This is information retrieval not information dispersal.

If you ever plan on moving to South Carolina, be prepared to go through Brazil. Huh? Not the country, the movie. Brazil, the movie, is the Terry Gilliam sci-fi classic about bureaucracy in a retro-future world. It's got some very very funny scenes. Well, when you're watching an anti-bureaucracy movie they're funny. When you're going through them in real life, well, they lose some humor. Take getting your SC license and tag. You think you can just go to the DMV and knock that out, right? WRONG! Here's the series of step you can expect:
1.Go to the DMV office. Not just any DMV office, the specific one in my part of the state that grants driver's licenses to non-US citizens. Luckily there's one about 14 miles from my house in Greenville. There, pass the eye exam, then fill out an application. Wait in line for your number to be called up.
2.Hand in the application, show all the documents that you have, then pay the fee. Then wait in line again for your number to be called up and for you to get your picture.
3.Get your picture taken. And although the driver's license prints right away, you'll have to wait 8 weeks for it to be mailed to your home. "The applications are backed up"...but you do get a two-sheet temporary ID that's a pain in the ass to carry around.
4.Drive downtown (about 10 miles away) so you can pay the property taxes that you owe for your car (you heard that right). Go to the office that handles first time tax payers, and wait in line.
5.Hand in the proper documents and find out how much you owe in taxes.
6.Go to another office to wait in line to pay your taxes. Hand in the proper documents, pay the fee and get the receipt.
7.Drive another 10 miles back to the DMV to get your tag. Wait in line again, then hand your tax receipt. Fill out an application for the tag, and hand that in along with your fee.

And voila, you get your license and tag!

So yes, going through all of that made feel like a little like Sam Lowry going through information retrieval and information dispersal offices...

College Football Poll, Week 6

Not much changed in the top 10 of the national polls this week. My poll, however, is very fluid and will change often.
I am being very tough on my Bulldogs this week, ranking teams such as Cal, Tenn, GT, Missouri ahead of them. Past two games have not gone over too well...

Rank.School (Last Week)
1.Ohio State (2) - Have gone on the road against good teams and dominated. They're for real.
2.Auburn (1) - Got a win in a tough environment.
3.Michigan (4) - Continue to blow all competition away. Should have an easy time this weekend against MSU.
4.USC (3) - Struggled on the road against WSU, a team that Auburn dismantled (albeit at home).
5.LSU (5) - Tough defense, this team really knows how to finish weaker opponents quickly.
6.Florida (8) - Defense is carrying the team through early parts of games.
7.Texas (7)
8.West Virginia (6) - Should win out until the Louisville game.
9.Oregon (11)
10.Louisville (9)
11.Oklahoma (14) - Keeps improving, defense needs a big game in Red River Shootout.
12.Clemson (12) - Offense is a monster right now, especially the running game.
13.Tennessee (16) - Could win the East if they win this weekend at Georgia.
14.California (17) - Playing very well right now.
15.Missouri (23) - Solid right now
16.Notre Dame (19) - Michigan State win keeps looking worse and worse. Defense is still weak, as the Purdue WR got 200+ yards against them. Soft schedule until finale against USC so they'll keep winning big until then.
17.Georgia Tech (21) - Defense is playing well and Ball is not making big mistakes. If they can avoid their yearly let-down game this is a team that can play for the ACC championship.
18.Georgia (13) - Offense is struggling, will be interesting how they handle their first ranked opponent.
19.Boise St (24) - Have to keep winning big to make it into a BCS game.
20.Florida St (22)
21.Rutgers (NR) - How long will they remain in the top 25? Who knows, they survived a tough USF team last week though.
22.Iowa (15) - I don't think they've played as well as they could all year, but should rebound from OSU thrashing.
23.Virginia Tech (10) - Got beat in every phase of the game against GT.
24.Nebraska (20)
25.Wake Forest (NR) - Keep on winning.

Others: Texas Tech, TCU, Boston College, Penn State, Arkansas

The grass is always greener...well, anywhere but here!

Damn the Joneses! Looking around last week at the yards around my house and well, our yard is really weak. Struggling. Much like the Georgia offense lately.
We went to Lowe's to try to figure out what we needed to do (i.e., overseeding, putting down fertilizer or lyme, etc). The guy was helpful, but he must've thought we were the biggest dumbasses around when we brought him a sample of our grass. He goes "well, that's Dallas Grass. Otherwise known as weed."

Damn that was the greenest best part of our yard. Turns out our yard is mostly weed with a little bit of fescue. I'm not sure what I did or what I was thinking, but I ended up buying starter seed, fertilizer, lyme, a spreader, sprinkler, etc. I have no idea what to do with all that, and it gets even more complicated because apparently I'm going to need to rent an aerator. I can barely work my leaf blower....ain't no telling how the aerator business is going to go.

Well, at least this is going to keep me quite busy and outdoors. Anybody that has any tips on how I should go about doing this let me know...

Champion's League

Finally got to watch my first two Champion's League matches this season. Wender Bremen hosted Barcelona, and Real Madrid hosted Dynamo Kiev. Real didn't look that great, but still won by a wide margin. I don't see them going all the way, especially with their play in the back. They'll miss Cicinho. I was disappointed with Barca as well. Nobody came to play, and now they've lost Eto'o for 5 months. Still plenty of talent there, but I came away impressed with Bremen. Loved Naldo and Diego, and Klose is about as good a striker as you'll get. I really think if Brazil had called up Naldo and Diego and actually had the marbles to play them instead of superstars like Ronaldinho and Lucio things could've been different. Oh well.

Sticking with CL, one team I really hope to watch is CSKA Moscow. They've got a couple of Brazilians who are playing really well. They're my dark horse team in the CL. I like Lyon and Valencia as well to make a deep run.

Speaking of Brazilians, out of the 32 teams in group play, there are 86 Brazilians! That's unbelievable!

That's enough soccer talk for me. My parents will be dropping by Saturday for a little bit and I need to clean up the place before they get here...

Taking a look around...some Oconee boys

Read a pretty neat article on ESPN yesterday about Clayton Matthews. He led my alma mater, Oconee County High School, to a Georgia state championship in football, in 1999. This was the same team with Tony Taylor and Tyson Browning and some other very good players. Clayton went on to James Madison to follow his father Mickey Matthews, a former UGA coach. Clayton was productive there, but after his senior year he got in not one but TWO car accidents, each one breaking his neck. He's now paralyzed, is still leading a very productive life. Clayton is now the receivers and kicking coach at James Madison, all in his wheelchair. Really puts things in perspective after all our bitching and complaining about little things, here's a kid that had nearly everything taken away from him and still hasn't backed away from his dreams and has never complained about it.


The Cover Two has started an initiave to retire Tony Taylor's number at Oconee County - in ALL sports. Tony is one of the most gifted athletes I have ever seen and had the pleasure to coach, and will likely be playing Sundays this time next year. He was a great athlete that did everything in football (punting, rushing, returning, playing LB/S), had a great basketball career (had a quadruple double once and always had to guard the other team's best player (whether it was a PG or C). But few people know of his soccer antics. Coach Rock talked him into playing his sophomore year, partly because one of his football buddies (TJ Stephens, who was a walk-on CB at UGA). He learned the position that year, and his junior and senior seasons he was a beast of a goalkeeper. Before his senior season he even made it into the GA Soccer Coaches "Top 25 to Watch" list. So good that a top soccer school like Clemson wanted him to go play for them. I believe if Tony had played baseball or tennis or lacrosse he would've done the same thing and would've been just as successful. He's probably the best athlete Oconee Co has ever seen and deserves his jersey retired.
Oh, and Tony probably deserves the game ball for his efforts last week vs Colorado. He was everywhere.

Speaking of soccer, former Oconee Co standout David Bell is making a splash his first year at Clemson. The junior transfer from Berry has started most of the games for the undefeated and number 1 ranked team in the nation. Living in Greenville I've been able to watch him play against then #1 Maryland and on tv against then #5 UNC (both wins). David is playing very well at the top alongside Jamaica international Dane Richards and Brazilian "Mooje".

Still following Oconee soccer alumni, Robbie Galvin is in his second year at Presbyterian. They're 6-1-1 and he's started half the games, scoring a goal. Down the road from my house, Ben Stephens began his first year with Furman Paladines. They're 5-4-1, and have some pretty good depth so I think Ben will redshirt this year. And up north, Stephen Fragaszy also started his second year at NYU. They're 8-1, and Stephen has played in one game as a backup, not allowing a goal.

Dawg Thoughts

Been a while since I've written, but I think I'll write a little more now that Heather is in a more difficult rotation and will be around less. Have to keep myself busy, maybe this isn't the most productive way, but at least its not (too) harmful.

Crazy game last weekend. I was expecting a tough game, but I wasn't expecting the complete dud that it was for 3.5 quarters. I knew the Buffalos had a pretty good defense and that their offense just wasn't executing well to win games...but that they would put that all together soon. And I knew they'd be well coached and hungry. That's a proud program that has won the Big XII North 4 out of the last 5 years and they were going to be tough. But I'm also one of those pessimistic fans and I was also (sorta) worried about Western Kentucky and UAB. I knew it would be tough but figure in the second half we'd pull away.
Here are some thoughts on the Colorado game, just for some closure:
Depth: I think that's what won us the game. You can tell the Buffs defensive line was getting tired towards the end of the game.
RBs: Lumpkin looked the best, but don't count out Thomas Brown. The holes weren't there for him, all year really. And they've been tackling him well. He's been strong in kick returns and receiving so I expect him to bounce back and have a big game soon.
QBs: Didn't help Stafford that the wide outs kept dropping balls. Staff was playing well, but as his receivers started to grease their hands, his confidence went down. And that's where you saw him throwing behind guys or overthrowing balls. Cox came in the guys started to play better around him. Maybe its leadership, who knows. But neither played bad and both deserve playing time this week.
WRs: They did catch the ball and make plays towards the end of the game, including the maligned MoMass. Moved the chains when we had to.
TE: Glad Millner had that catch. He's had it pretty tough past couple of years, with dropping passes and making special teams mistakes, and I'm glad he made a big catch. Hopefully that will get his confidence up and he'll play up to his potential.
Def: Tony Taylor gets a game ball in my opinion. He was everywhere, in the backfield and had the interception to seal the game.
Special Teams: Improved as the game went along, and that's good. We've got to remember that we have a lot of freshmen there too, with guys like Prince Miller getting a lot of PT in punt coverage.
Coaching: We got outcoached, but Richt made the right decisions when he had to. I like the bravado and 'marbles' that he showed going for it on 4th and short twice in the second half...but if he had gotten 3 both of those times the game would've bee a little different. Yes, it's easier to say it now that I know we didn't get the first down, but I wanted points of any kind. But I do like the aggressiveness. Yanking Staff was the right choice at the right time, but there were a couple of Richt of 2001 clock management blunders that irked me. First was the timeout for the extra point. We've got one of the best kickers around, so take the 5 yard penalty. We might have needed the timeout more than those 5 yards. And second, the timeout at the last drive that Cox called, when the clock was stopped anyway because MoMass ran out of bounds. It did work out thogh, I think the TD came in the very next play. Defensively, I thought we did a poor job of adjusting to Colorado's scheme. Yes, we only allowed 3 points after the half, but it took us too long to adjust. Should've been done in the first quarter, not the third. We came through when we had to.

So that's behind us now. We showed a lot of grit and won against a decent team (don't look at the record) on a tough day even though we played like crap for most of the game. Hopefully that's a good wake-up call, and good for those youngsters to learn how to win.

This week: Ole Miss
It's a late night game in Oxford (9:12pm kickoff) and you know the Rebel fans will be drunk and obnoxious and hungry for an SEC win. This is a team like Colorado, that has some talent but is seriously underachieving. I don't think we have a letdown like last week, and hopefully come out guns blazing. Our lines should be much better and it won't matter who's handing the ball off to our running backs.
One thing I do hope to see is Blake Barnes late in the game. The Mississippi native has stuck around and taken being the 3rd QB very well so far, and he deserves some playing time, especially when Oxford is less than an hour from his hometown.


Top 25
I think I've waited long enough before ranking teams. Here's my top 25:
1.Auburn - Toughest schedule so far, and toughest defense around.
2.Ohio State - Defense is playing really well right now, which is scary.
3.Southern Cal - Looks like Jarrett's injury isn't that serious.
4.Michigan - Playing as well as anyone right now.
5.LSU - Assuming Auburn is #1, this team is right behind them.
6.West Virginia - Poor game against ECU last weekend, they still have a lot to prove.
7.Texas - QB play will improve as the year goes along. Don't think they lose again.
8.Florida - Showed some toughness at Tenn, but they have a brutal schedule and don't think they can go unscathed.
9.Louisville - Not the best game last week, but this team keeps on winning.
10.Virginia Tech - Front runner to win the ACC.
11.Oregon
12.Clemson - Special teams mistake cost them a perfect season...but they could still win the ACC.
13.Georgia - Undefeated, but a lot of questions...
14.Oklahoma - Should be undefeated, if not for officiating blunders in Eugene.
15.Iowa - Won't be undefeated for too much longer.
16.Tennessee
17.California - Playing very well lately
18.TCU - Haven't seen them play, but winning big vs Texas Tech is good.
19.Notre Dame - Got away with one last week. They'll probably win out until USC and still make it to a BCS bowl.
20.Nebraska - Big XII up for grabs.
21.Georgia Tech
22.Florida State
23.Missouri
24.Boise St
25.Boston College

Others: Texas Tech, Rutgers, Wake Forest, Penn St, Purdue

Heisman Watch
1.Troy Smith - his team will keep winning and he'll keep making plays.
2.Adrian Peterson - will have to beat Texas to have a shot.
3.Calvin Johnson - Sky is the limit for him, well actually a really short and erratic QB is what limits him right now.
Give some love to: Garrett Wolfe - has been piling up stats against bad competition, but has proven he can get it done against the big boys.
Thanks for playing: Brady Quinn - he didn't lead the comeback last weekend. His defense did. He looked awful with exception of two series in the fourth quarter.

The Lawnmower Diaries

Learned my first lawnmower lesson last weekend: NEVER tip your lawnmower over!

I was trying to get it clean, and tipped it over, sprayed the grass, yadda yadda yadda...next thing I know the lawnmower won't run right. Sputtering, idling out, smoke coming out. I was afraid I had gotten oil in the carburetor, in the spark plugs, everywhere. After much tinkering with it, I realized that some oil had seeped through to the air filter. That sucker was dirty and nasty...so dirty that air wouldn't move through. So a clean filter did the job, and now it's running as smoothly as ever. So lesson I learned is not to tip it over!

Have my fantasy football draft for Colin's league tonight. I finished second to Colin last year (last two years actually) and hopefully will get one of the top 3 picks so I can put a whoopin' to Colin.

Former Dawgs in the NFL

With college football just around the corner, and NFL pre-season about over, I decided to take a look at what former Dawgs are doing in the NFL. Yeah most of us know where Hines Ward and Richard Seymour are playing, but there's a good group of players out there and I just wanted to recognize them.

Atlanta: DJ Shockley QB '06 - Was just named the 3rd team QB for the team, beating out incumbent Bryan Randall. Did a good job in pre-season and should be Vick's backup next year (assuming Schaub leaves via free-agency).
Atlanta: Josh Mallard DE '02 - One of my favorite players as a Dawg, always created havoc during pass rush situations. He's listed as a second team DE.
Atlanta: Will Thompson LB/DE '06 - Was just cut from the team, hopefully can make his way into a practice team or another league and try it again next year.
Arizona: Leonard Pope TE '06 - Listed on the 3rd team on the depth chart, but should move up quickly as he learns the system. Is in a high power offense and should do well, as seen by his beautiful TD in last week's pre-season game (1st quarter, from Warner).
Baltimore: Musa Smith RB '03 - Having a great pre-season, but still listed as a third team player. Should make the team.
Carolina: Thomas Davis SLB '05 - Making some hard hits in pre-season, and is listed as a starter at the linebacker spot for a very good Carolina defense.
Carolina: John Kasay PK '91 - Solid kicker for the Panthers.
Chicago: Bryan McLendon WR '06 - Was just waived from the Bears, played a little in the pre-season. I think he can contribute in special teams somewhere eventually.
Cincinnati: Odell Thurman MLB '05 - Excellent rookie season last year, when he led Cincy in tackles. Would be starting right now if not for his 4 game suspension (violating league substance abuse policy).
Cincinnati: David Pollack SLB '05 - Former college great is listed as a starter right now.
Cincinnati: Robert Geathers RE '04 - Listed as a second team end.
Cleveland: Sean Jones SS '04 - Seems to have the system down, is listed as the starter at safety.
Cleveland: DeMario Minter CB '06 - Injured right now and not listed on the depth chart.
Dallas: Jason Fergunson NT '97 - Starter once again for the Cowboys.
Dallas: Dennis Roland RT '06 - Listed as a 3rd team player, should make the team.
Denver: Champ Bailey LCB '99 - One of the best corners in the NFL will once again lead the charge for the Broncos.
Denver: George Foster RT '03 - Listed as a starter again for a potent Broncos offense.
Denver: Adam Meadows RT '97 - Listed as a backup on the second team, after a successful run with the Colts.
Detroit: Boss Bailey MLB '03 - Finally fully healthy, is a starter in the middle of the Lions defense.
Indianapolis: Russ Tanner LG '06 - Listed as a 3rd team player, is battling to make the team. Hopefully he will with his versatility as a lineman (plays C as well).
Indianapolis: Tim Jennings DB '06 - Listed as a 4th team player and also battling to make the Colts team. Hopefully can pick up the defense and stick with them.
Jacksonville: Marcus Stroud LDT '01 - All-Pro caliber and once again leading the way for a very good Jags defense.
Jacksonville: Tony Gilbert MLB '03 - Second on the depth chart and should make the team.
Kansas City: Kendrell Bell ROLB '01 - Former rookie of the year should start and hopefully remain healthy and have a successful season.
Miami: Randy McMichael TE '02 - One of the best in the NFL will once again start for the Dolphins.
Miami: Fred Gibson WR '05 - Having a terrific pre-season, is listed as a third team player but will have a tough time making the team as the Dolphins have a lot of depth. If he doesn't, he had a great audition and someone is likely to swoop in and sign him.
New England: Richard Seymour DE '01 - All-Pro and one of the best at his position in the NFL.
New England: Ben Watson TE '04 - Listed as a 2nd on the depth chart, but is their best pass-catching TE and should have a very good year for a great offense.
New England: Patrick Pass FB '00 - Listed as the starter at full-back, can also play some rb.
New England: Johnathan Sullivan DL '03 - Listed as 2nd on the depth chart, going through a much better spell with his new team.
New Orleans: Charles Grant LDE '02 - Most sacks on the Saints since joining the team, should have another monster season.
New Orleans: Jon Stinchcomb RT '03 - Listed 2nd on the depth chart.
New York Jets: Bruce Thornton CB '04 - Just signed a contract with them, will try to make the squad.
Philadelphia: Reggie Brown WR '05 - Will start and looks to be the go-to receiver for the Eagles.
Philadelphia: Max Jean-Gilles LG '06 - Third team player, will eventually be a good contributor.
Pittsburgh: Hines Ward FL '97 - Super Bowl MVP is ready for another great year.
Pittsburgh: Verron Haynes RB '02 - Depth chart is not up yet, but he should make the team as a second team rb (over Staley). Also looks like he'll replace Bettis as Pittsburgh's goal-line back.
Pittsburgh: Arnold Harrison ROLB '04 - Trying to make the team.
San Diego: Randall Godfrey ILB '96 - Great pro will start for the Chargers.
San Francisco: Jonas Jennings LT '01 - Will start for the 49rs.
Seattle: Mack Strong FB '93 - One of the best fullbacks in the NFL.
Seattle: David Greene QB '05 - 3rd team player, still behind Wallace and Hasselbeck.
St. Louis: Will Witherspoon MLB '02 - 'Spoon will start for his new team.
Tampa Bay: Jermaine Phillips SS '02 - Listed as a starter for a very good Bucs defense.
Washington: Phillip Daniels RDE '96 - Will start when he's fully healthy.
Washington: Demetric Evans RDE '01 - 2nd team player will be a backup this year.
Washington: Kedric Golston LDT '06 - Listed as a third team player, playing a lot in the pre-season and will hopefully make the team.
Washington: Nic Clemmons DE '03 - not listed on the depth chart, trying to make the team (he did last year).
Washington: Chris Clemmons LB - cut from the Redskins last week.
Minnesota: Jermaine Wiggins TE '00 - The starter again for the Vikings.
Minnesota: Greg Blue SS '06 - Playing very well in the pre-season, should soon move to 2nd string (from 3rd).

The Wall

Wallpaper
As some know, I've been cooped up at home trying to get 'stuff' done. Been battling with the wallpaper on the wall most recently...and well, I must say that the wallpaper is winning. It's really quite a hassle trying to get it off the wall. I can get it unstuck to the wall, but the geniuses who put the wallpaper there in the first place didn't prime the drywall or anything. So the I pull off the wallpaper, but the darn adhesive stays behind, covering half the wall. That's driving me bonkers.
I've finished ripping down the wallpaper in the hallway, but now I have a third of the drywall damaged, and a third of it covered with glue/adhesive. Which I now will have to sand off. After that, spackle the damaged wall. And then sand again. Sigh.

Interplanetary Social Chat #45089.
I read a couple of other blogs daily, Hey, Jenny Slater being one of them. Doug is a funny guy...his post Thursday 24th of August is pretty darn funny. I almost cried reading the "interplanetary social chat".

Draft!
Spent a good part of early Sunday afternoon drafting a football team for the league I'm in with a bunch of my friends. I had the first pick of the draft (no shenanigans there) and my draft was actually ok. I really hate all the teams that I draft right after I draft them because you always miscalculate something or miss on a player here and there. I've got a lot of RB depth, good starting WRs, decent TEs and questionable QBs. That's not too bad. Here's my team:
QB - D.Bledsoe DAL
WR - R.Moss OAK
WR - R.Wayne IND
WR - D.Driver GB
RB - S.Alexander SEA
RB - D.McAllister NO
TE - L.Smith PHI
W/R - F.Gore SF
bench - D.Branch NE
bench - C.Benson CHI
bench - C.Brown TEN
bench - G.Jones JAX
bench - S.McNair BAL
bench - K.Winslow CLE
bench - M.Turner SD
K - J.Wilkins STL
DEF - Jacksonville

It's a solid team that should compete and do a fine job in defending the league crown.

UGA QB Situation

Well, apparently every blocker out there has an opinion on the Georgia CB situation. So I figure I have my say on the situation as well.
I get a little annoyed with people that think they know what's going on in the practice field. You're not there. You don't watch practice and film every day. You don't know what is going on. All you see is G-Day scrimmage months ago and recruiting reports (and I guess video of recruits against high school players). Bottom line is the coaches are the people that really know what's going on. So I'll trust coach right and boob to know what is best for the UGH football team and for the 4 young men that were/are vying for the starting spot.

As for the final decision, I have no problem with it. First of all, we should trust the coaches (as mentioned above). Second of all, jet was no slouch coming out of h's either. He was a 4 star recruit and generally recognized as top 20 CB in the country. And he's tough as nails.
Joe Cox as the backup may be a bit surprising, but he was a stud coming out of h's, and has had 1 year to learn the system.

It will be interesting to see how those top two guys do. If they produce and we keep winning, I don't see Matthew Stafford playing this year. Which is not necessarily a bad thing. It will make next year interesting, but next year is a long time away. If the top two guys do struggle, then I think we've got a shot of seeing Barnes and Stafford...But right now I really don't want it to come down to that.

I look forward to the season, and just really hope that all Georgia fans are behind Joe threshing III. He IS our starting CB, and a damn good dais, and needs our support. I know Stafford has the most potential, but that's all that it is right now. JIHAD is more ready right now and gives the team the best chance to win, and it would be an insult to the other players to throw the season away just because the true freshman CB needs more reps.
Go daisy!