a weekend gone to hell

Saturday was pretty good for me. and then a shitty Sunday morning, and quite frankly, all is lost.

i'll work my way backwards. when i heard the news that Wayne Rooney wasn't going to play today, i had a certain amount of dread. then watching the pitiful first half Manchester United played at Liverpool, that dread was warranted. why the kids aren't been given chances before older players that suck is beyond me. a 1-0 loss is unacceptable when it's now 2 straight games without a goal. i hope to christ i see news by tomorrow evening of some signings (and i suppose they have to be Everton players since it's obvious that Moyes doesn't know how to coach United players) or selling some guys off to give other players a chance. i was angry enough to want to punch holes through walls. i didn't though. i'm pretty sure i'd be the one paying for repairs.

The Yankees got a complete game 3 hit shutout yesterday from Nova and 2 RBI from Cano to win 2-0. better yet, they pass Baltimore in the standings are now just 3 1/2 out of a playoff spot. hopefully they can get the sweep later today.

Ohio State had an awesome start to their game. probably too easy as they basically took the rest of the game off. a 40-20 win that felt much closer than the score.

there were some great college football games last night that i really enjoyed. Georgia and Clemson was definitely one of those. that game pretty much had my attention for all of it.

ROH last night was good. i have to admit i was fighting sleep for most of it. glad to see Adam Cole is now bringing his prick character to ROH. he's a much better heel than face. shouldn't be too long before he is in with the big boys.

i stole a few cat naps along the way yesterday. so i somehow felt refreshed after just 5 hours this morning. that has all changed as now the rest of the day i will be the asshole.

most of the Sunday night shows are off for the Labor Day weekend, so i believe it's just Big Brother and Total Divas this evening. and seeing how there is no way i'll be falling asleep at 11, i do believe i will be writing late tonight. and probably spending my holiday Monday typing them up.

now i'm off to take out the trash and feed the cats and probably scream some expletives to release some stress.

music:

Matthew Perryman Jones - Land of the Living

"Television is an invention that permits you to be entertained in your living room by people you wouldn't have in your home." - David Frost (April 7, 1939 - August 31, 2013)

beer, cartoons, ragweed, poems, and whatever else i can think of before i go insane

where do i begin?

i was supposed to write a poem yesterday for the artist in Sweden. but, the ragweed kicked my ass yesterday as the guy that farms out here decided to mow the fields for the first time in 2 months. the headache i had basically rendered me useless. but, i did manage to write that poem today and email it out. Janne likes it and of course, emailed me more. so, i have 3 more to write later this week. he also sent me a cartoon he did over one of the posts in this blog. i laughed my ass off when i saw it and thought i would have to share it with all of you.

just got done watching game one of the Yankees doubleheader. Nova had a shit 2nd inning and the Yankees fell behind 4-0. then, Cano decided to get his 200th HR and Chris "let me just close my eyes and swing and holy shit i hit something" Stewart hit a go ahead HR. a few more tack on runs and the Yankees win 8-4. hopefully this takes the pressure off of Hughes this evening and he gets the job done. i'm making sure i enjoy my victory beer now rather than waiting.

also this afternoon i watched a little Champions League soccer between PSV and AC Milan. 1-1 draw. PSV is so young but so good as well, i wouldn't be shocked if the big clubs come sniffing for some of that young talent before too long.

Monday Night Raw last night was excellent and took a decent step in setting up the story lines for the next PPV. it's obvious that Randy Orton is playing the role of The Rock, when he was the corporation champ for Vince and company, while Daniel Bryan is playing the role of Stone Cold. they might have to tweak it a bit along the way as Daniel can't do what Stone Cold could, but he's one of the best workers in the world. pair him with some good guys and watch the money flow in. as for my favorite CM Punk, the highlight last night was him ripping a fan in the first row a new asshole for interrupting him. he is one of the best talkers ever and when you combine that with his in ring ability and the ability to sell, top 5 of all time.

tonight will be a little baseball before i flip over to HBO to watch Hard Knocks. and i would love to fit in a shower somewhere and a long one at that. maybe that will get me out of this funk, literally.

that's all for today. i do hope this finds everyone well, drunk, fucking something pretty or at the very least, dreaming about it.

music:

Hayes Carll - KMAG YOYO (& other American stories)
Massive Attack - Mezzanine

"I try to leave out the parts readers skip." - Elmore Leonard (October 11, 1925 - August 20, 2013)

back on the grid

i haven't been able to check my email or anything up until a few hours ago. when the tech from Frontier Communications noticed that our signal was lower than dial up, the genius realized something had to be done. whatever he did do, so far, it has worked. and i was able to get through the 82 emails i had in a little over 24 hours in less than 30 minutes. before the change, i imagine that would have taken me over 6 hours. a huge fucking difference.

so, i will try to squish 2 posts into 1 for this one. my thoughts on Monday:

i didn't watch much of Home Run Derby but i did get the winner right. as for Monday Night Raw, it was excellent once again. they did a great job of setting up some major angles for the next PPV. plus, having RVD wrestle Y2J made the wrestling fan from 10 years ago smile widely.

now from yesterday:

a big win for team USA over Costa Rica, 1-0. they win the group and are pretty much the #1 seed for the quarterfinals for the Gold Cup. next match is on Sunday.

i was very happy to see that the hammer of god won the All Star MVP. sadly, i was watching when Cano got hit with a pitch in the 1st inning. i nearly threw the remote through the tv when it happened. just what the fucking Yankees need, another damn injury.

Deadliest Catch was great as usual last night.

i have absolutely no clue what i'll be watching this evening. i will do my best to avoid the shit programming on ESPN this evening. i guess i'll watch some Big Brother and then maybe a movie on one of the 100 or so movie channels i have. who knows, maybe some more writing.

i did write 6 poems during my time off the grid. i typed them up yesterday and they are really good. i need a few more and i'll have all the poems together for the 3 places i'm sending to. i really hope (especially if the internet doesn't flake on me again) to these submissions out by the end of the week.

the weather here is still a big hot mess. hopefully we'll get a little rain here soon. i doubt it will provide much relief, but the crops could definitely use a drink.

funny, just as i was typing that the internet has gone out again. i always wonder what my life would have been like if i would have listened to the 8 year old me and grabbed the rope and ladder and climbed the tree. well, at least i got through the damn emails.

and now i'm going to keep typing like a fool who thinks the internet will come back on and this will actually get posted.

music for the last 2 days:

Daft Punk - Random Access Memories
Van Morrison - Moondance
Willie Nelson - The Essential Willie Nelson
Beastie Boys - Hello Nasty

"Study the past, if you would divine the future." - Confucius

rain, death, poetry, and all the other maladies

i imagine the bad turn in my attitude started yesterday when i caught a skunk eating the cat food. i scared it away without getting sprayed but i really wish i had a gun on me at the time.

then, when i heard the news about the death of Pat Summerall, i really started to think about how much of my youth is now dead. nothing quite like nostalgia to make one feel old as hell.

i nearly forgot that Deadliest Catch started back up last night. thankfully, i was flipping through the channels around 6 and saw a preview. needless to say once the Yankees and Rangers got off to shit starts, the rest of my night was going to be about crab boats.

thankfully, the Yankees rebounded from that shit start to win 4-2. thanks to Robinson Cano and some great bullpen work. i'm a bit surprised at how quickly they have turned things around. hopefully it continues.

as for the Rangers, not quite sure why they came out flat and never really recovered, losing 4-2. i believe i read it somewhere up in Canada, but i totally agree with the point. if the Rangers miss the playoffs, they only have themselves to blame.

The Voice was pretty good once again last night. i'll probably watch the battles again on YouTube to get a better feel for them.

as for Deadliest Catch, it's one of my favorite shows ever. such great storytelling and people that just suck you in to see what happens next. i can't wait for another great season.

not quite sure why i was up before the sun this morning. it must have been the rain. i was stiff beyond belief. and not the kind of stiff i don't mind in the morning.

and now for an odd transition, the poet of the day on my Google+ page is Ally Malinenko. i really enjoy Ally's work. do check out her website at http://allymalinenko.com/.

with the bombings at the poisonous letters, it's starting to feel like 2001 again. not sure i like that.

that's all for me today. i've got 2 papers to read, dishes to do and hopefully watch Manchester United get a little closer to league title number 20.

music today:

Otis Redding - Otis Blue/Otis Redding Sings Soul
Alice in Chains - Unplugged

"Remain calm, serene, always in command of yourself. You will then find out how easy it is to get along." - Paramahansa Yogananda

should i really care anymore

i suppose i should be in a foul mood, given the Yankees lost and are now down 3-0. but, truth be told, i probably watched more of the Mexican national team tonight than i did of baseball. i did catch the 9th inning. i was happy to at least see them try and make the Tigers sweat a bit. but, having to get a hit with runners in scoring position is this team's downfall. they have fucking sucked at it all year long. CC gets the ball tomorrow night. he could pitch a no-hitter and the offense will find a way for him to lose. that's the way the game goes. at least Cano finally got a fucking hit. 1 for his last 30. and he wants to be paid like he's the best in baseball. fuck me.

i kind of do want them to lose in 4 so the baseball geniuses have to start making some tough decisions. who stays, who goes, who gets traded, which youngsters do you count on next year, etc, etc. why delay the inevitable. old men have slow bats in the playoffs. maybe one day they will remember that.

i did watch team USA win 3-1 tonight to qualify for the final round of qualifying for the World Cup. a good response after they gave up the wake the fuck up already goal at 5 minutes. 2 goals from Clint Dempsey. hopefully they figure out their defense before the next rounds start. they need a consistent back 4. and they need it quick. i'm not sure this team is capable of beating good teams 4-2 all the time. they have to win 1-0 or 2-1.

got a good phone call from my friend in California. funny how life can swing the emotions 180 degrees in just a day. welcome back my friend.

music today:

Bruce Springsteen - Born in the U.S.A.
Foy Vance - NoiseTrade Sampler
Shannon LaBrie - Just Be Honest

"I'm for whatever gets you through the night." - Frank Sinatra

frustration

so i flipped over to the Yankees game yesterday and saw that Kuroda was dealing (perfect through 6 innings). then i flip back to see Cano fuck up a double play which gave the Tigers their first run. i had the bad fortune of flipping back the next time to see a blown call at second base. and given that i have watched baseball my entire life, i know how the baseball gods work when an umpire fucks up the third out of an inning. sure enough, the Tigers score 2 more runs and eventually win 3-0. given that the offense is more or less dead, i'm not sure if he would have got the call right it would have meant much. but a little note to baseball, given the technology of today when everyone with any kind of device could see within 30 seconds that the call was wrong, wake the fuck up. if you wonder why the sport is becoming obsolete... god forbid you actually have a playoff game where the calls are correct. who the fuck would want that.

and another note, this one to Nick Swisher, who is hurt that Yankee fans are booing him. newsflash, you fucking suck in the playoffs. you've had 4 years of good to great regular seasons and 4 playoff years of complete fucking ineptitude. if you don't want to play in a place where the second season means everything, enjoy collecting a check in some other town next year.

if the getting out of Yankee Stadium excuse doesn't work for the offense, i'm hoping they just lose the next 2 games and get this fucking tease of a season over with. that way i can decide which minor league hockey team i'm going to follow (thank you NHL, you dumb asses) or god forbid, have to watch the NBA season from start to finish.

as for football, had my worst week of picking games in a long, long time. under 50% is absolutely shitty. i am winning my 3 fantasy football games, but i can sill lose 2 of them. that leaves me with no choice but to pay attention to the game tonight. great, 4 hours of Gruden blowing Peyton Manning. lovely.

now, it's to the outdoors to assess wind damage from yesterday. welcome to a farm with buildings from the 1800's on it.

music today:

Brooke Annibale - Silence Worth Breaking
Allison Ann - The Introduction of Allison Ann
Ivan & Alyosha - The Cabin Sessions

"A casual stroll through the lunatic asylum shows that faith does not prove anything." - Friedrich Nietzsche

i'm back

wanted to come back to this blog and gloat after a Yankee sweep of the Red Sox but sadly they only took 3 of 4. but, anytime the Red Sox can be in last place at the All Star break, i'm a pretty happy boy.

didn't watch much of the home run derby, especially after Robinson Cano put up a big fat ZERO. no need to watch after that.

after a few days of over 100 the heatwave finally fucking broke. nearly 2 weeks of 90+ every damn day broke to only 87 today. of course, we're nearly 9 inches below where we should be for precipitation for the year so far. i get the feeling we would have been better off growing dirt this year. thank god for crop insurance i suppose. and thank god the heatwave was just about broken when the a/c decided to go out.

managed to write 4 poems over the last few days. actually think they are pretty good. want to write another batch before i think of another round of submissions. i'm also toying with the thought of entering this poetry contest i got a postcard about in the mail today.

laundry day today (Monday). also a nice trip to the bank to deposit my rebate check for my health care (thank you Mr. President).

music that sneaked into my ears:

Ana Tijoux - La Bala
Bruce Springsteen - Darkness on the Edge of Town
Tom Waits - Orphans (Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards)

speaking of Tom Waits, great appearance on Letterman tonight. he's going to be on Jimmy Fallon Tuesday night.

"Men do not fail; they give up trying." - Elihu Root

thank you Kyle Farnsworth

i just wanted to thank Kyle Farnsworth for the Yankees win today. you did more today by walking 4 Yankees in an inning than you ever did while you pitched for the Yankees to help them win. the losing streak in that dump is over. Now, it's off to Boston with a scorching Robinson Cano. should be fun.