Blake Hoffarber

This guy is beginning to be the "miracle shot" guy. Tonight against Indiana in the Big-Ten Quarterfinals, Hoffarber brought back memories of the the famous Christian Laettner shot. The crazy thing is that it is not even close to his greatest shot ever. Perhaps one of the greatest shots ever in basketball was performed by Mr. Hoffarber a few years back. The butt shot. I have not been able to find a video clip of the shot to beat Indiana yet, but as soon as I do I will add it to this. What a rush it must be to throw up a miracle and have it go in. Congratulations Blake Hoffarber, and even more congratulations Minnesota Golden Gophers. Tubby Smith has them headed in the right direction.

Husbands, go all out in your love for your wives

Eliot Laurence Spitzer has had better moments in life I am sure. The recently exposed scandal that has brought down his term as governor of New York has been ugly. In light of all of it, the New York Post writer Cindy Adams decided it was important for her to write her own thoughts and opinions on the situation. Now I am definitely a fan of the First Amendment but every once in a while it disappoints me on how people use it. Her comments and subsequent support by Colin Cowherd on the radio was terrible. The comments reducing men to mere animals needing to satisfy their sex drive in whatever way possible was saddening. Even more saddening, though, was the support that seemed to say that the occasional "grazing" by a man during marriage was/is okay. In her words, "Paying a pro isn't disrespect to his wife." So somehow a man choosing to cheat once in a while (as long as it isn't in a long-term affair) is okay because it is normal, to be expected, and even a nice thing to do for his spouse. WHAT?! ! Cowherd in defending this position stated that marriage is the only thing we haven't allowed to evolve with the times. He even went on to say that he has never kept a coffee table longer than five years so how can marriage make sense. Comparing a wife to a coffee table? SERIOUSLY!?!! It saddened me deeply to hear about Spitzer. Not because I have any tie to New York or care about his politics. No, it saddened me because it was one more example of a guy betraying his spouse. And the support of it in the media (which thrives on the sensational journalism) was even more sickening. What has happened to our culture? I love my wife. I openly admit that I am not the best husband, I often screw up, say mean things, act selfishly/rude/disrespectful, and often do not think of how I can set her up for the most possible success in her life. I know that I could be so much better a husband to her. My goal is to spend the rest of my life trying to figure how to do that. The passage from Ephesians 5 is the blueprint upon which I strive to meet. The thing is that I do it not just because Christ tells me I should or because I feel guilty. I strive to "go all out in love" for her because that is what makes the most sense. If I am not completely loyal, loving, and serving to the person who I am supposed to love most in this world - why should anyone else trust me? What confidence can my kids have in me? Or my colleagues, friends, etc.? The measure of a man is the love & care he has for his spouse. Eliot Spitzer failed as a husband. I don't look down upon him because of that, I simply hope that he learns from his mistake(s). And contrary to Cindy Adams or Colin Cowherd it is not okay. The more men step up and love their spouses in this country the better off we as a society we will be. Marriage does not need to evolve, rather we as men need to learn how to make it work in an ever-changing, moral-decaying world.

50 miles and counting

Well since I took running back up I have ran about 50 miles in the past 4 weeks. That isn't terrible, but this morning I am discouraged. I just ran my lastest trail (3.6 miles) and I knew I did not put my full effort into it. I finished running and felt like I was wasting time. You just know when you are dogging something - technically you are doing it but in reality the effort is disgusting. I was reading stuff from Dean Karnazes and it just motivated me to go out there and run harder. Give it my absolute best. My goals aren't as lofty as his in terms of running, but I have decided on one. I would like to get myself into good enough shape that I can run a 10K (6.21 miles) on my long run day each week in less than 45 minutes. I've got a long road to get to that point, but I need some sort of goal so that I don't go out and slouch my way through my workouts. Running continues to feel good. My knee is a little sore - but mostly from tiredness any real aches/pains. Wish me luck!

Crispus Attucks

March 5th, 1770. One of the most important events in the history of the United States. High conflict and tension in the colonies over the Townshend Acts leads to the heinous crime committed by the British military. The aftermath? The Boston Massacre. 5 civilians would die and the spark for revolution would begin. I find it fascinating how much history is locked into each day of the year. It literally proves that each and every day truly matters. The Boston Massacre happend almost 240 years ago, and yet its importance still shines today. I love history. I think it is the most important subject to study. Nothing excites me more than spending time reading or physically going to some historical place. We can learn so much in studying the past. The question is will we? Either way I will continue to enjoy learning more and more about the past.

Thanks for the memories.

No more #4 slinging passes with reckless abandon. I was ten years old when Brett took over for the Majik Man and lead the Packers to victory over the Bengals. Ten. Now here I am, almost 26, and he is now retiring. Walking away from the game on his own terms. It is a sad day for me. Much like July 12th, 1996 when Kirby Puckett announced his retirement from baseball; I am left with a sad void in my sports-loving heart. With both Puckett and Favre, it did not matter who else was on the team - you always just assumed they had a chance to win. Watching Brett play the game was always exciting. He made every single moment of the game worth watching. Sometimes the excitement would be in joy over something amazing. Other times the excitement would be the irritation of him throwing yet another interception. Either way, I couldn't help but root for the guy. No matter how poor he played, I was always argue that none played the game better. He seemed to approach football like my two-year-old approaches life - full throttle with no regard to what is safe, proper or sometimes dare-I-say smart. The enthusiasm, fun, and belief that any throw was possible was hard not to love. For Packers fans, he brought forth an era of excellence not seen since the Lombardi days. For the NFL, there might never be a guy who loved the game and played with such gusto to ever grace the field again. Nothing seemed to ever derail the guy. Whether it was the improper lifestyle as a younger man that got him into trouble or the personal tragedies that seemed to come at a nonstop pace towards the end of his career. He just kept playing. In the end, it makes sense that the only thing that caused Brett to retire was his own decision. With such a successful season and perhaps a Super Bowl run on the horizon, it might be considered reckless for him to retire when he did, and yet that simply mimics the decision making he made on the field. Hearts are truly crushed in Green Bay and everywhere Packers fans are found. There will never be another one like him. Yet at the end of they day, I cannot help but feel happy for the guy. A chance to leave on his own terms with a legacy too big for words. Much like Paul Bunyan, years from now it will be hard to separate fact from fiction in all the stories of this legend of the gridiron. I am sad that my boys will never get to watch him play when they are old enough to truly understand the game. There will be great ones to watch for them I am sure, but he will always be one-of-a-kind. Well I guess I could go on and on, but I will end with two moments that will always stick out to me. The first is the first-round playoff absolute beating that the Packers took against St. Louis in January of 2002. The Rams took it to the Packers that day by close to 30 points and intercepted Favre 6 times! I was so upset and angry and yet as as I look back it makes me smile. No matter how many times they picked him off, Brett refused to stop slinging it down field. He refused to stop throwing heaters to guys 3 yards away from him. And he definitely did not get wrapped up in worrying about his stats. He simply played like he always played - with reckless abandonment. Six picks or zero picks, I wouldn't have him any other way. It was in games like that one that I was reminded that Favre was just an ordinary guy. The lunch-pail type as some call it. The second moment is the one I have autographed and framed. My wife bought me an autographed photo of him during the Super Bowl win against New England. He is running across the field, helmet raised high in his right hand with a boyish grin across his face. He is having the time of his life and he knows it. All emotion. That will be the picture I see in my head every time I think of Brett Favre. It does not matter what anyone else says, to me he will always be the best. It will never be the same watching Packers games in the future. Success or no success they are my team. But every game I watch from this moment on will be bittersweet because I know that the Old Gunslinger won't be there to make it exciting one way or the other. Goodbye Brett Lorenzo Favre. You will be missed but thanks for the memories.

Peter O'Toole

"In many ways, the work of a critic is easy. We risk very little yet enjoy a position over those who offer up their work and their selves to our judgment. We thrive on negative criticism, which is fun to write and to read. But the bitter truth we critics must face, is that in the grand scheme of things, the average piece of junk is more meaningful than our criticism designating it so." I was watching Ratatouille this morning with the boys, and I was really struck by this quote from one of the characters Anton Ego (voiced by Peter O'Toole). I guess what stuck out to me was the idea of how easy being a critic is and how easy it is to thrive on negative criticism. I find this so true in my own life where I can find at least 10 things to complain about or criticize before I can usually find one thing that is good. I am surrounded by this notion everywhere I go. At work, we critique everything we do, always looking at the bad [framing it in the disguise of "how could things go better"] first and trivializing the good. In my relationships, I often notice the things that drive me nuts and usually complain about them much sooner than I recognize the good. My poor wife often gets "left-over compliments" because I tend to notice things like the dishes being left undone or the amount of things she has asked me to help with around the house. It seems like it is much easier to to say "NO!" to my kids than it is to give them patience, understanding, and encouragement. Even with my own self I am apt to offer up more negativity than anything positive. Yes the role of a critic is easy. Unfortunately, I do not believe that is what the world needs from me...or anyone else for that matter. Like anything good in life, discipline is needed to get it. Therefore, instead of allowing myself to live in the realm of "easy" negative criticism, I would like to try to be more positive, uplifting and encouraging. Will that be easy to do? I would assume not...but sometimes I need to face the bitter truth and move onto a better tomorrow.

Leadership

I am reminded of a quote from one of my all-time favorite movies The American President . [written by Hollywood's greatest dialogue writer, Aaron Sorkin] In it, the character played by Michael J. Fox says, "People want leadership, Mr. President, and in the absence of genuine leadership, they'll listen to anyone who steps up to the microphone. They want leadership. They're so thirsty for it they'll crawl through the desert toward a mirage, and when they discover there's no water, they'll drink the sand." In terms of this political scene right now, I think this is where we find most Americans. We are in the position of wanting someone with genuine leadership who can give us something to believe in. In the event there is no one with genuine leadership to lead - we will "drink the sand" of whoever sounds best. In the campaign for the Presidency in 1992, James Carville got William Jefferson Clinton to focus on three things: the economy, healthcare, and "change" (as in change in Washington and the need to move forward for America). It was a highly succesful campaign and got Clinton elected over the incumbent George HW Bush. Whether or not a person believes Clinton delivered on his promises is certainly debatable. But the point is that Clinton gave people a reason to believe, hope and think that he knew what he was doing. He focused on the 3 things that hit Americans most. Flash foward to 2008. We sit here looking for the same things. Our economy is in the crapper. It is clearly seen in the housing market crash, the ever lowering federal interest rate in the hopes of something good happening, the rise in price of consumer needs like food and gasoline, and the list goes on and on. The current President can hem-and-haw all he wants about this not being a reason to panic but in the lives of real people it is. Most of America is scared to death about what is going to happen economically for us all. Healthcare is another issue. Let me be the first to say that I do not think universal healthcare is the answer or the thing that we should pursue. On the other hand, I think the cost of health insurance and anything to do with medicine is way too high. It is easy to blast ideas on providing healthcare for all people unless you are one of the people who are gambling that their health will stay good because they don't have the insurance or money to pay for anything "bad." Finally there is the notion of change. I don't think we want as much change as we say we want. No, I think change has more to with the idea that we want someone to step into the Oval Office and truly lead this country and this world. Someone who gives a rip about people of all races, religions, and economic statuses. We want someone who is going to lead not based upon popular opinion or personal impulse but on what is actually right. We want someone not in politics for personal gain but for the sole purpose of leading people. Connect with real people, let us know you care, and take us where we are not today. That is the change that will matter. Who is the person? Are they actually running for the Presidency right now? Who knows. That is for us as voters to decide. My hope is that all of the lofty promises, hopes, and dreams that Senators McCain, Obama, and Clinton are throwing out actually mean something to them. Whoever takes office - give us some genuine leadership. Michael Douglas responds to Michael J. Fox in the movie with this, "Lewis, we've had presidents who were beloved, who couldn't find a coherent sentence with two hands and a flashlight. People don't drink the sand because they're thirsty. They drink the sand because they don't know the difference." Do we know the difference? Do our candidates know the difference? Only time will tell.