Due a sharp hamstring pain last Saturday morning, I passed on running Greta Gallop's, the half marathon honoring nine time NYC Marathon Women's Champion and cancer survivor Greta Waitz.  It pained me because of the hamstring pain itself.  More importantly, I am running for cancer research at Memorial Sloan-Kettering in honor of Greta.  (We are pictured below after last year's Greta's Gallop.) 

However, I erred on the sign of caution and signed up for this morning's 20 mile Running Center training run.  I started running (not racing) at a good pace, touch wood.  After we finished the first loop of the reservoir, one of my fellow runners shouts "Howard Stern!"  I thought she was listening to a recording on her iPod of previous Howard show.  Nope, it was the real guy running with a blue running head band.

Howard was unfortunately running in the other direction.  We missed an opportunity to talk and see if I could guest host for him. 

Congratulations to Howard for his recent wedding with Beth Ostrovsky!  Good luck to Beth who will be joining me (touch wood) and about 38,000+ of our closest running friends in the NYC Marathon three weeks from tomorrow!

You know I always want to meet celebrities like Howard Stern.  However, I'm focused on the run against cancer.  Please sponsor me below at this fundraising permalink OR copy and paste the link below into a browser:

https://fredsteam.mskcc.org/fundraising/Controller?action=userHome&user_id=35640&event_id=113

Many thanks in advance for your support in these difficult economic times for a great cause.

Posted by a grateful Tank running against cancer in Central Park.

I decided to throw my hat into the ring because I was appalled by the lack of baseball integrity from the so-called leading presidential candidates.  For instance, Senator Clinton is not a real Yankee fan; she grew up a Cubs fan.  Mayor Guiliani supported the Red Sox during last year's World Series.  Judas is not even an appropriate description.  Speaking of Red Sox, Mayor Bloomberg is from Boston and is a Red Sox fan. 

Thanks to your support, Mayor Guiliani and Senator Clinton are no longer in the race.  Mayor Bloomberg decided not to run.  I look forward to campaigning against fellow real baseball fans like Senator McCain (Arizona Diamondbacks) and Senator Obama (Chicago White Sox).

I have an advantage over both candidates because I can bridge the partisan divide like no one else.  For instance, I recently met with former Bill Clinton advisor James "The Ragin' Cajun" Carville

and conservative talk show host and Guardian Angel Curtis Silwa in Midtown Manhattan.





I'm not perfect.  However, unlike other politicians, I have not cheated on my wife nor have a second family.  I know the issues and will bring baseball integrity back to the White House.  The fall debates will be filled with baseball references, World Series games, and good old fashioned American fun.  When the phone rings at 3 a.m., I'll answer it because I'll probably be at the ball park as I was at All Star Game or watching baseball highlights. 

Vote SteveAndTheTank.com.  I thank you for your support.

Posted by The Tank on the road to the White House.

After I let go of the Jets moving to New Jersey earlier this week, Steve replied Friday afternoon that he will never stop hating Bon Jovi for reasons that I can not describe in this family friendly blog.  Those were famous last words as Linda e-mailed me and asked if I had a Bon Jovi CD.  I didn't but bought one Friday afternoon.  I snuck the CD to Linda earlier today as we were going to the Catskills for our practice Everest Base Camp hike.  Bon Jovi's "One Wild Night Live 1985-2001" became part of our soundtrack of our roadtrip.  Steve tried to pretend that he didn't hear the music but he couldn't avoid it.  I already feel "We're Halfway There" to Everest Base Camp.   

Seriously, kudos to Steve for organizing the trip and to Linda for renting and driving the car.  It was great meeting Norm and Donna.  They are really cool.

I ended the day going to Central Park and watching the Bon Jovi concert which was MLB's kickoff for All Star Game Weekend. 

Posted by The Tank "Livin' On a Prayer" Live in the Catskills and Central Park.

Happy Father's Day to my Dad and all the other dads out there.  I love you Dad.
                                                                                       
I also wanted to recognize a father like figure I grew up watching on TV, Bob Barker.  This past Friday marked Bob's last broadcast of the "The Price Is Right".  Bob was the face of the TPIR for over 35 years.
                                     
"Come On Down" is one of the best known phrases as the announcer calls for the contestant to come on down and see if the Price Is Right.  Bob then takes them through different price guessing games.  Family fun for everyone.
                                                
I don't know who will succeed Bob.  Rosie O'Donnell is a rumored replacement (hopefully not) or possibly former NY Giants running back Tiki Barber as I suggested when he retired a few months ago or even someone else.
          
Regardless of who succeeds in trying to fill Bob's large shoes, best wishes to Bob for a happy and healthy retirement.             

Posted by the Tank in NY.

The Mets held auditions to sing the national anthem, the Star Spangled Banner, at the SportsNet New York studios this afternoon. 

Since the Tank is a patriot and an extremely gifted singer, he decided to audition.  The Tank wanted to audition as the American Idol age discrimination is 30 and I am 36.  The Tank wanted to audition to preserve and protect freedom of speech and the right to sing, especially those over 30.

When the Tank arrived around 12:30 pm during my lunch break, there was a really long line pictured below (which I couldn't get all of because it went around the SportsNet New York building).

Until next year, I literally have to go back to my day job. 

Posted by a dismayed but determined Tank in NY.

After watching Borat! and undergoing physical therapy Monday afternoon, the Tank was faced with a choice on Monday evening, watch the Barnaked Ladies (BNL) concert or watch the Bricks face the San Antonio Spurs.  The choice was not difficult as I have dozens of opportunities to watch the Bricks lose this season or watch BNL who I have never seen before live.  I wanted to see BNL with Alanis Morissette last year but had to work and/or I was angry that she was selling her album exclusively at Starbucks. 

I got into BNL in college as they are I like their melodic, poppy, quirky, geeky, and solid up tempo lyricists.  They can sing / kind of rap but are closer to a Generation X's successor to "Blondie".  I also like BNL as their lyrics remind me of Weird Al Yankovic's parodies.

BNL performed Monday night at Radio City Music Hall.  I scalped a cheap ticket and am on the main orchestra floor.  Thank God!  I can walk up stairs but have a hard time walking downstairs because my legs feel like lead from lactic acid.

Radio City is a great place to catch a concert because it is made for concerts, not sporting events, and even better after they improved the sound system a few years ago around the time my Twin Gil and I saw the Gipsy Kings who are playing Radio City again on February 24, 2007.  (The Tank is considering going.)  Radio City is also decked out in Holiday decorations.  It's almost 2007.  Whoa!  Where did 2006 go?

Before the concert began, BNL posted informative environmental messages on Radio City's great screens.  BNL uses soy based biodiesel.  The Tank is psyched that BNL is part of the environmental solution.  Go BNL!

Since my legs were full of lactic acid and my right knee was still injured, I had to limit my dancing but was still able to share my gifted musical voice and air guitar with my fellow concert goers.  It was a great crowd.  The couples in front of me were literally dancing in the aisle and twirling each other around like "Dancing with the Stars".  My row of total strangers but fast friends got into it as well.  There was unfortunately a dud married couple, especially a guy near me.  I felt like telling him, "Dude, I know this concert isn't your cup of tea.  It's not a Megadeth concert, but make the best of it and enjoy the show.  You spent all this money to take your wife out.  BTW, your wife is kind of hot.  Do you mind if I make out with her because you're just sitting there?"  As tempted as the Tank was "to make Sexy Time" (to quote Borat!) with the "Desperate Housewife", the Tank stayed a gentleman and quickly went back to focusing on the concert. 

I knew the hit songs but not the new stuff yet.  I knew the "Old Apartment" on the the first note and about five seconds before everyone else.  In addition to their new and hit songs, they did some nice covers like Van Morrison's "Moondance".  Ed played a few notes from the late great Stevie Ray Vaughan and Steve Vai to the tune of Van Halen's "Running with the D*vil".  They even picked on David Gray.  They are all very musically talented (rare in today's musicfacturing environment), especially the mandolin and accordion player.  Boo yeah!  

They explained the insanity signal of putting your index finger in the air to the tune of whatever music you're listening to.  I'll use it at work instead of flying the bird.  This is important because I'll hopefully get my Holiday bonus on Wednesday, November 22, touch wood. 

Being clever like they are, the incorporate poly unsaturated fats and Avenue of America(s) into "If I Had $1000000".  They encouraged everyone to vote.

The only down part of the night was I bought a live download for $14 and didn't want to wait the 25 minutes after the show to get the USB for $25.  The download didn't work but I haven't had a chance to call customer service. 

As for the Bricks, they lost to the Spurs 105-93.

All in all, I had a great time and know I made the right choice by going to the BNL concert. 

Posted by the Tank live from the BNL Concert at Radio City Music Hall in NY.   

Now that the marathon is over, it is time to do regular people stuff.  Before physical therapy Monday afternoon, I watched the new hit movie "Borat!: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan".  Borat Sagdiyev is a Kazakh television reporter who travels to America to learn about how Americans live.

For the uninitiated, Borat played by Sacha Baron Cohen who also starred as the French race car driver Jean Girard in the Tank nominated movie of the year "Talladega Nights".  Cohen's other famous character is Ali G from HBO's The Ali G Show.

One of the funniest things in the movie as the rooster he had with him on the plane from Kazakhstan to America.  This brought back memories of roosters and other poultry on the Tank's plane flight from St. Petersburg, Russia, to Tbilisi, Georgia, in the summer of 1992.  I can laugh now but that was a scary flight as dripping water from the ceiling of the old Aeroflot plane dripped onto me as we were about to take off.  The lady next to me and I held hands as we prayed that the plane did not crash and we thankfully made it. As if the flight to Tbilisi was bad enough, the return flight was also an adventure as we had too much cargo/souvenirs and Larry the Tour Director paid off the customs guy so our plane could take off.  More adventures for another time.

Anyway, back to Borat's adventures across America in an ice cream truck.  Borat interviews former Republican Congressman Bob Barr and two time Presidential candidate Alan Reyes made cameo appearances.  Who says Republicans don't have a sense of humor?

Other humorous scenes include the Kazakh national anthem to the tune of the Star Spangled Banner at the rodeo, fraternity drinking games on the cross-country RV, learning hip-hop speech and dress in Atlanta, the Pentecostal revival prayer meeting, and pursuing Pamela Anderson.

Though there is nudity in the film, it is NOT of Pamela Anderson.  During the hotel room scene, you may want to (a) get popcorn, (b) go to the restroom, © look away and glue your eyes shut, and (d) all of the above.  Trust me!

Though some of the scenes are crude and you'll want to look away, it is one of the funniest movies I have ever seen. Just see it if you haven't already and you'll thank me later.

Posted by The Tank at the movies in NY.

The Giants are on a roll but can not overlook the improving Texans.  The Giants should win.  Tiki Barber is talking about retiring and getting into broadcasting.  Will he take over for Bob Barker on the "Price Is Right"?  (I heard the theory on the Dan Patrick Show on ESPN 1050 AM this afternoon and wanted to share it with you.)  

Bills are coming off a bye and the Packers off a win. Tough call but the Bills are at home, should, and better win.  Go Bills!

The Jets can't get robbed by the refs this week as they have a bye.  Pennington's 21 quarterback rating was the worst of this career and the Jets didn't deserve to win.  However, the ref who screwed up the end zone call also screwed the Ravens last year.

We've lost another sports pioneer in the oldest professional athlete, Silas Simmons.  Mr. Simmons is the third recent pioneer to pass on after Messrs. Buck O'Neil and Red Auerbach.  Though not as well known as other African American legends Jackie Robinson or Buck O'Neil, he won't be forgotten.  I hope I don't have to post anymore sports obituaries for a long, long time.  

Posted by The Tank in NY.

With the weather dramatically turning colder, the Tank has been fighting off a cold over the past week.  Colds are always inopportune but especially more so as the NYC Marathon draws closer next Sunday.  To add salt to the wounds, the Tank won FREE tickets to the Skid Row Album Debut and Halloween Party hosted by Mike Piazza and Q104.3 DJ and VH1 Classic VJ Eddie Trunk.  What should the Tank do?  Party or Rest?
                                              
I like Skid Row but need my rest.  I missed the NYC Half Marathon in late August after working too much that week and catching a fever.  I can't risk it here and couldn't sleep in yesterday as I had to work on an IP Telephony project at work.  If it weren't for the Marathon, I would suck up the cold and go to the FREE Skid Row concert.                            
                           
Rock on!  Happy and Safe Halloween!  
         
Posted by The Tank in NY.

P.S. Congratulations to Steve on his 200th .NET broadcast tonight!

Tonight's Game 4 rainout in Saint Louis underscores a necessity for many teams around MLB, especially the Yankees and Mets, to address.  Both teams lost valuable momentum to their opponents and subsequent victors and eventual World Series opponents in those respective series, the Tigers in Game 2 of the ALDS, and Cardinals in Games 1 and 5 of the NLCS.  This is not making any excuses for the Yankees and Mets losses but a possible solution to prevent future inclement weather issues.

Both the Cardinals and Tigers are now rained out as well.  With rain forecasted over the next few days in both Saint Louis and Detroit, who knows when they'll get the games in?  Seattle is known for its inclement weather and took the necessary precautions when they built Safeco Field.  It is a state of the art facility that Yankees radio broadcasters John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman rave about as the best stadium they have seen.  Given not only the playoff rainouts and even difficulties of getting regular season games in from early in the season to summer showers and into September when often heavy rains from hurricanes coming up the East Coast, the Mets and Yankees should put retractable roofs on their state of the art facilities.  Ground has barely been broken on both facilities and there is time to make the necessary engineering and architectural modifications.

Yes, it will cost more money but the Mets and Yankees won't have to worry about lost revenue if fans don't want to take the chance on getting themselves and their loved ones sick from rain and the wind that accompanies it, especially from Long Island Sound.  Furthermore, both teams will be able to stage off season events.  This is a work around to the failed West Side Stadium which died when London beat out NYC for the 2012 Olympics as well as a little help from the Dolan MSG Monopoly.  NYC is 26th in Convention business and the new stadiums can help the City move up in the ranking creating jobs (granted some not great paying but jobs nevertheless), especially in the off season.  What out of town sports fan wouldn't want to visit the new Yankee or Met Stadium?  Concerts, political conventions, and other events could also generate additional tax revenue.

Traditionalists can point to the romantic nature of a nice summer day at the ballpark.  That's great.  But, if it's raining (or even the threat of rain), romance and MONEY are out the window as our weather continues to become more unpredictable with global warming and other climate changes.  What if you try to play when there is light rain and someone gets hurt God Forbid?  More lost MONEY down the drain.  Why chance it?  Please join me in calling local sports talk stations like the FAN 660 and ESPN 1050 to get the debate going for retractable roofs as well as contact the Yankees and Mets directly.  Thank you very much for your support!

Posted by the always passionate and pensive Tank in NY.

While at the Harvest in the Square Tuesday evening, the Tank hung out with new and old friends. 
                                        
As the heaviest lightweight drinker going, The Tank was already slurring his words by the time Kathleen got there about 30 minutes late from work.  A brief transcript appears below:

Kathleen: "You're drunk aren't you?"
              
Tank: "Yup."  No use in lying after ten or so shot glasses of wine and Brooklyn Brewery Oktoberfest Beer.  (On the back of the Brooklyn Brewery's beer coasters was the fact that Brooklyn Brewery is the first NYC company to switch to 100% wind generated electricity thanks to NewWind Energy.  Though the Tank has a more than a few drinks in him, can he get windmills going on his 51.78 acres Upstate which is not far from a current planned wind farm in Jordanville?  What are the zoning requirements?  Anything is worth a shot to improve the environment and get America away from OPEC supplied oil.  Fingers crossed as the Tank investigates.)  
                          
Talk about a cool gig, Steve is on the board of John's startup Internet Wine Database company.  The reason I drank so much is that Steve and I would wait until John sampled the wine.  If he liked it (and took their business card), Steve and I knew it was something we should try.  If you don't have a chance to party with John because he is the walking wine version of Internet Movie Database, please check out his Internet Wine Database which is in the process of construction so please keep checking back.
                                                                                  
 If you're going to marathon "train" with Linda, Steve, and Kathleen, you better be ready to "train".  After The Tank already had too much to eat and drink, we had mojitos at a nearby bar courtesy of "White Fedora Mike".  The Tank has heard about mojitos, especially in the recent hit movie "Miami Vice", so it was worth a shot.

Speaking of the NYC Marathon, Lance Armstrong is training for it.  We then started making predictions about how we thought Lance would do.  Steve's goal is to finish two hours or less behind Lance Armstrong.  Our predictions for Lance's finish are as follows in hours:minutes:

John: 2:45
Mike: 3:10
Steve: 2:39
Kathleen: 2:32.30
Linda: 3:00
Tank: 2:40
                                                                          
   The conversation then staggered wildly from "Pushing Tin" with John Cusack, Billy Bob Thornton, and Angelina Jolie to (b) John's sales trip in a Winnebago from Mansfeld, Ohio, to Wrigley Field, and back to movies (c) "Monster's Ball".

    Conclusion of this inebriated conversation: John and I decreed a new Miller Lite Man Law that women are better at 35 than 18.  More details when Steve and I get the premium content part of the website going.  Until then, please trust us.

    Mega thanks to Linda for organizing this and inviting me!

Go Mets! / Yankees! / The Gang!

Posted by The Tank in Union Square, Manhattan.

Since I rarely drink alcohol and Jones Beach Theater does not serve alcohol, that phrase could only be uttered by "White Fedora" Mike. 
                                     
Who is "White Fedora" Mike you ask?  I did too as I looked for him Friday afternoon at Penn Station enroute to the BEP concert.  Sara, Linda, and her cousins from Italy went to Jones Beach earlier in the afternoon to take them to the beach as I looked for Mike at Penn Station.  I saw an elderly gentleman in a black fedora praying.  That's not Mike.  Finally, I called his mobile and a bald man (sarcastic hint "white fedora") comes up and says hello.          
                                
Anyway, after a laugh, it's off to Jones Beach for the concert where we meet up with the rest of the gang. 

The Pussycat Dolls were supposed to open but they had to cancel for illness or some "rock and roll" reason.  There was some other fill-in performer from MTV but we didn't watch them as the ladies were distracted by the hair care display and us guys went to get something to eat.  "White Fedora" Mike and I really don't have much hair to care for as we have shaved and receding hair, respectively. 
                         
Onto the moving to our seats, kudos to Linda getting them close to the front but elevated in the second row of the second section -- basically a great view of center stage!   

Though I am familiar with most of BEP music (basically "Elephunk" and "Monkey Business" when Fergie came on the scene), I didn't know what to expect going into the show because I had never seen them live before.  They got off to a fast start and kept the show moving.  In researching the BEP, I read a review that Fergie is Gwen Stefani with better moves.  Granted, Fergie is hot, has a great vocal range (including a great cover of Guns and Roses' "Sweet Child of Mine"), and did cool cartwheels while singing but Gwen is still the Queen even on maternity leave because she has produced more music and is prettier.  (I am definitely willing to give Fergie another five to ten years to prove me wrong.)  Let's hope Fergie's new "Dutchess" solo album because doesn't pull BEP apart as Gwen's solo departure pretty much marked the end of No Doubt though they'll probably do a reunion tour down the line to rake in the big bucks like The Fugees. 
                                        
BEP cranked out hits like "Shut Up", "Pump It", "Let's Get Retarded", etc. as well as mixed in great samples of hip-hop classic "It Takes Two" (Rob Base and DJ EZ Rock), "O.P.P." (Naughty By Nature), and "Jump Around" (House of Pain).  Special Guest Dante Santiago had the joint jumping including yours truly to the shock of "White Fedora" Mike and a kid near us.  Though I am past the "American Idol" cutoff age, I can kick it with the best of them. 
      
I have listened to quite a bit of hip-hop over the years including still being a member of gansta rap label "Death Row East" long after the label's peak.  I actually got "recruited" into "Death Row East" as a van pulled up near the MTV Video Music Awards in 1996 across the street from Radio City Music Hall.  I still have the t-shirt they gave me as I was going to Rochester Big & Tall for a new dress shirt for work.  Dominican Lou (the real one from work, not the one on "Saturday Night Live" played by Tracy Morgan) did tell me the other day at work that I am black.  I always thought I was white.  Maybe I need the laser vision more than I think.  Regardless of my real or outward looking race, I have crossed numerous musical, racial, and other boundaries as a global musical envoy (six karaoke continents, only South America remains).                     

                                           
Pre and post concert conversation ranged from a harsh critique of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act to discussing the NBA and Stanley Kubrick in Italish (Italian and English and Linda translated the words we didn't know), and if German porn is better than American porn.  The man who made the German porn quote was thankfully NOT in the car ride home.  Though I am a very patriotic person, I don't know what the difference between German and American or any other ethno-nationalistic porn for that matter.  Porn is porn in my book except for the weird "inter-species erotica" found in "Clerks II".  This high and diverse level of pseudo-intellectual conversation can only come from the Tank and his long-time and new friends.  Linda sailed (I mean drove) the Titanic of a rental car back to the City.  All in all, a great time had by all.                   

Post by The Tank in NY.