Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
How they play baseball at Fordham
Watch the third runner cross home plate. Why don't the Red Sox do that? The antics of the coaches and umpire thereafter are worth watching, too.
Monday, April 19, 2010
The Strike Zone
It's supposed to be rectangular. Taller than it is wide. In practice it's a square. I base my statement on the evidence provided by questec, or whatever the electronic strike zone is called. You will frequently see balls that are inside or outside, often by the diameter of a ball or two, called strikes. You will also see, frequently, balls that are touching or entirely within the upper and lower limits called balls.
In other words, balls that are inside or outside are often called strikes, and the low strike and the high strike are often not called. Watch and you will see.
The umpire calling behind the plate in today's Red Sox game should be taken out and shot.
And the Red Sox look terrible. But at least we've got two third basemen.
In other words, balls that are inside or outside are often called strikes, and the low strike and the high strike are often not called. Watch and you will see.
The umpire calling behind the plate in today's Red Sox game should be taken out and shot.
And the Red Sox look terrible. But at least we've got two third basemen.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Stray cat referees.
Kate and I inquired about an apartment in Brooklyn last week and got what started as a very nice response. Then they wrote the following. We decided not to pursue the apartment for other reasons, but I found the email condescending and annoying enough that I didn't think I would want to rent from or live in the same building as the landlords. Kate disagreed, thinking that they would be quirky and interesting people, and finding the email hilarious.
You be the judge:
Also, since you are possibly coming in from out of town, let me share some insights we have gained over the years with out of town tenants who were not a good fit for our apartment. It may sound nutty, but would hate to have you waste your time. We mention this when people are veiwing the apartment:
- New York is a city of 8 million people, and you will hear them at all hours of the day. People work and play hard, and the work days start early so you will hear people in the street and in surrounding buildings as early as 5am to get up for work. Stray cats occupy the connected back yards and have their own rituals, and we as landlords are not responsible for nor would ever consider refereeing their behavior or exterminating them because they make noise.
- The cost of living is high here, so rents and living expenses approximate a price range that some people experience only when they vacation at exclusive resorts. That somehow permeates their mindset and skew expectations for a rental apartment. This is not an exclusive resort, and we as landlords are not the concierge.
- Old houses have character, but show their age. Architects, OCD sufferers, and any general anal retentive types have been apoplectic about creaking floors, the lack of precise 90 degree angles for the ceilings and floors, and the lack of glass and chrome in a Victorian era house.
- Renting is not the same as owning your own house or condo. You can't tear down walls or do your own renovations, or demand we swap out existing appliances and buy higher end ones of your choice. We have found previous house owners have a hard time adjusting to a rental arrangement and not being the lords of the manor.
You be the judge:
Also, since you are possibly coming in from out of town, let me share some insights we have gained over the years with out of town tenants who were not a good fit for our apartment. It may sound nutty, but would hate to have you waste your time. We mention this when people are veiwing the apartment:
- New York is a city of 8 million people, and you will hear them at all hours of the day. People work and play hard, and the work days start early so you will hear people in the street and in surrounding buildings as early as 5am to get up for work. Stray cats occupy the connected back yards and have their own rituals, and we as landlords are not responsible for nor would ever consider refereeing their behavior or exterminating them because they make noise.
- The cost of living is high here, so rents and living expenses approximate a price range that some people experience only when they vacation at exclusive resorts. That somehow permeates their mindset and skew expectations for a rental apartment. This is not an exclusive resort, and we as landlords are not the concierge.
- Old houses have character, but show their age. Architects, OCD sufferers, and any general anal retentive types have been apoplectic about creaking floors, the lack of precise 90 degree angles for the ceilings and floors, and the lack of glass and chrome in a Victorian era house.
- Renting is not the same as owning your own house or condo. You can't tear down walls or do your own renovations, or demand we swap out existing appliances and buy higher end ones of your choice. We have found previous house owners have a hard time adjusting to a rental arrangement and not being the lords of the manor.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Apparently cows now PREVENT global warming
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/environment/climatechange/7564682/Cows-absolved-of-causing-global-warming-with-nitrous-oxide.html
Thursday, April 08, 2010
Monday, April 05, 2010
My cousin Jim on Opening Day
He was in the third row behind home plate, just past the netting on the first base side. I thought I spotted him when I was watching the game, but I wasn't sure. As explained by my cousin Mary-Claire, she got the picture as follows: her friend Joan "slo-mo'd" her TV, took the picture with her phone, and texted it to Mary-Claire, who e-mailed it to herself and uploaded it to Facebook -- where I spotted it, copied it to my hard drive, and uploaded it to the blog.
Mary-Claire wants to know, "What do you think Gram would think of that?!" I think Gram (who was born in the 1890s) would think it was pretty awesome -- once she got past the part about taking a picture with a phone!
Sunday, April 04, 2010
Top Gear!!!
Okay, so I've discovered this BBC TV show called Top Gear which is apparently really popular in the UK and I think it's awesome. It's basically just 3 really funny British car experts who travel around the world driving cars. Hard to explain it much more than that, but maybe you guys will enjoy it as much as I do.
This first one is my favorite. They drive a PICK-UP TRUCK to the NORTH POLE.
Then in this one they drive 3 off-road vehicles through the Amazon rainforest and the Andes in Bolivia and Chile.
Kind of hard to describe why the show is so cool. Basically the guys are really funny and get themselves into all kinds of ridiculous situations, the car stuff is cool, and the places that they go are amazing.
This first one is my favorite. They drive a PICK-UP TRUCK to the NORTH POLE.
Then in this one they drive 3 off-road vehicles through the Amazon rainforest and the Andes in Bolivia and Chile.
Kind of hard to describe why the show is so cool. Basically the guys are really funny and get themselves into all kinds of ridiculous situations, the car stuff is cool, and the places that they go are amazing.
Friday, April 02, 2010
Thursday, April 01, 2010
Buy BK stock Now!
Burger King published a full-page advertisement in USA Today announcing the introduction of a new item to their menu: a "Left-Handed Whopper" specially designed for the 32 million left-handed Americans. According to the advertisement, the new whopper included the same ingredients as the original Whopper – lettuce, tomato, and hamburger patty – but all the condiments were rotated 180 degrees for the benefit of their left-handed customers.
Who's got the best darned burger in the whole wide world?
Burger King and I!
Arencha hungry for Burger King Now?
Who's got the best darned burger in the whole wide world?
Burger King and I!
Arencha hungry for Burger King Now?
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