Wednesday, October 11, 2006

Always Low Prices



I went to Walmart for the first time on Monday. There isn't a Walmart in any of the areas of New York that I've grown up or lived in, so I didn't know what the big deal was. We have Costco, Kmart and Target, but none of them prepared me for the spectacle of Walmart.

I had heard so much about Walmart, the way they do business, they way they screen products, the way they treat employees, and of course, the greeters.

When I stepped inside, there was a burly man in a blue Walmart apron in a wheelchair handing out shopping carts. "Ah! The greeters." I thought to myself, although I had imagined a pair of grandparents instead of the wheelchair fellow. Then as I stepped further into the store (or warehouse), I was taken aback by the giant supermarket that was connected to the giant everything else store. It was sort of similar to Costco, but at Costco you feel like it's "land of the giants" since everything comes in such large, bulk packaging. Walmart has individual items. And it was much larger than any Target or Kmart I'd ever seen.

The prices were so low, too. It's no wonder this company is so big and has such an impact on our country. I was so blown away by the enormity of the whole experience, I forgot what I had gone in there to buy (I had to go back the next day). I never did get a chance to consult the workers regarding their wages or health insurance. There was a Walmart greeter, however.

Sunday, October 01, 2006

Quick Sports News

The Yankees will face the Tigers in the first round of the playoffs. The Tigers have sort of limped towards the post season, so it will be interesting to see if the Yankees can take advantage, especially with the possibility that Randy Johnson will be out. I wonder if the A's can knock off Minnesota, and make sure the Yankees won't have to deal with Santana. Also, I can't wait to see how Kenny Rogers does against the Yankees, a team he has had a lot of trouble beating in the past. The Tigers have some nice players but I think the Yankees can take them.

As for the NFL, I haven't been this excited after a Jets loss in a while. Normally, a Jets loss sends me into a tizzy, but this one was a gutty, aggressive game. The offense was able to move the ball quite well but the defense couldn't stop the Colts at all. In the 3rd quarter, with the score tied 14-14, Jets coach Eric Mangini decided to go for the TD on 4th down at the Colts 2 yd line over kicking a FG. The next play, Chad Pennington was picked off in the end zone. That would have never happened under the previous coaching regime. Between going for it in the close game, and then also kicking an onside kick in the second quarter when the score was tied 7-7, it's clear that Mangini is willing to play an aggressive style of ball. It almost paid off, as the Jets came very close to winning the game, but Peyton Manning was able to drive down field with no timeouts and less than two minutes left. Part of the reason that I wasn't too sad about the loss is the way that on the last play of the game, the Jets attempted an amazing circus play with multiple laterals and almost got away with it!

Here's the play