The Facebook picture scanner strikes again. In regards to this picture, the comment I posted was:

“Ms. McKenna was the first cougar I ever met.”

It’s true. Posting that about Ms. McKenna was actually a real watershed moment for me.

Per the urban dictionary, a cougar is:

Ms. McKenna really was the first cougar I had ever met. Coming to this realization today was fantastic. It was a turning point, if you will. It is a special moment in every young man’s life when he looks at an older woman and thinks (for the first time):

“I could probably get her.”

To me, it was an awakening. Usually, this revelation happens later in life than it did for me (8th grade). This really isn’t a reflection on who I am, but who she was. She was the teacher that was (not so) subtly flirtatious with her students. Her words, actions and even her glances were different than any of my other teachers. She introduced the wonderful concept of cougars to me and for that, I am very truly thankful.

Continuing on the Thanksgiving theme, I’m also thankful and blessed to have such a warm, loving family and such great friends. I’m thankful that people actually take the time to read and check in here each day. To all of you:

I’m thankful that you choose to spend some of your internet time here with me. I’m also thankful for all the words of encouragement, emails, texts, Facebook posts, IMs, Tweets and especially the comments directly on the blog. You will never know how much all of that has meant to me over the past six months (has it been that long?). It really has been fabulous, so from the bottom of my heart:

Thank you.

I hope everyone has a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving. If you’re traveling, I hope your journeys are short, sweet and safe.

Enjoy the holiday!

(even you Ms. McKenna, wherever you are)

First off, a hearty Truth About Mike shout-out to my friend Julie who’s blog CreateGirl is now listed on the Boston.com blogroll. I might be slightly (entirely?) biased, but this is almost as good as being listed on my blogroll. It really couldn’t have happened to a nicer person. Talk about your Monday Morning Happy…

Seriously. Good stuff, my friend! Well deserved.

I mentioned Web 2.0 in my Twitter entry on Saturday and I can’t stop thinking about how connected we are becoming as a society. With the explosion of sites like Facebook (which is absolutely exploding, btw), Twitter, Myspace, blogs, message boards, and all the others, people are becoming more and more “connected” via the internet. Heck, my friend Red has posted more embarrassing pictures from high school on Facebook that I ever care to see again. The next time I am in his neck of the woods, you can bet that I’ll be going all Jack Bauer on his scanner.

Here’s another example: Before the Celtics game last Thursday, my friend Chris and I met up with my friends Josh and Gemma. Without even thinking, I congratulated the Gemster on finding her wedding dress. I don’t know her all that well, but read about it on my Facebook newsfeed. After I said it, I felt a little weird finding this information out in an indirect manner. She took it in stride and thanked me for mentioning it.

I signed up for Twitter the other day just for fun. In looking at my blog stats, people are actually clicking on my Twitter update page (right side of the screen) and checking it out. At this point, I almost feel obligated to update it. Furthermore, with email, IMing and the growing popularity of text messaging, we’re getting constant, real time updates on things we never would have known otherwise. As I’ve admitted before, I’m addicted to text messaging. Now, I’m using texts to update my Twitter status. Chris and I were able to meet up with Josh and the Gemster just because Josh shot me a text asking what I was up to.

This is only the tip of the iceberg. Gadgets like the I-phone will make us walking, talking “web presences” without even being on the computer. The I-phone commercial of people seeing where other people are just by looking at their phone freaks me out. This might be a little to much info for my tastes. These days, we can know what people are up to without talking on the phone or even seeing anyone.

What’s my point in all this? I’m not really sure. One thing I can say is to be careful in what you are revealing out there. We really don’t know the ramifications of Web 2.0 and probably won’t for sometime.

Thoughts while still shaking my head at Randy Moss and Matt Cassel’s performances yesterday…

Back in the day, I was an avid Bruins fan. In high school, we skipped school one day to go down to the old Boston Garden to buy playoff tickets. It was just after a big playoff win against the Pittsburgh Penguins and I can still remember the excitement we felt. In the 70’s, the Bruins were as popular as the Red Sox are now. The hockey team owned this town. Somewhere along the line, my interest for the Bruins fell off.

The youtube above was a commercial run on NESN last spring. Admittedly, I jumped back on the Bruins bandwagon during their hard-fought, seven game series against Montreal. I stayed with the Celtics during some lean years but it was very tough to sick with the Bruins as well. When the B’s made the playoffs last year, I was really happy for the folks that stuck with them. I felt like an outsider rooting for them.

In my defense, it was hard to stay on the B’s bandwagon. During the past seven years, the Pats have won three Super Bowls, the Sox have won two World Series and the Celtics won an NBA Championship. As much as I try to do otherwise, you can only devote so much time to sports. For me (and probably many other Boston fans), the Bruins suffered as a result of the other Boston teams’ successes. When I started writing this blog, a month had passed since they were eliminated.  I’ve never written about the B’s.

Until now.

The B’s have forced themselves back onto the Boston sports scene. They are 12-1-1 in their last 14 games and are one of the best teams in the NHL. I now find myself checking their schedule to see when they are on. Friday night, I watched the Bruins more than the Celtics for the first time in as long as I can remember. The Bruins are back and if they will have me, so am I.

The Bruins are really fun to watch. They have a young, high-powered offense and a goaltender (Tim Thomas) that is playing out of this world right now. This youth movement has been lead by Milan Lucic who wears #17 (fitting for the Garden, if I do say so myself). Lucic has drawn (albeit probably pre-mature) comparisons to a young Cam Neely. I’ll be going to my first Bruins game in years next month and I couldn’t be happier about it. Boston is such a great place to be when our sports teams are doing well.

It’s called Bruins.

And they’re back.

In my continuing effort to stay on top of the wave otherwise known as Web 2.0, I’m trying something new and have joined Twitter.

I’ve also added a new link on the right-hand side of the page called “Mike’s Twitter Updates.” For those of you that aren’t familiar with Twitter:

“Twitter is a service for friends, family, and co–workers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent answers to one simple question: What are you doing?”

Many people are jumping on the Twitter train. Even Shaquille O’Neal.

Facebook has a similiar feature called a status update. I’ve set it so I can update it via the web or via text message. I realize this may be TMI for some folks. It’s just an experiment to see if I actually keep up with it.

Check it out.

Or not.

The Game.

Those two words describe the Ohio State/Michigan game. Anyone who follows college football will know what game you are talking about if you say them. The Buckeyes and Wolverines first played in 1897 and these days The Game is usually at noon on the Saturday before Thanksgiving.

Ohio State/Michigan is the greatest rivalry in sports. The rivalry is so intense that either football team could lose all of their games but if they win The Game, the season is a success. This is like saying if the Red Sox went 18-0 against the Yankees but lost the other 146 games, Boston fans would be satisfied. Buckeye and Michigan fans would be happy with the football equivalent of an 18-146 season. In fact, they’d probably celebrate it.

During Ohio State/Michigan week each year, I miss being back on campus. Everywhere you go in Columbus, people are talking about The Game. The bars are packed every night and there are events held all over town. Even the grocery stores will have large “Beat Michigan” signs painted on their windows. There is no mistaking the next opponent if you are in Columbus or Ann Arbor during OSU/Michigan week.

What also makes The Game huge is that it is played only once a year. Each team only gets one shot at bragging rights over the other. After he was hired, Ohio State coach Jim Tressel addressed the OSU community for the first time at halftime of a Buckeye basketball game. This is what he said:

“I can assure you that you will be proud of our young people, in the classroom, in the community, and most especially in 310 days in Ann Arbor, Michigan on the football field.”

The crowd roared. Interestingly enough, there is no mention of winning a national championship. He only mentions “that team from up north” (as they say in Columbus), and nobody else. You’d never hear a Red Sox manager say the goal was to “beat the Yankees” and not mention the World Series. Furthermore, a player that left Ohio State for Michigan would never receive cheers like Johnny Damon received was when he returned to Fenway Park as a member of the New York Yankees. It just wouldn’t happen.

When I first got to Ohio State, this mentality confused and frustrated me. It seemed like the Buckeye fans were more interested in beating Michigan than winning the national championship. I always thought the goal each season was to win the national championship – to be champions of their sport. This isn’t necessarily the case in the Ohio State/Michigan rivalry.

On paper, this year’s edition of The Game looks like a blowout. Tthe Buckeyes are favored by 19 which is the largest spread in the history of the rivalry. However, there are added wrinkles to the 2008 installment of The Game. Leading the Buckeyes, this year is dynamic freshman quarterback Terrelle Pryor. Pryor was the #1 recruit in college football last year and chose Ohio State over Michigan after a long and somewhat ugly recruiting battle. Pryor is the first true freshman to start at Ohio State since Art Schlichter in 1978. Lastly, the Buckeyes are going for their fifth straight win over Michigan which has never happened before.

At 3-8, Michigan is assured of having their first losing season in over forty years. A win in Columbus tomorrow would turn this losing season into a success for Wolverines fans.

Go Bucks. Beat Michigan.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Thoughts while visions of Mark Teixeira in Fenway dance in my head…

In the spirit of Ohio State/Michigan week, I’m attending the Celtics/Pistons game tonight. Tonight’s C’s game will be the first of two Motor City beatdowns in three days.

I was talking to my friend Steve yesterday and he told me enough with the Ohio State/Michigan talk. Sorry Steve, you can’t turn it off. Not this week. Tomorrow’s entry will explain further, but today I’d like to talk about TBDBITL.

TBDBITL is the acronym for The Best Damn Band in the Land, otherwise known as The Ohio State University Marching Band. Up here in the Northeast, it is hard to fathom 105,000 people standing and screaming for… the band. The first time I attended a Big Ten football game, I was hooked. Most of the Big Ten schools are the biggest thing going in their city. The whole town shuts down for the big game and it is the topic of conversation all week. This couldn’t be more true for Ohio State/Michigan, otherwise known as “The Game.”

Like the football team, the marching band holds tryouts (yes, tryouts) to see who makes the band. The band’s entrance into the ‘Shoe is one of the best parts of an Ohio State football game. When I first saw TBDBITL, I was amazed at the reaction it received from the Buckeye fans. Unlike marching bands I was familiar with (which were usually mocked), TBDBITL is revered. The band is responsible for playing the national anthem, Ohio State fight songs and often plays “Hang On Sloopy” which has evolved into a popular Ohio State cheer.

TBDBITL’s signature move is known as Script Ohio. This is where the band members march in formation to spell out the world “Ohio.” Each time the band performs Script Ohio a sousaphone player (usually a senior), gets the honor of dotting the i. A few guests have been bestowed the honor of dotting the i, including Woody Hayes, Bob Hope and OSU alumnus Jack Nickalus. Per wikipedia, “the dotting of the “i” has been ranked the greatest college football tradition by Athlon Sports, and was most recently named the #1 College Football Tradition by ESPN.”

For your viewing pleasure, the incomparable Script Ohio:

(the dotting of the i begins at about 2:40 of this clip)

Continuing the spirit of Ohio State/Michigan week, I’d like to talk a little about Boston Celtic Brian “Veal” Scalabrine.

Wait, what?

I had a nice Moe Curtin “Cheaper Than Therapy” (been a while, eh?) entry planned for today. But reading this article in the Boston Globe yesterday almost made me throw up my lunch. Here’s the money shot:

“Rivers has said that the chanting of Scalabrine’s name by the home fans seems to make him tentative offensively.”

Wait, what?

Brian Scalabrine (who currently makes $3 million/year from the Celtics to do a real-life impersonation of Ollie from Hoosiers) gets “tentative offensively” when they chant his name? In my best Izzie Stevens, “Seriously?”

Wait, there’s more (from that same article):

Scalabrine also has played sparingly this season, which adds a level of complication to the late-game chants. “More times than not I’ve gone home and thought about how it’s a more mentally challenging way to play basketball than I’m up for,” Scalabrine said. “You feel uncomfortable while you’re out there playing when all these people are out there chanting. From a mental side . . . you have to get over that and try to be successful while they’re doing that.“

Wait, what?

“Sparingly” is the key word in that sentence. Veal has played so sparingly this season that the official NBA statistics department has decided to measure his playing time in seconds, not minutes. This season, Veal has appeared in four (out of eleven) games and is averaging 480 seconds per game. He’s been in four f#*&!@% games and is “tentative offensively” when people chant his name!!?!

Seriously?

I am hearby calling on Truth About Mike Nation™ for an important mission. I implore you to chant “SCAL-A-BRINE” whenever you see Veal on the streets. I want a tentative, offensive Brian Scalabrine at shopping centers, at dinner and any other time he is out in public. Hell, I might start going on the offensive and start doing this (even when I don’t see Veal) just to see how “tentative” I can make others.

When I’m out in public and people start the “Truth About Mike” chants…

Wait, what?

Ok, ok, bad example. But seriously Veal, give me a break. Take your 480 seconds once every three games and (as my boss likes to say) toughen up. If we can’t mockingly cheer for our bench warmers when we like, then the terrorists have truly won.

My TiVo has been acting up lately. I think it is pissed at me because I take it for granted. While re-setting/re-ordering my TiVO season pass list, I came up with the idea for this blog entry.

Without further ado, my top ten list of “must see” TV programs. (In the spirit of Ohio State/Michigan week and in true Big Ten football conference fashion, I actually offer eleven responses). Also, this entry may or may not be another shameless guise to post another Minka Kelly picture.

Honorable Mention: “How I Met Your Mother” – This is a really good show, but I keep forgetting to watch it. I’m really glad to see Neil Patrick Harris got work after “Doogie Houser, MD.”

10: “Grey’s Anatomy”- Yeah, I watch it. I’m a sap. So what? Not that there’s…

“Grey’s” is a really well written and tugs at the heart-strings. I think everything in life should begin and end with a Meredith Grey voiceover like in the show. Her “Pick Me, Choose Me, Love Me” Season Two plea to Derek “McDreamy” Shepherd had me hooked from the start. It is sweet, endearing, and even throws in a Say Anything reference. I like to think of Truth About Mike as the “McDreamy” of Al Gore’s internet, so I guess I can relate.

“Okay, here it is, your choice… it’s simple, her or me, and I’m sure she is really great. But Derek, I love you, in a really, really big pretend to like your taste in music, let you eat the last piece of cheesecake, hold a radio over my head outside your window, unfortunate way that makes me hate you, love you. So pick me, choose me, love me.”

9: “The Office” – I don’t think I’ve ever laughed harder at a TV show than at the one where Michael Scott accidentally sends out an email with a picture of him and Jan (in a bikini) on vacation. Another scene I re-watch all the time is the Michael Scott’s “Candy Bar” lecture.

The absolute best part about about the Office is how it never follows the typical, tired and true sitcom formulas. The best example of this is how they are treating Jim and Pam’s relationship. Evey time you think you know what is going to happen, the writers from the Office go the other way.

8: “30 Rock” – Tina Fey epitomizes one of my favorite terms, sneaky hot. She is not only sneaky hot, but sneaky funny hot which is a great combination in my book. “MILF Island” and “Episode 210” in which the cast sings “Midnight Train to Georgia” are two of my favorites. Here’s a clipped youtube of the song (This isn’t the whole scene. It is probably clipped for copyright reasons).

7: “24” – Also known as the “Jack Bauer Power Hour,” 24 packs a punch every week. My favorite character here is Chloe brilliantly played by Mary Lynn Rajskub (more sneaky hot!). One of my favorite episodes is when Edgar dies. I am willing to give it pass for last season and hope that this weekend’s “24” movie helps lead its resurgence back to a greatness. It better be because…

“They’re running out of tiiimmmeee!!”

6: “Entourage” – I don’t have HBO, but I watch this one via Netflix. I’ve tried to be an HBO subscriber twice, but I just don’t find myself watching it enough. Furthermore, with Netflix, I can get all the movies I want to watch. However, Tom Brady is supposed to be in an episode next season, so I may be trying HBO once again. My favorite character is Lloyd, brilliantly played by Rex Lee.

“I’m not Japanese, Ariiiii”

5: “Lost” – I had a great draft of what I wanted to say here, but I seemed to have misplaced it. Long live Locke!

(but seriously, I’ve been meaning to write an entry about “Lost” – maybe when it comes back in February)

4: “Friday Night Lights” – I have already professed my love for FNL here. Minka, Minka, Minka, the epitome of fabulous (see below).

3: “Monday Night Football” – Football has long overtaken baseball as the national pastime and MNF is still the game of the week. I love everything about MNF including the Hank Williams Jr. opening number. I love MNF so much that I will TiVo the opening if I’m not going to be home. I’ll watch MNF even if it is a crappy matchup like the Bills and Browns. Oh wait, that’s tonight’s matchup.

Are you ready for some football?

2: “NFL Sunday Ticket” – People always ask me why I don’t have HDTV. The reason is that I loooooove “NFL Sunday Ticket.” For those that don’t know, it is a package in which you can get every NFL game. It is only available from DirecTV. When I closed on my house, the first thing I bought was a DirecTV setup. DirecTV offers HD, but the trees behind my house are too tall for my dish to pickup the HD signal. So, I am ignoring the HD revolution in order to get every NFL game. Even as a Patriots season ticket holder, the money I spent on NFL Sunday Ticket is well worth it.

1: Pats, Sox, Celtics, Buckeyes, ManU and Bruins games. – Well, duh.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot…

I don’t read many other blogs, so I just figured out what a blogroll was. Because I’m a conformist, I added some new links on the right side of the page. These are blogs I like to read every once in a while. Check them out sometime.

As a gesture of my thanks, I offer this Haka (a Maori War Dance the New Zealand rugby team does before every game – Thanks Alex) in your honor. These guys are definitely channeling their inner KG!

Enjoy and have a great weekend.

“I think I’m supposed to be a lot madder right now.”

This thought kept running through my head driving home from the game tonight. I kept wondering why.

SETTING: AFC East showdown. (6-3) Jets at (6-3) New England. Winner gets control of the divsion and grabs the driver’s seat in the march towards the playoffs.

RESULT: Jets 34, Patriots 31 (OT)

Crappy game, right? Losing a tough one to your division rival and losing control of the division has gotta hurt, right?

Sorta, but not really.

Losing this game doesn’t feel as bad as I think it should. Between you and me, I’m actually proud of the Patriots. They have been decimated by injuries this season. They lost their league MVP quarterback, starting running back, starting safety, and too many other important players to mention right now (especially when I have to be at work in 5.5 hours). After they went down 24-6, I was hoping for some points just to make it respectable in front of the national TV audience.

What do they do? They go out and hold the Jets to 7 second-half points and force overtime. The coin toss doesn’t go their way and they ultimately end up losing. There are plays here and there that could have changed the outcome for the Pats, but the Jets had them too. What’s most important to me is that the Pats kept fighting and never gave up. This is all you really can ask for as a sports fan.

As strange as this sounds, I am loving this season. Every week is a dog fight and every week is a toss up. You really don’t know what is going to happen. The only consistent thing about this season is Matt Cassel getting better every week and increasing the size of the contract he is going to sign next season. He literally went from backup zero to almost hero. If the Pats pulled that game out, he would have been the story. I still can’t believe he made that throw to Randy Moss.

The lesson from last night is:

You’re not going to win them all. Even if you lose, and you lose going down with a fight, things really aren’t so bad.

See you next week, Pats.

I’m off to bed.

PHOTO CREDIT: Boston.com