It's good not to taper off

Get Up On The Pony Express

I have very little to say. I'm having a bad day -- my hair is okay it's the rest of me that's unwell. I've got a terrible sinus headache that won't go away despite a near-overdose of medication. It's going to rain -- so I'm wearing rainboots at the office. Eight hours in rainboots -- I'm going to let your imagination wander. I burned my hand in an unfortunate microwave accident. And to be honest (my mom's least favorite phrase), I'm feeling a surly. The only cure for all my ailments -- My Little Ponies singing show tunes. I hope it helps you too.

I'm-a still a believer!

Today is the 30th anniversary of the 'Miracle on ice.' I remember the 1980 Olympics well. I was a junior in high school. I have a clear memory of watching the game in the family room of our house. It still gives me a catch in my throat every time that I watch a few minutes of that game again. It came at a time when the country was in an economic slump and needed something to feel a sense of pride again.

There was a lot of trash-talking prior to yesterday's game between a lot of NHL All-Stars that had been re-organized by birthplace into two teams -- Canada vs. USA. I guess as a general rule, Canadians don't like the idea that we learned how to play their game. I get that, but I love hockey. I love to watch hockey. I'm an equal opportunity hockey fan -- my favorite hockey players were born on both sides of the border. L.A. Kings Dustin Brown and Jack Johnson play for the USA, while their teammate Drew Doughty plays for the Canada. Going into the game, I was neutral about who I wanted to win. The game was being called by my favorite hockey play-by-play annoucer Mike 'Doc' Emmerick -- the Vin Scully of the NHL. But then I heard the NBC promo -- U.S. takes on "Sid the Kid and the rest of Canada..." And I saw NHL commissioner Gary Bettman (who has always been a big supporter of Crosby's) at the game in a Canadian red sweater -- and suddenly I saw red -- and showed my true colors -- red, white and blue! Go USA!

It was a great game. Tense. Remarkable. The goalie from East Lansing, Michigan played the game of his life -- stopping something like 46 shots. I was so tense about the game -- I almost couldn't watch. With two minutes to go -- I told the Handsomest Man Alive that I couldn't watch any more. He said he had his own problem. I'm not sure if you're familiar with the term ''making diamonds." I'll skip the naughty language, the term describes being so tense that your anal cavity could compact coal into gemstones. "Well," he said, "Baby, I'm making you a tennis bracelet." I was working on matching earrings.

I've got the blues

This may be my favorite story all week -- even with all of the fun happening in Vancouver at the Olympics -- the rest of the world goes on and real life heroes reveal themselves without the hope of ever earning a gold medal.

And I used my cowboy voice...

I'm not sure what you're doing on Wednesday nights, but I'm watching "Modern Family." I don't remember when I saw a show that was this funny -- every single week I laugh out loud. And it doesn't just make you laugh -- it has a heart and seems to portray families in a very honest, albeit, HI-larious way. Check it out -- and now back to the Olympic games!

Good Things Come In Small Packages

It is big news! You could hear the shouts from shore-to-shore --- Lake Michigan to Lake Superior that is -- our little Sadie walked away with the title "Best in Show" at the Westminster Kennel Club dog show -- the most prestigious event in the canine kingdom. And to make Sadie's win even more exciting -- the little Scottie is a Michigander -- her owner is from Mackinac Island. The Detroit News reports that well-wishers are leaving messages for Sadie and her owner on the Grand Hotel blog -- you can find that here and send your own best wishes to the littler terror...er...terrier. Sadie was the favorite to win the big dog title at the show, and so while not a surprise -- her win is still a thrill. This is Sadie's third trip to Westminster -- the first year she got stage-fright and the second year she took a frowned upon potty break on the green carpet. But the third time is the charm, and for those of us from Michigan who count Scottish Terriers as family members, this is a big win. I've had quite a few Scotties in my family, and I'm sure that we're all related. In my family, Sadie's victory caused a burst of email forwards -- to make sure that everyone knew that a Scottie was once again on the top of the podium. And so for just one day -- Olympics Schmo-lympics! Go Sadie! May you get to return to Mackinac Island soon and live a life of car-free leisure.

Tossing a Kizzle Kazzle

It's tough times for the DVR. You'll have to prioritize tonight -- whether it's best to continue to the monitor the Olympics -- and the curling gets underway tonight -- and the hockey -- can it get any better? Or whether you should watch the Westminster Kennel Club dog show. The Scottish Terrier Sadie is competing for Best of Show tonight -- which makes this decision even worse. I've been enjoying NBC's broadcast of the Olympics from Vancouver. There have been some blunders that have left me shaking my head. Why aren't the final competions of the marquee events being broadcast before eleven o'clock? Am I the only person in the world with a school night bedtime? I tried to stay up last night to watch my personal favs -- Shue Shen and Hungbo Zhao -- win the pairs gold medal in figure skating, but I feel asleep three pairs before they were due on the ice. I know now that they won -- but I still haven't seen their performance -- it's stuck on my DVR. And I watched one segment of NBC's Olympic broadcast that featured Bob Costas and Chris Collingsworth having a little fireside chat surrounded by hundreds of candles. If I didn't know better I would've thought I was watching the introduction to gay porn on Masterpiece Theatre. Who's designing these Olympic sets? And then there's the fact that all the media outlets -- other than NBC -- are pumping out spoilers of who won before the events are broadcast in order to spoil NBC's ratings. Yes, there's a lot going on. I'm having a hard time keeping up.