Day 75

New Years Eve. This is a topic I have meaning to discuss and the question was posed to me by Mark P. These were his exact quotes: Everyone says "I hate new years, its so overrated" but do most people really mean it? Some girl I work with was just saying that, and then went on to say that she's going to some $125 party at a club?! I always say I'd love to stay home, but wouldn't that end up being depressing? Is bashing new years just a cool thing to say?

To me New Years Eve is amateur night. We started going out of town every new years when my in laws moved to Scottsdale and I never had to worry about making lame plans. We would always end up a crazy crowded bars or clubs, spending over $100 to drink shitty vodka and never being able to even get a drink on top of it. There are never any cabs to be had in Chicago new years eve. One year Sean and I walked back to my apartment in 5 degree temperatures for 40 minutes and not one cab drove by. Of course we both got sick. One year we finally had gotten a cab and he charged us $20 just to get in it. To me, my ideal new years eve is a dinner at a nice restaurant, say 9 o'clock reservations, with 3 or 4 other couples, good food, good drinks, 12 o'clock hits and I am out the door at 12:10. I haven't had that many memorable new years eve's, but hands-down my best ever was my junior year in high school, Eric Sulzer's party. Still the biggest party college or high school I had ever been to. Everyone from a 4 grade radius from Orange was there. At midnight, he was held up by the crowd and everyone was chanting "Ricky, Ricky, Ricky." Had to be the highlight of his life at that point. Tonight we are going to a Cartwright's in Cave Creek with Andy "call me Andrew" and his lovely new bride Jules "don't call me Julie" Rafal. Looking very much forward to it.

Rumors are swirling in Cleveland that first year GM Phil Savage is about to be fired because of "philosophical differences" with management. My inside sources tell me that owner Randy "daddy's little boy" Lerner was very concerned with Savage's ability to manage the salary cap when it cam to contract negotiations. He and team President John Collins seem to be in one corner, while Savage is in the other. Everyone knows the most important person in the organization is the guy who picks the players. Savage is a brilliant talent evaluator, yet Lerner seems to be in bed with Collins, a man who is a businessman first. This guy has no football credentials to speak of. That being said, he is the one running the money side of the organization and if Savage cannot negotiate contracts within the salary cap system, then that is on Collins and Lerner for hiring him. My sources tell me that the Browns organizational structure is the laughing stock of the league and these rumors are just the tip of the iceberg. Randy Lerner is no better than David Modell. Does he really want to start over again for a 4th time in 8 years? How much longer are these lemmings known as the Browns loyal fan base supposed to take this crap and continue to shell out their hard earned money? This disgrace of all of this is not that Savage may not have any clue at how to negotiate deals, but that this whole thing was leaked and then the Browns brass completely backtracked on the whole. What a joke.

Happy New Year to all the faithful blog readers....

Song of the Day: "Heard it All Before" by Sunshine Anderson