1) Twins Win, Twins Win - 5 division championships under Gardy in his 8 years as the team's manager.  The team overcame the largest deficit at that point of the season in the division's history.  Plus, they did all of this down the stretch while missing All-Star 1st baseman, Justin Morneau.  Despite not making things easy, I have to hand it to them for not giving up.  They sure know how to make things exciting.  The 12th inning of tonight's game had to be one of the best that I have ever seen!

2) Hometown kid made good - Just how good is Joe Mauer?  The numbers he put up this year are simply ridiculous.  Not only does he continue to hit for an obscene average (particularly for a catcher), but now he's added some power to his game.  I don't know what the Twins are going to need to do to keep him here after next year, but they better start coming up with something soon.  

3) Vikings Vs. Packers - As a Vikings season ticket holder, this is always one game you circle on your calendar.  The teams are pumped up, the fans are in a frenzy, and the games are almost always great.  

How are you going to top it?  I guess putting one team's legendary quarterback on the other team and you have a recipe for a whole new level of hoopla.  The dome was deafening and the atmosphere electric.  From the first play to the last, the game had excitement.  For the Vikings, I have to hand it to Brett Favre for playing under control despite what must have been an emotional evening.   I would be remiss to not mention the defensive line, particularly Jared "the calfroper" Allen, for taking the Packers offensive line behind the woodshed.  He notched up a Monday Night Football record 4.5 sacks.  Plus I love that he donates $3K per sack to charity.  Last night made for a nice little $13.5 thousand donation.

Lastly, I would like to give both team's fans a round of applause.  Sure there was the occasional overindulgence you see at a football game, but for that charged of an atmosphere, I didn't see any skirmishes, arguments, or particularly bad behavior.  From my vantage it was just a lot of good fun had by everyone!  

4) Gray-beard, The Silver Fox, Gunslinger - I don't really care what you want to call him, but last night Favre showed he's still got a few bullets left in the chamber.  As a football fan, it was a lot of fun to cheer for the guy last night vs. against him.  Hey made every type of throw a quarterback needs to make, and knew exactly where he wanted to go doing it.  For us Vikings fan, it was a treat to see a quarterback run the game vs. react to it (considering what we have dealt with).  

5) The Tasty Bite, Simple Bruschetta - With all of the fresh tomatoes at your disposal right now, what could be better than this classic Italian dish.  Start by taking a baguette of bread (we like the kind you can bake at home) and warm in the oven.  Cut the bread into slices at an angle and drizzle lightly with olive oil.  Take a fresh tomato and cut into slices, while also cutting a couple of fresh basil leaves into a chiffon.  At this point, take your tomato slices and place on top of the baguette slices.  Drizzle lightly with some additional olive oil, and add a dash of salt and pepper.  

From here you can customize the Bruschetta by drizzling a small amount of balsamic vinegar or red wine (Chianti works nicely) over the tomatoes.  The final piece should you choose is to add a little freshly grated parmesan to the top.  Talk about a delicious way to start your meal!

We hope you enjoyed this installment of Bits and Bites.  Bon Appetite and Enjoy!