Random Thoughts 14: I can see clearly now 2020 edition

[VeloClone]

My stepson played QB in high school (he was the backup) and didn't see the field until the starter was injured. As sophomores, they were playing down in Ames. They were behind 61-7 in the third quarter and the coach still had all the starters in the game.

When Joe got home, I asked him if anybody quit after the game. He said yes, some of the second teamers turned in their equipment. I asked him if he was one of them, and he said no, he planned on sticking it out.

I told him I was proud of him for that, but that I would have told that coach to shove it. Those second stringers get their brains beat out every day in practice, and knowing you have virtually no shot to play in a game has to be a huge disappointment.

You would think that some of these coaches would see scrubs getting a chance to play at the NCAA level even on both ends of scores like this. But apparently not.

 

[VeloClone]

You would also think that they would figure out that some of those short skinny freshmen and sophomores who never got to play and quit the team hit a growth spurt and are varsity material by the time they are seniors - but they aren't playing for asshat coach.

 

[BCClone]

Looking to maybe head to NY for a quick trip. Looking to stay in Manhattan to have easy access to the tourist things. Any place we should avoid staying?

 

[coolerifyoudid]

Looking to maybe head to NY for a quick trip. Looking to stay in Manhattan to have easy access to the tourist things. Any place we should avoid staying?

Rikers Island

 

[ImJustKCClone]

Looking to maybe head to NY for a quick trip. Looking to stay in Manhattan to have easy access to the tourist things. Any place we should avoid staying?

Trump Towers.

 

[BCClone]

Rikers Island

I’ve been binge watching prison break so I might be ok.

 

[BCClone]

A car pulled up, stopped in our driveway, backed out and now has driven by 3-4 times.

 

[ImJustKCClone]

A car pulled up, stopped in our driveway, backed out and now has driven by 3-4 times.

How old is your daughter???

 

[BCClone]

How old is your daughter???

17.

 

[coolerifyoudid]

A car pulled up, stopped in our driveway, backed out and now has driven by 3-4 times.

The boxers-and-shotgun approach is a time-tested deterrent

 

[coolerifyoudid]

Looking to maybe head to NY for a quick trip. Looking to stay in Manhattan to have easy access to the tourist things. Any place we should avoid staying?

Have you been to NYC before?

 

[BCClone]

Have you been to NYC before?

no. Always went west.

 

[jcyclonee]

Looking to maybe head to NY for a quick trip. Looking to stay in Manhattan to have easy access to the tourist things. Any place we should avoid staying?

If you are going with your kids, it's tough to find a decent hotel room for 5 in Manhattan at a reasonable price. If the prices are uncomfortably high, taking a bus in from New Jersey can save a ton of money. We stayed near the Meadowlands last summer. The bus stop was right behind our hotel.

 

[jcyclonee]

A car pulled up, stopped in our driveway, backed out and now has driven by 3-4 times.

I don't think we've ever had BC's stuff up for dibs before. If he has any leftover ribs from the graduation party, I get those.

 

[jcyclonee]

What an awesome thing to be a part of!

I joined the Knights of Columbus for that very reason. It seemed a good way to be involved in the church and also help causes outside of our parish. We have the most active council in our district but we can't do anything to that scale. Our Council did get a Coats for Kids program going and this year we gave away some ridiculous number of new coats and snowpants for kids who otherwise may not be able to afford them. Something like 800 coats and 600 snowpants this year alone if I remember correctly. Now our Brother Knight who spearheaded it has been helping multiple other councils get their CfK programs going. As you might imagine it is a big need both in urban and rural Minnesota. One of the latest councils he is helping serves one of the larger Native American Reservations. While we handle the logistics and raise some of the money through our projects, we couldn't do anything to this scale without some major local private and commercial donors who have been very generous - shout out to them!

The Catholic Church both world-wide and in our Archdiocese has gotten a black-eye in the past several years so it is nice to do something that can help to improve the public perception of the Church. We did just get some good news this week as they announced that the Archdiocese has been universally surpassing the goals set forth in the agreement the Archdiocese entered into after the abuse scandal.

Have you visited St. Williams after your K of C meetings?

 

[Cyclones_R_GR8]

Looking to maybe head to NY for a quick trip. Looking to stay in Manhattan to have easy access to the tourist things. Any place we should avoid staying?

Might be easier to stay up in Tarrytown and taking the Hudson line down into the city. You'll get out at Grand Central which puts you in walking distance of pretty much all your tourist stuff. It's been quite a time since I was last there but you could buy a 24 hour metro card that gave you access to subways and buses.

 

[BCClone]

If you are going with your kids, it's tough to find a decent hotel room for 5 in Manhattan at a reasonable price. If the prices are uncomfortably high, taking a bus in from New Jersey can save a ton of money. We stayed near the Meadowlands last summer. The bus stop was right behind our hotel.

Prices aren’t terrible for like a radisson in what it calls Mideast.

 

[stormchaser2014]

I was concerned about noise, but it probably wasn't as loud as it seemed being in the garage.

 

[jcyclonee]

Prices aren’t terrible for like a radisson in what it calls Mideast.

Mideast? I hear Riyadh is lovely this time of year but I'm not sure it's an easy commute to the Empire State Building.

 

[coolerifyoudid]

no. Always went west.

I've only gone once, but I really enjoyed it. We stayed somewhere in the Garment District and found that to be a decent area in regards to distance to stuff we wanted to see. That's been 16+ years ago though. You'd probably want an opinion of someone with more recent experience.

My $.02 - don't rent a car. Taxi from the airport and use the subway or walk to get places. The subway map was intimidating at first, but it got easy once you got used to it. We caught a show, walked through Little Italy and China Town, walked down by Wall Street and Battery Park (didn't hit the Statue of Liberty), went to Times Square, and visited St Patrick's Cathedral in a day and a half.

I'd like to return there and spend a little more time, but we basically ran through a checklist of things we wanted to see on a limited timetable.