Maintenance and Olympics
Posted: August 2nd, 2008 | Filed under: Media | 34 Comments »
Well, folks, it looks like the blog may be down periodically for the next couple of days because the crazy increase in traffic here has has forced me to move the whole kit and caboodle* to a faster server.
*It’s a shame that nobody ever uses the word “caboodle” without throwing kit in front of it. It’s like the Lou Whitaker of words — Whitaker was a really good player on his own, you shouldn’t have to throw Trammell in front of his name every time. Caboodle is such good word too. I think we all should try to bring back the word on its own merit — caboodle meaning “bunch or large quality.” As in: “Josh Hamilton has a caboodle of RBIs.” Or: “There were a caboodle of people waiting for a table at the Chili’s today — does it really make sense to WAIT for food at Chili’s? I mean, OK, you’re hungry, you see a Chili’s, your mind says, ‘You know, I do have a hankering to pepper in some fun into my life,’ sure, I can see that. You go to the entrance, say you need a table for two. But I’m thinking the second the greeter says, “OK, we have an hour wait,” — well, I’ve got to think that’s where my commitment for peppering fun ends. Sorry, i got off track.
ANYWAY, I’ve been forced to move this thing to a faster server, and by that I, of course, mean “forced me to pay someone much smarter than me to move it.” So, great, now I get to spend MORE money on this free blog. BUT … there’s actually some news on that front. I don’t want to ruin the surprise, but let’s just say that after I return from the Olympics this blog is moving on up to a deluxe apartment in the sky. Well, technically, it’s not moving anywhere, and it shouldn’t really affect you in any way at all but … well, you’ll have to wait and see. Something’s coming.
Also,I should say that I am leaving for the Olympics. I will be in the air all of Monday and Tuesday and part of Wednesday and, really, I land in China sometime around Labor Day. Then I will be responsible for writing a caboodle (updated) of columns about people whose names I do not know at this moment but who, for the next three weeks, will become the most important people on earth to me. Then, the Olympics will end, and all of that will disappear from the mind, like a hotel room number after you check out. Well, it happens every two years.
In any case, I suspect that while running around China chasing volleyballers and modern pentathloners*, the blog work load could go down. Of course, every time I have said that in the past I’ve proceeded to write MORE blog posts. So you can’t really trust me. We’ll just see how it goes.
*I have asked this question every four years: Why do they still call it the modern pentathlon? Is there really anyone out there who gets it confused with the ancient variety?
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Safe travels, Joe.
I’d be interested in trying out caboodle as a verb.
So you’re saying that you could (and seemingly, should) have written: “…I will be responsible for writing a caboodle of columns about people whose names I do not know at this moment…” I’m afraid I can’t take you’re suggestions seriously if you don’t do so yourself, Joe.
As another guy that has two daughters, I find it hard to believe that your house doesn’t have at least one Caboodle. My house has caboodles of Caboodles.
http://www.caboodles.com/
Hey Joe,
On your way to China could you please park your caboodle in Seattle for a lay-over. Please kit in on over to the Mariners’ front office and let them know that you are in favor of a Silva for Guillén trade.
Thank you,
THE JOSÉ GUILLEN SOCIETY
Trade that troublemaking Guillen to Seattle for Silva ASAP. Let’s do this thing!
To caboodle or not caboodle? That is the question. Trade Guillen for Silva? NO QUESTION ABOUT IT!!
I’m a big fan of the word “canoodling”
Safe travels, Joe
Guillen for Silva? No Freakin Way! Silva’s contract is a nightmare not to mention he’s horrible. 4-12 w/ a 5.95 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP? In a pitcher’s park?!? That trade fails on so many levels, I hope you aren’t serious.
THE JOSÉ GUILLEN SOCIETY is serious about hoping the M’s will offer the Royals a salary dump. Free up $10m per year in ‘09 and 2010 and give us your problem child, José Guillén. Win/Win. Your clubhouse distraction will be our team catalyst, as José was for the M’s in 2007.
I’ve heard rumors that China has a caboodle of people. No idea if it’s true or not.
Seriously … has anyone outside of China actually counted ‘em? How do we know for sure?
Godspeed. I look forward to hearing caboodles of athletes’ kittish pursuit of caboodles of medals.
Dear Jose Guillen society,
we don’t want your sorry pitcher. Not at all. Not for Guillen, not for anyone else and certainly not for the money he is owed. Please stop offering.
I was just gonna say, Joe, since your blog is so popular now, please, Please, PLEASE don’t add any annoying advertisements. It’s one of the reasons I love this place. Alright, it’s like a distant 2nd reason to your writing, but it’s still a reason. Hell, it’s the main reason I’ve only visited Deadspin about 3 times in my life. Yikes, what a mess.
More important, how can the “modern” pentathalon involve a horse?
Kyle,
You’ve got it backwards, buddy. We hope the M’s will want to help the Royals unload problem child Guillén by taking on his sizable salary. José fits in the Seattle clubhouse, but not in KC. Win-Win scenario here.
THE JOSÉ GUILLÉN SOCIETY
Just promise that you won’t change the layout of the blog.
pretty please?
Why do I get the feeling that Joe is going to be ten time zones away, ostensibly covering the biggest sporting event on Earth, and yet spending all his time on a four thousand word blog post describing a new statistic that ranks the best LOOGYs of the last twenty years?
If we all start signing our comments with “FREE TIBET” for the next two weeks, will Joe be censored from reading his own blog while in China?
Have fun, safe travels, and FREE TIBET!!
Is there any context in which you would rather say caboodle than passel? Or even mess?
I pay for Baseball Prospectus and I would pay for this blog too. I see no reason why Joe should have to pay for all this bandwidth out of his pocket. I wouldn’t mind some banner ads either.
Have a safe journey and stay in China. When it’s all over, let us know what the best story of the Olympics is; I trust your judgement.
“‘ANYWAY, I’ve been forced to move this thing to a faster server, and by that I, of course, mean “forced me to pay someone much smarter than me to move it.’”
Well, Joe, that’s just your fault for doing such a good job.
Happy Travels!
The “pentathlon”, no modern, is still contested in track. (Usually indoor, I think, but there’s no reason why you couldn’t do it outside.) It consists of hurdles, shot put, high jump, long jump, and an 800 meter run. It’s not quite the same as the Greek “ancient pentathlon” but close enough that it gets the non-prefixed name.
More important, how can the “modern†pentathalon involve a horse?
Because if it involved a Segway, it would be the post-modern pentathlon.
I’ll miss my Posterisks.
Caboodle is the Costanza of words . . . a great sidekick, capable of assuming a dominant role at times, but when trying to work alone comes across as uber-shallow and annoying.
Be sure to let us know if they have Panda Express over there.
Another word you only see used in a tag-team environment…. “ebb”. Why can’t something just ebb, and not flow? Poor ebb.
My wife has a pretty nice caboodle, if I do say so myself.
“My wife has a pretty nice caboodle, if I do say so myself.”
Is your pet name for her “Kitten”?
George Carlin had a riff on this:
Words like ‘kit and caboodle.’ Have you ever tried to buy a kit and caboodle? You can get a kit! But they’re all out of caboodles, man! You get you a reconditioned caboodle. ‘I’ll give you a caboodle kit, you can build your own caboodle.’ ‘That’s a kit and caboodle kit! I want a kit and caboodle, my friend.’
I don’t know if it’s illegal or not considering you’re already a columnist, but I bet if you include a “Donate Via PayPal” link, you’ll get a caboodle of extra money to operate this blog, and it’ll still technically be free because nobody is being forced to pay for it.
And I think Beijing is exactly 13 hours off from Kansas City, so if it’s 9 am in Kansas City, it’ll be 10 am in Beijing. Hope the plane trip went well, and good luck with the language.
There are a million reasons to not visit Deadspin that are far more important than the fact that they have ads, like, say, the sexism, general misogyny, racism and homophobia. But, maybe that’s just me.
Running a web site is not free. Server space and bandwidth are not free.
Run ads, Joe. Make money. Text Link Ads will make you more than Google AdSense. I can see him not wanting to take money from the ticket brokers, although they pay me enough every year to afford my post-season invoice, so I consider it sweet, sweet revenge for all those years I stood outside Madison Square Garden ticketless while the scalpers waved tickets I couldn’t afford in my face.
We all work for a living. This is Joe’s work. He has the blessing that (I hope) it is also fun for him. Wanting to make money off of your hard work is not wrong.
I’m ok if you run ads on this site, Joe. In fact, you can have a caboodle of them, for all I care. As long as you keep posting on this site, I don’t mind. You have the right to earn money from your labors.
I’m a fan of the writing, and can make up my own mind whether or not to click on an ad for insurance or cereals. Just keep writing.