Is It Worth Dealing With Traffic?

I am at to this library that's not close but close enough.  But I have to use the highway to get there.

While driving here, I see the traffic on the highway coming back completely backed up.  There are road crews that are doing something that requires shutting down the left-most lane.

Thing is, I see all this and have chances to take exits that get me home right away without getting stuck in all that.  I didn't take them.  I didn't turn around.  I figure I can just go on Google Maps and they'll find a way of getting me home.  But if not, I am driving the old minivan and will be stuck on the highway for a while, looks like.

So why am I going to the library?  Well, to blog post on my day off.  But also to sharpen my pencils.  This is the only public place I know close to me that has a public pencil sharpener.  I'm going to see Ohtani and the Dodgers play tonight/Wednesday night and I need to sharpen my pencils to score the Game.  That is enough for me to drive out here and sit in traffic on the way back.  Or am I being foolish?

Isn't Shohei Ohtani Ruining My Plans?

I have today/Wednesday off.  I have had this day planned off for some time.  I had changed it to going to the dentist's in case I needed to go back a second time this month to fill in all the cavities, but I didn't, so I reverted back to my original reason for taking that day off: To at least catch one full day of World Cup Matches that wouldn't short-staff my co-workers.  (Turns out work has been very light since last week, for some strange reason, so that reason is pretty much moot.  Also, I was going to take the whole week off, plus the back half of last week off, in anticipation of being hired for The Special Olympics, but that didn't happen.)

That was before I remembered that The Los Angeles Dodgers, my baseball team when I was out there for college, was in town and, in fact, in town for a three-Game series Monday through today.  I was going to skip it because hey, it's the World Cup, something I won't see for another four Years (well, at least the Men's; the Women's comes up next summer).  But then I checked the pitching matchup: Today, Shohei Ohtani pitches.  I know Ohtani is probably awesome to watch when he's just batting.  But he's a unicorn in that he's in the Lineup even when he's the Starting Pitcher.  His continued success doing both makes him, according to a growing chorus of baseball experts and fans, The Best Baseball Player In History.  Yes, even better than Babe Ruth.  For that reason alone, I think I need to see him do both in person.  It might be more than four Years before he comes to Target Field and does this again, if he ever does.  And, and this is relatively minor, but Joe Ryan is hurling for the Twins.  Great matchup.

I just convinced myself that going to the Twins Game tonight/Wednesday is the right thing to do.  But I wanted to blog post that I have altered my long-held plan to just plop my butt at a pub to watch soccer all day.  So, in that sense I've, well, usurped myself.  This is not the reason I was taking today off.  And I have to note that the Twins Game is badly timed.  The tripleheader of World Cup Matches are at 2, 5 and 8.  The baseball Game's at 6:40.  Plus, parking might be a bear because of Ohtani pitching.  So the plan I have now -- going downtown early to (hopefully) find parking and pay (ugh), watching the 2 o'clock Matches, then doing ... um, something and then heading to the ballpark relatively early -- has a lot of downtime that can't be filled by watching soccer Games in their entirety, which is something I really, really want to do.  It might not make sense to go downtown early to watch soccer.  So, taking that into account, why take off work?  Why not just go from work to the baseball Game?  If work is light again today/Wednesday, I could even stop at home and change, or even nap.

Eh, whatever.  I have the day off.  I'm going to see Ohtani pitch and hit, and whatever else I have the energy to do, I'll do.

My Cuba Libre Will Smell Of Onion And Cilantro, Yummy!!!

Instead of buying limes, I've hit upon an idea that's either genius or stupid.  I've been on a Mexican food kick lately -- partly because I want to support immigrant mom-and-pop businesses, partly because I'm World Cup-pilled now and watching soccer puts me in the mood for Latin American food.  (This may be racist.)

When you get food for a place like that, you get limes.  Cocktails use limes, right?  So why not, instead of using the limes on the food, I take them home with me to use for drinks?  I tried that once a couple weeks ago when I bought a Caesar salad from Pizza Luce that had lemons in it.  I didn't use them; instead, I stored them for a week and when I had time to make myself a drink ... only to feel the lemons get all slimy, an indication that I kept the lemons a little too long and they became spoiled.  Whoops.

That was a tangent.  I brought home limes from a Mexican restaurant once a few weeks ago, and I think it was just fine.  I think.  So I did it again with limes I took home after eating Mexican yesterday/Monday.  But since they were on the same plate as the quesabirria I ordered, the chunks of lime had bits of onion and cilantro stuck all over it.  I juiced them just now.  I did my best to scrape them off, but I see a couple pieces of cilantro in the measuring cup I pour the juice as I wait 4-10 hours for that juice to ripen.  Is it ideal to have cilantro and onion in my cocktail?  Probably not.  Won't stop me from my cuba libre, though!

Time Discrepancies For World Cup Matches On Television And Satellite Radio

Just want to note that of Fox TV, Telemundo and Sirius XM, it appears as though Fox TV is the "closest to live."  Telemundo appears to be between 25-9 seconds behind Fox TV, and Sirius XM is about 59 seconds (no, not a minute, but 59 seconds -- I timed it on my phone!) behind Fox TV ... so, to be a completist, Sirius XM is 30-4 seconds slower than Telemundo.  Watching Games (of any sport) live is something I have a thing for, and if there is more than one way to watch and/or hear a Game, I will listen to the radio or watch the TV network that's "first."

Three Things From Yesterday

All I wanted to do is wish Father and Happy Father's Day yesterday.  And sure, it's innocuous, but dammit, he reminded me that they plan on coming home some time.  When?  Who knows.  But he launched into this story where he was told by some guy who called him that there was a hailstorm here, which there was, and do you want us to check the house for any damage?  These shady, fly-by-night shakedown jobs always are on the make, promising to replace the roof quickly and for cheap.  Not to say that the roof on our house doesn't need at least a once-over.  But if it is, I'd rather go to a reputable company and not some half-ass dimwit who are just cold-calling people in the hopes of suckering them out of their money later.  Anyway, they're coming home, and that day is getting closer, and I am not ready for that.

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On a brighter note, all day yesterday/Sunday I hung out in downtown Minneapolis.  MNUFC and Brit's Pub held a joint soccer celebration where, for free, you can watch World Cup Matches.  During the last Game of the quadruple-header, Egypt-New Zealand, I looked up from where I was at the sunken Peavey Plaza.  There were strangers of all countries and background watching the Match from a huge TV screen.  Meanwhile, the setting sun managed to cast its rays on the tall buildings downtown.  And I felt happy and safe.  Downtown Minneapolis being dangerous is absolute bullshit.  What I experienced downtown yesterday?  That's the real downtown, and don't let any MAGAt make you believe otherwise.

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Even though Michael Boxall, who's MNUFC's longtime Centerback, was playing for New Zealand, Egypt fans overwhelmed Peavey Plaza.  I swear there were about four dozen Egyptians and Egypt Fans at the Game-watching party, and that is four dozen more Egyptians and Egypt fans than I believed live here.  Oh, and there are some fine-ass Egyptian chicks, I tell you what. ...

He's A Little Bitch

So I stumbled on this account on Bluesky that tracks and notifies you when someone blocks you.  I didn't seek it out, but like I said, I just came across it, and without thinking about it beyond saying to myself, "You know, I might want to know who hates me," I followed it.

There is a guy I follow.  This little bitch will remain nameless so my dissection of him (hopefully) remains untraceable.  He's a local person who likes sports and keenly follows the Lynx.  I like the Lynx and local sports, so I followed him.  He skeeted the World Cup schedule, specifically that there are quadruple-headers from today/Sunday until Tuesday, then tripleheaders where two Matches go on simultaneously for the next three days after that.  All I said -- all I said! -- was that this was a soccer orgy.  A little later, the block Bluesky account told me that this snowflake blocked me.

For what?!  I just wanted to confirm with him that he regarded it as a soccer orgy.  What the fuck is the problem with that?!?!  Does he not think my wit is refined?  Does he hate the word "orgy?"  What the fuck is wrong with him?!?!?!  So I did the mature thing and blocked his ass in return.  And then I worried about all the other Lynx/Minnesota sports accounts I follow on Bluesky and wonder if they would take his side over mine.

And then I had to stop myself and remember something all of us too often forget: This is social media.  This is the fucking Internet.  I don't know this guy.  I like (well, liked) his stuff, but I don't know him.  And even if I am butthurt, I have to remember that this guy doesn't know who the fuck I am and doesn't give two shits about me even if I did like and repost every skeet he made.  So even though it hurts to seemingly be rejected by someone whose work I admire ... I'm getting bent out of shape over some motherfucker I don't know.  Why am I so upset?

Maybe it's better to be ignorant.  Maybe it's better to not know who blocks you on Bluesky.  But once I realize this doesn't affect my life in any meaningful way, I'll get over it.  But he's still a little bitch.

Am I Getting Old ... Or Am I Becoming Normal?

Yet another day where I went to bed at a relatively sane time.  After work (which was light by my standards) I had dinner with a group at a Ecuadorian place close by me, and then I went home to watch a pair of World Cup Games.  I was feeling fatigued at night, again, close to the end of Paraguay-Tunisia, so once that Match got done at about ten past midnight, I eschewed Zynga Poker (broke my streak, oh well), turned off the TV, and turned over in my bed.

And I woke up around 7:30.  Eek!  This is a good thing in two ways.  One is the, you know, I get to act like a normal person thing.  For another, I have time to do some chores before my day begins.  I watered the plants and, finally, started working on the pile of receipts I've accumulated.  I can do all that because I have the energy to do it.  I've found that, lately, once I get home, no matter how early after work I get home, I don't have the energy to undertake things I need to do around the house, like washing dishes or getting the laundry done.  But about 7 1/2 hours of sleep has got me feeling like I'm on caffeine, so I now have what it takes to actually accomplish things I need to do.

The problem is that I woke up too early.  While I am glad I've gotten around to doing the things I need to do, I care much more about the things I want to do today, namely going to watch the World Cup at a bar, then going to an MNUFC2 Match, then seeing my ATF at My Favorite Stripclub (Cover Version), then cashing on this KFC deal I have through T-Mobile.  I need to get on the snake around 11, and I might not be back for a half-day.  Can I get a nap in before I do all this?  Will it matter if I fall asleep at the club in front of my ATF?

We will see.  You know, one of the chores I need and have the energy to do because I got close to a full night's sleep is this blog post. I'm happy for that, too.

Oh, the title I put for this blog post isn't followed up by anything I've typed here.  Well, I guess I am wondering if I'm getting old or becoming normal, especially if I continue to get tired earlier and earlier in the night.  But honestly, I am only wondering about this until I publish this blog post.  Then I need to either continue going through my receipts or take a nap.

And dammit, even though I was at home, ready to watch the Mexico-South Korea Match in its entirety, and I miss the two most important plays of the Game (the Goal and the crazy double-save by the Mexican Goalkeeper) because I to relieve myself in the bathroom.  Was it the two muffins at work?  The quesabirria after work?  The chicken chowder I got at the gas station where I dumped my garbage and added air to my tires?  Whatever -- I had the bad, bad timing of being in the can and so I didn't see it live.  I saw replays, and I heard it live from the TV in the dining room, but I didn't see it live.  And the curse of being able to see Goals and not seeing them because I'm distracted continues. ...

The Weekly Minnesota Sports Survey

#-1: Lynx (Last Week: 0).  In a possible WNBA Finals preview Saturday, the Lynx suffered their third Loss of the season at Las Vegas.  Head-to-head is the first (and, come to think of it, it should be the only) tie-breaker for the Commissioner's Cup, and since The Bastard Utah Starzzz beat Phoenix last/Wednesday night, they're going to face New York for the million-dollar payday.

That's why I can't rise the Lynx above negative number this Week.  But they did rout Portland at home on Monday and Los Angeles last/Wednesday night.  And, yes, they faced Vegas without Napheesa Collier and lost only by three.  And they came back to take the lead late in the Game, mostly courtesy of Olivia Miles, who has become the new sensation in the WNBA.  The Spectacle/The Show/O-Mi had no fear in driving on Aja Wilson ... and scoring.  She pretty much single-handedly brought Minnesota back into the Game.  And against L. A., she poured in 31 Points on 12-for-15 shooting.  Forget Rookie Of The Year; she's got that sewn up.  There is solid, incessant talk that she might be MVP.  She's making a case for it now.

So, even though they didn't make the Commissioner's Cup title Game, they're still on top of the league, and they're not even at full strength yet.  Maybe this team with a championship pedigree can come through and actually win the championship.  This screening Week they visit Golden State and then have a home-and-home with Washington.

#-2: Twins (Last Week: -1).  They're an afterthought in this market, but they didn't have a bad Week.  Sure, it started with an 11-0 shellacking to end their season at Detroit last Thursday afternoon.  But they won their weekend series here over St. Louis, with both Wins by a Run.  And they've already won their series at The Bastard Washington Senators v.2.0, doubling up Texas 4-2 Monday and then sextupling them 12-2 Tuesday night.  Byron Buxton remains (mostly) healthy, the bats are waking up, and the Bullpen ain't complete garbage.

I was wondering in last Week's WMNSS why the third Game of their current series skipped a Day and is being played this/afternoon.  I saw why last/Wednesday night.  Globe Life Field is in the vicinity of AT&T Stadium, the home of The Dallas Cowboys ... but is being renamed Dallas Stadium because of the World Cup.  And there was a Game there between England and Croatia.  (The English doubled up the Croats, 4-2.)  Two sporting events happening in the same area not only on the same Day but overlapping each other would be a traffic and security nightmare, so I'm guessing the two baseball teams asked for and were granted by Major League Baseball permission to push their getaway Game back a Day.  After that they travel to Arizona to play three at the Diamondbacks over the weekend, then they come home to host The Bastard Brooklyn Dodgers for a trio beginning on Monday.

Left Pinky Toe Twitch

So for the past, oh, week or so I have noticed that my left pinky toe, and maybe my left ring toe, has been twitching.  I notice this when I'm at home.  Wonder if all my sitting down at work has anything to do with it.

I also wonder if it's Parkinson's.  If I recall correctly, Michael J. Fox noticed an uncontrollable twitch in one of his fingers while he and his wife were being driven by limo to some awards ceremony.  The finger was shaking so violently, and Fox was so spooked, that they had the limo driver drive around the block in the hopes that it would stop twitching.  Don't know if it did, but I think it was the first time Fox felt something was very, very wrong.  He got the diagnosis some time after.

Yeah, let's hope it's not Parkinson's.