Odds and Ends

As I sit here on my couch watching the Rams actually looking like a good football team against the Cowboys I guess I'll write some random thoughts down.

-Amazing how some coaches of professional athletes are so fat when they are in charge of telling some of the most in-shape men in the world what to do. A little ironic, don't you think?

-Last night, one of the most exciting moments since becoming a Blues season ticket holder in 2006 happened at the Scottrade Center. Down by 2 goals to the Blackhawks in the 3rd period Keith Tkachuk scored with 10 minutes left making the score to 3-2. Then, with only 13 seconds left, with Manny Legace (goalie) on the bench for the extra attacker, Andy McDonald tied the game to force overtime.

Although the Blues had plenty of chances to win in overtime, they could not find the back of the net. But in the shootout Brad Boyes and rookie TJ Oshie, scored to finsh of the dramatic comeback. Awesome.

-Speeding and parking tickets are such as waste of money. Ugh! Nothing is more frustrating than working just to throw the paycheck away.

-A good friend of mine recently witnessed something so bizarre at work I have to share it with you. Last week, during a routine trip to the ladies room, she noticed an unusual scene taking place in the handicapped stall.

Through the crack between the door and wall panel, she saw another woman co-worker sitting on the floor reading a book. That's right. Reading, on the floor, in the ladies room. Weird!

-The thumb is healing rather well. It's a good thing the body can fix itself. Imagine if injuries were permanent. There'd be a lot of disfigured and incapacitated people out there.

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Time to grab some lunch. Until next time....

One of Those Moments...

So I'm sitting here on my couch at 7 o'clock on a Wednesday evening just wasting the night basically when, on the television, the lotto drawing is about to happen. I'm aware the drawings occur, obviously, but rarely do I catch them live. I'm typically just not on the channel they occur at this time. I don't even really play.

But that's not the point. The point is as soon as I saw they were going to draw the Pick 3 I said, out loud, 4-6-3. And sure enough, I watch the drawing and those exact numbers appear in that order!

I'm not trying to say I "knew" they were going to be chosen. All I'm saying is I am positive those numbers popped into my head seconds before I saw them picked. It's just one of those weird moments in life that make you think you might have some sort of untapped mental power just waiting to be unleashed.

Of course I don't believe in anything like that and I'm sure it was just a lucky guess.
Nevertheless it caused my mouth to drop and immediately wished someone would have been around to witness it.

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In other news, as you probably know if you're reading this, I suffered an injury last Friday playing softball. A hard hit line drive by a guy in softball took a bad hop on me and struck my right thumb, right on the top. Some separation occurred between the nail and the finger and also the fingertip was sliced open a little bit.

The only reason I bring it up is because it got me thinking about life and how random and unpredictable accidents are. When I left the house that night, never in my wildest dreams could I have predicted I'd be in the Emergency Room that night due to a freak finger accident. I hadn't been hurt in a long time before that.

Just goes to show you never know when things will happen that throw life off. One second you can be totally happy and feel like nothing will ever happen to you. Then a softball hits your thumb just the right way and you realize just how random life can be.

I guess the only thing that is certain is that these unpredictable things will happen. It's only a matter of time.

Oh well, you just roll with the changes as REO Speedwagon might say.

Sunday Afternoon

I don't know if it's laziness or lack of subject matter but, as you can see, I haven't posted in a little while.

I typically like to write about quirky events or interesting observations but I guess I haven't witnessed anything noteworthy lately, or, if I have, I didn't get to a computer in time to record it.

To be honest, I'm only a good writer when I'm inspired about something and today that's not really the case. Unfortunately, I've already posted the best of my MySpace blogs too.

So yeah, this is a nothing post just to say I'm still here and new stuff is coming.

Recycled Myspace Blog (2)- The To-Go Box

Here's another installment of an older post from my earlier blogging days on MySpace. Enjoy!

The To-Go Box (originally published on MySpace June 1, 2007)

Often times when I attend a sit-down restaurant I do not finish my entire meal due mostly in part the massive quantities of food I am served.

When my waitress comes for the second to last time to bring me the check she also asks me the most difficult question I have to answer during the whole dining experience.

"Would you like a to-go box for the rest of that?"

Most people probably answer with a quick yes or no answer, but it is much more complicated than that for me.

The to-go box requires me to do so many things and it's such a burden that, more often than not, I am not willing to bear.

Once I commit to the to-go box I have committed to:
-remembering to take the to-go box home
-remembering to take the to-go box out of my car and into my home
-putting the to-go box in the refrigerator
-remembering in the near future that when I'm hungry, the to-go box is waiting for me
-reheating the food inside the to-go box
-and finally, eating whatever little remains of the food I ate 24-72 hours ago.

9 times out of 10 the reheated meal doesn't taste anywhere close to the satisfaction you felt at the restaurant and just the look of the cold food as you take it out of the fridge before you put it in the microwave is enough to make you want to throw it out right there.

Speaking of throwing it out, I would say this is actually what happens to the majority of to-go boxes I've encountered. Take yesterday afternoon for example:

I have a delicious meal at California Pizza Kitchen (CPK). The waitress was cute, the food was yummy, I had great conversation with my friends while dining. All was well until I accepted the to-go box. The lunch time to-go box is the worst kind of them all because it adds 2 more steps to the whole process: Refrigerating at work, and remembering it's in there when you leave work.

Yesterday I did neither.

When I came in this morning, my CPK pizza was still there, waiting for me, on my desk, as cold and clammy as ever. The fate of the food and the to-go box that bore it was bleak my friends. As I type this now it is in my trash can waiting to begin its slow journey that is decomposition.

So what's the point you may ask?

The point is, to me, the to-go box is more trouble than it's worth. For me the chance of the food inside it ever reaching my lips again is about the same odds as me winning the lottery. It's not only a hassle for the waitress to bring it to you, but takes up space in your fridge, and most likely will just be tossed out like the trash it is in 3 days.

So next time you're asked if you want to take the rest of that home with you ask your self: Is it really worth it?

Riddle Me This

When I was in college, downloading music was just coming to fruition and we all know that back then, there was only one place to go to do it: Napster.

It was the coolest thing ever. Any song you wanted was a click and 20 seconds away and best of all, it didn't cost you a penny.

But September 24th, 2001, Napster was shut down due to legal struggles with the RIAA and the days of uninhibited downloading had come to an end - or had they?

Apparently not.

Shortly after Napsters demise I found Kazaa and Morpheus, two services which had popped up and filled the void in the free download world. They were ok but filled with annoying ads and had a high risk of infecting your computer with some sort of sickness.

But now, in 2008, we have Limewire.

To me, Limewire is every bit as good as Napster ever was. No ads, any song you could want is there, and best of all, all free.

So how is it my friends that 7 years after Napsters end I can still get any song I want online any time I want it without paying a penny?

A mystery to me.

Coed Softball Recap : 8/15/08

Drunken Clams Rout TALX in Season Opener 21-5

By Kevin Mueller

CREVE COEUR – A change of venues, a change of players, and a change of the team name may be insignificant details for the Drunken Clams, but after Friday’s blowout of TALX one thing is for certain: change is good.

Returning from last year, Jen, TJ, Kevin, Cara, Cody, Caryn, and Julie provided the foundation and making their softball debuts with the Clams were John, Margaret, and Gabe. This new group meshed well from the first pitch until the final out, playing solid defense and consistent offense throughout the game.

After falling behind quickly 2-0 in the top of the 1st, this new team did something last years group was unable to do all of last season: they responded, and responded big. Sending 18 players to the plate* in the bottom of the 1st, the Drunken Clams scored 13 runs* on 13 base hits* and a walk and never looked back.

After the Clams were held scoreless in the 2nd, TALX cut the lead to 13-3, but that was as close as this contest ever was. The 3rd inning saw TALX post two more tallies on the score sheet but were matched with two from the home team in the bottom half of the frame.

Heading into the 4th inning leading by 10, Cody pitched a scoreless top half of the inning, practically ensuring the Clams the victory, but there were more fireworks to come.

After Julie’s second walk of the game, and singles by John and Jen, Kevin stepped up to the plate for the fourth time in the game, this time with the bases loaded. Although he was 2 for 3 on the night already, no one, including Kevin himself, could believe what happened next.

A 2-2 pitch was tossed toward home and Kevin got every bit of it, sending the ball way out into left, well over the head of the fielder, and deep into the fenceless outfield. Although the TALX player moved quickly to recover the ball, Kevin was running hard out of the gate, and was right on the Jen’s heels as he crossed home plate, giving the Drunken Clams their first ever Grand Slam and 1st homerun of the 2008 season.

With the score now 24-5, the next batter, Margaret, lined a single into the outfield. This brought up Gabe who was already 3 for 3 on the night. But he wasn’t done either. Going a perfect 4 for 4, he launched a pitch to the opposite field and touched them all, the second homerun of the inning. This one would prove to be the final blow however, as after 3 innings, a team up by 15 is awarded the victory.

Surrendering only 5 runs though 4 innings, Cody picked up his first win as a co-ed recreational softball pitcher, striking out two batters in the process, and never giving up more than two runs in an inning.

* Designates team records

Game Notes: 9 out of 10 Clams scored runs. A deer was grazing in left field from the 2nd inning on, but did not prove to be a factor in the game. This was the Clams second team win dating back to last season when they did not have a team name. John was 5 for 5 in the game and is batting 1.000 along with Gabe.

NEXT GAME: 8/22/08 vs. The Hanging Chads @ 9:30 pm

Redemption

Let me start this one out by saying that I'm not a gambler. I've been to the casino probably a dozen times since I've been 21 (5 years). Having said that I have definitely have a game of choice when I do go and that is blackjack.

Why blackjack? It's simple really, I feel like I have the most control and the best shot at coming out ahead. Roulette is all chance, so are slots, and I to this day have no idea what the hell is going on in that craps game.

So blackjack it is.

Another thing you need to know about me to fully comprehend this story: I'm extremely competitive. I hate to lose. Doesn't matter if its be in a friendly game of Scattergories or a medium risk game of "21".

So when I go to the casino I don't want to walk out that door a loser, which is a dangerous thing (and the reason I don't go all that often).

So this afternoon I head to Harrah's with my friend Allison. I walk in the door with $40 and promised myself that was all I was willing to lose today. After a nice lunch I head right to my faithful game and sit down at a table.

Things start out well. I turn my $40 into about $60 but then go on to lose about 8 hands in a row which is extremely rare. So I'm out after only 20 minutes. Allison has about $10 she plays in some nickel slot as I sit and watch, contemplating my failure. She spends about 7 minutes and slowly and systematically watches her $1o turn into $0.

But during this time I've already made up my mind. I'm winning my money back, which means another trip to the ATM, and a betrayal of my self-promise to only gamble $40.

I'm determined, however, and remember, I hate to lose.

I pull out $60 this time and head back to blackjack but at a different table this time.

I quickly regret though as my decision as my $60 turns into $40, then $20, then $10.

Heartbroken and desperate I bet my final $10 but instead of walking away at this point disappointed and dejected something else happens. I win. My $10 doubles to $20 and I begin a great roll of blackjack. A sequence of luck and skill combine to save my afternoon and take me from one hand away from misery to cashing in one black chip to the cashier, which for those non-gamblers, is $100.

Now before you say wow, what a day for Kev at the casino let's remember I started with 40 and lost it, then got 60 out from the ATM for a total of $100 and a cashed out with, yep, $100. So I didn't win anything today. But in my opinion, if you don't lose any money at the boat, you are most certainly a winner.

Driving home I found it hard to wipe the smile off my face. I cheated fate and won, which doesn't happen very often. I was so happy I stopped off at DQ for a Peanut Buster Parfait and boy was it delicious.