The Flying Tomato usually has so many off-the-hill commitments that hes not able to spend more than three hours a session in training, but that doesnt concern him during the Winter X Games, which started Thursday and runs until Sunday on Buttermilk Mountain.

Weve thrown up some of the highlights from Gametrailers list, for easier viewing. But thats not to say that the sites audience got it completely right. In addition to the top five games that we think should be on anyones list of must-haves in 2012, were also taking a look at the five biggest omissions from Gametrailers big roundup. If you think weve missed anything big, feel free to tell us in the comments below!

1. Diablo III

Did we even have to guess? Diablo III once again takes top-honors on a list of games people want to play, which isnt really news at all at this point. So what is news? The games senior producer, Steve Parker, recently left Blizzard, leading eager gamers to worry that Diablo IIIs as-yet-unannounced release date could be further delayed. Blizzard also recently decided to nix the games companion pets and Scrolls of Reforging which means no cute bunnies, not on-the-fly item property rejiggering, will join players during their epic quest.

2. Guild Wars 2

Hot on the heels of World of Warcraft and Star Wars: The Old Republic comes Guild Wars 2, one of the more highly anticipated MMOs expected to arrive mid-year. Will its push for more realistic MMO combat, among other features, be enough to stop sith and pandas?

3. Grand Theft Auto V

You know the deal. Youre either a good guy or a bad guy trying to go good, but not before some chance encounter throws you back into a world of crime, punching random people on the street, and running everyone over with the 85th car youve stolen in a single gaming session. Such is the way of the Grand Theft Auto series.

4. Borderlands 2

Tons of guns, tons of redneck-like desert marauders, and tons of things to shoot: What more do you want from the followup to one of 2010s more exciting titles? Well, besides a better storyline and a greatly improved ending, that is.

5. The Last of Us

Zombie-like humans, post-apocalyptic setting, most of humanity has been killed and youre one of the few survivors, et cetera. Stop us if youve already heard or seen this one, even though game director Bruce Straley promises that The Last of Us is, not a zombie game. You know, like those other 300 post-apocalyptic zombie games.

1. The Witcher 2: Assassin of Kings

Old game? Check. New system? Check. Awesome new cinematic that makes old game feel like brand-new experience? Check. The Witcher 2 might be porting its way over to consoles, but that doesnt make us any less excited about the movies that CD Projekt RED puts out.

2. Syndicate

Comparing Syndicate (2012 version) to its 1993 predecessor is kind of like comparing modern-day dubstep to 1980s techno. Suffice, the game is appealing if for nothing else than allowing gamers to meticulously compare it to the original, isometric title in every way, shape, form, and gun.

3. Super Monday Night Combat

Hey, you got your tower defense game in my first-person shooter! This followup to the multiplayer-driven Monday Night Combat puts two teams of Team Fortress-like classes against each other in a Defense Against the Ancients-like match up. Or, for the uninitiated, you (and the help of computer drones) are tasked with pushing the other team back to its base and destroying it!

4. Tomb Raider

A Tomb Raider game thats focused on adventure realism instead of cartoony, disproportionate heroines and run-in-circles-and-shoot gameplay? Lara Croft gets younger, grittier, and bloodier in the trailer for the upcoming Tomb Raider refresh.

5. Twisted Metal 2012

Has the sun set on the drive around in cars and blow each other up genre? Or will the latest iteration of the Twisted Metal series take gamers back to the warmer, fuzzier times of killing each other with ice cream trucks? Just to add a little historical perspective, Twisted Metal (the first) launched on the original Sony PlayStation in 1995. Keep it up, and well all be shooting demon-enhanced vehicles in space someday.

For more from David, subscribe to him on Facebook: David Murphy.

Joyce Curvins garage is awash with enough stuff to make navigating that space an arduous task. The accrued detritus, much of which would be baled for trash pickup in other homes, is a rich source of creativity for Curvin. The stashes of plastic bottles, newspapers, cereal boxes, Styrofoam trays, bent wire, bits of leather, old pill bottles and seed pods from palm trees are everywhere.

From this mass of stuff will emerge whimsical animals in bright, cheerful colors, with their ears up, their heads tilted to one side and their eyes wide open.

Ive always been known as someone who can make something out of nothing, said Curvin, the wife of the Rev. Chris Curvin of Northwood Presbyterian Church in Clearwater and mother of two teenage sons. A bottle can become a body of a bird, an animal head or other parts of an animals body.

Her funky birds, cats, dogs, occasional gators and other animals are on display at most local art shows and on the shelves of a number of gift shops from Sarasota to Madeira Beach to Dunedin. Curvin calls her business Art-Official Pets.

On the walls of the family garage, which has been transformed into a workshop, hang colorful fish, all made from seed pods or other stiff fallen segments of local palm trees.

The tables hold an array of other recycled creatures. A colorful rooster was formed from a maple syrup bottle covered with feathery cuts of cereal boxes. Nearby, an 18-inch-long playful-looking bird with orange, turquoise and yellow feathers stands on clay feet. His wings were crafted from molded paper, his beak from leather and his body from a plastic soda bottle.

A 2-foot-high brown-painted terrier was fashioned from old shoes. He has a red leather tongue and a dog collar made from an old belt painted blue.

They are all loopy and weird, Curvin said of her favorite creatures. The tilt of the head can make all the difference.

Curvin, a St. Petersburg native who lives in Palm Harbor, said attitude is the key to a well-made pet. The animals have body language, she said, just as humans do.

You have to build attitude into the armature before the paint goes on, she said. Otherwise youll be fighting the whole way to get the personality.

In recent years, Curvin has added to her usual assortment of animals. The collection now includes miniature domestic pets made from her elderly parents discarded medicine bottles. These are my prescription pets, she said. Theyre good for what ails you.

Musical instruments are part of the new collection as well. Curvin salvages broken guitars, trumpets or horns and applies layers of colorful paint to the surfaces. Into the mouth of a trumpet or the sound hole of a guitar go birds nests with small sparrows or other tiny birds peeping out.

Birds build nests anywhere, she said, so I figured I could put them in unexpected places as well.

Throughout the year, Curvin presents workshops for children and adults at several local art centers. She noted that children usually accept her funky animals in all their crazy colors and poses right away.

Kids think outside the box, she said, but adults often think in terms of what things are supposed to look like.

Curvins pieces recently appeared at the Dunedin Art Harvest and the Florida Craftsmen show in St. Petersburg. She will next exhibit at the Sanibel Arts and Crafts Festival on Sanibel Island on Feb. 18 and 19.

Lets change the rules, based on what weve seen today. If you survey the weekend slate and you cant find any meaningful games and potential upsets that youre overly interested in, that means its time to call Earl and the crew (everybody has a friend named Earl), stock the fridge and get ready for some good basketball. If this was a lukewarm weekend in college basketball, what qualifies as a great one?

Iowa State 72, No. 5 Kansas 64

Many laughed when Fred Hoiberg began his tenure at Iowa State by recruiting from a pool of players known for their checkered pasts. Royce White, who left Minnesota two seasons ago after a tumultuous stay, led the bunch. But Hoiberg looks like a genius right now after the Cyclones handed No. 5 KU its first Big 12 loss of the season. The win snapped both the Jayhawks 13-game winning streak over Iowa State and their 10-game overall winning streak (they hadnt lost since Dec. 19).

The postgame court-storming was well-deserved for the Clones and their fans. Hoiberg has as much job security as any coach in the country based on his legendary career in Ames, which allowed him to pursue so many transfers without worry. In other words, hed get a mulligan if things didnt work out.

Against Kansas, however, Hoiberg proved that hes more than a risk-taking recruiter. He can coach, too. Iowa State, a squad that suffered an 82-73 loss at Kansas on Jan. 14, led by three points at halftime. But that didnt last. The Jayhawks scored 11 unanswered points early in the second half. The crowds energy dropped after that KU run, but Iowa State kept fighting, something it had failed to do down the stretch in its earlier loss to the Jayhawks.

White led the charge. With his team leading 56-53 and five minutes to play, he scored the Cyclones next eight points (three straight layups and a pair of free throws). He entered the game as a 51 percent free throw shooter — ISU was the Big 12s worst free throw shooting team at 61 percent overall — but he was 6-for-8 from the charity stripe in the second half. He finished with a team-high 18 points, nine rebounds and five assists, making up for his six turnovers. The team was 25-for-34 from the charity stripe.

So yes, the same Iowa State squad that lost at Drake Nov. 15 looks like an NCAA tournament team right now — no matter what my colleague Doug Gottlieb might tweet. At 5-3, the Cyclones are off to their best Big 12 start in a dozen years and sure seem like they wont be fading away anytime soon.

No. 4 Syracuse 63, West Virginia 61

It just cant happen. Not in late January with the stakes so high. Not when its so blatant. Officials in this game missed one of the more obvious and critical goaltending calls of the season. In the final seconds, West Virginias Truck Bryant air-balled a 3-pointer that ended up in Deniz Kiliclis hands with his team down by a bucket. Kiliclis layup was swatted away in mid-air by Syracuses Baye Keita, but replays showed what looked like a clear goaltending violation by Keita. Officials never blew their whistles.

West Virginia got the ball back and Kevin Jones (20 points, eight rebounds) missed a deep 3-pointer to win the game, but the final outcome might have changed had that crew flagged Keita for goaltending. Now granted, WVU had its chances. Brandon Triche (18 points) hit a pair of free throws with a minute and a half to play and the Mountaineers missed four consecutive shots. But the no-call clearly impacted the game.

Syracuse struggled in its third consecutive game without Fab Melo. The Orange just havent looked like the same squad without him and his defensive presence. West Virginia secured an astounding plus-21 (41-20) rebounding edge over the Cuse and had nearly as many offensive boards (19) as the Orange had total. How does that happen? Its not like the Mountaineers are the biggest team in the country. They were just tougher than Syracuse most of the afternoon. And had it not been for that missed goaltending call, West Virginia might have avoided its 13th loss to the Cuse in 14 meetings.

No. 7 Baylor 76, Texas 71

With 4:09 to go, Texas Myck Kabongo hit a 3-pointer as Pierre Jackson committed a ridiculous foul to put him on the line for a four-point play opportunity. Texas had been down by 12 points early in the second half, but Kabongos shot cut Baylors advantage to just one. Cameras panned to Baylor coach Scott Drew on the sidelines. He had the I cant believe this is happening at home look on his face.

Perry Jones (22 points, 14 rebounds) was far more aggressive than hed been in some of his efforts, but Baylor couldnt keep the pressure on the Longhorns and nearly blew one at home. JCovan Brown scored 32 points (11-for-22), his third consecutive 30-point effort. But he had way more time to create a better shot than the deep 3-ball he took with 14 seconds on the clock. His team was down by three points in the closing seconds, so I understand why hed take a deep shot, but he didnt have to shoot it when he did. He had more time on the clock.

Heres where you have to have more question marks about Baylor, though. The Bears are at home. Texas shot 36 percent from the field in the first half and was 1-for-12 from beyond the arc before halftime. Seemed like an opportunity for Baylor to flex its muscle. But it turned into another lukewarm finish for the Bears.

No. 13 Florida 69, No. 16 Mississippi State 57

The Bulldogs just couldnt handle Floridas inside-outside attack. Patric Young (12 points, six rebounds) was solid for the Gators, especially after halftime. Bradley Beal led the Gators talented backcourt with 19 points. The nations leaders in 3-point field goals hit 11 of them as they won their fifth straight and 17th in a row at home.

Arnett Moultrie was 4-for-10 and scored 12 points for a Bulldogs team that committed 14 turnovers. It was MSUs third SEC road loss of the season. At 5-3 in league play, theyd better find a way to compete away from home. Theyre certainly talented, but the Bulldogs have really struggled on the road. Thought this one would have been a closer game, but give the Gators credit. They can spread teams out with their guard play and minimize their size disadvantages, a tactic they used to perfection against the Bulldogs.

No. 1 Kentucky 74, LSU 50

The Wildcats are in Beast Mode right now. Theyre just crushing teams. LSU entered this game following a tight road loss at Mississippi State. But the Wildcats are just a different animal. Terrence Jones led all scorers with a season-high 27 points and the Wildcats held LSU to a 1-for-9 clip from the 3-point line. Just two Tigers reached double figures.

Although LSU is only 2-5 in the SEC, you have to wonder how dangerous the Wildcats can be in March when a guy like Jones can explode despite some inconsistency this season. He entered the game averaging 11.6 ppg and he only scored five points against Georgia on Tuesday. But this game was further proof that Kentucky is a pick your poison kind of opponent. How do you defend a team with that number of studs? The Wildcats have so many weapons.

Syracuse is deep. Ohio State has balance. But no team in America looks as potent as Kentucky right now.

Some more observations from the afternoon games …

• It Happened! It Happened! It Happened! Towson wins! The Tigers had set a record with 41 consecutive Division I losses, but on Saturday, a miracle happened when the Tigers beat UNC Wilmington 66-61 despite a 1-for-8 mark from the 3-point line. Marcus Damas scored 18 points. There were shaky moments late — the Seahawks hit some late 3s after Towson took a 60-53 lead with 1:25 to play — but the Tigers held on and a justifiable celebration ensued. For reaction from coach Pat Skerry and the Tigers, read Andy Katzs story in the Nation blog.
• Marquette did its normal slow-start/big-finish thing at Villanova, but Dana ONeil was at the game, so Ill let her tell you more about it.
• Duke nearly squandered a 22-point second-half lead against a young St. Johns team. The Blue Devils 83-76 victory over the Red Storm was nothing to hang their hats on. The Devils should be disappointed that they gave up a late run that could have cost them the game.
• Middle Tennessee State and Vanderbilt clashed Saturday in a tight game between the two Tennessee schools. MTSU, 20-2 entering the game, has been one of the bigger surprises on the national scene. The Blue Raiders start four transfers who werent with the team last season. But their story hit a roadblock in their 84-77 loss at Vanderbilt. The loss snapped Middles 12-game winning streak and gave Vandy its fourth win in its past five games.
• Is Pitt about to launch a big comeback this season? Im not sure. But the Panthers have won two in a row after an impressive 72-60 win over No. 10 Georgetown, their fifth win in their last six meetings with the Hoyas. They lost their first eight Big East games, but Lamar Patterson scored a team-high 18 points and Ashton Gibbs added 13 for the Panthers, who have now won an incredible 12 straight home games against top-10 opponents.
• The Mountain West Conference is legit. Proof? No. 12 San Diego State took a tough 77-60 road loss at Colorado State on Saturday, despite Jamaal Franklins 24 points. After a brutal travel week in the Rockies, the loss snapped SDSUs 11-game overall winning streak and its 58-game win streak against unranked foes, which had been the longest such run in the country. Colorado States dwindling at-large hopes certainly got a huge boost with this victory, the schools first over a ranked team since 2004.

Its a team game, so these things happen. Except with Brady they seem to keep happening, at least in white-knuckle playoff contests. The man who has built his brilliant career on a propensity for clutch play in the most significant of moments has a recent history of being mediocre when the season is on the line.

New Englands Joe Cool has gone cold.

Starting with Super Bowl XLII, where the Giants sprung a historic upset over the previously unbeaten Pats, Brady has struggled in four of New Englands five elimination games.

In that Super Bowl against the Giants four years ago, he went 29-of-48 for 266 yards and one TD.

[ Silver: Osi Umenyiora refuses to pout following contract dispute]

In the 09 AFC wild-card game against the Ravens, he went 23-of-42 for 154 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions.

In the 11 divisional round against the New York Jets, he went 29 of 45 for 299 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.

And then there was this AFC title game against Baltimore, the only one of the four New England survived.

In those four games hes averaged a 60.2 completion percentage and 239.5 yards, not horrible numbers but well below his averages during those same four regular seasons: 66.5 completion percentage and 286.6 yards a game.

Then there are the ugly five touchdowns against six interceptions disastrous compared to his 4.1-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio (153-37) during those four years.

His four-playoff game passer rating is a weak 69.5, a precipitous drop from the 107.5 he posted during those same regular seasons.

All of this, of course, is particularly jarring because of the standard set by Brady, who if he wins a fourth Super Bowl, will strengthen his case in the debate over who is the greatest quarterback of all time.

Hes thrown 300 regular-season touchdowns against just 115 picks. His all-time record as a starter, playoffs included, is 140-40, a plus-100 that is far and away the best in NFL history (Joe Montana at plus-73 appears to be second). Early in his career Brady routinely won tight playoff games, often with dramatic game-winning drives.

Its worth noting that his one strong playoff performance since that 07 Super Bowl was a blistering 26-of-34 for 363 yards and six-touchdown effort in a destruction of the Denver Broncos earlier this month.

So its not like he forgot how to be a great playoff quarterback. And no one doubts he is capable of another Super Bowl MVP effort in Indianapolis.

[ Cole: Giants eying unprecedented feat with victory ]

Its also, as time passes, easy to forget that this happens to the best of them. Montana lost three consecutive playoff games with the San Francisco 49ers from 1985-87 in which he threw zero touchdown passes and a combined four picks. Then he won the next two Super Bowls.

Still, what to make of Bradys mini recent track record?

You try to be at your very best in the biggest game, Brady said this week. My teammates really count on that. Certainly, I count on that. Theres a lot of preparation that goes into that.

An emu is a large, exotic bird, very similar to the ostrich. A ewe is a female sheep. Though they were two very different animals, Mary said they bonded and were inseparable.

Where you saw one, you saw the other, she said.

Dewsnup said that the emu was hatched right there in their backyard, nearly 10 years ago.

But Dewsnups happiness and joy for her pets came to end last Sunday, when she said they were brutally killed. She said they were mauled and attacked by her neighbors two pit bull dogs.

Im angry, Im very angry, said Dewsnup.

Dewsnup claimed the dogs forced their way through the wooden fence that she shares with her neighbor.

Eyewitness News contacted Dewsnups neighbor. The woman living there didnt want to give her name, but she said the allegations are false and said her dogs were chained up. The female neighbor also said that her family only has one pit bull, not two. She said that she believes the holes in the fence are the work of other neighborhood dogs.

All I want them to do is take care of the animals. Do something with the animals. I do not want them in the Bakersfield area, Dewsnup said.

Dewsnup told Eyewitness News that her partner reported the incident to Kern County Animal Control. A spokesperson for Animal Control said the agency is looking into the matter.

The female neighbor said she sympathizes with the loss, because she has animals of her own. But, she said her dogs were not responsible for the attack.

INFO: 8am onwards, Friday 3 February 2012. 7HE SEVENS Sports Stadium, Dubai-Al Ain Road. Entry costs Dhs10 for adults and free for children. To register, visit www.dubaipetshow.com. 

She soon concluded that the terms were too long, the payments too steep and the rate too high. And it wasnt the full amount that I wanted anyway, she said. It just didnt feel right.

Entrepreneurs are struggling to find veins of credit, even as the economy shows modest signs of improvement and small businesses are being challenged to fuel the nations recovery. Government-backed small-business lending declined precipitously in 2011 after a pair of incentives expired in December 2010.

Federal officials are shining an unprecedented light on small business. This past week, during his State of the Union address, President Barack Obama pressed Congress to pass an agenda that would foster their growth. Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve said it would keep its baseline interest rate static for until late 2014 to encourage investment spending.

Yet lenders remain reluctant, in part because todays borrowers look radically different than those a decade ago. Nearly all businesses suffered during the recession, bankers say, and those that survived walked away with some financial bruises.

As banks and borrowers recover from a downturn brought about by too much risk, few are willing to gamble as they attempt to pinpoint the right level of exposure.

Bankers arent willing to open their pockets yet, said Rick Stone, who leads the Small Business Development Centers capital finance team. He guides small-business owners through the loan application process.