Pressure At Work --> Eating (Out Of Order) At Home

So I just ate a slice of turkey and colby jack cheese even though I ate a cookie and part of a brownie a couple hours before then.  I have a rule whereby if I have dessert, I eat no other food that night.  Dessert is the last thing you eat, so you don't eat anything else after that, right?

Well, I did, partly because I realized I bought more food than I can finish before my parents come home, and partly because work is still stressing me the fuck out.  I am absolutely convinced now that The Third Department is a two-person department, and firing one and letting the other retire without filling her position full-time has become a mistake because I worked back there, by myself, for another ten hours yesterday/Thursday and, once again, I still did not get everything done.  In fact, I think I left more work (for myself; I'm there again today/Friday) than I have ever before.  It's a combination of heavy work that came in late and one particular test that I swear took 45 minutes and talking to four other people, one of them three times, to finally figure out.  Tedious problems like that take time, and frankly, I don't have a lot working in The Third Department to spare.

What makes this day worse is I kind of told my boss about the workload I was facing.  He was about to leave, and as he normally does, he asks all of us how we're doing.  My thinking was there was no hiding or sugarcoating all the work that was still coming in.  I think he knows this and is at least tolerant about this; otherwise, he would be on my case for working overtime so often.  The problem this time around is that he asked me, semi-point blank, "How late (do you think you're staying)?"  I hesitated; part of me was really frustrated throughout the whole day (seriously, one comment that I decided to take wrong and I would have exploded -- that's how bad my day turned out to be) and wanted to let him know that, the other part wanted to keep my head down because my cover would have been blown, in a way, and then I would lose all the OT holding in all this frustration is for.  Luckily (?), my co-worker immediately asked him a question and he gave her his attention, and once he answered her, he left for the day.

I am afraid, then, that he will remember that he asked me how long I was staying yesterday/Thursday when he reviews my timesheet.  He then might start to impose time restrictions for me to prevent me from taking any more overtime.  That day is coming anyway, but like I said, I am holding my temper in just because of all the OT I'm racking up, so I want to do (or not do) all I can to not jeopardize the gravy train before I have to get off.  At the very least I am going to receive more scrutiny from my supervisor -- I will come in in the morning and she'll say, "Do this and I'll do that," and I don't how I will feel from such a direct order.  Maybe I'll be relieved to finally have some direction.  Or, maybe this is the start of being reined in to just eight hours of work per day.

So that's what awaits me today/Friday.  At least I will face it with a full stomach, even though I ate stuff after dessert

On Procrastinating Drinking And Potentially Overthinking

I might be a manic person, because after a couple hours of surfing the Internet, looking at porn and touching myself, I'm finally getting around to making and drinking the Long Island iced tea that I should have drank at least around 10 p.m., not just before I am supposed to go to bed.  In the meantime, I'm thinking about my ATF, ******a, who texted me, "Busy tonight?" when 1) yes, I was busy tonight volunteering and 2) I thought I told her that I could see her at My Favorite Stripclub (Cover Edition) next week, not this week, and now I'm scared that I gave her tone when I told her no, I can't see her last/Wednesday night because she didn't text back with hearts or a kissing emoji like she used to.  Dammit, did I piss her off?  See, this is why I can't have relationships: I'll stick my foot in my mouth, she'll get angry, I'll rack my brain figuring out what I did wrong, and I'll conclude that the relationship is ruined beyond repair.  And this is why I go to stripclubs.

In the meantime, I have chores to do for tomorrow.  I need to pay the city the water and sewer bill.  I have to label the gas station-brand coffee creamer I bought after the post-volunteer dinner.  I need to make a sandwich for myself for work, opening up this special non-preserved loaf of bread that needs to be eaten in five days or else.  And finally, I need to make sure I pack an MNUFC jersey in my bag because I'm going to a Loons-themed concert at First Avenue tonight/Thursday night.

And I'm doing all this to while listening to Tommy Richman's "Million Dollar Baby" on a loop.  Not gonna lie, I love this song, and I've loved it ever since I heard it on that Wingstop commercial.  Since it clocks in at less than three minutes it's barely a song, but goddamn is it catchy!  Do you know there are YouTube videos of this song being played on a loop?  I'm listening to one where it's been recorded on repeat for up to an hour.  I wish the ending and beginning was more seamless, but no matter -- I am pushing through these tasks while listening to this earworm.

The Weekly Minnesota Sports Survey

#0: Gopher men's hockey (Last Week: -2).  Against a really good top-ten-ranked Ohio St. outfit at Mariucci, the Golden Gophers swept over the weekend by scores of 4-1 and 6-3.  The U. was ranked fifth in at least one poll, so this was an even matchup on paper.  That they were able to pull off a pair of three-Goal Wins augurs well for this team.  Oh, and they rocketed up from fifth to second in this Week's USCHO.com poll.  Yeah, that deserves above negative numbers.

They finish the regular season this weekend at Penn St., a club that, at least when it comes to the PairWise, is still out of the NCAA Tournament but has won nine out of their past 13 Games.  They just swept the top team in the Big Ten, Michigan St. (even though one was won in a Shootout) in East Lansing.  Again, Minnesota's in the tournament, but if the Nittany Lions are playing as if their tourney lives depend on it -- and they do -- the Gophs will end the regular season on a sour note.

#-1: Gopher women's basketball (Last Week: -7).  Finally did on Wednesday they didn't do the previous screening Week: Beat beatable teams.  In their only Game of the Week, they drubbed Purdue in West Lafayette, Ind., by a baker's dozen (74-61).  Charlie Creme still has this team in the "real" Big Dance, but will that change now that the U. (and women's basketball) has reached the end of its season?  The Gophers host Washington tonight/Wednesday night, then travel to ranked Michigan St. Saturday afternoon.

#-2: Gopher women's hockey (Last Week: -6).  Finally, the regular season is done.  And they finished it by sweeping Minnesota-Duluth at Ridder over the weekend, even though they were both one-Goal affairs (3-2 Friday, 1-0 Saturday).  And so the pairings for the WCHA Tournament (the final one to take place at a neutral site, namely at the X) are finally set, and the U. hosts Minnesota State-Mankato this weekend in a best two-out-of-three.

#-3: Gopher softball (Last Week: -5).  Could be worse ... went 3-2 in the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in Cathedral City, Calif.  Getting blanked by Duke (albeit 2-0) and Mercy Ruled by Tennessee (9-1 after five Innings) isn't good, but victories over Fresno St., Missouri and Long Beach State kind of make up for that.

They now finally come home -- albeit at the Vikings stadium -- to host their own softball tournament, The Gopher Indoor Classic, this weekend.  They will play North Dakota St. twice and Wagner, Miami (OH) and St. Thomas once.

#-4: Timberwolves (Last Week: -1).  Picked up off the All-Star Break by losing at Houston by six, then getting outclassed by The Bastard Seattle SuperSonics at home by seven.  But, and I have to give them credit here, on Monday, almost one full day after they played and lost at home, they flew down to Oklahoma City and, despite between down by as many as 25 Points in the Third Quarter, the Wolves scored the last 16 Points in regulation to force Overtime, where they continued to show their stick-to-itiveness in winning, 130-123.  It ties the Minnesota Timberwolves record for greatest comeback victory ever, and it is the first time in NBA history that a team was down by that many Points (which, to emphasize, was 16) with four Minutes left in the Fourth Quarter and win -- and this was against The Best Team In The Western Conference.

What was so striking about that tilt was Chris Finch's reliance on the youngsters, namely Jaylen Clark (who started that Game against The Bastard SuperSonics), Terrence Shannon, Jr., and Rob Dillingham.  They acquitted themselves quite well in this victory, which was not assured after Rudy Gobert sat out again because of his back spasms and Anthony Edwards sat out much of the Fourth-Quarter comeback because of his hamstring.  At the very least, the squad now has solid proof they can win against anybody no matter how dire the situation is.  Better case: The young pups now understand how to win in the NBA, and so they'll provide the injection of freshness that, combined with the experience of the rest of the team, might, just might, put them over the top.

They finish their four-Game road trip at The Team That Was Stolen From Us v.1.0, then The Bastard New Orleans Jazz (on back-to-back nights), then Phoenix.  They are home for just one contest, on Tuesday versus Philadelphia.

#-5: Gopher baseball (Last Week: -3).  Lost two-of-three in the Karbach Round Rock Classic in Round Rock, Tex.  Dropped close Games to Oklahoma (3-2 Friday afternoon) and second-ranked Virginia (4-2 Saturday afternoon).  But, on Sunday afternoon, they upset seventh-ranked Oregon St. going away, 10-4.  I don't know if this is a foundation block, but you get your Wins whenever you can get them.

A three-Game set at Arizona St., then they finally open up the home portion of their schedule facing Wisconsin-Milwaukee at U. S. Bank Stadium Tuesday.

#-6: Wild (Re-Entry!).  Got back from their 4 Nations Faceoff Break (inspired tournament idea, by the way, so grudging respect is given to National Hockey League Commissioner Gary Bettman) by splitting a home-and-home series versus The Detroit Red Wings where the road team won.  They still have the seventh-best record in the National Hockey League (even though it's a tie).  But they need to continue to remain resilient as Kirill Kaprizov and Joel Eriksson Ek continue to nurse injuries.

However, they are this low because of fuckin' Bill Guerin, who served as General Manager for Team USA for the 4 Nations.  He wanted to court the attention of the orange asshole currently installed in the White House.  Guerin praised the president for adding a "political flair" for the two 4 Nations Games between the U. S. and Canada, and I am fucking astounded that yet another person, without any prompting, just kissed that corrupt traitor's ass because he wanted his goddamn attention.  Everything Trump touches dies, as you saw when Canada beat Team USA in the 4 Nations Final.  Also, the Red Wings scored three Goals in last/Tuesday night's tilt after the Wild went up on them 2-0.  So if this squad spirals out of playoff contention, blame Guerin for his unnecessary and grotesque fellating.

Busy Week -- at Utah and Colorado (two places that stole their hockey clubs) back-to-back, then hosting Boston, then going out to Seattle.

#-7: United FC (New Season!!).  So, for the second time in ... uh, I want to say four seasons, the Loons serve as visitors for the kick-off Match for the Major League Soccer season, this time visiting LAFC, or Laugh-See.  And they lost, 1-0, on a shot by Jeremy Ebobisse, the journeyman Striker who was available for MNUFC's first-ever Draft (as well as everyone else; United FC had the #1 pick in that SuperDraft).  I'm not saying this is the soccer version of the Timberwolves passing up Steph Curry not once but twice to select Ricky Rubio and Johnny Flynn, but you can see the similarities.  Anyway, the Goal was a cross-post once from just outside one corner of the box.  The defender, and I don't know who it is, should have stepped up to block the shot, or least disrupt his timing.  The thing I can't get over is Ebobisse launched into the kick by pulling back his kicking leg really far behind him.  At that point, it's like a snake hissing before it bites.  And you see kick attempts like this all the time, so why not step up once a player rears back with his leg?

So the sky isn't falling, but the Loons took the L.  There are some prognosticators who are pretty bullish on United FC making some noise in the postseason.  We'll see.  In the meantime, they have their home opener Saturday night vs. Montreal.  I, of course, will be there.

#-8: Gopher men's basketball (Last Week: 0).  I really thought their sweep of both Los Angeles schools in L. A. would be the booster for the rocket ship that is this program for the rest of the Year.  After all, they had two middling teams, Penn St. and Northwestern, to play this screening Week, and both were playing at The Barn.  And yet, goddamn, the Goofers lost both Games, by nine to the Nittany Lions and by a dozen to Northwestern.  There's no getting this team, just none.

Thankfully there's only one tilt this Week, but it is at Nebraska.

Addendum To: Making The Pieces Fit

Well, all my inveighing last night is all for naught due to two things.  One, I was reminded that the financial advisor for one of my accounts is hosting a meal-packing event very close to where I live.  I have very few issues with the way my account is going right now, but he has been my financial advisor for a while and I have never met him.  He works closer to 394, so as long as he's up near my neck of the woods, and I can see him before the 'Rents come home, and there are a couple things I can talk to him about my account face-to-face, and I decided that I should stay awake tomorrow/Wednesday evening and volunteer.

The other thing is The State Of The Union Address.  I forgot that that motherfucker gets to have one out of the bat even though he was officially installed just over a month ago (it might not technically be called his State of the Union address, but it doesn't matter, he's getting a platform).  Yes, I hate him enough that I don't want to be even near a TV when he's vomiting his lies through his fat lips.  So I am making a point of seeing a movie, probably Captain America: Brave New World, right during the SOTU address.  So a quiet night is out the window on that night, too.

I have fun things I want to do before they come home, but I need a couple slow weeknights, too, just so I can start cleaning up at home and just because I need the break.  But as you can see above, I have my reasons not to do so.  That means that I will have no time to myself to get the house ready unless I take the weekends to do it.  And that might be my only recourse now.

Making The Pieces Fit

First of all, in an addendum to my previous blog post, I am going to compromise and come in at 7.  I really don't want to report to work at 6:30, but since my call time tomorrow/Tuesday and Wednesday is 7, I guess I wake up at 6 for a third straight day.

Assuming I am not explicitly allowed to stay for more than ten hours -- and I don't know if I would want to anyway -- I am leaving at 5:30.  That gives me plenty of time to go downtown for a massage I think I want to get before my parents come home.  Through much of yesterday/Sunday, I was trying to see if I should get a massage tonight/Monday night or next week.  It is one of half a dozen things (I wrote it down in my day planner) that I want to do before they come home.  I want to do three of them this week and three next, just so I have plenty of down time/quiet nights at home/nights where I can begin throwing my stuff back into boxes to put them back in storage.

Which things to do and when has become like solving a puzzle.  There are a lot of restrictions I have place on myself because of my OCD.  For example, beyond the 3-and-3 thing, I had a rule where I won't go downtown more than once a workweek.  That's been thrown out the window because there's a chance that I will be going to the Timberwolves Game next week.  If that's the case, and I still want to get a massage, I'll have to go downtown twice this week because I'm going to a concert at First Ave. on Thursday.  Oh, I should go back ... I could have gotten a massage from a place closer to home, but there is no female masseuses working Monday evenings, at least not apparently.  And I can't fit in a massage any day the next two weeks other than Mondays, so even though this place downtown is more expensive, I think my body is worth it, so I'm getting one tonight/Monday night.

Oh, another thing ... there might be a stripper awards party -- yeah, I know, right? -- next Monday night I will go to.  One of my ATFs, *****a, is one of the organizers, and I would like to see her.  But you have to dress up, and the ticket is kind of expensive, so I don't know if I want to go.  If I don't, I will eat at a fancy place downtown -- which is one of the half-dozen things I want to do before my parents come back home.  So you see how I'm trying to make all these things fit, and how it could drive one crazy?

Oh, one final thing -- I have to go to bed now.

Sorry, I Can't ... Or Can I?

It is nice to be thanked by your boss for coming in to do overtime.  You like to be liked, and I think that's a condition all humans (at least the ones who aren't dead inside) share.  But we are still behind, and I think way behind, in catching up on work.  Therefore, overtime has been authorized tomorrow/Monday.  We can all come in as soon as 6:30 to enter data.  Before we went yesterday/Saturday, he specifically reminded me that I could come in that early.

Well, I am in The Third Department tomorrow/Monday.  That's already a shitshow in which I have regularly worked ten hours, and that's before last week's storm that has messed everything up.  Back there, we get the forms that come in through these flights.  So, if they are playing catch-up starting tomorrow morning, and they seek to completely catch up tomorrow/Monday, that means that I will be saddled with stuff in The Third Department later that day.  I do no look forward to coming in early, then seeing in fact more work piled upon the work that's already there.  Working ten hours is assured even before getting this OT that's offered in My Main Department.  And, even though I like the money and I think the work would be appreciated, I do not want to work more than ten hours.  Finally, this means waking up very, very early on a Monday.  I am working in My Main Department Tuesday and Wednesday, too, so I could be pulling farmers' hours for three straight days, and I hate that.

I could say that the possibility that I will be leaving work in The Third Department even if I do my regular hours and stay two hours beyond that is very, very high, too.  I did that on Friday, and even though I felt like garbage leaving, I had no choice, and I might not have much of a choice tomorrow/Monday, either.  So why not leave at 5?  I'm not working back there Tuesday.  But ... man, I don't know.  I really don't want to.  But I might anyway.  My boss will appreciate me.  Again, who wouldn't want your boss to like you?

Runnin' On Empty

No, I do not regret pulling ten hours of work yesterday/Saturday and instead rolling in after watching the EPL in downtown Minneapolis.  I was treated very well, I ate quite well, I had a Bloody Mary for the first time in a long time and it was delish, and, most important of all, I stationed myself at a table where I could see both Matches that were put up in the two TVs in the main room, Arsenal 0-1 West Ham (to my left) and Ipswich Town 1-4 Tottenham Hotspur (to my right).  Drilling down specifically on that point, I was also able to catch all six Goals that went in between the two Games.  I didn't miss one because I was looking down at the breakfast poutine I ordered for myself, to give an example.  Missing a Goal because I wasn't actively looking at the TV at the time a goal went is one of those pet peeves that piss me off, so I'm glad that did not happen this time around.  In fact, seeing the Goals as they went in makes me feel as though I made the right decision to watch soccer in the morning.

Got done at work (well, with all the work that was sent out to us; there is still a lot of work to catch up on, but there weren't enough people to get through all the late work, so I think the supervisor in there called it a day like any normal day) a bit past 4:30.  I thought we would be staying late.  But, since we didn't, I got to veg at Northern Soda Company, which is less than five minutes from work.  I had one of their craft sodas and slushie, and trust me, I am so sugared out that I should be drinking tea.  That didn't stop me from eating a fritter just now to end my day, but yeah, I am not the sugar-high addict I was when I was a childhood.  I feel as though I need to have my foot amputated.

Anyway, I was able to get home and stay awake, even though I am tired as all get out.  I can feel myself crashing, however, so before something bad happens, I want to publish this blog post, brush my teeth, then fall asleep.  If my gas tank isn't empty, I am certainly running on fumes.

Work Sucks Right Now, In So Many Ways

Before I rant and feel sorry for myself, I want to say that I am grateful for the overtime I'm getting.  The money is worth the grief.

Well, at least I say that now.  While I was working yesterday/Friday, it sure as fuck didn't feel that way.  The Third Department is utter fucking chaos now.  It didn't help that all the work that got stuck down South Wednesday finally reached us.  The work that came for me ... I don't know if I have ever left so much work for my co-worker, who is doing The Third Department today/Saturday.  I apologized to her before I left work.  I stayed an extra two hours, like I usually do.  I could've stayed till nine o'clock and not gotten everything done.  Seriously.

There are so many things to keep apprised up in that particular position that I am constantly bombarded with things that crop up which I need to immediately address.  Toward the end of my day (which, because it ran so long, became my night), I saw something that essentially became a "STAT" thing that I had to drop everything to do, and I know I let out a "Fuck!" that I meant as a whisper but was probably loud enough for everybody in the room to hear.  It was that frustrating a day.

It didn't help that I screwed up, which I did right before I saw this "STAT" thing I just had to do.  I basically signed off on, like, a dozen reports that I should not have signed off on.  And so I had to go through each report and fix my mistake.  I had a shit ton to do already, and I didn't need to make it harder on myself by fucking up like I did.  But I realized that I made this mistake because I was not doing these reports every day, and that makes me susceptible to forgetting a process of, say, doing a report.  I see now how hard it is to step into work someone else started.  I can't just apply my training at any point in a particular process.  If I didn't start it, I am likely to screw it up.  And in a job where I hop from position to position, that will mess me up, man.

Aside, and I need to make this vague because, frankly, this may blow up into a shitshow: I may have made a mistake, but I sure as fuck don't like her tone.  There were so many other ways to tell me via e-mail to stop.  And by the way, the mistake started with the person not writing down the date.  What condescending bullshit.  And if she decides to take it up with my supervisor or boss, man, I could be in deep trouble.

With all my venting here, I'm going back to work today/Saturday to help out.  They're still behind, so much so that they might bring in people for Monday.  But goddammit, I'd rather this have happened last weekend, or next weekend.  'Cause this weekend was the only Saturday over at least the next month where I could watch EPL downtown, something I haven't done yet this season.  The combination of Matches kicking off at 9 this/Saturday morning doesn't involve any team that would take over the pub I want to go to, and I can't say that for any day until at least April.  But then this opportunity of working ten hours again has to come up this fucking Saturday.  I could decide to work a full day, but I have decided not to.  One, I really was looking forward to watching soccer, and work like this won't change my mind.  Also, I have pulled ten hours several days over the past few weeks, and I was so stressed after leaving work last/Friday night that I am trying to take time for myself.  I'll watch soccer, then go into work for an abbreviated day.  And if that means passing up some money, so be it.  I'm making plenty this time period.

With all that said, this incident from this e-mail may blow up.  There is a non-zero change that I won't have a job by the time today/Saturday ends.  Just a head's-up.

I've Now Got (Less Than) Three Weeks Left Of Freedom

OK, time to drop the other shoe: My parents are coming home in three weeks.  A blindside if there ever was one.  I really, really thought that since they left for Las Vegas late, they would come home late.  Also, Mother said that they'd be returning in the summer, which means that they would have just shifted their half-year away from here later in 2025.

Then again, Mother also did say that they (or at least she; I know Father hates the winter now) have to come back in time for tax season.  Also, even though it seems that March is way too soon for them to come back here, I looked through my Franklin Quests from previous years, and they usually come back in March.  That means that, unless they promptly turn around and head back to Vegas (or go on a lengthy vacation somewhere), they would have spent only three months out of town.  That doesn't seem long for two people who want to winter in warmer weather.

Regardless, I'm under the damn gun now.  All the time I thought (or wished) I had is now a distant memory.  I do have (less than) three weeks, but I have to now think of what stuff can I go through, and how do I pack up all the stuff I want to keep.  And then I have to worry about getting the house cleaned.  It's a thankless burden, trying to get everything tip-top in time for my parents coming back.  I have to worry, but dammit, I don't want to worry about it now.  Just later, please.

Bad Work Avoided

Got some devastating news in the evening, but I will keep that for my next blog post.  This time, though, I want to look towards the light and be grateful.

I was scheduled yesterday/Wednesday at My Main Department at work.  That meant I had to wake up at 5:30 for my start time of 6:30, a full 90 minutes earlier than I usually need to rise.  That sucks in and of itself.  But they're doing some things new in My Main Department, and I was going to be dropped into the middle of these new procedures.  And, well, I wasn't in the mood to figure out what I can't do anymore, where things are now, what I'm responsible for, etc.  Add that I would be tired while I'm figuring this all out because I had farmers' hours, and I was dreading going in to work.

What I did not anticipate, however, was that there would be a storm in the mid-South of the country.  That's where the shipment of forms, also known as our work, comes from.  It apparently blew through late Tuesday and, because they're Southerners who can't overcome winter storms, many of the feeder planes providing the work that would get lumped together into one big shipment that would be flown into MSP were cancelled.  That meant that, by my estimation, a quarter of the work that was expected yesterday didn't come.

The other people in My Main Department told me this just as I was about to turn on my computer.  My supervisor, who I guess started her day earlier, anticipated that there was just no work for all of us (at least to start out the day; what little that did get flown up here was delayed), so she sent out a department-wide e-mail telling me that I would be in filing, at least until the shipment finally came in.

Now, normally I'm not a fan of filing.  But that change actually brightened my mood because I didn't have to do what I feared I was going to do.  And once it became clear that this meager delayed shipment would be the only shipment yesterday, I was in filing for the whole day (at least until I was cut by my boss about a half-hour early), and thus I was spared sludging through whatever new crap I had to learn out in My Main Department.  There were other benefits that I didn't realize.  What I specifically did all day was re-file forms that were taken out of the folder they need to go back into.  That involved a lot of sitting down and getting up -- a lot of energy, in other words, and so I was forced to be alert throughout my day.  That was good; otherwise, I would be battling drowsiness as I typed away (well, whenever I was grumbling under my breath at figuring out what new thing I needed to re-train myself to do), which would have made the day interminable.  Also, all that motion discouraged me from bringing up satellite radio, and lately listening to that pisses me off because I would have naturally gravitated to SiriusXM Progress to learn what new crap President Muskrat has done.  I need to unplug from worrying about democracy once in a while, and this change to filing was an unexpected excuse to break away from it.

So, what was a day at work I expected to hate became one I turned out to like a lot.  You have to find ways to be grateful every day, you know?

The Weekly Minnesota Sports Survey

#0: Gopher men's basketball (Last Week: -4).  This has been an extremely underwhelming past seven sports Days, and that's magnified because the Wolves and six University of Minnesota teams I cover were all playing this Week ... with the Gopher men's basketball team being an impressive exception.  As I type this, they just finished off a Los Angeles sweep, beating both my alma mater and UCLA by three.

I cannot believe they did this.  On Saturday, they trailed by as many as 14 and led for only a total of, if I did the math right, 1:46 (most of it in the back half of the Second Half, but most importantly for the last 13 Seconds of the Game) to win it, 69-66.  And last/Tuesday night, they trailed by as much as 17 (albeit in the First Half) and led for only the last 23 Seconds to defeat the Bruins, 64-61.  They probably aren't going to any postseason tournament, but this might ensure they at least get to the Big Ten Tournament.  And, once again, these past two Games are showing that maybe you can't give up on Ben Johnson.  Very, very remarkable.  And wouldn't you know, this upcoming screening Week brings Penn St. and Northwestern, two beatable squads, to The Barn.  Can these guys go on a winning streak?

#-1: Timberwolves (Last Week: -1).  A shameful Loss followed by a stirring Win on consecutive nights.  On Wednesday the Woofie Dogs lost at home to Milwaukee, who were without their two best players, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, 103-101.  But on Thursday -- a Game I was able to attend -- they were able to pull away in the Fourth Quarter from The Bastard Seattle SuperSonics and beat the top team in the Western Conference, 116-101.  And how they did it was even more astounding, because they were a hurting unit themselves in this one.  Rudy Gobert sat out the Game, so they were playing small for much of the Match, with Naz Reid playing a lot in Center.  The Wolves also played their youngsters a ton: Jaylen Clark started for Stifel Tower, and Rob Dillingham, Terrence Shannon, Jr. and Luka Garza played double-digit Minutes.  And they all played well, and significantly!  Oh, and best of all, Naz had a career night with 27 Points and 14 Rebounds.  He played well on both ends of the floor, and I didn't see that happening against a team that is long, athletic, and was able to hoist a few Alley-Oops.  But that team just ran out of gas, and that helped Minnesota win.  By the way, I had no idea Isaiah bleepin' Hartenstein could be such a factor, but he was -- well, for the other team.

So they reached the All-Star Break (featuring an execrable All-Star Game, by all accounts) seventh in the West, and they gear back up to visit Houston (whom they played at Target Center back on the 6th) on Friday, then play a home-and-home on back-to-back Days (Sunday and Monday) against ... the same Bastard Seattle SuperSonics!  They play here late Sunday night and there Monday night.  You know, when these two teams played Thursday, they faced each other having played the previous night.  At least the Timberwolves didn't have to travel; The Bastard Seattle SuperSonics played (and beat) Miami, then they had to fly from Oklahoma City to here to play.  That seems like a heck of a trip.  That may be a reason why they lost to the Wolves.  And now both teams have to do that -- and play each other for the second and third times in their last four Games.  Kind of think the schedule could be laid out better.

#-2: Gopher men's hockey (Re-Entry!).  Two Losses at Michigan over the weekend.  Well, technically it's an overtime Loss Friday/Valentine's Night and a Shootout Loss Saturday night, but you know, it's two Losses.  The only saving grace to this otherwise disappointing trip is that, at least according to USCHO.com, the Gophers have somehow sewed up a spot in the NCAA Tournament.  But after facing the twelfth-ranked Wolverines on the road, they face sixth-or-seventh-ranked (depending on the poll) Ohio St. for two at home this weekend.  (Gopher fans, take note: Saturday is going to be a very busy sports Day, so build in some time on the way to driving to the area and parking.)

#-3: Gopher baseball (NEW SEASON!!).  Started the season -- one in which they're projected to be below average -- losing a traditional three-Game series in Houston against the Cougars.  They started off the Year trouncing Houston, 14-3, Friday night, but then lost over the next two Days by scores of 4-2 and 8-7.  They're back in the non-conference tournament circuit this weekend: They are in Round Rock, Tex., to participate in the Karbach Round Rock Classic where they will face Oklahoma, Virginia, and Oregon St.  Nice opponents.  But who is Karbach?

#-4: Gopher wrestling (Last Week: Positive Numbers).  Well, after an encouraging run where they won six Duals in a row, they finished the regular season hosting permanent powerhouse (and third-ranked) Iowa Valentine's Night ... and they got the shit beat out of them, 23-11.  But hey, at least Gable Steveson scored a Technical Fall in his heavyweight Match.  Conference championships in early March, NCAAs two Weeks after that.

#-5: Gopher softball (Last Week: -3).  Going 1-4 in a single tournament just does not look good.  But so the softballers did this past weekend in the Joan Joyce Classic in Boca Raton, Fla.  They lost to Villanova -- I've never seen the Wildcats as a softball program of any renown -- Saturday morning, 10-8.  They lost twice to Louisville where the U. scored only one Run in both Games.  What may be most embarrassing, however, is that got Mercy-Ruled by host Florida Atlantic in their first tourney Game Thursday evening in five Innings, 13-4.  So it doesn't look like this squad is going anywhere this Year.

This screening Week is the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in Cathedral City, Calif.  This is a gigantic ... well, it's more of a festival than a tournament.  There are five fields that, from Thursday to Sunday, will showcase Games between what seems to be at least a dozen teams.  Just look at this complete schedule chart!  The Gophers will play, in chronological order, Fresno St., Missouri, Duke, Tennessee and Long Beach St.  Wow, what variety!

#-6: Gopher women's hockey (Last Week: -5).  In a home-and-home, this team split with St. Cloud St.  That's bad enough -- I mean, it's the fucking St. Cloud St. women's hockey team, for crissake.  Worse than that, the road team won both tilts -- which means that, on Friday, the Huskies beat the Goofers at Ridder Arena, 4-3, for the first fucking time ever.  Plus they scored the Game-winner on a breakaway by SCSU's Ella Anick with 30.4 goddamn Seconds left to go.  They beat St. Cloud St. in St. Cloud the next evening, but that was only by a 2-1 score, plus remember that Minnesota was ranked third in the country (and that Loss pushed them down to fourth in this week's poll), plus they lost at home to fucking St. Cloud St.  What more evidence do you need to see that this program is not the blueblood it once was or absolutely should be?

They finish the regular season at home hosting Minnesota-Duluth for two.  But has the damage already been done?

#-7: Gopher women's basketball (Last Week: -2).  I put these women down at the bottom here for the pair of blown opportunities this screening Week that would have (and should have) bolstered their inclusion in the NCAA Tournament.  First, they went to Columbus on Thursday and, despite a feverish 17-3 run in the back half of the Fourth Quarter to send their Game vs. top-ten-ranked Ohio St. into Overtime tied at 74, they couldn't pull off the upset; Annika Stewart's contest-tying Three-Point attempt was blocked with one Second left in OT, and they lost, 87-84.

Sunday's defeat to Oregon might be worse.  The Ducks are not ranked and they had them at Williams, but they were playing catch-up since the Second Quarter and finally relented, 76-70.  I don't think this is officially termed a "Bad Loss" for NCAA tourney consideration, but these are Games you simply have to win.

And yet, Charlie Creme still says that Minnesota is in, and not even in the Play-Ins -- like the actual, real tournament.  Moreover, they only have one tilt this Week against a pretty bad Purdue club, and it's tonight/Wednesday night.  I have misgivings, however, because it's on the road.

Expenses Without Receipts

Starting from Monday, February 17:

• Well, I have receipts from this day back up to Groundhog Day, where *****y finally came over to give me some hand lovin'.  I think that, after I, uh, "finished" and she continued to wank me and I continued to wail, she finally "got" me, if you know what I mean, and if you don't, that's OK.  Unfortunately, she wanted an extra $20 beyond our normal price.  She said that with "inflation," her prices should also go up.  She's about to lose me as a customer if she keeps this bullshit up.  But I needed her to touch me, so I paid: $170.
• I was able to get *****y in before I headed off, for the first time, to the Trylon, to watch The Warriors for the second time in my life.  Despite my misgivings in this blog post, I was able to get to south Minneapolis with several minutes to spare.  *****y was really good in polishing me off, after all.  Anyway, I was surprised by how much of the movie I completely forgot the first time I saw it, which I think was when I rented a VHS cassette from the local rental movie place.  And that stuff I forgot, the scenes and segments and fights?  Yeah, they weren't all that great.  Well, the fights were cool.  But the plot didn't really hang together as well as I thought it did.  The acting was kind of wooden, too.  Still love the premise, but it turns out the premise was what led me to watch the second time.  And maybe two times is enough.  The Trylon prefers cash, so I used it on the ticket, a neat small popcorn and a can of Coke: $13.
• Tuesday, January 28, aka Chinese New Year's Eve ... you are supposed to eat a whole fish, head included (you're supposed to cook the fish with the head, not necessarily eat it) for New Year's Eve dinner.  I don't do that.  The next best thing I thought of was going to Anchor Fish & Chips for their, well, fish and chips.  Their fish is Alaskan cod, and even though I'm sure traditional Asians don't serve that type of fish, it's close enough for me.  With drink and tip: $32.
• After that, I went to Hy-Vee to grab some toilet bowl cleaner.  You're supposed to clean before Lunar New Year's Day, and my toilet was getting so bad that I really, really needed to clean, so I ducked in to Hy-Vee to buy it ... and, just because, a liter of regular Pepsi (fuck Coke for giving Trump a commemorative can, what a kiss-ass company).  The cashier rounded up to give me a nickel back in change instead of four pennies, so the total money I spent was: $7.65.
• On NFL Conference Championship Sunday I woke up early enough to go to Diamonds and work on some stuff.  An "Egg O'Muffin," a small mocha and tip equated to: $16.
• For the Games that afternoon I wanted to engorge on pizza, so I went to the local Carbone's for a small meat lover's pizza and a side of onion petals.  This is one of those places, I found out when I went in to pick up my food, that they're one of the places that charges extra to pay by credit card.  I've been noticing that a lot in the past, oh, year or so.  I should compile a list and, because I eat out a lot, I should start paying by cash more.  With tip: $24.
• Wednesday, January 22 -- I wanted to cash on the meager winnings I got as the Mega Millions jackpot soared past a billion dollars.  So I went to cash that ticket at the closest gas station.  An Infusion of: $2.
• That evening I stored new-looking dimes and pennies, two apiece: 22 cents.
• On Saturday the 18th I asked ******e to come around and work me over.  She didn't ask for an extra $20 like *****y did, thank Buddha.  No, she did that the last time she came over.  This visit cost me only: $120.
• Finally, back on Thursday, January 16 I visited my ATF at My Favorite Stripclub (Cover Edition).  Yeah, it hadn't been too long since I last saw her there, but this was several days before the Inauguration, and I finally decided I would see her again before January 20 because I was afraid of the MAGAts coming out of the woodwork if I saw her after.  (She says the club wasn't weird the week after the Inauguration, so I might see her again next month.  Hope it stays not weird.)  Got 20 dances with her.  Add cover, tips and my bottle of Redd's and I spent: $230.

Good through February 17.

Dangerously Cold Days

So the next few days (in my opinion) are going to be dangerously cold.  The National Weather Service (President Musk hasn't shut this down yet?) has issued a Cold Weather Advisory, where windchills could get to -35, that started at midnight and technically ends at 10 this/Monday morning.  Then it gets worse: There is an Extreme Cold Watch in effect from midnight tomorrow/Tuesday until 10 a.m. the following morning for windchills that could reach -45.  There are no advisories or some such Wednesday; it'll just be brutally cold and not dangerously cold, with the air temperature finally getting above zero then.  It'll get marginally better Thursday with highs in the teens, and even though that is still cold, I will declare that we'll be out of the (cold) woods by then.  Sunday we're supposed to get above freezing; we will have deserved that after the cold crap we have to get through now.

Damn, that's brutal.  I know that we have suffered through colder.  But one of these nights, I'm scared that I will finally get ... uh, "caught" by it.  Maybe I'll snap and book a vacation to the Caribbean, I don't know.  Or, maybe the car won't start.  Or, scarier still, the furnace blows and I'll have to deal with a cold house and, potentially, frozen pipes.  And on that topic: The central heat has been turning on more frequently tonight, I've noticed, and that damn buzzing continues to come and go.  I'm scared that buzzing is a sign that something is about to break down, and if that's the case, I'm screwed.

Because of the cold and the fear of getting "caught" by it, I've decided to hunker down from now until Wednesday.  I believe that you can't just hibernate all winter; you have to get out at some point.  But weather this cold, even though the Cold Weather Advisory and Extreme Cold Watch will not technically be in effect Monday or Tuesday night, is not the time to brave the weather.  I'm going to work, from work (assuming the car holds up), then staying home.  I had one stripper girlfriend, ****e, hastily agree to a session with us and another girl, ***i*, for tonight/Monday night but I still need a price quote from her, and since she hasn't replied back, I'm just going to not text her at least until Thursday, if not later.  I'm not in the mood for any sexytime in weather this frigid, and I hope ****e feels the same way.

Wish us luck.  And hey, if you're so inclined, pray for us.

Addendum To: Maybe I've Been Phished By Poker All This Time

Oh, I should say that about a week ago, maybe a few days after my malware software blocked the site, I could get in and play Zynga Poker again.  I don't know if there was a misunderstanding or a tweak to the, uh, algorithm (does malware software have algos?), but I can go in and play just as I had before.  So either there is no phishing issues with Zynga Poker or there is a lot of phishing issues with Zynga Poker and either the software or I don't care.  Heck, maybe it's both.

Addendum To: Assholes At Work Keep Cropping Up

More assholes at work, and I don't care if this sounds dick-ish: Whenever I hold the door open for someone, I think it's customary to say, "Thank you" to the person holding the door open for them.  This piece of shit did not.  And I opened the door twice -- no thanks either time.  Fuck you and your lack of manners.

By the way, I'm not sure the gender of this asshole (and yes, I am trying to make "asshole" an all-gender insult).  This person is tall, but he or she or they ... who knows?  All I know is that person is a rude asshole, and I am not going to open the door for that person ever again.  Prick.

You're Not Helping Your Case, Doc

I think I have blog posted before that sometimes my psychotherapist has texted me weirdly.  Most of the time they're a series of letters that make no sense.  Then, around the holidays he texted me pictures of the moon -- not bad, the pics were pretty, but I didn't ask for them.  He then left me a voicemail asking if he could talk.  He's never done that before and, frankly, I think it's inappropriate for a therapist to ask a patient to talk to him.

But he did earlier this week is yet another layer of what-the-fuckville.  He sent me a link to the Neptune Society, a cremation service company.  The hell???  Of course I didn't ask for this.  I have spoken to him about death a lot, but I don't ever raising the concept of cremation beyond telling him that my grandmother and uncle have both been cremated.  So why in the shit is he sending me a text about this?  Is he telling me something?  Does he want to talk about this?  Because I don't.  I have been thinking it's time to have a session with him again, but now that he sent me this strange link, I don't know if I want to now.  And if this is somehow a cry for help -- and there's a non-zero chance that is -- I am purposely ignoring him.  And, to be honest, if he gets depressed or even harms himself because I'm not speaking with him ... well, damn, I will not take responsibility.  Because this is some weird-ass fucking behavior, man.

I Don't Know If I'm Gonna See My Baby For Valentine's Day ...

... and by my baby I mean my ATF at My Favorite Stripclub (Cover Version).  There's a snowstorm coming this/Friday afternoon.  How much will fall will determine whether I dare brave driving all those miles down there to see her or not.

I waited till the rerun of the evening news and the weather report then to tell me, but they still don't know.  The problem is when the air aloft will be injected with moisture as the, uh, disturbance passes through the state.  The sooner it is injected, the more snow we'll get.  The model I saw on the news backed off snow totals to around two inches.  That ain't great to drive around in, but I've driven through worse.  But other forecasts think it'll be closer to three inches and, at the high end, six, and those amounts make me want to go home as soon as possible and shut the door.

So dang it, I'll keep waiting to see if anything definitive is declared in the morning, or maybe I'll check weather forecasts while at work in the afternoon.  But I'll have to make a decision about who my Valentine's Date will be at some point during the day, my ATF or my hand.

They Did Reply. And Somehow, I Saw It.

So I had to get my timing chain changed in January of 2024, way sooner than I needed to.  Apparently, my car is the subject of a Technical Service Bulletin, or TSB, which maps out problems that appear to be affecting all vehicles of a certain make and model, even though this is not a recall, where cars are supposed to be brought back to dealerships as soon as possible to get a problem fixed.  (I don't know if the difference is the number of vehicles that are estimated to have this problem, the severity of the problem, something else entirely, or a combination of factors.)

There was another TSB for my model that my car actually suffered from, namely a defective starter.  I think I was so incensed at the time that I sent a letter to the car company about this forced replacement -- and, to my big surprise, I not only got a reply but some compensation.  So, even though it took me a long, long time to get around to it, I finally went to the library during Limbo Week (the days between Christmas and New Year's Day) to type out a letter complaining about the bad timing chain and sent it.

And then I didn't hear anything.  For a long while.  I forgot about it, but once I remembered, I remembered that I sent it so long ago that, if they hadn't replied by now, they probably threw it away.  Honestly, I wasn't going to pursue it.  I just have too much on my mind, what with my country willingly falling into dictatorship and all, and besides, if they don't reply, what else could I do?

Thank Buddha, then, that I just decided to look through my spam folder before I went to bed Tuesday night/Wednesday morning.  I kept scrolling through all the fundraising e-mails that didn't go into my inbox and saw my car company and what looked to be a case number.  I opened it up and it said, and I'm paraphrasing, "We got your letter and would like to talk about it.  However, if you don't call and reply within five days of this e-mail we will close this matter."

The e-mail was sent Monday, and I left a message yesterday/Wednesday afternoon.  I hope they reply today, but if not, I hope to remember to call again while at work.  But I think about my very fortuitous fortune in finding this e-mail.  It was sent five, six weeks ago.  The reply was shunted into my spam folder.  I just so happened to go through that spam folder, and I don't think I had a reason as to why.  There were so many circumstances that could, even should, have meant that I would not get a chance to get money out of this defective timing chain.  But it looks like I will get that chance after all.

The Weekly Minnesota Sports Survey

Positive Numbers: Gopher wrestling (Last Week: 0).  OK, this is the kind of Week the Gopher wrestling team had when it was one of the big dogs in the sport.  Not since their championship Years has this program had a screening Week as accomplished and impressive as this past one.  Ranked seventh last Week, they went to Columbus on Friday and upset then-fourth-ranked Ohio St., 20-17, their first victory over a Top 5-ranked foe since beating fifth-ranked Oklahoma St. (also on the road, funny enough) more than three Years ago.

Both teams won five of then Matches.  The difference was the bonus Points: While two Buckeyes got Major Decisions and the four Points that come with, three Gopher grapplers got MDs (including Gable Steveson) and Andrew Sparks got a Technical Fall on Ohio St.'s Brock Herman to rack up five Points for his side.  The Buckeyes were leading, 17-16, going into the final Match at 184 Pounds, but Max McEnelly, ranked fourth in the country at the weight, routed Ohio St.'s Ryder Rogotzke (who was ranked 19th) by a score of 15-5, the third and final Major Decision for the U. that put them over the top.

They then followed that up by returning to Maturi Pavilion Super Bowl Sunday afternoon and beating the mess out of then-28th-ranked Purdue, 35-6.  This is the kind of dominance that I haven't seen in a long time and, pessimistically, wonder if I'll ever see again.  That's why I not only have these guys topping the survey this Week but also deservedly in Positive Numbers.

The regular season ends for this club Friday/Valentine's Day, and it's a big one: Sworn rival and third-ranked Iowa, also at home.

#0: Wild (Last Week: -3).  Quiet though the screening Week was, you always prefer going into an extended break winning and not losing, and the Wild did that, doubling up both The Bastard Hartford Whalers (2-1) Thursday and The New York Islanders (6-3) Saturday, both at the X.  The squad remains third in The Central Division, but you get the feeling that they'll be able to weather the storm of injuries that are currently plaguing the lineup and reach the postseason.

And so this extended break could not come at a better time for the Wild.  Did not realize until a few Days ago that there is no All-Star Game this season.  Instead, NHL players from the United States, Canada, Sweden and Finland will meet in the NHL-created 4 Nations Face-Off, being held in Boston and Montreal.  Five Wild players will not have the next week-and-a-half off: Brock Faber and Matt Boldy (for the U. S.); and Joel Eriksson Ek, Jonas Brodin and Filip Gustavsson (for Sweden).  Minnesota resumes play the 22nd.

#-1: Timberwolves (Last Week: -4).  Went 3-1: Crushed Chicago, Houston and Portland to finish off their five-Game homestand 3-2, then went to Cleveland Monday and got destroyed by a squad of Cavaliers that were nobodies last Year but got extremely good this Year -- you know, kind of like the Timberwolves last season.

OK, so I was wrong to say that the Wolves would go 0-5 in their homestand.  But I was at the Game against the Rockets, the one out of the five matchups I almost knew the T-Wolves would lose, and they won that one, 127-114.  Gotta tell ya, don't sleep on the Rockets.  They're young, they're fast, and they have the length to shoot over and around you.  The Game was close until the back half of the Fourth Quarter, and somehow the Wolves kept their composure while Houston lost its.

I slot the Wolves here for two other reasons beside the Week the team was having.  First, I haven't addressed the Luka Doncic trade until now because I was still digesting it.  It is, in my opinion, The Biggest Trade In The History Of The NBA, and takes your breath away.  Once I regained my composure, I realized that makes the Timberwolves' uncompetitive five-Game series Loss to Dallas in last Year's playoffs that much worse.  I mean, the Mavericks traded a guy who they see will not change his diet and conditioning, even though he helped depants the Wolves in five.  Also, news came down Monday that an arbitration panel concluded that, and I'll be damned, Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore are the true and rightful owners of the franchise, and not Glen Taylor.  I don't think Taylor was a great Owner.  But do you know what he did for us?  He bought the Timberwolves so they wouldn't be taken away to New Orleans.  And for that, I'm forever grateful, and I'll overlook the crap Joe Smith signing.  Mark my words and heed my cry, Minnesota basketball fans -- A-Rod and Lore will use the prospect of getting a brand-new arena for the Wolves as the pretense to eventually move them to, oh, Austin or Kansas City or even Mexico City.  I don't trust those two, I truly don't.

Like the Wild, the Timberwolves have a screening Week of two Games, both at home, before they have an extended break (All-Star this time).  Thing is, it's a back-to-back -- Milwaukee tonight/Wednesday night, The Bastard Seattle SuperSonics tomorrow/Thursday night.  

#-2: Gopher women's basketball (Last Week: -5).  Split the two Games they had at home this Week -- losing by eight to Iowa Thursday, then bouncing back to defeat Indiana by ten Super Bowl Sunday afternoon.  Both were winnable, but considering Charlie Creme still has these Gophs in the "actual" NCAA tournament as a 10-Seed, it's easy to look on the bright side.  But this upcoming Week will be a challenge: At Ohio St., which is either ranked eighth or ninth in the country (depending on which poll you look at) Thursday, then hosting Oregon Sunday afternoon.

#-3: Gopher softball (NEW SEASON!!).  While it feels like the dead of winter outside -- I know it's been colder, I know it's been this cold longer than it is now, but right now feels like an interminable cold -- the Gopher softball season has started ... south of here, of course.  And they unfortunately begin with a 1-3 record after participating in The Kajikawa Classic in Tempe, Ariz.  (Who is Kajikawa?  Don't know; I went to the athletic website for the host school, Arizona St., and they don't say anything about who this tournament is named for.)  Lost to Cal once and Utah to open and close the tourney.  Beat Miami (OH), though, albeit 4-3.  Managing to beat non-BcS schools and losing to Power 5/4 schools does not portend go things for this club.

This weekend they're in Boca Raton, Fla., for the Joan Joyce Classic.  (Who is Joan Joyce?  Don't know; I went to the athletic website for the host school, Florida Atlantic, and they don't say anything about who this tournament is named for.)  They will play, in order, the host Owls, Louisville twice (once Friday morning, once Saturday morning), Villanova and N. C. St.

#-4: Gopher men's basketball (Last Week: -2).  Yeah, losing Saturday to a not-unstoppable Illinois squad at The Barn by 21 is, uh, not good.  This team has shown flashes of good ball to make me think they could have, if not should have, taken this one.  But not only did they lose, they lost big.  And they are still on the outside looking in on the B1G tournament, where the three worst teams stay home.  (By the way, I finally looked at the bracket for the conference tourney, which only 15 teams make.  There five rounds.  The Second Round and Quarterfinals are each comprised of four Games played on the same Day.  But the First Round, for some inexplicable reason, is only three Games, hence only 15 teams play in The Big Ten Tournament.  Why can't there be a 16th team and a fourth First Round contest?  Is there something important going on that early Wednesday afternoon?)

Out playing the Los Angeles schools this screening Week.  Unlike the women's basketball club, the men have a fighting chance in both tilts.

#-5: Gopher women's hockey (Last Week: -1).  What Kendrick Lamar did to Drake in The Super Bowl Halftime Show on Sunday, the Wisconsin women's hockey team did to the Golden Goofer women's hockey team over the weekend.  Now, the Badgers were the #1-ranked team in the country before and after (obviously) the two-Game sweep, and this series was in Madison, so you could see this coming.  Still, no one lost more in terms of face than the U., including Drake.  They lost Saturday 8-2 and Sunday 6-1.  I don't think this program has gotten its ass kicked like that in a long time, if not ever.

Thing is, women's college hockey is still in such an embryonic state that the Minnesota stayed at #3 in the polls despite this curb-stomping.  And yet you cannot see any clearer the gap between an upper-echelon powerhouse like Wisconsin and "yes but" team like Minnesota than you can after what we were forced to bear witness over the weekend.

A home-and-home with St. Cloud St. this weekend.  Let's hope the U. doesn't suffer any PTSD.

I Shouldn't Have To Pay This Way

This might be a misleading title, but at my most dramatic, I feel this way.

It was another ten-hour day at work where I left so much work that I felt like I accomplished nothing.  The big thing I was looking forward to was picking up Popeye's before heading home.  As I left the drive-thru and got back on the road that would lead me to my house, a car was picking up steam behind me.  I was going to head into the left turn lane and drive slowly but directly home.  But that damn car was also taking a left, so I abruptly moved back on to the main road.

And then ... well, when you're tired and distracted, your mind kind of wanders, you know?  My next plan was to take this cloverleaf exit, but by the time I was aware of my surroundings, I was driving past it.  Instead of recklessly jerking my car to the right, I would go to my tertiary plan and take the next side street home.  Unfortunately, me being in Minnesota, this left turn took me right over a vicious goddamn pothole I did not see coming.  And then on the street just before the street that gets me to my house, I ran over another one.

I think my car's OK.  After eating my Popeye's (and spacing out, natch), I planned on checking out the underside of my car before getting gas for it, but I just drove to the gas station and back.  I forgot to look and make sure there is nothing underneath my car because, again, I spaced out.  But I hate, completely hate driving over potholes.  I always feel as though my small car will break apart, or more realistically (I guess) my shocks will get worn and/or broken.

And all of that could have been avoided if I had just taken that first left, or paid attention to the cloverleaf right.  But is driving over two potholes "punishment" for spacing out?  I feel that way, but I don't think that's right, know what I mean?  I shouldn't have to pay for my inattention by damaging my car.  But it feels as though that, if there are gods above, they're making me pay for not being more aware of my surroundings.  No grace for a spacing-out scoundrel like me, huh?

Assholes At Work Keep Cropping Up

So last Monday I was coming in from my lunchtime nap.  I key myself in and wipe my feet of the snow I trod upon on the mat.  While I was doing that, a technician, apparently finishing her break, gets up off her chair and, while looking at her phone the entire time, walks almost right at me.  She didn't look up, she didn't avoid me, she just kept looking at her phone and walking straight.  That shit pisses me off, but I stepped aside for her.  She did it again later in the week, too.  I tried to get back at her (this first time) by sidling up to her while grabbing some papers next to the door she was going through after she made a beeline right at me.  And goddammit, if she does this again, I have to stand my ground and make her move around me.  I might even push her to the ground so she finally looks up.  I have a right to defend myself!

And then on Wednesday the decrepit old lifer went into the lab with me to cut open packages.  Well, she was opening packages and I was taking the piss-laden specimens out.  And all through my unfortunate time standing next to her, I was reminded how truly selfish she was.  She was on her own time, cutting open packages at her speed, regardless of how long it took me to take out specimens that spilled.  We had dozens of packages she shoved my way, but she kept cutting and cutting and cutting.

Worse than that was how she cut, which was woefully half-ass.  You are trained to cut open a mouth wide enough so that you don't need to fish around in the package to grab them and pull them out.  If they're sufficiently open, all you need to do is lift open the top of the package and reach in.  She did none of that.  Her cuts were small, laughly, insultingly so.  And some times her cuts weren't clean, and so I had to tear open the packages and then tear up the top of the package so I can get at the specimen inside.  Quality of work, and making my life easier, was not her concern, of course.  She kept up her half-ass cutting at her sped up pace.  She did that so she can get through her stay at the lab as quickly as possible.  That was evident when we were dismissed.  She quickly left the station while I thanked everybody and properly took off my gloves and lab coat.  And when I walked out the door, she wasn't the one who kept it open for me.  She was out of there with the quickness, and who gives a shit about the guy who was working alongside her?

I don't know what her deal is, but I am glad I have little to no interaction with her.  Because that was the little I would have with her, and that feels like too much.  I welled up with anger just recalling what she did.  Damn, when the hell is she going to retire?  She's old enough, she's been in the company long enough, and she obviously hates the job.  So why the fuck doesn't she just up and leave?

Stupid-ass workers.

Super Bowl LIX Prediction

OK, I have no idea what in the hell is going to happen tonight.  I sometimes do these super-specific predictions about how the Game is going to go, like Patrick Mahomes is going to throw for "x" number of Yards, or Saquon Barkley is going to get so many Touchdowns, etc.  I can't do any of that here.  These teams are so evenly matched that I can't find an in on any way this Super Bowl will play out.  I hope that means it's going to be good.  But I can't predict anything.

I will say this: I want the Kansas City Chiefs to win.  I'm not hot with the name, the family who owns the franchise apparently are Trump humpers, Mahomes's wife and her family are MAGAts, the Kicker is a MAGAt, and I am not a fan of dynasties, which the Chiefs would extend to three in a row if they are victorious tonight.  But I like Mahomes, I like Travis Kelce, I think Taylor Swift is a good person and so if she has Kelce as a boyfriend, that means he's a good guy, and I love watching their brand of football, on both sides of the ball.  Oh, and I hate Philadelphia Eagles fans.  They're fucking brutes, and I will never forgive them for beating up Vikings fans when the Vikes played in Philly in that NFC Championship Game several Years back.  (I will say I like the Philadelphia Inquirer for standing up to Trump, and I will forgive the fanbase if I see proof the city stands up to Trump as well.)

When I research my super-specific predictions, I read two big essays I have turned to for years: Aaron Schatz, who founded Football Outsiders but now pens his Super Bowl essay for FTN Fantasy, and Bill Barnwell of ESPN.  After reading both breakdowns (and if you want to preview the Super Bowl, I would recommend you commit some time to reading both), I still don't know what's going to happen because neither Schatz nor Barnwell know what is going to happen, either.  Both writers point out things that the football viewer might not know:

• Kansas City Defensive Coordinator Steve Spagnuolo blitzes a lot.
• Philadelphia Eagles Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio does not blitz a lot.
• Eagles Quarterback Jalen Hurts has gotten better at throwing against the blitz.
• This will be a tight Game.
• The Chiefs just have it.

And it's that last "point," if you will, that lead both writers to pick Kansas City to win Super Bowl LIX.  The Eagles are a tremendous team, and better than the one that lost to the Chiefs in Super Bowl LVII.  But Mahomes and Kansas City Head Coach Andy Reid have a track record of making the right play at the right time to secure a close victory, and Schatz and Barnwell think that will happen tonight.

So who am I to argue?

Super Bowl LIX Prediction: Kansas City 30, Philadelphia 24

My Life, Revolving Around Snow

I blog post this knowing I may have given a diametrically different opinion before.  Also, even though I haven't measured it yet, it seems as though the snowstorm that has come through today isn't as bad as it was feared to be earlier a week ago.  It was, at its worst, forecast to be between six inches and a foot, and it was going all day and stopping some time between this evening and well into the night.

With that being said, this storm, as pedestrian as it probably will turn out to be, is the biggest storm of this winter.  Overall, that's really good, because I hate shoveling snow, hate plowing snow, hate driving through it, hate it when it's not Christmas.  But it's not as if I could go to, say, Hooters, like I wanted to do today before I heard about the storm.  Also, my boss texted me this morning asking if I could come in for overtime.  I would if there wasn't snow, but because there was, I at the very least could only get there once I clear my driveway.  He said things are OK at work, so I will not rush to shovel and/or plow enough snow so I can use my car.

This illustrates how, when there is a storm, I have to throw everything else aside in order to deal with the snow.  Well, I am blog posting this, so it's not as if I'm getting to the snow now.  But after these men's college basketball Games (as well as this intriguing men's lacrosse Game, where a Rutgers team coughed up a big lead to, of all schools, Stony Brook), I will go out to my front driveway, assess the damage, and determine if there's enough snow to justify firing up the snowblower for the first time this season (and, in fact, since the 2022-3 winter).  And then I will need to take a nap.  Then, the sun probably will be setting, and I will be too tired to do anything except, possibly, clearing the back deck.

See, my day is revolving around clearing snow.  I think on the whole this is better than fleeing a hurricane or picking up the pieces from an earthquake.  But right now, today, I don't feel this way.

I Now Hate The Third Department

I once said that this more a two-person job than a one-person job.  And sure, maybe there would be too much downtime if two people were doing this full-time.  But it sure as hell didn't feel like it last/Friday night.  There is usually some work left over to be done the next day.  But because I was snowed under a crush of work Thursday, there was so much, well, shit that I left for yesterday that by the time I got through all that bullshit, there was too much new bullshit that came yesterday that I didn't even start on.

I hate that feeling of lack of accomplishment.  In particular, I hate that I have left so, so much work for my co-worker, who is coming in to do The Third Department today/Saturday.  When we said our goodbyes yesterday/Friday, I told her that I was going to do my best to cut down on the stuff I am handing off to her.  Honestly, by the time I had to leave, I was unable to take anything off her plate.  If anything, I probably added more shit on to her plate.  I am thinking of all the work she has to do, and she must think that I did nothing, that I in fact lied to her when I said I am doing my best to cut down on the work I would give her.  I feel like a damn heel that I even mentioned that I would try.

I hate that department now.  I really do!  I remember loving the ease and the cozy work atmosphere back there.  But now that one person has to do all that crap, and considering there (at least I think) has been a big uptick in workload, I cannot fathom how my boss or his boss or any higher-ups in the company thinks one person can do all that needs to be done in only eight hours.  It can't be done.  And if my boss or any higher-ups say it can, I might blow my top and dare them to fire me, because that is goddamn well impossible.

Now, I have to have some perspective.  I have been reeling in the overtime ever since my co-worker retired around the holiday.  And unlike up to Easter, my boss hasn't been yelling at my about why I've been staying late, which I have been doing a lot of, and he has not really made a big stink over that.  (Saying that, he might question why I pulled ten hours last/Friday night.  One huge task that I dreaded doing I was specifically told by him I did not have to do, which probably makes him believe that I could leave after eight hours with everything under control.  It sure as hell wasn't, but I think he thinks it should have been, which means that he will shoot me an e-mail asking me why I stayed late.)  I get the feeling that my boss, as well as my supervisor, understands that everybody is overworked and doing the best we can.  If this is how it's going to be, and if he understands why I am staying late to get work done -- and partly as an aside, all the departments within the company have at least been asked to do OT within the past couple weeks ... man, I really don't know why the hell work has come flooding in like this -- I'll accept it ... and the overtime pay.  Nevertheless, this is no longer an easy job.  It has become very, very stressful, and so it is completely unlike the job this was when I began working it.

Stripper Parties Are Back -- But I'm Not Going To Any Of Them!

It's been a long, long time since I've been aware of a few house parties going on in the same weekend.  The prevalence of those died out largely due to the pandemic.  Nowadays I hear one from time to time.  Lately, there has been one going on regularly.  But the frequency of those parties to the point where I have to turn some of them down?  Probably a thing of the past.

But not this weekend.  Within the past seven days, I've been notified of four stripper parties this weekend: Two today/Friday (with one ending at the same time the other is starting), the one going on regularly tomorrow/Saturday, and one doing double-duty as a Super Bowl watch party Sunday.

And I'm not going to any of them.  The first one this/Friday afternoon is only a couple hours, and it's happening while I'm at work.  The one beginning this/Friday evening is too far for me to drive to, or at least I don't want to drive that far.  There's a snowstorm coming tomorrow/Saturday, and even though it isn't going to drop, like, a foot of snow, I don't want to deal with driving or parking in Minneapolis, so that's out.  Finally, I like tits and HJs, but if the Super Bowl's on, I want to concentrate on watching football, not gorgeous and naked women (I can't believe I'm saying that).

So I am in the process of rejecting all four house parties going on this weekend.  I don't think I've ever said no to so many parties going on around the same time.  The old Unforgivable Wetness would look at me with scorn for not going to even one.  But hey, maybe this is growing up.  Or, it could be aging.

By the way, the organizing stripper for the stripper party this/Friday afternoon said that if I can't make it to the party, she could come over to the house.  But she, whose name is ****e, insists on bringing another stripper, ***i*, along.  Now, I've gotten some play with ***i* before, but it was a long time ago.  Moreover, ****e is really pushing having the two of them service me.  If those two can come over after the party in the evening, after I get home from work, perfect.  But I asked for a price tag, she gave me her offer, and I simply cannot afford to spend that much money on two strippers.  I told ****e that, and I haven't heard back, which to me is a sign that she's not going to pursue me any longer.

Man: Four house parties this weekend and I won't go to even one of them.  Smh

Maybe I've Been Phished By Poker All This Time

So I've been trying to do my daily free slot machine spin at Zynga Poker, but my antivirus software, which I have had for the laptop I use for several years now, suddenly is preventing me from playing it.  The software gives me a warning box saying the game is a potential phishing site.  Has it been, all this time?  I don't think nefarious people have been able to get my personal information only because I've been playing online poker ... have they?

I find it odd this has cropped up now, tonight/Wednesday night, after years of playing this.  I think the software has been in use protecting my laptop all this time.  With that said, I got an e-mail earlier yesterday/Wednesday noting that my automatic payment renewing the antivirus software came through.  And now, in the nighttime, I can't play Zynga Poker.  Maybe it's coincidence, maybe it's not, but I am not going to evade my software just to play fake poker.  We'll see how if this continues and whether the antivirus drops its defenses, or something.  But right now, I will trust that it is looking out for me.

The Weekly Minnesota Sports Survey

Positive Numbers: Gopher men's hockey (Last Week: -5).  Warning y'all in advance: I have constructed this screening Week's survey with a lot of compromises that may not be consistent with how I've ranked teams in the past.  There are a lot of even splits and apples-and-oranges cases this Week, so I have to make a decision and stick with it (sorta).

I know for sure that the U. male icers top the list this Week by virtue of their sweep of border rivals Wisconsin at Mariucci over the weekend.  Friday's Win was notably exquisite because they came back from a 2-0 deficit after one Period to win going away, 5-2, and they were in control Saturday, 4-1.  It now appears (even though there was little doubt coming into the weekend) that Minnesota will be in the NCAA Tournament even if they lose out, and their case for getting a 1-Seed remains strong.  They visit Michigan in two Weeks.

#0: Gopher wrestling (Last Week: 0).  Make it four Duals in a row for the seventh-ranked Gopher grapplers after routing 12th-ranked Rutgers at Maturi Groundhog Afternoon, 28-9.  That's a nice little run, plus it's their second victory in this run over a ranked opponent.  No way are they even a contender for the NCAA championship, but that winning streak is worthy of some recognition here.  So even though I don't think the Gopher men's hockey team beating an albeit-ranked Wisconsin club necessarily warrants Positive Numbers, I do think the U. wrestlers deserve to be above negative numbers, and since the U. pretty much clinched the postseason, they have to be above the rasslers, and so we have Positive Numbers and 0 here.  Get it?

Busy Week -- At Ohio St. Friday, home to Purdue Sunday afternoon.

#-1: Gopher women's hockey (Last Week: -2).  I really thought they were going to get swept by Ohio St. at Ridder over the weekend, I really did.  But I caught glimpses of their upset 3-1 Win over the Buckeyes on Friday and was quite impressed.  Now, they coughed up a 1-0 lead after one Period and went on to lose Saturday by a score of 7-3, so that's icky.  But that split will go a long way to ensuring these Gophers finish ... well, as the 3-Seed in the NCAAs.  But hey, they have a weekend series against the other power program in top-flight women's hockey, Wisconsin.  Sadly, it's in Madison.

#-2: Gopher men's basketball (Last Week: -3).  I think this team has a better record than they do.  I still believe they, at best, have the third-worst record in the 18-squad Big Ten, where only the top 15 teams make the B1G Tournament.  (And by the way -- 15?  Not 16, not 18, but 15?  How does that bracket work?  Oh, and conference tournaments prove that there are way too many fucking clubs in a conference these days.)  But they are playing much better than they were when they started conference play.  Yes, they dropped a winnable Game at home to Washington Saturday afternoon, but they bounced back to win for only the second time this season on the road last/Tuesday night over Penn St.  It'll now take a miracle to make any postseason tournament, but there is talent there.  And this screening Week they have only one contest, a home one Saturday versus Illinois.

#-3: Wild (Last Week: -6).  The two pro teams currently playing confound me -- similarly in some ways, very differently in others.  The Wild just finished a five-Game road trip 3-2.  But a screening Week that began with Wins over Toronto and Montreal (where hometown son Marc-Andre Fleury had a multi-minute standing ovation) were followed by back-to-back shutouts by Ottawa and Boston, and since the scores were 6-0 and 3-0, they were not even competitive.  Worse yet: Ryan Hartman has just been suspended ten Games for a cheap shot on the Senators' Tim Stutzle.  He won't be allowed to get back on the ice for the next Month, and that includes the NHL taking a break for their 4 Nations soiree.  Hartman also loses almost half a million dollars for the suspension, and the Wild get no cap relief while he's sitting out.

There are now nine teams with as many or more Points as Minnesota.  They have overachieved thus far in the Year, and projections have them making the playoffs.  But the Week showed signs this team's engine is finally bogging down.  The two-Week break for the 4 Nations, then, might be good timing.  (Oh, wait a minute -- is there no All-Star Game this Year?)  But first they need to finish off the first half of the season with home Games vs. The Bastard Hartford Whalers and The New York Islanders.

#-4: Timberwolves (Last Week: -1).  Meanwhile, like the Mild, the Woofie Dogs had a 2-2 Week.  And they too also started off with victories on the road, over Phoenix and Utah.  But they came home to start a five-Game homestand and dropped a pair of two-Point results over two clubs they should have beaten, Washington (who was without their top four scorers) and The Bastard Rochester Royals/Kansas City-Omaha Kings (who had just traded De'Aaron Fox.

I just saw Jon Krawczynski, Timberwolves beat writer for The Athletic, write that this team is playing as good as they have after a rough start.  I don't see it.  Anthony Edwards remains hot-headed, Julius Randle is a black hole when he has the ball, Rudy Gobert and Mike Conley are aging rapidly before our eyes, and Jaden McDaniels, who needed to make the jump after Karl-Anthony Towns was shipped off, hasn't grown into the role, at least not to my satisfaction.  Also, the Wolves are so up against the second apron (I think) that they can do little to nothing by tomorrow/Thursday afternoon's Trade Deadline.

They finish off the homestand playing Chicago, Houston and Portland.  (They play at Cleveland Monday, good luck.)  No joke, they can finish the homestand 0-5.  Head Coaches have gotten fired after 0-5 homestands.  Watch your neck, Chris Finch.

#-5: Gopher women's basketball (Last Week: -4).  See, I feel bad putting these players down here.  I am going by Week record, and this is the only team in the WMNSS to go winless this Week.  But let it be known that this Week they had to face a pair of Top 5 teams on the road and in the same city.  Let it also be known that they gave my alma mater more of a scare than what would be indicated on paper on Thursday, only losing by 13, and the U. played UCLA tough through the First Half before the Bruins put the pedal to the metal and trounced the Gophs by 24.  Not fair, but consider the competition.  Also, Charlie Creme said yesterday/Tuesday that Minnesota is the last team in the actual tournament.  They slipped, but that's to be expected losing twice to great clubs on the road.

This screening Week will be a challenge -- Iowa Thursday, Indiana Sunday.  Both tilts are at home, though, so these are opportunities to fly up Creme's bracketology.

Social Media Truly Is A Shithole

I have really cut down on Twitter (fuck calling it X), and my big regret is that I didn't quit it sooner.  I waited until the results of the election, which was a mistake, because I had heard and seen that the new owner of Twitter was turning it into a white supremacist cesspool.  It wasn't the free-wheeling Twitter of even 2016, when it was used to peddle Republican disinformation.

You know, come to think of it, I should've quit Twitter of the 2016 election.  And I knew how destructive that platform was leading up to November, but I stayed on because the algorithm successfully engaged my rage.  But now that I saw how successful it was in brainwashing The Enemies Among Us, I had to leave ... and the owner and his fascists followers have the last laugh.

Now, I'm not deleting my account or anything.  In fact, I still go there from time to time.  I think I hear that the worst thing you can do is just keep your account dormant, because then hackers can get into your account and post as yourself, and I don't need anyone acting as an impostor.

---

What I have done with Twitter I should do with Facebook.  It has also gone downhill lately, namely around the time Zuck went to suck Trump's dick.  I see a lot more ads than status updates from friends, especially when I'm scrolling through the app on my phone.  There isn't much disinformation I'm seeing, but there are a hell of a lot more ads, and I am kind of over being sold stuff that doesn't interest me.  Also, all these tech bros kissing the ass is anti-democratic.  Every time I get on Facebook and interact is more money I'm giving Zuck.  So I'm trying to cut down, but goddammit, it's so goddamn addictive!

Hottest Babe In The Hooters Calendar: January 2025

Another year, another 12 editions evaluating the waitresses of Hooters.  It grounds me.

The month grew on me as I continued to look at the women posing.  Of the dozen in the month, I can actually pick out seven that catch my eye and do other things to other parts of my body.  In ascending order:

In seventh place is Angeleah, out of Springfield, Mo.  Long-ish blonde hair with dark roots, she sports a black two-piece bikini.  I like that she's posing her nice and tight body straight at the camera and that she's hitching up the sides of her bikini bottom.  I don't understand her grimace, but, oh well.

In sixth place is Savannah, hailing from Aurora, Colo.  Long red or brown hair, her two-piece is vertically striped in the colors of the rainbow.  Not a fan of her left arm swung in front of her stomach.  But rare is the Hooters server with skin as alabaster as hers.

In fifth place -- and just to warn you, the hotties between fifth and second I've just changed, they're so close -- is The Main Girl, Sarah, of Sarasota, Fla.  Brunette is wearing a Hooters-branded two-piece bikini.  Her eyes are narrowed, so either they're bewitching or sleepy, whatever you think.  What makes this picture, though, is the swimsuit, in particular the top, which is kept together with strings laced together like a shoe.  Very interesting.

In fourth place is Kyelie, out of Mesa, Ariz.  Hey, she's the classic big-booted Hooters blonde, and she's wearing a crocheted light-pink two-piece.  Her tanned body is erection-inducing, and she's pulling on the strings of several bikini tops and bottoms hanging as if they're drying in the sun, which gives me unfounded thoughts of her switching from those to what she's wearing now.  The only problem is that she's posing off to her side.  Still great, though.

In third place is Jazzlyn, hailing from Pelham, Ala.  Long, black hair, she is sporting a shimmering gray two-piece bikini.  Again, I'm not a fan of arms in front of stomachs, but in her case, she's pulling down the string between the two triangular parts of her bikini top, as if (wink, wink) she's about to pull her top off.  Also, she's got piercing, pale blue eyes.  I could drown in them and die happy.

In second place is Nashville's Kendall.  Long, dark blonde/light brown hair, gold two-piece.  She's not completely facing forward, but she's facing enough forward, and the more I look at her photograph, the more I'm stunned by her awesome, curvy fucking body.  She's got that strong slit down her front and everything!

Finally, in first place is Ryan, of King of Prussia, Pa.  This babe with the long raven-hair (which goes down to the middle of her back) wears a navy two-piece bikini bordered in white.  She is posed completely to the side, but that gives us a good look at her ass, namely that her bikini bottom is slight enough to expose, I'd say, half of her butt, and so this goes under the rule that any Hooters waitress showing off her ass automatically gets the top spot.  Also, as an added bonus, from this angle I can see she has pretty nice-sized tits.

So congratulations to Ryan, and to all the waitresses of January 2025.  I have already touched myself to all of them Saturday morning, but I might just touch myself to them again!

Sensitivity In Upper-Right Teeth

For the past ... oh, month, two months, since my check-up -- I don't mark these things because I assume an ailment I get will just go away, but this one didn't -- when I have bitten down on food, my upper right teeth hurt.  It doesn't happen all the time, and it sometimes goes away after a while.  But I feel something up there, and since it's not going away, I am a bit concerned.  Does it have to do with me grinding my teeth at night?  Does it have to do with the weather?  More importantly, will this stop, or will I eventually lose my teeth?

Just marking this here.

Addendum To: When You Can't Plan Because You Have Too Much Time

Yeah, what I said in my last blog post?  Didn't do it.

So what I said last night I said without taking a nap at all, which is rare for a day where I didn't go out and in fact intended to never even open the front door (although I did because the package I ordered at Best Buy came sooner than it did, yesterday/Saturday, and I didn't want to leave the package out all day, so I stepped out and got it, and I went down to the end of the driveway and got the mail, too).  I was so entranced that I had three televisions, both tuned to a different Game and arranged in a way I totally love: There's the 55" on the floor, there's the 32" on a stand (both of which I got from my acquaintances), and then there's the TV we've had for a long time, don't know its diagonal length, on a stand.  They're all oriented in such a way that I can watch all three from a bar stool on the outside of the kitchen counter.

It was great: Past noon I had, from left to right, men's college basketball on Channel 4, usually men's lacrosse on Big Ten+ (through the app on my cellphone and through Apple TV, which I plugged into the 32" because I don't have a remote for it not, until yesterday, an antenna, even though the package I got from Best Buy yesterday was another antenna), and men's college basketball on Channel 9.  In the evening, from left to right, it was men's college hockey on Channel 9, men's volleyball on Big Ten+, and Liga MX on Channel 21.  I tell ya, all that was bliss.  I want to die this way.

So, while I was geeked out by my setup, I didn't sleep.  In the evening I remembered what I said and set my alarm clock for 7 because the EPL Matches today/Sunday I said I wanted to go to began at 8.  And that's when I got a teeny tired because I've been up all day.  And then I asked myself, "Do I really want to do this?"  And then I reflected on what I just did.  I have to wake up at 7.  Now, most EPL Matches that go off simultaneously do so Saturdays at 9 o'clock our time.  It's a tradition in England that most of that league's Games kick off on that day and at that time.  Setting my alarm clock at 8 on a Saturday is not a big deal to me.  I've done it before and I've looked forward to it.  But 7 o'clock is when I usually need to get up to go to work, and I don't want to get up that early on a weekend, even if it's for something fun.  I really, really think I should sleep in on a weekend and not wake up so early unless I have to.  And again, it may have been my nap-less body speaking to me about all this.

So I decided not to go.  Or, more precisely, c'est la vie.  I did conk off around 11 last night, after the Liga MX Game ended.  That is enough time whereby if I naturally wake up before 7, I would go.  If not, well, I'm glad my body got the rest it needed.  Subsequently, with soccer off the table, seeing The Warriors is back on.  So I guess I'm watching a movie I've watched before at a theater I've never been to instead, even though I blog posted yesterday that I didn't want to do that.

Got up just now and I looked at my phone: 8:22 a.m.  Early, but not early enough to see the EPL.  Unfortunately, through all this, I asked *****y last night to cum and give me an HJ in the early afternoon, just before the screening of the film.  It's going to be tight as it is, and strippers are often late, plus I don't know how, uh, quick I'll be since, even though I didn't sleep, I did touch myself all day yesterday, and at my advanced age, pudding out the day before means I won't pud out all that fast the next day.  In other words, there's a chance I will miss both soccer and the movie today.  And that would leave me with literally nothing else to do during the day.

Well, I do have my three-TV set-up.  Guess it could be worse. ...