Eight yards is a lot of yards

This will be short because I spent most of the day spreading mulch.

We had eight yards of mulch delivered this morning and since the weather is perfect for working outdoors, we set to it.

I figure we are about 1/3 of the way through it and if we can keep up our pace, we should be able to finish up on Friday.

So what does that mean to you? Well, not much but it also means I didn't spend any time on the interwebs.

⧫
The Red Sox won last night, beating the Blue Jays 10-2.

Crochet had a great outing but the hitters had a fantastic outing with Duran, Bregman, Campbell, Devers and Abreu all hitting home runs.

They are back at it tonight and I'm a little nervous because Giolito will take the mound for his first outing since 2023. Hopefully he is good to go and he has a great outing.

⧫
I'm going to go take at least three ibuprofens.

Here are a few links:

• It's the Hap-Hap-Happiest Place on Earth!



• ALERT: Guntersville has a chicken guts problem.



• ALERT: Alford has a dime problem.



• This is why I don't walk behind old people.

Yes, there is baseball this evening.

The Red Sox are in Toronto to start a three-game series against the Blue Jays and the weather doesn't matter because Rogers Centre (Yes, it's spelled that way. What can I say, it's Canada...) has a dome over the field.

If it rains, all they have to do is close the roof.

First pitch is at 7:07 and Crochet has the start. Hopefully his last outing was a fluke and he's back to being unhittable.

⧫
I'm convinced Trump is manipulating the stock market by making false claims in the media.

I'm willing to bet there is no such deal in place with anyone. Trump just has his lackey go in front of the media and claim there is a deal.

Sorta like when he said there were tariff talks going on with China. The day after he said that, China came out and said they had no idea what he was talking about. They knew of no talks going on between China and anyone in the US government.

Trump is a loser and he knows it. He loses at almost everything he does and he's losing this whole tariffs thing. Problem is, it's not one of his failed businesses that suffers when he loses this one, it's us...

Also, I find it hard to believe he's only been in office for 100 days. It feels like he's been there for at least 10 years, given how much damage he's done.

⧫
Here are some links:

• If you are looking to install solar panels, you should probably avoid using SunRun. They sound kinda "scammy" to me.



• Oops...



• Amazon was going to put a line showing "tariff cost" on items so consumers would understand why prices are going up but Trump talked Bezos out of it.



• He probably should've kept the gun.



• Yet another reason to not fly commercial.



• College students: They aren't as bright as they think.

I have a running snowblower!

Today was the day I put my snowblower back together and I gotta admit, it was kind of a pain in the ass.

Anyone who tells you a small engine has a muffler is lying to you. There is nothing about those little box or round shaped things that quiet or dampen the sound. The purpose of those little things is to stop sparks/flames from shooting out of your engine and burning your house down.

The reason I tell you that is because the spark arrestor on my snowblower basically fell apart when I tried to put it back on the engine. There are two baffles inside that keep the sparks from making their way out the holes and those two baffles are rusted out & are currently in free-range mode. They are inside the exhaust chamber lying in some weird manner and probably not doing a damned thing to arrest any sparks.

Also, getting the governor connected back up to the throttle was also a project unto itself. I had to twist and turn things in more ways than the Flying Wallendas and it took me several tries to get it right.

After that it was a matter of putting all the tins back in place and tightening them down.

I put a little fuel in the tank, tested the little fuel pumping bulb to make sure it still filled the carb and then I pulled the starter rope.

It started on the second pull...

I let it run to drain the gas out of it and when it finally died, I put it away for the summer.

The real test will come this winter when I'm out trying to clear my driveway. If I was successful in getting everything just right, I should have no problems.

⧫
The lawn is mowed and it looks "not terrible". There are a lot of spots that suffered last summer and I'm hoping they make a comeback.The sprinkler system should help with that but I can't put any grass seed down until late August / early September.

The fertilizer guy was just here and he put down a load of "pre-emergent crab grass killer" which is a fancy way of saying, "kills grass seed". It kills crab grass seed, rye grass seed, fescue grass seed, you name it grass seed, it kills it.

I still have a shitload of something called "goose grass" which, despite my best efforts, ain't going away. If anyone has a good way to get rid of that crap, let me know.

⧫
Trump is still pissing off the Canadians.

Imagine if the Canadian Prime Minister was spewing out messages like that.

"Hey Minnesotta, New York, Vermont, Maine, et al... Come be provinces of Canada. No more whackjob trying to oppress your rights and increase your taxes with his tariffs! Plus we have health care! And maybe if you don't come over, we might just see about getting our military to move in and take over!"

Trump would have a siezure and most Americans would be pissed.

I wonder if he has any actual friends. You know, people who would hang out with him just to hang out with him. And I'm not talking about his sycophants who swarm around him telling him what a super genius he is. People like Little Marco, MTG, etc...

⧫
Enjoy these links:

• This is why I have a generator.



• The Bruins are looking for a new coach and it looks like Charlie McAvoy's father-in-law is available.



• You gotta love dogs.



• Isn't this normal for a Mexican restaurant.



• Key entry from our favorite police log: "11:22 a.m. A guy pooped in the park."



• I wonder if they know this is stealing.



• Yea, that's what American celebrities do all the time, they pick up random Welch strangers, give them suitcases filled with money and fly them to America.

Nice series win

The Red Sox managed to beat up on the Guardians this afternoon, beating them 13-3. This gave them the series win and put them at .533, 1½ games behind the Aaron Judges.

Bello had his second start of the season and in his usual mannor, he was mediocre at best during the first inning but then came to life and kicked ass over the next five innings.

He ended up facing 26 batters over six innings, giving up three earned runs, three walks and striking out four.

Hendricks came in to close out the game and he did pretty well. I'm thinking he's going to be all right over the course of this season.

They are off tomorrow and on Tuesday they start a three-game series against the Blue Jays

⧫
I was able to borrow a torque wrench (I can't find mine...) from John's nephew Anthony and got the head back on my snowblower engine. The service manual showed me the proper torque amount and the pattern to tighten the bolts so there was no guesswork on my part.

Aside from knowing how to do things, having the service manual is always a good idea. Some of them include not only specifics on what needs to be done but also some tips on the easiest way to do those things.

I also created a new "gasket" for the valve cover / breather. I used a manilla folder and some RTV to create the seal. Now I just have to give it a day to dry before putting any stress on it.

That means all that is left is putting the carb, the exhaust, the fuel tank and the tins back on it. Then I'll put gasoline in it and pray that it starts.

Assuming it runs, I'll change the oil and put it away until next winter.

⧫
I am about to watch a playoff between five players in the LPGA Chevron Championship.

That's pretty damned amazing.

⧫
Here are some links:

• Scientists have been making claims that various planets and moons show signs of life for as long as I can remember. So far, they haven't found a damned thing...



• Key line in this story: "And that's the problem with dictator jokes: They don't stay jokes, and flirting with authoritarianism doesn't stay flirting."



• Guess I better stock up.



• Some places have eagle cams and some places have bear cams. Colorado has the rattlesnake cam.



• I've decided that New Yorkers are weirdos.

Let the chaos continue

I wish I could tell you that Trump understands business but he has proven time and time again that he doesn't have a single idea on how to run a successful business. His money came from his father, not from any of his 16 failed businesses. But one thing Trump does understand is that low interest rates help businesses by giving them access to cheap cash. They turn that cheap cash into one of two things: A new business or a bigger business. Sometimes they even turn it into executive bonuses...

In my opinion, Looney Donald got it in his head that he could force the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates by crashing the economy. He did it by imposing extreme taxes on American businesses and consumers who buy goods made outside the US.

Oh sure, he claims his "tariffs" are a way to force manufacturing back into the US but what they really are is a tax on Americans.

Let me give you a real world example. Here is a 3D printer being sold by the Chinese retailer Ali Express:

Trump wants to impose 145% tax on this printer. That means it will cost an American $428, with $253 going straight to the US federal government. He can call that a "tariff" all he wants but it is no different than the current sales tax imposed by most states on retail sales. Only diference is that states usually charge between 3% and 7%, not 145%

So to recap, Trump is saying he is trying to bring business/manufacturing back into the US and I'm saying he is really imposing a massive tax increase while attempting to force the Fed to lower interest rates.

Who do you think is either wrong or is maybe lying to you, me or Looney Donald?

⧫
Yesterday's Red Sox / Guardians game got postponed until today where it became the first game of a double header. It was also Cora's 1,000 game as the Red Sox manager.

First pitch was at 1:10pm and Houck got the start for the Red Sox. He faced 24 batters over five innings, gave up 4 earned runs, walked one and struck out six.

Abreu and Devers both hit home runs but it wasn't enough and the Guardians won 5-4.

The first pitch of the second game will be at 7:10 this evening and it looks like Buehler will get the start.

⧫
Here are some links:

• Key phrase in this story about the Trump taxes: For Subaru, it’s cheaper to build and ship cars out of Japan than deal with the political whiplash of US trade policy.



• First Vince Foster commits suicide, then Ed Wiley commits suicide, then Jeffery Epstein commits suicide, then Mark Middleton commits suicide and now this poor woman commits suicide. That is a lot of suicides by folks that either worked with or were around with the Clintons. Anybody heard anything from Monica Lewinsky lately?



• For the record, I think "Homo Bigheads" is the best name for a newly discovered species ever...



• I'm betting this kind of thing happens in India all the time.



• Only in Florida.



• Key phrase in this story: "Monk insisted the running man’s dangly bits are the tapestry’s missing penis."

I still want to call them the Indians

The Red Sox are in Cleveland Ohio to play the Guardians and the LPGA ladies are in Houston Texas to play the Chevron Championship.

The reason I mention the Chevron is because there is a real possibilty that tonight's baseball game will not be played...

Hey, what can I say, sports are my thing. I can't play them but I love to watch them.

⧫
Not a busy day but things got done. This means I didn't have a lot of time to pay attention to news.

Here's what I can tell you:

Karen Reed's boyfriend is still dead.
The pope is still dead.
The Menendez Brothers are still in prison.
The protesters are still trying to get rid of Trump without an election.

Now you know everything I now.

⧫
Here are some links:

• Tommy Flanagan is back in the news.



• The chaos that is Trump continues. He loves to create chaos.



• I'm thinking that Psycho Vlad no longer throws his generals out of windows. Now he just blows them up.



• Huh... I didn't think you could get a Ford Edge up to 120mph.



• I was wondering why they put him there.



• This is why I have a BB gun.



• Rival Boffins and the Alien Farts would be a great name for a 1960s lounge band.

Two losses

They lost last night and again this afternoon, losing two of three to the Mariners.

They are still above .500 and in second place in the ALEast but just barely.

Hopefully they do better out in Cleveland. They will play a three-game series against the Guardians starting tomorrow. First pitch is at 7:10 and Houck has the start

⧫
I managed get the valves out of the snowblower engine this afternoon and scrape all the old gasket off. I also got a lot of the carbon build up off the cap and the head.

This is a before picture of the head:

This is an after picture of the head:

I'm pleased to announce that I managed to grind just enough off the valves to bring them into spec for the engine. Then I really made myself happy when I managed to successfully get the valves reinstalled in the head.

So now I wait for the new gasket to arrive. According to the folks at Amazon, it'll be here next Wednesday so hopefully we don't have any snow before then.

Oh, and for the record, I found the engine label and it has a "date of manufacture" on it. According to what I saw, the engine was made on October 20, 2003. Assuming the engine sat around for a year or two before it was mounted on to the snowblower nd eventually sold to me, that would make the snowblower around 20 years old.

I'd say I got my money's worth out of it. If I can keep it running for another five years, I'll be a happy guy. I'll also probably be too old to do my driveway and I'll hire someone.

⧫
Here are some links:

• How is this clown still alive?



• Looks like Ron DeSanctimonious might be in trouble.



• Speaking of Donald "Better than Washington. Better then Lincoln" Trump...



• And while I was looking up what it was that Looney Donald used to call DeSantis, I found this excellent Wikipedia page.



• I don't like the guy but he has my sympathy. I can't imagine losing a child to cancer.



• I guess I'm a giant prehistoric kangaroo...



• In other words, a bunch of drunks stirred up a bunch of bees.

A nice win

Despite the fact last nights game was three and a half hours long, I made it through all nine innings. My youngest, however, didn't make it past the eighth inning.

Granted, he and his wife had a pretty busy weekend and they were kinda burned out.

So anyways, the Red Sox had a nice win last night, beating the Mariners 8-3 and taking game one of the three-game series.

It was Bello's first game and he started out like crap but after two innings, he got his act together and was unhittable. He faced 22 batter over five innings, giving up four hits, one earned run, three walks and struck out three. Not a great line but not bad for his first outing of the season.

With that win, the Red Sox are now in second place in the ALEast, half a game behind the New York Aaron Judges.

Newcomb gets the start tonight. First pitch is at 6:45.

⧫
I am once again in "fix my machinery" mode.

Over the last three years, my snowblower, "The Beast", has had an issue. It runs strong for about 15 minutes and then suddenly starts losing power until it finally stalls.

I had the thought that it was lack of fuel so I replaced the carburetor but that didn't fix the problem.

Then I had the thought that maybe the gas cap wasn't allowing air into the tank and a vacuum was being created but when I loosened the cap, the problem still arose.

It was at this point that my brain said, "You know what this is, you just don't feel like fixing it. You know this is a valve issue."

So today I bit the bullet and took some tins & the carburetor off the engine. Then I took the valve cover off and set the cylinder to top dead center. Then I tried to slide a .004 feeler gauge in between the valve stem and the lifter.

Not only could I not fit the .004 gauge in the gap, there was no gap at all. I couldn't even fit a .001 gauge between them.

So I dismantled the remainder of the tins, the exhaust and the pull start. Then I marked and removed the head cap bolts. Trust me, you want to mark them so you put them back on correctly.

I gave the head cap a smack with a piece of wood and it came right off. Unfortunately the head gasket tore.

Once the cap was off, I put two fingers on top of the intake valve and tried to turn it. Then I put two fingers on top the exhaust valve and tried to turn it. Both valves turned with no problem. For the record, valves should not turn when they are fully seated.

Tomorrow I will remove the spring caps from the valve stem so I can remove the springs and pull out the valves. Then I will very, very carefully try to grind just enough off the stem to give the required .004 clearance. It is this step that make me nervous because if I grind off too much, I'm screwed. This machine is so old that I don't know if I can buy replacement valves.

Once I get the right clearance, I'll put a little valve lapping compound on the valves and lap them to fit the seats. I'm sure that over the years the gap between the valve and the seat has caused carbon build up on them.

After I put this thing back together, I'm hoping it works just fine. This is a great snowblower and to replace it with something similar would cost me a little more then $2,300. As a matter of fact, I don't think I could replace this machine. It's a 10½ horsepower monster that cuts through pretty much anything, hence the name "The Beast"

So far I'm into it about $20 for a new head gasket and some lapping compound.

⧫
Here are some links:

• Attention Cardinals: When you are picking your pope, you should keep in mind that the catholic church used to have a sense of humor.



• Hegseth is not alone. Little Marco is another guy who is in over his head.



• Attention researchers: You should be focused on important stuff like this instead of this worthless crap.



• Finally! An Easter hunt for adults.



• Yes, alcohol was involved.



• Key line in this story: "...on average, between 12 to 15 years old."

I had a dead transponder

I always wondered how long one of those EZPass transponders last and today I can tell you that they last about 18 years.

Back on 2007 when our eldest went off to college out in Boston, I figured we were going to be spending a lot of time driving back and forth on the pike. The state had just started up a system that allowed for electronic tolling so I signed up for one of the transponders. I didn't feel like keeping $100 in loose change in my car to cover the tolls.

Today I checked my EZ Pass account and found that my transponder was no longer being read. The transactions showed no transponder number and there was a picture of my car passing under the reader.

I took my transponder, as well as the one from my wife's car, over to the RMV service center at the Ludlow Turnpike west-bound rest area. The young lady that waited on me said, "Oh. These are very old. Yea, you need to replace these."

So now we all know that a transponder is good for around 18 years before it needs to be replaced. Although you might want to consider replacing yours before it gets to be old as dirt.

⧫
This made me laugh:

⧫
Time to watch some baseball.

Here are some links:

• I guess Musk is going broke.



• This man is a former FOX news host, a major idiot and, according to some talking heads, on the verge of being fired.



• If you have insomnia and are awake after midnight, check out the Lyrids. There are usually a lot of them.



• Key line in this story that should cause a lot of people to worry: "In all likelihood, however, firing Powell would just be the first step in dismantling the Fed’s independence."



• What a wuss. The bat is closer to the first baseman than it is to him.



• Guys being guys.



• Key entry from our favorite police log: "2:00 p.m. A boxer named Rambo made friends with the neighbor."

Busy day

Our day started at 7:00am when we jumped into our car and headed east.

Our destination was Boston where we planned to meet up with our youngest and his wife so we could go watch a baseball game at 11:00am

The reason we left so early was simple - traffic was an unknown today.

To get to Boston from our house we must pass through the small town of Hopkinton.

For those of you that aren't familiar with Hopkinton, it has one claim to fame: It is the starting line of the Boston Marathon.

So to recap, we were driving to Boston to attend a Red Sox game which usually results in a lot of traffic. Add to that the tens of thousands of people that show up to watch the marathon and you have more than a lot of traffic, you have what I like to call a shitload of traffic.

On top of the traffic, I figured we would have to deal with the 25 miles of closed roads and intersections that make up the marathon course.

Add all of that together and I figured we were going to run into some major traffic headaches.

What I can tell you is that we didn't run into any traffic on our way out and we made it to the game well before the first pitch.

The Red Sox won 4-2 and took three out of four in the series.

The drive home was a bit more of a headache but still not terrible.

⧫
The internet is all atwitter over this picture:

"The last photograph of the Pope alive..."

⧫
Here are a few links:

• Oh Canada.



• What about the non-medical stuff?



• A Eurasian Curlew on the Nidderdale Way is the most British thing you will read about today.



• The incident is tragic but the witness interview is hillarious.



• And this is why Snoopy is everybody's hero.

A win and a loss

The Red Sox beat the White Sox 4-3 yesterday afternoon.

Today's game didn't go so well because they lost 8-4. The bright spot was Liam Hendricks pitching for the first time in two years after dealing with non-Hodgkins Lymphoma.

They remain above .500 but just barely.

Tomorrow's game is the traditional Boston Marathon Day game. That means the first pitch is at 11:05 in the morning.

⧫
In LPGA news, Ingrid Lindblad is currently in the lead at the JM Eagle Championship.

This actually makes me smile because Lindblad looks and acts like a happy kid. She is 25 years old, has a great sense of humor and seems to really enjoy her time on the golf course.

In other words, she's a goofball. She is the Golden Retriever of the LPGA Tour.

We need more athletes like her.

⧫
Here are some links:

• I always wondered if it was possible to buy every combination of lottery numbers.



• As if Boeing didn't have enough financial trouble already...



• I'm pretty sure FOX News is part of the Russian government-controlled media.



• Key load of bullshit in this story: "...she is currently on paid administrative leave..."



• I have a feeling this will probably become a problem for the poor guys that have to use it in battle. I remember the piece of crap that came out of the "Bradley Fighting Vehicle" fiasco...



• This is probably the most Korean story you will read this month.



• Oh Canada.



• I really hope this doesn't lead to another toilet paper shortage.



• Australia: What doesn't try to kill ya hangs out in his pajamas above the highway.

Nice win last night

The Red Sox beat the White Sox 10-3 last night.

The kid from Worcester, Hunter Dobbins, did a great job on the mound. He faced 23 batters over six innings, striking out six and giving up one earned run.

He's back in Worcester now that Liam Hendricks has been activated and is back on the roster.

I'm hoping to see Hendricks pitch today but that is up to Cora.

As for Dobbins, I'm sure he'll be back up in Boston this season. Injuries happen all the time.

Today's game started at 4:05 and as of right now (5:20pm), it's 0-0 in the fifth inning.

You would think the Red Sox would be leading because the White Sox pitcher has hit three Red Sox batters and put them on base.

⧫
It seems to me that the news media loves talking about four things:

1. Karen Reed trial
2. Abrego Garcia deportation
3. The Menendez brothers
4. Anti-Trump protestors

I would like them to stop talking about those first three things and find something else to talk about because I don't really care about any of them.

As for the fourth item on the list, we elect our presidents by a system known as "voting". Protesting against them does nothing.

If we didn't want Trump in office, maybe we should have voted for someone else. It's not like he was unopposed...

⧫
Here are some links:

• Psycho Vlad keeps using the word "truce" but I don't think it means what he think's it means.



• Who the hell mailed sulfuric acid?



• Only in Walmart.



• Key line in this story: "...assured her that Crews dental records matched the body they had cremated."



• Check out this mugshot. This is why firearms permits should be a national law. Not everyone should be allowed access to guns.

I have a functional tractor.

Today I received the final replacement part for my lawn tractor and I set about putting it back together.

Just to recap, the tractor is about 12 years old. I replaced the blades on it about five years ago and other than changing the oil every spring, that is the only maintenance I've done to it.

Two weeks ago I was thatching my lawn and the tractor suddenly stopped moving. Turns out a spring that provides a return on the drive clutchborke and prevented the clutch from engaging. I had to go into my bag of tricks and mickey-mouse a repair so I could finish the job I was doing.

Once I had the machine in the garage, I dropped the mowing deck, pulled it out and flipped it over.

One item I discovered that needed to be replaced was the cable that controls the blades because it was frayed. I noticed it was frayed because as I reached to disconnect it from the deck, the steel wires that make up the cable stabbed deeply into my fingers tips. It hurt like hell and bled like I had nicked an artery.

I also noticed I needed new blades and I saw a worn spot on the blade drive belt. I was really hoping the worn spot might explain the vibration I was feeling when I started the mower.

So I made a list of parts and set about hunting them down. Since I am one of those guys who finds and downloads the schematics for every machine I own, I have the full parts list along with all the part numbers.

This meant all I had to do was give the part numbers to Amazon and it returned at least 10 vendors for each part.

I ordered everything and the final part (blade clutch cable) arrived today. I had the part in hand by 1:00, I took three pre-emptive ibuprofens and by 2:30, the tractor was fully reassembled.

I fired it up and started the blades. I am pleased to report that there was no vibration and everything worked as it should.

I had an uncle named Ted who once told me, "If you own a piece of equipment, you should know how to fix it. If you don't know how to fix it, don't buy it."

My uncle Ted was a pretty bright guy.

⧫
The Red Sox and the White Sox started playing tonights baseball game at 7:05 and it is now 7:45. The score is currently 3-0 after two innings.

This is the first game of a four-game series and I would really like to see them sweep the White Sox.

⧫
Here are some links:

• I'm not entirely sure this is a good thing...



• Key line in this story: "I swear to Allah I did not lick the goat’s genitals."



• What are the signs you've been abducted by the Loch Ness monster or Bigfoot?



• What did they think it was?



• Staten Island and The Flaming Sex Toys would be a great name for a 1980's punk rock band.

Another win

Granted, the score was 1-0 in favor of the Red Sox so I wouldn't exactly call it rout but I'll take any win.

With that win, they win the three-game series against the Rays and move back to .500.

Today is a travel day for them as they head back to Boston for a seven-game home stand. That means no baseball for me tonight.

Fortunately, the LPGA's JM Eagle LA Championship is on the Golf Channel at 6:00 so I'll get my sportings fix from that.

⧫
We lost a wastepaper basket.

We have no idea where it went or why it went. It was a small basket in our guest bathroom.

We're both pretty sure it was there a month ago but for some reason, I noticed today that it was gone.

Now just to be clear, I'm more than certain that no one broke into my house and stole just a wastepaper basket from our bathroom.

What I'm less certain about is the cats involvement...

⧫
Here are some links:

• Personally, I have no problem with requiring at least one parent be a citizen but I do have a problem with Trump changing the constitution to suit his needs.



• Scientists have been 'discovering signs of life' for the last 50 years but so far, no actual life.



• China: It's not like where I live.



• Only in Pennsylvania.



• Key phrase in this story: "A tiny piece of pink Lego, covered in wax."



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

Thank goodness they won

The Red Sox are still below .500 (.474 to be exact) but at least they won last night. They beat the Rays 7-4 and made up for their lack of offense the other night by getting 6 of those 7 runs in the first four innings.

Buehler did okay, facing 21 batters over five innings, giving up 2 earned runs and striking out three

Bregman definitely made up for his lack of hitting the other night when he managed to belt to home runs off Rays pitchers.

Unfortunately, Bregman is not in the lineup tonight since he is out on paternity leave. Sogard got called up from Worcester but I'm not entirely sure he'll be the one playing third.

Guess we'll see what happens at 7:05 when the first pitch of tonight's game is thrown. Newcomb has the start for the Red Sox.

⧫
The Bruins played their final game of the 2024-2025 season last night and in keeping with their record, they lost in OT.

So now begins the process of rebuilding the team and trying to put together a winning hockey club. Hopefully some of those early draft pick slots they traded for will bring them players that will have them once again playing hockey in May.

⧫
Here are some links:

• I have seen more restaurants fail on Boston Rd than anywhere else on the planet.



• I still think it should be perfectly legal to give them a little nudge with your car bumper.



• Key line in this story about people who are really, really bored: "Sleep? Forget it. I don’t sleep."



• If it doesn't get cloudy, you might see the aurora tonight.



• Well it's either a serial killer or we are killing each other...



• You just keep on thinking you're the smartest man on the planet Bernie.



• I shot this video when we were in Washington DC. It is the Changing of the Guard at The Tomb of the Unknowns. Sorry for the wind noise. It was very, very breezy that day.

The Boston Massacre

Last night, some little league team broke into the Red Sox locker room, stole all the uniforms and put them on. Then they took the field against the Rays and proceeded to get their ass kicked.

At least that is the story I'm sticking to because it's the only thing that explains how badly they played.

The Red Sox sucked from the get-go. The very first pitch thrown by Houck was hit into the stands for a home run and it just got worse from there. At one point, I looked at the clock and could not beleive that the game was 1½ hours old and it was only the middle of that third ining.

They lost to the Rays 16-1 and I'm pretty sure it could have been a lot worse.

The Red Sox team that took the field was ill-prepared to play baseball and it showed.

Hopefully tonight they are better prepared. First pitch is at 7:05 and Buehler gets the start.

⧫
My nephew and I went to the range this morning and blew away numerous sheets of paper, three or four quart milk bottle and one watermelon.

It was fun.

⧫
The first replacement part for my lawn tractor arriv ed today - the mower deck drive belt.

Tomorrow I'll try to correctly thread it through the four or five various pulleys that make up drive system for the blades.

Also tomorrow, I expect the mower deck clutch cable to arrive. That particular part requires I remove the fuel tank so I can get to the lever that I use to start and stop the blades. Once I have it connected to the lever, I'll leave it disconnected from the mower deck.

Once the blades arrive (next week sometime), I'll install them, put the mower deck back onto it's mounts under the tractor, hook up the clutch cable and pray to the lawnmower gods that I have succesfully eliminated the severe vibration.

If the vibration persists, I'll dismount the deck and re-evaluate my decision to not replace the blade mandrels/spindles. At $50.00 apiece, I'm hoping I don't need to replace them.

⧫
I'm going to watch what I hope will be MLB-level baseball.

Here are some links:

• Maybe she should wear some damned clothes.



• And the score is Amish 1 - Meteorologists 0.



• I'm pretty sure this is kind of unsanitary.



• Seppe Lodewijckx and The Ant Smugglers would be a fantastic name for a 1960's childrens cartoon book.



• Didn't Trump pardon this clown?

McIlroy won the Masters

McIlroy and Rose played a single playoff hole to determine the winner and McIlroy managed a birdie while Rose managed a par.

Whenever a golf match goes into a playoff, it's kind of exciting to watch. No one plays it safe, they go balls out to win the hole so you can sometimes get to see some amazing golf get played.

In other Masters news, "What the hell Jordan Spieth!"

⧫
The Red Sox are in Florida to start a three-game series against the Rays. This should be kind of interesting to watch...

The Rays home field, Tropicana Field, was pretty much destroyed by a hurricane and they are now using the Yankees spring training facility as their home field.

Rumor has it that baseball are flying out of the place, meaning there should be a lot of home runs being hit.

When all is said and done, I don't care how many home runs got hit as long as the Red Sox either take two of three or, even better, sweep the series.

First pitch is at 7:10 and Houck has the start.

⧫
Here are today's links:

• I'll be curious to see if he abides by the Supreme Court ruling or if he ignores them.
  I'm betting he choses to ignore them because as far as he's concerned, neither criminal or constitutional law apply to him.



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



• I've been married 40 years and this may explain some things.



• It's the 21^st century fer cripes sake. Just buy a freakin' coffee maker.



• Yet another reason to not fly commercial.



• Perhaps it just wanted to work out for a bit.

Two wins

Today was a good day for sportings.

The Red Sox beat the White Sox and the Bruins beat the Penguins.

And now that those two games are over with, I'm watching Rory McIlroy and Justin Rose go head-to-head in a playoff at The Masters.

I like a good sportings day.

⧫
I found another Looney Donald / Krazy Kim III meme picture that made me laugh:

⧫
Here's a list of things that we, as a species, are closer to realizing than we think we are.

Well, there is one on that list that I think I can already say we can do:

"Believe it or not, communicating with animals by translating brain waves into human language. Apparently Al research is on the verge of doing so."

I already know what dogs are thinking: "I gotta pee" followed by "I smell someone else's pee" which of course is followed by the ever popular, "I need to pee on that pee so it smells like my pee".

⧫
Here are today's links:

• Bezos is going to launch his big penis filled with women.



• This is a very interesting signing.



• The problem with Looney Donald is not just the tariffs. It's his changing them every other day.



• Emotional Support Horses would be a great name for a 2020 country/western lounge band.



• Only in Iowa.
  (I've been to Iowa. My daughter attended school there. It's flat.)

New England...

It is April 12th and I had an inch of snow in my yard.

I know that at some point in the very near future, I will be writing something about how grateful I am that Willis Carrier invented the air conditioner...

⧫
The Red Sox got their ass kicked last night, losing the White Sox 11-1.

Baseball is a simple game: You throw the ball, you catch the ball and you hit the ball. For some reason, they can't do any of those things.

During last nights loss, they racked up five errors, giving them a league-leading nineteen errors so far. Even the post-game talking heads don't understand why they can't do those things.

As for today's game, they started playing at 4:10 and right now, the score is 0-0 after two innings.

⧫
I found this on the interwebs and it made me laugh:

⧫
Enjoy these links:

• I always figured that AI is nothing more than a bunch of asian nerds sitting at cheap chromebooks typing answers to questions like they were working in a sweatshop.



• If Musk and Bezos get their way, we'll have satellites falling from the sky like rain.



• The Mooch is back in the news and he's still not the sharpest tool in the shed.



• No wonder the oceans are warming.



• He did what with what???



• It's only a matter of time before Kennedy has no more cultists.

Oops.

I forgot to type something.

⧫
The Red Sox did not get swept by the Blue Jays.

They won last night, beating the Blue Jays 4-3 after 10 innings.

Tonight they are in Chicago to start a three-game series against the White Sox.

Hopefully they win all three games.

⧫
On the other hand, the Bruins continued their losing streak last night.

The Blackhawk beat them 5-2 which is not a shock.

Their next game is on Sunday when they take on the Penguins.

⧫
Here are some links:

• It's about time.



• yet another reason to not fly commercial.



• Oh Canada.



• Only in Pennsylvania.



• Put your hands together for Louie Louie.

So much for the big spike

If yesterday's big jump in the stock market was a result of Trump announcing that he was pausing the tariffs then what caused todays drop?

Looney Donald is worse than Goofy Joe...

⧫
The Red Sox lost game three of their four-game series last night. It took eleven innings for the Blue Jays to beat them but beat them they did, winning the game 2-1.

The Red Sox are not hitting well. It just seems like they either aren't getting on base or they are getting hits when men are on base.

As I've often said, the only way to win the game is to step on home plate more than the other team.

As for today, the game started at 4:15. Right now they are in the bottom of the eighth inning and the score is 2-1 in favor of the Blue Jays.

If the Red Sox lose today, they will have been swept.

⧫
In case you are looking for the perfect Father's Day gift, this was posted on Reddit as being offered for sale on Facebook Marketplace:

I have no idea how much they want for it...
⧫
Here are a few links:

• Yet another reason to stay out of New York City.



• I'm normally a big fan of all things space but this seems like a waste of time and money.



• When I die, just cremate me.



• Yes, alcohol was involved.

Another loss

The Blue Jays beat the Red Sox 6-1 last night and it wasn't pretty.

The Red Sox made two errors and Crochet did not have a great outing. He faced 27 batters over 5⅔ innings, striking out five, walking four and giving up four runs

They play game three of their four-game series tonight. First pitch is at 6:45 and Houck gets to start.

⧫
The DJIA rose over 7% today because Trump has paused almost all the tariffs. Looney Donald is going to claim he's responsible for the greatest increase in the DJIA since WWII.

Here is a snapshot of todays DJIA:

Here's a snapshot of the DJIA since Trump took office:

As you can see, the DJIA is still down almost 8% since he took office.

Brag all you want Donny Boy, you are still responsible for screwing a lot of people, including me. Until the stock and equities markets are back above what you were handed by Goofy Joe, you haven't done anything.

⧫
Here are some links:

• I would like to say, "This fascinates me" but I can't. All it really does is confuse me.



• Key line in this story: "I can say I will not eat wings for five years."



• Schiff is an arrogant prick and he would do anything to make Trump look bad.



• I've been to Miami and I can assure you, this is bullshit.



• Key line in this story: "...trust me when I say that it's frowned upon."

Welcome to New England

Today is April 8, 2025.

It is 33°, it is snowing and the flowers are in full bloom...

As Mr. Samuel Langhorne Clemens once said, "If you don't like the weather in New England, just wait a few minutes."

⧫
The Red Sox took a loss last night, getting beat 6-2 by the Blue Jays.

I am not a fan of making excuses but I feel compelled to point out they looked freakin' exhausted after Sundays doubleheader. Also, Wong took a nasty hit to his catching hand and had to leave the game.

That was the first game of a four-game series they will play against the Blue Jays. The second game is tonight. First pitch is at 6:45 unless it gets snowed out...

⧫
My youngest and his wife are attending classes for first time home buyers and I gotta tell you, I think this is a great idea.

We have told them what it was like when we bought our first home but to be honest with you, times have changed and the process we went through back in the 1980s is really no longer anything like what they are embarking on.

The first class was last night and it covered the basics of how owning a home impacts your income taxes. They also talked about how to maintain your credit history.

Wednesday they will go over the basics of mortgage options, down payment assistance programs and various other items of note like PMI, homeowners insurance, etc...

⧫
This just keeps on getting better and better...

Since January 20th, the day Looney Donald took office, the DJIA has lost 15½% of its value.

The S&P 500 has lost 18½% of its value.

The Nasdaq Composite has lost almost a quarter of its value.

I'm no math wizard and I'm certainly not an economist but that seems like a lot.

If he keeps going at the rate he's going, he'll wipe out 100% of the value of the Nasdaq Composite sometime around November 25 or so.

⧫
Here are some links:

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



• I can assure you that I would never make assumptions about uranus.



• Let the infighting begin.
  (I wonder whose side Looney Donald will take?)



• Yea, why am I not shocked by this.



• I bet he's a real laugh riot when he's working on your teeth.



• Attention fawning media members: When he says, "Many countries are lining up to negotiate with us!" what he means is, "In my tiny little brain, I think everyone is afraid of how powerful I am and they all want to talk to me about tariffs!"



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



• If you need more proof that people are stupid, here you go.

As my father used to say, "That was slicker than whale snot!"

As I said yesterday, I tried once to install the new spring on my tractor and failed. The failure was because the heavy-duty twine I used was neither heavy nor duty. It snapped just as the spring end was getting close to the hole it needed to go into.

This morning I took three pre-emptive ibuprofen, grabbed my wifes yoga mat and pulled out my big ol' roll of paracord. If you don't know what paracord is, allow me to enlighten you: Paracord is some pretty tough stuff designed to be used for lashing poles together and/or tying down cargo. It's plenty heavy and extra duty. As a matter of fact, I would say it has duty to spare...

I threaded the cord through the tractor frame and tied it to the spring. I then tied a loop in the other end that was big enough to put my foot in. Then I set about getting my ancient ass into a position that would allow me to use my foot to apply force to the line while still letting me see the spring and use my hands to fit it into the hole it needed to go into.

After much groaning and swearing as I was getting situated under the tractor, I put my foot into the loop and pushed. This pulled the cord and the spring towards to hole. Once the end of the spring reached where it needed to be, I pushed it into its hole and slowly relaxed my foot. The spring snapped into place like it had been installed by the factory.

After that, it was a matter of putting the mowing deck back together and testing everything out.

I'm pleased to say that all is well and this job went a lot better than I thought it would.

Wait, that might be a lie. All is not actually "well".

Ladies and gentlemen, presenting my blood blister:

That is courtesy of my needle-nose pliers and I can assure you, it caused me to say some very, vey bad words.

⧫
This is Sage.

She really, really likes that towel.

⧫
These posters are popping up all over Europe.

"THE SWASTICAR"

⧫
With last nights loss to the Sabres, the Bruins are now in a position to get the number one draft pick in the upcoming offseason draft.

Yea, yea, I know. I'm grasping at silver linings in the cloud that is the Bruins 2024/2025 season...

⧫
The Red Sox beat the crap out of the Cardinals last night, beating them 18-7 and giving them the sweep.

That win put them in second place in the ALEast, 1/2 a game behind the New York Aaron Judges. And as I type this, the Judges getting beat by the Tigers 5-1 in the sixth inning.

If the Judges lose, the Red Sox will move into a tie for first place.

They take on the Blue Jays tonight and if they win, they will take a 1/2 game lead in the ALEast.

First pitch is at 6:45 and Fitts has the start.

⧫
Here are some links:

• "I didn't do it. It's not my fault!"



• I'm waiting for the news story where Iran says there are no meetings planned...



• Here's a feel good story for you.



• When I was a youngster working midnights, I would always stop on my way into work and buy a copy of The Star. We picked out the best stories and posted them on the duty board to give the day shift something to do.



• There are some who will claim this is because Musk is Trumps best buddy but I think it's because SpaceX actually knows what it is doing.



• I'm betting he is full of shit.



• I'm of the belief that "scientists" are spending a lot of time inventing shit we don't need.



• I'm hoping this is a good move.