Last year we bought a fake one with built-in lights, which is convenient. We were worried that cf-98 would make a habit of pulling all the ornaments off now that she can walk, but she's fortunately shown little interest in the tree.
I've had one of those fake ones with built-in lights for years. I grew up with real trees, but at this point with little kids around and my wife too short to be able to help with putting it up, the fake version is the way to go.
we went to a farm to cut down tree this weekend. spend most of Sun doing Xmas related chores like putting up all the lights outside and helping get large boxes from garage full of Xmas decorations.
i am personally not to invested in the whole Xmas tree thing, but it seems to make everyone else happy.
we took some little neighbor kids along for the tree cutting experience so that was a more fun than average.
I get my tree from Costco each year. $42 for a beautiful 8 foot tall tree. We got it the Saturday after thanksgiving. I also buy my wreath from Costco, $18 for a real wreath.
In Singapore and Hong Kong, there is (or was) a tradition to keep Christmas trees up until Chinese New Year. CNY is a lunar holiday, so the tree could be crispy dead depending when the holiday fell. This also meant Christmas songs played in the grocery store until the end of the lunar new year... which means it could be mid-February and you're humming along to Frosty the Snowman.
The Orchard Supply Hardware in Moraga closed down a couple of years ago and stayed closed for maybe 6-8 months, and then the Outdoor Supply Hardware opened up in its place with basically the exact same store. I noticed the Berkeley one opened back up but some of the other ones like Concord and Danville(ish) didn't. I wonder if it was something like bankruptcy or a re-org.
I think we'll get one this year since we're not traveling, but this is dependent on the daughters committing to decorating it, because they've always been the reason that we've got one.
I inherited not one but two plastic ones in the divorce, as the former Mrs Jimmy Chitwood was allergic to pine needles, along with gold, fun and smiling...when she thankfully pulled a Baltimore Colts upon our divorce being finalized, she left both boxes in the garage. I don't even break them out of the box, as the puppy would shadowbox with them.
In theory, it is everyone that is a) 2nd stringers who think highly of themselves and think they aren't being given a chance to be starters and b) below-average players that are on pace to graduate undergrad and have no future seeing the field. I expect several of the latter. As to the former, I have no insider knowledge - but I would be least surprised by a RB entering the portal.
Specific guys I wouldn't be surprised if they were in the portal - but have no knowledge: Collin Moore, DeCarlos Brooks, Tattersall, Horwitz, Etter, Reinwald, Tonges, Maldonado.
Joking aside, I was kind of expecting the football result anyway... and I was spared having to watch it by crashing out sometime around 10 pm Saturday night, the first time that dreadful insomnia has worked out well for me.
As for water polo, by all accounts it was an absolute "two heavyweight teams slugging it out to the last second" match, and you can't get too bummed about losing one of those (easy for me to say since I'm not on the team or otherwise engaged with the sport).
There were more members of the USC band at the game than players on the sidelines. I think the semi unofficial count was 47 scholarship players and 5 walk-ons dressed. We got word at the tailgate there was some sort of player revolt and a bunch of SC players didn't make the trip.
I forgot who I talked to on DBD few weeks ago, but United finally announced elite status extension for another year, but only for some. Of course, they wait until December to announce it after I meet their (reduced) spend requirement.
in this day and age, you have to assume that attending a game in person means that you're at risk for becoming a reaction meme. And as these pictures go, it's pretty good.
I was in stadium (Houston's Reliant NRG Stadium) during the 2004 Super Bowl "wardrobe malfunction" but in the stands, we had no idea that anything had happened. However, during one game break there was a streaker and he made it onto the field and one of the Panthers defensive players laid him out with a giant forearm. And that's what people in the stadium without benefit of the tv replays were buzzing about coming out of halftime.
There are generally two different types of cash-out refis. One is when you take out a larger mortgage on your existing place. Obviously, you're levering up with more principle, presumably at a lower interest rate and at a fixed rate. The downside to this is you have to find an investment opportunity that make a higher risk-adjusted return on that capital - which will depend on what life-stage you are at and your financial resources.
The other type is where you pay off one mortgage and add a mortgage on another place. You generally cash out and re-leverage the exact same amount in order to show lhe link between the two properties. The downside to this is a) IRS audit risk as you have to prove the two are linked and b) there is a payback period before there is a positive return.
if had done the even refi, our rate would have been lower than our existing one. but with the cash out it was bumped up to stay the same as our existing one.
so it felt like we got to extract some and keep the same rate which was ok w/ me. we were looking to refi anyways because our floating rate loan was just about to hit the floating period.
it was actually going to adjust down even though we had a pretty great rate from 5 yrs ago. but locking in another 7 at same rate seemed reasonable enough ..
the main drawback is that the rate is higher, at least it was for us.
on the other hand we took the cash out and are going to just add it to the pile of retirement savings. the idea is that the money invested is going to grow at a much higher rate than the rate differential.
on top of that the interest payments are all tax deductible.
Depends on how long you've owned the home and how much unearned capital gains you have in it. If you're approaching the limit ($250k single and $500k married), then you'll want to think about selling your house and move into a new one to start a new basis for primary residence tax exemption.
I think you need to weigh the refi against what it is being used to replace. If paying off student loans, the nice thing is you are wiping away nondischargeable debt, so that is a nice monkey off your back
Finally finished the 8 hour Peter Jackson Get Back Beatles Documentary. Note that I know the hits and big songs, but I am far from a big Beatles fan. I think I only owned the anthologies 1 & 2 on CD, and don't have an albums downloaded on iTunes.
1. The venue change from Twickenham to Apple Studios and adding Billy Preston really completely turned the mood in the studio
2. I was completely unaware of how much of the turmoil stemmed from George - and it didn't help that it seemed like Paul and John were mocking him.
3. John looks completely out of it half the time.
4. Yoko barely says anything the entire time - how much of her "breaking up the Beatles" was racism from the English tabloids?
5. The way they go from complete nonsense to "Get Back" and "Don't Let Me Down" is pretty amazing.
It seems pretty clear that they were going to break up, Yoko or no Yoko. She was just kind of a representation of John's increasing desire to move on to other things.
Honestly as someone without a deep Beatles knowledge, I didn't really know the tensions that lead to the break-up. Heck, I only realized last year that all of their success and the timeline from Fab Four to psychedelic Beatles was like 8 years.
I think that someone who gets so mad at a joke cow account that he sues is perfect for running a Trump media company, since normal rules like "demonstrably profitable" will be secondary to "laundering in debt from other companies" and "owning the libs" and "getting money from the rubes."
Stupid Democrats, listening to (white) progressives is a fatal mistake:
As Democrats seek to reach out to Latino voters in a more gender-neutral way, they’ve increasingly begun using the word Latinx, a term that first began to get traction among academics and activists on the left.
But that very effort could be counterproductive in courting those of Latin American descent, according to a new nationwide poll of Hispanic voters.
Only 2 percent of those polled refer to themselves as Latinx, while 68 percent call themselves “Hispanic” and 21 percent favored “Latino” or “Latina” to describe their ethnic background, according to the survey from Bendixen & Amandi International, a top Democratic firm specializing in Latino outreach.
More problematic for Democrats: 40 percent said Latinx bothers or offends them to some degree and 30 percent said they would be less likely to support a politician or organization that uses the term.
What's wild about this is that McCrory is a deep red candidate, espousing essentially every crackpot talking point that Trump supports with the lone exception that he acknowledged that Trump did not win the 2020 election. This put him on Trump's shit list. As the former governor, McCrory has a 15 point lead against the other candidates due to his name recognition. It proves that Trump is not a politician - but a despot - who wants loyalty to him, not to win as a political party.
After a week of dealing with a very bad virus, I got a test on Friday afternoon. Negative. Getting another test today, since about 95% of my symptoms have passed, to make sure I can make it back into the office.
It was a wild and severe virus I got, and even though symptoms are gone I'm still somewhat recovering from it. I was significantly weakened by it and I'm still hesitant to do anything strenuous.
I'm all set to go back to work following my daughter's release from covid protocols...just gotta take one last in-home covid test, which is fine because I've taken several of them over the last couple of weeks and they've all been negative...
Thanks everybody. I'll get the PCR test tomorrow and we'll see. I felt fine yesterday but today I have mild symptoms. Whether or not I'm just in my own head because of the positive test, I suppose we'll find out.
that was wild. Verstappen has tried to run Hamilton off the track / make him crash 4 or 5 times in the last 2 races, he's a fucking menace. A sports writer I follow noted on twitter that it takes some doing to be the upstart against a 7 time champion and somehow make yourself the villain.
Its so hard to know what's really going on inside an F1 program. I'm legitimately curious as to whether this sequence is Verstappen's idea (clearly with team mgt's acceptance at least, or they would have shut it down), or if its ordered or strongly encouraged as a way to challenge Mercedes. Either way though, its a really dangerous play to make.
I think Verstappen decided to brake-test Hamilton on his own. Horner (head of Red Bull) is a nutter like most team heads, but I can't see him sanctioning something that dumb / dangerous.
And a clearly dangerous track to begin with (based on what I've read coming out of the F2 event as well) was a really bad combination. Is that a Saudi problem or a F1 problem?
there was a strange moment in 4th Q where Detroit was up 2 w/ a couple min to go they went for it on 4th and 2 from their own 25 td line and Goff fumbles!!
WTF kind of play call is that??!! did i miss some crucial detail?
That game felt cursed throughout the second half. Detroit took a 20-6 lead into the half and blew the lead late after a mind-boggling decision to go for it on 4th and 1 from their own 28 with 4 minutes to go, despite still holding the lead. Goff got sacked and fumbled on the play, and Minnesota scored a few plays later.
Mike Zimmer again shows he’s no sharper than a marble as he eschews easy PAT points and starts going for 2 midway thru the 3Q despite being down less than a touchdown.
In all, he would go for 2 thrice, missing all 3 attempts and leaving 3 points on the board in a 2 point loss. The analytics may in fact say go for 2 in some situations, but midway through the 3Q? There’s still a lot of game to play & at the end of the day, points matter.
Glover is thankfully out of eligiblity. Milner vs. Zach Jonson left on scholarship. I bet Garbers is gone. Rowell is walk-on with a year left of eligibility, but I don't expect him to return. DeBisschop becomes the full time scout team. This leaves room for a transfer portal guy or two. We have a crap ton of eligible slots open for '22. I think Cal will hit the portal much more than in the past.
Fun fact: not counting the bizarro 2020 season, Wilcox's best team (2019) had the worst point differential (-9). This year's team had the best differential (+18). Such is life of a team that lives and dies by coin flips...
Avi pointed out that Cal's wins were all by double digits and their losses were all one score games with several losses coming in the closing minute or OT
I didn't see the exchange being referenced here, but my own observations of SEC football have led me to believe that whatever result most benefits the SEC will be the one that happens.
I'm not saying the SEC championship game is routinely fixed, but I'm not NOT saying that, either.
Me too, but my feeling was based on watching Bama play, they sure didn't look anywhere near as sharp as they did against Georgia - I hadn't actually watched Georgia play.
SEC shrill Brad Nessler relayed an interesting stat: going into the SEC Champ game, UGA QB Stetson Bennett had thrown 11 4Q passes all year bc they were always up multiple scores.
there's a guy on twitter (@statsowar) who runs advanced stats on games and every time he ran the numbers, it came up with Bama winning and he couldn't figure out why. I mentioned this to Cugel and Nam at the tailgate. It turns out that given Georgia's schedule compared to Alabama's, Georgia was too good, and too efficient against a weaker schedule that there simply weren't enough stats on certain in-game situations (converting 3rd and long, or defensive red zone efficiency, for example) and there was no way to measure how Georgia would respond in those types of situations. Bama had been there and had their hands full with aTm, LSU, and Auburn, going 2-1 ibn those games so that stats pointed to a Bama victory which turned out to be the case
All good. We’ll probably get the rematch next month...over/under on the number of 1st round draft picks over the next few drafts that were on the field in Atlanta Sat? The WR/TE room alone had at least 7. Unreal.
Trying to convince my dad (OSU alum) to get tickets to the Rose Bowl. Prior years, he didn't want to buy tickets and I could not afford to buy tickets, but over the past few years the tickets are now within my budget.
at the risk of being pilloried: I was very skeptical that the Rose Bowl "experience" was really worth it until I tried the real thing (this would have been different, perhaps, if SC had lost)
Not an unusual circumstance. One of the biggest benefits of getting into the Big XII will be better contracted bowls because the contract will not be BYU-centric.
finished fall quarter on 3 days ago, time for a month off :). Going to be at Cal basketball vs Santa Clara on the 11th and Dartmouth on the 19th in HAAS. Hopefully I get to see some of you again (or for the 1st time).
we were promised free tickets to a MBB game and we all picked Dartmouth as that game, but so far there's been no word from the ATO about said tickets and I'll be damned if i spend my own money on MBB
Since I was out of town for that FB game, I ended up getting 3 tickets on stubhub for the Dartmouth game since No 2 and 3 will be back by then. Only ended up paying $30 total. If I had to pay full price I definitely wouldn't be going.
Christmas trees
Last year we bought a fake one with built-in lights, which is convenient. We were worried that cf-98 would make a habit of pulling all the ornaments off now that she can walk, but she's fortunately shown little interest in the tree.
I've had one of those fake ones with built-in lights for years. I grew up with real trees, but at this point with little kids around and my wife too short to be able to help with putting it up, the fake version is the way to go.
we went to a farm to cut down tree this weekend. spend most of Sun doing Xmas related chores like putting up all the lights outside and helping get large boxes from garage full of Xmas decorations.
i am personally not to invested in the whole Xmas tree thing, but it seems to make everyone else happy.
we took some little neighbor kids along for the tree cutting experience so that was a more fun than average.
What Arnold called Dynamo in The Running Man....
Here is Professor Sub Zero, now. . . Plain Zero
I think...the next kill....will be made by.............Ben Richards,
Really the most unbelievable part of the entire movie is the bookies giving 100-1 odds on Ben Richards when he's already killed two stalkers.
I get my tree from Costco each year. $42 for a beautiful 8 foot tall tree. We got it the Saturday after thanksgiving. I also buy my wreath from Costco, $18 for a real wreath.
Fake, with lights built in, is the way to go imo
Real, just like we had growing up.
We usually get one from Lowe’s on Black Friday. Quality is fine, convenient, cost is reasonable.
Got mine Friday, it has lights and a star on it but I have not yet hung the ornaments.
It will be up until Epiphany.
got ours up yesterday. Typically we take it down right before new years.
Wow, y'all are really early with the trees, or maybe I'm late?
we try to get it first weekend in Dec. we usually go skiing the week btw Xmas and NYers so we get the enjoyment for 3-4 weeks
When we get a live tree we usually get it the first or second week in December.
Got it Friday, got it decorated Saturday. If you don't have it yet, you are late.
But always get it mid-December!
I've been known to wait until the 23rd before now
Good luck this year. Lots are already pretty bare.
We get the tree on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, every year. And it goes away no later than New Year's Day.
In Singapore and Hong Kong, there is (or was) a tradition to keep Christmas trees up until Chinese New Year. CNY is a lunar holiday, so the tree could be crispy dead depending when the holiday fell. This also meant Christmas songs played in the grocery store until the end of the lunar new year... which means it could be mid-February and you're humming along to Frosty the Snowman.
that sounds like three months of dead tree in the house.
Mrs Slug and I purchased a tree from Outdoor Supply Hardware on Ashby Ave in Berkeley.
We have started to decorate it.
The Orchard Supply Hardware in Moraga closed down a couple of years ago and stayed closed for maybe 6-8 months, and then the Outdoor Supply Hardware opened up in its place with basically the exact same store. I noticed the Berkeley one opened back up but some of the other ones like Concord and Danville(ish) didn't. I wonder if it was something like bankruptcy or a re-org.
Lowe's bought Orchard Supply Hardware and closed some of the original stores. Not sure what happened after that.
hmm..interesting.
Got one on Friday afternoon from Orchard in Lafayette.
I think we'll get one this year since we're not traveling, but this is dependent on the daughters committing to decorating it, because they've always been the reason that we've got one.
Fake one this year since we will be traveling for the Christmas holiday. But it still looks pretty nice!
Same. My relatives are complaining that real trees are super expensive. Apparently, there's been a run on fake ones too.
I can't believe how much they charge for the fake ones.
We’ve had our fake tree since the kids were born. Just break it down and keep it in the basement—came in handy this year!
The past few years we have done the ritual of cutting down a tree and all that jazz.
I inherited not one but two plastic ones in the divorce, as the former Mrs Jimmy Chitwood was allergic to pine needles, along with gold, fun and smiling...when she thankfully pulled a Baltimore Colts upon our divorce being finalized, she left both boxes in the garage. I don't even break them out of the box, as the puppy would shadowbox with them.
Cal
Welcome to transfer portal week for Cal and USC players
JH Tevis is in the portal
https://twitter.com/jh_tevis/status/1467968581258256389?s=21
I will almost guarantee he'll end up at Stanford.
Who is likely to transfer out from the Bears?
In theory, it is everyone that is a) 2nd stringers who think highly of themselves and think they aren't being given a chance to be starters and b) below-average players that are on pace to graduate undergrad and have no future seeing the field. I expect several of the latter. As to the former, I have no insider knowledge - but I would be least surprised by a RB entering the portal.
Specific guys I wouldn't be surprised if they were in the portal - but have no knowledge: Collin Moore, DeCarlos Brooks, Tattersall, Horwitz, Etter, Reinwald, Tonges, Maldonado.
Our most physically gifted offensive player did so this time last year...hope that doesn’t happen again....
Is this an appropriate place for some Dancy love? He’s so fun to watch
Go Bears!!!
congratulations for the football and water polo wins (I guess)
[Sarcasm] Uh huh. Someone please check for gunpowder stored underneath Dwinelle Hall.
Joking aside, I was kind of expecting the football result anyway... and I was spared having to watch it by crashing out sometime around 10 pm Saturday night, the first time that dreadful insomnia has worked out well for me.
As for water polo, by all accounts it was an absolute "two heavyweight teams slugging it out to the last second" match, and you can't get too bummed about losing one of those (easy for me to say since I'm not on the team or otherwise engaged with the sport).
There were more members of the USC band at the game than players on the sidelines. I think the semi unofficial count was 47 scholarship players and 5 walk-ons dressed. We got word at the tailgate there was some sort of player revolt and a bunch of SC players didn't make the trip.
Basketball should've beat Utah...but didn't. Football beats $C, going to be a while before $C is garbage again
Kuany injury hurt - Gach was a matchup nightmare after he hurt his ankle.
Story of the loss is that Kelly, double-teamed, had 4 points. We also could not buy a bucket as time wound down.
I can't watch the games but saw in the play by play that Cal had no FGs in the last five minutes. Same thing happened in the close loss to Seton Hall.
This team has no consistent scorers that can create their own shot, but they do battle hard.
United Airlines
I forgot who I talked to on DBD few weeks ago, but United finally announced elite status extension for another year, but only for some. Of course, they wait until December to announce it after I meet their (reduced) spend requirement.
https://onemileatatime.com/news/united-mileageplus-extends-elite-status/
The Streak!
I feel bad for the undergrad who unwittingly became our meme for poor USC performance. But not bad enough to prevent me from gleefully using it again.
in this day and age, you have to assume that attending a game in person means that you're at risk for becoming a reaction meme. And as these pictures go, it's pretty good.
I was in stadium (Houston's Reliant NRG Stadium) during the 2004 Super Bowl "wardrobe malfunction" but in the stands, we had no idea that anything had happened. However, during one game break there was a streaker and he made it onto the field and one of the Panthers defensive players laid him out with a giant forearm. And that's what people in the stadium without benefit of the tv replays were buzzing about coming out of halftime.
DBD NOT OFFICIAL FINANCIAL ADVICE
You can now invest in Dave Mustaine's ego by buying Megadeath's cryptocurrency SHMEGMA. Wait, no. $MEGA.
https://www.guitarworld.com/news/megadeth-crypto
What are the drawbacks of a cash-out refi?
I did one.
There are generally two different types of cash-out refis. One is when you take out a larger mortgage on your existing place. Obviously, you're levering up with more principle, presumably at a lower interest rate and at a fixed rate. The downside to this is you have to find an investment opportunity that make a higher risk-adjusted return on that capital - which will depend on what life-stage you are at and your financial resources.
The other type is where you pay off one mortgage and add a mortgage on another place. You generally cash out and re-leverage the exact same amount in order to show lhe link between the two properties. The downside to this is a) IRS audit risk as you have to prove the two are linked and b) there is a payback period before there is a positive return.
if had done the even refi, our rate would have been lower than our existing one. but with the cash out it was bumped up to stay the same as our existing one.
so it felt like we got to extract some and keep the same rate which was ok w/ me. we were looking to refi anyways because our floating rate loan was just about to hit the floating period.
it was actually going to adjust down even though we had a pretty great rate from 5 yrs ago. but locking in another 7 at same rate seemed reasonable enough ..
we just did this ...
the main drawback is that the rate is higher, at least it was for us.
on the other hand we took the cash out and are going to just add it to the pile of retirement savings. the idea is that the money invested is going to grow at a much higher rate than the rate differential.
on top of that the interest payments are all tax deductible.
i guess the other "obvious" drawback is that your principal amount goes up, so your monthly payment goes up proportionally.
what is the plan for the cash-out?
we technically had to transfer the $$ to an external account but will move it back into the investment account a few months later.
My goal is to pay off the remainder of student loans which would free up a nice bit of cash each month
Depends on how long you've owned the home and how much unearned capital gains you have in it. If you're approaching the limit ($250k single and $500k married), then you'll want to think about selling your house and move into a new one to start a new basis for primary residence tax exemption.
I think you need to weigh the refi against what it is being used to replace. If paying off student loans, the nice thing is you are wiping away nondischargeable debt, so that is a nice monkey off your back
I can't think of any, do it every time I refi (commercial loans have a 10 year term)
DBD AV Club
Finally finished the 8 hour Peter Jackson Get Back Beatles Documentary. Note that I know the hits and big songs, but I am far from a big Beatles fan. I think I only owned the anthologies 1 & 2 on CD, and don't have an albums downloaded on iTunes.
1. The venue change from Twickenham to Apple Studios and adding Billy Preston really completely turned the mood in the studio
2. I was completely unaware of how much of the turmoil stemmed from George - and it didn't help that it seemed like Paul and John were mocking him.
3. John looks completely out of it half the time.
4. Yoko barely says anything the entire time - how much of her "breaking up the Beatles" was racism from the English tabloids?
5. The way they go from complete nonsense to "Get Back" and "Don't Let Me Down" is pretty amazing.
It seems pretty clear that they were going to break up, Yoko or no Yoko. She was just kind of a representation of John's increasing desire to move on to other things.
Honestly as someone without a deep Beatles knowledge, I didn't really know the tensions that lead to the break-up. Heck, I only realized last year that all of their success and the timeline from Fab Four to psychedelic Beatles was like 8 years.
DBD Test Kitchen
i will be eating leftover bulgogi for the next couple of days. goodamn that might have been the best tailgate thing I made this year
The pictures of it looked fantastic
That sounds f-ing delicious.
OoooOOoooo the Smash burgers were pretty awesome.
Yeah this.
I’m still talking about the one you fixed me pre-Wazzu...divine!
Smash burgers will be coming back next season.
Had meatballs in tomatillo sauce, with roasted onions and orange bell peppers over rice. Paired with a decent 2018 Zinfandel.
Our Crumbling Democracy
[Politico] Devin Nunes to retire
https://twitter.com/JeremyBWhite/status/1467971287507034114
CEO of the new Trump media company which underwent a SPAC transaction. I don't believe he has any relevant experience running a media company.
I think that someone who gets so mad at a joke cow account that he sues is perfect for running a Trump media company, since normal rules like "demonstrably profitable" will be secondary to "laundering in debt from other companies" and "owning the libs" and "getting money from the rubes."
Stupid Democrats, listening to (white) progressives is a fatal mistake:
As Democrats seek to reach out to Latino voters in a more gender-neutral way, they’ve increasingly begun using the word Latinx, a term that first began to get traction among academics and activists on the left.
But that very effort could be counterproductive in courting those of Latin American descent, according to a new nationwide poll of Hispanic voters.
Only 2 percent of those polled refer to themselves as Latinx, while 68 percent call themselves “Hispanic” and 21 percent favored “Latino” or “Latina” to describe their ethnic background, according to the survey from Bendixen & Amandi International, a top Democratic firm specializing in Latino outreach.
More problematic for Democrats: 40 percent said Latinx bothers or offends them to some degree and 30 percent said they would be less likely to support a politician or organization that uses the term.
https://www.politico.com/news/2021/12/06/hispanic-voters-latinx-term-523776
I say this as someone married to a proud Latina. What the fuck is wrong with these fools?
They are increasingly scared of appearing as to offend a very vocal group who never ends up showing up to the voting booth.
Either they don't show up or they would show up and vote blue anyway.
What progressives or Latinos?
progressives
Trump brokers deal to remake the field in N.C. Senate race
https://www.politico.com/news/2021/12/05/donald-trump-ted-budd-north-carolina-523779
What's wild about this is that McCrory is a deep red candidate, espousing essentially every crackpot talking point that Trump supports with the lone exception that he acknowledged that Trump did not win the 2020 election. This put him on Trump's shit list. As the former governor, McCrory has a 15 point lead against the other candidates due to his name recognition. It proves that Trump is not a politician - but a despot - who wants loyalty to him, not to win as a political party.
I mean we’ve known that for awhile now. Authoritarianism fits with the GOP ethos nicely though so here we are.
Today in Omnicron
After a week of dealing with a very bad virus, I got a test on Friday afternoon. Negative. Getting another test today, since about 95% of my symptoms have passed, to make sure I can make it back into the office.
I was wondering what happened after you mentioned it last week and then not hearing anything.
It was a wild and severe virus I got, and even though symptoms are gone I'm still somewhat recovering from it. I was significantly weakened by it and I'm still hesitant to do anything strenuous.
Second test at noon today - negative.
I'm all set to go back to work following my daughter's release from covid protocols...just gotta take one last in-home covid test, which is fine because I've taken several of them over the last couple of weeks and they've all been negative...
...and...this one's positive. Fuck.
@shouldn't have taken the last test@
seriously though, hope you symptoms are very mild.
okay thanks Trump
Do you think it's a false positive or do you think you've actually got it? If it's a true positive, I hope it's a mild case.
Thanks everybody. I'll get the PCR test tomorrow and we'll see. I felt fine yesterday but today I have mild symptoms. Whether or not I'm just in my own head because of the positive test, I suppose we'll find out.
fingers crossed etc
Well that was quick. I'm starting to get the shivers, the snots, and the oh-fuck-here-it-comes...
Shit.
Covid sucks so hard
Early Reports on Omicron Variant Are ‘Encouraging,’ Fauci Says
https://www.marketwatch.com/articles/omicron-covid-variant-fauci-early-studies-51638786961
Pro
F1 in Saudi has been quite dramatic
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article.breaking-verstappen-handed-further-10-second-penalty-for-lap-37-collision.7GGfMvAnRIGPtMQphh7zCd.html
that was wild. Verstappen has tried to run Hamilton off the track / make him crash 4 or 5 times in the last 2 races, he's a fucking menace. A sports writer I follow noted on twitter that it takes some doing to be the upstart against a 7 time champion and somehow make yourself the villain.
It was nice to see someone challenge the Mercedes team this season, but that quickly evaporated when Max started repeatedly driving like a lunatic.
Its so hard to know what's really going on inside an F1 program. I'm legitimately curious as to whether this sequence is Verstappen's idea (clearly with team mgt's acceptance at least, or they would have shut it down), or if its ordered or strongly encouraged as a way to challenge Mercedes. Either way though, its a really dangerous play to make.
I think Verstappen decided to brake-test Hamilton on his own. Horner (head of Red Bull) is a nutter like most team heads, but I can't see him sanctioning something that dumb / dangerous.
And a clearly dangerous track to begin with (based on what I've read coming out of the F2 event as well) was a really bad combination. Is that a Saudi problem or a F1 problem?
Drivers’ championship tied going into the final race. Should be lively…
Also, it's a fucking danger as a track, way too many blind corners.
Bonkers
Pro DB coach checking in
https://twitter.com/GAlexander21/status/1467349487278567427
Raiders lose when they can't stop the fighting Riverboat Rons from driving down the field and kicking a FG.
The Lions finally win when Goff throws a TD on the last play of the game.
there was a strange moment in 4th Q where Detroit was up 2 w/ a couple min to go they went for it on 4th and 2 from their own 25 td line and Goff fumbles!!
WTF kind of play call is that??!! did i miss some crucial detail?
It was just an awful play call. Play action roll-out into the blitz….yuck.
That game felt cursed throughout the second half. Detroit took a 20-6 lead into the half and blew the lead late after a mind-boggling decision to go for it on 4th and 1 from their own 28 with 4 minutes to go, despite still holding the lead. Goff got sacked and fumbled on the play, and Minnesota scored a few plays later.
small hands.
So this problem may finally have caught up to Jared (see g.oso post above)
Mike Zimmer again shows he’s no sharper than a marble as he eschews easy PAT points and starts going for 2 midway thru the 3Q despite being down less than a touchdown.
In all, he would go for 2 thrice, missing all 3 attempts and leaving 3 points on the board in a 2 point loss. The analytics may in fact say go for 2 in some situations, but midway through the 3Q? There’s still a lot of game to play & at the end of the day, points matter.
So you're saying Wilcox should be coaching the Lions?
Goff winning off the field too it seems
https://twitter.com/sinow/status/1467854935022702594?s=10
Go Bears
Indeed
Thanks YWC.
Everton beat Arsenal 2 - 1 a short while ago, with Richarlison scoring a 1 goal hat trick (2 goals disallowed for offside).
49ers go scoreless in the second half and fall to the Seahawks 30-23
https://www.ninersnation.com/2021/12/5/22819347/49ers-go-scoreless-in-the-second-half-and-fall-to-the-seahawks-30-23
I knew this was going to happen. The Niners usually play like idiots up in Seattle.
I have a nephew in Seattle. He posted some pics of he and GF at the game. He was in a Niner jersey, she in Seahawk.
Reported that a terrible PI wasn't called near the end of that game, true?
Ya, Sherfield was held and pushed in the EZ on 3rd & goal w/ under a minute.
As does Jimmy Garoppolo
Other College
It's a gray-it deayuh to be a Tih-guh, I gay ron tee, it.
https://twitter.com/JeffDarlington/status/1466602743573856262
Prodigal son?
https://twitter.com/CKennedy247/status/1467904998646468609
That would be interesting if Martinez returns to the fold. Would Milner enter the portal?
I interpret this to mean that Chase is not returning.
Without a transfer, we could suck really, really badly next year.
Glover is thankfully out of eligiblity. Milner vs. Zach Jonson left on scholarship. I bet Garbers is gone. Rowell is walk-on with a year left of eligibility, but I don't expect him to return. DeBisschop becomes the full time scout team. This leaves room for a transfer portal guy or two. We have a crap ton of eligible slots open for '22. I think Cal will hit the portal much more than in the past.
He walked with the seniors on saturday night. Hoping he does not come back.
Statistic of the season: Nebraska finished 1-8 in conference. The combined point differential in all those games was zero.
https://huskers.com/sports/football/schedule/2021
Fun fact: not counting the bizarro 2020 season, Wilcox's best team (2019) had the worst point differential (-9). This year's team had the best differential (+18). Such is life of a team that lives and dies by coin flips...
Avi pointed out that Cal's wins were all by double digits and their losses were all one score games with several losses coming in the closing minute or OT
That was for the 2019 season and not this season correct?
Cal’s turnover discrepancy also paints the picture of a team with a winning record, I believe....
that is, in its own way, very impressive
[Source] Cristobal to Miami as HC has stalled
https://twitter.com/MichaelRyanRuiz/status/1467810450956075008
Uncle Phil must have opened up his wallet and said, take as much as you want.
He apparently did that already and Cristobal didn’t jump at the chance...apparently rankled some Nike feathers, per Canzano.
I have some inside info that Oregon backers ARE interested in pursuing Wilcox. Which I find surprising.
this tweet from Stewart Mandel about how Miami is funding all of this from hospital profits is quite something https://twitter.com/slmandel/status/1467713444220600324?s=20
I don’t understand the love for the guy, at least when it comes to expecting Playoff appearances. He’s a good coach but not top-tier IMO
Yeah, recruits well, players are fit, trash "in game" coaching
The perception (correctly) is you can't win big if you can't recruit that level of talent. First things first in many people's minds.
source: the partial Oregon games I've watched, and irritated text from my brother, an Oregon alum
Miami has finally fired poor Manny Diaz & Cristobal meeting w/ Duck players this a.m., per John Canzano....stay tuned.
Apropos: https://twitter.com/mzenitz/status/1467889855594123284
OU announces Brent Venables as HC
https://twitter.com/ou_football/status/1467687229732491266?s=21
OU seems to have stayed the course of actually trying to fix their defense.
I'll just get it over with and admit i was so wrong about Georgia. Kudos to Jimmy Chitwood
I didn't see the exchange being referenced here, but my own observations of SEC football have led me to believe that whatever result most benefits the SEC will be the one that happens.
I'm not saying the SEC championship game is routinely fixed, but I'm not NOT saying that, either.
Me too, but my feeling was based on watching Bama play, they sure didn't look anywhere near as sharp as they did against Georgia - I hadn't actually watched Georgia play.
SEC shrill Brad Nessler relayed an interesting stat: going into the SEC Champ game, UGA QB Stetson Bennett had thrown 11 4Q passes all year bc they were always up multiple scores.
there's a guy on twitter (@statsowar) who runs advanced stats on games and every time he ran the numbers, it came up with Bama winning and he couldn't figure out why. I mentioned this to Cugel and Nam at the tailgate. It turns out that given Georgia's schedule compared to Alabama's, Georgia was too good, and too efficient against a weaker schedule that there simply weren't enough stats on certain in-game situations (converting 3rd and long, or defensive red zone efficiency, for example) and there was no way to measure how Georgia would respond in those types of situations. Bama had been there and had their hands full with aTm, LSU, and Auburn, going 2-1 ibn those games so that stats pointed to a Bama victory which turned out to be the case
When I saw that stat, I thought it said 11 4Qtr TD passes, not just any old pass - wow.
All good. We’ll probably get the rematch next month...over/under on the number of 1st round draft picks over the next few drafts that were on the field in Atlanta Sat? The WR/TE room alone had at least 7. Unreal.
2021 Bowl Games: Schedule, College Football Playoff teams, kickoff times, dates, NCAA top 25 rankings
https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/2021-bowl-games-schedule-college-football-playoff-teams-kickoff-times-dates-ncaa-top-25-rankings/live/
Fenway Park hosts a bowl now? Spending 4 hours in the Boston cold at the end of December is not my idea of a good time.
Following the lead of the Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium, which looked miserable whenever I watched on tv...
There's a good reason Bowls should be in SoCal or Florida.
Trying to convince my dad (OSU alum) to get tickets to the Rose Bowl. Prior years, he didn't want to buy tickets and I could not afford to buy tickets, but over the past few years the tickets are now within my budget.
You know it doesn't count if you go, right??
The pain will probably count.
at the risk of being pilloried: I was very skeptical that the Rose Bowl "experience" was really worth it until I tried the real thing (this would have been different, perhaps, if SC had lost)
I kinda think BYU got shafted with their bowl selection.
Not an unusual circumstance. One of the biggest benefits of getting into the Big XII will be better contracted bowls because the contract will not be BYU-centric.
Yup, this is what you get when you're an independent and not Notre Dame.
I assumed that, but still. Solid team this year.
hang on, I can't find SC on here.... OH.
y'all lost the Sickos Bowl on saturday.
I feel like that is the only way to win the Sickos Bowl
finished fall quarter on 3 days ago, time for a month off :). Going to be at Cal basketball vs Santa Clara on the 11th and Dartmouth on the 19th in HAAS. Hopefully I get to see some of you again (or for the 1st time).
we were promised free tickets to a MBB game and we all picked Dartmouth as that game, but so far there's been no word from the ATO about said tickets and I'll be damned if i spend my own money on MBB
Since I was out of town for that FB game, I ended up getting 3 tickets on stubhub for the Dartmouth game since No 2 and 3 will be back by then. Only ended up paying $30 total. If I had to pay full price I definitely wouldn't be going.
I'm not willing to spend $10 of my own money