GAME05

Nah, not too interesting. I'm a law enforcement park ranger, so that's typical stuff here, but if you choose to keep reading I'll give you typical weekend stuff at the park. Alcohol is illegal here. When I catch a drunk and they say "You're targeting me. I bet 90% of the people in here have alcohol," I often give my co-worker's line of "Oh, I'd bet it's closer to 99%. But after we're done, you can point them all out to me and I'll go talk to them next." A couple Rangers got commissioned (given a gun and arresting power) the day before, so they were brand spankin' new. One found alcohol on a campsite but the lady was being an uncooperative blankety-blank. I'm nearby so I go to assist. When I get there she's trying to hand the Ranger a bottle of wine and the Ranger is refusing to take it. I explain to her that we can't just take stuff, as that would be stealing, and explain to the Ranger (not in front of her, though) that we can indeed confiscate property, but it requires some paperwork. It's amazing I've never once met a camper who brought wine but also brought a corkscrew. I guess they must feel that if they can get us in a quandary we'll just let them go. The lady gets polite and cooperative once I get there. Wasn't specifically me, just that more Rangers showed up. "I didn't even know I had the wine in my car" (riiiiiiiight). "OK, that's all the alcohol I have." "Can I look in your cooler?" (I need a warrant to just go in one, but I sure can when I get permission). There was a case in Virginia where a cop stopped a vehicle for something routine, randomly asked if he could look in their trunk. The driver gave the officer permission to do so, and go figure the guy had just killed somebody and had put the body in the trunk. Immediately as the lady says yes, her friend says "There's a beer in there." Me, I usually evict people once I catch them in a lie, but this was the new Ranger's stop and he chose not to. And that's fine. The new Ranger gets in the truck with me and all of two campsites later we find more alcohol. They're cooperative and dump it all (about three cases of beer), including a case that was visible inside their tent which I didn't say anything about to see if they'd try to hide it from me, but they dumped that, too, without me mentioning it. They cussed me out and filmed me, but whatever. You're perfectly within your rights to film a public officer so long as you don't push it in my face and obstruct my view. But be aware if I think you may have filmed any evidence, then I'll be confiscating your phone to include as evidence and you won't get it back until a judge says so (not a threat, just how it works). And again all of two campsites later the new Ranger spots what he thinks is a long-neck but isn't 100% and so thinks we can't go down there. I say that we don't need permission to go on a campsite, and that I've walked up to people a lot of times to discover that it's nothing. Side-story, a similar thing happened two two other Rangers that weekend. One thought they saw beer but the other Ranger walked up on their own. They quickly discovered the "beer" was a flashlight, and now was making an excuse to leave--we don't just walk on peoples' sites without a reason, since this isn't a police state. The Ranger garbled something about checking up and saying hello and just patrolling for alcohol, to which the campers said "Oh, we have alcohol. Here you go." So the new Ranger and I walk up on the site, and surprise-surprise they did have alcohol. This was the "I know it's illegal but I did it anyway" lady. After that stop we smashed the bottle of wine in the dumpster and I got to go home. So yeah, typical stuff. Sometimes it's odd, though. A couple months ago a guy was stopped for open container. Decided he "didn't want to deal with it" and so evaded arrest, didn't flinch one bit when he got pepper sprayed, punched the Ranger, assault with a deadly weapon (his vehicle), punched a police dog and punched another cop. Blew a .30 but was perfectly alert, but I don't know the blood results to know just what sort of drug was in his system to cancel out the alcohol. We're guessing meth, but who knows. Do I have to say "allegedly" to all that?

I guess I don't see the Bucks' ownership group as such a mess as others do. Every owner meddles, but at least with our group if we end up with a Herb Kohl governor-owner, at least we get a new perspective after five years. The only issue I have with the current NBA situation is that I wish the salary cap were a little more firm. When you keep winning titles like the Warriors are going to do, it isn't too hard to pay a lot of luxury tax to sign good players. But isn't that the natural benefit of being a great team, that great players want to come and be a part of it? My biggest fear is that Giannis will want to go play somewhere else when his contract is up, but I suppose that's the fear of just about every team and their best player.

12.5 hours and a LOT of dumped-out alcohol later, the worst day of the year is finally over. Hopefully the late crew stays safe. First honest answer I've ever had: "Yeah, I knew you couldn't bring alcohol in here, but I did anyway." "Well, thank you for your honesty, ma'am." "Are there people who aren't honest with you?" I only said "yeah," but in my head I was chuckling. Heck, I still assumed she was hiding something else.

Gearing up for Saturday, the worst day of the year. It'll be a line of cars all day. And a pretty healthy number of people who truly believe that they can show up five minutes before the fireworks start and be escorted to the best parking spot in the place--and gripe when they're told no. It's amazing how many people genuinely believe the world revolves around them. Really crossing my fingers it goes smoothly, that nobody shoots a gun off or tries to rob us, that we don't have fights or other nonsense.

Who's DJ Wilson? edit: Apparently Milwaukee really wanted Bam Adabayo.

I don't understand the desire for a PG, SG or SF. The President will need more playing time, Middleton is established, and they oftentimes run two guards along with Giannis. So wouldn't the natural target be a center who could step in once Greg Monroe leaves after this year? With Thon's closing speed it would make more sense that he plays PF and more outside instead of the traditional Center position. It seems like that's a bigger need than replacing Dellavadova, and it's not like we need to see Henson or Hawes get any real playing time.

I'd heard Lonzo Ball was a great kid, and that it's only his father who's got the money in his eyes. Kinda reminds me of Venus/Serena Williams' father. Lonzo's father can mess around all he wants with the off-court stuff, but on the court I think Lonzo won't be a distraction at all. Besides, he's replacing a guy who uploaded a teammates' affair to the internet, so he's got a low bar to climb with his teammates. Doesn't Jarrett Allen match the kind of stretch 5 the Bucks would want? Somebody who can also run the floor? He doesn't seem like that big a center on video, but maybe it's just because everyone is huge these days. Kings already have a young, good-shooting (or at least will be) SG, and they grab a PG and C. No reason they shouldn't be good really soon. You have to feel a little bad kinda-sorta for Lauri Markkenen, as he gets the instant comparisons to Dirk, and probably a lot of expectations he'll play like him right off the bat.

The Knicks obviously want a lot for him, and Parker+#17 certainly wouldn't be enough. Adding in Thon would help, but right now he seems like a big sell-low player in terms of what he is now and what his potential could be. As much as it would help to have him, it would equally hurt in the players we give up for him. Right now seems to be the hardest part of a rebuild, when you're good enough that you could make a splash and instantly be contenders, but maybe the wisest move is to stick with it, give it a little more time, and eventually become a better team than you would with Porzingis. Monroe is reportedly opting in on his contract for this coming year. It's probably good for both his improved defense and the thought that Henson otherwise would be given minutes.

I used to work as a proofreader. There were five of us in an open-concept room. The record was 3.5 days where nobody uttered a word, including a morning greeting or evening goodbye.

Had an interview in order to transfer to a different park. It's actually a demotion but with no pay change. I think my chances are pretty decent, but of course it's not up to me and I don't know a thing about any other applicants. Every other police department has what's called a Field Training program--you get sworn as an officer, but you assist an experienced officer for a long time to learn the ropes and how to do things. My agency doesn't have that and it's hurt my professional growth. The demotion gives me more immediate supervision, which I believe I will benefit from. Right now I'm in a more independent position, so if I make a mistake it's not noticed and rectified until the proverbial fan gets dirty. And when it's other people having to step in and make the corrections, it's a good time to reassess. Yesterday, hearing "We tried to tell you to do X, Y and Z, but it didn't get done" cements that a move is a good idea. I don't ignore suggestions, but they either weren't done appropriately or completely (not necessarily related to law enforcement actions), and more immediate supervision should help resolve that.

I guess the former employees walked off with two keys. Something like that. Gotta get two made by Saturday, but I guess it's a special sorta key and blanks aren't easy to find. Has the "don't duplicate" on it so we'll see if they'll do it anyway. Would like to avoid asking the higher-ups for more as I'd get the "Why are they missing? Didn't you collect them? Why wait until now?" routine.

Consider touring the big stadiums, too. ha-cha-cha!

I don't know why everyone is talking about drafting a SF. Even if Monroe opts in we need a backup C. And if he opts out (likely), we've got nobody. Thon Maker probably isn't ready for 25 minutes per game, isn't big enough yet to play the position, and is better out of the paint because of his catch-up speed. And Henson wasn't even allowed to work up a sweat in games this past season, so it's not like he'll be a good replacement. We've got so many guards we could more easily slide one of them into the SF position for a while, but really nobody who could slide into the center position. Here's somebody else's write-up of players who should be available at our draft location: ----------Shooting Guard--------- Terrance Ferguson 19 years old 6'7" 186lbs. Adelaide Donovan Mitchell 20 years old 6'3" 210lbs. Louisville Luke Kennard 20 years old 6'6" 202lbs. Duke -------Small Forwards-------- OG Anunoby 19 years old 6'8" 215lbs. Indiana Justin Jackson 22 years old 6'8" 193lbs. North Carolina Rodions Kurucs 19 years old 6'8" 190lbs. Barcelona 2 -----Power Forwards-------- John Collins 19 years old 6'10" 225lbs. Wake Forest Ivan Rabb 20 years old 6'10" 215lbs. Cal Isaiah Hartenstein 19 years old 7'0" 225lbs. Zalgiris TJ Leaf 20 years old 6'10" 220lbs. UCLA -----Center--------- Zach Collins 19 years old 7'0" 230lbs. Gonzaga Jarrett Allen 19 years old 6'11" 224lbs. Texas Ike Anigbogu 18 years old 6'10" 230lbs. UCLA Justin Patton 19 years old 7'0" 226lbs. Creighton Harry Giles 19 years old 6'11" 222lbs. Duke (SCHWARTZ CLIENT) Caleb "cookster123" Swanigan 20 years old 6'9" 247lbs. Purdue Bam Adebayo 19 years old 6'10" 250lbs. Kentucky

I commend him for trying to eliminate the middle-man, but I don't see where he has the business savvy to be able to pull it off. All I keep thinking is this Ball kid turns out to be an NBA bust and this whole thing turns to pot, and then the Ball kid ends up losing $10-whatever-million because he doesn't have a typical shoe deal in place. Although I just saw what the shoes look like and they're pretty cool. I'd totally pay $60 for them. Granted, $500 is pretty insane for shoes, but I also don't want to fall into the trap of thinking that because I don't value it that it's ridiculous that anybody else would.

Many many years ago I switched to the CBS Sports website from ESPN because theirs got to be full of ads and it was a chore just to reach the headlines. I put up with CBS' banner ad which expanded and collapsed, meaning I had to scroll around even though I was on the page I wanted, and that I couldn't click on links because they were moving around most of the time. But my problem now is that on every page, CBS insists on opening up an audio of some annoying guy which I have to constantly mute. And it's rarely an audio referencing the article I'm reading.

The thought that Lavar Ball is crazy is a good bit overblown by the media. He's just seeing a big financial opportunity with the shoe deal, plus the situation is somewhat unique with two more probable-NBA players on the way. I don't blame him for trying to get as much money as he can, but I'd guess everything to do with it is just way over his head. If dress shoes can be counted in with cost, then maybe $180 for a pair, though I don't think I've ever spent more than $60 for a pair of athletic shoes. I'm about as far as one can be from understanding urban youth culture, but maybe there's a value to having fancy and expensive shoes, so I guess I could see a few people buying them, not that $500 couldn't go to something more useful. Aren't Air Jordans about $200?

I had a piece of the Berlin Wall, but it was a small little bit and I think I lost it. My sister was in Germany when it fell.

Instead of foil, you can also try out a wrap of unlined butcher paper. I've never seen it in a store so I got a whole bunch online for about $15. Works the same way as foil to keep more heat in and speed up cooking time, but paper doesn't trap in moisture as much, and so your bark won't end up as soft.

I met someone who went on a few episodes of Wheel of Fortune. At the end of the show the winners sit down with a prize consultant who helps you figure out what the tax is going to be on the gift prizes. They pretty much tell you to decline the trips and similar luxury gifts because they'll cost so much.

That was a fun game to watch from start to finish. It was the defense, really; great help defense but they were rotating back over to the open man quickly and weren't allowing easy jumpers the way they were at the beginning of the year. How much of it is the team focusing more and how much of it is just losing Parker and his porous defense? Monroe is still putting out a ton of effort and is really fitting into the team style. It's odd that all of a sudden I wouldn't terribly mind if he used his player option and stayed another year (most likely won't, though). Didn't envision Maker being like this already. He used to be absolutely lost on defense, but now he's pretty good and is figuring out how to use his length to his advantage. It's kinda funny when he gets the ball at the 3-point line he sometimes gets this hesitation to say "Really? You're going to give me this shot? ok." The Bucks must have an amazing set of coaches to be able to develop raw talent like they've done with him and Giannis. Put another 30 pounds on Maker and it really seems like he could be something special, too. What a fun team to watch. Giannis is still getting 5' feet of space when he's at the top of the 3. Boy if only he could hit that shot at a reasonable clip he'd be impossible to stop. I think it's going to be surprising if Giannis doesn't at least get some recognition for MVP next year.

I live about an hour away. Looks like I know where I'll be going all summer.

Been thinking more about transferring to a different park. There's things I like here, though. But I don't appear too popular (work-wise, not personality wise) and I'm a little tired of everyone quickly getting really quiet when I walk into the office. There's a couple places I've wanted to go to, though they don't have openings often and transferring is based on seniority (and I don't have terribly much). But others open up fairly often and of course they come with their plusses and minuses.

I even have a separate shed and well house, and both have a light inside. I want to put my smoker and grill stuff in the front of my house, build a simple patio, and it'd be great if I could hang some lights to see at night, but nope, no outside plug.

My house doesn't have a single electrical outlet on the outside.

From an offensive perspective, that all should make for one heck of a dynamic, unstoppable offense, especially if we re-sign Lacy or draft a power running back. If you're a defense, who do you put out there if GB runs a 4WR set but Lacy is in the backfield? Or GB runs 2TE but Montgomery is there to split out wide and outrun everyone? But for the defense, all I wonder is that with so much cap money going toward Bennett and Kendricks and maybe Lacy, will the defense really be upgraded? I get that there's always the draft, but typically rookie DBs aren't that productive, especially drafting so late in the round.