Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou 25 June 1963 - 25 December 2016

source: biography.com
George Michael

Prior to yesterday, music already lost this year:
January 10, David Bowie

January 18, Glenn Frey

April 6, Merle Haggard

April 21, Prince Edward Rogers

November 7, Leonard Cohen
(see November 13 blog entry).

Then we sadly hear on Christmas Day, George Michael.

For me, it wasn't until he began his solo career away from Wham! I found his music with a bit more of a soulful edge.

My favorites were with his duets with 2 R&B/soul legends.

Aretha Franklin, "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)", 1987.


And, Mary J. Blige, performing Stevie Wonder's "As", 1999.


Really hard not to listen without a head sway, toe taps, or finger snaps. Which I'm certain is how George would have wanted it.

2016 California State Seniors Bowling Tournament

source: cssba.net

UPDATE - December 21, 2016. Final results came in today. Steve and I finished 13th, Doubles Class C. We split $168.

Last month, my Sunday practice/Wednesday night teammate Steve and I bowled singles and doubles in our first senior state tournament at Steve Cook's Fireside Lanes in Rocklin (greater Sacramento).

All squads have completed bowling but results are not yet final. Steve and I are currently in 13th place, thanks to Steve's 658 scratch series. It was nice to know that after we bowled, teammates asked if I'd bowl next year's tournament in Modesto.

Absolutely.

2016 PBA World Series of Bowling VIII - ESPN3 Live Streaming

source: PBA
EJ Tackett

Congratulations to E.J.Tackett for winning this year's PBA World Championship. A remarkable feat as this was E.J.'s second straight year in the finals match. He lost to Gary Faulkner Jr. in 2015.

Previous winners Tom Smallwood (2009) and my fave Dom Barrett (2013) finished 2nd and 3rd. Jason Belmonte finished 4th and Anthony Simonsen 5th.

Today's match aired live on ESPN. Yesterday, the other 5 tournaments that make up the World Series took place.

Oil pattern names:
Chameleon, Cheetah, Scorpion, Shark, and Viper.

I spent most of the day watching them all live. But not on television. On my laptop.

How? On ESPN3, ESPN's online streaming service (cable/satellite subscription required). Yeah, the same service that makes available college football and basketball games you can't get on television.

As written in my February 7, 2016 posting:
There will always be complainers that want matches to air live on a broadcast network like ABC (as it did 50+ years ago) or CBS (instead of CBS Sports Network)

I'll put it gently. The 20th century ended 15 years ago. There are too many other sports venues with larger markets where bowling cannot compete. Not going to happen.

It may not have happened on TV, but for me, live on ESPN3 is a terrific 21st century solution.

San Francisco 49ers - 11th consecutive loss

The York Family with Eddie DeBartolo (3rd from left)
source: 49ers.com

It's been a terrible news week. On Friday, another former high school classmate, Danny, passed away. Yesterday, it was the Oakland Ghost Ship Warehouse fire. Today, it was the passing of another longtime Monday night league bowler, Jack.

And to add salt to the wound, the 49ers lost their 11th consecutive game versus the Chicago Bears, who were 2-9 going into today's game.

I have been critical of the York family's/GM Trent Baalke's ability to manage the team pretty much from the start. It's either been a clash with successful coaches (Steve Mariucci, Jim Harbaugh), or musical chairs with a series of coaches with mediocre or no head coaching experience in the NFL (Dennis Erickson, Mike Nolan, Mike Singletary, Jim Tomsula and current head coach Chip Kelly).

Dr. and Mrs. York, you owe it to longtime fans. Sell the team to people who know something about football.