The Rhinos Wallow

      Well, wasn't that more like the pool that we have come to know and detest. As the newbies in the pool should now realize, things are not always easy.

      I found it a bit strange that on the first really screwed up week in the pool this season all the winners were old guys. I am not quite sure if that indicates anything but it is a bit strange.

      When I send out the Email of Hope all of those to "Shaw" email addresses bounced back to me. If you were one of those who never received your email and want to in future please send me an email address that is not "Shaw" - hotmail, yahoo, gmail etc.

      This week certainly changed the race for the "Streak" prize a lot. 40 of 60 franchises lost their top pick in one way or another.

      OldHuskey.270 wrote on Sunday, "The Bills are making dry October a bit rough, ugh" As I responded to Chris, "Luckily it is almost the end of the month." I suspect he may be counting the days 'til November.

      When I read what the Rotter sent me this week I realized that I had taken a bath this week - just not a forest bath. Is there a work to describe when you have a sexual experience (of sorts) in a football pool? A lot of us got screwed this week, and not in a good way.

      The Green Giant sent me a email with his "Team Photo" this weekend. Steve wrote, "This picture is a reminder for all the seagull fans out there. I often share it with other “football fans” in my life. Please post this picture for my win." On the "Dictionary.com website they describe Hubris "excessive pride or self-confidence; arrogance." The photo was a fine idea and I thank Steve for that but really, "Post this picture for my win!" There is a lesson here somewhere but as a friend once told me, "You cannot teach anybody anything - they have to learn it".

      I have written, more than once, to Mustard Man, Geofferson Starship, Jamacia Flava, Moe Money and Grumpie Bear asking them to introduce themselves to the rest of the pool and have yet to receive any response. I can only conclude that they were collectively raised by wolves and educated by grizzly bears and are totally lacking in the social graces.

The Rotters Report

In previous articles, I have given you new words to add to your vocabulary, such as jökulhlaup or paraprosdokian. If you don’t know what those words mean, you will have to look them up in your Funk and Wagnell. But today’s new word is “phytocidian”, for which I will give you the meaning:

People say when they take a walk through the forest; they breath in the fresh air, smell the trees and they come back refreshed with a clear and relaxed mind. The Japanese have a name for it: “A Forest Bath”.

Well there is some truth to this story: apparently trees give off an organic compound (phytocidian) which helps protect them from boring insects, fungus and bacteria. It is this compound which humans are breathing in when taking a forest hike that gives them a sense of well being. Have you had your phytocidians today?

The Email of Hope

TTTMan has the lead in the Email of Hope standings with 11 EoH. Watt’s Up is in second place with 7 EoH. There are 3 Franchises tied for third with 6 Emails of Hope each. They are: Jet Picker; Oldhusky.270 and Show Your TDs. For those of you who wish to see the complete Email of Hope standings, please click here.

Note: the winning dollar amounts are a week behind as the winners are not known at time of writing.

The Monica Award - If only he had earned 2 more points Fat Tony could have made it a 3 way tie for 3rd place. I bet that would have made his week - have a 3 way and Tin Cup elimination on the same weekend.

    The POW Award - This week's much coveted POW award goes to the 6 franchises that picked the Falcons to soar over the Buccaneers. BadGasBrown, Dinky, Dos Cervezas, Fat Tony, Jamaica Flavva and the Jet Picker all did well with their pick. Those who picked the Giants, the Steelers and the Broncos to win also did well and received consideration. Well done all of you.

    The Celler Dweller - This week's scores bring meaning to "Celler Dweller" Athletes Foot was truly Foot Fungus this week. Kyle was one of two contestant who failed to reach the 200 point level. That many points can be reached with 1 correct pick - that should put his week into perspective. Thankfully he earned more than the 130 points which would have put him into the "Hall Of Fame" 10 worst weeks area. I am not worried about the everlasting shame and stink of putresence that would cling to Kyle for eternity, (or at least one week) but it creates a lot of work for me and it is a pain updating that page. We all have our own priorities, don't we.

   Without further ado, this weeks winners, and we honour and congratulate them are....

1st - The Rotter With about 2 minutes to go in the MNF battle Ross wrote to me, "Starting to think about breaking out the Glayva." Later he wrote, "After starting the year losing my number 1 pick and being 200 plus points behind, I didn’t think this was possible. But just being consistent and having the leaders come back to me has paid off. Now to hold onto the lead."

2nd - Dos Cervezas - Matt never responded to his EofH but he has a "Shaw" email address so may not have received it. I imagine this calls for 2 beer to celebrate.

3rd - Sarge - Party hard in Vernon tonight.

4th (T)- Dinky - Well - not exactly standing erect but a tie for fourth should at least get Richard to "Slouch to attention"

4th (T) - Polecat - No Tin Cup for the Polecat this year. Another victory, of sorts, for the old guys.

This week's quote from Sir Winston Churchill can apply to this pool, "However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results." Words well worth pondering.

       'Til next week then...

          The Rhino