Sports Fact & Book Rec of the Day 5/8-5/11/2010

5/8/2003:
Aaron Boone cracks three solo homers to lead the Cincinnati Reds to an 8-6 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals at Great American Ball Park, their spanking-new home by the Ohio River. It's the second career three-homer game for Boone (also last year vs. San Diego), and it helps the Reds complete a four-game sweep of the Cardinals. Traded this summer to the Yankees, he'll author one of baseball's most memorable home runs, an 11-th inning clout in the seventh game of the ALCS to win the pennant for New York.

Birthdays:
Sonny Liston b. 1932
Mike Cuellar b. 1937
Bill Cowher b. 1957
Ronnie Lott b. 1959
Speedy Claxton b. 1978

5/9/1981:
The Minnesota North Stars win their first NHL Western Conference playoff final, beating the Calgary Flames, 5-3, to clinch the series in six games. Rookie left wing Brad Palmer scores twice for Minnesota, including a backbreaking shorthanded goal to establish a 4-1 lead with six minutes remaining. Al MacAdam, Dino Ciccarelli and Steve Payne also score for the North Stars, who advance to their first Stanley Cup final. Unfortunately, they will run into the New York Islanders dynasty and be dismissed in five games.

Birthdays:
Panco Gonzales b. 1928
Ralph Boston b. 1939
Howard "Butch" Komives b. 1941
Tony Gwynn b. 1960
Steve Tzerman b. 1965

Packers Fact:
The Packers did not turn over the ball in four different games in 2007; they won all four of them, giving them 30 wins in 31 such games since 1996.

5/10/2005:
In a 9-8 loss to the Dodgers at Busch Stadium, St. Louis third baseman Scott Rolen collides with Hee Seop Choi at first base after an errant throw by pitcher Scott Erickson, and suffers a torn labrum in his left shoulder. Rolen will undergo arthroscopic surgery right away, but after returning to the lineup he's still not right, so he'll be forced to accept season-ending surgery in July. He'll bounce back for a solid season in 2006, but his shoulder issues resurface in 2007, and following that season the Cardinals will trade him to the Toronto Blue Jays.

Birthdays:
Pat Summerall b. 1930
Manuel Santana b. 1938
Jim Calhoun b. 1942
Phil & Steve Mahre b. 1957
Rony Seikaly b. 1965

Packers Fact:
Running back Ryan Grant played college football at Notre Dame.

Arguably baseball's greatest promoters, Hall of Fame owner Bill Veeck knew his bread-and-butter audience was made up of dedicated fans who came out to the ballpark on a regular basis whether or not they had a lot of money to spend: "The fans' knowledge of the game is usually in inverse proportion to the price of their seats."

Birthdays:
Charlie Gehringer b. 1903
Jack Twyman b. 1934
Milt Pappas b. 1939
Kerry Ligienberg b. 1971
Matt Lefnart b. 1983

Packers Fact
Don Horn passed for a modest 20 touchdowns in eight NFL seasons beginning in 1967, but 5 of them came for Green Bay in a 45-28 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals to close the 1969 season.


http://web.mit.edu/people/jync/spam/
Spam-Ku
No, it's not poetry based on unwanted e-mails - it's haiku inspired by the famous pork-based luncheon meat.

http://www.krazydad.com/mandala.php
Ease-y Patterns
Set the view to full screen, sit back, relax, and enjoy your mandala of the day.

http://www.fromoldbooks.org/NathanBailey-CantingDictionary/A/
The Language of Thieves
If you dreamed of being a bully-ruffins or buff-knapper or are just writing about an arch-rogue with his own crew of foot-pads and want to sound authentic, the 18th-century lexicon at this site will have you speaking like a brigand in no time.

http://www.oreillymaker.com/
Create Your Own Book
It's not an accident that the sample tome on this site is called Avoiding Work at All Costs.

MOMS JUST WANNA HAVE FUN

Londoner Lucy Sweeny has given up her life as a TV producer to take on the challenge of being a full-time mother to her three boys. The predictable crises over household bills, the unhelpful father, school lunches, embarrassing kid moments, and out-of-control flirtations follow, but Fiona Neill knows her subject so well and has such a deft comic touch that you can’t help but laugh.

SLUMMY MUMMY, by Fiona Neill (Riverhead, 2007)

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?

Billie (or is he Billy) and her/his “robo sapiens” lover depart a dying, overexploited world for a new start on a fresh blue planet light-years away. Their adventure takes them through time as well as space and a world of ideas from Daniel Defoe to Samuel Beckett. The prizewinning author of Sexing the Cherry and Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit brings her lyricism and a fine sense of doom to this cautionary tale of artificial intelligence and human evolution.

THE STONE GODS, by Jeanette Winterson (Harcourt, 2008)

TIMELESS GARDENS

A Latin scholar and translator takes the works of four major Romans (Virgil, Pliny, Columella, and Palladius) on farming and gardening and presents their writings and philosophies in a way that highlights their charms. John Henderson sparkles in translating, and writers who may have seemed dull before now reveal winning style, wit, and enthusiasm. Fun reading and at the same time a historically significant addition to literature on the garden and on ancient Rome.

HORTUS: THE ROMAN BOOK OF GARDENING, by John Henderson (Routledge, 2004)

WITKAP STIMULO

Brouwerij Slaghmuylder, Ninove, Belgium

A sedimented ale with an unusually fragrant herbal bouquet, a refreshingly light flavor, and a dry finish. A pleasantly dry contrast to some of the heavier Belgian styles, this beer still weighs in at 6%/vol.—it seems the yeast does a great job converting almost all malt sweetness to alcohol. With a lightness and hop kick reminiscent of Arabier from De Dolle Brewers, but drier. A fine effort, and a great summer beer.

TUBORG GOLD LABEL

Tuborg Breweries, Copenhagen, Denmark

Gold Label pours with full, brilliant color, a big, balanced malt flavor and a refreshing finish. One of the oldest premium lager beers, this golden brew is popular the world over. Though Danish lager yeast tends to leave a drier finish than most, these beers aren’t usually as heavily kettle-hopped as German pilsener. So you’re left with a smooth, refreshing, drinkable pale beer. Simple, clean, and consistent.

GILDENBIER

Brewery Haacht, Boortmeerbeek, Belgium

A substantial, slightly vinous brown ale with a clean body and finish, this one’s not too sweet on the tongue—doesn’t leave you with too much malt in the aftertaste. It definitely drinks lighter than a typical 7% alcohol brown. As a session beer, this fairly simple but flawless ale would certainly fit the bill. If it’s really been brewed since 1389, as the label claims, it must have a sizeable following!

BEER FACT

According to the Haacht brewery, Gildenbier was associated with the Guild of Archers in Diest and only drunk at the annual Guild Ball. The barrels were stored under close guard in the town hall cellars, and only taken upstairs on the night of the ball. New Guild members had to undergo an initiation ritual: On the stroke of midnight, they were to drink a liter of Gildenbier while standing on one leg. Those who could keep their feet, despite the vicious shoves of other members, were accepted into the Guild.

DOUBLE DEAD GUY

Rogue Ales, Newport, Oregon

It’s the battle of the double ales. All the finest craft breweries are getting into the outdo-the-other-guy mentality in producing extra-strong versions of their best beers. Beer enthusiasts are the winners here, despite the premium prices we pay. Dead Guy was a great beer. But a double dead guy? Expectations soar. Deep amber, it’s a shade darker than its dark-blond single version. Its off-white foam laces pleasantly down the glass. In the aroma, lots of malt, delicate but persistent noble hops, and an elegant dash of pinot grigio–like alcohol. The flavor is a deliciously refined: caramel malt, with some biscuit notes, even a bit of chocolate. Hops are really in the background here, but offer a pleasant, mellow bitterness. Blond New World Doppelbock in an ale paradigm. Great stuff, and something you should either bestow upon your loved ones or hoard with extreme prejudice.