the "problem" w/ govt regulation on something like this is that the people deciding dont really know the real stuff. but maybe that's ok and how it always has been
Having a powerful thirst for more GB news, I tried the Beatline Sports podcast.
Beatline sounds like it’s an AI product. The audio version of the Uncanny Valley. An earnest sounding young man and young woman who have no emotional range, and cannot pronounce the athletes’s names correctly, and don’t care.
Have fun in Toronto! It's a fun town. IIRC, Queen Street was fun for bars and restaurants. We had a good time in Skydome/Roger's Center, which still feels like a modern marvel. Go up to the 5th deck in left field and try to get your head around Jose Canseco hitting a ball up there in the 1989 ALCS. I also remember going to the hockey HOF and getting our picture taken with Lord Stanley's Cup. The HOF is funny because you enter through a mall.
Probably left it the way it was everywhere else. They say they were only changing it in response to a US government order. (Yes, the order is bullshit and we all know it but that's their reasoning.)
I guess you now need to pay for WordleBot. I tried paying for the special 1.50/mo for 1 year and it says they're having issues processing my payment. I mean I'm trying to send you money and you don't want it?
You’ve watched baseball long enough to know an inherent truth: stars cannot save you. This is not football, where having one of the best quarterbacks alive can gift you a .500 season as the starting point. It’s certainly not basketball, where having one of best players is synonymous with having one of the best teams.
One of the Las Vegas Raiders’ biggest questions heading into the 2026 season was how much the offensive line could improve after being the worst unit in the NFL a year ago. If the Week 1 matchup against the Miami Dolphins is any indication, the Raiders will be a night-and-day difference in the trenches compared to last season.
LAS VEGAS -- — Kirk Cousins was brought in to be Las Vegas' present and a bridge to a future where top draft pick Fernando Mendoza is the Raiders' starting quarterback.
Cousins, now in his 15th season, quickly showed Sunday why the Raiders acquired him from Atlanta for that role, completing his first 10 passes and effectively running the offense in a 27-13 season-opening victory over the Miami Dolphins.
Enric Mas wraps up Vuelta win. Roglic 2nd, Felix Gall 3rd. Sepp Kuss - the eagle of Durango - rode a good final stage to end up 5th in the overall standings.
in other interesting news, Isaac del Toro beat Sexias in the Montreal GP race that is the exact same course as the World Championships in 2 weeks. i am going to be there for that.
I listened to the pick-6 on the radio while I was waiting for my son to leave from work. Gotta tell you, the radio broadcast is very good. Justin Allegri is quite good and professional, but not so professional that a little homerism doesn't come out. Mike Pawlawski is, as always, excellent and the call of the pick-six was so exciting.
On a side note, Pawlawski told a story about his playing days in the Arena League. Apparently, if a ball out out into the stands at an Arena League game, the fan got to keep the ball (a la baseball). Well, his team's line was so bad that he threw the ball away...like, a lot...like so much that they ran out of balls. In order for them to get the balls back, they gave away cell phones (!) in trade. According to Mike, the announcer would say something like "And there's another free cell phone, courtesy of Mike Pawlawski!"
Here's my report on the vibes around the game (not about the game itself). This was my first Syracuse football game, even though I live just a couple hours away. It was a great college football Saturday. College football Saturdays are pretty much the best possible day you can have - it's a super high floor.
Having said that, I think Syracuse delivers a college football Saturday experience that rests on that albeit high floor. Like, the quad was active and fun for pregame, but I was shocked at how few people were partying. There was some tailgating nearby, but not nearly as much as I'd expect. The pregame stuff with the marching bad was fun, of course, but also a smidge half-hearted. The Dome is a great venue, but wasn't close to full. The post-game scene was adequate but not bumpin'.
They had some fans that were super hospitable, like the phenomenal group that welcomed us at their tailgate on the quad. But there was also some very unhospitable things said to us, which we didn't get at Auburn, Ole Miss, Notre Dame, BC, TCU, etc.
Again, it was a college football Saturday at a Power Four school, so it was AWESOME. But Syracuse is a smaller private school that's in a city (not a college town), and they haven't had much football success recently. So even though it was awesome, the Syracuse experience isn't quite up to the level of some of the other places we've gone. I suppose I expected that, and some visiting fans might say that about Berkeley, too, so I get it.
We had loads of fun, though. So thank you, Syracuse, for a lovely time and for being slightly crappier on the field!
I just got home and took a nap. It took me 24 hours to get home, thanks to effing American Airlines. Syracuse is nice, small mini-city. SU campus is a beautiful private-east coast-college-in-a-rust-belt-city-that-has-kinda-bounced-back type of way. As pointed out, the vibes were kinda dead. You could tell that football wasn't really that big of a deal or is so beaten down that everybody is off the bandwagon. The first tangible thing that I noticed is that Syracuse is the most hostile crowd I've ever encountered. Tons of people giving us the hairy eyeball that said "what they heck are you doing here?". Perhaps a 6-8 responses to seeing my Cal gear was "f**k Cal" or "f**k you guys". I told an alumnus that their fans were hostile; he said that's not a Syracuse thing, they're just New Yorkers. A few were talking trash, which is weird. One student gave us the weirdest taunt ever: "we have better weather", which is perhaps the worst taunt ever and proof that he's never been to Northern California. Syracuse seems to be populated with a lot of northeastern LAX bros and girls who like wearing shorts that show the bottom 10% of their butt cheeks. US News & World Report says that Syracuse is 57% caucasian. I'd say the sample of football fans is perhaps 95% caucasian. The Carrier Dome is cool; loudest college venue that I've ever been to, even when 40% full thanks to it being a small dome with a kicking sound system. Syracuse food and bev scene post-game was pretty disappointing. Well, at least HAG and I got to see the Erie Canal Museum and be really close to Lake America.
Hilarious on the weather taunt. At the Auburn game AT Cal, an extremely wasted Auburn student tried to taunt us by saying "we earn more than you guys" (which is what they say to their Alabama rivals). Ummmm, no. Her companion wisely shut that down fast.
The Auburn to AL thing though reminded me a little of our "USC, Buy a Degree" chant with the jangling keys.
The Erie Canal Museum was cool. Learning the history of how it all came together. Similar to how the NY Transit Museum in Brooklyn was. Learned the history of the NY Subway system. It is in an old subway station and they have a bunch of old subway trains on display you can go in and sit down in. Highly recommend
Good thing we someone found a tailgate that was very embracing. Multiple people came over and talked with us and offered us food. So much so that we didn't have to buy food in the dome. The host of the tailgate, that I think pays for things, is a sun bleached, suntanned guy that looks like he's from Santa Cruz or an LA beach city. He said he lived in Tahoe a couple of summers.
A close friend who's a Syracuse guy implores that, deep down inside, 'cuse is actually a football school. He says that they've been mediocre to bad for so long that it's sorta gone dormant.
I dunno. Sure feels like a basketball school to me.
We were wondering where all the students were. I've learned that there's a place just off campus near fraternity row called Castle Court or "the castle" which is a student mob scene on gamedays. It's basically just a parking lot associated with student housing. The owners of the building (and others) have tried to shut it down several times, but the students fight for their right to darty (which is what they call a day party in Syracuse).
I don't think that alums - or grownups of any kind - are welcome there. It's students partying their faces off. And then, from the looks of things, most of them don't leave the party to watch mediocre football.
AI Madness
there has been a lot of AI doom news lately
and then talk of govt regulation of AI but not really
the "problem" w/ govt regulation on something like this is that the people deciding dont really know the real stuff. but maybe that's ok and how it always has been
Having a powerful thirst for more GB news, I tried the Beatline Sports podcast.
Beatline sounds like it’s an AI product. The audio version of the Uncanny Valley. An earnest sounding young man and young woman who have no emotional range, and cannot pronounce the athletes’s names correctly, and don’t care.
HAG is at some testing event in Seattle all week i think.
Toronto
Have fun in Toronto! It's a fun town. IIRC, Queen Street was fun for bars and restaurants. We had a good time in Skydome/Roger's Center, which still feels like a modern marvel. Go up to the 5th deck in left field and try to get your head around Jose Canseco hitting a ball up there in the 1989 ALCS. I also remember going to the hockey HOF and getting our picture taken with Lord Stanley's Cup. The HOF is funny because you enter through a mall.
I also went to the HOF. Only made sense since I was there during hockey season.
RIP Lake Ontario
i have a great view of the lake from my hotel.
it would appear Google Maps walked back their bowing-down-to-Trump and put back the name OR it might be because i am currently in Canada (?)
https://photos.app.goo.gl/8UtPRDfCvyaydExW9
My phone still shows Lake America in Seattle.
Well, that's not the right place for it.
haha...yup. wrote it wrong.
maybe he is confusing it with the Strait of America recently known as the Strait of Juan de Fuca
Pretty sure I read they were not going to change it in Canada. Not sure what they did if you’re not in either of the countries.
Probably left it the way it was everywhere else. They say they were only changing it in response to a US government order. (Yes, the order is bullshit and we all know it but that's their reasoning.)
i guess it is no different than the news we get. there will be many sources of truth that will further divide the people
here for a work conference for a week. same week at TIFF - the Toronto Intl Film Festival which makes for a more glamorous crowd around town.
unrelated - i have tix to a Sara Baraielles concert on Tue night.
i have been here once before almost 30 yrs ago for a day. will be nice to explore the city at a slower pace.
Digital Diversions
Globle
🌎 Sep 14, 2026 🌍
🔥 1 | Avg. Guesses: 6.33
🟨🟨🟧🟨🟩 = 5
https://globle-game.com
#globle
Worldle
#Worldle #1697 (14.09.2026) X/6 (92%)
🔥 Current Win Streak: 0 days
🟩🟩⬜⬜⬜⬅️
🟩🟩🟩⬜⬜↗️
🟩🟩🟩🟩⬜↘️
🟩🟩🟩🟩⬜↙️
🟩🟩🟩🟩⬜↘️
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟨⬇️
https://worldle.teuteuf.fr/share
Should've gotten this one.
probably
#Worldle #1697 (14.09.2026) 2/6 (100%)
🔥 Current Win Streak: 1 days
🟩🟩🟩🟨⬜⬅️
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🎉
https://worldle.teuteuf.fr/share
Octordle
Daily Octordle #1694
🕚8️⃣
🕛5️⃣
3️⃣7️⃣
🔟6️⃣
Score: 62
Quordle
🙂 Daily Quordle 1694
7️⃣6️⃣
3️⃣5️⃣
m-w.com/games/quordle/
surprised that wasnt more luck!
exact same as WordleBot ..
Wordle 1,913 2/6*
⬛⬛🟨⬛🟨
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
WordleBot
Skill 99/99
Luck 85/99
Wordle 1,913 3/6*
🟨⬛⬛🟨🟩
🟩⬛⬛🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
I guess you now need to pay for WordleBot. I tried paying for the special 1.50/mo for 1 year and it says they're having issues processing my payment. I mean I'm trying to send you money and you don't want it?
Well done!
Wordle 1,913 3/6
🟨⬜⬜⬜🟩
⬜🟨⬜🟨⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
WordleBot
Skill 90/99
Luck 70/99
Wordle 1,913 3/6
🟨⬜⬜⬜🟩
⬜⬜🟨🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
WordleBot
Skill 90/99
Luck 74/99
I tried to match you.
Wordle 1,913 3/6
⬜🟩🟩⬜🟩
⬜🟩🟩⬜🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
PRO
Padres get to Logan Webb, sweep Giants
https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/san-francisco-giants-scores-standings/111616/giants-padres-scores-recap-logan-webb-rafael-devers
You’ve watched baseball long enough to know an inherent truth: stars cannot save you. This is not football, where having one of the best quarterbacks alive can gift you a .500 season as the starting point. It’s certainly not basketball, where having one of best players is synonymous with having one of the best teams.
Dodgers bullpen blew the game. Lost to the Marlins 6-4.
NFL is back. i watched a few games here and there. it didnt seem as exciting as past years.
Las Vegas Raiders’ offensive line dominates in Week 1 win over Miami Dolphins
https://www.silverandblackpride.com/las-vegas-raiders-scores-results/139576/las-vegas-raiders-miami-dolphins-score-offensive-line-internet-reacts
One of the Las Vegas Raiders’ biggest questions heading into the 2026 season was how much the offensive line could improve after being the worst unit in the NFL a year ago. If the Week 1 matchup against the Miami Dolphins is any indication, the Raiders will be a night-and-day difference in the trenches compared to last season.
LAS VEGAS -- — Kirk Cousins was brought in to be Las Vegas' present and a bridge to a future where top draft pick Fernando Mendoza is the Raiders' starting quarterback.
Cousins, now in his 15th season, quickly showed Sunday why the Raiders acquired him from Atlanta for that role, completing his first 10 passes and effectively running the offense in a 27-13 season-opening victory over the Miami Dolphins.
Enric Mas wraps up Vuelta win. Roglic 2nd, Felix Gall 3rd. Sepp Kuss - the eagle of Durango - rode a good final stage to end up 5th in the overall standings.
in other interesting news, Isaac del Toro beat Sexias in the Montreal GP race that is the exact same course as the World Championships in 2 weeks. i am going to be there for that.
Cal
I listened to the pick-6 on the radio while I was waiting for my son to leave from work. Gotta tell you, the radio broadcast is very good. Justin Allegri is quite good and professional, but not so professional that a little homerism doesn't come out. Mike Pawlawski is, as always, excellent and the call of the pick-six was so exciting.
On a side note, Pawlawski told a story about his playing days in the Arena League. Apparently, if a ball out out into the stands at an Arena League game, the fan got to keep the ball (a la baseball). Well, his team's line was so bad that he threw the ball away...like, a lot...like so much that they ran out of balls. In order for them to get the balls back, they gave away cell phones (!) in trade. According to Mike, the announcer would say something like "And there's another free cell phone, courtesy of Mike Pawlawski!"
Last season I watched some of Justin and Mike on YouTube. You don’t get to see the game, but it is interesting to see them while they’re talking.
Here's my report on the vibes around the game (not about the game itself). This was my first Syracuse football game, even though I live just a couple hours away. It was a great college football Saturday. College football Saturdays are pretty much the best possible day you can have - it's a super high floor.
Having said that, I think Syracuse delivers a college football Saturday experience that rests on that albeit high floor. Like, the quad was active and fun for pregame, but I was shocked at how few people were partying. There was some tailgating nearby, but not nearly as much as I'd expect. The pregame stuff with the marching bad was fun, of course, but also a smidge half-hearted. The Dome is a great venue, but wasn't close to full. The post-game scene was adequate but not bumpin'.
They had some fans that were super hospitable, like the phenomenal group that welcomed us at their tailgate on the quad. But there was also some very unhospitable things said to us, which we didn't get at Auburn, Ole Miss, Notre Dame, BC, TCU, etc.
Again, it was a college football Saturday at a Power Four school, so it was AWESOME. But Syracuse is a smaller private school that's in a city (not a college town), and they haven't had much football success recently. So even though it was awesome, the Syracuse experience isn't quite up to the level of some of the other places we've gone. I suppose I expected that, and some visiting fans might say that about Berkeley, too, so I get it.
We had loads of fun, though. So thank you, Syracuse, for a lovely time and for being slightly crappier on the field!
I just got home and took a nap. It took me 24 hours to get home, thanks to effing American Airlines. Syracuse is nice, small mini-city. SU campus is a beautiful private-east coast-college-in-a-rust-belt-city-that-has-kinda-bounced-back type of way. As pointed out, the vibes were kinda dead. You could tell that football wasn't really that big of a deal or is so beaten down that everybody is off the bandwagon. The first tangible thing that I noticed is that Syracuse is the most hostile crowd I've ever encountered. Tons of people giving us the hairy eyeball that said "what they heck are you doing here?". Perhaps a 6-8 responses to seeing my Cal gear was "f**k Cal" or "f**k you guys". I told an alumnus that their fans were hostile; he said that's not a Syracuse thing, they're just New Yorkers. A few were talking trash, which is weird. One student gave us the weirdest taunt ever: "we have better weather", which is perhaps the worst taunt ever and proof that he's never been to Northern California. Syracuse seems to be populated with a lot of northeastern LAX bros and girls who like wearing shorts that show the bottom 10% of their butt cheeks. US News & World Report says that Syracuse is 57% caucasian. I'd say the sample of football fans is perhaps 95% caucasian. The Carrier Dome is cool; loudest college venue that I've ever been to, even when 40% full thanks to it being a small dome with a kicking sound system. Syracuse food and bev scene post-game was pretty disappointing. Well, at least HAG and I got to see the Erie Canal Museum and be really close to Lake America.
Hilarious on the weather taunt. At the Auburn game AT Cal, an extremely wasted Auburn student tried to taunt us by saying "we earn more than you guys" (which is what they say to their Alabama rivals). Ummmm, no. Her companion wisely shut that down fast.
The Auburn to AL thing though reminded me a little of our "USC, Buy a Degree" chant with the jangling keys.
The Erie Canal Museum was cool. Learning the history of how it all came together. Similar to how the NY Transit Museum in Brooklyn was. Learned the history of the NY Subway system. It is in an old subway station and they have a bunch of old subway trains on display you can go in and sit down in. Highly recommend
Good thing we someone found a tailgate that was very embracing. Multiple people came over and talked with us and offered us food. So much so that we didn't have to buy food in the dome. The host of the tailgate, that I think pays for things, is a sun bleached, suntanned guy that looks like he's from Santa Cruz or an LA beach city. He said he lived in Tahoe a couple of summers.
Think like a Jeff Spicoli.
Seems like you can tell that Syracuse isn't a football school. It's probably better for hoops.
It's a Lacrosse school
A close friend who's a Syracuse guy implores that, deep down inside, 'cuse is actually a football school. He says that they've been mediocre to bad for so long that it's sorta gone dormant.
I dunno. Sure feels like a basketball school to me.
We were wondering where all the students were. I've learned that there's a place just off campus near fraternity row called Castle Court or "the castle" which is a student mob scene on gamedays. It's basically just a parking lot associated with student housing. The owners of the building (and others) have tried to shut it down several times, but the students fight for their right to darty (which is what they call a day party in Syracuse).
I don't think that alums - or grownups of any kind - are welcome there. It's students partying their faces off. And then, from the looks of things, most of them don't leave the party to watch mediocre football.
I work with so many Syracuse alums and fans...thank Oski the Bears won, otherwise today would have been intolerable!
I also work with a Syracuse alumna- she is suspiciously quiet today!
missed the Syracuse game while attending a family wedding in rural WI. i could barely get score updates since there was no service out on the farm
You missed the utter dark energy chaos of Cal football.
Be glad you missed this trip.
We missed you in Cuse!