Final Worm

I created a beautiful movie showing all the worms linked together.  It even has music.  But for some reason it doesn't upload.  So if you are ever in Walnut Creek, come by and I'll screen it for you.

And just for Moira:

http://youtu.be/nOcNT0leicQ

Oh - figured it out.  Enjoy!

India in the finals

India seem to be the golden children of this tournament. They are looking goooooooood. Will England be able to disrupt their run? I think England may be the only team that could. I think both teams have had great tournaments so far, and well deserved their places in the final. I am looking forward to Sundays match.

As for India/ Sri Lanka? What happened to Sri Lanka? They just didn't seem to get anything going on the pitch or off. Sri Lanka batted first and while they hung in for all 50 overs they only put up 181. The highest total was from Mathews with 51. Jayawardene? Sangakkara? Dilshan? Nothing to write here about. 3 wickets a piece for Sharma and Ashwin. But if you were disappointed in Sri Lankas batting you were probably more disappointed in their bowling. India easily surpassed the target in 35 overs with 8 wickets remaining. 68 for Dhawan and 58 for Kohli. No one got near a 3 wicket haul as there weren't 3 wickets to be had!

Red Watch has seen their way back in the top 100, claiming #73 in the world! They have also given themselves a bit of distance from the Red Foxes. 3rd place has been claimed (at least temporarily) by Outhousers 2. But watch out for the Balls of Thunder cause they're knocking at the door (I think they really need to go - to much fruit you know?!) There seems to be Clear Weather ahead but the Rainbow Horses are making a play for rain. If Olga Brietenfoulers kids are planning to fly the coop they should watch out for The Dragons on their tails. They don't want to be crying "My Leg Hurts" like some. Chartham Aces are being held up Henry's sleeve but be careful the ST Stars are trying for a late game shine. Meanwhile, Jr. Siren's Crabs are hoping to make it to the varsity level next year.

Enjoy a few days off and don't forget to watch the big match on Sunday!

Holding Thumbs for the Final

Do you have to hold both thumbs or will one do?

England in the Finals!

England crushed South Africa today. There is really no other word for it. South Africa went all out after 38.4 overs with only 175 to show for it. Well done to the English bowlers and their wicketkeeper (who by the way I had picked early on to be one of my stars and then he proceeded to do NOTHING, so I dropped him in favor of de Villiers who goes out for a duck - such has been my tournament). Anyway 56 was the biggest run total from Miller and 3 wickets a piece to Broad and Tredwell. It only took England 37.3 overs and 3 wickets to take South Africa down. 82 not out for Trott, probably would have gotten a century if they had had a little better target. Anyway, well done England, you guys are looking good.

Tomorrow should be a good match between India and Sri Lanka.

Have you all checked out the worm? If you think the battle for first is tight check out the battle for 3rd. Seems like each day a new person takes over the 3rd spot. 5 people all within 300 points of each other. Who's still got trades???

For those in the area we are planning on watching the game here Sunday afternoon after Ethan's Birthday Party like around 2 or something, we can see how the party goes and play it by ear. So, if you are planning to come here don't spoil it for yourself by checking scores early. If you're watching live from some other part of the world don't spoil it for us by "what's apping" the results. Enjoy the cricket!

Battle On

Into the Semis We GO!

sandwich

Corn Salad

Moira, the above links are the two vegan recipes I made. Our guest liked the corn salad so much he had 3 helpings and asked for the recipe. I thought the sandwich was also very tasty. James, the veggies didn't do anything to me but I'm an equal opportunity kinda gal.

Back to cricket............Sri Lanka beat Australia. I'm assuming you knew that by now. So, tomorrow England will take on South Africa and then on Thursday India will battle Sri Lanka. Have you all made your trades? Don't forget. I for one am planning on really turning on the heat in these last few matches. I might even change my captain. Missy has been overheard boasting about having full teams lined up. Michael is still trying to figure out who is playing. Bob is beside himself that Sri Lanka are going through. James is shaking in his boots watching Katy S rise through ranks. What is up with you?????

Good Luck tomorrow.

Catherines Delight

England moves on! In a limited overs game (due to D/L) Engalnd bested New Zealand and moves on. New Zealand is not totally out of it but it depends on the game today which currently looks like Australia is struggling a bit to catch Sri Lanka. Anyway, back to England. Michael actually saw some of the game while I prepared our vegan lunch - which was quite tasty by the way. Engalnd batted first and their opener Cook got a nice total of 64. No other real batting standouts and the finished their overs with 169 to chase. As for the bowling, hats off to McCleneghan (3 wickets) and Mills (4 wickets) pretty impressive with limited overs. When New Zealand came on to chase they did ok (Williamson with 67) but dropped to many of their early order and just couldn't make it. They fell 10 short. 3 wickets to Anderson and 2 a piece to Broad and Bopara.

There was almost no movement in our competition except Michael who overtook Bob and Moira and Katy S who overtook Henry and I. Whose in for a late surge? Anyone? Anyone? Beuller?

As I said Sri Lanka is currently battling Australia for the last spot in the semis and then we have a rest day tomorrow. The first semi on Wednesday will be South Africa vs. ? (probably England) and semi 2 will be on Thursday with India battling ?

Too close for comfort

Fruit, fruit, the magical fruit.........

Sorry about the lack of a blog this last day, I have been up to my eyeballs in fruit. Picking, jamming, pieing, and eating. All that fruit also leads to some other time consuming issues. Anyway, with all this fruit around I barely had time to hit a 4 year olds birthday and plan a vegan lunch. So what has been going on? Well, a whole lot of rain. Both of the last games have been effected by the rain and ol duckworth lewis had to rear his ugly head. Don't know what/who duckworth lewis is? Neither do I but it has something to do with rain and how you shorten and decide on a winner in the game of cricket. So, today India beat Pakistan by 8 wickets with 17 balls remaining in a pretty boring game. Not much of note there. Pakistan was out of it anyway. India moves on. and the day before well it was a nail bitter. I was just rereading the commentary so I could set you all up for the drama but honestly I am just confused. Seems the target to win changes every over when you are under the spell of ol duckworth. But It all came down to one wicket and the Pollard was the poor sucker who dropped it. So, South Africa and the West Indies tied. But South Africa has a better net run rate than the West Indies so they will be moving on.

Tomorrow England and New Zealand play. A win for either one will ensure they move on, a loss and you have to look at what happens with Australia and net run rates and all kinds of weird things. So lets hope they play and someone wins.

Our tourney is all about jockey for position these days. Seems like at this point you are either on the top, in the middle, or on the bottom with not much change. However, do not give up hope, the end is near and this is when your trade management may come into play. So, battle on folks, battle on.

Not much change, but some mighty tight battles for position

Warner Did It

Sorry about that last blog, I was rained out. Tonight we can blame everything on Australia's Warner. Warner did it, and it may or may not have involved "fancy dress" ("costumes" for those of you who speak American) but it definately involved Root so I say Warner was England's demise, or Sangakarra. But anyway, England lost to Sri Lanka and I for one was shocked. When I saw that England had posted an impressive 293 I thought Sri Lanka was doomed. But then they went out to bat and they got a few runs, and a few more, and few more, and suddenly Sangakarra has 134 and Sri Lanka win by 7 wickets with 17 balls remaining. Since Australia and New Zealand both got a no result from yesterdays rain-out it sets up an interesting situation in group A. No one in that group is guaranteed a pass to the next round and all 4 of them need to score a win in their next matches. In group B, India is moving on, Pakistan is out so Saturdays game will be for pride. But the match tomorrow between South Africa and the West Indies will determine who else goes through.

As for us, BOB SURGED! He wanted to make sure I put that in the blog. Bob surged! He loves him some Sri Lankans. Anna and Catherine seems to be in their own competition at the top. Catherine had a bit of surge herself today and is within 100 points of Anna. Three more of us are battling for 3rd - Bob (who surged), Missy (who was surged upon) and James (who has a crick in his neck from looking over his shoulder at his parents. And NO James don't think because you're the favorite they won't take you out in a heart beat). There is also a battle happening for the Sweaty Teddy. Jolie and Hilary have been jocking for the coveted last place, which rookie will come out on top? The rest of us? well, we are there in the middle somewhere..............

Hilary makes her move

Rain, Rain, Go Away

It seems like each tournament I have to break out that title dibble at least once. So today dibble dibble Australia in a battle dibble dibble dop New Zealand. South Africa batted dibble dibble dop dop dop.......pitter patter plop plop plop...................

So the India has clinched a place in the semifinals. How'd they do it? Well, let me tell you. The West Indies batted first and managed a total of 233. 60 from Charles and 56 from Sammy (who by the way I had on my team the other day and then he DID NOT PLAY!). Anyway, they seemed to do OK but really India was on point the whole time, especially with Jadeja who racked up 5 wickets, Yeah that's right, 5 wickets! Who picked Jadeja? Anna did of course. Then India took center stage and just went balls to the walls cracking shots like no bodies business. They won the game with 8 wickets and 10.5 overs to spare. I mean seriously folks, I would have liked to see that batting. They only had four guys batting and all four had strike rates around 100. Nuts. Dhawan got a century and 1/2 centuries went to Sharma and Karthik. So there you have it, India is looking GOOD! They simultaneously secured their place in the semis and knocked Pakistan out.

Tomorrow Australia really could use a win against New Zealand. If they lose it will be hard for them to move on. So, GO AUSTRALIA!!!!!!!!!!!

As for us, check the worm.

I'm Back!

Sorry about last night folks, Michael wanted to watch the chick flick I got on Netflix so I told him he had to write the blog while I made my trades so that we would have time for the movie. And don't let him fool you, HE wanted to watch the chick flick, he likes a good romantic comedy. Anyway, Tonight he's catching up on some press conference about the new x-box. He's almost as excited to watch the press conference as he is about the new machine - geek. So what happened? Well, Solid hitting by South Africa got them a decent score of 234 in the opening innings of todays game against Pakistan. The total would have been much higher if not for Pakistans even more solid fielding. Amla had a respectable 81 and everyone else did pretty good with double digits. Four of the wickets were run outs (2 from the Haq, he also had a catch) so you'll pick up some points for that since you'll be missing some wicket points from the bowlers. When it was Pakistans turn Jamshed had a pretty good run with 42 but wasn't able to develop any real partnerships. Later the Haq got 55 but they just didn't have a high enough run rate so all their fielding was for not as they went all out with only 167. Hats off to the rookie, Morris for some fine bowling and to McLaren with a 4 wicket haul. Did we all learn our McLaren lesson? Pakistan now needs to beat India to have any hope of moving on, they also need the West Indies to win their next two matches.

Tomorrow West Indies take on India.

Is McLaren red? cause that's who we need to watch as Anna once again claims the top spot. Sorry foxes, not red enough apparently. The Rainbow Horses also had a nice surge today, well done Moira. Hey, I just realized all these top folks have colors in their names.....is that the secret? Its the power of the color wheel. Do think the color you choose matters? Maybe I'll change my team to the Cerulean Dragons! They surged today for sure but they just didn't surge enough to fight off the Brietenfoulers (is that a reference to Olga's color or her bright feathers?), Michael's pasty legs, or the Clear (Blue?) Weathers. The Dark Grey Balls of Thunder also slipped while the Chartham Aces of Spades and the Jr. Siren's Red Crabs held their ground. Hilary's ST Gold Stars are languishing in last place - I'm sure it was Michael's fault, lets blame him. Now you might be wondering about the new Brown Outhousers 2 team? We had a snafu with Aunt Katy and her computer so I had to create a new team for her. But we can't get into erase the old team. So, you should now ignore the Yellow Outhousers and add 537 to the Brown Outhousers 2. Or just look at Anna's worm to see where Katy S stands - she surged today for sure.

Enjoy!

Lots of movement

Or would that be wiggle?

Katy made me do it

This is Michael telling you stuff today. Apparently the game was very exciting but I didn't watch it. I think it was New Zealand and somebody else playing today coz I got points from my New Zealand guy but not for anybody else coz I forgot to do trades yesterday coz I was feeling a bit under the weather which I guess was fine for the game coz they played and my mom said the game was exciting on facebook. It was also exciting other places. Maybe I should look up what happened. How about if I just cut and paste a few sentences from cricinfo in here? NZ survive Malinga magic in thriller. Malinga 4/34. Wow, that's some good throwing. Oh ya, Malinga plays for Sri Lanka so that must be who New Zealand were playing. What happened in the tennis by the way? I was watching the Canadian Formula One Grand Prix, so I know what happened in that, but that was after the cricket and the tennis so that is no excuse for not watching either one. Where was I? Oh, Sri Lanka and Stuff. Word is SL lost the game by not batting better. There you go then, bat better if you want to win. At one point NZ needed 11 from 12 but despite Malinga's previously mentioned heroics NZ won anyway. So there you go, now you know as much as I do about today's game, if not more. Oh ya, Catherine looks like she is the winningest fantasy cricketer right now. I just double checked and she is in fact at the head of the bunch (that's the term for all of us together). Bob, Missy, James, Moira and Hilary all moved up the rankings. The rest of us didn't move up, some not moving up more than others. I know coz I checked. Now quit asking questions like when will Katy get back to blogging coz we like her better. That's not nice. Love, Michael

Getting Interesting

I Surged and So Can You.......

Today saw a match between England and Australia. England came out strong with Bell putting up 91 and a few other guys in the 30's and 40's, resulting in 269 for Australia to chase. Australia for their part didn't have any 3-wickets hauls but McKay and Faulkner both had 2 a piece with pretty good econ rates. Enter Australia: Warner and Watson got off to a slow start and the speed never really picked up. Bailey and Faulkner both got 1/2 centuries but it was no near enough to bring England down. Anderson led England's bowlers with a 3 wicket haul and an econ rate of 3.00. So well done England! Hope they can keep it going.

As for us, there was lots of action. I had a surge, so did Bob. Moira slipped as did James. No need to worry folks there is lots of cricket left. The rumor poolside is that Bob is banking heavily on the Sri Lankans and Anna will only charge you a dollar to see the results of her tri-grouping pivot experiment. The excitement continues to mount..........

Tomorrow we see the last of the 8 teams New Zealand and Sri Lanka. They are both looking to add some trophies to their tiny collections so it should be a good game. Enjoy!

Time to Surge

Did ya all see the worm? Damn Catherine had a fine surge. I was wondering if Anna was just going to run away with this but Catherine is keeping her in check for sure - Catherine, did you assign your maths students to create pivot tables for you?? Just wondering. Well done.

The game seemed like a bit of a bore, but I wasn't watching it so maybe it was exciting. I tried to check in with the commentary but between the rain delay and a lot of talk about what the first day of the millennium was, well..... So anyway, the West Indies beat Pakistan by 2 wickets with 56 balls remaining. Pakistan batted first and put up 170. Only two of their batsmen did squat, Jamshed with 50 and the Hawk with 96. The rest all scored in the single digits! Both Roach and Narine were able to rack up 3 wicket hauls, well done to the bowlers. Then the West Indies took to the bat, no one did anything to exciting with the highest score coming from Gayle (39), but then they didn't really need to did they. Seems like it was a pretty easy win for them. So, does this mean Pakistan is bottom of the barrel this tournament or does it mean West Indies have their eyes on the finals? It remains to be seen.

Tomorrow we have an ashes preview with England and Australia. Apparently Australia isn't looking good and were crushed in a practice match by England not long ago. Australia's captain Michael Clarke is out with a bad back. Not to worry though because he is being looked after by the wiggles personal fitness guru. Apparently this guy even played guitar on one of the wiggles albums, so I'm sure Clarke is in good hands. And if not maybe he can have a second career as the green guy, Sean will be so pleased.

As for the rest of us. There was a bit of shifting but nothing compared to Catherine's surge. Jolie seemed to flatten a little while I don't think Katy S nor Hillary had people playing. You know there is a game everyday right ladies? And you have like 75 trades right? Just saying, maybe they have some secret strategy....hmmmmmmmmmm............

Good luck everyone, you're gonna need it because I'm planning my own surge tomorrow.

Go Catherine Go

Day One Done

So we have begun and what a start it was, for some at least. Anna? That is some pivot girl! More on that later. For those of you who are new to my commentary let me fill you in on some history. I have no real knowledge of the sport. I had never seen a game until Michael dragged me to the West Indies to see the World Cup a few years back. With two kids running around and strange start times I don't see many of the games in the tournament. I try and follow the commentary on cricinfo when I can. So, when I sit down to write my recap of the day I look over the score card and make shit up. Frequently I use vocabulary that I know I've seen somewhere but I may or may not know what it means or if I am using it appropriately. My Mom thinks I'm brilliant, but then again she knows less than I do and, well, she's my Mom. My Mother-in-Law tells me I do a great job but frankly I think its more likely that she and Henry are just having a good laugh each evening. So, with that said, let me dazzle you with my witty banter, and you can ignore me if you like.

The opening match saw India trounce South Africa by 26 runs. India batted first and their openers must have been something to see - not me, I didn't see them, I was snoring at the time. But, I am sure no one in the right time zone could have slept through the openers. Sharma got 65 and the first century of the tournament went to Dhawan with 114. That set up India pretty nicely and after 50 overs they had posted a respectable 331 with 3 wickets to spare. Of note in the bowling arena, R. McLaren got 3 wickets! Well done Anna for choosing him as your captain. How do you do that? I mean no one has heard of this guy! How did he figure into your pivot?

So with 331 to chase South Africa took the field, or went out, or came up to bat, or something. Anyway, it was their turn to hit the ball. It started out rocky but then Peterson and de Villiers started to put up a fight. Neither one reached a century but they can at least hold their heads up. Then my man Faf comes in, or out or whatever. He was partnered with Miller for all of 3 minutes and he pulled a classic du Plessis. He hits the ball, screws up the hand signals, then when they are run out he lets Miller take the golden duck for him! Michael was not pleased with me for that one as Miller earned him -20. Its all part of the plan my love, all part of the plan. Enter McLaren who rallied late to 71 but SA still came up short. So well done India.

As for us: Anna is the news of day, her brilliant captain choice propelled her to the top of the worm and #4 overall in the world! Let me also take this opportunity to thank Anna for taking up worm detail, Michael is distracted with outdoor tables, pocket hole jigs, and sketch-up. And we love a good worm! Catherine and Katy S should also be congratulated on jobs well done followed not to far behind by Moira and James. Moira! take a screen shot cause I think this might be your highest placement yet. It may not be the sweaty teddy for you after-all!

Tomorrow is West Indies v. Pakistan. Should be a good one, enjoy!

Worm 1

Just testing out the worm post.  And of course, why wouldn't I?

Are you ready to rumble????????

OK, does everyone have their strategies ready to go? I myself think I do, but then again maybe not......... I had picked out a great South African sleeper that was going to cinch my early rise to the top of the worm and then, well, he's not listed in the predicted line-up, so I ditched him. Took myself some Faf du Plessis, cause who doesn't want a guy on the team with a name like that. Michael doesn't understand my fascination, I guess its like South Africa's version of Smith or something. Anyway, Faf du Plessis and I will be worming our way to top just you watch. Ofcourse, I still haven't taken a class on pivoting so who knows. Can you set Faf as the pivot point? Would that help him crack some sixes? Just a suggestion.

Apparently we should be able to get the games through the x-box. So, anyone in town feel free to come on over for a match or two. Maybe an early morning finals party...hmmm.....Actually I think Jolie will be here that day, no better way to get indoctrinated than a 5am cricket match! Will have to do some planning.

So, we kick off the tournament in a few short hours with a match between India and South Africa. They haven't played each other since 2011 or so I've read. And I guess the folks playing now don't much resemble the folks who played then. So....should be a good game. Happy cricketing folks and get your hankies ready cause you'll be eating my dust soon!

And so it begins................... again.

Welcome back folks, glad you all could join me for some cricket fun. The tournament gets underway on Thursday June 6th with a match between India and South Africa. This tournament is a bit shorter than our world cup tourneys. There are two groups of 4 teams. Each team will play one ODI against each other team in their group - so 3 matches total. 2 points for a win, 1 for tie or no result and 0 for a loss. Top two teams in the group advance to a semifinal match. Winners of those move on to the final on June 23rd. For those rookies out there an ODI is a One Day International game. It means that each match will be comprised of 50 overs per side. Slightly longer than the Twenty20 matches but not as long as a test match. If you are still confused check out the cricket 101 link on the right.

I hear rumors of a new face in our midst. Please welcome Jolie. Jolie was a college roommate of mine and still a very dear friend. The tournament gets under way on her birthday – but that should not be any reason to go easy on her – she’s one tough cookie.

So………get your teams together and lets have some fun!