Mission Control the garden has been planted and other weekend observations

Hi There. I hoped you remembered to clean the grill before you refilled or exchanged your propane tank or got some nice new charcoal before starting it up. Hard to believe that its been 27 years since I first came up here as weekender from NJ. Mom, I'm so glad you hated the beach so Dad couldn't buy a place in RI by his aunts and we ended up buying lakefront property. I would have begged and pleaded with you each weekend to just drop me off at Aunt Pat and Uncle Rome's house and get me on the way home. I am not a beach person. I remember the day of the closing Memorial Day Weekend 1981. It was at an office somewhere in downtown Glens Falls and the red, white, and blue bunting was still up because the day before their was a parade celebrating the Redwings first Calder Cup Championship. If you wanted to visit, you just had to show up. We always had room. Have the times changed. Now a days its a rarity if any of my family comes. There is nothing better then waking up in the morning and seeing the sun rise on the lake and the water's glistening. Well for once I'm actually talking about the garden. Just got to plant some green beans and squash this weekend and I'm done. The tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, lettuce, potatoes, and herbs are in. Now the real work starts. For a change there was no experiments with different varieties. I kept it simple. Is it just me or is the Indy 500 becoming insignificant or am I just a NASCAR fan who thinks open wheel racing has become boring. Danica Patrick maybe attractive, but she is starting to get on my nerves the way Kobe, LeBrun, and Sid the Kid do. When it comes to Danicas, I'll take Danica McKeller from the "Wonder Years." I'm starting to feel like that weird guy who did the "Leave Brittney Spears Alone" video, only I want to look in a camera and say, "Leave Willie Randolph Alone" and go on a crying rant and put it on "You Tube." The black flies and mosquitos are hungry, be careful...Leccese out.

The Slapbet Commissioner needs to be slapped himself and other oberservations

Hi There. I find it amazing that the TV networks would end the season with the May sweeps even though there was a writers strike. So with that in mind. The CBS Monday night comedies wrapped up for the season. "Big Bang Theory" might have been the best of the 3. Yes even a nerd can get a date with the "out of their league" attractive blond. You the man Leonard. You may be my new hero. There's hope for me yet. Dan and Pete, find me somebody like Penny and I'll go out with her. "How I Met Your Mother" was just O.K. Ted are you sure you want to marry Stella? I know Sarah Chalke would make a very nice wife but so soon. Last but not least is "Two and a half Men" which should be renamed "Three and a half Men." The storyline formula is starting to wear thin and could there be any fatter and dumber kid right now on the planet then Jake? He's starting to remind me of the son of one of the people who works here at the radio stations. I would love to talk about the shows with Dan and John like we always do, but John hasn't watched them yet. John is our slap bet commissioner here, so I think he should punish himself and let both of us slap him once. I'm a hard core foodie, so I've been watching and getting into "Top Chef" on Bravo. Last night Anthony Bourdain was a guest judge. I'm telling you, the man is so cool. Check out "No Reservations" on the Travel Channel or "A Cooks Tour" on Food Network. You'll see why. However for the sake of all things sane on the show, Padma and Tom listen to me please and tell Lisa to finally pack her knives and leave! It just keeps getting worse for Willie Randolph. He obviously wasn't paying attention when Ian O'Connor turned on that recorder. Coming down with terminal foot in mouth disease is not a good sign. As a Mets fan I know they've been seriously under achieving, but if Willie is let go, who is out there to take over? The reality is Bobby V isn't coming back, so name somebody else. Buck Showalter, 10 years ago I would've hired him in a minute, but now I don't think so. Lee Mazzilli, after his experience with the Orioles and Peter Angelos, why would he want to manage again? The pickings are real slim. Plus don't forget Rick Peterson is still pitching coach. I find it hard to believe that the NFL is crying poverty. Roger Goodell, I think you need to find a better accountant. Your current one may have his hand in the cookie jar. Finally, I want to thank everybody at Johnsburg Central School for a great day Tuesday. Dan and I went up there to talk about radio with the 4th, 5th and 6th graders. Jeff Baroudi showed us around, introduced us to the other faculty and staff. The kids were great. They were prepared and asked great questions. We really had fun and hopefully we'll get to go back and do it again. Long weekend is ahead...Leccese out.

Searching for Golf in the rural Adirondacks and other weekend observations

Hi There. Hope you dodged the raindrops and enjoyed the weekend. After filling in for Mikey Saturday it was off to indulge myself on the golf course. Headed over to Bay Meadows and played nine before the rain came. I was fine from tee to green, but the chipping and putting was my downfall. The rust hasn't come off yet. Then yesterday I headed North to Newcomb. I bet you're wondering why would I go to Newcomb, it was the lure of playing High Peaks Golf Course. It's a gem of a nine hole, par 33 off route 28N. It meanders its way around the mountains of the area with great views of the high peaks. Its 2 or 3 years old and a must play for those who want to try a new course. The sixth hole is a bear of a par 5. The white tees play 475 yards and its uphill. I'm making it a point to play more courses that I've never been to. On the list is Battenkill, Schroon Lake, Pole Valley, and Skene Valley. There are a group of about 8 courses I play every year. So Big Brown won the Preakness in convincing fashion. I would love to see him win the Belmont, but until it happens I'm not holding out hope. 11 other horses have tried, but failed. Remember the Belmont is a mile and a half. Is it just me or have your noticed Big Brown doesn't have the great story line behind him that FunnyCide or Smarty Jones did in their pursuit of the Triple Crown. Horse racing needs a feel good story after what happened to Eight Belles. Well the Pens knocked off the Flyers in 5, and tonight the Wings should finish off the Stars. I'm picking the Wings to win the Cup in 6. Next year should be the Pens year. I have enough of a hard time losing 50 bucks playing the slots, but how could Charles Barkley forget to pay back the 400g's he owes in Vegas? Its terrible, just terrible. Season finales of "Big Bang Theory" and "How I Met Your Mother" tonight..Leccese out.

Friend of Doug and other whimsical thoughts

Hi There. Here I am on a Saturday pondering the world around me. Lets see. Boy "How I Met Your Mother" Monday night was such a disappointment. The Tuesday water cooler discussion between Dan, John and myself dealt with how awful Brittany was. She was bad, real bad. It was so bad it made my skin crawl. On to the Subway Series. With the Mets dropping 3 of 4 to Washington and the Yanks losing 3 of 4 to the Rays, its nice to see both teams imploding heading into this weekend. Gotta give props to Billy Wags for calling out his teammates. At least there is somebody on the Mets with some heart and the you-know-whats to at least care. David Wright has to step up and take over the leadership of this team. He is a special talent. As you know I hide no punches in my dislike for Rick Peterson and I squarely put the blame on him for the problems with the pitching staff. However, I like Willie Randolph. He is a class act who deserves better and its not all his fault. On to the Yankees. I really hope that Ian Kennedy and Phil Hughes work out. Its not helping that Jorge Posada is on the shelf with the bum shoulder. One thing I don't want to see. The slump busting gold lame thong of Jason Giambi. Mommy, what's that scary looking thing on the big guy who did steroids? I'm scared. My skin is crawling again. Finally, I want to congratulate a friend on a well deserved promotion. Doug Duell was named principal at Warrensburg JR/SR High School. I often say that I couldn't do my job without co-operation from the Athletic Directors and their secretaries at the many schools we cover. Doug ranks up there in the top five. Many times he has gone above and beyond the call of duty for us. Now if he could convince the school board in the 'Burgh to build a nice place for the coaches and media to watch the games at the football field, he would be #1 on my list. Doug, I know you talk with Chip Corlew and Tom Heinzelman. Have them help you. Just kidding. Enjoy your weekend...Leccese out.

An innocent couch had to die and other weekend observations

Hi There... Hope all you Moms enjoyed your special day. Mine was in Virginia helping out my uncle so I didn't get to see her, so I did what we would have done; headed to Saratoga for a couple of hours. I did talk with her on the phone and I sent her a card and gift to my uncle's home. She was also pre-occupied by the joy of her life my niece Morgan being there, so she got to be Nana for the weekend. Saturday was one of those rare days that I didn't leave Warrensburg or Chestertown. Picked up some plants and soil and worked in the garden getting everything ready and I planted my tomatoes. It gets better. The rest of the day was a blur lying on the couch watching sports. Did anyone see Don Cherry on Sports Center? I don't know if he goes to a tailor or an upholsterer? Some poor sofa or love seat made the ultimate sacrifice so Don Cherry could have a sports coat. Robert Downey, Jr has come back from the forgotten and has a Mega-hit with "Iron Man." The writers are probably cranking out the sequel as we speak. I read a rumor that "Captain America" is the next Marvel comic book super hero heading to the big screen. Have we forgotten anyone yet? Personally, I would love to see Robin become Nightwing. It would work. The conflict between Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson. We can't get enough Batman. Since I don't have TiVo, I'm just going to have to watch "How I Met Your Mother" at its regular time slot...Leccese out.

They're back and other observations

Hi There. Well they've returned. Like the swallows to San Juan Capistrano, the buzzards to that place in Ohio; and now the hummingbirds have returned to Chestertown. I keep a feeder out for them from May through Halloween, and around Mother's Day they make their first appearance. In the winter you fight a losing battle with squirrels in your bird feeder, in the summer it's ants in the hummingbird feeder. The food is basically sugar and water mixed together. If you're a hockey fan you'll love this announcement: Bristol Tech has added Don Cherry to help out with its analysis of the NHL final four. Don Cherry used to coach the Bruins and Colorado Rockies (not the baseball team, the Devils played in Denver before moving to NJ in the early 80's) and maybe is the most popular TV sports personality in Canada. He has a segment called "Coaches Corner" on Hockey Night in Canada and its hilarious. To put it nicely, he is not politically correct. Speaking of the cup finals. I like Detroit in five and the Pens in six. Since the Flyers have to deal with the officials and the Crosby rules, they'll be lucky to take the series to 7 games. I would love to see the Flyers win and see that spoiled brat and his buddy Malkin sent home packing. One more thing. The Monday night comedies on CBS. Did you catch "Big Bang Theory?" Was Sheldon's sister hot or what? She was smokin' hot, plus that southern accent. Lethal combination, definitely lethal combination. "How I Met Your Mother" was its usual solid funny episode. Sarah Chaulk is working out very nicely as Ted's new girlfriend and next week Brittany comes back as Stella's receptionist. Mission Control we have lift off for a potentially really good episode. Can't wait...Leccese out.

Cinco De Mayo and other weekend observations

Hi There...So Big Brown wins the Kentucky Derby does that mean UPS uses the horse in an ad campaign that goes something like this, " I want to ride the horse." It worked for the NASCAR team. More on the Derby later. We want to take the time to thank the Rangers, Avs, Sharks, and Canadiens for playing, here's a copy of our home game as a consolation prize. Gary Bettman and the suits at the NHL must be drooling at their final four. Philly, Detroit, Dallas, all good hockey TV markets and Pittsburgh who have 2 of the 3 most exciting young players in the game. I don't want to sound like a sour grapes Ranger fan, but the officiating in the Cup playoffs have been borderline awful. How could 4 guys not see Chris Drury bleeding after taking a high stick that went under his visor. There was a 10 minute delay to clean the blood off the ice! Nothing called. Yet late in the game Drury commits the same offense and gets sent off. First the Association had the Jordan rules and now I'm starting to believe the NHL has the Pens rules. If you missed the end of game four, Evegni Malkin tried to injure Paul Mara with a slewfoot and in the end only got 2 minutes for roughing after Mara retaliated. I think officials in all pro sports should be held more accountable for the calls they make and be made to answer questions during a post game press conference. Coaches get fined for criticizing officials all the time. Its wrong! On to the derby. Horse racing is taken a beating. Last year it was Barbaro and this year Eight Belles. She ran a great race against the boys. Its sad these injuries happen and the horse often ends up suffering or worse. The race itself was pretty good. NBC showed a great overhead shot of the horses going round the clubhouse turn into the back stretch. Now there's one stampede I wouldn't want to be in the middle of. Kent Desormeaux rode a great race and if you heard his description of the ride, when he retires sign him up for TV commentary. We are so spoiled to have had great track announcers like Dave Johnson, Marshall Cassidy and now Tom Durkin calling the races in Saratoga. "How I Met Your Mother" is on tonight, so you know what my plans are...Leccese out.

A May basket filled with random thoughts

Hi There...One of the great things about Directv is I've got 5 different HBO channels available at my disposal. If you're a sports fan like me, find out when the most recent "Costas Now" is going to be rebroadcast. Bob Costas moderated a 90 minute town hall style meeting on the state of sports and the media Tuesday night. On occasion Bob rubs me the wrong way, especially when it comes to baseball. He thinks he knows all and has all the answers. The other night though, he was brilliant. He brought in some of the best and worst (namely Christopher Russo) in sports media. Writers, TV, radio, Wil Leitch the guy behind Deadspin.com and athletes participated. It was fascinating and insightful. I occasionally use this blog to talk about sports, I do play by play of 3 different high school sports on WWSC and would love the chance to host a radio talk show on sports. I learned something watching it. Speaking of sports. Enough already with the Roger Clemens bashing. First the allegation he used steroids and HGH, now marital infidelity. Anything else while the mic is on. Does he hate puppies and kittens? Does he know where Jimmy Hoffa's buried? How about aliens in Roswell? What about the grassy knoll? Got the Section 2 high school football schedule and the first game is just over 4 months away. The Kentucky Derby is Saturday. I have no clue who the contenders for the triple crown are. I'll let Kyle Brownell handle that department. Racing at Saratoga will be here sooner than you think. So indulge in a Mint Julep and a Kentucky Hot Brown while you enjoy the weekend...Leccese out.