Well, I was hoping that after last week's 3-0 defeat at Middlesbrough, Villa might at least grab a point from today's game against Chelsea. They lost 1-0 instead. Still, in both games they played very well, so I'm not at all worried (yet). Although, injury problems and a lack of experienced players are of some concern.
The Portland Pirates play top of the division Manchester in a short while. The Pirates are still very inconsistent at the moment. In their previous three games they lost 4-1 to Hartford, beat Bridgeport 4-3 in overtime in a thrilling game, lost 3-2 to Hartford in a shootout and 3-2 to Springfield, also in a shootout. Argh!
I almost forgot... Merry Christmas!
I don't know about you, but I absolutely love Christmas. It is without a doubt my favourite time of the year. And I write this, Santa is currently on his way around the world delivering presents! You can track his progress online with NORAD right now. He'll be arriving the UK soon, so I'd better get to bed quick!
Apart from some cabling issues, the building of my new PC went very well indeed. Everything is working beautifully. Certain components are a little noisier than I would like - the PSU and CPU fan's particularly - but other than that I'm very happy with it. I'll write a little more about it (and other things) tomorrow.
The less said about the awful result on Sunday afternoon the better. I'm hurting quite badly at the moment. I'm not even going to post a link to the match report. Instead, I'll comment on the super news today that Villa boss David O'Leary has at long last signed a new contract that will keep him at the club until 2008.
Meanwhile, across the pond in Canada, a bid to end the NHL lockout has collapsed, with both sides - the owners and the players - no nearer a deal than before. We all got our hopes up last week when the players offered a new proposal, but alas it wasn't to be. It's going to take a miracle to save the season now.
Until the NHL starts up again, I'm continuing to keep my eye on the Caps' AHL farm team the Portland Pirates. They're going through a shakey patch at the moment. They lost twice over the weekend to St. John's - 2-1 and 2-1 in overtime - and lost 4-1 to Worcester on Tuesday night. Portland are currently 10-12-3-2.
I've finally got all the parts I need to commence building my new PC on Saturday. Once I've worked it all out, the final cost will be just over £500, which is less than half the price I paid for my current Dell machine! I don't anticipate any major problems, but if I don't post here by Sunday you'll know something's gone wrong!
Driving to and from work everyday is becoming increasingly risky. I just cannot believe how aggressively and dangerously some people drive. I've seen people do the most unbelievable things. It just takes my breath away. Of course, I don't drive perfectly all the time, but at least I'm not a danger to myself and others!
After a disappointing 2-0 loss to Manchester City, and a lucky 1-1 draw at home to Liverpool, Villa are currently sixth in the table. That's a whole nine places higher, and a whopping eleven points more than the enemy across the city. Villa play them this Sunday at Villa Park, and the only acceptable result is a Villa win!
The Pirates' form has been rather erratic of late. In the two weeks just gone they lost 3-1 at home to Norfolk, lost to Springfield 2-1 in a shootout, beat the Hershey Bears at home 4-3, and lost 3-2 at home to Worcester. The Pirates travel up north to play the St. John's Maple Leafs tomorrow and Saturday.
Remember I told you a few months ago I was going to build my own PC? Well, I've now chosen the parts I need and I'm just waiting for them all to be delivered! The case arrived on Monday from the excellent Komplett. The other bits and pieces should be with me by the weekend. It's going to be a beast of a machine!
I finished Void Moon by Michael Connelly a week or two ago. It's better than Blood Work and The Poet in my opinion. From start to finish it keeps you hooked, and the ending (and what an ending) is one of the most emotional I've ever read. It's a superb piece of thriller writing from Connelly, and I highly recommend it.
Yes, I know. It has been over a week and I haven't posted anything. The good news is I've lots to write about. The bad news is I'm very tired and won't be writing it tonight! So for now I'll just point out the seasonal background change I made a week or so ago, and promise I'll write a monster update tomorrow.