Ok. So this has been less than live. A couple of things. We brought the wrong charger so I can’t charge the battery in my laptop. (Yet, our current hotel might have some.) The battery expired several days ago. Second, it’s been hard to find time to hit up the internet cafes. The opportunity cost is so great… I could sit for an hour in a cafe or explore a foreign country. Which do you think is going to be more persuassive? Third, Italian keyboards are really difficult to type on. Many of the punctuation keys are in different spots, making typing a bit slower than what it would be if I were on my own keyboard.
Right now I’m in the “business center” of our hotel. It’s really just one room with an old computer. But it has the internet, so I’m not complaining. I made some Thanksgiving day fantasy football selections, checked a few things on facebook, and responded to a few emails.
Things have been mostly good. Yesterday was by far our worst day – an even so it wasn’t that bad. I got “hustled” for a blurry picture and some expensive roses on the Spanish Steps. At least for 20 Euros the dude took one good picture. We also over paid for tea and got lost returning to our hotel. On the flip side, we found some good wine and Cuban cigars. I was shocked to find out that I wasn’t in the United States and that these are entirely legal over here. Who knew?
Anyway, a few posts will be coming later with a back dated time stamp. I wrote them in word on my macbook. I just need power and the internet to post them. And finding that has been a bit more than difficult.
Today we are off to see the Roman Forum and other Roman ruins. I hope everyone has a great day, a huge turkey leg, and a long nap.
Alright, for those of you who haven’t seen facebook. I proposed to Alissa. (To marry me – douche bags). She said yes (assholes). Some people were wondering why I didn’t wait until Italy. To make a long story short: I was concerned about unwittingly becoming an international jewel thief and/or (more likely and) losing the ring.
Apparently yesterday’s flight from Chicago to Italy was canceled due to a bird hitting the nose of the plane. Because of the large size of the bird, the plane was irreparable and grounded. So there was a long line when we arrived at the airport and lots. This made me feel like arriving early (like three hours early) was a good decision. Alissa thought it was funny that the Italian plane needed a nose job. We took some pictures of the bird guts and the mechanics changing the cone of the plane. Because of this the plane is delayed a bit. We are supposed to leave at 4:30ish.
Alissa *had* to buy a bridal magazine as soon as she got through security. She also couldn’t reach it because it was up high, way in the back. I had to get it for her.
I’m a bit nervous because this is the first time that I’ve flown for a time longer than 4 hours and its my first time leaving the good ole U.S.A. I need to go because I have to move to fine an outline and charge my laptop battery so that we can watch movies on the plane.
Let’s clarify something: I love fantasy football. I don’t know why, but I do. It probably has to do something with liking football plus trying to predict what will happen in the games, who will benefit, and how will probability change everything.
The problem is that I like it too much. I read tons of advice columns, none of which ever really seem overly helpful aside from recommending things I could have already deduce myself. Start any team against the Lions? Really? That’s your advice? Wow, really willing to risk being wrong. The other options are columns that write things like “start Peyton Manning.” Gee. I didn’t know he was good.
In all seriousness, I read to try and get a sense of the problems that I face. My suspicion is that other managers do the same thing. Some advice is pretty good. I recommend reading the Fantasy Football Librarian. She complies a good amount of information (like a true librarian, and yes, she is a real one) that other sites have written and compiles it into a decent post. If you have the time, then you could read what everyone thinks on the subject.
I usually do read everything. Which consumes a lot of time. And leaves me frustrated – because it hasn’t resolve the difficulties I faced and then I wasted time reading lots of articles. I face a number of dilemmas this week (and probably for the next three weeks).
Well, it seems that at least ONE other person reads this. Thanks, random internet person!
I’m a big fan of the Madison Mallards. If you don’t know what the Mallards are, they are an amateur summer league that competes in Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota, Canada, and New Hampshire. The players on these teams are NCAA players that want to get experience of day to day play with wooden bats. I like it because it’s baseball – cheap and very close. Anyway, they have a blog: http://mallardsbaseball.blogspot.com/. Check it out. The current post asks for suggestions about merchandise. I’d make a suggestion about how to make better hats – but I don’t think Alissa would let me buy another one. Their posts are long, but if you like the “inside baseball” feel, you should be content.
As long as I’m talking about Madison blogs that aren’t mine. Let me point out two. Mayor Dave’s blog on Triple M’s website (link). It’s pretty amusing. The other one is Eating in Madison A to Z (link). In a recent review of Manna Cafe (which I love, mainly because of its proximity to my house), they wrote:
In a word: Manna ability doesn’t go on the stack. It resolves (hunger) immediately.
I laughed quite hard at the sheer geek behind that. If you don’t get it, don’t ask – my explanation will only show how much of a nerd I am.
There are other blogs about Madison to be sure, but I find that these needed some more love. Or perhaps I need to convince more people to read blogs and write in them?
T-minus five days and counting. In fact, if you’re looking for a more precise estimate, then check this out: (link). I will try and put up some photos of our vacation in something like real time. If you have no idea what I’m talking about, then here’s some urgent news: Alissa and I are going on vacation to Italy starting Saturday.
I am also following through on my commitment to write everyday. Accordingly, I have two thoughts related to the nature of this blog. One: I think my blog needs a new title. I am open to suggestions. Two: I think I need a vision about what to write about. See the poll below.
Speculation abound today that Gov. Doyle is leaving Madison for a post in the Obama administration. This speculation is nothing new to people in state government. Doyle was asked if he would leave for a post in the Obama administration during the Denver convention. His answers was no. (Sorry, I can’t find the link). Many people at the time thought that as a very early endorser of Obama (the Friday after the Iowa Caucuses), he would be ideal for some cabinet level post.
He was asked again about this before the election, and again Doyle’s answer was that he preferred being Governor. (link)
And now apparently, this is today’s news:
Gov Jim Doyle traveled out of state, reportedly to New York, this week on a trip that Capitol insiders who were familiar with the governor’s schedule said involved neither state business nor campaign duties.
Doyle aides said the gubernatorial travel involved “personal business.”
Might that “personal business” have something to do with a position in President-elect Barack Obama’s administration?
That was the speculation that swept the Capitol Thursday afternoon and Friday morning. Doyle aides confirmed to reporters that the governor had had some contact with the Obama transition team, but would go no further in describing the nature of any discussions.
And so, the speculation resumes. The situation is further complicated by the fact that the political environment for the governor are getting worse. The state budget deficit is projected to be $5 billion dollars and the only real solutions are drastically cutting state programs or raising taxes. Neither alternative makes a governor politically popular.
It’s facebook official. My wiscmail account is coming to a close at the end of December. It’s kind of sad to see my longest standing email address go away. I kind of wish I could keep it. In a way I can… I still POP my wiscmail; so I will retain most of the messages after the account gets shut down.
I mean I could sign up for a uwalumni account, but why? I really like gmail.
Also, how long does it take to count ballots in Alaska. Like 300,000 people voted their. That’s about the size of Dane county. And Dane county was done about a week ago. What gives?
