With the usual caveats about sour grapes and being a sore loser and so on, it must be said that, before tonight, I had never seen such openly corrupt officiating in person. I had seen it on TV when the SEC was trying to protect Florida's and Alabama's paths to the BCS. I had seen it on TV when the Big Ten was trying to protect Iowa's path to the BCS. Now the Big East has a chance to clear an extra $4.5 million if Pitt and Cincinnati both qualify. I saw the Big East's corruption on TV when West Virginia got hosed out of a fumble recovery and Cincinnati scored a touchdown. And now I've seen it in person. The Pitt fans surrounding us were visibly embarrassed by the time the game was over.
There is a built-in financial incentive for conferences to protect their own teams under the current system. Yet, Notre Dame continues to sign contracts that provide for the opponents' conferences to provide the officials. After firing the coach, which it seems they'll have to do pretty soon, the next step is to get the officiating contracts fixed. If I'm a whiner then so be it, but I spent a lot of money on this weekend and I was robbed of the opportunity to see how the game would turn out.
The fight for which I volunteered did almost materialize though. A fella was running his mouth on the way out of the stadium. Once it was too much for us to take, my brothers and I angled over in his direction. The fella suddenly found that he didn't have as many friends as he thought he had. So he scurried into an intersection with some cops around and we continued out to my car. A fitting non-conclusion to the day.
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Friday, November 13, 2009
11/13/09
Time is running out for Pitt fans to volunteer to fight me. By this time tomorrow night, I'll be winding down from a long day of drinking and my martial availability will have expired. Sign up now, if that's your thing. I'm a little older and weaker than I once was, but I'll sure as hell try to kick your ass.
I got my truck back from Ohio today. Some might be tempted to call the afternoon drive a mere appetizer for tonight's main course. For me though, it carried the significance of adding another 57 miles to my week and earning enough money to pay my insurance premiums. Alas, I just checked the company's web portal. The dispatcher who told me that he would "take care of it" was full of shit. My (official) current pay period consists of only 57 miles. That's a one-way trip from Taylor to Perrysburg. My truck is therefore still (officially) in Perrysburg and my (official) pay for the week is $21.66. Peckerhead. I'll have another $21.66 coming whenever I go back to work, since the truck has to get to Taylor somehow, but today's dispatching failure screws up my pay schedule.
The disappointment should have ended there. It didn't. After a nice and easy drive down to Pittsburgh this evening, my brothers and I chugged a few beers at the hotel and then walked over to a local bar. The place was nice. The food was good. The crowd was pitiful. Nary a hot broad in sight. Hardly any dudes either, for that matter. We ate well and drank a few rounds, then headed back to the hotel (where a full cooler was waiting). My two (much younger 'second marriage') brothers are sleeping like a couple of little bitches. I'm watching ESPN and typing a blog post. This is not how the Friday before a big game is supposed to conclude. And I still haven't found anyone to fight me.
I got my truck back from Ohio today. Some might be tempted to call the afternoon drive a mere appetizer for tonight's main course. For me though, it carried the significance of adding another 57 miles to my week and earning enough money to pay my insurance premiums. Alas, I just checked the company's web portal. The dispatcher who told me that he would "take care of it" was full of shit. My (official) current pay period consists of only 57 miles. That's a one-way trip from Taylor to Perrysburg. My truck is therefore still (officially) in Perrysburg and my (official) pay for the week is $21.66. Peckerhead. I'll have another $21.66 coming whenever I go back to work, since the truck has to get to Taylor somehow, but today's dispatching failure screws up my pay schedule.
The disappointment should have ended there. It didn't. After a nice and easy drive down to Pittsburgh this evening, my brothers and I chugged a few beers at the hotel and then walked over to a local bar. The place was nice. The food was good. The crowd was pitiful. Nary a hot broad in sight. Hardly any dudes either, for that matter. We ate well and drank a few rounds, then headed back to the hotel (where a full cooler was waiting). My two (much younger 'second marriage') brothers are sleeping like a couple of little bitches. I'm watching ESPN and typing a blog post. This is not how the Friday before a big game is supposed to conclude. And I still haven't found anyone to fight me.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
11/12/09
Not every day has an easily identifiable highlight but some days certainly do. Today had a very distinct highlight. It came when I was lucky enough to end up between my parents at dinner. When they haven't been on speaking terms for the last day or two, the fella who draws the 'buffer' seat should always consider himself lucky. It wasn't as bad as I expected though. The food was superb and nobody said anything awkward. Good enough.
There was no sound on the TVs at the bar where we had dinner, but I still could see that the discussion on various ESPN and Fox Sports shows involved a certain Indiana university whose football players wear shiny gold helmets. Plenty of pundits laughing at the lads and their coach this week, it would appear. To quote our nation's esteemed leader and undisputed savior of the free world - Fired up! Ready to go! Saturday can't get here fast enough. As of the time that this post is being made, nobody has yet volunteered to fight me. The offer stands.
The six cases of beer in the trunk of my car should be enough to get us through tomorrow night and all of Saturday, I hope. My last leisure trip to Pittsburgh came in 2005. Following a dazzling 42-21 victory for the Irish on that Saturday night, my fruitless pursuit of a late-night beer store left an indelible mark on my soul. The place is still run by Quakers or something and, beginning promptly at 1am, I was shit out of luck. Never again, I vowed. Never again. If I were ever to visit for another Pitt game, I would make sure to arrive with more beer than I could possibly hope to drink.
My Swedish buddy Sjoe managed to offload his smuggled cigarettes from Kentucky tonight and I'll get paid for my brothers' football tickets tomorrow, so the financial end of the weekend appears to be pretty well situated. All that is left is for Our Lady's fearless defenders of righteousness to redeem their soiled name. We'll see.
There was no sound on the TVs at the bar where we had dinner, but I still could see that the discussion on various ESPN and Fox Sports shows involved a certain Indiana university whose football players wear shiny gold helmets. Plenty of pundits laughing at the lads and their coach this week, it would appear. To quote our nation's esteemed leader and undisputed savior of the free world - Fired up! Ready to go! Saturday can't get here fast enough. As of the time that this post is being made, nobody has yet volunteered to fight me. The offer stands.
The six cases of beer in the trunk of my car should be enough to get us through tomorrow night and all of Saturday, I hope. My last leisure trip to Pittsburgh came in 2005. Following a dazzling 42-21 victory for the Irish on that Saturday night, my fruitless pursuit of a late-night beer store left an indelible mark on my soul. The place is still run by Quakers or something and, beginning promptly at 1am, I was shit out of luck. Never again, I vowed. Never again. If I were ever to visit for another Pitt game, I would make sure to arrive with more beer than I could possibly hope to drink.
My Swedish buddy Sjoe managed to offload his smuggled cigarettes from Kentucky tonight and I'll get paid for my brothers' football tickets tomorrow, so the financial end of the weekend appears to be pretty well situated. All that is left is for Our Lady's fearless defenders of righteousness to redeem their soiled name. We'll see.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
11/11/09
One trip to Ohio is better than two, for various reasons, but it's still a trip to Ohio. After calling the road service guys this morning to give them the rundown on my truck, I expected to be sent to the damned Kenworth dealer in Dearborn. It turns out though that I am not the only one with a low opinion of those degenerates. I was sent to the dealership in Perrysburg, Ohio instead. Hey, I earned $21.66 today. Woo hoo!
The guy down in Perrysburg said that he would call me some time this evening and let me know how long my truck would be in the shop. The guys in Dearborn always used to say that they would call me and then they would never call. Given the different location and all, I actually believed the guy today. Yeah, the joke was on me. No phone call. State lines are no barrier against shitty customer service. It's all over. It would be nice to get the truck back up here before the weekend so that my pay will be enough to cover my insurance premiums. Other than that though, I have no use for my truck until next week. Let's just hope that they get it all fixed up nice and proper.
After (and perhaps despite) enjoying a few beers while out to dinner with a friend of mine this evening, I managed to resist the temptation to return a phone call to a non-friend of mine. Score one for the angel on my right shoulder this time around. Nice and simple. That's how we like things around here. The devil on the left shoulder, however, is giving me the silent treatment. According to him - sober, bored, and alone is no way to go through a night.
Tomorrow looks to be a pretty busy one ahead of Friday's departure for Pittsburgh. Lots of running here and there would seem to be in store. And just in case any Pitt fans are reading - I'm still prepared to fight you at a time and place that would prove mutually convenient for each of us. If you are unable or unwilling to fight me, I will gladly insult your mother instead. Just let me know.
The guy down in Perrysburg said that he would call me some time this evening and let me know how long my truck would be in the shop. The guys in Dearborn always used to say that they would call me and then they would never call. Given the different location and all, I actually believed the guy today. Yeah, the joke was on me. No phone call. State lines are no barrier against shitty customer service. It's all over. It would be nice to get the truck back up here before the weekend so that my pay will be enough to cover my insurance premiums. Other than that though, I have no use for my truck until next week. Let's just hope that they get it all fixed up nice and proper.
After (and perhaps despite) enjoying a few beers while out to dinner with a friend of mine this evening, I managed to resist the temptation to return a phone call to a non-friend of mine. Score one for the angel on my right shoulder this time around. Nice and simple. That's how we like things around here. The devil on the left shoulder, however, is giving me the silent treatment. According to him - sober, bored, and alone is no way to go through a night.
Tomorrow looks to be a pretty busy one ahead of Friday's departure for Pittsburgh. Lots of running here and there would seem to be in store. And just in case any Pitt fans are reading - I'm still prepared to fight you at a time and place that would prove mutually convenient for each of us. If you are unable or unwilling to fight me, I will gladly insult your mother instead. Just let me know.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
11/10/09
Some of this blog's more astute readers may have concluded that the only alcoholic to earn any mention here on a regular basis is my Swedish buddy Sjoe. Those readers are dead wrong. I have had a few pops myself tonight and I don't mind telling you - the world can be a pretty good place when you're a drunk. Once the beers flow freely for a few hours, one can almost forget about the ongoing debate concerning Charlie Weis' job status. Beauty. At this point, I'll gladly fight any Pitt fan who wants to step up to the plate.
To fulfill our blog's trucking-related quota - I did scrub down the floors in my truck this afternoon. I'll take the beast over to the Kenworth dealer in Dearborn tomorrow. Hopefully those degenerates can have the clutch brake, air conditioning, and fuel tanks fixed by the time I check back with them next week. Hopefully.
Gotta go now. Rumor has it that my ideal woman has been spotted outside Ann Arbor...
To fulfill our blog's trucking-related quota - I did scrub down the floors in my truck this afternoon. I'll take the beast over to the Kenworth dealer in Dearborn tomorrow. Hopefully those degenerates can have the clutch brake, air conditioning, and fuel tanks fixed by the time I check back with them next week. Hopefully.
Gotta go now. Rumor has it that my ideal woman has been spotted outside Ann Arbor...
Monday, November 9, 2009
11/9/09
I think that we'll go ahead and get tonight's post done early for a couple of reasons.
First is that I need to create a new backup image of my hard drive and this will likely take until tomorrow morning. My computer will be out of commission during the interim.
Second is that I have a sneaking suspicion that I'll be at a local pub before too much longer this evening. I got most of the crap out of my truck this afternoon, scrubbed my car down after that, and did some laundry after that. I've most certainly earned my leisure time.
First is that I need to create a new backup image of my hard drive and this will likely take until tomorrow morning. My computer will be out of commission during the interim.
Second is that I have a sneaking suspicion that I'll be at a local pub before too much longer this evening. I got most of the crap out of my truck this afternoon, scrubbed my car down after that, and did some laundry after that. I've most certainly earned my leisure time.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
11/8/09
Lying on the couch all day can make you tired, it would seem. One minute, I was reading a book. The next minute, I woke to find that the day was over. Bummer.
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