You’re just darn lucky he wasn’t a part of the ‘Gnomesville Massacre’ . Oh, the gnome-manity!
Happy New Year, Or: I Totally Meant To Write More On Vacation But Life Interfered
Happy 2007, everyone. I hope your New Year’s celebrations went well.
I got some great Christmas gifts this year, the latest of which is a most excellent head cold that I have very kindly shared with Will. So as for me, I’m off to bed. I’ll post more later in the week.
I’m Too Young To Feel This Old
I turned the ripe old age of 29 today, meaning that in a little less than 366 days, I will officially be 30, a fact that makes me Officially Old, the import of which my blushing bride has reminded me of several times throughout the course of the day.
That’s not what makes me feel the oldest, though. I found out today that one of the kids placed in my charge while I was a counselor at Camp Brookwoods just got back from a tour of duty in Iraq. He joined the service and ended up in the Rangers and was finishing up his first tour a couple of weeks ago. According to second-hand information, on the second-to-last day of his tour, his convoy was hit by an IED. He was first on the scene to the Hummer struck by the blast and thus was first to see that he had lost three of his buddies to the explosion.
I can’t even comprehend what that does to a person; nearest I can figure it, to see comrades and friends die must age one significantly in a mere instant. My heart goes out to the families of those three brave soldiers. And Stu, if you ever read this, know that I’m about as proud a counselor as any could ever possibly be. You’re a certified hero and there’s no way for those of us that remain Stateside to truly signify our thanks.
Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas, everyone. Hope you and your families had a wonderful day.
Not Appearing In iTunes: Skalvin And The Chip-punks
Those in my readership familiar with ska of a mid-to-late-90’s vintage (Vinny, Andies One and II, Brad, I’m looking in your directions) are no doubt (hah!) able to recognize the works of Less Than Jake. One of their seminal albums, titled Hello Rockview, had been running through my head recently, so I pulled it down and burned it to CD. I’m not sure where in the process something went awry, but somehow the bitrates on the entire album got hosed, a fact that escaped my notice until I reached my car and plunked the CD into the CD player. I expected to hear this:
[audio:ltj-metalheads-regular.mp3]
Instead, I heard this:
[audio:ltj-metalheads-fast.mp3]
Heh. While it’s amusing, one ultimately can only take so much ska at roughly 130% speed and pitch – all the trombones sound like trumpets and the singers all sound like a certain rodent trio famed for their lame renditions of classic Christmas songs. It’ll be interesting to see if speed ska takes off as a genre – I may well be in the vanguard of this vast, untapped musical goldmine! *grin*
Fantasy Football Results, Week 13
Soldiers of Fortune (192.25) defeated The Barrage (153)
Well, that’s it, folks. The Barrage went down in a blaze of glory. I’m a little gratified that all the other division winners lost as well. I think it was just a bit of a freak week; in fact, there was only one higher-ranked seed that won this week. Every game was an upset.
I’ll be supporting my fellow division-mates throughout the rest of the playoffs, so we’ll see how that goes. Here’s to hoping next year’s season goes better.
Attention, AndyOne
Beer Tycoon is calling your name. Heed it, just not while I’m about.
The theme music to Meister Brau/Brau Meister/whatevertheheckitwas still echoes in my skull.
Fantasy Football Results, Week 12
Bumskis (163.75 pts) defeated The Barrage (151.75 pts)
The Barrage (151.75 pts) defeated CTRL-ALT-DELETE (135.25 pts)
As I predicted, I did indeed have trouble with the bumskis, primarily because of the loss of Donovan McNabb. Had I had a quarterback to equal t.b.’s Drew Brees, I belive I would have had a shot at beating him.
This week marks the beginning of the playoffs (the brackets are here, if you’re interested) and I believe I should win this week’s game fairly handily. Next week could end up being the end of the road for Yours Truly, however, as I could very well face the bumskis a second time. Only time will tell.
Go Barrage!
Fantasy Football Results, Week 11
The Barrage (196.50 pts) defeated Team V (140.50 pts)
The Barrage (196.50 pts) defeated TO’s Cry for Help (143.75 pts)
I pulled out another two wins in stellar fashion – while losing McNabb for the season to a torn ACL, Tomlinson and Chad Johnson both decided to go off and score me the vast majority of my points. That, plus my providential pick of the Cowboys on the one week that Peyton Manning decides to act like a human quarterback added up to victory for The Barrage.
Now, I’ve got to scramble for a quarterback to help finish out the season. I’m in trouble this week, as the bumskis have Drew Brees and all I have to offer is Steve “Formerly ‘Air'” McNair. Bah, says I.
Fantasy Football Results, Week 10
The Barrage (191.50 pts) defeated Phyllis Diller Fan Club (180.25 pts)
The Barrage (191.50 pts) defeated Deep Fried Turkey (153.50 pts)
I returned to my winning ways in Week 10, moving to a 15-5 record with two big wins. While McNabb had what amounted to a rather pedestrian day with only 24 points, Tomlinson once again carried me to victory with a huge 49. And, in a stunning display of humility if I do say so myself, I sat Chad Johnson and thus spared my league-mates the embarrassment of having a 240+ point week. I’m so proud of me.
Two more weeks until the playoffs – I think I have a decent shot at finishing out the season with at least a 3-1 victory margin. TO’s Cry For Help and the bumskis may end up being tough opponents, particularly since the bumskis have both McNabb and Tomlinson as well. They did lose McGahee for our game, most likely, which definitely helps me.
Go Barrage!