Why Would I Want These Tacos?

I fail to grasp the logic behind this taco ad from Jack In the Box:





How exactly is this supposed to motivate me to buy these tacos? Do I want to emulate someone who is so stupid he can't read or do basic math? If he's that stupid (or that stoned) why would I trust his culinary judgment? For that matter how was he able to drive that van with so few brain cells? Mysteries abound.

Why I Love Soccer

While I was on hiatus, I came across this post on the New York Times Goal Blog. It's a fairly standard piece about the empty soccer stadiums across Mexico during the height of the swine flu scare, but it shows how much soccer brings people together.

Soccer is often an escape for many Mexicans — and many people the world over — looking for an respite from the travails of daily life. As Jere Longman reported for The Times, fans of Indios, in the border city of Ciudad Juarez go to games to escape the violent and deadly turf war between vicious drug cartels that has left nearly 2,000 people dead over the past 14 months.

“But the lurid headlines, the murder of the deputy police chief and the threats to decapitate the mayor have not deterred soccer fans, at least on game days,” wrote Longman. “The stadium, just across the Rio Grande from El Paso, regularly fills to its capacity of about 22,000. Parents feel safe enough to bring their children. Mayor José Reyes Ferriz attended Sunday’s match, along with a top official of the surrounding state of Chihuahua. Even the bishop of Juárez is occasionally spotted in the grandstand.”

Horrifying drug war? Deadly epidemic? Soccer still trumps all, bringing joy to thousands. How can you not love that?

A Rose By Any Other Name

We now know the three Caribbean entrants into the 2009/2010 CONCACAF Champions League:

1. San Juan Jabloteh (Trinidad and Tobago)
2. W Connection (Trinidad and Tobago)
3. Puerto Rico Islanders (Puerto Rico)

Thanks to this article from Trinidad and Tobago's Newsday we also know that Jabloteh's players have some of the best names in the region:

"Cyrano Glen and Elton John netted first half items for Jabloteh, while an own goal by Karlon Murray helped Tempete’s cause."

and

"In the 69th, Jabloteh’s substitute Willis Plaza could not divert Elton John’s right-sided freekick past Guillaume but it did not matter in the end as the San Juan lads held on for the win. "

Wow. Expect Max Bretos to call John Rocket Man at least once during the FSC broadcasts. My favorite may be Willis Plaza. How can you not like a guy whose name sounds like a shopping center, or a place you would erect a book depository?

CCL Results By Country - Final Stats

When the group stages were complete, Mexico was on top, with their teams averaging 1.93 points per game. Now that the initial tournament is in the books, Canada finishes on top - with the caveat that there was only one Canadian team in the competition. If you go by winning percentage, goal differential or number of teams in the final four, Mexico wins hands down.

Interesting is that the USL1 entrants (the Montreal Impact and Puerto Rico Islanders) won 50% of their collective games, while MLS sides only managed 2 wins in 18 tries. Hopefully American teams bring their "A game" next time.

             W  L  T  GF  GA  DIF   WIN %  PPG
Canada       5  2  3  11  15   10  50.0%  1.80
Mexico      23 12 10  84  44   40  51.1%  1.76
Puerto Rico  6  3  3  18  16    2  50.0%  1.75
Honduras     6  5  5  27  18    9  37.5%  1.44
Costa Rica   3  3  2   9  12   -3  37.5%  1.38
El Salvador  2  3  3   9  12   -3  25.0%  1.13
Guatemala    2  3  3  13  18   -5  25.0%  1.13
Trin & Tob   3  5  0   9  16   -7  37.5%  1.13
Panama       4  7  5  21  25   -4  25.0%  1.06
USA          2 10  6  16  35  -19  11.1%  0.67
Nicaragua    0  1  1   0   1   -1   0.0%  0.50
Jamaica      0  1  0   0   3   -3   0.0%  0.00
Belize       0  2  0   0  12  -12   0.0%  0.00

Heard You Missed Us... We're Back

Yes, I've been slacking as far as posting lately. So what gives?

1. I've been really busy with "real life"
2. I've been lazy
3. I made the mistake of buying Fallout 3, which is a fantastic, engrossing game. I'll review it eventually.... when I finish it... which may be a while. You really get your money's worth with this one. :)
   

Centurions II

This past week DC United's Jaime Moreno became the only MLS player to reach career marks of both 100 goals and 100 assists. To put that into perspective, there are only four 100-goal scorers in league history (Moreno leads with 122) and just five 100-assist men.

It is possible that two players could join the 100 goal club this season. Taylor Twellman needs just one more strike. Landon Donovan needs 14 more goals which seems possible after his stellar performance from a year ago. If he doesn't make it this year, Donovan may never do it. I fully expect him to jump across the Atlantic before the start of next year, and if he latches on somewhere, he's unlikely to be back any time soon.

It's going to be a long time before we see another player reach 100 assists. No active player has even 75 assists. It's equally unlikely that Moreno will ever own the top spot on the assists chart since Steve Ralston is still playing and has a nearly 30 assist lead on him.

An Easter Thought

A few years ago, my wife and I saw one of these candy dispensers being advertised on a home shopping channel. One the hucksters said "...and this makes a perfect Easter gift."



That's right, because nothing says "Hallelujah the Lord has risen" like a pooping moose...