SurvivingInfidelity.com^®

Not a big fan of KC, Mr. K., but Mahomes makes it hard to hate them. The dude has so much talent. I guarantee this Sunday will be a good game. I know Dallas has the slight advantage, but I picked the Rams in my pool because of you. So, yeah, I'll be cheering your team on.

How are you doing, sisoon? I always love hearing from you on this thread.

I picked the Rams in my pool because of you.

Oh goodness, don't do that.

Oh goodness, don't do that.

I do whatever I want these days. Too bad I've lost my passivity, right?

I do whatever I want these days. Too bad I've lost my passivity, right?

Ha Ha.

Likewise, losfer.

I feel pretty strange ... 10th d-day coming up in a week. 10th! Mother in rough shape (well, she's over 100), son in rough shape, grandson in rough shape. Got back last weekend from our annual Thanksgiving trip that had to be extended so I could go to a funeral - my father's sister.

But I feel healthy. I'm actually losing weight, and have been for the past year or more. W & I are connected, and the A is in the past for me, though she is still doing work she needs to do.

I'm somewhat fogged up, though - I feel as healthy as a 20 year old, and I harbor hopes of turning the clock back 30 years, neither of which is very likely. How I got to be 75 is beyond me, and yet more and more of us get here with no particular effort.

So ... stressed more than usual, but still very happy to be alive.

That is a trip, sisoon! I am just hitting the nine year mark on both of my d-days from 2010.

Sounds like you are going through a lot on the family front, my friend.

Aside from all that, I'm very happy to hear you are in good health and losing weight. You have been making me look like a slacker once again this year with your bike riding, but a challenge is always good!

Foggy or not, your posts are always sharp as a tack. You've still got it, bro. Hope your increased physical activity helps with the additional stress. Hang in there, man.

I need to give up on football. Fucking Broncos...

I need to give up on football. Fucking Broncos...

The Rams got thumped on by the Cowboys today and our season is over - "No playoffs for you." - The Soup Nazi.

Now we can watch the rest of the teams go into the playoffs and the Super Bowl without our blood pressure boiling over.

I think that, tonight, I am going to start scaling back on my medication. I chose to increase it over three months ago, and I am going to try dialing it back a little.

Right now, I take 2 ten mg pills every 6 hours to control anxiety, which is 2 more pills a day than my doctor prescribed. I have spoken with her about it and she is 100% on board as a temporary thing; I had been taking two less than prescribed for a year, so I had a back stock of the medication.

I am going to start taking 2 pills every eight hours, which will eliminate one dose daily. It'll extend my time between doses by 2 hours, so instead of every 12 and 6, I'll take them at 8AM, 4PM, and midnight. This will take me out of the danger zone of running out.

I made this decision because I realized that I am consistently missing my dose time by about 2 hours, and I haven't been unable to control any anxiety surges. I would like, eventually, to be able to stop my medication. I drop to an even lower daily dosage once I move out, I think (one pill every six hours, for a total of four pills per day).

Anyways... I didn't want to post this on FB where my ex or one of her harpies would see it. It's none of their fucking business.

In other news, I've just been working. Not much else. Did some silver work, shipped it off, played with the remaining silver, etc. Got my newest audiobook files in, and it's set to be released on the 31st, which is awesome. I'm listening to it now while playing some video games, and I love the narrator.

How is everyone else doing on the buildup to Christmas?

What it’s like to be a NY Giants fan today...

Eli likely plays his last game as a Giant and wins (albeit over the hapless Fins). Awesome!

But now the Giants will have a worse draft slot and possibly not get Chase Young all because they won a meaningless game in December. Sonofa...!

Incarnate - my personal demon is depression, which as you probably know, has a deep, personal relationship with anxiety. The medication helps. If you're going off/reducing the meds, definitely have a plan in place. I think having a plan in place to get off the meds is a good thing, actually. If you can, take a holistic approach with that, man.

Thanks for making me laugh through my NFL tears, Mr. K. Let's go Bills! They are my surrogate team for the playoffs, and my friend YOP's (who has not posted here in forever) team.

I hear ya, Walloped. Peyton served the broncos well. Lots of respect for the Manning family!

Snow day here - yeah!

What it’s like to be a NY Giants fan today...

Eli likely plays his last game as a Giant and wins (albeit over the hapless Fins). Awesome!

But now the Giants will have a worse draft slot and possibly not get Chase Young all because they won a meaningless game in December. Sonofa...!

Big Blue will rise again with a good, young QB and hopefully a new head coach. Getting rid of Janoris Jenkins(a former Ram) was a good start in the right direction.

Let's go Bills! They are my surrogate team for the playoffs

Absolutely. Any team that can knock off the Patriots during the playoffs will be celebrated by yours truly.

But now the Giants will have a worse draft slot and possibly not get Chase Young all because they won a meaningless game in December.

As a diehard bleed burgundy and gold fan, we thank you for Chase Young . You know it's bad when Browns fans are like "at least we aren't the Redskins".

ETA: Los, can you let me know who you are pulling for this weekend? Not for gambling purposes or anything at all!

[This message edited by Tred at 9:34 PM, December 16th (Monday)]

But now the Giants will have a worse draft slot and possibly not get Chase Young all because they won a meaningless game in December. Sonofa...!

Don't buy into that, "First round draft picks will save our team." crap. Look at all the current top QBs. All but 1-2 were 2nd or 3rd round draft picks.

The biggest issue I see in the NFL, Kickers and not respecting putting a Wide Receiver head to head with a corner. If you need 5 years, just load up the receivers and throw it out there at the line of scrimmage. Instant 5 yards. Heck, make one of your receivers a beast and have him really smash the corner.

Second thing, what is with NFL kickers. I feel sorry for them, but how do soccer players kick a ball 100 yards and regularly score even with a goalie? We need some of those kickers from a pro soccer team. The guys whose legs are so big they rub together as they walk around. Then 50 yard field goals will be common place. Plus all these touch backs. My high school team kicker would drop it spinning weirdly at the 10. That was also with a real high arc so we could get there. Where are those kicks? Scoop it with your foot and get some air.

BTW - I am a 49ers fan from back in the day, but my surrogate team is the Packers. Up here with the Vikings also getting into the playoffs, this Monday when they play each other will be funny to see the rivalry. Cousins is going to choke though. Highest paid QB that replaced a low paid QB that took a team without a shot to the playoffs. All the hype and 90 million for nothing special. Rodgers just better stay healthy.

Let's go Bills! They are my surrogate team for the playoffs, and my friend YOP's (who has not posted here in forever) team.

What's up and Happy Holidays Gents!! You're absolutely right Losfer. I have not posted here in a very long time. Too long. I have been waiting all season for my Bills rematch against the Patsies. I think my team is going to at least play them strong and actually have a legit chance at pulling one out. They can compete with the best of them and it's been almost 20 years since I've been able to say that. Living only a few towns over from Gillette stadium has been football hell for me. I keep my mouth shut and try to fly under the radar but for whatever reason, as soon as Patsies fans find out I'm a Bills fan they can't keep their mouth shut. Which is fine I guess as I can take it but almost 20 years of this enough already. For example, yesterday I was head down working away when a coworker walked by and said "I hope Allen can stay in the game this time." Grrrrrrr... Fuck the playoffs!! I just so badly want them to win on Sat. That's our superbowl right there.

yop

Don't buy into that, "First round draft picks will save our team." crap.

Hey. I need to look forward to something!

In truth, you build a team through the draft, over time, and supplement with key FA pieces. The Jints have zero pass rushing ability. One or two key playmakers on D can have a massive impact and helps the DL. Right now the DL is all alone. When opposing OL’s / blocking TE’s need to account not just for the DL but for DE’s and LB’s it a chance to make a play either through getting to the QB or via the secondary. There’s no question that Young would be a massive upgrade over what they Guants have today.

Absolutely. Any team that can knock off the Patriots during the playoffs will be celebrated by yours truly.

Now you are speaking my language, Mr. K. I already thought you were pretty cool, but you just elevated yourself into the upper echelons of respecthood (is that a word?) in my book.

Tred - If you want, I can PM you with my football picks for this week. If you were a gambling man, I would recommend going with whatever teams I don't pick. You could be in for some serious cash. Me picking the Broncos vs. the KFC Chefs was a bad decision, for example.

Second thing, what is with NFL kickers.

DoinBettr - Dude, the kickers have been awful this year, but I feel like McManus has been the fucking MVP for the Broncos! They should have just gotten the ball into the red zone and let him kick all season. I have some hopes for Drew Lock, though. Next year might be our season! (I know, I know, I've said that for a few years now).

Walloped - Send Eli over to the Broncos! Wouldn't that be a trip?

Good to see/hear from you YOP!! Will definitely pick the Bills in the pool this weekend (take note, Tred, if you want to cash in). I truly do hope they win, though!

The NFL has gotten too smart. All the big games are this weekend. Then next week is all fun games.

Dallas and Chickens figure out top dog.

Packers and Vikings same.

Pats and Bills same.

It is really close.

Then next week, Pats and Fins. Vikes and Bears.

Pack and Kitties.

Bills and Paper Air Planes.

Just silly. But kind of how the NHL championship went to game 5. Then blowout in Boston.

I wonder how effective they are at rigging things? I would love to hear people's takes on that.

I getcha, YOP. I'm a Packers fan living just outside of Chicago. This city is so insular that sometimes the Bears game is the only one on TV. Good to hear from you, BTW. You've been missed

Man, I was still in HS in Providence when the AFL started. I have a vague memory of a 51-50 Bills victory over the Pats, and another vague memory of watching the Pats at Brown stadium.

Someone close to me did some football coaching and sent a couple of people to the Pats. He never was impressed with organization before Belichek took over.

My GS was a Pats fan for a couple of years. He's switched to the 'skins, thankfully.

*****

One of the stressors I've been dealing with is the 2020 budget for our condo. I drafted it and came up with a major set of unknowns (think as much as multiple $100Ks for a 16 unit condo) and a need for a big increase in assessments even without accounting for the unknowns. In other words, as treasurer I had to tell my neighbors we needed a big increase January 1, and we'd need another, probably bigger increase when we actually got the numbers for some major repairs.

One of the repairs isn't needed, except that a SOB neighbor is suing us because we haven't done it. (I apologize to female dogs.)

I did a lot of work on the presentation and arguments in favor of the budget last month and got some flack from a couple of owners. I believe they lobbied other owners to join them in their objections. I expected a really tough meeting, and ... nothing.

A few questions. No objections. The Board voted. The meeting was over in 45 minutes.

I feel so much better today.

*****

Had a hearing test yesterday. The HA guy suggested an adjustment, which made sense to me. It's done wirelessly, and unfortunately one of my aids apparently got fried as soon as the process started.

The guy really isn't responsible for destroying the aid. It's almost 5 years old. I can get it rebuilt for $135.

The loss of the aid really hurts my hearing. At the meeting last night, one possible reason for the lack of objections was that one objector started with a question, in a fake attempt to 'seek first to understand, then to be understood.'

Maybe the fact that I had to keep saying, 'Will you say that again, louder?' kept them from even trying to object.

Happy Thursday to all.

I took this picture just a couple of hours ago. I wanted this place to be my first tribute to him, since he has graced these pages on so many Fridays during happy hour.

Koda. Your watch is over, my friend and companion. May the path rise up to meet you. May you have a lot of snow across the rainbow bridge. May the bunnies and squirrels give you a good chase, because you have always been a fast motherfucker, despite your size, and you've always had a healthy appetite until the end. You took a large part of my heart with me when you left a couple hours ago, but that's okay, because my heart is filled with you. Cheers, and I will see you on the other side one of these days.