Bob’s Ramblings

It’s an exciting time for fans of the Cleveland Indians.  It’s been nearly 20 years since they’ve played in the World Series (1997) and it’s been 68 years since they’ve won the World Series (1948).  As an Indians fan that lives in the state of Louisiana, I’m often asked, “Why?  Why the Indians?”.  It’s a somewhat long story, but thought I would take the time to share it.

Growing up in Louisiana, all we really had as far as professional sports were The New Orleans Saints  (Sure, we had the New Orleans Jazz for a few years, but I was too young to really give a flip about basketball).  When you take into consideration the product that the Saints were putting on the field during my childhood, one would even argue that we didn’t even really have a football team either.

Baseball first got my real attention during the World Series of 1989.  I had just graduated high school, and I had already moved to Baton Rouge (where my mom got transferred).  The 1989 World Series featured The San Francisco Giants and the Oakland Athletics.  I had no connection to either team, but what made this particular series intriguing and in the news was the earthquake that occurred just before Game 3.  As a result, Candlestick Park took structural damage and the game had to be postponed because of the fear of people’s lives being in danger.  Game 3 was eventually rescheduled (10 days later) and play resumed.  The Oakland A’s went on to sweep the Giants in 4 games.  I paid attention to Games 3 and 4 because I was curious as to how the earthquake would affect the game play of the two teams.  Like I said, I had no connection to either team, it was just fun to watch.

At the time, I was working at the Domino’s Pizza on Old Hammond Hwy in Baton Rouge.  I was one of the people that took orders over the phone (as this story predates online ordering or mobile ordering).  I continued to work there through my 18th birthday and was asked if I would be interested in becoming an MIT (Manager In Training).  I agreed and started along the path of eventually becoming a store manager.  Working as an MIT at the store on Old Hammond Hwy allowed me to work different shifts (day/night) and interact with all of the other employees.  I found myself typically working the closing shift on Fridays and the morning shift on Sundays.  A common thread between those two shifts was a driver that worked with me during those shifts, named Kurt.

Kurt worked at that store for years.  He predated my arrival as well as the store manager’s arrival.  During many conversations he mentioned “breaking in” several store managers.  When the store manager moved on to the Denham Springs store, I went along with her (I didn’t care for the dick that took her place).  After about a year at the Denham Springs store, I received a call from the Franchise Area Supervisor informing me that the Old Hammond store needed a manager and asked if I would be willing to take it.  I agreed.  Upon walking back into that store, the entire staff that was there when I left was gone, aside from Kurt.

Kurt and I picked up right where we left off.  During one of our conversations, I asked him about his Braves cap.  He said that he began following baseball and wanted to pick a team that no one else really cared for because it’s easy being a fan of a winner.  The real passion comes from picking a loser and following the team and watching them build towards something.   I thought about that for a second and it made complete sense.  When you pick a team that is bad and you notice signs of improvement, you tend to cherish it more.  There are already low expectations.  So, just winning a game is enough to keep you looking at the box score everyday.   He told me that he looked at the standings of the National League teams and picked the Atlanta Braves at the time because there were in last place.  He went on to tell me how enjoyable it was to watch the Braves gradually move up in the standings.  This was the beginning of the run the Braves went on in the 90’s.

The idea was fascinating.  I could pick a team and watch them build and improve.  I could become personally invested with a team by simply paying attention to the result of each and every game. So I opened up the newspaper and thought I would follow Kurt’s lead.   In the National League, my option would be the Houston Astros, while in the American League, my option would be The Cleveland Indians.  That bright orange that was on the Astro’s uniforms was absolutely horrendous.  Whereas the Indians uniform was composed of red, white, and blue.  That little Indian guy (Chief Wahoo) is a logo that I could get behind.  The final kicker was the fact even though these two teams were last in their respective leagues, the Indians were the worse of the two.  So, I chose the Cleveland Indians.  I went to the mall and purchased my first Cleveland Indians cap.  The year was 1991, and the Indians went on to post a 57-105 record.  That is absolutely horrible.  This means that there is greater room for improvement.

The following season, I started collecting baseball cards, and at that point, I was all in.  I got to put faces to the names I would see in the newspaper.   This was also the time when I managed to catch ‘Major League’ for the first time.  I don’t think I would have even bothered to watch it at all if I hadn’t noticed the Chief Wahoo logo during the movie trailer on HBO.  So, I set my VCR to record it and it solidified my love for the team.  The Indians still weren’t that good in 1992, but they were certainly better than they were in 1991.  I paid attention to the broadcast schedule of ESPN because catching an Indians game on TV would prove to be difficult.  I even made a trip to Arlington, Texas to watch the Indians play the Rangers.  That trip became an instant memory because I got to watch them win.  I also got to meet Kenny Lofton outside the stadium and got his autograph. Win-win.  They had a marked improvement from the previous year and finished at 76-86.

In 1993, it was determined that the Indians would be moving into their new stadium for the 1994 season.  There was a lot of hype about the new stadium and as the 1993 season went on the talk began about the final season in Municipal Stadium.  I made a trip to Cleveland in September of ’93 just to have an opportunity to watch the Indians play in their stadium before it was torn down.  The problem I ran into was that a lot of fans had the same idea.  I approached the ticket window in hopes of buying tickets for me and my friends and was told that they were sold out.  I couldn’t believe that I made the trip there, only to be shut down by not having tickets.  As I began the walk back towards my friends to break the news, a guy came up to me and gave me 3 tickets to get into the game (no charge!). Win-win!  The Indians finished at 76-86 again that year, but there were putting a team together that could prove to lethal in years to come.

In the months leading up to the 1994 season, the front office of the Indians decided to open up the check book and start paying some decent salaries.  The Indians started playing in their new stadium, Jacob’s Field (named after the owner).  The Indians started winning and they started becoming relevant.  The only potential road block to success that I could see that year was the Collective Bargaining Agreement expiring.  Unfortunately, the agreement expired before both sides could agree, which led the Major League Baseball Players Association to go on strike, this cancelling the remainder of the 1994 season.  The hardest pill to swallow that year was the fact that when the season was cancelled, the Indians were 66-47 (that’s a winning season) and were only 1 game out of first place in the AL Central.

The strike eventually ended, but it ran into the 1995 season.  In fact, the 1995 season was shortened by 18 games.  This was the year when the Indians really turned it on.  Despite a shortened season, the Indians went on to post a record of 100-44.  Albert Belle went on to hit 50 home runs that year.  Watching the Indians play postseason baseball was just unbelievable.  I watched the team grow from a 57-105 record to a 100-44 record in just 4-5 years.  Kurt was right, when expectations are low, you tend to get really excited when those expectations are exceeded.  The Indians went on to reach the World Series that year.  Unfortunately, the Indians lost to Kurt’s Braves 4 games to 2.

The Indians would continue having success for the rest of the 90’s and early 2000’s.  They reached the World Series again in 1997.  The Indians were 2 outs away from winning the World Series when Jose Mesa blew the save and allowed the Florida Marlins to take game 7 and win it 4 games to 3.

I could go on and on and give a year by year recap of how I followed the Indians, but after losing pivotal playoff series in the early 2000s, players began to depart, new players came in, and the team began to change.  Like every sports franchise, the window of opportunity closed for the Indians and they were forced to rebuild.  It would be 2007 before the Indians would reach the postseason again, only to be eliminated by the Boston Red Sox in the American League Championship Series.  The Red Sox went on to win their second World Series in 4 years under the guidance of their manager Terry Francona.

In 2012, the Cleveland Indians hired Terry Francona to be the new manager of the team.  In just his first season as manager, Francona took the Indians back to the playoffs, but lost the wild card game to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in 2013.

It’s now 2016, and I find myself having followed the Indians now for 25 years.  It certainly doesn’t feel that long, but it’s been a fun ride, especially after seeing this team for what it once was.  Francona has the Indians in the World Series against the Chicago Cubs (who has an even longer championship drought than the Indians).  One of these teams droughts will end, while the other will continue.  Win or lose (hopefully win though), I’m proud of what the Cleveland Indians have accomplished this year.  Go Tribe!

It’s been an incredibly long time since I’ve written a post on here.  Too long in fact.

I’m going to make a concerted effort to visit here more often and let everyone in on what’s going on with me.  So if you’re still interested, check back soon.

-Bob

It’s going to be quite hard to imagine a world without my friend Becky in it.  Granted, she and I haven’t spoken much or seen each other much within the last few years, but hearing of her passing on 2/2/11 has given me plenty of time to reflect back on some fond memories.

Becky and I shared a (quite large) circle of friends.  I met her through Vik, as I met most of that circle.  When Vik and I had a falling out (for whatever the reason), I lost contact with many of the friends within that circle.  Becky however maintained contact with me.  She remained loyal.  She got me.

It’s hard to explain the relationship that Becky and I had.  It was always platonic, never awkward, and there was always a mutual respect between her and I.  She was quite an intelligent woman and steadfast in what she believed in.  She and I never argued, yet were open to constructive debate.  I cared for her, and she did for me.  We could go months without seeing or talking to one another and pick up right where we left off when we finally did reconnect.  We were like kindred spirits.  I got her, she got me.  I find myself wondering if anyone else out there could even come close to knowing me like she did.

I recall Becky buying me a Xingu beer upon knowing that I would be meeting everyone for cards one evening.  She didn’t have to do that, as we weren’t that close at the time.  But she wanted me to feel welcomed, and I did.

I recall Becky spending my 25th birthday with me at the Happy Note.  The Happy Note has been gone for some time now, but that memory will remain.

I recall going to movies with Becky.  She and I were good about that.  We could go see a movie together and it was cool, casual, and most of all, not weird.  She convinced me to see Memento with her, and I enjoyed it.

I recall Becky giving me a Cleveland Indians plaque that commemorated 100 years of Indians baseball as a gift.   Like I said, she got me.

I recall getting a phone call early in the morning on 9/11/01 about the planes hitting the World Trade Center.  It was from Becky.  If anyone else had done that, I would have been angry, but I wasn’t.

Becky was the inspiration behind starting up the ‘News According to Bob’ posts.  Her correspondence with Brian Flores started it all.

I recall setting her up with Marc, which led to them eventually living together for a little while.

I recall many nights playing trivia with her at Bennigan’s.  She was smart, and bested me on many occasions.

I recall Becky and I attending some dance classes together at LSU.  We took an Irish Dancing class as well as a Salsa/Merengue class together.  It was fun, and it was never weird.  We put our skills to the test at Bennigan’s (Irish) and at Kathy’s wedding.

When I ran into Becky at the Beerfest about 3 years ago, we picked up right where we left off.  I ran into her again the following year and we told each other that we would get together with our spouses and do something.  The intent was there, but it never happened.  I never got to meet her husband.

I didn’t see her at the Beerfest last year, but I was looking.  I was going to contact her soon to ask if she was going.  That will never happen now.

My last correspondence with her was an email that simply read, “I miss you BC”.  Her response was just as simple, “I miss you too Knobby Knob.”

I didn’t even know that she had cancer.  I should have done a better job of staying in constant contact with her.  Now she’ll never know how much I’m going to miss her.

She”ll never know how much different the world is going to be without Becky in it.

I’m going to miss you BC.  I love you.

All throughout my life, I’ve been referred to as “skinny”.   I got constant ribbing from my friends during grade school, and it even followed me into college.  I got used to it though, and I started laughing along with my friends.

So imagine my surprise when I stepped on the Wii Fit and it told me that I was “overweight”.  Wait.  Seriously?  I’m overweight?  That’s just not possible.  I’ve been the skinny guy all my life, so there’s no way in hell that I’m overweight.

So, I did some research (Google) to determine whether the Wii Fit was full of shit.  My results indicated that I was indeed overweight.  When did this happen?  How did this happen?  Is this the reason why the world will end in 2012?

I reported my findings to my wife and told her that I was going to get back into shape.  This includes being more active and all that fun stuff too. So she and I decided that we would try Weight Watchers.

Weight Watchers has been around a long time (longer than I can remember), so it had to work right?  The way it works though is that you track what you eat on a day to day basis with everything you eat getting a point value.  As long as you have points remaining, you can continue to eat.  Once you used up your points, you’re done for the day (unless you tap into your weekly points).  Points were calculated based on the number of calories, fiber, and fat that each item contained.

When I weighed myself in November, I was at my all time high of 218.  My goal was to get back down to 185, and my immediate short term goal was to get back to 200.

I got down to under 210 in just a couple of weeks.

Things were going well, until we went to Disney during the week that followed Thanksgiving (oh we took Thanksgiving day off too, you almost have to).  We knew it was going to be impossible to stay on it while we were on vacation, so we ate what we wanted.  Upon coming home, I weighed myself and noticed that I was 206.

The holidays came, so we took off for the rest of the year, basically eating whatever we wanted.  We agreed that we would hit it full force after the first of the year.

Turns out that Weight Watchers has changed their point system.  Points are now calculated based on fat, carbs, protein, and fiber.  Point values went up on foods, but we were given more points to spend.

When I weighed back in after the first of the year, I was at 206.  After a week of being on the new plan, I was down to 204.

This past Monday (which is my weigh-in day), I was down to 200.  I have reached my immediate goal. I’ve also been exercising though, which I’m sure helps.

I’ll keep everyone posted on my progress.

I know I haven’t written anything in quite some time, so I thought I would share something that happened just the other day…

While at work, I stood up from my desk in order to get myself something to drink. Upon doing so however, I became quite dizzy and light-headed. I must say that the experience was totally unpleasant. I tried to shake it off, but I noticed that as I kept walking, I couldn’t keep my balance and my stomach became quite nauseous.

Now, this had happened to me once before, but it had been like 2-3 years or so ago. Back then, I required a trip to the doctor to perform a diagnosis and get a prescription. Since ObamaCare doesn’t kick in until 2014, I knew that I wouldn’t have any problem with getting in to see a doctor, so I immediately scheduled an appointment.

Well, it turned out that my general practitioner only works half a day on Tuesday (what a weird day to work half a day), so I got in to see a different doctor.

When the doctor came into the little room to diagnose me, she informed me about how there are these little crystals in our ears that are composed of calcium carbonate or some shit like that. She mentioned that she would provide me with some documentation for me to read along with some exercises. She then wrote me a prescription and sent me on my way. I have to say that I was somewhat disappointed that she couldn’t find anything “wrong” with me. At least when this happened a couple of years ago, I had an inner ear infection, but not this time. Nothing.

So, as I leave the doctor and I look down that the documentation that she provided, I noticed a diagram of the ear with the canals and crap, and there was also mentioning of some crystal, but there was some sort of medical term associated with it (which escapes me at the moment) but in parenthesis were the words “ear rocks”.

Ear Rocks. Huh? Really? The documentation went on to indicate that we all have these “ear rocks” in our ears and that sometimes they become dislodged and mess with the little hairs in our ears which in turn sends signals to the brain, which then processes these signals as movement (even though we’re standing still). Basically, the little rock needs to get back where it belongs in order for the symptoms to diminish, but will eventually happen.

But the idea of “ear rocks” was quite amazing. I only wish I knew about these “ear rocks” thirty years ago…

You see, 30 years ago or so, I was playing badminton in my grandmother’s yard and the little birdie went over the fence. I went into the yard to retrieve the birdie, but my grandmother’s dog had retrieved before I did and began to chew on it. It was at that point that I decided that I would make an attempt to get the birdie from the dog by hitting him over the head with the badminton racket. Well, the next thing I know, the dog lunges for me and I’m waking up in my grandmother’s den with my eye cut all to hell. I still have the scar to prove it, but it’s not as bad as it was when I was a kid.

Anyway, after that episode, I recall telling my uncle about what I did, and his response was, “What were you thinking? Do you have rocks in your head?”

So, had I known of these “ear rocks” back then, I could have easily replied with, “Yes” and I wouldn’t have gotten punished for being a smart ass.

Holiday traffic is the worst.  Really it is. 

I decided to do some shopping at lunch today since my wife worked from home today.  I had the displeasure of dealing with too many people at Academy Sports.   On top of that, the cashier neglected to ring up an item that I had and didn’t notice it until I was about to walk out the store, so I had to get back in line and be checked out again.

So I get in my car and make the right onto Airline Hwy and right before I get to the Airline Hwy/Florida Blvd split, a truck pulls out right in front of me (causing me to slam my brakes to avoid hitting him) and he casually bears toward the Airline side of the split.

It was at this juncture that I decided to do what any good Christian would do and extend my middle finger in the gentleman’s direction.  I wasn’t sure whether or not the guy saw it, but the next thing I know, it appeared that he changed his mind and decided to go to the Florida Blvd side of the split instead.  But instead of driving, he pulls to the side of the road. 

I casually pass the truck and as I look in my rear view mirror, I see the truck following me.  Now, I was planning on picking up some lunch on my way back to the office, but I hadn’t decided on where I was going to go.  But, I look again in my rear view mirror and see that this truck is coming up on my rear end mighty fast.  

As I merge onto Florida Blvd, the truck enters the middle lane and as I patiently wait for him to pass me (so that I can get into the middle lane myself) he slows down on the side of me and I can hear him yelling at me.  He proceeds to instruct me to pull over and settle this like men.   I couldn’t help but notice that he had his buddy in the truck with him. 

Guy:  You wanna give someone the finger?  You fucking pussy! Pull over, we’ll settle this right now.

Me: You cut me off. 

Guy: Pull over now! Pull over!

Me:  Yeah, so you and your friend can pummel me?  No thanks. 

Guy: You think you can just give someone the finger whenever want?  Pull over!

Me:  Fuck you.  Bitch.

He then makes a right hand turn and goes who knows where.  I proceed to my destination as if nothing happened.  I can’t help but think about these events though.  I mean, the guy was obviously in a hurry to begin with that he couldn’t wait for me to pass before pulling into traffic.  But he had enough time to change direction and follow me so that he can threaten me?  The end result being that he ends up going a much longer route to get to where he intended to go in the first place?

People are strange.  Some people are just assholes.  Unfortunately, I just met one.

It’s really quite amazing that I haven’t written about my beloved football team.  Having been a New Orleans Saints fan since I was able to speak, I find myself wondering, “what has taken me so long…?”

Friends of mine know that I follow professional football somewhat extensively.  Many would even confirm that even though I do love watching me some LSU football, Saints football is still number one in my book.   Many people prefer college ball over pro, I however am the reverse.   I love the competitiveness that surrounds professional football.   To me, it’s just a cleaner and funner game to watch.  With that said, I feel compelled to spread my thoughts on the phenomenon going on in the NFL right now, namely the Saints.

Several people would vouch for me when I say this, but I knew before this season started that the Saints were going to be a team to reckon with.   I can recall several conversations that I have had with different people when asked how I felt the Saints were going to do this year.  To all of them, I said the following, “I really like what they’ve done in the off season.   They’ve made some good pickups and I feel that they’ve done enough to get themselves back into the NFC Championship game.  What they do beyond that is going to be up to the Saints.”

Having been wanting to take my wife and Trace to watch a Saints game, I told my wife that this would be the year to go, because I had such high aspirations for the team and it would be great to say later on that we saw a Saints game during that 2009 year.  With that, I purchased tickets to the Saints game scheduled for October 3, 2009 back in July (as soon as they became available).

As luck would have it, my plans on attending that game were halted.  My boss decided to send my wife and I to Orlando for some training and it conflicted with the Saints game that I had tickets for.  So, I had to sell them to a friend.  It was ok though, I would simply buy tickets for a later contest.  However, I could never find a game that would fit with our schedule and as time went on, tickets became scarce and much more expensive.

The Saints game on October 3rd featured two unbeaten teams: The Jets and The Saints.  The Saints went on to win that contest as I watched it from a bar in Orlando.  I knew as I watched that game that my friend that purchased the tickets from me was certainly enjoying herself.

From that point on, the Saints just kept winning.  Beating insurmountable odds, they find themselves overcoming HUGE deficits to eventually win the game.   How? These are the Saints.  The Saints don’t come back in games.   In fact, historically they’ve been the team that blows leads.  Who are these guys?

So, week 8 rolls around and the Saints find themselves on Monday Night Football playing the Atlanta Falcons in the Superdome.  The commentators are beginning to give the Saints some credit.  However after beating the Falcons and going 7-0, the talk commences about the possibility of being 10-0 when they face the New England Patriots the next time they’re on Monday Night Football.   LA LA LA LA LA LA. I don’t want to hear it.  LA LA LA LA LA LA. Don’t jinx them.  LA LA LA LA LA LA LA. One game at a time please.

Four weeks later, I find myself in Disney World with my family and the Saints are 10-0.  That Monday Night Football showdown that the commentators were salivating for is here.  I get the pass from my wife to break free and watch the game at the ESPN Sports Club at Disney.  I couldn’t even get into the door at the place.  It was packed.  I had to get pitchers of beer and watch the game outside.  What was even more amazing was the number of Saints fans that were there.  And not just Saints fans, but people from New Orleans.  It was crazy.  I befriended another poor soul that couldn’t get a seat inside.  So one pitcher turned into six.  I had a great time watching the undefeated Saints knock off the marquee New England Patriots.

After that, I had to start thinking that maybe, just maybe these Saints can win the rest of them and finish the rest of the season at 16-0 (an accomplishment that the same New England Patriots did just a mere 2 years ago).  Why stop at 16-0 though?  Why not roll through the playoffs and *gasp* reach the Superbowl?

Really?  Am I finally able to use Saints and Superbowl in the same sentence?  Can it be possible that this really is their year?  I mean, I knew they were going to be good, but not undefeated.  Not by a long shot.

As I watched the game yesterday against the Washington Redskins,  I have to admit that I was indeed worried about the Saints.  I have a friend that is a huge Redskins fan and he’ll acknowledge that I was giving his team props the day before.  I felt that the Saints would win it, but I didn’t think it was going to be a walk in the park.

So, with under 2 minutes to go with the Redskins up by 7 and in position to kick the field goal to go up by 10 and thus ending the magical ride, I walk into my home office with my head down, I hold back the tears as I tell my wife that I don’t think they’re going to do it this time.  11-1 is nothing to be ashamed of and that 30 other teams would be happy to be where the Saints are at.  I walk back into the living room in time for the commercial to end and back to the game.  Washington lines up for the field goal…. holy fucking shit! Suisham missed it! Oh crap!   Saints ball!  Come on Brees, let’s score that fucking touchdown! Brees proceeds to drive the Saints right down the field to score and tie the game up at 30.  Wow!

Uh oh, too much time left.  Saints kick the ball off and the entire Saints nation patiently wait to see if the defense can finally stop the Skins.  INTERCEPTION!!!  Oh my fucking god!   The Saints can win it in regulation.  This is insane!  Missed the field goal (too long of an attempt anyway).  That’s ok, let’s win it in overtime…

Brees calls tails, the coin toss is heads… Washington wins the toss.  Shit.  Campbell starts moving his team with a quick pass for a gain.  Then a run for another gain.  Campbell then throws the ball to Sellers where he is tackled and fumbles the ball and recovered by New Orleans, but the officials rule him down before the fumble.

Timeout Saints.  Oh Brilliant!  Overtime rules dictate that coaches cannot challenge plays as all replays will be handled by the booth.  So in order to buy more time, Payton calls a timeout in order for the officials to take another look, they decide to review the fumble….OVERTURNED and the Saints have the ball.  Holy fucking shit!

Hartley kicks the field goal and the Saints improve to 12-0.  The have now tied the franchise record for wins in a season and the NFC South Division.  Yay!!!!

Most of my friends can tell you that I seldom participate in discussions revolving around religion or politics.   In fact, I’ve been known to either completely clam up or just walk away to avoid talking about it.   Some people tend to get really offended when they learn that you don’t believe the same way that they do. 

Granted, I can be somewhat of an ass in an argument, but that’s because I know I’m right and tend to be somewhat condescending and will outright belittle people that attempt to find flaws in my logic.  It’s silly really.  I mean, there normally aren’t any flaws in my logic, so stop trying to find any.  They’re simply not there.

Perhaps the only time you will find me discussing politics with anyone is if I am completely certain as to which way that person leans (right or left).  I don’t engage in political discussions with lefters because they end up pissing me off and I’ll end up calling them morons and/or idiots.

While I was watching the premier of V (Tuesday nights on ABC) I couldn’t help but reflect to what was presently going on in our country and find so many correlations to what is normally going on in society.

Now, if you’ve been under a rock since the 80’s, V was a television series on NBC (thank God it’s no longer on NBC, but that is another discussion altogether) back in the day.   The premise is that alien visitors have arrived to earth in spaceships requesting the help of the humans in the form or natural resources abundantly found on Earth and in return they will provide the human with advances in technology, however they have a hidden agenda that is unknown to the humans, but I’m getting a bit ahead of myself.

The priest in the new V is played by Joel Gretsch (The 4400) and he is the first to mention (to another priest) about how convenient the arrival of the visitors are.  They managed to show up just when they’re needed most he adds.  He’s referring to the downturn of the economy, terrorism on the rise, unemployment is way up (in fact the story takes place in the present, so the current events of today are the same as in the show).   Just when things are the bleakest, the aliens show up to save the day.

Meanwhile, the FBI agent played by Elizabeth Mitchell (LOST) is tracking sleeper cell activity and noticed that terrorism chatter has been down across the board except for one sleeper cell, which we learn is composed by visitors disguised as humans.  We also learn that the visitors have been here for several years and have infiltrated the government.  This of course can lead the viewer to believe that the visitors have caused all of the chaos on the planet in order to become the savior.  Huh.  Wow.  This is starting to sound familiar.

I am one of those right-wing nutjobs that believe that Obama was born in Kenya.  I don’t think he’s constitutionally elible to be our president.  I refuse to acknowledge that he’s our president and will continue to refuse to acknowledge it until he has proven without a doubt that he was actually born in Hawaii as he claims.   The supposed COLB that was posted on a website during the election IMO does not provide the necessary proof whatsoever that he was born in Hawaii, simply because back in 1961, Hawaii gave out COLB to foreign born babies as well as domestic ones.   I would like to see the long form birth certificate.  On top of that, he traveled to Pakistan back in 1981.  Ok cool. He went abroad when he was in college.  The problem there however is that US citizens were not able to travel to Pakistan easily back then since Pakistan was under military rule, but entering with an Indonesian passport would have been easy.

Anyway, I’m going off on tangents.  My point is however, when I was watching the show, I couldn’t help but think about some of the decisions that have been made over the past year and how those decisions have effectively shaped the world in which we live in today.  It almost seems as if Obama is creating chaos so he can look like a savior by fixing it.

Perhaps the most horrifying minutes that I recall from watching V was when the TV reporter guy was interviewing Anna (the leader of the visitors).  Anna politely demanded that the young reporter was not allowed to ask any questions that would put the visitors in a negative light.  Whoah! Are you kidding me?  Now the reporter didn’t like it, but he had no choice but to go along with it.   (Does this sound like Fox News anyone?) 

How about the visitors taking steps by luring in the children?  If you can brainwash the kids, then you can establish a foothold for many years to come. 

It was almost scary to watch.  I had to stop it at one point and talk to my wife about how closely the story paralleled what was going on in the world today.  Is this ABC’s way of taking a stand and perhaps getting people to think about things from a different perspective?  I don’t recall the older version of the show being this way, although I was in 6-7 grade when it originally aired.

I’m just saying…

Tomorrow is the day when Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen hits the stores on DVD.   I’ve been as giddy as a schoolgirl when I heard it was coming out so soon.  So giddy in fact that I’ve planned my whole day around it.

Now, I know it was harshly criticized for being too long, or having too complex of a plot, or being offensive to certain races and such, but gosh darnit, I liked it.  Hell I loved it. 

In my opinion, Transformers 2 was exactly what I go to the movies for; to be entertained.   Was it long?  Sure it was a little long, but I take that as meaning I’m getting more movie for my buck.  Hell, I’ve thrown my money to lots of movies this summer, some of which I couldn’t wait for them to end.  

The only real complaint that I have about the length of the movie has more to do with the fact that I bought the large drink at the theater and had to run off to the restroom during it, which in turn made me miss Devastator forming.  Which now I’ll be able to watch time and time again in the comfort of my own home.

 Transformers had a lots of action, plenty of explosions, “face ripping” and giant transforming robots.  Hello?  GIANT TRANSFORMING ROBOTS.  Who doesn’t like giant transforming robots?

So when I told my wife that Transformers 2 was coming out on DVD on October 20th, all she could do is roll her eyes.  She knew that it was inevitable that I was going to be buying the Blu-Ray version as quickly as I could.  

Susan:  “Transformers?  Again?  Really?”

Bob :  “Ummm yeah, we’re talking about Optimus Prime and the Autobots here sweetheart!  I need to watch them battle the Decepticons.  Duh!”

Susan:  “Yeah, but didn’t you say the same thing back in June?”

Bob:  “Pfffft, that was so 5 months ago.”

Susan:  “Does this mean that we’re going to watch Transformers on Tuesday?”

Bob:  “Does a bear shit in the woods?  Hell yeahz we’re watching some giant robot fighting action.  Bam Boom Pow!”

Anyway, so I’ve convinced my wife that buying this DVD tomorrow is really the right thing to do.  If she can throw $25 on High School Musical 3, then certainly I can do the same for Transformers.  Plus, it’s very likely that I’ll watch Transformers more than 10 times to so.

From that point, the countdown begins to Transformers 3, which will be in theaters in July 2011.  Yay!

Saying that I’ve been busy lately would be a complete understatement.

Since I embarked upon the trip to my old hometown (New Orleans) for my 20 year high school reunion, I managed to return to the office following that weekend to discover a plethora of work that required my attention.

You see, there are times where I suffer from procrastination…

Last Summer, one of my company’s clients wanted a ton of changes made to one of the web applications that a former employee of ours wrote.  Granted, the former employee was brilliant in how he implemented some things, but he also made it a bit complicated to follow.   So as long as he was with the company, we would be able to make changes as needed and I wouldn’t have to worry about it.  But, umm, he’s no longer with the company so someone had to pick up the slack, and that someone turned out to be me.

Anyway, back to last Summer.  The client wanted a lot of stuff done by October.  My boss and I spoke with him and basically told him that it would be next to impossible to have everything he wanted in by October and that if he prioritized the MUST HAVE items, I would do my best to get those in. 

Now, I’m not the best programmer in the world, but I can hold my own.  I managed to piece together the MUST HAVE items that he needed (albeit crudely based on the design) and he was happy.  However, an agreement was made that the other items would be implemented by this time next year.  All parties smiled and went about their merry way.

So this past August rolls around and my boss mentioned that we’re right back where we were last year and asked how much more time I needed to finish up those other changes.  Well, my face just dropped.   I guess I was supposed to have been working on those things for the past year, and well, I guess I was too busy on other stuff to put ANY thought into how I was going to accomplish what he wanted.  So I got to work.

We got on the phone again with the client, and once again he asked for an October 1 drop date for everything.   Seeing as how I had already poked around in the application, I began to get a feel for what the previous coder had done, I confidently told him that I would shoot for the last week in September (I was trying to give him that warm and fuzzy feeling) and he was jubilant with excitement.  The problem was, I still hadn’t figured out how I was going to do it.

To make a long story short, I pulled it off.  I was indeed early with my deadline and put the application into Production and have had next to no issues, so everyone’s happy.

Now, I’m making it sound like all I had to do for the last couple of months was work my ass off at work.  But when you throw in the cub scout den meetings (I’m Trace’s den leader) and Trace playing Fall Ball (in Livingston no less)  it made for long evenings. 

Also, prior to football season starting, I decided that I was going to treat my family to a Saints game this year.  I got tickets to the Saints/Jets game on October 4 in the Superdome.  I got them at a pretty good price and the time worked well for us (the other games are either too early or too late).  But as it turned out, my boss decided to send my wife and I to Orlando for a few days to attend a conference.  So I ended up having to sell my tickets to a friend.  Now the Saints are doing really well and if I want to take my family to a game, I’m going to end up paying twice what I paid for the last ones, and deal with a time that won’t be as friendly.

Oh well.  Hopefully now I can spend more time updating my blog now that things are slowing done.   Go Saints!!!