The Sturgeon General

Some guys in Florida caught this 1,000-lb. sturgeon recently. Now, that's what I call a fish!

Meerkat Manor: Meerkats have a Tough Life

Meerkat Manor is a television series made by Oxford Scientific Films for Animal Planet. It presents the daily activities of a family, or mob, of wild meerkats as part of the Kalahari Meerkat Project. Although the show has elements of a documentary, and is based on actual events, the narrative is presented in a style similar to a soap opera.

The show is narrated by Bill Nighy in the UK and Canada, Mike Goldman in Australia, and Sean Astin in the USA. The series was originally shown in the UK, and is its primary home, but was picked up in Australia, Canada, and the United States, and is now a worldwide hit.

The show is currently in production for its third season of 13 episodes; as of April 2007 the second season is being shown in the UK on BBC 2 on Sunday early evenings and repeated on the next Saturday. Season 3 began airing in the United States on August 10, 2007. Other sources also report that it has been contracted for two more years.

It’s a tough life being a meerkat. First off, there’s a lot of infighting within the mob itself. Meerkats sleeping with other meerkats, messy breakups and sordid affairs. Then, they’re the other meerkat mobs that are always fighting and competing for territories. And to top it off, there are all the predators trying to eat the meerkats, like hawks, owls, other rodents and snakes. A meerkat’s life is no waltz in the woods, believe me!

John Mayer Continues Incredible Dating Spree

John Mayer is on a dating spree that any celebrity would be proud of. Within the last year, he's been seen with Jessica Simpson, Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton, Natalie Portman, Phyllis Diller, Anne Heche and Jennifer Love Hewitt, not to mention a bunch of models, wannabe actresses and other assorted female hotties. The man's little black book is larger than the new version of Webster's Dictionary.

Mayer is on an incredible run, collecting babes like young boys collect baseball cards. Now to top it off, he’s dating Cameron Diaz. We haven't seen a streak like this since Joe DiMaggio hit safely in 56 straight games more than five decades ago.

If Mayer had a hit song for every babe he’s been out with, he’d have sold more records than Elvis Presley and the Beatles combined by now. He’s a serial dater and is completely out-of-control. He needs to start a 12-step program through a program like Dater’s Anonymous (DA).

John Mayer and Diaz kept up their New York flirtation over the weekend, according to www.people.com.

The pair, who were first spotted out together in the city last week, were "all over each other" and "super flirty" at the Bowery Hotel Friday night, an onlooker tells PEOPLE.

Mayer, 29, and Diaz, 34, who sat together on a couch in the back of the patio, "were laughing and talking a lot" as the waitress brought several rounds of drinks, says the source. It's been reported that when Diaz got up to go to the restroom, John got at least 4 phone numbers.

Last Tuesday, the pair were spotted having dessert at the French-Vietnamese restaurant Indochine. "It looked like a casual date," said a source. "She was giggly. She was laughing and seemed happy."

Asked if the newly-close pair are dating, a source close to Mayer tells PEOPLE, "Yes, it's definitely true."

Diaz, who is filming What Happens in Vegas... in New York, split from longtime boyfriend Justin Timberlake in January. Mayer ended his on-again, off-again relationship with Jessica Simpson in June.

A spokesperson for Mayer, Richard Gozinya, said that the Diaz fling is nothing more than an extended booty call. “John is on a tight dating schedule,” Gozinya said. “He has women lined up pretty much through mid-2008. After he’s done with Diaz, he’ll be dating a whole slew of other celebrity ladies, including major names I can’t divulge. He’s even planning on having a few affairs with married women. Once he’s run out of them, he’ll be dating older women, possibly people like Cher and Sharon Stone. The guy is really working it like an over-sexed school boy.”

Mayer has even considered dating dead women, Gozinya said. “The poor guy is very upset that he wasn’t around to date women like Katherine Hepburn, Bette Davis and Martha Raye. He’s thinking of getting with a clairvoyant to find out if they might be interested in hooking up with him from beyond the grave.”

(Portions of this article are fictional and offered for entertainment purposes only.)

Pacific Coast League Reunion Report

Ernie Broglio Now
Ernie Broglio Then
Billy Raimondi Now
Billy Raimondi Then

The Pacific Coast League Reunion XIII was held on Saturday, August 18th at the Oakland Museum in downtown Oakland, and was attended by more than 300 former PCL players and fans. Over 30 former PCL players were on hand. There were displays of memorabilia, a great lunch and a 2-hour discussion and presentation. Bill Salveson, son of former PCL star Jack Salveson came all the way from Florida to honor his father’s induction into the PCL Hall of Fame. Former players who played in the PCL and also in the major leagues in attendance included: Charlie Silvera, Ernie Broglio, Bill Renna, Rugger Ardioza, Dario Lodigiani (all of whom I’ve interviewed), as well as the legendary Billy Raimondi, who played as a catcher in the PCL for 21 years.

Digital Cameras Rock!

The newest technology in digital cameras has changed and will continue to change the world of photography. Remember when you had to actually take pictures somewhere to get them developed? Man, it cots and arm and a leg. And then, if the pictures came out lousy, you had to pay for the prints anyway. What a waste of time, paper and cash that was. Now, with the new digital cameras, you can get super high-quality photos with super high definition and they’re only getting better. Look at these great pictures I took with my new digital camera!

Take ME to Orlando!

Oh, yes, there’s nothing like a sweet, sunny Orlando vacation to give you the super relaxing and fun time you’re looking for. I just have a major fascination with Orlando vacations. I’m just like everyone else, I guess – just searching for that sensation that comes with getting to the Sunshine State, kicking back in the sun and having an incredible time. The people are great, the food is fantastic, the days are hot and the nights are cool. There’s just so much to do in Orlando, especially during the summer months. Orlando has it all, baby – Disney World, Epcot Center, golf, concerts, sporting events, sightseeing, and so much more.

There's No Suing in Baseball!

Bonds is suing fellow players now? This could open up a whole can of worms. Sportswriters and announcers will be getting slapped with suits right and left for criticizing athletes. Bonds is going to ruffle a lot of feathers with this one, because everyone knows that there’s no suing in baseball.

One of the great things about sports is that attorneys aren’t good at them. Sure, they negotiate players’ contracts and are behind the scenes, but that’s their role and it’s very limited. Now, lawyers will be suing other athletes on behalf of their player clients and it is going to get ugly.

This article appeared yesterday in The Boston Globe:

Curt Schilling expressed no emotion yesterday after being informed that attorneys representing slugger Barry Bonds may be targeting the Red Sox pitcher for comments he made about the San Francisco Giants to HBO’s Bob Costas.

In a joint statement, attorneys Todd Schneider and John Burris said they are representing Bonds “in connection with legal issues arising from the myriad of false statements attributed to him by players, the media and others.”

Attorney Michael Rains, who has represented Bonds in the slugger’s ongoing BALCO steroids case, told the San Jose Mercury News, “This is directed at Schilling more than anybody. Schilling said some things that were inappropriate and potentially defamatory. I know it was upsetting to Barry. We talked about the issue and I know he was talking to some civil lawyers to put people on notice that he has someone defending him.”

Schilling, when told of the statement issued by Schneider and Burris, said, “I didn’t read it and I don’t have any comment about it. That’s not something I’m going to talk about.”

In a recent appearance on the HBO program “Costas Now,” Schilling brought up Kimberly Bell, a former mistress of Bonds who in 2000 testified before a grand jury about the slugger’s steroid use. She also testified that Bonds gave her money to buy a new home - money, she said, that came from baseball card shows that was not reported to the IRS

“If I wrote a book about Bob Costas and in that book I wrote about Bob Costas’ girlfriend being on the road, and Bob Costas giving that girlfriend card show money and I outlined your daily steroid regimen, I’ve got to believe your first line of defense is to sue my (butt) off,” Schilling told Costas.

In their joint statement, Schneider and Burris said they “want the public to know that Barry’s silence in the face of the accusations should not be construed as an admission of any kind. In fact, Mr. Bonds retained Schneider and Burris because of the false nature of these statements. While pursuing Hank Aaron’s home run record, Barry felt that it was more prudent to remain silent. Now that the record has been broken, Burris and Schneider will evaluate any and all statements attributed to him that are false. His attorneys are particularly concerned about individuals profiting from his accomplishments by attributing statements and/or conversations to him that never occurred.”

In the aftermath of the Schilling interview on HBO, Bonds referred to Costas as “a midget who knows (nothing) about baseball,” and said, “Don’t worry, my day will come.”

If Schneider and Burris are to be believed, that day may have arrived.

In their statement, Schneider and Burris said, “Certain members of the public and of the media are attempting to personally profit by making false and misleading comments about Mr. Bonds. This conduct has to stop and should not be tolerated by a society which prides itself on free, open and fair public dialogue.”

Doing Laundry Can Be Exhausting

Now Vick's Getting Sued

One day after Michael Vick was offered a plea agreement that would send him to jail for approximately one year, now he has a civil suit on his hands. This sounds ridiculous and probably doesn’t have any merit. When I first read it, I thought it might be a prank.
Vick has been accused of a lot of different things, but up until now, no one has questioned his allegiance to the United States. This suit appears to be a case of someone piling on. I’d like to get a little more background on this inmate to determine if this suit has any validity at all. I doubt it does.
Here is the story as it appeared on ESPN.com:
Embattled NFL quarterback Michael Vick, facing federal charges related to his alleged participation in dog fighting, has been hit with a "$63,000,000,000 billion dollar" lawsuit filed by a South Carolina inmate who alleges the Atlanta Falcons star stole his pit bulls and sold them on eBay to buy "missiles from Iran," FOX News has learned.
Jonathan Lee Riches filed the handwritten complaint over "theft and abuse of my animals" on July 23.
Riches alleges that Vick stole two white mixed pit bull dogs from his home in Holiday, Fla., and used them for dog fighting operations in Richmond, Va. The complaint goes on to allege that Vick sold the dogs on eBay and “used the proceeds to purchase missiles from the Iran government.”
The complaint also alleges that Vick would need those missiles because he pledged allegiance to Al Qaeda in February of this year.
“Michael Vick has to stop physically hurting my feelings and dashing my hopes,” Riches writes in the complaint.
Riches wants $63 billion dollars “backed by gold and silver “delivered to the front gates to the Williamsburg Federal Correctional facility in South Carolina. Riches is an inmate at the facility serving out a wire fraud conviction.
Vick's attorneys, meanwhile, are negotiating a plea deal with federal prosecutors before new dog fighting charges are filed next week, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
No plea agreement involving Atlanta Falcons quarterback Vick has been filed, according to the court clerk, FOX News has learned.
Vick was accused of being involved in a dog fighting ring called "Bad Newz Kennels" run on property he owned in Surry County, Va. In late July, Vick pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to travel in interstate commerce in aid of unlawful activities, and conspiring to sponsor a dog in an animal fighting venture in a Richmond, Va., court.
Vick could reach an agreement ahead of new charges expected to come down next week after two more of Vick's three co-defendants prepare to enter guilty pleas later this week. By reaching a plea agreement, Vick could avoid any additional charges.

"Viva El Tigre!"

Unless he experiences a complete and total meltdown, Tiger Woods is on course to become the greatest golfer in the history of the sport within the next five years. After that, it’s likely he will set a record for winning major tournaments that will put him in the stratosphere of PGA history.
One of the great things about Tiger is that he’s a great role model, a solid citizen and a family man. People have searched long and hard to find chinks in the man’s armor, but they don’t exist. He lives to play golf and has dominated the sport since the day he turned pro.
Some fellow pro golfers and sportswriters occasionally whine and openly admit that they’d like to see someone come along and knock Tiger off his pedestal. They’re tired of seeing Tiger sin, they say. He’s taken a very difficult and trying sport – one most human beings can’t play well – and made it look easy. This frustrates people and they lash out sometimes.
I say “Viva El Tigre!” I hope he wins until he’s 100 years old if he wants to play that long. I can’t wait to see him cleaning house on the Senior Tour. I will never tire of his excellence. Every time he turns the rest of the field into pretenders, I smile from ear-to-ear.
Tiger’s fourth PGA Championship victory moved him one closer to the all-time record for winning majors, a chase that should dominate the sport's attention over the next two, three, maybe four years, at most.
He has won 13 times in 44 majors as a professional (Nicklaus won 11 in his first 44). If Woods maintains that pace, you had better get your tickets right now to the 2012 U.S. Open at the Olympic Club in San Francisco – just up the road from Stanford, where Woods went to school – because that's when he's going to tie it.
Except it won't take that long. Like his first name might imply, Woods is at his best when he's about to pounce, about to go for the kill. He tends to refocus, redouble his efforts and leave the rest of the field realizing they never stood a chance.
And there isn't going to be anything Tiger Woods wants more than his 18th major. Except, of course, his 19th.
"Well, when you first start your career, 18 is just a long way away," he said. "And even though I'm at 13, it's still a long way away. You can't get it done in one year.
"It's one of those things where it's going to take some time. And hopefully health permitting and everything goes right and I keep improving, that I'll one day surpass that."
That's a nice, humble sentiment, but the way Woods is playing now, "one day" is going to come one day soon.
If anything, his recent 5-for-22 stretch in majors (starting after his 2002 U.S. Open win at Bethpage Black) may prove to be a slow period in his career. It included dealing with a swing change, some possibly inferior Nike equipment (at least according to Phil Mickelson) and the illness and death of his father.
That's all behind him now. Maybe it's no surprise that in his last six majors he won three times and finished second twice.
Tiger is at the absolute top of his game right now, both physically and mentally. He actually claims he is (gasp) "improving." Asked if he was better than in 2000, he didn't hesitate.
"By far," he said. "Just experience. Understanding how to handle it and how to manage my game around the golf course. I have more shots than I did then just because (he has had) that many more years to learn them. And how to make adjustments on the fly just comes with experience.
"And I'll say the same thing seven years from now – more experienced then than I am now. It makes things a little bit (easier) coming down the stretch.
"You look back then; I hit the ball long, I hit it high (but) didn't really do a lot with the golf ball. I tried to, but I didn't really have an understanding how to just do it."
As he showed this week, there doesn't seem to be a shot he doesn't possess, a challenge he hasn't already faced or an external circumstance he can't overcome.
There are essentially no questions left. People tried to make a big deal that Southern Hills, with its crooked fairways, was Tiger-proof. "I don't understand why people kept saying that," Woods said. They won't again after he shot a major record-tying 63 on Friday and virtually coasted to the title the rest of the way.
And any thought that diaper duty as a new father might rattle him was finished here. He called meeting his wife and baby daughter after the round "more special" than any other celebration, which means, if anything, he now might be more motivated.
The only question is whether he can hit the accelerator and make quick work of this run toward the record and then work on putting it into the stratosphere.
He has plenty of time. Nicklaus won his last major at 46, a thrilling victory at the 1986 Masters. Woods is in far superior physical condition than Nicklaus ever was, and it is nothing to think he can remain an elite competitor until he is, say, 45. Vijay Singh is 44, and he has won twice on the tour this year and is the seventh-ranked golfer in the world. The runner-up here, Woody Austin, is 43.
If he is an elite player until only his 45th birthday, he'll have 52 more chances to win just the five majors needed to tie and six to break Nicklaus' record. Think he can win one out of every 10? Please.
If he were to maintain just his recent pace – five wins in his last 22 majors – he'll wind up with a breathtaking 24 or 25 majors before he turns 46. If he gets better, he may soar past 30.
"I certainly believe there is an art to winning," he said. "I've been in so many different circumstances to try and win championships, to win tournaments that you start getting a feel how to do it."
About the only thing that could derail him is boredom or, say, pursuit of becoming president of the United States. He may, indeed, one day become president. But this guy never is going to get bored of winning.
Perhaps this is when the charge to the record becomes official. Tiger is close now, a big year from pulling this into his sights. Next year starts beautifully for him, at Augusta, where he seemingly always is in contention, and the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines, where he has won five times in the last nine years.
History is coming now. Sooner, perhaps, than even Tiger Woods realizes.
(Portions of this article came from cbssportsline.)