All of us got home safely, me, Court, and Shell. With all our bags (and gifts) intact to boot. Speaking of Boot(s), he was very happy to see us when we got here, and has been very good with Shell and all.

It's New Year's Eve tonight...our expected company is NOT coming over (due to family medical reasons) so it is just us three. And out of those, only I will be awake at midnight. Shell turned in a few hours ago, and Court is going to bed now. There are people blowing off fireworks outside tonight, so we'll see if they can stay asleep.

To all my readers, Happy New Year!


ps---Wireless mouse and ATI 9800 Pro installed and working fine. :D

Merry (belated) Christmas!

Had a great Christmas Eve/Christmas. Spent the first over at the hotel with my family (as always) and the second at Court's Grandma's. Taken together, I got EVERYTHING on my list. X-men 2, Bruce Almighty, Pirates of the Caribbean, Alien Quadrilogy, Terminator 3, Knights of the Old Republic PC game, Jedi Academy game, and a bunch of other cool stuff. Also ordered League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, SWAT, and XIII (PC game) from amazon. Hopefully they'll arrive by the time we get home.

Hope everybody reading this had a GREAT holiday!

Just checking in. We landed in Chicago on Friday all good and everything. Having a good time so far. Hope you readers are having a good holiday, and have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Back in FL on the 31st.

We leave this afternoon for home. I had to dust off my IL-weather clothes, which still make up about 85% of my wardrobe. This means I'll be wearing pants on back-to-back days for the first time since I got down here. I'm looking forward to seeing everybody.

I've been checking espn.com for A-Rod news all day. Keeping my eye out for some nutso deal where he goes to the Cubs. :)

I'm just hoping Clemens does NOT come out of retirement and go to Houston.

Weatherbug tells me it's 28 degrees here. (F) Doesn't feel that cold, to me at least. After I went to the gym I stopped at the local library to ask if they took book donations and the librarian asked me where my coat and long pants were. (it was around 53F at that time) I told her I was from Chicago. :)

There's a ton of weather advisories down here because of the 'cold'. Big whip.

The Onion | Non-Widescreen Version Of DVD Received As Hanukkah Gift

To be fair, I'd be upset if I got 'The Matrix Reloaded' in either widescreen or pan & scan...though pan & scan is UNACCEPTABLE to me in ANY film!

Was watching last night's 'American Chopper' over lunch (after I watched 'Monster House')...and everytime I see Big Paul yell at Paulie and Vinnie about their slacking and the time constraints and blaa blaa blaa, I think 'have they EVER been late on a bike'?

I remember the internet before pop-ups.

Isn't that something?

Say what you want about slim-fast...I was starving a minute ago, and now I'm not.

Some people don't like the taste. Personally, I cannot stand the vanilla. I can down it but I won't be very happy about it. The Chocolate tastes like a thicker chocolate milk to me.

I'm up maybe around 10 pounds since I got married. Going to the gym should help that out a bit. I do feel stronger, so that's cool.

CNN.com - U.S.: 'We got him' - Dec. 14, 2003

Saddam Hussein was captured today. I should sleep late every day. :)

Somebody across the way keeps running an electric saw that keeps buzzing.

How bad a person would I be if I called the cops and had them check their permits? :)

Why do people rush to get flu shots? It seems like half the time they get the flu anyways. I've never gotten one and never had the flu.

My three favorite Christmas movies (not in order):

1. Christmas Vacation


2. Scrooged


3. Christmas Story

Every once in a while I stumble upon a disney website and they post these people's 'trip reports' and whatnot, and they get all excited that they did this and this and that and that...and it's weird to me, because if I wanted I could be there in 15 minutes.

I miss 'Jumpin Jack' Doritos. That is all.

We saw this last night with Amy and Chris (from FL). It was pretty neat what they did with the ice. Everybody was telling me I was going to be freezing...the security people there actually laughed at me because I only had shorts, a shirt, and my pullover on. They said it was SO COLD and my legs would turns blue and all that crap. I guess it was only 5 degrees F in there.

I wasn't that cold at all. There was NO wind chill, and as anybody with a brain knows THAT's what makes the cold COLD. It was SO no big deal. The others had parkas on, which they hand out at the entrance. I just carried mine the whole time.

It was nice to feel the cold again. I've missed it.

My amazon wishlist...not so you can buy me something, just so you can see what I'm into.

Just finished watching the new Battlestar Galactica mini-series. I never watched the original show. Couldn't really tell you much about it...I was a Buck Rogers fans instead. bee-dee bee-dee bee-dee

Anyways, I enjoyed this remake. Part II is tomorrow night.

'Scrubs' is about the funniest show I watch on TV. I just started watching it a little while ago. It's almost as funny as PTI.

Last week JD saw the Janitor in the 'Fugitive' when he was watching it on TV. (the same actor had a bit part in the movie) This led to a storyline about the Janitor having a whole secret life as an actor and a bunch of other stuff. It was funny as hell when JD saw him in the movie and just said 'Janitor!'.

ESPN.com - Page2 - Winter of our Sox content

Take out the Schilling acquisition, and switch 'Sox' for 'Cubs' and he describes exactly how I felt post-Bartman.

Ok...how is it that since I needed to hit the mall real fast after having lunch with Court today, the mall is JAM PACKED.

Isn't today a Monday? it was the middle of the damn day. What the heck.

On the way back, I heard a pocket rocker classic...'I just died in your arms tonight' by Cutting Crew. If I'd heard 'Walk like an Egyptian' it would have been freaky.

It's this time of year when I'm glad I don't give a crap about college football.

I saw 'Timeline' and 'Matrix Revolutions' on Saturday. Court had to work until 10pm and didn't want to see either so I caught them at back-to-back matinees. 'Timeline' was good...strayed from the book in a few areas (for seemingly no reason) and I thought it was enjoyable.

'Matrix Revolutions' was stupid. I didn't really care about the characters since 'Reloaded' and so it was hard to be into it too much. Also, Smith and Neo fight for what seemed to be around a half hour to 45 minutes. That's too long to see two guys (who can't seem to be hurt by ANYTHING) fighting. It'd be like see Superman fighting Superman, and one is chucking cars at the other, getting thrown down through the street and under ground, getting tossed through buildings, and they just shrug it off and keep fighting. I mean...how is that interesting? How can anybody win? Anyways, it was a waste. I'm glad I only have the first film on DVD.

How long until Opening Day again?

This is killing me.

Boy, I'm glad they don't charge for water at the gym. I am so sore it's not even funny.

The Cat

My blog is titled 'The cat is under the bed' for a very good reason. I was trying to come up with something obscure.

It came from the fact that when I moved down here and worked upstairs at home during the day Boots would pretty much hide under our bed in our bedroom all day long until Court got home. I don't know if he was scared of me, or if he normally did that while Court was gone, or what. But he'd be under there all day.

Now, that might not seem as such a bad thing. Thing is, he'd also run under the bed after doing something that pissed me off. And even though I could still get at him by moving the bed it was still a huge pain in the ass. I finally decided that in order to have him get used to having me around the house and home all during the day that I'd close the bedroom doors after I got up so he couldn't get under the bed.

Every morning when I wake up he's laying in the director's chair we have in the living room. It's pretty much his chair since nobody ever sits in it. One thing I've discovered about cats is that they like to be as high as they can so they can look down on what's happening. (kind of appropriate since that's their attitude) He really likes to be perched on the over-hang on our second level that looks down on our first-floor living room.

Anyway, we've had our ups and downs. It sounds funny to say it like that, but it's true. For a while I would instantly react whenever he did something that bothered me, like when he'd hiss or swat. Sometimes he do it if he thought I was following him (when we were walking in the same direction) or if I came around a corner too fast. Then I'd chase him around the house yelling at him or squirting him with water or compressed air. He doesn't like that very much.

That may make me seem like a bad person, but I really do love pets and I'd only do it when he did something bad or tried to attack me. In any case, I eventually learned to just let him do whatever because it was really no big deal. After time went by he wouldn't run away from me anymore. He's actually gotten pretty docile. He actually comes upstairs and walks around when I'm up here and Court isn't home. He'd never do that in the past.

He'll do his nuzzle passes around my legs when I shake the cat treat container and he doesn't mind if I pick him up and just put him on his chair or in the florida room in the back. I'm not a cat person, probably will never be one, but it's not bad. I still say a cat is more work than a dog though.

I've got a few things I want to write about tomorrow and in the next few days...a Boots update, 80's cartoons (and their revivals), maybe some JFK conspiracy thoughts...also, general FL things like what I like best about being here and what I don't like...that kind of thing. Maybe I'll even start posting some pics to liven it up a little.

I only have a few people I buy Christmas gifts for. Let's say a dozen. Court has probably twice as many. Makes me wonder who the real money-spender-person is around here.

She has a list of people she sends Christmas cards to. (second sentence ended in a preposition--->who cares)

Anyway. She asked me if I had a list of people I send Christmas cards to...as if I had ever done such a thing. It made me think...'did she just not remember never getting a card from me, or did she think I sent ones to other people and not her?'...or 'does she even think *I* would write out Christmas cards'? I mean...not that I'm against it, but I'm not really a 'card' type of guy. I have to press myself to remember thank-you cards to people, and that's like the bare minimum of card-sending, isn't it?

I forgot to add...one thing that sucks about living here is I have no clue where anything is beyond a few choice places. Turns out For Eyes is about 45 minutes away from the house near downtown Orlando. That pretty much sucks. I'm used to having one 5 minutes away...not that I went there very often. Eye doc was a nice enough guy...commented on my Smallville High shirt at least. He didn't have the sing-songy timbre of Dr. Carlson though.

Cubs have been picking up some good players for the past few days...so that's all good.

Made a trek (no pun intended) to For Eyes (pun intended) because my glasses kind of fell apart spontaneously last week. The right lens just kind of popped out. I was going to pop it back in until I saw that it popped out because the frames had broken on that side. Oh well. I *think* those are only the second pair of glasses I've ever had since the infamous 'Atlanta' incident.

In case you don't know the story, I'll tell you now. There was a while where money was tight in our family, so when my glasses frames broke one day I just bought a cheap-o pair of wireframe sunglasses and swapped the lenses with my glasses lenses. This worked for a while...until one day while I was working at Ace a lens popped out and cracked in two on the ground. I was able to fit both pieces together back into the frames and I was fine. A few days later I left for Atlanta for Thanksgiving with Uncle Bruce, Aunt Angie, and Beth.

Early in the trip the 2 pieces broke into 3. At Stone Mountain the broken lens popped out and cracked into like 5-6 pieces. I was done with them. We got a good laugh out of my cobbled together glasses and I think there's video of it somewhere.

So, these latest to break are either the ones I got when I returned from Atlanta (unlikely, since that would mean they're almost 10 years old now) or the ones I got to replace that pair (more likely). At any rate, they're at least 5 years old. I got a different frame style than I've ever had before. Should be interesting. I kept telling the woman that I only use my glasses to read and she thought I meant I only needed vision help to read and she corrected me...I finally explained that when I'm going to read before bed, I put my glasses on.

I don't really read (for pleasure at night) with my contacts in. Having glasses on to do that is just a little more comfortable for some reason. Boy, this is sure interesting, isn't it? :)

I hope it snows when we go up for Christmas. Not just flurries...blizzard with a capital B.

(not during the flight up/down though, Court would freak)

By my eyes, we've gotten 2 new neighbors...both across the way. Haven't seen anything of them beyond the moving trucks in the one place and a bunch of contractors (that have been there for weeks) in the other.

Not that we'll ever get to know them, but they're there.

I have an eye appointment today at 3pm. My glasses broke last week...the part of the frame holding the right lens just kind of disintegrated at one point and the lens just popped out. It's being held in by tape now because I just couldn't get by without them even though I have contacts. It's just one of those things.

Dang, Court just scared the crap out of me. I'm upstairs and she must have got up and noticed I wasn't there. She walked into the living room and said 'Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiich...' in some zombified half-asleep tone. She sounded like a damn ghost woman or something.

Uh...time for me to go to bed I think.

Some notes from today:

-worked out for the first time at the new gym. Very nice. Did treadmill on an 8% incline for about a mile and a half, then some chest and back. One thing that stinks...no towel service. I'll have to bring my own.

-watched the wedding video. A few things from this, actually...I'm glad I didn't dance beyond what I was really required to, I think my face looks fat from some angles, and I apparently have a dimple on one side of my face. I suppose I've always had it, but I've never noticed it before.

Been watching a lot of JFK-conspiracy stuff due to the 40th anniversary last week. I'll post some thoughts on the morrow.

Heard today...



On the radio: "It's a chilly day today, 63 degrees here in Orlando."

And these people wonder why I will NEVER respect them.

Prisoners' last meals satisfy appetite for curious facts

My last meal would be...

• Pork Chops (shake and bake)


• Mashed Potatoes (from Chef Mickey's)


• Corn (green giant frozen is fine)


• biscuits (gran's flaky layers ? )

That narrowly beats out hibachi steak and chicken (with garlic cooked up) from the Japanese Steakhouse.

The wedding video came today. 2 DVDs and a bunch of videos. I'd like to watch it but I told Court that I'd wait until she got home. I did put it in the player to make sure it worked, as the disc is one from a DVD burner and one of those we'd gotten from a prospective videographer did not work in my player.

After work I'm going to work out then head to the mall for some Old Navy fleece pants for Court (she's been wearing mine as it's colder here now) then to BB and Target then home.

From one of my favorite DirecTV commercials...

We did the Candlelight processional dinner package thing tonight. The music and singers were great, and Andy Garcia did a great job as the narrarator. He had a lot of fun with it and made some jokes too. Seemed like a nice guy. He sounded just like his DirecTV dramatic reading of the fan letter too. :)

We had dinner here. First time I've ever eaten there. It was very nice. Had the feduccini alfredo...Court had lasagna. I prefer OG's feduccini...probably because it is a lot creamier.

Googlism

Googlism for: gonzalez

gonzalez is brains
gonzalez is now happy
gonzalez is homer king
gonzalez is a cub


Hey...I'll take it.

It seems like some people (particularly on the web) like to blame President Bush for all the problems we're having in this country.

I wonder what they will do if he loses the next election, someone else is President, and we still have these problems?

If I wasn't married, I'd have T-3, Bruce Almighty, and X-2 on DVD already. I'd also have the PC games MOH:Breakthrough, Call of Duty, Knights of the Old Republic, and Jedi Academy.

But because I promised Court I would not buy myself anything (well, within reason) during the months of November (due to my BD) and December (Christmas) I do not have them.

Hopefully I get any (hopefully all!) of these for Christmas. If not, once we get back, I am buying whatever of those I don't have. And some peeps will just have to deal with that. :D

Saw 'The Haunted Mansion' tonight. It was pretty crowded. The movie was ok/good. I'd give it a B I guess. One note...the woman playing Eddie Murphy's wife in this movie looked familiar to me. After checking imdb.com I discovered where I knew her from...She plays Nessa on 'Las Vegas'. It's funny...on LV she plays a English woman...British accent and all. Turns out she was born in the UK, but after watching HM you'd never guess it.

Did see a few good previews...'Hildalgo', with Viggo Mortenson, and a movie about the 1980 'Miracle on Ice' Olympic team starring Kurt Russell. Those look promising. Hopefully a movie will give that '80 Olypmic Hockey team some recognition with today's younger sports fans.

BlogSpeak - FREE remote commenting system for Blogger based weblogs.

Thanks to this, my blog can now accept comments.

Koo-Koo-Kachoo

Movie & TV News @ IMDb.com#1#1

'Survivor' Loser Is 'The View' Winner


Elisabeth Filarski Hasselbeck, who made it to the final four on CBS's Survivor: The Australian Outback, won a permanent place on ABC's The View Monday following numerous on-air tryouts of personalities to fill the position on the show left vacant when Lisa Ling left nearly a year ago. Hasselbeck currently hosts a weekly bargain-shopping show, The Look for Less, which airs on the Style channel. She also has her own line of greeting cards, bags, planners and shoes.

That's good. She seemed like a nice girl, and Hasselbeck is a class act.

We saw 'The Cat in the Hat' on Friday. It was crap. I think Austin Powers has killed any joy I ever took in Mike Myers. I should have learned that with Austin 3, which I thought was so bad I almost walked out.

Of course, it had a great weekend and made a ton of cash. What a world, what a world.

Since the uber-package of channels from DirecTV that we've been getting for free with activation is now up, I dialed it back to Total Choice Plus (with local channels) last night. We still get like 6 Discoveries and all that, just no movie channels. Fine by me since we never even really watched any of them anyways. I still have some movies I recorded on the Tivo to watch for when this happened. Most everything on the movie channels now is stuff I saw in the theaters anyway, since I go to the movies so often.

Some places I'd like to visit:

Boston
New York
Seattle
Washington DC
Dallas
New Orleans

Theforce.net is reporting that George Lucas is thinking of changing/updating the original trilogy once episode III is done. I'm not sure if it's all even true, but oh well. Below are the rumored changes and my comments on each.

Episode IV: A New Hope

01. The Imperial March has been added to Darth Vader's first appearance on Princess Leia's ship.

Very cool. Necessary, if you ask me.

02. When Obi-Wan is talking to Luke about his father Anakin's Theme plays in the background and then it turns into the Imperial March as he talks about Vader.

Good change.

03. The lightsaber effects have been redone and the frame jumps of lightsabers being turned on has been removed.

Necessary. There are too many times during the Obi-Wan/Vader duel where the saber is barely even colored.

04. There's a new scene which has been shot during the filming of Episode III in which the Emperor dissolves the Senate.

Cool, but shouldn't be too long or it'll distract from the story.

05. In the Cantina, the Duros (green aliens guys) have been replaced with Neimoidians and some aliens from the prequels have been added.

Not really necessary, but it shouldn't be too bad.

06. The bleeding arm on the floor in the Cantina has been replaced with a non-bleeding arm because it's now canon that lightsabers cauterize wounds.

That's cool. It's probably the only blood in the entire Star Wars saga, and that's a weird shot to begin with.

07. The original shooting scene between Han and Greedo has been restored.

GOOD.

08. Jabba the Hutt has been given a makeover and Han no longer steps on his tale.

Improvement.

09. In place of R2 wobbling down the stairs to the Falcon's hangar, a CG R2 navigating the stairs like he does in Attack of the Clones was added.

Cool.

10. The white boxes around space ships have been removed and new CG shots have been added.

That's good. They're distracting at times.

11. The scene of the Falcon being chased by the two Star Destroyers was modified. The Falcon now does spinning moves, avoiding the Star Destroyers' fire.

Very cool. One of my favorite SE changes was the Falcon during the escape from Mos Eisley and the end Death Star battle where the falcon swoops away after taking those TIEs off Luke's back. Much better than the original shot where it just kind of floated up out of frame.

12. When the Death Star destroys Alderaan there's a new scene of Yoda's reaction to the disturbance in the Force that is created by all those deaths and then it cuts to Obi-Wan reacting to it as well.

I'd rather have Yoda's first appearance inj the OT be where it is now, in ESB.

13. The Dianoga has gotten a CG makeover and were are now able to see more of the creature.

Cool.

14. The Death Star's paneling and computers have been slightly altered to show similar displays to those in the prequels.

That should be neat.

15. The words "Tractor Beam" with Aurebesh lettering.

And there goes the only time english lettering is used in the Star Wars movies. :)

16. More stormtroopers have been added to the Death Star.

Necessary, if you ask me. Makes more sense for there to be more than there were.

17. Temuera Morrison's voice is being recorded for use with all the stormtroopers.

This kind of kills the EU notion that stormtroopers were all human conscripts from worlds conquered by the Emperor...there might be an out though, because maybe the Empire ran out of clone troops at one point and had to start conscripting.

18. The Obi-Wan/Vader duel has been spruced up. It is much more epic and there is much more movement. A modified version of Duel of the Fates is being considered for the scene.

How they're going to do this, I have no idea. I guess they could CGI-up Obi-Wan but I think that'd look silly. The fight as it is though, is kind of odd because it's not really fancy or anything.

19. The Death Star plans that are taken from R2 have been updated. When the Rebels are reviewing the Death Star plans they look similar to the plans we see in Attack of the Clones.

The current graphic that they show is pretty poor, and also inaccurate. This should be nice.

20. The Death Star battle is much more epic with more Tie Fighters and more Rebels being blown to bits. We get to see old Naboo starfighters being used by the Rebels.

I'm all for making the fleets bigger in every space battle.M

21. There's a new scene (shot during Episode III) where Darth Vader goes to Coruscant and lands his ship in the same building Count Dooku does at the end of Attack of the Clones. Except now the building is all fixed up and it is now Palpatine's palace. He meets with Palpatine to ask for forgiveness for his failure and inform him of a new potential who is strong in the Force.

Ok I guess.

22. Chewbacca now gets a medal.

Heh...he deserves it!

I'll do the (rumored) changes to the other two movies later on.

EU=Expanded Universe (books) OT=Original Trilogy

After hearing it in the background of promos for 'Celebrity Poker' on Bravo (which I fully intend to watch and enjoy) I can't get the song 'Hey Ya' from Andre 3000 out of my head. I'm currently playing it constantly in hopes that I'll get sick of it.

Man...this guy's only a little older than I am. Well, over a year, but still.

They suspect it's suicide. I mean, to die at 27 it's pretty much that, overdose, or some freaky brain aneurysm or something, right?

If it is suicide, it's a shame. It's funny how when you're a kid you wish you had lives like TV stars did...I would have given anything to be on SeaQuest. But in reality, in turns out that it's maybe not all it's cracked up to be, and maybe the life you have now is better than anything you might have wished for.

I guess turning 26 does make you a *little* smarter. :)

Dang...Rupert's 'I just got booted' message sounded more like a suicide note. 'I really needed this...there goes my dreams' and all that. I feel bad for the guy for losing, but seriously. Does your whole life hinge on whether you win the million in Survivor? I mean, I know it's not a million dollars, but I REALLY REALLY wanted to win that Disney cruise during my Millionaire thing...especially with Court there cheering me on, since I know she'd really like to go. But I didn't win. I was a little sad, but not anywhere close to how Rupert sounded.

Maybe he's got financial problems of some such, but really...it is NOT realistic to hope that the million dollars in Survivor will fix all your problems in life. Just don't count your chickens like that.

Ok...Jon from Survivor's a dumbass. I hope as hell he doesn't win. I'm in the middle of watching tonight's right now.

Just got back from dinner. I opened my gifts before I left. Some things I got...(in order of finding out/opening)

-From my Mom, the whole Playskool SW toy collection. I'd been wanting to get them for when Court and I have kids some day.

-From Court's parents, and Grandma, a new leather high-back desk chair.

-From my Dad, the Jonathan Archer Hallmark ornament from this year, and a Homer Simpson talking universal remote.

-From My sister, the books 'To Kill a Mockingbird' and 'The Day Lincoln was shot', two books I've really been wanting.

-From Court, a GameBoy Advanced SP, Justice League, Namco Museum, and TMNT games...also a carrying case.

From Boots, the Two Towers Extended Edition DVD.

I also got checks from Court's Aunt Cammie and my Grandma. These will go towards the models I've won.

Chef Mickey's dinner was great, as always. Thanks for everybody for everything. Thank-yous will be in the mail tomorrow. :)

Oh...it's my birthday today. I'm working on the laptop downstairs with the TV on as a kind of gift to myself. I've never done it before...I miss my chair. :)

I have some gifts and cards to open after dinner. We're going to Chef Mickey's tonight after Court gets home. It's my favorite place. I got a box today and I thought it was something we'd ordered from somebody from ebay and it turned out to be a box from my Dad. I got this year's Jonathan Archer Hallmark ornament and a Homer Simpson talking universal remote. Very cool. :)

We saw Love Actually last night. It wasn't what I thought it would be. I thought it'd be a stupid romantic comedy but fortunately that was NOT the case.

There were multiple threads to the story...kind of like a Clancy novel with 10 stories going on during the course of the novel and they all are tied together in the end. I agree with the Ebert review that says it's too long. I think one or two of the stories could have been cut with no loss to the movie. It was ok...not great, but not bad either.

It's raining today. First (consistent) rain we've seen down here in a while. Weather has been really nice for the past few weeks. 80's or so...not too hot and with a nice breeze.

I got Portillo's Italian Beef from Fedex today...a BD gift from Aimee and Chris. It came in a big box with ice packs in it and all that. The beef and the bread too...very nice! It's thawing now and should make a good dinner on Friday.

I think my blog is safe for everybody to read. :)

I got a LOT of mail today. More than Court, which is a rare happening. Some junk, a credit card I don't want, and cards from my Grandma, Court's Grandma, and Court's Aunt Cammie. I'm waiting to open them until Thursday, along with my sister's gift and Court's gift. Hopefully Thursday comes quickly.

The chicagosports.com website (really the Tribune sports section) wants you to PAY EXTRA for extra-special Bears content.

They sure picked a bad year to debut that service. Of course, I'm paying for NFL Sunday ticket on DirecTV to watch the Bears get pasted, so that makes me an idiot too. I did enjoy KC/Cincy yesterday though.

Looney Tunes: Back in Action may soon be put out to pasture, as the film made a less-than-spectacular debut over the weekend. The feature animation/live-action mix opened in fifth place with $9.5 million, eclipsed by Brother Bear from arch-rival Disney, which in its third week in wide release grossed $12.0 million. On a per-screen basis, Brother Bear aced the Looney Tunes crew again, grossing $3,966 to Back in Action's $3,272.

The weekend was dominated by the performance of Will Ferrell's comedy Elf, which moved from the number two berth to number one with a weekend gross of $27.2 million, bringing the film's cumulative gross to $71.2 million.. That weekend performance represented a decline of only 12%, which was in marked contrast to the 66% plunge suffered by The Matrix Revolutions, which grossed $16.3 million (cumulative: $114.1 million). The other big opening was by Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, the Russell Crowe nautical epic that opened in second with $25.7 million.



ouch...so, I was on track, except for the fact that LT did NOT beat 'Brother Bear' (which is good for Disney) AND LT made a LOT less than I'd thought. oh well. I liked it enough.

We went to MGM yesterday. Went to Millionaire and guess what...I got in the hot seat. Just like during Star Wars Weekends. A little *too* just like that time for my taste. I can NEVER win fastest finger so I had to just hope that the guy who did win would get a question wrong early. After the 1000 pt plateau they showed the audience rankings and I was at the top...seat 6...which is actually in a fastest finger chair down on the set floor...just like in the show. There are about 10 seats down there, and people who've never been to 'Play It!' think that those are the only people elidgible to get into the hot seat until it's explained to them by the host.

Anyways, I digress. The question was 'Which one of these is a unit of measure?' and candela was a possibililty. Knowing it had *something* to do with light I chose that one and I was right...the guy in the seat was wrong. Once they showed the audience scores up on the board (to choose the next player in the hotseat) and they'd showed the top 9, leaving off #1 (for suspense I suppose) and I didn't see my number up there, I knew I had to be the one. And I was.

Long story short (too late) I used a 'ask the audience' on one I should have known (how many kids are there if you have septuplets?--answer 7) and a 'phone a complete stranger' on one I was SURE the person would not know (what is a dulcimer?--answer musical instrument) and he ended up being 100% sure of (thanks to the guy, wherever you are) I used a 50/50 on something too, so once I got to one I had no clue on (What is Dreyer's Ice Cream known as west of the rocky mountains?--answer Edy's) I was like...It's probably A--Breyer's, because they sound the same, but I'll go with D--Edy's. And I was right. Totally pulled that one out of my ass. Used up all my luck too. :)

One I got to the 250,000 pt question...and the Disney Cruise you get at a million was in my sights...they give me a flower question. A G*ddamn flower question. I don't know jack about flowers. Anyways...the question (Other than waterlilies, what flower is associated with July?---answer Larkspur) I answered Daisy and was wrong. Looking back, a woman in the audience correcting his pronounciation of "Larkspur" so I should have taken that as a sign. Anyways, it was fun...I was nervous but I think I played well and joked around with the guy to make it a little fun at least. I got pins like the ones I have, shirt like the one I have, hat like the one I have, and a lanyard like the one I have, but that's cool. Might put the pins in a case like I have the ones from the SW Millionaire.

I felt bad to lose, especially since Court was there and I know she'd love to go on that cruise. We'll probably go anyways, but still. I didn't feel as bad after losing as I did during Star Wars Weekends, because while the SW question I lost on was tough, I know a TON of SW stuff and there's still no excuse. I did NOT feel too bad not knowing a flower question.

All in all, a fun time. I have to wait 30 days to be in the hot seat again.

Al Yellon's blog says 142 days until Opening Day.

It's gonna be a looooooooooonnnnnnnnnnnnng winter. :(

Court's parents got back home ok...in fact, Mr. D called today and left a message to razz about being back watching a BIG TV again after having to watch the one we have here (27"). Naturally I had to call him and razz him on having 'cable TV like the cavemen had' while we have satellite here. :)

Saw "Looney Tunes - Back in Action" tonight. It was pretty good. Bugs and Daffy were spot-on...much better than in "Space Jam" I felt. This was really a LT movie in spirit. Lots of laughs and all that. The Steven Martin (main villain) character was a little too screwball for me...a little too "Doctor Evil" I think...and after 3 Austin Powers movies I'm REALLY sick of that kind of humor. I think Martin could have played it a little like Gene Hackman's Lex Luthor in "Superman"...that would have been preferable.

We went to a 7:45pm showing, after dinner at Chevy's. We sat in the balcony and there were *maybe* a half-dozen people up there with us. I did not see the theater below but I don't imagine it was crowded.

I'm looking for 'Matrix Revolutions' to win the weekend and LT:BIA to make *maybe* between $20-30 million at the box office. And 30 is a big stretch. It'll come in fourth I'd say...behind MR, "Master and Commander", and (possibly) Elf. Brother Bear will do ok but LT will make a little more.

We'll see how right I am on Monday. :)

I got a new desk chair today...early birthday gift from Court's parents and grandma. *Very* nice. leather with a high back. A lot better than Court's old chair that I've been using for 6 months.

I think getting older (or at least getting married since I'm not that old) means you no longer go to the movies for the 'event' movies unless you think they'll be really good. For instance...The Matrix Revolutions. In the past, I would have gone because it was the thing to do. Also, because it's the third film in a trilogy. And maybe I'd like it, maybe I wouldn't, but I would have gone (probably on opening night) and contributed to the opening weekend grosses.

Well, I thought 'The Matrix Reloaded' sucked and because I've had a ton of other things to do I haven't gotten around to seeing the third film. Maybe I'll wait until it's on DVD...who knows? Same thing with Bad Boys 2 and Charlie's Angels 2 (which I did eventually see in a matinee at the end of its theatrical run). I've just got too much to do to get all geared up to see some movie that'll probably suck. Also, I don't want to encourage these movie's makers by plunking down my cash for junk.

Some movies I'm looking forward to seeing: Elf, Looney Tunes: Back in Action, The Cat in the Hat (presence of gray cat notwithstanding), Timeline, The Hanted Mansion, and LOTR: The Return of the King.

Boy do I miss baseball. I'd say I didn't realize how much it helped me get through the day here, but that'd be lying.

I was in Illinois last Sunday--->Sunday. It was nice to see everybody again, family and friends combined. I got to eat at Barnaby's and Garibaldi's, and also went to a movie with Aimee and Chris. Too bad is was Scary Movie 3, which absolutely sucked.

Anyways, when I got to the e-ticket terminal, I put my card in and it popped my name up and said it was unable to confirm my seat and I should check it at the gate. Well, after getting through security and all that I did, only to be told by the woman there not to worry, everybody will have a seat on this plane.

Well, after seeing everybody get a seat on the plane, and being part of about a half-dozen people that still had NO seat, I was a little perturbed. Eventually they tempted people out of the plane with that whole 'first-class, free this, free that' deal I got a seat and got ready to takeoff. I mentioned to a woman (who was in my same predicament) that it was nice to buy a ticket full-price yet still get treated like you're standby. She agreed.

Too bad the stewardess, and then the first officer started futzed with closing the door to our plane. Turns out some light wasn't turning on or whatever and they couldn't be sure it was locked-in and shut. We had to taxi back to the gate and get a mechanic to look at it. Eventually we took off, 1.5 hours late. I got my bags and took a cab to Uncle Bruce's house in Naperville. It was nice to see them and Bailey again. We then drove to the Embassy Suites over by Meacham and Algonquin.

Hotel room was very nice. Was so busy didn't even turn on the TV or even use the phone. Each night I went to bed tired. I stayed there until Wednesday night, then my Mom picked me up and we went to dinner at Barnaby's. I stayed by Don & Mom the rest of the trip. Saw Aimee and Chris on Friday (Japanese steakhouse, with GARLIC!) and saw my Dad & Jodie on Saturday to show them the wedding pics. Came back on Sunday, no problems. New laptop has nice long battery life...watched DVDs (disk 2 'making of...'s that I hadn't ever had the time to checkout) both going there and coming back. Was nice to be home afterwards. I missed Court a lot.

Had a hectic last 2 weekends with Mom & Don, then going to IL and returning, and now Court's parents are coming up this weekend. It'll be nice to see them. I didn't get a chance to when I went up this past week because I didn't have a car. They got a new car so they're driving it down here on Saturday. Not sure how long they're staying. It'll be nice to have them over so they can see the stuff we've done to the house since I've been down here.

We saw 'Brother Bear' last night. I can sleep well at night knowing it's about 900x better than I'm sure 'Matrix Revolutions' is.

BB was a VERY good movie. Funny, sad, and nice animation. I hope it does well.

Thoughts for the day...

#1 I think that if I lived alone I'd never turn the lights on at night, except while reading.

#2 It seems like the older I'm getting, the less sleep I need. Went to bed at 2am last night and up at 8am. How weird is that?

Being a Cub fan is something you are born to, and learn for so many years that failure is a way of life. In some ways, I think it helps you deal with life itself, since so much of life is dealing well with failures. I guess so far, I haven't dealt with this one very well. One day, I think I will, and win or lose, lose, lose, I will remain with my baseball team forever.


That's an excerpt from Al Yellon's blog entry of the day of the disaster. Sums up my feelings perfectly, though Al is a much bigger (and more involved) Cub fan than I.

Needless to say, I thought we'd win this one. Truth be told, the NLCS *was* MY World Series. All I wanted was for the Cubs to win the NLCS. Just *get* to the Series. And if they lose the Series, I'd be sad. But not as sad as I ended up being Tuesday night.

You know the story. Everybody does. Prior was cruising with a 3-0 lead. He wasn't at his best, but he was good enough, and that was good enough. Until the top of 8th. A one-out foul ball to the stands in left decided this game. People don't want to blame the fan, saying it was Alex Gonzalez's (in a Leon Durham/Bill Buckner replay) bobble of an easy DP ball that cost the Cubs this game, but I don't blame Step 2 for this one. I blame Step 1. That fan and the foul ball. His name has been out enough in the media and I won't mention it. I don't wish bad on him. He already has infamy forever, and that's a BIG punishment. But if he had just stayed back from that ball and let Alou catch it, the Cubs would be in the Series right now. With 2 outs and nobody on first Gonzalez wouldn't be thinking DP on that grounder, he'd take the easy out at first. And the Cubs would be 3 outs away from the Series instead of out of it all together.

The jolt from that fan blocking Alou jarred Prior and the team visibly. Prior soon loaded the bases, gave up some runs, and eventually Farnsworth (another possible goat) gave up a 3-run hit to somebody and the game was beyond our grasp. The Cubs couldn't come back from this one and lost 8-3. It was a disaster. Unbelieveable.

I couldn't believe it. I kept yelling that at the TV, along with a few choice words. We almost got a new TV out of this game, since I was VERY close to throwing my glass right into the screen. THIS was the day I lost hope. I knew we had Wood going the next day, but THIS loss was worth than anything that could have happened. (sportswise)

This was one you never forget. You tell your kids about it. My Dad never told me any sports stories or anything, but now I have one for my kids. And I'll never, ever, forget it. I know it's just baseball. That's clear to me. Sports-wise, it is the worst thing I have ever seen, and the worst I have EVER felt. And I think it will ALWAYS will be. Only thing that could have happened worse is career-ending injuries to Prior & Wood during the game. Do I think Baker should have used Juan Cruz or Matt Clement instead of Farnsworth, Veres, Alfonseca, or anybody in the pen but Borowski? Yes. Do I think the Cubs would have won then? I do. But it doesn't matter, and Dusty deserves the benefit of the doubt after getting the Cubs so far in one year.

Thoughts on Wednesday's game 7 to follow.

As I was going to bed last night the cat was on the bed. He hissed at me. I picked him up and threw him out of the room and shut the doors.

To him, that's like getting kicked out of paradise. Oh well.

One last thing...

An aquaintance, after telling me they were a HUGE Mets and Yankees fan, proceeded to ask me what time Game 3 was on yesterday.

In just how many ways does this not compute? I lump this person with the newly minted Cubs fans, who feign weeping now that the Cubs are out of the playoffs. Sad for you, but I was weeping/soaring with this team in MAY. And many Mays-Septembers previous.

Yankees are beating the Marlins 6-1 in the 9th.

I'd take this time to mention that the Cubs took 2 out of 3 from the Bronx Bombers during the regular season, if it mattered at all.

By the way, thanks to PTI...

Bear + trampoline = funny!

Enjoy.

Now, for my thoughts on the Cubs...bear in mind, I am STILL reeling from some of these events.

Ok, so my thoughts on each game of the Braves series, and Games 1, 2, 3, and 4 of the NLCS are already summed up in this blog. Now, we come to Game 5. Also known as, THE ONLY CUB PLAYOFF GAME I'VE EVER BEEN TO. (AND IT WASN'T AT WRIGLEY)

So, minutes after the Cubs game-5 win against the Braves, Court and I (Court's idea) were online trying to get tickets to one of the games here in Florida. Game 4 was already sold out, but there were still tickets to game 5. I can only assume that is because at that time Game 5 was still a * if necessary game. We were able to but two tickets in a spot that said 'partially blocked view' or some crap like that. It was in a section not normally sold for Marlin games...as if that matters, since the place NEVER draws any Marlin fans during the regular season. I think their attendance average is <20k. Earlier in the blog you can read my thoughts as to how jazzed I was that I'd have a chance to see the Cubs clinch the NL pennant for the first time in over 50 years. Needless to say, I was ready for magic to happen.

It did...but it was evil, bad, ugly, scary, terrible magic. Voodoo magic. Bad jass. More on that later.

The drive down to Miami was uneventful. We'd packed a lunch so I had a sandwich and pop and some pringles while driving. It's basically 2 minutes on one road, 2 minutes on another, then the other 98% of the journey is on one highway, the FL turnpike. FL is weird because their oasises (is that right?) are at ground level, but still in the middle of the highways, with the road passing to either side. But I digress.

We see a stadium off in the distance, but at this time the net directions were getting a little patchy and we went the wrong way. I guess we were thinking it might have been the stadium where the Dolphins play (it was, duh, me) which I thought was called 'Joe Robbie Stadium' (it used to be, duh, me) and not 'Pro Player Stadium' as our tickets said. They renamed it a few years ago, much to my not caring. And the signs just said 'STADIUM'...not like the name of the stadium attached or anything. Which I guess is ok, since there's only ONE stadium in Miami, which apparently is common knowledge to everyone but me.

We get there around 2 hours early. It's hotter than heck out. Sun is BLAZING. We get in and they're offering those white crap-rag towels they Marlins fans wave. I declined, and I declined Court's on her behalf. I didn't want to jinx the Cubs. Looking back, I should have taken one, if only to use to clean up when the cat horks on the carpet or if there's crap stuck to his ass. That'd be a good use for it.

So, our seats were at the highest tier (third, I think) out in foul territory in DEEP left. The 'abstructed view' thing meant that we were probably missing a few dozen feet of left field. We couldn't see the left fielder because he was in our blind spot. It was too sunny to sit so we walked around the concourse. The stadium is ok, I guess. Totally meant for football, with its cruddy and too-cramped seats. There were a TON of Cub fans there, especially in our section. I was really proud to see them all. Court got a scorecard so she could keep score and I got us some liquids to keep us from drying out. I think I had 3-4 lemonades in all that day, and a few bottled waters too. It was too hot for beer, for me at least.

So, the game begins. Low and behold, Josh Beckett becomes some kind of pitching meta-human, and Zambrano cannot throw strikes. He got out of 2 or 3 sticky bases-loaded situations (if memory serves) and the game was scoreless until I had to get up and go to the bathroom and get some more lemonade. I'm in line, and BAM. Mike Lowell (who I would soon grow to HATE) hits a 2-run shot and the Marlins never looked back. Well, the Cubs got 2 as well...HITS. Beckett was just a madman that day and I didn't blame Zambrano for this loss. The Cubs bats were DEAD. Very sad, especially since they lit-up the Marlins during the Saturday night game that I missed seeing due to dinner.

During the game, the Marlins fans were talking major-league shee-it. It was easy to do, since Lowell was on auto-pilot and the Marlins got 2 more runs off I-Rod and Jeff (old man) Conine (I think) solo shots. There were some rough words exchanged between fans, particularly these two guys a few rows ahead of us, but nothing major. Fact is, the Cubs were anemic the whole game so even though the Cubs fans kept cheering there was really nothing they could say. At the end of the game, with Marlins fans cheering, two Cub fans started cheering "PRI-OR" "PRI-OR", and saying things like "Enjoy this game, it's your last one here this year." and all that. I was inclined to agree with them. Oh, how WRONG I would be.

(I will discuss the debacle tomorrow. Tomorrow's secret word will be: DEVASTATED.)

Messing around with the new laptop from work today. Dell Latitude D600. VERY snazzy. Onboard lan, modem, and apparently bluetooth, though I have no devices to try it, and don't even know anybody WITH anything compatible. Too bad it's not regular 'ole onboard W-lan. That said, old laptop will go out to pasture for a while and W-lan card has been put into the new hotness.

Machine came already put together by the moto-PC-monkeys. That's good news/bad news...fortunately, I already disabled the PITA stuff, like the machine making my password be what it calls 'complex'. I'm sure we all know what THAT means. I really don't want my password to have to be some l33tspeak jamble like 'G0 cu85 2003' or some crap like that. Sorry...if they just assume the regular user can't find the setting to disable that it's not my fault some people have the motts to figure it out.

New Hotness tech specs...XP, 1.59GHz, 1GB RAM, 60GB harddrive space. Very nice.

I haven't meant to drop-off the blog-posting map. (how's THAT for hyphens?)

I will post my thoughts on the Cubs debacle tomorrow.

Tonight, been playing the CSI game I've had for months and just haven't gotten a chance to play. VERY cool, though it seems to be short. That's not such a big deal. Already did a case with Grissom, Sara, and Nick, and all that's left is Warrick and Catherine. 5 cases in the game. Enjoyable so far. Hopefully they make a sequel of some kind. All the characters from the show are involved including the Doc, Brass, and Greg. I think my sister would like this, though I don't think she plays games. I wonder if her machine could run it?

I can't even believe this.

Long story short, the Cubs lost yesterday. Josh Beckett pitched like a madman. More details to follow when I'm in the mood.

Had dinner tonight with Court's cousin Angela & family. Tony Roma's...a good time was had by all. I had to sit out watching tonight's Cub game, but there were TVs there tuned to the game and by checking the score a few times I was able to follow along with tonight's 8-3 victory! Unfortunately, thought I was recording the game at home, it cut out after 3hrs (top of the 8th I think) for some reason even though I thought I had increased the recording time by an hour and a half. Anyway, I was able to go back and see some key hits including the Aramis Ramirez grand-slam (first in Cub post-season history) which started the Cubs off 4 runs up and they never looked back.

Great game fellas! Nice win by Clement! A key victory!

One more WIN puts the Cubs in the Series! We're leaving here for Miami tomorrow around 11am! We hope to see the Cubs clinch the pennant with a W!

I forgot to add Kudos for Borowski, who came in and kept Marlins scoreless for 2 1/3 innings ( I think) and earned the W tonight!

Way to go Joe!

CUBS WIN! After getting 2 runs in the first, losing that lead, then tying it, losing then tying, it, taking the lead in the top of the 11th the Cubs closed out the Marlins in the bottom of the 11th on a great heads-up play by Ramon Martinez! 2 outs, man on second...bouncer to third which Martinez bobbles...man on second got caught in a run-down. Cubs tagged him out to WIN Game 3 of the NLCS by the score of 5-4! GREAT WIN! Big Kudos to Randall Simon for a 2-run shot that tied it at 4. Also, big kudos to Kenny Lofton for getting on base in the top of the 11th and Doug Glanville for tripling him in to take the lead in the top of the 11th.

Great Win fellas! Way to go!

I'm still shaking...this game lasted about 4 and a half hours. I have to use the john now...been holding it for an hour!

GO CUBS GO!

Got my "Cubs 2003 NL Central Division Champs" sweatshirt today. UPS guy and I chatted up the Cubs for a bit...seems he's a fan too. Weird...lot of Cub fans down here. I s'pose because their spring training used to be down here.

Awesome game by Mark Prior tonight! 12-3 Cub victory! Prior pitched an amazing game, only giving up any runs (2 on back to back homers, then one which I think was probably charged to him after leaving with the bags loaded/nobody out and Veres got out of the inning but gave up a run) and that was only after the game was basically in the bag. The Cubs led the whole night after putting up a two-spot in the bottom of the first. Alex Gonzalez (OUR AG, as there's one on the Marlins as well) hit TWO homers, and Sammy hit one straight back that hit the top of the camera shack in the center field bleachers...one of the longest I've ever seen him hit. Stone mentioned a Clemente shot as being the only one he's seen that's longer straight back at Wrigley.

Again...GREAT GAME to Mark Prior & the Cubs! Way to go, fellas!

The Cubs lost today...game 1 of the NLCS at Wrigley. After putting up a 4-spot in the bottom of the first, Zambrano gave up 5 runs shortly thereafter and while the Marlins would take the lead and the Cubs would come back and tie TWICE (A. Gonzalez homer, Sammy Sosa 2-run bottom of the ninth homer), a Mike Lowell homer off Mark Gurthrie to lead off the 11th made it 9-8 and the Cubs didn't score in the bottom half of the inning.

Some BIG offense for the Cubs today, but Zambrano just gave up too many runs, and Borowski (2 runs) and Guthrie (1 run) out of the pen didn't help. It's a shame that they lost with all the runs they put up, but they lost that early lead and were chasing the Marlins ever since.

I can only hope this loss stuns the Cubs into recognizing they have to FIGHT to win each of these NLCS games. The Marlins are not a team that will just roll over. Let's hope Prior (tomorrow) and Wood (Friday) put the Cubs up 2 games to 1.

This loss by the Cubs means that if they win ONE of the next 3 games we will be at the game on Sunday. I hope they win the next three straight and we see them clinch on the pennant! GO CUBS!

Thought of the day: Is it a hallmark of our increasingly violent society that when I build up successful cities in my region playing Sim City 4, all that I can think about is how cool it would be if they could declare war on each other? :)

Sight of the day (3am today): I found the culprit that's been raiding our trash for months. It was NOT, as I originally thought, a cat, and NOT, as I thought last week after spying one, a possum, but at 3am this morning I look out the window to inspect our trash, and after noticing it upset, what did I see? A RACCOON. Court was right all along. When I went out there with a flashlight the thing was in no hurry to get away either. Just kind of walking briskly off. I could have him him with a baseball, had I had one. I straightened the trash TWICE last night and STILL it was a mess this morning. The thing is, he walks RIGHT PAST the neighbor's trash to get to ours. Weird. Makes me think Boots has something to do with this.

In all seriousness, I'm going to start scouring the net for something to keep him away, as the dog/cat (pepper, seems like) repellant spray does nothing to keep this creature away.

I was up so late last night because of sleeping late AND because I was still SOARING from the CUBS VICTORY LAST NIGHT!

WOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

After a loss yesterday after what eventually became a close game, the CUBS WON TODAY 5-1, beating Atlanta and moving on to the NLCS! WOOOO HOOOOO! Got congratulatory calls from Mom and a friend back home...they know I've had my time suffering with the Cubs, just as every Cub fan has. This is GREAT! Kerry Wood went out there today and pitched a fantastic game, giving up only 1 run and that was on a pretty controversial call...Kenny man on first and second and a little liner to center field which Kenny caught (and replays showed it) but was ruled a trap...man on second scored and the Cubs got the forceout at second since even Giles thought it was a catch and didn't run to second.

FANTASTIC GAME by Kerry and the Cubs. GREAT JOB GUYS! The Cubs play the Florida Marlins on Tuesday. Court & I have tickets to game 5 (if neccessary...I hope the Cubs win three straight and make it UNnecessary) so if it does happen I'll get a chance to see the Cubs clinch the pennant!

Again...Great Game to Kerry & the Cubs!

Cubs win! Spectacular 2-hit complete game performance by Mark Prior! Way to go Mark!

Great job, fellas! Go get 'em tomorrow too!

The Cubs lost last night. Zambrano pitched an OK game, and at one point the Cubs were leading 2-1, but after the Braves made it 3-2 and the Cubs tied THAT up Dave Veres gave up 2 runs in the bottom of the eighth and the Cubs lost 5-3.

Disappointing, but with a Prior start and a Clement start upcoming I still very much believe we'll win this series.

Last night, at around (or was it a little after?) midnight, THE CUBS WON GAME ONE! Wooooooo Hoooooooo! 4-2!

They had control of the entire game, basically. They squandered a TON of scoring chances early as Russ Ortiz never really had anything. Bases loaded with no outs and strikeout-strikeout-flyout...then, it happened AGAIN and this time they scored on a KERRY WOOD double! AWESOME!

Wood pitched an AMAZING game. Even made an awesome backhanded catch. What a great day for Kerry and the Cubs! Great job guys!

Game 2 is tonight at 7pm (est)! Good Luck Cubs!

In honor of the Bears getting destroyed by Green Bay in the first game in the new Soldier Field, I have decided to post my pager replies to my friend Arnold during the game. We page back and forth during Bears games commenting on how we think the game is going. The game started at 9:00pm (est)

9:45pm

Oh man...what a waste that satellite football package was. Maybe I'll start rooting for the Colts from now on. LOL

9:46pm

Jauron must go! LOL

9:49pm

Urlacher is banging Paris Hilton! He doesn't care anymore! Kordell blows! If they lose by 30 plus I am officially a Colts fan tomorrow and forever!!!

9:50pm

Terrell is jawing with Bears down by 17...Jauron looks like a deer in the headlights!

9:53pm

I guess this shows that Champaign was NOT to blame for last year's debacle! Virginia McCasky will drop dead of embarassment!

9:56pm

Damn...GB obviously blitzing two guys on left, yet man in motion doesn't pick it up, just keeps running to other side...Kordell's gonna get killed.

10:00pm

Screen pass...3rd and 11...get your a** to Church...Shoop MUST go!

10:24pm

Poor Kordell...does he even know he's doomed? LOL

11:41pm

I switch to DS9 DVDs about an hour ago. LOL

12:17am

Bears aren't doing so bad since GB stopped caring. LOL

12:23am

If I never have to see Favre smiling again it'll be too soon. Even laughing with my hero Chelios! Damn him!

12:26am

Bears organization shoudl have taken $ for new Soldier Field and bought some other state's team. LOL NIU would beat them!

12:29am

How sad...depressing, really. This team could go winless!

12:32am

Jauron totally had the 'deer in the headlights' look. And that was in the FIRST quarter!

12:38am

Yeah...team has a LOT of deficiences from what I see. Injuries, losing Ted Washington, O-line...

12:43am

Do you like how Madden kept calling the option a 'high school play' and we kept calling it? Shoop must go!

12:49am

I think we need to start thinking about the draft. LOL

12:52am

BTW...to me, seeing Chelios joking around with Favre is like finding out Santa Claus is good friends with Hitler. LOL

12:55am

Only two worse people for it to have been...Grace, and George Lucas. LOL

12:59am

I will do a dance of joy when Favre retires.

1:03am (after Arnold hoped that he'd do a dance of joy when Shoops drops dead from a bullet, car accident, homocide, or being eaten by wild animals)

Wild animals...LOL. Shoop, youngest ever coordinator, using some high school's playbook! wtf!

1:09am (after Arnold said he hopes Shoop goes home tonight and eats his gun)

I think McMicheal, Butkis, Duerson, Dent, and Singletary squad is beating Jauron and Shoop to death right now. LOL


And THAT, my friends, was about all the joy I got out of the Bears game...making fun of them. What a LETDOWN!


Anyways...CUBS PLAY TONIGHT! Cubs at Braves at 8pm (est). LET'S GO CUBS! Good Luck Guys!

CUBS WIN THE DIVISION!!!!!!!!!!!!


WOOOOO HOOOOOOOOO!

Astros lost today! More importantly...THE CUBS WON GAME ONE! Now, will definitely end up with a TIE for the Division no matter what happens! LET'S WIN GAME TWO AND TAKE THE DIVISION TODAY!

GREAT JOB GUYS!!!!!!!

The Cubs were rained out today. (BOO!)

They're playing a double header tomorrow and because they've used ALL their allowed night games (by the city of Chicago) they'll play basically 2 afternoon games, with a half hour break in between! (BOO!)

But, THE ASTROS LOST TO THE BREWERS TONIGHT 12-5! YEAH! Cubs in first by a HALF GAME! WOO HOO!

Not only did the Cubs LOSE to the Reds last night, but the Astros won. Cubs are tired for first.

On top of that, woke up to cat puke at the bottom of the stairs this morning. That's always nice. ANYBODY who says cats are less work than dogs is CRAZY. They're a lot MORE work, and it's a lot more DISGUSTING. Especially considering cats crap IN your house every day, and if a dog did that it would be punished!

VERY sharp complete game performance by Shawn Estes last night! It was on ESPN2 so I could watch...very nice!

Astros also won, so the Cubs don't gain a game, but they are still in FIRST with 4 to play!

Hopes are HIGH, bubba.

Giants win! Woo hoo!

Cubs tied for first with six games left! Three with Cincinatti, three with Pittsburgh!

GO CUBS!

Ok...Cubs are a half game back while Houston plays the San Francisco Giants. I'm hoping the Giants sweep the Astros while the Cubs keep winning! SF is at Houston, and I'm hoping I gave the Giants some mojo by going to a game at Pac Bell this year.

3-3 tie going into the ninth...and in the top of the ninth the Giants have scored 3 runs and it's now 6-3! If this holds up, the Cubs will be TIED FOR FIRST by tomorrow! Woo hoo!!!!!!!

2 years since 9/11. Wow. Well, if I started writing about everything I felt that day I'd be up all night. Suffice it to say, It changed a lot about the way I see the world. For the first time ever I didn't feel safe in this country. Could have had something to do about living 2 minutes away from the world's biggest airport and a half-hour out from what I still consider to be the world's tallest building.

On that Tuesday morning I was in Mr. Qarmaza's web class. I got a page from Uncle Bruce that a plane had hit the WTC. I figured it was an accident. Something had happened to the Empire State Building (I think) a few decades back. I tried to reach cnn.com or any news site via the web in class and it was too clogged up to be useful. I later got a page that the second tower had been hit. After class I went to work, and while I was driving the first tower fell and there were reports of smoke near the Lincoln Memorial. With that, I decided to head for home instead. (Later, I found out this smoke was from the attack on the Pentagon.)

I made it home just in time to see the second tower fall on live TV. I woke up my Dad (working third shift at the time) and filled him in. I did make it to work that day, for a time. We were glued to the TV in the little sitting area in a hallway in Arlington Heights. On the way home there were HUGE lines at every gas station I passed. First and only time I've ever seen that.

I was supposed to leave for FL on September 13th...the day before Court's 27th birthday. The secretary of transportation shut down the airways for the next 3 days. I finally flew out of Midway on the 14th around 9pm...after having my flight pushed back a day and then sitting in Midway as my 1pm flight was cancelled due to some bomb threat there. After about 9 hours at the airport we finally left. One of the first flights to leave Chicago once they turned the skies back on. I *did* make it to Court's in time for her BD...Central time, anyway. It was already 1am in FL by the time I arrived.

Something I'll always remember...living at my Dad's, near an industrial park and close to O'hare by minutes, I was used to the CONSTANT sound of planes overhead, all day and night long. Not hearing that for the days that flights were cancelled...it was just...wrong. That's all I can say about it. I'll never forget the quiet.

God bless all the people who lost their lives that day...paricularly those that lost their lives in the line of duty, as many of NY's Finest and Bravest did that day. Also, to the men and women passengers that brought down the third plane in Pennsylvania...I can only hope I'd be as brave as you all were that day. God bless.

Didn't sleep much last night. Just couldn't sleep. I made some kool-aid for the first time in years and years, and drank a lot of it. Must have been all that sugar that kept me awake. I must be getting too old to handle the sugar anymore. Sheesh.

Cubs won last night, and I'd thought Houston and St. Louis had lost, but Houston came back and won. So we're tied with them for first, with 19 games to go.

That's not so bad.

Cubs win again today! (yesterday)

Came back twice in the course of the game! (yesterday)

Cubs play Brewers tomorrow! (today)

Wish 'em luck! (always)

The Cubs came back from a 6-0 deficit yesterday. Yes, I thought the game was over and didn't pay any attention to it after the halfway point or so.

Shortly after, they came back and won it. I think *next* year is *this* year...and there'll be no more waiting.

The satellite people called this morning saying they'd be here between 3pm and 6pm. Consequently, at 2pm I started readying my current Tivo for moving into our bedroom and thus clearing out the space for the new Tivo.

That done, I'm looking out the window every five minutes to see if they're here yet. :D

PS--->Out of the 5 things to get accomplished this weekend, we did 4 and a half. Got the Universal passes, got the FL car insurance, got the model paint (no framing at this time...still investigating what we *really* want it to look like), got the grill cover, chain, and cinderblock, and mulch. No anchors and screws yet...have to check weight. Also, WE GOT DIRECTV! With TIVO! Hopefully the satellite guy comes today. This afternoon I'll try to cook-up a drive to sling into the new Tivo and give us more hours of recording time. Also, we got a china cabinet (which I've just learned won't be delivered until October 15th, as it is not in stock). So, with the China cabinet that's actually a thing we got accomplished that wasn't on the list! All that, and Court was sick with a bad cold all weekend. Not too shabby.

As a side note, the DirecTivo does NOT take a broadband connection as my current Tivo does...so it'll need a phoneline. That sucks, because I had to cobble a solution together for the Tivo to work without a phoneline (using an ethernet card and wireless-ethernet convertor) and now I need a phoneline on a wall which doesn't have one anywhere near it. Solution: Ebay, and a wireless phone jack device...turns any power outlet into a phone jack. We'll see how good it works when it arrives. Wish me luck!

The Cubs won last night, which was good. 1.5 games out of first, doubleheader with the Cards today.

The trash was knocked over AGAIN last night, which was VERY, VERY BAD. Court looked outside and saw it and also saw a white cat (with collar) standing around our front porch. I am now 100% convinced it is CATS doing the destruction. I now HATE all cats.

I definitely think Boots being in our house has something to do with it. The neighborhood cats (at least the white one and a calico) know we have a cat imprisoned in our house. The calico came to our front window (evidenced by boots mewing like crazy at the front) and I went outside and shooed it away. The dead bird I found outside our front door last week (did I write about that?) is more evidence they're doing this as a reaction to us having a cat. I think they're trying to woo him or something. Who knows?

Court still thinks raccoon for the cause of the trash destruction...but I'm still staying with 'cat'. Next step: go to Home Depot and buy some animal repellant (or maybe poison...must investigate legal ramifications...) to put around trash each night. Court wants to move it to the back. I don't think it'll be any safer there...in fact, if it IS a raccoon, it'll be worse, since it's probably coming out of the wildlife behind our house. Also, if the trash is in the back and is upset at night we won't even see it until we look out back, which we almost never do.

Two heart-breaking cub losses in a row...woe is me. :( Let's hope we trounce the brew crew this weekend.

So much to do this weekend:

1. Get universal 2-year passes for Court and I.

2. Get FL car insurance all setup.

3. Go to Micheal's and get a frame for the PotC litho and the California Adventure litho. Also, model paint for my DeLorean model.

4. Go to Home Depot and get a grill cover, big chain and cinderblock to chain grill to, and mulch. Also, anchors and screws for the Snow White magic mirror.

5. Go to BB and investigate the DirecTivos, probably getting DirecTV there. Want to get it setup before football next weekend.

6. I think that's it, but I wanted to end on an even number.

The cat hissed at me today. By my count that is twice since we've been back. Only twice in three days. Uh oh...he might be getting used to me.

I've even petted him a few times.

No, I'm still not a cat person...and will never be a cat person. But I'm retreating from my earlier opinion, which was that if he got run over by a steamroller, I wouldn't bat an eye.

Got back in to FL yesterday afternoon. After unpacking and doing some food shopping (as we had intentionally left NO food in the house, silly us) we started going through the mail and everything. Court got 'Chicago' from amazon, so I'll be treated to that garbage some time soon, I'm sure. At least I'm going to BB this afternoon to pick up 'Animal House'. If there were two movies that are less like each other than 'Chicago' and 'Animal House', I'm not sure.

Anyhoo, After going through the web, emails, regular mail, shopping, and ordering up some pizza for dinner, I didn't go to bed until 2am. Suffice it to say, I'm tired as hell. The honeymoon/wedding blog write-up is coming, so be patient. Actually, Court had kept a journal (of sorts) during our trip, detailing the things we did and such. I might refer to it to refresh my memory, as we had a ga-zillion things to do between Friday, August 15th, and yesterday, August 25th.

The cat is NOT under the bed at this time. He was actually very friendly and happy upon our return yesterday. I think he thought we'd abandoned him. I actually petted him and everything, and he didn't run away. Isn't that funny? I'm amazed he's actually acting like a pet. I'm reminded of a Bill Murray quote from Ghostbusters, a classic...'It'll be chaos! Cats and Dogs, living together...'.

I haven't even been hissed at...yet. Let's hope it never happens. :)

Was out doing 'bachelor party' type stuff until 4am. Woke up at 7:45 with a muddled head. (more than normal)

It hasn't gone away.

Also, crisis at work, which is always fun, has kept me here later than I'd wanted. I'm leaving with the hour to go to the mall to get Court her swiss-army Nextel phone and then to pick up my tux. Then, back this way to the church at 7pm for the rehearsal.

Hopefully my muddleds are gone by then. Heh...that sounds vaguely Potter-esque, doesn't it? Oh wait...that's muggles. d'oh

Well, we landed safely last night and all that. Picked up the rental car, a nice four-door with XM radio. Very slick. Slept good, nice to be in my bed again. I still say we need to lose that pillow-pad thing and the mattress protector thing that's on our mattress at home. I really really don't like it.

Went to the bank this morning and wrote the biggest check I've ever written in my life...easily eclipsing my previous record of $2000. I had to get a cashier's check to pay Fountain Blue with this afternoon. We're heading to lunch soon...nice to be back with the guys here for a few days.

Cubs lost yesterday. They play at 7:30p tonight so I'll miss it since our flight leaves at 7:50p. It'll be nice to be back home for a little while. There's a lot ot do in preparation for the wedding on Saturday though. I have to go get my tux and...well, that's about it for me.

I got the WB tickets reserved, and also received an email saying the new Clancy novel will be sent to my Mom's house. I went 2-day, so it should get there on Thursday. I wanted it by Sunday so I can have it on the flight to CA. You know, I'm still not sure if we leave Sunday or Monday. Yeesh.

Mainly cleaned today, but took some time off to go see Charlie's Angels 2 and go pick up something for Court's Dad at the village.

CA2 was ok. Too many impossible things, like people flipping around in mid-air and stuff. I mean, in the Matrix, they do that because they're 'playing' the Matrix program, right? But in what's supposed to be 'real life', it ends up looking idiotic. And this movie had it to the nth degree....waaay out of control.

We leave to go back to IL on Tuesday. First time Court and I will ever be on a plane together, so that'll be fun. Have to call Warner Bros. tomorrow to reserve out studio tour tickets for next Wednesday. Really looking forward to seeing California!

Cubs won again tonight! They're a game and a half back! Woo hoo!

Got a call from my Mom tonight, who got a call from my Grandma in Arizona. Seems she was asking why a certain Aunt (let's call her Gail) was not invited to the wedding. I'll have to call her back tomorrow, but the real answer (and the one I'll give her) is that I just didn't think about that person. She's my great aunt...My Dad's aunt. Truth be told, I didn't even remember she existed when we were making our lists. I haven't seen Aunt Gail in YEARS. Like waaaay over 5 year, and more around 10. I mean, do I really need to invite these people? We are still 10 under the guaranteed, so I might as well, but still. And it's not like I care about pissing them off, because it's not like I saw them when WE LIVED IN THE SAME STATE, which we do not anymore. What a pain. I mean, if her son was getting married (for all I know, he is already) I wouldn't expect to be invited, nor would I care. I guess with the number of AZ people coming in for the wedding word must have gotten around. Also, her brother ( I think...still not sure about that side 100%) is coming, but I would recognize him on sight, as would he me, I hope. They're the same tier of family member (great-...) but it's just different. Last time I heard about this family, they were trying to hit my Dad up for some investment or something. Court talked to my Mom about this, and then said to me 'well, they're lawyers, so at least we'll...' and I was like 'uh, no. I don't think they're like that.'

I mean, gifts are nice, but I'm not all about that. From day one of the engagement I knew that a HUGE chunk of my money would be going towards this wedding, and I considered it gone from then on. I'll be happy with what we get, that's for sure, but I'm not looking to make any money out of getting married. Some people make money, some break even, some end up losing.

Financially, we can afford to lose all of it (mostly because I get paid the day before) and not get thrown out of the house or anything, which is always nice. :)

I just hope everybody has a good time, and it all comes together well with no problems, and let the chips (and gifts) fall where they may.

I should rename this blog 'it's pouring outside', because it is. Cats and dogs. Court lost power at work even. So if I blink out here (UPS is hooked up to the Tivo :) ) you'll know why.

This morning, the trash was strewn about outside again. I swear, if I ever catch whatever is doing it. I think I'll have a stakeout in my car overnight when we get back. I'm going to have to start spraying RAID all over the trashcan before it goes out out trashnight. I don't put the bungee cord on it when the trashman comes because we've already lost 2 that way.

Once we get a dog, I hope the scent will keep other animals away from our front lawn...especially those outside cats.

Cubs won again tonight, 3-2. They're in second place now, 2 1/2 behind Houston still...but they bypassed the damn Cards, who lost again tonight! Woo hoo!
Nicely pitched game by Kerry Wood and a homer by Sammy. Cubs have won their last 3 series, and this makes 4. Way to go!

We had a frozen bagged skillet thing for dinner. Nice mix of chicken and veggies. We added some worchestershire and it's given me heartburn a little bit. It was good though. Very enjoyable.

9 days til the big wedding day. People keep asking if I'm nervous. I'm not, really. Truth is, I don't really think about it that much. I've always been that way. I wait until the day before the special occassion (holidays, vacations) to really start thinking about it. I am looking forward to it all. For wedding and being married matters, it already feels like we're married to me. For all intents and purposes, we are. Only difference is, after the 16th I'll have to wear a ring. :)

Cubs win! 2 1/2 games out now!

Aramis Ramirez just hit a two-run homer with a two-strike count! Cubs winning 3-0, top ninth!

(a win is a MUST, considering the Cards and Astros both lost!)

Listening to the Cubs game now. West coast game, so it started at 10pm our time. Top of the ninth, Cubs lead 1-0. Prior came back today from his arm bruise and pitched a gem til the sixth when they took him out. Guthrie got the Cubs out of a jam later on in the game by getting the Cubs out of a bases-loaded situation. The game's Tivo'ing, but I prefer to listen to the radio and mute the television, and since Court is sleeping now I'm listening upstairs. (via the internet of course, since WGN doesn't reach quite this far).

As is the FL case, it torrentially rained again today. Man...last year, it was all about the drought down here. Now, all it does is storm. Oh well...I like the rain. It puts me to sleep.

Rained like CRAZY today. Tons of flodding around here...one intersection was totally flooded out. We went out to go to Staples so I could get some things and it was raining so badly we turned around and came home. Stayed in for a while and then went out after it stopped. I got my new mousepad...it's a 3M Precise Mousing Surface, specially made for optical mice. Hopefully this means no more dirt and stuff on the bottom of my mouse. Also, it's got a wrist rest, which I hope helps the 'I think it's carpal tunnel' pain in my right shoulder. That's the only thing I can think of...my body is getting used to sitting in a new position at a new desk. I should probably find my keyboard's wrist wrest...wherever it is.

I usually never use that stuff. I must be getting old.

We went to Target today to pick up some things from our list now that our wedding shower gift-getting is most likely over. We got new pots and pans, a paper shredder, a new toaster, and a new vacuum cleaner. The old stuff will be going to Salvation Army.

We were going to go to Chef Mickey's (my fav) for dinenr tonight but opted out. Neither of us was in the mood for going over to Disney and all that. Instead, I picked up MD's and we watched 'Planes, Tranes, and Automobiles'. It was bad to eat MD, but the movie was funny as Hell, as always. It's one of my all time favorites comedies.

'You're going the wrong way!' 'How could he know where we're going?'

And the Cubs win!

Ok...I listened to the Cub game until the rain delay. Great pitcher's duel....1-1 throughout until the D-backs scored 3 shortly after I re-joined the game in extra innings. I figured I jinxed them, so I shut it off. Now it's 3-3 in the top of the 14th. I was just about to turn it back on, but then I was like 'uh...maybe not.' Don't want to jinx them again!

Go Cubs!

We were going to help Court's friend Denise move on Sunday and then go to dinner at Chef Mickey's (my fav) but Court's boss told her that she now has to work on Sunday! WTF is that...2 days notice! Her boss is such a tool. Doesn't know HOW to be a manager, and when things blow up in his face (i.e., not remember certain people asked for the same day off yet still saying 'yes' to them and stranding someone by themself then) he pretty much just says 'oh well'. What BS. I told her when we get back from the honeymoon she should actively look for a new job. Maybe something at Disney, who knows.

Tonight, maybe Donato's for dinner. Maybe we'll pick up a pizza then head to Blockbuster for a DVD. Sounds good by me. The spire fan from Sharper Image came today. Should be a nice surprise for Court...I set it up and everything. It's part of my wedding present to her. I see that it's raining now, which is odd because it's bright outside and the sun is shining. Oh well...nobody ever said living here was NORMAL.

Wow...haven't blogged in a while! Well, I guess because nothing as happened. While the Cubs were off Monday, they won Tuesday and lost Wednesday. They picked up Doug Glanville, another former Cub, shortly after ditching Jose Hernandez. Let's hope Doug doesn't strike out too often.

Last night we went to Epcot briefly to pick up a pillbox for Court from China. She has to take some medicine for her back and doesn't like carrying around all of them in her purse. Weather was nice. Got in about 2 hours before park closing. Pretty big crowd, most of them staking out spaces for the fireworks show at park closing.

Tonight we'll go see Tomb Raider 2...if we get stuck with second row seats (like LXG) I will absolutely go postal. No doubt about it.

Wedding stuff is going good I guess. We are at 220-some at last count. Plus, I know of 2 more because my Dad hasn't sent his RSVP in yet. Also, haven't gotten an answer from Dan (my boss) yet. Not sure if he's coming or not. He's got 3 little kids, so unless he can kind a good sitter I'd say no. We guaranteed Fountain Blue 250 so we will probably be short. I told Court, better 220 than 320, mostly for $ reasons. Paying Fountain Blue will come within about $1500-$2000 of cleaning my bank account out. No big deal though, since I've always known that would happen. It'll be nice to see it all come together. I hope everyone has a good time.

Though I forgot below, I want to give props to 'ole Betsy, my beloved Contour, who came through in a clutch on Saturday and saved the day!

For those of you who thought my car was 'old n busted' and would be the more likely to die rather than Court's, I say poop on you.

I missing updated yesterday during the day, so let me give you a rundown of what happened on Saturday.

Actually, story starts Friday. On our way home from being out and about, it was raining. The battery light in Court's car came on. She said it's happened before and nothing has been wrong. Also, Thursday, while the car was being repaired for catalytic convertor work, they did a check on the batt and it was fine. So we dismissed it.

Cut to Saturday...Court's on her way to work, I'm still sleeping. She calls me on the nextel, saying her instrument panel has given out. She has LCD spedometer and other gauges, so when it goes it's just OFF. She made it to the Gaylord (where she was working) and I said I'd get ready and get out there to swap cars so she wouldn't have to drive her car (with no gauges) and I'd just take it straight home. Well, I go there and drop my car off and take her car home. Well...I was *trying* to get home, and then...

The radio gave out. To me, that's a sign that the car's electrical system/battery is ready to plunk it. The car then began to have some other problems...it wouldn't change into the next gear, so I was stuck going about 25mph on the street. I was able to coax it onto on onramp so I could at least get it on the shoulder of the highway, which was better than the street because there was no room. I went on the highway for about 2 minutes and then decided to try to get off and get it into some parking lot so Court could bring my car and jump it. It didn't make it that far. It died, totally, 100%, at the light at the end of the exit. Thankfully, there were 2 lanes going the direction I was blocking, so people eventually got the hint (after I waved a dozen people past in all) that I wasn't moving. The blinkers were on, but with no juice they were just about invisible. Eventually, Court called the dealership, which ok'd a tow truck applied against her warranty and they sent a truck out. Court then left work and met up with me where I was stranded.

In all, I'm glad it was me and not her. Unfortunately, I've had a *lot* of experience with this...with the blue beast and Dad's various vehicular problems. I've had cars die in the middle of the highway in the middle of rushhour...die in huge snowstorms...die and have to be restarted on the fly while shifted to neutral. And that's not even mentioning some of Dad's car things. I'm long passed being embarassed about it as people pass me. To their credit, Floridians are nice people, as about a half-dozen people asked me if I needed help and seemed eager to do so. I'm just glad it was a Saturday with the light traffic and less hustle and bustle. Had it been a weekday I doubt people would have been so nice. Also, it was hotter than hell. It's about 98 today, and it was probably around there on Saturday. And with no air I was DYING. Good thing Court left work and met up with me in my car. Tow truck driver was a nice guy...it sucks that he had to come out on a weekend but I tipped him $10 on top of whatever he normally makes. So that was my adventure.

So Court has my car today, her late day, which means she'll be home at 11pm. Normally I'd get Little Caesar's $5 large pizza and $1.99 two crazy bread, but I have no car. Luckily, Court's car will be done tomorrow and she's going to Amy's after work to help with our FL shower favors for the shower we're getting down here this weekend. I helped out with enough favors in all, so I'm opting out. At least I'll get my Caesar's tomorrow. Bwong!

We did a ton of running around yesterday. Court had to go shopping for a few things so we went to the outlet mall, the regular mall, and Target. We went big food shopping at Target...I swear, we can't leave that place without spending $100. I miss Jewel, I have to say.

At Target, there was a big fat woman harassing the pharmacist because allegedly he didn't let her '9-months pregnant' daughter have the key to the bathroom in the pharmacy, which the pharmacist said he didn't have anyway. I guess there's been something wrong with the door for like 3 days and they can't even use it themselves. Best part was, the lady started off her rant with 'I'm in here spending 300 dollars and you refuse to let my daughter' blaa blaa blaa...thing was, about 70 feet away is the front of the store, with the regular people restrooms and all that. My impression: go to the other bathrooom, lady. Court's impression: 9-months pregnant women shouldn't be going to Target anyways. But the phrase of the day was said by a random passer-by who heard the rant...'Jeez lady, go get yourself a can and piss in that'. I'm not sure if she heard that, but I did, and it was funny as hell.

While Court was getting her perscription the pharmacist told her some other info about her medicine...as we were leaving, I said 'oops, we forgot to ask him for the key to the bathroom' and that got a laugh out of the clerk. :)

We went to Chili's for dinner tonight. Ended up being out so late that when we got home Court was ready for bed anyways. (read: 10pm) I'll have to save 'Monk' and 'Stargate SG-1' for tomorrow to watch I guess. I'm about ready to start reading, and then bed. She works tomorrow so I'll do some outside lawn work on our bushes and stuff in front and then maybe watch some DS9 DVDs or maybe some American Revolution stuff I Tivo'd off the History Channel on the 4th.

BTW, State Farm woman called today with her quote. Once Court & I are married my 6 month insurance will be somewhere around $538. Bonus...that's cheaper than it was at home. Still sucks that I got that school bus ticket though...what total BS that was! Snark!

It's past three and because fo work stuff I haven't even had time to take a shower today! Dang it. You know, people tease me about getting to work from home and being able to goof off...the truth is, on a normal Friday I'd probably be heading home/out by now. And there's on way I would have gotten into the office at 8am like I did today.

Wanted to see LXG tonight, but Court says Amy & Chris (FL) want to see that too, so we're going tomorrow night. Tonight we might see Lara Croft, which means we'll encounter the exact crowds that I wanted to avoid by wanting to go see an 'older' movie tonight. Why wouldn't they go see LXG tonight? Oh, who knows. blarg

We had a nice dinner tonight. Pork chops baked in with some Campbell's meal-in-a-box stuff. Some kind of sauce and stuffing...it was very good. After running to the post office this afternoon to return some damaged crystal we had gotten I went to Panera and got some sour-dough rolls for dinner. It was very good. After, we watch 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding'. Kinda funny, kinda appropriate somewhat. I think my family is like the guy's family, while Court's is kinda like the girl's family, but not quite that bad. :)

I beat EF2 tonight. It's an awesome game. I guess the multi-player (internet gaming) isn't as good as EF1, but I don't really have the time/inclination to stay up until 4am playing against some online guys in Germany. Too much other stuff to do, I guess. I get about 1-2 hours of gaming in a day, usually in the time between when Court falls asleep and I feel tired enough to start reading. I'm installing 'Enter the Matrix' now, which I got a while ago but never found time to play. Then, it'll be 'Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb' or 'Bridge Commander'. Most like BC, so I can see if anybody on the Raven boards wants to take me on in my retro Bird of Prey.

Cubs lost tonight...Lofton and Ramirez went 0 for 4, and Ramirez missing a grounder at third that *I* could have snagged up...and I was a catcher/outfielder by trade. Oh well. Let's hope they win the next two to win the series with Philly.

Just heard the Cubs traded for Kenny Kenny Kenny Kenny Kenny Lofton and Aramis Ramirez! They had to move Jose Hernandez (who sucks), some money, and a prospect! Aramis WILL BE the solution at THIRD! And Kenny Kenny Kenny Kenny Kenny can play center and steal bases, so he'll be a good replacement for the injured Patterson! What great news! Too bad the Cubs lost tonight though. :(

Still, I can't WAIT to see the new lineup!

We watched Star Wars tonight...Court's choice, strangely enough. She's a fan, so that's cool. VHS tapes though...sucks...can't wait for the orig trilogy on DVD.

Frozen Boston Market Turkey Pot Pie for dinner. I've never had a pot pie made of anything before. It was good. Nuff said on that.

p.s.---Boots is fine from his Road Hotel ordeal. No ill effects. He was actually acting nice to me today. Probably because we went to Target for some stuff and got him so new treats. We got 3 different kinds, and when they all didn't fit in the normal container I just put the excess in his bowl. I miss my Bay-Bay.

This morning I awoke to find one of the roach traps (which I put out yesterday) on the floor at the bottom of the stairs. It had a hole in it. Next to it was some cat puke. Boots must have gotten a hold of one somehow and gotten a taste of it that made him glark up his breakfast.

Oh well. The cat is fine. That is all.

Went with Court to her doctor's appointment today. She got a prescription for some painkiller for days her back is bad. The doc said that the MRI of her back looks like that of someone much older than her. Basically, he said she's too young for the kind of surgery it'd take, but 10 years down the road it'll have to happen. I just hope it doesn't get any worse. :(

Cubs won tonight, after Mr. D called to raz me about Prior going on the DL. It's 15 day, retro from his last start, so he'll miss a start. The Cubs called up some nobody to take his space for the start. Hopefully, it's a good kind of 'nobody' meaning that teams won't have a script for him so they won't know what they're seeing until it's too late. We'll see what happens.

Dinner at Ale House tonight, after we decided to forget the idea of having yesterday's OG leftovers. After the doc we weren't in the mood for re-heated yesterday food. In fact, I'm never in the mood for that. AH was ok...I can do without going there for a while...and it's enough like Hooters where I can forget that for a while too.

Our trash bungee cord was stolen ...

WHOA...just saw a huge roach on the wall. Ran downstairs, got the RAID, and BLASTED it! El-gone-o! Sucked it up with the vacuum. Good thing Court didn't see that. She can't handle bugs. Funny, we just put roach motels in the crevices and bowels of the house tonight too. Reminds me of my days at ACE where if I saw a bug I'd run to lawn & garden, get some spray, and blast it out of existence.

Anyway...back to the bungee cord. So, the dang bungee cord I use to close up the trash can each night was stolen by some bastard. This morning I noticed it was gone when I picked up the trash can from the street, and I figured the trash guys just threw it in with the trash. I happened to mention that to Court and she said that when she left this morning she had to move to lid, cord, and trashcan out of the way of her car. So the trash guys didn't take it...some bastard in our neighborhood did. We live at the end of a cul-de-sac of sorts, so there are only about 4 families that could have even seen it to take it. And out of those, one is our new neighbors (extremely unlikely) and one is our semi-new neighbors (older couple, no chance whatsoever) so it's either 'late night raining stereo installer' people or 'people I don't even know and have rarely if ever seen'. I'll keep a lookout. It's a $2 cord, but after 'The Great Gas Grill Heist' in the backyard I'm taking no chances, especially with important things in the house, like my DVDs, Tivo, TV, and the cat. (in that order)

Well, I'm off to read and to bed. Later Skaters