That Aud Smell

Apologies for not finding/seeing a more recent thread on the topic (like, one from this season), but I'd prefer to revive one rather than start one anew. This was just posted to the Twitter. Mike Kelly@MikeKellyNHL Top 5 forwards in puck battles won per game (even-strength): 1. O'Reilly - 4.0 2. Kopitar - 3.9 3. Matthews - 3.8 4. Barkov - 3.7 5. E. Staal - 3.6 In my mind, ROR had a really rough start to the season (mainly, he seemed super slow) and then maybe started to look better of late. But maybe that perception is/was off?

You are what your record says you are. I quite like that maxim. Anything that is bound to happen -- because of what the underlying numbers say -- has not yet happened, and therefore has no bearing on what you are at that particular point in time. That sort of thinking bears on what you may yet become. But not on what you are.

Ah, quite so. Gotcha.

I'm not sure how or whether the two things relate. Like, at all. In any case, mine was largely covered by my health insurance policy. There was a decent deductible or co-pay involved (as there would have been for any similar out-patient procedure), but it was otherwise covered.

^ Amazing.

I've mostly abandoned my "faith-based" angle of skepticism with McDermott. Whatever I may think of that particular world view, it matters not. What matters is whether McDermott can sell what he's preaching to his team. And I think he can and does. Put maybe another way: Would my intellectualized, ironic, skeptical outlook on the world tend to galvanize and motivate an NFL roster? Most certainly not. Interesting.

I firmly believe that the Bills weren't winning that Chargers game, in all events. A breath-taking amount of good fortune was needed for this team to qualify for the playoffs. But, whatever. I'll take it without any further analysis.* * If only also to note that the team made enough personnel moves earlier in the year that there was talk of tanking. McDermott deserves full credit for wringing 9 wins out of this squad. There is something to be said for the ... wait ... yes, I'll say it ... culture that he created and fostered.

I didn't hear him say it, but the way I heard it in my head was in the manner of an adrenaline-fueled business exec speaking in that context. That is: With a bit of a wink and a nod, a little gleam in the eye. Maybe some gum-chomping and a shoulder-clap-with-open-hand tossed in for good measure.

I used the term "ideal" above, and these posts prompted me to reflect: The list of priorities on how and when and where this gets done is something like this: 1a. Baby's need to eat. 1b. Mom's convenience and necessity. 2. No other valid considerations.

Increasingly normal, for sure. I'm not averse to thinking that it's a better practice to cover or remove oneself before feeding. And now, even having typed that, I'm not sure that's appropriate for me to say. To each their own, I guess. I happen to think that it's a sufficiently intimate act and that - from a functional standpoint - there's something to be gained from having a little privacy and quiet, that just going into feed-mode in the middle of a conversation or whatever isn't ideal. My girls attend(ed) an all-female high school -- that school abandoned the term "freshman" years ago. I dunno. This is a pretty easy tweak, so I'd say it's on this side of "too much." Where I start to draw the line is on the creeping insistence that all of society abandon cis-normative (sp?) pronouns and assumptions. My wife was at a coffee shop last week, and there were 5 other (apparent) women waiting with her for their orders. It wasn't a Starbucks, so people didn't have names on their cups. The barista comes over with an order and says "okay, ladies, who had the two mocha lattes?" Someone among the group sniffed loudly and remarked that it was awfully presumptuous to address the group as "ladies." My wife was still trying to sort that out hours later, and I think I'm still a bit perplexed. Sorry to hear of this. Did they pirate it for their own commercial use?

In order: Nope. He cares -- just not as much as he cares about the Bills. Especially when -- as the old saw used to go (still goes?) -- hockey season doesn't even start until football season is over. Nope. As posted in the Bills thread, I am pretty sure that I know who and what Terry is at this point, and what/who he is not. It is what it is; he is who he is.

I was away, and mostly offline, for the holidays. The events of NYE and the Bills were immediately among the best experiences I've had as a sports fan. Top-10, for sure -- possibly top-5? Whatever. Just, joy. Fun. And, yes, some tears. +++ OTOH, I read this and just palm smacked my forehead. (It was from a broadcast interview on WGRZ.) I'm done thinking that there's any real hope for the guy. I'm much more in "blind squirrels find chestnuts too" mode. Kevin Pritchard@BfloBlog The first guy Pegula felt good for was RUSS ###### BRANDON? Not Williams, Wood, Shady, TT, etc 11:24pm · 31 Dec 2017 · Twitter for iPhone

Remember Mark Astley? We used to serenade him: “Never gonna clear that puck....”

Ooooh. Good call.

I say nay.

There's something to what you're saying. Although I think Hoppe was just writing a fair, objective piece about who and what they are -- letting that speak for itself. Excellent point.

Beth Mowins. I think she does good, solid work, and, moreover, deserves a ton of credit for cracking through into a field that has historically been for men only. That said, she said "McCoy" when she meant "Taylor" at least twice. That can't happen.

It's a delicate balance, though, innit? I mean, you don't want to become downcast and sullen. That's not helping anything. But you also don't want to remain proverbially fat, dumb, and happy when your team stinks.

I think that's right. Not that the insufferable a-hole* needs to rule with an iron fist to the exclusion of the good-time Charlies. But there's too many of the latter, I infer. And there may be none of the former. *Paging Mr. Drury. Mr. Drury, please pick up the nearest white courtesy phone.

In no particular order: James Brown - Harry Belafonte - Ric Flair - Mel Brooks I suspect Belafonte might be a bit of an unusual choice. I'll just say that I saw him play Tanglewood when I was in my early 20s, and he cast a goddamned spell over the crowd. Amazing. Flair is a bit of a capricious inclusion. But, c'mon. He was one of the most entertaining people I've ever seen or experienced - that's for sure.

That’s probably right. Slightly different game, it was, though? Jimmy G certainly had the sound of a successful NFL QB. Edit: I looked it up. Welp. Those “good” games were ... not much.

I’ll admit to being impressed. But that’s a small sample size. Trent Edwards once looked like the second coming. Until he didn’t.

I can hear what's intended there, when I say it out loud. Can you not? It's intended to evoke a bit of a goofy pronunciation and inflection of the phrase thank you. Maybe expand it as follows: 10 Q Betty Betty Much.

Nice.