoherent, rambling rant, brought to you in our traditional four goal style (even though none of the following four points would be considered a "goal" by any rational human being).

1) NBA playoffs start next week. I wish I could be excited about the prospects of my beloved Cavaliers, but the fact of the matter is, they just don't have it this year. The new acquisitions haven't gelled yet, and they look painfully slow against running teams (like Philly). However this is no cause for concern for this guy...since the quality of play is better than its been in years. Every night there is a compelling matchup, and every team has at least one guy who could start on a championship team (with the possible exception of Memphis, or New York). I'm loving the NBA right now

2) Hope everyone noticed my beloved Montreal Canadiens grab the top seed in the East today! I like their chances in the loaded East, since they drew the Bruins in the first round (who they were 8-0 against this year). But I want no part of Alex Ovechkin and the streaking Caps, nor the ridiculously loaded Penguins. Even freaking Ottawa is a 6 seed, and they've been crapping on the Habs faces for 3 years now. It'll be a tough road, but I think, more than anything else, a traditional hockey town needs to win the cup this year. Whether its Pittsburgh, Montreal, Detroit, San Jose (you heard me), Philly or New York, SOMEONE must win from a traditional hockey market. I don't know if the league can take another sun belt team with a fickle fan base winning the cup (like Anaheim last year, Carolina the year before, or Tampa Bay the time before that...though to be fair, Carolina fans are underrated, and Raleigh is a wonderful market for the NHL).

3) Baseball, baby! Hope everyone caught the strange incident in the Braves/Pirates game last Wednesday. After bringing in righty Chris Resop to pitch to one of the Pirates tough righties (Jason Bay, I think), Bobby Cox then replaced Resop with lefty Royce Ring to face Adam LaRoche...except he put Resop in left field so he could bring him in again to face another righty in Xavier Nady. The move unfortunately backfired, as Nady doubled in the winning run, but I loved Cox's out of the box thinking. The old man is fully capable of getting creative, and is every bit as spry as he was in the early 90's. That being said, I think managers get pretty ridiculous with the lefty on lefty matchups, and this was a perfect example of that. What I really think is dumb is the idea that right handers hit worse against right handed pitching. They've been facing right handed pitchers their entire lives...I don't think they are shaking in their boots facing one now! Still the Braves are 3-3, and beat the Mets twice this weekend. I'm not as optimistic as some experts on their chances this year, but I really don't think the Mets and Phillies are that much better.

4) How 'bout some music? Some favorites of mine currently: Skurny's recent visit produced a bit more than the usual haze of smoke and Smithwicks, as he turned me onto Band of Horses, a band so good I've been wondering where they've been all my life. Also, the pride of Akron Ohio (other than LeBron James) has a new album out, The Black Keys actually hired Danger Mouse to produce their new album, "Attack and Release." I'm pretty sure Skurny will second my opinion on that one. Also, Death Cab for Cutie has a new album dropping next Monday. Though I'm certain I'll get crap for plugging that one, its important to mention that Death Cab isn't really "emo", at least in the current definition. I mean, they are mellow, and methodical. Completely different from crappy bands like Panic at the Disco or whatever the fuck they're called, who are considered "emo" by mainstream music pundits. So can we all agree to stop referring to Death Cab as emo? Thank you, that is all.