Suprise!

This weekend, my brother, his fiancé and I threw my mom a big surprise party! It was really great, the food was amazing and I think my mom was genuinely surprised and appreciative. More importantly, I can’t believe I was able to keep it a secret. One more day and I might have totally blown it!

NASCAR Update:
UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 Recap:
It was a bumpy start to the UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday, but when the dust had settled, a familiar face was in victory lane. By lap 23, the field had been slowed down for three separate incidents involving Rookie David Ragan, Casey Mears, Robby Gordon, Ward Burton, Joe Nemechek and Dave Blaney. As the race progressed, the concern over tires subsided, but the lack of grip did not improve. A late race crash involving pole sitter Kasey Kahne led to an 11 lap shout-out. In the end, no one could keep up with Jimmie Johnson as he cruised to his third straight Vegas win.

Shout outs to Jamie McMurray who got his first top 15 finish in 16 races.

Random Quote: “It amazes me — every time I think Robby (Gordon) can't do anything any more stupid than he's already done, he one-ups himself.” -Casey Mears (foxsports.com)

Nextel Cup Standings after Las Vegas
The Chase for the Nextel Cup
1. Mark Martin LEADER
2. Jeff Gordon -6
3. Jeff Burton -42
4. Jimmie Johnson -89
5. Matt Kenseth -98
6. Kevin Harvick -106
7. Kyle Busch -113
8. Denny Hamlin -121
9. J.J. Yeley -130
10. Elliott Sadler -153
11. David Stremme -156
12. David Gilliland -160
Outside Looking In
13. Tony Stewart -163
14. Robby Gordon -165
15. Ryan Newman -167
16. Greg Biffle -169
17. Carl Edwards -170
18. Clint Bowyer -171
19. David Ragan -173
20. Joe Nemechek -187
New Jersey’s Finest
27. Martin Truex, Jr. -245

NASCAR Notes: Only two Toyotas made the field for the Cup race this weekend (Dale Jarrett and Dave Blaney). Jeremy Mayfield and A.J. Allmendinger have failed to qualify for a race this season…The Charlotte Observer is reporting that the Nextel Cup Series will be known as the Sprint Cup Series in 2008. This is why I call it the Cup Series, way less confusing...Bristol Motor Speedway will undergo a small makeover after the March 25th race. It will be repaved due to the deteriorating concrete as well as widen and banked to promote side-by-side racing. (foxsports.com)

Around Sports:
Basketball
Isiah Thomas has reportedly received a contract extension to coach the New York Knicks. The Knicks are an unremarkable 29-34, but hold the 8th playoff spot in the East. (foxsports.com)

College Basketball
The brackets were released today. Mostly notably absent were Syracuse which had a very light out of conference schedule and Drexel. The first round starts on Thursday so you only have two and a half days to fill out those brackets!

Football
One of my favorite Grizzly Adams reincarnated athletes, Jake Plummer, announced his retirement on Friday. Plummer was traded by the Denver Broncos to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on March 3rd. But a beard is far too itchy in a warm climate like Tampa. (AP)

Soccer
The U.S. Women’s team beat Finland 1-0 at the Algrave Cup. The US is 2-0 after beating China 2-1 on Wednesday. They’ll face 2-0 Sweden later this week, with the winner advancing to the finals. (AP)

Tennis
Roger Federer’s 41 match winning streak came to an end on Sunday when he lost 7-5, 6-2 to Guillermo Canas in the third round of the Pacific Life Open. (AP)

Around the World:
Here’s today’s test…what causes more power outages in Nebraska, lightning or squirrels? Think long and hard on this one. If you guessed lightning, then you’re totally wrong! This whole squirrel thing is not just a problem in Nebraska; Georgia has seen squirrel related outages jump from 5,273 in 2005 to 16,750 in 2006, which has cost Georgia Power $2 million last year. It seems the squirrels are not the only ones to blame, the increase in acorns have lured more squirrels to suburban areas. Once you let those wily squirrels loose, you never know what’s going to happen. (usatoday.com)

The TSA (transportation security administration) says it has confiscated 9 million bottles, mostly alcohol and perfume, at Miami International Airport. Well, drinking at the airport bar is just so desperate. (usatoday.com)

Popo in my crib News:
Snoop Dogg was held by Swedish popo in Stockholm after his car was pulled over this weekend. Snoop and his female companion appeared to be under the influence of a narcotic and were taken in for questioning. Snoop was released after taking a drug test. Watch out Snoop, because the popo are on your tail!

Box Office Rewind:
300 ($70 million)
Wild Hogs ($28 million)
Bridge to Terabithia ($6.9 million)
Ghost Rider ($6.8 million)
Zodiac ($6.8 million)

Celebrity Tid Bits:
Regis Philbin informed viewers that he would undergo bypass surgery this week. Get well soon Reg!

Carrie Underwood will join host Peyton Manning on the March 24th episode of “Saturday Night Live.”

BREAK-UP ALERT: Mandy Moore and DJ AM

Happy birthday shout outs to Casey Mears (29), Aaron Eckart (39), Darryl Strawberry (45), Marlon Jackson (50), James Taylor (59) and Liza Minelli (61).

It’s been fun blogging with you,
Kate