I got around to watching the first episode of this year’s “Hard Knocks” on HBO last night. For those who don’t know (or care), the show follows an NFL team through training camp, and this year it’s the Jets. As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve been a lifelong (if not partially closeted) Jets fan since I was about 7 years old, and even have an olde-tyme Jets bobblehead (back before they were called bobbleheads, though I don’t recall what they called them back then) among other Jets stuff (used to have a #12 Jets helmet, too, but that’s long gone to wherever it is that things go when they’re no longer around, and it was pretty tight on my big fat head even when I was twelve; if I still had it, I’d probably make a lamp or something out of it). Plus the Jets training camp is in my backyard – just a couple exits south of here in Cortland. Last year was their first year up here, and it nearly resulted in a trip to the Super Bowl, so we all have high hopes for this season. As you can tell, this is pretty darn exciting stuff (at least when compared to the rest of what I laughingly refer to as my “life”). And the show was fun to watch (though from what I read, Rex Ryan’s mom called him up and told him to clean up his language; Rex is a bit of a potty mouth).

I don’t know if y’all caught “The Daily Show” the other night, but if you did, you may have seen Jon Stewart refer to the orange-colored John Boehner as the “former Syracuse mascot.” Pretty funny, but – much as I detest him – even ‘Otto the Orange’ isn’t as bad as the Boehner.

If you’re looking for something to do this weekend, head out to a National Park. Admission is free. Oh, sure, you’ll be supporting socialism and subverting the right of private ownership to buy land and turn it into strip malls and expensive estates for rich people, but, still.

Oh well, it’s Friday the 13^th, so you all be careful out there today.