2006 St. Louis Cardinals: World Series or Bust!

It's official. Spring Training is here. Pitchers and catchers report in less than 11 hours. It should be a great season and I am looking forward to it.

Alex Salem, creator of "Lazy River," is also a blogger. I've blogrolled the Alex Salem Blog Project.

Also, make sure to check out Lazy Muncie, the official Indiana response.

CNET.com had an article dealing with the whole comic rappers battling for credibility. I have answered the call but the video is in post-production right now but rest assured "Lazy Tuesday" will be finished this weekend.

In any case, while the viral spread of "Lazy Sunday" was met with almost universal acclaim, some have seen fit to attack "Lazy Monday" for anything from not being funny to being a poor response to the original. Feuerstein thinks he understands people's reactions, even though he thinks they should understand that the whole thing was a joke.

"I think it's because we pit ourselves against the most beloved creation on the Internet," Feuerstein said, "that people are coming at us with rage."

To Stein, the negativity comes from a general lack of irony on the part of "Lazy Sunday" fans, despite the fact that "Lazy Monday" has been downloaded several hundred thousand times.

"There was something about the original, maybe because it was on SNL," Stein said. "They see ours, they see us painting, (they think) 'They're not hard-core, they're just painting."

On their site, Feuerstein and Stein specifically call on others to join the coastal "fight."

And before long, someone did, albeit someone from the American Midwest.

"I guess because I've seen East versus West stuff on SNL before," said Alex Salem, the creator of "Lazy River," a Midwestern entry in the battle, "I thought, why doesn't the Midwest do something?"

Salem created the rap--about playing poker at home--with the help of some friends. And he recognizes the power of the Internet to propagate and spread memes like the faux rap battle.

"There's no way this would happen without the Internet," he said. "You put up a video and a day later 500 people have seen it. It's the only way three guys from Iowa can have a voice in a rap battle."

In the meantime, Feuerstein and Stein are content with making sure that the "Lazy Sunday" creators know that the West Coast is holding its own. But they joked that they're ready for the retaliation they know could be coming.

Lazy Tuesday is coming. It has to be done. I can only hope that Ashley Judd and George Clooney find it something to be proud of happening in their home state. I think Ashley was born in the state and not elsewhere.

There marching towards South Carolina and probably asking for money as the Republicans run for president. Keeping to my pledge, I will not attack Republicans while the Olympics are going on.

Neil Young was nominated for some Juno's in Canada. Neil Young recieved nominations for songwriter of the year for three of his songs (Prarie Wind, When G-d Made Me, and The Painter) off of his country-based Prarie Wind, adult alternative album of the year for Prarie Wind, and producer of the year for Prarie Wind. This is a very good album.