There Used To Be a Ballpark

I have spouted off about this before but, after last night's amazing finish to Game 6 of the 2011 MLB World Series, I feel the need to spew again!!!!
Last night was probably one of the most exciting World Series games in years and I would guess that about 1000 people on the east coast got to see the end of it. Why is that? The game's FIRST PITCH wasn't until about 8:07pm. If it had ended in regulation, we are still talking about around 11:30 but this one went into extra innings (11 to be exact) and wound up ending at 12:40 AM!!!!!
One of my fondest childhood memories from this time of year were the World Series' games I was able to listen to on the radio and/or watch on television. My interest in baseball was above just about everything else and the same applied for most of my friends at that time. We would re-enact these games in our own back yards or at the nearby school baseball field.
These days those fields are empty. When was the last time you saw a bunch of kids playing baseball anywhere? The fields, the yards, the streets? What I mentioned in the first paragraph is the primary reason why. What child is able to stay up past 10pm, let alone 12:40AM, to watch a basxeball game? Oh, but John, we can't forget the west coast. Remember, they're 3 hours behind us. So, how many West Coast baseball fans are into the Rangers and the Cardinals? You probably could count that on one hand.
Now look at the NFL.....Sunday afternoons are still sacred. They still play in daylight, for the most part. Even the Super Bowl is over early enough for everyone to watch
When will Major League Baseball realize that they are losing the younger fan base? The NFL...the NCAA.....Extreme Games.....that's where they are going......or maybe they're just going to the streets with nothing to do but get into trouble. Bring baseball back to the masses. The earlier, the better!

There Goes My "Neighborhood"

We live in a modest, ranch home. 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms. Your typical 60's home upgraded and remodeled, of course. Since day one, I have had full use of the master bath which is a small closet-like room attached to our master bedroom. The girls - my wife and daughter - used the large "guest" bathroom complete with two sinks, tub, etc. - all of the acoutrements needed as far as any women is concerned.
Well, now, that the "little" girl is moving into the teen years, my lovely wife is now having issues sharing the bathroom with her and has decided it would be best for us to share the smaller master bath. This morning has been "move in" day. The sink has, somehow, disappeared in a sea of various lotions and soaps. Half of the medicine cabinet now has items I couldn't identify if you put a gun to my head. Of course, during the "cleanup" (and there was a massive cleanup prior to move-in), my wife claims to have found medicine and after shave that had expired 5 years ago. Those things have expiration dates? Really? Nothing had evaporated or disappeared so, for me, they were still good. Guess not for the "new" tenant.
I just walked in there a few minutes ago and the aroma of Pine-Sol permeated the room. Hadn't smelled that in years. The floor, the shower, the sink - spotless!!!! What was happening??? Cleanliness has now crept into my life. That's a positive, I guess. I would also have to assume that the other would be the year or two added to my life because of the lack of whatever germs had resided in there for the past 6 years.
I guess sharing isn't so bad after all!

You Gotta Have Heart

It's been a while for one of these but it's time to get back into the old "blog" swing and, after yesterday, it's time. I will warn you that a sports analogy is coming but there will be a point for everyone...sports enthusiast or not.
Last night, I had the opportunity to witness two sporting events - one in person and one on TV. After taking in the results of each, I was able to see the relation between the two.
I had the fortune of seeing one of the best high school football games I ever witnessed, in person, last night. A game where the lead changed 7 times in the 4th quarter alone! I saw the home team (my team, by the way) fall behind with less than a minute to go and, then, I watched as a bunch of players became a team. They closed ranks, with just 40 seconds left and 80 yards to go to score, pulled it all together to come back and win. They looked to each other and used each other to lift the team to a higher level.
My second sporting event was viewed from the comfort of my "man room" couch as my Philadelphia Phillies (if you don't know by now....I'm a Philly native and a HUGE fan!)were trying to stave off being eliminated from the National League playoffs. They were a preseason pick....and a during-season pick, to win the whole thing. This was a team made up of some of the best in the business and they were fortified this year by more of that type of player. In the other dugout, a team that was doing all they could to get IN the playoffs, let alone STAY in the playoffs. One team - the Phils - had a 10 and a half game lead when they clinched their playoff place. The other team - the St. Louis Cardinals - were 10 and a half games OUT OF the playoffs when that happened. They had lots of ground to make up in a short period of time. Well, you know the result. What I saw last night was one group of players waiting for the next guy to step up against another TEAM who closed ranks and decided to do it TOGETHER!!! You know who won?.....the TEAM, of course!!!!
The common thread from both of these events - other than the fact that two TEAMS won? Both winners showed the love they had for each other as teammates and put away and all personal ambitions for the sake of the TEAM. They performed with their hearts instead of their heads. Give me a TEAM like that every time and talent doesn't matter. There IS strength in unity.
Out jogging this morning, I thought about the parallels to my life and to others I know. I can't do it alone....with my job.....with my family......with my life. I, YOU, need a TEAM to make it happen every day with your job, your family....your life!!! You GOTTA have heart!! That brain part is secondary!

Our Little "Surprise"

It was 49 years ago.......earlier in the year....the announcement was made at our dinner table that my brother, at age 17, and I, at age 11, were going to be treated to a family addition. No, not a pet....a real, live human being. We were going to have another sibling in the house. We never gave another family member a thought.....until that day. Well, 49 years ago yesterday, our little sister was born. My days as the youngest were over....I was the now the "middle" child. Little did I know how blessed that day would be. She was the happiest, sweetest little one. I was, pretty much, the "big" brother at home since my big brother headed off to college. She was with me just about everywhere even that day that my friends taught her, as she put it, "some new bad words" while watching us play basketball in our driveway. I watched her excel in gymnastics at age 6......and 7 ....and 8.....and then I went off to college. From there it's been a blur but she has grown up to be one of the strongest people I know. Life threw her a number of curveballs but, like the patient hitter, she handled it all. I couldn't be prouder of anyone. Happy Birthday to my little sister.

THEE Man in My Life

From the first day I could recall anything, he was there......not the most affectionate guy but...he was there.....he was there for my first day at school. He was there for my confirmation, first communion, etc. A night I will always remember when he was there - I was 6 years old, being treated for a nasty head cut in a hospital emergency room (I was begging my mom to go outside and play one last time, sitting at the top of our basement steps and I leaned a little too far and tumbled down the steps to the bottom where the back of my head found a paint-covered cinder block. Maybe why I've been accused by some of having a hard head.). I was as scared as any 6-year old would be in that situation until I heard whispered in my ear, "Don't worry, I'm here!......He was there for to teach me how to catch and hit a baseball, throw a football, shoot a basketball, mow a lawn, drive a car, etc. He was there supporting me through all of my relationship mistakes. Never second-guessed me, although he could....and maybe should have..:). After my last one went awry after a bunch of years, not too long ago, he was there, calling me offering encouragement. He was right - the best was yet to come and I met her 7 years ago. He taught me the meaning of loyalty and obedience; what a little "elbow grease", as he called it, would do for me. He taught me NEVER to quit on anything, especially myself. He was tough and somewhat hard to please but he was the most generous individual I'd ever known. He would help anyone in trouble, whether he knew them or not.
Today, I am one of the fortunate ones who, at my age, get to spend a day with him. My Dad.....if I turn out to be half the person he's been, I'm good! My Dad - THEE man in my life! Please remember yours today.....whether he is here or not....believe he is always "here" for you.

Is Our Life A Numbers Game?

It's been awhile since we've talked. Count on these to be a little more frequent from here on. Thanks for your patience, in the meantime.
By now, you should know that I'm a huge sports fan and, at different times during my career, I did some work for various sports teams. My most memorable "stint" was with the NBA Champion Dallas Mavericks in their pre-Mark Cuban days. I have a longer history with Mr. Cuban being his very first ever web streaming client. KLIF, Dallas, started it all for him......so, was there any question as to whom I was rooting for in the NBA Finals? It's still takes me back just a bit when I precede the Mavericks name with "NBA Champion". I was there when 15-20 wins in an 80-game season was more than the norm than an aberration. I saw when this team started builidng itself. Above that, I saw the philosophy they were beginning to build on - the philosophy that got them a championship - teamwork! No one player was above any other. Every one had a role and a backup role and they all were integral part of an improbable championship run. Before his ownership, Mark Cuban exexmplified that with the way he treated his web clients and carried that over to his team.
The Mavs' coach, Rick Carlisle, spoke of success versus fulfillment after the big win. Each player achieved some level of success in the league and their careers up to that point but none were able to fulfill that ultimate dream until this past Sunday. They went up against a Miami Heat franchise with two (maybe three) of the most talented players in the NBA today against one aging star and 11 other "spare parts". What ensued was a "star" who looked at more of himself as part of a bigger team framework going against three all-stars who hadn't figured out how to reach the mountain top as a unit.
The Dallas Mavericks fulfilled their ultimate dream by relying on each other through the good and bad times. They believed in each other. They leaned on one another. They had confidence and each other's ability knwoing , if one player was out of step another would step up. They believed in the fulfillment. "Strength in numbers" is what one player epitomized as the ultimate reason for the Mavericks' win.
Thetre is no question that we can learn from this event with our jobs, our friends, our family, our faith! We can't do any of this alone. NONE of it. Yes, we will experience individual success but that only happens for that moment in time. Our ultimate fulfillment depends on how we build our relationships over time and how we incorporate tjem into our life. If we approached our lives as the Dallas Mavericks approached an NBA Championship, all uf us......we may see the world around us as God meant it be when he put it all together. There's definitely "Strength in Numbers".

FINALLY, An INteresting NASCAR Story

For those who know me, I'm an avid sports fan. I like most sports. Depending upon the event, I watch my share of baseball, football, golf, basketball, hockey, etc. To be very honest, though, I have never been a any kind of a NASCAR fan. I have tried but a race of 500 miles just can't hold my interest so I, usually, wait until about mile 495 to watch a major race. This applied to the past weekend's Daytona 500. I figured I would wait until about a couple of laps were remaining and, then, I would be there to see the finish.
Turns out I wound up seeing history and something, in my opinion, that can do nothing but good for NASCAR. Jeff Gordon was out.....Jimmy Johnson was deep in the pack......Junior wrecked just prior to my tuning in. So - up steps this 20-year old rookie who was only driving in his second NASCAR event and, in a thrilling finish, wins! What a story - best exemplified by his remark after the race while driving off the track ' "Where Do I Go Now - I've never been here before!" 20 years old....the youngest ever to win the Daytona 500. Trevor Bayne showed us that even NASCAR can come up with a great story. I noticed that the attention being paid to this win and Trevor himself stretched well beyond the normal NASCAR fan. Even my wife showed interest in the story and she is about as interested in NASCAR as our little dog (as a matter of fact, the pup did show some interest toward the end, waking from his nap to stare at the TV.). On a weekend when the NBA All-Stars were showing off (literally) their talents in LA; on a weekend when Major League Baseball Spring Training got underway in earnest; on a weekend, when the NFL owners and the Players Association started their negotitiation joust, NASCAR took center stage. Hats off to you, Trevor Bayne. Don't be a flash in the pan and this could be a year long story! Just what NASCAR needs to bet back into total prominence.