Dear Annie.... Abby..... Carolyn......

I lied. Sorry, but... not really too sorry.

I told this blog "Done with Advice columns."

Sorry, taint.

Today is Saturday, March 7... who knows when I'll hit 'publish', throw it out there.... but in the meantime..  I'm gonna read the columns... open this back up... and enter some'a the 'superlatives'... or. 'descriptors'.... or, is it, 'adjectives?' (Love to write, never learned the right rules, or terms).......

Today..... Dear Annie.... "One of her brothers lives on the farm and is a slob"........  Dear Abby...  "My husband vapes in our home and I have run out of ways to get this thought his thick skull that it is unhealthy".... Dear Carolyn... "My friends think I'm stupid." 

1-800-BETS OFF

There are two guys I went to college with....   the last few years, thanks to a joint visit to Mehico... memories of college ten years ago... ok, maybe it was fitty.... we text, prolly too much, seeing who could 'diss' the other the best (or worst I guess is more fitting..)

Baby, pretend, kinda sorta real arguments..  sharing "what are you gonna do today, tomorrow, for Christmas, next week, in October", yada.  Thanks to the miracles of science and the genius of Alexander Graham Bell, we've admittedly behaved like a few teenage girls in winging multiple messages a day.

That was a way too long to their predicted reaction from the 1-800 BETS OFF thing:  I foresee "I CALL BS".... or, "FINALLY, IT BETTER BE!"  "BELIEVE IT WHEN I SEE IT."

This blog is about gambling, so, if it ain't your thing, Snagglepuss is over there (stage left) in line at the Ameristar Buffet, you're welcome to join him now if you like, no hard feelings, at least that's what the odds say. I've heard the crab legs are to-die-for... me, I don't eat that crap.

Two things together.  Scratch that, three.  One, my friends' concern for me gambling, and, I am thankful folks care.  Two (and three) my reaction to their concern, coupled with an exhibited past history of throwing songs in this stupid blog......  As in, this time, borrowing from that deep voiced Eric Burdon and the Animals.. (Oh, and I was today old when Wiki learnt me his middle name is VICTOR!)  The song.........

"It's my life and I'll do what I want."

I love rock and roll, put another dime in the juke box...... no, wait, that ain't it.  I love blackjack, put another chip in the blackjack circle........

Gambling, is an extreme rush for me.  I mean, the closest thing i can compare it to is.. (VICTOR!  STOP!).. hey, I was just gonna say a box of Thin Mint GS Cookies.. I was..  Well you can tell everyone I'm a down disgrace, drag my name all over the place... ahm, I don't care anymore.

It's lifelike, in that it's full of "OH NO"s and "HELL YEAH"s!  The thrill of Victor(y), the agony of the ATM machine.

It's like telling the Hippie "You can't do that!"  WATCH ME! There's joy, glee in that, or can be.  Sure, at times, inward thought is "Damn, maybe they're right, maybe I shouldn't."

This much I can tell you.  Anyone who tells you "I'm really good at gambling."  Or, "Nine times outta ten, I win" is lying through their teeth.  Sure I've lost more than I've won - but it's kinda sorta my version of a cardiac workout. A forget the rest stress test.

If I'm sitting at a blackjack table........ I ain't thinking about my car approaching 200,000 miles.... my hip that ain't hip and needs to be replaced...  I'm living life, with blinders on to the bad crap.  How harmful can that be?  OK, $ure, I get it. I have literally, sat at a blackjack table for over 24 consecutive hours, no breaks other than to pee.  Nuh uh.  UH HUH.

The Good, the Bad, The Ugly.

My favorite experience......... is, once...... sometime in a November, mebbe ten, twelve years ago...... I won over a grand at the blackjack table.  The saying "Pigs get fat, hogs get slaughtered" echoed in my brain - so, I got up and walked straight to the cashier, got real money for my chips.   Simultaneously, two pretty shady looking characters that had been standing behind, watching, followed me.

Suddenly, the rush of a BIG WIN was overcome by "Will it be a knife or a glock that does me in?"....  "Say, (cashier lady), I know this isn't a GREAT amount, but, I was wondering if you offer an escort service to my car?"   "Why yes, we do." She picks up phone, calls someone......  And in a flash...........

This dude...  all of 5'3", mebbe 120 lbs... looked to be onea those you KNOW would be picked last in PE for a fun bout of Dodge Ball........ more cardiac palpatations.  But, he was carrying, so... hey, let's go.  No one followed us, but I was so damn nervous I couldn't remember where I'd parked.... which door I came out... He ended up getting another guard to pick me up in a pickemup truck, drive half an hour until we found my car.

Whew.

I immediately, drove across the highway to what used to be a pretty nice Holidome (Holiday Inn with a big ole dome over the pool)... I threw down my hunnerds and said "I wanna book six rooms for my family for Christmas Eve."  Twas one'a my fave-or-right Christmas's, so much where i might text my college buddies "Nanny nanny boo boo, stick your head in dog doo."

The bad.......  Several times of going thru a couple hunnerd before I could whistle dixie... going to ATM for three hunnerd more...... the hang dog walk of shame to my car... gas gauge on fumes.....Oh sh*t, wunner if I've got enough on my debit card to buy enough gas to get home?

The ugly.  It gets worse Victor?  Mebbe.  Blackjack losses don't all come at once.  It's, the Ameristar Casino song, game plan, "Ole McAmeristar has a farm, E I E I O... and a on this farm there sat some pigs... E I E I O... we deal, they, "here a chip, there a chip, everywhere a chip chip."  LOSERS. THEY'RE ALL (me included) LOSERS!  But....

When you have a bookie. (Victor, you have the right to remain silent.)  You know me, I can't do that.  There was a guy, or so i heard, that took bets on football, basketball, the price of tea in China, you name it. Soooooooooooooo.........

February 2nd, 2014.  The Super Bowl.  For quite some time, everything Peyton Manning touched, turned to gold.  I was in the "Hey, gimme some'a that" mode...   Divorced (so no "Victor, DON'T do that")... had a few extra bucks...  Playing the Seahawks... "This'll be gravy!"

Very cockily, "Here's a hunnerd, put it on the Bronco's please." I'd never bet a hunnerd at once before.

Invited a slew of buddies to my apartment to watch the game.  Even Googled howinthehell to make Rotel.. including using italian sausage, my fav, along with "a splash of milk'" recommendation  from some chick I worked with. Chick, said lovingly.  Here a chick, there a chick, everywhere a chick chick, call me misogynist if you like, I equate to FRIEND, said lovingly.

So... enough chairs... filled with buds... I splurged for the pop, beer, cheese dip, chips, some sliders.. I mean hell, I was gonna win a hunnerd anyways....... then.......

12 seconds into the game.  Manning, readied to put his golden touch on a long bomb, moments after hollerin' out his normal "OMAHA OMAHA"........ and......

The damn center SNAPPED IT OVER HIS HEAD.  Into the End Zone.  Safety, Seattle.  2-0.  And it just got worse, and worse and worse, 43-8 final.

Oh well. I stopped gambling for five years.  OK, three months, but i did stop.

Which brings us to today.  My frat bros, our texts.  I've texted them like five times "I'm quitting". It's what we gamblers do.  Good intentions, quick deposit fingers, just $5 more today, THEN, I'm done.

Victor, this is getting boring, and I don't gamble.  Sorry, you be stuck.

So......... December 1, 2025.  Missouri gets online betting.  Oh sh*it, or to me and Austin Powers, "YEAH BABY!"...

This site gave you $300 in bonus bets if you bet $5.  That site gave you $350 for $5.  And annuder.  Hog heaven, I was in.  I literally, paid for my grandkid's Christmas.  (Maybe I should just gamble around Christmas eh?)

And then, like any gambling, reality sets in.  I ain't on house money any longer.

I be po'. Victor, TMI. I don't care. I ain't got unlimited resources.  I work a bit. I love my job at the golf course, i do.

At least for the short term, I will continue to gamble.  Not every day, and, not very much ($5, MAX $10)  I have notebooks, I read for two hours on a single game, folks and their predictions, and then I bet.... watch the game.... it's a rush.......  sometimes I win....... sometimes I lose.... sometimes I lose.... sometimes I lose.

"Gambling has brought our family together.  We had to move into a smaller house."  Tommy Cooper

I wouldn't hurt a flea, I really wouldn't. I've just always had an affinity for doing things between the legal lines that maybe the Harper Valley PTA would roll their eyes at.  I likes eye rolls.  Watch me. Right Marty Feldman?

Well you can tell everyone I'm a down disgrace, drag my name all over the place... ahm, I don't care anymore.

Love, Victurd

Uno... dos... tres.....

The number three is considered the smallest unit needed to create a pattern, making it a cornerstone of structure, storytelling, and cognitive processing.  It signifies completion, balance, and harmony - often called the "Rule of Three" and is deeply embedded in science, culture, and psychology as the 'magic number' for memorability.

Holy crap, I think Victurd, who claims to having "sure, tried pot, wasn't for me, didn't do anything else".. me thinks he fibs... he done swallowed or smoked something... he's talking fancified and he's a bonafide simpleton.  There's a hole in this bucket blog Dear Liza Dear Liza.

Oh bite me.  Back to simple.  Basically, I think we live a life in threes. (Uno) Infant, youth, hubba hubba to school, backpack on back, ie, growing up...... the  (Dos) 'middle third', a backpack of responsibilities, wage earning, having, teaching, guiding, our own infants, youths, snotnoses....and, (Tres) the geezer, senior stage, where, due to them prior two stages, we now walk hunched over, kinda like we still gotta backpack on, but, we ain't.

A, B, C, it's as easy as 1, 2, 3 as simple as do re mi.  Right Michael?

VICTURD?  Uh huh?  How did you get here?  Well, quite frankly, that's kinda personal, and, actually, I never asked mom and dad.

I give up.

I don't. When we (and I use 'we' in thinking most everyone here is a Boomer, ifn's ya ain't, welcome, buckle your seatbelt, have fun...   When we were kids, we knew......... kids... folks (parents, aunts, uncles, teachers, cobblers [COBBLERS?} uh huh, cobblers..we had one in our town, 'twas meant to represent like shopkeepers, folks in that age range..., cops, preachers, taxi drivers, etc........ and then grands...  over the river and through the woods to grandmother's house we go.... you know, them people that don't work... they sit on benches at the park, on the Square, they wave... they always seem happy..

CHANGE.  All three represent great change.  Great lives, in and of themselves, great change from one kid, adult, senior to the other. Think it's time to stop, children, what's that sound, everybody look what's going down.....  a brief respite..   life sadly teaches, not all are blessed to experience all three stages in life.  Point being, we can't take a day for granted.  And that's all I'll say about that.

Now, howinthehell did this blog idea start?  I was visiting with a loved one.. now, a grandparent... and it was related how soon, sometime today, a pile (that's more than three little ones) will roll, energize, out of a van, YIPPEE's all around.. then, they'll race (surely hollerin' out "FIRST!, SECOND!" as they reach the door into the joint where they find a humongous indoor playground with boo koo inflatables to slide down, bounce on, hide from, flip, roll, yada (and surely probably, get germs, the flu, colds, yada)

Thing, time, life changes. We, Boomers, had station wagons "DIBS ON THE VERY BACK SEAT!", no seatbelts that I remember..excitement to us was a weekend trip to granny's.. Am I the Lone Ranger or does anyone else remember when scattered across our great land, on highways, there were a buncha little rest areas with picnic tables?  It was A TREAT for dad to pullover, us, the snotnoses, to energize out of the station wagon, YIPPEE's all around.. then, race "FIRST.. SECOND!"  to the hey boo boo pic-a-nic tables... gobble down some'a mom's fried chicken, warsh it down with cherry Kool-Aid.. then, back on the road again Willie., and Susie, Junior, et al. (Long paragraph, TBC)

Similar, surely, to the 'today' snotnoses, traveling in the van, drop down DVD players for dayum near every chair in the car... seatbelts.. "YES Tommy, you have to use a booster seat until you weigh 80 pounds." Headphones, earbuds, whatever you call the damn things, each.  Different.  Same. "I got first dibs on the USB port to charge my phone", "SECOND!"... That.  Then.

Dad worked, mom stayed home.  Factory, grocery store, sales calls outta town until Thursday nights.. wherever, whatever to make a buck, provide.  Moms, mostly, learnt us ABC's, "take your dirty clothes to the basement and put 'em by the warsher" and, 'tweren't bad in dad's absence, for a game of catch.

Now, mom works, many from home.  Dads, too. Soccer moms can now be dads too as they drive you to practice, take their laptop with 'em, or, that fancified phone with no 'tachments, in their ear, work from the bleachers, some even cook and fold laundry.

Back in our day, it was common across town to hear "WAIT UNTIL YOUR FATHER GETS HOME!"  Mom was strapped with much, some dads, had a strap.

Nowadays, poor kids.  FOUR, not two, eyeballs on 'em.  Not to mention Ring cameras, surveillance 'game' cameras for the whole damn acreage...  a camera (phone) in damn near every 3BR, 2BA room. All we had to worry about was Mrs. Jones seein' us, tellin Tommy's mom, who told the Wagner lady, and then, it finally got back to our folks, and by then, we'd long had chance for an alibi, good story.

This is where I, the blog writer, get to add my personal input, opine, and sorry, there ain't one damn thing you can do about it.  Oh, I guess you could comment, but hells bells, of late, seems like only one or two of you swing by to read it.. and frankly, as bad as they've been, I don't blame ya!

My opine.  I think the MIDDLE part (kids, FOLKS, geezer/senior) is the hardest part.  We just left the fun part where we had a lot of fun things to do, really, not much responsibility... now... our heads turn, offer, "NOT FAIR", then, for years, we are the ones who monitor, work, scold, teach, mentor, 'IS IT MONDAY ALREADY"... then, when we finally DO take this job and shove it, there's bursitis, arthritis, and THAT (SS check)? is what I gotta live on, with today's costs?  Uh huh, sorry, I wish for you there were do-overs (and yes, damnit, for me too!)

But then, ya settle.  You grow used to it (that last part, and I hate the word last). We look back on our own grandparents, lie to ourselves "man, they were old, looked it, thought like it... I'm glad we're still young inside, sure, a few more wrinkles, but with ma' new hip, I can still juggle AND do the Twist at the same time."

Again, a reminder to us all, we're all not afforded all three, kid, adult, geezer.

Much changes, yet, much is the same.  The "IS IT MONDAY ALREADY" is now replaced by "What are you gonna do today Herbert?"  "I dunno, I ain't thought about much after Wordle, you?"

Tin cans with string, library trips to Dewey Decimal, those damn Flashcubes that burnt your hands a full three days after you dropped of the film at Fotomat, slide rules, pocket calculators, have all been replaced by phones. IPhones for the lucky ones, Androids for us "We are poor little lambs".  Bah, bah, bah.

Life IS good, no matter if you're in the balcony, lower middle, or, the Uecker seats... Young is young, middle is middle, old is old.

"Hey Herbert?"  "Yes, Mabel?"  "Just checked ma' phone, Uncle Sam deposited our SS checks right after midnight... I'm votin' Dairy Queen for a Peanut Buster Parfait!"  "OK, then I'll race ya do the the sedan, but only after you bring me my walker and gimme a ten foot head start."  "OK, but you'll never grow up Herbert."  "Hope not."

So.............. with all that said, THIS, is an order.

STOP. AND. SMELL. THE. ROSES.

But, wear gloves, they're prickly.

Love, Victurd

Kit Kat......

Gimme a break, gimme a break, break me off a piece of that Kit Kat Bar.....

What are your "I really shouldn't (eat) do that....."?  Kit Kat's are ok... meh even.  Heath is prolly my fav but I rarely see em....  WalMart does not have Milk Duds, to me, that's UnAmercian.  Snickers are hard to beat too....  And you?

After staring at the computer screen for an inordinate amount of time....  I noticed.... I need to clean it off, dirt spots on it.  Oh, and that I'm having trouble coming up with any idea for a blog.  Taking a break.

Your welcome.

And yes, I 'get' that it's 'You're welcome' but too, it's your welcome.

Go. Be kind.  If you live in tornado alley, gather some reading material for the basement.  Flashlight batteries too.  If you're old like me, use the handrail.  We're too old for forward rolls.

Victor, you keep writing.  You were gonna take a break.

Yeah, you're right.  Hey, make someone's day... go, tap 'em on the shoulder, then when they look at you, say, "I love you!"

Love, Victurd

A quickie.......

Forty-three people who never ever even open this damn blog, did today... in hopes of reading some sexual encounter recap.

For shame, for shame, for shame.

MSHSAA

That's kinda fun to 'say'. I've heard it as 'Mah Shah Shah'... it's the governing board for Missouri High School Athletics..  Missouri State High School Athletic Association.

I guess, a couple of nights ago, Principia High School defeated Highland High School in a Girls Basketball, Class 3, Sectional game, 46-45.

Or, so they thought.

Apparently, the folks manning the scorebook, at some point in the 3rd quarter, gave Principia one more point than was actually scored on a basket.  Proper procedure is to, Stop Children Whats That Sound, Everybody Look What's Going Down.

No, that ain't it.  Well, kinda sorta. I guess the proper thing to have done was to sound the buzzer, call the refs over, get the scorebook and the scoreboard to match, resume play.

That didn't happen.  It sounded messy... it was brought to ref attention at halftime.. I guess they checked the official book, somehow by then, it matched the scoreboard. They did not check the visitor's book or the home team's book, which, didn't match and which the refs WERE SUPPOSED TO CHECK.

Video evidence after the fact confirmed an error was made, but, because a proper protest was not carried out (or something like that, perty please, just trust me, they goofed and I gotta breakfast to go to and I don't wanna be late!)..  anyways, they couldn't deduct a point, call it a tie, then, have em resume in the form of an overtime.....

Sooooooooo... tonight (I think) yellow busses will once again roll.. basketball players, coaches, managers, cheer folks and their poms will hop on... . parents, aunts, uncles, owners of Casey's (I assume there'll be one, aint there one in every smalltown) will buy gas that's now higher (VICTOR!  Sorry, kinda) and......

They will restart the game with 48 seconds remaining in the 3rd quarter, Highland ahead 34-29.  Yain't gotta pay to get in.... if you choose to stay home, it's free on whadever the MSHSAA TV channel is (I think it's normally ten bucks).. Different refs.  Principals in charge of discipline will sit RIGHT BEHIND scorebook people...  I made that part up.

And play ball........

Facebook recount of the recount........ there's like 40 comments now, ranging from "This blows my mind"... to "WOW" to "this happened before with Principia, hmmmmm"..  'Good for MSHSAA for getting it right".... and your normal "Tastes Great - Less Filling" dependent upon which team you root for...     but my favorite was........

"I’ve never known this to happen before. Is there a statute of limitations? If not, Edina Girl’s-vs-Baring Girl’s 7/8 Grade Elementary Tournament’71-‘72 should be restarted in 3rd quarter when the foul was assigned in error to Cheryl Reed fouling her out. Baring Freshman Girls were in charge of the clock and books. Do you guys remember this? 

 I’d love to see 69-66 year olds playing a quarter of basketball!! 

I WOULD TOO!  LET'S MAKE IT HAPPEN!

Back to the blog...   my thought when I woke up....... a blog about "Things that make me feel good"

First feel good I read today started very sad (in the '30's, I think) a racially motivated bus bombing... a little girl was the only white onlooker who assisted the folks injured on the bus.  The town ostracized her. Sadly, it was a different, highly incorrect day and age.  She grew up to continue a lifetime of care, concern in the medical field.  I felt good after I read that.

Then, Ricky Fowler, PGA golfer, won some Arnie Palmer "Good Guy": award for his work with youth.  Ricky's golf game hadn't been great, he was down for a long time, it's finally coming back around, he's a good dude, and he spoke glowingly of his love for Arnie and how much he positively impacted his life... and this, in front of Palmer's relatives...  Again, I felt good after reading.

Then, the scoring errror... and the thought of hopefully seeing 60+ year old grannies playing some hoop... another feel good.

And finally, for you perverts... I honestly did think of "Quickies" to add to the list of things that make one feel good.  But, who's keeping score ya know?

Love, Victurd

Just checking in........

I'm Bart Simpson, who the hell are you?

No, really, I do wanna know.  I spend WAY too much time here on 'me'... then folks run like cockroaches when I do.

So who are you? Are you a neat freak, or, have you lived a dog-eared life?  OCD or, "the hell did I put that?". What was it like, and do you remember the first time your folks took off your training wheels?  Didya fall?  Did any, of your kid trevails outdoors, have you end up in the Doctor's office for stitches or mebbe a cast?

Ever been in a fist fight?  Especially would love to hear from you girls on this one...   What's it like pulling someone's hair so they fall to the ground?  Or, having that done to you?

Do you remember, on your written driver's test.. which way you are supposed to turn the wheels on the car when you are parked, going downhill?  First car, did you buy your own petrol?  Or, on an allowance?  What was your very first job, how did it start, and better yet ,how'd it end?

Ever split a pair of pants/jeans?  Did you go home immediately, or, "I'll change when I get home", which, leads to the next question, Boxers or briefs??  And gals, nah, we don't need to know.

First crush?  Did you marry 'em? Ha!  It happens, or so I hear.  Favorite nextdoor neighbor ever?  Did your family move a lot growing up?  Did you spend time with your grandparents?  Cousins, aunts, uncles?

What did "when I grow up I wanna be ________" actually turn out to be? Growing up, what class, subject, gave you a tummy ache?  Do you know what PEMDAS is?  Onomatopoeia?  The first 5 Presidents? How old were ya the last night you spent/lived at your folks house?

How much did your first car cost? How long did you have it?  Did you ever, on a family trip, lay in the very very back of a station wagon?  Did you have a Radio Flyer wagon as a kid?  If you had a skateboard, was it 'real' or, plywood with someone's old roller skates bolted on?

Ever....  snow ski...   water ski....  canoe trip....  kayak... big ole raft?  Did you go to church as a kid?  Ever get in trouble in doing same?  Go now?

If ya married... was it in a church?  Honeymooned at _______?    Ride in the trunk into the Drive Inn Theater?  Tear the 'federal offense tag' off of a pillow?  Heaven forbid, get up, go sit in a better seat at a ballgame that wasn't where your ticket said?

NFL game, Survivor, AFV, Chopped, Andy Griffith are all on at the same time...... you're watching?

To Tell The Truth........ you, mate..  ever argue about:   money..  parenting...  who's driving...  how, whoever is driving..    route to take... smooching (or not)..  Inlaws..  I'm going golfing, or, I'm going to Bunko... or, heaven forbid, politics.?..  

Do you sleep on your side, your back, your tummy or, some combination of those?  Ever kick out a snorer to the extra bedroom... or, go yourself due to same?  Dogs, cats in bed legal or hell to the no... howabout on the sofa?

What word do you choose to say when your little toe catches the coffee table as you walk around it?

Cry easy?  Enjoy touch, and I don't mean the naughty kinda touch.. I mean high fives, comforting kids, holding partners hand, that stuff.

THE LONGEST you've ever talked on the phone, and who to?  Night owl or early bird?  Best movie ya ever saw?  

Would you buy, wear a top from a Thrift Store? Camp in a tent?  Swim in a lake?   Skinny dip?  Truth, have ya?  Condo by the beach or, cabin in the mountains?  Class reunion or hell to the no?

Favorite decade of your life? What's the bravest thing you ever did?

I hope it NEVER happens, but, if someone told you "You're gonna die tomorrow"... what things would be on your "I wish I woulda" list?

The last time you were scared, where were ya and why were you scared?  Do you fall asleep then go to bed, or, go to bed then fall asleep?

Anything been a lifelong challenge for you?  Still got your teeth?  All of 'em?  Most of 'em?  Stop, count... outta four, how many are the ones you were born with? (hips, knees).. 

Flying.  Old hat, or, keep barf bag near?  Ever ride a choo choo?  A real one, some distance.

Sauna, jacuzzi or neither?  Pool or ocean?................ Shower or bath?  Coffee or tea?  Interstate or backroad?

Things on TV you'll never watch?  Things on TV you simply won't miss?

My top 5 favorite faces to see are..................................  Balcony or deck?  Fireplace or fire pit?  Sun or the moon?  Daylight savings yay or nay?  Speed limit is 70, how fast are you going?

Ever have your bank account compromised?  Get it back?

I wasn't gonna include me, but, my bank, same one, long time... now, when I go, every time, every transaction from the drive thru.. I must give them driver's license, and, for transaction to happen, i must give them the 6 digit code they send me.  Too much, or, I'm glad they protect?

Ever shot a rabbit?  Cooked a fish you caught?  Hired a taxidermist?  Does a lazy river sound exciting, relaxing, or, a waste of time?

My fridge always has _______ in it.  To get your troubles to go down the drain, do you call Roto Rooter, or, the local guy?

When's the last time you wrote a check?  Used a pay phone?  Rented a movie?  Did a flip? (Did you, could you ever, do a flip?)

Did you ever have to make up your mind... say yes to one and leave the others behind...  Doya like good music?

Before I die, I'd sure like to talk to ________ and _______ and _________ and _______ again.  Well, what's stoppin' ya?

Ketchup on your hot dog?  Pineapple on pizza?  Favorite girl scout cookie flavor?  Pie?

Victor, why did you do this?  Cause I couldnt thinka nuthin else to write about, and when I relate crap about my ongoings, everyone runs (and I don't blame ya.)

So............please......... using a number 2 lead....... or, your computer, print, scan......(Oh, ,I finally got ridda my landline ST1-4398) and gotta cell..  so..  complete your answers and text me the results...   867-5309.. you know the area code.  You do not have the right to remain silent...everything you say will be, either loved, laughed at, or "you too?ed?)  I mean, wth, it's the day and age of Social Media, hop to it.

Tune in tomorrow, I'll share everyone's answers.

Love, Victurd

The verdict is in...........

I hope I do this giving justice....

Come and listen to a story about a man named Andy....

You mean Griffith?  No.  Oh, then, that pizza joint in North Myrtle Beach, Famous Andy's?  No.

Andy Reid.  You HOMER! BORING! There are a kajillion good coaches in the NFL.. I ain't a Chief's fan, WHY should I read?

Reid, please trust me.

One of Andy's qualities - his preparation.  I'll never ever hold a candle to him in that area, but I kinda sorta feel like I know (of) him, OK.  Years (and years) of observing from afar (BYU, MU, San Francisco State, Green Bay, Philly, and much more.  Then, close up, here in Kansas City...   Days after being dumped by Philly... a plane trip and three head coaching interview setup - first stop, Kansas City.  He never got off the plane.  Clark Hunt liked, loved him so much - the feelings were mutual, he agreed to become the head coach in KC, canceled all his other interviews.

Boring Victor.  Mebbe.  Back to preparation.  Watching with real eyeballs ain't enough..  I (always) go to Wiki.  Gotta learn the basics.  Then, at the bottom of Wiki there was an article written before he'd ever won a Super Bowl.  To me, reading it was exhaustively yummy.  It was like a trip through THE BEST buffet you ever seen. Diversity in foods (Owners, GM's, Players, co coaches, Assistant coaches, Trainers, longtime friends) and.. the excitement of going back to get a new plate (feed me more Seymour) to continue to the superlatives of 'Reid', eat.

I went back thru and highlighted some'a the descriptors, I found.  Bear wit' me.

Vibrant. Big smiley baby face, grandfatherly way even when he was young, no stone left unturned. Teddy Bear and a gentleman. dry sense of humor.

That's a start, Family, HUGE (in stature yes, but too) in family. Mom, a Doctor, an unbelievable analytical mind, dad an artist, outside the box thinking. So a little art and a little science in his football.

His affinity for all things passing (QB's, formations, motion, routes, plays, yada) probably originated with his first "Bomb" way back in the day as a kid on Holly Knoll Drive in LA.  He, his buddies, took a section of gutter to the toppa the hill, loaded a shot put in it, and leggo, thinking it would go harmlessly into the curb below.  Soon, they were in awe as they watched... at 40 mph, it jumped the curb, goes airborn, BOOM through one car door, out the other... he, his buddies, scattered like cockroaches.

Andy was XXL before Double XL was cool.  If you've ever seen the Punt Pass and Kick picture of him when he was 13, he was literally TWO feet taller than the rest.

Back to family and the importance of. "It didn't matter if you were new to the team, that man knew your name, your family's names, where you were from, everything. He would call guys up, undrafted guys and ask them, "Hey, how's Betty?" And guys would be like, "Oh, how'd he know?  Big Red just asked me how my mom is doing!"

With the 2nd pick in the 1999 draft, to Philly folks, it was a given it'd be running back Ricky Williams of Texas. Andy, then, head coach AND GM, was adament, nope, Donovan McNabb, QB, because of his ability to make plays on his own, and, a personality, part joker, part general, that reminded Andy of Farve (when Andy was with Green Bay.)

That year, the Eagles lost their first four games.  QB then, Doug Peterson, somehow survived the first half beating from the 10-0 Dallas Cowboys.  Fans were SCREAMING "PLAY MCNABB! F-REID! PLAY MCNABB!"  An assistant walked up to Andy.. "PLEASE play McNabb...they're throwing batteries at us, I don't wanna get killed."  Andy answered, knowing Donovan wasn't ready, "I'm going to do what I'm going to do and I don't care what you guys are thinking." Somehow, lo and behold, they rally, upset the Cowboys 13-10.

In the early morning of August 5, 2012, after a long battle with drug addiction, Reid's oldest son Garrett, a strength and conditioning coach for the Eagles, was found dead from an accidental heroin overdose in his dorm. He was 29.  John Banner, then Eagles President "I remember the funeral vividly. It was a testament to him and to all the relationships he's built in and out of the NFL.  The line just went on forever.'

Fletcher Cox, Eagles defensive tackle, "I had just lost my grandmom and had to go home my rookie year. Andy and I were talking about how important family is, and a week or so later he had the death of his son. I'll always remember that conversation with him.

John Harbaugh, then Ravens coach, and an assistant for Andy in Philly for 9 years... "I always saw a 3-by-5 card right behind Andy's desk. It had two words written on it: Don't judge, and I never asked him about it because it was pretty clear-cut what it means.  It's a biblical principle, but the point of the whole thing was: Take people for who they are and for where they're at in their life, as football players, as coaches, whatever, and let them be who they are."

Steve Mariucci, who coached with Andy in Green Bay, "Andy's a compassionate guy. You see it in how he handles players who have been down and out, and he's one of those guys who believes strongly in second chances in life.  Some guys are not willing to do that, but he tries to help guys who have had indiscretions. Takes them under his wing, tries to help them through. And I think that goes back to Garrett."

After Garrett's death, the Eagles season staggered through at 4-12.  After a 42-7 loss to the NY Giants, the Eagles reluctantly fired Andy. Andy got one more chance to talk with the team. When he finished, his players sent him off with a standing ovation.  That just doesn't happen.

Rick Burkholder, then Eagles trainer (now Chief's trainer) "The day we were leaving Philly, when the party was officially over, my two daughters called me and said "We want to see Coach Reid." I said, "Why?" And they said "What if we never get to see him again?" I mean, these are 12 and 9 year old girls! So I called Andy, "I know you're having a hell of a day, but my girls want to see you."  "Bring 'em up."

Everything wasn't (yet) up to date in Kansas City. In 2015, the Chiefs started 1-5. Andy stood in front of the team, "Look, no one's losing their job, no one's getting fired, no one's getting demoted or cut.  We're not gonna change a thing. We're just gonna practice harder and believe in each other and get this right." The players looked around and they didn't know a coach could be that way, steady and even, without having to yell or scream or cuss.  Ten wins later, the Chiefs were 11-5 and in the playoffs.

Steve Spagnuolo, Chief's Defensive Coordinator. "I feel a sense there's a more relaxed Andy Reid who is enjoying what he's doing tremendously.  I really see that. We are in offices that back up to each other, side by side, so we can both look out the window and see the same thing. And we're both early morning guys. When I look out the window and see a beautiful sunrise, I'll take a picture and text it to Andy, who is literally on the other side of the wall.  After I send the picture, always, a comment comes back or a smiley face or a text that says something like "We have the greatest jobs in America."

The life of a professional football coach is, obviously, extremely stressy and time consuming.  All those around KC, find a new pep-in-the-step of Andy since he's become a grandfather. It's always, back to family.

Along comes Mahomes. Burkholder "I've never seen Andy sit down during a game, so the first time he went and sat down next to Mahomaes, as a medical guy, my thought was "Is there something wrong with him?" I don't say anything, I just watch him. He's teaching this kid like when I was a little kid and my dad sat down with me after baseball practice. That's the grandfather part of Andy.  That's the part that's different than before.

Remember the Chiefs having the AFC Championship game against the Patriots wrapped up, and then Dee Ford stepped offsides, Patriots cashed in on the second chance.. No Super Bowl for Andy.  Spagnuolo "I talked to him three days after the game and I don't think the conversation ever went back to that game.  All he wanted to talk about was going forward.  Typical Andy."

Tackle Eric Schwartz "The outside world was talking about the offside thing with the Patriots, but he (Andy) was talking about how everyone in this room was probably 4 inches off at some point in the game.  We all could have been 4 inches better, that was his message."

Burkholder "He's probably had as much of an effect on my life as anybody but my father. Great teams, the playoffs, through hell with injuries and deaths and victories and losses and everything."  Burkholder went on to say "If he ever wins a Super Bowl he's a shoe-in for Canton." We now know how that went.

Burkholder s'more "I've known Shady (LeSean McCoy) since high school.. and when he chose to sign here, I said "Why us bro? Is it because of Mahomes?" and  he goes "Pat? No, man, it's because of Andy." How many people take less money and a backup role just to play for a man? And then, we were in a hotel in LA and Terrell Owens came to our hotel just to see Andy.. TO, the guy Andy fired wanted to come see him and talk to him.  You want to talk about legacy? Andy's been in the NFL for 21 years and I don't think he has a single enemy."

Fast forward to today.  The Chief's past year (6-11) is not what we've been used to of late.  If you've got two bucks, or heck, probably five now, there's an article in the KC paper this morning addressing that exact thing....... and... the excitement of Andy Reid readying, looking forward to... is certainly predictable, and for those in life he's touched, fans, players, coaches, teammates, etc., we're lucky to have been a part of his life ride.

I stole a lot, from an article by ESPN's David Fleming from January 19, 2020 entitled "Mahomes, Farve and other NFL stars reveal the larger-than-life tales behind Andy Reid.

I love my ex, but she always reminded me, "Victor, perhaps not everyone is excited about your ideas as you." And, I get it.  Still, I recommend the article, there's so much more in it, including when Reid and Mariucci had just been hired by Green Bay, they, unbeknownst to each other, were staying in the same motor lodge a day before going house hunting, fire alarm went off... Mariucci, ran outside in his tightie whities, looked, three doors down, "Reid?", yep, in his tightie whities... Talked, finally, "He, wanna meet my wife?" so there they were, the four of them, the gals with blankies wrapped around em and tightie whities and all'. 

Or, the time Mariucci and Reid went to Prime Quarter for a 40 ounce steak.. "Eat it in under an hour you get your picture on the wall."  Mariucci, 30 minutes, Andy, 19! Picture is still there!

Sometimes life is like taking a walk in the backyard, dog poop ALLOVER.  It's refreshing, to have in our own backyard, someone kind, consistent, and as genuine as Andy Reid,  Even a Bronco's fan like Terry might at least appreciate, admire him.

Love, Victurd