Odd Bits - The Holiday Edition

I took my life in my hands today because I dared to go out into the madness. Not the usual weekend-before-Christmas madness, but a much more dangerous condition that’s native to Baltimore: There’s a Big Snowstorm Coming!

(click the pic to see the detail I lovingly photoshopped... poorly)

I elaborated last week on my thoughts regarding Baltimore’s snowyphobia, here.

I was off today so I had just a few things to pick up at the local Super-Colossal Store. Getting there was simple enough but once I got into the parking lot, it was like a scene from Mad Max-Beyond Parkingdome. Place was jammed and every aisle seemed full. I grabbed the first space I saw, way on the outskirts of the lot.

I don’t believe in circling indefinitely until you find that perfect spot right up close. Usually, but the time That Spot opens up, you could have walked from the lot’s nether regions and been inside shopping. In this case, though, I misplayed it. The traffic wasn’t so much people looking for spot as people trying to get out of the lot from the single exit they have. Oh well. I got what I needed, including some beer to ride out the weekend.

Not Exactly Sophie’s Choice
If you’ll permit me a bit of Penguins talk, just let me say: Wooooooooooooooooo! Swept the home and home against the hated Flyers! I hate the Flyers almost as much as I hate the Ravens. But last night, I had a bit of a tough choice to make.

I watch the Penguins games on the NHL Center Ice package. Last night it offered both the home and away announcer teams. Usually, that’s a slam-dunk. I love listening to the Pittsburgh guys. I know they’re homers, but they’re my homers. It’s irritating to listen to someone else’s homers.

BUT, the game was also on Comcast Sports Net in HD. Hockey looks terrific in HD, so it’s a no-brainer, right?

Wrong. The HD version had the call from the Philly announcers. Bleah…

So I could either:
Watch a comparatively fuzzy and pinched up broadcast but with the friendly warmth of Steiggy and Errey…

or the crystal clear and expansive HD broadcast that includes the desperate whining of the Philly team.

I ended up making the Solomonic decision to watch the HD broadcast until something happened, then flip over to the Pittsburgh feed for the details and also for the intermissions.

Jesus Vs Santa Claus
Fellow blogger Red Pen Mama started a very interesting conversation today, asking atheists, agnostics and non-believers why they bother celebrating Christmas. I was happy to contribute to the dialogue as were a number of others. I could recount my part in it here but it would be much more interesting if you had a look yourself, right here. You can always find a link to Red Pen Mama on my blogroll.

Now, just in case you ever wondered what it would sound like if Jesus and Santa ever launched a Vegas-style musical revue, you can check out this clip.

Again, I wish I could find the actual video from South Park, but real audio with these stills will have to do.