FORMER MEMBER OF THE GREEN AND IS GOLD GOING GREEN

I thought that I had heard something recently about the building of a "green" (environmentally friendly) city in the US. MJD of Yahoo's Shutdown Corner allowed a non-news-consumer like myself get the lowdown on this amazing idea.

Former Packer Syd Kitson (drafted in 1980) is leading the development of Babcock Ranch in southwest Florida. Kitson, whose career as a guard lasted six years of protecting quarterbacks, is now doing his part in protecting the environment. And for someone like myself who goes to school in Ithaca, NY, the most leftover hippy-dwelling and greenest city that I've ever been in, this story is quite interesting. The city is projected to cost about $2 billion, but with 100% of the city's energy coming from solar power and being reusable, it could save a lot of money and can help save the planet in the long run. While the economy probably isn't in the best place to pursue such an idea right now, if these guys really care about the environment, I believe they know that they can receive the financial backing necessary. Watch the virtual tour video; this really is something special.

FINALLY AN ANSWER... KINDA

The Green Bay Press-Gazette understands my yearning for the schedule to be released. And the NFL has answered my call for the schedule. Tuesday night it will be! Ah, excitement fills the air, as I await the announcement of the Packers game on October 18th, PRAYING it is a home game. Help me out NFL! I'm just a kid with a dream!

THE NFL IS KILLING ME

Ever since I decided on my road trip to Wisconsin, the question as to whether or not the whole trip will work out the way I want it to has been in the NFL's hands. And they just won't let me know! When they released the opening weekend games and the few prime time matchups, I was sure that the rest of the schedule would soon follow. Not so much.

PLEASE NFL, I'M BEGGING OF YOU, RELEASE THE REST OF THE SCHEDULE AND HAVE THE PACKERS IN GREEN BAY ON OCTOBER 18TH!!

THE LAMBEAU LEAP IS SO SWEET IT WAS TURNED INTO A SONG

While many Packer fans probably knew about CWA, some other music that has come from Titletown went a little bit less noticed. Well, at least as far as I can tell. Remember Robert Brooks? Yeah, thought so. Number 87 was a great receiver for the Pack from 1992-1998, and after tearing his ACL in the Super Bowl championship season of 1996, he came back to help lead the team to Super Bowl XXXII and received the Comeback Player of the Year award. Injuries ended his career after a short try at a comeback with the Denver Broncos in 2000, but Brooks caught 32 of Brett Favre's career TD passes, and the following stat stands out even more to me: The Packers were 24-2 in games in which Favre threw a TD to Brooks. That is outstanding, and it proves how important he was to the Pack's return to prominance in the 1990's. But what is often forgotten, maybe rightfully so, was his music career while with the green and gold.

Ah, this may strike up a memory in some minds, but others may be thinking, "What? Robert Brooks' music career?" Again, on one of our many family trips to Green Bay, my cousin asked me if I had heard Robert Brooks' song "Jump." Being from New York, of course I hadn't, the same way I had never heard Cheeseheads With Attitude until a family vacation. So he put the tape in (yes, the cassette tape) and I listened. Back then, I thought it was awesome. Robert Brooks had made a song about the Lambeau Leap! Looking at it now, my god, what was he thinking? He created a record label "Shoo-In 4 Life" and produced two CDs called "Jump" and "Down Wit' Tha Bay." Brooks explains his musical pursuits on his official website, which clearly has not been updated in years.

Please, I beg you to take the time out of your day to watch the music video Brooks made for "Jump."

CONTINUING THE MUSIC THEME

In honor of Aaron Rodgers weekend in Vegas, more specifically his Sunday night with Lady Antebellum's Hillary Scott, a couple of music-themed posts have found there way to my fingertips at a perfect time.

After one of our many family trips to Wisconsin, years ago, we returned home with a CD by a group called Cheeseheads With Attitude. It was called "Straight Outta Wisconsin," and it was hilarious. So, recently, I decided to look more into this CD and the parody-based, pro-Packer musical group. Some of the things I found were quite interesting, but for my post today, the humor will be the highlight (due to the fact that it is April 7th and snowing in central New York).


First, Stevie Rachelle, who attained fame by being the lead singer of the 80's glam band Tuff, was a member of CWA. Rachelle grew up in Wisconsin and graduated from Oshkosh West High School before moving to California and striking up his original music career. CWA created parodies, like the famed Weird Al Yankovic, by taking hit songs' melodies and altering the lyrics to take a pro-Packer form. The most widely known example is the Cheesehead's take on Beck's "Loser." The Wisconsin trio struck fame with their version entitled "Cheesehead Baby." The transformation of the lyrics is as follows:

Beck: Soy un perdedor. I'm a loser baby, so why don't you kill me?
CWA: Oh, gosh darnit don'tcha know, I'm a cheesehead baby, the pride of Wisconsin.

Cheeseheads With Attitude even performed in front of 10,000 fans at the official Super Bowl XXXII pep rally in San Diego, CA. That performance featured a song off of their second CD "Cheesehead's For Life" entitled "P-A-C-K", a parody of the famed "YMCA" by the Village People. The refrain was changed to, "It's fun to cheer for the P-A-C-K... Wearin' green and the gold, Lambeau covered in snow, You can tailgate out in the cold."

A chain record store's district manager even said at one point that Cheeseheads With Attitude was outselling Garth Brooks and the Spice Girls in many Wisconsin stores during the 1996 holiday season. An official history of the trio can be found here. CD's and MP3's can easily be found on the internet at sites like Amazon.

QUIET TIME

Right now is quiet time, it seems, around 1265 Lombardi Avenue. While the organization is hard at work still breaking down draft prospects and some players are working hard with the new strength and conditioning coach, not much that is going on is newsworthy. That's why Aaron Rodgers is making news for being in Vegas this past weekend. Being a ladies man. See here. Oh, but A-Rod wasn't done after spending Saturday night with that blonde. Sunday night, Rodgers was seen out and about with country group Lady Antebellum's lead singer Hillary Scott, pictured above. Looks like Rodgers went 2-0 this weekend. And his "newsworthy" weekend has given me some ideas for posts during this quiet time in Titletown!

Does that make him 3-0?