Why I've Always Been A Pittsburgh Pirates Fan

This article is in response to Why I'm No Longer A Pittsburgh Pirates Fan from last summer. As I was sitting alone at the Rangers Ballpark in Arlington on Monday night watching the Pittsburgh Pirates get win #82, I spent a lot of time thinking about the past 20 years and all of the experiences that team has given me despite the losing. There are so many amazing memories that still stick with me. The first I can think of was the very first game I ever went to, my 6th birthday against the Expos with my Dad and one of my best friends BJ. I also thought of the times when the five of us in the family would go to a game,... Read More

We hope you enjoyed the start to the NCAA college football season, but in case you don't have a great gameplan for your viewing day, Pat has compiled a tactical plan to help guide you through 16 hours of the the best football around. Gear up, it's gameday! 8:00 am: Get up. You're an adult and should be out of bed already. Or in some cases just getting in from a late night. Don't bother with breakfast, get your daily exercise out of the way already. 9:30 am: 
You should be in your favorite chair with a copy of your favorite college football guide (Lindy or Athlon will work just fine), and already setting the favorites if... Read More

In less than a month, one of my favorite TV shows of all-time, Breaking Bad, will be finished. I've seen every episode since it began on January 20, 2008, and I've never gone more than a day after the premiere of a new episode before watching it. However, I'm not what you would call a "superfan" of the show. This may surprise you, but it shouldn't. I had heard some things about the show before it premiered, but I shrugged them off. I was what you would call a "casual" fan of Malcolm In The Middle, because I'd usually watch it if I had nothing better to do. Sunday nights in Pittsburgh in the '90's? I was obviously... Read More

In our continuing series, our own Marv Nelson takes a look at what it takes to be a father. My wife Hilary and I have good friends who invited us on a vacation with them this past week. Jen and Sean are our friends, and the vacation spot was Maryland, so we jumped in our soccer-mom mini-vans, loaded up our kids (4 kids, our two and their two) and headed off on a great adventure! The trip was really relaxing, fun, and all around amazing. The trip back however, proved to be a bit less of all of those! It was pouring down rain at one point, windy out the wazoo the next, and pretty much a toddler/pre-school whinefest... Read More

The people in my life that know me well also know just how important of a role my pets, both of which are rescue animals, play in my life. My dog is a lab-chow mix whose mother was so severely abused that when taken from her "owners" she was minutes from being put down before they found that she was pregnant. The other is an 8 year old Manx cat who was taken from his mother at 3 weeks and, while only weighing half a pound, was about to be left in the woods by his "owners." For the people that know me, it's also no secret that I like animals more than I like most people, and I detest those who neglect and abuse animals. Don't worry... Read More

The Xbox One and the PlayStation 4 had many of their most important details released recently. Most of you are probably just as excited as we are about the new game consoles, but which one should you choose? So much info has been thrown at us, the consumers, over the last couple of weeks including E3 that it can be overwhelming. Well don't worry, I'm going to weigh out the pros and cons for you in a good old fashioned Bro Council "Guy's Rant." Let's start with the PS4: as an owner of a PS3 I had a couple of complaints, including long loading times for games and a boring UI. Hopefully with faster processors and software... Read More