I hope your holidays were positive. I really enjoyed the fact that the weather was cold over Christmas and it could have still been better with some overcast skies or even some precipiation.  I've had a hard time adjusting to the weather around the holidays in Tucson after spending so many Christmases in Pennsylvania as a kid. I never imagined having to give some sunscreen as a Christmas gift, not because it's thoughtful but because it’s a necessity. I’ve lived in Tucson for over 9 years now and love it. But in Pennsylvania our tradition around Christmas is making hot chocolate on Christmas. Not scrambled eggs on the sidewalk or iced tea on the porch.  The only time our bare skin would see the light of day around Christmas is if we forgot our ear muffs or scarves. Here it's because you decided to sunbathe before finishing up wrapping. Ill never get used to it and thankfully this Christmas the thermometer read about 45-50 degrees and I didn't have to give anyone sunscreen. Overall, I had a great time and will be heading to Albuquerque for the New Year's weekend.  Here are some extended thoughts on the Patriots record breaking game vs. the Giants tomorrow night.

New England @ NY Giants
There's a concerted effort to create some dramatic theatre out of this game and understandably so.  The Patriots are on the verge of almost effortlessly shattering the most hallowed record in professional team sports: an undefeated season in the NFL.  The ease by which New England has done this has been astounding.  Sure, there were a few teams that challenged the Patriots, namely the Colts, Eagles and even the Ravens, but at no point during a Patriots game did it realistically seem like they were on the verge of losing.  So, in an effort to ramp up the dramatic moments of the Patriots vs. Giants game, there has been serious discussion about how long the Patriots will play their starters, how badly the Giants just want to win and so forth.  Here's the simple breakdown: New England is going to go all out.  It doesn't matter what the Giants do but if Tom Coughlin has managed to successfully stave off NFL senility for another game, he'll rest just about everyone after the first quarter.  New England is winning this game and going 16-0.  I understand the artificial drama behind this.  The baseball parallel would have been like Barry Bonds breaking the all time HR record by hitting off a tee over a fence that was 200 feet from home plate and questions leading up to it like, "Will Barry swing and miss?" or "Will their be a gale force wind at the last minute that keeps the ball from going out?". 

Some more thoughts on this game:
I'm just not a fan of Eli Manning.  Look, I know he has achieved some success.  He led the Giants to the NFC Crown in 2005, led them to the playoffs in 2006 and has once again directed a Giants team to the 2007 postseason and along the way compiled some solid stats.  In 3 full years of starting, the Giants have made the playoffs every year.  Compared to a huge majority of the QB's who started in the NFL this year, the Giants are extremely fortunate to have Eli.  But something is off about him and I think I figured it out.  My best hypothesis on Eli is that he has been forced to steadfastly suppress his true career dreams since about 3rd grade.  He likes football well enough but he'd really love to be a...firefighter.  Or a pastry chef.  Or a veterinarian.  But Archie wouldn't have it and Peyton has been enlisted to gain his trust and steer him clearly into football waters.  There's a look on his face after every interception or tough loss that I can best translate into:  "I knew I was right when I told Dad I wanted to be a veternarian but NOOOO, Mannings aren't veterinarians,  they're football players!"  Only, he doesn't have enough strength to ever stop playing football and let down Archie and Peyton. And the rest of the team sees the pictures of all the animals in his locker, or the firefighting helmet or the pastry cookbook and know they aren't following a person who lives and breathes football and thirsts for success more than anything, they are following a grown man who has never outgrown his 3rd grade dreams of being a horsy doctor.

Also, now that the game is being simulcast on NBC and CBS in addition to the regular telecast on the NFL Network, the entire football base will be subjected to the absolutely terrible play by play job of Bryant Gumble.  I enjoy Gumble's work on Real Sports with Bryant Gumble, but he just doesn't do a very good job on the NFL Network.  Conversely, I enjoy Cris Collinsworth's commentary very much.  Its like Collinsworth is the good friend who you know when you invite him for an evening out, its comes will the inherent knowledge that his annoying girlfriend is coming too with at least a 60% chance she ruins the evening, but you forgot about this fact until you meet up with him.  Whenever there's a Thursday or Saturday night game on the NFL Network I get all excited to watch some NFL on a non-Sunday or Monday night until I hear Gumble's voice.  If you haven't heard Gumble's work before because you don't get the NFL Network, consider this your primer.  Its gonna be a solid enough evening until Gumble freaks out about Collinsworth giving the waitress too much of a tip or confusing him saying "excuse me" for flirting with someone to the point where its just uncomfortable for everyone because everyone knows Collinsworth is miserable.

Have a safe and happy New Year's.  Ill try and blog some more before New Year's and if not, Ill definitely have some thoughts on New Years, bowl games, and more next week. 

Jody