neurological dryer lint

am i dreaming? did we really beat pittsburgh today? do we really have a winning record?

i guess my expectation since week one for the bengals has been that, this season, we would look like the colts do right now - near flawless. now that reality has caught up and my expectations are no longer choking my reasoning, it dawns on me that the Coach Lewis-driven turnaround has happened in just a couple of years, and what a colossal blessing that is.

it couldn't have happened last year (obviously not with a leslie frazier defense). the difference this year has been noticeable improvement in problem areas throughout the progression of the season. think about it: what were they saying about us during week one? too many penalties. how many have we had in the last few games? they said our run defense was weak. while it's still far from efficient - the rushing yards we allow are far lower than in the first half of the season.

so now, we need to work on tackling - taking less than half of the defensive line to bring down an opposing receiver or running back. but i believe that it can happen. if we can beat the steelers, it can happen. could we knock off indy to take the AFC? it's too early to say that, i don't want to get that ahead of myself.

now (hopefully) we'll get the respect, because we pulled off a win in a very significant matchup. someone said this afternoon that last week during the baltimore game they talked about how the ravens were missing ed reed and ray lewis, but no one said anything about us missing madeiu williams. now maybe they'll notice.

obviously that win made my day. i just feel good. capped off a pretty good weekend. renee and i hit pappadeux's, the new seafood place up off of rt. 4, on friday night, and i have to recommend it to everyone. it's a little pricy but worth it - very good seafood, great service, and the atmosphere of the inside of an old southern house or hotel that seals the deal.

saturday was all work until i headed to another round at jim dandy's with brian and simon for the grand opening. they had mini pulled pork sandwiches for $1, but i opted for the ribs - which i can definitely hype as meaty.

renee and i put up our tree this weekend too, and she put together some homemade decorations that look really good. i must admit, although the entire month of december is a siren song calling to my consumer side, i can still appreciate some christmas lights.

today was aly callahan's birthday / football watching party, which rocked and allowed me to experience the 'hanky panky', a sausage/cheese on toasted rye mix that i now adore. and congrats to mikey and dara, the newest victims to fall prey to engagement.

ok is it me, or is coach ditka physically unable to complete a sentence? discuss.