Implausible Dreams

NHL Realignment - One that (mostly) makes sense

2011-10-08T12:28:00.000-07:00

There are a number of issues with the National Hockey League.

One of them - that the league is clearly aware of - is that with the move of the Atlanta Thrashers to Canada and renamed the Winnipeg Jets, you now have a team from Manitoba in the "Southeast" Division.

The good thing about this problem is that we now have an opportunity to really look at a few glaring issues in the way the divisions are set up and schedules are set.

Close to my heart is Dallas being in the "Pacific" division. Really? Is this punishment for the Cowboys being in the "East" for so long? Add in the hyper-division-focused scheduling, and with that setup, it is a challenge to see game after game start at 9 pm Central and end at midnight.

But with the new realignment needs, there is a chance of that being fixed.

One option - that is basically geographically based and one that solves most (but not all) of the issues, is this:

Pacific - Los Angeles, Anaheim, Phoenix, San Jose, **Colorado**
Northwest - Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Minnesota, **Winnipeg**
Central - Detroit, Columbus, St. Louis, Chicago, **Dallas**

Southeast - Florida, Tampa Bay, Carolina, Washington, **Nashville**
Atlantic - New Jersey, New York (Islanders), New York (Rangers), Philadelphia, Pittsburgh
Northeast - Boston, Buffalo, Toronto, Montreal, Ottowa

It gets Dallas out of having to travel TWO TIME ZONES to play "division" games.
It puts ALL teams in geographically close divisions.

The possible flies in the ointment? Detroit wants to get into the East (as does Columbus and Nashville).

The other thing that NEEDS to be done - and what could help address Detroit's situation - is change the schedule format. In a league that is trying to regain its place in the US sports landscape, using a format that makes it financially difficult on Western Conference teams and keeping fans of all teams from seeing all teams is just . . . well, indicative that the league isn't looking out for the success of the whole but rather the continued success of certain teams.

The NFL is the king of the hill for a reason. Yes, they have a few hanger-on franchises that don't really keep their product up to speed and just enjoy the revenue sharing money that comes in, but that is few and far between. Overall, it is the most healthy, financially strong, balanced and competitive league in the world.

The NHL ain't the NFL, but could take a few lessons from it and realize that the health and competitiveness of all franchises helps everyone have better crowds and television ratings - which means more $$$.

So those in the NHL who pull the strings - take a moment to think about the fact that you have had to move one franchise (and were lucky that you had a suitor for it) and that you have a few other teams that could use some help and others that could be even better than they are, and seriously think about these two issues. Making the right moves could help solidify one of the best sports in the world by making its best league more stable.

Tron:Legacy - REVIEWED!

2010-12-15T21:34:00.000-08:00

I got a chance to see Tron:Legacy earlier this week and figured I'd share some insights and observations. Note that this review is broke into two parts - the main article and then a segment below involving spoiler stuff. So read on! Find out if there is substance behind all the slick marketing that Disney is throwing at you!

Short answer - Mostly yes. In a variety of ways, this is a great movie. In a few others - ways that Sci-Fi movies sometimes tend to fall short - it isn't great but it is pretty solid. Visually, musically, etc., it is top notch. The story is good enough for Sci-Fi and it definitely is entertaining. The 3D aspect ain't all bad either. So Sci-Fi and action-adventure fans will dig this.

Tron:Legacy - REVIEWED!

One question up front - we're all familiar with the original Tron, yes?

No?

Well, luckily you don't need to know much about the original movie. In one of the things that the writers did very well, they lay a good foundation and Tron:Legacy stands mostly on its own.

Basic Storyline

For Tron:Legacy's story, we have son Sam trying to handle being abandoned by his father, Kevin Flynn, when he is given an opportunity to find him. This little adventure brings him to the world Flynn discovered in the 1982 movie, where the electronic computer world manifests itself as an action-adventure landscape called "The Grid." Sam tries to find his father while trying to survive a gladiator-type arena. This much you can get from the trailers and I'll leave it at that for now. See below for a more detail, including spoiler information.

Suffice to say, it is quite a show. We'll break down the acting, cinematography, music a bit before getting into the story proper as that contains some spoiler information.

Cast

Jeff Bridges does a very good job as Kevin Flynn. He does a solid job portraying a man who has been confined for years, and is weighted down by certain issues. He re-captures the original character of Kevin Flynn very well. The same guy who will also dominate the December theaters in True Grit plays an almost 30 year old character in a way that not only is true to what the character was in the '82 film, but what you would expect him to become under the circumstances.

Garrett Hedlund portrays Flynn's son, Sam. New to the Tron scene, he embraces the role of frustrated, rebellious youth. He delivers both serious and humorous lines well and is overall believable. He also is a good action figure.

The Flynns' sidekick is female action hero, Quorra, and Olivia Wilde is pretty good at portraying the character's duality - on one hand, she is a vulnerable innocent, but on the other, she is a full-on action hero, starting with our introduction to the character as she pulls Sam's bacon from the frying pan. Now it isn't over-the-top amazing, and there are moments where the depth is a bit wanting, but on the whole, that is a small issue. Overall she is all most want in a Sci-fi female hero.

The fourth main character of the movie brings us back to Bridges. Kevin Flynn created a Tron-like program to help him develop The Grid. As he created the program, Clu, it looks like 1985 Flynn. While not perfect, the moviemakers do a good job of using images of Bridges from back in the day and digitally imposes it over Jeff's actual acting. The effect is slightly obvious, and that actually adds to the character a bit. Clu is the enemy - a program who overthrew its user - and has very evil intentions.

Bridges plays Clu well. The character is believable and true to his role in the film. Could he have been a bit more intimidating? (Christopher Walken/Prophecy) Yes. Could he have been more dastardly? Yes. (Ralph Fiennes/Schindler's List). But he certainly does the necessary evil things - double-crossing, controlling, lying, conniving, powerful - well enough to give Clu life and presence.

Tron returns - but to what extent I'll save for the spoiler section.

Overall, it is a good cast. The ancillary characters add just variety and uniqueness to complete the tapestry enough. Again, this isn't Saving Private Ryan - it is a good Sci-Fi movie, and overall the characters are more than they need to be to carry the story.

Cinematography and Music

The visuals and the sound are stunning. If you don't want to go out and buy a motorcycle or fly a plane after seeing this movie, then something is wrong with you. The chase and action scenes are gripping, and the overall picture painted of The Grid and its menagerie is spot on - definitely what the original writers and producers would have wanted from the '82 film if they would have had the technology. I won't say it is at the same level as Avatar, but it is definitely fun stuff and got this motorcyclist's juices flowing.

And I can't say enough about Daft Punk. Maybe it is just my personal taste, but it seemed that the music gave the movie a up-tempo, high-tech feel that the music in the original movie lacked. In many ways, the 1982 movie was ground-breaking, especially in terms of visuals and overall cinematography. But the music sounded like it was done on a personal Casio keyboard. No issues with Legacy - this soundtrack moves.

So overall, I give Tron:Legacy a B+. It is what it was supposed to be - a very good looking and sounding Sci-Fi movie, with above average acting.

The problem comes in when you look at the story, and here is where we have to get into spoilers, so for those who haven't seen the movie and don't want spoilers, just know that the story is good enough for a Sci-Fi movie and go enjoy it. Then come back and let me know if you agree or disagree about my comments below.

[SPOILER SPACE]

[SPOILER SPACE]

Okay, for those who have come with me - let's get to the story. I will give enough background so you'll understand my points, but not so much that you'll know the entire story. Overall, know that I think the story is good enough for what it is needed to be - just not as good as it could have been.

Details/Spoilers

Sam finds out that the reason why his father never came back for him was that he was trapped in The Grid when Clu overthrows him and he doesn't make it back to the portal in time. To keep Clu from getting to the real world, Flynn refuses to try to escape.

The "miracle" that Flynn mentions to his son early in the movie are an electronic race of beings that exist in The Grid - "Iso"s. Apparently they had the knowledge to cure cancer and all of the world's ills, but Clu considered them an aberration and overthrew Flynn and exterminated the Isos.

Clu's overthrow smacks a bit of Frankenstein, a bit of the Christopher Walken movie, Prophecy. It is relatively believable, if somewhat shallowly presented.

Sam obviously wants to get his father out, and eventually we see that getting Quorra - the last remaining Iso - out is Flynn's main goal.

Tron is basically Clu's right hand fighter, apparently reprogrammed to serve Clu rather than the Users.

Close enough for jazz, but what is missing

Overall, the story is good enough to be a vehicle for the action and visualization. The acting and music takes this from traditional Sci-Fi geek-only-love to a pretty accessible movie for most people. I expect there will be a pretty good buzz about the movie and it will do relatively well at the box office.

My issue is there are a few things that could have been written better. The Grid seems small - especially in the world of the internet we live in. Everyone seems to have an iPad or iPhone, their own webpage and internet personality, etc. Why not take advantage of that largess to make the threat more tangible?

And a bigger issue is this - with the original villain an Master Control Program and its programmer, Dillinger, how hard would it be to visualize some "Skynet" type defense program that breaks away from the government (with the help of its User?) to try to dominate the internet? With movies like "War Games", "Terminator", etc., there is ample opportunity to make the evil in The Grid tangible to us and the real world.

And the issue of the Isos seems too simply explained, tied up and dropped. Where did they come from? Why were they so special? Certainly, the opportunity to have a more complex rebellion within The Grid, as well as fleshing out the issues surrounding the Isos, was missed.

As I discussed with a friend after the movie, the mythology of the movie lasts 127 minutes. Good enough to occupy you during the movie, but doesn't really survive much examination.

So Alan is Flynn's best friend - why doesn't he check up on Flynn when he doesn't show up originally? Surely he has an idea where Flynn might be.

Tron returns and is Clu's No. 1 warrior - but we don't know how his "I fight for the Users" *main programming* is overriden by Clu for so many cycles.

There are a variety of other little issues you could pick if you took the time to do so. Personally, I know I could go back to see the movie again and enjoy it - it is that good on the other parts and the story line is good enough for a Sci-Fi movie. Again, the acting and music take this from your usual Sci-Fi pulp fiction and make it something good enough to be accessible to most moviegoers.

Just don't expect it to all tie neatly in a bow - that isn't going to happen. So enjoy Sam's rebellion - it is tangible enough to be enjoyable. The music, the action - all great fun. Quorra isn't La Femme Nikita (the movie, not the television series) great, but she definitely can fight and drive a car fast, and carries herself well. And Bridges does well to portray Flynn and Clu. So have fun with it, and thank your lucky stars we didn't have another horrible re-imagining with Tron:Legacy. We have a good, solid, fun Sci-Fi action film.

Coda

I'll be back after the movie comes out with some of my thoughts about the ending. For now, know that again, within the scope of the movie, it works well enough, but check back over the weekend to see where I think it might have fallen short of where it could have been.

Implausible Dreams - Main Page

2009-07-06T11:30:00.000-07:00

I'm not giving in to security under pressure
I'm not missing out on the promise of adventure
I'm not giving up on implausible dreams

Implausible Dreams is my personal webpage, originally posted in 2002 (Implausible Dreams). The name comes from the Rush song you see above (more).

I've got a number of interests that I'll share here - not the least of which is soccer, but also motorcycling, hockey, music and Texas A&M University athletics.

HOT TIMES IN DFW SPORTS!

Right now, the two biggest things are FC Dallas and the Texas Rangers as they go after post-season glory. Here are a few notes about FC Dallas and then I've updated my Texas Rangers page with specific thoughts about the series v. the Yankees. Click HERE to read more.

FC DALLAS

As for FC Dallas, what can you say? 19 games unbeaten in league play. Set the MLS record for games unbeaten on the road. Hot on the trail of RSL and LA for the overall best record in the league. That doesn't count the game against the 2010 Champions League winners, Inter Milan. What an amazing run!

Jeff Cunningham has tied Jaime Moreno for the all-time goals-scored record in MLS, and with the way Moreno hasn't been playing, and the run Jeff is on, Jeff is in position to set a new record. Personally, I love the idea of FC Dallas being the only MLS club to have two players who held or hold the all-time goals-scored record.

Hands down, FCD is one of the top teams in MLS and has a chance to prove how good they really are over the next month. Although the loss to RSL was a step back, there were positives to take from it and Dallas can still do a lot of damage going forward. We find out this weekend where all the teams will finish and what the playoff landscape looks like. With FCD at Los Angeles on Sunday, we will know what result of the game will mean before kickoff.

Either way, get ready for the playoffs!

US Soccer Links

One of the key parts of this website is the US Soccer Links Page. It is designed to ultimately be a one-stop launching pad for much of the soccer world for people who follow soccer in the US. FC Dallas? MLS? US national teams? It either has it or will have it. The idea is to have all the links in one spot. So far, I've got the major ones down, especially for Dallas, MLS and the USSF. I have the basics of the USL and some general overall news sites so you can get to EPL, etc., if that is your cup of tea. It is still a bit under construction in a few spots, but recently revised and still very useful. Let me know what you'd like to see added!

What you'll find below are descriptions and links for the new additions/updates to certain pages, some information about older but still useful pages, and then some other stuff about me. Note that most of the main pages also have links on the right side of the page. Enjoy!

CHAOTICA

The most recently completed page is Chaotica, my music page. See it just below this post with information about some unique musicians that I personally enjoy. Most recently, I've done blog posts on Kaki King and Del Castillo.

Other Updates

Recent tweaks have been made to Cygnus X-1, my Dallas Stars page.

I had previously updated Highway Child - my motorcycle resource page, as well as written some actual blog entries including two motorcycle/karma blogs, Why Motorcycle Riders Wave and Karma = Good (Motorcycle Version).

Here are some other pages, most with recent updates:

Janice and The Music Therapy Show - about Janice Harris' wonderful radio program
Neil Peart Condolences Page
Highway Child - Motorcycle Page

Go HERE for a little more background information about these pages and me.

The Women's Professional Soccer - Power Rankings

2009-07-06T11:28:00.000-07:00

April 21, 2010

The second weekend started to show some separation. Not surprisingly, Washington got their first win over the expansion Atlanta Beat. St. Louis found a way to get a result at Chicago. FC Gold Pride took advantage of the traveling team and got a solid result over Sky Blue. The mild surprise of the weekend was the expansion side Philly finding a way to get a tie at Boston.

This weekend, Atlanta continues its road trip - fun way to start off for an expansion side, huh? This time, it is against the California team with Marta... On Sunday, Philadelphia hosts the Freedom, Chicago hosts the women from Jersey and Athletica takes on the Breakers. Put my money on FC Gold Pride and the St. Louis crew. I'm sensing a draw in the Independence match. Can Sky Blue take advantage of a Red Star side that is still looking for some consistency?

Here are the numbers for the week.

			Totals
No	Pvs	Team	Pts	G	PPG	Pace
1	1	Boston Breakers	4	2	2.00	2
2	2	St. Louis Athletica	4	2	2.00	0
3	3	Sky Blue FC	3	2	1.50	-1
4	7	FC Gold Pride	3	2	1.50	-1
5	5	Philadelphia Independence	2	2	1.00	-1
6	8	Washington Freedom	3	2	1.50	-3
7	4	Atlanta Beat	1	2	0.50	-1
8	6	Chicago Red Stars	1	2	0.50	-2

April 13, 2010

The first weekend of play didn't reveal much we probably couldn't surmise coming into the season. Philly and Atlanta tied at zeros for their first game. St. Louis picked up right where they left off, beating FC Gold Pride at home in convincing fashion and Sky Blue beat Chicago as well. The surprise of the weekend was Boston winning at Washington. Considering how tight last year finished, and the fact that there are now eight teams, is it too soon to worry about dropped points? Probably, but you can't like starting off that way.

So here are the numbers for the week. See below for the theory behind the numbers.

No.	Team	Pts	G	PPG	Pace
1	Boston Breakers	3	1	3	2
2	St. Louis Athletica	3	1	3	0
3	Sky Blue FC	3	1	3	0
4	Atlanta Beat	1	1	1	0
5	Philadelphia Independence	1	1	1	-1
6	Chicago Red Stars	0	1	0	-1
7	FC Gold Pride	0	1	0	-1
8	Washington Freedom	0	1	0	-3

Looking forward to next week, we have St. Louis at Chicago and Sky Blue at FC Gold Pride on Saturday and Atlanta at Washington and Philadelphia at Boston.

Can Athletica continue their home success on the road? Chicago obviously wants to defend their home turf, so that should be a good battle. Can Sky Blue FC do the same? FC Gold Pride didn't start the season well, but now they are home. Traditionally, coast to coast travelers don't do well.... The Sunday games ought to give us a good barometer of where the expansion teams are relative to the league. These are pretty much the first true-blue expansion teams in women's professional soccer history, so there isn't much of a track record to look at for perspective. I'm looking forward to seeing how they do.

April 3, 2010

Well, it has been quite an interesting off-season. No more LA Sol, but we've seen the addition of the Philadelphia Independence and the return of an original WUSA team, the Atlanta Beat. They join the Washington Freedom and the Boston Breakers as returning teams as we kick off Season Two of the WPS.

It will be interesting to see how the new players settle into their new teams and how the league adjusts without the Sol.

August 23, 2009

Congratulations to Sky Blue - what an amazing run to the championship! Especially considering the format - obviously, I wasn't a believer, but they didn't give up and found a way to win all the games.

I can't say enough about the determination it took to win all those games under those circumstances.

August 10, 2009

Congratulations to Washington and Sky Blue for being the third and fourth seeds into the inaugural WPS playoffs! Especially for Sky Blue, who had the toughest road to the playoffs of the remaining three teams.

What I find interesting is that the playoffs all happen in a week - this weekend's first round, next Wednesday's Super Semifinal and then the Final the following weekend. That is a lot less of a down period for the LA Sol. Add in their victory over the Breakers on Sunday, and I think they have regained their mojo enough that I think they are no longer in significant danger of losing the final to a more in-form team. So call that me picking the obvious.

Here are the final rankings for the 2009 WPS season. It has been fun getting back into things and I look forward to next season where we have more teams to work with and a better feel for what teams bring to the table.

Once again, Boston and New Jersey swapped places. Those teams were neck and neck down the stretch, but a home win by Sky Blue over FCGP combined with Boston's loss to LA on Sunday gives the Jersey Girls (sorry, I'll admit, I'm a Kevin Smith fan) the edge at the end. After all was said and done, it was Sky Blue FC's better home record that put them over the top.

No.	Prv	Team	Pts	G	PPG	Pace
1	1	LA Sol	41	20	2.05	1
2	2	St. Louis Athletica	34	20	1.70	-6
3	3	Washington Freedom	29	20	1.45	-11
4	5	Sky Blue FC	26	20	1.30	-14
5	4	Boston Breakers	25	20	1.25	-15
6	6	Chicago Red Stars	20	20	1.00	-20
7	7	FC Gold Pride	18	20	0.90	-22

So now we're on to the playoffs. As a reminder the format is 4@3, then winner @2, then winner @1. So Washington hosts New Jersey, then St. Louis hosts that winner, and then LA hosts the final.

Sky Blue at Washington. It looks like the Freedom have the upper hand both in terms of recent results and also playing at home. Through the course of the season, the Freedom compiled a 5-2-3 (w-l-t) record, including a recent 3-1 win over Sky Blue on August 8. SBFC only won two road games this past season - over Chicago and Boston. On paper, it looks to be Washington's. The question is whether Sky Blue can continue to show their mettle and beat the Freedom. Unlike last Saturday's game, where Sky Blue FC came into the game on short rest having played on Wednesday, this time New Jersey will be fresh and rested. I'm predicting a Freedom win, but these teams are close enough in competition that anything is possible.

Super Semifinal at St. Louis. Whoever wins the first round game will most likely fall victim to the second best team in the league. Athletica is the only team other than the Sol to have a winning record on the road as well as at home. Even without their star forward, St. Louis is deep enough to overtake either Sky Blue or Washington.

Super Semifinal winner at Los Angeles. If St. Louis is upset in the semis, you can chalk this up to LA before the first whistle. Yes, yes, I know - you still have to play the games. But three games in seven days for the visiting team? We've seen what this does in MLS to teams, and the WPS teams have a lot less experience dealing with short turnarounds (although every team did have to do it more than once this past season).

On the other hand, if St. Louis wins as expected, then I think you'll see one of the best games of the season, although I see LA edging out St. Louis at the final whistle as you will still have St. Louis playing on short rest and the break isn't as long as I originally thought - cutting down the chance that LA would lose a bit of its edge in the time off.

So yes, probably going According To Hoyle for this year's playoffs.

Thanks for joining us this season. Enjoy the playoffs and we'll see you - along with the Atlanta Beat and the Philadelphia Independence - in 2010!

August 4, 2009

And now we know more. Not everything, but we know a lot more. Going into tonight's game, we know that Boston has fallen further behind Washington, but because of where Sky Blue FC is and what that team is facing, the Breakers are most likely to make the playoffs - probably as the four seed.

We do know that as Athletica go into the game tonight against Chicago, they are locked into second place and will host the Super Semifinal on August 19.

We also know that Sol is not invulnerable - even with Marta.

What we do know is that there is a good separation of teams, with the New York/New Jersey team the lone possible outlier. LA and St. Louis are clearly Nos. 1 and 2. Boston, Washington and Sky Blue are the middle three and FC Gold Pride and Chicago are the bottom two. Both recent results over the past few weeks and the overall numbers bear this out.

What we don't know are: (A) whether Sky Blue can overcome their coaching carousel to pull off the improbable - or maybe even just be competitive; (B) whether Washington can hold off Boston for the third spot; and (C) whether Boston can overcome recent stumbles to reassert themselves enough to at least be the Four Seed or even overtake the Freedom.

The fun of it is this - any of the three teams fighting for the playoffs can be third, fourth or out.

Enjoy!

Here are the raw numbers:

1	1	LA Sol	38	19	2.00	-1
2	2	St. Louis Athletica	30	18	1.67	-6
3	4	Washington Freedom	26	19	1.37	-11
4	3	Boston Breakers	25	19	1.32	-12
5	5	Sky Blue FC	23	18	1.28	-13
6	6	Chicago Red Stars	20	19	1.05	-19
7	7	FC Gold Pride	17	18	0.94	-19

July 27, 2009

With the season winding down, some of this will cover some playoff scenarios in addition to the current rankings. Despite a few stumbles, the LA Sol and St. Louis Athletica were able to hold onto their respective spots at Nos. 1 and 2. We now know that two teams won't make the inaugural playoffs (San Jose and Chicago), but we also know it will be a real fight to the end for the remaining three teams (Washington, Boston and New York) for the final two spots.

Yes, technically, St. Louis hasn't locked up a playoff spot yet, but with only three games remaining - two of which are at home - the chance that they will be caught by all three chasers is a lot closer to none than slim. Four points is a lot of points to make up. Athletica could very well lock up a playoff spot and all but take the second spot with a win over their new-found rivals, Boston, this Saturday.

On the other end of it, Sky Blue FC has the toughest road - only two games left and currently tied with Washington for that last playoff spot. New York catches a break in that they play a team mathematically out (FC Gold Pride) at home, but then play what could be a winner-take-all match in the nation's capitol for their final game.

Boston and Washington currently look to be the strongest to be the 3 and 4 seeds, and they play on Wednesday in Maryland. Not much at stake in that game, huh? The Freedom hold more of their destiny in their hand than any team, especially with two of their three remaining games at home.

What is nice about the way the season is playing out is that each team trying to get into the playoffs has a game (or two) against their rivals for those playoff spots - so they get a chance to take their spoils right there on the field.

As for the rankings, we have a change - with the recent results, Washington has passed Sky Blue FC for the fourth spot. Even though they are tied on points, the Freedom have both a game in hand and a better road record. St. Louis came back to the pack a little with their loss and tie, but not enough to really flirt with being caught by Boston - yet, that is. A win for Boston this weekend could push the Breakers past Athletica in both points per game and Pace. LA isn't going to be caught this season - not until the championship game, anyway.

I still think three weeks off is a LOOONG time between games, and think there is a greater than zero chance that the No. 2 team - Athletica or not - has a good chance of being rested for one week, then taking on a beat-up 3 or 4 team, and then in a good groove to play the No. 1 team. We'll see how it plays out - should be fun!

Okay, so here are the raw rankings. As always, comments are surely welcome!

No.	Prv	Team	Pts	G	PPG	Pace
1	1	LA Sol	38	18	2.11	0
2	2	St. Louis Athletica	27	17	1.59	-6
3	3	Boston Breakers	25	17	1.47	-10
4	5	Washington Freedom	23	17	1.35	-10
5	4	Sky Blue FC	23	18	1.28	-13
6	6	Chicago Red Stars	17	18	0.94	-19
7	7	FC Gold Pride	14	17	0.82	-19

July 20, 2009

Due to some work issues, I wasn't able to do the rankings for this week, but it was notable that you started to have some real pressure on some teams in terms of playoff spots, and you got to see some real desperation.

July 13, 2009

So are we seeing a crack in the Sol armor? Could St. Louis not only be the second best team in the league, but one that has the guns to take LA down for the championship? Athletica's amazing road record points to that possibility. Joan of Arc's ladies have played four fewer home games than the Sol, but their Pace is but a mere -3 behind La's even.

Below what appear more and more to be the top two teams in the league, teams are bunched together tightly. Two points separate the next four teams, with the San Jose club falling behind a little more with each passing week.

We have one of our first best examples of how these rankings wash out statistical anomalies. Technically, the Red Stars are ahead of the Freedom in terms of points, but they have played one more game and have a worse home record than Washington and so you can clearly see how this keeps the Freedom in the Five Spot.

So here are the raw numbers - feel free to share your comments!

No.	Prv	Team	Pts	G	PPG	Pace
1	1	LA Sol	37	17	2.18	0
2	2	St. Louis Athletica	23	14	1.64	-3
3	3	Boston Breakers	18	14	1.29	-10
4	4	Sky Blue FC	18	14	1.29	-10
5	5	Washington Freedom	16	14	1.14	-12
6	6	Chicago Red Stars	17	15	1.13	-14
7	7	FC Gold Pride	12	14	0.86	-14

July 6, 2009 - Power Rankings Returns!

I am very proud to bring back my format for power rankings and apply them to Women's Professional Soccer!

After a four year hiatus, I'll be back on the web with what I consider to be the best objective evaluation of where teams are as the season progresses, this time for the new women's soccer league, WPS.

The idea is to find a way to wash out the statistical anomalies that come along during a season as some teams play more home games than away games or vice versa, and the same for games played. This gives you a more realistic look at where the teams stand at any given moment. This is different than most of the power rankings out there that are either mostly or entirely subjective - and we all know the flaws inherent in that system...

I originally came up with this formula in the early years of MLS, and did this for MLS while writing for 3rdDegree from 1998 through 2005. I also did them for WUSA for a time as a part of my Shannon MacMillan page.

Now, I'll be applying them to WPS, and I'm really looking forward to it.

So here they are - the first week of WPS Power Rankings!

July 6, 2009

No.	Prv	Team	Pts	G	PPG	Pace
1		LA Sol	37	16	2.31	3
2		St. Louis Athletica	20	13	1.54	-5
3		Boston Breakers	18	13	1.38	-7
4		Sky Blue FC	15	13	1.15	-12
5		Washington Freedom	16	14	1.14	-12
6		Chicago Red Stars	14	14	1.00	-14
7		FC Gold Pride	12	13	0.92	-13

As this is the first week, there aren't previous (Prv) numbers.

The System

The Points Per Game is pretty straightforward.

The Pace is the key, in my opinion. It is an objective standard that takes into account what in most sports - to some degree - is a factor: home field. The Pace refers to winning at home, and tying on the road. So if you win on the road, you get +2. If you tie at home, you get -2. Winning at home or tying on the road is 0.

Analysis - July 6, 2009

What is interesting is that for this current group, things line up pretty straightforward - PPG and The Pace are almost exactly the same in terms of how the teams are ranked. Obviously, the Sol are the cream of the crop. With the unique WPS playoff format, they will certainly be the most rested team once they have to play in the final - assuming they keep their place, with sure seems like a safe assumption at this point. I wonder if they might be TOO rested...

St. Louis and Boston are pretty clearly the next tier of teams, with the rest of the league following them. This will be fun to track these last bit of the season and then see how things play out in the playoffs.

So what do you think? Is this something that you're interested in?

Implausible Dreams - Background Pages

2009-06-13T11:22:00.000-07:00

I'm not giving in to security under pressure
I'm not missing out on the promise of adventure
I'm not giving up on implausible dreams

Implausible Dreams is my personal webpage, originally posted in 2002 (Implausible Dreams). The name comes from the Rush song you see above (more). This post contains the background/less current information about this whole project.

Background Pages

Here are some of the older pages that were from the original version of this website, Implausible Dreams (flashnet version).

I don't plan on updating The Red Book (originally about the Dallas Burn, now FC Dallas) as I work for the team and I'm going to leave that stuff up to the official team sources, the media and the fans. You can see a lot of the links worth checking out on my US Soccer Links Page in the FC Dallas section.

I also will probably not update the original idea that sparked Implausible Dreams, my World Cup Resource page, as I probably won't have time to. If that changes, I'll consider it. But for now, use the original page above and the US Soccer Links page to get access to that stuff.

Here is the original post, "Implausible Dreams Returns!" It contains a more detailed description of why we're back.

For those so interested, here is the link to my old Main Page. And then there is the link to my REALLY old Main Page.

More about me:

Soccer - Dallas Burn/FC Dallas, USSF

There have also been a LOT of changes on the soccer front. The Dallas Burn is now FC Dallas. Jason Kreis and Eddie Johnson are gone, Pizza Hut Park has been completed, and I'm no longer just a fan, but now actually work for the team. To those who get it - Yes, it is as cool as it sounds. To those who may not - imagine working for the NFL in the late 1950s or early 1960s and being there when things were about to explode. (Implausible Dreams, indeed!)

Needless to say, I'm not going to be providing any inside information about FC Dallas. You won't see anything here that isn't already public information - and I would guess that the Blogger people wouldn't like sales information on this page, so that won't be here either, although if you have any questions about anything, don't hesitate to contact me.

The main page I've updated there, though, is my USA Association Football Links page. At the time, it had a number of great links to all the cutting edge information. And it still does in some cases. As you probably can imagine, though, over the past four years enough has changed that a few are no longer around and I don't have a few of the newer sites on there. I want to get the format right, so it might take me a little time to get that one finalized.

One new thing that is a part of my life is Texas Hold 'Em. LOVE that game. I'll probably have to put a page together for that as well.

Kaki King - And all of a sudden, with no warning, I was overtaken (again)

2009-06-13T09:15:00.000-07:00

I've been impressed by musicians and music often. As I described in my Del Castillo piece, give me depth, intensity, passion, texture. It happened with Pearl Jam and "Ten." It happened with Live. It happened with Oysterhead. (For more detail, see Chaotica.)

This time, it wasn't the abrupt, immediate, in-your-face overwhelming that happened with Del Castillo. Instead, it happened weeks after the introduction, sneaking up on me from the quiet reaches, slipping into my consciousness.

One moment, she was just another suggested musician who didn't really strike a chord with me, an appreciated thought that just wasn't a good fit.

And then, before I knew it, I was wanting to listen to her music almost all the time. Now I'll suggest Kaki King to anyone who I think appreciates good music and creativity, but especially music with a texture, a quirkiness and an inventive side.

A bit of background on the artist - Born Katherine Elizabeth King in Georgia, Kaki King eventually moved to New York to study at New York University. She developed her own style of playing guitar and has written a number of albums. Take a look at the wikipedia entry about her for more details.

The story for me relates to my friend Mike - a music critic - who recommended I listen to her album, "Dreaming of Revenge" after I shared some of my opinions about female musicians. (I've always appreciated the creativity and expression that many female musicians share through their music.) As I was thinking more along the lines of No Doubt, Hole, L7, Skunk Anansie - in other words, more hard rock/aggressive artists - at the time, my first listen made me think Mike was just misunderstood what I was talking about.

Turns out I was the one who was off. What I misunderstood was he was talking about the musicianship - and on that point, he was spot on. Because I was also talking about Ani DiFranco, Liz Phair, MeShell Ndengeochello, Tori Amos. But I didn't know that at the time.

My first listen, I heard the album all the way through, and with each song I was expecting something more aggressive. As it never came, I just set it aside, mentally.

But over the course of the next few weeks I found myself every once in a while wanting something more sedate, and every once of those whiles, I'd remember that I thought Dreaming of Revenge was in that genre, so I'd throw it on the playlist.

And then one day, I found myself wanting to listen to Kaki King's Bone Chaos in the Castle and I didn't have it readily available, and I REALLY wanted to listen to it. It perfectly met my mood at the time, and that caught my attention. Maybe I should give her a closer listen.

And when I did, I was shocked at what I had been overlooking.

In terms of style, pull up a You Tube of "Playing with Pink Noise" (video high quality), and you'll get a feel of what I'm talking about. I have yet to find an online version of Bone Chaos in the Castle that does justice to the album version - which you can hear on iTunes if you want to get a taste - but that also gives you a good sense of some of her more creative writing. It is at times a percussive style - almost as if you mixed Stuart Hamm and Stanley Jordan, with a very Ani DiFranco indifference to spice up the attitude.

She also does some amazing lyrical bits with songs like "Life Being What It Is" (the You Tube video by "A Shoot The Player Film" bit is a great look into her colorful, honest personality), "2 O'Clock," and "Saving Days in a Frozen Head." As a fan of Exile in Guyville, I appreciate her turns of phrase. Such as....

"Life being what it is - we all dream of revenge
Open your eyes for a second - just to roll them at me."
- Life Being What It Is

"Sunlight wakes me - just to say 'Let's go to sleep now'."
- Saving Days In A Frozen Head

"2 O'Clock - you're still sleeping.
When you wake up you'll be in such pain.
And I wait with the plate, piled high with my love, that you won't eat from.

"File off the sharpness of feelings so
I'll be protected from all of your evil.
When you come 'round my love, I'll be gone - finally done
Never to come to your rescue."
- 2 O'Clock

Kaki King also does some good work with layering pieces - looping line after line, musically, and sometimes putting vocals over it. Either way, it often has the texture and flavor that appeals to those looking for the little nuances.

Threads of some of her music reminds me of k.d. lang's Ingenue, others Ani DiFranco's Not a Pretty Girl. But all of it is unique, and wonderfully textured and detailed. The dynamics and intricacy that I look for in my music is all here.

A lot of this is available via You Tube and iTunes. So go forth, enjoy and share your feedback.

But bear this in mind - I shared this with a co-worker and he fell head of heels madly in love with her in less than an hour.

You have been warned.

For more on Kevin's takes on music, check out Chaotica.

Chaotica - my music page - Rush, Del Castillo and more!

2009-01-04T13:40:00.000-08:00

Here are some links to my favorite musicians and bands. As I recently wrote in my bit on Del Castillo, I've always been very into music. As a musician, and in how I live and experience my life, music is very important to me.

My musical interests run the whole spectrum - from classical to punk, jazz to metal. The overriding theme? Make it intense, make it have meaning. What I've done here (and will update from time to time) is highlight a few musicians that I think highlight this.

My most recent piece is on guitarist/singer-songwriter Kaki King.

Rush

Overall, my favorite in large part because of the combination of their musicianship, music and message. As a bassist, obviously, Geddy Lee was someone I looked to for inspiration. Their message of "Anything can happen/I'm not giving in to security under pressure-I'm not giving up on Implausible Dreams" - a thread that runs throughout their music from Fly By Night to current music - is something that has always resonated with me.

Here are a few sites of note: Official - Power Windows - Wiki - Forum

Also, I put together a Neil Peart Condolences Page (Original - Updated) a while back. Although it isn't as relevant now as it was at the time (and yet I still need to update it with submissions), I still find people who don't know the back-story and what was a very dark chasm that Neil walked through.

Del Castillo

First and foremost, read my blog from my first encouter with the band here. That says a lot of it, albeit in a really long and involved post. Short version - they are an incredible Latin Rock band, with musicianship and style that I found very impressive. If you've seen the movie Once Upon A time In Mexico or Kill Bill Vol. II, you've heard their music.

Here is their official page. They also have a number of You Tube clips that do them pretty good justice.

Live

From my original version of this page, "a band that has never let me down for their understanding of the need for dynamics in music. So many musicians put a line together, or a rhythm, and they go with it. I feel like my friend Gready when he screams, 'Do SOMETHING!' Live has always done something with their music."

Official

Oysterhead

One of the most creative projects of the past decade, Oysterhead is the combination of Primus' Les Claypool, Phish's Trey Anastasio and Stewart Copeland of The Police.

Official - Wiki

Other bands (links to be added) - Mechelle Ndengeochello - Ani DiFranco - Skunk Anansie - Days of the New - Disturbed - Eric Johnson

BTW - this was my original version of this page.

Del Castillo - I have nothing left....

2008-12-27T19:20:00.000-08:00

It is about 1 am Saturday morning. I've been played like a violin, taken on an emotional and spiritual ride that has pushed me like no other, and I got nuthin'. And this blog isn't about me if I don't share this experience. So here goes - a description of what shook me to the core of my being.

First, some background. Understand, I'm a musician. I've played before thousands in groups big and small and, on occasion, solo. By the time I was a senior in high school, I was playing Austin clubs. Liberty Lunch, Joe's Generic, etc. I continued playing while in college. It was mostly rock in high school, and branched out into jazz afterwards. Now, it isn't currently my vocation, but for a time, it was a huge part of my life, and music has always meant a lot to me.

And additionally, I was blessed with the opportunity to lead supporters groups for both the local Dallas professional soccer team for ten years and the US Mens National Team in two World Cups as well as numerous qualification matches leading up to them - most often playing snare in a samba band or with other musicians. When you tie in music to the emotion and passion of sports at that level, mixed in with samba and other Latin influences in the stands, on the field and in the music, those were some of the most intense moments of my life. Playing samba, surrounded by hundreds of fans, on the storied Cotton Bowl concourse in celebration of a Dallas win? A full stadium in Kaiserslautern, Germany, with 10,000 of my closest friends as the US played the eventual World Cup champions to a stalemate down to nine men? "Implausible Dreams" indeed.

My tastes in some ways are very sporadic, but in others very similar. "The only thing I'll ever ask of you - you've got to promise not to stop when I say when." Be it Metallica and Rage Against the Machine or Adagio for Strings, make it passionate, make it intense, make it have meaning. As a musician, I appreciate technical ability, but really appreciate someone who not only has technical ability but also is very expressive. Jimi Hendrix comes to mind as probably the best example I can come up with to illustrate that idea.

One of the musicians I have the highest respect for is Stevie Ray Vaughn, and not just because he was from my hometown of Austin and played Texas blues, but rather because he played it with a level of soul that few have ever matched.

And for perspective, I've seen Texas guitar virtuoso Eric Johnson up close and personal - in a room of 150, from about ten feet away. (If you like Texas music, or enjoy quality guitar work, and haven't listened to Eric Johnson, do so.) I've seen great acts like U2, The Police, Metallica, Linkin Park and The Cure, as well as SRV. I've seen great technical acts like Yes, Rush, Stuart Hamm, along with Eric. I've seen emotional acts like NIN, Alanis Morrisette, Indigo Girls, James Taylor, Tori Amos. I've seen legends - Jimmy Paige, Eddie Van Halen, Pink Floyd, Tom Petty.

I say that so you understand the context in which I make these statements. I've been in the presence of - and that close to - greatness before.

Friday night, at the legendary Austin venue, Antone's, I heard an act that blew away any previous musical experience I have ever had: Passion at levels way beyond what I was emotionally ready for. Musicianship and technical skill that I have rarely been exposed to, despite my thirst for music at that level. A synchronicity on stage that you see only in the greatest of acts, the ones who have played together for years, who have overcome all the maturation issues that a band faces when breaking through. "I can't pretend a stranger is a long awaited friend" and all that.

To set the scene a bit more, we were there because Janice's friend, Else Maria, "knew" the band personally and said they were pretty good. Actually, she said she was going and she thought it would be great if we came along. In my mind, I was expecting a pretty good Austin band, like so many others that were talented and skilled, able to play to a crowd well enough to sell a few CDs, waiting for a big record company to notice that the next ZZ Top or Stevie Ray Vaughn was out there, ready to explode on the scene. I mean, it was Antone's after all - you usually don't get slouches in there.

To add to the scene, the earlier act was blues legend Pinetop Perkins. Thirty minutes before the act we came to see took the stage, we were in a packed crowd in THE Austin blues bar, listening to a 95-year-old, graveled-voice blues master. That alone was worth the price of admission. I mean, it was Antone's after all. So while I probably should have been a bit more ready for the quality of the act, I wasn't really paying attention to the signs and portents coming at me. I was frankly just happy to be back in Austin for the holidays, that Janice and my family were getting along, and that we had gotten a chance to meet up with Elsa - someone Janice doesn't see very often but they are very close. The fact that we were in Antone's, getting ready to hear from a band that Elsa Maria knew - always a cool experience.

By the chorus of the first song, they had my attention - way more than what I was expecting. Talented, engaging, passionate....

By the end of the second song, I admitted my surprise to Janice's friend.

By the fifth song, I was asking Janice's friend, "Are you ******* kidding me?!?!?!?"

And when it was all over, I was completely drained. I had been wrung dry, pushed and pulled beyond my envelope of experience. Me, the guy who always wanted more, needed passion in excess - drained.

Who was this act?

Del Castillo, a Latin Rock group from Texas that I found out was amazing anyone who heard them.

To be fair, note that I have always loved classical guitar - the sound and feel of nylon strings rather than steel. And the passion and intensity of Latin music, and the true sense of home that comes with Texas music, has always had a very special place in my heart. I love Texas - its land, its people, its culture - and I think a big part of what makes Texas special is the influence that Mexican and other Latin culture has had in shaping what makes Texas what it is. Throw in the friends and friendships and resulting experiences I've had through soccer (one of the major reasons why I left practicing as an attorney to work for the local Major League Soccer team, FC Dallas), and it is safe to say that I was ripe to be impressed by this group.

I would also say that things like the Gypsy Kings, Los Lobos and Paco de Lucia have always impressed me, but also left me with a sense of "they could do more with that." Even Santana - a band who has done very impressive things with Latin music - has sometimes left me thinking that there was more ground to cover. And not necessarily musically, but that you could add more of a rock element to drive it home, if you will.

But oh my. After Friday night, I am left wanting no more. What an expression of life through music!

As I describe my impressions of the musicians, bear in mind, they are just that: impressions. I don't know them personally - this is just the sense I got from the front row at Antone's Friday night. "One fellow's opinion" and all that.

The Del Castillo brothers - Mark and Rick - are the guitarists, and they are phenomenally talented. And not just in terms of speed or technique. Anyone can play fast and furious. (Well, not anyone, but you know what I mean.) But they use the full range of dynamics - soft, loud, fast, slow, simple, complex, traditional or avant garde.

They alone are worth the price of admission. I was constantly amazed by their solos and how they shaped the music, every moment trying to drink in every note (even at breakneck speed) but also hungering for more. I probably had more than I could handle by their first break, but obviously wasn't going anywhere until they finally called it quits after over two hours.

The key? Every note (and silence) had MEANING. It dripped with intensity, passion, life. And it was at a speed I wasn't expecting, so I never really caught up, emotionally.

And on top of it all, they were having a blast! I've never seen musicians smile so much while playing such intense music for so long. And they have a youthful exuberance that just screams how wonderful life is and can be.

But those are the guitarists. On top of that you have the singer, Alex Ruiz. Imagine Robert Plant, Jim Morrison and Perry Farrell mixed into one, and then give him the same passion, Latin and South Texas perspective that the guitarists bring to the show, but with an added touch of grit. His face, and his singing, is lined with experience. I remember k.d. lang once saying in an interview that, "We're only as deep as what is carved into us" and Alex's singing drips with that sense of reality. When he sings about brotherhood or forgiveness, you get the sense that he has walked the dark sides of those streets and his words have real meaning - belief in the face of reality, rather than naive, blind faith in the goodness of life.

Again, meaning.

And then there is the rhythm section. We are talking about Latin music, remember? The bassist, Albert Besteiro, is as rock-solid a bass player as I have ever seen, playing those deep, full, rhythmic bass lines that drive the bus that is rock music. And he does it all the while the engine that drives the activity on stage. He is always smiling, always engaging with either other musicians or stage hands or fans. Everyone is his best friend and he makes sure they are all having a blast. His notes were as aggressive as could be without taking center stage or overshadowing the other musicians, and even if he had just stood there, stoically playing the part, I would have been impressed - although it probably wouldn't have had the life that came off the stage.

And then there is the drummer. Last, but by no means the least, Mike Zeoli was the thumping heart that pounded its way throughout the night. Make no mistake, while this is most definitely Latin music, it is also definitely rock, and I'd kill to see Zeoli play anything from Led Zepplin to Metallica. (They actually slipped in what sure sounded to me like four measures of "One" for good measure, and it was a very cool touch.) Not only am I confident he could pull it off, but he could bring his own energy to it. That should give you the scope of what was sitting behind the kit. They had someone else playing some other percussion bits - unfortunately, I can't remember his name (if someone knows it, comment and I'll add it), but he also brought a lot to the table. But clearly, it was an added layer that raised the bar rather than helping Zeoli fill any gaps in his play. Oh, and I was pretty sure I sensed influences of Neil Peart in some of Zeoli's solos - which I'm sure you know warmed my heart.

As for the songs - Each had its own feel - not the over-consistency you get from some artists trying to "define themselves" - yet there was a definite style above and beyond the fact that you had a set instrumentation and a somewhat consistent placement of the back-beats. And it was so refreshing to see a band not bat an eye at long, involved solos in almost every song - and that each solo had its own presence. Again, like the songs themselves, each had their own nuances and differences, but were definitely "their own."

The nice thing I found on the way home listening to the CD - enough of the feel from the solos and the concert makes it to the album. Obviously, they couldn't put all of the solo work on a studio album, but there is enough of it that you don't feel like the CD is a neutered version of the band. I got "Brotherhood", and if you want to check it out on iTunes, listen to the clip of Este Amor and you'll get a touch of Alex's singing and the brothers' guitar playing. If you get or have the album, I'd also throw in Arena Al Viento, Vida Latina and El Corrido De Don Lulai to get a sense of what assaulted me Friday night.

And the stage presence and showmanship? Again, I've seen The Police, U2, Metallica. I've seen bands who grab the audience by the throat - however gently or firmly - and take them for an emotional, passionate ride. Del Castillo (Wiki) is right there with the best of them. I mentioned the atmosphere on stage - like a band of brothers who have come to peace with themselves and enjoy each other's company. Well, they invite the audience into that same atmosphere, but with the added connection of the intensity of the music.

And then there are the times the musicians - especially the guitarists - going into the crowd while they play. For those who don't know Antone's there is a VIP area up some stairs to the left of the stage (from the audience's perspective). At one point, during one of his long, colorful solos, Mark walked up there and gave his wife a simple kiss on the cheek. The cool panache of the moment was most impressive, especially considering that the intensity never wavered. Both Mark and Rick took turns walking through the crowd during their solos, as did Alex from time to time, adding to the personal contact the band has with its audience.

The highlight of the night for me was about halfway through the second set. Mark was doing a solo and it was the first time he had wandered the crowd. Most of the crowd was standing, but there were a few tables set aside for VIPs. One of those were near me, and he walked up and sat down and there I was, leaning over his right shoulder, watching him play music that I had been trying to breath into my soul the whole night. Understand, I was overwhelmed with their music fifteen minutes into the show, so you can imagine how I now felt having better than literally a front row seat.

Eventually, the show was over. I was tired. I was sore. I was emotionally drained. And I loved it. I read up on them, and they are definitely on the radar screen of some people. They have been used for the soundtracks of Kill Bill, vol. II and Once Upon A Time In Mexico - not exactly small ventures. Will they make that jump to true stardom? I have no idea. But if they do, I think they will strike a chord with so many. I mean, if Gypsy Kings can get a hit, surely this band can do the same. And in my humble opinion, if they do, there may be no looking back.

Bear in mind - I'm not a music critic. I am relatively musically knowledgeable, but I'm not trained in the ways of critiquing a band. And I'm here sharing my personal experience, not here to give a critical analysis of their performance. And I certainly wasn't prepared for what I was about to experience.

But that being said, what I've seen of Del Castillo is enough that I will support them in the way that I support Rush. And as I've done here, I'll spread the word to anyone that they are a band worth listening to at least once - with the smiling "warning" that if it strikes a chord, it will strike hard. The last band I had that kind of insight about was Pearl Jam - before they had a single out on the radio or video.....

Del Castillo is the height of what music can be, especially in this vein - it IS Latin Rock - and most certainly capitalize that R.

"Vida Latina Amor" indeed.

For more on Kevin's takes on music, check out Chaotica.

Karma = Good (Motorcycle version)

2008-10-18T14:36:00.000-07:00

So I'm on my way to meet a friend to ride north of the MetroPlex this morning, and my plan was to gas up at the meeting site, about 40 miles away. Starting off, I'm still in the main tank and I usually get 40 miles out of the reserve, so I figure I'm good to go.

Going west on I-635, about five miles into the ride, I have to reach into my reserve tank, which, again I've got a five mile buffer so I'm cool, right?

Well, then I'm going north on I-35 about ten miles later and I come across and accident that has traffic backed up for about a mile. I thought I got through it relatively quickly and still had some buffer to go, but then 25 miles into the reserve, I run out of gas......

Short story long, as I'm about a mile into walking my bike about two miles to the next gas station (you're right - it sure could have been worse), I notice a truck pass me and then start backing up. WTH? Then I notice a sports bike in the bed of the truck and realize my good fortune. The gentleman stops, asks what is up and when I tell him I'm short on gas, pulls out a gas can and drops in some. We introduced ourselves - his name is Ron. As we talked, he said he is learning to ride and his brother apparently is pretty good, and he couldn't let another rider get stuck. Needless to say, I thanked him sincerely and wished him the best.

It wasn't until he started to drive off that I realized that this was Karma in action. See my earlier post about Why Motorcyclists Wave. For a variety of reasons, Ron was very helpful today and saved my butt. Thanks tons, Ron! Best wishes! Here is hoping that when it is your time for Karma to come your way, it does with the same speed that you came to my aid today. You're a good man and a good friend in my book.

FWIW, props to all who reach out to help others - it isn't just a motorcycle thing. I just mention it here because it seems one of the communities I know where you really see it in action.

As for the trip, it was a great ride. The guy who suggested we ride is guy I've known for a while and we grab a ride from time to time. This time, Steve called me Thursday or Friday, and I hadn't been planning on riding but had the time and I know we've missed each other in the past, so I jumped on the opportunity.

We took another Shadow of the Valkyries ride - going north of Denton, up to 902 through some back roads, then over to 289 south to 121 over to Tioga and Clark's Outpost for BBQ. Up until 121, it was all new roads for me and it was really cool. (If you want to try it out, look for 3002 east from I-35 and map a route up to 372 and 3496.) Some of the roads were high-twisties, but also not in the best condition.

After a late lunch, we went over to 75 via FM 455 and 543 - my two favorite roads in Texas in large part because they were the first real twisties I ever took (thanks, Mer and Randy and all you Beginner Biker folk). Those roads are still great for turns. Disappointinly, 543 is a little rough for wear with some washout areas, but it still was a good ride. Thanks, Steve - great suggestion and it was great to hit the roads with you again.

So, to sum up - Texas is still beautiful for riding, and Karma is still good currency.

El Capitan

2008-07-31T21:51:00.000-07:00

Every once in a while, especially on Twitter (drumrboy93) and Facebook (kevin.lindstrom1), I'll mention El Capitan, usually in reference to an FC Dallas game.

What is El Capitan you ask?

See Wiki - and yes, I'm the one that fires it. As described in the Wiki entry, it is a Civil War Era, muzzle-loading mountain howitzer. El Capitan ain't no two shotgun shells and a pull-string, that is for sure.

Love the smell of gunpowder. Smells like . . . victory!

Motorcycle Rider Resource Page(s)

2008-07-26T10:11:00.000-07:00

I'll update this page with more detail later, but as a starting point, here are some Motorcycle Rider resources:

Beginning Riders: Get In The Saddle (my original BR resource page) - Beginnerbikers.org

More advanced Riders: Highway Child (my original resource page w/ info about me) - Beginner and Beyond.com

Get In The Saddle has a number of good sections, including stuff about information sources for bike evaluations, insurance options, used bike evaluation tools, along with a number of notes about how I learned to ride and the things that challenged me and the things that helped me. Ideally, GITS is an all-encompassing resource page for beginning riders.

Beginnerbikers.org is a wonderful internet discussion site that has a bunch of great contributors. Especially for a beginning rider who doesn't have people they personally know to ask questions of, or if you're just looking for a community that has a positive attitude about riding (have fun, be safe), it is a wonderful place to check in to.

Highway Child was my original website and chronicles how I got into riding, a number of the notes and comments from GITS but in a more raw form as a lot of it was written as it was happening. The GITS stuff is more condensed. It also includes Stephanie's Corner, a section of websites geared towards women riders.

Beginner and Beyond.com is a website that is - as the name implies - for beginning and more advanced riders. It includes some of the Beginner Bikers stuff, but also has stuff for riders that have been around the block a few times, so to speak.

I intend on revising GITS and Highway Child through this website down the road, but for now, here is a good starting point.

Also, I came across an interesting website out of Oregon - HinesSight. An interesting set of (wait for it....) in-Sights! (Sorry, couldn't help myself.) Seriously, very cool take on the world.

Why Motorcycle Riders Wave

2008-07-17T21:40:00.000-07:00

Those of you who don't ride motorcycles probably don't know this. Those of you who do ride probably do.

Motorcycle riders wave to each other. It usually is a small thing - a simple raise of a few fingers or nod of the head in a lot of instances.

It has always given me a sense of community and never ceases to put a smile on my face. It means we're brothers and sisters on the road.

Today, though, it became a lot more - a reminder of what it really is all about.

I was riding home from work when I saw a guy riding a Harley coming into the intersection from my left. He waved, and as I was holding down the clutch with my hand, I just nodded. Then he entered the intersection to turn left in front of me. His front tire lost pressure, his bike lost contact with the road and he dropped the bike.

It took me about three seconds to really get what had just happened. Once it sunk in, I pulled my bike to the median and went over to him. As bad as things can be when you drop a bike, he was relatively okay. But I stood with him and made sure everything was okay. We checked out the bike and noted the scrapes and scratches, and then he got his bike back up and I followed him down the road to a gas station where he refilled his front tire. We talked a bit, making sure that he was good to ride home, etc.

That experience was a bit startling, but not what really drove home to me the issue of why motorcycle riders wave. What drove that home was one of the stories he shared - about a night where he was basically ridden off the road by a van and left behind in oncoming traffic, and about how no one stopped to help until two motorcyclists stopped and helped get him out from under his bike and out of the road.

My point? In many instances, we're all each other has. I've stopped a number of times for riders who look like they might be in trouble. This is the first time for someone who had dropped their bike, and I'm damn glad I did. Thinking back, I am sure I could have handled a situation like that on my own, but I'm sure I would appreciate having someone who understood riding (or even just someone to make sure I was okay) there to have my six, so to speak.

On the rest of the way home, I saw a number of riders. Bikes of all kinds - cruisers, crotch rockets, touring bikes. And every time someone waved, I could feel the camaraderie - and the underlying "when we waive, we celebrate enjoying riding together, but we also say 'I've got your six', too."

So if you ride - thanks. Thanks for being a part of that family that takes care of each other.

If you don't ride, please, watch out for the motorcycles out there. Car and truck drivers have a tendency to not notice motorcycles because they are more focused on the larger vehicles like themselves. I'm asking you to be proactive in noticing the motorcycles out there, and if you happen to see someone on a bike in trouble, consider checking to see if they are okay. The vast majority of the riders out there are not the stereotypical biker gang dude, but rather people who have found the joy of riding motorcycles.

If you are considering taking up motorcycling, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE consider taking a Motorcycle Safety Foundation course. The VAST majority of serious motorcycle accidents happen in the first year of a person taking up riding. Reduce those odds by taking a MSF course and then riding carefully for at least six months.

If you want more information, take a look at my old "Get in the Saddle - A Motorcycle Rider Beginner Basics" page. It has a lot of solid information about how to evaluate bikes, links to resources, etc. Some of them are outdated, and I plan on doing a revised version here on this Blogspot page, but for now, it is still a useful page.

Also, in checking out articles about riders and waiving, I found an old friend, so to speak - BeginnerBikers.org! This was a wonderful resource from when I started riding. It included a forum that was great for discussing all things a learning rider needed to see and read and talk about. I met friends there who rode with me in the Hill Country - what a great ride! Unfortunately, that version of the organization apparently hit a road bump or two and was offline for a bit, but apparently it resurfaced and is back, stronger than ever. I HIGHLY recommend it to any rider with two years experience or less, and would even recommend it for experienced riders who just want to stay in touch.

Keep the shinny side up, folks. And remember - when riders wave, it not only means "ain't this cool?", but also "I've got your back."

Welcome to Implausible Dreams! - Euro 2008

2008-06-21T09:37:00.000-07:00

Have you been following Euro 2008?

If not, what rock are you stuck under, and what do we need to get you out from under it?

ESPN and ABC could not have asked for a better year to take this great tournament into mainstream America. What incredible games. It isn't too late to start following the games - they are in the quarterfinals now and if things continue at this pace, people are going to start dying of heart attacks from all the incredible drama.

As usual, I have made some more additions to most of my pages, including the page about Janice and her radio show, my Dallas Stars page Cygnus X-1, and the US Soccer Links page.

FWIW, I transitioned my June 9 entry into a mini-Rangers page. I also added a few things to the links on the right - including some basic stuff I use regularly (CNN for news, the Dallas Morning News and Fort Worth Star Telegram for general local sports, Weather.com, etc., and some general working links like MapQuest, Wikipedia, Google).

For now, take a look at the following pages:

Janice and The Music Therapy Show
Cygnus X-1 (Dallas Stars)
Neil Peart Condolences Page
US Soccer Links Page (a bit under construction still, but recently revised)
Texas A&M University Sports Page

Soon to come/under construction (current link to old page):
Motorcycle Beginner Basics Page
Chaotica (my music)

I don't plan on updating The Red Book (originally about the Dallas Burn, now FC Dallas) as I work for the team and I'm going to leave that stuff up to the official team sources, the media and the fans.

I also will probably not update the original idea that sparked Implausible Dreams, my World Cup Resource page, as I probably won't have time to. If that changes, I'll consider it. But for now, use the US Soccer Links page to get access to that stuff.

Here is the original post, "Implausible Dreams Returns!" It contains a more detailed description of why we're back.

For those so interested, here is the link to my old Main Page. And then there is the link to my REALLY old Main Page.

For those visiting for the first time or otherwise not familiar with my old site, here is a (somewhat) brief summary.

Implausible Dreams

"Why Implausible Dreams?" THIS is why. I'm pretty happy that I've been able to experience a number of them come true, including a number of USA soccer triumphs on three continents and the construction of an incredible soccer specific venue in the DFW MetroPlex, among others.

As mentioned above, the original idea for Implausible Dreams was to put together a World Cup Resource for the 2002 World Cup, and things just grew from there.

Texas Rangers Mini-Page

2008-06-09T21:15:00.001-07:00

October 18, 2010 - Pre-game

Now THAT was the Texas Rangers team we expected to see in these playoffs - aggressive, smart, hard-nosed baseball players. The fact that the Rangers knocked around another Yankees starter - and the Rangers starter was more than solid - should be a very good overall sign for the series.

But the bullpen, while redeeming themselves to a large degree, didn't completely erase the concerns, and now you have two of the best post-season pitchers in the game going head-to-head - anything is possible. Tonight has the potential to be a heck of a game - and is huge in terms of where this series is headed.

For the most part, the Rangers got out of the first two games what they wanted - proof that they not only deserved to be in the ALCS, but that they could very well win it. The Rangers slogan went from "It's Time" to "It's On!" But all that means is that the Yankees are now on notice that they can take the Rangers starting pitching for granted at their peril. Same for the offense.

Tonight is definitely a huge-swing game. Win this game, and either team is in the driver's seat. Lose, and it is panic-just-a-little time.

So get out there, Texas - show what you're made of!

October 16, 2010 Update

A complete loss for words. That was my original response to watching everything the Texas Rangers had hoped for in the first seven innings go up in smoke in the 8th last night. Now that I've had a little time to process, it comes down to this - the Rangers showed both that they have the ability to play with the Yankees, and at the same time they obviously don't have the same level of composure. And simply put, this is it. Cliff Lee doesn't mean a thing if the Rangers can't get a win on Saturday. Show us what you got, Rangers.

As for my thoughts going into the game, I don't think Cruz' out in the first falls into the "too aggressive" category - how often does a wild pitch bounce so hard off the wall?

Obviously, CJ showed he can shut down the Yankees for the most part. And the Rangers can get to anyone, even CC Sabathia. So those are good things going forward.

But between Oliver and Young, you sure would have expected more from these veterans than what we got from them in the 8th. Other than that (and a few other shaky pitching performances), the Rangers did everything they wanted to do.

So lots of huge positives thrown away. Now their backs are completely against the wall. Lose Game Two, and Lee won't really matter.

So let's see what you've got, Rangers.

October 15, 2010 Update

Wow. Just wow.

This is the Texas Rangers team I had always wanted to see. Pitching, defense, timely/situational hitting.

It is one thing to hope to see it, to know it is possible. It is something entirely different to see it put in practice - in the playoffs no less!

But now we have ourselves a thing. Called the American League Championship Series. Against the Yankees.

"Big Time" indeed.

So here are some thoughts and observations going into tonight's huge game and the rest of the series.

I think it is all about Game One. CJ v. CC. With Cliff Lee pitching Game Three and available for at least Game Seven (if necessary), a win in Game One puts the favored Yankees under immense pressure. Right now, it seems they have a sense that they are heavy favorites, and think it is a fair evaluation. Losing Game One to CJ would shatter that confidence and change the tone of the series. It would probably excise some playoff- and Yankee-demons from The Ballpark in Arlington and inflame an already passionate Rangers fan-base.

I worry about the Rangers aggressive base-running. Not that it shouldn't be done, but that they might try too often, at the wrong times, trying to be more than what they need to be. What do they need to be? One of the best teams in the AL in 2010 - and if they play within themselves, it will be a heck of a series between two amazing baseball teams. Yes, you can still be aggressive at the right times (Elvis, Vlad). Just don't be aggressive at the wrong times (Cruz) because unlike the Rays, the Yankees probably aren't going to make defensive errors.

I also worry about the Yankees seeing how the Rangers bats responded to junk in Games Three and Four of the ALDS.... How much of the series win over the Rays was simple matchups? Was it as simple as the Rangers beat the fastball pitchers and lost to the off-speed pitchers...? I don't think so, but we'll just have to see.

I think Cliff Lee has no choice but to continue to be his absolutely amazing self. Yes, technically he could be slightly off, lose (he is going up against this Andy Pettitte guy...) and not lose much luster. But he isn't that guy. He is the Michael Jordan/Lance Armstrong "I don't lose" guy. And he simply isn't going to have an off game. If the Rangers lose a game Lee pitches in, it is because the Ranger bats don't find a way to beat the Yankees pitching.

So with that in mind, back to tonight - CJ, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE continue your Cliff Lee impersonation. Throw strikes, throw strikes, throw strikes. Do that, and the Rangers have a chance to continue this amazing season.

Win Game One, with Cliff Lee on the horizon, the Rangers would be completely in the drivers seat in this series. Frankly, win either of the first two games and the Rangers are in good shape. Winning Game Two is possible, but harder and wouldn't have the momentum that winning Game One would have.

So Mr. Wilson, do us proud. Rangers, bring out the Claw and Antlers, play Wash-ball. Pitch by the Maddux book, hit by the Hurdle book, and let's see how far we can take this thing!

August 5, 2009 Update

And just like that, it seems the boys have slipped that step off the pace. No success in bringing in a new front line pitcher, although I'm okay with that. And the Rangers still have one of the top teams in baseball - just not at that top tier (right now). Interesting how much can change over a weekend, huh?

I'm okay with no big move for a pitcher because I'd rather bet on two of Holland, Feliz and a few others paying out over six years rather than knowing we'd have Halladay for a year and a half. After seeing what Feliz can bring, and what Holland did on Thursday, I think that is a good bet. (Thank you, Mark T and the Braves!)

I'll just admit that I'm a little sad to see the potential dream season come back to Earth a bit. Sure, things can change. A series sweep of the Angels and/or Boston and we're back in it. I'm just not sure that a team that is young and new to this whole playoff race business is going to have the endurance for it.

On the other hand - and this is my key for this season - it is good for this team to grow as a team and learn this process AS a team. The Bulls had to go through Detroit and I think they were better for it. Same for a number of teams who were significant champions. Hopefully this is the beginning of a run where the AL is dominated by the Angels, Rangers, Yankees and Boston. I'm okay with that.

But to be at THAT level, you can't just pull something together overnight. See the Marlins, Rays, etc. There has to be a core, a foundation.

And with players like Salty, Elvis, Ian, etc., I think we definitely have that. I'd rather be slower developing and miss the playoffs this year with the chance of long-term success on one hand than blow our wad this season on the other. We're one of the biggest sports markets in the country with a great ballpark, for crying out loud. And Texas (the state) is known for good baseball. There is absolutely no reason why the Texas Rangers can't be one of the premier teams in baseball.

That's my story, and I'm stickin' to it.

Late July 2009 Update

What in the Wide Wide World of Sports is a goin' on hea'? - Slim Pickens

I feel like Annie from Bull Durham during the Bulls' winning streak (you know the line I'm talking about) - although in more of a just-baseball kind of way. The Rangers defense and pitching is phenomenal, but their bats can't seem to hit enough. And will the Angels lose a game sometime? Seriously!

It looks as if the Rangers are just going to have to catch the Angels by beating them head-to-head because rare is the day when the Angels lose of late. Hey, props to them because they have lost Vlad and Torii for stretches, and haven't missed a beat.

Interestingly, it looks like the Wild Card might be in play, as well. What is MLB going to do if the Wild Card doesn't come out of the AL East for once?

I take confidence from a stat I heard yesterday - that the Rangers have the best record in baseball against winning teams. I like the sound of that not only for the playoff race, but also for the playoffs themselves. But yes, let's get there first.

And we're just about to start August, too. Fun, fun, fun!

July 2009 Update

Oy. Scary June, there, huh? It would appear that the Rangers have clawed their way out of that mini-slump and just recently swept the Tampa Bay Rays (still not 100% comfortable with the new name....) Now they go into the lion's den and play the Angels in California. One win is pretty much needed from a confidence stantpoint, but winning the series would be another significant shot across the Angel's bow.

June 2009 Update

Interesting how things change in a year.

Last June, 2008, I wrote the following:

Earlier, I had asked if I was going to have to put a Rangers page together. In typical Rangers fashion, they told me to tap them brakes just a touch. I'm not trashing the idea, but I am setting it on the back burner for now. Let's not have to drop a starting pitcher because he can't get along with the rest of the team first, huh?

This June, the Rangers seem to have something going that is more than just a hot set of bats. Efforts to improve the pitching - especially the starting pitching - and the defense have yielded a team that has held the best record in the American League more than once this season, and has been in first place in the AL West - by more than three games - for much of May and June. They even survived the issues that were eerily similar to the Sidney Ponson episode last year (quality starting pitcher with "team chemistry challenges") - this time they found a way to keep the pitcher (Padilla). At least for now.

My question is this - what happens later in the hot summer? Do the Rangers take their foot off the starting pitcher pedal and ease the workload so that they don't burn out? Is a fresh bullpen more able to handle that added work? Does the focus on defense continue?

There are other questions - how aggressive are the Rangers at trying to stay in first place/try to win in the playoffs? Do they make trades for an extra bat, etc.? (I'd prefer they let this group learn together - win or lose.) And what I consider to be the biggest question, especially if the pitching and defense continue to be successful - when/how do they transition from a free-swinging club to one that can manufacture runs. No significant playoff success can be had until that happens - at least, in my personal opinion.

But all of that aside, it is great to see this team playing well and making improvements. Tip of the cap mostly to Nolan Ryan for injecting confidence and professionalism into the ballclub. And "well done" to Washington, Daniels, Maddux and Rudy. This time it looks like we might have the foundation for the kind of team North Texas deserves.

So for now, here is the Ranger's official page and ESPN page, along with MLB's official page and ESPN page.

Texas A&M University Sports Page

2008-06-09T20:58:00.000-07:00

So far, the 2008 season has been one of promise and growth.

As always, the womens' soccer team continues to be tops in the Big XII and are working towards breaking through on a national level.

The baseball and softball teams also did well this year in 2008 and should have good 2009 seasons. The softball team made the final series in the Womens' College World Series and the baseball team won the Big XII. Both are programs looking good for the future.

The men's and women's basketball teams have done really well of late. Both are now consistently playing in the NCAA tournament - something only recently accomplished. If they can maintain that on a consistent basis, Aggie basketball can become the kind of force it has been in other sports.

The gridiron football team has a new coach - one with college and NFL experience, and signs indicated to a renewed focus on winning the state of Texas first. As great at UT and OU have been based on Texas talent, if the Aggies can play at that level, it is a pretty darn good level, what with the national championships those two programs have won in the past decade. Obviously, 2008 wasn't the best of seasons, but it is over and now we look to 2009 and what should be some progress.

As you can probably tell, in general, this is more of a personal page - allowing me to tap into the sports I like the most, so forgive me for not having some of the other sports listed here.

Go here for the overall page.

Here is my old page.

Welcome to Implausible Dreams! (May 2006)

2008-05-15T21:37:00.001-07:00

How about them Aggies!?!?!?!? At least so far, Texas A&M has acquitted themselves rather well in both the baseball and softball playoffs so far. The men have won their first two games in the College Station Regional and the women have won their first two games in the College World Series, beating an incredibly tough Virginia Tech team and surviving a spirited Louisiana-Lafayette team.

On the Stars front, we're watching the team that knocked us out of the playoffs tear Pittsburgh a new one. Looks like we lost to the team that is going to win the Stanley Cup and unless Pittsburgh can muster up a win in Detroit - a place it has yet to score a playoff goal - we will have been the team that gave them the hardest run.

Am I going to have to put a Rangers page together? I want them to do well, of course, but they have been mired in mediocrity for so long.... yet now they are not only above .500, but are close to being second in the division. I'm not ready to declare them the next dynasty just yet, but they sure seem to be doing the right things - patient hitting, pitching, defense, etc. And it sure seems like the minor league teams are doing well also.

US Soccer Links

2008-05-15T21:25:00.001-07:00


FC Dallas	MLS	General Soccer
Official	Official	ESPN
3rd Degree		Fox Sports
Big D Soccer		CNNSI
The Inferno		USA Today
Guardia Roja	Goff Blog	Yahoo
Los Toros	Ives Blog
Big Soccer	Big Soccer	MLS Teams below

USSF	USL	WPS
Official	USL1	Official
Mens	USL2	Big Soccer (womens soccer generally)
Womens	PDL
Sams Army	W-League	US Open Cup
American Outlaws		Official
Big Soccer

Historical		MISL
American Soccer History Archives
RSSSF		NTPSA NTCSA
NASL (unofficial)		DMSSL
National Soccer Hall of Fame		CONCACAF
Dave Wasser's Historical Soccer Videos		FIFA

	MLS Teams
Team (Official)	Big Soccer	Supporters Group(s)
CD Chivas USA	CD Chivas USA	Legion 1908
Chicago Fire	Chicago Fire	Section 8	Ultras
Colorado Rapids	Colorado Rapids	Centenial Firm	Class IV
Columbus Crew	Columbus Crew
DC United	DC United	Barra Brava	Screaming Eagles
Houston Dynamo	Houston Dynamo	Texian Army	El Battalion
Kansas City Wizards	Kansas City Wizards	Mystics
Los Angeles Galaxy	Los Angeles Galaxy	LA Riot Squad	Galaxians
New England Revolution	New England Revolution	Midnight Riders
Real Salt Lake	Real Salt Lake	Loyalists
Red Bull New York	Red Bull New York	Empire SC
San Jose EarthQuakes	San Jose EarthQuakes	The Casbah	Club Quake
Toronto FC	Toronto FC	Red Patch Boys
Seattle Sounders	Seattle Sounders	Emerald City Supporters

Here is a link to the old Soccer Links page.

Neil Peart Condolences Page

2008-05-11T19:28:00.000-07:00

A long time ago, a favorite musician of mine, Neil Peart of the band Rush, suffered an incredible set of tragedies. In a somewhat rare situation, he chose to keep his experience and mourning private. This was completely understandable, but unique. One of the specific things that I believe he asked for was to not have fans write in to him.

Now, at the time and even now, I get that. And certainly, I and most of his fans want to respect that.

On the other hand, while certainly not as directly affected as he was, I think many of us were touched by Neil and that his experiences impacted us as well. As such, I put together the Neil Peart Condolences Page. It was designed to be a voice for those who wanted to share their thoughts and feelings about Neil and Rush and how they impacted our lives.

The original page detailed a few more things, including the incidents in question and Neil's journey after that, up to the writing of the book Ghost Rider. And I had a number of people email me their thoughts that I have shared on that page.

Unfortunately, I lost the ability to update the page a few years back and until recently didn't have the avenue to include other submissions I received. Thankfully, now I can. I will periodically update this section of my page with new entries. A note about entries - which you can submit via email to klindstr@flash.net: Please proofread them well as I am going to be a reluctant editor.

For now, though, please take a look at the original page and let me know your thoughts.

Janice and The Music Therapy Show!

2008-04-28T14:47:00.000-07:00

Janice Harris has a Blog and Radio Show! It started early in 2008 and has been going on weekly ever since. It has been really exciting watch her listenership grow and develop.

Based on inspiration from FlyLady and Jonathan Roche, Janice has put together what looks to be a great information source for people who are interested in Music Therapy through a Blog and Radio Show. The radio show is called The Music Therapy Show with Janice Harris and airs via Blog Talk Radio every Saturday at 4:00 CT. I was really excited about its potential because there isn't anything like it out there, and she is a pretty educated person when it comes to music therapy - and as I had hoped, she has done great! Take a look at her blog to get more information.

She was kind enough to let me write, perform and record the music for her show. Thanks to Ace Radio Live of The Footie Fetish Show fame for the technical help in getting it uploaded! It was pretty cool to get back in the swing of things in terms of playing and writing.

The intro piece is called Marie, and is something I wrote in college. Completed, it will be a full instrumental piece with drums, guitar and a lead instrument (probably bass), but right now it is just the basic bass line. Mostly this is because we just need a bit of an intro piece and nothing too complex, and it was easy to record the bass line.

The exit piece is College Station Blues, and is another piece I wrote in college. I'm still playing with ideas for the name a bit, but College Station Blues will work for now. Again, it is just an exit piece. I haven't written a lead or words to it yet.

For the May 17 show, I did another guitar break - "Texas 287." It is a song that I've had for a while and although I've never put lyrics to it, it always gave me a feeling of movement, of hope - sort of like a road trip. I've taken a lot of road trips on Texas highways, and one of my favorite is Texas 287 that goes up northwest on the way to Colorado and New Mexico. We're going to use it for the break before the History of Music Therapy segment.

For the May 31 show, I introduced another piece, Open Skies. It is similar in feel and idea to Texas 287.

I'm hoping to record a few other things to use as breaks, assuming Janice likes them. It has been a lot of fun working with Janice on this - taking my journalism background and putting it to good use on the blog and radio show. She comes up with the creative and we work on the logistics together. There have been some understandable growing pains (of course as neither of us has actually done a radio show before), but mostly it has been very cool to work with her on this.

Cygnus X-1 - Leht's Go Stars!

2008-02-16T07:57:00.000-08:00

Welcome to my Dallas Stars page. Here you will find some cool links, my favorite players and overall comments about the team. (See the bottom of the page for the answer to the question, “Why ‘Cygnus X-1’?”) The main idea of this page is to be an information source as well as hosting commentary. If you have any links you think I should add, please let me know by emailing me.

Note - I've added AHL page below, but deleted the Iowa Stars page as they changed their affililation to the Ducks (yuck). Once the Stars finalize what their minor league relationship(s) will be, I'll add the respective links. Considering how many who spent significant time in Iowa contributed so much to the Stars playoff run, it probably is worth keeping an eye on the kids out there during the season. (June 2009 update - looks like the Stars will be working with a new club out of Austin.)

Also, I've added a new fan-page/blog - The Sign Girls. It contains some cool stuff from some fans who really care about the team and aren't afraid to show it!

Dallas Stars and NHL Links

The Winds of Change

And Hicks decides that he wants to go with GM Joe and Nieuwendyk goes with Marc Crawford as his new coach. See my blog post for the Dallas Stars Podcast for most of my current thoughts about the changes. I'm not sure it is fair to Tippett as he seemed to be given some pretty tough cards to play, but that is life in the big city. Tipp will be back and I'm glad for all that he did for the Stars.

2008-2009 Season - Well, at least it is over

The injuries kept coming and despite the fact that the team overcame the Avery debacle, they just couldn't scrape into the playoffs. It will be interesting to see what the club tries to do to recover from this. Is it as simple as get healthy? Considering the success of 2007-2008, that would be my thought. Unless through the haze of all the injuries, the organization thinks that something changed between two years ago and this past season that needs a change.

2008-2009 Season - so far, not so good...

Well, that wasn't the kind of first half we were thinking we were going to get, now was it? The whole Avery mess, the injuries (Zubov, Morrow and such) etc., and the Stars are far from being a top team in the West, but are more like a team struggling to smell the playoffs, let alone get in. December seemed to reveal some signs that Tip has the team moving in a more positive direction.

2008 Draft

The Stars took a goalkeeper, Tyler Beskorowany of the Ontario Hockey League (Owen Sound Attack) with the 59th pick in the 2008 NHL draft. Follow the rest of the draft on the Stars page.

Back to Reality

And then it was over. Game Six, and we lose to the Red Wings at home. But not before we gave them a heck of a run. The great thing is that we found out that we could compete with them. Obviously, a lot goes into a season and we can't assume that we'll be back to the WCF next year, but it sure does give Stars fans a better feeling going into the off-season to know that the boys have the stones to do some damage in the playoffs once again.

Stars Win! Stars Win! Stars Win!

Game Five - Dallas 2, @ Detroit 1!

And we have ourselves a series. It took a lot of hard sledding, and needless to say, it ain't over yet. But rather than just win one game for pride on Wednesday, the Stars have now injected themselves into the series. No time to think about winning the series just yet - now is the time to focus on Game Six and nothing further. Especially considering that it has taken everything the Stars have just to get to this point.

So let's reflect on what we've seen so far. Wednesday, we saw the Stars play their guts out and dominate the game. Today, we saw them play their guts out and eek out a win. But in both situations, it took maximum effort for 60 minutes to get the wins. How much more do the Stars have in the tank at this point?

The other thing - both games relied on Dallas getting the lead. Does Dallas have to keep Detroit from scoring first to win?

What is new?

Last year, the Dallas Stars Havoc Fanatics were formed. Rather than do the gimmicks that have been done by the Dallas Mavericks, etc., the Stars decided to try to rustle up some real rowdy fans – and it worked! The Fanatics were born. Located in Section 332 (sometimes called the Asylum by Stars color analyst Razor Reaugh), these fans are as active as any fans you’ll see supporting any team anywhere. They’ve borrowed and stolen from traditional hockey fans, soccer fans and good ol’ American sports stuff to create a fun atmosphere for every game.

But make no mistake – this isn’t about fun. It is about supporting the Stars – it just happens to be a lot of fun to go all out for your team. I’ve had a lot of experience doing this for the Dallas Burn and FC Dallas, and when I saw the Fanatics for the first time last season, I fell head over heels in love. Imagine my surprise when they reached out to me via my job with FC Dallas! Now I get to be a fan again, and I’m having a blast.

HERE is their website – check it out!

Feel free to email me if you have any questions or comments about what the Fanatics are or how to join.

Fan Commentary

Well well well. What have we here? Is it the rebirth of the Stars as a perennial Western Conference power?

It sure smells like it. While we've had some tough times since after the 2000 Stanley Cup Playoffs, and especially since the 2003 playoffs when we last won a playoff series before this year, this year has seen us defeat our divisional nemesis, the Anaheim Ducks - who just happened to be the defending champs - as well as the division winners, the San Jose Sharks.

While we're in quite a dog-fight with the Detroit Red Wings and need to get a win Monday night, winning the past two series sure seems like vindication for Marty Turco and Dave Tippett. It sure feels like a team that is in its ascendancy.

This is a section that I will update as the season goes on, so feel free to check back from time to time to get my latest take on all things Dallas Stars related.

Favorite Players

Here you will find my favorite Dallas Stars players with a bit about them and why they are my favorites. Currently this is a simplified version of what I want to have in the end, but you have to start somewhere, right?

Jere Lehtinen – Gritty, aggressive, with the ability to score. He is what I would want to be if I were a hockey player. I love the idea of outworking the other team, but not just being a grinder – being someone who can put a bulge in the old onion bag, too. He is my favorite hockey player in the NHL for that reason.

Brenden Morrow – similar to Jere, but also the captain of the team and seems to have learned at the foot of his father in law, the great Guy Carbonneau. I love the ties to hockey tradition with this team – all the Canadiens personnel who helped make the Stars what they were in the 1990s. Brenden seems to me to be a legacy player of those times.

Steve Ott – Cut from the same cloth as Jere, although not everyone is blessed to be that good. On the other hand, he has a nastiness to his game that seems to get under the skin of other teams and while not necessarily a fighter, isn't afraid to drop the gloves.

Sergi Zubov – While he isn’t a grinder, he is probably the smartest and most skilled player on the ice and I love watching him make things happen.

Stephane Robidas - NEW - WOW. Where did this guy come from? Tough as nails, making huge plays on offense and defense. Incredible. I'd put him in my top three right now, with Morrow and Jere.

Stu Barnes - NEW - he has shown a whole heck of a lot in the first two rounds, and I wonder how much of the team's recent struggles relate to his absence...

Thanks for Reading

So thanks for checking my website out. As always, comments are welcome. How can I make this site better? What do you agree with? Disagree with? Fire away!

Check out my other sites as well. Right now, it is just the main page, Implausible Dreams, but I hope to have the other sites I mention on that page up and running over the next few weeks.

Why “Cygnus X-1”?

As with some of my other pages, this one has a Rush theme as Cygnus X-1 is one of their songs and mentioned in another. The song itself starts with a great rif that the band builds into, and the lyrics are about a journey to – and through - that black hole. By the way, HERE is the original version of that site.

Implausible Dreams returns!

2008-02-10T17:41:00.000-08:00

After a few years of technical issues, Implausible Dreams has returned! Sorry for the problems - although most of the links are still active and mostly still relevant, it is still good to get things back up and running with some new content, yes?

Keep an eye here as I'm going to create a blog page for each of my main pages with links to the old ones as necessary. And as always, comments are appreciated.

Here is the link to my old Main Page.

For those visiting for the first time or otherwise not familiar with my old site, here is a (somewhat) brief summary.

Implausible Dreams

For starters, as to the question, "Why Implausible Dreams?" THIS is why. I'm pretty happy that I've been able to experience a number of them come true, including a number of USA soccer triumphs on three continents and the construction of an incredible soccer specific venue in the DFW MetroPlex, among others.

I've got a number of interests - not the least of which is soccer, but also motorcycling, hockey, Rush (the progressive rock band, not the radio guy) and Texas A&M University athletics (especially, football, soccer, baseball and basketball). I'll be creating a new page for each of those, especially the Neil Peart Condolences Page, as I've had a number of submissions that I haven't been able to publish.

Soccer - Dallas Burn/FC Dallas, USSF

There have also been a LOT of changes on the soccer front. The Dallas Burn is now FC Dallas. Jason Kreis and Eddie Johnson are gone, Pizza Hut Park has been completed, and I'm no longer just a fan, but now actually work for the team. To those who get it - Yes, it is as cool as it sounds. To those who may not - imagine working for the NFL in the late 1950s or early 1960s and being there when things were about to explode. (Implausible Dreams, indeed!)

Needless to say, I'm not going to be providing any inside information about FC Dallas. You won't see anything here that isn't already public information - and I would guess that the Blogger people wouldn't like sales information on this page, so that won't be here either.

The main page I'll be updating there, though, is my USA Association Football Links page. At the time, it had a number of great links to all the cutting edge information. And it still does in some cases. As you probably can imagine, though, over the past four years enough has changed that a few are no longer around and I don't have a few of the newer sites on there. I want to get the format right, so it might take me a little time to get that one republished.

Dallas Stars/Stars Fanatics

There have also been some changes on the hockey side of things, too. I'm now a part of the Stars Fanatics - the active fans who stand in Section 332 and make noise at the games. You'll see a number of additions to that page, but for now check out their site and also the Stars Podcast page.

Popular Pages and a few loose ends

The Neil Peart Condolences Page is one of my most visited sites. Along with the Neil Peart page, my other popular site is the Motorcycle Rider Beginner Basics page, and I'll be updating that as well. There are some other music and motorcycle pages, as well as the Texas A&M University sports page, that I'll have to look at in terms of signal to noise ratio.

One new thing that is a part of my life is Texas Hold 'Em. LOVE that game. I'll probably have to put a page together for that as well.

As for now, though, let me breathe a sigh of relief as now I can get my pages current again.