One win, one loss

Last night, the Red Sox beat the Orioles but the Bruins lost to the Maple Leafs.

So that means the Red Sox have a winning streak of one and the Bruins will play a best-of-seven series against the Hurricanes in the first round

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Let's start with hockey:

The Bruins lost to the Maple Leafs 5-2 and the remain as the first wild card team.

On Monday, May 2nd, the Bruins and the Hurricanes will face off at 7:00pm down in Raleigh, NC.

Historically, the Bruins have eliminated the Hurricanes in the playoffs twice. Once in 2019 and again in 2020. But that may not matter since this season the Bruins are 0-3 against the Hurricanes. That's not an encouraging record...

Guess we'll see what happens over those seven games.

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As for the Red Sox, they managed to hold off the Orioles and won last nights game 3-1.

Pitching was pretty good with the Orioles being held scoreless until the ninth inning. That was when Robles came in and gave up two hits, one of which was a home run.

Cora took Robles out with runners on first & second and two outs. He put Straham in who promptly walked a guy and loaded the bases. Fortunately, he got the next guy to strike out and end the game without giving up a run.

First pitch tonight is at 7:00. Eovaldi is on the mound for the Red Sox. Cordero, who made a decent showing last night, will be on the bench and Dalbec will be playing first. I'm hoping Dalbec breaks out of his slump tonight and starts hitting the ball.

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The Killer Robin is back.

Instead of building her nest in one of the bushes next to our back porch, this year she decided to build in one of the property border bushes.

I discovered her when I was trimming the bushes and she swooped at me. I immediately stopped work and found this:

So if you drive by my house, you'll notice that one bush is not like the others

I figure one of two things will happen: Either the crows, starlings or blue jays will find the eggs and eat them or the eggs will hatch and the fledges will fly away. Either way, that is when I will trim that bush.

She deserves her privacy.

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Right now, I'm watching the Worcester Red Sox. At 7:00, I'll put on the Boston Red Sox. I'm basically overdosing on sports this evening.

While I do that, you can check these out:

• Australia: What doesn't try to kill ya, delights the researchers.



• Only in Florida.



• Oh Canada.



• Ouch.



• Australia: What doesn't try to kill ya, waves it's twigs & berries at ya.



• Why do I have a feeling this is due to the recent changes in bail guidelines, what charges to pursue and sentencing guidelines.

And another loss

The Red Sox designated Travis Shaw for assignment this afternoon and I can't say I blame them. Nice guy and he used to be a good ball player but at this point, he's done. They are bringing Franchy Cordero up from Worcester and he will be on the roster for tonights game in Baltimore.

I have a feeling they are thinking about sending Dalbec down to Worcester because he's not hitting anywhere close to where he should be. Something isn't right with him and maybe a week in the minors will help him get his swing back.

They start a three-game series against the Orioles tonight and I'm hoping they win all three games.

No. Let me rephrase that.

They *need* to win all three games against the Orioles.

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The Bruins won last night and are now one point behind the Lightening.

Tonight is their final game of the season and they are playing the Maple Leafs.

They don't have the best record against the Maple Leafs but they just beat the number one team in the NHL (Florida Panthers) so it's not a stretch to think they can beat the Maple Leafs.

If they beat the Leafs and the Lightening lose to the Islanders, the Bruins will move from fourth place to third place and out of the wild card.

That would kick them up one notch in the seeding for the playoffs. If they go into the playoffs as the number four seed, they will play the number one seed. If they go in as the number three seed, they will play the number two seed.

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Speaking of sports, tonight is one of those nights where I'll be flipping back and forth between NESN and NESN+ because the Red Sox and the Bruins both play tonight.

While I do that, you can do these:

• I gotta be honest with you, I'm pretty sure this is a bad idea.



• Dave Barry posted this picture he took on his website.



• They should be easy to spot.



• Escaped Saint Bernards would be a great name for a 1990s high school talent night band.



• Nope. Nope, nope, nope...

Finally, a win

The Red Sox managed to win last night and I managed to stay awake to watch all nine innings. Bogaerts hit the ball long and often last night, racking up four hits, two runs and one RBI over four plate appearances. For the record, that is .1000 batting average for the night.

They are still well below .500 but they are one & a half games ahead of the Orioles and two & a half games behind the Rays.

They are currently in the sixth inning of the final game in their four-game series and the score is 1-0 in favor of the Blue Jays.

In other sports, the Sabres are in Boston to play the Bruins and the puck drops at 7:00 this evening.

With only two games left in the season, the Bruins are three points behind the Lightening. If the Lightening lose their final games and the Bruins win their final games, the Bruins will move out of the wild card into third place in the Atlantic.

Yes, I know it's wishful thinking but it would be fun to see.

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I'm going to finish watching the Red Sox while I figure out what to make for dinner. After that, I'm going to settle in to watch the Bruins.

Here are some links that you might enjoy:

• This must break his heart.



• At some point, we're gonna get a call from the Martian Police Department about all the trash we're leaving on their planet.



• Get ready for the price of chicken mcnuggets to go up.



• A man who is not married is telling us to be nice to our mother-in-law.



• Only in Florida.



• They got a different way of protesting in Vermont.

I'm just gonna say it.

They suck...

I watched that baseball game last night and was feeling pretty good about things when they went up 5-2 in the eighth inning.

Then I watched them give up three runs in the ninth, allowing the Blue Jays to tie the game and go to a tenth inning.

Then I watched Barnes load the bases in the tenth before Venable pulled him and put Straham in.

Then I watched Straham allow a sacrifice fly that allowed the Blue Jays to win the game.

Basically, I stayed up past my bedtime to watch the Red Sox hand the game to the Blue Jays.

On the upside, the Orioles really suck and the Red Sox are not in last place. They are half a game ahead of the Orioles.

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The Bruins are making me proud.

Last night they beat the number one team in the NHL, the Florida Panthers.

They are still in the first wildcard slot but they just got themselves a pretty big ego boost and they know that they can win no matter who they play.

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George Washington once said, "Offensive operations, often times, is the surest, if not the only means of defense." We have changed that qoute to meet our modern version of english and we now know it as, "The best defense is a good offense".

Looks like the Ukranians may be ramping up the defense of their country by going on the offense.

On the other hand, I can't help but wonder if maybe Vlad is doing this to his own people as an excuse to increase his attacks on civilians. He really likes killing babies and other defenseless people...

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I pulled this link out of the bulleted lists below because I wanted to include a picture with it:

If you can afford a $47.00 hamburger, you can afford to cover the 3% surcharge.

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Yes, I'm going to watch tonights baseball game.

Yes, I'm going to yell at the TV.

I'm really hoping I don't stay up past my bedtime just to have them break my brain and heart again.

While I do that, you can do these:

• We're out of the pandemic until they tell us we're in the pandemic. That will probably be next week.



• Sorta gives a new meaning to that famous Monty Python prop, The Holy Hand Grenade.



• Presenting the winner of The Mom of the Month award.



• When someone comes up with a new logo, they really should let a bunch of 14 year old boys look at it before they make it public.



• I can say, without any hesitation, that yes, Stuart, you are too old to be naked.

Another loss

So much for sweeping the Blue Jays...

Eovaldi pitched a pretty good game and when he finished off the seventh inning, the Red Sox were down 2-0. They scored two runs in the eighth to tie the game but the bullpen gave up a grand slam and the Blue Jays ended up winning the game 6-2.

They are now only half a game up on the Orioles. They need to win or face the fact that they may be in last place in the ALEast in the very near future. Like maybe tomorrow.

It's gonna be a long season.

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I'm tired and I'm going to fall asleep watching baseball.

Here are some links:

• Only in Florida.



• "Covid Cages" are a bit extreme.



• Japan: They are not like us.



• If you build your house next to a golf course, expect to have golf balls in your yard.

The Orioles lost

Since the Orioles lost last night, they remain in last place and the Red Sox are not in last place with them.

The Red Sox are in Toronto for a four-game series against the Blue Jays. Well, most of the Red Sox are in Toronto.

It would be nice of they can take three of the four games and move up in the standings but when they met in Boston for a three-game series last week, the Blue Jays took two out of three games.

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When Putin first started to assemble his troops as a precursor to his assault on Ukraine, he made some statements along the lines of, "I'm doing this so Ukraine does not join NATO. Ukraine must never join NATO."

His invasion is looking like he wants to create a buffer zone between Russia's western border and most of Europe. He is terrified of NATO on his border.

Well, looks like his plan might have a flaw or two.

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I'm going to watch some baseball and fall asleep early.

Here are some links:

• Only in Florida.



• Key phrase in this story: "What the Americans are doing is pouring oil on the flames."



• He probably shouldn't have eaten a big bowl of pea soup before the game.



• This is probably going to end poorly.



• There's a world snooker championship?

Things are going in the wrong direction

The Red Sox lost last night and then again this afternoon.

If the Orioles win their game against the Angels this evening, the Red Sox and Orioles will be tied for last place in the ALEast.

Like I said the other day, I'm getting that "It's gonna be a long season" feeling...

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On the upside, the Bruins beat the Rangers last night and are once again two points ahead of the Capitals.

Tonight they take on the Canadiens.

I really need them to win.

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My wife and I are trying to figure out to do for dinner.

You should figure out if you want to click on these links:

• What the hell is wrong with people...



• Kevin McCarthy is an ass-kissing bone-head. Lizzy Warren is an arrogant, loud-mouthed ass. If we lock them in the same cage together, I'm betting we could sell the video feed to HBO for a million or so.



• I don't want to shock you or anything but it appears that Russia might be lying about some things.



• Bernie Sanders is to unskilled retail workers what Al Sharpton is to black people: He shows up and gets his face in front of the cameras without actually accomplishing anything.



• Imagine that. Who would have thought that putting large signs with scrolling words over the highway would cause drivers to be distracted...

Wow.

I was going to start this off by telling you the Red Sox held on to win last nights game against the Rays but when I opened MLB to get some stats on the game, I noticed this:

Looks like the Pirates are having a very, very bad day...

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So anyways, the Red Sox managed to hold on and beat the Rays 4-3 last night. It was a real nail-bitter and I ended up staying awake to watch the entire game.

Wacha did okay, giving up three hits and two runs over five innings but the big story was the Red Sox batters beating the crap out of Corey Kluber. Over those same five innings, Kluber gave up eleven hits and four runs.

The Red Sox left a lot of guys on base and I would still like to see them move the runners along. With eleven hits, there should have been way more than four runs scored.

Still, a win is a win and I'm happy with it. This is despite the fact I stayed up until 10:30...

First pitch is at 6:10 this evening and I'm kinda hoping that with the earlier start time, the game will have an earlier end time.

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I'm going to cook up some steaks and watch some baseball.

Enjoy these links:

• I can't help but wonder if he had a point he was trying to make or if he was just a really screwed up guy.



• There are some people who think this might create a black hole. I'm not one of those people.



• Ouch.



• I love it when karma serves itself up a big ol' mess of steaming hot justice.



• Only in Florida.

And the Bruins lost

Yesterday was not a good day for my sports teams.

The Red Sox lost and are now in fourth place in the ALEast, behind the Blue Jays, the Yankees and the Rays. The only thing I can say about them is that they are not the Orioles.

The Red Sox are playing the Rays at 7:00 tonight. I'm hoping Wacha pitches as good as he did during his last outing but more importantly, I'm really hoping the batters start hitting the damned ball and step on home plate.

As for the Bruins, they lost last night and are now three points behind the Lightening & two points ahead of the Capitals. With five games left in the regular season, it's very possible that the Capitals can overtake the Bruins, putting the Bruins in the second wild card slot and the lowest seed. That means they will have to play the number one seed in the first round.

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I am never going to be able to retire...

I just keep telling myself that one of these days, when Goofy Joe is no longer president, the economy will recover and I might be able to retire.

I can dream, can't I?

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I'm going to figure out what to do for dinner and then watch some baseball.

Here are some links:

• Is "Pet Psychic" an actual profession?



• Only in Florida.



• Atlanta used to be considered genteel and filled with southern charm. Now it is the New York City of the south.



• We got dandelions, they got tumbleweeds.



• Key phrase in this story: "suspicious suicides"...



• Some people should stay out of haunted houses.

The Red Sox lost again

The pitching is doing okay but the batters just aren't getting the job done. Not only did they lose todays game, they lost the series, giving the Blue Jays 2 out of 3 games.

They lost todays game 3-2 because they didn't score those two runs until the ninth inning. They continuously left men on base which is a problem the Red Sox have had in the past.

They are off to Florida were they will play a three-game series against the Rays and it would be nice to see them win that series. Unfortunately, the 'rona seems to be making it's way through the clubhouse. I believe two players, Plawecki and Araúz, one of the coaches and the manager, Cora, are all out with covid. Martinez is listed as day-to-day with some kind of muscle strain.

Why am I getting that, "It's gonna be a long season." feeling...

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The Bruins are in Pittsburgh to take on the Penguins.

If the Bruins can win this evenings game and the Maple Leafs can beat the Lightening tonight, the Bruins will move out of the wild card back into third place in the Atlantic.

I'm not entirely sure how much of the game I'm going to watch. I'm shooting for all three periods but as we all know, that might be an issue.

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The state of Florida (actually, the governor) is upset with the Disney corporation because Disney said the new Florida law is wrong and made fun of it. Basically, the law is nicknamed the "Don't Say Gay" law and Disney released an ad that said "Gay! Gay! Gay!" over and over again along with a line that said something like "Come to Disney and say gay all you want."

Well, that ad pissed off the governor and he said he was introducing a bill that would revoke the township granted to Disney when they were created back in the early 60s.

Seems like maybe the governor didn't think his reaction through and his little hissy fit is going to be very expensive.

In case you didn't know this, let me enlighten you: Politicians are morons.

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You can click on these links of you want:

• Yes, alcohol was involved.



• Whenever someone adds the words “at heart” when describing someone as “good” what they really mean is, "She’s an asshole but I feel like I should say something nice about her."



• Washington: How has that city not collapsed in on itself and sunk into the swamps from the sheer weight of stupidity is beyond my understanding.



• As you all know, I can't stand Trump but this guy makes Trump look like a bright ray of sunshine.



• I was wondering why Don Orsillo wasn't part of the tribute to Remy the other night.



• Best Name Ever for a meth addict!

I hate ESPN

It turns out I was unable to watch any hockey last night because it was only on ESPN+. For those of you not in the know, ESPN+ is a streaming service that costs $7.00 per month.

ESPN sucks and I have always disliked their coverage of sports which explains why I would never pay them to watch sports. Ever. They can kiss my ass and I still won't pay them.

Fact of the matter is that I will never pay them to piss me off and as a result, I was not able to watch last nights Bruins game.

For the record, the Bruins won in OT. They are now only one point behind the Lightening and stand a good chance of moving up in the standings.

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As for the Red Sox, they managed to beat the Blue Jays last night and even though the game didn't end until 10:30, I watched all 9 innings.

Eovaldi had a so-so game and only lasted 4 ½ innings, giving up seven hits, one of which was a home run. The Red Sox managed to tie the game and finally take a 2-1 lead in seventh inning.

The Red Sox won the game 2-1 and are currently in a 3-way tie for first place in the ALEast with the Blue Jays and the Yankees.

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There is no hockey this evening but there is baseball.

While I watch that, you can do whatever you want:

• This just keeps getting better and better.



• I have at least one offspring that is going to be unhappy about this.



• Key phrase in this story: "We’ll be enjoying Uranus jokes for years."



• We don't pay cops enough.



• Here's a tip for all the wanna-be criminals out there: Never allow anyone to take a picture of you in a sexy pose because that is the picture that will be used by the media when you are arrested.



• This is your brain. This is your brain on drugs.

Baseball vs Hockey

The Red Sox game starts at 7:00 and the Bruins game starts at 8:00.

The baseball season is just starting and there will be plenty more to watch. The hockey season is winding down and there are very few games left to watch.

My plan is to start watching the baseball game and if the Red Sox are kicking the Blue Jays ass, I'll probably keep watching it and flip over to the Bruins game every so often. If the Red Sox are getting their ass kicked, I'll probably put the Bruins and check in on the Red Sox via MLB gameday.

Either way, I'll probably turn everything off by 9:30 and go to bed.

Oh, and by the way, I lied. The baseball game is in Boston tonight, not Toronto. They go to Toronto next week.

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I'm goint to watch sports.

You can visit these:

• I would be pretty pissed if I ran over a tile adhesive spill.



• Some people just love to complain.



• They have been saying, "Flying Cars Are Coming Soon!" since the 1950s.



• Oh Canada.

A little early to plant veggies

Every year my daughter grabs a small corner of land behind my garage and plants some veggies. She plants tomatoes, zucchini, squash and cucumbers. Maybe some other stuff. Maybe some marijuana. I don't really know.

The point of this story is to explain that she recently planted some seeds in those little starter pots so her plants are ready to go when the planting season starts. She planned on sticking them in the ground in May like she always does but it appears the plants have other ideas.

The plants are all about 3-4 inches tall right now and are rapidly outgrowing the little starter pots. That means she may have to plant them earlier than anticipated.

Maybe we'll have a bumper crop of veggies this year. Maybe not. Who knows. Not me. If there is one thing I do know it's that I can't grow anything. If I plant it, it dies. If I water it, it dies. If I look at it, it dies.

I did not take over the family farm for a reason.

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The Red Sox lost today and I'm thinking it was because Rich Hill might not be in his prime anymore

He threw 80 pitches over 4 ½ innings, giving up six hits that resulted in four runs. Two of those hits were home runs.

The Red Sox hitters were trying their darnedest to keep up with the Twins, with five hits over those same four innings but they just couldn't seem to step on home plate.

They ended up losing the game 8-3, leaving them in second place but now a full game behind the Blue Jays.

The vaccinated members of the team are traveling to Toronto where tomorrow they will kick off a three-game series against the Blue Jays. Hopefully the win at least two of the three games and come home on Thursday in first place.

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There is no hockey this evening so I'll be watching some DVRs.

While I do that, you can enjoy these links:

• Oh Canada.



• If you are selling your house, you might want to take down that "Welcome to POUNDTOWN" sign that you have over your bed.



• I can recite, from memory, the lyrics to all 18 minutes of Alice's Restaurant Massacree but I can't remember what I walked into the kitchen for.



• Key phrase in this story: "Her husband brought the wrong eggs and chaos ensued."



• Yes, alcohol was involved.

Traditional Easter mulching.

My wife spent most of Friday and Saturday cleaning her back gardens. Yesterday, we picked up some cedar mulch and she spent this morning spreading it.

There is a lot more to do but this is a start. This coming week, or maybe next week, I will pick up some more and she will make her way along the side of the garage and into the front.

Mulch is one of those things that is pretty inexpensive and it makes your house look like you give a shit.

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As I said yesterday, the Bruins have clinched a playoff slot so I guess I'll be watching hockey in May.

What would be really nice would be if the Lightening started losing games and the Bruins kept winning games. They only need to win two games while the Lightening loses and they will jump out of the wildcard into third place.

Trust me, the Lightening are perfectly capable of going on a losing streak...

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In the baseball world, it was a tight game through seven innings with the score 2-1 in favor of the Red Sox. In the eighth inning, the Red Sox batters opened it up and scored six more runs, beating the Twins 8-1.

Wacha pitched a decent game, throwing 79 pitches over five innings, giving up only one hit and no runs. The bullpen came in and did a pretty good job as well, giving up only one run.

With the Yankees loss to the Orioles this afternoon, the Red Sox are now in second place in the ALEast, just ½ a game behind the Blue Jays.

Yes, I know it's early in the season and there is a lot of baseball left to be played but I don't care. I like it when they are working hard to take over first place.

They have one more game against the Twins tomorrow morning and then it's off to Toronto to play the first place Blue Jays.

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Enjoy these links:

• This just keeps getting better and better...



• Oops.



• Some people just like to complain.



• Oh Canada.



• I'm pretty sure the housing market has lost its collective mind.

Oops

Guess I forgot to post something yesterday.

Let's see what we find today.

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In the world of sporting teams I follow, the Bruins beat the Penguins this afternoon. With that win, the Bruins clinched at least a wild card slot for the playoffs.

As for Baseball, the Red Sox lost yesterday but are working hard to make up for it today. The game started at 4:00 and right now, it's the 3rd inning and the Red Sox are up 4-0.

Houck is pitching pretty good and Vazquez is a cannon behind the plate. He threw out a base stealer yesterday and another one today.

Hopefully the bullpen doesn't implode and the Red Sox walk away with a win.

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In the world of war, the Russians are back to launching missiles at Kyiv and I suspect it's because of they are extra pissed about that ship the Ukrainians sunk. I know the Russians are claiming that the ship caught fire and that's what caused it to sink but the Ukrainians claim they hit it with two missiles.

I have a feeling the Ukrainians are telling the truth on this one.

Problem is, someone asked if the ship was carrying nuclear weapons. The Russians are saying no but since they placed all their nuclear forces on high alert a month ago, it's reasonable to assume that ship, a guided missile frigate, was carrying nuclear-tipped tactical weapons.

That means there is a good chance that there are several nuclear bombs sitting on the floor of the Black Sea.

This just keeps getting better and better.

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I'm going to continue watching the rest of this game make some dinner and fall asleep early.

You can visit these links if you want:

• Only in Florida.



• Oops.



• Japan: They're not like us.



• Presenting this episodes "Brilliant Criminal of the Day".

Busy day, short post

There was no baseball today and I spent most of my day working on a project.

Given that I had a long and busy day, that combines to mean you have a short, limited post.

Enjoy these links while I watch some hockey:

• How the hell are these two idiots still alive?



• I'm pretty sure she was unfit to serve 10 years ago.



• The internet is filled with porn. There is no reason for someone to do this.



• Key phrase from our favorite police log: "11:55 a.m. Five horses showed up at a house that wasn’t theirs."



• I'm pretty sure that if God was looking out for her, she'd still have a house.

So much for the divisional race

The Bruins lost to the Blues last night. The Lightening also lost so that means the Bruins remain one point behind them in the first wild card slot.

The problem is that there are only nine games left in the season. It's going to be difficult for them to overtake the Lightening and pretty much impossible for them to overtake the Maple Leafs.

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The Red Sox batters finally figured out what their bats are for and they hit the shit out of their old teammate, Eduardo Rodriguez, this afternoon. He made it through three innings with the score tied 1-1 but in the fourth inning, the Red Sox scored six huge runs, taking a 7-1 lead.

Eovaldi made it 101 pitches through five innings and left the game with the score 7-2. The bullpen took over and they combined to give up five runs over four innings while the Red Sox hitters managed to score two more runs. The game ended with the score 9-7 in favor of the Red Sox.

I'm still uncertain about the new guy, Story. I'm not saying I'm disappointed in him but I'm not standing on a podium speechifying about how great he is either.

When they signed him, he was hyped as a big hitter but here we are six games into the season and he finally got his first hit today. That is not a sign of a guy who is a big hitter.

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Key phrase on this anniversary: "Okay Houston, we’ve had a problem here."

Fifty two years ago today, three guys wearing diapers damned near shit themselves when the aluminum can they were sitting in experienced a catastrophic failure of an oxygen tank. The tank exploded and came very close to ripping open the command module & exposing them to the vacuum of space.

Actually, if I remember correctly, they didn't react to the explosion with stress or anxiety at all. They remained calm and focused on their job, which was to secure the spacecraft and repair what they could so they could live long enough to make it back to earth.

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Take a look at your lawn mower and see if you can find a sticker that gives you operating & maintenance instructions. This is the sticker on my lawn tractor:

I’m showing you this so you’ll understand why Biden allowing the sale of gasoline that contains 15% ethanol during the summer months might just cost you money.

Read the last sentence on that sticker and note the capitalized "DO NOT" at the beginning. That is an emphatic way of telling you that using 15% ethanol is bad for your engine.

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Not sure what I'm doing for dinner. If you have any good ideas, let me know.

While I await your suggestions, you can visit these links if you want:

• Art: I will never understand it.



• Sweet Jesus on rye toast! How much was he doing it???



• I coached baseball and soccer for years. On several occasions I had to step in and prevent an enraged or stupid parent from going after a ump/ref.



• I gotta admit that after reading this compilation, I can't help but wonder about the skills of the NYPD detective bureau.
  I mean, the guy is not a rocket scientist. Hell, he's not even a paper-airplane scientist.



• Australia: What doesn't try to kill ya, just wants to go for a ride.



• Hey boss. We gotta the heads from those deer for testing. What should we do with the bodies?
  Oh, just leave them on the side of the road.

They won today

Last night, the Red Sox lost to the Tigers 3-1.

It wasn't a well-played game but it wasn't terrible. They lost for two reasons - They didn't get into Detroit until after 2:00am. That meant they were tired for the game. The second reason is because the batter weren't hitting the ball.

Today's game was a complete opposite. Hill, the pitcher, threw a good game and the batters all hit the ball well. They won todays game 5-3.

Tomorrow is the "rubber match". Hopefully they win and take the series.

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Turns out I wasn't entirely accurate the other day when I said the Bruins would hold on to third place. The Lightening stepped up and won last night, moving them into third place in the Atlantic and booting the Bruins back into the wild card race.

Tonight they take on the Blues at 7:00 and I plan on watching at least one period, maybe two.

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Here are some linsk that you might find entertaining:

• If you are trying to figure out what to get me for my birthday, here you go.



• I can only imagine what that pile of bags smells like.



• VIP Overflow Area would be a great name for a 1980's porno movie.



• I wonder if we'll see the blast when it crashes in to the moon.



• Oh Canada.



• To be honest with you, I didn't think he was all that funny.

They did not get swept

The Red Sox managed to hold off the Yankees over nine innings and won last nights game 4-3.

Historically, whenever the Red Sox and the Yankees play each other, their games last around 3½ or 4 hours and last night was no exception. I didn't get to bed until 11:00 last night.

As for today, the first pitch is at 5:00, which is just about now. That means I'm going to stop typing, drop a few links below for you and settle in to watch the game.

• Key phrase in this story: "After he was arrested, Padgett smashed his head into the patrol car's metal partition."



• Key entry from our favorite police log: "1:24 a.m. A man was not in the mood for partying."



• Only in Florida.



• It seems that not only are Russian soldiers murderous evil thugs, they are also really stupid.

Yard work is afoot

My wife managed to get some of her gardens cleaned up and I managed to get my yard thatched and mowed. I also tossed some grass seed on some bare spots. I doubt it will grow because as everyone knows, I have terrible luck growing anything.

Anyways, just in case I actually do manage to grow some grass, here's a before picture:

If grass suddenly starts growing and it becomes a lush, green lawn, I'll let you know.

Don't get your hopes up...

⧫
The Bruins lost to the Capitals this afternoon. Fortunately the Maple Leafs don't play until Tuesday so the Bruins remain in third place.

As for the Red Sox, they kick of the third and final game in their three-game series against the Yankees at 7:00 this evening.

They really need this win and I hope they don't get swept by the Yankees but to be honest with you, I'm not all that concerned. I haven't forgotten last season when they got swept in their opening series by the Orioles. They went on to win the next nine games. That's a pretty damned good winning streak.

So anyways, I'm going to watch the game.

You can look at these if you want:

• Here's an entry in the category of Things That Will Never Happen To You Or Me.



• Major Cheese Heist would be a fantastic name for a military character in a Marvel movie.



• Japan: They're not like us.



• You can bet that the price of a 2x4 is going to skyrocket.



• Only in Florida.



• I can't help but wonder if alcohol may have been involved.

April in Massachusetts

At 9:00 this morning, we went grocery shopping. The sun was out, the temp was around 55° and there was little or no wind. In other words, it was a beautiful spring day.

At 2:30 this afternoon, the temp was around 45° and we had this:

Yes, that is hail. It went along nicely with the thunder, the lightning and the gusty winds.

My wife had plans to work in her gardens this afternoon. Obviously, that didn't happen.

So she made brownies instead.

For the record, I like brownies way better than leaf-free gardens...

⧫
Today's baseball game only lasted nine innings but much like yesterday's game, it didn't go in the Red Sox favor. The Red Sox took an early lead but the Yankees battled back to win the game 4-2.

Pivetta pitched a good game but he gave up two runs in the fourth and two runs in the sixth before turning the ball over to the bullpen.

The Red Sox batters struggled against the Yankee bullpen and they just couldn't overcome those runs.

They will finish this three-game series tomorrow at 7:00 before heading out to Detroit to play the Tigers.

⧫
The Bruins beat the Lightening last night in OT so they picked up two points. Because the game went in to overtime, the Lightening picked up one point. That means the Bruins are in third place in the Atlantic, ahead of the Lightening by one point.

They are off tonight and they take on the Capitals tomorrow at 1:30.

⧫
I'm going to shut my laptop down and watch bad television until I fall asleep on my couch.

You can see if these are any good:

• Boris really needs a groomer to take care of his hair but the man has got a set of balls on him.



• Hey, you gotta do something while waiting for your car to charge.



• People are losing their minds.



• Only in Florida.



• Face tattoos are usually an indication of someone who makes bad life decisions.



• The Easter Bunny is going to jail.

Finally, there was baseball

And it was good baseball.

Eovaldi threw 76 pitches over five solid innings but he didn't get the win because he left the game tied at three. He did give up two home runs but, hey, it's early in the season and all things considered, he pitched pretty damn well. The bullpen, led by Whitlock, did a pretty good job and the batters kept scoring runs but the Yankees kept coming back to tie the game.

The game ended after four hours and eleven innings with the Yankees winning 6-5.

The new guy, Story, didn't impress me with his first outing but he did manage a hit. After all the hype around him, I was hoping to see more.

They meet again tomorrow and hopefully the outcome falls more in the Red Sox favor

⧫
As for hockey, as I said yesterday, tonights game is kind of important for the Bruins. They can take a two point lead over the Lightening tonight.

Including tonight there are twelve games left in the season and those two points could very well be the difference between being the number three seed in the division, being one of the wild card teams or being on vacation come May 1st

My problem is I had a crappy nights sleep last night so I may not make it through all three periods.

⧫
I'm gonna watch some hockey now.

You can visit these if you want:

• I have to be honest with you, I'm beginning to wonder if the Russians are simple idiots or the Ukrainians are really good at fake propaganda.



• You gotta love dogs.



• Key phrase in this story: "...not quite Robocop."



• Man, there's a day for everything.



• Only in Florida.

Back in the big race

The Lightening lost to the Capitals last night. That means the Bruins and the Lightening remain tied in points but the Bruins have more wins in regulation. That means the Bruins have the better record and are once again in the divisional race, three points behind the Maple Leafs.

They pick it up again tomorrow when they will take on...

...the Lightening.

That will be a pretty important game for them. Hopefully Pasternak is back in the lineup.

⧫
It sucked that there was no baseball this afternoon but the filters for my lawn tractor showed up and I was able to get the oil changed.

Yes, I managed to pour oil all over my garage floor. Not because I failed to catch it out of the drain but because when I took the filter off, it poured about a pint of oil on the floor.

Oil is like blood - a little bit quickly spreads and looks like a lot. In this case, it was a lot and it spread. A lot.

So anyways, 2.5 quarts of oil and 2 pounds of cat litter later, my tractor is ready to go and my garage floor is free of oil.

⧫
We have a new member of the SCOTUS and all anyone can talk about is that she is black and she is a woman.

You know what? I don't care.

Tell me what her thoughts are on the constitution. Don't tell me how much melanin she has in her skin.

Tell me if she thinks all amendments should be treated equally or if she thinks one is more important than the others. Don't tell me that she has breasts and a vagina.

Because if she wants to take away my guns or stifle my speech or allow the government to house soldiers in my house, well, I'm gonna have a problem with her. If she thinks the constitution and its amendments are not open to debate, then I'm going to support her. Her sex and race have no bearing.

⧫
I've got DVRs to watch.

Enjoy these links:

• I'm not entirely sure how the people of Georgia can vote for her. She's less intelligent than a box of dried concrete.



• Some people should be legally required to have a self-driving car.



• Yes Ms. Paski, it is a publicity stunt. It's designed to draw public attention to the fact that Texas, Arizona, New Mexico and California are ground zero for a problem that no one in the federal government seems to have the balls or intelligence to fix.



• Japan: They aren't like us.



• Add this to the list of ways I don't want to die.



• Attention everyone.

I'm freakin' Nostradamus

Back on March 30th I said, "There are now only 8 days until opening day and according to the Weather Channel, April 7th will be a cold, rainy day in New York City. That means there is a possibility that just like the last few years, opening day will be postponed"

Whelp, turns out I'm prescient.

Not really but I am good at making educated guesses. You see, this same thing happened last year so guessing it would happen again this year wasn't that big of a leap.

I've always wondered why the MLB doesn't schedule opening day at ball parks that are under a roof or are located where the weather is rarely a problem. Places like Houston, Phoenix, Miami, Toronto, Dallas, San Diego, Los Angeles, etc... are all places where there is roof or a far better chance of nice weather in April than New York or Boston.

⧫
The Bruins got whopped last night which isn't good but at least they are still tied with Lightening at 93 points. They are off tonight but the Lightening is playing the Capitals tonight. I'm hoping the Capitals win...

As for last nights loss, look, I get it, last night was a tough game. They played on Monday and again on Tuesday which meant no time off between games. I imagine they were a little tired and it showed. They were also very, very frustrated with the way they played. There were a lot of fights in the game. As a matter of fact, there was even a fight after the game ended.

There are three weeks left in the regular season and they stand a good chance of getting back into the divisional race if they can suck it up and play hard.

⧫
The vultures are back.

They are some big-ass birds.

⧫
I'm going to be enjoying some chicken cordon bleu with rice pilaf for dinner this evening. Yes, I know it sounds fancy but trust me, it's not. It all comes out of a box because I'm too lazy to make chicken cordon bleu from scratch.

Here are some links that you might find enjoyable:

• Is it just me or does anyone else think Putin's daughters look like they would rip your tongue off and throw it in your face.
  (And by "rip" I mean bite and by "tongue" I mean dick.)



• I could watch videos of people being tased all day long.



• No it doesn't. It makes you *think* you know how.



• Here's a friendly reminder about why it's a bad idea to stand under a tree in a thunderstorm.



• Australia: What doesn't try to kill ya, just wants to get rid of those pesky frogs in your office.



• I may have found my perfect retirement job.

Wacha did not do well

The Red Sox won this afternoons game but Wacha failed miserably. He only lasted three and a half innings and gave up six runs.

Fortunately, the offense took control and the Red Sox won the final spring training game 10-6

There is no baseball tomorrow and the season opener will be on Thursday in New York against the Yankees. Hopefully Eovaldi will go six innings because I'm not entirely sure the bullpen if ready for the season.

As for the Bruins, they won last night in overtime and are currently tied with the Maple Leafs at 93 points. Fortunately, the Bruins have more wins in regulation which puts them ahead of the Maple Leafs in the standings and they are once again in the divisional race.

Not a bad day to be a Boston fan...

⧫
Once again, I was a bit busy today and didn't have a lot of internet time. I'm still working on that project for the HR department so that took quite a bit of my time this morning.

After work, it was oil change day for my machines.

I changed the oil in the snow blower, the push mower and the generator but I held off on the lawn tractor because I did not have an oil filter handy.

I ran over to Home Depot to pick up an oil filter but I wanted to check that I had the right part. I opened the browser on my phone, typed in the engine type/model number and up popped a listing from Amazon that had the filter priced at $8.00. The one I had in my hand was $12.00. Then I looked at the air filter and saw that Amazon had it for $7.00 and the one on the shelf was priced at $15.00.

You can rest assured that I put the filter back on the shelf, came home and placed an order on Amazon. Turns out Amazon had a deal on the pair and I got both for $13.00.

This is why Amazon is winning.

⧫
I'm going to watch some hockey (yes, the Bruins are playing again this evening) and fall asleep on my couch.

You can click on these if you want:

• First they had boob jobs. Then they had butt jobs. Now they have lobe jobs.



• Only in Florida.



• Wasn't this a scene in a James Bond movie?



• Another reason to not fly commercial.



• Beer - Is there anything it can't do...



• Apparently it's illegal to put a spell on cops in Pennsylvania.

As predicted...

The house The Vet looked at yesterday sold today. For the record, I wish whoever bought it only the best.

I remember the housing bubble in the 90s and I have a feeling we are in another one. As a matter of fact, I have a feeling we are at the peak of a huge housing bubble and sometime in the near future, it's going to pop.

When this bubble pops, there are going to be a lot of people who owe more on their homes than what it is worth. And that, my friends, is when the shit hits the fan...

Imagine buying a $350,000 house, taking out a mortgage for $300,000 and six months later, you find out your house is only worth $250,000. And the bank wants you to make up the difference because they don't want to hold a note on a property that is worth less than the note. A lot of people lost their homes to foreclosure back then.

That happened to a lot of people back in the 90s and I'm trying my best to make sure it doesn't happen to my daughter.

⧫
Russia continues to claim they are doing nothing wrong. They claim that everything the media is showing is either fake or a lie.

I read a story not too long ago that had been written by a guy from Syria. For those you that have been living under a rock for the last 7 or 8 years, Syria is in the midst of a civil war with Russia supporting the dictator Bashar al-Assad. And by supporting, I mean they are doing a lot of bombing. As a matter of fact, they've used chemical weapons against the civilian population.

The story was not so much a news report as it was more of a warning.

His premise was,

"Look, we know how the Russians think because they have been doing it to us (Syria) for years.

Don't tell them where the civilians are because that is where they will bomb.

Don't tell them where the hospitals are because that is where they will bomb.

Don't tell them where the schools are because that is where they will bomb.

Don't tell them where the children are because that is where they will bomb.

Don't announce any humanitarian rescue attempts because that is where they will set up roadblocks with tanks and machine guns.

If you see any Russians, don't raise your hands because then they know you don't have a gun. They really seem to enjoy shooting unarmed men and raping unarmed women. After they're done raping the women, they shoot them.

Arm yourself and shoot every Russian you see because that is what they will do to you."

Basically, Russia wages war not by sending an army against an opposing army. They wage war by sending mass murderers into a city to massacre the civilians.

They "win" by killing all the people, taking land and rebuilding it to suit their liking.

⧫
The Red Sox lost to the Twins today but the big news is that Houck went six solid innings.

Tomorrow they play the Twins again with Wacha on the mound. If he can give them a good five or six innings, that will put the starting rotation in good shape.

I am feeling pretty good about this team. I like their defense and I love their offense. If their pitching can hold up, they will be contenders.

The Bruins are playing the Blue Jackets again this evening and I will watch some of it. Hell, maybe I'll watch all of it.⧫

While I do that, you can visit these:

• As Tod from the movie Parenthood said, "You know, Mrs. Buckman, you need a license to buy a dog, or drive a car. Hell, you need a license to catch a fish! But they'll let any butt-reaming asshole be a father.



• Why do I think Putin doesn't care.



• Of course it got terrible ratings. There was no slapping going on. People want slappings.



• I'm pretty sure they should listen to that Hawking guy. He was pretty smart.



• Yes, Low-Farting Cows would be a great name for a 1970s country-western band from the Soviet Union.



• Australia: What doesn't try to kill ya, slips in the door and goes for a ride. Then it tries to kill ya.

House hunting continues

We went with The Vet to look at another house today. This one was nice but not worth the asking price. I'm sure they'll get it but not from my daughter.

After going to several open houses over the last few weeks I can say with complete honesty that my family, both immediate and extended, are damn near royalty.

Some of the houses we've looked at not only need an immense amount of work to make them livable, the owners probably should have done some cleaning before the open house.

And when I say an immense amount of work, I'm being serious. Several had a basement with a dirt floor (can you say radon?), in one case the detached garage was tipping over and more than a few of them had dirt driveways. If you've ever tried to clear snow off a dirt driveway you know why most houses in New England have paved driveways.

As for cleaning, what can I say. If I knew that dozens of strangers were about to wander through my house, I would at least vacuum. I also probably wouldn't cook up a mess of broccoli and onions or something like that just before the start of the open house. There is nothing more appealing than walking into a house and smelling death...

⧫
As the Russian army is driven back from Kyiv and the news reporters are moving in, they are finding dead civilians everywhere. We're talking piles of bodies with the hands tied bahind them, evidence of torture and finally shot dead.

The Russians, when the news media started reporting the atrocities and genocide, made the following statement, "Not a single civilian has faced any violent action by the Russian military."

So I guess being machine-gunned, bombed, burned, raped or summarily-executed is not considered violent in the Russian culture.

⧫
The Red Sox made quick work of the Braves this afternoon, beating them 6-3.

Pivetta went five strong innings and took the win. He, along with Eovaldi, looks ready for the season to start. Not sure about Houck or Wacha yet. They have yet to throw more than four innings.

The season starts in four days so they better get to gettin' ready.

As for last night, the Bruins beat the Blue Jackets 5-2. They picked up two points but remain in the wild card because the Maple Leafs and the Lightening won last night as well.

⧫
No hockey tonight so I guess I'll be watching DVRs and falling asleep early

While I enjoy my non-sports evening, you can enjoy these links:

• This sounds like a terrible idea.



• So in other words, refill them.



• I call bullshit.



• Researchers: Contributing to the betterment of our society or a complete waste of perfectly good oxygen?



• Oh Canada.



• Magnetic Turd and the Moving Slime would be a fantastic name for a 1950s rock-a-billy band.

Florida = Morons

The state government in Florida is apparently in the process of screwing up the Orlando / Kissimmee area..

I can only imagine the shit-show that will happen if Disney says, "You know what? We make more money than you can imagine off movies and live entertainment. Also, we got a place in California that looks a lot like this one. We're just gonna call it a day here and leave. Good luck with all the swamp land."

This is what happens when you elect a governor who is incredibly tone-deaf to what is going on around him.

I can't wait to see this play out.

⧫
The Pirates beat the Red Sox this afternoon and I'm okay with that. Eovaldi pushed hard and made it through five & a half innings. This is a good thing because with the shortened spring training, it's possible that most of the starters on all the teams won't last that long in the early games.

The Blue Jackets are in town to play the Bruins this evening so I'll have that to watch.

⧫
You should check these links out:

• This was probably the ugliest vehicle since the AMC Pacer.



• Heads up people. There are more cameras at the MGM casinos than there are at the MGM movie studios.



• India's new motto should be: It's as bad here as it is in Australia.



• Maybe it's because researchers keep interrupting us.



• Only in Florida.



• I always wear shoes when I fly.

Grocery shopping is an adventure

Because there is problem with stores keeping items on their shelves, we have fallen into a habit of going to at least two, usually three, grocery stores in order to locate the items we want or need. This morning's weekly hunting expidition took us to Stop & Shop, Big Y and then another Big Y before we finally located everything we wanted.

I'm beginning to think I should just go to Costco and get everything I need there. They have all the stuff we like but we have to buy it in huge quantities. For instance, I bought coffee filters there the other day and I'm pretty sure I won't have to buy coffee filters again for at least a year.

⧫
Russia has accused Ukraine of attacking a fuel depot on Russian soil and the Russians are upset. President Vladimir Putin's spokesman said the incident "cannot be perceived as creating comfortable conditions for continuing the talks with Kyiv.

So let me see if I got this straight. The Russians have been bombing Ukrainian children, shooting Ukrainian elderly and raping Ukrainian women but now they are they shocked that Ukraine blew up some of their oil? As a matter of fact, not only are they shocked, they are in disbelief?

I'm inclined to believe the Ukrainians when they say they didn't do it because this seems like something the Russians would do to themselves so they can justify their continued rape and murder in Ukraine. They seem to be enjoying all the raping and murdering they get to do.

Having said that, I'm of the opinion that Ukraine should look into maybe tossing a few missiles into Moscow. Specifically, they should target the Kremlin when Vlad is in the house.

Then again, if Vlad the Insane is eliminated, the world might end up with someone even crazier in charge over there.

⧫
The Red Sox got their ass handed to them this afternoon by the Rays. The final score of the game was 9-3 and the Red Sox pitcher, Hill, did not have a good showing.

He was okay through two innings but in the third, the Rays hit the shit out of the ball and scored 6 runs.

Sure hope that doesn't happen during the regular season.

⧫
I'm gonna fire up the electric indoor grill and toss some steaks on it.

While I do that, you can do these:

• It's about damned time.



• He was very popular when he was in Boston. Maybe the Red Sox will bring him back...



• Japan: They aren't like us.



• Yet another reason I don't fly commercial.



• Ony in Florida.



• Do you want to know why people are quitting their jobs? Shit like this is why people are quitting their jobs.