Pitchers & Catchers

It’s odd. Usually the day that spring training baseball camps open (like, today!) is a much bigger deal to me. Pitchers & catchers reporting marks the beginning of yet another baseball season with the World Series Championship shining like a beacon in far off October.

But again, we see how much of everything is perception and the relative good or bad brought to our lives by other factors. In this case, my beloved Chiefs.

Most years at this point, the Chiefs haven’t played in about six weeks. Even in the good years, where it might have been only four weeks, that four weeks was punctuated with a horrible, gut wrenching loss snatched from the jaws of victory.

But this year…

We’re still basking in the glory. The memes are glorious. The flags are still up and I’m still watching replays of the playoff games. Today’s mail brought me my copy of the Kansas City Star from Monday, Feburary 3rd. (Guess what’s on the cover?)

So the first spring training games aren’t for another eleven days. Instead of leaping on the baseball bandwagon like a drowning man pushing Rose off of the door into the drink, let’s mosey on toward baseball.

I like this. I could get used to it.

Every year.

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Filed under KC Chiefs, LA Angels, Sports

No Context For You – February 10th

I believe I actually took this purpose with malice aforethought. I just can’t remember why.

On an unrelated note, I can’t help but wonder if life wouldn’t be simpler and less stressful in many ways if I simply didn’t give a damn.

If only that were an option.

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Filed under Photography

Intercontinental

I’ve got pictures of major cities at night from all over the world – New York, Chicago, Boston, Washington DC, Seattle, London, Prague, Brussels, Seoul, Shanghai, Kyoto, Las Vegas…

But very damn few from Los Angeles, despite the fact that I’ve lived here for over 45 years.

I’ll have to fix that.

In the meantime, here’s the Intercontinental Hotel Downtown, which we were next to while walking to the Metro station after the Kings game last Saturday.

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Filed under Los Angeles, Photography

Panoramic Hockey

This will be quick – I just came up for air from being buried in accounting and righteous indignation on social media and realized it’s 23:59

Again, from last Saturday.

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Filed under LA Kings, Panorama, Photography

Hockey

From last Saturday night.

It’s COLD down here!

But we’re close to the ice.

Look up there, way up in the rafters, just to the right of the bottom of the scoreboard…

…we were still in the Kobey mourning period. (We might still be, I lost track.)

There are some very fancy luxury boxes here, and up in the rafters at this end…

…memories of better days. And hopes for better days to come.

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Filed under LA Kings, Photography

Cork

When we popped the cork on Sunday after our glorious victory, it took off from the kitchen, through the dining room, and down the hallway. I found it here later, lonely, forlorn, while the party continued in the other room.

I liked the image.

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Filed under KC Chiefs, Photography

This Reality Has Some Serious Continuity Flaws

Can’t make this shit up folks.

Trump got acquitted today, as expected. It’s incredibly disappointing and depressing and it sucks to be watching the death of the great American experiment as we sink into authoritarianism under a fascist, criminal regime – but that’s a rant for another day.

Here’s the thing…

Turning on the 11PM local news tonight, four stations (CBS, NBC, ABC, and KTLA) the #1 news story of the night, the lead, the biggest news that they’re ALL going to spend the first five minutes talking about was…

…the death of Kirk Douglas.

Okay, it’s Hollywood, La-La Land. We’ll cut them some slack, maybe? The impeachment will be second, right?

Nope. Some of them had the coronavirus scare #2 (a Korean air liner had to divert to LA because people on board had been exposed) and a local measles outbreak #3 (the irony is delicious and lost on them, running back to back stories about a panic over a 100% preventable disease like measles vs the coronavirus, which could be a humanity killing pandemic or just another false alarm that kills in ten years fewer people than die from car accidents in the US in a week), and some had the measles and then the coronavirus, but NONE of them had the impeachment acquittal.

Story #4 after the second commercial break seemed to be all over the place – a murder here, a freeze warning there…

This is how we’ve been worn down and beaten into submission by the Trump cult. Something that would have been the “Story of the Decade!” in another decade isn’t even reported in this one.

Geez, the LEAST they could have done is shown the Chiefs’ Super Bowl victory parade as the #2 or #3 story! If you’ve done the measles story, just do “Coronavirus – ditto!” and move on to something good!!

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Filed under KC Chiefs, Los Angeles, Moral Outrage, Politics

Not Super Back To Reality Tuesday

Back to that place where the traffic sucks, I’m short on sleep, the office is busy and hectic, the winds are blowing, it’s cold, and if I can’t be a the Chiefs’ victory parade tomorrow in KC then I want to be on a beach someplace warm and just sleep and watch movies and read books for about six months.

Which also isn’t going to happen.

And then you turn on the news…

So you try to escape into a classic, favorite, 1960’s comedy that was one of your Dad’s favorites and you realize just how awful and dated and sort of disgusting it is, and not in a really good Mel Brooks sort of way.

One foot in front of the other, I guess.

The only way out is through…

I hope your Wednesday doesn’t suck.

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Filed under Paul

Super Bowl Champions Monday

We won.

There was BBQ at our house because, well… Kansas City! BBQ! Duh!

(Click to enlarge.)

There was some tension being behind by ten points with only about eight minutes left – but you have seen us play, right? Like, really?

There was champagne that we had been saving for a special occasion, and they don’t get just a whole lot more special than this.

There was hanging out and celebrating and watching Andy Reid get his awards and Patrick Mahomes get his and everyone else looking at wedding pictures.

See you next year, same time, same place – back to back!

(And pitchers and catchers report in eight days…)

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Filed under Castle Willett, KC Chiefs, Panorama, Photography, Sports, Video

Super Bowl Sunday

I might be a bit busy and preoccupied later today, so let me get this out there for everyone now, an hour and a half before game time.

We’re ready.

(Click to enlarge so you can see the signed Len Dawson photo in the corner…)

The BBQ and the guests will be here soon.

It’s going to be a good day. I hope yours is too.

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Filed under Castle Willett, KC Chiefs