I knew it would happen at some point I just had no idea it would be this soon.  She is a very inquisitive girl who seems to remember everything and she proved it last night.  Unfortunately I had to be on the other end of it.

Nikki made brownies yesterday for what Avery was calling our “football party.”  Which actually consisted of the three of us, my parents and my brother.  I guess though when you are that young, anything when people come over can be considered a party.  Avery was very much looking forward to having a brownie after she ate her dinner.  So, seven rolled around and she very politely asked for her treat.  She was SO excited about having it, she ate exactly half her brownie and proceeded to leave the rest on the coffee table. 

While I was cleaning up about an hour later, the brownie was still in the same spot with the same amount of tiny teeth marks in it.  Being 8pm and almost bed time, I just threw it out, not really considering the repercussions.  Of course, two minutes later, here comes Avery looking for her brownie.  Quickly after that came the tears, and you can never count on the tears.  (thank you to those who got that!)  We quickly scrambled and told her it’s gone, and thankfully everyone was leaving so it distracted her for a bit. 

Soon there after, we were sitting down watching some good wholesome family programming, (Simpsons) when Avery again asked, with tears welling up (hey the girl likes her chocolate), where her brownie was.  Yet again, I scrambled and told her that Macbeth our dog must have eaten it.  Here’s where it gets interesting:

She turned around and looked at me with a very puzzled look.  She thought for another few seconds and then this gem came out. 

“No Dada, Macbeth didn’t eat my brownie.  Dogs don’t like chocolate it makes them feel yucky.  SO who ate my brownie? 

Needless to say, I was caught wrapped in my own lie.  Of course it didn’t help that Nikki was on the other side of the room laughing asking “Yeah, Dada, what did happen to her brownie?”  My wife, she always has my back.

Well, I finally broke down and told her I threw it out because I thought she was done.  She said, ” no I wasn’t done,” and started to pout.  I apologized and told her she could have one today which seemed to mask her disappointment in me for the time being. 

Looking back on it, I guess there is some lessons to be learned from all this.  One: don’t fuck with a girls chocolate.  Two: just tell your kids the truth (well at least on the little stuff) because eventually they’ll figure it out.  Three: yep, I’m screwed!

That win came about because the Steelers made some huge mistakes.  Last time I checked though, good teams and good players seem to always capitalize on other’s mistakes.  Ben Rothlisberger was hurt pretty bad but he was well enough to play.  Should the Broncos not have taken advantage of his status?  The Steelers came in the heavy favorites and with one of, if not the best defense in the league and they gor shredded by what others call an “awful NFL quarterback.”

What I’m already sick of hearing is how Denver didn’t win the game, Pittsburgh lost the game.  That’s just a moronic statement to make when you are all out of anti-Tebow arguments.  Isn’t a quarterbacks job to manage the game, take advantage of any mismatches and lead his team to victory?  IF he wins the game who cares if he completes 10 passes or 16 passes?  The Steelers gambled and they got burned.  If it was, lets say, Tom Brady, the pundits would be praising Tom Terrific for his wonderful game management, not criticizing him for completing only ten passes.  316 yards is still 316 yards whether it comes from ten completions or 20 completions.

One other argument I heard…..and I still can’t believe it came from the mouth of a Patriots fan.  He actually said that the receiver should get all the credit for the score, not the QB.  The throw was only 25 yards and the receiver ran the last 55.  Really???? That’s a valid argument????  Can anyone tell me what the hell Brady to Welker is then?? 

THEY DO THE SAME EXACT THING AND BRADY IS TREATED AS A GOD!!!!!!!!!!!   IT’S LIKE ANY OTHER QB/WR COMBO!!!!  HELL, ELI HAS NICKS AND CRUZ DOING THE SAME THING AND ELI GETS THE LOUGH BUT WHEN IT TEBOW, ALL THE CREDIT SHOULD GO TO HIS RECEIVER?  JESUS FUCKING CHRIST PEOPLE IT’S OK TO ADMIT THAT TIM TEBOW MADE A GOOD PLAY!!!!!!!!!!

Just for that comment alone I hope that the Broncos roll into a quiet and lackluster Gillette on Saturday night and take care of business.  Just to rub into the faces of all those pompous Patriot fans that say things like “Wow, the Patriots now have two bye weeks.”  Let me remind you that the Patriots haven’t won a playoff game in almost four years.  Ever since this play:

All I gotta say Patsie fans, be careful what you wish for. 

Related articles

• Tim Tebow and the Broncos beat the Steelers 29-23 in overtime (faniq.com)
• Tim Tebow: Broncos QB Won’t Be Able to Keep Up with Tom Brady in Round 2 (bleacherreport.com)
• You: Tim Tebow Broncos Shock The World By Beating Steelers (sportsviews.com)
• Broncos Vs. Steelers: Denver And Tim Tebow Set Several NFL Records In Win (denver.sbnation.com)
• Tim Tebow a Real Starting Quarterback? (ballhyped.com)
• Patriots vs. Broncos: Why Tom Brady and New England Will Blow out Denver (bleacherreport.com)

Last night was one of those moments happened.  Something that really pissed me off at the time but now that I can look back on it, I know will only make us better.

We played Portland HS in a basketball game last night.  My JV team had struggled coming into the game,  we had managed to lose all five of our games so far this young season.  I have a fairly inexperienced team and I was looking at this game as a potential win.  unfortunately, the Portland JV’s had some really good players and we came up just short.  I was kinda pissed off at my kids until the starting lineups were announced for the Portland varsity team.  As it turns out, three JV starters also started varsity and two more were the 1st off the bench for them.  Mine and my teams view quickly changed about our JV loss.

It occurred to all of us that we just lost to a varsity team.  Not a great varsity team mind you, but one that had played together a lot.  The thing that pisses me off is that you had varsity starters play an entire JV game.  It’s not that it’s not fair, it’s just not right.  JV sports is designed to develop athletes for the next level.  I firmly believe that in basketball especially, if you have a kid who is starting varsity he should not be playing with the JV’s. 

I have a couple of kids that play on both teams but if they are going to start for the varsity squad, they don’t play JV that night.  If they did, that would just mean they are taking up a spot that another kid could play in.  Now I know that some schools aren’t graced with a lot of kids in their program, so I understand that situation.  Portland, however, didn’t have that problem.  They had plenty of kids to fill out both rosters without using varsity starters as jv starters. 

Now, if you are that hungry for a JV win, whatever.  Trust me, no one is hungrier for one than my team and myself but it’s going to come the right way.  It’s going to come through hard work, blood, sweat and tears.  It’s going to come from my JV guys playing as one, not by pulling down some varsity players to give us an edge.

I hope that JV win was so important last night Portland.  It’ll only be used as a way to make us stronger.  I know, in the end we’ll be better off for it. 

Doing the right thing always seems to pay off in the end.

2011 was a very good year and here’s to making 2012 even better.  I’m not a big resolution guy, I just try to live my life right, work hard and good things usually happen.  I have all I can ask for, a great wife, wonderful daughter, a nice house, good jobs and a caring family.  Everything beyond that is just gravy.  I would also like to thank everyone for stopping by to read this blog.  I realize it hasn’t been updated as consistently as in the past but it hasn’t stopped people from reading it.  I posted the year-end stats at the bottom of the page.  Click on it and check out some highlights from this past year.  Thanks again and have a great New Years!

Here’s an excerpt:

The concert hall at the Sydney Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 16,000 times in 2011. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 6 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.

Click here to see the complete report.

I cam across a couple of articles this morning on Deadspin.  One proclaiming the evilness of the 1/2 hour special and another stating the positives.

I encourage you to read both articles and then come back to mine.

I’ll admit, I am a true lover of the Peanuts and Charles Schultz.  While not always the funniest of the comics, it was always poignent.  Somehow, Schultz was able to take any trouble in the world, turn it around to a child’s perspective and make you rethink the gravity of it.  Strips as simple as “Happiness is a warm puppy“  really says a lot when you take time to think about it.

I think that’s what makes ’Merry Christmas..” so iconic and relevant even today.  What lessons do these modern-day cartoon christmas specials teach?  what relevance do they have?  They don’t hold a candle to the Grinch, Rudolph or the granddaddy of them all, the Peanuts.

While the writer of the first article proclaims it to be depressing I look at it as a kid just trying to figure things out.  Charlie Brown is just searching for meaning in a crazy world.  He holds out as the one true, honest and naive souls left in his little world.  He is so genuine and sincere that his friends can’t see it through the thick smog of the christmas hype.  His tree symbolizes that entirely.  With a little sentiment and a little love, the tree transforms into a true symbol of the season but it needed Charlie Brown to turn his friends to see that.  While some look at Charlie Brown as a simple blockhead, I see him as a complex individual with basic wants.  He just wants to know if there is good in the world and how he can make it a better place.  Really shouldn’t that be what we all want?

I’m not even a religious person, in fact I don’t believe in the whole theory of religion but the scene with Linus is one of my favorite of all time.  The simplicity of it is what makes it so good.  Here’s a little kid, just seven or so, breaking down what many people tend to forget: Christmas is a time for giving, sharing and spending times with loved ones.  Whether you are christian or not, sometimes we tend to forget those things. 

This year, I was able to sit down and watch it with my 2 1/2 year old daughter.  She knew who Snoopy was (she has two stuffed Snoopy dolls, one of them mine from when I was a kid.)  She absolutely loved it.  In fact she wants to see it every day now.  Of course, she doesn’t grasp the whole concept of the show.  She loves the music, the dancing and when Snoopy says “Blah” but I think she also understands the importance of it. 

I think the writer of “Fuck You Charlie Brown” misses the whole point of the show, and frankly that is sad.  While one can look at it as being depressing, I tend to look at it as an uplifting and inspiring story that shows that man (children) can still find good in the world, even if it as simple as a tree. 

If that doesn’t get you in the mood, then I sure hope the music does.  Still the best christmas music there is.  If this can’t get a smile on your face, then there is no hope for you. 

Enjoy your Christmas weekend!!!

Related articles

• Fuck You, Charlie Brown [Deadspin Classic] (deadspin.com)
• Counterpoint: Charlie Brown Is Bigger Than Jesus [Charlie Brown] (deadspin.com)
• “Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown!” (donfharris.com)
• Charlie Brown, I Have Another Tree For You (craigmotor.wordpress.com)
• Affiliate Link – A Charlie Brown Christmas Dominoes (battlegrip.com)

Image via CrunchBase

I recently just joined the wonderful world of the iPad.  I mulled over the purchase for like a month but I am very happy I went through with it.  It will be such a great tool while coaching.  I can use it for practice, games and stats afterward.  I’ve also found it has some great apps for kids.  There are so many educational choices to keep Avery entertained for hours (not that I’m letting her play on it for hours, I don’t need DCF knocking on my door).

The one thing thought that really bothers me is the app store.  There are so many great apps for coaching that it’s hard to choose between them.  Also, most of them aren’t free.  They range from as little as $.99 to as much as $19.99.  The tough thing is you aren’t really sure what you are getting until you actually purchase the app and try it for yourself.  It’s a little risky.  Even after one reads all the user reviews, you still don’t know if it will work for you until you actually use it.  So, if you paid for an app and it doesn’t fit your needs, you are kinda screwed.

Apple and Google should give their customers some sort of grace period.  Let a user purchase an app, try it out for a week lets say and if they keep it, then charge ‘em.  If they don’t, let ‘em delete it from the device with no charge applied. 

It only seems like the right thing to do.  If I bought an item from a store and I was not satisfied with it, I have the option of returning it for either store credit or my money back.  Why can’t this be the same in the app store or the android market?

I’m sure I can’t be the only one who has gone through this.  It makes me kinda apprehensive when it comes to buying apps now.  I’ve already deleted one that cost $2.99 because it just wasn’t useful.  While it’s only $3 after a while it can add up.  Plus, I’m not a big fan of spending money on things that I won’t use (well, at least now….). 

Let’s make this happen Apple and fix this!

Related articles

• ‘Tis the season to be giving: New apps from Appsfire (appsfire.com)
• Apple: 500,000 apps, 18 billion downloads, 100 million for Mac (tech.fortune.cnn.com)

There are a few things in this life of mine that I have a great passion for: sports, beer, music, food and history.  Today just happened to bring a few of those together. 

I woke up this morning already knowing it was to be a pretty solid day.  You see, my favorite athlete of all time turns 55 today: Larry Joe Bird!  I will go down fighting arguing that he may be the greatest player I’ve ever seen.  I know, MJ and Magic were great, but I don’t think they hold a candle to Larry Joe.  If any of you even think of bringing up Lebron, then get off my blog right now!!!!!!!

When I got into work, I was informed that the Red Hot Chili Peppers were finally inducted into the Rock and roll Hall of Fame!  I great honor for one of the most succesful rock bands of my generation.  While other bands come and go, the Peppers are always there for me.  From their first album to their latest, the Peppers have transformed themselves with the times.  While not all were huge sellers, each album represents who they are at that point in time.  They’ve gone from the shitty little clubs of LA to selling out huge stadiums worldwide.  This is an honor well deserved!

Thirdly, with today being Pearl Harbor Day, it strikes up thoughts of one of my favorite eras of time: WWII.  It obviously was the most defining moment of the past century and arguably the most important day in the history of the country.  This moment set of a dominance by America that lasted for decades. 

So, I got Larry Bird, Chili Peppers, WWII, what else….. oh yeah food and drink.  Well, it just so happens that Stew Leonards has a sale this week on porterhouse steaks, my absolute favorite food.  Lets see now, beer.  Hmmmmm, I’m wearing a Celtics shirt with a shamrock on it, a shamrock is Irish and so is Guinness AND I have some at home.

You see, everything’s comin’ up Hendu!!

Go ahead, talk about yours.

Kepler-22b is a mere 600 light years away.  While not a weekend jaunt, a relatively short distance.  The fact that our scientists were able to find a planet just like ours is pretty amazing.  It is a little bigger but it sits right in the perfect spot for life to be there.  The average temp is 72, so I picture something like San Diego which isn’t too bad.

Of course this got me wondering.  Just how long would it take us to get there.  Well, after scouring the web for the answer, what I found is that it varies. 

If you were to travel at the speed of light, it would take 600 years to get there.  That’s slightly un-realistic.  However, if you wanna go all Star Wars/Star Trek then the time would obviously shrink.  A trusted co-worker on the subject informed me this morning that at Warp-4 it would take us just 15 hours to get to the new planet.  Really???  That’s just a drive to Richmond VA!!  That’s a cakewalk. 

Another calculation that i found was Warp 1 equals the speed of light.  Therefore, Warp 4 is four times the speed of light.  If that’s the case, at warp 4 it would take 75 years if my calculations are right and about 37 years at warp 5.  Hmmmm, that’s a little more of a committment.  I’m down for a little more than half my day, not half my life.

Oh well, however long it will take we are eons from developing that type of speed.  Regardless, how cool is it that another earth could be out there.  It would be sweet if we had a telescope that could zoom in and see cities, roads or other signs of real civilization.

Now, how about working on that space travel thing. 

To be honest, I’m still don’t know how I feel about this.  I don’t get the “warm-fuzzies” like I did with Francona.  For some reason, Tito made sense to me.  Just something about him clicked with me.  I really can’t tell you what it was but I just knew it was the right move.

This time around, I just don’t know.  Yeah, he’s been succesful at all his stops, but at what costs?  He wore out his welcome relatively quickly in Texas and New York.  Then he went to Japan and to his credit, completely dominated Japanese baseball.  In a way, he Americanized it a bit and in the process, Japan players infiltrated MLB more and more. 

Bobby V just has a way about him.  Some people love it, others hate it.  Me, I’ve always been rubbed the wrong way with him.  Never really liked the way he worked on TV.  He seemed to always come across as a know-it-all.  I guess he just never had the way to pass along great info without coming across as a douche. 

There is no doubt he knows the game.  I’m just not sure if he’ll fit in Boston.  Normally I would trust the Sox brass that they’ve made the right call, but these guys have done nothing yet to win me over.  I trusted Theo and Co. in 2003.  He proved that he had an eye for talent.  Ben Cherington has done nothing yet.  He won’t last long as GM if his first major hire blew up in his face.

I hope beyond hope that it all works out.  I want Bobby Valentine to succeed in Beantown.  The franchise is desperate for a new start and a new direction.  The players are ready for a new voice and leader.  I’m just still not sure he is it.

If you need me, I’ll be on the fence for a while.

That would be a sample of a conversation you may have with Avery while reading this.  Of course your answers may differ a bit than they did in my head, but so what, it’s my blog.

Anyway, that’s the stage she’s in now.  Everything is “Why?”  I get that it is the way that two-year-olds learn but good god does it get irritating quick.  Some of you may know that I am not the most patient guy in the world so a stretch of this type of questioning can get old fast.  Shockingly though, I think I have handled it pretty well.  We’ll play along for a little bit, answering as much as we want.  When it gets to that point, and I think as parents, we all know what that point is, we flip the script.  Once we start asking her why. she quickly stops.  Childish?  Yes, but sometimes very necessary and frankly I’m above nothing.

I guess from here on out. it’s a battle of wills.  This could get ugly.