Theft

Is it me, or did the Tribe steal one from the Cardinals?  I mean, I know he is 20, lefty, in A ball -- and prolly ready to tear a UCL -- but the fact of the matter is he was one of their better prospects...and the Cardinals get Brandon Moss, not even hitting .220 and with 105 strikeouts.  Compared to the Masterson deal -- a tweener OF -- this seems like more of a catch...to be sure, the Cardinals, like the Braves, are not the type to get rid of pitchers (at least good ones)....

I finished the Civil War book; I liked it -- the Army of the Tennessee was late in evolving successful battle tactics that caused high casualties/made it harder for them to win -- but the one thing I thought odd was that the author (a Scot) noted that Pat Cleburne was one of the better Confederate generals...yet not noticing that he was trained in the British army, and thus had been exposed to...well, a different way of doing things.  Maybe it was some sort of editorial modesty, but...it would be interesting to see how much better of an officer he was compared to the others in that force.

I ordered a Netflix film, which was defective...sigh.  On the other hand, it does give me a chance to watch another episode of SOA...can I start another series.  Which makes sense.

Dump

Shame about the homer, because Bauer really pitched well tonite; not sure if it is confidence, stuff, or a mechanical fix, but...if he had pitched like that all year, the Tribe would be adding and not subtracting.  In the meantime, Murphy is dumped for a middle infielder -- it would appear to be superfluous -- and some salary relief, a not-unimportant consideration for ownership.

I met a cool person Sunday -- I was out in Little Italy with some friends, and made a digression, if you will -- and we really clicked, hung out the entire evening...and said person is leaving for good on Friday.  Alas, alack...it was a real roll-up-the-map-of-Europe moment, but I would argue it is par for the course around here.

Watched "Dracula" last nite, and I liked it...I didn't think it was the best film ever, of course, but I could how in 1931 it would cause people to really flip their lids.  I note a day game tomorrow, which would give me an opportunity to cross another off the list, catch up on some SOA/reading, and some other things...maybe even sleep.

Slump

As you can see, I had a busy weekend...Friday nite I met some friends, Saturday was OC duty -- steady busy, to put it mildly -- then my godson's third bday.  Sunday was Dim Sum with favorite niece, followed by dinner with Mom and drinks with a friend in Little Italy...  Dim Sum has become quite pricey; it was about $30 plus...not that it wasn't good, but Jesus...  Little Italy was a better bargain, even if there was no parking; as I told someone at the bar, this is why God invented the suburbs.

The Tribe is dong exceptionally well...I think this reflects another of Francona's failings; I know he is no drama and low-key and has faith in his guys, but when it goes South...he's not the man to put it together.  No one gets benched.  No one gets pulled; hell, it takes time to get a guy put down in the lineup.  He also leaves the starters in too long -- like tonite -- which amuses me because he is quick to make the superfluous change at every other opportunity.

In the meantime, I have completed the Hall book on the cultural inheritance of the Greeks and am now reading Haughton's book about tactics and training about the Army of Tennessee (CSA)...yes, this is what I consider to be fun reading.   :)  The author is from the UK, and I think it is actually beneficial, as it allows a more....clinical approach to the subject.

Smash

Well, that was a thrilling Tribe game...I do get a kick out of people saying that they should be playing for the Wild Card; maybe, but...taking what you can get and reloading for next year (getting rid of the front office would only make too much sense)...Aviles is out of the picture, which I find admirable, but, being the hardass I am, not very sensible.  I am little skeptical on the Carrasco trade, given that the rotation is the solid spot, and unless you got the king's ransom, you shouldn't break it up...and there is not much depth on the farm, either.

http://thefederalist.com/2015/07/23/new-york-times-editor-isnt-it-awesome-how-hillarys-stonewalling-the-press/

The guy is not exactly wrong, but he is schilling for the NYT, and I think you have to keep that in perspective as well...

One thing that annoyed/amused me at work today was the number of people who came asking for help, advice, etc...  On the one hand, I don't mind, because a lot of times, I was left on my own, for better or worse, and on the other, though, I did, because, let's face it, I have my own projects to complete, and they can't get done -- especially given the hit or miss nature of things -- if I am handling other people's work.  I am working from home tomorrow, and I think I may achieve much more because of it...

Hmmm

As I mentioned on facebook, I sort of liked "Going My Way."  Bing Crosby -- Fr. Bing Crosby -- 1944, sort of schmalty, but not that bad.  The music didn't do anything for me, but the message was...well, timeless, if you will.

http://www.baseballthinkfactory.org/newsstand/discussion/tigers_brad_ausmus_would_do_nothing_different_about_poor_bullpen_management

I liked this...I sort of wish Francona would get some pushback on his moves.  In the meantime...8 double plays in two games.  Somewhere, Dusty Baker is chuckling.

http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-07-21/de-blasio-s-push-to-curb-uber-in-new-york-may-get-vote-this-week

I see they passed a deal, but if I was some GOP governor -- John Kasich, for instance -- I would be working to lure them to my state and passing legislation that was as friendly to Uber as possible, just to say...well, fuck you to NYC, but also to say that they were with the 21st century economy...

Trumped

I probably should have taken advantage of the Tribe's off day and watched a flick, but instead I worked late, hit the gym, read some, killed a Games magazine, and went through the email backlog.  Rah.  The offensive display by the Tribe yesterday...well, at the very least, Cueto's asking price went down.  I mean...I still think they are sellers, with pieces-parts in return, but it would kill the mini-attendance they have to sell, in which case, they are but 5.5 out of the wild card...  Nah, still sell.  Maybe we can renovate everything but the fielding cages.  :)

I need to read more -- the book pile is steady but has some weighty tomes on it -- but the next weeks will be busy, so there will have to be carve outs....

I am amused by the people who are appalled now by Trump's comments.  I mean, the man while outspoken and amusing...well, he is quite the showpiece, if nothing else, and while it is fun while it lasts, the problem is that some people really cannot control what they say...I can only hope we have another year of this.  Actually, I don't mind; I mean, let's face it, half --- at least a third -- of the global population experiences nothing like this, and even hoping for something similar can get you a bullet to the head, so the shitstorm is a small price to pay.

Sunday

I should be catching up on movies, but here I am, blogging and watching the Tribe  I did watch all of the first season of "Endeavour"(I am fan of it, not that I ever watch PBS) and thus that means we are NOT getting through Sons of Anarchy/

OC Duty yesterday.  Steady busy.  117 or so.  Minor crisis in the beginning; the computers crashed -- our net connection was out -- and we had it remotely refilled, and then we could begin...but we started late and it was a little hectic.  We also closed late -- I HATE THAT -- due to late clients, the need to be nice to them (which I sort of get, but come ON TIME like everyone else) and of course a lot of our volunteers are chatty Cathys...and as I had to take Mom to the store...well, bitching went down the line.  Then I went to the Greek fest at St. Paul's in N. Royalton (they tried to cheat me on the side dishes, which I assumed was due to the need to send capital back home) and met some friends in Lakewood for a night cap.  Oi.

Today we had a very loooooooooooooong homily about the need for priestly vocations; Fr. P re-ran an anecdote from a couple of weeks ago, which didn't exactly help.  Mind you, church can get a little toasty now...let us just say that I was ready to sing up myself, just because I figured I would be able to give a better -- and shorter -- homily.

Costs

I watched "Gunga Din" last nite, which put me to 326 on the NFR list...I liked the film, though it was quite dated.  I could see why its 1939 release was problematic for the British Empire...very white man's burden, but the action scenes were fun, and there was enough humor in it -- albeit stock humor -- to keep you interested.  After "Cry of Jazz" Monday, it was a nice change.  I should have watched one tonight, but read and caught up on email.  Rah.

http://www.clevescene.com/cleveland/overbuilt-retail-has-left-dead-malls-strewn-across-northeast-ohio-will-severance-town-center-be-next/Content?oid=4607564

I get a kick out of these stories, since, let's face it, do you really think other suburbs care about each other?  I mean, not really, and certainly not those in the outer ring.  Retail is not sustainable for the People's Republic, but it is for Westlake and Medina...and let's face it, people will pay for the privilege of living there...and NOT for living in the PSRCH.  

Much sleeplessness lately.  In a word, uncool.

Midway

Watched "Cry of Jazz" tonite -- #325 on my list -- which puts me halfway through it.  Interesting...informative.  Still relevant today, and I learned something about jazz.

I have to admit, Scott Walker's rollout was...while not exciting, impressive.  I still he is A front runner; maybe not the front runner -- Jeb and his cash cannot be discounted -- but I think the CW on him is correct...just need to slog through.  Hell, he was certainly more impressive than Hillary.  Not that we are all that surprised.

The Tribe limps into the break...not that there is shame in losing to Sunny Gray, but Saturday to me personified the Francona era..a series of gratuitous pitching changes that ended up costing them the game...I got a kick out of the PD claiming that the Moss error was the key downfall...no, chasing some teeny platoon advantage and thus bringing in ineffective pitchers cost them the game...  oi.  At least there is pomp and pageantry and tradition tomorrow, which is one thing I have always loved about baseball, even if the rosters are now 50 or so.

Practice

So, I finished watching "Rosemary's Baby" today...and it was meh.  I mean, I guess if you are into that sort of thing, it is the sort of thing you would like, but as I am not...well, another off the list, if nothing else.

Busy day at the OC...closed last week, 146 today.  We had to re-register people, which was problematic, given that a small bunch -- despite a month of reminders -- didn't have the two forms of ID required by the GCFB... several times people pointed out there should be a sign or something, we would point out four, and of course they would insist we should do more.  Oi.  We did give away a lot of stuff, which was useful, and most of the people were nice...but it was a little hectic for a while.

I am reading Not A Game, the new bio of Allen Iverson...it is interesting, mainly because he is a giant dick, and the author makes no real attempt to try and hide that fact.  I always liked him as a player, though I suspect not that much...and I am not exactly liking him now.

Grexit

Well, that was an exciting Tribe game...I wouldn't want to say that they are hot, but they are playing fairly well.  Anderson had another good start -- not a lot of Ks, but he generally pitched well, and Santana had an RBI triple (of all things) and some nice ABs...call me crazy, but I am a little perplexed by the concern about his walks.  Yes, he has been a disappointment, but I highly doubt that a guy who gets on base is the problem.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jacobsullum/2015/07/09/opponents-of-private-liquor-sales-claim-state-monopolies-serve-customers-better/

I have to admit this is pretty funny; I mean, I wish someone would have the balls to simply say that they are doing this to protect union jobs and Democratic contributors...of course, they won't, and the press certainly won't, either.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2015/07/08/what-gov-scott-walker-is-about-to-do-to-wisconsins-public-schools/?tid=pm_local_pop_b

There is all sorts of good stuff here...on both sides; I mean, for me, it was a giant snark fest.

I give the Greeks credit; this is actually a genius method of defaulting, by making it take as long as possible, as they now get all sorts of foreign capital from all the reporters, camera people, diplomats, etc., all of whom have to eat and drink and sleep and score all kinds of cheap crap.  I mean, they really should have gotten more debt from more lenders in more countries and had them schlep to Athens as well...meetings, human interest stories, travel writers...smart enough, yet not so all at the same time.

Lagging

Four days since the last post?  Possible.  I ended up having a busy, sleepless weekend and it has carried over through the week...ugh.  As you can see, this includes now.  On the good side, I crossed two more films off the list -- "The Great Dictator" and "Grass," both good -- and finished up season 6 of SOA (rah).  Got some reading done...a book about the evolution of tactics and logistics in the Civil War.  As you can imagine, this fascinates me to no end...I think I have 3,000 pages to get through on the shelf, so I should really hop to it, eh?

I got a kick out of the rope line at the Hillary event; if some GOPer had balls or brains, he'd hand out leashes for the press just to remind them that they are her lapdogs in every sense of the word.  It would be a win-win, as it isn't like they would support any GOP candidate, anyways.

Is it me, or does no one believe that a "technical glitch" shut down the NYSE.

I noted that Murphy had the key hit tonite...this is good, and against a lefty as well.  He's had quite the solid season...reminds me of Kevin Seitzer, when he was here...didn't waste many at bats, not that much power, but he could hit, and they were quality at bats; you could always discern his approach.  I am seeing a lot of it with Murphy; I mean, if you're going to put a lefty OF in RF and not be that concerned with the glove...well, Moss is really sucking one now (loooong swing!) and I would think some bench time would be therapeutic.

Explode

I've had two late nites the last two days -- I went out last nite, and Thursday I could not sleep -- and the result is that I am feeling it today...I really wish I could cure myself of the 6:15 wakeups, but it is what it is.

In the meantime, I watched another silent short -- "The Cry of the Children."  It involves child labor, and is against it.  :)  No, it is ok; I mean, it is a bit maudlin, but this is 1912 and I suspect there was a higher tolerance for that sort of thing.

Anyways, off to do some cleaning before enjoying what has become a not-so-restful weekend.

Events

I've had quite the interesting evening....first, I smudged my glasses -- permanently, I fear.  While searching for the prescription my eye doctor gave me a while ago -- that I prolly threw away -- I spilled something in a drawer, which necessitated a cleanup of some time.  The script is gone, so I need to get a new one...to be sure, the main issue is when I look at a screen, not that we do that in the modern age, but it IS annoying, in the First World non-problem way.  (It is also my own damn fault.)  While going through every drawer of the house for the non-existent script, I noted that I really NEED to clean them out...  it would be a good idea to do it this weekend, especially as this is a three-day one and such.

Anyways, things have been good lately...Tribe has been winning.  We won Pub Quiz yesterday (small crowd notwithstanding).  A three-day weekend...plenty of good books from the library, a list of films, the remaining SOA episodes...  It could be worse.

The June OC stats:  447 clients, representing 194 seniors, 618 adults, 402 kids.  Rah.  In the meantime, we have lots of clothes, but not much food, due to an ordering bollux.  Oi.  It should be noted that we need to register everyone again, though with the computers, it should not be a major crisis.  Downtown has been pressuring me as to when I will get the school supply delivery scheduled.  I pointed out that summer had just started...oi.