Last night things didn't go quite as planned. Toni and I intended on having an early night but we both start doing various things and then ended up wide awake. As a result we decided to start watching the Chicago Blackhawks v L.A. Kings game. This didn't start until 2am so turned out to be a bad idea! The game was great to watch although by the end of the second period we were really struggling to stay awake. At 04:30, with the light starting to appear, and the game tied at 2 - 2 we gave up and headed to bed only to have to get up again at seven! Sadly I woke to find that the Chicago Blackhawks had won 3 - 2 and were now leading the L.A. Kings 3 - 1 in the series.
Absolutely shattered I headed into work facing a day of long meetings. It was definitely a strong coffee day! Things kicked off with a two hour Sprint Review Meeting. This one was quite painful as everyone was giving feedback on a slightly chaotic process that we've only just start using. There was lots of repetition and going round in circles but overall the meeting was positive. We identified things that need to be improved on that we can take forward into the next Sprints. It did feel very much like a hard slog but things were nowhere near as bad as they could have been and at least everyone seems to be taking on board that we need to start thinking and working in a different way. It was also acknowledged that things would take some time to settle down but we could all see where we wanted to end up. Hopefully the next one will be a lot quicker!
Sadly I didn't have time for lunch as I had an hour to get a few things done before the next meeting. To make matters worse the lifts broke down meaning that we had to walk down the stairs from the 26th to the 16th floor. I'm pleased to report that this Sprint Planning Meeting went a lot better than the one two weeks ago. People were better prepared all round which really helped. Again, the meeting was too long so I'll be working on trying to shorten things in future as I hate long meetings and I know most of the team do too.
The rest of my day was spent prepping the planning tool for the next two weeks. It was driving me nuts to start with but I did manage to get a system going which made it relatively painless overall. I've made a few tweaks to things that should make monitoring things a bit easier. I'm quite looking forward to seeing how the next Sprint goes.
It was an intense day, especially as I'd had only a few hours sleep, but it was rewarding (and stressful too). It was such a relief to get out at the end of the day.
Sadly it was my turn to cook tonight. I really didn't feel like it but after a quick chill I did myself proud. Sam and Gemima were presented with my variation of pasta bolognaise while Toni and I had grilled Dover sole (dressed with lemon and pepper) and a nice green salad. I don't really enjoy cooking all that much but I can cook up some delicious fare when I put my mind to it.
We had a trip down memory lane by watching Disney's wonderful Aladdin. This film never gets old and is definitely a classic. Sam and I were singing along quite merrily and had forgotten very few of the words LOL.
We went a bit hardcore after that and watched the documentary on Monsanto called Seeds Of Death. It's a quote astonishing look at the crap that Monsanto are trying to pull and the danger they are creating in the world today. It's long. It well worth a watch!
Despite knowing the score we watched the final period of the Blackhawks v Kings game to pass away the time until the next live game (at 1am).
This was Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals between Boston Bruins and Pittsburgh Penguins. This was like a repeat of the Bruins v Rangers series with the Bruins heading into this game leading things 3 - 0 and threatening to sweep. They didn't manage to pull it off against New York so could they do it against Pittsburgh? Yes we were probably insane to want to watch this game cruising on only a few hours of sleep but this was a big game and it had to be done! More coffee, strong coffee!
First period started with the Penguins definitely being the hungrier of the two teams. The Bruins seemed to take a while to get revved up but by the last five minutes we had a game on our hands and it was end to end stuff. Boston edged the shots on goal. Sadly the period ended 0 - 0 but at least Boston weren't trailing.
Second period was a bit more frantic. Once again it was end to end stuff but a very free flowing game. Penguins turned it up a notch at the very end but once again things ended with a flat 0 - 0 score line and the Bruins led shots on goal. Neither teams had taken any unnecessary risks in the first two periods but we suspected that this might change in the third.
Refuelled with tea and toast we headed into the third period. First goal came for the Bruins at 14:59 with a beautiful shot from McQuaid. Pressure was on now with the Bruins being one step away from sweeping the Penguins and also in getting through to the Stanley Cup Finals. Despite the Penguins trying to turn things around it was the Bruins that seemed more dangerous. Rather than defend their lead they kept up the attack.
The final 90 seconds were mental with the Penguins pulling their netminder for the extra attacker but the Bruins held on and won the game 1 - 0, took the series 4 - 0 and emerged winners of the Eastern Conference Finals and now have a well deserved place in the Stanley Cup Finals. Just need the Blackhawks v Kings series to conclude then we find out who the Bruins will face. It could be decided tomorrow night!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
No comments:
Post a Comment