Manny, Oh Manny

The sound you heard Thursday was the sound of cars veering off the freeway, jaws scraping the floor, and eyes popping out of sockets of sports fans everywhere.

Maybe we shouldn't be surprised anymore, but the news of Manny Ramirez receiving a 50 game suspension was enough to catch my attention, and bring a brief moment of sadness.

For those of us, who have followed baseball since a young kid, we now are faced with the realization that many of our favorite stars were cheating by using performance enhancing drugs that didn't start with a V.

As yet another star falls from grace, we are left with lingering questions, what about Pujols, what about Ryan Howard, David Ortiz, Jim Thome.....the list can go on, because there really isn't an innocent until proven guilty quality about players that played in the "steriods era".

On a side note, I've always had a fondness for Manny Ramirez, as my wife and I visited Fenway Park during his first year with the Red Sox. While we were not Red Sox or Manny fans, it was easy to feel the excitement the crowd had, every time he came to the plate, and the "Manny! Manny!" chants that erupted when he hit a double. For the boxscore from that game, click here (baseball-reference.com is a wonderful place).

So now, like we will be dealing with for the next several years, we're left with sorting through the aftermath of another messy steriods-use admission.

Desert Song

Here's a great song from Hillsong, that I've been listening too a lot lately.
Fitting song for the struggles of the current church, economic & cultural climate.

Odd Man Out

I've recently finished reading a book called "Odd Man Out". It's about a former minor league left-handed pitcher named Matt McCarthy.

He tells his experiences from a year in Rookie ball with the Angels Organization.

Fascinating book, with a few cringe moments. Of course you have to look past the language as well.

Sports Illustrated did an excerpt from the book that gives the "flavor" of the story, if you want a cleaner version.

Probably the best baseball I've read since "Moneyball" by Michael Lewis (and no I didn't bother reading the steroid accounts of Mr. Canseco and Mr. Bonds).

Chainsaw

Last night I decided to cut up some old logs that are in our "woods". I use the term "woods" loosely, since our portion of it isn't very deep, but I digress...

Anyways, seeing that I'm not exactly John Bunyan (the lumberman came from St. Paul), I decided to use a chainsaw.

That worked well for the majority of the time, until I decided to cut this big, thick tree that had broke off near the base (3-4 feet off the ground). I was aware that, upon getting through the trunk, I would want to keep my tender toes & ankles away from the falling trunk.

As it turned out, I ran into a different problem. While casually off in la-la land, I got to the point where the top "halves" of the trunk fell slightly together, "binding" my chainsaw in the trunk......in other words, plain stuck.

No having a certain degree of pride, I decided that I need to get this out without any help. So, I set about cutting with my handsaw from the other end.

After awhile I would test what's left by jumping up and down on the cut area. Remember the scene in "Fireproof" where the Kirk Cameron character is smashing stuff, knocking over garbage cans, etc. That's the kind of moment I probably gave my neighbors if they saw me in the woods jumping up and down like a gorilla. (I probably gave a few frustrated grunts as well).

I did that alternating cycle for about 15 minutes before the "light came on" in my head, and I went to get my power saw. With the aid of electricity, and several strategic cuts later, the two pieces fell together, and all was well....just as darkness set.

All in a days work?

80 degrees in Virginia

This past weekend my wife and I, along with our two boys had an chance to visit her relatives in Virgina.

It was a great weekend of relaxing, enjoying the sunny 80 degree weather, and watching the boys jump around on the trampoline, and play "dog ball".

The "dog" of "dogball" is a stuffed toy tied around on a rope, that swings above the trampoline. You try to avoid it, or hit it in a certain manner (without touching the trampoline). My boys loved the combination of all things related to jumping up and down.

We even got to spend some time on the lake (paddle-boat) and creek (canoe).

Equally important was the lack of technology, well....MY technology to be specific. Since I didn't have cell coverage, I could turn off my phone, which meant I could turn off my emails (work and personal) and turn off my interest in checking internet news. One phone, 3 options, total departure from the busy norm.

All in all, a great extended weekend.

Soooo much to catch up on.....

....don't know where to start.

1) Had a cold for what seems like 2 months now

2) Congrats to the Steelers on winning a Super Bowl (again).

- heard that the Pittsburgh area had a 2 hour delay on Monday (not weather related). Also heard a negative reaction to that (from people who have no sense of adventure.....about what "message" it's sending). C'mon, kids are going to understand the value of schooling....relax.

3) Found out that there is a marketed product called the "Long-Sleeve Praise & Worship Leotard" (okay, so it doesn't rank up there with the "Shamm-WOW", and it didn't get any commercial endorsements in the Super Bowl, but you can check this out further by clicking here . Comes in Black, White, Red or Purple all for $23.63

I'd post a photo, but I'd probably receive "angst" from the same people who complained about the 2-hour delay.

4) Started playing this little online game called "Streak for the Cash". It's something that fantasy baseball/football players play when they don't want to play fantasy basketball/hockey/Nascar/bass fishing.....yup....fantasy bass fishing. Do I play to win cash....technically, but my chances of winning are .0000000000001% that it's more of just something to do. Basically you need to build a streak of correct winning picks....easier said than done. I've got a longest winning streak of 4, and a longest losing streak of 7, so that gives you an idea of how well it's going.

5) I stumbled across some old emails when I was looking for a baby picture of my oldest son, and found them interesting. I might compile them a bit further for my reading interest. Different time, different place (in life, and location). If anything, my writing has gotten worse with time....

6) My wife's birthday is today, so happy 29th dear!

Fireproof

This weekend I got a chance to see "Fireproof" with my wife. We had 2 showings at our church, and from what I can tell, both were well attended.

If you haven't seen the movie yet, I highly recommend it. It's something that we as a faith community can get behind.

There are books (Love Dare), curriculum (kits, participants guides, DVDs) and other ways to help promote this concept.

Of course, the best way to promote staying married is to "live the life".....




(C.Cameron isn't even that distracting, he does well)....thankfully it's a higher production value than some of his other "Christian" offerings (yes, I'm talking about you, Mr. Left Behind).