The big news in the world of baseball today is that Jason Bay is not returning to the Boston Red Sox but is signing with the New York Mets instead. This isn't exactly a shocker, the Mets have been portrayed as the front runner to land Bay the past few weeks. The shocker is the contract that Bay got from the Mets compared to what he turned down from the Red Sox.
The Red Sox offered Bay 4 years at $60 Million, a cool $15 Million per year. The Mets are giving Bay 4 years at $66 Million, which works out to $16.5 Million per year. Jason Bay will get an extra $1.5 Million per year to play for a team that hasn't made the playoffs since 2006 and lost 92 games in 2009. He could have stayed with the Red Sox for $1.5 Million less per year and been on a team that has been to the playoffs in 6 of the last 7 years and has won 2 World Series Titles in that time.
I don't get it. I can see if the Mets were offering him $5 or $6 Million more per season but to go from a championship caliber team to a cellar dweller for a mere 10% more in salary is ludicrous to me. Is Jason Bay that obsessed with money? If so, that is really sad.
On the plus side, I am ecstatic that he didn't end up with the Yankees. That is always my biggest fear as a Red Sox fan. In fact, so far, things seem to be going in the Sox favor for 2010. The Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay is gone to the National League - sweet! The Sox signed John Lackey without having to give away half our team or best prospects - sweet! The Mike Lowell to Texas trade fell through - double sweet!
Only 50 days until Red Sox pitchers and catchers report to Ft. Meyers on February 18, 2010.
Mood: Flabbergasted.
It's Ironic:
That local radio station Mix 107.3 airs commercials touting "Commercial free Mondays" on Mondays.
Song Of The Day:
"I'm noddin' my head like "Yeah!" Movin' my hips like "Yeah!""
-Party In The USA
Miley Cyrus
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Sunday, December 6, 2009
December 5th is Evil!!!
I don't know what it is about December 5th, but for some reason it likes to snow in NoVa (Northern Virginia) on that day. Here is the weather for the last several December 5ths:
2009 - Cold, snow - 4 inches
2008 - Sunny, cold, high of 40
2007 - Cold, snow - 3 inches
2006 - Sunny, cold, high of 41
2005 - Cold, snow - 3 inches
2004 - Warm, high of 59
2003 - Cold, high of 33
2002 - Cold, snow - 6 inches
The normal high temperature is "around" 50 degrees for December 5th. I say "around" 50 because I checked 2 different websites and got 3 different answers for it. Weather Underground says it is 48 and The Weather Channel has both 49 and 51 listed as the "average" high in different parts of their colossal website.
The last eight December 5ths have been quite a change from the four before them when it was always warm and we had 2 record highs set for the date within a period of three years:
2001 - Sunny, warm, record high of 77!
2000 - Warm, high of 51
1999 - Warm, high of 66
1998 - Partly sunny, warm, record high of 73!
For the record, my first two years in NoVa featured fairly uneventful December 5th weather:
1997 - Sun to clouds, high of 46
1996 - Cold, high of 39
I suppose when you average it all up you come out with a normal high of "around" 50 degrees.
You might think that I would be appalled at snow in December and in fact it is just the opposite. I think snow in December is the sign of a mild winter to come. I was actually very worried that we are due for a really bad winter this year. The first winter I was in NoVa, 1996, was horrible and seven years later the winter of 2003 was also a bad one. If the seven year pattern holds, 2010 is due to be another rough year with a huge snowstorm hiding somewhere in it. The more snow we have now, the less likely that outcome is in my opinion. I will take 4 inches of snow in December over 24 inches in February any day!
Mood: Chilly
Song Of The Day:
"But under my hood is internal combustion power and Satan is my motor."
-Satan Is My Motor
Cake
2009 - Cold, snow - 4 inches
2008 - Sunny, cold, high of 40
2007 - Cold, snow - 3 inches
2006 - Sunny, cold, high of 41
2005 - Cold, snow - 3 inches
2004 - Warm, high of 59
2003 - Cold, high of 33
2002 - Cold, snow - 6 inches
The normal high temperature is "around" 50 degrees for December 5th. I say "around" 50 because I checked 2 different websites and got 3 different answers for it. Weather Underground says it is 48 and The Weather Channel has both 49 and 51 listed as the "average" high in different parts of their colossal website.
The last eight December 5ths have been quite a change from the four before them when it was always warm and we had 2 record highs set for the date within a period of three years:
2001 - Sunny, warm, record high of 77!
2000 - Warm, high of 51
1999 - Warm, high of 66
1998 - Partly sunny, warm, record high of 73!
For the record, my first two years in NoVa featured fairly uneventful December 5th weather:
1997 - Sun to clouds, high of 46
1996 - Cold, high of 39
I suppose when you average it all up you come out with a normal high of "around" 50 degrees.
You might think that I would be appalled at snow in December and in fact it is just the opposite. I think snow in December is the sign of a mild winter to come. I was actually very worried that we are due for a really bad winter this year. The first winter I was in NoVa, 1996, was horrible and seven years later the winter of 2003 was also a bad one. If the seven year pattern holds, 2010 is due to be another rough year with a huge snowstorm hiding somewhere in it. The more snow we have now, the less likely that outcome is in my opinion. I will take 4 inches of snow in December over 24 inches in February any day!
Mood: Chilly
Song Of The Day:
"But under my hood is internal combustion power and Satan is my motor."
-Satan Is My Motor
Cake
Friday, November 20, 2009
If It Ain't Broke...
You know the rest of that saying, I know you do. Your parents probably used it almost as much as "were you raised in a barn?" or perhaps "I'm glad you aren't my kid, you stupid imbecilic retard." OK, that is actually a line from the movie One Crazy Summer.
Anyway, every now and then a company takes what is by all accounts a wonderful product and "improves" it but the end result is that it gets fucked up all to hell. The best example of this endeavor is the 1985 introduction of, drum roll please, New Coke.
One of my favorite childhood treats and something I still seek out to this day when I am back in New England are Necco Wafers. For those unfamiliar, Necco stands for New England Confectionary Company and they are based in Revere, Massachusetts. Necco has been making Necco Wafers since 1847. They come in rolls with 8 assorted flavors. They have standard flavors like lemon, lime, chocolate and orange but also very unique flavors of clove, wintergreen, cinnamon and licorice. Just popping one in my mouth instantly takes me back to days of yore.
Well, it used to but not anymore. Necco has suddenly "updated" Necco Wafers in 2009 after 162 years of continuous sales success. Translation: "they have fucked them all to hell." Their website brags of making the candy out of all natural flavors and blah, blah, blah. That is all well and good but they suddenly taste like shit. No, I take that back, they taste like the shit that eats shit.
If I get really ambitious I may email the company to let them know they fucked this one up. A quick search of the web reveals there are lots of longtime Necco Wafer fans just as pissed off as I am. I wonder if their management team used to work for Coke in the mid-1980s?
Mood: Violated
Song Of The Day:
"I love you like a fat kid love cake."
-21 Questions
50 Cent
Anyway, every now and then a company takes what is by all accounts a wonderful product and "improves" it but the end result is that it gets fucked up all to hell. The best example of this endeavor is the 1985 introduction of, drum roll please, New Coke.
One of my favorite childhood treats and something I still seek out to this day when I am back in New England are Necco Wafers. For those unfamiliar, Necco stands for New England Confectionary Company and they are based in Revere, Massachusetts. Necco has been making Necco Wafers since 1847. They come in rolls with 8 assorted flavors. They have standard flavors like lemon, lime, chocolate and orange but also very unique flavors of clove, wintergreen, cinnamon and licorice. Just popping one in my mouth instantly takes me back to days of yore.
Well, it used to but not anymore. Necco has suddenly "updated" Necco Wafers in 2009 after 162 years of continuous sales success. Translation: "they have fucked them all to hell." Their website brags of making the candy out of all natural flavors and blah, blah, blah. That is all well and good but they suddenly taste like shit. No, I take that back, they taste like the shit that eats shit.
If I get really ambitious I may email the company to let them know they fucked this one up. A quick search of the web reveals there are lots of longtime Necco Wafer fans just as pissed off as I am. I wonder if their management team used to work for Coke in the mid-1980s?
Mood: Violated
Song Of The Day:
"I love you like a fat kid love cake."
-21 Questions
50 Cent
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Money Honeys
Are you familiar with the term Money Honeys? If your not here's the Urban Dictionary definition for the term: "Any hot female television news reporter that covers the business and finance world." The world of finance is my bread and butter so I know a thing or two about money honeys. There are oodles of websites devoted to the following and maybe even stalking of money honeys like Erin Burnett and my girl Becky Quick.
The problem with the money honeys is that they have no actual business or finance credentials. They are just pretty faces with degrees in broadcasting who can read a teleprompter. Don't get me wrong, if Erin Burnett rang my doorbell tomorrow and asked me to move to a tropical island with her you would NEVER hear from me again. EVER. That being said there are some actual money honeys who don't get as much coverage on the blogosphere but have the credentials to go along with their looks. Here are my top three:
Liz Ann Sonders - I have been in love with Liz Ann Sonders for nearly a decade since I first saw her on Wall $treet Week With Louis Rukeyser. Liz Ann knows her stuff and has the degrees and Wall Street credentials to prove it. You don't become the Chief Investment Strategist for Charles Schwab & Co. because you have a pretty face.
Danielle Hughes - Danielle is one of the few women on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange trading with all the boys in the pit day in and day out. She has worked her way up the Wall Street ladder from sales associate to CEO. She now runs her own financial services firm, Divine Capital Markets. Oh yeah, and she's smoking hot. Rich, smart and hot - what's not to love there?
Michelle Meyer - Michelle is an economic analyst with the firm Barclays Capital. Another female in a predominantly male job title. I haven't been able to locate her biography but I have heard her speak enough to know she is the real deal.
I will give honorable mention to Michelle Caruso Cabrera. Not because she has the credentials to back up her looks but because she has a porn twin. Michelle's porn twin is named Alaura Eden. They look so much alike that they could be twin sisters! I imagine millions of men in America would love to see Michelle naked and thanks to Alaura Eden they can.
Mood: Reflexive
Failed Advertising Slogan Of The Day:
"Wegmans - So Big You Can't Find Anything."
The problem with the money honeys is that they have no actual business or finance credentials. They are just pretty faces with degrees in broadcasting who can read a teleprompter. Don't get me wrong, if Erin Burnett rang my doorbell tomorrow and asked me to move to a tropical island with her you would NEVER hear from me again. EVER. That being said there are some actual money honeys who don't get as much coverage on the blogosphere but have the credentials to go along with their looks. Here are my top three:
Liz Ann Sonders - I have been in love with Liz Ann Sonders for nearly a decade since I first saw her on Wall $treet Week With Louis Rukeyser. Liz Ann knows her stuff and has the degrees and Wall Street credentials to prove it. You don't become the Chief Investment Strategist for Charles Schwab & Co. because you have a pretty face.
Danielle Hughes - Danielle is one of the few women on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange trading with all the boys in the pit day in and day out. She has worked her way up the Wall Street ladder from sales associate to CEO. She now runs her own financial services firm, Divine Capital Markets. Oh yeah, and she's smoking hot. Rich, smart and hot - what's not to love there?
Michelle Meyer - Michelle is an economic analyst with the firm Barclays Capital. Another female in a predominantly male job title. I haven't been able to locate her biography but I have heard her speak enough to know she is the real deal.
I will give honorable mention to Michelle Caruso Cabrera. Not because she has the credentials to back up her looks but because she has a porn twin. Michelle's porn twin is named Alaura Eden. They look so much alike that they could be twin sisters! I imagine millions of men in America would love to see Michelle naked and thanks to Alaura Eden they can.
Mood: Reflexive
Failed Advertising Slogan Of The Day:
"Wegmans - So Big You Can't Find Anything."
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Happy Anniversary Baby!
If you pay any attention to the stock market you know that yesterday, September 15, 2009, was the one year anniversary of the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy. It marked the beginning of the absolute free fall of the financial markets that took place over the ensuing 6 months, so it was indeed an important anniversary.
However, there is another one year anniversary today that no one has been talking about. It was one year ago today, September 16, 2008, that The Reserve's Primary Fund, a money market mutual fund, "broke the buck." The reason it broke the buck was it held some Lehman Brothers notes and paper which instantly became worthless. This caused the asset value of the fund to drop below the sacred $1.00 threshold. This was a HUGE event and it caused banks, businesses and individuals to rethink the security, safety and liquidity of all money market mutual funds, but no one is talking about it.
The Reserve was the pioneer in the money market mutual fund industry. Their breaking the buck is the equivalent of the Surgeon General of the United States admitting he has taken up smoking. The breaking of the buck was only the beginning of the troubles at The Reserve. Within a few days they froze all assets in all of their money market mutual funds, even ones that had no exposure to the toxic Lehman Brothers debt. I know this because I had one of The Reserve's other funds, the US Government Money Market Fund, in my IRA, Roth IRA and brokerage account. In an instant, the majority of my cash reserves was suddenly frozen, illiquid and inaccessible.
One year later the Reserve Primary Fund still has not returned all it's money to shareholders. This is an absolutely unacceptable outcome after 12 months have passed. The only thing more unacceptable than that is that there has been no new regulation of the financial services industry over the past 12 months. Nothing, nada, zilch.
Mood: Perplexed
Failed Advertising Slogan of the Day:
West Virginia: Lame and Annoying
Song Of The Day:
"Happy Anniversary baby! I've got you on my mind."
-Happy Anniversary
The Little River Band
However, there is another one year anniversary today that no one has been talking about. It was one year ago today, September 16, 2008, that The Reserve's Primary Fund, a money market mutual fund, "broke the buck." The reason it broke the buck was it held some Lehman Brothers notes and paper which instantly became worthless. This caused the asset value of the fund to drop below the sacred $1.00 threshold. This was a HUGE event and it caused banks, businesses and individuals to rethink the security, safety and liquidity of all money market mutual funds, but no one is talking about it.
The Reserve was the pioneer in the money market mutual fund industry. Their breaking the buck is the equivalent of the Surgeon General of the United States admitting he has taken up smoking. The breaking of the buck was only the beginning of the troubles at The Reserve. Within a few days they froze all assets in all of their money market mutual funds, even ones that had no exposure to the toxic Lehman Brothers debt. I know this because I had one of The Reserve's other funds, the US Government Money Market Fund, in my IRA, Roth IRA and brokerage account. In an instant, the majority of my cash reserves was suddenly frozen, illiquid and inaccessible.
One year later the Reserve Primary Fund still has not returned all it's money to shareholders. This is an absolutely unacceptable outcome after 12 months have passed. The only thing more unacceptable than that is that there has been no new regulation of the financial services industry over the past 12 months. Nothing, nada, zilch.
Mood: Perplexed
Failed Advertising Slogan of the Day:
West Virginia: Lame and Annoying
Song Of The Day:
"Happy Anniversary baby! I've got you on my mind."
-Happy Anniversary
The Little River Band
Monday, August 10, 2009
Joe Buck Yourself!!!
Joe Buck Yourself is the name of the Wiffleball team I am on in my first season in the DC based Potomac Wiffleball League, simply known as the PWL from here on out. You may laugh, but these people take wiffleball as serious as I do, which is not an easy thing to accomplish. They have a top notch website with game recaps, standings, stats and even league leaders. These are my people!!!
I went 6-16 with 3 doubles, 1 home run, 3 runs scored and 2 RBI in my PWL debut on Sunday, August 9, 2009. It is all there in black and white and even color on the PWL website. Yes, in color because they video tape the games and post the videos online! Now you too can see me rope a double to lead off our game against the Rough Riders and even score the winning run in the 10th inning!
This particular game is in the record books as the longest game in PWL history. (Wiffleball games are 6 innings long, not nine like baseball.) We had a 2-0 lead heading into the bottom of the 6th inning and seemed to have the game in hand as the Rough Riders were down to their last out. Then a bloop and a blast tied the game and we headed to extra innings. I actually scored or drove in all 4 runs for the team, so I think it was a pretty good PWL debut.
If you have a little free time check out the video:
http://www.potomacwiffleball.org/Videos/775/complete-game-videos-su09-week-1
The game is the 2nd from the bottom - Joe Buck Yourself vs Rough Riders. It is over 70 minutes long so here are the "Regis" highlights:
1:00 Lead off double to open the game
3:00 Score on single by Mike Lemaire
24:30 Nearly 5 minute at bat where I smack a solo home run
29:00 The actual home run is hit
64:00 Another long at bat in which I hit a solid single
66:30 The actual single is hit
67:30 Involved in a base running controversy, so much drama!
69:00 Score the game winning run on a triple by Mike Lemaire
70:00 My last at bat begins
71:00 Rip an RBI double for an extra run of insurance
I am happy to report that Joe Buck Yourself won both games on Sunday and sits in a 3-way tie for 1st place in our division.
I am unhappy to report that I did not come up with the name Joe Buck Yourself because it is clearly the BEST NAME FOR ANYTHING, EVER.
Mood: Sore
Song Of The Day:
"Come on now, no batter, no batter. Big wiffah, big wiffah!"
-Right Field
Adam Sandler
I went 6-16 with 3 doubles, 1 home run, 3 runs scored and 2 RBI in my PWL debut on Sunday, August 9, 2009. It is all there in black and white and even color on the PWL website. Yes, in color because they video tape the games and post the videos online! Now you too can see me rope a double to lead off our game against the Rough Riders and even score the winning run in the 10th inning!
This particular game is in the record books as the longest game in PWL history. (Wiffleball games are 6 innings long, not nine like baseball.) We had a 2-0 lead heading into the bottom of the 6th inning and seemed to have the game in hand as the Rough Riders were down to their last out. Then a bloop and a blast tied the game and we headed to extra innings. I actually scored or drove in all 4 runs for the team, so I think it was a pretty good PWL debut.
If you have a little free time check out the video:
http://www.potomacwiffleball.org/Videos/775/complete-game-videos-su09-week-1
The game is the 2nd from the bottom - Joe Buck Yourself vs Rough Riders. It is over 70 minutes long so here are the "Regis" highlights:
1:00 Lead off double to open the game
3:00 Score on single by Mike Lemaire
24:30 Nearly 5 minute at bat where I smack a solo home run
29:00 The actual home run is hit
64:00 Another long at bat in which I hit a solid single
66:30 The actual single is hit
67:30 Involved in a base running controversy, so much drama!
69:00 Score the game winning run on a triple by Mike Lemaire
70:00 My last at bat begins
71:00 Rip an RBI double for an extra run of insurance
I am happy to report that Joe Buck Yourself won both games on Sunday and sits in a 3-way tie for 1st place in our division.
I am unhappy to report that I did not come up with the name Joe Buck Yourself because it is clearly the BEST NAME FOR ANYTHING, EVER.
Mood: Sore
Song Of The Day:
"Come on now, no batter, no batter. Big wiffah, big wiffah!"
-Right Field
Adam Sandler
Sunday, August 2, 2009
The Road To Nowhere
One of the things I try to do everyday is go for a walk. It helps me to get some exercise, a healthy tan – which is probably an oxymoron – and clear my head. At home I walk everyday like clockwork and I try to do the same on the road as well. My mom is actually the one who got me walking, she has been walking regularly for probably a dozen years or more.
Whenever I go north for a visit mom and I always try to get in as many walks as possible. Our favorite spot is a new subdivision just a ways up the street from her. It is called Stone Creek and has a beautifully maintained entrance with a stone wall, flowers, plants and shrubs and a nicely manicured lawn. The only problem with Stone Creek is that none of the 14 house lots have been sold which makes Greystone Drive a road to nowhere.
The developers started clearing away trees and building what became Greystone Drive in the fall of 2007. By April 2008 the road was paved, lots were cleared and marked and had brand spanking new For Sale signs on them. Fifteen months later not much has changed. It could be that it was just a bad time to make a new housing development with the real estate bubble bursting or it could be that these lots are wayyyyy overpriced. They cost between $60,000 and $80,000 for lots of 2 to 4 acres. That is a steep price most anywhere in the country and seems especially high in Maine.
At first we would bet on when the first lot would sell as we walked up and down Greystone Drive. August 15th, March 21st, November 11th and so on. We have given that up entirely at this point. Now we simply discuss which of the 14 lots will be the first to be sold and the various pros and cons of each lot. My money is on lot number 1, right at the top of the hill. It has lots of tall pine trees and just looks like a very inviting place to build a home to me.
The other fascinating thing about Stone Creek is that it has a very nice community mailbox already. It has slots for all of the someday-to-be houses and even a slot for outgoing mail. I would love to pop a letter in there one day and see how long it takes to be delivered. It could be months or even years at this point before the postal service starts checking it.
Mood: Rejuvenated.
Song Of The Day:
"There ain't no rest for the wicked, money don't grow on trees."
-Ain't No Rest For The Wicked
Cage The Elephant
Whenever I go north for a visit mom and I always try to get in as many walks as possible. Our favorite spot is a new subdivision just a ways up the street from her. It is called Stone Creek and has a beautifully maintained entrance with a stone wall, flowers, plants and shrubs and a nicely manicured lawn. The only problem with Stone Creek is that none of the 14 house lots have been sold which makes Greystone Drive a road to nowhere.
The developers started clearing away trees and building what became Greystone Drive in the fall of 2007. By April 2008 the road was paved, lots were cleared and marked and had brand spanking new For Sale signs on them. Fifteen months later not much has changed. It could be that it was just a bad time to make a new housing development with the real estate bubble bursting or it could be that these lots are wayyyyy overpriced. They cost between $60,000 and $80,000 for lots of 2 to 4 acres. That is a steep price most anywhere in the country and seems especially high in Maine.
At first we would bet on when the first lot would sell as we walked up and down Greystone Drive. August 15th, March 21st, November 11th and so on. We have given that up entirely at this point. Now we simply discuss which of the 14 lots will be the first to be sold and the various pros and cons of each lot. My money is on lot number 1, right at the top of the hill. It has lots of tall pine trees and just looks like a very inviting place to build a home to me.
The other fascinating thing about Stone Creek is that it has a very nice community mailbox already. It has slots for all of the someday-to-be houses and even a slot for outgoing mail. I would love to pop a letter in there one day and see how long it takes to be delivered. It could be months or even years at this point before the postal service starts checking it.
Mood: Rejuvenated.
Song Of The Day:
"There ain't no rest for the wicked, money don't grow on trees."
-Ain't No Rest For The Wicked
Cage The Elephant
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Best Names In College Baseball 2009
I have spent the past few weeks following the 2009 NCAA Division One Baseball Championship. First the Conference Tournaments, then the Regionals, Super Regionals and finally the College World Series. Needless to say I have watched a ton of baseball over the last five weeks.
I now present my list of the Best Names In College Baseball - 2009. I did not scour the internet, reviewing team rosters or the 2009 MLB Draft to find the ultimate list. These are simply the best names I ran across as I watched games in 2009. My only rule is Only 1 Player from any team can make the list. Sorry, Russell Mauldenhauer, Brandon Belt beat you out.
1st Base: Brandon Belt, Texas
2nd Base: Cory Kovanda, Ohio State
3rd Base: Colby May, Georgia
Shortstop: Tyler Cannon, Virginia
Catcher: Myckie Lugbauer, Maine
Designated Hitter: Bryce Nugent, Marist
Left Field: Cole Calhoun, Arizona State
Center Field: Mikie Mahtook, Louisiana State
Right Field: Logan Power, Mississippi
Starting Pitcher: Stephen Strasburg, San Diego State
Relief Pitcher: Logan Munson, North Carolina
I plan to do this each year, and if so the only other rule I will add is you can only make the list once. Talk is cheap though.
Mood: Nostalgic
Song Of The Day:
"Are you real to me? Or are you non dairy...creamer?"
-Non Dairy Creamer
Third Eye Blind
I now present my list of the Best Names In College Baseball - 2009. I did not scour the internet, reviewing team rosters or the 2009 MLB Draft to find the ultimate list. These are simply the best names I ran across as I watched games in 2009. My only rule is Only 1 Player from any team can make the list. Sorry, Russell Mauldenhauer, Brandon Belt beat you out.
1st Base: Brandon Belt, Texas
2nd Base: Cory Kovanda, Ohio State
3rd Base: Colby May, Georgia
Shortstop: Tyler Cannon, Virginia
Catcher: Myckie Lugbauer, Maine
Designated Hitter: Bryce Nugent, Marist
Left Field: Cole Calhoun, Arizona State
Center Field: Mikie Mahtook, Louisiana State
Right Field: Logan Power, Mississippi
Starting Pitcher: Stephen Strasburg, San Diego State
Relief Pitcher: Logan Munson, North Carolina
I plan to do this each year, and if so the only other rule I will add is you can only make the list once. Talk is cheap though.
Mood: Nostalgic
Song Of The Day:
"Are you real to me? Or are you non dairy...creamer?"
-Non Dairy Creamer
Third Eye Blind
Friday, June 19, 2009
The People In My Neighborhood
For about the past four years I have been walking two miles every day to get a little exercise and fresh air. I literally leave my house, walk a mile through my neighborhood, turn around and walk back home. After approximately 3,000 trips up and down the sidewalk the walk has become a bit on the mundane side.
To lighten up the monotony some I began counting cars a couple years back. I just keep a running count of how many cars pass me on my trip. It varies depending on what time of day I go. If I go around dinner time I will see a ton of cars, 97 is the all time high. That's about 3 cars a minute driving through my little slice of suburbia. The low is a mere 8 cars when I went about midnight one night.
I also count other things from time to time, squirrels in the fall, robins in the spring for instance. After four years of scoping out my neighborhood I have a pretty good handle on things. I recognize when a car has been parked in the same spot for three weeks, new street signs and other random things. Here are some of the highlights of my walk through zip code 20121.
Yellow Shirt Guy:
If I leave my house at about 1:55pm, my standard departure time, I usually see a guy in a little green Honda wearing a bright yellow shirt driving towards me as I walk. I figure he is on his lunch break and heading back to work as he is always heading in the same direction at about the same time of day.
Darky The Squirrel:
There is a black squirrel in my neighborhood. I see him all the time, not just on my walk. Black squirrels are a genetic mutation and not all that uncommon but just seeing him is a bit of a treat. I always yell out "Hi Darky" whenever I see him. He has never said anything back though.
The Pedophile:
I also see this old man at the park pretty regularly on the swings. I call him the pedophile but maybe he is just a retired pilot who missed the friendly skies. He is on the swings a couple days a week and always looks like he is having a blast swinging away.
The Dog Lady:
I also see a retired woman walking her dog on a pretty regular basis. We have brief conversations about the weather but I don't even know her name after probably two years of seeing her. I do know her dog was a rescue from Hurricane Katrina but that's about it.
The Bleeding Tree:
Last year the power company cut down a bunch of trees around their power lines. Ever since, one of the leftover stumps has been "bleeding". Really, it just means the roots of the tree are still alive and capturing water and nutrients and sending them upwards to the tree that is no longer there. Still, it's wicked creepy and the kind of thing that Stephen King would love to use in one of his novels.
Homeless Guy:
Every now and then I see a guy sleeping in his car at night. He isn't there every night but every so often he will be in it with his pillow and blankets for a few nights in a row. The car is always there but he is not always in it. Maybe it's just when his mother-in-law comes to visit.
Mood: Content
Song Of The Day:
"Oh, who are the people in your neighborhood,
In your neighborhood, in your neighborhood."
-In Your Neighborhood
The Muppets
To lighten up the monotony some I began counting cars a couple years back. I just keep a running count of how many cars pass me on my trip. It varies depending on what time of day I go. If I go around dinner time I will see a ton of cars, 97 is the all time high. That's about 3 cars a minute driving through my little slice of suburbia. The low is a mere 8 cars when I went about midnight one night.
I also count other things from time to time, squirrels in the fall, robins in the spring for instance. After four years of scoping out my neighborhood I have a pretty good handle on things. I recognize when a car has been parked in the same spot for three weeks, new street signs and other random things. Here are some of the highlights of my walk through zip code 20121.
Yellow Shirt Guy:
If I leave my house at about 1:55pm, my standard departure time, I usually see a guy in a little green Honda wearing a bright yellow shirt driving towards me as I walk. I figure he is on his lunch break and heading back to work as he is always heading in the same direction at about the same time of day.
Darky The Squirrel:
There is a black squirrel in my neighborhood. I see him all the time, not just on my walk. Black squirrels are a genetic mutation and not all that uncommon but just seeing him is a bit of a treat. I always yell out "Hi Darky" whenever I see him. He has never said anything back though.
The Pedophile:
I also see this old man at the park pretty regularly on the swings. I call him the pedophile but maybe he is just a retired pilot who missed the friendly skies. He is on the swings a couple days a week and always looks like he is having a blast swinging away.
The Dog Lady:
I also see a retired woman walking her dog on a pretty regular basis. We have brief conversations about the weather but I don't even know her name after probably two years of seeing her. I do know her dog was a rescue from Hurricane Katrina but that's about it.
The Bleeding Tree:
Last year the power company cut down a bunch of trees around their power lines. Ever since, one of the leftover stumps has been "bleeding". Really, it just means the roots of the tree are still alive and capturing water and nutrients and sending them upwards to the tree that is no longer there. Still, it's wicked creepy and the kind of thing that Stephen King would love to use in one of his novels.
Homeless Guy:
Every now and then I see a guy sleeping in his car at night. He isn't there every night but every so often he will be in it with his pillow and blankets for a few nights in a row. The car is always there but he is not always in it. Maybe it's just when his mother-in-law comes to visit.
Mood: Content
Song Of The Day:
"Oh, who are the people in your neighborhood,
In your neighborhood, in your neighborhood."
-In Your Neighborhood
The Muppets
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Traitor Johnny
OK,this one goes out to Ian Browne and the countless other sports reporters who don't understand why die hard Red Sox fans like myself still ABSOLUTELY DESPISE Johnny Damon three and a half years after he left the Sox to sign with the Yankees.
Ian, it is extremely simple. The reason we hate Damon so much is because he lied to us. Early in the 2005 season Damon was asked point blank if he would ever consider signing with the Yankees when he became a free agent. His response was this and I quote: "No way." Even though he said "they (the Yankees) were gonna come after (him) hard." He said he could never play for the Yankees after playing for the Sox.
Less thank six months after making this absolutely concrete statement Damon signed a four year contract with the Yankees. Red Sox Nation waited 86 years for our 6th World Series title. It's citizens are not going to forget a promise like that in a mere six months. Obviously there is a statute of limitations on a quote like that but it is certainly significantly longer than six months.
If Damon simply owned up to his betrayal the fans of Red Sox Nation would have let him off the hook. We understand that baseball is a business and that Damon went to the team that was willing to pay him the most money. Our anger doesn't come from the act of signing with the Evil Empire but the promise Damon made to us that he would NEVER do such a thing.
Anyone who doesn't get this is clearly NOT a member of Red Sox Nation. This isn't a complex issue, it's an issue of loyalty and a broken promise. We took Damon at his word and it was our mistake but we certainly will not make that mistake again. Now we live to make every at bat and half inning in the outfield a miserable experience for Traitor Johnny.
Mood: Hysterical.
Found Porn:
There's a town in Missouri called Knob Lick, it's right off US Route 67. The only way this could be better is if it was near Route 69 instead!
Song of the Day:
"Swing Batta Batta Batta Batta Batta Swing."
-Come Baby Come
K-7
Ian, it is extremely simple. The reason we hate Damon so much is because he lied to us. Early in the 2005 season Damon was asked point blank if he would ever consider signing with the Yankees when he became a free agent. His response was this and I quote: "No way." Even though he said "they (the Yankees) were gonna come after (him) hard." He said he could never play for the Yankees after playing for the Sox.
Less thank six months after making this absolutely concrete statement Damon signed a four year contract with the Yankees. Red Sox Nation waited 86 years for our 6th World Series title. It's citizens are not going to forget a promise like that in a mere six months. Obviously there is a statute of limitations on a quote like that but it is certainly significantly longer than six months.
If Damon simply owned up to his betrayal the fans of Red Sox Nation would have let him off the hook. We understand that baseball is a business and that Damon went to the team that was willing to pay him the most money. Our anger doesn't come from the act of signing with the Evil Empire but the promise Damon made to us that he would NEVER do such a thing.
Anyone who doesn't get this is clearly NOT a member of Red Sox Nation. This isn't a complex issue, it's an issue of loyalty and a broken promise. We took Damon at his word and it was our mistake but we certainly will not make that mistake again. Now we live to make every at bat and half inning in the outfield a miserable experience for Traitor Johnny.
Mood: Hysterical.
Found Porn:
There's a town in Missouri called Knob Lick, it's right off US Route 67. The only way this could be better is if it was near Route 69 instead!
Song of the Day:
"Swing Batta Batta Batta Batta Batta Swing."
-Come Baby Come
K-7
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Going Postal
It has been all over the news the last few weeks that the United States Postal Service, USPS from here on out, was raising rates effective Monday, May 11, 2009. They did a nice job getting the word out on TV, radio and the Internet. I actually thought it was nice that USPS waited until after Mother's Day to raise rates. They usually raise rates this time of year and very easily could have done so on May 1st but they waited.
I happened to be out of stamps on the 11th so I took a drive to my local USPS office to stock up on the new denominations. The cost of a one ounce, first class stamp went from 42 cents to 44 cents. Still a pretty good bargain in my opinion. I can pop a letter in the mail here in Virginia and it is delivered as far away as Hawaii in two or three days for a mere 44 cents - sweet!
I went about lunchtime and the line wasn't too long and within a minute or two I was standing at the counter looking at a very nice cardboard sign displaying all the new rates. I needed 44 cent stamps and 88 cent stamps for oversized mail. (That's what she said!!!) They were both listed right on the sign as the correct postage effective that day - Monday, May 11, 2009 - but the Post Office didn't have either in stock.
Wait, What? Seems to me that the USPS has known for months that rates were going up so they should have been able to print a buttload of stamps with higher denominations for delivery to USPS locations everywhere in early May. In fact, a quick Internet search found an online newspaper story from November 2008 telling the World that Postage rates were going up in 2009. The article didn't know the new rates at the time but it shows that the USPS has been planning to raise rates for a minimum of 6 full months before it happened. That seems like plenty of time to stop printing 42 cent stamps and start printing 44 centers.
What the Post Office had instead was the Forever Stamp. They cost me 44 cents a piece but no denomination is listed on the actual stamp. So in theory you could buy a few rolls of these stamps now and use them for the rest of your life. They never expire and they will always be accepted by the Post Office. In fact, if you were smart you could have stocked up on them last year when they first came out. They only cost 41 cents then.
The other thing I needed was stamps for oversized envelopes, they are priced differently at 88 cents for the first ounce. They didn't have those either, big surprise. I settled for some 87 cent stamps. I have tons of 1 cent stamps I can use to make up the difference, no big deal. The only stamp they had in stock that I actually needed were 17 cent stamps, used for additional ounces after the first ounce. They only had these because the price stayed the same. I am sure if it had changed I would have been out of luck there too.
If this is how the USPS always acts I am now amazed that anything I put in my mailbox ever gets delivered anywhere and I certainly have a bit of an understanding for why people go postal.
Mood: Uninspired.
It's Ironic:
That Patriots Day is not listed as a holiday on my 2009 Boston Red Sox Calendar.
Failed Advertising Slogan of the Day:
"Washington Post - If you don't get it, you're retarded."
I happened to be out of stamps on the 11th so I took a drive to my local USPS office to stock up on the new denominations. The cost of a one ounce, first class stamp went from 42 cents to 44 cents. Still a pretty good bargain in my opinion. I can pop a letter in the mail here in Virginia and it is delivered as far away as Hawaii in two or three days for a mere 44 cents - sweet!
I went about lunchtime and the line wasn't too long and within a minute or two I was standing at the counter looking at a very nice cardboard sign displaying all the new rates. I needed 44 cent stamps and 88 cent stamps for oversized mail. (That's what she said!!!) They were both listed right on the sign as the correct postage effective that day - Monday, May 11, 2009 - but the Post Office didn't have either in stock.
Wait, What? Seems to me that the USPS has known for months that rates were going up so they should have been able to print a buttload of stamps with higher denominations for delivery to USPS locations everywhere in early May. In fact, a quick Internet search found an online newspaper story from November 2008 telling the World that Postage rates were going up in 2009. The article didn't know the new rates at the time but it shows that the USPS has been planning to raise rates for a minimum of 6 full months before it happened. That seems like plenty of time to stop printing 42 cent stamps and start printing 44 centers.
What the Post Office had instead was the Forever Stamp. They cost me 44 cents a piece but no denomination is listed on the actual stamp. So in theory you could buy a few rolls of these stamps now and use them for the rest of your life. They never expire and they will always be accepted by the Post Office. In fact, if you were smart you could have stocked up on them last year when they first came out. They only cost 41 cents then.
The other thing I needed was stamps for oversized envelopes, they are priced differently at 88 cents for the first ounce. They didn't have those either, big surprise. I settled for some 87 cent stamps. I have tons of 1 cent stamps I can use to make up the difference, no big deal. The only stamp they had in stock that I actually needed were 17 cent stamps, used for additional ounces after the first ounce. They only had these because the price stayed the same. I am sure if it had changed I would have been out of luck there too.
If this is how the USPS always acts I am now amazed that anything I put in my mailbox ever gets delivered anywhere and I certainly have a bit of an understanding for why people go postal.
Mood: Uninspired.
It's Ironic:
That Patriots Day is not listed as a holiday on my 2009 Boston Red Sox Calendar.
Failed Advertising Slogan of the Day:
"Washington Post - If you don't get it, you're retarded."
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Wasted Time
The bad thing about having 333 cable channels is that if you surf up and down them long enough you will probably find something to watch. If I had a mere 57 channels or some other paltry number I am sure that I would be much more intelligent than I am now because I would do so much more reading.
I really don't watch an overabundance of TV, a big reason why is that I don't have a TV in my bedroom. I physically have to get up, walk out to the living room to watch TV. It's probably a good 30 foot walk. Whew! I am tired just thinking about it.
That being said there are times when I inevitably lumber out, sit down in my favorite chair and fire up the remote. As I sit and surf the guide there are always a few ultra cheezy movies that whenever I see them I will instantly turn to them and be glued to the screen until they are over. Here's a sample:
Weekend At Bernie's - a movie you probably couldn't get away with making in 2009 - but back in 1989 we apparently weren't quite as cultured as we are now. Who knew you could have so much fun carting a dead guy around for a weekend? The saddest thing is they even made a Weekend at Bernie's 2.
Van Wilder - something about the slacker turned hero plot always sucks me in. Maybe it's the music, it has a very good soundtrack. It certainly isn't Tara Reid's plastic face. Write that down!
One Crazy Summer - an ultra cheezy 1986 flick with John Cusack, Demi Moore and the lovable Bobcat Goldthwaith. It always makes me want to vacation on Martha's Vineyard, not that I could afford to these days.
Hot Fuzz - I never cared much for Shaun of the Dead but I have probably watched this flick at least 20 times. Lots of action, good music and a ridiculous plot. It's a perfect movie for 1:00am.
Captain Ron - if you don't wanna watch a one eyed ship captain (Kurt Russell) drive Martin Short nearly crazy you must be retarded! I much prefer this over Pirates of the Caribbean.
Real Genius - another classic 80s flick featuring a young Val Kilmer as a brainiac, slacker college student turned hero. Plus it has ultra luscious 80s vixen Deborah Foreman - of Valley Girl fame.
I could keep going - Super Troopers, Loser, The New Guy - but I will stop here.
Mood: Wick-frig-some (Wicked Friggin' Awesome).
Failed Advertising Slogan of the Day:
"Heartburn? Kick it in the junk with Zantac."
I really don't watch an overabundance of TV, a big reason why is that I don't have a TV in my bedroom. I physically have to get up, walk out to the living room to watch TV. It's probably a good 30 foot walk. Whew! I am tired just thinking about it.
That being said there are times when I inevitably lumber out, sit down in my favorite chair and fire up the remote. As I sit and surf the guide there are always a few ultra cheezy movies that whenever I see them I will instantly turn to them and be glued to the screen until they are over. Here's a sample:
Weekend At Bernie's - a movie you probably couldn't get away with making in 2009 - but back in 1989 we apparently weren't quite as cultured as we are now. Who knew you could have so much fun carting a dead guy around for a weekend? The saddest thing is they even made a Weekend at Bernie's 2.
Van Wilder - something about the slacker turned hero plot always sucks me in. Maybe it's the music, it has a very good soundtrack. It certainly isn't Tara Reid's plastic face. Write that down!
One Crazy Summer - an ultra cheezy 1986 flick with John Cusack, Demi Moore and the lovable Bobcat Goldthwaith. It always makes me want to vacation on Martha's Vineyard, not that I could afford to these days.
Hot Fuzz - I never cared much for Shaun of the Dead but I have probably watched this flick at least 20 times. Lots of action, good music and a ridiculous plot. It's a perfect movie for 1:00am.
Captain Ron - if you don't wanna watch a one eyed ship captain (Kurt Russell) drive Martin Short nearly crazy you must be retarded! I much prefer this over Pirates of the Caribbean.
Real Genius - another classic 80s flick featuring a young Val Kilmer as a brainiac, slacker college student turned hero. Plus it has ultra luscious 80s vixen Deborah Foreman - of Valley Girl fame.
I could keep going - Super Troopers, Loser, The New Guy - but I will stop here.
Mood: Wick-frig-some (Wicked Friggin' Awesome).
Failed Advertising Slogan of the Day:
"Heartburn? Kick it in the junk with Zantac."
Monday, April 6, 2009
2200 Miles
Whew, the pressure is off me. Someone else is already hiking the AT this year and even documenting it to boot. Check it out:
www.2200miles.com
Ironically, he started his journey the very same day I waxed philosophically about wanting to do the same.
Best of luck Chris!
Mood: Jealous!
It's Ironic:
That the rustiest old clunkers deliver your pizza to you in 30 minutes or less.
www.2200miles.com
Ironically, he started his journey the very same day I waxed philosophically about wanting to do the same.
Best of luck Chris!
Mood: Jealous!
It's Ironic:
That the rustiest old clunkers deliver your pizza to you in 30 minutes or less.
Saturday, April 4, 2009
The Stinky Tree
Summer is by far my favorite season. I would take 12 months of July every year and only partly because my birthday is in July. But before it can be Summer it has to be Spring. Spring in NoVa is about a two month process from when the first few blades of grass turn green in early March to when the last tree leafs out in late April.
There are lots of obvious and no so obvious signs of spring each year in NoVa. Not too long after the first blades of new grass the prettiest little blue flowers pop up in lawns and parks everywhere. I don't know their name but they are one of the signs of spring it would be easy to overlook.
By mid March each year the Forsythia is starting to bloom and within a week or two the electric yellow blossoms dominate gardens and median strips alike all throughout the region. There is no denying that spring is on the way when you see it.
By the first week of April that familiar hum and the smell that goes with it are in the air as people begin their lawncare chores for the year. Actually, I believe that most lawncare is done by Landscaping Services in NoVa. It sometimes seems everywhere you look there is a latino with a bag of mulch and a leaf blower.
Trees of various shapes, sizes and colors begin to blossom the last few days of March or very early April. The most famous tree in our neck of the planet is the ornamental cherry tree. They are everywhere, not just around the tidal basin in DC.
For me the undeniable sign that spring is well on it's way and is an unstoppable force is the stinky tree. Each year NoVa is filled with a beautiful, blossom filled tree that makes you gag. From afar they are a sight to behold with their many branches reaching skyward covered in whitish-green blossoms.
I even dug out my Audubon Society's Eastern Forests book to see if I could figure out precisely what it is but had no luck. The leaves look exactly like the quaking aspen, the most widely distributed tree in North America, but I don't remember them smelling like this. Perhaps is is some other lesser known aspen or linden variety. Whatever it is, I always hold my breath as I walk underneath them.
Mood: Tired.
Song of the Day:
"Ooh, ooh that smell. Can't you smell that smell?
-That Smell
Lynyrd Skynyrd
Failed Advertising Slogan of the Day:
Forex: "A brand new way for you to lose money."
There are lots of obvious and no so obvious signs of spring each year in NoVa. Not too long after the first blades of new grass the prettiest little blue flowers pop up in lawns and parks everywhere. I don't know their name but they are one of the signs of spring it would be easy to overlook.
By mid March each year the Forsythia is starting to bloom and within a week or two the electric yellow blossoms dominate gardens and median strips alike all throughout the region. There is no denying that spring is on the way when you see it.
By the first week of April that familiar hum and the smell that goes with it are in the air as people begin their lawncare chores for the year. Actually, I believe that most lawncare is done by Landscaping Services in NoVa. It sometimes seems everywhere you look there is a latino with a bag of mulch and a leaf blower.
Trees of various shapes, sizes and colors begin to blossom the last few days of March or very early April. The most famous tree in our neck of the planet is the ornamental cherry tree. They are everywhere, not just around the tidal basin in DC.
For me the undeniable sign that spring is well on it's way and is an unstoppable force is the stinky tree. Each year NoVa is filled with a beautiful, blossom filled tree that makes you gag. From afar they are a sight to behold with their many branches reaching skyward covered in whitish-green blossoms.
I even dug out my Audubon Society's Eastern Forests book to see if I could figure out precisely what it is but had no luck. The leaves look exactly like the quaking aspen, the most widely distributed tree in North America, but I don't remember them smelling like this. Perhaps is is some other lesser known aspen or linden variety. Whatever it is, I always hold my breath as I walk underneath them.
Mood: Tired.
Song of the Day:
"Ooh, ooh that smell. Can't you smell that smell?
-That Smell
Lynyrd Skynyrd
Failed Advertising Slogan of the Day:
Forex: "A brand new way for you to lose money."
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Five Million Steps
Every so often something happens that reignites a smoldering desire in me to hike the Appalachian Trail. Hiking was forced upon me at a very early age by my parents. Our vacation EVERY YEAR was to go to the wilds of the Maine Woods and spend a few days hiking in Baxter State Park. One of my earliest memories as a child is being carried in a backpack on my father's back as the family hiked the trails around South Branch Pond. I was too small to hike at this point, or I would have simply slowed the rest of the family down too much, so I got a free ride. To keep me entertained as they hiked they fed me Smarties candy, one at a time. The trick was I had to guess the color. My dad would ask me "what color is the sun" and I would shout out "yellow" and he would hand me a yellow Smartie. That kept me entertained for hours at age 3.
Fast forward to 1995 and a friend of mine from college decided to hike the AT upon college graduation. He was a big guy, probably 240 pounds when he hit the trail head at Springer Mountain, Georgia in June that year. Four months later some friends and I met him at the top of Maine's Mount Katahdin, we even lugged beer to the top of the mountain, and he was a svelte 180 pounds. At that point I thought to myself - if he can do it, I could do it.
A few years after that Bill Bryson pens his book "A Walk In The Woods" about his attempt to hike the AT and fans the embers. The book details his adventures on the trail. Bryson hikes 870 miles of the trail, less than half of the 2100+ miles it takes to complete the journey. I have read the book several times, even reading just a chapter of two makes the flames burn hotter.
Today I open up the Travel section of the Washington Post and I am sucked back in again. "Hit The Trail" is the name of the article and it is complete with a map of the route, food, gear and packing tips and more. The most important aspect of attempting an adventure like this is emotional competence. You have to believe that you can do it and you have to have the inner will to overcome the loneliness and obstacles you will encounter on the trail.
At this point the idea of actually hiking the whole AT is just a fantasy. Something I would consider if I become obscenely rich and had lots of free time on my hand. I do have a strong desire to do the Hundred Mile Wilderness but I would need to convince someone (Kevin???) to accompany me. The Hundred Mile Wilderness is the last 100 miles of the trail through the deepest woods of Maine. The intensity of the hiking and the days of solitude are said to be the biggest challenge of the entire 2,100 miles. I would like to hike it just to say that I have done it. Not too many others can make that claim.
Mood: Contemplative
Movie Quote of the Day:
"You're killing me Smalls!" - The Sandlot
Fast forward to 1995 and a friend of mine from college decided to hike the AT upon college graduation. He was a big guy, probably 240 pounds when he hit the trail head at Springer Mountain, Georgia in June that year. Four months later some friends and I met him at the top of Maine's Mount Katahdin, we even lugged beer to the top of the mountain, and he was a svelte 180 pounds. At that point I thought to myself - if he can do it, I could do it.
A few years after that Bill Bryson pens his book "A Walk In The Woods" about his attempt to hike the AT and fans the embers. The book details his adventures on the trail. Bryson hikes 870 miles of the trail, less than half of the 2100+ miles it takes to complete the journey. I have read the book several times, even reading just a chapter of two makes the flames burn hotter.
Today I open up the Travel section of the Washington Post and I am sucked back in again. "Hit The Trail" is the name of the article and it is complete with a map of the route, food, gear and packing tips and more. The most important aspect of attempting an adventure like this is emotional competence. You have to believe that you can do it and you have to have the inner will to overcome the loneliness and obstacles you will encounter on the trail.
At this point the idea of actually hiking the whole AT is just a fantasy. Something I would consider if I become obscenely rich and had lots of free time on my hand. I do have a strong desire to do the Hundred Mile Wilderness but I would need to convince someone (Kevin???) to accompany me. The Hundred Mile Wilderness is the last 100 miles of the trail through the deepest woods of Maine. The intensity of the hiking and the days of solitude are said to be the biggest challenge of the entire 2,100 miles. I would like to hike it just to say that I have done it. Not too many others can make that claim.
Mood: Contemplative
Movie Quote of the Day:
"You're killing me Smalls!" - The Sandlot
Monday, March 23, 2009
World Baseball Classic
I enjoyed watching the 2009 edition of the World Baseball Classic. I don't remember watching any of the inaugural event in 2006. This time around I watched every game the US played and parts of several games involving some of the other 15 teams competing. Watching David Wright get a walk off hit in the 9th inning to beat Puerto Rico and send the US team into the semifinals was up there with any baseball moment I have ever seen.
Unfortunately, as a fan rooting for the US team it became very apparent, very early that they would not win the tourney. In fact, given there horrible starting pitching and terrible game management it was a miracle they got as far as they did. It appears that the US treated this tournament as more of an All Star Game while the two teams in the final - Korea and Japan - treated it more like the World Series. The attitude and results go hand in hand.
In an All Star Game the job of the manager is to get every player into the game somehow. That explains why US manager Davey Johnson pinch hit for Curtis Granderson with Evan Longoria in the 8th inning with his team down by two runs and a man on 3rd base in the 8th inning against Japan. There is no other logical explanation for the switch. He took out a left handed power hitter, who could hit with the wind, and put in a right handed power hitter, who had to hit into the wind. That move made no baseball sense, Johnson must have simply been trying to get Longoria an at bat in the series.
The US starting pitching was atrocious and clearly overmatched in nearly every game. Roy Oswalt, Jake Peavy, Ted Lily and Jeremy Guthrie combined to give up 25 runs in 26.3 innings of work. That is an ERA of a whopping 8.54 for our starting pitching. You aren't going to win too many games with those numbers. If the US ever wants to win this thing it has to get it's starting pitchers going a few weeks earlier so they aren't still in stretch out mode during the tourney. That would make a huge difference in their results.
Still, I enjoyed watching players from different clubs all on the same team with the red, white and blue USA logo on their chests. It was clear the players involved enjoyed their experience and gave all they had for their country. I rooted passionately for everyone on the US team during the games with one exception. I just couldn't bring myself to root for Derek Jeter. The Red Sox fan in me is stronger than the baseball fan in me.
Mood: Patriotic
Song of the Day:
"She wants her nails painted black, she wants the toy in the cracker jack, she wants to ride the bull at the rodeo."
-Feel That Fire
Dierks Bentley
Unfortunately, as a fan rooting for the US team it became very apparent, very early that they would not win the tourney. In fact, given there horrible starting pitching and terrible game management it was a miracle they got as far as they did. It appears that the US treated this tournament as more of an All Star Game while the two teams in the final - Korea and Japan - treated it more like the World Series. The attitude and results go hand in hand.
In an All Star Game the job of the manager is to get every player into the game somehow. That explains why US manager Davey Johnson pinch hit for Curtis Granderson with Evan Longoria in the 8th inning with his team down by two runs and a man on 3rd base in the 8th inning against Japan. There is no other logical explanation for the switch. He took out a left handed power hitter, who could hit with the wind, and put in a right handed power hitter, who had to hit into the wind. That move made no baseball sense, Johnson must have simply been trying to get Longoria an at bat in the series.
The US starting pitching was atrocious and clearly overmatched in nearly every game. Roy Oswalt, Jake Peavy, Ted Lily and Jeremy Guthrie combined to give up 25 runs in 26.3 innings of work. That is an ERA of a whopping 8.54 for our starting pitching. You aren't going to win too many games with those numbers. If the US ever wants to win this thing it has to get it's starting pitchers going a few weeks earlier so they aren't still in stretch out mode during the tourney. That would make a huge difference in their results.
Still, I enjoyed watching players from different clubs all on the same team with the red, white and blue USA logo on their chests. It was clear the players involved enjoyed their experience and gave all they had for their country. I rooted passionately for everyone on the US team during the games with one exception. I just couldn't bring myself to root for Derek Jeter. The Red Sox fan in me is stronger than the baseball fan in me.
Mood: Patriotic
Song of the Day:
"She wants her nails painted black, she wants the toy in the cracker jack, she wants to ride the bull at the rodeo."
-Feel That Fire
Dierks Bentley
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Due Diligence
This post is mostly to myself to remind me (waves!) to not be such a dumbass and do a little more research before buying any individual stock.
I purchased 40 shares of Xyratex (Ticker XRTX) in my Roth IRA on September 3, 2008. It is a company that manufactures external disk drives, parts and components and the machines used in making those drives. Given the explosion of data available online ready for downloading and media being created and uploaded daily from people's digital cameras, iPods and other devices this certainly sounds like a growth industry.
The first thing I did wrong was I bought too many shares. My standard practice is to buy 25 shares of any company the first time out. Then if it drops in price, a minimum of 10%, preferably 20%, I do more research to determine if I should scoop up more shares at a lower cost basis. But I bought 40 shares instead of the normal 25 because I was being greedy.
The second thing I did wrong was to base my purchase decision purely on earnings estimates of the stock. Earnings estimates are helpful when researching a stock, but they are not concrete - they are ESTIMATES and they can change very rapidly. At the time XRTX was expected to earn $1.09 per share this year and $1.77 per share next year - solid earnings growth.
What I also should have done in September was go onto their company website and review their Annual Report for 2008. This would have given me more insight into their business. Where their revenue comes from, how much debt they have, future expansion plans, an overview of their industry and tons and tons of financial data for the past 3-5 years.
Alas, I didn't do that and bought the stock purely based on the earnings estimates for the two upcoming years. As we all know, the economy has tanked and now XRTX is estimated to LOSE $.25 this year and post a profit of.....wait for it.....$.01 next year. As a result the stock, which I bought at $13.85 per share, now trades at just North of $2.00 per share.
The 2009 Annual Report for Xyratex came today in the mail so I gave it a look while eating lunch. If I had bothered to look at the 2008 Report, which I could have accessed for free on the company's website, I never would have purchased the stock. It turns out XRTX got 70% of all its revenue for 2008 from only 3 customers. So if one of those cancels some orders, goes bankrupt or even merges with another company XRTX will probably be screwed. (Ironically, one of XRTX's major customers is another stock that I have owned in the past Western Digital [WDC].) Having a few customers account for the overwhelming majority of a company's revenue is a Major Red Flag with "Don't Buy Me!!!" printed in huge, bold letters on it.
Greed 1, Jon 0.
Mood: Inquisitive.
Movie Quote of the Day:
"Don't take life too seriously, you'll never get out alive." - Van Wilder
I purchased 40 shares of Xyratex (Ticker XRTX) in my Roth IRA on September 3, 2008. It is a company that manufactures external disk drives, parts and components and the machines used in making those drives. Given the explosion of data available online ready for downloading and media being created and uploaded daily from people's digital cameras, iPods and other devices this certainly sounds like a growth industry.
The first thing I did wrong was I bought too many shares. My standard practice is to buy 25 shares of any company the first time out. Then if it drops in price, a minimum of 10%, preferably 20%, I do more research to determine if I should scoop up more shares at a lower cost basis. But I bought 40 shares instead of the normal 25 because I was being greedy.
The second thing I did wrong was to base my purchase decision purely on earnings estimates of the stock. Earnings estimates are helpful when researching a stock, but they are not concrete - they are ESTIMATES and they can change very rapidly. At the time XRTX was expected to earn $1.09 per share this year and $1.77 per share next year - solid earnings growth.
What I also should have done in September was go onto their company website and review their Annual Report for 2008. This would have given me more insight into their business. Where their revenue comes from, how much debt they have, future expansion plans, an overview of their industry and tons and tons of financial data for the past 3-5 years.
Alas, I didn't do that and bought the stock purely based on the earnings estimates for the two upcoming years. As we all know, the economy has tanked and now XRTX is estimated to LOSE $.25 this year and post a profit of.....wait for it.....$.01 next year. As a result the stock, which I bought at $13.85 per share, now trades at just North of $2.00 per share.
The 2009 Annual Report for Xyratex came today in the mail so I gave it a look while eating lunch. If I had bothered to look at the 2008 Report, which I could have accessed for free on the company's website, I never would have purchased the stock. It turns out XRTX got 70% of all its revenue for 2008 from only 3 customers. So if one of those cancels some orders, goes bankrupt or even merges with another company XRTX will probably be screwed. (Ironically, one of XRTX's major customers is another stock that I have owned in the past Western Digital [WDC].) Having a few customers account for the overwhelming majority of a company's revenue is a Major Red Flag with "Don't Buy Me!!!" printed in huge, bold letters on it.
Greed 1, Jon 0.
Mood: Inquisitive.
Movie Quote of the Day:
"Don't take life too seriously, you'll never get out alive." - Van Wilder
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Working For A Living
Today is kind of a special day. It marks my 10 year anniversary as an Ameriprise financial advisor. With the ongoing market turmoil my job has become more stressful than ever the past few months at the same time my income has been plummeting. In honor of my 10 years on the job here are a few careers that I could never stomach. Just something about them that rubs me the wrong way.
1) Water Boy - at pretty much every major sporting event there are people on the sidelines with water bottles at the ready to service the players as they come off the field, court, ice or what have you. A water boy (or girl I suppose) is responsible for squirting water or Gatorade or something (could be steroids for all we know) into the players' mouths when they come to the sidelines. They may also have the extra special task of wiping the sweat off the athletes. Nope, can't do it.
2) Realtor - this one may surprise you since a Realtor is a fairly nice, cushy professional job with solid earnings potential. Sell one $500,000 house in greater DC and your commission is $15,000. Certainly the housing slump has made this career a challenge but that is not the reason for my disdain of it. Realtors have to work Sundays and show houses. There is no way I could ever bring myself to have an open house on Super Bowl Sunday as I saw many Realtors doing just a few weeks ago.
3) Special Interest Lobbyist - Certainly DC is packed with associations for everything under the sun and they all have lobbyists. That is all well and good to a degree but it is not a career my conscious would allow me to pursue. Trying to persuade Congress that cigarette taxes should be lowered or that we should repeal the Clean Air Act is just not in my soul.
4) Commercial Actor - while I wouldn't be opposed to fame and money the path to reaching that nirvana does this career in for me. You have to start out at the bottom, in commercials. You have to feign excitement for a sale at Kia Motors or dance around like a spaz because you ate some Jello Pudding. No thanks. There are some really lousy commercials on the airwaves and I am very glad you will never see me in one.
5) Sweat Boy - This is perhaps the next step up from water boy in the NBA. At each end of the court there is a guy (never seen a girl) with a big mop and his job is to mop up the sweat the basketball players leave on the court. Once upon a time this was a very respected profession. Sweat boy would mop up the sweat after a collision or foul when players would end up on the floor. It was a valuable service and only performed when needed. That is not the case anymore. Sweat boys are whoring themselves out between every possession mopping up even the tiniest beads of perspiration on the court or perhaps mopping up nothing at all. Sweat boy, you have lost your soul for all eternity, pfffftttttt.
Someone told me they thought it would be fun to be a water boy because you could pretend that the players are your pets. You pat them on the head, squirt some water in their mouth and send them on their way. Unfortunately, that would only work until payday when you realize you get $8.50 per hour and they get $8.5 million per season.
Mood: Jovial
Song of the Day:
"I'm taking what their giving, cause I'm working for a living."
- Working For A Living
Huey Lewis and The News
1) Water Boy - at pretty much every major sporting event there are people on the sidelines with water bottles at the ready to service the players as they come off the field, court, ice or what have you. A water boy (or girl I suppose) is responsible for squirting water or Gatorade or something (could be steroids for all we know) into the players' mouths when they come to the sidelines. They may also have the extra special task of wiping the sweat off the athletes. Nope, can't do it.
2) Realtor - this one may surprise you since a Realtor is a fairly nice, cushy professional job with solid earnings potential. Sell one $500,000 house in greater DC and your commission is $15,000. Certainly the housing slump has made this career a challenge but that is not the reason for my disdain of it. Realtors have to work Sundays and show houses. There is no way I could ever bring myself to have an open house on Super Bowl Sunday as I saw many Realtors doing just a few weeks ago.
3) Special Interest Lobbyist - Certainly DC is packed with associations for everything under the sun and they all have lobbyists. That is all well and good to a degree but it is not a career my conscious would allow me to pursue. Trying to persuade Congress that cigarette taxes should be lowered or that we should repeal the Clean Air Act is just not in my soul.
4) Commercial Actor - while I wouldn't be opposed to fame and money the path to reaching that nirvana does this career in for me. You have to start out at the bottom, in commercials. You have to feign excitement for a sale at Kia Motors or dance around like a spaz because you ate some Jello Pudding. No thanks. There are some really lousy commercials on the airwaves and I am very glad you will never see me in one.
5) Sweat Boy - This is perhaps the next step up from water boy in the NBA. At each end of the court there is a guy (never seen a girl) with a big mop and his job is to mop up the sweat the basketball players leave on the court. Once upon a time this was a very respected profession. Sweat boy would mop up the sweat after a collision or foul when players would end up on the floor. It was a valuable service and only performed when needed. That is not the case anymore. Sweat boys are whoring themselves out between every possession mopping up even the tiniest beads of perspiration on the court or perhaps mopping up nothing at all. Sweat boy, you have lost your soul for all eternity, pfffftttttt.
Someone told me they thought it would be fun to be a water boy because you could pretend that the players are your pets. You pat them on the head, squirt some water in their mouth and send them on their way. Unfortunately, that would only work until payday when you realize you get $8.50 per hour and they get $8.5 million per season.
Mood: Jovial
Song of the Day:
"I'm taking what their giving, cause I'm working for a living."
- Working For A Living
Huey Lewis and The News
Monday, February 9, 2009
A-Fraud
I love baseball. Anyone who knows me well knows that. Any other sporting event I watch is just a way to kill time because there is no baseball on. MLB Network has certainly helped out in that department.
The big scandal these days in the world of professional baseball is that Alex Rodriquez now admits that he took steroids. What a shocker this is, um, no not really. I am not here to droll on and on about that. There is more than enough of that going on elsewhere.
I don't like Alex Rodriquez as a player or as a person. He openly cheats on the field - see the ball slapping incident of the 2004 playoffs for proof - and off the field too - on his wife. Still, he is arguably the best offensive player in the world. He is a grown man who gets paid millions to play a child's game. He will make more money per at bat than the average American will make all year. And I actually feel bad for him today.
To me, the real controversy here is really the betrayal by the very organization that is supposed to protect players like him - the Major League Baseball Players Association - MLBPA for short. Back in 2003 when baseball finally decided to do something about steroids they tested all players on each team's 40 man roster for steroids and illegal substances. The point of the testing was to serve as a benchmark, to find out how bad it was out there. Were 15% of players doing roids? Or was it 3%? Or 48%? The testing was mandatory but anonymous. Everyone participated because there was no other option.
About 1200 players were tested (30 teams, 40 players per team) and 104 of them tested positive for steroids or illegal substances. Break that number into a percentage and you get 8.7% of players who tested positive. Just like the Mitchell Report, a serious number but not an eye popping outcome in my opinion.
However only 1 name of the 104 guilty parties has been leaked to the press. MLBPA failed Alex Rodriquez and every other player by not ensuring that these anonymous test results stayed anonymous. Their sole purpose as an organization is to protect the rights of MLB players and they have supremely failed.
MLBPA should have made absolutely sure all test results were destroyed years ago the second they were no longer needed by MLB. While I do not care for A-Rod as a person or player I certainly don't want to see his civil rights violated. Even he deserves to be treated better than this.
Mood: Shocked.
Movie Quote of the Day:
"Your middle name is Ralph, as in puke." - The Breakfast Club
It's Ironic:
Kinda funny that both my trail running cousin and I took pictures of our shadows yesterday while we were out on the trail. Mine was taken in VA with a temperature of 67 degrees while his was up in Maine at a slightly lower reading, lol.
The big scandal these days in the world of professional baseball is that Alex Rodriquez now admits that he took steroids. What a shocker this is, um, no not really. I am not here to droll on and on about that. There is more than enough of that going on elsewhere.
I don't like Alex Rodriquez as a player or as a person. He openly cheats on the field - see the ball slapping incident of the 2004 playoffs for proof - and off the field too - on his wife. Still, he is arguably the best offensive player in the world. He is a grown man who gets paid millions to play a child's game. He will make more money per at bat than the average American will make all year. And I actually feel bad for him today.
To me, the real controversy here is really the betrayal by the very organization that is supposed to protect players like him - the Major League Baseball Players Association - MLBPA for short. Back in 2003 when baseball finally decided to do something about steroids they tested all players on each team's 40 man roster for steroids and illegal substances. The point of the testing was to serve as a benchmark, to find out how bad it was out there. Were 15% of players doing roids? Or was it 3%? Or 48%? The testing was mandatory but anonymous. Everyone participated because there was no other option.
About 1200 players were tested (30 teams, 40 players per team) and 104 of them tested positive for steroids or illegal substances. Break that number into a percentage and you get 8.7% of players who tested positive. Just like the Mitchell Report, a serious number but not an eye popping outcome in my opinion.
However only 1 name of the 104 guilty parties has been leaked to the press. MLBPA failed Alex Rodriquez and every other player by not ensuring that these anonymous test results stayed anonymous. Their sole purpose as an organization is to protect the rights of MLB players and they have supremely failed.
MLBPA should have made absolutely sure all test results were destroyed years ago the second they were no longer needed by MLB. While I do not care for A-Rod as a person or player I certainly don't want to see his civil rights violated. Even he deserves to be treated better than this.
Mood: Shocked.
Movie Quote of the Day:
"Your middle name is Ralph, as in puke." - The Breakfast Club
It's Ironic:
Kinda funny that both my trail running cousin and I took pictures of our shadows yesterday while we were out on the trail. Mine was taken in VA with a temperature of 67 degrees while his was up in Maine at a slightly lower reading, lol.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
I Hate January
Boy do I hate January, boy oh boy. Not because it's winter - although that is certainly a good enough reason - not because of the end of pro football, not because there are six more long months before my birthday. I hate January because of New Year's Resolutions.
I think that New Year's Resolutions, NYR from here on out, are a bunch of crap. It really all goes back to the general lack of personal responsibility that pervades the world these days. If you notice a flaw in yourself, you get to put off dealing with it for upwards of months at a time. I say why wait until some arbitrary day to remedy it. If you notice something out of whack or an area you could improve upon, fix it on the spot.
The most annoying NYR, or at least the one that affects me the most, is the whole "I'm gonna get in shape!" NYR. Face it, if you were a fat ass in November you are going to be a fat ass in March, now get the hell out of the gym. Stop wasting your time and everyone else's - especially mine - with that pathetic, feeble attempt to get some exercise in January. Just go to the store, buy a 12 pack of cupcakes, sit down on the couch and accept it - you have a big, fat, monkey butt!
Every January, gyms across the world are crammed with oodles of people who have turned over a new leaf to get in shape. They clog up the treadmills of the world, walking slower than they could on the sidewalk, watching Survivor and I hate them all. Here are some of the things I hate most about January at the gym.
Machine Hogs:
You know you have seen them, people who stay on the treadmill, cross trainer or bench press for what seems like hours at a time. These are usually the people who are doing the least amount of exercise in the whole gym. My favorites are the fatties who come to the gym to walk on the treadmill. Instead of driving to the gym to walk, why don't you just walk around your neighborhood, it's free!
TV Watchers:
You've seen them too. Staring intently at something mundane on TV. It might be American Idol or better yet the Food Channel. They are glued to the TV but hardly put any effort towards the exercise they are doing. God forbid they apply that much attention to getting in shape. I say if you want to watch American Idol so fuckin' bad, stay the fuck home.
Phone Whores:
OMG, it's not a baby, it's a phone. Leave the damn thing at home. I used to regularly see a girl at the gym who was always on her phone while on the treadmill. She would be talking nonstop to some poor fool on the other end. I always wanted to elbow her in the face and then step on her phone once it fell to the floor. Luckily I haven't seen her in months.
Tagalongs:
Why do some people who have a friend that is working out at the gym feel compelled to go with them? Is your friend retarded? Do you think that hanging out in the corner texting your mom is going to impress the ladies? Tonight I had to ask this guy who was just sitting on various machines to move 3 times so I could get all my sets in. If Timmy needs to bring you to the gym for moral support, he should just end his life once and for all and take you with him.
Mood: Cockfuckballs!
Song of the Day:
"And every penny from my last paycheck, I've blown it on you."
- Bouncing Off the Walls
Sugarcult
I think that New Year's Resolutions, NYR from here on out, are a bunch of crap. It really all goes back to the general lack of personal responsibility that pervades the world these days. If you notice a flaw in yourself, you get to put off dealing with it for upwards of months at a time. I say why wait until some arbitrary day to remedy it. If you notice something out of whack or an area you could improve upon, fix it on the spot.
The most annoying NYR, or at least the one that affects me the most, is the whole "I'm gonna get in shape!" NYR. Face it, if you were a fat ass in November you are going to be a fat ass in March, now get the hell out of the gym. Stop wasting your time and everyone else's - especially mine - with that pathetic, feeble attempt to get some exercise in January. Just go to the store, buy a 12 pack of cupcakes, sit down on the couch and accept it - you have a big, fat, monkey butt!
Every January, gyms across the world are crammed with oodles of people who have turned over a new leaf to get in shape. They clog up the treadmills of the world, walking slower than they could on the sidewalk, watching Survivor and I hate them all. Here are some of the things I hate most about January at the gym.
Machine Hogs:
You know you have seen them, people who stay on the treadmill, cross trainer or bench press for what seems like hours at a time. These are usually the people who are doing the least amount of exercise in the whole gym. My favorites are the fatties who come to the gym to walk on the treadmill. Instead of driving to the gym to walk, why don't you just walk around your neighborhood, it's free!
TV Watchers:
You've seen them too. Staring intently at something mundane on TV. It might be American Idol or better yet the Food Channel. They are glued to the TV but hardly put any effort towards the exercise they are doing. God forbid they apply that much attention to getting in shape. I say if you want to watch American Idol so fuckin' bad, stay the fuck home.
Phone Whores:
OMG, it's not a baby, it's a phone. Leave the damn thing at home. I used to regularly see a girl at the gym who was always on her phone while on the treadmill. She would be talking nonstop to some poor fool on the other end. I always wanted to elbow her in the face and then step on her phone once it fell to the floor. Luckily I haven't seen her in months.
Tagalongs:
Why do some people who have a friend that is working out at the gym feel compelled to go with them? Is your friend retarded? Do you think that hanging out in the corner texting your mom is going to impress the ladies? Tonight I had to ask this guy who was just sitting on various machines to move 3 times so I could get all my sets in. If Timmy needs to bring you to the gym for moral support, he should just end his life once and for all and take you with him.
Mood: Cockfuckballs!
Song of the Day:
"And every penny from my last paycheck, I've blown it on you."
- Bouncing Off the Walls
Sugarcult
Friday, January 16, 2009
Coldest Day of the Year
Brrrr, it's cold out there today boys and girls. Doesn't matter if you are in Bangor, Maine or Atlanta, Georgia. Today was one of the coldest days in a long time over a wide swath of the country. Here in the NoVa (Northern Virginia) suburbs of Washington DC the high temperature was 17 degrees.
Now I know all you people out there with zip codes like 02492 and 04938 think I am a pansy for writing about a temperature of 17 degrees. That's balmy you say! But temperature is all relative to what you are used to. The normal high temperature here on January 16th is 41 degrees, so a high of 17 is pretty much unheard of. In fact, the last time we had a day this cold was February 4, 1996 - 13 years ago - when the mercury also topped out at 17 degrees.
I actually remember that day as a matter of fact. I had only been in DC for about 5 weeks and so 17 degrees didn't phase me a bit then. I actually went sightseeing downtown that day and walked all around the mall. Here's a pic in fact.
The ironic thing is that while much of the United States in in the deep freeze Alaska is having record high temperatures this week. Temperatures have been in the 40s and 50s in the heart of the Alaskan wilderness. Places like Denali National Park and Fairbanks, Alaska have set record high temperatures for the MONTH of January this week. All time records there have been shattered not by one or two degrees but by 10 to 15 degrees.
It's not unusual for it to get cold in DC, we have a few days every year where the temps don't get out of the 20s. The weird thing is we don't have any snow this time around. In fact, we haven't had any measureable snow all winter. We got a dusting one evening back in December but that is it. That simply means that we are due. Hopefully it won't all come at once, in March. That would totally suck.
Mood: Frostbitten
Song of the Day:
"We'll run away together. We'll spend some time forever. We'll never feel bad anymore."
- Island In The Sun
Weezer
Global Warming Stat of the Day:
There is enough water frozen in Antarctica to raise sea level by 160 feet. (Yowzah!!!)
It's Ironic:
That the only thing the 'prevent defense' used in football prevents is winning.
Now I know all you people out there with zip codes like 02492 and 04938 think I am a pansy for writing about a temperature of 17 degrees. That's balmy you say! But temperature is all relative to what you are used to. The normal high temperature here on January 16th is 41 degrees, so a high of 17 is pretty much unheard of. In fact, the last time we had a day this cold was February 4, 1996 - 13 years ago - when the mercury also topped out at 17 degrees.
I actually remember that day as a matter of fact. I had only been in DC for about 5 weeks and so 17 degrees didn't phase me a bit then. I actually went sightseeing downtown that day and walked all around the mall. Here's a pic in fact.
The ironic thing is that while much of the United States in in the deep freeze Alaska is having record high temperatures this week. Temperatures have been in the 40s and 50s in the heart of the Alaskan wilderness. Places like Denali National Park and Fairbanks, Alaska have set record high temperatures for the MONTH of January this week. All time records there have been shattered not by one or two degrees but by 10 to 15 degrees.
It's not unusual for it to get cold in DC, we have a few days every year where the temps don't get out of the 20s. The weird thing is we don't have any snow this time around. In fact, we haven't had any measureable snow all winter. We got a dusting one evening back in December but that is it. That simply means that we are due. Hopefully it won't all come at once, in March. That would totally suck.
Mood: Frostbitten
Song of the Day:
"We'll run away together. We'll spend some time forever. We'll never feel bad anymore."
- Island In The Sun
Weezer
Global Warming Stat of the Day:
There is enough water frozen in Antarctica to raise sea level by 160 feet. (Yowzah!!!)
It's Ironic:
That the only thing the 'prevent defense' used in football prevents is winning.
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