Barack Obama announced Hillary Rodham Clinton as his secretary of state and said that President George W. Bush's defense secretary, Robert Gates, is staying on.
Obama also named Washington lawyer Eric Holder as attorney general and Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano as homeland security secretary. He also announced two senior foreign policy positions outside the Cabinet: campaign foreign policy adviser Susan Rice as U.N. ambassador and retired Marine Gen. James L. Jones as national security adviser.
Monday, December 1, 2008, 11:24 AM EST [Pay-Per-View]
Well I was right that Triple H will get a chance to get the WWE title back from Edge, and adding Jeff Hardy to the fold, since they did a Beat The Clock match for the #1 contender, but both Triple H & Jeff Hardy each committed their falls in the same elapsed time.
Chris Jericho will get a rematch with John Cena in Armageddon though, but who knows what may happen if Jericho wants to get involved with the December 1 match with Cena and Kane. I'm sure there will be a backfire somewhere or Jericho will keep a watch.
Don't forget that WWE heads up north for the holidays so I hope the wrestlers have their passports ready and stay clean when passing through customs. Did you know that what we win in Canada is tax free? I hope WWE will give away some holiday gifts and/or cash to the fans in Toronto on December 22 as an early Christmas gift. Or during the breaks at the Air Canada Centre. If The Score wanted to do a money giveaway for Canadians, I think they should where the lucky callers must say "I know The Score" as the secret password to win some tax free money.
Anyway, Kovolev will face The Undertaker at Armageddon now that the title match is set in stone. Watch Smackdown! this Friday to see if this matchup storyline does become a reality.
Thursday night is my typical league bowling night. HOWEVER, since Thursday was Thanksgiving, we didn't have league.
Thanksgiving? PSHAW! Thanksgiving isn't enough to stop us from bowling. So, my team, as well as my coach, went out to Brownsburg to throw a few games last night.
I started out relatively decently with a 166, but my hip was bothering me and I shot a measly 101 after that.
Jeff (my coach) showed up and I managed a 154, a 173, and a 210.
That's right ladies and gents, for the first time since I moved to Indianapolis, I broke 200.
Even with my 101, I managed to average 160 for the night, which is higher than my league average.
SCORES:
Thursday 11/27/08: 166, 101, 154, 173, 210
Series = 804
I went Jackpot bowling on Saturday. I won $1, but my scores were relatively unimpressive. (I was also trying out a new ball)
Last night I went bowling with my g/f and my coach. I did all right, but not great.
SCORES:
Sunday 11/30/08: 156, 149, 171
Series = 476
My coach definitely thinks that my average should be 170+. I just need to get more consistent, and make adjustments earlier rather than later.
Dear readers. I hope you are sitting comfortably. I have news, and not just any news. I am not writing to inform you that Miss Hughes has had her bunions removed or that yesterday I beat Jeffrey at carpet golf or some such trivia. No, it is my pleasure to apprise you of two significant, hat-related developments.
This weekend, an extraordinary coincidence occurred. On Friday evening, Jeffrey and I went out to dinner, leaving Sophie and David alone in the house making charity Christmas cards out of photographs of the Church's stained glass windows.
We dined at the bistro in the village. Just as we had finished our steak au poivre (which was pleasant enough, but quite unequal to Argentinian cuts), Jeffrey slumped down from the table. I feared an angina attack and shrieked. He told me to be quiet. I noticed he was on one knee. He produced a small box, tied with black ribbons. I opened it. It contained a ring, featuring a diamond-encrusted skull. I shrieked again. Jeffrey asked if I would marry him. I feared he had caught some delirium-inducing bug on holiday. He hadn't. He explained, with a quiet, gruff sort of eloquence, that he felt that we were starting out on a new phase of our life together, that he wanted to reiterate his love for me and renew his vows. He slipped the ring onto my finger. The skull snagged briefly on my knuckle, but eventually passed. It is not what I would have chosen, but Jeffrey tells me it is 'Hirstian' and 'cool', and I didn't want to hurt his feelings.
Afterwards, Sophie was very pleased, though David did point out that there was no biblical precedent for renewal ceremonies. Jeffrey told him, with unwarranted anatomical explicitness, where he could insert his precedence.
As if this wasn't drama enough for one weekend, Rupert called by on Saturday. He looked very well. He has filled out over the last few months and has moved his parting one inch to the left, which suits him. I ushered him into the drawing room, called for Jeffrey and Sophie, and told him that I had important news. Before I could get any further, however, he said that he had important news too, and that he couldn't wait a minute longer to tell us. Sophie and Jeffrey looked at him expectantly. I told him to go on, repressing my mild chagrin at having my own announcement deferred. He coughed nervously, but then said in a calm, clear voice that he and Alex were getting married. He said they didn't want any fuss, and were planning a simple civil ceremony for New Year's Eve.
Well. For a moment, I felt a twinge of regret as the mirage of my son walking up the aisle with a nice biddable sort of girl finally faded for ever. Jeffrey was silent. Sophie was white. But when I looked at Rupert's face, when I saw his shy smile and the new glimmer of self-confidence in his eyes, when I considered that a gay wedding is just as much justification for the purchase of a new puce hat as a conventional one, I forgot my doubts. I gave him my blessing. Jeffrey slapped him on the back. Sophie ran to her room. Religious scruples can be most inconvenient.
Then it was my turn to tell Rupert my news, and show him the ring. I am not sure which shocked him most: the prospect of his 50-something-year-old parents repeating their wedding vows in public; or the sight of the sparkling skull on my small white hand. The ring has started to grow on me. In any case, he quickly recovered himself, and offered his congratulations.
The one remaining question is this. Should I suggest a joint ceremony?
KEN BAKER (E! NEW EXECUTIVE EDITOR) - with details on Madonna and A-Rod - they are HOT ON. All about their new relationship and what country they're in now!
And BRITNEY SPEARS, she performed in Europe over holiday break. Is she back or still a work-in-progress? Plus, the big news from last night's MTV documentary.
MARIO LOPEZ - host of EXTRA and Randy Jackson's: America's Best Dance Crew on MTV!
SIMON COWELL - Britney Spears performed on Simon's European talent show X FACTOR over the weekend. Was it a hit or a miss? Simon's calling in with exclusive backstage info!
MINNEAPOLIS -- Inches from an 11-point edge late in the first half, Matt Forte and the Chicago Bears hit the wall. The Minnesota Vikings turned around and quickly took the lead -- in the game and in the division.
With a gutty goal-line stand and one big heave by Gus Frerotte, the Vikings grabbed control of the NFC North and sent Kyle Orton and the Bears home with a 34-14 loss Sunday night.
"If you're going to win these tough games, you've got to make plays and you've got to capitalize," Orton said. "Against a defense like this, you're not going to have too many opportunities down there."
Seconds after the Bears were stopped four times at the 1, Bernard Berrian was wide open up the sideline for a 99-yard touchdown pass from Frerotte.
"That's the first time I've ever seen a 99-yard play, and I've been playing football since I was 8 years old," said Vikings defensive end Jared Allen, who had three sacks. "That right there, that's just a dagger in your chest. Defensively, if that happened to us, I'd be like, 'Holy smokes.'"
Orton's team-record streak of 206 attempts without an interception ended with a thud. He threw three of them, and Minnesota (7-5) turned them into 17 second-half points. Orton finished 11-for-29 for 153 yards and, despite two touchdowns, suddenly looked more like the lost rookie who struggled through the 2005 season.
"With any quarterback, you put pressure on 'em and they rush their throws a little bit," defensive end Ray Edwards said. "He didn't have time back there to make the plays that needed to be made."
Adrian Peterson had 100 yards by halftime and finished with 131 yards and a late score for the Vikings, who enjoyed their largest winning margin this year.
"When you have a balanced offense, it's wonderful. Especially for a running back," Peterson said.
When the afternoon scores were given over the loudspeaker before the game, Green Bay's 35-31 loss to Carolina got a hearty cheer. The Packers (5-7) fell two games behind after a brutal November, and the Vikings sailed into the fourth quarter of the season with a critical lead over the Bears (6-6).
The possibility of four-game suspensions for star defensive tackles Kevin Williams and Pat Williams looms for Minnesota, and Chicago plays three straight weeks at home. Clearly, this was one the Vikings had to have.
After surrendering 283 yards and two touchdowns passing last month in a 48-41 loss at Soldier Field to Orton, one of the best games of his breakthrough season, the Vikings tightened up. They yielded a 65-yard touchdown pass to Devin Hester in the first quarter, but that was their only lapse.
The Bears, leading 7-3, reached the 1 after a 26-yard scamper by Matt Forte up the sideline with five minutes left in the second.
The Williams wall didn't budge, though, helping stuff three straight-ahead runs in a row after an overthrow by Orton. Jared Allen, Ben Leber and Pat Williams smacked Forte, the league's leading rookie rusher, on fourth down to send the defense rollicking off the field. Chicago coach Lovie Smith looked as if he was about to lose his lunch.
Momentum to Minnesota.
Frerotte dropped back in the end zone and found Berrian blowing by former teammate Charles Tillman, who had ducked inside to cut off tight end Visanthe Shiancoe. Frerotte thought to himself, "Why is he so wide open? What's going on?"
The pass was perfect, Berrian caught it in stride, and the result -- the 11th pass covering that distance in NFL history and the longest offensive play in Minnesota history by 10 yards -- had the home crowd roaring.
"It was the luckiest touchdown I ever had," Berrian said, adding: "I was actually surprised how open I was."
Said Tillman: "No excuses. It was a good play, and a good call."
The stunned Bears punted it back, and Frerotte went 4-for-4 for 52 yards on an 86-yard drive he finished with a 1-yard sneak that made it 17-7 right before the half.
"It's amazing what a shift in momentum can do," Smith said.
Notes: Former Vikings DT John Randle, who ranks third on the franchise's career sacks list, was inducted into the team's "Ring of Honor" in a halftime ceremony. ... The previous record offensive play by the Vikings came in their second season, an 89-yard pass from Fran Tarkenton to Charley Ferguson on Nov. 11, 1962. ... The home team has won 12 of the last 14 games in the series. ... Forte finished with 96 yards on 22 carries. ... The Bears had a plus-8 turnover margin entering the game.
Ben Gordon scored 21 points, Drew Gooden had 20 points and 12 rebounds, and the Chicago Bulls rallied from an early 15-point deficit for a 103-92 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers. Derrick Rose contributed 18 points and 10 assists and reached double figures in assists for the first time this season. Reserve Larry Hughes had 16 points for the Bulls (8-9), who won for the third time in 10 games on the road.
A 17-year-old grocery bagger was ready to wash his hands in the bathroom at the Federal Way supermarket where he works when he saw a brown canvas bag on the floor.
Moisei Baraniuc was curious. He opened it and saw envelopes filled with money — "a pretty thick stack," he said. He did the right thing and turned the money in!!!
Stuffed with $50 and $100 bills, the bag contained $10,000, the life savings of a Vancouver, Wash., man who accidentally left it in the men's bathroom at Top Food & Drug on Nov. 13.
Key 
Result: End of Game Key 
Result: End of Game Key 
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