Motor City Sonics

I worked at Honeybaked Ham for about 3 years in the 80s. Mostly a very easy, laid-back job. You can get a lot of studying done most of the year (or get really good at foil-ball floor broom hockey), but the holidays, oh my word. Hired a lot of extra help and it was like an assembly line, but you get rotated around to different duties. Cutting hams in half, glazing the hams with the torches, taking them from the torching rings to the wrappers, and then wrapping them in foil. Seems like that wrapping job would be easy? It was the worst. Speed was everything and the runner would put the ham on a flattened foil sheet and you need to wrap that puppy up in 10 - 15 seconds so nobody is standing there with a molten ham in their hands. First time I did that wrapping part, I did not wear gloves to get a better grip. Probably at least a dozen paper cuts (on each hand), but made with foil So painful. Then I am showing my co-workers how many cuts I had and a guy named Dan Zammet walked by with liquid cleanser and squirted a bunch in my hands. I liked Dan, he was funny, but I will never forgive him for that. If I ever see him again (haven't since the mid 90s), he knows that'll be the first thing I bring up. I don't see much of anyone anymore. I don't drink anymore and I have severed a few friendships because of their politics and I don't like leaving the house. With the ear damage I am a bit scared of going to concerts because I don't want to damage my good ear. I just want to chill at home with my dog and my Tigers games.

Yeah, but it's so weird to be standing for maybe 3-5 minutes in one section of a store and they knew EXACTLY what I was looking for. Just creepy. But I think I am a fairly young-thinking old guy at 61, but I don't need non-stop adulation on social media. To me it's a form of mental illness and there's a lot of really sick people out there and they don't know it. I've read about a growing trend of people unplugging from social media and finding themselves to be much, much happier. It's crazy. It's like the Black Mirror episode "Nosedive", which is the most realistic episode of the whole series. Great episode and 100% happening in real life.

It's funny, but I don't bring my phone into the store probably 80% of the time. And the reason was I was once shopping for a streaming device in a target. All I had was my phone on me. I did not take my phone out check anything and the next thing you know, I started getting a bunch of ads for streaming device sales. So, based on where I stood for a few minutes, I guess. That **** is scary to me. I no longer have Facebook on my phone because I found it to be a major distraction, but also, I don't want people to know where I am at all times and I think Facebook is a major contributor to that. I do use loyalty rewards at Kroger and Meijer, but they have physical price labels on their shelves. If I see those disappear or see electronic ones, I will dump that rewards program.

Aren't prices posted on the items when you come in ? Like, if I am looking at a box of Multigrain Cheerios, how are they going to charge me somehting different if the price is posted right in front of the item? Is this for online shopping only? Only time I have ever bought groceries and had them delivered is when I had Covid. Whenever I go to the store I always buy some sort of produce and I have to pick that out myself, plus I live in Dearborn and I probably have 15 grocery or produce stores within a 10 minute drive. Maybe more, so a quick trip is all that's needed. The new Harvest Market in Ann Arbor at Briarwood is very convenient because I work less then half a mile from there. I thought they would be really overpriced, but they are not. Lots of produce too. I love it. Props to Maryland for protecting people. Again, as I have posted in other threads, it just floors me - why can't we just live in a stand-up world? If you just sold what you sold without this nonsense, you're still making plenty of money. It's never enough, though, is it?

The Red Sox are in a very very tough division. One that any team within it (including themselves) could win. It seems to me that they did not do much to improve themselves in the offseason, so they blamed the manager. Correct me if I am wrong (because I don't pay close attention like I used to), but they changed their strategy from run scoring to run-prevention and they gave that change a month? Changes like that take time. The Tigers are a run-prevention team too and that took a couple of years to finally click and they were in a much weaker division. Now, the Mets. What a ****ing disaster. Swept at home by the Rockies? LOL. I am stunned Mendoza still has his job. Mets fans must be screaming MENDOZA like McBain does in the Simpsons. I am stunned that Alex Cora hasn't already been named Mets manager. He's still a good manager, but the change in strategy in Boston wasn't given any time. If the Mets don't make the move for Cora very soon, the Phillies probably will. This Braves series is going to be a very tough one for the Tigers. I think they'll be fortunate to win one. Who are the Guardians playng this week?

Yeah, don't do anything significant at the trade deadline. We've seen this before Tigers could have used just one more hitter. Nope, we get washed up pitchers like Charlie Morton Wings year-after-year don't do anything at the deadline - finallly get someone this year and he makes it worse. But the Pistons - having the season they were having - did next to nothing to capitalize on it. And here we are. This team could win 3 in a row. But not likely now.

Realizing today, that at 61, this might be the last year I take care of my own lawn and outdoor work. And this bums me out. Not that I like doing it, but having to hand it over to someone else is like the first step to going to the old folks home. Half a day of light labor and my back is killing me.

Because I think grading any draft before 3 years is absolutely pointless, let's look back Round 1 - Jahmyr Gibbs - A+. Raised a lot of eyebrows at the time, didn't it? Round 1 - Jack Campbell - A+ Yeah, it took a little longer to come together, but he's their Chris Spielman. Round 2 - Sam LaPorta - A+ Dude's a game-changer. Could not have predicted the injury Round 2 - Brian Branch - A+ A game-changer from his very first game. Again, can't count injuries against them Round 3- Hendon Hooker - F. It was a very puzzling pick. I understand wanting to take the next QB, but he was never going to be the next QB and they couldn't use him. Round 3 - Brodric Martin - F. He played in only 6 games and did not make an imipact Round 5 - Colby Sorsdal - OL D At least they got a little use out of him. He was a 5th rounder, after all Round 7 - Antoine Green - F. Even for a 7th rounder - a 1-catch for 2 yard career isn't much I give this an A-. The Top Half was absolutely an A+. Four players that could be major pieces for a Super Bowl run. Those four picks were so strong that the failure of round 3 still keeps it in the A range for me. But that 3rd round, yikes. Get average 3rd round performances out of those two picks and maybe they actully would have won a Super Bowl. Depth players that could have come in handy in these last two injury-littered seasons. Injuries have derailed a couple of those A+ guys, hopefully only temporarily.

I am very cynical with all this crap. That AI asking for your name and address - it's recording your voice and I think there is the STRONG possibility that somewhere down the line the recording of your voice will be used to get you into something you never agreed to do. "Well, we've got a recording of you giving your info for this.......". Sure, it would be foolish for major companies to do this, but look what Wells Fargo did with customer information. Opened millions of fake accounts. They got busted. Paid a fine (which was far less than what they probably gained in the scam) and then they DID IT AGAIN. only using info from people who weren't their own customers. Gee, wonder where they got that info? Wells Fargo shouldn't be allowed to exist anymore, yet people still kneel to them. I'm just so beaten down by all of it. I just don't get why there is so much dishonesty and scumbaggery in this world and especially in this country (because the wealthy NEVER get punished in the USA). We've reached a point where dishonesty is celebrated and when you just live your life in relative honesty and with relative integrity, YOU are the one that's the outsider. A.I. is only going to accelerate it all.

They're gonna replace him with Chad Tracy, who will get them playing better and get an extention. Like Don Kelly.

Wow, that didn't take long.

Alex Cora out as Red Sox manager. One of the best managers they ever had. How long until Alex is named Mets skipper?

All I can remember about that draft is that when the Lions drafted him, the talking heads didn't say a word about him. Because nobody knew anything about him. Scenario: Bill Belichick called Bob Quinn to catch up and casually mentioned how high the Patriots were on this kid from Hawaii nobody heard of. Bob, I think we're really gonna take this kid, if he's available. Bob listened.

I don't know. I just know it's gonna rain for a long time there. What they do with that is a mystery to me.

Well in fairness, Connor Stallions relayed where his feet would be before the play...............

Have you seen my driveway. It's very wet. And the radar..........well, they aren't finishing this one tonight. It's going to rain heavily for hours

Because they are trading down and picking up a 3rd rounder to go down a few spots and get the player they wanted anyway?

Carson Beck. WTF?

The Raiders traded DOWN ? WHAT? Just kidding. But if anyone would it would be them.

I was at work in my office. It's a radio station, so there are often loud noises coming from somewhere (it's actually 3 stations). My office is in the back corner of the building, away from most people. It's perfect - because after 2pm I get to listen to music loudly without bothering anyone. I was watching online. Anyway, as soon as Tork hit that ball I yelled THERE YOU GO, GET ON THE BUS !" and two people from the total other side of the building came over to check if I was okay. Another one said (from a distance) "there was a Tigers game today, he does that".

THE BUS IS HERE

The Double Dutch buss is warming up....................

AND THE BUS IS HERE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

He's a true Tigers closer, isn't he? Never easy.

The bus is stuck at the last stop, it hasn't moved.