Kings & Pens both WIN / Meetup.com
I can't believe that the Kings and the Pens won on the same day! Plus, the Penguins finally won a game that wasn't on a Saturday - definitely a must for turning their season around and starting to play well as they should! It's about time there was a good day for both of my hockey teams at once. I can tell it's gonna be a great weekend. :-)

David told me about Meetup.com and if you haven't heard of it, you should check it out. They have groups for just about every interest (apparently, David's been hiking a lot lately with the groups there). I didn't even realize that the musical Chess was playing in Orange County this weekend. Hopefully, it'll be a good production.

I'm so excited that I'll get to see Melissa, TC, and Melissa's parents this Sunday! Vegas is just too far away for close friends. I miss them a lot and TC is such an adorable and happy baby. The Penguins & Kings started off a great weekend. :-)

Labels: hockey, Kings, life, NHL, Penguins

Posted by Kat @ 10:13 PM | 0 meows

Best Frozen Fury Weekend
This weekend was Frozen Fury X at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Frozen Fury is a pre-season game the Kings host in Vegas, almost always against the Colorado Avalanche. It's a lot of fun to hang out with hockey friends and have an excuse to go to Vegas. (Of course, since Melissa & Tom moved to Vegas, I always have a reason to go there...)

I haven't been to all ten of the Frozen Fury games (I haven't been a Kings fan that long), but this was definitely the most exciting game I can remember seeing in Vegas. It was really interesting and a lot of fun. I'm glad that this was the game I was able to convince my dad and his girlfriend to attend. They got to see a great game that ended in a shootout. Normally, I think shootouts in general are silly and that pre-season shootouts are really ridiculous, but for Frozen Fury, I think it's important for the fans to have a clear winner and it was a great way to end the game.

I got to see the most adorable baby ever (see Melissa's page for a picture, though I swear TC is even cuter now) and hang out with him two days in a row. Holding TC and playing with him really took the sting out of watching Penn State lose with TC, his daddy Tom, my dad, & my dad's girlfriend, Corinne. Somehow, when you're playing with a cute baby everything is okay with the world.

The Kings also did their part by winning the Frozen Fury game. I didn't run into as many people I know who are Kings fans as I normally do during the course of the weekend, but I wonder if some of them might have missed it, since they're going to London for the start of the season and couldn't be away two weekends in a row, or are already enjoying Europe.

The poor Kings were actually leaving around 4:30 the morning after Frozen Fury. I hope they just stayed up, which is easy to do in Vegas. I don't know about them, but there's no way I could get up that early. Staying up that late in Vegas is easy, though. I was up until about that time Friday night and a little after 3 Saturday night. :-)

It was great to see everyone and enjoy exciting hockey in Vegas. Lots of fun! I wish it didn't have to end so soon. I definitely didn't want to leave today.

Labels: friends, hockey, Kings, Las Vegas, life, Penn State, sports, travel

Posted by Kat @ 10:25 PM | 0 meows

Shows, Travel, Etc.
This past weekend was very busy with concerts. I highly recommend Josh Groban and David Burnham in concert! They were both wonderful. I didn't know too much of Josh Groban's music before the concert, but I really enjoyed it. I think I'll have to get a couple of his CD's. Surprisingly, David Burnham sang quite a few songs I had never heard before and they were all wonderful. I hope he puts them on his next CD (and that I don't have to wait TOO long for that). He has a great way with an audience and it was great to see him again before and after the show, too. Such a sweetheart!

September is going to be a very busy month. The first weekend, I'm visiting family in San Diego - it'll be nice to enjoy the long weekend down there. I love San Diego and it's always great to hang out with family. I'm sure I'll see a couple movies, too. Perhaps I'll finally get to see The Bourne Ultimatum. I've wanted to see it since it came out, but haven't gotten around to it yet.

The following Thursday night, I leave for PA, then NYC. It'll be great to see more friends and family, the Penn State/Notre Dame game, Grease, Spring Awakening, Rent (yes, when Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp extended I got a great ticket to see it Saturday night, September 15 - the last show I'll see this year in New York - I can't wait to see them again). With the Ticketmaster fees being so annoyingly outrageous, I've decided to only pre-purchase one Rent ticket for this trip, but if I can pick up a ticket for another show when I'm there, I'll probably see it again. I love Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp so much and I may never get this chance again. Hopefully, there won't be problems with the microphones this time. That was the only thing keeping the last time I saw Rent from being completely perfect.

The next to last weekend of September, I'll be in Las Vegas for Frozen Fury (Kings/Avalanche pre-season game). I'm glad my father and his girlfriend will be able to make it this year - especially since David won't be going with me. I know I won't be with them during the game, but it'll be great to do dinner with them on Friday and spend time with them Saturday and Sunday.

College football has started! It's good to have another sport! The Yankees are doing better (they're in the wild card spot now - yippee!), but I'm still really looking forward to having more sports. The summer doesn't have enough. Getting to see Penn State's second game will be great, too. I haven't been back to State College in years. It'll be great to see Beaver Stadium, go to the Creamery, Ye Old College Diner, see what's changed on campus and downtown, etc. I'm glad I'll get to hang out there with Lisa, too. My sister and I have never hung out there since she's been able to drink, so we should have a great time, in spite of the time of the game and the fact that I'll have to drive to Williamsport that night (I didn't get my hotel reservation early enough).

Very busy month. I hope I'll be able to get up early enough to enjoy the first two Kings games of the season - with them both taking place at 9 a.m. on my only non-travel weekend in September, it might be tough.

Hockey season is coming - I can't wait!

Labels: David Burnham, hockey, life, shows, sports, travel

Posted by Kat @ 10:28 PM | 0 meows

Ducks win the Stanley Cup
Last night, I was (of course) at the last game of this year's Stanley Cup Finals. I expected it would be the last game and was prepared for the Ducks to win the Stanley Cup. I looked on the bright side - although the Penguins won the Cup twice, they won both away. Therefore, I'd never seen the Stanley Cup awarded live. Also, Teemu Selanne is a really classy guy, so he definitely deserves to have the Cup before he retires (which many say will be this year).

Surprisingly, though I clearly wasn't happy by the fact that the Ducks won the Cup last night, I wasn't really that bummed. It definitely sucks as a Kings fan to have the Ducks win the Cup in 14 years when the Kings haven't won it in 40 - especially since they're the Kings' biggest rival, but it might help the NHL in California some.

The really sad thing about the Ducks winning the Cup is that there were barely signs of the finals even coming to Anaheim. We drove around Anaheim a bit more last night than we had going to the games before and there are banners about the playoffs only at the arena. Outside of that, there are Disney and Angels banners, but nothing indicating that the Stanley Cup was just won by the Ducks (or even could be won by them). They had no party outside prior to the game, no band, ... not even face painting for the kids. The Ducks do more on their typical Sunday games than they did for the Stanley Cup Finals and that's sad. If the Kings had been in the finals, there would have been more fan fare. The Kings shot off streamers after every playoff win. The Ducks shot them off only when they won the Western Conference Finals and the Stanley Cup Finals - not even for the other finals wins.

Now, the hockey talk in Anaheim will turn to whether Selanne is really going to retire and where Giguere will end up, since he's an unrestricted free agent this year. If the Ducks don't sign Giguere by the end of the month, he could end up anywhere. It should be interesting to see.

We should get to see the new Kings' jerseys (and everyone else's) at the NHL draft on the 22nd. I'm really interested in how they've designed the new style of jersey. We know what the style looks like from the All Star game, but every time the jersey gets re-designed, it's an opportunity for the team to do something different and I can't wait to see what they do! I definitely want a new Kopitar jersey, so I'm hoping the new jerseys are well done.

Labels: hockey, NHL, playoffs

Posted by Kat @ 9:04 PM | 0 meows

Stanley Cup Finals Game 1
Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals didn't end the way I'd want, but it did end the way I expected. I think the Senators will win it in 6 and whatever happens, I hope they manage to win it somehow. They definitely showed the ability to do it today. That first Ducks goal is really what killed them, I think, in spite of how the game went afterwards.

At least the game was fun and exciting, which is always good in the finals. Wednesday's game should be a lot of fun - hopefully it'll have a better outcome.

GO SENATORS!!

My migraine was definitely not helped by the noise in the arena. I finally broke down and took something for it tonight. Hopefully, that'll help. Now that they've changed the lights out at work (which I think made the migraines worse), I'd like to start out the week without a migraine and see if I can stay there.

Labels: hockey, migraines, NHL, sports

Posted by Kat @ 9:13 PM | 1 meows

NHL Playoff Fun
The Red Wings/Ducks game last night was unreal. I hadn't ever cheered for the Red Wings before, but did a lot of that at the Honda Center last night. It was definitely strange, but a lot of fun. As a Kings fan, the playoffs haven't had a lot of overly bright spots. Last night's game at the Honda Center was definitely a huge bright spot. The worst Ducks' loss in their playoff history. Sure, they haven't been around that long, but to be there for the loss was the best a Kings fan could hope for in a season where the Kings were clearly out of the playoffs from early on in the season.

The fact that the Ducks were down the entire game made the crowd a lot more quiet. Since the organist never really does much to get the crowd going and they have to start most of their own cheers, it was a lot more quiet than most arenas of losing teams. The traffic going home was a lot lighter, since so many fans left early. There was definitely a much higher red to orange ratio at the end of the game than at the beginning.

I'm glad that the Sabres managed to win tonight. I'm sure all of their fans were worried that they'd manage to lose as they have when they've had leads before, but it's good that they held on. Hopefully, they'll be able to win one at home for their fans. I'm sure Ottawa will win the series, but at least it'll look like the Sabres fought for the win a bit.

Enjoy the NHL playoffs (and the NBA playoffs for those of you who watch them. I've never really cared about basketball unless it's college and Penn State is still involved, so that's not too often)!

Labels: hockey, NHL, playoffs, sports

Posted by Kat @ 10:56 PM | 0 meows

What a Week...
What a Week...
Glad that it's the weekend... Just one of those weeks at work. I had been so excited last week when the migraine from hell went away and when it came back yesterday afternoon along with the tingling in my hands they said I might get the first couple weeks and again this afternoon, it really bummed me out. Hopefully, it'll go away again by tomorrow morning and not come back. David is painting the theatre room wall, but I'm going out to run some errands and to see The Light in the Piazza again if I can get a decent seat when I head over there tomorrow, since I'll be in the area. If not, I'll find some other way to stay out of the house, but I'm hopeful that I'll find at least a semi-decent seat. For some reason, it's not selling well - I just don't get it. The show is great.

Tonight, the Ducks lost to the Red Wings. Strange to be cheering for the Red Wings, but great to see the Ducks lose the first game. I'd like to see them come back to Anaheim down 2-0. That'd be a great way to start off the Western Conference Finals!

I hope everyone has a great weekend - especially the mothers out there!

Labels: hockey, holiday, life, migraines, musicals, NHL, playoffs

Posted by Kat @ 10:08 PM | 0 meows

Life is Good!
First of all, congratulations to the University of California, Irvine Volleyball team - NCAA Champions! They're also the MPSF Champions, which was a harder road - they had to face the number one ranked team going into the playoffs (Pepperdine) to win that one. This is UCI's first Volleyball NCAA or MPSF Championship ever and first NCAA Championship since 1988 (the other two were in water polo).

In other good sports news, the Rangers are out of the playoffs (it's about time - sorry, Kenny) and so are the Devils! We enjoyed the AVP (pro beach volleyball) today in Huntington Beach with Chris and Amy - beautiful day to be at the beach and just windy enough to keep us from being too hot in the stands. Gorgeous day to be at the beach. Parking took forever, but it was worth it.

We saw The Light in the Piazza Wednesday night and I loved it. Check out my review on my Kat Views site. I bought David Burnham's CD and The Light in the Piazza right away and can't wait to get them. Now, on to the really big news for me....

Those of you who know me well know two things about me:
1. I love the musical Rent
2. I had a transformed migraine which started on October 3, 2006

Here's the great news....
1. Anthony Rapp & Adam Pascal are going back to Broadway for 6 weeks only to reprise their roles (Mark & Roger) and I'm heading back there to see them. I missed the OBC. Of course, I own the DVD, but seeing them live in the roles they created on Broadway will mean so much to me. We already had our annual trip planned and we arrive the day after their last scheduled performance, but you all know how much I love New York, so having an excuse to go there one more time, see my friends, and see some extra shows is never a problem for me. I'm very excited. If (as Murphy's Law would dictate) Anthony & Adam extend their run, I'll get tickets for when I'm there in September and David will get to experience them in Rent live, too. It's a win-win situation, really.

2. This is the big one... I woke up Friday morning without a migraine. After 7 months and one day, my migraine was gone. I'm a big fan of Topamax. I was afraid to think it could last all day, but it did. The really great news was when we saw Spider-Man 3: The IMAX Experience on Saturday and by the end of the movie I still had no migraine. I have a mild migraine now, but I went 2 1/2 days without a migraine and after 7 months with one, that's HUGE! I have a lot more energy and today's migraine was brought on by being out in the sun and perhaps a bit of dehydration. We drank water and gatorade, but perhaps not enough. At least I have hope that I might wake up tomorrow without a migraine, which is something that was hard to have last week.

Spider-Man 3 was my favorite Spider-Man movie yet. Great special effects, well-done story line, and Venom - what more could one want? I definitely recommend seeing it in IMAX if you can.

Labels: beach volleyball, hockey, life, migraines, movies, musicals, NHL, playoffs, volleyball

Posted by Kat @ 10:15 PM | 0 meows

Round 2 Begins
Round 2 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs has begun! As I expected, the Rangers got killed by the Sabres. It was wonderful to see that Jagr and Avery were both kept from getting any points, too. Wonderful day for all of us who can't stand the jerks on the Rangers. I do really like some of the guys on the team, but those who are jerks are so loud about it that they make it hard to remember that there are nice guys on the Rangers.

The Ducks game was exciting, even for a Kings fan. I thought the Canucks would put up much more of a fight - especially when the Ducks came out super-sluggish. It seemed that the Ducks didn't realize the game started at 7 this time around (as many of the fans didn't). Perhaps the Canucks were just tired, but I thought tonight's game was the Canucks' best chance at playing well against the Ducks. Hopefully, they'll win a game at home to make it respectful and bring the playoffs back here for a game 5, but I can't imagine this round going beyond that point - especially the way tonight's game went. I guess a lot will be seen by how they come out in the next game, though. Perhaps they were just tired from all their overtime games against the Stars. Luongo had played more minutes of hockey than anyone else out there with all the overtime and going to 7 games in the first series.

I hope the rest of you hockey fans are enjoying the playoffs!

Labels: hockey, NHL, playoffs, sports

Posted by Kat @ 8:20 PM | 0 meows

What a Night
If anyone had told me that the Ducks would get outshot by the Canucks in the first period of game 2 of round 2, I would have thought they were nuts. Winning by half-way through regulation? No way! Go into overtime with the team that mutilated the Canucks in game 1? Never. But, it happened, and I was there.

Luongo is an amazing goalie and his 97.727 save percentage tonight in his 87:49 minutes allowed the Canucks to beat the Ducks and his teammates better be greatful. Before tonight's game, many were thinking the Ducks might sweep the Canucks.

Going into this round, I figured the Ducks would win in 5. After game one, I thought they might sweep, but figured the Canucks might win one at home. Now that the Canucks beat the Ducks in the 2nd OT in Anaheim, I'm wondering how the series will go. Perhaps the Ducks will need to go to 6 or 7 to beat the Canucks. They obviously have a lot more fight in them than most of us expected. Of course, the Ducks played horribly (with a few exceptions) tonight, so if that changes, a lot will be up in the air, too.

I also think the penalty on Parros with about 5 minutes left to go in the 1st period was BS - even after watching it on Tivo at home. The goal Cowan got was amazing. Giguere is probably still wondering how that happened.

Of course, the Sabres beat the Rangers to go ahead in that series 2-0, the Devils are losing their series 1-0 and the Red Wings are losing their series 1-0. Generally a good time in hockey for me now. :-)

I do think it's great that Giguere got recognized by the press as the number three star of the day in the NHL today, even though he wasn't granted that honor in the game, which I think he deserved. Luongo, of course, deserved the number one star of the game and NHL today. He played amazingly well and was great to be able to watch in person in the playoffs for over 4 periods. What a day for hockey!

Enjoy the playoffs everyone!

Labels: hockey, NHL, playoffs, sports

Posted by Kat @ 11:49 PM | 0 meows

NHL Playoffs Start Tonight!
I'm so excited about the NHL playoffs starting tonight. For the first time in years, I have a team that I love in the playoffs again. Granted, I'd like to see the Kings in the playoffs, too, but you can't have everything. The Penguins are back in the race and I can't wait to see the young players they have in the playoffs. Many of the Penguins have never been to the playoffs before, which a lot of people seem to think is a disadvantage. While I understand that experience can help in coping with the pressure of the playoffs, the younger players tend to be more excited and hungrier for the wins, which could work in the Pens' favor. Although Jagr is definitely no Crosby, he won the cup very early in his career in Pittsburgh. I see no reason why Sidney Crosby can't do the same.

The Penguins are a very good team and I hope to see them raising the cup high at the end of the finals. I'm not holding my breath for the Pens to get the cup this year, but the playoffs will definitely be much more exciting for me than they've been in years. Having a team you love in the playoffs makes all the difference. The Pens won 3 of the 4 games against the Senators this season, so I know they're capable of making it to round two.

Crosby is the youngest player to win the NHL scoring title. I hope the Pens have a long and exciting playoff run. Since the new arena (and staying in Pittsburgh) was announced earlier this year, it would be a fairy tale ending for the Penguins to win the cup this year. I know everyone in Pittsburgh would love to see the cup return.

Let's go PENS!

Labels: hockey, NHL, Penguins, Pittsburgh

Posted by Kat @ 1:46 PM | 0 meows

Latest Updates
As usual, much has happened since the last time I posted. This past weekend, I attended one baby shower and helped throw a second. Since one was for a baby girl and one a baby boy, I got to see pretty much everything in the stores these days for baby boys and girls. Some truely adorable clothes and amazing accessories. Both showers were a lot of fun. It was great to see the friends I never seem to see enough.

I got to see Melissa two weekends in a row, since we were out in Vegas the weekend before the baby showers, which is also cool. It's funny, since I hadn't seen her since she found out she was pregnant and now she's only about 6 weeks away from giving birth and actually LOOKS pregnant. Amazing how time flies. We also got to see Becki & Neale (friends from college), their friends Amy & Mike, and Cirque du Soleil's Love. Tons of fun, as always, in spite of the smoke. Thankfully, Vegas passed a law prohibiting smoking anywhere that's serving food, which at least made eating a bit better.

The Kings won't be in the playoffs this year, so their season ends on Saturday. At least the Penguins will be in the playoffs this year, so I have a team to really cheer for... I also plan on attending the playoff games in Anaheim, since the Ducks are in the playoffs (unfortunately). It's painful as a Kings fan (and former Disney employee) to see the Ducks doing this well again, but at least the Kings look like they can be a very good team next year. Hopefully, that'll work out for all of us Kings fans.

Labels: friends, hockey, life, NHL, playoffs

Posted by Kat @ 9:36 PM | 0 meows

December Already?
I was a lot farther behind on shopping this year than usual and December has been pretty busy. At least I managed to get all my gifts that need to be sent wrapped, so they can go out soon.

So far, every time I've been in the press box for a hockey game, the team I've wanted to win has won. I've been very lucky with my picks. Hopefully, the Kings and the Pens will both start playing better soon. The Kings are in the process of rebuilding (again), but when they play well they do very well. It's hard to watch them totally give up in some games. The Penguins have so many talented players that it's very frustrating to watch them lose. I'd bet that if he doesn't pull them together soon, Therrian's days are numbered. With a team that has that much talent, I'm sure the management is going to be very upset if they don't start winning. It should be interesting to se what happens.

My migraine (that I've had since October 3rd) is still going strong, but my neurologist thinks we should have the right level of medication in a month or so. Then, I should be mostly migraine free. I can't wait!

Labels: hockey, holiday, Kings, life, Penguins

Posted by Kat @ 8:27 PM | 0 meows

Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

I haven't written for a while, but I've been pretty busy at work and outside of work. On Friday night, I found out that everything was set up for me to have a press pass for Saturday's game at Staples Center. This was exciting, but a bit crazy, since Saturday's game was at 1 and we figured that I wouldn't have a press pass for that, since I hadn't heard anything yet. Fortunately, David's dad was able to join him for the game, so I didn't abandon him.

I was surprised by some of the differences between the Wachovia Center and Staples Center press areas. I was lucky enough to have a couple of guys who work for the NHL take me under their wing and show me where the press room was so I could get some lunch. From there, I figured everything out on my own and it worked out well.

The press box in Staples Center is freezing. It wasn't too surprising to me, since our seats (in the 300 level) are much colder than seats closer to the ice (because of the air conditioning), but I still wish it were a bit warmer.

I got to see Rick Kehoe (now a scout for the NY Rangers) and catch up with him a bit, too, which was nice. He and dad haven't kept in touch for years and I'm sure he didn't remember me from college (the last time I was at his house for a Stanley Cup party). It was also nice to be able to take notes on my laptop rather than using a pen and notepad from my regular seats. I could look up facts at the game during a commercial break rather than waiting to get home after the game. Very convenient. I'll still be in my normal seats for most of the games, but it'll be nice to take advantage of the press pass from time to time throughout the rest of the season.

Have a safe & happy Thanksgiving!

Labels: hockey, holiday, Kings, life, NHL

Posted by Kat @ 3:29 PM | 0 meows

Philadelphia and Beyond
I had a great trip in Philly, in spite of the wind. When we first got there, it was warm and I was thrilled that there was no wind. Of course, that didn't last.

I had a great time with Eklund getting my first press pass and being shown around the Wachovia Center. I really do hope the Flyers fans appreciate how lucky they are to have such a wonderful arena. The HD screens, the huge bar (complete with band after the game), the stats they show every time a player scores a goal... It was really great to see an arena that cares as much about their hockey fans (more, actually, from what I hear) as they do about their basketball team. The fans definitely back their team, though. In spite of how badly they lost to the Penguins and how poorly they're doing this year, the fans that stayed for the whole game continued to cheer for their team. In LA, the team would have been booed, which is pretty sad. The Flyers fans didn't boo their team till the end of the game.

On Sunday, we got to see Amber, Matt, Becki, Neale, & Rowan for a late breakfast at our hotel. It was so good to meet Matt and see everyone else. Rowan is growing so fast and she's totally adorable! The only bummer about being in California is being far away from friends and family (especially those with kids).

As if all of this wasn't enough, we flew home first class. Great ending to a wonderful trip in NYC & Philadelphia!

Since I've been home, there hasn't been much time to relax. There were Kings games Monday and Wednesday and Tuesday was Halloween. It was great to see the Penguins again - Malkin is really amazing. Unfortunately, Kopitar (the best Kings rookie) probably won't be the number one rookie for long, even though Malkin has played 9 fewer games. I can't wait to see the Pens again on Monday as they beat the Ducks (and, of course, see them play the Sharks on TV Saturday).

After the Pens/Kings game last night, I was on XM radio, which was pretty cool. I don't think I did too well, since they asked some questions I really didn't anticipate. Eklund said I did okay, though, so it's probably not too bad. He's sending me the mp3, so I guess I'll see at some point, though I've never liked my speaking voice on tape...

Hopefully, I can get my press pass soon so that I can get information a bit faster for my XM radio and Hockey Buzz commentaries. Now, I really do need to get an XM radio so that I can listen to the show when other people are on. Besides, it'd be great to have an XM radio for many of the other stations, the NHL and MLB games, etc.

Labels: hockey, life, NHL, Philadelphia

Posted by Kat @ 9:45 PM | 3 meows

Philadelphia - WOW!
Those of you who know me know that this year I was more excited about my trip to Philadelphia to see friends and the Penguins playing the Flyers at the Wachovia Center more than anything this trip. I always love seeing the Penguins play, and when they're playing as well as they are now (Crosby and Malkin on the same line - amazing!) it's even more fun. Going to an NHL arena I've never visitedd is also always great. The Wachovia Center was truly amazing in many ways. The score board and other screens are top of the line, but the most impressive thing to me was how the Flyers fans stand by their team even when they're at the bottom of the NHL. Fan support like that is great to see!

Labels: hockey, life, NHL, Philadelphia

Posted by Kat @ 6:59 PM | 0 meows

Rough Intro to the Honda Center
The Kings lose 4-3 after dominating the first 2 periods and giving up completely in the third.

I had a great intro to the Honda Center in other ways, too. Someone had thrown up on our seats and they had never cleaned it up. They did send someone to clean it up as well as she could, but we still used one of the hideous orange Ducks shirts we got for free to protect us from the parts that they didn't cover up with a towel or completely clean. The lady who cleaned it did the best they could, but there's only so much you can do without being able to get the seat really wet.

And, in the 3rd period when the Ducks scored their third goal (first of the period), the girl behind me spilled the scalding hot chocolate (that was too hot for her to drink) on my head. Fabulous. Really helped my migraine... My head still feels hot and hurts where the hot chocolate hit my scalp. The jersey was mostly spared and I only got a little on my jeans, but my first experience at the Honda Center wasn't any better than my last experience at a Ducks game (then the Mighty Ducks). Hopefully, next time I see the Ducks play I won't get anything spilled on me!

I also hope that the Kings will play all three periods tomorrow night at their home opener at Staples Center. I missed Renee's chocolate party tonight to see the Kings lose. I can't believe they had the nerve to lose when I skipped CHOCOLATE for them! Very rude!

On top of all that, the Yankees totally bombed tonight. They'd better pull their act together soon! Let's go YANKEES!!!

In good news, it seems almost everyone is having a baby now. Four cousins, my only friend in Germany, and my best female friend are all pregnant now! My friend in Germany is due in a couple weeks, the rest have a lot more of their pregnancy left than that, but it's all so very exciting! Congratulations to all of you expectant mothers out there.

Labels: baseball, hockey, Kings, NHL, Yankees

Posted by Kat @ 12:21 AM | 0 meows

Through rain, sleet... but NOT slurry coating
Yesterday, when we got home from the show we saw, I discovered that our mail man is too lazy to deliver mail to our short (for those of you who haven't seen my street, it's only about 7 houses on each side and this is southern California, they're not far apart) street when the street couldn't be driven on, since it was being slurry coated. It's not like my neighborhood in Pennsylvania where there were no sidewalks. We have sidewalks - he could have gotten to the mailboxes. He just chose not to. I guess I should know better than to expect him to - no one walks in southern California. Fortunately, we had nothing urgent going out in the mail, but it was still annoying.

In good news, our bathroom project is finally done (just needs wallpaper we haven't picked yet). The mirrors are really cool and everything is great. Now that they want their final payment, perhaps they'll address David's issues with the discount they thought was fair since he had to completely re-do the heated floor and the money he saved them because he was smart enough to a. know that the installer messed up and b. fix it before the tile was put in, since they would have had to tear everything out and re-do it if he hadn't.

Our built-in cabinets upstairs are being installed this weekend, which is cool. The LCD screen that'll go on the wall in that room won't be bought for years, but at least the surrounding wall will look great. :-)

We got our pre-season tickets for the Kings today. Hockey starts next month!!! Yippee! And, the Yankees are doing great for the end of the season and it looks like the playoffs will be set up pretty well for them. Perhaps this will finally be the year that the Yankees win the world series this millennium! GO YANKEES!

Labels: baseball, hockey, life, NHL, Yankees

Posted by Kat @ 7:40 PM | 0 meows

Donate Blood!
I donated blood yesterday and was shocked to find out that only about 5% of the US population donates blood - ever. That's counting all those people who donate once and then never go back. That really blew my mind. I know that there are a lot of people who don't weigh enough (*sigh* I remember when that included me...), but most of the US adult population does weigh enough. I know a lot of people are afraid of needles, but suck it up and try to donate blood. You don't have to watch them. Tell them you're scared and they'll take really good care of you.

I donate whenever I can and I'm lucky, since the blood drives on campus are right by my building, but I used to drive pretty far to donate, since I think it's important. Just think about what would happen if you were in a major car accident or something. Wouldn't you want them to have your blood type on hand? I would.

Okay, enough of my badgering people to donate blood.

I can actually post blogs directly on Eklund's Hockey Buzz now, which is cool. Granted, my opinions of Garon not being a good goalie and LaBarbera being better than him, even, aren't very popular with the masses. Not many people commenting agree with that. Oh well, most of the season ticket holders I know see the same things I do, so at least I'm not alone in thinking this. I'm glad that the hockey pre-season is only two months away. I just hope that the Kings can do okay this year. I worry about some of the choices they've made.

Today is my sister's birthday and she loved the Ipod Nano we got her (along with my dad - we got a the most important accessories she wanted, too). Lots of future gift ideas to go with it, which is nice, too. She really loves it and she was beyond excited about the gift, which is cool. It's always nice to be able to do that. The second she mentioned that she was interested in one, I told her to be sure not to buy it (which is definitely a sign that I would work on it), but apparently she was still a little surprised.

My boss (the one I report to, not the one I end up doing work for) is leaving to go down the hall to work for the person I used to do work for. It's nice that she'll still be really close in case there are questions, but we have such a great work environment now that I worry about what it will become. What if the person they hire for Robin's job is difficult to get along with or not as easy going as Robin? We've had it great since I've been here (vacation is easy to get off as long as the other two people who support the office aren't off at the same time) and I would hate to see that change. Wish us luck!

Labels: hockey, Kings, life, NHL

Posted by Kat @ 11:29 AM | 0 meows

Bye, hockey...
No more hockey till September. Always seems like a long time, even though we have one of the shortest off-seasons in sports. The Oilers should be very proud of how well they did. I'm sure they're disappointed, but they did a great job. They were the first team to ever get to the Stanley Cup Finals as an 8th seed and they took it down to the last minutes of game 7. I'm glad that when they were down 2-0 they didn't give up - at least they weren't shut out of game 7.

Now, it's time to concentrate on the off season... The Mighty Ducks will no longer be "Mighty." They'll reveal their new colors, logo, and name... So much for them being named after a few crappy Disney movies. And that was so much fun to make fun of, too.

It'll be interesting to see what happens to my first love in hockey teams (the Penguins), but I'm not getting my hopes up until I see what the new GM does. Getting rid of Craig Patrick was a great start if they can work towards a younger team that will play hard.

I think the Kings have such great potential for next season. With all new management, I can't wait to see what they do for our team! Next season really could be a great season for us. I like what everyone who's come on board so far has been saying and doing, so I think we're headed in the right direction. We seem to have stepped up our management and coaching staff already and we don't even have a full team yet.

Labels: hockey, Kings, NHL

Posted by Kat @ 8:56 AM | 0 meows