Stating the Obvious

[For 12/31]

The obvious topic to post here in this last missive for 2008 is that it really is true that you learn something new every day. I did in 2008. I proved it here. Some days I learned many new things. Some days I had to think for a while to come up with something.

I won't be starting a new blog about stuff I learn in 2009 (nor continuing this one), but you can ask me -- preferably near the end of the day -- what I learned today, and I should be able to tell you. But then...you should be able to tell me what you learned too.

Happy New Year!

[Edit: I just noticed that there are now 363 posts in this blog. That would seem to say I missed posting for 3 days, since 2008 was a leap year. I'm not going to go back and figure out where I went wrong. Trust me...I did learn something on those lost days too.]

Timing Is Everything

I should not start a 4-player game of Agricola at 11:00 P.M. It's too hard to get up for work the next morning. I actually took a short nap after work. I never do that.

BGG Site Down

[For 12/29]

It's a sad thing when the Web site you visit every day is down for several days. I understand there was a hardware failure, and it took a long time to restore everything from the backups. But BoardGameGeek.com is back online (as of this post), so all of us geeks can get our daily fix again.

Packers vs Lions

The Green Bay Packers handed the Detroit Lions an 0-16 record -- the first ever -- today by defeating them 31-21 in a meaningless (except maybe for draft position) game at Lambeau Field today.

Early to Rise

Someone got up relatively early this morning to go 3 hours west to the city on Old Man River -- even after a late night at the "Casino". Eager to see friends, I guess.

Hare & Tortoise

[For 12/26]

Though Hare & Tortoise has rules for 2 players, it really wasn't meant to be played that way. There are some quirks to the game that wouldn't show up if played with 3 or more. I hope I can play it with several others soon.

Cool New Games

Scripts and Scribes, Kingsburg, and Gemlok are three cool new (to me) games that I got to play today. Thank you very much, givers!

Christmas Eve

[For 12/24]

I received many very cool presents from my wife and children tonight...books, clothes, a game, and more. God bless you all.

Longer Days

[For 12/23]

After the first day of winter, the days start to get longer, but only because the sun sets later. For a few days, the sun actually rises later too! But it's not enough to offset the later sunset and make the days continue to get shorter.

I don't understand why that should be, but that's what it says on sunrisesunset.com and elsewhere.

Merry Christmas, Lovie

[For 12/22]

Well, Lovie, your goal for the Bears was to beat the Packers, and that you did as the Pack lost yet again by 4 points or less. Merry Christmas, Lovie.

Any Given Sunday

[For 12/21]

On any given Sunday that the Packers don't play, it's possible to complete 3 games of Agricola with 3 different numbers of players -- especially when the wind chill is -10 or lower.

Ticket Costs

[For 12/20]

To get 2 tickets to a show (online), you really end up paying for 3 after all the extra charges are added on. It's like they keep telling you, "Please, sir, I want some more."

Snow, Snow, and More Snow

[For 12/19]

I thought we had a lot of snow last year, but the piles are already higher now than when I took pictures of them in 2007 or early 2008. I knew I would be working from home today when I found a foot of snow piled up on the deck. I've never seen that much at one time on that deck.

Kwik Trip

[For 12/18]

The Kwik Trip at the intersection of Hwy 26 and I-94 is on the south side of the interstate.

Plush Meeple

I saw a blue, plush meeple "pillow" today.

Goose Is Cooked

[For 12/16]

A Christmas present I ordered probably won't arrive on time -- at least it's no longer guaranteed. Sadness.

1000+ New Species

I read an article today (It may still be here.) that told how scientists have discovered over 1000 new species of critters in the Mekong area over the past decade.

This is my favorite quote from the article: "Not all species were found hiding in remote jungles -- the Laotian rock rat, which the study said was thought to be extinct about 11 million years ago, was first encountered by scientists in a local food market in 2005, it said."

Not only does that border on the hilarious, but it also raises all kinds of questions about endangered species and what we're supposedly doing wrong relative to creation. Just think about it for a few minutes. The longer you think, the more questions you'll have.

Packers Out of the Playoffs

The Green Bay Packers didn't have much of a chance at making the playoffs before their game this week, but they sealed their fate by losing to the Jaguars -- by only 4 points (again). They lost way too many games by 4 points or less this year.

I still think they're better than the Vikings and the Bears though.

Cable TV Reboot

Sometimes the cable TV can set itself so that it looks like you have to pay extra to watch every channel -- even the "free" ones that you're already paying for. Just reboot.

T-shirt Slogan

[For 12/12]

A T-shirt reading, "I beat anorexia" is a funny thing when worn by a fat man.

No, I didn't say that anorexia is funny. No hate comments needed, thank-you-very-much.