Family circus driving #12

It has been a while since one of these was posted since for the most part, I stopped caring about her driving but this time I was forced to intervene. One of the only good things about having to move into an apartment was needing to get rid of the cat. Though occasionally it was tolerable the constant vomit, shedding, scooting and mostly urinating made the house uncomfortable. I was considering "accidentally" dropping a bowling ball at the wrong time as trying to find a "no kill" place for that cat that nobody we knew would take was difficult and wasting time that should have been used for packing. After we had moved and the cat was STILL IN THE HOUSE, I attempted to grab it to drop it off at the pound but was unable to do so.

Anyway, a place was finally found and my wife with my daughter headed there. You can guess what happened:

When my daughter called me, they had just crossed into INDIANA 25 miles from where they needed to go. After guiding them to the place and then home (5 hours after they left) my daughter stated she was using the GPS on her phone until my wife grabbed it from my daughter (who was pleasing with my wife to listen knowing they were going the wrong way) and threw it into the dashboard causing the battery to dislodge. My wife gave her phone to my daughter a half hour later to call me.

From what I could ascertain, my wife was looking for the Harlem exit off I-294 and since it does not exist and neither my wife nor daughter saw the sign stating they were crossing over Harlem Ave, continued driving another 15 miles before exiting and then heading east on 159th st. One would have to exit at 95th street and head east a couple of blocks to get to Harlem. Also on the way back, they missed the 95th street exit and had to drive a couple of blocks north to turn around to head back to 95th.

Game 64 (2014 edition)

It feels like not that long ago I posted about the games played between the Chicago Bears and Miami Dolphins since 1985 just before the teams played in 2010. As I anticipated the injuries suffered by the offensive players of the Dolphins the Sunday before and then during the Thursday night game showed as the Bears (whose defense that week was on my fantasy team) won 16-0

So what about this Sunday in Soldier Field? Both teams finished 8-8 last year having issues with a specific part of their team missing out on a playoff berth by losing their last regular season game. In each team's first five games this year both teams lost to Green Bay and Buffalo as well as a surprise 2013 playoff team (Carolina/ Kansas City). Both teams also beat a very bad team (Jets/Oakland) as well as a team that lost last year's conference championship (49ers/Patriots).

One would think reading that both teams are similar and the game will be close. This is why not. The NFC over the last couple years has been better. Also the Bears did play a 6th game and looked as well as they have all year since their early season injuries to many offensive players have mended for the most part allowing the team to gain timing in practice. Last Sunday it was 88 in Miami for their afternoon game which they lost giving up a touchdown with 3 seconds left.

I was looking for stats related to how well teams have played the week after playing in extreme conditions (heat, cold, snow) to confirm my observation that they generally don't but could not find any.

I did considered the possibility of the Dolphins defensive line causing havoc with Cutler creating turnovers or even an injury or Tannehill being able to exploit the Bears D but don't see either as likely especially with Tannehill slowed by an ankle injury and their #1 RB Moreno out for the season after last Sunday.

This looks like the type of game where the Bears can score early as the Dolphins are still reeling from their loss last week causing the Dolphins to start to press, panic, then quit (similar to the Broncos last Super Bowl).

Score: Chicago 31, Miami 7.

P.S. I hope I'm wrong.

Columbus Day is NOT a holiday

Multiple times over the previous three days I had to tell people I have to work on October 13th which is Columbus Day in the US and Thanksgiving in Canada. I stated though schools, the government, and stock market are closed today, things in the real world are open.

This morning at 5:35, I was surprised to hear the train crossing and then panicked when I discovered there was a freight train stopped on the tracks on the street just east of where I now live. When I left the driveway, I realized others have the same issue and my normal 8 minute commute took 25 minutes and I was late for work. Here is a map showing my route (normal in orange, today's in green, and the X marked where the train made the crossing impassable.)

 

 

Note: I am travelling east to west or right to left on the map and this only shows the first third of my commute.

Official projection

As I stated, I wasn't kidding about when I am projected to die. It even states this on my artist profile on the Mad Music website. Note: I updated the pic since the 3rd (and most likely final) track was listed on Jan 14, 2015.

As noted on Buzzfeed

Someone wrote a nice article about FuMPfeST including pics and a video where I make an appearance.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/katienotopoulos/the-men-who-dare-to-be-demented

Soccer TMI

Since the World Cup is starting tomorrow in Brazil, I wanted to post this for those who want to sound smart about the event.

This is the 20th version of the event held every four years. This is the 19th time it has been held on a continent which borders the Atlantic Ocean. (One was cohosted by South Korea/Japan) Except for 1930, the other 18 events held in an Atlantic Ocean border continent all had UEFA (Europe) or CONMEBOL (South America) teams in the semi-final.

Also in those 18 events, 17 of the winning countries were on the same side of the Atlantic Ocean as the host nation. The only time it didn't happen was in 1958 when Brazil won in Sweden captained by someone named Pele.

 So what does that mean? First of all, don't expect a team from North America, Asia, or Africa to make the semi-final. Second, since this year's event is in Brazil, expect a team from South America to win.

Generally, teams focus on defense in the World Cup so teams with talented scorers have an advantage. The best one in the world right now is Luis Suarez, who led the Barclay's (English) Premier League in goals but is having knee issues. If he holds up, my pick of Uruguay to win the title would be a good bet even though they were the last team to qualify for the 32 country final.

"Title defense" and national championships

No this is not about the NHL where a deflected shot in overtime as I predicted ended the Blackhawks' attempt to repeat. This is about disc golf, my disc golf, that is.

Like I suggested in my post tournament questionnaire, the tournament I won my division in Palatine last July is being held in less than two weeks. Here is a pic of me making a shot on #9 last year:

I did go on the course last Sunday and the weeds are much more manageable even cut in some places where they weren't last year. I also took half the dose of medication which caused my heart to pound in my chest and it relieved the pain without any symptoms.

I believe that recent events in my life are guiding me to dedicate more time, energy and funds to disc golf since I am not sure how many more productive years my body has left in it. The fact that my casting computer has died and my final show will be broadcast later this month is a sign to do other things along with the fact that as far as comedy music is concerned, I have accomplished all I could expect. I have appeared in numerous songs that played on the Dr. Demento show joining wonderful, talented, awesome musicians whom I consider as friends on stage during performances, met and replaced the pic of Weird Al the broken camera failed to take and by being chosen as a juror for the Logan Awards was given the highest honor one without musical talent could ever imagine. FuMPFeST will be a fitting finale for me especially watching my daughter perform something she wrote.

Since I turn 50 next year and the year of birth is the guideline, I will be the youngest one in the 50+ division as opposed to one of the oldest in my current one. The Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA) holds a national championship every year and it is time for the madman to appear on the playing field for one last go around while he still can.

I went to the PDGA site and looked and found out something I did not know. The PDGA national championship is an event which people have to qualify the previous year and get an invite to participate. For the Grandmaster (50+) division, I need 75 points from events in 2014. The type and size of the event determines points. The small one I won last year was worth 8 points. Therefore I would probably need to play anywhere from 4-6 events to get what I need even playing in a non 40+ division with more players.

I also looked at my rating based on the limited tournament play I have done the past 5 years. Compared to the other 26 people from Illinois in my age bracket, only three are worse. In the 50+ bracket, I would rank 20 out of 25. Obviously I need to get better.

Also realize that to have a chance, I need to weigh less and that could help with my play.

It will not be cheap and I have to figure out how much in entry fees, lessons, and possibly a Weight Watchers and fitness center membership would be needed to get myself to the point where I can give myself the best chance to qualify. I might even attempt to crowd fund this.