Penguins, Pot & Other Stuff

Well, that’s what one certain Dickhead is saying this morning.  He twisted my arm into making a $10 bet on the World Series.  Even let me pick the team I wanted to root for.  The thing is, I hummed & hawed so long, he went ahead and picked Philadelphia himself.  Damn, $10 for his Long John Baldry quiz and now this.  Will wonders never cease?  Oh well, in the end Dickhead is still way ahead.  He managed to win $50 in our weekly football pool.  Not only that, he co-won $460 (he got $230) in the NFL suicide pool.  It was down to Dickhead & Michelle: they were the only two left.  He offered to split with her and she accepted.  Let’s see; $50 + $230 = $280.  Minus my hard-won $20 = $260.  I have so much more to strive for!

Last regular season home game for the Tiger Cats.  With the playoffs still up in the air, they are all important games now.  Unfortunately Brother Mike was unable to attend.  It was his weekend to be working.  So, off to the game with Trish the Dish & Paulo.  Even Dickhead came along as there was an extra ticket for him to scoop up.

 

It was a very cool & windy day.  Usually the wind is coming from behind us so we are somewhat protected by the seats at our back.  Not yesterday.  A strong, somewhat cold breeze was blowing steady at us throughout the whole game.  Thank goodness I had 4 layers of clothing on.  Managed to stay quite comfortable during the whole game.  Of course, my smuggled in thermos of hot chocolate was also a lifesaver.

 

The game: total domination by the Cats.  They were running & passing quite nicely while Saskatchewan was having problems going into the wind and even playing with it.  24,000 people saw quite a good game by the Cats.  As usual, Brother Joseph came over at halftime to compare notes.  At that point, Dickhead was mumbling something about Long John Baldry & my blog to him.  Avid blog readers will know where I am coming from on this one.  Anyway, final result was a big win for the Hamilton boys.  Now, when we take care of those Bombers in Winnipeg, it will be back at Ivor Wynne for a home playoff game.  Oskee wee wee!

 

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Yes, not much happening that would warrant blog mentioning.  Played poker with the boys (minus Dickhead) a while back.  Lost $30.  Went fishing with Brother Mike over a week ago out at Binbrook.  He caught a couple, one of which was really nice: a bass that weighed at least 2.5 pounds.  We will probably be going out again Thursday of this week.

 

Football (both real & fantasy) is going somewhat better.  I have restructured my fantasy football team which has led to a slow but steady rise in the standings.  All the way up to 8th place for now and that will get me into the playoffs (as long as I don’t slip again).  Actually won $50 on Pro Line last week and that’s the first win this year.  Even the Tiger Cats are doing better.  If they keep winning, the playoffs are guaranteed and there will be a game in Hamilton.  Oskee Wee Wee!

 

Noticed the other day that David Wilcox is playing at the Hamilton Convention Center on November 27.  I’ve always wanted to see him in concert.  I’ll probably be going.  Is anyone else interested in attending?

I can’t believe how badly I am doing with my fantasy football team this year.  Really thought I would do well.  Had some good players with lots of potential.  Even picked up a couple of star players during our preseason draft.  Oh the excitement!  Then, the season started: end of excitement.  Injuries, players not playing up to their potential: end result-disaster.  Not in the playoffs right now and I will have to work hard just to get there.  Oh well, they say good things come to those who wait.

 

Then, my Tiger Cats.  Started out so well.  Second-place for almost the entire season.  Then, about one month ago, the dive started.  All of a sudden, those boys from Winnipeg were making it a race.  The annual Thanksgiving Day game was supposed to be one where a Hamilton win would almost guarantee second-place.  Unfortunately: Winnipeg-38 Hamilton-28.  Ouch!  There are four games left in the schedule and it’s a tie with the boys from the prairies.  Going to be a very very interesting finish to the season!

 

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Yes, twice.  Was lucky enough to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner on two occasions this year.  Seemed like nothing was going to be happening at first so I suggested to Paulo & Jeannine we have a nice turkey dinner in honor of the occasion.  I buy the turkey and Jeannine cooks it.  She put together a lovely meal for all of us which we had on Saturday.  Poor girl was so tired but she still managed to put out a fantastic spread.  Thank you Jeanine!

 

Of course, within hours of coming up with the Saturday dinner plan, Brother Mike called to invite me to Sunday dinner with his family!  Made sure I had nothing to eat after that Saturday feast so that I could really enjoy the next one.  I wasn’t disappointed!  Along with Brother Mike’s family, Cindy’s parents were there along with her sister.  Even Cassandra’s boyfriend Trevor made an appearance.  And to top it off, after dinner there were homemade desserts from a family friend.  Delicious, simply delicious!

 

Even before the dinner though, we got together to visit Mom at the nursing home.  Brothers Mike & Joe were there along with Sisters Dianne & June.  Those 2 cute nieces, Nicole & Danielle, also graced us with their presence.  Was nice to have such a group together visiting dear Mom.  Happy Thanksgiving to all and if you have any leftovers, well, there is lots of room in my freezer!

 

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Summer has faded away and with that, much of our nice fishing weather is going with it.  Still though, a couple of days ago it was nice enough for Brother Mike & I to head out to Binbrook once again.  There was absolutely no wind and the temperature was around 15°C so it was quite enjoyable.  To top it off, I caught my first real fish while on the pontoon.  A nice little bass which was close to a pound.  Actually broke water when it got near the boat!

 

Don’t know how many more (if any) trips we will be able to make this year.  I’m hoping we can get at least one more in there.  Then it will be time to get the boat ready for winter storage.  It’s going to be a long long wait for next year’s fishing fun. Patience Patience Patience!

Every once in a while, Dickhead surprises me with an offer of lunch on him.  Now, yours truly is always springing for the tab with so many people.  He must see this and figure that if he buys me lunch, the acid of my tongue will lessen in intensity.  Poor deluded boy!

 

Anyway, met him today at Jackson Square.  Tried to get Paulo to come along so that the lunch would cost Dickhead even more.  Unfortunately, he could not make it.  Ordered the usual: The Works from New York Fries.  Simply delicious!  We sat at the food court and caught up on things.  All in all, an enjoyable time.  Then, off to the Farmer’s Market.  Charles came along (okay, just this one time) and offered to help.  It was nice having my Man Friday providing assistance.  Some sausages, a steak and some potatoes.  Dinner will be taken care of for the next couple of days.

Thanks Dickhead, an enjoyable afternoon.  The next time though, don’t wait so long between feeds!

Was cruising around the other day with the lovely Trish.  Asked if she wouldn’t mind driving me out to the cemetery to visit Dad.  Hadn’t been there for a while.  Trish was good enough to trim back some of the plants that had overgrown a bit.  Was nice to see that the Malta flag sticker I put on Dad’s headstone was still there.  While we were there, Trish noticed that her friend’s mother is buried just two spots over from Dad!

 

Was nice to remember those good things involving Dad while I was there.  They are still so fresh in my mind!  May he rest in peace.

Now, for some reason that I just can’t figure out, people often put the tag of "cheap" on yours truly.  Oh, the injustice of life!  But, had a very interesting conversation with a friend of mine who tends to be what I consider an overzealous tipper.  15% she says, that’s what it’s supposed to be!  I was at a meal with her (Trish darling, it was delicious) and a friend of hers.  Her friend decided to take care of the tip.  The meal was $68.  The tip: $30!  Trish could see by the look on my face that I was stunned.  "That’s because you are so cheap" she responded.

So I ask you, and please be honest.  Let’s say you were at a nice restaurant with a friend and paying for the meal.  The bill came to $100.  What kind of tip would you leave?  I told Trish I would put down $10 and feel quite comfortable with that. She just laughed & rolled her eyes.  So again, I ask: what kind of tip would you have left?

Yes, took place yesterday at a lovely banquet hall in Hamilton: Michelangelo’s.  I think this was the fifth one and I have been to all of them.  Brought Jeannine & Paulo along.  We were met there by Brother Joseph & Lady Kathryn and Sister Dianne & Jim.  A lovely table of seven-which was good for us because most tables had eight people so with that one opening, there was more food for the rest of us.  And excellent food it was!

 

Hors d’oeuvres were served before the meal.  Then, some fresh buns with creamy butter.  Antepaste (not sure of the spelling) was brought out as a premeal appetizer-cold cuts with cheese & pickled vegetables.  Then, a healthy portion of lasagna which was followed by a roast beef dinner that included vegetables & potato.  There was also enough wine to keep everyone happy.  Simply delicious!  Then came dessert: sherbet & fruit with, of course, hot coffee.  I actually skipped on the desert because I was feeling a bit chilled.  The hot coffee though helped with that.

 

As usual, it was nice to see so much of the old Maltese crowd: friends of Mom and Dad.  There are still quite a few around.  Also good to see some of the kids I grew up with.  Lots of those!  There were even a couple of bottoms I had changed & diapered as a babysitter a long time ago.  The conversation was good and everyone enjoyed dancing to the DJ.  A great evening for all!

 

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