Sportmanship

Being a good Sportman and Sportsmanship.....IMO it goes beyond the textbook definition: " as fairness, courtesy, being a cheerful loser."

I bring this up becuase, Today as with most Saturdays I had the opportunity to go play co-ed soccer at a local indoor facility. The team I am currently on is not the greatest, but suffices until my knee is back to 100%. Well....the team we played against a (green) team that had about 15 people to our 8. We were up for the challenge. No sooner had the game started than we netted 3 goals. I have never played against a more pathetic team. A the game progressed, the one-eyed ref continuously favored the other team by not calling fouls for hand balls, flying elbows or a combo of other tactics used to gain the upper hand.

It was not our fault that the other team sucked and were no better than a groups of 12 yr olds. You would think that by paying the ref to call the game in your favor was enough...it wasn’t. Should one be a poor sport if they or their team suck and continously lose? Gracefully lose and we a shining example of what a good sportman is. Instead of calling out to direct and motivate team members, the green team was complaining. If my team even bumped a player on the green team they were all over the ref. These people needed a lesson in how to lose gracefully.....I think there is a book by Al Davis (Raiders Owner) on this topic.

I think my team was a perfect example of true sportsmanship. After all we were fair enough to let them score twice so they wouldn’t leave without scoring. We barely managed to walked away with an 11-2 victory. I won MVP of the game due to my acrobatic leap to block a shot and manage to get a knee in the back at the same time.
Now that is a perfect example of a true sportsman....taking one for the team to protect the slim lead we had.

Sound Off!!!

I almost choked on my PopTart Sunday morning when I heard the Federal Gov was earmarking $700 billion dollars over the next few years to buy "toxic" assets of the large troubled US Banks. WTH!!!..$700 billion, that is about equal to the combined net worth of the 15 Richest people in the world.

I can see why the government is getting involved to protect the economy, but at what expense to the citizens and hard working taxpayers. It seems that the big cats that run these financial institutions have little or no blame when it comes to chaotic problems as the ones plaguing the financial markets and economy right now. If anything they are fired or "forced" to resign, but they don’t leave broken. Most of these individuals are given a nice golden parachute, so they will never be poor or go broke. And all of this is at the expense of us poor folk.

It seems that the government will promise money to any large Fortune 500 company, even if they dont have it. I can understand why the governement is trying to help soften the blow that the credit crunch is causing and to avoid "toxic" or troubled assets from flooding the markets. Their help...at what cost? Look at the national debt. As of September 2008, the government’s debt was a staggering $9.7 trillion. TRILLION...Not billion or Million. This figures out to be about $32,000 per capita. So while the government is underfunding SS, Medicare/Medicaid and other important programs, they have no problem handing out $700B to banks and financial intuitions who have been poorly managed. Maybe the government needs to pass laws that protect things like this happening again. I doubt it.

I am finished ranting...I will step off my soap box. God Bless America....Go Cowboys!!!

A Fond Farewell

Tonight was a bittersweet moment as time at RES came to a close. With RSL finishing the final touches on their expensive, state-of-art stadium, RSL played their finally game at the stadium. After 4 tumultuous years, that saw a dozens of players come and go, 2 coaches, GoldBalls with Real Madrid and LA, and a World Cup Qualifier, RSL bid farewell to RES. The experiences and sites seen over these years are memorable and will never be forgotten. I hope my view at the next stadium will be just as nice.

Eating Is Hard Work

Now that Carter has broken the 1 yr mark and is able to eat normal food. he has been spending some extra time practicing to be a competive eater. Some of his conditioning sessions break into his early evening nap time.

Gone Fishing!!!

There comes a time in every child’s life where they need to have the chance to go fishing. In our family, Paddy is the Master Fisherman. So when Jordan came to me and wanted me to teach him to fish, I turned to Paddy to advise me. A nice trip to the sporting goods store and we were set. Jordan made it clear to Paddy that he wanted only the best, too bad Nike doesn’t make fishing gear.

So one Saturday morning I took Jordan to the local fishing hole for a test run. It didn’t go as well as planned. There were minnows and gold fish swimming by the banks of the pond. Jordan was more interested in tossing pieces of Power Bait at the fish than casting his line into the pond. After about 15 mins of watching Jordan try to catch the fish with Power Bait and his bare hands, I decided to put an end to the game. All in All, the 2 hrs we spent at the pond were fun and enjoyable. Now I just need to find a FISHING FOR DUMMIES book with pictures. Then maybe Jordan will understand that a fishing pole with bait works better than his bare hands.

A Government Out of Control!!!

The War in Iraq, The Mortgage Crisis, The Presidential Election....I can continue naming problematic issues but will spare you the reading. Out of all the issues putting the strain on the government and economy that I have never understood is how the welfare and assistance programs function. Granted, there are people that have bad luck and have no control over how their lives play out. This I can understand that the government is there to step in and save and help. What about the people that are lazy or have figured out how to play the system? This abuse is ignored!!! It makes me sick to see people that use their food stamps at the grocery store or gas station to purchase "necessities", only to go hope into a large pimped out SUV or car. How is this possible? Luxuries like this should be earned and not given to people that have to rely on the government to pay for their food and medical needs because they WANT the nice things in life without working for them. Cmon!!!

I wake up every morning and go to work for 8-9 hrs, pay taxes and insurance premiums faithfully out of each pay check. After this I am expected to pay my bills out of my own pocket with no help from the government. So it’s hard to watch people abuse a generous system fund by my tax dollars and other hard working Americans. I have known a few people that have managed to play the system. They too have jobs, but choose for the lesser paying jobs. They want to appear as poor as possible. It’s their choice to make $7-10/hr instead of more. No one hold a gun to their head and robs them of their free agency. If you choose this, you should go without the finer things in life...the nice SUV, Prada handbag, Tag Heuer watch or daily trips to Starbucks.

The government would have millions or even billions if they would spend a little more time and money to prevent and stop the abuse. After all, look at the national debt!! Some of the money save from the abuse could go towards paying down the debt and paying more into SS benefits for the current and future retirees.

OK...I am done; I will step off my soapbox, thanks for listening to me vent. GOD BLESS!!!

Life's Crazy Circle

Well....I have finally come to the realization that I am getting old. Besides the extra weight I have gain, the thinning hair and a few gray stands of hair that I try tp pluck out. My baby Jordan is starting Full Time Pre-School. What makes things even crazier, his pre-school is in the old Murray Library that Grandma Nancy worked at 30+ years ago. This is the same one that is kiddie-corner from my old pre-school.

It was nice to walk thru Jordan's pre-school and picture the library as it was back in the late 70s and 80s. Feathered hair, bellbottom jeans and other wonderful clothing styles of that time. I counted atleast 6-7 people I knew from high school that were bringing their kids to enroll at the school.

What is it about the hometown that brings people back to raise their kids? I have tried for years to escape the grasps of Utah and the Murray area. Somehow I find myself remembering how good it use to be and wanting the same for my kids. I guess I am doing something right or atleast trying too......

Beer Goggles

If I wasnt already taken, I would have volunteered for this experiment. I came across this article a few weeks back and forgot to post it.

http://news.yahoo.com/story//livescience/20080814/sc_livescience/peoplereallydolookbetterwhenyoudrink

When Selling Pills to Humans isnt Enough?

I had a friend show me a story about a new development in the pharmaceutical market. It appears that the wonderful folks at Pfizer Labs (aka legal drug pushers) have developed the world's first diet pill FOR DOGS! The below site shows dogs just like they'd show people on diet products!

http://www.slentrol.com

The Summer of Fun

I dont know what it is with the summer season, but it seems that its a good time of the year for children to grow and change.

Jordan is the BIG MAN on campus as he started pre-school last month. He has already manage to make some friends and form his own Rat Pack. Lucky for us, he has behaved and managed to stay out of trouble. I guess he is waiting to save the best for when he is in Elementry.

Carter "C Note", has manage to create a name for himself. Borrowing from Patrick vs Braden battle when the much smaller Braden showed Patrick who owned the Mini basketball court. For those that are not familar with this epic battle (I will spare you the details), Braden sent Patrick to the ER with a cracked skull due to a golf club (3 Wood) to the cabasa. One night after Carter had enough of Jordan's harrassment, he waited patiently until Jordan was close by and BAM!!! a smack on the head with a hammer. No ER visit this time since it was just a plastic play hammer, put Jordan thinks twice before he messes will the Lil One.

Below of current pictures of the boys....Enjoy