Photo of the Day - Beverly Hillbillies Dog

I managed to run across this tonight. It seems that a dog was originally written into the popular television show, The Beverly Hillbillies. It never quite made it to final production, but I did find the following picture of the dog. I think that the show missed a big opportunity here.

Photo of the Day - Dog Abuse

The picture below was taken at this year's Westminster Dog Show. The dog in the woman's lap is a long haired Dachshund, but it's problems do not end there. In this candid photo we see the owner and dog just after their time in the ring. Here, the angry owner is in the middle of beating the daylights out of her dog. She has raised a fist to her losing dog and has managed to maintain a wry smile the whole time. Dog Shows are serious business.

Photo of the Day - If you think we were snowed in, think again

We are in the midst of a record-breaking accumulative snowfall this year in Northern Virginia and I have heard several complaints from friends and neighbors about the amount of snow and all of the shoveling, etc. Before we call the waambulance, let's remember that we are in VIRGINIA, i.e., the Southern United States. Let's just be thankful that we don't live in Switzerland like the poor bastard below.


Now that's some snow!

Phoot of the Day - Retarded Dachshunds

This is obviously a shot taken during a weiner dog race. It cracks me up to see these maniacal weiners who lack the ability to stay in their lanes. It looks like a jailbreak from a dog lunatic asylum.

Kara's Surgery

Kara made it through her foot surgery with no permanent damage. She was in the hospital in order to get a protruding bone shaved down and her ligaments moved into optimal position. She went completely under for the procedure and all went well. She is at home and dead asleep (for now). Next up, the right foot.

NC State retired jerseys

I recently posted an entry that listed all of the retired jerseys for the UNC-Ch basketball program. Several people have asked me what jerseys have been retired for the NC State program. The answer, of course, is one. NC State has retired number 44, brought to national prominence by the inimitable David Thompson.

I made light in my earlier post that UNC-Ch has 6 criteria, one of which must be met in order to be considered for jersey retirement. NC State also has criteria for jersey retirement, but in classic NC State form, it is a much simpler list. In order to have your jersey retired at NC State, you must be considered the "Greatest Player in ACC History". NC State's list is much more impressive.

Who is the greatest player in the history of UNC-Ch basketball?

Today, Taylor Hansberry became the 8th player in the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-Ch) history to have his jersey retired. The current list includes:

NC	Jack Cobb	1926
20	George Glamack	1941
10	Lennie Rosenbluth	1957
12	Phil Ford	1978
52	James Worthy	1983
23	Michael Jordan	1984
33	Antawn Jamison	1998
50	Tyler Hansbrough	2010

I did a little research this evening and discovered that UNC-Ch has a set of criteria, one of which must be be met in order for a jersey to be retired. They are:

• Associated Press Player of the Year
• Oscar Robertson Trophy, formerly known as the United States Broadcasters Association National Player of the Year
• National Association of Basketball Coaches Player of the Year
• Sporting News Player of the Year
• John R. Wooden Award
• Naismith College Player of the Year

An interesting tidbit I found during this rather boring endeavor was that during the 2007-2008 season, Hansberry won all 6 awards, making his jersey retirement a foregone conclusion. As far as I know, Hansberry is the only UNC-Ch player to do this. Logically, this makes him the greatest basketball player to ever don the baby-blues.

That is a fairly amazing accomplishment considering the number of nationally known players that have played basketball for the Tarheels. I never would have thought that such an obscure player would stand head and shoulders above all others, outshining other UNC-Ch players such as Steve Hale, Ranzino Smith, that white guy that threw Dean Smith out of his office, Danny Manning, that douchebag that broke his wrist at LSU, Bobby Hurley, and the Rubber Man. Wow.

Helpful Web Links

In the course of my online life, I have accumulated a key set of links that I come back to time and time again. I thought it best to record these for posterity in the event that a reader will need something like this and possibly share their own.

Digital Photography
DPReview - This is the best place to go for reviews, specs, and forums related to digital cameras.
Digital Photography Tutorials - Nice set of tutorials on issues related to digital imaging, particularly for thise with DLSRs.

Acronyms
Acronym Finder - If it's not here, then it's not anywhere.

Book Resources
Book Finder - Especially helpful if the book is out of print.
Book Army - Looking for a review?

Dictionaries
dict.org - My favorite dictionary and the fastest to look something up.
dictionary.com - Good secondary resource, especially if you are looking for a more modern source.
hyperdictionary - Good source for multiple lookups

Motorcycle Parts
Yamaha Parts Catalog - If you need a part for your Yamaha, it's here. The best parts catalog interface I have run across. Complete down to any bolt on any bike.

Conversions
Unit Conversions - Convert any unit to another.
File Conversion - Quick way to convert files when the usual stuff (i.e., Handbrake) isn't handy.