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December 31, 2004
Go Yanks Go!
Just when I was getting over the disappointment of the Yanks not being able to consummate a horrendeous three way trade with the Diamondbacks and Dodgers, they come back at me with an even worse deal!
They Get:
-A 42-year-old pitcher with a bad back who needs saline injections in his knee to pitch. For THREE years! For $16M/year!
They Give Up:
-A 28-year-old pitcher that was unanimously seen as the best piching signing of 2004, eats innings like a knuckleballer, strikes out a bunch of guys and is widely considered to be one of the smartest men in baseball
-One of there two marketable minor leaguers, making it more difficult for them to make trades at the deadline this year
-Another $9M, just for kicks
-A slam dunk chance at signing Carlos Beltran. They may still get him, but even the Yankees eventually run up against financial constraints
In sum, they give up two guys that could be hurting the Sox for the next 10 years for a pitcher whose body could go caput at any moment.
This, in the shadow of the real most important deal of the year, the sox signing Wade Miller for change. Wade has had a sub 3.40 ERA three of the last four years, including during a year where his shoulder was coming apart.
I'm really starting to look forward to the century of the Boston Red Sox.
Posted by stan at 11:24 AM
December 30, 2004
Recommendation
Another recommendation I have for anyone interested is to live directly across the street from where you work. It takes me 1 minute and 23 seconds from the front door of our building to my desk at work. It varies with traffic, but still.
The last two days I've around lunch time I've just gotten up, crossed the street and had lunch at home. Besides the money I'll be saving by doing this each day, I'll be able to take lunchtime swims on warm days, lunchtime naps are year-round possibilities, and I could even do lunchtime laundry if I so choose.
Too bad I don't have a pet to take on a lunchtime walk.
Posted by stan at 04:42 PM
Love Is In The Air
I've entered into a new relationship which I expect will ask for the remainder of my days. Through good times and bad, sickness and health, tamales and I will be together forever.
Sara and I had some today at lunch, she bought them from a man standing randomly in the supermarket with a cooler full of them. Delightful. I'm looking forward to trying Berryhill Hot Tamales on Post Oak Blvd. soon, just around the corner from our temporary home. The fine folks at Berryhill have been providing tamales to a greatful public since 1928. And yes, you can order them online, this isn't just a treat for us Houstonians.
Posted by stan at 04:34 PM
December 29, 2004
Whoops
Seems the gentleman in the next cube is actually an ornithology buff.
Yes, I am embarrassed to have jumped to a stereotypical conclusion.
My penance? Directing you to this site. We will not discuss this again.
Posted by stan at 04:44 PM
Hooters
OK, the guy in the next cube just had a 5 minute conversation about shooting owls? Either he was talking about the Rice University basketball team or I am confused. Do people go owl hunting?
Posted by stan at 04:19 PM | Comments (1)
My Funny Fiancee
Sara has the makings of a comedy dynamo now that she's in Houston. She has already strapped on her backpack to walk to the grocery store and then the CVS. No "when in Rome..." for this girl.
And in a delightful bit of role-reversal, she has already begun to react snarkily to the prevailing political climate of Texas. Her response to my amusing comment about the delightfully named town of Sugar Land? To grimly state that that the district that Tom Delay represents. Coincidently, I made the same comment at Logan yesterday when Ted Kennedy came over the PA system to thank me for choosing Logan airport.
It's a good thing there are plam trees in front of our building to soothe her.
Posted by stan at 12:41 PM
No Exaggerations In This Post
I here. For 6 months. In Houston. Houston, Texas. Where they apparently fly the state flag at the same height as the national one. This makes a point, I suppose.
I'm here, it's 70 degrees, a marked increase from the 9 degrees I left in Boston. Also, much less snow. Also, in a cube. A cube. A cube. I started missing my old big office, my big ol' office, as soon as the guy in the cube next to me mentioned on the phone that he was "fired up" about something for the 17th time. That was 9:30. I'm not exaggerating. Then the 45 minute discussion of fishing lures. Again, not exaggerating. I use to like fishing too.
Other highlights, I've spent 45 minutes waiting for my computer to process because most of our servers are still in Boston. I wish I was a server. Another hour trying to get in touch with people in the Boston office. I wish I was people in the Boston office. Again, I'd like to stress how these are not exaggerations.
On the bright side, our apartment is wicked nice. I've always wanted to invite 20 people over to watch a movie in our private movie theater. Now, that dream is a reality. There are some problems though, the free gourmet cooking lessons are a little later in the evening than I thought, and our free welcome dinner did not come with appetizers. Also, only the main pool has wifi, so the other 5 are pretty useless. And the felt on the pool table is a little worn.
But we will persevere.
Posted by stan at 12:29 PM
December 23, 2004
Festivus Hiatus
No Hat No Cattle is on its Festivus break...next posts will be from Houston.
Posted by stan at 10:31 PM
December 22, 2004
Glimpse Into The Future
Sara likes wiener dogs. I like Great Danes. Here's a glimpse of the future.
Posted by stan at 11:28 AM | Comments (2)
Supreme Court
John Paul Stevens, isn't he the one who said "I have not yet begun to fight"?
Posted by stan at 10:44 AM
December 21, 2004
Merry...Um...Happy Holidays
21 Dec. 2004
SCOTT McCLELLAN: Thank you. Happy holidays to everybody here.
Q. You can say, Christmas.
via Press Gaggle
Posted by stan at 11:11 PM
Alone
I'm apparently the only person in Boston that was actually hoping for the Randy Johnson trade to go through for the Yankees. Think about it, the Yanks would loss Javier Vasquez, who was the biggest thing since sliced bread only one year ago. No way he pitches as bad as he did last year, more likely he is back to his innings-eating ways in 2005. And he's just a kid, we could have to deal with him for the next 7-8 years. They'd also lose their only two marketable minor leaguers, meaning that they'd be in a much weaker position to add to their roster once the trade deadline rolls around.
They'd give all that up for a 41 year-old that needs regular saline injections in his knee, has a baulky back and is going to make them give him $17M/year through 2007. And they get a kind of expensive Japanese pitcher that has a decided phobia about throwing strikes.
What's not to like about that deal? Maybe it makes the Yanks marginally better in '05, but it sure hastens the decline of the dynasty.
Posted by stan at 10:17 PM
Movin' Up The Food Chain
Just got back from taking my last final exam at BC. It was a little anti-climatic, campus was completely empty and Securities Regulation exams only offer so much excitement. My time as a Beaver was up long ago and now my time as an Eagle has ended. In a couple weeks I'll begin my short tenure as a Cougar, happily I'm moving the right way up the food chain.
Posted by stan at 10:09 PM
The State Where We'll Live
"As we kept standing out there, people kept yelling, 'Beat the hell out of the list-eater,'" student Micah Gertson told KBTX-TV of Bryan and College Station, Texas. "As she's up there talking, people started throwing doughnuts at her."
Aggie football fans regularly urge the team to "beat the hell out of" its opponents.
Posted by stan at 01:15 PM
December 18, 2004
Canyon Cafe
Friday's lunch spot.
Posted by stan at 04:10 PM
Bumper Sticker
Hey, it's the guy who voted for Kerry!
Posted by stan at 04:08 PM
Sara's New Favorite
Looks like the Gap is about to get bumped to #2 on Sara's list of favorites.
Posted by stan at 04:04 PM
Perks
I guess this is actually a pretty good reward in Houston.
Posted by stan at 04:02 PM
Crosswalks
They've got these giant silver arches over Post Oak Blvd. to indicate where all the crosswalks are located. From what I can tell, they made them so big so to alert drivers that they don't need to slow down one iota.
Posted by stan at 03:59 PM
Gas N' Porn
You say you like gas? You say you also like the porn? Well, Houston in the place for you. But do they really think a FRENCH porn store is going to fly in this town?
Posted by stan at 03:57 PM
Clouds
Posted by stan at 03:54 PM | Comments (1)
On The Positive Side...
...one of the nice things about Houston is the prevalance of a certain favorite pepper flavored drink.
No word yet if they carry this old North Carolina favorite though.
Posted by stan at 03:49 PM
Keys
Posted by stan at 03:37 PM
Lone Star State
Posted by stan at 03:06 PM
December 17, 2004
Heading Home
OK, that's enough Houston for one week, I'm leaving to catch my flight home. Final score:
Cowboy Hats - 7
Strip Joints - 4
The hats pulled it out at the buzzer today at lunch, with not one but four of 'em having atop the patrons in the booth across from mine.
Until later, Hook'em Horns.
Posted by stan at 04:35 PM
Is She Wierd?
The kitchen in the office down here has a copier, printer and fax machine in it as well as the normal accoutrements. Is that odd?
Posted by stan at 03:29 PM
New Digs
Just ran over for a quick tour of our new place at lunch today. It seems pretty nice, though I'd say they should stop advertising kitchens with electric stoves as "chef's kitchens". Isn't this Texas, natural gas being pumped right up out of the ground and all? Is a gas stove too much to ask? I guess I'll have to console myself by spending time in one of our six pools.
Also, I asked what the occupancy rate of the building was, the tour girl said 37% without even cracking a smile or laughing or anything like that. Houstonians.
Posted by stan at 03:15 PM
Pidgeons
I rembember all the talk about this problem a few months ago when the central artery finally started coming down in Boston.
The funny thing is why the idea of building nests was rejected by the local civic organization, because the nests wouldn't fit in with the new trendy image they are trying to create. Shouldn't it have been rejected because, you know, it is a patently ridiculous idea?
Posted by stan at 12:09 PM
Another Wierd Thing
The other odd thing is that, while there are tons and tons of cars going here or there, you don't really see too many people outside of the cars. I did about an hour of walking last night and didn't pass more than 10 people on the sidewalks.
Where's everyone going? The Grand Lux?
Note: I should mention all these obervations are based on about a 5 square block area of the city. Those are big blocks though.
Posted by stan at 10:25 AM | Comments (1)
Everything's Bigger in Texas
It's really true, everything does seem bigger in Texas. Not that much different, just bigger. For instance, there are a lot of SUVs in Boston, but there seem to be many more here. What's more, they are pretty much all the biggest SUVs around here, tons of Escalades, Expeditions, Suburbans, Ford F350s etc.
Another example, delis. In Boston, most Delis could be crammed into a shoebox, couple hundred square feet, maybe seating for 6-8. Here, they're all 4000 sq. ft. with giant neon signs. It's mostly empty space too, you just have 30 feet you need to walk to the counter.
It's weird.
Posted by stan at 10:19 AM
Not So Grand Lux Cafe
So I was going to go to the Grand Lux Cafe for dinner last night but couldn't do it. First off, the place is so big you could herd sheep in it, if it doesn't seat 400-500 I'd be surprised. Second, it looked a little trendier than I first thought, and I was alone wearing dirty pants, not a good fit. But what made me turn away were the three (three!) women that walked in the door wearing fur coats as I was approaching. I've got nothing against wearing fur, but it was 50 degrees for Christ's sake. I guess if you have a fur and live in Houston you can't be too picky about your opportunities to wear it, but still, it made me hot just looking at them.
So I walked down Westheimer (heretofore known as Gray Ghost Blvd) for about 20 minutes, didn't pass a single person walking, and found an Italian restaurant with a band playing and the such, it was ok, skimpy beer list, Sorrento's was the name I think. I watched a Mexican soap opera with the bartender and had the manocotti.
Posted by stan at 10:06 AM
December 16, 2004
More Hats
By the way, for those of you scoring at home:
Strip Joints 4
Cowboy Hats 3
It's gonna be a squeaker!
Posted by stan at 06:30 PM | Comments (2)
Tonight
ok, I think I'm going to try Cafe Lux tonight. It is a giant, orange monstrosity of a building, so they should at least have a big bar. I'd go to Morton's, but apparently I have a cap on reimbursable meals expense now, what a screw.
Posted by stan at 06:27 PM | Comments (1)
What's The Hurry?
Boy, the pace sure is s....l....o.....w down here. It's kind of nice because it feels like you're on vacation in a way. But why does it take everyone 30 seconds to pick an elevator button or 4 minutes to order a hamburger here? This place is beginning to feel like a giant CVS, the pharmacy where time does not exist.
Posted by stan at 05:14 PM
Renteria
I cannot tell you how disappointed I was to learn that the Red Sox signed Edgar Renteria to such a crazy contract. 4 years/$40M? That is an awful lot of money for a guy who hits 12 HRs a year. Especially when they have Hanley Rameriez on his way in the minors and/or could have signed Cabrera, who loves/is loved by the city of Boston, for $2M-$3M less a year. Then you could have used that extra money to overspend to get the last solid free agent pitcher left, Matt Clement (someone will have to overspend now), or pick yourself up another solid arm for the bullpen.
Frankly, the only deal I like so far is Miribelli for 2-years/$3M. I am starting to worry about the '05 sox.
Posted by stan at 05:04 PM
Authentic Thai Cuisine
So I took a look around the new neighborhood last night, I'm still trying to figure out the best way to describe it. I guess I'd say that its like a series of really, really nice strip malls, but strip malls nonetheless. I only walked down a couple of streets on account of it takes about 12 minutes to cross the street at each intersection, I was hoping to find the future local bar, but no luck. I did find a pretty good Thai place, Erawan, that was, well, in a shopping center next to the grocery store. Very good service, pretty good food, very few customers. I'm hoping its around at least as long as we are.
Posted by stan at 10:55 AM
December 15, 2004
Red-State Moment
Alright, now things are rolling. In the bathroom a few minutes ago a couple of guys were making fun of the inflexible labor markets in Germany and France and one mentioned how France was "only good for wine and strippers." Nevermind that we work for a French company and this statement neglects France's contributions in the cheese department, or that I could set my friend Chas off on this subject this weekend at his house outside Boston and hear much worse, I think this qualifies as my first bonafide Red-State Moment! I'm glad they're letting me get up to speed on this stuff gradually though.
Posted by stan at 06:30 PM
Houston The Hatless
I guess the one main thing that I've noticed so far from my 5 hours in houston is the conspicuous lack of people in cowboy hats. Isn't this suppose to be Texas? There are so few cowboy hats so far that I'm beginning to think that the would be no repercussions if I decided to Mess with this state. 1 cowboy hat siting so far!
Things I've seen more of than cowboy hats:
Car accidents (2)
Mini-Golf courses (2)
Soda machines in the office that charge you money to get a drink! (2)
Billboards for cemeteries (2)
Adult entertainment establishments (3)
The heretofore unknown phrase "Eastex" (East Texas, I guess) (6 or 7)
Posted by stan at 05:16 PM | Comments (2)
The Arrival
Well, I've landed. A mere hour cab ride from George W. Bush International in traffic snarled streets and I am in my horrible cube on the 16th floor, with scenic views of downtown and Reliant Stadium. I can also see a large patch of trees nearby, which may indicate a park of some kind. Other than that it is a bunch of traffic and chain retail stores so far. I think Sara may have sensory overload from all the options.
Just keep a positive attitude, like me.
Posted by stan at 03:45 PM
December 14, 2004
Garbage Out
After two and a half years in grad school, I can now churn our business-speak with frieghtening efficiency. Behold, the first paragraph of my Social Issues in Managment paper, which took me exactly 43 seconds to write:
At its heart, corporate responsibility is about striving for and maintaining balance among all the stakeholders of a firm. It is about weighing the importance of meeting economic goals against the effect achieving those goals will have on employees, suppliers, customers, communities and the environment. As with any individual, a certain level of imbalance can be sustained. However, a point comes when the imbalance begins to hamper the person’s ability to function effectively. This is no different for an organization than it is for a person; to achieve maximum effectiveness a firm needs maintain a certain focus on balancing stakeholder needs. Should a firm fail to do so for a particular stakeholder, the imbalance will begin to hamper its ability to function profitably.
Another favorite line of nothingness from earlier this year:
Only through a combination of redressing past malevolence and boldly striking out towards a new vision of corporate benevolence can Parmalat hope to regain a successful position in the market.
Posted by stan at 04:48 PM
Houston: It's Hot
I read a while back that the city of Houston was trying to make a pretty big PR push to improve its image and come up with its own "I Love NY" catch phrase. One of the suggestions was Houston: It's Hot, which I guess hasn't caught on, though that is the most oft mentioned perk of the big move.
Well, we'll see. I'm on the 7:40 flight tomorrow morning and will be doing some reconissance for the rest of the week. I've been instructed to fill the little 16MB memory card on my camera with as many low res pictures as possible and canvass the new neighborhood to determine as best I can if Houston is, in fact, hot. According to Accuweather at least, it's going to be more mild than anything else.
Posted by stan at 03:53 PM
Pedro
So just like that, the most dominant pitcher I've ever seen in my lifetime is gone. I don't particularly blame him, the deal from the Mets was significantly better and he can escape the bile-ridden Boston sports media that focuses 85% of its time on the Red Sox for at least a fresh start with the NY sports media that only focuses 20% of its attention on the Mets. I always find it curious when a player leaves Boston and the press expounds on how much they'll be missing by not being the center of attention in Boston. It never occurs to them that being derided by a bunch of jealous writers day-in day-out probably plays into the players' decisions.
Now we have to start worrying about the Sox doing something crazy like giving Edgar Renteria the $40M they had reserved for Pedro. And to top it off, the Mets don't play in Houston until July, so I won't even get to see Pedro down there.
Posted by stan at 09:35 AM
December 12, 2004
More Moving...
The moving continues, Sara and I took too more trips up to our now overflowing storage space and put some more stuff in her father's basement. So, if you're scoring at home, our affects are now stored at 4 seperate places in the Greater New England area.
It's getting serious now, my computer is gone (though we still have Sara's two), we only have two plates left and are officially using plastic utensils and cups.
All that and the apartment is STILL unbearably small.
Posted by stan at 05:34 PM
Press Gaggle
Q. There is a report that nearly 6,000 people in the U.S. wind up in emergency rooms over the holidays because of decorating injuries. What specifically are you and the President doing to hang the holly and the mistletoe safely? (Laughter.) And have orders been issued that there is to be no dipping into the punch bowl while decorating? (Laughter.)
SCOTT McCLELLAN: I would just say that we have great appreciation for all the staff and the volunteers who help put up the Christmas decorations and the holiday decorations that adorn the White House, and we appreciate all that they have done in that.
Q. Follow-up, Scott. (Laughter.)
MR. McCLELLAN: Happy holidays. Go ahead, Les.
______________________________________________________________________
I've started reading Press Gaggle pretty regularly now, it pulls out two or three sort of funny comments from every White House press conference. If you like really dry humor, so dry that you miss some of the funny parts on the first reading, you should put down your Economist and take a look. My only complain is that there is no index that I can find, so if you want the look at stuff from the election or earlier you have to keep clicking the previous link over and over and over again.
Posted by stan at 05:29 PM
December 10, 2004
Sounds Like A Normal Town To Me
I've had some people mention that crime in Houston is a bit bigger problem than in Boston, but I didn't realize it was this serious. In the spirit of full disclosure, I must admit that I was involved in a somewhat similar incident back during my more excitable college years at the KFC on Walnut Street in Newton. Thankfully, the authorities were not involved.
Posted by stan at 04:02 PM
Jibba-Jabba
Posted by stan at 10:08 AM
December 09, 2004
No Hat, No Cattle, Yes Nephew
Aunt Sara (to-be) and the Big Unc just got back from a visit with the young Micah. He enjoys peek-a-boo, funny faces, TV's The Wiggles, crawling up stairs, chair rides, eating messily and especially sleeping.
Update: More Micah!
Posted by stan at 08:26 PM
December 07, 2004
Which Is Worse?
So which is worse, that I've taken to openly drinking bourbon in the office or that I have enough time on my hands to take pictures of myself doing it and post them here?
Posted by stan at 10:05 PM
Pepper
Photofriday: Reflections
Posted by stan at 10:04 PM
December 06, 2004
Intriguing
Three Philosophers Quadrupel Belgian-Style Ale from Brewery Ommegang in Cooperstown. I can't decide if a bubbly blend of caramel and cherry would be delightful or repulsive.
Posted by stan at 04:26 PM
Slightly Dispiriting
Sara forwards me this exchange from craigslist:
houston neighborhoods < galia > 09/20 15:05:04
i'm moving to houston from NY and need some advice on what are the liveliest areas to live in.
Sorry, but there are none < jimmy_t > 09/20 17:57:41
Houstonians certainly love their city, but kind of in the manner that a close family might defend some lackluster child. Secretly, they know it's not up to snuff, but they love it anyway, and challenge any outsider to say something negative.
I left Houston a long time ago, and I'm glad I did.
To answer your specific question: ha. There ARE no nabes. Just one uniformly nondescript city that got annexed by Houston/Harris County along the way after another. Neighborhoods are for walking around. Houston's for driving your SUV around.
Good luck...
I'm not sure if I believe this, the website for our new apartment promises us both "urban sophistication" and "international style."
Posted by stan at 10:38 AM | Comments (2)
December 05, 2004
Walk Down Boylston Street
Posted by stan at 04:29 PM
December 04, 2004
Too Early on a Saturday Morning
On the way to the business plan competition.
Posted by stan at 11:03 PM
Funny Looks
What some funny looks? Hop on the T at about 7AM on a Saturday morning wearing a suit and tie. You'll get some good double-takes and even a couple of looks from people that actually seem angry that you're all dudded up at that hour.
Posted by stan at 12:56 PM
December 03, 2004
Original Formula
Posted by stan at 07:12 PM
BALCO
The faux-indignation polluting the NY newspapers, most notably here, here and here, is really starting to get ridiculous. Does anyone actually believe that if Jason Giambi hit .330 with 45 HRs the last two years and/or didn't have an over-market contract that these same people in NY would be so outraged?
Witness Gary Sheffield, every bit as guilty as Giambi. The above three articles mention his name exactly zero times, even though he admitted out in the open that he'd done pretty much the same thing, with the caveat that he "didn't know they were steroids" (so he's a cheater and not so smart I guess). The real caveat in this is that Sheffield crushed the ball last year for NY, and probably will do the same next year.
Build 'em up so you can tear 'em down, the eternal cycle of sports reporting.
Posted by stan at 10:11 AM
December 01, 2004
Bad Moon Rising
Posted by stan at 06:34 PM
Catchers
I'll say it: $55M/5 years is too much for Jason Varitek, as much as I like him. I'd rather go with Doug Mirrabelli at $1.5M/year and spend that additonal $9.5M/year on some other free agents out there.
Posted by stan at 11:00 AM