It was about a year ago that I came out against all things pumpkin spice. It has become a fun back and forth with my sister and others that are absolutely in love with the fall flavor. I stand by the fact that I enjoy things like pumpkin bread/muffins. I even enjoy the smell of pumpkin candles, but when you start to see cereal, coffee, coffee creamer, pizza, tobacco maybe it has gone a little too far. So as a joke in reaction to my sister posting some pumpkin spice thing to me on social media, I said that pumpkin spice things caused climate change. Now it's time to build a humorous case against pumpkin spice in the defense of the earth. This is all written tongue in cheek. Nothing I write is scientifically true, but if for some reason I 'disappear' you all know I am on to something and the Pumpkin Spice Industrial Complex must be stopped!
In order to get the appropriate amount of pumpkin flavoring, the number of pumpkin patches and farms has skyrocketed over the past five years. What is not known is that when the pumpkins are harvested and processed methane gas and carbon dioxide are released into the air. The machines that are used to process the pumpkins and mix the pumpkin with all the spices to get your favorite fall flavor are powered by coal. This causes the temperatures to rise not just intermittently but it has a long lasting impact on the climate. The gases stay trapped in the atmosphere raising the temperatures around the world throughout the year.
It all comes full circle because with the climate changing and pumpkin crops not being as fruitful as they have been in previous years, farmers are having to plant more in the hopes of getting a harvest that rivals previous years. As the pumpkin patches expand, trees are cut down, other fruits and vegetables are no longer planted to make way for the pumpkins. This in turn causes more of the gas to be released into the air. WAKE UP SHEEPLE!
Not only do we have the gases in the sky from all the processing, but with the pumpkin patches and farms getting larger, the farmers are cutting back on other fruits and vegetables to keep up with the pumpkin demand. We will have less green beans, less corn, less carrots, potatoes, etc. Not only will we have a shortage in all these fine foods, but the cost will skyrocket. Now we're getting into the economic change all caused because you wanted pumpkin spiced Cheerios.
Pretty soon, it's gonna look like Mad Max times all across the world. You are all doing this to yourselves. Stop the climate change! Save the earth! Stop buying pumpkin spice things!
Okay, that was fun to write....
28 September 2017
25 September 2017
We Need A Villain
While the Tigers season was practically done by the middle of July, the season did continue on. I watched them get humiliated by the Twins in a four game sweep. Which, good for the Twins, they have been bad for a long time and this year are in the hunt for a wild card race. That is the nice about baseball. There always seems to be a historically bad team that has a good year and most people rally around them hoping that they'll make a deep run in the playoffs. The Chicago Cubs are the obvious example with their World Series win last year, but the Cleveland Indians (sad to say) also are starting to play very well.
When we lived in Wichita, I watched a lot of Royals games. They weren't the back to back American League Champion Royals, they were the lose ninety games Royals. When they did win, with the exception of when they played Detroit, you felt good for them. If they had a seventy five win season, that was a great year and something to build upon. I think that no matter what team you root for if a bad team plays well doesn't a little bit of you feel good for them? Except the White Sox. Fuck that team.
But if everyone is happy for everyone else isn't there something missing? It's almost like baseball, every sport for that matter, needs that one team every fan rallies against. In football you have the New England Patriots. Basketball has the Los Angeles Lakers or the Golden State Warriors. Hockey has the Chicago Blackhawks and the Pittsburgh Penguins. Teams that are either historically good or currently winning a title every time you turn around. And who does baseball have? The New York Yankees of course. And to a lesser degree the Boston Red Sox. They won a few titles and aren't considered an underdog much anymore.
Every sport needs that team to root against. That team that always has the great players, that seems to get the call in their favor, that will sign your favorite player in the offseason. For the past few years, the Yankees haven't been the same old Yankees everyone hates. Sure, we hate them because of they're the Yankees, but they haven't been very relevant when it came to the playoffs the past few years. Well they're back. They are going to make the playoffs this season and seem to be peaking at the right time. We all know that if you're team is hot going into the post season there is no telling what can happen.
This is a good thing for baseball. We might not like seeing the Yankees in the post season, but it gives us a villain. It gives us a reason to watch if our team doesn't make it because we want to see the Yankees lose. Am I right? Depending on who they end up playing, I would rather see the Yankees lose than the other team win. I want to see the dejected faces of the fans as their beloved Yanks get crushed. It's one of those scenarios where it's 'anyone but New York' for those of us who have no team playing in October. At least that's the way I'm approaching it.
When we lived in Wichita, I watched a lot of Royals games. They weren't the back to back American League Champion Royals, they were the lose ninety games Royals. When they did win, with the exception of when they played Detroit, you felt good for them. If they had a seventy five win season, that was a great year and something to build upon. I think that no matter what team you root for if a bad team plays well doesn't a little bit of you feel good for them? Except the White Sox. Fuck that team.
But if everyone is happy for everyone else isn't there something missing? It's almost like baseball, every sport for that matter, needs that one team every fan rallies against. In football you have the New England Patriots. Basketball has the Los Angeles Lakers or the Golden State Warriors. Hockey has the Chicago Blackhawks and the Pittsburgh Penguins. Teams that are either historically good or currently winning a title every time you turn around. And who does baseball have? The New York Yankees of course. And to a lesser degree the Boston Red Sox. They won a few titles and aren't considered an underdog much anymore.
Every sport needs that team to root against. That team that always has the great players, that seems to get the call in their favor, that will sign your favorite player in the offseason. For the past few years, the Yankees haven't been the same old Yankees everyone hates. Sure, we hate them because of they're the Yankees, but they haven't been very relevant when it came to the playoffs the past few years. Well they're back. They are going to make the playoffs this season and seem to be peaking at the right time. We all know that if you're team is hot going into the post season there is no telling what can happen.
This is a good thing for baseball. We might not like seeing the Yankees in the post season, but it gives us a villain. It gives us a reason to watch if our team doesn't make it because we want to see the Yankees lose. Am I right? Depending on who they end up playing, I would rather see the Yankees lose than the other team win. I want to see the dejected faces of the fans as their beloved Yanks get crushed. It's one of those scenarios where it's 'anyone but New York' for those of us who have no team playing in October. At least that's the way I'm approaching it.
18 September 2017
It's Okay
You see these posts on social media that are titled things like 'a list of things for my son' or 'every rule my daughter needs to follow'. Once they gain momentum on social media sites, it's hard to slow them down. Then they go away for a bit, then suddenly reappear. There isn't anything wrong with them. I usually read through these and get a smile or two out of them. I have my own list like that. I call it my 'It's Okay' list.
It's okay to be the 'work parent'. Be the person that others go to for advice. Life advice, work advice, it doesn't matter. Be the person that younger co-workers go to. My wife tells me plenty of stories of people she works with that come to her for day in and day out advice. It helps that she works with people that are ten to twelve years younger than we are. It gives you the opportunity to be a life mentor without it being a stupid program.
It's okay to not like 'classics'. Whether it is movies, books, art, whatever. It's fine for you to not like something just because it is considered a classic. There have been several books that are classics that I just didn't like. 'The Sound and the Fury' and 'Tropic of Cancer' to name a few. Most Hemingway as well.
It's okay for your favorite pop culture item to be something other than a classic. One of my favorite books I have read is called '44 Dublin Made Me' by Peter Sheridan. It's his memoir about growing up in Ireland. Yes, I have my favorite classic books, but it's nice to have a favorite that maybe not everyone has heard of.
It's okay to binge watch an entire season of a show in one day. Streaming services have made this a possibility the past few years. Personally, I can sit and watch a few hours worth of television shows but I cannot, on the regular, sit and watch eight or nine episodes of a show in one day. Sometimes it's nice to escape the day and laze around.
It's okay to spoil yourself. Sometimes it can be something as small as stopping at Dairy Queen and getting yourself a treat just because. It can be going out and buying something new like a work outfit, a book, or a case of craft beer. I have a wedding to go to in the fall and on my last day off, I went out and bought some new dress clothes. I'm not a huge shopper, but it was fun to do on a day off.
This last one isn't an 'it's okay', but I'm going to throw it on here. Everyone should own at least one jazz album. I'm talking Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Ella Fitzgerald. Jazz musicians feel music at a whole other level than other musicians. It's just something you need to hear, and once you do it'll stick with you.
It's okay to be the 'work parent'. Be the person that others go to for advice. Life advice, work advice, it doesn't matter. Be the person that younger co-workers go to. My wife tells me plenty of stories of people she works with that come to her for day in and day out advice. It helps that she works with people that are ten to twelve years younger than we are. It gives you the opportunity to be a life mentor without it being a stupid program.
It's okay to not like 'classics'. Whether it is movies, books, art, whatever. It's fine for you to not like something just because it is considered a classic. There have been several books that are classics that I just didn't like. 'The Sound and the Fury' and 'Tropic of Cancer' to name a few. Most Hemingway as well.
It's okay for your favorite pop culture item to be something other than a classic. One of my favorite books I have read is called '44 Dublin Made Me' by Peter Sheridan. It's his memoir about growing up in Ireland. Yes, I have my favorite classic books, but it's nice to have a favorite that maybe not everyone has heard of.
It's okay to binge watch an entire season of a show in one day. Streaming services have made this a possibility the past few years. Personally, I can sit and watch a few hours worth of television shows but I cannot, on the regular, sit and watch eight or nine episodes of a show in one day. Sometimes it's nice to escape the day and laze around.
It's okay to spoil yourself. Sometimes it can be something as small as stopping at Dairy Queen and getting yourself a treat just because. It can be going out and buying something new like a work outfit, a book, or a case of craft beer. I have a wedding to go to in the fall and on my last day off, I went out and bought some new dress clothes. I'm not a huge shopper, but it was fun to do on a day off.
This last one isn't an 'it's okay', but I'm going to throw it on here. Everyone should own at least one jazz album. I'm talking Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Ella Fitzgerald. Jazz musicians feel music at a whole other level than other musicians. It's just something you need to hear, and once you do it'll stick with you.
14 September 2017
Tank Games
As we watch the Detroit Tigers struggle to reach the finish of the season, there are plenty of people that believe that the team should go out of their way to lose games. The thought is that the more games they lose the higher the draft pick they will get in next year's draft. The higher the draft pick, allegedly, the better the talent. The better the talent, the better your team gets. Pretty straight forward thinking. I see a few problems with this strategy, as do plenty of others.
The first problem I see with this idea is that with baseball prospects, even the guys that are coming out of college, are still several years away from playing in the MLB. By all accounts, the major leagues are on a much higher level than even the minor leagues so if a fanbase thinks that a number one or two pick is going to have an immediate impact on their team they don't really pay attention. There are once in a generation type players that can have an immediate impact, but there doesn't appear to be any player like that in the upcoming draft. They'll settle for a top five draft pick for next year's draft and the front office that the Tigers have will most certainly do an excellent job selecting their next player.
The MLB draft seems like a crap shoot when it comes to comparison of the other major sports. A lot of that hinges on players getting drafted so young. There are plenty that get drafted right out of high school, and yes they can decline to sign with the team that drafts them and pursue a college career. You see that quite a bit that a player will get drafted out of high school, not sign with the team, and then several years later get drafted much higher because they have developed. Even those generational players that get drafted spend some time in the minors before getting called up.
It takes time. It always takes time. With all the holes that are in the Tigers roster, it's a good thing for them to take their time developing their young players. Al Avila traded away five veteran players and got nine players back. There have been a couple that have played in the Major League with other teams and have even seen some time with the Tigers this year. The majority of the players are in double A or lower. There are players that they have drafted that are about the same level. So the next crop of talent is going to come up soon, and they are going to come up together. That is how you seemingly come out of nowhere and start winning plenty of games. Look at the Royals in 2014 and 2015. Look at the Cubs the past couple of years. The Astros. All of them were terrible for so long. They drafted talent, developed the talent, and then were seemingly relevant.
I feel like I have written several posts like this, and part of it might be trying to convince myself that this is for the best. This is how the Tigers are going to get good again. Gone are the days of winning now. In five and six years they'll have the win now mentality, but for now it's going to be terrible baseball to watch. Just keep an eye on the minor league teams if you want to get excited about baseball. That's what will keep you going.
The first problem I see with this idea is that with baseball prospects, even the guys that are coming out of college, are still several years away from playing in the MLB. By all accounts, the major leagues are on a much higher level than even the minor leagues so if a fanbase thinks that a number one or two pick is going to have an immediate impact on their team they don't really pay attention. There are once in a generation type players that can have an immediate impact, but there doesn't appear to be any player like that in the upcoming draft. They'll settle for a top five draft pick for next year's draft and the front office that the Tigers have will most certainly do an excellent job selecting their next player.
The MLB draft seems like a crap shoot when it comes to comparison of the other major sports. A lot of that hinges on players getting drafted so young. There are plenty that get drafted right out of high school, and yes they can decline to sign with the team that drafts them and pursue a college career. You see that quite a bit that a player will get drafted out of high school, not sign with the team, and then several years later get drafted much higher because they have developed. Even those generational players that get drafted spend some time in the minors before getting called up.
It takes time. It always takes time. With all the holes that are in the Tigers roster, it's a good thing for them to take their time developing their young players. Al Avila traded away five veteran players and got nine players back. There have been a couple that have played in the Major League with other teams and have even seen some time with the Tigers this year. The majority of the players are in double A or lower. There are players that they have drafted that are about the same level. So the next crop of talent is going to come up soon, and they are going to come up together. That is how you seemingly come out of nowhere and start winning plenty of games. Look at the Royals in 2014 and 2015. Look at the Cubs the past couple of years. The Astros. All of them were terrible for so long. They drafted talent, developed the talent, and then were seemingly relevant.
I feel like I have written several posts like this, and part of it might be trying to convince myself that this is for the best. This is how the Tigers are going to get good again. Gone are the days of winning now. In five and six years they'll have the win now mentality, but for now it's going to be terrible baseball to watch. Just keep an eye on the minor league teams if you want to get excited about baseball. That's what will keep you going.
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