365 in 365: Images 112 through 118

I'm going to be honest.  The fourth week of April's pictures suck, which is representative of the lousy weather we had in Minnesota.  We had a significant snow storm, again, which pretty much drained the creativity out of me; and I would think out of a large portion of the state populace.  It's mid-June now and we may have finally turned a corner.  I hope to have a lot more series of interesting pictures in short order.

No. 112:  04-22-13

This is straight up bullshit right here!

No. 113:  04-23-13:

Some straight up bullshit aftermath on our street.

No. 114:  04-24-13  (placeholder)

The weather did get warmer, but not great.  Here's more straight up
bullshit aftermath on our street.

No. 115:  04-25-13

You can see some green in the background, but it's an evergreen, so
it doesn't count.

No. 116:  04-26-13

It won't be Spring until ALL the snow is gone.

No. 117:  04-27-13

I don't know if it's the skin of ice or dead fish that keeps me from
swimming in Beaver Lake.

No. 118:  04-28-13

A view of Minneapolis from the base of the Witch's Hat Water Tower.

365 in 365: Images 105 through 111

These pictures are from the third week of April.  I was still in the throes of my flu, but still managed to take a business trip to Chicago.  While I was there, a huge thunderstorm had rolled in (a familiar refrain during the year) and most of the highways around the airport were flooded.  I had a 90 minute taxi ride to my hotel, which was only 2.5 miles from the airport.  The combination of illness and inclement weather resulted in a weak crop of pictures, which would explain the couple images of the Company's Aftermarket Parts distributor in Chicago.

No. 105:  04-15-13: (placeholder)

During my convalescence, I watched "Young Adult" on Netflix.  The
opening scenes were of Charlize Theron in her apartment.  
I recognized the distinctive half circle balconies to be of this 
apartment building.

No. 106:  04-16-13:  (placeholder)

The lesser known Disney movie, "Herbie:  The Jailbird"

No. 107:  04-17-13:

This is an old railway car garage from when the Stone Arch Bridge 
was used by trains.  The building has been converted into offices 
for an advertising agency.

No. 108:  04-18-13: (placeholder) 

My job is working with distributors to stock HVAC replacement 
parts for local customers.  This distributor is one of the largest.

No. 109:  04-19-13:

The Parts Manager and I had a business dinner and in 
the parking garage we were directed to these elevators.

No. 110:  04-20-13:  (placeholder)

Just one small section of the distributor's warehouse

No. 111:  04-21-13:

A fleet of tugboats at the ready in the St. Paul area 
of the Mississippi River

Just Lackey Being Lackey

I was glad to see the Red Sox won today even though John Lackey was the pitcher of record.  I've never hidden the fact that I don't like Lackey.  I still believe he was the catalyst for the coup against Terry Francona that lead to the Red Sox collapse in 2011.  After Clemens, Beckett, and now Lackey, the Red Sox seem to love asshole pitchers from Texas.  They better keep a tight rein on Clay Buchholz and get rid of Lackey as a negative influence.

Before he joined the Red Sox, I never had an opinion about Lackey either way.  I knew he was considered a better than average pitcher, but when the Red Sox faced him, I remember them doing quite well.  Now that the Boston media can document his every move, the more I see and read, the less impressed I've become.

I watched Lackey's last start on TV against the Rays.  Even though he was staked a six run lead in the first inning, he was hit hard repeatedly and slowly started giving back the lead.  It's in those moments when the going gets tough that you get to see the true nature of a person.  During a particularly rough inning, the Rays were able to get a number of runners on base, the culmination of which was a bloop single that fell in front of Daniel Nava.  The replay showed Lackey shouting in frustration, perhaps at himself, but I think he was yelling at Nava for not getting to the ball.

Now Nava isn't a speed guy, but he hustles and plays a solid defense.  He isn't going to make diving plays, but he will keep a single from turning into a double or triple.  He's like Trot Nixon; a true Dirt Dog, and a potential All-Star.  There is no reason for his pitcher to be showing him up.

Later in the game, Lackey drilled Matt Joyce in the back.  Joyce had hit a home run and was demonstrative when he hit a long foul ball, just missing his second home run.  I saw the replay and it looked very much like he was disappointed in himself for missing a pitch.  He wasn't showboating in any way.

Even in his short stint with the Red Sox, Lackey has shown a history of hitting batters who he felt showed him up, and it probably goes back to his days with the Angels.  I remember a game in 2011 he pitched against the Yankees.  Lackey served up a meatball to Francisco Cervelli, a light-hitting catcher, that went over the Green Monster.  When Cervelli reached home plate, he appeared to hunch over and give one enthusiastic clap of his hands.  During the replay, the camera focused on Lackey and he was seen rubbing up a new baseball and glaring at the plate.  I could tell by the look on his face that he had decided to hit Cervelli during his next at bat.  Sure enough, he did.  What an asshole pitcher from Texas!

One other thing chapped my ass as I was watching the game.  It was televised on ESPN and one of the analysts was Aaron Boone.  The game had reached the late innings and Lackey had been relieved.  The camera had looked into the Red Sox dugout and showed all the players standing against the railing, watching the game.  To his credit, Lackey was there, too.  Boone took this opportunity to praise Lackey for showing that kind of sportsmanship and said he has always been that kind of player.  I call bullshit.  

I thought I had gotten over my anger at Aaron Boone when he hit that walk-off home run against Tim Wakefield in 2003, but that comment had rekindled my rage.  Aaron Fucking Boone!

365 in 365: Images 098 to 104

This batch of pictures is from the second week of April, when I took a business trip to Louisiana and then had the flu when I returned.  I was able to sack up and get to another G-Bug volleyball tournament as well.  Busy week!

No. 098:  04-08-13

Bourbon Street in New Orleans.  There was a Jazz Festival this week; but
really.  Isn't there something going on on Bourbon St. EVERY week?

No. 099:  04-09-13 (placeholder)

I was in New Orleans two nights, but only hit Bourbon Street
on my first night.  Here's another picture though.

No. 100:  04-10-13

Glad to have a chance to take a special picture for my 100th.  This is one of
the famous houses in Shreveport, LA

No. 101:  04-11-13

Can't seem to avoid the crappy weather, no matter where I go.  Huge
thunderstorm rolled in my one night in Shreveport.  Didn't stop me from
going to the Horseshoe Casino where I took this pic from the garage.

No. 102:  04-12-13

The weekend after I returned from my trip, I was laid up by the flu.

No. 103:  04-13-13 (placeholder)

G-Bug serving during her volleyball tournament.  She has really improved
this area of her game.  Unfortunately, her height will keep her by the net
so she might not get to serve much.

No. 104:  04-14-13

The actual volleyball play date date

365 in 365: Images 091 to 097

The last couple of months have been a whirlwind of business travel, family visits, and illness, so I haven't been as diligent in creating blog posts as I would want.  I have been doing my best to take pictures on a regular basis, so I have quite a few to post, with a fair number of "placeholder" shots to make up the difference.  After a six-month respite, I hope I can get current and stay there.  Here is the next set of pictures, keep in mind these were taken the first week of April, when the weather was still sucky in MN.  Enjoy!

No. 091: 04-01-13

Fallen tree next to Lake Harriet.  I wonder, was anyone around to hear it
make a sound?  That was almost poetic!

No. 092:  04-02-13

Grand Spectacle on Grand Ave. in St. Paul.  They must have positioned
the eyes like that on purpose.

No. 093:  04-03-13 (placeholder)

This must be a hottie in the duck world, as she attracted the attention
of two males.

No. 094:  04-04-13 (placeholder)

The slowly retreating ice on Lake Harriet

No. 095:  04-05-13 (placeholder)

Sunset over the band shell on Lake Harriet

No. 096:  04-06-13

Foggy morning looking at Minneapolis from the Mississippi River Blvd

No. 097:  04-07-13

What I thought would be the first Spring thaw in our backyard