No, Pete didn't win a jackpot, but it does describe where we went!  Actually to be fair, on this evening in Las Vegas he did turn a nickle in $17, although everyone is sick of hearing this story.  I know I am, but it is a great feat, not amazing mind you.  On this evening, Pete, Pete, and I visited about two dozen casinos, and I even turned a dollar into a cool two bucks on a Wheel of Fortune, then left the money as a tip.  I felt like Steve Wynn.

 

OK, I made that up, it's not even Rey Mysterio.  It's my nephew when we went to see the WWE SmackDown superstars.  We sat so close we could almost even see the ring, which is usually hard to do from the third row.

 

In what may be the best original idea to hit Whitewater since the Thursday Night Welcoming Committee, Dan and I are with the "sisters" of this fake soriority.  The best part was the back of these shirts, which featured names like "Ho-tel" and "Ho-Nelly".

 

It was St. Patrick's Day, so why not carry a nice, attractive co-ed around with me?  If you were there you would have too....at least I would hope so.

 

The mighty Casey struck out on this afternoon as the mighty warriors from the radio side finally had enough sympathy for the lowly Cable station that we let them win in 2003, for the first time ever in softball.  I'm not pictured, but I did go 2 for 2.  Anywho, here we have Clark (holding hat in front), Pete (white hat in middle), Golberg (blue hat in back), Chef (black Pirates hat in back middle) and Joe (green hat and jacket).

 

It was a fun weekend in lovely Cincinnati, Ohio.  We took in a few Reds games, had 2 beers and went bowling.  As your can see, I dominated.  In the pictures you see most of the competitors.  Chris (who didn't win) is on the left, Gonzo (who also didn't win) is behind him, I (your undisputed champion of Ohio) am in the middle, Jerry (who lost a bet, and didn't win) is wearing a Cubs hat (why?) and Cathy (smiling, but also losing) is even here.  Taking the picture, and also not beating me, was Megan.  In case you cared, she was wearing bowling shoes.

 

Tyler (left), Charles Woodson (me in center) and Perry (right) are kicking back and taking in the scene at the first Max Power Gathering (more information on the tailgate parties page).  Sure, the Brewers lost, and someone stole the Mustang that I was planning on winning in the postgame drawing, but it was still a fun night.  Plus, we learned that night that the key to life is to get a house, rent it out, and buy stock in Krispy Kreme.

 

In my second trip to the Metrodome, my beloved Broncos fell short in their comeback attempt to the Vikings, 28-20.  It was still a fun atmosphere being surrounded by Viking fans, but it would have been fun if we would have won the game.  According to a fan in a 1986 John Elway jersey, in the end it didn't matter who won because we're all Americans.  Yeah right, I wanted a Broncos victory.

 

As you can see in this picture, Pete gave Golberg his jump shot as a birthday gift.  Actually, the brick was from Pete and Joe and was a brick from Milwaukee County Stadium.  This evening was also the reunion show for the Squared Circle.  The entire cast of regulars were on hand, as Pete, Spencer, Announcer Steve and I joined Golberg, the host with the most, for the celebration.

 

10.  May 31; Astros at Cubs.  If you haven't noticed by now, I am passionate about sports.  And there is nothing that can top baseball.  In just my second trip to Wrigley Field we saw a classic, as the Cubs defeated the Astros 1-0 in 16 innings.  It was a thrilling pitcher's duel in a classic venue.  It was cold and windy, but Jerry and I didn't once move into the sun and we certainly didn't leave early.  You know a game was good when you don't even mind the $20 you paid to park in Rosemont (OK, it was only about 5 blocks away).  The only thing missing was Steve Bartman...sorry Cub fans that was mean.  OK, how about a goat....oh, that's a sore spot too.  Well, it was a hell of a game and a great day to be a fan of America's pastime. 

 

9.  September 17; Golf at Currie Park.  What in life is better than a great round of golf with a good friend?  Well, you'll have to ask someone else, because this was nothing like it.  This was more like a round of golf with Chevy Chase (please, watch Caddyshack if an explination is needed).  Perry is one of those people on the golf course that you are never sure if he's coming or going....mainly because he hits the ball and he has no idea where it's going.  The only question I had at the end of the round was if he had more jokes or more strokes over the course of the round.  Both were in the 150s....okay, that's a lie, he's not that funny.

 

8.  July 18-20; Summer Road Trip to Cincinnati, Ohio.  A weekend of fun in the home of the Reds and the Bengals.  Highlights of this trip included seeing Great American Ball Park (the new home of the Reds), a bowling outing in Mason, Ohio, and a spirited call to LaRosa's Pizza.  And, let's not forget they have Waffle Houses in Ohio, and you can never go wrong with a Waffle House breakfast! 

 

7.  May 8; Clark's Graduation Party.  It is nights like these that make the years of studying and sacrifice seem worth it.  OK, so the party wasn't that great, but over the years you get to meet a lot of great people, and sometimes they throw fun parties.  This was one of those times.  You combine a bunch of friends, a perfect party location, and just the right amount of beer and this is what you can come up with.  Even after Clark locked us out on the porch we continued to party in the cold.  The highlight of this evening was probably the story a girl told about her trip to McDonald's that took an hour to tell.  I don't recall any of the story (other than Pete and I almost laughing so hard that we cried), but I do remember the guy that decided he couldn't wait for the story to end, so he walked home in a downpour to the otherside of campus, which was at least 20 minutes away. 

 

6.  August 2; Cookout at Steve's.  As a recent college grad with the majority of my friends still in school, it is always nice to go visit them.  Of course the friends I am referring to are the bottles that make up a case of Miller Lite, and I caught up with all of them on this evening.  There were several highlights on this afternoon/evening, but chief among them would probably be the grilling of lawn chairs and other assorted items.  You also know it's a good night when you pass out before Topper's arrives!

 

5.  December 13; Community Service in Whitewater.  One of my favorite activities is to go visit my friends in Whitewater, and this was a very interesting evening.  Steve provided plenty of comedy on this evening as he didn't remember ordering, or eating, Dominos.  But perhaps the highlight of the night came when he took the money that I gave him to buy Timmy and I drinks, and returned with a beer for himself.  No drinks for Timmy or me, and then he wouldn't give me my change right away.  Eventually I got my change, and there were plenty of Jager bombs to go around.

 

4.  September 20; 1st Max Power Gathering on Fan Appreciation Day.  We debuted a new reason to tailgate in 2003, and it was a great begining.  Among the highlights on this beautiful September evening were finding out that the key to life is to get a house, rent it out and buy stock in Krispy Kreme.  A couple beers were consumed, the Brewers lost, and I did not win the Mustang, but it was still a fun evening.

 

3.  November 23; Pete and Joe's Going Away Party.  It was a somewhat somber event for their friends in Wisconsin, but we are all happy for them and their success.  In any event, this was a great party put on by the hosts of the Pete and Joe Show.  Plus, it's always fun to go see your friends, and they were almost all on hand for this big send off.

 

2.  January 6; A Night in Las Vegas.  This was a great evening out and about on the Las Vegas strip with Pete and Pete.  It started at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, with lunch, and then some blackjack with a guy that insisted on calling me Vick (enev with the jersey on I don't see any similarities).  We then proceeded on to the Imperial Palace for some beers and a viewing of Boston Public.  BP was on late, so we went and played some blackjack with a Connie Chung look-a-like.  After BP we tried to do the sobriety test on the machine in the hotel lobby, and it didn't work....or maybe we didn't!  Then we hit over a dozen casinos the rest of the night.  It can all be summarized by one two words, good times.

 

1.  April 6;  Coach's Cookout III.  This was a morning and afternoon that had it all.  Hot dogs thrown onto the freeway, Pete's record setting drinking performance, and peeing into bottles.  It was cold, the Brewers lost, and it was still the day of the year.  Some of us that attended even remember being there.

 

 

Now, before you disagree, please remember I don't go watch a whole lot of movies, so the options for me were pretty limited.  That said, Bad Santa was really a laugh a minute comedy, and one of the few movies that I really anticipated going to see.

 

Best Album....  Murphy's Law by Murphy Lee

 

OK kids, let's remember that the year is 2003 and everything is available on the internet.  I think I bought a grand total of 2 CDs in 2003, so this is a closed competition.  I enjoy most of the tracks on this release by this member of the St. Lunatic's and would recommend it to any fan of Nelly and company.

 

Best DVD....  The Ultimate Ric Flair Collection

 

This isn't even a contest.  The only complaint I have about this WWE product was how hard it was to track down on it's release date.  After visiting 4 stores and 2 malls I finally found it.  This is a must-have for any Ric Flair fan.  It chronicals his feuds with Ricky "the Dragon" Steamboat, Sting, "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes, Harley Race and so much more.  Nearly eleven hours of Ric Flair proving why he is the man.

 

Best Video Game....  Madden 2004

 

Could somebody please explain to me how EA Sports can in one moment make by far the best football game on the market and then two months later churn out a basketball game that is worse than the year before (and I really hated Live 2003)?  I could rant about video game makers inability to make a decent basketball game, but instead, let's give it up to EA for making yet more improvements on the best video game on the market today.

 

Most Disapointing News Item....  Pete and Joe move to California

 

Sure, it was good news for them to get their morning show gig at KZOZ in San Luis Obispo, but that's not putting any money in my pocket or anything on my resume, yet it takes away two friends from the area.  But, on the flip side, I could look at it as a good excuse to take a vacation out to California. Actually, I do wish them well, but I think they should be syndicated nationally, from Milwaukee!

 

Most Painful Sports Anguish....  Polk High loses in fantasy football playoffs

 

Yes, that would be my fantasy football team.  And why was it painful?  Well, when you go 12-2 in the regular season and have lost 2 league Super Bowls in a row heading into the year, you expact to at least return to the big game.  But no, coming off a bye and getting the sixth seed in the second round would make you think that Polk High could at least return to the title game.  Especially wen Peyton Manning only needed to match his worst game of the season to get us to the promised land.  Instead, he tallies 12 completions for 146 yards and no TDs.  Merry Christmas you jerk.  (Now if I may rant briefly)  Then, two weeks after laying that egg, that cost me what would have been a fantasy football Super Bowl win (at long last), he goes out and gets the playoff monkey off his back.  Not only that, he plays the best game of his career.  His passer rating was perfect.  His first quarter stats were better than his full game stats from the game that knocked me out.  Not only that, he did it against my Broncos.  If he would have reverted to previous form, all six years of his career I might add, and fliped those games, I would have a Super Bowl title and my team of choice would have advanced in the playoffs.  Boo to you Peyton, boo to you I say.