Lots of sport stuff today

Lets start with the Red "We got the 'rona!" Sox. They have six players on the covid-19 list. They are Hernandez, Arroyo, Barnes, Sawamura, Taylor and Perez.

On top of that, they lost last night, putting them 9 games behind the first place Rays and 2 games behind the second place Yankees

They traded some cash to the Indians for a minor league pitcher that no one has ever heard of named Peacock. He will be the starter tonight.

I'm pretty sure I will not be shocked if they lose tonight.

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Now on to the Patriots.

Belichick made a move today that brings me great joy.

Last December, I said,

"I also think Belichick should not bring Newton back next season. It was an interesting experiment but enough is enough."

Well, today the Patriots released Newton outright and announced that Mac Jones will be their starting quarterback.

For those of you that haven't been watching the preseason games, I can tell you that Jones is a far better quarterback than Newton.

Look, I'm a realist and I know that when the real games start next week, Jones may fall apart like a house of cards. Rookies tend to do that when the pressure is on them but there is no way he can be as bad as Newton was.

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Finally, lets take a look at the Bruins.

Last season we witnessed the collapse of one of the best goalies in the NHL. Tuukka Rask had to be taken out of a couple of games and during one of those games, he had to bne helpd off the ice.

Turns out the Rask tore his labrum in one of his hip sockets and he had surgery for it this June. It looks like he will be unavailable until January of 2022.

In order to fill the hole left by Rask, the Bruins signed free agent goalie Linus Ullmark. They lost Halak in free agency but they have Swayman, a kid who impressed the hell out of me last season.

With Ullmark and Swayman, they have a really good goalie rotation. Assuming Rask comes back in January and is somewhere close to his potential, they should have a formidable team.

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I'm going to make some dinner and then watch the fiasco that is the Red Sox.

You should visit these links:

• You gotta appreciate a good prank.



• Key phrase in this story: "No, the deputy does not appear to have dusted the posterior prints and the report mentions no explanation for the origin of the dubious derriere.."



• Here's your Naked Guy in the News story.



• I would say that is a pretty good presumption.



• Sex-Crazed Spiders would be a fantastic name for a 1980s punk band.



• Fashion: I don't get it.

The bullpen fell apart

The heavily-used Red Sox bullpen just didn't have it in them to hold on to the lead last night and the Indians won the game.

At least the Red Sox took 2 of 3 games and won the series.

Tonight they are in Tampa to start a four-game series against the Rays. Seeing as how they are currently eight games behind the rays, it would be nice to see the Red Sox win this series. It would be even nicer to see them sweep the Rays but my expectations are that they will split the series 2-2. That will leave them...

...eight games behind the Rays.

I'm going to believe in the sweep and not be disappointed with a split. What will be disappointing is if the Red Sox lose 3 of the 4 games. Even worse will be getting swept. That would suck huge.

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Not much else to prattle on about.

Here are some links:

• Can't help but wonder if we'll be back there in another year or two.



• I've been to South Lake Tahoe. There is basically one road that runs from east to west through the mountains.



• Why won't they release his name? If you're old enough to carry a gun, you're old enough for the public to know who you are.



• Remind me to never go to Brazil. Those people are crazy.



• Oh Canada.



• Must have been a hell of a wedding.

Two in a row

In the tenth inning of last nights game, Martinez stepped up and hit a 3 run homer, giving the Red Sox a 5-2 lead in the game.

Then Perez came in to pitch and immediately stunk the place up. Extra innings start with a runner on base and Perez walked a guy, then hit a guy, loading the bases. Since there is a rule tht a pitcher must face a minimum of three batters, Cora had to leave him to face at least one more batter. Fortunately, he struck out that batter but just barely. Cora took him out and put Ottavino in.

Ottavino struck out the first guy he faced but gave up a single to the next guy, driving in a run. The final guy hit a soft grounder to first, ending the game and giving the Red Sox a 5-3 win.

Today's game was supposed to kick off at 1:00 but apparently it rains in Cleveland and there was a delay. The game did not start until almost 4:30 and there is a slight pobability they won't make it through nine innings. According to the announcers, there is another line of showers heading their way.

As I type this, the Red Sox are up 5-3 at the middle of the seventh thanks to some good hitting by the batters and good pitching by Houck through five innings. It was 4-1 but in the sixth, Houck hit two batters and Cora took him out. Cora put Taylor in and he managed to get two outs before giving up a single that drove in the two hit batters.

They need to win this game...

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I have occasionally peeked in on some live feeds from the New Orleans area. Specifically this feed which shows Bourbon Street.

There are a surprising number of people driving/walking around as the storm comes ashore. Kinda makes me wonder what is so important that the need to be out in a category four hurricane. Were they out of cigarettes? Did their dog get out and they're looking for it?

What is it that makes someone say, "Hey Mabel, what say we go for a walk-about in that thar' major hurreeecane!"

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While watch the rest of this ball game, you can visit these:

• Key phrase in this story: "...which set off more explosions inside the house."
  Those are known as "secondary explosions" and are indicative of explosives being stored in the house.



• Delta is charging unvaccinated employees an additional $200 in health insurance premiums. This is a smart thing on Delta's part.



• Speaking of people that are unvaccinated, are there any tv or radio guys still alive who are preaching against the vaccine or have they all died off?



• Australia: What doesn't kill ya, eats it's own kind.



• Self-Healing Blob From Space would be a fantastic name for a 1950 sci-fi "B" movie.



• My mom grew up in Ellwood City.

Long day = Short post

Busy day today. First there was grocery shopping and then we spent some time at the mall buying things we needed to buy. Primarily, we needed to buy my wife a new laptop, which we did.

After that, we stopped for a quick late-lunch / early-dinner and then home. From there I went to a friends house to help him set up a new printer while my wife and daughter worked to get everything transferred on to my wifes new computer.

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The Red Sox and Indians are about to enter the 10th inning tied 2-2.

They won last night and I'm really hoping they win tonight.

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While I watch the end of this game, you can visit these links:

• Attention guys: Don't get grabby with the ladies.



• Oh Canada.



• It's going to be shitty Thanksgiving in the Werking household for the next few years.



• Um, because we give a shit about ourselves and our society?



• No wonder the the stock market is a mess.



• Yet another thing that does not shock me.

Two in a row would be nice.

They won the series against the Twins when they won last nights game. Tonight they are in Cleveland to play the Indians, or whatever they're called now-a-days.

Sale pitched a hell of a game last night and had his third "immaculate inning" since joining the Red Sox. For those of you that don't know what an immaculate inning is, that is where the pitcher strikes out the side on only nine pitches. Three pitches for each batter that result in three strikes for each batter. Those strikes can be the result of the batter looking, the batter swinging and missing or the batter fouling a ball off.

Trust me when I say, immaculate innings are rare. Just to be clear, they are rarer than no-hitters. There have only been 104 immaculate innings in MLB history. Sale is only one of seven pitchers in all of MLB history to have multiple immaculate innings and he is only one of two pitchers to have three immaculate innings. The other guy with three immaculate innings is named Sandy Koufax

As for the team, they played well. There weren't any fielding or base running errors and while a few of them are still slumping at the plate, others seem to have come out of their funk. Dalbec in particular managed to smoke a three run homer in the second inning and then a two run homer in the seventh.

All-in-all they played decent ball last night. We'll have to wait and see what tonight brings.

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Looks like New Orleans, a city that was built below sea level, is about to get run over by another hurricane.

I wonder how long it will take them to recover from this one.

Actually, what I really wonder is how much of my already stretched thin tax dollars will be spent helping them recover from this one...

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Biden said something the other day that I didn't like. He said,

These American service members who gave their lives — it’s an overused word, but it’s totally appropriate — they were heroes.

That statement is designed to make him feel good. He should have said "These American service members who gave their lives were 18, 19, 20 year old kids who believed their commander & chief would never put them unnecessarily into harm's way." That would be more accurate. He also wouldn't be able to hide behind the word "hero" and make it sound like they knew what they were getting into.

Hey Biden, take responsibility for screwing this up. Own the fiasco that resulted in those deaths. And stop trying to pin the blame on "the previous administration" for cutting a deal with the taliban. You have been in office since January and you knew about the deal Trump cut. Yet you waited until now to order the departure with what appears to have been little planning or notice.

It's shit like this that makes me dislike all politicians. Liberal or conservative, democrat or republican, it doesn;'t matter. None of them have ever made me say, "Hey, that guy seems like a smart guy who is willing to listen to other smart guys and make an informed decision."

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I'm going to run out and pick up some dinner. Then I'm going to come home and eat that dinner while first watching some evening news and then some baseball.

You should feel free to see if these links are of any interest to you:

• All I can say is, Thank goodness there is a US version of The Sun.



• Key phrase in this story: "For nearly as long as automobiles have parked along city streets, municipalities have found ways to enforce parking regulations without implicating the Fourth Amendment."



• Only in Florida.



• Key words in this headline: "...the bug health officials are begging you to kill on sight."



• Key phrase in this story: "If the object is not claimed, they will be able to keep it."



• I really hope they don't let this kid out. He knew exactly what he was doing when he shot all those people.

Just can't win 2 in a row

They failed to score any runs over six innings last night and were down 4-0 going into the seventh. That was when they decided to start stepping on home plate and by the ninth inning, the game was tied 4-4.

In the tenth inning, the reliever gave up 5 runs and the Red Sox could only score 2 runs and the game ended with the Red Sox losing 9-6.

I'd like to blame the reliever, Robles, for that loss but I can't. If the batters had managed to drive in a run during the six innings, the score would not have been tied in the ninth and he would never be asked to come in to the game. No sir, I can't blame him, I blame the team that failed to score any runs during the first 2/3rds of the game.

They are in a meltdown and it shows. They don't look like they are having fun. They all look stressed. They all look like they expect to lose when they walk on to the field.

Something needs to happen to turn them around.

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Four days ago, I said, "All I know is I will not be shocked if there is an attack on US citizens or soldiers in the very near future."

As much as it pains me to say this, it turns out I was right.

This entire thing has been a fiasco since he announced it. Hell, it was a mess long before that but Goofy Joe made it worse when he decided to pull the troops out before getting the Americans out, getting the Afghans who helped the Americans out or getting the embassy staff out.

And to make matters worse, the taliban and their ilk have grabbed up all the American gear so when the Marines look out and see a humvee being driven by men carrying M-4 carbines and dressed in US military fatigues, they don't know if it's Americans or taliban. They don't know if they should defend themselves or let the group just roll on in.

According to Goofy Joe, all evacuations will stop on August 31st. That means we can probably expect one, maybe two more attacks over the next 5 days. After that, they'll start blowing shit up in the middle-east, then Europe and then the US.

Not a good time for an ammo shortage.

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I was kinda busy today working and then doing lawyer stuff for my mother-in-law so I didn't get to spend a lot of time doing internet stuff for you.

Trust me, I would much rather spend time doing internet stuff than lawyer stuff...

Anyways, here's what I found for you:

• This is an interesting approach. I will be paying attention to see how this all turns out.



• Speaking of interesting approaches...



• There is a movement in the US to legalize magic mushrooms.
  This is a terrible idea.



• Key phrase in this story: "Yes, that’s right: it’s a miniature dick-rocket that costs $69..."



• I would like to point out that this episodes Brilliant Criminal has a mask on his neck that could have been used to hide his identity.



• Key phrase in this story: "I’m an outdoors guy."

They damn near blew it.

The Red Sox were up 9-3 in the fifth inning, 9-4 in the sixth inning and 9-8 in the seventh inning. They scored two more runs in the eighth but the Twins scored one in the ninth. This made the final score 11-9 and my blood pressure about 200/150.

I swear to God, those guys are gonna give me a heart attack.

Let's hope tonight's game is a little less stressful...

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Key phrase in this story: "The commission had launched an effort to create an official historic district in 2006 and 2010, but that vote failed at Town Meetings."

Yes it did fail. And we're not talking about some "close vote", it failed by quite a bit. As a matter of fact, I'd almost call it a landslide loss.

Albano needs to remember that it failed because the townspeople don't want a historic district. A historic district takes control away from the property owners and gives it to a gang of little Hitlers, calling themselves "The Historic Commission". We're talking about arrogant little pricks issuing directives, orders and fines to people who just want to put up a new mailbox or paint their front door.

As far as I'm concerned, the historic commission should be disbanded, those signs should be taken down and the money spent on them should be returned to the taxpayers.

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Attention everyone who was concerned about me being blown up, you can stand down.

The gas companmy has successfully completed the replacement of our gas meter.

No explosions, no flames, no leaking gas. Just a bunch of hornets buzzing around the guys head while he was replacing the meter.

I need to figure out where those hornets are coming from and spray the crap out of them.

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Time to take a shot at the anti-vax community:

I love finding things like that on the internets...

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Here are some links:

• Looks like someone has found a way to get rich that doesn't involve doing any work.



• High-Powered Epoxy and The Prophylactic Fiasco would be a fantastic name for a 1970s San Francisco psychedelic band.



• Speaking of stupid people.... There's a real possibility that our species will go extinct in the very near future just because of all the incredibly stupid things we do.



• The British take their sheds very seriously.



• Jeff Dunham is a funny guy.

New York has a female governor

I find it almost laughable that hyper-progressive, overly-liberal New York is just now getting around to joining in on the female governor bandwagon.

Just to be clear, the part I find laughable is that the fine citizens of New York elected Creepy Cuomo and Slimy Spitzer but never came close to voting for a woman.

And Governor Hochul, just so you know, the average New York politician needs more than "ethics training" to become a decent human being.

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I'm going to watch the Red Sox.

You can visit these links:

• Attention criminals: Lottery tickets all have serial numbers. If you steal them and try to cash them in, you will be arrested.



• How the hell did Keith Richards outlive Charlie Watts...



• Damned porch pirates are everywhere.



• Another reason to get your colonoscopy.



• Holy shit that's a lot of shit!

I'm sick of being damp

According to the weather dweebs, we have several more days of damp weather ahead of us. The rain should be over with sometime tonight but then the next three days it's going to be hot (upper 80's/lower 90's) and be humid. This means we'll have the normal New England summertime weather of "a possibility of scattered showers in the afternoon".

I still have a small puddle in my basement... Well, it's not so much a puddle as it is an overly damp spot where the foundation wall has a small crack. Fortunately, the dehumidifier seems to be doing enough to keep the flood at bay and I don't have to spend my time running my wet/dry vac.

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The gas company sent me a notice that they need to replace my gas meter. I called them and made an appointment for them to come out and do the install this Wednesday morning.

I figured I'd tell you that so if you happen to see or hear a large explosion in my area on Wednesday morning, check up on me to make sure I'm okay.

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The Red Sox and the Rangers played at 1:00 today, making up the game that they were supposed to play yesterday.

The Red Sox scored two quick runs in the second inning and one more in the sixth while the Rangers didn't manage to score a run until the fifth inning. They went into the ninth inning with the Red Sox up 3-1.

So in an effort to give me a freakin' heart attack, Cora put Barnes in to close the game and he promptly gave up two runs to tie the game. Cora took him out and put Whitlock in. Fortunately, Whitlock managed to get the requisite number of outs, ending the ninth inning in a 3-3 tie.

The Rangers scored a run in the tenth but so did the Red Sox, sending the game into the eleventh inning.

Whitlock held off the Rangers and the Red Sox came up to bat in the bottom of the eleventh tied 4-4.

For the record, the MLB changed the way extra-inning games are played by having each inning start with a runner on second. The first two Red Sox batters managed to walk and get a hit to load the bases.

So with the bases loaded, Travis Shaw, a guy who who started his MLB career with the Red Sox before being traded to the Brewers back in 2016 stepped up to the plate. It should be noted that two weeks ago, Shaw was released by the Brewers and the Red Sox promptly picked him up off waivers. During his first stint with the Red Sox, Shaw was known as "The Mayor of Ding Dong City". In case you don't know it, a home run is sometimes referred to as a "dinger" and since he hit a lot of "dingers", his teammates started calling him the mayor of ding dong city.

I don't see any reason to drop his nickname since with the bases loaded in the eleventh inning, The Mayor of Ding Dong City hit a walk-off grand slam to win the game 8-4.

Welcome home Mr. Mayor.

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Time to eat some dinner and watch bad television.

Here are today's links:

• Rampaging Cows and the Hurt Tourists would be a fantastic name a 1950s country/western band.



• Your vaccination status is your business and you are entitled to do as you please with your body but if you use your position in life to influence your followers, you should be arrested and charged with attempted murder.



• Key entry from our favorite police log: "3:09 p.m. A suspicious looking drug deal turned out to be a two people bagging up huckleberries."



• Oh Canada.

That one stung a bit

Not only did the pitching and the hitting suck, they went and made five errors in the field. They lost a game 10-1 that they should not have lost.

Cora came out at the end of the game and basically said that the coaches and the team should be embarrassed.

He was right.

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Henry has become nothing more than an annoying rain storm. We had a one minute power outage around 2:00 this afternoon and I currently have a small puddle in my basement but that's it.

As I type this at 4:P00pm, it is currently swirling over Norwich, CT heading towards Hartford, CT. The majority of the rain is to its west and we should see the rain depart our area around 9:00 tonight. The winds are down to 11-16 knots so we don't have to worry about trees falling down and taking wires with them.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining. I prefer to have my electricity delivered to my house by National Grid instead of running my small generator for hours.

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Seems that Nikki Haley is a bit upset with Goofy Joe.

I understand what Biden wanted to do. The US has been in Afghanistan for 20 years and it was more than time to get out.

Having said that, they really screwed this up. The statement, "They have surrendered the American people and actually withdrew our troops before they withdrew the American people." is very accurate. They should have done a gradual drawdown that allowed them to evacuate the Americans as well as the Afghans that supported the Americans.

Instead, they decided to "negotiate" with the taliban. That, my friends, is an indication that Goofy Joe is a moron. It's impossible to "negotiate" with a religious fanatic, particularly a religious fanatic who thinks you should be put to death for not following his religion.

On the other hand, there's this idiot who thinks the taliban (and Krazy Kim) love & respect him.

All I know is I will not be shocked if there is an attack on US citizens or soldiers in the very near future. No sir, not shocked at all. The best I can hope for is that none of my loved ones or friends is a victim. I'm particularly concerned about my nephew Mike. If another shooting war starts, he and his tank will be on the front line.

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Today's baseball game was postponed to tomorrow at 1:00.

Here are some links:

• Are they saying that not only has this been legal, it happens enough that it needs a law to ban it?



• Pennsylvania has captured the Australian illegal alien.



• Australia: What doesn't try to kill ya, won't let you play through.



• Sexually Frustrated Sea Snakes would be a great name for a 1970s pop band.

Winning streak of one game

The Red Sox managed to beat the Rangers 6-0 last night. Since the Rays got beat by the White Sox, the Red Sox picked up a game on them. Unfortunately, the Yankees beat the Twins so the Red Sox are still in third place.

Sales pitched a great game but they are babying him and pulled him in the 5th inning after 71 pitches. As he gets more games in, they'll allow him to throw more pitches and go more innings.

Tonight will feature Rodriguez on the mound. I really hope he has a good game and they win.

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Quick update on my ammo cases:

I have completed the sizing, decapping and washing/polishing of all 1,125 brass pistol cases. I took one of the nickel cases, set up the expansion die and dialed in a small expansion of the neck of the case. Then I took out the expansion die and set up the seating/crimping die. I dialed it in using the previously expanded nickel case and one of my bullets.

I now have 1,125 cases ready to go and all three of the die's are set up. Now it's just a matter of finding a place that sells the powder I want, then buying a replacement powder scale (I have no idea what happened to the old balance scale we had) and setting about creating 200 rounds of 9mm.

I'm limited to 200 because that is how many bullets and primers I have. That's more than enough ammunition a few days of fun poking holes in a bunch of paper targets but I'm hoping when I find a powder supplier, I also find that they sell the other components I need.

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They have changed the path of Henry a bit and now it looks like the eye will come up the Connecticut river valley and probably dump on my little town. It's scheduled to be here sometime tomorrow (Sunday) night and hang with us through mid-day on Monday.

I suspect I'm going to be glad I have a generator, enough gasoline to run it for two/three days, and a wet/dry vac.

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Time for some dinner and then some baseball.

It's also time for you to check out these links:

• Key phrase in this story: "The victim, whose gender police did not disclose, suffered non-life-threatening injuries after the crash around 11:15 a.m."
  I don't know about you but I consider being covered in someone else's shit to be life-threatening...



• I have a feeling that alcohol may have been involved.



• Key phrase in this story: "Chita now needs to concentrate on socialising with other primates."



• We have cameras in our phones that can take a crystal clear picture of an object a mile away but they just can't seem to focus on the Loch Ness monster or bigfoot.



• Tantra at Ängsbacka and The Randy Revellers would be a fantastic name for a 1960s religious rock-a-billy band.



• Australia: What doesn't try to kill ya, just wants to get its grocery shopping done.

They need to get back on a winning streak

I know that before the season started, all the talking heads predicted the Red Sox to be a mediocre team, maybe winning half their games and taking fourth place in the ALEast.

This is a screenshot I took back on March 30 that shows the prognosticators and their predictions:

I also know that Bloom clearly stated in the spring that this would be a rebuilding season where he was focused on getting the farm system back to one that was the envy of MLB and "building a team that will compete every year, that’s our main goal".

But let's face it, the Red Sox got all of us fans all fired up and excited during the first half of the season by being the best team in the MLB. This Red Sox fan came to expect that they would continue to win but I also recognized the the Red Sox always experience a post-All Star break slump.

Well, that slump has gone on longer than usual and it has me concerned.

At this point, my expectations are once again tempered by young Mr Bloom and his goal of rebuilding the system. I am once again looking at the Red Sox as a team attempting to rebuild itself after the era of "Trade-em Away Dave".

I am no longer going to look at each loss as a slap in the face but instead I'm going to try and remember that the team is trying to position itself for a long-term run that hopefully includes more than one World Series.

I still want them to win every game and I really hope they make the playoffs but just need to temper those expectations with a little bit of reality.

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Here comes Henry!

I've tested my generator and I have 15 gallons of gas. Tomorrow is our normal grocery shopping day so we'll stock up on the necessities like candy bars, cookies, soda, beer, etc...

You know, the essentials.

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The Patriots pretty much ran roughshod over the Eagles last night, giving them 2-0 record.

Yes, I know these are preseason and don't matter one bit. Yes I know the Patriots always do well in the preseason games but damnit, I need to feel good about a local sports team and this is the one that is winning.

Give me this little ray of sunshine.

Well, give me that and a liberal dose of PGA/USGA/LPGA tournaments.

I do like watching a little golf every now and then. Particularly the LPGA or any tournament with Bubba Watson in it.

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Here are a few links you may find enjoyable:

• I am, as always, the proud dad.



• Seems like lhe more people die, the more people get vaccinated. Funny how that works...



• Australia: What doesn't try to kill ya, tries to summon a demon on ya.

No baseball tonight

There is, however, some pre-season football. The Patriots will play a game against the Eagles at 7:30 this evening.

For those of you that still watch football, NBC will be carrying the game.

For those of you that stopped watching football because somebody decided to exercise their first amendment rights and take a knee while the National Anthem was playing, I just want to tell you that I think it's a damned shame you stopped watching something you always enjoyed watching because someone had an opinion you don't like.

Oh, and I'll also mention that when you change your habits because of a protestor, you are actually doing what the protestor wants you to do. Not only do you not get to enjoy watching a football game, they get to say, "Look at what we did! We are successful in our protest! People are changing their ways! Yay us!"

Personally, I don't pay any attention to protestors because it seems that everyone has a pet peeve these days and they like to protest about it.

Imagine if we all stopped paying attention to protestors. George Carlin once did a bit where he portrayed a news anchor. One of his "headlines" was the following:

A man has barricaded himself inside his house this afternoon; however, he is not armed and nobody is paying any attention to him.

We should do that to protestors.

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As for baseball, with last night's loss to the Yankees, the Red Sox are now firmly in third place in the ALEast. Furthermore, they are currently tied with the Athletics for the second wild card slot in the American league but because they are 1 percentage point below the Athletics, they are technically out of the wild card.

They are off tonight. Tomorrow they will welcome the Rangers in to Boston for a three-game series. Hopefully they fare better against the Rangers than they did against the Yankees.

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I'm gonna make some dinner and then watch some football.

Here are some links:

• More proof that some people have way too much free time.



• Apparently Zuckerberg has learned how to create water from nothing.



• Key phrase in this story: "Don't make me do something stupid for a Snickers bar."



• Wasn't this one of the scenes from Weekend at Bernies.

Oh, how the mighty have fallen

They are now five games behind the Rays and tied for second with the Yankees. If they lose tonight, they will be in third place, one game behind the Yankees.

Just three weeks ago, they were in first place in the ALEast, two and a half games ahead of the Rays, eight and a half games ahead of the Yankees and tied with the Astros for first in the American League.

The only way you win a baseball game is to step on home plate more times than your opponent and they aren't doing that.

They need to start doing that. Soon. And by "soon", I mean tonight.

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The press is set up and since I have all the hardware components to begin sizing / depriming those 1,000 pistol cases, I set about doing some today.

I figured it would take me at least two hours to do 1,000. Turns out I was really wrong.

I spent almost two hours to do these 400 cases:

My plan now is to prime, charge and seat the seven nickel cases I have as my "tests". Nickel isn't as durable as brass so I don't care about them. If I screw up the expansion or the crimp and destroy the case, it's no loss. Assuming all goes well, I'll prime, charge and seat those 400. That should give us at least 7 or 8 days of range fun.

I'm kind of enjoying myself doing this.

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Time to make some dinner and then watch some baseball.

You might want to look at these:

• I’m haveing a hard time trying to figure out the difference between them doing this and us taking down statues of Robert E. Lee…



• Get ready folks, we might be in for a bumpy ride.



• When I was a kid, all the library ever gave me was a fine for returning books past the due date.



• If you are a T-Mobile customer, you might be kinda screwed.



• Oh Canada.



• Pennsylvania: Now known as "North Australia".

Seven inning double headers

I think nine innings is the perfect number of innings for a baseball game. The games last anywhere from 3 to 4 hours which is just about the right time for a ball game.

Last season, MLB introduced seven inning double headers which means I get to watch two baseball games without having to sit through 8 hours of baseball.

The first game of today's double header started at 1:10 and ended at 3:30. Tonight's game starts at 7:10 and it's a pretty good bet it will be over by 9:30. I can watch two 2-hour games.

And speaking of the first game, the Red Sox lost to the Yankees 5-3. Houk pitched pretty well and left the game with the Red Sox up 3-2. Then the bullpen kinda imploded and the Yankees scored 3 quick runs. Try as they might, the hitters just couldn't drive in any runs.

Let's hope the second game goes better for the Red Sox. Eovaldi is pitching so I'm kinda hoping he goes all seven innings.

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Now that all my cases have been through an initial wash and dry, I can tell you that I have over 1,000 pistol and 100 rifle cases.

Yes, I realize that this makes me a hoarder.

Given that 1,000 pistol cases would cost around $200 and 100 rifle cases would cost around $75, I'm kinda pleased with my hoarding.

Next up is depriming & sizing the pistol cases and then washing them in a solution of water, vinegar and salt to restore them to like-new condition.

Assuming all goes well with the depriming & sizing, then I'll run them through the expander while priming them with new primers. Expanding is done only to the neck of the case so that you can properly seat a bullet. Once they are expanded and primed, it's a matter of charging them with the appropriate amount of powder, seating the bullets and crimping the case neck around the bullet.

That sounds simple and it is but it is also the part that if you screw it up, you might just end up with the nickname "Three Fingers Fred" or "One Eyed Sam".

I prefer to keep all my fingers and both my eyes, thank you very much, so I will read and reread the formula regarding charge amount for bullet weight. Then I will calculate and recalculate before arriving at a powder weight.

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Time for dinner and then more baseball.

You should think about checking these out:

• Looks like Massachusetts isn't the only state where the government thinks it's main job is to take as much money as possible from its citizens.



• Idiot Holidaymaker would be a fantastic name for a 1950's Debbie Reynolds/Rock Hudson movie.



• So my heartless question is, "How many millions of dollars have been spent on this guy so far that could have been prevented with a $10.00 shot?"

Busy day

Work got done and then I spent the afternoon building a new linux server and washing more brass.

I have a lot of hobbies...

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Yesterday I said I would try to upload a video I took while waiting for clearance to take off at Barnes in Westfield.

Here it is:
(Click the title to view it much larger on Youtube)

Those guys are smooth as silk.

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The collapse of Afghanistan is now complete. I fully anticipate that the taliban will soon start attacking American troops in Kabul in the next few days.

This could have been handled so much better than it was. But when you have a goofball driving the ship of state, this is what we should expect.

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No baseball until 8:00 tonight when NESN will run a game from 2017.

While I watch that, you an check these out:

• Oh Canada.



• You gotta love The Sun.



• Key phrase in this story: "...they did not call police because they were afraid officers would possibly uncover other illegal activity."

They swept the Orioles

With today's 6-2 win over the Orioles, and the Rays loss to the Twins, the Red Sox are now only three games out of first.

They are still struggling with the bullpen but their starting rotation seems to be doing just fine. Rodriguez went 6 innings, giving up only one run but then Ottavino came out to start the seventh. He gave up a run and then got drilled in the shoulder by a comebacker and had to leave the game. Fortunately Whitlock was on target and he closed out the seventh and eighth.

Barnes came in to close it out in the ninth and wasn't at his best. He gave up two hits before finishing the game.

And for the record, the new guy, Schwarber, was the DH today and he hit two doubles.

They are off tomorrow before heading to New York to play three games against the Yankees. Tuesday features a double header with the first game at 1:00 and the second game at 7:00. Wednesday is a normal 7:00 game.

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The first batch of cases have been washed and dried. The second batch is soaking in soapy water now and tomorrow (or maybe Tuesday), I'll rinse then thoroughly and set them next to the dehumidifier to dry.

There is another batch to be washed after that one but, in the meantime, I need to order some equipment so I can get started on the actual task of reloading.

According to everything I'm reading, I should be able to cut my cost per round in half by reloading my own. That can be substantial over the course of a year. Especially now that my daughter is joining me.

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So now that dinner is done and today's Red Sox game is over, I guess I'll kick back and watch the August 15, 2015 Red Sox game on NESN+ that features Don Orsillo and Jerry Remy in their prime. You know, before NESN management decided to fire Orsillo in favor of the guy they got now.

While I do that, you can do these:

• I'd love to see the F-15s from Westfield land and then take-off on the Pike. The would be extra cool. Maybe tomorrow I'll upload a video I took while waiting for my departure clearance at Westfield last April.



• Key phrase in this story: "Glanerbrug is not ready for this."



• Let's all welcome North Carolina to the 21st century.

They won last night

Pivetta pitched a great six innings and then Richards (formerly a starter, now a reliever) came in. He pitched a great three innings to finish the game. Between them, they gave up seven hits and one run. When the game ended, the Red Sox had defeated the Orioles 8-1.

Today's game started at 4:00 and Sale made his pitrching debut.

As I type this, it is the sixth inning and the Red Sox are up 14-2. Sale went five innings and Sawamura took over in the sixth. Sale threw a total of 89 pitches and struck out eight batters. The two runs the Orioles scored are from back-to-back home runs in the third and as far as I'm concerned, those were anomolies. For a guy who hasn't pitched in a big league game since 2019, that's some pretty good pitching.

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Busy day washing a few hundred brass cases in an effort to get back into reloading.

The cost of ammunition is bordering on prohibitive so I reached out to my cousin and he brought me the reloading gear we used almost forty years ago. It's not fancy but it's quality and it includes all the stuff I bought back then.

On the other hand, I sure hope I remember how to do this because the last thing I want to do is screw it up. Creating something that is designed to contain a small explosion inches away from my face requires me to be knowledgeable, careful and meticulous. I'm pretty good about the knowledgeable and the meticulous parts but careful has never been high on my list of skills.

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I'm going to watch the rest of this game.

While I do that, you should look at these:

• Key phrase in this story: "I feel like there’s other things to worry about."



• Man, those people in Haiti just can't catch a break.



• Key phrase in this story: "There’s definitely an underappreciation for nurses."



• Apparently Fred is a degenerate.



• Key phrase in this story: "I have a Kraft American Single that I have been saving for my dream girl."



• I've been wondering if insurers would start refusing to pay for the unvaccinated.

They are digging deeper

With last nights loss, the Red Sox are now five games out of first place behind the Rays and two games ahead of the third place Yankees.

Houck pitched well. He went five innings, giving up one run. In the sixth, he gave up three runs and Cora took him out. After that, the bullpen gave up four more runs, giving the Rays a 8 to 1 win.

And in all honesty, I can't hold the pitching to task without mentioning that the hitters only managed to score one run in nine innings. That kinda sucks.

Tonight starts a three game series against the Orioles. Hopefully the Red Sox don't get beat by the worst team in the American League. That would really suck...

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In other sportings newses, the Patriots won their first pre-season game last night. I know, it doesn't count, but it was fun to watch.

The new kid, Mac Jones, played the majority of the snaps and looked pretty damned good to me. Nto sure what Belichick thought but I thought he was ready to take on the role of first string quarterback.

Hell, after watching Newton fall apart last season, I would not be surprised to see him replaced by the rookie.

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The Red Sox just announced the Schwarber will be activated as a DH for tonight's game. This should be interesting.

Time for me to feed the critters and the people. While I do that, you should enjoy these links:

• I had a friend whose license plate was 123-HGO (the letter 'O' at the end). She kept getting parking tickets on a vehicle with the lisense plate 123-HG0 (the number '0' at the end).



• There are a lot of people in our society who should not be allowed to have children.



• Attention criminals: Never hide a stolen horse in your bedroom. It's the first place they look. Also, it's next to impossible to get the poop stains out of your sheets.



• Key entry from our favorite police log: "12:36 a.m. Four people were beating on a stop sign and then stopped in order to beat on their own car."



• Seems that the democrats aren't getting along with each other.

I hope they didn't use all their runs

The Red Sox decided to hit the snot out of the baseball last night and they defeated the Rays 20-8.

Todays game started at 4:10 and Houck is pitching. I'm really hoping they keep him up in the big league this time because if they do, the rotation will consist of Sale, Eovaldi, Rodriguez, Pivetta and Houck. That's a pretty good rotation.

So anyways, after four innings, the game is tied 1-1 and Houck is doing a damn fine job.

It would be nice to see them win two games in a row.

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When covid kicked off and I started to work from home, I set up an office in my youngest sons old bedroom. The desk in there was perfect for my two monitors and my laptop. Plus, it was one floor away from the living room where my wife set up her home office.

There is still a bed in there and the various creatures that live with us have decided that the bed is there favorite spot in the house. The Dog and The Sisters clamber up there and sprawl while I work away. Normally they don't bother me and they tend to entertain anyone I'm in a video meeting with.

Every so often, one of The Sisters likes to come to the edge of the bed and tap me on the shoulder to get my attention. This is what I see when I turn around:

Her name is Sage and she seems to think I'm her best friend.

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I'm going go pick up a pizza and watch the rest of this game. After that, NBC is carrying the Patriots/Washington game so I'll probably watch a little preseason football.

While I do that, you can do these:

• Somewhere in this story there should be a line about some guy having a serious set of balls.



• Something tells me she isn't all that bright...



• Head in a Freezer would be a fantastic name for a 1980s punk rock band.



• Oh Canada.



• You gotta love Ahhnold.



• I'm kinda surprised Massachusetts didn't lose a seat.

They just keep on losing

Last night, they had a 4-1 lead going into the 6th inning. By the end of the 7th inning, the score was tied. In the 8th inning, I went to bed because I couldn't keep my eyes open any longer. When I woke up this morning, I found that the Rays scored 4 runs in the 9th, winning the game 8-4.

If the Red Sox don't solve whatever problem is eating at them right now, they run the real risk of seeing their season go rapidly down the toilet.

For the record, if that happens, I will continue to watch them because, well, it's what I do.

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There are two lines in this story that should worry you:

“Apple plans to scan users’ encrypted messages for sexually explicit content as a child safety measure.

That tells me Apple plans to break its encryption which is something they have always refused to do, even when a subpoena was issued by the courts. That tells me that I cannot trust their encryption. No sir, not one bit.

Parents snapping innocent photos of a child in the bath presumably need not worry.

Bullshit. A naked child is a naked child. All it will take is for some Apple "reviewer" to have a bad day and before you know it, child protective services is showing up at the door of some young family, grabbing kids and putting them into "safe places" while the local sheriff is locking mom and dad up for child pornography.

Also, who the hell decided Apple is the acme of moral character in our society? Seems to me that Apple is a heartless corporation with little or no moral compass. The executives like to think they are ethical and moral but they aren't. They only do what is best for the company, not for society.

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If you haven't seen the front page of the New York Post, let me show it to you:

That's a funny front page.

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Time for me to say thanks to Mr. Willis Carrier for his excellent invention and to watch some baseball.

Here are the links I found for you:

• Yet another reason to not fly commercial...



• Key entry from our favorite police log: "7:53 p.m. A man requested help dispatching a deer hit by a car because he didn’t 'have a tire iron'."



• God sure spends a lot of time talking to weirdo's...



• Presenting this episodes Brilliant Criminal of the Month.



• Oh Canada.



• It takes a special kind of scumbag to rob a farm.

They need a win tonight

If the Red Sox can beat the Rays this evening, it may just fire them up enough to beat them again tomorrow.

They need to get back on a winning streak soon because the deeper they get, the harder it is to overcome.

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In case anyone wanted to know, I miss Gary Larson...

His new stuff is good but it's just not up to par with his older stuff.

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Like I predicted back in March, Kathy Hochul will soon be the new governor of New York.

In my opinion, it's about time that creepy little arrogant ass stepped aside.

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Time to get some dinner and then watch some baseball.

Here are some links:

• Boris Johnson is an interesting individual.



• Yes, but do they live in a pineapple under the sea?



• Here's your Naked Guy In The News story.
  (Yes, I know it's old news but I just found it so that makes it new news to me.)



• Key phrase in this story that makes me cringe: "Clark attacked him and completely bit off his nipple."



• Here's a baby picture of Hurricane Fred.
  (I like saying "Hurricane Fred")



• Maybe the bear was out of non-dairy creamer or something.

They did not lose today

The Red Sox did not lose today because they didn't play.

Man, they have to turn this around and soon. They are getting deeper into a hole that will quickly become impossible to dig out of.

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Kinda busy today with stuff that involves my mother-in-law so I didn't get to do a lot of news reading and/or webanizing.

Here a some links:

• Good for them. The more there are the lower the chance of spread and mutation.



• I just want to know how they managed to extrapolate a "dragon" from a 10 cm (4 inch) peice of bone...



• This guy is starting to come off as a little deranged.



• Not only in Florida. I bet this happens a lot more than we hear about and it happens all over the place.

Well, they had a one game winning streak

The Red Sox split yesterday's double header but lost today's game, giving them a three game loss in their four-game series with the Blue Jays.

They are now four games behind the Rays and only a two & a half games ahead of the Yankees, so things continue to head downhill for them.

I'm really hoping August 14th is a good day for the Red Sox...

They are off tomorrow before welcoming the Rays into Boston for a three-game series starting Tuesday evening.

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I'm probably starting to sound like a broken record about this whole 'rona vaccine thing but rest assured, those of you that fail to get vaccinated probably won't have to listen to me prattle on about it much longer. I figure it's only a matter of time before you die.

Look, I really don't mean to be a nag but trust me, nothing is going to happen to you if you get vaccinated. You aren't going to die, you aren't going to become magnetic, you aren't going to grow a third eye and you aren't going to become a brain-damaged vegetable. The only thing that is going to happen to you is you will substantially reduce your risk of contracting the virus and, on the rare chance you actually contract the virus, you will reduce your risk of death to less that 1/10th of a percent.

Go and get yourself the shot. Yea, my arm hurt afterwards and yes, some folks experienced a few hours of body aches/fever but no one I know has suffered at all from the vaccine.

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I'm going to figure what to do about dinner and then watch some bad television.

You can spend some time clicking on these:

• It might be time to get Ol' Bess out of storage.



• This is a great editorial on government mismanagement and financial irresponsibility.



• I'm getting a flashback to American involvement in Vietnam.



• This is what you get when you implement bail reform.



• I think the best thing that could happen to the city of Chicago would be for the entire Chicago police department to resign and let the enlightened liberals & their social workers handle any conflicts that might arise.



• Bummer. She was great in Night Court.

They are in full suck mode

I have been following the Red Sox since I was in first grade back in 1964. That was the year that Brian Quirk and I signed up to play baseball in the parochial school league in Springfield. We played for the school we attended (Holy Cross) and we had a coach who inspired our love of the game.

We were the stereotypical little boys - collecting the baseball cards of our favorite players, listening to the games on the radio or gathering around the tv set to watch those games that were televised. We didn't care what teams were playing as long as we could listen or watch the game.

My mom was an avid Red Sox fan and because of that, I became a Red Sox fan.

Why did I tell you that? So you know how long I have followed the Red Sox.

Ah, the Boston Red Sox... The team of Yaz, Rico, TonyC, Spaceman and Boomer. The team that gave us Eck, Pudge, Dewey, Butch, Jim-Ed and Bernie. They would start the season in full kick-ass mode and we would get all excited. We would talk about the games like we had played them ourselves.

Then, in the middle of the season, they would fall apart.

Every year, they would be in first or second place at the All Star break only to go into a slump that I liked to the call "The All Star Slump". They would start each game looking like a professional baseball team but by the fourth inning, they looked like little-leaguers, struggling to hit, struggling to field and struggling to score.

It was "The Curse". It was the penalty we were all paying for Mr. Harry Herbert Frazee's greed when he sold Babe Ruth to the Yankees for $125,000 dollars. It was inevitable and we accepted the demise of our season by saying, "We'll get 'em next year!"

Well, it seems like that is happening again. I'm beginning to get that same sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach as I watch the Red Sox lose 12 of their 21 games since the All Star break. I'm not liking the fact they are a sub-500 team since the break. It reminds me of what they were like for most of my life.

I do, however, have faith. I'm hopeful they will get back on track and start winning again but I'm also a fan from the 1960's who understands that we're talking about Red Sox. We need to be prepared to be disappointed. I will continue to cheer on Kiké, Froe, Dugie, Rafie, Bogie and JD. I will enjoy watching them play and if they win it all, I'll enjoy that as well.

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Back on March 3rd I said, "I have a feeling that Kathy Hochul may become the governor of New York in the very near future.." I also said that I thought she was not unattractive.

I might have been right about the first part but I'd like to rescind the part about her not being unattractive.

She has on way too much makeup to judge her level of attractiveness and I've always said that anyone who wears that much makeup is hiding something.

As for Cuomo, he's an arrogant self-centered New Yorker, just like Trump. I don't like him just like I don't like Trump. Fortunately for me, I don't live in New York so I don't have to give a shit about him. New Yorkers voted him into office so they should get to vote him out. It's not up to Goofy Joe, or anyone else for that matter, to dictate his removal, it's up to the voters to decide his fate.

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They lost the first game of the double-header. I hope they win the second game.

While I watch that, you can enjoy these:

• To all my relatives and friends in law enforcement: Please be careful...



• Oops.



• Key entry from our favorite police log: "8:55 p.m. A pony-tailed man was yelling about Antifa."



• Only in Florida.

No post tonight

I had a busy day and then went to Tommys for some adult beverages.

Here are some links:

• I would like this mod for my car.



• Michigan Sewage Lagoon would be a fantastic name for a 1980's country/western band.



• This is why we need term limits. Old guys don't understand technology.

Well, they had a winning streak of one game

The Red Sox won last night but they lost this afternoon. That means they are have lost their last two series and are now 1-6.

They really need to get their shit together.

Soon.

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In other sportings news, I watched some of the lesser-known olympic sports this afternoon.

I gotta tell you, the canoe sprints are some of the most amazing races I've ever seen. I watched a young lady row a canoe over a distance of 200 meters in 45 seconds.

Think about how fast that is.

Never mind, I'll tell you how fast that is.

200 meters = 219 yards.
219 yards ~ 1/12 of a mile.
45 seconds times 12 = 540 seconds or 9 minutes.

That is a 9 minute mile.

Most people I know can't run a 9 minute mile nevermind row a canoe through water by yourself that fast.

Another sport I watched was rock climbing.

After watching that, I now know where Stan Lee got his ideas for Spiderman. Holy crap, those people are amazing.

Finally, there was speed walking which I immediately turned off because that is as boring to watch as cross-country skiing...

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Enjoy these links:

• Amazingly enough, this is not in Australia.



• Whelp, this is gonna piss off the Chinese.



• I feel like I'm probably going to hell for laughing outloud at this video.



• The subject matter aside, this is actually a pretty good carving.



• We need this law in Massachusetts.



• Key phrase in this story: "...vowing to stay in jail until he could return to his cabin that had been built on someone else’s land."

Nice day today

I went on campus today to meet with some folks and then headed down to Costco to spend way more money than I intended.

After that it was finishing up my work day and then catching up on some DVRs.

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The Red Sox are still on a losing streak, having lost their last five games. They are currently one and half games behind the Rays and only five games ahead of the Yankees.

Yes, the hitting sucks right now but I also think it might be time for Richards to get relegated to a bullpen role or maybe even designated for assignment. Houck should be brought up from Worcester given a shot at earning a permanent spot in the starting rotation.

I know that every team goes through slumps and I know that they usually turn it around but it's still frustrating to watch them lose every night.

Hopefully Rodriguez has a good night tonight, goes more then five innings and the hitters start hitting. Hopefully they turn it around tonight.

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Time to get some dinner and then watch some baseball.

You should check these out:

• A dog would have visited every player on the field looking for head scritches...



• Only in Florida.



• Oh Canada.



• For the record, this is not a protest, it's insanity. Also, how do they know what he's protesting? If they asked him, all he could say would be, "Mmmm mmm mmm mmmmm!"



• Alabama: Florida's hat...



• If your God tells you to burn your house, you need to get a new God.

Extra busy today

I had a lot to do today and not enough time.

That means you don't get much of an entry today.

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I did find this picture. It pretty much explains how us old guys end up sitting at a bar with our friends.

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The Red Sox are taking on the Tigers today and I'm gonna watch it.

Here are a few links:

• Attention Alanis Morissette: This is ironic.



• Key phrase in this story: "I originally thought it was dirt on the windows that I cleaned but it was probably honey because there were drip marks."



• Only in Florida.



• This is why I drink Bud bottles.

Four in a row is not good.

The Red Sox have lost their last four games and that is not a good thing. It is, however, not a terrible thing. It's a normal thing.

Most teams go through a losing streak at some point during the season. Fortunately for the Red Sox, they hit their losing streak while at the top of their division and not at the bottom.

They have plenty of time to recover from any losing streak and once Sale gets back in the game, they should have a pitching rotation that will be pretty damned good. Also, everything I read about Schwarber tells me he is a consistent power hitter and a great teammate. He should fit right in with that team and improve the already strong lineup.

They are on a much needed night off tonight while they travel to Detroit for a three game series against the Tigers.

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This afternoon, I was sitting on the back porch, working on some "stuff" on my computer, including this little treatise. The Dog and The Sisters were sitting with me, enjoying the nice day.

Well, the folks that live behind us are having some tree work done and they just dropped a fully grown pine into the woods. It hit hard and everything on the porch, including The Dog and The Susters, bounced from the impact.

The Dog decided she needed to protect everyone so she bolted out through her doggy door into the back woods to bark at the tree.

The Sisters, however, both jumped about a foot off the ground and bolted for the safety of their little hideaway in the basement.

I'll probably see them sometime this evening when it's time to eat. Until then, it's a pretty good bet they're gonna keep a low profile.

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

• In case you didn't know it, one trillion dollars is a 1 followed by 12 zeros. That’s $1,000,000,000,000.



• But I guess a one followed by twelve zeros just isn't enough...



• When I read stories like this I have two thoughts. The first thought is that I feel bad for the family. The second thought is that this is basically survival of the fittest. If you are too stubborn or too stupid to go and get vaccinated, you should expect these results.



• I'm pretty sure this is a shitty strategy.



• Key entry in our favorite police log: "3:40 p.m. Puppies were barking."



• If you build it, they will jump.



• Key phrase in this story: "They did not believe me when I told them that I am innocent."