Thanks goodness for DVRs

We are approximately two weeks away from the start of spring training, the NHL All Star break is going on, the Superb Owl is twelve days away and the Golf Channel has taken the MTV approach - they don't actually show very much golf.

Fortunately I have about 10 DVRs on my machine, a new season of Reacher on Amazon Prime and a rather decent SciFi book on my end table.

I think I'll survive.

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Speaking of spring training, I'm looking forward to watching baseball again even though I don't have high hopes for the Red Sox this coming season.

Then again, if you had told me 20 years ago in February of 2004 that the collection of dingbats they were putting on the field would go on to win the World Series, I would have told you you were nuts.

I'm going to start the season with my usual optimism.

I like that they still have guys like Devers, Casas, Story, Duran, Refsnyder and Yoshida in the field and Bernardino, Crawford, Bello, Jansen, Pivetta, Houck and Whitlock on the mound. I like the new pitcher Giolito and the new fielder Grissom.

I'm looking forward to seeing what the team chemistry is going to be and I like to think that at least one or two of the kids in the minors will get called up.

I'm really hoping that this team is fun to watch.

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I found this list on a Newsweek article:

It's the first time I've ever seen the complete list of charges against him.

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Time to figure out what to eat for dinner and then find some entertainment.

Here are some links:

• Massachusetts needs to shut down the State Police and give the money we spend on them to the several county sheriffs.



• So this was an act of theft and vandalism by some asshole racists against little kids who just want to play baseball.



• The little moon lander that could...



• I absolutely have a decline in my "episodic memory".



• Key line this story: "...there’s growing speculation that the Patriots will attempt to trade Jones during this offseason."



• Apparently the other Springfield. is just as screwed up as our Springfield.

The Superb Owl teams are decided

The Chiefs beat the Ravens and the 49ers beat the Lions yesterday.

That means that on February 11^th, the Chiefs and the 49ers will head to Vegas to play each other in Superb Oowl 58. Or, as the intellectuals at the NFL like to call it, "Super Bowl LVIII".

They think that using roman numerals makes them sound smart.

So anyways, most of the odds makers as well as all the so-called "sports experts" on ESPN have the Chiefs winning simply because they can't imagine that the 49ers have any chance of figuring out Mahomes.

I like Mahomes but I really don't care who wins. I'm just hoping for a good game to watch.

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A quick check of the TurboTax web site says the form I need will be available on February 1^{st so I guess I'll be able to file then.}

Other than that, not much else to chat about.

Here are some links for you:

• The job title, "Ex-US Army Man" does not make this story anymore believable.



• Yea, but you can't charge a truck with a crime.



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



• You just gotta love dogs.



• Must have been a big egg.

It's a football kind of day

There was some golf mixed in with my football viewing because, well, it's golf. It's an interesting match with the "K" girls playing some pretty damned good golf. Ko is currently in the lead but Korda and Khang are hot on her heels.

But for the most part, I'm watching football.

The AFC game started at 3:00 this afternoon with the Chiefs in Baltimore to play the Ravens. It's been an interesting game with both teams fired up to the point where almost every play ends with a lot of pushing and shouting between the players.

As a matter of fact, the fighting started before the game did when the Ravens kicker put all his gear in the end zone where the Chiefs were doing their pregame work. The Chiefs players started tossing the gear off to the side and this caused a lot of shoving, slapping, punching and generally bad behavior on everyones part.

So anyways, that game is currently in the third quarter and the Chiefs are up 17-7.

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In addition to football, today was tax day.

Neither my wife nor myself are tax accountants but we have been doing our own taxes for at least 20 years now. It started when the guy we had doing our taxes decided to retire and he sold his business to one of the chain joints.

I took our information over to them and sat there while this guy basically entered everything into a tax software that looked an awful lot like TurboTax. That was when I decided that I didn't need to pay someone to fill out a form on a computer. Ever since then, we've been doing it ourselves.

Every year, we buy TurboTax, create a new folder and, once we have all the proper paperwork, we sit down and enter everything. Never once have we had a situation that I said to myself, "Hmm. That's weird."

This year, we have a situation.

It seems that several years ago, one of my investment accounts took a small capital loss. Massachusetts allows you to carryover a loss to be used against any future capital gains and since I haven't sold any investments lately, I have had no capital gains to apply the loss against. Too be honest with you, I don't remember this loss but TurboTax does and it insists on filling out a "Schedule D" and filing it with my state taxes.

The problem is, the state has not yet approved the Schedule D that TurboTax is using so we are unable to file.

Hopefully things get approved soon and we can put this behind us.

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I have dinner to make and more football to watch.

You have links to look at:

• We are going to end up at war with Iran...



• What kind of scumbag steals a statue for Jackie Robinson from a little league park?



• The other day, Goofy Joe stopped for a beer with some of his construction buddies. He decided to put on one of their hard hats but... he put it on backwards.



• We refuse to use the metric system but we'll measure things using a giraffe as a unit of measure.



• That seems like a lot of underwear to me. Does that seem like a lot of underwear to you?



• Oh Canada.

Nice win this afternoon.

At the end of the first period, the Bruins were up 4-0 over the Flyers. By the time the game ended, the Bruins were up 6-2.

That win put the Bruins into first place in the NHL, two points ahead of the Canucks.

The Canucks are playing the Blue Jackets at 7:00 this evening and if the Canucks win, the Bruins and Canucks will go into the All-Star break tied for first place. If the Canucks win, the Bruins go into the All-Star break in sole possession of first place.

Either way, it's nice to see the Bruins in first place at the break.

The Bruins' next game will be on February 6^th when the Flames come to Boston. Puck drops at 7:00.

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Tomorrow there will be football.

The AFC conference final is up first with the Chiefs taking on the Ravens at 3:00.

Then the NFC conference final between the Lions and the 49ers will kick off at 6:30.

I would like to point out that both of those games are being played at decent times. All sports games should be played at those times.

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I'm curently watching golf and trying to figure out what to do about dinner.

You can check these links out:

• If I only had weeks to live, I'd probably do the same thing.



• Key phrase in this story: "I am on camera so I cannot say the words I exactly used."



• Man, they got world records for everything.



• This is a rule change I completely support.



• Most teams just hold extra practice sessions...



• You know times are tough when an armed robber uses a bicycle as their getaway vehicle.

Close game

The Bruins and Senators ended regulation in a 2-2 tie last night. Fortunately, the Bruins were able to put one into the net during the sudden death period and win the game.

With that win, they are now in a tie for first place in the NHL.

Tomorrow, they take on the Flyers at 12:30. I like when they play during the day because I have no problem staying awake during a day game.

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I'm pretty sure that calling for the use of the US military (National Guard) against a US federal agency (US Border Patrol) can be construed as an insurrection.

He really likes his insurrections.

Also, aside from the legal/constitutional issues, it seems to me that using armed soldiers against women and children is something a third world dictator would do.

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No sports tonight but plenty of DVRs.

Here are some links:

• Oh Canada.



• This is what happens when you don't know how to stop talking.



• Hey everybody! Goofy Joe says the economy is fine!
  Then again, a gallon of milk costs almost $6.00 so maybe he doesn't know what the hell he's talking about.



• Okay but what if I eat too many hot dogs? Can I call then?



• Eagles: Don't mess with them.

Tough loss

The Bruins tried but failed last night, losing to the Hurricanes 3-2 in regulation.

Tonight they are up in Ottowa to take on the Senators. Puck drops at 7:00.

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Time for a quick check on the roster updates the Red Sox have done in the offseason:

Nope, nothing new since the last update.

The only news out of Boston is that ownership finally admitted they lied when they said they were "going full throttle" last November.

Apparently what they meant to say was, "We're going to improve the team" which apparently they haven't done yet.

Which, when questioned about their commitment to improving the team, led them to say, "You're wrong, you're a liar, and I'll correct you on it."

For the record Sam, that probably wasn't the smartest thing to say to someone asking you if ownership is committed to delivering a quality product.

I'm pretty sure it's time for the Red Sox ownership to speak the truth.

They also need to lower their ticket prices. The Red Sox have the highest ticket prices in all of MLB and considering that they don't want to produce a quality product, they should expect to see their customers go elsewhere.

And they should knock off the "streaming" thing they do every so often. I'm not going to pay someone so I can watch a game I already pay a hefty cable bill to watch.

Personally, I find the MiLB baseball team in Worcester to be just as entertaining as the MLB team in Boston.

Don't get me wrong - I'll still watch the Red Sox but my expectations for a winning season are pretty low.

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You will note that I continue to ignore any and all news about the primaries.

The reason I am ignoring all the news is because it will come as no shock to me on November 5, 2024 that our choices will be Goofy Joe and Cult Leader Trump.

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Time for me to make some burgers and then watch some hockey.

You should look at these links:

• I said it the other day and I'll say it again: Bummer.



• Key phrase in this story: "The team is sick of it, everyone’s sick of it."



• I would have like to have seen this.



• More proof that our society is filled with idiots.



• Yep, filled with idiots...



• Key phrase in this story: "...sounds like we got a problem."

Short post today

In anticipation of the government taking all my money, I installed the new tax software and ran it through it's update process. While it was updating, I realized that I hadn't done a backup of my laptop in at least a year.

This is bad. Very, very bad.

Computers break and when they do, you will more than likely lose all of the data on the hard drive. Without a recent backup, I would be screwed if my machine decided to take a permanent vacation.

This is particularly stupid on my part since I have terabytes of network storage at my house and backing up my important stuff is simply a matter of dragging the folders from one drive to another and letting the machine copy the data onto the backup.

Once I got done with the backups, I decided it might be time to do a little housecleaning. I'm pretty sure I don't need shit like the 4 gigabytes of video and photos taken at the Eastern States Exposition three years ago...

All of that adds up to me spending a lot of time going through my stuff and deleting a lot of it from my laptop. Having a full backup of stuff also lowers the stress associated with deleting stuff because if, in the future, I decide I really do need the pictures of the llamas and cows, I can copy them off the backup.

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Here are a few links to carry you through:

• Are they saying this is against the law?



• She seems very proud of her accomplishment.



• Key phrase in this story: "I think we’d all agree you’re the rude one here."

Another great win.

The Bruins played some mostly-great hockey (the 2^nd period had some issues...) last night and they beat the Jets 4-1.

The Canucks also won so the Bruins remain one point behind them in the NHL.

With 36 games left in the regular season, there is still a lot of hockey left and a lot can happen. Players get injured, schedules get hard, etc... but I feel pretty good about the way the team is playing.

Next game is tomorrow at 7:30 against the Hurricanes.

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I'm trying my best to ignore the New Hampshire primaries.

There is nothing more boring that watching someone walk around a town, telling everyone how great they are.

Just once I would like to see someone running for president that I can look at and say, "Ya, I can vote for that person."

I felt pretty good about voting for Gerald Ford and I got a little excited about the possibility of voting for Colin Powell. Other than those two, no one has ever run for president that I liked. And this year is no different.

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I'm going to call it a day and spend the rest of my evening trying to figure out why certain functions in C++ ncurses aren't working like the man pages say they should.

While I do that, you can check these out:

• You know things are bad in your town when a fast food joint thinks it's too dangerous to be there.



• According to CNBC, the presidential elections are being decided by an applause meter.



• Only in Florida.
  (And on the pike at the Warren flats / straightaway)



• Key line in this story: "...potentially because he was drunk at the time".



• Maybe they should make more than one a year.



• The pope knows what he is talking about.

Time for the conference finals

The NFL Divisionals are decided and the Conference finals will be held this Sunday.

In the AFC, the Chiefs will be in Baltimore to take on the Ravens at 3:00.

In the NFC, the Lions will be in San Francisco to take on the 49ers at 6:30.

Go Chiefs!

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This is going to be short.

I'm not in the mood to write a lot of drivle and there isn't that much actually going on in the news.

I'm going to eat some dinner and then watch some hockey.

You are more than welcome to check out these links:

• Am I the only one who thinks the Trump campaign is behind this?



• Get ready for some internet and television outages.



• Apparently James Kirk visited Mars.



• Worlds best made up title: "Nationally Renowned Anal Surgeon".



• There should be a test given to people before they are allowed to vote. The people of Missouri voted for this guy...



• How do you not notice this.

Nice win last night

The Bruins managed to kick the crap out of the Canadiens last night, beating them 9-5 in regulation.

Someone on Twitter pointed out that the Bruins scored more points last night than the Patriots did in six of their games this past season.

Anyways, that win put them in second place in the NHL, one point ahead of the Jets and one point behind the Canucks.

Their next game is tomorrow against the Jets. Faceoff is at 7:00.

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In other sports, in what was actually a pretty good football game, the Ravens beat the Texans 34-10. I have no idea if the later game was any good because I was busy watching hockey but the 49ers beat the Packers 24-21.

As for today, my plan is to watch as much football as possible, particularly the Chiefs / Bills game. Right now I'm watching the Buccaneers / Lions game and flipping over to the LPGA Tournament of Champions.

Go Chiefs!

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We had a cop in our little town get shot last night. A young guy who recently joined what he must have thought was a nice quiet police department. Now he's in the hospital with two bullet wounds.

Hopefully he makes a full recovery, takes a medical retirement and lives the rest of his life without any worries.

Oh, and it's probably no consolation to him but I'm impressed he was able to return fire and hit the shooter, preventing him from shooting anyone else. You have to have balls of steel to accurately put a round on target while being shot.

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Here are some links you might enjoy:

• In case you ever wondered what too much booze and too many drugs do to you, I present David Lee Roth.



• Key entry from our favorite police log: "4:37 p.m. A man, who had a “rowdy night” the previous evening, was wondering if an officer could come breathalyze him to make sure he was okay to drive to do some errands."



• This is why women outlive men.



• I'm willing to bet that he was promised the job of vice president.



• You wanna know what worries me? It worries me that I'm older than this guy.



• Things just keep getting shittier and shittier. Pretty soon there's gonna be a full-blown war over there.



• Key line in this "Only in Florida" story: "Don't assume that they're dead."

Hockey and football

The Bruins are taking on the Canadiens this evening and the NFL Divisionals are going on today & tomorrow.

This afternoon at 4:30, the Texans play the Ravens and at 8:15, the Packers play the 49ers.

Tomorrow afternoon at 3:00, the Buccaneers take on the Lions and at 6:30, the Chiefs take on the Bills.

I really don't care about the Texans, the Ravens, the Packers or the 49ers but I'll watch a little bit of those games.

I am also not really all that interested in the Buccaneers or the Lions but I do like the Chiefs and the Bills.

I do care about the Bruins so I'll watch all of that game today. Since the Bruins aren't playing tomorrow, I'll watch both of those football games.

I like watching the sports.

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While I watch all the sports, you can check these out:

• I can think of a lot of reasons to question his mental fitness and stability.
  Remember when he suggested we inject disinfectant?



• Bummer.



• How would you like to be that dispatcher.



• Only in Florida.



• Probably because you're spending a lot of money renting a million dollar house!



• Australia: What doesn't try to kill ya, has sex with you and then tries to kill you.



• I guess you can't trust those Sunday school teachers.

Nice win last night

The Bruins played. some pretty damned good hockey last night, beating the Avalanche 5-2 in regulation.

That win puts them in sole possesion of second place in the National Hockey League.

Their next game is tomorrow against the Canadiens. Puck drops at 7:00

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Now that Jerod Mayo has been officially announced as the new head coach of the Patriots, all the talking heads have turned their attention to what Belichick is doing.

The Falcons could not find a better head coach than Belichick but they should not allow him to be the general manager and make personnel decisions. He has never been great at picking players.

Let's face it, Cam Newton was a shot in the dark that turned out to be a terrible choice after two seasons and don't get me started on the whole Aaron Hernandez debacle.

Guess we'll see what happens over the next few weeks.

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I'm going to make some burgers and fries. Then I'm going to watch some Gold Rush.

You can enjoy these links:

• Looks like we might be saying goodbye to the swimsuit edition.



• In case you are looking for that perfect birthday gift.



• Oh Canada.



• Hebert Hoover's great granddaughter is kinda attractive.



• I have to admit: I drink black coffee.

It's a bit chilly

I'm pretty sure it didn't get much warmer than 25 today and my driveway is not melting.

Well, it is melting but just a little. As a matter of fact, it's melting just enough to put a nice layer of water on top of the ice, making it even more slippery than it normally is.

And with another inch of snow predicted for tomorrow, I'm think about getting my ice skates out and just using my driveway as a skating rink.

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Trump keeps saying that everything is rigged against him

My favorite from him is this one:

Not only is it in all capital letters, he even goes so far as to say, "EVEN EVENTS THAT 'CROSS THE LINE' MUST FALL UNDER TOTAL IMMUNITY".

Does that mean that in Trump's world, if the president takes a gun and shoots the secretary of labor in the head, the president is immune from prosecution?

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Here are today's links:

• The middle-east continues to be a shithole filled with people who have been at war with themselves and everyone else since the year zero.



• Another reason to not fly commercial.



• Here we go again.



• Other than that, I'm sure it was a lovely affair.



• They got some miraculous potholes in India.



• This is why you should always look in the freezer when you are at an open house.

Bit of a scare

At 6:45 this morning, I opened my garage door, started The Professors car and backed it into the driveway. My intention was to try and get some of the ice off the car roof (she is too short to reach the roof) and let the car warm up for her.

As I backed the car into the sun, I saw a crack in her windshield that went the entire height of the glass.

I went into the house and said, "Well, I got some bad news for you - your windshield is cracked."

She went out, looked at the glass and said, "That is just a line from a frozen stream of melt water."

She did not add "you idiot" to the end of her sentence but I could feel it hanging in the air.

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Speaking of melt, my driveway is actually looking pretty damned good.

Last night, I threw a small amount of ice melt on the top of the driveway as well as the sidewalk. The part that got the ice melt was completely melted this morning and, as it melted, the water (with the ice melt in it) ran down the driveway and melted more of the ice/snow.

I would say that about half my driveway is clear of snow and ice.

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I'm done for the day.

Here are some links:

• Key phrase in this story: "You can't control yourself."



• Man, Iran is lobbing bombs at everybody.



• This is an interesting rumor...



• I would not have a problem with this.



• Who?

That was interesting.

I flipped on the news at 6:00 this morning to see a list of school closings that led me to believe we had a major blizzard overnight. I opened the door, turned on the lights and stepped out into...

...¾ of an inch of snow.

I couldn't figure out why all the towns had cancelled school. Then, at 9:30, I drove to the post office...

Holy crap, those roads were slicker than cow snot.

I got to watch the guy in front of me go into a curve at about 20mph and slowly slide sideways down both lanes of the road. He was very lucky no one was coming the other way.

So I guess the school closings were probably a good idea.

My guess is we ended up with about four inches of snow followed by some ice/rain.

As of 6:00 tonight, my driveway was cleared of snow, but I suspect it will be covered again by morning. I just hope it's covered in snow and not a thick layer of ice.

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I'm going to call it a night and watch some Gold Rush on the DVR.

You can check these out:

• Only in Florida.



• They have these in Iowa. I giggled like a school boy every time I saw one.



• Australia: What doesn't try to kill ya, just wants a little ice.



• "Luxury Ice" is another way of saying "bullshit".



• Froghopper and the Foamy Farts would be a great name for a 1960s lounge band.

I like daytime hockey

The Bruins took on the Devils this afternoon at 1:00. That means I was able to watch the entire game without nodding off.

As for the game, the Bruins took a 1-0 lead late in the second period and then took 2-0 lead early in the third period.

Then, with just over one minute left in the game, the Bruins overcame the six-on-five assault from the Devils and managed to put one into the Devils empty net, making the final score of the game 3-0.

Next game is Thursday against the Avalanch. Puck drops at 7:00

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Now, if they manage to shovel out Highmark Stadium, I'm going to watch the Steelers hopefully beat the Bills.

Here are today's links:

• I'm betting this might be a little weird at family dinners.



• When I think of places that give quality medical care, Bob's Furniture Store is not high on my list.



• Oh Canada.



• Clown Heads Over Bostson would be a great name for a 1990s techno band.



• Here's your Naked Guy In The News story.
  (It's from 2022. Not sure how I missed it back then)

Finally, a win.

Once again, the Bruins ended regulation in a 3-3 tie but this time they managed to score in the sudden-death OT period and beat the Blues 4-3.

With that win, they maintain their 3rd place position in the NHL:

They are on their way back to Boston where tomorrow they will take on the Devils. Puck drops at 1:00.

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I didn't get to watch the Dolphins / Chiefs game last night because the NFL is run by greedy bastards who don't give a shit about fans but I was able to listen to it on a streaming radio station out of Kansas City.

The Chiefs won the game, beating the Dolphins 26-7 and moving on to the divisional's but the big news wasn't the win or the fact that Taylor Swift had on some kind of fancy new jacket. The big news was the temperature.

It was cold. Very, very cold.

I hear you say, "Steve. How cold was it?"

It was -10° with wind chills of -31°.

Trust me, that is cold. As a matter of fact, it's cold enough that the equipment was becoming brittle. It was so brittle that at one point, Mahomes helmet cracked after a hit.

Yea, that's kinda cold.

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Here is where I say something that will piss people off:

The key phrase in this story is: "...she is financially distressed" yet she is buying Earl Grey tea, lobster dip and a chicken pie.

Hell, I'm not "financially distressed" and I don't buy lobster dip.

Also, the statement, "this is the second time that this has happened to me" leads me to think that maybe, just maybe, she shouldn't be allowed to go shopping on her own. I'm not entirely sure she knows how to do simple math...

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The Steelers / Bills game is postponed until tomorrow so golf is the sport of choice for me today. I might watch a bit of the other two games but I'm not a big fan of the Cowboys, the Packers, the Rams or the Lions so there will have to be nothing else on.

You can check out these links:

• Only in Florida.



• Crashing in a backyard near you!



• This is the problem with polls. They don't accurately reflect anything.



• Yet another reason to avoid flying commercial.

Short post

Not much going on and I got wrapped up in a new book.

That means I didn't spend a lot of time on the internet.

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Yes, there is hockey tonight and yes, I will be watching it.

Yes, there is football tonight but I won't be watching it.

The NFL, a business that earns multi-billions of dollars a year, decided they need more money so they sold the broadcast rights for a playoff game to a streaming service called Peacock. No one I know will be watching tonights playoff game.

Here are a few links:

• Australia: What doesn't try to kill ya, tries to kill you and everyone in your family.



• I'm sorry but this comes across as more than a little whiny.



• Proof that our society is filled with idiots.



• More proof that our society is filled with idiots.



• I'm pretty sure this was the plotline to numerous 1950's Sci-Fi movies.

And another OT loss

The Bruins and the Golden Knights ended regulation play in a 1-1 tie and once again, the Bruins lost in the sudden death OT period.

This is the third game in a row that they lost in overtime which is making me think they need to work on their stamina or something. Then again, they are on a road trip and this was the third game they've played in the last four days.

Despite losing the last three games, they've at least earned a point in each game for the regulation tie. That means they are still within spitting distance of first place in the NHL

They have one more road game this week. Tomorrow they are in St Louis to play the Blues.

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Yesterday I asked the question, "I'm curious to see who the Patriots think they can hire that will do a better job than Belichick."

I guess I got my answer.

Based on reports that last November, in an off-the-cuff public remark, Kraft said that Mayo was "heir apparent", this may have been the plan all along.

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Attention idiots in congress:

The president cannot declare war against another country without the approval of congress. He is, however, the commander and chief of the military and does not need congressional approval to initiate military action against any group that attacks American people or interests.

Quit whining and do your damned job.

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Here are some links:

• What kind of scumbag steals someone's puppy.



• If you are planning a bathroom remodel in the near future, maybe start by poking around with one of those borescope cameras before knocking down any walls.



• I can't tell you the number of times I had to read either Hop on Pop or The Grouchy Ladybug or Cars and Trucks and Things That Go over and over again.



• Australia: What doesn't try to kill ya, just wants to embarass you.



• Leave it to the federal government to take the fun out of anything.



• Key entry from our favorite police log: "12 a.m. A black horse escaped from its pen, but no one could see it in the dark."

Thirty Five Days

Since the Red Sox haven't announced the date that pitchers and catchers report for spring training, I'm going to go with the date they reported last year. That was February 15th and that is 35 days from today.

I'm really hoping they do well this season. They finished in last place in the previous two seasons and I can't really blame anyone in particular. Sure, Bloom was given the shitty task of fielding a team while cutting payroll which means blame could be placed upon ownership, but when you look at the players, they should have played better than they did.

But in the end, Bloom took the blame and the eventual fall, being fired even before the season ended.

Now they have an untested rookie wizard named Breslow who basically appears to have the same set of guidelines - field a winning team and cut payroll.

Unless he really is a wizard, I have a feeling that next year at this time I'll be talking about how Breslow took the fall for ownerships bad decisions...

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Remember the other day when I said that Robert Kraft was not a fool?

Turns out I was wrong...

Then again, it could very well have been Belichick's decision to end it. Twenty four years with one team is a long time.

I'm curious to see who the Patriots think they can hire that will do a better job than Belichick.

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I'm going to end this and see if I can figure out what to make for dinner.

Here are some links:

• THis sounds like the opening scene to a 1970's sci-fi movie.



• Here we go again.



• Key phrase in this story: "...became upset with her after finding out that his sandwich was not separated."



• Only in Florida.



• Oh Canada.

Another loss

The Bruins took an early lead over the Coyotes but failed to hold on to it and, once again, they finished regulation tied 3-3.

Unfortunately, Ullmark was injured in the first two minutes of the sudden-death OT period and Swayman, who played the other night, had to go in. The Coyotes managed to slip one past him and win the game.

This pushes them down to third place in the NHL:

They are off today and are back at it tomorrow at 10:00 when they face off against the Golden Knights.

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I ended up running my generator for just under two hours last night. The power came back around 9:00 and fortunately it stayed on during all the high winds throughout the night.

Speaking of the winds, we have two cats living in this house and I can tell you that one of those cats was not a happy camper with the snow rolling off the roof in large, loud sheets. She made it her goal to see to it that if the sound of the snow falling off the roof didn't wake me up, she was going to wake me up.

I don't know if she was doing it on purpose but doing it she was. I got eight hours of sleep in eight one-hour chunks last night.

They are predicting more winds tonight but not as high as last night and since there is no snow on my roof anymore, I might just get my sleep in chunks longer than an hour.

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Time to check in on what exciting moves the Red Sox have made during this off-season

The Red Sox have signed Lucas Giolitto to replace Chris Sale who they traded to the Braves for Vaughn Grissom.

This has been your update on all the exciting moves the Red Sox have made during the off season.

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It's been a couple of weeks since I last checked out Trumps thruth thingee.

I'm confused. He keeps saying he did nothing wrong. If he did nothing wrong, why does he need immunity?

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Time for some mild television and some much needed sleep.

Enjoy these links:

• For those of you looking to put more junk food in your life, look no more.



• I'm still not entirely sure who the Houthi's are but seems to me they are looking to get their asses kicked.



• Am I the only one who thinks it's a little weird that her husband and her mother are the same age?



• Speaking of Trump, his cult continues to eat their own.



• I keep waiting for Massachusetts to have a chipmunk hunting competition.



• Finally, someone is doing important research.

Two things to say.

First thing to say is it's getting windy and it's starting to rain.

The weather forecast is that we will see wind gusts in excess of 30mph. In some places they might even see gusts over 45mph.

I am concerned enough that I checked to see if I have enough gasoline to run my generator for at least 24 hours and as it turns out, I do.

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Second thing is we once again have a dishwasher.

This one has a light.

I've never seen a dishwasher with a light and I'm not entirely sure why we need a light in our dishwasher but we have one.

It also has a light on the outside that shines on the floor and changes from blue to green to let us know when the dishwasher is done washing dishes.

I have a feeling these are just more things to go wrong but for now, I'm happy that I don't have to wash all the dishes by hand.

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The Bruins and the Avalanche ended up in a 3-3 tie at the end of regulation and a 3-3 tie after the sudden death period but it was the shootout that sealed the Bruins fate and they ended up losing the game 4-3.

They still picked up one point, leaving them only one point behind the Jets in the NHL.

Tonight they play the Coyotes. Just like last night, they drop puck at 9:00 and that means there is a really good chance I won't be watching.

Update

Turns out I'm glad I have gasoline for my generator.

It is currently 8:15pm and my generator has been running since 7:15pm. I suspect it will be running until 10:00 when either the power comes back on or I decided to shut it down and go to bed.

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Here are some links:

• I'm pretty sure that cow shit does not prevent covid.



• Colorado and The Legal Crawfish Boils sounds like a fantastic name for a 1950s rock-a-billy band.



• This is why I only drink Bud bottles.



• And they are still getting their asses kicked.



• Darn, I missed the latest award show.



• I'm thinking that house was built on a bad spot.

Let the melting begin

They keep using the word "flooding" when talking about the upcoming weather. I think they are using the word "flooding" differently than I use it.

When I say flood, I mean a lot of water moving rapidly in a river or stream bed, overflowing the banks and possibly damaging the surrounding infrastructure.

When they say flood, I think they are talking about large puddles in the road and maybe the rivers being higher than normal.

Guess we'll see who is using it correctly come this Wednesday when the warmer weather and rain reaches us here in the north east.

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So now that the Patriots season is over with, the media is having a field day speculating on Belichick's status.

After the game yesterday, he was asked about his future and he gave the typical Belichick answer:

"I'm under contract. I'm going to do what I always do, which is you know every day, I come in work as hard as I can to help the team and whatever way I can."

I get it, they are all looking for drama and they all want to "break the news". The problem is, I don't think he's going anywhere. I don't think there is going to be any news to break.

Like I said yesterday, I don't think Kraft is a fool.

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My son and daughter-in-law recently made a trek across half the country, taking several days to drive from Boston, MA to Austin, TX. Along the way they stopped in several places including Washington, DC, Nashville, TN and New Orleans, LA.

Now keep in mind that this is my youngest son and he is still at the stage in life where having a good time is important to him. This is a young man who likes to party and his wife is no less an enjoyer of fun.

Which kind of threw me a bit when my son sent me a text from New Orleans that said,

This is a man who knows how to have a good time but apparently is growing out of his college years and enjoying life.

I am, as always, the proud dad.

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Neither my wife nor myself have any idea about what to have for dinner. I guess that means we are going to starve.

While I watch the Bruins play the Avalanche, you can enjoy these links:

• Only in Florida.
  (In a glove???)



• Why do I have a feeling that the Connecicut River is about to get extra brown.



• New Zealand is nothing like Australia. As a matter of fact, it's more like Florida.



• Sounds like Mr. Jingles is staying busy.
  (For those of you that don't understand the reference, watch The Green Mile.)



• Key answer in this story: "I am a weapon."



• Key threat in this story: "...including the maintenance staff."

Snow abounds

The weather dweebs kept saying we were going to get 6-12 inches of light, fluffy snow.

They were wrong.

What we got was about 12 inches of heavy, wet, sticky snow.

I decided to wait until it stopped snowing before heading out and The Beast struggled a bit. Particularly with the large boulders left by the plow at the end of the driveway.

So anyways, the clearing of snow is now done and our cars can once again move freely from our garage to the road.

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In one of the most meaningless games of the year, the Patriots ended their season with a home game against the Jets. Both teams have been eliminated from playoff contention so from a post-season perspective, it doesn't matter who won or lost. This game was played simply because it was on the schedule.

In the end, the Jets beat the Patriots 17-3 and the Patriots finished their season with a record of 4-13, putting them in second-to-last place in the NFL, just ahead of the Panthers.

So now, much like we do with the Red Sox, we watch what happens to the team during the off season.

All the talking heads are predicting that Belichick will not be coaching the Patriots next season. I think that Belichick is recognized as one of the best coaches in the NFL and Kraft would be a fool to think he can replace Belichick with a better coach.

I also think that Kraft is not a fool.

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The Bruins beat up on the Lightning last night, beating them 7-3.

It was good to see them play hockey like they should play. Their passes were quick & clean and they took 27 shots on goal. That means they were shooting at the goal instead of dinking around with the puck.

As they old saying goes, you miss 100% of the shots you don't take.

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You would think I would remember that we no longer have a working dishwasher but you would be wrong. Everytime I finish eating or drinking something, I automatically put the dish/cup/utensil into the not-a-working-dishwasher currently sitting under our counter.

My fear is that I will put something in there, walk away and wake up the next day to the smell of death in my kitchen. Because of that fear, I did this:

That's right, I put masking tape on the racks so I can't just toss dirty dishes in there like the good old days when we had a working dishwasher.

Rumor has it that our replacement machine will arrive on Tuesday. This will cause me much joy because, to be honest with you, I'm getting sick of washing dishes by hand...

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Time to eat and watch some DVRs. I might watch some of the Bills/Dolphins game.

You can check these out if you want:

• Oh Canada.



• Seems like this is the wrong reason to close down.



• Everybody knows it's yellow so you don't eat the yellow snow.



• Key phrase in this story: "...drunk some Captain Morgans at different bars in Las Vegas before the flight."



• I can't imagine being jammed in with 5,000 people.



• Yes, alcohol was involved.



• I think I'm going to get a dash cam.



• Congress needs to ban these things.

Happy Let's Violently Overthrow the Government Day!

Three years ago today Donald "I'm right, your wrong!" Trump rallied his cult followers and urged them to "Fight like Hell. And if you don't fight like hell, you're not going to have a country anymore".

So they did.

They marched to the building that houses our government, marched up the stairs, smashed the windows & doors, attacked the police defending the building and then, once inside, they destroyed or stole whatever they could.

It was something that hadn't happened in this country since the British ransacked Washington back in 1812.

We were at war with the British in 1812...

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I have moved The Beast behind my car so tomorrow morning all I have to do is open the garage door and commence to blowin'.

And for all you dirty minded people out there, enjoy your laugh while you can.

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I have two things to say about the person that did this:

Screw you for leaving domestic animals to die a terrible death in the woods in the winter time.
Screw you for introducing a non-native species that could very well overwhelm and displace the native species.

People are stupid.

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My town has a parking ban and apparently they really, really wanted me to know about it because they sent me four seperate emails telling me about it:

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It's taco Saturday. That will be followed by hockey.

Here are some links for you:

• The Flying Platypus is scheduled to roll out on January 12^th.



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



• Giant Predator Worms would be a great name for a 1990s punk band.



• Key phrase in this story: "...recent attacks off Somalia could have been prompted by the relocation of navy ships from the US and other countries from the Indian Ocean to the Red Sea..."



• The last thing I want is Alexa knowing about my butt.

Big internet fight

Picture yourself at the age of seven, standing on a playground and watching two other seven year old kids get into a shouting match over something as idiotic as who has better video games:

Your games suck!
Your games don't work!
You're a big doody head!
Ya, well your a jerk face!
Oh yea? Come over here and say that!
No, you come over here!

Apparently, that is what is going on between Jimmy Kimmel and Aaron Rodgers.

If you were to ask me, "Hey Steve! Name two people! Any two people." I can pretty much guarantee you that neither one of those guys would be named.

I think Rodgers says and does things that pretty much prove his brain is more than a little mushy after being tackled for the last several years.

I think Kimmel is an arrogant, self-centered, "I'm right and your wrong" kind of guy whose brain swelled ten sizes too big for his head when he got his own talk show.

I don't really care for either one of them.

I will, however, microwave some popcorn, sit back on my couch and watch the "little kid pissing contest" that is going on between them because it's kinda funny.

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The Bruins lost to the Penguins last night because once again, they played like crap.

Well, maybe not like crap but they absolutely did not play their best game.

With that loss and several other teams winning, they are now back in fourth place in the league.

Their next game is tomorrow against the Lightning.

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I'm going to make some dinner and then see what I have on my DVR.

Here are today's links:

• Looks to me that even after 20 years, he's still bitter about that loss.



• This is getting bad.



• Australia: What doesn't try to kill ya, kills ya.



• Australia: What doesn't try to kill ya, is hot and hungry and trying to kill ya.



• Ony in Florida.

We woke up to snow

Not much snow, just a coating. Not enough to alarm my uncle out in Pittsburgh. He calls me to make sure we are all okay out here when the talking heads on the national news tell the world that New England has been devestated by [insert weather here].

This weekend however, might be a different story. They are talking about the first plowable snowfall of the season and whenever that happens, we get to enjoy all those people who are afraid to drive in the snow who never-the-less go out and drive anyways.

Trust me people, if you are afraid to drive in the snow, don't drive in it. Stay home and let the rest of us get to where we have to go without trying to figure out how to get around the line of 15 cars backed up behind some q-tip in an 1997 Oldsmobile Cutlass going 10 mph.

For the love of God, just stay home. Trust me, despite what all the talking heads say, you don't need to stock up on batteries, milk and bread.

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The courts have released all the documents that were presented in the law suit against the estate of the late Jeffrey Epstein.

Here's what I know: The only thing those documents contain is a bunch of accusations. No evidence or facts. They basically say things like, "He was a friend of Epstein" or "He visited Epstein" or "No, I never met him".

All you people that were sitting around waiting for something that proved Trump and/or Clinton were molesting little girls can go back to formulating your next great conspiracy theory because that one is over and done with.

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The Bruins are playing this evening so I'm all set for entertainment.

Here are some links that you can look at:

• If this keeps up, the gangsters will once again have someplace to hide the bodies.



• Do you want to know how you avoid a restaurant's tipping policy? You don't go to that restaurant. That's how you avoid a restaurant's tipping policy.



• Oh Canada.



• I was never a fan of Dunkin' Donuts.