Another win

Despite the fact that the Bruins and the Maple Leafs decided to beat the crap out of each other and extend the third period beyond my normal bed time, I stayed up to watch the entire game.

The Bruins managed to play some pretty good hockey and they ended the game with a 5-3 victory over the Maple Leafs which is the same score the last time these two teams played.

So now the Bruins are tied for first in points but are in second because of win percentage.

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

⧫
Here are some links:

• Other than saying he doesn't bark, I'm not entirely sure these emails reveal anything, either good or bad, about Trump.



• Like I said before, how did a guy who had been arrested in a drive-by shooting get a job as the governors aide?



• Not in Massachusetts.



• About damned time.



• Next up will be Thunderstruck on accordians.



• You're 80 years old. Give it a rest.

Sportings will be watched

♫Hello out there, we're on the air, it's hockey night tonight♫.

The Bruins will take on the Maple Leafs and I'm hoping for a repeat of their last meeting when the Bruins won 5-3. Specially since that game was in Toronto and tonight's game is on the Bruins home ice in Boston.

Puck drops at 7:00pm. The game is not on NESN, it is on TNT.

⧫
Today was one of those quiet days with very little going on.

So I went full-on nerd and fired up my IBM Z/OS mainframe emulator!

I spent 30 years working on the IBM mainframe platform and I kind of enjoy playing with the Hercules emulator. I don't have any specific processes that I'm doing with it, just writing some code, compiling it, running it and generally realizing that I have forgotten a lot of stuff about the mainframe.

Hell, it took me 20 minutes to remember how to create a file, or as us mainframe dweebs like to say, "allocate a dataset".

Basically, I'm just trying to keep my brain functional by assigning it tasks that require an effort on its part. My experience with some people over the years tells me that people who sit around and do nothing usually end up either dying young or lose their minds and end up strapped into a wheelchair, drooling into their lap.

I don't want to drool into my lap.

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Here are some links:

• If the clouds break and the skies clear tonight, you might see the aurora.



• The big question is did Pancake use pancake batter to batter father Pancake.



• This is why I like YouTube.



• Key line in this story: "...given a reprieve due to the COVID-19 pandemic."



• Steve should not be wearing speedo's.

I forget a lot

Presenting my excuse for forgetting yesterday's posting:

Back in 1975, my father wrote me a note stating that he had taken moms car. My mom was at work and he wanted me to call her to find out if she needed a ride home.


Several things to point out here:
• My dad had great handwriting.
• We always had a paper shortage at our house so we wrote notes on whatever was handy. In this case, it was the back of my sister Karen's report card.
• My sister Karen was prompt in repaying her debt of 50 cents back to my father.
• My father ended the note with the line:
Don't give me that "I forgot" crappola. O.K.
 
So even as a youngster, I had a shitty memory.

This has been my excuse for yesterday's lack of posting.

⧫
No, I have not yet purchased any lottery tickets.

When it gets over a billion, I'll think about it.

And speaking of gambling...

Those kinds of stories piss me off because they are a bald-faced lie. That gambler did not spend $1.50 to win a jackpot. They probably spent a several hundred dollars to win that jackpot. As a matter of fact, if you add up all the money they gambled this year, they probably spent thousands of dollars before they won that jackpot

Gambling is an addiction and like all addictions, it can ruin you. I've seen people sitting in a bar spending their entire weekly paycheck on Keno. As a matter of fact, I once saw a woman ask Tommy to loan her money so she could keep playing her numbers.

If you are taking out a loan, or even using a credit card, to pay for your gambling, you are addicted and you need to get some help.

Don't fall for those newspaper stories about how exciting and fun gambling is. They are really just advertising for the casinos.

⧫
Yesterday the Patriots beat the Buccaneers 28-23, firming up their lead in the AFCEast.

In the AFC, they are currently in third place:

Actually, they are in a three-way tie in the AFC but I'm pretty sure that in the event of a tie, the NFL uses net points to determine standings.

Their next game is this coming Thursday against the Jets. Kickoff is at 8:15pm and the game will be streamed on Amazon Prime. That means I'll be watching it on my laptop.

⧫
Today was my monthly lunch meeting with Jim and The Bill's.

Once again, we spent a couple of hours not only identify everything that is wrong with the world but also solving all of those problems.

If only we could convince the world to listen to us, everything would be great.

⧫
Here are some links:

• Key line in this story: "The pardons are largely symbolic — none of those identified were charged with federal crimes."



• If you own a Honda Civic, you might want to get another car.



• Defending the nation for 250 years.



• Socialists: Learning about reality one promise at a time.



• I'm pretty sure that Rudy doesn't understand that he was convicted at the state level and Trump can only pardon federal crimes.

I forgot

I'll try to remember tomorrow

95 days

The Red Sox pitchers & catchers, and any other players that feel like it, will report to JetBlue on February 11, 2026. That is 95 days from today.

As things stand, it looks like either Duran or Abreu will be on the trade block because they have plenty of outfielders while being in need of starting pitching, a 3^rd baseman and probably a 1^st baseman.

My guess is Duran will be the trade simply because A) he has a higher salary than Abreu and B) he has been sought after for a few years now. Numerous teams have expressed interest in him so he may bring the best price.

And the reason I say they may need a 1^st baseman is because Casas went down hard this year and there is no guarantee that he'll be ready to go this February. Also, he had become a little streaky with his bat, striking out a lot.

It's going to be an interesting 95 days...

⧫
For the record, my lawn looks beautiful.

My wife got all the leaves out of her gardens while I used my lawn tractor to clean the lawn. My neighbor did his lawn as well so I won't have his leaves blowing over here for a couple of days.

⧫
Here are some links:

• If you live on the west coast, you might want to move inland a bit.



• Australia: What doesn't try to kill ya, just wants to lick your face and love you to death.



• Psycho Vlad is 3½ years into his "special military operation"



• Key line in this story: "Defendant is a serial and prolific adulterer..."



• Assholes: They're all around us.



• This is not good. Not good at all.

Another OT win

The Bruins damned near blew it last night but they managed to finish regulation in a 2-2 tie with the Senators. They scored the winning goal in sudden-death OT and picked up two points in the standings.

They are now one point ahead of the Maple Leafs, in third place in the Atlantic division.

Their next game is tomorrow against the Maple Leafs so a win then will put them 3 points ahead in the standings.

⧫
The Red Sox did not make a qualifying offer to Lucas Giolito which, initially, seems like a smart idea to me.

The qualifying offers this season are roughly $22 million and I'm pretty sure Giolito would have taken it because it's more than what he earned in 2025. It's also more than he might be worth.

By not making the qualifying offer, he becomes a free-agent which means the Red Sox are free to negotiate a contract with him if they are still interested in his services.

I'd like to see him back with the Red Sox next season but I understand why that might not happen.

In other Red Sox news, the so-called "experts" in the media keep claiming "this guy is a perfect fit" for just about every team in the league and that includes the Red Sox.

The problem with that is that a signing from Japan is a crap shoot at best. These players have not been through the MiLB and they have not received the training/coaching that kids coming up through the MiLB get.

I'm not saying they are a bust I'm just saying that their first season in the major leagues could be a waste of time and effort. Then again, they could also turn out to be another Ohtani...

⧫
Here are some links:

• She's crazy as a loon. She actually makes The Very Stable Genius look stable.



• I wonder if the citizens of New York City will stop paying federal taxes.



• When you vote for Trump, you get Trumped.



• One upside of the government shutdown is The Very Stable Genius wont have to hear how poorly the jobs market is doing.



• Key line in this story: "...an armored casket mounted on an ATV frame..."



• Nothing like a good old fashioned skewer fight.



• This is not good. Not good at all.



• I guess Jon Stewart feels the same way about the democrats that I do.

Still breezy

The wind just doesn't want to slow down and as a result, my lawn is covered with my neighbors leaves.

One of these days, the winds will abate and I will have a clean lawn. Until then, you are going to have to deal with my bitching about it.

⧫
The Bruins and the Senators go at it this evening and I'm really hoping it's not a repeat of their last meeting when the Senators beat the crap out of the Bruins.

The Bruins have been pushed back down to 4^th place by the Maple Leafs so they need to win tonight just to get back to where they were.

⧫
The washing machine saga continues.

The repair guy was here this afternoon and found that there are some bearing/motor issues. This means ordering more parts and waiting until they arrive.

Once he has the new motor and drive belt, he seems more than confident that the repairs will be complete and we can once again wash our clothes like normal people.

⧫
Here are some links:

• Finally, our long national nightmare is over.



• Looks like Antonio is gonna get his day in court.



• You want to know why Trump is president? This is why Trump is president. The democrats are all socialists/communists.

Third place

It was a messy win but a win none-the-less.

The first period ended 0-0 and the Islanders scored first in the second period. They traded scores through the second and third periods and regulation ended with a 3-3 tie. The sudden death OT period also ended in a 3-3 tie. That meant they needed a shootout to determine a winner.

Fortunately, the Bruins managed to put the puck into the net more times than the Islanders did and the game ended with a Bruins 4-3 win.

That win moved them back up the standings into 3^rd place in the Atlantic division.

Their next game will be tomorrow against the Senators. Puck drops at 7:00pm.

⧫
Today I spent some time on a live chat with our washing machine repair people trying very hard to not yell at anyone.

I want you to understand that the act of remaining civil when my frustration level is a 17 on a scale of 1 to 5 is a difficult thing for me.

The bottom line is that I am now slated to have a repair guy working on my washing machine at some point tomorrow.

I'm very proud of the fact that I did not yell at the young lady from India who was trying her best to get things taken care for me. I did express my frustration with the process and she was quick to show me plenty of empathy and understanding.

If this doesn't work out to my satisfaction, I can always take my frustrations out by pounding clothes on rocks down by the stream for a few more days...

⧫
Alex Bregman has declined his option to return to the Red Sox but Trevor Story has picked up his option and will remain the Red Sox shortstop for two more years.

This means the Red Sox either need to find a new 3^rd baseman or make Bregman an offer he can't refuse. I'm kind of hoping they make him that offer.

They also need to take a long hard look at what is going on with first base.

Casas should be back from his injury and hopefully ready to play but he's beginning to make bad noises on social media that indicate he is not happy. This is a bad path to go down for any player but it's a very stupid path for an injury-prone player to take.

He turned down a large contract offer in 2024 because he was sure he was worth a lot more than what the Red Sox offered him. Then he hurt himself and missed 60% of that season. In 2025, he hurt himself again and missed 80% of that season.

He really should have taken that offer back in 2024 because I doubt it's still on the table...

⧫
Here are a few links:

• Key line in the ongoing saga of the worlds wussiest federal officer: "This case, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, is about a sandwich."



• For the record, "If I can help NYC, just let me know what I can do" is short for "I will give you a large some of money if you don't tax the shit out of me."



• I hope you aren't planning on going anywhere.



• Here's a nice Florida story.

My lawn is a mess

On the one hand, my lawn is nice and thick and green.

On the other hand, it is covered with leaves that have blown over from my neighbors yard and his oak trees.

At some point, the wind will stop blowing and maybe my lawn will stay reasonably clean. Until then, I just need to stay on top of things so I don't get overwhelmed.

⧫
We were briefly the proud owners of a functional washing machine this afternoon.

And by "briefly", I mean long enough to get three loads of laundry done before it decided to once again flash some innocuous error code and shut itself down.

I have a text message into the repair guy but if I don't hear from him soon, I'll give a call to the company and start this whole, "My washing machine is broken" gig all over again.

At this point, I'm about ready to trash the thing and get a new one but since this one is only about 18 months old, that seems like an incredible waste.

⧫
The Bruins will take on the Islanders this evening and I would really like them to repeat their last meeting when the Bruins beat the Islanders 5-2.

A win tonight moves them up the standings into a decent position and that will make me happy.

⧫
The Red Sox have signed Jarren Duran to a one year contract which means they have avoided arbitration.

In the long run, avoiding arbitration doesn't really matter because I suspect the Red Sox will be trading Duran.

He is an outfielder on a team with two Gold Glove outfielders and a third outfielder who has been nominated for Rookie of the Year. That leaves him as the odd man.

Then again, what the hell do I know. Maybe they'll trade one of their gold glovers...

In other Red Sox news, they have declined to pick up the option on Liam Hendricks which is not surprising at all. As a matter of fact, I would have been very surprised if they had kept him.

⧫
Here are some links:

• I will never forget the time he shot an old lawyer in the face.



• The Very Stable Genius is going to have an apoplectic fit if the socialist wins.



• Key phrase in this story: "...attempted to keep a straight face during the first day of his criminal trial."



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



• Speaking of Naked Guy In The News...



• Seems to me that Brazilian police might need some military support.

I hate the time change

I may have mentioned 50 or 60 times in the past that I really dislike the changing of the clocks.

I'm not entirely sure what purpose it serves other than to make me crankier than I normally am.

⧫
Over the last two days, the Bruins have been bumped down two spots in the standings but that is because they have played the most games in the league.

If you look at the standings you will notice that they have 14 points which puts them in a 3-way tie for 3^rd place but they have played more games than anyone else. They have the same number of wins but more losses so they are a .500 team.

I expect that will change over the next week or so. Hopefully the change is the win percentage and points going up...

⧫
Here are some links:

• So I guess PopEye Patel wasn't lying the other day.



• Speaking of PopEye, he takes after his boss.



• The Red Sox are in need of a third baseman.



• Charging him with a felony proves that the Trump administration is crazy but this idiot lost his job and his $10.00 sandwich because he can't control his emotions.



• I'm not a conspiracy theorist but I can't help but wonder if The Very Stable Genius and BrainWorm Bobby had stock in Kimberly-Clark and they purposely drove Kenvue's stock price down with their idiotic autism claims.



• This man is insane and someone should put him in a safe place before he kills us all.

My gutters are clean

I went up on my roof this morning and got my gutters nice and clean.

I figure they'll stay that way for at least a whole day before I have to think about going back up there to clean them out again.

I will be damned glad when the damned leaves are off the damned trees..

⧫
The Patriots continued their winning ways, beating the Falcons 23-24 this afternoon.

The spread should have been greater but Maye got stripped on a sack and the Falcons recovered the ball. They scored a touchdown on the next drive.

Another turnover came when the Falcons rushed Maye, had him surrounded and he ended up tossing an airball that got intercepted. This resulted in an eventual field goal by the Falcons.

The Patriots take on the Buccaneers next Sunday. Kickoff is at 1:00 which means I will once again be able to watch all four quarters

⧫
I managed to watch 5 innings of baseball last night and when I went to bed, the Blue Jays were up 4-2 over the Ohtani's.

When I woke up this morning, I discovered that the Ohtani's are World Series champions, beating the Blue Jays 5-4 in 11 innings.

Whatever...

So anyways, now that the World Series is over with, teams and free agents will begin negotiations. I really hope Breslow and ownership have the same goal in mind that I have - to win the World Series.

Do I think they can do it with the youngsters they have? Maybe but probably not.

Do I think they can do it by paying a bunch of free agents a lot of money? Also maybe but they better be the worlds best free agents.

Do I think they can do it if they combine their youngsters with a nice group of veteran free agents? Absolutely

Breslow needs to be particular who he brings in. He made some bad choices this past season (Matz and May come to mind) so I'd like to see him find the best fit.

⧫
Here are a few links:

• For a guy that avoided military service by faking some kind of weird chronic problem, he sure likes to go to war.



• If you are planning on flying anywhere in the near future, you might want to think about driving.



• I'm beginning to think it's a race to see who goes first: The Very Stable Genius, Bubba or Goofy Joe. My money is on Goofy Joe.



• Bill Maher looks more like Barry Weiss from Storage Wars than Barry does.

Another win

The Bruins beat the Hurricane 2-1 this afternoon and are now in 3^rd place in the Atlantic division.

They played well today. They played like a team destined for a playoff spot. Hopefully they can keep playing that way.

Next game is Tuesday against the Islanders. Puck drops at 7:00.

⧫
Something very large fell in our neighborhood around 10:30 last night. It was big enough that when it hit the ground, the house shook.

Fortunately, it didn't fall in my yard or in any of my immediate neighbors yards but when I went outside to look around, I could smell pine. And not like those cheap carwash air fresheners, I mean real pine.

My guess is that someone in my neighborhood is now the proud owner of a few hundred board feet of white pine.

My next door neighbor did have a tree fall this morning but it was an already dead oak tree in the woods behind our houses. No damage was done and it was no big loss.

Wind is an amzing thing.

⧫
Our new control board showed up this afternnon and we now have an appointment for Tuesday morning.

Hopefully this is the final repair of this washing machine because if this doesn't fix it, I'm thinking it might be time for a whole new machine.

⧫
The Ohtani's managed to hold off the Blue Jays last night and tie the series 3-3.

They play the final "winner-take-all" game tonight at 8:00.

I'll probably watch a few innings but if I don't, I'm not gonna worry about it. It's two teams I don't really care about.

⧫
Here are some links:

• The world is filled with crazies and no one is paying attention to them. Time to stock up on ammo.



• He just loves gold. How much is all this shit costing us?



• Great. As if we didn't have enough to worry about, now we got collapsing crust.



• The football wizards are predicting the Patriots will beat the Falcons.

Good game.

The Bruins managed to give up the lead in the 3^rd period and regulation ended with a 3-3 tie. Then, with about 3 minutes left in the sudden death OT period, they scored and won the game.

There was, however, an injury to a Bruin that might impact the team over the next few weeks.

On the upside, they are now in the middle of the pack in the Atlantic division.

I can live with that.

⧫
The other day, our esteemed governor, Maura "I know what's best for you!" Healey, was asked about the hiring process for her staff and she said, "That individual underwent a complete background check."

It's my guess that she might have lied about that.

Either that or she has no clue at all about the hiring process in her office and is just making shit up in her mind. If that individual had undergone a "complete background check", they should have noticed the drive-by shooting arrest back in 2001...

Unless of course by "background check" she meant, "We asked him if he had ever been a naughty and he said no."

I still don't understand how any organization that has been in existence as long as the Massachusetts government can be so inept at the little things like making sure the governor's aides aren't career criminals...

⧫
The Small Dog was back with us again today and she was dressed appropriately.

I can say in all honesty, I miss having a dog in the house.

I'm never getting another dog because they require a lot of attention. Mainly because they don't have opposable thumbs and as such cannot open the door themselves to go outside and pee but I still miss having one.

Another reason I'm reluctant to get another dog is because Our Large Main Dog, Kirby, was a fantastic dog who rarely, if ever, did anything bad. I mean, other than eating two remote controls, a full roll of paper towels, an entire liter of cola and a large section of our family room rug, he was a great dog.

If my wife went outside to work in her gardens, Kirby followed her out and lay down right next to her. He felt he had two jobs: Protecting her and keeping her company. Those where his jobs and he did them with a passion. He listened to what we said and did what we asked him to do.

Having The Small Dog with us is nice. As I type this, she is curled up next to my wife on the couch. My wife is reading and The Small Dog is snoring and probably drooling because she's a dog. It's one of the things they do. That, and farting but if she was farting, we would know it because there is nothing more potent than a dog fart.

⧫
Well, time to start paying attention to my door. We have a batch of little kids in my neighborhood so despite the wind, I anticipate some trick-or-treaters this evening.

Here are some links:

• I'm kind of surprised that they haven't fired their coach yet.



• I don't believe him. He lies all the time.
  And apparently I'm not the only one with a low opinion of him.



• Dammit...



• You know what? Just feed the people for christs sake. We don't need people begging for food on street corners. We're better than that.



• If you need help naming your baby, you should not be allowed to have children.



• This is probably not going to end well.

We have a special guest

The Small Dog had surgery yesterday and since the incision is in a spot that prevents the wearing of the cone of shame, The Vet asked if we would dog-sit for a couple days while she was at work.

We immediately said, "Absolutely!"

So we are once again graced with her presence:

She spent most of the day napping and getting reacquainted with Graceless, one of The Sisters. The other Sister, BitchFace, spent the day hiding, like she always does.

⧫
With yesterday's defeat of the Ohtani's, the Blue Jays are one game away from winning the World Series.

The Blue Jays beat the Ohtani's 6-1 last night and are now up 3 games to 2 in the series. They are off tonight while they travel back to Toronto.

⧫
The Bruins take on the Sabres this evening.

I was looking at the standings, being all disappointed in how the season is going for the Bruins when it suddenly dawned on me that I am an idiot.

Yes, they are in second-to-last place in the division but looking at the points, they are only 2 points out of the wild card!

A win tonight puts them right back into contention!

⧫
The washing machine saga continues.

The repair guy showed up at 9:30 this morning and installed the new pump. He then turned the washing machine on and sonovabitch if it didn't present the same error code.

Turns out it needs a new control board, which he ordered and will be arriving here on Saturday.

So now we wait. Again.

⧫
Here are some links:

• As I've said before, The Very Stable Genius really likes blowing stuff up.



• Good luck everybody!



• I'm pretty sure Arlo Guthrie wrote a song about this.



• Why is it that when someone dies, the family fires up a go-fund-me page. That just seems odd to me.



• Randy Andy is homeless.

We have a pump

The washing machine repair guy must have used some magic or something because a new washing machine pump showed up at our house this afternoon.

It was immediately followed by a text message from the company saying they see the pump is in and they have scheduled the repair guy come over and install it tomorrow.

To be honest with you, if tomorrow ends with us having a repaired washing machine, I'll be a happy guy.

Apparently it does not take much to make me happy...

⧫
The Bruins had me very concerned when the islanders went up 2-0 in the first period. But then they got their shit together and ended up beating the Islanders 5-2.

They are still in last place in the Atlantic division but they are no longer in last place in the Eastern conference.

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

⧫
The Ohtani's and the Blue Jays played only 9 innings last night and the Blue Jays won, beating the Ohtani's 6-2.

This ties the series up at 2 games each

Tonight is the final game in Los Angles. Tomorrow they will travel back to Toronto where they will finish the series and one of those teams will be crowned World Series Champions.

If I recall, the good people of Toronto have a tendency to riot when things go poorly for their teams. Or maybe it's when things go well for their teams. I don't remember what the trigger is.

Either way, there is a pretty good chance we will see a riot in Toronto this week.

⧫
Key load of crap in this story: "I can attest that double poles are a priority for every community that I discuss."

I'm sure that the number one thing on the agenda for every town is the old double-pole problem. It's not school funding or cherry sheet imbalance. It's not taxes or unsafe roads/bridges.

No sir, it's none of those things.

The number one thing that towns want to discuss with the state government is having two utility poles next to each other...

Our state government is so full of shit I don't understand how any of them can form coherent sentences.

⧫
Here are some links:

• Massachusetts: We're more corrupt that Illinois!



• I'm thinking that The Very Stable Genius might actually be an extremely unstable moron.



• This has me more than a little concerned.



• This guy is crazy as a loon. He calls everything "aliens", including the Shoemaker-Levy comet that hit Jupiter back in 1994.



• I always liked Brian Setzer. I hope he's okay.



• You gotta admit that "Why did a helicopter land on me?" is a pretty damned good question.

They lost. Again.

The Bruins, a team I had such I hopes for this season, can't seem to get out of their own way. They took an early 1-0 lead over the Senators but that was pretty much it for them and they ended up losing the game 7-2.

They are now not only in last place in the Atlantic division, they are also in last place in the Eastern conference.

Man, this is shaping up to be one of those disappointing seasons...

But I'll still watch them and I'll still root for them. As a matter of fact, they are back at it again tonight, taking on the Islanders. Puck drops at 7:15.

⧫
The Ohtani's and the Blue Jays played two baseball games last night and no, it wasn't a double-header.

This is the box score from last night's World Series game 3:

I want you to know I had to copy/paste/align two separate images to get the entire box score onto a single image...

Eighteen innings is a lot of innings but you want to know what's really interesting? They play again tonight!

That's right folks, after playing six and a half hours of baseball last night and into early this morning, they are back at it again tonight.

Those guys are gonna be tired...

⧫
My lawn is covered with leaves and I've decided that today, I don't give a shit.

Tomorrow I will probably feel different but today, I don't care.

⧫
We had a visit from a washing machine repair guy today and his exact words were, "Yea, it's broken. You need a new pump. I'll order one."

That means we are still without a washing machine while we wait for the new pump to arrive.

⧫
Here are some links:

• This deer is looking from some help. Trust me, stay the hell away from it.



• Australia: Oops.



• I'm guessing he was in first class because us peasants in coach don't get silverware. Hell, we don't even get food.



• I guess The Very Stable Genius won't be getting the noble peace prize.



• Not in Massachusetts.



• My wife and daughter like this place. I am not a fan.

Yes, I cleaned my lawn up

At 4:00 this afternoon, my lawn looked beautiful. Nice green grass with nary a leaf on it.

I suspect that tomorrow will bring a different story.

⧫
The Bruins are in Ottawa tonight to take on the Senators.

Let's hope they continue playing like they did against the Avalanche the other day.

⧫
Here are some links:

• I gotta be honest with you, it's looking more and more like we are better off without him on the force.



• Back in May, I said, "I really hope the Steelers stay far away from this nutcase."
  Today I am saying, "I was right, he's a nutcase."
  



• Here's a more accurate headline: "Boy is shot and murdered while driving stolen car and the car crashes into tree."



• Key line in this story: "...surveillance video from the incident showed the couple having sex in the restaurant’s patio before the break-in."



• You wanna get shot? Because if you wanna get shot, this is one of many ways that can get you shot.

Excellent game

The Patriots started out looking lost and the Browns took a first quarter 7-3 lead.

Then things got interesting and the Patriots started playing some great football.

It was at this point that my wife announced the washing machine was not working so I left the couch, and my tv, to look at the damned washing machine.

By the time I got back to the game, the score was 23-7 in favor of the Patriots.

By the time the game ended, the Patriots had beaten the Browns 32-13. They are no 6-2 on the season and in first place in the AFCEast.

Their next game will be against the Falcons this coming Sunday. It will also be the first day of Eastern Standard Time and I will probably fall asleep on my couch because that damned time change screws me up.

Oh, and no, I was not able to repair the washing machine. It needs a new drain pump or something and that goes beyond my skillset. We will call someone tomorrow to fix it.

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Amazingly enough, the Bruins beat the Avalanche 3-2 last night.

They are still in second-to-last place in the Atlantic Division but at least they aren't in last place.

They need a winning streak to pick it back up and start climbing the ladder.

Their next game is tomorrow against the Senators. Puck drops at 7:30 so I shold be able to watch the entire game

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Back in May of this year, The Very Stable Genius announced a 'historic' trade deal with China.

Back in June of this year, The Very Stable Genius announced a trade deal with China.

Today, The Very Stable Genius announced a trade deal with China.

I'm beginning to think he has alzheimer's or something because he keeps repeating his lies.

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This 11:00 this morning, my lawn looked like this:

At 4:30 this afternoon, my lawn looked like this:

I'll be glad when the trees finally get around to dropping all their leaves.

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Here are some links:

• Oh Canada.



• Apparently it's a quiet news day in Minneapolis.



• No thanks. It's cold in the winter and there are ticks in the summer.

The World Series has begun

As I may have indicated, I don't really care about the World Series since the Red Sox aren't in it. Having said that, I did watch some of the game last night.

The game was tied 2-2 in the 5^th inning when I went to bed and apparently I missed an exciting inning because in the 6^th, the Blue Jays decided to score 9 runs, putting them up 11-2.

The Ohtani's scored 2 more runs in the 7^th making the score 11-4 and that was it for scoring during the rest of the game.

They are back at it again tonight and I'll probably watch a few innings.

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The Bruins are currently playing the Avalanche. Puck dropped at 3:00 this afternoon.

As I post this, it is the second intermission and the Bruins are up 3-1 with a period left to go. The problem is they usually blow it in the third period and end up losing the game.

Let's hope they don't blow it again...

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Here are some links:

• The term "blasting mishap" makes me think someone is trying hard to cover up someone's screw up.



• She will lose again.



• Am I a bad person for hoping that his next interaction with police ends with him being shot in the face.



• Looks like we'll see Bailey Zappe tomorrow afternoon.



• It's pretty good bet that anyone who calls themself "Mr. Crafty Pants" might be a little off the rails...



• This actually sounds like a really good idea.



• Don't let BrainWorm Bobby know about this.

The leaves are falling

I broke out my leaf blower yesterday to clear off the back yard.

I probably should have done it again today but I didn't feel like.

I went and got my flu shot instead.

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All of the talking heads in the media are in a tizzy about The Very Stable Genius tearing down the East Wing of The White House but they aren't really saying anything other than, "HE'S TEARING DOWN THE WHITE HOUSE!!!". So I got a little curious about what was happening and here's what I found.

I went on to google maps and found that there is a nice street view of the White House. This is the street view of the East Wing:

I guided my street view inside the building (yes, google street view went into the White House) and found this:

That commemoration plaque states that the East Wing was constructed in 1942. For the record, the United States was deeply involved in World War II while this was being constructed.

The bottom line here folks is that Trump is knocking down a small piece of what is formally known as "The White House Complex" and replacing it with god only knows what.

No, he is not tearing down a major portion of the White House and it certainly isn't a cultural or historical piece of the White House. It's basically extra office space that is used by the First Lady.

Everybody needs to relax and get over it. It's not the end of the world. Once it's done and we finally see what it looks like, then we can get all up in arms but until then, just relax.

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I've decided that if the Bruins lose tonight, it's because Lindholm is still out.

The way I look at it, he went down on the 9th while playing the Blackhawks. They won their next game against the Sabres (who really suck, by the way) but they've lost every game since then.

No Hampus, no win.

He is a very good defensman and they need him back.

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Here are some links:

• If they offer him a contract that makes him a Red Sox for the rest of his career, I'll be happy with that.



• Spiders: They aren't dumb.



• Maybe this is why I'm getting a lot less spam lately.



• If this kid is let back out on the street, we should all prepare to defend our homes and our families. There is no reason this kid should be walking around free.



• Their slogan used to be, "No One Out-Pizza's The Hut!"



• I have never been to Wyomissing PA and now I definitely don't want to go there.

They aren't doing well

The Bruins are not doing great.

They were down 2-0 going into the third period and made a great comeback, taking a 3-2 lead. Problem is the Panthers also made a great comeback and beat the Bruins 4-3.

They played great hockey but the hockey gods are not smiling on them.

Their next game is Thursday against the Ducks. Puck drops at 7:00.

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Last year at this time the Patriots were 1-6 and in last place in the AFCEast. Today they are 5-2 and in first place in the AFCEast.

Quite a change from last year.

Hopefully the alleged experts are right and the Patriots roll over the Browns this Sunday.

Sorry about the mid-week football update but the Patriots are really the only sports team I follow that is doing good right now.

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Here are some links:

• Once again, The Very Stable Genius lied about his intentions.
  (Why do I have a feeling it's going to be some gaudy gold-leaf embarrassment when he's done.)



• I also hope his best friend makes a come back next season.



• Can you people please stop using "AI" to make decisions. It's great at being artificial but it sucks at intelligence.



• If I recall correctly, when Biden was in office this happened at least once a month.



• If you're planning a trip to Seaside Oregon, don't plan on going swimming.



• Psycho Vlad is blowing up kindergartners.

It's a wonderful time of the year

It's that time of the year for us Medicare people to figure out what plan we want to sign up for. Yay!

If there is one thing I know, it's that I don't know shit about health insurance options. And neither does anyone else. We are all just grabbing whatever insurance is going to cost us the least amount of money while giving us the coverage we want.

I am fortunate in that my previous employer offers me several retiree health care options so I have choices. My wife is also covered under that retiree offering so we both have the same options.

I go for the Medicare Advantage plans because I don't really have any medical issues. Yes, that will change in the future but right now, I don't have any prescriptions and I don't have any chronic problems.

In 2024, my plan of choice was a PPO that was free to me. In 2025, they added a $19 monthly premium and I didn't think that was too bad so I stuck with them. This upcoming year (2026) they have increased that premium to $29. That's $348 per year and it seems kind of excessive to me because the same carrier offers a HMO plan that offers all of the same coverage as long as I stay in-network with a zero dollar premium.

Since the "in-network" includes my current doctor, my wifes current doctor and all the hospitals in the area, I guess we're leaning towards the HMO.

All I really know is that my wife, The Professor, spent a large amount of time doing compares on all the options available to us and that was very helpful. Add to that a Zoom session with the insurer and we have finally made up our minds.

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After that it was a two hour presentation at the library called "Mysterious Massachusetts" that my wife talked me into going to.

It was supposed to be an hour but no one told the woman doing the presenting and she went on for two hours.

You want to know what I know? I know that there is nothing "mysterious" about Massachusetts and all of the odd things about Massachusetts, like Lizzie Borden or the Salem Witch Trials, don't warrant a two hour lecture.

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Once we were home and settled in, I flipped on the ALCS game and thoroughly enjoyed watching the Mariners beat up on the Blue Jays.

Then, in the 5th inning, when the score was 3-1 in favor of the Mariners, I went to bed, thinking that all was well with the world.

When I woke up this morning I found out that the Blue Jays won the game 4-3 because Springer hit a 3-run homer in the 7th.

Oh well.

So now the World Series is set. The Ohtani's will be going to Canada to play the first two games against the Blue Jays.

I'm not really rooting for either team...

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Today I spent an hour resetting and reloading software onto a corrupted AppleTV device for The Vet and her animal clinic. That was followed by lawn mowing and leaf clearing. Once the lawn as mowed, I set about attempting to add a drive to my online server that I could use as a timemachine backup device.

That did not go well at all.

I actually got it to work and was very pleased with myself until I saw that the estimated time to backup my laptop was going to be 20 hours.

That seemed like an excessive amount of time so I'm guessing I screwed something up.

I'll probably play with it again tomorrow because I've reached my "messing with technology" limit.

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Yes, the Bruins are playing tonight.

No, I don't want to talk about their recent losses.

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Here are some links;

• All you 25 year old guys should stay out of Michigan.



• Researchers: Please just stop with the research.



• Good job everybody.



• I'm betting Musk is pissed.

Busy

We had several things to do today that took up all of my time.

It is now 8:40 and I'm watching baseball.

That means no posting for today.

Excellent win

The Patriots played a good game of football today. Maye threw 23 passes for 21 completions and 2 touchdowns. That's a completion rate a little better than 90% which is a pretty good completion rate.

Oh, and he also ran 8 times for a total of 62 yards.

And Rhamondre Stevenson must have gotten some pretty good coaching over the last few weeks because he had a death-grip on the football whenever he got it in his hands and did not fumble once in 18 carries.

In the end, the Patriots beat the Titans 31-13 and are now 5-2 on the season.

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The Louvre started its life as a fortress built in the 12th century. In 1793, it became a museum. That was 232 years ago.

You would think that after 232 years of operation, they would know how to stop three guys with a ladder from breaking in during business hours and stealing stuff.

Just proves that arrogance, overconfidence and stagnation will absolutely cause you to screw up.

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The Mariners and the Blue Jays will play game six tonight at 8:00.

The Mariners are up 3 games to the Blue Jays 2 so if the Mariners win tonight, they move on to the World Series and will play the Dodgers.

That means the World Series will be a west coast world series and I probably won't be staying awake to watch very much of it. And what I will be awake for kinda is in direct competition with the Bruins game.

Go Mariners!

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Speaking of the Bruins, they are playing the Mammoths (formerly known as The Utah Hockey Club) at 7:00 tonight so I should be able to watch the entire game.

I find it kind interesting that they decided to stop calling themselves the Hockey Club and went with the Mammoths. Are there a lot of mammoths wandering around Utah?

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Here are some links:

• It's only a matter of time before we have no allies.



• I wonder what Liberty was singing?



• Between Musk's exploding rockets and Bezos flying penis, I won't be surprised to find out one of them has something to do with this.



• Speaking of Musk and Bezos...



• What are they going to do with 200 stuffed animals?

Dammit

The Ohtani's beat the Brewers last night, sweeping the NLCS and moving on to the World Series.

And yes, Ohtani had a hell of a game last night. As the only pitcher/hitter in the MLB, he faced 22 batters over 6 innings, giving up 0 runs, striking out 10, walking 3 and giving up 0 runs. On the offensive side of his game, in 4 plate appearances, he walked once and hit 3 home runs.

That is a fairly impressive game of baseball.

Immediately after the game, they were awarded the NLCS trophy. Here is a picture of them accepting the trophy:

I wonder what position the woman in the sweatpants and glasses plays?

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In the ALCS, the Mariners beat the Blue Jays last night and are now up 3-2 in their best-of-seven series. There is no game tonight as both teams travel to Toronto for game 6 tomorrow. First pitch is at 8:00

Go Mariners!

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The Very Stable Genius has commuted the sentence of Tommy Flanagan, calling him "somewhat of a 'rogue' " instead of an admitted fraud who committed identity theft, stole money from people and lied to the public about himself during his campaign.

Then again, The Very Stable Genius is a bit "roguish" himself...

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The Bruins take on the Avalanche tonight. Puck drops at 9:00 so I might make it through the first period.

They need this win because as of right now, they are in 4^th place in the Atlantic division and 8^th place in the Eastern conference.

Yes, it's very, very early in the season so tracking position is kinda pointless but I feel like the better a team plays at the beginning of the season, the easier it is for them to maintain a playoff position as the season winds down in March/April.

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No, I did not go protest today.

I don't protest in large groups. I protest by myself. For instance, the other day a clerk charged me $2.99 for a $1.59 bottle of water. I protested that mistake and he said "Oops, sorry" and charged me the correct price.

I thought that was a pretty successful protest.

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Here are some links

• Boy, those Trump tariffs have got our trading partners right were he wants them....



• Yet another idiotic prediction about the future. I just want to know where the flying cars are we were told about in the 1960s...



• Only in Florida.



• I think I'll just stay out of Chester County, PA.

Bad sportings day

Yesterday was not a good day for my sports teams.

The Brewers lost 1-3 to the Ohtani's.

The Mariners lost 2-8 to the Blue Jays.

The Steelers lost 31-33 to the Bengals.

And the final blow was the Bruins losing 5-6 to the Golden Knights.

Like I said, not a good sports day for me...

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On the up side, we had a very nice dinner over at the Hampden House last night.

About once a month we go out to dinner with our neighbors and last night seemed as good a night as any. We have three or four restaurants we rotate through and we all decided it was the Hampden House's turn.

If you go, I recommend the Crazy Alfredo. It's got a good spicy flavor without that "burn the crap out of your sinuses" heat that some people seem to like.

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For the British, this is a fairly big deal. Not just because he's a member of the royal family but more so because he's associated with Jeffery Epstein.

You see, over here in America, it appears we don't give a shit that our officials are raping underage girls but the Brits don't like it. No sir, they don't like it one bit.

I wonder when we'll actually see those files. And if we do ever see them, how many words/names will be blacked out.

The Very Stable Genius likes to use Sharpies for a reason...

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Here are some links:

• Look who's back!



• Key line in this story: "It honestly gets funnier the more you watch it."



• Thank God. This woman is full-tilt bozos.



• And this is why I often think about moving to New Hampshire.



• Man, we're just blowing people up on a daily basis.



• Holy crap!



• This is why I always put my cash in my pocket.



• It might be time for someone to invade and take care of that little problem.