Today is “Medical Tuesday” with both a booster shot and teeth cleaning. It’s been since March (7 months) that I’ve had my choppers looked at or had the initial Covid shot. Since I was only able to get the single dose of J&J it’s important that I supplement it with a Pzifer second. Here in what many call the Covid hotbed, there’s no point in taking a risk. Although, even our HOA has lifted the mask requirement for indoor events. I imagine that later today I’ll experience some mild symptoms or at least have a sore arm, but my gums should feel good.
Tonight is Game 6 of the World Series with another chance for the Braves to win it all. The neighborhood stadium should be abuzz with fans hoping to share the winning moment. With an 8 p.m. start, I will be in bed for the outcome. I’ve already had a disappointing week of sports, including the Noah Clowney decision yesterday to go to Alabama over Indiana. This is really the first setback in the Coach Woodson era. Wins and losses will be the next measure of his success after an excellent recruiting record so far with the exception of Noah Clowney. I always consider it a sign that maybe he wasn’t the right fit for the program, but I.U. basketball needs all the good publicity it can get right now. With the ability for players to now rescind on their commitments depending on which way the wind is blowing, securing a future prospect in the early signing period is no longer a certainty.
The Morning Show has suddenly turned dark, while Ted Lasso isn’t as funny as I expected. We watched both Apple TV series last night, as I wait for Curse of Oak Island to restart. I caught up on some Season 8 episodes before we left for the movie theatre yesterday afternoon, in anticipation of tonight’s Season 9 restart. The movie Dune was very entertaining from a special effects standpoint on the big screen, but with all science fiction productions I seem to have trouble keeping the characters and places straight. Most productions anymore for me require multiple viewings, so I will watch one of the earlier versions of the story to gain a clearer understanding. I’ll try to fit it into my busy retirement schedule… ha ha!
The IU offense was down to their #3 quarterback, but that wasn’t the problem in today’s loss to Maryland. IUD was the culprit, It looks like The Terrapins likely earned a bowl bid while the Hoosiers will need a miracle over Michigan to even qualify with a .500 record. Five Top 10 losses and now to an unranked foe will necessitate a four game winning streak over the Wolverines, Rutgers, Minnesota, and Purdue to close the season. Once again, basketball can not get here soon enough, but I certainly can’t take more disappointment from the Cream & Crimson. Currently, soccer is the only shining star, but Maryland could once again get in the way of glory in tomorrow’s match.
I’m wearing my new Atlanta Braves T-shirt in anticipation of another World Series victory from my neighborhood team. By adopting them late in the season, I’ve probably doomed them to join my other loss plagued teams. We played host to an Astros fan last night and took him to Cool Today Park (Braves Spring Training site) to watch game 3 on the Jumbotron. He happens to currently live in Atlanta where he met my wife’s niece, so he was obviously disappointed in the 2-0 loss. The Braves went with several relievers to compile a no-hitter into the eight, but as has become typical of the modern game, didn’t give rookie right-hander Ian Anderson a chance to finish his gem of a start. Don Larsen, from Michigan City, Indiana, continues to hold on to his unmatched 1956 perfect game performance. With more and more platoon pitching, as was the case last night, it will never be equaled.
We’re headed to the ballpark again tonight for live music, a Halloween costume contest, and Game 5 on the big screen. Fantasy football resumes tomorrow and no guests expected for another week. We enjoy our visitors but need a break in the action to make our next plan that will probably include another Dolphin cruise. We had such great spotting fortune yesterday afternoon, when initially we thought the trip would be cancelled due to high winds. Mothers and babies romped freely in nearby Lemon Bay. The water was very choppy but reminded me of the Depot Bay whale watching adventure a year ago, my first break from Covid detention. The same good friend that organized it will expect me to return the fishy favor and show him some Florida nature. Just like IU football, hopefully, we can “just get it over with,” as I’m known to say.
One year ago, IU football coach, Tom Allen, could do no wrong. He was the darling of the BIG with coaching offers from other schools and players that loved him and each other. The term LEO (Love Each Other) was emblazoned on helmets, uniforms, and merchandise. It was one big love fest in Bloomington as he jumped in the air with enthusiastic support for his team. They knocked off Penn State on a last second plunge and nearly beat the Buckeyes on their home turf. Recruits were knocking on his door and the transfer portal a one-way street to Memorial Stadium. Fans, like me, drank the Kool-Aid, thinking that at last IU was becoming a football school, when it wasn’t really even a basketball school any more.
Yesterday, the Kool-Aid was more like First Aid, with quarterback after quarterback helped off the field. The Buckeyes came to town with a vengeful mission of putting the Hoosiers in their place. They showed why they are so much better by humiliating the Tom Allen Hoosiers on national TV. Earlier this year, they made the same statement by trouncing Archie Miller’s struggling hoopsters in Columbus, after winning their 25 straight football matchup with the Hoosiers. Today, it’s 26 consecutive Buckeye gridiron wins, and once again another higher preseason ranking in basketball! What have we done about it other than stealing Thad Matta to help improve our basketball recruiting? Are we starting to hear “Fire Tom Allen” chants already from the football faithful? How many of his current players will check out the transfer portal this week?
Ohio State is currently the superior sports school, although IU soccer just beat them 3-0, a decisive drubbing. It does not seem to have the same humiliating impact as the 54-7 football score, including a painful 30-0 second quarter. Adding to the frustration, 78-59 was the final in last year’s only head-to-head hardwood meeting. New basketball coach Mike Woodson rarely lost to Ohio State when he was a player. Hopefully, that will be the case for his teams in future Buckeye basketball encounters. However, will I ever see a football victory over Ohio State in my lifetime? Please pass the Kool-Aid, I need a healthy dose to get through this devastating loss!
As I patiently wait for basketball season to start, there’s a big hole in my sports bucket. IU Football lost to another Top 10 opponent, while rival Purdue found a way to beat Iowa. Last year at this time, Purdue was not even a factor in the BIG and now they are making waves. IU was supposed to be that X-factor with great expectations that have fizzled away. My teams continue to flounder – no Cubs or White Sox left to play baseball, even IU soccer, once ranked #1 in the nation, has failed to further impress. I’m left to speculate about Hoosier basketball that seems to be shrouded in mystery while sports writers continue to project them to be just another average program in the conference.
IU Football can still get to a bowl game this year with a 6-6 record, but they would have to beat Maryland, Rutgers, Minnesota, and Purdue. I don’t see them with a victory over Michigan or Ohio State, but it’s exactly what they need to restore confidence in the future of the program. After all, even Purdue showed some spunk, upsetting the #2 team in the country! Boiler Up! They should be my pigskin pick and are stacking up to be a basketball powerhouse this year.
Today is all about the NFL, even though the Hoosiers are on the soccer pitch at Penn State this afternoon. The Portland Timbers lost last night to the LA Galaxy, as I continue to hang on to those Oregon sports ties. The Ducks were victorious over Cal. The struggling Colts and banged up Bears take the field soon. I’m hoping for a W against the Packers and that the Horseshoes can stay out of last place by beating the equally faltering Texans. Fantasy football may be my only salvation on today’s schedule if our players can keep from getting injured. Our opponent is heavily into the Cowboys, so I’m actually rooting for the Patriot’s defense to stop the killer K’s – Dak and Ezekiel. Hopefully, the can “keep them in Belichiek!” It’s Pigskin Sunday!
After four days in Pittsburgh, one in Tampa, four more days of company, a night out with friends, and a neighborhood party, we needed some time to ourselves. I watched football all day yesterday and another portion of The Morning Show with our new Apple TV subscription while my wife did her routine activities like water aerobics, food preparation, dog park socialization, and video games. We ate dinner together alone and went to the ballpark to watch the sunset and the Braves. We found a quieter spot away from the band and chatted between songs, then went home to watch two more episodes of Only Murders In The Building. We’re starting to fall back into our normal boring schedule.
Today, we’ll spend by the pool soaking up the sun. I’ll watch football or baseball on the outside TV and she’ll make use of her newly purchased floatation device. It will be a day without family or friends. My run was better this morning, so I think that one trip to the chiropractor next week will only be necessary. Our schnauzer Tally has been often abandoned these past few weeks so she’ll be glad to have us home all week. Our former long lost co-worker, living temporarily in the neighborhood next door, is moving to Orlando, so there will be little interaction for awhile. We’ll probably get together with her and her husband when we visit Disney World around Christmas. My new Pickle Ball partner will be hundreds of miles away until they come back to visit their parents here in Venice.
The Dolphish play today, my son’s fantasy football team that I partner with him on. We’re 2-2 so far this season with another tough match-up today, after failing to score much on Thursday night. IU football was thankfully off this week, giving my frustrations a much needed break. Granted, they’ve lost to three ranked teams, but their efforts have been disappointing after so much promise leading into the schedule. Undefeated Sparty comes to town this Saturday! Meanwhile, the sputtering White Sox have added to the downfall of expectations, falling behind the Astros 2-0 in their bid for another World Series crown. Da Bears have also been mediocre to start the season. As always, I hope that my teams step up this week, but I’m prepared for the worst.
I was glad to see my poetic side emerge again yesterday (See Post #1806). Hopefully, it means that my aches and pains are starting to subside. Maybe I can even get off the Advil soon? Turning seventy and the associated arthritis has hit me hard. Although this morning’s run #4,648 was slow and out of balance, I still felt better than normal. Losing about five pounds would really help, but there are too many cookies and M&Ms in the house. The grandkids were over for dinner last night that concluded with Key Lime pie. The beer can chicken that I prepared was once again a tasty hit. I’m just such a messy cook, even on the grill.
Today will be filled with more frustrating football, although I think I’ll watch outside in the sunshine. My tan is starting to fade when compared to my wife who spends much more time outside. At least there was some sun on this morning’s run, but I’ve spent too much time in the cool darkness of my office. Sunshine is my fuel and I can feel it rekindling my spirits when I bathe in its warmth. Swimming with the kids yesterday was cancelled due to rain, just like about everything else we’ve tried to schedule in advance lately. Trips, concerts, meet-ups have been postponed or lost due to weather, Covid, or fires. This year’s travel miles will be comparable with 2020, less than half of what we’ve done in years prior. At least, 2021 has afforded more opportunities to get away, but each adventure much shorter in length. Hopefully, we can still get to Pittsburgh at the end of this month.
IU football and soccer suffered more losses this weekend. Both programs were looking at national prominence, but have instead faced disappointment. The Colts and Bears will look to rebound from last week, but I’m not seeing much promise out of either team. Only the Ducks have excelled, especially the big win over Ohio State last week. Purdue lost to Notre Dame, despite the big drum controversy. Maybe Fantasy Football will bring a little sunshine into my sports world today?
For most of my life as an IU Hoosier Football fan, I’ve been plagued with poor results. Yes, every once in a while, there was a glimmer of hope, an upset, or a surprise ending. By the end of every season, I was more than ready for basketball to finally start, with maybe a season saving win over Purdue in the Bucket Game. Most of the time, that was even a disappointment. Now that basketball has sunk to the very bottom of a dark, murky septic pool, only soccer was my annual savior, something to hang my IU hat on with a sense of pride. However, 2021 was beginning to look like the year that football, soccer, basketball, and baseball were all finally coming together. Soccer, in fact, started the season with the #1 ranking, until unheralded Creighton came to town last night. For the first time since 2015, the Hoosiers lost a game at Armstrong Stadium and the unbeaten streak came to a stunning end at 43 matches. In fact, they allowed only six goals during all of last season that ended in a National Championship loss. Last night, they gave up three! Reduced Expectations.
Basketball was also on a new high, with a new coach, Hoosier legend Mike Woodson, and promising exhibition wins over a highly touted Serbian team down in the Bahamas. Unprecedented recruiting is bringing some promising new faces to Bloomington and restoring respect for the recently sinking program. Excitement is building for the upcoming season, but no need to rush into it – there’s actually a football team worth watching. Coach Tom Allen took them to a #10 national ranking and a bowl game last season and has them in the Top 20 to start 2021. The home game against formidable Cincinnati is already an unheard of sell-out This could be the year! Or just further reduced expectations?
We’ll find out this afternoon when the up-trending Cream & Crimson travel to Iowa. A road game against another Top 20 BIG to start the season is beyond bold! The bubble of fan enthusiasm and team confidence could pop quickly or take on new levels. It would be devastating to watch both Football and Soccer fizzle in a matter of two days. All that hype for nothing when we’ve gotten sadly used to mediocrity on the gridiron. Soccer will easily rebound, using the sting of a shut-out loss at home to a non-conference foe as momentum for another drive to the College Cup. However, reduced expectations by the Football team will be a huge setback in a program just starting to show promise. Let’s show them all we’re for real -Go Hoosiers!
Elements of our overhead lighting will be installed this afternoon, including kitchen counter canisters and the dining room chandelier that we brought with us from Portland. It actually turned out to be our 20th wedding anniversary gift, as part of the move to Florida. Yesterday, we made good use of our new location with a trip to the beach about 20 minutes away. Tally had to stay home this time with the temperatures still in the nineties. The heat is a constant drain on my energy, but the Gulf breezes are revitalizing. As I sit in the sun, it’s as if my cells are recharging.
Tonight is the stadium concert, Majesty of Rock, taking us back to our 70s musical roots. They will perform the songs of Styx and Journey while we sing along. Hopefully, it won’t storm like it has most evenings this week. It’s part of the countdown to my 70th birthday in just six days, culminating with a night in Tampa with Santana and Earth, Wind, Fire. Thankfully, the funeral for my ex-step-mother-in-law has been cancelled. One of the family members has tested positive for Covid, so I’m glad that my son doesn’t have to make the long drive back to Indiana. He’ll be able to join me now for the Fantasy Football draft that he got me involved in doing. At least, it’s a visit to Buffalo Wild Wings, a place I used to call home. I will once again enjoy their wings and a beer.
Tomorrow morning, my son and I will make the drive to Tampa for the White Sox vs. Rays game. I’m also reuniting with a friend from my WMEE radio days back in Ft. Wayne, Indiana. We haven’t been to a Sox game together since May of 2007, fourteen years ago. We also were joint season ticket holders for IU football for many years, but that ended over 20 years ago. He moved to Tampa several years ago when the opportunity presented itself to do his radio production work from home. It will be good to see him again, reminiscing about radio, softball, and sports, while spending the day with my son. The Countdown to 70 continues…..
Oh My! The Cubs lost their 10th straight and the Damn Yankees got even with the White Sox. Da Bears and Justin Fields started what hopefully will become a winning tradition. IU Hoops showed some promise in the Bahamas. All in all, a big day in sports. I even watched a little Cornhole on TV where a woman historically took the title. The Little League World Series is underway and today is the Brickyard – now 200 miles instead of 400 and on a road course rather than oval, while some things in sports never change like the Yankee uniforms.
This morning’s run was ocean front with a stiff wind coming off the Atlantic. I’m sitting on my balcony watching the waves roll in as I write this. It looks like Florida dodged Fred but hurricane Grace is now tracking in our direction. There’s one more Sox-Yankees clash this afternoon and more of IU Basketball, though not televised. I’ll have to get the wrap-up on Inside The Hall because even Twitter updates were hard to find on Friday evening.
The Yankees are having their way with the supposedly unstoppable Sox closers, Kimbrel and Hendriks. This is not a favorable sign of things to come for the SOX despite their huge Division lead. They will certainly make the Playoffs but have struggled against the other top tier teams. They were decisively swept by the Yanks in NY so winning the Field of Dreams game in dramatic fashion was encouraging. Last night, the Pinstripes won in the 10th shutting down Tim Anderson with the bases loaded and avoiding déjà vu. I’ll be anxious to see how The Pale Hose fare against the defending AL Champ Rays next weekend – in person. IU on the other hand, may have rudely awakened the Serbians for today’s rematch. Go Hoosiers, Sox, and Bears… Oh My!
I’ll guess I’ll be taking a retirement vacation this weekend – the only real change being a break from writing for a few days. It’s about a three-hour drive over to Singer Island and Riviera Beach where we’ll be spending the weekend under the care of Mother Marriott in a luxury condominium overlooking the Atlantic beaches. It will certainly be a change in routine with no dog or home chores to deal with – just friends to meet and sunshine to absorb. I’m looking forward to the change of scenery, unless Tropical Depression Fred changes course and crashes the party. It’s the second storm we’ve had to contend with since moving to Florida.
I sunk the chairs in the pool and removed potential flying objects from the lanai. Hopefully, it will not turn into a hurricane and lose intensity or better yet change course. All the preparations are a hassle but at least we installed high impact glass, so putting up shutters and plywood will not be necessary. Heavy rain is still likely, as seems to be the case most afternoons. Right now it’s the calm before the storm and should stay pleasant for our cross-Florida drive. We’ll have dinner tonight with my wife’s long lost Butler sorority sister and have another of her old friends stay in the second bedroom tomorrow night. My wife has done a great job of rekindling friendships since we’ve moved here. She’s also been good at finding new acquaintances through all her resort activities.
As I pointed out in yesterday’s post, my wife views our new living arrangements as a camp. Some days she’s even the counselor, arranging field trips for me. I was forced to leave the air conditioned comfort of our home to go to Selby Gardens and Spanish Point yesterday afternoon. She’s recently initiated “Tourist Thursdays” that include lunch and a visit to a historical site. The homestead and gardens we went to dates back almost 4,500 years and was permanently settled in the 1800s along Little Sarasota Bay. It was beastly hot and humid as we wandered along dirt paths and through restored cottages. It reminded me of a camp and I couldn’t wait to get back in our air-conditioned car. We also had to wear masks for the first time in awhile. I could see why the South was so opposed to wearing them in this suffocating heat.
My wife has another “tourist” plan for next Thursday, but I prefer to remain in the dark. At least she gets me out of the house where I spend too many hours in front of the TV. We were home in time for me to watch the Field of Dreams game where my White Sox knocked off the evil Yankees in the bottom of the 9th, despite a ferocious comeback. It made my day! Today, IU basketball starts up again with an untelevised exhibition game in The Bahamas. It also marks the day my wife’s mother would have turned 100, having passed three years ago. In two weeks I’ll turn 70 at a Santana concert, so this steamy month of August is filled with many memories and celebrations.
