NFL 2013: Top 200, #200-151

Yes, it is back for the 4th time. The Annual Top 200 Players in the NFL list. A few housekeeping notes before I start:

1.) Huge hat tip and credit given to Football Outsiders. As far as I know, they were doing advanced proprietary (as in, not calculatable by an, no pun intended, outsider) for football before anyone else. In recent years, sites like Pro Football Focus are becoming increasingly popular, but I'm a Football Outsiders loyalist. Their stats are great, their numbers are great to debate about, and their annual Football Outsiders Almanac is brilliant. I couldn't even think about doing this list without it. I use and cite a lot of their statistics in the list. Here's a quick rundown of what they all mean (but really, just use their site).

• DVOA: A percentage based stat that basically says how many percent better or worse than the average is a player/team/situation. It can be broken down to home/road, by down, by quarter, and even by situation. It's their main stat.
• DYAR: Essentially the counting-version of DVOA, but only for position players. Mostly useful to judge players who attain a whole lot of snaps or datapoints to calculate DVOA.
• Stop: A play by a defensive player (or team) that stops the offense from acheiving a successful play.
• Stop rate: The percentage of plays by a particular defender that are stops.
• Average yards allowed: a defensive stat showing the average yards per play that defender allows on runs or passes that involve him.
• Success Rate: The percentage of passing plays a certain defender is targeted that did not result in a successful play for the offense (so, a success for the defense).

2.) This list isn't forward looking, so there is no inherent advantage given for players who are younger or who could get substantially better.

3.) The list is not based solely upon 2012 performance. What a player does in 2011, 2010 and even before matters. Of course, a player great in 2012 but bad in 2011 would be ranked ahead of the reverse. What this basically means is that just because a guy like Greg Toler was quite good in 2012 after being middling his whole doesn't mean he will make the list over a guy like Cortland Finnegan, who was worse than Toler in 2012.

That's about it, let's get to the list.

200.) Robert McClain (CB-ATL)

Every year there are a few great nickelbacks in the NFL (oddly, there are nary a one great nickelback in the music industry). Last years ones drop off (hello, Alterraun Verner) and new ones crop up. Well, here's a new one. Robert McClain, in what was a packed secondary in Atlanta, rose up and performed brilliantly in the slot. He had the 3rd highest success rate (64%) and the top yards per pass allowed (4.4 ypa). Those are ridiculous stats. There is no chance, in what is a far emptier secondary, he does those numbers again, but it was fun while it lasted.


199.) Janoris Jenkins (CB-STL)

Jenkins started the season slowly, but starting with his breakout game against Arizona where he returned two picks for scores, Jenkins ended the season playing really well. His overall FO numbers are quite good (33rd in ypa allowed), especially when looking solely at the second half of the season. Corners are rarely good in their 1st season, so Jenkins above average play is something to really build off of.


198.) Brandon Spikes (ILB-NE)

The Patriots are slowly trying to build their defense to emulate what it was back in their title winning days. Those defenses were always great against the run, and Spikes' value lies there. He is quite awful in pass defense (although his stats are merely below average), Spikes has become one of the best run stopping linebackers in the NFL. Spikes lack of value in pass defense will limit his eventual ceiling, but the Patriots have other ways to attempt to fix that. 


197.) Chris Johnson (RB-TEN)

Chris Johnson once again was stopped behind the line too much, had too many plays of negative three or four yards, but as always, some of that is terrible blocking. Some of it is bad playcalling. And some of it is Johnson. But mixed in a season that had a fair amount of terrible games (Week 1, he had four yards on 11 carries), he had a great middle. Johnson still has value in the passing game, and if Jake Locker will ever work, he needs the Chris Johnson that roamed from 2010. He's not as far off from that as many think.


196.) Mike Adams (S-DEN)

Rahim Moore is the more famous Broncos safety, for reasons I never want to remember, and while he was generally good throughout the season, Mike Adams was the real glue on the backend of the Broncos secondary. Adams was used a lot like the Giants used Antrel Rolle, to do a little bit of everything. He ranked in the Top 30 for secondary players in allowing yards on runs and passes in his direction. He is a sure tackler in a secondary that doesn't really shine in that area. If only he was the guy retreating on that cold night in January.


195.) Brandon Myers (TE-NYG)

Brandon Myers used his excellent season in Oakland where Carson Palmer force-fed him passes due to the revolving door at receiver into joining the Giants white-guy TE pipeline. Eli Manning has always been good to his TEs, and Myers should do great in that offense where, unlike Oakland, there are receivers good enough to constantly drag coverage away from Myers. His blocking is even good. The Giants always seemed to unearth TEs in the draft, but now they've poached a nice one.


194.) Stephen Bowen (DE-WAS)

 With Brian Orakpo and Adam Carriker out for much of the year, the Redskins needed other pieces to step up, and Stephen Bowen responded with an excellent year. He had two monsters suck blockers away from him, and was put in position to make plays and that he did. He was in the Top 3 of both success rate and ypa allowed on runs. Of course, this is ridiculously better than last year, so Bowen's rise in 2013 probably was somewhat of a fluke.


193.) Scott Wells (C-STL)

Scott Wells didn't play much in 2012, but when he did, Wells was great. Sam Bradford's numbers in the games that Wells played were far better than when he was out, and while that isn't total causation, it makes this ranking sound better. Wells had been one of the few men to block for Aaron Rodgers not to suffer injury after injury, so it is reasonable to suggest he'll never be as injured as he was in 2012 again, and if that is the case, Bradford would be one step closer to that breakthrough he seemed to always be on the cusp of.


192.) Denarrio Alexander (WR-SD)
 
During Philip Rivers' time in San Diego, there's been a free flow of high-DVOA receivers. Alexander is the latest in them. He doesn't have the multi-year track record that Vincent Jackson had, but he doesn't have the injury concerns that Malcolm Floyd had (Floyd was equally DVOA crazy last year). Alexander had a ridiculous end to the season, and his catch rate on downfield throws was fantastic. Considering that Rivers himself should be better in 2013, Alexander should as well.


191.) Jonathan Goodwin (C-SF)

Jonathan Goodwin didn't have a blown block that led to a sack (courtesy of Football Outsiders Game charting). There's not many centers that can say that, and the ones that can usually play for QBs that aren't as sackable as Alex Smith and Colin Kaepernick. Neither one is exactly Aaron Rodgers in teh 'hold-onto-the-ball' category, but Goodwin's feat remains great.


190.) Tyson Clabo (T-MIA)

Tyson Clabo is the latest departure from what was once a rock-solid stable offensive line in Atlanta. He enters Miami off his worst season of the past four or five, but he still doesn't allow too many sacks (especially when you factor in how many times the Falcons threw it last year). He avoids penalties pretty well to boot. His best days are almost obviously behind him, but he's been one of the more consistent RTs in the NFL over the past half decade.


189.) Anthony Castonzo (T-IND)

Castonzo blew a lot of blocks according to Football Outsiders. Of course, he was left on an island all the time by a coordinator who loved to leave no one in to block (and when he did, it was usually to help RT Winston Justice). Castonzo has a tough job blocking the blind side of a neo-Roethlisberger in Luck, and much like Ben's parade of LTs, his numbers don't look good. His isolated performance, though, does.


188.) Carlos Dunlap (DE-CIN)

Carlos Dunlap was used primarily as a 3rd-down free rusher on the Bengals dominant D-Line, and despite those limitations, he performed well enough that Cincinnati essentially chose to keep him instead of Michael Johnson. Oddly, it is his performance against the run that grades out better than against the pass, but if you prorate his limited sacks over the amount normally faced by a three-down player, his pass rushing numbers start to look a little more diruptive. All I have to say is in choosing a U of Florida pass rusher in 2010, the Bengals chose right and the Pats chose very wrong.


187.) Steven Jackson (RB-ATL)

Despite getting older, and despite being the focus of every opponents' gameplan to stop the Rams, Steven Jackson has continued to play solidly. Now he joins a team where he will be the 4th player of concern for opposing defenses, but also one where the line hasn't allowed for a good run game since about 2009. Jackson should be better, the Falcons run game should be better, but I don't think 1+1=3 here in Atlanta.


186.) Greg Jennings (WR-MIN)

Greg Jennings should be exhibit A of how fast a receiver can fall. Jennings was great in 2011, he was marginal in 2012. This is a ranking based partly on past performance from before the 2012 season, and partly on the idea that Jennings was never fully healthy in 2012. I don't see how going from Aaron Rodgers to Christian Ponder can't possibly help his numbers either. Good chance he's off the list in 2014.


185.) Antonio Gates (TE-SD)

Gates once again battled injuries, which has been a recurring theme since his incredilbe, injury-shortened 2010 season. He's still managed to catch over 60% of his passes and 7 TDs as Philip Rivers' main red zone target. Not a lot to say here other than enjoy the last few years of a future Hall of Famer, as we all should with any future Hall of Famer in his final years.


184.) Bernard Pollard (S-TEN)

If Bernard Pollard only suited up against the Patriots, he would be in the Top-50. Instead, he does play the other 30 teams in the NFL, and his performance is never as impactful against those. He's still a quality player that has turned from a running trivia answer ('Who tore Tom Brady's ACL?') into a great run defender at safety (#13 in yards per play allowed against the run) and an increasingly decent cover man.


183.) Will Beatty (T-NYG)

Eli Manning makes his blindside protector look better. How else do you explain David Diehl being a two-time Super Bowl winning Left Tackle. Still, Will Beatty was really good in pass protection last year. He was finally healthy, and going forward, he'll need to stay so as Chris Snee and David Baas' careers end slowly.


182.) Maurice Jones-Drew (RB-JAX)

The negatives are he had a strange, mysterious injury that probably still hasn't been fully explained (nor has the injury fully healed enough for MoJo to actually want to play for the Jags again), but when you have a DVOA around zero playing for a putrid team and an even worse offense, that shows that you still have something to give. MoJo Drew has definitely passed his peak, and his size has always made him a lingering injury waiting to happen, but for one of the most consistent running backs, it will take more than one strange year to knock him off completely.


181.) Vontae Davis (CB-IND)

Vontae Davis' numbers were not good last year. There are two reasons why he makes this list. First, this list isn't purely based off of 2012 performance, and secondly he got better when he returned from injury (as FO notes, his success rate rose from 22%, which is awful, to 53%, which is solid). Vontae Davis needs to be the guy he was at the end in Miami and was late last season going forward to stabilize that defense.


180.) Keenan Lewis (CB-NO)

Keenan Lewis was really good last year against both the run and pass. There is a long history of corners in Pittsburgh playing well there and leaving, and doing little in their next location. Some of those have even returned to the Three Rivers in relative disgrace, like Bryant McFadden and William Gay. All I'm saying is now that Keenan Lewis deservedly earned himself a contract, I wouldn't be surprised if he does nothing in Rob Ryan's overhyped defense and returns to Heinz Field in 2015 with his tail between his legs.


179.) Dannell Ellerbe (ILB-MIA)

Dannell Ellerbe, playing in the position that pumps up your status more than anything else (playing ILB next to Ray Lewis), was somehow underrated in his 2012 performance. Football Outsiders ranks him in the Top-20 in both success rate and ypa allowed on defense, and he also was a valuable blitz weapon. He's changing to a 4-3, but that transition shouldn't be what holds him back. What does is the same thing that held Jamie Sharper, Edgerton Hartwell and Bart Scott back: playing next to Ray Lewis and in front of Ed Reed is a lot easier than not doing those things.


178.) Chris Canty (DT-BAL)

He's an aging, sure tackling, penetrating, slightly injury prone tackle who is leaving one haven of defensive (line) play in New York to another in Baltimore. This was one of my favorite underrated moves of the offseason. Canty was lost in New York with the media attention given to the more sack-happy (and quotable) lineman in New York, but he won't be in Baltimore.


177.) Wesley Woodyard (ILB-DEN)

So yes, Woodyard wasn't great against the run, but with Von Miller (who's a little bit higher up this list) doing his thing on the other side, it didn't much matter. Woodyard's true value was being awesome against the pass. He was a Top-10 linebacker against the pass in both of Football Outsiders' main two stats. Woodyard is given a lot of responsibility in that defense, especially on 3rd Down when Miller becomes a de-facto lineman, and in 2012, he was great at it.


176.) Nick Hardwick (C-SD)

Nick Hardwick has been playing for a long time. So long, he can remember when San Diego was routinely being mentioned as 'the most talented team in the NFL' because, and this is conjecture, they had a proclivity for beating teams quarterbacked by Peyton Manning. Well, Nick Hardwick wasn't really mentioned as one of those people making the Chargers so damn talented, but he's still here and he's still playing really well. It's hard to imagine, but his ability to stuff tackles is the only thing stopping Philip Rivers from being maimed by now.


175.) Chris Snee (G-NYG)

Once upon a time, the Giants fielded the NFL's best o-line. Those were different times, when Aaron Rodgers was an unknown and Tiki Barber was the Barber twin far more likely to make the Hall of Fame. Chris Snee is the only remnant from those halcyon times left, and he continues to play well. He was penalized just four times, and allowed just two sacks, against some really good interior lineman. Chris Snee won't be remembered as fondly as Shaun O'Hara, but Tom Coughlin's son-in-law is damn good, historically too.


174.) Terrance Knighton (DT-DEN)

The Broncos were really good against the run, getting some unexpected performances out of the likes of Kevin Vickerson and the ancient Justin Bannan. Well, Bannan retired, and the Broncos replaced him with one of the best run-stuffers in the NFL. He's lost trying to get to the QB, but he ranked #5 in stop rate and #16 in ypr allowed. All he needs is to do that again, and the Broncos would have upgraded what was already a very good run defense.


173.) Jurrell Casey (DT-TEN)

The Titans are still built in a quasi-Jeff Fisher way, and Casey's disruptive play at Tackle is something Fisher would have done wonders with. Munchak is doing whatever is necessary, though. Casey's numbers aren't fantastic on FO, but his age and his activity (making a play on 9% of the snaps he was on the field for - really high for a defensive tackle) make him more valuable than the numbers would say.



172.) Cam Newton (QB-CAR)

Cam Newton didn't have a sophomore slump. He just didn't have a sophomore bump. Too many times we expect players to get better every year when they are young, and these expectations are even higher on QBs. Almost no great QB got appreciably better in his second season outside of Peyton Manning. Cam Newton's slightly better play is a good sign. He held his value even though offensive levels dropped leaguewide. He was never going to match those inflated rookie numbers, but protecting the ball even better without any sort of run game is still an improvement.


171.) Jabaal Sheard (DE-CLE)

The Mike Holmgren era in Cleveland came and went before you could really analyze and judge what happened, and considering Mike Lombardi has never been a good GM, his almost sure impending failure will probably let Holmgren off the hook for whatever bad decisions he made. All this is to say that Jabaal Sheard was a darn good decision. Sheard was a Top-25 lineman against the run in FO's stats, while also getting 7 sacks and 16 more hurries. He even tipped four balls, which is good in a world where you remember that JJ Watt is not a human being.


170.) Cortland Finnegan (CB-STL)

Cortland Finnegan isn't where he was back in his late-Titans prime (him and everyone on the 2008 Titans defense were fantastic), but considering how often he gets stuck on an island against the opponents #1, his numbers aren't all that bad. Fisher gave most of his safety support to Jenkins and Bradley Fletcher. Finnegan had to play against the top receivers and did a decent job at it. Plus, the 14 passed defended make up for some of the average rate stats.


169.) Randall Cobb (WR-GB)

Randall Cobb was awesome by DVOA and DYAR standards. He also had a great catch rate. So why is he so low? Well, Brandon Stokley was all of these things as well, and isn't on the Top-200. Randall Cobb is used really well by Mike McCarthy, but slot receivers like Cobbster have put up great advanced stats for years. It's easier to do what Randall Cobb does when you have Greg Jennings (up till now), Jordy Nelson and James Jones, with Aaron Rodgers throwing the ball. Still, a 77% catch rate on 104 targets is insane.


168.) Jason Peters (T-PHI)

Jason Peters, when healthy, is a Top-5 Left Tackle. Too bad for him he doesn't always stay healthy. Peters has had the unfair task of being Mike Vick's tackle, but luckily for him, he missed out on the more unfair task of protecting the blind side of Nick Foles. Well, he gets that challenge this year. Yes, Peters is one of a few guys on this list who missed serious time in 2012 (in Peters case, the whole season), but again, past performance matters here as well. He's been good in the past and given his age, he should be good again. When he's on the field, at least.


167.) Corey Liuget (DT-SD)

Corey Liuget quietly had a really good second season in the NFL. He was solid against the run, but his real value laid in his pass rush. 7 sacks and 8 tipped balls (again, really good when we don't consider what a Kaiju JJ Watt was), and a ridiculous activity rate for a 3-4 DE in a Watt-less world. The Chargers are building a nice little front-seven on defense, and Liuget is the key.


166.) Brandon Moore (G-NYJ)

Yes, he's currently a free agen


165.) Connor Barwin (OLB-PHI)

Connor Barwin, when you look at the numbers, took a step backwards in 2012 after a nice breakout in 2011. Of course, this was true of every member of the Texans defense not named JJ Watt. However, with Barwin it helps to look deeper. Football Outsiders' noted him in the Top-10 in the league with 14 QB hits, and his 16.5 hurries aren't too shabby either. He was getting pressure, just not finishing the job. That stuff fluctuates, especially with young players as then it is more bad luck and less 'losing a step'.


164.) Dwayne Allen (TE-IND)

When Dwayne Allen was selected in the 3rd round of the 2012 draft, most Colts fans I knew hated the pick. It wasn't so much the choice of Allen, but the choice of another TE after taking Luck's binky Coby Fleener a round earlier. Well, Fleener had an injury plagued rookie season, and Dwayne Allen happened to turn in a damn good rookie campaign at TE. His DVOA was really nice for a high usage TE, as was hist 68% catch rate (which is about 10% higher than Luck's completion to rate to anyone not named Dwayne Allen). Best was his two drops. Dwayne Allen had a really good rookie season. Now it comes to see whether Fleener can reach his level, not vice versa.


163.) Cary Williams (CB-CLE)

Cary Williams had a really nice 2011 season, but struggled for much of 2012 after being forced into the CB1 role with Lardarius Webb's ACL injury. Still, he performed admirably out-of-position and was really nice in their playoff run. His 17 passes defended rank 3rd in the NFL for secondary players, and his tacklins will be a great relief to those Eagles fans that struggled through Asante & Asomugha non-contact combination.


162.) Tony Romo (QB-DAL)

Tony Romo had some nice fantasy numbers, and had more than a few great 4th quarter moments, and kept that team alive in the playoff race. Still, it is hard to get past the lowest y/a of his career along with his highest interception total in years (a league-high 19). Tony Romo is a very good QB. There aren't many established QBs that are ahead of him (there are three rookies that I did rank ahead of him), and the Cowboys probably couldn't get any better QB any time soon, but with his age creeping up there, it might be time to start savoring the memories and not expecting a Super Bowl out of him.


161.) Captain Munnerlyn (CB-CAR)

Captain Munnerlyn is Exhibit A of the variable state of slot-corners in the NFL. Football Outsiders had him ranked #11, #3, #79 and #2 in ypa allowed over the past four years. With the strange retirement of Chris Gamble, Munnerlyn might have to take his slot-corner abilities outside, which should be something to watch in 2013. Not many corners can make that transition, and the Panthers need him to be one of the few who do, considering their other options are people no one has heard of.


160.) Stephen Tulloch (MLB-DET)

Tulloch is the rare pure Cover-2 MLB. He is totally middling against the run, but is great against the pass (Top-20 in both of FO's pass defense stats). He always stays on the field, and is rarely the one giving up big plays. Guys that can cover the field are incredibly important in a division that contains the likes of Kyle Rudolph, Randall Cobb and Jermichael Finley, and despite not being overly fast, Tulloch does a great job on all of them.


159.) Brandon Browner (CB-SEA)

Brandon Browner makes up the less touted half of the Sehawks corner duo, but in a few ways he had a better season in 2012 Sherman. First, he gave up fewer yards per pass and had a higher success rate than Sherman. He also had a higher target rate, making those stats more impressive. However, he was awful against the run; not a huge priority for a corner, but still. Also, he wasn't as impactful in terms of defending passes and interceptions. Sure, those are variable from year-to-year, but having 13 fewer passes defended is substantial.


158.) Marques Colston (WR-NO)

Colston had another stellar season as the WR1 in the Saints offense, with a nice 64% catch rate, and 10 TDs (the second highest total of his career). His advanced stats are below that of his more slot-ish receiving mate in Lance Moore, but Colston's incredible consistency going up against opposing top corners lands him on this list. It's amazing that he's already turning 30, but when you remember that he's been in New Orleans as long as Drew Brees has, it is less so.


157.) Andre Smith (T-CIN)

Andre Smith will probably forever be known for his man-boobs flopping during his private workout before the 2009 draft. That will be the immediate picture in the head of any NFL fan of Andre Smith, no matter how consistently good he is. No one will mistake Andre Smith for Joe Thomas, or even Sebastian Vollmer (considering Smith plays RT), but he's one of the NFL's best at RT. He rarely gives up sacks and is a monster in the run game. That was his forte coming out of Alabama, and unlike so many of Nick Saban's Alabama players, his NFL play has come close to matching his Crimson Tide play.


156.) Glover Quin (S-DET)

Glover Quin was the only member of the Houston Texans secondary, apart from Kareem Jackson who got a lot better, to hold his value in 2012 from 2011. Quin was a Top-30 safety in both run defense categories on Football Outsiders, and a Top-20 performer against the pass. Not many reach both levels. Detroit is really depending on Quin being that good once again for them, as they've needed a solid secondary player for about 15 years now. Quin has that ability.


155.) Joe Haden (CB-CLE)

Haden's numbers weren't great, and his four game PED suspension is an issue, but the promise he showed as a rookie is still there. Corners take time to develop, and he has to go against some good receivers in that division. Ray Horton's defense asks a lot of corners, but I do think Haden is up for the task.


154.) Kareem Jackson (CB-HOU)

Kareem Jackson was all sorts of terrible in 2011. There's a reason why corners shouldn't be judged on their rookie season, even if that rookie season is as bad as Jackson's was. Kareem Jackson wasn't run-of-the-mill bad, but 'you get an average of 11.5 yards when you throw at him' bad. Fast forward 16-games and you only get 7.1 yards, which might sound bad but it is good for 29th in the NFL. Couple that with the league's 12th best success rate and 19 passes defended and you get one of the biggest surprises of the 2012 season.


153.) Heath Miller (TE-PIT)

Heath Miller, who's been in the league since 2005, just had his best receiving season. He had a career high in yards and TDs. It's always seemed odd to me that Heath Miller didn't have more TDs than he had (two each in 2010 and 2011), but he was Ben's main red zone target in 2012. His blocking has notably gotten worse over time, but he's as good a receiving target at 30 as he was at 25, which is phenomenal.


152.) Greg Hardy (DE-CAR)

Greg Hardy probably isn't as famous or well-perceived as Charles Johnson, but he had a great 2012 season with 11 sacks, 19 hurries and above average play against the run. Hardy is just 25, and pass rushers age well, so he could be on the cusp of a long and productive career in Carolina. The Pannthers pass rush is quietly really good, and with Hardy playing this way and the additions in the offseason, it should stay that way.


151.) Eric Berry (S-KC)

Eric Berry is arguably the best safety against the run by Football Outsiders numbers, ranking #2 in stop percentage and #1 in yards allowed for all secondary players. However, the more important job of a safety is to be good against the pass, and while Berry isn't particularly bad against the pass, I'm sure the Chiefs would rather have his skill set reversed. Still, Berry is young and supposedly fully healthy. Great things should still await one of the more talented safeties in the NFL.

Thoughts on Arrested Development Season 4

It took seven years for there to finally be a 4th season of Arrested Development. It took about two weeks for me to finish the 15 episodes of that 4th season. It took me four more weeks to finally gather myself and write this. Arrested Development, during its FOX run, was one of the best TV comedies ever (I had it ranked #1 out of the comedies I have seen). It combined every type of modern comedy, did all aspects well and had an incredible cast that perfectly meshed ridiculous antics and surreal dialogue. The first three seasons of Arrested Development were basically perfect.

The fourth season is not. Luckily, I think most people held seasons 1-3 in such high regard and could see how tough it would be to recapture that magic seven years later that the fact that Season 4 is quite decidedly the worst 'season' the show ever did wasn't even all that disappointing. Season 4 doesn't change my opinion of Seasons 1-3. Honestly, Season 4 was like a new show. Other than the characters and the tone, there isn't much similar between the two. Some of this was by design, some of it was by necessity. It combined into something I wish could have been better, but was still more or less acceptable

Creator Mitch Hurwitz didn't have access to each of the characters at the same time, so there wasn't a single episode where all nine main characters (10 with Oscar) appeared. That is a problem. One of the greatest strengths of Arrested Development was its incredible deep cast. They had nine main actors playing 9/10 characters, each of which would more or less appear in each episode, each of which had good chemistry with each other, each with a distinctive voice and style. They took ensemble comedy to a whole new level. That was partially lost. The actors appeared basically in relation to how much success they've had outside the show, so we got to spend a ton of time with George, Lucille, Oscar, Lindsay and Tobias, and way too few time with George Michael, Maebe and Buster. For whatever reason, Jason Bateman is the exception, but he was turned into more of a 'main character' in this season than in the shows original run.

In the end, the way the characters were meshed really wasn't truly in Mitch Hurwitz's control. It would have been great if the nine main actors dropped whatever they were doing and did a season in the same way they did the first three. But that isn't how the industry works. Instead, Hurwitz was left with half rosters for most of the episodes, which made the show never really feel like classic Arrested Development. Still, the competing work schedules wasn't all of what was wrong with the first season, nor did it stop there from being some excellent moments. That variation was purely about plot and the show itself.

I'll start with my plot related problems first. The main issue for me was the plot was confusing in a boring way. In fairness, the overarching plot of the original show (the SEC arrests George Sr. and freezes the Bluth family because George has committed fraud and possibly treason) was always complicated. It helped that the plot wasn't what drove Arrested Development, the week to week banter and interaction did. Well, when the amount and combinations of interactions are limited, then plot becomes more important, and with that more glaring.

The long winding, connected plot was a slow build that worked in a storytelling sense (all the main storylines colliding towards the party on Cinco), but with the lengthy episodes (I'll get to this in a bit) and the relative isolation of the characters, it was damn hard to keep track. It was hard to really see how George's long con with the stimulus money (the 'stimmy' was seemingly the only connecting link between all the plots) connected to Lindsay's infatution with Herbert Love. Michael's role as an executive either pleading for or withholding movie rights was funny but strange. The show just never found its ground plot wise, and it wasn't funny enough to make the plot issues disappear, which is what the original run used to do.

The biggest issue, though, was the length of the episodes. One of my favorite part of owning the Arrested Development DVDs were the lengthy, hilarious deleted and extended scenes of each one. Mitch Hurwitz often commented on how much extra stuff they had for each of the 21-minute FOX episodes. Well, here Hurwitz got no time restraint (although if he tried a 40+ minute one Netflix may have said no), leading to a ton of episodes in the 30-34 minute range and one 37-minute monster. If they were of the caliber of the old AD, I would have loved the longer times, but they weren't.

It made it worse that some of the season's worst episodes were the lengthiest. They just dragged at times. And with the idea of each episodes starring one character, it made the character seem way too large. Tobias just isn't a main character the way Michael is, and having him be the central figure of a longer episode just hurt.

There are a few characters I wasn't a fan of either. The largest was Marky Bark, Lindsay's love interest, which was never as funny as the far more brief time I spent with Barky back in Season 1. Also Tobias' love interest, whatever that dull woman's name was, was about as bad. In fact, almost everything with those two characters worked far less than the original run. I wish Hurwitz just kept them perpetually unhappy in that marraige instead of finding love in hopeless places.

I've wrote a lot about what I didn't really like in the show, but that doesn't mean I'm upset or regretful it was made. I still think it was better than most comedies on TV, and still had enough of the old Arrested Development tone that it worked. The characters were more isolated, and more focused in their individual episodes, but they were still the same. The show didn't really change any character from the original run. They all had their same foibles, same weaknesses and same comedic strengths.

Certain episodes were excellent, like the episode where Michael first meets Ron Howard, or most of the shows final seven or so episodes. It came on strong when the plotlines started to get more intertwined. I liked the kids even more than before, especially Maebe's who's smaller role fit really well. I liked how many guesstars they could get, and while they didn't bring back many of my favorites (not bringing back Maggie Lizer was painful), the new ones like Herbert Love, Rebel Ally (great joke in her name) and Ron Howard himself worked well.

In the end, it simply isn't interesting to write a litany of all the things I found positive in the new season of Arrested Development. I grade it a solid B, which while lower than any of the previous seasons (which went 'A', 'A', 'A-' for me), is still damn good. It was just so much fun to see those characters interacting again. Arrested Development, much like one of my favorite recent sitcoms, the now-cancelled Happy Endings, used its actors better than anyone else has ever used those same actors. All the actors seemed born for the roles on Arrested, and they still were.

It is hard to say what my judgement of Arrested Development on totality will be from now on. If I consider Arrested Development to be a four-season show when comparing it on my list of favorite comedy programs of all time, it definitely drops below Seinfeld, and maybe even Chappelle Show, but how can I really consider something that came out seven years after the most recent episode to be the same show. If Everybody Loves Raymond does another season, or The Wire, say, will anyone place those with the rest of those show's run when comparing it longterm. Maybe? But I don't. Arrested Development Season 4 to me was its own entity. It had no plot connection to the previous seasons. You don't need to have watched Seasons 1-3 to really understand what the show in Season 4 is all about. It is its standalone entity, and that is how I will remember it. A fine standalone entity that couldn't capture the same magic of its namesake, but good enough to want another season. If it does happen (and word is it could) I just hope they have at least one episode where every character appears.

Andy Murray and the Chase

Andy Murray is a Hall of Fame tennis player. This was true before Sunday's win at Wimbledon, and it would have been true even had he lost the Wimbledon final to a more Hall of Fame tennis player in Novak Djokovic. Andy Murray could have easily had a Top-20 level career by winning a few more hardcourt majors, retiring in 2019 or so with about 4 or 5 slams on hardcourt and a slew of other finals. However, that iteration of Andy Murray's career, however great it may have been, would have been incomplete. It would have felt like a career well played, but with one giant hole in it. A hole larger than Sampras' o-fer at the French or Federer's same o-fer until 2009. No, this would have been a hole the size of Great Britain, as Andy Murray's career would end without a Wimbledon title.

I don't think any tennis player has faced the pressure that Andy Murray has faced at Wimbledon. This is the sports biggest tournament, and a home-grown talent hadn't won it since the 30's. Tim Henman was the first player, I believe, to seriously challenge that title drought, but Henman was never really talented enough. He wasn't as good as Sampras or Agassi, wasn't as good as Patrick Rafter, and wasn't as good as Goran Ivanesivec in 2001. Murray was different. He was as good. He was as talented as the other top guys (or at least as talented as Federer in his past-his-prime career and Rafa when he's hurt enough to lose to Steve Darcis). He first challenged the Wimbledon curse with a spirited run to the Quarterfinals in 2008, until he was unceremoniously blasted by Rafael Nadal in straight sets. At this point, Murray was a wire-thin player and he entered that match coming off of a five set grind against Richard Gasquet. After the loss to Nadal, Murray admitted to being tired, and after that match he started getting fit. How fit? He was able to make Novak Djokovic look decidedly the slower player on Sunday.

Murray and Djokovic should be tied together in history like Federer and Nadal. Of course, the Nadal-Djokovic rivalry has been played more than either of those two and is about as great, but Murray and Djokovic are truly scarily similar. They were born one week apart. They were really close coming up the ranks. They both have similar games that have always featured a great backhand and a once-flighty forehand. They both are insanely fit. And they both weren't as good as Federer and Nadal. Novak broke through first, making five straight semifinals from the 2007 French Open through the 2008 French Open, during which time he won the 2008 Australian Open. He was brash, but also a bit strange. One week he would claim that his win over Federer spelled the end of the King, the next, he was retiring from Grand Slam matches. But he was insanely talented with what looked like a technically perfect game. He was far ahead of Murray. Then, a strange thing happened at that 2008 Wimbledon. The same one where Murray made his first major quarterfinal, Djokovic was shockingly beaten by Marat Safin in the 2nd round.

What followed was a two year period where, despite similar performances, Murray was suddenly touted as the greater of the two players. Djokovic's act got tiring (mocking the NYC crowd at the 2008 US Open, retiring because of Heat Stress from the 2009 Australian Open). Murray was constantly being touted as the guy coming into slams hot and ready to pounce, while Novak was being constantly criticized as the guy coming into slams cold. Some of this is true, as through the 2009 and 2010 seasons, Murray did pass Novak in the rankings for some period (getting to as high as #2, partly due to Nadal missing Wimbledon in 2009), and Novak spent most of 2010 with more double faults than aces. Still, in the 2009 and 2010 seasons, their slam performances were similar. Both lost one final (Novak to Nadal at the '10 US Open, Murray to Federer at the '10 Oz Open). They both made two additional semifinals. Murray did lose early more often, losing before the quarters three times to Novak's one, but Murray was still seen as the better player.

Coming into the 2011 season Rafael Nadal had won the previous three majors, and Novak Djokovic was on the brink of passing Federer in the rankings for #2, and both Djokovic and Murray played great tennis during the 2011 Australian Open, and they met each other in the final. Because of their constant place at #3-4 over the previous years, they had rarely ever met, and Murray was the slight prematch favorite. Of course, Djokovic crushed him in straight sets. Djokovic finally won his second straight slam springing him forward on one of the dominant seasons in tennis history. Murray lost his third grand slam final, and had the dubious distinction of being the first player to lose each of his first three finals in straight sets. The loss to Djokovic did propel Murray in a way as well, it made him motivated.

It was that 2011 Australian Open Final that first made me (as well as many others) ask the question, "Is Murray just not good enough to win a major competing against Nadal, Federer and Djokovic?" Djokovic's brilliant 2011 season just made the gap between Murray and the then 'Big Three' seem that much greater. For everything Murray could do, those other guys could do better. Djokovic was basically Andy Murray, but better in every single way. Better forehand, better backhand, better return, more fit, faster, more flexible, more durable. Andy Murray had a good 2011 season, making the semis at the next three slams, but was beaten by Nadal each time.

2012 was really the best year Murray's had. He kept working to get as good as those guys, and for one year he was. He barely lost a thrilling five-set semifinal to Novak at the 2012 Australian Open (which was totally overshadowed by the more memorable six hour final Novak and Rafa played two days later). He made his first Wimbledon final, where he lost to Roger Federer. After the loss, Murray cried, and unlike when Federer bawled like a child after losing the 2009 Australian Open final to Nadal, everyone understood what Murray was feeling. He had all the pressure in the World. The two guys that had dominated him in recent years (Novak and Rafa) were gone. All left was Federer, a man he had a better than .500 record against, and he even won the 1st set, but it wasn't meant to be.

Murray did end up winning the Olympics, beating Federer in the final (and Novak in the semis) on the same court where he lost the Wimbledon final, and then won the US Open, his first major win after four losses in finals. Even after pretty quietly losing the 2013 Australian Open final to Novak, Murray was seen as a guy who was obviously talented enough to win a major. He was close to topping Federer for #2 (a position that he holds dominantly right now - despite not playing the French Open). Djokovic was still the sports' best player, but outside of his inhuman 2011 season, he has yet to win a slam outside of Australia. En route to his 2013 Australian Open runner-up finish, he beat Roger Federer for the first time at a major, crossing that off his checklist as well. The only question left was the biggest one, the cause of his whole career to begin with: can he win Wimbledon?

Despite not having a traditional grass court game (who does, anymore?), Murray always performed well at Wimbledon, and his clinical performance in the 2013 Wimbledon final was how it should be with him. His whole career had been seen as a disappointment heading into 2012, but in reality, he was following a normal curve. He was getting better each year. Murray wasn't Djokovic, breaking into the scene by making five straight semis at 20. No, it took Murray a while to get going. In 2008 he was embarrassed by Nadal  6-3, 6-2, 6-4. Well, in 2009, he made it one round further at Wimbledon, losing to Andy Roddick in the semifinals. Murray was the favorite, and that probably was his most disappointing loss at Wimbledon, but Roddick played out of his mind. In 2010, it was another step up. Although he was beaten again by Nadal in the Semifinals in straight sets, the sets were closer, Nadal was in the midst of his most dominant run of his career, and Murray this time wasn't the favorite. In 2011, it was another step up, this time he took a set off of Nadal in the semifinal. In 2012, he finally won a semifinal (beating Tsonga, not Nadal - still the only real hurdle for Murray to cross) but fell to Federer in the final. In 2013, it was the final step, the final grade, winning it all.

After Djokovic's tiring win in that brilliant 5-setter to Juan Martin del Potro (how great is it to see him hitting those forehands again), and Murray's easy path to the final (strange vintange Verdasco performance aside), it was easy to see Murray winning. It wasn't easy to see him winning in three sets, but he did. It was clinical. It was efficient. It was great tennis. It may be the best Murray can play, but it was good enough to say the opposite of what I said about Murray after the 2011 Australian Open final loss to Novak. He was too good. He was everywhere. His strokes worked perfectly. He served incredibly against one of the best returners ever. Andy Murray made Novak Djokovic look slow.

Finally, let's get to the English aspect of this. To me, I think Murray felt relief more than anything. Murray cried after losing the final last year. He was near tears after winning the US Open last year. Sunday's celebration was more visceral, but less emotional. There was no tears, no watery eyes as his national anthem plays (I'm looking at you, Rafa, from four weeks ago), only pure joy and exuberance. Andy Murray did what many thought was never going to happen and didn't luck into it. He played the best tennis had to offer him, and he clinically broke Djokovic down. It was wonderful to see. It used to be grating to have the tennis world pump Murray up in the 2008-2010 years when he really didn't deserve it. But lost in all the talk of Federer's slide to #5 in the world, to Novak's dominance the last three years, to Rafa's incredible start to 2013 in his comeback (stunning stat, despite not playing in the Australian Open and losing in the 1st round of Wimbledon, Nadal still has earned more points in 2013 than anyone else), was Murray's ascent to the sports most consistent player. He's made the final of the last four slams he's played (and five of the last six), winning two of them. Throw in a Olympic title, and he's the best player in the sport right now. He also ended a drought that lasted since before WWII. As a person who loves a great story, the latter one is more interesting, the local hero finally conquering Wimbledon, but as a tennis fan, it is the former. There is still time for Murray to end up with the better career than Novak that so many were predicting in 2009, and with his slow climb in greatness, it just may happen because there isn't too much higher he can get.

RTW Trip: The A-B-C's, Part II

The Conclusion of my A-B-C's for my Round-the-World Trip.

N is for New Meats

My second day in Cape Town I had crocodile ribs. That opened the pandora's box of strange, new meats to try out. Crocodile became Ostrich, which became Warthog, which became another dose of Crocodile, which became Gembok (an antelope like thing), and all of this was just South Africa. Africa as a continent has some really unique fauna, and I tasted most of them (I don't think they eat Elephant or Hippo or Giraffe), but my tour of meats didn't end there. The most bizarre meat was still to come, and that happened my last day in Cambodia, where I went to one place that is notable for a crawling little appetizer. When I first saw turantula on the menu, I was excited. When they brought those 8-legged things to me, I was disappointed at how small they were. When I tasted them I was excited at how good they were. I finished off this tour in Australia with Kangaroo, another tender, red meat that I wish we could have in the US.


O is for the Oxford Art Factory

This is the only entry about a night spot, mainly because there was a witness to what happened that night anyway, in my cousin who was in Sydney at the time. We left an already decent bar near the Sydney waterfront that had lively music, a livelier crowd and view of the harbor on a beautiful night. I was a little skeptical of this place on Oxford Street being as good, and although I'm not one to leave a good thing too easily, since he was paying, I left without too much of a fight. The entrance to the Oxford Art Gallery gave off a really 'club' vibe, and a large area of the place was a nightclub, but that was closed off to ticketed guests only because some DJ was playing there. Instead, we had to hang at the bar, which had a dance floor, a giant projection screen playing music videos (that weren't the same songs as the ones playing out loud), a long bar and a ton of young people. It was an interesting night out with my cousin, and I learned a lot, like how seriously they take trying to keep out people without a ticket from the many side entrances to the club, to the fact that in Australia, they might not know what an 'Irish Car Bomb' is, and instead charge you for Guinness and Jameson separately. It was a long night, but a damn fun one.


P is for Phang Nga Bay

I was sick for each of my first two days in Phuket, but our last day there, I braved my still pulsating stomach illness to join my Mom on a boat tour of Phang Nga Bay. We ended up going for a nicer (in terms of price) tour than originally planned because instead of two tours we were just doing one, and while we did miss out on the other tour, I can't say that this tour was anything but incredible. The view of the small rock islands jutting out of the crystal-clear blue water, the winding caves that we were taken in by kayak, made to duck to avoid the glistening limestone formations on the ceilings, the umpteen photo opportunities. Everything combined for a memorable day out in the Andaman Bay. Somehow, despite all that was excellent with this tour, my most lasting memory is having to pass over the free, ice-cold coke bottles that the rest of the people on the tour boat were gulping down as an antidote against the oppressive heat because of my stomach.


Q is for Quality Family Time (yeah, I know, boring)

Obviously, the main attraction, in terms of getting to spend time with family, is to visit my long lost family in Australia. I had met them all before eons ago, and met my cousin Lisa in the US two years previously, but this would be meeting them on their turf; spending time at their home. I would also get to spend some time with the part of my family that is trapped in India (I kid about the 'trapped' thing). What I didn't expect was to meet another cousin who lives in the US in Sydney, or meet cousins of my parents in Sydney, Singapore, Mumbai and other places. The height of this history lesson came at a party in Bangalore at my Mom's cousin's house for his daughter's communion, where my Uncle Anthony basically pointed out each person and told me how they were connected to me. Because of how Mangalore worked, all of my 2nd cousins on that side of the family (My Mom's paternal family) are basically my Mom's age, so that added to the confusion. The last family members I met on my trip were my Aunt and cousin who used to live in Boston, one last reminder of the family I left behind in the US and the long litany of them I had met on my voyage.


R is for Rendang and Roti (Canai)

I wanted to go to Malaysia mainly for the food. I would say the cuisine encompassed about 75% of my reasoning to go to Malaysia. My favorite part of the cuisine experience in Malaysia was probably the seafood in the night markets in Penang, the stalls that sold fish, squid, clams, scallops adn shrimp by the ounce with any sauce you want, delivered to your table as you sip a Tiger Beer listening to the music. That's life. But this is about Rending and Roti Canai, my two mainstay Malaysian dishes I eat in the US. Roti Canai was a little hard to find since it is a breakfast food there, but I was able to get it at a Muslim eatery across our hotel in KL that stayed open all night. Rendang was more plentiful, and although none of the Rendangs we sampled were what we have in the US, we tried a few of them and all were quite good. Some were more spicy, some were more saucy, some were just totally different, but the various versions of Rendang was almost the connecting line for our time in Malaysia. I went to Malaysia for food, and if I go back, it will be for food. I'm sure there are more authentic restaurants serving Rendang that we didn't try out last time.


S is for Sushi!!

From one food to another. I didn't only go to Japan to eat sushi, but it just so happened that I eat a metric ton of sushi.I had expected the sushi in Japan to be good and to also be expensive, but only half of that statement turned out to be true. Of course, there is very expensive sushi, and I would classify one place I went to as moderately expensive, but the scores of 'Kaiten Sushi' places, with their conveyor belt, generally gave me good bang for my buck. The best of those places served all their different types of sushi, which encompassed most of the ones anyone would generally want, for 126 yen (about $1.25). Another had most for 115 yen, and then a few in the 165, 199, 250, and 450 yen categories. I ate at these places too many times that by the end I was able to request what I wanted to the sushi chef (by yelling at him, which is what everyone does) in Japanese. Although the real revelation in Japanese cuisine was the Japanese Korean BBQ, sushi was what really sustained me. Sushi became a part of me.


T is for Table Mountain

Table Mountain has the distinction of being one of the Top 10 tourist attractions worldwide according to Tripadvisor. I knew this going in, so my expectations were damn high for Table Mountain. My Uncle also told me it was the best tourist attraction in Cape Town, one of the best tourist spots in the world, so my expectations were a little higher. Somehow, Table Mountain exceeded them. The view on the cable car up to Table Mountain was incredible,, but that was merely an appetizer for what was on top. Table Mountain is situated directly behind Cape Town, creating a perfect view of the entire city. There is also the view of the Western Cape down South of Cape Town. The best part may be the size of the 'Table' top, making Table Mountain a perfect place to get some exercise walking up and down the rocks. I haven't seen enough of the world to say if it really is one of the 10 best tourist attractions, but I can't see how anyone could possibly be disappointed with spending some time atop of Table Mountain.


U is for the United MileagePlus Program

When I first started researching the logistics of how this trip would work, I found that each of the three major alliances gave round-the-world tickets. Of course, those came with about a $6,000 price, so those were quickly forgotten about. Then, I found that United offered a round-the-world mileage ticket for 180,000 miles, but the amount of stipulations on that were about three pages of text, and nearly every itinerary I wanted was not allowed for one reason or another. I finally settled on two seperated mileage tickets, and then the fun began. United and its Star Alliance partners can basically connect any two places in the world, but the fun is maximizing the stopovers, layovers, airlines and airports. I was able to get everything I wanted. Somehow, despite Johannesburg creating a nearly perfect triangle with New York and Ho Chi Minh, it was acceptable to use it as a stopover, making Cape Town fall into my lap. The amount of iterations and mock-itineraries I made on United.com's MileagePlus page; the amount of combinations and permutations of airlines and airports from Melbourne to Tokyo to Bangalore. I finally settled on getting a flight on All Nippon, because why not try All Nippon. United MileagePlus gave me 12 and 16 hour layovers in Singapore. It gave me everything I wanted. You rarely get a chance to say this to an American airline (and you rarely want to), but thank you United Airlines, for making your Mileage program a joy to use.


V is for the Victoria & Albert Waterfront

The Victoria and Albert (V&A) Waterfront in Cape Town was basically my city center during my stay on the Western Cape. It helped that it was a beautiful 15-20 minute walk away from my hostel. The Waterfront encapsulated everything I loved about Cape Town in one smaller than you would think area. There was great food with interesting meats, especially at City Grill, a place that gave me the royal treatment when I decided to go a second straight day. There was a mix of interesting people with awesome South African accents. There was great beer (Milk & Honey - which was so good it deserved its own letter). There was an incredible view of Table Mountain off in the distance, and there was the nervousness of leaving the place at night in fear of being attacked. If I had to do Cape Town again, I might stay closer to Long Street, but staying near the V&A Waterfront gave me an incredible start for my trip, energizing everything that had to come.


W is for Wine Tastings  

I'm not really a wine fan. I choose to drink beer, or scotch, or mostly anything over wine. But going to two of the more exotic wine producing countries, it was hard to avoid the lure of taking a lazy trip into Wine Country. My first experience was a tour to the Stellenbosch wine region of Cape Town. Given the nature of the trip (me and about 10 other mostly 40+ year old folks), that day was more about the odd entertainment of conversing with older married folk who joked in German, Danish and (for my sake) English. The other trip was near Melbourne, it a more picturesque area, with rolling hills of wineries, glowing under a purely sunny day. I still remember the names of the Melbourne wineries. There was De Botoli, there was Helen Hills, where we had lunch and I had one of the meatiest lamb legs I've ever had, and then Chandon, which was as nice as you would think, given the brand. Even after all the wine tasting, I'm still not the largest wine fan, but at least I enjoyed them enough that I can see me doing an adequate amount of wine tasting with my future wife at some point. My interest in wine will grow greater with age, much like the wine itself, but these trips to the wine regions of South Africa and Melbourne were a nice catalyst to get this process going.


X is for Xacuti

This trip to Goa was a slight disappointment, mainly because of where we chose to stay. Instead of staying at the more active North Goa, where we stayed in January 2011, we stayed in South Goa, which is quieter, but supposedly more beautiful. That may or may not be true, but if I go to Goa again, I'm definitely staying in North Goa. Anyway, back to South Goa. Because getting shack food was a little tougher and demanded driving some distance, I had more normal Goan food this time. Xacuti, a Goan curry used to cook beef, lamb, prawn and everything else in, represents those authentic Goan flavors. It took a while to get into the groove in Goa, but the food helped. Shack food was and still is great, but having Goan curries, headlined with Xacuti, on the beach with a beer, all for around 5 dollars, is still about as good as it gets in India.


Y is for Youth Hostels

You may be asking where did I stay when I was alone. You probably aren't, but you could be. And the answer, for every place where I was alone and didn't have family living there, was Youth Hostels, courtesy of Hostels.com or HostelWorld.com, or Booking.com. I had certain rules for any place I stayed. Firstmost, was to be in my own room. I lived through a 10-bed dorm-style room in Madrid in Spring 2010, and I was never going to do repeat that harrowing experience. My second requirement was air conditioning, because staying in Cambodia or Vietnam without it would have meant certain death. The final one was Wi-Fi, which most hostels give for free. All of these qualifications were met in a lot of places that were a lot nicer than what many would expect from the term 'Youth Hostel'. My hostel in Siem Reap (The Lotus Lodge) was actually a beautiful hotel, with giant rooms, a beautifully decorated pool with a bar and lodge area near it. The ones in Japan were modern, devilishly clean buildings. The best part, though, of Youth Hostels are the youth; the people there to meet. I would have never known how fun Colombians are, or never hung out with Brisbane-ites, or never met scores of other people if not for youth hostels.


Z is for Zero Regrets

When I left JFK on February 25th, on South African Airlines flight SA204, aboard a beautiful Airbus A340-600, with three seats all to myself, I was excited, obviously, but also extremely nervous. It was daunting to be away from the US for so long, especially since I was going to be alone for about half the trip. Since these are the 2010s, with Wi-Fi everywhere, I wasn't really alone, but what if I didn't make friends at the hostel? What if I got sick? What if I got injured? What if I didn't plan this well? Luckily, other than the sick part, none of those fears were realized. Only my dreams were. This trip was a great gift from a dad who I gifted with not having to pay for an 8th term at NYU. But more than that it was a chance for me to do a trip that I would never really have the chance to do again at an age where I don't have mortgages or car leases or any other real 'adult' strings holding me back. This was an opportunity to experience three continents, nine countries and countless cities. It was a chance to do anything I wanted, within the bounds of the law of course, and eat anything I wanted, and drink anything I wanted. When I left I was dreaming of eating a black pepper at Jumbo Seafood and then telling the cab driver 'Changi Airport' while telling myself 'Home'. But when I reached Jumbo Seafood on June 7th, and finished my black pepper crab, I instead of wanting to go home, wanted to start it all over again. You only get one chance to do this sort of trip, and I had my chance. Thank God I loved every part of it.

Big News Comes in Threes

Here are my quick thoughts on three recent developments in the Sports World.


1.) The Blackhawks Cement their Mini-Dynasty

I'm almost always wrong in my preseason predictions. Hell, I had the Bears beating the Giants in the NFC Championship Game before the 2012 season started, and I had picked Kansas to win the NCAA Title in both 2010 and 2011, years where they were unceremoniously beaten by Northern Iowa and VCU. So, when I am right, I usually flaunt it. And this time I was, as I picked the Blackhawks to win the Stanley Cup back in January (http://loungingpass.blogspot.com/2013/01/nhl-2013-season-picks.html). Of course, I had them beating the Carolina Hurricanes in the Stanley Cup Final, but let's overlook that part for a second.

The Blackhawks are the first team to win multiple Stanley Cups in the post-lockout era, and while they did it with a great core of young players like Toews, Kane, Keith, Seabrook, Sharp and a grizzled vet with Marian Hossa. However, Toews and Kane scored a combined 5 goals in those two Stanley Cup Finals, and while Duncan Keith was brilliant in this Cup Final, Marian Hossa missed a game and did little when he was on the ice. No, the Blackhawks won each Cup because their role players stepped up and performed. The amazing part about this Blackhawk mini-dynasty, though, is almost none of the role players from 2010 were on this team.

First of all, the goalie is different, with the "dont-eff-this-up-for-us" Antti Niemi gone in favor of Corey Crawford. But guys like Troy Brouwer, Brian Campbell, Kris Versteeg, Tomas Kopecky, Dustin Byfuglien and John Madden have all been replaced. It took a while for that process to happen, but they were replaced by Andrew Shaw, Brandon Saad, Nick Leddy, Michael Roszival and Michael Handzus, and this core worked about as well as the last one. The Blackhawks, like the Penguins, got lucky by sucking for a while and getting two first-rate players, but it is what they have surrounded those two stars with that seperates them from the Penguins.

It was amazing to watch the swiftness in the Blackhawks comeback at the end of Game 6. It brought up some bad memories, as the ending was hauntingly similar to the Hurricanes comeback in Game 7 against the Devils in 2009 (my 4th worst personal sports loss), as they too were down by one with under two minutes and came back to win scoring two goals within 40 seconds. The difference here was Boston still had to win another game, but then again, this was losing a chance to win a Stanley Cup. Boston fans have had more to cheer about over the past 10 years than any sports city should ever have to cheer about, but they've also had to go experience some terrible defeats. Add this one to the list.

The Blackhawks shouldn't be done any time soon as long as they hang onto Toews and Kane. Crawford is still young, but his price may get too high, and the Hawks have already shown that the goalie doesn't have to be a constant. Unlike 2010, their role players will mostly been back next season and some of them are exciting young guys who just got their first NHL action. There are other teams out there stockpiling talent (Hello, Edmonton), but the Blackhawks are well set up to be as close to a modern NHL dynasty as we will see.


2.) Aaron Hernandez

I don't know why, but when the Hernandez story first broke about 10 days ago, when the news reported that he wasn't a suspect, just a party of interest, I always thought that it could end up being a lot messier than that. I don't know why. Even though I was right, I would have never expected this. What Aaron Hernandez has been charged with doing (not to mention the possibility that he could have been involved in the shooting of two other people last year - this being the killing of a potential snitch on the other episode) is far beyond what I could have conceived. How someone with his life, his opportunity, his contract, could have thrown it all away is beyond comprehension.

There are many questions I have about Aaron Hernandez and what he was charged with doing. First, if you are going to 'orchestrate the execution' (great line, by the way), why be there when it happens? Why not pull a Rae Carruth and just set the thing up? Of course, that wouldn't be any better, but Hernandez compounded his stupidity by making the idiotic decision of being there, if not shooting the guy himself. Then, how deep were his gang connections? Many NFL players left the gang life behind but still have ties to the gang world through friends and past associated. Hernandez took it one step further by still seemingly being a part of that world while in the NFL. This is different than OJ or Michael Vick, or even Ray Lewis. This looks like gang violence, orchestrated by an NFL player.

Of course, when the news of his impending arrest broke, I was slightly amused that this was happening to the Patriots, that their greatest strength (TE) is being turned into a large weakness one-by-one. Of course, I then had to credit the Patriots for making a tough, logical decision to get rid of Hernandez early. They are going as far to distance themselves from Hernandez as possible, and I have to think this was purely Bob Kraft's decision (although I doubt Belichick gave much resistance) to remove the stain of a potential murderer from the Patriots organization.

To defend the Pats for a second, this shouldn't be used as some sign of a deteriorating Patriots locker room. First of all, the 'Patriot Way' has been dead for about six years, but still, the Patriots didn't draft him in the 1st round knowing his character concerns, but in the 4th. They gave him an extension I'm sure after doing due diligence, it just missed whatever was still there with Aaron. The Patriots have other issues in the locker room, particularly on defense, and this definitely looked bad in the beginning of the saga, but by cutting the cord quickly, they did all they could to remove themselves from the Hernandez trail and situation.

As for Hernandez, he's basically everything that is wrong with the glamorization of gang violence in this country. If what has been alleged is true (and I would put that percentage quite high), Hernandez chose to dole out his justice in the most primal, 'gangster-y' way possible, seemingly wanting to flex his muscles. Hernandez obviously is dumber than a rock, not only with the crime but the haphazard way he planned it (texting his associates to meet him) and the brilliantly terrible way he tried to cover it up (the 'breaking the phone' idea kind of shows how much TV Herndo has watched on such matters). Hernandez is a terrible person, but also a terribly dumb and insecure person. The NFL is better off without him, and while his ability (which I always thought was slightly overrated) will be missed in New England, his presence won't be. I just can't believe that for all of Rob Gronkowski's raunchy, frat-bro qualities and exploits, he's by far the smarter, more well-adjusted TE the Patriots had.


3.) The Fall of Rafa and Roger?

I have an almost prescient ability to predict what will happen in Nadal matches very early. The fact that Nadal couldn't break Darcis early in the 1st set of their 1st round match made me nervous. I don't know why. He lost the first set in each of his first two matches at the French Open just four weeks earlier and then he won that tournament. Still, a similar feeling the previous year made me nervous, and that ended with a similar outcome. By the time the shocking three-set match was over, it was hard to believe that that man, Rafael Nadal, could have once won Wimbledon twice and made five straight finals at Wimbledon, let alone won a major just 16 days earlier.

Yet none of that compares to watching Federer lose. In isolation, the Nadal loss is a bigger upset. Darcis is the lower ranked player, and while that ranking difference is quite close with Stakhovsky currently ranked 116, he spent much of the last 3-4 years firmly in the Top 100. Nadal is younger and still closer to his prime. Discounting last year's Wimbledon, Nadal had made the Final of 9 of his last 10 slams played. Rafael Nadal was having the best year of anyone on tour despite missing the Australian Open. Federer, on the other hand, was having his worst year since 2002, going just 27-7 heading into Wimbledon, losing meekly to guys like Tsonga and Kei Nishikori, let alone Nadal twice. However, Federer was the defending champ, and because of Lukas Rosol's even more stunning upset last year, we are conditioned to believe Nadal was beatable early.

Out of all the many records and streaks Federer has set, the consecutive Semifinal streak was always the one I was most impressed with. From Wimbledon 2004 to the 2010 Australian Open, Federer always made the last four. That's kind of absurd. Djokovic just crossed the halway point, but he would need to make it to the 2016 Australian Open to match it. The Semifinal streak ended with a loss to Robin Soderlin (of all people), and since then he's missed the Semifinal another four times coming into this Wimbledon (Wimby '10 and '11, the '12 US Open and the '13 French), but he at least made the last 8, which brings me to my third favorite Fed streak, the 36 straight Quarterfinals, which now ended. Djokovic has now made the QFs 16 straight times, with the 2009 French Open the last time he failed to do so. He would have to make it through the French Open in 2018(!) to match that. The worst part of how the streak ended was that it wasn't some rousing match in the Round of 16, but a shocking, stunning loss in the second round on his best surface.

Roger Federer is either the Greatest or the 2nd Greatest (after Rod Laver) male tennis player of modern times. Rafael Nadal is definitely in the Top 10 and would easily be in the Top 5 on most people's lists today and still has an outside shot of getting 17 slams. However, they will both probably be ranked outside the Top 3 come the end of Wimbledon. I'm not ready to call this a new era, because Nadal's deflated ranking is still mostly due to him missing everything from the US Open Series in 2012 through the Australian Open this year, but Federer, who hasn't missed any time, is clearly declining. There was so much anticipation of a Federer-Nadal Quarterfinal, on the surface where you would think the greatest chance of an epic match would lie, but shockingly neither will make it.

I have no idea what the long term ramifications of this match will be, but going forward the more interesting story is Rafa's. Last year when Lukas Rosol beat him in the 2nd round, he was clearly less than 100% during that match, but he ended up missing the next 7 months. Nadal didn't seem hampered in the loss to Darcis, and he's already said that there was no injury and there will be no layoff, but it will be interesting to notice if his confidence will drop. Despite his bulldog mentality, Nadal's confidence, in my opinion, has never really recovered from losing four straight Masters 1000 (the 2nd best level of tennis tournaments after the four slams) to Djokovic in the spring of 2011. I think that lack of confidence followed Rafa to the Wimbledon, US and Australian Open Finals, each he lost to Djokovic. He's since beaten Novak twice in majors, but I don't think he's the confident force he was through 2010. This is the lowest moment, so it will be interesting to see what happens if he has early trouble at the US Open.

The Federer-Nadal rivalry is still what carried Tennis back into the minds of many sports fans after some lean years after the end of the Sampras era. Despite Nadal and Djokovic having played far more times than Nadal and Federer, the Federer-Nadal rivalry will always mean more, will always be more special, and it makes sense that two days after Nadal's (new) lowest moment, Federer suffers his. They were tied together at Wimbledon forever because of that amazing 2008 Final, and are tied together again in defeat. A rivalry till the end,

The Acceptable Loss

GIF credit to SBNation and NBA on ESPN

One week and one day ago, Kawhi Leonard missed a free throw that would have effectively won the Spurs the 2013 NBA Title over the best Heat team out of the three. Of course, there were a bunch of other disasters and mistakes that happened late in that game for the Spurs (not to mention the Heat missing their first desperation three each time only to get an offensive rebound both times). If Manu Ginobili hits a free throw a few seconds before, or if someone just fouls Chris Bosh hard when he gets the offensive rebound down three, or if they just closeout better, the Spurs also win, so it is hard to pin this on Kawhi Leonard. It is even harder to pin it on Leonard when he had the Spurs' only two buckets in the Overtime, and then played great in Game 7, a game where Manu Giniboli was the worst version of Manu Ginobili and Danny Green basically decided to revert to the Cavaliers version of himself. But I will always remember Kawhi Leonard's missed free throw. It is a shame that even the Heat get a break every now and then.

Still, after Game 7 was over, and the Heat were crowned champs once again, I saw Dwyane Wade, a pretty unlikable figure these days, immediately go over to Tim Duncan and embrace him. I saw LeBron do the same thing. I saw the both of them go over to Popovich and have a long conversation with Popovich. All three of these things really took place before they even celebrated themselves. And while this made me feel a bit less upset at LeBron (and Wade) getting another ring, it made me feel better as a quasi-Spurs fan. Despite the Heat having lost once in this current iteration (I'm still not sure how Dallas did it), and been pushed to 7 games two other times (the Eastern Conference Final each of the last two years), this seemed like the hardest the Heat had had to work for a win. The Spurs made them earn it, and the Heat loved and respected them for it, and I do as well, even more than before.

What I'll remember about the Spurs in these playoffs and finals, after I get past the image of Kawhi Leonard, or Tim Duncan slapping the floor after missing the hook shot that would have tied Game 7, is Tim Duncan going 10-12 in the first half of Game 6, of all but Bill Simmons picking the Grizzlies to beat them and then the Spurs laying waste and getting swept. That's what these playoffs did for the Spurs. It is rare to lose the Finals, especially in that fashion (what transpired in the last minute of Game 6 was basically a collapse equal to the Bruins collapse in their Game 6) and actually have your legacy raised, but I think that is what happened with Duncan and Popovich, if not Parker as well.

In a way, the Devils had the same thing happen to them last year with their loss in the Stanley Cup Finals. They weren't supposed to be there. Their years of winning titles in the Brodeur era were long gone (for the Devils it was 2003, as opposed to 2007 for the Spurs), but Marty turned back the clock, Parise and Kovalchuk played at level with their talent, and they made one last run. The Spurs have enough good young players, and potentially enough cap space that this doesn't have to be one last run, but it felt like one anyway.

Even last year, they had the type of team that could beat the Heat, with great three-point shooting, a defensive plan that limited threes and a deep bench that could destroy an opponents bench. They just ran into the Thunder playing at their peak (and after losing Harden, that four game stretch against the Spurs may be as good as that Thunder crew ever plays). I'm sure the Heat breathed a sigh of relief last year when they drew the Thunder, a team they match up brilliantly with, instead of the Spurs, but no such luck for them this year. The Spurs played at their best in their dominant Game 3, but it was Game 5 that will be their lasting memory, the game that let everyone remember just how good that 'Big 3' was. Ginobili had one last shining moment, Tim Duncan went for 17 and 12, and some random role player hit a bunch of threes, with Danny Green playing the role once played by Brent Barry and Stephen Jackson. It was everything the Spurs were known for that led to four titles.

It was a cruel twist of the knife that the first time the Spurs would ever trail a finals series was when they lost the Finals four games to three. However, it was crueler that they did what they did in Game 7, doing something everyone hoped for but not too many thought was going to happen. They kept game 7 close. They made Game 7 extremely watchable and dramatic. They did the opposite of what a game Indiana team did a round earlier in making that particular Game 7 one of the most anti-climactic Game 7's that I can remember. It really all went downhill after Mario Chalmers' 3rd-quarter half-court buzzer beater to give the Heat a 72-71 lead. The Spurs never retook the lead, but kept the Game close throughout. At the end, they aren't as good as Miami. They don't have LeBron James right now, because this isn't 2003 Tim Duncan (no matter how amazing he was in the 1st half in Game 6). Miami had their aging star play three good games while the Spurs had theirs play just one. That's life in the NBA. You can't beat Father Time, but you can fight it.

The Spurs may never reach the finals again in the Duncan-Popovich era. Duncan may never get that 5th ring to make him level with Kobe, removing the 'Ringz' argument from the Duncan vs. Kobe debate. But the embrace of Duncan and Popovich with Wade and LeBron, you almost feel like the Spurs are co-winners. They didn't shy away from the team that won 27 straight games this season. They didn't wilt under the pressure of playing a Game 7 in Miami after blowing Game 6. The Spurs did what they have done for 15 years, played to the level of their abilities, and see how far it can take them. Maybe a year from now Kawhi Leonard has the confidence and stability to nail that second free throw, but maybe a year from now Duncan isn't quite good enough to drop 25 in one last vintage half. But it all came together this year, against that team, and made for one great series and one last moment for the NBA's model franchise.

RTW Trip: The A-B-C's, Pt. I

I've done this type of thing before, with the A-B-C's of the 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2010 NFL Season, but this is different. This is longer. There is a good chance this is the longest post I've ever done by the time it is done. Anyway, here are the A-B-C's of my trip (the first of a few trip-overview posts). I'll try to be a little creative with these, so none of these will simply be cities.


A is for Aussie Rules Football 

Well, this is a sports blog, so I'll start with the one international sport that dominated my trip. Sure, seeing the Royal Challengers Bangalore (still a terribly idiotic name) beat the Mumbai Indians by four runs was fun, but it was Aussie Rules Football that I really took too. I still feel that if Aussie Rules was an American sport (which would certainly be tough given 'Aussie' is in the name) it would be my 2nd favorite sport after 'American Rules' Football. The strategy is incredible in that game, the action end-to-end. Even sluggish defensive games seem fun and exciting. My cousins' favorite team Essendon is still #3 in the league, and if they continue to be good that will probably get me to get up (or stay up) to watch some of the AFL playoffs. Australia loves sports in a way that seems entirely American, since they follow many different sports (compared to Europe, where it is mainly just football), and it helps that I stayed in Victoria, but Aussie Rules, with their crazy fans, their 'Inside the NBA'-lite weekly show, and strategy any sports fan would love quickly became my favorite.


B is for Black Pepper Crab

One of my mental images when I was planning the trip was eating a giant Black Pepper Crab on Singapore's East Coast Seafood Center, with the planes descending into Changi flying overhead. In the beginning, this was an image of the last thing I would do on the trip (apart from flying), but I soon added a second near-full-day layover in Singapore on the way to Melbourne, making the image double in my mind. I was able to go to Jumbo Seafood both times, and eat those massive crabs. I have no real idea how they make the Black Pepper sauce taste so good. It permeates through the entire crab without being too saucy and messy. The cleanliness factor is important, because as a messy eater working with a crab that weighs nearly a kilo, there is a high chance for it being an extremely messy exercise. Somehow, I classed myself up to the point that I barely made any mess. So much so that I was able to save one of the lobster (or in this case, crab) bibs they gave me because it was so pristine. Jumbo seafood spoiled me, as now I want any trip to India to end with a day in Singapore and a black pepper crab at Jumbo seafood. No final leg of a trip will be complete without it.


C is for Columns at Ranakpur

I didn't really want to go to Rajasthan when I was planning my trip. I have disliked doing any touristy activities in India after a disappointing trip to Kerala after my cousin's wedding in Early 2011. Rajasthan was the idea of my Mom, and I went along because it is hard not to. Luckily, Rajasthan was surprisingly entertaining, with good food, good sights, good shopping (which for me meant good hand-crafted coasters) and a lack of humidity. However, nothing from that part of the trip was as memorable as the Jain temple in Ranakpur. It took us about two hours to get there from Udaipur, and we had to wait around for another 45 minutes, meandering around the temple, before the cameras (and the foreigners) were let inside. Nothing in those Jain temples are more impressive than their array of Columns, none similar to any others. I would estimate there were around 1,000 columns in that temple (quick note: estimate could be very, very wrong, but it was a large number), all carved with exacting detail. The whole temple was a brilliant testament to what India could be as a tourist destination.


D is for Dalat Easy Riders

My only regret with the Dalat Easy Rider tour is that I didn't get to ride the motorcycle. The Dalat Easy Rider tour was the first trip I did after I recovered from my first of two stomach upsets. The first bout (which took up my entire stay in Ho Chi Minh City was the worst of the two, and I was still a little unsure if I was totally healthy when the day started, but the feeling of the cool Dalat air rushing through my body, and the incredible views of the Vietnamese forest hills above, below and underneath me. The temples were all situated on these hills, serenely isolated from the rest of Dalat. The most fun was the incredible little roller-coaster descent to the Datanla Waterfall, but that whole day was memorable. I didn't really know too much about Dalat, and my tight schedule made this basically the only large trip I could take when I was there, but my God was I so happy I did. They have tours where you can rent the motorcycle yourself, but it probably was more fun being the passenger, just enjoying idyllic, forested Vietnam.


E is for Eating and Observing

No city can really go wrong with a CN Tower type tower. It is strange because the only thing those towers are selling is the ability to view the city from up above. They have no residential or commercial purpose because all they are are elevator shafts and a few revolving floors. Still, their allure is pretty hard to avoid. I went to many cities with these types of buildings, and what my Mom and I quickly realized is that the price of actually having food at one of the revolving restaurants is a damn good deal when considering the price of not having food at one of the revolving observation decks. We did this little scam at the Menara KL in Kuala Lumpur, but there we only had tea. I took the scam to its natural conclusion with a lunch buffet at the Sydney Tower. The buffet there was really good. They gave a ridiculous amount of meat choices, all presented really well. In the end, the view actually became kind of secondary to the food in Sydney. I went to two observation decks sans food in Melbourne (The Eureka Tower) and Tokyo (The Tokyo SkyTree), but they weren't the same.



F is for Flinders St. & Federation Square

Melbourne isn't Sydney. It doesn't have the array of sights to see, the world-famous Opera House, or the hustle and bustle. But it is probably the best walking city I went to on my trip (some of this is probably due to the fact that I walked in Melbourne more than any other city). And during my various walks around Melbourne, Federation Square, right opposite the ornate entrance to Flinders St. Station, was my center point. From there, you got a view of everything. The cluster of buildings to the East, the other cluster of government buildings and financial offices to the West, and the Eureka Tower and the newer buildings to the South. You had the MCG off to one side, and the wiry Eiffel-Tower styled top of the Arts building on one side. From there, I enjoyed a few brews at the International Brew House who's name I now forget, but it was just a great way to end an evening in Melbourne.


G is for General Pol Pot

Call it ignorance, but I didn't really know a lot about the Khmer Rouge genocide that Cambodia endured in the 70's before heading to Phnom Penh. It never had the cache or the scope of the Holocaust, but seeing what I saw and experiencing what I experienced, there is a definite argument to be made that it was worse. What Pol Pot and his cronies did in Cambodia defies explanation, defies everything, really. To bash babies' brains into tree stumps. To smash peoples' skulls with hammers and axes. To play loud propaganda music to cover up the shrieks and cries for help. All of it for no real reason. What is left of the Pol Pot regime is basically the 'Killing Fields' outside of Phnom Penh and the old school-house-turned-torture-prison-turned-museum in Phnom Penh, and both make for a chilling, lasting, day of witnessing just how evil evil can get.


H is for Haribeil

I mentioned how when leaving Tokyo, I was not sure if having those last 10 days in India was a mistake or not. I left India a month-and-a-half earlier wanting more time with my family, but came back dreading the heat, the humidity and all the countless other pains that one has to deal with in India. But if anything made me happy to spend those last 10 days was my trip to my cousin's friend's estate in little Haribeil.There is no better way to describe the scenery and beauty of the estate region of India than by saying that it is unlike anything you would imagine would be in India. There is nothing Indian about it, apart from the semi-frequent power outages. When I was in the estate, it was hard to imagine that this is the same country that I was sweating my skin off two days in earlier, wilting under the oppressive heat. No, this is a different India. This is the India you see in the 'Incredible India' tourism ads that are on TV every now and then. Put aside the fact that the people there and what we did during those few days was also memorable, but I've done the same with those same people in Bangalore. No, the estate was the star. That and her shortbread.


I is for Intestinal Issues

When I travel to India, I go in knowing that I will most likely get sick at some point. It is just going to happen. I usually don't get sick enough to throw up, but sick enough to ruin a few days. Well, this time I never really got sick in India. That's the good news. The bad news is I got sick two other times outside India. The first came as a real punch to the gut, as all of a sudden on my flight from Johannesburg to Bangkok, I started feeling ill. Within an hour, I was fixed in a catatonic state, zombied out and lightheaded. The stomach illness ended up lasting throughout my three days in Ho Chi Minh City, ruining that city for me. In the end, I've put that bout on having tap water in Cape Town the night before I left. The second was more normal, coming from indulging in one too many spicy Thai dishes in my first day in Bangkok, and I only exacerbated that bout by having oily food on the second evening of the bout and a Gin and Tonic on the third. I don't know what consumed me to do that, but it did lead to me eating a $7 Naan. So there's that.


J is for the Japan Rail Pass

Japan's railway system is world famous, for all the right reasons. It is ridiculously precise, pulling into the station at the exact right position at the exact right time. Of course, one of these right reasons isn't its price. Traveling by rail is not cheap, but Japan does its tourist a service by offering the Japan Rail Pass, allowing unlimited access to their JR Trains, including the slower (but still super-fast) versions of their Shinkansen Bullet Trains. The passes aren't cheap, but they are still a damn good deal. The big problem is that Japan doesn't really advertise this pass, and you have to buy the voucher to buy the pass outside of Japan. The trains, after all the messiness of getting the pass and getting on a train, were wonderful, with Wi-Fi, seats that recline far further back than any economy seat on a plane, and girls rolling food and drink carts through the cars, even selling beer. The hours I spent on the train allowed me to watch most of Season 1 of Game of Thrones and get near Mt. Fuji. By the end of my time in Japan, I became a veteran at riding the JR Rail, knowing how to confidently flash my pass to the guards, knowing where to line up to easily enter the train, and knowing just where the AC Outlets are located on the trains.


K is for Kangaroos!

Other than meeting my family, there was probably nothing I wanted to do more in Australia than fiddle around with the native wildlife. Australia's probably more famous for its wildlife than anything else, and nothing is more recognizable than those weird, hopping marsupials. My Uncle and Aunt took my sister to a wildlife farm on Phillip Island, near Melbourne, that had free range kangaroos that you can go up to, pet and feed them (and the Emus, but I was terrified of the Emus, with their velociraptorian faces and height). I never expected to see so many kangaroos and so many of them be willing to hop right over to you and beg for food. The kangaroos really were like hopping dogs. My sister told me that when she went, the kangaroos shied away from her and everyone else at the park. I was astounded by this, because they flocked to me like sheep coming to a shepard. The best moment, though, was my cousin Lisa noticing the little head of a baby kangaroo popping intermittently out of the pouch of the mother kangaroo. That basically forced me to be a paparazzi for a while, trying to snap a picture of a kangaroo baby. I was able to, and I was also able to throw feed at a sleeping koala in hopes of waking it up (failed), and was able to have a picture of me being terrified of an emu (success). All in all, a great, uniquely Australian, day.


L is for Leopold Cafe

I never really knew about Leopold Cafe until November 26th, 2008, when Mumbai was attacked. The Leopold Cafe was one of the targets, and a few people died amidst the hundreds of rounds fired into that Cafe. I had no idea it was so close to my Grandparents' apartment, but now I do. Now I also know who the manager is, what the rules of the upstairs is, the protocol for entering with a backpack, and who some of the main waiters are. Mostly because of the attack, but also due to the preponderance of foreigners, common opinion is that Leopold Cafe is more of a tourist attraction than a place to eat, but I have to disagree. Leopold Cafe's food in genuinely good. That whole little hamlet off the Causeway near the Taj hotel is littered with good restaurants that are probably a little too commercial to ever get the credit that they deserve. Both times before I left Mumbai for the airport was go to Leopold for one last meal, one last few hours spent people watching the foreigners having fun in my old family hometown.


M is for Milk & Honey

Nothing I drank had the impact of Milk & Honey Beer, courtesy of Mitchell's Scottish Ale House in the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town. I went there too many times, and drank Milk & Honey too many times. I actually enjoyed some of the other craft beer they had, but the Milk & Honey beer was the best beer I have ever had. My last day there, I had too many mugs of Milk & Honey, and because of fearing being hungover during my flight because of those beers, I had tap water in my hotel, which I believer directly led to my sickness that ruined my time in Ho Chi Minh City. Would I trade not having those extra Milk & Honey's for being able to get out of bed in Ho Chi Minh City? Yeah, I probably would. But Milk & Honey led to a lot of great things in Cape Town, most of which is ensuring that I have to go back.