Here are some highlights of Russell and here are his career stats.
1) WINNING (Part 1): The Celtics were ho-hum right before Russell joined the team, pretty bad right after he retired, and even worse when he missed games during his career, but when he was there they were the most dominant title-winning franchise in sports history, which proves how ludicrous the “He was simply the best player on a loaded team” comment is. DETAILS: a) Boston won 2 total playoff series in the 10 seasons before Russell arrived, and both were short best-of-3 series (‘53, ‘55), b) Boston went 34-48 and missed the playoffs in ‘70 right after winning the title in Russell’s final season, and c) when he missed games during his career, the Celtics were 10-18 (.357), and 18 of those 28 missed games were against teams with losing records, so there was no excuse for a “loaded” squad to be so bad. When Russell missed 3 or more games in a row --meaning his teammates really had to adjust & couldn’t just “get up” for one game without their leader-- the Celtics were a pitiful 1-12. They were horrible without him. There is NO evidence the Celtics were any good when Russell wasn’t on the floor, rather a ton of evidence to the contrary.
2) WINNING (Part 2): It's been commonly reported that Russell was 21-0 in winner-take-all games, but that’s incorrect …. he was 22-0. If Russell's team played even with an opponent throughout a series or got to the same place in a tournament, Russell's team was ALWAYS going to pull it out in the end.

• At USF, his '55 team was 5-0 in the tourney on the way to the title.
  
• At USF, his '56 team was 4-0 in the tourney on the way to the title.
  
• In the '56 Olympics, the US squad was 2-0 when it came to the winner-take-all Final 4 for gold after the group stage.
  
• In the NBA, the Celtics were famously 10-0 in Games 7's throughout his career.
  
• In the '66 playoffs, the Celtics won Game 5 in the best-of-5 series with Cincinnati (link).
  

3) WINNING (Part 3): The Celtics didn’t win the title only 2 times during Russell’s 13-year career, and both were (very likely) due to difficulties experienced by Russell.

• In 1958, the Hawks topped Boston 4-2 in the Finals (winning by 2, 3, 2, & 1 points), during which Russell missed 2 games and played at far less than 100% with a horribly sprained ankle when he was available in the series. It’s safe to say Boston would have won that title with a healthy Russell.
  
• In 1967, the aging Celtics, fresh off of 8 straight championships, lost to the loaded and younger Sixers in the ECF. This was the first year Russell was Boston’s player-coach, which is significant since he faced horrendously stressful & over-the-top racism as the first black coach in major US pro sports history. He played so much and so intensely (43.3 min/gm in the playoffs) that he often forgot to sub players which hurt his team. The next season, the Celtics were older & considered “done”, but he added a bench coach to handle subs, and they beat the favored defending champion Sixers in the playoffs, and then won the title. Then the “seriously, they’re done now” 1968-69 Celtics clawed their way into the Finals & beat the loaded West-Wilt-Baylor Lakers 4-3 in Russell’s final season. Two giant asterisks have to go beside the only two championships Boston didn’t win during Russell’s career.
  

4) WINNING (Part 4): Russell went to college at the University of San Francisco which had just suffered through 3 straight losing seasons before he joined the varsity team. He lead an unranked USF team to 2 consecutive NCAA titles during his junior and senior seasons, going 57-1 along the way, and he could have won a title all 3 seasons he played at USF if not for losing teammate K.C. Jones one game into their sophomore season; they smashed the #17 team 51-33 in game 1 with Jones who was hospitalized that night with a burst appendix, but Russell still lead them to a 14-7 record before going on to those 2 titles. Even at the college level, he could lead players who weren’t supposed to win to the ultimate heights; it wasn’t just in Boston. Also, he was the leading scorer, rebounder, and defender on the 1956 gold medal winning US Olympic team, which had an average margin of victory of +53, the highest ever (’92 Dream Team was +44).
5) CLUTCH: I already mentioned how dominant Russell’s teams were when it was all on the line, but I’ll add that his list of clutch games, series, and moments is ridiculously long, plus his ppg, rpg, and apg averages all rose in the playoffs. I’ll simply point out that he had the greatest Game 7 performance of all-time in the 1962 Finals, scoring 30 points & grabbing 40 rebounds to win the title in a super-tight Game 7. If you didn’t know, the NBA Finals MVP award is officially called the Bill Russell NBA Finals MVP Award.
6) INTELLIGENCE: Part of what made Russell so unbelievable in big games and moments was that his IQ and level of manipulating opponents is unparalleled historically. On defense, he’d often intentionally “just miss” blocking a particular star player’s shots earlier in a contest, but late in the game when the opponent was lulled into thinking they could get a certain shot off over Russell that night, he’d extend the extra inch and come up with clutch blocks & defensive plays they weren't expecting. I’ve never heard of another player doing stuff like this. The stories about his IQ are legendary & numerous; here are some clips about his hoops IQ. At least watch the 3rd one on that list ("Some more mindgames") to see a short interview with him talking about manipulation of a star opponent in a way I’ve never heard another player articulate; he truly was thinking on a whole different level to create advantages for his team.
7) VERSATILITY: Bill Russell was so versatile on the floor because he trained and played all 5 positions on offense. The only other players in history who could maybe do this are Maurice Stokes and Giannis Antetokounmpo, but Russell’s results were quite different, plus immediate & sustained. His value to the Celtics’ offense is WAY underrated, especially on the fast break where he arguably had a bigger influence than Steve Nash did for the Suns’ fast break due to how well he could start, run, and finish it.
8) PASSING & OFFENSIVE INFLUENCE: Speaking of his versatility on the fast break, Bill Russell was a great passer, both in the half-court & full-court, and put up insane assist numbers for a center, especially in the playoffs (averaged >5 apg in the playoffs during 7 different seasons, far more times than any other center).
John Havlicek, in his 1977 autobiography, said the following about Russell's effect on Boston's offense when specifically discussing their first post-Russell season ('70):

"You couldn't begin to count the ways we missed [him]. People think about him in terms of defense and rebounding, but he had been the key to our offense. He made the best pass more than anyone I have ever played with. That mattered to people like Nelson, Howell, Siegfried, Sanders, and myself. None of us were one on one players ... Russell made us better offensive players. His ability as a passer, pick-setter, and general surmiser of offense has always been over-looked.”

I’ll add that Bill Russell finished 4th in MVP voting with an 18% vote share in 1969, his final season (‘69 MVP voting). I believe this is the best MVP finish by any player in their final season.
9) MORE ABOUT HIS OFFENSE: Fans often knock Russell for not being a high scorer. He played on a team that spread around the scoring, so very few Celtics ever had big scoring numbers, and he often had the best FG% on the team. Russell was top-5 in FG% in the league 4 times, while more recent dominant-scoring centers Hakeem Olajuwon, David Robinson, and Patrick Ewing all did it once. Russell understood what individual sacrifices to make and how to improve his teammates so they collectively would be winners, which is why he won the 1962 MVP (voting) over Wilt Chamberlain (his epic 50 ppg & 26 rpg season) and Oscar Robertson (his epic triple-double season). By the way, Russell holds the record for the most consecutive MVP awards (3), most consecutive top-2 MVP finishes (6), and has the 2nd most MVP’s of all-time (5). It was clear that Russell’s approach was far more valuable to his team’s success than that of other superstars with monster stats.
10) DEFENSIVE IMPACT: There is no hyperbole in saying Russell was unquestionably the most impactful defensive player ever. The Celtics consistently & regularly had the #1 defense in the NBA throughout his career, yet they were FAR worse before he joined the team, and they immediately dropped in the ‘70 season right after he retired. Here are Boston’s annual rankings in Defensive Rating, starting in the ‘54 season: 8, 8, 6, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 1, 8 (the highlighted parts represent Russell’s career). He had an overwhelmingly positive influence on the entire team’s defense to a degree we’ve never seen from any other player.
11) ATHLETICISM: Watching film of Russell, it’s clear he was extremely fast and active, elite even by today’s standards. He also possessed Olympic-level leaping ability (7th ranked high jumper in the world in 1956). For the record, he was measured as 6-ft-9-and-⅝ without shoes, taller than both Dwight Howard and Alonzo Mourning. This incredible athleticism is what allowed his defense to be a cross between Tim Duncan & Kevin Garnett, covering everything everywhere with phenomenal explosiveness, plus impeccable timing & decision-making.
12) LEADERSHIP: Bill Russell had the best combination of elite on-court impact on team synergy plus elite locker-room unity & positivity. Very few guys are even in the discussion of having this type of elite combo: Tim Duncan, Jerry West, Larry Bird …. not many more, especially when you also consider a player’s impact on his team’s defensive synergy.

Here are some highlights of Russell and here are his career stats.
1) WINNING (Part 1): The Celtics were ho-hum right before Russell joined the team, pretty bad right after he retired, and even worse when he missed games during his career, but when he was there they were the most dominant title-winning franchise in sports history, which proves how ludicrous the “He was simply the best player on a loaded team” comment is. DETAILS: a) Boston won 2 total playoff series in the 10 seasons before Russell arrived (he was a rookie in '57), and both were short best-of-3 series (‘53, ‘55), b) Boston went 34-48 and missed the playoffs in ‘70 right after winning the title in Russell’s final season, and c) when he missed games during his career, the Celtics were 10-18 (.357), and 18 of those 28 missed games were against teams with losing records, so there was no excuse for a “loaded” squad to be so bad. When Russell missed 3 or more games in a row --meaning his teammates really had to adjust & couldn’t just “get up” for one game without their leader-- the Celtics were a pitiful 1-12. They were horrible without him. There is NO evidence the Celtics were any good when Russell wasn’t on the floor, rather a ton of evidence to the contrary.
2) WINNING (Part 2): It's been commonly reported that Russell was 21-0 in winner-take-all games, but that’s incorrect …. he was 22-0. If Russell's team played even with an opponent throughout a series or got to the same place in a tournament, Russell's team was ALWAYS going to pull it out in the end.

• At USF, his '55 team was 5-0 in the tourney on the way to the title.
  
• At USF, his '56 team was 4-0 in the tourney on the way to the title.
  
• In the '56 Olympics, the US squad was 2-0 when it came to the winner-take-all Final 4 for gold after the group stage.
  
• In the NBA, the Celtics were famously 10-0 in Games 7's throughout his career.
  
• In the '66 playoffs, the Celtics won Game 5 in the best-of-5 series with Cincinnati (link).
  

3) WINNING (Part 3): The Celtics didn’t win the title only 2 times during Russell’s 13-year career, and both were (very likely) due to difficulties experienced by Russell.

• In 1958, the Hawks topped Boston 4-2 in the Finals (winning by 2, 3, 2, & 1 points), during which Russell missed 2 games and played at far less than 100% with a horribly sprained ankle when he was available in the series. It’s safe to say Boston would have won that title with a healthy Russell.
  
• In 1967, the aging Celtics, fresh off of 8 straight championships, lost to the loaded and younger Sixers in the ECF. This was the first year Russell was Boston’s player-coach, which is significant since he faced horrendously stressful & over-the-top racism as the first black coach in major US pro sports history. He played so much and so intensely (43.3 min/gm in the playoffs) that he often forgot to sub players which hurt his team. The next season, the Celtics were older & considered “done”, but he added a bench coach to handle subs, and they beat the favored defending champion Sixers in the playoffs, and then won the title. Then the “seriously, they’re done now” 1968-69 Celtics clawed their way into the Finals & beat the loaded West-Wilt-Baylor Lakers 4-3 in Russell’s final season. Oh yeah, Russell was the only player-coach in NBA history to win a championship, and he won two.
  

Two giant asterisks have to go beside the only two championships Boston didn’t win during Russell’s career.
4) WINNING (Part 4): Russell went to college at the University of San Francisco which had just suffered through 3 straight losing seasons before he joined the varsity team. He lead an unranked USF team to 2 consecutive NCAA titles during his junior and senior seasons, going 57-1 along the way, and he could have won a title all 3 seasons he played at USF if not for losing teammate K.C. Jones one game into their sophomore season; they smashed the #17 team 51-33 in game 1 with Jones playing who was then hospitalized that night with a burst appendix, but 1st-year Russell still lead them to a 14-7 record without the HOF PG before going on to those 2 titles. Even at the college level, he could lead players who weren’t supposed to win to the ultimate heights; it wasn’t just in Boston. Also, he was the leading scorer, rebounder, and defender on the 1956 gold medal winning US Olympic team, which had an average margin of victory of +53, the highest ever (’92 Dream Team was +44).
5) CLUTCH: I already mentioned how dominant Russell’s teams were when it was all on the line, but I’ll add that his list of clutch games, series, and moments is ridiculously long, plus his ppg, rpg, and apg averages all rose in the playoffs. I’ll simply point out that he had the greatest Game 7 performance of all-time in the 1962 Finals, scoring 30 points & grabbing 40 rebounds to win the title in a super-tight Game 7. If you didn’t know, the NBA Finals MVP award is officially called the Bill Russell NBA Finals MVP Award.
6) INTELLIGENCE: Part of what made Russell so unbelievable in big games and moments was that his IQ and level of manipulating opponents is unparalleled historically. On defense, he’d often intentionally “just miss” blocking a particular star player’s shots earlier in a contest, but late in the game when the opponent was lulled into thinking they could get a certain shot off over Russell that night, he’d extend the extra inch and come up with clutch blocks & defensive plays they weren't expecting. I’ve never heard of another player doing stuff like this. The stories about his IQ are legendary & numerous; here are some clips about his hoops IQ. At least watch the 3rd one on that list ("Some more mindgames") to see a short interview with him talking about manipulation of a star opponent in a way I’ve never heard another player articulate; he truly was thinking on a whole different level to create advantages for his team.
7) VERSATILITY: Bill Russell was so versatile on the floor because he trained and played all 5 positions on offense. The only other players in history who could maybe do this are Maurice Stokes and Giannis Antetokounmpo, but Russell’s results were quite different, plus immediate & sustained. His value to the Celtics’ offense is WAY underrated, especially on the fast break where he arguably had a bigger influence than Steve Nash did for the Suns’ fast break due to how well he could start, run, and finish it.
8) PASSING & OFFENSIVE INFLUENCE: Speaking of his versatility on the fast break, Bill Russell was a great passer, both in the half-court & full-court, and put up insane assist numbers for a center, especially in the playoffs (averaged >5 apg in the playoffs during 7 different seasons, far more times than any other center).
John Havlicek, in his 1977 autobiography, said the following about Russell's effect on Boston's offense when specifically discussing their first post-Russell season ('70):

"You couldn't begin to count the ways we missed [him]. People think about him in terms of defense and rebounding, but he had been the key to our offense. He made the best pass more than anyone I have ever played with. That mattered to people like Nelson, Howell, Siegfried, Sanders, and myself. None of us were one on one players ... Russell made us better offensive players. His ability as a passer, pick-setter, and general surmiser of offense has always been over-looked.”

I’ll add that Bill Russell finished 4th in MVP voting with an 18% vote share in 1969, his final season (‘69 MVP voting). I believe this is the best MVP finish by any player in their final season.
9) MORE ABOUT HIS OFFENSE: Fans often knock Russell for not being a high scorer. He played on a team that spread around the scoring, so very few Celtics ever had big scoring numbers, and he often had the best FG% on the team. Russell was top-5 in FG% in the league 4 times, while more recent dominant-scoring centers Hakeem Olajuwon, David Robinson, and Patrick Ewing all did it once. Russell understood what individual sacrifices to make and how to improve his teammates so they collectively would be winners, which is why he won the 1962 MVP (voting) over Wilt Chamberlain (his epic 50 ppg & 26 rpg season) and Oscar Robertson (his epic triple-double season). By the way, Russell holds the record for the most consecutive MVP awards (3), most consecutive top-2 MVP finishes (6), and has the 2nd most MVP’s of all-time (5). It was clear that Russell’s approach was far more valuable to his team’s success than that of other superstars with monster stats.
10) DEFENSIVE IMPACT: There is no hyperbole in saying Russell was unquestionably the most impactful defensive player ever. The Celtics consistently & regularly had the #1 defense in the NBA throughout his career, yet they were FAR worse before he joined the team, and they immediately dropped in the ‘70 season right after he retired. Here are Boston’s annual rankings in Defensive Rating, starting in the ‘54 season: 8, 8, 6, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 1, 8 (the highlighted parts represent Russell’s career). He had an overwhelmingly positive influence on the entire team’s defense to a degree we’ve never seen from any other player.
11) ATHLETICISM: Watching film of Russell, it’s clear he was extremely fast and active, elite even by today’s standards. He also possessed Olympic-level leaping ability (7th ranked high jumper in the world in 1956). For the record, he was measured as 6-ft-9-and-⅝ without shoes, taller than both Dwight Howard and Alonzo Mourning. This incredible athleticism is what allowed his defense to be a cross between Tim Duncan & Kevin Garnett, covering everything everywhere with phenomenal explosiveness, plus impeccable timing & decision-making.
12) LEADERSHIP: Bill Russell had the best combination of elite on-court impact on team synergy plus elite locker-room unity & positivity. Very few guys are even in the discussion of having this type of elite combo: Tim Duncan, Jerry West, Larry Bird …. not many more, especially when you also consider a player’s impact on his team’s defensive synergy.

Before the season, I posted "My Take on the 2021 NFL QB Class". With the exception of D'Eriq King and Purdy, my class is fairly similar to what it was earlier in the season. Obviously, Zach Wilson was the big mover. COVID did impact this QB class as it did for everything in sports. Here is my updated list:
QB1 :
Trevor Lawrence – Top QB in the draft. Once in a generation prospect even if his QB skills aren’t exactly there with Andrew Luck, he’s better at the spread than Luck as a pro-style QB.
Status – Very Polished, could use more polish as a pro-style QB
Style of QB – Balanced QB
System – Spread (Elite) The greatest spread QB prospect of all time.
Floor: Very good NFL QB who’s a top 12-15 QB especially if used in the spread, could be higher.
Ceiling: The best player in the NFL
Player Comparison – John Elway
Impact Comparison – Not sure we have seen someone as good as Trevor as a spread QB who is going to a spread system like Urban Meyer. Obviously, Kyler and Kliff Kingsbury was a great marriage but T. Law is several tiers better at the spread than Murray. Some will say Herbert but Trevor is a much better spread QB than Herbert. Trevor makes others around him better. Herbert needs to have a strong supporting cast. Trevor has some Deshaun Watson in him.
Tier – All-Pro Prospect
I am about going to breakdown any of these prospects to a T. I felt a lot of guys have done that already and have pretty good lists of their strengths and weaknesses. While Trevor has a similar floor to Fields, his potential is astronomical. He and Lance have the highest ceiling in this draft. If this were another sport like Basketball, I would compare Trevor to Luka Doncic.
Favorite High-End Play from Trevor: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WiGP_wd8Z5c
QB2:
Trey Lance– Most talented and gifted QB in this draft. Elite athleticism, elite strength for the position, very good arm, elite work ethic, elite Football IQ, and Football instincts, with pre-snap abilities as an RS Freshman. It helps he’s also a pro-style QB which matters in the NFL.
Status – Needs polish, Boom or Bust prospect
Style of QB – Running QB
System – West Coast QB
Floor: Below Average QB who could be solid (top 20-25 QB) if the personnel around him is very good.
Ceiling: All-Pro QB who is an elite football player while being a very good QB
Player Comparison – Steve McNair
Impact Comparison – Josh Allen
Tier – Pro Bowl Prospect
He has a lot of McNair qualities and throws and moves a lot like McNair. Faster than McNair plays like a 4.5 guy. What is special about Lance is he is an elite all-around athlete. He is not just a great athlete out of the pocket, he is a great athlete in the pocket. He also showcases a very good mental processing speed. They make things simple for Lance with mirrors but considering he was an RS Freshman in all the tape I watched, I really don’t have as much of a problem with it.
I liked his accuracy overall. I really did not have much of an issue with it as I rewatched the tape. Experience is probably the biggest thing I want to see him add more of. He's a freak athlete, extremely talented QB, what if he is what Pat Mahomes is to Brett Favre for him/McNair. His impact comparison is Allen because he's one of the most naturally gifted and talented physically strong players I've seen as I have been doing this.
QB3a:
Justin Fields– Elite Mobile QB prospect and the best mobile QB I have ever seen. Excellent athleticism, elite strength for the position, very good arm, excellent accuracy, elite work ethic, scheme versatile, and knows when to run or pass effortlessly. PFF rated him an elite QB every season he has played.
Status – The most polished QB in the draft.
Style of QB – Mobile QB
System – Pro-Style QB, scheme versatile, can also play pro-style at a high level.
Floor: Good QB, top 20 QB day 1.
Ceiling: Multiple time Pro Bowler who can win you a lot of games with a good team surrounding him.
Player Comparison – Donovan McNabb
Impact Comparison – Matt Ryan
Tier – Very good Prospect
Reminds me of Matt Ryan a lot. Meaning that they are extremely polished as prospects and ready on day 1 but they have a good number of flaws that are not as workable as their fans want you to believe and I wonder if their ceiling really is that high. I felt Ryan’s was not and was proven correct. I feel the same about Fields, but I could be proven wrong.
Ryan as a prospect was an elite game manager prospect which is like Fields who is an elite mobile QB prospect. His playing style reminds me a lot of McNabb. I hate the Watson comparison; Watson is a gamer who is a freakish playmaker. Fields usually take what the defense gives him. He is a lot more like McNabb.
Mobile QB always have a much higher risk of injuries due to their style of play but their style of play leads to winning with less and winning big with more but they don’t have the same longevity as balanced and non-mobile QBs.
QB3b:
Zach Wilson– Similar to Joe Burrow, he had a freakishly elite year before he entered the NFL while previous years were decent but nothing to write about for an NFL QB Prospect. What I love about Wilson is many of the things I loved about Burrow. Elite accuracy. Can throw off-platform. Throws off many different arm angles. Mobile. Good football IQ. The issue where I differ between him and Burrow who I felt was a legit All-Pro prospect with a very high floor is decision making. I do like his arm strength more than Burrow. I really was not a fan of Wilson’s decision making and I feel, he needs a lot of development at it if it can be fixed at all. PFF rated him a 95.4 which is insanely high considering his personnel.
Status – Very polished
Style of QB – Balanced QB
System – Spread QB
Floor: Decent QB, should be top 20-25 QB as a rookie and better depending on the personnel.
Ceiling: Multiple time Pro Bowler who can win you a lot of games with a good team surrounding him. Players will really be able to put up excellent stats with him at QB when he reaches his comfort zone.
Player Comparison – Joe Burrow
Impact Comparison – Tony Romo
Tier – Very good Prospect
Reminds me of Tony Romo. Talented. Accurate. Questionable decision making. Thinks he is more athletic than he is. Will likely have a lot of injuries due to his decision making. Overall, he’s a great fit for the modern game with the WR’s, TE’s, and schemes we have in today’s NFL.
QB5:
Mac Jones – Had one of the best seasons in college football history. Tremendous pocket QB ability. Elite ball placement on short to intermediate throws. Gives his WRs a shot to make the play. Throws all his players in stride when it is not a deep ball. He likes to sling the rock and knows how to mix run and pass. His athletic ability is not awful, he reminds me of Nick Mullens athletically. Best Football IQ in this draft for a QB, he is a very good decision-maker. Tremendous foot speed within the pocket. The best in the class and easily the best I have seen in a while for a QB prospect.
His arm strength is a major issue and considering the timing of today’s pocket, he needs to be more athletic too. Also, his weapons are better than the players he will likely play with at the next level. He is clearly the best game managing QB I have seen in a while but most of these guys if not all of them have been bad or bust recently. Jared Goff is the last elite game managing prospect, and he is hurting his team more than helping them these days. Mac is a very good game manager prospect.
Status – Very polished
Style of QB – Game Manager
System – West Coast QB
Floor: Below average QB, should be back up tier QB as a rookie.
Ceiling: Could be a decent QB long term. Depending on the system, coaching, and personnel, could be the biggest breakout in this class.
Player Comparison – Jake Fromm
Impact Comparison – Phillip Rivers
Tier – Good Prospect
Clearly a 1st round QB to me. Best pocket passer in the draft. Will be a game manager for a while and hopes that he can develop into a good QB. He reminds me of a lot of Fromm but he is superior in many key areas. The hope is that he eventually develops into a Phillip Rivers reliable Pro Bowl type of QB considering his arm strength questions. His most impressive trait for me is his foot speed within the pocket. He will remind some people of Tom Brady. Watching early Brady, I can see the comparisons but man, Brady needed A LOT to go right for him to be an elite QB. Coaching, system, scheme, personnel, how you are used. You can go to the wrong team and he is a rich man’s Nate Peterman being a career backup. In today’s NFL, getting everything to go right usually does not happen so do not expect it to happen. If there is a Pat Mahomes or Lamar Jackson in this class (2nd or 3rd round grade QB who became a superstar), Mac Jones is it for me.
QB6:
Kyle Trask – A Pocket Passer. We do not get many of these a lot these days. Kyle is excellent at the line. The pre-snap grade is very good. He knows how to get the ball to his playmakers. He has an excellent feel for the game. He has very good size. He is a very good Pocket Passer QB prospect. Guys like him do well in the NFL because running an offense and being productive is VERY hard to find and his arm is strong enough.
Status – Very polished
Style of QB – Pocket Passer
System – Spread QB
Floor: Average QB, should be a top tier backup QB as a rookie. Top 30-35 QB
Ceiling: Should be a decent QB long term with the potential to be a long-term starter
Player Comparison – Dwayne Haskins
Impact Comparison – Matt Hasselbeck
Tier – Good Prospect
While he is not a 1st rounder to me. He is a lot less risky than Jones or Lance. Why? He going to run the offense the way the coaches draw it up to be run like. He has the size. He has the arm. It would not surprise me if he appealed to teams who want to be run first and defensive-minded. His potential is not high, but it is not bad either. Do not be surprised if Trask has more success than Wilson long term. It is hard to see him have more success than Fields or T-Law. Do not be shocked if he had more short-term success than Lance.
QB7:
Jamie Newman – An mobile QB prospect who is a deep ball threat. Newman reminds me of Daunte Culpepper as a prospect. I wish we would have seen him this year but the Monken system was not really a fit for Newman’s style of play.
Status – Needs polish
Style of QB – Mobile QB
System – Pro-Style QB
Floor: Below average QB, backup at best.
Ceiling: A top 20 QB with a chance a major success with the right personnel.
Player Comparison – Daunte Culpepper
Impact Comparison – Daunte Culpepper
Tier – Good Prospect
While he is not a 1st rounder to me. He has one of the higher ceilings in the draft. If there is a QB you want to bet on the long term and you have the right system, Newman makes a lot of sense. Should appeal to teams like Pitt who want big plays and the running game to win games.
The rest are not worth me grading. Mond is a 4th to 5th rounder for me. He is a poor man’s Kaepernick. Ellinger is even worse. Ian Book, Dustin Crum, and Davis Mills are interesting, and I will be tracking them at the combine and further.

1. Trevor - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WiGP_wd8Z5c
2. Trey - https://youtu.be/4oP3O1C3PUc
3. Justin and Zach - https://youtu.be/afu8ul3RoQ0 and https://youtu.be/T36Gk6czPio
4. –
5. Mac - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8W9a_Z9hkvY
6. Kyle - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tcDrgjZ_h4
7. Newman - https://youtu.be/zZhi_bLhGa0
8. Mond - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rkdKxCELcQU
9. Crum - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7nByCGzbjJQ
10. Book - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sP5w-R3mN8

Original Thread:
https://www.reddit.com/NFL_Draft/comments/izkhe5/my_take_on_the_2021_nfl_qb_class/

I seem to remember someone doing this a few years back and really enjoying it, so I thought I'd give it a shot with the condensed schedule leaving so many games on the schedule each night. I'm ranking each game in three categories: competitiveness, importance, and style points/storylines (which includes star power, the style of basketball, and any intriguing stories to watch). I'll include a survey at the end where you can predict the winners of each game!
Let me know if this is something you'd like to see again!
10) Milwaukee Bucks (1-1) vs. New York Knicks (0-2) at 7:30 pm EST
Where to Watch: League Pass
Spread: Milwaukee -11
Last Meeting: January 14th, 2020. RJ Barrett drained five threes and Bobby Portis scored 20 off the bench, but the Bucks dominated the Knicks at Fiserv Forum 128-102. The two teams combined for a whopping 79 points in the third quarter.
The Bucks have won their last five meetings with the Knicks, with the last New York win coming in an overtime thriller at the Garden in December of 2018.
Competitiveness: A championship contender that dismantled the Warriors by 40 facing the Knicks on the tail end of a back-to-back. Not much else to say here. 1.5/10
Importance: This game is essentially a scheduled win for the Bucks, and a chance for the Knicks to test their young guys and let them grow up a little. Unfortunate that Obi Toppin will be on the sidelines for this one. 2/10
Style Points: The high-flying Bucks offense has been off to another hot start, topping the 120 point mark in both of their games. The Knicks' young guns have shown promise and made so flashy plays, but they also turn the ball over a lot. Neither team tends to foul a lot or shoot a ton of free throws, which will help game flow.
Some might keep an eye on Giannis' free throw shooting, but the real story to watch is RJ Barrett's three point accuracy. He lit it up from distance against Indiana, but struggled mightily against Philly. Can he take a step forward in that department this season?
Bonus points for the MSG crew calling this game. 6/10
Overall Rating: 3/10
9) Brooklyn Nets (2-0) vs. Charlotte Hornets (0-2) at 7:00 pm EST
Where to Watch: NBA TV
Spread: Brooklyn -7.5
Last Meeting: February 22nd, 2020. The Nets used a third quarter explosion to turn a comfortable win into a rout as they won 115-86. Luwawu-Cabarrot led the team in scoring with 21, while Garrett Temple of all people snagged eleven boards.
Competitiveness: The Nets have steamrolled over their competition so far, blowing out the Warriors and Celtics by 20+ points. The Hornets have struggled with two losses to non-contenders, and come into this game on the wrong end of a back-to-back. 1.5/10
Importance: A contending Nets team cannot afford to drop games like this one, especially in the early part of the season when there are so many eyeballs on KD and Kyrie. The Hornets could really use a positive performance to get their season headed in the right direction. 4/10
Style Points: The Nets have stars all over the court and have looked like a juggernaut early this season, making them one of the most intriguing teams to watch, and a fun one too, as they've played fast and made lots of threes. Charlotte ranked last in pace of play last season but seems to be trying to pick things up. You'll get the Charlotte crew for this game on NBA TV, and they call a fun game.
Terry Rozier and Gordon Hayward are two guys to pay attention to- Rozier dropped 42 on a Cavs team that sucks at defending point guards. Is he headed for a breakout season? Hayward was shut down by the Thunder last night and will look to get things going. Plus LaMelo Ball! 8/10
Overall: 4.4/10
8) Golden State Warriors (0-2) vs. Chicago Bulls (0-2) at 8:00 pm EST
Where to Watch: League Pass
Spread: Golden State -2.5
Last Meeting: December 6th, 2019. Glenn Robinson III made the go-ahead layup with a minute left and a very different looking Warriors team beat the Bulls 100-98 in Chicago. Denzel Valentine was ejected in the third quarter for yelling at the Warriors' bench.
Competitiveness: The Warriors have been blown out by two great teams so far. The Bulls have been blown out by two mediocre teams and just played a deflating contest against the Pacers last night. 4.5/10
Importance: Both teams could really use their first win of the season. The Warriors cannot afford to lose to teams like the Bulls if they're going to contend for the playoffs. This probably still figures as a matchup of two non-contenders, though. 5.5/10
Style Points: The Bulls have lots of exciting young players, but they seem turnover-prone and have struggled to score. Neither team has been able to stop literally anyone on defense so far (lol thanks Golden State for taking Wiggins), so there's a chance this turns into one of those ridiculous shootouts where both teams top 70 in the first half.
Patrick Williams looked good in his first game against the Hawks, but the Pacers were able to shut him down. Watching him adjust to the breakneck pace of games and the new level of competition will be interesting. The Warriors will need to find other sources of offense besides Curry and Wiseman, and this game is a perfect chance for them to do so. Definitely opt for the Chicago broadcast if you tune in. 4.5/10
Overall: 4.8/10
** 7)Philadelphia 76ers (2-0) vs. Cleveland Cavaliers (2-0) at 7:30 pm EST**
Where to Watch: League Pass
Spread: Philadelphia -6
Last Meeting: February 26th, 2020. The Sixers had to play most of the game without their two best players as Joel Embiid left in the first quarter with a sprained shoulder. The Cavs, then the worst team in the East, led the entire way and won 108-94.
Competitiveness: The Cavs look like a much better team this year as Sexton has another year under his belt and they have Drummond underneath. There's a long way to go to challenge the Sixers, though, and they played an exhausting two-overtime trench war with the Pistons last night while Philly coasted to an easy win over the Knicks. 5/10
Importance: Definitely a litmus test game for the Cavs- can they hang with Philly and prove that they can be that dangerous team no one wants to face in the east play-in tournament? The 76ers might be looking past this game as they have a big clash with Tampa Bay coming up on Tuesday. 4/10
Style Points: This game gives us two matchups between stars. Joel Embiid has been on a mission to start this season, following up his 29/14 against Washington with a 27/10 against the Knicks. His matchup with Andre Drummond will be one to watch. At point guard, Simmons-Sexton could be an even more exciting face-off. The Cavs have played a more fun style of basketball this season, using Sexton to ignite a high pressure defense that stole a win in Detroit. That double-overtime win might prove costly tonight, though, when they run out of gas against a deeper and more talented Sixers team. Bonus points for the Cavs having that really fun color guy, I guess. 6.75/10
Overall: 5.25/10
6) Minnesota Timberwolves (2-0) vs. Los Angeles Lakers (1-1) at 10:00 pm EST
Where to watch: NBA TV
Spread: Los Angeles -11
Last Meeting: December 8th, 2019. AD dropped half a hundred and LeBron put up 32 and thirteen assists as the Lakers won a 142-125 slugfest. The Wolves hung around and trailed by only seven after three quarters before LA pulled away.
Competitiveness: The Wolves are off to a surprising 2-0 start, including an impressive win in Utah last night. Most would write this off as a scheduled loss, though, with a back-to-back against the defending champs and KAT getting dinged up at the end of the Jazz game. Still, it will be interesting to see how this new-look Wolves team trades punches with AD and Bron in the first half. 6/10
Importance: The Lakers seem to finally be settling into the new season after a disappointing showing on opening night, and will be looking for another statement win. Some Wolves fans have speculated that they will rest KAT after his injury scare tonight. I'd expect him to play, but no one in Minnesota thinks they will win this game. 3/10
Style Points: Anthony Edwards going up against two of the best in the game? DLo back in LA? Upstarts against the defending champs? Top notch storylines for this game, where the first half will be a good litmus test for Minnesota, before fatigue probably sets in for guys like Edwards and Culver and the game gets pretty ugly.
Minnesota's defense looks much improved this season, and their explosive bench can keep this game fun. And you know what you're getting with the Lakers' stars. Unfortunately the NBA TV rights to this game mean most fans will get the LA crew and miss out on the top notch Fox Sports North announcers. 8/10
Overall: 5.6/10
5) San Antonio Spurs (2-0) vs. New Orleans Pelicans (1-1) at 7:00 pm EST
Where to Watch: League Pass
Spread: New Orleans -5
Last Meeting: August 9th, 2020. The Spurs and Pels faced off for a high-scoring showdown in the bubble that saw the two teams combined for 77 fourth quarter points. JJ Redick went off and hit eight threes and Zion chipped in 25, but the rest of their teammates shit the bed and the Spurs won 122-113.
Competitiveness: The Spurs are off to a fast start, most recently squeaking out an impressive win over the Raptors last night. The Pelicans have produced mixed results, but beat Tampa by a more impressive margin and have an extra day of rest. Expect a close one early, with New Orleans having a sizeable edge late. 6.5/10
Importance: Both teams figure to be in the hunt for the final playoff spots and will see each other plenty this season as they are both in the same division. I doubt the Spurs would sweat this B2B loss too much, though. 7/10
Style Points: Zion put up a highlight-worthy 32 and 14 on Christmas Day against the Heat, and the Pels look like a new team on defense, making them one of the most interesting squads to watch this year. Ingram, Redick, Hart, and Lonzo can combine for an offensive explosion at any time. The Spurs can play kind of a bland style sometimes, especially with 35 year old LaMarcus Aldridge playing on a back-to-back. Dejounte Murray, who just posted his first career triple double and looks much improved this season, will be an interesting to player to watch today. This one feels like it could be a snooze-fest or a barn-burner, with nothing in between. 6.75/10
Overall: 6.7/10
4) Boston Celtics (1-1) vs. Indiana Pacers (2-0) at 8:00 pm EST
Where to Watch: League Pass
Spread: Boston -2.5
Last Meeting: Tuesday March 10th, 2020. The Celtics were the last team the Pacers faced before Miss Rona stepped in and put a stop to the basketball for awhile. Marcus Smart made the go-ahead layup to rescue Boston in the final minute after they blew a 19 point lead, and they held on to win 114-111. Sabonis posted a 28-9-8 night for Indiana.
Competitiveness: The Celtics have the rest advantage, as they got the night off to lick their wounds after a Christmas Night Stomping at the hands of KD and Kyrie, while the Pacers had to take the floor last night and beat up on the Bulls. The Pacers figure to be in the middle of the playoff pack, while the Celtics would like to challenge the Bucks and Nets at the top, and this game will be a huge early measuring stick for both teams. The Pacers will have home floor, which makes this anyone's game. 8/10
Importance: It's never too early to have a big game for playoff seeding! The Celtics will be anxious to prove that their opening game win against Milwaukee was no fluke, while the Pacers need to show us that they can beat someone better than the Knicks and Bulls. 7.5/10
Style Points: This is where this game kind of falls short. Tatum, Kemba, Sabonis, Brown, and others all provide lots of star power, but aren't the big names featured elsewhere on this list, and both teams tend to play slower, more defensive-oriented basketball. The Celtics' thumping at the hands of the Nets is more of a story for Brooklyn than for Boston, and Indiana has maybe been the playoff team that jumped off the page less than anyone else so far. Add in a game that's only broadcast locally and that overlaps with every other game but two and this game takes a bump in a packed Sunday night slate.
Still, this should be a very good game between two playoff teams, and a fun one to tune in for down the stretch if the Pacers keep it close. 5.5/10
Overall: 7/10
T-2) Orlando Magic (2-0) vs. Washington Wizards (0-2) at 7:00 pm EST
Where to Watch: League Pass
Spread: Washington -1.5
Last Meeting: Last night! The Magic and Wizards squared off for their first of back-to-back games, which was an exciting back-and-forth contest. The Magic had the edge on the glass for much of the game, which only intensified late as they pulled away and the Wizards started pressing and taking bad shots. Beal went off for 39 points while Westbrook posted a triple-double, proving that they can in fact play together just fine.
Competitiveness: Last night's game was a see-sawing battle for most of the evening. Orlando looks like the better team and one of the more improved squads in the East, if their win against Miami is any indication. Still, beating a team on their home floor twice in a row is extraordinarily difficult, and the Wizards get to regroup and see if they can fix their rebounding woes against the same team. Expect another entertaining toss-up!9/10
Importance: Both teams are in roughly the same boat: improved squads who will likely find themselves sitting on the edge of the Eastern Conference playoff field. They won't see each other again in the first half of the season, and to pick up a quick two games on their competition would be an enormous boost for Orlando. 7.5/10
Style Points: The Wizards have been playing a fun new style with Russ and Bradley Beal sharing the load on offense, and early speculation about how the pair will get along on the court has been promising. The Magic get the job done with comparatively little star power, but Vucevic has always been one of the more underrated players in the league and deserves some recognition. Terrence Ross and Davis Bertans will be other players to keep an eye on- Ross has been extremely hot offensively in his first two games, while Bertans is a streaky shooter who can be the key to Washington winning or losing.
Perhaps the most interesting storyline, though, is the back-to-back baseball-style two game series. College leagues are trying this out across the country and we've seen in leagues like the MAAC, Mountain West, and others how hard it is for superior teams to beat the same team on consecutive nights. We've also gotten a glimpse of this in the NBA preseason. This time, the teams are very evenly matched. How will the Wizards adjust tonight? What effect will the wonky scheduling have? 8/10
Overall: 8.2/10
T-2) Dallas Mavericks (0-2) vs. Los Angeles Clippers (2-0) at 3:30 pm EST
Where to Watch: NBA TV
Spread: Los Angeles -5
Last Meeting: August 30th, 2020. The Clippers knocked the Mavs out of the first round of the playoffs, winning Game 6 after the game was moved back due to the player strike. Doncic dropped 38 and Dorian Finney-Smith chipped in 16, but only one other Dallas played cracked double digits. L.A. moved on to the next round where they cruised through the first four games against the Nuggets and...oh wait hahahahahahahahahaha.
Competitiveness: The Mavs need to get their shit together. They posted a close opening night loss against the Suns and then got their doors kicked in by the Lakers... neither of those are alarming results, but they're not the mark of a playoff team. The Clippers are angry at the way last season ended, ready to take it out on the league, and they've looked like a juggernaut with Nic Batum in their lineup, putting up convincing wins over the other top two teams in the West. Doncic can keep any game close, but he needs his teammates to carry some of the load, and the Clippers are still the clear favourites here. 6.5/10
Importance: Dallas needs to show that they can beat playoff teams, as their schedule for the next few weeks doesn't get any easier after tonight. They'll face the Heat, Rockets, Magic, Nuggets, and Pelicans. They'll have to figure out who their second and third best scoring options are in the process. Both teams will be looking for a statement win on a national stage- they're the only teams playing in the afternoon tomorrow and get a national broadcast on NBA TV. 8/10
Style Points: Kawhi... Luka... PG13.... could you really get any more star power? The Mavs looking for revenge on the team that knocked them out of the playoffs by beating them in a Sunday Showcase game (albeit on NBA TV) in their house provides a great story to go along with the stars. The Clippers have been red hot from three point range to start the season, and a Mavs defense that allowed 138 points to the Lakers will probably provide plenty of opportunities for more fireworks. If not for the potential of a lopsided final score, this would be the #1 game of the day. Tune into this instead of football on a relatively light NFL day. 10/10
Overall: 8.2/10
1) Phoenix Suns (1-1) vs. Sacramento Kings (2-0) at 9:00 pm EST
Where to Watch: League Pass
Spread: Phoenix -3.5
Last Meeting: Last night! Sacramento jumped out to a 15-2 lead, but the Suns almost immediately cut that in half, and tied the game early in the third quarter. The teams traded baskets for much of the second half, with DeAaron Fox and Buddy Hield carrying the offensive load for the Kings, who held on to win thanks to some timely offensive rebounding from Richaun Holmes.
Competitiveness: Aside from the early flurry from the Kings, these teams were as evenly matched as they come, trading punches for the entire second half. The Suns probably won't shoot 11-44 from three point range again tonight, and the Kings will probably take better care of the basketball. Regardless, we're in for a fascinating rematch of two Western Conference playoff hopefuls. 10/10
Importance: Both the Suns and the Kings are exciting young teams with opportunities to improve on last season, and both figure to end up in that 7-10 seed range in the Western Conference. These two teams won't see each other again in the first half of the season, and the Suns cannot afford to drop back-to-back contests against one of their competitors for the last couple of playoff spots. The Kings, meanwhile, were largely overlooked by fans and writers heading into the season and look poised to outperform expectations. Going 3-0 to start the season would do a lot to quiet the doubters. Regardless, this two game series will likely end up mattering down the road. 8/10
Style Points: The Suns were the talk of the NBA Bubble in August and have continued turning heads with their opening night win against the Mavs. Chris Paul's presence at point guard allows them to run a better offense than "just let Devin Booker chuck as many threes as he wants and hope Ayton rebounds enough to let us eke out a close win". They're still a fun, up-tempo team that shoots lots of threes, and finally play some good defense if that's your thing too. Sacramento announced themselves as a team not to be slept on with their opening night win against the Nuggets (thanks Will Barton), and the trend continued last night. They've attempted the fewest threes of any team through two games this year, and their game plan of Fox driving and everyone crashing the glass gives us an intriguing contrast of styles.
Like I mentioned for the Wizards game, the baseball-style series also presents us with interesting questions to answer in this game (how will the Suns adjust on the glass? can the Kings beat the same team twice in a row?), and a nerve-wracking two games between two teams who are very close in talent level and playoff hopes. Perhaps most importantly, Phoenix's broadcast is the only one on League Pass so far that has figured out their on-court audio and actually sounds normal. Keep that one in mind! 8/10
Overall: 8.7/10
I also made a Google Form where you can pick all the winners of today's games... I'll link that below. Thought it would be cool to see how Reddit does predicting the winners. I'll close the form at 3:30 when the Mavs and Clips tip off. I'll try to pare this down length-wise if and when I do this again. Thanks for reading!
Pick the winners here!

"There’s no better morale booster than a son of strife riddled with borderline psychopathy" – Rosalie Osborne

General Info:

• Current age: 20
  
• Birthday: 01/14/2016
  
• Full name: Lukas Geralt Albrecht Kleiner
  
• Birthplace: Newport, RI
  
• Demigod-Related Conundrums: Dyslexia/ADHD
  
• Alignment: Chaotic Good
  
• Affiliation: Camp Half-Blood, Cabin #25, Bunker Nine, Cult of Phlegethon, Institute of Culinary Education New York campus.
  

Favorite Things:

• Foods: Lukas loves pretty much all food, but has a particular fondness for garlic bread and blueberry pastries, among other baked goods.
  
• Drinks: Coffee milk. Lukas just can’t get enough of it (which is probably a consequence of where he came from). Besides that, he also loves frozen lemonade, as well as any and all flavors of Kool-Aid. Of note is the fact that he despises the taste of wine, but not necessarily of alcohol in general.
  
• Media:
  

Video Games: From Call of Duty to Ace Combat to Super Smash Bros, Lukas is a whiz at fast-paced action video games. Besides that, the likes of Pokemon and The Elder Scrolls also hold a special place in his heart.
Books: Despite being dyslexic, Lukas manages to work through it and is reasonably well-read, thanks to his educational upbringing and his father’s tutelage. School-recommended readings such as The Adventures of Tom Sawyer are a given, as well as the Harry Potter, Nancy Drew, A Series of Unfortunate Events series. Growing up, he moved on to the likes of Dale Brown, Clive Cussler, Tom Clancy, and James Dashner. However, all throughout, it would be Lord of the Flies that would remain his favorite book, which makes sense when he looks back on it, now that he knew who his mother is.
Movies and Television: Growing up with a proud military grandfather, war movies are a must. Saving Private Ryan and Full Metal Jacket, among others. There’s also TV series such as Generation War and the holy Trinity of HBO World War II miniseries: Band of Brothers, The Pacific, and Masters of the Air. He is also quite into animation, both western and japanese, particularly of the Justice League animated series and Code Geass. More still, is his familiarity with all the most ubiquitous movies and series, particularly Star Wars and Lord of the Rings.
Look, what I’m saying is that he has watched a lot of stuff, alright?
Music: Lukas primarily listens to pop punk bands such as the Wonder Years, Neck Deep, and Hot Mulligan, as well as the likes of Dance Gavin Dance and The Amity Affliction, though he is also prone to just listening to whatever strikes his fancy up to and including straight-up meme songs.

Appearance:

Faceclaim	Height	Weight	Hair color	Eye color	Body type
FC	5’10”	180 lbs	steel-gray	purple	lean, toned, and athletic

Clothing Style: Best described as a variation of skater-style clothing (despite not being an avid skater himself). Casual combinations of T-shirts, jeans, and sneakers. Outerwear (jackets and hoodies) is definitely a must.
Others: Over the years, Lukas’s many encounters have left him with similarly numerous scars. His entire back is very heavily scarred from a harpy attack, while his left forearm was similarly mangled in a hellhound attack. There is a long scar on his right bicep and there are two smaller scars on his left cheek.

Personality:

Lukas is, in a word, spontaneous. One moment, he can’t be taken seriously (and is likewise, taking nothing seriously) then the next moment, he’s cold, clinical, and calculating.
Going deeper into his personality, it almost begins to make sense: he’s a confident, carefree, happy-go-lucky guy who’s surprisingly competent when the situation calls for it. However, not even that is enough to encompass Lukas’s character.
Ultimately, the truth is simpler to say, but harder to realize: Lukas is nothing more than a loose collection of many various character traits – some of which contradict each other – affixed onto your typical demigod. He possesses some deterministic viewpoints, but would gladly roil and rage against fate just out of principle. He is a humanist at heart, but would gladly dehumanize his enemies. He is overwhelmingly confident in his abilities, but not in his character and identity. All these clashing personality traits – along with a whole miscellany of other minutiae – bounce around in his head, creating the chaotic storm that is one Lukas Geralt Albrecht Kleiner.

Family:

Member	Name	Age	Relationship
Mother	Eris	“Yo mama so old”	Goddess of chaos, strife, and discord. Despite the less-than-favorable opinion many gods, demigods, scholars, and even just casual enthusiasts of mythology hold towards her, Lukas is actually quite proud to call her his mother, and the two have gotten along famously on the few occasions that they got to meet. Needless to say, his relationship with his mother is vastly positive.
Father	Richard Kleiner, son of Athena	43	A straight-laced, no-nonsense man who seemed to have a pole perpetually up his butt. Despite not being particularly affectionate, he was by no means cold or overly strict, and Lukas holds him in high esteem for being his guardian and mentor.
Grandfather	Brigadier-General William Kleiner (ret.)	76	A loud, larger-than-life presence, William takes a large portion of the blame for why Lukas turned out the way he did, encouraging his grandson’s antics and misadventures every step of the way. It was he who taught Lukas how to cook and bake, as well as to keep a knife concealed on his person at all times and for that, he is the son of Eris’s foremost role model.
Stepmother	Alyssa Masters-Kleiner, daughter of Hecate	44	Lukas shares a reasonably warm relationship with his stepmother, in large part thanks to their mutual doting over Helena. As far as Lukas is concerned, she is just as much a mother to him as Eris is - okay, maybe a little less than Eris is...
Stepsister	Helena Masters	17	Lukas met Helena within his first year at camp and, after having grown up an only child as well as being the youngest of his demigod siblings at the time, he took to his role of being the big brother with considerable enthusiasm, much to the annoyance of his stepsister. He positively dotes on her, and even sees her as closer to him than any of his demigod siblings.

Pets:

Name	Species	Description
Odahviing (“Odie”)	Drakon-like serpent	A prize from when the gods came to camp to hold olympic games. Odie is 13 feet long (at the moment, at least, and he can grow up to 15 feet), has scales harder than celestial bronze, breathes acid, and is very, very grumpy, especially when hungry. Very few people can claim that he even remotely likes them
Fimbulvetr (“Fi”)	Winter snake	Actually Helena’s pet. Lukas got Fi from Boreas himself as a peace offering when Camp sent out a quest to negotiate with the god and stop him from taking over and freezing the northern hemisphere. Unlike Odie, Fi is so much smaller milder and affectioniate – except when he sees that Helena doesn’t like someone, in which case he turns as threatening as an adorable 1-foot-long snake with tiny, tiny fangs and no venom can possibly be.
Bort	Giant loaf of bread with googly eyes	Don’t ask.

Friends:

Name	Description
Serenity Bloom, daughter of Enyo	Lukas’s girlfriend for... quite a long while by now. With how violently chaotic the two of them can be, very few people are aware of how sickeningly sweet they act in private. Serenity is essentially the only person who Lukas is comfortable sharing his vulnerable side with, particularly some of his deepest and darkest doubts and fears, which is just one indicator of how much she means to him.
Brandon Davenport, son of Hephaestus	Lukas’s best friend, and one of the Boom Bros. Lukas was there to welcome Brandon to Camp, and had trained him when he was just a new demigod. Fast-forward to the present and Lukas is immensely proud of Brandon’s achievements and current status in camp, and even acts in deference to him in matters where he can trust the son of Hephaestus’s expertise.
Matthew Thompson, son of Athena	The third Boom Bro who has now since moved on from life at Camp. Matthew was the foremost tactician for the Bros, responsible for taking Lukas’s seemingly insane concepts and giving them form for Brandon to bring into reality. Just like with Brandon, Lukas respects and values Matthew’s unique insight, despite technically holding seniority over the son of Athena.
Deklyn Hayes, daughter of Iris	The bane of Lukas’s cooking ingredients, Deklyn brings a sense of normalcy into Lukas’s camp life when he’s with her and Brandon. Owing to a minor mishap involving illusions and a knife, Lukas is indirectly responsible for getting Brandon and Deklyn together and, considering how well it all turned out in the end, looks upon them and their relationship happily and proudly.
Tristan Macmillan, son of Zeus	Lukas and Helena like to tease Tristan by calling him their pet bird. And as absurd as that sounds – deservedly so, might I add – there is some truth to that: The two stepsiblings have all but adopted the son of Zeus like some sort of long-lost little brother (even though he’s older than Helena). Beyond that wholesome little detail, however, Tristan is also Lukas and Brandon’s de facto subordinate – at least, until they made it official when he joined the Cult of Phlegethon – an arrangement that the son of Zeus is strangely okay with, despite how Lukas and Brandon insist on him to come into his own.
Albireo Albright, son of Techne	Another of Lukas and Brandon’s subordinates in the Cult of Phlegethon. Unlike with Tristan, Lukas is more hands-off with Alby and their relationship is more professional than anything else, though Lukas does insist on looking after the son of Techne’s well-being to some extent.
Rosalie Osborne, daughter of Pandia	A key figure in the ballista project that gave rise to the Boom Bros, Rosalie may very well be an honorary Bro as far as Lukas is concerned. Besides that, Lukas had gone with Rosalie on his second quest, and greatly approves of the determination the once-timid girl had shown in defiance of a god. Rosalie has since left Camp, leaving Lukas with only fond memories of her during an admittedly bad time.
Mackenzie Knoton-Lee, daughter of Aeolus	Helena’s “cousin” (Aeolus wasn’t one of the anemoi but neither Lukas nor Helena cared for the distinction). Lukas is nowhere near as affectionate with her as Helena is, but he’s always ready to lend a hand, an ear, a shoulder, or a knife to the younger daughter of Aeolus. Mack was the third member of Lukas’s second quest and, much like with Rosalie, he admires her confidence and bravery despite her youth.
Alexandra Williams, daughter of Eris	Lukas’s elder sister, and the one who had welcomed him into Camp and into the world of gods and monsters. Even now that she’s left Camp, Lukas looks back on her fondly and often.
Roran Riselli, son of Ares	A veteran son of Ares who had been Lukas’s primary mentor in demigodly matters, primarily combat. It would be an understatement to say that Lukas would not be who he was without Roran. Unfortunately, Roran vanished during the Mycenaean war, making Lukas’s memories of him more bitter than those of his other absent friends
Cressida Raven, daughter of Athena	One of Lukas’s questmates from his very first quest. Cressida, being more experienced than Lukas, unknowingly influenced him into becoming more analytical and evaluative, drawing out a side of him that he, at the time, had not known existed – and that turned out to be partially attributable to his grandmother.
Edwin Galliard, son of Pollux	The third man of Lukas’s first quest. Where Cressida influenced him to become more tactical, Edwin inspired him to be more combative, as opposed to being satisfied with merely using his powers for sabotage. Wherever he is, Lukas misses one of his very first friends at camp.

Items and Equipment:

Type	Name	Description
Enchanted Throwing Knives	Hummel, Hornisse, Wespe, and Biene	A set of throwing knives bestowed upon him by Hephaestus as a reward from his first quest. Only a few inches long, one wonders why they’re his weapon of choice. When one considers the fact that they’re indestructible, magically return to their sheaths, cannot be wielded by anyone except him, and bear his mother’s signature, it starts to make a little more sense.
Light Celestial Bronze Plate Armor	--	A set of armor commissioned from Brandon. Its celestial bronze composition and construction provide excellent protection against glancing blows and near misses. However, it was designed with all sorts of weight-saving measures such as incomplete coverage over certain parts of his body, as well as light and hollow plates. As such, it offers considerably less protection against direct hits compared to a standard set of armor.
Explosive Canisters	XPC-TB, XPC-G, XPC-GTB	Basically grenades with fluid payloads, they come in three flavors: fuel vapors (akin to a fuel-air bomb), liquid greek fire, and greek fire vapors, all contained in a pressurized vessel. Bunker Nine produces these explosives in a limited quantity, and even fewer actually leave the Bunker for actual use. They can be set to explode on a timer, or one end of the canister can be unlocked to violently spew the contents over a short distance.
Kawasaki Ninja ZX-14R ABS	Schwarzer Schmetterling	A motorcycle given to Lukas by his father and grandfather upon returning from his first quest.
Food Truck (credits to u/Shining_Bright for the image)	The Waffelwagen	A food truck that Lukas had stolen liberated from an impound lot, refurbished and repurposed as his own private kitchen at Bunker Nine.

Powers and Abilities

Title	Description
Passive Power: Combat Expertise	Being that Eris is a (if not the) purveyor of conflict, Lukas possess a preternatural talent for combat, best exemplified in his lightning-quick, razor-sharp reflexes. When throwing himself into the melee, he can sift through the chaos of battle with ease, picking out prime windows of opportunity and allowing him to make the maximum impact possible with whatever little he’s got.
Emotional Manipulation	Lukas can manipulate existing feelings of anger and hatred in other people, either turning those aforementioned emotions up to their boiling point, or forcing them to simmer down. This works best when used in conjunction with either scathing or soothing words, gibing Lukas more emotions to work with.
Chaos Initiation	When either focused onto a target (be it inanimate or living) or allowed to spread freely around him, Lukas essentially weaponizes chaos and disorder. This means that every possible outcome, both good and bad, of a given reaction is now in play. While this does not necessarily equate to “bad luck”, the simple fact of the matter is just that, generally speaking, for every desirable outcome, there are just so many ways for things to go horribly wrong.
Insanity Inducement	The power that Lukas is least comfortable with. Lukas can directly inflict a host of psychological symptoms, foremost of which is thought disorder but also including delusions, mania, paranoia and auditory and visual hallucinations, to name a few. However, use of this power comes at a cost: Lukas himself is made to suffer the same symptoms that he inflicts on others, albeit to a lesser extent, and repeated use of this power over the years has left its mark on him and his psyche. As such, he restricts himself from unleashing its more sever effects on others – and on those rare occasions when he does, he makse sure he’s somewhat restrained from doing anything else at the moment, lest he run rampant himself.

Other abilities:

• Combat: besides his divinely-inherited combat proficiency, Lukas’s training has honed and specialized him for fast-paced combat with both his knives and mental powers. However, Lukas’s effectiveness in combat drops off drastically the heavier and slower his equipment makes him.
  
• Tactical: while far from a right and proper battlefield commander, Lukas fills a distinct niche as a small unit tactician. He can confidently and competently take command of a small, select unit with whom he can accomplish singular objectives, though he would ultimately have to the likes of Jay, Matthew, or Brandon for overall operations.
  
• Cooking: definitely the one thing that Lukas is most proud of. Lukas started learning how to cook at the age of six – though he only managed to succeed at it when he turned thirteen. See, the thing is, his chaos powers had always gotten in the way, screwing up a decent enough recipe just because of a few imperfections. However, what that meant was that when he finally got it right, it was because he executed his procedures so flawlessly that there was no way for even his powers to mess it up.
  
• Academics and Intellect: despite his dyslexia, Lukas had done well enough in school, and possesses a keen, analytic mind, being a legacy of Athena. He excels in the natural sciences, does well in history, and performs roughly around average in other fields.
  
• Athletics: Lukas does... alright in sports. He could probably make the track or soccer team if he tried, though he is highly averse to football and basketball. He’s athletic, sure, but he’s just not built for that kind of full-contact, a fact highlighted when he came to a camp populated by literal superhumans, where he now ends up looking average, if not outright scrawny.
  
• Music: Lukas is by no means a great singer but he can at least hold a tune. However, what he is good at is playing drums, and he played the snare for his highschool’s marching band and cheer squad.
  

History:

Even glossing over the less important details, Lukas’s story ultimately starts with his father and grandfather.
Richard Kleiner had, at the age of 13, been claimed as a son of Athena, and was ready to leave Kiel, Germany for Camp Half-Blood in the United States. Then, all of a sudden, his father, William decided to leave his command (of the Kommandospezialkrafte, no less, the German special operations unit) to be able to live at least relatively closer to his son. The surprising and unnatural ease with which he was allowed to retire, as well as to secure his new job as a professor in the US Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island, may or may not be thanks to the favor of Athena...
In any case, Richard would grow into adulthood, becoming a lawyer and starting his own relatively successful private practice firm in Newport. It was around this period when he somehow captured the attention of Eris. One thing led to another and, well... It’s Lukas time.
Growing up, Lukas would often find himself at the epicenter of some altercation or another. However, the young demigod had a knack for weaseling his way out of it, every single time. In fact, he was always so strangely unscathed that no one ever suspected that he had any involvement in whatever incident he would be found in. And technically, he didn’t: he was just there enjoying the show.
It was in his mid-teens when he found himself getting into progressively more violent incidents that his grandfather taught him self-defense. It turns out, a tiny hidden knife worked wonders in getting you out of massive brawls when you stick it into just the right places – as long as you cover your bases with some quick thinking, a few choice words, and some good old-fashioned situational awareness. Needless to say, quite a few punks found themselves with some strange little stab wounds – and no real idea where they came from.
That life couldn’t last forever, though. A few months after his 17th birthday, Lukas would fall prey to a vicious attack by a flock of harpies. Up until that point, his father had managed to keep him safe from any and all monster attacks but at that moment, Richard knew that Lukas had to go to Camp.
And from there, the rest is Camp history: nearly three years at Camp Half-Blood, most of it spent as counselor, with just about as many world-ending crises averted. Lukas was now an experienced, battle-honed veteran of Camp – not quite a hero, but he’s what they’ve got.

Present Day:

The scent of freshly-baked bread wafted from the kitchens, where Lukas can be found baking to pass the time. With his knifework out of the way, Lukas figured this was the next best way to spend a lazy Sunday such as today...
(template by u/ModernPharmakeia, with some modifications by u/MechaAdaptor and further modified by myself)

Just about all of you are weighing in on the Deshaun Watson controversy and the hiring of the new head coach. I expect Watson, or his people, to make an official trade demand soon, and we’ll see where it goes from there. They can trade him or let him sit out, if it comes to that. I hope it doesn’t get James Harden ugly.
If you’re venting and don’t ask for an answer, I’ll just run your comment.
The Watson controversy could drag on for a long time. Meanwhile, general manager Nick Caserio is getting closer to recommending a new coach to Cal McNair, who’ll sign off on it.
There’s a good chance the next head could be a coordinator in the AFC Championship Game — Buffalo defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier or Kansas City offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy. I think Indianapolis defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus is a strong candidate, too.
Q: Does anybody really know what’s going on with Watson? No doubt he is a tremendous talent and I have always gotten the impression a stand-up guy. All the news/ESPN hype aside why hasn’t he stated his position. What the news is reporting is second- or third-hand information. I don’t believe in Twitter, etc., to communicate in a situation like this. The owner, GM and Watson needs to sit down and talk. If there is a problem or issue, lay it out on the table. They all need to man up. If Watson doesn’t want to be a Texan after they gave him the contract and money, Watson needs to move on. McNair owns the club, you may not agree with how everything is done but he is the owneboss. I hope Watson decides he wants to be a Texan, but that is his call. If not he is a distraction and remember there is no I in team. — Bill B.
A: Sitting down and talking makes too much sense, Bill. So far, Watson hasn’t said what he wants. It’s all come from unnamed sources close to Watson.
Q: The rhetoric around Deshaun displeasure seems to be escalating. My personal opinion is that Deshaun shows a lot of audacity demanding that the owner of the company he works for must consult with him on who he hires to be his boss. Any other industry and he would be in the parking lot with a pink slip in his hand. But then I'm an old guy and not in tune with today’s youth. My question is in regard to his contract. If he stays mad and won't play and demands a trade are the Texans obligated to trade him, or can they not pay him for showing up for work and hold him accountable for the length of the contract? — Eric R.
A: Times have changed, Eric. Some agents and players in the NFL want it to be like the NBA, where the agents and players control so much, like who goes where. If Watson sits, he doesn’t get paid. If he sits out the season, he loses credit for the season and has to start over in 2022. He can do like James Harden and make it so ugly they have to trade him, but I can’t imagine Watson doing what Harden did. That’s not the Deshaun I’ve covered since the day he was drafted.
Q: Does McNair’s decision to keep Easterby send the message to Deshaun (and the others in the locker room that consider Jack toxic) that Easterby is more valuable to the Texans organization than Deshaun. Cal called the Easterby criticism “unjustified.” I get it — it’s unjustified, to Cal. But isn’t it totally justified to 85 to 90 of the locker room (if the Sports Illustrated article and interviews are accurate). — David M.
A: I don’t know what the other players think. Charles Omenihu said at a charity event this week he didn’t have a problem with Easterby. Brandin Cooks, who met Easterby at New England, has praised him, too. What McNair is saying is that nobody is going to tell him to hire or fire, like the owner of most businesses I know.
Q: I know you keep reassuring everyone Watson isn’t going anywhere, but the situation seems to be escalating. The Texans are finding more and interesting ways to keep the fans churned up. It is like a tempest in a teapot. One issue you touched on is will the Texans be able to attract the right candidate if they don’t get this Watson situation fixed. McNair seems to be willing to win the battle at the cost of the war. I am so disgusted with that organization for being so out of touch. One question about Easterby. Is it his ties to OB or is he doing things in the organization to create divisiveness? I can’t understand how somebody can be this polarizing to so many people within the organization and so popular with management. None of this makes sense! — Randy S.
A: You’re right about it not making sense, Randy. I think players and fans believe every bad decision OB made was also made by Easterby. I know many don’t like that Easterby has his fingerprints on so many parts of the organization rather than staying in his lane like he did with the Patriots. But McNair has given him that authority, and Easterby answers to only one person.
Q: I don’t really understand what Easterby did that was so offensive to Watson and Andre Johnson. It’s like the teacher going to the superintendent and telling him to fire the principal. But in this case, Easterby doesn’t directly work with Watson. You’ve been at the Chronicle a long time and are highly respected, but you don’t tell the publisher what to do or you wouldn't be there much longer. — Joe T.
A: You’ve got that right, Joe, but times are different today. Players and agents want control. The Texans negotiated a contract in good faith for $156 million, and they don’t want to trade Watson. They’ve done nothing but praise him to the high heavens. But if Watson is determined to get traded, it’s going to deteriorate. McNair apologized to Watson for the miscommunications on the Caserio hire. McNair and Caserio assured everyone they’d keep Watson updated on the coaching search. ESPN reported Sunday that Watson won’t return their calls. If that’s the case, how does he keep up with their coaching search?
Q: Why do people not like Easterby? Evidently McNair is one of the few who support him. Watson deserves to have some input. We wasted too many years with O’Brien. — Carole R.
A: I’m not exactly sure why they don’t like him, Carole, other than his close association with OB, being part of a total collapse in a disastrous season, having Watson and Andre Johnson taking public shots at him. Nobody has detailed what they don’t like.
Q: Watson's feud. Another employee that wants to be boss. And a rich one at that. Really never heard about Easterby until lately. Let's not forget that Cal McNair let O'Brien take over. O'Brien along with McNair, will never be forgiven here in Houston for giving Hopkins away. Hiring a coach means more to your readers/fans than anything a guy like Caserio could. You've been here. You know as much as anyone, maybe more. Can anyone point McNair in the right direction? Let's see. Caserio has been here a week! Please continue to keep us aware. — Lyn B.
A: Caserio has been in personnel for 19 of his 21 years in the NFL, Lyn. There was no personnel director more deserving of getting a chance to become personnel director than Caserio. It’s going to take a lot of work, starting with the new coach and his staff.
Q: Once again I enjoyed your Mailbag this week. Under one of the Chronicle pictures of Deshaun Watson in said he was unhappy with his lack of involvement in searches for GM and coach. How can he be unhappy when his paycheck hits the bank each week. Someone should remind him that he was hired to be the QB, not the GM or coach. And I do mean sit him down for a little owner-to-QB session and remind him who signs those paychecks since he wants to talk to McNair so badly. Sounds like another entitlement issue to me. Quite frankly, I think he gets too much credit and week after week he makes his share of mistakes that contribute to losses. Not sure why the masses are willing to look beyond that. How could the Texans give him any more than they have already? As far as his no-trade clause, the backup quarterback position might just show him a bit of humility or appreciation for where he is and what he has. Time for someone to put these prima donnas in their place. With a good GM and a good coach in place the Texans can do better without him as the starting QB. Let him watch a few Texan wins from the bench for awhile and let’s see how much input he thinks he should have in GM and head coach hires. — Will W.
A: Will, Watson won’t be sitting on the bench. If he’s here, he’s starting. If he’s not, he’s starting somewhere else.
Q: I am a Chronicle subscriber, have read your column for years. I read how the Texans re-did Andre's contract. Then he was an assistant (or similar) in recent years. I understand Andre taking up for Deshaun but I do not understand such sharpness being tweeted out. That seems completely unlike the Andre that the public knows. How was Andre so wronged? — Ed K.
A: He wasn’t wronged, Ed. I think when he suggested that Watson stand his ground and then ripped Easterby, he was telling us what he thinks.
Q: Watson not happy? Let's kiss his butt to make him happy. Last time I checked he was an employee, not a part owner. Many employees are not happy with certain things in their workplace, but they get over it. Show him the door. — Gene C.
Q: OK, it’s crunch time. My opinion, hiring Bieniemy or possibly Frazier is the only thing that keeps Watson. — Scott M.
A: I’m guessing it’s got to be more than that, Scott.
Q: I think I’ve finally reached my tipping point. That is saying a lot after a year like 2020. The Harden situation was surprisingly easier. I’m a die-hard Rockets and basketball fan. I’ve had season tickets or have been buying tickets since 1991. And yet when it comes to Harden, good riddance. Take it somewhere else. Watson is a whole different deal. While the old-school part of me laughs a little at the Gen Y and Gen X demands and attitudes, that train has left the station. When you give a “kid” $100-200 million it’s hard to expect the maturity or experience of someone in their more developed years. That said, how could McNair let this get so bad? Not sure what to believe in this world of blogger news, but where there is smoke, there is fire. I guess as long as Cal believes we will keep buying tickets and watching on TV then he too can do what he wants. I will say if Watson goes, I will be remorsefully selling my PSLs at first opportunity. Even if our new GM pulled of a Herschel Walker-like trade. I believe in loyalty. It’s important in life. But there is nothing Easterby can be providing that outweighs the damage that seems well documented in and out of the organization. It’s just unbelievable to me and frankly bums me out. I handled the Astros. I’m OK with the Rockets. I’ve accepted the mask. I’ve accepted the election. I just can’t get my head around the situation with Watson. — Keith C.
A: I imagine many of us feel like you do, Keith.
Q: By the way, I’m tired of the sophomoric name-calling in many of your e-mails. You should be able to make your point without stooping to name-calling, right? Thank you. — Mike A.
A: The e-mails have been better this week, Mike. Thank everyone for ditching the name-calling. I’ve deleted several e-mails because I don’t want to take the time to edit out the name-calling.
Q: Congratulations on the Cal McNair interview about Easterby. National media giving you credit for it as well. The news about McNair being so entrenched was nauseating at best but at least it provides certainty. Let's hope the players can convince Caserio to wall him off from them so he isn't a distraction. I sincerely hope fans are allowed in the stadium next year so they can provide direct feedback to McNair and his boss. I can think of no other situation in American business when a subordinate has withstood this much hostility and venom. Maybe in a cult, but not a business. How terribly unfortunate. Thanks for being the messenger. — Ray M.
A: Thanks very much, Ray.
Q: I read your articles and watch your videos. Cal McNair apologized for his actions or communications that created mistrust. Few hours after that Deshaun Watson puts another cryptic tweet about 2 and 10. Why does such a smart player and good person put out such tweets that hurt the reputation of the team and ownership? Is he misguided? Wish tweets could be used to spread positivity, awareness on social issues instead of riling public opinion against team ownership. Why is it hard for players to sort out differences directly as grown-up adults instead of washing dirty linen in public? I want Deshaun to stay in Houston but these cryptic tweets and media leaks (anonymous sources) are beginning to damage his reputation as well. — Jeevan R.
A: It’s a new era, Jeevan. That’s just the way a lot of people operate today. One-on-one communication seems to be a thing of the past.
Q: If Easterby was such a help to the organization here are some suggested comments McNair might have made:

1. You know we could not have pulled off the trading of Hopkins without his help, this was a really successful moment for our franchise, he advised O'Brian perfectly on this trade.
   
2. Why would people question the decision to keep Easterby, after all who would listen to Andre or Watson, they were just players and you can never get enough advice for someone who has been in New England
   
3. Our new GM needed to have friends around to support his decision making and Easterby is that guy
   
4. Why should I listen to a quarterback or a retired wideout when choosing a GM, after all I have Easterly to advise me, let Watson vacation in Cabo
   
5. Andre simply has not gotten to know "Jackie" like I have.
   
6. You will see when our team advised by my close buddy Jack Easterby chooses our head coach. No I do not think a quarterback of a losing team should have any say, why would I think of that? After all he is not Elway or Manning or even Blanda. You will see Easterby's worth when we choose the new coach.
   

Sorry David Barron is retiring, you now have to be the old wise owl. — Don H.
A: We’re all sorry Barron is retiring, Don. He leaves a huge hole in our sports coverage and will be missed by so many of us.
Q: On the coaching search by Texans, this year it seems the new slogan for teams looking for the HC is a leader of men. In a football world of Alphas, not all coaches and players are Alphas. Bill O'Brien wasn't necessarily an Alpha. Mike Vrabel was an Alpha, as evidenced by the many complimentary comments from Texan players during Vrabel's time here. It's been no surprise to me that the Titans have excelled under Vrabel's stewardship. He's supported by a good GM who has had some recently productive drafts. I won't be surprised when the Titans go Super Bowling. How does an NFL owner or GM identify that Alpha quality in a HC candidate? — Roy S.
A: It’s pretty easy to identify, Roy, if you know what you're doing, have a lot of experience in the NFL and have a lot of contacts to investigate candidates’ strengths and weaknesses.
Q: It seems like almost everybody has agreed that Watson will be traded. I don’t think Caserio will do that, but what do you think it takes for Watson and the Texans to get their relationship back on track? And do you think this has hurt the search for a new HC? Med venlig hilsen. — Kristian S.
A: I don’t think it’s hurt the search, Kristian. There are only 32 of these jobs in the world, and they’re coveted by so many. Not to mention the new coach will probably get about $5 mil a year — lots more than an assistant coach. Med venlig hilsen to you, too.
Q: If Watson does not trust Easterby, and Caserio has said that they have a long-term relationship, don't you think it's just better for them to part ways? Get someone who wants to be here and can buy in to what Caserio is building, otherwise there will always be some kind of drama. Watson seems to be a great guy, but he wants to be at a place where he feels like he's respected, clearly he feels that he has not been, right or wrong! I don't care how much money you make, nobody wants to go to work looking over their shoulder every day. Sounds like a clean break is needed. I'd hate to see him go, but hey they traded Olajuwon! — Robert T.
A: Why would Watson have to look over his shoulder every day, Robert? Perhaps they will make a clean break. Perhaps it’ll get real ugly like Harden. Or maybe they can work it out if Watson wants to work it out.
Q: With Cal "running” things, Texans deserve what they get. But the fans don’t deserve this crap. Jack Easterby is now a known problem — nationwide — but Cal can’t see it. Respected SI writers go on for pages about his crap. Cal: unjustified and we own it in the building. It's beyond reproach that the building is an abject disaster. Did Cal say why he is retaining JE? Did he say why, when it's jeopardizing the team, Deshaun, the fans, etc; was he asked to address and respond to the litany of the events outlined in the SI article? Was he asked if 20 percent of that is true, all is probably true, Why is JE being retained? Did he answer why he is being retained when, according to O’Brien, he was intimately involved in all the horrendous decisions since he arrived? If he wasn’t asked these things, then why not?? These are the questions that 90 plus percent of Texans fans deserve answers to. And last, was he asked why, in view of all of the press and backlash, locally and nationwide, he hasn’t had a press conference so that he can field questions from a variety, not just insiders? Cal is damn lucky he’s here in Houston, and not another city where the media and fans demand performance and are exacting in their review. See Philly! Firing a pretty damn good coach who Texans ought to consider, but JE won’t approve, so no chance. Not to mention not even interviewing Saleh and asking for Bieniemy 2 weeks late. The ticket holders should boycott! Once Cal’s cash train comes to a grinding halt, maybe things will change. — Steve C.
A: Steve, I guess you missed McNair answering every question the media had about Easterby on the Zoom call with the media. I guess you missed what’s been reported over and over: It’s Caserio’s search and hire. As soon as he got here for his first day on the job, he notified the league he wanted to interview five coaches, including Bieniemy. And I guess you’ve missed all those times it’s been written, broadcast and tweeted: McNair says Easterby is here because the owner thinks he does a good job. No other explanation is necessary.
Q: Shades of the Houston Oilers. Reminds me of the yesterdays when Bud Adams didn't know what he was doing. McNair standing up for a man that was totally bamboozled and steamrolled by Bill O'Brien is a joke. It just tells me that the owner doesn't have a clue about football management. Mr. McNair seems to be a good man, and a man that knows how to make money. But his personnel skills are lacking. By standing up for Easterby, he has endorsed the failures of the past 5 years under O'Brien. The man that dismantled the Texans and left them non-competitive. But Deshaun knows Easterby is zero help. Why didn't Deshaun say something before or after he signed his huge contract? Why did J.J. Watt wait so long to speak out? Easterby was there to listen to them. I predict the Texans will continue to lose for the next 5 years. New coach? Who wants this job? Texans will have to beg to get a coach. Interviews mostly with retreads Jim Caldwell, Marvin Lewis? Are you kidding me? Losers. Watt will be gone to a potential championship team like Green Bay. The Texans will not beat the Jaguars again. You will see what real coaching does. Watson will remain unhappy and frustrated fans will still buy tickets, based on a sales pitch. Easterby will get it done. Seen it all before. Thank God I don't have season tickets with a seat license. — Kelley J.
A: I disagree about failure for the last five years with OB. Winning four division titles in five years and two playoff games isn’t failure. Let’s be fair. The Texans have interviewed eight candidates, including five who’ve never been a head coach. By the way, some other retreads who’d been fired: Bill Belichick, Pete Carroll, Tony Dungy, Marty Schottenheimer, Dan Reeves, Andy Reid, Jon Gruden and Gary Kubiak, just to name a few.
Q: I'm from Boston and subscribe to Texas Sports Nation to read your stuff. We had a sportscaster named Bob Lobel who would show highlights of former players and say, "why can't we get guys like that." I hope Nick and Easterby (who reminds me of Rasputin and I'm glad he's Houston's problem) ship him (Watson) to New England. Stranger things have happened. More likely the Jets for Darnold and great picks. — Vic L.
A: Vic, what do you have to offer for Watson to go to the Patriots to work with Belichick and Josh McDaniels.
Q: I’m sure I’m not telling you anything you don’t know, but in my view, regardless of how his role evolved, a critical part of Easterby’s position was to maintain a good relationship with players. Most of all, the team leaders such as Deshaun Watson. If he has not done this, he has failed at a significant part of his job. Just like with any other job, I don’t really think it matters what the reasons are. He has obviously failed at it. Personally I try to form my opinions from the information I have available to me. There is a lot of information out there regarding Deshaun Watson, from his childhood, to college, to NFL. He does not appear to be someone to me that is unreasonable or difficult to deal with. If he was, then maybe this breakdown with Easterby would be excusable. I think where there is smoke, there is fire. And there is just too much smoke around players having problems with Easterby. So, in my opinion, McNair keeping him around may not be the easy way out, but it also may not be the right decision. I just don’t think it should have been that hard for Easterby to maintain those relationships. Sometimes in life if situations degrade then it just needs to be changed, regardless of the perspectives of those involved. — David G.
A: David, Easterby’s job has nothing to do with his relationship with players. That was at New England. He’s the executive vice president of football operations who works closely with the GM who has final say on all football decisions.
Q: McNair’s every word, action and decision show he is simply not intelligent enough to be an NFL owner. The smartest thing Cal McNair could do is find someone smart enough to operate the Texans football franchise and step out of the way. Maybe that person is Nick Caserio? Maybe that is the new real question? — Deanne N.
A: The idea, Deanne, is for Caserio to hire the coach to be the face of the franchise, and McNair and Easterby slip into the background.
Q: Texans fans badly need to understand the what and why the Texans have completely fallen apart since the playoff game last year against Kansas City. While Bill O’Brien had not won a Super Bowl, he had considerable success and seemed on the brink of winning the big one. The crazy trades, the demise of any defense, all this attention of Jack Easterby, etc. What does he do that is good or bad? It appears that with the passing of Bob McNair, things have deteriorated greatly. The Chronicle needs some in-depth reporting on the matter to the benefit of those paying the tab. No diatribe from the two columnists, please. — Charles M.
A: Charles, if I had a dollar for every time I’ve written about the demise of the Texans dating back to the second quarter of the Kansas City playoff game I could buy out Cal McNair.
Q: I take it you watched the Bills vs Baltimore playoff game. The Bills beat Lamar Jackson badly. That drops the stock of Balt's OC. They couldn't do that against Watson. That game only made Watson more priceless. There's not another QB in the NFL capable of the DW4 heroic plays. But what does Houston gain by declaring him untradeable? If the D can't improve substantially during his contract, he's going to leave Houston when it expires. Doesn't it make more sense to ask for a king’s ransom now? Hypothetically speaking, if Houston were to trade him, where does Chicago rank as a trade partner? All things considered, can Houston rebound defensively and compete for the AFC crown next year? — Juan B.
A: Watson has a no-trade clause. I doubt seriously he’d agree to be traded to the Bears. I don’t think the Texans can compete for the AFC crown next season, Juan. If they trade Watson, they’ll compete for the first pick in the draft.
Q: What would happen if J.J. Watt and Deshaun Watson both say they don’t want to play for the Texans as long as Easterby is in the building? What would happen if the Texans hire a coach that Deshaun Watson isn’t happy with? Easterby knows that he is toxic amongst the best players on the team and Cal knows that. What if Watson says I’m not coming unless Easterby is gone or if J.J. Watt says I’m not coming back to camp unless Easterby is gone? I feel bad for Caserio. — Glen K.
A: I feel bad for Caserio, too, Glen. He’s waited 20 years for a chance to become a GM and he starts with this mess.
Q: Hard to imagine the hold Easterby has on McNair. His background purportedly was as a character coach when he was brought in. Instead he has apparently done only one thing right — ingratiating himself with McNair and Caserio. It’s hard to imagine we may lose an unbelievable talent like Watson because of a character like Easterby. His skill set was supposed to be building team chemistry. He has done a tremendous job of doing the exact opposite. It sounds like players see him for what he is, a poser. Amazing! Casserio could salvage everything by calling Bieniemy and offering him the job immediately. Watching KC’s offense and the higher level creativity is just too good to pass on. Or we can take the safe route, dawdle and get stuck with whomever is left and have that as an excuse. Fortunately, it will probably be a defensive coach and we will need a great D without Deshaun here. — Mike D.
Q: I am a daily reader. I just got through reading the Sports Illustrated article online about Easterby. I'm trying to figure out other than the fact that he prays, what is the specific issue. Maybe everybody's avoiding coming right out and saying it due to a legal liability, but I have been unable to find anything other than vague references to the fact that Easterby's being here has somehow caused the Texans to play terribly. I also have not seen anything in the media that says a billionaire has to run his business according to public opinion which may not even represent the majority. I'm not a defender of either person, it just seems that there's a lot of smoke and not the whole lot of specific fire. No one wants to lose so maybe that's the biggest thing. Why Deshaun Watson at 25 thinks he should be able to dictate to the people who pay him a hundred and fifty million dollars is still a puzzle to me. According to SI online when asked why Caserio wasn't on their list, Korn Ferry said they knew that he was already on the Texans list so they did not add his name. I have not seen this detail in any local media, which seems to make the issue of Caserio not being on Korn Ferry list something that we should think about. — Charles W.
A: Charles, I don’t give a damn about Korn Ferry. Jed Hughes recommended they hire Brian Schottenheimer as their head coach, and he was fired by Seattle. A search firm is paid to compile information and make recommendations. This was the third time the Texans tried to interview Caserio dating back to 2017 when they had to replace Rick Smith. Caserio is one of the most respected personnel men in the NFL. That’s not debatable. Who gives a hoot if he was on the Korn Ferry list?
Q: I have no insight into the operation of a football organization. My Ph.D. is in management and have a very good understanding of organizations outside of football. I don't understand the upset QB and I am guessing many of his supporters. Let me frame my question. The CEO runs the company. His/her direct reports are probably VP's, then there are managers and report to them are various staff. I was once a college president. If a hot shot staff member had demanded that he/she be part of the selection of a VP or their direct boss I would tell them they have no business selecting senior members of my staff and I would guess that other CEO's would tell the staff member the same thing or would no longer have a job. Here is my question. Why does Watson think he should be in or hiring Caserio or the next head coach? — Rudy S.
A: That’s the way it is in just about every business, Rudy, but not the business of sports.
Q: I have not written to a newspaper writer in my 71 years on this earth, but I am highly disappointed in what is going on with the Texans. I have been a season ticket holder since 2003 and have stood by the team each year be it good or bad. Deshaun Watson has lost my respect as a player and a person. He has lowered himself to acting like a spoiled NBA player. He is paid to play football not manage the team. People are down on Jack Easterby but no reasons have been put forth for their dissatisfaction. So what is the story? The McNair family owns the franchise and funds it so that makes them the boss. I would like to see Deshaun play for the Texans but what he is doing right now is destructive and stirring up trouble for the team, fans and ticket holders. This kind of behavior is going to drive away ticket holders. A sad season ticket holder. — Jo Ann C.
A: Many feel as you do, Jo Ann. Unfortunately, times are different. Agents and players have a lot more power than they used to.
Q: It’s sad that a premier QB is now executive management. He should do his job and improve like not throw 1 interception ever again. So now we’ve established no one’s perfect, lets address coaching. Texans hired great GM, let him do his job. — Stephen G.
A: I agree, Stephen, to let Caserio do what he was hired to do.
Q: I'm heartened by last week's Mailbag participants whose concerns I shared about religion and hiring within the Texans organization. And thank you for your enlightening information in that regard. Should Deshaun Watson (or anyone) have been angered that Bieniemy wasn't interviewed before Caserio was hired to search for a coach? That confusion seems like an easy thing to smooth over. If not and Watson leaves, the organization would no longer be qualified to represent the great city of Houston. Especially after the excellent season Watson had. I'm not sure which he needed less, the support of a running game or Bill O'Brien calling plays. Am I wrong in thinking if Jamey Rootes resigns, as he was rumored to want to after all the reported GM hiring chaos, it means all that reported chaos is true? In which case, aside from Watson leaving, Rootes departing would also be a strong indictment of Cal McNair's management. If the Texans hire a defensive coordinator as head coach, does that mean Tim Kelly has a chance to stay on? — Tim K.
A: I should point out, Tim, that you’re not the Tim Kelly. I’ve said all along I thought it was a waste of time to interview a candidate before the GM was hired. Caserio is running the search, and McNair will sign off on his recommendation. I think Kelly has a chance to stay no matter who they hire. Watson wants him, and he helped Watson have his best season.
Q: What value does Jack Easterby bring to the Texans organization? How much value does this man hold if keeping him around could cost the team the one thing an NFL team needs to succeed - a transcendent quarterback. With the SI articles, it's clear there's something rotten in NRG. You keep saying Watson won't be traded, but every day that goes by is a day that the possibility increases. Firing Easterby would be the beginning of mending fences. I don't think McNair and Caserio are willing to do it. Houston seems to have got lucky to be able to interview Eric Bieniemy due to the bad press about the lack of Black coaches being hired this offseason. Although there's a limited number of these jobs, it seems to be less desirable with Easterby in the building. Can you just explain, what does that man do? If it's to provide comfort, it ain't working. It would be better the Texans bring in rescue puppies and kittens in to pet once a week. — Louis E.
A: His job isn’t to provide comfort, Louis. He’s the executive vice president of football operations. He does things on the football side to help the GM, who has final say. Easterby’s involved in everything on the football side and some things on the business side.
Q: Instead of being a reporter, how about being the GM of the Texans for a day. Granted you aren’t able to interview the coaching prospects or D4, but if you had the chance to pull the strings what would you do for coach, QB and other positions you feel need to be addressed. — Mike P.
A: I’d bring in the two or three finalists for in-person interviews. Then, I’d make my recommendation to McNair. After he signs off on it, the coach would be hired. The coach and I would sit down and figure out a way to get Watson to communicate with us. We’d offer to fly to where he is for some one-on-one communication. I might even bring my OC, Tim Kelly, along since Watson was adamant he wanted to keep Kelly as the play-caller.
Q: You have certainly added logs on them. Marketing fire to help Caserio maintain the less than stellar historical glow of the burdened mid market Texans! Honestly, in my 35 years living my life in Texas, which I continue to celebrate; for the life of my I still wonder how we get mid market and Houston disproved as in the same sentence! Stay strong John! — Bob B.
Q: The history of the Texans success is directly related to their players injuries each season. Recognition of this should be the team’s primary goal for its future. Miami coach Don Shula installed a program to prevent player injuries, and that likely played significantly in their success. If ever a team needed such a program, it's the Houston Texans. — Don S.

The following is a relatively detailed account of one of my earlier experiences with communal showers. I am making an honest attempt to accurately recount and depict my memories of these events, but it bears mentioning that memories have a way of changing over time and considerations have to be made in terms of style and composition. This is a follow up to an earlier post title "a conversation on the playground" which is the sequential prequel to this episode. I hope you guys find it interesting. I also would encourage anyone who has not shared their own stories to consider doing so or if you have done so already to do so in greater detail or from a different perspective. Most of how we understand the role of communal showers in our society comes form personal anecdotes and the more detailed these are the better our understanding! Anyway, The episode begins now!
Middle School, the place, the institution the experience, had loomed over my future for over a year. Almost every kindergartner knows that the grades of education go beyond the 5th, though I'm not sure if I knew at that point exactly how many. I knew there were other, bigger schools that I'd eventually go to once I finished at my small elementary school on the edge of a rural midwestern town. The daily bussing routs would take us to each of the buildings that would make up the later stages of our primary education but if you had asked me exactly what years a student would spend in middle and then in high school, I rather doubt I could have told you. I had a vague awareness that eventually I'd leave the bright red brick building with is sprawling playground but that all seemed so far off. Time unfolds slowly when you are that young. A 15 minute recess was an extended period that could see several rather involved games play out to their unrushed conclusions. A single "day" at school seemed like a marathon of boredom and attention taxation. Winter break with its 2 weeks felt like an entire season and the summer, felt like a series of lifetimes unfolding one after another. The first day of school always seemingly like it was still a long ways away.
This period of uncomprehending stasis was not to last. By the 4th grade I could have told you what grades corresponded to each building. The recesses were not long enough for our more complicated and involved play we had developed after years of trying to do new and different things on the same grassy acre or two. Even the previously endless summers had started to shrink. As I got older, my parents became more and more comfortable taking or sending us onto ever longer and more involved trips. Instead of the same repetitive sequence of neighborhood bike rides, road trips, camp grounds and family vacations that might takes several weeks at a time started to slice up June, July and August into manageable pieces that past quicker and quicker every year. Where as before a single day seemed to drag on forever, now an entire month could come and go with scarcely a chance to catch ones breath.
After the mid point of 3rd grade I had also started to internalize the fate of all the older cohorts of students. In kindergarten, 1st or Junior 1st (yes I somehow flunked kindergarten), I really didn't know any 4th or 5th graders. They were so much bigger, faster and more sophisticated that I never got to know them as individuals. They had always just seemed more like super natural phantoms than other children like me. When they graduated and suddenly vanished from the scene I didn't really notice, not at first anyway. However by the last 2 or 3 years I knew these "older kids" better. While it was still very rare to play with them directly, I had been seeing them on the playground for years. I knew their faces, their winter jackets, how they played. They were not so mysterious, and when they did not come back to the first day of school during those hot dog days at the end of August, I started to notice. In fact, even though I did not have class with any of the kids 1 or 2 years older than me, I started to see them as a sort of shield, because as long as they were still around, it meant that I wasn't going anywhere. I could tell myself that the endless cycles of play and coddling shelter could continue. But every year, without fail, another layer of that shield would be torn away. On the last day of school, during the games and parties and other totally non educational activities, you'd see mixed in with the smiles and laughter, the tears of slightly older kids who knew it was all over and that what awaited them next was something much more formidable. Then after 7 seemingly endless year, the smiles and laughter and tears were on the faces of my own classmates because it had come to be our time to vanish from the playground so the younger students could take their turn to inherit and then loose it after us. It was time to take the first huge step in our educational journey, it was time for middle school.
Many aspects of the middle school seemed daunting. It was a far larger more intricate building. Three stories tall, with various wings, corridors, and irregular rooms. Every classroom in the elementary school had been the same, but at the middle school there would be a shop room, a band room, an auditorium, science labs and hallways filled with dusty mysterious trophy cases. It wasn't just that there were more and different classrooms, it was also that we would have to switch between different ones not once a year as before but 6 or 7 times every day. We wouldn't have a single teacher to contend with but many, each and every one seemingly more gruff demanding and intimidating than any elementary school teacher (except 4th grade Mrs. Church, she was a terror from another age). We wouldn't even have the same classmates. We all hoped that we would end up sticking with those we had already grown up with. Kids we had known, been to birthday parties with, and spent countless hours socializing with on the playground. Now we would be thrown in with every similar aged kid in the school district, at least 75% of whom we had never met and did not know at all. Then there were the lockers. They seemed complicated, forbidding and almost to indicate that there was something dangerous about this school. What was it exactly that we needed protection from? Even the types of classes were daunting. There were obviously the continuations of classes we already knew, math, science, reading, though certainly they would be much harder and the teacher, specializing in each subject were sure to grade far harder. However in addition there were a host of totally novel classes. Band, health, shop, home ec, and computers. What impossible skills were we going to need to learn, and how on earth could we pass the devilish tests devised by these strange more serious educators. It was a lot to worry about, but one aspect loomed more than any other. I had used bike lockers before and taken piano lessons and worked wood at summer camp. These classes, though unfamiliar in a school setting, presented to particular dread. However the same could not be said for Gym class, and it inevitable daily coda, the communal shower.
The gym class itself was not the problem. Presumably the classes would be more challenging and involve actual sport rather than the games that dominated elementary school's once a week gym class. Nor was the facility that much of an issue. Every elementary school had a gym and though the dimensions were not the same, it was recognizably familiar. No it wasn't the gym class that was the problem, it was the irregular shaped room next to the gym where the similarities ended. Whereas the elementary gymnasium had been only that. A large single room but without any auxiliary facilities. One walked out its double doors into a hallway connecting the two wings of the school. The middle school was not so simple, because when you left the double doors of its gym to enter the main first floor corridor of the school, to your immediate left was an unassuming doorway. There was no door, only an opening and a long hallway squeezing between the gym and the adjacent shop room. This drab dirty white brick hallway extended off the main corridor. After a few steps down this hallway to your left was another opening with a fairly normal looking bathroom. Although the position and exact makeup of this bathroom was not identical to that in elementary school, it was familiar enough. However the hallway continued several more paces, deeper into the schools dark interior, until after passing the PE teachers office the hallway opened up to a larger interior space, almost like a cave. This room had no analog to anything at the elementary school. The right half of the room was lined with lockers set above a long tiled terrace that acted as a bench. There was a free standing "island" of lockers that constricted this half of the room into a somewhat narrow gully of lockers. These lockers were not like those we kept our books in the main corridor. They did not have in built locks and the locker doors were not solid but rather filled with large open holes, just big enough to insert a finger. However interesting this locker formation may have been though, it was impossible for the eyes to not be drawn to the left side of the room. It was much simpler and open than the right. It was an open space, with a partial wall that created a sort of cubby enclosed on 3 sides but open on the 4th. Along each of these walls were set a series of shower heads and control valves. This area, likely less than half the size of our old elementary classrooms, was the most terrifying, anticipated and alluring portion of the entire middle school. The first time I saw it, without having to be told what it was, I knew what it entailed. I had been expecting it, and it more than anything else had made me want to remain on that elementary school playground forever.
My first recollection of a communal shower goes back to kindergarten. My best friend had hosted his birthday party at the rec center of the local university. We had pizza and cake and a piñata, and after that, the 7 or 8 little boys entered the rec center through a side entrance and descended a stairway into a large well maintained locker room. I already knew how to swim and it was fun to be able to play in a big pool without having to swim laps like in lessons. However the most fun happened after. As we scampered back into the locker room, the birthday boy wanted to show us how to have fun, and entering the big tiled room with 8 shower heads, turned on each and every one and then stripped down to his birthday suit. He and his brother and maybe 4 or 5 other boys all got naked and stared running and then sliding belly first along the floor, now perpetually wet with warm water from the 8 blasting shower heads. I joined in the slip and slide but not in the nudity. It was great fun to slide and fun to see my friends naked and lasted until a very annoyed college football player entered the room and chastised us, not for being naked but for risking injury by sliding around on the hard floor. I never forgot that day or that shower room.
However as I grew up that room, and rooms just like it were sources of dread more than fun. I continued taking swimming lessons in that very same pool but when they ended, I would practically leap out of the pool like a penguin fleeing an orca, run down the stairs ahead of everyone else, take off my suit, put on my whitey tighties and THEN dry off so there was no chance Id still be drying and naked when the second person made it into the locker room. In cub scout day camp, when it came time to swim in the lake I would wait until the last boy had left the cabin used to change in so I could do so without being seen. At age 10 I attended another birthday party for a different friend. We were to go to pizza hut and then a pool at a small community college deep in the Manistee national forest. I knew what to expect and planning ahead, wore a suit under my pants so to eliminate any need to get naked in front of others. Climbing into the car for the ride over my dad asked if I had remembered to pack my suit. I said I was already wearing it. When he asked why and I explained that I wanted to avoid nudity in front of others, he explained that it was normal to be naked around other guys and that I would need to "get over it". He made me go back into my room and take them off. I really don't know where this fear came from. His attitude was one I had noticed in other adults. It was an attitude, rarely made explicit, that getting naked with my peers, or even men in general, was something I should be ok doing. Further it was also often implied and sometimes explicitly stated that this would be in my future weather I wanted it or not. Every depiction in the media showed it. Every facility I had occasion to visit or see photographs of contained them. My elementary gym teacher on at least one occasion quibbed, after we had gotten very sweaty playing some game he devised, that he wished we were 6th graders so he could "make us shower". His words seemed hollow at the time because we were not in fact 6th graders yet and the elementary school had no such facilities. But that was in the past. My final summer before middle school had ended. Nervous and uncertain I bordered the buss in pre dawn early light of the late summer and jostled by a crowd of hundreds of other students, made my way to my first day of middle school. My turn had come and the thing I had spent the better part of my life.....almost ALL of my sentient life, had finally come.
That fist day was hectic as we were herded and organized in the auditorium into smaller alphabetical groups and processed. Locker assignments, home rooms and then our first schedules. Finding the rooms was often a challenge since the building was larger and more intricate than any we had had to navigate alone before. However the gym wasnt hard to find. I had heard it was required and considered asking my parents to request I be exempted. However knowing my fathers attitude and realizing I had no counter argument (and perhaps aware of how cowardly the request would seem) I had said nothing. I had hoped that at the very least I would take PE later in my first year so that the humiliations of naked showers would not be compounded with all the other stresses of started this new daunting chapter in my life. So now finally the first dreaded day had arrived.
All my previous communal shower experiences had seemed manageable. My swimming lessons teachers never had a reason to care if I showered, and even if they had their authority to force me was so non existent that even as I child I knew they had none. At the various parties I had attended nobody really cared. Not my friends, and certainly not their parents. I had always been able to skip showers or use my suite and some combination of the towel dance and timing to avoid any naked exposure whatsoever. However I knew that this would not be possible in middle school. The limited time between classes and the penalties for delay were high. Aside from the trouble I'd get in for being late to the next class, delaying in the locker room would only mean having to change with the NEXT gym class, potentially much more intimidating 7th or 8th graders. Unlike the various birthday parties or one off events that took me to a communal shower room, this would be 5 days a week, for months. The gym teacher would be monitoring and have the authority to make me do it no matter how much I might object. It was like loosing control of a car and knowing you are going to crash. You can see clearly what it coming and you know you cant stop it. Later in life I learned how to cope with situations where you are impotent to avert disaster. When I was in a car accident on an Icy freeway I was perfectly calm as I careened out of control. However I didn't have any of that character that fall in 1995. It was a collision I had seen coming for years and now I was only a breath away from impact.
The first day of gym class was not so bad. I had vision of a demeaning hazing where we would be stripped down after the fist bell and broken into the naked souless sub adults of adolescence. However that was impractical. The fist day we sat in rows on the floor in the gym and the teacher explained his expectations and what we would do. The gym teacher I understand, while not a new teacher was new to the position. The old gym teacher had retired the year before and the new had actually been the assistant principal for some time. A year later we found out one reason he was transferred was that he was having an extra marital affair with the the guidance counselor who was herself married to the science teacher. Trying to split them up was apparently one of the reasons he was chosen to fill the vacated gym teacher position. He seemed affable and fair but also clear in his expectation. He did not seem the type I would be able to sweet talk. The ability to type and print had not spread as widely as the ability to xerox and copy so the syllabus had been written out in cursive and then photo copied. It had no date and one is forced to wonder at least in hind sight if we were maybe looking at a bunch policies first put down in the 1980's by someone sporting a still stylish afro. Of course it covered attendance and grading, tardiness, sick days. All stuff that in my fear of the post class showers I had never really thought about but which nevertheless made sense. However there in clear writing, on the document that was a force of law in my world it stated that I was responsible for bringing and cleaning my own gym cloths AND soap, shampoo, towel and OTHER SHOWER SUPPLIES. It was hardly a surprise. It seemed the entire zeitgeist of western culture had taught me to expect this. I was relieved that this first day would spare me the indignity, but it was obvious that it would be the last day of my innocence. Knowing that not having the supplies would only entail an ever escalating argument that I could not win, or even worse, being forced to shower without proper supplies and then wander in un-towled humiliation for the rest of the day, I went home and picked out my shower supplies.
I was terrified to the point of nausea the next day. Riding the bus into school along the country roads, I wished every stop would drag out, as each kid piled on stop by stop I could not help but notice the extra bulk of my backpack. It was loaded down with all the heavy new text books of middle school. However it was especially stuffed today because it also contained, neatly folded and then stuffed into whatever space remained, a towel, shampoo, soap, a wash cloth and my best approximation of gym cloths. Once the busses had disembarked the several hundred students in a logistical feat similar to the D Day landings (only I was sure I was more scared than any private on Omaha Beach), they roared away leaving us to mill around the cemented over court yard awaiting the bell to ring. Although there were 4 sets of double doors, when they were opened all at once, the several hundred students pushing in would form a human throng pulling everyone, including me and all my quaint gym supplies to our inevitable fates. I made my way to my locker to remove the books I would not be needing this next period and then on to the boys locker room. Inside we picked a locker and then changed into our gym cloths. Most did not have any actual gym or basketball shorts. I just word a pair of regular shorts and a T shirt. Nobody got naked. Guys would change their shirt or pants one at a time showing no more than the latest fashion of white underware (boxers were a rarity). Most guys were careful to not end up with just their underware on without at least their gym shirt already in place. This changing routine was new. It was only on rare occasion I had seen other students in underwear or been seen. Here we were the first few minutes of the second class and it was already well passed any previous experience. That we were expected to do this as part of a routine seemed to make us all a bit more mature. We were not little kids now. As we shuffled out into the gym, briefly passing through the main hallway between the entrance to the boys locker room and the doors to the gym, clad in our gym cloths, I felt almost like I was going off to war.
We had all been hesitant and our time to change had been slow so the bell had already rung by the time we stared to shuffle into the gym. We got a stern lecture about how we would need to be faster or face tardy marks. Presumably our dignity would be battered so thoroughly in a day or two that we would be expected to strip on command and in a prompt manner. The lecture on promptness given and attendance taken, we commenced with a game of dodgeball. In spite of the situation it was pretty fun. Running, jumping and throwing. Getting held back after kindergarten gave me a year of extra development and even though I was not athletically inclined I was tall and strong relative to most other guys in my grade. It was really fun but it was taking its toll. I could see all the red faces, and feel the heat on my temples. I had not really noticed when it started but by the time I did, I was already good and soaked. I'd try and wipe my forehead with my arm but both were wet and slick to the touch. Worst of all, every few mins, the teacher would blow his whistle and my heart would stop, because I knew at any given moment he give the command to "hit the showers". This was even true when the class was only half over. I didn't know how much time we might need. There were not as many shower heads as their were male students so it might take some time. Those first few whistled scared me but I also knew it was probably to early. However that realization only put off the inevitable by a few minutes. I concluded that the most likely time would be 5 minutes before the bell would ring. Between that 5 mins and the 4 mins between classes, that would give us 9 mins to shower, change and get to the next class. That would probably be tight but reasonable. When the teacher blew his whistle with just 5 mins of class remaining I knew this was it and almost started to head to the door. But then he bellowed "One more round!" and had us initiate a final round or dodgeball. This was a relief but also alarming. How would we possibly have time to shower now? I couldn't really focus on the game because the hectic scramble I knew had to happen now seemed the worst of all possible scenarios. Would we be rushing naked into the showers just as a group of athletic 8th graders (near high school kids) filled the locker room to mock us as we ran out half dressed and still wet only to be late to our next class anyway? I was so upset that they would demand we do this primitive and demeaning ritual and then not even allow us the time to do it in a practical circumstance. Finally, only a minute before the bell the adulterous gym teacher blew his whistle one last time. "ok time to go get changed!".
"Get Chnage?" Not "time to shower" or "go shower" or "Hit the showers"? No such command left his lips. Nor even a encouraging suggestion "Think about taking a shower", "Consider showering" , "you should probably shower". Not even a hypothetical. "You could shower if you wanted", "you have an option to shower". Indeed given the time left, this wasn't even practically possible. We hustled out of the gym, sweaty and tired and shocked by our good luck. The most dreaded fear of our youth had failed to materialize. As we nearly jogged into the locker room, our cloths soaked with tween sweat, we removed them piece by piece and stuffed them into our aerated lockers. More guys than before stripped to their underware, maybe to help cool off, maybe to save time or maybe as a substitute show of bravery in leu of the shower we had all braced ourselves for. A few had brought deodorant and they caked on the white pasty Sure. Then, still red and wet with perspiration we re dressed in the cloths we came in with and rushed out of the locker room with just enough time to be among the last arrivals at our next classes.
I was surprised to say the least. Every indicator I had seen led me to expect to have to shower. I mean there they were, all built and ready to use. However I cant say I was sad. Confused, unclear but I was so relieved. I could handle the changing down to underwear and it seemed that gym, like basically every other aspect of middle school, was not going to be substantively any more difficult than elementary school. There was some question about weather or not the teacher might ask us to shower another day, but we had been so sweaty that if he was going to do it, that first day would have been it. There was some trepidation the rest of that week but he never once that entire semester so much as said the word shower. The terrible bomb I had feared most of my life ended up being a dud. Any curiosity I had at the time was overwhelmed by relief. This challenge not having panned out into anything I moved on to others, like just about everything else touted about middle school they all turned out to be exaggerated. If I did not forget all the emotions I felt focused on that one poorly lit and underused corner of the locker room, I certainly didn't dwell on them. A few years later, when the less official but more powerful forces of peer pressure finally got me naked under the spray, the great time I had didn't make me reflect on the lost opportunity that first Middle School gym class had represented. It was not until college, years later that I really started to reflect and research (and had the internet to do so with). When I did I saw that my experience fit into a broad cultural trend. As mysterious in its causes as its time of origin, the decline of communal showers was sweeping the nation and left me sweaty stinking and childish just when I least expected it. The once near universal cultural practice had receded so fast that the infrastructure supporting it, the showers themselves still remained. And while the water still flowed in my time, the floor was more often than not bone dry. Less than 10 years later I was to read in articles in college that in many schools the water was permanently shut off and the space used for storage. Indeed the very year I started 6th grade, the fall of 1995, saw a trio of articles in three of the nations leading papers noting the decline and pondering without clear answers the reasons. It wasn't until all those years later that I realized something momentous had happened in a quite revolution that was affecting how every person saw their bodies and interacted with their peers (and indeed with all members of society). It was not until it was far to late that I realized I had missed out of something really wonderful and beneficial. Something I needed more than I could ever understand before I had it. Its been over 25 years since that first day at middle school. The decline in communal showers was well advanced even at that date and the intervening years seen it go from an outgoing tide to muddy bottom land with a narrow and shallow channel running in a few of the deepest depressions. I still don't understand the forces that led to my shocked reprieve, but looking back all I know for sure is that I want to be part of the forces that reverse the course.

Section Zero: Thank you in advance for reading! I love Money Diaries and I've written them before but this is my first time submitting/posting. Sorry it's kinda long, but I'm personally nosey so I included details that I would want to know as a reader. Maybe I went overboard tho lol. Also this is a throwaway for the MD subreddit.
Section One: Assets and Debt
Retirement Balance: ~$23k. I’ve never not contributed to my 401k, but in the past my nominations were way smaller (3-4%) and my previous employers didn’t match as generously. This job is the first time I’ve contributed double digits (specific figures noted below).
Equity if you're a homeowner: None yet; planning to move to the East Coast and buy there in 2 years.
HYSA: $17k (emergency fund)
Acorns: $5.5k
Twine: $20k (this is a shared account with my BF where we both contribute; this balance is mostly his and will go towards a combo of our engagement + wedding)
Brokerage: $260k (inheritance)
Coinbase: $2.1k; I loosely keep up with the crypto world and keep a few long term investments in here.
Checking account balance: ~$2k at any given time for recurring payments. I usually pay for everything else through my credit card (Chase Sapphire) to get dem points!
Credit card debt: $0, pay off each month
Student loan debt: $0, paid off. I graduated with ~$24k in loans for a Bachelors in PMarketing from a private university. I had about half of my tuition covered by scholarships and grants, my parents paid what they could, and I took out loans for the rest. For two years I paid the loans off monthly, then my family received an inheritance which my parents gave me a part of to pay off the loans.
Section Two: Income
\*I don’t combine finances with my bf but we live together (going on 2.5 years now) which definitely impacts my expenses. He makes* $82k per year. Other than rent, we don’t split anything evenly. He’ll pay a few times, then I will. You’ll see this in my diary.\**
Income Progression (post college only): I've been working for 4 years & my starting salary was $45k. I worked in social media for 3 years, then switched to ops in January 2020.
2016 - Social Media Coordinator, Midwest: $45k + OT, brought me to $50k ish
Industry: corporate retail
2017 - Account Executive, California: $58k
Industry: social media/consumer tech (agency)
2018 - Social Media Specialist, Midwest: $55k
Industry: corporate retail
2020 - Marketing Ops Analyst, Midwest: $80k + bonus
Industry: tech
Main Job Monthly Take Home: $3930/mo
Monthly Deductions
401k: $1332/mo (13% + 6% match)
Health insurance (medical & dental): $97; this is going to go down a bit in the new year because I just switched plans. Vision is covered by my employer.
FSA: $79.14; also going to go down, switching to an HSA where my company contributes $750 so I won’t be adding as much of my own money
ESPP: $266.68
Disability: $7.56
Side Gig Monthly Take Home
$0. This is actually the first time in awhile that I’m not freelancing on the side. I’ve held a mix of social media/digital marketing side gigs throughout the years, but since I’ve transitioned into operations that isn’t my strength or focus area right now. In the beginning of the year (Jan-March) I was freelancing for my previous employer until they filled my role, at a rate of $75/hr, so that will go on my taxes but I didn’t include it in my income figure because it isn’t current… maybe I should though? Haha. I made a few grand and put it all in savings
Any Other Income Here
My paternal side of the family is selling property overseas, and when the sale is complete I will receive ~$50k from the proceeds. This will go into investments/long term savings.
I also receive a lot of random gifts, bonuses and reimbursements through work, some with monetary value and some without. I don’t really consider it “income” but it counts for something I suppose… not sure where else to add it. We don’t typically receive notice of these in advance so there’s no way to really plan for it, but over the past year I’ve received:
$540 for holiday-time meals
$100 for family meal when the pandemic hit
$500 to create a home office
$250 for noise cancelling headphones
Random gift cards (Uber eats, Starbucks, Visa etc)
Holiday gift packages
I also received roughly ~$1100 in payout of my accrued PTO when my company switched to unlimited earlier this year. I had only been with the company for a few months at that point so didn’t have a ton saved up.
Section Three: Expenses
Rent / Mortgage / HOA fees: $850/month. T pays $950, because he pays for the parking spot. Our rent + parking is $1800 total, for a 2 bed 1 bath in the Lakeview area (~1200 sq ft). No washedryer in unit but it is free in the basement. Small porch and backyard. It’s not the most updated place ever but the second bedroom allows me to have my own office and overall gets the job done lol.
Renters / home insurance: $7.50/mo ($15/mo through Lemonade; my bf pays and I reimburse him for my share every 6 months)
Savings contribution: Whatever is leftover at the end of the month goes to a HYSA or Acorns/other investment apps.
Donations: I don’t donate regularly on a monthly basis, but I have donated ~$750 this year to various causes (Lebanese Red Cross, my alma mater for giving day, animal shelters I’ve adopted from, etc). My company matches up to $5k in donations, so I’ve been able to double my impact which is nice. My company also gives time off to volunteer, and I’ve logged 60 hours of volunteer time since January.
Electric/Wifi/Cable/Landline: T pays
Cellphone: on my mom’s family plan
Subscriptions
Book of the Month: $14.99/mo
Netflix/Hulu/HBO Max: We have profiles via T’s dad’s account.
Amazon: Use my mom’s account when I need to, which isn’t often.
Spotify: $9.99/month
Gym membership: Work pays; Melissa Wood Health ($9.99/mo) and Peloton app ($12.99/mo)
Pet expenses: ~$100/mo for my share for 3 animals (one dog, two cats). Some months are higher than others, like when they get their annual shots, but I would guess it evens out to about this much. My dog just went on a new medication which is $37/month. We’re in the process of switching all pets over to raw food, which increases their food expense.
Car payment / insurance: None, don’t have a car.
Regular therapy: None right now, BUT this is something I need to get serious about in 2021. I had a few sessions with a therapist earlier in the year but she was just not my vibe, and the thought of having to repeat and unload my traumas multiple times until I found the right therapist put me off the whole process. If you have any recs in Chicago on the north side lmk!
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Day 1 (Sunday)
9:55 am: Good morning, world! Roll out of bed, put on a pot of coffee and join my boyfriend T on the couch. He’s playing video games so I scroll through social media and my email. I see that Overtone is running a 20% off promo, so I get a dark red coloring conditioner for my hair. I love this brand for non-permanent hair color that doesn’t strip or dry out my hair like salon coloring does, and it’s fun to play around with different shades. With tax and shipping it comes to $34.63.
11 am: We really want pancakes but don’t have ingredients so we take a walk to Whole Foods for mix. It comes out to $3.86 but T pays. We get home and I do a quick 18 minute Melissa Wood video while T prepares the pancakes. When I get out of the shower, the pancakes are ready - perfect timing!
1 pm: We dial into a Zoom birthday celebration for T’s grandmother, who is turning 90! She is in a nursing home on the east coast (where he is from) and the family has only been able to do 20 minute drive-by visits due to the pandemic, so this means a lot to her. We spend about an hour on the call, then start our Sunday chores. I clean the bathroom and do the dishes while T vacuums. Then I grab my laptop to get a jump start on work for the week, with Red Zone on in the background so I can keep tabs on my Fantasy players.
4 pm: Wrap up my work for the afternoon, heat up some food (leftovers from Persian takeout the other night. If you like Greek/mediterranean food, I highly suggest you try Persian!!) and watch a Her Atlas YouTube video while I eat. I have wanted to visit Japan for years, and that’s going to be mine and T’s big, yearly international trip once it’s safe to travel again. Last year we did Spain.
7 pm: The rest of the afternoon is spent relaxing, reading (I’m currently on Obama’s new book), snacking and watching Gilmore Girls...aka my favorite type of Sunday. My mom got us the Bonne Maman advent calendar this year and we’ve been doing a cheese and cracker appetizer with each day’s jam. Today’s is a pineapple preserve. T and I spend some time looking up recipes to make for the week and decide on two Half Baked Harvest recipes. T places a Whole Foods delivery order for the items we need; it comes out to $45 and he pays. Head to bed around 10 pm.
Daily total: $34.63
Day 2 (Monday)
7:45 am: Top of the morning! I wouldn’t usually be excited for a Monday, but this is my last full 5-day work week of 2020 - woo hoo! I fix my coffee, feed the cats and get started on my morning routine. I wash my face with Cerave cleanser, followed by Klairs toner, Melano CC spot treatment and Supergoop sunscreen. My company has a very meeting-heavy culture and I’m on camera all day long, so I typically do a light makeup routine of tinted moisturizer, blush, eyebrow gel and mascara. Even though we’re working from home, it does wonders for my confidence to feel put together on camera. Not everyone’s vibe, but it works for me. Leggings forever, though!
12:15 pm: Quick break for lunch after a busy morning of meetings, spreadsheet work and deck building. I was supposed to have my quarterly skip level this morning but it got moved to Thursday, which is fine cus it gives me more time to prep. Lunch is a “harvest bowl”: roasted brussels sprouts and butternut squash, sauerkraut, avocado scrambled eggs and furikake seasoning on top. We’re running low on the seasoning so I add it to mine and T’s shared iCloud note for Trader Joe’s items.
5 pm: Now that it’s pitch black and I’m tired and cold, I decide to take my last bit of work from the couch under a blanket. My mom calls me and we chat for a bit. Wrap up around 6:30 and opt to skip working out. Daylight savings zaps my motivation.
7 pm: Dinner is our Bonne Maman jam app (strawberry rhubarb) with crackers, leftover butternut squash gnocchi soup that we made late last week, and Trader Joe’s chocolate covered banana slices for dessert. Watch Gilmore Girls then move to bed to read Obama. Lights out around 10:15.
Daily total: $0
Day 3 (Tuesday)
8:15 am: I had horrible insomnia last night so I sleep in a bit. I tried melatonin, CBD, meditation...nothing worked. I know it’s because of my stressful work projects coming up. I get up, put on coffee and pray these next 8 working days go by fast! Repeat the same morning routine.
9:30 am: Get an email from our team EA with information on our Adopt-a-Family for this year and donation options. I venmo her $50.
10 am: Breakfast time! I make a green “juice” in my Vitamix (water blended with apple, pear, cucumber, lemon, spinach, and ginger), more coffee and some Seven Sundays muesli with coconut milk.
1 pm: Lunch break; I make the same harvest bowl as yesterday and use up all the roasted veggies, which makes me happy cus I love getting rid of leftovers and freeing up fridge space. I also make a chocolate macaroon David’s Tea.
2 pm: Check my personal email and see a 20% off coupon from Bombas, so I order merino wool socks for T and my mom as stocking stuffers. After shipping and tax it comes to $34.80. I also receive some forms from the DC embassy of the country where my relatives are selling property, but it’s all in the local language so I forward them the email so they can translate it for me.
5 pm: Spend the afternoon working on an audit project and presenting a new process I created to one of our teams. I serve as an admin for an external software we use in marketing, and one aspect of my role is optimizing how teams use that software and establishing infrastructure to scale. The presentation goes really well! Also get an email from HR saying everyone is getting a $50 giftcard of their choice for the holidays; I browse the options and choose Nordstrom.
5:45 pm: Quick abs and arms Melissa Wood workout, shower, then back to work...on the couch this time, though. My alma mater has a basketball game tonight so I turn that on in the background. They are stomping on the competition, so I don’t have to pay attention too closely. I love non stressful, easy-win games lol.
6:30 pm: A random Amazon package shows up, and I can’t for the life of me remember ordering anything. I open it up to find a ring light as a holiday gift from our team’s VP! This is actually perfect bc it’s going to be gray and gloomy in Chicago for the foreseeable future. I set it to charge so I can use it for tomorrow’s video calls.
7:30 pm: Dinner time! T made a Half Baked Harvest Asian noodles recipe. I wrap up work and we turn on Gilmore Girls. After an episode, I do my night routine and move to bed to read Obama. Night routine consists of Simple micellar water, Cerave cleanser, Klairs toner, prescription retinol (0.05% tretinoin), Cosrx moisturizer and The Ordinary squalane oil as the cherry on top. Lights off at 10 pm ish.
Daily total: $84.80
Day 4 (Wednesday)
8 am: Made it halfway through the week! I’m woken up by Karen, our Roomba vacuum. My insomnia was a bit more mellow last night. I couldn’t fall asleep for awhile but I think I ended up getting a solid 6 hours or so of shuteye, which is more than I can say for the night before. I’ll take it!
9 am: Today is going to be spent on my audit project, working in a spreadsheet all day…. Ugh. But on the bright side, my boss messages our team saying we have permission to expense lunch or wine for extra motivation! Wine for me, please.
12:30 pm: I’m making better progress on my audit project than I thought I would, so I decide to run a couple lunch errands with T. It feels so nice to get outside and step away from my screens for a bit. It’s also 50 degrees and sunny (this is cause for celebration in Chicago in December)! First we stop by the vet to pick up a refill of the dog’s meds. The med price recently went up so I make a mental note to call CVS to see if they can fill a generic for cheaper. Next stop is Whole Foods for my motivation wine, and also a few items we forgot in T’s order from earlier in the week. We get salmon, feta cheese, beets, coffee creamer, eggs, pepper jack and Olly sleep gummies. It comes to $61.80 and I pay. I also get my wine which comes to $22.15 but that goes on my company card.
4:30 pm: I finish my audit work! Another coworker on the project is a bit behind on her portion though so I offer to help...not out of the woods yet. I decide I deserve a spreadsheet break and have a bit of time before a call with colleagues in Singapore, so I do a 20 minute Melissa Wood workout. I was really skeptical of home exercise when lockdown first started, but I’ve grown to love it! It’s nice being able to squeeze movement in without having to schlep to the gym. After the workout, it’s back to my office to get some audit work done before my call.
6:30 pm: Call is over so it’s Motivation Wine time! I pop open the bottle to breathe while I shower, then pour a glass for more audit work. T prepares dinner, which is a Half Baked Harvest artichoke salmon recipe. If you’re thinking “this chick never cooks,” you thought right lol. T does most of the cooking and I do most of the cleaning. He also tends to do more of the dog duties, while I handle the cats. We find our balance.
9 pm: T and I finish Gilmore Girls! This was my third time watching the entire series; we chat about the ending and his thoughts. I tell him we have to watch the Netflix revival next, even though it sucks. We head to bed around 10:30.
Daily total: $61.80
Day 5 (Thursday)
8 am: No insomnia last night!! I knocked right out and slept a solid 10 hours, so I’m feeling GOOD. Coffee, feed cats, skincare, muesli, the usual.
9 am: I dial into our Chicago office winter town hall meeting and keep it on in the background while catching up on email. A local nonprofit founder is the guest speaker, and during the call he makes an announcement that the Chicago office will be receiving free copies of his new book! I’ve actually done a lot of volunteer work with this nonprofit and the founder has an awesome backstory, so I’m excited to read the book.
11:30 am: Coming up for air from a very productive morning! I had my rescheduled skip level chat - my VP confirmed I’ll go up for promotion in the next round and said I’m all around #killingit, which is always nice to hear. I also had a session with my mentee who is a college student interning at my company; we did a LinkedIn workshop and got her profile to the All Star level! Being a mentor is new for me and it’s harder than I thought, but she was more engaged than usual so I’m happy with today’s meeting. I check my email to see I sold something on Poshmark, so I send the label to Fedex to print, which costs $0.15. I’ll make a whopping $11 on my sale. Drop the package in a USPS drop box on my way back.
5:30 pm: Wrapping up early for once this week! I had a presentation this afternoon that went awesome; my boss said it’s a huge win and wants to make sure I get it in front of our SVPs. After work I go for a 4 mile run by the lake. Arrive home to another random package, which ends up being my company’s 2020 ugly Christmas sweater and a mask. Sweet!
9 pm: Since it’s been a hectic week, I decide to treat T and I to a fancy take out meal for tomorrow night from our favorite sushi spot in the city. They require advanced ordering and scheduled pick up so I place the order $95 platter for 2 + a fuji apple crisp dessert for 7 pm pick up tomorrow evening. With fees and tip it comes to $138.40. This is actually a very good deal; anytime we’ve eaten in the actual restaurant it’s at least $200+.
Daily total: $138.55
Day 6 (Friday)
8 am: TGIF! T and I usually do a neighborhood coffee date on Fridays, barring any crappy weather. We bundle up and take the dog with us to Coffee & Tea Exchange - they have the best seasonal lattes. I get a gingerbread cheesecake latte and T gets a fancy hot chocolate (he’s not a coffee drinker, which is CRAZY to me!). With tip it's $10.10; I pay.
9 am: T makes us pancakes for breakfast bc #Friday, but then 30 mins later I get a surprise donut delivery from work! Regretting all those pancakes now. I text our neighbors to see if they want any and they do, so I leave them on their back porch.
10:30 am: Dial into a department all hands and chat with our Chicago hub slack channel on the side. I work on a distributed team, meaning we’re spread across the country. I’m the only person in Chicago, so it’s nice to have a connection to local coworkers since I can’t go into the office.
12:30 pm: Virtual holiday party time! We play ‘Never Have I Ever’ which is fun; I learn a lot of silly facts about my team and especially my boss.
6:30 pm: Drowning in preparation for my global project kicking off on Monday, but break to go pick up my bougie sushi order. We get home, I eat, then I get back online for a couple hours to get to a better stopping point.
9:30 pm: Call it quits for the day and join T on the couch for our alma mater’s basketball game. This one isn’t as much as a blowout as the other night, keeping the faith though!
10:30 pm: We lose the game. :( Put on “Meet Me in St. Louis” to lift our spirits with some jolly showtunes. T insists I let him help me with my audit project, so I tell him to go for it. He stays up til midnight working on it. I fall asleep watching the movie.
Daily total: $10.10
Day 7 (Saturday)
10:15 am: Saturday, best day! I slept for 10+ hours so I’m feeling great. Put on coffee and join T on the couch to read my book. T makes us spinach pepper jack omelettes, and helps me with my work project again. He’s a gem. At 1:30 pm we put on T’s cousin’s Zoom wedding.
2:30 pm: After the wedding, I order T’s final Christmas present, which are a pair of boots from Thursdays he hinted at. With tax it comes to $211. After that I do a Nicki Minaj full body strength workout on Peloton, which kicks my butt but is so fun.
4 pm: We go on a Target run for some household items; I’m also looking for things to spend my FSA balance on. T buys an Instant Pot air fryer attachment and snacks. I get a pair of 5 lb dumbbells (my Peloton workout earlier made me realize I need more variety lol), 3 Christmas cards (for my mom, for T and T’s parents), hand soap, trash bags for $60. I also buy condoms, 2 face cleansers and body lotion using my FSA card.
5:30 pm: I head downtown to a friend’s apartment to hang out. She lives in Streeterville, land of the expensive parking - I pay $15 for the evening. She makes us dinner, and we watch Elf and Gossip Girl. Random combo. She sends me home with a bunch of leftovers.
9:30 pm: Back home, dick around on my phone while T plays Assassin’s Creed. At 10:30 we turn on SNL, bc Timothee Chalamet is hosting and I love him (much to T’s dismay lol). After that we head to bed, watch an episode of Broad City, and fall asleep.
Daily total: $286
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WEEKLY TOTAL: $615.88
Food + Drink: $210.30
Home + Health: $60
Clothes + Beauty + Gifts: $280.43
Transport: $15
Other: $50.15
This was a fairly normal week for me, other than the Christmas gifts. T and I do takeout once per week and I typically pay since he tends to cover groceries; this takeout meal was a tad more expensive than usual but that expense itself is standard. I hope you all enjoyed reading!