It's not me, it's him, right? for September 2002
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8 So I'm at the grocery store on a Sunday morning during husband, wife and no fewer than seven screaming kids hour, when the lady in front of me is buying enough groceries to feed the football team for two weeks. She then proceeds to write a check for $276 of groceries. A check?!? Who writes checks anymore? Well, at this particular store, you need a check card. She doesn't have one. During the time the clerks runs over to the service department to get managerial, governmental and papal approval for the check, I explain to her that I noticed on her check she belonged to the credit union, and I explain the virtues of a check card. Long story longer, they declined the check and forced her to use a credit card. I still have my check book for one thing -- the repayment of my student loan. They're the only entity I pay money to that has yet to embrace electronic funds. Thank God there's only 8 months left on it.

Note for the Lions: Dump one of the Ms. You don't need to dump both. You have a rookie GM and a rookie coach. If you had a rookie coach with a veteran GM, things would be OK. A veteran coach with a rookie GM would probably be OK, too. Plus, your rookie coach shouldn't also be the coordinator. You don't need to clean house, you just need to balance it.
9 My DIRECTV receiver with the UHF remote arrived, so I could complete audio/visual installation on the new homestead. I had to do some extra wiring to get a phone connection to the box in the basement, but it is nice to have one receiver pretty much controlling wherever I am in the house, since the UHF remote can go through walls and I can have a TV in each room I am normally in. I do however draw the line at bathrooms.

However, as I've now strung wire everywhere, I can take stock in the fact that I own a lot of wire. And how come people just didn't decide on one wire type for everything and stick with it? I have at least 13 unused video cables (one too short one comes with each VCR/DVD/TV I've ever purchased), at least a dozen phone cords (one for every modem I've ever purchased 300 600 1200 2400 9600 14K 28K 56K plus phones), and some network cable, but I'll need to purchase even more to wire the house for the Internet once the DSL arrives (so far, 14 days without). Of course, network cable comes in two types -> crossover, which you need somewhere in the connection, but just once; and regular, which you use everywhere else. Remember when early network cables were video cables. Why did that change?
10 Another attempt to try to lose the spare tire has been temporarily shelved. Due to the fact that my commute at the new house has now doubled from 12 to 24 minutes, I thought I could bike to work faster. Well, going to work is fine. I can get there in 25 minutes and it wasn't that bad. However, going home is pretty much impossible, since it's a slow climb uphill for about 70% of the trip. I'll try again in the spring, but for now, it's back to the bus to me. I really miss weekly floor hockey, it was the only thing keeping me in reasonable shape. I haven't been under 200 since it broke up in 1998.

Anyway, I bring this up because since I had to check the weather this morning, I turned on the local news. If you haven't heard, a former Piston player is presumed lost somewhere in the Pacific, so it's making the local news here. So, their report included a live remote from a boat slip. At 6:30 in the morning! What are they expecting, Bison Dele to all of a sudden just come out of Lake St. Clair and say just kidding? Newsrooms are consolidating everywhere because of alleged money problems, how come their not knocking out superfulous live shots instead?
11 Remember the Simpsons Episode where Mr. Burns sort of hijacked the company softball team with ringers? Well, last week we started our fall season, and lost in a doubleheader 30-1 and 18-6. So, this week, I come in and the pitcher, second baseman, third baseman and left-center fielder were new and not company employees. We still lost both games, although 10-9 and 21-15 were a little better. But I just feel a company softball team should be that -- for the company. To paraphrase the center of the universe -- it is better to play and lose than not play at all. I was 0-2 in game 1 and 2-2 in game 2.

I was finally able to play a game of APBA since I've moved to the new digs with a game from my 1979 league. For those of you keeping score, Saskatoon evened their record to 5-5 as Gary Carter belts a solo homer, his third of the season, in the bottom of the 12th off Winnipeg's David Palmer (1-1). Bruce Sutter blew the save in the 9th for Saskatoon when Paul Molitor scooted home on a wild throw by Ken Oberkfell. Mike Marshall pitched 2 scoreless innings for the win (1-0). Winnipeg falls to 2-8.
12 Thursday saw another highlight day in APBA, as game #2 of the Winnipeg-Saskatoon series goes 17 innings with Saskatoon again coming up on top. Saskatoon was nursing a 3-0 lead in the top of the 8th when pinch-hitter Gene Tenace hit a two run homer of Bill Lee to tie the game at 3. After going scoreless for a long time, Winnipeg pushed home 2 runs in the top of the 16th when Ben Oglivie tripled but Saskatoon's Steve Kemp, the last batter on the bench for either team, came up and hit a 2-run single to tie the game at 5. However, Roy Smalley drove in Andre Thornton with a single to give Bruce Sutter (1-0) the win. Dennis Eckersley (0-2) had to make an in-between starts appearance and ends up with a loss. I wonder if he would make a good relief pitcher later in his career?

I just finished my mortgage forms (which Craig probably made) for the place I've been living in for the past 17 days. It's weird to research things I never really pay attention to, such as the value of my car (just under $6,000) or the 401K balance. During the stock market boom a couple of years ago, my 401K plan managed to lose money. I can't imagine what kind of money it would be losing if I didn't dump $3,800 a year in it.
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15 16 Phoenix turned out to be a wonderful getaway, even if my intended reason doesn't pan out. I went to try out for the new version of Pyramid, and since their contestant searches were coming nowhere near Michigan, I chose a city on the most convienent weekend, which turned out to be this one. Things I observed:

--The purpose of having the ogle-searches at the incoming security checkpoint and at the gate is for the amusement and appeasement of the other passengers. I was twice selected for this honor, with the one going on to the plane being the only person out of a 20 person flight. Once everybody was on the flight, the search was magically over.

--It disturbs me in Phoenix how the weather people casually mention "it's going to be 104 today."

--In the best interest of baseball, Randy Johnson should not be facing the Brewers. 17 Ks and it didn't even look like he tried. He technically broke the record with 21 Ks, but four of those were while he was batting.

--I brought a radio into the BOB in order to listen to the Michigan-Notre Dame game during the D-Backs game. I forgot to bring batteries. No problem, I'll buy some in the stadium. Go into the Stadium Store and hear from the clerk "you can't get batteries anywhere in the BOB." So, apparently they've heard this question enough that they have a rehearsed answer. Wouldn't it be better to just stock batteries? And she called it "BOB", not "Bank One Ballpark." She's fired.

--Phoenix traffic is very leisurely. You do the math.<

I think Pyramid's going to be a big hit. I also think I killed in my tryout and I hope that translates into a contestant spot. FlannelFamily Feud with new host Richard Karn still seems to be missing something. What they lose in obnoxiousness with no more Louie Anderson they became much more stiff. Meredith Viera on Millionaire seems to care much more about the female contestants than the male ones, but she looks like a natural. And for Tom Bergeron's sake, Hollywood Squares should just morph into Match Game '03. He would be a perfect host.

I tried lawn work today. The mower didn't start. I may not be the right person for this.

Closed on the old place. So, until the closing on the new place, I technically don't own a house, but I do have the largest bank account I've ever had.

And if you still care, Saskatoon swept their series with Winnipeg with a 2-hit shutout by spot starter Dick Drago (1-0), who also contributed a run-scoring single. Tommy John (1-2) took the loss for the crashing Jets.
17 Every time I try to think of something for today, it doesn't sound interesting. So we'll skip today. 18 Oh my, we finally won a softball game this season. Only because the other team didn't show up with enough players. They found an 8th for the second game, and we lost 17-1, playing some of the worst calliope softball I have ever seen.

In APBA land, the schedule has moved for the battle for first in the east between Ottawa and Hamilton, two very good teams. Steve Rogers was on the hill for the Capitals, while J.R. Richard was on the hill for the Steelers. In what should have been a pitchers' duel, Jim Rice slams two homers for Hamilton as they win 7-5.

The APBA game got me thinking every time they talk about somebody in their 20's and tagging them future hall of famer. And for J.R. Richard, that tag seemed accurate. A right-handed Randy Johnson (he was 6'8"), by age 29 (end of the 1979 season), he already had 97 wins and 1374 strikeouts, had led the league in Ks twice, ERA once and had a 20 win season. In 1980, complaining of problems all season long, he was still 10-4 by the All-Star break before he suffered a stroke a week after the all-star break and never recovered. His life spiraled downward after that, even spending time homeless after losing all his money in failed businesses and a messy divorce. With a healthy Richard in 1980, the Astros wouldn't have had to be in such a tight race for the division and probably would have been in the World Series instead of the Phillies. So when you see pitchers today like Barry Zito, Joe Mays or Pedro Martinez, each start could be their last.
19 People you don't know they're name, but you know the face: James Gregory, who played both the Senator in The Manchurian Candidate and Inspector Luger on Barney Miller passed away yesterday at the age of 90. The strange part is, he looked 90 when he was on Barney Miller.

Question authority, or at least Earthlink: I had a rather strange phone call today saying my new house didn't qualify for DSL. I thought that was odd, since Kevin lives nearby, he has DSL, and one of my neighbors has it too. Well, I called them, got a little nasty, and it was a #^!& up on their end, and I should have DSL by Tuesday. My long 28.8 nightmare will finally be over! And for those of you who think I'm being too whiny, it was no big deal until I had DSL -- it's very hard to go back.

It better stop raining, Nate Cornejo did a masterful job of giving up 8 runs in 1/3 of an inning, there's 106 points going to go to waste.

In APBA news, I finished the Ottawa-Hamilton with each team picking up a win. In Ottawa's win, Bert "Be Home" Blyleven pitched eight scoreless innings for the 1-0 victory with Keith Hernandez hitting his first dinger of the season. In Hamilton's win, Ted Simmons hit a walk off homerun for a 4-2 win, giving Kent Tekulve his 2nd win of the season. Enrique "Sherrif" Romo blew the save and took the loss, amazingly in 5 relief appearances he's already 2-2.

This just in -- the game was called. Bastards.
20 Lame day. Rained a lot. 21 Ever since 1986 except for the three years in grad school at Colorado State, I have attended Michigan football games, a streak which has now approached 79 games. The team has gone 65-14 during this span, so you think fans would happy, estatic, thrilled for winning 80% of the time. Nope. I have to sit in a section where no matter what the team does, it's bad. John Navarre sucks, the defensive backs play too much off the ball, the play calling is too conservative, blah, blah, blah. Now I realize you pay $49 a game for these seats, but if you're going to put through yourself such agony about the abilities of 20 year olds playing football, I would highly recommend you take your $49 and spend it elsewhere. Some things to keep in perspective about sports:

--It's a $^!&ing game. Your life is not going to change if the team you have decided to place some sort of misguided allegiance behind can't win for you.

--In the case of today's rant, they are college students. Would you like to go back to your college days and have to perform in front of 110,000 people? Or currently, how about your job? I have enough trouble reporting to two supervisors I may see once or twice a day, I can't imagine 110,000 people booing me because I decided to stare out the window for two minutes.

--Fans who yell at the team to do something that's so patently obvious really frost my Kelvinator. Look folks, we sit in the 65th row in a stadium which most places don't even have a 65th row. And even if they can hear you, they're not going to take recommendations from some guy who got cut from 8th grade football but is infinitely more knowledgable about the game because he watches a lot of it on TV. Hey, I thought I knew a lot about hockey, and when I started playing it again at 24, I still had so much to learn that I quickly realized that you can't really criticize what you see in a sporting event, especially since your perspective in the stands or on TV is very different than what's on the field. If I had some magical vision where I could see a power play from the top rather than at ice level, I'd be scoring 200 goals a year. But you can't, because most playing fields are two dimensional, and do not some super-isolated slow motion 360 degree computer generated shots.

As much as people criticize the legal industry as a bunch of money hungry vultures, did you know that in terms of gross product, the sports industry in this country actually produces more money? Remember, the next time you wish to invest mucho dinero to go to a sporting event, or invest time in front of a TV screen watching a game, you have set in motion the parameters that have caused sports to be way overblown in this society. The reason I follow sports has not changed in the last 23 years I have been a fan, but society sure has and the way sports has now become a main course of life rather than a dessert, and I don't think I will ever be able to reconcile the two.
22 23 24 25 26 27 O.K. It's been a while. There really isn't anything interesting going on right now unless your interested in laundry or edging the lawn.

However, I did have one of those events last night. One of the [dis]advantages of taking the medication I take is the new levels/depths of freakiness my dreams take. Rather than give you a long, boring summary, here are things that appeared in said dream:

--A Polish/Basque dictionary.*
--David Letterman working the drive-through at a White Castle

*Although I couldn't find one in book form, there does seem to be one on-line. And, in finding this site, I came across a real-neat one for the über-geography geeks -- Common Place names in many different languages.
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