So it’s the night game and we’re the underdogs – perfect! We went to a good one as not only did the Giants win, but they sacked McNabb 12 times (which ties an NFL record). Osi Umenyiora had six sacks of his own (team record). Michael Strahan became the Giants’ all-time sack leader and now ranks 7th in the NFL with 133.5 sacks.

It was also fun to watch Eli Manning, Jeremy Shockey, Plaxico Burress, Amani Toomer, Derrick Ward, and Antonio Pierce. The final was 16-3 and we loved every minute of it. So will the Giants defense continue to play at this level and lead their team to the playoffs? We hope so…

My parents just left after their visit up here to the Big Apple. My mom’s favorite part was shopping on Canal Street and my dad’s was going to the Yankees game (they beat Baltimore and have made it into the playoffs as the Wild Card now). We love going to Yankees games and my dad has always been a huge baseball fan, so taking him to Yankee Stadium was a great memory for me.

Timing couldn’t have been better as we went to eat in Little Italy during the Feast of San Gennaro. It’s one of New York's most famous and well-loved street festivals. Held every September in Little Italy, the Feast of San Gennaro offers great food, entertainment, and plenty of prime people-watching.

But the best food we had during their trip was at Spark’s Steak House. The filet was huge and absolutely delicious! For those of you who don’t know, this is the place where the mafia boss Paul Castellano was shot and killed in 1985. It happened in broad daylight in the middle of the crowded streets, supposedly ordered by John Gotti. The atmosphere was very interesting – thanks again Mom and Dad – we really enjoyed it.

We all flew into Buffalo and went to Niagara Falls on Saturday. We stayed in Canada and had a spectacular view of both the American and Horseshoe Falls from our room on the 24th floor. We took the “Maid of the Mist” boat tour which took us right up to the falls. We also took a tour “behind the falls”. They actually dug tunnels out behind the Horseshoe Falls and we were able to see what it looked like from that perspective.

Mom and Dad, we really enjoyed your visit and we look forward to seeing you again in December! Thanks again for the room in Niagara and the steak dinner!

The Greater New York Chapter of the University of Alabama Alumni Association consists of over 1,700 alumni and friends of the University in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. I think it's the biggest AL alumni chapter in the world (there's only one outside of the US and that's the one we started in London).

Jill and I went to watch Alabama beat Arkansas with the NYC University of Alabama Alumni Club at the Mercury Bar. During football season, this bar gets every Bama game and plays it on all of their 20+ TVs including several big screens. The waitresses even dress up in Alabama cheerleader uniforms!

It was great being back in the States watching Bama football surrounded by lots of Alabama fans - it's been way too long since we've been in this atmosphere. We even met up with an old friend from college - it was great seeing you again Lisa!

Nothing like Sweet Home Alabama blasting with "Roll Tide Roll" in the chorus as well as 200+ Bama fans singing Rammer Jammer after another victory! Roll Tide Roll!

As we entered our beta testing phase, I flew out there to join the team in a two week work marathon. We all worked 10-16 hour days everyday except for Sunday. We had breakfast, lunch, and dinner catered in each day so we never had to leave the office. We all worked extremely hard to get prepared for our new offering.

Since my birthday landed on one of these days, Jill flew out there and stayed for a few days. She brought me all kinds of presents and cards and she really made it a special day for me. We had an incredible steak dinner with Scott and Diana at Donovan’s – thanks again Scott!

Since 9/11, the “Tribute in Light” memorial has been turned on every year on the anniversary. Two columns of light representing the twin towers of the World Trade Center rose above the NYC skyline tonight - what an awesome sight it was!

On a brighter note, Levi and I went shopping today at Coach and Century 21 (department store). He was like a celebrity - everyone had to talk to him. At one point we had about 20 people crowded around us in a circle at the Clinique counter. He is just like me - loves NYC!

Jill and I are on the train back from our long weekend trip to Boston. Everybody remembers the TV show Cheers, right? There are actually two Cheers pubs here - the outside of the original one, the Bull & Finch Pub on Beacon Hill, is actually shown on TV. The inside of the other one is an exact replica of the bar from the show. We had a Sam Adams beer at each of them - they still use the same beer mugs as seen on the show.

I wasn't feeling too well on the day we arrived, so I rested at the hotel while Jill shopped at Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market. That worked out well - maybe I can pull this off again in the future :) We had some good seafood that night, but we found other favorites during our trip. Jill's favorite was the lobster roll and clam chowder (which I admit was fantastic), and my favorite was Wagamama. I have missed Waga ever since we moved back from London, and this is the only city in the U.S. that has one. Just wait - I guarantee you this takes off and you'll see many more pop up in the future. If I had enough money, I'd buy a franchise myself.

We went to Fenway Park to watch a baseball game. The Red Sox beat Orioles by pitching a no-hitter (it was only his second game). Good for them, but the Yankee fans that we are needed them to lose! Fenway is a really neat park - very old and traditional with their manual scoreboards, standings, etc. And I've always wanted to see the Green Monster in person - Youkilis hit one over it that night.

We went to Cambridge and walked around the Harvard and M.I.T. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) campuses. School is back in session so we saw all of the students moving into their dorms. The Harvard campus is really pretty (Jill says) and M.I.T. consists of more modern buildings. We walked across the Harvard Bridge on our way to the Prudential building. We had a drink and enjoyed a spectacular view of Boston from the restaurant on the 52nd floor.

We saw the site of the Boston Massacre near the Old State House as well as the graves of John Hancock (first signer of the Declaration of Independence), Samuel Adams (key figure in starting the American Revolution), and Paul Revere (famous for his midnight ride from Boston to Lexington to warn John Hancock and Samuel Adams of the movements of the British army). We also went to Boston Harbor where the Boston Tea Party took place, saw Paul Revere's house, and had a Boston Cream Pie on Hannover Street (in the North End). Although Boston is a little smaller than we expected, we really enjoyed our time in this beautiful, clean city.

So it’s been two years since I’ve been to our annual Fantasy Football draft and golf fest. And Charlie and Joe were back this year, so it was a great reunion for all.

We had two cabins in Muscle Shoals (Florence, AL). These cabins are awesome – plenty of space, nice back porches, full kitchens, grills, everything we needed. A special thanks goes out to Trey for cooking some fantastic food for us all weekend (ribs, pizza, steak, wings, and all the fixings).

These guys were already gone when it got to me for my first pick - LaDainian Tomlinson, Steven Jackson , Larry Johnson, Joseph Addai, Frank Gore, and Reggie Bush. So who would you have gotten? I went with Willie Parker – we’ll see how this works out. This is the first year in a while that I haven’t been extremely happy with my team right after the draft. I’m weak at QB, TE, and I don’t have much depth at RB. We’ll see if my guys can stay healthy and pull through for another Super Bowl championship.

With Joe and Charlie back in the crew, we somehow agreed to revive the old golf teams – BPAS (Trey, Smitty, Charlie, Wade, and Steve) against Team No Name (Joe, Geno, Rusty, Scott, and myself). BPAS is stacked, so it would take a miracle for us to win. We planned to play 36 holes on Friday, 36 on Saturday, and 18 on Sunday. Well, by the time we played our first 18 on Saturday, we were already done – BPAS had skunked us all so there was no way we could have won. We played a scramble for fun that afternoon and decided not to play at all on Sunday (Let me remind you that we were playing in 100+ degree record-breaking heat this weekend). So with the practice 9 on Thursday, we only played 63 holes this year (compared to the normal 99+).

Anyway, congratulations to the BPAS – we’ll beat you guys one of these days. I’m afraid we’re too stubborn to ever change teams now. I had a great time seeing all of you guys – I’m already looking forward to next year. Joe, I hope your hand isn’t broken!