My Electoral Prediction

Here is the way I see the electoral college going on Tuesday. My beloved home state, Ohio, has lots of kooks in the southern part of the state so it's gonna be close. Cleveland and the surrounding areas are Obama country, not so much Cinci.

OBAMA/BIDEN '08

>2008 Election Contest: Pick Your President - Predict the winner of the 2008 presidential election.

Popular vote: Obama 51% McCain 46% Other 3%

FL & PA will go to Barack. This will mean the election should be called rather early in the evening. I would love to see IN, MO and GA go blue, but NC will suffice. A blue NC will make Jesse Helms roll over in his grave...good stuff.

I am closely watching the Franken/Coleman race in MN. I would love to see Al in the Senate.

Other projections:
Post-election Senate make-up: 58 Dems, 40 Reps, 2 Others
Post-election House make-up: 256 Dems, 179 Reps

NTN Trivia, Snyder, Jill and Damon's

After some goading, from who I suspect is Chris Snyder, I suppose I could relate to you the details of an evening out while I was in Ohio.

Before I go any further I should preface the following story with some details. My sister Jill and I have always claimed the trivia crown. For many years we have gone head-to-head in numerous contests in order to one-up the other...it's intense! Neither one of us is willing to concede the title of trivia master.

We found ourselves in a position to once again do battle. A chain of restaurants throughout the U.S. known as Damon's has for years had a nation-wide trivia game that you can play while you eat and drink in one of their restaurants. It's called NTN Trivia and it's cool because you compete against the entire country, not just the restaurant you happen to be in.

Jill called up my good friend Chris Snyder to see if he wanted to join us. He obliged and we headed out to the local eatery. Also, Jill's two oldest boys joined us for a good dinner prior to the showdown. After noshing and enjoying hearing about the craziness of the lives of the boys, we said goodbye to them and headed over to the bar to show off our incredible grasps on the world of worthless trivia.

I had just had a good meal and was feeling pretty confident so I decided to take on Chris and Jill in a 2 against 1 challenge...perhaps not my best decision of the night. To make a long story a wee bit shorter, I think I did pretty well, I held my own. Considering I was playing against two folks that are considerably older than me (yikes, I am gonna pay for that remark), I think my performance was strong. If you ask my opponents, they might gloat in their victory...don't be fooled. The final score doesn't always reflect the quality of the competition. I had those two squirming and on the run throughout the evening!! My spirit has not been quashed regardless of the fact that the scoreboard didn't favor me. I accept the silver medal/loss in this battle but I certainly haven't lost the war!

One aspect of the challenge that I didn't see coming was Chris' wide knowledge-base. He was a worthy opponent. Don't get to comfy at the top Chris and Jill, I will return stronger and more committed than ever!...lol

In all seriousness, I had a lot of fun. Chris and Jill are two of the best people walking this planet. I am truly blessed to have these two folks in my life. The evening at Damon's was big fun despite the damage to my ego!

At the Jacksons (Trip Report part 4)

After the two-week stint in Ohio, I flew back to Vegas. I had a couple days left in the U.S. and was going to spend them with my sister Jayne and her family. They recently moved from Ohio to Vegas so it was cool to hang with them and explore some of the fun things they have discovered since making the move. The housing market is flailing so Jayne and her husband Tom decided to rent a house. Perhaps when the market settles they will buy a house. As for now, they are renting a very nice pad in Henderson, the largest suburb of Vegas. The house is really nice and has a killer view of the city.

Although I only had a few days with them, I got the impression that the Jacksons were digging their new surroundings. Tom is especially happy to be in a less harsh climate. Jayne started a job at one of the fancier hotels in the city a few days before I visited, I wish ya big luck with the new gig sis!

Here are a few more shots of Sin City:

The view from the patio at dusk. The patio is a very nice feature. It has a hot tub that allows you to soak and look out over the city and the mountains...good stuff!

The lower level of the backyard leading into the house.

Oscar. This is one of the coolest little dogs around. He digs his new place except the occasional passers-by. He is very territorial. Look at that mug.

Almost the same view as above but in the full-blown evening. You can see the lights of the Strip on the right.

Strolling along the Strip. Another perfect day in Las Vegas. It's tough to find fault with the climate. The sensory overload brought on by the overwhelming marketing of the casinos can be hard to digest.

Approaching the southern portion of the Strip. Up ahead is the New York, New York, the MGM Grand, the Luxor and the Excalibur. I read somewhere that there are more hotel rooms on that one corner than in any other city in America...is that possible?

Staring up at the fake Eiffel Tower. Part of the well-designed Paris Casino. It's all a facsimile of the real thing, but it's impressive.

The MGM Grand. This place is a nightmare. Once you are inside it's impossible to get out. They have very effectively hidden the exits. I once spent 20 minutes trying to find an exit in this place.

I need to thank Perry, Andrea, Jayne, Tom and Jordan for making my visit to Vegas a fun one. I had a lot on my mind and sometimes may have seemed distant. Nevertheless, I had a great trip.

Next time I come to visit I will bring Catherine, I promise.

Hanging Out In Ohio (Trip Report Part 3)

After the craziness of Las Vegas, I headed to my hometown, Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. The Falls is a suburb of Akron, Ohio. Not exactly the most exciting place in the world, but my home. I had about two weeks to hang with the family and spend some quality time with my mom. I spent a lot of my time doing odd jobs around my mom's house. The basement and the yard needed a good spring cleaning and I love to do that kind of stuff in small doses...lol.

The following are some photos of the goings on in the Buckeye State.

My mom hanging out in the front yard with my sister Jill and her kids. You can see the winter was pretty rough on the yard. I needed at least two more weeks to really get the place up to shape.

My niece Grace. She is a cutie. Not terribly happy that Uncle David was pointing the camera at her.

A shot of 19th Street while standing in front of my mom's place. It was mid-April and the leaves still weren't on all of the trees...not a fun winter!

The family threw a little shindig for me. It was a fun time with lots of good eats. My sister Shelley made a few of her favorite dishes, they were delish.

My nephew Adam mugging for the camera. He is growing up so fast. Seems like he was just in kindergarten.

Jami, my niece, brought over the video game "Rock Band". It's a pretty crazy game where you follow the cues from the TV and actually play the music on the various instruments. The selection of music was cool. The game included stuff from all kinds of good rock bands, quite a variety. Jami is the crazy chick in the middle jamming the guitar. Lauren, another niece, is doing her best to bang out on the drums.

The back yard. As you can see, lots of work to do. This was after a few days of work. There are several huge trees in the yard so it's in constant need of upkeep.

Standing in the driveway trying to capture some images for posterity. Mom is probably going to sell the house in the next year or two and I may not make it back to the States by then.

Adam playing Wii. He needs to be surgically removed from the game...lol. You know Uncle David is home because the room is cluttered with junk food!

Shelley, Mom and Jill. Shell & Jill are half of the sister contingent in my family.

I miss my car! My niece Jami took ownership of it when I moved to Taiwan. It was great to see it again. I really miss road trips in the Maxima.

Last but not least, Bubba. This guy is my buddy. Mom has done a wonderful job of taking care of him in my absence. He is a remarkable animal and I'd love to have him here with me but it's just not possible. He is experiencing some health problems and I trust mom to do the right thing for him. He is a monster!