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LET’S GO YANKEES

/ Jo Redd / Leave a comment

With the Tampa Bay series’ conclusion, the Yankees have extended their lead, and they head for Boston with the chance to continue their winning streak. Winning against the Twins is expected, but this series with Tampa could have ended with us looking up at them in the top spot.

The second half of the season has been especially rough on Yankees fans, and it is a sign of hope to see them take this series. The Yankees need to continue to roll. I’m not sure if the front office has it in them to thoroughly shake things up, but if they were up to snuff, they would DFA Hicks once Hader is ready to go. I think the administration and the manager have made it clear that they see no value in him. It would have been nice for them to have come to this conclusion before the beginning of the season, but hindsight is 20/20. While Hicks has been struggling, I worry that an abrupt departure could potentially derail the team yet again.

As a lifelong fan, I am used to the roller coaster of emotions that a season can elicit, but this year has been particularly tough. Last year the team was just plain awful. It was easy to see that they would spiral and sputter up until the last game, which is exactly what happened. This year started at such a booming pace that it felt like things would never change. I thought they would look at a season with over 110 wins, but we’ll be lucky to pull out a hundred.

What a wild week.

/ Jo Redd / Leave a comment

The world has been watching for the past week as Russia encroaches on Ukrainian territory, and it has been a wild ride. First, we got to listen to a speech given by Putin where he opted to revise history, then we watched as “peacekeeping forces” were sent into the region and troops were drawn to the border on both sides. It all culminated in the Russian forces surging into the countryside, where they found multiple pockets of resistance.

It seems surreal. I feel like the news has the conflict plastered front and center for all segments, yet many other issues still need to be focused on. Is anyone else drowning due to inflation? I can’t seem to stop spending at least $70 every time I pop into the grocery store. Milk is up almost two dollars from a year and a half ago. Meat prices are astronomical. Let’s not forget that gas is bound to skyrocket once the full effect of this Eastern European conflict is felt around the world. Meanwhile, the people in power just keep spending more money on everything they can think of.

Covid has been placed on the backburner. We just watched Canada trample citizens over the issue of Covid vaccine mandates, and yet the threat of war has caused a fog to settle on this issue. The medical industry is still shedding employees due to burnout and requiring a vaccine that might prevent severe symptoms.

Hopefully, something slows down. We need cooler heads to prevail in these matters, and we need to remember that war is something we do not need to be involved in.

Jumping back into a customer service job.

/ Jo Redd / Leave a comment

I have officially been hired on with Casey’s and I am just thrilled at having found a source of income. One of the best perks is that it is literally up the road from where I live, so once the weather warms up I will be able to walk up there. With gas prices jumping up, with no end in sight, I love the idea of cutting back on that expense significantly.

People always joke about the convenience store closest to their house being a place where everyone has seen them at their worst, and I am no exception. This has been my regular haunt for four-plus years, it is about time I finally became a part of the team.

Don’t forget, MLBtv auto-renews on March 1st.

/ Jo Redd / Leave a comment

Since the lockout is dragging on potentially into March, this is your friendly reminder that MLBtv usually auto-renews on March 1st. Less than a week ago, I heard the owners debate that players in the minor league should not be paid for Spring Training, they also argued in defense of cutting a ton of jobs, and we were blessed with the idea of expanding the playoffs. Baseball is becoming a joke, and I am not letting that organization take my money, considering the season is likely to be delayed.

The owners are making a ton of money. Every year prices increase when it comes to food, drinks, ticket prices, and this year you can bet a trip to the stadium will cost a pretty penny. That’s assuming that there is a reason to go to the stadium. 2022 is giving off serious 2020 vibes, and I’m not about to fall for that trick again. I ponied up the money to watch a short season because there was a worldwide pandemic occurring, but there is no excuse this year.

The only silver lining I can find in this situation is that the lockout has allowed the Yankees to pretend like they were ever going to sign a big-name player. The organization showed the fans their true colors with the rehiring of Boone as manager. Before the lockout, there were no movements with any true significance, and I have no hope that the period after the lockout will be any different.

How can the players get an extension done before the (theoretical) season gets started if Spring Training is already delayed? This is a serious question that I have not seen many people bring up on social media. We all act as though the pen will start flying and that all these gigantic contacts will spring out of the front office, but why would that be the case? These owners will retaliate if they come out on the losing end.

I realize that a lot of this is just rambling to people who do not follow baseball, but it’s something that is more than a little aggravating, given that most fans just want to feel like things are back to normal. The idea of not being able to watch baseball is depressing, and I really do hope the two sides can come together and agree.

Crypto is having a bad day.

/ Jo Redd / Leave a comment

My crypto account is seeing red. The amount I’ve made just keeps going down, and it is never something one wants to see. I refuse to cut my losses and turn away from Crypto because, in the long run, I think it is going to be a brilliant financial decision for me. At times like this, I tend to try and invest a small amount. It is the same mindset you’re supposed to have with the stock market: Buy when it’s low and sell it when it’s high.

I certainly don’t intend to invest until I’m broke, that would be unwise, but I will keep my tiny piece of the pie for the long-term gain that I know will happen.

Facebook/Meta Banhammer for 90 days

/ Jo Redd / Leave a comment

A year and a half ago, I chose to post a funny meme on Facebook. Today, that meme came back to bite me in the ass, and it resulted in a ban from posting ads on Facebook. It’s one of the only ways I can hope to gain traffic to my site, and now it has been squelched.

To be completely transparent, here is the meme in question:

It is ridiculous that something like this gets flagged. It is no wonder that the site is hemorrhaging users.

Speak it into existence.

/ Jo Redd / Leave a comment

The fear of failing is powerful. It can hold the brightest and most ambitious back from success. Sometimes, all we need to do to combat this failure is speak of our goals aloud. Instead of keeping our dearest thoughts and dreams locked inside our minds, we need to release those ideas and let the rest of the world hear about our endeavors. I am ready to be successful, I am prepared to build a business in my home, and I am prepared to move forward.

I have been on this planet for 33 years, and I have gained knowledge on various topics in that time frame. My hobbies are multifaceted, as are my talents and skills. I am always willing to learn something new, and I crave finding a work atmosphere that feels inclusive and warm. I realize that all jobs will have stressors, but my former employment had too many all at once.

I’m tired of moping around and whining to myself about why things aren’t working out. I will never change things if I continue to feel afraid of failure. Perhaps the universe is keeping me from finding another 9-5 job because It recognizes that I am meant for more than I currently have.

It is time to start something new. I don’t care what I start working on. I just know that I need to complete some sort of project. I need to prove that I have what it takes to get the kind of career I want.

Down and out, but not defeated. Yet.

/ Jo Redd / Leave a comment

2022 has already been a wild ride, and I’m starting to wonder why I chose to go down this path. I can handle rejection. My issue stems from how much time I have spent just to find yet another seemingly insignificant hiccup on the road to working for myself.

Once I realized I needed a bachelor’s degree before doing anything related to editing, I turned my attention back to the work from home industry. I got cold feet when looking into a job with Omni Interactions, and I’m still kicking myself for letting that one go. Tonight, I finally decided to set up an account with arise. I did the assessment, watched the videos, gave them all my information, only to have them turn around and reject me due to my equipment. My laptop’s processor isn’t up to snuff, and now I have hit another dead-end. I just bought this computer at the end of 2022, and already it isn’t capable of handling the kind of work most of these places require. I would be lying if I said I had the money to fix this: I don’t. I do not have the means to make that big purchase again.

I’ve spent the last month getting things set up to work from home. Now it seems as though all of that money has been wasted. I’m also looking for a standard 9-5 job, and even in that respect, I have been hitting numerous dead-end roads.

Halftime Show was a win for music.

/ Jo Redd / Leave a comment

I don’t care what anyone says. That was an excellent halftime performance from all the artists. Eminem will always be my favorite, but the other artists put all their energy into what they were singing. The crowd seemed to become electrified watching each stage light up.

I knew that Snoop would be the first one out of the gate because that is always how it seems to work. I’ve seen him in concert before, probably about a decade ago, and he’s still got the same swag that he’s always had. It was really cool to watch all the performers work together and create exciting bridges before going into their solo stuff.

I loved all the dancing and theatrical choreography. Each backup performer had a purpose, and no one seemed to be left making their own random moves.

I am not sure why they chose to make the stage viewable to half the audience, but other than that, I have no complaints.