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!

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!

Kaleb is playing soccer again this year.  Very snazzy red & black uniforms.  Decided to watch the little guy go play yesterday.  Who shows up?  Dickhead!  Oh well, it was a lovely day and the weather was nice so I was able to put up with him.

After a late start, it was Kaleb’s Reds versus the Greens.  Unfortunately, the Green team did not have enough players so they borrowed some kids from the other teams and became the Powder Blues.  After a slow start, Kaleb’s team started to show its dominance.  It was already 1-0 for the good guys when I had to leave.  I eventually learned the final score was Reds-4 Powder Blues-2.  A victory!

Headed out with Brother Joseph & Lady Kathryn to watch Sister Dianne play some baseball at the Dofasco Sports Complex.  When we got there, met up with Brother Mike.  You could say Sister Dianne had her own official cheering section.  All we needed were pom-poms!

Sister Dianne’s team was sporting their snazzy purple uniforms.  They were up against the team wearing green.  It was already 1-0 Dianne’s squad when we got there.  We got to see Sister Dianne play second base, first base & catcher.  She did really well; nothing got by her in the infield.  She drove in a run with an infield hit and was robbed of a double by a good (but lucky) catch by the Green team’s second baseman.  The teams are all made up of female players who have some kind of a connection to Dofasco.  Players of all kinds; some very very good and some, well, not quite so good!

It was a fun couple of hours.  After the game, Brother Joseph & Lady Kathryn & I headed out to a new ice cream parlor that’s the talk of the town in Stoney Creek.  Of more importance to me, it’s attached to a Tim Horton’s!  While Joe & Kathryn partook of the ice cream, I settled down with a coffee and a couple of wraps.  Delicious!

Not a nice way to start the season!  Expectations of Tiger Cat fans were high.  Brother Mike & I went to the game and were accompanied by Dickhead-he got a free ticket from yours truly (the only way he would attend!).  Have to say though, Dickhead was generous enough to take care of parking & the purchase of a jumbo hot dog pour moi.  Will wonders never cease?!?  The lovely Paulo was also there to round out our quartet.

Unfortunately, the Tiger Cats didn’t show up until the first quarter was over.  By then, Toronto was winning 20-0.  Looking at it that way, we won the rest of the game 17-10!  Silly penalties at bad times, turnovers and some injuries took their toll.  Oh well, at least it only rained for 10 or 15 minutes; could have been a lot worse.

Brother Mike and I went down to Ivor Wynne Stadium on Sunday to pick up our seasons tickets. The club was hosting a party for seasons ticket holders. Quite a nice event.  Free food from Swiss Chalet: chicken, perogies & salad.  The playing field was open to people.  Checked out the visitors locker room.  What a hellhole!  Also talked football with Auggie Barrenechea, starting middle linebacker.  That guarantees a better season!  All in all, a nice way to spend an hour on a Sunday afternoon.

A little-known fact about yours truly: an excellent coach who has won championships at every level.  In my younger days they used to call me "Scotty".  As a matter of fact, another guy I tutored for a while went on to some success using the same name!  Of course, being such a good coach led to some very tangible results.  Check out the pictures!

Went to see the Bulldogs play last Saturday.  The Dickhead came along with me.  Unfortunately we saw a stinker of a game.  Hamilton lost to Grand Rapids 3-1.  That put them down 2-0 in the best-of-seven series.  Fortunately though, Hamilton won last night in Grand Rapids.  They have to take at least one more there to have another game back home.

Don’t know what to say about the boys this year.  Simply awful!  I know injuries played a part in their demise but there are so many other things going on "behind-the-scenes".  I hear that the goaltender, Carey Price, may be in trouble at the end of the season over a statutory rape charge that is being held back until then.  Ouch!