I don't usually talk about personal things here in the basement but I think some people know that my wife has had chronic lung and heart issues.
Unfortunately last Wednesday morning she was nauseous and ended up throwing up, choking and ultimately aspirated vomit into her lungs. Thankfully I was home and got her to the ER. She has been on a mechanical ventilator ever since. The problem is she can't get her oxygen levels up high enough to get off the mechanical ventilation. She was improving but yesterday failed a test and they had to boost up her oxygen levels through the machine again. I doubt that today they will even consider getting her off the machine but the doctors are optimistic. Yesterday was especially hard as it was her birthday. We haven't even discussed what, if any, permanent damage has been done to her lungs but reading between the lines, I'm not getting a good vibe.
Anyway sorry to start off the week on such a downer I thought it was time to let everyone know what was going on.
Sorry to hear that, free.
Best wishes and our prayers for your wife.
Thanks for letting us know.
Our prayers are with you.
Sorry to hear this news, free.
My thoughts & prayers are with you bud.
I'm so sorry--and what awful timing to boot. A very close friend has muscular dystrophy and has dealt with a lot of lung issues over the years. Here's hoping you make it out of the hospital sooner rather than later.
Lousy news, Free. Prayers and best wishes to you guys.
Wow. I can't even imagine what you and your wife are going through. You are in our prayers.
I'll add my thoughts. Best wishes, free.
Sorry to hear it. I'll be thinking about and praying for your family.
Sad news, free. Sending out good vibes for what it's worth.
that's pretty awful, free. hope everything finds a healthy resolution.
That's terrible, free- best wishes to her and you.
So sorry to hear about this, free. Hope everything works out, and I am adding my prayers and best wishes.
Ugh so sorry free, I'll be keeping you and your family in my thoughts.
Sorry to hear about this, Free. Best wishes.
Ugh, sorry to hear this free.
My sympathies. Best wishes to you and yours, Dean.
I know I'm late, but free, you and your wife have my empathy. There's nothing like a seriously ill spouse (or child) to turn life upside down. Remember to take care of yourself so you can take care of her, too.
I'm late as well, but my thoughts and good vibes are with y'all.
Best wishes.
I never know what to say in these situations, but count me among those who are hoping for the best for you and your wife.
Thanks for your thoughts and prayers you guys. They are appreciated.
When I saw she was 53, I expected it to be drug related.
When I saw which band she was in, I expected autoerotic asphyxiation.
I am still the king of sleep. Yesterday about 6 PM I was with my daughter while my wife was out doing some things. I got tired and I told my daughter that I needed a nap, which was true. I said, why don't you come and lay down by me and help Dad get to sleep. We went through the drill: get comfortable, relax, lie still, be quiet, close your eyes. She was lying on my back. I fell asleep for about 10 minutes. When I awoke, she was sleeping. I let her lie there for a little while and then I put her to bed. She slept until 7 AM. She was exhibiting all the signs of being tired, but I didn't have putting her to bed on the radar. It's just that when I went through our little routine, it was like she got hypnotized.
Was she ever bright-eyed and bushy tailed today!
just wait until she's a teenager college kid, then you can't get her to not nap
She'll still nap for Dad. For years, my wife denied my king-ness. She's finally accepted that re(g)ality.
Honestly, though, she's developmentally behind in her sleep routine. At this age, she should be able to go to bed all by herself. She can't, but I am working on that now. I expect that it won't be long until she will say good night and head up on her own. At least, that is, when I'm around.
I'm thinking about a nap right now, and I haven't even been up for 3 hours yet.
Wild Playoff Chase
With the loss to the Flames last night, the division is now out of reach.
Columbus beat San Jose, and Dallas got 1 point from LA.
Magic Numbers (3 of these 4 need to get to 0 to clinch a playoff spot)
Detroit - 6
Columbus - 5
Dallas - 4
Phoenix - 4
Tonight's Games
Phoenix @ Detroit - no 3 point games, please!
From the PiPRess:
Reliever Tim Wood (shoulder) tossed a scoreless inning at Triple-A Rochester on Saturday, striking out two and throwing 11 of 15 pitches for strikes. He needs to show he can work back-to-back days before the Twins would have to figure out a way to add him to their big-league bullpen.
Wood is out of options. Right-hander Casey Fien, who has stranded eight of nine inherited runners this season, can still be optioned back to the minor leagues.
I sure hope that this is pure speculation. Would the Twins even remotely consider this? Fien is probably our third best reliever and the best option to pitch the eighth when Burton is unavailable. I really doubt anyone thinks Wood is that valuable. I doubt he would get claimed if they had to put him through waivers anyways.
I've never figured out why the Twins are enamoured with Tim Wood. Who is this guy?
yeah, I dont get it either.
I would say if there is a low man on the bullpen totem pole is Roenicke or Pressly, but so far they have not been so bad the Twins need to ship them out.
They also are out of options (Roenicke) or would have to be offered back to the team the Twins drafted him from (Pressly), so same problem. This is why Robertson was sent down when Swarzak came off the DL.
If the Twins can play some games, this will work itself out. Someone will get hurt before a real decision needs to be made.
Is Wood out of options? Could he stay in AAA if this whole Marlins series needs to be rescheduled*?
*preventing anyone from getting hurt
Can somebody handle tonight's game log? I'm supposed to be released today but its looking more like late in the day than early. Thanks!
I dont think there will be a game tonight due to rain/snow, but I got ya covered
The beginning of Rick Reilly's new column:
Welcome to the new TV roundtable discussion show, "One Take."
Except it's not on TV, the table isn't round and there isn't any discussion. It's just me and my One Take. A lot less arguing that way. Shall we begin?
TOPIC: The Tampa Bay Buccaneers apparently won't give up more than a first-round draft pick for Jets superstar cornerback Darrelle Revis.
ONE TAKE: This trade isn't going to happen. Revis is worth at least a first- and a second-rounder. Revis will be a Jet this season. Tim Tebow, on the other hand, will be a Hamilton Tiger-Cat.
well, he was right that it took more than a first-round pick....
That's way too much Reilly to see without having to opt-in. Please spoiler all further quotes of the man longer than three words.
Target Field get another Kenny Chesney concert this year. The Saints ... well
Patrick Kessler @PatKessler
Home Run: Bob Dylan to play July 10 at St. Paul Saints minor league ballpark. Also appearing: Wilco, My Morning Jacket.
i saw dylan the last time he went to midway along with ani difranco and BR5-49. that was an awesome show.
Hey I was there. I had a miserable time because I had a boil on my cheek and it hurt like hell and I didn't bring any analgesics to take after my first set wore off. I enjoyed the openers quite a bit.
Now, if I had wanted to smoke something to feel better, I saw about 10 different people I knew there that would have obliged me. But no Advil.
I was there too. I had a much better time in part because I was there with a cute girl and in part because of all the free pain killer being passed around.
yeah, that was a good night. also, i wouldn't have thought that AMR would have even needed to ask; just standing in the crowd would've helped take the edge off.
Don't want to go into too much detail, but what those folk had to offer was never good to me, and I never would have trusted it with actual pain relief. I really wanted Advil and Tylenol. OK, some codeine cough syrup would have been even better, but I'd have probably fallen asleep on some comfy concrete steps.
I had a recurrence of the boil (or another in almost the exact same spot) around Halloween. That was awful. I used a tweezers (from my Swiss Army knife!) to pull a green chunk of pus bigger than a pea out of my cheek. I then collapsed to the floor from pain, though it didn't "hurt" hurt, more like a phantom hurt like there was a nerve in there that I pulled out of its roots.
No, I asked all these different folk I knew that I saw if they had any Advil or Tylenol, and the response was, "No, but we can smoke you up!" "I really just want an Advil, I'm in a ton of pain." "OK, let me ask my buddy." Buddy: "No, man, sorry I don't, but I can smoke you up!" Repeat at least five times.
It was an awesome show. Again, free pain killer abounded, but the moment the lights popped on and they launched into Tangled Up In Blue about 15 feet away from me was a top-10 moment.
Was that before or after "Everybody Must Get Stoned"?
Kenny Chesney! He married Renee Zellwiger about a week before (or was it after?) my wife and I got married. That one didn't take. (If you haven't figured out why I mention that, well, think about it for a little while longer. Hint: Lucy is an alias.)
But yeah, if the Saints can get that lineup, you would think that the Twins could do a little bit better.
Also appearing on the Dylan bill: Richard Thompson Electric Trio.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JC5g4ulOzMo
Worth the price of admission alone.
My favorite post office employee in DT Minneapolis is a huge Dylan fan. However, she said she saw him at Xcel last year and couldn't actually recognize most of the songs--even the old ones--because of changes in arrangement and trouble deciphering lyrics. Not to say she wasn't glad she went.
I read - I think - that this tour is supposed to be hits-heavy. Regardless, it's the 3 bands combined that I'm exctied about. For me at least, this show beats the hell out of Rock the Garden or the Blockparty.
That sounds about right. I saw Bob Dylan last fall when he came through Seattle on a double bill with Mark Knopfler (mainly because some friends wanted to see Knopfler.) I like that even though he's about a million years old (in rock'n'roll years), he doesn't just go through the motions and play his songs as they were recorded. Not all of the new arrangements work for me, but hey, if I just wanted to listen to the way they were recorded, I could spend $20 on iTunes (definitely less than the price of admission) and put together my own private "concert." IMO, the best way to describe a modern Bob Dylan concert is to imagine what it would be like if Bob Dylan was in a cover band that only covered Bob Dylan songs.
I thought his show at the Xcel Energy Center back in 2003 or so was better, though I'm glad he's still touring. It was essentially the same format, but I think his voice was in a little better shape. I particularly remember that they did an amazing cover of "Brown Sugar." It seemed noteworthy because 1) it was a great cover and 2) Bob Dylan has written more good material over the last 50 years than all but maybe a dozen of songwriters, and he thought it would be a good idea to cover someone else's song.
After last night's "GoT" episode, I've decided my next band will be called "Dragon Leash"
Wait- your "next" band? What have your other bands been named?
My next band will be my first. I'll have to learn an instrument before that, though. The name for it changes quite often.
Heh, I was pretty sure that was the case. And "Dragon Leash" would be a great band name.
If I ever have a band (which seems highly unlikely), I want to call it "Spoiler Alert."
SPOILER ALERT!
I don't remember who got me started on Men in Blazers (dw perhaps?), but I made their blog today.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wRvHaRmyEFc
Congrats on becoming a GFOP. Hopefully your blazer patch is on its way.
They didn't say anything about getting my address. I would so love a patch. I would totally get a blazer at Goodwill to affix it to.
Dave St. Peter @TwinsPrez
Tonight's game vs. Miami has been postponed. Rescheduled for 7:10 pm tomorrow as part of spit day-night DH. First game will start at 1:10 pm
yeah, i didn't even realize it for awhile but it must've clicked over to the SSL version right away. no problems on my end so far.
The Recent Comments plugin implements naive caching, causing anyone using the HTTPS version to have that encoded into all of the links. Since people often use that for navigating the site, it slowly propagates to other people.
Is there any connection to that and the comments RSS feed?
I noticed I was missing a few comments at work today.
RIP E.L. Konigsburg. (Anyone else love From The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler as much as I did as a kid?)
dido.
I sure did.
Didn't see this posted here before, but Joe C is reporting that the B1G is changing divisions with the addition of Maryland and Rutgers.
The Gophers would be in the West, along with their two closest rivals -- Wisconsin and Iowa -- as well as Nebraska, Illinois, Northwestern and Purdue.
The East division would have Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, Penn State and Rutgers.
The Gophers lucked out by not being in the same division as Michigan and Ohio State (or even Penn State for that matter).
How will we tell who the legends and leaders are?
Without double-checking on a map, it actually looks like they went with a strictly geographic split, which I approve of. That should help to reduce travel in general for conference games/meets (in all sports.)
Yeah, the blog said it was going to be renamed West and East divisions.
That is very favorable (football-wise). The West has only two powers: Nebraska and Wisconsin and five dogs*. The East has three powers, plus Mich St., which isn't exactly a dog. You know who should be really happy? Nebraska and Wisconsin. They should develop a huge rivalry and they'll basically play for the right to head to the championship game every year.
*Only one or two of those dogs might be good at any one time.
Wis-Neb: Whoever wins gets to claim that the other team stole their look.
Nebraska already knows Wisconsin stole it. Barry Alvarez (a Husker) installed it.
The East is more top-heavy, but I think the West is deeper, which will ultimately be tougher for the Gophers. Penn State hasn't felt the full effects of their sanctions and reductions yet. Sparty seems like it's been trending up, other than this last year, but if you look deeper I wouldn't call them that much better a program than Iowa. And if you line up Indiana/Maryland/Rutgers against Northwestern/Purdue/Illinois I think you'll have a hard time calling the first group stronger most years.
I guess I should say that if you compare the new division to the old Legends division, this is certainly better for Minnesota - trading annual games with the Michigans for ones with Purdue/Illinois. Comparing the new divisions to each other, though, I definitely think the West is slightly tougher top to bottom - this is more of a gift to Michigan/tOSU than it is to Nebraska/Wisconsin.
So here it comes. Remaining cold in Fargo until mid-week and then bang! Mid to upper 60s this weekend. The good news is no precip this weekend, but those temps will bring very fast melting. The river is still under flood stage. By Monday it is projected to be 20 feet higher than it is right now. That's still more than four feet below the record, but more rising can come.
But, my old buddy Joel is saying not to worry. We'll see about that.
Okay, I could maybe see his point before the recent batch of precip... But the fact that he's still banging the drum, well...
We'll see about that indeed.
By the way, that bum Kevin Slowey, who's mere presence on the Miami roster shows how awful the Marlins are, now has a 1.90 ERA (11th in the NL) and a 1.23 WHIP in 23.2 innings (four starts).
I would make a joke about the Yankees being on ESPN again, but since its played in the Trop Dome, it might be the only game not rained out tonight.
P.A. Interviewed Bremer this morning. They discussed the Shields trade and Bremer said the Twins are smart enough to never trade a potential star for a short-term player. Uh huh.
I don't know, I changed the station before I had a seizure while driving
Anthony Slama gave up five runs in 1/3 of an inning in the ninth inning of a tied game. He's now 0-4 with an 18.47 ERA. Ouch.
It's being reported that Slama has a stiff back.
He probably Charlie Browned it.
Whoa: I appear to be atop the WGOM EPL Leaderboard.
You have been practically all season.
Whenever I've checked, I've been close, but this is the very top.
If it's been more than I've checked, I'm awesome.
I hope I can join DK, UncleWalt, and Cheaptoy on that "Achievements" page.
Okay, this is pretty outstanding
I don't usually talk about personal things here in the basement but I think some people know that my wife has had chronic lung and heart issues.
Unfortunately last Wednesday morning she was nauseous and ended up throwing up, choking and ultimately aspirated vomit into her lungs. Thankfully I was home and got her to the ER. She has been on a mechanical ventilator ever since. The problem is she can't get her oxygen levels up high enough to get off the mechanical ventilation. She was improving but yesterday failed a test and they had to boost up her oxygen levels through the machine again. I doubt that today they will even consider getting her off the machine but the doctors are optimistic. Yesterday was especially hard as it was her birthday. We haven't even discussed what, if any, permanent damage has been done to her lungs but reading between the lines, I'm not getting a good vibe.
Anyway sorry to start off the week on such a downer I thought it was time to let everyone know what was going on.
Sorry to hear that, free.
Best wishes and our prayers for your wife.
Thanks for letting us know.
Our prayers are with you.
Sorry to hear this news, free.
My thoughts & prayers are with you bud.
I'm so sorry--and what awful timing to boot. A very close friend has muscular dystrophy and has dealt with a lot of lung issues over the years. Here's hoping you make it out of the hospital sooner rather than later.
Lousy news, Free. Prayers and best wishes to you guys.
Wow. I can't even imagine what you and your wife are going through. You are in our prayers.
I'll add my thoughts. Best wishes, free.
Sorry to hear it. I'll be thinking about and praying for your family.
Sad news, free. Sending out good vibes for what it's worth.
that's pretty awful, free. hope everything finds a healthy resolution.
That's terrible, free- best wishes to her and you.
So sorry to hear about this, free. Hope everything works out, and I am adding my prayers and best wishes.
Ugh so sorry free, I'll be keeping you and your family in my thoughts.
Sorry to hear about this, Free. Best wishes.
Ugh, sorry to hear this free.
My sympathies. Best wishes to you and yours, Dean.
I know I'm late, but free, you and your wife have my empathy. There's nothing like a seriously ill spouse (or child) to turn life upside down. Remember to take care of yourself so you can take care of her, too.
I'm late as well, but my thoughts and good vibes are with y'all.
Best wishes.
I never know what to say in these situations, but count me among those who are hoping for the best for you and your wife.
Thanks for your thoughts and prayers you guys. They are appreciated.
Don’t Make Me Think of a Theme
Movies, perhaps?
RIP Chrissy Amphlett.
When I saw she was 53, I expected it to be drug related.
When I saw which band she was in, I expected autoerotic asphyxiation.
I am still the king of sleep. Yesterday about 6 PM I was with my daughter while my wife was out doing some things. I got tired and I told my daughter that I needed a nap, which was true. I said, why don't you come and lay down by me and help Dad get to sleep. We went through the drill: get comfortable, relax, lie still, be quiet, close your eyes. She was lying on my back. I fell asleep for about 10 minutes. When I awoke, she was sleeping. I let her lie there for a little while and then I put her to bed. She slept until 7 AM. She was exhibiting all the signs of being tired, but I didn't have putting her to bed on the radar. It's just that when I went through our little routine, it was like she got hypnotized.
Was she ever bright-eyed and bushy tailed today!
just wait until she's a
teenagercollege kid, then you can't get her to not napShe'll still nap for Dad. For years, my wife denied my king-ness. She's finally accepted that re(g)ality.
Honestly, though, she's developmentally behind in her sleep routine. At this age, she should be able to go to bed all by herself. She can't, but I am working on that now. I expect that it won't be long until she will say good night and head up on her own. At least, that is, when I'm around.
I'm thinking about a nap right now, and I haven't even been up for 3 hours yet.
Wild Playoff Chase
With the loss to the Flames last night, the division is now out of reach.
Columbus beat San Jose, and Dallas got 1 point from LA.
Magic Numbers (3 of these 4 need to get to 0 to clinch a playoff spot)
Detroit - 6
Columbus - 5
Dallas - 4
Phoenix - 4
Tonight's Games
Phoenix @ Detroit - no 3 point games, please!
From the PiPRess:
I sure hope that this is pure speculation. Would the Twins even remotely consider this? Fien is probably our third best reliever and the best option to pitch the eighth when Burton is unavailable. I really doubt anyone thinks Wood is that valuable. I doubt he would get claimed if they had to put him through waivers anyways.
I've never figured out why the Twins are enamoured with Tim Wood. Who is this guy?
yeah, I dont get it either.
I would say if there is a low man on the bullpen totem pole is Roenicke or Pressly, but so far they have not been so bad the Twins need to ship them out.
They also are out of options (Roenicke) or would have to be offered back to the team the Twins drafted him from (Pressly), so same problem. This is why Robertson was sent down when Swarzak came off the DL.
If the Twins can play some games, this will work itself out. Someone will get hurt before a real decision needs to be made.
Is Wood out of options? Could he stay in AAA if this whole Marlins series needs to be rescheduled*?
*preventing anyone from getting hurt
Can somebody handle tonight's game log? I'm supposed to be released today but its looking more like late in the day than early. Thanks!
I dont think there will be a game tonight due to rain/snow, but I got ya covered
The beginning of Rick Reilly's new column:
No need to read any further, right?
well, he was right that it took more than a first-round pick....
That's way too much Reilly to see without having to opt-in. Please spoiler all further quotes of the man longer than three words.
Target Field get another Kenny Chesney concert this year. The Saints ... well
i saw dylan the last time he went to midway along with ani difranco and BR5-49. that was an awesome show.
Hey I was there. I had a miserable time because I had a boil on my cheek and it hurt like hell and I didn't bring any analgesics to take after my first set wore off. I enjoyed the openers quite a bit.
Now, if I had wanted to smoke something to feel better, I saw about 10 different people I knew there that would have obliged me. But no Advil.
I was there too. I had a much better time in part because I was there with a cute girl and in part because of all the free pain killer being passed around.
yeah, that was a good night. also, i wouldn't have thought that AMR would have even needed to ask; just standing in the crowd would've helped take the edge off.
Don't want to go into too much detail, but what those folk had to offer was never good to me, and I never would have trusted it with actual pain relief. I really wanted Advil and Tylenol. OK, some codeine cough syrup would have been even better, but I'd have probably fallen asleep on some comfy concrete steps.
I had a recurrence of the boil (or another in almost the exact same spot) around Halloween. That was awful. I used a tweezers (from my Swiss Army knife!) to pull a green chunk of pus bigger than a pea out of my cheek. I then collapsed to the floor from pain, though it didn't "hurt" hurt, more like a phantom hurt like there was a nerve in there that I pulled out of its roots.
No, I asked all these different folk I knew that I saw if they had any Advil or Tylenol, and the response was, "No, but we can smoke you up!" "I really just want an Advil, I'm in a ton of pain." "OK, let me ask my buddy." Buddy: "No, man, sorry I don't, but I can smoke you up!" Repeat at least five times.
It was an awesome show. Again, free pain killer abounded, but the moment the lights popped on and they launched into Tangled Up In Blue about 15 feet away from me was a top-10 moment.
Was that before or after "Everybody Must Get Stoned"?
Kenny Chesney! He married Renee Zellwiger about a week before (or was it after?) my wife and I got married. That one didn't take. (If you haven't figured out why I mention that, well, think about it for a little while longer. Hint: Lucy is an alias.)
But yeah, if the Saints can get that lineup, you would think that the Twins could do a little bit better.
Also appearing on the Dylan bill: Richard Thompson Electric Trio.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JC5g4ulOzMo
Worth the price of admission alone.
My favorite post office employee in DT Minneapolis is a huge Dylan fan. However, she said she saw him at Xcel last year and couldn't actually recognize most of the songs--even the old ones--because of changes in arrangement and trouble deciphering lyrics. Not to say she wasn't glad she went.
I read - I think - that this tour is supposed to be hits-heavy. Regardless, it's the 3 bands combined that I'm exctied about. For me at least, this show beats the hell out of Rock the Garden or the Blockparty.
That sounds about right. I saw Bob Dylan last fall when he came through Seattle on a double bill with Mark Knopfler (mainly because some friends wanted to see Knopfler.) I like that even though he's about a million years old (in rock'n'roll years), he doesn't just go through the motions and play his songs as they were recorded. Not all of the new arrangements work for me, but hey, if I just wanted to listen to the way they were recorded, I could spend $20 on iTunes (definitely less than the price of admission) and put together my own private "concert." IMO, the best way to describe a modern Bob Dylan concert is to imagine what it would be like if Bob Dylan was in a cover band that only covered Bob Dylan songs.
I thought his show at the Xcel Energy Center back in 2003 or so was better, though I'm glad he's still touring. It was essentially the same format, but I think his voice was in a little better shape. I particularly remember that they did an amazing cover of "Brown Sugar." It seemed noteworthy because 1) it was a great cover and 2) Bob Dylan has written more good material over the last 50 years than all but maybe a dozen of songwriters, and he thought it would be a good idea to cover someone else's song.
After last night's "GoT" episode, I've decided my next band will be called "Dragon Leash"
Wait- your "next" band? What have your other bands been named?
My next band will be my first. I'll have to learn an instrument before that, though. The name for it changes quite often.
Heh, I was pretty sure that was the case. And "Dragon Leash" would be a great band name.
If I ever have a band (which seems highly unlikely), I want to call it "Spoiler Alert."
SPOILER ALERT!
I don't remember who got me started on Men in Blazers (dw perhaps?), but I made their blog today.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wRvHaRmyEFc
Congrats on becoming a GFOP. Hopefully your blazer patch is on its way.
They didn't say anything about getting my address. I would so love a patch. I would totally get a blazer at Goodwill to affix it to.
Going to be a lot of doubleheaders this year.
Dammit, I have some work to do, then.
CC to hungry joe:
Have you tried the SSL version of the WGOM at work yet?
yeah, i didn't even realize it for awhile but it must've clicked over to the SSL version right away. no problems on my end so far.
The Recent Comments plugin implements naive caching, causing anyone using the HTTPS version to have that encoded into all of the links. Since people often use that for navigating the site, it slowly propagates to other people.
Is there any connection to that and the comments RSS feed?
I noticed I was missing a few comments at work today.
RIP E.L. Konigsburg. (Anyone else love From The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler as much as I did as a kid?)
dido.
I sure did.
Didn't see this posted here before, but Joe C is reporting that the B1G is changing divisions with the addition of Maryland and Rutgers.
The Gophers lucked out by not being in the same division as Michigan and Ohio State (or even Penn State for that matter).
How will we tell who the legends and leaders are?
Without double-checking on a map, it actually looks like they went with a strictly geographic split, which I approve of. That should help to reduce travel in general for conference games/meets (in all sports.)
Yeah, the blog said it was going to be renamed West and East divisions.
That is very favorable (football-wise). The West has only two powers: Nebraska and Wisconsin and five dogs*. The East has three powers, plus Mich St., which isn't exactly a dog. You know who should be really happy? Nebraska and Wisconsin. They should develop a huge rivalry and they'll basically play for the right to head to the championship game every year.
*Only one or two of those dogs might be good at any one time.
Wis-Neb: Whoever wins gets to claim that the other team stole their look.
Nebraska already knows Wisconsin stole it. Barry Alvarez (a Husker) installed it.
The East is more top-heavy, but I think the West is deeper, which will ultimately be tougher for the Gophers. Penn State hasn't felt the full effects of their sanctions and reductions yet. Sparty seems like it's been trending up, other than this last year, but if you look deeper I wouldn't call them that much better a program than Iowa. And if you line up Indiana/Maryland/Rutgers against Northwestern/Purdue/Illinois I think you'll have a hard time calling the first group stronger most years.
I guess I should say that if you compare the new division to the old Legends division, this is certainly better for Minnesota - trading annual games with the Michigans for ones with Purdue/Illinois. Comparing the new divisions to each other, though, I definitely think the West is slightly tougher top to bottom - this is more of a gift to Michigan/tOSU than it is to Nebraska/Wisconsin.
So here it comes. Remaining cold in Fargo until mid-week and then bang! Mid to upper 60s this weekend. The good news is no precip this weekend, but those temps will bring very fast melting. The river is still under flood stage. By Monday it is projected to be 20 feet higher than it is right now. That's still more than four feet below the record, but more rising can come.
But, my old buddy Joel is saying not to worry. We'll see about that.
Okay, I could maybe see his point before the recent batch of precip... But the fact that he's still banging the drum, well...
We'll see about that indeed.
By the way, that bum Kevin Slowey, who's mere presence on the Miami roster shows how awful the Marlins are, now has a 1.90 ERA (11th in the NL) and a 1.23 WHIP in 23.2 innings (four starts).
Boooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo(urns).
I would make a joke about the Yankees being on ESPN again, but since its played in the Trop Dome, it might be the only game not rained out tonight.
P.A. Interviewed Bremer this morning. They discussed the Shields trade and Bremer said the Twins are smart enough to never trade a potential star for a short-term player. Uh huh.
Neither condone nor accept.
Did PA say anything about that?
I don't know, I changed the station before I had a seizure while driving
Anthony Slama gave up five runs in 1/3 of an inning in the ninth inning of a tied game. He's now 0-4 with an 18.47 ERA. Ouch.
It's being reported that Slama has a stiff back.
He probably Charlie Browned it.
Whoa: I appear to be atop the WGOM EPL Leaderboard.
You have been practically all season.
Whenever I've checked, I've been close, but this is the very top.
If it's been more than I've checked, I'm awesome.
I hope I can join DK, UncleWalt, and Cheaptoy on that "Achievements" page.