JimH5

I was at today's game and was really taken aback by the amount of fan profanity that just seemed to be part of the atmosphere. There were some Chisox fans who were part of it, but it was largely Brewers fans entering the stadium and walking around the concourses, in the men's room, etc. Lots of f-bombs dropped, and one guy made no qualms about using the n-word loudly to his buddy in a large mass of people. I was paying particular attention as I was contemplating bringing my young daughter to a future game. But now I'm not so sure. Pretty disheartening. I don't expect an opera crowd, but with several kids around for a day game, it would be nice if people would hold back a little.

3.2 3.3 3.5 III.II III.III III.V I believe I've cracked the code. 3 decimals. Add up to 10. Written two ways. Or else I suppose you could use Times New Roman and Helvetica. Smarmy? Yes.

I highly recommend Bill's weekly podcast with his friend Jack-O as they discuss all things Red Sox & Yankees. It's really good, as both guys are well spoken, funny, and loyal to their teams. He does 3-5 shows per week, but the Jack-O ones are the best. As for Papi. . .I'm not convinced that he's done just yet. Either that, or there's something more going on.

My neighbor in NJ used Timbertech products on his deck a few years ago, and it looked terrific. We have friends who have a cottage in upstate NY with a very old (first generation?) Trex deck that has not gotten swept over the years. It's pretty ugly--though still structurally fine. That deck is probably 20 years old, and leaves just pile up on it for months at a time. We have a wood deck (bought the house with it), and when it comes time to replace it, I'm about 99 percent sure I'm going with an engineered product.

I regularly listen to the Mark Belling podcast, along with MLB.com's Fantasy 411, and Baseball Today from ESPN.com. I'm semi regular with the Dan Patrick show podcast (a couple times per week). I'll listen to Bill Simmons as well, as long as the subject is sports. And then finally, I will listen to stuff from WFAN.com Mike Francesa, Benigno & Roberts, and Steve Somers. Jon Heyman talking baseball with Francesa is the best.

Great interview Todd. . .And Brooks, you seem like a terrific guy. Kudos to you on that. To me, this feels like baseball might have been back in the 1950s and earlier, with players living in the neighborhoods, playing stickball with the kids and working as bartenders and car dealers in the offseason. Cool stuff.

Just two weeks to go before our Wisconsin vacation! After the past five months in Singapore and the daily 90+ degrees and high humidity, it will be a great respite. And this marks the halfway point to meeting our three-year commitment. . .also all good. Singapore's fine, but I can't imagine missing it when we're finally gone for good.

While those stories are unfortunate, I would much rather have them deny a good signature than pass a bad one. None of the authenticators are perfect. Unless you personally see someone signing an item, there will always be a chance the signature is bogus. You just have to go with an authenticator who has the best reputation, and I would say that JSA and PSA/DNA are the two leaders right now. Incidentally, Ron Keurajian who used to write for SCD (maybe he still does) is putting out a book later this year with signature examples of all the Hall of Famers and others.

I sit in the seat I'm assigned, unless I'm next to an especially unpleasant person, in which case I move to a lesser seat. Somewhat related. . .I never buy from scalpers, as I would rather that the Brewers get my money.

For vintage stuff, I would feel completely fine in buying from Kevin Keating, Phil Marks, Richard Simon & Jim Stinson. To buy from others, I would trust a JSA or PSA cert, or ones from Mike Guttierez. I buy from all the above guys, along with Steve Verkman at Clean Sweep Auctions, and Mears.

I gave my advice based on the experiences I had as an undisciplined student, and on the observations I have had in the 24 years since my graduation. I'm also now living in Asia, which is cranking out thousands and thousands of graduates who are ready to take the reigns in a global economy. They're not on the hose end of a beer bong wondering how to get an advanced copy of the final exam. College should be the best 4 years of a student's life--up until the point in which college is over. After that comes the next 50 years, which should in fact be the best 50 years of your life. And the course of those 50 years can largely be developed by the way that a student spends the 4 years in school. I'm not saying to never have fun--but understand why you're there, and also understand that your degree comes with no guarantees. And especially in this economy, when jobs are scarce and great people remain unemployed or underemployed, for someone to recommend that a student not give it their all academically is bad advice.

I don't know why anyone would recommend that a student not focus on academics. To that I say, work your tail off academically. Don't accept being anything short of the best student every single day. Pour yourself into the material and become smarter and more disciplined than the next guy. At graduation, you'll be the one more likely to be able to chart your own course and be the pursuer--not just another resume that blends in with the pile. Even if you slacked off in high school, this is a chance to change that and become an achiever. The best thing for you to do is study, study, study. You're forging the new you. Get serious with your life and don't spend those years slopping around. There's too much at stake.

He was Ned's boy, and Ned was a thoroughly unlikeable thin-skinned, humorless know-it-all.

Don't hold back, Blatzlight, tell us what you REALLY think.

That seems like a terrific idea and a great use of an empty parking lot.

Deadspin has an interesting piece on the Manny story and how they were trying to break it for months. It's a good look inside media. Be careful as the language is pretty strong, and not for all eyes. As such, I won't post the link, but you can find it pretty easily.

I would say you play until the umpire says to stop. It's not church-league softball.

Police were searching for a green 1992 Honda Civic with a license plate number of 547-HGH, in which some suspects may have fled. Apparently these Ninjas haven't learned to conceal the identity of their getaway ride. That might prove to be a problem for the Black Knights.

I thought this was a little strange. On MLB.com's homepage, there is a link to their webstore, where fans can buy T-shirts that go a little beyond the standard fare. For instance this one for Cubs fans that trashes the Brewers: http://mlb.imageg.net/graphics/product_images/pMLB2-5892457dt.jpg I get that individuals have made a nice little industry out of selling the "Yankees S*CK" stuff and the like, but now for MLB itself to join the party seems a little weird.

That's one of the coolest things I've seen in a very long time. Congrats to you!

It's a compelling story, but really quite sad. He's left quite a trail of wreckage behind, people drawn to his celebrity. And now it really seems to be spinning out of control. For anyone to take his investment advice at this point would just be ignorant.

Congrats to you and your wife. . . There's really no going back now, so enjoy your new life, Dad.

Rest in Peace, Merle. Wonderful broadcaster. Nice family. Fans of those early Brewers teams were lucky to have that Harmon/Uecker broadcast team. Then to watch Hank Stoddard or Earl Gillespie give the scores on the nightly news. . . Those were great times to be a kid.

No to the cards and dice. . . But I do play APBA computer baseball in a league, as well as computer Strat-O-Matic solo play. Good stuff. The APBA league has 4 guys and been going since 1986, and I started doing Strat replays this past winter. I started with the 1900 season, and am picking a team to play out the whole season. I took the '00 Pirates to the pennant, and fell just short with the '01 Dodgers. It just gives you a different perspective on the merits of the era and its players. Nerdy? Perhaps, though I suspect this board is generally sympathetic to nerds and our obsessions.

Congrats to you. Owning your own home is a great feeling. A bit of old man advice for you. . . DO NOT spend all that you can on your mortgage. Home ownership is only fun if you've actually got some money left at the end of the month. You may be tempted to borrow all that the lender will offer you--but don't do it You'll need money left over for repairs, renovation, and your life. Buying carpeting and paint is fun and cheap. Buying a new roof or furnace is neither fun nor cheap. So make sure that the house is sound, even if it is ugly. School districts matter. Even if you don't have kids, the value of the house is often affected by the perceived quality of its school district. Now on to your questions: How do you go about finding a lender? Do you just go from bank to bank checking what the best rates will be? Bankrate.com will give you a pretty good indication of what the rates are. You can apply for a loan online, or you can go to a local bank or lender at least knowing what their competitors are offering. Sometimes a bank will sweeten the deal with other financial products (preferred checking, safe deposit box) to entice you. Once pre-approved, how long until you have to close? In the past, we've had 45-day windows, 60-day windows. . .it's usually up to each bank. Generally, you "lock in" certain rates, and if you can't close within the pre-determined window, then you get a new rate, either higher or lower. Can I find out how much a lender will give us without being officially pre-approved? Yes, a lender should tell you that. You may have to submit an application fee that may be waived if you take the loan with the lender. How do you go about finding a real estate agent? Pick someone you like. Whoever you pick will be your "buyer's agent", who then splits the sales commission with the seller's agent. What is the minimum amount of time that it will take once we get pre-approved to the time we close? The last house we bought I think it took around 30 days. There can be lots of steps in the whole process. Hiring a home inspector, scheduling the inspection. Having the house inspected by a representative of the lender, doing a title search, doing any remediation of stuff that your home inspector finds, coordinating a moveout with the current owner (buying a vacant house is usually quicker). For a first-timer, that's really where the buyer's agent earns his/her money. . .walking you through all of that. The process is largely regulated by laws that establish timetables on how long stuff can take. I'm sure there are others on this board who are in the lending trade, or in real estate, and they may agree or disagree with me. I'm just giving you info based on my experiences buying and selling my own homes over the past 20 years. . . Good Luck!