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Showing posts from May, 2016

Charlie Chases a Coon

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Jennifer snapped this photo of the raccoon on our front porch yesterday.  I have spotted three raccoons on my property this year.  That is a rare thing.  I can count on one hand the number of raccoons (hither called coons) Jennifer and I have seen at all on our land and it has been several years since I saw the last one. Earlier this spring I caught a glimpse of one scurrying into the privet hedge.  I wasn't sure it was a coon, it could have been a opossum or maybe a large cat.  We have plenty of those. A couple of weeks ago I came face to face with another coon. I was walking the path down from the upper field, being quiet as usual on my walks, when a good-sized adult coon came running across our back yard near the woods and up the path toward me.  The coon was occupied with something and did not see me immediately.  I froze and watch it for maybe two seconds before it saw me.  It stooped, looked at me for a moment, then quickly returned the way it came as I stood motio

Gaming Cassino '44: An Overview

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Cassino '44 fully spread out with the playing counters unpunched.  The map is artistically impressive but it is too big for my gaming table.  You can see Monte Cassino in the upper right.  The scenario I chose to play sets up on the two maps on the left. On May 15, 1944, two reinforced British regiments attacked a stitched together German kampfgruppe near Monte Cassino in Italy. The British attempted to cut a major road held by the Germans who were blocking supply from getting to the 8th Indian Division in the overall attempt by Allied troops to capture Monte Cassino.  The attack began in the predawn hours, with visibility limited by darkness. The road was taken but the Germans launched immediate counterattacks and control shifted back and forth until the British finally secured the area mid-afternoon with the assistance of heavy artillery fire and a few aircraft sorties. This was a small part of Operation Diadem . Long-time readers know that I enjoy military wargamin

The Atlanta Braves Really Suck

April 2016 was unkind to my favorite sports team, the Atlanta Braves .  Or maybe I should say the Braves were unkind to April.  They sucked.  They experienced the worst 20-game start (actually extended to 21 games) in franchise history and ended the month at 5-18. This is baseball's oldest franchise, going back to 1876. So the absolute worst start in all that time is not only historic it is difficult to witness as a life-long fan. The closest season by comparison in my lifetime was the 1988 Braves , who experienced a 4-16 record and went on to lose 106 ballgames. At a family gathering in March I was asked how many games I thought the Braves would win this year.  My deadpan response was "61" (which means 101 loses).  This surprised the guy I was talking to. I guess he figured since I am an avid fan I would be more optimistic.  Well, perhaps I was too optimistic even with that dismal prediction.  Right now, the Braves are on a trajectory (or nose dive) to lose 136 games(