The Daily News

1   So…Tony Curtis walks into a bar…

2   Great actor, hundreds of pictures over the years.

3   Some of  you might remember him playing opposite Jack Lemmon and Marilyn Monroe in Billy Wilder’s classic film Some Like it Hot.

4   He is also the father of Jamie Lee Curtis.

5   Curtis made well over eighty some-odd films, and can still be enjoyed to this day in films like Operation Petticoat, Sex and the Single Girl, Spartacus, The Great Race, and Rosemary’s Baby.

6   Fun rainy-day Saturday guy. Any of those films are worth a gander, and Curtis, who lived a pretty troubled life, is always fun to watch. He also made the cover of Sgt. Pepper.

7   Sad, but life moves on.

8   Moving on, Part the First: Following up on the grand nightmare of getting grades done, it all went smoothly yesterday. Because I have been pouring every waking moment into my work lately, the usual stressful issue of getting grades in ran as well as I could have hoped. There was no second guessing, and before I knew it, I was on the way to the BEACH!

9   Do ya love it?

10 The second I got my grades sent in, I got a text from Jenny.

11   She simply wanted to go for some lunch, just to catch up.

12    Well, the timing seemed perfect. I had finished doing the grades <MONUMENTAL> and handled more than enough boushit to fill a truck, but don’t we all put up with that on a daily basis?

13   So all I thought about was today’s lesson, and making sure that everything was workin’.

14   We have some new digital means of entering our grades, so a part of me was stressed, but soon I found it to be pretty user-friendly, and started finishing up what I am beginning to call “The Business”.

15   Did I even SPELL that right?  I swear to you, I do need rest. I wrote that last item last night after months of stress, and it actually looked incorrect.

16   I’m starting to get why students misspell. I was always an amazing speller, even won a schoolwide bee when I was in sixth grade. But exhaustion and the reading constantly of misspelled words makes me question things as I rocket toward senility. I always prided myself on my spelling abilities. For example, until this year, I thought I was the only person walking around who could spell “leprechaun” without looking. 

17   Last week one of my students went up to the board and spelled it correctly. He is a shy kid, but I asked if anyone thought they could spell “leprechaun”. This kid popped up and raised his hand. He’s a cool kid named Mose. 

18    AnywayZ…he walked right up to the board and laid it down.

L-E-P-R-E-C-H-A-U-N.

19   I was dutifully impressed.

20  AnywayZ!!!

21  I’m fookin’ exhausted.

22  But I got it done, and shortly thereafter hit the BEACH!

23  Jenny and Grant just wanted to chill, and take me on a tour of the coast.

24  Against all odds, I decided to go.

25   Best thing I’ve done in about a hundred years.

26   We hit Capitola for some late lunch at the immortal Zelda’s, and then cruised over to Santa Cruz for some ice cream and shopping at Marini’s on the Santa Cruz Wharf.

27   Outstanding!

28    Marini’s is Santa Cruz’s answer to any candy store/ice cream parlour on the planet.

29    We hit Capitola late afternoon, and I pulled out my guitar. We sang, and enjoyed a lovely day at the beach.

30    But the highlight was that if you go to the Wharf in Santa Cruz, you could drive right down the Wharf to an Marini’s.

31    I never knew this, but after six, the Wharf is totally FREE if you are there under thirty minutes.

32   Thirty minutes to me is golden.

33   We parked, went in, and enjoyed the gift shop, and some of the best ice cream anyone could ever dream of! I had a root-beer float cone <WAY amazing!> and a hot cuppa cocoa. They attach a piece of fudge to the side of your glass, like a dessert cocktail. They also gave free samples of their amazingly yummy pumpkin fudge. Just outstanding.

34   Once we left, the parking was easy as pie. The sun came down on the ocean, bringing instand cold and wind, but looked orange, purple and amazing. A bit too cold for no coats, so we turned and left. Still…the quick trip to such a great place was just the what was needed.

35   Let me tellya. Anyone can do that after a day at the beach, and I totally loved it!

36   I got home just in time to watch the Giants win again, and boy!

37   Fun night!

38    I’ll keep the rest of this short, because there was so much more, but yesterday was the first time I’ve relaxed in at LEAST a well over a month.

39   Great day, great night.

40   I have worked really hard the past few months. Who hasn’t?

41   So I am just one guy.

42   But I had such a nice day and night, and then my Giants won.

43   As of right now, I have no lesson plan for today.

44   But I had to pound out the DN for y’all first.  I think I know what I’m gonna do later today. By the time I’ve had a little coffee this morning, it’ll all materialize. Group work, for sure.

45   I’ll go in today and rock the house. It’s time to relax.

46   Bottom line: it’s all done!

47   I’m free, at least for now. I’ts like any college student who is finally free.

48   Time to kick back and reflect, my friends.

49   Lovin’ life. Lovin’ ice cream, hot cocoa and fudge.

50   A huge thanks to Jenny and Grant for a lovely, lovely day.

51   There’s more to face, but for now, I’m lovin’ life.

52    You enjoy your day every way you can today.

53    And as always, live life.

54    Love life.

55    Peace.

~H~

www.xanga.com/bharrington

The Daily News

1  Howz bout those Giants?

2  I have watched and sweat through every pitch, every flubbed play, every double play to witness a team that went from being practically a minor league flair to an honest threat to smash through the playoffs!

3   For those of you new to baseball, being in first place all alone on September 29 is everything you need to realize that YOUR team, the one you have lived and died for, is on top!

4   Like any sport, baseball pulls you into its family. You begin to feel that you personally KNOW these guys. And they let you know that yes, they personally know you.

5   I’ll keep it short, honestly I will, ‘cuz I need my beauty rest.

6   But I’ve been riveted with this amazing team of young guys and Old Brown Shoes all summer, and watched as they grew, matured, and have now become a bonafide powerhouse in major league baseball. And it’s because they play as a TEAM, just like the song from Charlie Brown.

7   As a kid, I got into the Giants because my grandfather was WAY into them.

8   When my own Nonie passed away, my Mom told me to talk Giants with my grandfather, to try to keep his spirits up. He was crushed when he lost her, and spent many hours sobbing at our kitchen table. My job as a kid was to cheer him up. Our common denominator: our Giants.

9   He was my Papu. And we became best friends on the Giants alone. We talked about who we liked, who we hated, and who were Bums <ALWAYS the Dodgers, of course!>

10  I had to learn baseball, and Giants’ baseball in paricular, pretty quickly.

11  I remember the nights we would sit at the table, he with a nice glass of Chianti, the classic bottles in the basket holders, and waste warm summer evenings talking baseball, and loving all of it, me with perhaps a glass if ice cold milk. He would smile and laugh with me, and I with him.

12   I wound up working for the Giants for nearly twenty-five years as a vendor, and later as a merch guy. I spent thousands of summers out at Candlestick Park loving every single pitch, loving every single hot dog, and loving the skies that could turn from sunshiny and amiable to fierce, foggy, and windy within milliseconds. I knew how to wear enough clothes to fight off the cold. I loved that visiting teams were intimidated by it.

13   Day games that began at noon midsummer were consistently warm and gorgeous. The ones that started at one turned pretty cold at around four. But noon games were classic baseball. Hot dogs and sodas, a small bag of peanuts, and ice cream around the sixth. It is a nostalgia that any baseball fan anywhere has, so I’ll shorten it.

14   Point is, last night the new Giants looked VERY much like serious contenders for not only the playoffs. They might not make it. In July they were a 7-1 shot to make the playoffs. Not anymore. And they were a 20-1 shot to win the World Series. Not…

15   Okay, okay, maybe I’m a bit over the top.

16    Just abide the old geezer.

17    Last night, right before the Giants won, I finished totalling the grades for my last major class. I finished about thirty seconds before the game ended. I have one more class to add up, but it has only twenty-one students. So I had an enormous double-victory last night. By this afternoon, I’m going to be free of the burden of grading that has been on my back since the first day of school. It’ll be DONE, and I will be free! To those of you in college, it’s like having all your finals done and about two weeks off!

18    So please abide. And if you’re a Giants’ fan, raise a HUGE glass to an organization that has EVERYTHING together right now!

20    Can I get an ” ‘Attababe”?

21   Immina keep it short today, because I do indeed need to finish off that last class.

22   But I feel free, and amazing on this warm Autumn night. My yard is lit, the fountain mingles with a few summer crickets, and life is amazingly good.

23   I LOVE baseball, dudes.

24   But then, you KNEW that.

25    So I’m going to raise a glass, and tuck myself in bed, ‘cuz it’s already a half-hour past my bedtime. Drink to me; drink to my health.

26    Peace to you, my noble homies.

27    Late.

~H~

www.xanga.com/bharrington

The Daily News

1   So…George Blanda walks into a bar…

2   Great Raider, one of the best ever. Famous for having come out of retirement and lead the team as an aging back-up quarterback who basically took the 1970 Raiders to the playoffs. Similar to Brett Favre, only not as ridiculous. Blanda played into his late forties, and was always a class act.

3   Even when I hated the Raiders, I still loved George.

4   I no longer hate the Raiders, and in fact, I find myself rooting for them like crazy lately.

5   And I loved George not because he has my given name, but because he was a fighter. Just an inspirational human being.

6   We’ll miss you, Mr. Blanda. You always were a class act, and an exciting player in your old age.

7   Guys like that I revere. Here’s an article about Blanda written my me old chum and confidant Brian Daley:

George Blanda and his magic 1970 season

By Brian Daley

SF Cable TV Examiner

• September 27th, 2010 7:59 pm PT

 

George Blanda

Photo: google images

George Blanda played in an NFL record 26 seasons, and although he rewrote the record book in terms of longevity, longtime Oakland Raider fans will remember him most for his incredible 1970 season, when Blanda accounted for the winning or tying points in the final moments of five consecutive games. Blanda, who spent nine of his 26 pro-football years with the Raiders, died earlier this week at the age of 83.

After playing college football at the University of Kentucky, George Blanda played his first of 340 pro-football games with the Chicago Bears in 1949. Blanda spent ten seasons in Chicago, primarily as a backup quarterback, but also serving as the team’s placekicker. George Blanda retired after the 1958 season, but was lured back to football in 1960 by the Houston Oilers of the brand new American Football League. Blanda led the Oilers to the first two AFL titles, and was named AFL player of the year for 1961, a season which saw him throw 36 touchdown passes, a pro-football record at that time.

Blanda’s career seemed finished in 1967 when the Oilers released the soon to be 40 veteran, but the Oakland Raiders gave him a new lease on life, signing him as their placekicker, and backup quarterback to Daryl Lamonica. Blanda responded by leading the AFL in scoring in 1967, and proved more than capable in the reserve quarterback role. By 1970, however, the Raiders had a new potential second string quarterback in Ken Stabler, and Blanda, nearing 43, was released during the pre-season. But shortly before opening weekend, Blanda was reactivated, and his miracle season began.

The 1970 Oakland Raiders struggled the first month of the season, and entered their October 25th game against Pittsburg with a 2-2-1 record. Coming off the bench to replace an injured Daryl Lamonica, George Blanda threw three touchdown passes to help defeat the Steelers 31-14. The following week in Kansas City, Blanda kicked a 48 yard field goal to preserve a 17-17 tie against the Chiefs. On November 8th, Blanda provided what was probably his signature heroics in a game against Cleveland. Trailing the Browns 20-13, Oakland again turned to Blanda after Lamonica was hurt late in the fourth quarter. Tying the game with a 14 yard touchdown pass to Warren Wells, Blanda won the game with a 53 yard field goal with eight seconds left. The following week, Lamonica was injured yet again, allowing Blanda to save the day once more, hitting Fred Biletnikoff with a touchdown toss to beat the Denver Broncos, 24-19. On November 22, Blanda was called on one more time, and he delivered with a 16 yard field goal to beat the San Diego Chargers, 20-17. The Raiders won the 1970 AFC Western Division title with an 8-4-2 record.

The 1970 AFC Championship game against the Baltimore Colts saw Blanda again relieving Lamonica, and although Blanda completed 17 out of 32 passes for two touchdowns, a pair of late interceptions allowed the Colts to prevail, 27-17. Despite the loss, Blanda was awarded the Bert Bell Award, presented annually the pro-football player of the year. Blanda retired after the 1975 season, finishing with over 2,000 points, 236 touchdown passes and 26,920 passing yards. George Blanda also holds the distinction of being the oldest quarterback to start in a title game, and the oldest person to play in an NFL game (48 years, 109 days). In 1981, George Blanda was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

8   I never got a chance to meet Blanda, even though Brian’s father used to cover the Raiders for the San Francisco Examiner many years ago. The Daley house always had sports’ celebs coming and going, so it was fun for us as kids.

9   George Blanda showed all of us that with a proper work ethic, anybody can remain on top of their game and still get the job done.

10  Well, almost anybody.

11  Moving on, Part the Second:  Speakng of which, Niners sent offensive coordinator Jimmy Raye packing, which is sad, to a degree, but he truly was working past his prime. Blanda still managed to get things done, in almost a miraculous way. It can be done, but it must be done through true hard work, and realizing that the knocks are still going to come fast and furious.

12  Right now, I am working as hard as I have ever worked, and turned the corner on grading papers. I also face many challenges this year, but in no way do I feel anything but electricity every second I’m in the classroom.

13   I do this because I still work as hard as I ever, have added fifteen units to an upgrade in my educational resume, and still go in every single day as passionate and intense as ever.

14   So far it’s been working. It’s a challenge, but rather than resting on whatever cheap laurels I might have, I spend hours upon hours thinking, organizing, and staying on top of my game.

15   I spend hours upon hours on weekends thinking, changing, grading, and getting more sleep than ever so that each day I’m fresh and ready. I work long hours on the weekends to stay on top of things, and this year I’ve learned how to get over eight hours of sleep, something I haven’t been able to muster over the years. I’m getting more rest, going to sleep early and waking up early.

16   VERY tough year, but so far, so good.

17   I’m blessed that I work in a school that desperately NEEDS input from an Old Brown Shoe who is still bringing it each day.

18   As I said, it ain’t easy. It is more intense work than I’ve ever attempted, and I do feel that it is working.

19   Are there challenges?

20   Nah. Not a one.

21 

22   Okay, the answer is a resounding, “Yes!” Every single day is a challenge, as every single day is for anyone working passionately at their job.

23   But I also love when something breaks through.

24   I’m not trying to pat myself on the back here. I just know that I have poured my heart into my work these past two years. You know when you are getting it done, and it is STILL one of the hardest jobs in the world, despite what the public might think.

25   And the fact that I go in every single day LOVING it makes it all worthwhile.

26   I never wanted to be one of those old geezers who hides behind the union and leaves at 3. Won’t ever happen with this boy, never.

27   Too many successes over the years, many the result of the love that many DN readers threw my way over the years.

28   I thank all of you for keeping me up on my game.

29   Emotional stuff, but also electric stuff!

30   Last night I beat down almost an entire ream of papers. Doesn’t sound like much, does it?

31   But if we consider a summer of building an entire backyard garden for Caitlin’s engagement party, and then “segueing” into the school year, I haven’t stopped working myself into a tizzy until last night at around 9 p.m.!

32   The huge stack of papers I had to read three weeks ago is now around a quarter of an inch in height. I spent hours and hours reading, correcting, grading, planning, and enjoying, and I am enjoying teaching more now than I ever have!

33   Dear Gawd. I think back on my last year at YB, and I was into a tailspin. I was depressed beyond all measure, and had a really tough sixth period class. Life told me to change direction, and I think I left at just the right time. I was getting beat up and slammed around everywhere I turned. It was time. And suddenly, I am resting, spinning, planning, crafting, and enjoying my time up at the Chill.

34   I honestly don’t want this to sound like bragging. It’s just that I finally turned the corner on this school year. I’ve been working morning, noon, and night, and it just seemed I wasn’t getting there. So it’s more like a night that I could pump my fists in the air and say,”Yeah!” We’ve all had those moments.

35   It’s okay to share hard work, right?

36   Last night I didn’t even think I’d make the deadline, and today it looks like everything is twinkling! So you know how it is when suddenly you get that “break through” on something that has bugged you for around three months?

37   Yesterday I had a surge. I had a terrible moment in class where I had to throw a kid out of class and blast him for being disruptive, AND I had to take time out of my ridiculous deadline to write a referral on the poor kid.

38   Oh, he deserved a referral, but he was SO over the top that I had to take action.

39   And I really hope the kid turns around, because I could tell that deep down, he’s just a kid who is obviously hurting. But his behaviors since he joined my class have been totally beyond normal. He clearly is hurting inside, and it killed me to write him up and to berate him, but I had no choice.

40   My heart cries for the poor kid. But his behaviors were so disruptive and inconsiderate of the other students that I had to send him out and follow with a referral that took me almost an hour to scratch out.

41   Admittedly it took me out of my game, but I knew I had to get back in there, teach two more classes, and finish grading, never mind come up with vigorous lesson plans for today.

42   So no, not bragging at all. It has been a huge struggle this first six weeks, and in fact, these past three months, but last night I turned the corner!

43   I was able to gather it all together for the last two classes, then go home beat-up and somehow manage to finish the job.

44   It all worked, so hopefully by this weekend, I’ll be free of all papers, planning, and all the rest!

45   My hope is that not only will I do that, but that I can help that poor kid. If he is THAT over the top, then he needs intervention.

46   Anyway, that is my day in the life yesterday. Major break-through!

47    Today I fully intend to get every single thing graded and into the computer by Wednesday, and then go coastal.

48    Hope this didn’t come across as too self-indulgent, but this was a MAJOR breakthrough for the entire year, so I am celebrating with ice lemon water and Cheez-Its!

49   Anyway, I’m burnt but hopeful, and I can’t wait to go in today and take on the world. The world deserves it. I’t gotten a tad beaten down too.

50   I love you all, everything. Thank all of you for helping me get through it. It’s been a tough go, but finally! For those of you who have followed the DN for years, I bring you once more the immortal Chaplinesque, by Hart Crane. Just seems appropriate:

51   The figher still remains. Have a GREAT Tuesday.

52   Peace.

~H~

www.xanga.com/bharrington

And a song I was writing is left undone
I don’t know why I spend my time
Writing songs I can’t believe
With words that tear and strain to rhyme.

    The Daily News

1   Is it still summer?

2   Last week, I thought I officially declared that summer was over!

3   Foolish me. Astoundingly, I forgot to include the actual weather in the mix.

4   Ah, whatev.

5   I love “whatev”.

6   New skool.

7   It is so confusing living in a real/digital world, let me tellya.

8   But do we adjust?

9   In a manner of speaking.

10  To me, the world has systematically moved to the stupider.

11  It’s not like it’s a new trend or anything.

12  If you could read some of the papers I’ve been reading lately, you would clearly see that we are almost at critical mass.

13  Whatev. Or more to the point, “whatever THAT means.”

14  I just roll wid it.

15  For example, the simple fact that the word “with” is being replaced by the word “wid” speaks volumes.

16  We are becoming a nation of idiots.

17  I fight a war every single day to see that that <that that, tee hee!> doesn’t happen.

18  But make no mistake, we are quickly losing the War on Idiocy.

19  Makes for a challenging segue, “whatev” THAT means.

20  I’m pretty sure that I never knew what “segue” meant until I asked the venerable Shawna Fleming, who assured me it was just some hodge-podge that meant quite simply, “transition”. Shawna of course explained it in perfectly succinct terms that I could never even try to lay down here, but she laid it down with a trowel. She lay it down with a trowel? Oh, bother.

21  Nowadays, a “Segue” is some sort of weird scooter that listens and senses your direction.

22  I wish I could find some sort of vehicle that could do that.

23  I just keep growing older, and yes, a wee bit wiser by the day. It is truly one of the finer traits of growing older.

24   And even if we don’t somehow get wiser, we can certainly scam the younger set into believing that old equals brilliant.

25   I once saw film of a lecture by the immortal Bernard Shaw (He HATED the name “George” which to me personally set him at an immediate disadvantage.). I don’t even recall where he spoke, nor to whom. But the essence of his oratory was this: you listen to me because I am older, and weathered, and because I have white hair,and so you now respect anything I have to say.

26   I think that is one of the reasons that I raise Bernard Shaw to one of the pantheon set of intellectuals that I actually believe are intellectuals.

27   But I digress.

28   Or perhaps I don’t.

29   We are brilliant.

30   The old, I mean. Have I finally subscribed to the notion that I am old?

31   Not on your life.

32   Who else do I believe are intellectuals in my time?

33   Well, who do YOU consider the sages of your age?

34   If I start naming names after two days of reading students’ papers, I could readily see that some are in my classes. Yes, I do have geniuses. As in real life, they are few and far between, but they are there.

35   Back to it: who would be on my list of the sages of the age? If I actually begin NAMING names, I might start with Bernard Shaw.

36   Or Shawna Fleming.

37   Perhaps Marx.Or Lennon. Get it? Wasn’t funny.

38   The fact is, we have had the glorious chance of witnessing some of the very greats in our time. We just don’t know who history will see as brilliant.

39   Would that include Aretha? Or perhaps closer to home, Coldplay? Green Day? Sinatra? Eminem? Tupac? Santana? Notice I’m rattling off a lot of musicians.

40   Clearly there are the many more. It is interesting to think of who the truly wise are in our own time. We are all different. And we all follow different inspirations.

41   I won’t go into who I think are the greatest minds of our time. We never recognize them anyway; history has proven that.

42   There’s a lot out there. Much more than anyone could hope to Facebook,Twitter, Tweet,Toot, or even Stumble Upon.

43   Who are the true visionaries and thinkers in our time?

44   I don’t know. I can’t say I know. I think I’ll think about it today. Helps Monday move by more swiftly.

45   It’s a nice thought on a Monday. Whatever it is you are doing, at some time today stop and think of who YOU see as brilliant. Can you name ten?

46   Think of ten, and then keep them in your heart. I’m not the least bit interested, because clearly the answers will vary.

47   But it’s an interesting thought, isn’t it?

48   Who moves you?

49   It’s rhetorical. You’re certainly welcome to answer me in a message, because I’m WAY interested in your top ten.

50   But it’s not necessary.

51   It’s really just to give a little guidance. It’s almost 4 a.m. as I clack these words. It’s pitch black with the exception of the computer screen, and the incredible amount of led lights that surround us each night.

52   So I think I’ll crawl back into bed.

53   They would have to be insomniacs. The top ten.

54   I need to leave now.

55   See you tomorrow.

56    Peace.

~H~

www.xanga.com/bharrington

The Daily News

1   On the way home last night, I stopped in at CRS, or whatever it is that Long’s is now, to pick up something, anything!

2   I wound up buying a buncha stuff, including a last-minute impluse buy of some saltines.

3   I grabbed a box of their finest generic crackers and walked out like a proud white guy buying crackers.

4   Sorry.

5   Little joke about white guys as crackers. Never did get that one, but I’ll bet whoever thought it was funny is rollin’.

6   Anyway, when I opened the box. It turns out that I must have purchased “Pre-Stale” crackers. You know how they have “Pre-Cut-up” pants? I’m pretty sure these were like fashionable crackers, because they had “stale” down to an almost nostalgic perfection.

7   I remember how every now and again growing up, I’d grab a square wax bag of stale saltines, and the staleness had almost a nose, and an after-sniff, like a good glass of Merlot, only in a sort-of reverse.

8  Anyway, those crackers I got last night fit the mold, if you’ll excuse my pun.     

9  It was actually the second time in a day that I went to a low-budget store to get something, and came away a little disappointed.

10  Earlier I had gone down the street to the local Walgreen’s to buy a cheap, battery-powered radio so that I could listen to the Giants’ game between innings at Back-to-School Night.

11  About a week earlier I had gone into my own Walgreen’s for something or other. You shop Walgreen’s for printer paper, or Bic’s pencils, or maybe even cheap headphones, pharmeceudicals, or funky cosmetics. That IS Walgreen’s, man.

12   Three-pack of Bic’s anything. Tee-shirts, 5 for $10.

13   Well, I think I wanted to get an ink cartridge. Whatever I wanted was nullifed by two items that were in the window:

14   One was a recliner for $799. The other was an even bigger recliner for $999.

15

17   Walgreen’s? Really?

18   I kept looking at all the nerdy stuff that is in Walgreen’s, and two pieces of cheap furniture that collectively totaled over $1600 was unimaginable. A huge calulator for $9.99 I could understand.

19   But I was on my prep period when I went in for the radio, and figured I could at least find some sort of “As Seen on TV” shower radio for under ten bucks.

20   How wrong I was!

21   I entered the Walgreen’s over by the school, and was instantly met by an entire Halloween aisle, with cheapo Halloween items: stufffy masks, black cats, purple led lights; you get the drift.

22   But that aisle was exactly in the same area that previously staged cheapo radios, low-budget curling irons, digital blood-pressure kits, and HUGE calculators for $9.99. Here’s a former Christmas photo of the exact rack for which I was searching:

23   I couldn’t find any sort of radio, let alone an “As Seen on TV” shower radio.In fact, I couldn’t even find this reliable rack, which is ALWAYS on the right side of every Walgreens, near the photo area. I expected it to be near the Halloween stuff, the same way it is near the Christmas stuff in the above pic. But it was nowhere.

24   Naturally I goofed on the irony of the Walgreen’s by my house featuring ridiculously overpriced cheapo chairs that are expensive, and my NOT being able to find a radio there.

25   And now, the Walgreen’s up by the Chill had replaced all that gloriously stupid stuff with…nothing. No rack. No junk. No quick little radios, or things that cost $9.99!

26  I ALSO noticed that the Walgreen’s by the school has suddenly ADDED a wine aisle, after years of not selling alcohol. I was Amishly stunned. I stared astonished, sort of like Abe Lincoln, if Abe Lincoln were Amish.

27  Extraordinary.

28  But I guess it was all a sign of the times. I do think something astoundingly crooked could be going on at the Walgreen’s by where I live, but I choose not to think too much about it.

29  Well, enough about that.

30   Moving on, Part One: We indeed had Back-to-School night last night, and it went fabulously! I always sort of dread BTSN, but I am always thankful to the parents who make the effort to get there. One parent I thanked said, “Well, it’s only once a year, so…” Fine words from a fine parent.

31   After I finally found my way home, I chilled a little, ate some stale crackers, and then went outside to chill and get some ideas for today’s DN.

32   I walked right back into summer, full with a beautifully lit night, and crickets.

33   After a few moments of Zen, I looked up at the first autumnal night sky of the year.

34   Ah, might have been the second, I dunno.

35   The moon looked absolutely lovely, and then I saw that Venus was remarkably close to the moon.

36   For one brief, shining moment, I thought that it might NOT have been Venus, but some distant star that was being lit up by the moon.

37   So much for my astronomical knowledge.

38   I laughed readily at my own stupidity, and then enjoyed all of it for what it’s worth.

39   The same way that some people look at teachers as amazing people, I thought that parents who care enough about their kids to come down to the school after a long day are amazing people.

40   Two-way street.

41   To any parent who takes time to support their kids in school, I salute you, especially if you could drag yourself down to the school after a hard day working, or a hard day parenting, or simply a hard day. I stand completely in awe. You are my heroes.

42   Anyway, those are just a lot of random thoughts about one of my best nights of the year.

43   I’m exhausted as I tack away at all this boushit, but I also feel that there is certainly lots of hope for tomorrow.

44   Tomorrow in the more distant, visionary sense.

45   Teach your kids to love intelligence and class, and you teach your kids to love life. There’s a direct correlation.

46   For me, I did my time yesterday, and I can’t wait to go back in today and give it everything I have.

47   It is so worth the pain, and the effort.

48   But for now, I’m pretty much done.

49   Have an absolutely lovely Thursday everybody.

50   See you again.

51   Peace.

~H~

www.xanga.com/bharrington

The Daily News

1   So yesterday I was in the midst of having the first of my “days that fall a bit short of my expectations”.

2   Translation in Real Time: I was having a bad day.

3   But you see, I don’t believe in bad days. I believe that when things run a bit astray, that it is a random thing, and that I simply need to give it closer analysis, and work to make it work.

4  If you don’t do that in this profession, you get eaten alive.

5   It’s a great philosophy, even in life out there beyond all this folderol. But it still doesn’t always work, not in this profession, not in any profession, not in life.

6  Anyway, it was an okay day, to a point, and then we had a break.

7  I slammed about fourteen bananas, and a glass of water.

8  Right near the end of that, the door to my room swung open, and this really neat kid from last year walked into my room.

9   The guy said very little, and then reached into his bag, and pulled out this old Christmas pencil, about half-size and with one of those flat red erasers. It had snowmen on it.

10  He looked at me almost ashamedly and said, ” “I borrowed this from you last year for finals, Mr. Harrington, and I feel bad that I never returned it.”

11  I looked up and smiled. He’s a nice student, and I said, “Wow! Thank you!” I was tempted to go way overboard on my accolades, but decided just to smile. He shyly said, “Well…bye.” And then he left.

12  I’m glad I didn’t say something stupid like, “Wow, I’ve been looking for this all summer!” because it just occurred to me what an amazing thing that was. I can’t keep a pencil around my desk for more than five minutes without misplacing it. How that kid hung on to that one pencil all summer is beyond me. Pretty cute, when you get right down to it.

13  So that was the good part of the morning. My next class came in, and a bit of Hell broke loose.

14  We have Back-to-School night tonight, so I was going to have my students take their vocabulary sentences and in groups, choose the best ones and then have their groups write them on the whiteboard, using multi-colored markers.

15  The students had just turned in magazines about themselves the day before, so they were displayed, so I figured that if they weren’t at the board, they could share their magazines with one another. The two periods before that one I did that, and played some Ben Harper music softly in the background. I figured it was a perfect lesson that would keep them occupied while I cleaned and organized my classroom, and give them a bit of a break as well. I told them that today would be Bud Lite. About two kids got it, which is about all I wanted. Nudge, nudge, wink, wink!

16  Except THIS next class didn’t do their homework. All bets were off. I had forgotten that this was one class that simply can’t seem to remember to do that. It has been frustrating, but I had adapted their lessons so they wouldn’t all be failing, and thought they had enough time the day before yesterday to do those sentences in class and finish them up at night.

17  <Basketball buzzer>

18   I had about two kids who had finished, and all the rest had only gotten about half the assignment done. They aren’t bad kids at all, but I’m used to four English 1A classes, most of whom do ALL their homework ALL the time.

19   So I allowed them simply to finish up their assignments, and I could maybe get some grading done at my desk.

20  <Basketball buzzer>

21   They decided they were going to get goofy and grab things, try to mark each other with markers, and act like kindergartners.

22   Yup.

23    It even happens to this Old Brown Shoe.

24    As some finished, others played around, and I found myself being a tad wagged around. Tail. Dog.

25   That usually doesn’t last, but several students sincerely had trouble finishing the assignment. Some students were interested in the magazines, but something was just not quite right. They were in a screw-around mood. This happens to the best of us.

26   Those sorts of periods go through high mischief to moments of calm. During a moment of calm, one student came to my desk and asked if I could make a copy for him. I was actually happy to help, because that will usually keep things a bit calm too.

27  Well, my printer was out of color ink, but for some reason, it refused to print in black-and-white, something that it has done consistently for four years. But yesterday this big letter E for “error” came on, and the color print picture started flashing. As I fiddled and fuddled with that, I could hear the mischief that was waiting to go afoot.

28   One student kept swearing, even though I pulled him over and told him to stop. Others started grabbing backpacks and just acting up.

29   I finally had them all shut up, calmed them down, reprimanded them, and then put them into their sentence groups. I said, “You are to work in your groups, and choose sentences you will put on the board tomorrow.” I called the groups, but somehow forgot to tell them which desks to sit in, and just told them to get with one another and start working.

30   <Basketball buzzer> Party foul. They didn’t even move. Finally, the kid who kept swearing swore again, so I sent him out of the room. The class got instantly quiet as I walked out the door to confront the student.

31   He’s actually a nice kid, and I really don’t think he even knew he was cussing so much. He just cusses a lot. So I asked him if he knew WHY I booted him out of the room. He had no idea. He just recently was added to the class. As I said, not a bad kid, just a little mischievous.

32   I said, “You need to watch the incessant cussing. It’s okay to slip now and again, but you go a bit overboard. I don’t appreciate that.” He smiled and said, “Okay.”

33   I said, “Now let’s go back in.” And we did.

34   The class was quieted down, and one spokesperson said, “We’ll work tomorrow Mr. H. We was just sort of goofing around.”

35   I almost pulled a Singletary, but decided maybe a simple statement would work.

36   “The lunatics cannot run the asylum. Do you guys get that?” And then I smiled. They smiled too, so it wasn’t that bad.

37   Still.

38   The second the bell rang, they shuffled out, and I was absolutely exhausted. I haven’t had a class do that to me since 2006, so I was a bit out of practice.

39   Just as the door almost closed, this really awesome student I had two years ago popped her head in and gave me a little wave. Her name is Winnie, which is such a perfect name. She was  named after Winnie Cooper from The Wonder Years.

40   So between the kid with the snowman pencil and Winnie’s winning smile, I had a bit of a bump-in-the-road yesterday.

41   I have lunch and then prep, so I had an hour-and-a half to re-group. My last class of the day came in, and I gave the same, identical lesson. They jumped all over the magazines, laughed, shared, and got WAY into reading them. Almost everyone had done their homework, and the groups went to the board with awesome sentences. As they did, some read, some shared, others loved writing on the board. Ben Harper played wonderfully in the background, and two students not in my class came in to join the fun!

42  I cleaned and organized, sparkled up the room, and by day’s end, the place looked great, and the day completely turned around.

43  And as they left, I had a lot of, “Have a great day, Mr. H’s!”

44  So I used to believe in bad days. I used to believe that a day can go wrong, wronger, and wrongest.

45  I just don’t believe that anymore. I do believe that several random things can go wrong, but that several random things can go right just as easily. And that we have a lot more control over making things go right, with the right attitude and with the right approach.

46   And if something isn’t working, then it needs to be changed so that it does. That’s my challenge with that one class. The very fact that they said they would work today was a good thing. Can I depend on that? Maybe. Maybe not. We’ll see today.

47   But I can make a plan, have a back-up plan, and even a tertiary plan today. Yesterday I was caught off-guard. You can’t do that in this profession. It’s like turning your back on the ocean, or some such nonsense.

48   So that was a day in the life. It isn’t always rosy, but I still love the job, and I think I always will. But every now and again, it can get you.

49   But it also has a thousand little moments, and a million little memories.

50   Most of them are really pretty nice.

51   Well, gottago. Thought you might like a little glimpse into the classroom. It isn’t always pretty, but it can be challenging. I thought I was moving towards being untouchable up at the Chill, but got a little snake bit yesterday.

52   Good to know.

53   You guys have a GREAT day, or perhaps CREATE a great day!

54    See ya again.

55    Peace.

~H~

  
The Niners’ Patrick Willis and the Saints’ Reggie Bush
appear to be doing a Rhumba in last night’s toe-to-toe go.
The Daily News

1   Yeesh. The first thing I have to ask: Why do I bother watching Niners’ football?

2   Good game, I must admit. GREAT game, in fact!

3   But the stupidity! That’s the difference between the Walsh era and the Singletary era.

4   The drama played out on the evening when the team retired Jerry Rice’s # 80 Jersey. EVERYBODY was there, so there was almost a supernatural feel to this game.

5   And before anyone could sit down with a beer a ball gets hiked over Smith’s head, causing a safety. Bad snap. Horrible snap, and we’re down two. Stupid.

6   Hey, don’t get me wrong. We all do stupid things on a daily basis. But you just have to have all things going if you’re going to succeed.

7   And I’m going to say this: Alex Smith looked…well, WAY better.

8   A WHOLE lot of stupid happened in last night’s game, but the Niners tried. Just not hard enough. You have to be on all cylinders, which NONE of us are, lol!

9   Oh well.

10  It’s just a game. No point trippin’.

11  And the Raiders WON, and let’s here it for BRUCE!!!

12  Ah, I hate to make the DN all about sports, but this was a big one, and it certainly was an exciting game. But O, the stupidity! You had some of that back in the day, but really. Stupidity keeps rearing its ugly head. It seems to be all over this  team.

13  That’s my immediate summary on the game.

14   To be fair, I exhibit stupidity every single day in my job.

15   So it’s not like it’s rare.

16   And I prepare carefully and work hard all week trying to make things happen for my students.

17   But every now and again, I do turn stupid.

18   Hey, it’s RARE, but I do.

19   Ahhh, okay. I do stupidity on a daily basis, which is probably psychologically why I find it particularly offensive.

20   Don’t we all do that?

21   We REALLY despise stuff that WE do all the time.

22   Human nature.

23   Freud was a genius, and knew all these things.

24   Moving on, Part the First:  After the game, I switched over to Dancin’ With the Stars.

25  Florence Henderson at age 76 kicked the 49ers entire Special Teams Unit in the buttocks.

26  Years ago I saw Florence Henderson play Maria in The Sound of Music.

27   Len Goodman said she was “entertaining”. I thought she was beautiful, and still amazing. Maybe a tad fake, maybe a little too much Botox, but she brought it, and if I may be so ageist, “for a gal her age”.

28   Nice work, Mrs. Brady.

29   I am descended from Bradys, which I always thought was cool, because my immediate Brady cousins LOOKED like the Brady Bunch girls when I was younger.

30   And they are all three STILL gorgeous!

31   Just FYI, one of my gorgeous cousins is named Marcia, and she is absolutely wonderful! Remember Marcia in the Brady Bunch? We have a REAL Marcia.

32   I SWEAR to you, they were the Brady Bunch, all the way down to the split long-hair, and the bell bottoms. Here’s their picture:

33   Pretty darned close, wouldn’t you say? Good times, good times.They’ll probably kill me if they read this.

34   So I have no idea how I got to this point in the DN except to say that I now retire early so I could give it my all in the classroom.

35   I STILL do stupid things, and I think without looking that today’s DN began that as a theme, using the fledgling 49ers as a model.

36   Game on, dude.

37    Moving On, Part the Second: I’m still getting all sorts of leg cramps from this muggy weather. Yesterday I ate THREE, count ‘em, THREE bananas and about a thousand glasses of water to stop the leg cramps.

38   Didn’t work. Anyone know where I could grab a few Midol?

39   Is it Midols? Or is it just naturally plural, like deer, or buffalo?

40   Ah, who knows.

41   If my sister’s husband gives me two Midols, are they considered “Midols-in-Law”?

42   I’m really sorry I said that.

43   Right now, Mike “The Situation” is about to dance on Dancin’ With the Stars.

44   We’re right back to “stupid”.

45   Well, it’s almost October, and I’m ready to throw all this grading of papers away and hit the gym like I did last year.

46   I fully want to get buff, shave my head, and throw down with The Situation.

47   Or not.

48    Moving on, Part the Third: I pretty much hit the sack immediately after the game, as I have been trying to early-to bed it. The leg cramps subsided, and I ALMOST slept through the night. I awakened at 3 a.m. to some news show. The television somehow was still on, and it talked all about how Prince Charles not only talks to each of his plants, but listens to them. Charles purportedly told reporters that he was not a “loony”.

49    I think that’s what 49ers rookie Philip Adams was doing when he tried to field a punt that was going to go out of bounds inside the Niners 20-yard line. I think he was more than likely listening to the turf, and it told him to field the ball. It was 19-14 at the time, so…

50   I’m sorry. I still can’t get over the stupidity of that play. I actually have a friend who has a friend (?) who figured that you would probably come out ahead more often if you NEVER field a punt. I don’t know about that, but it’s an interesting concept.

51   Well, they’re still my team, but it is pretty frustrating. I don’t want the DN to become a sports rag, so it is important that Prince Charles listens to his plants. I used to listen to my plants in college, but they’d always say, “Put on some Zeppelin, dude.” I’d look over and some pink Zinnia would be smiling at me.

52   That may have been the day that I gave up on both plants AND Zeppelin.

53   So fear not, sports fans. I am frustrated with my Niners, but they’re still my team. I was born into a Niner family, went to games when I was way young, have lived and died with them forever, and was even on the 40-yard line when Joe Montana hit Dwight Clark with “The Catch”. I stood with family and childhood friends. We celebrated, and then immediately got worried because there was still enough time for us to lose.

54   I remember Lawrence Pillars forcing a fumble, and THEN celebrating “The Catch”, because we got the ball back.

55   Good times. Can this team do it? I honestly don’t know. Even though Smith played his best game ever, he still likes to roll to the right and throw the ball out-of-bounds. The difference this week was that he completed 11 passes in a row, and THEN rolled right and threw it out-of-bounds. It WAS a great game, I admit. But the stupid mistakes. Yeesh.

56   Moving on, Part Four: Lost in all of this is the San Jose Giants’ repeat Cal League Champions by defeating Rancho Cucumonga 7-6 in 10 innings. Congrats to San Jo, and to manager Brian Harper.

57   Dayum, it’s almost 3:45 a.m. and I’m still venting.

58   Well, I have to teach in a few hours.

59   Bet I make at least one mistake. I’ll try to be perfect though, I promise. And when I get home, I’m going to go out to my yard and do a little listening.

60   Gottago.

61    Peace.

~H~

www.xanga.com/bharrington

  

2  Now I’m sure I’ll catch some flack on this one, but to me? Pickles should NOT be sweet, but instead should taste “pickled”. It’s okay for relish to be sweet, but a pickle? Come on.

3   Great moments in disappointment.

4   Don’t get me wrong. Claussen makes a pretty good pickle. Crunchy and amazing. Good for a diet too, so I’ve been told.

5   It all began yesterday afternoon when I finished making a vocab list for today’s lesson. It was the end of two straight days of planning and grading.

6    It took a shorter time than I thought, so I thought I’d kite off to Kinkos to make some copies.

7     I know, I know. What’s this have to do with pickles?

8    Hey, just trust the process here.

9    I’ll get to that, dude.

10   I think.

11  The Kinkos I go to is on Hostetter, a reasonably normal street in good ol’ Sannozay. It eventually turns into Brokaw Road.

12  I needed TP, as we were down to our last roll.

13  TMI, I imagine. But normal Sunday stuff.

14   As the machine started throwing copies, I thought to myself, “There’s a Tony Franco’s PW Super, which is going out of business, directly next door!”

15   That PW used to be awesome, but in the past year it has been slowly running out of stuff. I knew it was on the outs, because we lost a PW Super over by my house a few years ago. The same stuff happened. I assumed that there would be remarkable bargains, and I was right.

16   But it was…weird.

17  Really weird.

18  Anyway, when I approached the front of the store, it had all sorts of printer paper with signs that let me know that most of what was left in the store was now 50% off: cosmetics, health-care products, things like that.

19  I thought, “What the hey! That means that TP must also be on sale, but I certainly hope that the two-ply is still available!” At first I was pretty happy about the sales, but once I walked in…

20  Wow.

21   Ever walk into a store that was going out of business? It’s a sad thing, really. First, you know that people are going to lose jobs, so a part of you doesn’t really feel comfortable walking around the store. Then there was the physical realities: Stock was down, shelves were empty, and the only Altoids they had left were the ones that turn your tongue green. Walk into a store going out of business, and there is a feeling of sadness coupled with a sort of vulture mentality.

22  All I wanted to do was to get in and out of there in as short a period of time as I could muster.

23   But after a fashion, I decided to settle slowly into it. There WERE bargains everywhere, on every imaginable item, and being the thrifty sort that I am, I thought I’d have a little patience at the plate.

24   Baseball term, but what it means is simply to slow your life down and survey slowly anything that looks good.

25   So it worked, albeit in a VERY strange manner.

26   I got a frozen Stouffer’s Veggie Lasagna for six bucks, for example.

27   I also got some Romano cheese, frozen veggies,cheap rum, and about two thousand Lean Cuisines at two bucks a pop.

28   Still…a store on the verge of closing has a rather tragic sense to it. It was difficult trying to celebrate because of the atmosphere of doom.

29   Large sections were roped off. All that was left in the meat section was frozen seafood from God knows where. It all looked a little yellowish.

30  The bath tissue aisle was almost cleared, except for these little dollar-store packages that looked like they could use a meal.

31   Amid all of this sadness was an aisle that had cans of various items. I really wanted to get out of there at this point, when I saw the pickles.

32   Amid all this sadness was a jar of Claussen pickles. I grabbed them up, didn’t really care what they cost, and went up to the checker. I knew that I had struck gold!

33   Since there were only about four people shopping, it was pretty easy to go through the line. There was one lady talking to the guy who was checking. They talked about how truly sad this is, and he said that PW was going to try to help them all get jobs. But he knew the economy.

34   Fortunately, the guy was in pretty good spirits. Young guy, so I guess it wasn’t the end of the world, but still. I’ve had to look at this stuff going on everywhere.

35   Moving on, Sort of, Part the First: The other day I received notification that my ybdrama.com website had been shut down for non-payment. I was a bit confused, because I didn’t remember getting a reminder or anything. In fact, I don’t remember the last time I paid. I was always pretty pissed at Geocities because I upgraded a few years back, and when I went to build the website, it wouldn’t let me do a lot of things. How’s that an upgrade? I complained, and they never did help.

36   I haven’t used the site since 2006 anyway. But still, I always let it sit out there in the weeds like a sort of museum piece. It never made me sad. I always thought it was a sort of fun website.

37   I do intend to contact those guys and see about getting it working again, mainly because it has the only copy of The Heidi Chronicles. I have no intention of writing all of that again, since I’m not really directing anymore. But those stories are interesting, and they are a huge part of my life. I always feel that a large part of my life is sort of like that John Cusack movie Serendipity, where coincidences run the guys life.

38   But I had that strange PW sort of weirdness when I tried to access the website and couldn’t. It had nothing to do with the economy, but it did have a lot to do with the disappearance of things over time.

39   I have too many wonderful memories of the Shows over the years to get too weirded out by that. And I will try to get it working again, only because as stated, it remains a sort of museum piece sitting in the weeds.

40   Moving on, Part the Second: Well, I spent my entire weekend grading papers and planning classes. It was a welcome break heading out to Kinkos, and when I got home I was pretty happy with all the bargains.

41   The other items worked well: I put the lasagna in oven, poured some sorta pirate drink with the rum, took a pinch or two of the Romano cheese, and then eyeballed the Claussens. I couldn’t wait to crunch down on the pickle with a pinch of Romano. It’s a great little snack, and reasonably calorie free.

42   Yep. As stated. Great moments in disappointment.

43   Oh, well. We have all purchased things that may have disappointed.

44   I didn’t really want to drive all the way back and return them, so I guess I’ll just get by. They aren’t THAT bad. They might work with a hot dog tonight when I watch the Niners get their butts kicked by New Orleans. Throw in some onions. Okay, I’m there.

45   My cure for insomnia, by the way, fell to the wayside last night. My legs cramped up from all the mugginess, so I awakened at around 2:30 complaining of pickles.

46   That explains this entire mess.

47   So it’s around 3:45 a.m. as I finish this up, on a Monday morning.

48   Think I’ll catch some winks before moving on.

49   Have a grand day everyone. That’s about all I have left.

50  Yours in sweet pickles.

51   Peace.

~H~

www.xanga.com/bharrington

The Daily News

1   I started composing today’s DN yesterday at around 5:30 in the afternoon.

2   See, I’ve been trying like heck to sleep through the night by doing a Franklin-esque early-to-bed ritual each night.

3   It has actually worked.

4   I’m going to bed at around 10-11, WAY early for me. Long-time listeners might remember my pieces on Craig Ferguson and Jimmy Himmel, both of whom are worlds better than Conan…sorry Conan fans. Jimmy Fallon also rocks the insomniacal world.

5   Anyway, what this does is it changes my morning drastically. Instead of fighting the 4:20 awakening bark by my ear friend and confidant Phoebe, the Dog, I now awaken whether she is barking at me or not, and I may have as much as six to seven hours of uninterrupted sleep.

6   It works great because I wake up KNOWING already that I have had enough sleep to conquer the main parts of the day.

7   There actuallly isn’t too much bad about it either, with the possible exception of my usual three to five-in-the afternoon biorhythms, which definitely trend South. The other day I fell asleep on my hand.

8   So today I thought I’d start writing the DN yesterday, if you are following.

9   Thursday’s DN always has the Eye, which tells you what is playin’ around the Bay Area each weekend.

10  The one thing that I simply couldn’t move away from was the lineup for this year’s The Bridge School benefit: Saturday, October 23, beginning at 5 p.m. is the following lineup:  Grizzly Bear, Modest Mouse, Jackson Browne and David Lindely, Lucinda Williams, Merle Haggard and Kriss Kristofferson, Elvis Costello, Pearl Jam, and HEADLINER Buffalo Springfield!

11  Huh?

12  Yep, you heard it. Here’s a blurb:

Buffalo Springfield Reunite for First Show in 42 Years

by: Howard Wyman

13  On Sunday, October 24, beginning at 2 p.m., the lineup is this: Grizzly Bear, Modest Mouse, Merle Haggard and Kris Kristofferson, T-Bone Burnett’s Speaking clock Revue featuring Elton John & Leon Russell, Elvis Costello, Ralph Stanley, Neko Case, and Jeff Bridges, Pearl Jam, and HEADLINER Buffalo Springfield!

14  As long as I’m plugging things, Dial M for Murder opens this weekend in Fremont. It is being brought to the stage by Broadway West Theatre Company. The reason I bring this up is that our good friend Angie Higgins is directing the Show, and it has some other familiar faces to our Pigeon Players’ fans. I’ll let their ads tell the rest of the story:

15  Hmm. Notice anything unusual?

16  Suddenly, Mozilla has taken on a mind of its own and refuses to let me edit the DN.

17  It will not allow me control over fonts nor of centering, so I’m going to publicly humiliate them.

18  As mentioned above, I began this DN yesterday at 5:30 in the afternoon so that I would avoid being rushed this morning. I have a huge workshop going on in all my classes and need to get my room ready.

19  So I had much of this written yesterday, but this morning, Mozilla has made it nearly impossible for me to edit this.

20  So this is just a bit of a pie-in-the face to Mozilla.

21  Dude.

22   Leave my stuff alone. I don’t want this to go out to “friends”, or for the entire universe to get it. I don’t want this linked to every Twitter, Tweet, or wherever they throw all this stuff nowadays.

23  I don’t want every Tom, Dick, and Harry even to know I am “online” and “available to chat”. With all due respect, I don’t have enough time to chat, which is why I rarely do it. So don’t go telling the world that I’m “available” for ANYTHING!!!

24  Who the F#$K are you?

25  Sorry.

26  Just venting.

27   Moving on, Part the First: My Giants FINALLY moved into first place all alone for the first time since May 6! I was still teaching last year’s classes, and was pretty far away from the school year being over.

28  Aubrey Huff Daddy took care of that, AND the dreaded Dodgers last night with one swing of the bat. He hit it off a guy named “Lilly”. I found some pictures from Red Bluff that I thought would tell the story pretty well:

29  In the Battle of the Flora, Buster Posey stepped up a second later and took Lilly deep.

30  It was a statement. Final score: Giants 10, Bums 2.

31  The Giants are now alone in first place after trailing by seven-and-a half games a little over a month ago.

32   The Panda sat down yesterday. Maybe they should let him sit around knawing on sugar canes for the remainder of the year.

33  Maybe not.

34  That’s the Giants.

35  Torture.

36  But it’s becoming torture for the OTHER teams.

37  Yesterday Giants’ announcer Duane Kuiper used the word “cajones”.

38  His parting words to Murph and Mac: “S.F. Giants: CAJONES!!!”

39  Study in Contrast, Part the First: Sports headlines in yesterday’s Merc:

GIANTS BACK ON TOP

SANCHEZ STIFLES DODGERS, STRIKING OUT 12 IN STRONG START

contrast to

49ers’ ‘rat’ angers Singletary

40  Sounds like one franchise is on the way up. I just can’t imagine Bruce Bochy calling one of his players a ‘rat’. 

41  Just sayin’.

42   Lost in all of this is the San Jose Giants’ winning of the Cal League championship opener, 10-0 over Rancho Cucamonga.

43  I saw Buster Posey play for SJ two years ago.

44   Fun stuff, no matter how you look at it.

45  Okay, Drama and Sports’ fans. Go out and do EVERYTHING this weekend.

46  Have a great one!

47  Peace.

~H~

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