Random Thoughts for the Week of July 18, 2013

Well, no more small talk, let’s get right to it!

• Feel nothing but pride as a member of the Husker Nation as Team Jack won the ESPY award last night for “Best Moment in Sports.”  I think it says a great deal about our team, football fans and mayhaps ESPN fans that a moment outside of the regular season can move enough people to support Jack, his family and their cause and give out this award.  My thoughts always turn to the other kids on Team Jack who suffer from the same brain cancer and didn’t get their turn to run down the field.  I count my blessings, say a prayer and thank God that there is still some goodness in people in the world … and they live and play in Nebraska.
• For the love of God, people … leave the British Royals alone!  I know if I had that many reporters and cameras waiting outside my hospital (before we even got there) when Alex was born, I would have taken a squirt gun to them all until they left.  This is not a moment for the world or even really for the British Nation.  It is a moment for that family that is about to be blessed with the birth of a child.  Let’s show some dignity here.  I suppose you can call all the labor experts you want who can diagnose Kate’s due date based on the size of the bump under her dress, but I don’t have to watch or read the blather every time I look at the news.  Can we focus on some real problems?
• My pathetic Congress is at it again.  Congress declared “victory” last week by agreeing with itself not to filibuster itself.  Uh.  Let me get this straight.  Your time that you should spend governing the people and our county has been spent making a deal with yourself not to stop governing?  I have the greatest form of government in the world and the worst leaders doing the governing, from the top down.  I’ll be amazed if anything gets done in the next four years, much less improving the nation in any way, shape or form.
• McDonalds did it right preparing that budget class for its employees, and we should be supporting them 100%.  Here’s a company who recognizes that the majority (I think) of its workforce is making far below the standard wage, and it’s proactively working with them to provide for themselves and their family.  Mindi said it to me best last night … people are simply living beyond their means.  The people who complain about this program and the fact that it highlights that minimum wage earners might need two jobs to meet their needs are missing a vital point: people choose to live beyond their means!  They spend money on cigarettes and Friday nights at the bar.  They have children before saving and budgeting for their needs, sometimes more kids than they could ever support.  They waste money on things and don’t thinking responsibly.  McDonalds is actually doing something to make that better.  I wish our school system could say the same.  If people are joining the workforce before they learn to balance their checkbook, then they reap the whirlwind.  I applaud McDonalds for actually trying to help them.  I wish they’d take the advice and trim the fat a bit in their lives and take responsibility for their fiscal lives.  Then maybe they’d be on the road to a better life down the way.  Stepping down from the soapbox on that one …
• It’s sad to see anyone, including famous actors, die from overdose not long after leaving rehab.  My problem at this point is more with the people he was with before he died.  Apparently none of them thought to look after their friend who has been struggling with this for so long.  Someone had to sell him that shit.  I doubt anyone will be charged criminally for it, but I always wonder why the hell someone isn’t.
• My thoughts on the Zimmerman verdict?  I don’t think it could have gone any other way for two reasons.  First, the defense put on a way better case than the prosecutor.  Don’t get me wrong, they did fine, but their witnesses just got beat by the defense’s.  They were out-lawyered, but good.  Second, and most importantly, the Florida laws tied the hands of that jury more than anything.  In other states Zimmerman would likely have been tried and convicted.  In Florida the current laws gave enough room for him to get away with it.  I prefer to see justice done in any murder, and in this case (as others) the justice will likely come monetarily, if not with a prison sentence.  If nothing else, George Zimmerman’s life as he knew it is over.  He’ll have to go far, wide and do many, many good deeds to remove the blood from his hands.  And even then, he’ll have to live with the repercussions of his acts for the rest of his life.  There is some justice in that, at least.
• I’ve watched the “Today” show for a long time, and if you ask me that team hosting it has as much chemistry as a junior high school dance.  I think a change in ranks is needed before I can get energized about the show.  They still land the big interviews, and that’s a credit to the producers.  But as far as entertaining and energizing me for my day, Good Morning America beats them hands down.  Maybe it’s all just a matter of what we want with our coffee these days.  Shrug.
• I love coffee.
• The Green Bay Packers announced this week that Brett Favre’s jersey number will not be retired this season.  I’m not surprised, but why the delay?  What’s the problem?  Weird.
• I love hot tub.
• Moving forward on the trip to Rivera Maya.  80 days away.  My god, that feels like a lifetime from now, especially while I’m sitting at work writing this blog.
• My unwritten goal is to lose another 10 pounds before we leave.  That basically means 1 pound a week.  I’ve been averaging at best 0.3 pounds a week for the past few months.  Discipline, discipline, discipline.  That and a shitload of running.  If I can even lose 6 more pounds and get under 210, that’ll be record territory in recent history and heading strongly in the right direction.
• After my run last weekend, I’m really nervous about making the Corporate Cup in under an hour.
• I think if I’m to survive much longer in corporate America I will need a good, healthy vacation with many drinks and Mindi.  Then I should be good to go for a bit.
• Turning 40 doesn’t feel bad today.  We’ll see about that in a few months.
• I love lamp.
• “Despicable Me Minion Rush” = my new addiction.  Goodbye, Temple Run 2.  It’s been a hoot.
• Need an electrician for the man cave.  Anyone know anyone?

Until next time, got to play Minion Rush now instead of this writing shit.

Random Thoughts for the Week of July 11, 2013

Greetings, Faithful Reader, and welcome back for another week of blurbs, brain farts and other assorted gases.  I hope this blog finds you well and enjoying the summer months as much as I am.  Now, on to the good stuff …

• At last count there have been nearly 40 arrests of NFL players during this off-season.  My god, these kids are all just blind idiots.  They have been given the dream opportunity to play professional football, get paid thousands or millions of dollars to do it, and then they go and throw it all away so recklessly.  There are kids playing pee-wee football today dreaming of the opportunities these morons are letting pass through their fingertips.  I’d encourage better lecturing by the NFL and teams to prevent this but even Adam Jones can’t stay out of jail a year after giving a lecture to NFL rookies on why they should stay out of jail.  I’m all for the “one strike and you’re out” approach.  Professional athletes are blessed with the skill, stamina and endurance to play a sport at an Olympian level for our entertainment.  It doesn’t give them free license to ignore decorum and act like children.  There are plenty of other people out there ready for the chance to play and to play to win, not for the money.  If the best can’t do it cleanly, I say give it to the next guy.  That goes for football, baseball and every other sport out there.  Good people should be rewarded and bad people punished.
• Speaking of bad people, Aaron Hernandez has to be the dumbest criminal I’ve ever seen.  He must have just assumed his high-profile status would protect him, so he left breadcrumb after breadcrumb for the authorities to find him.  What a fucking idiot.  Enjoy spending the rest of your life in prison, dumbass.
• Alfonso Dennard, dumbass.  Good luck in the Canadian League after your 1-year DUI sentence is up.  Hope it was worth it.
• I think I may need to expand/rename my Lawrence Philips Award for the FF League this year.  There are 40 new candidates for this honor roll already!
• Speaking of FF, just finished creating the new Evans World 2013 site.  Last year was a bad FF year for me.  I’d blame it on the kid, but that’s too easy.  I’m going to pay far more attention this year to all the changes around the league and see the stars through the trees (as it were).  This year it’s the playoffs or nothing.
• I saw Joss Whedon’s “Much Ado about Nothing” last night.  A good flick, and a decent rendering of the play.  The modern setting is nice, and Whedon definitely knows the best spots in his own house to film in.  Some of the lighting and scene setups were magnificent.  Nathan Fillion steals the movie away in the middle when he shows up leading his rag-tag security team in good cop-show style (you’ll understand what I mean when you see it).  Any fan of the Whedonverse will appreciate it, and at times it really is like you’re watching Wesley, Fred, Agent Colston and Simon Tam taking a break from their normal lives to meet in a house and speak in Shakespearean tongue … and what’s wrong with that?
• Speaking of Shakespeare, Mindi and I sat through “Twelfth Night” at Omaha’s Shakespeare on the Green last week.  One of our favorite plays, we were both disappointed by the presentation.  It was the right idea, no question.  Interposing modern songs into the play was a fun twist, and could have worked better had the song choices been better and if the actors could sing worth a damn.  Instead it was something right out of the joke plays we used to put on at Millard North back in the days.  It’s really only funny to them.
• The more I talk to people the more I think I should be a little more open towards the “Man of Steel” movie.  Walking out of the theater I didn’t really like it.  I was looking for a continuation of the Christopher Reeve Superman and instead got a newer, darker Superman unlike anything I’d seen before.  The special effects were amazing, no question.  But the one-dimensional villain Zod and his hamstrung forces that should have easily won that battle left me disappointed.  Above all, I didn’t like how Superman resorted to killing Zod.  That’s not the Superman I grew up with.  Even still, it all did make for a good movie, and there are plenty of plot lines that were established that could make the sequels good movies.  I’ll ease up a bit on my contempt for the movie.  In all honesty, I still prefer the Reeve movies (as cheesy as they were) and even Routh’s movie (even with the massive plot pits) over this one.
• My 10K training has taken a hit over the past month with crazy schedules.  Thanks to Mindi and our Fitbits, I can at least get 3-5 miles walking each day, which is good.  I hope to hit the treadmill and see if I can do a sustained 12-minute mile this weekend.  Even still, not quite where I wanted to be at this point to make it under 1 hour.  I have 3 months left to improve my speed, and lots of things to fill the time between them.
• Mindi is looking crazy good down over 30 pounds thanks to MyFitnessPal, Fitbit and her own determination.  I’m so proud of her!
• Me? I love being able to fit into size 36 pants/shorts and Large t-shirts easily again.  Still a long ways to go, and I need to get off this plateau I’m on.  Also want to get rid of my Jabba the Hut neck fat at soon as possible.
• Mindi and I have booked a trip to Rivera Maya in October!  Looking forward to sitting in a nice, all-inclusive resort where I can get a drink at any time.  It’s what my life was supposed to be like 20 years go.
• I make a lousy electrician.  I’m just glad I didn’t blow up the house.
• Thank God for YouTube and the legions of people with so much free time they can scrape and upload so many snippets of my favorite shows like West Wing, Doctor Who and so many others.  Lots of things I missed and so many things I can enjoy in my spare moments at work and home to get me through the day.
• The man cave design is nearly complete!  Simply waiting for the electrician to make the right quote to do the hard work (no way I’m running a 110V circuit in there) and then it’s full steam ahead.  My goal is to have it fully armed and operational by the NFL opening day, but I’ll be thrilled to have it for the first Nebraska game.  Keep an eye out for pics/updates/invites to the first game.

Until next time, friends …

Random Thoughts for the Week of June 24, 2013

I know it’s been almost a year since I posted my last collection of thoughts.  I’ll admit I did those posts primarily to keep my Omaha friends updated on my life in Ohio.  But it was also a very helpful way for me to vent/verbalize the things that have been on my mind, so I figured I’ll bring them back, maybe not every week, but every now and then just for my own sanity.  I hope you enjoy and post any comments/thoughts.

• Shame on Food Network for dropping Paula Deen.  Here’s the thing, folks.  Racism did not vanish with the 13th Amendment, the Civil Rights Movement, MLK or even Obama’s election.  It’s still prevalent in our nation, particularly in the areas where Deen grew up and works in.  Is that an excuse for uttering racist remarks?  Of course not, but let’s look at a broader canvas here.  The racist remarks that Deen admitted to saying are spoken EVERY DAY by many of the same people that are analyzing and condemning her.  Rappers and comedians are uttering racist epithets in song and verse, continuing to encourage and popularize words and phrases that should have been dumped 50 years ago.  And we all do it ourselves (myself included) … we make a bad joke with some racist slur in it to get the laugh.  Worst case is when we honestly believe the subservient nature of another race/class and they aren’t even jokes anymore.  I’ve said it before … we’re at the “hearts and minds stage” when it comes to racism in the U.S.  We need to teach each other and our kids in our actions and beliefs that these things are wrong.  Yes, Deen should apologize for saying those things, but she shouldn’t be fired.  Instead, her mistakes should be used by Food Network and the media as the positive example of someone recognizing her heart and mind were in the wrong place and needed permanent correction … just like we all need.  If we simply abandon the people who make these mistakes we send a message of surrender rather than the hopeful message of repentance and the living example of potential for positive change.  Deen is one of those celebrity personalities that could be used to send such a message and set that positive example for how we can all change.  Instead, she’ll slowly disappear from the limelight and her career is ruined.  What happens when we discover that Oprah, Ellen, Pat Sajak, Brian Williams or Steve Harvey used such epithets in the past?  Will we ditch them too?
• Do I think Edward Snowden is a traitor?  No.  A bad consultant? Definitely.  A spy?  Doubtful, but he did break his oath to the NSA and revealed what he knows.  No matter what that information was, he has to do the time for it.  He needs to turn himself in and recognize that you don’t get a get out of jail free card for stirring up a debate.  You still face the consequences of your actions.
• That being said, I don’t care that the NSA looks at the logs of who I call.  I don’t care that they have been given that access without my consent.  There are a few reasons why.  First, there is no expectation of privacy when it comes to my phone records.  The police can obtain that without a warrant any time they want (I think).  Besides, they don’t know the content of the conversation only the numbers I’ve called.  Second, I WANT my security forces equipped with the information they need to catch the really bad guys.  If looking at my cable TV records to see what shows I’m watching will help do that, by all means have at it.  Third, and I hate to admit it, there is NO right to privacy in the Constitution.  There are expectations of privacy set by businesses and services, sure.  There are limits to what law enforcement agencies can and can’t do, sure.  But in truth if it comes down to saving the country from an impending threat or caring that the government knows how often I call my parents, I’ll take the security.  Because here’s the real kicker: I’m a law abiding person.  I’m not hiding anything or trying to conduct illegal operations and avoid creating evidence of that activity.  I’m a good person.  I don’t care if the NSA has a record of whom I’ve called.  Have at it.  Just be careful not to go further than that.  That’s a dangerous slope that can lead to government oversight into what I say and do, and there ARE laws that protect that.
• Enjoyed the last season of “Mad Men” and pretty content with the season finale.  I thought the episode everyone was on speed was one of their best, and I cringed every time Bob and Duck showed up on screen.  Some characters just need to vanish (Ted).  Even still, I enjoy a show that doesn’t follow any pre-existing TV show template, lets characters grow and wither naturally (no matter how much it twists your guts to watch) and explores storylines with honesty and a creative energy that comes out in the performance and production.  Arguably, one of the best made shows on TV today.
• It must have been a REALLY slow news week last week.  Every time I looked at a TV while in Austin the only news anyone seemed to be covering was the death of James Gandolfini.  Don’t get me wrong, it’s sad to see a good actor die so young and unexpectedly.  But seriously, isn’t there some other important issues to talk about than the natural death of one person?  Weird.
• Speaking of Austin, enjoyed my trip there for the first time this week.  Nice people there, although a little rude when it comes to their driving.  Austin is spread out very much like Columbus is.  Downtown was very neat, especially at night, and I wouldn’t mind coming back and seeing a UT football game there.  What I really want to come back for is the BBQ.  So many spots left behind that could continue to bring such happiness to my world.
• I never wanted to be home so badly as I did this week.  I love working hard, but there is nothing that compares to spending time with Mindi and Alex.  I treasure every moment of my weekend with them more than any success I achieved down there.  3 days apart is the max I can do these days.  4 days was a killer.
• Got my first golf game of the year in and happy that I only whiffed the ball twice.  Even had a few shots go my way.  Definitely enjoyed hanging with Nathan and Kevin for the first time in what feels like an eternity.  Looking forward to getting some lessons this summer and getting out on a course more often.  Weird to see me write that.
• As much as I want to change my back porch, I really loved hanging out on it Saturday night, watching the super moon and enjoying a bottle of wine with Mindi.
• I learned more about cat puke this past weekend than I ever thought I would care to know.  If you want more details, just let me know and I’ll gladly share in this blog. 
• Got to a College World Series game before I left for Austin.  Sad to say it was quite possibly the most boring baseball game I’ve ever been to, and that says a lot!  The pitching and hitting were so slow and unexciting!  The most exciting thing to happen was to see the girl two rows in front of us get pelted by a foul ball, watch two separate teams of medics come to check on her (“CODE 69! Young MILF in section 120 needs medical assistance.  All mustache crews converge immediately!), and then listen to Mindi pick on her.  Hopefully the championship game tomorrow night will restore some of the zest of the event.  I’m definitely not scheduling a work trip over CWS week again.
• Can we all agree now that Kim Kardashian is too unimportant, stupid and worthless to spend so much time and energy following?  Who names their kid that???  She’s going to be picked on for years, no matter who her parents are.  High School is going to eat her alive.  Sad.
• Very happy that Danielle won “The Voice” last week.  While I thought Jordan had the best voice of all the contestants, Danielle was certainly the best of who was left.  I’m calling it here … she’s the next Carrie Underwood.  In four years she’ll have found her niche, gotten comfortable performing in front of huge crowds, and she’ll start winning awards.  Good for her!
• It feels good to be writing again.  I’m working to find a way to get it back into my work day life again.
• Also need to get back on the treadmill.  Just under three months until the Corporate Cup and I’m still a long ways from getting to a 10-min mile.

Have a great week everybody!

Random Thoughts for the Week of August 20, 2012

Well, we’re 8 days out from the move and 2/3 of the house is packed up and ready to go.  Now it’s just a matter of figuring out the logistics of moving 2 households, a 3-month old baby, a dog and a cat from Ohio to Nebraska … yeah … going to be a long week.  So, my thoughts this week and next week will be brief. 

• I remember watching Dr. Drew on Loveline back in High School and really appreciating his frank, scientific approach to the problems they dealt with on the show.  He was honest, amusing without being condescending and genuinely cared about the callers and their problems.  But since then he’s become quite the little poster child of celebrity psychoses.  Then he did a whole show on rehabbing celebrities and their various psychological issues/addictions.  Now it seems like every time someone does something crazy (ex. Junior Seau, the asshole in Aurora, etc.), Dr. Drew is there and ready to take the interview and diagnose the situation, rarely without talking to the person in question.  Huh.  So Dr. Drew now has 2 patients from his Celebrity Rehab show that have died as a result of the addictions the show failed to treat/cure.  Is it time we admit that Dr. Drew may not be the most qualified person to handle these situations?  I’m just saying that Jeff Conaway had some really serious problems, and dealing with them in front of a camera with a celebrity analyst may not have been the best decision.  Just sayin …
• So, is the recession really over?  I’m puzzled as to what criteria economists would use to make that decision.  I know what politicians and uneducated friends on Facebook are saying: the Dow is back up to where it was when Obama took office.  Well, that’s great and I know my 401(k) appreciates that, but is that really the best indicator of the state of our economy?  My dad, the financial advisor, always warned me about using the DJI as the sole-indicator and I think he’s right.  To me a better indicator has always been how much people are spending and saving.  If people are spending more, either on goods, services or investments and people are able to save then the economy is in good shape and you’d see stock prices go up and thus the DJI goes up.  Okay, good so far.  But if government spending goes up then taxes go up.  If taxes go up people tend to hold onto their money more, spending less and complaining more.  Seems like we’re still having a lot of the latter rather then the former, even since Obama took office.  And then there’s still the high unemployment rate, but I’m a little kinder on that since it’s not the job of the federal government to make someone work and study hard enough to get and keep a good job.  That falls more on the individual.  Even still when I see those Facebook posts saying how much things are better now than they were 4 years ago, I’m not sure I agree with 100% of what they’re saying.  I also want to add in how much their kids owed 4 years ago versus today …
• USC is going to be scary good in football.  I think it’s a credit to the program, coaches and history of the college that they managed to keep high-quality teams throughout their post-season ban.  I think other coaches and colleges (hint, hint Penn State) will be taking a long, hard look at how they did it and start emulating their practice and recruitment techniques.  Mark Barkley is going to be as household a name as Reggie Bush and Carson Palmer were in the day.
• I love that the Patriots gave Olympian silver medalist Jeff Demps a chance to play football again.  Demps bypassed the NFL Draft to focus on his Olympic training, and it paid off.  Now the former Gator RB has rededicated himself to football.  Good luck to you, Demps.  You’ve earned the chance.  Kudos to the Pats for giving it to him.  In ancient times Olympic athletes, especially the winners, were lavished with honors upon their return home.  Nice to see the U.S. can do this too, not just having the athletes on the late night talk shows.
• I really hope Andrew Luck does well, this year and in the future.
• I really hope the Jets suck this year.
• Watched the “Hard Knocks” episode where Chad Johnson got fired.  It hurt to watch.  Networks, take note.  “Hard Knocks” is a TRUE reality show.  Sure, the people on the screen know there are cameras there, but they really don’t change much because of it.  The authenticity I saw in that show blew me away, especially as they dealt with such a serious thing.  Would it get as many viewers as “Big Brother?” Sadly, no.
• Okay, “True Blood” got WAY better this last week.  I actually found myself holding my breath as to what would happen next.  Not many shows on today that can say that.
• Kearney Nebraska sent their first team to the Little League World Series this year.  Big time congrats to them and that community for doing what is normally done by coastal, metropolitan areas that recruit, train and play like semi-professional teams.  Something tells me the kids on the Kearney team had way more fun during their season than the other teams from California and Florida.
• RIP, William Windom.  You were a bigger actor in the day, but I remember when you played Commodore Decker in my favorite original Star Trek episode “The Doomsday Machine” with such straightforward insanity.  I loved to hate your character, and I learned not only what a commodore was because of the show but I learned there was a whole fleet of ships and thus my real love of starships was born.  I just watched that episode recently and wondered what happened to you.  I hope you lived a long and happy life.  Your little 1-hour journey into the final frontier had a lasting impact on my life.  Thanks!
• RIP, Tony Scott.  “Top Gun” and “Days of Thunder” are two movies that always got my adrenaline going.  “Crimson Tide” and “Spy Game” always hold my attention till the end if I’m channel surfing.  You were good and you’ll be remembered.
• This week the world rejoiced as Nicki Minaj stopped singing and talking.  Then they wept to find out she’ll be an American Idol judge.  Dear God I don’t even want to see commercials for that show.  Please let this season be the last season before even the train wreck gets too horrible to watch.
• I’m not a financial genius, but I think anyone who thought they’d make a great deal of money investing in Facebook doesn’t understand the fickle nature of social media and its user base.  Social media people don’t like ads.  They don’t like to be interrupted by a sales pitch even a little.  So if the users of these sites abhor advertising, how can those sites truly make money for investors when the money comes from the ads and not membership fees?  Yeah, I called that one.  And we won’t even talk about the whole trend/fad aspect of it.  lol
• After watching him on the Today Show, I was saddened to see for the first time just how much of a egotistical asshole Lionel Richie is.  I understand his daughter more now too.  Wow, it’s just all about him, him, him.  Yes, he’s a musical genius and “Can’t Slow Down” was the first pop album I ever owned.  Other than that, what a jerk.
• I just can’t get excited about using Google+ or LinkedIn.  I think updating my life in one place is enough.
• In my first FF draft this season I had to stretch and scrounge for players that had the best potential to bring in points.  There are so many injuries and so many players who are teamed with others it’s so hard to tell who’s going to be the FF best players this season.  Driving me crazy!

ALEXANDER UPDATE

• Alex had a great weekend with Nana while Mindi and I worked on packing.  It was also the first time I really got a good, hard look at how big he’s become.  Good Lord, he’s so huge compared to just a few months ago!  It’s crazy how fast they grow.  Yes, I know people told me that, but I thought it was just an expression. 
• It’s fun to watch Alex try to talk or touch the baby he sees in the mirror.  Keep trying, little guy.
• I swear, the minute I get out my phone or the video camera to record something, Alex stops doing it.  Better leave that stuff to mommy.
• Alex is talking more, grabbing more, holding his head up more, likes tummy time more, arches his back and sleeps a lot more.  Yeah, he’s a great little boy.
• So, how much longer does this bliss last?  I’ve got a bad feeling about what’s coming …

Random Thoughts for the Week of August 13, 2012

The Olympics are over, the Presidential race is now in full swing as we head towards the conventions and the Wendel Family is a mere 3 weeks away from moving back to Omaha.  So, lots to talk about this week:

MY LAST THOUGHTS ON THE 2012 OLYMPICS

• I think my favorite moment of the Olympics had to be seeing McKayla Maroney nailing, and I mean nailing, that vault in the team finals.  Hands down just an amazing piece of athletic greatness.  It only sucks that she couldn’t be as impressive in the individuals, and she’ll be remembered for her sneer on the awards podium rather than that first amazing vault.  Of course, it’s pretty hilarious what people have done with that sneer.  My favorite so far is replacing the Mona Lisa’s face with it.  Sorry, I digress … awesome, awesome vault. 
• I think if there were more parents as excited and actively involved with their kids’ performance as Aly Raisman’s and Missy Franklin’s parents or Michael Phelps’ mom, we’d have some pretty amazing kids today (i.e. not shooting each other with guns) … and some great videos of our wacky parents to share with the world.
• I think if I ever see Andrea Kramer asking athletes questions again I might just throw something at the TV.  She either found the most obvious/least interesting question to ask someone or she threw out what would be the most painful/embarrassing question at that moment.  I think it’s time for her to retire.
• 46 gold medals awarded to U.S. athletes in the past two weeks and we focus only on the celebrities.  Well, I guess there’s not much we can do about that, but the lousy 5 minutes Claressa Shields got for being the first gold medal boxer on the Today show was an embarrassment.
• Okay, I’ll admit it, I’m a huge Missy Franklin fan.  Why can’t Olympic greatness also be fun?  Seriously, even when she gave stock answers to questions I believed her humble, innocent sincerity.
• I would give anything to know what those athletes are listening to on their MP3 players before their matches.
• The IOC gave out 150,000 condoms to athletes this year.  Turns out the Olympic Village is quite the hookup zone.  Also turns out that some coaches encourage sex during competition as a stress and anxiety reducer.  Huh.
• Say what you will about his ego, Bolt can run the run. 
• I agree with Lolo Jones’ teammates who diverted attention from Jones’ second failure onto their success.  They’re teammates, yes, but they still won and should be honored for their achievement.  They don’t compare themselves to anyone else.  The media just latched onto Jones’ story and ballooned it enough to overshadow their moment in the sun.  Sad.
• In another life I’d so be hitting on Jessica Ennis.
• Tell me again … why are the riders of the horses awarded the medal and not the horses?  I guess the same could be said of cyclists and their bikes, but I think the cyclists actually had to exert themselves to win.  You know, like the horses did.
• It’s amazing to me how little the Nebraska ties to the games mattered to me.  Mindi would tell me this athlete went to UNL but all I thought was this was an U.S. athlete.  Huh.
• In the past two weeks I’ve tripled my knowledge of volleyball, water polo, beach volleyball, shooting, cycling, diving and swimming.
• Last week I said finishing fourth was probably the worst thing an Olympic athlete must deal with.  I still think that’s true, but the German diver who flopped square on his back … that’s a whole new level of failure.  Ouch … twice!
• The Olympics were well timed for the homebound Wendel family who not only had to care for a newborn but also pack up the home for the move in 3 weeks.  Great background viewing every night for two weeks.
• After watching the NBC special about the 1992 U.S. Men’s Basketball team, I am convinced now more than ever that there will never be a greater team in sports history.  Period.
• NBC has got to figure out a way to handle the time difference for sporting events in the future.  The Rio games of 2016 will only be 2 hours ahead of the U.S. so the delays will be far more tolerable.  But it’s a good bet that 4 years from now wireless signals and portable devices will balloon in usage to the point where Olympic coverage must be “real time.”  I don’t think you can tape delay events for primetime like they did this year and expect the same result.  I say ditch the primetime coverage, go live immediately after local news and give the time back to the local stations after.  Believe me, Extra and Inside Edition will still be on the air and just as irrelevant at 10:30 as they are at 6:30.
• Sadly the war in Syria continued during the Olympics as the government and rebel forces all but leveled the largest city in their country.  And 8 U.S. troops were killed in Afghanistan after visiting the home of a local they’d come to trust.  Yeah, the ancients did it way better than us in honoring peace during the Olympic Games.

WHAT I THINK ABOUT THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION NOW

• Well, I like the selection of Paul Ryan if for no other reason than he’s a seasoned Washington politician who actually knows what’s going on, unlike other VP candidates in the past 20 years.   But, wow, do he and I disagree on a LOT of things.  Sigh.
• Selecting Ryan has made the election about one thing: the economy.  Great!  I’m all for it.  Here’s the problem:  The electorate doesn’t understand the economy! 
• I think that fact should be clear to both campaigns. After months of commercials about how each candidate is making the economy worse on a local and national scale, the polls haven’t changed much for either candidate.  Here’s what the smart candidate should do (and for Romney it’s a great way to turn voters to him): Instead of showing the impact of the last 4 years on the present economy, focus on how much it’s going to cost Alexander and the other kids in the future to pay back the debt the spending of the last 4 years has created.  Just say something like “Imagine maxing out you credit cards and then handing them off to your kids to pay off when they’re 18.  Add in the interest between now and then, and then add in the fact that other countries (like China) are going to come collect the minute he graduates from high school.  How can you pay for it?  Alex gets pay more taxes.  And what happens to all these neat programs we sustained while Alex was growing up?  They’ll get cut to pay off the debt.”  I wonder if that would actually change any minds.  The only way to win this election is to convince people that the benefits of Obama’s health care plans do not outweigh the eventual costs of that program for our kids and our country down the road.  I don’t see that happening and we’ll get 4 more years of heavy government spending and 20 years of massive debt and interest that will make it that much harder for my son to make a living and support himself in the future. 
• Thankfully this election won’t be about social issues anymore.  Hey, I think Republicans need to get their heads out of the bible and into modern times and allow gay marriage.  I don’t think the government should have the right to tell a woman what she can do with her body.  I think it’s a protected right to burn the U.S. flag.  I don’t think the government should regulate or outlaw prayer in public schools, and I would prefer it if the kids said the pledge of allegiance every day at school to develop a sense of patriotism for their home country.  Alas, all of those things will disappear if Romney wins.  You know what, I’ll let the lawyers and the courts deal with those decisions.  Right now I need my government to spend less and spend it in the right places, and that won’t happen if Obama is re-elected.
• I also want Congress to get some work done, but I’m honestly not sure if that will ever be possible again in my lifetime, even if a single political party controls Congress and the White House.  I think the desire to win is far more important to politicians than actually making things better for Americans.  USA Today reported today the 2012 Congress has only passed 61 laws this year and is on track to be the most unproductive Congress in history.  Not surprised.

And now, for more important things …

• Every picture, every update from Curiosity just gets me more and more excited!  Such amazing things to be discovered in the coming months.  For now, it’s amazing to discover how much the folks back here on Earth can still get excited about science and exploration and achievement, not just bitching about the billions of dollars spent to send a robot to Mars.
• “Mad Men.”  I don’t get it.  I like it a lot, but I think there’s some artsy thing about it I’m missing.  Maybe I’m too busy focusing on Christina Hendricks’ bust or how great those cigarettes and scotch must taste.
• “True Blood” … I liked it more when it was about vampires and rednecks.  Still, the boobies are nice.
• “The Newsroom” – Started strong but now slowing down for me.  I think every scene Sam Waterston is in is 10x better than every other scene.  More screen time for John Gallagher, Jr. would be a good idea.  I’m on the fence about Olivia Munn; easy to look at and a decent character, but not sure what her role is there other than to look good.  Some great one-liners though.
• So a kid in Columbus played XBox for 3 days and got dehydrated.  Not sure which is dumber … a kid going 3 days without water for a video game or the parent that didn’t wonder at the end of day 1, “Hey, where’s my kid and did he have any dinner?”
• I never noticed before, but have you noticed how so many things happened to people in Ohio?  Weird how so much you hear about nationally happened here.
• Joss Whedon writing and directing Avengers 2.  Pure awesome!
• Chad Johnson.  Nuff said.  Getting what he deserved by marrying a media hound.  Rather than dealing with the issue in her family, she called the cops.  She knew exactly what she was doing. When I found out they’d already had a “reality” show planned to air on VH1, I know exactly why she called.  Too bad it didn’t turn out the way she’d hoped.  Good luck in obscurity, losers.
• I’m really uncomfortable with the Packers’ running game.
• I really don’t like the new Husker uniforms.
• FF drafts are starting.  With so many players coming off injuries and so many changes in teams, I think this is one of the least uncertain seasons I’ve ever played in.  I definitely don’t think there are any guarantees going in.

ALEXANDER UPDATE

• Alexander loves to talk.  Click here to check out the video Mindi took.  We’re getting better at this video thing, so I hope to have more in the future.  I swear he’s got something profound to say, he just doesn’t have the words yet.
• The mixed expression of amusement and frustration that comes over Alex’s face when I boop his nose warms my heart every time.
• Alex continues to sleep from 9:30 PM through 7:00 AM consistently, which is a welcome thing.  He’s not a big fan of trying to roll over as yet, and he’s slowly getting the hand of his hands.
• I love it when Alex’s head follows me as I walk across the room and back to my office to work.  It makes it hard to leave though.

Random Thoughts for the Week of August 6, 2012

In just this past week I think I’ve seen the best and worst that mankind can be.  I find it strange and sad that we can have a week, at any time, where both sides of human nature can be so publicly and vividly expressed.  Why can’t we have more of the good than the bad?

THE GOOD (well GREAT)

• In ancient times the Olympic athletes were truly the best of the best.  They represented the most fit, mentally capable, confident, strong and, put simply, the best humans on the planet (ex. Heracles).  After watching this past week of Olympic feats I think that hasn’t changed much.  Those athletes are at the top of their games.  They have such fitness , discipline, endurance and an insatiable drive to win.  It’s as inspiring to watch them lose as it is to cheer for their victories.  They are the best role models for us all.
• The U.S. may be last in math and engineering in schools, but we just landed a massive mobile laboratory on another planet.  NASA and its engineers display ingenuity, expertise and intellectual greatness that never makes it into the papers or onto TV.  Whether you realize it or not, they are out there making the world a better place and raising the bar for human achievement.

THE BAD

• I don’t know why that idiot felt it was necessary to walk into a temple and start shooting people.  I don’t understand that mentality at all.  How can things be so bad, people so horrible that the only solution is to kill them with a gun?  Truly such thinking is the worst of humanity today.
• 31 people were shot in Omaha in the month of July.  Truly people have no idea how to be neighbors, even in such a wonderful town as Omaha. 
• The New York Post continues to write about incidents in the city where a simple argument escalates to gun play and death.  Gun owners in New York must be some of the dumbest people on the planet, right up there with gang members in Omaha.
• Congress, the President and the Republican nominee are all unwilling to even talk about gun control laws during an election year.  Wow.  How cowardly is that?  There are people out there getting guns who shouldn’t have them!  We’re not saying ban all guns or even ban certain types of guns (although I still need someone to convince me they need an assault rifle and body armor in their home).  We’re saying do more to keep the guns out of the hands of the fucking idiots in the world.  That’s the responsibility of our government oversight.  Alas, the power of the electorate and the lobbyist is too strong.  Some day other issues are going to hamstring our government (abortion, health care, budgeting, etc.) and nothing will ever get accomplished.  The only thing I’ve seen Congress get done in all of 2012 is to pass the continuing resolution to spend as money as we have been to keep the government running.  I wouldn’t say our Congress has earned their paycheck this year.  The background check for guns people either.  I guess what I’m saying is maybe it’s time for the end of the professional politician.  If a party of candidates were formed by people willing to take 2, 4 or 6-year terms away from their normal jobs to serve and not get re-elected I’d bet we’d get some things done in this country.  I’ll have to think more on that and write about it later.
• The father of a friend of mine decided to be with a friend and probably get drunk rather than stay and support his family. He threatened to kick them out of the house. If we can’t even support the people closest to us, how can we possibly survive? You support your family. Period. No matter how bad it gets, you stick with them. He’s an idiot. I hope counseling will help him to recognize this and work to make things better for himself and the whole family.
• The ancient Olympic athletes would have had some creative ways to deal with the Badminton players who deliberately played poorly in their matches this week.  I hope they’re banned for life from the “sport.”  I hope the other athletes in the Olympic Village pepper them with so much ridicule that they leave and never return.  I hope the Badminton officials rethink how matches are setup to avoid such pathetic attempts to position teams into better playoff spots.  The Olympic Games are about the being the best of the best of the best.  I don’t see how deliberating losing a game, in any sport, demonstrates that mentality.  Fuck them.

WHAT ELSE I THOUGHT ABOUT THE OLYMPICS SO FAR

• Why the hell is Badminton an Olympic sport anyway?  Seriously.  Tiny little racquets.  A shuttlecock.  A dinky little net.  Sorry, I don’t see athletic greatness in this event.  I see a backyard game that kids play.  Might as well make cornhole an Olympic event.
• Same with water polo.  Yes, it’s a tough, physical game.  But as I watched those players with their silly little hats, all I could think about was playing in the pool in elementary school when we were anything by Olympic in our play and stature.  It’s just silly.
• I’m unqualified to say whether Michael Phelps is the greatest Olympian athlete ever.  There’s nearly 100 years of athletes and achievements to compare him to.  He’s obviously the most decorated and successful Olympian, based on medal count alone, and that’s no small feat.  That means he defeated dozens and dozens of other exceptional athletes, all of whom qualified to be there.  But is he the “greatest ever?”  That’s a huge statement to make, especially if you compare a modern athlete to Heracles, one of the first Olympian athletes.  For me, the “greatest ever” would have had to accomplished something that no man has ever achieved, overcome such odds and competition time and time again that he has no equal, and the achievement is one that may not be duplicated again in our lifetime.  So, yeah, I guess he qualifies, but I can’t say for sure if there’s someone else who does or has done that and more.  Phelps can swim like a fish, no doubt, and he’s one of the best examples of a professional and selfless athlete I’ve seen since Michael Jordan.  But do his achievements overshadow Bolt’s blazing speed, the fitness greatness of gymnasts, or so many others?  It’s hard for me to say for sure.  Right now though, he’s at the top of the pyramid and he’s earned it.
• I got to watch some of the Olympic fencing this week.  Really enjoyed seeing that the sport has evolved in all the right ways.  Do I miss fencing?  Only a little.  I doubt I’ll show up in Omaha and join the fencing club, but it’s not impossible.  I think the thing I loved most about fencing was my team and its coaches.  That’s something that just can’t be duplicated.
• I can think of few things worse for a professional athlete than finishing fourth.  So close to greatness.  So mired in obscurity.  It’s probably worse than finishing dead last.
• People, Gabby Douglas won a gold medal in gymnastics.  That’s a really, really, really, really hard thing to do, especially for someone as young as her.  Really, you’re going to give her shit about her hair?  Fuck off and learn to take pride in someone’s achievements.
• The more I look at it the more I love the Olympic torch.  Brilliant in its simplicity.  If I were an athlete in that stadium, every time I looked at it I’d be inspired to greatness.
• London may be the greatest site for the Olympics ever.  I love the fact that this booming, modern city is host to so many people with such diversity in its offerings and appearance.  I love the fact that the equestrian and beach volleyball stadiums are within spitting distance of the royal palace itself.  They built a fucking waterway!!  I’m amazed the more I see it.  On top of just the physical locations the citizens of the country come out to watch and cheer, six rows deep on rainy days.  I’m not sure you’d get that in Los Angeles, Chicago or New York.  The British should be very proud of this year’s events.

And now, on to other shit …

• So, this whole Chick-fil-A thing … I feel I should chime in considering how hard I came down on the Boy Scouts a few weeks ago for their stance on homosexuality.  But then the more I thought, read and talked about it, the more I realized the two situations aren’t even in the same fucking ballpark.  The BSA, an organization dedicated to the education and moral development of kids, demonstrated discrimination in their policy and should be punished for it by abstaining from its activities.  Chick-fil-A is in the business of selling chicken sandwiches.  Who cares what their CEO believes?  He’s entitled to his opinions.  He has the right to express them publically.  But you know what, his company does not have specific policies that says they won’t hire gays or serve gays.  They do have a policy that says they won’t be open on Sundays so employees and their families can attend church services, and no one is up in arms about not getting a chicken sandwich on a summer Sunday afternoon.  People can disagree with the CEO, but chastising the entire company is ridiculous.  If you want to protest the CEO by not eating there, that’s fine, but I don’t see any justification for mayors to deny the restaurant business opportunities in their cities.  That’s just taking it one step too far.  Hopefully the pundits and the courts will recognize it, then maybe the public will too.  I think if I boycotted a company because of the ethical opinions of it’s senior management I probably wouldn’t do business with any company except NASA.
• It’s been so hot this year the Mississippi River hit 91 degrees.  That is just crazy to me.  What sucks is I’ll never really know if it IS because of global climate change because I can’t trust any scientist or politician to tell me the truth about the situation because of their own agendas.  Sad.
• Can’t wait to see pictures from Curiosity.  Seriously, the greatest achievement by engineers since the invention of the iPhone.  Impressive!
• Kudos to NASA for investing in private companies to get astronauts back into space.  What sucks is these new spaceships are going to be so boring looking.  We’re going backwards in our designs to simple Apollo capsule designs rather than the starship Enterprise.  Why can’t space travel be comfortable and elegant as well as practical?
• I never knew it, but NFL players are charged $5,000 in fines each time they do a Lambeau Leap (for either excessive celebration or leaving the playing field, I’m not sure).  Crazy.  I’m glad they do it anyway.
• Wow, with the Olympics, the Wisconsin shooting and everything else going on, did anyone even notice that the NFL Hall of Fame Induction and game was this weekend?  I didn’t and it happened only 2 hours away from me!  Granted, I’m not a big fan of any of this year’s inductees (although I did get one good FF year from Curtis Martin).  Even still, the NFL pre-season starts Thursday.  From an FF perspective I am way, way, way behind schedule this year … I wonder why …
• I came upon an article about Tiki Barber who left his 8-month pregnant wife to shack up with an intern with NBC.  What’s sad about it is that he’s given multiple interviews in the past lambasting his father who dumped his wife for another woman.  Then here he comes along and does the same thing.  Hypocrites drive me crazy.
• Hang in there, Pastor Bill.  God has given you many challenges in your life.  This is just one more.  He also has way too many other things for you to add your special talents to.  Peace and long life to you, sir.
• After listening to “Balls in Your Mouth” I have a new found respect for Eddie Vedder’s musical abilities.  Sure, his own songs are weird, depressing and not that interesting, but his vocal range and his musical talent are quite impressive.

ALEXANDER UPDATE

• Well, Mindi survived and thrived three days without any help around the house.  No surprise to me there.  What was a surprise was the arrival of all new growing tantrums that resulted in erratic eating and sleeping habits in our little monkey.  Mindi adjusted very well and got the job done.
• Modern technology allowed Mindi to send me pictures and videos of my son while I was in California.  If there’s any greater benefit from those advancements in our society, I’m not sure what they are … well … maybe curing a few diseases would be nice, but I sure loved the video of my son talking. 
• Alex is definitely finding his voice.  It’s an adorable voice and I can’t get enough of it.  We’ve been able to get a little dialogue going.  I think he is just loving talking! 
• Alex is now sleeping from 9:30 till 6-6:30 each night. I honestly didn’t think that happened until closer to 6 months in. I’m grateful that both Mindi and I can get full nights’ sleep now. If only we didn’t have other stresses in our lives …
• I also get the feeling he wants to be able to move around on his own more.  He enjoys sitting up (well, propped up by us) and he wiggles with more intensity now, as if he’s got somewhere he wants to go.  He just hasn’t realized yet that he has the ability to move on his own.  When he does, God help us.

Random Thoughts for the Week of July 30, 2012

• There are a few news agencies I check in with every day: CNN.com (good summary site), USA Today (excellent writing/reviews), Omaha.com (hometown news), NY Post (those wacky New Yorkers and their crazy perspectives on what’s important) and NBC 4 here in Columbus (trustworthy, entertaining).  In every single one of these sources this past week I found at least 3-4 articles reporting senseless, random acts of gun violence.  In many cases they were drive-by shootings (gang-related or not, doesn’t matter) or random arguments that escalated into gunplay.  Give me a fucking break, people.  There are real idiots in the world, people who are using up vital natural resources and oxygen better used by weeds, and they all seem to not only have guns (obtained legally, I’d bet) but also a lack of common sense and humanity that would prevent them from using the gun to solve their problems.  Let them all rot away in prison, I say (in a very non-Christian manner).  They shot or killed innocent children without any regard for their safety much less the consequences!  What a sad, pathetic waste of human life, all of them.
• Read an interesting article on CNN.com asking where God was during the Aurora shootings.  I think the best point the author made was not answering the base question of the article but rather reminding us of a simple fact of existence:  God does not guarantee a life free of suffering.  The Bible, as flawed as it is, is ripe with human suffering created by man and God alike. Buddha said it himself, it’s the #1 Noble Truth in our existence: we will experience suffering.  It’s how we choose to deal with it that helps define our humanity.  As Mindi put so well God was there in Aurora, no doubt.  But it’s not God’s place to stay the hand of assholes with guns (obviously based on last week’s article count), but more to support a world where we as humans must make the conscious choice (i.e. free will) to use violence or not.  God’s “plan” is not to say that 12 people shall die in Aurora.  God’s plan, if you want to call it that, is to have a world where people live their lives, make choices, thrive and from time-to-time experience suffering.  The rest is up to us.  God will be there to comfort us and encourage us to be our best if we look for him.  At least that’s what I think. 
• Steve Smith of the Carolina Panthers donated $100K to the families of the victims of the Aurora shooting. I have a totally new view of the man now. I’m disappointed that so little press was given to this. I think it was classy of the local hospitals to also get together and unload the bills from the victims as well. God’s at work there, folks.
• RIP, Barb Magner.  You too experienced suffering in your life, although you worked hard to ensure it did not impact your friends at PCM.  You were always there at bell choir with a smile, a joke and you found such great delight and pleasure in making the beautiful music you did.  You will be missed in the choir and in the church.
• Does anyone use those wide-ruled, black and white composition books anymore?  I swear I went through almost 20 years of schooling without using one once.  I have to think so since they’re still on the shelves for school supplies shopping.  Weird.  I for one am not a big fan of wide-ruled paper.  Even still, they have a “classic” sense to them that I’m glad is still in use today, if not by the Millard Public School system.
• Walking through Target the other day I flashed back to how much I LOVED school supply shopping as a kid.  The right folders and Trapper Keeper did more to ensure a fun school year than any piece of clothing or grade I got.
• Wow, is anyone surprised by Kristen Stewart’s behavior?  All I know is the tours for the release of the last Twilight film are going to be painful for everyone to participate in or watch, no matter how good/bad the movie is.
• Happy 39th Birthday to my best friend Kevin this week on August 1.  May this year be filled with twice the blessings of the last year.  By the time he turns 40 he’ll be a new man.  Proud of you, Schmedley!
• Also proud of my brother Tom for losing enough weight this past week to make it under 200 pounds for the first time in years.  Keep it up, dude!
• Mindi and I had a good first week back on the MyFitnessPal food logging.  Mindi can fit into her pre-pregnancy pants, and I can see my neck again.  A good start.    Our weigh-ins are Wednesday mornings so the plug-in will update then.
• Stay away from moving brokers.  They’re just as annoying as telemarkers.  Just deal with the moving companies directly.
• I enjoyed visiting the Cleveland Indians’ stadium this past week for a game.  They played like shit (at least until after we left), but I don’t care as much.  Baseball stadiums are, to me, as interesting as half-complete Greek/Roman temples (or ruins, as they’re normally called).  Each stadium has its own personality, its own design philosophy and its own way of enhancing the experience of watching a baseball game.  As America’s pastime (real or imagined), a great deal of thought and art is put into stadiums.  So I want to see as many of them as I can before I die.  Happy to cross that one off the list.  Progressive Field is very new but holds true to some older designs.  It didn’t feel as constrictive as the Diamondbacks’ stadium but lacked the openness off the Clippers/Stormchasers stadiums.  The hot dog was average to below average (just like the Indians themselves).  The crowd barely got into the game, even while the starters were announced.  Kinda sad.
• I need to start a list and scoring sheet for all these baseball stadiums!

WHAT I THINK ABOUT THE OLYMPICS SO FAR

• Mindi is an admitted Olympics Junkie, so the TV has been on all weekend as we watched (primarily Ryan Lochte) game after game.  I don’t mind one bit.
• In fact, I think one of the coolest things about the Olympics is my ability to watch any sport/event on the iPad if it isn’t already on one of a half-dozen NBC channels (conveniently organized by DirectTV to easily find the sport we want).  It was fun watching cycling on the TV Saturday morning with women’s foil on the iPad with the same HD-quality picture.  I think it’s using technology at its finest, providing us with real-time access to events around the world.  Add to that the social media aspect where we can get the first-hand opinions of the participants, viewers and commentators via Facebook, Twitter, etc.  More and more experiencing something somewhere else in the world becomes more and more real, no matter where we are.  The world is flat, indeed.
• That being said, NBC made a massive and surprisingly obvious mistake in setting up such easy access:  we know what happens before primetime TV coverage starts!  In the past Olympics, the network that covered the event had the benefit of tape-delay as well as the lack of a 24/7 news cycle that could report the results overseas before they could be re-broadcast in primetime where the real money is made.  So far, after three days of events, the viewers in the U.S. already knew the outcome hours before they are broadcast on NBC.  I know why NBC is doing it.  Primetime is when the real money is made, and that’s what they’re here for: to make money.  Even still, it’s a little pie in their face trying to hype up the importance or surprise of a result when whatever feeling has been absorbed and processed LONG before we actually see it on screen.  I doubt NBC would be able to make money if they limited Olympic coverage to just LIVE viewings, so I don’t blame them for showing the big events in the evenings.  For those Americans who do not have Facebook, Twitter or basic Internet access this is the only way they can experience the Olympics.  Well, them and hardcore watchers like Mindi and I who simply enjoy watching it, even if we already read the spoilers.  I think NBC will take the pie in the face but keep the money they make.
• The opening ceremonies were odd.  It was like watching a mural we made in Elementary school come to life.  The most amazing moments to me were the 5 gold Olympic rings showering the floor with sparks (great camera angle) and the lighting of the Olympic torch.  I love that torch.  Not just a single torch for the events, but a culmination of every participating country.  It was amazing to see.  I don’t like that it’s hidden away from the participants inside the stadium, but it is one of the coolest torches I’ve seen since the Atlanta games.
• What a waste of a great James Bond moment.  The series has been around for 60 years and not once did Bond share the same screen as real royalty.  And here, in this great first time, the opportunity was short, quiet and frankly not that entertaining.  Did I want Bond to hit on the Queen?  No, but a little more interaction would have been lovely.  Maybe a little thank you from the Queen for destroying so much of British property or wooing British girls.  But, I guess her Majesty wasn’t quite up for so much Hollywood and did the bare minimum.  Too bad.  I know the Brits love their Queen, but if she showed a little youth and energy the World would have loved her. 
• I looked it up.  The “Olympic Anthem” they play when they raise the Olympic flag is not used for commercials or on TV.  The song they use the most is the “Bugler’s Dream” which was written back in the 1950’s.  It’s the brass triumph that plays almost in every commercial.  I remember it most because it played in all the Olympic computer games I played as a kid (everyone remember Decathlon with Bruce Jenner?).  The “Olympic Fanfare and Theme” from the 1984 games (the first set of games I ever watched) was written by John Williams is used a lot too and rightfully so.  It’s a magnificent piece and should last long, long after I’m dead and gone.  I think each time we hear that music we get jazzed up for the amazing displays of human greatness we’re about to see.
• Yeah, you can add “carry the Olympic torch” to my bucket list.  Even for a 10-25 mile stretch, it would be a moment I’d cherish forever.
• You know what amazes me most?  The multitude of people who lined the streets of England for the cycling events.  This is a 60-mile+ track, and the entire stretch was covered by spectators, 3 rows deep in some places.  That just fucking amazes me.  That’s dedication on the party of the host country.  Amazing!
• I’ll probably make plenty of references to the Ancient Olympics in the coming weeks, but I’ll just make one here.  In the Ancient Olympics, when the games were played all wars were stopped in honor of the games.  If only that were still true today.

ALEXANDER UPDATE

• One of my favorite things in the world now is being a human pillow for my son.  I could do it for hours and hours.
• We’ve moved Alex into jumpers for his evenings.  So far, so good.  We can’t swaddle him forever, you know. 
• I could spend my entire weekend watching Alex wiggle on the couch.  I’ve never seen anyone simply enjoy moving his arms and legs as much as he does.
• I’m in California most of the week for work.  I know Mindi will rock it out here by herself while I’m gone, but I’ve got a good feeling that when I get back I get to do a TON of the feeding and diaper changes for a while. LOL.  I’m okay with that.

Random Thoughts for the Week of July 23, 2012

• Yet another horrific massacre brought on by insanity and access to military-grade guns and equipment.  When we will start taking better care of each other?  Will we ever remember what it meant to be neighbors like our grandparents did?  When we will start to see that when we take a gun out of our homes it is for only one purpose: to hurt someone else.  And don’t give me any bullshit about self-defense.  You’re just extending the problem deeper and deeper, making it okay to always have a gun, always use it to resolve a problem and make it acceptable to use in any situation.  Keep your guns in your homes, locked up and used only for those most important of situations.  And visit your kids to make sure they’re okay and not planning anything horrible.
• I can’t tell you how disappointed I am with the Boy Scouts of America and their decision to ban gay members.  As a former Eagle Scout who went through the program I can understand the antiquated, closed-minded, Judeo-Christian culture the BSA is based on and how that culture has been reaffirmed by their decision.  I was never the best of Eagle Scouts, but I’d gladly return my award as a gesture of disapproval of their discriminatory decision.  Will I keep Alex out of the Boy Scouts because of their decision?  Yes, I probably will.  I learned a lot from the Boy Scouts.  In truth the things I really needed to learn in BSA I learned from my leaders and my fellow scouts, not the sanctioned BSA program (I remember learning about AC/DC from Jay Kenyon more than I do anything about tying knots or making sure my uniform was on correctly).  Until the BSA joins the 21st century and accepts the fact that we live in a multicultural world with numerous belief systems that all should be respected, I think I’ll send Alex to public school for the things he could learn from the BSA with Mindi and my teachings about how individuals can have their own beliefs and that they should be shared, respected, discussed and often explored, not just condemned outright.
• Penn State got screwed by the NCAA, and the Board of Trustees of the university should be up in arms that they weren’t even consulted before the university agreed to the sanctions against them.  What a clusterfuck.  The NCAA moved at lightspeed to demonstrate they won’t tolerate behavior like this.  Great, but now they’ve left the door WIDE open for future infractions by other universities to get the fast track on the way judgment.  No longer will committees and due process win out, the NCAA executives can just come up with their own discipline (crippling in some cases) and impose judgment.  I think the university has strong grounds for an appeal, and I hope they do appeal.  Even still, I do like the NCAA punishing the football program by taking away all wins since 1998.  It demonstrates unequivocally how actions like those of Paterno and the university have severe costs, for the players, coaches, reputation and legacy of even the most revered of people (like Paterno).  It sucks for the current players, but it’s the legacy that took the biggest hit and that’s where it was needed.  Let’s see how the appeal turns out.
• I think it’s pretty clear that Joe Paterno did some things to cover up for his friend Sandusky, despite the stern assertion from his family that he did not.  So, how does that affect his legacy?  It’s a difficult question to answer.  Do we still cheer on Barry Bonds’ home run record after his significant weight and muscle gain in such a short time?  Do we forgive Pete Rose or Michael Vick or Pacman Jones?  Yeah, none of them are fair comparisons.  None of them got caught protecting a serial child rapist.  I think it’s in the best interests of Penn State to remove Paterno’s name from any building or program that bares his name.  His name is forever tarnished, there’s no way around it.  The university would do well to distance themselves from Paterno the Man.  However, Nittany Lions fans can continue to savor, to the best of their abilities, the legacy of Paterno the Coach.  He served as a leader, mentor and role model for thousands of players.  Yes, he made HUGE mistakes, but even the greatest of our heroes did.  They still did heroic things, and those deeds should never be completely forgotten.  Were the positions different and Tom Osborne was accused of such things, as a Nebraska fan I’d feel the same inner conflict that thousands of Penn State alumni share today.  In the end, I think I have enough respect for the game and the roles our heroes play in it to respect Paterno the Coach, even though Paterno the Man let me and countless others down.  Looks like they announced they’re taking the statue down though.  I guess even Paterno the Coach has been brought down off his pedestal (literally).  So be it.
• Not that I care much, but kudos to Katie Holmes for seeing to the best interests of her daughter and herself despite the certain media avalanche that will haunt them for years to come.  Kudos also to her and Cruise for ending so quickly that which Christine Brinkley failed to do after years of hearings and public battles.  Suri is guaranteed a long life constantly in the limelight.  At least now when she’s out of a bad situation so she can live a life that is better for her.
• I think one of the best things I ever did in my life was go to therapy.  Yes, it sucked.  Yes, it hurt.  It hurt like nothing else could.  But there are numerous aspects of my life that do not haunt me or disrupt my life today because I went.  Had I not got to therapy those fractures in my life would have continued and my life would not be as rich as it is today.  It was hard as hell, and I cringe to remember the feelings I felt, but I am so glad that I went through all that.  It was the only way I could have achieved the happiness I have today, I’m certain of that.
• I’m not sure which diet and exercise plan to use.  I’ll explore that more in the coming weeks.  I can’t afford a gym right now and am not too keen about any of the big name plans.  Less calories in, more calories out, day in, day out.  Might be the only way to do it this time.  We’ll see.  I think Mindi and I are going to start back with MyFitnessPal to start and see how it goes.  More on that to come.
• Right now the number of bad days at my job are far outweighing the good ones.  Were situations different I’d be looking for another job.  It’s sad that the recession and economy are still in such bad shape that I’m reluctant to start a new job elsewhere at the risk of it being cut back, almost to the point of staying in my current position until retirement.  Unless I were to go to work for a mega-company (something which is not terribly appealing), I’m kinda screwed for now.  We’ll revisit in a year or so.
• With all the other things going on in my life it’s hard to get psyched for the coming FF season … but I’m going to try.
• Chad Ochocinco is Chad Johnson again.  Yawn.
• I liked the “Man of Steel” teaser trailers.  Very cognitive approach, using the voice over of Superman’s two fathers.  My main concern is with the final story.  There’s only so many times you can tell the same story again and again (The Amazing Spider-Man, anyone?) before it gets old hat.  Hopefully they’ll do something new and/or interesting to separate it out (i.e. Batman Begins).  We’ll see.
• I think it’s yet another achievement for Sally Ride that she lived her life (a life dedicated to science and math) without making her homosexuality the defining element of her life.  We place so much importance in the sexuality of our celebrities, and in Ride’s case our heroes, when I think she demonstrated just how unimportant it really is.  Sally Ride will forever been enshrined for the deeds she did as an astronaut, educator and scientist.  I doubt girls in 2083 will care that she was gay when they celebrate the 100th anniversary of her first shuttle mission.  Hopefully our society will have evolved to that point to be as enlightened as Dr. Ride was.  Godspeed, Sally.
• I think it was really classy of Christian Bale to visit the victims of the Aurora shooting.  I honestly don’t care if he was there on his own or at the request of Warner Bros.  He was there.  That puts him above so many others who won’t be or haven’t been in the past.  Good for you, Mr. Bale.

ALEXANDER UPDATE

• Alex continues to grow and grow and grow.  He’s now close to 11 lbs and 22 inches long.  I love my growing boy, but every now and then I miss tiny Alex who I could easily hold in one arm.  Perhaps that’s what people really mean when they tell me to enjoy every day.  Every day my boy changes and isn’t the same as the day before.  Advice noted, friends.
• One of the best moments of my last week was when Alex slept on my shoulder for several hours over the weekend.  I spend so much time back here in this office, I can’t begin to describe how wonderful it was to sit there with him, make him feel warm and safe, and hear his little sighs.  Yeah, I’m a softy.
• Alex is slowly discovering his voice.  He certainly has discovered how to turn his cry/wail up to an 11 when he needs to.  He and Mindi had the most adorable talking session (well, coos and ahhs) that I just missed getting a video of.  That moment will make me happy for weeks to come.
• If I were Alex I’d be totally stoked about the size of his room in the Omaha house.  I hope he thanks us properly someday.

Random Thoughts for the Week of July 16, 2012

Two weeks without a blog!  I know, I apologize.  We just got back from a whirlwind visit to Omaha.  The next 6 weeks look to be nothing but insanity for me and the family.  Should be a fun ride.  But, I’m back now and ready to entertain you with all the myriad of thoughts running through my massive cranium (apparently a genetic trait).

• RIP, Dick Dasenbrock.  You were always one of my favorite members of PCM.  You were the first to welcome me back from college with a warm handshake and a “Greetings, Mr. Wendel.”  You were the first person to call me Mr. Wendel with respect, and I’ll always appreciate you for that.  With every visit and handshake we shared, I respected and liked you more and more.  I know you treated everyone around you with the same courtesy that is difficult to find these days.  I will miss seeing you in the halls of the church but know you will always be watching over Barb and your wonderful family.  God bless you, sir.
• If you ask me, “American Idol” is done and over with.  I think it’s a good thing if TV executives realize when a good thing has run its course and end it gracefully.  ABC could have milked “Lost” for years, but it would have driven the fan base nuts and away from the network.  I think FOX needs to follow their example and focus efforts on X Factor or a new show.  An Idol winner hasn’t had a major career for years and there’s a reason for that.  We stop caring about the contestants once the winner is announced (including the winner).  We’ve moved on to the next thing.  Time for them to do the same.
• So, let’s take a look at how many NFL players have been arrested in the off-season … hmm … I’m thinking that Alex will have to look elsewhere for role models if this keeps up.  I can think of close to an even dozen starters who have been arrested since the Super Bowl.  Grow up, idiots.  You’re professional football players.  Be professional.
• NBA trades … zzzz.
• Other sports could learn a lot from Wimbledon.  Look at the system designed for to determine if a ball was in/out for a player challenge.  The system shows, within seconds, whether the ball was in/out.  How fucking hard would that be to put on a football field?  Was it a first down?  I don’t know, let’s just consult the loose chain dangling between two flags held by individuals who may/may not have started at exactly the right place … yeah … time for the NFL stadiums to check out that technology.  I’m not saying get rid of the chains just yet, but let’s give it a trial run for a season and see if the tech can get the job done.
• I think some of the most professional people in the world are the line judges at Wimbledon.  Those folks take their jobs seriously, and why not?  One poor judgment can change a game/tournament!  Watching those judges as they shift from spot to spot, focusing their gaze and setting their stance, moving effortlessly to avoid a 125-mph shot heading right for them.  They have a grace and dignity that is lacking in modern sports.  It’s almost as fun to watch them as the tennis!  I sure can’t see Ed Hocoli doing that.
• Mindi and I have started watching “Mad Men” on Netflix.  I’m not sold on it yet, but I will give them kudos for transporting us back to the 1960’s effortlessly in each episode.  The costumes, sets and attitudes are flawlessly recreated, right down to the 3-scotch lunches and an endless supply of cigarettes.  Now, I think they’re trying to do something artsy with the storylines, but I haven’t put my finger on it yet.  All I see is a bunch of characters treading water in their personal and professional lives.  Just waiting for someone to start drowning.  I’ll keep at it for a bit longer.
• Mudslinging has taken a new form in this election.  It’s a  wonderfully subtle method both sides are using.  They take a single fact from the opponent’s career or recent public statements and build countless speeches, commercials, press releases and so much more to hammer home the mistake the individual made.  It’s not exactly a body blow, but it’s good, small jabs that might take a guy out of the match.  There's still one thing I haven’t heard from either candidate: how to get Congress to start doing its job.
• I’m pretty neutral about Obamacare, although I’m more against it than pro.  I think we should remove the preexisting condition clause for insurance companies.  Not only because I’m affected by it, but because there so many more serious cases and they should get the help they need.  I am against the deliberate taxing of citizens who choose (for whatever reason) to not get health insurance.  Huh?  I haven’t heard a single Democrat, including the President, offer an explanation of how this is not a new tax.  The thing that bugs me the most is the price tag for this initiative.  It puts this country so much farther into debt it makes my head spin.  And what does it change about how we allow health care to run in this country?  Very little, in my opinion.  I think it has far more negative impact than positive on small doctor practices, insurance companies and on the single, healthy folks whose premiums front those people with bad, bad luck health-wise.  I still think Congress should have instead set limits to malpractice claims to help stabilize and reduce malpractice insurance which would lower the doctors’ costs which would reduce the cost for health care overall.  Then you find a way to make medical school bills more affordable (can anyone say tax credits?) and encourage our doctors to become doctors for reasons other than big paychecks.  Yes, it’d take years to fix, but I think it’d have a much better long-term effect than Obamacare.  Time will tell.  In the meantime I’ll vote for Romney just so he can repeal it.  Then I’ll just watch him screw up other things.
• You know what made me smile reading the news recently?  The number of articles asking again and again why we should care that Kourtney Kardashian had a kid.  Yes, congrats to her and the family.  Same congrats I given to the hundreds of families (including mine … and got no national press coverage for some reason) who had a child in the past month!  Why should we care about these people and their lives?  I know I’m beating a dead horse here, but it’s comforting to find my opinions shared (if not properly cited, LOL) by other writers with larger numbers of subscribers.
• I’ve worked hard all my life for various reasons: to earn a bigger salary, to solve greater challenges, to learn new skills, to obtain recognition for extra and valuable effort.  The list goes on.  This past week the fruits of my labors for the past 20 years allowed me to buy a house for my family with my own salary.  I’ve never felt prouder of myself and what I can do.  I’m not one to toot my own horn, so if you’ll allow me this moment to take pride in my accomplishments I’d appreciate it.  {Insert digital chuck to the shoulder here.}  Nice job, Brad.

ALEXANDER UPDATE

• I read a lot of parenting books.  Not so much for training but just to give me a guide of where we should be and what’s coming up.  You know, reduce the surprises and take stock in my parental abilities.  So imagine my surprise when I learn last week that babies have growth spurts.  Never read that one in a book!  Never saw how much his eating, sleeping and crying would change overnight!  I wonder if they left it out on purpose, just to keep idiots like me on our toes.  Douche bags.  Anyway, Alex is going through a hefty one right now.  It sure made the drive home a challenge last Sunday.  Even still my little boy, who barely fit in his onesies, is now a huge tootsie roll of a kid and still growing.
• I finally understand what people have been saying about enjoying these times.  Looking at my son grow and grow, I find I miss the days when he was so tiny he barely fit into the crook of my arm.  He was so damn cute then!  Sure, he’s cute now but it’s a different cute, and that cute will never come again.  Huh.

Random Thoughts for the Week of June 25, 2012

• I managed to get a little writing in last week and got to play with some other ideas. Still no reading or serious writing. Small steps, I suppose. Watching Alex squirm on the couch is just so much more satisfying than carving up that short story I’ve been meaning to publish for four years.
• A Texas man was not charged with the shooting death of another man who was sexually assaulting his daughter.  The other man was Hispanic.  Where was the outcry from society?  Where was the charges of racism or unnecessary violence?  Where was Spike Lee?  I can’t help but laugh at how hypocritical our society has become that we treat George Zimmerman (whose actions seemed protected by Florida law) with so much disdain but this man (whose actions were protected by Texas law) gets off without barely a single by-line in a national newspaper.  Racism in this country is still deadlocked in a “hearts and minds” stage where we as citizens and fellow human beings must see and treat each other with respect and equality.  Not because our laws tell us we have to but because our very nature demands it of us.  We are all human beings, built out of the same genetic codes and given the wonderful gift of life that is ours to squander or live to the fullest by our own choices and actions.  That being said, why do people choose to hate others? I’ll never understand racism, and I’ll certainly never encourage it in others, but I will hold individuals and society accountable when we treat one person differently from another as we did in this case.
• I watched a lot of morning TV growing up and got caught up on it in the past 7 months here in Columbus.  I still think Today is the best morning show, but GMA is definitely changed for the better.  I remember when Ann Curry did the news, and I remember liking her.  In all fairness she lacks the charisma that Katie or Meredith or Jane had, and I doubt she’d deny it.  She was definitely uncomfortable sitting with celebrities talking about their love lives or understanding why a guest cook choose curry over cumin.  But she did love the news and she did love the truth and that made her someone we trusted and wanted to listen to.  She’ll be fine wherever she lands.  Even still, if I gave 15 years of my life to a single enterprise I’d expect to be treated better at the end than she has been by NBC.
• I know it’s not very Christian of me, but if Jerry Sandusky and every child molester in the world were to simply up and die today, I’d be okay with that.  Talk about people who just don’t understand how precious and wonderful life is and who don’t deserve the gift.  Perhaps I need a few more bible study classes on forgiveness, but I think the bible is pretty clear about what we’re supposed to do with assholes like him.  Fortunately modern jurisprudence will shield him from such treatment.
• I think it’s safe to say I will never go boar hunting.
• Something tells me I’m going to experience a lot of disappointment in the upcoming football season with the Huskers, Packers and FF.  I don’t know why.  It’s a gut feeling I had as I renewed our FF league.  I hope I’m wrong.
• It’s amazing how easy it is not to eat after 9 PM and how much it helps with the weigh-ins.
• I watched “This is Spinal Tap” for the first time in my life this weekend.  I know, crazy.  I watched it early Saturday morning while Mindi and Alex were sleeping and I almost hurt myself trying to not laugh out loud!  My favorite part was definitely the sweet song on the piano that Nigel played that he called “Lick my Love Pump.”  I’m giggling right now reading that.
• NBA Finals.  Meh.
• I’ll always love the Blatt, but some of those shots of the TD Ameritrade stadium as the sun was setting were really quite stunning!  Omaha can be a really beautiful town if you look at it just right and at the right time.  We can’t wait to get home.
• Found a good Jamaica Me Crazy coffee that both Mindi and I can enjoy together.  Of course it’s an Ohio brand that I’d be amazed if we can find back in Nebraska.  Sigh.
• You wouldn’t think it but Omaha Steaks' beef franks are just as good as their steaks.  Their burgers are still pretty boring.
• Kudos to the NCAA for backing a 4-team playoff for football.  They realized how well the basketball tournament worked and followed its lead.  Huh.  I’m amazed it took them this long to realize that maybe they should look to one of the biggest and most successful tournaments in the world for what to do.  I don’t think anyone has ever challenged the results of March Madness.
• I respect Rainbow Rowell and her column is a nice read, but I have to disagree with her take on Woody Allen this past week.  Allen is a simple, consistent writer and director and while his movies are formulaic they still offer insights into the human soul far better than most other artists out there.  But Rowell does bring up a good question: should we separate the artist from the art?  Should I watch a Charlie Sheen movie/show despite how ludicrous I think he is as a person?  Should I avoid Spike Lee movies because of the racist hypocrite that he is?  Should I boycott Woody Allen movies because he married his stepdaughter?  I think the answer to that question is very much up to the individual.  I’ll admit I won’t ever enjoy a Roman Polanski picture because he molested children.  And yes I’d have a hard time sitting through a Spike Lee film without thinking about all the horrible things he says and does when not behind the camera.  Would I go see a Woody Allen picture?  Yes, I would, because as weird as it was for Allen to marry his stepdaughter (or Morgan Freeman marrying his granddaughter), love is a crazy, crazy thing and sometimes works in opposition to what we’d expect it to.  Allen’s 15-year marriage is perhaps a better example for a healthy relationship than say a Kardashian or most other celebrity marriage.  I don’t know.  I guess Rowell and I need to watch some Woody Allen movies to figure out just how love works.
• On a similar note, watched “Crazy Stupid Love” this weekend too.  As much fun as the love stories were what I took away from the movie was how the 13-year old kid knew in his heart that he’d found the love of his life and the adults were trying to tell him he was wrong.  Why should we do that?  To protect them from heartbreak?  Maybe, but heartbreak is one of those experiences that 99% of society must endure at some point in their lives, so I say any protection is unlikely to succeed.  Shouldn’t we instead teach our kids to be honest with their feelings and communicate them honestly with others?  Yes, it doesn’t always end up the storybook way, but who can say they weren’t stronger, better people after a heartbreak?  Love can hurt us, as John Hughes so wisely noted, “that’s why they’re called crushes.”  I hope that when the day comes I will show Alex the potential good and bad of loving someone and help him to find his path through the maze of love and feelings without limiting or stifling his dreams.
• Surprisingly, I’m not upset with Verizon Wireless that they found a way to weasel me out of my unlimited data plan.  The simple truth is for the past 2 years I haven’t been outside of data range no matter where I’ve gone in the U.S.  I can’t say the same with other providers.  Even still I can’t quite figure out how I get charged for long-distance minutes sometimes.  Sigh.
• I for one like the look of the Microsoft Surface.  Having never used Windows Mobile 7 or touched Windows 8 Beta I’m skeptical about the Metro interface and the direction the UI is going, but I’ll stick with it for a while.  From a business standpoint I think Metro is going in the wrong direction, but time will tell.  Microsoft needs to lighten up on the development side in order to get more Apps in order for the Surface to really take off.

Random Thoughts for the Week of June 18, 2012

• This past week I celebrated my first Father’s Day as a father.  It was surreal.  For 38 years Tom and I celebrated Father’s Day, often with our Dad away on a fishing trip (and why not let Dad enjoy his favorite hobby on the day meant for him?).  The more I see how I am with Alex and Mindi and my in laws the more I realize how much I learned from my dad.  Sometimes what to do, other times what not to do.  Above all my dad was always there, ever present in my life if not always deeply involved.  I sometimes forget that isn’t the case for so many kids in the world.  I’m blessed.
• Thanks, L.T., for so many great years of Fantasy Football.  You were a great player and a great teammate and you always looked out for your FF owners.  Good luck to you, sir.  Now, who the hell am I going to get from my #3 RB???
• Seriously folks … there are about 10000 other golfers in the world.  Can we please just accept that Tiger Woods is now (pardon the pun) on par with them and stop focusing 98% of our coverage around his game?  He can’t be expected to win EVERY tournament he appears in, no more than any other PGA golfer.  Get off his back so maybe, just maybe, he can enjoy the game again and get some true happiness back in his life.  The pressure we as watchers put on him is too much for anyone.
• Seriously, when will the sports media realize they CREATE phenoms like Woods and Hossler.  They really need to be careful about their impact on these people.  Yes, they need to make money and yes they need to create tension and someone to root for.  But when I see the pressure Tiger plays under and see how Hossler’s game went to shit on the last day because the pressure was on, I can’t help but think the media is partially to blame.  I can only hope they recognize this and tread more responsibly in the future.  HA.  Yeah, right.
• I should really stop reading the New York Post.  All week I’ve seen report after report of people being absolutely CRUEL to each other.  Stealing, beating, killing each other, and all for the most petty of reasons.  I truly worry about the world my son is growing up into; a world filled with the selfish and the uncaring and the multitude of people who think they are entitled to be cared for by the rest of society one way or another.  It got so bad I had terrible nightmares for the first time in years about the world going mad.  Our human society needs a serious morality reboot or there will come a day when the Event occurs that will turn us all against each other and all hope will be lost.  Wow, that was morose.  Time to liven things up a bit.
• If you ask me the one time when you really, really want instant reply in baseball is for plays at home plate.  Whether a base runner is safe or out at home can make or break an inning and naturally the entire game/series for a team.  So why don’t they use instant replay there?  I have no clue, but there were probably a dozen bad calls at home this past weekend at all levels of play where the instant reply could have ensured the true outcome of a game. 
• A lukewarm start to CWS this year, probably just because Mindi and I aren’t there.  I was rooting for Stony Brook but I’ll go for Arizona now.  All I really want is for the other remaining teams to lose.
• The Blatt gets torn down next month and I’ve said my goodbyes … but still my mind wanders back to that happy memory: sitting behind the third-base dugout in our normal seats looking out over the zoo and the Missouri River into Iowa as the sun slowly set behind the stadium.  The smell of the hot dogs and the peanuts.  The whack of the bats and the roar of the crowd.  It was 1987, the height of my youth, and possibly one of my happiest family memories.  I’m glad I have that memory to take with me long after those seats are forever removed.
• Still searching for the perfect coffee.
• RIP Ray Bradbury.  “The Martian Chronicles” opened my eyes to so many potential wonders in science fiction that I’m still reeling today.  I’m not sure what you were thinking with “Dandelion Wine” or trying to read your own works for audiobooks, but your plots and twists kept we readers on our toes and never knew quite what to expect.  Thank you for showing society that even in the world of scifi society’s choices and behaviors have consequences out amongst the stars.
• Good for you, Bobbi Kristina, for ditching your dad’s wedding this weekend.  I think anyone who feels Bobby Brown is guiltless of the lifestyle that led to Whitney Houston’s death is disillusioning themselves, Brown included.  She caused her own death, but he created the environment and supported the means with which she did it.  I hope he didn’t get anything for Father’s Day either.
• This weekend I probably tripled the lifetime amount of time I spent watching golf.  It does get me itching to play, and it is very relaxing but gets a little boring.
• I haven’t touched my book or my writing for over a month.  I haven’t exercised either.  Or read a book.  Yikes.  Gotta get back into the swing of things here.  One thing at a time …

ALEXANDER UPDATE

• It was a good weekend with the in-laws as they got to know their 4th grandchild a little better.  The best part was my mother-in-law Janet, or Nana as she prefers.  She is like the Baby Whisperer.  She had tricks and ideas that just made things so much better, and Alex took to her like they’d known each other for years!  We called her Doctor Nana she was so good at taking care of Alex.  Also, she’s the only mother-in-law I’ve heard of who not only helped with the yard work while she was here, she even picked up dog poop!  Janet is one of a kind in many ways.
• Alex is having a bit of a burping problem.  I don’t want to say it’s a gas problem because he’s got the farting down to an art form.  The toxic gas has aged Mindi by a few months, I think.  We just can’t get him to burp as easily.  Hopefully the doctor will help us out with this during his checkup tomorrow. 
• Mindi is recovering very well too, far faster than I think most women would.  If only I could come up with a cure for the herniated disk …
• I’m not sure what I love about Alex more: the look on his face when he sees me or the coos he makes throughout the day.  Yeah, it’s the way he looks at me.  He doesn’t know it’s love, but it is and it warms my heart even at 3 AM.