i was a Dark Knight, Angelfood, waterboy!

That's right I was an Dark Knight, Angelfood, waterboy this weekend.
Things started off on Friday night. Juju and I went to see the Dark Knight. It was pretty good. As everyone knows by now, Heath Ledger stole the show. The Joker was effing crazy. The movie ran about a half hour too long, but other than that, a solid performance by all and a decent story line.
The Goat watched Cooter at our house and I went to bed as soon as i got home as i had to get up at 4:00 am to pick up food for my church at 5:00 am across town. Unfortunately, the runway light went out at the airport.... Why do you say unfortunately.... because i own a police scanner and it was really good listening. Planes circling the airport at different altitudes as they are trying to figure out what is wrong. Helicopters coming in and air traffic controllers making sure everyone can see everyone else. I mean, really there were only 3 planes and a helicopter, but it was still interesting to listening to the ATC coordinate it all. Finally, there was one never-used runway lit and the ATC told the planes they could “land at their own risk”...not very reassuring at the airport was covering their booties if anything should go wrong. Just as the first plane was landing all the lights came back on. Crap! Interesting airport night over and nighty night time about 11:30.
Woke up Saturday morning and met my Bro-in-law JT at the catering business to pick up the box truck and head across town. Got there a little after 5 am, got the truck situated and it was time to unload the semi and divide up the food. It was a crazy month as the first thing off the semi were big boxes of produce. We had sold 30 boxes and we had filled a pallet of food just with the first item. We had to do a lot of re-stacking in our truck as the food coming off the semi was all wonky. Got to church and kept the food in the truck until the last minute as it was pretty cool inside with all the frozen foods piled up.
Got all the food distributed, had lunch and went home. Cooter and i were bushed and he fell asleep in the car. I brought him inside and then had to jump Juju's car as the battery had died the day before. She took it to Monroe to get a new battery. She has a Passat and the battery is in a crazy place... right below the wipers in the middle of the car. There are plates and stuff you have to remove to even get to the darn thing. Whatever happen to the old days when you didn't have to take it to the mechanic to change a battery. Anyway, Cooter woke up about 10 minutes after Juju left and wanted to watch and dance to his Pooh video. Crap. No sleep for me. Juju got home late in the afternoon and i got a few ours before supper. After everyone was well rested we went to Sissy & Turnbuckles house to visit as Juju's aunt and uncle were in town from VA for Juju's father's uncle's funeral. It was a nice visit, but they decided to make smores in the chiminea. Not a good place to be with a 1 ½ year old. No matter how many times you tell him hot, he always runs right for the crappin' thing. After everyone taking turns occupying him we went home and straight to bed.

Sunday morning i got up at 6:00 am as i was volunteering to be a waterboy at our city's annual runner's club half marathon. I met Hatches and her brother, his wife their two kids, another of Hatches nieces and two people from Big Brothers, Big Sisters. After a bit of confusion about where we were to be, we set-up our water cups and doled out water to all these crazy people that think running is fun! After the race we got meal tickets to eat at a picnic at our local amusement park Waldameer. The race ended early as most people didn't do too much walking. The last runner quit at the BB&BS second water table and a gave him a ride back to the finish line. His name was Jimmy and he was from Pittsburgh. We chatted for a few miles and i extolled the virtues of my hometown. Met Hatches, the girls and their mom at wallyworld at about 10:30. Walked around the unopened park. (the waterpark opens at 11 am and the Rides at 1 pm) We ate the picnic lunch, which wasn't bad, a bit bland. Burgers, dogs, potato salad, macaroni salad, baked beans, ice cream, cake and my favorite, beer. I left for home right after eating as we were supposed to go to a graduation party. We bagged it in order to nap and then went to Juju's aunt and uncles for a picnic and swimming for supper. Overall. A pretty busy and rewarding weekend. Well, better get to bed, gotta work in the morning. I haven't been sleeping very well and i am not sure why.

P.S. I took some pick of the house the other day. I will try to post them tomorrow.

Poker and Infusion Wednesday

Poker was tonight and this is how it played out.
10 players. No re-buys = $100
2^nd place – Lex - $20
1^st place – Me $80
It was an odd night for my play. Usually i am pretty steady hovering around 500 chips. Then at some point i will make a move and either bust or get the chip lead. This happens usually about halfway through the field. I don't think it is a conscious thing. It's just that when half the players are out you should have double what you started with to stay above water...and usually i don't. So whether i get a few decent hands and “push a bit” or try to bluff a pot or two, i make my stand and let the chips fall where they may. Tonight a hit a butt-load of straights. I must have won 7 hands with straights. Mostly with two face cards. I definitely got better cards later in the night, but when i got the lead i bought quite a few pots with nothing. I lost a huge pot, about 2000 chips, to Oz when he got runner-runner heart to get the flush. (we both flopped 2 pair, i can't remember the community pair) he went all in with pocket 6's and one heart... i had 10's....and no hearts...crap. Honest me, no one saw the flush and as Oz was leaving the table i said “hey, you won with a flush”. At least i can say it was an honest win. that hand crippled me, but i got 2 great hands after that got a triple-up and double-up and was back in the hunt. I think i had about 200. the triple-up gave me 600 and the double-up gave me 1200. I just kept winning hands after that.
I don't like playing the first hand of the tournament and toss almost anything as the chances of winning the first AND last hand of a tournament are slim. I tell the person who wins the first pot of the night, "you win the first one and i'll win the last...."
Juju got her infusion of Remicade today and is feeling and moving much better. The goat picked up Cooter around 4:30 at day-care as the infusion takes three hours and started at two. Got to the goats after work and juju showed up soon afterward with New York Lunch (greek burgers and fries and gyros). As we missed the local Greekfest this year due to our Juju's arthritis acting up, she got a substitute. It was tasty!

Turnbuckle had to go over to the new house and fix some ductwork that the inspector didn't like. TB said he has done tons of new construction jobs and never had to seal every joint like the inspector wanted. they had to cut some walls and ceiling drywall away where the ductwork ran, but hopefully everything is fine now and we can proceed. not much new to say about the house. the progress is pretty stagnant lately, other than drywall and mudding and a new lawn nothing much has changed. I realize i haven't posted any pics lately, so i will soon.

reverse of last weekend

After the excitement of my nephew being born it was a pretty laid-back weekend. Saturday I did some stuff around the house and went to Lowes to buy some stuff to fix and outside spigot. went back to look at some clearance stuff for the new house with the family. then, ended up at the goat's house to mooch supper. It poured rain most of the afternoon and evening, so i didn't get the spigot on til Sunday. We now can use the hose to water the plants and cars. Yippee.
Sunday played with Cooter and watched Winnie the Pooh sing-a-long about 20 times. The kid doesn't quit. All he says is Pooh, Pooh and jumps and (tries to) sing with the music. It is damn cute, but he tires me out just watching him. it is a VCR tape so he gets very impatient when it rewinds. I have to tell him to keep his fingers off the VCR buttons constantly. I caught up the laundry and put a new neck on the shower head. Uppa, Grandma and aunt AJ came to visit sunday night. Cooter was a big show-off. the kid loves to "entertain".
Last weekend was run, run, run. this weekend was pretty slow. I like the slow weekends. I was still busy, but not driving all over the county like last week.

I'm an UNCLE !

My brother Bear and his wife Candy had a little boy last night at 4:45 am.

Mack-Q Boki Mame (not his real name ;-)
9 lbs. 8 oz. and delivered naturally. God bless you Candy!
He certainly has the Boki Mame eyes and lips.
His big brother G-Money will be very jealous. "G" turned 2 on the 9th.

Poker and a Cooter

Well, tonight was a crappy night for cards, but a good night for laughs. There were only 7 people who showed and one was a newbie. Here is how it played out.

1^st tournament
2^nd – Captain Dave - 10$
1^st - Dead Money – 60$

2^nd tournament
2^nd – Lex – 10$
1^st – Captain Dave – 60$

I was out of both tournaments first. I just couldn't get anything to play. And in the few instances i did, the flop was low and someone would bet it up. (like they had a pocket pair) Crap! In the 2^nd tournament i flopped a K high straight and went all in. The way i was going i was not trapping anyone. Well, Turnbuckle called me with a A 10 and the K hit on the river to give him the A high straight. A 3 outer........That is how my night went. At least we had quite a few laughs with 6 regulars. The conversation was excellent and i don't remember laughing that much in a long time.

Tomorrow I have to take Cooter to my folks house. Cooter's daycare lady is on vacation this week and Juju has had him from sun-up to sun-down. i haven't really been home at night. Monday we met with our insurance guy at the house and Cooter ran around like a wild man. Tuesday night was investment club (Juju stayed home and i represented the family) and tonight was poker (she watched JJ and Cooter while Sissy was out and Turnbuckle played cards). She deserves a break from crazy coot.

A few words about investment club....it is really hard to buy stocks when the market is nose-diving every day. We bought 50 shares of CVS last month and have already lost 3 bucks a share. It would have been better to leave it in cash. At least we would have the same amount and not $150 in the hole. Crap. But that is why it is called investment club and not money club. Lol.

Tomorrow night we need to order tile for the kitchen. Most of the drywall is up (except the bathrooms and laundry) and being mudded. I am forced to have the perimeter of the upstairs drywalled per the inspector. More money. Crap. But the house is shaping up and i can't wait to get it finished.

A cruise, 2 picnics, a birthday, a wedding, a reception, a reunion and 2 engagements

Yep, that was my holiday weekend. It started Thursday night. Juju and i want on the dinner cruise in pre-celebration of my boss's wedding. What a beautiful night.My boss and my work wife enjoying the dinner cruise. The paddles on the dinner cruise boat. The tower on the dock. they sold tickets to watch the fireworks from the top this year!Heading back to the car. One of the many marinas on the lake.

Friday was the 4th of July Parade in the morning. I stayed at our new house and cleaned up the construction debris while Juju, cooter, the goat, Sissy, JJ and Sissy's friend and her kids went to the parade. (we are a few blocks from the route so it is a good meeting spot) Next year we will have a full blown party before and after the parade. We also had a 4th of July picnic at my uncle Bill's house and a birthday party for my nephew g-money. here are a few pics from that day. Cooter during a break in the action.Cooter and JJ. Cooter still doesn't share well.

Juju and Cooter . Aunt AJ and Rusty are in the background

Me and Cooter catching his first fish in Uncle Bill's Pond. or as Cooter says Sheeeez.

Saturday was my boss's wedding and reception and Juju's 20 year class reunion. It was a crazy day. we go to the church @ 1:01...late by 1 minute and the bride was heading in.....Crap! After the wedding we picked up the beer and head to the reception. we ate, socialized a bit, and then headed to Juju's reunion. I had a headache as i wore my contacts for the first time i like 4 years. What possessed me i do not know. the contacts lasted for about 6 hours. i took them out at the reunion and got an instant headache. a bunch of aspirin did the trick and I lasted the night. stopped at the goat's on the way home and she was having a party for a 30 year class reunion from the same school as Juju's. we had a bite to eat and headed home. Cooter spent the night with Uppa and Gramma. It was his first night away from both of us....we held up pretty well. We slept in and then we had family class reunion picninc at a local park. i picked up cooter from U&G house and headed to the picnic as Juju was already there setting up. We came home in the afternoon and napped... that is probably why i am still typing at 12:30 am. well, better get to bed. gotta work tomorrow.

Willy and Lori doing the I-dos.

Oh snap, I almost forgot the 2 engagements. I found out at the wedding that one of my co-workers got engaged on the 4th. congrats Robin. and one of my good friends Steve, got engaged also. (I found out from my mom...how humilating. lol) He lives in the Virgina D.C. area, congrats. to you too steve. I will catch up with you soon.

Poker, Cooter and the Po Po

Here is how poker went down this week.
11 guys and 3 rebuys (including me) = 140 bucks
3rd place – 20 bucks – me
1st place chop – 60 each – Calypso Jim and Lex.
I stayed at my steady 500 until about 6 guys. I won a few big pots and was the chip leader for awhile. Lost a big pot to Hanging Chad and then most my stack to Calypso AJ vs me QQ. An A comes on the flop and i lost 1200 as i called jim's all in. I was left with about 300. i doubled up a few times and waited for Chad to drop, as he had about 150. the blinds were like 80/160 at that point so Chad had one move and thankfully he missed. I think Jim busted him. Lex was real quiet and patient. He was only playing premium hands. At one point he had not played any hands in 3 or 4 rounds. his blinds were raised enough that he folded. All of a sudden he comes in with a raise and Chad says, “Lex, welcome to the game, when did you get here?”. Chadly has some good ones.
Cutter was on fire at the beginning of the game he took “Mitch the Bitch” out the first hand with 10 10. Mitch had Q Q. the flop was 6 8 6, the turn was a K and the river was a 10 Cutter caught the boat and Mitch was steaming as he misplayed the hand very badly by not re-raising Cutter. Anyway, we had an all-in the first and second hand as Texty Steve went all in and Cutter called. Steve had AJ and Cutter had AA. No help came and Cutter had 1500 chips after 2 hands! I got busted on a suck-out. i flopped 2 top pair and Jim went all in and he didn't have anything. Jim caught runner, runner heart to make his flush and i am on the rails. (but with my 20 bucks back.)
Juju and Cooter went to the beach for a Monday night concert with the Goat, Sissy and JJ. I guess he “worked the crowd” as she put it. Mooching food and drink from every stranger he saw. The goat said he would get in the middle of a crowd of people and start dancing. The crowd would start clapping and he would eat it up......he's 1 ½..... CRAP! My kids is an exhibitionist...but a good one. Lol. If you are gonna be and exhibitionist at least be good at it.
Last night the police scanner woke me up out of a dead sleep. I woke up to, “Don't shoot, don't shoot”. Talk about a rude awakening. Apparently there was a double shooting on the east side and the cop had his mic open and gun draw as he came up to the victims car. I think one is dead and one is in critical. I was up for about an hour listening... calling the ambulances, securing the crime scenes, (there were 2. one were the shooting took place and one where the car ended up.) the cops kept telling the ambulances to hurry. when they got them to the hospital, i listened to the security channel and ER calls there. I have always wanted to broadcast my police scanner over the internet. Maybe someday i will have the time to set it up. I like listening to big city police scanners on the internet. Chicago is crazy. I think i will put a link to the site with the list of internet police scanners.