LLP Bonus - Nightwish

Live in New York last night to open the new tour!  I've been listening to the new cd since I received it from Amazon on the US release date, March 31.  I have already had them as a Latest Listening Pleasure a few times so did not want to do it again so readily, so this is just a new thing - a LLP Bonus!  I came across this video of last night's show in New York to open their US tour and I wanted to post it because it is the newest live video of them since year before last festival season, and we hear the newest songs live!  The new album, Endless Forms Most Beautiful, opened in the US top 40 last week.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Shudder Before The Beautiful
02. Yours Is An Empty Hope
03. Amaranth
04. She Is My Sin
05. Endless Forms Most Beautiful
06. My Walden
07. The Islander
08. Élan
09. Weak Fantasy
10. Storytime
11. Nemo
12. I Want My Tears Back
13. Stargazers
14. Sleeping Sun
15 The Greatest Show On Earth

Encore:

16. Ghost Love Score
17. Last Ride Of The Day

Via Blabbermouth

Yesterday...

...was my sixth blogday.  Over 850 posts, with this.      Um.     Yeah, seems about right.

Good Show, Badgers

(Click to view larger)  via ESPN

Early Cat Birthday and GO BADGERS!

Hamish, top, and Basil.

Their official birthday is not until April 20, as far as we know, so Basil and Hamish got their gift early this year.  We are still waiting on the weather to stay above freezing overnight consistently before I get started with the power washer chores outside, so since I had the time this past weekend I cut a base and assembled the new cat tree early.  I also adapted an old TV turntable for one of the new lamps.  It feels good to get outside and make stuff out of wood again!

While the new cat tree is larger than the old one, it still has the same type of base, with carpet folded over the edges, so it is not as stable as I would like, especially when they get a running start at it, so I added a base to give it weight and stability.  Nothing too difficult to do and it may save a window (or a cat) someday.  I should have used a darker stain on the wood, that is something I can go back and redo later if I want.  The new cat tree has one less level than the old one, but the levels are larger and overall it is about 6 inches taller.  The top area is also larger than the old one so when they share the space now they will not have to lay on top of each other as much as before.

Still tight on top for 2, but better than before!

Also, we used to have a turntable under our old (large, boxy) television so we could turn it to face wherever we needed it to in the living room.  Now we have a new, flat screen TV that is mounted on the wall so this was sitting downstairs collecting dust.  I made a cardboard template of the base of the swing arm lamp to get an approximate size and trimmed down the turntable so it would fit in the corner and still turn with no problems.  Now we can swing the lamp out much more easily to get at the window behind it.  Not real exciting, and I did not take pictures.

The old cat tree has been moved to the back porch for the summer.  When we have the patio door open I can just see the cats running the length of the house from one cat tree to the other!  This fall, once it is cold enough to keep the patio door shut for the season the old one will be trashed.  They have had it for two years and it is getting pretty worn.  Happy birthday, Basil and Hamish!

Also, tonight the Wisconsin Badgers take on the Duke Blue Devils for the NCAA College Men's Basketball Championship!  The Badgers beat the unbeaten Kentucky Wildcats on Saturday night, avenging last year's Final Four loss to them by one point.  This team is good enough to get it done.  No matter what happens, it has been a wonderful season to follow the Badgers.  I see no reason they will not follow through with their stated goal - and bring home a National Championship! 

GO BADGERS!

Just Okay Friday

Well, I wound up disappointing my wife in one of those ways that I should have seen coming but I'm a man therefore stupid blind to all hints and unable to understand the simplest gestures until all is lost and apologies are even a last ditch, lame sounding, even-I-don't-believe-me pathetic gesture.

My lovely wife wanted to spend our rare afternoon off together making a short round of our favorite bar/restaurants and have an appropriate drink and appetizer/food item at each place.  I don't eat much during the day so did not have much of an appetite when we started out, and well, my lack of appetite at the time made my wife not order anything and it just did not turn out like she wanted.  I went about it too casually and should have looked at our time this afternoon more like a date.  By not doing so, I let her down.

Mr. Donut may have saved an ugly fight, tonight.  After exiting our last stop and realizing how bad I messed up we were stopped in the parking lot just before getting into our car by the owner of a well respected local bakery who insisted on giving us his last box of donuts out of the back of his luxury SUV.  His name is Marv and he seemed a very nice man who was in a grand mood.  Today was Good Friday so maybe he was out seeing clients and making deliveries and some friends along the way.  I don't know why, but the donuts were delicious!  The (taped shut) box had 15 in it and you could tell by the freshness that they had been baked that morning.  After we (me) ate more than a  few and before sugar shock kicked in my wife smartly wrapped and froze half or more of them for another day.



I was Homer Simpson today in more ways than one.  Mmm, donuts...  Not good.

This and Thats for March

I feel as though I have been slacking, not writing as often as I should.  Nothing has been going on that I have needed to write about, and backing off from posting as frivolously as I had in the past was part of my plan when I took some time off from blogging recently.  So I guess I should just get over it.  I know I'm not going away, just posting less than I have.

Now, having said that again, to start off this This and Thats post is a blurb from a draft I wrote back in December, after I made my decision to back off a bit.

• "In my first year and two thirds, 2009 and 2010, I posted at an amazing rate of about 20 posts a month.  I took to it quickly and buying our first house at the same time gave me some material to work with.  In 2011 I slowed a bit to about 8 or so posts a month on average.  I think I realized how much time I spent on posting crap.  2012 and 2013 - coincidentally have 99 posts each.  I found my rhythm.  This year was on the same pace, perhaps a few more even, until something... changed.  Changed in that my computer, 10-15% of my normal 24 hour day, took a dump on me.  Changed how I looked at how I spent my time.  Changed because I wanted it to.  Hell, I needed it to." - Scoakat's Blog draft from December, 2014.
• My most recent post was on a day we reached over 70º F, we haven't been even close to that since.  Mother Nature has given us more snow on a few occasions, and I have had to get back out some winter gear for the temperatures.  This week we are to settle in with highs mostly in the 60's.  Hopefully it can finally be - and stay - spring.
• I bought a power washer a few weeks ago.  I liked the gas powered ones a lot but I didn't feel I could justify the higher cost and maintenance for the few uses a year it would get so i got an electric.  I have assembled it but I have not tested it yet, the temperatures have not been warm enough to start anything.  It looks like next weekend I can finally test it out and get started on our foundation - cleaning, sealing and repainting before the flowers come up.
• We bought two very nice new floor lamps for the living room recently so the living room is almost how we want it to be.  We still need a couple nice end tables to replace the very cheap temporary things I bought a few years ago.  And we need to get rid of my La-Z-Boy recliner, it is just too big for the room (and not the best for my back).  We need to replace it with a different kind of living room chair, one that fits and matches the space we are creating.
• We also bought a very nice light fixture for the bedroom (pictured above).  Before, there was just a plain, white ceiling fan without a light.  Since we've had the house I would often hit the switch wanting a light to go on, even recently still, so it was time to get rid of the little used fan and replace it with a nice light fixture.  We could have gotten a cheap but adequate replacement like we did in the other bedroom, our office, when we moved in, but we wanted something nicer.  My wife pointed out one or two of this style and eventually I really warmed up to it.  It was for sure expensive, but it looks great in there I think it is worth it.
• My next two big projects are to look up tree removal services to utilize in the very near future, and to start looking for a new car.  I want both done by summer, and hopefully done by the end of May, my next extended time off from work.  I also have a new shelf to assemble downstairs.  I write that now to remind myself to do it, it's been down there waiting for 2 weeks.
• The new Nightwish album will be released in the US on Tuesday.  Amazon says I should receive it that day so it should be here when I get home from work.  I can't remember anticipating a new release like this in a long time.  Of course, I've had it free from the internet already for about a week, but I do not want to listen to it yet.  I want the CD so I can hold it and read it and follow along with the lyrics, like people used to do for a much anticipated release.  These days most things are leaked early and shared, long before the artist intended.
• I've noted here before how it is a pretty good time to be a sports fan in Wisconsin, and it still is.  The Wisconsin Men's Basketball Badgers have reached the Final Four for the second year in a row.  They play Kentucky next Saturday in a Final Four rematch from last year when we lost to them by one point.  The Badgers are better this year than they were last year, I think they can get by Kentucky and go for the national championship!  I'd love to see that happen but it will be tough, only one team in the tourney ends with a 'W' and only the best are left.  (Congrats to Michigan State, too.  May we meet in the championship game!)

Thanks for stopping by and checking out what my wife and I are up to.  I have high hopes, as we do every spring, but our to-do list this year is very specific and there is much on it - and it is to be done very soon.

We also have enough fun things scheduled out that I'm sure I'll have more to share here in the coming months.  Weather permitting, of course, it would be nice to be able to fully come out of winter hibernation!

Sprung Spring

Just a quick note to acknowledge the dramatic change in our weather.  In a week our high temperatures raised over 40 degrees, from highs in the teens or lower at the end of the previous week (Grandma's funeral) to over 50º F by the middle of last week.  Right now it is 71º F.  Very nice.  I have to re-learn how to dress myself.  Winter coat in the morning, light jacket midday and none in the evening?  Who carries two coats around all day?  Sigh.  I'll adapt, I always do!

Pictured here is the yard on Saturday.  The only snow left was in the shade along the back fence.  Today there is no snow left in the yard and after work we got a little bit of raking and picking up sticks done.  There is always much to do in spring, waiting for the proper time can be difficult, though.  I finally got my pressure washer, it will first be used to clean the foundation (and I may as well get the siding while I'm at it) so we can repaint it before the plants come up.

Daylight Saving Time

How is this still a thing?  

A bit late for the topic, but I must agree.  There are no discernible benefits to our bi-annual time shift, so why do we continue what is generally viewed as a useless tradition?  Dubya (President George W. Bush) altered the dates for no apparent reason in 2005.  That's enough for me now, I blame him!

In reality I think we would all adjust rather easily.  The video is entertaining - watch it!


via B&P

RIP Grandma L

My paternal grandmother passed away on Monday morning.  She was 95 years old and had lived independently up until only a couple months ago.  I had last seen her on September 9 of last year, my mother and I had met at grandma's place for a visit.  I liked visiting with her but I usually always had someone with me, just to help fill the silences.  It can be hard to keep a conversation going for a few hours, for me anyway.  Grandma loved talking about the farm where she grew up and I was able to get part of one of those stories on video that day.  Two days later she called me to wish me a happy birthday - a message that I still have on my phone.  I think part of me really thought that it may be the last time I see her, and it was.

We drove down, about an hour and change away, on Wednesday afternoon and checked into a hotel before going to the wake.  I had just been here less than two years ago for my maternal grandmother's funeral.   Like then, there were several relatives I had not seen in a long time - aunts and uncles, and lots of cousins that have grown up and, in many cases, had moved away.  It was very nice to see them all again.

A few years ago I was visiting with her and she asked me to be one of her pall bearers.  Of course, I told her, and I was.  My brother and sister always used to tease me about being her favorite.  I was her first grandchild, but I cannot say that I was the favorite.  Maybe they were just rotten kids.  I think I'll just go with that.  Thursday morning was the last visitation and funeral service.  It was nice as far as church things go, grandma didn't need to know I'm agnostic/atheist.  The ceremony by the grave site was shortened as it was very cold that morning, barely above zero, so no one lingered long.  Afterward was a lunch in a small hall attached to the church.  It was a last opportunity to visit with everyone before we all went our separate ways again.

I'm fresh out of grandparents now.  A sign of getting older, I guess.  RIP Grandma L, I will miss you.

Andrew Bird - Echolocations

Just because I like Andrew Bird and I find this refreshing and relaxing.  Enjoy.

Flat Tire and Trouble Walking

Friday is the work day we all can't wait to arrive but when it has we can't wait for it to be over.

When I went to break this afternoon I checked my phone - I had two texts and a phone message waiting.  I never see that type of activity so I knew something was up.  It was my wife, she was okay but she got a flat tire just down the road after leaving work and was waiting for Triple-A to come and change her tire so she could get home.  I gave her a call while she was waiting for them and after some discussion we decided to go ahead and get new tires, the cheapest available and only on the front.  I called the shop right away and arranged for service on Monday.

See, we recently paid off my vehicle so we have no car payment at all now.  We have been discussing getting rid of her 1997 low riding ashtray sedan for a newer vehicle.  We have had it since 2000, so for 15 years now and it has definitely seen better days.  With my broken body it is barely usable for me, I can barely get in and out of the tiny and low car anymore.  The plan is to acquire a new vehicle for me so my wife can drive the car I drive now.

My 2003 RAV4, stock

The problem is that I love my car.  When we get a new one, I will drive the new car and have garage parking to protect the investment and so my wife can smoke in the older car, a 2003 model, and keep parking that vehicle on the street or driveway in all seasons - as I do with same vehicle now.  We always kept her older car in the garage because first; I'm a gentleman and her car is clean and sheltered all seasons, and second; it, frankly, increased the chances of it surviving the last several winters.  Being the non-smoker, I will suck it up and drive the new car (when purchased) and enjoy the garage access for the first time in my adult life.  I'm sure I'll still be using both cars, they will be more interchangeable for short trips and I will make her keep it cleaner than the old car she drives now.  Now for me, let's start talking about heated seats, USB ports, colors and all other options!  Okay, maybe too early for that, but we may have to start looking into it soon.

Meanwhile, on to a story my wife - Miss Trouble Walking herself - told me about her younger days after we got home from dinner and drinks tonight:

She and her bff Terry dropped out of a night school gym class after getting caught not walking during an independent walking exercise class, 45 minutes, for school credit, on their own, outside.  She said they would walk to the car, parked a block away out of sight, then drive around and smoke, listen to music, you know - do what kids would do.  Then they would try to come back like nothing happened - and they got caught.

Like, just take a fucking walk around a block or two, girls!  Wow.  Youth - we've all been there.

We had a good laugh, and there is more detail to the story but she can post it herself if she wishes.  She has always had an open invitation to post but has yet declined.

I hope every one of you has a great weekend!  LLAP

Think Spring!

No, this is not here.  Wherever it is, I admire their artistic optimism!      via Bits & Pieces

Valentine's Day Dinner

On Valentine's Day I went to dinner with three lovely young women, my wife Kate, her friend Terry and Terry's sister Becky.  In reality, I wasn't lucky enough to have three dates for the holiday, but I was lucky enough to tag along for a different dining experience at the Bourbon Street Grille - on the south side of Madison and located on the Yahara River - on what just happened to be the heart-y holiday evening.

Have you ever heard of a pasta board?


Me neither.  And while it was good, it was still eating spaghetti and meatballs off the table.

Actually, it is a specially treated board that covers the table and I'm sure they wash it very thoroughly.  The recipe for the sauce was supposedly bought from a local legendary Italian place that is no longer, and it was very good.  The meatballs were large and fine-tasting.  The pasta was just pasta and the salad and bread were just okay.

The whole thing about this by-reservation-only dinner is the novelty of eating off the table.  You use the pasta spoon to pull a pile in front of you and still have your sides and drinks beside it on the table.  I'm not really trying to knock it, but now that I've had the dinner for myself, it is still just eating pasta off the table.  We actually did have a good time while doing so and because Terry got a great groupon deal it was not expensive, thank you for dinner, Terry!  Overall, though, I don't really see myself needing to ever to do that again.

Sorry for the blurry pics, I hate the camera on my phone but that is for another post.

Latest Listening Pleasure 17 - Cradle Of Thorns

Wow, I haven't posted a LLP post since last June!  I have been enjoying mostly the music I always have, even thought I have been looking for and listening to what new music (to me) that I can.   I'm always open to new music but sometimes the new music is old music still waiting to be found.

1996 - Download This!

Cradle Of Thorns was first known to me as the CD my latest gal pal in the late mid 90's did not want to lose.  The 1996 CD was called Download This!, I had never heard of them, but she could not wait to play it for me, and yes, I agreed it was pretty great, just not as fanatically as she.  Okay, she'd say, I'll leave it here but you better take care of it and I want it back!  This was a girlfriend that, well, chose me.  You know, you're in a dead spot and she's kinda cute and likes you lots.  Not sure if you want all your friends to know your seeing her but she does some things very well to and for you to keep you there. That kind of thing.

Not really long story short - she wound up off in Montana and her CD was still at my place, not my fault.  It was a really good CD way back then and still is now.  It has some of that in between song annoying, inane stuff, to me anyway, but the songs were innovative and differently good to me at the time.  Plus it had a great cover of Motley Crue's 'Shout at the Devil!'

1994 - Feed-Us

Recently I had been listening to this CD again and I decided to look them up on YouTube.  There is not much to be found.  They put out three albums as Cradle Of Thorns, then a later CD as Videodrone in 1999.   I have the Videodrone CD from a prior re-interest a few years ago (I guess when I have no new music interests I tend to research my prior favorites more).  This time I went back and got their 1994 album, Feed-Us, I ordered the physical CD from my favorite place to shop, Amazon.  This CD has things on it that reverberated on 1996's Download This!, but in my opinion not quite as well.  But I would expect that, as this came before, and as of right now I've just re-added the 1999 Videodrone CD to my digital library to refresh my memory on that.  If I'm still curious later, there is a 1990 CD called Remember It Day out there somewhere, probably waiting to find its way to my collection in another 5 years or so, depending on how bored I get finding new things to listen to.

They have no real 'official' videos that I can find, so try this - the song Flesh, from my newest CD; Cradle Of Thorns, 1994, Feed-Us.


Previous LLP Posts...
LLP 1 - Pain
LLP 2 - Nightwish
LLP 3 - Die Antwoord
LLP 4 - Pain part 2
LLP 5 - Andrew Bird
LLP 6 - Nightwish part 2
LLP 7 - Paramore
LLP 8 - Newsted
LLP 9 - U.D.O.
LLP 10 - Nightwish Imaginaerum Movie
LLP 11 - Kiss
LLP 12 - Rick Springfield
LLP 13 - Hyrax
LLP 14 - In This Moment
LLP 15 - Faster Pussycat
LLP 16 - Sebastian Bach
LLP 17 - Cradle Of Thorns

Prior LLP Bands that have also turned my head recently after the break!  Including a brand new video posted only yesterday!

Kanye... I Agree With SP

Steel Panther saying what we all thought.

A Sick This And Thats

It is winter and not as much happens, thus nothing to write.  Plus, now that I have taken a step back from blogging for a bit it does get harder to make myself sit and write.  So, since I may jump around a bit we'll make it a This and Thats post!

• I've accepted my third promotion in about as many years.  Tomorrow I start in my new department, higher in rank and money though not much of either.  Still, this department has a whole lot more potential than the department I was in.  I will have adjustments to make, like I will have a later schedule and I'll be changing buildings again.  I'll be back in the building I first worked in for years, so there will be a lot of familiar faces - whether I like that or not.
• And of course on the eve of my new job I get sick.  After work on Friday, my wife and I went out for bit before coming home and ordering out dinner.  Sometime during the course of the evening the back of my sinuses gave me that feeling and sure enough, when I got up on Saturday I felt terrible and it only got worse the longer I was awake.  I only feel slightly better today, still very ill.  I can only hope for a miraculous recovery for tomorrow morning or it will probably be a difficult week in training.
• For good news, we went out a couple of weeks ago and bought a new bed and it finally got delivered yesterday.  Our old bed had been worn out for quite some time.  Nyquil, Sudafed and a new mattress helped me sleep okay last night.  We also bought a couple new comforters for the new bed and we will also have to buy some more sheets to fit, this bed us much taller than the last.
• My thoughts lately have turned to spring, and taking a week off with nicer weather.  I feel the need for a vacation very soon and I have projects I would like to work on.  But sawing and painting is best done outside in the driveway or garage.  It's way too cold for that these days.  I still have some designing to do but the final design is always just how it ends up, not always the idea I started with.  I like creating as I go so only general plans are usually needed until I start sawing things.
• We still have all the snow from a week ago, piled up everywhere.  Temps the last couple days have started it melting but we know it is not over yet.  At about 27 inches we're about six inches under our average for this date.  There's still plenty of time for mother nature to wallop us again.  I don't know what Jimmy the goundhog - the local celebrity for the holiday - told the mayor of Sun Prairie but he seemed adamant about it.  The local 'hog's bite made news around the world.

Okay, I'm tired.  Back to my lazy boy and blankie.

Snow Daze

by graphica.

Cat Spat

Basil and Hamish playing/fighting about 20 minutes ago.  Hamish, the smaller of the two, seems to have the upper hand this time around.

Badgers Mend Packer Pain

This is for my fellow Green Bay Packers fans, for my heart aches with yours.  This was written today about our Wisconsin Badgers Men's Basketball team:

"...All of which adds up to this: On Tuesday night, Wisconsin beat a ranked Big Ten team, one without a road loss yet this season, by 32 points. In the process, they committed exactly one turnover. Which came on a shot-clock violation. Thanks to a scorer's table correction. Without their starting point guard..."

Not too shabby having a team like this to root for now.  I'm not saying it takes away the hurt from the Packers overtime loss to end their season, but it is certainly a good distraction.  Go Badgers!

Happy Birthday Mrs Scoakat!

Yes I am still here, thank you.  I realize I have not posted much lately but I have not had much to say and I no longer pressure myself to post even in those droughts.  If you read back, I've been trying to be much more relaxed and manage my time better recently.  That being said, ever forward!

We celebrated my wife Kate's birthday recently.  On Saturday night we had friends over, turned the heat to 80º F, and had a 'tropical' party.  We got some cheap decorations on Amazon and my wife put out a very nice tropical spread, only partially seen here.  We made the best tropical fun out of a January birthday that one can expect (without hefty expenditure) and enjoyed a good time with our friends.

Then last night, her actual birthday, we had reservations for a local bar/restaurant, Dexter's Pub,  that was having their first beer tasting dinner event.  They call it their 'Heritage Series,' and they have them scheduled for almost every month for almost 2 years out.

Each month they bring in a different craft brewery that works with their chef to create different dinner courses that compliment various brews from that brewery.  I'm sure this type of thing has been happening for quite some time now at other places and in other areas, the craft brew market has exploded in the past decade or more.  Seating was limited to the first twenty people, cash up front.  We bought our tickets about a month ago when we were there to have dinner with friends, in fact we were the first two to sign up.

We had such a good time that we would highly consider doing it again - but the next one is all seafood and, well, I just can't do that.  But that's okay, there are many more events scheduled and it will be nice to see if it runs a bit smoother after they have a few of these under their belts.  Also, Dexter's is only probably a 20 minute walk from home so it is very nearby.  Just another reason to love our side of town in this capitol city which we live.

Note to self:  Get Bikes In Spring!

New Year Resolutions*

Someone brought up new year resolutions to me recently and my first reaction was to chuckle, then I actually stopped to think.  It has been a long time since I made a new year resolution, even longer since I made a serious one, probably as a kid.  If it works for you then go for it, I hope you get what you want.  I guess I can make life resolutions.  I know what I have to do to improve myself and I can resolve myself to it any day of the year.

However, no matter how or what kind of resolutions you make, following it through can be the hard part - no matter when you make your resolution.  Inner strength and determination are the biggest factors in changing yourself.  Do it for you.  Do it to be a better you.  Good luck, I'm pulling for ya!

*Edit, 5:05 pm: Another thought is that is what new year resolutions are - life resolutions at that specific time.  No one said a new year resolution has to start that day.  That leads me to the arbitrary choice of that particular day as a time to set those goals.  I'm sure there's something out there explaining our need of hope and change and a 'fresh start' with the new year.  Sorry, but now I've lost interest since typing that last bit.  I'd research a whole lot more odd things if there were more hours in the day.  Walking away now...

Happy New Year 2015

I know I said there was going to be an end of the year rant coming, I guess I just don't have a rant in me right now.  However, it has been some time since I've written much of anything so how about another 'This and Thats' post!

• After a very cold November, December has thankfully been much more seasonable.  All the snow we had was melted by the middle of the month, so we did not have a white christmas - not that I mind at all.  We will be ringing in the new year much cooler starting, well, now.  It was -1º F when I left for work this morning.  Thats about -18º C for my friends outside America.  
• This short "break" I have taken from blogging has been good for me.  In fact, I'm tempted to extend it but I need to write/rant/unload sometimes and, after all, I do enjoy it.  In this time away I have cut down on podcasts and websites that I had almost obsessively kept up on before, so I managed some more time in the living room in the evenings with my wife, and I'm working on reading my first book in several months (I'm The Man by Scott Ian from the band Anthrax). I'm sure I would have cut down my computer time even more but I have been reading a lot of sports sites.  The Packers are entering the playoffs, the Badgers football team plays in the Outback Bowl tomorrow and basketball season is under way with the Badgers a top 5 team in the country.  It's usually a good thing to be a fan of sports teams from Wisconsin.  We may not win championships every year, but we seem to have a realistic shot every year after year.
• Let's see, weather - check, address the break - check, sports bragging - check, um.  See, I had a couple interruptions from typing so now I have to gather my thoughts again.  A sign of getting older?  Maybe, so is wanting to stay home on new year's eve, some say.  Okay, back on track now, let's talk about that!
• Tonight.  New Year's Eve 2015.  My wife has allowed me to stay home tonight.  It was much less dramatic than the last few years.  Without looking back to what I've written, we seem to have had a pre-party here and then gone out to the same local tavern for the last several years.  While I have had a lot of fun doing that, despite sometimes being a 'whiny little bitch' about it - as my wife said I wrote last year - I am finally staying home this year.  I hope to ring in the new year in my sleep.  I think this is the 5th consecutive year that the Badgers have played in a new year's day game and I will finally be able to feel good, energetic, and be able to really enjoy a few drinks during the game instead of just having a couple 'hair of the dog' drinks to try and enjoy our college football's last hurrah for the season.  I have actual errands to get done before the game, too.  Back on topic, though, less friends will be out this year anyway, no one says we all have to do the same thing every year.  I do feel a bit bad because I will not get to kiss my wonderful wife at midnight, though...
• The water heater has been leaking a bit.  It started several weeks ago, actually, and has gotten progressively a bit worse.  When we bought the house the inspection said that it was toward the end of its useful life.  That was over 5 years ago.  Plus, stupid me had no idea there was maintenance for me to drain it clear twice a year.  So anyway, the plumbers are showing up here in a few days to install a new water heater.  While they're here I have a couple other odd little jobs for them, too.   Hell, if you have a plumber at the house you better address all issues that day - to save money, of course.  We don't really have other issues other than I want to be able to remove the bathtub drain plug for snaking hair - I've tried but it is old and I can't remove it as it should be able to be removed so want a pro to make it so.  Also, we want to get a water filter for under our sink so we don't have to filter our cooking, ice and drinking water through a pitcher filter anymore.  Certainly not an absolute necessity in our city, just really our strong preference.  I will have to work that day but my lovely wife has off to host the plumbers and oversee their work.  I wish I could be here but I do trust this local company to get things done right, they have helped us out before.
• I didn't post about Christmas, but we did have a very enjoyable early one with my Mom and Dan and my sister Kelly and her kids James and Lindsey.  My brother couldn't make it with his family unfortunately or it could have been probably the best holiday with my sibs and nieces and nephews in forever.  In otherwords, I was disappointed it didn't work out that we all were there at the same time, oh well, what works out best for us does not always work best for others.  On Christmas Eve we had a nice evening with the my wife's family at her sister's house, the one with our 3 nephews.  All seemed to have a good time and some good gifts were given.  It is all for the kids to us these days, and I do enjoy these kids, the youngest is a sport.  It is kind of fun trying to get them the perfect gift for $$ dollars, and only $$ and not $$$ dollars.  They're kids, after all.
• I also found out that a good high school friend's wife passed from cancer very recently.  My contact info for him is out of date.  We kept in touch after high school, I was in his wedding, and we remain friends for many years but I have not talked to him in several.  I'm not sure what I would say right now, anyway, but I'd like to let him know that I'm thinking of him and his family.  RIP Becky.

I've been writing this post now over several hours now.  More typing than I thought I would do tonight and I have had other things going on.  My wife just left to go out with a couple friends for the next few hours and I expect to be in bed by 10, okay 10:30 at the latest.  Hmm, this posting should be delayed a bit maybe.  I do really, really, really want a good nights sleep tonight and I want to be up fairly early for errands and chores before the 11:00 am Badger game so I can have the rest of the holiday for relaxation - basically enjoy it while I can because mandatory overtime at work is almost inevitable after this week.

Happy New Year to you all.  The ones I read, the ones I love, all my friends and all of you who take the time to read me.  Whether you comment or not, I can see you're there.  Thank you.

Merry Christmas 2014

Warning: Adult Content and Language.

Steel Panther played here at the Orpheum Theater here in Madison last Sunday night, the 21st.  I do like them, and a couple co-workers I know went to the show, but it was on a Sunday night and I just was not willing to get home at midnight or later, not drink at all, and have to get up at 4:30 for my job on a Monday morning.  They're pretty good but they're not 'Faster Pussycat' or 'WASP' good - in my book.

Still, they are a pretty good comedy hair metal show.  I've watched tons of their stuff on Youtube.  Just be obnoxious and have a totally confident, 80's hair metal attitude and dumb chicks jump on your stage, show you their tits and play along.  Amazing.  Sigh, I wish I had that chance to play 'rock star.'  But most guys wish that, so I guess these lucky guys are livin' the dream - at least for today.  Hell, Judas Priest almighty just had them opening out on tour!

Here's the best one of the four videos I found tonight from just downtown here this past Sunday.  One of our town's finest sluts jumping on stage, I'm sure.  I heard there were many more up there that night, but really, I went to every heavy metal concert around here that I could in the late 80's and 90's.  The more sluts shit changes the more it stays the same...


Merry Fucking Holidays, people.  Don't think too much about it, just Rock Out and Roll along with it.  What the hell else can we really do, anyway?

End of the year rant coming soon.

Chri$tma$ $ea$on

via

Bizarro Immigration

While I was without my desktop I still came across a few things I would have liked to post or write about had I had my computer.  Mostly my usual odd reposts, but one thing still stands out to me that I wanted to repost, enough so that I even emailed the author to get permission.  That was about a month ago now.  See, we've had an election since I'd been away, too, so politics reared it's ugly head and took over all media for some time.  I'm not apolitical, but I do not consider it my strong suit.  When I hear or read something that I agree with I clearly know it and sometimes wonder how anyone else cannot understand it like me.  I'm sure most people get that feeling and most probably do not agree with my views, but I like knowing there are others out there who generally do think like me.

I've been a Dan Piraro (Bizarro) fan for a long time now and for the last several years I have been following his blog.  He does more than post his daily comics, he has a bit of fun and shares just enough that you know what kind of guy he is - and I really like the guy (or at least his sense of humor!).  Here is his post on immigration, with comic, from November 6 that struck a nerve with me:

"If you find yourself tempted to believe that any substantial amount of America’s problems are being caused by illegal aliens, remind yourself that historically this is an ancient technique by dishonest governments to shift blame. And it almost always works. In this case, the corporations who run our country and their puppet politicians say, “Yes, things are lousy, but it isn’t our fault. It’s their fault!” Then they point to illegals, gay marriage, abortion clinics, terrorists, climate change scientists, whatever “other” they can find to unite the rest of us against something other than those in charge. Don’t fall for it. You’re smarter than that."

Dan Piraro, Bizarro Comic Blog
November 6, 2014


I encourage you to give him a visit at the link above or in the right column!  His new website is a work in progress at the moment, it will be better soon, I'm sure.

While I'm on the subject of comics, one of my all-time favorites is after the break!

Gobble Gobble

Short Break

I've decided to take advantage of the time I have spent away from this site for a bit longer.  I am going to take a short break from blogging for the rest of the year.  I may still post something for the holidays or if something comes along that I feel the need to say or post then I will, but until 2015 there will be no regular updates.  I've been doing this very regularly for over 5 years now and I want to get away from that feeling that I have to post something - sometimes anything - unless the urge hits me.

I may not have actual OCD - most people who say they do really do not have the obsessiveness of the real disorder - but I definitely do have OCD tendencies and I always have.  In fact, I used to be much more obsessive-compulsive than I am now.  This break is to help me make some changes in my day to day life.  I want to stop needing to check a list of websites daily, needing to post at least 7 times a month (I always have), needing to keep current on all my (soon to be fewer) favorite podcasts, and spend more time with my wife, read more books that I'm interested in and even work on more household chores and projects (but don't tell my wife I said that!).  This is a lofty goal for myself, I know, but I should think about it kind of like a head start on a New Year's resolution.

So I may not be posting much in the near future, but I will be around the 'net and even stop back here occasionally.  When I return I hope to be less anxious about everything and a little bit more in control.

Try not to mess the place up too much while I'm out, huh?

Happy Holidays,

Scoakat

P.S.  I feel better already just making this decision!

I'm Back!

This must be the longest I've gone without posting anything since I started this site.  Shortly after my last post the old computer was just done.  I couldn't get it to do anything.  She was a workhorse, used practically every day for around 4 and a half years.  Thankfully, I keep everything backed up on external hard drives so we lost nothing.

Then I had no desk top computer but I did have my phone and sometimes my wife's little laptop.  Either one is way too uncomfortable typing to put together any actual post, so my only online presence this past two weeks has been comments here and there on other sites.  Otherwise, at least I was able to keep current on the sites I like to visit daily.

The new computer is essentially the same as the last one - just a little less memory, which is fine because I do not need a terabyte of memory on the computer when I have my external hard drives already.  It also has only one disc drive.  I can't even remember the last time I used a disc drive, it was probably to play a DVD.  I had two disc drives on the last computer thinking it would be easier to copy discs.  That turned out to be about the time I went almost completely digital and I don't think the second one was ever used.  I still buy the CDs and DVDs of bands I want to support, out of loyalty, but it is actually easier to find that stuff online these days.  I wonder how many discs I have that have never been played?

I still have some things to do to get everything in order with this machine but the bulk of it is done.  Eventually it should get back to business as usual around here.  Not better, not worse.  Just as it was before, I suspect.

Hard Drive Failure Imminent

It's hit or miss trying to get this computer up and going these days.  More miss than hit, and even then it is really slow.  Two days ago I ordered a new computer, much the same as this one - and with Windows 7, not the troublesome 8!  That may take a while so I may be mostly away for another week and a half.  Last night I saw a message when trying to start it up:  Hard Drive Failure Imminent - Backup and Replace.  Yup, no going back now. 

Wish me luck, but this transition should be easier than the defective computer I bought (and returned) a couple months ago.


Oh, Happy Halloween!

The Suitsy

I found this hilarious!  Even more funny is that I can't think of one good reason why the hell not?!

via

Still muddling through with this old computer but ordered a new one this evening.

Elvira - Two Big Pumpkins

via SG

And if you like your cheesiness with a little odd and funny, see Elvira's Big Top 2014 Complete Show at Knott's Scary Farm Halloween Haunt.  

Halloween Ghost?

This old computer is about to give up the ghost.  I have had all sorts of trouble today - besides a back ache and such.  Everything seemed normal, it started okay, but after a bit it got slower.  At this point I had the mind to back up what little has not been backed up yet.  I did a restart and it took a while, but still lagged.  Enough that I couldn't connect to the internet at one point.  Later I left it and went to the store and when I came back the screen saver was froze and nothing woke it up.  I had to do a hard shut down.  I tried restarting a couple times but it would freeze.  I finally was able to restore the system to a few days ago.  So, it works for the moment but it still lags.

I think the inevitable has arrived.  Unless I get pretty lucky I'll be checking in from my phone.


Then again, I hope it's not that &*#%!ing Microsoft office update that I have been declining for several days now...  It just popped up again while writing this after the computer lagged again, and - having already given up - I went ahead and let it update.  Seems better now.  WTF!?  Should I be happy or mad?!

Yardwork Afternoon, Part II

Actually it was yardwork late morning into just after noon, but then the title would be too long.  Easier to go with the same title part two.

Yes, we took advantage of the nice weather this weekend to do some fall chores.  I was thinking that it may be a bit too early to start mulching, but this morning I thought differently.  There were a lot of leaves out front and Kate wanted mulch over the bulbs she planted, so we started out front raking the leaves into a couple big piles then I vacuumed them up with my handy dandy leaf vac/mulcher/blower.  I dumped several bags of mulched up leaves over the bulbs in front, on either side of the steps as seen in the pic on the right, and throughout the flower beds in the yard.

In the back I mowed to mulch those leaves.  The black walnut trees next door have lost all their leaves already - I thought they started dropping strangely early, and the nuts did not seem as plentiful as years past - so the back yard leaves were fine for using, but we had enough leaf mulch already for the flowerbeds. 

Besides, as the picture below shows, there are plenty of leaves to fall yet, out front and in back.  Our silver maple is usually the last to drop all it's leaves.  Next year will be vastly different....

Kate also did a lot of work in the garden, I'll talk a little about it and dump more pictures from today over at the garden site.

Yardwork Afternoon

After the big win by the Badgers this afternoon it was time for some work around the yard and garden.  The sun was shining and the temperature made it comfortable without a jacket.  We're supposed to get more of the same tomorrow and then we get cold again.  I had just received a very nice sweater jacket that I had ordered, too, but I have to return it.  It says it is XXL but wears like a L.  I was very disappointed.

But the point of this is to post pictures.  Starting with the burning bush, with it's leaves aflame in red this time of year.  It was very overgrown when we moved in, and I have trimmed it since to try to get some underneath growth.  It took a big hit during the drought of a few summers ago, we weren't sure it would survive.  What you see is what is left after I cut out the dead parts.  In fact, we burnt up the last of the dead trunks that I removed during the fire pit last weekend (see last post).  I don't know how it will look in a few years, but I'm hoping to encourage enough undergrowth that I can get it to be more bush than tree.

The compost bin that I built a couple years ago has been working out wonderfully.  It is attractive in the yard and keeps critters from making a mess.  Alternating sides each year works out perfectly so we always have fresh soil to add to the garden in the fall.  Today I added most of the compost from last year, which was just nutrient rich soil now, into the garden where Kate raked it out evenly amongst the plants we're keeping.  There's even another bucket or two left for elsewhere in the yard.  It will surely get put somewhere eventually this fall yet so we can start depositing in that side and, once all the fall clean up is in, let the left side start breaking down to be next year's garden enrichment.  We added quite a bit today so I gave it a little turn with the pitchfork which is what you see above. 

I'll post more pictures over at the garden site later tonight.

Leaves And Leaving

Fall is definitely here.  I can no longer ignore the drifts of leaves on the driveways and walks or the cold, cold mornings.  I did a little fall clean up this afternoon, after the Packer game.  I mulched a few plants and mowed down some others, added a little edging out front and gave the evergreen bushes a long drink of water. 

I still haven't even thought of raking leaves, yet.  I'm actually not a big proponent of raking.  In the back yard we get a lot of the black walnut leaves from next door so I have taken to mulching those with the mower until the last clean up when I do rake it all back along the fence over the hostas.  Out front I use a different strategy since there isn't black walnut leaves mixed in.  Oh, I will mulch them with the mower a time or two early, but eventually I do rake them up and mulch them for the flower beds around the whole yard.  I don't put any leaves out for pick up by the city, and I don't put any leaves in the compost bin.  They all get put to use back in the soil, as it should be.

I took the top pic this morning and if you look you will notice the firepit is still out from last night.  Our friend James recently left our favorite restaurant, Brothers Three, where he had been the main cook for over 8 years.  Technically, he was fired and I kind of know why but really don't feel a need to pry further.  In the long run I'm sure it's best for all involved.  Since leaving there he has moved to Minnesota and already has a job there, so it was a nice surprise when he texted me that he was in town to tie up loose ends and move all his stuff up there.

I thought we should see him before he leaves and I had also been wanting to have a firepit at least once more this year, so I texted a bunch of people to come over Saturday night, in two days time.  Well, more notice would have been better for other people because it was only me and Kate and James sitting around the fire.  That was really okay with us because we got to visit just with James for what could be the last time. 

There is more that I wanted to say about James but I don't want this to start sounding like a eulogy.  From us to you, a heartfelt Goodbye and Good Luck, James!

Because I Got High - Remix

By Afroman.  Legalize it, already, Wisconsin.  Seen at Huff Post.

Aaron Rodgers' Doppelganger

I had to post this for the Packer fans that visit. Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers meets Tom Wrigglesworth, a comedian from Sheffield that has a bit of a resemblance...


via

Something

I told myself I would post something tonight, well, there it is.


Okay, okay, I can't just do that.

Why have I not been posting much?  Well, I was sick for a week and it lingered for another week.  There's still mandatory overtime at work.  Next excuse on the list - wait, did I type that?  Stop!

Truth is, sometimes there's not a whole lot to say.  I could talk about the weather - we had our first frost about a week ago, not a real 'hard' frost yet.  I could talk about our social life - 'Happy hour' means drinks, people, not dinner.  I could talk about sports - Brewers caved and we're in the heart of football season.  Perhaps I've just been lazy.

Yeah, probably got something there...

Shelter From The Storm*

Bill Murray version

via

*Update:  A teaser for a movie, I should have known.  I thought maybe it was just Bill Murray being Bill Murray and making a fun video, silly me.

This and Thats

Please forgive my absence, I've been rather sick for the last week (which may have had something to do with my mood in the last post).  I've been hearing for a while now that a nasty upper respiratory bug has been in the region and I think that is what I had.  Today is the first day in a week that I'm feeling almost like my normal healthy self.

So, what to say...

Well, I did mention a couple posts ago that I had quit smoking again.  I got tired of all the phlegm, quite frankly.  I previously quit back in 2009, I believe.  I know I had been off the smokes for about two years when I started again in the first half of 2011.  And it wasn't that I missed smoking as much as just having two surgeries and looking ahead to another stressed me.  I didn't want to get addicted again, so I started smoking clove 'cigars.'  It was much later I found out that those can be up to two thirds tobacco, so even though I didn't smoke them as much or inhale nearly as deeply I found myself addicted again.  I had a doctor appointment last month so I had him give me Chantix again.  It's how I quit last time and is working well so far again.  I've been smoke-free for over a month now.

I also mentioned that I finally got my first cell phone, a smart phone.  I've been playing with it for over a month now.  No, it has not made me text crazy.  I have only shot one 'selfie' and that was for my first text to all I know so they would have my new number - still accounts for about half my texts total.  I bought a memory card and have been using my phone in lieu of my ipod recently, but I'm thinking of going back to my ipod for music and podcasts because the battery life on the new phone isn't the greatest, about 6 hours I'm told, and I've been doing more listening at work.  I've also downloaded and uninstalled about a dozen games so far.  Most games don't appeal to me, or they have too many ads, or they want money to continue, etc.  But I do get a new cool background from NASA every day!  Having a phone has not changed my habits, really, at all.  And that is nice.  I do not want to be one of the cell phone zombies that you see everywhere, and I don't think I ever will be.

Fall is here, on the calendar and outside.  It was nice this last weekend, but it was also most likely the last time we will see 80ºF until next year.  Leaves are falling and starting to clutter up the streets and walks.  Fall chores are coming up very soon and there is always much to do, but you can't rush things, either.  Still, I should make sure the snow thrower starts before it gets too late.

Okay, time to wrap up.  I guess this will be a 'This and Thats' post.  Goodbye September!

*     *     *

This was my first ever text, I sent it to all I know their number:

'Whose got a thumb and finally joined the 21st century?  This guy!  Save my number!"

...Goofy-lookin' fucker, ain't I?