It has been a long time since I wrote any of my Daily Notes. So what would I have written during my prolonged absence?
Wake Forest Football took a major hit this year. That 5 game losing streak with games lost by the closest of margins did not do justice to the performance that Riley Skinner has put in for the past 4 years taking the team to 3 bowl games including the Orange Bowl in his freshman year. He has put in records that will take years to break. So it has been disappointing. Part of the problem was the loss of so many seniors from last year on defence. That defence made the difference in so many games over the years and proven to be irreplaceable in many ways. But that is life in college football. A constant turnover of players year in, year out but it is the programs and traditions that keep several schools competitive year every year. Wake is not there yet and next year will bring many unknowns especially at quarterback. But the team has something to look back on as it builds for the future.
The neighbourhood coffee shop, Confluence Coffee closed shop after 15 months in business. Continual losses made the shop a drain on the resources of the church that was maintaining it. It’s a pity for it was a good place to go but then again I never went there frequently like many others and that is what lead it to its demise.
Downtown Winston-Salem has been quiet of late regarding new developments but it looks like some new things will be happening on Trade Street at Seventh with a new restaurant. But it seems that with each new entry in the local market, someone else leaves like the Camel City Cafe at the Stevens Center.
On politics, alot of things are happening. Health care seems to be slowly moving forward. Whether it becomes a reality before the New Year depends on the political will of the Democratic Senators. It can happen if they remained united.
As one war winds down, another starts to heat up. There is no doubt that President Obama will be making a firm commitment to the war Afghanistan. The question is what exit strategy will be employed. There can not be a blank cheque here.
I missed not taking autumn photos this year along with the Ballonfest. Missed out on other events as well. Will have to pick it up next year. Xmas parade coming up this weekend, though.
One more year and Madeleine will be in kindergarten. She is growing up fast.
Been a few months since downgrading my cable television to the bare minimum. Not really missing much other than the HD quality. Been renting from Netflix to make up some of the difference. I have plenty to catch up on especially as I have not been to the theater at all in months.
I think this has been the wettest autumn I have ever seen here in Winston since I moved here in 2002.
… and that is all I wrote.
Powerball lottery jackpot is up to $213 million for this Saturday’s draw with the lump sum payment of $103 million. Ever since they went with the much tougher odds for jackpots, they have been getting their big jackpots. So routine now, that it barely rates as news anymore. Perhaps when it gets to $300 million then it may be worth a news item of people lining up to buy tickets.
I wonder, though, why the lottery even bothers with the jackpot as it is announced now. The vast majority of jackpot winners always opt for the lump sum payment as it is usually a much better deal in the long run than receiving equal annual payments for 20 years or so.
Of course, the inflated number is what drives people to buy the tickets in the first place but it seems so dishonest in a way. Even with the lump sum payment, though, the net proceeds is much less when the various governments get their taxes out of the winnings.
Flickr is having some real site problems this past week which is causing all sorts of access issues for me on that site as well as for my own site which uses Flickr as the source of the photo galleries. Patience they counsel, patience.
This weekend is going to be somewhat busy. Saturday is the church social group picnic for the Mother’s group. After that is over with, we are planning to race to Wake Forest for Fan Fest and get pictures with the players and check out the stadium. Sunday, we go to Mooresville for a birthday party.
That is a lot of driving and a lot of gas. While cheaper than last year, prices are still pretty high. Not to the point yet where we drive only when we have to but it is getting close.
While America Got Talent television show is reaching its semi final rounds with a fairly predictable safe and standard mix of mostly singers and a few dance troupes, the Ukrainian version of the show had its finale not too long ago and its shows that to win, you do not have to be a singer or a dancer. Amazing what someone could do with sand and light.
Dog Days of summer, indeed.
… and that is all I wrote.
Quiet start to the week. Hot one too with temperatures probably hitting near 100°F(40°C) when factoring in the humidity. Mowing the lawn even after 7pm proved to be an ordeal. After getting through half of the yard, my tshirt was drenched. I figured that was a good point to stop for the evening. Resuming the mowing this evening.
Not sure if I want to keep on doing this year in, year out for 6-8 months of the year. I would really like to rebuild the backyard to eliminate most of the mowing and make it low maintenance but I hesitate though in going through with it. It is a big back yard making it ideal for young children to run and play, to let their imaginations run wild. If there was an open field nearby where they could do the same, then that would have take care of that need but being a subdivision, public spaces are rare. We’ ll see for the future I guess.
Looking forward to Bookmarks festival on September 12th. No real big names this year so far but Justin Fox, columnist for Time Magazine, will be there promoting his new book, Myth of the Rational Market which is getting stellar reviews. It is going to be downtown this year which should make for some interesting venues. I expect the lawn area on Civic Plaza to be utilised to some degree.
Speaking of things to do on a weekend, Saturday is Fan Fest for Wake Forest football. Every year, I promise myself I would go but never able to because something comes up. So far, I have kept my calendar free this weekend so we shall see if I get there.
Another day and another day of rain. According to the weather service, this is the 5th wettest spring in the southeast USA since they habe been recording such things since 1895. All sorts of rain too: drizzling rain, thunderstorms, all day, occasional shower and so on. temperatures have been moderate with some hot days. Supposedly, this spell of wet water will pass and we will enter a period of hot dry weather for the balance of the summer season. Sounds like a bumper crop of corn will be in the offing then come the harvest season.
Still, the wet weather did not stop us in having a great picnic this past weekend at my work’s place. Great food, great fun and great company. Check out the photos.
Jeff Teague is joining James Johnson in entering the NBA draft. It is a bit disappointing that the sophomores are leaving so soon. If they were both in the lineup for the upcoming year, Wake Forest would be fine contention for another run at the top like they did in January. So it is time for the freshmen from last year start taking on a more prominent role. Aminu, Woods and Walker were considered to be the 5th best recruiting class last year so it is time for them to step up. Ish Smith and LD Williams will have to make the most of their senior year to keep Wake in contention.
So it goes for another day.
Tonight the third round of the NCAA Tournament will start with the tip off with Purdue against UConn at 7pm. Other games on the night’s schedule include Pittsburgh vs Xavier, Duke vs Villanova, and Memphis vs Missouri. All in all, a very attractive slate of games unlike the NIT tournament games being shown this week on ESPN. Just never got into the NIT despite some of the quality teams that are there.
As for my brackets, I am not doing too badly actually. Of my top 16, on three of my brackets, I have 13 out of 16. Not too bad of an average and for the office pool, enough to put me into a tie for first place.
The really bummer about the whole thing is that Wake went out in defeat in one of the worst games of the year for them. But I should not be too surprised; the team has exhibited Jekyll and Hyde tendencies in the last half of the season. It is not about talent. Plenty of that but rather it is about leadership on the team and the motivation that flows from that. Against top teams like UNC or Duke, each player is highly motivated to do their best but against lower ranked opposition, the team just could not get it going. That is when a true leader steps to the fore and brings the team along with him. If the team remains intact, that means James Johnson who has shown that he can get the team going through his efforts should be the designated captain even informally and adopt the leadership role that the team needs.
So it looks like a good weekend of basketball. Some excellent games and even though there are no Cinderella teams this year, I do not mind as long as I see some truly competitive games.
Let’s hope my bracket stays intact.