He's Home!

I sprung him from the hospital this morning. Well, not exactly...they said I could.

They were finally able to put a name on the strain of bacteria that took up residence in his system: campylobacter jejuni. Sounds nice, doesn't it? It is mostly gotten from raw or undercooked poultry. We've traced our steps and couldn't pinpoint any particular time he may have ingested it. Since it takes 2-5 days for the onset of the first symptoms, I know it wasn't at home because we haven't had poultry for quite some time.

I want to thank all of you that have sent good wishes and prayers our way. They were very much appreciated and won't be forgotten.

So all is back to normal for now; I don't ever want to experience something like that again. He sure put a scarin' into me the day it all began, because to be honest with you, I thought I lost him forever.

Hospital Day 3

Just checking in to let you all know tests are still being run, blood is still being drawn, and it goes on and on. The strain of bacteria still hasn't been pinpointed yet to our knowledge, but I feel it is now time to start asking questions of the staff. That will be done today when I go in to visit. This is so very hard on me, not to mention our cats. Especially Junior...because he is very attached to my husband and he misses him so much. Of course, aloof Dakota really doesn't care unless she is hiding it. Don't know when I'll be back on again to update. Hopefully it will be with good news.

Will Be Back As Soon As I Can

My husband is in the hospital with what they think at the moment is a bacterial infection. Please bear with me during this trying time. Tuesday morning started off with a 911 call when he blacked out and fell due to dehydration (and a blood pressure reading of 60/40) which was due to diarrhea, which we now know was probably due to a nasty bacterial bug.

Sonoma Weekend

The 24 and 48 teams (Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson respectively) got a jolt of reality Friday when both cars failed to pass the first inspection. They tested NASCAR's gray area and came up short, as both teams were parked for the day and not allowed on the track for practice or qualifying. They were allowed to practice Saturday after bringing both cars up to specs. They also were told they would start at the rear of the pack on Sunday. Big deal, like that's going to impede their quest to get to the front and win.

I was very shocked when that is what I heard the first time I turned my TV on at 3 pm on Friday. When I heard what was happening, I immediately wanted both the crew chiefs' heads on a silver platter, especially the 48 crew chief of Jimmie Johnson. Chad Knaus is forever testing the patience of NASCAR and this is his third huge infraction in as many years. I know the 24 team was talked into joining in as they share the same building. Up until now the 24 crew chief of Jeff Gordon had a pristine record.

And Rick Hendrick, the team owner, doesn't think they did anything wrong. Huh? They got caught red handed for gosh sakes. It was "blatant in-your-face NASCAR, so what do you think of that?" Well, we'll see what NASCAR thinks of it come Tuesday when the penalties are handed out to them. And there had better be penalties and they should match, at the very least, what they handed out to Junior's team back at the Darlington race.

I want NASCAR to stick to their consistency policy (if there is such a thing). That's the least they promised us: consistency in the penalties. The infraction on Junior's car, which was an honest mistake, would not have made his car faster. And it passed two inspections before it was "discovered." And that was after he qualified. The Hendrick cars were found to be out of alignment in the hood area as soon as the template 'claw' was lowered onto the car. Holy crap! How could they be so blatant? (I like that word so I used it twice.) What they did would have definitely made both cars go faster.

Now fast forward to Sunday's race. How did both drivers fare starting at the rear on the road course? Jeff managed a 7th place finish and Jimmie ended up 17th. (Junior finished 13th only because their pit strategy didn't work to their advantage, as he had a top five car and was having a blast driving at a track he used to hate.)

And the winner was:

Juan Pablo Montoya who won his first NASCAR Cup race.


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Junior Nation Needs Help

There's a campaign going on right now to get DEI to release the #8 so that Junior can drive it for the remainder of his career. It was his grandfather Ralph Earnhardt's number throughout his career, and it is the only number Junior has driven in his Cup career.

NASCAR owns the numbers issued to the owners. The owners cannot sell that number to another owner. I am presuming they can use it as bargaining power but I'm not sure how that works either. We doubt that NASCAR will step in to help the cause; therefore, this has to be generated and pushed by the Junior Nation. And as a representative I am asking for your help.

Once there are sufficient signatures on the petition it will then be presented to Teresa Earnhardt, current owner of Dale Earnhardt Inc. We are hoping she will relent and give it up, but we are not holding our breath. After all, we know how she can be, don't we?

Rescue Me

I love this program, and it's been a long time since I watched last year's end-of-season episode. This season's premier was on last Wednesday and it didn't disappoint.


I guess I love the show so much because its main character, Tommy Gavin played by Denis Leary, is just so dysfunctional. And, boy, can I identify with that (no details forthcoming ~ you'll just have to take my word for it). Actually almost the whole cast is dysfunctional.


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And just a reminder...Jericho will be back as re-runs starting on Friday July 6th at 9 pm (eastern) on CBS. Don't miss it if you haven't seen it at all. The more people that watch, the more power we have of insuring it stays around for the Fall lineup beyond the new episodes, and those could be as early as November.

5th Place!

Think he's not happy? Think again. And this photo was taken before the race. He was ecstatic after the race. I can't wait till he wins one this year.



Every week after the race, some of Junior's radio exchanges are posted. There haven't really been many good ones this year probably due to the heavy mental load he's been carrying around. This one made me chuckle for some reason:


With less than ten laps remaining, Dale Jr. continued to gain positions, but couldn't find a scoreboard around the circuit to tell him where he was running - or where teammate Truex raced.

Dale Jr: "Martin's gonna win?"

Hmiel: "He's three car lengths behind the leader Edwards, but he's made up four seconds on him."

Dale Jr. (referring to Truex) "That sum' b###h is GOOD today! Dang!... Am I gonna have to pit?!"

Hmiel: "No!"

Gibson: "No sir!"

Hmiel: "Eight laps to go."

Dale Jr: "What place are we in?"

Hmiel: "You're P5."

Dale Jr.: "10-4.. (as he crossed the finish line with a sputtering engine).. HA! It run outta gas right there!"

The 2008 Hendrick Boys

Casey Mears ~ Jimmie Johnson ~ Jeff Gordon ~ Dale Earnhardt Jr.

If You Can't Beat 'em Join 'em

Dale Jr. will be driving for Hendrick Motorsports in 2008. His contract will run for five years. His teammates will be Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Casey Mears. I could say here to keep your friends close, your enemies closer but Junior is actually friends with all three, so that doesn't wash.

The number and sponsors have yet to be worked out over the next few months. I really am hoping that Budweiser is smart enough to stay with Junior. The #8 is another matter ~ step-mommy dearest knows how to be vindictive. He's had to deal with her since he was six years old.

What a difference in Junior from the day he announced he was leaving DEI ~ a complete turn around today. On May 10th he was so sad, but today all he did from the time he entered the stage was grin from ear to ear and it's so good to see him that happy. That's all that counts anyway.

Way to go Junior!

How do I feel? Well, since I've known where he was going for almost 24 hours prior to the conference, I have had ample time to digest all of it and come to terms with it. It's time for me to put my dislikes away, pull up my big girl pants, and support Junior just like I have all along.

Breaking News

Dale Earnhardt Jr. will be making an announcement as to his plans for 2008 Wednesday June 13th from his JR Motorsports complex.

It will be telecast live on SPEED at 11 AM with a preconference show airing at 10 AM.

Let the media frenzy and speculation begin...

JERICHO Will Be Back!

Yay! It was one of my favorite shows of the '06-'07 TV season. And then "they" decided to cancel it. Why, I'll never know. Fans were in an uproar, me included, and I never missed an episode. I signed petitions but some fans had huge amounts of nuts delivered to CBS. If you watched the show you'd know why. If you want to find out why, the entire first season will supposedly be shown over the coming summer months. The part about the nuts is revealed in the final episode.

For now the word is that CBS has scheduled at least 7 episodes and if they garner enough viewers there will be more of them. I have no idea when they are going to bring it back on because they want to get that done before the Fall season.

I guess when the bigwigs at CBS decided Jericho needed an immense break (hiatus if you will) from Fall into Spring, they thought they knew what they were doing. Not! And when they brought it back in the Spring, they scheduled it opposite American Idol, which I think should have its own spot opposite nothing.

I enjoyed watching Skeet Ulrich as the main character. I enjoy watching him in just about anything he does. He is the nephew of NASCAR driver Ricky Rudd (Ricky and Skeet's mother are siblings). So I will be looking forward to once again watching Jericho. Thank you CBS!

WTF

I am just too dumbfounded to post anything of significance because NASCAR handed another win to a Hendrick driver. That makes 10 out of 14 races won by Hendrick teams so far this year. Why?

Oh No, Bill Weber Is Back...

...and it seems like we just got rid of him.

Bill Weber, one of the race analysts (and I use that term loosely...very loosely), for last year's races on NBC, is back again this year for the next six races on TNT. He probably covered the TNT races last year, too; I just don't remember, or care. I thought we would be well rid of him this year.

When you watch him after awhile you appreciate Hollywood Hammond and ol' DW. Oh while I'm on the subject of Jeff Hammond, I would like to say to him: "Shame on you for telling us you had inside information that Dale Jr. was definitely going to Gibbs Racing with VISA as his sponsor." You were wrong, wrong, wrong about the VISA part; we're still waiting to hear about the Gibbs part.

Anyway, back to Weber...

Just once I'd like to see him with messy hair ~ or at the very least just a few strands of hair out of place. He certainly is keeping whatever brand hairspray he uses in business. I'd like to have stock in that company. Somebody, anybody, please mess up his hair.

And another thing, I wish he'd not repeat things week after week (like last year when all he could talk about was the Hendrick airplane crash the previous year) because it's very offensive to me. And bothersome. And annoying. You get the drift.

Here he is as one of the new 3 Stooges ~ well, only 2 since Kyle Petty usually knows what he's talking about. I can trust Kyle to tell the truth all the time. And he doesn't repeat. And he's down to earth. You get the drift. For those of you who aren't familiar with these guys, that's Kyle Petty, Wally Dallenbach, and Bill (gee, my hair is pretty) Weber.

Ok let's get this show on the road...(oh thank God no more boogity! boogity! boogity!)

R.I.P. Mr. France

4-4-33 ~ 6-4-07

The son of Bill France Sr. (NASCAR pioneer) and father of Brian France (NASCAR CEO), will be laid to rest today.

Without the France family NASCAR would not exist.

Grrooaann...

Yesterday's race? No comment...I am going into hibernation for awhile.

...well at least for four days till we cycle through again on Friday.

Hold it a minute! I do have a comment or two to make.

First of all my sincere congratulations go out to Martin Truex Jr., one of the good guys, for his first ever Cup win. (Notice I didn't say Nextel Cup win...sorry, I refuse to.) He's taking a lot of heat now because he'll be the top driver at DEI when Junior leaves, and some of Junior's fans (not the true ones) are a bit peeved at some of Truex's statements, along with his crew chief, Bono. The press keeps reminding him of that. It could get ugly if they keep pressing him, no pun intended there.

To Rick Hendrick: stick that in your pipe and smoke it; none of your "boys" won this CoT race. 'bout damn time.

Junior, Junior, Junior...how did you go from pacing the first practice to qualifying second and right into the dumpster during the race? Are you sure that was you driving that #8 car yesterday, or did you have someone fill in for you? Coulda fooled me. Geez, one flat under green was bad enough, but two? And then your engine decides to act up on top of all of that?



Looks to me like ol' Teresa, the Ice Queen, is starting to get even already...she's seeing that Truex is getting the better equipment. It sure didn't take her long, now did it?

It Just Keeps Getting Worse

Milk is expected to jump by approximately 40 cents a gallon over the next few months, and the demands of corn for ethanol is part of the problem. All I can say is it's a good thing I drink soy milk, because, boy, do I love my cereal. I've been drinking soy milk for a very long time. It used to cost more than whole milk, but not any more and it is a lot healthier to drink. We prefer the vanilla flavor, and I usually get the fat-free version.


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Here's another little tidbit to chew on. Our state took a survey as to whether residents wanted the current 6% sales tax raised to reduce homeowners' property taxes. We've been waiting for real estate tax relief for so long now that this is just another one of the governor's jokes. And boy he is a topic all by himself but I don't have all day to write about that dude.

I really don't think another percent added to the sales tax is going to give us any tax relief. Oh, it might...but only if it is used solely for that purpose. I know that's not even remotely true. It goes here and there and everywhere else and before you know it, you're still left scratching your a...er...head wondering why the hell your real estate taxes went up yet again.



Actually, it's not the real estate taxes that bother me; those I can live with. No, it's those damn pesky school taxes. I think once people no longer have children in school, they should not be burdened with school taxes, or maybe at least get a 50% reduction. I also think that once senior citizens reach 65 and go on Medicare, they should no longer have to pay school taxes at all. Period.

Almost

Close but no cigar, as they say. Dale Jr. almost had his first pole in five years but Ryan Newman thought otherwise. Ryan is the King of Poles. I just wish he'd have left well enough alone, so that Junior could have basked in the "pole" limelight for once.

Needless to say though, he will still be on the front row starting second. And that's good enough for me.

The #8's Final Curtain

As most of you know, Dale Jr. will be leaving DEI at the end of this season; he's leaving, the #8 on his car is not ~ because that's just how his mean stepmother is. Forget the fact that Dale's father had secured the rights to the #8 solely for his son to use, and forget all the other things surrounding what his father did for him at DEI, now known as TEI.

With all that in mind, I decided I'd better order the remaining three diecast #8 cars to complete my Dale Earnhardt Jr. collection. Here they are in all their glory. Well, at least two of them can be shown. The Elvis Presley car for the September 8th (love that number) Richmond race is still too shy to come out and face the public. Soon.





Next year I can start all over again adding to my collection with perhaps a new sponsor, a new number, new colors...

Holy Mother of Pizza (Face)

Not all of my posts are about Dale Jr. and/or NASCAR happenings. Sometimes I throw other things in the mix. But I must add a little warning here because what I am about to write about is not for the faint of heart. This post is about the job I lost two years ago on June 1st, and since that anniversary is almost here I thought I would write about it a few days early.

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"He" arrived on the scene in the Spring of '05, (in late April.) I had just buried both my parents within the past four months (Dad in late December and Mom in late February), and was thrust into a whole new world of estates, wills etc. of which I knew nothing about. I had been appointed executrix and I learned a lot in a hurry. Because of my world having been tossed upside down, I was not the easiest person to be around ~ especially at work. And so the saga began...

I heard about "him" long before he became the terminal manager where I worked. The terminal where he was coming from said he ruled with an iron fist and no one had a good word to say about him. I think he was only 28 at that time. Once he arrived, he rode herd like there was no tomorrow, setting people up and then firing them. We never knew who would be next, and a lot of us never knew what hit us either. People that were there many years found themselves on the outside looking in. Sixteen months after he got to me, he also got to my husband. He had worked there 11 years. This is how I felt about him:

That man acted like he was God, and his appointed assistant sidekick trailed him everywhere as a sort of bodyguard because he knew he was a marked man. There were a lot who wanted to punch him a new attitude, me included.

This is the company we worked for at the time; they still aren't a very nice company to work for either, because they have no regard for decent hard-working people.



And so, after he worked there two years wreaking havoc on dozens of good, hard-working people, that good-for-nothing b*st*rd left the building. Can you believe that? After all those trumped up charges, all those railroaded people, all those kicked-to-the-curb nice people, and he had the audacity to leave the company. Wow! What balls.

And so I say, may bad karma follow him wherever he goes and I can only hope he roasts in hell.



Oh, did I mention that he was not very nice on the eyes? This became his nickname behind his back very quickly:



Hey, RJS, this is for you:



...warning over; I never said I was a goody two-shoes either. Don't think any less of me for publishing this post. The devil made me do it.

Never Forget Them