Well, I guess they are standing pat.

The Red Sox announced that they made no changes to their roster at the 2019 trade deadline. I can't say that I'm surprised nor am I disappointed. The team is a good team and I honestly believe they suffer from a disease known as The World Series Hangover.

The team that wins the world series always seems to fall apart the next season an d that is what has happened to the Red Sox.

Don't get me wrong, they still stand a chance of making it to the post-season but as the season rolls on, that light at the end of the tunnel is getting dimmer. Fortunately, the Red Sox did not do something incredibly stupid like trade away a great outfielder for a mediocre bullpen arm.

I'm still hoping to see them playing in October.

⧫

I did not need to water my lawn today and the storm that rolled through seemed to have broken the heat. I was able to turn off the AC and open some windows this afternoon.

I like AC but I like having the windows open more.

⧫

I'm going to watch some baseball and you are apparently going to surf the internet.

Here it is:

• Guys don't have this problem. We pretty much do exactly what the third paragraph says we shouldn't do.



• Oh Canada.



• I'm still not gonna drink that crap.



• I already hate celebrities who think the world revolves around them but now I'm really beginning to hate rich people who think the universe revolves around them.



• You don't need a law. You need to stop punishing cops who do their job.

I'm having first-world problems

My 10 year old travel mug finally died today.

It was an Aladin Travel Mug that was perfect in every way. It held 16 oz of my own great blend of fresh ground coffee, had a little flip top to close it so I didn't spill it all over myself and it fit perfectly into my car's cup holders. Most important was the fact that I could toss it in the dishwasher to clean it.

Most travel mugs have poor seals between the inner and outer walls so they tend to get water into the void between the walls. This mug was vacuum sealed and there was no way water would ever get between the walls.

But, after 10 years of suffering my abuse, it finally developed a crack and has begun to fill with water.

I looked but they don't make them anymore. I have begun the process of searching for a suitable replacement. In the meantime, I will use one of my lesser travel mugs.

⧫

Price is pitching against the Rays tonight and I'm hoping he pitches well.

While I watch the game, you can visit the links:

• I've come to the conclusion that the internet is filled with things I never wanted to know.



• My question is if "an employee saw what the woman was doing", why didn't he punch her in the face and then proceed to beat her soundly until police arrived?



• Yes, this happened in New Hampshire.



• Maybe he was just wanted to cut out the middle-man.



• In my opinion, if you spend more than 10 minutes a decade protesting against something, you are probably a moron who is incapable of having an original thought of your own.

No sweep

They took 3 of the 4 games from the Yankees but just couldn't pull off the sweep. Unfortunately, with that loss, they are also now a full game behind the Athletics in the AL wild card race.

No game tonight while they wait for the Rays to fly down from Toronto. Tomorrow they start a 3 game series against the Rays before the Yankees come back into town for another series.

I personally think that whoever is in charge of the season schedule should spend a little more time looking at who plays who and when they play each other. I mean, the Yankees just left Boston, went home to New York to play the Diamondbacks and in three days, they have to come back to Boston.

Seems kinda screwed up to me.

⧫

My daughter has to operate on a possum tomorrow.

I gotta be honest with you, when my wife told me that, the first thing that crossed my mind was The Beverly Hillbillies.

⧫

I'm going to catch up on some DVRs. You can click on these:

• Because they don't have guns?



• Brewers fans are imitating Red Sox fans.



• Well, if it's just a souvenir, go right ahead. Just make sure you don't have more than 3 ounces of shampoo!

ESPN has the game tonight

I hate when ESPN has the game. It's four hours of Vasgersian and Rodriguez trying to get into Mendoza's pants while Mendoza tells stories and analyzes each play like she played at the MLB level.

Fortunately ESPN got the message from the viewing public and stopped insisting that the games start at 8:30 ET and now they start 7:05 ET.

Cashner pitched pretty good yesterday, proving that he's got the stuff. He got a standing ovation from the normally jaded crowd at Fenway so I'm not alone in my assessment.

Sale is pitching tonight and based on his last two outings, I'm thinking that whatever was bothering him is gone.

I have a good feeling about tonights game. I'm feeling a sweep of the Yankees coming on. And if they don't win, I'm still happy because they won 3 out of 4.

⧫

Enjoy these links while I cringe at the talking heads on ESPN:

• Based on the pictures, they look like they would be a fun group to ride around with.



• It's the old, "I forgot I was eating" defense.



• Those Wyomians are no fun at all.



• I'm not entirely sure what this headline means but it's from Australia so I'm posting it.



• Either they are very tiny glasses or her liver is made of concrete.



• This is actually a very New Hampshire kind of thing.

Pat thinks I'm crazy

And to a certain degree, he might be right.

There are a lot of known problems with owning those voice assistants, the biggest one being the fact that the service is always listening to what you say and recording it on some remote server somewhere. There have been a lot of stories about service people listening to private conversations.

Since the deepest conversations my wife and I have usually involve what to have for dinner or finding out if one of us fed The Dog, I'm not really concerned about anyone listening to what we have to say.

None of that really matters. What matters is that it makes my wife happy. And for the record, my entire adult life has pretty much been spent making my wife happy.

⧫

The Red Sox won again last night, taking the first two games in this four game series.

Todays game started at 4:00 and the Red Sox won. They have now taken three of the four games and with Sale pitching tomorrow, there is a pretty good chance they will sweep the Yankees.

More importantly, they have moved into second place in the ALEast and they are now the second wild card team, just a half game ahead of the Athletics and the Rays. If they can keep it up, they will probably move into the first wild card slot ahead of the Indians within the next week or two.

If the Yankees keep playing the way they are playing, the Red Sox could very well move into first place in the ALEast sometime in mid to late August.

I am a very, very, very happy guy.

⧫

You might find something interesting in these links:

• We enjoyed pan seared scallops for dinner tonight, which is great, but now our house smells like the hold of a whaling boat. Guess we gotta break out the Febreze.



• Not where I work. That shit sits around for three or four days before someone finally gets around to throwing it out.



• It was either a crappy car or he is a moron.



• Nothing that a well-aimed M72 LAW rocket can't fix.



• I'm betting alcohol was involved.

Wow. Just wow.

I was going to say holy shit but I wanted the title to be family friendly. Let me say it now:

HOLY SHIT!

The Red Sox beat the Yankees 19-3 last night. That is a lot of runs.

I'm hoping they win again tonight. That would be excellent.

⧫

I'm going to watch some baseball.

While I do that, you can click on these:

• I'm pretty sure that the words "Humongous" and "Chihuahua" don't go together.



• Only our government would spend $3,000,000 to clarify the obvious.



• It's only a matter of time before they outlaw those things.



• I never want to go to Africa.... Ever....



• When it comes to taxes, New Jersey is almost as bad as Massachusetts.

Got a new toy.

We bought one of those voice assistant thingees and it arrived today. When I got home from work, I set it up, taught it were my smart devices were and then spent some time talking to it to see what it can do.

It reminded me the Red Sox were on at 7:00, it set a timer to remind me to turn off my lawn sprinkler and it played the NPR news to me.

I'm not entirely sure this is a necessity in my life but I kind of like it.

⧫

As I type this, it's the top of the 2nd inning, the Red Sox are up 7-1, the Yankees are batting, the bases are loaded and there is one out. Porcello was gold in the 1st inning but he is struggling in the second.

As with the Rays, if the Red Sox win one of these four games, I'll be happy. If they win two, I'll be very happy. If they win three, I'll be freakin' ecstatic and it they win all four of these games, I'll have to go get medicated.

⧫

While I watch the game, you can click the links:

• It doesn't hurt to ask.



• Stray Mule would be a great name for a 1950's country/western singer.



• Welcome to Western Mass.

I'm extra happy.

The Red Sox won last night, taking two of the three games in the series from the Rays. Unfortunately, they lost todays game, missing the sweep.

Given that the Rays have been playing some damned good baseball this season, taking two out of three from them is pretty good.

⧫

I managed to get an hour in the air today and it was a good hour. I got in one touch & go and one full stop landing. Between those two landings, I flew around the valley sightseeing with a friend.

It was a picture perfect day to be flying with bright sunshine punctuated by some light fluffy clouds at around 5,000 feet. There were very few planes in the sky so there was no stress or concerns about where everyone was.

I'm trying to fly every three weeks and so far it's working for me. Hopefully I can keep on this schedule because I've still got three more people on my list who want to go up and see the world from 3,000 feet.

⧫

Since I was flying, I missed todays Red Sox game. It looks like NESN is going to rerun it at 8:00 so I'll be able to watch some of it. Yes, I know how the game turns out but I'll still watch it.

It's what I do.

You can enjoy these links if you want:

• Hey BooBoo! I scored the world biggest pic-i-nic basket!



• Something tells me this won't go over very well.



• Someone is gonna spend several hours on the toilet after this.



• There are never any attractive people at these places.



• Here's another clear, concise picture that proves beyond a shadow of a doubt the existence of the Loch Ness Monster.



• I don't like cold fries but this reaction seems a bit excessive.

I'm happy

The Red Sox won last night and that means they have taken at least one of the three games against the Rays. If they win again tonight, I'll be extra happy.

I will tell you that I'm not enjoying Carlos Peña doing the color commentating on NESN. He may have been a good ball player but he's not a good talking head.

⧫

I don't have a lot to talk about so here are some links:

• She'll probably still get elected.



• There is something wrong with people.



• This is why I take my car to an actual mechanic.



• Maybe this is why they keep trying to sneak into the United States.



• This is a pretty shitty first date.



• Only in Florida.

Busy day today.

Work was work today. I had a lot to do and I managed to get it all done. There are some additional tasks I want to finish up tomorrow but the heavy lifting is done.

At some point in my future I am going to wake up and say, "That's enough". That is when I will retire. Until then, I'm really glad I got my butt out of the corporate world.

Don't misunderstand, I have no objections to the 30 years I spent working at a Fortune 100 company. My wife and I were able to raise three children in a nice home, put them all through college and still build a nice retirement nest egg.

But I like working at the college far more than I ever enjoyed the cubicle farm.

⧫

I found out today two things today that make me smile:

1. There is a possibility that Quintin Tarantino may direct the next Star Trek movie. He says it will be a space gangster movie in the style of Pulp Fiction.


2. Tom Hanks has the lead role in a movie about the life of Fred Rogers.

I'm looking forward to seeing those two movies.

⧫

The Red Sox are down in Tampa to play a three game series against the Rays.

The way they've been playing lately, I'll be happy if they win just one of those games.

While I spend most of my evening watching them play, you can spend a few minutes clicking on these:

• Another reason to not fly commercial.



• This can't be good.



• Just kidding!



• Something tells me it is probably the only thing worth seeing there.



• Key phrase in this story: "The parent fled and is still being sought."

My car is retarded.

I have an old car. It's 15 years old, to be precise. I have an old car because I like this car. It runs like a champ and after 15 years, the drivers seat has molded itself to my ass. I also like not having any car payments.

Anyways, there is a small two-line display that gives me information when things go wrong and that was how I knew the headlamp was out. The display also told me I had a "position light bulb failure".

Now, I know what a running light is, I know what a tail light is, I know what a head light is, I know what backup light is and I know what a turn signal is. I have never heard of a position light.

I assumed it was those little marker lights on the corners of the car but when I looked, all four of those little lights were burning brightly, as was every other light on my car. Yet the message persisted.

Turns out, after several hours of staring, poking, testing and soldering, the "position light" is actually a tail light.

See, my car has four light bulbs for its tail lights and after a lot of additional staring, I found that one of those four bulbs is burned out. Goddammit!

How hard would it have been to say, "Tail light bulb failure" instead of position light?

I figure that the message is either a lie or it's possible that my car may be mildly retarded.

I'm going with retarded.

⧫

Red Sox won in fine style last night, beating the Orioles 17-6.

Yay! Good game boys!

The Red Sox got shut out 5-0 today.

Boo! You suck!

Also, we got our second look at Cashner. Suffice to say it was not a good second look. I'd go so far as to say it might have been worse than the first look we had of him. At this point, I'm starting to think that maybe Cashner wasn't worth the two low-end prospects they traded for him.

His next outing better be way better than his first two.

⧫

Enjoy these links:

• Australia: What doesn't kill ya, hides in your couch and tries to kill ya.



• Oh Canada.



• Oops.

Price had a bad night

The Red Sox got beat by the almost last place Orioles last night and they got beat good. The final score was 11-2.

I'd like to say that Price sucks but I can't. This was the first game he blew in a long time and his pitching this season has be pretty damned good. I suspect last night was one of those nights that every pitcher has.

Fortunately Sale seemed to get his act together last time he pitched, Rodriguez is still on a roll and I have hopes that Porcello will do well tonight. I can't say much about the new guy, Cashner, because he's only itched one game for them and it was bad.

Like I said, hopefully Porcello will have a good night and the Red Sox win. They can't afford to lose to the Orioles.

⧫

Long day today. At 5:00 this morning, we got a phone call about a problem with my mother-in-law (she's fine). We ended up in the ER until 10:00 before everything got sorted out.

Then we ran our errands and at some point, one of my headlights decided to call it quits. This caused me to spend some time outdoors trying to figure out what the problem was.

I suspect a wiring issue but after 20 minutes in the heat, I decided it could wait until tomorrow morning. I'm not going anywhere tonight and if I do need to go somewhere, I'll take my wife's car.

⧫

I'll be watching baseball.

You can click on these if you want:

• Baltimore is a bad city.



• Nigeria is a bad country.



• Here's your Naked Guy In The News story.



• Only in Florida.



• Oops.

And then there were none.

We had five trees taken down today and boy, does that change the yard.

We had the two crab apple tree trunks removed as well as a huge four-trunk pine tree on the side. Then we had two very tall pines that were leaning towards our house taken down.

Now all I have to do is buy a shitload of grass seed and try to get my lawn back:

I don't have high hopes....

⧫

As usual, baseball is on and I will be watching some of it.

While I do that, you can do these:

• I wonder what the fine is.



• Only in Florida.



• Also only in Florida.



• Key entry from our favorite police log: "8:23 a.m. A Kalispell man called police to ask what he should do with his friend’s stuff now that his friend is in jail."

They took 3 out of 4

The Red Sox won last night and then again this afternoon. That means they won 3 out of the 4 games in their series against the Blue Jays.

Now it's down to Baltimore where tomorrow they start a 3 game series against the Orioles.

⧫

NESN is rerunning this afternoons game at 8:00 tonight so I'll watch that. Until then, I'm not entirely sure what I'm going to watch. Maybe I'll spend my time looking for interesting stuff on the interwebs.

Here are the things I found:

• Only in Florida.



• I guess those French billionaires were full of shit.



• Sponge-dwelling Worm would be a great name for a 1990s Russian Punk Rocker.



• Lawyers: Bastions of integrity and decorum.



• Australia: What doesn't kill ya, hitches a ride on ya.



• Here's your Naked Guy In The News story.

Air conditioners are all installed

It was a little on the warm side today but my house stayed nice and cool.

I like nice and cool.

⧫

Well, Cashner's debut was less than stellar last night and the Red Sox managed to lose to the Blue Jays 10-4.

I really hope it was because he was pitching for a new team and not because he sucks....

As for tonight, Rodriguez is on the mound and he's been pretty good lately. He's a little slow but he's been winning games. This is a good thing even though those games have been lasting for 4 hours.

You can bet I won't be awake to see all nine innings.

⧫

I'm going to watch some baseball.

Here are some links you might enjoy:

• If you've ever wanted to sleep in an ancient, large advertisement, now's your chance.



• Oops.



• For the record, 74,000 BPS = $92,000.00.



• Another reason to not eat sushi.

Time to put in more air conditioners

My wife has decided that with the upcoming heat wave, she would like air conditioning in additional room. I agree and will be installing one or two more units tomorrow.

I love air conditioning.

⧫

The Red Sox almost blew a huge lead last night but held on at the end and won 10-8.

I fell didn't stay awake for all 9 innings and when I went to bed after the 7th inning, the score was 10-4. When I woke up I found out the Blue Jays had scored 4 runs in the 8th and almost scored a few more in the 9th.

They really need to do something about the bullpen.

I'm going to watch as much of tonights game as I can. The new guy, Cashner, is the starter tonight and after doing some research on him, I've decided I'm going to like him. He is a good ol' boy from Texas and those guys are usually good guys to have on a team.

⧫

You might like these:

• For the record, I like The Onion and I miss BurgerTime. It was a great game.



• Only in Florida.



• I'm coining a new term: "Gun Hoarder"

No planes available

Today was one of those days where I wish I owned my own plane.

I tried to reserve one at the airport but there were none available. If there were, you can bet I would have gone flying today. It was a beautiful freakin' day.

⧫

I have decided that I hate all politicians. And I do mean all of them. I hate Republicans, I hate Democrats, I hate Socialists, I hate anyone that thinks they should tell me what to do and how to live. More importantly, I hate people how behave like 3rd graders on a playground.

They spend all their time pissing on each other and doing nothing for us. Nothing at all.

To quote Thomas Jefferson: "A little rebellion now and then is a good thing"

Mr. Jefferson was a pretty bright guy.

⧫

The Red Sox are playing the Blue Jays tonight. Right now it's the top of the second inning and the score is 5-1 in favor of the Red Sox.

This could be a good series for them.

⧫

Here are some links:

• I bet the New Zealand motto is, "Oy! We're not Australia!"



• No thank you.



• You know how I always say, "Only in Florida"? Well, not this time.



• You gotta love The Sun. They get all the breaking news.

They got themselves a pitcher

The Red Sox acquired a starting pitcher named Cashner from the Orioles. This is a win for everyone.

The Orioles got two youngsters and lowered their payroll by $1.3 million, the Red Sox got a much-needed, decent starting pitcher who will only cost them $1.3 million and Cashner gets to play for a team with a far better better shot at making the post-season than the Orioles will ever have.

When Evoldi comes back in a week or so, he will become the closer they have been missing all season. I'm really hoping with a decent rotation and a closer, they will take it easier on the stressed out bullpen and start winning enough games to move into contention.

⧫

My daughter is at a horse track today. Apparently they are racing things other than horses.

She sent me these pics:

She said the zebra race was a bit uncoordinated.

But the ostrich race was a riot!

⧫

I've got kind of a busy evening plus there is baseball.

Let's just get to the links and call it a night:

• Oh Canada.



• Time to get that bottle of Death To All Bugs yard spray out and hose down the yard.



• Proof that our society contains many, many nutcases.

Quiet day today

Took care of some things that I needed to take care of and then it was lazy time. I basically spent this afternoon catching up on some DVRs and then watching some woodworking videos on YouTube.

⧫

For the record, woodworking isn't something I do as a hobby, it's something I do when I need to. I watch the YouTube videos because I like learning new techniques and tools. Several months ago I made a couple of temporary sleds for my tables saw out of MDF. Those sleds have served their usefulness and I figure it might be time to make a couple of permanent ones.

The permanent ones will be made out of a solid core plywood like birch. I'll pick up one of those plastic cutting boards and cut it into runners that fit the miter slots on my table. The stability of the plywood and the low friction of the plastic runners will make the sleds a lot more usable.

Hey, I gotta find something to keep me busy.

⧫

The Red Sox beat the Dodgers last night and I'm hoping they beat them again tonight.

While I watch them, you should think about clicking on these:

• Australia: What doesn't kill ya, makes you wonder what the hell is wrong with those people.



• Australia: What doesn't kill ya, gives ya the munchies.



• Oh Canada.



• Only in Florida.



• Bernie Sanders?

Stopped for beverages

and now I'm watching baseball.

I will try to make it up to you tomorrow.

The baseball drought ends tonight

No, the Red Sox are not playing tonight. They play tomorrow.

There is only one baseball game tonight and it's between the Rangers and the Astros. ESPN will be carrying the game and I'll watch a little of it because, well, there really is nothing else on.

I realize I'm old and my tastes in entertainment have changed but man, there is nothing on television that appeals to me. The only stations I watch are sports or science. I had high hopes for Holey Moley because it looked like it might be a remake of WipeOut. Instead it's a boring mini-golf show with no redeeming qualities.

Guess I'll just stick with baseball, How the Universe Works and Savage Builds.

⧫

While I eat some dinner and figure out what to watch, you can visit these:

• Only in Florida.



• Key phrase in this story: "Did you call the sheriffs?"



• Huh. Must be one of those foreign beers.



• Mom of the Year.

I mowed my dead lawn

Maybe it's not entirely dead but it's definitely not feeling all that well.

I've watered it every day this week and I'm hoping that is having a positive effect on it. They are predicting heat and humidity tomorrow so I'll continue watering every day until they get around to predicting rain.

⧫

Still no baseball. I watched a little of the Home Run Derby on Monday and none of the All Star game on Tuesday.

I'm not a fan of the All Star game because to the players, it's a joke. It's an excuse for them to hang out with each other and there is usually no chance of seeing anyone play well.

The game starts back up on Friday when the Red Sox will host the Dodgers for the start of a 3 game series. Maybe the Red Sox will have figured out what to do about their bullpen by then.

⧫

I'm going to make some dinner and then watch my DVRs.

While I do that, you can do these:

• Only in Florida.
  (Key line in that story: "I know when it comes on for you to go, you have to go.")



• Also only in Florida.



• And also Only in Florida.



• Wasn't this the opening scene to a lot of 1960s SciFi horror movies?



• I'm thinking there won't be a second date...



• Admit it, we've all wanted to do this.

Guess who spent an hour flying today

I took a friend up for an hour today and it was great. It was a little bumpy but not terrible.

I took them up for my usual upper valley flight:

That flight is best described as pretty. The mountains, lakes and flatland that make up the Connecticut River Valley are beautiful.

⧫

I wish I had some links for you but I don't.

Tomorrow there will be links.

I killed my lawn

Dragging all the debris across my lawn during two days of high heat and humidity appears to have caused some damage. The rain we had the other day came too fast to actually soak into the ground so I watered it this evening for a half hour.

I'm not a lawn guy so I'm not entirely sure my watering it is going to help but what the hell, it can't hurt.

⧫

The Home Run Derby is on today and in my opinion, that is probably the second most boring thing on television. The first most boring thing are those catholic masses they run on Sunday mornings.

But.....

There really isn't anything else on tonight so I'll turn it on. If Berman is doing that "Back back back back!" thing he does, I'll turn it off and find something interesting to watch on Netflix.

Maybe there's a catholic mass on....

⧫

Here are a few links you can enjoy if you want:

• I don't think I've ever heard of an accuser invoking his right against self-incrimination.



• Australia: What doesn't kill ya, drops stabby things on you from above.



• Well, he's going to spend the rest of his career explaining this to his peers.



• I bet the nurses really enjoyed it.

They swept the Tigers

The Red Sox managed to win all three games in their series against the Tigers. Not a bad way to finish up the first half of the season.

Now most of them are on vacation for a week. A few of them will be going to play in the All Star game which, if you want my opinion, is a bad idea. They should take the down time and relax instead of playing in a meaningless game.

Unfortunately, they are still 9 games behind the Yankees in the ALEast and 2 games behind the Indians in the ALWildCard.

Those are surmountable numbers over the second half of the season but they are in a hole and need to dig out if they want to play in October.

⧫

In other sports news, the US Women's Soccer team won the World Cup this afternoon when they defeated the Netherlands 2-0 in the final.

I'm not a big soccer fan and I'm particularly not a fan of one of the players on the women's team but hey, it's sports so I watched.

⧫

You should enjoy these links:

• I've been to Ben and Jerrys but only to get some ice cream.



• No more "Spy vs Spy" or small comics in the margins. No more fold-out back page or racy drawings from Vargas.



• This needs to be renamed "Running of the Morons".

Surprisingly, I am not sore

Neither my wife nor myself appear to be suffering from our intense labor over the last two days. I figured for sure it would be a struggle to get out of bed but not so.

Guess I'm not as decrepit as I thought.

⧫

The Red Sox won last nights game despite the fact I stopped watching once the rain delay was called. I was really tired and staying awake to watch a bunch of talking heads describe things that were pretty meaningless seemed like a bad idea.

As for todays game, well, that is currently in a rain delay. Hopefully they start playing at some point this evening.

⧫

Not much in the way of linkage today. Here are a few you might like:

• I have no idea if this is real or not but I find one in my house, I'm moving.



• Only in Florida.



• We need more judges like these guys.

Well, they won last night

In the 6th inning of last nights game, the Red Sox were down 6-1. Suddenly they figured out what their bats are for and when the 6th inning ended, they were up 7-6.

The Blue Jays tied it in the 8th but the Red Sox put the kid Hernandez in to pinch hit in the 9th and he managed to put one into the stands, giving the Red Sox a 1 run lead.

And that is how the game ended with the Red Sox winning 8-7.

Tonight they are in Detroit to play the Tigers. I'm hoping they win that series as well.

⧫

The yard is clean of all debris:

My wife and I know how to bust ass and get the job done!

Of course, tomorrow we are probably both going to be sore as hell and beat up. I have more scratches on my legs and arms than I can count.

⧫

I'm going to watch some baseball and try to ease my muscles a bit.

You can click on these links:

• This is an excellent headline.



• You need a license to drive a car and a license to get a dog but they'll let any asshole be a parent.



• Key entry from our favorite police log: "6:11 a.m. A man called the Kalispell Police Department asking if they could call the U.S. Secret Service because he had a problem that was way out of the local authorities’ league."

Sale has a problem

I don't know what is wrong with him and I don't think anyone else does either. The man just isn't pitching like he should.

As a result, he gave up 3 home runs and the Red Sox lost last night 6-3.

Tonight the starting pitcher is Velazquez. As a note, he hasn't started since mid-May so this should be interesting.

⧫

This morning we spent two hours hauling crab apple branches into the woods. Then we spent some time at my sisters place enjoying the company of family.

When we got home this evening, we spent another two hours hauling crab apple branches into the woods. This is the result:

If I was an evil dictator and I wanted to torture people, I would make them drag carb apple branches around for a few hours a day. My arms are scratched up, my back is killing me and there are scratches on my face. I feel like I walked through a blackberry patch.

Those things have all kinds of sharp little nubs sticking out of them and they entangle with each other like velcro. You pull on one branch and six others try to come along for the ride. Then, when you try to untangle them, one of them snap loose and whips you in the face.

But the debris from one of the two trees has been cleaned up and while I was dragging the last few massive branches, my wife got a bit of a start on the second tree:

I'm hoping to be finished with the second tree tomorrow. Then it's just a matter of waiting for the tree guy to show up and cut down all the trees, including the two crab apple trunks.

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I'm hoping the Red Sox do better tonight and take 2 of 3 in this series.

I'm also hoping you find these entertaining or enlightening:

• I think this is the most disgusting thing ever conceived.



• That must have been attractive....



• We should consider doing this around here. Start with all the golf courses.



• Only in Florida.



• Key phrase in this story: "The agency says only living, breathing people can be counted for the HOV lane."

Nice win last night

The Red Sox took care of business last night, beating the Blue Jays 10-6.

Tonights game is looking like it might be a low scoring game since it's currently 0-0 in the 2nd inning.

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We've been getting quotes on some tree removal and two of the trees we want removed are crab apples that are growing up into the wires. All of the guys have said, "I don't like working in the wires." and then they give us an outrageous quote.

My wife decided to call the electric company and National Grid said they would send a truck out to look. The guy showed up around 3:00 and my wive explained what was going on. He said that since we were going to have the trees removed, he would "trim" them for us.

I got home to find two tree trunks, each standing about 6 to 8 feet tall and a bunch of branches laying on the ground.

My wife and I spent an hour this evening dragging the branches out of the road and our driveway and into the woods and she will give the one tree guy who she liked a call and tell him he should come back and give us another quote.

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So anyways, this is late because I was being a lumberjack.

While I watch the game, you can click on these:

• Yes, alcohol was involved.



• Only in Florida.



• Mom and Dad must be proud.



• Key phrase in this story: "...took a small amount of cash and coins, as well as the two lava lamps."

Yes, there is baseball.

The Red Sox are in Toronto to play the Blue Jays and so far, they are doing all right. They are in the first inning and the Red Sox are up 4-0.

Hopefully they are back on the winning track.

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I've got another FAA briefing tonight so this is short.

Enjoy these links:

• Presenting this episodes Brilliant Criminal of the Day.



• This is not a smart woman.



• Key phrase in this story: "How did a huge gecko crawl into a tiny ear hole?"

No baseball tonight

The Red Sox are back in the United States and they are off until tomorrow. That is when they will leave the United States to start a 3 game series against the Blue Jays up in Toronto, Canada.

As for their recent loses to the Yankees, I got to thinking about it and I've got something to say:

The Red Sox scored a total of 21 runs over two games and didn't win either game.

That is a shitload of runs.

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In other baseball news, a 27 year old pitcher for the Angels named Tyler Skaggs was found dead in a hotel room. No one is saying why or how he died but no matter how, it's a damned shame.

⧫

Everyone is kind of pissed off the Trump stepped on North Korea soil. They are saying that by doing that, he give's legitimacy to the North Korean dictator.

I say that North Korea has had a dictator since the end of WWII and nothing anyone has done has had any impact on that.

Don't blame Trump for the Krazy Kims. He's just the guy stuck with dealing with a situation foisted on him by several generations of US Presidents.

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I'm going to sit through an FAA presentation on weather briefings and then watch some bad DVRs.

You can do these if you want:

• If you visit Cambridge, England, be careful.



• Attention parents: Buy your kid a toy instead of letting them play with your phone. It's cheaper.



• Oh Canada.



• Do not watch this video.



• Key caption in this video: "Good luck explaining that to your insurance company!"



• Well, I guess us humans had a good run....