Day 64

I have received several "complaints" of late that I am lacking in good material these days and that some of my readers are bored. I'll say this, while I do love the feedback and the fact that this blog has become a part of people's everyday routine- nobody is putting a gun to anyone's head telling you you have to read this. So in my never ending quest to entertain my friends and family - I pledge to you all that I will come strong as often as I can.

With my Friday blog tribute to the great Howard Stern, I failed to mention that it was the second birthday of the great Casey the dog. I never meant to shortchange her. We had a small birthday party for her this morning. She got a dradle treat, a new toy, and two new shirts. Now I will be the first person to admit that I think dog clothes are ridiculous. I never wanted a dog, but when we got her, I said my dog will NEVER wear clothes in my presence. Seriously, is there anything worse than seeing dogs with jackets and little booties on? It is flat out embarrassing. That being said, Casey looks really cute in her shirt, however the shirts will never be seen on her in public with me. Maybe with Leah, but not with me.

We went to a Hanukkah party tonight at our friend's Michael and Michelle's house in the suburbs. They just moved up there after years in the city. We covered the whole gambit of topics at dinner including was wet wipes vs. toilet paper, back waxing, how Michael and Michelle's 3 and 5 year olds love to say the F word incessantly, cousin Steve, the pros and cons of the HD tivo box, and The Clapper just to name a few. I'll just say this - Michelle's artichoke dip is seriously one of the best things I've eaten in a long time. It is the epitome of my favorite phrase - the whup.

In the world of sports, I am starting to get concerned about the lack of movement by my Tribe. I see the White Sox improving what is already the best rotation in baseball, while trading for my favorite player of all time, Jim Thome, to DH. All we have done is watch our top set up man Bob Howry price himself out of our league and go to the Cubs, and sign Paul Byrd for $7 million a year. We still haven't addressed the gaping holes in RF and first base. If I have to watch another year of Casey Blake in RF, I may throw up. The Dolan's cheapness is already an old bit. I just hate being reminded of it every offseason.

They recently passed the smoking ban in Chicago for all bars and restaurants. I couldn't be any more excited about it. It supposedly is going to take effect January 1. I cannot tell you how much I am looking forward to coming home from bars and not reeking of cigarettes. Everytime I go to California, I come back saying how lucky they are to have the ban in place. It works in LA. It works in San Francisco. It works in New York City and Boston. It even works in Lawrence, Kansas - my college town. I'm surprised it took so long to go into effect here.

Mad props go out to "Boss" Ross Glick and Ags for their solid performances this weekend.

Song of the Day: "She's Crafty" by The Beastie Boys