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No, seriously…

A juror in England is being charged with contempt of court after it was discovered that she was listening to her MP3 player during a murder trial.

A Cape Cod man told a judge that he was a homophobic racist with a propensity for telling lies in an attempt to avoid jury duty.

Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen dished out $12 million for a 40-foot yellow submarine.

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A pretty solid piece in the San Diego Union-Tribune on the decline of the sports trading card industry.

Ex-Purdue QB Brandon Kirsch wishes he had stayed at Purdue instead of acting like a petulant child and stupidly declaring early for the NFL draft. The reality is that there was a reason why Kirsch played behind Kyle Orton and why he was replaced in his junior year by redshirt freshman Curtis Painter — he’s not a very good quarterback.

The New York Daily News looks at which team is likely to land A-Rod when he opts out of his contract with the Yankees at the end of this season. What?! The Pirates didn’t make this list?! Come on.

Chicago Sun-Times columnist and resident screamer on Around the Horn Jay Marriotti volunteers himself for a ruthless beating in his column today.

Michael Jordan’s son, Jeff, becomes college basketball’s most celebrated walk-on.

Interesting story in the Dallas Morning News about former Nevada forward and Dallas Maverick Nick Fazekas.

Former Iowa guard Pierre Pierce is out of prison and back on the basketball court. I think that one of the lines in this story perfectly summarizes why people like Pacman Jones and Tank Johnson continue to find themselves on pro rosters. “He is here at the invitation of the Warriors, who are intrigued enough by his potential — and undeterred by his past — to offer a summer-league spot…” This guy has been twice convicted of charges related to sexual assault and just served an 11-month prison sentence. The people of the Bay Area should be vocal and make sure this guy doesn’t make the roster and represent their community.

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Well-rounded news…

Will there be an iPhone nano?

I’m tired of hearing about The Simpsons Movie but you can vote on just which Springfield is the real Springfield.

Head of EA says video games need to be more innovative.

Good piece in Newsweek on Digg founder Kevin Rose.

The heat of summer is hurting consumers at the pump in more ways than one.

Chicago film critics are not happy that Fox is trying to control press on their films by limiting press screenings.

The Kings of Leon are apparently at odds about drummer Nathan Followill getting married.

Bloc Party will be heading to North America for a tour this fall. Luckily for my girlfriend (who unabashedly hates Bloc Party), the band will not be playing Atlanta.

The Beverly Hills mansion of William Randolph Hearst can be yours for $165 million.

Spike Lee is saying he is not a part of ‘mainstream’ Hollywood.

More on J.J. Abrams’ mystery project.

The Associated Press is reporting that the NFL has fined Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher a whopping $100,000 for wearing a hat of a sponsor not endorsed by the league during Super Bowl Media Day in February.

How ridiculous is this? I understand the intent of this rule. You want to dissuade players from becoming walking billboards during league functions (all the while being walking billboards themselves — notice the Reebok logo on his shoulder) but 100 grand? Yikes.