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Fitbit V: Week 46

My final work week of 2019 ends in disappointment, with only one single day coming in over goal.  The week got off to a slow start on Sunday with just under 3700 steps, thanks in part to the long drive home from Ann Arbor, where we watched Angelina and the BU Synchro team perform.  The easy last week at work did mean no afternoon coffee runs, so Monday and Tuesday both finished between 5700 and 5850 steps.  Wednesday saw an improvement all the way up to 6600 steps.  Thursday was the lone good day of the week, using trips around campus to pass out Christmas cards to nearly get to 7800 steps.  Friday, being a day off with bad weather, put me barely over 2200 steps.  Saturday was more of the same, with a vast 100 step increase.

Total steps: 34,229

Daily average: 4889.9

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Prolific Authors 2019

Way back in December of 2011 (and again in the Decembers of 2013, 2015, and 2017), we took a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 48 books from 50 different authors. There shouldn’t be much movement over the past 2 years, but it’s time to take another look and see if my “favorite” authors have changed much in that time span. Once again, we will be limiting ourselves to the now 70 authors from whom I have read more than one book.

 

Author Name Current Total 2017 Total Difference
Nancy Holder 16 15 1

Nancy Holder adds 1 new book over the past 2 years to maintain her lead.

Richard Castle 15 14 1

The writer (or writers) using the nom de plume of the main character from the television show Castle sees a slight increase, despite the show being off the air for well over 3 years now.

Stephen King 13 12 1
Greg Rucka 13 13 0
Christopher Golden 12 12 0
Brad Meltzer 12 11 1

Very little movement in the next tier the past 2 years.

Jeffery Deaver 11 8 3

We round out the double digits with Deaver, who will be going up again soon, as I’m currently reading one of his books. Continue reading →

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Ballpark Tour: Pirates

With 2020 upon us and spring training about a month away, we continue our tour of all of the different baseball stadiums I’ve been to over the years. This week, we head to the steel city of Pittsburgh for a look at the Pittsburgh Pirates. So, without further ado, let’s take a deeper look at my history with PNC Park.

Stadium Name: PNC Park

Years in Service: 2001 – Present

Visits: 1

After 30 1/2 seasons at Three Rivers Stadium, the Pittsburgh Pirates moved into their new home for the 2001 season, starting with an 8-2 loss against the Reds on April 9th. Since then, the stadium has placed at or near the top of most rankings, with the only drawback being the woeful state of its main occupant.

I made my one trip to PNC Park on May 15, 2005 to see the Cubs defeat the Pirates 3-2. Southwest Airlines was introducing service from Chicago to Pittsburgh and was offering fares for $30 each way, so plans were made for a daytrip out to Pittsburgh. We arrived in town and took a bus from the airport to the stadium, where we ate a pregame meal of ribs at the in-stadium Outback Steakhouse. Yeah, you read that right. There was an Outback Steakhouse in the stadium. After the game, there was another bus trip back to the airport for the flight back to Chicago, which seemed to be made up strictly of people who were at the game, as a rousing rendition of Take Me Out To The Ballgame broke out mid-flight.

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Book 25 (of 52) – Vectors

Vectors – Dean Wesley Smith and Kristine Kathryn Rusch

Fresh from her tour of duty on the Enterprise, Dr. Pulaski is summoned to the Cardassian outpost of Terok Nor (soon to be known as Deep Space Nine) to help diagnose and cure a plague that is affecting both the Cardassians and their Bajoran slaves.  When she arrives, she finds that the cause of the plague looks awfully similar to something the Enterprise had encountered a year earlier.

Dean Wesley Smith and Kristine Kathryn Rusch bring us Vectors, the second entry in the Double Helix series.  Now, I can’t say I was particularly thrilled to find out that this was basically a Pulaski solo story, away from the rest of the Enterprise crew, but it turned out better than I would have thought.  There was some plot overlap with the previous entry, but I guess there are only so many ways to investigate and solve for a mysterious plague affecting a population.

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Winter Meetings Roundup

After a lot of build-up leading into the Winter Meetings, things were pretty quiet for the White Sox, with their only move being a trade with the Rangers, acquiring outfielder Nomar Mazara for minor leaguer Steele Walker.  Mazara, who will begin the 2020 season at age 24, has spent 4 years in the big leagues, putting up consistent, if unspectacular, numbers.  While the White Sox hope they can finally unlock the potential that led to Mazara signing what was, at the time, the largest international amateur bonus of all time, the unspectacular numbers he’s put up in Texas would still be a mass improvement over the production the team received in 2019.

Walker, the second round pick of the White Sox in 2018, is only one year younger than Mazara and has yet to progress past high A ball.  He was ranked as the #6 prospect in the Sox’s system by MLB Pipeline, but is probably years away from breaking through to the big leagues, if he ever does.

In other news, the June draft is moving from the MLB Network studios in New Jersey to Omaha, site of the College World Series.  The move allows for more potential draftees to be in attendance, putting on caps and making the television rounds like their counterparts in the NFL and NBA.

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You Can Put Him In The Hall, Yes!

Former White Sox broadcaster Ken “Hawk” Harrelson, who retired following the 2018 season, was awarded the 2020 Ford C. Frick Award yesterday, presented annually for excellence in broadcasting by the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.  Harrelson spent 33 of his 42 seasons as a broadcaster for the White Sox, starting in 1982, with a brief interruption caused by his inadvised turn as the teams General Manager in 1986.  He returned to the broadcast booth in 1989, where he stayed until retiring last fall.

Harrelson’s broadcasting career began in 1975, following the end of his playing career and a short foray into professional golf.  He, along with Don Drysdale, joined the White Sox booth in 1982, replacing Harry Caray, who had clashed with the team’s new ownership group.  He returned to the south side in 1989, alongside former Sox player Tom Paciorek. In 2000, he was joined in the booth by another former White Sox outfielder, Darrin Jackson.  2009 saw his final broadcast partner, Steve Stone, join the team.  A five-time Emmy Award winner, Harrelson’s trademark calls of “You can put it on the board…Yes!” and “Mercy!” became the nightly soundtrack for multiple generations of White Sox fans, including a young Jason Benetti, who would grow up to replace him with the White Sox.

Harrelson, 78, is the fifth announcer with ties to Chicago to earn the honor, following Milo Hamilton, Harry Caray, Jack Brickhouse, and Bob Elson.  Two other finalists for next year’s award also have strong ties to the city: current Cub radio announcer Pat Hughes and former Cub announcer Dewayne Staats.

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Fitbit V: Week 45

Yet another disappointing week, as I failed to make my goal for the 15th straight week.  Things got off to a slow start on Sunday, as I barely surpassed 3000 steps.  I headed back to work on Monday, but only managed to improve up to 6400 steps.  Tuesday finally got over goal, with nearly 8300 steps.  I worked from home on Wednesday, which led to the paltry total of 2800 steps.  Thursday was a nice bounce back day, finishing a whopping 48 steps over my goal.  I was off on Friday, so I ended up just over 2500 steps.  Saturday, we headed up to Ann Arbor to see Angelina and the BU Synchro team skate, so my 3000 steps can be attributed to spending most of the day in the car.

Total steps: 33,720

Daily average: 4817.1

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Ballpark Tour: Nationals

With 2020 nearly upon us and spring training about 2 months away, we continue our tour of all of the different baseball stadiums I’ve been to over the years. This week, we head to our nation’s capital for a look at the defending World Series champion Washington Nationals. So, without further ado, let’s take a deeper look at my history, such as it is, with Nationals Park.

Stadium Name: Nationals Park

Years in Service: 2008 – Present

Visits: 1

After 3 seasons at RFK Stadium following their move from Montreal, the Washington Nationals moved into their new home for the 2008 season, starting with an 3-2 walk-off victory against the Braves on March 30th.  On January 1, 2015, the park hosted its first hockey game, as the Capitals defeated the Blackhawks in the Winter Classic.  The All-Star Game returned to Washington in 2018 for the first time since 1969, and, this past season, the park hosted the first World Series games in Washington since 1933.

I made my one trip to Nationals Park this past June 5, to see the Nationals defeat the White Sox 6-4.  The game was part of an overall trip to DC celebrating Michael’s grammar school graduation.  It was a beautiful afternoon, despite the result thanks to some bad bullpen results.

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Book 24 (of 52) – The Girl Who Lived Twice

The Girl Who Lived Twice – David Lagercrantz

The latest installment in the Millennium Trilogy (can it still be a trilogy when you get to book 6?), The Girl Who Lived Twice, is the third entry from David Lagercrantz.  In this go around, Lisbeth Salander looks to take down her sister, while Mikael Blomkvist investigates a dead Sherpa and his links to a local politician.

As I tried to get into this latest edition of the Lisbeth Salander story, I was having a hard time.  It seems that the tale of a young, socially awkward woman and the older man who loves her, despite her taking him for granted and mostly ignoring him hit a little too close to home.  Eventually, though, I got past  that and worked my way through.  I’m still not exactly sold on Lagercrantz’s takes on Stieg Larsson’s world and characters, but not much to do about that at this point.

So where does the series go from here?  Lagercrantz has now equaled Larsson’s output with the characters and the overarching story of Salander’s family seems to have been wrapped up, so maybe this is the end?  Though, given the financial success of the series, something tells me another adventure will be out in 2 years time.

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Fitbit V: Week 44

Thanksgiving week was, quite possibly, my worst week in 4+ years.  Things got off to a poor start on Sunday, where I came 1 step shy of 4500 steps, thanks to schlepping up Christmas decorations from the basement.  Monday finished just over 3500 steps, despite a trip into the city for dinner.  Tuesday was back up around 4400 steps.  Wednesday finished 1 step shy of 4000 steps.  Thanksgiving itself came in with a sad total of 2350 steps.  Friday bounced back a little bit, jumping all the way up to 3200 steps.  Saturday was the low point of the week, coming 1 step shy of 1700.

Total steps: 23,704

Daily average: 3386.3