Hump night thoughts

It would be just like me to forget to post something for four days after my last post. I'm getting into that bad habit again. I need to think about this long and hard when I go to bed.

Okay, there really wasn't much to report between Saturday morning and Tuesday at noon. My car did not leave the garage, and about all I did was write for the papers I cover sports for and watch my Monk DVD collection. I didn't watch much college football, and I certainly did not watch a single second of tennis at the U.S. Open. I don't think I've watched much of any tennis since 1987 or thereabouts. Maybe it was 1988 when Steffi Graf won the women's grand slam, but I'm not sure. But I know I won't be watching tennis anytime soon. At least Maria Sharapova won't be marrying that leeching loser Sasha Vucic.

It picked up again Tuesday. Got my work done and got out of Russell by noon, which was the goal, so I could go to Salina and make an important pickup in Salina. A fan. Not only could I get a fan at Target, but I was able to get two bags of my favorite potato chips, plus the best hot dogs in Kansas at Freddy's Frozen Custard. Then it was on to Beloit, where one again, I arrived way too early, so I lounged in the car with my air conditioning on, given it was 102 degrees outside.

Second volleyball day of the season. This time, it was a four-way between Smith Center, Republic County of Belleville, Beloit and Red Cloud from Webster County, Nebraska. The setup in Beloit was not optimal, so I was positioned in a chair on the floor, which didn't give me the best view to call the matches for Smith Center's television channel, but I managed.

I started doing volleyball matches for Smith Center's TV channel by happenstance. I was at Smith Center covering a match two years ago, and they did not have an announcer to do the match on TV that day. So Smith Center's athletic director, Greg Hobelmann, and Alan Dunnavan, who runs the sound board and video for the broadcasts, asked me to pinch-hit. They liked my work, and asked me to do three matches during the sub-state they hosted the next month.

When the 2011 season started, they wanted me to do it whenever I showed up, which was pretty often. I got more positive reviews for my work, and now, I am trying to make every Lady Red match if I can. So far, so good. They play again this coming Tuesday vs. Ellis and Victoria at Ellis, so this is a shorter trip.

Smith Center went 2-1 at Beloit Tuesday. The Lady Red looked flat against Republic County in the opener and lost 25-19, 25-22, but they came back in the last two matches to oust Beloit 25-10, 25-22 and Red Cloud 25-12, 25-17. They're now 3-2 on the year.

A severe thunderstorm passed through Beloit during the last match. It got dark after the second match, and I barely made it out in time to roll up my windows; I had them down a little bit due to the heat. The rain had stopped in Beloit when I left, but when I got on US 24 heading east toward US 81, something else got my attention.

The tire sensor on my car said three of my four tires were low, and sure enough, all of them were at 25 to 26 PSI; the normal weight is 30 to 31. I thought about pulling over and getting air, but the weather turned awful once I got on US 81. The rain started again about 10 miles north of Minneapolis and got heavier as I got closer to Salina. I thought about going back to Freddy's for more hot dogs, but they closed down as I pulled up, so I went to the Pilot on I-70 and 9th Street. The rain got heavier, so I went inside the store, browsed a little and played some video games before leaving there at 10:45. I made it home alright, but it was already 11:50.

I went to Hays this morning to get the tires checked out. Sure enough, there was a faulty sensor when they rotated them last week, and they pumped them right up. Things are fine there.

I was exhausted when I got home. I had to lay down at 11:30 am and take a nap. I couldn't get going until just before 2, but I got my work done in plenty of time for the Russell County News.

I'm now watching Dallas and the Giants in the NFL season opener. Dallas leads 17-10 but is looking to put it away with seven minutes to go. I will post my Kansas high school football picks in my next post.