Cleaning out the inbox-Non-Sports edition

Time for another inbox cleaning this time from the non-sports world...

We start with another note from Joe Plum,who offers this interesting taste test of the so-called "Frankenfish" the Snakehead,which is native to Asia and is suddenly taking the Potomac River by storm.
Kevin Ambrose of the Washington Post compares the taste of the Snakehead to some various popular fish such as Tilapia,Flounder Catfish and Cod.

Ambrose and his taste buds rated the Snakehead surprisingly high against the better known fish and perhaps it will encourage more fisherman to tackle the Snakehead via rod and reel an an attempt battle back against its takeover of the river.....

I recently discussed my dislike for former Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley in a recent podcast and wished for a devastatingly awful result for O'Malley's Presidential campaign (much like he devastated Maryland,but I digress).
Five Thirty Eight nails the title (click here for more) and explains more on why O'Malley and his campaign is On a first class ticket to NOWHERE...


This is an old article from the New York Times that discusses the Pennsylvania convenience store war between Western Pa's Sheetz and Eastern's Wawa.
We are surrounded by Sheetz here locally,but in Frederick,Wawa has begun to dip into Maryland.
For some reason,I think I have written about this before,but I couldn't find anything here,so if it has been mentioned already-I apologize.

Grantland writes about John Cusack,who I consider a favorite actor and his career work.
Cusack plays various roles,is not afraid to try new things and is willing to do some small independent work if he likes the role-All admirable qualities in an actor.
Cusack appears as the Beach Boys Brian Wilson in the upcoming film "Love and Mercy",which not only appears interesting,but hopefully features Wilson's "Love and Mercy" as the movie theme.
I've always considered the title song to be Wilson's best work as a solo artist.



We've written about our Star Trek fandom,Leonard Nimoy and Mr.Spock,but now there is an official asteroid named after the late actor.
Nimoy 4864 is an asteroid that orbits the Sun and is located between Mars and Jupiter.
I doubt you'll be seeing Nimoy 4864 anytime soon,but it's a cool tribute to the Science Fiction icon...

We wrap up with a Grantland article on abandoned amusement parks including the Six Flags one in Louisiana that was closed by Hurricane Katrina and was a host for the filming of Jurassic World.
The article talks about the desolation of such places and the two Disney parks that are closed off to the public.
Interesting if you like Disney or just nature taking things back for itself...

Back tomorrow with either the end of the Cavaliers season or the setup for Game Seven!

Another Cleaning of the Inbox

I know we just cleaned the inbox a few days ago,but these things can sometimes fill faster than others and since I have no news to write,I figured I would clean it out and keep the totals down.

Before we start I'd like to thank all of you that sent notes,messages,phone calls etc as my mom has suffered another stroke.
Looks like she is headed for a lengthy rehab stay as she attempts therapy to help her return to walking status.
Your thoughts have been appreciated.

Also wanted to thank those of you that have been giving the podcast a try.
I'm planning a podcast over the next few days that will cover the Indians,Pirates and maybe Giants prospects.
Normally this is a blog posting,but I think I'm going to make this a podcast and see how it works out.
Please feel free to pass us along to friends on the various social media platforms and otherwise as we would love to have the podcast become successful...

Two notable (to us) hirings at mid-major college basketball schools and it'll be interesting for us to follow as they head to their new jobs.

Cleveland Cavaliers legend Mark Price has held various jobs in the NBA-shooting consultant,color commentator (in Cleveland) and assistant coach (in Orlando and currently in Charlotte),but he has never been involved in college coaching-until now as Price accepted the head coaching position at Charlotte (formerly UNC-Charlotte).
Price is known as one of the nicest guys in the game and super knowledgeable,so the chops are there to be an excellent coach.
I'm also sure he will be liked by his players,but the top question is this-in this day and age-Can Price not be walked on by his players?
A mid-major job where the players are more likely to stay three or four years seems to be a perfect starting point for Price to test those waters.
I would not surprised in the least to see Price quickly turn Charlotte's fortunes around in Conference USA.....

Eric Musselman is notable for being a solid basketball mind that has some baggage after his NBA head coaching stints in Golden State and Utah,but has spent the last few years learning the college game as an assistant to Herb Sendek at Arizona State and last season to Johnny Jones at LSU.
The 50 year old son of the late Bill Musselman will get his chance to run a college program as he was hired at Nevada (Reno) as their new head coach.
The Mountain West is a better conference than is often given credit for so Musselman has work to do in rebuilding a team that went 9-22 last season,but I bet Musselman's commitment to defense might be able to make the Wolfpack contenders faster than most expect.
Credit to Ryan for sending me word of the Musselman hire.

We recently mentioned the death of former American League batting champion Alex Johnson and Hardball Times has a very interesting article on the career of Johnson.
I didn't know (other than obvious stats) that Johnson's career stalled so badly as an Indian that befuddled teammates watched him bunt time after time as if "he had lost confidence in his ability to swing away".
Good stuff on a player that at one time was among the best in the game.

I usually like making stops on youtube or various sites that show abandoned sites that once were popular and now are just left to fall down.
Some of these are amusement parks,stadiums,buildings etc,but this one from a photojournalist from the UK captures the former NASCAR stronghold at North Wilkesboro Speedway.
The last race at North Wilkesboro as a top level NASCAR track was in the first year of my few year run as a NASCAR fan,so I have a memory of the track,but the removal for the smaller,yet unique tracks in favor of the cookie cutter speedways in larger cities was the beginning of the end of my interest in the sport and (In my opinion) the beginning of the end of the upward fan interest in NASCAR.
Between the loss of the unique tracks and the retirements of the drivers that made the sport different and their replacements being right off the bland conveyor belt,it does not surprise me in the slightest that NASCAR's interest and TV ratings have dropped so far...

Glen Campbell's been in the news a lot lately for his Alzheimer's and the documentary on his final tour,but this note is about another documentary-this one on the legendary studio musicians-The Wrecking Crew.
Rolling Stone offers this article on Campbell's early touring struggles before he hit it big and when he opened for the Doors in the Pacific Northwest.
I'm a fan of both,but I'd be willing to wager that pairing wasn't filled with a ton of fans that crossed over liking both.....

We wrap up with the Asian "Fortune Teller" Spider,which apparently is making its home in the Southeastern region of the US.
The non-poisonous spider most likely hitched a ride on some sort of shipments and the weather in the area likely is a match for the humidity loving arachnid.....