Because I need this right now, the first full team workouts in MLB are in exactly one month.
Joey Bats is officially back, and maybe more fired up than ever with something to prove to his detractors over the past couple months. Sure it would be nice to have gotten Edwin too, especially the way his market worked out, but I still have faith that the Jays can be a legitimate contender this year.
As long as Osuna isn't blocked from playing in the US by Opening Day.
January 18, 2017
April 09, 2016
Ballplayers Can Wear Dresses
In this day and age, both girls and boys like to wear dresses, and both are socially acceptable, and welcome. The same people that do so, are not choosing to do so at the same time in which they are participating in a competitive sport. Instead, they would choose to attire themselves in whatever clothing and demeanor befit the task at hand; sweat-wicking under wear, breathable and stretchy overwear. If they did take the field in dresses, it would make mockery of both themselves, and the sport in which they are trying to compete as the clothing would not fit the task.
This is the humour in John Gibbons' comment this week about his team 'taking the field in dresses' in response to the perceived 'soft' call at second base that ruled that Jose Bautista interfered with Logan Forsythe's play around the 2nd base area. Yes, he said it in the heat of a testy moment. Yes, he almost certainly didn't think it through. But, why are so people quick to the trigger on things like this?
I am sure that Gibbons, and the entire team, understand that there are women and those identifying as women who play baseball, and are damned good at it. But there are also many people, both men and women, who would never put themselves infront of 100 MPH fastballs, or quick one hoppers at 3rd; never lay their body out at full stride in an attempt to catch a seamed leather sphere, or brace their body mass against another charging for the plate in an attempt to score a run.
Even if there is money or contract on the line, there is always a line. Gibbons was not saying that 'dress wearing' or, by poor extrapolation, that women are inherently soft, just that there is an implied level of physicality within the game, and that to engage with that level of play, most people are not wearing dresses to their day at the ballpark, and that the game is engaged by those that love it willingly.
From pro to amateur beer league player, the body is sacrificed, bruises are taken, all within the rules of the game. We take bumps and bruises and the rashes from awkward slides.We all, sometimes literally, take it on the chin. We all dress for the game in which we are playing. If Gibbons had only said 'maybe we'll show up tomorrow in business suits' there would have been no controversy at all.
This is the humour in John Gibbons' comment this week about his team 'taking the field in dresses' in response to the perceived 'soft' call at second base that ruled that Jose Bautista interfered with Logan Forsythe's play around the 2nd base area. Yes, he said it in the heat of a testy moment. Yes, he almost certainly didn't think it through. But, why are so people quick to the trigger on things like this?
I am sure that Gibbons, and the entire team, understand that there are women and those identifying as women who play baseball, and are damned good at it. But there are also many people, both men and women, who would never put themselves infront of 100 MPH fastballs, or quick one hoppers at 3rd; never lay their body out at full stride in an attempt to catch a seamed leather sphere, or brace their body mass against another charging for the plate in an attempt to score a run.
Even if there is money or contract on the line, there is always a line. Gibbons was not saying that 'dress wearing' or, by poor extrapolation, that women are inherently soft, just that there is an implied level of physicality within the game, and that to engage with that level of play, most people are not wearing dresses to their day at the ballpark, and that the game is engaged by those that love it willingly.
From pro to amateur beer league player, the body is sacrificed, bruises are taken, all within the rules of the game. We take bumps and bruises and the rashes from awkward slides.We all, sometimes literally, take it on the chin. We all dress for the game in which we are playing. If Gibbons had only said 'maybe we'll show up tomorrow in business suits' there would have been no controversy at all.
February 04, 2016
Please Pack Your Things
I packed up my office and left today. Even did it on my terms.
The day of our big office relocation is finally here, and there was to be no messing around. Everyone I've talked to is 100% on board with the move, despite the longer commute for a lot of people in our group in particular, but the lack of windows, and forever service calls were just too much.
On Monday morning, we'll be in shiny new'ish' digs in Waterloo (a building given up when a local former tech giant had to go through some re-structuring a few years back). Apparently people in our own office were involved in the design, before my time, so at least there will be people that can be answerable to any complaints we have. Given what I've seen, I don't think there will be many.
I actually watched the final 4 months of construction on the building from a research site set up by a long time buddy of mine for his PhD thesis which I helped along with instrumentation and data collection. It will be a welcome return to a nice area of the city.
That's not to say that downtown Kitchener hasn't really been revitalized over the past 5 years. And many of us are going to miss the quick 5 minute walk to a number of homegrown great restaurants; but there are plenty of other great restaurants within walking distance if we're willing to extend our lunch breaks, and driving distance if we're lazy. We've also been told there is a regular food truck schedule featuring some of the great restaurants in town. We won't be lacking for choices.
And there will be daylight. All day long. Through windows. I think many of the people that don't get to go out and do field work regularly may be dazed and squinty for the first few weeks in the new office. I have suggested sunblock samples also be given out. We'll see what happens.
And to my end, I'm trying to treat this all as a big refresher to get reinvigorated about my work, before I go ahead and pack up my things and leave for real.
The day of our big office relocation is finally here, and there was to be no messing around. Everyone I've talked to is 100% on board with the move, despite the longer commute for a lot of people in our group in particular, but the lack of windows, and forever service calls were just too much.
On Monday morning, we'll be in shiny new'ish' digs in Waterloo (a building given up when a local former tech giant had to go through some re-structuring a few years back). Apparently people in our own office were involved in the design, before my time, so at least there will be people that can be answerable to any complaints we have. Given what I've seen, I don't think there will be many.
I actually watched the final 4 months of construction on the building from a research site set up by a long time buddy of mine for his PhD thesis which I helped along with instrumentation and data collection. It will be a welcome return to a nice area of the city.
That's not to say that downtown Kitchener hasn't really been revitalized over the past 5 years. And many of us are going to miss the quick 5 minute walk to a number of homegrown great restaurants; but there are plenty of other great restaurants within walking distance if we're willing to extend our lunch breaks, and driving distance if we're lazy. We've also been told there is a regular food truck schedule featuring some of the great restaurants in town. We won't be lacking for choices.
And there will be daylight. All day long. Through windows. I think many of the people that don't get to go out and do field work regularly may be dazed and squinty for the first few weeks in the new office. I have suggested sunblock samples also be given out. We'll see what happens.
And to my end, I'm trying to treat this all as a big refresher to get reinvigorated about my work, before I go ahead and pack up my things and leave for real.
August 25, 2015
Last Week of August
I can't be alone in wondering where this summer went, right? Add up a couple weekend getaways, a busier than normal work schedule, and putting more time than most seasons into watching baseball, with the Jays being competitive (even odds with the Cardinals and Royals right now to win outright; for what odds makers are worth). It seems like playoff ticket prices are going to be a bit silly, so, even if given the chance at them, I'm not sure I'll bite. Between needing some work on my car, having some house upkeep to take care of before the winter, and hopefully replacing my busted ass guitar amp (Marshall, you're supposed to be a mark of quality, a 9 year old amp should not fail for the limited 'rocking' I actually put it through) I don't know that I'll be able to justify the $200 per game rates.It seems like 500 Level outfield tickets might be affordable up until the World Series, should I have access to any. Having been to many games in the regular season '92-'93 campaigns, and the '91 All Star game, only a playoff game is really left on my Dome bucket list. Oh, and maybe a Monster Jam?
The 5th or 6th Annual Beer Olympics also got squeezed in the mix, with the take home message being that we're all getting a little older, and further distanced from our college/university levels of energy and stamina. Some of us learned that lesson harder than others, but thankfully it was neither Carolyn or myself, this time around.
Now the warm weather just has one or two deck parties in store and a Labour Day weekend trip to the cottage where the plan will be to focus on relaxing and having some fun, as opposed to clean up and condensing preparing for likely future sale. There will be plenty of time for that in the fall. Of course, hopefully between now and October, the Jays do their best to ruin plans of going away to the cottage in the 3rd week of October. I love AM radio broadcasts once in a while, but sure as hell not going to go without watching those games on TV. Forgive me for being such an optimist. It doesn't happen much around here.
The 5th or 6th Annual Beer Olympics also got squeezed in the mix, with the take home message being that we're all getting a little older, and further distanced from our college/university levels of energy and stamina. Some of us learned that lesson harder than others, but thankfully it was neither Carolyn or myself, this time around.
Now the warm weather just has one or two deck parties in store and a Labour Day weekend trip to the cottage where the plan will be to focus on relaxing and having some fun, as opposed to clean up and condensing preparing for likely future sale. There will be plenty of time for that in the fall. Of course, hopefully between now and October, the Jays do their best to ruin plans of going away to the cottage in the 3rd week of October. I love AM radio broadcasts once in a while, but sure as hell not going to go without watching those games on TV. Forgive me for being such an optimist. It doesn't happen much around here.
July 20, 2015
How Do You Like Them Apples?
Back from the whirlwind road trip to Baaaston and vacationing from the vacation. It was a great trip, but in my attempt to keep it a fairly compact weekend, we tried to squeeze too much sightseeing into too little time, and had to trim out some of the stuff we'd wanted to do. Amongst the cull list were a side stop at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, walking tours of Harvard and MIT campuses, and, though never formally planned, but a 'time filler' if we had some down time, a tour of the Sam Adams Brewery. I've learned my lesson.
We did get to see and tour Fenway which, for anyone that knows me, was the biggest check-box on the list. We opted to just do the short, 15 minute tour of the park, as stage crew were in the midst of converting the field for the weekend Foo Fighters concerts.
This was likely the closest I'll ever get to 'backstage at a rock show'. We lucked out in that it was the mini-tour guide's last shift of the day, and our group got an extra 10-15 minutes to explore, which you'd think would be a lot of time, but didn't feel like it, which was a common theme for the weekend.
Apparently the tarps laid on the outfield were breathable so as not to kill the grass, and the stage set-up was fully expected to ruin the turf in centre field, but there was no sacrificing the infield turf. There were no fewer than 6 people tasked with guarding the barriers around the infield during the show.
There was still plenty of baseball history on display. It would seem old teams with winning histories get a bit of a track record of having had some good players, managers, and staff around them.
...and this was just one of the walls of Hall of Fame plaques.
After the Fenway tour Friday, we grabbed some pints in South End, where our friends have a place, and waited to meet up with them for dinner, drinks, and to crash for the night. It was a great area, and the pub-bistro we ended up at had a fantastic selection of craft beers, albeit at some inflated prices. The inflated craft beer prices actually were another theme of the trip. Americans apparently just call any old glass full of beer 'a pint'. So, whereas if I go out at home to a place with craft taps I can expect to spend $5.50 to $7.50 CAD for a roughly 500 mL draught pint, whereas prices in Boston started at roughly $8.75 CAD and escalated quickly, and were for 330 mL 'pints'. I mean seriously, USA, you're the ones that insist on using the damned imperial system, at least know its defined volumes.
Beer prices aside, tapas dinner at Toro was fantastic.
The next morning, our hosts took us on a walking tour that covered almost the entirety of Boston proper, including a trip up to the upper floors of the John Hancock tower. Glass reflections didn't play nicely with the camera, but the view would have been tough to capture well anyway.
Boston was surprisingly walkable, granted, we did spend 5 blister inducing hours walking at a quick pace to try to see everything.
Apparently John Hancock liked to leave his mark everywhere, what a dick.
After the walking tour, we parted way with our friends, and checked in to our hotel on the Cambridge side of the Charles for a power nap before walking back over to Fenway for the Saturday Foo show. The show was totally worth the blister tearing walk, with locals The Mighty Mighty Bosstones opening in a high energy set from the band excited to play 'the park they grew up in' for the first time. The Foo Fighters were awesome, playing a full 2 hours and forty minutes straight, with some great on-stage banter, and crowd banter from Dave, with the sports-minded Bostonians frequently giving long loud 'Fooooooo' calls (think 'booo'). Highlights for me were an acoustic cover of 'My Hero', and a cover of 'Under Pressure' which they've been doing semi-regularly, from what I've seen, on this tour. The extended riffing during the solo section of 'Outside' off of Sonic Highways was also great, with Dave never really achieving the all out guitar solo he seemed to be going for, and joking after the song, "Gimme a break, I'm a drummer".
On Sunday morning, being a bit exhausted from a few days of driving and hiking around, we decided to sleep in and get on the road for home a bit early, at the expense of some of the other things we'd wanted to squeeze in to the trip. A decision that turned out for the best, hitting two different 2 hour traffic jams on the ideal 9 hour drive home. Amazingly, the border crossing was one of the faster ones I've ever experienced.
And so, after getting in late, both of us today are taking vacation from vacation, before getting back to the grind.
We did get to see and tour Fenway which, for anyone that knows me, was the biggest check-box on the list. We opted to just do the short, 15 minute tour of the park, as stage crew were in the midst of converting the field for the weekend Foo Fighters concerts.
Apparently the tarps laid on the outfield were breathable so as not to kill the grass, and the stage set-up was fully expected to ruin the turf in centre field, but there was no sacrificing the infield turf. There were no fewer than 6 people tasked with guarding the barriers around the infield during the show.
There was still plenty of baseball history on display. It would seem old teams with winning histories get a bit of a track record of having had some good players, managers, and staff around them.
...and this was just one of the walls of Hall of Fame plaques.
After the Fenway tour Friday, we grabbed some pints in South End, where our friends have a place, and waited to meet up with them for dinner, drinks, and to crash for the night. It was a great area, and the pub-bistro we ended up at had a fantastic selection of craft beers, albeit at some inflated prices. The inflated craft beer prices actually were another theme of the trip. Americans apparently just call any old glass full of beer 'a pint'. So, whereas if I go out at home to a place with craft taps I can expect to spend $5.50 to $7.50 CAD for a roughly 500 mL draught pint, whereas prices in Boston started at roughly $8.75 CAD and escalated quickly, and were for 330 mL 'pints'. I mean seriously, USA, you're the ones that insist on using the damned imperial system, at least know its defined volumes.
Beer prices aside, tapas dinner at Toro was fantastic.
The next morning, our hosts took us on a walking tour that covered almost the entirety of Boston proper, including a trip up to the upper floors of the John Hancock tower. Glass reflections didn't play nicely with the camera, but the view would have been tough to capture well anyway.
Boston was surprisingly walkable, granted, we did spend 5 blister inducing hours walking at a quick pace to try to see everything.
Apparently John Hancock liked to leave his mark everywhere, what a dick.
After the walking tour, we parted way with our friends, and checked in to our hotel on the Cambridge side of the Charles for a power nap before walking back over to Fenway for the Saturday Foo show. The show was totally worth the blister tearing walk, with locals The Mighty Mighty Bosstones opening in a high energy set from the band excited to play 'the park they grew up in' for the first time. The Foo Fighters were awesome, playing a full 2 hours and forty minutes straight, with some great on-stage banter, and crowd banter from Dave, with the sports-minded Bostonians frequently giving long loud 'Fooooooo' calls (think 'booo'). Highlights for me were an acoustic cover of 'My Hero', and a cover of 'Under Pressure' which they've been doing semi-regularly, from what I've seen, on this tour. The extended riffing during the solo section of 'Outside' off of Sonic Highways was also great, with Dave never really achieving the all out guitar solo he seemed to be going for, and joking after the song, "Gimme a break, I'm a drummer".
On Sunday morning, being a bit exhausted from a few days of driving and hiking around, we decided to sleep in and get on the road for home a bit early, at the expense of some of the other things we'd wanted to squeeze in to the trip. A decision that turned out for the best, hitting two different 2 hour traffic jams on the ideal 9 hour drive home. Amazingly, the border crossing was one of the faster ones I've ever experienced.
And so, after getting in late, both of us today are taking vacation from vacation, before getting back to the grind.
June 25, 2015
Boom and Bust
The nature of my work typically sees quarterly peaks and valleys in the amount of work that needs to be done. Generally, March, June, September and December are my busiest months, with extra special levels of madness in June and again in December when the month is shortened by the holidays.
I'm just starting to come clear of the blur that's been June now, and realizing that, holy shit, its already the end of June! In less than a month we'll be taking our extended weekend road trip for the Foo Fighters in Boston. Or, at the very least, Boston. Some old friends have graciously offered a pull-down bed to sleep on for the entirety of our stay, and we may actually take them up for one of the two nights we intend to stay in the city.
Some other friends of ours were there a couple weeks back, and highly recommend the Sam Adams brewery tour, which I'm told is a proper tour, and not just a sampling session. They even picked up a kit to convert a growler into a hanging lamp (pictures of which will follow once I have it set up). But, being as we're already stopping in Albany on the way down and hitting a brew pub there, I think we may fore go the Sam Adams stop.
Weekends for the rest of the summer are already quickly filling up and double booking, which means, before I know it, it will be September, and time for the next work rush. The eternal pessimist. Here, look at some ducks:
I'm just starting to come clear of the blur that's been June now, and realizing that, holy shit, its already the end of June! In less than a month we'll be taking our extended weekend road trip for the Foo Fighters in Boston. Or, at the very least, Boston. Some old friends have graciously offered a pull-down bed to sleep on for the entirety of our stay, and we may actually take them up for one of the two nights we intend to stay in the city.
Some other friends of ours were there a couple weeks back, and highly recommend the Sam Adams brewery tour, which I'm told is a proper tour, and not just a sampling session. They even picked up a kit to convert a growler into a hanging lamp (pictures of which will follow once I have it set up). But, being as we're already stopping in Albany on the way down and hitting a brew pub there, I think we may fore go the Sam Adams stop.
Weekends for the rest of the summer are already quickly filling up and double booking, which means, before I know it, it will be September, and time for the next work rush. The eternal pessimist. Here, look at some ducks:
May 29, 2015
egattoC
The cottage trip went more smoothly than expected, with Carolyn's emotions only really getting the better of her once we were on the last stretch of the drive.
The cottage itself wintered well, with no apparent leaks or cracked pipes, and no-one having broken in since I sealed it up in the fall, which has happened a couple times in the past. Being basically invisible from the road or any neighbours, its kind of a target for things like that.
The weather was fantastic, and something like 10 degrees warmer than the forecast I'd seen before we left, allowing for some naturism (again, its pretty secluded up there..), and making the outdoor chores enjoyable.
The lone black spot on the long weekend came when we attempted to run a load of the weekend's linens and towels through the washer, and finding that the winter cold and, likely more significant, age of the washer had cracked a seal in the drum leaving us scrambling to sop up a lot of water, without the benefit of a mop.
Its still very much up in the air as to what will come of the cottage in coming months as Carolyn's mom and siblings sort out their desires. But low maintenance weekends like this one past make me more open to the outside prospect of taking on a second property tax bill.
The cottage itself wintered well, with no apparent leaks or cracked pipes, and no-one having broken in since I sealed it up in the fall, which has happened a couple times in the past. Being basically invisible from the road or any neighbours, its kind of a target for things like that.
The weather was fantastic, and something like 10 degrees warmer than the forecast I'd seen before we left, allowing for some naturism (again, its pretty secluded up there..), and making the outdoor chores enjoyable.
The lone black spot on the long weekend came when we attempted to run a load of the weekend's linens and towels through the washer, and finding that the winter cold and, likely more significant, age of the washer had cracked a seal in the drum leaving us scrambling to sop up a lot of water, without the benefit of a mop.Its still very much up in the air as to what will come of the cottage in coming months as Carolyn's mom and siblings sort out their desires. But low maintenance weekends like this one past make me more open to the outside prospect of taking on a second property tax bill.
May 22, 2015
The Cottage
This weekend promises to be an emotional one.
Carolyn's dad bought a plot of land on a calculated whim, if there's such a thing, back in the 70s, so the story goes. As he built his family, he also, bit by bit, cleared a plot of trees, poured a foundation, and built a home away from home.
Drilling of a well, setting of a septic bed, clearing of a path for an overhead, electric line through trees, and clearing of trees jeopardizing those lines all undertaken by Carolyn's dad.
Built from the ground up, basically by hand, this first visit to the family cottage this weekend will be difficult. In the days following his passing, I drove up with a a long time friend, and, as small cities go, also distant in-law of the family, to grab some belongings for visitation, and drain water lines since it was pretty clear at that point, no-one would be, or want to be going back to the cottage for a while.
At the time it was an act of preservation, and support. I knew there were important family photos there, and I also knew the cottage would need to be prepped for winter, because the stalwart of that landing was no longer around.
As it turned out, Carolyn and I had been the last occupants a few weeks earlier, with our notes of minor maintenance issues still sitting on the kitchen table, as was tradition. In the shock of how these things go, my old friend and I grabbed the required, as well as some quirky belongings, ensured antifreeze in the drains, and completed the cannonball run up north and back.
Funeral, extended visitation with extended family, and time. And all the adjustment that comes with funerals.
And now, its time to go back to the cottage for the first time for anyone in the family, and begin adapting with the builder no longer being around to offer his critique.
Its started to hit me more than it did in those first days of rushing up to just 'take care of things'.
To have a dedicated father, with goal in mind of a family retreat, and place to relax in in retirement. A retirement that was just shy of a year away. Long hours invested to have returns cut short.
And as trying as it will be for me, for Carolyn, as the oldest, and most embracing of the cottage experience and all its trivialities, I don't expect it to be easy going. Frequently disagreeing with her father's 'design' ideas, and propensity towards brown paint, and 100W lightbulbs everywhere, Carolyn, with her mom, took pride in finishing details of the projects, arranging, and organizing the cottage into what is a truly relaxing retreat.
I can only try to imagine and ease the emotions Carolyn will go through this weekend, likely without success. Myself, I'll be building a fire in the 'limestone amphitheater' hot enough to quickly evaporate any eye moisture that I expect may accumulate in memory.
Carolyn's dad bought a plot of land on a calculated whim, if there's such a thing, back in the 70s, so the story goes. As he built his family, he also, bit by bit, cleared a plot of trees, poured a foundation, and built a home away from home.
Drilling of a well, setting of a septic bed, clearing of a path for an overhead, electric line through trees, and clearing of trees jeopardizing those lines all undertaken by Carolyn's dad.
Built from the ground up, basically by hand, this first visit to the family cottage this weekend will be difficult. In the days following his passing, I drove up with a a long time friend, and, as small cities go, also distant in-law of the family, to grab some belongings for visitation, and drain water lines since it was pretty clear at that point, no-one would be, or want to be going back to the cottage for a while.
At the time it was an act of preservation, and support. I knew there were important family photos there, and I also knew the cottage would need to be prepped for winter, because the stalwart of that landing was no longer around.
As it turned out, Carolyn and I had been the last occupants a few weeks earlier, with our notes of minor maintenance issues still sitting on the kitchen table, as was tradition. In the shock of how these things go, my old friend and I grabbed the required, as well as some quirky belongings, ensured antifreeze in the drains, and completed the cannonball run up north and back.
Funeral, extended visitation with extended family, and time. And all the adjustment that comes with funerals.
And now, its time to go back to the cottage for the first time for anyone in the family, and begin adapting with the builder no longer being around to offer his critique.
Its started to hit me more than it did in those first days of rushing up to just 'take care of things'.
To have a dedicated father, with goal in mind of a family retreat, and place to relax in in retirement. A retirement that was just shy of a year away. Long hours invested to have returns cut short.
And as trying as it will be for me, for Carolyn, as the oldest, and most embracing of the cottage experience and all its trivialities, I don't expect it to be easy going. Frequently disagreeing with her father's 'design' ideas, and propensity towards brown paint, and 100W lightbulbs everywhere, Carolyn, with her mom, took pride in finishing details of the projects, arranging, and organizing the cottage into what is a truly relaxing retreat.
I can only try to imagine and ease the emotions Carolyn will go through this weekend, likely without success. Myself, I'll be building a fire in the 'limestone amphitheater' hot enough to quickly evaporate any eye moisture that I expect may accumulate in memory.
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