Thanks to Just Between Strangers, who points his readers to one of the most wonderful blogs I have seen: The Blog of Henry David Thoreau.

The site would be but a glorified day-by-day calendar were it not for the sheer beauty of Thoreau’s writing and the sharp eye of the site’s editor, who picks plums from fourteen year’s worth of Thoreau’s journals and posts them on the date Thoreau wrote them.

This brilliant site shows us the nineteenth-century equivalent of a blog, and, I’m sad to say, discloses how far we have fallen. Thoreau waxes rhapsodic over the partridge’s crop and the blossom’s buds, while I discuss the finer points of Randy Moss’ endzone moon.

I’m looking forward to reading Thoreau’s journals every day, and I hope that someone starts a similar site for Emerson. If you want to learn how to write, you can do no better than follow these two masters of the form.

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I just started reading Robert Sullivan’s Rats : Observations on the History and Habitat of the City’s Most Unwanted Inhabitants, and I have a feeling that I’m going to be tantalizing you with strange and digusting relevations as I make my way through the book.

I’m only two chapters in, and already I have a disturbing passage to share with you:

What a great paragraph–each sentence makes you gag, and it gets worse and worse, taking you to ever increasing depths of nausea. Twenty times a day! That’s a lot of lovin’. And what, exactly, is a “healthy” amount of garbage?

I can already tell that reading this book on the heels of Steve Almond’s Candyfreak is going to be a strange experience. (If you love candy, by the way, you must read Candyfreak). More on that later, in a post that I promise will be 100% free of rodent sex.

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Will Caroll, on his baseball blog, writes today about an issue that many bloggers might have thought about: is blogging just a hobby, or is it a stop on the road to becoming a professional journalist?

Here is what Will has to say in his column “Changing A FAQ”, in response to the question “You have a great job. How do I do what you do?”:

This hits home for me because I do hope to write for magazines and newspapers one day, and see my blog as a both a means of personal expression—-a way to tell friends, “hey, check out this cool link!”—-and a vehicle to build up clips.

When I entered graduate school, professors warned me repeatedly about the difficulty of getting a job after graduation (in the field of English, only 50% of new Ph.D.s end up with tenure-track jobs). Of course, I took those warnings as a challenge, and didn’t let them stop me from entering a Ph.D. program (whether or not that was a wise decision is still an open question).

The parallel I would draw from that is that I think it’s fine to mix in a few dire warnings when discussing the market–those who really want to do it will not wilt in the face of a few discouraging words.

But what do you think about Will’s post? What is blogging for you–a hobby, a road towards a paying job, or something in between? Is your blog a means to an end, or is it the end in itself?

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In his January 30 column, Frank Rich talks about this clip of Vanity Fair’s Judy Bachrach appearing on Fox News to talk about the inauguration. Bachrach nails Bush for spending $40 million on the event while soldiers are forced to use scrap metal to protect their humvees. It’s a treat to watch the Fox anchor sputter and stammer in the face of Bachrach’s heresy.

That clip got me going on the ifilm site. Here are a few other fun clips. If you find others, please post them in the comments.

First, another political clip: “The GOP in Two Minutes”–a sickening, but hilarious, distillation of fear-mongering rhetoric from the Republican convention.

And second, this aggression will not stand, at least if Skeletor has anything to say about it.

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Those, apparently, were Johnny Carson’s last words to his brother before he died…

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Wow. How about that! The Eagles are going to the Super Bowl!

This means so much to so many people in this town. I’m happy for people like the old timer who called WIP the other day. He recalled watching the Eagles play in Shibe Park a long, long time ago, and he has been waiting for this moment for twenty-four years. I’m so happy for the fans in Philly, who love this team passionately, and who can finally breath a sigh of relief.

I was wrong on the score—-I expected the game to be closer and lower-scoring than it was—-but I was right about what would happen in the game:

Here are my notes from the game:

First Quarter
Things started off right with the crowd getting into the game early, forcing Vick to waste a timeout during his first series.

One of my favorite plays happened early on. After a play, Dhani Jones got up and pushed a Falcons player, who pushed him back. Keith Adams, playing for the injured Mark Simoneau, walked into the Falcons player from behind. It was a small moment, but it was a message.

The fake punt was stupid. The only reason why Andy Reid called it is that people in this town have criticized him for not being aggressive enough in previous NFC Championship games. But this was a very bad move. Luckily, the Eagles D stopped them on third and one. Then Reid made a very smart timeout call just before the clock ran out, forcing the Falcons to kick against the wind.

Dorsey Levens is a HAMMER—-he just bangs away. Great touchdown.

Second Quarter

Man, Hollis Thomas nailed Vick as he scrambling towards the end zone. That’s three hundred and six pounds of nasty.

McNabb goes long with a forty-six yard bomb to Greg Lewis. I love Donnie Mac’s deep throws.

How about Chad Lewis, getting both feet in before going out of the end zone. What concentration! I loved the little tufts of dirt that flew up, showing how sharply he planted his toes into the grass.

I listened to the game on the radio—-after last week’s game, I could no longer stand to listen to those idiots on Fox. Merrill Reese, who announces games for the Eagles on WYSP, is one of those signature announcers (like the Phillies’ Harry Calas), who just makes the game what it is.

Dawkins hit Alge Crumpler—-ouch. He came up under him and delivered a hard shot to his solar-plexus from below. The Eagles have been hitting the Falcons—-especially Vick—-hard all day. I love watching these warm-weather dome boys get up slowly after being driven into the ground by an Eagle.

I couldn’t believe it when the booth didn’t call for a replay on the spot of a third down Westbrook run. I thought he made the first down, but Reid couldn’t challenge the spot, and the officials upstairs were too busy to notice that the ball was spotted wrongly.

Keith Adams came up big in the first half.

David Akers seemed to have been hit in the eye on one play. Mike Quick, on the radio, gravely informed us that the diagnosis was a “busted nose.”

Third Quarter
I loved the end-around when McNabb went out as the leader blocker for Westbrook. He cut down his man and Westbrook ran for a first down.

WYSP announcer and former Eagle Mike Quick, when Derrick Burgess sacked Vick: “Now that’s the Michael Vick experience!” Burgess had a great second half.

McNabb throws so hard…you could hear the thump when he drilled Chad Lewis in the chest for a first down.

Fourth Quarter
Just use the clock. Great drive for the Eagles, and especially for the offensive line. They’re giving McNabb all day, and on the plays when someone gets a hand on him, he twists free and finds a receiver.

Westbrook is amazing—-he never goes down after the first hit.

McNabb scrambles for a first down, gets up, and pumps his fists in the air. This is the first time I’ve ever seen McNabb pump up the crowd.

Freddie Mitchell braided his hair into a mohawk and brought a championship belt with him…too bad he made only one significant catch—-a thirteen yard gain for a first down—- in the game.

How great it was to see Jim Mora tearing off his headset and trampling it into the ground.

I loved seeing the team laughing and relaxed. As Mike and Mad Dog pointed out last Friday on the FAN, there have been few teams with as much pressure on them to win a game as the Eagles today. They had to win, or this town would be inconsolable. But the Eagles did a great job of not coming out tight. McNabb led the way by staying loose all week and laughing off the pressure with a relaxed confidence.

And I have to say it’s right that they won—- they were clearly the better team.

Postgame Interviews:

What is bonehead Terry Bradshaw doing out there, dictating what’s happening, and telling Brian Dawkins what to do with the trophy? Why does this man have a job?

When asked what one play made the game, Donovan pointed to his offensive line. You see how smart this guy is? He happens to be right, but he also knows who protects him in the pocket.

——–
I hope that the Eagles play the Patriots—-that way, when they beat them to win the Super Bowl, there will be no doubt about the greatness of this team.

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I got to this too late; there’s no time for fooling around. So here are the Tattered Coat’s playoff picks:

ATLANTA (12-5) at PHILADELPHIA (14-3), 3 p.m., FOX
You can’t win a playoff game throwing 82 yards, as Michael Vick did last week. The Eagles will win this game because their quick linebackers will contain Dunn and Vick, and Vick can’t throw. He’ll likely get a few breakaway runs, but I think the Eagles D will come up big. The birds are relaxed and ready. This is their time. This is Donovan’s time. He will show Vick what it means to be a quarterback in this league.
Tattered Pick: Eagles 17, Falcons 14

NEW ENGLAND (15-2) at PITTSBURGH (16-1)), 6:30 p.m., CBS
I heard Mike and the Mad Dog a few days ago on the FAN saying that this game is Brady and Belichick vs. Roethlisberger and Cowher. Given that scenario, you can’t help but take the Patriots. But football is a team sport, and there are a few other guys who will make a difference in this game–among them Dillon, the Bus, and Duce. It’s insane, I know, but I’m going to take the Steelers here, just because everyone else is taking the Pats (and besides, I love rooting against Boston teams). My guess is that Ben returns to form, the D comes up big, and the Steelers pound it down the NE gut like there is no tomorrow.
Tattered Pick: Steelers 14, Patriots 10

I’m picking low scores because of the cold and wind. It might be impossible to kick field goals in Philly (it’s COLD out there! — a point that I’m sure the announcers will drive home, oh, about eight thousand times during the broadcast), and the ball is going to feel like a ton of bricks.

E - A - G - L - E - S — Eagles!

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How would they come out? The Eagles had coasted into the postseason over their last four regular-season games, playing two at half-speed (Redskins, Cowboys) and two at preseason speed (Rams, Bengels), and losing their prime offensive weapon, Terrell Owens, in the process. They had another week off after that, so by the time yesterday’s game rolled around, the starters hadn’t played for real in five weeks. How could they be sharp after that much time off?

Well, the Eagles answered all questions yesterday. They came out like a revved-up hot rod, all shiny and polished, wheels gleaming, engine purring deeply and sweetly, ready to ride.

Jevon Kearse was everywhere, coming at the quarterback from all directions with arms flailing.

Jeremiah Trotter looked like a cartoon character who had gotten so mad that tea-kettle steam screamed out of his ears. The Ax-Man was a force of nature out there.

Brian Westbrook was like a tuned-up Porsche hitting a stretch of fresh black pavement for the first time. This guy packs three dekes into a split second.

Donnie Mac just sat back and chilled with that big smile of his, relaxed and confident, having a good time.

FredEx finally put up the deeds to match the words. By the time he busted out the belt in the end zone, Philly was 100% behind him. We now know that 4th and 26th was not an anomaly: the guy can make big plays, and no one in this town forgets a playoff touchdown, especially not one as wild and wooly as that fumble recovery he had yesterday in the end zone. He delivered.

Brian Dawkins looks like he was chiseled out of stone. You know he has some kind of digital readout on the inside of that visor. And check it out: these guys had so much time off that they started blogging.

And how about this tackle, huh? Seconds after this photo was taken, Dawkins ripped off Marcus Robinson’s head and fed it to the hungry Philly crowd. Wiz wit!!

Ike Reese intercepted one of Culpepper’s passes by knocking it straight up into the air like a volleyball player digging out a spike, then catching it and running. Lito Sheppard, Sheldon Brown, Rod Hood, and Michael Lewis all shackled the Vikes receivers without drawing significant penalties.

Dorsey Levens was a hammer, coming out play after play to bang up the middle.

And Andy Reid. What more can you say about this guy? What a coach. Given a 12-1 team, how do you get it to the playoffs in primed shape? It’s a tough proposition–you don’t want your players to get hurt, but if you take your foot off the gas, the team could lose its intensity. Reid succeeded in getting this team into the game from the first second of play; he also composed an offensive strategy that just decimated the Vikings. They started Westbrook out as a wide receiver to begin the game, dazzling the Vikings and forcing them into double coverage, just like they would have had to put on T.O. Then, in the fourth quarter, he was a back again, carving out eleven yard gains on first down. The Eagles spread the ball, with all of the receivers–Greg Lewis, Pinkie, and FredEx, getting in on the action.

That was an AWESOME game. If this is rusty, the Falcons had better watch they ass.

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Did anyone out there catch Terry Bradshaw on Sunday, jokingly pointing out one of the Fox NFL Sunday show’s producers to the cameras and saying that the guy had voted for Michael Vick for MVP? The producer turned his back to the camera, which Bradshaw thought was hilarious. He poked Howie Long in the shoulder and made him look at the cringing producer. “I thought those votes were supposed to be secret,” Long told his co-host. Bradshaw just kept on guffawing like a five year-old.

Well, uh oh. The MVP voting became public today, and it looks like Peyton Manning was named MVP by a near-unanimous vote. Only one person didn’t vote for him….and thanks to Terry, I guess we know whose vote was not like the others.

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Salon’s King Kauffman of Salon perfectly nails the hypocritical outrage at Fox over the Randy Moss mooning incident:

Joe Buck nearly shat his pants after the incident, calling Moss’ act “disgusting” repeatedly, and ruing the fact that “we had that on our air live,” as if the very airwaves at Fox had been sullied by Moss’ gesture. Even though, as King Kaufman notes, Buck later downgraded his description of Moss’ action to “classless,” the Fox Sports crew back at the studio joined him in condemning the unspeakable act.

It seems to me that Joe Buck’s reaction plays into the cultural climate of the post Janet-Jackson-boob incident and our nation’s newfound “moral values.” I mean, it was a “classless” gesture, but it’s pretty hypocritical for Fox commentators to pontificate about how disgusting it is for a guy to pretend to take off his pants when half of the shows on the network are premised upon people taking off their pants.

But what set Buck in a rage, I think, was not only the baseness of the gesture and the lack of sportsmanship it displayed, but also the desecration of holy Lambeau Field (get that goalpost a power washer!) and America’s patron saint of football, Brett Favre. And in that sense, I have to say, part of me wonders about the racial undertones of this conflict, with the stoic and reserved white athletes and commentators on one side, and the flashy, loudmouthed black athletes on the other. I thought that James Brown’s reaction was partly based upon a calculation of the racial dynamics of the incident.

POSTSCRIPT: As time passes, more things come to light. Apparently, mooning is not so uncommon at Lambeau Field, as Indianapolis coach Tony Dungy reports:

Meanwhile, the people at Fox Sports are shocked, shocked by Randy Moss, but that doesn’t mean that they won’t plaster pictures of his “digusting” act all over their home page.

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