Ups and Downs of the Week

Las Vegas – Just got back from 5 days there. Great place for pictures and dining. I’ll have pics up soon.

Crowds – It’s not really the crowds as much as the few inconsiderate jerks who make the crowds nearly unbearable. The ones who stand and chat in choke points are the worst.

Patriots – They seem to have found their way again. Should be an easy coast to the division title from here.

Christkindlesmarkt – The annual Christmas Market in Nürnberg is on again.

Ups and Downs of the Week

Formula One – Yas Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi this weekend. Great racetrack.

Penn State Debacle – How many ways can you screw up? We’re not talking about a couple of players taking money or selling trinkets. This was (allegedly) child rape. And it took this many years for it to come to light despite the entire chain of command knowing about it?

Patriots – Don’t count on post-season play. If they lose to the Jets this weekend, it’s all over.

Sunsets – Another nice one tonight.

Ups and Downs of the Week

Weather – Continued clear skies have given us some great sunsets, as can be seen in this week’s pics.

Patriots – Are we seeing the real team now? The defense is useless and the offense has little time on the field. Not a good sign.

NFL – Talk about a ridiculous system of fines and penalties. This is from The Boston Globe:

Pittsburgh S Troy Polamalu – who tackled Wes Welker to the ground by his head and twisted his helmet nearly 90 degrees and injured Welker’s neck to the point where he missed one day of practice this week and was limited for the other two – was not fined.Nor was Polamalu flagged on the play during the game.

Yet two weeks ago the NFL fined Polamalu $10,000 for calling his wife from the sidelines to inform her that he was okay after suffering a concussion during a game.

DST ends this weekend, so next week it’ll be dark for most of my commute. Not many more opportunities for images like this.

I was driving home tonight and had to stop to catch this scene as the sun set behind this small copse of trees.

Halloween Sunset

Some fun with Photoshop.

Ups and Downs of the Week

St. Louis Cardinals – 2011 World Series Champs. Well done. They fought at every at bat and it paid off when their backs were against the wall. The entire World Series was great (except for the bozos at Faux Sports). I watched much of the games with the mute on.

Racing World Tragedies – Two top-tier professional racers lost this month. Dan Wheldon was killed in an IndyCar Race in Las Vegas and Marco Simoncelli from the MotoGP motorcycle series died in a crash in Sepang. Racing is immeasurably safer than it was just a couple of decades ago, and perhaps that makes losses like this all the more shocking.

Weather – Alright, it’s cold and you can feel winter coming. But this morning there was sunshine and a cold fog rising off the fields. Made for some nice pictures.