Good News and Bad News

The bad news first. The Canes sucked ass last night. Talk about not showing up for the game, they didn't even get off the bus at the stadium. To say I am disappointed about them getting their asses kicked by 37 points is an understatement. Actually, I think I should blame it on George Bush, as that seems to be the way you do things the last few years if you don't get your way. I'm sure that some liberal left winger out there will find some type of conspiracy theory about how the big bad government and the "evil Bush administration" is to blame for the big loss last night. I prefer to not point fingers and whine and just tell it like it is...they got their asses kicked by a better team. Sorry about that...you know I couldn't write a story without at least a hint of politics!

The good news is that today is New Years Eve, which means it's party time. The 2nd Annual Margarita Lounge New Years bash is set to start in about 12 hours. We are expecting a little higher turnout than last year and I am looking forward to it. Plenty of alcohol will be flowing and I am sure there will be some good stories to tell tomorrow...I will make sure to keep everyone updated.

Some interesting reading

I was checking out one of my favorite sites, worldtribune.com, when I came upon this article. As everyone is doing the "Best of 2005" stuff on TV, I thought I would get in the act. The article brings up some good points about the mainstream media. Here is the link: http://media.nationalreview.com/085155.asp

On a roll

I feel like I've been on a roll lately...five posts in six days is pretty impressive for me. I guess Christmas was an inspiration. Back on the "news of the day" subject, I came up with a few more interesting things on my cruise around the internet tonight:

1) A naked man was arrested today in Eustis, FL. I guess this dude was walking around with his boxers around his ankles yelling at people and claiming he was Satan. Why does this type of shit always happen in Florida? People down here are weird. I wish there was some video footage of this, because it would be hilarious to see. Actually, I shouldn't judge people because I've done some pretty stupid things when I've been drunk.

2) Judge throws out restraining order against Letterman. I apologize for the poaching of your thunder Pimpbling, but that crazy lady who claimed David Letterman was secretly communicating with her in New Mexico on his show was really funny. Actually...if they locked up this woman in the same cell as the guy who thinks he's Satan, I would pay whatever the pay-per-view provider wanted to see that meeting of the minds.

3) Linda Ronstadt is still performing! Yes, this is an inside joke that only one person will get, but aint that great! After all these years she's still out there. Actually, she is performing at the Kravitz center in January and I know someone who could get you tickets if necessary. Only $85 each...what a deal! I would rather pay $85 to watch the two aforementioned nutballs in the jail cell.

4) The historical importance of William Jefferson Clinton's penis. Yes, this dude will NOT go away. I guess textbook providers are debating how to correctly note this in the newest history books. I say call a spade a spade. He was only the second President in US history to be impeached by the House. Let's also remember that he was impeached for lying to a Grand Jury and for Obstruction of Justice. Even if you don't like W, you gotta admit it's good to know that he isn't getting blow jobs in the Oval Office by slutty interns.

The Day After....

Well, I feel MUCH better today than I anticipated. While the party at Mom and Dad's place was fun, everyone managed to keep themselves under contol and the hangovers should be minor. As for Christmas, I made out like a thief in a jewelry store. Clothes, Video Games, DVDs, Books, Gift Certificates, Cash. You name it and I got it this year. They were all great gifts, but the big surprise was last night when my wonderful and loving wife rolled out the new Mountain Bike. Talk about a hook-up, huh? I think I looked pretty silly just staring at it for a while, but I eventually picked my mouth up off the ground and thanked her. I hope that everyone had as good a Christmas as I did...your drunk or funny stories are always welcome in the comments section.

Ho Ho Ho

I awoke from my wine-induced coma this morning around 7:30 am and crawled out of bed knowing perfectly well that I will be in the same situation again tomorrow morning. Actually, I will probably feel worse. As some of you know, a typical family get-together at my parents house is full of booze, fun, and usually a few hangovers. We depart for the original Margarita Lounge around 2:30pm. SIDEBAR: The term "Margarita Lounge" was originally coined when Cheryl moved to Florida and lived at my parents house while they were out of town for the summer. Thus, we officially live at the Margarita Lounge 4, but who's counting.

I just love Christmas Day in Florida. For those like Princes T who are now enjoying their first Florida Christmas, they often feel a little off-kilter the first year. But it grows on you after a while. While many are content and happy to bundle up in their sweaters and socks and stare out the window at the snow, I have moved past that nostalgic stuff. I guess 26 years of cold winters does that to you. Every Christmas I get to open up the windows and feel the warm sunshine and gentle breezes. If I feel like it, I can walk down the street and sit by the pool for a while. Or I can do nothing all day...which sounds like the plan right now. Merry Christmas everyone and don't forget about the New Years party at the Lounge!

Thoughts on Christmas Eve....

It is Christmas Eve and my thoughts have turned away from the day-to-day grind of the stock market, interest rates, and oil prices to the happiness associated with the best holiday of the year. Alas, I still occasionally watch the news and see more ridiculous things out there. Here are some of my random thoughts the last few days:

1) Spying is supposed to be secret. That's why it's known as SPYING. It is not something that should be in the mainstream news media nor should it be something that Joe Q. Taxpayer needs to know. As I have said in the past, there is no reason that everyone in the country needs to know every single detail about every single thing happening at any time. It's just ridiculous. Does a guy who lives on the street need to know the small details of the most recent board meeting at Microsoft? No. I guess my point here is that spying is done in the interests of National Security, and while some people seem to think that National Security is something to laugh and belittle, the government takes it seriously (as they should). Let it be.

2) On a lighter note, don't go anywhere near any Mall today if you can avoid it. If you are a procrastinator, prepare for the worst day of your life. I work directly in front of the Boynton Beach Mall and it has been a mad house for the last week. Also be on the lookout for crazy old people and impatient men in large SUVs or pickup trucks. Obviously, the rules of the road do not apply to these people and they are free to cut you off or make the turn made famous in Palm Beach County...the right hand turn from the left hand lane.

3) Drink plenty of fluids over the next few days. I am heeding my own advice here and began drinking a bottle of my new favorite wine last night. With everyone off on Monday, this weekend presents a great chance to have a three-day bender and to justify it with a holiday! Talk about the best of both worlds! For anyone interested in a reasonably priced red wine, try the 2003 Terrazas Malbec from Argentina. And it's only about $10 a bottle which is even better.

4) On a serious note, everyone have a great Christmas. Like everyone else, I get excited and fired up all the time about certain issues or ideas. Certain things upset us during the year. We all disagree with each other from time-to-time, argue, or are not kind to one another. I would encourage everyone to give your day-to-day complaining a break for a few days and enjoy the good feelings of the holiday. Christmas only comes once a year and it is indeed a very special time. Enjoy it.

Damn!

Didn't win the lottery last night so I still need to go to work today. One lucky bastard won last night and is going to have one hell of a great Christmas with their $46 Million.

Mr. Golden lives!

I got a chance to catch up with the great catfisherman himself last night over at Brus. I arrived at 4:30pm to Keith and the Steve Miller Band downing shots and beers. Mr Golden was in his typical work attire of flip flops, shorts and a t-shirt. For those of you who do not know Mr Golden or Mr. Miller, these guys are the stuff of legend. These two gentlemen are one of the rare breed of man who parties at 40 years old like he is a 25 year-old rock star on his first world tour. Most people tell you good stories about partying and you follow it up with a quick "bullshit". These boys are the real deal...trips to Vegas, strippers, binges for days, no sleep, waking up in a town you have never been to...that type of stuff. While I would love to repeat some of the stories, my simple blog would do them no justice.

In any case, it was good to see both of them and live in someone else's world for a few hours. It was even better when Mr. Miller threw down a hunnie on his way out the door for the tab. Maybe that's why I feel so shitty today. Either that or I'm catching that damn cold going around our office. Well, after I win the $46 Million Florida Lottery tonight all will be better...

Winding down...

Things seem to be slowly winding down for the year around the Margarita Lounge. The work year is almost over, the Christmas shopping is done, the holiday parties are about over, and the football season has only two more weeks left.

As for me, I've had a pretty draining weekend. Friday Night I got to see Chad and the Senator for a while while Cheryl hung out with her two sisters. Saturday was a day full of doing nothing at all. I finally got off my ass around 3pm and took a shower. The office Christmas Party (screw political correctness) was in Lake Worth from 5:30-7:30. Most people, including my wife, left the Bizarre Cafe pretty wasted. We proceeded on to Two George's for a while and I ended up shuttin-er-down back here at the Margarita Lounge around 1am after being told by Dawn how much of a skirt I was and how she could drink anyone under the table. Years ago this type of talk used to fire me up. Nowadays I laugh at it because I am no longer out to prove anything. I can bet I felt better this morning though!

In any case, Pimpbling departed around 9:30 this morning after crashing on the famous "70's couch". I give him a lot of credit for realizing his drunkedness last night and not arguing like K-Delish used to. I was once again impressed with the Dophins, who pulled out another close game today. Unfortunately, they are now mathematically eliminated from the playoffs. That's OK...as I have been saying for the past few weeks,,,they are going to be a contender starting next year...MARK MY WORDS NOW! Cheryl and I wrapped up the weekend with our annual trip to Pompano Beach to see grandma and the Pompano Boat Parade. While some of my cousins attended who are real pains in the ass, John was there. John is the only one of the three cousins from the "other side" of the family who I can tolerate. We haven't seen him in a while and he at least made things more fun. Actually, he lives out in the acreage pretty close to you Pimpbling...you guys ought to hang out...he just bought a new Saleen Mustang which you would love.

So, here I sit at 9:30 ready to go to bed. Actually, I'm really impressed I was able to ramble this long without falling asleep. I'd like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas (like I said before...screw the "Happy Holidays" stuff...I celebrate Christmas at the Margarita Lounge!) and a Happy New Year. Don't forget about the party on New Years Eve!

Pathetic Cindy

Just when you thought you heard the last of my old buddy Cindy Sheehan, she has re-surfaced in Spain. I guess she recenly led an anti-war "rally" in Spain where a whopping 100 people showed up. I could get more people together for a free lunch seminar in Palm Beach County! According to the story I read, Cindy indicated that Iraq, in her opinion, is worse than Vietnam. Hmmm, lets think about that. In Vietnam there were approx. 58,000 US war dead. Iraq...about 2,300. In Vietnam the country ended up in communist control. Iraq just had it's third free election in a one year period. Obviously Cindy has run away to Europe in the hopes that someone will still listen to her.

The Big Surprise

Well, I guess the cat is out of the bag, so I might as well tell everyone. My longtime friend Kris, otherwise known and referred to as K-Delish, is going to be a daddy. Gone now are the crazy drunken nights of fun and partying and he can now look forward to changing diapers every day. Everyone at the Margarita Lounge wishes him, Jen, and little K-Delish(or K-Delishess) all the best.

Happiness, Frustration, and a big surprise!

What an interesting two days it has been. In general, things have been pretty positive. Busy, but positive. The market seems to be holding above 10,700 which is good news for the bulls like me who see the Dow breaking 11,000 by the middle of January. I have some new clients and accounts coming aboard this week, which us always good.

Yet, no matter how good things look, there is always that pesky cloud that shows up every now and then. My clouds are EOI and EOS. Why have these two funds (along with all the other equity option funds out there) been hammered the last two days? There is no fundamental reason and I have been scratching my head since Monday morning. Not even my illustrious research department can help out on things...I just got some lame blurb about year-end tax-loss selling. I'm going to chalk it up to a market "conundrum" and suggest backing up the truck. That's the secret that all you market watchers need to realize. If you are a buyer when nobody else likes the stock, you are going to win quite a few of those bets in the long run. That's why the big boys make money and the little guys don't...a simple matter of having the balls to pull the trigger when it feels wrong to do so.

As for the "big surprise", it sure was a BIG one today. Unfortunately for all you readers, I have sworn an oath of secrecy until a later date. Don't you HATE it when someone does that to you? Soon enough, grasshopper....soon enough. Lets just say that one of my friends recently had a life changing experience. Stay tuned for the details....

Gotta love Honest Abe...

One of our greatest presidents speaking out from the grave. Thanks to Pimpbling for this one.

A Little Christmas Humor

Cheryl emailed this to me today. It may take a while to load or you may have to refresh it, but trust me....it's worth it in the end. Here's the link: www.wimp.com/pissedchristmas/

Three in a Row

It's looking more and more like the Dolphins have turned the corner. While it is probably too late for this year, it gets me excited for the next couple of years. With three quality wins this season over Denver, Carolina, and San Diego, they prove that they can hang with the big boys. Pimpbling came over to root 'em on with me and actually just left a few minutes ago on his trip back to the homestead.

Speaking of Pimpbling, he had a small get-together last night at his place and I want to thank him for the great hospitality. I have never been out to the Acreage, but I came away really impressed with the area and his house in particular. To see houses in South Florida on an acre of land (that are not huge, overdone mansions) is really refeshing. My neighborhood (where the houses are on top of one another) is no comparison to the quiet and isolation out there. Pimpbling...you need to have more parties out there because it kicks ass. It's not like there isn't enough wine in the house!

Besides that, the weekend was filled with some Christmas shopping, some wrapping of said gifts, and a little relaxation around the house. With the office Christmas party coming up this Saturday and the impeding arrival of Dawn later this week (the third Soderberg sister), it should be a fun few weeks leading up to Christmas.

A Better Day

I am so glad that I couldn't post last night. For some reason (whether it's the Blogger site, the internet or my computer I have no idea) I couldn't post anything last night. I guess that was a good thing because I was in a pretty foul mood. Three crappy days at the office spinning my wheels and making no money does that to you. The good news is that today was much better.

Since I haven't done this in a while, I figured I would point out a few stories in the news recently that caught my attention:

1) Saddam missed his trial yesterday. File this #1 on the "who really gives a shit" list. I mean, am I really supposed to get excited about this? Since when did Saddam become a celebrity worthy of all this attention?

2) That dude shot on the plane in Miami. I'm sure the ACLU is going to have fun with this one, saying how his rights were infringed on and how mean and insensitive the police are. If you are acting crazy on a plane, saying you have a bomb in your bag, refusing to give up this bag, and then refuse to listen to the police telling you they will shoot, you deserve to be shot. Maybe I'm not "sensitive" enough to people with bipolar disorders, but I call a spade a spade. Maybe it's George Bush's fault! The air marshalls did the right thing.

3) Phony Mall Santa Drops his pants. Now THATS a news story worth reading!! I guess a guy dressed up in a Santa suit dropped his drawers in front of a bunch of teens at a New Hampshire Mall the other day. I guess he did it more than once before he was finally arrested. Now, wouldn't you rather read something like that? I am sick......

Links...finally!

I don't know how it happened, but all of a sudden I have links on the right side of the Margarita Lounge! I have been trying to figure it out for a while, and I think I finally got it! Feel free to check out some of my friends and some of my favorite sites. I'm sure that I will add some more links as I discover them.

A Nice Rally for a Win

For the first time all year, the Dolphins have won two games in a row! After three quarters of absolutely terrible football, Gus went down and ol' Sage Rosenfels stepped in to guide the big 4th quarter come-from-behind rally. My neighbors probably think I'm nuts for all the screaming coming out of the house over the past half hour. I could really see this game as a turning point for the year and a sign of positive things to come through the end of the season. Are the Dolphins going to win their division? No...let's not get carried away here. But with a strong finish, I can see them pulling out an 8-8 record, which would be one hell of an accomplishment for Nick Saban after the way the team has played all year.

Sorry for the lack of updates since Wednesday, but my mind has been on Christmas. I spent all day yesterday doing things around the house, getting the Christmas tree, putting up the outside lights, etc. Today involved a trip to visit my niece for her 2nd birthday and gift shopping for a few hours. Surprisingly, the 2nd half of the Dolphins game was the only football I have watched all weekend.

Today is also Princess T's 30th birthday. She has been at Sanibel Island since Friday and we are expecting her home soon. I guess she over-did it on Friday night and was pretty hungover all day yesterday. Hopefully she is feeling better today since we are planning on having a big dinner and celebration tonight.

Pimpbling Speaks!!

Just a quick note to my readers that Mr. Pimpbling himself has started a blog. The address is: http://blingpimp.blogspot.com/. I encourage everyone to let the big pimp know you found him. For those of you who are completely clueless as to who this mysterious "pimpbling" guy is, he is a co-worker of mine who sees eye-to-eye with me on many things. We regularly complain to each other about clients and the crazy business we are both involved in.

Cheryl is scheduled to come home tonight from a 2 day trip to Virginia Beach on work. I have to say that I have missed her. Besides that, not much new. I'm sorry...there is one more thing. The Senator is FINALLY back on his soapbox after 2 months of slacking. In case anyone forgot, the address is: http://www.stufftbox.blogspot.com/. Iit looks like the Senator really was saving up his energy for the big release. I hope his head didn't explode after he wrote the most recent posting. Good Day.

PARTY ANNOUNCEMENT

In all my excitement about the coming holiday season, I nearly forgot that New Years is also only a month or so away. That being said, I would like to announce the 2nd Annual Margarita Lounge New Years Party. We are thinking of startng around 8 or 9pm and I'll let everyone know the details as we develop them. If you are a regular reader of the blog, consider yourself invited.

4 Weeks and Counting

The Christmas music is in the air and as I look at the calendar, I realize it's only 4 weeks until the big day. The Margarita Lounge already has the holiday music in the air as Cheryl and Princess T are both Christmas nuts. My family has never made a real big deal about Christmas, but to both of them, Christmas is the biggest and happiest time of the year. While this was confusing and strange to me the past few years, I am beginning to get into the swing of it this year.

While the Christmas spirit is in my head now, I sure wish the Dolphins could find some cheer and actually win a football game. Last weekend in Key West my boys got destroyed by Cleveland in a 22-0 romp. In addition, my Canes blew any outside chance of making it into the BCS Championship game by losing to Georgia Tech. Talk about a bah-humbug, huh?

I'm dreading going into work tomorrow. Not beacuse I anticipate bad things or stress...it's just the fact that I haven't worked an entire day in over a week and getting back in the swing of things after vacation is always tough. When you are used to drinking wine every night and sleeping until 8 or 9am and you then have to start getting up again at 6am, it's gonna suck.

Back from Paradise

Cheryl and I slowly rolled the Explorer into the driveway around 2:30 this afternoon after our nice four and a half day vacation to the Keys. As usual, the trip was a memorable one. I took the above picture yesterday at the Bahia Honda State Park, which is about 30 miles outside of Key West. The picture shows the only remaining portion of Flagler's original railroad to Key West. We stopped there yesterday afternoon and it really is a beautiful park.

In general, our trip was a little more "touristy" than normal. We spent an hour or so in the Key West Cemetary, which was really cool. We also rented bikes and tooled around the island, checking out the Southernmost Point and the Truman Annex. For those of you who have spent time in Key West with me, yes I got drunk. Actually I think I was drunk every night I was down there. We met some interesting people at the Smallest Bar in Key West, one of our hangouts that makes us feel like locals. Below I have posted a few pictures we took. Gobble Goble Gobble tomorrow...heading to Gary and Sue's tomorrow for Turkey Day. Hoping everyone has a good one.

Sorry Gunther...

I just had to post this one. We ran into a guy who was a fellow parton at the Smallest Bar in Key West on Sunday Night. I wish I could remember his name, but it really isn't important. The bartender was a guy named Sully who worked summers at the Beer Barrel at Put-In-Bay west of Cleveland and we all had a good laugh when this guy walked in with this shirt on.

Cemetary

I guess Mrs. Roberts was sick after all, huh?

Sunset Pier

For any of you who have been to the Sunset Pier next to Mallory Square, this is what it looks like after Wilma kicked it's ass in October.

The Kid from Brooklyn

Ok...I am going on vacation, but I just had to post this. The big catfisherman forwarded this to me today and I have been laughing my ass off for a while. Cheryl wasn't as entertained as I was. Here's the link: http://media.putfile.com/A-Brooklyn-Solution-To-Terrorism

You gotta be kidding me

As many of you know, Cheryl and I are heading to Key West tomorrow morning for our much-needed respite from the real world. I have been concerned all week watching the Western Caribbean and the remnants of TD #27. Right on schedule, Tropical Storm Gamma developed this afternoon with a projected track right over Key West on Monday afternoon. I guess we'll just have to hunker down at the bed and breakfast with some cold beers. Gamma aint gonna ruin my vacation! See everyone after Thanksgiving.

Random thoughts on the market

I was just inspired by my buddy Gunther over at MagneCarte. He wrote a good entry today that everyone should read if they get a chance. It has indeed been a strange market the last few weeks. The Dow is up near 52 week highs, yet the only thing that has rallied much is the financials. Oil is now under $60 on its way back to $50 and closed-end funds are getting hammered as the market goes up. For leveraged funds, this would make sense, but for equity option funds it sure as hell doesn't.

Even though I work in the financial services industry, I am not in the practice of making specific recommendations on this blog. This one just seems too good to pass up.... NFJ at 21.50 is an absolute steal here. Once it bounces back to 23 people will want to buy it, but I am smarter than they are. I'll buy it here when nobody likes it and hold it and it's 9.7% dividend. It's not like this is a junk bond from GM or a mortgage REIT thats going to cut it's dividend soon. Buy it in an IRA, reinvest the dividends and just leave it alone...even if the price goes nowhere you are going to get almost 10% a year to wait. Even big brother initiated coverage recently and is on the bandwagon. Back up the truck!

The CMAs and Brokeback Mountain

So, I'm sitting here watching the CMA awards tonight. I was unimpressed with the way things started out, but things seem to be improving. I preferred it in Nashville where it really should be. It just seems out of place in NYC.

In any case, watching this reminded me of a story I was reading recently about a new movie coming out in the next month or two called "Brokeback Mountain". I guess it's a cowboy movie staring Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal set in the 1960s. So, whats the big deal about a cowboy movie? I guess the cowboys are both gay, so this is supposed to be some big deal to "Middle America". I don't see why it's that big of a deal, but everyone is entitled to their own opinions. I was just searching Google and every review I saw rated it as excellent. Might have to check it out.

Only one more week

One week from now I will be en route to Key West on a much needed vacation. As you can assume by my lazy lack of posts this week, it was a pretty busy week. Finally got my windshield fixed from Wilma, but the treadmill broke. Had a busy few days on Thurday and Friday, but didn't make much money. Just one of those odd weeks I guess. At least the market is doing better and my client statements should look better in November than they have the last two months. It's funny being a financial advisor because you NEVER hear from your clients when they are making money, but they all call when there is a bad month or two wanting to know "whats wrong". It can be quite maddening if you let it get to you. A word of advice to everyone out there who invests in the stock market...sometimes it goes down. Like life, every day/week/year isn't always perfect. If you can't deal with it, buy FDIC insured CDs and get your 4% return per year. I'll average 8-10% and be happy.

Sorry about that....had some pent-up rage about this week. Pimpbling and Gunther know what I'm talking about here, right gentlemen? Outside of that, I am planning on having a relaxing weekend...watching some football and doing some yard work. I'm also going to Brian's daughter Isabella's baptism tomorrow. She is almost a year old and I still haven't seen her....I think it's time.

Two Years

On this night two years ago, Cheryl and I were married on the roof of the La Concha Hotel in Key West. For those of you who attended that wonderful night, I thank you for being there and hope that you enjoyed it as much as we did. It was indeed a special night for us...so special in fact that there was a lunar eclipse. Some of you may not remember that due to the alcohol, but trust me...it was really cool.

While the dates didn't work out exactly right this year, we are making out return trip to Key West on November 19th for three nights followed by one night in Key Colony Beach on the return trip. I am looking forward to doing nothing all day and hanging out again at a few of my favorite places: Irish Kevin's, Rick's Tree Bar, and Hogs Breath.

TO outta here

In what could be the greatest move in NFL history, the Eagles told TO to kiss their ass today and suspended him for an additional 3 games. After the suspension, the team plans to de-activate him for the remainder of the season. I know that I mentioned this in yesterday's post, but I couldn't be happier. When a guy is complaining at the beginning of the NFL season about making ONLY $7 Million this year, it's really hard to feel bad for him when he shoots his mouth off and gets punked by his own team. An "A" for the Eagles for having the balls to do what other teams won't.

On a completely separate note, oil prices dipped under $60 today on their way back to $50. I realize there is more demand from China, but $60 and $70 oil prices are just not sustainable for a long period of time. Good thing I listened to the Chevron CEO about a month ago when he said exactly that. We'll be back between $50-$55 after Jan 1. I am off to play "God of War"...Scott was kind enough to buy it for me for my birthday and I'm already addicted.

Nobody's perfect

Well, it looks like Michael Vick was a much more able adversary than his younger brother Marcus was last night. I end the weekend 1-1 with the Dolphins 7 point loss today. Congrats to the Falcons on the win and it's back to the grind tomorrow.

The Big Win

Ah yes....that great feeling. The feeling that you were right when all the sports writers and reporters were terribly wrong. Yes folks, the Canes pulled off the big upset last night as I prognosticated in yesterday's post. And they didn't just beat VA Tech, they destroyed them. I could rant on about how overlooked and underrated the Canes are, but I'll let the game last night do the talking.

Congrats to Scottie up in Raleigh. His Wolfpack again proved to be Bobby Bowden's achilles heel by beating Florida State yesterday. Sounds like he had a good day yesterday...I just got an email that he went sky-diving in addition to the big win.

Shifting to the NFL, I see that TO was suspended indefinitely by the Eagles yesterday. I am so happy to see this happen...he really has zero class in my book. And that brings us to the Dolphins today. The Dolphins get a chance at Mike Vick today when they take the field at 1pm to play the Falcons. Could the Miami teams go 2-0 against the Vicks this weekend? I'm not quite as confident in the Dolphins as I am with the Canes, but I'm feeling lucky today...take the Dolphins plus the two points. Seems like the sucker bet, but they seem to play better at home.

Big Game Saturday!

Well, the big day has finally arrived! At 7:45 tonight by beloved Canes go up against the hated VA Tech Hokies. I am already excited and it's still 12 hours till kickoff. Since we have had our asses kicked the last two years and all the critics say that Marcus Vick is the "X factor", I am taking the Canes in the upset. Our time has come to ruin their National Title hopes. If we can pull out a win tonight and get some help from USC, Texas and Alabama, we could still be playing for the title come January. Stranger things have happened......

Breaking out the Champagne

Congrats go out today to Pricess T who started her new job this morning. I wish I could give lots of details, but I just found out this morning myself. It seems that the Princess was being quiet about the job offer and sprung it on us this morning. We all wish her the best as she re-joins the ranks of us working class tax-paying stiffs.

Those Damn Oil Companies

I've seen lots of news stories recently about these "damn oil companies" who are making all this money. This is another example of stupid reporting that flies in the face of everything our country stands for. Oil prices (per barrel) have been higher in the last year than they have ever been in history so it stands to reason the oil companies will make more money.

I guess I just don't get the whole argument about this being bad. Profitable companies make money and create shareholder wealth for grandma and grandpa. They also create jobs for people like you and me and enable us to purchase inexpensive goods and services. Sure, gas is more expensive than it was two years ago, but it's still cheaper to go to the local BP station than to explore, transport, and refine it yourself. When the tech market was going crazy in the late 90s, the computer companies were making shitloads of money and you never heard about those "greedy, evil computer guys", did you? Why is it that oil companies and drug companies are now seen as the big bad wolf? The last time I checked, making lots of money wasn't a crime.

Rush Hour Madness

It took me 25 minutes to get home from work today. Some people may wonder why this is a big deal as they have longer commute times. The problem is that they don't live 2 miles from work. Word to the wise people of Palm Beach County in these strange post-Wilma days...don't go anywhere near the Mall between 4 and 6pm.

In other "items of interest", looks like the Stilers pulled one out last night on Monday Night Fotball. Congrats to the non-posting Margarita Lounge deserter K-Delish. Where you been K?

Touchdown Jesus

It's very rare that I have a story of "local boy does good". Coming from Erie, PA means that you are usually way off the map. I was pleasantly surprised today to find out that a guy from Erie who is an old friend of the Senator just published his first book. His name is Scott Eden and he now lives in Chicago. While the name rings a bell, I can't say that I remember him personally. Here is a link to Barnes and Noble in case anyone is a Notre Dame/ College Football fan: Link

Back to Normal?

On a typical Sunday Night, by thoughts are filled with dread of going back to work on Monday. Thoughts on why weekends aren't three days long and how weekends are never long enough. This week things are a little different. After four days without power and the mild chaos of trying to navigate without traffic lights, power, or gas, I am ready for the return of anything "normal".

From what I can guess, it's going to be at least a month before all the traffic lights are operational. Last year it was mostly about fixing the broken lights. This year the lights are completely gone or smashed to pieces. The grocery stores are just starting to get the perishables back in stock and the gas lines are dwindling as more stations get their power back. Hey...the Dolphins even won today...things are looking up!

Now, all I have to do is get used to sunset an hour earlier and the fact that I turn 32 tomorrow. For all of you that didn't know...yes I was a Halloween baby!

Wilma Pictures

Below you will find some pictures from Wilma. I took 40 pictures and these were the ones that made the cut. The Margarita Lounge got power back about 8pm on Thursday Night but internet just came up a few hours ago. As of today there are still over a million people in South Florida without power, but things are slowly becoming a little more "normal" and work will start on Monday as scheduled. If you click on the pictures, you should be able to see a larger view.

Front View

The front of the Margarita Lounge post-Wilma. Needless the say the Palm tree isn't going to make it. Since the eye passed directly over us, there was a strange, almost unsettling calm for about 45 minutes before the backside hammered us.

Front View 2

A closer view of the front. The branches were a bitch to cut up, but Tracy and Cheryl were very helpful. Thanks to both of them for pitching in all week to help me out.

Tile Shower

This is my neighbor's driveway after the storm. If you can't make them out, those are broken roof tiles all over the place. Unfortunately, my truck and Tracy's car were parked in that driveway and we both have cracked windshields and scratches to our paint.

Tree Troubles

This is a picture from another of my neighbors. Good thing the tree fell sideways and not onto the house.

Roof Damage

Cheryl took this picture on Wednesday at her office. Wilma tore the roof off part of the building and this was the result.

Nice Try, Wilma

Just a quick post to let everyone know that the Margarita Lounge is OK. We are still out of power, as is about 90% of Palm Beach County. Cheryl's co-worker Jen was kind enough to let us take a warm shower this evening since she just got power back. Needless to say, Wilma was stronger than many people here expected. I will have some pictures posted as soon as we get power back. In general we did OK...I lost about 20 roof tiles, lost a palm tree out front, and have a cracked windshield and some dents in the paint on my Explorer. Still no power at work and we are hoping for a return to "normal" life in the next few days. According to FPL, there are still over 2 million houses and businesses on the east coast without power and all are expected to be restored by the middle of November. More as things develop. Hoping everyone else made it through OK.

Bracing for the worst...

Cheryl, Tracy and I just got back from Grandma's place where we helped her celebrate her 86th birthday. All the plywood is up, the batteries and candles ready and we've settled in for what is destined to be a rough 24 hours. Looking at the computer models and tracks, it looks like Wilma will come ashore tomorrow morning near Naples and head right over us during the day tomorrow. I think it will hit the coast with winds in the 110-115 mph area. With the speed it's moving, we are definitely going to see 75-80 mph winds here and may see gusts up near 100 mph. I am sure we will lose power, hopefully only for a day or two. At least the worst will be during the day tomorrow, opposed to last year when Frances and Jeanne came through at night.

Alexander the Buckeye

Gunther and Xan came over this afternoon for a little football on TV. As you can see, Xan is quite the Buckeye fan and the good news is the Buckeyes whooped Indiana'a ass pretty good today. The Senator should be making his appearance at the Margarita Lounge soon for a little pre-hurricane get-together tonight. It's loking like Wilma is finally heading our way...the plywood goes up tomorrow morning. While I hope we don't lose power, the reality is that we probably will and the Lounge could be silent for a while. I'll keep everyone updated as much as possible.

Get it over with already!

Gunther and I are in the same boat on this beyatch Wilma...just get it over with. First she was coming through on Saturday...then Sunday...now Monday. Some models say it will only be a strong Tropical Storm and others show a Category 3. Talk about frustrating.

This is obviously going to make a difference in whether I board up or not. The weather sucks so bad that I can't even cut the damn grass...I guess I'll just have to sit around all day and watch college football games. Problem is I don't have any beer in the house. I guess I'll have to go to the store today.

Gunther's New Creation

I encourage all of my Margarita Lounge readers interested in the stock market or the economy to read Gunther's new MagneCarte blog. He set it up a few months ago and forgot his password, but I guess he just remembered it, so he's up and running. The address is http://www.frotuss.blogspot.com. Since Gunther and I both work in the same business, I am sure I will post some of my thoughts over there from time to time.

The Cheeseburger Bill

I was very glad to see the House pass the "Cheeseburger Bill" on Wednesday. In case you are not familiar with it, the bill would block lawsuits by people who blame fast-food restaurants for being overweight. Here is the article:

http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/10/20/cheeseburger.bill/index.html

As you can tell, I am 100% behind this bill. Just because someone stuffs their face with Big Macs every day doesn't mean they should be able to sue McDonalds when they get fat. I mean, this isn't rocket science...if you eat shitty food all the time you will get fat. It reminds me of these lawsuits people file against Budweiser after they drink 25 beers and wrap their car around a telephone pole. It wasn't the beer company's fault that you are a dumbass.

People just love to blame others for their problems. And if they can get money for it, look out. Whatever happened to taking responsibility for your actions? I see that the California Democrat Bob Filner disagrees with the bill. If Bob and his buddies had their way, everyone could sue any company at any time for any amount of money and without any reason. Companies would then have to pay outrageous legal bills to deal with the lawsuits. Companies would pass on this expense in the form of higher prices for beer and cheeseburgers...just simple economics. That would suck, because I like beer and cheeseburgers.

WILMA!!!!!

It seems that the only subject on everyone's mind these days in Boynton Beach is Hurricane Wilma. I have just spent the most miserable hour of my life up in my attic. After a good sized tree branch fell on my roof last year during Hurricane Frances, I found a small leak in the roof. It wasn't a big deal and I was able to seal it pretty simply myself. Well, of course it re-appears a few days before Wilma is expected to go right over us. I sealed it again about two hours ago and (of course) it just RAINED. Murphy's Law at it's finest, huh?

In any case, we have begun the waiting game... sitting around, watching the weather stations, filling up the cars with gas, and getting extra water. Luckily I went out last night around 9pm and took care of anything we needed. Being through this drill a few times in the last year makes you very calculating and rational about things. I mean...there isn't anything I can do to change the storm's track, so you do your best to prepare to ride things out. Sure things might get windy...we might lose power...my roof might start leaking. Shit happens...you get through it and you get on with life the best you can.

Unfortunately, there always have to be those people who panic about things four days before they might (or might not) happen. I have one of these "panic" people in my office and she drives me nuts. To protect the innocent, we will call her Phyllis. The storm is 600 miles away and might not even come close to us, but Phyllis thinks that trees are going to fall on her house. She feels the need to cancel her week-long vacation to Georgia on Friday (an area that is considered much safer than South Florida) so she can "make sure nothing happens to the house". Does this make sense to anyone? Let's stay in our house (that will probably lose power) for a few days instead of going on vacation to a beautiful mountain cabin and relax while this thing blows through. That's a pretty simple decision if it were me.

Dig Cindy, Dig!

I think Cindy Sheehan is slowly digging her own grave and nobody could be happier than me. I just saw a story where Cindy was trashing Hillary Clinton about her stance on Iraq. Indeed...today is a good day! Nobody on the right has liked Cindy for months, and now that she has trashed Hillary, nobody on the left likes her either. I'm sure I can find an extra shovel around here to help Cindy dig that hole....

Moonfest

Hi all. Is anyone up for Moonfest (http://www.moonfest.org/BOO.htm) down on Clematis this year? Todd and I are heading there to celebrate his 32nd birthday and Halloween on Saturday, October 29th!! Let me know if you're interested and I'll call you when we make the plans.

Cheryl

Some Flooding Humor

As many of you know, the northeast has had quite a bit of flooding the past two weeks. On Friday, one of the Today Show reporters decided to slightly embellish the true state of affairs in one particular area. The reporter, Michelle Kosinski, was paddling a canoe down a street and telling the story of the terrible flooding when two men walked in between the reporter and the cameraman. What's so funny about that you ask? Well, the water the guys were walking through was about ankle-deep. I guess that Matt Lauer and Katie Couric had problems keeping a straight face and even made a few jokes about the "miracle men" who walked on water. I posted the picture above and have been laughing my ass off for a few minutes. Ah, the wonders of live TV....

More rude people

According to a recent study, Americans are getting more rude. This is something that I have personally noticed over the past 5-10 years. With the world becoming more and more hectic and the need for everyone to know everything about everyone at anytime, manners seem to have gone out the window. Rude kids, rude parents, even rude grandparents seem to be the norm these days, especially here in South Florida.

I had a particularly rude person show up at Barnes and Noble the other night. I decided to run over there for about an hour to relax and see if anything struck me as interesting. Right in the middle of the store was a young kid (maybe 18 years old) on his cell phone. For some reason, he and his buddy decided that talking into their cell phones wasn't good enough, they needed to yell into them. After hanging up, they proceeded to yell a conversation that I could hear at least halfway across the store. I just can't understand why people can't go outside if they want to have a loud conversation on a cell phone. Not necessarily in the grocery store at a bar, but in a book store I would consider it common courtesy. Maybe I am getting too old and crotchety, but shit like that really bothers me. Am I way off base on this or not? I'm interested to see everyone's opinion. Please let me know in the comments section if you can. Below is the link to the story in case you want to read the article. Thanks.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/10/14/poll.rude.ap/index.html

Ghost town

AG Edwards was like a ghost town today. With a large Jewish population in Palm Beach County and today being Yom Kippur, things were very quiet. I think I only talked to two clients all day, but got a chance to hold Pimpbling's clients hands all day. I did get a chance to have lunch with Mr. Hickman and JC over at Brus and had a colbeer after work with Mr. Golden. Not much new around the Margarita Lounge this week. I am still drooling over my HD, which I have been watching pretty much non-stop since Monday Night....

HD Arrives at the Lounge!

I finally broke down and put in the call to Adelphia yesterday. After waiting for a year and a half, I finally pulled the trigger and got an HD box for my television. The only phrase I can now utter is "Holy Shit!"...thats it. I can't imagine how I ever owned a widescreen for so long without it. All is good with the world. And do you know what the best thing about it is? I got to watch the Yankees get their asses kicked last night in High Definition! I must now return to my shrine....

The Dolphins blow...

Thats really the easiest way to say it. When you turn the ball over 5 times and have 18 penalties, you are bound to lose a game in the NFL. On the other hand, if you do this and you have a chance to win the game in the last few minutes, all isn't lost...there is always next week. The good news is that Cheryl went with me to watch the game today...a first for her. We ended up having a few more beers than scheduled and will probably pay for it tomorrow, but it was a lot of fun and I hope she wants to go next week.

In the same boat today with the Dolphins are John Daly and the Atlanta Braves. JD missed a 3 footer on the 17th hole which would have won him the American Express Championship. He then missed a shorter putt on the second playoff hole to choke it to Tiger. I have nothing against Eldrick, but JD is so much more fun to watch play golf. As for the Braves, they again proved they are a great regular-season team. They were up by five runs with two innings left and blew it. I think they have won the NL East 14 years in a row and only have one World Series title to show for it. In football that might not be so bad, but only 8 teams make the playoffs in baseball. That sucks no matter how you slice it.

Penn State pulls the upset in Happy Valley

I am sure Gunther is crying in his scotch (or wine) tonight and I feel for him. The mightly Buckeyes were just beaten by Penn State in somewhat of a surprise. I don't think many people gave Penn State a chance in this one, even after winning their first five games against "lesser" opponents. To beat a quality team like the Buckeyes will make more beleivers of many people. While not good enough to win the National Championship, I am sure some sports reporters will be kissing Joe Paterno's ass tomorrow and saying how great he is. And hey...the guy is about 150 years old and still coaching in big time college football...more power to him.

Tonight will be absolutely nuts in State College. I haven't been there since my college days, but I can't imagine things have changed that much in 10-12 years. I'm sure they still party like rock stars and puke all over College Ave. Ah...the good old days.

A Quiet Night Out

Cheryl and I decided to go out to a quiet dinner last night at Josie's. With all the day-to-day stresses in the world, it's always enjoyable to have a nice relaxing dinner at a local Italian place...eat pasta, drink wine, and just chill. We followed dinner with a trip to one of my favorite places in the world, Coldstone.

We are on our way to meet Francisco shortly for lunch. Cheryl used to work with him up in Raleigh and we haven't seen him since our wedding two years ago. After that we are heading to Gary and Sue's briefly. We have been throwing around the idea of going to the Lake Worth drive-in tonight with a few people. I have many fond memories of getting drunk at the drive-in growing up. Unfortunately, there are very few of them left these days.

As for sports, tomorrow is (obviously) devoted to the Dolphins game. We've even convinced Cheryl to go to Brus with us to watch the game. It was nice to see the White Sox sweep Boston last night. They are for real this year. And with the way the Yankees are playing, it very well could be the Angels and White Sox in the AL Championship game. My World Series projection is Chicago and St. Louis with the Cardinals pulling it out in 6 games.

My apologies

I have been a little lazy recently and I apologize to my faithful readers. Unlike the Senator, I like to update my blog more often than every two weeks. Work has been good the past month, I just scheduled vacation in the Keys for November, and all is well around the house. Well...we still have a house guest we can't seem to get rid of, but that's another story. The baseball playoffs are underway and we are in the heart of college football season. The Dolphins are actually leading their division, which is really crazy. I had lunch with my mom today, which is always fun. Life is good and I really can't complain too much about things. Sorry...that's it for today. No ranting, no raving, just happy thoughts. Bob Ross would be proud...you all remember Bob Ross:
http://www.hofcraft.com/images/BobRossLogo.GIF

Rain Delay

So, the Marlins won last night in pretty dramatic fashion with a late game rally. The actual game was great, but the 3 hour rain delay kinda sucked. The game was delayed at 6:30 only half way through the first inning. Things didn't resume until 9:30. The good news was that there was no traffic after the game because there was nobody left in the ninth inning. We still didn't get home until about 12:30, which is late for an old man like me.

It's looking like my Indians have choked their way out of the playoffs this year. Unless they win today and Boston loses, they are done and will have to sit it out until next year. The good news is that they seem to be up-and-comers in the AL and will hopefully challenge the White Sox next year for the division title.

Cheryl and I also booked our November vacation to Key West this morning. We haven't been there in two years (since our wedding) and the trip is long over-due. If you are remotely interested, you can check out the website for the guesthouse we are staying at: www.artisthousekeywest.com. I'm already counting the days until departure!

Go Tribe!

It's shaping up to be a big weekend in baseball. My old team the Cleveland Indians have three big games against the White Sox starting tonight. If they can sweep the series, they'll make the playoffs for the first time in about 5 years. This is really exciting considering I was spoiled with the good teams the Indians used to field. For those of you that don't know, I lived in Cleveland from Jan of 1996 through Jan of 2000. These were the years when the Indians always locked up the AL Central by mid September. Since then, my boys have gone into the skid known as "rebuilding" while losing all the great talent they had in those late 90's teams. I've dusted off the old Chief Wahoo hat and will be cheering hard this weekend.

Staying on the subject of baseball, Cheryl and I are going to the Marlins/Braves game tomorrow evening. While I was hoping the game would have playoff implications, it was not meant to be this year for the Marlins. Regardless, I'm looking forward to it. Everyone stay out of trouble this weekend.

The moron is back in the news

My old friend Cindy Sheehan is back in the news. As all you regular readers of the Lounge know, I really dislike this woman. I guess she was arrested today in front of the White House while protesting again....yawn. Above is the picture of her being hauled away. It is indeed a great day! A few things of interest in this story:

1) You need to have a permit to protest in Washington DC and Cindy did not have one. Other places this might not be required, but in Washington it is understandable. Play by the rules if you want to protest...it's that simple. If you are asked to break things up by the police (and this happened three times) and you don't leave, you will be arrested.

2) Climbing the fence outside the White House is a no-no. One of Cindy's friends decided it would be a good idea to do this and the Secret Service got him quickly. Hopefully they gave him a good beat-down and a body cavity search. I don't care who you are...climb the fence at the White House and you are getting your ass kicked.

3) Doesn't Cindy have a job? I have wondered about this for a while and honestly don't know the answer to the question. Some Americans might want to join her in her quest, but us normal people need to WORK. I would think Cindy should concentrate on being a productive member of society and paying taxes like the rest of us. Then she can complain about how the government runs things.

4) Is this woman really the good role model that parents want their kids to look up to? I sure hope not. In addition to having no job and being arrested, she showed her wonderful respect for the law by laughing and smiling about the whole situation. Boy, I sure hope Mikey grows up to be like her!

Happy News

Well, the Dolphins pulled out a win today. All the shit that Ronnie Brown has been getting was put to rest today with a 132 yard effort against Carolina. I hate it when sports reporters (the so-called "experts") write off a rookie after only two games. I'll be laughing in December when Ronnie reaches 1000 yards.

In a related happy story, I finally found a cool website that isn't the same old "doom-and-gloom, count the bodies and tell me how the world sucks" news site. It is called happynews.com and everyone should check it out. If you like body counts and negativity, prepare to be disappointed. If you want something that is a nice change of pace, check it out.

Who's gonna show up?

So, what Dolphins team is going to show up today at 1pm? The team that looked great in week one scoring 34 points against Denver or the jackasses in New York last week that scored 7? Hopefully Nick Saban can right the ship today. Carolina is coming off a big win against New England and I am hoping for the proverbial "letdown" this week. That in combination with a motivated team at home will hopefully translate into a win. Stay tuned...

A little looting fun

Yes, I stole this idea...I admit it. But it was SO funny that I couldn't pass it up. My old buddy Gunther at Frotuss.com posted this today and I have been laughing my ass off for about five minutes. I'm sure that the people over at Heineken are pretty happy about the publicity.

This gentleman seems rather resourceful. He didn't take food, water, or any of the necessities he might need after Katrina flooded his neighborhood...he got the beer. He's going to have bad cottonmouth in the morning after drinking all those beers and no water. I guess the people over at Heineken are right...It's all about the beer.

No way!

Above is the now famous picture of Kate Moss getting ready to do a line. This whole story really amuses me. Yeah...I know this story is a day or two old and I am late to the party...it's just really funny. Everyone is acting like "we had no idea models snorted coke". Yeah, right. The entire industry is full of girls who do it constantly. There is a reason why these girls stay so skinny, people! Saying you are "shocked" by a model blowing lines up her nose is like being "shocked" that kids under 21 drink. Please.

Here we go again

All I can say about Rita is HOLY SHIT. Thats it. Rita's central pressure just dropped to 898 mb, which is the third lowest ever in the Atlantic basin. Lower than Andrew, Lower than Camile, and yes...lower than Katrina. Unless something strange happens in the next few days, the damage could be just as bad as what we saw in New Orleans. With that being said:

1) If you are in the path of the storm...get out. Heroes who try to ride out these types of storms end up dead.

2) If you are a politician...shut your mouth. I'm already hearing rumblings and politicians who want independent investigations as to why the preparations are going smoother for Rita than for Katrina.

3) If you aren't in the path and can help out...do so. Be happy and appreciative that you aren't the one whose house is going to be flattened in three days. Living where I do, I am thankful every day.

A little humor helps

This picture is hilarious. The "to go" comment on the bottom makes it really hilarious. I think the picture sums up the attitude of most people in the Keys very well. As the Keys were the location for my engagement and wedding, it is obviously one of my favorite places on earth.

I hope that everyone takes the mandatory evacuations down there seriously, though since there is noplace to run and hide in the Keys once a hurricane shows up.

Back to Reality

Well, the Dolphins have fallen back to reality this week after getting their asses handed to them by the Jets 17-7. They looked a lot more like the 4-12 team from last year today. Pimpbling and I were pleaseantly surprised to have the company of Gunther for the game. He was a little more fortunate today as his Browns beat Green Bay.

It looks like Rita is now up to 50mph winds and the National Weather Service expects a Category One by tomorrow night. The current track is pointing to the Keys, but any small shift north and we are in the path. Phillipe could turn west and I wouldn't be surprised to see Tropical Storm Stan form later this week right on the heels of Phillipe. Welcome to the peak of hurricane season in South Florida.

Taking a Chad

I think that the word "Nap" needs to be replaced in the dictionary with "Chad". I went out last night with the Senator, Big Daddy, and Chad to watch the college football games. Chad was late as usual because he fell asleep. I have never seen anyone sleep more than Chad does. He sleeps like 12 hours a night and is always taking a nap. Crazy shit.

On another front, it looks like TD 18 is heading our way. This one should be Tropical Storm Rita later today or tonight. Hopefully it will stay south of us and we'll only get some wind and rain on Tuesday.

I'm heading to Brus Room around 3:30 with Pimpbling to see if the Dolphins can follow-up on their win from last week. Living here in South Florida(sometimes knows as New York City South..how YOU doin?) there are usually more Jets fans at the bars than Dolphins fans. And, yes they are usually obnoxious as many New Yorkers are. Hopefully we'll come home with a win.

Prime Catch/ Idiot Watch

Cheryl and I had dinner with my parents last night at Prime Catch here in Boynton. I have only been there three times, but every time the food has been excellent. You would think I'd stay away from seafood places (since I don't like it), but the steaks are so good that I will always make an exception. It's kind of strange being the ONLY person in Florida that dislikes seafood, but I have managed pretty well. Next on my list is what I call "Idiot Watch". I know I promised to retire the Katrina rhetoric, but like boxers I am briefly coming out of retirement.

"George Bush needs to stop talking, admit the mistakes of his all around failed administration, pull our troops out of occupied New Orleans and Iraq, and excuse his self from power."

Above is a quote from the wonderfully idiotic Cindy Sheehan (who had her cute little "camp" outside the Presidents ranch this summer). Is this woman insane? Maybe she needs to check into a mental institution. PULL THE TROOPS OUT OF NEW ORLEANS?? Take the troops out who are providing the protection that residents need...great idea Cindy. I guess Cindy hopes that New Orleans can go back to the looting, murder and rapes that were happening 2 weeks ago without the troops there. And people listen to this woman??

Mixing it up a little

I see that we have a little sparring going on in the comments sections. A little friendly boxing is always encouraged at the Margarita Lounge. It seems like we have Gunther and Pimpbling (oh yeah..and me) in one corner and MT in the other. Don't worry MT, the Senator has been pretty slack on his comments (and his blog) recently and I'm sure he will have your back.

As for me, I hit it out of the park today at work. Every now and then you have a day where everything works out and today was that kind of day. With tomorrow being Friday, hopefully I can carry the rally into the weekend.

Speaking of the weekend, lots going on for the Florida teams this weekend. Florida/Tennessee, Miami/Clemson and Florida State/Boston College should all be good games on Saturday. Plus, the Dolphins/Jets game on Sunday might be better than we all expected.

Last one on Katrina

In an effort to "move on", this will be my last post mentioning Katrina. The whole "blame game" going on in the media really upsets me and has gotten under my skin the last week. There is a time and a place for analysis and accountability. I just don't believe two weeks after one of the largest disasters in US history is that time.

A few weeks or months from now, Congress will spend lots of taxpayer dollars in the hunt to throw around blame. Our culture always wants instant gratification, we want answers today. We want someone to blame, we want a scapegoat. In this case, there is only one clear-cut "bad guy" out there and she isn't around anymore. Her name is Katrina.

Please stop

And people wonder why I can't stand watching the evening news. Bias is the reason...plain and simple. Oh yeah...it's time for a little pent-up political rage. If I was not an intelligent and resourceful person, I would beleive that George W. Bush is the reincarnation of Satan himself. All I need to do is look at the news anytime there is a problem in the world and would know that it is ALL his fault.

I guess all this finger-pointing about Hurricane Katrina has finally gotten under my skin. I am usually very good at expressing my feelings, but when someone else states something so accurately and so eloquently, I can do nothing but agree. Here is an article from Jack Kelly that I suggest everyone read: Link

Who the hell was that?

Who was that team that beat up the Broncos yesterday at Dolphins Stadium? I couldn't beleive my eyes all afternoon. The Dolphins score 34 points in a game? I have become so used to the Jay Fiedler-led Dolphins scoring 7 or 10 points a game that I was shocked to see points on the board. Now, one game does not make a season, but I was pleasantly surprised by my team's performance and hope that my 8-8 prognostication was an error.

Football

Well, I am sure Gunther is sad this morning after the poor offensive showing the Buckeyes had last night. You gotta put the ball it in the endzone. Don't feel bad pardner (subtle reference to Brent Mustberger), the Canes looked equally shitty last week against Florida State. Actually, Miami looked a lot worse than your beloved Buckeyes. We can now both hang our heads at having a loss early in the year. The good news is that an early loss to a highly ranked team is much better than a loss late in the year or a loss to a crappy team like TCU.

Speaking of losses, the Dolphins open their season today against the Broncos at 1pm. After a stellar 4-12 record in 2004 (with more drama than a high school prom), Nick Saban is hoping to improve a team that really sucked last year. I would consider an 8-8 record this year a success but think they will be more competitive than everyone thinks. It's not like they are going to make the playoffs or anything, but they did manage to beat the Patriots last year.

Arrival of the Piano

Today is a very happy day for Cheryl. This morning around 11am Zeke and I delivered her piano. We almost killed ourselves lifting into the Uhaul van I rented, but we "got 'er done". The rest of my day has been relatively uneventful..an hour working in the yard, some college football on TV, and a few small naps.

As for the golf tournament yesterday, we were the big winners. Our team was 3rd in 2003 and 2nd in 2004, so we were due to win this year. Unfortunately, we didn't win a trophy like the last two years, we won gift certificates to the golf shop. Not that I'm complaining...we had a great time all afternoon and it sure beats working on a Friday afternoon. I was hoping to go out tonight to watch the Ohio State-Texas game, but it seems like most of my friends are out of town. I guess the couch is going to be the location of choice.

Golf, Ophelia, and the Piano

Well, we are close to the end of another week. You gotta love the four day work week, huh? Actually, its going to be a 3 1/2 day work week for me. I am playing in the annual Rotary Club golf outing at Cypress Creek tomorrow with a few co-workers. I'm usually recruited for these events because I am a pretty decent golfer. Unfortunately, the boys might be disappointed tomorrow as I haven't hit a golf ball in about 5 months. Actually, with now Hurricane Ophelia circling a few hundred miles north of us, I hope we don't get wet.

As for this weekend, Cheryl and I will soon be proud owners of a piano. Zeke was looking to get rid of his wife's piano and I offered to buy it off him. Needless to say, Cheryl is very excited. She's already ordered sheets and sheets of piano music. I'm renting a Uhaul van on Saturday morning and hopefully won't break anything...wish me luck.

Blog Comments

I want to thank everyone who comments on the blog on a regular basis. I also want to encourage everyone who does not comment to do so...I'd love to know who is reading and what you think about the stories, my opinions, life, whatever. To comment, just click on the comment link below the story. Once the next page pulls up, click on the "post comment" link to enter your comment.

On the comments section, I have added a word verification feature. All you need to do is type the word that is on the page. This is to avoid all the spam programs out there that have been placing annoying advertisements on the Margarita Lounge. It doesn't effect anyone's ability to post an actual comment....just the crap I don't want. Thanks again to everyone for reading.

Back in the Saddle

I have survived my trip to Pittsburgh and have returned in one piece. It was nice to visit K-Delish and his family for the weekend, but there is nothing like coming home to your own bed. Lots of fun was had and a few beverages were drank on my little trip to the great white north. While 50 degrees at night might be "pleasant" in Pennsylvania, it downright cold for a South Floridian in early September...I was glad to feel the warm blast of humidity when I stepped off the plane last night.

I am also gearing up for the big game tonight. Miami/Florida State kicks off just after 8pm in a college version of Monday Night Football. Go Canes!

Thanks to Cheryl for posting the idiotic comments from Kanye West the other day. I'm amused by all the finger-pointing going on now about the handling of Katrina by the Louisiana government officials. Local and regional disaters have always been the responsibility of the local and state governments with Federal assistance provided. If things weren't done right, the mayor of New Orleans and the Governor of Louisiana (both Democrats) need to first look at themselves before blaming Bush for things. Lets all remember that there was never this type of problem when Jeb handled the 4 hurricanes Florida had last year. There were also no complaints about how Rudy Guiliani and Governor Pataki handled the aftermath of 9/11 four years ago. Conveniently, all three of them were Republicans. Here's a good link that probably says it better than I do: http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/nl74.html

Kanye West

In my husband's absence tonight, I feel obligated to post this......

On the Hurricane Relief Benefit Concert (LIVE) tonight, Kanye West blurts out "George Bush doesn't care about black people". Way to spread the love and promote giving, dumb ass.

http://www.juiceenewsdaily.com/0605/news/west.html?1125709350109

Headin' North for the Weekend

I will be heading north to Pittsburgh tomorrow morning to visit the great K-Delish for a few days. Hopefully everyone will be able to survive a few days without my babbling. See ya on Monday...everyone have a great Labor Day weekend.

This makes me sick

It's not bad enough that New Orleans and the Gulf Coast have just been destroyed. Thousands of people are homeless or dead and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has the audacity to politicze the situation on his blog. I have read many articles over the years that have really upset me, but this one takes the cake. Essentially, Mr. Kennedy is blaming the Republicans (including Bush and the Mississippi governor) for all the problems in the environment, even throwing in a reference to Katrina at the end.

Now, there is a time and a place for discussions on the environment. There is also a time and a place for politics. This is not one of those times. This is a time to mobilize, organize, save lives, and help people...period. Do you think the people stranded on their rooftops for 3 days want to have a discussion about the effects of global warming? I doubt it. What they need is food, water, and shelter. I would suggest Bobby getting off his high horse and actually doing something to help. If he can't help out, at least send a check. Politics will wait, asshole.

Tomorrow may be worse

As bad as some of the pictures were today from Katrina's landfall, I have a bad feeling that tomorrow's will be much worse. With the first damage assessments starting tomorrow morning, I heard one reporter say that some damage in Southwestern Mississippi is "Andrew-esque". I really hope that he was exagerating. Houses can be rebuilt and cars can be replaced, but life is a precious thing. Similar to my friend Mark over at the Stufftbox, I encourage you to give to the American Red Cross if you can. www.redcross.org

Feelin' Real Lucky

I woke up this morning to something I never expected. Katrina is now a category 5 storm with 175 mph winds. As some of you know, I am a hurricane nut. Living in the potential path of destruction for a few months a year, I keep updated on the paths and statistics of hurricanes as they form and develop. I went to bed last night and Katrina had 115 mph winds. Yes, a category 3 storm, but something that I see at least a few times during the year. Jeanne was a category 3 at impact and that hit about 50 miles north of here last year.

Katrina is completely different. Right now it is much more powerful than Andrew was at landfall and if it hit land today would have the second lowest pressure ever recorded. This is really a terrifying storm. I drove through Homested a few months after Andrew went through in 1992 and it was the scariest thing I have ever seen in my life. If anyone out there has friends/family in the path of this storm you need to call them now to make sure they have evacuated.

Normally I am a light hearted person, but this hurricane makes my skin crawl. I just know that there is some "cowboy" out there in Louisiana, Mississippi or Alabama who figures he is tough enough to ride it out. Trust me...the pictures from CNN that everyone is going to see on Tuesday morning will not be pretty, no matter where it hits. I feel very lucky that we only got brushed by Katrina when she was a much weaker storm.

All Clear

We got brushed by Katrina but ended up being OK. The Margarita Lounge lost power around 7:30pm and it came back on at 11. The wind is still howling outside, but things should calm down over the next 6-12 hours. Looks like we dodged another bullet. I feel bad for the people southwest of Miami. One area got about 16 inches of rain this afternoon/evening and the weather guy said it was still coming down. Since the storm took a turn to the southwest after landfall, it looks like the gulf coast might get hit with a major hurricane in a few days. It's been a long day around here so I'm heading to bed...

Hurricane Prep

Above is a picture of the current plan of attack if Katrina comes a-knockin. I think the chances are pretty good that we will get some good winds and lose power for a while. As our experiences from last year taught us, always keep plenty of booze on hand for a Tropical Storm or Hurricane. When the lights go out there isn't much else to do but get drunk. Giddie up.

TD 12

Looks like Tropical Depression #12 just formed this afternoon over the Southern Bahamas. With the warm water in the Bahamas, it looks like this baby will strengthen into at least a tropical storm in the next day or so. While it shouldn't be as bad as Frances or Jeanne, we are definitely going to get some heavy rain and wind by the end of the week.

Wireless Surfin'

I have been a lazy ass all day. The extent of my journeys outside the Margarita Lounge has been one trip to Target a few hours ago with Cheryl. The Reese's wrappers, boxes of Hot Tamales and bags of junk food are piling up. Here I sit on the couch, watching golf on the big screen, and typing out a blog entry during the commercials on Cheryls laptop. Cheryl hooked up a wireless network in the house a week or two ago, so I can now surf the web while on the couch. The applications are endless, especially with football season starting soon.

Pinched

What an odd Saturday it's been. I awoke (surprisingly) without a hangover and got outside by 8:30 to cut the grass before the real heat of the day kicked in. Sometime around 9:15, I pinched a nerve in my uper back/shoulder. This is something I have never experienced before today and it's something I hope never to repeat. This shit HURTS! I was completely useless and immobile for about an hour and a half...I just layed on the floor and complained to Cheryl. I finally got to the point where I could halfway function around 11:30. By this afternoon I feel a little better, but I'm still uncomfortable when I move certain directions.

Staying in on Friday Nights...Pinching Nerves in my back...man am I feeling old. Soon I will be driving a Lincoln Towncar, going to early bird dinner at 4:00 and buying Depends. The good news is that we are getting some Sals Pizza for dinner... probably followed by a few glasses of wine. My guess is that by 9pm I will be feeling better one way or another.

Another week done....

Another long work week has ended at the Lounge. I am getting old because I seem to relish staying home and relaxing most Friday Nights. I guess that is supposed to happen once you reach the big 30...right?

It was good to hear from both Gunther and the Senator on the blog. I actually got a chance to have a beer with Mr. Hickman (and the catfisherman) last night after work. It was good to get together and we should do it more often boys.

Many of you may notice that I have not been posting as many political comments recently. Don't worry...I haven't crawled into a hole or anything. I just don't see much out there that fires me up. The one thing that gets a little fire going is this Cindy Sheehan woman. Yeah..that lady in Texas being supported by the "people" over at Air America, Move On and Michael Moore. I can understand (and respect) the grieving mother, but how many grieving mothers have PR directors? Please. The good news is that the wine tastes real good tonight and not much is rocking my boat right about now.

Where art thou??

Where have you been hiding at Gunther? Both you and the Senator seemed to have dropped off the radar screen recently. No comments? No snide remarks? No emails? Nothing. I'm beginning to think I stink or something. In the immortal words of Roger Waters...Is there anybody out there?

Another One for Lefty

I had to come home from work around 10am today to check out the finishing few holes of the PGA. I was glad to see Phil come through for major victory #2. In a world full of golfers who look and act like robots, it's nice to see someone smile when they actually win a tournament. Two years ago, everyone was talking about Phil never living up to his potential. Now he is half way to the career grand-slam and has just as many majors in the last two years as Eldrick. Sure, he is five years older than Tiger, but golfers are competitive well into their 40s these days, so his best days could be ahead.