This past weekend was pretty awesome. Too bad I only slept like 7 hours the whole weekend but it was well worth it.

I went to a friend’s wedding on Friday that my girlfriend was in. The wedding was at a small church in Affton and then the reception at Andre’s. I was impressed with the whole night knowing how much they spent and how well it was put together. It gives a little hope…lol. Becki and I had a blast at the reception and we danced a ton.

I woke up 3 hours later after going to sleep to drive down to Columbia to see ESPN’s College Gameday. After a car pickup and a car switch we finally were on the road. We got to COMO and headed for our favorite new tailgating spot. We were extremely excited to see that we could tailgate in the lot next to Reactor. I am not sure what happened to the rule that you could only tailgate 3 hours before the game but I am glad to see it’s gone.  We walked to the Quad and it was packed. I didn’t know what to expect and it exceeded my expectations. Supposedly we set a record for Gameday attendance. We walked back to the tailgate to begin the party. We cooked some good brats and hamburgers courtesy of Ted. The weather was great and I even wore flip flops. Not bad knowing it is late October and it was supposed to rain all day.

The game itself was awesome. In case you didnt hear. MU defeated #1 OK. The opening kickoff got the party started and it did not stop. We played pretty awesome but we did make some major mistakes. Field the first punt was a big one. We had huge momentum and great field position. The wind was swirling so the return man should have made no attempt on the short kick. The other was clock management. I have no clue why we chose to pass on 3rd down with the time winding down. I also like my friend Matt’s conspiracy theory that Bob Stoops punted at the end of the game because they knew they were going to lose and didnt want to risk MU scoring again so their BCS number wouldnt hurt since that would have made the game a blow out.

I don’t know what happened on Sunday. All I know is the Rams lost a game that they should have won. The dropped so many easy interceptions and seemed to dominate the first half only to totally fall apart in the 2nd half (didnt we see that last week) and lose the game. Also, where was Denario Alexander?

Picture of the week are here.

This was what I would call a pretty lazy weekend. It was the first weekend that my girlfriend and I were both in town for a while so we did a lot of lounging. We ran errands on Friday and did a little housework. I tried to be a plumber which I thought would be easy. I guess I needed to consider the facts that (1) my girlfriends plumber friend has repeatedly worked on the tub (2) the house is older and has older fixtures. Needless to say, I took out the stem and recognized that there were several seals broken and missing. The whole issue with the tub was that it was leaking at the stem but I could also tell that it probably wasn’t sealing between the lower bath head and the shower head because the seal was totally gone. We went to Home Depot to find seals which we couldn’t so we just bought a complete replacement kit. Unfortunately, the kit had the wrong size stem. I am guess there is a standard now but not back when this bathroom was designed. We went to Ace and it really is the place because it had all kind of stem kits and seals but the person working there wasn’t very helpful and we couldn’t find anything that looked close. I ended up reusing a seal (that probably was not a good idea) and buying an oring where I needed a washer gasket. I did get it to seal and it works pretty good except the fact that the water pressure is only 75% of what it was before. I’m assuming because of the seal I reused in a different place. That a weekday goal to fix.

We watched the MU game on Saturday which really pumped me up. So much that I bought tickets for the game this weekend. How can you pass up tickets for Homecoming weekend, the first visit by ESPN’s College Gameday crew, and the #1 team in the nation? I sure couldn’t. We went to a friends wedding rehearsal that night and went to the MAC for the dinner portion. It was a good time and the place was packed.

Not much happened on Sunday either. I watched the amazing upset by the Rams. I am super excited about Denario Alexander’s excellent first game. Becki and I watched some shows on the DVR that night and were very successful on our first attempt of making lasagna. It was amazing. Here are some more pictures of the process.

Update: I fixed the water pressure issue with the shower head in like 2 minutes. The o-ring I bought ( that wasn’t the right fit and needed to be a washer gasket) was compressing into the chamber under pressure and causing restrictions. I just cut it out and going without it. It is only used to seal between the shower head and the bottom outlet which must make a good metal to metal seal since it does not leak.

This was a jammed pack weekend.  There was oodles to do in St Louis this weekend which worked out well since the weather was amazing.  Unfortunately, there was so much going on that I missed out on the Soulard Oktoberfest but I hear it was a lot of fun.

This was reunion weekend at Washington University. There was a reunion reception at school, a gala, and there were supposed to be individual class parties. Our class party (albeit for only a 1 year reunion) sort of fell apart in the last week when we lost our venue so we decided to go see Wall Street – Money Never Sleeps. My fellow MBAers always talked about this movie and Gordon Gekko. Thus I watch the original 1987 movie on Thursday and loved it. It used a ton of financial buzzwords that we used pretty regularly in our studies plus it was suspense and action packed. We had a group of about 10 or 12 people hit the Esquire Theater on Clayton. First off, that theater sucks. The seats were uncomfortably small, there was actually a tear on the screen, and we could hear sounds from other theaters. There were probably only 10 other people in the theater on a Friday night so not sure how they stay in business. The movie was okay. The movie was basically based on the financial meltdown two years ago with aspects of the 1^st Wall Street movie. It would probably be cool for the average moviegoer but we discussed this crisis in great detail in school so it wasn’t any insight that I already didn’t know. The movie was also a little too sappy for me and didn’t have the action as the first one. Thus, I only give it a C. Everyone else were a little disappointed too. We went to Brandt’s for a couple free adult beverages courtesy of AB. I had not been there in a long time and I guess they changed management and structure. It was fun catching up with some of my classmates. Some of us went to Blueberry Hill to meet others and grab some snacks. I finished the night at “T Town” as my friend Mike puts it. Talayna’s is right next to his house so I went for an hour or so. It will probably be the last time I go back…lol.

I ran some errands on Saturday waiting for Becki to return from Sweden. I have a funny story. I have been searching high and low for a shower organizer that I actually like. It seems like no one makes a wide but short organizer. They either come in small or large where the small one is short and narrow and the large one is tall and wide. I might make one myself. Needless to say, I’ve bought some really expensive ones only to take them back. Why make a top shelf that is only 12”s from the shower head? Just doesn’t make sense to me.  After my second run to Bed Bath and Beyond in a week (and not last), I watched all the great college football games on before meeting up with Becki. Becki and I had dinner at Onestos in SOHA (as Matt puts it) for a friends bday dinner. The place was pretty good and we ordered way too much. We went back to the bday couples house to sit by a fire, talk about transgenic rats (we really know how to have a good time), and play with some dogs.

Becki and I went to the country on Sunday for Becki’s grandma’s 85^th bday. We were a little past Gerald, MO. It is sort of funny because it is very much like the area I grew up in but seems like a lifetime ago that I lived in that surroundings. We went on a hay ride and saw cows (both a first for my girlfriend), rode ATV’s, and had some good food. The ATV trails were pretty awesome. There were like 6 or 7 ATV’s with trails though fields and the woods over 50 acres. I had a ton of fun. The only bad part is that my throat is killing me today. I am hoping it is just irritated from all the dust and grass getting in my face from off-roading.

And that is it. I am glad to see Mizzou won its football game. I watched the first quarter and was a little scared. The same goes for the Blues winning their first game. Hopefully the Blues come out to a strong start. I can not say the same about the Rams. It looks like they got a little of a reality check. I did not watch the game but I heard the Rams started with an onside kick that was not recovered. I do not agree with that strategy and it probably put a bad tone on the game. At least we held them to a field goal that drive. I think we can squash any hope of winning the division despite how weak it is. I also looked to put up a strong week in fantasy football….possibly the best of the week.

I am extremely busy so just gonna go over the highlights. I tailgated bright and early at 7AM for MU’s first game vs Illinois on the Saturday of Labor Day weekend. We got the same spot as last year but no rain so it was pretty awesome. We grilled some great food, had some adult beverages, and hung out with a bunch of friends that I do not always get to see. Overall an awesome time. Some of us went to my place to watch the game while others went to the game. MU of course won and we reconvened at Over Under for some post game celebration. I had dinner at Ozzies afterwards and was in bed by 10AM.

I went to Sugar Creek winery on Sunday with my girlfriend, her sister, and her brother-in-law. Apparently everyone else had the same idea on a beautiful Labor Day weekend. Fortunately, we were able to score this awesome tent (the only one there) after sweating in the sun for an hour. We felt like we were kings. The wine was good but the place was definitely understaffed since it took 30 mins to an hour to get a bottle of wine at the single counter they had going. Still a great time.

I had another jammed pack weekend last week. I watched The Lovely Bones which was actually very good. Even though I knew the plot of the story, I did not know how it would play out so it was good. Peter Jackson did an awesome job. The movie was actually a little trippy. I went to a friends garage sale on Saturday morning and hung out at his house for a while then hit up a couples shower. Sunday was the big day of the annual Scott Air Show I have gone to the last 3 years. We normally go on Saturday but Sunday was just as fun. We took the metrolink there and basically saw every flight. We even got to see the Blue Angels which apparently havent flown at Scott in like 20 years. The show was awesome. We made a surprise stop at the Casino Queen for a $12 buffet. All I can say to my eating friends is that we need to hit this up again. They had an Asian, Italian, American and other kinds of foods. I stuffed myself silly.

I was sick this weekend so sort of laid low. I went to Molly’s for my grandmother’s bday on Friday evening then made my way back to my place to relax. Molly’s new expansion was interesting but I was not impressed with the food. I can not see me going back. I closed on the night with some GTL action on MTV (aka Jersey Shore).

Saturday was the Kick Ball for a Cause tournament. I was not looking forward to it at all. I was feeling horrible and  it was supposed to be 100 degrees. I was also told that this team had never won a game in the last 2 or 3 years so did not know what to expect. Needless to say we were awesome. I set the bar high by scoring our first run by kicking a home run. I also made our team’s only double play so I called myself the MVP. My girlfriend even drove me in on a homerun so I was impressed. We won our first four games and advanced to the playoffs. We had a big inning in our first playoff game and won. We lost in the semi-finals. It was our first game on a dirt infield and our players were having troubles adjusting. We made a ton of errors and none of our good hitters could make contact. It was sad to lose but we were all feeling pretty bad after being in the heat for so long. I actually wouldn’t mind playing kickball again. It was really fun. We tried to watch Hot Tub Time Machine that night but it froze up after 5 mins on Charter on Demand and never worked that night.

We finally got to watch Hot Tub Time Machine on Sunday. It was funny but I thought it got good reviews and can not see how that is possible. Besides that, I did not do much. Ran some errands, made some delicious sirloin kabobs, and watched my Sunday night TV shows, along with catching up with 3 weeks of weekend wrap ups.

This weekend pretty much revolved around our “annual” float trip. I felt like I had been planning this trip for months even though we only started seriously discussing it two weeks ago. The reason it seemed like it took forever because I think about 100 emails were exchanged between where we wanted to stay, who was going, and what we were bringing. The issue we ran into was that most wanted to stay in an air conditioned unit for the night and waiting till two weeks before is not a smart idea.

We finally found a place after calling several campgrounds. The funny thing was that the place we ended up at was our original plan. They had some cancellations that freed up some spots. We chose Ozark Outdoors since we floated with them several times in the past and they are the closest. We had two rafts, 1 canoe, 1 motel room and 1 camp site. We chose a lot longer than usual float  (for some reason) so we were a little worried about doing a 9 mile float. We got there early (or at least some of us). There was no reason to worry because we got done with the float by 5PM which sucked. The water was high and had a decent current so we were just flying down the river. I was hoping to get back around dusk.

We had a lot of float trip “rookies” this year and it definitely showed. I almost thought my girlfriend died after she got swept up by the current under the raft and did not pop up till another 15 feet down the river. It was pretty scary but was out of her control. It was definitely the fastest current I have ever seen on a float trip. Especially in mid July when most of the time you are worried if there is enough water for a raft. Also, a couple of the girls took long naps during the trip. Jello shots are not for everyone…lol.

The water camera was also lost again. This is the second time in three trips so no pictures from the trip. Sorry to Mike. Hopefully it turns up.

The motel was very nice. Having your own shower and bathroom was nice. We were right next to our campsite too which was awesome. Needless to say, I still prefer not staying down the night but staying in the AC is ten times better. I would like to explore the party bus idea where we rent a bus and a driver for the day to drive us down and back. I think the cost would offset what we paid for the cabin and camping.

Not much went on Friday evening and Sunday. I went to my favorite Mexican restaurant again on Friday. We got fake tattoos again for the float trip but the alcohol in the spray sun screen quickly dissolved them. I watched the World Cup on Sunday but was bored with it mainly because I was tired. The game itself seemed very physical and fast paced. A lot of scoring opportunities were missed too. There should have been at least 3 or 4 goals that should have been made.

This was a pretty action packed weekend for me with all kinds of plans. I hit up my favorite Mexican restaurant, Mi Ranchito, for dinner on Friday with my girlfriend. I normally always get the lunch enchilada meal but got a mixed combo to “branch out.” I swear that I will order something totally different one day. We followed that up with going to the grand opening of Copia on Washington Avenue. The place looked fantastic. They installed a sliding roof on the patio for when the weather is good/bad. The one thing that troubled me was a “corking fee.” We wanted to try some wine. We saw a bottle that looked good. It said $8 for glass and $16 for bottle so we figured the bottle is a better deal even though we only wanted a glass. Well they ended up charging us an $8 corking fee. I thought such fees were only when you brought your own wine into a venue…not when you buy it from them. That is super deceptive adverting and is not right. The bartender even made a comment about how stupid people are for not realizing the corking fee. We followed it off with a visit to Shiver. Shiver is a new vodka bar next to Copia. I read an article earlier in the week about how you can drink vodka in a freezer. They provide parkas to keep you warm. Supposedly it is popular in other big cities like Las Vegas, New York, and LA. It was a good atmosphere even though it was pretty empty. I would describe it like Lure (down the street) but without a cover and cheaper drinks so much better than Lure. But it seems like Lure lowered their cover. I can swear paying in the $15 to $20 range when it first opened. $10 is more reasonable but still the highest on Washington Avenue.

I went to a friend’s pool party on Saturday. The weather was awesome plus I did not get burnt which is a major win. We also watched the US soccer game. All I can say is that FIFA needs to make some major changes. I understand why United States has not embraces soccer like the rest of the world. These are the changes I suggest (1) add replay or more officials…the calls and missed calls have been ridiculous. (2) be able to rescind cards after the game like the NBA does with technical fouls. I have seen some horrible calls that have knocked players out of the next match when they should not have been. (3) make more calls on flops. (4) stop the clock when the play is dead. Is it that hard to stop the clock?…every other US sport does it. Stoppage time does not work. Watching how the Ghana players were just falling and laying down on the ground to delay time was ridiculous. No sports outcome should ever be determined because of the delay tactics of the other team. I don’t care if people say every team does it…that doesn’t make it right.

I went on a serious cleaning binge on Sunday along with knocking out a couple shows off the DVR. I am glad Entourage is back. I also like the new realm of True Blood. I thought last season wasn’t that good and definitely like this new storyline better. I have an appointment to get my wood floors professional cleaned this week which has be excited. I did something to my floors the first time I cleaned them and they have never looked the same.

• I have not played video games since I came back from Chile almost two months ago. Pretty odd considering I was addicted before I left.
• I can not get on top of my DVR situation.  I have my DVR 75% full which is about 900 GB. I have complete seasons of Chuck, Dollhouse, Tudors, Flash Forward, V, and probably others. I have over 5 episodes each of Simpsons, Parks and Recreations, The Middle, American Dad, America – The Story of Us, and many others.
• I do not know what to think about this shift from the Big 12. I thought it was a money issue but I read last week that MU has gotten around $22 million a year in the Big 12 revenue sharing program where the Big 10 programs get 20 million. Doesn’t make sense. It sounds like the whole league could fold if MU and Nebraska leave which is eerie. I read a stupid article yesterday that said KU and K State would be out to dry. Both are major sports programs so I am sure they will have no problem finding their way into a strong conference.
• I love that I somehow got new HD channels with Charter. I believe 6 in total. Comedy Central is huge and the Disney channel is not bad. Bravo is also a big one even though I do not watch any shows from there. My girl friend can now watch Drop Dead Diva in HD on Lifetime now too.
• I had a brief stroll down Wash Ave last night and saw a lot of development started back up again. The market that was started before Culinaria opened looked to be going again and almost finished. There is also a convenient store next to Lucas Park being built. Copia looks to open any day and the Vodka bar next door to Copia is open.
• The Lakers Celtics series is pretty good but I think the referees are deterring from the game. There has been a lot of missed calls in terms of fouls….more than normal on both sides. It seems life refs automatically call a foul if the player falls down but don’t call one when players get whacked in arm. The 2  minute replay review needs to be looked at because the Odom-Rondo reversal was ridiculous. Rondo fouled Odom (and it was easy to see) on a rebound that made Odom knock the ball out of bounds. The refs originally called it Lakers ball and reversed. Obviously he would not have knocked it out of bounds if Rondo would not have knocked is right hand off the ball.
• Looking forward to Vegas. More and more people keep signing up plus I can’t wait to hang out with friends I have partied with in a while.

I thought this past weekend was going by super slow on Sunday when I woke up (which is good) but here I sit on Monday and wonder where the time went. Isn’t it always like that?

I went to the Cardinals game with some of my boys on Friday. We hit up Harry’s before hand to enjoy the great weather and patio scene. The game was a fun time, the weather was perfect (not too hot), and Waino was pitching so of course we won. I went to Paddyo’s for a while before I went home to crash.

Saturday was pretty relaxing. I hung out with my brother and saw Lucabrasi at the RFT Music Festival on Wash Ave. I followed that up with a quick dinner at Ozzie’s then went to Pepper’s for a 30^th bday party for my cousin. I tried to end the night by watching Where the Wild Things Are but gave up about 30 minutes in. It is already back in the mail because I don’t think I would ever get into it and there are much better movies in my Netflix queue.

Sunday was also a relaxing day. I knocked out some errands with my girlfriend, made a delicious spaghetti dinner, and suffered through a Lakers loss (even though it was a good game but with some bad calls). I also flipped back and forth between the Cards game and the Chicago/Philadelphia NHL game. Two comments… (1) I do want Chicago to win the Cup which is hard to say. The series has been fantastic. (2) Why does the NBA switch formats to 2-3-2 in the finals? It does not make sense. It seems to give more of an advantage to the team that doesn’t have the best record because all they have to do it win 1 game out of the first 2 on the road and then have 3 home games to close it out. The finals games are spread out further too which makes it even easier for 2-2-1-1-1 schedule.

It was a pretty jammed pack weekend for me that was a lot of fun. Friday was the first Cards game I went to with the “boys.” I say that in quotation marks since only one guy was there. It amazing how much changed in two years thinking how we had 5 seats in the Bank of America club which was a blast. Needless to say the game was very fun and the Cards won so it was a plus. I met some other friends at Paddyo’s and did a little dancing. It was a good night.

I went to the Mt Pleasant and Sugar Creek wineries on Saturday. I will have a more detailed post about this later in the week but Mt Pleasant was a big disappointment while Sugar Creek was awesome. The wine was great, the weather was perfect, and we had a lot of fun. Plus, I did not get sun burnt or even red.

I put on my domesticated hat on Sunday and did some grass cutting and yard work in the blazing sun and heat (supposedly it tied the record for St Louis heatwise). I got some errands done and then settled down to watch the best TV shows ever….Lost! I am amazed about the show the more and more I think about it (which is a lot). I will have a separate post about it later in the week too. I missed the Lakers game and they lost (is that the theme of this paragraph?).