I spent yesterday afternoon in the Jersey City studios of the mighty WFMU, where I joined “Fool’s Paradise” radio host Rex and a festive crowd of merry-makers and rabble-rousers to ring in the holiday. While Rex spun hep platters like “Santa Came Home Drunk,” “Seymour the Beatnik Elf,” and “Christmas in Jail” (here’s the full playlist), the rest of us tucked into a huge spread of food and drink, including a kielbasa sausage that had been cut and styled into the cross-shaped arrangement you see above. As the most passionate carnivore and the only nominal Christ-killer among our group, I was tasked with taking the first bite. I’m happy to report that meat and the cross are indeed two great tastes that taste great together. A Christmas miracle!
The afternoon took a uni-related turn when Rex and his lovely wife Coco presented me with a most excellent gift: a pair of genuine San Francisco Giants sanitary socks that they’d pinched from AT+T Park during a recent tour (eat your heart out, Brinke). The only problem is that Rex — who’d had quite a few Kringle’s Tingle cocktails by this point — referred to them on the air as “sanitation socks.” Fortunately, I was already standing near a microphone, so I corrected him and order was swiftly restored.
I’m having a few friends over today for a Boxing Day feast (gonna be making this; here’s the full recipe), so I probably won’t be paying much attention to football. Also, we’re under a blizzard warning here in NYC, which is always fun. Assuming my friends are able to make it over in the first place, they may end up snowed in here for a while. Fortunately, there should be more than enough food to last us a few days, so we won’t have to go all Donner Party on each other. Probably.
Uni Watch News Ticker, Special Sunday Edition: The Nuggets wore black shoes and socks on the road last Wednesday night, and then again yesterday. “That’s the first time this season I’ve seen black shoes with the baby blue jerseys,” says Dan Buckalew. “Maybe they just didn’t feel like packing their white shoes on this road trip, or maybe they’ll continue to go with this look.” ”¦ Speaking of the NBA, here’s a quick roundup of yesterday’s Christmas action: The Knicks and Bulls went green-vs.-red with a variety of shoe colors; the Lakers wore Grinch-colored sneakers; the Thunder lent credence to the Nike/Day-Glo conspiracy theory; and lots of players went with Christmas themed footwear and accessories. ”¦ Meanwhile, Ryan Mandel notes that the league’s snowflake logo looks a bit like a Star of David, but Phil points out that you can barely even see the snowflake on white jerseys because it doesn’t have a dark outline. ”¦ Back on Friday I mentioned that Freddie Dean appeared to have an aftermarket first initial in 1982. But now it turns out that the other Dean on that team, Vernon Dean, had the exact same kind of initial. The initials — both of which are the wrong font, too far to the left, and without a period — must both have been added after the jerseys were received from the manufacturer (great detective work by Dan Bly). ”¦ In a related item, check out the NOBs on the Sutter brothers — different fonts, and only one of them has a period after the initial (good spot by Michael Wilder). ”¦ Michel Hendriks checked in from the Netherlands, where he coaches a local baseball club called the UVV Red Lions. They’ve just released a BP jersey based on an old Netherlands team design. Note that the original version included a uni number on the thigh. ”¦ I forgot to include the photo link for one of the items in Thursday’s Ticker, so let’s try it again, this time with the proper visuals: “A few days ago I ran a photo of this vintage jersey I recently won on eBay. It turns out Rachel Askin has another version of the same exact jersey. “My dad wore it while playing in an adult softball league in Philadelphia, probably in the late ’70s,” she says. “The team was formed by my uncle and his friends. They were economists, so they named their team the Invisible Hands, after Adam Smith’s famous phrase.” Sorry for botching that the first time, Rachel. ”¦ My buddy Todd Abramson attended the World Series in San Francisco and finally got around to sending me a photo he took of the ball boy’s logo-emblazoned stool. No, not that kind of stool (although having a logo on that would be quite a trick) —this kind. ”¦ Kyle Donnelly got this awesome 1962 curling pin for Christmas. “You can sort of see how the texture under the outside green border and red ring of the house catch the light, but the photo hardly does it justice,” he says. ”¦ Very intriguing Texas A&M football report by John Trigg, who writes: “There’s been a good discussion on an Aggie message board, with great pics, about the possibility of bringing back A&M’s 1970s-era cross-shoulder jersey stripes, which was as close as A&M has gotten to an iconic uniform look in its history. Nobody then had that look, and nobody since. The discussion thread and pics are here.” ”¦ “We all know the Riddell Revoloution Speed helmet’s unusual vent positioning creates challenges for helmet decals,” writes Clint Glaze. “Here’s how the SDSU Aztecs deal with it: Apparently they make the logo a little smaller and actually tighten up the arc of the lettering.” ”¦ Tulsa added a little floral pattern to their blue helmet stripe and helmet script for the Hawaii Bowl on Friday. ”¦ “As one of your shoe nerds, I feel it is my duty to bring this to light,” says Greg Riffenburgh. “Donovan McNabb has been wearing a player-exclusive version of Nike’s Air Max MVP, a molded baseball cleat, for much of the season, on both natural and artificial turfs. And Ben Roethlisberger has been wearing mismatched shoes with heavy tape on the right one since he hurt his ankle, as you can see in these photos from Weeks 13, 14, 15, and 16. Note the different combinations used for natural and artificial turf. The shoes worn on his left foot are his usual player-exclusive designs (for both surfaces) and those on his right appear to be standard-issue black/white shoes, chosen (presumably) for the extra ankle support he needs on the injured leg.” ”¦ Poignant Christmas story from Brinke, who writes: “Back in the 1970s, the Reds had a gift shop in downtown Cincinnati, called the 580 Building. I went all the time, bought lots of Reds items, including this game-used Darrel Chaney hat. I hadn’t seen it in years, but it arrived this week, along with some other caps my Mom had kept all these years — she passed away in the summer of 2009, and we received some of her things this week. So my first-ever big league hat ended up being a nice Christmas present from the past, from the best Mom anyone could ever have.”
“…nominal Christ-killer”? Really?
i.e., non-religious Jew.
Just disappointed that you’d use the phrase “Christ-killer”…
It’s on the order of certain gay groups taking the word “queer” and adopting it as their own, in an attempt to take the derogatory nature out of it. Similarly, using that term in that way might be a small step toward purging the vile notion that Jews are guilty of deicide.
Paul, I hope you take a picture of your dinner when it is made. That dish looks beautiful…and tasty! Beats the pot-roast I am making today.
Sammy’s Noodles in the Village had a very spicy (or so they said) beef dish called Black Beef or something like that. Looks like the same idea as what you are making, only made with hot chilies and served over boc choi.
Actually, if you look at the recipe, you’ll see that asado negro is a pot roast of sorts, at least in terms of the cooking method (a long braise in the oven), although I’m hoping it tastes a whole lot more remarkable than that due to the caramel and vinegar. It’s an intriguing recipe — looking forward to trying it.
Gotta love the St. Paul Saints’ sense of humor…
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—Ricko
NFL considering postponing the Viking/Eagles games according to several tweets I have got. From a spectator point of view I am not happy about it. From a Fantasy Football owner prospective, who has Vick and Peterson in the championship game, please postponed.
Seriously?!
The one truly superior thing about football is that the show must go on, no matter the weather. I can see maybe — MAYBE — canceling a game due to severe lightning. But snow? Shit, it isn’t even gonna be that cold in Philly this evening (mid- to high 20s). OK, so there won’t be much of a crowd — too bad. Play the damn game.
The issue apparently is the possibility of one to two FEET of snow during the game.
They talk about “safety” re: players, but I’m guessing they might honestly be worried about people crazy enough to attend, and the issues they might have with transportation. Stuck on the road in the dark, etc.
The last thing the NFL needs is some drunk to plow into as snow drift afterward, freeze to death and his family sues the Eagles and the league for playing the game and somehow “enticing” the guy to go out in that weather. I mean, after all, he DID pay a lot of money for his ticket.
Sound unlikely? Hey, if someone can sue McDonalds cuz they serve their coffee too hot…
—Ricko
Yeah, that is what I am reading is that there is a snow emergency in Philadelphia starting at 2 PM. The heaviest snow will be between 3 PM and midnight. They are worried about fans traveling to and from the game.
Snow + blizzard conditions with the Linc right near the Delaware River. Philly is in snow shutdown right now.
Postponed until Tuesday at 8 PM
Disappointing, but it’s probably a good thing. This isn’t an unprecedented idea; a few decades ago they cancelled an Astros game at the Astrodome because, while the teams made it, no one else could get to the stadium due to flooding in Houston.
Why doesn’t Chris Anderson of the Nuggets just go ahead and get his face tattoed like a bird?
At this point, might as well.
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Wonder what he’d look like in the 80s unis…
Saying “kielbasa sausage” is redundant, at least in Wisconsin. Also known here as “Polish sausage” and served as such at Miller Park (and featured in the Brewers’ sausage race).
If you have to go Donner Party, try what we in Wisconsin call cannibal sandwiches. “A barbaric combination of raw ground sirloin served on dark rye bread or crackers and topped with thin-sliced raw onion.” link
As a longtime Wisconsin-phile, I am well familiar with the charms of the cannibal sandwich. Never made one myself, though. Maybe for New Year’s….
I used to love raw hamburger (maybe with a little salt) as a kid. Since I’ve been married, my wife has convinced me not to nibble anymore, though.
Blech… even on that Cincinnati Magazine page 8, there’s a Nike ad. The article on the KISS concert was a bit brow raising, tho the “Dear Mr. Annoy” bit on page 53 is pretty damned hilarious.
Last night – FSU and Baylor went color on color.
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That’s going to happen a lot when Florida State wears that uniform. But I don’t consider that color-on-color any more than when the Lakers wear their yellow jerseys at home.
About the Sutter picture. Duane’s name does not have the orange outline on it.
A shirt on sale today that paul might be interested in:
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Monochromes for the Rams today.
And the more I think about it the more I think the Lions should wear Honolulu Blue home and road, all the time. They would almost never clash, and it’s a good look, especially if they take away the black.
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Don’t know if “Flatbush” is near PL’s, but here’s what snow in Brooklyn looks like.
Chicago Bears Idonije is missing the top half of his helmet decal….
Here is a screen grab!
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Mark Sanchez was wearing earhole covers on his helmet today while he was at Spaceship Field. (link)
Speaking of Bears, there’s a screengrab of Devon Hester getting shanked on Monday Night against the Eagles a few years back (link)
Upon actually reading the site, it’s from 2009.
Can one of the helmet guys tell me if Aaron Rodgers has changed his helmet this week after his brain issues this season…? I thought he was an old-school Riddell guy.
Yes, the said on the game that he had change helmets because of the concussions.
He wore a Schutt Air XP, he’s usually worn the Riddell VSR-4.
Wild in their third jerseys tonight vs. the Red Wings. Detroit is 5-2 playing teams in their 3rd jerseys.
One other thing about the NBA shoes from yesterday. D Wade was wearing the new Air Jordan 2011 in the first half.
So I’m being forced to watch the Little Ceasar’s Bowl because of the Eagles & Vikes being postponed. Here is my breakdown:
Mascot Edge: Golden Panthers vs Rockets. Ok so a rocket being controlled by humans would assuredly be able to either outrun a panther unless of course said panther was inside the rocket. In which case the panthers win.
Uni Edge: Toledo wins by default here.
Come on the teams are fighting for two larges with everything and an order of Crazy Bread.
Don’t underestimate the power of the Crazy Bread.
I wish I still had a Little Caesars near me, that stuff rules.
I’d eat that. The sauce leaves something to be desired, though, so I add some butter to it. My son loves that place, so I end up eating more of their stuff than I normally would.
The game could have looked worse. FIU’s white unis are a lot better than the blue/black ones.
Seriously those numbers on Toledo’s unis could be seen from the space station.
You say this as it was a bad thing. Numbers that can be seen from a long way are great things to use statisticians.
Exactly.
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Not the prettiest font, but it serves its purpose. Big, readable and there’s no confusing a 5 from a 2 *CoughOregonCough*.
Is it me or does Toledo have different sizes fonts for their NOB. Shorter name have larger fonts, medium names have medium fonts and longer names have smaller fonts?
I could tell if I watched this online (since it’s not one of the three bowl games my TV gets this year), but that just seems like too much work at this hour. You might be right, though. One other time I saw them it seemed as if the sizes were different.
The Nuggets wore black shoes and socks on the road last Wednesday night, and then again yesterday. “That’s the first time this season I’ve seen black shoes with the baby blue jerseys,” says Dan Buckalew. “Maybe they just didn’t feel like packing their white shoes on this road trip, or maybe they’ll continue to go with this look.”
–Could this (black shoes & socks) have been done with respect to the death of Carmelo Anthony’s sister and his absence for those two games?
Well at least we have the Little Caesar’s Pizza Bowl to watch… I guess that’s something.
/stupid NFL
Don’t know if this has come up in prior discussions, but ESPN Classic airs a ton of old bowl games this time of year, and that should provide plenty of uniform fodder discussion.
Regarding the Texas A&M uniform jersey stripes, I hope the Aggies move forward on that one. It’s one of those examples of a short-lived design which had potential, but was pulled. My high school football team had that design in the early 80s, and I doubt it was the only one. It would be interesting to see how many other college football programs tried the jersey stripes look in the past.
Little Caesars Pizza commercials are using the same music (Monday Night Football theme) as Papa John’s.
Love the Texas A&M late 1970s jerseys – totally (almost) unique to the team, and great-looking!
UW Honchos – I must offer some correcting info regarding “no one before or since” has worn that type jersey …. when Texas A&M coach Emory Bellard (said to be the father of the Wishbone offense while Darrly Royal’s assistant at Texas) left A&M and was hired at Mississippi State, he took the shoulder cross-striped jersey design with him to MSU and they wore it for 4-5 years that he coached them. They wore it woth a Maroon helmet, where Texas A&M wore it with a White helmet.
Maybe nobody saw MSU wear it unless you paid to go to a game – they were not on TV much back then, if at all – either way, that jersey looked pretty darn good!
Also weny to colege with a guy that wore that design when he played junior college ball – he had a Brown (!) jersey with Athletic Gold stripes – looked pretty good also.
well, you won’t have Singletary to kick around anymore.
SFGate reports he was let go just now.
Page 19 in that Cincinnati magazine:
“(November) 14 Stingers v. U.S. Olympic Team, at 7:30.”
A bunch of college kids playing a CHL club? On a Wednesday night? Psh…
Sutter Jersey… I think the picture is from a presason game and one of them is wearing the previous season jersey..(at work..so I can’t dig for proof)