Since he's not gearing up for spring training, what is Ron Gardenhire doing with his down time?

"Well, if you look at the north wall of the garage, you'll see," said the former Twins manager, gesturing to an impressive stack of empty Coors Light cans.

Gardenhire, let go by the Twins this fall after being with the organization since 1987, spoke with reporters on Thursday about his suddenly wide open schedule.

"Scotty (Ullger, the former Twins coach) has come by to help me stack the empties. He's always coming by with a sixer or twelver. Right before dusk, the sun hits those bullets, and the shine they make..." Gardenhire's voice trailed off as a wistful smile spread across his face.

"It's almost done. Give it another week, and we'll call it good. Carol'll be back from her sister's place by then, too, so I'll have to take it down anyway."

Plummeting gas prices have also given Gardenhire the chance to spend more time in his beloved RV.

"$1.99 gas down at the Circle K," he exclaimed. "I used to be afraid to even step inside that sucker because boom, there goes another gallon. Geez-a-loo, now I'm just using it to go run errands. I might go to the Redbox later with Scotty, maybe see what the new releases are. Me and him watched August: Osage County the other night. Wasn't my cup of tea at all, but Scotty sure got a good laugh when Julia Roberts kept saying 'cooch.'"