WooHoo Dynamo!

Congrats to the Houston Dynamo, the MLS Champions!!! They won in a shootout after double overtime. The best thing is, they're Orange. Folks in the stands wave giant orange checkerboard flags (wonder where they got those?), the manager just showed up in a orange blazer (hmmm....) and now all they need is a coon dog to cheer them on.

Way to go Orange!

Texas Weather

This time of year we get "fronts" moving through that dramatically change our temperatures. Unlike other places where they just happen, here in Texas you can see them and know exactly when the wind is going to change and the temp drop. This is a picture from my truck as I cross a bridge on the way to work.

Please, no smart comments about driving and photography....you have to sacrifice for your art...

Test Post

Just checking to see if this new method works....

I ran out of ideas....

This is an x-ray of my briefcase, in case any of you were wondering what I carry daily.

More Morristown

It appears to be like a 7 part series on Morristown. I didn't think there was enough info about Morristown to make 7 series. Jeff City maybe...but Morristown?

What's next, an expose' on Tuckyhoe? A 3 part series on famous people who live in Mascot? A heart warming personal story on Straw Plains?

You East Tennessee'rs get all the good pub.

Morristown Article

The Houston Chronicle had a big article today (front page)about illegal immigration and an uproar in Morristown. It was odd reading about Morristown on the front of the Houston paper.

They also showed a map of M'Town with what (according to the map) are your only two businesses. A chicken deboning plant and a chicken slaughtering plant.

They interviewed people in trailers, mentioned the KKK and racism. So that pretty much covers you hillbillies. It seemed a little one-sided....

Happy Birthday...

There are a lot of celebrity birthdays today. I like celebrity birthdays cause it always surprises me how old tv stars have gotten while I stayed relatively the same age....

Chuck (Johnny B. Goode) Berry is 80 today. Keith (Whoa Nelly) Jackson is 78. Mike (I'll rip your head off if you run up the middle) Ditka is 67. And...Mork's wife, Mindy (Pam Dawber) is 55 today. 55! Na-Nu, Na-Nu.

Bug Shot

Bug picture I took. Woohoo.

Cool photo

Ever wonder what happens to the big orange external tank that is jettisoned from the space shuttle as it gets to orbit? It floats back down to earth and is burned up in re-entry. Here is a picture from the last shuttle misison that shows it floating down over European farmland. This photo was taken from the shuttle. Cool huh?

My dream car

Two great Rock-n-Rollers have birthdays today. Chubby Checker is 65, and Ashlee Simpson is 22 today.

And yes, that was the Oscar Meyer Weinermobile. What gave it away? Were the words "weinermobile" on the bumper a clue?

Guess what car this is?

I get to see some awesome stuff sometimes.....

Astros Win The Pennant

OK, not quite yet, but by the weekend for sure. They are only 2 and a half games out after making up 6 games in one week. They will beat the Cardinals in a one game playoff at Minute Maid Park. You heard it here first.

I'm at a motel on a lake in Texas. The view is beautiful but the gnats and mosquitoes are fearsome. I forgot what living on the water was like. My room is full of gnats. My coffee is full of gnats. My nostrils are full of...wait...achooo.... Well they used to be full of gnats. At least the river rats haven't climbed the balcony yet.

Weekend Wrapup

I know it's a longshot, but we said they have to sweep the Cardinals and they did in very dramatic fashion. Wow. I still believe the wild card is possible, maybe even the Division. Only 3 1/2 out and there are still 7 games to go....

The Texans weren't quite so fortunate. Ouch, ouch, ouch. They looked horrible.

On the college front, it was an ok weekend. Arkansas/Alabama was an interesting game. "Wide Right" ain't just FSU anymore...

On this day in 1775 Ethan Allen was captured by the British during the Revolutionary War while attacking Montreal. He recovered to start and lead a successful expensive furniture company. What I want to know is...Montreal is in Canada. Were we trying to capture Canada?

In 1956, the first Trans-Atlantic telephone cable was layed. The first Trans-Atlantic busy signal soon followed.

I'm on the move this week so postings will really depend on what the hotel means by "Internet accessible".

Look Up

The place I love to go (and I don't usually plug outside websites) is www.heavens-above.com. This website has all the satellite sightings, shuttle, station, flares, etc etc etc. It's amazing how much stuff, and time, is put into this website. If you get a chance go visit it. Wander around til you get to ISS (International Space Station)sightings and it'll show you in detail the best opportunities. It's an awesome reasource and always accurate. I've used it to see itty bitty satellites that I never knew existed. One night I stood outside for like 30 minutes and saw something like 8 things float by. I never knew you could do this. I was (and still am) amazed.

Here is a link to the best sightings of Space Station from Knoxville. (there is a good one tomorrow.)

Easy, Easy

I could hear the tension in your voices last Thursday and now I know why. AAARGGGH. Why do we always make Florida look like a good team? And I don't know thwe final tally but we probably rushed for negative yards. And sacks weren't the problem. Except for that last one AAARgh.

Overall we played pretty good. But the running game stunk. There were a few holes and we missed them. It was just sad. Fortunately Notre Dame lost so I feel a little better.

Texas A&M was the luckiest this weekend. They were ahead late over Army who had played very, very well. A&M went for it with 4th and 2 around their own 30 with about 2 minutes to go. (Why not punt????) Army stuffed them for a 5 yard loss. Army worked it down until a goal line stand saved A&M. Dumb, dumb decsion by A&M coaching staff. Horrible decision. Reminded me of a fake punt tried against Georgia that cost us the game 30 years ago.

Aaaaarghgh!

I "upgraded" to a fancier, newer version of blogger a while back and ever since I did posting pictures has become a real chore. Most of the time it acts like it's working, but never finishes. This has really impacted my desire to blog. It takes some time anyway, but trying to do it and having the software not cooperate is really frustrating. Hopefully it will get fixed soon. I just tried uploading a new cartoon and it won't work.


AAAAAARRRGH!!!!

Whew!

It's really nerve wracking to follow a game by only looking at the ESPN tickler on the bottom of the tv screen. You see us behind, then ahead, then way ahead and start to relax. Then all of a sudden it's almost tied. And then you cringe as the next update rolls around.

Glad we hung in there. We dropped to 13 in the polls but that is ok. We'll do better after beating Florida this weekend.

The Pig

Way back in 1979, ESPN was born on this day. Yes Virginia, there was a day when you didn't have eleventeen football games on tv every Saturday. There was the Wide World of Sports....and one game on Saturday. ...and that game was usually Notre Dame vs somebody or Army/Navy....it was a dark, dark time.

Yesterday, way back in 1916, the first self-service grocery store opened in Memphis Tennessee. Before that, you asked a clerk to go get your stuff. Now, you can get whatever you want your ownself. Was it a HEB? Kroger? Safeway? Randalls? Nope, it was my favorite chain...Piggly Wiggly. You can get official Pig t-shirts off their web-site. A great gift idea....

The smokehouse picture is from Lost Creek golf course. You overthunk it....

The Pig

Way back in 1979, ESPN was born on this day. Yes Virginia, there was a day when you didn't have eleventeen football games on tv every Saturday. There was the Wide World of Sports....and one game on Saturday. ...and that game was usually Notre Dame vs somebody or Army/Navy....it was a dark, dark time.

Yesterday, way back in 1916, the first self-service grocery store opened in Memphis Tennessee. Before that, you asked a clerk to go get your stuff. Now, you can get whatever you want your ownself. Was it a HEB? Kroger? Safeway? Randalls? Nope, it was my favorite chain...Piggly Wiggly. You can get official Pig t-shirts off their web-site. A great gift idea....

The smokehouse picture is from Lost Creek golf course. You overthunk it....

The Pig

Way back in 1979, ESPN was born on this day. Yes Virginia, there was a day when you didn't have eleventeen football games on tv every Saturday. There was the Wide World of Sports....and one game on Saturday. ...and that game was usually Notre Dame vs somebody or Army/Navy....it was a dark, dark time.

Yesterday, way back in 1916, the first self-service grocery store opened in Memphis Tennessee. Before that, you asked a clerk to go get your stuff. Now, you can get whatever you want your ownself. Was it a HEB? Kroger? Safeway? Randalls? Nope, it was my favorite chain...Piggly Wiggly. You can get official Pig t-shirts off their web-site. A great gift idea....

The smokehouse picture is from Lost Creek golf course. You overthunk it....

Mystery Shed

Anybody know what this is a picture of??? Where it was taken???

It's Here

Much to the chagrine of my wife...football season is here. I vow not to be glued to the tube this year, but I do enjoy an occasional game.

Looks like CN got off to a good start already with a 44-0 thrashing of Webber International. I thought those guys just made b-b-q grills.

I'm a little worried about Cal. This could be a really tough openener. Let's hope we got a few things figured out.

Feetball Preview

It officially starts tonight. High school and college games are all over the place. So it's time for the big Feetball preview. Here we go...

Big 12: Oklahoma reels from the loss of it's QB. It's enough to ruin their season. Nebraska is good but not quite good enough. Texas A&M likes their QB but nothing else. They pull together a nice, if not spectacular season. Texas dreams of a repeat, but there's no Vince. They lose three in a surprise. Baylor wins six in a surprise. So who is it??? Who wins the Big 12???

Texas Tech shines in all aspects. New QB sets records all over the place and defense is surprisingly good. Tortillas fly. Red Raiders win the Big 12 in an upset and make a fairly big splash nationally.

Nationally: Ohio State is good, but loses two. Notre Dame is a bust and loses five. That's right, five. The ROT returns to prominence and finishes second in the SEC to the New National Champion....Auburn.

That's it...enjoy the season

Last Year This Time

It's the one year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, if you didn't already know that. It's amazing how much damage that one storm did. It's also amazing at how many folks are still struggling after a year. But I suppose that shouldn't really be a surprise, considering the devastation. The whole thing is just unbelievable.

Rain, Rain, Rain

It rained hard, hard, hard on Saturday and I stayed wet all day. We had a soccer tournament among other things. It's like real futbol where you play regardless of the weather. It's just hard to move the ball when it's sitting in 8 inches of water. The worse part as a coach is that your feet stay wet all day. I finally ditched my socks and just went with shoes. But my feet hurt and were one big wrinkled mess.

I'm glad I was never a soldier and had to march for three days in the rain.

It did clear up enough for the balloon festival to continue. I'll post a few pictures in the next couple of days. This website has had some difficulty in posting pictures the last couple of weeks.

Still searching

I'm still searching for the perfect online information source for the Vols. It's not Knoxnews for sure. I may find it in a small town paper like the Wartburg Times or something.

We have a big balloon festival this weekend. It's pretty cool to see a hundered or so hot air balloons flying by at one time. I've taken three flights but I've retired from flying. I'm not real great with heights and I remember that shortly after we takeoff. My memory is better this year.

No Help

I'm sorry, but thanks for the suggestion. There's no way I could read the Nashville paper for Tennessee Vols news. First, it's Vanderbilt Country so they'd be biased not perfectly impartial like the Knoxville paper. Secondly, Nashville stole our Oilers so I can't act like I like them.

I could read the Maryville paper, if it contained any actual articles. How about the Chattanooga paper? I seem to remember they had good coverage of fastpitch softball. Do they cover the Vols too? Are they free?

Astros Woes

We are now like 7 games out of the wild card race. Which doesn't sound impossible except there are 45 teams between us and the wild card. Everybody in the National League stinks. We still have hope.

How's Big Orange football coming along? I don't get to read too much about it cause KnoxNews requires you to pay to read about Tenn football. Their whole site is free except for Tenn football. I can read about any worldly event, not just how our offensive line is shaping up.

The snake house isn't mine. It was a fellow employees house, they just wanted me to tell them what kind of snake it was. That's part of my job you see, snake handling. It is a rat snake. Apparently, the homeowner used to have rats.....

Texas Wildlife

Ever had a snake like this on your house????

Napolean!

Today is Napolean Bonaparte's birthday, stick one hand in your shirt day. And...way, way back in 1969 the Woodstock Music and Art Festival opened in New York. In remembrance of Woodstock, walk around in mud and don't wash your feet for three days.

Alex was 27 yesterday and he's still single. His momma cooked supper for him yesterday, and today he had to go to work. Welcome to old age dude.

WooHoo! Undefeated!!!!

Based on what I saw Saturday evening, I think it's pretty clear that the Texans....are going to the Super Bowl!!!!! That's right, we hammered the Chiefs. Rookie Mario Williams scared them so bad he didn't even have to make a tackle! We beat 'em bad! We are undefeated! WooHoo!

Today's birthdays include Magic Johnson who is 47....and David Crosby aint so Young, he's 65 today.

Big Day

On this day back in 1992, the Mall of America in Minnesota opened. It was the largest Mall in the United States of America. It has been a dream destination of my wife ever since. I wonder if they have specially soft benches for the guys to sit on? Do they run marathons in there?

I Survived

I survived the management retreat. It was pretty good and the hotel was alright. It sure wasn't luxurious or anything. I didn't get to play golf or poker or anything, just work.

Today is the first day of school. Next year they are going back to school on July 4th and the year after that they will end their summer vacation on January 10th.

I hate these short summers...

Boonies

This hotel is pretty well out there in the boonies. Its what we call a "one bar" hotel. That means you only get one bar on your cell phone signal. When you call someone you usually get half the call finished before you get dropped off. You see folks walking around looking at their phone trying to find a "sweet spot". Does it sound like we are technology addicts? Yep for sure.

Headed Out

I'm headed out for a "managament retreat" for a couple of days. Expect a lot of flip charts, some synergy, and problem resolutions. I actually like these retreats cause getting away from the office helps me think.

My wife likes them also. She calls them vacations for herself. Until I get back of course. Then she claims how hard it was without me so I have to take the kids. So she manages to work it all into 2 vacations.

She's a lot smarter than me.

Impress Your Friends

Want a cheap Heads Up Display like all the fighter pilots have? Follow along with me.

Copy a map from Mapquest or any of the mapping services. Paste it into Microsoft Paint. Hit CTRL-R, (or "image", "flip vertical"). This will show your map backwards, and inside out. Then print it. You MAC users just have to figure which program will invert the image then print it.

Then put this piece of paper on your dashboard. You will get a reflection on your windshield that is a perfect map! It's a Heads Up Display! It actually works awesome. If you want to get fancy put a little flashlight under it to make it even brighter.

You'll never have to hunt for that map again or divert your eyes from the road. Thank the great folks at Lifehacker for the idea.

Troubles....

I saw where another UT footballer got arrested yesterday, this time for flashing a toy uzi at a police officer. Jim Bob Cooter is still out and will miss the opener. All I hear down here is about LSU, Auburn, a little Florida etc. There is no mention of the Big Orange as a contender. Is it going to be another down year? Are we really that bad?

Floyd Landis looks like he won't be cleared of doping charges and now Justin Gatlin is involved. What is it? Is it the money, or the fame? I have no problem keeping track of what goes into my body why can't they? Are they just cheaters?

As long as Miss Debbies don't start adding testosterone to their recipe I suppose I'll be ok...

More Pics

When I get lazy I post pictures cause I don't have to write anything. I just have to pretend they have "some reason" to be there.

Furry Friends

I took this picture at work the other day...

We'll Be on TV Today

You'll probably see us on tv on the news tonight. It's raining today and will flood. We're expecting about 10 inches today. It doesn't drain fast enough so some homes and a lot of cars will go under water. It'll look like chaos on tv.

Folks will be interviewed who say "I was just driving and saw some cars go in the water and then all of a sudden I stalled out and had to get help from that guy over there to get out. It was scary." Reporters will wade up to people's homes who will say "We've had high water before but never nothing like this. I mean we are still fixin' up after last month's rains but it was never this high. I got water two foot high all thru the house."

You heard it here first. The poor folks who live in low lying areas will get flooded again. They don't have insurance cause nobody will insure those areas. They live there cause the houses are cheaper...cause they flood. And poor folks get knocked back to zero every time they try to get ahead. It's sad.

Cool PIc

Irritating the French, Part Ocho

Eight years in a row now Americans have won the Tour de France. This year they really wanted somebody else to win, but Floyd Landis did the incredible and pulled off the victory. Nice job.

Tiger won the Open yesterday but I didn't watch. Just had other things to do. Somehow I figured he would win. I suppose you don't see him collapse very often.

Wonder how th Big Orange is shaping up? I heard that Florida, Auburn, and LSU are being touted as the SEC's best this year.

Went to a Dog Show on Saturday cause my kids have puppy fever real bad. Please don't encourage them or mention it. It sends them into hour long whines. Saw lots of weirdo dogs, some big enough to ride, some that inspired the phrase "dog ugly", and some that had so much hair they couldn't possibly see where they were walking. All in all, it wasn't nearly as painfully boring as I expected.

Amazing Floyd

Floyd Landis did the impossible yesterday. He made up 8 minutes in the Tour de France. That's the equivalent of lapping the field in the 1600 meters at the Olympics. All anyone can figure is that when he made his move (very early in the race) that no one thought he could do this so they let him go to burn out. But he never burned out. He just kept accelerating and riders kept dropping off.

Does anybody else in the country follow the Tour? In Texas, you are used to watching it because of Lance....

Shivers

You know those little PlayStation Portable game consoles? You know, walk around and play handheld games...

I just figured out they have wireless capability. I mean, you can get them to work through your existing wireless network, just like a computer. You can browse the internet on one of those little suckers. You can go to Starbucks and read the NY Times on your Playstation Portable.

And the graphics are great. Extremely clear resolution on pictures etc. You can watch internet video, very clearly on one of these.

The Nintendo handheld games don't have browser capability yet, but you can connect wirelessly on them too, and play Mario GoCart with anybody else anywhere in the world. Amazing. I got shivers.

Oh, these kids. They're gonna take over the world.

I'm Breathless

Dick Button turns 77 today. Can you say double sow-cow, triple toe loop, double axle? Whoever came up with those names? I mean really? Did Dick and Peggy Fleming sit around and try to think up weird names for skating jumps? What skinny little skater wanted to be called a sow-cow?

How about some new names...."Tara is setting up her next combination..there it is!....a double bloated pig into a triple heel spinner followed by a half circle looper to a double double hooty. Wonderful...."

Whut?

Them NASA people have some weird stuff around....

Feetball "Sheeps"

Torbush Returns

Carl Torbush, former Texas A&M defensive coordinator, was re-hired by Carson-Newman yesterday. Torbush was a CN grad before he landed his first big job....as a Carter Green Hornet. Then he went to CN, Carolina, Bama, and finally became an Aggie. Now he's come full circle. I expect he'll work wonders as assistant coach of the Eagles.

Politics

Way back in 1804, when duels were still fairly common, the Vice President of the U.S. Aaron Burr shot the Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton on this day. Hamilton was mortally wounded. Can you imagine two top cabinet members squaring off today? Ever hear somebody say that civility in politics is at an all time low? I think not. You probably won't see cabinet members pacing off these days...

First photo

Here's a shot that shows how close we actually got. I have a zoom lens of course, but we were pretty close.

I'm trying to figure a way to post the other shots so you can look if you want, without it appearing as if I'm showing boring vacation pictures...

In other news...how about that North Korea? Can't feed people, but we can shoot long range missiles, sort of. That Kim Son Il, or whatever his name is, is a real work of art. He's the first dictator I've seen who can rule millions of subjects in a truck mechanic jumpsuit.

Home again, home again

Great to be back home and not eating at Arby's. I'll have some pictures to post in a day or two. This is my first post from a "dashboard widget" on my wife's Mac-Mini. It's amazing to me that you can type in a little box, hit publish, and it goes to the blog seamlessly. Amazing.

Fire works

Yesterday we saw launch of the space shuttle, then went to the beach. Last night we saw fireworks on the beach. It was kind of an all american 4th. It would only have been better if we'd had hot dogs on the beach. We did have pulled pork fron sonny's bar-b-q so that was the next best thing.

Launch

Saw launch today from a fifth floor balcony at the vehicle assembly bldg at the cape. Was nervous til t minus 31 seconds then I knew we were going. It was beautiful.

Try, try again

No launch on saturday. Today we went on the bus but by the time we got to our spot we just turned around and came home. Way too many clouds today. Looks like we'll try on July 4th for the third time. That sounds like a winner. I keep thinking that the odds are getting better and better each attempt. Keeping my fingers crossed.

Launch fever

Spent the day at kennedy space center. Saw STS-121 sitting on the pad. Took a tour etc and I'm getting a little excited about saturdays launch. Weather aint great but we'll see.

USA Today says 177 Tennessee national gaurd have volunteered to help patrol the mexican border in texas. Its a big border and might take a few more than that. This might seem cynical but I'm not that worried about the Mexican border. Its those pesky Canadiens that concern me. I never did like hockey or those mounties hats. Are they British? English? French? Let's watch the northern border, texas can handle our part.

On the road

In new orleans headed towards florida for the launch of the space shuttle on july 1st. Still lots of work going on around here with roofs etc. Iife appears to be returning to normal but the reports we're hearing say the french quarter may be a little sporty these days. The national gaurd has been deployed and there is a lot of stealing, looting etc. Local folks say they aren't real excited about nightime activities there. But businesses are back and quite a few people are around.

Tomorrow we head towards the cape on a long driving day. Hope the nintendos are fully charged.

All my favs are gone...

It was knockout weekend for me in the World Cup. The US, Mexico, and the Netherlands have all gone packing. I still sort of like England, kinda like Argentina, and could always root for Brasil if need be. It appears to me to be a lot like the NCAA basketball tourney. Upsets happen in the early games but the big dogs settle in for the later rounds.

Ghana will exit tomorrow when they play Brasil, which would've been the US's fate anyway. Mexico played great but couldn't win. The Netherlands should've won by 2 or 3 but couldn't keep from hitting the crossbar on open shots.

Flame Out

OK, so Ghana (wherever that is) whupped us in soccer and we're out. Now we just have to cheer for the Orange. Dissappointing game.

The Rocket is back. This is the first step towards this years World Series championship, the first for Houston.

Dallas lost the basketball championship. Sad for them.

El Tri Is In!

Mexico has advanced to the 2nd round! And they lost both games they played! That's what you have to love about futbol. You can never figure out what it takes to advance.

Their coach was pelted with rocks boarding the team bus, after they qualified to advance.

My favorite team is still the Netherlands. All Orange all the time. Even orange socks.

World Cup Madness

Tough Question

Inking the Post

Irony

Paul McCartney turns 64 on Sunday. I wonder if he'll be banging his head with Maxwell's Silver Hammer....

Beware the Couch

We bought a couch about 6 months ago and today I decided to remove the tags. We like to leave them on for a while (a la Minnie Pearl) so the stuff still seems new. One tag I took off was a "Safety Warning".

I thought to myself what dangers are inherent in couches? You might fall off? Get fat watching tv? Muscle atrophy from lying prone? Drown in slobber after falling asleep?

Turns out it's a warning that the couch will burn if you put flame to it. It warns against smoking on the couch, putting it too close to a candle or trying to mend your car fender with a blowtorch while watching the Astros in high def. So I suppose it's a good warning, although I would've figured out that flame to the fabric was probably a bad idea in the first place. Anyway, no smoking on my new couch please....

Braves get Smoked

Went to the Astros game yesterday with the Jeff City crowd. It was a perfect game to watch. There were 7 or 8 homers, 27 total hits, and the Astros won 14-4. Balls were flying out all over. Jeff Francouer of the Braves hit two balls over 420 feet and both were caught. The pitcher of the Braves got hit in the head by a line drive (ouch). All in all, it was exciting.

Our guests got to eat a BBQ tater, a Dome Dog, cotton candy, peanuts and more. They got to sing "God Bless America", "Take Me Out To The Ballgame", and "Deep in the Heart of Texas" during the 7th inning stretch.

And we followed it up with a pork-out on fajitas at Pappasito's. A great day......

Seeing as I'm a renaissance man and apprecaite sophisticated, international things.... herewith are my predictions for the premier sporting event in the World. Volunteer fans bear with me, but soccer or "futbol" is important to a lot of folks.

Group A: Poland upsets Germany in the shocker of the tourney. The host country doesn't make it out of round 1.
Group B: England struggles with Trinidad and Tabasco, England advances.
Group C: Visions of Maradonna dance in their head, Argentina advances.
Group D: Angola puts up a great fight but the Tri-Colores advances...Mexico it is.
Group E: Italy is strong but the good Old US of A is stronger. Americans move on.
Group F: They advance cause their fans are the funniest. Brazil.
Group G: What, no France? Switzerland in an upset.
Group H: Underachiever Spain sits again. Ukraine advances.

My favorite team? Besides the US? It's the Netherlands. Go Big Orange. More predictions after Group play concludes.

Today is Princes' 48th birthday and Tom Jones 66th birthday. Now that you mention it, they do sort of look alike...

We have Tennessee guests coming in this weekend so we'll catch up on everybody's personal history. I hope you don't have any secrets cause we'll hear about 'em....

Us in Your Paper

Walters State eliminated San Jac yesterday and is headed to the championship game. Clear Creek's quarterback last year, J.P. Padron, was listed as getting a big hit for San Jac. So one of our local boys made the Knoxville paper.

And Big Orange girls beat UCLA, Fran and Ollie yesterday to advance in the women's softabll series. Nice job.

Coincidence...NOT

On this day...in 1796 Tennessee became the 16th state.

And....today is also Andy Griffith's birthday.

Coincidence. Hardly.

Softball!!!

I heard where the Lady Vols were in the College World Softball Series, or whatever they call it. Congrats.

And in a weird coincidence...San Jacinto College, our local powerhouse JUCO got whupped in the JUCO College World Series by.....Walters State. This is the first time I've seen Walters State in our paper. But don't worry, the Ravens will eventually prevail. Any Team that can boast alumni of Andy Pettite and Roger Clemens can't be all bad.

Here's a sports shot that I "postcarded". It's my favorite photo effect these days.

I'm lazy in the posting department too. It's summer, give me some slack.

Postcard from the edge

A nice shot of the Texas State Capitol, and "stylized" to look like an old postcard. Not bad if I say so myself....

On This Day

In 1813, composer Richard Wagner was born in Germany. Later on in his career he went to work for Sears and invented the electric painting machine.

Would You Have Croaked??

I heard from one of my French friends at work about the Marie Antoinette post. He said back in them days the average life expectancy in France was 30. So the fact they got married at 15 put them smack in middle age. 30. That would make me....well....above average.

I suppose anything out of the ordinary killed you back then. A bad drink of water, a broke toe that gets infected, appendicitis, a beheading, etc...

We forget that modern medicine keeps us going long after normal things would've had us planted in the bone garden. For me, it could've been appendicitis, a broke arm, pnuemonia, and probably a few flu's. Would you have still been around in the 1700's???

On this day....

Way back in 1770, 14 year old Marie Antoinette married the future King Louis who was only 15. Who knew the French Royalty and Tennessee hillbillies had so much in common?

From the "Wow, I'm old" department... Olga Korbut turns 51 today.

And of course, the final three perform on American Idol tonight. Will it be Taylor, Elliot, or Katherine? I get goose bumps just thinking about it.

Whut?

Whew! I ate some really bad anchovy laced pizza late last night. And it didn't sit well. In fact, I woke up in a cold sweat about 3:00am. I had the worst nightmare that really, really scared me.

I dreamed that Chris got voted off American Idol instead of McPheever, Elliot or Taylor. And Reggie Bush was subbing for Ryan Seacrest. The Idol Panel consisited of Charley Casserly, Bob McNair and Vince Young. I bolted up out of bed screaming...

What's up with these choices? Chris was the obvious winner. Obvious. And now he's out? What's the world coming too?

Happy Anniversary

Just the other day (March) I passed a full year of doing this blog. Then it seemed I hit writers block bigtime. I'm doing some self reflection personalization now to see whether I want to continue. A year is a long time but it's become part of my routine.

The second part is I ramble a lot and I just don't think it's that interesting. We'll see.

Summer Coming

Baseball is winding down and we are headed for our full blown summertime here very soon. We had some hail yesterday and thunderstorms today. You can tell it's a slow day when I'm talking about the weather.

The lightning bugs haven't returned.

Amazing Lightning Bugs

Saw the oddest thing last night. According to my neighbors, we don't have many lightning bugs here because the fire ants eat the eggs that are layed on the ground. I have seen a lightning bug only once in Texas.

Last night my better half was headed to the store late and she hollered for us to come outside. There were two lightning bugs that we watched for about 15 minutes. But they were definetly different than the Tennessee version. In Big Orange Country they blink slowly and dimly. They sort of glow.

These two buggers blinked very brightly and fast. It looked more like one of those LED bicycle lights. You could see them a long way off and they looked much bigger than the Tennessee version. It would've been breathtaking had there been a field full of them instead of just two. Anybody ever heard about fast blinking, very bright bugs? They were the standard amber green. Anybody who ever lived down here seen lightning bugs at their place?

Sinus Surgery

Ok,....so the actual surgery didn't really hurt that much. Just uncomfortable. The nightmare part came yesterday during the followup visit. The Doc stuck the 7 foot probe up there and cleaned out all the packing and dried stuff. You know, cleaning the wound.

Sometimes he had a camera and tongs up there, sometimes a camera and vacumn cleaner, once he even inserted a small elf to pick up some pieces. The probe was approximately 7 feet long, it could've been a foot or two longer I'm not sure. Once I felt it bang into the back of my head when he pushed it a little too hard.

He'd do it for 30 minutes or so until I passed out. Then he'd let me rest a few minutes and start again. In the doctors office at 9:30. Out of the office at 1:30. Rod stuck up my nostril in between.

All in all...just like a couple of root canals with no anesthesia. And the best part???? He has to finish it up next week.

North Carolina Whut?

If'n you had told me 6 weeks ago that the Texans wouldn't get Bush or Young I would've been upset that they traded away the number 1 pick. But I was blown away that they actually decided not to take either one and took some guy from NC State. A nice fella mind you, but I hadn't heard of him 6 weeks ago. And he plays defense for goodness sakes.

It feels like we frittered away our pick. Like we really got the number 4 pick or something. I'm in shock and I don't really like pro football that much myself. Wow, this is going to be interesting to see how it works out. It will be painful every time Bush or Vince scores.

And nothing personal, but he made highlight reels in the ACC. Not the Big 12, SEC or even the Big 10. The ACC basketball conference. He sacked Maryland's quarterback. He sacked Wake Forest's quarterback. He might've been able to sack Vanderbilt's quarterback, or maybe one of the Kansas's quarterbacks. He would've been awesome in the Mountain West I bet.

I told you I was in shock....

Strange Weather

Two weeks ago it was 108 degress in Laredo. A cold front? blew thrugh yesterday and the high was 75 here. Is this possible?

It seems like summer has come and gone, winter has come and gone, and now summer is headed back. Weird.

I'm Back

Have been out of pocket for a few days but now I'm baaaaa-aaack. Had minor nose surgery and am feeling ok. Didn't get a new nose, just got the old one roto-rootered. Hope this helps me breath better.

Yesterday was the un-fun day. Go downtown to the horsepital by 5:30am, reemed out by noon, hang out til 5 or so before coming home. Boy, that knockout medicine can sure make your stomach naseous.

Now I am just hanging out and letting my nose bleed.

A few more days watching Oprah and then back to work...

Out of Pocket

I won't be able to post for the rest of the week (most likely). But I was wondering what happened to UT baseball? Seems like I remember they were in the top ten early and now they are nowehere to be found. How's our women's softball doing? Is the big left-hander still around?

Famous Day Here

Eighteen thirty-six,
Sam Houston, San Jacinto,
Twenty minutes done.
Remembered the Alamo.
On this day Texas was born.

It's Earth Thursday

Somethings Wrong

It's an old song, but somethings wrong...

"Daddy played first base, momma played second. Brother and sister were the pitcher and catcher. Shortstop was a good old boy named Sue. Three big homerun hittin' guys, out in the outfield shaggin' flies, brothers Art and Bart and cousin Fargo too."

What's wrong?

And HAPPY BIRTHDAY HATCHET!!

Perfect Bluebonnets

Two for you, Nineteen for me

That's right, today is get your taxes in day. We got a couple of extry days due to Easter but the deadline is finally upon us.

Today is a weird day in history for you numerology fans. On this day in 1790, Ben Franklin passed away. On this day in 1970, Apollo 13 splashed down safely.

And it appears everyone is lining up behind Reggie Bush. The smart money says he's the guy. But will the Texans owner look at season ticket sales numbers and the impact Vince Young would have?

Vince or Reggie

Should the Texans take Vince Young or Reggie Bush as the first pick in the NFL draft? That's the overwhelming debate down here these days. As uninterested observers, what do you think fron the Tennessee perspective?

25th Anniversary of First Shuttle Launch

A quarter of a century ago I stood at the Public Affairs Press Site on Kennedy Space Center and waited for launch. I was worn out, exhausted and anxious. Press from all over the world wandered around. Folks tied up all of the phones as they scrambled to read their story back to their office. A few folks banged away on Radio Shack TRS-80's and plugged them into phones to send their reports in at a screaming 1200 baud rate. How cool. It was a clear, warm Florida morning.

Launch went on time and the Shuttle era was born.

BasketVols???

I see where Knoxville just received an ABA basketball franchise. They are hoping to play there first season next year at Catholic gym. What's next, women's pro football?? (We have it here and have been National Champs three years in a row).

KnoxVegas is becoming quite the sports mecca. Now if you could only get a quality COLLEGE football program you would have something.....

Orange and White

Anybody go to the Orange and White game? I heard we won. I didn't get to see much about it down here. Texas A&M was bragging about 30,000 at there Maroon and White game. How'd we do?

KnoxNews expects you to pay to be able to read interesting stuff about the Vols. I guess everything can't be free.

Yikes

Tony Dorsett turns 52 today. Yikes, I'm old.

1621 Again

On this day in 1621, the Mayflower turned around and came back to Plymouth Rock to check to make sure they didn't leave the stove on. Then they left again for England. Two days later, Jacob Marker was the first to ask "Are we there yet?".

On this day in 1621, the Mayflower left the United States on it's return trip to England. I never thought about it going back but I suppose it did. I wonder what it felt like standing on the shore watching it head back to England. Must have been a queasy feeling.

And odder yet, Howard Hughes died in Houston on this day way back in 1976.

And faithful reader "anonymous" asks "how about in 2106" in response to yesterdays post on 1,2,3,4,5,6. So ok, in 2106 the clock will strike 01:02:03, 04/05/06.....hmmmmm. I think he/she may be right. However, perhaps I should've said it will never happen again in my history. I doubt I see 2106. I suppose it keeps happening in 06 years????

Odd Time

Tomorrow, shortly after 1:00 am, the clock will strike 1:02:03, 04/05/06. This will never, ever happen ever again in history. I don't know if that makes this historic, or just odd. I stayed up for the turn of the century, but I'll probably pass on 1,2,3,4,5,6.

Thanks to one of my faithful readers for pointing this out to me.

Go Big Orange

Seen the inaugural MLS soccer game with the Houston Dynamo beating the Colorado Somethings 5-2 this weekend. What a game. Three headers for a goal, and the game ended on a bicycle kick for a goal. That's the baseball equivalent of Lance Berkman batting backwards and hitting one out. Brian Ching (Ca-Ching!) scored 4 goals, one short of a record. And the best part???? The official colors of the new Houston Dynamos are Black, White and Tennessee Vol Orange. My whole family was able to Orange out for the game.

The Fan Club for the Dynamos are called the Texians and they wave Orange flags that look very similar to the orange checkerboard flags I see at HoundDogs. Everything about them screamed UT Alumni. I think they just grabbed the most rabid, half lit Tennesseans to be Texians. Just like the original 1836 Texians I suppose.

The kids especially liked the confetti canon that fired with every goal. They "collected" confetti and I now have confetti wars at the house. Great Opener Dynamos!!!!

Weekly Tanks Wrapup

It's now down to four.
Can LSU make the two?
Big Baby says yes.
Moses may say otherwise.
Wait, it's Noah not Moses.

Straw Plains Battle?

Sometime today I'm going to try and look up the battle and see what the earthworks looked like. Maybe a metal detector would find an old cannon or bullets. More likely it would discover old Pabst cans.

Still don't know who won....

New Tourist Attraction

We just learned (as did the property owners) that the Strawberry Plains battlefield at the river bridge is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was actually listed in 1999 but it takes a while for news to get to Straw Plains. Now that it's listed, you can apply for grants to restore it. I can see a glass encased visitor center, trams taking tourists on tours, lots of souvenirs, commerative coins, opening day with poiticians, those little confederate hats and wooden rifles, re-enactments of the battle, and definitely a festival.

What do you think the current property owners ought to do with this historic property? I'll pass along your ideas in a master plan I'm developing for them. An IMAX theatre with a Disney produced anthology of the battlefield. How about some statues? Anybody have any idea who actually won the battle???

I searched the world over...

I failed to mention yesterday, the passing this weekend of one of the greatest country music stars of all time. Buck Owens of "Buck Owens and the Buckaroos" passed away. Buck was a legitimate country star who became most famous for his production and acting in the popular "HeeHaw" show. He was "pickin'" and Roy Clark was "grinnin'". Who could forget the small town salutes. The crows in the corn field "caw-caw". And the most famous song of all, "Where or where, are you tonight...". "What's for supper?" with LuLu and Grandpa Jones. And my personal favorite, Junior Samples and his telephone number "BR-549". We'll miss you Buck.

Gloom, despair and agony on me. Deep dark depression, excessive misery. If it weren't for bad luck I'd have no luck at all. Gloom, despair and agony on me.

Congrats

All the accomplishments were by women this weekend. Lady Vols are alive in the elite eight ater an awesome performance against Rutgut.

And the best performance of the weekend??? My sister-in-law, the Clear Springs Antelope, finished the half marathon on Sunday. She did it by "Nordic walking", which, as I understand it, is walking real fast with poles. No word on what her partner Lech Walesa's time was....

NCAA Poetry

Blue Devils are out,
Cajuns delivered the blow.
Deedle lost his pool.
Texas is still in the hunt,
Gonzaga just plain blew it.

West Yellowstone Crime News

I haven't reported on crime in the wild west lately so here goes on some news from West Yellowstone....

-- Both ambulances went to the old airport for two people who had been injured. Later one of the ambulances was released in order to be in the parade. (Sorry, you'll have to wait on that ride to the hospital, I'm scheduled to be the grand marshall...)

-- A resident of the Lower Beartrap subdivision called to report that a pair of bison were in her driveway. One of the animals had a long string of Christmas lights draped over its head. (Even the Bison drink too much...)

-- At 11:30 a.m. a "possibly intoxicated" male was seen attempting to walk, but falling down and lying in the street instead. An officer took him to his residence. (He could have been "possibly stupid" also...)

25th Anniversary?

The Lady Vols reached the sweet sixteen for the 25th year in a row. Wowee. That's a long run of greatness. I'm not overly enamored by the dunk thing, cause that's not why I watch women's hoops. I watch cause they still play real basketball.

Go get 'em girls...

Wow, That's a Lot

Did you know that this is the 265th post on this blog? Man, that seems like a lot. It sure doesn't feel like I've been doing it that long. I'm glad I've stuck with it though. It's a great stress reliever for me. Except for the pressure to having to post every day. That's a stress adder.

So today's trivia...what percentage of Americans drink coffee every day????

54%. That's why Starbucks is rich. 54% of Americans are addicted and Starbucks has the drug.

Close

Good season for the Vols. They could've won that game. And their bracket turned out to be easy. Oh well, there's always the Lady Vols and the dunkathons. Unbelieveable still that there is so much dis-parity in the womens game when you can make the tourney and still get beat by 60.

The only question now? Can the Horns win the tourney and simultaneously hold the baseball, football, and basketball championships? That would be something.

Weekly Tanka

Kinnick and Will off,
Gone Gedeon and Ayla Brown.
March Madness begins.
Is life on Enceladus?,
Spring Break is finally here!.

Due to foreseen circumstances there will be no postings for the next entire week most probably. I will be taking a short break. Enjoy your spring break and be safe. Tenga Cuidado.

It's Thursday and time for "Sheeps"...

Bonds???

So what do you do with poor Barry? Let his records stand? How about McGwire? Let his records stand? What a mess baseball has created.

Vols

So we're fixin' to have both the boys and girls basketball teams in the NCAA's. Wouldn't it be great to win both? You won't be happy with the girls unless they win. But the boys? Would you be happy if we make it out of the first round? All the way to the sweet sixteen? Elite eight?

What if we lose in round one? Would he season have been a bust? Isn't it nice to be pondering this than wondering in if the NIT still exists?????

Oscar Fix???

Reese Witherspoon won best actress just like I predicted. The rest of my predictions were pretty much a bust. Who would've thunk that a picture nobody has heard of would win best picture??? Really now, nobody has seen "Crash" I bet you more folks have seen "Chicken Little" than have seen "Crash". Quick, what's it about? See, nobody knows. Crash winning Best Picture is the equivalent of UT Chattanooga winning the NCAA's. And thankfully, the selection program's are this weekend and we can get on with more important stuff.

By the way, Reese is from Nashville.

Oskars

Best Picture: Should be "I walk the line", but will be "broke mountain"
Best Director: The dude who did "Capote"
Best Actor: Heath Bar Ledger for Broke hill
Best Actress: Reese Bar Witherspoon I walk the line

Why are best actor and best actress both named after candy bars??????

Oh well

So much for beatin' Kentucky. Let's not flame out in the SEC tourney. And please don't lose in the first round of the NCAA's...

Please

C'mon. We gotta beat Kentucky at home and clinch the SEC title. What better way to top off our season. And my wife claims Kentucky as her homeland and has always loved Wildcat basketball to boot. So it would really help me too. Please...

Feels Like Home

This past weekend we had a major building outage where we cut power to it and go in and do some major work. We found something interesting in the electrical switchgear that reminded me of home.

There was a possum that had made a nest in the high voltage electrical gear. Later, he accidently brushed up against two hot wires. He was instantly cooked. Unfortunately we didn't find him until much later, and to top it off, the voltage was so high that he was well overdone.

Oh well, almost supper.

It's Over

The flag has been lowered and the flame extinguished and now we can get back to watching mindless tv. There was Bode and Apolo, Sasha and Sabrina, Chad and Shani, and Drew and Cheryl.

Which just goes to show...if your going to make it in this world you've got to be recognizable by one name. Mick, Madonnna, Ali, Elvis, Jordan, Hakeem, Wilt, Kareem, JohnWayne. So start working on your one name moniker or you'll never make the Olympic team.

Round Ball Fever

I know everybody is excited about the BasketVols. But here, I don't get to see them. In fact, I don't get to see anybody interesting. So it's hard for me to get worked up over them or talk about them intelligently.

But I do understand that a coach can make a difference. These are the same players the other guy had and look at the difference. I don't remember hearing of a Bernard King addition either. So when somebody tells you it's all about the players show them this team.

That Pearl dude is sure paying for himself.

Thursday's Sheeps

Sow Cows and All That

Tonight's the biggest night of the Olympics. The skating divas take center-stage. It's the women's figure skating free skate final. Can Sasha Cohen finally pull together the solid finish she so desperatley needs? Will Irini Slutskya nail her difficult triple sow cow? Or will perky Sara Hughes sneak in and steal the show?

I can't wait to see the triple toe loop, double toe loop, triple over and under with a half double twist combination jump. Wow. It should be a night to remember.

Wore Out

I'm kinda tired of watching the Olympics so I took last night off. I know the girl skaters did good and Chad and Shani didn't win. I'm tired of their fueding too. The Austrians are way deep involved in a doping scandal, which is very tiring. And those cross country skiers look, well, tired.

C'mon, USA. Somebody wake us out of this slump.

Olympic Moments

Overall, I'd say we aren't doing the greatest this year. I'd give us a solid "B" so far. We did do whiz bang yesterday at ice dancing though. The semifinals featured ice dancers falling all over themselves, but in the final the US pair of Agostino/Babel grabbed the silver with gusto. Costumes were the highlight. I saw "Pirates of the Carribean", "Deadwood", "Anthony and Cleopatra", "Florence Nightingale", "Snow Dogs" and "Star Tek" themed costumes.
Tonight features some big stuff.

The womens compulsory program for ice skating. The "Divas" competition as Dick Button calls it. Also, the big showdown in the mens 1500 meter speed skating event. Shani versus Chad.

But alas, the most Olympic achievement this weekend belongs to the 62 year old great-grandmother from Redding California who just gave birth to her 12th child. Her oldest son is 40.
And sadly, Curt Gowdy passed away this weekend. I can't watch Elk hunting in Wyoming on tv without hearing him whisper "we're about 200 yards downwind".

Olympics Tanka

Olympics started,
Chad won a speed skating gold!
Flying tomato.
I know what skeleton is,
I never want to do it.

Sheeps

Oke Rij

I was talking business with a feller from Oak Ridge yesterday. At the end of the conversation I aske dif he was from Tennessee and he said yes. He asked me if I follow Tennessee basketball. I replied "yes, when I can".

He then proceeded to praise Bruce Pearl for about 45 minutes straight without catching his breath. You would've thought Bruce had caught saddam Hussein and Osama with his bare hands. His enthusiasm for UT basketball was overwhelming.

I suppose that Pearl guy is doing a decent job....

Snow???

Let me see if I get this right...you get 41 inches of snow on Mt LeConte so you cancel school in Cedar Bluff? You guys are panicking way too early. Back when I was a kid it actually had to snow before school was cancelled. And if they didn't make the call in time, you just didn't go anyway cause you knew they would cancel it eventually when nobody showed up.

We are getting way too conservative as a nation. Part of the fun is overcoming the obstacles to becoming a winner. How's that for a jump from local snow to national malaise???

Blizzards

I understand Knoxville was besieged with one or two inches of snow yesterday. I think DC had some too, I'm not sure.

Sadly, I don't believe we are going to get a freeze this year. Last week there was a threat of it dipping below freezing one night for about an hour. But alas, it didn't quite make it. So we are going to go a whole winter without the temperature hitting 32. A whole winter.

The amazing part is the newspeople were warning us to bring our pets in, wrap our pipes, and cover our plants because of the (their words) "bitter" cold coming our way. Since when is near freezing "bitter" cold??? When's the last time that your pipes busted when the thermometer hit 40 degrees?

Flying tomater

The red headed snowboarder won, as did the Texan who ice skates. And now that Kwan has bowed out, another Texan steps up as first alternate in womens ice skating.

She has an odd name though. She is Katy Taylor. She lives in Katy Texas, and goes to Taylor high school. Just like you say "Knoxville Carter" we say "Katy Taylor". So Katy Taylor hails from Katy Taylor. Weird.

Olympics Is Near

My prediction for the Friday opening ceremonies....

Skaters in flowing outfits looking all artistic. You scratching your head saying "what are they supposed to be?" Your wife chiming in with "They represent world kindness and the need for cooperation among humanity." You replying "When does downhill start?"

I'm out tomorrow so no more posts (most likely) til Monday. Go USA.

My Unique Qualifications as a reporter

People have asked me numerous times...what makes me qualified to report on these Winter Olympics? Let me tell you, I have a unique and longstanding tie with the Games hometown of Turin (or Torino) Italy.

When I was in high school, I bought a ten speed bike that I road all the way through college and still ride today. In fact, I recently pumped up the tires and put significant miles on it during a recent athletics challenge. What is the brand name of this bike? It is a "Gios Torino".

Interesting you say, but it get's more freaky. In high school I ached to have my own car. My dad finally took me to look at a used car which had the definite potential to be my first car ever. Freedom, popularity all rode with convincing him this was the perfect fit for me. His interest of course, was much more along the "Does it run good and is it cheap" line of thinking. When we arrived at the sellers house I peered out into the driveway. There sat this orange behemoth of a vehicle. Not regular orange, not burnt orange, not even bright Tennessee orange. This was orange of seven shades brighter than traffic cone orange. And what kind of vehicle was to become my first ever car? What make and brand was to forever be my "first vehicle"?

A screaming orange Ford Gran Torino.

Freaky, huh? Don't you think these early character imprinters with Torino Italy make me uniquely qualified????

Ice Dancing and Skeleton, Yin and Yang

The two oddest events at the winter olympics? No, not curling. It's strange yet understandable. Ice dancing is one. I can appreciate it's a fun thing to do if your into that sort of thing....but an olympic event?

My favorite odd event has to be skeleton. That's right...skeleton. What a cool name for a sport. Do they fly pirate flags at the event? Do participants have to pledge to the pirate code? Instead of the national anthem when you win, do they play Alice in Chains "Dem Bones" as you stand on the podium with your gold medal? Is it a gold medal or gold dubloon? I want to do skeleton, whatever it is.

Forget The Super Bowl

Something much more entertaining is happening this week. The opening of the Winter Olympics! Ice Dancing, skeleton, half-pipe to just name a few of my favorite events. The games are smaller than the summer version, the stars are smaller, and everything is just a little more fun.

Look for complete coverage here. Especially for the 4 man bobsled team led by a Houstonian. Don't ask me how.

Super Bowl Tanka

Super Bowl Sunday,
Seattle versus Pittsburgh,
What a great matchup.
Will it be a bus or bird?
Seahawks thirty-one to 7.

Look for Big Ben to blowup and litter the field with interceptions. It was a good run Steelers. Shame it ends this way.

Groundhogs Day Sheeps

Anonymous Reply

"Anonymous" recently submitted this entry "Nickname for Pearl should be Mosses - he is leading this program out of the wilderness. " and then asked when his prize would be forthcoming.

First, he (or she) oughta make a few more Sunday School classes cause I think the fella's name was "Moses" not "Mosses". Perhaps he was thinking of Randy Moss?

And I'm proud to report that his prize was mailed yesterday. It was addressed to "Anonymous, USA". I'm sorry I didn't know a zip code so it may take a few extra days to arrive.

Today is Groundhog Days' Eve. Have you got your presents bought?

Contest is Finally Over

Ok, the Mt. Rushmore BIg Orange contest is over. The winner is the entry of:

Al Wilson, Peyton Manning, Doug Atkins, Reggie White

The other two entries included Gen Neyland who I don't remember actually playing much. It was a great contest though, with overwhelming response.

What's the problem with men's basketball? We have actually stayed in the top 25 for like a week now. What gives? I'm beginning to think we might have a chance to get in the tournament and then to advance a round or two with a few upsets. I won't get my hopes up too far but could the end of our misery be in sight?

Rushmore

The contest is almost over. We did have someone remember Stanley Morgan. But no Hacksaw Reynolds, no Majors, no punters, no Jackie Wilson, no Peerless Price. Oh well, get your entry in today if you want a chance at the prize.

Response

Wow, the response to the Mt Rushmore contest has been overwhelming. So far we have one entry. Oh well....

By the way... we've lost TWO Lady Vol basketball games in a row. We should fire that bum of a coach.

Anyone see Oprah's browbeating of the "Million Little Pieces" author yesterday? And Oprah's never stretched the truth a little? C'mon....

Who is your Mt. Rushmore?

This is a hot new game we we are playing in Houston (learn it so you hillbillies will seem sofisticated). "Who is your Mt Rushmore" on a topic means who is your top four folks or things. Not three, not five, just four. For instance....Who is your Mt Rushmore Lakers of all time?

The answer would be Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Jerry West, Magic Johnson and....maybe Kobe, maybe Wilt Chamberlain..maybe Shaq, Elgin Baylor??? The fourth is always the hardest.

So...who is your Tennessee Vol Football Mt Rushmore of all time? Add your thoughts in the comments section and I'll pick a winner.

Peyton? James Stewart? Willie Gault? Dewey Warren? Phil Fulmer? Bobby Majors? Condredge? Heath Shuler? Travis Henry? Some punters?

Defeat Stinks

First it was Peyton Manning and the Colts blowing a great opportunity to get to the Super Bowl. Then it was the Lady Vols getting shellacked by Duke in an embarrassing loss. But last night I hit the wall. One loss too many. I exploded.

Todd Bridges was booted from Skating with the Celebrities in one of the most appalling scoring debacles since the Russians beat us in Basketball at the Olympics.

How about booting Bruce Jenner and his skin tight facelift that makes him look like Joan Rivers dad? Todd is a recovering heroin addict and he needs this show. He only fell once for goodness sakes.

I can't take it anymore....

Famous Visitor

Marty McFly stopped by for a visit yesterday at work.

Weekly Activity Report/Poem

Pearl just passed win nine,
Pat Summitt wins nine hundred,
How's football recruiting?
Baseball tryouts start tomorrow
We are heading into spring.

Sheeps

More Pics

Another New Orleans picture. See the black line?

Don't Get Overworked Up

Yes it's true, Houston dropped to number 2. Chicago has been declared Americas fattest city. Houston lost the top spot from last year. This is according to Men's Fitness magazine or something. They calculated how fit a city was by looking at how many fast food restaurants there were among other things.

Which just goes to prove my brother's theory. Newspapers will print anything. After last year's "news" came out our Mayor launched a fitness campaign led by Calvin Murphy. We talked about it, got mad about it, refuted it etc. Just like a number of years ago when Knoxville was named Americas ugliest city. Knoxville called a press conference to discuss it.

Know why Houston and now Chicago were named fattest cities by Men's Fitness magazine? Cause they are the number 2 and number 4 size cities in the US which means there are a lot of people who live there and buy magazines. They want to sell magazines. So the next time you hear of a city being named ugliest, or fattest, or most livable, or whatever...don't buy the magazine. It's a trick.

Country Boys

The PBS Frontline documentary ended and it was really good. A pretty accurate description of how things are for some in Appalachia.

My favorite quote from the show comes from Chris's friend, (I can't remember his name):

"You teach me how to drive and I'll teach you how to get food stamps. That's what buddies are for."

Extry tall water tower....

I saw this water tower the other day on my way back to Houston. The water presuure from this dude must be enormous.

Country Boys

There has been a great documentary on PBS Frontline this week called "Country Boys". It's about two young fellas growing up in Prestonburg, Kentucky. The last episode is tonight. It looks pretty much like what we all experienced growing up, unless of course, you grew up in Farragut or Cedar Bluff.

These two boys were a little hilarious in the first episode but last night I got to feeling real sorry for them. You can probably watch or download the episodes from the PBS site if you want. It's just a nice change from the gory crime dramas based in New York.

Oh, and by the way....Hook 'Em. Now Texas is defending College Baseball and Football Champions. And we have an awesome basketball team. Could it be a three-way??? Stay tuned.

New Orleans

We drove through New Orleans on our way back to Texas. Look closely at the picture. The black line is the water line from the flood. Every picture we took has a black line through it. There was a lot of traffic, and a lot of work going on. It looks like the recovery is underway, at least for some. The French Quarter is open.

Ancient Archeological Find

While on vacation we stumbled upon the famous "Dinosaur Rock" first discovered by the explorer Juan Perez' de Mascotte in 1521. It is believed that ancient Mulungeons once roamed these parts and are responsible for some local cave drawings. This limestone artifact is on the National Historic register for defaced rock formations and is the main tourist draw for the tri-city Tuckyhoe/Mascot/Straw Plains region. admission free.