Tomas Walsh

Fever

2026-04-13T12:18:00.000-07:00

10/11/26...

Are the WNBA playoffs over yet? I don't know who's been winning along the way. In case I haven't mentioned it before, I really loathe the WNBA.

10/2/26...

The Fever and Aces played the deciding game last night but I didn't watch it and I don't know who won. I assumed the Aces would win because I couldn't imagine Caitlin Clark would be able to overcome the overwhelmingly biased officiating in favor of the Aces, especially Aja Wilson who should not be allowed to play in the game due to her gross violation of league rules in the previous game. The WNBA's refusal to abide by their own rules in administering the required suspension of Wilson for going into the stands to confront a spectator convinces me that the league would stop at nothing to ensure the Aces' win.

There is far too much unnecessary drama in the WNBA. The arrival of Caitlin Clark to the league could have been a remarkable asset the league. It should have been. Instead, the jealousy of other players, coaches, referees and management in general turned into a firestorm of misplaced contempt at the expense of the entire WNBA. The continued physical violence and verbal abuse of Clark was prevalent from day one of her arrival...even before her arrival, with so many prominent players saying she was in store for a rude awakening when confronted by the physical nature of the WNBA. She was "too small", "too weak", "too frail" to compete with the pros. I never saw any mention of those limitations to players such as Skyler Diggins-Smith or DeWanna Bonner. It was just a precurser to the vitriol Clark would face every day because she happened to be a straight, white woman who had set new NCAA standards in her time at Iowa. There was resentment because she was a popular, straight, white woman coming into their exclusive environment carrying a legacy of unprecedented popularity wherever she had played. The existing clique of WNBA elites hated her very existence and they made that clear from day one right up to last night.

Caitlin Clark brought interest in the WNBA. She brought fans. She brought money. She raised all of them up. It was not enough to satisfy the ignorant masses of the WNBA. Ignorant, yes. One only has to listen to some of them speak. Caitlin Clark doesn't need them. She has enough money to never have to work again in her life. They need her.

I may or may not ever watch another WNBA game, which is too bad. I happen to be only one of millions of people who were drawn to the game because of Caitlin Clark. My interest did extend to other players and teams but only if there is some connection to Clark. Right now, I would be satisfied if she retired from the WNBA. She can play basketball if she wants somewhere else and I would probably find a way to see her games. However, I would not bother with the WNBA and I suspect there are many millions of others who feel the same way...disgusted.

As I mentioned, I did not see last night's game. I did see the previous game...and it was one for the ages. Caitlin Clark took her entire team on her shoulders and carried them to victory. That is the Caitlin Clark legacy I want to remember.

9/30/26...

I was thinking about how much I hate the WNBA. Yesterday, when Aja Wilson stormed off the court and into the stands going after a fan who pointed at her, she violated a rule prohibiting such action and the league rules apparently require immediate, multi-game suspension. In addition, those players on the Aces team who accompanied her face the same suspension. I don't expect the league to follow through with that suspension requirement because Wilson is the MVP (Most Vile Player) and the WNBA and all the media seem to support anything and everything that is not Caitlin Clark and the Fever. Also, concerning that same incident...there is something wrong with the fine points of the WNBA rules whereby if an offensive player such as Wilson or Breanna Stewart goes plowing headlong like a running back into a defensive player, the foul is called on the defensive player if she is not completely still. That is what happened in this play...Wilson totally decked Lexie Hull who was charged with the foul. That is just not right and the rule needs to be changed. I've seen Stewart get away with that so many times...the same with Wilson, especially because some players have a "special whistle". Anyway, I don't expect anything to be done about the rule and I don't expect Wilson and any of her teammates to be suspended...and I hate the WNBA. I do wish players like Clark and others who want to compete fairly can survive the biased officiating and the condoned, violent actions of the league and some of the entitled thugs in the game.

9/29.26...

Yeah...watching the 2nd game with the Fever vs Aces. The first quarter ended with the Aces already up by 8 and the Fever have missed at least 5 or 6 short range shots (bunnies, I guess). The Fever are playing with a lot of energy but the Aces seem to just be a better team. As soon as Caitlin Clark went to the bench, Mitchell goes into her dribbling game. Half time comes along and the Fever are ahead by 5 points. The Fever played the second quarter with incredible intensity and I hope they can continue with that...it sure won't be easy. Oh yeah, and I think Clark already has something like 14 points and 11 assists...amazing. This is probably the Caitlin Clark style of play everyone expected to see all the time...but that doesn't fit into the Coach's game plan. It's like Caitlin Clark decided to play her game and damn the coaches. In any case, I do realize it is a very tall order for the Fever to hang on and win the game...and there's something to be said about halftime adjustments mad by coaches...and in that case, one would have to favor the Aces. Actually, I was so pleased with the 2nd quarter that I'm reluctant to watch the rest of the game. One thing I noticed...it looks like almost all the Aces players are considerably bigger and stronger looking than the Fever players...except for Yamamoto...and she is incredibly quick. Anyway, the 3rd quarter ended and the Fever team is up by 12. Before I get too far along watching this game I want to make an observation about Aja Wilson't ability to get fouls called on every shot...she goes up for the shot with her left hand and the defender reaches up with their right hand...this invariably leads to hitting Wilson't arm. There is a solution...the defender has to reach for the block with their left hand against a left-handed shooter. Another comment as the 4th quarter score is getting closer with the Fever still ahead...the Fever continue to miss too many bunnies! So Aja Wilson got into it with a fan who was removed from the court, Caitlin Clark is on the bench with 5 fouls and about 4 minutes to go and it doesn't look good for the Fever even though they're still up by 7. I mentioned all the missed bunnies by the Fever...well they also have missed a lot of free throws. Aja Wilson goes plowing under the basket into Clark and of course they call the foul against Clark just like they always give the call to people like Wilson or even Stewart who does the same headlong dive into a crowd and gets the call her way. So...now with just under 3 minutes to play, Clark has fouled out and the wind has blown completely out of my sails. Holy crap...the Fever hung on to win! Mitchell, Boston and Clark all scored like they're supposed to...Caitlin Clark had 27 points, 15 assists and 7 rebounds. I guess I have one more game to watch this season. Okay, I have to say coach White did 2 things right this game...she put Hines-Allen in the game and she made a huge difference...also, she called a timely time out when Clark was stuck dribbling around somewhat out of control and no one was able to get free to help her out.

9/28/26...

So I watched the 1st playoff game with the Fever against the Aces. for one thing, it sure looks like Aja Wilson is the best player on the court but there's definitely a special whistle for her because any time someone touches her there's a foul called...not that she needs it and not that it would have made a difference in the outcome. Caitlin Clark managed to get her assists and some points but she missed an awful lot of shots...and so did Mitchell. Hull and Cunningham both did their part on defense and scoring and Johnson filled in just fine. However, if they have expect to have any chance to win the next game, Clark and Mitchell will have to shoot "lights out" and that doesn't appear to be likely. I think the Aces just have a much better team...and a much better coaching staff...and with Carl, Mitchell, Boston and Hull getting so many fouls called by an obviously, egregiously biased officiating crew, it looks like I'll be watching just one more WNBA game this season. I hate the WNBA...and Caitlin Clark getting benched in a playoff game after missing a couple of shots???

9/26/26...

No game today...but tomorrow the playoffs begin with the Fever against the Aces. To me, this is mostly a non-event. The Fever may win a game...or even win the series but I don't think so. The WNBA is so repugnant to me now that I don't really care what happens. Sure I'd like Caitlin Clark to have a chance to show her talents and I have learned to like all the rest of the Fever players but there's so much controversy in and around the league that whatever happens is of little interest and I look forward to seeing Iowa, the WNBL and Stuelke in the Italian league. Did I mention that I despise the WNBA?

9/25/26...

Okay...I'm watching the beginning of the Fever vs Lynx game played last night and I just had to write this down before I forget...I had to bust out laughing aloud as there are so many missed shots by both teams, especially the Fever. It reminds me of the few times I watched a little bit of WNBA games years ago before Caitlin Clark...nobody could shoot the ball...both teams just run back and forth, missing, missing, missing. I remember just laughing at how bad they were. Anyway, that's what the first few minutes of today's game reminds me of. Poor Lexie Hull...she already missed three shots and has been replaced by Cunningham. Even though her defense has been great, even in this game, I hope this doesn't signal an end to Hull's time with the Fever. To be fair, everyone on the team stinks so far and the Lynx are running away with the game. So the 1st quarter ended with Clark and Hull on the bench...Clark only scored once and had just one assist with the score 32-13. I think the Fever missed 9 or 10 3-pointers in the quarter. Wow...60-32 at the half. The Fever are 3 for 21 from three! That right there is the main difference in the game. The Fever are stinking it up and the Lynx look every bit as good as they really are. I have to say that I do like the Lynx players who seem to be regular people rather than prison-ballers...I don't know anything about Olivia Miles though, because I haven't seen her play...and their coach...maybe not so much. I have to say again as the game drags on...I have no idea why Raven Johnson is getting so much playing time all of a sudden since she hardly played at all throughout the season. So...the game ended...the entire Fever team was awful and now comes the playoffs and I'll be watching until the Fever are out. They play the Aces in the 1st round which isn't all that promising...but I suppose it's better than facing the Mystics. So...if the Fever are eliminated, I'll have to wait for Iowa, the WNBL and maybe Stuelke playing in Italy if I can find the games on the internet. I definitely won't have any interest in the WNBA after the Fever are out.

One more thing...I watched another Youtube video with the guy who calls himself "Awful Coaching". I'm definitely as far from an expert on basketball as a person can be but everything he says makes a lot of sense to me and I wonder if the Fever coaching and management is as bad as he makes it out to be. It sure looks like it is. As much as I want to see Caitlin Clark display her incredible abilities on the basketball court, I do think she's been badly mishandled in the WNBA. I'd much rather see her play in just about any other league in the world than continue to be abused as she has been...or maybe she can just hang it up and go play golf. I'm satisfied with what I've seen of her skills already and I'd be fine with her never playing again.

9/24/26...

...just thought I'd mention...once again I can't watch the Fever game against the Lynch until the replay on League Pass tomorrow. This is the last game of the season and I have to say I really hate the WNBA. There's far too much going on that has nothing to do with basketball and most of the people involved seem to be interested in every petty thing that also has nothing to do with basketball.

9/23/26...

So I did manage to see the Fever game against the Lynx this morning on League Pass. The Fever ran away with it early on...but it looked like the Lynch weren't really into it and they inserted their second team for the rest of the game. Caitlin Clark got her points, assists and rebounds and Mitchell got her 20. I don't think Raven Johnson is ready for prime-time but she keeps getting too many minutes. I have to say the previous game's loss was entirely the coach's fault. I think if the Fever play with the intensity they had in this game, they might even have a chance in the playoffs...but the coach has to let Clark play her game and also keep Johnson on the bench. Oh yeah...and Hull will have to make some shots and Boston has to stay out of foul trouble. Seeing Howard and Bibby play so well makes me wish the Fever had kept them. I have to repeat...Caitlin Clark is definitely the most valuable player on her team and in the league and it kinda is disappointing to see all the hype about Mitchell as MVP...although that award will probably go to Wilson again anyway. I haven't seen enough of Aja Wilson to even have an opinion about her value to the her team or the league.

9/22/26...

I tried to watch the game with the Fever against the Lynx. It showed okay on YouTube for the first minute or so and then it was removed because apparently it was a pirated broadcast. The game is on Fox, I think, but I don't subscribe to Fox. I do have Amazon Prime and WNBA League Pass but there are so many entities with their fingers in the pot and I can't afford them all. This is just bullshit that the WNBA and the Fever can't just have one broadcast source! It's criminal! Anyway, I was able to see right up until Caitlin Clark hit a three and then it cut out. I think I can watch one of the live YouTube videos of the game that have a big, semi-transparent sphere in the center of the screen but that's far too distracting and unpleasant to watch. I can wait until tomorrow and watch a replay on League Pass. I suppose I'll do that. However, those replays aren't complete. They cut out a lot of the commentary and skip ahead a lot...but that's the only way I can see the game without the big ball in the middle of the screen. So...don't anyone tell me anything about how the game went...so I can see it for myself tomorrow. (I don't expect the Fever to win this game or the next one either. Then I suppose they'll lose the first two playoff games and be done for the season.) This WNBA season was a typically ugly mess.

9/20/26...

Wow...just finished watching the first half of the Fever against the Mystics...well, for one thing, I do think the Mystics have a better team than the Fever...but...this was just about the worst I've ever seen the Fever play. Even at their best, it would be difficult to win...but they are all shooting awful! All of them! While the Fever aren't able to do anything right, I'm wondering if there's something to be said about the coaching and game plan of the Fever. I definitely dislike the Mystics coach but he sure did win the coaching battle in the first half. Okay, I do have to say that if the Fever players had been hitting their shots, it would be a close game right now...but they've been missing every kind of shot from 3s to mid-range to layups...everything. The second half can't possibly be as bad as the first...can it? So the second half comes along and there have been some really bad calls by the referees and the Fever still can't shoot well enough to win...and damn!...I wish Lexie Hull would work on her shooting. So, assuming the Fever lose this one, they have 2 games remaining in the season, both against Minnesota. In order for the Fever to do anything in the playoffs the entire team would have to all have incredible shooting every single game...not likely. This game against the Mystics was basically a playoff type game because the Fever was playing for home court advantage in the playoffs...and they were blown off the court by a better team and a better coach. Mitchell got her points and Caitlin Clark got her points and some assists. Oh...I see in the box score that Lucy Olsen actually made it on the court for one minute.

After thinking about it for a while...what the heck was Raven Johnson doing in the game for so long? So Hull might have missed a couple of shots but what's new about that? I think keeping Hull and Cunningham on the bench was a huge mistake...in an extremely important game, the coach benches the players she's used all season and puts in Raven Johnson? Maybe that's why Clark didn't have very many assists...because it was an entirely different Fever team out on the court...and all of a sudden Russell is chosen ahead of Billings? Yes, I think there was a severe coaching problem this game. The announcers kept saying how this group of Fever players have been practicing together for 2 weeks...so freeking what? They weren't good enough to use in games before...why now? Enough of that...it looks like the best game plan against the Fever is to just play hard under the boards to get Boston out of the game on fouls. In her new role as point-center, she's completely ineffective...and then the opponent just has to get her in foul trouble and game over. It's nice to see Boston hit a few 3s but what ever happened to the pick-and-roll? The Fever's game plan was awful, the personnel choices were awful. That's all about coaching.

9/18/26...

Finally! The dastardly World Cup is over and it's back to basketball. It's halftime for the Fever and the Tempo and it's not a runaway by any means. Clark has her points and assists and Mitchell has her points. I guess I don't really care who wins. I just want to see Clark and Co. play and not have to witness street ball or prison ball. There's so much animosity and vitriole in the news and on the internet that it's hard to concentrate on the game. Anyway, in this game...Boston hasn't gotten into the scoring much yet...and I wish Lexie Hull would make some more of her shots! Also, I'd be happy if Raven Johnson could shake off what must be some kind of nerves and play up to her potential. Even though Boston didn't do a whole lot of scoring this game, it occurs to me that even though I didn't like her attempting to be a point-center and handling the ball a lot, one thing about Boston has made a gigantic difference in the Fever's performance this year...that is Boston's outside shooting. She is a definite threat to score from outside and that is often a decisive factor in games. Anyway, the Fever did finally pull away to beat the Tempo and, as I mentioned, Clark and Mitchell both did their thing...again.

9/13/26...

I looked up the box score for the US vs France...the US won by a lot. Caitlin Clark played just 13 minutes and was 8th in minutes played. That's all I need to know...and I hate all the people involved in the system that denied the best player in the world from playing...and just for spite, they decreased Clark's playing time each game in response to the criticism. Did I mention how much I hate so much of USA basketball and the WNBA? I'd be pleased to no end if Caitlin Clark just up and quit the league...maybe to play in Australia and/or one of the European leagues if she really wants to continue playing the game. Heck, for the treatment they received, Bueckers, Reese and Howard should leave too...oh...and take Cunningham and Hull. Maybe I'll think of some others...Oh yeah...Lucy Olsen and every one of the Australian players and those who have played in the WNBL should all leave the WNBA...and Kate Martin...and Erica Wheeler....maybe Citron.. Actually that looks like a pretty good team right there! Another "big" would be nice. I do assume Han Xu would be included since she does play in the WNBL...I'm not absolutely sure about Boston...I like her so much but I don't know about her attitude...I'll leave that up to her to decide...might as well give Stuelke a shot while I'm setting up my super team of WNBA escapees. (This is several days later...I don't know what I was thinking...Timpson seems to be a really nice young woman...I want her to be one of the WNBA departees.) (...and added even later...as long as I'm thinking about players I like and who seem to play clean on and off the court...that I'd be happy to see outside the WNBA...Fagbenle, Mercedes Russel...oh, it looks like I haven't mentioned Kelsey Mitchell (I love her but I wish she would pass just a tad more)...maybe the breakaway group needs a coach, eh? How about Brondello? Maybe Lisa Bluder? Oh yeah...and that coach for the Valkyries looks good too.

9/12/26...

So I'm watching the France vs Germany game and I'm thinking that either one of these teams could have a chance to beat the US...although the US still has to get past Spain to make the finals and I don't know much about Spain's team. I have to say that I like the other teams more than I like the US team...they all just seem to be groups of better, nicer people than what looks like a bunch of arrogant thugs on the US team. However, if the US team would use a different, younger lineup, I'd like them a lot more.

So...I had to go out for a few hours...I got home and the Fever vs Spain was already over. I turned HBO Max to watch the game and what they had was a very abbreviated, very unsharp video of the game...I actually paid for this crap? The US won the game...so what? Caitlin Clark played the 8th most minutes. I think the US coaching staff is doing this on purpose because of all the criticism. I don't give a flying flip about watching the "veterans" play. Hell, I rather watch Angel Reese than seeing Stewart playing for herself all game. I watch to see the exciting play of Caitlin Clark. Basically, I don't care if the USA wins the final against France tomorrow if Clark doesn't have a chance to show her stuff...I hate this situation. The WNBA, the USA women's team, the coaches, the TV reporters...I hate it all. they're just a stinking heap of jealous also-rans. I wonder what the TV ratings would have been if Caitlin Clark had not been begrudgingly included on the team.

The US could probably have selected almost any combination of WNBA players for the team and still win the World Cup. Caitlin Clark is undoubtedly the most popular player in the world and the dipstick coaches refuse to let her play while her teammates are too jealous or stupid to even pass the ball to her when she's in the game. It's a damn travesty. So...I won't be watching the game tomorrow...unless I read in the box score afterwards that Caitlin Clark was a factor.

9/10/26...

Okay...I made a mistake. I had no clue when the US was playing Hungary so I was surprised it was already over...so I found the full game on YouTube. It was an awful video with parts of the court cut out and really bad resolution. Sometimes, when there was a shot made, the shooter wasn't even in the picture. Anyway, I did watch it. Even though Caitlin Clark had 20 minutes, it seemed like she was hardly ever on the floor. It was not a well-played game and the "starters" should stay home. Breanna Stewart is still doing whatever she wants on the court and mostly is a ball hog rather than a team player. As I always point out, Caitlin Clark should have had a lot more assists but her teammates keep missing shots! I do believe Clark is the best player out there and should be the MVP but since her coach won't even let her play her game, just like the Fever treat her, the MVP will probably go to Stewart. Angel Reese played a lot better than all the videos make her out to be. The Hungarian team had no chance in the game so the US team was never exposed for their poor play. By the way, Italy should have beaten the US and then they should have beaten Australia. Watching their games is a lot like watching the Valkyries. They're exciting and determined. It's sad to see them out of the tournament.

I watched parts of the other quarter-finals. I think Spain would need a tremendous shooting night to beat the US but either Germany or France could have a good chance at beating the US. Both of those teams play a lot more like a team than the old guard on the US team.

9/7/26...

Watching the US vs Czechia with the sound turned off...can't stand to hear the constant bullshit about Aja Wilson and the praise of the US players while Caitlin Clark sits on the bench being blacklisted by the coaches, her team and the announcers. It looks like with 4 minutes left in the 1st quarter, Clark is finally in the game. So Clark played about 4 minutes in the 1st quarter...2 points, two assists (should have been more) and at least 1 rebound. It does look like Stewart is the featured player getting the most shots, points etc.

2nd quarter, Clark played the first 2 minutes and goes to the bench again. She would have had 2 more assists if they could make the shots. I didn't see anyone ever pass the ball to Clark....and with 3 1/2 minutes left in the 1st half Clark is back in the game. What a boring game this is. Clark missed a shot or two...nobody passes the ball to her. The entire thing seems to be to let Stewart do whatever she wants.

3rd quarter...Clark is not in the game. It's just more of the Breanna Stewart show. I'm just trying to fast-forward to se if Caitlin Clark gets back in. You all know by now that I only watch this stuff to see Caitlin Clark play. Something about that...I know players like Clark have to be on the court to get in a rhythm...in and out for a few minutes at a time just doesn't do it...if she misses a couple of shots, it's no big deal because she'll make up for it as she stays on the floor...not in this case...because they won't let her play. The whole bunch of them is anti-Clark. Oh...6 minutes gone and Clark is back in the game. This is a runaway game but it sure would be a lot closer if the Czechian team could shoot better. I read that the Japanese team made 20, 3-pointers in a game. Maybe that can be a challenge for the US team.

4th quarter...Clark is not in the game...fast-forward a couple of minutes and Clark is back in. They left her in for the entire 7 1/2 minutes left in the game. She ended up with 9 points and 6 assists for her limited time. It's odd...despite Caitlin Clark playing in limited bursts of time, she still had more total minutes than most. I have to say I would not have watched any of these games if Caitlin Clark wasn't on the team...I never watched any of the Olympic stuff or anything else before.

9/6/26...

Trying to find the USA vs Italy game...it's nowhere! I finally gave in and signed up for HBO Max just to see this game but I'll cancel right away if the other games are not on this site. There'd are so may places where you have to sign up and pay for various games and none of them carry all the games of any particular team. It's freeking highway robbery! Anyway, a few minutes in and Caitlin Clark is not in the game. She's the only reason I watch this stuff! Oh...one kinda funny thing...so often, when I see Breanna Stewart, I think it's Caitlin Clark...she just looks like an oversized Clark on the court. As far as the other players...I don't give a flip...and I'd rather not ever see Angel Reese...she's kinda scary...her weird, toothy, phony looking smile is freaky and her attitude is in the gutter...and she looks like she can't jump and is uncoordinated...and can't shoot. I noticed the Italy coach just screaming at one of his players...he's an asshole. And coaches? Who the heck are the USA coaches?...and what the heck?...Stephanie White is one of them??? More than 6 minutes gone and Caitlin Clark is just getting in the game with the score 8-56, USA up by 2. I thin Clark had only one point in the first half and she's finally getting back in the game with a little more that 6 minutes to go in the 3rd and the USA up by only 3. So...the game ended. Use won by an eyelash. Caitlin Clark didn't play much and when she did, she missed a lot of shots. It was not a good game. I kind of noticed that Chelsey Gray has knock-knees and that nobody on the USA team shot well...in fact they were awful. I think I wasted a lot of money on this game. Caitlin Clark scored 1 point, went 0 for 6 shooting, had 4 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal...the worst performance of her entire life. in fact, it looks like the entire US team had their worst games of their careers. Clark tied for the 5th most minutes in the game (19). Rhyne Howard barely played at all. Aside from the horrific shooting, it looks like there's a real problem with the coaching.

On the plus side, they play again tomorrow. On the minus side, it looks like the coaches and teammates of Caitlin Clark seem to be incapable of seeing what so many millions of other people can see plainly...that Caitlin Clark is the best basketball player on the planet...all they have to do is let her do her thing on the court. Of course they will not allow that to happen.

9/4/26...

I watched the USA against China the other day. I was looking forward to seeing Han Xu and the other, extremely tall player. It was good that Caitlin Clark did some scoring and assisting. Breanna Stewart and Rhine Howard looked unstoppable too...and I even enjoyed seeing Paige Bueckers hitting her mid-range shots...but there really is no one in Caitlin Clark's league. One thing that looked a bit different was that it looked like the USA players were not wearing their blond wigs and heavy makeup...now, they can go ahead and cut their nails too. I can't imagine any team beating the US team but the coaches and their choices of who plays can significantly impact the outcome...like not playing Clark enough.

8/28/26...

Now I'm watching the Fever against the Sun and the Fever have not started well. Caitlin Clark has already been denied at least 4 assists as her teammates haven't made their shots. I think it's a real upgrade to have Mercedes Russel replacing Dantas...even though I do like Dantas too. It looks like Kelsey Mitchell will have no problem getting her 20 points again. Oh wow...the Fever completely took over in the 2nd quarter. Then they just ran away with the game. I was a bit surprised about one aspect of the Suns' game...as I recall, the Suns were a somewhat dirty team in the past but except for the kinda creepy looking coach, they played a clean and spirited game...although if Griner had played it might have been different. Boston was a sort of non-factor in the game while Timpson continues to grow. Darn...I wish Lexie Hull won't stop missing so many shots...and speaking of missing shots, Clark should have had 16 or more assists to go with her 34 points. Kelsey Mitchell also had 34 but there's not the same excitement with her game as Clark's...actually, it's not even close...and along that line, I personally think Clark is the hands-down MVP in the WNBA. As to her value to the league, there can be no question. As to whether her play is MVP, I think so, although I have to admit I haven't seen all that much of Aja Wilson this year. I wouldn't be too upset if Wilson is voted as the MVP but if she isn't, it sure better be Caitlin Clark. I should mention that the anti-Clark jealous biased sports world will probably continue to deny just how good she is and will select Wilson...or anyone but Caitlin Clark. another thing that's kind of odd...I just learned the schedule is being interrupted by the World Cup tournament. That's just plain weird.

I want to comment on Angel Reese...I don't think she's quite as bad as so many videos make her out to be but I do think she's a horrible athlete from those videos I have seen. It looks like she can't jump. It looks like she's uncoordinated and can't shoot. It looks like her lack of coordination makes her a very bad ball handler and dribbler. It looks like she's a dirty player. It looks like she's a constant whiner. It looks like she's completely full of herself, as though she believes all the media hype that she helped create about herself...and speaking of that media hype...I don't care that she gets a lot of rebounds, some by pushing her own teammates away and others by grabbing he own missed shots...she claims that she is the best player in the WNBA and the media keeps heaping praise on her. I would never spend a penny to see her play and I'd be happy to never see or hear anything about her for the rest of my life. As I said, she probably isn't all that bad but I don't think she should be in the league for so many reasons. Maybe she could just settle into a rebounding role like Dennis Rodman. Maybe she could get her rebounds and immediately pass the ball out to actual shooters...never even attempt a shot herself. Maybe then I think she would be adding value to her team. Oh yeah, and it would be nice if she would stop acting like some kind of fashion model on the court. It's a damn basketball game. For players like Reese and several others to have long nails and wigs is a just a joke. She and players like Carrington should not be allowed to play in the league if they can't respect the game and other players. The league should establish rules to keep the game clean and get rid of the assaults that take place on the court. I know no one ever reads this so I thought I'd just get it written down for the heck of it.

8/23/26...

Watching the Fever vs Liberty the day after...too many missed free throws...too many missed shots that would have been Clark assists. When I saw the headlines before watching, I thought the ending was going to be exciting. It wasn't. The Fever was out of it near the end. They were not playing much throughout the game with Clark leading the offense and it showed. Mitchell got her 20 points but big deal now. I think the Fever team has to let Clark run the offense..but in the end they still could have won the game if they could make their free throws...and whatever happened to the great connection Boston and Clark had, with pick-and-rolls, setting screens and such...and how is it that Boston no longer plays center but instead seems to be trying to be a primary ball handler? I have to say that I really do like the New York team...the players. I wish they had kept their coach though.

8/23/26...

Yeah it's still 8/23...I'm trying to watch the Fever vs Sky game on the internet with the stupid bubble in the middle of the screen. I've mentioned how much I like some of the other teams...the Sky is not one of them...Sheldon and Carrington come to mind as players I'd rather never see playing against Clark and the Fever...and why the hell is a basketball player all dressed up with a long blond wig and silly eyelashes? Actually, I think Carrington is a great athlete...I just don't understand the costume...and why in heck didn't Carrington get a technical foul called against her for taunting Clark right in front of the referee??? I do really like most of the other Sky players though. This is 2 games in less than 24 hours for the Fever. Yee gods...even having to watch with a big bubble over the screen, they still show split-screen ads during play...and...they're not even showing the full screen anyway...the players on the two sides of the screen and at the bottom aren't even in the picture, with or without the damn ball! My TV doesn't get the channel this game is shown on. It's really frustrating being unable to afford cable or any of the incredible number of services I'd have to subscribe to in order to see each game. Somehow I thought that paying for the WNBA League Pass was all I needed...nope. Anyway, the game ended and the all the Fever players were outstanding. Mitchell got her 20 again...Clark had lots of 3's, points and assists and Hull finally had a chance to contribute to the scoring. Timpson is developing into a real force at both ends of the quart...and I hope I'm not saying that too soon. Where was Boston? Oh...and I have to remind my millions of readers that I watch this stuff because of Caitlin Clark...and I was not disappointed today.

I have to say something about something...I don't understand why there is such animosity toward Cunningham. As I recall, she made some statement or something about how only girls should be in the WNBA. I'm not sure what's wrong with that. It is the "W" NBA. Maybe I'm missing something, eh? Maybe it has to do with males who identify as female and think they should play against the women. I don't know enough to make any sense of it. It just seems to me that regardless of what a person thinks they are or claim to be, if they are physically male they should be competing in a men's league. I don't know...is there some gray area between male and female?...and who are the people who are booing Cunningham for taking her stand in support of females? There must be more to the story than I understand.

8/21...

Watching League Pass the day after the Fever vs Wings game...about half way through the 4th and it sure looks like the Wings have this game in hand. Mitchell has been getting her points but Caitlin Clark has not. She's been a bit quiet shooting...and she's been fouled a lot (even tackled at one point) but they haven't been called. Shepard has been a scoring machine and Quier has been amazing. I do like this Dallas team. Oh yeah...and they do have Arike too! I have to say I'm a bit surprised how much hype there is about Bueckers...she's just kind of boring with mostly pull-up fadeaway, midrange jump shots. Okay...the game ended and Dallas did win. Clark and Cunningham shot badly! Clark had only 10 points but did have 9 assists. Cunningham mad zero shots. You just can't win if you can't shoot the darn ball. The best team certainly won this game.

I watched a couple of YouTube videos after the game. Apparently, there's a lot that goes on that I don't notice. Kelsey Mitchell's ball-hogging and stat-padding is encouraged by White and the continued denial of passes to Clark by Mitchell and Boston is detrimental to the Fever's game. Basically, it seems, there is a concerted effort to avoid running the offense through Clark and it really is undeniable that Clark is the best the league has ever seen. It does get tiring to see Mitchell running around, dribbling so much. Her performance and that of the entire team would improve if she were to play as a member of the team rather than one-on-five so much. Wasting the talents of Caitlin Clark due to petty jealousies and a desire to pump up Mitchell, due to her (Clark) not being black and/or lesbian is very costly to the team's success. Also, the animosity toward Cunningham because of her political and social stand is detracting from success. I have to say in that regard, I don't care at all what a person's sexual preference is. It should have nothing to do with basketball. I absolutely love watching a lot of the players who are, apparently, gay. However, I do abhor seeing some players all decked out with wigs, fake eyelashes, fake nails and so on. It's basketball game!

8/18/26...

Fever vs Tempo...I don't have any of the paid broadcast systems but I do have the WNBA League Pass. I was trying to watch the game on YouTube but they're showing it with a big bubble thing in the middle of the screen. I suppose they have to do that to avoid being taken down. Oh, and the camera angle only shows a small portion of the court. I kept trying other YouTube sites but couldn't find one that hasn't been blacked out. So even though I was sort of tuned in for the entire 1st quarter, I'll try again in the morning with the League Pass re-broadcast. It's just plain stupid and annoying that there's no one single source that carries all the games. If there was (besides League Pass replays), I would probably sign up...but there's no way I can pay for a shitload of different subscriptions like ESPN, ABC, CBS, WNBA, Disney, Amazon Prime and so on. It's bullshit. When I watch the Australian league, I have to set my VPN to an Australian location and the games are broadcast on regular TV...at least so far.

I did watch the game on League Pass...after I finally figured out how to get rid of the Spanish broadcast. Mitchell is injured or something...I hope she's okay because she is absolutely great. I might even put her ahead of Clark for MVP...although I do believe Clark is definitely the most valuable player in the league, overall. Sykes played a tremendous game and Mabrey was amazing. Clark got her points and not enough assists...and had some really unnecessary turnovers. Unfortunately I knew the score before I watched it. Oh...Fagbenle is one of my favorite players and I do like their coach and team in general...it just was a little too "chippy" for a while. Apparently Mabrey is most at fault for the animosity during the game...any time someone can elicit anger and finger-pointing from Kelsey Mitchell, there must be something very bad going on!

8/16/26...

Okay...so today's Fever against the Dream...it was on TV but I thought it was 4 PM my time. I was wrong. So I finally found what I think is the full game on YouTube...in Spanish! I only recognize a few words but that's okay because I sometimes watch the away games with the sound off because I don't like the announcers. I tried to avoid seeing the final score...first I thought Atlanta won...then I think the Fever win in OT...I'm not sure. Right now the score is 8-6 and one thing I was looking forward to is seeing if Angel Reese is as bad as all the videos I've seen...or as good as I thought she was. So far, just into the game she has a turnover, a missed shot and 2 missed layups. I saw one play where she passed the ball to the perimeter and raced to the basket without ever looking to see if a pass might be coming back to her. She took herself completely out of the offensive scheme to go for a rebound. (I'll go back to the game now.) Oh...before I forget...I really want Lexie Hull to practice shooting. I know her main focus is on her tenacious defense but if she would please make some of her shots it would make a huge difference. Another thing...as I recall, the Dream is one of the teams with violent players...even Reese is a bit of a thug on the court...so I worry about Clark and the rest of the Feverettes' safety. I think I just noticed that Borlaise I think that's the name) is on the Dream team...as I recall she was great in the Australian league. Halftime...and Atlanta is up by 4. I don't know how that happened. I think Reese has been mostly a non-factor thus far...and she claims to be the best player in the league. As play goes on in the 3rd...Atlanta has a really good team...PaoPao (sp?) ad Alisha Gray...wow. Reese whines a lot. Clark was smacked in the face and the foul was called on her!...end of 3rd and the Fever are down by 8. I noticed that Reese isn't all painted up with makeup and doesn't have foot-long eyelashes. That's a nice surprise. Okay...the Fever did win in OT. The next best part was Kelsey Mitchell getting her 20 points! Maybe I'll add to this tomorrow...but as I always say...Clark would have had a lot more assists if her teammates could shoot those easy baskets and catch her passes. I have to say...it shows what I know...Timpson shot the lights out! I think Mercedes Russell is a really good addition...I remember seeing her before.

8/14/26...

So right now I'm watching the Fever against the Wings...Simpson keeps mishandling passes and missing shots! Every Fever is missing shots. I think Clark should have at least 5 more assists right now. Bueckers is scoring a lot of midrange shots and the announcers keep talking about how good she is...but those 10 to 12 foot jumpers are just plain boring. Clark and all the Fever players are shooting horribly. This is awful...so many missed layups! I think the Fever should be able to bury the Wings. Oops...I take that back. It looked like Alicia Clark somehow injure CaitlinClark's ankle and she (Caitlin) just limped straight into the locker room. Just starting the 2nd half...Timpson is a real offensive liability! Watching Arike...she is one of my favorites and I can't understand why she was not one of the All Stars. So...early in the 4th quarter...just keep Timpson on the bench...she hasn't been able to catch the ball, dribble the ball or shoot the ball...it's not her day. I was just thinking...aside from the problem with Timpson being unable to catch and handle passes (I think Boston can handle almost any pass heading her way), she has to stop dribbling near or under the basket. She needs a crash course from Jan Jensen!

8/12/26...

I finally managed to watch the Fever game against the Liberty on League Pass the day after. I just have a few comments...first, I really do like the Liberty team because they are not just a bunch of WNBA thugs. I like all their players. I did notice that Stewart was a bit rowdy, throwing her hands up, flailing her head back and flagrantly pushing opponents with two hands. I just adored the Kelsey Mitchell interview during the game when she had such a sweet, honest smile. She's so likable. I also appreciated the interview with Billings because she was well-spoken, thoughtful and nice. Cunningham blocked a Han Shu shot! Just a reminder...I watch this stuff because of Caitlin Clark...and I do appreciate so many other players that I never would have seen otherwise. Clark would have had a lot more assists (as usual) if her teammates could make shots...and also if Timpson was able to catch her passes. It was a good win...next up is Atlanta and, as I recall, they have some of those nasty violent players. Oh...maybe the Wings are next.

8/8/26...

Okay, just started watching the Fever/Sky game...I realized Sheldon is on that team and wondered about the safety of the Fever players, especially Clark, because Sheldon is such a thug at times against Clark...then, in comes Carrington and I remembered just how good she is...and she really is a great athlete...but I was wondering what is the point of getting all dressed up with a blond wig, long fake eyelashes and nails...like isn't this a freeking basketball game? Then...and this is when I paused the game to write this...Carrington hammers Cunningham in the face and gets ejected and she looks so surprised. This is a basketball game, not a dating show or a fashion show...it's a basketball game and it's not a back alley where you can assault someone. Back to the game...the Fever are missing a lot of shots!...and Clark has been on the bench for a while's the quarter comes to an end...? So...the Fever hung on long enough to win, Clark and Mitchell did their thing...and it was a kind of sloppy game at times. Sometimes I think Boston is trying too hard to be a point guard and sometimes she makes wrong decisions as to when and where to pass or shoot. I was watching this on YouTube on Fly Hippie's site...and he was a mentioning something about Carrington claiming something about white privilege being the reason why she was thrown out of the game. Hey!...I'm a very old white guy. I just enjoy watching these great athletes and I don't give a flip about their color. actually, except for the attitude and the weird costumes she wears, Carrington happens to be one of my favorites because she's just so darn good at the game.

8/7/26...

The Fever lost to the Lynx a few days ago...I don't even remember much about it but I suppose the Lynx had the better team and Caitlin Clark did fine.

Today I watched the game against the Aces. I had to wait for it to be a replay on the WNBA League Pass because I couldn't find anyone showing on YouTube when it was live. Unfortunately, I already knew the outcome so there wasn't the stress as the game came to an end. Caitlin Clark didn't shoot all that well but still had her points and assists (which, as usual, would have been a lot more if her teammates could shoot). Aside from all else, the one thing that I thought was astounding was that the Fever did not foul immediately when they were up by three points with five seconds left. There's a guy who shouts throughout his posts on YouTube about how badly coached the Fever defense is. I think his videos are called "awful coaching". I don't know enough about the sport to say whether he's right or wrong but it seems to make sense to me, the way he breaks down plays and claims it's all due to inept coaching. I suppose players have to be taught the best fundamentals to follow on defense and that pure hustle and desire is not always enough. Just another unrelated comment...I find it interesting that players like Bonner and Alyssa Smith did not want to play for the Fever and showed very little effort...but on other teams, they step back up to their potential. Maybe I was wrong about thinking I might be wrong about Stephanie White. Maybe some of the stuff being hurled through the internet about how awful the entire coaching and management staff of the Fever are is correct. I don't know...I just watch the games to see Caitlin Clark perform and, as a result of watching her so much, I've definitely learned to appreciate, follow and watch so many of her past and current teammates.

Something I was thinking about...so...I definitely enjoy watching and following so many players I've been exposed to since Caitlin Clark appeared on my radar. It's like I can almost think of them all as my own daughters and I feel elated and proud when they perform. ( I have to say...I don't have any daughters...only sons...and it's more accurate for me to think of them all as granddaughters or even great-granddaughters since I do have a fifteen-year-old great-grandson). Anyway, one thing I've realized is that if I read some of the things on the internet about any aspect of the game...players, coaches, managers, owners...it is distracting and depressing. It sways my opinions and viewpoints. For example, all I see of Angel Reese is how awful she is, unathletic, selfish and so on...they consistently make a a joke out of her and then I wonder how in the world she could be on the US national team...but the few times I've seen her play...she's darn good. All that other stuff in the media is meaningless. That applies to the entire league, top to bottom. What I need to do is not read or watch any of that nonsense...that way I can simply watch and enjoy the games and form my own opinions about who is playing well on a given day...or who needs help with something. I have to avoid all the fog of media garbage.

8/1/26...

Was I wrong about the conflict between Caitlin Clark and Stephanie White? Near the end of the Fever's game against the Fire, it seemed extremely obvious that White put Clark in, and ran a play designed for her to drop the ball in to Boston. It worked...and Clark had her triple-double! Stat padding for sure...and I don't mind. Also, it looks like, with Clark healthy, she is completely in charge of the offense. Anyway, it was a great performance (offensively) for the Fever....not so much, defensively. Funny...I don't remember if Hines-Allen ever got in the game. I'd be happy if every player on the team was in every game. Cunningham's shooting has been spectacular lately.

7/30/26...

I haven't made any comments about the recent two games. It's just that Caitlin Clark is doing everything I expect of her and the team is too. I'm enjoying the heck out of it. I do hope it continues but there are a lot of good teams ahead, loaded with great athletes. All the side-show theatrics and politics of the WNBA are a bit much to take.

7/22/26...

Well the Fever had their way with a completely overmatched Suns' team. Caitlin Clark led scoring and assists and didn't play in the 4th quarter. The entire team played well. I do have an issue with the announcers...at one point they were saying that Clark should be prepared for such physical play because the opposition would naturally go after someone who is such a scoring threat. That's bull. I don't see Mitchell being attacked and she has been scoring as much or more than Clark. I do watch the games just to witness the exciting play of Caitlin Clark...all she has to do to keep me happy is make one three-pointer...I have learned to appreciate most of the other Fever players and want them all to do well. Mitchell certainly puts up enough numbers to be in the MVP conversation but I still prefer the excitement of Clark...although it does get a bit tiring to see her continually throwing her head back as though she's just been slapped in the face, even though nothing like that happened...it's an awful lot like flopping. I guess she's no saint.

7/17/26...

So...I watched the first half of the Fever against the Seattle Storm...but I had an important phone call and I don't know what happened the rest of the game...I'll try to watch a replay later, I suppose. Anyway, in that first half, Mitchell had a lot of points, Boston did not play and Caitlin Clark seemed to be her normal self with almost 20 points and 5 assists which, as usual would have been more if her teammates could shoot the ball. I think Clark played less than 13 minutes in the half. They say it's the medical staff that determines how much playing time she gets but I just don't know about that...I think it's more a coach's decision. With the Fever allowing the Storm to be only 3 points down at the half, I wish I knew more about basketball to make a sensible comment about the piss poor defense the Fever always seems to have. The other day, I listened to a guy shouting on YouTube about all the basic and obvious mistakes the Fever players make on defense. If there's any truth to all that, it seems the coaching staff is at fault for not establishing proper defensive playmaking. In the game against the Valkyries, it was obvious that the Fever were the inferior team on defense. Anyway, in today's first half, the Storm looked like there are some really great players...I remember how good Jade Melbourne was playing in last year's Australian league.

Okay...I watched the second half. It was a nail-biter but wow...Caitlin Clark ended up with 45 points, 6 3-pointers and 10 assists...plus she had 4 steals and 2 blocks...amazing. That's why people go to see her play. Oh yeah, and even though Kelsey Mitchell had a couple of lulls during the game, she still had 30 points...she can flat out score...and it looks like nobody can guard her. However, speaking of guarding...the Storm definitely did not go after Clark, defensively, like so many other teams do. I suppose with another game tomorrow, this time against New York, Boston will probably play and Clark probably won't. I hope she does, though.

7/15/26...

The Valkyries just plain outplayed the Fever. They were better coached, shot, better, defended better and, played as a team...organized, not flustered...and...something of note...they are not a bunch of thugs on the court like so many other WNBA teams. What's not to like about the Valkeries? Also, it looks like every player is capable of shooting the ball from anywhere as opposed to the Fever. The Fever have too many players who don't even consider shooting the ball sometimes...it's definitely not a team on the same level, overall, as the Valkyries. Early on in the game, I noticed the Fever were missing lots of easy shots, so I kept track of it during the game...the Fever missed more than 30 makable shots! You can't expect to win if you can't score. Caitlin Clark looked a bit rusty although she did play a bit more minutes than she has been. Mitchell didn't run away with the game and Cunningham came back to Earth in her shooting. All in all, the Fever were beaten by a much better team...and I'd rather have their coach than ours.

7/12/26...

I missed the game against the Phoenix team. I noticed it was a close win. clark didn't play. Yesterday, the Aces beat the same Phoenix team by 48 points and today the Aces play against the Fever with Caitlin Clark still on a minutes restriction. Also, Justine Pissot will be playing for the Aces. She never even played a single minute for the Fever but scored 19 points in just 10 minutes in her first game ever in the WNBA. It's so difficult to understand what's going on with the Fever. There's so much conflicting information about whether the coach should leave or if they should Trade Clark. It's all sickening to me. From what I see, I do believe either Clark or White should leave immediately and I do wonder why the hell the Fever let Pissot go (and kept Dantas). I kind of expect the Aces to completely blow out the Fever today. Oh...and I thought I should mention...perhaps again...with all the internet talk of Caitlin Clark up for trade...there seems to be a few possibilities...New York, Los Angeles and Toronto. I like the coach in Toronto and she likes Clark. I like the Liberty team but don't know much about the new coach. I think I like a lot of the Sparks players...isn't that where Kate Martin is now? I'd probably switch alliances to any team Clark goes to...but whichever it is, there'd be an awful lot they's have to give up to get Caitlin Clark. I just hope SOMETHING happens...Clark or White...White or Clark. Somebody has to go.

Okay...it's still Sunday and the Fever just destroyed the Aces. This shows how much I don't know about basketball. Clark is still on a "minutes restriction" but she still managed 12 pts, 6 assists and 7 rebounds...as usual, she would have more assists if her teammates could catch her passes and if they could make the darn easy baskets. I did enjoy the game and it's good when Clark plays so that I get a chance to see Mitchell, Boston, Hull and Cunningham...I don't watch when Clark is out. I'm also beginning to recognize the talents of some of the other players. I think it's strange that Mitchell plays so many minutes when the game is basically over...somebody said it's stat-padding.

7/8/26...

Wow...just for the heck of it, I checked to see if Caitlin Clark was playing against the Sparks tonight...she is! The game hasn't started yet but Boston is out.. Looking at the starting lineups, I just smiled to see Erica Wheeler's smiling picture. I miss her. So the Fever were completely beaten. Clark didn't play much. It's too bad I wasted the time watching the game. The Fever were disjointed and looked like they all just met each other. Mitchell, while she's such a great athlete (and shooter), simply dribbled and ran all over the place. I can only imagine what it was like when Wheeler and Mitchell were together before Clark showed up. Lexie Hull played her usual, inspired game and Cunningham seemed injured Most of the other Fever players are kind of nameless to me. Basically, it really was a bore. Tomorrow, they play again and they say Clark will not play but Boston will. I'll check out the box score after that game.

7/3/26...

I just read that Caitlin Clark will not be playing against the Aces this weekend...so I won't be watching. I really do like seeing Mitchell.Hull, Boston and Cunningham play but...I just can't watch with Clark out. Also...there are some players I really hate to watch...among them are Stewart and Wilson...they definitely receive "special whistle" treatment...if anyone touches them, there's a foul called. They are both great players but the special treatment they receive is too unbearable to watch.

6/28/26...

I didn't watch the Fever's game against the Sparks. Apparently. the Fever won by a wide margin...but even though I like all the players and want them to do well, my primary interest is in Caitlin Clark...and she was out. The continued violence in the WNBA and the total lack of unbiased control by the officials makes the league unwatchable for me. There are players like Wilson and Stewart who seem to have special whistles while others are treated with blind eye from the referees. The league is entirely too violent and unfair for some players while favoring others. I've watched a lot of college games and a lot of Australian games and there's a huge difference in the way physical play is allowed. All of a sudden, I've heard that some well known athletes outside the WNBA are saying Clark should just quit the WNBA and go to Europe. This is not a new idea. I (and many others) have been proposing this for a long time. Actually, I have never seen more than a few minutes of European basketball...if it's anything like Australian basketball, it would be okay by me if Clark goes there. However, the WNBA can (and should) clean up its own act before Caitlin Clark decides to leave. The NCAA and probably every league other than the WNBA manages to control the violence. I've watched every Caitlin Clark game I can find on the internet, from high school to college to the pros...and I've enjoyed seeing her progress every step of the way. I'm ready to throw in the towel and be satisfied with her performance throughout these years. I don't really care if she goes to another league right now. I know she is and has been the most remarkable athlete to ever play women's basketball...so let the WNBA crumble...let Caitlin Clark bow out. She probably doesn't need the money...she can play golf and enjoy life before the WNBA completely destroys her, physically.

6/24.26...

Fever lost to the Mercury today. Caitlin Clark was scoring well and having lots of assists but (supposedly) had back pain and only played 20 minutes. They're not much of a team without Clark...actually, they're only a mediocre team with Clark. This was a competitive game played by two middle-of-the pack teams. Still...I watch because of Caitlin Clark and when she's in the game, she does not disappoint. I do wonder if there's any truth to all the internet talk about the friction and game management philosophies of Clark and White...and what a bad coach White is. There's so much absolute garbage on the internet that I never really know anything for sure. As an example of what I don't really know about truths...YouTube is ablaze right now with videos of Alyssa Thomas's fist in Caitlin Clark's throat and her knee to Clark's crotch. Some of them claim that Clark's back injury and failure to finish the game was a result of that. Others say that Clark was benched for making a bad pass. Some are irate that the officials didn't even call a foul on the play where they claim Clark was assaulted and that Thomas should be suspended and legally charged with assault. Somewhere in all of that is the truth...but I just have no way of knowing. I'm sort of going to see ConvosWithCarter's input...but I think he might not even mention it.

6/23/26...

Wow! Three points in a quarter! (Yes, I know Mitchell scored in the last second but it sure felt like only three points.) Caitlin Clark brought them back in the 2nd quarter and I have no idea why the team can't play like that all the time. There is something very wrong with the Fever. While it was exciting to see all the fighting going on later in the game, the downside is that these two teams play again tomorrow and I can only expect every body contact will be called as a foul. Clark and Boston will be at greatest risk...and they have to be on the floor for the team to have a chance at winning. Oh...and I suppose Hines-Allen will be out, due to her being ejected.

6/20/26...

Oh no...the Fever play the Dream again today. I just don't see how the Fever can win. I think it will take some great shooting from unexpected sources...Lexie Hull has to score, Mitchell has to hang on to the ball and pass a few times, they all have to make the shots that should be made and Boston and Clark have to stay out of trouble. So...it's halftime...there have been lots of questionable fouls called...the Fever team has missed lots of layups...but lead by four. Clark had a ton of points in the 1st and Mitchell had a ton of points in the 2nd...it looks to me like the Dream will probably outlast the Fever in this game that doesn't have much defense going on...also, the Fever players have not stayed out of foul trouble. The 3rd quarter was totally awful for the Fever...too many fouls, missed shots, turnovers...maybe some questionable decisions by the Fever coach. I don't see the Fever having the fire power to pull this out, down by 10...unless someone gets really hot on the team and the Dream falls apart. So...the 4th quarter looks even worse for the Fever than the third. I turned it off and won't watch any more of it. I'll have a look at the box score later. The Fever is not a complete and coordinated team. Too bad. By the way, to me it looks like Caitlin Clark's performances in the early parts of the game are great...and then she is sort of a non-factor later on. Is she tired? Does the team's game plan change? Also...and to belabor something I keep saying...I think the team's offense is much better when Boston posts up and doesn't try to be a primary ball handler or perimeter player. Uh...again, I have a fleeting expectation that I'll read Stephanie White has been let go. Certainly, something has to change with this team!

6/18/26...

A loss to the Dream! The Fever were mostly out it the entire game but always had a chance...oh well. I have to remind myself that I watch these games to see and because of Caitlin Clark. She did not disappoint. The only thing that concerned me about the game was the continued poor shooting by Lexie Hull. I really want more of her shots to fall so she doesn't become a liability in spite of her defensive work. That's about all I have to say about the game. I suppose (and hope) someone like Carter (ConvosWithCarter) will be able to properly analyze the game and point out nuances that I didn't notice. One thing I did notice...the phony, showboat hugging again with Stephanie White and Clark.

6/17/26...

The Fever finally had a clear win...this time, over the Tempo. I did get a chance to see Fagbenle but she wasn't so good as she seemed to be with the Fever...I guess she needs someone like Caitlin Clark....and speaking about Clark, her outside shot is missing but she did get enough points and LOTS of assists...I think, with her scoring and assists, she accounted for 60 points. Lexie Hull's energy and defense are important to the team and I wish she would make more of her shots...maybe the effort on the other end affects her shooting....and speaking of shooting...Sophie Cunningham seems to arrived from some other planet...amazing...exciting! Maybe I was slightly wrong about Boston's ball handling ability but I'd still rather have her post up and go back to the pick-and-roll more often with Clark...and why the heck is Mitchell not able to catch passes? Anyway, the Fever did look good this game...maybe because the Tempo did look bad.

6/14/26...

Yesterday, the Fever beat the Sun. While they did get past Jacy Sheldon without serious assault, it wasn't so good against Griner who got away with some serious violence. I have to repeat, though...Caitlin Clark's habit of flailing her head and body back when opponents are anywhere near her is no different than flopping on the floor. It's phony and obvious. That habit of hers and her sticking out the tongue, I find extremely distasteful. (Sorry to make a negative comment about my all-time favorite athlete.) The game against the Sun was typical of Fever games in that they should have won in a rout but somehow managed to make it close...until Cunningham exploded onto the court at the end. That was quite the show. I wish Lexie Hull would make a few more shots so she can justify her time on the court a little more...maybe it's enough that her energy and defense make a huge difference every game. Clark's scoring seems to be settling in, possibly due to the tighter control on fouls this year...and if her teammates could make the easy shots more reliably, she'd have a tremendous number of assists. I do watch the WNBA and women's basketball overall just because of Caitlin Clark and she does not disappoint. I also appreciate so many other great athletes that I never would have seen if not for Clark.

6/11/26...

I'm watching the Fever against the Sky...and the Fever had a big lead that slipped away by half time. I do like the Sky's team...especially Skyler Diggins...she's one of my favorites...the way she moves or something. Except for Jacy Sheldon who always seems to be to violent. Clark played the entire first quarter and scored, assisted and rebounded well...I don't know what changed in the second quarter in the Fever offense but it sure looked bad. I just have to say...if I haven't before...even though I think Mitchell often dribbles around too much, I think she is an absolutely incredibly, gifted athlete and her physical coordination is just plain astounding at times. I definitely have to look up information about that girl, Taylor, on the Sky...just an amazing game for her. But Hines'Allen...what a force she is! So...the game finally ended...the Fever sure don't make it easy!

6/8/26...

So, I was trying to watch the Fever against the Mystics on various Youtube streams. It's not easy. There are lots of ads and pauses and it's really frustrating. Also, Caitlin Clark was called for her third foul on a particularly questionable (in my opinion) play. I'll try to watch the second half tomorrow on the League Pass on my TV...so don't tell me the final score. Now, with Clark having 3 fouls and doing a lot of sitting, I don't find much to watch of the game, anyway. I like watching Hines-Allen, Hull and Cunningham....and Boston (sort of). I can't stand seeing Mitchell racing around with the ball and I don't care if she scores or not...even though she's an incredible basketball player...it's just plain boring to watch. In fact, without Clark in the game AND running the offense, I don't find the game very interesting at all. There's something very wrong about how the Fever play.

Okay...right now it's the next day and I'm trying to watch the second half of Fever/Mystics game. First...how in the world was the flagrant foul not called when Clark made a three? Also, t'snow the 4th quarter and it looks like there's lot of time left on this video...so maybe there's overtime to come. But...this game is chopped up so much by fouls, challenges and timeouts that neither team can possibly build up any consistency. It's highly unpleasant to watch. I'd like to see Mitchell stop running around with the ball...and I'd like to see Clark stay in the rest of the game. Oh...and I wanted to see Lucy Olsen in the game but the Mystics have such great guards that she may never get on the court. This game is in Washington and the announcers are completely pro-Mystics. It's annoying. This 4th quarter is just taking forever! Why the heck is Boston no longer playing any kind of post position? Clark just missed 2 free throws!? Now...4.3 seconds to go and the Fever down by one...it looks like yet another loss for the Fever and something has to be done about the offensive scheme...put Clark back in control! Holy crap! Caitlin Clark just hit a three!...a long three! I'm shocked...and pleased. Fever win.

6/7/26...

Well...the Liberty beat the Fever. I don't know what the Fever's game plan is...but it isn't working. I still want Clark and Boston to get back to what works with Boston not playing guard. Having Clark standing out on the wing doesn't work...Mitchell seems to forget she has teammates too often. The main thing I noticed is something I've mentioned many times before...when Stewart goes plowing into everyone near the basket, she always ends up with free throws. She's the one initiating all the contact and gets away with it every time. Why? I just don't get it...are the referees afraid to call her on it? Are they intentionally letting her do whatever she wants? Another main thing...Caitlin Clark should be running the damn offense!

6/5/26...

The Fever beat the Dream last night. I'm as about as far from a basketball guru as a person can be. However, for most of the game the Fever offense looked disjointed and without any clear plan. Even though Boston hit some outside shots, I'd rather she plays more of a post position to enable pick-and-rolls while keeping the threat of the outside shot so she can't be ignored out there...and is Dantas finished with the Fever? One thing that I noticed...Caitlin Clark looked like she was playing a frenzied, high energy defense. I had the impression that she must have lost the political battle with White as to who's in control...and that she has just given in to the foolish game plan of White's. In the long term this sort of play for Caitlin Clark will probably hurt the team. I want her to limit her defensive intensity and concentrate on scoring or assisting on the other end...That's what I watch the games to see...and Stephanie White hugging Caitlin Clark as she came off the court?...that looked so staged! It sounded like the announcers were again hyping up Raven Johnson as being more effective than Clark. I'm not satisfied with the overall play of the team. While it's obvious to me that the referees are calling more fouls this year, the sure do miss a lot of calls!...and they still may be biased. Oh...I have to mention a couple of things Caitlin Clark does that I just don't like...one is the tongue wagging like a Maori in a pregame Haka. It's gross. The other is how she keeps flinging her head back trying to get foul calls. That gets old after a while and makes her look cheap and silly....and another thing...there are rumors that Caitlin Clark will be traded to the LA Sparks. I don't know...maybe Toronto or even NY might be better...but if a major change has to be made, I'd rather see White gone.

6/1/26...

Before anything else, I have to write this...I watched 3/4 of last night's Fever game against the Portland Fire. (By the way, I watch the WNBA and NCAA women's basketball just because of Caitlin Clark.) I turned off the game after the 3rd quarter. The Fever were absolutely awful. Clark had 5 fouls and didn't play much...actually she was taken out after just a couple of minutes in the 1st quarter. I wondered about that. She had just scored and assisted in all points, leading to an 8 to 2 lead...and that was the end of it. During the part of the game I did watch, with the Fever being made to look like a bunch of 8th graders who never played together before, I was thinking that something drastic has to change...I was thinking the coach would be fired immediately. ..or severely reined in and disciplined by the team owners. Apparently, all the talk about the rift between Caitlin Clark and Stephanie White is true. A team can't ever expect to win games the way they're playing. The Portland Fire looked like every player was better than the Fever players in skill, desire and teamwork. What the heck is going on? Since when is Aliyah Boston primary ball handler? I don't want her to ever take more than two dribbles. I think the shift in play, having Boston trying to be a point center, point guard or point forward is stupid. If this offensive philosophy and game management is White's choice, she has to go. It doesn't matter to me so much if the Fever win every game. I tune in to watch Caitlin Clark's unmatched brilliance on the court and I've learned to appreciate all the players around her as well. However, if the Fever continue to disintegrate as they seem to be doing, there's no point in watching. Actually, it's painful to watch. Maybe Caitlin Clark can get away if the owners won't fire White. Last year, with all the violent play, I thought Clark would be better off getting out of the WNBA and playing in Australia or Europe. Now, with tighter officiating, I'm thinking Clark's greatest opponent is White, and I'd rather have her not play at all. Oh...I did read that the officiating wasn't fair in last night's game...I don't know about that. I just think that the Fever need to decide right now...is it Caitlin Clark's team or is it Stephanie White's? They can't have it both ways. I do hope to read, very soon today, that Stephanie White has been fired because the Fever, as they are now, look like the worst team in the WNBA. One more thing...I was hoping to see CovosWithCarter on YouTube for his take on the game but it's not there yet...and maybe he won't bother. I like his knowledge about the game...he's far, far beyond me in basketball. I think he avoids some of the distractions of personalities and concentrates more on the actual game. Anyway, I do hope he posts his comments.

5/30/26...

Okay, the Fever lost to the Valkyries. That's a really good team...and I don't know any of their names. I don't have much to say about the game except...why did Caitlin Clark only have 16 points? There's all kind of talk about the coach and the game plan...and there's talk about inconsistent officiating...like 10 or 12 fouls on Clark not called. I don't know. It came down to the wire...and the Fever lost. That's all I know. Oh yeah...Boston has to stay out of foul trouble. I think they play Portland today. In the preseason, I thought Portland looked awful but they sure seem to be winning against some good teams.

5/23/26...

The Fever beat the Valkyries. I had a difficult time watching this game because of a severe lag in my connection so I might rewatch parts of it later. Anyway, for a lot of the game I thought the Valkyries would win and I never dd see how the Fever regained control. However, Caitlin Clark did her thing and Boston and Mitchell did too. I'm not convinced that Boston should be handling the ball so much as a dribbler and I remember how effective her pick-and-roll offense with Clark works so well. Clark did get her share of fouls called on her so it's a good thing that fouls are being called more tightly this year. When I saw Hull get a technical foul, I could only think how the games would have been so much better in the past if the officiating was fair...I thought of Chennedy Carter's hit on Clark. Even though the fouls are being called, I wonder if such violent offenses like Carter's would result in more serious punishment now...like immediate ejection...or suspension...or would they still be just fouls? I think Kelsey Mitchell is a wild card in every game...a good wild card. It's like...the team is running an offense with everyone playing a proper role...except for Mitchell...she darts in and out of the play like they're all standing still and she's at warp speed. I don't think she can be guarded when she doesn't want to be and with Clark doing her magic, either scoring or assisting, the Fever can be unbeatable. Oh...I didn't see Dantas in the game. Maybe she's on the way out. There was also a new player...Van Slooten? I don't know anything about her. However, I think Anneli Maley is available...she would be great on the Fever team! Another thing...I didn't see any friction between Clark and White. I hope that's over with...and I hope Clark's back issues settle down. Hull and Cunningham are like clones of each other...with Hull a bit better on defense and Cunningham on offense. With Clark healthy, this really is a good team. Oh...something else...I really REALLY hate when Caitlin Clark sticks her tongue out! I think it's gross, childish, unappealing and self-demeaning. (I thought the same when Jordan used to do it too.)

5/20/26...2nd comment of the day...

So...I got home and turned on the Fever/Portland game about halfway into the first quarter...the Fever were up 19-13 or something like that. Caitlin Clark was not in the game.I watched for a while...long enough to see Boston dribble all the way up the court, get trapped and throw the ball away. She is not a ball handler! Stop it! What the heck is this team trying to do? Do they want her to forget how good she was working at the post? This is a really bad sign for the Fever. At the end of the quarter when I had still not seen Caitlin Clark, I looked it up...she's out for the game...and I'm out from watching it. I did see one thing that made me think a bit during the brief time I watched...There was a play where Hines-Allen (I think) received the ball about 2 or 3 feet from the basket...she dribbled once and then when up in traffic and scored. The thing I thought at that moment was how Jan Jensen and probably every other coach worth their salt taught players under the basket...do not dribble the ball...not even once...take a step if you need to, one way or the other but...do not bounce the ball...go up with the shot. You don't have to dribble the ball under the basket. You're right there...shoot the damn ball. I've seen the same thing with Boston and most of the bigs near the basket. Boston is not a point guard and should never dribble the ball anywhere near any defensive player...oh...I got side-tracked there...the point is, when a big is so close to the basket, do not put the ball on the floor! As to today's Fever game... I suppose they'll win and maybe I'll watch the replay tomorrow or something...I do still get some enjoyment watching Mitchell, Hull and Cunningham...I'm not sure yet about the rest of them...and as for Boston...if she's not going to play the same role she has played for so long, I don't care to see her play...I just cringe when she's trying to be a point-forward...or point-center. I wonder if Caitlin Clark is really injured...she barely played at the beginning of the 4th quarter of the last game...I wonder if there's something more to her absence...like maybe all the internet talk is correct...like maybe her being out is fallout from her clashes with White...some kind of political power play going on.

5/20/26...

Just to keep up with this stuff...I did watch the Fever beat Seattle. Caitlin Clark did all I could hope for and barely played at all in the 4th. While it would have been great if she triple-doubled, I understand the coach's decision to allow her the time to rest...if that was the really reason White took her out. There's an awful lot of criticism of the Fever coaches for how Clark is handled. I just don't know what is correct. Anyway, Mitchell continues to mount up the points and even had an assist! Hull and Cunningham both played an inspired game on both ends of the court...but what about the rest of the team? There's a lot of inconsistency. Also, if Boston comes back for today's game, I hope she doesn't still think she should be a ball handler and remembers how to set a screen and roll to the basket like the team needs her to do. I don't know what her lower leg injury, suffered during play with Unrivaled, is but it should be a lesson for her and every other WNBA player...if they consider the WNBA to be their primary focus, they should never put themselves at risk in the off-season. I do see an exception in Lucy Olsen's, Han XU's and a few others' case...they are not key players for their WNBA teams and can benefit from the additional play...XU and Olsen were outstanding in the WNBL as were several other current WNBA players which I'm pleased to see in the WNBA. Back to the Caitlin Clark/Stephanie White issue...it appears there's a lot of friction between them and how the offense should run...and the heated argument Clark had with one of the other coaches too is something that should not be happening. Whether it's Caitlin Clark or any other player, the coaches should never be the source of stress. The players have enough stress just playing the game without having more added by a coach. Another thing...I may be wrong but it sure looks to me like the WNBA has tightened up the officiating...although Clark hasn't run into the most violent thugs yet.

5/15/26...

I didn't have much to say about the Fever's win against the Sparks...they did almost manage to lose though. Clark and Mitchell got their points, Boston did not look very good and the team seemed somewhat disjointed. Today, the Fever lost to the Mystics. I was hoping to see Lucy Olsen but she never played a minute...but their other guards are really good...and their bigs completely outclassed the Fever's bigs. Mitchell and Clark were both pretty cold until the 4th and then, especially Caitlin Clark lit it up...and that is why I watch the games...it doesn't matter so much who wins...if Caitlin Clark makes just one three-pointer and gets some assists...that's all I need. Boston looked like she was huffin and puffin every early in the game...like she's just not in good shape...or she's sick or something. And...whatever happened to the unstoppable Fever play where Boston sets a screen at the top of the key, rests a pick olls to the basket and gets a pass from Clark for an easy score? Boston was dribbling the ball up the court...trying to make her own shots off the dribble...this is not how to win a game. If she plays like that, she's a liability. Let's get back to what works. From what I've seen so far, the Fever are just above half the teams I've seen...like maybe they get in the playoffs...but they're not a championship team...maybe that will change...that would be nice. Is it coaching decisions about how to play the game...or are the players not good enough? I kinda think it's mainly the coach's game plan that's at fault...why else would Boston think she's a point-center? Another thing...there were sure a lot of missed, easy shots by the Fever...Clark would have had several more assists if her teammates could shoot better. Actually, Clark's performance in the fourth quarter was astounding. Oh...right after the Fever game, the Sparks against the Tempo came on...I was able to see Kate Martin play for the few minutes she was in the game...and Erica Wheeler looks like she's just as fast as ever...I thought Fagbenle was with the Tempo but I didn't see her.

5/7/26...

What the heck! The Valkyries waived Miela Sowah and then resigned her to the practice squad. This is a person who can completely take over a game. Now...they also just waived Kate Martin...and they had previously gotten rid of Fagbenle. Unless Sowah is playing, I have no interest in that team. In fact, I hope they tank! Some team MUST pick up Martin....I'd want the Fever to have her but they are completely stacked at the guard position. With all the cuts still going on, I have hopes that Lucy Olsen will stay with the Mystics. It's no wonder that the new Portland team traded away Chloe Bibby. I watched their last game and the one dimensional ball-hogs on the team never passed the ball to Bibby no matter how open she was. That Portland team looks like they might never win a single game. Enough venting...for now. OH yeah... at least Erica Wheeler is still playing! With her great attitude and energy, she's one of my favorite players.

5/3/26...

Shows what I know...Miela Sowah was waived by the Valkyries. To me, she could have been one of the most exciting players in the WNBA. Going out on a limb...I think there was a choice of keeping Kate Martin or Miela Sowah. I wouldn't want to be the one to make that decision. Oh...I first saw Sowah play last season for the Townsville Fire...I never knew she had played for Duke. So...I hope someone (the Fever?) picks her up before she heads back down under. The preseason is over, I suppose. It's not easy to evaluate the strengths of the teams because so much effort had to be made to evaluate rosters. Can't wait to see who stays with the Fever...Dantas may have shot herself off the lineup but for some reason the management is sold on her...and everyone seems sold on Raven Johnson...She's kind of a bull in a china shop out there. Oh...I saw something about Iriafen throwing Reese to the floor during their game. While I don't think much of Angel Reese, I think a whole less of Iriafen. As I recall, she's a particularly violent and arrogant player...the sort that Caitlin Clark should stay far away from. After all, my primary interest in women's basketball is Caitlin Clark. If she's not playing...I'm not watching.

4/30/26...

The Fever got hammered by Dallas in today's pre-season game. Caitlin Clark played for a while and did just fine (she's the reason for my interest in the sport). I guess Paige Bueckers really is pretty good. This game was more of a tryout opportunity than a competition to win and, as I've mentioned before, it's so sad that not every player will remain with each team. Dallas doesn't have any of the violent players that attack Clark so it's still not clear if the officiating is any better than last year. Anyway, it was satisfying to see Clark make some shots. To change the subject a bit...I didn't like the female announcer's adding "at" at the end of so many sentences, so many times..."...know where her teammates are at...", for example. She's a college graduate...don't they teach English in school? It's just plain incorrect to end those sentences with "at". The season hasn't started yet and there isn't much to comment about but I thought I might mention...there are some coaches I don't like. Tyler Marsh...I don't know why but I just don't like looking at him...the same with Rachid Meziane...and as for Sydney Johnson, I don't like him or trust him since I watched him in a game last year, hugging one of the female players somewhat inappropriately. Why the hell are there so many men coaching women's basketball in the first place? If I had any daughters, I would not want them to have a male coach...although I understand one of those guys has four daughters and is probably okay with other people's daughters. Oh...I must say I have been utterly surprised to see how many Australians are playing in the WNBA. I watched a lot of the WNBL games last season. So many of those players are really good...and there isn't the same level of violence as the WNBA has.

4/28/26...

So I watched the Mystics play so I could see how Lucy Olsen is doing with the hope that she'll stay with the team. She played under control unlike so many of the Mystics players who just ball-hogged and didn't pass. Lucy looked like she's a good team leader. Oh...I think Melbourne (from Australia's WNBL) is great. Speaking of great, I also watched the Valkyries. Anneli Maley, to me, is almost every bit as exciting as Caitlin Clark...and Miela Sowah is right up there with her. (This is an update, added on Wednesday, 4/29...I made a mistake. It's Sowah who is the really exciting player to watch...with Maley far behind her.) When I watched so many WNBL games, I thought lots of the players were really good but I wondered how they would do in the WNBA. Well, I've seen enough of them to realize that they really are good in the WNBA too. I was hoping to see Erica Wheeler in the Storm/Valkyries game. She wasn't there. Where is she? And Kate Martin better be kept in the Valkyries lineup...and I haven't found out yet where Fagbenle is either.

4/25/26...

Finally! It was the first preseason game, the Fever and Liberty. Caitlin Clark looked a bit rusty, especially on the dribble. Three Fever players sat out the game. Cunningham was great! Actually, the entire team looked good and, as usual, it's so sad knowing they all can't remain on the team. I realize that I really like the Liberty. They don't have any punks or thugs on the team...they're just a bunch of good people. I did like their previous coach but the new guy looks okay too. Oh...it was a pleasant surprise to see three players from the WNBL on the Liberty. I watched their games all last season and...I could never understand how Maley got so many rebounds while still being able to handle the ball, pass well and score. When I saw her in Australia, I remember thinking I'd like to see her play for the Fever. Oh well. Actually, I also thought it would be okay by me if Caitlin Clark quit the WNBA and went to play in the WNBL...they're not as violent in that league. Along that line...in today's game, it looked like the referees called the whole thing fairly...called fouls when they occurred. I didn't recognize them and I wonder if they're new to the league. However, I should keep in mind that neither the Fever nor the Liberty has any of those particularly nasty players, so I suppose it remains to be seen if the WNBA has made the necessary adjustments to the officiating. Now, since I developed an interest in the game because of Caitlin Clark, as long as she keeps playing, I'll be watching some of the games where her ex-teammates that I like are...Lucy Olsen, Erica Wheeler, Temi Fagbenle, etc. As far as ex-teammates go, it's to bad Hannah Stuelke wasn't signed anywhere, although she never did develop her shooting skills...and Kiley Feuerbach doesn't seem to be going pro either...her game is so much like Lexie Hull's. I now not many people ever read any of this but it's mainly for my own benefit that I write this stuff.

4/16/26...

As an Iowa Hawkeye fan (due to Caitlin Clark), I'm curious if Stuelke and/or Feuerbach will have a chance to play in the WNBA. Stuelke certainly would need to develop a mid-range and 3 point shot. Feuerbach reminds me so much of Lexie Hull that I can imagine her in the pros. As to the Fever...I don't know much about the players drafted but it looks good to me what they've been doing. I think I read that Natasha Howard is gone and I don't have a problem with that. I have to comment on a couple of players who are gone...I had high hopes when Bonner was brought in and I have no idea why she chose not to perform. Also, Erica Wheeler is one of my favorite players...her attitude, her energy, her ball handling...I was sorry to see her go. I was kinda hoping Skyler Diggins could move to the Fever but that didn't happen. So...the core of the team remains and I have to learn to ignore the various headlines that are critical of team management's efforts to limit Caitlin Clark's role with the offense. As far as I'm concerned, she is the face of the team and the entire WNBA. I want her to have free rein to run the offense whenever she's in the game. For me, Caitlin Clark is essential to maintaining my interest in the league. If she is playing, I keep an eye on other teams and occasionally watch their games, developing curiosity elsewhere. It's her influence that creates my attraction to other players and other teams.

4/13/26...

Another WNBA season is coming. Tonight is draft day and I have no idea who the Fever will select but the only thing that matters to me is that they build around Caitlin Clark. I don't know what to believe about what's been reported on the internet...the Fever have signed various free agents but with so much bullshit on line, a lot of it is just plain lies. So I'll wait to see who's on the roster when on opening day. I have grave concerns about Caitlin's well-being and I hope the league has addressed the issues of violence and poor officiating. It was somewhat refreshing to see so many NCAA games that were for the great majority officiated fairly...fouls were called when they occurred and most games were decided by the actual players. It would be so nice if the WNBA referees could keep the games under control. However, if Caitlin Clark is attacked constantly and is unable to play due to injuries, I'll have to drop out. I think she has already demonstrated enough that she is a far superior player and I'd be satisfied if she just hangs it up for her own physical well-being.

Iowa Hawkeye Women's Basketball...Hawkeye Fever...Townsville Fire

2025-12-06T10:28:00.000-08:00

Sunday, 4/5/26...

I though I was finished with all this but...UConn was totally destroyed by South Carolina and their coach made a complete ass of himself. I hope I never have to see him or even hear his name again. In the final game, UCLA completely destroyed South Carolina. So...even though Iowa was long gone, some things did turn out right.

Friday, 4/3/26...

Okay...the Hawks are out. The season sputtered out. Addie Deal has entered the transfer portal, I suppose because her expectation to be the starting point guard at Iowa was not to be realized. Stuelke and Feuerbach (if they want) may have a chance to play in the WNBA but Stuelke will definitely have to develop a better outside shot and the same is true for Feuerbach who is a Lexie Hull type player but she needs to be able to hit threes. These years since the beginning of Caitlin Clark's time have been exciting and I hope to be able to continue to follow the ever-changing team. However, that's about it for all my commentary this year and it's time to focus on the Fever. I hope the WNBA has addressed the biased and inconsistent officiating problems and made a commitment to curtail the prison ball play as well as, and especially the targeting of their bread and butter...Caitlin Clark...because without her, I and millions of others will be out. It may sound silly but...if anyone should have a "special whistle"...it's Caitlin Clark...she IS the WNBA...as to current March Madness going on...I don't really care. It would be nice if UConn and NC were to be eliminated but that's about it.

Saturday, 2/21/26...

First game of March Madness...It's so difficult for me to find a way to watch games. The two sites I found on YouTube kept freezing up and I had to settle for watching ESPN but it was just a stupid highlight broadcast so I never had a chance to get into the game. Anyway, it was a win. It's too bad that this is the end for the seniors who have only one more loss to take before their careers are over. Apparently, Feuerbach suffered a jammed thumb during the game but none of that was evident the the crummy ESPN broadcast. I absolutely hate the piss poor availability of the TV sports broadcasters. You can't just pay one source to see the team you like. They're spread all over the place. Was Lucy Olsen at the game? Was Caitlin Clark there? Were any ex-Hawkeyes there? Maybe there will be a complete game replay somewhere tomorrow. They get Virginia (I think) next and they sure need to play a more complete game than it looks like they had today.

Thursday, 3/12/26...

I'm waiting for March Madness to start. In the meantime, the US women's team has had a couple of games. I can't watch the games live because I don't have cable and I would need more than one additional service also. It's certainly not easy or affordable to wade through the countless, conflicting services that broadcast games. It's never just one service that has every game for a particular team. Anyway, I have been able to see the "highlights" for the first two games. What a colossal bore! I only want to see Caitlin Clark play and I think the US team is almost as much against her as the WNBA. All those other players on the team are good...but there's absolutely no one who can bring the excitement like Caitlin Clark. If the US team isn't going to let her play her style of play...and leave her in there most of the game...I don't give a flip whether they win or lose...they're just plain boring to watch.

Sunday, 2/826...

Oh my...Iowa made it to the final game in the Big 10 tournament and the poor Hawkeyes showed that they aren't a top tier team. They have at least one more game this season. Maybe they'll even make it to the sweet sixteen...the elite eight?...I hope so. The final four? That would be an amazing accomplishment. They just don't have the horses to compete at the highest level. Stremlow can be counted on to throw the ball away every game, Stuelke's inability to shoot is an achilles heel, Feuerbach has to learn how to shoot more and actually make some. I have to say that this game against UCLA could have been at least slightly competitive if Iowa had been much better at shooting the ball. Stuelke and Feuerbach...I don't know if they made any shots at all. Were they too nervous or what? Anyway, this was a painful game to watch. (It would have been nice if the announcers knew how to pronounce all the names.) Next year...I suppose I'll continue to watch even though McCabe, Feuerbach and Stuelke will be gone. I know Heiden will score a lot but the only real exciting players will probably be Wright and Houston...and maybe Levin and some freshman who comes in. I have to say I really like watching Wright play...as I mentioned before, she looks like a little china doll out there and she's just plain precious! Now, I'll wait to see the NCAA tournament and hope the Hawkeyes have a good seeding. I don't know much about the other top teams but it would be good if Iowa is not in the same bracket as UCONN or UCLA.

Thursday, 3/5/26...

I call bull on the screwed up, unfair broadcast system! I pay for Big+ so I can watch Iowa's games, usually the day after the game. Now I find out that tomorrow's game which is the Hawkeyes' first Big 10 game will not be shown on Big+. The first rounds will be shown on Peacock, the second round (Iowa's first game) will be on the Big Ten Network and the championship is only on CBS. My television doesn't get CBS! I can't afford to subscribe to Peacock and Big 10 network. This is 4 separate ways to watch the games which means 4 separate subscriptions! This is some kind of joke, right? Right? Well, it's certainly a ripoff!

Sunday, 3/1/26...

The Townsville Fire with Lucy Olsen just won the WNBL championship! It was an incredible game that went into overtime. Lucy Olsen made a couple of 3s, scored 15 with 5 assists, made a crucial steal and was fouled with seconds remaining...then scored the final 2 points from the foul line! Australian pro basketball is every bit as exciting and well-played as the WNBA and NCAA games! While I wanted Townsville to win and for Lucy Olsen to do well, it's sad to know the season is over. In a way, I would have been okay with Perth winning so there could be another game. Now I'm waiting for the last, regular season game for Iowa to start.

Friday, 2/27/26...

Last night's game was a really tight one and Iowa came together to beat Illinois. Heiden is unstoppable, Stuelke and Feuerbach are essential and Houston just keeps getting better. I don't understand how Michigan can be ranked above Iowa since Iowa just destroyed them last week. However, in the NCAA tournament, it doesn't look like Iowa will be able to make the final 4...but I hope I'm wrong.

Yesterday I watched the Townsville Fire win the first game against Perth in the WNBL finals. Lucy Olsen was okay, especially on defense. She missed a few shots and played less than half the game.

Monday, 2/23/26...

I haven't watched yesterday's Iowa game yet but I did finally manage to see the Townsville Fire game against the Southside Flyers. It was the deciding game to make the finals against Perth. Lucy Olsen played a little less than half the game and had only 2 points but she did have 5 assists...as was always the case with Caitlin Clark, she would have had more assists if her teammates made the shots. Anyway, the Fire did win and now will face Perth for the championship. Han Xu is formidable as is Maley. I do expect Townsville to win though. One more thing...I noticed that Lucy Olsen seems to be sporting a tan. Summer in Townsville is probably great!

As to the Hawkeyes game...I think if Heiden can stay out of foul trouble, if Stuelke is back and healthy and if they get lucky, the Fever has a slight chance to win.

Okay...I just watched the first quarter against Michigan. It was by far the most intense and exciting game I've seen in a long long time! First quarter score...12-12...

At the half, Iowa is up by 7 and the second quarter was just as good as the first!

Game over! Stunning! The energy of the entire Iowa team was spectacular.

Thursday, 2/19/26...

Iowa came out on top of Purdue. It was a rout until Iowa sort of went flat in the second half. There was no mention by the inept announcers that Stuelke was out due to injury. It was a rare case that Big+ aired an Iowa game live on TV. However, the announcers were as bad as any I've ever heard. They consistently mis-pronounced Iowa players' names. They frequently mis-identified which Iowa player was involved in a play. During time-outs and between periods...it was utterly silent. There was no sound, just video. I wonder if the two guys doing the broadcast were professionals or just students. If they were paid professionals, they should not cash their paychecks. If they were students, they shouldn't plan on a future in broadcasting. They were bad. Their play descriptions were unprofessional, as though they didn't know anything abut basketball and didn't bother to prepare for the game. Anyway, Stremlow had a spectacular first half, Heiden continued to do her thing, Houston gets better every day, Feuerbach still looks like Lexie Hull on defense and poor Chit-chat had an off night for shooting while still being absolutely essential on the court. I certainly hope Hannah Stuelke is okay!

Wednesday, 1/18/26...

Wow...I was so wrong about the Townsville Fire. I thought, after they crushed Southside in the first playoff game, they would win the second and go straight to the finals. However...they were completely blown out in game two and I wonder if they can possibly win the next one. Lucy Olsen didn't even play half the game and scored about 6 points. I think she is under strict orders not to shoot much. I have to say...the WNBL is much better to watch than the WNBA. They do play a physical game but there's no violence or petty, personal jealousy. The WNBA definitely needs to clean up its act.

Tuesday, 2/17/26.A..

I just watched last night's game between Iowa and Nebraska. There isn't much to say...it wasn't a very competitive game. I did like Maupin and Prince for Nebraska. I wish Feuerbach would work on her shooting...if she wants to play anywhere in the pros, she'll have to shoot better...it's not enough that she plays defense like Lexie Hull...she has to shoot better. Prince seems to play like Bueckers and probably would really stand out if she had better teammates. I also just watched last night's game between Perth and Bendigo. It was a lot closer than their previous game but Xu and Maley are just too much to handle. Speaking of players reminding me of others...Maley looks like a kind of clone of Sowah of the Fire. Tonight, the Fire play the second playoff game against Southside, so I'll watch that tomorrow. My whole interest there is how well Lucy Olsen plays...and it would be good to see the Fire meet Perth in the championship series in the WNBL I think the Fire will win...well, I want them to win.

Wednesday, 2/11/26...

Iowa and Washington...with the end of the first half, even though Iowa is up by six, they don't really look very good...they seem disjointed and without an identity. Maybe the second half will be better. h...I have to say that I don't like the two guys who are the announcers. The main, ply-by-play guy isn't so awful but I don't like his voice. The other guy...the one with a lisp and somewhat, slurred words is tough to listen to. I know it's my problem but it's still a problem for me. I would like Stuelke to take the damn shots when she's wide open! Feuerbach has been good, defensively but her shooting hasn't been. I'll get back to this after the game. Okay, the game ended with a win. It was. a bit choppy but I suppose the opponent had something to do with that. I have to repeat...the announcers were bad...saying Feurebach was in for McCabe...mis-representing lots of Hawkeye information...calling Washington, Wisconsin! The voice of the guy with the lisp was like chalkboard screeching to me and his pronunciation of so many words was annoying. Feuerbach hitting the 3 near the end was great! Actually, the entire team played pretty well and I really shouldn't be complaining. Stuelke scored enough and rebounded more than enough. Chit- Chat is just to precious for words! I happen to live in the Northwest and the Huskies should be my home team but...I caught Hawkeye Fever from Caitlin Clark and it's not something I can get over. Nebraska is next but I'll also be watching the Townsville Fire and Lucy Olsen in the WNBL playoffs.

Friday, 2/6/26...

I just watched last night's game against Minnesota...another loss...third straight. Iowa did not look good in their offense. Minnesota shot lights-out and Tonga is big like Audi Crooks and is difficult to guard. Feuerbach played 34 minutes and scored 0. With Stuelke a non-factor from outside and Feuerbach unable to score from anywhere, it's difficult to win games.

Monday, 2/2/26...

Before watching last night's game against UCLA...I suppose Iowa could win this game if Stuelke and Heiden stay out of foul trouble, if Feuerbach hits some 3s and doesn't blow any easy shots, if Stremlow doesn't throw the ball away, if Wright hits some 3s and others, if Deal continues to improve, if Houston makes an impact without fouling much, if all the subs play great, if Betts has early foul trouble and if UCLA has a poor shooting night overall. It would have been good to have McCabe. She always played a solid game on both ends. If she were playing in this game, it would have been good for her to hit a lot of 3s and even better if she took some offensive initiative to manufacture her own shots. Oh...another thing...Stuelke just HAS TO develop a reliable mid-range and 3-point shot. Seeing her stand there, unguarded, so many times without shooting is downright painful. If she's open, she should shoot the damn ball! Now I'll watch the game, expecting a lop-sided loss but hoping for the gigantic upset.

Well, the first half is over and Iowa is down by 11. This had to be an almost perfect game for the Hawkeyes but...Stremlow did throw the ball away, Heiden and Stuelke both are in foul trouble, Feuerbach continues to miss bunnies (and 3s) and Houston isn't lighting it up. At least Wright is doing well and Stuelke made some shots (but not free-throws). Maybe the second half will be better...

Game over. There were no miracles today as UCLA dominated everything and Iowa was left in their wake. Feuerbach has to learn how to shot the ball...not that it would have made any difference in the game. I think without Wright, Iowa would have lost every game.

Friday, 1/30/26...

I haven’t watched yesterday’s game against USC yet. I will, after I post this. I think the Hawkeyes are a lot better than I expected and they might be able to win this one, especially without Watkins playing. Stuelke has been a real force, as have Heiden and Wright. With the tragic loss of one of my favorites for many years, Taylor McCAbe, Deal has begun to blossom just in time and Stremlow seems to be handling the ball better. So…maybe a win.

I’ve watched most of Lucy Olsen’s games with the Townsville Fire. (They have two more games in the regular season.) Olsen doesn’t even start for the team which has three other extremely good guards in Woods, Ellis and Sowal. The WNBL is a competitive league filled with great players. They play a spirited, physical game in the league but don’t have the extreme violence or poor, biased officiating of the WNBA. I bring this up because my original interest in basketball is due entirely to the presence of Caitlin Clark and I worry about the upcoming WNBA season. If the WNBA can’t get games smelly under control, I would be pleased as punch if Caitlin Clark just left. That’s right, I think she should seriously consider leaving the WNBA to rot…and should go to play in the WNBL in Australia. She doesn’t need the WNBA…not the money or the risk of assault. I think she just wants to play basketball and she should do that in Australia. Yeah, they only play 21 games in the regular season…that’s a definite downside. However, it is a place to play the game safely.

I realize the WNBL games are not easy to find on television in the US. For those who are interested, here’s how to see the games. Go to 9Now and log in. However, the games (and 9Now) are not available outside Australia. So…the viewer needs to have a VPN on the computer…set it to an Australian site (I just choose Brisbane)…then it appears that you are in Australia and you can find the games. Yes, a VPN on your computer costs money…but it not only allows you to watch Australian basketball…it also provides tremendous, personal security at the same time. The bottom line…Caitlin Clark should play in Australia instead of the WNBA. She can still play the game she plays better than anyone ever has…and we can still watch and enjoy.

Okay…now I’ll try to find yesterday’s Iowa game on Big+ on the TV.

Game over. It was an awful performance by the poor Hawkeyes. There were far too many missed shots of all kinds. Stuelke has to refine her mid-range and 3-point shots...otherwise, she's somewhat of a liability. Stremlow double-dribbled? That's not acceptable.Too many turnovers...bad passes. I guess the team just wasn't ready to play this game...and fortunately it's just one game. But...oh no! They have to play UCLA next!

Uh...this is Saturday and I just watched Lucy Olsen's game from last night. It was her Townsville Fire against Canberra. Lucy was a starter for a change (because team captain, Woods was out with an injury.) Lucy managed a couple of 3s, made a few other shots and had a few assists. She would have had a lot more assists if her teammates had made the easy shots. She played well except...she missed a LOT of shots and had too many fouls. Anyway, it's good to see Hawkeyes play after their college days.

Monday, 1/26/26...

Iowa took care of Ohio State easily. The horrible news is the knee injury to McCabe (and her sister suffered a knee injury on the same night!). I hope beyond hope that it's not severe and that her career can continue. As usual, I had to watch this game the day after. I liked the two female announcers...and I wonder why there are so many male announcers in sports that have soprano voices. It was interesting that they said Wright models her game and was coached by Erica Wheeler. I've noticed before that she plays similarly to Wheeler but actually passes better. Stremlow didn't seem to throw the ball away too much and played a fierce game. Deal is indeed, the real deal. Stuelke looks like she's really going to be okay in the WNBA and Heiden does too. With Wright's growth in the future, she'll be good in the WNBA and I do hope that the pros recognize that Feuerbach is like a clone of Lexie Hull. Of course, I have no idea if any of these players have any desire at all to play in the WNBA with all the violence and poorly officiated games. I think the Hawkeyes are a lot better than I thought they would be in the beginning. The entire team played well and in control and I wonder if they could even do well in March...except for UConn and those southern teams that I know nothing about.

Friday, 1/23/26...

Iowa vs Maryland...it looked like a very easy win until the last couple of minutes when they blew a 17 point lead. At least the Hawkeyes won in overtime. It looked like everyone played well...I'm still not sure Stremlow should be in at point guard....Deal looks like a better option to back up Wright at point. I have to say that I never played basketball and have only watched on TV. Speaking of TV...the Maryland game had Maryland announcers so I understand their bias. However, like so many games, in all sports, I wish the broadcasters could find a way to isolate the announcers' voices from the crowd noise. In so many games of all kinds, it's almost impossible to hear their voices. Oh...I also wish they all could provide more in-game stats. For example, I was very surprised when I heard Heiden had received her 4th foul...They hadn't been providing that sort of information throughout the game. Anyway...another win...and I'm surprised and pleased.

Monday, 1/19/26...

Another win, this time against Michigan State. Stuelke was great at both ends...even made another mid-range shot. Wright is indispensable. Stremlow probably should not be at point guard. Anyway, it was a surprisingly good game against a team I thought might win. There are still some really tough games ahead. It's good to have Feuerbach back.

Friday, 1/16/26...

Just getting ready to watch Iowa's game against Oregon from yesterday which is finally on Big+. Did I mention what a pain it is to find a way to watch these games? But first...I have to say I figured out how to watch Lucy Olsen's Townsville Fire games. I had to log in to the 9now network in Australia...and to do that, I had to set the VPN on my computer to an Australian location because the network is only available in Australia. Lucy only plays as a sub and for about half the game. It's too bad because she really can score, and gets some steals and rebounds. However, her team, the Fire, is very good and has some good point guards besides Olsen. In any case, it's great to have a chance to see the games.

Now for the Hawkeyes...Stuelke made some mid-range shots and was great all around...even close to triple-double territory. (I just love seeing her smile all the time.) Everyone played well...maybe Stremlow needs to focus a bit more...and I hope McCabe isn't worried about missing some shots. The team certainly played better than they have been lately. The upcoming schedule is absolutely scary! I've mentioned that I maintain an interest in watching some players after they leave Iowa...I think I'll always like seeing Stuelke, Feuerbach, McCabe, Wright and probably Deal if they go on to play after college. It's like I'm watching my own daughters (or granddaughters) with pride.

Sunday, 1/11/26...

This is before today's game against Indiana. While Indiana has a few losses under their belts, I always have a concern about the game. In this case it's because Indiana has a bunch of tall players who could be a problem. I still don't know what's up with Feuerbach. The team really needs her. They only have one good ball handler in Wright and it's too bad that Rodriguez didn't work out because she definitely is a good ball handler. If Stuelke has hopes of plying in the WNBA, she absolutely must develop a mid-range shot AND a three-point shot. Otherwise, she's just mediocre. I don't mean to be critical of Stuelke because I really, really like her. I just want her to shoot the ball! That's enough for now...I'll get back to this after the game.

Oh...one other thing...I've been watching the Townsville fire. While she's getting a bit more playing time, Lucy Olsen isn't scoring as much as she can. It was interesting...after a game that the Fire was blown out in, Lucy was in the press conference with the coach. She actually said something about how much she has learned since joining the team. I don't understand that. She's been involved with some pretty intense programs already. Anyway, it's good to see ex-Hawkeyes continue to play and Lucy Olsen is right up there with my favorites...like Stuelke, Feurebach, Martin, Affolter, Marshall and (of course) Caitlin Clark. Wright and Heiden are also working their way onto my list of favorites.

I just checked and it seems I'll have to wait to see this game. I do subscribe to Big+ to watch but they never have anything I want to see (which is only the Hawkeye women). So...hopefully, they'll have the replay in a few hours...or tomorrow. I could probably find the "pirated" game on YouTube but that's a last resort because there's usually some guy's face in the corner and he talks throughout the broadcast. Or...there's sometimes some foreign name broadcasting and it cuts off before the game is even over. It's not easy finding a way to see these games!

Okay...finally watched Iowa and Indiana the day after. What a horrendous first half! Nothing went right. So Iowa managed to crawl back and win but it was ugly. It's great that Feuerbach is back! I think Stuelke had decent numbers but...she has to be able to shoot mid-range and 3s! Otherwise, she's an offensive liability. I just imagine what a difference it would make in every game if Stuelke was an offensive threat from distance! I like her so much and I really want her to improve her shooting to help the team...and her possible play in the pros. Wright is a gem on both ends of the court and Houston makes her presence known at all times. I breathed a huge sigh of relief several times when the Hawkeyes finally caught up and again...and again. A win is a win.

Tuesday, 1/6/26...

I had to wait until today to watch this game on Big+ because it just wasn't available last night. It's SO difficult to find a way to watch these games! What a choppy first half...too many missed layups...no real offensive flow. At halftime, I think the Hawkeyes should be able to win this game by twenty points. Where the heck is Feuerbach? Stuelke received a gash across the cheek and there was no foul called!

The 3rd quarter continues with far too many missed layups...and missed free throws. This does not look like Iowa basketball at all! Also, there a lots of fouls called. It would be nice if the WNBA referees could be so attentive...Caitlin Clark would not have been assaulted so many times. Stremlow has been called for double-dribble and carrying...maybe she's not one to rely on for ball control.

Before I forget...I do appreciate the announcers on the broadcast. However, I do not like the views provided. It seems like the camera angles are odd.

Anyway...game over. It was an ugly game. So many fouls. So many missed shots. So many missed free throws. One thing I noticed was that McCabe actually made a move to free herself up for a shot (which she made). She should do more of that.

Friday, 1/2/26...

Just a quick departure from the Hawkeyes...I did find the Townsville Fire game on TV this morning. Lucy Olsen is not even a starter on this team but she does get a lot of minutes. She's always so fun to watch and I wonder why the Fire doesn't recognize what a scorer she is. In this game, it looks like she's hit a few 3s, had a number of assists and a few steals. It's just great to have a chance to follow the Iowa players as they continue elsewhere. It's funny...starting with Caitlin Clark, I've developed an interest in the players on her teams and all their progress. It's an ever-expanding group of young women that I'm pleased to watch as though they're all my own daughters (or granddaughters).

Thursday, 1/1/26...

I really, kind of expected Nebraska to beat the Hawkeyes with Petrie and Prince. (Silly me.) Actually I was surprised to learn Prince is only a sophomore because it seems like I've seen her play so many times before...anyway, I'd take Prince over Bueckers any day. About the game though...I liked everyone's play...Stuelke had some fire in her game even though she smiles after acting tough, Heiden continues her impressive play and Wright?...Wright is just too good to be true...ball handling...shooting...defense...court awareness...and...she might just have the prettiest, china-doll face in basketball. McCabe managed to make a 2-pointer ( ! ) and I hope she keeps shooting 3s whenever she can, even with a few misses lately. So...it was another win and the incredible depth of this young team seems to carry them to victory over anyone who isn't from Uconn or have an enormous center. I have to repeat...there are so many good players and I wish they could all play every game!...and where is Feuerbach? Her tenacious play is needed.

One more thing...it's extremely difficult to find a way to watch all these games. It wasn't live on anything I could find, then, after a couple of hours, it was on Youtube...but it was probably a pirated copy and it cut off before the game was over and just showed some guy's face (the pirate, probably) sitting in front of his computer screen...very weird! A couple of hours later, the game was finally on Big+...so I did see the ending.

Oh...I just watched the press conference with Stuelke and Wright...what a breath of fresh air! As I watched, I couldn't help it but I remembered the horrible interviews with some of the obnoxious WNBA players. (You know who they are!)

I think I'll be able to watch the Townsville Fire game on TV in the early morning. That's where Lucy Olsen is playing. I've only been able to watch highlight sections of their games on Youtube so far. Supposedly the game is on the AWSN network which is on PLUTO which I can access through Roku. Life gets more confusing every day!

Wednesday, 12/31/25...

Just a couple of notes about the Hawkeyes rout of Penn State a few days ago...The whole team played well. Journey Houston looks like she gets better each game. Wright is the real deal. I like them all so much! It's sad what seems to have happened with Rodriguez. Someone should remind McCabe that shooters just keep shooting and not to be dismayed at one bad performance. For Penn State, Myrtle is too big to defend. She's a lot like Crooks but not quite as formidable. That seems to be the new thing in women's basketball...a giant, immovable presence. I suppose teams will have to find a way to play against those players. Tomorrow will be a huge test against Nebraska.

Saturday,12/20/25…

This is the morning before the UConn game. I expect Iowa to struggle to finish within twenty points but I hope for better. I hope for a win! McCabe has to hit lots of threes and needs to assert herself, offensively…somehow find a way to free herself for shots and continue to pressure, defensively. Feuerbach has to hit her threes and continue her Lexie Hull-type defense. Stuelke has to shoot the damn ball when she’s open. She must be hitting those outside shots in practice. She needs to listen to her coaches and watch Heiden…don’t dribble the ball under the basket…make a move and go up with the shot. I don’t know anything at all about UConn’s bigs so I can only hope Heiden can stay out of foul trouble and make a real impact on both ends. Oh…I also hope Stuelke can stay out of foul trouble. Wright will probably be just fine but the same thing holds true for her as McCabe and Feuerbach (as well as Stremlow and everyone else)…They all need to have a great shooting game to have any chance. Deal and Huston have to continue improving and have break-out performances….the same with Hays, Johnson, Levin and Mallegni (I don’t know if she’s even playing)…even Gyamfi! The point is…if every Hawkeye who steps on the court can manage to play their best…there is a chance to win. Playing on a neutral court rather than at UConn is a help, too.

I don’t know why Emely Rodriguez was suspended and will not be at the game. It’s too bad. She’s a remarkable athlete and would not have been brought in from UCF if the organization didn’t know that. Assuming she does return, I hope she can learn to play team basketball.

It's now half time against UConn...The Hawkeyes are not setting any personal best records but they are only down by eleven. It looks like every one of the UConn players is really good but the difference in the game is UConn's defense for sure. There's nobody out there with Caitlin Clarks's talent but maybe Sarah Strong is somewhat unstoppable so far. It's still not impossible to win...but unlikely. It sounds like the announcers must be UConn's team. It's a bit annoying. Not just because they talk so much about UConn and don't know much about the Hawkeyes but also when they mention Caitlin Clark, they throw in Bueckers. It's like all the talk about Angel Reese whenever Clark is brought up. Give me a break! Those players are so far beneath Caitlin Clark that their names should never come up.

End of the third quarter...down by twenty-one now. Overall, UConn has better players, a stronger bench, more polished offense, better shooters and superior defense. Iowa looks really sloppy sometimes but that's probably due to the speed and quickness of the defense. This is looking like freshmen playing against seniors...not much of a contest.

Game over...blowout. Wright was good. Stuelke was okay...she DID make a mid-range shot. I don't know how Fudd ended up with so many points. I don't suppose there'll be a final four this season. I've had it up to here with the very existence of that coach, Geno.

Saturday, 12/13/25...

Iowa had their way with Lindenwood in a romp. I don't have much to say about the game except it was good to see Hannah Stuelke score so much but not so good to see her miss so many shots. Keep shooting, Hannah. The game (and your WNBA future) depends on it. I watched the game on Big+ and I must say...the announcers were pathetic, never mentioning statistics, often repeating inane phrases and sounding like high school amateurs. Being a Hawkeye fan, it was extremely disappointing that the announcers weren't up on information about the players at all.

Thursday 12/11/25…

I suppose it was unrealistic to imagine Iowa wouldn’t lose a game this season…and Iowa State just handed the Hawkeyes their first loss. So…Audi Crooks is just plain too big to defend. Even when Heiden, Stuelke or anyone has a great defensive position against her, Crooks’s body is so large that they can’t get close enough to the ball to do anything without fouling…and foul, they did. Also, I noticed that Crooks is obviously not fleet of foot...and it doesn't take much contact for her to lose her balance and go down. This makes it even more difficult to play against her because incidental contact with any other player is just that...incidental...but not with Crooks...she can't move out of the way. Even though Stuelke grabbed a bunch of rebounds, I’m concerned that her offense is lacking…she doesn’t seem to be hitting any shots this year but I wish she would take more of them…like when she’s standing near the free throw line with the ball, wide open…and passes instead of shooting. Shoot, Hannah! Shoot! Along that line, it was good to see McCabe and Feuerbach being more assertive with the ball on offense. Heiden was taken out of her game entirely. Wright is exciting to watch and she carried the team. She can handle the ball and find her shot but she also seems to be always looking to pass. One of the reasons I like watching these college and pro woman play is the joy they seem to have as shown in their smiles and facial expressions. Stulke, Wright...all of them just look genuinely happy to be there. I don’t know what the heck happens to some of them when they make it to the WNBA…it’s like some of them turn into thugs or something. It’s disappointing, for sure. Anyway, the Hawks looked really good in most of the game…fast-paced…passing…shooting…this should be an experience to build on as they face some serious opponents along the way. I have to say...it sure would be nice if someone (anyone!) on the team could make some free throws!

Monday 12/8/25…

It was a dominant win over Rutgers and the entire team performed well. However, I do have one negative observation to make and I hope, among my thousands of readers, that Jan Jensen will read this. I really like Hannah Stuelke but I’m concerned about her play. I want her to shoot the damn ball when she’s open. I want her to look for her shots and be more assertive on the offensive end. Also…she must have heard coach Jensen through these several years…”Don’t dribble the ball under the basket! Just go up and shoot!” Another comment…it just makes my day when Feuerbach and McCabe make threes…actually, when any of the Fever players hit from distance! Even Levin dropped at least one from there. I feel like I’m watching my daughters (or granddaughters…or great-granddaughters) out there even though I had only sons! I do hope Wright can play against Iowa State Wednesday…she seems vital to the Fevers’ game…and I’m looking forward to seeing how they can manage against Audi Crooks.

Saturday 12/6/25…

Okay…I started watching Iowa women’s basketball because of Caitlin Clark. I had read about her for a few years and was amazed to finally see her play on TV. (I must confess…I’ve watched every YouTube video of her games, including college and high school…and even soccer). Then I became a fan of all her teammates along the way and have since followed them all. So…now I’m a Hawkeye and Fever fan but above all, Caitlin Clark is the driving force.

Now…This is the morning before the game with Rutgers. I don’t know much about the Rutger’s team but I hope the Hawkeyes prevail with Iowa State and UConn looming ahead. As the team has won every game thus far, I’ve wondered how they would do against Audi Crooks or Lauren Betts…or powerhouses like UConn. The Big Ten is loaded with formidable opponents and even with eight straight wins the season is still just beginning.

Ava Heiden seems to be for real and Chit Chat Wright (if she can return from injury) is a legitimate ball-handler. Taylor McCabe can turn around a game when she’s hitting her shots and I wish she would be more assertive, offensively. Kylie Feuerbach is the Hawkeyes’ indispensable version of Lexie Hull. And then there’s Hannah Stuelke, my favorite (just ahead of Feuerbach). She seems to always be smiling or unfazed with the pressures of the game. Actually, she might do well with a bit more fire in her. I mistakenly compare her with Aliyah Boston but that’s not fair. She’s smaller and now is playing forward anyway. I do worry about her WNBA future because I want her to be more assertive offensively on the court and shoot more (and make more of those shots!). Heck, she scored 48 points in a game with Caitlin Clark at the helm so she CAN score!

Anyway, I think the depth of talent on the team is remarkable. I wish they could all play more! Taylor Stremlow needs to be on the court but so do so many others. Emely Rodriguez has great ball handling skills but seems to lack court awareness and doesn’t look for her teammates. I think that negative aspect can be improved in time but for now, she’s the only (very slight and temporary) weak link. It’s fantastic when Jada Gyamfi gets on the floor and the crowd goes wild and Journey Houston looks like she can be a starter. I can’t ignore the ability of Addie Deal or the talent of Layla Hays, Callie Levin and Tegan Mallegni! This team is stacked! And, as I said, I wish they could all play!

I don’t expect them to go undefeated…although that would be nice. I hope when they do lose a game, they are able to regroup and learn.

WNBA Problem and Solution

2025-08-14T19:43:00.000-07:00

This is Feb. 9th, 2026...I just watched the final game of the WNBL season. There was no violence and the referees kept the game under control. I discovered I could follow Lucy Olsen to the WNBL by tuning in to 9Now in Australia. That network only broadcasts within Australia so I have to set the VPN on my computer to an Australian city. Lucy Olsen was a standout performer for Iowa in college and had previously been the #3 scorer in the US when she was at Villanova. On the Townsville Fire team, she's not even a starter and averages just 9 points per game. The Australian players are good...and shoot great. While they may not do so well if they had to play prison ball against WNBA teams, their games are far more interesting and less painful to watch. Actually, since Caitlin Clark probably doesn't need the money, I'd be pleased to have her play in Australia rather than in the WNBA. The risk of assault would be gone and she could still play the game she loves. Of course, there are fewer games in the WNBL season...but that gives her more time off to play golf. I encourage her to join Lucy Olsen in Australian basketball because I don't really expect any positive results from the WNBA critique I offer below.

I have to add something to the comments below...It's January, 2026 now...I've been watching Iowa's college games and I've also been watching the pro games in Australia...I have seen absolutely no poor and/or biased officiating in those leagues. I have also seen absolutely no violence or miserable attitudes that are so prevalent in the WNBA...Oh...for anyone interested, you can read what I have to say about Iowa women's basketball as well as some comments about Caitlin Clark, etc.

Iowa Women's Basketball...

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/3924040381459219784/1068902146734163271?hl=en

August 14th, 2025...

Here’s what I’ve determined is what is at the core of the WNBA’s problems…and the solution.

First, I have to explain my interest in the league. It started when I read about a girl in college who was setting scoring records and was the most exciting player in the country. That was Caitlin Clark, of course. I watched her whenever the games were televised and was fascinated by every aspect of her game…shooting, ball handling, passing and attitude. Subsequently, I viewed all the videos of her high school and college…even playing soccer. I became a Hawkeye fan and developed an interest in all the other players on the team. I continue to follow the Hawkeyes as well as the players as they progress. I must confess to knowing very little about basketball before being so enthralled with Clark’s game…I am, after all, just a doddering old man. I continued watching as she entered the WNBA and became a Fever fan as well…now having an interest in all those players.

Watching the Fever games wasn’t enough. I found myself watching other WNBA teams and learning just how athletic so many of the women in the league are. Caitlin Clark was not the only star. However, I was convinced that she was still unique. She had brought her outstanding play to the pros and did, indeed, stand out as the most exciting player in the league (in my opinion, of course).

In seeing so many great players and having the most exposure to the Fever, I was dismayed to see people like Wheeler and Fagbenle leave but I followed them to there new teams and watched their games just as I followed Martin and Olsen after they left Iowa. I like the play and attitude of some more than others…Wheeler from the Fever and Olsen from the Hawkeyes for example. I marveled at some of the athletes…Bonner, Chennedy Carter, Carrington, Ionescu (shooting in the 3-point contest!), Arike’s all-star performance and many others…Wilson seems unstoppable at times. The WNBA is filled with remarkable talent.

There are some things I don’t like…the intentional violence and boring play. While Bueckers is highly regarded, I find her play to be boring…a lot of simple, pull-up jump shots…she’s no Caitlin Clark…there’s only one of those. Wilson isn’t exciting either but definitely has some moments. There are many, mostly unheralded, great athletes to see. There are others who are highly touted by the media or who speak highly of themselves who are…not very good. I can think of one…Reese. She seems to be extremely uncoordinated but has a knack for getting rebounds. Dennis Rodman comes to mind. She’s one of the players I’d be happy never to see in a game. (I do find great humor in seeing the myriad of YouTube videos of her inept performances, though!) The violence and physical assaults by some players is out of control. Actually, there are several who exhibit wonderful physical dexterity and are wonderful players but also are overly offensive, physically and, even though I respected their game earlier, I’d rather never see them again.

Well, I think I’ve gotten off track. (I’m not writing this in one sitting…leaving for hours at a time and such. The inconsistent officiating, the prison-ball violence, the favoritism shown to some players. All this is available for anyone to see either live or on video. Everyone can see it. For one example, the time when Mabrey decked Clark…or later in the game when Sheldon lowered her shoulder and plowed into Cunningham with no effort at all to shoot the ball (this was the play that Cunningham reacted by grabbing Sheldon behind the head and was given the “T” even though it was instigated by Sheldon)…Carter slamming into Clark and Reese laughing about it…Bueckers pushing Cunningham (or was it Hull?) out of the way with both hands and Cunningham being called for the foul…there are countless examples of women elbowing, pushing and throwing to the floor, hooking, attempting to punch, eye gouging etc. (By the way, why in the world are these players allowed to wear those fake nails?..wearing those silly fake eyelashes and wigs is bad enough! This is a basketball game, for Pete’s sake!)

The WNBA is populated, predominantly by women of color and, I suppose, predominantly by lesbians. Personally, I don’t give a flip whether a player is white or black..or whatever. I don’t give a flip if they’re interested in women, men…or whatever. I only care if they are athletic, play well and play fair. There is a problem for which I can offer no solution…that is when two players are married or in some relationship off court. Whether they are on the same team or playing against each other…either way…there is a problem. Unfortunately, that same issue probably extends to the coaches and referees.

I suppose I could go on and on with examples of horrible, physical play that has been condoned by the league…players like Stewart running full-tilt into a crowd of defenders under the basket…and when one of them moves, it’s a foul on the defense. Special whistles!

So…I began all this by claiming to have a solution to the most serious and glaring problem at the core of the WNBA. The real problem is the officiating. It is consistently inconsistent. I don’t know why some referees appear to be so incompetent or why they make so many blatantly incorrect calls…I don’t even want to go there because the inferences are just too demeaning to the officiating crews who may or may not be corrupt, coerced, compromised...or just plain incompetent. The individuals who are doing the officiating are probably underpaid and are certainly under-appreciated. The solution to the WNBA’s problem is to upgrade the officials. If that means tripling their salaries…fine. If that means firing them all…fine. If that means replacing them all with NBA caliber referees…fine. The most egregious aspect of WNBA games rests with the referees. All fouls must be called, consistently, whether for against a perceived star. Paige Bueckers, Breanna Stewart and the other big names (the untouchables) in the league have to be held to the same standard as everyone else. The referees cannot consider which individual or which team is involved in a play…only whether there was a foul committed or not…and by which player. No bias based on a referee’s personal feelings…just call the game fairly.

That’s it. The problem is the referees and the solution is to upgrade the entire bunch of them…either with huge financial incentives or replacement. Just imagine how different things might be if Caitlin Clark’s assailants had been properly dealt with right in the beginning…if flagrant fouls had been called when warranted…if she had not been targeted by referees and called for non-existing fouls…if physical attacks had been met with immediate fines and suspensions. The same is true for every player in the league. No player should be subject to attack on the court which is then overlooked by biased referees. Every WNBA basketball game should be played by the rules throughout each game and those rules should be upheld fairly by an unbiased referring crew, always. The problem…referees. The solution…improve or replace.

Just to add to the above...This is 9/27 and the Fever lost to the Aces yesterday and have another home game before (probably) being defeated in the semis. I didn't notice the "special whistle" for Wilson but a lot of other comments claim she should be called for moving screens frequently. The Aces seem to be a much better team the the Fever. I really like the play and attitude of Mitchell (she's somewhat exciting to watch when she's hitting her shots) but she certainly could pass the ball more and learn how to help her team more with assists. I admire everything about the play and attitude of Boston but when I think of exciting players to watch, Hull stands far above everyone else...slightly approaching the sheer joy of witnessing the play of Caitlin Clark. So...when the Fever are eliminated (tomorrow probably), I'll be cancelling my League Pass because there's nothing else worth watching in the WNBA without Caitlin Clark. I enjoyed watching the Fever games all season because I had been exposed to all the players because of Clark. Beyond that, the poor officiating and prison ball permitted so frequently make the WNBA unwatchable for me.

Well, this is 9/27 and the Fever just won game 4 against the Aces...so I was wrong...again. I'll have at least one more game to watch. I also read that the Lynx without their coach and Collier lost to the Phoenix team. Shocking to me. Bonner seems to have learned to play basketball after leaving the Fever. I had such high hopes when she signed with the Fever but she chose not to even try. Oh...another thing about Bonner as relates to Caitlin Clark...there was so much criticism of Clark concerning how thin and slight she is...that she didn't have the body to compete in the WNBA. That's when I think of Bonner and others like Diggins...you don't get much slighter than that. Anyway, I'm not pleased that the Lynx have been knocked out by the likes of Bonner who screwed over the Fever.

Just a quick addition to the above...it seems that everyone involved with WNBA games (except referees) has issues with the lack of consistency and level of officiating in the games. The coaches, players and viewers have all been irate over calls for and against them. Some players are allowed to do whatever they want and others are called for non-existent offenses. Some players and coaches are handed technical fouls for almost nothing while, of course, others have free reign.

If Paige Bueckers was guarded with the same physical intensity as Caitlin Clark, she'd probably be out, injured, by now...and would certainly not be scoring so well. On the other hand, if Caitlin Clark had been afforded the same "hands off" treatment as Bueckers all along, she wouldn't be injured and would probably be battling Collier, Wilson etc. for MVP...and the Fever would have a much better record.

Obviously, I'm a Caitlin Clark fan and the way things have turned out with the abysmal WNBA officiating, I've lost interest in what could have (should have) been an exciting league to watch. As it is, and if the problem is not acceptably addressed, I hope Clark has the good sense to remain on the bench and/or just retire from basketball, take her money and go play golf.

Next season could be very different in the WNBA. Having two more teams will dilute the talent level a bit and the hopeful changes to the officiating as well as the replacement of Engelbert may change the way the game is played. I wonder what players the Fever will protect in the expansion draft. Personally, I'd like them to protect Boston, Mitchell, Clark, Hull, Cunningham and maybe Timpson, Bibby and one of the guards. I think Howard is finished. If the Fever don't win today's game five against the Aces to make it to the finals, I suppose I'll just wait for Iowa's season to begin.

This is October 2nd...I did cancel my WNNBA League Pass right after they lost to the Aces. I have no interest in seeing the finals between the Aces and the Mercury. Seeing Bonner out there on the court actually trying after she played dead for the Fever would drive me nutso and watching Wilson get away with whatever she wants all game would be more than I could stand. While I didn't notice too much myself, there are numerous examples being shown in which the officiating seemed to favor the Aces against the Fever, especially where Wilson and Boston were involved. About the Fever next season (if there is one), I know I commented that the Fever could keep one of the extra guards like maybe Sims but I'm not so sure. Having two Mitchells running around without ever passing the ball should not be permitted. One MItchell is enough. I think the team should be built around Caitlin Clark's wizardry and Mitchell should not be the primary offensive threat. I also think that coach White would not (could not) do that. So...I think coach White has to go away and be replaced by someone like Brondello or Lisa Bluder. Caitlin Clark (I believe) is truly one-of-a-kind, a generational talent...and I don't think coach White can handle that. She has to go. Hopefully, the Fever organization will read this and follow my suggestions. Also, hopefully the league will also read this and follow my suggestion to get rid of Engelbert and revamp the officiating directives. The games should be officiated more like college games and/or the NBA, and fouls should be called when necessary and not based on referee biases. Prison ball should not be permitted and excessive violence should be dealt with immediately with suspensions, fines and/or permanent suspensions.

October 3rd...I don't think I mentioned before...the Fever's final game against the Aces was truly amazing. The spirited play by the team should have won the game if not for some extremely questionable calls by the referees...especially the fouls called on Boston. Assuming Hull returns to the team next year, I hope she practices shooting. If she had made a few more of her shots, the Fever would have won the game (and others through the season). Also, if Howard remains with the team, I hope she never attempts a 3-point shot ever again. With Mitchell having to play quarterback and produce most of the scoring, she (and the rest of the team) gave every bit of effort possible in their final game...Mitchell especially, giving more than she even had...and her body shutting down. Hull's tenacity was, as usual, spectacular. I even have to bite the bullet and commend Sims for having the ability to score and keep the Fever in the game. Next year will probably be a very different team (I hope) with the return of a healthy Clark and a coach who knows how to exploit her unique abilities.

TWO BOOKS!

2024-01-16T16:12:00.000-08:00

"Fool That I Am" is available at Barnes and Noble online. It is a non-fiction narrative of my recent experience as a victim of fraud, deceit, phone hacking, computer hacking and identity theft. It includes some personal information to acquaint one with my inadequacies, that the reader may have insight into how I could possibly have made so many, incredibly foolish moves. Actual names and dates are given, including the fruitless contacts with various institutions...banks and government agencies.

"Floods and More Floods" is finally available also! This is the resurrected effort from a LONG time ago that was produced in reversing text. In it, the text begins each paragraph in normal, left-to-right direction but the following line is mirrored so the reader has to adapt to reading backwards, right-to-left, then back to normal, then backwards...and so on, down the page. There are even "tooned" images incorporated in the book! It's a must read for anyone with an imagination...and patience...and determination. Oh! The entire thing is published in the back half of the book in normal reading format...for those without imagination...or patience...or determination.

Both of the books use the same cover image...in fact, the next two books will also have the same cover! (If it ain't broke, don't fix it.) One of the new ones is a murder mystery, partially set in Carnation, Washington. The other is more of a sci-fi thing, incorporating some of my "theories".

As I mentioned, the initial publications can be purchased from Barnes and Noble online. They may (or may not) become available at Amazon because they have both been held "in review" for a LONG time and there is no explanation forthcoming from their crack team of experts.

This is now seven months later and both books are still in review at KDP. They have sent me about thirty emails, apologizing and saying they are working on the issue. I call them every week or so and the response is always something like they will notify the technical team and that's all they can do. So...if you are thinking of self-publishing, forget KDP.

(note: both books are available at Amazon now.)

Now, with both books available from two sources...and so many people are reading this post...how about you readers start ordering the books! I'd like to know how many people are able to train their minds to get through the "Floods" book. It's definitely a challenge. The other book, the "Fool" book can be instrumental in helping someone to avoid stepping into the same financial hole that I did...especially, retirees.

Spain versus Sweden

2023-08-15T10:16:00.001-07:00

I just had to mention this. I've been watching soccer matches, especially the Women's World Cup. There's an odd thing...the announcer's seem to always refer to a team's effort as a plural..."Spain have scored", for example. In American English the word "team" is singular and the correct grammar would be, "Spain has scored". this is always a distraction to me when watching a broadcast. Another thing that seems odd is how the announcers always say, "the left hand side" or "the right hand side" rather than simply saying "the left side" or "the right side". That "hand" is superfluous. Okay...I understand that when describing the "right side", a person may think it's as opposed to the "wrong side" so, on a certain level, maybe clarifying "direction" from "right or wrong" may help some listeners. But why bother with saying "left hand" when "left" is all that's needed? Last night's match between Spain and Sweden brought in an entirely new phrase! The woman announcing the play-by-play said, "the near hand side"! All I could do was laugh. Aside from that...I have found all the Fox announcers to be exemplary. That is a stark contrast to the Telemundo calls. While some people praise those announcers, I actually hate their work. When goal is scored, I immediately mute the sound on my TV because I despise the drawn out, self-centered shout, "g o a l" that drags on for so long and then is repeated. This means of description detracts from the action on the field. Other announcers, after declaring that a goal had been scored, continue to describe what is happening on the field...not the Telemundo guy. I should also mention that I equally abhor the Telemundo guy who shouts, "goal, goal, goal goal" so many times I want to puke.

Random Observations of Things

2023-07-27T08:23:00.026-07:00

I am curious about many things and have been most interested in the basics for the last few decades…that is…what things are at the core…mass, energy and whatever is involved in their relationships. Actually, what I am is an observationist.

Twenty years ago, looking into the night sky, I determined that there was energy everywhere out there, traveling in all directions all the time. I imagined the light emitted from every star, traveling outward, endlessly. Photons would be ever-present in every conceivable place in space. For example, I imagined that any given cubic foot out there was completely filled with energy in the form of photons going everywhere but not affecting each other. How odd!

I thought of those photons all moving at the speed of light while all particles with mass were relegated to slower velocities. Why? Well, things with mass are affected by something which limits their movement. Dark matter? Dark energy? I don’t really like those worn out terms. I think I’ll revert to calling that stuff out there as “cold dark matter” (CDM). No, I like “cold dark plasma” (CDP) more…so I’ll use that in this text. So…the CDP is what inhibits the movement of particles. What of it, I wondered? Well, if that is really the case, then everything traveling through empty space is being affected by that empty space (CDP) and it should be measurable. I wondered how one might measure such a thing and came up with my own device…

Our planet Earth is a space traveler and must be affected by the CDP. In my kitchen, I made morning and evening weight measurements (12 hours apart) of 40 lbs of iron on my bathroom scale for six months. In such a lengthy test, I determined that changes in weather, humidity, atmospheric pressure and the position of the moon would be ameliorated. The averaged results indicated that in the direction Earth was traveling, there was a .6% increase in weight. There were isolated incidents when the weight was the same but there was never a case when the trailing edge was greater. My conclusion was, of course, Earth is traveling through a substance, not a vacuum.

It’s that substance, CDP, which has a profound effect on everything. I’ve read that scientists have determined that empty space has a temperature of just above absolute zero. I’m supposing that the temperature is actually absolute zero and scientific measurements are skewed by the presence of energy passing through the same place. I’m also supposing that energy has an absolute, maximum temperature but I have no way to determine that.

Yes, I am aware that the existence of dark matter (what I now call CDP) has been known for many years, but to me it was relatively simple to prove (to myself) without any formal education. It’s the understanding of its properties and role in the universe that interests me. I think all that is required to understand some things is to ignore the impossible, smoke-and-mirrors facade maintained in the private society of elite theoretical physicists that is shrouded in ever-more-complicated math and just observe.

In gazing into the night sky, I wondered what things are. What are particles? What determines mass? What is energy? E=MC2 indicates they are the same thing, interchangeable. Of course that would also mean that a photon with no mass could not exist at rest. So, I assume that energy must always be in motion. So…when at rest, energy must acquire (or become) mass.
For a while, I then concocted a scenario whereby energy was comprised of vibrating fibers which had been compressed through the ages in a black hole and were somehow released at the big bang moment and left to vibrate, or resonate throughout all time. I thought, perhaps, such a black hole might have wandered into an already occupied space as a myriad of objects and were subsequently pressed together by the dark matter (CDP) of space. I was somewhat satisfied with such and idea but it didn’t address the question of what matter might be. What was an electron? A proton? A neutrino? So much was unanswered.

I had to start over. There could be other dimensions at work. Things could be infinitely small…or large. Time itself could be infinite.

I purchased a graphic calculator to follow some of the math…what energy is absorbed and released when a photon encounters an electron? Things like that. I’m certainly no math whiz and had no inclination to continue down that path because, aside from the fact that I wouldn’t fully comprehend what I was doing, anyway…and I didn’t think it would provide answers to my underlying questions.

Looking at the illustrations of a flat space-time with a large mass causing a depression and bending the fabric of space was interesting. Another, smaller, mass with enough velocity would orbit the larger one rather than fall into the hole and be absorbed. A massive enough body, such as a black hole might sink so far into the two-dimensional fabric that it could tear through…or come into contact with another layer of space-time if such space time is circular or spherical…or if there are multiple layers of space-time. That would account for time and space as being infinite. Such a black hole tearing through or re-appearing elsewhere could be the source of the big bang in our reality.

Still, none of those ideas which are not unique by any means, address the heart of the question as to what things are. I’m not really so naive as to believe I could ever come up with any new idea, something that hasn’t already been proposed. I just want to understand.

Getting back to that two-dimensional fabric of space…I’ve already determined that the stuff in space (CDP) plays a role in the interaction of celestial bodies and their movement as there is greater gravity at the leading edge of Earth than the trailing edge, and particles with mass cannot travel at the speed of light. The model of space-time should not be two-dimensional. It should be at least three-dimensional. That would mean that, instead of a body pressing against space, space is pressing against matter. Perhaps gravity is a pressing force rather than a pulling force. The CDP would be somewhat compressible depending on the mass of an object. In the case of a planet, for example, its mass or density would dictate how much force is applied to the surface. Every available space within the planet which is not occupied by particles such as electrons, quarks, etc. would be occupied by the CDP. There would be no unoccupied space…no vacuum. A denser planet would have less CDP encapsulated and would have greater density of the CDP at the surface, creating a greater gravitational force depending on the actual size of the planet.

There seem to be two opposing entities at work here…the absolute darkness and zero-temperature of the CDP and the absolute brightness and temperature of energy. It seems that the interaction between these entities is the foundation of everything.

There is so much I don’t understand and I need to incorporate time in my thought process. According to what I’ve read, both velocity and gravity affect time, in that an increase in velocity slows time and an increase in gravity also slows time. If I’m correct in assuming that gravity is actually a pressing force created by increasing density of the CDP, then the area closest to a massive body would, conceivably have little or no passage of time. In the case of a black hole, the event horizon where no time passes would be where the CDP is densest. As light passes by a black hole from a distant star, its own time would stop nearest the black hole but would simply slow at distances farther away. With a black hole being in motion as everything is, it would appear that the light was bending but it was not. Also, oddly, if that same light were to be stopped at the area of maximum density of the CDP, those photons or quanta of light would cease to exist as energy because energy cannot exist without motion…unless that might be the point where energy is transformed to matter.

That is something worth considering for sure. Supposedly, in the two-dimensional, graphic illustrations of the various fields (electron, boson, Higgs) it is indicated that the Higgs field creates mass. Looking at it from three dimensions, the Higgs field is probably the densest area of the CDP. That would be the source of mass.

I was thinking of wave and particle duality. A photon is thought to be both a particle and a wave but I wonder about that. If a photon or any quanta of energy were to be oscillating up and down, back and forth, inside and out (whatever), while in motion because it must be in motion lest it be transformed into mass, it would appear to an observer to be a wave. I think that’s the simple answer to the particle/wave duality. Energy oscillates. I’m thinking that it, more likely, throbs…it contracts and expands. It could be round or cylindrical or whatever (?) shape…but it probably throbs.

Time dilation is strange. A person living 100 years at Earth’s equator would live about 4 minutes longer than someone living at either pole because they’re moving about 1000 MPH faster…and if the person at the pole were standing on a mountaintop all that time, there would be an even greater time difference. I also wonder about mass with regard to velocity. If mass increases with velocity, would it not decrease as gravity (or CDP) increases? Or, possibly, the opposite might be true…that mass increases as gravity increases.

On a much smaller scale, I wonder about electrons and neutrinos traveling near light speed. An electron frantically orbiting a nucleus would really be more massive than if it were at rest. Its rest mass would be much smaller than reported. A neutrino travels nearly light speed and is thought to be 6 to 800,000 times smaller than an electron. That same neutrino at rest…how much smaller can it possibly be? Is there no limit to size, either large or small?

I wonder if everything is a conflict of extreme opposites. Maybe the passage of time is one of those conflicts..with no time passing at zero light speed and maximum gravity and the fastest movement of time at zero gravity and velocity. Maybe the two AND three-dimensional version of space-time exist together. I can’t imagine this is the case but…

I was thinking…if I am correct that compressed CDP is the source of gravity, what about the science-fiction tales of wormholes and the possibility of interstellar travel? If space-time is not a flat, two-dimensional plane that can be folded and distorted by massive bodies, thereby providing a shorter distance between two points…but rather, three-dimensional…that would preclude the possibility of wormholes…unless, of course, one envisions additional dimensions, say, an inner-dimension, or something else, altogether. I’m reminded of the startled populace of “Flatland”.

Another thing I wonder about is the structure of protons and neutrons as well as the existence of elements as we know them. Why would there not be the possibility of many more quarks in a proton or neutron? This would lead to entirely new elements with unimaginable attributes…maybe even invisible to our vision and devices. Since I believe energy and CDP occupy the same space together, maybe other elements are co-existing right before our eyes, unseen, undetected and undetectable.

What I think is going on, however, is this……wait…I want to explain my choice of “plasma” for the stuff in space…that it’s continuous, analog…as opposed to digital or quanta. Maybe I should change the term from CDP to something that includes “inert” or “static”. Also…how gravitational waves can be actual waves in the CDP due to changes in density caused by the movement of matter. Also, a black hole exploding could cause release of energy in plasma form…as it expands, it breaks apart into quanta. Matter and anti matter…is the form of matter dependent on the attitude or charge of energy as it enters the densest CDP (Higgs field)? Is the paucity of anti-matter due to matter/anti-matter collisions releasing energy? If so, this might indicate that total production of matter is limited in our universe. I don’t know if this adds up.
Oh…I should mention about how particles can be any size…not just those we know of. Can it be that each quanta of energy is polarized like a magnet? I have to accept, I think, that I can never really know what energy is. Being polarized, can it really be that string theory is correct in the sense that energy is an extremely small, vibrating string or fiber? Other notes…light traveling at the speed of light experiences zero time…so if a photon is actually a quanta of energy and if that quanta is actually a vibrating or oscillating “something”, say with poles like a magnet, maybe with a positive or negative charge as though it were matter or anti-matter or energy or anti-energy, it will never stop vibrating unless it is acted upon by some other force which alters its velocity…like gravity. Gravity seeming to have a maximum density or strength which, if I am correct, is dependent on the density or compaction of the CDP, will cease the passage of time. What I wonder is whether or not the maximum CDP density can alter the state of energy, thereby causing it to contract into mass. I think I already determined that to be true in that the Higgs field is the name given to the CDP at maximum density that does indeed, change energy to mass…but because the energy is converted to mass, it no longer is traveling at the speed of light and begins to experience the passage of time…but because the CDP is at maximum density, there would still be no passage of time…this seems to indicate that a shell of CDP remains around every particle and traps time within. That seems to be similar to how I envision a black hole might be a massive conglomeration of particles (each one encompassed within its own shell) all contained within a larger shell of CDP. In any case, all particles would probably simply be compacted energy constrained by CDP (the Higgs field).

Gravity, energy, time, mass…

A photon on its journey from a distant star travels, say, a billion light years but from its own point of view no time passes. From its view, it is at the beginning and end simultaneously. It exists everywhere at once. In essence, it appears that when a single photon (or packet of energy) begins its journey, it already has a predetermined end since there is no passage of time for it. Perhaps time is just another dimension.

I wonder if, in the nucleus of an atom, all the gluons and quarks are actively moving from place to place at the speed of light. I wonder if energy is a life-form, itself, devoid of time.

I think the word “energy” is mis-applied in some senses. I think of energy as the quanta of a photon, for example. However, energy is the word used to describe the amount of exertion or power of a movement or thing. Kinetic energy is the amount of force of something performing work. Potential energy is used to describe how much force a thing could muster if given the opportunity…such as a boulder resting on a cliff. These are totally different uses of the term, energy.

I noticed a YouTube video titled “Time ran slower in early universe, new study finds”. I find that curious. (I haven’t watched it.) However, since an increase in velocity causes time to slow, perhaps everything was moving at higher velocity so far in the past. On the other hand, since time also slows with an increase in gravity, I think this is more likely the case. Because I postulate that gravity is the result of dense, compacted CDP, perhaps this is an indication that space (CDP) is expanding and in our early universe the CDP was considerably denser than it is today. This doesn’t seem to bode well for our future as an ever-expanding CDP decreases density through time. Eventually, this would lead to a decrease in gravity throughout the universe and there would be less pressure holding things together…including galaxies, solar systems and even individual particles.

This is July 19, 2023. I wanted to include that date in order to mark this moment. I have firmly believed that “there’s never anything new under the sun”…that there are no new ideas to come across that haven’t been considered before…that even includes my reversible writing system for which I obtained a US patent (pending)…it turns out that the ancient Sumerians (I think) beat me to it.

However, in spite of the previous comment, I think I’ve hit upon a, “By jove! I think he’s got it!” moment. As I was thinking about what I had written about the likelihood of the CDP (the dark matter, the stuff that is in space) expanding and decreasing in density. Well…what about looking the other way? If it’s expanding now, what was it before. Going backward, it must have begun at a single point. Perhaps the big bang was an explosion or release of CDP into a bright, hot, energy filled void, rather than energy blasting forth into a dark void! I find that concept to be remarkable. If I take another step into uncharted territory…I suppose it’s just as possible that the dark and the light emerged together from a point and they are expanding together, always in conflict with each other. This definitely deserves more consideration. The CDP would be at absolute maximum density at the beginning and, acting as the Higgs field, would be creating mass from the simultaneously, escaping energy. Of course, as every other proposal…what else was there at the beginning? Was that truly the beginning of all things and time as well? In the compact CDP, there would have been no passage of time…no time at all until it began to expand. As the expansion occurs, perceived gravity would decrease and time would pass at a greater rate, proportionally. To counter that, as the energy burst forth at light speed (and no time passing) to begin, it may decrease velocity and allow time to balance with the CDP.

Another thought about that thought of maximum CDP density at a single point…suppose it’s not maximum density but rather just the level of density where time ceases to progress. What if CDP density can continue beyond? As such, time would reverse. Maybe that is what happens inside a black hole as well as the point of origin before the big bang. I think it’s beyond my comprehension to imagine a time and place before time began.

Naturally, peeling away another layer of uncertainty only reveals new possibilities of reality…if energy and CDP co-existed at a single point before time began…where did that point originate?…what, if anything, existed outside the point? Was there truly nothing? Accepting that infinity is a reality is essential to a complete understanding of the meaning of everything.

I’m just wondering about that beginning…everything (energy and CDP) emanating from a single point in time and space…what might the size of such a thing be? There was no time and nothing existed…

I don’t remember if I mentioned this earlier but…light itself, as a single quanta of energy, experienced no passage of time during its entire existence. This would indicate that from the beginning of the big bang (or great emergence), no time passes for any energy until it is transformed by the pressure of the CDP’s compaction into mass. It would appear that time only exists for particles with mass and their associated groupings as elements.

In a slightly different direction..I was wondering about electrons in an atom absorbing the energy of a photon…that causes the electron to rise to a higher orbit where it quickly releases that excess energy and falls back to its original orbit. The thing I have a problem with is…just what is happening that an electron “absorbs” energy? What does that mean? Does the electron become hotter? Or spin faster? Or What? I think it’s a little different.I have to imagine what the structure of an electron must be…it’s basically, highly condensed energy resulting from an interaction with compact CDP (Higgs field), so it makes more sense that condensed energy can increase with the addition of a photon, rather than an electron existing as a solid thing.

Energy and matter being the same thing is similar to the various forms of water, each form dependent on outside influences and taking on totally different characteristics at specific points…no smooth transitions from one to the other…ice is solid, water is liquid, steam is gas, and there may be a plasma form (?). With energy, the condensed form is the solid we call matter and the liquid (plasma) form known as energy…there is no smooth transition phase…it’s one or the other and remains so, depending on the outside influence of CDP. Another key factor in altering the state of energy/mass is time which works in conjunction with CDP density to affect change.

I have the impression that theoretical physicists have absolutely no interest in the opinions of people outside their sphere. That’s too bad. I think it severely limits their narrow, parochial scope of possibilities and falsely leads them to believe that no one else has the capacity for thought.

Interestingly, if I think about the interlacing of mass, energy and time…suppose we, our planet and all the galaxies and all the stars in our universe were traveling at light speed velocity together through an area unlike our own space…(a distinct possibility). There would be no passage of time and, like a simple photon en route from a distant star to the rods and cones in my eye, would experience no past or future. The present would co-exist with every moment in our existence, past to future. Our universe’s (and our own) existence would be laid bare on a single page, exposing all history at once. As such, time travel would be a simple matter of focusing attention at different parts of the plane. I don’t think we could do that ourselves…but someone looking from elsewhere could.

About that…getting back to a single, lonesome little photon. Throughout its existence, there is no time. From beginning to end it experiences nothing special and that beginning to end all occurs simultaneously, almost as though it was all predetermined. That predetermination was something I thought about long ago when a video depicted how a wave works using a rope. You hold a rope at one end while the other is held at the other. An up and down movement causes a wave (or waves, depending on the initial shake of the rope) to form in the rope. This is really only possible if there are two ends determined at the outset…so as soon as the wave begins, its entire existence is already known. The same would be true for the photon. Oh…another thing about that photon. I had thought that energy is constantly resonating or throbbing somehow throughout its existence…but…with no time passing, perhaps only a single (or very few) complete oscillations ever occur.

Okay…Okay! I admit I am arriving very late to this party…and I showed up without any of the prerequisites needed for attendance. I’m learning as I go along without most of the information that all the experts have. That’s my excuse. I adapt my stance as needed.

I still don’t know what energy is. Maybe it’s a different form of resonating matter that isn’t affected by the dark matter (CDP) all around. Maybe when it comes into contact with the influences of compacted dark matter (CDP) and time, it is transformed into the matter we are familiar with. So may questions…so little time. I suppose I have to accept that energy, CDP and time are just there…or here. They have no beginnings or ends…they must be intrinsic…and infinite. As to CDP, I’m supposing that it exists everywhere, occupying all space where there is no particle. That would indicate that even at the sub-atomic level, there would be CDP…sloshing around inside protons and neutrons with the Quarks and gluons…and impacting the behavior of electrons in orbit just as it does with celestial bodies. There would be constant turmoil and movement as CDP interacts with condensed energy (matter).

Oh…I should add a qualifier to all the hypotheses I’ve mentioned above. Many years ago, when I was working for a company, in meetings, the owner often began with a statement about the business that was incorrect. He followed that up with a lengthy series of scenarios that developed from his initial false assertion. His entire proposals were based upon a foundation of possibilities that developed from untrue data. The people in the meeting were usually taken in by his preposterous notions because they failed to notice the initial falsehood that the story was built from. So…my qualifier (and concession) is to note that a great amount of my speculation is routed in my allegation that gravity is a pressing force…and that hypothesis is supported by the experiment I conducted at home on my bathroom scale. I haven’t found anyone anywhere to properly conduct a similar experiment in a reputable lab. I did, however, correspond with Freeman Dysan and he claimed (rightfully so, as I was already aware) that I had discovered the means for a perpetual motion machine…the rise and fall of the effect of gravity as the earth rotates and the leading edge of earth changes. My brother jokingly said I had discovered the tides.

Today I was wondering about something…if CDP (space) is expanding from an initial point, is there a limit to the elasticity of it? As it continues to expand, it becomes less and less dense and something has to give! Either the CDP becomes fragmented or…it reaches a maximum stress and…contracts…snaps back. That could lead to perpetual expansion and contraction and an explanation for what we attribute to be the big bang…occurring time after time, forever. Maybe…just maybe, when the CDP rushes back inward it reaches a central point and actually creates the sum total of energy in our universe which is released again. As I’ve heard, out universe is expanding…so we are existing in the expansion stage.

I watch numerous, science-fiction TV reruns and they often have “wormholes” as a key element in the storyline. My earlier suspicion that such things could not exist in “my universe” as I see it, may not be accurate. I was thinking that CDP is always moving and being influenced by matter…and this could cause varying areas of increased density. With such an increase in density which causes time dilation, maybe…just maybe. However, if dense CDP causes time dilation, thereby allowing the remote possibility of wormholes, the problem for science-fiction enthusiasts would be that even though travel to distant reaches of space may be possible with little passage of time for those making the journey (as a single photon transporting through space without aging), time on the outside would proceed as usual…the wormhole traveler would find her or himself in a distant future upon arrival at a new, remote location. On the other hand, in an area of space where the CDP is extremely thin…for one thing, particles could traverse the area with little (or no) resistance, even at (or near) the speed of light. This could precipitate far more efficient space travel by humans. Also, in the thinnest of CDP, there could develop the possibility of wormhole types of voids. (I’m really reaching here, merely in a futile attempt to find hope for science-fiction enthusiasts like me. Dreams are good!) Actually, now that I think about it, the densest CDP has no passage of time so an object (or person) could enter the dense CDP and traverse back and forth at will…and the only apparent aging would be experienced by the traveler. The thing is…so many aspects of the universe should be viewed inversely to the normally accepted methods…just like the 2-dimensional illustrations of the fabric of space, the pulsating energy fields (Higgs, electron) are shown in 2 dimensions. Wormholes are no different…they should be considered as solid shafts rather than empty holes.

I just thought of something…a comet, in its journey through space would not be shedding its particles (ice crystals?) if it were not traveling through something…CDP! If there were nothing at all, there would be no friction. This simple observation is even more convincing of the existence of the plasma (CDP) in space than my weight experiment.

I need to do a recap of all this…

The stuff in space and everywhere that is not occupied by particles of any kind is what I call “cold dark plasma” or “CDP”. CDP and energy can occupy the same space. CDP exists at absolute zero temperature and can be compressed. While energy can pass through CDP unabated, particles with mass cannot. In fact, it is the CDP’s effect on mass that is gravity. The greater the degree of compression, the greater the gravitational force and also the effect on time dilation. Highly compressed CDP slows (and/or) stops time and accounts for the conversion of energy to an apparent, solid form. This is what is called the Higgs field. Packets of energy (photons) must always be in motion. At rest, due to a slowing of time and the density of CDP, energy changes its state to solid form. In the entire existence of a photon in motion, no time elapses. Therefore, it appears that a photo’s existence is predetermined since its past present and future all occur at the same time. (Bear with me here…I start and stop this story as the mood arises.)

I realize no one ever reads this but something else just occurred to me. With the Earth plunging head long into the CDP which creates more force against the leading edge of our planet, we are also rotating at the same time. This rotation would create an even greater pressure against the torque or rotational force of the planet. This may well account for the tectonic movement of the plates near the earth's surface.

Back to photons and particles for a second...I'm wondering if the wavelength or color of a photon entering into a dense area of space (the Higgs field) determines what particle it becomes. a very short wavelength might become a neutrino, then, as the wavelength of a given photon increases a larger particle is produced...electron, charm quark, etc. Of course, in all cases all the particles considered to have mass are simply, condensed (or constricted) photons or bits of energy. Since the so-called particles are indeed condensed photons, they would retain some semblance of particle/wave duality as observed in double-slit experiments. Perhaps, in the process of converting a photon to a particle, only the core of the photon is converted to what we consider to be mass and the outer fringes of each photon remain wavelike...and we just don't have the technology to observe it yet.

A quick comment about the Fermi paradox and time travel...I don't think any aliens have ever visited Earth. I did think, long ago, that it was remotely possible there may have been intelligent life on Mars which evolved well enough to visit (or even colonize) Earth but no probes of Mars have found the slightest hint of prior civilization. So...to comment on the alien issue...all the so-called UFOs...the only explanation I might have is time travel. These would be visitors from a future Earth. Since time does not exist for photons or in extreme gravity, it should be possible for humans to develop and enter into such a gravitational state (such as in the event horizon of a black hole). This would permit time travel...past and future. Actually, I don't feel like reading what I've already written, so I don't know if I've mentioned this before but...I can imagine a man-made spacecraft with an inverted cone at its leading edge, traveling in space at velocities not yet possible...the inverted nose-cone could be gathering and condensing the stuff in space (CDP) to a point where it would reach the density similar to that which engulfs a black hole. That might well create an event horizon around the spacecraft, thereby stopping the passage of time. Thus, passengers in the craft (and the craft itself) could explore and observe the past and future without any passage of time for themselves. I suppose they could arrive outside Earth's atmosphere, dispatch smaller vehicles for observation purposes (which would be seen as UFOs) and return to the "mother ship". During such visits, of course, time would pass for the visitors until they resumed the velocity necessary to stop time and return to their own time...or explore elsewhere...actually, the stoppage of time would be achieved by a combination of velocity (slowing time) and gravity (slowing time). Well, that was a fun diversion into science fiction.

Oh yeah...about that science fiction, time travel thing...I had dismissed the wormhole idea a long time ago because I think it requires imagining the fabric of space to be two-dimensional, perhaps with multiple layers. However, when I think of my proposal that the material comprising space is CDP and that it can be compressed, I suppose it's possible that it may slosh around out there, sometimes in more dense configurations not associated with black holes...it follows that there could be areas appearing and disappearing or wandering about and those areas may be dense enough to slow or stop time within...these could be portals (or wormholes) allowing physical passage within, excluding the passage of time.

Every once in a while, the spirit moves me to make another comment after years of adding to this missive. (I began writing this many years ago)..I'm thinking the stuff in space I call CDP may well be expanding as though it was compressed for millennia and now tends to seek its own state of equilibrium or entropy much like matter seeks entropy. This tendency of the CDP in the universe might explain what we see as expansion of the universe.

Impeachment trial farce

2021-01-28T08:18:00.001-08:00

Imagine you're charged with some crime and the trial is set for, say, next week. Whether you're guilty or not, you're entitled to a fair trial. The jurors are all interviewed in advance, to assure they enter the court with an unbiased, open mind...capable of weighing the evidence presented in the proceedings and not predisposed to a positive or negative verdict based on racial, political, gender, or any other prejudices. That's the way your trial should be conducted...should be.

I admit that I don't closely follow every item in the news. However, I did come across a little tidbit which I found to be disturbing. In the upcoming Senate, impeachment trial, various senators who are the actual jurors in this case, have already declared how they intend to vote...a week before the trial even occurs...before any witnesses have been called...before any evidence is presented.

Back to your imagined, upcoming case...if the prospective jurors had indicated any predisposed, biased inclination of your guilt or innocence...they would be disqualified from the jury pool immediately. What the hell is the point of a trial if the verdict is already known?

This Senate trial is a farce. It is not a trial at all...only politics as usual. Any senator who has already made up his or her mind should be excluded from voting in this trial. Maybe that would work.

structured settlement loans

2020-12-21T18:05:00.001-08:00

What's with the TV ads in the Seattle area for companies loaning money on structured settlement income? There's Peachtree Financial and JG Wentworth...they both have opera singing in their dueling ads. How odd! I suppose the JG Wentworth company was first with the opera motif onaccounta the name, Jordan Wentworth, kinda seems to be the connection...and Peachtree copied it. It's downright silly. Couldn't one of them come up with their own ideas?

Corona Virus, National Emergency

2020-03-13T23:04:00.002-07:00

Okay...I wasn't all that worried about the long term effects of the Corona virus. While I am old, I am in relatively good health and would most likely survive if I were beset with the virus. Also, I don't get out much.

However, today I heard on the radio that Trump had declared a national emergency. That's the part that concerns me.

When Trump first took the throne, there was an underlying suspicion that some sort of orchestrated war or false threat might be in the works to undermine this country's freedoms...and the Corona virus seems to fit right into the plans of our despicable despots-in-charge. I can just picture all those old cronies, wringing their hands and gurgling for joy at such a serendipitous turn of events...like old witches cackling over a cauldron of boiling blood, rats eyes and snake venom.

I've heard some ideas put forward...cut payroll taxes, cut social security and medicare taxes, make those reductions or eliminations permanent, etc. The people who benefit from those tax reductions are only those with jobs...and those who benefit the most are the high earners. As usual, it's the wealthy who reap the rewards. Of course, vaguely hidden in those proposals, with the elimination of any influx of funds into social security and medicare, the republicans will have the sledge hammer they crave so much to demand cuts to the beneficiaries of those programs.

Of course, this entire situation is horrible. People are dying and development of any vaccines may take years (if ever). The long term effects are beyond my comprehension.

Indeed, Trump is an idiot...but it's not just him or his pitiful family. It's the right-wing, racist, republican establishment to be feared, especially at this time of "national emergency"...because...the next step they would fall all over themselves to take is...Martial Law...and that would truly be a disaster...maybe, suspend elections indefinitely, eh? Maybe ban all, selective, public gatherings? Maybe squash selective dissent? This is scary. And now I AM worried. I'm not a religious man...but if I were...I'd say God Help Us.

Added a few weeks later...With the near-worldwide shutdown and businesses of all kinds in the US closing their doors...with so many millions of people put out of work (and income), a financial calamity looms ahead. It would be just peachy if everyone would just stand still in one place for a few weeks...this would all pass. Those infected would not pass the virus along and the lifecycle of the virus would run its course. The attempt at "social distancing" will help, I suppose, but it probably won't be enough. The virus will spread and may over-tax our healthcare facilities. The long term, financial effects may be devastating. The government proposals to ameliorate the economic implosion seem to be bandaids...treating one small laceration while a thousand others erupt and fester. I propose an immediate halt to all debt repayment...no rent, no mortgage payments, no insurance payments, no tax payments...Oh, but what of the banks and institutions who also have debts to pay? I said Halt All Debt Repayment. It's a "financial timeout" for everyone until the pandemic fades away...maybe months...maybe years...whatever it takes. Maybe a vaccine is on the horizon in a year or so...maybe not. Regardless, the horse is already out of the barn. Best to let it graze until a fenced-in field is devoid of nutrients. Then...when the firestorm has ended...when we all can go back to work...Then, we can pick up where we left off and restart paying our bills.

Now it's April. The virus is still spreading and many states have entered a lockdown phase. The Democratic Convention has been postponed along with so many other public events. The trend seems to be heading toward my greatest, initial fear...Police State...no elections...no ousting of the traitorous scum in control of the US government. This is a truly frightening time.

Ludicrous TV Ad Spokesmen etc.

2020-03-13T16:14:00.004-07:00

Absolutely laughable washed-out old spokesmen for...whatever products on TV...How could anyone anywhere be enticed to spend their money because these characters mumble their way through a taping session?

Lou Pinella...selling retirement apartments?

Joe Namath...who cares what he says?

Mike Ditka...barely speaking with marbles in his mouth

Chris Berman...whoever the hell that is...with his loud, semi-lisping voice

Who else? I'll add more as I notice them. Any suggestions?

How bout the woman in the commercial who can't pronounce 'funeral'?

The ad where the guy says A-hundred instead of eight-hundred

or the guy who says 'hunnerd' instead of 'hundred'

King County wasting money on trail

2020-03-03T08:20:00.001-08:00

I was wondering just how much money the county parks department must be spending on the trail at the end of my street and the question was raised, "Why not spend that money to help the homeless?"

This street in Fall City is a dead end. (It's the old Fall City Dump Road.) There are three houses along one side of the street with two more set back on long driveways. So...there are five residences. The other side of the street is all water. At the end of the road there's a gate...and then a county-maintained, mostly gravel access road/trail that leads up the hill through private property to the main Snoqualmie trail that once was a railroad built mainly to transport lumber.

Hikers, bicyclists and horse riders use this access to the trail above. This particular, gravel trail is subject to frequent slides and erosion...just nature doing its thing. Lately, with this winter's usual weather damage, there has been a steady stream of heavy equipment, including tens of truckloads of gravel going up there to make repairs. This sort of thing has been going on for years. The King county roads department does the work along this street to the gate. From there, the King county parks department takes over. Some years ago, the roads department spent millions of dollars to replace a twenty foot bridge along the road. (A reminder...there are only five residences here!) They claimed the old bridge was at risk but it seemed fine to me.

So...back to my wondering and the question about the homeless. There are actually homeless people living right here in Fall City and countless others throughout the county. Instead of using public funds to maintain a road and a trail just for the precious few who travel from the big city to get back to nature...why not help the thousands of less fortunate? Just imagine having these millions of dollars available for those who really need it...rather than cater to a tiny minority of trail enthusiasts. In fact, there are other access points to the county trail system. If the hikers, bikers and horses don't want to cross over a few ruts or gashes on the uphill trail...they can use one of the other entry points. By the way...the trail up above...the one that used to be a railroad bed...it's just a slightly graded, cleared, dirt and gravel road now, whereas it used to be mostly overgrown with a narrow pathway snaking through the wilds.The land on each side is all privately owned, so those who use the trail are required to stay on the trail. There's no legal access to the forest. When a person goes up there, it's just a back and forth trip...no exploring...no cutting through the trees...no blazing new trails...just stay on the straight-and-narrow...might as well be on a mouse/gerbil, exercise wheel.

It's time for King county to take a close look at what in the world they're throwing away our tax money on. Maybe, consider a more humane use of our assets, eh? This money pit in Fall City is not going away. There will be no end to erosion on this little trail and the county will have to continue throwing money at it for years to come...as it has for years gone by. Stop. Let it be.

Fukushima and Global Warming

2019-08-20T06:43:00.000-07:00

I'm wondering...with the Fukushima, nuclear facility pumping 300 tons of radioactive water into the ocean every day with no human-inspired solution on the horizon...maybe there is something else at foot. Maybe the earth itself is taking measures to ameliorate the effects of the contamination. Maybe...just maybe...global warming has an upside. Recognizing a severe, global catastrophe, the earth is simply melting all its stored ice available in an effort to dilute the seas and prolong the disaster until enough time passes for the worst of the radiation to subside...buying time for all us poor souls in its keeping. Maybe the earth is operating in its own survival mode, eh? Maybe we're all just unwitting pawns in the game.

Even if global warming and rising seas are not being orchestrated by an omniscient, concerned planet...and it's all the fault of human meddling...and even if untold millions of lives are lost...our species may survive in some form thanks to the dilution of our oceans...(as though we're really worth it).

Particles and Waves

2019-06-13T06:45:00.000-07:00

Okay, here's something...

Twenty (or so) years ago, I was looking at a graphic which demonstrated the effect of gravity by placing a large sphere on a grid, with another, smaller sphere traveling around it. Given enough momentum, the smaller sphere would continue to orbit the larger one. The distortion in the grid (which represented the fabric of space) was distorted or stretched downward and adequately depicted, in a two-dimensional scale, how gravity works. I realized that the fabric of space is certainly not two-dimensional. It must be at least three. So picturing in my mind what a three-dimensional graphic would be, I concluded that gravity is a pressing force rather than a pulling force.

So...just yesterday, I was looking at a graph of a waveform. It was showing the nature of photons, electrons, neutrons (everything) and how such things can be particles while still exhibiting wavelike tendencies. There was an explanation about quantum physics and the likelihood of a single particle being found at any point along the graph. The base, horizontal line would be the least likely and the farthest-most positions on the wave would be most likely. Fine.

But wait! How about adding another dimension to that graph. Viewing it in three dimensions gives an entirely different result. Of course, I only noticed this yesterday and haven't thought it through very much at this point. However, as I see it, the waveform of light and other particles is not like a two-dimensional cutaway of ocean waves. It appears to be more like a coil...a helix...the threads on a bolt. A particle travels from one direction to the next along a helical path. When viewed in only two dimensions, it's a wave...but give it depth and it's a helix.

I'm not sure what to make of this observation yet but it seems that taking a slice out of the helix at a specific point will yield precisely where a particle is...so much for the uncertainly of quantum physics.

Back to the shape of the helix. If I think of the coil as being more like a Slinky than a bolt, I can imagine stretching or compacting the thing which would indicate frequency changes. If I imagine a greater or lesser diameter, I arrive at varying wavelengths.

Particles must be traveling (or existing) in a helical direction which appears to a narrow mind to be a wave. About hat helical direction...I think it's remarkable when considering it's the same shape as DNA. Maybe DNA is predisposed to coiling due to the nature of every particle in the universe. Coils, helixes everywhere. the helix shape probably did morph into longer strands...and pair up...this probably occurred at some time in Earth's distant past...maybe at the time of Pangea or another super-continent time...the random helical pairings then continued mutations through the ages and as the continents drifted apart...this would account for the existence of similar, but unequal versions of hominids found in so many diverse locations around the world. About those particles...I don't pretend to know how to describe their size and shape. They may be little, round balls traveling in the threads around a bolt. Maybe they're magnets with their charges on each end of a rotating thread or string. Maybe the magnets are horseshoe shaped, or bent threads. Maybe they are not bent magnets but just bent threads, pulsating or throbbing. How about circular threads, rolling forward. Maybe they're threads in the form of a helix and bursts of energy flow through them...or maybe the basic elements are shorter, arced threads that join together to continue around in a helix. There are countless forms to consider...and I've only had this one day. However, regardless of the size and shape...magnets or throbbing...pulsating...rolling...that internal, resonance...movement...would be the energy stored in each photon, electron, etc.

I don't think there are many original ideas left to put forth about anything at all. I suspect, just like everything else I've discovered on my own has already been found by countless others. To me, it's a fine thing that I see something for the first time...that I experience an event for the first time...maybe it never happened before, ever, anywhere. Maybe not. For now, I believe gravity is a pressing force. I believe whatever is called dark matter or dark energy exists throughout our universe and it is a continuous material...not particles. It permeates everything and is responsible for the forces extending from gravity down to the sub-atomic level. We (the essence of our existence in the form of energy or even particles) in this universe are simply intruders in a previously, unoccupied place. I believe waves are actually helixes and it's that helical tendency which created our form of life, via DNA. I suppose I should also mention that I believe in infinity...of time and space. Oh...lest that part be misconstrued...the infinity of space is not limited to our universe. I think this universe is a confined place...the dark matter of this universe seems to have nowhere else to go and that's why it resists the presence of all our matter. Beyond our universe...that's where infinity is. As to time...maybe it travels in a loop, a circle, a straight line...maybe it loops back upon itself or intersects along the way...maybe I'll find out someday.

Sorry for all the off-topic rambling. My purpose in writing this was to explain how I thing particles can act as waves. I just wanted to get this down in words now before I forget.

Uh...just a brief comment about String Theory...It's my understanding that the very basis of String Theory is that strings are one-dimensional. and may be curved or even circular...also, that they're vibrating. A point particle such as an electron or quark can certainly also be a line if viewed perpendicularly but if a straight line is vibrating it has to be at least two-dimensional. If a line is curved, it has to be at least two-dimensional. If it also has depth while pulsating, it has to have three dimensions. In any case, things occupying one, two or three dimensions should all be observable. Maybe a three-dimensional string vibrates into and out of an additional dimension, eh? At this moment, I'm not buyin' it...so I'll stick to what I can see rather than rely on dreams and imagined, alternate realities.

As to the Higgs field and the Higgs boson...the theory seems to be that immediately after the Big Bang, the various particles emitted traveled through the Higgs field and interacted with Higgs bosons thereby acquiring varying degrees of mass, thus assuming identities of quarks, electrons and such. There isn't any explanation as to where this Higgs Field came from and, more importantly, how there jut happened to be Higgs bosons already present. I disagree with the concept. Instead, I hold to my own idea...The Big Bang occurred in an already occupied space. That space was occupied by the dark matter, dark energy, ether, Higgs Field...whatever name one chooses to apply at any given time. It is that dark matter which altered the velocity of the ejecta from the Big Bang and caused the particles to interact with each other to acquire mass...rather than Higgs bosons. Higgs bosons are simply additional products of the event. It is certainly possible that Higgs bosons were among the first to acquire mass upon being spewed from the initial Black Hole exploding in the Big Bang...and shedding some of their mass to other particles when slowing down in the ether. In any case, I still maintain that the dark matter in this universe is confined to a limited space and exerts a force upon all matter as we know it. This includes gravity and all nuclear forces.

Mueller...Release the Report!

2019-03-30T12:21:00.000-07:00

The Mueller report handed over to Barr is certainly not the only copy. I'd be pleased as punch if Mueller simply released a copy to several news sources and has it published and made available to the public immediately. It's the right thing to do. He would be a true American hero!

Hey Mueller! Release the entire report yourself! You know very well that you didn't do all that work so it would all be buried. Do it. Hand it all over to the American people.

Amazon Third Party Mess...Amazon IS the Third Party!

2019-01-18T05:58:00.000-08:00

Holy crap! This is the second time I ordered something from Amazon that didn't arrive...but is listed as "delivered". The thing is, you see, when it's not a product shipped directly from an Amazon warehouse, it's a "third party" shipper. Amazon simply takes your money and orders the thing from someone else...the "third party". If the wrong thing shows up or if it never shows up at all, Amazon denies any responsibility and says they can only issue a refund. They say they "have no other options". I tell them, "Of course you have another option. I ordered something from Amazon and already paid for it. It did not arrive yet. Your option is to re-order from the third party and have it shipped to me."

It sure seems pretty plain and simple. If you buy something from Amazon, it's Amazon's responsibility to have it shipped. It doesn't matter how many other parties are involved. Amazon has taken on the responsibility of selling you something...so it's Amazon's job to get the product to you. Yet, they deny it. They say I can order a "replacement". I tell them there's nothing to replace since I never received anything to be replaced.

Anyway...it's just an awful web of deceit to deal with Amazon. Their people just spout off the mantra, "Our only option is to issue a refund." It doesn't matter that the customer placed their trust in Amazon and expects Amazon to make things right.

Of course, this problem was easily avoidable for me...especially since I've had the same issue more than once. When you're intending to buy something from Amazon, just have a look at where the product is coming from. If it's not coming from Amazon directly...if it's coming from a "third party"...stop right there! Contact the third party yourself. This whole Amazon thing is a hoax...a joke...a farce. The silly thing is...Amazon is the "Third Party"! If you're buying someone else's product through Amazon...it's not the someone else who's the third party. It's Amazon.

Don't buy anything from Amazon unless they have it sitting right there on their own floor.

Oddly...it's my understanding that Amazon began as a supplier of books. Well...over the years, I have purchased many books through Amazon and the odd thing?...One book I ordered finally arrived (very late) but not the same as my original order. In that case, I ran into the horrible "third party" fiasco and Amazon never did make it right. (I had ordered a used, paperback in "Like New" condition. However, I received very used, hardcover copy from a library! It had all the library stamps on it and even still had a freeking library card tucked inside the back cover!) Another book I bought through Amazon arrived with a hand-written note to contact them directly the next time I want a vintage book...that way I don't have to pay Amazon's 30% markup.

Southern New Hampshire University and Grand Canyon University...Scams?

2018-12-12T16:35:00.002-08:00

Why in the world are these two schools, Southern New Hampshire University and Grand Canyon University, running so many annoying ads on TV? I never see any other schools advertising. They're on ALL THE TIME! Why? How can they possibly be providing a decent education if they're blowing away so much money on advertising? I don't really know what the scam can be but it sure seems like there's a great similarity to Trump University...just a get rich quick for the investors. There appears to be an effort to flood the minds of prospective students with the hope that they actually believe the hype about how famous and well-respected they are...but they're not. Brainwashing isn't the best way to attract promising students...a real, positive reputation based on results would be best, eh? I hope no one is stupid enough to actually enroll there...I assume there are hundreds of better choices all around the country.

Sports Teams

2018-11-20T14:55:00.000-08:00

I don't fully understand anyone's loyalty to any given sports team. The teams are always in a state of flux and there is no actual team...especially in the pros and a bit less so in colleges. It even happens in high schools,,,maybe not in grade schools...I don't know.

It's like Animal Farm...or a flip book. In a flip book, one makes subtle changes from page to page until the final rendition is completely different than the first. I once worked at a company called Imagine. There were many people working there who came from a company called Iridio. As time went by, there were changes made in company focus, client targets and attitude. I told the owners that if I had wanted to work at Iridio I would have gone there in the first place but I was not one of the owners and could only observe. I made a flip book. I started with the word, Imagine...and on each page, I made a very slight change to the letters...at the end, after fanning through the booklet, what was...Iridio. That was what was really happening to the company as well...but no one seemed to notice...or care.

In Animal Farm (which I haven't read for a long, long time and may be incorrect with the details), the hapless animals saw nearly indistinct changes, day by day..."Didn't that sign used to say...? Didn't the pigs used to live in the barnyard with us? Weren't there people in the house?" Without even being aware of it, the farm animals learned to accept an entirely new reality.

That's what the sports teams are all about. There are very few, lasting members of any team. There are trades made to make improvements all the time. ..or the players insist on moving on...The Seattle Mariners and Seahawks are a good example. The fans show up at the games, paying for tickets, hot dogs, beer, tee shirts and a variety of memorabilia. Nothing stays the same though. The teams don't have any of the same players and the fans keep coming. "Go Hawks! Go Mariners!"...but these are not the same people they rooted for just one season ago. You can't go off thinking Griffey, A-Rod, Paxton or The Big Unit are your Mariners. They're not. They're gone. It's the same with the Seahawks. Yet the rabid fans keep on keepin' on.

Why in the world do the local fans continue to support their team...the individual players...any of it? It's always in transition. There is no real team! Those players who moved to other teams...they return as opponents, sometimes on the same day they left.

Russel Wilson changed schools...as so many others have done. He'll go to a different pro team if the money doesn't work out in Seattle. There is zero loyalty from team ownership or management to players or fans....or from players to teams or fans...and yet the local fan base remains attached to the team. It simply makes no sense. There is no team!

The coaches and managers are no different. There's a revolving door in the offices and clubhouses of all pro and college organizations.

"Didn't that guy used to be our running back? Wasn't he our pitcher?" Go team!

Things that irritate me ..change the channel

2018-11-03T21:07:00.000-07:00

I just thought to add this comment...at the beginning, rather than the end...most of the irritants mentioned below cause me to instantly turn off the radio or TV...or change the channel. It's all like chalkboard screeching and I can't stand it.

I don't pretend to know or speak perfect English...but there are so many things I hear and read that really annoy me! Here are some...in no particular order...and I'll add to this as I come across...or remember...others.

Sportscasters using the term, "difference maker". Somehow, to me, this term sounds childish at best. There simply must be another way to describe a person or event in a contest making a difference better than that.

Washington State sports announcers who can't seem to say, "Washington State". Instead they say, " Wash State, Washing State, Wahston, Washtn"...etc. It's only recently I realized the same thing occurs when media people speak of Washington DC...or the Washington Redskins...etc.

Ekcetera...no way!

Even though it's totally wrong to say..."Him and I did so and so..." or "Him and me did so and so..."...it's far worse when they say..."to he and I..."...That just indicates someone is really trying to sound intelligent and educated when it's just plain ignorant!

Weather reporters saying "temps" or "précip" just gets under my skin.

Anybody on the radio or TV who says, "This particular time..." Lose the 'particular!

So many people say, "at the end of the day"...or "net net"...or "as it were..."

Meaningless fillers are used, apparently just to appear educated...or something...How about just ending a statement with "with", which is nonsense...and other times, just inserting "if" without meaning...like, "if you will follow me...", without continuing with the "if" part...better to say, "please follow me..." (make sense?)...and too often, I hear "per se" and "I digress..." Those things are just meaningless comments...fillers, best left, unsaid.

Calling dollars 'bucks'!

"Speak to the issue..." I don't understand that. One speaks about and issue...not 'to' an issue.

"...at the same time..." That's certainly overused!

Okay..."Try and see what's going on..." or "Try and find out something..."...etc. What in the world is that all about? You don't "try AND see". You "try TO see"! If you're trying AND seeing, there's no need to try since you've already indicated you know you'll see whatever it is. You're trying TO see something!

Traffic reporters saying traffic is backed up in "either direction" rather than "both directions". This, while grammatically acceptable, is a pretentious way of speaking.

And, speaking of being pretentious, how about pronouncing the word "either" with a long 'I" rather than a long "E" sound.

Pretentious again...news media of all kinds and everyone else speaking...misuse of the descriptive words "further" and "farther"! For example, saying something is "further away" rather than "farther away" seems to be a feeble attempt to sound enlightened and intelligent while exposing ignorance of the language.

Anyone who says "nuculer" rather than "nuclear". President Bush said it so many times, I had to look it up, thinking I must be wrong.

The inability or lack of desire to pronounce the letter "L" normally. The Tom Bokaw, Peter Falk, Pete Rose (and others), tendency of speaking with a dark, velarized, Slavic, liquid "L" really irritates me. This is dialectical and can be corrected. There was a local weatherman with that problem and it was hilarious when he said he was a "meteorologist".

A certain, local, radio personality actually pronounces the word "err" with a short "U" sound...as in "her". This is simply preposterous and highly pretentious. When I hear it, I immediately switch stations.

Sports broadcasters placing emphasis oddly. For example, with the score of three to two, and the leading team scores again, the announcer says, "Now the score is four to TWO", emphasizing the two...rather than, "FOUR to two".

All sports people who claim a team is 'within one or two...or whatever number' when they're actually trailing by that amount. They are not within that amount! Say, the score is 10 to 3 and the trailing team scores 1 more to make it 10 to 4. They are NOT within 6 at that point.

Another...ending a sentence with "at" such as, "Where are you at?" The "at" is unnecessary of course.

How about all those "gots"? "You've got to see this" is really, "You have got to see this" and should be, "You have to see this". Better yet, "You must see this". The main issue is the insertion of "got" in so many places where it shouldn't be. Arby's ran an ad for a long time..."We've got the meat". However, they've seen the light and now the ad is, "We have the meat". (How nice!) Similarly, the word "that" is thrown into so many sentences, unnecessarily, it makes my blood churn! Also, the word, "that" is used to describe people when the word, "who" is better used.

"I could care less"! I was reading a Salon article the other day which described Trump's apparent feelings for immigrants. In it, the author wrote, "He could care less". When I read or hear such things, I stop right there...and move on to some other article or station.

There are so many ways people start sentences oddly...some people I know begin every sentence with, "I mean..." or " Ya know..."

Saying, "carmel" instead of "caramel"...

What does the president do?

2018-11-02T17:51:00.001-07:00

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qJxQXYXWnE

What does the President DO ????

...oh...I see now...

onebox

2018-10-07T12:03:00.002-07:00

This service is worth absolutely nothing. It takes forever to log on and other times...it doesn't work at all. I can't even log on to make a comment! We PAY for this crap?!

I can't log on at all...all day! I can't get in contact with onebox.

Trump attacks Germany

2018-07-11T17:08:00.002-07:00

I just had to get this out...Today, Trump lashed out at Germany for it's energy ties to Russia and it seemed so odd for an American President to accuse a NATO ally of cozying up to Russia...Not odd at all and exactly what should be expected. It's called deflection. The plan is to divert attention from Trump's own Russia problems to someone else. Deflection. It's just another con to save his ass.

With eyes on midterms, Trump embraces immigration fight

2018-06-19T18:07:00.001-07:00

Say it isn't so! Is Trump planning a last-second reprieve for all those families he's had separated at the border so he can claim how wonderful he is? Is he really using the lives of innocent people to advance his political agenda? Does he really not care about the damage he's doing to so many men, women and children that he's holding hostage? Say it isn't so! (But I know it is. He really IS that evil.)

...Or maybe he'll continue the suffering in order to have his wall built...on the backs of broken families and permanently scarred children. Indeed, he is that evil. Trump is personally responsible for all the pain. If he were human at all just a simple phone call would do it...but he's less than human. In any case, Heaven help us all...and deliver us from the evil that is Trump.

Maybe this will be remembered as the infamous, "Hostages for Wall" deal.

Raging River Cafe

2018-06-03T08:01:00.000-07:00

Oh the price of a simple breakfast! For the first time in years, I went out for breakfast...to the little, old eatery in Fall City. After waiting a half hour for the place to open, I had 2 eggs with sausage and hash-browns, tomato juice and coffee. The total for this simple meal for one was $17.79. That's just plain too much! (Uh...there's also that 20% tip which I added to the $17.79 so it ended up costing just over $20 for...what?) I tried adding a review on Yelp to make potential customers aware of the high price of breakfast at the Raging River but Yelp wanted me to sign in...and agree to their terms. I decided not to risk subjecting myself to whatever those terms might be. Instead, I'm just posting my review here:

"I just had breakfast there. The food and service was fine but...$17.79 for 2 eggs and a tomato juice eating there by myself!? That's just a bit out of line and I won't be returning."

So...there it is.

Maybe that's why fast food places like McDonalds stay in business... or maybe that's why I seldom buy my meals out.

Late Swallows

2018-04-01T18:29:00.002-07:00

Just in case anyone's wondering, I decided to mention when the swallows returned to my neighborhood this year (2018). They first arrived on March 29! In recent years they's been appearing earlier and earlier, even as early as March 10....but this year made a grand reversal. Alas, spring is equally late coming.

Kate's Teeth

2018-03-24T21:51:00.000-07:00

Uh...not that it really matters but...it looks like whatever was done to Kate Middleton's teeth gave her an extra set of incisors. Have a look. On each side of her two front teeth there are two incisors before the canines start. There should only be one incisor between the front teeth and canines. I think it's odd and certainly unnatural.