It's hard to hold a candle in the cold November rain

So I haven’t been blogging much lately. Blame work. (I blame it for everything from my high cholesterol count to the reason that VT lost to Miami.) Budget season has been all over me for the past few weeks, giving me scant time to get my thoughts down on paper. Here are just a few things to catch up on:

UVA attempts to play football
If there’s one thing I love it’s rivalry pranks. One of the best prank’s I’ve seen was when Yalies got Harvard fans to hold up placards that spelled out “WE SUCK” at Harvard Stadium. Classic. Stealing the mascots are always fun as well, as long as none get hurt. As you may have seen, some industrious VT fans sneaked into Scott Stadium before the VT/UVA game 2 weeks ago and painted a “T” next to the “V”. While the grounds crew was able to wash away the “T” paint before the game began, the Hokies showed that we own the field anyway, winning 52-14. And while I’m at it, one final joke: Q. What do the Virginia Tech Football team and the Dave Matthews Band have in common? A. They’re the only ones who can sell out Scott Stadium.

Hitting the road
Thanks to VT’s victory over North Carolina last weekend (as well as our friends in Atlanta upsetting Miami 2 weeks ago), the Hokies are on their way to the ACC Championship in Jacksonville…where we face the Florida St. Seminoles. This year Florida St. is down…for them, it’s probably looking like they’re bottom feeders. You don’t see many 7-4 seasons in Tallahassee, and they finished the regular season with a stomping by the hands of the hated Gators. While the Noles might be down, I would never count them out. VT hasn’t beaten FSU since 1975, going 0-11 in that time. Probably the biggest game between the two (no, not probably – THE biggest) was the 2000 Sugar Bowl where both teams met for the National Championship. The Hokies were leading going into the 4th quarter…and then my memory of the game just goes away. Oh well, we’ll be looking for some payback this weekend, and hopefully Sage and I will be there to see it. Look for a road-trip blog from Sage next week.

Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory
A quick update on my laser eye surgery. So far, no complaints. My eyesight is doing great, and I haven’t had any side affects that I know of (except for some small inflammation, which has since gone away). My next check up is next week, so hopefully my vision is slowly improving.

Shoveling the turkey and stuffing the snow
Thanksgiving has come and gone, and thanks a bunch to Steve for cooking up the feast this year. It was nice not having to worry about cooking this year, not that I mind too much. (Though I wouldn’t have minded real stuffing…I love Stove Top as much as the next guy, but for T-giving? However, considering the stuffing I made last year, which was so hard I’m pretty sure we all chipped teeth trying to eat it, it was probably the right call.) Steve also invited his friends John and Christine, which was nice not only because Christine likes to play games, but because John does not. Here's a photo of the happy group before digging in to the pie.

I do have to say that Thanksgiving probably isn’t one of my most favorite holidays. A lot of people clamor about how it’s so great because it has no religious context…it’s just all about family and food. But for me, I just don't get too worked up about it. First, I love turkey and all that goes with it. But I can never eat that much on Thanksgiving Day. It probably has to do with all the other food being eaten before the main meal. Also, what sort of holiday is on a Thursday? I haven't had to work the day after T-giving in about 8 years, but still...Couldn't Abe Lincoln have said, "you know what, I think the 4th Friday of the November might be fine."

If I had to list my top five favorite holidays, they’d go like this:
1. Memorial Day. Nothing like a long weekend to get the summer kicked off. Barbeques and beer.
2. Labor Day. Marks the beginning of College Football season. Another good holiday for barbeques and beer.
3. 4th of July. Love the hot summer nights and fireworks. Also...barbeques and beer.
4. Guy Fawkes Day. Celebrated in Britain, it commemorates the day in 1605 when Guy Fawkes (along with some other English friends) tried to blow up Parliament. Celebrated with bonfires and fireworks – how can you top that? (With some barbeques and beer, my friend!)
5. Halloween. I’m not huge into dressing up, but it gives me an excuse to eat candy, which I usually try to avoid. No barbeques or beer here. Wait...what am I doing putting Halloween 5th then? Let me get back to you on this one...I have to get my priorities straight.