December 30th - 26 to 19

Final day off of the year, since I'm working December 31st. Spent it doing Appletell work and some stuff around the house, including hanging up my Minnesota Wild Ave. sign above the kitchen door in the garage. Looks pretty good up there, right next to my Seahawks Fat Head that is now held up almost entirely by staples. I am nothing if not dedicated.

Sophie and I met Tieraney and a coworker for lunch (Sam was at day care, because I can't get anything done with the two kids are together). While at home, Sophie and I watch a few episodes of "Bean." She loves Mr. Bean, and that's okay by me, because I'll certainly take that over Barbie Three Musketeers or whatever the hell girls her age normally watch. Mr. Bean is funny, after all.

I also picked up New Super Mario Brothers Wii for me and Tieraney to play on New Year's Eve. It's become a tradition for our agoraphobic lives. We put the kids to bed and eat quality cheese and drink the liquor while playing video games until midnight. The game in the past has been Mario Party. This year, I've decided on a new Mario game.



There may come a time again where we will dump our kids with someone and go to a party, but two things will have to happen first:

1. Someone must be willing to spend New Year's Eve watching our kids.
2. Someone must be willing to invite us to a party.

Until that time, ringing in the new year with video games, my wife and cheese is about as perfect as New Year's can be.

I take knee (without incident this time).

My ball. 2nd and 12 on my own 32.

December 29th - 26 to 19

Gelert is found!

Tieraney spent the morning making calls and visiting pounds. I drove around with Sophie for a while before her annual doctor check-up. No luck. We're told that people who find huskies often don't turn them in, they keep them, and I find this oddly comforting. It's easier for me to deal with this under the belief that Gelert has been taken in by someone instead of lying dead on the road.

But then, come 5:00 or so, there's a knock on my garage door. I see a black pick up outside, and the whole way to the door, I'm thinking, "They have my dog." The guy at the door asks the question, "Do you know anyone with a white huskie?" I say, "Yeah, that's me." He laughs. "You're kidding. This is the first house I stopped at."

Here's the story. This fellow, Ernie, lives across the street from my sublet, right night to the Jehovah's Witness church, at which he's pointed a canon, perhaps oblivious to the symbolism. Big property with a pond in front of the house and a huge backyard / wooded area. Monday, Ernie and his wife heard howling all night long, which they believed to be a coyote (plausible, as Tieraney and I saw one in our back yard this year). When the howling was still going on Tuesday morning, they decided to check it out. Behind their shed, about 40 feet deep in the woods, they found Gelert. She'd wrapped her chain around a tree, and was stuck there.

Ernie and wife took Gelert back to their garage, gave her food and water, and eventually started their hunt, which quickly found me.

So, my dumbass dog spent around 15 hours--overnight in 15 degree weather and steady snowfall--in the woods (as Sophie would later say, "She must be very brave."). But now she's home, and is showing no ill effects of her adventure. In fact, when she got back inside, she took a quick drink, went outside to pee, then fell asleep under my computer desk for the rest of the night. We celebrated by shoving her in her crate and going out to dinner at Red Lobster. Welcome home, Gelert!

This is when Sam told me, "I told you she was at the neighbor's. I told you." And he had. He kept telling us that Gelert was at the neighbor's behind a red barn, barking. Great. Thanks for the help, Sam. If he'd said she was behind a shed, howling, maybe that wouldn't have been so useless.

And then the Wild lost to the fucking Ducks of Anaheim.

Life tries to go deep, we make the pick.

My ball. 1st and 10 on my own 34.

December 28th - 26 to 19

Never mind my Wild win (4-3 over the Kings in Los Angeles), my dog is gone.

I chained her up yesterday before going outside to shovel the snow. The kids were out front with me, then went to the backyard. About 20 to 30 minutes after first chaining up the dog, I went out back to check on the kids.

No dog. No chain. She somehow yanked it up out of the ground and made off. The kids said they never saw her back there, and figured I'd taken her inside. So, my dog is gone, and had a nearly half hour head start on me. Needless to say, I couldn't find her. Tried following her footprints and the chain track, but that disappeared when she reached Martin Road. Drove around the places she's been known to go when getting loose before, but nothing. I even dumped the kids with the neighbors so I could continue looking (no car seat for Sophie, and it was snowing pretty heavily), but an hour later, it was getting too dark to see anything.

I think she could survive the night despite the 15 degree temperature. She's a husky, after all, and she knows how to find the warm areas. There's also the chance someone took her in. But we live in a largely wooded area, so she could've ended up there, possibly got her chain stuck on something. Also possible she got hit. Things I don't want to think about. Tieraney posted a notice on Craig's List and is checking the pound. I'll be going out again with Sophie.

This is sad. Over the past few months, Gelert has been great. No more peeing problems. No more chewing and scratching at her cage. Things were going good, and now this. It's heartbreaking.



And that's Miracle in the Meadowlands style play. Botched snap. Somehow, Life ends up recovering a fumble. The crowd is stunned, and Life's still alive with seconds to go.

Life's ball. 1st and 10 on their own 41.

December 26th-27th - 26 to 19

Boy, my Seahawks suck. Two weeks ago, I mentioned on Facebook and on the forums that this is the worst Seahawks team in franchise history. People thought I was nuts. No one's disagreeing with me any more. That's a horrible product we keep putting out there. Go draft picks!

My hockey team, on the other hand, won again on Saturday night. I think we shook off a five game slump to the Blue by finally beating them 4-3 at home. The new Canadian got two of our goals. Guillaume Latendresse had two goals, including the game winner, for the lift. Lat has been one of those rare instances where he was underperforming on his original team, but is shining in his new surroundings. Nice to see that finally swing my way.



Even better, my team won the Turkey Bowl on Saturday. Actually, considering when we play it now, I should start referring to it as the Sausage Breakfast Casserole Bowl. Down 7-14 at one point, we moved Jack Jose to QB, and quickly saw a 35-14 swing. We called it at 35-21, and started a new two-possession game to end it. I had one TD and one fumble recovery, but never once played QB. My favorite play was when I got absolutely drilled by Steve Uhler, who hasn't played in about ten years (we had eight on eight, by the way...nice turnout). I shook a couple defenders on crossing pattern and thought I had a TD, but turned to see Steve barreling down on me. Tried to stiff-arm him, but he blew right through it and slammed me down into the mud. It was awesome. For a moment, we were both 23 again. When I woke up on Sunday, though, I was closer to 48.

Worth it, though. Totally worth the pain.

And because of the game, I got to miss 3/4 of the Patterson family Christmas party. Bonus! I hung out with former Shattered Image band members Steve Johnson (drums) and Jack Jose (keyboards/vocals) and the wives at BW3 Saturday evening before heading home. All in all, a good time.

Another run for eight, and that's the game. All that's left is to take a knee.

My ball. 1st and 10 on Life's 39.

December 25th - 26 to 19

Know what's a good Christmas? One where you don't have to go anywhere. We got up with the kids (we actually had to wake them up at around 8:00 a.m....we were tired of waiting for them, having already showered and all), opened gifts, cooked up the breakfast casserole (there are few meats I enjoy more than the ground sausage), and waited for our parents to arrive.

The kids seemed pleased with what they got. Tieraney was okay with her gifts. I was okay with mine. She got me this thing:



Sad thing about this is that they don't work in garages. I'm guessing it's the cold. The instructions do say that they're for indoor use only, but I figured that was a rain/sun thing, not a temperature thing. But it doesn't want to stick to my wall, so I'm periodically stapling it in place as it peels in new areas. Eventually, I figure it'll just stop. If not, that's either a lot of staples or a $90 gift down the drain.

Even in my garage, the Seahawks find a way to disappoint.

My parents were up first for a little bit, and Tieraney's parents pulled in right as mine were leaving. Most didn't eat the food Tieraney had prepared, so that means leftovers. And since I'm off my workout schedule until after the new year, that means weight gain.

But who cares? I'm married. I don't need to look good.

Run up the middle gains four.

My ball. 2nd and 6 on my Life's 47.

December 24th - 26 to 19

Good day at work, but you'll have that when you're there all alone. Got some solid work done, handled only a few calls, ate Chinese food. Nothing wrong with any of this.

Christmas eve service was fine. Out church has an odd habit of doing mini-plays or dramatic readings or something. Church members over the age of 55 reading from scripts. Angels talking to various people. Thing is, most of these people were teachers, so they sound like teachers reading to grade school kids. Not sure I get it. I'd rather we just sing for an hour straight, but it's all okay in the end when we do sing "Silent Night" by candlelight. It's beautiful. I mean, "Silent Night" is the second most beautiful song ever written. But there in church, everything is so quiet. It's peaceful. I means something, and I like that. It's why I don't care about the commercialism and the shopping crowds and the non-existant war on Christmas, because I get that moment on Christmas eve. Everything that people freak out about because they think we're losing the purpose of it all, it's all right there. I don't need it to be in airports or on TV, and I'm not sure why everyone else does, either.

So, I'll call it a successful night. Kids in bed by 9:00, me and Tieraney by 10:45 because we had nothing to put together. Merry Christmas, all of you who don't even know this blog exists. As Kermit the Frog once sang:

I don't know if you believe in Christmas
Or if you have presents underneath a Christmas tree
But if you believe in love, that will be more than enough
For you to come and celebrate with me

Incomplete pass. I take over on downs.

My ball. 1st and 10 on my own 49.

December 23rd - 26 to 19

Well, good. We got off the losing streak before it could become a streak, beating the Oilers 3-1 at home. Goals by Brunette and Nolan, and an empty netter at the end from Latendresse. Apparently, the Wild finished the game very strong. I haven't watched the highlights yet.

Never mind. Just did. I like hockey. Look at these two:



They're men, dammit. Fuck football.

Spilled coffee on my keyboard at work. New keyboard at work. Tieraney went to her company's holiday party yesterday afternoon and proceeded to win nothing. They gave away Wiis, PlayStations, widescreen TVs, but no. She got a $25 gift card to Regal Cinemas. I'll take that, sure, but shiny new TV would've been cool.

Incomplete pass.

Life's ball. 4th and 7 on my 49.

December 22nd - 26 to 19

Finally bought my wife's Christmas gifts yesterday. Took care of that in one trip, although I have an idea for another one that'll come later on. We'll see how she does with my gifts. As the Dead Milkmen once said, "There's a time for taking and there's a time for giving, but ripping off the Butthole Surfers is how I make my living."

That does nothing to solidify my point, but I'll blame the Milkmen for that.

Grocery shopping after worked to make sure we're ready for the guests come Christmas day. KFC for the supper. Wrestle with the kids for a while. (The chirrens love to be body slammed to the couch. What's the move where you pick your opponent up by the neck and slam him on his back? That's what I do.) Put them to bed. Exercise. Appletell featuring the aforementioned chirrens. Put myself to bed. Nothing exciting, but that's how you want to wind down the year, right?

Incomplete pass.

Life's ball. 3rd and 7 on my 49.

December 21st - 26 to 19

Another Wild loss last night. Down 1-4 at one point, they came back to make a game of it, but lost 3-4 in regulation. And did you know they lost their equipment in a fire? True. Happened on the Ottawa, I guess, where the equipment van caught fire. So, they were playing in rented equipment that night. Pads didn't fit and such. Weird.

Back to back losses kills any momentum we had. Sad. We outshot the Avalanche, but Backstrom continues his sucky ways. So it goes.

Got some business for the company yesterday. An old funiture retailer client of our went out of business a few years back. The guy I worked with now works at a new furniture retailer, and he brought us in. I made the pitch, and I got the gig. THIS is how I help the company. Do good work, and people will bring you back. Just ask my wife.

BOOM!

Run up to Christmas. I'm working, Tieraney's at home with the kids. She made the cookie style objects. I ate some.

QB can't find a man open downfield, but completes a pass to the sideline to stop the clock.

Life's ball. 2nd and 7 on my 49.

December 19th-20th - 26 to 19

The weekend started off solid. First, I did that thing to my wife on Saturday morning. You know that thing that men do to their wives? I did it. This is weird, because that has happened in about five years. Since the kids, spontaneous things haven't happened. But Saturday morning, while the kids were downstairs watching TV and Tieraney was on her way up to shower, I made a play. Her resistance was minimal. I started that thing. The resistance was over. Go team!

No thing for me, but where do you think I live now? Crazy town? Rather, we waited until that night and engaged in the full thing. Go team!

Between things, we saw that Avatar movie in the 3D. Much better than I expected, because if you told me a 3D hybrid of "Dances with Wolves" and "Gorillas in the Mist" would be anything more than pretty to look at, I would've told you to go to hell. And yet, there I was, thoroughly entertained. Perhaps it was the ballsy "war/corporations = bad, environment/property = good" message that generally doesn't fly in sci-fi/action movie. Perhaps it was the neon. Regardless, good time.

But then it all went to hell. My hockey team lost 1-4 in Ottawa, the 2009 Seahawks have officially become the worst Seahawks team in franchise history (record withstanding) with a loss to Tampa Bay at home, and I lost my franchise league playoff game.

And so, what looked like a sack ends up becoming a QB scramble for 12.

Life's ball. 1st and 10 on their own 48.

December 18th - 26 to 19

My wife wants me to find a new job. That sounds admirable, her putting my happiness ahead of family security. But I don't want her to find a new job when she reaches the point that I have. I want her to stick with the job that pays well and has dental. Her thing is that I'm too far from work (true) and that I come home sad too often because the negatives are starting to outweigh the positives in my current situation. Two years now without raise. No vacation time increase in seven years. Boss wants me to become a salesman.

Now, Boss has been exceptionally good to me. I like Boss. But the company has changed over the past two years and is becoming the exact opposite of why I took and enjoyed the job to begin with. It's been 11 years now...is this where I want to be for the rest of my life? I have to figure this out soon. If I decide no, then I have to decide what's next, because it won't be this. How does a guy with an English degree and 11 years of web design find solid work that pays the bills? I'm not sure it's possible, but if it's there, I'll find it.

Life picks up the first down on 4th and 2.

Life's ball. 1st and 10 on their own 36.

December 17th - 26-19

3-1 win in Montreal. Goals by Earl and Koivu in the first, and one by my boy Clutterbuck (that's right, I have a hockey boy) in the third to clinch it.



That's 9-2 in the last 11 games, still digging our way up out of the hole, which is an expression I've never understood. How do you dig your way out of something? I suppose maybe you dig a ramp? Regardless, we're in the western conference where all the power is this year, so we've still got a long way to go. It's nice to see this turnaround, though. Sure wish Seattle had the ability to do such a thing.

Life calls a timeout to plan their 4th down play. They've got one timeout left.

Life's ball. 4th and 2 on their own 32.

December 16th - 26-19

No raise again this year, which totally blows, but I guess that's what happens when your company hires too many people. My boss tells me we'll talk in January to see about developing a plan for the company to make more money so I can get a raise. It's fair and all, i suppose, but do you know what I'm not? A salesman. I don't sell anything, and I don't develop ways to make money.

That said, I do have a couple good ideas.

No raise = no defense, so Life picks up 12.

Life's ball. 4th and 2 on their own 32.

December 15th - 26-19

Stupid basketball. The Wild were supposed to be on last night, as they were playing Columbus at home. Rather, FSN shows me the Caballeros. The NBA used to interrupt my Benny Hill, now it interrupts my hockey. I have no time for the NBA. Only good thing that ever came of it was Kurtis Blow's rhyme: "Basketball is my favorite sport / I like the way they dribble up and down the court."

If a white dude had written that, he'd been laughed all the way out of Compton. But Kurtis knows how to sell it.

Anyway, time for the traditional victory photo:



Notice the missing pane of glass? It shattered! Thankfully, it was Tyutin's skate that knocked it out, not his head. I'm all for violence, but totally opposed to injury.

Did I mention that we won? We did. 2-1. Low shot affair. Half our shots were made in the first period. But Marek Zidlicky got the game winner with 40 seconds to go. The Wild are 8-2 in the last 10 games. Four other teams share that record, only one is better. Too bad we got off to such a horrible start, eh?

Came in second in the fantasy league. Playoffs are this weekend. I'd like to win, because I enjoy free Seahawks items. It'll be tough, though. I think I lucked into where I am now, riding on Drew Brees most of the way. I'll be losing his numbers, so it'll take plenty of creativity and luck to haul in a playoff win.

Incomplete pass.

Life's ball. 3rd and 14 on their own 20.

December 14th - 26-19

Bonus two came rolling down today. After taxes, Tieraney will clear around $1,700. You have to dig that, right? That pays for our cruise in June.

That'll carry the day, then, since not much else going on. I picked up both kids after work and went grocery shopping, which I only do because they have a children's area of sorts. Guess what. Closed! So I had to deal with both kids while shopping. Only it wasn't that bad, because the deli lady gave Sam some meat. The kid's already rocking the glasses to his benefit. I think glasses on little boys are like big boobs on 23-year-old women. He turned down the salami but took some ham and some cheese. Got some for Sophie, too. So, they ate while I picked up the fruit chews.

After supper, Tieraney and I caught up on the shows. And that'll be the end of the day.

QB scrambles for a four yard loss.

Life's ball. 2nd and 14 on their own 20.

December 12th-13th - 26-19

There was no Hiner Victory Weekend this weekend. The Seahawks were spanked in Houston; the type of spanking where if they weren't paying for it, then someone needs to go to jail. But who cares? It's December...who's even watching football at this point?

The Wild lost in Vancouver, too, but I'm not all that upset about that, either. We played Harding, and we always loose with Harding the net. We won three of five on this road trip, and I'll take that. Next up, the Blue Jackets visit us. If we lose that one, then I'll be upset.

So, here's the boy in glasses:



By Sunday, he'd resigned himself to his fate. He couldn't understand all day Saturday why he wasn't allowed to take them off, but he'd stopped complaining by Sunday. That's right, man, break the boy's spirit.

Aside from getting those on Saturday, we took the kids to see Santa Claus. Tieraney was getting tested for her own new pair of glasses, because, you know, we're millionaires, so I had the kids on my own when visiting Santa. It went pretty well, although Tieraney still complained about the photo because Sam's pants and shirt had been pulled up a bit. I'm a dude...is it my job to notice such things? No. I never will, and I'll make no effort at all to change that about myself.

Beyond all that, not a bad weekend. Lazy. They'll get quite busy quite soon, so I'll enjoy the lazy ones while I can.

Kickoff is returned to the 24.

Life's ball. 1st and 10 on their own 24.

December 11th - 26-19

The boy needs glasses. What is he, like, three? Do three-year-olds wear glasses? I'm 39 and I don't wear glasses? But he doesn't have a lazy eye, he's got this thing where his right eye pulls inside in an effort to focus...like Lofa Tatupu pulling in to compensate when Marcus Tubbs was injured, which led to many gaps and Tatupu constantly injuring himself. Unlike Ruskell, though, we're going to fill that gap with glasses. Doctor says he'll need them until he's 8 to 12 years old. I imagine it's for life.

I've got not issue with this, other than the expense and the fact that he'll be breaking them constantly.

Glasses. What's next? Robot eyes? That would actually be cool. I'll see if I can get that set up before we spend the cash on the glasses.

Oh, and my hockey team won. 46 shots on goal to Calgary's 23, and we still needed overtime to win 2-1. Hell of an offense, and the goal scorers were important. James Sheppard, who's been a severe disappointment of a top prospect, and Martin Havlat, who's been a severe disappointment of an off season trade. Hopefully, this gets both of them going.



Anyway, that's six points so far on a five game road trip. Nice.

Field goal is good, extending our lead to 7.

December 10th - 23-19

I'm going to just quit making entries on Thurdays when there's no hockey. Thursdays just happen; like turning left on the way to work. You know you did it. You can recall when they happen, but unless you hit a deer or see some drunken college woman peeing on the side of the road because the line to the Kings of Leon concert is longer than she expected, you really aren't going to remember a thing about them.

Measurement shows we're inches short.

My ball. 4th and inches on Life's 18.

December 9th - 23-19

Well, there you go. After being shut out in Phoenix, the Wild turned around got their first shutout of the season, beating Colorado 1-0. Obviously, the game was heavy on defense; only 22 shots for each team. This is the kind of win we expected last year with Lemaire coaching us. Ah, the good old days.



Got the Christmas bonus. $900. I guess the days of getting an entire paycheck for my bonus are long gone. That's what happens when you hire new people. We have to spread that amongst more people. It sucks, but what're gonna do? I appreciate what I get, as I never count on getting it (meaning I don't spend that money before I have it, of course). Hopefully, Tieraney gets a nice one, too. We won't know that until the end of the month, however.

And my piss is back to its normal color. I stopped taking the pills, and things seem good for now.

Wild win plus $900 equals a 12 yard pass play.

Refs are calling for the chains.

December 8th - 23-19

My piss is orange. And I don't mean a darker color than normal, I mean orange. Cleveland Browns orange. I'm pissing Tang.



The good news is that this was expected, as I warned by the medicine I'm taking. The bad news is that the medicine I'm taking is for what I believe to be a bladder infection. Spent all day feeling like I had to go to the bathroom, which is highly annoying. This is the second time this has happened to me in life, and better timed. The first time, I spent that day at Cedar Point. Roller coasters plus bladder infections are not a good mix.

So anyway, if this isn't gone by Wednesday, I'll call the doctor. Because even if you know it's coming, orange piss isn't the type of thing you want to see in the morning.

On the bright side of things, my dentist appointment yielded no cavities, so I'm still 100% cavity free for my lifetime. I may have no gums by the time I'm old enough to take tours to casinos with my assisted living friends, but at least I'll be easily identifiable when they pull my charred remains from the bus.

Also, new DS game: The Legend of Zelda - Spirit Tracks. This is a big deal to me...like a new Queen album or Vonnegut book when Queen was releasing albums and Vonnegut was...alive. I enjoy me some Zelda games, and I expect to enjoy this one.

Did I mention my piss is orange?

Incomplete pass.

My ball. 3rd and 12 on Life's 30.

December 7th - 23-19

My hockey team's winning streak came to an end in Phoenix, where the Coyotes silenced our mighty sticks, 0-2. We seemed to play well, with 29 shots on goal, but couldn't hit the net. I'm not too upset, as five straight wins is certainly good enough, but this was the first of a four game road trip, and I don't want to see us drop them all.

Sophie was pretty bad, so she had to go to bed early. Spoke with Peter Flores for a while, which is cool. Peter is VP of Membership for the Midwest Seahawkers. I've spent maybe 10 to 30 minutes with him face to face, and I regard him as one of my best friends. Is that sad? In fact, four of my five friends (I have five friends...the rest are all just acquaintances) live at least three states away from me in any direction. That could mean either a.) I'm good at maintaining friendships across the miles, or b.) I only like people I don't have to see regularly...or vice versa.

Anyway, that's how this day ends.

Run is stuffed behind the line.

My ball. 2nd and 12 on Life's 30.

December 5th-6th - 23-19

Another Hiner Victory weekend, but let's take this chronologically.

It began with shopping on Saturday. We stopped at the Lodi Outlet Mall, where I bought a new shirt at the Van Heusen store. You wear the Van Heusen shirts? Fine shirts. Manly. Not like those NAMBLA Old Navy shirts or gay Gap ships. I recommend the Van Heusen. Then, it was on to Mansfield for more Christmas gifts for the young Hiners. I think we're done that at this point, although there's talk of getting Sam a drum set and Sophie a guitar. Not sure how that'll work.

Saturday night, then, the Wild played the Predators in Nashville. I was following the score driving home, and we went down early, 0-1. When I checked at home, we were up 2-1 at the first intermission. By the third, we were up 5-1.

Excuse me? A multiple goal lead for the Wild? We needed it, as we hung on for a 5-3 win. Nice to not worry about overtime or the shootout, for a change, and even better considering I was quite certain we'd lose, what with being on the road and putting Josh Harding in at goalie. So, there you go. A five game winning streak, our best since 2007. Take it.

Then, my Seahawks won on Sunday, 20-17. It was a good win, as we pulled out a close one...something we haven't been good at lately.



Wins are only hurting us at this point, but again, you don't want to give division rivals a sense of confidence. I'll take this one.

And finally, I won my fantasy league. Or will win, anyway, thanks to another big day from Brees and a bad day by my opponent (I beat the projected points by four, he fell short by 34). That puts me at 9-4 and tied for first place, and gives me a playoff spot.

The Appletell site was down all weekend. They were trying to migrate to the new owner's server, and it didn't work well at all. Sometimes, visitors saw a "maintenance" page. Sometimes, they saw nothing. That meant a weekend of no work for me, but considering I get paid by the pageviews, and I lost two days of pageviews, I'm not entirely happy about it.

That doesn't prevent us from getting the first down, however.

Six yard pass.

My ball. 1st and 10 on Life's 28.

December 4th - 23-19

This is just getting stupid. The Wild again came from behind in the third, scoring two goals in the final five minutes to force a 4-4 overtime. This one went to the shootout, where the Wild won. That gives us four wins in a row, and we're suddenly not looking that bad. Obviously, our goaltending is an issue, but the offense is looking sharp. Long way to go to gain the ground we need after our horrible start, but there's hope.

Also, I have yet to see a photo taken of an unattractive woman a Minnesota sports event.



The question, though, is what Jack Nicholson and Mike Martz are doing back there.

The kids are good, the wife's good, my dinners are good. I'm enjoying things right now.

Five yard run. Life knows I'm bringing it, but can't stop it.

My ball. 3rd and 2 on Life's 34.

December 3rd - 23-19

Day off from hockey before a busy weekend, so it was an uneventful evening to round out an uneventful day. Sophie kicked Sam in the eye ("On accident!" she repeatedly screamed through her own tears), so that was fun. Kids got quite the bruise under his eye, but it just makes him look badass. Tieraney freaked only slightly. I enjoyed watching it grow. I mean, don't get me wrong...I don't want to see my kids in pain. But I know things like this will happen, and once you're sure no body parts will be lost as a result of the "accident," you may as well use the incident to teach the boy to be tough, right?

Three yard run.

My ball. 2nd and 7 on Life's 39.

December 2nd - 23-19

Whoa! The Wild beat the Predators, which is quit the thing, considering they were nearly 10 point above us going in. Another back and forth battle. Wild up 3-2 after one, tied 3-3 after two, and down 3-4 in the third when Koivu forced OT on a PPG and Backstrom fended a late power play for the Preds. A minute and a half into OT, the newly acquired Andrew Ebbett scored the game winner. That's three wins in a row for the Wild, with the Ducks heading into town on Friday.



Beyond that, I had beans and wieners for supper (we sometimes like to eat what the boy likes to eat). I played a new zombie killing game, because I can't get enough of killing the zombies, apparently. I did Appletell work. In fact, I got my first NAPCO paycheck. No raise in there, but I didn't have much hope. Also found out there'll be no Dynamics Online holiday party this year, which makes sense, considering we just did that river cruise/dinner in October. I hope that money goes to our bonus. I need a new computer.

Life punts to the 49, 7 yard return.

My ball. 1st and 10 on Life's 42.

December 1st - 23-19

Another scare at work today, which turned out to be nothing. Same client who's online stores shut down last month had it happen again, but it wasn't the same issue. The guy who created the identity module made a mistake on his last fix, and it somehow created a new problem one month on. Once I alerted him, he changed some code, and all was good.

Otherwise, I've got nothing but sushi, traffic jams, and a wife who thinks she's the only one who does anything around the house. Perhaps I should set up a "Work I've Done Today" blog so the stuff I do gets noticed. Not sure how I'd relate that to football, though.

Life decides to run a draw to give their punter room, and is hoping their defense can come up big.

Life's ball. 4th and 13 on their own 9.

November 30th - 23-19

Sam has to go to the eye doctor. We think he has the lazy eye. He's becoming our Brett. Brett was the Hiner boy who, because of his countless minor medical issues (ear tubes, braces, jaw surgery, etc.) ensured the Family von Hiner never got to go on vacation or own a pontoon boat. That's Sam's duty now. Perpetual ear operations, vision issues now, and who knows what else. I'm not mad at the kid, of course. This goes with the job. It's all cool. But then there comes Tieraney, who wants another one of these things.

How much money will lose on that one?

Me? I just want one championship. I don't care if it's Seattle or Minnesota, I want to know what it's like to root for a champion at least once in my lifetime.

Beyond all this nonesense, Monday was just the day that was. I did get a ridiculous come-from-behind win in my fantasy league, though, pushing me to sole possession of second place. If I win one of the last two, I'm definitely in the playoffs. If either of two other teams loses at least one, I'm in. If I win next week, I'm tied for first. Good times.

And it's enough to bat down a pass at the line of scrimmage.

Life's ball. 3rd and 17 on their own 5.