Even Though I Don't Agree With His Parenting Skills

I am grateful for the person my step-dad is and how he raised me. I’m sure when Craig was growing up he didn’t have dreams of raising eight children, he probably didn’t have dreams of raising any. He was a die-hard Green Bay Packers fan and most likely thought about playing in big games as their starting quarterback; gaining thousands of fans, having pretty girls with the Farah Fawcett swoop following him around, and even gaining countless “people he knows”. Cause you see, Craig doesn’t have friends, he has; neighbors, co-workers, family members and people he knows. But, it is this kind of mentality that makes us love Craig. His goofy antics make him the kind of person that’s fun to be around and would make anyone proud to be a person he knows.
I had a wonderful opportunity in this life. I’ve had the two most amazing dads anyone could ask for. When it was time for one to step aside, he did. My biological father left this world when I was just six years old. It was like he was waiting to make sure we were in good hands before he could leave. I know he’s still there, still making sure we have what we need. However, his work is cut in half because of everything Craig does for us. So, Happy Fathers Day Dad! Even though I don’t agree with you leaving this world when I just six, I still love you.
My fondest memories with my step-dad are riddled with watching sports games and playing sports with him. He would always come to every football, basketball and baseball game of mine, that didn’t interfere with his work schedule, and I know he felt bad when he couldn’t make it. He’s the most supportive person I know. My favorite sports teams are his, and even when my favorite teams play his, I can’t help but smile when he cheers the BoSox on over his Angels. However, it’s the one-on-one moments we shared that were so precious to me, and I’m not even sure he realizes how much of an impact they had on me. Probably the memory I look back on the most was arriving home from school and sitting down with some Hot Pockets to watch Jeopardy! with him. We would clap along with the audience whenever a player would choose a Daily Double clue, even if the contestant was the person we were rooting for to lose. I clap to this day when the Daily Doubles are chosen.
He would give the shirt off his back to anyone in his family. He goes to every soccer game he can, sometimes several a day, no matter how sick he is of seeing little kids attempt to kick a ball. He’s always willing to drop everything to help a member of his family. His cynicism is unrivaled. He has opened his arms to Kai, and treats him as though he is his grandson, though they share no relation at all. He is my step-dad.
So once again, even though I don’t agree with many of your life choices, I love you and want to wish you a Happy Fathers Day. That’s right, nothing’s sacred in this family. That’s what we call tongue-in-cheek. But seriously, Happy Fathers Day!

It's Official...

My brother, while totally insane, has hit the nail right on the head. The NBA is fixed. Not to the extent that he says it is, but to a certain degree it is. This is seen in the very recent history of the league. Now, being that this is my first sports entry, please do not stop reading. I know that most of my readers are not people who are into sports, but this will hopefully be interesting and enjoyable for all to read. Let’s rewind to the offseason just before the 2007-2008 NBA season. The Boston Celtics were coming off their worst season in franchise history, winning something like 16 games or some dismal number like that. Kevin Garnett of the Minnesota Timberwolves is on the market, he’s not a free agent, but the T-Wolves are interested in shopping him around, Boston is first in line. Kevin McHale, a long-time Boston Celtic great has been conveniently put in as Minnesota’s general manager. Garnett makes it very publicly known that he does not want to go to Boston, why would he play for such a terrible team? If he wanted to do that, he could just stay with Minnesota. Miraculously, just a few days later, the Boston Celtics secure perennial all-star Ray Allen, suddenly Boston doesn’t look too bad. Not only have they secured two super-stars for several years, they have young players they are willing to deal. They are ready to make a move for Garnett, a big three is more enticing than just little old Paul Pierce. They make Garnett an offer, Minnesota accepts. Normally, this deal would surely have gotten rejected. Not only did the Timberwolves get completely ripped off, the NBA, under normal circumstances, would have watched this deal like a hawk. With Kevin McHale over in Minnesota, making no bones about saying he still has loyalties to the Celtics, this deal would not have been brokered, it would have been stopped dead as a conflict of interest. The Celtics secure Garnett for almost nothing. Okay, so that’s only three players, you can’t win a championship on that. Not long after this deal, the Celtics are able to sign two lock-down defenders; point guard Eddie House, and Forward James Posey. Suddenly the Celtics are looking like a championship contender. You see, the NBA needs a good basketball team is Boston, it’s too big of a market to have them as a financial liability. Not to mention the history surrounding this franchise.
So, you’ve got your powerhouse in the Eastern Conference, a rejuvenated Boston team ready to hit the ground running. Now all the NBA needed was Kobe to stay in Los Angeles. At around this same time, the Lakers had been struggling through their own seasons. With the departure of Shaq and most of the city wanting Kobe’s head on a platter, the basketball culture in Los Angeles was ready to collapse. Enter Pao Gasol. A guy the Lakers were able to get from Memphis for less than Boston had to give up for Garnett. With the return of Derek Fisher and the acquisition of Lamar Odom, the Lakers were ready to roll. The rivalry the NBA so desperately wanted to see rekindled was a lock. They could not let one of the best Celtics of all time (Paul Pierce) and one of the best Lakers of all time (Kobe Bryant) never square off for a championship. It had to happen. These teams inevitably met in the finals in June of 2008 and the Celtics got the better of the Lakers. Here’s the kicker, it didn’t matter who won that one, the other was going to win the next time these teams met up. They couldn’t let one Laker great get the better of the other Celtic great and vice versa. It just wasn’t right. Had Los Angeles won that series in 2008, this year’s NBA Finals would have had a very different outcome.
What about Orlando, you say? Yeah, what about Orlando? After all, if the NBA was fixed wouldn’t it have been Lebron vs. Kobe last year, or even a Boston vs. Los Angeles rematch? This is where the script writers for the NBA gain their genius status. That series was a perfect distraction to keep the fans from seeing the ultimate picture. They needed to toss in a throw-away series. One that Los Angeles could cake-walk through, pulling them just two titles away from tying Boston for the all-time lead. With them a lock to win the title over Boston this year, they are now just within one. You see, the NFL has a near monopoly when it comes to ratings. When the seasons overlap, football games are always taking precedent over basketball games. The viewers make the choice, and these companies have to adapt. Yes, these are companies, business and money are their bottom line. Do you think the NBA would draw as much money if this finals had been Cleveland vs. Utah? Or Orlando vs. Phoenix? Absolutely not. They need the money and the ratings to be able to compete with the NFL. Now, I’m not saying the NBA is entirely fixed. I think it would be impossible to choreograph it so that Kobe can miss and make a basket on cue. But, is it so hard to believe that perhaps the big-wigs of the NBA hold closed doors meeting with important team officials and the heads of the referee union? Perhaps it is scripted a little bit. Big games always garner blown calls, bad calls and often times silenced whistles. The star power speaks for itself. The NBA consistently uses the referees as their crutch, throwing them under the bus and giving out bogus penalties when they really screw the pooch. However, their ultimate enemy is the NFL. This is their ultimate competition, it’s a fight for ratings and for revenue. What better way to combat this than with a titles race between Los Angeles and Boston? Boston and Los Angeles will be powerhouses in the NBA for several years to come, with the occasional downward swings to keep the heat off the NBA’s back. New York is too big of a market to be this dry for this many years, something WILL happen there. I’m not saying it will be anything drastic like Lebron James going to either New Jersey or New York, it might be very subtle. However, before long, one of those teams will rise from the ashes and be a contender again. So, here are my predictions; Boston and Los Angeles keep trading title blows, and a New York makes a comeback and becomes relevant again within three years. Of course teams like Denver, Utah and Atlanta will keep getting their participant ribbons, talk about markets being victims of the system. If I’m wrong, I guess it’s not fixed, but if I’m right, oh if I’m right.
On a happier note, congratulations to the University of Utah. Inking the deal with the Pac-10 conference. This is quite impressive. I hold no loyalty to either team of the Holy War, as it’s come to be known, so let me speak as an objective observer. Come on people, it’s over. It was a good run while it lasted, and I think BYU holds the record for more wins, so that’s something you can take away from it. This will never be as heated on the Utah sidelines as it will on the BYU sidelines, never again. Utah will look at this as more of a practice exam for the big SAT that’s coming up. Sure, BYU will put up a fight, and, if this rivalry even continues, they might get a win here or there. But, let’s be honest, Utah will be making more money, a lot more. They now have a chance at a national title, which means better recruits, and that in turn puts more NFL scouts in the seats, gives more television exposure which leads to more national exposure. If a player is torn between BYU and Utah, he’s going to go to Utah 99 out of 100 times. Within five years Utah will be a much different team. They will be head and shoulders above BYU. Unfortunately, I think this may be an end to the Holy War. No disrespect to BYU, they have a wonderful program down south, but it seems as though this “war” as become more of a last chance crusade for the Mormons. Yes, I’m sure Utah will struggle through their first few years in this powerful conference, there’s always a learning curve. In the end, they’ll find their stride, bring in better players, equipment, facilities, and then it’s all over. Kind of bitter sweet. Finally, some national recognition for a Utah college football program. You have to take the good with the bad, this state’s greatest rivalry is now, vanquished.
‘Nuff Said.

Under 20 to go!!!

So, I started this p90x thing about a month ago. I had some expectations, but I did not think it would do everything that it has. Eighteen months ago I weighed 241 lbs, I was disgusting. I was watching this show on television and it said, to lose weight you have to diet and exercise. This is the only healthy way to lose weight. Did you hear that HCG users? What about Atkins supporters? You need a balanced diet and exercise to lose weight and be healthy. The guy on the show flat out said, dieting is hard, it’s supposed to be. The things in life that are easy to attain are never the things that are the most prized. Is no one suspicious of HCG? There is no miracle drug to make you lose weight. We've seen them before, Phen-Phen, Hydroxycut, many others, they either do not do what they say they are going to do, or they end up harming your body in very serious ways. People have died on Hydroxycut, died. For those of you taking HCG, 500 calories a day is not a healthy way to lose weight. It just isn't. I was talking to a woman on HCG and she said, you're not really only using 500 calories per day, your body is burning the fat deposits it has stored up, and thus, it gets calories from those deposits. Oh really? So like, when you're starving to death? Yeah, that's what happens when you're starving to death, your body starts to eat at your fat deposits, your stored energy. HCG is a starvation diet, no, I'm going to take it one step further, it's anorexia! So, I was ready to take on the dieting challenge, the guy on the show said the easiest way is to start small. Make sure you have at least one serving of fruits and one serving of vegetables a day. Try to cut out as much sugar as you can, don't eat too late at night, the last thing you eat should be about three hours before you go to bed, eat breakfast, and, get this do not be afraid to eat a moderate amount of carbohydrates. They are good for you, people. He also said to buy a calorie counting book and keep track of everything you ingest, food, ounces of water, everything. I had made up my mind. I was going to do it, I was going to start a diet. I did some research and found that the absolute lowest amount of calories a man my age and height could take in a day and still be healthy was 1500. Yeah, three times as many as the HCG diet allows. So, I decided to stick to 1500 calories a day. The diet was the hard part. The physical exercise I needed actually came easy. This guy, who I later found out was a nutritionist, wish I knew his name, went on to say, you need to get exercise, it's crucial, at least five hours a week. Great! I thought to myself, I hate going to the gym and struggling in front of all those meat heads. Then, the guy said something that really stuck with me. "You don't have to go to the gym and struggle in front of strangers." Ha! That was almost exactly what I was thinking. He said I needed to think back to what I would do as a kid for physical exercise, since kids are much more physically active than adults, and do that. Basketball! It was so simple. I put myself out there, I got myself invited to every game I heard about. It was fun, and it was easy. In five short months I had lost around 55 lbs. I was down to 185, the lowest I had been in four years. I didn't use drugs, I didn't go on any miracle diets or take any kind of miracle pill, I did it, me! I understand there are people out there that need chemicals to help them lose weight because they have imbalances. I also know this number is not consistent with as many people using chemicals to help them lose weight. I had achieved my goal, and surpassed it, to get under 200 lbs for my wedding. The honeymoon, seven day/seven night cruise kind of put the kibosh on the diet. I rocketed back up to 195 lbs and I was getting as much physical exercise as I was since I started playing basketball. See! Diet and exercise go hand in hand! I had hit a wall. I was stuck at 195 lbs, wasn't going up, wasn't going down. I had heard countless times about an extreme fitness program called p90x. I had been wanting to try it, but never really whole-heartedly. Suddenly, it was everywhere, billboards, buses, web site banners, even my favorite radio talk show host was peddling it. I figured I'd give it a try. It's a 90 day program of which I am right now 27 days into. Let me just give you some statistics, 21 lbs down, drops in both cholesterol and blood pressure, less stress, higher self-esteem, more positive outlook on life and oh yeah, one more thing, increased activity in the bedroom. Ha ha ha! Seriously, there's only one way to be healthy people; diet and exercise. No two ways about it. You're not too busy, you're not too lazy, just get started, you'll get addicted and end up loving it. I'm not saying you have to take the same route I did, you don't have to do p90x, find what works for you. I owe Tony Horton a lot, and I'm really looking forward to the next 63 days. I take my 30 day pictures tomorrow, if I'm brave enough I'll post them on here. As Tony Horton would say, do your best and forget the rest.

You Can't Claim Christianity...

...and support the death penalty.
"Judge not lest ye be judged."
"Turn the other cheek."
It really doesn't work that way. Christ taught forgiveness and said he would be the one to do the judging. As a people it is not our responsibility to say who will live and who will die. If you support the death penalty, that's fine with me, as long as you don't claim Christianity as well. It's a double standard and it does not work that way.
'Nuff Said.

Settling Son

So, about two years ago I had a dream. It was a dream about my dad, who has been dead for nearly 20 years. I don't remember the dream, or what it was about, or what happened in it, or what I said, or what he said. However, I had this dream in my small basement room of the Logan house I was living in while attending Utah State University. When I awoke the next morning I had one line from one Less Than Jake song stuck in my head. I had only heard the song a couple of times, so it was the only part I knew, "Mouthfuls of rotting dynamite." I had long since forgotten about this dream until one month ago when I was listening to my XM Radio driving home from Tooele where I now attend Utah State University. I was trying to find the Red Sox game when traffic grew a bit heavy. I took my finger off the scanner and was surprised to hear those words again, "Mouthfuls of rotting dynamite." Immediately the memory of the dream came back into my consciousness, as though it had been waiting to spring into action for two years. When the song was over the dj announced it was Settling Son by Less Than Jake off of their GNV,FLA album. I had that album and decided to listen to the whole song, to see what the song was about. These are the the lyrics:

Settling Son
by Less Than Jake

Son take it from me, it's in the little victories
That keep you shaking hands with defeat, yeah.
Son, I'll tell you reality isn't all it's cracked up to be.
But the years go lightening fast, and I just can't help but see

We believe it's okay to leave the words caught in your throat
But you know, that you're growing old.
You always do what you're told
Going up in smoke
And you're a ghost you know in the end
You'll be walking the tight rope, walking the tight rope.

Son take it from me,
Life's more than the floors of this factory
And working 40 hours every single week.
Son, I'll tell you reality, isn't living down on your knees.
But my life's gone in a flash and I just can't help but see

We believe it's okay to leave the words caught in your throat
But you know, that you're growing old.
You always do what you're told
Going up in smoke
And you're a ghost you've known in the end
You'll be walking the tight rope, walking the tight rope.

Mouthfuls of rotting dynamite.
Mouthfuls of rotting dynamite.
You call this living a normal life?
We're not living a normal life.

We still believe it's okay to leave the words caught in your throat
But you know, that you're growing old.
You always do what you're told
Going up in smoke
And you're a ghost you knew in the end
You'd be walking the tight rope, walking the tight rope.

I was shocked when I read these lyrics, and even though I'm not sure fully how they fit in to the dream, since I am now unaware of what the dream was about, this whole thing seems like a strange coincidence. Maybe one day I'll know what this is all about.
'Nuff Said.

For My Mother on Mothers' Day

My mother is not the richest mother in the world. She isn’t the smartest, the bravest or the wisest. She’s not the most enthusiastic, the slimmest or the best cooker. One thing that my mother does have over every other mom in the world is her resiliency. She, like most mothers will stop at nothing to achieve what’s best for her children. She never stops loving, never stops sharing, never stops caring, or helping her children. Though her children may not be where she wants them to be at this point in their lives, she does not stop loving them for that, or accepting or understanding them. She constantly tries to get involved in what her children are involved in. When approached for help, advice or guidance, she merely smiles and offers an unbiased, objective view of all the options for her children to take, while never nudging her children in the way she wants them to go. This means her children have true independence and agency. However, she does not let the consequences of bad choices go unnoticed. She understands that a little bit of suffering does a world of good. She does not swoop in and rescue her children from their own mistakes, she lets them learn, lets them climb out of their own holes, offering the occasional safety line, but never completely bailing them out.
My mother’s silence can say any number of things. She can tell you exactly how she is feeling while never uttering a single sound. Her personality radiates an entire room and her hope and unbridled optimism can be felt, heart-to-heart. She’s been through good times and bad. She’s buried a child, a husband, brothers, both of her parents and the occasional pet, never losing her happiness, never losing her stability. She truly is a lighthouse in the storm, constantly guiding others to the safety of the shore. She stands firmly to her political ideology, often times in the faces of many sneering members of the opposite party, family members, and the very religion she loves. She accepts children not part of this family (Kai) with open arms, to all family parties and activities and treats them like her own. She braves the elements to give love to my own little one, Fenway, whom she is deathly allergic to. My mother never pushes her children, she knows that in their own good time they will do what is needed. This understanding of her children is beyond words, beyond comparison.
There is so much more I could say about her, but this will have to do. This is merely a fraction of what could be said about her. I hope this will do. So, Happy Mothers’ Day, mom. May the next year be filled with as much, if not, more joy than the last year. May you be granted everything your heart desires, and may you continue to fill the hearts of the children of the world with the same hope and optimism you have filled every one of your children with. I love you.

Just a Quick Update

So, here's what's gone down since I last wrote. I am taking the week off from work to concentrate on my finals. Just started p90x yesterday, I'm sore as hell today, wonder how my wife feels, she had to go to work, poor girl. It's okay though, I got up early and cooked breakfast for her and I'm planning on cleaning the apartment by the time she gets home, but don't tell her. The Red Sox suck, but I'm still a fan. This is going to be a LONG year. In fact, we should just concede this season and start building toward the next, a lot needs to change before we're back on top. Seriously, I think our average age is like 63 or something. I had an inner, personal struggle, trying to decide whether or not I wanted to get a kitten that could barely walk, with a heavy heart I decided not to get it, just don't have the time. I know that sounds extremely petty, but there's nothing I can do about it. I'm really looking forward to two vacations this year, one in June and one in October, yes I'm going on vacation during the baseball playoffs, but as mentioned before, the Red Sox players will probably be on vacation as well, ha ha ha. Or some of them might be in old folks' homes, ha ha ha. Anyway, until next time 'Nuff Said.