I'm Too Big!

Over the weekend I traveled to Nipawin Saskatchewan to watch my brother (Grant Jensen) play hockey with the Nipawin Hawks. As some of you know he was traded there from the Weyburn Red Wings before Christmas. On my trip all I planned on doing was watching some hockey, being lazy and maybe partake in a few beverages.

All in all it was a great trip. My brothers second family is really nice. His billet family for those who are wondering. I pretty much hung out with them more than my brother. Since he had hockey and practice and team stuff I was pretty much left at the house.

When I got to Nipawin I was able to meet everyone before being rushed out the door to head to the rink to watch the Nipawin Hawks Alumni team take on player of the Saskatchewan Roughriders. It was great entertainment and I had a few good laughs. It was like the Harlem Globtrotters on ice ha ha.

When I got to the rink I wanted to pick up some Nipawin Hawks gear. Hats, shirts, mugs, mini sticks.... that stuff. I found a really nice hat and some mini sticks and a mug. The shirt, jacket, bunny hug part was a little harder to acquire. I am a pretty large guy. But the largest clothes they had were just Large or one shirt that was Extra Large. I skipped out on the shirt for the first day needless to say.

That night I watched the Hawks play the Stars. Nipawin lost 5-2 in what was a pretty decent game to watch.

The next day I walked up to the merch booth again and the guy recognized me and asked if I found anything that fit. After explaining I did not he asked if I tried on a Hawks jersey. I said no and explained I didn't want to pay that much. After talking for a bit he told me he would give me a good deal if one fit. What do you know, one did fit. I asked how much and he said $45. I was shocked and paid him before he could change his mind. During the game I bought a few 50/50 tickets. It must have been my lucky night because what do you know. I won. I won $272.50.

Too bad it wasn't the Hawks lucky night. They lost 7-1.

That was my trip up North. I am looking forward to the next time I get to go.

(Clinton Pirio Left with Grant Jensen Right)

In The Butt!

This isn't a story I'm really proud of..... at all. But it happened. Some people know the story other have never heard 2 words of it.

Back on December 21st I was linesing a Big 6 (Senior) hockey game in Lampman. It started out like any other game. Got hit with the puck a few times and it was a low scoring game that didn't have a lot of entertainment in it. That is until the 5 minute mark in the first period. An Oxbow player was attempting to hit a Lampman player into the board right where I was standing. Needless to say the hit didn't go as planned. The Lampman player got out of the way and Oxbow player hit the boards and clipped me. When the Oxbow player fell he took me down with him. If you don't know this, hockey officials wear little to no equipment. We have skates, shin pads, a cup, elbow pads and a helmet. Some wear more some wear less. When I was falling I landed my left side on the players turned-up skate. The impact happened right bellow my left kidney.

The pain was almost unbearable but I still managed to get up and continue the game. So, in pain I continue the game. The second period was going well but the officials were still getting hit with the puck. In the later part of the 3rd period a Lampman player was attempting to ice the puck and decided to hit me in the side. Once again it was the same side I previously injured. This time only 2 inches away from the earlier impact. Once again the pain almost brought me to tears and I was thinking about leaving the game. But since I haven't walked out on a game before I wasn't going to do it this game.

After the game the other officials looked at my side and told me to get to the hospital right away because of potential kidney damage. Lampman is an hour away from Weyburn and it was getting pretty late by this time, 11:30 PM. When I arrived in Weyburn I dropped off my equipment and went to the hospital. When I arrived the nurse looked at it and told me it was just soft tissue damage and my kidneys are fine.

I was happy to hear this but the pain was still there and very bad by this time. I asked if there was anything she could do and she said yes. She told me she would be giving me a shot to help to pain. I hate needles by the way. I have fainted at the sight of them many times. But the pain was so bad I would try anything. So I rolled up my sleeve and said ok lets do this. The nurse stood there and said "No, you'll need to undo your pants". My fear for needles increased. She took a needle and told me there would be a tight pinching feeling. She then followed up this very true statement by jamming the needle in the meat of my buttocks.

After this embarrassing moment was over and I never wanted to come back again something odd happened. I received a letter in the mail from my local health centre.It was a bill. A bill for $5.00 for the needle they stabbed in my rear end. I still have the bill and still contemplating paying it...... even though I know I should. I just can't justify paying someone for stabbing me in that fashion.

And that folks it when you say "next time I'll take the pain over getting jabbed in the butt by the health centre".

I Go Everywhere!

So as some of you know when I am not sitting at radio station I am very active in minor, senior, and junior hockey. I travel a lot of places around southern Saskatchewan just to ref or lines a hockey game. I do games in Assiniboia, Weyburn, Radville, Lampman, Oxbow, Midale, Redvers, and many other places. Some people think I am crazy for giving up my evenings and weekends for hockey. Others think I am doing a great thing for the community because of the lack of officials.

When I travel to all of these places I get to chance meet some really interesting people. Some have stories that are so far fetches you just laugh. Some stories are sad but most are fun and intriguing. Along with new people I always get the chance to hang out with many familiar faces. Some people I have known since I was 4 years old and lived next door to. Others I have met in the past 4 years. The best part of doing games on the road with these guys are the road trips. Nothing beats a bunch of guys in the vehicle who have a lot in common and come from all walks of life and have many different careers outside hockey.

Like I said before many people think I'm crazy for doing it. Some people have even been mad at more for not being able to socialize with them because I ref so much. I do miss hanging out with the friends and family in hockey season. I don't pick hockey over friends because I don't want to be with them. I pick hockey for many reasons. I enjoy going out and skating. Feeling the cold wind on my face is amazing. Sure I get frozen pucks shot at me, yelled at by coaches, players and fans, but I enjoy the 2 hours I'm there. I call it my exercise. Also the money helps ha ha. No I don't ref for the money. But I also wouldn't ref if there wasn't any money.

So to all my family and friends who have been or are upset with me because of hockey I am sorry. Being on the ice is what I love. I love it as much as hanging out with friends. But hockey is only a major part of my life for a few months out of the year. You will all be a part of my life 12 months out of the year.

I also had this discussion with a few of my at the time girlfriends (ex's). They say I never spend time with them or I take hockey over them. I will say the same thing now as I said then. If you can handle me in the winter you can handle me in the summer. If you are unable to deal with my life in the winter then it just won't work out.

For all of those wondering how much hockey I do it's a lot. I get 2 nights off a week while I ref at least 3 games a weekend. On my time off I do enjoy to be lazy and sit on my couch and veg. It's hard to do that when you get home from work at 5, leave the house at 6 and don't get home until midnight some nights.

This post was a little more personal! But a really close friend of mine told me I should make it about something I am passionate about. So I will try that for a while.

New Zodiac Sign

So the big news that has been blowing up Facebook, Twitter, TV, Radio and even grocery shopping isles; has nothing to do with the Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali leaving the country, or the Toronto Maple Leafs loss to the Phoenix Coyotes. NO these are not as important as what seems to be the biggest issue in all of world.


ZODIAC SIGNS.


That's right, some people will now have to change their Zodiac Sign. Or will they? I have read many articles on this topic and some are even calling this a sham. Some websites are telling me this will only effect children born after 2009. Some say this will only effect the Eastern Hemisphere. 


So what do I believe? Well With this change I will not be changing my Zodiac Sign. No, not because i'm stubborn and think this is all a bunch of bull plop. I won't be changing because I am one of the few people who is still their original Zodiac animal. 


Here is the list of the dates and the signs.


Pisces (March 13 - April 19)
Aries (April 20 - May 12)
Taurus (May 13 - June 20)
Gemini (June 21 - July 19)
Cancer (July 20 - August 11)
Leo (August 12 - September 17)
Virgo (Sepetember 18 - October 31)
Libra (November 1 - November 21)
Scorpius (November 22 - November30)
Ophiuchus (December 1 - December 18)
Sagittarius (December 19 - January 18)
Capricorn (January 19 - February 17)
Aquarius (February 18 - March 12)




If you are one of those people who is now an Ophiuchus, you will not be able to find your horoscope any place too easy. But I have a feeling it might read something like this. 
          Ophiuchus - You cause anger and outrage. This seems like a good day to keep to yourself. Any new knowledge about yourself should be kept to yourself for your own protection.


As for myself this is my daily horoscope. 


"Are you focused and ready for your day? Remember your communication skills. You will need these skills as you will have the opportunity to inform and convince others. Motives of others might be in question at this time. Good listening skills will come in just as handy as your excellent communication skills. If you are stuck in a power play with a customer, shake hands and move on . . . they may just need time to think over a contract or a sales offer. The sheer abundance of your energy can get in your way so slowly come back to square one when you need to focus. Writing things down will force you to slow down and think before acting. In the meantime, make sure to take your allocated breaks. During the noon break exercise by walking."

Tick Tok

The great debate has started once again. But this time in January?! Time change in Saskatchewan. Here is the link to the story. I have been asking my listeners today what they think and I have been getting a lot of "no" answers. It seems the large majority of people in Southern Saskatchewan (at least here) want to stay the same.


Even with all the "no's" I have heard 2 people so far say "YES". The first lady wanted to change so it would be easier to call her family. She also added that she is originally from Ontario. Then when I asked here if we should move to Alberta time or Manitoba time here response was simple. "Alberta I guess. My sister lives there." It may not be the best reason but it is a reason none the less. My second yes came from a guy named Chris. He thinks we should be changing. This is what he told me "I think we should adopt daylight saving time. Why not utilize the extra daylight? The sun come up at 4:30 am and it would be nice to get an extra hour of daylight. We could get an extra inning of baseball in, or actually play all 18 holes of golf before it gets dark. So we should change to daylight savings time." I think he has a good point.


Since this is one of my more serious blog post I will add a picture of an upside down dog.

Do they know it's NOT Christmas?

So on my drive to work today I noticed at lest 3 houses that still had their Christmas lights on. Personally I say all lights should be shut off (at the very latest) by the first week in January. I know a lot of people have different feelings towards this. But they are Christmas Lights, not winter lights.

According to ehow.com there are actually some "rules" or guidelines you can follow if you are unsure of when to remove decorations. (Copied and pasted from their site!!)

1

Take your Christmas lights and decorations down when your neighbors have done so. If you're the only person with your Christmas decorations still out on your whole block, it may be time to put them away until the next holiday season.

2

When you take your Christmas tree down, take down your other Christmas decorations. There's no point to leave up just some of your Christmas decorations. Once your Christmas tree is down, remove all of your Christmas lights and decorations.

3

Take down your Christmas lights and decorations once stores have removed all Christmas merchandise from the shelves. Stores will leave Christmas merchandise for weeks after December 25. When stores near you have finally removed all Christmas merchandise, it's probably time to down your decorations.

4

Take down your Christmas lights and decorations after January 6. January 6 is known as the Feast of the Epiphany and is also the last "day of Christmas." This is always a good time to remove all of your decorations until the next Christmas.

5

Take down your Christmas lights and decorations if your lights go out after Christmas. If your lights go out before Christmas, you'll probably want to fix the problem. However, if they go out sometime in January, you should probably just take them down and either try to fix them next season or just buy new lights.

6

Remove your Christmas lights and decorations when your local churches have removed all Christmas decorations. Once local churches have removed all Christmas decorations, it's a good sign to you that you may want to do the same.

Read more: How to Tell When to Take Down Your Christmas Lights and Decorations | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_2172469_tell-down-christmas-lights-decorations.html#ixzz1AeBrUXqm

I'm Serious!!!!

I have been sitting here looking a blank screen for the past hour or longer thinking about what to write. I browsed YouTube, TheChive, Facebook, the usual sites. I seriously can't think of anything witty to write. Then I can to the conclusion it is a new year.

This year I plan on posting something interesting everyday I am able to. (Which I hope will be at lest 4 times a week). There will be a lot of random things that might not tickle your fancy or there may be things that you are able to relate to. Either way there will be a lot of random post from me.

I am always looking for random things to research and write about. If you have any ideas give me a shout and I will see what I can do. As for this random post I will wrap it up with a video that makes me laugh. By the way this video has over 154 million views.