Even though my neck of the woods just received almost four inches of snow, the meteorologists in the area are still trying to sell us on the idea that December 15th will be nearly seventy degrees. Yes, I am a major downer, but it isn’t out of spite. I try to remain a realist, and anyone from the Midwest knows that if you have this much snow on the ground, you will not see southern temperatures. The fact that rain is supposedly coming with this system makes me cringe. I can already see mountains of ice being dumped on the already snow-covered roads.
I love warm weather. If I could move somewhere warm and dry, I would do it in a heartbeat. My home is here in the midwest, and so these periodic promises of warm weather only drive the knife a little deeper once winter proves all the intelligent people wrong.
When I’m wrong, I’ll be the first to admit that I am wrong. So please, let me eat my words here in just a couple of days.
I know that I have been silent for the majority of the year, but 2021 has been nothing but a whirlwind for me. I am once again considering a new career path, and the decision has been weighing heavily on my mind.
One day I intend on having this little corner of the internet up and running. I can only guess when that day will come.
In a somewhat surprising move, the Angels have released Albert Pujols yesterday. Pujols, who was in the last year of his contract, was a fan favorite, and it’s somewhat upsetting to see the Angels treat him this way. Yes, the Angels have been struggling, but they cannot blame it all on the rough start that Pujols has had.
While I’m not a big fan of the Cardinals, and I was more than a little perturbed by them not trying to keep Pujols around, I do think they should offer a short contract to him so that he may return home and play in front of the crowd that always loved him.
The polar vortex is upon us and its giving me terrible cabin fever. The roads are dangerous because we keep getting snow squalls and with the low temperatures you can’t keep it from freezing, so I have been sticking to home. I’ve got plenty of books that I could be reading but I feel like I need to be going somewhere. I hate feeling like I am trapped, and I begin trying to make any excuse to leave.
Wind chills are -30 so I refuse to take my kid out in this, but that means we’ve had to come up with creative ideas to stay active in a very small space. We have a very cold entry room that we will occasionally bring a tub of snow into and I’ll let my child play with that for a while. He is very much into reading so we will spend a good chunk of the afternoon reading, and I recently signed up for this kid streaming service that is supposed to be more “wholesome” content. We’ve also started designing tents using different furniture pieces, a favorite of X’s. Those solar lanterns have come in handy for when he wants to “sit in the dark tent.”
I’m such bad luck that I promise you, its a good thing for the Chiefs that I want to see the Buccaneers win. I’m off to get a late start on some of the food I’m making for my kid and I. Happy Super Bowl everyone!
Everyone has a go-to guilty pleasure movie; mine just happens to be an entire franchise. Any Fast and Furious movie is something I’m willing to sit down and watch and I’m looking forward to seeing the next installment.
Because of the quarantine, I discovered CinemaSins which is a movie review channel on YouTube. He has done reviews of all 8 films and I’ve watched them all multiple times because often I’m laughing over his jokes. Its such an accurate take on each movie and some of the one liners are hilarious to the point of tears. I guess I never realized just how ridiculous this series was in its entirety.
If bad car movies aren’t your thing (when it comes to reviews) never fear, the channel has a variety of different genres and the commentary is punctuated perfectly with the clips included. Other personal recommendations would be his review of Twister and School of Rock. Again, the analysis provided in each video is unique and its fast paced so even though the videos are close to twenty minutes, it doesn’t feel like you’ve spent that much time on it. The reviews, at times, are better than the movies themselves.
Winter has finally descended upon the Midwest and its time to pull out the inside activities. So, today we decided to tackle one of my kid’s puzzles. It is only 100 pieces but its pretty cool, and it glows in the dark!
Side note: My kid hasn’t put down the lanterns since they got here. They are definitely a hit. And when you keep them on their low level they last about 30 hours.
With the departure of Masahiro Tanaka from the New York Yankees, I got to thinking about my all-time favorite Yankee player: Hideki Matsui. He was on the team from 2003 to 2009, and he is the reason I have a special place in my heart for all the players from Japan.
Matsui was the pinnacle of good manners, unmatchable work ethic, and undying loyalty. I will forever believe that the Yankees made a mistake not resigning him after the 2009 season. Matsui was the MVP of the World Series and, while his knees were beginning to fail him, I think he would have been a better producer for us than Damon was. I’m willing to admit that I am heavily biased in this argument. I remember having pictures of Matsui in my locker at school, and I can remember always being super bummed when he was not in the lineup. On the other hand, Damon was a former Red Sox player, and he could not win me over.
Matsui was such a hard worker in left field; I remember the game where he broke his wrist and, though you could see the obvious pain on his face, Matsui stopped the runners from being able to advance farther by finding the ball and throwing it in. I don’t know too many players today that wouldn’t fall to the ground and completely forget about the game (understandably so) after sustaining that injury. After Matsui was placed on the injured list, he actually released a statement where he apologized for letting down the fans. He was always so concerned about the impression he had on the fans, and that’s why everyone loved him.
One of the many reasons I respect the Yankees as an organization involves Hideki Matsui and the end of his career. When he was getting ready for retirement, Matsui worked out a one-day contract where he could officially retire as a Yankee. Matsui is instrumental in acquiring top talent from Japan signed to the Yankees, and he is a presence on the field throughout spring training and the rest of the season. It’s been nice to see him maintain a relationship with the Yankees because he’s always been someone to add to the clubhouse atmosphere.
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