Nobody's Fault But Mine

Anybody that knows me well can tell you that I am not a fan of planning. I find that it's far too cold and clinical to eliminate all chances of spontaneity from an event; being able to wing it is half the fun of a road trip or something of the sort. When things go astray from your grand plan, as they invariably will, you must be able to react and adapt. Over-planning makes this difficult.

However, there are exceptions. I have recently learned the value of having a backup plan in case things go completely to hell. Let me explain. To my chagrin, I learned several days ago that there is a chance, and not a small one, that I might be thrown out of Americorps. There is, of course, a story behind this that I would be glad to tell people, but I don't feel like typing it all down. Regardless. I will do my best to negotiate with the people in charge to stay in (or, failing that, allowing me to voluntarily withdraw as opposed to being kicked out) but my eternal pessimism leads me to believe that such an effort might be a waste of time. Nothing has been decided yet, however.

Hence my backup plan. At the moment, if Americorps lets me go, my plan is to head home for a week or so to get things in order and receive the obligatory ass-chewing from my parents, then pack up, catch a Greyhound to Georgia and begin hiking north on the Appalachian Trail (a backpacking trail that runs from Georgia up the East Coast and ends in Maine) taking pictures and writing along the way. I doubt I'll have the fortitude or money to complete the whole thousand-plus mile trek, but I shall do my best to make it as far as I can. After that, who the hell knows.

And onto other things. My Pittsburgh Penguins have proven that they are the class of the NHL, sweeping the Ottawa Senators out of the playoff race in four games. The Senators, if you remember, eliminated the Penguins last year in four games. Payback is a bitch. It is unknown who they will face next round thus far, but they have been looking like contenders all year and that trend will continue throughout the playoffs. GO PENS.

Not much in the way of football news lately, unfortunately; I hate the NFL off-season. The draft is coming up this weekend and I'm remarkably excited. Yes, I will be spending that Saturday at work, but will be receiving frequent updates from people back home. The Steelers have got to concentrate on their offensive line; it was the team's weak spot last year even before we lost all-world guard Alan Faneca to the Jets. I'm hoping for Jeff Otah myself; he went to Pitt and is used to the rough playing surface at Heinz Field. Plus, he's a local boy and will go over well with the fans. If he's off the board by the time the Steelers pick at #23, Boston College's Gosder Cherilus would work well at tackle.

Finally, a plea to Robert Plant: STOP TOURING WITH ALLISON KRAUSS. Trust me, a lot more people will come and see you if you start touring with Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones, and Jason Bonham. You are the reason the anxiously-awaited Led Zeppelin reunion tour hasn't happened yet. The hell with previous commitments; come back and rock.

PS: People are reading this! Fuckin' A, I never thought that would happen. Leave me a comment, even if it's just to tell me I'm a crappy writer; gotta read it to come to that conclusion.