Texsox

QUOTE(Alpha Dog @ Mar 21, 2008 -> 03:34 PM) I take a wide stance, about 4 feet, so I don't dangle into the urinal. I need all the room I can get.

The big points are at the end. I try not to look until the 3rd round. But I did, and once again, these guys suck at following my script . . .

He's still playing? I honestly thought he was out of the league. I guess I should pay some attention to the NL

I'm back to where I started. 226 this morning.

I've been living in South Texas, along the border, for over ten years. During that time, I have sailed and fished the Gulf of Mexico, backpacking and camping throughout the Rio Grande Valley, both on public and private lands. I have scanned the butterfly and birding maps and trodden down trails lined with mesquite and live oaks. I have grown to appreciate the beauty of cacti and respect the hard life of the plants and animals who occupy this region. I thought I knew all the best spots, saw all the best sights. Until yesterday. To have an interesting life, surround yourself with interesting people. To see things you have never seen before, find friends who have seen things you have not. This started with a phone call. Would you like to take a canoe trip down the Rio Grande with the Friends of Roma Bluffs? I've been hearing about these float trips for a few years and until now, have resisted trips on the river. I have visited areas near the population centers of McAllen and Donna and the river was dirty with all the signs of visitors that needed to move quickly and for whom taking time to dawdle and "leave no trace" was not an option. This trip was much further up the river, the put in spot was just a few miles below the Falcon Reservoir Dam and would put out several miles and approximately ninety minutes down current and into what would be the prevailing winds. Joining us on the trip was two excellent guides, Bill and Michelle who are full time RVers, wintering in South Texas before heading north towards St. Louis in their kids. They are volunteering through US Fish and Wildlife along with several other couples. Each year with the arrival of our Winter Texans and their dollars, comes passionate volunteers who leave the area better. Making the $10 payments were a retired couple from Wisconsin and their son, and a family of four. All total we had 11 people ranging in age from 9 to (I'll be polite). What I am hinting here is anyone could take this trip. We met at the Roma Bluffs World Birding Center and piled into the US issued van which hauled the canoes up river. Along the way we picked up our volunteer driver who along with his volunteer wife, would be bringing the van and trailer back downriver to the take out spot. After unloading the canoes at a wonderful private campground and a safety and orientation chat, we were floating. The 16' canoes were perfectly maintained and seemingly new. The personal flotation devices were well fitted, and the paddles were well balanced. Most of my recent experiences have been in kayaks, so there was a period of adjustment before I was comfortable. Once confident in the boat and our abilities to control in the current, we began to look around and enjoy the scenery. This area of the river is far from any concentration of people and very clean. At one point, visibility was over three feet to a clean rocky bottom. Of the man made variety we saw very little evidence of humans, a couple fishermen on the south bank, a fence now and then, but most of the time it was just the birds and us. The birds! So many ducks, so many birds we could not identify. Fortunately Bill and Michelle were excellent resources with sharp eyes. Kiskadees were everywhere. Their bright yellow feathers would catch our eyes as we lazily paddled and floated. We had packed water and snacks but were so busy enjoying this stretch of river we never ate. I remembered to stay hydrated, my usually careful friend barely sipped any water. Despite the mild conditions that day, March temperatures stayed in the 70s, she was slightly dehydrated at days end. Irrigation demands down river dictate the flow of water being released from the dam. With water levels higher than normal most navigation challenges were safely below the surface, so our trip was uneventful. We were told at lower levels, some boulders become something to avoid. There have been a couple canoes that have tipped this season, but both were crewed by guests with zero canoe experience who wished to stay together. Besides the unpleasant dunking, no one was injured, and their trips went on as scheduled. Once we arrived at the take out point, we were treated to an incredible sight. A bird feeding station, a short walk from the ramp, offered birders a chance to view up close, dozens of species. From bright red cardinals, to yellow kiskadees, orange orioles, several species of woodpeckers, and many more I wish I had the expertise to describe. Even to a casual observer, this was a treat. And to think the we were a month or two past the prime viewing months of January and February. After a short drive back to the Roma Bluffs Center we were heading back home and trying to describe each moment, hoping to remember every sight along the way. The trips are offered throughout the winter months and I expect to be back next year, with more friends. I only pray the proposed border wall does not destroy this opportunity for future generations.

I would like to mention the Sloan Royal Flush II is perhaps the most viewed bit of plumbing anywhere. It has no equal. I wait with anticpation for the Royal Flush III

QUOTE(Jenks Heat @ Mar 19, 2008 -> 12:45 PM) What is funny is the $40K is probably a good percentage of some of their annual salaries. Why should the bullpen coach get an extra $40K for going ot Japan? Same with some players, a guy making the league minimum will really notice this. The player's union no doubt managed this clause for their union members. Most companies would offer management at least some of the same benefits that the people they manage are getting. Interesting the union members are striking to help management. How often does that happen?

The players were not b****ing about playing, they just wanted their coaches and staff compensated. Seems a lot different then the Yankees situation.

QUOTE(kjshoe04 @ Mar 19, 2008 -> 01:52 AM) Hope they get that contained, Tex. By the time it was contained over 25,000 acres were burned and 4 homes. Fortunately it is ranch land. They are checking on livestock now. Perversely, losing homes in some cases would be less of a financial hardship then losing the cattle.

QUOTE(AssHatSoxFan @ Mar 18, 2008 -> 01:04 PM) so you can neither confirm nor deny that TT has sand in his Va-jay-jay? My exd-wife was an X-Ray tech at Lake Forest Hospital and saw several of the Bears. She also worked at Highland Park Hospital where we met Jordan's then wife. She had one of the boys in the ER. The most amazingly gracious person. Saw Keith Van Horn one evening. What a huge human. Nothing fit on the standard X-ray film size.

Scary stuff. The area about 20 miles north of me, including several ranches that friends of mine own, is burning. 1,500 acres and growing. The winds are nuts here all day today. I was in the area for a while tonoght and seeing dozens and dozens of emergency vehicles all staged and taking off is sobering. http://www.kgbt4.com/Global/story.asp?S=8037146

I hate bubble buster on my cell phone. I've played like 500 times in three days. I see f***ing patterns everywhere. When stuff doesn't fall in real life I'm confused.

Keep in mind they also considered what the Sox valued Crede at. And we've gone over them dozens of times. Boras, Fields, etc. So they assumed Crede had no value and just to avoid any chance of Boras mesmerizing K-Dubya into a nasty contract might have been motivating.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Mar 17, 2008 -> 10:09 PM) This is probably his last shot with the Sox. Someone will still sign him to a minor league deal if we're forced to let him go and he'll be considered a 6th or 7th option if someone gets hurt or implodes. And/or someone will be able to "fix" him.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Mar 17, 2008 -> 06:53 PM) They could just do 3/5s if they want to really disenfranchise everyone... A tip of the Dennis Miller trilby to you

classic.

Dotel will have the best season, which I defined as the greatest difference between expectations and results. In other words if Bobby saves 40, only a few blown saves, well that is kind of expected.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Mar 17, 2008 -> 01:25 PM) Garland was incredibly streaky during the course of his seasons. He would get on incredible tears, and then there would be months where he just got killed. His first year in the majors looks like something out of Floyds stat line in 70 IP. We could sit here and toss out player after player who started slow in the mlb and got better. And it would be countered by 100 more that started slow and got worse from there. They all can't be Buehrle who started fast and kind of stayed there. My default is the guy is going to do well. He's on the Sox and I just would rather enjoy being an optimist until proven other wise. But I guess some people enjoy a good, "I told you he sucked".

QUOTE(dasox24 @ Mar 17, 2008 -> 04:25 PM) In... A final 4 of Tenn, Wisconsin, Stanford, and UCLA when it was all said and done. Guess who's winning it all? Someone not on your list

QUOTE(SoxFan101 @ Mar 17, 2008 -> 04:04 PM) I don't exactly understand what the point or what this thread is trying to prove. It was actually started in the Dem primary when someone felt that the south was more racist then the north. These were detracting from the primary thread and someone make a new thread.

QUOTE(Athomeboy_2000 @ Mar 17, 2008 -> 03:01 PM) i hear ya. I believe 501c3s are not allowed to be political, but i am not sure. Edit: i stand corrected. Not a problem at all. Basically all it says is they perform some charitable function and are tax exempt. Which is different then just being a non profit. Most registered non profits are not charities, but the terms get misused interchangeably.

QUOTE(Chisoxfn @ Mar 17, 2008 -> 11:57 AM) In. boy did I make some stupid picks. Ditto. Most years I pick 15 seeds to win brackets tried to be a bit more realistic this year. Or as realistic as I could get with Texas winning it all

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Mar 17, 2008 -> 07:50 AM) It finally hit me why I feel like we have done this before... Gavin Floyd=Jon Garland Yup. Their histories are so similar, it is scary. Both were very high draft picks who supposedly had mid to high 90's stuff, with a HUGE curveball. They both seemed to lose a decent amount of their stuff on their trip through the minors and beginning in the majors. They both were highly disappointed on their initial trips to the bigs, to the point of both players being traded early in their careers (remember the Garland/Erstad deal that Disney nixed?). They both suffered huge confidence problems after both their stuff and preformances had big disappointments. Finally both became huge targets for their fan bases. We might as well have the Floyd "Fan" Club start calling him "Judy" and get it over with. The one thing that gives me faith about Floyd is how well this regime did with Garland, who was a bust under the Manuel group. They really broke him down and rebuilt him into a very good pitcher. Garland was a guy who you didn't build a rotation around, but you also knew you were going to get solid stats and preformances from, and you could spend your time worrying about other problems. Great synopsis of Garland. Great post.

Somebody tell me again how Mariotti sucks? I felt like I just read one of his columns, only poorly written and without much entertainment value.

QUOTE(kyyle23 @ Mar 17, 2008 -> 11:37 AM) So if we were playing Clue, it was the Rent-A-Cop (getting laid) in the Computer Room with the Coffee Cup? very well played