Sorry we haven’t spent much time together lately.  I’ve been busy tweeting about the sports broadcasting industry.  See what I have to say at @lindsayhumbert

An A-bomb from A-Rod.

But probably not the kind that pops into your head.

Sure, pitchers intentionally walk A-Rod (87 times in his career, according to MLB.com‘s statistics).  And yes, fans have vehemently booed both celebrity sluggers.

But all that happened even when A-Rod had 598 home runs.

Since hitting his 599th on July 22nd against the Kansas City Royals, ESPN and MLB Network have been interrupting their broadcasts every time number 13 steps up to the plate.  Similar to when Bonds was rewriting the record books, viewers endure/enjoy being a part of each potentially monumental at-bat.

In our society of instant gratification, instant highlights are apparently passé.  But riddle me this.

Would the networks try to replicate such coverage if a pitcher was one away from Nolan Ryan’s career 5714 strikeouts?

What if every one of Brett Favre‘s offensive drives interrupted your team’s broadcast as he chased Dan Marino for most career passing touchdowns?

How about if a sharp-shooting forward were to approach immortality and challenge the Great One‘s record of 894 career goal scored?  Would interruptions occur on the fly with each shift he skated?

Given that entire soccer games can be played without an entire team scoring a goal, let alone a specific player sitting on the verge of a record, can you imagine such coverage for MLS?

Hopefully, you answered “NO!”

And on a night where ESPN’s coverage of Matt Garza‘s no-hitter was interrupted to show A-Rod going 0-for-4, you very well should have.

Gru's Minions

But it was the bonus ending that, for me, stole the focus.

After the credits started rolling, a few of the minions embarked on their own adventure, building a bridge towards us the audience; a sketch that was clearly catered towards the 3D viewing audiences.

The growth of 3D has certainly impacted HOW we watch movies, and now even television.  But will it also play a part in WHAT we are watching?

How will these change our movies of the future?

Without audiences donning 3D glasses, it’s likely that the Minions would have embarked on a more 2-dimensional adventure.

Sponsorships and product placement has already taken its tolls on scripts and plots.  Look no further than the way “You’ve Got Mail” revolved around Starbucks and AOL.

Could 3D technologies be the next big influence over upcoming stories popping from the silver screen?

If the Minions are any indication, I believe so.

Safe to say Cleveland just became loyal Googlers.

The whole special, titled “The Decision” was presented to us by Bing.  Brilliant!  The Decision Engine sponsoring THE DECISION.

It seems Microsoft was as eager to be a part of ESPN’s LeBron-o-thon of coverage as James was to have superstar teammates.

While opinions of LeBron’s move to South Beach vary (particularly by zipcode), most people I know gave the King’s choice to crush the city of Cleveland on live prime-time television a thumbs-down. Yes, the sponsorship money went to LeBron’s charity and Boys and Girls Clubs in five cities, including Cleveland and Akron. However it doesn’t take a search engine to figure out if the children of Ohio would have preferred to keep LeBron.

You can read more about the sponsorship here.

Adam Everett

EXPLANATION:
The three of us were attending a PawSox game when there was a trivia question about Adam Everett. (Fun bonus fact: he was the first Red Sox player to receive a million dollar signing bonus.)  This prompted us to wonder did Everett ever play for the Sox at the major league level? (Answer below)  Since none of us are the fortunate owners of smartphones, the source of knowledge I turned to was the mobile search program ChaCha.

My brothers had never heard of ChaCha before, which allowed me to be the one to enlighten them. ChaCha is a service that has people, including Rick Reilly, answer questions that you text to 242-242.  However when you mix humans with technology the results tend to be, well, interesting. See for yourself with some of the answers we received last night, below.

THE GOOD:
“According to his biography, Adam Everett has never played for the Red Sox.”
Sounds good, and is accurate as confirmed later by Lord Google.  However, this was the second answer ChaCha provided.

THE BAD:
The first time I asked ChaCha if Adam Everett had ever played for the Red Sox, ChaCha had this to say, “No, Adam Kennedy [wrong player] has never been a Red Sock [wrong spelling, its Sox]. He has played under the Arizona Cardinals [an NFL franchise] and the Anaheim Angels [correct but incomplete for Kennedy who also played for Oakland and Washington]. Oh well.

THE FUNNY:
Eager to explore the depths of ChaCha’s knowledge, my brothers quickly set to work brainstorming all sorts of difficult and challenging questions.  Enjoy.

Q: Where is Waldo?
A: Waldo is somewhere in the U.S. or Canada. In Britain, they look for Wally. In Denmark, the game is Find Holger.”
Result: Informative.

Q: How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
A: A woodchuck would only chuck as much wood as Chuck Norris would allow it to, because the woodchuck shares Chuck’s name. Therefore, Chuck must punish it and make it chuck as much wood as Chuck can. So a woodchuck would chuck as much wood as Chuck.
Result: Interesting logic.

Q: What came first, the chicken or the egg?
A: Science has not answered that key question, but I do know that the Chicken McNugget came before the Egg McMuffin!
Result: Ultimate truth!

Q: Is the Hokey Pokey really what it’s all about?
A: Nah it’s definitely about the ChaCha and our awesome clothes!
Result: Questionable arrogance and factually.

Mr. Fredricksen had the right idea

The ingenuity I’m currently fixated on, as I procrastinate packing for my weekend trip, comes from their 2009 masterpiece “Up.”  The niftiest part of Carl Fredricksen’s transportation to Paradise Falls, is that traveling in your house completely eliminates the problem of forgetting something at home.  In the words of resident Wilderness Explorer Russell, ”most people take a plane, but you’re smart because you’ll have all your TV and clocks and stuff.”  [Although I typically don't fret about not packing my clocks.]

I have never enjoyed packing, although over the years I have gotten better at it.  My preference to always be prepared conflicts with the popular preference to pack light. What if our hotel has a pool?…I’ll need flip flops.  What if it has a gym?…I’ll need sneakers.  What if we go somewhere nice for dinner?…I’ll need heels.  And that’s just the footwear.

Walmart count: 0

Should ‘what ifs’ like these keep you up all night (packing, of course) I have some words of wisdom for you.  To quote my mother, “There are stores there, too.”  Well, except for where Mr. Fredricksen was going.

Courtesy of Cara R. Angelucci-NFL Films

This summer I’m interning at NFL Films, where last week was broadcast boot camp which gave 25 players (pictured, right) a crash course in radio, studio hosting, field reporting, etc. Aside from all this, I’ve found time for other activities such as baseball games, the beach, and Skype.  Oh, and after persevering through some episodes of questionable quality, the faithful were rewarded with an absolutely spectacular Glee season finale! Bravo.

We also met up with the worst weather to hit the West Coast in 50 years, which meant that half our trip, including our day at Universal Theme Park, was pretty soggy. It also means that our flight back to school was canceled and we’re spending three days in Arizona. Some adventures defy real life.

Samsung's Glyde

When touchscreen phones first came out, I couldn’t have been more excited. I’m a very visual person and now I could navigate my cellphone just by pointing at what I wanted. SO much easier than using a corresponding push button. Needless to say when I graduated high school, I was the proud owner of a Samsung Glyde from Verizon. I was a huge fan of the sliding rather than flipping action and with a full QWERTY keyboard it was love at first type. However, when the weather got chilly, I soon discovered that gloves do not get the job done. It’s frustrating to choose between a frostbitten hand and a missed call. So while I still appreciate the technology, I’d prefer to see it implemented in other (read: indoor) electronics. Touch screen TV remotes, anyone?