I’d like to take a break from talking football this week, and quite possibly for several weeks. Yes, I do have a life outside of football. As much as I love to immerse myself in it from about May through January, I do sort of “turn it off” during these spring months.

I’d like to tell you a story this week, about a guy that suffered from constant heartburn for much of his adult life. That guy is me. Yes, through over-consumption of alcohol and other fun stuff that is bad for you, I tortured my poor stomach into a constant state of acidity. Rolaids were my constant companion. But they never seemed to really solve the problem.

Then in later years, acid reflux reared it’s ugly back-wash. Sleepless nights ensued. The problem was out of control.

But lucky me, medical science by this time had “solved” this little problem. All I had to do was go to my doctor and tell him of my private torture, and he would send me home with a prescription. Problem solved.

Except one thing. I don’t like taking pills. I am not good at remembering to take pills. And I don’t want to pay to take pills the rest of my life if I don’t have to. But according to my doctor, my pills and I would be spending the next 30 years together. Assuming I wanted to lead a semi-normal life, full of eating, sleeping and such.

It was about that time that I started checking out natural cures. Surely there had to be a better way than this what with the drug companies holding my stomach hostage and all. I didn’t look long before I found what I was looking for. Apple cider vinegar.

I know what you are thinking. Kevin is going “grandma” on us. Break out the Metamucil.

But guys, I am here to testify, the stuff worked like magic. It is kind of nasty. It is hard to get used to. But if you do it you will thank me. It worked for me.

For 30 days in a row I took a tablespoon of that vile liquid before each meal chased with a glass of water. Heartburn? Immediately gone. Acid Reflux? A memory. Beer and Pizza? No problem. Whisky and Gumbo? Dive right in. Hot wings and a 2 liter of Pepsi? Go for it. My menu was full once again.

The best part is that though I continued to take the stuff for another couple of weeks once a day, after that I quit taking it altogether. And I am happy to report that the “cure” stuck with me even after I stopped taking the magic potion. That was probably 4 years ago or so. Only recently have I begun to have any kind of symptoms again. The holidays were hell. So I went back to the health food store to start another regimen.

Keep in mind you need to get the organic stuff. The stuff with the nasty strandy stuff in it is what you want. It is mostly the magic found in those potent strands that offer the relief you seek. You will get nothing from the “purified” stuff you will find in the grocery store.

Keep in mind I am not offering medical advice here. I am not your doctor. I do not know your specific situation. All I know is that the stuff worked for me. And as a bonus I lost about 3-4 lbs. the month I took it as well.

An apple a day? Still some of the best advice ever. Way better than my advice about Ryan Grant last season, that I will guarantee you. I will be waiting anxiously to see the long list of success stories you come back to give me in the comments section. You are all welcome. Have a healthy day!

I live in a small market town. We don’t have big league teams. We have a double A baseball team and a division 1 NCAA basketball team. It is not what I would call a big sports town. And that is fine with me. I have traded the big city life for a more comfortable (and affordable) existance.

And when this little mid-western “cow-town” got sports talk radio programming some ten years ago, I was thrilled. Finally, a radio station for sports. What a concept for this sleepy little town.

At first, everything was fine. The locals just took the national feeds from ESPN and then Fox for the most part, and the programming was ok. Not all great but at least acceptable for the most part. I remember fondly the Kiley and Booms show that used to run afternoons on FSR. It was loosely termed a “sports show” but it was usually entertaining no matter the subject matter. That show featured the left wing type “live and let live” Kevin Kiley playing straight man to right wing comedian Chuck Booms. The show worked.

But like most good things, the show had a relatively short run as Booms couldn’t play nice with the corporate radio types, which led to his departure.

Since then, Fox has tried an infinite combination of programming to fill that afternoon time slot after Jim Rome with little success.

My local Fox station has been running a 2 hour local morning talk show for probably 8 years now, which was fine with me once Colin Cowherd hit the airwaves on ESPN. Finally an alternative I could live with. Then the local ESPN finally got jealous of Fox stealing all the local thunder that they decided to slice off the last hour of Cowherd with their own local morning show. Oh brother.

Let me tell you, the local show the Espn affiliate here put on is embarrassing. It is like “The View” except it is two guys talking instead of five chicks. The conversation however is not much different, and I would be willing to bet that Whoopi Goldberg knows more about sports than the bozo’s on this train crash of a show.

I must admit, I do catch myself listening to this “sports” talk radio show sometimes after Cowherd, but it is not information and well thought out opinions and views presented in an entertaining fashion that I am looking for as with Cowherd. That never, and I mean never happens with the locals.

Now I am listening to find out what common knowledge sports information they are confused about or have forgotten about. How many factual errors they commit. To see if anybody has the guts to call in to ask them a question that would require some actual knowledge of sports to answer, so I can pity the poor fools. (That rarely happens) About the only reason I would listen to this show only to feel superior to the poor delusional hosts. Sometimes I feel sorry for them. I mean, I had a short gig in radio many many moons ago. I know those guys aren’t making any money. Hell, they are probably doing the show for free. And I must say it is worth every penny.

So back to Jim Rome I go. Oh brother. What can you say about Rome that he hasn’t said himself, and then proceeded to repeat another 15 times just in case you missed it the first time. He said it 15 times. 15 times he said it. 15 is a lot of times to say it. Oh, and by the way, just in case you missed it, he says things 15 times.

I can take Rome in only short doses these days. At his best the show is moderately entertaining. At his worst, he is like root canal. Mostly the root canal. I’ll give him this though. He manages to fill a 3 hour show with about 30 minutes worth of actual material almost every day, and manages to keep his “clones” listening all the repetitive way. Good job Pimp in the Box. Nice.

I have tried to warm up to Scott Van Pelt in the afternoons, but he isn’t exactly growing on me like a Chia. I guess I still hold a grudge from when he went off on his rant against fantasy football. He thinks I am a loser. I just can’t get past that. He calls us losers? The guy is one of the most horrible prognosticators ever to defile a microphone. Absolutely awful. No wonder he isn’t interested in fantasy football. I generally hate stuff I suck at too.

And now the final blow comes to my sports radio day. My Fox affiliate has decided that one local show during the day isn’t enough. So they have added two glorious hours of local programming immediately following Jim Rome. The focus? High school sports. Two hours. Every weekday. Fascinating interviews with high school volleyball and softball coaches. Interviews with giggly high school volleyball players are always compelling, especially if you don’t know them. Hey. Try and stop me from listening to that every day.

And so, while I have enjoyed the sports based radio stations, they seem ot have hit their peak and are currently in a state of deterioration. The national programmers can’t give the locals anything “hot” enough to keep them from wanting to put their own pathetic (yet more lucrative) programming in place of what the networks are offering.

I foresee a lot more “music” in my future.

It is amazing how much more interesting the “off-season” is when you have a dynasty team. My team is pretty much set at all other positions besides wide receiver. I have Colston and Cotchery, and a whole bunch of has-beens (Chris Chambers) and prospects. I am always looking at players in flux as I re-build, and the guys I grabbed off waivers during my “lost season” all have intriguing possibilities.

Miles Austin is a restricted free agent who is rumored to be of interest to Miami. But rumors persist that Owens may be on his way out in Dallas, so in either scenario Austin would achieve instant “sleeper” status.

Mark Bradley managed to actually stay on the field for long stretches this season, and did pretty well opposite of Bowe. With new management in town Bradley’s future is anything but certain, but his showing last year gives him one more chance after he seemed just about out of them.

Chris Henry could end up with a starters role in the ‘nati with Housh possibly hitting the road. Of course, he will have to stay out of jail to achieve that. Color me optimistic. He already made it half way through February without checking into the Graybar Hotel. Hey, it could happen…

Jason Hill is still in a crowded situation in San Francisco, once again a management in flux so who knows what will happen here. Josh Morgan is the guy the fantasy crowd seems most interested in, but Hill could still emerge as well.

Domenik Hixon put up decent but not spectacular numbers when filling Burress’ spot in the lineup. He had some of the same problems Plax had (ie. actually catching the ball) but lacked the explosion and YAC that Burress did. This is another situation that looks to be a long way from being resolved. Hixon may have played his way out of the Giants plans for him as a starter. He will need to bulk up to ever become a serious fantasy threat in any case.

Mike Walker still has me hanging on. From what we know, the management still likes Walker, and the management is staying intact apparently, so Walker could get a chance to redeem his “lost season” or two. Potential doesn’t always translate, especially when a guy is terminally injured. I probably have the least hope for Walker among this group, if only because he just hasn’t given me much reason to do so.

So, that is the group. I also have Devery Henderson, but he is basically hanging around in case Colston manages to injure himself yet again. Not much hope for him ever being Mr. Consistant. To me this is a nice group to be holding this off-season. I would like to think that at least one or two of these guys prove useful next season. A couple of them will have to be dropped for my rookie draft, so the dumper will be loaded with the least desireable of these when the time comes.

I am just amazed at the level of turnover taking place in the league next season. With all the coaching changes and personell changes to come, we will definitely have our work cut out for us for next year’s drafts. I am going to begin praying right now every night that my head does not explode by draft-time. This off-season is a wild ride that is only beginning.

Not too much to say this week. The Cardinals made a game of it. Had the Steelers gripping near the end, but couldn’t close the deal. It wasn’t exactly a “great game” as I had anticipated, pretty sleepy through three quarters. But that last quarter was something special.

As I heard Colin Cowherd say on his radio show, the NFL somehow manages to get everything right. This game was not an epic match-up, but it had a fantastic ending. The last thing Americans will remember about the NFL is that ending. The NFL managed to go out on a high note despite the controversy at the end of the game.

As far as that controversial last play is concerned, I totally get why the replay officials did things the way they did. You have a moving drama in motion. You have a flow. The game is hitting a crescendo. The last thing you want to do is have that ref wave his arms and announce that the play will be reviewed in the booth. If they say they reviewed if sufficiently in the booth to let play continue I have no problem with that.

I leave the season un-convinced that the Steelers were a “great” team. We don’t have “great teams” any more. We have teams that are consistantly just a little better than all the rest. And in this kind of environment a class organization like the Steelers have a chance to play in this game every year. My hats off to them for surviving the gauntlet.

While the end of the season is bittersweet, I am comforted with the knowledge that nobody in my dynasty league took my Kurt Warner bait. He will be heading up my fantasy roster again next season (assuming he hangs in there, and you know he will) along with that sweet #2 overall rookie draft pick I’ve got coming.

Yes, there is always next year…