Woman Gives Birth to 13 Pound Baby

METHUEN (FOX 25 / MyFoxBoston.com) - A local couple is beaming after delivering a big bundle of joy at Holy Family Hospital...Meet Johnathan Patrick, just days old, coming into the world on Feb. 3, weighing a whopping 13 pounds. 13.26 pounds to be exact...The average size baby, by the way, is just six pounds.


You've got to feel bad for the husband here, if this wasn't a C-section he's in for a miserable rest of his life, divorce being his only savior.


First off, he's not going to win an argument or fight for the remainder of this relationship.  "Hunny I'm too tired to grow to the grocery store" will be met with "I passed a watermelon through my vagina." Disagree on where to go on vacation? She passed a human being the size of the jumbo jet you're going to fly on, she's choosing where you go. End of argument. Husbands have it hard enough with your average 6 pound baby, nevermind this guy spawning fat albert in his wife's womb.  Just a lifetime of oppression ahead for this guy.

And then, not to be too distasteful, but obviously things are never going to be the same in the bedroom.  I have to believe once your wife passes the equivalent of two whole gallons of milk out her baby-maker things just aren't going to fall back into place, and frankly I'm sick just thinking of it, nevermind living it.

Super Bowl Leftovers

Similar to CW's frige this morning, though I think these college students have more real food than I do today

I'd wager to say there is no odder morning to open your fridge as a supposed adult than the day after hosting people for the Super Bowl.  A brief scan of my fridge and kitchen this morning led me to believe I was experiencing Dejavu, half believing I'd transported back in time to my college apartment.

On the counters, enough scattered beer bottles to make a homeless person mildly jealous, half a fridge full of unopened beers (would definitely make a homeless person jealous), unexplained blocks of cheese, 90% finished off bags of tostitos, seemingly dozens of plates covered in salsa (honestly there were just 4 of us, I have no idea how we ended up with that many plates), a few boxes of "authentic frozen mexican food" strewn about, and a half eaten tray of brownies. 

Of course the delusion/fantasy ended when I scanned the rest of the room and saw that my furniture wasn't assembled from a scattering of yard sale and Salvation Army purchases, and the art on my walls was actually art instead of the standard half naked chic posters, the John Belushi in animal house poster that gets handed out on the first day of college, and blacklight art work posters.

Do You Blow Your Nose or Sniff?

Suck it up guy

A debate has been raging in my house hold for a while now, over a question as old as time.  Do you blow your nose, or sniff everything in?

I'm firmly in the sniffer category. I probably blow my nose 2.5-3 times per year, and only on those truly stuffed up occasions where sniffing just isn't getting the job done.  And before everyone gets all self-righteous on me about "oh it's so gross, blah,blah,blah" just know that I find you blowing your nose just as disgusting.

At least I have the common courtesy to keep whats mine, mine.  Not like every other Tom, Dick and Sally just blowing expectorate and snot wherever they please.  And don't give me any crap about using tissues.  Do you honestly think that razor thin slice of paper is keeping us safe from all your germs? And I'm not talking about people at home alone, or in the bathroom, I'm talking about the rest of you who just blow it wherever you please. 

If you're blowing your nose in your cube I have a question for you, where do you wash your hands? Or how about out in a mall, a store, a bar? I don't see ya'll running to wash off the translucent booger matter that is without a doubt now trapped on your hands.

And that doesn't even tough upon the freaks carrying around hankerchiefs. Yea you're the picture of health and manners shoving wadded up napkins of boggers into your pocket.  Gross bro, gross.

So go ahead and judge me, just know that my snot has never led to any spreading of bird, swine, or any other mammal based flu.

If You're Fat Chances Are You Can Blame Your Mom

(CNN) -- The length of a mother's employment is associated with an increase in her child's body mass index, according to a study in the journal Child Development...Morrissey and her co-authors observed the increase in children's BMI -- which, at third grade, was approximately a 1-pound gain for every six months the child's mother worked. The weight gain was cumulative and the link became stronger as the children matured into fifth- and sixth-grade in the analysis of 900 children.These types of studies upset Susan Wenner Jackson, who blogs on Working moms against guilt."I get sick of all these studies coming out that seem to say being a working mom equals harming your children," she said. "I've seen a bunch of them -- the kids don't get as much attention, they aren't good readers."

Hey guy, I don't think your mom working 40 hours a week when you were 6 has anything to do with you polishing off that Double Quarter Pounder and large fries as your late night snack when you're in your 20's.

Is it just me or is there a new reason why kids grow up fat dealing with their mothers every 9 months? My mom didn't breast feed me, my mom works full time, my mom drives an ice cream truck and brings her work home. When will the madness end. Are fat people the only ones running studies in this country? Because the studies never point the finger at themselves. Like maybe instead of playing Ken Griffey Jr. Baseball on Nintendo you should have got outside and played wiffle ball growing up.  And instead of sitting at home wallowing about how your mom made you fat now you could take a walk or join a gym?

Personally, if I had to blame anyone, I'd blame the schools.  All these initiatives about every child being special and anti-bullying programs are making kids soft and mushy in the mid-section.  I'm not that old but I remember a distinct change from when I was a 3rd grader to when I was a 7th or 8th grader.  3rd grade we all had to pass Presidential fitness programs and anyone who didn't was roundly mocked and picked on, gym teachers turned a blind eye. And you know what, those kids passed the next time.  Wedgies as a motivator cannot be overstated at that age.  7th and 8th grade rolled around and suddenly we weren't allowed to play dodge ball anymore, and if kids wanted to walk or opt out of the 15 minute jog around the fields they could just take a check-minus for the day.  Think about that. You couldn't even fail kids for not participating in gym, you just gave them a check-minus.  And no one thinks that gives fat kids the wrong lesson?

Snow Blowing On the Roof (vid inside)

Good old fashioned American Ingenuity right there, I've seen a slew of these snow blower on roof videos in the past few days and I gotta tell you, it beats the hell out of the alternatives. 

I'm not quite sure how people are getting the snow blowers up there but I think I'd rather go through the trouble of figuring that out than having a neighbor watch me lay out some panty-hose filled with salt and ammonium oxide and lay them out on my roof (or for that matter have to go through the check-out line at Target with 5 packs of panty hose, I'll just assume they call the police as soon as you exit the building when a guy makes that kind of purchase). 

The other alternative is apparently hiring Department of Corrections crews to shovel your roof off.  Because there is nothing that comforts me more than having a few convicted fellon crawling around on my roof or my school's roof with shovel as weapons.  Seems like a wise idea.

When is a Mustache Acceptable?

CW attemtped to grow a mustache yesterday, half in jest, half curious as to the reactions it would receive (note reactions overwhelmingly pointed to shaving it this morning). I'm always at a loss when I see someone that has never had a mustache before and all of a sudden comes into work with a fresh Saddam Hussein classic.  It got me musing about when it becomes acceptable to grow a 'stache

Professions - Obviously there are some professions where this is more acceptable than others. There are the obvious semi-mandatory jobs where it's weird if you don't rock a mustache (cops, firefighters to some extent, and male porn stars).  Two that fly right under the radar in the mustache-aficionado world? Lumberjacks and Janitors. If there is anything the Brawny man has taught us is that those who clear trees wear mustaches, though no one is quite sure why yet.  Janitors, think back to childhood, those friendly folks (maybe a little too friendly sometimes...) sweeping the floors and cleaning up our cafes always had mustaches. Now think about your office...ditto right? I'd argue that 2/3rds of all janitors rock mustache's, females included.  As for why, its fairly obvious, either to disguise themselves from anyone who might recognize them and find out they're a janitor. Or, to allow the easy change of appearance for when they skip town on sexual assault charges (funny list of more professions here).

Age- Well obviously CW was too young to attempt this.  My attempt looked downright creepy, and almost as if I'd simply forgotten to shave my lip. Not a good look. The girlfriend was calling me Pablo (apparently facial hair has racial implications). Pennypacker ignored it until I brought it up, at which point he said he noticed it but wasn't sure if he should say something, in other words he treated me like someone with a physical defect.  That was all the evidence I needed.  I still don't know the age where an American male is rightfully allowed to grow a mustache but I'm going to assume it's sometime after 30.  I'll try again in a few years.  

The good news for all you Arab-Americans, though you may lack many of the fundamental civil liberties us white folks take for granted, google searches have indicated that it's acceptable for males of Arab descent to grow a mustache as young as 13-14 years old. 

Alt-Tabs

Just a few Alt-Tab Links today, it's been an exhausting week, and honestly I think I've already posted every relevant news story the world has offered this week, but for traditions sake, I couldn't resist.  See you all Monday, Go PACK!

George Bush's Reaction When told his daughter supports gays and calls her self a New Yorker

Barbara Bush Speaks Out on Behalf of Gay Marriage - Former President George W. Bush's daughter Barbara is appearing in a new web video in support of gay marriage. "I'm Barbara Bush and I'm a New Yorker for marriage equality," Bush says. 

What outraged George more, Barbara being a fan of the gays, or claiming to be a New Yorker. My guess? "Don't Mess With Texas."

Snow Rage Takes Hold in Boston - A dispute over thrown snow escalated into a case of "snow rage" on a Back Bay street, with one man accused of brandishing knives, police said.  The suspect began throwing snow and the other man told him to stop.

Normally I'd say this guy overreacted, but honestly, we've gotten something over 5 feet of snow this winter. My back frigen kills, I'm exhausted, the weather report now gives me anxiety, and I'm pretty sure I have bunions from wearing my boots so often (never thought I'd share a physical characteristic with my grandma this early in life). If some rando is out there throwing snow at me while I shovel my drive way after a long day at work I wouldn't even stop to go get the knives, just assault him right then and there with my shovel.

Apple, 10 Billion Apps Sold -  Apple's countdown to 10 billion downloads in its App Store hit its long-awaited milestone this weekend. The lucky customer, who gets $10,000 worth of virtual cash for the download, responded to the news by hanging up the phone on Apple when the company called to congratulate her. "I thought it was a prank call."

Apple joins McDonalds in taunting their competition with their mind boggling sales figures. We get it guys, you're really good at what you do.  Seems fitting to link these two companies together, 99% of all McDonalds kajillion burgers sold made their customers crap, 99% of Apples sales were Fart noise apps. See the relation?

Until 2012...

I don't know if you've heard, but its been snowing in Dallas this week. I can't wait to hear about all these sportswriters complaining about it in 2014. Anyways, read on for my game pick.

Squares – 0-9, 0-9: You’re going to want to shoot for 7/3 (or 3/7), 0/7 (7/0), or 3/7 (7/3) here…basically the numbers that are the most common. Even a 4 or 1 would be nice to have paired with one of those. Stay away from any squares that contain 2s, 9s, and to a lesser degree, 5s…you don’t want those. The Picks: 7s, 3s, 0s

Total Points Scored – Between 71 and 75 (100/1), between 76 and 80 (150/1): I’ll be honest, this probably isn’t going to happen. These props have been getting some pub since Simmons talked him up on his podcast, and I think he made some valid points. Like we did yesterday, ask yourself this: if the game is played 100 times, do you think it ends up something like 37-34 once? How bout 41-35? Sure the total has only gone over 70 once in Super Bowl history, but that was once in 44 games, which is better than 1 in 100. Like I said, this probably won’t happen, but its fun to root for and has great value…two things you don’t often see together. Put 10 bucks on each, and theres a shot you’ll be buying the office lunch on Monday, or at least me a few man-sodas next time you see me. The Picks: 71-75 (100/1), 76-80 (150/1)

MVP: Always a fun (frustrating) one. People say It usually ends up being the quarterback, but that’s not really true. It has only been the QB 6 times in the past 11 Super Bowls. Also, I wont watch the Super Bowl with you if you bet the QB to win MVP…you’re just being boring and unoriginal (but if you’ve got a problem with that, we can step outside ). Plus, I’ve got a sneaking suspicion that these crusty sportswriters may not want to continue the Big Ben Reclamation Tour by voting him MVP. I’ve got an eye on Mendenhall at +750, Greg Jennings at +1200, and Mike Wallace at +1600. A defensive player might be an interesting choice with bigtime playmakers on both sides. I may take 2 of those offensive guys and a defensive guy. The Pick: 2 offensive guys and a defensive guy

Green Bay Packers (-2.5) vs Pittsburgh Steelers: CW is going to hate this, but I don’t really have a strong opinion on this game. I know I’m paid to have one, but to be honest, I don’t really. My recommendation would be Green Bay, partially because I don’t want any part of Ben and the Steelers having a 3rd ring in the past few years. I just think Green Bay is the better team…there are no angles or situations in play here, and you’ve heard all the analysis. I don’t even know who I’m picking for my pool where I go head to head with some chick with 500 bucks on the line. I know that Green Bay has been much more impressive in their playoff run than the Steelers, and when they were in their only dome game of that stretch, they put up points like an arena league team. If it turns into one of those games, I don’t think the Steelers can keep pace. Lets just hope it’s a good game because chances are we won’t have another one for at least a year. The Pick: Packers 30 Steelers 24

This Guy Clearly Doesn't Understand How BJ's Wholesale Works

So I'm reading this story in the Boston Globe about how BJ's wholesale is up for sale and had my blog all ready to go about how the buyer first has to go to the counter up front and purchase a day pass, and as a bonus BJ's is kicking in a 5 lb bag of popcorn and 88 rolls of toilet paper.  Standard wholesale club jokes type stuff. Been done to death. But just as I'm about to click publish post I catch this gem in the comment section:

How Un-American do you have to be to make such ignorant comments about a classic American institution. Dude if they did away with the membership it wouldn't be a club, it would be a Giant Sized Proportions Stop n' Shop.  

And portions are too large? I don't know what country you're from, but here in America bigger is better. I'm not shopping at BJ's for a normal sized box of Frosted Flakes.  I'm shopping at BJ's for the "It's supposed to be economy sized but I'm eating 3 bows before my brother and sister get to have any" sized Frosted Flakes.

Any other American institutions you feel like griping on bro? Store 24 open too many hours? Wendy's dollar menu too economical?