Super Bowl prediction

Alas, the Packers will not be playing in the big game. They almost got real lucky, but then the Giants finally decided to stop choking. I'll be rooting for the Giants to beat the Patriots and wipe that smirk off Tom Brady's face. However, my mind wins over my heart in this forecast....

Prediction: Patriots 31, Giants 16. 19-0 is realized. Tom Brady wins another Super Bowl MVP award. Randy Moss gets a long TD catch. Eli Manning throws 2 INTs. The '72 Dolphins weep.

Good Books

I've gone through a string of several books in the last month and a few of them have been pretty good. So, I'll give you faithful blog readers 3 recommendations.

Let Me Be a Woman by Elisabeth Elliot - I have read and enjoyed the book Passion and Purity by Elliot, so when I got this book I was excited to read it. I was not let down. Elliot does and amazing job explaining what it means to be a biblical woman. I was extremely challenged in my role as a wife. This book is for any woman in any stage of life but it really spoke to me in my current stage of being married for only 7 months.

Next by Michael Crichton - I'm a big Crichton fan and enjoyed reading this book. This novel dealt with the topic of genetic engineering, so it was pretty intriguing. Although, if you've never read Crichton before I would recommend starting with Congo, Jurassic Park or The Rising Sun (all great novels).

Princess Academy by Shannon Hale - Hale has been a recent discovery of mine. Most of her writing consists of fairy tales in the youth fiction section but they are a joy to read. I just finished Princess Academy (Newbery Honor Book) and was captivated by the story. I've read a couple other books by her this fall but this was my favorite.

Happy reading (even if you don't read these books)!

"Be as careful of the books you read, as of the company you keep, for your habits and character will be as much influenced by the former as the latter. "
~Paxton Hood

Wordplay

Matt and I recently watched an amazing movie called "Wordplay" which was recommended by my friend Jerusha and we loved it. The movie is a documentary about people who love to do The New York Times crossword puzzles so much that they enter an annual tournament (which is a very big deal). The tournament is called the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament and the winner is crowned based on accuracy and speed. The contestants have to solve 6 puzzles on Sat. of increasing difficulty and then one on Sun. before the top 3 people compete in the finals. The speed at which these people solve puzzles is amazing. Some of the "easy" puzzles were solved in 2 minutes. I don't think I could completely solve one of the puzzles period. Anyway, the movie was well done, a riot to watch, and motivates me to start solving crossword puzzles.

On another note, I have implemented 2 new webtools into my life and I want to recommend them.

1. If you are a blog reader like me, Google Reader makes checking blogs so easy. As the video on the website explains, it's like an inbox for the internet. You choose the websites you want the reader to check and it lets you know when they've been updated. (To all you nerds out there, I know I should have started using this a long time ago but hey at least I have it now.)

2. I've also started making my to-do list online. I can access it anywhere and maybe I won't forget to do things. A good tool that Matt found is called Todoist.

Championship Game Predictions

What an amazing weekend of football last weekend. From the snow bowl in Lambeau on Saturday to the two upsets on Sunday, the divisional round of the playoffs more than exceeded my expectations. I still cannot believe the Colts lost to a Chargers team that could barely field a team the 2nd half. Maybe the Colts didn't want to have to play the Patriots until next year?

On to this week's conference championships...

Patriots vs. Chargers, 2pm Sunday
Analysis: The Chargers come in banged up, the Patriots are still unbeaten. The Chargers have an aggressive defense that could affect Tom Brady and the Patriot's passing game. But the Chargers offense won't be able to stay with the Patriots. I think the Chargers will keep it close in the first half, but the Patriots will run away with this game.
Prediction: Patriots 45, Chargers 24

Packers vs. Giants, 5:30pm Sunday
Analysis: The Giants have a lot of momentum going for them after winning two consecutive road games. The problem is that the Packers have a lot of confidence right now and will be playing on the Frozen Tundra at Lambeau Field. The Giants great pass rush will likely be neutralized by the Packers' quick passing game. I don't see Eli Manning having a great game in the cold weather, and that's the only way the Giants could pull off an upset. Favre will lead the Packers back to the Super Bowl.
Prediction: Packers 24, Giants 14

Honesty note: After predicting the winners, I was struggling to pick final score predictions. So I copied off of this and this. I love technology.

On a related note, I want to inform the public of two promises I've made to my wife related to the outcome of the rest of the football season:

1. If the Packers should go to the Super Bowl, I will celebrate by taking 1 month off of sports completely (after the Super Bowl of course).
2. If the Packers should win the Super Bowl, I will celebrate by taking 6 months off of sports completely (not including Opening Day of baseball).
   

The Greatest Football Weekend Of The Year

This weekend from 3:30 - 10pm on Saturday and 12pm - 6pm on Sunday, I will be partaking in the annual celebration of the Greatest Football Weekend Of The Year. Featuring the top 4 teams in the league (all who had byes last week) versus the 4 teams who won during last weekend's wild-card round, the weekend will be full of drama, suspense, and great football. Here is my analysis and prediction for each game:

Packers vs. Seahawks, 3:30pm CT on Saturday
Analysis: The Packers and Seahawks are two similar teams. They both have above average passing games, below average running games, and solid defenses. What tips the boat for the Packers is they're at home and have the better running game.
Prediction: Packers 24, Seahawks 13

Patriots vs. Jaguars, 7:00pm CT on Saturday
Analysis: A lot of NFL analysts believe the Jaguars have the make-up to upset the Patriots. There's just one big problem: the Jaguars passing defense. The Steelers showed that they could throw the ball at will against the Jaguars last week. Hmmmm.....I wonder what Tom Brady, Randy Moss, and company will be able to do. I don't think this game will be close.
Prediction: Patriots 45, Jaguars 10

Colts vs. Chargers, 12:00pm CT on Saturday
Analysis: These seems like an easy game to pick. The Colts are solid on both sides of the ball and the Chargers will likely be missing a big playmaker, Antonio Gates. However, the Chargers got to Manning for 6 INT when they played against the Colts earlier in the year. I think they'll be able to make it a game, but come up short. Too much Joseph Addai will do the Chargers in.
Prediction: Colts 27, Chargers 24

Cowboys vs. Giants, 3:30pm CT on Saturday
Analysis: First of all, Tony Romo hearts Jessica Simpson. Secondly, the Giants played well last week but they're the same team that were barely competitive with the Cowboys in 2 regular season games. I see the Cowboys winning (Tony Romo WILL have a good game), but the Giants keep it close with Eli Manning continuing to finally resemble his older brother.
Prediction: Cowboys 31, Giants 24

I know, I know, my picks aren't dangerous. I took the favorites in each match-up. However, if there was a game where I would pick an upset, it would be the Seahawks over my Packers. The Seahawks have a team loaded with postseason and Super Bowl experience while only a third of the Packers' team has even played in the postseason. But I can't pick against my Packers. Brett Favre for President!

Libraries Rule, Bookstores Drool

If you live in Champaign, IL or anyplace somewhat close (namely Urbana) I would highly recommend checking out the brand new Champaign Public Library. As I have perused the shelves of the old library I have watched the new library being built next door and daydreamed about spending time in it one day. Well, that day came. The library opened on January 6th and I was there by January 7th.

"Library Director Marsha Grove predicts that visitors will be amazed by the 122,600-square-foot space, which is three times the size of the building it replaces. 'There’s really no comparison with what we have now,' Grove said. 'We think the public is going to be thrilled and extremely proud when they get a chance to see their new library.'" I was proud of the new library for sure and I just want to spend hours soaking up the atmosphere.

Here are my top 5 favorite things about the new library....

1. Self Checkout everywhere! All you have to do is set your pile of books on this magic pad and the computer knows what you want to check out. What?! That's as cool as the Internet.

2. Seating galore!!! The old library was seriously lacking on a place to sit and read, not this new library. Matt even said he thought there was too much seating. I say impossible!

3. Many conference rooms and study rooms!!! Although I may never use one of these rooms, they looked awesome. I wanted to go sign up for a really hard class at the U of I so I could visit the library and study.

4. More space!!! It was so fun to just wander around the new space and take it all in. The library is huge.

5. It's still free!!! Why buy a new book when you can go to the library and check it out. Look into it people. If you don't have a library card and live in Champaign, I will go with you to the library to get one.

I Love Caucus

Today marks the official beginning of the 2008 Presidential elections for the USA, with the first primary occurring in Iowa for the Republican and Democratic candidates. As I found myself excited about today's events, I did a little reading about the candidates and the outlook for today's primary races. What I stumbled across was this article on how the Iowa Democratic caucus works. How did I not know about this yet (I feel so ignorant)? The caucus format is amazing. People grouped together for what candidate they would vote for! Then they look around and can change their mind! I love it!

The more I thought about it, the more I thought that all primary elections should be done this way and it should be a reality TV show. I mean, how amazing would it be to see the time between the 1st and 2nd votes where candidate support leaders run across the room to try and persuade voters to come to their side? I would totally watch that and I don't like reality TV. I'm starting the campaign now: All Primaries Become Like Iowa Caucuses in 2012!

P.S. Here is another interesting link (video) about the Iowa Democratic caucus.