TURKEYS AND FOREHAND WINNERS

I've never really been crazy about video games. I have played Tecmo Super Bowl a lot. I've made it a mission to beat several games. Let's see. Duck Tales. Killer Instinct. Mega Man 2, 3 and 4. 24: the Game. But since I was 10, I've never planned a night of video-game playing. I've never suggested hey, let's play video games. I bought a Playstation 2 but have mainly used it for DVDs. I own a Nintendo (that still works) and a Sega Genesis (which doesn't work.)
So, why did I find myself Sunday bowling, swinging a bat and winning an epic game of tennis?
That's because my mom bought a Wii. Yup, that's right. And not for me. For herself. Which begs the question: Is she the first mom to buy a gaming system for herself and not for her son? There can't be too many more. The thought of her showing me how to conquer a Wii sport is slightly disturbing.
The main question is what possessed her to want a Wii. I'm not sure exactly. But somehow I have a feeling Oprah is involved. I wonder if she had a show about how great the Wii is and then my mom thought hey, I should get one. More and more, I'm getting the feeling that Oprah is going to be the leader of the next massed suicide.
But hey, my mom is excited about the purchase. It will be fun exercise. Keeps her active. The biggest benefit for me? With the reward zone points that will get, I'll have a five-dollar coupon in no time.
Though I am predicting she gets bored with it by the end of the month and brings it back. Unless she gets really into the characters you can create in the Wii world or whatever it's called. If her character comes out looking a lot like her when Paul makes it, she's going to flip out and fall in love with the damn thing. I'll keep you posted.
My mom worked mostly on her bowling game Sunday. So far, her high score is 148. I'm thinking of having Family Bowling Night.
Planning to play a video game? I don't even know myself anymore.

MY WEEKLY CUBS THOUGHTS
Instead of blabbering about the Cubs all the time, I'm just going to give weekly thoughts on Sundays. Until October that is. Ok, I have ten thoughts here, but I can't promise to hit that number every week.

- Big Z looked great Friday against the Cardinals. Focused. Intense. Had good movement. Definitely a positive sign because he is the one to carry us deep into the postseason.
- I'm fascinated with the reaction of other announcers to the way Dempster shakes his glove before pitching. One thought it was a great idea for timing. Another seemed so shocked that a pitcher was doing such a thing that Dempster might as well have been wearing a dress on the mound.
- Soto, Ramirez, Lee and Soriano are all tied with 15 homers. That's balance. Of course, Soriano has missed a lot of time. I'll predict he finishes with the most on the team.
- Winning 2 of 3 from St. Louis is huge. But with Sabathia in the fold, I say the Brewers are now the favorites. That's a scary team. We can take them though.
- Marmol is a key storyline. I think they need that dominant, scary reliever. And he was that for a while. If he can't get it together, that's a major hole on the team.
- I figured Wood was due for a blown save. I just wish it wasn't against the Cardinals.
- Wednesday's win was great. Dempster was good. The Giants kept coming back. But we still won it.
- The Cubs are 11-12 without Soriano. So yes he's vital. Hey, I like the guy. Swings at bad pitches? Sure. Shaky defense? Yah. But he throws out runners (deletes runs for them) and hits homers (adds runs for us).
- MVP of the week: DeRosa. Grand slam on Monday. And he just kept going.
- I predicted 93 wins at the beginning of the season. I'll still take that, but this team should be at 97-99.

MY DAILY TOP LIST
It's time to get a little personal with today's list. Let's make it girl related. The top five things girls have said to me.

1) When are you going to stop teasing me and fuck me already? --- December 2007.
2) No. I don't think so. --- September 2004. After I said: I have feelings for you. Do you have them for me?
3) My dad was killed in an airplane by terrorists. He sent a friend to be my guardian angel. And he sits on my bed sometimes at night and watches me sleep. He'll follow you around too and protect you. --- February 2002.
4) You better call me right away. Don't keep me waiting. --- July 2001. In an e-mail. Trust me. I called right away.
5) You're so dreamy, Gene. --- Fall 2004.