#also i turned 16 yesterday!! hooray

[churomo]

i kind of wish she had an ohoho laugh

[verdantglow]

Fuck it, posts my SmallEtho playlist.

Part-Time Soulmate, Full-Time Problem: A SmallEtho/Boat Boys Playlist

(Best listened to on shuffle.)

This is a kinda long playlist (28 tracks), so if you only have time for a few songs, check out: ‘Pyrokenesis’; ‘I Am Fred Astaire’; & ‘Built To Burn.’

Full track list & selected lyrics under cut.

1. Son of a Gun - Motion City Soundtrack

Have you had enough? Are you tough? Are you broken?/Hit me where it hurts, don’t just curtsey & sulk/I know I deserve every elegant word that you’re hurling at me

2. Pyrokenesis - 7chariot

When you say the things you say, they start a little spark/Ignite this small but also highly flammable heart

You’re setting me on fire, I don’t wanna fight it/You don’t need a lighter, you’re a flame/Drowning myself in water only makes it harder/Hard for me to keep myself away

3. Just One Yesterday - Fall Out Boy

I want to teach you a lesson in the worst kind of way/Still I’d trade all my tomorrows for just one yesterday

4. Violently Alive - I Hate Kate

I hate that you’re there/And I’m here/In the same room/Miles from me to you/We’re so distant/But close enough to touch

5. Tiger Teeth - Walk The Moon

Give in, give in, I want you back/One heart, one too many to stomach/Love bites so deep and we got tiger teeth

6. It’s Not A Fashion Statement, It’s A Deathwish - My Chemical Romance

Hip-hip-hooray for me, you talk to me/But would you kill me in my sleep?/Lay still like the dead/From the razor to the rosary, we could lose ourselves/And paint these walls in pitchfork red

7. True Romance - Motion City Soundtrack

I’m a screwup of epic proportions/A walking hand grenade/Hyper-manic, a dime store dramatic/A conduit for pain

She said “Don’t speak, don’t think,/Just take it off, take it off”/I said “Don’t speak, don’t think,/Just mess me up, mess me up”

8. Violence - blink-182

Like violence, you have me, forever and after/Like violence, you kill me, forever and after

9. I Am Fred Astaire - Taking Back Sunday

I’m under the assumption that I’m gonna be the one that’s leaving you/Tonight, oh, tonight/Well I flipped every switch that I could find on my way out/Just to upset you more/Just to keep you busy/Just to make you angry/Just because you were right

I’m stuttering through it, but I hear it/Well I-I I hear it’s good t-t-to stick to what you know

10. The Wolf - The Crane Wives

I am not a tempest/I light torches in my sleep/I have gasoline in my veins/I am always burning, burning burning

11. Crave - Waterparks

I’m cravin’ a getaway from the/Smooth talk that’s keeping me grounded/To the carpet in my room/My quiet blue tomb of you

I wish I could forget you

12. Hold Me Like A Grudge - Fall Out Boy

Hold me, hold me like a grudge/The world is always spinning and I can’t keep up/Faster and faster, can’t do it on my own/Part-time soulmate, full-time problem yeah/Hold me like a grudge

13. Formidable - Twenty One Pilots

You are formidable to me/‘Cause you seem to know it, where you wanna go/Yeah yeah yeah I’ll follow you/But you should know/I might be cynical towards you/But I just can’t believe that I’m for you/Yeah yeah yeah I can die with you/Just let me know

14. Play With Fire - Sam Tinnesz feat Yacht Money

I ride the edge/My speed goes in the red/Hot blood, these veins/My pleasure is their pain/I love to watch the castles burn/These golden ashes turn to dirt/I’ve always liked to play with fire

15. Bulletproof Heart - My Chemical Romance

I’ve got a bulletproof heart/You’ve got a hollow point smile/Me and your runaway scars/Got photographed dream on the getaway mile/Let’s blow a hole in this town/And do our talking with a laser beam/Gunnin’ out of this place in a bullet’s embrace/Then we’ll do it again

16. The Truth Is, You Should Lie With Me - Say Anything

You’re a pretty face, you should like me/I want to get used by you/‘Cause I’m full of hate, just excite me/I want to get bruised by you

17. Red - Pale Waves

Oh no baby, are we gonna make it this time?/I always take hearts that shouldn’t be mine, be mine/Slow down baby, are we gonna make it alive?/You’ve got a face that I always recognize/Always recognize

18. Kill V. Maim - Grimes

I did something bad, maybe I was wrong/Sometimes people says that I’m a big time bomb/But I’m only a man/And I do what I can

19. FUNERAL GREY - Waterparks

I said that you can call me, beep me/If you want my skin/She rolled her eyes and then she said/“I know your dying wish is to be baptized in my spit”

20. Shiver - Motion City Soundtrack

Shiver away, I thought the action was real/Somewhere I know that’s just the way you are/it’s hard to believe that you’re a part of me/And I can’t believe when you carry on and on

21. Kiss With A Fist - Florence + The Machine

My black eye casts no shadow/Your red eye sees nothing/Your slaps don’t stick, your kicks don’t hit/So we remain the same/Love sticks, sweat drips/Break the lock if it don’t fit/A kick to the teeth is good for some/A kiss with a fist is better than none

22. Mr. Brightside- The Killers

It started out with a kiss/How did it end up like this/It was only a kiss/It was only a kiss

23. Tear You Apart - She Wants Revenge

Escape was just a nod and a casual wave/Obsess about it heavy for the next two days/It’s only just a crush, it’ll go away/It’s just like all the others, it’ll go away/Or maybe this is danger and he just don’t know/You pray it all away, but it continues to grow

24. Can You Feel My Heart (Remix) - Bring Me The Horizon, Jeris Johnson

I’m scared to get close/And I hate being alone/I long for that feeling to not feel at all

Holding on, bring me close, feel my heart/Can you feel my heart?

25. Built To Burn - Shaffer James

We’ll build a world/And burn it down/Everything is pretty/When we burn it to the ground

26. Hatef—k - The Bravery

There will be no tenderness, no tenderness/I will show no mercy for you/You had no mercy for me/The only thing that I ask/Love me mercilessly

27. Stupid For You - Waterparks

You’re playing ring around my head/I’ll wear you like a halo/You’re a symphony/I’m just a sour note/I’ll take what I can get/The best is hard to grip when everybody wants you/And everybody wants you

28. My Obsession - Pale Waves

I’m stood still, I can barely breathe/You’re such a mess but you’re always beautiful to me/Run your fingers across my mouth/I’m not prepared to stay here without you

[keywestlou]

GOOD BYE IAN!

GOOD BYE IAN! - https://keywestlou.com/good-bye-ian/Good bye Ian. Glad to see you are going to pass us by. First off, I have to concede I was panicking. The weather releases concerned me. Key West was as close to the center of the cone as possible. Even when the cone began drifting westward, Key West remained near center. Now Key West is totally out of the cone. God bless! Hooray! Many Key Westers shared my concern. My grocery person Jaqueline told me yesterday morning Publix was crazy. People grabbing everything they could off the shelves. A few Key West friends called. They said the talk in town was crazy.....looked like we were in for it. Then everything changed. I should have known better. So should everyone else. The reason for the panic was again the cone. Too large, too soon. I hope some discussion follows and the cone problem does not occur again. It was the media over reporting, over dramatizing an event. Two things came out of this scenario for me. One good, one bad. My car got some minimal updating. The good. The bad is I have groceries, most of which I do not normally eat. I purchased groceries based on what I would need if I remained. In 30 years, I have only left twice. Georges in 1998 and Irma 5 years ago. So I am aware that when one stays, the person remains without electric power. Means no electricity. No water a problem also. The first two items to go. Food planning involves what need not be kept refrigerated or cooked. My choice potato chips, pretzels, crackers, peanut butter, jam chocolate pudding cups that need not be refrigerated, Hershey chocolate bars, American bread and bananas. My normal diet only includes the bananas and the American bread. I also purchased 6 cases of water. Twenty four 16 ounce bottles to each. Plus 36 16 ounce bottles of Diet Pepsi. I already have flashlights and candles. All left for me to do was fill the bathtub with water. To flush the toilets. American bread because it lasts a couple of weeks without turning green. Store made bread molds fast. I am not disappointed that Ian will not be visiting. I do feel a sympathy for those he will, however. Steve Thompson tells the story of a bar called Monster. Way before my Key West time. An interesting place however in the late 1970's and into the early 1980's till AIDS hit. In the late 70's Seth and Sven opened the Monster Bar. It was the foremost Key West hangout by far. Some of the hottest girls were there every day. They didn't get harassed cause it was mostly gay. The local studs said they were friends of Schwinns. To get past the doorman cause they couldn't pronounce Sven. All the best bands and entertainers were there. Everyone partied without a care. Famous people from all over the Keys. The Village People and every celebrity. It seemed like there was no end in sight. Then someone shot Seth in the head one night. Thank God he survived and was able to come back. But no one was ready for the next whack. It was now the eighties and everything was opening up. When locals were getting sick going, "what the____?" Nobody knew what was going on. But everyone knew something was wrong. AIDS scared everyone to death as it should. And that was the end of Monster for good. Ian obviously a concern to many in Florida. Over on the east cast at Cape Canaveral for the third proposed launch of Artemis I scheduled for this coming Tuesday. Canceled again. This time due to a hurricane scare rather than the previous two hydrogen problems. This is the final day of the Presidents Cup. The U.S. leads 11-7. Twelve single matches scheduled. Needed to win 15.5 points. The International team closed the gap yesterday by winning 3 of the last 4 matches. It seems like an impossible task for the International team to win 8.5 points today. Means win 8 matches and tie 1. Compared to the U.S. only needing 4.5 points. However one never knows. Hope springs eternal. Never say never. Though I doubt the Internationals will even come close. Enjoy your Sunday!                

[yoshimickster]

Rwby Volume 5 Episode 6 Recap (SPOLERS BABY)

Hey everybloody-LET’S START THE MICKSTERECAP!

A Qrow walks into a bar and asks “I’m an alcoholic-GIVE ME BOOZE!”...that’s not a joke, thats usually what happens.

1:48 AAAAAAAAAAAAAH-Piccolo bartender! And not SMOOTH Chris Sabat either-GRIZZLED! Or is that Lanipator? Either way-AWESOME!

1:55

Qrow: I’m looking for a guy with a bad ass name.

Bartender: That’s literally EVERYONE.

2:28 ANGRY PICCOLO BARTENDER IS ANGRY! I my god this is wonderful.

2:52 The above is the list of Qrow’s potential new Suicide Squad, and he BETTER get Blanka Griffin, that name just OOZES awesome!

3:11

...uh, okay I need fan-art of this beautiful blacksmith like YESTERDAY! We all know Qrow would’ve gotten her number if not for his...sad man’s search.

4:26 CLOSE IT OUT-with Qrow asking a father and child where their mother is...damn that was sad.

4:43...oh...my...GOD! Qrow’s so depressed he doesn’t DRINK! These are truly dark times.

He then goes to the leaderboards(yes they have those)to see that literally EVERYONE on his list is busy! He then goes to pay off Shiro’s tab-RIGHT BEFORE WE ALL SEE-

6:16 ...that...right outside the bar. What the hell racist Piccolo?!

6:20 CUT TO-the Branwen clan, sitting down for tea! OH-and Vernal’s pooring, what a nice young demi-god!

6:46 We are then treated to Raven being sassy as usual before she drops the BIGGEST bombshell ever-

Raven: We did it[attended beacon] to KILL huntsman.

7:44

Those right there? Those are SHOCK faces, they be shocked.

8:37

Raven:-[Ozpin]-turning a blind eye for when we got into more trouble than we should’ve.

...damn, that boy has NOT changed a lot since Team STRK’s day have they?

9:48

Raven: So yeah...the Grimm have a dark Maleficent style Overlord that wants to kill all humanity.

Yang: Say whaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?!

10:31 UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGH Raven you stupid BITCH, make fun of Qrow, NOT the dad who raised her ALMOST single-handedly...wait bad metaphor, SORRY Yang!

...okay...this is the greatest picture ever. Yang’s all “DON’T YOU SHIT TALK MY OLD MAN!” while Weiss is all “Bitch you fucked up now.”

11:44 “But I bet he never told you what he did to my brother and me.”

Please just be bird powers, PLEASE just be bird powers, there’s too many creeps in the news with a line like that!

12:55 OH THANK GOD just bird powers. 

13:23 Raven: I’m giving you a choice, stay with me and I’ll answer everything. Or go to your uncle-

Yang: Uncle Qrow.

Weiss: Why would you bother asking that? You KNOW what her answer is you dumb bitch!

Raven: Hey, I’m abusive not SMART!

AW SNAP-now this is the greates pic ever. DAMN Freezerburn is KILLING IT with the sassy looks.

14:36

CUT BACK TO QROW-logically giving himself one FUCK of a pity party. Its okay man, you tried.

Qrow: This isn’t right, I get one or two of them but...all of them?

...huh, that...that is a good point. Either a conspiramacy is in the work, or his bad luck powers are in FULL foce, like that episode of the Flash or any episode of Milo Murphy’s Law! MAN-I can’t wait for that hiatus to end.

14:50 CARROTS! HOORAY FOR CARROTS! Also is that a dust oven? COOL!

15:28 DAMMIT RUBY-stop burning empty frying pans and go see your sister!

16:00 FEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELS!

Close  it out with an ADORABLE 3/4ths Team RWBY reunion and WE GOOD!

Holy SHIT this was the best all talking episode of Rwby EVER and I mean that sincerely!

[not-ghost-proof]

I MADE A FRIEND @bergarass AND SHE TAGGED ME IN THIS HOORAY FOR FRIENDS

rules: answer these 85 statements about yourself, then tag 20 people.

 last

1. drink - coffee

2. phone call – my dad I think???

3. text message – “HI TELL HIM I LOVE HIM” (about a horse LMAO)

4. song you listened to – Colors by Portugal. The Man

5. time you cried – yesterday… because I love my cats so much

ever

6. dated someone twice? - no

7. kissed someone and regretted it - no

8. been cheated on - no

9. lost someone special – not really?

10. been depressed - nah

11. gotten drunk and thrown up - nah

Fave colours

12. bright red

13. bright orange

14.  royal blue

in the last year have you…

15. made new friends – YES THANK GOSH

16. fallen out of love – haven’t been in it yo

17. laughed until you cried – yeah the other day in Italian class when my friend said he was organising a crying party where you have to “wear black to represent sadness”

18. found out someone was talking about you – yeah fuck you all

19. met someone who changed you – yeah sure

20. found out who your friends are – definitely

21. kissed someone on your facebook friends list – I don’t have facebook hAH

general

22. how many of your facebook friends do you know irl – I don’t have facebook

23. do you have any pets – yeah… 13 cats, 1 dog, 2 fish an 3859204 yabbies

24. do you want to change your name – yes I hate my name a lot

25. what did you do for your last birthday – I…… honestly can’t remember. I do know that the only friend I saw was my stepsister and she chased me around the house trying to put whipped cream on my nose

26. what time did you wake up today – weeeeell 6:30 but I was like nah its Sunday and went back to sleep for another hour and a half, so 8:00

27. what were you doing at midnight last night – trying to sleep

28. what is something you can’t wait for – probably this free horse riding lesson I won. Also my birthday

30. what are you listening to right now - music

31. have you ever talked to a person named tom – ya

32. something that’s getting on your nerves – MY PHONE BECAUSE ITS FUCKED UP

33. most visited website – Is Instagram a website? If no, this one lol

34. hair colour – “honey blonde” (brown)

35. long or short hair – long, like half way down my back

36. do you have a crush on someone – ummmm idek tbh

37. what do you like about yourself – my hair and my eyes and that’s about it lol

38. want any piercings? – yeah that bit at the top of my ear I cant remember

39. blood type – I cant remember

40. nicknames – none that I’m willing to tell anyone

41. relationship status – single

42. zodiac – Taurus

43. pronouns – she/her

44. fave tv shows – Bondi rescue and channel 10 news tbh. Oh and The Simpsons

45. tattoos – none. Idk if I want any

46. right or left handed - right

47. ever had surgery - nah

48. piercings – just your average ear lobe piercing

49. sport – equestrian!!! And netball

50. vacation – I wanna go back to Kangaroo Island

51. trainers - nikes

more general

52. eating – choc wheaton biscuits

53. drinking - water

54. i’m about to watch - nothing

55. waiting for – my next riding lesson because I haven’t been for 5 WEEKS!!

56. want – a life

57. get married – idk tbh

58. career – none rn and idk about the future I’m too young for that

which is better

59. hugs or kisses - hugs

60. lips or eyes - eyes

61. shorter or taller – I don’t care, being super, super short means everyone’s tall to me

62. older or younger – I don’t care but please don’t be too much younger/older

63. nice arms or stomach – I don’t care

64. hookup or relationship - relationship

65. troublemaker or hesitant – I don’t knowwwwwwwww

have you ever

66. kissed a stranger - no

67. drank hard liquor - no

68. lost glasses – no I don’t have any

69. turned someone down – no never had the opportunity LOL

70. sex on first date – no

71. broken someones heart – I don’t think so???

72. had your heart broken - nah

73. been arrested – no… yet

74. cried when someone died – I haven’t lost anyone close to me… so not

75. fallen for a friend - no

do you believe in

76. yourself – hAh no

77. miracles – maybe???? Idk I’m not religious but like bfbdehwusjhdg

78. love at first sight - nah

79. santa claus – lol no

80. kiss on a first date – no sorry

81. angels – no

other

82. best friend’s name – either madi, erica or rhyanna

83. eye colour - brown

84. fave movie – I have no clue, I don’t watch tv/movies much

85. fave actor – no one

I have no one to tag but that’s ok!!

[kierancfthehunt]

Tag

rules: you must answer these 85 statements and tag 20 people

tagged by @catarinalosss​ and someone else I can’t remember. Thank you angel! (and thank you person I can’t remember. Sorry!)

I tag @annalightwoodthequeen​ @lvdy-midnight​ @tiberiusblacktorn​ @oblivionsdream​ @sania0810​ @lovelaces-are-quiters​ @i-am-but-a-humble-potato​ @herondqle​ @emmacxrstairs​ and whoever else wants to do it.

the last … 1. drink: Coke 2. phone call: My mom  3. text message: The Gay Salt Squad(TM) 4. song you listened to: Stay Alive from Hamilton *ahem* 5. last time you cried: Yesterday while I watched In A Heartbeat for the fourth time, 6. dated someone twice: dfd yeah whoops. Neither times worked.  7. kissed someone and regretted it: yep  8. been cheated on: nope 9. lost someone special: nope not yet  10. been depressed: I’ve been on the verge of depression, but never actually been there. 11. gotten drunk and thrown up: Never had a drop of alcohol favorite colors 12. to wear - red, black, white, pastel pink  13. Navy blue 14. Dark red in the last year have you … 15. made new friends: Definitely 16. fallen out of love: I guess so?  17. laughed until you cried: YES  18. found out someone was talking about you: In a bad way or a good way? Well, who cares, the answer to both is yes.   19. met someone who changed you: Oh yeah.  20. found out who your friends are: Not quite, not yet. 21. kissed someone on your facebook list: Don’t have a facebook, kissed one person and regretted it anyway lol. 22. how many of your facebook friends do you know in real life: Don’t have a facebook.  23. do you have (had) any pets: I’ve had like 5 dogs throught my life: Emilio, Tuffy, Luca, Tommy and Max. 24. do you want to change your name: Nah I like it. 25. what did you do for your last birthday: woke up with an scorpion next to my pillow (no joke), watched my parents leave for a week and tried not to cry, and ate at a restaurant. 26. what time did you wake up: like 7:30am sigh 27. what were you doing at midnight last night: Sleeping (fell asleep early hooray)  28. name something you can’t wait for: moving out. 29. when was the last time you saw your mom: This morning. 31. what are you listening to right now: I’m watching CA:CW so that. Also an airplane. 32. have you ever talked to a person named tom: Ha no, Idk any Toms. 33. something that is getting on your nerves: My dad talking about how I should dress, have my hair, behave, think, act, etc. 34. most visited website: tumblr and twitter. 35. hair colour: light brown 36. long or short hair: shoulder-length  37. do you have a crush on someone: I have a crush on half of the internet whoops. Can I say Rosey and Ele? :) #ExposingMyself  38. what do you like about yourself: I like my hair and eyes, I think. And I’m not stupid? Maybe? lfadsfsd I hate talking about good stuff about myself lol. 39. piercings: Ears  40. blood type: uh 41. nickname: June, Juney, June bug  42. relationship status: Single *sigh*  43. zodiac: Leo  44. pronouns: she/her 45. favourite tv show: atm, Downtown Abbey, The Last Airbender and Dr. House. 46. tattoos: not ever getting one <-- same as Rosey 47. right or left handed: right 48. surgery: Nope  49. piercing: ears (this has been asked twice) 50. sport: Used to play volleyball but quit it cause school was kicking my ass  51 vacation: travel the entire fucking globe to see my beautiful internet friends (with Rosey since she’ll be visiting me :P) 52. pair of trainers: Adidas? I think? 53. eating: atm, nothing I just had lunch. 54. drinking: nothing  55. i’m about to: go out to the dentist  56. the fkcinh qoaad release + tec release (what was the question??) 57. want: stevebucky to be canon PLEASE MARVEL 58. get married: I just really want someone to love me pls  59. career: not sure yet- something related to psychology. 60. hugs or kisses: GIVE ME ALL OF THE PHYSICAL AFFECTION.  61. lips or eyes: eyes ! 62. shorter or taller: taller 63. older or younger: don’t care  64. nice arms or nice stomach: don’t care 65. hook up or relationship: Relationship 100%  66. troublemaker or hesitant: lol hesitant. 67. kissed a stranger: nope  68. drank hard liquor: nope  69. lost glasses/contact lenses: too many  70. turned someone down: ugh yes, when I was 13 and I was a fucking bitch and could have been so much nicer jesus.  71. sex on the first date: NO  72. broken someone’s heart: may..be? I think? According to what they said, at least. 73. yepp (what was the question lol) 74. been arrested: nope  75. cried when someone died: yeah  76. fallen for a friend: yes. Twice, for two different people. Bigest mistake of my life. do you believe in … 77. yourself: depends  78. miracles: yeah 79. love at first sight: yes  80. santa claus: haha no  81. kiss on the first date: maybe, depends on the person. I don’t believe much in dating, gimme relationships based on friendships.  82. angels: I think so  other 83. current best friend’s name: I don’t think I have an irl bff bc.. reasons... but I think Rosey is my online bff rn (and irl I mean I don’t have an irl bff so that’ll be Rosey too). 84. eye colour: Brown 85. favourite movie: Uh.. Wilde, Brokeback Mountain, 10 Things I Hate About You, CA:CW anddd maybe Age of Ultron.

[hookysblog]

South America

 TEATRO RIVAL, RIO DE JANIERO 1/12/16

A long trip via Atlanta gets us into Rio the day of the gig, so it is going to be tough, especially for the lads.

Strange being here the same time as New Odour. I notice in interviews that Gillian says she misses me?…..Aah bless! And Steve cracked on he didn’t even know we were here with The Light at the same time…humh? I find both those statements impossible to believe for many, many reasons.

The Brazilian Press have turned it into a bit of an Us vs Them, which could turn out to be quite interesting. In Chile we are actually playing at the same theatre three days apart….Weird!

Weirder still, we split up after The South American Tour in 2006. Ten years ago nearly to the day (and have been at each other’s throats ever since;) God that takes some stamina that doesn’t it? I cannot believe it myself, very New Order.

Anyway we are staying in Copacabana right on the beach and it is glorious. We have played this club before and it is a bit rough and ready but has a great atmosphere. As I arrive I remember one other thing….It is bloody hot! Poor Old Leadfoot is worn out. The gig goes great (Sold Out again!) and the audience are wonderful, I sign a million things and do a thousand photos, before crawling back to bed;)

 BAR OPINIAO, PORTE ALLEGRE 3/12/16

 A much-needed night off, here on the 2nd recharges our batteries. The Hotel surprise me with a lovely welcoming gift. How sweet, tasted lovely too.

This is getting tough for me….Must be my age? It really does get harder every year;( Still I manage the gym again, which is nice and makes me feel a lot better. The gig looms large and this is a big place (Sold Out;) and strangely me and Pottsy have a row??? Not over much, fold-back actually;(…It is years since we’ve had one and thankfully it is over quickly. I think we are all frazzled to be honest! It makes you very cranky these late nights and early mornings, and being an old bloke, that’s the worst one. God knows how I handled it when I was drinking etc., Well, I just answered that question really;) I had actually forgotten what it was like to be mad at some one on tour! Me and Jack bang heads a few times but it’s never over anything disastrous. I come up with a new motto ‘Don’t moan….Phone!’ which everyone loves throwing back in my face as soon as I start moaning…..typical.

Ends up being a great gig, crackling with energy. The audience goes nuts for both sets and we struggle to get out with the amount of people clustered round the van. ‘Is this what it was like for The Beatles?’ asks Pottsy.

I think it was worse for them mate, a little.

CINE JOIA, SAO PAOLO 6/12/16

 Short flight brings us to Sao, and we have two nights off. Brilliant!

 Early on the first night we get a great curry from this really dodgy looking place in the middle of Sao Paolo (Google we love you x). On the way home it starts to rain and one of the gutters bursts, but not with water, with cockroaches!!! An army of them pour out and scare Phil to death (he’d be no good in I’m a celebrity get me out of here). I regale the boys with tales of my cockroach days in Ordsall in Salford. They are suitably impressed/disgusted.  We all get sunburnt rotten the next day and finish off with a typical Brazilian Barbecue meal.

 Amazing to think how in the old days we would go to loads of these and not eat at all! The Promoters, who always took you, must have thought we were mad. But those days are thankfully gone. Nice early night for me, I was feeling a bit weird to be honest. I think I’m getting a cold again. Leadfoot’s got one and hard as I try to stay away from him, it is impossible with his magnetic personality. The gig day dawns and I still feel rough but steel myself and go to the gym, which works….I feel much better….Hooray! Before I know it my old mate Heitor picks me up and after a Japanese meal in Japantown, Sao Paolo. (Turns out Sao Paolo, has the largest Japanese population of any city in the world after Tokyo, go figure?) My other old friend and our Promoter Giuli, drives us to the gig. Now this gig’s stage is the highest I have ever seen, even higher than The Glasgow Appollo. So the audience are way below. A great very young crowd goes mad from start to finish. We play great. It is hotter than hell…again. One wonderful moment when this old geezer climbs up on the stage and goes to crowd surf off during Warsaw, but the crowd just part and won’t support him and he has to jump down going flying arse over tit, bet he’s aching today;)

We play Atmosphere for the Brazilian team lost in the air crash. I watched the funeral in Port Allegre, and it reminded me of Princess Diana’s funeral in England. It was very moving and the footballers were so young. It seems to have affected all the Brazilian people very much. As I sing I see many people in the audience crying one girl in particular makes me choke up too and I have to really pull myself together to get the words out. I think it was because Heitor my friend, a doctor, was a volunteer in Columbia to bring the players back home to Brazil. He was telling me all about the scene and what had happened, a shocking waste of life because of one man’s greed.

A real tragedy.

We give them mercy with Love W. T. U. A. and the ‘Sold Out’ house goes bonkers! Wonder how we’ll fare in the comparison stakes eh world? We shall have to wait and see won't we……Off to Chile very early tomorrow.

 TEATRO CAUPOLICAN, SANTIAGO, CHILE.

God we are knackered. Bed at 2.30a.m. and up at 5.45a.m. for our trip. I am in shock. It’s still dark, but every one is very happy after such a great gig last night. At the airport it takes over two hours to check the equipment in and get to Departures, then a 4hr 45min flight, then 1 hour in immigration and an hour and a half in Baggage to get the equipment out. It seems it has been stored until tomorrow for some reason? We get to our bus, and I must admit it has seen better years, probably around 1960 I reckon. Our greeters seem a bit sheepish and very quiet, almost avoiding eye contact and certainly no conversation. By the time we arrive at the Hotel there is no time to rest and the lads go straight to the sound-check. I crash out (you are allowed if your over 60) and I am just nodding off when all the phone start, almost all at once. At first I thought it was someone pissing around. Then I realise not only are the lads phoning me but also my manager. I finally get the very bad news that the Promoter has not sorted out the advertising for the gig. He had billed it as ‘New Order’ in a cheap attempt, I presume, to get sales off ‘The Others’. He had been warned about their removal and facing legal action, so I had no option but to pull the gig.

I am devastated. This gig in particular was the one I was looking forward to;(

Three days after them? same venue? it was the perfect opportunity to show our worth. We had been checking with this Promoter a lot, to make sure the show could go ahead, I am not daft. This was a problem, even though our gig was booked 4 months before they announced theirs ….Boo… Hiss(hey it is pantomime season;). Right up until the last minute the Promoter had assured us there would be no problems. He is an idiot.

After doing so well in Brazil to be treated like this here was terrible. We have played here twice before…. both sold-out, why this promoter acted like this I do not know.

I can only apologise to all our fans and ‘The Others’ and say when we come back again it will not be with him.  

A welcome early night gets us ready for more obscene travelling.

NICETO CLUB, BUENOS ARIES.

Up at 6.30a.m for our flight to the beautiful place that is Buenos Aries, the Paris of the south. A gorgeous city…… but we are tired, very tired. Thankfully gig wise we are back to normal, with another ‘Sell Out’ and what a gig it is! An absolutely bonkers reception for both sets! I am amazed! It is so welcome after the shenanigins of yesterday.

B.A. I LOVE YOU! All thoughts of that awful night over 10 years ago are forgotten and forgiven…..You made an old man very, very happy. It is times like this that make all the effort worthwhile. Crawl to bed.

Almost human 10a.m start to …..

 MUSIC BOX, MONTEVIDEO.

Our last gig, on this tour.

Jack tells me we have done 49 since Glasgow….WOW! What an achievement. My wife, dog and daughters have forgotten me but it was almost worth it….ha ha! Weird hotel this one, great pool and gym, and a strange 60’s style casino, all of which I have to ignore because of my cold, now in full bloom. The gig is nice and there is always a weird feeling at the end, no matter where you are or ‘who’ you are with. Tonight is no different. The gig goes great and we give Andy Poole, our ex-keyboard player a great send off. He is leaving us for pastures new, sadly.

 Adios mon ami! Love Hooky ‘16

[ayeletinthemountains]

Mount Bierstadt (and picking up our van!)

11/20/16

This is not just the story of Mount Bierstadt, but also how Leo and I purchased our new, traveling home: Betty White the Sprinter. Leo and I had been making preparations to head off for the adventure of a lifetime, traveling around North America in a van and climbing mountains. We had been searching for the perfect van for a couple months, when we finally found an amazing van for a reasonable price in Colorado.

It was the weekend before Thanksgiving, so we both took the whole week off. Leo already had plans to spend Thanksgiving with his Mom in Austin, so after we both went to get the van together, he would fly to Austin, and I’d drive the van back solo to San Francisco (with a stop along the way to see friends climbing in Sedona).

Flying to Colorado!

Leo and I flew to Denver Friday night, spent the night at an Airbnb, and then grabbed a ride the next morning to meet Dave (the van owner and builder) and Betty, at Dave’s shop. Betty was even better in person than we were expecting. We were sold. We went to the bank, signed the paperwork, and were officially van-owners. Welcome to #vanlife!

Meeting Betty for the first time!

We spent the rest of the day running some errands, and then went to a delicious Friendsgiving at a friend’s house near Boulder. At the end of the night, we drove up to the trailhead for Mount Bierstadt. There was no way we were going to spend a few days in Colorado and not climb a 14er. It was my first time in the state, and I was itching to get up high!

My friend Ryan had suggested Bierstadt — it’s one of the easiest CO 14ers, but given that it was shoulder season, that’s what made sense. The road to the trailhead was still fully open, so we’d only have to do 2.4k feet of elevation gain and three mi each way. Given that I hadn’t been hiking much recently, and we had no idea if the snow conditions would be miserable (and we had essentially no snow gear with us), this seemed like a great option.

We spent our first night in the van at the trailhead (Guanella Pass), at 11.7k ft. No biggie. Thankfully, we weren’t cold at all. What did prove to be a problem though was the wind: it was insanely windy all night, and I could barely sleep. The van just kept rocking back and forth continually. Leo and I planned to get up as soon as the sun rose so we could just get the heck out of there, and drive out in the light. (The road *had* had some snow/ice on it, so we figured in the daylight would be better).

Betty at the trailhead. (Photo by Leo).

But then, we got up around 8am, and the winds had died down a little! And the sun was out! Okay… We figured we could start hiking a little and see how it went. It looked like there was surprisingly little snow coverage, so we might be able to give the summit a go anyways. We packed up some snacks and water, and set off.

Yes, there are going to be a lot of photos of Betty. (Photo by Leo).

As we started, there was very little snow coverage, and we were fully able to follow the class 1 trail. It heads downhill slightly into an open area, and then starts to switchback up the peak. While we had been one of only two cars when we pulled up late the night before, there were now at least 10 in the parking lot. Turns out easy CO 14ers are quite popular — who would have guessed? ;) So, as we headed down the trail, we frequently passed people or saw others coming down.

It was definitely cold and windy, but still reasonable. As the trail began to climb, the snow became more frequent. Any sort of traction devices though would have definitely been overkill, which we were happy to see. Towards the top, there was a bit of a scramble, which was slightly annoying with the snow, but caused no actual issues.

On the summit ridge.

A couple hours after leaving, we were at the summit! It was incredibly up there, so we quickly took a requisite selfie, and then started to head back down the mountain. I had packed my huge parka, which I gladly put on before heading back down.

Very cold summit selfie.

Less cold on the way down.

The downhill went quickly, and before long we were back at the van. We put our gear away and got ready to drive out. This is when things got interesting. Leo started up the car no problem, but as soon as he put it in drive, it died. It felt like the car had stalled or something. Okay… let’s try it again. Same thing. Okay… let’s try putting it in reverse. Same thing.  Uh oh. Was something wrong? Betty had had a brand new transmission installed only 5 days before… and we were worried something was pretty broken.

To make matters worse, a big storm was supposed to roll in that night. And the road that we had taken to the trailhead would likely close for the entire winter season as a result. And AAA won’t tow you if a road is officially closed. And we had no cell service at the trailhead.

It was about 2pm, and I felt like we needed to move fast to make sure we could get Betty down from the mountain. We asked a hiker who had just gotten back to the parking lot if he’d be willing to give us a ride back to the nearest town, which is 10mi down the road. He graciously said yes, and a few minutes later, we were headed back to cell service. He dropped us off at a coffee shop, and Leo and I set about trying to fix this situation.

I called AAA while Leo called Dave, to let him know we were having problems. Dave said we could definitely take Betty back to the shop where the transmission was installed to have it looked at — great. I was dealing with AAA to make sure we could actually get Betty there, but I kept having setbacks. Is the car registered to you? No — we just bought it yesterday, Saturday, in CO, and we live in CA. Does the car have plates? No, in CO, the plates stay with the original owner, and we could only get temporary plates the next day once the DMV was open. Did we have the title to the van? No, Dave had had a loan on the van, so the bank still had the title, and we’d only receive it in a week or two. Oy vey.

AAA said they would only tow the vehicle if we got plates. Dave, however, was busy running his own errands, and could only bring us the plates in about two hours — but at least he would bring them to us, which we beyond appreciated. AAA said this was okay — and they’d call us a tow truck then. Great! So, it looks like we’d hopefully be able to get Betty off the mountain after all.

Leo and I walked around the tiny town, Georgetown, checking out the various touristy stores and having a bite to eat while we waited for Dave to bring the plates and the tow truck to show up. Dave got there maybe 15 mins before the tow truck, so I drove back up the pass with Dave while Leo waited for the tow truck.

While driving up to Betty, Dave asked me for more information about what had happened. We told him the car started fine, but it just would die every time it went into drive or reverse. Well… turns out Dave had had this same problem a number of times when it was very cold. All he had to do was run the engine for a while to let it warm up, and then it would be fine. Oh… Apparently this is a thing with diesel vehicles, which Leo and I had no idea about, since we had never owned a diesel. Woops… Dave bet this was going to be the problem. When we showed up at Betty, he turned on the engine to get it going, while he did some other basic inspections on the transmission. He had brought some tools to check the fluid levels, as well as the computer that can read out any error codes from the engine. A few minutes later, Leo and the tow truck driver showed up.

The tow truck driver was getting ready to tow Betty, but Dave asked him if he could have a few more minutes to see if she’d work. Lo-and-behold, when Dave put Betty in drive, it worked just fine. Wow. Oh well… At least the van worked!

Betty almost getting towed. Exciting stuff.

The three vehicles all caravanned back down the road. Leo and I had to use one of our free AAA tows on the ordeal, but at least everything was fine. We had been expecting the worst. We were super thankful of Dave’s help, and his humor in the whole thing. We felt bad that we had wasted his time, but so it goes. He said he freaked out the first time the same thing happened to him, but he had had service at the time, so he was just able to Google it. So it goes.

We drove Betty back to the Denver area. The shop still looked at her the next day to make sure she was fine, and they said everything was a-okay. Hooray! And so, we climbed a mountain and learned a thing or two about van ownership. The next day Leo flew out, and I started the journey to CA solo.

[scenarios-on-ice]

Yeah, I definitely get why you chose Hange ^^ I just thought Zeke would make a much more terrifying villain. Like, you think he’d stop at antique photos? Hell no. He’d steal everyone’s antique items and stash them in his bedroom.

Then he’d steal an antique broom holder from Levi and get completely wrecked.

Lafayette’s son was named George Washington de La Fayette :) and Lafayette and Washington were really close. I don’t remember the exact quote but apparently Washington once said something along the lines of “Treat him as if he were my own son” about Lafayette.

But on the topic of Washington and father-son relationships…

I was reading Ham’s biography and apparently Hamilton and Washington weren’t really that close. Washington definitely trusted Hamilton and recognized how skilled he was, while Hamilton held Washington in high regard, but their relationship was based more on mutual respect and admiration than on any realy emotional bond. There was also the fact that Hamilton’s personality made him restless as a follower working under someone else, even if that someone else was Washington.

I got too used to their bond in the musical ;-; history has no right to have its eyes on me when it’s disappointing me so badly (but wait Evans who said history had its eyes on you in the first place you’re a loser remember)

I imagine Furuta as Jake and Urie as the MC. Urie’s expressions would be perfect.

Btw, I was playing around on Youtube and found some Yuri on Ice AMVs- one of Burn, with Yuuri as Eliza and Viktor as Alex, and one of Congratulations with Yurio as Angelica (Yurio’s expressions fit surprisingly well with the song). Plus a whole bunch of Hamilton-YoI crack videos.

That sounds terrifying (I’m only half joking here). I hope you’ll be ok! *hugs*

I HATH RISSEN FROM THE DEAD! 

True, Zeke would just steal everything from people’s houses. He’d be that person who’d never get invited to parties, since everyone would be afraid of stuff going missing.  He’d probably sneak in and steal everything, just because they didn’t invite him.

Levi would kick his ass for it. One does not simply steal from Levi. Especially if it’s something antique and related to cleaning. 

Aww, that’s so adorable! New brotp activate! Washington jr. must’ve been an adorable kid! Well, Washington senior was probably an adorable kid as well, before he became Washingdad. Also Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette This is what I got after going to wikipedia for Lafayette.

 That’s kinda sad… I mean, the musical made me think of them as quite close.  Also, I just read through the wikipedia about Hamilton basically betraying Lafayette and I’m more or less like this right now:

Hamilton was an asshole. 

Urie would be done with Furuta on so many levels. I wouldn’t be surprised if he jumped out of the window at that point. 

Do you have links? ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

I had 2 dreams related to Hamilton this week! And in both of them, my first reaction was ‘can’t wait to tell Evans about this!’.

In the first one, there were a few people (Not the original cast, just some random people) on one of Zagreb’s squares performing Hamilton and they were pretty good! It was only Act 1 and It’s Quiet Uptown, and I missed my bus because I stayed and watched them hahah But I wasn’t upset, since Hamilton>Being home on time.  For some reason, my history teacher was there and he was like ‘yes, this is a good opportunity to learn, you better pay attention, Luna’ and my reaction was ‘bitch, I know 80% of the lyrics to this, wtf’

And in the second one, my school decided to make a Ham musical, with different cast for every song and I was Ham for ‘Meet me inside’ with one of my friends as Washingdad. My role was mostly sitting there, pouting with my arms crossed and going ‘don’t call me son’, but I think I switched it for ‘you’re not my dad’ at one point… But I do know that I though ‘hey, I should have someone film this, so I can show it to Evans’, bc I was so proud to be cast as our favourite asshole. 

Also, holy shit this week. I hope you don’t mind, but I’m gonna rant here a bit (a lot), since I wanna vent.

Right, so my biggest problem was yesterday night/this morning.  But the girl I ‘got’ wasn’t the nicest either, since we usually had to go home a bit earlier than everyone else (my mom’s very strict with curfews) and she badmouthed me to everyone for it, even though I told her nicely ‘hey, I’m sorry, but we can’t stay later than 22:30′. 

Yesterday, though, we went out to a club, since it was the last night and it was chaotic (Good, but chaotic). First, we almost didn’t even manage to get the Dutch kids in the club, since they look more 13 than 16. But we managed, since  we convinced the bartender that all the Croatian kids are over 18. I had to pretend to be Dutch since I definitely don’t look near 18, even though I’m turning 17 in 18 days ;-; Then, we found out that one guy brought weed with him, so some people decided it’s be a good idea to go smoke it! But not only did they get stoned, they also got wasted, because one of the girls is 18, so she bought them really strong drinks.  Somehow, I’m the only person out of the 20 of us who doesn’t drink (a I’m underage, b I don’t like how alcohol tastes), so everyone decided that Luna would be responsible that night. And I’m like ‘sure’, because I knew that most Croatian people would get tipsy, but not really drunk. However, I’m the only one who could truly be considered sober. Since I usually don’t go to clubs (this was actually my first time, hooray!), it was all really awkward for me, and I sat in the corner most of the night and drank my cola.  And at one point, around 1:30am, a guy came up to me and started hitting on me. Now that I think about it, I’m kinda flattered, but at that point, I was grumpy and I wanted to sleep, so I just turned to him (with the biggest resting bitch face, might I add) and went ‘fuck off’. I’ve never seen anyone look so offended in my life. I’m aware of how rude it was, and I kinda feel embarrassed about it now ;-; But the whole point of the thing is that I felt like I was on the party from ‘The One Thing…’, since we had 11 people who were absolutely wasted and I feel like they might’ve started shouting ‘FUCK DA POLICE’ had someone said ‘something something Police’.

I am done with the rant, thank you for your patience.

[clevelandindiansfans]

Ranking the 2018 MLB Opening Day pitching matchups: Kluber vs. Felix tops our list

The 2018 regular season is upon us. All 30 teams begin their seasons Thursday, March 29, meaning we get a full 15-game slate on Opening Day. Hooray for that.

Each year Opening Day brings a ton of quality pitching matchups. Every club starts whoever they deem their best available pitcher in the first game of the new season. You can't beat it. It's nothing but great matchups all day. Given that, it's time to compile our annual Opening Day pitching matchup rankings.

The rankings, which were compiled by me after consulting the other CBS Sports MLB scribes, are based on three factors:

Pitcher Quality. No one likes to watch a bad pitcher, right? Right.

Intrigue. Is someone making their first start with a new team? Facing his former team? Coming back from injury? That sort of thing.

Watchability. The most subjective factor. How fun is it to watch these guys pitch?

Now, with that in mind, here are the 2018 Opening Day pitching matchup rankings. Two former Cy Young winners get us started.

  1. Corey Kluber, Indians vs. Felix Hernandez, Mariners

For a while it appeared Felix wouldn't able to start on Opening Day. He took a line drive to the forearm early in spring training and had to be shut down for a while to let it heal. Fortunately, Hernandez was able to take the mound late in camp, and he will indeed be on the mound for the 10th consecutive Opening Day.

Felix is no longer the pitcher he was in his prime, but he is still only 31, and he has a deep enough bag of tricks that he should remain effective for several more seasons as long as he stays healthy. The baseball fan in me would love to see a vintage Felix season. When he was at his best, he was as fun to watch as any pitch I've ever seen.

As for Kluber, he is the reigning AL Cy Young award winner and no worse than the second best right-handed pitcher in baseball. ALDS issues notwithstanding (nine runs in two starts and 6 1/3 innings in the ALDS last year), he is on the short list of the best pitchers in baseball, and who doesn't love to watch great pitchers do their thing? Kluber's breaking ball is straight out of a video game:

The Kluber-Felix matchup is this year's only Opening Day matchup with two former Cy Young winners.

  2. Carlos Martinez, Cardinals vs. Noah Syndergaard, Mets

I almost ranked this matchup No. 1 because I am so looking forward to seeing healthy Syndergaard again. A torn lat limited him to 30 1/3 innings last season, but he returned to full health this spring, striking out 23 with a 1.35 ERA in 20 Grapefruit League innings. Syndergaard also routinely topped 100 mph on the radar gun, which is good news after the lat injury.

Between the triple-digit fastballs and the knee-buckling secondary pitches and the long flowing hair, Syndergaard looks like a superhero out on the mound. Hard to see how he doesn't win a Cy Young one of these years, as long as he stays healthy.

Martinez actually had his worst season as a starter last year, though he was still really good, throwing 205 innings with a 3.64 ERA. Wouldn't be a shock to see both these pitchers in Washington for the All-Star Game in July.

3. Chris Sale, Red Sox vs. Chris Archer, Rays

Another matchup I considered ranking No. 1. Sale is the game's preeminent strikeout pitcher -- he fanned 36.2 percent of batters faced last season, the best rate by a starting pitcher since Hall of Famer Randy Johnson in 2001 (37.4 percent) -- and a little late season fade was the only thing that stopped him from winning the Cy Young last year. He's incredible.

  Archer has a reputation for being an ace even though the results have been pretty average the last two seasons:

2016: 100 ERA+

2017: 101 ERA+

Still, Archer has the potential to be much better than that, and when he's on, he's as good as anyone in baseball. I feel the Sale-Archer matchup has the best chance for a Grade-A pitcher's duel among all Opening Day pitching matchups this year. Eight scoreless innings with double-digit strikeouts for both starters. That sort of thing.

4. Justin Verlander, Astros vs. Cole Hamels, Rangers

After 12 1/2 seasons in Detroit, Verlander is starting his first full season with the Astros, and he's making his 10th career Opening Day start. Only 13 pitchers have more. Now that he's won a World Series, Verlander has nothing left to accomplish in this game. Just continue to pad that Hall of Fame case and win more rings.

This will be Opening Day start No. 4 for Hamels and his second with Texas. I'm curious to see whether he can find all those missing strikeouts from a year ago. Hamels struck out 23.8 percent of batters faced from 2010-16, including 23.6 percent in 2016. In 2017 though, his strikeout rate dipped to 17.1 percent. Hmmm. Feels like just yesterday Verlander and Hamels were hot shot prospects breaking into the big leagues. Now they're grizzled veterans.

  5. Luis Severino, Yankees vs. J.A. Happ, Blue Jays

This was a tough one to place. Severino finished third in the AL Cy Young voting last season and is one of the brightest young pitchers in the game. Happ has been reliably excellent in his two years since returning to the Blue Jays, throwing 340 1/3 innings with a 3.33 ERA. And yet, I've never felt compelled to turn on his starts like I am with so many other Opening Day starters. Maybe that's a me problem.

Anyway, yeah, Severino is a stud and Happ has been comfortably above-average the last two years. Can't deny his performance. At one point I had this matchup ranked a few spots lower. I also considered ranking it a spot or two higher. Fifth seems right to me. Ultimately, Severino and Happ are two very good pitchers, and the two offenses are in for a challenge on Thursday.

6. Aaron Nola, Phillies vs. Julio Teheran, Braves

New Phillies manager Gabe Kapler named Nola his Opening Day starter before the Jake Arrieta signing and he stuck to it even after Philadelphia reeled in Arrieta. This will be Nola's first career Opening Day start and he is one of the top up-and-coming young pitchers in baseball. Last season he threw 168 innings with a 3.54 ERA and 184 strikeouts. I'm guessing we'll see Nola a) at the All-Star Game, and b) get Cy Young votes this year.

Teheran is a tough pitcher to gauge. Is he an ace? League average? Something in the middle? None of the above? Look at his five full seasons in the big leagues:

  2013: 117 OPS+

2014: 123 OPS+

2015: 95 OPS+

2016: 129 OPS+

2017: 95 OPS+

I guess that means Teheran is due for a 120-something ERA+ season in 2018. This, believe it or not, will be Teheran's fifth straight Opening Day start for the Braves. Only Warren Spahn (10), Phil Niekro (8), and Greg Maddux (7) have started more season openers in franchise history. For real.

7. Ty Blach, Giants vs. Clayton Kershaw, Dodgers

Had a comebacker not broken Madison Bumgarner's hand last week, the Giants-Dodgers matchup would've ranked atop this list no questions asked. Kershaw, even with his back trouble, remains the best in the business. He'll be in the inner circle of the inner circle of the Hall of Fame, and he is the reason this matchup ranks so high, relatively speaking. This will be Kershaw's eighth consecutive Opening Day start, passing Don Sutton for the longest Opening Day start streak in franchise history.

Blach will not be in the inner circle of the inner circle of the Hall of Fame. Or even the outer circle. He's starting Opening Day because Bumgarner's injury happened late in the spring, and the Giants didn't have enough time to rearrange Johnny Cueto's schedule to give him the Opening Day start. So Blach it is. Here are the lowest strikeout rates by pitchers with enough innings to qualify for the batting title over the last five seasons:

Ty Blach, 2017: 10.6 percent

Mark Buehrle, 2015: 11.0 percent

Mike Pelfrey, 2015: 12.0 percent

Martin Perez, 2016: 12.1 percent

Andrew Cashner, 2017: 12.2 percent

Welp. Now prepare for Blach to throw seven shutout innings and take Kershaw deep on Opening Day. You know it's happening.

  8. Jon Gray, Rockies vs. Patrick Corbin, Diamondbacks

The pitching matchup I am irrationally excited about. Gray is a beast, and if he weren't stuck pitching his home games in Coors Field, he'd get more attention for being one of the top young starters in the game. He struck out 112 with a 3.67 ERA in 110 1/3 innings around a foot problem last year. A 3.67 ERA at Coors Field with the juiced ball is pretty incredible. This is Gray's second straight Opening Day assignment.

Corbin is a personal favorite. I have a thing for lefties with good strikeout (21.6 percent) and ground ball (50.4 percent) rates. He is finally making his first career Opening Day start after having the 2014 season opener taken away from him by a torn elbow ligament in spring training. Corbin needed Tommy John surgery a few weeks before the season opener that year. Better late than never, I guess.

9. Garrett Richards, Angels vs. Kendall Graveman, Athletics  

This year's sneaky good pitching matchup. Richards can be utterly dominant on his best days and Graveman has emerged as a quietly solid ground ball pitcher. He throws sinker after sinker after sinker. I just wish I could bank on Richards staying healthy. Injuries have limited him to 62 1/3 innings the last two years. But, he'll be healthy for Opening Day, and that's all that matters as far as these rankings are concerned.

10. Max Scherzer, Nationals vs. Homer Bailey, Reds

I suppose this matchup should rank higher seeing how Scherzer has won back-to-back NL Cy Young awards and is on the very short list of the best pitchers in baseball. He's awesome. Bailey ... is not. Tommy John surgery and other lingering injuries have sabotaged his last three seasons, during which Bailey has thrown 125 1/3 innings with a 6.39 ERA. Egad. Hopefully he stays healthy this year and has a strong season after working so hard to overcome injuries the last few years.

  11. Jon Lester, Cubs vs. Jose Urena, Marlins

Lester is coming off the second worst full season of his career -- he threw 180 2/3 innings with a 4.33 ERA, which tells you how good he's been throughout his career -- while Urena quietly had a 3.97 ERA in 154 1/3 innings as a starter last season. Still, he's not the type of pitcher fans tune in to watch on Opening Day, no offense to him. This is Urena's first career Opening Day start (duh) and Lester's seventh.

12. Jake Odorizzi, Twins vs. Dylan Bundy, Orioles

The Twins were able to nab Odorizzi from the Rays at a bargain price -- the prospect they surrendered, Jermaine Palacios, doesn't even rank among MLB.com's top 30 Rays prospects -- probably because his numbers have been trending in the wrong direction the last few years, and because he's starting to make real money through arbitration. Bundy had the first full healthy season of his career last year, throwing 169 2/3 innings with a 4.24 ERA. That qualifies as an ace in Baltimore these days. This will be the first Opening Day start for both Odorizzi and Bundy.

13. James Shields, White Sox vs. Danny Duffy, Royals

ChiSox pitching coach Don Cooper has saved many careers over the years, though turning around late career Shields might take a minor miracle. The former Rays workhorse has pitched to a 5.60 ERA in 298 2/3 innings the last two seasons. Hey, rebuilding teams need Opening Day starters too. Duffy, meanwhile, had a little injury scare a few weeks ago, but he'll be good to go for the season opener. It will be his second Opening Day start and the eighth -- eighth! -- for Shields.

14. Ivan Nova, Pirates vs. Jordan Zimmermann, Tigers

Zimmermann said he felt better this spring than he has in years, and the Tigers sure hope that is the case, because he had a 5.60 ERA the last two years and there's still $74 million remaining on his contract. He is the first pitcher not named Verlander to start Opening Day for the Tigers since ... David Price in 2015. Not that long ago. Zimmermann is the first right-handed pitcher not named Verlander to start Opening Day for the Tigers since Jeremy Bonderman in 2007. There you go. The perfectly cromulent Nova gets the first Opening Day start in the post-Gerrit Cole era for the Pirates.

  15. Chase Anderson, Brewers vs. Clayton Richard, Padres

One Opening Day pitching matchup has to rank last, and this year it's Anderson-Richard. Anderson had a good year last season though. He threw 141 1/3 innings with a 2.74 ERA. He'll be the fifth Opening Day starter in the last five years for the Brew Crew. Richard led the league in losses (15), hits allowed (240), and batters faced (858) last year. Hey, someone has to start Opening Day. Richards is San Diego's sixth different Opening Day starter in the last six years.

Source

http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/ranking-the-2018-mlb-opening-day-pitching-matchups-kluber-vs-felix-tops-our-list/

[survivingmexico]

Since someone has decided to turn La Yacata into a post-apocalyptic wasteland by burning every single lot whether or not the owners gave permission, food for our herd/flock has been harder to find.  The goats are getting by because they eat quite a variety of plant stuff and are agile in their foraging abilities. The sheep, on the other hand, are finding good eats more difficult.

As rainy season doesn’t begin for another few months, my husband decided that some of the sheep needed to go in order to buy some food for the rest.  He went back and forth which should be sold, not really wanting to part with any of them. Finally, he decided the two newest additions would be sacrificed for the greater good.  Neither had names yet so we hadn’t gotten too attached.

The neighbor, who I call Best Buddy because he wants to do everything my husband does, also decided he was going to sell some sheep to buy some feed.  He wanted to sell 4.  So since my husband wanted to take them to Puruándiro, Michoacan to sell, he needed to get a “guia”, which is a permit for transporting animals.  He picked it up at the same place he registered the animals in January, the Asociacion Ganadera Local in Moroleon.  It cost 25 pesos.

  Since Best Buddy couldn’t leave any earlier than 8 am, I had plenty of time to take my walk with Puppy and feed the cats.  Then we were off.

Just as we passed La Calera, a truck with some goats pulled alongside us and motioned for us to pull over.  Curious, we did. They wanted to know if we were off to sell the animals in Puruándiro. We were. They offered to buy them for 33 pesos a kilo right then and save us the trip. Best Buddy wasn’t too happy with the price.  He had been told that in Puruándiro he could get 36 pesos per kilo. I signaled to my husband that we should take the deal.  After all, we weren’t experienced in the whole buying and selling done in Puruándiro and odds were we’d actually get a smaller price without knowing the ins and outs of it all.

Finally, my husband suggested we go and weigh the animals in Cerano, the next town, and then decide.  There is a bascula (weighing machine) there. This bascula is the type you drive upon with the animals and get weighed.  Then you take the animals off and weigh the vehicle again. The difference is the weight of the animals. So we pulled in there and said hi to my husband’s cousin who runs it. However, Best Buddy wanted the animals to be weighed separately since they had two owners.

La bascula in Cerano

No problem.  We followed them into town and stopped next to a telephone post.  The guys pulled out a scale and hung the animals from it, one by one. One sheep weighted 52 kilos and the other was 20 kilos. 72 kilos at 33 pesos a kilo was enough to buy food that should last until the rainy season starts.  Interestingly enough,  macho sheep are sold for 40 pesos per kilo, 7 pesos more than females. Since we have more machos than we need at the moment, this little tidbit will be useful in the future.

With the prices agreed upon and the animals loaded into the other guys’ truck, we followed them up the road to the bank so they could make a withdrawal.  Of course, there was the chance that the truck would take off with the animals and we’d be left whistling Dixie, but that didn’t happen. It turns out that the guys were from Cerano and knew my husband’s family.  I have no doubt that they took their new acquisitions to Puruándiro and sold them for 36 pesos per kilo.

Since cash runs like water through my husband’s fingers, we went in search of pacas (bales) of alfalfa immediately. We drove towards Yuriria and came across some pacas in lines waiting for transport.  We stopped and my husband hopped out to ask the guy if they were for sale. He wasn’t in charge, but the owner was just up the road on the tractor. So that’s where we went. After some negotiation, the owner agreed to 100 pesos per paca (bale). For comparison, most pacas in Moroleon are running 120 pesos right now and increase the further into the dry season it is.  My husband and Best Buddy loaded the truck up.

  But we weren’t done yet.  We headed to this little town called Monte de Los Juarez (the hill belonging to the Juarez family). There, Best Buddy did some heavy negotiation with the lady who runs the store for 2 turkeys for 500 pesos. So with a full truckload of pacas, 3 adults and 2 turkeys in the cab, we headed home.

Negotiation in process.

The next day, Best Buddy sold the turkeys he bought and our two that had stripped all our saplings bare in the course of an afternoon.  With more money in his hot little (or not so little) hands, my husband wanted to get some more pacas–this time rastrojo (corn stalk). We headed to the same area as yesterday but traveled further down the road.  Just past the town Juan Lucas, we saw a huge towering mound of pacas. We stopped and asked some guy walking down the road if he knew if those pacas were for sale. He said they were and hopped in the back of the truck to head to see the owner. After several whistles and shouts, the owner came to the door.  It’s not polite here to approach a door and knock. Whistling is proper protocol. Drives me nuts though. The owner hollered out that he’d be there in a moment.  He needed to put a shirt on.

Eventually, he came out and the men conferred and pulled at their chins a bit before the price was agreed upon–13 pesos per paca.  In Moroleon, the average rastrojo paca is 16 pesos. The hitchhiker and my husband loaded the truck up. My husband gave him algo pa’la soda (a tip) and we dropped him off at his house.

On the way home, we stopped at a roadside stand in Ozumbilla.  DELICIOUS! While we were eating, a man with an ice cream tricycle began to hoot and holler.  We looked over and he was gesturing down the road and at our truck. It seemed the man wasn’t able to talk, but he wanted us to be aware that the Federales were heading down the road.  There’s a great deal of suspicion against the police in small towns and not without reason. We didn’t have anywhere else to park the truck, so decided to wait it out. Sure enough, a convoy passed not 5 minutes later with the entire town along the side of the road to bear witness to their passing.

Lunch finished, we headed home. We now have enough feed to last us close enough to the rainy season.  Hooray!

Selling Some Sheep Since someone has decided to turn La Yacata into a post-apocalyptic wasteland by burning every single lot whether or not the owners gave permission, food for our herd/flock has been harder to find.