NCAA Kickoff 13-14/Wk. 1 Picks

"ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL?!" -Hank Williams Jr.-



Good evening everyone (again)...  :)  If you're here looking for my 'I Remember The First Time (32)' post, I published that just a few short hours ago, and you'll find it right before this entry.  If you came here because you're excited that we're starting the 2013-2014 football season, then you're in EXACTLY THE RIGHT PLACE!  :)  As I promised you previously, we have SEVERAL celebrity experts giving you their picks on this weekend's Texas and Texas State football games, and my co-pilot Alyssa is making her official debut tonight with 'Alyssa's Corner.'  OH..., and I'll be making some predictions on this weekend's games for you also.  The celebrity expert picks are new to the blog this year, and I think that they'll add something to it.  On August 23rd I created 'Coach's Hall of Fame' - if you look back to that entry, it is a webpage dedicated solely to those football psychics who are able to correctly predict the exact score of any of the football games that I invite them to prognosticate.  You don't have to look back there right now (there are no names there yet) since these are the first games to be played since I created the H.O.F. a whole six days ago...  ;)  And YES Alyssa, our picks are eligible to get our names into the H.O.F...  And we're off and running...


Saturday, August 31st - Texas Longhorns vs. New Mexico State Aggies

Texas  47-13     James Schleicher - Publisher, Horns Illustrated Magazine
Texas  62-13     Pete Wyatt - My Brother, 1st Official Blog Follower
Texas  42-17     @audrybabe - UT Fan
Texas  32-10     Courtney & Rene Mendoza - All About Vapor
Texas  45-13     Zane Butter - UT Student
Texas  41-17     Clay Mealy - UT Student
Texas  54-10     Hunter Harvin - UT Student
Texas  51-3      @NotUfatJesus - UT Fan
Texas  38-3      Peyton McDonough - UT Student
Texas  49-3      Blake Smith - UT Student (Couldn't read fraternity name - contact me to fix)
Texas  69-0      Clay Alexander - UT Student



Saturday, August 31st - Texas State Bobcats @ Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles

Bobcats  21-12     Daniel Guerrero - Mayor of San Marcos, Texas
Bobcats  26-24     Tim Hawkins - Former Bobcat Football Standout
Bobcats  35-34     George Garcia - G.M., Bobcat Nation Sports Bar & Grill
Bobcats  28-24     Natalie Berko - Texas State Alum @NatalieBerko
Bobcats  30-24     Alvin Canady - Former Bobcat & Rattler Football Standout
Bobcats  38-21     Alyssa Lesa - Sam's Warehouse Accounting Associate
Bobcats  34-21     Ashley Brannan - Texas State Alum
Bobcats  27-17     Scott Slovacek - @Scott_slov
Bobcats  23-21     Lauren Meckel - Superfly's Lone Star Music Emporium/Texas State Alum
Bobcats  27-17     Nick Kass - Harper's/Slackers/The Veranda
So. Miss  33-14    Gabby Contreras - Texas State Student/Chi Omega/@owlsandpearls

And Gabby's prediction was IMMEDIATELY followed by this:  "DISCLAIMER:  I know almost nothing about football and my prediction does in no way, shape, or form represent my pride for Texas State and all of its athletic organizations..."



Yes Alyssa, that's your "little" that made that pick...  :O  Way to stick to your guns Gabby!  ;)  And now it's time (you can mark this as the moment that the blog went downhill)...  Actually, this will be remembered as the moment that the blog's readership began to increase EXPONENTIALLY, leading to Alyssa's eventual takeover.  Welcome to Alyssa's Corner...

Hello blog readers!  Coach has finally given in and has given me a spot in the blog.  I am a recent Texas State Alum and am barely surviving adulthood.  Being a big girl has been exhausting, but I was fortunate enough to get offered a job the day after I graduated.  I now live in Abilene, Texas, a town that's the complete opposite of San Marcos.  The worst thing about this town is that it's swarming with Cowboys fans, which for a diehard Texans fan is positively painful.  If I knew I was moving to "Cowboy Country," then maybe I would have reconsidered taking my job here.  Haha.  Every week I will be giving my predictions on the Texas State Bobcats, the Texas Longhorns, and the Houston Texans football games.  The Texans are playing tonight against the Cowboys in their last preseason game.  I'm excited to see what my team will do this year!  The Bobcats are playing at Southern Mississippi, and I am predicting a score of 31-20 Bobcats.  I'm also predicting that the Longhorns will beat New Mexico State 45-10.  Have a nice weekend!

Alyssa




And now it's my turn...  :O  It's pretty scary having to pick the outcomes of the Week 1 games, with no prior scores to use as a baseline, but since that's the situation, I've decided to include a lot of this week's primetime games in my plays.  But before I get ahead of myself, let me give you my predictions on the games of local interest.  My alma mater is currently an 8 1/2 point underdog at Southern Miss., but they were a 40-plus point underdog at Houston last year if I remember correctly, so I'm going with the Bobcats 33-27.  The Longhorns are currently favored by as many as 43 points over the Aggies of New Mexico State, and anytime that Texas has the opportunity to crush Aggies, they're going to jump at the chance.  I'm going with 62-10 Texas in that one...  Oh, and just because this is my sidekick's first official post, I'm going to carry over the Texans color-theme here in the blog for one more week.  Alyssa didn't tell you, but she had a bet on tonight's Texans/Cowboys preseason game (yeah, I know).  But hey, the Houston subs won the game and she didn't have to wear a Cowboys jersey, so congratulations Alyssa!  :)


Coach's Ten Best Bets of the Week:

Notre Dame (-29 1/2) vs. Temple - C'mon, you're hosting TEMPLE...
Ohio/Louisville (Under 58 1/2) - The Cards return 10 starters on defense...
Nebraska (-29 1/2) vs. Wyoming - C'mon Huskers, your defense should score...
Florida State/Pittsburgh (Over 49 1/2) - That number just strikes me as being low...
Kentucky (-4 1/2) @ Western Kentucky - The Wildcats are still in the SEC, right???
Washington State/Auburn (Over 60 1/2) - Leach team against the Tigers (did someone just score?)
Washington (-3 1/2) vs. Boise State - Please eliminate Boise from title talk in 1st game...
Georgia/Clemson (Under 72) - That would be a lot of points in a Bulldogs game...
Florida (-23) vs. Toledo - Muschamp's defense is due to start shining, right?
Ohio State (-34 1/2) vs. SUNY-Buffalo - Meyer's Buckeyes should light it up...


And there you go - one football entry in the books, and the Super Bowl is right around the corner...  ;)  I hope that you have an outstanding weekend of football and I'll see you again on Monday!

























    

I Remember The First Time (32)

"I have too much to type tonight to give you a quote right here..." -Chris Wyatt-

I remember the first time that it was football season again - WOO HOO!!!  :D  Good evening everyone.  There is a lot going on tonight at the intersection of Bikini Hill, 6th, & the Strip...  After I type this quick little entry for you, I'm going to start constructing my first football predictions entry of the 2013-2014 season!!!  There is a real life college football game on ESPN right now (North Carolina at South Carolina), and Mississippi at Vanderbilt will follow this game with ANOTHER real life game tonight at 8:15 p.m. CST.  All 32 teams in the NFL are also playing their final preseason games tonight as rosters have to be cut down to 53 players ahead of next week's season openers...  I'm a pretty happy camper tonight...

I remember the first time that I wasn't a happy camper...  Do any of you remember what tonight is the one year anniversary of?  One year ago tonight (the Thursday leading into Labor Day Weekend) I was out playing poker until 1:00 a.m., and when I returned to my apartment, I discovered that someone had kicked in the door 3 times.  Luckily for me, all that was taken was my Droid charger and three pairs of windpants.  While I was talking to the Las Vegas police for an hour and a half, I decided that I was going to pack up my vehicle and make the more than twenty-hour return trip to San Marcos, America.  A lot has happened in the past year, and I'm looking forward to this next year with renewed enthusiasm...

I remember the first time that Cain and Abel's was unable to stay open...  Oh, my friends at Cain and Abel's...  I went for a walk at about midnight on Tuesday, and when I reached Cain and Abel's, I saw one of the waitresses cleaning up the outside area of the very popular West Campus establishment.  When I asked her why they weren't open, she said that the fire marshall forced them to close their doors a half-hour before I arrived because they had exceeded capacity...  This was on the night before UT began classes for the fall semester, and they lost two and a half hours worth of business...  :(

I remember the first time that my thoughts drifted back to an NFL playoff game that took place more than thirty years ago...  On this same West Campus walk on Tuesday night, I saw SEVERAL PEOPLE celebrating their return to Austin.  Among those celebrating was a girl who had partaken in too much of the festivities, and she was being helped down the sidewalk by a couple of her friends.  As she was helped along, with her arms draped around the shoulders of her friends, I recalled Kellen Winslow of the San Diego Chargers being helped off of the field by a couple of teammates after a thrilling 1981 Divisional Playoff Game overtime victory against the Miami Dolphins.  The game (actually played on January 2nd, 1982) was the highest-scoring playoff game in NFL history at that time.  Wow, LOOK AT ME working a little bit of football history into the blog on the first night of real games this season...  ;)

I remember the first time that I made any reference to the fact that I'm 100 years old (though I'm really not)...  Sooooo, yesterday I'm eating lunch at the Texas Union, a very packed Union due to the fact that classes on campus resumed yesterday...  My friends had already left the table where we ate our lunch when I saw a group of three young ladies wandering around aimlessly in search of an open table.  From the far back corner location of our table, I waved the ladies over.  They DEFINITELY saw me waving them open, so they proceeded to walk across the middle of the dining area, before promptly turning left, and walking RIGHT OUT OF THE DINING AREA, with one of the girls in the group even looking back at me...  :D  Oh..., you DON'T KNOW how funny I thought this was!!!  Here I was trying to be nice, to give these ladies a place to sit down and eat, and they must have thought that they were being invited to eat with a 100 year-old man.  SO unappreciated...  :(

Okay boys and girls, it's time for me to publish this and to dive straight into my football entry.  If you check back here in about 3-4 hours, there is a VERY GOOD CHANCE that you will see this entry up tonight.  Remember that I will have a co-pilot named Alyssa with me this time around to help guide all of us through what promises to be a very exciting 2013-2014 football season.  Enjoy the next couple of hours and we'll see you shortly!

  

      

Could You? (32)

"One week of college has been better than four years of high school... #TXST17"
-@Kristella Tamez- (via Twitter)

"Aaaannnd I saw an albino squirrel on campus today! #justsayin #UT17 #goodluckforthissemester" -@Morgan_Yarnik- (via Twitter)

"Whatever Destiny wants, Destiny gets.  Just follow your Destiny..." -@Dest61699- (via Twitter)



Could you be more adorable?...  "Just follow your Destiny," from a girl named Destiny, as a TWITTER bio line.  FOLLOW Destiny.  Well done Destiny...  :)

Could you welcome back the Bobcats and the Longhorns?...  Yes, school is back in session people...  The Bobcats just down the road in San Marcos, America had their first day of classes on Monday (GREAT tweet by the way Kristella - I hope that Texas State continues to treat you well), and the Longhorns will be attending their first classes tomorrow, on Wednesday (most of you are reading this on Wednesday since I started typing it at about 10:00 p.m.).  And Morgan, the albino squirrel on the campus of UT is famous (and is even one of my Twitter followers)...  ;) -@UtexasAlbino-

Could you tell us about your visit to Cain & Abel's last night Coach?  As I said here in the blog last night, I will have no trouble getting celebrity experts to give me score predictions for the Bobcat and Longhorn football games each week - it's just compiling that information and typing it up that will challenge my time...  I already had five expert picks for the first UT game (they open this weekend at home against New Mexico State) when I decided to walk down 24th Street last night to Cain & Abel's to find 5 more people who were willing to go out on a limb and predict the final score for a game in which the Longhorns are favored to win by a mere 42 points...  I approached two different groups of people for scores, and the funny thing was that once I asked somebody in each group for their prediction, other people immediately jumped into the conversation eager to volunteer their picks...  It's gonna be a fun football season, and EVERYONE is looking forward to it!

Could you tell us something about the Bobcats matchup this weekend Coach?  Well, the last time I looked, the Bobcats were 7 1/2 point underdogs heading into this Saturday's game at Southern Mississippi.  The funny thing is, the Cats were 40-SOMETHING point underdogs at this time a year ago when they visited the Houston Cougars and STUNNED the college football world with their 30-13 upset win.  Just a little tease for Friday's premiere football predictions entry:  My Bobcat experts are finding SEVERAL DIFFERENT WAYS to say that they expect a close game in Mississippi this Saturday, while my Longhorn experts are finding SEVERAL DIFFERENT WAYS of stating that they do not expect a barnburner at DKR on Saturday...

Could you get yourself organized Coach?!  It took me until TONIGHT to retrieve my password for my ESPN account and get myself signed up for my first fantasy football draft of the season.  My league with friends from work is drafting on Sunday, and the NFL kicks off its season on Thursday - there's NOTHING like being well-prepared...  :P  The Bikini Hill Bobcats are the team that will proudly (??) be representing this blog in that league, and the Bikini Hill Horns and just awaiting a league invite from another coworker before they're official...  :)

Could you test the waters and see if any of the bloggers want to be in a fantasy football league this season?  Pete P. Peters made a comment on a recent blog entry of mine and was wondering if our little community of bloggers was ever going to form a fantasy football league...  I don't have the time to run a league right now, but if someone out there is willing to be the commissioner and we can hold our online draft at night (not this Saturday or Sunday night), then I am more than willing to compete in a third league with y'all this season.  Just let me know my friends...

Could you help me with my umbrella Coach?  We actually had some wind on the campus of UT earlier today, and it LOOKED LIKE it might rain just a little bit.  When it did start to sprinkle, I saw a student whose umbrella flipped "inside-out" due to the wind.  She started to reach for the edges of the umbrella to pull it back to its normal deployed position.  I had seen all of this transpire and called over to her - "just point it back into the wind..."  Being a smart college student, she took my advice, and the wind straightened her umbrella back out.  :P  And just remember, you're getting all of this for FREE...  ;)

Well boys and girls, I'll be back on Thursday with your next blog entry, and on Friday, it's our first football predictions entry of the 2013-2014 season!!!  :)  Have a good one!


    

Hannah Montana Isn't In Kansas Anymore

"Don't bite off more than you can chew (because nobody looks attractive spitting it back out)..."
-Carroll Bryant-



Good evening everyone.  Yeah, just a little while ago I realized that having twenty celebrity experts picking scores for EACH AND EVERY Texas State and Texas football game during the fall might be a little ambitious.  Getting the prognosticators isn't the problem that I'm having though - I'm not that shy...  ;)  Tracking down the total of forty people each week, compiling their picks and their preferred descriptions for the blog, and then typing up their predictions for the Friday entries is the time-consumer that already has me "spitting it back out..."  As a matter of fact, when I sent a tweet to one person that I know through Twitter, asking for their score on the upcoming Texas/New Mexico State game, another person saw that tweet and volunteered their pick...  :)  We'll go with ten for each game and maybe up that amount on special occasions (i.e., when I have more time)...  :P  I do have most of my experts for this weekend lined up already, and I'd like to say thank you for responding to my requests for your predictions so promptly!

Speaking of not being shy, my Twitter account was suspended for a good portion of the day yesterday, and I apologize to any of you who tried to access my account for any reason.  "Hannah Montana isn't in Kansas anymore" is about the most brilliant thing that I would have come up with yesterday anyway...  "WOW" about sums it up...  #areyoukidding  :O

Young people...  It seems that over the weekend, my friend Allie was eavesdropping on her mother's conversation about possibly taking in a foreign exchange student, because when her mother stopped talking, Allie BURST INTO THE ROOM all excited, saying, "I want a 'poor strange student'!  Can we get her today?!"  The day wasn't over yet for Allie though, as she proceeded to watch "Dangerous Adventures" later that evening.  She told her mom that she wanted to be an animal scientist, but then she retracted that statement, and said, "Maybe not, I might die!!!"  Allie is probably one of my favorite people that I've never met...  :)

Due to time constraints (I need to get some sleep before work tomorrow), I'm going to give you the condensed version of the fantasy baseball standings for this week.  Can you believe that I'm not in a fantasy football league yet?  :)  Anyway, 'The View From Bikini Hill' is currently sitting in 6th place in its league (DraftDodgers and Neshanic are 1 and 2), 'The Bikini Hill Bobcats' are currently in 5th in their league (with Breaking Bats and 4troublemakers holding the top 2 spots), and 'The Bikini Hill Nine' is currently tied for 3rd place in its league, with Nappy Heads (67 pts.), jonnylove7 (62 pts.), and Pittsburg Crawfords (61 pts.) also jockeying for position.  Even the 7th place team in the latter league is at 53 points, so that race will go right down to the wire...

Sorry again about the Twitter outage over the weekend.  Have a good one and I'll see you again tomorrow night!








  

Football Fridays Preview

Good evening everyone.  There's so much that I have to put into this entry that we're not even going to have song lyrics (sorry Miletus) or tweets or stolen facebook statuses tonight...  ONE WEEK from today I will be typing up my first football picks of the season for your viewing pleasure.  When I started writing this blog on September 28th just under 2 years ago, one of the primary reasons was to keep track of the success of my football "bets" to help determine whether or not I should move back to Las Vegas.  During each week of the football season, I will be looking at the line (or point-spread) and the over/under for every college and NFL game, and I will publish my ten best bets of the week.  I pick ten because that's the number of bets that I would include on my biggest (number of bets) parlay tickets when I lived in the desert.  I will start with next Saturday's college football games, and I will be making picks up through and including the Super Bowl on February 2nd.  I tend to make all sorts of football predictions, and you can look through last Thursday's entry, '2013 Football Predictions,' if you want to read some of my thoughts on the upcoming season.

Things will be a little different (and a lot better) in the blog during the football season this year.  One change that is going to take place is that I will be predicting a final score for every Texas State Bobcats and Texas Longhorns football game this season.  Due to the fact that I'm a Texas State graduate that has lived more of my life in San Marcos, Texas than in any other one place, coupled with the fact that I'm now living in Austin again in the area known as West Campus (of the University of Texas at Austin), these two schools and cities are of interest to many of the readers of this blog (as you easily figured out if you read the blog description above).  Not only will I be making predictions on the final scores of Bobcats and Longhorns games, but I am also going to utilize the help of ten "celebrity experts" (for each game) during each week of the season.  I have to keep track of and enter all of these predictions, so ten seemed like a reasonable number to cap it at each week (we'll see if I'm right)...  :)  I have just dedicated a page within the blog to the celebrity experts who are successful in predicting the exact final score of the game that they have been chosen to prognosticate.  This page is known as 'Coach's Hall Of Fame," and can be found in the blog entry that I published right before I started typing this post.  I cannot provide prizes to those who are skilled enough to call these games correctly because I just don't have the ability to keep track of all of the people who might want to participate in predicting scores (so it has to be "invite only"), thus the creation of the Hall of Fame, which will remain in existence as long as Google allows and the internet is around...  :D  Your name is print FOREVER (so to speak) in my blog - WHAT could be better?!  ;)

But wait..., there's more...  In addition to everything that I've already summarized, 'Bikini Hill, 6th, & The Strip' is proud to officially welcome the addition of 'Alyssa's Corner' to the blog...

Alyssa (pronounced Uhh lee suhh) is the person pictured above who actually knows something about football, and I'm the 100 year-old man...  This photo was taken at the crawfish boil that I wrote about on April 12th ('Sean And Kate's 7th Annual Crawfish Boil'), and to the delight of people WORLDWIDE, this is the last time that you'll see my picture in the blog for a while (well..., that is..., unless the Houston Texans happen to lose, but we'll get to that in a minute)...  Alyssa will be my partner in the blog this fall, my "sidekick" so to speak...  Not too long ago, I mentioned Alyssa in the blog (which I did several times during the past year when I worked at Harper's in San Marcos - this is the "famous Alyssa" that I've referred to previously, and the one who doesn't know how to peel crawfish, no matter what she tells you)...  :)  Anyway, when I mentioned Alyssa, the views for the blog spiked that day, and I joked that if they did so when I mentioned her again the next day, I might have to give her a spot in this blog.  OF COURSE, the total number of views SPIKED AGAIN, and after thinking about it, I told her that I would like to include 'Alyssa's Corner' in the blog to coincide with the start of the football season.  Alyssa's response was, "Wahoo!  Should have done Alyssa's Corner a long time ago.  I probably told you a billion times..."  (That number is off by about a billion by the way)...  When football (preseason) returned, Alyssa made a comment stating that all was right with the world again, and I knew that I had made a good decision...  ;)  Alyssa has been a lifelong Houston Texans fan (her family has held a pair of season tickets since the inception of the team), and Alyssa and I became friends through football.  This is quote from Alyssa during a discussion about what you'll see beginning next Friday:  "We bonded on football Coach!  And I offered you a cupcake the first time I met you!  Remember that?  It was my birthday cupcakes and they had little Houston Texans rings on them..."  Yes I remember, and YES..., this girl LOVES the Houston Texans...  In honor of Alyssa, the color theme of the blog is 'Houston Texans' right now, and it will be until the college football season begins next weekend.  I told her that the next time the blog will see this color theme is when the Texans win the Super Bowl...  Like myself, Alyssa will be giving you a score prediction for every Texas State (her alma mater also - May 2013) and Texas football game this season.  Additionally, Alyssa will be giving you a score prediction for every Houston Texans game this year.  On top of that, I will also be giving Alyssa 99 (not 100, but 99, because that's J.J. Watt's jersey number) words of this blog space each week to use however she pleases (heaven help us, and within Google's guidelines of course)...  :)  I have absolute confidence in the fact that Alyssa will add something to the blog, will do a better job of predicting football games than me, and will ultimately completely take over the blog altogether...  ;)

Starting next week, and continuing every Friday after a Texans win, there will be a happy Texans photo leading into Alyssa's Corner, like this one (or another shot of her choosing):

During any week following a Texans loss, you will see the picture shown below:

Luckily for Alyssa (and blog readers everywhere), the Texans will probably win at least twelve games during the regular season...  I hope that you're as excited about the upcoming football season as we are, and we look forward to seeing you on Fridays during the fall.  Have a great weekend and I'll see you again on Monday!

Coach's Hall Of Fame

This page is dedicated to those people who had the skill to correctly predict the exact final score of the football game that they were chosen to prognosticate.  Eligibility for this honor began with games that were played on August 31st, 2013.  Congratulations to all of those whose names are listed below!

I Remember The First Time (31)

"I've got to carry on but, I miss you (I miss you), oh, no other way to say it, and I, and I can't deny it, I miss you (I miss you), it's so easy to see, that you're part of me now..."
-Klymaxx- (I Miss You)

"Note to self - next time you try to be sneaky, turn off the damn flash..."
-Kourtney Chalmers- (via Twitter)

"These problems are piling all at once, cause everything that bothers me, I got it bottled up, I think I'm bottoming out, but I'm not about to give up, I gotta get up..."
-Eminem- (Say Goodbye To Hollywood)



I remember the first time that I worked 11 hours, 12 hours, 12 hours, and then 13 hours in consecutive days...  And no, surprisingly enough, I didn't get back into teaching and coaching this year...  :P  A lot of hours this week, but I'm being a trooper for you once again (and no, Taylor hasn't showed up again tonight..., yet???)...

I remember the first time that I saw a 'Hail Mary' broadcast from OUTER FREAKIN SPACE...  So, did any of you happen to watch the preseason game between the Carolina Panthers and the Baltimore Ravens tonight?  I realize that it's only preseason, but if you're going to broadcast the game, PLEASE zoom in enough so that your viewers CAN ACTUALLY SEE the final play of the game...  Thank you ESPN, I appreciate it...

I remember the first time that 'USA Today Sports Weekly' tried to steal my thunder...  When I returned home from work tonight, I took a minute to read Memphis Mojo's blog (which is aptly titled 'Memphis Mojo' - the link to Mojo's blog is located in the list of fine blogs over there on the right)...  This is a direct quote from Mojo regarding the big extra section on fantasy football provided by the publication mentioned above:  "The articles and draft advice were moronic..."  My timely response was, "I find this EXTREMELY OFFENSIVE!!!  You already have a source for moronic football information...  They need to stay off of my turf!"  That's right boys and girls, we're another day closer to the start of the FOOTBALL SEASON!!!  Make sure you come back here this weekend for my "Football Fridays" preview post, which will be giving you an idea of what you're in for here on Fridays starting exactly one week from now...  :)  I'm really looking forward to this football season (I remember the first time that I said that also, and it wasn't just now)...  ;)

I remember the first time that Joe Flacco was a genius...  Okay, so it seems that many people are on board with my opinion that Joe Flacco was overpaid during the offseason (the new contract), and I've talked with many others who agree that Anquan Boldin made Flacco's contract possible with his playoff performance.  I've also seen in several circles that people agree that the Ravens have lost too much going into this season to win the AFC North.  It's not like Flacco already has enough pressure, but I came across this headline just a few minutes ago on Yahoo!:  "Flacco:  Ray Lewis' Pep Talks Didn't Make Sense..."  Joe..., Mr. Flacco..., I don't care if Lewis gave his pep talks in a combination of Chinese, Spanish, and Pig Latin, but now you're knocking someone who's more popular than you're EVER GOING TO BE in Baltimore, so you MIGHT WANT TO tone it down just a little bit...  Have I mentioned that I CAN'T WAIT for football to begin...  ;)

I'm sorry my friends, but I'm out of steam now, and I had to drink a Mountain Dew just to get this far.  Please come back this weekend (the post will be made tomorrow or on Saturday, depending on when I work).  We're going to have a lot of fun during this football season...  :D  Have a great Friday and I'll see you soon!

Could You? (31)

"Not quite a year since she went away, Rosanna yeah..., now she's gone and I have to say..., meet you all the way..., Rosanna yeah, meet you all the way..., Rosanna yeah..."
-Toto- (Rosanna)

"When fighting clowns, go for the juggler..." -Sign in the Services Building at the University of Texas at Austin-

"And I was thinking if, you were lonely, maybe we could leave here and no one would know..."
-Matchbox Twenty- (Back To Good)



Could you just suck it up and put some effort into it Coach?...  Good evening everyone.  Despite the fact that I worked 11 hours on Monday, 12 hours yesterday, and 12 hours today, I'm going to tough it out and put together a post JUST FOR YOU...  ;)

Could you not have cravings please?  So..., on that first Austin trip to Walmart, the one where I was initially told that the paper bags cost $10.00 (yeah, you know the one)..., well, I thought that it would be a good idea to pick up some macaroni salad and some potato salad.  WELL, being the price-conscious (cheap) person that I am, I HAD TO buy the four-pound container of each salad because it's cheaper by the ounce to do so.  Sooooo, how much salad did Coach return home with?  (You wanted math homework, right?)  If you answered EIGHT POUNDS of salad, you're correct...  Guess who was eating macaroni and/or potato salad EVERY DAY until each was gone...  Umm hmm....  You know, they have expiration dates or something...

Could you please, please give us some more numbers in the form at statistics Coach?  As my staff was gearing up for the big football season that is approaching, it seems that somebody forgot to tell me to pass along word that my little blog went over 45,000 total views over the weekend.  My statisticians also neglected to tell me to mention that my Twitter account now has over 3,000 followers, another mark which was passed this weekend.  Thanks again for reading the blog and for the follows on Twitter - hopefully you're big football fans and you enjoy repeated attempts at humor, because you're in for a lot of both in the near future...  :)

Could you tell me why you're so busy?  Last Tuesday evening I was out for a leisurely walk along 24th Street at just after 11:00 p.m. when I strolled by Cain & Abel's, which had a PACKED PATIO (porch?  well, it was outside)...  ANYWAY, the..., outside area was quiet for the rest of the week, and then when I was walking home from work last night (another Tuesday), it was PACKED once again, and this was before 9:00 p.m.  I stopped and asked the doorguy what it is about Tuesday, and he said that domestic beers are only $1.00.  I asked "when?" - and he responded. "now..."  I then asked, "WHEN??" - and he responded, "until 2:00 a.m..."  (This conversation was going like Abbott and Costello's "Who's On First?")  Then I said, "8 o'clock, 7 o'clock..., what time does it start?"  He answered, "all day..."  OOPS, I have to interrupt this for BREAKING NEWS!!!

Could you MAKE MY NIGHT?!  Is is 10:20 p.m. right now as I'm typing this, and as I typed in the phrase "all day...," I heard a KNOCK KNOCK on my door, followed by the sound of HURRIED FOOTSTEPS down the stairs...  I put on a ballcap before I answered the door, but when I did, I found this scrawled, handwritten-in-pencil note hanging outside:  "(Sorry)  I was kind of drunk when I wrote this, but! - I used to live here  it's a great place!!!  enjoy the location and best of luck - "Heart" (I don't know how to make a heart with my keyboard) taylor"

HMMMM...  :)  The note was left for me on a sheet of typing paper, but on the back are a couple of typed questions, which are the only other clues provided about the person who left this note...

Question 1:  What is the Full Spectrum Extra Lifting Creme and Color Catalyst Ratio?  The answer written down (in black sharpie) is 1:2.

Question 2:  What is the Full Spectrum Universal DN?  The list of answers below includes:  designed for vsl (I think, kinda messy) with all 3; color lines permenant (spelled wrong), deep, 3; deposit only; and shine & tone...

Well, God bless America, God bless UT, and God bless West Campus...  And God bless Taylor of course...  :P  I'm not topping this tonight, so have a good one and I'll see you again tomorrow!

  

Demons

"You and I go hard at each other like we're going to war, you and I go rough, we keep throwing things and slamming the door, you and I get so damn dysfunctional, we start keeping score, you and I get sick, yeah, I know that we can't do this no more..." -Maroon 5- (One More Night)

"How do you feel when there is no coffee?  Depresso..." -Leanne Calderon- (via facebook)

"Your eyes, they shine so bright, I want to save that light, I can't escape this now, unless you show me how..., when you feel my heat, look into my eyes, it's where my demons hide, it's where my demons hide..." -Imagine Dragons- (Demons)



Good morning everyone.  Actually, it's late Sunday night right now, so these fantasy baseball standings may change just a little bit, but I'm sure that you'll forgive me...


League 1  (25 entry fee - 1st place/125, 2nd place/25)

1)  DraftDodgers                           73.50 (Leader in a close race)
2)  Neshanic                                70.50 (It's been these two for quite some time)
3)  Buschleaguers                        65.00 (Okay, these three...)  :)
8)  The View From Bikini Hill         44.00 (Poor tribute to the original name of this blog)


League 2 (40 entry fee - 1st place/300, 2nd place/50)

1)  Breaking Bats                          82.00 (All season long...)
2)  4troublemakers                        76.50 (More of a true two-team race)
3)  Muchos Bravos                        69.00 (Still has time...)
5)  The Bikini Hill Bobcats             50.50 (I'd say my chances are 50/50 - Ba dump, ching!)


League 3 (40 entry fee - 1st place/300, 2nd place/50)

1)  Nappy Heads                           69.00 (Has a lot of company...)
2)  jonnylove7                                64.00 (Within striking distance)
3)  Pittsburg Crawfords                  63.50 (1/2 a point from the $$$...)
4)  The Bikini Hill Nine                   62.00 (Maybe???)


Well, if you're rooting for me to win some money, League 3 is definitely the league to watch, and my pitching staff has plenty of starts this week.  Weaver, Lynn, Corbin, Medlen, and Arroyo all have two starts, while Kershaw and Scherzer are also starting a game each for my squad.  Stay tuned...


OBVIOUSLY, the 'Demons' title of this post refers to the fact that I'll be giving you my predictions on football games soon...  If you haven't done so already, please scroll down to my '2013 Football Predictions' entry from Friday and give it a read.  That entry took some time to get together and I was hoping that it would be viewed at least 500 times over the weekend.  As things stand, it's been read almost 400 times now...  I'm not asking that you put any credence in it, but at least read it...  :)

Speaking of reading, this made me laugh last night...  As I was scrolling through my facebook newsfeed, I read the following:  "Monica has added two books (to the list of books she's read) - 'To Kill A Mockingbird' and 'Green Eggs and Ham'..."  :D  And don't get me wrong..., I love Monica to death and I've also read both of these books, but when they came up in this combination, I couldn't stop myself from laughing...  Of course it started me thinking that I should just begin listing odd pairs of books on my facebook account just for kicks...  "Coach has just added two books..., "War & Peace" and "See Spot Run..."  And then a week later..., "Coach has just added..., "A Tale of Two Cities" and "Curious George..."  Yes, I have no life...  ;)

Okay, I did have a little life this weekend...  On Friday I actually took the last trip that I'll make for a while to San Marcos.  Some friends of mine held the grand opening for Louie's Oyster House & Beer Garden over the weekend, and people just would not stop posting facebook statuses about the "soft opening" that was held on Thursday, so off I went on Friday night...  Okay, I just looked at the Texas State football schedule again, and it seems that a lot of the kickoffs are at 6:00 p.m., so I may be using the term "a while" loosely...  Anyway, deciding that I would make this trip at the last minute (9:00 p.m.), I arrived too late to get any food, but all of the reviews that I've heard about the place have been great, plus I got to hang out with my friends James, Ollie, Joey, and my new friend Sara.  Sara is one of those MANY PEOPLE that I have talked about here in the blog before...  I've seen her like A HUNDRED TIMES over at Harper's, and she knew me, and knew that I was 'Coach', but I had no idea what her name was.  Well, problem solved now...  And as for Joey..., well..., it's as if I was sent to San Marcos on a mission, as I soon discovered that Joey was contemplating whether or not to play fantasy football...  "Oh, you HAVE TO PLAY..., it makes ALL OF THE GAMES INTERESTING, even games that you would usually have no rooting interest in...  You'll either have someone on 1 of the 2 teams, or you'll be rooting against someone..."  It's like the NFL should be paying me a commission for promoting fantasy football...  Oh, and Joey DID DECIDE that he would join a league, and had already paid his entry fee by the time that I left San Marcos on Friday night...  Oh..., what???  I forgot to tell Joey about the heartache of playing, the misery of injuries, deciding who he should play each week, and what it feels like to lose when your team was "projected" to win by FORTY points...  Oh well...  :)

From Louie's I made my way across the street to the Veranda, where I found that my friend and former Bobcat football standout Tim had TAKEN OVER my perch and the end of the bar, but we started chatting football and I confirmed his commitment to help me out as a guest celebrity here in the blog in the near future, so all was forgiven...  From there I made my way down to Slackers, where first my friend Amy, who was shortly followed by our friend Mo, both took a minute to recognize me and realize that I was actually down in San Marcos..., but again, all was quickly forgiven as we made our way..., RIGHT BACK UP to the Veranda...  :)  I also confirmed the current operating hours for Louie's (11:00 a.m. to midnight) for many people since I was actually one of the first people (relatively speaking) to have been there (since Friday was only their second day of business).  Oysters and shrimp and crawfish and onion rings and liquor and too many kinds of beer to count are among the things that are on the menu my friends...  :)

That being said, I'm going to grab something to eat and call it a night.  Have a good one and I'll see you again on Tuesday!
          

2013 Football Predictions

"You can observe a lot by watching..." -Yogi Berra-

Hello everyone.  Is it an ominous sign that I hear thunder and see lightning RIGHT BEFORE I begin typing my predictions for the 2013 football season?  I think so...  :)  It's preseason football that's on in the background right now, but we're getting REALLY CLOSE my friends...  For those of you who are new to the blog (and/or for those of you who are returning), starting with the first weekend of college games that kicks off 2 weeks from now, and for the next 6 months after that, up through and including the Super Bowl, I will be making predictions on football games here.  During the regular season I will look at all of the college and NFL spreads and the over/unders, and I will post what I believe are the ten best bets of the week.  When the college bowl season arrives, I will publish my picks for all of the bowl games (unless I'm too busy because I'm lucky enough to make a return trip to Las Vegas late this fall/early this winter), and I will make predictions on all of the NFL playoff games.  This year I will also be making weekly score predictions for all of the Texas State Bobcats (my alma mater) and the Texas Longhorns football games - these games are of great interest to a lot of my readers...  One of the reasons that I started doing this in the blog almost two years ago is that I wanted to keep track of how well my picks performed to help me gauge if I should move back to Las Vegas to bet football games during the season.  I know that you can find other outlets to wager, but I love my football parlays and parlay cards, and I've never had any trouble cashing a winning ticket at a Las Vegas sportsbook (that one time that I was right)...  ;)  Anyway, the reason that I'm telling you all of that is that I don't like making "prop bets" myself (the bets that depend on the outcome of a whole season of play, etc...) because they can be impacted by several factors, and even if you win, you have to wait so long to collect on your wager.  I would rather make weekly wagers where I can take into account how injuries and other trends will affect games, so just keep that in mind as you read these predictions.  You also have to know that I LOVE making predictions, so I'm going to make these anyway...  ;)

                                                            

                                                    2013 Football Predictions

1)  Not only will the Baltimore Ravens not repeat as Super Bowl Champions, but I'm predicting that they won't even reach the playoffs this season, and that they'll be lucky to be better than .500 (an 8-8 record).  The Ravens were playing mediocre last season until Ray Lewis returned from his injury.  This season they won't have Lewis' talent or leadership, or Ed Reed, or Anquan Boldin (who MADE Joe Flacco's new contract), in addition to a lot of other players.  I do think that Flacco will do fine as a fantasy quarterback because I obviously think that the Ravens will be trailing in a lot of games and that Baltimore will have to throw, but will they repeat?  No...

2)  Not only will Johnny Manziel not repeat as the Heisman Trophy Winner, but I'm predicting that he doesn't even get selected as a finalist (if he is eligible to play this season).  Even if Manziel is eligible to play, I think that it's going to be extremely hard for him (and his teammates) to stay focused, teams have a book on him now, and the Aggies only return half of their starters from last season (6 on offense and 5 on defense).

3)  Not only will Adrian Peterson not break the single-season rushing record this season, but I'm predicting that he won't even break 1,500 rushing yards.  Historically, running backs haven't fared nearly as well the season after performing in the neighborhood of the 2,000 yard mark the previous season, plus you have to factor in the toll of all of those carries and the hits that he took last season.  Peterson would have to stay healthy and perform exceptionally for most of this season, and I don't think that he's going to get there...

4)  Look out for the Louisville Cardinals...  They could be this year's Boise State, meaning they're a decent team that could benefit tremendously from playing a relatively weak schedule, which could result in them finishing high in the rankings and getting another shot at a big bowl game.  Last year the Cards upset Florida 33-23 in the Sugar Bowl, and this year they return 6 offensive and 10 defensive starters from last year's squad...

5)  The Philadelphia Eagles will play in a lot of high-scoring games and will gain a lot of yards on offense...  Former Oregon head coach Chip Kelly is at the helm of the Eagles now, and they are going to run A LOT of plays on offense this year.  This will have a significant impact on the over/under in their games, and will also have a big fantasy impact over the course of the season.  I would not take the Eagles defense in fantasy (their opponents will have a lot of possessions also), I would take a long look at their placekicker, I think that LeSean McCoy will have a HUGE year, and I would consider Eagles over equally-talented players at other positions when you're stuck on who to select.

6)  On a related note, I do not think that the Oregon Ducks will be as strong this season.  Now don't get me wrong, the Ducks will be good (#5 in Phil Steele's preseason rankings), but I have a lot of respect for Chip Kelly, and I don't believe that the Ducks will be as dominant this year (which I'm sure will be reflected in my weekly picks, as I think that Vegas may give their opponents too many points in games, especially earlier in the season)...

7)  In fantasy football, I think that Drew Brees may be the most underrated player that I've seen up to this point based on what he's done in his career.  You have to remember that Brees didn't have Sean Payton on the sidelines last season.  Brees probably tried to do too much to carry the team himself, and I believe that this led to a lot of his interceptions.  I think that Brees is still extremely dangerous with all of the weapons that he has in New Orleans, coupled with the fact that the Saints don't have the strongest strength of schedule this season.

8)  Alternatively, I think that Danny Amendola may be the most overrated player that I've seen in fantasy circles up to this point.  Amendola is going to draw a lot of attention in New England due to the weapons that the Patriots have lost, he's been prone to injuries during his career, and he'll have to play several games in cold weather at the end of the season.

9)  I don't believe that Texas A&M will finish the season ranked in the Top 20.  The Aggies are ranked #13 in Phil Steele's preseason rankings, but that whole squad will have to deal with the spotlight that comes with Manziel winning the Heisman Trophy last season (something that Manziel himself hasn't handled very well to this point), half of their starters will be new, this year Alabama has a bye week before playing A&M, and the Aggies will travel to LSU, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Missouri.  A&M has a lot of new faces and won't be sneaking up on anyone this season...

10)  Who is going to the playoffs in the NFL?  First of all, there will be a TREMENDOUS AMOUNT of parity in the league this season.  I believe that the vast majority of the league's 32 teams will finish with between 7 to 10 victories this season.  As you all know, injuries are always a key factor (which is the reason that I wouldn't bet my life savings on these picks, as small as that amount may be), but even with some of the stronger favorites (Denver, Green Bay, and New England for example), if they suffer only a few more injuries, they won't be strong favorites...  That being said, I like the Texans, Broncos, Patriots, Colts, Bengals, and the Steelers to reach the playoffs in the AFC.  The Texans and Colts will benefit from playing the Jaguars and the Titans twice, the Broncos will benefit from a whole division trying to play catch-up (as will the Patriots), and the Bengals and Steelers will be fighting each other and the next best Wild Card contender off.  In the NFC, I like the Falcons, 49ers, Packers, Seahawks, Saints, and the Cowboys to make the postseason.  The Falcons added a hungry Steven Jackson (former Ram) to an already loaded team (which gets the Panthers twice, in addition to games with the Rams, Jets, Cardinals, and the Dolphins), the 49ers are still extremely talented (and play the Rams and the Cardinals twice, in addition to games with Carolina and Jacksonville), the Packers have just a little bit more talent than the Bears and the Vikings, the Seahawks (like the 49ers) benefit from that weak NFC West schedule, the Saints will be back under the leadership of Sean Payton, and the Cowboys will be the best team in a HOTLY-CONTESTED NFC East. 

And there you have it...  I hope that gets your football juices flowing (if they weren't already) and I look forward to enjoying the 2013 football season with you.  Have a great weekend and I'll see you on Monday!

         

    

      

I Remember The First Time (30)

"I will remember you, will you remember me?, Don't let your life, pass you by, weep not for, the memories..." -Sarah McLachlan- (I Will Remember You)

"Do you remember, when we fell in love, we were young and innocent then..."
-Michael Jackson- (Remember The Time)

"Now it's..., only a memory, of what our love was going to be, only a memory, broken bits of you and me..." -The Smithereens- (Only A Memory)




I remember the first time that I actually posted early...  Good evening everyone.  Well people, tonight you're getting an early Thursday post, and then I'm going to march myself down 24th Street with my football magazines, plant myself at the Texas Union on the campus of the University of Texas at Austin, and when you tune in again on Friday, I'll have a substantial list of 2013 football predictions for you...  ;)

I remember the first time that little Allie was too cute again...  I was having a facebook conversation with my friend Jennifer last night where I was complimenting her quotable young daughter when Jennifer said this to me:  "Well, tonight when her brother took her pizza away from her, she said, 'Fine, I will just eat tomorrow'..."  When Jennifer told Allie that she would get her more if she was still hungry, Allie replied, "Yes, I'm hungry, but just in case I will wait until tomorrow to eat so brother will forget he wants my food!"  You've gotta love kids...  :)

I remember the first time that my friend Carmel Josephine described me perfectly:  "That moment when you realize that you aren't the most attractive person in the relationship..."  Wow, that sounds a lot like Coach in EVERY ONE of his personal relationships...  ;)

I remember the first time that something didn't taste quite right...  I also remember the first time that I stole A LOT from facebook...  ;)  This comes to you from my friend Charli:  "One of the many job perks of being a muralist:  Mistakenly drinking paint water on a regular basis..."  YUCK...  :O

I remember the first time that I had a strange dream...  Last night I had a dream that I was getting the financing for a new car (I'm not even looking to buy a car, but okay)...  I secured the financing, and then when I got in my new car, I noticed that it had 589,000 miles on it...  FIVE HUNDRED AND EIGHTY-NINE THOUSAND MILES!!!  The car looked shiny and new though...  :P

I remember the first time that I was brainwashed...  I turned on my phone today at lunch and was browsing through some of the headlines on the preinstalled news app when I read that Donovan McNabb believes that Robert Griffin III is being brainwashed...  HMMM..., I'll bite...  Evidently, RG III has decided that he is no longer going to communicate with McNabb, which leads McNabb to believe that people are "brainwashing" Griffin against seeking out McNabb's advice...  "He's being brainwashed, HE'S BEING BRAINWASHED I'll tell ya!" (< That quote is from me, not McNabb)...

I remember the first time that the college football season was starting TWO WEEKS FROM TOMORROW!  :)

I'm heading off to the Texas Union now to sift through some words and numbers and punctuation.  I'll see ya again on Friday with some football predictions...  :)  Have a good one!

Could You? (30)

"I've, become so numb, I can't feel you there, I've become so tired, so much more aware, I'm becoming this, all I want to do, is be more like me, and be less like you..." -Linkin Park- (Numb)

"Welcome to the jungle, we take it day by day, if you want it, you're gonna bleed, but it's the price you pay..." -Guns 'N Roses- (Welcome To The Jungle)

"Upside inside out, livin' la vida loca, she'll push and pull you down, livin' la vida loca..."
-Ricky Martin- (Livin' La Vida Loca)



Could you tell me that you're kidding Coach?  Good evening everyone.  We're off to a quick start tonight...  :)  For tonight's song lyrics, I searched "motivational songs for sports list" on Yahoo.  Doing so led me to find the link for "50 Motivational Songs Athletes Listen To..."  All three of the songs showcased above were on that list...  Yes people, evidently when someone is trying to get pumped up, they're cranking out the lyrics to 'Livin' La Vida Loca'...  :)  And just when you thought that you'd never find the words 'Ricky Martin' in this blog...

Could you give us a quote from one of your favorites Coach?  This is from my young friend Allie (who I have never met):  "Do parents drop their kids off at a baby pound if they don't want them, like their dogs?..."  Ah, to see the world through the eyes of children...  :)

Could you tell us where Allie gets it from Coach?  A couple of weeks ago, I noticed on my facebook newsfeed that Allie's mom Jennifer (who I have met) checked-in for dinner at a little place in North Texas called (wait for it...), 'Mooyah Burgers & Fries..."  Poor Allie..., she never even had a chance...  :P

Could you steal a quote directly from another blog Coach, because you don't steal from those often enough?...  This gem comes to you from the blog, "Linda Lou, live from Las Vegas," which can be found in the list of links on the right.  My friend Linda (who I have also never met) just saw the Monkees for the first time ever on Saturday, and she had this to say about the experience:  "I mean, we were SCREAMING all night.  Like abduction screaming, except we were screaming with happiness..."  :)

Could you tell us about your most recent shopping experience Coach?  After a longer than anticipated nap on Friday night (yeah, we know who is NOT living "La Vida Loca..."), I found myself checking out of Walmart at about 3:00 a.m. on Saturday morning.  I had completely forgotten what I had heard about shopping in Austin now until the cashier said, "did you bring bags, or would you like to buy some?"  My immediate thought was...  (well..., I don't use words like that in this blog, but suffice it to say, I did not have any bags with me)...  You see, the stores in Austin cannot use plastic bags now, but they will sell you paper bags if you didn't bring bags with you.  The cashier later went on to say that this has actually hurt their business, because this Walmart is located in the north part of Austin, near suburbs where stores are still allowed to give their customers plastic bags.  Back to my story..., just when that thought that I can't type here registered in my head, the cashier (who is actually an assistant manager) followed up his original comment with, "we sell them for ten dollars..."  WELL..., you SHOULD HAVE SEEN the LOOK ON MY FACE...  As my expression was twisting up into a look that was appropriate to match the price of TEN DOLLARS for a PAPER GROCERY BAG, the assistant manager quickly said, "I mean 10 cents...  Sorry, it's 3:00 in the morning..."  Then my heart started beating again...  :)

Could you tell us what you did as soon as you finished your blog entry last night Coach?  Well, since I have a NEVERENDING LIST of things to do, NATURALLY I decided to take a walk down 24th Street about 20 minutes after I hit the publish button last night.  One thing that I like about walking near my new apartment is that I can find civilization in less than five minutes.  Even in San Marcos, it was about a fifteen-minute walk to Bikini Hill or the Square from my place.  Here in Austin however, I can reach a very active 24th Street (the home of Cuatro's and Cain & Abel's - and you're welcome for the shout outs) in no time.  I can also reach "the drag" (which is also known as Guadalupe, and is the street that separates the University of Texas at Austin from West Campus) in about ten minutes.  Although I only walked for about half an hour, I found that I fell asleep much faster last night, so this will most likely become a nightly ritual...

Could you tell us what looks a lot alike Coach?  A few mornings back, when I was waking up after less than four hours of sleep, I happened to notice that Equate (Walmart brand) Green Mint Mouthwash looks A LOT LIKE Hill Country Fare (H-E-B brand) Green Apple Dishwashing Liquid.  SOOOOOO, if you're reading a post here in the future where I'm telling you a story about how I gargled one morning with DISHWASHING SOAP, we both know that I should have known better...  ;)

Have a good one and I'll see you again on Thursday!


       

Earlier

"You said you didn't need me in your life, oh I guess you were right..., yeah..., ewww I never meant to cause you no pain, but it looks like I did it again..." -Phil Collins- (I Wish It Would Rain Down)

"If you go, say goodbye, there'll be something missing in my life, 'cause you know, that all I really want is you..." -Jon Secada- (If You Go)

"But you didn't have to cut me off, make it like it never happened and that we were nothing, I don't even need your love, but you treat me like a stranger and that feels so rough..." -Gotye- (Somebody That I Used To Know)



Good evening everyone.  Let's get right to the fantasy baseball since I've mostly been glossing over it for the last few weeks, and you'll get a look at the very interesting "League 3" that I'm a part of...


League 1  (25 entry fee - 1st place/125, 2nd place/25)

1)  DraftDodgers                           76.00
2)  Neshanic                                72.50
3)  Buschleaguers                        65.50
7)  The View From Bikini Hill         46.00


League 2  (40 entry fee - 1st place/300, 2nd place/50)

1)  Breaking Bats                         83.00
2)  4troublemakers                       75.50
3)  Muchos Bravos                       64.00
5)  The Bikini Hill Bobcats             51.00


League 3  (40 entry fee - 1st place/300, 2nd place/50)

1)  Nappy Heads                          68.00
2)  jonnylove7                               64.00
3)  Pittsburg Crawfords                  63.00
4)  The Bikini Hill Nine                   62.00
5)  Fishing For Trout                      55.50
6)  Mad Men                                 54.50
7)  Loons XXI                                50.50


As you can see above, only the top two teams in each league will be paid.  Things are looking pretty bleak for me in League 1 obviously (and doesn't it seem like FOREVER since 'The View From Bikini Hill' was the name of this blog?).  My team in League 2 (The Bikini Hill Bobcats) has gone the way of 'The View From Bikini Hill' - after yesterday's action, the Bobcats now have EIGHT PLAYERS on the disabled list.  League 3, as I said, is very interesting.  The point totals are so tightly bunched near the top, and in each category of standings you find the same thing.  For example, Nappy Heads is currently 2nd in ERA, while jonnylove7 is 4th.  If jonnylove7 rises to 2nd, their score in the category would rise from 7 to 9 (up 2 places), and in that overall list above, jonnylove7 would have 66.00 points.  Nappy Heads would lose a point (from 9 to 8, for falling from 2nd to 3rd), and their new overall score would be 67.00.  It is going to be a fun last 50 days in this particular fantasy baseball league, which is the only one that I realistically have a chance of cashing in...


I only plan on playing in one fantasy football league this season, and if that doesn't happen with friends at my new job (which was my old job), then I'll join a league for a small amount of money online.  For those of you who have fantasy football drafts coming up, I'd advise you to look at the schedule strength of all of the teams in the NFL before you draft.  Many times you can get "bargains" by taking players that are on teams facing weaker schedules.

EARLIER...  I HAVE TO get to bed earlier!  It was one week ago today/tonight that I moved into this apartment.  It was about now that I was arriving back in San Marcos at the end of round trip number three.  For those of you who missed the blog entry last week, I returned to this new apartment sometime around 11:45 p.m. after trip number FOUR of the day from San Marcos to Austin, and the pizza arrived at 12:07 a.m.  I never got to bed before 1:00 a.m. last week, and last night I managed to have EVERYTHING that I had tucked away in "big tupperware" (those storage containers) scattered ALL OVER MY APARTMENT.  By the time that I had repacked or shelved all of it, my head ended up hitting the pillow at about 2:00 a.m.  That is the reason that I took the nap shortly after I got home from work today, and THAT is the reason that I'm still typing my Monday blog entry at 9:41 p.m.

Coming this Friday will be my big football predictions blog entry for the 2013 season.  I gave three of these predictions in my most recent entry on Saturday (concerning the Baltimore Ravens, Johnny Manziel, and Adrian Peterson) for those of you who want to look back.  I did manage to find both my college and pro football magazines last night as I littered my apartment with everything that I own, and I'll find some time between now and Friday to study them so that I can amaze you with my "crystal football..." (obviously using the word 'amaze' very loosely here, unless I'm right about something)...  ;)  "I remember the last time that I was right about something..."  As I got my apartment from where it was on Friday to where it is at the moment, I watched HOURS AND HOURS of NFL preseason football...  I'll be very honest with you when I say that considering the scorching temperatures that we're expected to continue experiencing in Austin, coupled with the fact that I'm rebuilding my itty bitty, teenie weenie pile of cash, I'll probably be around my apartment most of next weekend also, accomplishing things with NFL preseason football serving as my background noise.

I also watched a lot of 'Breaking Bad' this weekend, and I think that it's interesting that I find myself rooting for Walter White (do any of you find yourselves doing the same)?  Okay..., I mean, the guy is making meth..., and people are getting killed..., but nobody's perfect, right?...  :P  It's a very interesting show to say the least...  Like I said on facebook and Twitter yesterday, 'Breaking Bad' makes science fun...  :D

Speaking of fun, I should call in sick to work on Thursday (of course I won't).  They are remodeling roughly a third of the units at my apartment complex, and I believe that I'm correct when I say that ALL THIRTY of the new leases begin on the 15th (and ALL OF THESE UNITS are on my end of the complex)...  The parking lot ought to be quite a scene with all of those people moving in that day...  In case you're keeping score at home, the first day of classes for the fall semester is Monday the 26th at Texas State, and it's Wednesday the 28th here at the University of Texas.  Let the students return to town and let the temperatures drop just a little bit and I'll give you some stories from 6th Street...  ;)

Hmmm...  I just looked back at the NFL Network (yes, I'm an addict, I know...), and the schedule says that in less than an hour, they're supposed to rebroadcast the Rams/Browns game from this weekend.  This was one of SEVERAL GAMES that I watched over the weekend, and you may have heard about the controversy regarding Bernie Kosar's comments during the telecast.  Kosar, a former Browns quarterback, was just DOGGING Rams quarterback Kellen Clemens while he was in the game.  As you might suspect, I have watched A LOT OF FOOTBALL over the years (one hundred years to be precise..., though not really), and some of Kosar's commentary raised my eyebrows (like I'd be sorting things around the apartment, and then I'd look up at the t.v. and say, "WOW" in response to something that he'd said - that sort of thing)...  In all fairness to Kosar though (for some of the heat that he's been taking from the media), he did compliment Clemens later in the game when he made some nice plays...  Nonetheless, I know what I'll be watching again in about 34 minutes...  YEAH..., I'll get to bed earlier...  The unpacking is ENDLESS...

Have a good one and I'll see you again tomorrow night (or TONIGHT if it's already Tuesday)...  ;)
    

  

  

Football Teaser

"Forgetting what it's like to live alone and be fully aware of your surroundings - every little sound freaks me out lol...  Ice Maker 1  Leanne 0" -Leanne Calderon- (via facebook)

"Tax Free (Weekend) is coming up and all I can say is I'm ready to get it over with..., from what people tell me about how crazy it gets and from seeing it that one time that I went out to shop lol...  I'm gonna ask if I can wear my slippers that day, because I know my feet are going to HURT!!!"
-Yvonne Gonzales- (via facebook)

"Did the Texans get the Cowboys' videographers for this game or what?"
-Max Cannady- (via facebook)



Good afternoon everyone.  Hey, Saturday is pretty much the same as Friday, right?...  Yeah..., sorry about that.  I moved back up to Austin on Monday (a fact that you're well aware of by now), and I never got to bed before 1:00 a.m. this week (not counting my after work naps when I CRASHED - I meant 1:00 a.m. for the night) due to trying to make my apartment more navigable.  Anyway, after I took a nap yesterday after work, it was too late to post (and expect anyone to read it), so I just plowed ahead with a trip to Walmart and staying up through the night, cleaning my apartment and going to wash my clothes at 7:00 a.m. this morning.  This morning I posted, "The early bird wears clean clothes" on facebook and Twitter, and when my friend Jessica tacked on "...and has a clean house," I accused her of spying on me...  :)  I apologize again for missing my post yesterday, but I'll make up for it today with a little tease of what next Friday's post is going to be made up of (cue suspenseful music)...

Before I go any further however, let me give a shoutout to a famous person since I once again brought up the subject of my move to Austin (and the references to this move will eventually go away)...  :)  After tweeting that I had just made my final commute from San Marcos to the ATX last Friday morning, Amanda Dugan, the Morning Traffic Reporter for KXAN News here in Austin (@mandydugan) asked me how the Friday commute was.  I replied that it was EARLY (because I had left at 5:00 a.m.), but I just wanted to give Amanda a shoutout because it's not every day that celebrities take the time to ask you about your commute.  Be sure to tune into KXAN for Amanda's morning traffic reports if you live here in the ATX since SHE IS one of my six Twitter followers...  ;)

Speaking of awesome people, this came across my facebook newsfeed earlier in the week:  "Not too many people like us when we hang out together..., but they're just mad they can't be this awesome..." -via Monica, Alyssa, and Raquel-  Now I've known Monica and Alyssa for 100 years, but I just recently added Raquel as a facebook friend yesterday.  What struck me as funny was that the first photo that I saw Raquel post was a shot of her wearing a Houston Texans jersey.  WHAT ARE THE ODDS that someone that I added as a friend would like FOOTBALL?!...  :P

Speaking of more awesome people, it's time to recognize my friends Emily, Paige, and Jasmine for graduating from Texas State University this weekend!!!  It's also time to recognize my friend Jenn for graduating from Texas Tech University!!!  And yes, even though she's not a Bobcat (#bighairproblem), we still love Jenn...  :D


Back to football (and yes, we're getting closer), this is a facebook conversation that I had with my brother earlier in the week:

Pete:  "No more 'tuck rule' - Big Ben is going to have a high number of turnovers..."

Me:  "Don't talk about this year's Super Bowl MVP like that..." (I might be a Steelers fan...)

Pete:  "Line on a second job..., comedian???  LOL"


Max's tweet at the top of the page (the video was messing up during last night's broadcast of the Houston Texans preseason game, thus the dig on the Cowboys), Raquel's jersey, that conversation with my brother..., yes..., the football is getting a little bit closer...  :)  BUT..., before we get to the football, let me add in one last facebook quote that I saw earlier today from my friend Amy:  "Ahhh..., football is on TV again and all is right with the world..."  Does that sound familiar Alyssa?  (Different Alyssa Alyssa)  ;)

Well, let me tease the football ONE LAST TIME by saying that my good friend Alyssa will be joining me here on Fridays this fall with her own little space, which will be called 'Alyssa's Corner' (appropriately enough, and the name was her suggestion)...  :)  Alyssa will be my football "sidekick" here in the blog, and there will be more details coming on that very soon...

Yes, that would be Alyssa...  You will hear more about her very soon, but right now...


And here we go...  Just because I'm a good guy, and because I've been rushing through SO MANY of my blog posts lately (and completely missing some - OOPS), I am going to give you a taste of next Friday's blog entry, the one in which I will be giving you A SLEW of predictions for the coming football season, by giving you three of those predictions today...


1)  NOT ONLY will the Baltimore Ravens NOT REPEAT as Super Bowl Champions, but I'm predicting that they DON'T EVEN MAKE THE PLAYOFFS this season, and they'll be LUCKY to be better than .500 (8-8).  Hey Carmen, hey Jenny...  :)  I hope that you enjoyed last year (which I KNOW YOU DID), but it won't be the same this year.  Okay everyone, the Ravens were playing mediocre last season until Ray Lewis returned from his injury.  This season they won't have Lewis' talent or leadership, or Ed Reed, or Anquan Boldin (who MADE Joe Flacco's new contract), in addition to a lot of other players.  I think that Flacco will do fine as a fantasy quarterback because I obviously think that Baltimore will be trailing in a lot of games, but will they repeat?  NO...

2)  NOT ONLY will Johnny Manziel NOT REPEAT as the Heisman Trophy Winner, but I"m predicting that he doesn't even get selected as a finalist (as this is assuming that he is eligible to play at all)...  I've been telling you for some time now that I've meant to write about Manziel, and as time has passed, he's repeatedly been in the news because of something new...  One of the things that I was going to address was his coach.  I FINALLY heard an analyst this week mention that he was surprised that Coach Sumlin hadn't stepped in, and this was the thought that I'd had.  My thing is that Coach Sumlin needed/needs to sit Manziel down, but even worse, what if he had already talked to Manziel, before he kept resurfacing in the news?   Even if Manziel is eligible to play, I think that it's going to be extremely hard for him to stay focused, plus teams have a book on him now, and he lost about half of his offense...

3)  NOT ONLY will Adrian Peterson NOT BREAK the single-season rushing record this season, but I'm predicting that he won't break 1,500 rushing yards...  I heard an analyst on a fantasy show a few nights ago saying that A.P. will break the record this year, and that teams will be "laying down for him" because he's so good, etc...  I'm not buying it...  It's not as if A.P. hasn't been the focus of defenses already, but he's going to get EVEN MORE ATTENTION now - you HAVE TO make somebody else beat you if you're the defensive coordinator!  Additionally, running backs haven't fared nearly as well the season after putting up totals in the neighborhood of the numbers that Peterson reached last year.  You have to factor in the toll of all of those carries, all of those hits, he needs to be healthy for most of the season...  I don't think he's going to get there...

There you go people, just a little taste of what's coming next Friday, now that I'll have a chance to sit down with my football magazines and try to make some sense of this thing...  :)  Have a great weekend and I'll see you again on Monday!
          

  

I Remember The First Time (29)

"It's my life, it's now or never, I ain't gonna live forever, I just want to live while I'm alive..."
-Bon Jovi- (It's My Life)

"Don't be afraid to be weak, don't be too proud to be strong, just look into your heart, my friend, that will be the return to yourself, the return to innocence..." -Enigma- (Return To Innocence)

"And I just can't keep living this way, so starting today, I'm breaking out of this cage..."
-Eminem- (Not Afraid)



I remember the first time that I felt rejuvenated...  Good evening everyone.  Well, the foundation is starting to fall into place people...  I tried to find some lyrics tonight that capture the way that I feel right now.  When I made the decision to return to Austin many months ago due to the numerous opportunities that are available here, I was ready to be here RIGHT THEN.  Tonight personifies what I've been waiting for...  This is the eve of the last day of my work week, and I have a "six-pack" of preseason football games to kick off a weekend in which I will be ENGROSSED in setting up my new apartment.  I have a line on a second job.  I just want to live while I'm alive, so starting today, I'm breaking out of this cage...  Didn't I just make stealing from two people look easy?  (They're credited above, so relax)...  ;)

I remember the first time that I felt thankful...  Again, to each and every one of you that helped to pick me up and showed me kindness when I was down, thank you SO MUCH...  I try to treat people right, and I do remember when they treat me well...

I remember the first time that I started talking about football, A LOT...  Okay people, tomorrow will be the start of seeing quite an increase in the number of words dedicated to the upcoming football season in this blog - get ready for it (and cheer up Miletus, maybe we'll teach you something, and maybe..., JUST MAYBE you'll even LIKE football someday, or even CARE ABOUT IT..., maybe)...  ;)

I remember the first time that I was this excited about a football season...  I'm telling you boys and girls, for the next 6 months..., the preseason, the regular season, the postseason, college football, pro football, fantasy football, pick 'em contests, PREDICTIONS, and Alyssa's Corner (3 weeks to go - are you ready Alyssa?)...  I'll give you more information on Alyssa's Corner VERY SOON...  Are you ready for some football people?!  :)

I remember the first time that I procrastinated...  As much as I feel good (and I'm sure that you feel ill) about making what I consider to be a "full-length" blog entry again, it is helping me to push back the setting up of my apartment.  Throughout the day I jotted down little notes in my memo pad that is usually dedicated to this blog..., little notes about things that I need to get accomplished this weekend.  Well, that list sits at THIRTEEN right now...  :O  #help

I remember the first time that number one on the aforementioned list was "go through EVERYTHING (that I own)..."  Yeah, I'm glad that the NFL Network is showing preseason games ALL WEEKEND...

I remember the first time that I completely stopped doing situps in the month of July...  Well folks, once upon a time, really early in the month of July...  I'll tell you, between dieting, and walking, and going to the river, and then starting my job, AND THEN moving when it was ONE HUNDRED AND TWO DEGREES on Monday..., well..., I really haven't gained any weight (I'll attempt to prove that once I find my scale this weekend)...  :)  The pair of medium Domino's pizzas that arrived at 12:07 a.m. on Tuesday morning after the move was completed disappeared in less than 24 hours - I was EXHAUSTED...

I remember the first time that I said goodnight because it was time to watch some football and unpack..., SOMETHING...  Have a great evening and I'll see you again tomorrow!
























  

Could You? (29)

"I believe there is nothing stopping us from embracing our dreams and creating the lives we wish to live..." -@jasminee70- (via twitter)

"Cause it's too cold..., for you here, and now, so let me hold..., both your hands, in, the holes of my sweater..." -Sweater Weather- (The Neighbourhood)

"It's always 'Shark Week' if you're a shark..." -@Etzel44Miller- (via twitter)



Could you post a little bit later Coach, BARELY fitting your entry into the confines of Tuesday?  Good evening everyone...  :)  I'm not saying that moving yesterday in the 102 degree heat from an apartment on the second floor to another apartment on the second floor was tiring, but somebody might have taken a 4-hour nap right after they got home from work today...  Might have..., PFFFFFT...  I CRASHED!  :P

Could you tell us why you're posting the lyrics of the song 'Sweater Weather' when it's over 100 degrees every day in the ATX?...  Wishful thinking???  :)  That's the song that was stuck in my head as I just went for a little walk on West Campus.  NO, I'm not walking for the exercise after yesterday.  I was searching for some of those little yellow potassium boosters (that would be 'bananas' for you lay people)...  Anyway, the closest convenience store to me hasn't opened its doors yet, and the one halfway to campus was out.  I actually made it through last night and today without eating a banana after all of that physical exertion yesterday, although I did drink PLENTY of fluids in the aftermath of the move (and I'm now 2 slices away from finishing 2 medium pizzas that were delivered just under 23 hours ago)...  :)

Could you tell us about your patience yesterday Coach?  I SWEAR (pun intended) that I swore more yesterday than I have since..., well..., I can't remember the last time that I swore that much.  Three round trips between San Marcos and Austin, and then add in another one-way trip.  Dealing with all of that traffic...  I kid you not, as I was returning to San Marcos on the back end of trip number three, I got behind an older gentlemen driving FIVE MILES AN HOUR in front of the Chick Fil A on M.L.K., like he was in a parade, or part of a vehicular tour of the restaurant...  UGGGGHHHH...

Could you tell us how you REALLY FEEL about the traffic in Austin Coach?  This line is from Patrick Swayze's character Bodhi in the movie 'Point Break' (one of my personal favorites for several reasons):  "We are here to show those guys that are inching their way on the freeways in their metal coffins that the human spirit is still alive..."  I could NEVER have a job that forced me to sit in rush hour traffic (if I ever have to commute again, I would do what I did for the last few weeks, and leave super early for work while waiting for the evening traffic to die down)...  Did I tell you that I WALKED to work today, and returned home on the campus bus?...  :D  Believe me, if I can get to something that is going on in Austin without driving, then I won't be driving...  ;)

Could you please forgive me?  I'm going to cut this entry just a little short because I still have a ton of unpacking to do, but I will be back again on Thursday, and football will be weaving its way into these entries VERY, VERY SOON...  :)  Have a great day and I'll see you again on Thursday!



  

The Domino's Just Arrived

"I'm on my way, I'm on my way, home sweet home, tonight, tonight, I'm on my way, I'm on my way, home sweet home..." -Motley Crue- (Home Sweet Home)



The Domino's just arrived - the move is officially over...  ;)  One mushroom and one pepperoni people - nom, nom, nom...  :D  If you'd do me a favor and close your eyes for a moment (c'mon, just close your eyes)...  Well, I guess if you close your eyes, you can't read what I'm typing right now..., but if you just take a second to imagine almost everything that I own sitting in the middle of my apartment, that's EXACTLY what it looks like right now...  I woke up at 4:00 a.m. after just over 4 hours of sleep, packed the vehicle, and got my keys at 9:00 a.m.  I got a call from the Time Warner tech at just after 10 a.m. saying that he was running early, and he asked me if he could move our appointment up - okay, twist my arm.  Having brought my equipment with me from San Marcos, and having literally unplugged it from the walls right before I left, the cords were still in everything (modem, computer, t.v.).  My cable and internet were up and running by 10:30 a.m., a half-hour before my 11:00 - 12:00 window was supposed to BEGIN...  :D  I returned to San Marcos and filled out the paperwork to disconnect my utilities, stopped at Burger King (I eat well when I move), and then I returned to the apartment and took a one-hour nap since I was ahead of schedule and already tired.  Flight 2 departed from San Marcos at 2:00 p.m., and I arrived back in Austin, unloaded, and returned to San Marcos at about 5:00 p.m.  At this point I took another nap because I was tired AND hot (you should see my left arm, the one that the sun hit all day in my non air-conditioned vehicle)...  The forecast high was 102 degrees - I'm betting that it probably got there...  After I woke up I borrowed my friend George's truck to move my mattress (in unrelated news, Bobcat Nation will be mentioned several times in the coming months in this blog), and I returned to San Marcos from that round trip at 9:00 p.m.  I loaded my vehicle for the last time, cleaned the apartment a little bit more (Lindsey, my apartment isn't the most pristineiest - it's a word..., well..., probably not..., that I've ever left it, but I'd still put it up against most tenants that you check out)...  :)  Thank you again so much George and Lindsey!  I returned to Austin at about 11:40 p.m., called Domino's at 11:43 p.m., and right after I finished unloading my stuff for the last time today, my pizza arrived at 12:07 a.m.  What did you do today?  :)

I hope that you have a great day, and I'll see you Tuesday night with my first 'Could You?' from the ATX...
  

No Excuses

"On the road again..., just can't wait to get on the road again..."
-Willie Nelson- (On The Road Again)

"I think it is just terrible and disgusting how everyone has treated Lance Armstrong, especially after what he achieved, winning seven Tour de France races while on drugs.  When I was on drugs, I couldn't even find my bike..."  -Willie Nelson-




Good afternoon everyone.  Well, there's no room for me to make excuses and not be ready for the move tomorrow.  Today's t.v. lineup features 'The Break Up' (just started), 'The Karate Kid' (the new one, at 2:00), RV at 5:00 (I've never seen it, but it has Robin Williams in it), and then..., AND THEN..., AHHHH..., the very first preseason football game of the year, featuring the Dallas Cowboys and the Miami Dolphins at 7:00.  Now that the commuting is over, I just can't wait to get on the road again...  Tomorrow will entail making 3 or 4 San Marcos/Austin round trips (well, the last trip won't be round), and then I'll be in my new place.

Since I've got all of this great background t.v. noise to work to today (Aniston's brother is just starting to sing "The Owner of a Lonely Heart"), let me procrastinate a little more by talking to you instead of cleaning or packing...  Last night I successfully gave away my 'Ollie' couch and loveseat to some of my friends from Harper's, who were kind enough to stop by on short notice to take possession of the furniture.  Thanks to Adam, Kerry, and Scott for coming by to pick up the pieces at about 4:00 in the morning, and thanks to Ollie for furnishing the homes of more of the hardworking people in San Marcos, America...

Of course finding a home for the furniture on such short notice (having JUST BARELY signed my lease up in Austin on April 25th...) meant that I had to go to the Square last night (darn my bad luck)...  After briefly checking-in at a very hot and busy Harper's/Slackers/The Veranda last night (where I did accomplish talking to Kerry and Adam about my soon-to-be homeless furniture), I made my way over to the Barfish Lounge where I ran into the beautiful Lindsey and the beautiful Bianca (and that's the Square for you - I'm walking around in cargo shorts and sneakers while this duo is dressed up and looking awesome). Also, I'm not just complimenting these two because I knocked Bianca's phone out of her hand (oops) or because Lindsey gave me a beer when I returned to Harper's...  :)  After Lindsey and Bianca gave me the opportunity to whine SOME MORE about having to actually MAKE THE MOVE up to Austin (where Lindsey chimed-in about seeing all of my posts/tweets about commuting - and yes, I've used SEVERAL OUTLETS other than the blog to cry about the three weeks of commuting and my impending move), then the beautiful Rhiannon bought me a beer.  As I drank my beer and watched the beautiful Rhiannon and the beautiful Lauren serving customers, I doubted that there could have been two more friendly and attractive bartenders working side-by-side anywhere in San Marcos at the moment, as I wondered why Barfish wasn't more busy...  NOTE:  Everything that you just read above was typed just after 12:00 p.m., and evidently sleeping until 9:00 a.m. wasn't enough this morning, because I just took a nap that lasted until FOUR P.M....  :)  So now that I'm well-rested (I sure hope so), let me finish this up so that I can get to work.  After giving my friends Lauren and Rhiannon goodbye hugs (because Austin is a whole 30 miles away you know), I went back to Harper's (where Lindsey gave me that aforementioned beer), and then my friend Brian bought me a beer (evidently people were really happy that I was going to be moving)...  ;)  And yes, this was followed by my friend Sam getting me a beer (maybe the long nap means that I just can't keep up anymore???).  :)

Well, I'm hoping that the next time that I see you here will be tomorrow night, in a post that I'm typing from my new place in the ATX.  We'll see how well the moving goes tomorrow...  Enjoy your football tonight and I'll see you (I hope) again tomorrow!