LaBombo

http://www.smoothtransitionslawblog.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/306/2015/04/mad-men-episode-711-post-don-hamm-980x551.jpg

Missed an Intermediate German midterm and had to do extra credit field trip. There's a youth hostel outside of Munich probably still wondering why how those tire tracks were made in the shower. No, actually I just picked that picture because it perfectly captured the homely, clown car Camaro proportions of the Manta.

That made me laugh out loud. While I could barely afford a kilo of mac and cheese in college, I did manage to buy a semi-decent car stereo, because priorities. The AM-only radio in the dash defied all reasonable attempts at removal, so the glove compartment, being nothing but a door concealing a highly modifiable plastic box, became the safehouse to the new unit. Turned out that an AM-only radio was a greater theft deterrent than a car alarm. I like to think that some dumb SOB breaking into cars in the middle of the night shined a flashlight into my car and muttered to himself "Thank christ I'm not the poor bastard who owns this POS" as he moved on to greener pastures.

Easy fix, no charge.

Mine was a heavily used Opel Manta. My junior year of college, every one of the eight or so cars in the 12 unit Minneapolis apartment building parking lot was broken into one night. Except mine. And just as depicted in the photo below, it was so old and plain that it generated a field of black and white around it wherever it went. Godspeed, mighty Opel. You saw me through high school and college road trip antics without a scratch. May the next form your recycled molecules took on have been easier, more graceful and more peaceful, like maybe a canoe, or Gulfstream G IV jet, or the spiral binding of a Sports illustrated Swimsuit calendar.

The baserunners/outs run expectancy tables now feature a disclaimer at the top that says "Twins fans see note below table".

"Name the part of the human body that you'd most want to avoid getting zapped by a powerful electric shock! Number one answer still on the board!"... http://www.debmarmercury.com/images/family-feud-banner.jpg

Given the history and geology of the Bay area, i wouldn't want to count on the damage stopping there.. http://www.seaonc.org/sites/default/files/content/3.png

"This now obscure third baseman kept Hall of Famer Miguel Sano from playing his natural position for over a year before being traded for a C prospect"

Well, that was sort of a 'where were you when' moment. I found out the Minnesota Twins have descended into the 10th level of Baseball Hades on the afternoon of June 1st, 2016, when Dick Bremer suggested that the Twins pitch around Danny Valencia. Not to put the double play in order, not to get to a lefty batter, just... to avoid getting beat up by Danny Valencia. White hot offensive juggernaut Danny Valencia. http://meowoof.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/7_BackToWork1.jpg

On how many teams, ever, in any sport. could a 4-7 record in games you start be a major feather in your cap/hat/helmet/sweatband ?

They say the person at the end of the chain gets zapped the worst...

It's maybe reached the point now where it's passing the "holes" stage and moving on to crumbs of cheese on an otherwise empty plate. Pitching too. My hope is that a new GM will take the half empty approach at least initially, and ask the baseball version of the Gene Kranz Apollo 13 question: http://resizing.flixster.com/cfJ-5CdJtV65MEVQGwwSEzxEAQQ=/700x380/dkpu1ddg7pbsk.cloudfront.net/site/10/27/04/10270407_ori.jpg "What have we got on the spacecraft that's good?

"Pacific Rim free agents for $200" "If you didn't play for the Minnesota Twins in 2011 or 2012, then you contributed more win shares to the Twins in those years than this Japanese middle infielder who compiled an astonishingly low -2.0 WAR in just 254 plate appearances before vanishing from Major League Baseball forever."

Fingers crossed. That could mean 10 at bats per week instead of 8.

Had long term TDY in the Bay area many years ago, when the A's and Twins were still AL West rivals. Had only a small amount of household goods, so the contract storage/moving company sent only two movers, both of them crammed into one enormous guy wearing an A"s t-shirt the size of a 4 man tent. Watched him from the balcony of my third floor apartment as he loaded up the hand trolley. My new oak coffee table was clearly wobbling on top, and predictably nosedived when the cart hit the first bump. Crash. He eventually got the whole mess onto the service elevator and up to my apartment. He set the coffee table down first, and pounded the broken, skewed surface piece flat against the base pedestal. "Guys at the storage warehouse can be pretty rough on stuff", he offered by way of a theory explaining how the mystery damage might have happened. Seeing my eyebrow tilt, he quickly changed the subject. Having noticed my Twins shirt he asked "Twins fan?" I hesitantly answered yes, and he cheerfully replied "Me and some guys from work got into a fight with a cuppla Twins fans at an A's game last year. Twins won the ball game, but we beat them Minnesota guys up pretty good!" Having graciously warned me that in addition to being enormous he was also prone to violence and probably not the least bit likely to feel guilty about outnumbering me 2 to 1 if a fight should happen to break out, he retrieved the rest of my stuff and presented the document for me to sign that acknowledged the receipt of my possessions in good condition. "Don't worry", he assured me, "If you find anything is damaged when you unpack it, you can submit a claim". The kitchen counter being covered now with boxes, I bent down and signed the form on my scarred, skewed, wobbly, formerly brand new coffee table, whereupon the top promptly fell completely off. He hoisted it back onto the pedestal and smashed it down so hard the floor shook. "Have a good day, maybe we'll see ya at an A's game!" he said as he left with the form, sounding genuinely pleased at the prospect. Sadly, though, he never turned up at either Twins road game I attended. It was probably just as well, though, since the Twins won both.

More solid work on the motion of planets. Still dressing a bit silly though. http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zDpwVQM2bZ4/T97qS1g1S3I/AAAAAAAABdM/d5Tv6wna5fA/s1600/Johannes-Kepler.jpg

Everyone needs a hobby. One of mine just happens to be nocturnal photography. Sorry, couldn't resist. I'm going to bed before I creep even myself out.

At least they had the decency to lose it in 9 instead of making me think the Great Pumpkin was just about to rise up from left center in the 12th. See you all later this afternoon. Pleasant dreams.

Perfectly understandable mistake swing by Arcia on the high fastball. In the heat of the moment, anybody can forget they're not 8 feet tall.

This is turning out to be an even more disappointing thing to stay up late for than that Halloween when I was seven and skipped trick or treating... http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-K0VdlDql2wQ/VFJEVpuflYI/AAAAAAAAHYc/gKeAzGio2XA/s1600/Linus%2BAlone.png

No, but they'll be happy to mark your suitcase while you're packing if they're unhappy about having the old neighbor lady look after them for a week again.

When your former lefty specialist can't get a lefty out, that's abad sign of things to come.

If you say so. Even I can't tell after midnight.