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| 5:33
| Buzz is super this morning, which is good. Steve was just recording some commercials since we're going to be off next week. |
| 5:34
| Steve's already thrown down some temper tantrums, it's a good way to start the day off. We had deadlines which we told the sales staff we needed copy by. |
| 5:35
| The mistake might have been telling them that the deadline was Monday but Wednesday at the latest. Then Steve gets some copy this morning and had to crank those out. |
| 5:36
| Steve and Buzz have already spent hours this week recording live reads, you'd think the sales staff could get these things in on time. It is benefiting them after all. |
| 5:37
| This will all be brought up in a meeting after the show today. Buzz should stick around if he wants to see something good. He'll be throwing paper weights, maybe breaking office windows, it'll be a Tony-winning performance. |
| 5:38
| Steve thought he might have sounded like he was still asleep but Pete says it was fine. Steve has more to do after the show too. Can Pete just play the first one back? |
| 5:39
| Mary started to take the copy away when Steve was fake throwing his headphones and kicking the equipment rack. He also wanted to punch out one of the windows. The last time Buzz saw a high-rise window break it was at the Hancock. Some sales guy took an ax to it and jumped out. |
| 5:40
| Steve did not get a ton of sleep last night. On his way home from the Sox game Steve heard Ed talking to Chris Rongey. Chris is filling in for Steve Steve and he had talked to Mark Buehrle's dad before the game. |
| 5:41
| Mark is 3 strikeouts away from 1,000 and his dad said if it doesn't happen here he'll have to go out to LA. Then Steve remembered the Sox would be out in LA next week. |
| 5:42
| Pat Dahl is getting ready to move home so Steve thought he should go out there next week and go to the game with him and his dad. Sure it's sort of late notice but Steve thought he was being a good son. |
| 5:43
| So Steve books his flight and he gets the game tickets on Stub Hub. But when he tries to book a rental car there is seemingly nothing left on the Hertz lot. This is all at 11 last night when Steve should be sleeping. |
| 5:44
| Then Steve went to National where they have the Emerald Club. They were the first people to make it so you don't have to go to the check-in counter to get your car but they just have groups of cars, not one car set aside. So it's too random, he might get an Escalade or he might get a bicycle built for two. |
| 5:45
| Then Steve booked himself at the hotel and the package includes a rental car. But then he forgot to click on the option where the hotel picks you up at the airport. So he had to cancel that reservation and start over. And it's midnight and he's all jacked about travel and wondering what will happen to him. |
| 5:46
| Steve's not sure if his brother will come with but if he doesn't then Pat's wife could come. But then Janet accused Steve of being insensitive because Pat and Rachael have a lot on their plate with the move. Janet was awake during |
| 5:47
| Then Steve was mad that he didn't go in and see his girl at Dunkin' Donuts this morning. So he apologizes to everyone on the staff that he may have frightened. Mainly it was Mary, who had to come into the studio like a lion tamer and get the live read scripts from him. |
| 5:48
| Pete is sitting in his studio recording all of this, saying noting encouraging. You know he's just sitting in there rolling tape and laughing. It'll be used against Steve at a Christmas party. |
| 5:49
| It's a 5:15 am flip-out where Steve is mad because he's going on vacation, this is great stuff for Pete. Plus at this time of the morning there's no self-censorship in place. Plus Steve's on 3 hours of sleep and all sorts of herbal supplements. |
| 5:50
| One live read that Steve had to record was for McCracken Financial. It was a letter from a customer so Steve didn't know if he should do a different voice for it. And since it's the first one of the day Steve wants to get it right. |
| 5:51
| Then he starts kicking things and demanding a meeting with everyone. He wants Les Moonves flown in, he wants Zimmerman, he wants Bowen and Cavanah and Ryan Lieberman and that kid who handles the McCracken account! |
| 5:52
| Steve hasn't taken a vacation all year because he wants to shore things up here. Steve gets 5 weeks but Buzz only gets 4. He gets a 5th week by piggybacking on Steve since we can't leave him here alone. The place would be boarded up when Steve got back. |
| 5:53
| Steve really appreciates all of Pete's positive feedback throughout the recording session this morning. As soon as Steve starts throwing stuff you can hear Pete lock his studio door. He has enough water in there to stay in until 10 am. |
| 5:54
| It's probably a good idea to go out to L.A. next week, at least it seemed like that last night. Steve would still like to go to Yankee Stadium at some point this summer. Maybe he'll go for the All-Star Game. |
| 5:55
| Steve couldn't stop making arrangements last night and he was getting all jacked up about it. He was imagining every scenario for his trip, when he should come home, what he should do in LA, should he take a meeting with Bob Teitel about the Disco Demolition movie, is he sick of that already? Next thing Steve knows it's midnight. |
| 5:56
| Steve could have been asleep by 10 since Mark Buehrle pitches a quick game and it was over by 9:30. Steve went in with the best of intentions but then he's yelling at Janet because she's supposed to stop him. He wouldn't be surprised if everyone just has him committed. At the very least they could put him in a padded room or a cage that can be hosed down everyday. |
| 6:02
| Steve got himself awake this morning and a trip to L.A. next week to see Sox at Dodgers. As distasteful as the entire episode seemed it was productive. Mary said that some of the punching started when she was in the room but she did not stay for long. |
| 6:03
| Mary wears the riot gear whenever she's in the studio while live reads are being recorded. It's the full Chicago cop get-up, like they wore in 1968. She passes the copy through a slot. Meanwhile Pete locks himself in the studio and doesn't say anything helpful. Pete's just sitting in there thinking what a fat jerk Steve is, thinking about all the extra work he has to do, hoping Steve eats a Cinnabon and has a heart attack. Buzz doesn't think Pete ever wishes for anything fatal. Who else would put up with him? He'd last a week in a real job. |
| 6:04
| It's probably good that Steve got all of this out early. He'd still like to see all of those people in his office for a meeting. Sometimes the sales people are afraid to tell their clients that the show is on hiatus. The Best of is still a really good show though, better than anything else that's on. Usually people can't even tell Steve is on vacation, they're just surprised that one day he's in Hawaii, then he's in Dubai and then he's back with Garry Meier. |
| 6:05
| There might be still be a tranquilizer gun out in the hall. In case Steve hits the hallway someone can take him down. It'll be a fun trip to L.A. though with Steve and his dad and Pat. He got some good tickets on Stub Hub and the parking passes are being Fed Exed to him now. |
| 6:06
| Hertz being sold out of cars really made things harder for Steve last night. They can't be sold out of every car at LAX can they? Steve didn't like the uncertainty of the National car rental though, he doesn't want to get there and be racing someone to the car he wants. |
| 6:07
| Then he couldn't remember his Avis number so he just went with the hotel package. It doesn't say what kind of car he'll get but he doesn't really care. It occurred to him that Stephanie could probably do some of this today though. |
| 6:08
| There is some sort of CBS discount but Steve didn't want to call Todd Cavanah at 11:30 at night to ask him about it. Every time Steve books a hotel though Todd tells him he should have gone through CBS. |
| 6:09
| Steve can't get out of the trip now because the parking passes are being sent to him. He should have probably had them sent to someone out in L.A. It's just another day at the beach for Steve. |
| 6:10
| Steve and Buzz have been following Oprah's 21 day cleanse, which she's blogging about. THe blogging has been very spotty though. The first week she blogged all 7 days. By the way she starts her week on Sunday which Steve finds troubling. |
| 6:11
| So far for week 4 she only has 1 day but she also lags behind a bit. Saturday of week three was her first official day off from work, no meetings or commitments. Does she know how Steve and Buzz have been cranking out shows with no vacation since January 3rd? And they don't do a 1 hour show, they do 4 1/2 grueling hours. |
| 6:12
| This is the first day that Oprah has felt grumpy because of what she can't eat. She wanted pasta or pizza or a panini, all things that start with a P. She really wanted a panini because she made one for an unexpected guest. Why would you do that? |
| 6:13
| Finally, Oprah is on day 21 of here cleanse. Oprah wants some wine, a Bordeaux 82. She almost broke down and had a glass but didn't because of her commitment to fellow VCTers. Steve has no idea what that means. Vegan cleanse tacos? |
| 6:14
| "Tomorrow Scarlet...tomorrow is another day" that's Oprah's mantra for now. What is that? Is that from Gone with the Wind? Steve's never seen the movie, the timing hasn't be right. Buzz is pretty sure it's the last line of the movie. |
| 6:15
| VCT is Veganista Cleanse Team. Her main meal was a large baked potato with sauteed onions, herbs and olive oil. That doesn't sound so bad. She also had a salad with avocado, tomato, lemon, garlic and olive oil. |
| 6:16
| All the ingredients came from her garden, she's growing potatoes, beets and corn. You know she's probably out there dressed like she's picking cotton. |
| 6:17
| Oprah has reached a new level of awareness about food, eating and how it gets to her table. She used to say thanks before a meal out of habit but now she considers it true grace to be able to eat anything in a world of food shortages and starving people. It's good that she can tie all that in too. |
| 6:18
| Steve still has the final part of Oprah's Stanford commencement address which is all about her as it turns out. She's telling kids that they shouldn't do what they don't want to do which is easy to say when you're a billionaire. If you're a college grad then you might have to do things you don't want to do, at least starting out. |
| 6:19
| Caller Jeff wanted to let Steve know that a Bordeaux 82 would cost you about $1,000 a bottle, probably more at a restaurant. It would be hideous to Buzz to develop a craving for a $1,000 bottle of wine. He just craves cheap Merlot and he indulges that craving. |
| 6:20
| Steve's no expert no wine but at some point it seems like you reach the point of diminishing returns. Jeff says you can tell the difference between a $1,000 bottle and a $200 bottle. |
| 6:21
| Buzz thinks it's just the mindset you put yourself in. When he drinks that cheap Merlot he can't think of a wine tasting better to him. Sometimes he has a wine that's more expensive and he doesn't like it. |
| 6:22
| Buzz's brain works very well with his wallet which is good. He still prefers Cuervo Gold, or a cheap Merlot. That's a good way to be though, it saves you a lot of money. |
| 6:23
| It seems weird to crack open a bottle of $1,000 wine just to have a glass with your panini. Of course Oprah's a billionaire. At what point is Oprah unrelatable though? People seem to mostly get off on it though. |
| 6:24
| Look at Martha Stewart, she's got a 30-room house and ever room is a suite. She must spend $30,000 entertaining guests for a weekend. Buzz thinks that people who are out there struggling to pay the rent enjoy the fact that at least someone is living like Oprah is. It probably gives them hope. |
| 6:25
| It all just annoys Steve. because it's sort of within his realm. It's the brass ring that he just can't grasp. If he has a private jet he's not up all night last night booking a flight to L.A. |
| 6:32
| That's Oprah's mantra from Gone with the Wind. Steve's never seen it, he doesn't really like the classics. By the time he gets around to seeing a classic movie he's heard so much about it. |
| 6:33
| Steve has seen Casablanca and it's pretty good. It was probably great when it came out. And Citizen Kane? Steve doesn't even get it. Well he got it but still. |
| 6:34
| Steve likes to keep his "greatest movie ever" more current, like Borat or Iron Man. Let's see Orson Welles do Iron Man! He couldn't even fit in the suit. Of course he's dead now. |
| 6:35
| Steve once saw Orson Welles when he was out in L.A., meeting with Irving Azoff. He wanted to be Steve's manager but not so much Garry's manager. It would have been a package deal but Steve wasn't interested. He would have probably ended up being a game show host and he didn't want that. |
| 6:36
| Azoff took them to Mom Maison which might be where Wolfgang Puck got his start. Orson Welles was sitting in a corner with a big bowl of escargot, popping them in his mouth like they were M & M's. He must have weighed 800 pounds, it was really something to see. It was like going to Sea World. |
| 6:37
| It seems like everyone really watched him grown. When he started out he was a little stocky but by no means fat. That's what happens when you peak early. He was wearing a caftan and popping those things with some butter and toast. |
| 6:38
| Live read: Hawk Ford |
| 6:39
| OK, on to Oprah's commencement address. Just to recap, she's been giving the graduates advice as if they were billionaires. She means well but when you're a college graduate, even from Stanford, you can't just sit still and decide what you like. |
| 6:40
| We also learned that one of the reasons she accepted the gig is because she feels her school in Africa is the same as Stanford. The Stanfords, Betty and Leland, started the school after their son died. So she set aside some time in the speech for that comparison, which is somewhat self-serving. |
| 6:41
| Oprah was always happy doing her talk show but at some point she decided to use television to serve her viewers and not have television use her. That alone changed her trajectory, whatever that means. Is that when her show stopped being like Jerry Springer? |
| 6:42
| This whole time Steve would have his face scrunched up wondering what Oprah was talking about. Oprah says if you're an anatomist you use your skill for healing. What's an anatomist? is that a doctor? |
| 6:43
| These are all nice thoughts but they seem impractical for a 22 year old kid or a 26 year old who just finished grad school. |
| 6:44
| Oprah ends with one of her favorite quotes from Dr. Martin Luther King. "Not everybody can be famous" Oprah doesn't know that everybody today wants to be famous. Fame is a trip, people follow you to the bathroom and listen to you pee. What you have to do is pee quietly. It doesn't matter though because when you come out people say "It's you, you peed!" |
| 6:45
| Dr. King said that everybody can be great because greatness is determined by service. You don't need a college degree to serve, you don't need to have your predicate and verb agree to serve, or know Einstein's theory of relativity to serve. |
| 6:46
| Not all of this speech is bad, the end of it gets more like a graduation speech. Then there's Steve's favorite part. Underneath every graduate's seat is two of her favorite books. |
| 6:47
| Don't you think you would have noticed the books under your seat before she told you about them? Well that's Oprah, out there making a difference. Keep up the good work! |
| 6:48
| Hopefully the 21-day cleanse went well, it's over now and she's probably cracked open the $1,000 bottle of wine. Steve doesn't drink any more but he likes to smell wine, you can tell differences. People always freak out when Steve smells wine, they think he's going to take a big gulp or something. |
| 6:54
| Steve just had the Jim kid in the studio talking some Cubs. He calls down to the newsroom. The Cubs are in Tampa, they're a tough team they swept the White Sox but of course the CUbs haven't been swept yet. Jim thought the Sox won 1 of 4 in that series. That's the same as being swept. |
| 6:55
| How's Jim's dog Santo doing? He named it Chance as in Tinkers to Evers to Chance. She's doing good, very rambunctious and full of puppy energy. Is Jim still getting married? |
| 6:56
| He's still getting married, they're actually looking at reception halls today but everything in the city is so expensive. They all charge you a rental fee for their uniqueness. That uniqueness is like an old building or one place that has a classic car collection in it. Awesome, they should do that one! They want to but the rental fees are crazy, they're all between $4,000 and $8,000. |
| 6:57
| If you were at a hotel or banquet hall wouldn't they build that in? So far they've only looked at one hotel and it's the cheapest because they only charge for the catering. Why wouldn't they add that in at a hotel, is it a Travelodge or something. |
| 6:58
| It's actually the Holiday in at the Apparel Mart. They won't build that in, they don't even have windows. Actually it does have windows and a nice view of the river. All of the sudden Jim is a wedding expert, he's like Franc from Father of the Bride. |
| 7:00
| They're also looking at Germania Place in Old Town. What's the parking situation at these places because Steve's going to need valet if he attends. He'll need a space up front in case he has to leave to deliver a baby or something. |
| 7:01
| Well Steve will do whatever he can to help, maybe someone at that billboard place is listening. Jim is hoping to go with a place that uses Levy Brothers, he likes their food. Steve does know people there, he knows their executive chef. |
| 7:02
| Maybe Steve doesn't know what he's talking about and places don't add in a rental fee. To be honest he couldn't pay attention during the planning of Pat's wedding. He wanted to but he couldn't process any more info. Steve is leaning towards that place with the classic cars if that matters to anyone. |
| 7:03
| Steve could tent his backyard and he'll only charge Jim $2,500. Buzz would take that. Does Jim get use of the pool? Steve could put a plexiglass dance floor over it and then buy all the steaks from Allen Brothers and mark them up. He'll even grill them, how many people is that? They're thinking about 300 people, that could take a while. |
| 7:04
| And Jim's dog is OK? Steve was enlisted to take his dogs to the vet yesterday and it almost ended in tragedy. Janet asked him to come along so he put the dogs in the car and kept them back with the partition. Steve got onto Wolf Road and one intersection it's only a 2-lane road. There's a turning lane to the left and what Steve thinks is a lane to go right. A lot of people go into the right lane and try to beat you across the intersection and get in front of you before it goes to one lane. |
| 7:05
| In most cases all you have to do is speed up to put yourself in the proper spot. Of course you could let it go, there's that school of thought. On any given day Steve could be in that school of thought. But when a person positions himself in such a way that you have to get behind him and you don't back off that creates a really bad scenario for someone like Steve. |
| 7:06
| It's especially bad when the other driver is a shrimpy white guy wearing one of those nylon skull caps in a what is quite frankly in one of those Mustangs that girls drive. That got a little out of hand and the guy wouldn't back off. Steve wasn't going to back off so Steve actually went into the lane of oncoming traffic to get around him. With the wife and the dogs in the car that's not a good idea. |
| 7:09
| And of course Steve was getting yelled at going into the vet's office and rightly so. This stuff only happens when Janet is in the car. Or maybe Steve just doesn't notice when he's alone. It didn't seem like that big of a deal going into the southbound lane when he was heading north. |
| 7:10
| Then when Steve attempted to get the dogs out Millie just jumped out right into the street in front of a car. Normally the dogs wait for him to grab their leashes but lately MIllie has been sewing her wild oats a bit. |
| 7:11
| Caller Mandy is on hands free and Steve doesn't like it. Steve likes it to be personal, doesn't Mandy feel closer to Steve now? Mandy's in Lake Zurich but she's not flooded, her house is up on grade where it should be. |
| 7:12
| Mandy has some info about that classic car place Jim is looking at for his wedding. A co-worker has been to a wedding there and he said it was the most unique wedding he'd ever been to. There are three levels so Jim should check them all out. |
| 7:13
| The guy used the classic car level for cocktails then the rooftop atrium for appetizers and the middle level for dinner. Steve would like Jim to stay on the car level and have carhop service. |
| 7:14
| This place is called the Ravenswood Billboard Factory. If their rental fee isn't down to at least $2,500 Jim should let Steve know. Right now it's $8,500 to rent the place. $8,500! Steve and Buzz need to get themselves a banquet hall and get some rich people to start storing their old cars there. Yikes! Steve is still leaning towards it though. |
| 7:15
| Mandy's going to take herself out of the spin of the wheel because she won the big prize within the last 6 months. That's some good self-regulating. Mandy called in to tell Buzz about making fried rice with his pan-fried steak. |
| 7:16
| Steve was mad because Buzz was serving Ore-Ida potatoes with steak so Mandy recommended another side. Was the time where Aimee burned the potatoes? |
| 7:17
| Mandy told Buzz to throw some butter into the pan along with some pre-cooked rice and the meat drippings. Buzz needs potatoes with his steak and you can't really move him off that, or anything really. |
| 7:25
| Live read: Fresh Diet |
| 7:26
| Buzz has been agonizing over a slab of ribs he had for Father's Day and Steve doesn't want to hear about it any more. |
| 7:27
| A slab is a pretty standard serving of ribs. Steve can see agonizing over the second slab of ribs, not the second half of the slab. |
| 7:28
| Steve got some pretty good emails today but he's not going to open up the mailbag. This one is from Steve's nephew Colin who's buddy used If It's Not His Mole It's Not his Pole for the name of his bar trivia team name. |
| 7:29
| They were having a contest for the best name and they won hands down and got a free tray of shots. |
| 7:30
| Joining us now is Len Kasper, would we call him the TV voice of the Cubs? Steve can call Len whatever he wants. How about great broadcaster? |
| 7:31
| Len and Bob do a great job on those Cubs games which is a lot coming from a big Sox fan like Steve. Len's always had fun but it's been even more fun when they're winning. |
| 7:32
| Steve has no tickets for the games this weekend although he knows someone with a rooftop deal. You can't really see the games from there which segues perfectly into Comcast's full coverage of the games. If you can't go to the game you can watch it from home. |
| 7:33
| And of course all the Cubs and Sox games are in HD now. Len and Bob do have to wear make up now that they're in HD. It's always fun to be putting some of that when a scout or a former player walks in. Len usually offers them some of his make-up. |
| 7:34
| Steve had to wear make-up for the Comcast Sportsnet Awards. If he looks good in it he actually likes leaving it on. The only danger with getting TV make-up at night is making sure you get it off before you go to bed. |
| 7:35
| Len saw in a blog once where someone spotted him after a game and said it looked like he had make-up on. That's because he did have make-up on. Steve and Buzz are wearing make-up now and they're not even on TV. |
| 7:36
| Len is down in Tampa, those Rays are a buzzsaw. Len knew coming in that the Rays were good. They pitch well, they play great defense, they're going to make you beat them which is new for that team. The most wins they've ever had was 70 under Lou. Len's not sure if they can hang with the Red Sox but they don't really need to, they can get in with the Wild Card. |
| 7:37
| When the schedule came out you were glad to not get the Yankees and Red Sox but the Blue Jays are pretty good, the Orioles are better than people thought and the Rays are really good. |
| 7:38
| On paper Len thinks the Cubs are the best team in the National League. He sort of wishes the Cubs were playing the Red Sox just to see that match-up, but they do get to match-up against the White Sox and Rays and they're two potential World Series teams. |
| 7:39
| The Cubs still haven't played the Red Sox in Fenway Park and Len thought that would happen this year. You'd think MLB would want that series to happen. |
| 7:40
| The Rays are no longer the Devil Rays and Len has a list of other potential names that they almost went with instead of the Rays. There was the Waves, the Cannons, the Dukes. Steve thinks Rays works but he also liked Devil Rays. |
| 7:41
| Tropicana Field is the only sports facility that has a ray tank so it's unique. Steve thinks it's a godforsaken hole. It is pretty generic but at least the Cubs got the games in. It looks like it could rain in Tampa but it won't matter. |
| 7:42
| The Rays are looking to build a new waterfront stadium with a retractable roof. It'll have real grass though. |
| 7:43
| Len is staying at the Vinoy Hotel which is the place that's haunted. So far he hasn't had any problems. Nick Swisher stayed there one night with the door open, then the next night at Toby Hall's house. Two other Sox players actually shared a room. |
| 7:44
| Len doesn't necessarily believe in ghosts but he would if he saw it. Then he'd be on board. Steve doesn't believe it either although he's been drunk enough to demand a ghost show up in house. |
| 7:45
| Does a Len Kasper order room service in the hotel? Len's son always asks him about room service when he comes back from a road trip, he thinks it's the greatest invention ever. It is pretty cool. |
| 7:46
| He ordered room service yesterday and then went for a walk around Tampa. Bob Brenly does a lot of walking when the team is out on the road. Steve would do more room service ordering and watching pay-per-view. |
| 7:47
| The Cubs play a night game tonight and then are back home for a 1:20 tomorrow which makes a ton of sense. Some guys can go right to sleep on a plane but Len can't really sleep sitting up. And they fly home with the team right? |
| 7:48
| Len and Bob do a really great job with the broadcasts though. Steve likes Len's little stats for everything. He's not being pejorative, he likes the stats. The Sox don't have enough stats, it's al just wondering. |
| 7:49
| Len prefers to ask questions instead of just giving his opinion. There's a lot about baseball that people still don't understand. If he asks a question someone will look it up. |
| 7:50
| That just happened last night. Bob said that most 3-0 pitches are called strikes and then someone actually looked it up and emailed Len |
| 7:51
| Steve also likes how Len and Bob talk rock & roll. Len knows his stuff but so does Bob. Bob is always coming in and asking if he's heard some new album. You have to do what Pete does and just say "OH, they're so over" |
| 7:52
| Steve does have a baseball question, what about Zambrano? He left the game with shoulder soreness last night and then came back to Chicago for an MRI. His next start is supposed to be Tuesday after the Monday off day. |
| 7:53
| The Cubs are going to be very cautious since he's there ace. Bob gave Geovanny Soto a lot of credit last night, he saw something in Z's last pitch and immediately called the trainer over and went out there. Z is the kind of guy who won't say he's hurt. |
| 7:54
| Both opening day starters will not pitch this weekend but it should still be interesting. It'll be a good series and it'll actually matter. Then the weekend after they're down at The Cell. |
| 7:55
| Steve will be at all 3 games at The Cell. Len's wondering if Steve is nice to Cubs fans who come down there. He doesn't beat anyone up although last night there was a guy in a Cubs hat and Steve thought that was unnecessary. After the Sox won the World Series it seemed weird for Steve to hate the Cubs. He got what he wanted and he hopes Cubs fans do too. |
| 7:56
| Steve really appreciates Len working Peanut Butter into the broadcast, we were all thrilled by that. Len's wife listens to the show everyday. |
| 7:57
| Len and Bob do a great job on the broadcasts and they bring all the stats. Steve really wishes they'd do that on Sox games though. It's all just DJ wondering something and Hawk saying he doesn't know. |
| 8:02
| Steve was going to try to work in some sort of joke about the haunted hotel in Tampa and Kasper the friendly ghost but the joke eluded him. He'd at least like credit for thinking of it. |
| 8:03
| Live read: The Little Guys |
| 8:04
| It's Thursday which means it's Lunch Date with Steve at Taco Bell. Can we start up the news now? It might get interrupted for the Eight O'Clock Taco Bell and Pat Boyle might just walk in. |
| 8:05
| News with Buzz |
| 8:06
| Governor Blagojevich is asking Congress for more money for flood victims in Illinois. He says that things are going to get worse before they get better. Thanks for the update hot dog, no comfort there. Blago is working on a Seniors Drown Free program though. |
| 8:07
| Barack Obama has named a blue ribbon panel to advise him about national security and foreign policy. Heading up that panel is Madeline Albright. |
| 8:08
| Steve needs to stop for a minute. Why is this guy on CNN crouched down in the flood waters? Does it matter how fast the current is? It's a flood, no one is going whitewater rafting. |
| 8:09
| Everything used to be dry where he's standing right now. That's why the call it a flood! What has happened to CNN?! Steve had to stop because there's a guy standing in the flood water. |
| 8:10
| And look there's pigs on a rooftop! You know who's going to want to go down there and grab those pigs, Tyrone. He'll be heading down because he's having a BBQ this weekend. |
| 8:11
| Two Muslim women wearing traditional head scarves were kept out of camera view during the Obama rally in Detroit on Tuesday. Campaign staffers prevented them from sitting behind the stage and have since apologized. Barack Obama has not though. |
| 8:12
| Because Barack Obama probably goes out and arranges the entire audience just like he wants it right? Steve can sort of see why you'd move them though. If they're Obama supporters they would know that he's got his hands full with all this Muslim stuff. |
| 8:13
| Meanwhile Obama and John McCain sat next to each other at a memorial service for Tim Russert. It got massive coverage everywhere. Channel 5 did 3 minutes on it. Buzz hasn't celebrated the death of anyone like this since maybe JFK. |
| 8:14
| All the NBC people are taking Russert's death very personally, maybe inappropriately. Mary Anne Ahern is mining the local angle because her brother's went to school with him. She can't stop showing photos of her brothers with Russert. |
| 8:15
| Steve made the comment about the coverage a few days ago and Buzz thought that would be it but it's still going on. Buzz feels the coverage has loosened up the channel 5 news team though. |
| 8:16
| Later in the broadcast Warner Saunders attempted to explain the phenomenon of the moon looking bigger near the horizon. Does Buzz finally understand it? |
| 8:17
| Steve has an explanation of that effect from NASA. It's pretty long so Steve will just play it until we get bored. Pat Boyle is also here. The guy explaining this sounds exactly like Kenneth from 30 Rock. |
| 8:19
| NASA really doesn't know either and that's NASA! They've sent a probe to Mars but they don't know why the moon looks bigger than the horizon. |
| 8:20
| Only Warner Saunders knows and he's trying to explain it to Allison Rosati. Last night's news sort of had a cathouse feel to it. It was Warner, Allison, Ginger Zee and Paula Faris. |
| 8:21
| Pat hasn't seen Warner this fired up since he thought he had inside information about that blow-up doll in the White Sox clubhouse. He thought it was an American Girl doll. |
| 8:22
| Alright it's time for the Eight O'Clock Taco Bell. On the phone is Steve from Schaumburg. Steve will be having some soft shell tacos, beef, and chalupa. He might got steak, he'll see when he gets there. |
| 8:23
| Steve's son plays in a traveling baseball team and he stops at a Taco Bell in every town he goes to. How can Steve say no to the Why Pay More Menu? |
| 8:24
| Steve is going to wash that down with a Code Red, from Mountain Dew. It's red and it has a little extra caffeine in it. |
| 8:30
| Steve needs to hear that drop again, he was talking to Pat Boyle. It was Warner Saunders asking about the American Girl doll. |
| 8:31
| Paula Faris actually dressed Warner down, she couldn't believe he brought that up. THen she made him lie. No player calls Warner Saunders to give him inside info. |
| 8:32
| Live read: Woodfield Nissan |
| 8:33
| Alright back to Buzz in the newsroom. A study in New Scientists reveals that bad boys get the most women. Steve knew that too. Right now Pat Boyle is going "This is where I went wrong" |
| 8:34
| Two students in Gloucester have discovered why pregnancy rates in their school have gone up so much. According to a Time Magazine article 17 girls made a pact to get pregnant and raise their babies together. |
| 8:35
| Another foot has been found in British Columbia. This is the 6th one to be found. Steve knew they'd find 6 feet but they're all right feet. |
| 8:36
| Rapper Lil' Wayne could be facing up to three years in prison. Is he in trouble for having sex with an overage woman? Lil' Wayne just released the hottest album of the year, the first million seller in 3 years. |
| 8:37
| 9 people contracted salmonella after eating at two Adobo Grill locations in Old Town and Wicker Park. Health officials are stressing that the danger of contracting salmonella has passed. |
| 8:38
| It's not their fault though right, it's just bad tomatoes. Isn't that where Steve and Buzz got the fish tacos from? |
| 8:39
| A new British study shows that people who eat a big breakfast are less likely to crave food throughout the day. |
| 8:40
| Whenever Steve has a big breakfast he usually needs a nap. Or he drinks a big pot of coffee at a hotel. |
| 8:41
| Pat thought Steve wanted to play Guess the Room Service Prices with Len Kasper. It seemed like that to Buzz as well. Steve doesn't know Len well enough yet. |
| 8:42
| Maybe Steve should have one of those breakfast burritos and see if that cuts down on his eating for the rest of the day. Steve is going to the Sox game today where he usually eats too much. |
| 8:43
| What else does Steve have now, he doesn't drink? Buzz still has a few things, he likes to have a couple of glasses of wine here and there. Usually he waits until after he puts the kid to bed. |
| 8:44
| Buzz is usually reeling after that second glass of wine. Then the food comes. He's going out like Henry VIII. |
| 8:45
| Buzz is sort of embarrassed at his low tolerance but on the other hand it's good. Steve can't even imagine what his tolerance would be right now but he doesn't want to find out. |
| 8:46
| Steve does find that if he eats a big breakfast he's not as hungry the rest of the day. One of Steve's most troubling traits is when he's actually choking on food but is still eating it. |
| 8:52
| Live read: Sport Clips |
| 8:53
| Why is Steve suddenly unable to talk? Does anyone know? He feels it might be the towering presence of Pat Boyle. Can he lower himself at all? He's like one of those giant fiberglass Paul Bunyon statues. |
| 8:54
| Alright it's time for the web poll. Why can't Steve ever remember the web poll from the day before? Buzz can't remember either. Yesterday's question was "Should vehicles be allowed to park in the bus lane?" Steve says no unless it's his car. |
| 8:55
| Today's question is "Did you ever have perfect attendance?" Is that limited to school? This is from Celia Rivenbark of the Miami-Herald. |
| 8:56
| It doesn't win her any points from other moms but Celia tends to loudly yell "BOOOOO" and make lots of exaggerated thumbs-down gestures whenever a kid skips up to the stage to receive a perfect attendance certificate at a year-end school assembly. |
| 8:57
| Celia doesn't think it's worth risking everyone else's health just so you can get a fill-in-the-blank away certificate. Buzz has heard that during the flu pandemic of 1918 more men died than women because men went to work sick and spread the flu. |
| 8:58
| They usually present the perfect attendance award at the year-assembly/awards presentation/fifth-grade graduation/nacho bar. |
| 8:59
| Does this woman really boo kids? Her fitness freak mom doesn't understand why she boos little kids, they'll get their feelings hurt. She must really do it then. |
| 9:00
| Celia calls the kids snot factories. The kids are so stressed about perfect attendance and now half the third grade has Fifth's Disease. Is that a real disease? |
| 9:01
| After fitness mom scurried away Celia raised her voice like a crazy person. She hissed "Look at that woman with the camcorder" to no one. Parents are the ones driving this nuttiness. |
| 9:02
| Last week a Michigan teen's parents gave her a new car for having never missed a day of school from kindergarten to senior year. Colds in Michigan? Who would have though? |
| 9:03
| Pat has to agree with this woman, he would keep his kids at home with a fever. That's the stipulation at Buzz's daughter's school. |
| 9:04
| Caller Susan has some info about Fifth's Disease. Did she say hello to Pat Boyle, the Giant? How tall is Pat? 8 feet? |
| 9:05
| Susan's husband is very tall but she's short. It seems like a lot of tall guys go for short women and that's fascinating to Buzz. |
| 9:06
| So Fifth's Disease is real, Susan just learned about it a few weeks ago so she was excited to call in. Fifth's Disease looks like your face got slapped, it's all red. |
| 9:07
| Caller Mary loves Steve and Buzz, she's been listening for a long time. It only feels like a long time, it's just been since 5:30. |
| 9:08
| Mary's husband is 6' 8" and she's 5', that's a huge difference. And Buzz is fascinated by that. He once had a lovely encounter with the secretary at High Times magazine. |
| 9:09
| Buzz spent some time in the High Times offices and the girl invited him back to his place for some dinner. Back in the 60s or 70s that was an open invite. But Buzz was so freaked out by how short she was, she was under 5'. |
| 9:10
| Buzz has spent a lifetime regretting his decision to walk out. That's just not on several levels. |
| 9:12
| We could probably try to find this girl and hook her up with Buzz again but that seems inappropriate. She was very cute but now she's old. Meaning she's the same age as Buzz and he doesn't do that. |
| 9:13
| Just so everyone knows Ed Silha likes short women. He's not that tall is he? When everyone was out to dinner a few weeks ago Ed had a girl with him and she wasn't short. |
| 9:14
| Where did Mary meet her husband, was he a basketball player or something? They actually met at the radio station they worked at. Thankfully he doesn't work there any more, there's no money in radio. |
| 9:15
| Mary's husband always gets asked how tall he is which he doesn't like. it's like asking a fat person how much they weigh. Sometimes people do ask Steve that. |
| 9:16
| Buzz probably ate the dinner that this girl made and then headed out of there before the canvas dress came off. |
| 9:17
| For all the talk Buzz does about spinners he had one and he walked away. She was just short right, she wasn't like a dwarf or anything? |
| 9:18
| Steve needs to take a break but there's a guy on hold, hopefully he waits. Earlier in the broadcast we were talking to Jim kid who's getting married. |
| 9:19
| Jim mentioned a place that has classic cars and we might have the owner of the places on the phone. Steve's leaning towards that place. |
| 9:27
| Alright, Steve's been told that Jim is aware of this. He hesitates to step in and get involved in something like this. Steve has been through this whole wedding thing with Pat. |
| 9:28
| Steve pretty much avoided the whole thing, it's a minefield of danger. Should we get Jim on the blower? |
| 9:29
| Pat Boyle now has dug a hole in floor, in a very Orson Wells move. He is now actually shorter than Buzz, just sitting cross-legged on the floor. |
| 9:30
| This place is actually one Jim was going to see, the Ravenswood Billboard Factory. Andy is on the phone and he is the guy that owns it, let’s have him talk to Jim Kid. Andy wants to thank Steve because since he mentioned it, Andy has had a few people call to check the place out and possibly book it. |
| 9:31
| Jim is looking at the first floor, it was a converted press place and is surrounded by a lot of old cars. The building has 3 levels and you don’t have to use them all but people use the top floor atrium as well, they have spectacular views of the city. Andy runs an in-house catering company as well. Buzz would like to be served while sitting inside of one of the antique cars. |
| 9:32
| Hey! Buzz stole that from Steve. What’s next, he will become a big wedding consultant? All Steve knows is there is a lot of money thrown around in wedding planning. |
| 9:33
| See, look what Steve did for Jim. Andy is going to help him out. Steve just wants to be taken care of when he goes there. He wants his own mushroom cap person and none of that “take the napkin” garbage. He just wants a mushroom cap and he is going to shove it right in his mouth. If he needs to wipe his hands he'll wipe them on something else. |
| 9:34
| Every place wants you to take a napkin, Steve hates that! He doesn't’t need to have a napkin, there is no need for one. Then you refuse and they look at you like you’re a caveman. |
| 9:35
| Actually, Steve wants a female mushroom cap server and he wants her to put them right into his mouth. He also likes coconut shrimp but that’s a disposal problem as well, what do you do with the tail? You have to put it in a planter or something. He’d likes some mango chutney as well. |
| 9:36
| Steve and Buzz have to look into getting a banquet hall. There is big money in that business, lots of extras you don’t realize. They market a lot of it to women specifically and everyone feels they need to keep up. Jim needs to make more of an effort to stop some of this, he is already being dragged around to look at banquet halls. |
| 9:37
| Steve foresees him registering at Crate and Barrel. Jim does have the free afternoons now so he is more open to do this stuff. If Jim needs any work related excuses to use, Steve can help him out with that. |
| 9:38
| Caller is Britney is short. Is she nervous? Because Buzz doesn't want any of that. She actually has a crush on Pat. Pat?! What about Steve, no one has a crush on him? |
| 9:39
| Pat's married but that isn't always an issue. Steve is always telling Pat that the family is an albatross, this could be the way to get rid of it. |
| 9:40
| Every time we want Pat to do something he has family commitments. There's a reason Luke Stuckmeyer is rising up through the ranks. |
| 9:41
| It's OK to have a crush on Pat but there must be something wrong with her TV. Britney's crush actually started before she ever saw him on TV. Pat is always sitting next to Bill Melton or Mark Schanowsky so he's always going to look better. |
| 9:42
| Last night Britney was at a bar with some friends. She didn't go home with a Pat Boyle impersonator did she? Britney was watching Pat on Comcast, mesmerized and she told her friend that was her future husband. |
| 9:43
| The friend said "That guy?!" But then another friend tried to explain the Pat Boyle crush. She saw him in person at the Comcast Sportsnet Awards. Britney was mad that her friend didn't get Pat's autograph. Once again Steve is left out of all of it. |
| 9:44
| Britney's friend was too busy taking photos with Ted Lilly to get Pat's autograph. Ted is also very short. Buzz was actually invited to Ted's house for dinner but he left right after eating. |
| 9:45
| Pat's wondering how old Britney is. Hold on a second, apparently Pat has started up his own Dating Game here. |
| 9:46
| Britney is just so excited to be talking to Pat today. Steve never wants to see Pat in the studio again. He always said he wanted him to come in but he doesn't. |
| 9:47
| We have Britney's number right, in case there's some sort of stabbing? We should probably stop all of this before everyone ends up divorced. |
| 9:48
| And Britney will probably end up dropping Pat for a fireman, they're much hotter. |
| 9:49
| That was disgusting, Britney was almost quavering. It made Pat's day though. |
| 9:50
| Live read: McCracken Financial |
| 9:51
| Live read: Woodfield Nissan |
| 9:57
| We might have looked Britney up on Facebook during the break. Actually Brendan did and showed everyone. We don't have a ton of time left but there's a woman on hold Steve wanted to talk to. |
| 9:58
| Caller Linda is getting married at the Ravenswood Billboard Factory in November. They're getting married in the atrium and the reception is in the car room. |
| 9:59
| If Steve wants to wait until November Linda can invite him to the wedding and seat him in one of the cars. She'll even feed him a mushroom cap herself. On her wedding day?! |
| 10:00
| Linda and her husband are both car enthusiasts and they knew they wanted this place right away. |
| 10:01
| This is only going to help Jim. Steve can't see himself going to the wedding of someone he doesn't know although it's a nice invite. |
| 10:02
| Is there anything going on in sports? Everyone at Comcast is getting ready for the Crosstown, no one knows what's wrong with Big Z but he's on his way back to Chicago now for an MRI. It could be very bad if they lose him for a significant amount of time. |
| 10:03
| Mark Buehrle finally got some run support and Toby Hall had his first home run in 2 years. |
