Charlie’s Back

Charlie The Betta Fish

It’s been a while, I know. But I have some wonderful updates!

First off, I’ve moved to the other side of the mantle. It took me a while to get used to the view, but I like it a lot. The guy and the girl have been spending a lot of time on the couch recently, which is good because sometimes I get fed twice. The only odd thing is that I keep hearing chimp and gorilla sounds lately… coming from that box on my left… er, right now. It’s all very strange.

I’ve grown a lot too, I really, really hope I get a new living space when my birthday comes around. It’s getting a little stuff in here with the frogs (who still don’t have much to say) and my wonderful tree. Oh how I love to sleep in that tree. My fins are getting nice and colorful too, thanks to my diet of blood worms. It’s not every day, but it’s certainly more than I used to get them. They’re best crunchy, btw.

What’s Missing From FSU Sports Blogs?

I write for my main website ScalpEm.com on a regular basis. My goal over there has always been to either A) get more coverage of a sport that wasn’t covered (softball) or B) to push my own opinion, since a message board wasn’t enough. Hahaha. You can’t ignore my post if it’s the whole site, right? Anyway, maybe I’m just burned out on the whole thing, or maybe I’m in a rut, but I’m at loss for the direction of the blogs out there, including my own.

Anyway, the more I look at sports blogs in general (and more heavily many Seminoles blogs out there) I’m getting more and more disappointed. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think that ScalpEm.com is the end all be all of FSU blogs, but all too often the other places I look, I get more of the same. More reader mailbags, more game summations, more drive summaries, etc. etc. I can read all of that in a whole bunch of places to begin with, ESPN, Yahoo, Warchant.com, etc. I want something different from a blog.

Andrew Carter is getting the idea. His Orlando Sentinel blog is like the bonus footage from a DVD. It’s behind the scene, or extra stuff that doesn’t make it to the full on production (his articles in the Sentinel) but for a major fan it’s fun reading. He also uses it to get information out ahead of the traditional print, since that wait would make it old news in many cases.

FSUncensored Tomahawk Nation should stick with the “stats” guys. It looked promising as FSUncensored, and I’m sure they’re very enthusiastic over there about the new digs. Congrats on that guys. SB Nation is a good place to start. But, I get the feeling that they’re falling into the trap of doing what everyone else does. Q&A, mailbag, drive summaries, etc. That’s everywhere, even Andrew Carter is considering a mailbag.

Block-C is another example of a great blog in my opinion. It’s different. Why? They mix the funny and the serious, but they present Clemson football in a different way than most. It’s not meant to be hard hitting commentary all the time, but it is when the situation calls for it.

I guess my big question is, what is everyone’s ultimate goal here? If it’s to make money, then the Seminole bloggers should unite under a common site. If it’s for personal pleasure then status quo is good. But, I often wonder why there aren’t some fresh angles out there? All the chatter is starting to sound the same to me after 4+ years of doing this.

New Theme, Woo!

I’ve installed a new theme for EN. I hope you like it!

Here’s the homepage for MagicBlue!

Rasing The Driving Age?

Are you kidding me?

Evidently there’s an effort to raise the driving age from 16 to 17 or 18 in this country. The case is being made because driving accidents are leading cause of teen deaths. Here’s the problem though, the Insurance Institue for Highway Safety is providing the wrong solution to the wrong question.

This isn’t a question about age, it’s about maturity and practice. Age doesn’t guarantee maturity, so why should a 16 year old safe driver be penalized for his or her peers? Because it’s easier to lump everyone together? I’ve seen plenty of drivers over the age of 18 that should be off the road. The United States takes a view that a driver’s license is pretty much a right and not a privledge. That’s the ultimate question, should driving be a privilege?

If the IIHS is really worried about creating safer roads through better driving, then we should be talking about the following things:

• Mandatory Driver’s Education
• Better enforcement of aggressive driving and traffic laws
• Required written testing, not just once-and-you’re-done
• Required driving tests every few years
• Stricter DUI limitations
• Fuel efficent, less powerful cars
• Required Headsets or Speakphones for in car use of cell phones
• Black boxes for your car
• Increased punishment for traffic violations

Why Am I Excited? NBC’s Life Comes Back Soon

NBC Life

If you were one of the many that didn’t pay much attention to Life before the writer’s strike screwed everything up, now is your opportunity to check it out prior to Season 2 starting on September 29. Hulu.com has every Season 1 episode available, for free.

The Season 2 premiere will debut on Hulu early, btw, along with Chuck, 30 Rock, Knight Rider, Lipstick Jungle a full week before the TV airing!

At Least This Spammer Tried

From my inbox…

“Shocking news UPS BUYS U.S. Postal Service”

At least it’s better than some of the ones I’ve received… aka from “Penis.” At least put some effort into it.