monday morning reflections

well, Spain certainly showed me that my guts have shit for brains. they absolutely destroyed Italy. i think i can feel pretty safe in my thoughts that they are the greatest national team in history. all in all, a pretty good EURO 2012. in a few weeks club pre-season play starts, so i'll enjoy all the rumors in the meantime.

a little underwhelmed with what the New York Rangers did yesterday. i don't think they made any mistakes actually, just curious to see how it will all work out. it will be hard watching Brandon Prust wearing a Montreal sweater. good for him to get the money and i'm really hoping one of the kids can step up on the penalty kill.

was nice to see the Yankees get a split of the series with the White Sox. kudos to Phil Hughes for putting on his big boy pants for a change and showing the lessons he has learned over the years. to get shit on in the first and then last 7 more innings and allow basically nothing, in that heat, fucking impressive.

speaking of heat, the run of 90 + degree days continue. can't be long until the insanity begins i imagine. at least i'm hoping...

music ths morning:

Tom Waits - Closing Time

"A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing." - George Bernard Shaw

a little story about life on the farm, etc.

so, last night i go to check to see if the back door is locked. i happen to look out the window and see a black cow about 4 feet from the door eating on some weeds. i go to get my mother and tell her "You've gotta fucking see this." She looks out the window and sees nothing, i'm thinking great, i'm having an acid flashback. i hit the outside flood lights and she says "Oh shit!" and flings open the back door. 2 cows and a steer. i go get a flashlight and get all the outside lights on. a phone call and some careful walking in the dark by smell and as far as i know, the cows were back on the farm next door. drenched in sweat, i went upstairs to find a fan and flip between Ring of Honor and Cinemax.

there's a little slice of life in the sticks.

hard to think it's already July 1. but, today is christmas for sports junkies.

NHL and NBA free agency starts.
Old Timer's Day at Yankee Stadium.
EURO 2012 final (My heart says Spain, my gut says Italy, i really just want to be entertained.)

i see a nice long day with the a/c and my chair watching some tv. racing to the computer to confirm some rumors and then a rest period on the shitter. hopefully i won't end up bored out of my mind. hype is such a double edged sword at times.

music this morning:

Matthew Sweet - Time Capsule-The Best of

"You can't wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club." - Jack London

well well well

thank god i'm not a betting man any longer. Italy defended like gods today and it still stuns me that after all these years, Germany can't beat Italy when it truly matters. 2 great goals from that fucker Balotelli, though i'll never be happy for a guy who plays for Manchester City. should make for a very interesting EURO 2012 final with Spain.

as of sitting down to write this, it's 102 degrees outside. first time this area has hit 100 or more since 1988. spent 10 minutes outside giving the cats more water and felt like i stumbled into the Sahara. holy fuck it's hot.

busy night of tv ahead for me. NBA draft, Yankees vs. White Sox, Wilfred and Louie on FX, might sneek in a view of that turd of a show Duets and god knows what else. as long as the a/c holds up, i'm good.

music today:

Fitz and the Tantrums - Pickin' Up the Pieces

speaking of FATT, i throughly enjoyed the 2 FREE EP's they have put out this summer. if you ever get a chance to see them live, go. you will not be disappointed. go to their website for info on the free EP's.

"The secret of my success is a two word answer: Know people." - Harvey S. Firestone

and then BOOM!

it was another Yankee game where i find myself wondering in the middle innings why the fuck do i bother to watch this team. constantly swinging at bad pitches and getting fooled by a guy with a bad arm and nothing over 85 mph.

and then BOOM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

a walk, a misplayed fly ball double and a home run. 3 pitches, score tied. 2 batters later Eric Chavez hits the first pinch hit home run of his injury riddled career and the Yankees have the lead. and then the best bullpen in baseball, even without the hammer of god (Mariano Rivera) struck out nearly everyone left in the game. a nice way to end a losing streak.

i have no clue if the Yankees will be able to hit a knuckle ball tonight or not.

i also have no clue who is going to win today between England and Italy in EURO 2012 action. could be a great chess match or just what i need for an afternoon nap. regardless, i think the finals will be Spain and Germany. both are just playing too good at the moment.

chance of rain tonight. yeah right.

looking forward to the new HBO show tonight, the newsroom or whatever the fuck it's called. looks like it will be pretty good.

music for today:

Shooter Jennings - Family Man
Various Artists - Sweet Relief II: Gravity of the Situation (the songs of Vic Chesnutt)

"Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes." - Carl Jung

it's friday already

was very happy for LeBron last night. i totally agree with what a reporter in Miami said he should do. size the championship ring for his middle finger. i know he won't, but that would make me a bigger fan.

i got a good laugh when the Greeks today tugged on superman's cape and tied the game with Germany at 1. the German response was clinical and deadly. 3 straight goals. Greece got a meaningless penalty kick goal late in the match but it was well decided by then. if the Germans don't make it to the final of EURO 2012 i'll be stunned.

the subway series starts back up tonight. not real interested in it, although the Mets closer calling the Yankees chickens hopefully starts a bean ball war. i would love to see a 1996 brawl like the one the Yankees had against Baltimore. good times.

got my business cards in the mail today. they are fucking spectacular. i love Vistaprint. i've been doing business with them for years and they never disappoint. highly recommended.

not a lot of music today as i snuck in a few cat naps. but i did manage to listen to this gem this morning:

Alice in Chains - Unplugged

i hope everyone has a great weekend. i'm hoping the Rangers have a good draft or at least make an interesting trade or two.

peace and chicken grease.

"A pain stabbed my heart as it did every time I saw a girl I loved who was going the opposite direction in this too-big world." - Jack Kerouac

someone turn off the damn heat

some genius said it's supposed to rain tonight. i've stopped giving a shit...

nice win by Portugal today in EURO 2012 action. of course, anytime i can watch that clown goalie from Chelsea lose, i'm all in.

good news to report from The Camel Saloon. 2 of the 3 i sent were accepted for publication. i like that batting average. i'll post some links when they do get published.

looking forward to game 5 of the NBA finals tonight. maybe LeBron will win and everyone will shut the fuck up for a bit. for the sake of my sports talk ears, i hope so.

was hoping my new business cards would be in the mail today, like they said they were going to be. but, of course, they weren't. alas, there's always tomorrow.

music for today:

Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band - Live! in Chicago
Tori Amos - from the choirgirl hotel

"A man is never more truthful than when he acknowledges himself a liar." - Mark Twain

all things must end

so the Yankees finally lost after 10 wins in a row. it was bound to happen given that they still can't hit with runners in scoring position. and any game where you get 2 runners thrown out at the plate, you deserve to lose. the train ride starts back up tomorrow. hopefully.

watched a good bit of the NBA finals game 4 tonight. looks like the Heat have learned a few lessons.

funny how the internet has been screwy for me lately but make a phone call, bitch and moan, get some free shit and suddenly it's working fine again. interesting.

i'll be sending out 8 poems here soon to 2 places. more details to come.

enjoyed Deadliest Catch again tonight, maybe one of the best shows on tv.

took a nice nap during EURO 2012 today. between the heat and how England plays, a nap was much easier than paying attention. was nice to see Rooney playing again though.

music for today:

UB40 - The Best Of Vol. 1 & 2

"A dirty joke is a sort of mental rebellion." - George Orwell

it was supposed to be raining...

woke up to a downpour, which was great. until it only lasted for 3 minutes. as of last night, it was supposed to rain all morning. why i bother to pay attention to weather forecasts...

happy father's day to all the good fathers out there. as for the bad ones like my own...

typed up 2 poems this morning. i really like them both. i'm hoping to send them out by the end of this week. i have a few places in mind.

another day of the Yankees, EURO 2012, a little Nascar and maybe a little NBA around my Showtime and HBO schedules tonight. other than taking out the trash and hopefully watching it rain, my day is pretty much set.

some morning music:

Steve Earle - Copperhead Road
Fun. - Some Nights
Interpol - Turn on the Bright Lights

"I would never have done what I'd done if I'd considered my father as somebody I wanted to please." - Robert Mapplethorpe

find the pleasure in the pain

got a little too much sun yesterday in my 5 hours of mowing grass on the farm. woke up with the shits this morning. the joy of being fair-skinned. my left leg got it real good. combine the heat, sweatpants and where the exhaust comes out on my riding lawn mower and you can imagine all the different colors my left leg is today. fun.

a big thank you to those who have inquired about the broadsides. they will be arriving shortly.

really enjoyed England vs. Sweden today in EURO 2012 action. a spectacular goal from Danny Welbeck to win it for England. certainly makes all of us Man U fans proud.

looking forward to the Yankees and Nationals tonight. should be an interesting test for both teams. hopefully the train keeps charging along.

an early happy birthday to my mother. you don't look your age.

i will spend the weekend writing, staying away from the sun, hopefully posting pictures of my paintings on here and praying for rain. we're more than 5 inches behind where we should be. and the soybeans are certainly showing it.

"Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know." - Ernest Hemingway

monday morning in the rain

even the rain can't dampen my joy of the Yankees sweeping the Mets on a walk off home run. always nice to stick it to those fuckers.

watched the conclusion of the French Open this morning. really wish it wouldn't have rained in Paris yesterday. nothing against Nadal or anything, just think it would have been a better match without the rain delays.

the holy war of France vs. England starts off EURO 2012 today. i'll be paying close attention since the coach of France is rumored to be the next coach of Manchester United whenever Sir Alex comes down from the mountain.

wrote 3 poems last night. might be a few keepers in the batch. i'll have a better sense when i type them up. sometime today i imagine.

a very happy birthday to the longest crush of my life. damn near a quarter century now. hope you have a great day.

morning music

Hayes Carll - Trouble In Mind

"Do you know the difference between education and experience? Education is when you read the fine print; experience is what you get when you don't." - Pete Seeger

insert Beth Orton lyric here

a good sunday morning to anyone who stumbles upon this blog. i hope you are doing well. better than i am at the very least. a night of shitty sleep after helping the muse deal with a shitty day. got 5 poems rejected from Gloom Cupboard on top of everything as well. you win some, you lose more times than not. welcome to life as a poet.

a nice sports day for me. Yankees going for the sweep. French Open finals. a little Nascar, EURO 2012 as well and i have a nice, well rounded, sophisticated white trash day ahead of me.

nice to see my favorite anti-hero make the NBA finals. maybe LeBron will win it for a change and give the entire world the middle finger. enjoy being the heel. embrace it. you'll never have more fun in your life.

i'm hoping the storms they are calling for tonight are just rain and not much else. i don't need a light show or the power going out. masturbating by candle light can get tricky, if you know what i mean.

happy birthday to the first real love of my life. i hope you are doing well and have a wonderful day with your family and friends.

went a little soft and pretentious for music this morning

Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago
The Civil Wars - Barton Hollow

"All the forces in the world are not so powerful as an idea whose time has come."
   - Victor Hugo

a friday in june, stuck indoors

by choice. the sun tends to be my enemy these type of days.

great game from LeBron last night. as Dan Patrick said this morning, if they win game 7, it's historic, if they lose, it's a footnote.

not surprised the Yankees couldn't pull off the sweep. much easier to revert back to the old bullshit that sadly this season is being built upon. no shutdown innings, no key hits, no timely hits, blah blah blah. maybe the series against the Mets will get my juices going, but i doubt it.

watched the start of EURO 2012 today. i suppose my afternoons of music listening are going to be replaced for the next month or so.

i sent 5 poems to Underground Voices today. fingers are crossed.

other than the usual back pain and apathy, taking cat naps while watching soccer on tv in the air conditioning today wasn't that bad.

and it's always good to hear from a friend. hello.

not as much music today, but 2 of my favorites snuck their way into my ears

Jamey Johnson - That Lonesome Song
Cowboy Junkies - Studio: Selected Studio Recordings 1986-1995

"A flower cannot blossom without sunshine, and man cannot live without love." - Max Muller