THESE AREN'T STUPID QUESTIONS!!!

Alright, need to get this off my chest.

So there's this one Facebook friend I have who I have never really met, I just saw on her naked in Playboy's "College Girls" issue once and I friend requested her out of the blue.  She's really cool -- I think.  Anyway, she has adopted two kids (she has two biologically) and is in the process of adopting a third, and I think she is a single mom as of right now.  Total respect.

Saw Instant Family Tuesday.  Very good, heartwarming film.  It's one of those films where people who hate Hollywood and say, "No one there makes a family movie!" should watch -- provided they can get over the swearing.  Anyway, once I saw the film, I thought of her, and so I messaged her about whether she has watched it yet.  She didn't.  She is going to rent it next year, and the only bad thing she's heard about it is the portrayal of these cartoonish, buffonish foster parents from which the main characters rescue these three kids.

"So you're saying that on the whole, foster parents aren't bad people?" I said.

Silence.

Haven't heard from her in two days now.

Now, you can't tell tone on the Internet.  But dammit, my insecure, paranoid persona is running wild in my head now.  I can't help but think that this hot Facebook friend looked at what I wrote back to her and thought, "Ugh, such a stupid question.  Of course foster parents aren't bad people -- that's what I just said, moron."  I have half a belief that she's de-friended me by the time I publish this blog post.

Look, it's not a stupid question!  I am just confirming -- making sure, you know? -- what she is trying to communicate.  I hope she's not telling me, "No shit, Sherlock."  Man, why the hell are so many people outraged over a simple back-and-forth conversation?  Can't fucking talk to people anymore.

---

Wednesday I had to talk to our gas company because we (in my parents' name) were sent bills for a property they had sold (and they had told the company that) back in the summer.  I needed to follow up even though, for some reason, another, "final" bill came with a refund.  On it was a line item for a payment made in late October.  That frightened me because that would have meant that I had paid for something that I should not have paid for, and I overlooked it.

I initially called about this before Thanksgiving and was told to call back either Monday or Tuesday.  I remembered to call Wednesday and, after getting the runaround where I was told to wait and then was sent back to the introductory message not once but twice, I finally got someone.  After looking up the case number I provided, she said, "You will receive a check as a credit for this property" ... which is precisely what I was able to glean from the statement just sent.

But what about the payment supposedly made in October?  I was trying to ask the question while giving the long story so as not to make her think I was stupid.  But then I realized that my folks were getting a credit, which means that any payment made from our household was going to come back to us.  (Although, for some reason, I'm still not entirely sure about the logic behind that.)  So I finally got around to asking the customer representative, "So, can you tell me about the nature of this payment and ... uh, whether you can confirm to me I'm getting all of it back?"

And all she said was: "You will receive a check as a credit for this property."  Again.  Oh, and her tone was definitely, "You're an idiot."

Look, it's not a stupid question!  I see amounts added up and subtracted, and all of a sudden I see some payment three hours after my parents' account was supposed to be deactivated, and you sound like you're pissed that we've been given the runaround?!  Fuck you!  I don't care how mushmouthed my question was.  You can answer better than just repeating what you said, you bitch!  I declined answering their survey after the call because I had been given that runaround three times, but if I had known she would have treated me this way, I would have definitely agreed to the survey so I could torpedo her chances of keeping her job as much as I could.  Goddammit, man, I mean, seriously.

WHY ARE PEOPLE THINKING I'M ASKING STUPID QUESTIONS???  I'M NOT ASKING STUPID QUESTIONS!!!

Finally Got Done Eating All The Potato Salad I Bought For Halloween!

On Sunday I did what I once thought was impossible: I got done eating the three tubs of potato salad I bought for the buffet at work for Halloween.

I initially changed my mind about the potato salad.  I wanted to buy chocolates because 1) I hadn't bought some high-end chocolate in some time and 2) it's Halloween -- everybody wants chocolate!  But the person organizing the buffet (who I have not seen in a couple weeks -- where did she go?) said that the people there love potato salad.  I mean they were drooling on the potluck list as soon as they saw the words "potato salad," she said to me ... basically.  So I changed my mind back.

I wanted to make a good impression and erred on the side of too much instead of too little.  So I went to my nearby mom-and-pop grocery store and bought three kinds of potato salad, 2 lbs. each.

Did not fly out of the tubs.  Don't know why -- well, besides that the woman organizing the buffet lied to me.  But here's the thing: I made sure to pack in three spoons, one for each tub.  My idea was that, before the buffet, I would do the grown-up thing and prepare my potato salad by sticking in a spoon each in tub.  That way, duh, people would have a utensil for which they could literally spoon their potato salad of choice onto their plate.

The problem: I got so caught up in getting work done before the big lunch that The Organizer volunteered to get the tubs of salad ready for me.  I appreciated her generosity.  But when I finally got done and piled into line, I didn't see the spoons daggered into the salads.  She didn't see them and left them in the bag.  And if there is no serving spoon, why would one want the salad?  I did put spoons in, but I was one of the last in line, so it was way too late, even for the workers who wanted seconds.

I took home all three tubs, all of which were at least half-full.  I think one had only, like, an inch off the top spooned out.  I had no damn clue what I was going to do.  I like potato salad, and I was prepared to eat any that was left over, but I thought the co-workers would eat some more than they did.  Turns out they hate potato salad.  It was so much that I thought about Googling "where can I donate leftovers" before realizing I didn't want Google knowing I can be that pathetic.

So I put them in the fridge and, after ginning up some courage, I dove into the three tubs.  I did it in an orderly way with a dash of OCD.  Somehow, after packing up for Halloween at work, the spoon I stabbed into the tub of steakhouse potato salad was gone.  I had pushed the spoons still in the tubs for regular potato salad and mustard potato salad down with lids.  And since no one else was going to eat the salads, I used both spoons to eat.  Specifically:

1. I would use the spoon in the regular salad to eat a spoonful;
2. I would then use that same spoon so scoop up a spoonful of the steakhouse salad;
3. then I would leave that spoon in there and use the spoon in the mustard salad for a bite;
4. I would go back, take the spoon that I left in the steakhouse, dig back into the regular and eat;
5. I would then leave that spoon in the regular potato salad, take the spoon in the mustard potato salad, and dive back into the steakhouse with it;
6. and, finally, I would take that same spoon to have a dollop of the mustard salad.

Six bites.  With that same routine.  For most days in the month of November.  As much as I love potato salad, and these were good, I didn't want to get fat eating them.  I could not see the bottom of those tubs until, one night, I finished the mustard potato salad.  A couple days later I cleaned out the regular potato salad.  And then, finally, I chased down the back half of the turkey footlong I got from Subway (to commemorate Thanksgiving, of course) with the rest of the steakhouse potato salad on Sunday.

It took 25 days, but by God, I got through them all.  And I know you're not supposed to keep leftovers for almost a month.  But shoot, they didn't look bad and they didn't smell bad (no, I confess -- I didn't smell them at all).  And I'm still alive and blogging about this, so all three tubs of potato salad were still edible.  Score!

Finally Getting Done Eating My Halloween Candy!

Want to note that today, Wednesday, November 28, will be my last day eating Halloween candy.

I have trouble with candy.  Not in terms of eating it; I used to be a candy fiend, but not anymore.  And that was the problem: I would get candy when I don't want to eat it and, sometimes, when it's not the type of candy I want.  And so it accumulates.  Shoot, I have some at work right now, and I don't know if I'll get around to it.

And so when my workplace had that big to-do over Halloween, I kind of freaked.  What the hell am I going to do all this candy?  There was candy I hate, and even with the candy I love, I'll be pressured into eating them when I don't want to!  Argh!

But then I Googled "donating Halloween candy" (or something like that) because I remembered that some people take candy.  I was going to go to a dental office, but they were offering a gift that, frankly, I didn't want.  But then I saw that Goodwill was accepting donated candy.  Phew!  I gathered up all the candy I hated, and some of the chocolate (Twix, 3 Musketeers, Snickers, Milky Way -- you know) I loved but didn't want to be weighed down with, and drove over there to drop it off.

That left me with a manageable amount of chocolate (and one pouch of fruit), plus some of the Halloween-themed Hershey's Kisses I bought for work.  I get high on my own supply.  At some point, I decided I was going to bring a couple pieces of candy to nibble on at work.  I've done that -- taking two pieces of candy with me -- most days until today, where I have three final pieces, one each of the three different wrappings of those Hershey's Kisses, to bring with me and snack on at work later today.  And then I will be done with the Halloween candy, 28 days after getting them.  Relief!

Finally Got Done Reconciling October!

It has been a pure pain-in-the-ass, but by going to the library last (Monday) night (after passing out in the evening) and using a computer's 10-key, I finally got through reconciling my expenses for last month.

Maybe I'm getting ahead of myself.  I still own a day planner, a Frankly Quest/Covey.  I still am obsessed with how much money I spend, so for the past couple decades, every month I write down, in my FQ/C, the money I take out from the ATM or bank and how much money I spend on stuff.  This is the reason I do those Expenses Without Receipt(s) blogs from time to time: If I don't have receipts on things I use cash for, I need to write them down somewhere before I forget.

This is a pain-in-the-ass even if I were timely about it.  It does take up a lot of time.  And these monthly reconciliations do not take into account everything I use my credit card for, which, admittedly, skews the idea of tracking my expenses so much it raises the question of why even do this.  (Fair question.)  But this month, trying to get through October, has been a particularly brutal chore. 

I blame being sick for much of the month, and last month.  I usually go to a place, either Caffetto or Glam Doll, to sit down, reach into my pockets, pull out the receipts I do have and write them down, or (this requires a second visit) blogging about EWR.  I then have to tally up the amounts, write them down in my Franklin Quest, and then finally add them up to see if I spent more cash or took out more cash.  I write down my results, I put away last month's pages, insert the current month's pages into my day planner, and that's that.  But I was so sick I didn't want to go out or do anything.  So the receipts piled up, and piled up.  And it got to the point where I had to relieve this mass of paper in my left hip pocket because it was getting to be too damn much.

That was the first week of November, where I was still coughing up a storm.  It took a while, and it took deciding that I couldn't do other things, such as watch TV sitcoms or exercising, to finally catch up on this mountain of receipts and jot the amounts down in my day planner.  But, with the help of finally getting better, I finally did.  And, not for nothing, turns out I spent just $1.75 more than I took out of my bank account.  I don't remember if I have had a smaller month-end amount, either in the black or in the red, ever.  That might not mean anything, but weird results like that make doing these month-end reconciliations worthwhile to me.

The Weekly Minnesota Sports Survey

#-1: Gopher men's basketball (Last Week: 0).  I can tell you, without a doubt, that this is the most successful screening week for Twin Cities sports teams in the history of The Weekly Minnesota Sports Survey.  Of the ten squads featured in this survey, there was only a collective three losses -- and one of those was suffered by a club that may have as good of a chance to win its sport's championship as they have ever had in program history.

This, however, has resulted in what may be the most controversial, and maybe most fucked-up, WMNSS in history.  I feel as though I should give more weight to victories that are more pivotal.  But I counter that by believing that I will decide that the wins by the more popular teams are the ones that are the most pivotal.  And I don't want to do that.  So I go back to my lodestar when it comes to ranking teams for this: Record.  But that means I open myself to the possibility that I am trying to compare apples and oranges -- to which I defend myself by saying, Shit, I've been trying to do that since the advent of the WMNSS.  That also means I get the list you see here, where a person might go, "Really?  These guys are at the top of the list?"  And honestly, I am sort-of underwhelmed, too.  Maybe that's why I'm not using Positive Numbers or 0 to start off this survey.  It's just a way to show how ambivalent I am about how I ordered the teams.

But golly, I'm not going to put the U. football team on top just because they won Paul Bunyan's Axe for the first time in 15 years.  (I actually put them down on the bottom; you can guess my line of thinking if you've been reading this for some time now, but I'll explain in that club's entry when I get there.)  Instead, I really think that the most impressive screening week from local squads came from the University of Minnesota men's basketball team, which went to Vancouver and left still undefeated on the year after wins over Santa Clara (80-66) Monday and Washington Tuesday.  That win over the Huskies was impressive; Gabe Kalscheur drained an off-balance three-pointer with 2.1 seconds left to give them the 68-66 lead/win.  That game was similar to the victory over Texas A&M that kicked off the team's participation in the Vancouver Showcase Sunday: A good, game opponent that did not make things easy for the Golden Gophers and forced them to rebound, fight and get a little dirty in order to grind out the win.  And I think that will make these guys better as the season goes on.

They have a very challenging week ahead of them.  They visit Boston College to do their part of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge tonight (Monday night).  They then go back home, but not go back home; they are playing at U.S. Bank Stadium for a game Friday night versus Oklahoma St. ... and holy shit!  I totally didn't realize that these games are the same weekend as the U.'s volleyball matches.  Fuck, what am I gonna do?!

#-2: Gopher women's hockey (Last Week: -2).  And yes, the Gopher female icers take the runner-up spot.  Playing in a neutral site over Thanksgiving Weekend (in this case the Windjammer Classic in Burlington, Vt.) is not easy.  And while the squad's foe in the title game Saturday, Vermont, is not a good team (probably neither was Syracuse, the team the Catamounts beat to face the U.), the U.'s semifinal opponent Friday, St. Lawrence, was ranked eighth in the country.  And they quadrupled the Saints, 8-2.  (The team merely tripled Vermont, 6-2.)  So what if I know nothing else about them?  They deserve being up this high.

This weekend they are at Yale for a two-game series.

#-3: Wild (Last Week: -5).  Like the Gopher women's hockey team, the Wild faced a bad team (Ottawa) and a good team (Winnipeg) this screening week.  Also like the Gopher women's hockey team, they won both games, although both of them were struggles (and, I should note, both of the Wild's games were at the X).  In the game against the Senators Dranksgiving, the Wild flashed out to a 4-1 lead before Ottawa scored three Goals in the Third Period to tie the game.  That chased starting Goalie Devan Dubnyk for Alex Stalock.  Sixty-seven Seconds later, Eric Staal put in the game-winner.  (Eric Fehr deposited the Empty-Netter for the 6-4 final margin of victory.)  And on Black Friday afternoon, they came back from a 2-0 deficit after two Periods to rip four past Bastard Atlanta Thrashers Goaltender Connor Hellebuyck for the comeback win.  They remain hot, 30 Points on a 14-9 record.  But so is much of the Central; the Wild remain behind Nashville for the division lead and Winnipeg is only two points behind them.

This week: Home to The Bastard Winnipeg Jets Tuesday, at Columbus Thursday, then hosting Toronto Saturday.

#-4: Vikings (Last Week: -8).  This is a good win, don't get me wrong.  It was also a necessary one, this 24-14 victory over the seriously-in-trouble Green Bay Packers last (Sunday) night at Oooos-Bahnk Stadium.  Getting to 6-4-1 puts the Vikes, at least for now, in fifth in the National Football Conference race and away from, I think, certain doom against the Chicago Bears, who are now 1 1/2 Games ahead of Minnesota in the division.  (The tie to the Pack in Week 2 and the loss at home to Buffalo are going to continue to bite this team in the ass all season, dammit.)  But there are still a lot of deficiencies in this team's play that hasn't stopped me from thinking these guys just don't have it this year.

I have one thing about the game in particular I want to raise.  So it was great that the Vikes got that turnover off the muffed punt by Tramon Williams at the Packers' 15.  But they didn't score.  That includes going for it on fourth down and failing to convert.  You could say that the game was over by then (they were leading by the final score at that time).  But if our team were the Saints or the Chiefs or the Rams, we would've stuck the dagger in the Packers' hearts by scoring on the first play off the muffed punt.  That we stalled after getting such a gift is borderline disgusting to me.

Now I have one larger point I want to argue against.  Head Coach Mike Zimmer, as well as others, insist that the best way for Minnesota to score is to have a balanced offense -- that is, the Vikings need to run the ball, and to commit to running the ball.  I think that's largely bogus.  The best teams this season, namely the ones I named above, have been flinging the ball for huge chunks of yardage in every game they've played.  Add to that the Vikings' Offensive Line being so banged up and showing that they still have a lot of trouble run-blocking, and I think it's time to commit to being a pass-first offense.  It's not as if Kirk Cousins is Spergon Wynn.  I saw the game, and he continues to make incredible throws.  He has the guts to throw them, and Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs are hauling in most of his passes.  So why not just be who you are?  That's the best way -- and maybe the only way -- to climb back into title contention.

BTW, they needed this win because their season-ending stretch is a killer.  Next week they visit New England.  It is possible that all of this goes south because the squad finishes with a five-game losing streak.  I'm serious.

#-5: Gopher women's basketball (Last Week: 0).  Don't want to put a damper on what Lindsay Whalen & Co. are doing.  This club is still undefeated and it undoubtedly will climb up the Top 25.  But this was an easy week, using hot starts to crush two tomato cans, Arkansas-Pine Bluff Tuesday and Cornell Friday, by respective scores of 84-42 (holy fucking Christ, the U. was able to double up the Golden Lions and 65-45.  A sterner test should come Thursday, as the Gophers do their part in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge and host Syracuse.  Then they play the Air Force at The Barn Sunday afternoon.

#-6: Gopher wrestling (Last Week: -6).  A once-proud title contender that is now clearly a cut below the likes of Penn St. and Oklahoma St. still has the juice to crush non-BcS schools.  That's what the Golden Gopher grapplers did yesterday (Sunday) afternoon in crushing South Dakota St., 35-6.  And that's all I have to say about them.  They take part in the Cliff Keen Invitational in Vegas this weekend.  I will leave these guys out of next week's WMNSS unless something truly magical happens.

#-7: Gopher volleyball (Last Week: Positive Numbers).  OK, so this is where the survey turns itself inside out.  The U. did not run the table in the B1G.  Friday, the Penn St. Nittany Lions beat the U. in five Sets in State College.

However, the Gophers did sweep Rutgers the next night to finish their season 19-1 in-conference and 25-3 overall.  And that convinced the NCAA Selection Committee to give Minnesota the #2 overall seed (behind Stanford) for the NCAA Tournament, announced last (Sunday) night.  With the final four being staged at Target Center, this team does not have to leave the area.  Add powerful, smart and resilient players to what would be a raucous home crowd if they reach the national semifinals, and let's be honest -- there is no better chance for the University of Minnesota to win its first-ever NCAA championship in women's volleyball than this year.  That's a lot of pressure, though, and we need to see if there is some out-of-nowhere upset before the third weekend.

The road to Target Center starts at Maturi Pavilion this weekend.  They host Bryant Friday, then play either South Carolina or Colorado Saturday.  (Aside: With the tickets for the b-ball games at U.S. Bank Stadium already bought, combined with the fact I am pretty sure these Gophers will reach the regional semifinals next weekend, I might skip Saturday's Second Round match-up.  I probably will stay for, like, the first Set between the Gophers and the Bulldogs before heading downtown.  But that first game, between the Gamecocks and the Buffaloes?  You never see those teams up here, so I think I'll buy a ticket because of that contest.)

#-8: Timberwolves (Last Week: -3).  Lost a close one to Denver at Target Dranksgiving, 103-101.  But then these guys delivered victories on back-to-back days, 112-102 at Brooklyn early Black Friday afternoon, then 111-96 over Chicago at home Saturday night.

In that win over the Bulls, Gabe Fernandez of Deadspin noted that Karl-Anthony Towns continued to be vocal as of late.  That paid dividends as KAT scored 35 and hauled in 22 Rebounds.  (He may have needed to be a beast to make up for the lost performance of Andrew Wiggins, who went scoreless on 0-for-12 shooting.)  But Fernandez sees Towns finally stepping up to be a leader in a way that matches his max contract.  He wasn't that demonstrative when Jimmy Butler was in town, which reinforces the obvious fact that people can blossom into being their best selves when they're not surrounded by fucking bullies.  (In the meantime, Butler drained his second buzzer-beating game-winner for Philadelphia last/Sunday night.)

This week: A quick getaway to Cleveland tonight (Monday night), then home dates vs. San Antonio and Boston.

#-9: Gopher men's hockey (Last Week: -4).  Crushed Michigan St. Friday at Mariucci, 7-2, but lost to the Spartans Saturday at Mariucci, 4-2.  Again, this is Bob Motzko's first year, so I'm giving him and this club a mulligan this year.  That's all I have to say about these players ... well, after saying that they host Ohio St. for a pair this weekend.

#-Infinity: Gopher football (Last Week: -7).  One final weird cock-up in this screening week's survey.  But hey, this is what you get in college football -- a mediocre team's season ending in elation when vanquishing a rival for the first time in what seems like ages.  By rule, because the football team's year is ending without a championship, I have to put them in at -Infinity.  (And I am ending the U.'s season now because no one without a screw loose in his or her brain gives a rat's ass about a bowl game.)

Nevertheless, all credit goes to the Gophers.  Well, I should say that they caught Wisconsin in as good a time as any.  Don't know what happened, but the Badgers, with much of their best players returning this year, was just out of synch.  Sure, the U. would've sent a much better message if they beat a much better team (and in Madison at that), but the U. has been so bad I didn't know if they were capable of beating Wisconsin in a down year -- well, sort of like this year's version of the U.

So what to make of Year 2 of the P. J. Fleck Era?  They have this win, and they have the romp over Purdue.  (Guess you could throw in Fresno St. as well.)  But they did lose four in a row to begin B1G play, effectively ending any hopes of a miracle season, and in what I think was a eminently winnable game on the road, they were blitzed by Illinois (who extended the contract of Lovie Smith even though he went 4-8), 55-31.  The Boilermaker and Badger victories came at the end of the season, so can we consider that to be progress?

Well, it's not as though the U. is going to fire him, and I don't think Fleck has enough juice to go anywhere.  So it'll be steady as she goes for Year 3 ... although I can allow myself some hope and believe that this finishing kick is just the beginning for this football program.

Every year at the Minnesota State Fair, the U. takes over a building.  They set aside one section for sports, and if there are big trophies that have been won over the past year, they display them there.  That includes football rivalry trophies such as Floyd of Rosedale and the Little Brown Jug, which I have seen and photographed up close.  But for the life of me, I don't ever remember seeing Paul Bunyan's Axe.  But blessed be, when next year's State Fair rolls around, that axe will be there, and I will finally get to see it.  I didn't even go to the U. and I need to see it!

You know, I wanted today to be a no-spend day.  (I initially thought it would be a no-get-out-of-the-house day, too, but I felt the need to work out, so I did that this morning/afternoon.)  But damn if I didn't get a push notification while doing the laundry saying I automatically paid my cellphone bill, sigh.  Guess I'll need to find another day not to spend money.

Damn Pharmacy Ninja

My Father asked me to get his refill of sleeping pills, even though he's out of the country and won't get them until he gets back here.  (He's a fucking addict.)  He demanded that I get them this week, but the day after I called it in, I was told by the pharmacist or the cashier in the pharmacy said that it was $151 because My Father's insurance would not pay for it.  That's odd; three months ago, in late August, My Father's insurance totally paid for it, to the point where the co-pay was less than three bucks.  The guy said I needed to come back with My Father's insurance information.  I left puzzled; he already has My Father's insurance information.

Because of that, uh, clash, I no longer believed he would help me, at least in a way that I would be satisfied with.  I just can't see how anyone would not be able to look up information voluntarily given to the pharmacy, and then applied to a drug regularly used by that customer, to cut the price down to its rightful amount unless, well, unless he didn't care.  And that is what I concluded with this guy: He didn't give a fuck, and so it would be useless to take my grievances back to him.

Told my parents about this.  If worst comes to worst, My Mother said, I could go into their room and find My Father's insurance cards.  I was hoping I would not need to employ such drastic means.  I figured I could just find the receipt for the pills I picked up in August and show them that the insurance information used then to knock down the price of My Father's sleeping pills to three bucks is information they still have, and since it's still 2018, there would be no reason for it to change or be rendered inaccurate.

I found that receipt, and on Black Friday I went to the pharmacy right after work.  But I had to case the joint for a bit because I really did not want to even see him working there.  If I did, I would walk right back out.  I'm serious -- this is how low I thought of his willingness to help me.

On Friday I was milling about, casing the joint.  I wanted to see if that guy was around without looking as though I was seeing if that guy was around.  And sure enough, while pretending to, uh, look up the price for Mucinex, I saw him, behind the counter, answering the phone like any pharmacist would.  Talking to him would be a waste of my time, I thought, so I promptly left.

---

Work was so slow yesterday (Saturday) that I was cut a half-hour early.  I thought about going back to the pharmacy Sunday to see if he was there (or if he works seven days a week like my parents did when they ran The Store), but getting off work early yesterday/Saturday compelled me to give it a shot after work.

Once again I cased the joint.  I casually looked around the pharmacy to see if he was there.  Behind the counter, all I saw was some girl working by herself.  I looked to my left, then to my right, and then I started approaching the counter as though I wanted to pick up a prescription.

But as the girl went to the counter and looked up the information she had to use to retrieve My Father's refill, from my left, outta fuckin' nowhere, was that guy, opening the door to get into the pharmacy.  WHERE IN THE FUCK DID HE COME FROM?!?!?!  I looked everywhere for, like, two minutes before sticking my neck out and talking about the good insurance on the meds.  Just as I thought the coast was clear and I could get a fresh face to take a lot at the situation, this damn pharmacy ninja fucks up my plans.  Quite literally, I must say; once I saw him enter, I turned my head, put the August sleeping pills receipt up to my mouth, and quietly uttered, "Fuck."

But by then the cat was out of the bag.  If I had just told the girl that I needed her to re-check the insurance information on those pills, and if he overheard all that, there's no reason to keep that a secret from him, too.  From them on I spoke to the guy who initially rejected me.  And you know what?  It looks as though he looked up My Father's insurance information again and used it on the pills.  And it applied -- the total went from almost $151 to just under $3.

So all's well that ends well.  That guy just corrected his mistake.  Shouldn't've made it in the first place, but whatevs.  All that's important is that I will get those pills when I remember to bring my folks' credit card.  But if that damn pharmacy ninja blindsides me again when I come in, I will take umbrage.  Believe me.

Not Exactly A Sign I Was In The Black Friday Shopping Mood

Once I got home, I did the three things I needed to do, per my previous blog post (talk about those later), then decided to eat ribs I had thawed out a week ago, then I slept.

I did, however, want to partake in Black Friday festivities.  Namely, it was time for me to finally upgrade my iPhone from my 4.  So, after seeing the beginning of the Apple Cup, I went out, in the rain, to the Mall of America.  And I went into the Apple Store, and ... I didn't buy it.  My heart is still set on getting the 8, but ... well, maybe there will be a price drop after the weekend, or maybe my parents will say that they're getting me a new phone, and I kind of thought that if I buy it and then carry it with me around the Megamall it might get stolen, so maybe I should just buy it Monday afternoon at Rosedale when it's less crowded ... shoot, it's a lot of money.  I know I need to get a new one, but I just decided against plunging all my money into something last night.

Instead, I mostly spent my money on food and drink.  Caribou was selling coffee for a buck, so that was the first thing I went to when I got to MOA.  And then both the Apple Cup and the Oklahoma-West Virginia games were getting close, so I ended my trip by going to Buffalo Wild Wings and partaking in its new menu.  But I still felt pressure to buy something.  But what?  The only thing I thought I could buy are no porno pants because my old ones are starting to tear.  I got those at H&M, so just before closing I went over there to see if they had those same pants or something similar to it.  They didn't, but under pressure to "celebrate" Black Friday, I saw two standbys that I usually believe I could always use more of, both of which were too expensive at the Gap and Banana Republic: Socks and underwear.  H&M is always good for cheap stuff, and I came across boxers with a "$4" sticker stamped in the upper-right corner.  And with 30% off, those only cost me $2.80.

So yep, I shopped on Black Friday.  Got boxers for less than three bucks.  I'm totally into the holiday spirit now!

Triple Trouble Today

After work (I gotta confess; when I heard the alarm just now, I was absolutely shocked that I had to go to work today -- goddammit) I have three fires I need to put out:

1. The storage place.  They called me about something.  I think I should pay them a visit -- you know, just to see what's going on (I think I talked about this already);
2. The pharmacy.  Father's sleeping pills, I was told, is going to cost me $150 because insurance wasn't going to take it -- even though they have his information and three months ago, the last time I got his refill, it only cost me $2.50.  I don't know how to tell them to, you know, apply what you already have;
3. The bank.  Was e-mailed by my parents' management team that a check I had to send to them has not been received.  Was it stolen?  Do I have to put a stop payment on it?  Well, maybe -- that's what I have to go to the bank for (well, that and I can deposit some real estate checks for my folks, too).

The chances that all three things will be resolved to my satisfaction is zero.

Expenses Without Receipt

Jesus fuck, I haven't done this one in over a month.  Starting from Wednesday, November 221:

• Back when my parents still had The Store, they would take regular but short vacations to Las Vegas.  That's when I would sneak out to My Favorite Stripclub (Cover Edition).  This being Dranksgiving, and remembering that I haven't seen my ATF in some time, I eschewed an invitation to a stripper party closer to my house and went.  I wouldn't've gone if she weren't there, but thank God this place has a website that regularly updates its roster.  I won't lie to you; she has gained some weight since the last time I saw her, and she's really, uh, fatter than the first time I've seen her.  But I want to be loyal to my ATF's, and her being there for upwards of a decade is a hell of an accomplishment, so I got 11 dances from her.  With cover (didn't get ramen to get a discount because the discount scantly covered the cost of the ramen), beer on Happy Hour and tips to only two other chicks (aside: a lot of the girls I saw were more plain-looking and were natural up top), the total came out to: $150.
• I then went to My Favorite Stripclub (Non-Cover Division) because, by the time I downed the last fried pickle at Hooters (ugh), there wasn't enough time to enjoy a stripper party.  So I went to the strip bar instead, where I got coffee, gave stage tips, and got a lapper from Barbie, who I hadn't seen in some time and thought had left the place.  I did not give a tip to Barbie and I did not get a lapdance from the other three girls working the last shift before Thanksgiving, so I shelled out a total of: $30.
• Oh, after getting an LD from Barbie, I saw some money at a chair close by.  The bar was scantly populated, so I moseyed on over, sat down on the money, and tried to suavely slip it into my pocket.  That was when Willow, another of the girls working that shift, invited herself over to say hi.  I told her I was behaving funny because I was partly stretching my bad back and partly farting.  Was that worth just one dollar?  Uh, maybe.  An Infusion of: $1.
• On Tuesday the 20th I went to see Widows.  Like I said, it is too big of a movie.  Ticket, popcorn and pop: $11.81.
• I still have not gone through my receipts yet for the month of October, so because I had Thursday off, I went to Caffetto on this Tuesday night to work.  Glad I did.  Had a discount I used: Two bucks off my large coffee and pumpkin cheesecake.  With tip and I had to pay just: $5.
• Monday, November 19 ... I went to the library to print out an Arby's coupon and copies of my parents' corporation: 30 cents.
• It amazes me that people continue to leave change in the copy machine coin register.  The two quarters I slid in slid back out, and in trying to fish them back so I could use them again, I found a third quarter.  Whoa.  So these copies only cost me five cents total.  Score!  An Infusion of: 25 cents.
• Sunday the 18th: Fucked ****e.  I wanted to sleep with her overnight, but she sleeps with the dogs in the living room.  Anyway, I could say a lot of things about her, but I'll just give out this one story: When she was preparing her big lunch (which has become a part of our day together), she promised that she would make me cum twice.  And she did!  Several hours after we fucked the first time, and after I took a log nap during football, she came in and said, "I'll give you a blowjob!"  And I wish I were more, uh, responsive, but she then let me rawdog her a second time that day, and I beat off and ejaculated all over her stomach a second time.  She didn't even ask for more money.  But I gave her an extra $20 because she fucked me twice!  You can't blame me, can you?  Total: $140.
• Back to Saturday, November 17 ... OK.  I popped into my alma mater's game-watching place on Tuesday because I need to tell the guys there what time it'll be on.  And to keep up relations, I figure that I should sit down and eat and drink there.  That's what I did this time around, like I did several times this season.  But this time I forgot my wallet.  I yanked it out because I charged a bunch of things online, and I just put my wallet on my dresser and didn't put it back in my pocket when going out.  So I apologized to the manager, and he said I could pay him back for the game Saturday.  I have no idea how to settle up in a situation like this.  And I didn't want to use money on this day because I decided this was a no-cash day.  But it was just so much easier if I just personally gave him the cash he used to pay for my bill.  So I did.  And I hope I remember this so I don't forget my wallet again.  With tip the EWR was: $19.
• On Friday the 16th I went to the University of Minnesota men's hockey game vs. St. Lawrence.  Scalped a ticket from my guy for the first time in a long time.  He's one of those guys where I am totally satisfied with our relationship at the level that it is.  That ticket plus a program, a hot dog, and a medium Coke came out to: $27.50.
• I then wanted to go to Glam Doll, a place I hadn't been to in weeks.  But when I got there, they were closed.  Apparently they sold out all their donuts.  Hadn't ever seen them do that by 10 o'clock, however, and that makes me wonder.  Regardless, that turned my night into a wandering one.  Walking up and down Lyndale, I had no idea where I wanted go.  Finally, I went to The Leaning Tower of Pizza, a place I had been to only once before.  Thankfully they had a late Happy Hour, so I took them up on a break on a buck off an Angry Orchard, a break on mozzarella sticks and four (?) bucks on a slice of pepperoni pizza.  With tip: $17.
• Thursday, November 15: There was a house party, and I don't remember the last time I went to one.  Plus there were several girls there that I hadn't gotten freaky with in a while.  I decided I was going to get there early and not dawdle.  I knew that some strippers just wouldn't get there early, but I was OK with that because it would filter out the girls I would feel obligated to do something with.  I took the host, ******a, to the back, where I was too flaccid and had to jerk myself off (man, I am being totally honest).  I got lappers from everyone else who was dressed by the time I left.  And I took so many shots of Fireball that I was dangerously tipsy.  But I still showed my dick to one girl I wanted to for a long time, and I took myself out and showed it to another girl while walking with *****a to a bed and away from her.  Cover, tip for the host's sister, bedroom fee, *****a, lapper with Evette (who did not see my dick) and lappers with ***i and ****y (the two girls who did see it), I spent a lot of money, like: $230.
• On Wednesday the 14th I went to a movie.  I know, Wednesdays aren't movie days.  But I had not seen a good movie in weeks, I was tired of that, and Can You Ever Forgive Me? was playing, but at the Heights, which is a great old movie theater I hadn't been to in a while.  Good movie, but Melissa McCarthy can act.  Ticket, popcorn, pop and tip: $16.50.
• Went to Caffetto afterward.  Pumpkin pie, small coffee, and tip: $6.
• Then I went to My Favorite Stripclub (Non-Cover Version), where I kind of splurged and got lap dances from not one but two strippers, Tanya and Marie.  Don't remember the last time I did that.  Not like I minded.  With tips and coffee: $51.
• Back to Monday, November 12, when I went to the U. men's basketball game (with a ticket I bought at the Minnesota State Fair).  This team, I think, is a good team.  Program, souvenir-sized Coke and hot dog: $13.50.
• Sunday the 11th -- had ***e* come over to rake more leaves ... and to give me a handjob.  It's been a long time since she wanked me.  Grand total for those two tasks: $220.
• Before ***e* came over, I texted her if she wanted any food.  She actually said yes, and even though I got KFC for myself, I went to Chipotle to get a burrito bowl for her and chips and guacamole for me.  Charged this meal, but I threw in a tip: $1.
• To Friday, November 9, when I went to the U. women's basketball game (with a ticket I bought at the Minnesota State Fair).  This was Lindsay Whalen's first game as Head Coach, and I was kind of surprised they kicked ass.  Program and medium Coke only because, to celebrate Whalen, they were offering free Domino's.  I took three slices!  Total spent: $7.
• Keep going back to Wednesday the 7th, where I once again went downtown to tell my bar what time our game is.  But first, a trip My Favorite Stripclub (Non-Cover Division).  Jade was there.  She demands five bucks at the stage every time.  I never will do that, but I tried that with other girls and one of them totally got pissed at me, so I figured that I would make it up to her by getting a lapper from her.  She's good, but I can't give her $20 every time she's there, you know?  With tips and coffee I shelled out: $30.
• Then went to my bar downtown.  Think I only got a Coke and soup this time.  With tip: $9.
• Tuesday the 6th was Election Day.  Saw on Facebook that Bauhaus was having an Election party, and unlike 2016, where I was happily going to the Herkimer, only to see too many states going red, I was happy seeing the projection that Democrats took the House.  The beer was a buck off.  Got a pint of that and a pint of root beer, too.  With tips for each drink: $8.
• On Monday the 5th I went downtown to take up The Local's Sunday/Monday deal of a burger & beer for ten bucks (while watching EPL) and getting my shoes shined.  I got those shoes shined after the soccer match because Lisa extended her hours, which she was able to do because her daughter moved off for college.  She gave me a break on polishing my Doc's -- half-off.  Buddha bless her.  I gave her my customary five bucks' tip anyway, thereby making the total for the shoeshine just: $10.
• Sunday the 4th ... after the Vikings game, went to My Favorite Stripclub (Non-Cover Division), per usual.  Cicily is still there, and still hot, and since I hadn't seen her in a long time, got an LD from her.  With coffee and tips and the total was, I think: $33.
• On Friday, November 2 (I think), I hired ***e* over to rake my leaves -- and to just rake my leaves -- for the first time.  I realize now that I spent the same amount on her this time as I did the next time, and that next time was with an HJ.  I guess I can justify it by saying that I had her do both the front and back yards and fill up the remaining bags with leaves enshrouded in snow because it had snowed around that time and it was still cold.  And hell, I love ***e*.  Gave her: $220.
• Shit, now I have to do the October.  OK ... Halloween ... Went to Hooters to see all the babes in costumes.  Only two of them were wearing slutty stuff showing their tummies.  Used my October coupon from the calendar.  With tip it came to: $25.50.
• Afterwards I went to My Favorite Stripclub (Non-Cover Version) to see hot women get out of their costumes.  Willow was dressed up as a sexy circus ringleader.  Nice!  Lapdance with her, Sprite and tips, and I think it summed to: $32.
• OK, so the next EWR goes all the way back to Saturday, October 20.  Was able to leave early from work to get to this alumni event downtown.  I was able to get free valet -- but of course I had to tip.  I wonder if I tipped too much: $5.
• After my alma mater's game, I went to, yep, My Favorite Stripclub (Non-Cover Edition), where I got a lapper, finally, from JJ.  With coffee and tips, where my trip was a relatively short one, from the amount I spent: $28.
• Friday the 19th ... because of this alumni event I got a haircut from Great Clips.  Charged the cut, Update on 10:06 p.m. on November 22 that I actually paid cash and I have the receipt for the cut, so just ignore the cut; but the tip was cash and receipt-less: $3.
• Thursday, October 18 was the last home game for the U. soccer team.  Went to see a win.  Hot dog, Coke, program: $11.50.
• Wednesday the 17th: Oh, I got wanked by ******e on this date!  This seems so long ago.  Later that night I saw my basement flooded because my humidifier started leaking.  That may have been an omen to not bring her here ever again.  But her HJ skills are awesome ... even though she is kind of weird.  I first thought I would be spending only $120, but then she told me I had to pay her to drive up here, and then she wanted a tip because she was going to blow my mind.  Hey, her wanking skills are really good, but mind-blowing?  C'mon: $150.
• On Monday the 15th I did something I want to do more of on Mondays off: Go to a well-regarded restaurant.  After I went to see Grandmother's best friend, I went up to Edina and ate at Red Wagon Pizza.  The small pizza is expensive; so was the beer.  But it was good, and I am better for going.  I think.  Total with tip: $35.
• Sunday, October 14 ... after the Vikings game I went to, you guessed it, My Favorite Stripclub (Non-Cover Division).  Ruby is a unique person -- plain-looking, but really smart and curious, and a great person to have a conversation with.  Got a lap dance from her, and I should do so again in the future.  With tips and coffee and it all came out to: $32.
• Was able to hit our local mom-and-pop grocery store before it closed.  Got bread for sandwiches and peanut butter-and-jelly.  Also got lottery tickets when both Mega Millions and the Powerball had crazy jackpots.  Man, those were the fuckin' days, man.  You know how much money I spent on lottery tickets, for myself and for my family?  I don't!  I usually am given a receipt at this place, but I didn't get one.  At least I remembered: $30.49.

Christ, I have to stay on this regular blog post more frequently!  Good through November 21.

Halfway Gone, Halfway Home; And Other Thanksgiving Thoughts

Thanksgiving marks roughly (although, if I think about it, I may have another week or so) the halfway point in my parents' long retirement vacation doing everything in another part of the world.  I really am happy for them.  But I think we all know that I am happy without them here, and they are happy that they don't have to think about me too much.  We are at our best when are not in each other's hair, and that's why I dread that in three months' time, we will be back together again, and hating each other.

Other Thanksgiving thoughts:

• You know, there is Christmas music (I think one station flipped from hip-hop in early October).  This isn't a rant about Christmas music being played too early, although Christmas music is being played too early.  I want to say that although there is Christmas music, and I think there is some Halloween music, there is no such thing as Thanksgiving music, is there?  I mean, what are songs about this day?  There's, what, the theme song to A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving and, uh, Adam Sandler's song, and that's it.
• I have a ton of food in the fridge, and I am going to be eating out this afternoon (after, hopefully, working out in the morning), then having Subway (a turkey sandwich!) for dinner.  And there will still be leftovers rotting in the fridge!
• Speaking of which ... I am still trying to eat through potato salad I bought for work -- for Halloween.  A part of me thinks I should throw it away, but I ate some yesterday, and they still taste good, and I'm blog posting this, so I'm OK.  Right?
• If I am enterprising enough today, I am going to try and clean out the humidifier tube.  Oh, have I told you guys that the humidifier is leaking again?  Well, it is, and I am not comfortable turning it on now.  Don't know what to do.  Heh.
• The guy who runs my storage left me a message yesterday.  I think I am going to pay him a visit tomorrow, just to get to the bottom of all this.
• And I might buy a new phone for Black Friday.
• Oh, and I should add this: I was a bit drunk going into Hooters last night, and I was wearing my porno pants, and I had my fly completely undone.  And thank Buddha I had a long shirt on, because I wanted to see how my pants were as I was sitting, and I pulled up my shirt and I could see my flaccid dick sticking out through my pants.  And then I thought, Ah, I shouldn't risk it, so I went into the bathroom and buttoned one button.

Happy Thanksgiving, y'all.

Are You Telling Me What To Do???

So I park farther away from my department than most people -- that is, there are other doors closer to where I work in the building, but I eschew that because ... well, OK, brace yourself: From where I park, if the sun is shining, it doesn't stream in through the passenger side, which is where I sit to take a nap.  But if I parked closer, I would be parked on the other side of the building, and that would mean my car is parked the exact opposite way, which means that the sun would be beating down my face and therefore I wouldn't be able to sleep because the sun would burn my face.  (This is all excepting that there was no sun today.  Also, I wasn't able to sleep.  But whatever.)

I am coming in through the long way.  There is a long hallway I traverse to reach my department.  Today, I had the bad timing of seeing one of my supervisors walk in ahead of me.  No big deal -- at first.  But then she points down one of the other front doors which I did not come through and says, "Don't forget to punch in."

As you could fathom, for shift workers like me, there are time clocks near every front door.  "I already clocked in."

"You did?"

"Yeah.  At the back (pointing to the back, to be helpful)."

"Oh.  You should clock in here."

"Here."

"Yeah."

EXCUSE ME?!?!?!  I NOW HAVE A SPECIFIC PLACE I NEED TO PUNCH IN?!?!?!  WHAT THE FUCK?!?!?!  WHAT GODDAMN DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE?!?!?!  I'LL PUNCH IN WHEREVER THE HELL I WANT TO, OKAY?!?!?!  I'M ALREADY WAKING UP AT 5:30 IN THE FUCKING MORNING, AND NOW I HAVE A FRONT DOOR I NEED TO GO THROUGH TO MAKE YOU HAPPY?!?!?!

(sigh)

So I did, and I'll do it until I move back to my new department.  But if overbearing nagging such as this is commonplace at this job ... fuck it, I need to find another job.

Back To The Frustration

OK, so because of Thanksgiving, or at least so I think, my continued training in this new department is suspended for this week.  Back to the old department I go, but I was kind of told in the morning that all I was doing was data entry.  If that is all I'm doing for the week, phew!  Smooth sailing for me.

Well, I had one other job.  Without boring you with details, I have to do this file of really finicky, uh, papers.  And even though I had written down the process before, I'll be damned if I didn't know what to do, so much so that I stayed over my shift.  I'm so flummoxed that I really can't tell you how I screwed it up.  All I can say is that I thought one thing was happening, but then another issue popped up, and I thought another issue popped up, but it didn't, but I had already made a mistake in thinking that second issue popped up, and then I'm racing to get to the movie theater on time to see Widows (good movie, by the way, but a too-big one ... I'll give it a B).

Let me also say that my intense frustration over trying to deal with this file stems from the fact that I zig when the circumstances involved with these files zag, and those circumstances seem to change every time I do them.  Sometimes I blow through the papers, only to realize that I had missed a step (or two), and so I have to waste time undoing things in order to make things right.  And sometimes I am too careful, taking these half-steps when I know one of the others is going to tell me to just get on with it, and so I have wasted time doing things I shouldn't be doing.

So I'm flailing, just like I did this afternoon.  And unfortunately (or fortunately -- hey, maybe I should see this as a growth opportunity!), I think I will be entrusted to do this for the rest of the week.  I either sink or swim, it looks like.

The Weekly Minnesota Sports Survey

Positive Numbers: Gopher volleyball (Last Week: 0).  Well, with the U.'s soccer team eliminated, the U's volleyball squad reasserts its place atop the WMNSS by not only continuing its winning streak via a four-Set win at Maryland and a five-Setter at Ohio St. (that is now 19 wins in a row), but with the victory over the Buckeyes, the Golden Gophers have sewn up the Big Ten title.  Winning the regular season championship of the best conference in Women's College Volleyball Nation (and it's not close) outright with two Games left to go?  Mighty impressive.

We'll see what overall rank the NCAA Selection Committee gives the U.  They finish up the season Saturday at Rutgers.  But the real match, the one that stands between them and their first perfect Big Ten season ever, comes on Friday, when they play at Penn St.  Should be an epic one.

#0 (tie): Gopher women's basketball and Gopher men's basketball (Last Week, respectively: -2 and -3).

I couldn't differentiate between either Dinkytown b-ball squad, and frankly, I'm tired and I have 11 teams to go through, so I don't feel like nit-picking.  Both teams are still undefeated after winning both games this screening week, and both had to rally to win one of those games.

We'll start with the Gopher women, who, after throttling New Hampshire last week (and probably on the name recognition of Lindsay Whalen), glommed on to the Top 25.  They might move up after crushing Xavier in Cincinnati by 25 on Wednesday, then coming back from a seven-point deficit to start the Fourth Quarter by doubling up San Diego 24-12 to win the game Saturday, 53-48.  In both games the team was led by Kenisha Bell, who dropped 18 against the Musketeers and 21 on the Toreros.  That victory over USD was the first of a six-game homestand; this screening week they will host Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Cornell.

I was at the Gopher men's basketball game Monday vs. Utah.  With the exception of a lull in the middle of the Second Half, the team was in control over the Utes, especially when it comes to rebounding.  But I believe that this club goes as far as Jordan Murphy goes.  He hauled down 17 boards in the win over the Utes, and when he was on the bench, the team was not as tough or as dynamic.  His teammates needed his team-high 14 Points and 7 Rebs late Sunday night when they fell behind Texas A&M late in the Second Half before making six Free Throws and holding the Aggies scoreless in the final two Minutes (the Aggies turning the ball over helped immensely) to win in the Gophers' first game in the Vancouver Showcase, 69-64.  Their two other showcase games are on Tuesday and Wednesday versus, respectively, Santa Clara and Washington.

#-2: Gopher women's hockey (Re-Entry!).  Swept St. Cloud St., although the Huskies took the club to OT on Saturday before Taylor Heise ended the game with an unassisted Goal three Minutes in.  (Minnesota crushed St. Cloud St. Sunday, 7-2.)

This weekend they go to Burlington, Vt., to take part in what is called the Windjammer Classic.  They face St. Lawrence Black Friday afternoon, then face either Vermont or Syracuse the next day.

#-3: Timberwolves (Last Week: -Infinity).  Well, with the Jimmy Butler saga now fully in the rearview mirror, fans are wondering what the team would look like.  And the answer is, pretty good.  Well, they ripped off three wins in a row before falling flat on their face Sunday against The Bastard Vancouver Grizzlies at Target Center.  Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins can secretly complain about the bullying Butler inflicted on them.  But the trade-off for trading him away is that these guys now have to fully live up their max contracts and, you know, fuckin' lead.  The three wins are a step in the right direction.  But the grind continues nonetheless: Home to Denver Wednesday, at Brooklyn Black Friday afternoon, then right back to Target for a Saturday night date vs. Chicago.

#-4: Gopher men's hockey (Last Week: -5).  Because the forecast said that the snow was likely headed south of the Twin Cities (and it did, for the most part), I decided I wanted to see this St. Lawrence club and so I went to the Gopher game on Friday.  Honestly, I don't think I've ever seen a team so out of synch.  There was a lot of bad individual play -- errant passes out of the offensive zone, a lack of toughness one-on-one, etc.  And the Saints, by golly, took advantage of that, racing out to a 3-1 lead.

The Goofers came back to score twice to force Overtime, but a lucky pass in their defensive zone led to a tic-tac-toe which gave St. Lawrence the 4-3 win.  I wasn't all that shaken up by the defeat.  I liked that there was still enough talent on the squad to score twice in the Third Period.  And besides, I always give a mulligan to a Head Coach's first year.  But ... shit, St. Lawrence???  I really assumed they would beat them.  And you should have seen the furor over this defeat on Twitter, where they're already calling for Bob Motzko's head -- mostly because, and I confess that I overlooked this on the program, St. Lawrence had won only one Game up until Friday.  (The pissed-off-ness online contrasts with the scene at Mariucci, where the place was just about half-full, and more than one spectator made audible note of that.)  The U. blanked the Saints Saturday, 3-0, but I have to think that this team will be spending a second straight year out of the NCAA Tournament.

The icers, which sit at 3-5-1, resume B1G play when they host Michigan St. for a pair this weekend.

#-5: Wild (Last Week: -4).  Well, the Mild probably gave up the third-highest Point total after suffering a hiccup this screening week.  Lost two-of-three at home, then got beat at Chicago last (Sunday) night.  Not the worst thing in the world, but honestly, this was more of a week I've been expecting from them.  Will this slide continue this screening week, where they have only two Games, both at home, against Ottawa (Wednesday) and Winnipeg (Black Friday afternoon)?

#-6: Gopher wrestling (Re-Entry!).  Whoops.  These guys actually began their season on Nov. 9.  I just forgot because, well, they have fallen so solidly into mediocrity that I kind of forgot them.  I noticed that on Sunday at Maturi, they got crushed by Oklahoma St., 23-9.  They beat the Air Force on the 9th, 33-3, but the Cowboys are more the competition I am used to them facing (and beating), not the Falcons.  And that they got their brains kicked in, again, means another irrelevant season for a once-proud program.  But hey, at least they're clean.

Host South Dakota St. Sunday.

#-7: Gopher football (Last Week: -1).  Northwestern has already clinched the B1G West, the division, if you don't know already, Minnesota's in.  (Aside: This bifurcation into divisions is destroying the concept of what a conference is.  If you are grouped with the same teams year after year, and play them year after year while you play the other teams sporadically -- well, that means you are not in a league of 14 teams, but in a league of seven.  I truly believe that.  But expounding on this is best for another day.)  I don't think the Wildcats are all that good anyway, but I think with nothing to play for, Northwestern was vulnerable to a game on the road versus a team celebrating Senior Day.

Uh, no dice.  There remains a decisive talent gap between the two teams as the Wildcats come into Das Bank v.1.0 and beat the Gophs, 24-14.  This despite the heroics of Senior Linebacker Blake Cashman, who made 20 Tackles in the defeat (the most in-conference in a non-Overtime game since Ryan Shazier did it for Ohio St. in 2013, and the most by a Minnesota player since Eli Ward had 22 back in 2002) and was thus named conference Defensive Player Of The Week.  Cashman is an impressive story.  He started off as a walk-on, and will finish seventh in program history in Tackles For Loss and tied for 13th in Sacks.

Meanwhile, his team remains at only five wins.  The squad's final game of the season is at Wisconsin Saturday for Paul Bunyan's Ax.  The Badgers are suffering a down year, but is that enough for the Gophers to spring a surprise, get that damn axe for the first time this millennium, and become bowl-eligible.  The extension of the season likely rides on that contest.

#-8: Vikings (Re-Entry!).  Oh shit, this is not good.

First of all, I have noticed that I don't watch Vikings Games all that much.  It's too excruciating to see them lose, and even see them struggle, so, for example, for last (Sunday) night's tilt at Chicago, after the Bears took the lead, I took a shower and then had a late dinner ****e cooked up for me.  I was watching the Gopher men's b-ball Game against Texas A&M on ESPN2, so I was kept abreast of the ViQueens Game on the crawl.  Glad I didn't turn back to it; although the club showed some life after heading into the half down 14-0, they still succumbed to the upstart Bears, 25-20.  They were actually in it, until Kirk Cousins threw a Pick-Six that basically iced the game.

You can see "We'll see you at the Dome in Week 17!"  But this one hurts, a lot.  Chicago now is up 1 1/2 Games in the National Football Conference North Division, and there is a lot of flotsam and jetsam in the race for the Wild Cards.  (Never mind that this team doesn't seem to have the O or the D to get to the Super Bowl, but that's another story.)  I've been pondering this in my mind a lot, and I'll just throw it out there.  I think that most Super Bowl-winning teams come out of nowhere.  They are not teams writers believe from the outset could win.  They are, at least just as often, teams just off of a shitty year prior that combined new talent with good luck and an easy schedule to surge into a surprise year.  The Philadelphia Eagles followed that blueprint last year.  So did the St. Louis Rams when they won their title.  It just seems as though the only way most teams can win the Super Bowl is by surprising everyone, getting the jump on them before they know what hit them.  The Bears and, to a lesser extent, the Chiefs are following this same blueprint.  The Vikes, who some felt would go all the way, are not because they were cursed by expectations.

Guess what I'm saying is, last night was a statement that, despite all the signings and expectations, the Chicago Bears, who no one saw coming, is a better team than the Minnesota Vikings, and now they have a 1 1/2-Game lead to prove it.  This team is fucking done.

They host Green Bay, another team with high expectations but may be more embattled than the Vikes, next Sunday night.

#-Infinity: Gopher soccer (Last Week: Positive Numbers).  OK, so the side's season came to an end ignominiously Friday night in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, 5-0 to UCLA in Westwood.  No shame in that, especially when the Golden Gophers had to rip off three consecutive wins to get a birth in the NCAA Tournament, and then upset Auburn on the road to reach the second weekend.  Credit to Head Coach Stephanie Golan and the team, led by B1G Forward Of The Year April Bockin, who played in her last game in the maroon and gold, for a surprising run.

Good luck with the team, which is bringing in ten new recruits, next year.  Assuming I can find parking, I'll be able to attend a match or two!

Bad Driver: ATP A24 (white Volvo?)

Kid, your problem was veering to the lane to my left as I was preparing to get onto 35WN.  That's all.  You couldn't fathom being behind me, so you changed lanes and changed back in front of me ... and you slowed down before we hit the on-ramp.

I'll be honest: You are not the first asshole who's pulled that shit.  But tonight, after taking it in the chin for so goddamn long, you were the one I finally challenged.  You were the one who convinced me to turn off the ECON button and see what my car's got.  And goddamn, when I cut in front of you and pissed you off, man, that was satisfaction.  Knowing you feel just as pissed off as I do whenever you and other pricks cut me off, everything else you did was gravy.  Sure, maybe you pulling back in front of me was dangerous because 1) construction cut off the number of lanes and 2) there was another driver neither of us accounted for.  And I must say, your passive-aggressive stunt of driving behind me was a neat trick.  Until the time you drove away from the 100 exit, I was wondering if I knew a police station I could pull into.

But shit, man, anything I made you feel, you brought on yourself for that bullshit maneuver before 35WN.  But hey, at least I know my car can go 100.  It can't really brake as fast, and I probably did a number on my transmission (same to you I assume), but now I know what my car's capable of.  And you know what?  I have your punk ass to thank for that, too!

You Actually Let Me Go??

Getting off of work early for my alma mater's football game's this season has been sort of a challenge.  There was one time when I was not allowed to go, thereby missing the first half of a game-watching event for the first time in years, if not a decade.  (I wonder if this will be a growing problem as the years go by.)

Because my team was playing an afternoon game yesterday, and it was announced earlier in the week, I was in a panic to see if my time-off request would be granted.  I was really thinking that if this too was rejected, I would just call in sick.  But I got the time off.  Fair enough.

It was only a partial time-off request.  I know that many people ask for a Saturday off here and there, and so leaving in the afternoon just in time to get to the game was the best of all worlds.

I don't want to bore you with the set-up, but for this department (one that was different from the one I'm training on right now) there are between two and five of us lined up along a wall, desk touching desk.  The files we have to go through and check are passed from the middle people to the ends.  That's a lot of interconnectedness ... and that might lead to some friction, as I'm observing (and I might blog post about later).  The work that comes through has to get done, and even though we usually finish before our shift is over, there was one Saturday where we had to stay an extra 90 minutes.  I think that was because the work we had to get we didn't get earlier in the day, and so we were slammed at the end of the day.  There was also only three of us that day, but frankly, I don't think it would've mattered all that much if we were at the maximum of five.

That last thought I want you to think of as I go back to yesterday.  We started the day with only three of us.  One of them actually does not work Saturdays and came in to help out.  But -- and bear with me here -- it was only, like, the hour before I was leaving that I put two and two together.  Namely, that two other people took the whole day off, and with me leaving in the afternoon, that meant three regular people would not be around for the end of the workweek.

I blurt this out.  One of the two others, That Bitch (who, to be honest, was actually quite friendly to me yesterday ... maybe I should reconsider her being a bitch), said something I also didn't realize: "It was supposed to be just you and me."

Yeah, it was!  Go beyond the fact whether or not we two can work together, just us, side-by-side.  On a Saturday, where I have seen things go pear-shaped, there would have been just two people chugging through files.  And then I made my final no-shit realization: With me leaving at lunch, there will be  only two people chugging through files, one of them actually working overtime (I think) so that it wouldn't be only one person.

And I'm thinking, My boss actually let me go?  You know what?  He shouldn't have!  You need at least three people to go through this.  Now, maybe everything was fine yesterday.  But, you know, maybe everything was not, and it's always best to have enough manpower to get the job done.

Man, I skipped out on work when work needed me the most.  And my team lost, so maybe it was better if I just stayed at work!

Now This Shit With The Storage Company Is Getting Shady

Thursday, I went to the storage company (after dumping leaves at the county compost site) to figure out just why in the hell I got a bill from them for late fees.  I was waiting on a car lined up at the keypad that opens the gate.  They were there for a few minutes before they backed down and drove away, and all that time I was thinking these guys must have a screw loose if they are deciding whether or not they want to go through.

So I go up to the keypad to punch in my code ... and I get a warning saying "Access denied ... suspension," or something.  Had my access to my stuff in there been taken from me because of this phantom late fee?  But then I peered inside past the iron-wrought gates, just like the male driver before me.  (After getting my code rejected, I now understand why he was dawdling around and not moving his car.)  Even though the owners of this self-storage place have regular hours, and on Thursdays that means they're open until 6 p.m., there was no light inside the front office.  So there was nothing else I could do idling there.  I went home.

This is getting to be strange.  First of all, when I was moving my stuff from one unit to another back around Easter, these owners (they're husband and wife) were very nice and didn't seem to fit a shyster profile.  Then we don't see each other for a while.  Then, I get hit with a late fee bill, and then a few days later no one seems to have access to the insides of that compound, plus the owners of said compound are nowhere to be found.  Are they on the lam?  Do they somehow need to protect themselves from someone?  Or are they somehow in debt to the self-storage space they run and just fuckin' bailed on their responsibility.?  Whatever the reason, this shit is getting weird.  And all I want to know is whether I can go back to being paid in full, then getting March 2019 free because of my earlier dealings with birds hitting U.S Bank Stadium.  (ETA later on November 19 on 7:43 p.m. because I don't know what the hell that phrase was.  I mean, "birds hitting U.S. Bank Stadium."?  I've got to be honest with you: When I blog posted this, I was just about asleep.  I mean, my mind was fucking gone.  [Oh, and I replaced a period with a question mark at the end of one sentence above.]  So, I guess I wanted to say, "those guys promised me that when they made me move my crap.  There, fixed!)  Otherwise, my crap is beyond my reach and now goddamn lawyers might have to sue in order for me to rescue my bags.

Just what in the hell is going on?

So That's The Way It's Gonna Be, Boss?

So today, near the end of work, I spoke to my boss, who was moving boxes, about where I was supposed to be tomorrow.  I am training right now, but last Friday I had to go back to my original department because the guy who was training me had last Friday off.  I did not know that, so I was at the new department before my boss replied to my e-mail and said to go back.

That was the scenario I wanted to avoid when I spoke to him today.  But he seemed surprised by me asking.  "So, he will not be working tomorrow?" he said.  "No, he will be working," to which he replied, "Well, yeah," but he may as well have been saying, "No shit -- why the hell are you telling me this?"  Sorry, I just wanted to avoid a repeat of last week, you know?  Besides, you didn't know if he was going to be working tomorrow, right?

Later, he came back to my department and told me I made a mistake -- something about imaging forms to the wrong category.  I did my best to make up for my mistake, especially by finding the forms so I can scan them to the right category.  But when I said, "Sorry," he didn't acknowledge me -- he just started talking to someone else.  Hey, dude, I'm trying to apologize to you.  Do you give a shit?

Not impressed by him, to say the least.

Linin' Up My Hoes

OK, my dick has gotten super hard and so ready to cum in the past few days because I have lined up sexy time with not one but two babes over the next few days.  I have not fucked around with either ****e or ****e in a while.  But with the money rolling in and me finally feeling good about my health (the coughing is still there, just not as bad as it has been), I have gotten my groove back ... and I'm ready to rock out with my cock out!

I'm looking forward to tomorrow, when I ****e sucks my dick.  I just happened to see her at My Favorite Stripclub (Non-Cover Edition) last (Wednesday) night and I arranged for me to take her to the party.  I now have a fantasy of showing up at her place early, then asking if the shit I want her to do to me at the party we can do in her bedroom instead.  It'd save me a fee!  Regardless, ****e is ready to fuckin' put out, and I (hopefully) will be ready to respond with my jizz!

Then, assuming she calls back, I'll drive a long way on Sunday, a football day, to mess around with ****e.  She is now the only woman in my life who'll let me rawdog her.  And I'm ready to slide my dick into her vagina and copulate the way God intended.  And hey, maybe she'll cook me lunch before we fuck.  And double hey, since it's the weekend, maybe she'll let me stay over for the night!

I don't care that I'm spending money.  I have enough where I can fuck!

Don't Fuck Me Like This, Storage Dude!

Got a late fee charge from the storage place last night.  How in the hell?  These are the same guys who made me move my shit into another place over Easter ... and gave me a free month.  And this is on top of me paying for a year.  I should be good through March, and yet I've been told I'm late?!

Man, I don't need this shit right now.

Micro-Aggression?

OK, so I'm starting to get what the other people in this department are saying when talking about the guy who's training me.  I think.  Today he sort-of ripped a paper out of my hands, and I think I got a paper cut.  Is it micro-aggression?  Nervousness?  I think it's an accident, and throughout it all (and the whole day) he was kind and docile.  But there are other behaviors that tell you about a person, and ... yeah, I didn't need that, let's just say.

The Weekly Minnesota Sports Survey

Positive Numbers: Gopher soccer (Last Week: Positive Numbers).  Whatever happens from here on out, I believe that the University of Minnesota women's soccer team is currently the most unheralded story going on in Twin Cities sports.  For the first time in program history, the Golden Gophers won an NCAA women's soccer tournament game on the road.  Friday they walked onto the AU Soccer Complex and beat Auburn, 2-0, on Goals by Emily Peterson (in the 61st Minute) and Megan Gray (80'), both off Set Pieces (Free Kick for the former, Corner Kick for the latter).  I was happy that this squad ran the table and won the Big Ten Tournament when that was the only way to get into the NCAAs.  And now they've won a game?  Cool!

This weekend they go to Los Angeles.  Friday at 9:30 p.m. they visit UCLA, which is one of the four #2 seeds.  They somehow survive that, they face either Santa Clara (one of four #3 seeds) or N.C. St. Sunday night.  But really, they could get throttled by the Bruins and this season is already a roaring success.  Good luck to the Gophers!

#0: Gopher volleyball (Last Week: 0).  And we still need to give dap to the volleyball club, who remain perfect in the B1G after sweeping Indiana and Purdue at Maturi over the weekend.  But now comes the hard part standing in the way of conference perfection.  The home schedule is over; the team now plays the final four games of the regular season on the road, starting with a Maryland-Ohio St. back-to-back this weekend.

#-1: Gopher football (Last Week: -6).  OK, now this is a pleasant surprise ... although the fanbase has been starving for progress like this in P. J. Fleck's second year.  Hosting a Purdue squad that frogstomped Ohio St. and has a Head Coach who now seems ticketed to go back to his alma mater of Louisville (Jeff Brohm), the Golden Gophers controlled the game from second 1 on Saturday and coasted to a 41-10 rout of the Boilermakers.  It's kind of inexplicable how it happened.  But it happened, and it should have happened, and now these guys have the same record as my alma mater.

Now, the goal is bowl eligibility.  Unfortunately, neither of the team's last two games are winnable.  Saturday they host Northwestern, which has already sewn up the Big Ten West.

#-2: Gopher women's basketball (Re-Entry!).  I was at Lindsay Whalen's first game as Head Coach.  Frankly, they went overboard with all the hype.  The HC was more of a focus than the players -- which might make sense, but in another way, it shouldn't be that way.

For most of Friday's game versus New Hampshire I was looking at Whalen, just because.  She has this tic of straightening her hair.  Many times Assistant Coach Danielle O'Banion climbed onto the Williams Arena floor to talk to Whalen about something -- which might make sense, since Whalen is a new Head Coach while O'Banion has been an HC (at Kent St. from 2012 to 2016).  And one time during a media timeout huddle, Minnesota set up their stools too close to one of those free-throw shooting contests the arena runs, and the whole team had to get up and re-huddle closer to the sideline.

But other than those peculiarities that don't really amount to much, all was well and good.  The U. rebounded well, and led by Kenisha Bell, the Gophers ran away from the Wildcats, 70-47.  Not a bad start.  Now comes the hard part: The first road game of Whalen's career, at Xavier Wednesday.  Then then host San Diego at The Barn Saturday night.

#-3: Gopher men's basketball (Re-Entry!).  It is a make-or-break year for Richard Pitino.  Remember that the hype was on for Minnesota last year; they were even placed in the preseason Top 25.  And they responded with such a devastating flame-out that they refused a spot in the NIT.  At least they have some dignity there.

Most of the entire outfit is back, including Eric Curry, who missed the whole season and was considered one of the main reasons the Goofers underachieved.  And yet, even with a veteran-laden squad, they are picked to finish in the middle of the B1G, with only flickering hopes of The Big Dance.  Anything less than that, and Pitino goes from the hot seat to the unemployment line.  Sure, the year began on the right foot, beating Nebraska-Omaha at Williams Tuesday, 104-76.  But I think a better barometer for what this team is made of comes tonight (Monday night) vs. Utah, a game I will be going to in a few hours.  After that, the U. begins the Vancouver Showcase (whatever that is) with a game Sunday night against Texas A&M.

#-4: Wild (Last Week: -3).  Overall, this was a superlative week for Twin Cities sports.  The Wild are the first team on the WMNSS to have lost this screening week, and even then, with a 4-3 loss in San Jose, they responded with victories at Los Angeles, Anaheim (those two coming back-to-back), and St. Louis -- all on the road.  That gives the club 24 Points, which is second-best in the Central Division and Western Conference (behind Nashville), and third-best in the NHL (behind the Predators and Tampa Bay).  Can they keep this up?  This week they host Washington, Vancouver and Buffalo every other day; the Sabres matchup Saturday is followed by a roadie against Chicago Sunday.

#-5: Gopher men's hockey (Last Week: -5).  You win some, you lose some.  The club split a two-fer at Wisconsin, beating the Badgers Friday 3-2, then losing to them Saturday, 3-1.  They host a two-game series vs. St. Lawrence (now that's an exotic squad that doesn't come up here often) this weekend.

#-Infinity: Timberwolves (Last Week: -4).  How in the fuck Tom Thibodeau fucked this up astounds me.  He eschewed the by far best trade possible, to Houston for four first-round picks, and instead sent Jimmy Butler to the Philadelphia 76ers for two role players, an expiring contract, and a second-round pick.  Thibs doesn't even get one fucking first-round pick out of this.  I don't understand how in the hell Owner Glen Taylor hasn't fired Tom Thibodeau already.

Do I even need to list why this was such a self-own?  I don't care that the Houston Rockets are a NBA championship contender.  The four first-round picks would come next year and then every other year through 2025.  (By NBA bylaw, a team cannot trade first-rounders in consecutive years, and a team cannot trade any picks beyond seven years.  The Rockets literally gave the Woofie Dogs as many first-round picks as they were allowed to.)  A lot can happen in seven years.  The Rockets could turn to shit by 2025, even if Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey set some protections for those last two picks.  Besides, first-round picks are assets.  A General Manager, or at least one more competent than Thibs, could flip first-rounders if need be for Timberwolves needs as they arise.  Just get the fucking picks!

Instead, we get Robert Covington and Dario Saric.  Perfect Thibs people -- defend well, and can shoot the three, which this franchise still sorely need.  (Oh, and the expiring contract belongs to Jerryd Bayless; there is a lot of talk that Bayless will be cut for money reasons.)  But this is not the haul you get for a consensus Top 20 pick (as well as Justin Patton).  Covington and Saric are pieces that will complement Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins, and that leaves a problem that remains even with Butler and his bullying gone.  Because it turns out that the Timberwolves' two #1 draft picks, Wiggins and Towns, are talents that don't give a shit about winning.  This franchise had no choice but to go all-in on these two players, but unfortunately it feels as though these guys are not worth the contracts they signed.  So Covington and Saric are going to be satellite pieces that are going to be led by two players who don't want to lead.  And that's another reason why you collect first-round picks.  Maybe Wiggins and Towns aren't the answer, and this organization has to -- my God, I can't believe I'm saying this -- start over again with yet another #1 overall picks.  But with no first-round picks coming back in the Butler trade, that is impossible.

You want to know why Thibs turned down the Rockets' offer?  He didn't want to trade Butler to a Western Conference rival.  What the fuck makes him think the Timberwolves are actually a rival to the Houston Rockets?  I think Thibs wanted to trade Butler to the Sixers because he thought the two d-men who he got are the best players that will help him win now -- even though it's obvious, at least to me, that this is not a playoff team.

My God, this fucking franchise could not have bungled up this trade saga worse than they have.  And that is why they get a midseason #-Infinity.  Well, that and the fact that they went 0-3 in California this screening week, extended a losing streak to five.  At least they'll be home for the next five, including games vs. Brooklyn, New Orleans, Portland and Memphis this week.

I'm Going To Get Into Trouble For Saying This, But. ...

OK, so I follow a bunch of hot models on Facebook, right?  Well, I came by a status update today (Sunday) from one of them relaying a cold call she got.  Apparently the man on the other end of the line was kind of stuttering and hesitant, but eventually he got the courage to say that, and I think I'm quoting, "I pleasure myself to nude photos of you."

And she objected to it -- both the call and the concept.  "If you do jerk off to me nude," I'm paraphrasing her as saying, "Don't tell me, because it's creepy and weird."  And to that I say: What do you expect?  Is it creepy and weird?  Eh ... I don't think so.  That's why I look at nude photos of you and others.  You really think men look at those types of photos just for their artistic quality lol.

OK, so the guy cold-call her out of the blue.  That's weird.  But frankly, I've had that urge.  And she should not be surprised at all by the sentiment.  'Cause that's what I do.  And I'm certain most other male admirers do the same thing I do.

Hope I don't catch hell for this.

Addendum To: Fuckin' Furnace Leaked Again Last Night

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Furnace Fuckin' Leaked Again Last Night

But I think I know why.  I mean, it shouldn't happen, but I think I now know when it happens.

So the humidifier has seven different settings.  It has always been set on "4," the normal setting.  But looking at the instructions and knowing how cold it is outside, there is a recommended level of humidity for the house, and to do that, yesterday I raised it to "5," meaning more moisture in the air.

I don't remember how long I left it at that setting.  But something told me to check, and once I got down to the furnace, yep, the hose was dripping and/or leaking water.  I had the good sense to put the mop bucket underneath the hose, but the hose is flush against the furnace, and the lip of the bucket is flat, plus the shape of the bucket meant that a lot of the water reached the floor.  It didn't swamp the entire basement, thank goodness, and the Shamwow soaked up some of the water and, well, time evaporated the water in the bucket.  But there was a lot more water than I thought, and I don't think I left the furnace for that long.

However, I think that the first time it happened it happened with the humidifier set on "5."  So, even though I turned off the heater before I went to work today (came back and it was 55 degrees -- yikes!), I feel good that water leaks only when I set the humidifier at something past "4."  I don't know if it's ideal for the house or for my sinuses, keeping at a "normal" setting.  But I'll take a dry cough -- and warmth -- over dealing with a fucking water leak.

Turns Out No One Likes The Guy Training Me This Week

So this week I switched to a new dimension to my job.  For what I've seen so far, I like it, a lot.  There doesn't seem to be a deadline where I have to get the work done, so there's no stress there.  What does go on there seems to be up my alley; I don't feel as lost as I do in my first skill set, and I think I have most of the gist of it down.  Finally (and this most certainly could change), I like everybody in the department.  They are so nice, and they're willing to help, and that's including the guy who is training me.

That last sentiment isn't shared, however.  Today, I didn't know which department I would be working in because the guy wasn't there to train me.  But I just sauntered into the new department and started working.  (Turns out I should have gone back to my old department first thing in the morning.  E-mailed my supervisor, and an hour into the day he told me to get out of there.  That is an echo to Tuesday, where I started out at my old department when I should have directly went into my new department first thing.)  As the others started rolling in, late because of the first dusting of snow of the season (there are no worse drivers than Minnesotans after the first snow of the season), they started telling me how the guy who's training me ... uh, could be better at his job.  One of them complains that he doesn't tell the other people about things they might want to know, such as me coming into training starting this week.  Also, one of them overheard him saying to me, "I told you this yesterday ..." and taking deep umbrage at his tone.  I didn't really mind it; the supervisor from my previous skill set pulled that line on me twice.  But maybe I've just shielded myself to it, and that I maybe should listen to the woman who thought he went over the line.

OK, so the other people in the dept. thinks he's kind of a dope.  I have no beef with him.  And yet -- this is something worth keeping in mind.

My Reservoir Of Snot

So as of this afternoon the amoxicilin/potassium clavunalate is gone.  So, I'm assuming my sinus infection is completely done with, and yet I still feel quite miserable.

I'm waking up in the middle of the night coughing like the dickens.  That's because my body believes there's so much mucus building up that if I don't cough, I'll suffocate.  Well, where does that mucus come from?  Since my birth, I've been a snot factory.  No two ways about it.

But I'll just throw this out there.  Once, long ago, my dentist at the time took x-rays of not only my teeth but the surrounding area.  And, assuming I'm not mis-remembering this, he noticed a mass right around one of my nostrils -- probably my left one, because that's the one that usually produces the most snot.  If I recall correctly, he said that that mass is producing mucus/snot ... and that it can be removed.  If that's correct, and if I get this procedure, does this mean that I won't produce any more snot?  At the very least will I finally be rid of episodes like this, where I'm literally choking myself awake?

It seems so far-fetched that if I tell my doctor, I'm afraid he'll laugh me out of the room.  But geez, I generate so much of this crap that there has to be some reservoir of snot that is producing this mucus like it's wartime.  Maybe I should look into this.

A Good Night's Sleep -- What's That?

Woke up violently to coughing again this morning, around 3:30.  NyQuil put me back under, but only for a couple hours because I have fucking farmer hours for work.

I have not had a decent night's sleep in a month.  At least.  Cannot believe it.

Off to fucking work I go.

Hottest Babe In The Hooters Calendar: October

Overall, the dozen babes for this month are as mashing lot.

First of all, a word for the main girl, Hailey Slobodzian of Ft. Myers.  She's got a body, I know it.  Unfortunately, it's underneath a black full one-piece, so it shows nothing.  However, and I mean this, the sexiest part about her ... is her last name.  Not that "Slobodzian" is a sexy last name.  But she did not change it.  It's her real name, and she's using it to model, and I admire the hell out of that.

One of the girls who was there for the signing signed for this month: Kiffanie (weird name) out of Lone Tree, Colo.  She wrote down "I can't wait to be pinned against your wall!"  Why is that Kiff?  You like it hard?  You wanna be fucked rough, you slut, you?  No?  It's just a saying?  Yeah, I knew that.  She's sexy, but the pun kind of kills it for me.

I will point out two other girls.  One is Laiken, from Douglasville, Ga., and I know that this year she was crowned Miss Hooters International and thus will be on the cover of the 2019 calendar.  Good for her.  Sadly, her photo has her left arm crossed in front of her, and I hate that because it conceals too much.  Also, a Brittney from Spring Hill, Fla. is posing with a watermelon.  Why are you posing with a watermelon?

So the runner-up is Kylie, from San Marcos, Calif.  The blonde is wearing an orange two-piece, but the top has a collar.  Seeing her big tits, it makes me think she needs that collar to support her gigantic breasts!  But the winner for the month is Victoria, from Castleton, Ind.  A black two-piece on, but the best thing about this blonde is her girl next door look.  She doesn't seem to be a model, but her smile makes her think she's just a regular, accessible cutie.  So the winner is Victoria!

Now I can masturbate to this page and flip it to November, a week late.