Tuesday

This will be brief as I am again working off of the iPad and my Bluetooth keyboard is outta power. This screen keyboard is not my thing.

If the flight to Moline gets home on schedule, I will have had a very successful trip on an air-travel scale. Maybe traveling in off-peak times is the key.

I stumbled into using my iPhone as my boarding pass for the flights today. So far, so good. When I checked-in for my out-bound flights Friday morning, the process gave me an option to auto-check in for the return flights. Which I did. What I didn't consciously do, was select the mobile device as the boarding-pass option. I figured I'd have to print the passes once I got to LGA. But then there was that bar-code image on the pass on my phone, and it occurred to me that I had everything that I needed. This was not a plan, but I now know how I will be handling these things going forward. I am sooooo New Age!!!

Here's a Top Ten list of weekend highlights from The Big Apple:

1. Staying in The Westin was a great move. Nice place.
2. Yankee Stadium is nice. But I definitely prefer the Wrigley experience.
3. If they closed all the Starbucks shops, half the buildings in town would be impacted!
4. Residents need to get a monthly, unlimited subway/metro ticket.
5. I'm thinking that a scaffold supply company may hold the winning lottery ticket in Manhattan.
6. The payroll for NYC employees is a BIG number.
7. Except for the very annoying, and loud, musicians on a few of the subway platforms, and the other panhandlers, there's little talking on the trains or sidewalks. Everybody is just busy going somewhere.
8. The restoration of St. Patrick's Cathedral reminded me of Pillars of the Earth. And it will be going on for years.
9. It's hard to tell on the street, but I found customer service at every venue that we went to to be courteous and willing. (Well, maybe those in crowd-control roles at Yankee Stadium weren't exactly the cheeriest sorts. But the jackass quotient in our seating area, left field bleachers, was on the high side.)
10. Three days over a weekend is the right amount of time for LtPC.

Ok. Now they've done the old switcherooski on my gate. More later with pics.

Thanks to 3, 3.1 and 4 for a fun trip.

BCOT




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Monday

Throwing up a few lines here this AM as I wait to meet up with 4. Lower your expectations on the creativity scale.

I never fail to retreat back to memories of our time in C-town in the late '70's when I spend a few days here in NYC. The density of people, the street-canyons amid the high-rise buildings, and the public transportation experiences. Not bad things. And I am comfortable in moving with the flow. But I do like that driveway back on Maplecrest!

The police presence throughout Manhattan is impressive. There's not the brute force out and about today as there was back a couple of years ago when you had the Occupy Wall Street (do they deserve caps?) crowd encamped, but you see officers at almost every street corner...just hangin' out.

We spent quite a bit of time yesterday (Sunday) on the street, checking out different areas where 3 and 3.1 might find a new apartment. (Lots of choices for them. None of them inexpensive.) But regardless of where we were, we saw people dragging roller suitcases.

Not sure what that means other than that NYC has lots of visitors.

And walking along on the street, in the train station, at the coffee shop...so many non-English conversations. Like the very annoying young European now on the phone at the next table!

4 had a Junior League community service project yesterday that took place at a venue that took her over an hour to get to by public transport. Weekend trains are not "expresses", and the sheer number of trains is reduced. So making it to a distant location become an exercise in and of itself. That's the part of urban living that I find least appealing.

We did serious damage to 3.1's wine inventory over the weekend. Shock.

The plan today is for 4 and I to check out FOX News, and Brooklyn. Looking forward to seeing her world on a first-person basis.

Pics to follow later.

BCOT
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Manhattan Starbuck's on Lexington Avenue

Thursday

Just a small amount of slushy ice on my front windshield this AM.  That can't compete with the Winter weather that the folks on Harvest Path continue to battle, but it doesn't compute for my late-April expectations.  They say that we'll have 70 degrees here tomorrow.

I'm scheduled for a 3-hour continuing education program at the local testing center today.  For the general stock-broker license, you have to comply with numerous educational requirements, and this one is an every-three-years, proctored, computerized, inter-active, case-study, proficiency assurance exercise that is more confirmation of basic securities logic than an examination.  Still, the proficiency is measured through multiple-choice questions.  Incorrect answers lead to additional elements in the case-study until you get enough questions correct.  Kind of a pain.  And basically CYA-stuff for the regulators and the brokerage firms employing the brokers.

I'm just about 48 hours from departure-time for my visit to NYC.  (This air traffic controller furlough issue has my attention.)  It occurred to me last night when I was out for a walk that my mind kicks in to an hour-countdown mode when I have something on my schedule that I'm either really looking forward to, or I'm running out of time to complete/address.  Obviously, huge events like 07282012, get on the internal clock a long time in advance of the occurrence date.  But smaller things take on importance as they become a short-term focal point.  Normally, the 72-hour mark is when I start noticing the clock.

Here's a list of some of the more notable countdown's that come to my mind:

1.  1700 hours on April 15th.  This doesn't happen every year, but it did in 2013. 

2.  Second semester finals at ND, May 1969.  I had to ace my Stat 101 final to pass the course.  Which I did by studying and memorizing prior year tests.  The lazy prof used one of 'em!

3.  Those kilometer-by-kilometer signs going up The Tourmalet with 4 in August of 2011.

4.  My return to the good ol' US of A from my Korea one-year tour of duty.  September 1974.

5.  Green Bay half-marathon.  May 2004.  Brutal.

Obviously, the title of this blog reflects a basic countdown mentality as well.  As does my 60-month program started a year ago (which is now a 48-month program by my math).  Could it be that I'm hung up on numbers?

Moving on...

I got caught in another grocery-shopping buyer's oversight last week.  I'm trying to figure out whether Hy Vee was being less-than-direct, or whether I was just being too casual.  It was one of those "3 for $11" deals for 12-packs of soda.  I picked up one pack and went through the check-out where the gal charged me $4.69 for the soda.  I questioned whether she ran the coupon, and she said that you had to buy 3 packs to get the lower price.  An assistant manager came over and confirmed the treatment.

Now I know that I buy one of many things in the store where the advertised price is, "$x for 2", and they give me the advertised price for the one item. I gathered from the assistant manager's comment that when goods are marked, "$x for 2 with coupon", then you have to buy 2 to get the lower price.  I don't think that I have ever made that distinction previously.  Interesting.  And in the aisle where I picked up the soda, I don't recall seeing the "with coupon" advice prominently displayed.

My global debriefing conclusion on this is that stores continue to play a little game with consumers.  I understand that I am the responsible party here, but I'm also a little offended at the gimmickry that is sometimes employed in the grocery-shopping business.

Speaking of gimmicks, Wells Fargo is playing one on my investment clients.  They're changing the cash options for the temporary cash positions in accounts to one of their own house-funds...with some pretty high internal expenses.  Just like their announced changes earlier this year for monthly fees in small consumer checking accounts, the bank is looking for revenue.  I understand that businesses need to make money.  But...  Its another example of the importance of paying attention to your wallet.

All for now.  Make it a good day.

BCOT

Tuesday

My RCL is back in Europe.  So I have the substitute gal for the next couple of weeks.  She's very good, and there's no drop-off in performance.  I learned of the switcheroo last week when I came home on Tuesday for lunch and unexpectedly found the substitute hard at it.  My regular day is Wednesday, but the sub has a conflict, so its Tuesday for her.  Which is fine by me.  I'm just interested in results.

Looks like the FAA is making a statement with the furloughing of air traffic controllers.  Let's create some delays and support the White House's blame game on the dirty GOP for failing to raise your taxes!  I wonder how bad I will get caught in the mess heading to LGA this weekend?

The Senate is looking at a bill that would allow states to collect sales taxes on Internet sales.  I actually have taxation of Internet transactions as part of my fundamental U.S. tax code reform package.  The cornerstone of my tax reform proposal is in fact a National sales tax, including taxes on Internet sales.  Of course, eBay and Overstock are opponents of Internet taxation, but why give a tax holiday to these types of businesses?  (Amazon has mostly conceded the issue.)

I actually think that the states taxing Internet sales is a stickier wicket.  Enforcement will always be a problem for the individual state regulators, and the sales companies will have an exponential increase in their internal accounting requirements.  People on all sides will be lost in data.  Maybe a new government agency can be created, or a new division designed by the IRS.  Now that's a scary thought!

They played Major League Baseball in Denver today with temps in the 20's.  Why?  Note the snow in the center field home run area.  Yeah, I wish I was there today.  Let's play two!

The flood on the Illinois side, the Rock River is a record setter.  The lay of the land once you get over the hills on the Illinois side of the Mississippi really flattens out, and the water just spreads over thousands of acres of the low lands.  Those fields will be nothing but mud for months.

So Tom Cruise successfully opened another action movie, Oblivion, last weekend. At age 50.  I've never been a huge Cruise fan (Penelope Cruz excepted), but he's put a lot of butts in seats since Risky Business.  How long can he play the action-hero?  Please tell him to stop before he gets Sylvester Stallone over-the-hill disease.

Tip 'o the hat to Patrick for taking notice.  If you get back to Ioway this Summer, you need to stop by Maplecrest for a cold one.

Make it a Good Wednesday.

BCOT

Sunday

A picture similar to this one may have been posted in an earlier entry from a previous year.  This is an aerial view of the minor league park located on the riverfront in downtown Davenport...from this morning's edition of the QC Times.  (From the shadows, this pic must have been snapped around midday on Saturday.)  After the 1993 flood took the ballpark out of commission for the entire Summer, they came up with a series of earthen and gated dikes that keep the water off of the field.

I think that they have a temporary, elevated walkway that they can install from the lower right of the photo so that fans can get to the stadium.  With the waters expected to recede by Thursday, I'm not sure of the plan for this year.  Seems like a lot of work for just a few days of use.  Then again, the city maintenance corps may not have that much else to do but flood control this week.

A couple of other local rivers, the Rock in Illinois and the Wapsipinicon in Iowa, are also well out of their banks.  The Wapsi has shut down one of our regular bike routes for the DeWitt ride.  This happens almost every year, and the detour can go on for a week or two.  A few years back, the flood on the Wapsi was bad enough to require substantial shoulder repair and we were re-routed for several weeks.  Mother Nature gets a little testy this time of year.

Moving on...

I tend to buy the DM Register on my travel days to get the day's NYT crossword.  I did that last week beginning on Wednesday (before finding out that my flight was cancelled).  The paper itself doesn't take long to read as the national news is just wire-fed stuff, and their Sports page has become a non-starter.  I'll usually scan the OpEd page for content before jumping to the crossword, knowing that most of the columns will be against my right-leaning grain.

The Wednesday or Thursday paper had another proto-typical "tax the rich" guest viewpoint written by a professor from Iowa City.  Shock!  Out of curiosity today, I checked to see if the column had generated any Comments, and read the handful that had been posted, all but one responder being a supporter of the professor's thesis.  What I found to be of more interest was that the professor's column was essentially a counter-claim to an earlier submission by a consultant who had posited that taxing the rich was the easy-out for politicians and the public because they didn't have to pay the increased levy.  The author of the earlier piece happened to be a former partner at a major public accounting firm in Davenport (and Des Moines, I think), with whom I have had a few business dealings over the years.

I took the step to read the article by the accountant, and the more lengthy array of Comments that had been posted to that guest editorial.  The Comments, not surprisingly, generally disputed the accountant's positions.  What continues to amaze me is the willingness of the electorate to accept the concept that "fair share" means more for the high end, and zero for an increasing proportion of the lower half of eligible taxpayers.  And that higher taxes will not impact the business decisions by these "1 percenter's".  Its always easier to spend other people's money.

Pretty sure that I'm not saying anything new here. 

Now off to mow my yard for the first time of the year.

BCOT

Saturday

This is just a normal weekend entry coming to you from the coffee shop. A story-entry may be posted tomorrow.

The bright sunshine of early this AM has evolved to partly-cloudy...and still on the cool side of things. But at least the rain has stayed away (but still in the 5-day forecast). It may even be lawn-mowing weather this afternoon.

Margret has ended her Winter's hibernation. I figured that it was getting to the time when @srh4 needed some room in the 3rd stall of her garage to facilitate her yard work, and so it was time to roll out the old machine. It wasn't an immediate start, but the battery was strong, and it just took a


minute or tow for that old 390 engine to fire. I may take her over to the Ford dealership for routine service next week. From the date on the decal on the windshield, it doesn't look like I even did an oil change last year!

I wonder how (not if) the politicians will try to leverage the Boston Marathon case.

The 24 put his car into the wall on his qualifying run yesterday at the Kansas track. So he's starting from the back of the field. Taking the Under on him in a Top Ten finish Sunday.

Looks like we may finally get a tenant in our lower-level rental space in our office building. The space has been vacant for almost two years. I've theorized that the vacancy was a reflection of the soft economy, but I also think that our marketing efforts (and those of our agents) contributed to the situation. Whatever. Getting a paying renter is a good result.

I've posted this using the blogging app in my iPad. If I have time this evening to add some more thoughts, I will likely do so from the laptop. I'm curious as to the editing that I may want to do after I see this portion posted.

So...maybe more here late.

BCOT

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Friday

My planned trip to Scottsdale for a conference yesterday and today was a wash-out due to weather-related air-travel problems.  My flight out of MLI to Denver on Wednesday afternoon was delayed, making the connection to my scheduled PHX flight impossible. The alternatives offered by UAL were a joke, so I took the path of least resistance, and stayed home.  A real factor was my disinterest of stressing myself out physically by way of Airport Olympics and having a health relapse.

I'd say that this travel snafu was a product of the numbers game when it comes to air travel success.  Let's face it: a trip without issues is rare.  Most trips have at least a minor delay on one leg of the round trip.  Sometimes these delays make for interesting connection opportunities.  So I'm willing to have this all-business trip get scuttled if it makes my percentages on the next 3-4 personal trips more in my favor.  And for further advancement of The Glad Game, this problem happened before I even left town, much better timing than if it was on the return flights.

The most important electrical device in my house this week has been my sump pump.  The rain that started on Wednesday has saturated the ground, and if a basement is susceptible to taking on water, this would be the week to see it.  Fortunately, the pump kept on pumpin' and I've had no issues.  For the long term, I really need to make some adjustments outside my house to help channel the water away from the foundation.  Not sure if that's in the RCL or PN's job descriptions.

Duck Creek was out of its banks much of Thursday.  The bike path was submerged in many locations.  This usually happens once or twice a year, and the City crews need to then get out and either power sweep or blade the muck/mud left behind on the bike path.  The creek slices through farm fields North of town, so flood waters pick up lots of top soil that gets deposited on the flooded path.  If not cleaned off, this dirt can make some spots almost impassable, and others dangerous where turns are required.  Rule #1 doesn't need any extra help.

Other than a few flooded basements, there wasn't much damage from these latest storms.  I gotta believe that the drought from last year is now over.

I did have hail at my place right before I left for the airport around lunch time on Wednesday...enough for it to gather in spots around my house.  But I don't think enough (or of enough size) to cause any roof problems.

So much for the weather report on Maplecrest.

If there's any lesson for the public, in general, (and the criminally-inclined in particular) from the Boston marathon man-hunt, it's that a person should never think that they are entirely below radar.  It looks like the NCIS-type high-tech use of street cameras, facial-recognition software and other electronic tracking protocols are for real.  "Someone is watching" may always be a true statement.  Not sure if I like that.

You also have the lesson for TV viewers to turn off the sound when so-called experts are brought in to commentate (speculate?) extemporaneously on the status of the investigation.  These people are worse than campaign hacks.  The likelihood of them adding anything but heresay to the situation is remote.  Are they getting paid to go on-camera?  If so, they're being over paid.

The plan for the rest of my weekend remains the same.  Relax.  Blog.  Catch-up on rest.  Next week starts the post-April 15th period at the office.  Stuff needs to get done that had a pass while taxes were on the front-burner.

Have a great weekend.

BCOT

Tuesday

Well, I survived April 15th...again.  It wasn't a triumphant survival.  More like the trudge up that last ramp on Mt. Rose.  I begin the wait now to figure out what I forgot to do.  Never have the comfort of thinking that I got everything covered.  Always the nagging doubt that a loose-end failed to get tied.  Stay tuned.

One of my new limitations has been reading the fine-print on documents and reports.  Lots of the electronic files seem to print out in smaller size than what might appear on a screen.  At least that's my rationalization.  There are some definite instances of that situation, but there's also the reality of my eye-sight showing some signs of diminished clarity.  (I really notice it when I try to read the box scores in the sports pages of the daily papers.  I know that that print has a smaller size today than years ago.  And I think that the newspaper people are just messin' with folks when they make the print that small!)

Anyway, my solution to my reading-the-small-print problem has been an Old School approach...literally.  I broke out Margaret's magnifying glass that I have kept in my coffee table on Maplecrest for these last many years.  It has the advantage of solving my small-print-problem, and the cool-ness of having a little bit of Margaret right on my desk, and in use every day.  Suite!

(I noticed the Bronco Buster sculpture in the background in the Oval Office again this AM when they had a still-shot of the President on the Boston Marathon story.  My edition of the sculpture here on Kimberly Road gives me the eye everyday.  Tip 'o the hat to 3 and 3.1 for such a special gift.)

My goal is to get back on the blog with a little more focus in the weeks ahead.  I have a lot of travel scheduled over the next month and a half, so there'll be quite a few entries from the road.  I will also complete the Not So Short Short Story from Tomah within the next week or two. 

Getting out among the living on a daily basis will expand my topics for discussion, in contrast to my life these last few weeks on Military Time.  It's been hard to see anything creative when in the back of your mind you're always worried about this return or that deduction.  At least that's the excuse I'm going with for now.

I depart for Phoenix tomorrow afternoon for a two-day conference in Scottsdale.  My plan is to go with the iPad only this time rather than also pack the laptop.  We'll see how that works on this trip and make choices for subsequent travel accordingly.  My recollection is that adding pic's on the blog from the iPad is limited.  And editing a previous or still-open entry gets clumsy, but I just don't feel like carrying another bag.  We'll see.

All for today.  I'm looking forward to some outside time in daylight.

BCOT

Monday

Really need to BCOT today!!!

Saturday

Here's to the clan founders on their 77th anniversary!!

Friday

Just a few lines this AM to let my vast readership know that I'm alive.  Creativity is not part of the program today.

My world has basically been work, eat, sleep most of the last couple of weeks.  I call it Military Time.  When I was stationed in Korea in the Winter of 1973-74, we had a December that was one of those snow-never-stopped months.  Since my job as Base Vehicle Maintenance Officer included oversight of the snow plow shop, and we were a combat-ready base with two F-4's on 24-7 alert status, those runways staying open was my Job One.  We went to a 12-on, 12-off schedule for the entire month.  Hence, my designation of Military Time.

I had a good friend (who has had more medical problems over the last 10 years than anyone else I know), tell me that you know you're old when all of your conversations come back to health issues.  So I'm keeping my mouth shut about my pneumonia-lost-months when anyone asks how I'm doing these days.

Dodgers-Padres had a bench-clearing brawl last night, and the Dodger's new $147-million-dollar man, right-handed pitcher Zack Greinke, suffered a broken collar bone in his non-throwing shoulder.  Yeah, that was smart by all parties.  It was started by the hitter who got hot when he was hit by a pitch on a 3-2 count in a one-run game.  The guy is the current major-league leader in getting hit by pitches.  And he charges the mound?  What a false-macho idiot. Give me a freakin' break. 

I'm giving Tahoe Phil recognition as Brother of the Day for his triumph in March Madness.  At least the Final Four had good games this year, and Louisville had to earn the title.  I guess you could say that the committee got it right in terms of the overall Number 1 seed in the tournament.  You 'da man, Bro!

I've got to check my dates, but I think that I missed recognition of Daddy's birthday earlier this week.  And I think that their wedding anniversary is tomorrow?  1936?  My mind is too foggy to do the math or the history.  Probably shouldn't go for that GMAT exam tomorrow.

Make it a Good Friday.

BCOT

Tuesday

I missed the end of the first half and most of the second half of the title game.  Just couldn't get invested in either team.  I've never been a big fan of Pitino...and Michigan is...well, Michigan.  How can a Hawkeye root for Michigan?  Haven't seen any gloating yet from Nevada.  Did someone else slip in to the top spot?

The differences in the generations is very evident in the tax preparation business.  I don't do that many returns for Millennials, but the way to handle their communication is electronic.  They prefer their returns on email: they'll do signatures back and forth the same way.

By contrast, the Boomers are mostly snail mail, or fax if it has to be same day.  Local Boomers just stop at the office and do their biz face-to-face.

I also didn't watch the country awards show on Sunday night.  There's really been a transfer of power in country music, and I'm just not that into the new, edgier and more rockish emphasis in the genre.  Not that it is bad, just that I don't find the singers and their styles that appealing.  Backward baseball hats and stocking caps are not all that country to me.

I did just happen to catch the segment where George Strait and Garth Brooks were on stage in a tribute to Dick Clark.  (Garth looks like he's made it to a couple buffet lines!)  I didn't realize that Dick Clark had also made his mark on country music.

Danica had a nice run last weekend at a short track in Martinsville, finishing 12th.  She has a lot to learn, but doing well at Martinsville is a sign that she may have some skills.  Its a tough track on newbies.  But if she can't get something figured out at the 1-1.5 mile tracks, her place in the standings will not make any headlines.

(4's comment on the NCAA bringing the DII and DIII championship games to the same weekend as the DI game is noted.  The idea to have a "championship weekend" certainly has some marquee appeal, but I agree with the coach at Augie who gives it a thumbs-down (at least in private conversation).  They started the DIII tournament over a month ago and then strung it out to this past weekend.  Way too long between games.  They played the semifinals on March 23rd, and had to wait over two weeks to play the championship game.  With my Sometimer's, I would have thought that the season was over when they didn't play the finals the same weekend as the semi's.)

Again, lots going on today.  Mid 60's in the forecast.  That grass will be green by the weekend.

BCOT

Sunday

Not a lot to report today.  Another day at the office for the tax-preparing profession.  It will be a busy next several days.  Love this time of year.

Those semi-final games last night looked like semi-final games.  No pretenders allowed.  I'm in the unusual position of rooting for Michigan to win.  The important question is, do the numbers add up to a Tahoe Phil victory in the clan pool?

ND - UConn women this afternoon.  For the fourth time this year!  Even the coaches are grousing that the committee erred in placing the two teams in brackets that could meet in the semi-finals.  (I had to look at the schedule to get the other game...Cal vs. Louisville.  Not one many expected, eh?)  I'd say the ND-UConn winner will have their hands full in the finals as a result of the emotional drain from their semifinal game.

2 and I did a BBQ on Maplecrest last night.  Steaks and veggies.  The only possible improvement would have been warmer weather for outdoor seating.  Looking forward to more of the same as the season comes around.

Just took a break from the office, came home for a late lunch, and laid down some yard treatments;  Turf Builder plus Halts to prevent the crabgrass from taking over, and some basic Weed 'n Feed to give the grass a shot of juice to come to life. 
I gotta say, it would take some serious work to get the homestead up to Master Gardener status.  The drought last year killed most of my grass in the front, and I may end up having to re-seed the parking.  But not today. 

(Reminder to self: you have all the fertilizer you need for next time, LtPC.  I did a cursory scan on the bagged lawn stuff in my garage before I headed to Home Depot, but I obviously was in another world.  After completing my yard applications today, I now have an un-opened bag of Weed 'n Feed, as well as a 3/4-full bag of Halts for the next time.  Sometimer's again, I guess.)

Speaking of Sometimer's, I stopped at Hy Vee on my way home for lunch to pick up some fruit.  The deal-of-the-day was Red Delicious apples at .98/lb, so I bought three apples.  When the gal rang me up, the bill was over $2, which seemed like a lot, so I questioned her on the math.  They sure looked like Red Delicious to me, and I thought I grabbed them from the same display case.  But the little stickers were different on two of them and the price was for them was $1.79/lb.  (As an after-thought, I'm impressed that the cashier actually recognized that she was dealing with different stickers.)

So either 1) I made a wrong pick-up and my memory was in the same spot as when I was looking for fertilizer supplies in my garage, 2) the apples were mixed up in the case, or 3) maybe Jose in California or the kid in the back put the wrong stickers on some of the Red Delicious.  Regardless, there was a hitch in my giddy-up for what was supposed to have been a cheap lunch. (Well, OK, two bucks was still a cheap date.)

I'm giving 3 a nod as Daughter of the Day.  She's on the road again tomorrow to Austin, Texas.  Not a trip of her choosing.  Life in the Fast Lane, Kiddo.  Hang in there...and be a Star!

All for now.  Thanks for reading.

BCOT

Friday

Well, that Iowa game wasn't the most fun to watch last night.  At least 3, 3.1 and 4 didn't fly across the country to see the game.  Its much easier to digest if its just an in-town trip to watch a rout.  I had the good fortune of not watching the second half.  I see in the box score this AM that the Hawks shot 26% from the field.  You win lots of games with that marksmanship...Not!

But once the bad taste from this game is allowed to dissipate, the Hawks will look at their NIT run as a stepping-stone for next season.  One adjustment that will be made is that they'll need to schedule some pre-conference-season games with schools other than Directional State Junior College.

I had to detour from my normal route home last night due to the cops/EMT's blockade on Spruce Hills Drive East of I-74.  I think this is the first motorcycle fatality of the season.  From the story in this AM's paper, I'm guessing that a driver of a car failed to see the motorcycle coming and turned right into its path as the car attempted a left-turn, crossing the lane of on-coming traffic. Donor-cycles.

The whole matter of the danger of left-hand turns makes the argument for round-a-bouts worthy of discussion.  Americans don't get it because we've lived (and died) with the left-turn as a staple in our motoring culture.  But I think that cities and towns should expand the use of the round-a-bout and get

people more tuned-in to the safety of eliminating the turn across traffic.  Distracted driving and a person's natural tendency to look right through something in front of us make the left-turn across traffic one of the most dangerous moves on the road.

Most of the local golf courses, including Geneva in Muscatine have opened.  My buddies will be out there this weekend for sure.  We still don't have much in the way of green grass, but it looks like the temps are moving to the 60's this weekend.  The parking lots still have the piles of dirty snow that have yet to melt.  But maybe I'll be able to put the parka away for the year.  My 2012 calendar shows me as having mowed my grass twice this week, and having my pre-emergent and initial weed-n-feed already on the yard.

In the For What Its Worth Department, I think my health status has moved to 95% of normal this week.  Maybe those walks with The Winniferous last weekend got me over the 90% hump.  There's the possibility of me getting on the bike tomorrow and Sunday if the rain stays away.  I describe my 2-month recovery from the pneumonia as a "long slog up-hill".

Without going into the details of any of the stories, news out of Rutgers basketball, Pac-10 refereeing, and Auburn football all suggest that there is no veil for people to hide behind.  The phone-video device is omni-present.  You are never-ever below radar.  We are in a TMZ driven world.  That said, the "investigator" behind the Auburn story (which may have too much dirt to ignore) is muckraker Salena Roberts, who has never let an opportunity to make a headline pass her by.

Another busy day on Kimberly Road.  Make yours a Good Friday.

BCOT

Wednesday

Let's give the Hawkeyes their due:  big win at The Garden last night in The Big Apple.  So glad that 4 was able to see the game.  I'm presuming that she will be joined by 3 and 3.1 for the championship game tomorrow night.  These last couple of wins by Iowa suggest that the program may have turned a corner to national competitiveness.  Wins in the spotlight help with recruiting.  If you don't have good players, you don't win, regardless of the effort or coaching.

I know that this is an RCL day.  But I couldn't remember if it is a 2 or 4 hour day for her.  I left the 4-hour fee.  Too many tax returns on my mind.

Its not surprising that the basketball coach for Florida Gulf Coast, Andy Enfield, is on the move.  When you have lightening-in-a-bottle, you need to use it.  He goes to USC, which is a huge move, but one that USC could afford to take since basketball is largely irrelevant at the LA school.  The mating dance that goes on this time of year among college coaches is an interesting process.  The schools all want to win, but they all have different facts.  For instance, Minnesota was tired of Tubby.  But he seems to be a good fit in Lubbock.  Check out the Coaching Carousel article on CBS.com to catch up on these firings and hirings.

The other thing that you learn about the coaching business is that there's a lot of in-breeding and cross-pollination.  Very rarely is a newly-hired coach truly from off-the-reservation.  Most have a connection with the AD who hired them, the President of the college, or with the college itself from a prior life.  Even with those connections, winning in the NCAA tournament (or getting there as a low-major), is a coach's ticket to movin' up town.

Its still on the cool side here, but the grocery stores are starting to get deliveries of supplies to their parking-lot garden centers.  That's sign of Spring, right?  Hy Vee down from our office had mulch and other bagged products sitting on pallets at least two weeks ago in the snow.  There must be some profits in that stuff.

OK.  Lots to do today.  Maybe a little more here later this evening.

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Monday...EVENING UPDATE

I tend to not get much on the blog on these weekends when the fam is on the move and we have some modified fff going on at one of our primary locations.  With 3 and 3.1 in Iowa for an Easter visit, and 2 up on Harvest Path, the Twittersphere was much more interesting than anything I could add here.

With all the basketball being played, yesterday didn't have an "Opening Day" feel, but there was a battle in Texas between the Rangers and Astros kicking off the season.  So I've made a change to the Home Page pic to recognize the start of the 162-game odyssey known as the Regular Season.  I think they said the forecast for Target Field today was 33 degrees.  Yeah, looking forward to taking my cuts against a guy throwing a 96 MPH heater in that weather.

The BBQ on Maplecrest last night was a success, but the chef has a ways to go to meet his normal standards.  That wind made it hard to regulate the cooking temperature, and it wasn't until I moved the grill just inside the garage that I was able to get a handle on things.  Good ultimate results, especially the salmon.  Hard to beat brats and burgers off the charcoal heat.

Regardless of what happened in the men's games, the Baylor loss in the women's tournament was the biggest upset of the year.  I mean, there was no way they should have lost.  But a team hitting 18 3-pointers starts to balance the scales.  Goes to show, it ain't over till its over.  Several teams now have a shot at the title.  ND has to get past Duke tomorrow night, but if they do, they might be the team to beat in the Final Four.

I am so glad to be done with March.  It took forever.  April, by contrast, will go quickly.  Not only do I have a ton of work to do before the 15th, but I travel to Scottsdale for three days beginning on the 17th, and I visit The Big Apple the 27th through the 30th.  That last half of the month will be a whisper in the wind.

Anyone watching replays of the L'ville kid breaking his leg is sick.

I'll get back here later today.  In the meantime, make it a Good Monday.

Now Evening:  Just one item to add for discussion this evening.  We have controversy on the podium of the Tour of Flanders.  As I relayed on on my Twitter feed yesterday, Spartacus ran away from the field for the win.  As everyone expected.  On the podium for the trophy presentation, second-place finisher Peter Sagan became a Twitter Sensation with a gauche move that will be remembered for too long: can you say, "What have you been drinking?  You are not below radar!"

Anyway, lots of political correctness and acceptable-social-conduct recriminations have peppered the media waves.  Okay.  The guy is a buffoon.  The blonde should've turned and given him a smack across the face.  But don't take away the podium girls!  For cryin' out loud.  If the podium girls go, next in line is Miss Sprint Cup (all three of her!).  And Miss Hog Days over in Kewanee.  And the cheerleaders and dance teams. 

Sorry.  I can't join the chorus that all these positions are demeaning to the female sex.  There are jerks everywhere.  (And if a driver put that kind of a move on Miss Sprint Cup, he'd be lookin' for a ticket to even watch the next race.   IF they would let him on the grounds.)  Let the pretty girls be pretty girls.

On to other things.  Yankees were awful on Opening Day.  4 saved some money by not scalping a ticket.  My pal Lee was at Opening Day for the Sox in C-town.  A win!  And UConn looked impressive tonight getting their win to the Final Four.

Thanks for reading.


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