THE NERD REPORT
Nerds around town: Comicpalooza, Thrones, Rockets
May 9, 2019, 7:22 am
ART BY JESUS RODRIGUEZ
Born with a comic book in one hand and a remote control in the other, Cory DLG is the talent of Conroe's very own Nerd Thug Radio, Sports and Wrestling. Check out the podcast replay of the FM radio show at www.nerdthugradio.com!
Hey Nerds!
It's Thursday and I don't know if you can tell but this is one of those times I am genuinely happy for the weekend because guys, this weekend is COMICPALOOZA!
GOOD DEED OF THE DAY
Today on reddit there was an Ask Me Anything from a 17 year old girl who has twice had to deal with the effects of fighting cancer. Stuff like this just breaks my heart and frustrates me to no end, kids with cancer? Like how does a family handle that? What wouldn't a parent do to save their kid, so now that you're thinking about that. Help Crits For Cancer help people in the battle against cancer. #NerdsUnite
COMICPALOOZA WEEK
There are so many great and fun things to do when you're at Comicpalooza one of the biggest things to partake in and enjoy is Artist Alley. Tons of great crafters and writers and artists set up shop in Artist Alley and are trying to make a living or supplement their living, selling art. Which honestly, is a pretty cool thing. You'll see all kinds of stuff there from all kinds of people, there are usually crafted goods like leather working and knitted things and there are self published books and indy comic books and music and small television shows and all kinds of assorted oddities to partake in. You can get commissions from artists, you can buy their prints, there are literally all kinds of things available and you won't find them anywhere else and that's the fun part. So seriously, go buy a weekend pass and check out Artist Alley.
GOING GREEN
Britain yesterday marked the first time since the industrial revolution that they had gone a week without using any coal to power their nation. That is an awesome and impressive step in the right direction and while it isn't perfect it absolutely should be celebrated. Last year renewable sources of energy were over 27% of how Britain got its power and natural gas was a little over 43% of how they got their power which is down 1% from the year before which also is a step in the right direction. They hope to be completely renewable powered by 2050 and honestly I hope it's sooner than that, I think if nations got serious about getting off of oil it would do several things. First of all it would take money and power out of the Middle East and OPEC, and if money and power drain from those areas than all of those people who are upset about "all these Muslim countries" well, most of those extremist religious regimes would go away because they are backed by oil. The thing that blows my mind, is even if you ignore the global warming component of all of this, people are getting mad and fighting against the concept of having an essentially free power grid. Let's say you hate everything "liberal" and are completely anti-"green" concepts, are you so against these things that you would rather pay a $200 monthly power bill every summer than just have free electricity or if not free then VERY cheap?
MAP OF THRONES
So I found something that's fun and worth a little bit of time to play with today if you have a few minutes to spare. It's an interactive map of the world of Game of Thrones and on it you can track the movement of your favorite characters by book or by episode. It's fascinating to see the distances some of these characters have traveled in this story, including Tyrion Lannister and Brianne of Tarth, if you think about it, Brianne has gone back and forth across the seven kingdoms like three times by this season. Have you ever done that? I know I haven't and to think she did it on horseback this whole time, not a plane or train in sight although she has seen a few dragons. It's really worth checking out and playing with for a few minutes, I recommend killing some time with it today.
NOT THAT YOU ASKED
The Rockets game last night was so frustrating. The Warriors lost Kevin Durant and we still couldn't pull ahead. We had a whole fourth quarter where we finally could control all the match ups and they still got ahead and stayed ahead. It was perhaps the most disappointing fourth quarter of the season, also why the heck aren't we fouling every possession with the last like 60 seconds to play down by four at one point? Foul, foul, foul and foul some more, put them right on the line and then get CP3 and Harden some shots behind the line or easy dunks to Capella. But you have to do something more than traps and lazy defense. That might have been the season right there and I am of the opinion that it is unlikely for the Warriors to get back to the finals, because it's just so impossible to go five straight seasons, remember no one has done that as a team, ever, but if we're going to quit like that then there chances increase significantly.
I'm going to jump out and wish you guys a great Thursday and remind everyone to be kind to each other and try a little harder to have a great day! I'm coming back Friday and we'll be bringing more good times your way. Feel free to check out my digital short story The Wilson House or buy a shirt from Side Hustle Ts where some proceeds help fight cancer or listen to Nerd Thug Radio or support our Patreon Page. Thoughts, complaints, events and comments can be sent to corydlg@gmail.com.
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The phrase most associated with the late former Oakland-Los Angeles-Oakland Raiders’ owner Al Davis was “Just win baby.” One has to think Al would strongly approve of the Houston Astros. Going to the fifth inning Sunday against the Mariners the Astros were facing a 3-0 deficit and staring at the prospect of being swept out of Seattle and having their American League West division lead slashed to just two games. Now after roaring from behind with 11 unanswered runs to take the series finale in the Emerald City, and then sweeping three games from the Diamondbacks in Phoenix, the Astros stand six games up with 60 games to go. So, if the Astros play just .500 ball the rest of the way (which would have them finish with 90 victories), the Mariners have to play .600 ball to catch them. If somehow the Astros are to maintain their season long win pace to the finish line they’d close with 95 wins, and the race is already over unless someone thinks the M’s are poised to uncork a finishing kick of 41-19 or better. It’s quite a pleasing perch from which the Astros survey the standings. Coupled with the freefalling Detroit Tigers having dropped nine of their last ten games, the Astros amazingly start this homestand sporting the best record in the entire American League. On the homestand they follow four games against the team with the second-worst record in the American League (Athletics) with three versus the team with the second-worst record in the National League (Nationals). I know, I know. There is fear of the Astros playing down to the competition, but that is not the way to look at it. A bad Major League team can beat a good team in a series at any time. If it happens it happens, but it wouldn’t mean it happened only because the Astros didn’t take their opponent seriously. This isn’t the NBA.
Trade deadline looming
Of course, It hasn’t been all good news with Isaac Paredes badly injuring a hamstring Sunday. Paredes could be back in three weeks (doubtful), he could miss the rest of the season. GET WELL SOON JEREMY PENA! Lance McCullers’s latest Injured List stint could be considered addition by subtraction for the Astros’ starting rotation. Whether impacted by his blister issue, Lance was lousy in four of his last five starts. So, one week from the trade deadline, if general manager Dana Brown has the ammo to get one deal done, where does he make the upgrade? The left-handed hitter everyone knows the Astros can use regardless of Yordan Alvarez’s status is a natural priority. With the Astros’ weak farm system it would seem difficult for Brown to put forth the winning offer for the top bats that could be in play. That probably rings even truer now, since if he wasn’t already untouchable, Brice Matthews may have cemented untouchable status by darn near winning the first two games of the Diamondbacks series by himself. Matthews is going to struggle mightily to hit for a good average if he can’t make notable improvement in the contact department, but the power is obvious, as is the athleticism in the field. The 23-year-old Matthews and 22-year-old Cam Smith (though presently mired in a three for 36 slump) are the clear (and right now only) two young shining beacons for the lineup’s future.
You can't have enough pitching
While Brandon Walter has been a revelation, a starting pitcher would make sense unless the decision is to hope Spencer Arrighetti and/or Cristian Javier can contribute meaningfully upon return to the big leagues, likely sometime next month. Going after a reliever or two may make more sense in terms of availability and transaction cost. Overall the Astros’ bullpen has been excellent, but Bryan Abreu is the only trustworthy right-handed option for Joe Espada. Back to Walter. Barely two months ago no way Walter himself would have believed he’d be where he is now. Nine starts since being summoned basically out of desperation, Walter has a 3.35 earned run average, and a stunning 13 to one strikeout-to-walk ratio with his 52 strikeouts against a measly four walks allowed in 53 2/3 innings. Walter has pitched fabulously in seven of his nine starts. He only has two wins, but that’s because in five of the six Walter starts the Astros didn’t win the game they failed to score more than two runs. Walter turns 29 years old in September. His only prior big league experience was 23 innings in relief with a 6.26 ERA for the Red Sox two years ago. The Bosox released him last August, the Astros signed him basically as minor league depth. Look at him (and the Astros) now.
For Astro-centric conversation, join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday. Click here to catch!
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