Nats Stadium Open ins Dramatic Fashion

The first regular season game at the new Nats Stadium in DC is in the books. And you couldn't have scripted a better finish. The Nats scored two runs in the first, and then didn't have a one base runner again until the bottom of the 9th. the Braves tied the game in the top of the 9th, and then in the bottom of the 9th when 23 year old Ryan Zimmerman homered to beat the Braves 3-2. A very exciting game to open a new the new Stadium in Washington D.C.

Starbucks Voters VS. Dunkin Voters

Heard this on NPR today, and did little a Internet search and apparently the Obama and Clinton supporters can also be known by what coffee they drink... this is from The Boston Globe...

"Coffee and class have merged into political shorthand as commentators, campaign operatives, and bloggers alike try to make sense of this highly caffeinated campaign season. In several primaries and caucuses, (Barack) Obama has shown strength among white-collar professionals with a college degree -- the so-called "Starbucks Democrats" -- while (Hillary) Clinton has won support from blue-collar workers with a high school degree, dubbed "Dunkin' Donuts Democrats. "

I like both Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts, but I have been known to frequent Starbucks more..

The new Newseum

I got a sneak preview of the new Newseum which opens to the general public in two weeks. The Newseum use to be in Rosslyn, VA and now they have a great spot on the mall at 6th and Pennsylvania Avenue.. it's huge, and it take hours to go thru. it has a lot of interactive exhibits and videos about the news business. among the highlights.. a updated video of "What is News?" narrated by Charles Osgood, a look at news reporting by the local and national reporters in New York City on 9/11, a video about the evolution of the sports reporting, and look at the Internet and how that's changing journalism. there was even a video about "blogging" and one blogger said he probably only has five people reading his blog, but's that doesn't matter because it's the magazine he always wanted to create!

oh and there is a video in one of the rooms where i am in! it was shot a while back at work (i actually don't even remember then shooting it)! so all and all, i enjoyed it. the only downside for the general public when it opens is the cost. it's general admission price is $20. for dc that's very high, but for the other cities that's average.

Living in DC....

one of the exciting things about living in D.C. is there always seems to be something new. As i have mentioned in previous blogs.. this weekend opens the new Nats Stadium in Southeast Washington D.C. not sure when I will make it to the first game, but as sure as I do i will post pictures and my review.. Also opening very soon is the new Newseum. on Saturday, I will have a chance to sneak preview the Newseum which focuses on the news business. I will try to blog about it Saturday Night or Sunday. and then I hope (weather permitting) to make it to Cherry Blossom's (which is old but always new if you know what i mean).

by the way, in case you were wondering, i did NOT take this amazing DC skyline picture. actually got it from national geographic web site!!!

"Stop Loss"

Saw a sneak preview of "Stop Loss" a movie which opens this Friday and is about a Sargent with the U.S. Army just back from Iraq.. he thinks he is about to get out, when army orders him back for another tour- a practice called Stop Loss. John Kerry in 2004 called Stop Loss a "back door draft" and the movie says since the start of the Iraq war Stop Loss has happened to 10,000s of soldiers. The movie is very violent but also very powerful. it not only shows what happens to soldiers while over in Iraq, but also what happens to them when they get back. It's very timely, seeing we just passed 4,000 death toll since 2003 in Iraq. i recommend the movie highly!



the picture is from the movie.. the movie stars Ryan Phillippe.

Easter Weekend

This is Easter Weekend... next weekend is big weekend here in DC.. next Sunday Night is the opening of the new Nats Stadium....Also next weekend is the peak blooming time for the Cherry Blossoms, which I am excited to test out my new digital camera and hopefully post some cool pictures!!! According to the official web site, March 27- April 3rd is the "Peek Bloom" for all of those who can make it down to the Tidal Basin.

March Madness

it wasn't a good day for the two teams I was rooting for in the NCAA tournament... the first was AU. they actually surprised many by hanging in with a really good Tennessee team. it would have been a HUGE upset if AU won, but they came up short... they played a great game and for their first appearance in the NCAA Tourney they have a lot to be proud off!

the other team is UCONN. i have been following them and fan ins 1989. they lost in overtime to San Diego in of the two big upsets of the day (the other was Sienna beating Vanderbilt). at least UCONN has two national titles, but this loss I still really have accepted. they had a good young team, and I thought they could have gone far. but like the Big East tournament they weren't able to get by their opening game. oh well, I guess I will have to root for Georgetown.

i will not to try to make this a sports blog, but I can't fail to mention that Tiger Woods is one shot of the lead at WGC-CA Championship in Doral, Florida. going into the weekend. this is a really nice golf course (most known for the famed Blue Monster) outside of Miami. I was there six years ago before it was a World Championship Tournament and before they attracted a good field. i remember watching David Duval sitting in the middle of the fairway waiting to hit the ball. turns out he wasn't feeling well, and I wasn't feeling the tournament and left after only being there two hours. anyways, go Tiger!

Good Friday

3 pm is the time when it is said in the Bible that Jesus died on the cross. Friday Christians around the world pause and remember.

In Rome, a sign that the cardinal's elected an "older pope" in 2005:

POPE Benedict XVI will sit out most of the traditional Way of the Cross procession in Rome's Colosseum on Good Friday, the Vatican said.

The 80-year-old pope will preside over the annual event from the Palatine Hill overlooking the Colosseum and will walk for only the final three of the 14 Stations of the Cross commemorating the path Jesus took to his crucifixion, Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said today.

Father Federico Lombardi, the papal spokesman, said: "The Pope does not want to do the long walk up the steps to the Palatine Hill, where the ceremony ends. The Easter schedule is very tiring and he wants to save his strength."

He added: "It will be clear to all viewers that the Pope is in good health, since he will be on television for morning and afternoon ceremonies almost every day.

Spring is here....

Today is the first day of Spring.. which means warmer weather should be coming and are chances of snow or ice diminishes (hopefully).. Today is also Holy Thursday for Christians around the world. It's the day that we remember the last Supper.

the AU Basketball game is tomorrow at 12:10 p.m. in Alabama. Hopefully they won't get blown out by a very good Tennessee team. this Tennessee team was # 1 in the country a few weeks ago!

Iraq War Anniversary

As most of you know, Wednesday marks the 5th Anniversary of the start of the Iraq War. In those five years, close to 4,000 U.S. Soldiers have died, close to 30,000 have been injured, and 10,000's of Iraq Citizens have died. Since the start too, we have learned that there were no "weapons of mass destruction" and there is no connection to Hussein/Iraq and what happened on 9/11. Also since March 19, 2003... the U.S. government has yet to capture Osama Bin Laden who is the mastermind behind the 9/11 attacks. While we may not agree with this war, while looking for some pictures to go with posting on the Internet, I am struck with a sadness and admiration for all the thousands of soldiers who have sacrificed for the cause.

Happy St. Patricks Day....

Hope everyone is having a great St. Patrick's Day! While most people worldwide are celebrating it today, the official celebration in Ireland was moved to Saturday (the 15th)... that's because today is the first day of holy week (ending with Easter on Sunday).. the last time the day was moved was 1940.

Let the Madness Begin...

NCAA Announcements have been made... AU is a # 15 seed... and they play # 2 seed Tennessee on Friday! UConn (the team I will follow the closet) is a # 4 seed and they play San Diego also on Friday. Locally Georgetown is # 2 seed and they play UMBC (from the Baltimore area) and George Mason is a # 12 seed and they play Norte Dame.

In other sports news.. Tiger Woods had a another amazing finish winning Arnold Palmer's Tournament in Orlando late this afternoon to win his 5th straight tournament, and tie Ben Hogan at 64 on the third spot on all time wins. After he passes that, next up 73 wins earned by Jack Nicklaus (# 2 on the list) and in a few years he can pass # 1 on list which is 82 set by the late Sam Snead. Today's win he had to sink a 24 foot putt on the last hole of the tournament to avoid a playoff!

Sunday

Went to Shamrock Fest 2008 yesterday at RFK parking lot. there were close to 10 stages with at least five bands playing at the same time. there was a lot of people drinking beer (not a lot of green beer though). all and all it was fun, although the trip to the portapodies late in the day was not a highlight. i will leave it at that!

Today is Palm Sunday for Christians around the world. today is the day they read the Passion in church. it's also the start of holy week that ends next Sunday with Easter! this year is one of the earliest Easter since like 1915 (don't quote me on that date). How do they determine when Easter falls you ask? it's the Sunday following the first Paschal Full Moon (PFM) date for the year. And this year if falls really early!

"Hooray for the little guys"

The Quote is from Wil Jones, one of the only two American players to have his jersey retired by the school in today's Washington Post front page article. Some fun facts about AU's win from the W. Post article... before the win they were only one of 33 Division 1 schools whose men's or women's teams failed to qualify for the NCAA tournament. the last big sports event for AU in NCAA... the AU soccer team in 1985 went to the national title game vs. UCLA and lost in eight overtimes! And locally, powerhouse University of Maryland men's basketball team will not being going to big dance (maybe NIT) while AU is starting to pack there bags to will wait to see where they are heading next week.

AU Heading to the Big Dance

As a alumni of American University (class 1996) I excited to say for that for the first time time in school history the Men Basketball team will be heading to the NCAA tournament. AU has been in the Patriot Conference finals 4 out of the past 7 years and Friday Night they FINALLY earned their spot in the elite 64 (or is it now 65?) best teams in country. Go Eagles!!!!

Watch this Space....

In the next month lot of exciting things are happening in Washington D.C. which I plan to attend and blog about. The first is the opening of the new Nationals Stadium. While I am NOT a Nats fan, it is exciting when any new Stadium opens and there is a lot of excitement in DC. My favorite team (Yankees) Stadium closes this year, and new Yankee Stadium in the Bronx (across the street) opens next year (2009). Back in DC, in April the Pope visits Washington D.C. (before going to New York) and I plan on attending the public Mass on April 17th. Also in the end of March/early April the Cherry Blossoms bloom, and I am plan to go down to the Tidal Basin and take some cool (hopefully) pictures and post them! Finally, I hope to get up to Pennsylvania sometime before the April 22nd Primary to bring some color to the very close Democratic Presidential Race. So hopefully you will come back and check this space out in the weeks and months to come!

Stay Tuned...

hello fellow bloggers and other readers.. i hope to post some cool pictures and postings in the days and weeks to come... thanks for reading and check back soon.