Thoughts on a weekend

Its 8:32 pm

    Its a nice warm evening here in SE Michigan. Summer is still in full force as we are being blessed with just wonderful warm days.
   Where to even start with this entry...I had a decent week for the most part. Had just a hellish night on the 19th of August,so bad I had to take a day off work because I couldn't sleep a wink. And that was even with my CPAP machine. I finally fell sleep but only for a little while..but that is the nature of what is going on here.
But since that day,its been pretty okay....talked to Becca from Arbor Hospice who called on the 20th and also Don Neilson where we talked on FB for an hour. Felt good to decompress a bit.
  The U of Michigan is having a day of remembering for the families of those who lost a loved one. I decided I am going to go,I am submitting a picture and Lori's name to be included. There is also a option for those folks who may wish to speak about their loved one at a future time. I also am going to sign up for that. I want to speak about Lori and how bravely she lived despite her cancer. How she loved life and kept her beautiful smile all the way to the very end. I want her remembered and I know I am the only voice that can really tell her story.
  So I am taking my neighbor Al's advice and am looking to join Toastmasters so I can learn to speak in a public setting. This will take some doing because while I am quite good at sharing my feelings via this blog,speaking publicly would be a whole different ball of wax. The local chapter meets on Wednesday night so I am going to go and see what happens.
  I also took the time to go to Canton's city hall and signed up to resume volunteering for the emergency food program. I had been a steady volunteer there as had Lori until her illness prevented her from doing but I continued. Its a good program and while the numbers of families had stayed pretty steady for the 4 years of the program (about 70-72),it recent saw a upsurge of about 30 more families/people who have requested help. So now its at about 100 families..the part-time economy is starting to take its toll on people. I know it has for me as well as I too,am going to have to sign up for some help. There is a local church that runs a massive food assistance program close to me and I am going to ask for help. But that is not uncommon after such a serious illness devastates a family or a couple like we were. Its hard to fathom this is happening to me but one can only grit their teeth and push on through it. I intend to volunteer in exchange for the help I am hoping to get. I said hoping only in the fact a person has to be interviewed first before being placed on the food list. I have been told they had to really crack down because of the abusers and cheats who look to take advantage of the program. I can understand that and agree with it as well.
  I'm turning 49 on Monday....but all it means to me is One Day Closer. I can't ask for a better present.

My thanks to Ken Helwig of the The Empty's for a fine interview and for the great support the interview has been showed. I want to go on record that I had to go and re-edit the story because of a few errors that I made. The small changes were made and the interview is 100% factually correct.
  Next interview will be posted shortly...

So Ben Affleck is going to be the new Batman. Well,I for one,am very happy with the choice. I think Ben will be a excellent Batman and so will any REAL fanboy and not just some whiny posers who are bitching just because its "Ben Affleck". I heard this same shit when Tobey McGuire was picked to play Spiderman,Hugh Jackman was picked to play Wolverine,even Halle Barry to play Storm. Face it,except for a handful of not so bad casting but horrible scripts (hello Superman IV,Supergirl,the cheesy Hulk series) the actors chosen to play superheroes has been pretty well thought of. Think about that for a second....you can point to Catwoman and say "Look how awful that was". And I would agree but an actor is only as good as a script lets him/her be.
  Daredevil was Ben's first superhero movie and while the film that was in the theaters was so-so,the director's cut fully shows off just how badass Ben's Daredevil really was. And speaking of that film,I can remember seeing so many snobs protest both Colin Ferrell as Bullseye but Michael Clarke Duncan as The Kingpin. But years later and many fans who loved the director's cut of Daredevil,agree that the casting was near perfect and Ben played both Matt Murdock and Daredevil as they should have been played.
  I mean the other "name" that was being tossed around was Josh Brolin! Really?? Josh Brolin?? He is a good actor but as Batman? He may have been good but not as good as Affleck will be. I think fans need to take a deep breath and let it slowly out. And if you really need convincing,go rent "Argo" and "The Town" and tell us that he can't pull this out.

 Its now Sunday,the 25th....its 2:07 pm

  Another great day here....got a phone call from Marlene (Crash's mom) who invited me for brunch today. Since I was scheduled a quick 3 hour shift,I agreed to it and we made plans to meet after work.
Dylan showed me a couple of card tricks and they gave me a cute card. It was a very nice gesture and I was touched they remembered my birthday.
 But when I got to work..I saw that I had somehow gotten my times mixed up,I thought it was 8 am to 11 am (it is a special project,hence the weird hours) when it fact it was 8 pm to 11 pm. I had another crappy night of sleep so I had to fight to get up and get going.
  Once I learned what I did,I was bummed..I have plans for tonight so I asked if they needed me anyways. They did and I worked with Ty (the ASM who really supported me during Lori's illness),Paul and Val in straightening our tile and floor section. It was hard work but I enjoyed it and the time flew quickly.

Football season starts this week. The San Jose State Spartans are hosting a dangerous Sacramento State team on Thursday night. As I have pointed out,while being a lower FCS squad,the Hornets have beaten two Pac-12 teams the past two years and will get a third crack at it as they play Arizona State after SJSU. They upset Oregon State,29-28,two years ago and then beat Colorado,30-28 last year. So this is a game the Spartans MUST take seriously and yet dominate in order to get ready for 2nd ranked Stanford the next week.
   But even more important,the fans have to show up. Spartan Stadium is 31,000 seats yet it drew the least amount of fans for a Top 25 team last year. This has to change and change quickly. We really good crowds so ESPN and Fox 1 will be willing to show the Spartans on TV. No one wants to see a 5,000-6,000 crowd on TV. The school is trying very hard to bring quality teams in as well...no one wants to see a FCS team every year,its cool to be able to host a "name" program like Navy and BYU. But those games cost money to bring in and only packed houses can generate that...the school just signed two home and away series with both BYU (the last two games were on ESPN and did pretty well rating wise) and also with Oregon State.
Add two games against SEC Auburn plus signed series with Army,Colorado and Iowa State and the future is bright...as along as the fans show up to support the team.
 
  Well,that is all I have for this short post.

Special shout out to my favorite crew...Sue,Tiana,Kim (enjoy the getaway!) and Angie (no more TJ Hooker for you,detective).