NFL Week 4: Sleeping

Hello from the Maldives! China's Golden week is starting, which means the whole country shuts down for a week and the ex-pats flee the country. It's tough to handicap games with a view of the ocean that is teal-green. The one drawback; the internet connection is not great so I'm not able (at this time) to log into slingbox to see the Ryder Cup disappointment. I know, first world problems.


The Browns are on a bye this week, taking a rest, so let's talk about one of the innate abilities of the Chinese population - the ability to sleep anywhere at any time! A lot of Chinese people invest their time into work....it's very common for people to work until 8, 9 at night and every day I get email from the China P&G employees at 11 pm, 12 midnight or later....on a Tuesday. They feel a responibility to work. That leaves them a little time after wotk to rest/relax; when we lived in the city, the river walk was bust every night with noises until 1, 2 am. (It was tough to get a 3-year old to bed at 8:30 pm with all that business outside.

So when do they sleep? Well, anywhere and any time. I took the picture above at noon on a Thursday walking to another building. This is in a public park. The CHinese will sleep anywhere, because many of them are sleep-deprived.

1. Sleeping in public parks is very common; where else is there shade and relative quiet?

2. At work, there was a "gift" from P&G to all empoyees. What was it? A round pillow to be used at your desk. Every day, there are plenty of people sleeping at their desk from 12-1:30, and there are other sleeping at those times in huddle rooms.

3. You see people sleeping in cars (parked, of course) all over town. Again, no better place to get a quick nap where it is quiet.

Maybe this is a direct function of the overcrowding? It is so.... busy? ...at home, that people escape to public places to get some shut-eye. I think the "rule" of 8 hours of sleep is unheard of here, even for kids. Normal bedtimes for Chinese kids, like 8-10 year olds, are 10 pm or later. There is a photo book entitled "Sleeping Chinese" http://sleepingchinese.com/that has pictures of the population sleeping in weird places; I should pick up a copy before I leave here.


Still upset on the multiple missed opportunities for the Browns last week. We should have won that game...only the Browns can throw a 71-yard pass to a wide open receiver - and I mean WIDE OPEN - http://sleepingchinese.com/and have the drive result in 0 points. Argh.

Anyway, on to the games:

Bal 23, Car 16. I still believe in the Ravens' home magic, and they have enough on D to stop the Panthers.

GB 27, Chi 20. Not impressed at all with the Bears. The wins they have are a result of the teams giving them the games (49ers, Jets). This is a desperate situation for the Pack (like the Steelers last week ).

Buf 20, Hou 17. Buffalo ran into a very good Charger team last week; I think they have enough on O to beat a Texans team that still may be overrated.

Ind 30, Ten 16. These games are always close, but it's hard to see how Tennessee has to offense to stay with the Colts in Indy. The Colts should move up and down vs. the Titans.

NYJ 24, Det 17. Not impressed with the Lions as an outdoor team, and the Jets have a good defense. I think this is an upset here. 

Oak 20, Mia 17. Yes, I am biased since Miami laid an egg last week and I am still pissed at that. Oakland has a solid, underrated defense that can stop the Dolphins. What will Miami do on O?

Pit 30, TB 23. Not touching this game from a team perspective. Would love to see Tampa win outright, with Glennon as their QB, but Big Ben has the weapons to avoid it. I am scared that Tampa will be 0-7 when they come to Cleveland in Week 9.

SD 27, Jax 16. I should be bold enough to pick a much closer game here - SD is off 2 big wins and rpime for a letdown, and Bortles will be ready. OK< screw it, I'll pick the close game. How many Jacksonvill games can I get wrong in a year?  (don't answer that....)  SD 27, Jax 20.

Min 20, Atl 19. Minnesota has a very solid D and I don't like the Falcons outdoors. The Bridgewater era begins with an upset.

Phi 31, SF 27. SF is so overrated. Their defense is not that good, and they have a one-dimensional offense dependent on a flaky Kapernick.

NO 24, Dal 20. Rob Ryan will figure out how to stop the Dallas run D, forcing Romo to beat them....and we all know what happens then.

NE 23, KC 20.  I am confused about this game. I don't believe that the Pats are any good - they are a 1-2 team at best, but got lucky with the schedule so far. Does KC have the offense to score in the 20's here and keep it close?

Best bets: 13 of them. Last week: 9-5, overall: 24-20-1.

Bal -3

GB -1 1/2

Buf +3

Ind -7

NYJ +1 1/2

Oak +3 1/2

TB/Pit over 45 1/2

Jax +12 1/2

Min +3

Atl/Min under 47

Phi +4 1/2

Phi/SF over 49 1/2

NO/Dal under 54


Supercontest: Last week: 3-2; overall: 9-6

GB -1 1/2

Bal -3 1/2 (hate that hook here)

Buf +3

Min +3

Phi +5 1/2

NFL Week 3: Money

Money is a strange subject in China. At first glance, you see that China is a communist country - so money would not be very important (or blatent) in this culture. And you would be so wrong.

Here is a sign I saw on one of the cubicles at work - from a local - that sums up the attitude of most Chinese I know. People here believe that money truly can bring happiness. At the very least, the possession of money is important and needs to be flaunted at every possible opportunity.

The questions we get about money are much transparent and "prying" than they are in the States. "How much do you make" is a question I have heard numerous times while interviewing people out of school. In fact, I signed up for the P&G team to run the half-marathon in Guangzhou in November. The application form asked for my blood type (I should know, but I don't) and my salary. WTF?

But the most shocking part of the culture is the fact that you have to appear to have money. That's why the demand for brand-name designer clothes is insatiable - the buyer and then show it off and impress their family and friends. Locals would not be caught dead in second-hand goods. I may have shared this story before - three years ago, Janice's boss left Guangzhou for Singapore, and had a "moving" sale for all sorts of furniture in his house. He made up a 10 page Word doc with pictures of all the stuff he was selling, and passed it around work. The only people to inquire back to him about buying stuff were....other ex-pats. It is beneath the dignity of the Chinese to buy something second hand. It smacks of poverty.

(we got a nice bunk bed out of it!)

This attitude of flaunting wealth carries over to travel, as well. We (our ex-pat lunch group) are convinced that the Chinese travel boom is not because they want to see the sights of the world.....it's so they can say they have seen the sights. That's why they take all sorts of pictures of themselves during vacation - so they can show people they have the money to actually visit this place. See? I'm here! You have to believe me! See, I have money?

They certainly do not vacation to experience the local culture and cuisine, as admitted by Xi Jinping recently.

The relationship between the Chinese and money is fascinating....sort of like the relationship between an NFL team and a good QB. If you have one, you better flaunt it, because in today's NFL, a good QB will bring you success.

Do we have a good (or decent) QB in Cleveland? Well, a game winning FG drive starting from the 4 certainly made me happy last week. Let's see if Hoyer can perform about as well against a much tougher Ravens D.......

On to the games:

SD 26, Buf 23. Both teams could suffer from a letdown; I just feel that I should jump on the chance to get points with the better team.

Cin 20, Ten 17. Ten's run D was awful last week, so they will make the adjustments necessary here and force Dalton to throw. I think Green being dinged up will be an issue, and the Titans may be a classic zig-zag team.

Det 31, GB 24. I am starting to think that the Pack may not be that good - and their D could be 25th or worse. Det moved the ball last week against Car (with nothing to show for it).

Ind 27, Jax 24. Jax can't be as bad as they looked in the last 6 quarters....and the Colts are extremely one-dimensional.

NE 24, Oak 13.  Not sold on the greatness of the Pats just yet. The Vikes gave them 14 points last week (on an INT and a blocked FG), and I'm buying the raiders low here.

NYG 23, Hou 17. Gulp. But the Giants moved the ball last week, and Houston hasn't played anybody.

Phi 26, Was 24. Yes, I'm buying the opinion of the Skins O being much better with Cousins vs. RG III. And Philly will pay for their first-half doldrums sooner or later.....Was can rush the QB, which will mitigate the Philly O.

Dal 27, StL 17. So I'm supposed to think StL is decent after beating the Bucs? How was Tampa on Thursday? I know this is an obvious trap, but I can't help it.....

Az 21, SF 20. Gone round and round on this game. I guess I need to see Colin Kaepernick win a game vs. a good defense before I feel comfortable picking him on the road.

Mia 23, KC 16. I think Miami uses the heat to its advantage well, and will control the lines. What O weapons does KC have ?

Sea 27, Den 24. I expect an instant classic of a game here. Two teams desperate for a win.

Pit 19, Car 16.  I know, this makes no sense, as Carolina is the much better team, but Pittsburgh is desperate and will pull out trick plays and exotic blitzes to stay in the game.

NYJ 24, Chi 20. Who know what the health of the Bears' receivers will be at game time? I was surprised the Jets scored in the 20s at Green Bay.

Best bets: 14 of them. Last week: 10-6, overall: 15-15-1

SD +1 1/2
Ten +6 1/2
Det -2 1/2
Jax +7
Ind/Jax over 45 1/2
Oak +14
Oak/NE under 47
Min/NO over 49
NYG -1 1/2
Was +6
Dal -1
Mia -3 1/2
Pit +3
Pit/Car under 42

Supercontest: Last week: 5-0!!! The holy grail! Season: 6-4.

Ten +6 1/2
Det -2 1/2
NYG +2
Dal -1 1/2
Mia -4 1/2


 

NFL Week 2: Lawn Care

Well, that was a rough start to the 2014 NFL season. 1-4 in the Supercontest picks (although 1 better than someone I know), a losing record overall, lost 2 of my 3 fantasy leagues, and of course the Browns lose in dramatic fashion. I should have known; I watched the game in Macau where it's now a trend with the Browns losing heartbreakers when I watch the game at the Venetian:

2010: NY Jets 26, Cleveland 20, OT
2013: New England 27, Cleveland 26
2014; Pittsburgh 30, Cleveland 27

Oh well. A 3 point road loss to Pittsburgh isn't the end of the world. Let's move to week 2.

We have a picture from 2011 when we still lived in our apartment in the city and came out to visit friends of ours at the Golden Lake housing complex. (In 2012, we moved out to Golden Lake and no are very good friends with this family). Here is their side yard - you can see our boys playing on the trampoline (with Martin, age 3, trying valiantly to get on).

But what's that to the left of the trampoline? That's lawn care in China. There are two workers from the complex on the knees - well, actually squatting - and doing lawn care. I think in this picture they are actually weeding. They spent over an hour weeding the lawn by hand - with one of those hand-held, two prong gardening instruments.

This photo I think shows the dichotomy of China right now . It wants to be modern and more "Western", but still relies heavily on good old man-power to get things done. It's as if the industrial revolution hasn't come to parts of China yet. I have played golf where we go by a bunker and there are 10 ladies - all dressed in hats, long sleeves, and long pants on a 100-degree day - doing a "relay" of sod squares to repair a bunker. 10 people!

It also highlights the rich-poor gap in China. There are insanely rich Chinese people (not counting the ex-pats), and yet, in the same city, we have workers doing hand-weeding as a full time job. I may have a picture of some of the cars in the garage of our apartment (where we used to live) - Bentleys, 4-door Lamborghinis, etc.

I guess this is the result of a society with a low cost of labor........but what happens when the labor costs go up and these manual jobs disappear? I think a lot of economists are trying to figure that out, and are a bit frightened at the possibilities. Some sort of class war will be coming here....not this year, not in the next 5 years, but probably in our lifetime. I don't think I want to be here when it happens.

Anyway, on to lighter things...it's clear now that we have a rich-poor gap in the NFL. Wes Welker can be re-instated, the Doobie Brothers on the Steelers can face no punishment for their pot-smoking hijinks, but Josh Gordon? No way in hell - 10 games for you. It's like we will always be the weeders on the lawn looking up at those ex-pats on the trampoline ....until we get a quarterback.

(Do we have one? This week will tell a lot).

On to the games:

Mia 23, Buf 20. I've been going back and forth on this one - I just am more impressed with Mia's win than Buffalo's. Should be a very close game.

Was 27, Jax 13. How the hell did Jax not cover last week? They could not score at all once Phi stopped turning the ball over - and Washington's defense impressed me.

Dal 27, Ten 24. Romo can't have 2 disasterous games back to back, can he? Don't answer that.

Az 20, NYG 16. Maybe the preseason does matter, after all. My Giants pick last week could be the dumbest pick I have made in a while.

NE 31, Min 20. I'll take this even as the line increases above 5. I refuse to believe that the Patriots are "done", with all that talent. They will score here, and I don't think the Vikes can keep up.

Cin 27, Atl 16. I'm impressed with Cincinnati. Moved up and down the field against the Ravens - who may have a good defense. They will score TD's against the Falcons.

Car 27, Det 24. Again, not sure what to think here. Two evenly matched teams; I don't know if the Lions D is as good as they showed Monday night.

TB 27, StL 10. Banking on a bounceback from the Bucs and a continuation of the mess in St Louis.

Sea 19, SD 17. This is a scary game for the Hawks. They don't usually play well outdoors, on the road, against halfway-decent defenses.

Oak 19, Hou 17. Just a feeling here. Don't think Fitzpatrick can get it done on the road for the Texans.

GB 31, NYJ 17. The Jets will struggle on O - GB has a weak pass D, but how do the Jets take advantage of that?

Den 31, KC 23. Reid will have this team ready on the offensive side of the ball - but Denver is just too much.

Chi 28, SF 27. I don't think the Niners are elite; Dallas gave them the game last week, and Dallas was moving at will.

Ind 30, Phi 24. The improvements on the D side will help the Colts.

Best bets: 16 of them; last week: 5-9-1:
Was -6
Dal +3 1/2
Az/NYG under 42 1/2
NE -5 1/2
Cin -5 1/2
Atl/Cin under 49
Det/Car over 44
TB -5 1/2
SD +5
Sea/SD under 44
Oak +3
GB -7 1/2
KC +12
Chi +7
Chi/SF over 48
Ind -3


Supercontest picks: Last week: 1-4
Was -6
Dal +3 1/2
NE -3
Cin -5 1/2
Chi +6 1/2




 

NFL Week 1: The Playground

Hello everyone! We are live from the Venetian in Macau for Week 1 of the 2014 NFL season. Spending a 3-day weekend in Hong Kong and Macau with Mike A - otherwise known to some as "Why Not 5" - and others. A Morton's dinner is on tap for later tonight (I will sign the check as Mr. Steve Wieczynski to see if he has an account on file. After that, gambling and then kickoff at 1 am my time.

As many of you know, this will most probably be my last NFL season in China. Details are still being worked out for our trip home - I could be back in time for the home playoff game between the 2014 AFC North Champions Cleveland Browns hosting the wild card Denver Broncos; but nothing is set in stone yet. For the theme this year, we will be focusing on pictures I have that represent the experiences of China. These could be pictures of our family interacting with the Chinese, or just some random pictures I took in the street of daily life. I have a lot of pictures on my phone that I don't think I have published, and this is a good way to share 17 of them.


We start Week 1 with the playground. I don't think I have shared this yet. THis picture was taken in November, 2010, three months into our stint here. The "new"ness had worn off and we were still trying to comprenhend life here. We had been told numberous times that life as an ex-pat in China is like life in a fishbowl. Chinese, especially those from the rural areas, will be fascinated by the "white people" they see from Ohio. We saw it a lot for the first month or two - but life was such a blur for us then we didn;t really notice it. I think this photo is when it hit home.


We traveled to a public playground on the main island in the city - Er Sha - which is very crowded and diverse. Here's Freddie and Warren playing around - and there's a Chinese lady, camera at the ready, taking pictures of them. For what reason? Just to have and say "I saw them! They really do exist!" I had to snap this picture to capture the fascination that the Chinese had - and still have! - on foreigners.


It happened even today at lunch, someone came up to our group and took a picture. This was the first time I realized that the fishbowl would not end here in China.


Kind of like how Johnny Manziel feels in his new city and career! Maybe JFF should head over to China to see how life really is when you are constantly in the spotlight - good training for the 24-hour meaningless ESPN coverage.

(they do realize he is not starting, correct?)

On to the games!
NO 31, Atl 24. I can't help it. I know it's a trap, and I will willingly take the Saints. They have more talent - this is the obvious pick....

StL 24, Min 21. Not sure what's going to happen here. Unsure of Cassel at QB, and I think Hill will be OK running Stl's offense with the conservative Fisher.

Cle 24, Pit 0. Twenty five years ago, the Browns went to Pittsburgh for the opener with a new coach and a QB that got hurt the year before and missed the last half of the season....and this happened. I will suffer for just 50% of that beatdown this year.

Phi 34, Jax 27 - A gut feel here. Bradley had the Jags playing well late last year, and he is defensive coach that should be able to help stop Philly a bit with all this time to plan.

NYJ 23, Oak 13. I think Rex Ryan and the Jets' D will be able to handle a rookie QB at home. Oak turnovers will give the Jets the ball in good field position several times.

Bal 19, Cin 17. Two offensive coordiantors that love to run and eat clock - should be a low scoring game, with the Ravens finding home magic again.

Chi 31, Buf 17. Again, too easy, but I am sooooo impressed with the Bears' offense.

Hou 27, Was 20. Anything can happen in this game - but I like Romeo, Watt and Clowney vs. the shaky Washington O.

KC 24, Ten 13. Kansas City still has a good defense, right? They should shut down the Titans.

NE 30, Mia 27. Mia's improved O line will allow them to score vs.the Pats, but it's hard to see NE lose this with Brady and his weapons. Love to see a shootout here.

Car 23, TB 17. I don't get the Tampa love. What has Josh McCown done? Are we sure Doug Martin is good? Isn't Carolina's D still elite? I know Cam is banged up, but I have faith in Derek Anderson (cough).


Dal 33, SF 30. Dal's weakness is Pass D, and I don't think SF can fully take advantage of that. And Dallas may be playing desperate from the get go in week 1. Love the home dog with the upset here.

Den 34, Ind 23. Den rang up 49 on the Ravens last year in primetime week 1, and the Colts D is not better than the Ravens.

NYG 27, Det 24. Coughlin vs. Caldwell - who ya got? I know the Giants looked horrible, but I have to believe that COughlin will use all sorts of schemes to neutralize Megatron.


Az 23, SD 20. This is the game where I have no idea what will happen. Is either team a mirage - or both? Is Arizona's defense still elite? Will Rivers play ot his form last year, or 2013? Who knows....we will learn a lot from this game.

Best bets: 15 of them.

To recap:
 
Last year: 127-122-6

Overall, 6 years: 1002-916-57

NO -3

Jax +10 1/2

Jax/Phi over 51 1/2

NYJ -5

Cin/Bal under 42 1/2

Chi -6 1/2

Hou -3

KC -3

Ten/KC under 44

NE/Mia over 46 1/2

Car +2 1/2

Dal +3 1/2

SF/Dal over 51

Den -7 1/2

NYG +6 1/2


Supercontest: here we go again! The 5 picks:

Jax +10 1/2

NYJ -5 1/2

Dal +4 1/2

Car +2

NYG +5 1/2

Let's get ready for football !

Hi everyone :

So this blog is turning into a NFL and Vegas diary blog ?

Anyway, it's the weekend of week 1 of the NFL season - which means it is a trip to Hon Kong ! We are doing the annual day trip in a boat around the harbor. Should be great - weather looks nice so far.

It also means unfettered access to YouTube - and time to scour the archives for old NFL openings !

How about this opening from NBC in 1981 between a huge week 16 clash between Miami and Buffalo ?

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=jMyGvAJxVUc

Even Don Criqui seemed bored of the annoying theme.  And how about a better tag line, Radio Shack ?

The one thing NBC did right was the beginning for their pregnant show.  Remember these montages ?

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=BctCHz2iyr4

I don't remember that last game. I was only 8.  This was the year of red right 88 - so more heartbreak was coming.