Dome Pondering

89 days to go. So as the days now head into double-digit territory, the anticipation continues to grow, and the reflection continues. While chatting with a friend, the topics of girls of the past came up. He proceeded to attempt to warn me that I will soon be “limited to one woman”, and that I will have to find new ways to keep things between myself and my tag-team partner fresh. All of this in a way to attempt somewhat scare me, or make me think twice about this supposed “hard work” that lies ahead. As he continued, I simply responded with a single statement, “hey, I’m getting married, I don’t need to pretend, or play games anymore…the chess match for me is over”. Right there he knew I was right. While he still has to impress, still has endure the “feeling out process”, and still has to “figure things out”, I just have to be myself. And sure, marriage brings many new barriers and trials, however, I can thoroughly be myself through the entire process. And while we went ba...

History was made last night. And while it seems the majority of those around me are celebrating this radical change and momentous occasion, I lack the the same type of enthusiasm. Truthfully, I’m not excited at all. At. All. There is a part of me during this history changing time that feels disappointed, and the other part of me knows that this is more that just a milestone for “change”, of the positive kind. Of course, I am talking about the passing of the bill here in New York State that will now legalize same-sex marriage. I've always been brutally honest with this little blog called Dome Pondering , and in the past I have admitted that I do not support same-sex marriage. I understand that I am now in the minority, but I still (and will always will) remain firm to this belief. Even though, it seems many have either have had a change of mind, or have just gone with what has become popular, almost fad-like, in supporting the same-sex marriage cause, I still remain true to...

Well, after delaying the inevitable, I have completed the the fifth and final season of Friday Night Lights . A time I knew was to come eventually, as stated in my farewell ode to the one and only season of Lights Out , has indeed come, and the feeling that I have is one of anger, joy, and sadness.   DP devotees already know about my strange addiction to the Friday Night Lights platforms – book, movie, and television show. I love all three platforms, the sayings, the mottos, the dialogue, the morals, and all of the subliminal messages and underlying messages of American life the three presented. Heck, the current DP design is based off of Friday Night Lights! So yes, I am addicted. And because of that love and raw emotional connection the stories of each platform has with me, my first emotion is that of anger. It is very upsetting to watch a program as great as FNL (An Emmy Award Winning Series) along with the cult-like following that fought for the show every season desp...

[Courtesy: APic ] Phil Hughes rehab start in Brooklyn. Sometimes we just need to start over to get things back on track.

The 2010-2011 NBA Season is now over, and the Miami Heat are NOT your 2010-2011 NBA Champions. Sounds good to me! Just kidding. Well sort of.  In a season that was one of the most anticipated as long as I can remember, the NBA has solidified itself as a brand that is back. With more stars than any other sport, and of course the most polarizing storyline in all of sports - the Miami Heat - the league is in great position today, and moving forward. And in a season where so much was made of the Miami Heat, and most notably, LeBron James, the story of the Dallas Mavericks and, especially, Dirk Nowitzki deserves top billing. While the Heat dealt with several off the court issues and countless psycho-analysis, Nowitzki played one of the greatest NBA Finals yours truly has seen since the days of Michael Jordan. Simply phenomenal. And as we take a look back on the 2010-2011 season, here is one last cheers to the Dallas Mavericks organization on an effort that will be memorialized for...

I miss college baseball. I miss everything about it. From the double headers, to the sound of the metal bats, to the sheer camaraderie and overall enthusiasm surrounding the game. It was a special time for yours truly. For four years, I had the opportunity to enjoy college baseball. And while it was at the DIII level, I knew that it was nothing to be scoffed or taken for granted. In fact, I barely played, and was often one of the few men out of the bullpen, but I simply just enjoyed being around the field, around the game, and around the atmosphere. See, as a child, I was born with two club feet, a congenital deformity that causes the foot to be completely rotated at the ankle. While my right foot happened to work itself out, my left one never did, and needed surgery to correct it. After several surgeries, and a pin inserted into my left leg, a fixture still in my foot today, my foot was placed in a cast for almost a year to correct. After removal, the doctor stated the surgery woul...

It seems every so often in the growth of Total Nonstop Action, the company comes to a fork in the road where they must decided where to go next. Recently, the company decided to rebrand their flagship show as “Impact Wrestling”. The change not only came in the name of the show, but the overall cosmetic look of the show, and of course the catchy and clever slogan of “Wrestling Matters”.  While the “Wrestling Matters” slogan was in direct response to the WWE dropping the word “Wrestling” from their company name, I thoroughly do like the direction. Wrestling should matter, and for a company that has the most talented roster in the world, wrestling is where the focus should be.  Unlike most wrestling columnists and “experts”, I wanted to give TNA a full four weeks along with a pay per view showing to comment on the new branding. And while the overall production of the company is great, I’m still wondering about the direction of the company. It still seems like the co...

After watching an amazing NBA Finals, and thinking back on all the attention, ratings, and media coverage the NBA has received over the past week, and even throughout the playoffs, it forced me to think about the sport of baseball, and it’s future. I know I have touched on baseball’s future in the past, but that was directly toward the lingering problem of the declining presence of African-American ballplayers in the game. The question that got me thinking was raised on the Rucco and Lundberg Show on 1050 ESPN radio. Both hosts examined the state of the NBA, and how it is in a good state moving forward with so many young stars, and each of them being on many different teams allowing, along with the varied storylines, made for an overall good product. Then the topic of baseball was brought up and the question was raised, “outside of Yankees/Red Sox, what else does baseball have to offer right now?”

The art of the promo is an ability that separates the good professional wrestlers from the ones that are memorable. The promo, is a moment of words, charisma, wit, and emotion all wrapped up to make the viewer that much more interested in the product, while making that specific wrestler a larger than life character. Over the years, pro wrestling has seen it’s share of wrestlers that were downright terrible on the mic. Those are the guys that have no business talking in public. However, the industry has seen guys that whenever a microphone is in front of them, and as Jeff Jarrett says, “the red light goes on”, you just hang on every word that comes out of their mouths. In the following Pondering 10 list, yours truly will give his All-Time Promo Men Wrestlers. Before I do, just a mention of some of the few that didn’t quite make the cut: Bubba Ray Dudley, Scott Steiner, Arn Anderson, William Regal, Road Warrior Hawk, T.A. Magnum, JBL, Mick Foley, Jeff Jarrett, Goldust, Ted Dibiase, M...

What is it about? The story of the rise and fall of Christopher Wallace, otherwise known as The Notorious B.I.G. Who is in it? Jamal Woolard – Christopher Wallace (Notorious B.I.G.) Angela Bassett – Voletta Wallace Derek Luke – Sean “Puffy” Combs Anthony Mackie – Tupac Shakur

The world of the New York City Subway system is that of an interesting one. It is one that can be considered a separate culture onto its own. The system has its own forms of courtesy, its ways of progress, and its day-to-day rituals and routines that are second-nature to most New Yorkers. However, as always with every culture, there are various things that are cause for annoyance, with some of those being caused by a select few that refuse to follow the ways of the underground world (looking at those tourists). We all know public transportation can be very inconvenient, uncomfortable, and irritating because of those infractions of the common underground law. The following Pondering 10 ranks the most annoying things that occur on the New York City Subway system.

Unfortunately, for Congressman Anthony Weiner, his last name makes the latest scandal that much funnier.  And in all honesty, while the scandal on Weiner sexting and having extra marital relationships via telephone and social media is another black eye on our society the whole situation has really evoked laughter from yours truly.  Now, I understand what Weiner did is a serious issue. And quite frankly, my heart goes out to his wife, Huma Abedin, who is now pregnant with child. She is the one married to Weiner, and she is the one that is ultimately humiliated in this whole ordeal.  However, while my seriousness begins and ends at genuine feelings for Weiner’s wife, the entire situation just flat out baffles me to the point of laughter. I understand we are now in an age of easy communicating access through Twitter, Facebook, and text messaging, but the whole idea of “sexting” and sending lewd pictures of one’s private parts just causes me to wonder – what...

After 19 years, Shaquille O’Neal has decided to hang it up. In typical Shaq fashion, his retirement press conference was full of jokes, laughter, and of course to my dismay, a subtle rib at the New York Knicks for their sudden shakeup and yes, mismanagement. However, as Shaq finally hangs them up, the reflection on his career has begun. Luckily, I was able to witness such a dominant player in my lifetime. Heck, in an era today where the NBA has become a guard league, true centers are very few and far in between. Nonetheless, Shaq brought a distinct and unique style of force, dominance, agility and quickness that has never been seen by center in the NBA. From his powerful dunks, his quick drop step, and his demonstrative mannerisms after flushing it, Shaq will thoroughly be missed. Shaq’s ability to entertain will sorely be missed as well. While I’m sure he’ll land somewhere (most likely ESPN) as an analyst in attempts to rival TNT’s Charles Barkely, the nicknames, dances, jokes, a...

“Who are you supposed to call when you are in trouble?” It was a simple question asked by one of my closest friends, who also is in law school. It is a simple question that would usually illicit a simple answer of “the police”, however, the context in which the question was asked, caused everyone in the conversation to stop dead in their tracks… who are you supposed to call when you are in trouble? The conversation surrounded the recent decision in the now infamous case regarding two NYPD officers accused of raping a woman who was intoxicated. The woman, who should have been helped when her taxi driver called the police after she was unable to leave the cab, was allegedly taken advantage of after the two officers walked her up to her apartment, and returned several times – not proper NYPD procedure.  For all of the details on a very interesting case, please Google and get in the know. Now days after the two officers were found innocent due to a lack of physical...