NY Losers and Winners ... Mainly Losers: The fact that the NY Giants managed to beat the previously unbeaten Vikings, even after making a few mistakes, is typical ... they have what it takes, but aren't consistent enough to show it week after week. Since the Eagles beat the NY Jets (17-14 at the end of the Third Quarter, 17-24 at the end of the game, not helped by Chad's first drive ending with a fumble in the Red Zone near the end of the First Half), the 3-4 Giants might not have enough to show their potential and get to the playoffs. Anyway, the Jets loss was a bummer.

The Yankees World Series loss in six was a bit surprising (I thought it would go seven, but the Yankees failed to show enough life even with their back against the wall) but deserved. Three straight losses, ending up with the other team celebrating at Yankee Stadium might just be what it takes for some serious changes to occur. It's time.

As to other subjects, Dana Priest's book The Mission: Waging War and Keeping Peace with America's Military argues that in the current world the US military is more and more the guiding force in its foreign policy, even if it is not the best group for the job. The book's theme however is not given an extended discussion per se, since Priest (Washington Post reporter whose bylines top critical Bush administration piece after critical Bush administration piece) uses military actions throughout the world (especially Kosovo) to tell the tale for her. And, this is how a book of over four hundred pages becomes a page turner, able to be enjoyed as a sort of adventure story as much as critical look at the military mission today. The book was written before the Iraq War, but as its approach was clear, and is all the more telling as time goes by.

Meanwhile, I caught "Intolerable Cruelty," which in my opinion explains the effect of this movie on the audience. The movie is advertised as a "romantic comedy," and though it is barely a romance, the comedy is mainly of the "oh, I see how this is supposed to be funny," and not even that much can be said at times. The Coen brothers are known for some quirky classics and some that are just quirky, but worth watching all the same. This is truly a failed effort, so much I was amazed at how bad it actually turned out to be. It began with a totally unfunny first scene and ending with a totally lame ending. Where was all the "sparring" of the two leads? A key trick is not to be believed and the response less so. I don't know why this film even got so many good reviews.

Afterwards, our party (lol) (we all disliked the film, each with different tastes) went out to eat. Annoying exercise. I might be mistaken, but I do not think I'm too fussy when it comes to restaurants. I do dislike bad service, including waiting to be seated and waited on (dining room around half empty). I would not like to wait around fifteen minutes or more to get my appetizer or finish my dessert before my coffee comes. And, this is partly bad luck, if I will get a steaming hot pasta dish (unlike my companions), serving my meal last is a bad idea. The food was pretty good, but the selection of Italian dishes was somewhat mediocre. Finally, though I cannot really do so, I will mixed in the fact that right after I left, I found out the Jets lost by one score.

Maybe, I am fussy?