I wanted to give you a sneak peek into my Football Recipe Guide by giving you signature cocktails and burger recipes for some of today’s key matchups. If your Game of the Week is not listed today, leave me a comment or shoot me an email and I’ll send you the recipe for your team! Enjoy!

• Detroit v. Chicago
• Baltimore v. New England
• Buffalo v. Miami
• Dallas v. Denver
• San Diego v. Pittsburgh
• Monday Night: Green Bay v. Minnesota

Stay tuned for more recipe guides and the fabulous Football Season Survival Guide, coming soon!

1:00 Matchups

Detroit  vs. Chicago

My Pick: Chicago. Only because my friend Mike would disown me if I picked against his team. But since Detroit has finally won a game, I’m secretly rooting for them to make it to the Super Bowl.

Detroit Lions

The Drink:

The Lions Paw

* 1 fluid ounce Southern Comfort liqueur
* 1 fluid ounce pineapple juice
* 1 fluid ounce raspberry wine
DIRECTIONS
1. In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, shake the Southern Comfort liqueur, pineapple juice, and raspberry wine until well blended. Strain into a martini glass, and garnish with a slice of fruit.

The Guiness Sangria

One of the many unique drink items available at the Detroit Pub is Guinness Sangria. This drink mixes the dark brewed beer with a ruby port wine and is topped with a sprinkle of nutmeg. It has a sweet, rich, almost coffee-like taste to it.

The Burger:

Motor City Black & Blue BBQ Burgers
The Coney Burgers

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Chicago Bears

The Drink:

Da Bear-tini

2 parts Kahlúa
1 part Tequila Tezón

Shake in a shaker with ice and strain into a martini glass. Garnish with an
orange twist.

The Burger:

Da Bears Deep Dish PizzaBurger:

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Baltimore Ravens vs. New England Patriots

Baltimore Ravens

My Pick: Patriots. Tough call for me since I actually like the Ravens a little but being considering I have a sign in my kitchen that says “I Love New England” (the place, not the team), I suppose I better stick to it!

The Drink:

THE RAVENS
The Raven is a dark and mysterious cocktail that I’ve adapted from other recipes. I like this one because it contains ingredients that are more common in bars than those found in other Ravens. The key to this drink is the layer which is rather easy to obtain in this mix as the blue shaken mix is much lighter than the Chambord and they rarely break the layers unless stirred.
Ingredients:

* 1 oz vodka
* 1 oz rum
* 1 oz blue curacao
* 1/2 oz Chambord

Preparation:

1. Pour the vodka, rum and blue curacao into a cocktail shaker filled with ice.
2. Strain into a highball glass filled with fresh ice.
3. Slowly pour the Chambord over the back of a bar spoon so it floats on top.

The Burger:

Charm City Crab Burger: **I don’t have an actual recipe for this. I say, either buy some yummy crab cakes or whip up your own batch. Then stick them in between some gourmet bread with some spicy aioli sauce and voila!

New England Patriots

The Drink:

Cranberry Almond Kicker
2 cups cranberry juice cocktail
1 cup vodka
1/2 cup amaretto
3 tablespoons fresh orange juice*
Ice cubes
Clementines, peeled, separated into segments (optional)

1. Mix cranberry juice, vodka, amaretto, and orange juice in pitcher.
2. Cover and chill until ready to serve. It can be prepared 1 day ahead. Keep refrigerated.
3. To make 2 drinks, fill cocktail shaker with ice cubes. Pour in scant 1 cup vodka mixture.
4. Cover and shake vigorously. Strain into 2 Martini glasses. Garnish each with clementine segment, if desired. Repeat 3 times with ice cubes, remaining vodka mixture, and clementine segments.

Makes 8 cocktails.

*I used 1/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice because I liked the tartness it added to the cocktail.

The Burger:

The Best Burger Ever (Sam Adams Edition)

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4:00 Matchups

Buffalo Bills vs. Miami Dolphins

My Pick: I know I’m going to regret this, but let’s go with Miami.

Buffalo Bills

The Drink:

The Buffalo Wild Wings (BDubbz) Cure
*  2 cups ice cubes
* 2 tablespoons (1 ounce) Domaine de Canton ginger liqueur
* 10 tablespoons (5 ounces) light lager, such as Miller High Life
* 1 tablespoon (1/2 ounce) fresh lemon juice
* 5 (1-inch) pieces peeled fresh ginger cut into thin matchsticks

The Burger:

Buffalo Burgers with Smokey Red Pepper Sauce

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Miami Dolphins

The Drink:

The Miami Mojito

1.25 oz Captain Morgan® Original spiced rum
12 mint leaves
1 tbsp sugar
0.5 oz lime juice
2 oz soda

Place mint leaves in bottom of glass. Add crushed ice, Captain Morgan Original Spiced Rum, sugar, and lime juice, and muddle. Add soda water and garnish with mint leaves.

The Burger:

The Miami Cuban Burger

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Dallas Cowboys vs. Denver Broncos

My Pick: Dallas.

The Drink:

Bring in on 6: Don’t Mess With The Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders (also known as: All my Ex’s live in Texas Kool-Aid by Miss Charming)
• Half pony the Brandy
• Half pony the Sherry
• Pony the Tequila Rose
• Pony the Strawberry Flavored Vodka
• Fill with sweet-n-sour & cranberry juice
• Strawberry garnish
• Texas size tall cool glass

** pony = an ounce, so half a pony is half an ounce.

Find the biggest glass you can find (remember, this is a Texas themed drink!) Pour in the  Brandy, Sherry, and Tequila Rose. Then  add the Strawberry Vodka, sweet-n-sour and cranberry juice and shake it like a Dallas Cowboy Cheerleader!

The Burger:

The Dallas Burger

—————————————————

Denver Broncos

The Drink:

The Mile High

INGREDIENTS

* 1 part Lychee liqueur
* 1 part Midori® melon liqueur
* 2 Lime wedge
* 2 Sugar

Muddle the lime wedges and sugar, add ice, and the liquer. Shake and serve on ice.

The Burger:

Mile High Burgers

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The Late Game: San Diego Chargers & Pittsburgh Steelers

My Pick: Chargers. Still angry at the Steelers for the whole Super Bowl thing last season.

San Diego Chargers

The Drink:
san diego sea breeze
use:       1.0 tsp  Blackberry Liqueur
0.5 part Orange juice
0.5 part Pineapple Juice
1.0 oz  Vodka
0.5 oz Blueberry Schnapps
0.5 oz Raspberry Schnapps

The Burger:

The Cali Burger

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Pittsburgh Steelers

The Drink:

The Black & Gold

* 2 oz Blavod vodka (aka black vodka.)
* 1 oz Goldschlager (cinnamon liquor with gold flakes!)

1. Pour the Blavod into ice filled shaker and shake it good.
2. Strain into a chilled glass
3. Top with Goldschlager so the flakes float all around! Sparkly!

Pittsburgh Sunrise

• 4 oz vodka
• 8 oz Sprite soda
• 4 oz peach & papaya juice

The Burger

The Pittsburgh Panini
The Roethlis-burger:

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Monday Night Football:

My Pick: Tough, tough call. Brett Favre against the team who scorned him. Except I’m kinda tired of the whole Favre madness. Leave already or don’t. You are good, but you ain’t the Michael Jordan of football. But, I shall go with the Vikings.

Green Bay Packers

The Drink:

old fashioned brandy wisconsin
* 3 oz brandy
* 2-3 dashes Angostura bitters
* 1 tsp sugar
* dash of water
* lemon peel for garnish

Preparation:

1. Place the sugar cube at the bottom of an old-fashioned glass.
2. Saturate the cube with the water and bitters.
3. Muddle these ingredients.
4. Fill the glass with ice cubes.
5. Add the brandy.
6. Stir well.
7. Garnish with a lemon peel.

The Burger:

Green Bay Beer Cheese Brat Burgers:

————————————————

Minnesota Vikings

The Drink:

Purple Viking
1 oz Southern Comfort® peach liqueur
1 oz Blue Curacao liqueur
1 oz blueberry liqueur
1 oz sloe gin
1 splash lime juice
1 splash sweet and sour mix
1 splash 7-Up® soda

screaming viking:
2 oz vodka
- 1 oz dry vermouth
- 1 oz lime juice
- 1 celery stalk
- 1 spear cucumber

The Burger

The Viking Burger: http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1725,144168-255197,00.html

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Every week we’ll be bringing you fabulous recipes to make it through the football season, from the pre-game to the 4th quarter. We’ve compiled 17 dunkin’ dip recipes, 17 mouthwatering appetizers, 17 of the most unique wing recipes, 17 hearty, delicious chilis and stews, and 17 bite-size slider recipes. Plus, we’ve also created 32 signature cocktails and 32 signature burgers—one for every NFL team. There may even be a few extra bonus for college football fanatics!

So check back weekly for the newest fabulous football recipes!

Now, on to Week 1!

• Pre-Game: Dips
• 1st Quarter: Appetizers
• 2nd Quarter: Wings
• Halftime: Chilis & Burgers, aka “man meals”
• 3rd Quarter: Cocktails
• 4th Quarter: Dessert

Pre Game:

Buffalo Chicken Wing Dip:

Ingredients

* 16 ounces cream cheese
* 8 ounces Frank’s Red Hot Sauce
* 3/4 cup chopped celery
* 2 cups cooked shredded chicken
* 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions

1. Combine cream cheese, hot sauce and celery. Heat in microwave until cream cheese is melted. Stir; add chicken and cheddar cheese. Mix together. Put into a baking dish. Top with more shredded Cheddar cheese, if desired. Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes.

From: http://www.foodclassics.com/re2101/recipes.php

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1st Quarter:

7 Layer Tex Mex Dip Sliders

Inside the bun are refried beans, a spicy burger, cheese, lime guacamole, yellow mustard and yellow tomato salsa, olives and tangy sour cream. Look for mini brioche or potato rolls if your market’s bakery does not make mini burger buns. Split packaged dinner rolls work in a pinch as well.

*1 (15-ounce) can vegetarian (lard-free) spicy refried beans
*2 pounds ground sirloin
*1 tablespoon chipotle chili powder or chili powder, a palmful
*1 tablespoon sweet smoked paprika, a palmful
*3 to 4 tablespoons grated onion
*3 garlic cloves, minced or grated
*1½ tablespoons grill seasoning, such as McCormick’s Montreal Steak Seasoning, 1½ palmfuls
*1 cup beer—whatever the cook is drinkin’
EVOO (extra-virgin olive oil), for drizzling
*6 slices of pepper Jack cheese from the deli counter, quartered to make 24 little squares
*1 large ripe Hass avocado
*1 teaspoon grated lime zest
Juice of 2 limes
*3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
*½ small or medium red onion, finely chopped
*2 jalapeños, seeded and finely chopped
*Salt
*2 medium yellow tomatoes, seeded and chopped
*¼ cup yellow mustard (eyeball it)
*1 cup sour cream
*1 tablespoon hot sauce (eyeball it)
*1 teaspoon ground cumin
*12 mini buns, split
Shredded lettuce
*½ cup green olives with pimientos, chopped

Heat the beans in a small skillet over medium-low heat. Thin them out with a splash of water so they can heat through without becoming pastelike. Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat.

Use your hands to combine the meat and chili powder, smoked paprika, grated onion, two cloves of garlic, grill seasoning and beer. Score the meat into four portions with the side of your hand and form three 3-inch patties from each section, yielding 12 mini sliders. Drizzle EVOO over the burgers and place them in the hot skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the burgers for 6 minutes, turning once, for medium doneness.

• In the last minute of cooking time place 2 mini slices of cheese on each burger and tent the pan with foil to melt the cheese.
• While the burgers cook, mash the avocado with the lime zest and juice, half the cilantro, half the red onion, the remaining clove of garlic, half of the chopped jalapeño, and salt to taste.
• Toss the tomatoes in a bowl with the remaining cilantro, red onion, and jalapeño, salt to taste, and the mustard to make a salsa.
• In a separate bowl combine the sour cream with the hot sauce and cumin.
• To assemble the sliders, layer as follows: bun bottom, a spoonful of beans spread around, a beef patty with cheese, lettuce, guacamole, salsa, sour cream, olives and bun top.

From: http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Recipes/story?id=6197380

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Fabulous Football Franks

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Heinz Ketchup ®
• 1 pound cocktail franks
• 1-2 tablespoons chopped jalapeño peppers
• ½ cup grape jelly
• 1 can (8 ounces) undrained crushed pineapple in juice

Preparation:

• Combine ketchup, pineapple, grape jelly and jalapeño peppers.
• Cook over medium heat, stirring until jelly is melted.
• Stir in cocktail franks; heat. Serve warm with toothpicks. Makes 12-15 servings.

From: http://pittsburgh.about.com/od/recipes/r/football_franks.htm

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2nd Quarter

Red Hot Honey Glazed Grilled Wings with blue cheese-celery dipping sauce

Ingredients
For the wings:

* 1 cup hot sauce
* 1/2 cup honey
* 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
* 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
* Salt
* Freshly ground black pepper
* 24 chicken wings, tips removed

For the blue cheese-celery dipping sauce:

* 1/2 cup mayonnaise
* 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
* 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
* 1/4 cup finely diced celery
* 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese (recommended: Cabrales)
* 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh chives
* Salt
* Freshly ground black pepper

Whisk together all sauce ingredients in a medium bowl and season with salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Directions

• Heat grill to medium-high.
• Combine the hot sauce, honey and butter in a small saucepan and cook over medium heat until the butter is melted and the mixture comes together, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in the vinegar and season with salt and pepper.
• Pour half of the sauce in a bowl and keep the remaining sauce in the pan, warm over low heat.
• Season the wings on both sides with the salt and pepper. Brush the wings with the reserved sauce in the bowl and place on the grill.
• Grill on each side for 5 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through.
• Remove wings from the grill and toss with the warm hot sauce.

From: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bobby-flay/chicken-wings-with-red-hot-honey-glaze-and-blue-cheese-celery-dipping-sauce-recipe/index.html

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Halftime

3 bean 3 meat Guinness Chili

Prep Work

• Place 1lb. stew meat in pot, soak it in a pint of Guinness Draught (can, not bottle)
• Brown 1lb. lean ground beef (I use 97% lean), add to Guinness soak.
• Take three (3) links of smoked beef sausage and cut into small cubes, add to Guinness soak.
• Allow meats to soak for 1 hr, no heat.
• Chop one (1) large white onion, set aside

Mix one (1) 6oz. can of Tomato paste into meat/Guinness soak until well blended

Getting Rubbed the Right Way

Add the following dry rubs (NO CHEATING! DO NOT USE A CHILI MIX!):

• 1/2 Tablespoon Paprika
• 2 Tablespoons Ancho Chili Pepper (McCormick)
• 2 Tablespoons Chipotle Chili Pepper (McCormick)
• 3 Tablespoons Ground Cumin (McCormick)
• 1/2 Tablespoon Crushed Red Pepper
• 1/2 Teaspoon Pepper Blend

The dry rubs should create a thick pasty-like blend in the meats. This will be broken down when we add the remaining ingredients.

Add the following to the pot:

• chopped white onion
• Two (2) 24oz. cans of Rotel Original Tomatos and Green Chiles
• One (1) can black beans (do not drain juice)
• One (1) can red beans (do not drain juice)
• One (1) can kidney beans (do not drain juice)

Mix well, and cook over medium heat – stirring frequently for about 10 minutes. Then, reduce heat and slow simmer the chili for several hours. Keeping this just above the “low“ setting should allow it to slow cook all day and present you with a fantastic dinner in the evening. This is also a great recipe for tailgating.

Serves: An army, but freezes well. From: http://msmvps.com/blogs/lduncan/articles/16752.aspx

——————————————————-

Firecracker Burgers

• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1/4 cup chunky salsa
• 4 frozen breaded cheddar cheese jalapeno peppers, thawed
• 1/4 cup guacamole
• 4 hamburger buns, split and toasted
• 4 lettuce leaves
• 1/4 cup salsa con queso dip
• 1/4 cup sliced plum tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons sliced ripe olives
• 4 thin slices sweet onion

Directions:

In a bowl, combine the beef and salsa. Shape into four patties. Place a jalapeno in the center of each; wrap beef around jalapeno, forming a ball. Reshape into patties, about 3-1/2 to 4 in. in diameter and 1 in. thick.
Grill, covered, over medium-hot heat for 7-8 minutes on each side or until meat is no longer pink. Spread guacamole over toasted side of bun tops. On each bun bottom, layer lettuce, a burger, con queso dip, tomatoes, olives and onion; replace tops. Makes: 4 servings.

From: http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Firecracker-Burgers

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3rd Quarter: Cocktails

Touchdown

4 oz bourbon
8 oz lemonade
8 oz iced tea (unsweetened)

Combine bourbon with iced tea in a mixing glass filled with ice. Strain equal parts into two Hurricane glasses filled with ice. Top with lemonade. (Makes two 12-ounce servings.)

Quarterback Sack

2 oz gin
2 oz vodka
1 oz triple sec
4 oz bloody mary mix
Splash tonic water

In a mixing glass half filled with ice combine all ingredients except tonic water. Strain into four shot glasses. Top with tonic water. (Makes four 1 1/2-ounce servings.)

———————————-

Also come up with signature cocktails for each team, here are some for the key first week matchups:

Dallas Cowboys v. Tampa Bay Buccanneers

The Dallas Cowboy Cocktail

Ingredients

* 3 fresh mint leaves
* Crushed ice
* 1/2 lime, juiced
* 1 shot tequila blanco
* 1 bottle beer (recommended: Corona)
* Fresh mint sprig, for garnish

Directions

Place mint leaves in bottom of highball glass. Fill with crushed ice. Add lime juice, stir, then add the tequila and beer. Garnish with mint sprig.

The Tampa Bay Fuzzy Pirate
Ingredients
* 1 1/2 oz. Rum, light
* 1 1/2 oz. Schnapps, peach
* 3 oz. Orange Juice
Shake ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Strain into glass over crushed ice. Also makes a great frozen drink when blended like a frozen daiquiri. Can also use flavored rums like mango, orange, or anything fruity.

———————–

Washington Redskins v. New York Giants

The Washington RedApple
* 1 oz Crown Royal Canadian Whiskey
* 1 oz sour apple schnapps
* 1 oz cranberry juice
* apple slice for garnish
The Absolut Jolly New York Giant
Ingredients

2 part(s) Absolut Ruby Red Vodka – (more)
1/2 part(s) Lemon Juice – (more)
1/2 part(s) Maraska Maraschino Liqueur – (more)
1/4 oz. Pomegranate Juice – (more)

Shake and strain into a martini glass over a brandied cherry, or over ice into a rocks glass.

———————————————

And finally, the 4th Quarter

Football Cupcakes:

Who doesn’t love a cupcake? Rich, moist, melts-in-your mouth and covered in yummy frosting! Some other ideas are football shaped or football decorated cookies but the cupcakes are my personal favorites! Here is a really cute, er, manly, design: http://familyfun.go.com/recipes/special/cake/cake-football-cupcake/

Jam-packed with everything you need to know about college football and the NFL so come September, you too can yell “I’m ready for some football!”

Want a sneak peek at what’s coming up? Check out our sidebar where we are featuring some our fan-favorite  Girl’s Guide to Football articles.

Right now we are offering a special limited time deal on The Stiletto Sports Complete Girl’s Guide to Football! The first 50 people to pre-order will be getting their copy of The Complete Girl’s Guide to Football absolutely FREE and before it even hits the internet!

To pre-order The Complete Girl’s Guide to Football,  just register to become part of Team Stiletto* (or Team Sneaker if you happen to be a male opposed to rockin’ high heels). There’s no cost, no fees, and really, no reason not to do it! Plus, you’ll receive our weekly newsletter, The Stiletto Report, and be the first to hear about all of our contests or giveaways!

Pre-Order My Copy:

45 20 5 3 0copies left!

Because of the overwhelming response and demand for The Girl’s Guide to Football, we’ve decided to extend our free offer to the first 65 people to sign up! Hurry, even with the extension there are still only 10 5 2 copies left!

*if you are already on the mailing list, don’t fret! You are already signed up to receive your free copy! See, the early bird does get the best deals in the store…..or something like that!
Here’s a little tease of what’s to come:

• Grillin’ and Chillin’: yummy recipes and tips to throwing amazing parties every Sunday!
• The Hotties of Fall Catalogue
• Football movie showdown
• And of course….all the rules, terms, basic plays and football jargon that you need to know to watch a game and actually know what’s going on!

But the best part is that our guide is going to be delivered in an e-Guide format so you can download it at any time! Forget waiting for a book to arrive in the mail or having to run to the store at the last minute to study up before the season starts!

Also, look for our new Stiletto Sports Fall Fashion Preview coming soon full of fun, flirty, fabulous and most importantly, fashionable, football-chic gear to get you ready for the sports season!

However, that’s not always an option, especially if they live a couple of thousand miles away from each other an Yankee Stadium. However, that doesn’t mean that you can’t get him something Yankee related.

Yankee Stadium: Baseball’s Cathedral DVD (With Collectible Ticket & Coin)

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve watched this DVD. I’ve even had non-Yankee fans say it was moving. If your father has ever been to a game at Yankee stadium, he’ll love this DVD.

Baseball’s epicenter sits at 161st Street and River Avenue in the Bronx, New York. For more than 80 years, fans and ballplayers have congregated on sultry summer days and chilly October nights to witness history. They cheer their hearts out, realize their dreams and heal their souls in this ultimate baseball cathedral. Yankee Stadium has meant so much to so many, and Yankees players and fans will enjoy one final season in the House That Ruth Built before making their way to the new Yankee Stadium in 2009.

Yankee Stadium: Baseball’s Cathedral will celebrate the entire spectrum that makes this ballpark the most talked about sports structure in the entire world. Contains an exclusive 85-Year Yankee Stadium Commemorative Ticket with Yankee Coin.

But this for $25 at Amazon.
Remembering Yankee Stadium Hardcover Book

I received this book as Christmas present last year and it was one of my favorite gifts that I received. Flipping through this book and looking at the amazing pictures brought back a lot of good memories.

Diamonds aren’t forever. After the 2008 season, the seemingly immortal “House That Ruth Built” will shut its gates forever—to be replaced by a brand-new stadium just a homer’s length away. As if anything could ever replace Yankee Stadium in the hearts and memories of New York Yankees’ fans.

Memories are what this book is about. From the moment it opened on April 18, 1923, Yankee Stadium was a phenomenon: It was more than double the size of any ballpark at the time. And what was happening on the field was just as phenomenal. In the third inning of that opening-day game, Babe Ruth hit the home run he deemed the most satisfying of his career. That fall, the stadium hosted the first of the many World Series games that would be played there over the ensuing 85 years.

And that, of course, was just the beginning. Remembering Yankee Stadium brilliantly and beautifully documents the stadium’s entire career through a decade-by-decade account, a priceless collection of historical photographs, and, most movingly, the vivid, first-person reminiscences of the people to whom this “citadel of sport” has meant so much: entertainers and politicians, broadcasters and sportswriters, players and fans. No Yankees fan—no baseball fan—will be able to resist this incredible book.

On Sale At Amazon For Less Than $30.

New York Yankees #1 Dad T-Shirt

Instead of getting him that #1 Dad Coffee Mug, get him the Yankee t-shirt.

Buy from the MLB Shop for $19.99.

New York Yankees General Manger Series Watch By Game Time

If you want to get something your father can wear, but you don’t want to get him a tie, check out this watch. It’s got some style and something that any father would be proud to wear on their wrist.

• Officially licensed team logo embossed in 23k gold
• 23k Gold accents on stainless steel case and bracelet
• Rotating bezel ring
• Miyota Quartz movement

Buy from the MLB Shop For $119.99.

New York Yankees Silk Tie

If you feel like you have to get him a tie, this is the only tie that is acceptable.

$39.99 at the MLB Shop.

My grandfather had Babe Ruth to cheer for.

My father got to watch Roger Maris.

I have the steroids era.

One by one, the heroes and legends that I admired have fallen off their pedestals.

Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa battled back and forth in 1998 for the home run title. I was glued to my television screen watching them beat the Roger Marris’s record of 61 home runs. Then in 2005, I was watching television again, but this time they were testifying in front of congress about steroids.

Roger Clemens led my beloved Yankees past the Mets in the 2000 World Series. In 2008, accusations that he used performance enhancing drugs in 2000 surfacned.

Alex Rodriguez was on pace to beat Barry Bonds for the most career home runs. He was going to be the player that didn’t need steroids to do it. Then after 553 home runs, we find out that he was using steroids.

Now, it’s Manny Ramirez who’s suspended for fifty games for using a banned substance.

They all had their denials – I didn’t know it was banned, I didn’t know I what I was injecting into my body – but their statements just make them look more dirty. They sound just as bad as the politicians that have been caught cheating on their wives and taking bribes.

But, we know we’re being lied to. We know a lot, if not most of the baseball players in the past ten or twenty years were using steroids. We may not want to believe it, but the evidence keeps growing.

There’s a good chance that there’s players that are using human growth hormones and other performance enhancing drugs today.

Of course, the owners, the teams and Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig should step up to the plate and perform stricter testing, find out who is really juiced and ban them for life.

My only question is “who’s next?”

I’m not the only one that is suspicious of every player that has stepped on to the field in the last twenty years.

It’s not going to stop me from going to the games or rooting for the Yankees every night on television, but what am I going to tell my grand kids? I got to see the greatest cheaters ever?

—
Originally posted on Section 59.

It’s half “official blog for Stiletto Sports magazine” and half “Stiletto Sport Jen’s personal blog.” Okay, it’s more like 20/80…..

I really wanted to make a fun place that’s easy to interact with others. As Stiletto Sports continues to grow and change from blog, to website to magazine, I’ve been feeling more and more disconnected from my readers. There’s a lot going on over here!

Pink Bubble World is more chill and laid back. My Happy Place. Reflections on live, love, blogging and the pursuit of a pink, bubble filled world.

Oh and going forward most of my reality tv show commentary will move over there as well. Maybe.

So, go check it out. There’s a whole new template but still a pink, bubbly, sparkly feel! Let me know what you think!

Also, we are looking for anyone interested in becoming a guest columnist for Stiletto Sports! Daily, Weekly, Monthly, or by specific sports coverage…we are really flexible. We just want to give back and help syndicate your work! Leave a comment here or check out our Write For Stiletto Sports for more info!

You may have noticed (and will continue to notice) a decline in posting on StilettoSports. com. Don’t fear! We are still here! Just working on a lot of new & exciting projects for the magazine and the site that have not been revealed yet! Stay tuned!

Make sure you stay connected so you don’t miss the new posts! We recommend:

1. Subscribing to our RSS or put us in your Google Reader if we aren’t already!
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Thank you so much for your support and loyalty!

But nope, it’s been a full year and we are about to crown the new American Prince Idol. I’ve made my feelings abundantly clear all season long so it will no surprise when I say GO TEAM KRIS!

For those of you that don’t know, I think Adam is insanely talented but you couldn’t pay me to buy his album and listen to that screaming. I do believe he should win, I just don’t want him to! And Kris has really come so far over the season. The “Dark Horse” (as opposed to the “dark goth”) continuously shocked the audience and judges—and me—week after week!

The finale had three rounds: singer’s choice, producer Simon Fuller’s choice, and crap-ass Official Single by Kara DioGuardi.

Round 1

Artist’s favorite performance of the season

Adam Lambert “Mad World” Tears for Fears

One of the only performances of Adam’s that I really liked all season and was actually able to listen to from start to finish. I was really glad that he picked this one to revisit because there was no screaming! Simple, powerful, haunting and really amazing.

Kris Allen “Ain’t No Sunshine” Bill Withers

This is word-for-word what I said the last time he performed this song

His “Ain’t No Sunshine” is on par with David Cook’s “Hello” from last season. Both songs were very, very well known, pretty much out-of-date, cliched and “owned” by only one artist–meaning anyone else that tried to sing the song, sounded like a karaoke version of Bill Withers and Lionel Ritchie. But not these guys. They completely stripped it down, re-did it in a modern way and totally blew the song out of the water. It was un-real.

And it beared repeating becaue it blew me away all over again.

The only person that summed up my thoughts about his performance even better than I could was  Kara DioGuaridi when she said: “If you can’t feel a Kris Allen performance and he doesn’t move you, then there is something wrong with you. You have a way of creating an intimate bond with everybody in the audience. You make us feel like you are singing to us”

Even better was Simon’s endorsement that yes, America got it right putting Kris in the finals.

Round 1 Winner (judges): KRIS!

Round 1 Winner (me): KRIS!!!!

Round 2:

Simon Fuller’s Pick

Adam Lambert “A Change is Going to Come” Sam Cooke

Why on earth Simon would pick this song is beyond me. IT is the most oversung song on Idol. I actually think Idol must get paid everytime someone sings that song because it is done at least once a season.

The judges were drooling all over themselves over his take and unique spin on the song.

I heard “Blah blah blah Scream Screech SCREAM SCREECH.”

Kris Allen “What’s Going On” Marvin Gaye

I love Kris because he doesn’t need fog, smoke, lights, high pitched screeches and guyliner to rock it out and be AMAZING!

The judges all thought it was too casual for a “night like this” I thought it was a huge risk to get up and just jam out. Let’s face it, he’s not Dave Matthews yet and it takes a lot of guts to get up in front of 7,000 live screaming people and come off chill and relaxed.

Round 2 Winner (judges): ADAM!

Round 2 Winner (me): Adam

but I don’t think that that he won it “a million times over” Kris like Simon said.

Round 3:

Their Will-Be Single

Adam Lambert “No Boundaries” co-written by Kara DioGuardi

I will officially boycott all radio stations for at least three years if Adam wins this competition because there is no way I can handle having to hear Adam’s bloodcurdling screechy version of that song every hour of every day.

From Mr. Cowell:

“You are one of the best, most original contestants we have ever had on the show. I genuinely believe we have found a world wide star in you.”

But he refused to critique his performance during Kara’s song. Because it freaking sucked.

Kris Allen’s “No Boundaries“ co-written by Kara DioGuardi

My tweet: “well crap. Kris’s voice just isn’t powerful enough for that arrangement of the song. I love him, but David Cook he is not.”

The problem was just what the judges said, the key was too high for him. I think if it was lowered just a bit he would have had an instant hit but I think he did the best that he could with a shitty song and the key.

That said, I would MUCH rather listen to that song every single hour of every day on the radio than Adam’s obnoxious version.

Round 3 Winner (judges): not revealed

instead the critiqued the season, not the performance, probably because they didn’t want to bash Kara’s crappy ass song.

Round 3 Winner (me): KRIS!!!!

——————-

My Winner:

GO TEAM KRIS!

What do you think? Who do you want to win?

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Shawn Johnson

• The Finals Paso-Doble Face-Off
  • Scores: 9-9-10= 28
    
  • Watch Shawn & Marks’s Paso Doble Face-Off video on YouTube in the sidebar too!

Melissa Rycroft

• The Finals Paso-Doble Face-Off

• • Scores: 10-9-10 = 29
    
  • Watch Melissa & Tony’s Paso Doble Face-Off video on YouTube in the sidebar too!

Gilles Marini

-Rachel Alexandra became the first filly (aka female horse) to win the Preakness, one of the most prestigious horse races in the world. The Preakness is also the second leg of the coveted Triple Crown. Rachel Alexandra did not race in the first leg–the Kentucky Derby but she did run in the filly version of the race and totally blew away the competition. She is scheduled to run in the Belmont, the final leg of the Crown.
Mine that Bird, the winner of the Kentucky Derby came in second in the Preakness.

–The Boston Celtics, the defending NBA Champs, will not be defending their title any longer this year. They fell to the Orlando Magic in Game 7, 101-82.

-The Yankees had three walk-off home runs in a row. It means that they scored in the ninth or extra innings to win and were able to walk off the field without playing the whole game. Or something. This, apparently, is a very big deal.

-Dancing with The Stars begins their finale Monday night! Gilles Marini, Melissa Rycroft and Shawn Johnson are the three stars that made it to the final dance-off for the coveted mirror-ball trophy.

It just struck me this morning… I’m such a passionate sports fan, I love all sports… and yet I’ve only been to a small sampling of professional sporting events in my life. It’s a slight oxymoron to me. ”Yeah! Go sports! As long as I’m sitting at my desk!”

………. really?

I remember my first pro event. What man—or any sports fan—doesn’t? It was an NFL game. November 30, 2000. My dad had a business trip up in Minnesota to attend, and the company representative (can’t for the life of me remember his name) invited us to come along to an NFL game.

Now, up to this point (I can’t believe that I’m about to admit this), I wasn’t really a fan of any particular NFL team, but I *did* have a little Green Bay Packers keychain… you remember those, with the 3 inch rubber/plastic dude dangling from his helmet? Yeah, I had one of those.

Give me a second… I’m feeling slightly ill.

By the way… a big shout out to the company rep that took us. My dad and I stopped at a souvenir booth, and I was like “Oooo, jerseys!”… but they were $100. No way I was getting one of those. So my dad grabbed me a hat instead. And then the rep (dangit, what was his name?) came up and said “You want that jersey up there?” I was pretty much in shock. Such a nice guy.

Anyway, we were sitting down in the end zone, about 15ish rows up. Part of me thinks “Man, what crappy seats”. The other part of me (I was 13 at the time) couldn’t stop babbling and jumping up and down. Here I was, at a Vikings/Lions game (pre 0-16 Lions, that is) in the Metrodome, with a new hat and a jersey that I still swim in to this day. On a Thursday, which meant I was missing school… honestly, that was probably the #2 reason for all my excitement. Ah, childhood.

But you gotta remember… this wasn’t a Tarvaris Jackson-led Vikings team… oh no. This was Daunte Culpepper in his prime, with Randy Moss and Cris Carter as his targets. This is the year they finished 11-5 and won the division. Our trophy case is devoid of any Super Bowl trophies, so I drool over what I can… get off me.

Anyway, here we were in our crappy end zone seats, in my purple dress jersey and white stocking hat, cheering for absolutely no reason except I was watching a great game. And then, suddenly, right in front of me… history happened.

Vikings were making a drive (I don’t remember the quarter). On the 4-yard line,Cris Carter split out wide to the right side. The ball was snapped, lofted by Culpepper to the corner of the end zone, right into the waiting hands of Carter. Who was a mere 15ish rows in front of me.

His 1,000th career reception, and a touchdown to boot.

I remember getting a few slaps on the back from people around me as we were celebrating. It took me until after the extra point to realize that this was because I was sporting a brand new #80 jersey… Carter’s number.

Dad… help me out here. What was that rep’s name?

Going to live sporting events is magical. I’ve been to:

3 Vikings games

• Carter 1,000th reception
• The game where Randy Moss caught a pass down the middle at the end of the first half, then flipped it over his shoulder to… someone…. as he was getting tackled. The guy got a TD off of it…
• and the Vikings/Colts game this past 2008 season, won by 5 field goals and lost by TJack’s terrible jump-passes)

2 Red Sox games, both in the Metrodome against the Twins.

• The first time was in 2001 or 2002, and no one knew how to pronounce Nomar Garciaparra’s last name.
• The second time, we had a dad and his 5 year old son sitting behind us, and the dad thought it was hilariously funny that “Co-Co Kripsy!” was playing for the Red Sox. Yes, Co-Co Krispy.).

I can’t wait till the day that I get to see the Red Sox play in Fenway, the Cubs in Wrigley, the Bears at Soldier Field or Packers at Lambeau. Not only is there so much history in all these parks and stadiums, but you come away from every game with some story that you’ll remember forever (”Look, Tyler, it’s Co-Co Krispy!”… and he’d say this about 3 or 4 times an at bat too… urgh).

So… as a sports fan…to all other sports fans, and non-sports fans: if you haven’t been to a professional sporting event, go to one. I promise that you won’t regret it.