ar

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Christmas is Coming ?!

Today, while perusing the Swarovski store for possible additions to my collection, I happened upon a shelf marked with "New".

It was populated with their 2009 Christmas collection.

It is August. August !! 90 degrees outside ! Kids barely back in school ! 2 months before Halloween ! And the Christmas push is already on.

Later in our shopping trip, we headed into the Hallmark store. Right there, by the front entrance as we walked in, was a huge rack of ornaments and baubles, all with the Christmas theme.

It has started.

Lord, help me. (shaking head)

Thursday, August 27, 2009

Danny is a Superstar

The owner at Danny's work is also the lucky owner of several season's tickets to the Giants games. As a gesture of goodwill toward his employees, if he is unable to attend a game, he often gives tickets away to his employees. Last night, we were the recipients of this good fortune.

The seats are SPECTACULAR. 15 rows back from the field, directly behind the Giants dugout. Servers come around and take our food orders, then deliver it to us for a nominal extra charge. Players habitually toss balls into the area after an inning. The view is awesome, and it is prime location for foul balls. Hands down, these are our favorite seats to sit in. And last night gave us yet another reason to love them.

We found out via text message that Danny was on TV during the first inning. The camera was on the people behind us, but you can see him clearly in the shot:



(EDIT: I think I finally fixed the issue that was causing Blogger to display the picture upside-down.)

Nobody looks very happy in that shot, for the simple reason that the Giants were playing HORRIBLY. In the first inning alone, they made two boneheaded mistakes that cost them a run, and we, the fans, were none too pleased.

Until the 8th inning.

The Giants managed to put two runners on base, after 7 innings of weak and ineffectual hitting. And in an unexpected move, the manager brought in the slightly-injured Bengie Molina to pinch-hit. The crowd went wild.

We all know Bengie is an incredible hitter, this year's stats aside. He has always been money in clutch situations. And his appearance, with two outs in the 8th, invigorated the crowd. We started chanting, "Bengie ! Bengie !".

Fueled by the support of his fans, Bengie took one massive swing, and belted the ball out of the park to take the lead. A 3-run home run that turned out to be the game winner. We all went ballistic. Our throats were hurting from all the screaming. Bengie had come through, and our team had won the game.

It was VERY tough to sleep last night after that adrenaline rush.

Now let's see if they can keep the momentum going towards the playoffs. A wild card spot is within reach. They just need to keep scoring runs.

Friday, August 14, 2009

Hehehe..

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Another Reason Why I am Afraid of Heights...

24 people were suspended in the air from a Great America roller coaster for up to five hours yesterday. Luckily the ride broke down while the riders were right-side-up, however some were tipped forward and others were tipped backward. It is a miracle that nobody was hurt.

My friend's son was at the park at the time of the incident. He will be seeking a refund, as a third of the park was shut down during the rescue.

Scary stuff. Yet another reason for me to be afraid of heights.

Link: [Article]

Thursday, August 06, 2009

Protection

As with any sport that involves fast-flying objects, there is always a risk of injury in softball. Especially since my preferred position is infield, and I play with guys who can scream a line drive whenever and wherever they wish. Last night's game was no exception to this.

We were out on the field, warming up for the game, when a new player for our team stepped in the box. He then proceeded to wail three straight hot ground balls in my direction. I handled them just fine, until the third one, looking quite routine, bounced close to the ground towards my positioned glove. Then, at the very last second, it took a funny hop, and walloped me right in the chest.

As many women will attest, this is not a comfortable experience. Certainly not to the level of a mid-section shot to a man, but still. My teammates all yelled "OW" in response to the impact. With the exception of my good friend AJ, who piped up, "Suck it up, Slink !"

So I did. And I have a nice big raspberry this morning to prove it.

But the worst part ? It happened in PRACTICE. I couldn't even say I took one for the team.

Oh well.

Given this incident, and the tendency of one particular female I tend to get partnered up with in Krav Maga -- who continually misses my abdomen and punches me in the boobs -- I think it's time for one of these.

Wednesday, August 05, 2009

Slinky Kitty

What walks down stairs, alone or in pairs....

Keywords: Andrea Di Lecce, andrea di lecce, Andrea DiLecce, andrea dilecce, Andrea Abrahamsen, andrea abrahamsen, Slinky, slinky, SlinkyGal, SLiNKyGaL, slinkygal, SlinkyDee, slinkydee, Toronto, toronto, San Francisco, san francisco, San Jose, san jose, softball, Seido karate, volleyball, blog, emotion, philosophy, funny, jokes, musings, psychology, EMT, EMS, emergency medical services