tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post1139073339204454128..comments2023-11-03T06:02:02.128-07:00Comments on By Ken Levine: The Sunshine Boys of SummerBy Ken Levinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-88371992402346113092008-03-14T13:37:00.000-07:002008-03-14T13:37:00.000-07:00Just you wait, Levine. My Twins will beat your Dod...Just you wait, Levine. My Twins will beat your Dodgers this year. Wait . . . do they play them?<BR/><BR/>By the way, Minnesota has a gas station chain called "Pump n' Munch". Gross.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-82200189432321658922008-03-14T11:41:00.000-07:002008-03-14T11:41:00.000-07:00I enjoy the Mother's Day countdown, because Outbac...I enjoy the Mother's Day countdown, because Outback Steakhouse runs its seasonal radio commercial featuring a lovely little song in tribute to "Mum"--the term being more fitting to the Australian vibe of the eatery...as well as allowing the jingle to have as a rhyming lyric "Even when she whacks you on the bum".Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-70432302357435765082008-03-14T09:45:00.000-07:002008-03-14T09:45:00.000-07:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-37671138970996835292008-03-13T10:28:00.000-07:002008-03-13T10:28:00.000-07:00Hey Ken,I went to Dodger fantasy camp in January a...Hey Ken,<BR/><BR/>I went to Dodger fantasy camp in January and I must say, it was an incredible experience. Thanks so much for writing about Dodgertown, it deserves every honor it gets.<BR/><BR/>You can read about my week at camp <A HREF="http://arjewtino.com/2008/dodgertown-my-week-at-baseball-fantasy-camp/" REL="nofollow">here</A>.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-4588789773529194662008-03-13T10:26:00.000-07:002008-03-13T10:26:00.000-07:00Dear Ms. Manners,When one’s foreclosure rate is hi...Dear Ms. Manners,<BR/>When one’s foreclosure rate is highest in the nation, which enlarged foam finger would be appropriate to take to the ballpark? And are you certain all of that commotion is real estate activity or merely a gaggle of elderly snowbirds in their traditional impossibly colored blazers? Yet, be still my heart, the Frank Deford of online sports travelogues is <I>baaa-aack</I>! Farmclub fresh. (No lie, we once stayed at a Prince Edward Island B&B, where the mimeographed menu included: “potato salad <I>when in season</I>.”)<BR/><BR/>You think Vero Beach is a long haul now? Wait until the Orioles take over and they redirect you down Cal Ripken Hwy. It just keeps going, and going, and going. Take an astronaut diaper, no rest stops. Let’s hope they don’t go any further overboard with the thematic names. Chan Ho Park in Vero Beach sounds just too much like a 40’s stag film noir. But the starting lineup looks formidable. Just once I want to here you exclaim, “Looks like they’re going to take him out, that Kuroda has been tossing nothing but Nakamoras all night.”<BR/><BR/>That said, we are all terribly excited over your opportunity to make this a family outing. God knows, what we all need is more Jews in Florida. Rumor has it that there on the Gulf Coast they are changing the name of one of the cities from Sara- to <I>Dr. Brown’s Cream</I>-sota. Although the place has become somewhat of a true melting pot with the growing Juban population.<BR/><BR/>As Yeehaw Junction attests, yes, isn’t the South <I>grand</I>? Of the two-dozen signatures ahead of my wife’s in Nashville’s faux-Parthenon guest book, fully one-third were from different towns whose names included the suffix “Holler.”<BR/><BR/>With regard to your <I>Guide Michlevine</I>, averse as we are to any hostelry conceivably named for a Spanish body part, I have been known to frequent the occasional La Quinta in my day, and, even worse, in some of my nights. The attraction, which you neglected to mention, of course being the complimentary breakfast affording one the opportunity to “make your own waffles.” If one can marshal the dexterity to employ any device resembling a cross between Farberware and a Soloflex. With this back-to-basics mentality, I look forward to our South Dakota road trip, where Comfort Inn’s thematic hook is “grow your own wheat.”<BR/><BR/>Much as you will savor your Windsor Garden golden automotive memories, the next time you head on up to Boston to either visit your son or experience the Sox in their native habitat, I urge you to run, not walk, to overnight accommodations at the world-renowned Sheraton Newton Hotel. This Starwood facility boasts the unique architectural feature of spanning the entire breadth of the Massachusetts Turnpike. There is nothing like the experience of both seeing and feeling the highway traffic rumbling directly <I>under</I> your room, 24-hrs. a day. <BR/>Should you commit to this experience, I would caution limiting your room selection to either the south end, westward-facing rooms or the north end, eastward-directed. Only then can you be assured of the frightening shock of <I>oncoming</I> traffic coursing directly into you upon opening the curtains in the morning. Essentially the hands-on experience of a bird’s eye view from a low-flying blimp at the Daytona 500. I am not making this up. And you thought having sex in the <I>back seat</I> of a car could be dicey? Best of all, only a short 8-mile drive to Logan via the Ted Williams Tunnel, so named because it tends to freeze over in winter.<BR/><BR/>I must, however, beg to differ with one of your restaurant reviews. I can honestly state without fear of equivocation that we have <I>never</I> had a bad dining experience at any Wanda Sikes-recommended eatery. As far as “army chow with fun names,” what part of <I> on a shingle</I> don’t you understand? While one tends to throw a little caution to the wind and experiment while traveling -- like suddenly experiencing the urge to order tomato juice or stewed prunes off the breakfast menu -- I would encourage you to avoid the Tommy LaSorda Merlot with the farm animals on the label and ask the sommelier to proffer the drier Parcell’s white with its familiar big tuna signature, and a hint of both oak and mercury.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-28778047028485814172008-03-13T05:59:00.000-07:002008-03-13T05:59:00.000-07:00Thanks for the shout-out re: the foreclosure rate....Thanks for the shout-out re: the foreclosure rate. If you would have given us non-wheelchair-bound Floridians some advance notice, we could have given you better restaurant recommendations than Outhouse Steakhouse and Crapplebee's. Blech x 2.<BR/><BR/>Oh, and Central Florida is NOT Deliverance country. It is Redneck Country. To get that fine breed of inbreds, you need to be in the vicinity of the Okeefenokee Swamp.<BR/><BR/>Next year, you need to take a ride up to Bradenton to see McKechnie Field (Pirates): 80 years charming and recently lit. Or up to Winter Haven to Chain O Lakes Park to see The Tribe, or even to Lakeland to see Tigertown. All great old parks -- that's what we're doing every weekend this March.Alto2https://www.blogger.com/profile/04383871934188791511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-3469839499364478352008-03-13T05:57:00.000-07:002008-03-13T05:57:00.000-07:00Ken - I'm so delighted to discover your blog. You ...Ken - I'm so delighted to discover your blog. You really are an exceptional broadcaster -- I lived in Seattle when you were there. We just got back from 10 days traversing the Sunshine State from head to toe...Including the Deliverence territory between Miami and Naples -- gawd, I swear I heard banjos... Pity that the Dodgers are heading west - my mom, who lives 90 minutes north of Orlando, really liked being close enough to visit her beloved blues... Most of Florida seems like a giant exurban wasteland, or a forgotten, sun blasted town with too many closed hardware stores and way too many near-abandoned motels. I can last about a week before feeling my brain atrophy. Cheers.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-22262882231541283602008-03-13T05:07:00.000-07:002008-03-13T05:07:00.000-07:00Don't worry, daddy. There's a fifth third bank nex...Don't worry, daddy. There's a fifth third bank next to the hotel where you stay when you come to visit me. You can open up your account in May.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-65142134262829914562008-03-13T00:26:00.000-07:002008-03-13T00:26:00.000-07:00aw, ken, you came to florida and didn't come see m...aw, ken, you came to florida and didn't come see me? i'm presently about two hours or so north of orlando. <BR/><BR/>today i spent a very nice afternoon walking a trail at San Felasco State Preserve and then watching the sun set over Paynes Prairie.<BR/><BR/>at the Prairie (formerly a huge lake in years gone by), egrets were out looking for dinner on one side of the road, and on the other side of the road a very large alligator was thinking the egrets would make excellent appetizers.<BR/><BR/>been through YeeHaw Junction myself once or twice. that was enough. haven't the land developers discovered that area yet? aren't there any "Gates of YeeHaw Junction" upscale housing developments? no? give 'em time. all of florida is only folly for land speculators and developers - same as it ever was, thank you Mr. Flagler.<BR/><BR/>y'all come back, ya hear?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-75139290483826193272008-03-12T23:11:00.000-07:002008-03-12T23:11:00.000-07:00Sure, put lipstick on a pig and it's still a pig. ...Sure, put lipstick on a pig and it's still a pig. Stick 'em in a dress and it's a Republican scandal waiting to happen.Tim W.https://www.blogger.com/profile/16860726607106078491noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-9160535566752763602008-03-12T22:59:00.000-07:002008-03-12T22:59:00.000-07:00Best post in a while, Ken. If the Orioles had sen...Best post in a while, Ken. If the Orioles had sense they'd name the roads after people Baltimoreans people actually cared about. "Omar Little Drive", "Barksdale Ave", that sort of thing.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-19852437224208171402008-03-12T22:40:00.000-07:002008-03-12T22:40:00.000-07:00"If you turned in an Avis car needing gas it was $..."If you turned in an Avis car needing gas it was $7.20 a gallon."<BR/><BR/>Yeah, I found out that one the hard way. What was even worse was my GPS told me to get off at an exit that was closed which caused me to have to pay a toll. After I payed the toll, my GPS told me to go back through that same toll booth.<BR/><BR/>Its probably my fault for listening to the stupid gadget, but the extra $1.50 won't put a damper on my 4 days in paradise. Wish it could have been longer...Adamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01393990048541598287noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-78421594008541220782008-03-12T21:39:00.000-07:002008-03-12T21:39:00.000-07:00Ken said:I found it amusing that just after you pa...Ken said:<BR/><BR/><I>I found it amusing that just after you pass Disney World there’s a billboard advertising VASECTOMY.COM, “It’s easier than you think”.</I><BR/><BR/>This is surprising? How? Don't you have to visit "Lobotomy.com" before going to Disney World???TCinLAhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10019943818456775718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-88215793287773318962008-03-12T21:28:00.000-07:002008-03-12T21:28:00.000-07:00And here all along I've thought that all those e-m...And here all along I've thought that all those e-mails from the "Fifth Third Bank" that my online account (that I don't have) had been suspended were e-mails from someplace not nice in Bulgaria. Just goes to show...<BR/><BR/>As to Outback Steakhouses (particularly in Florida), the term "Outback Steackhouse" has long been known as the synonym for "Republican Feeding Trough."<BR/><BR/>What's so hard? You're in JebBushLasnd? Something there surprises you?TCinLAhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10019943818456775718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-58156680589936611582008-03-12T21:25:00.000-07:002008-03-12T21:25:00.000-07:00Ken you forget who owns the Orioles. If they take ...Ken you forget who owns the Orioles. If they take over from the Dodgers, it's going to be “Peter Angelos Road”, “Peter Angelos Blvd.” and “Peter Angelos Way.”<BR/><BR/>And I suppose training in Arizona will make it easier for Dodger fans to make the commute from L.A. to watch the games. But you'll have to replace the glut of furniture stores with the glut of RV trailer and accessory stores in next year's narrative.<BR/><BR/>(Also, I hope you didn't do anything during your Floirda visit to make Joe Girardi send someone after you with a spike to the groin.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com