Monthly Archives: November 2002

General, Uncategorized

Transit

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So here I at MSP Intern’tl Airport.  The flight out of Bzn was delayed about half an hour cuz of fog.  Then the plane arrived at gate G-40, which is at precisely the opposite end of this gigantic airport from my departure gate, A-14.  All that did was to keep me from having both a beer and a meal.  There was only time for a beer (6.00) and a king-size Snickers (1.25) from the vending machine.  This leads me to an observation about candy bar sales — there is far less frequently an option to even get a regular-sized bar (this machine being an example of that) so why even call the ‘king-size’ such?  The way I see it, the candy bars were a hell of a lot bigger when I was a kid anyway, so let’s just cut the crap, y’know what I’m sayin?

Whew.  A 24-oz, 6-dollar Sam Adams will make you go off about stuff.  It will also make this little pda keyboard look fuzzy, so I’ll wrap this up.

The only other comment I really needed to make was about women.  There were at least a half-dozen GORGEOUS ones on the flight from Bzn this morning, all accompanied by their husbands/boyfriends.  I think the odds of meeting a normal, single one go down a little every day.

Oh, that, and I met a bloke at the bar coming from Colorado Springs on his way to Dayton and then to Japan on Sunday.  Apparently, this eastbound detour (to his hometown) saved him 200 dollars on the fare.  Sometimes the planets are just aligned, I guess.  More from ER.

Oh a PS after I got on this plane: I am glad I had a drink first.  I will be impressed if this thing leaves the ground.

General, Uncategorized

Less than Sane

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It’s Wednesday, the 27th of November, 2002.  Tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day.  This is a college campus I’m living on.  At least fifty percent of the student population has vacated the for the weekend already, bound for their parents’ or friends’ homes, their favorite ski destinations, or some other secluded refuge from the bustle of academia.

A PRIME TIME, one would think, to do some last-minute laundry before leaving on an extended weekend away, so that the load when one gets back is a bit lighter.  Ought to be able to go down the stairs, one would think, and find a silent, vacant laundry room, the majority of the kiddies already out the door, and dragging with them the bag of dirty clothes they’ll probably manage to convince Mom to wash for them when they get home.

NOT THE BLOODY CASE.  Nonono, at 9:30 AM on this day, the place is BOOKED SOLID.  ‘Nary a washer to be had!!  Even at 4 on a Saturday afternoon (roughly two hours after your average student will rise) in the heart of the fall, when no one has good reason to be anywhere but SHACKED UP IN THE DORM have I encountered such a high laundry demand.

I am perturbed.  More to come later on, things to do, then the previously-promised “last video.”

General, Uncategorized

Creativity, by God.

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Glad to know that it hasn’t left me completely.  I have sat down numerous times in the past couple weeks trying to start a new story about a radio DJ in a small Midwestern town (writin what I know, Jen) and I didn’t really know anything except that that guy would be in it.  I would sit and lament that all the academic drivel I’ve had to produce this semester crippled me somehow and stole my ability to think outside that strict and stiff discourse.  But ah, not the case!

I got something started today, and it felt really nice.  Y’know, I’m finding that it is so much damned easier to write about someplace you’ve been, something you’ve done, some situation you’re familiar with.  There’s a lot less about the environment you have to imagine to life, leaving you only concerned with the lives of the characters and their relations.  It’s nice.

Well, time for me to watch 24 and Smallville now, so that’s where I’m at on that… tomorrow is going to be the Final Video Address of the Semester, so look for that, eh?

If you’re going to be in ER this weekend, see you there!

Sports, Uncategorized

Aftermath

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Following a long NFL conversation with Josh Schneider this morning, I see good reason to prognosticate on the remaining NFL season as it stands this Monday morning.  Me thinks I smell a feature for Mondays the rest of the year…

Josh contends that there is a “conspiracy” in the NFL, not only to have the NFC playoffs all travel through Green Bay, but also for Brett Favre and the Pack to hoist a Lombardi Trophy in San Diego in January as a “farewell” to Favre, who will announce his retirement shortly thereafter.  I believe Josh to be full of shit, and I’ve told him as much.  Here is how the playoffs will shape up:

 

As you can see, yesterday’s game will wind up costing the Packers a first-round playoff bye and what would’ve been a home game in Rd 2.  In the AFC, Jay Fiedler back in the lineup and the overall parity in the conference will get the Dolphins a home game in the Divisional Round, but they will choke as usual, and San Diego’s youth will be exposed when the Senior NFL Tour drops by from upstate.  The only thing I’m changing my mind about already is that it will, in fact, end up being OAKLAND that wins the Super Bowl, not Tampa.  The savvy Raiders will find a way to score more than 23 points in that game, putting it out of reach for the O-less Bucs.

So yeah, Super Bowl matchup: Tampa Bay vs. Oakland, Raiders win.

Greatest travesty in the playoffs: Philly’s loss of Donovan McNabb.  With him under center, they had a legitimate shot at winning out for the year, and later winning the conference, but with Koy Detmer @ QB, they will win 3, lose 3, and quickly and silently bow out in the Wild Card round.