Thursday's This 'N That

The Links
-Why would I post a video that is NSFW on a blog that is dedicated to getting you through your work day? Because this video is friggin' hilarious! Big thanks to Warren S. for sending that one in.

-If you find a video, or an article that you find worth sharing online, please feel free to e-mail it to 8hourstokill@gmail.com. We will post the link and be sure to give you full credit.

Sports
-Last night's Lakers/Rockets game showed exactly why I love watching the NBA Playoffs so much. 5 technical fouls, and 2 ejections were just part of the story last night at the Staples Center. Derek Fisher absolutely had a cheap shot on Luis Scola. There is very little doubt in my mind that he is going to be suspended for Game 3 on Friday night. The Inside the NBA crew breaks it down right here. Ron Artest continues to be one of the most entertaining nut jobs in the Association. Watch his post game comments on his ejection from last night's game, I promise it is worth the time.

Update: I was just told by a friend of mine that Ron Artest apparently applied for a job at Circuit City after his rookie year just so he could use the employee discount. This just keeps getting better and better.

-Rajon Rondo had a triple-double last night to help lead the Celtics past the Magic in Game 2 of their series. Obviously the only reason the Celtics were able to hold on in this game was because JJ Redick fouled out with 4:46 remaining. Had he remained in the game he would have started hitting 30 footers like he was back in college and brought Orlando right back into the game. Believe it.

Entertainment
-American Idol is down to their final 3. I'm not going to post who was kicked off, just in case there are readers who have last night's episode recorded at home. Oh yeah, that and I haven't watched this show in 6 years so I couldn't tell you any of the people's names.

-Last week I mentioned the reality TV show, Jon and Kate Plus 8. Who knew that mentioning it on the blog would lead to such a media blitz? If you've never seen the show, well first of all good work, but you might want to check it out just to see how crazy Kate is. I'm never going to condone cheating on your spouse, but it wouldn't surprise me if Jon was hanging out with some women who were actually sane.

-Do not, I repeat DO NOT mess with Jack Bauer.

News
-President Obama has provided a more in depth look at his 2010 budget. Obama is calling for cuts that will trim $17 billion from the U.S. budget. There are 121 federal programs that the President will cut funding for, including many in the defense department.

-Ahhh, nothing quite like the occasional porn star running for a senate bid in Louisiana. Stormy Daniels is apparently on a tour through the state to see if there is support for her to potentially run against current senator David Vitter. How many jokes will the late night talk shows get out of this?

Tuesday's Tidbits

The Links
-Today's link is sent in by... ME! I saw this picture over at the Uni Watch Blog and couldn't help but want to share it with the world. Check out Mark Sanchez' helmet. Sanchez was the Jets first round draft pick, and should compete for the starting QB job this season. Good times in the Big Apple.

-Lisa R. sent in this video which shows 5 very talented young girls singing the National Anthem at a Texas Tech/Texas men's basketball game. If this doesn't give you goosebumps you might want to check your pulse.

Sports
-Two upsets last night in the Association. The Orlando Magic went into Boston and defeated the Celtics 95-90. The Magic iced the game on free throws by J.J. "Mariano Rivera" Redick. Yeah I said it. J.J. had 12 points in his second consecutive start for Orlando.

-Behind 28 points and 10 rebounds from Yao Ming, Houston went to the Staples Center and beat the Lakers 100-92. Kobe Bryant scored 32 points for the Lakers, but of course he needed 31 shots to get that done. Houston dodged a bullet when Bryant and Yao knocked knees in the 4th quarter. After heading into the tunnel and loosening up again, Yao returned to help seal the deal for the Rockets. Game 2 is Wednesday night in L.A.

Entertainment
-It appears that rookie American Idol judge Kara DioGuardi will be back next season. Simon Cowell told Ellen DeGeneres at a taping of her talk show that the new Idol judge will be back for next season. Hooray.

-Is the season finale of Scrubs going to be the series finale? According to show creator Bill Lawrence, it may be. Lawrence will be departing after this season, as will co-star Zach Braff. The only reason I mention this is for you Jason A. I know you are a Scrubs fan, although I'm not sure why, but read the article and let us all know what you are feeling.

News
-According to Federal Reserve Chairman, Ben Bernanke, the US Economy should start to recover by the end of 2009. Bernanke says that the economy will bottom out sometime this later this year and begin to turn upward. However he warns that there will be some more bumps along the road, aka more job loss, and the further diminishing of your 401K, and Roth IRA. Not that I'm keeping track or anything.

I've been looking for a 2nd news story to link, I can't find anything that I think is interesting enough to post. So take that news world! Come up with something better for me and I'll link it!

Weekend Update... Only Not As Funny

First before we get to any highlights from the weekend, I wanted to address the passing of Utah Jazz owner Larry H. Miller. Obviously being a Jazz fan, and living in the state of Utah I have seen first hand what this man has meant not only to the Jazz, but to the entire state. Without him we wouldn't have the ESA, we wouldn't still have the Jazz, and who knows what else.

So much has already been written throughout the local papers and blogs that I figured I'd just link to a couple of my favorites:

Doug Robinson had a fantastic piece in the Deseret News on Sunday.

Ross Siler covered numerous things in regards to the death of the Jazz owner in his blog for the Salt Lake Tribune.

The Jazz will be wearing a memorial patch for Miller on their jerseys for the remainder of the season. Even the folks over at the Uni Watch Blog like the patch.

The official release sent out by the Miller group can be found here.

RIP Larry, you were a great man.

-LeBron did his thing Friday night in Milwaukee. James scored 55 points on only 29 shots against the Bucks. Maybe Kobe could take notes since he took 30 shots to score 39 points in overtime against the Hornets on Friday.

-Dwayne Wade had the crowd chanting MVP on Sunday. The only problem was, the game was in Orlando. Wade scored a career high 50 points in a loss to the Magic. Dwight Howard had 32 and 17 in the win. The Magic are going to be a force to be reckoned with come playoff time. A lot of people are talking about where a potential game 7 would be between the Celtics and the Cavs, don't count out JJ's boys come June.

-Very sad story out of the NFL combine in Indianapolis. Brian Mandeville was told by doctors to retire before his professional career even started. Apparently during a routine exam prior to working out doctors found an irregularity with his heart that could be life threatning if he continued to play football.

-Matt Kenseth turned left better than anyone else on Sunday to win the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series Race at Fontana.

-Slumdog Millionaire was the big winner at the 81st Academy Awards last night in LA. Sean Penn, Kate Winslet, and Heath Ledger were among the winners.

Around the Association

It's time to take a quick trip Around the Association where we will take a look at some of the highlights from last night in the NBA.

-Obvious first stop is in Orlando where Dwight Howard went off. Being the Duke homer that I am, I decided to check the box score last night and see how J.J. Redick did (20 minutes, 10 points, 3-5 FG, and hit a 3 to send the game into OT, just an FYI) and somehow totally missed Dwight's line. 45-19-8. I'll repeat, 45 points, 19 boards, and 8 blocks, and I didn't even notice it in the box score. Maybe had he gone to Duke this would not have happened.

-Kevin Durant continues to scare the bejeezus out of me. Last night he had 47 points in the loss to New Orleans. This guy is going to be a force to be reckoned with in the Northwest Division for years to come I'm afraid. Not to go unmentioned was David West dropping 37 and 13 to help the Hornets escape with a victory.

-Thanks for coming Terry Porter. Your former employer, the Phoenix Suns, decided to drop 140 on the Clippers in their first game without you at the helm. The Suns shot 76% in the first half, and 63% for the game. Do you think they might have been sending a statement to Terry Porter, that throwing away the 7 Seconds or Less theory might have been a bad idea for a team who was built around it? Just a thought.

-Tracy McGrady is out for the year with Microfracture surgery. I can't decide if this is a good thing or a bad thing for the Rockets. When their big 3 (McGrady, Yao, and Artest) are healthy they seem to be worse off as a team. But when one of them is hurt they seem to play better because it opens up the floor a little bit more for guys like Battier, and Scola who are much more efficent from the floor. I can't help but wonder if this will effect the trade rumors that are circulating between the Rockets and the Nets.

-Good night for Deron Williams. Andrei Kirilenko returned from injury for the Jazz, and it looks like Carlos Boozer is not far behind.

-Thank God.

-Do you think Sean Williams will be attending his 20 year reunion at Boston College? Yeah, me neither.