NFL picks week #13

Last Week - 14 - 1

Overall - 111 - 63

Detroit over Chicago - The Lions always play on Thanksgiving. That's what I'm going with.

Dallas over Philadelphia - I'm not quite on the Mark Sanchez bandwagon yet. If he can win against Dallas at home...maybe.

Seattle over San Francisco - Here comes the big hype, but I think Seattle will run over the 49ers.

Cleveland over Buffalo - This is the game I went back and forth on. The Browns can't make up their mind, but we are coming to the end and I think they will find it to keep in the hunt.

Indianapolis over Washington - Yeah. Won't happen the other way around unless Luck falls asleep or gets hurt.

St. Louis over Oakland - The Raiders want that draft pick. The Rams haven't given up yet.

Carolina over Minnesota - Teddy Bridgewater has done well stepping into a team that lost its main man, running back Adrian Peterson, but I'm not sure they can beat Cam Newton.

Pittsburgh over New Orleans - Here we go again. Another team that is so-so. Let's hope the off week helped us. Let's hope the celebration of the 40th anniversary of our first Super Bowl win will help us.

Cincinnati over Tampa - Really? Poor Tampa.

Jacksonville over the Giants - Yep, I'm going with the Jags. They have worked their way out of their slump and they just keep chugging. I like that in a team.

Baltimore over Chargers - I hope the Chargers kick the Ravens butt, but I obviously didn't feel that would happen.

Houston over Tennessee - Snore fest.

Arizona over Atlanta - The Falcons could come out smokin' and pull out the win at home, but then again this is the Cardinals, the team that has everyone talking.

Green Bay over New England - Two people have told me this is the Super Bowl. Yeah...I don't see it. It will be two obscure teams this year and these two are far from obscure. I'm going with the Packers at home against a New England team that has been lucky.

Denver over Kansas City - Peyton finds his groove again this week.

Miami over the Jets - I don't even know what to say about the Jets. That's why I went with the Dolphins.

From the travel journal - Day 1

Travel Journal - South Carolina - Day 1, Part 1

(Cara's writing)

7:30 am - As usual we left late. The van is packed to the gills, much to Darcy's disappointment as she likes to ride in the very back. Tom did not make mention of all the stuff I brought so he earned points for that. The dog was very unhappy as he watched us pack and load. We all felt bad about leaving him, but Auntie Kelly will be moving into the house and she will take great care of him. 

Before we even left the driveway, Darcy reminded me that she needed to stop at the credit union to deposit a check into her account.  This then had to be explained to Tom who argued how that should have been done the day prior. 

Tom: "Or last night. I did all of that stuff last night. You should have done that with me."

Me: "That would have been great, but once again you disappeared without telling anyone and thus no one was able to tag along "

He drove to the credit union. 

The next stop was at Frida's bakery. I only made the comment that we should stop there as a joke, this being the place of the great coffee lid debacle. Tom took the turn on two wheels and had I had a cup of java in my hands it definitely would have spilled. We got coffee, but he said we would stop further down the road for breakfast, which I thought made no sense since that required another stop, but I wanted him happy so....

We made our third stop at Panera Bread, bagged some bagels and an egg sandwich for me, and finally headed north. 

9:00 - We had several funny moments in that first hour of travel, but by the time I got to writing in this journal too much had happened for any of us to remember the funny things Tom said and did. 

Me: "Oh, man I forgot the travel journal! I thought about it last night, but didn't get it out."

Madison: "Oh, that's a shame."

Me: "That didn't sound sincere."

Madison: "It wasn't."

So I began the first electronic journal! I'm not sure anyone else will write in here, but we shall see. 

Things that have occurred thus far:

* I whined about not having wifi for my IPad so that I could journal and Tom admitted he had a wifi gadget. Unfortunately, it was in his bag in the trunk so Darcy had to climb over the seats to retrieve the gadget. The gadget was great, but Tom had forgotten the USB charging cable so our wifi would be limited. Then Tom didn't believe it wasn't in the little gadget case so I had to take each piece out and show it to him and then turn the case upside down. That led to him saying it must be in his bag and Darcy had to climb back over the seats to the trunk for his bag. It wasn't in there either so we just enjoyed what little wifi we would have. 

*Tom's complaining about the volume of traffic led me to check the I75 website for issues. By the time I got on it we had passed the poor soul who had hit the median guard rail causing a slow down in traffic. I questioned whether I should report the incident seeing that they had a place for doing so on the website. Tom said sure so I reported it and within seconds ambulances and fire trucks came screaming down the south bound lanes. We attributed it to the fast work of cmkerwin, the name I reported it under. 

*As we approached Ocala, Tom suggested finding a Target to get a USB cable. Since we needed a potty break I agreed. I got the directions and we all trooped in. Darcy bought underwear and bobby pins. Maddy bought personal items. Tom bought the USB cord and I bought nothing because they did not have the new Toby Keith CD. 

*Having wifi has made me have to look up various random things that pop into Tom's head. This in turn has led to other searches. For example, a search of UF's football schedule led to the Target stop; a question regarding blueberry bushes led to my blog where I had photos of our blueberry picking escapades, which led to an article on porta-pottys; a billboard of Black Cat led to a competition of who was right regarding the company (we both were correct, but Tom's company was the one being referred to). 

Funny things Tom has said:

* "Do you want to stop at the Burrito Barn for breakfast? It is right up here." (he meant Taco Bell)

*"Does anyone know where Waldo is?" Said as we entered Waldo, FL

*"This is horse country. Look at that farm." It was a golf course. 

*"At the post office?" In response to my declaration  "Oh, I need to post my photo."

*After finding out by researc that a donkey and an ass were the same animal, I stated that there was no difference between them. "They are spelled differently. Oh, sorry, are you being an ass?"

(Tom's writing)

Cara: "Who wants to write in the journal now? Tom how about you? You write and I'll tell you what to say." I was driving. Enough said. 

(Cara's writing)

3:33 - We are closing in on our destination. We have been through Georgia and are now in South Carolina on a little four lane road that requires a safe speed limit because the police are everywhere. Tom keeps drifting off on to the shoulder and the painted line with ridges makes farting noises when he does so. Madison has made a remark that his driving ability is questionable. He has now offered to pull over to allow her a nature potty break. 

We had lunch at a MCDonald's (Tom's pick) that had trouble with our order or I should say Tom's order. He got his drink but no fries. We carried on without those salty things. The weather has been cloudy, sometimes drizzling, and warm. At our GA McDonald's stop the air was much cooler than Florida and Darcy and I were dressed properly having worn long pants. I spied some fall changes as we drove and took photos of course. 

Our flying family texted us that they arrived in Charleston about the same time we crossed into SC. We should all arrive around the same time, although they are stopping at a grocery store and the honey baked ham store. We are still looking for a rest stop. Our four lane road is now a two lane road and it seems like the middle of nowhere. Marshy areas with lots of swampy Spanish oak trees and minimal traffic. We have spied a small post office building that looked ready to fall down with a gust of wind and a corral with a lone donkey/ass (which started the whole discussion on that).

4:30 - We have arrived at our destination, a southern, woodsy retreat nestled in the far corner of an island. It reminds me of being stranded on a desert island and wandering off to discover an uninhabited forest with abandoned spooky cabins. Our flying family is a minute behind us, but I am headed up the wooden staircase to registration to check us in. Ah, let the fun begin. 

NFL Monday recap

Steelers: My boys had a bye this week - yay, we finally don't have it in week 4 - but I'm recapping their MNF game here.

Battle of the Bergers - This is what the announcers kept calling it because the two quarterbacks had berger at the end of their names; Roethlisberger and Mettenberger. It is so nice when teams give the television guys something to work with.

Sacks - Another five sacks on Roethlisberger with the Titans blitzing almost every snap. The problem with that was Tennessee's defense got tired and the Steelers got smart and readjusted. Ben finally got angry and did some shouting at his team, which I was happy to see, and he didn't get injured.  

Slow offense - I don't know if Ben was tired or if the receivers were tired, but the throws and missed catches were lazy. Ben's passes looked like second thoughts lofted in the air and the receivers stood around hoping the ball would just fall into their arms. Ugh. Hard to watch that.

Nate Washington - He use to be one of ours, and he was one I liked and hated to see leave same as I felt about 

Emmanuel Sanders. He caught the 80 yard bomb from Meetenberger that put the Titans ahead, but it was what the MNF announcers said after that warmed my heart. Washington had talked about how grateful he was to the Steelers organization for taking a chance on him and giving him the opportunity to play in the league. He had nothing but great things to say about his time with the Steelers and hoped that when he made big plays like the one he made on Monday night that the Rooneys would feel good about their decision and proud of the guy they helped develop.

Mettenberger - I didn't know anything about this guy. This was my first time seeing him in action. For a rookie he maintained poise and confidence out there especially after that beginning interception, but someone has got to work with him on interviewing. He came to his post game interview still dressed in his jersey and pads and gave away some nice Whisenhunt secrets. I hope the Steeler organization was listening. 

Old School - Hats off to Haley. Throwing offense wasn't working so he went to the old-school Steeler football; running. And Le'Veon Bell did his job and more racking up 205 yards, scoring a touchdown, turning the game and the offense around, and settling into the record books amongst some impressive Steelers.

Blount - Apparently, he was unhappy that he wasn't getting the ball. Apparently, he forgot too that this football stuff is a job. He showed his displeasure by leaving his job early. He went into the locker room, dressed, and headed to the team bus before the rest of the guys were off the field. The Steelers showed their displeasure by firing him. Oh, LaGarrette, those of us here in Tampa are not surprised by your behavior, but you signed with the wrong team this time. The Steelers don't take kindly to men acting like children. Two strikes (the first being your arrest for smoking weed) was one too many.

Harbaugh incident - This happened after the Jets lost, but it still bothers me so I'm speaking about it. The Baltimore Ravens coach, he of the Sports Illustrated article I read long ago of his hatred for the Steelers and the nonsense he makes the players chant before playing them, was filmed in the Ravens locker room by CBS after his team beat the Titans the week before the Steelers did the same. He referred to the loss the Steelers just had against the Jets, and while what he said wasn't really that big of a deal, it just makes me reiterate how angry this guy is against his division rivals. I don't think the players hate the Steelers as much as their coach does. The fact that the Ravens were fined $45,000 for their viciousness against the Steelers the week they played against them is a concern I think the league needs to be watching and it starts with Harbaugh who fires up his players with a hatred that goes beyond their rivalry. I don't like it. Something is off here and something is going to happen if the league can't get this guy under control.

Others:  I'm out of town again and only caught some glimpses of football, but I'll throw in my two cents. 

Blount - So after writing the above last week after the Steelers fired LaGarrette Blount, his old team the Patriots picked him up the next day. Seriously? What kind of nonsense is that? They released him, but now they want him? I don't care if they needed him. Shouldn't there be some sort of respect here? The guy walked off the field during a game. He acted like a child. Yet New England is going to reward him? And the NFL wants to change their image? Shame on Bill Belichick and that organization. The Rooneys are well respected in the league, but the Patriots owner certainly didn't show any in my opinion. Shame on him too.

RGIII - A little over one hundred yards. A sack and fumble to end the game. The buzz is it's the quarterback, the same guy who three years ago was considered to be the next great thing. I haven't seen the team play since RGIII came back, and granted he has some mental cobwebs (Mike Shanahan step forward), but the Redskins issues go beyond one man. 

Odell Beckham Jr. - His one handed, overextended, off his feet catch in the corner of the end zone for the Giants touchdown was possible the greatest artistic-athletic catch we have seen in years. Wow!

TY Hilton -Anyone else get a tad teary eyed watching his post on-field interview after the game as he talked about his newborn daughter who was born hours earlier? Heartfelt, and not afraid to show his emotions. Feature more of the players like him instead of the ones who screw up, get arrested, mock former teams, etc. and maybe we can believe in the NFL again. 

49ers - Whatever is happening in their locker room seems to have gotten squared away on the field. Their guys made clutch catches, key stops, and Kapernick threw a couple of bombs to seal their win and keep everyone quiet for another week. 

NFL picks week 12

Last Week - 6 - 8

Overall - 97 - 62

Kansas City over Oakland - Well, well, sooner or later the Raiders had to win. I just didn't think it would be this week.

Cleveland over Atlanta - This might go the other way, and I changed this one twice before figuring that the Browns play better away.

Chicago over Tampa Bay - Yes, the Bucs did it last week. Yes, Bucs coach Lovie Smith played for the Bears before being fired. No, I don't see them winning this week.

Indianapolis over Jacksonville - While the Jaguars are playing well they aren't pulling in the wins, and they won't this week either.

Green Bay over Minnesota - Aaron Rogers is on a streak and Minnesota, while playing better than expected with the turmoil surrounding their main main Adrian Peterson, won't stop him this week.

New England over Detroit - The Lions are too sporadic for me. While I'm annoyed about the Patriots taking LaGarrette Blount (more on that tomorrow) he will want to play well this week as an in-your-face. Oh, and they have Tom Brady.

Philadelphia over Tennessee - The Titans couldn't put away the Steelers last week so I don't see them putting away the other Pennsylvania team.

Cincinnati over Houston - I went back and forth on this one too, but in the end I see the Texans like I see the Lions so I chose the Bengals.

San Diego over St. Louis - Surely, the Chargers are better than they have been.

Seattle over Arizona - Hmmm...if the Cardinals win this week....I might be a believer.

Denver over Miami - I'm a believer in my man Peyton.

San Francisco over Washington - The Redskins, (are they still called that?) have problems. The 49ers do too, but they seem to continue to win despite it.

Dallas over the Giants - The Giants are the Bucs of the east. Poor things. They might win today, but I didn't have enough confidence for them to do so.

Buffalo over the Jets - I haven't seen the Jets play yet (I was on an plane when they beat my boys), but I have seen the Bills.

Baltimore over New Orleans - The Ravens don't want the Steelers to move ahead of them no matter what.

The big one

I turned fifty on Monday. Or was it Tuesday? When you get this old body parts sag and ache and your mind and memory falter. It was on Monday. I know because I looked it up. It wasn't as bad as I anticipated, mainly because I've worried and cried about it since I turned 49. It loomed over me. This one year difference somehow made a... difference.

I don't feel fifty years old. Fifty is, was my parents and my neighbors. Fifty is, was, old people with grown kids. Fifty is, was, women who wandered their empty nests wondering what to do with themselves or who participated in golf games for exercise and social activity. It certainly was not an age I would become for like ages. My god, it was SO far away and I had so much to do before I ever got to that point.

Yet, here I am. Fifty years old.

The big five zero. 5 0.

I see pictures of classmates on Facebook and think, "Holy, crap, look how old he/she is! Oh, my." But I don't see that when I look into the mirror. Except that I do see it and then I deny that I see it or I simply avoid mirrors and shiny, large objects that might inadvertently show my image.

In my head I am a young girl. I'm hip with today's social media. I listen to my kid's music. I've got the lingo down and my children's friends think I'm "funny". Pfft. My parents certainly didn't have any of that because they were like...old. Fifty.

But that isn't me, no siree. Only it is me because I'm now fifty.

From the moment I turned 49 I was almost 50, and it went beyond my obsession with odd numbers in terms of age. Almost fifty meant I had, what, twenty? thirty? years left? How is that possible? Where did the time go? I have so much more I want to do and places I want to see and holy, mother of god, that isn't possible anymore because I'm almost fifty!

Everyone knows life starts declining at that age. Suddenly I have back trouble, and a large weight gain, and hot flashes, and no period, which is actually cool, but even the coolness means I'm OLD. A period as a young girl meant you were a woman and no period means I'm what? Shriveling up? Slowly dying from the inside out? The only thing I have left is my eye sight and even it went in my forties. The only reason I still have it now is I paid big bucks for it.

I don't feel I have the wisdom that should come with turning almost fifty. Hell, my daughters are learning what I learned in college during their freshman years in high school. Mostly what I feel is fear. I have no father, no mother, and no will because it signals my impending doom. My eldest is a senior and will be leaving for her own adulthood adventure in a few months and her sister isn't far behind. My SIL was diagnosed with cancer, my neighbors are leaving, and I have no interest in golf.

And fifty is behind it all.

Yet when the big day did arrive, I was...calm.

After spending a week with my brother and his family, watching what they go through--living with cancer, cold, dark weather, and the worry of employment--I realized I could tuck inside myself and give up or be thankful for everything I do have.

Suddenly that morning I didn't feel depressed or pained or worrisome. I got out of bed and embraced the day. I told myself to believe the guy that said these would be the best years yet.

For the most part I patted myself on the back and counted my blessings. I have a home, a great family, and my health. I have love, wonderful friends, and the gulf waters not far from me. The back trouble thus far is manageable, the weight I'll work on, the hot flashes have slowed, and my period reappeared a week before my birthday. Surely that means something youthful!

Bring it on fifty!

Photos from Indiana

Because you haven't had enough of these...

The first night I got there Gabby Ollie wanted to show me all of his outfits. He did a little fashion show for me. This is his Halloween costume.

This is his raincoat, although I noticed he did not wear this when he went out into the snow.

This is his Christmas sweater, and after he saw this great picture I took of him in it with the Christmas  candle back drop he chose this photo as his Christmas card.

My baby bro. He and I spent Monday conducting business and then driving around town. Driving with him is exhausting an entertainment all in itself.

Did you really think I wouldn't post a fall photo? 

After the chemo treatment and after a big meal. Good thing I can keep myself entertained.

I didn't take this photo, but I wanted the cat, Zoie, to have her time on the blog too. Here she is asking Rusty for some toothpaste, an obsession of hers. She spent her days in my room hiding from the dog because she wasn't allowed in her normal space, the master bedroom, due to chemo rules.

My second snow person, Priscilla, after the first one, Harvey, bled red gobstoppers all over his front making him look like a frozen homicide victim.

The Christmas bulbs that my brother kept tweaking with his fingers, which in turn caused his wife to yell at him to stop, which made him tweak it harder. Oh, and a picture of my niece actually smiling in a photo.

This was a fire pit outside a restaurant at the mall. People actually stopped to warm their hands as they made their way from the parking lot. I wanted to tell them to just go inside for warmth, but maybe it was the novelty of it.

A food photo because cancer and snow does not stop this family from eating.

Family. Awe!

From fall to winter

I have lived now in Florida almost longer than I lived in Indiana. I am acclimated to the warmth and the sun and the trees that are rarely bare. I was worried before I left my cozy 80 degree weather state to travel to the frozen tundra of northern Indiana. I was sure I would freeze. I pictured myself wandering around the house wrapped in layers upon layers of cloth with a blanket around my shoulders. I shopped before I flew out, purchasing long, thick pants and sweaters that I will never wear at home. I borrowed a long, wool coat to protect me from whatever weather I might encounter, and I ate more to build up fat just in case none of the outer wear worked.

Then I arrived in Indiana. It was in the 50's the first two days and some of the trees still had beautiful, fall leaves clinging to its branches. It was gorgeous and amazing, and when the temperatures dropped and fall quickly turned into winter, I embraced it. I put a stocking cap on my head and went outside and breathed in the coldness, the beauty, and the difference of the states that I have called home.

Susan: "You can do this because you get to get on an airplane and leave it for palm trees, heat, and sunshine."

True.

Suz

I had seen the pictures of course, and she was beautiful, but seeing her bald in person made it all real. She has cancer and this is her life now; fighting to stay alive. She and her family have adjusted to pain, pills, tiredness, and doctor visits. I was glad I was able to help in whatever way I could, but I was more grateful to be here to hug them all. Gently for her because of her port. I've had to learn.

The day of her chemo treatment brought back memories of my mother. I felt anxious as we arrived, but she was so calm and directed me to sit while she checked in. We made jokes and chatted with a couple who had ties to Florida. My brother arrived and the three of us trooped inside to begin the ritual she does every twenty one days. She sat and had her vitals taken and then moved into another room where blood was taken, questions were asked, and her port was cleaned. I watched it all and it was real.

We moved into the large open chemo room with its wall of large windows and open cubicles of recliners, warm light, and baskets of hospitality. She settled into a recliner and explained the process to me as the nurse hooked her up to an IV pole with bags and bags of chemicals. From there it was just a waiting game as the foreign chemical combinations dripped into her port to kill the cancerous mass in her body. She was positive through it all talking and laughing and preparing me for what might come. The advocate from the local Pink Ladies organization showed up and sat with us, and before I knew it hours had passed and it was all over. She was unhooked, given her appointment calendar for the month, and we were once again back outside in our car. In, bam, boom, ba, and out. Just another day of fighting cancer.

By the end of my visit I wasn't as startled by her lack of hair. She tolerates the drugs better than I expected. She is determined not to let it all define her. She forces herself to get up out of her spot on the couch to get needed items herself so that she doesn't just curl up into a ball and fade away. She has a lot of pain at times, nausea at other times. Her bones ache after the bone marrow shot the day after the chemo treatment and she moves slower, but it doesn't stop her. She gets her daughter up and ready for school. She carries on her household duties when she has good moments, cleaning rooms and handling the laundry. She fixes herself food when she is able and keeps track of all the medication that she needs to take. She is determined to beat this terrible disease.

I was only there a week, but it was enough to enter their world and catch a glimpse of life with cancer. They work together. They have faith and a positive attitude. Together they will all beat this and move on to their next phase of life. It is important to her that life continue on with every day activities and the mundane. I am in awe of them, of her.

I know we all do what we have to do in tough situations, but I have to say that this family is special. They just keep getting up when life knocks them down and they keep forging ahead, pushing aside the bad and pulling in the good. I have watched her develop from a young girl to a mother to a woman. She is strong, fierce, loving, determined and faithful. Cancer might slow her down and it scares the hell out of her, but it doesn't define her and she will not let it win. She stands straight and tall with a smile on her face. I love her. She is my heroine, and I am so glad that she is my family.

NFL Monday recap

I didn't see football the past two weeks due to flight scheduling. I tried to keep up via my ESPN phone app, but yesterday's football was mind blowing. This morning I am having to catch up via media sources so I'll just give my shocked impressions of what I learned upon landing back in 80 degree Florida.

Manning brothers - They threw seven picks combined this week. What? Peyton says he needs to play better football. Uh. You think?

Green Bay - This game popped right up when I turned on my phone while still sitting on the plane. 53 points against the Eagles? I knew it wouldn't be pretty, but 53 points? I better take a closer look at these guys. Although maybe it was those throwback uniforms like the Steelers bees.

Andy Dalton - Peyton can take heart. Have a couple of bad weeks, but then come back out and remember what you are suppose to do. Cincinnati's quarterback did just that making big throws and getting the win.

Saints fan - After scoring the Bengals third touchdown, Cincinnati's Jermaine Gresham spotted two female Bengals fans in the stands, gestured that he was giving them the ball, something that he will have to pony up cash for doing so, and tossed one of them the ball. Unfortunately for her, the New Orleans Saints player sitting next to her intercepted the ball as if he were a defensive player in the game of his life, elbowing her in the face, snatching the ball from her, and refusing to give it to her when she begged on national television. Pitiful. This isn't the MLB buddy. Clearly, Gresham was giving his fan the ball. This guy is a thief. Of course, the fan got the most important thing overall, the win, and she actually got another ball from the New Orleans organization along with a story. But seriously? Bad sportsmanship.

Tampa -Well looky, looky, the Bucs played some ball both defensively and offensively. Good for them. Can't wait to read all about it in my first newspaper in a week.

My picks - After a great pick week in week 10, I totally lost it this week. That's what happens when you miss a week watching games. Gotta get it back tonight.

ESPN commercial - I loved this week's commercial for Monday night football with Ben Roethlisberger throwing bombs and Antonio Brown catching touchdowns while You're Just to Good to be True played in the background. I'm feeling a win!

NFL Picks - week 11

Last week - 10 - 3

Overall - 92 - 54

Miami over Buffalo - I'm not falling for the Bills this week. Not in Miami.

Minnesota over Chicago - I took da Bears, but then I remembered the last two weeks and changed my mind. Can Bridgewater pull off another one?

Cleveland over Houston - The Browns are at home so I went with them, but I'm not so sure as they can't make up their minds if they want to break their decades+ curse or not.

Seattle over Kansas City - Here I go again picking against the Chiefs, but really are the Seahawks seriously losing their mojo?

Denver over St. Louis - This isn't my team, but I realize I keep picking them every week. But I believe in Peyton Manning and the Rams, despite their grit, can't beat him.

Cincinnati over New Orleans - The Bengals, despite my apathy for them, are playing some football.

San Francisco over the Giants - The other Manning brother has had too much trouble this season to pull off a win here.

Washington over Tampa Bay - Weeks ago I took the Bucs because eventually they will win one. I'm not sure I can say that now in all seriousness.

Carolina over Atlanta - The Falcons are suddenly back to playing some football and these two teams are about the same in my head. I just went with the Panthers because I felt it.

San Diego over Oakland - The Chargers will have their shit together this week against this team.

Green Bay over Philadelphia - Two weeks ago I would have picked the opposite, but I don't think back up quarterback Mark Sanchez will pull off a win in the frozen Lambeau tundra.

Detroit over Arizona - I'm not sure what I was thinking on this one. Oops.

Indianapolis over New England -  - Are the Patriots really that strong in their comeback from the beginning of the season? The Colts play well at home,  Andrew Luck won't want to look wimpy against Brady, and maybe the warm indoor air will make the Pats sluggish.

Pittsburgh over Tennessee - I missed football last week and will miss Sunday football again this week as my flight overlaps, but I do get to see my boys. Plus it is my birthday so I'm expecting a win because they will want to give me that.

Indiana Fall

Me: "Look at those beautiful trees!"

Me: "Look at the vibrant colors! Beautiful."

Me: "Oh, look at that one! Gorgeous!"

Him: "Would you stop saying that? Beautiful trees was two weeks ago. You're late."

Me: "Not when you are from Florida. This right here is new for me and it is just beautiful."

Throwback vs Now

At Darcy's Regional swim meet a week ago I waited for her afterwards outside the venue. It is on the water south of us and I sat on a bench and had some time to reflect on life. As I sat there looking around I suddenly remembered that I had been here once before with Darcy while Tom was swimming at the pool.

I don't remember why we were with him or why we didn't swim (although it looked a tad chilly in these photos), but Darcy and I hung out by the water. I sat on a bench and she ran and played. There was a jungle set up of three sizes of bars on the beach and Darcy spent a lot of time climbing and swinging from these bars, trying to work her way up to the highest one.

The same jungle set was still there, just down the way from my bench seat. So when Darcy finally met up with me to head home I made her go out and recreate that scene for me so I could take her picture again.

Me: "Please. Please, oh, please?"

And so she humored her mother. And once she got going she found she could still climb and swing. Although the high bar was no longer high.

Darcy: "I remember this being taller."

 

Sigh. It was. A long time ago.

Halloween 2014

My kids don't trick or treat anymore so I figured my spooky Halloween would be just handing out candy and enjoying a cocktail with my neighbors. A few days before my neighbor across the street,l Sid, saw me out with the dog and invited me to my next door neighbor's house to help him decorate it. Which I found odd as my next door neighbor is currently in Texas.

Me: "Uh? O-K?"
Sid: "I want to decorate it and then send him pictures of it and tell him we found it like this when we went in to check on things."

This is the neighbor who who entertained me when I was out of town so I refrained from rolling my eyes. Sid had recently had surgery on his foot and I was concerned he would do something to mess that up so I went with him and his woman, Gloria, to decorate for Halloween. They brought along the supplies which included a giant spider that they were going to make their little Yorkshire wear that night, a spider web, and duct tape.

The idea was to decorate a room, take a picture of it, and then take down the decorations and move into another room. I'm not going to lie. We giggled and snorted and tip toed around my neighbor's house as if we were really pulling a fast one on him.

Sid and I hung up the web and stretched it out to cover any object we thought might look good. Gloria took the photographs. I'm not sure we missed any room.

The snickering really began when we went into the bedroom. My neighbor had left for the airport, forgetting his laundry was still in the dryer and so he had asked if Gloria (notice he asked the woman) could fold that up for him and put it on his bed. He told her to ignore the underwear, which she didn't because the underwear was Izod. He took some ribbing with that and so I decided that it would be even funnier to include that in the pictures.

My neighbor is 93 years old. He recently got an Ipad to go with his Iphone and he and I text to stay updated about every other day or so. I let Sid and Gloria send him the pictures and mess with him and when he texted me that a large spider had been lose in his house and was now somewhere outside, lock up Elliot, I responded with:

Me: "Note for next time: Be careful of who you leave your keys with when you leave town."

NFL picks week 10

Last week - 7 - 6
Overall - 82 - 51

Cincinnati over Cleveland - Well, really, who thought it would be the other way around?

Kansas City over Buffalo - As sure as I picked this I knew it would be the other way around.

Detroit over Miami - I like the Lions. I like Matt Stafford. I'm not a Dolphins fan. Detroit is coming off the bye, but Miami is coming off a big win. What to do, what to do. I think the Lions play big in the cold.

New Orleans over San Francisco - The Saints have slowly worked their way past that beginning they had and San Francisco can't seem to find a way out of whatever hole they have gotten themselves into so I'm going with the home team.

Pittsburgh over the Jets - Oh, boy. Here we go. Everyone is expecting a blow out, but I know my boys. They get lazy when they play a no win team, and they think teams like this are no big deal, and they come out sluggish and yawning. I hope I'm wrong and they keep on the streak they have had now for two games. I'll be on an airplane when they play so I'll get the news when I land, but I will be decked out in black and gold!

Atlanta over Tampa - I can't even work up anything to say about this game. God love them both.

Dallas over Jacksonville - In London. Again. WTH? I don't get it. I really don't. The big news this week besides the game on the other side of the ocean is that Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo made the flight despite having to sit hours in a plane with a bad back. Does that mean he plays this week? Frankly, I'm not sure it matters. While Jacksonville hasn't been lying down on the field snoring despite their losing record and depite back-up Brandon Weedon's memory loss that he is a quarterback, Tony Romo is floppily either on game or off when he plays. This could turn out to be a good game. Or not.

Baltimore over Tennessee - The Ravens lose again? What a great birthday present that would be, but I can't see that happening.

Denver over Oakland - Who is worse the Raiders or the Bucs. Shouldn't those two teams be playing each other just so one of them could feel better? This is kind of sad that they have to play against a Peyton Manning team who lost last week.

Arizona over St. Louis - I thought Philadelphia was the team to watch, but how about those Cardinals? I'm liking them more and more, but then I'm partial as Bruce Arians use to be ours.

Seattle over the Giants - This is certainly the week of huge mismatches of great teams against mediocre teams and this one right here would be another match. Poor Eli and the Giants. They can't find themselves as a football team. They won't find it in Seattle either.

Green Bay over Chicago - The Midwest is pumped for this cold game, but Aaron Rogers will throw far and long and win.

Philadelphia over Carolina - The Eagles have lost their quarterback. Can they depend on Mark Sanchez, the former Romo of the Jets? I'm going on the thought that they are still running on their high from that great comeback last week. Plus they are at home on a Monday night. This could be my oops game.

5 things to start the weekend

1. I'm leaving tomorrow for a trip to the frozen tundra. I had to buy some clothes to wear there and I still don't think I'll be prepared for warmth. I spent all day trying on my winter clothes and by the time I had a few outfits to pack I was sweating. Our weather here is beautiful. Why would anyone want to live in the cold?
2. I checked the weather for the week and snow is a huge possibility. While that is exciting I have no shoes for that either. My daughter asked me if my SIL was the same shoe size as me and I laughed. My brother would be more like it.
3. I tried to plan out the week for everyone here. I set up rides for my children. I had dinner plans set for them. I then tried to discuss this with my husband and he blew a gasket. He accused me of being a planner and a worrier. "You should be worried about planning for what you are going to do when you get to Indiana," he said. "We will be fine here." I secretly left a list for the girls of phone numbers and helpful information just in case.
4. My SIL is having her 5th chemo treatment while I'm there if all of her blood work checks out. I'm the designated caregiver, and I mentioned to her how I didn't think I was very good in this role, especially with my mother. She told me it involved a lot of sitting around watching television and talking to her. Now that I can do!
5. "One thing. If I feel like getting up and making myself an egg or something to eat," she told me. "Please let me. Don't tell me how you are here to do that and get on me about sitting down and taking it easy. If I feel like doing it, I need to get up and move around. Ok?" My reply? "Will you make me an egg too?"

Florida living whether we like it or not

Our weather turned cooler a couple of weeks ago and so I opened windows to air out the stuffiness of a closed house. My front door is usually always open during the day because I have another door(I'm sure there is a name for all these doors, but for the life of me I'm drawing a blank...storm door?) that is top to bottom windows for the dog to see out and for light to be brought into my otherwise dark house. There is a magic window within the door. Pull down the window and it becomes a screen. It is the best door. Except when it lets in flying Florida cockroaches.

One Friday night Madison, Kelly and I were watching our Friday night television when Tom decided to take out the dog. He opened the door and then stood there with it open while he tried to watch just a little more of the program we were watching. As he exited and the door was closing behind him, in came this LARGE flying object. The three of us inside followed its flight pattern across the room until it landed on the wall directly above the couch that I was sitting in. Immediately Kelly and I were on our feet and across the other side of the room screaming at the top of our lungs as if the grim reaper himself had entered our house with a scythe. Madison never moved, but stared at us as if we had completely lost our minds.

Kelly/Cara: "OMG! OMG! A cockroach!! Kill it! Get it! AAAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!
Madison: "What? Why are you screaming?"
Kelly/Cara: "THEREISACOCKROACHTHESIZEOFCALIFORNIAONTHEWALLOMGKILLIT"

About this time the cockroach decided to have some fun with us and he flew DIRECTLY AT US. Kelly and I fell over one another as we turned to escape the reaper. It was like a comedy where two people go in opposite directions, bang into one another, turn to go elsewhere and come full circle into one another again. Eventually we got it right. Kelly ran into the kitchen and I ran in the opposite direction into the hallway. At some point as I ran I realized that if I continued running down the hall I would not see where the cockroach landed and thus would never be able to enter the living room again. So I stopped in the hall and peeked out the entrance. The cockroach, sensing the hysteria he was causing, would land on one wall and then take off again from one end of the room to the other. Eventually I lost the bastard. Through all of this Kelly and I continued to exercise our lungs which had apparently been dormant for far too long and needed to let off steam.

Madison slowly got up off the couch and returned with a can of Febreeze.

Kelly: "What are you going to do with that? Make it smell better? For god's sake get a shoe!!!"
Madison: "You two need to calm down!"

Which of course had the opposite effect. Kelly immediately returned, half of her in the room, her hands on her hips.

Kelly: "Don't tell me to calm down. You have never had one of those crawling up your leg in the middle of the night! You haven't had one lurking over you while you were washing your hair in the shower. When that happens to you I seriously doubt you will tell me to calm down!!"
Madison: "What is the big deal? Why is this animal so much more frightening than say a rat?"
Kelly: "A rat? ARE YOU KIDDING ME? A rat is cute with four little legs, two little ears, and a nose. It has fur that is soft and cuddly. A roach is none of those things. NONE OF THOSE THINGS!! It is skeletal. It has a hard shell that is crunchy when you step on it and spindly little legs and antennae. NOTHING ABOUT AN ANIMAL THAT CARRIES ITS SKELETON ON THE OUTSIDE IS RIGHT."

At this point I was back on the couch. As long as the critter was out of sight I was okay. Kelly paced back and forth going on and on about the anatomy of a cockroach and then spiders and then insects, talking in a very loud, stern, why-are-you-such-an-idiot voice. It finally got me laughing, which in turn made her angrier until she finally got caught up in our laughter and calmed down some. She sat back down again, but kept jumping any time she felt a twinge on her skin. Madison went around spraying the Febreeze around the room until I couldn't breathe from all of the chemicals and had to put my shirt over my nose.

Kelly: "Madison. You don't perfume bugs. You kill them! With a shoe! Kill them! Kill them dead."
Madison: "I'm not going to kill them just because you don't like them."
Kelly: "Well, that is where you are wrong! Cockroaches should be killed and killed some more. You mark my words. There will be nothing but trouble with that thing because you didn't kill it."

Ah, foreshadowing. The next night while I was home alone watching television who should appear out from behind my television on the wall? He slowly crawled up the wall toward the ceiling which I thought was a good sign. I have a bug guy and I was hoping that his magical spray had slowed the little sucker down. I got up and went looking for the roach spray. It wasn't under the kitchen sink. It wasn't in the garage where it usually is. I could feel myself becoming frantic. I peeked into the room and he was still in the same spot so I got out a bottle of water and vinegar and tried to spray him. Only the nozzle on the spray bottle wasn't working properly and a small vapor of spray fizzled into the air about five inches from the bottle and then drifted downward. The roach went back behind the television. I got one of Tom's shoes.

I waited and eventually he came back up the wall. I went to hit him and he took flight. I had to duck to avoid getting touched and he flew across the room to the wall above the couch. I went toward him and he flew to the other side of the room. He ran behind some decorative nonsense I have hanging there so I hit the wall with the shoe and he scurried out. I tried to hit him, but he he was at an odd angle and I missed. He went into the foyer by my front door. I did not venture into the small alcove. Instead I texted Kelly.

Me: "The roach has reappeared."
Kelly: "KILL HIM! KILL HIM!"
Me: "I tried. I missed. He is somewhere by the front door."
Kelly: "Get a shoe. You have to KILL HIM!"
Me: "I have one. And I also have the stupid Frebreeze."
Kelly: "Listen to me...KILL HIM. KILL HIM DEAD."

At this point Madison arrived home from a babysitting job. She came in and began talking about the five month old baby she was caring for, but I couldn't stop looking for the roach. As she talked and talked suddenly I jumped up. The roach was crawling up the same wall where the front door is. He was behind the door near the bottom. I picked up the shoe, but Madison jumped up and put her hand out. She went to the door, opened it, and coaxed the roach outside where he ran off into the grass.

Madison: "He's out. There. Are you better? See that wasn't so bad."
I texted this to Kelly.
Kelly: "That was a mistake. He will return...with friends. YOU SHOULD HAVE KILLED HIM."

Two days later my bug guy showed up for my three month spraying. So far all bugs discovered have been on their backs and DEAD.

Monday morning NFL recap week 9

Steelers: I'm going to be honest. Ninety percent of me didn't believe we would win this game. I'm glad the ten percent of me knows her stuff and obviously overpowers the majority.

Officials - I'm starting with this because these guys, especially the head ref, earned their money in last night's game. Bill Vinovich and crew were outstanding. That game was rough, crazy, and someone could have seriously been injured if not for those guys in the zebra stripes. Vinovich maintained calm and poise and at one point told both coaches to get their team in control or he would start sending guys to the locker room. I was impressed with how well they did in keeping that game from getting out of hand. Kudos to all of them.

Rough - The Ravens are nuts. I really believe that. Ever since I read the Sports Illustrated article where I learned how John Harbaugh talks to his locker room before playing the Steelers I decided that as long as he was in charge the Ravens would be nuts. There were times in the game that their players just made dumb, uncalled for mistakes that could have resulted in someone being out for the season. I realize that there are times that is unavoidable, but because both teams were playing for keeps stupid came crawling out of the woodwork way too often.

Mental vs Physical - The Steelers were in the Ravens head after our defense began to come awake. The Ravens retaliated with force. Let's see...Ray Rice played for what team? These are adults that have got to learn to man up and walk away from taunting. Either that or play like the Steelers did.

Big Ben - He threw for six touchdowns last night that gave him another NFL record. He is the first quarterback in history to have back to back games with six consecutive touchdowns. Woo Hoo! More important to me is how he conducts himself in his interviews. He is all about his teammates and giving them the credit. He talks about having a lot of work still to do, about the ones that got away, and about how proud he is of his guys.  That's a far cry from who he was four years ago in front of fans and cameras. I hope he is this guy elsewhere in his life too, proving that redemption is possible.

Troy Polamalu - Gone from the game at the end of the first half after making a tackle and getting pounced on. He is said to have a knee sprain and whatever the hell that means medically what we fans hear is that Troy is gone from the game. And that is never good for the Steelers.

Terrell Suggs - My buddy calls him a thug and he certainly lived up to that title last night. He was assessed several penalties, but the worst was his hit on LeGarrette Blount after the whistle had blown the play dead. In real time it looked like the hit had crippled Blount with broken legs and the entire stadium, as well as the announcers, were heard gasping and booing. Upon slow motion replay it wasn't as nasty with the hit coming to the hip and thigh, but the fact that Suggs had already stopped running and tackling and was walking off to suddenly come at Blount at a full run and tackle was uncalled for. He was flagged, but that kind of stuff is what makes everyone inside and outside the NFL cry "dirty".

Mean Joe Greene - His number 75 was retired at last night's game, only the second player to have this done in Pittsburgh. His story is a cool one. When he was taken as the Steelers pick in 1969 no one outside of Texas had any idea of this kid. He soon changed that and now no one else in the Steelers organization will wear the number 75. He was my favorite player along with Terry and every day I sit at my computer he watches over me as I have his name and number painted on my wall above me.

Halftime Ceremony - I thought it tacky that CBS did not show the halftime retirement of Joe Greene's jersey. Yeah, I know. Money, money, money needs to be made, but this was Mean Joe Greene. Mean! Joe! Greene! What he meant in Pittsburgh, and what he meant to the Steelers organization, and what he meant to kids all around the world in the 70's who loved coke...come one. The station could have showed a portion of something. Thank god for the Internet where I was able to watch his private ceremony, as well as the one on the field.

Speech - Joe Greene fired up the defense and the rest of the team by giving the pre-game speech. He kept it short and simple and told them to get out their and do some butt kicking. No wonder our guys played like they did. Greene had one of those personalities that I talk about on this blog. If he thought a teammate needed to step up, he told him. So when he told the team to kick butt...well, they did exactly that. Now if we could just have Greene do that every week we would be good.

Other:

Bucs game announcers - Thom Brennanman and David Diehl drove me crazy with their after-the-fact discussions that had no bearing on the live game. They showed us plays that they felt controversial, but that the officials obviously didn't because no whistle was blown. They kept rambling on about plays that had happened two plays previously where again no whistle was blown and no challenges issued. I finally had to turn the sound off.

Mike Glennon - He can throw, but in this day and age of bomb throwers the poor Bucs quarterback can't even light the fuse. He also is such a weeny, little thing that I worry someone is going to crush him on the field and he'll just disappear in a poof of smoke and everyone will wonder what happened to Mike Glennon.

Arizona - I better start paying more attention to this team. I knew I should have have changed my pick at the last minute. The Cardinals demolished the Cowboys in their own stadium, and I swear they just kept running all the way back to Arizona.

Chargers - Whoa. What happened here? They are playing like the Steelers were in the beginning of the year, but even we didn't lose three in a row. Maybe they need Joe Greene in their locker room. Has anyone called Dan Fouts?

Brady vs Manning - I don't get as caught up in this nonsense as the media does. Jeez, this is all they talked about for a whole week. Even Terry Bradshaw and company had a round table discussion about who they would take as their quarterback. Here is the scoop. Tom Brady is jealous of Peyton Manning. He always plays well that first game and he usually wins. Which is fine with me. Because when it really counts, the playoffs, Manning will win. Especially if he was beaten once before by that team. I'd take Peyton Manning over everyone anytime anywhere.

Tony Gonzalez - His head is so perfect with the back drop of the NFL Network GameDay that I feel like I'm watching a cartoon. I could say the same thing about Michael Strahan over at Fox. They just have these perfect, chiseled features that makes me forget all about what they have to say.

Eagles - Oops. Lost their quarterback Nick Foles to what is being reported as a broken collarbone. Just when you think you have a team... Former Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez, he of the wishy washy maybe today I'll play or maybe today I won't stepped in as the back up and brought home the win. Fans are wondering though if he can continue to be the leader this team needs. I think this is Sanchez's time to man up and show the NFL what he believes he has always been capable of.