Jack in the Box & the Stoner Demographic

I love that Jack in the Box has so openly and clearly accepted the importance of the Stoner demographic to their survival as a fast food franchise.

Yet Another Entertaining Interview from the Australian Open

Not sure what it is about Tennis, but so far the Australian Open has been offering up the most entertaining sports interviews we've seen in ages. Here's Li Na being interviewed after she beat top seed Caroline Wozniacki to advance to the finals where she'll play Kim Clijsters.

Kids Say the Darndest Things - The NFC Championship Edition

This little Chicago Bears fan was not happy with the result in Sunday's game:

American Football in Italy - Yes, it Exists

I'm an American, I'm a sports fan, I'm a soccer fan, I'm a football fan, I'm a Serie A fan. While watching Major League Soccer grow in the United States, I've grown an appreciation and interest in watching the development of American football in Europe, especially Italy, home to my favorite soccer team and league (Roma and Serie A). American football has garnered sustainable followings mainly in Northern Europe and especially in Germanic regions, so it's not surprising that its strongest foothold in Italy is in the northern regions, but it's reach extends down to Sicily. Most of the players are Italians who are not paid, but each team has a couple of American players on salary and coaches tend to be American. For more information on the Italian Football League - CLICK HERE - the season doesn't start till late March.

Yep, Mark Sanchez did pick his nose & wipe it on Mark Brunell's Jacket

While the Pittsburgh Steelers were busy marching the ball down the field during their opening possession in today's AFC Championship Game with the New York Jets, Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez was picking his nose and wiping the contents of same on teammate Mark Brunell's Jacket.

The Genius that is Jon Lajoie - NSFW

You might know him as Taco from The League on FX, but Jon Lajoie has a whole 'nother line of awesomeness going on:

The Swanson Pyramid of Greatness

Yep, Parks & Recreation is back . . .

1560 The Game's Lance Zierlein Takes Aim at Uncle D

Been a fun week for those of us who listen to 1560 The Game here in Houston, first we had Lance Zierlen giving us a nice Houston Texans rant, and now we have Lance taking aim at Houston's baseball team, the Astros, and their owner, Drayton McLane.

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Lance also discussed Uncle D's new catchphrase: "Tooty Fruity, Sugar Booty:"

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[TV] Network Mid Season Replacements & Cable's New Season

Now that we're a couple weeks into a brand new year, broadcast television networks are starting to roll out their mid season replacements and cable television networks are premiering new shows or new seasons of shows.

Until last night, much of the mid season shows rolled out by network tv, such as The Cape, Bob's Burgers, Harry's Law, and Off the Map, haven't appealed to me. It wasn't until last night, when NBC unveiled their new "All Comedy Thursday" that I've had any interest in checking out new shows. And by new shows, I really just mean one show - Perfect Couples. Parks and Recreation also made its premier last night, but I don't really consider this to be a new season replacement, just that weird marketing ploy adopted by tv networks a couple years ago to compress an entire season of an existing show into half a season. It means less reruns, which is good, but it also means a longer wait for new episodes.

Perfect Couples, an ensemble cast sitcom that focuses on three different couples, was okay, it wasn't great and it wasn't terrible. It had the faults that pretty much all sitcoms tend to have in their premier episodes: it's flow was disjointed, the characters aren't well developed, and the interaction between the actors is awkward and choppy. Given time, these flaws can be resolved and it'll have to survive on good writing and characters, or die. I'll give it a couple episodes. The first episode of Outsourced was like that, and while it's not a great show, it's improved and isn't a complete waste of 30 minutes.

The big show last night was the return of Parks & Recreation, which nailed it. This was a sitcom that started out awkwardly too, but has really hit its stride - thanks to the writing and characters like Tom Haverford, Ann Perkins, and Ron Swanson. In this age of DVRs I'm not going to say too much about last night's show, but Swanson stole it.

I'm not gonna say too much at this point about the shows on cable networks, except I will recommend Shameless on Showtime, as well as suggesting that you check out the episodes from the original UK version that air on The Sundance Channel. I know USA premiered a new season of Royal Pains last night. The show worked good as a light, breezy summer series, we'll see how it does in the winter months.

Fox is rolling out a new show, Mixed Signals, on February 8th. This sitcom is based on the successful Ramzor from Israel. I saw the trailer back during the summer, and my curiosity was piqued. Instead of describing it, here's the trailer for your preview:

Kim Clijsters is not Pregnant, okay Todd?

Todd Woodbridge learns that you should never ever inquire as to whether a woman is pregnant or not, especially when you have to interview said woman.

Bad NFL Teams Make for Great Sports Radio Rants

Having grown up rooting for the Houston Oilers, I've learned what disappointment, but I've also known what it is like to have my NFL team in the playoffs. When the Houston Texans joined the NFL in 2002, I hoped that I would again see my NFL team in the playoffs in a few short years. It's been nine years, and no playoffs.

Lance Zierlein, one of the morning hosts at 1560 The Game here in Houston, is just slightly older than me and has experienced some of the same Houston sporting moments I have experienced. Like me, he's frustrated with the Houston Texans, and this is what happened on Wednesday morning, January 19, 2011:

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Meanwhile, probably at about the same time that Lance was going on his rant, Greg Kozarik a host on Locked and Loaded on the Digital Sports Network in Cleveland went on his own rant about the Cleveland Browns:

Welcome to My New Blog

Welcome to my new blog on the interwebs. I may be new to some readers while other readers will know me from my other website, The Zygo Soccer Report, or from my work with The Orange Slice on 1560 The Game in Houston, Texas.

Yes, I'm based in Houston, Texas, and yes, I'm a soccer journo and commentator. Though the job that pays the bills is in the oil and gas industry.

While I'll still post some non-soccer material at The Zygo Soccer Report, I realized it was time for me to have an outlet for other matters of sports and society. A place to rant or comment on non-soccer matters and place to share non-soccer material that I find interesting or humorous.

I won't be shy, I'll express opinions, some of which you may not agree with. But that's okay. We don't have to agree. I do promise that I will be civil and polite, I'm no mood to get into any arguments with you, cause, let's face it, you aren't changing my mind and I'm not changing your mind. I promise to respect your opinions.

I also wanted to make sure that I was open about my identity here, not hiding behind a pen name, so my name is Brian Zygo and you can follow me on Twitter if you wish.

Hope you enjoy.