Leno/O'Brien: Change We Can Believe In

It's difficult to believe that Jay Leno leaves the Tonight Show after tonight's broadcast after 17 years. Not to be sad, however, as he takes up residence in a 10 pm time slot on NBC in the fall. Beginning Monday, the Tonight Show will be hosted by Conan O'Brien, who Jay featured as his last guest tonight. Good luck to both of them as they undertake their new venues.

Superstition

Tomorrow, the Stanley Cup finals begin when the Pittsburgh Penguins face the Detroit Red Wings in a repeat of last years finals, where the Wings prevailed. The Penguins are hoping to turn the tides this year and be able to grab the cup from the Wings. But will superstition and tradition get in the way? Following Pittsburgh's four game sweep of the Carolina Hurricanes, team captain Sidney Crosby broke with tradition, causing some hard core fans to believe that that would cost them the Stanley Cup. In the hockey world, tradition dictates that when a team is presented with their conference championship trophy, bad luck will accompany it if it is touched by the winning team. That is why when team captains are presented with the trophy, they simply acknowledge it and other that posing for a picture with it, they simply skate away not even looking at it. The reason for this is simple; they want the big prize, the Stanley Cup, and superstition dictates that if you touch any other trophy before winning the cup, you risk the chance of losing it. Hockey players don't take the Stanley Cup lightly. Example: two brothers who played on opposite teams attended a family reunion during the off season. One had been on the cup winning team that year, and he had brought the cup to the reunion. The cup was placed in a separate room and the brother who had not won it never went in to see it, let alone touch it. Players believe that in order to touch it, you must first win it. And so now, taking all of the above into consideration, let us look back at this year's Eastern Conference Championship trophy presentation. Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby actually picked up the trophy and skated around with it, at one point handing it off to other players. His reasoning was that they avoided it last year and they wound up losing the series, so they decided to break tradition. Whether they prevail or not remains to be seen.

The Definition of Warranties

I remember quite vividly one day speaking to my cardiologist about various aches and pains, to which he quickly responded "Your warranties begin to expire after 50". Hmm, warranties? That one raises some interesting questions, some of which are why didn't my parents inform me of this, and why don't I have my own copies of these? Does this mean that any medical problem prior to 50 is covered by these so called warranties. Hey, we may be onto something here. In order to make these work in our favor, we have to change their validity to after 50. After all, that's the period in our lifetime when we will most likely need their coverage the most. Now I understand why they refer to 50 and above as the Golden Years, it's because the medical profession takes all our gold!

A Time To Reflect

As we enjoy the beginning of the summer season this weekend, we should pause and reflect. The fact that we enjoy freedom in this country does not come to us without a price. We owe it all to our brave men and women who serve endlessly and tirelessly in our armed forces. We should take a few moments in our weekend to remember what Memorial Day is really about. If you see a soldier, thank him or her for their service and sacrifice.

Let's Talk Waterboarding Shall We?

Conservative talk show hostess and columnist Ann Coulter appeared on The Larry King Show recently, and was interviewed by Joy Bayhard from The View. Click the link below the post to see this interview. Coulter catches Bayhard off guard when she answers one particular question on waterboarding. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vS0fwCa1DFM

Hey Congress...Bail Us Out!

No, I'm not expecting a trillion dollar bailout, or a million dollar bailout. However, I would like to see Congress put it to the credit card industry before they bring all of us everyday Joes to ruins. These people shouldn't be allowed to rule our lives the way they are.

The thing that irritates me the most is that your credit rating can affect your getting a job in some cases. First of all, who's damn business is it what I chose to do with my money. How I spend it should have nothing to do with my right to earn it.

And so, it's been a while since I issued a 'reservation in hell award', but the credit card companies are well deserving of it. They sure are wearing it well!

For God's Sake

A worldwide alert has been put out for a missing 13 year old boy who is badly in need of chemotherapy, and is believed to have been kidnapped by his mother. He suffers from a treatable case of cancer, however without the court ordered chemotherapy he could die. The survival rate is 85 to 90 percent with chemo, but because of religious reasons, the mother is believed to have run off with him. The boy's estranged father was interviewed by authorities but seemed vague about his son's whereabouts. He did finally say that he believed that they were probably no longer in the country, and ruled out Canada as a possible location. Police now think that the father's vagueness may have been a stalling tactic to allow his family to flee the country. Now looking at this from the point of view of a total stranger, it is extremely difficult for me to understand how people could endanger their children based on religious beliefs. Perhaps it's because I refuse to believe God would allow this, or that it would even be expected of us. Where are the parental instincts? One can only conclude that these people are failures at parenthood.

I'm A Daddy! (Well Sort Of, So To Speak)

About two weeks ago I began an aggressive lawn patching project around the house in an effort to fill in bare spots. It was also my intent to level off various spots by eliminating the 'dips'. Painstakingly I dug up spots, large and small, and loosened up the dirt thoroughly. Then came the potting soil, which was added to level the spot. A borrowed tamper from a neighbor compacted it down, after which grass seed was spread out over the spot and covered with mulch. The only thing left to do now was to water the spots daily to keep them moist in order to promote seed germination. Fortunately, plenty of rain has often taken care of that job for me. A few days ago I received a call at work from my wife, where she greeted me with 'Congratulations, you're the proud daddy of baby grass'. Now you know why I've been with this woman for 30 years.

Farrah Fawcett

If you're of my generation, then you'll understand very well about the impact of the news about Farrah Fawcett's illness. Tuning in weekly to watch 'Charlie's Angels' was a ritual that seemed to put her directly into our living rooms. Her beautiful wavy hair only served to enhance her natural beauty. And who could forget her famous poster?

With all those days well gone by, we now learn of her tragic ongoing battle with cancer, and the toll it is taking. She suffers from a rare form of the disease known as anal cancer. The disease is listed as curable with early detection. Now we all can hope for her recovery from this dreaded condition. Ryan O'Neal, her long time companion, has stated that her treatment has come to an end and that the doctors can do nothing else for her.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to Farrah for a full recovery.

Eli Wiesel

While thumbing through some videos this morning, I came across one that features Jewish writer, professor and activist Eli Wiesel. In addition to being a Holocaust survivor, Eli Wiesel has had the misfortune of having lost almost everything he had to swindler extraordinaire Bernie Madoff. In this clip of a recent television interview, Wiesel describes his innermost feelings and how he has managed all these years to stay on the positive side of life. With every right to bitterness and condemnation on his side, he defeats it with his calm and articulate manner, reflecting an individual who believes in the good of mankind. Click on the link below to hear this marvelous interview. http://www.comcast.net/video/holocaust-survivor-on-madoff/1126067502/Comcast/1125200579/

Cal Ripken, Jr.

This morning I came across the attached blog, which outlines a writers' account of a speaking engagement given by Hall of Famer Cal Ripken. Residing in the Baltimore area and seeing Ripken's name come up quite frequently, it's hard to believe that he has actually gotten 'bad press'. Click on the blog and judge for yourselves. http://blogs.palmbeachpost.com/marlins/2009/05/15/cal-ripken-lets-down-fans/

Finally, Spring Is Here!

Probably my most favorite time of the year, with fall a very close second. Whether it's the rain cleansing the air and delivering renewed growth to the environment, or the ability to save on utility bills as a result of comfortable temperatures, spring does it for me. In fact, it would downright meet with my approval to have spring on a year round basis. As I previously posted, the weather hasn't always been kind to me this spring. Seems that whenever I would be off from work, the rain would haunt me, preventing my much needed yard work. But alas, my fate changed for the better the last week, and I got to complete my yard assignments. I don't know about anyone else out there, but I truly find it a great way to relax. Spring also brings with it the ideal climate for cycling, something I enjoy with a passion. Every year I keep telling myself that I'll be out on the road more, but this time I will see to it that it happens. And if that's not enough for me to idolize spring, my pathetic attempt to break 100 in golf remains a yearly conquest! So, now that I've spelled out spring from my perspective, I'd be interested in hearing from you. What does spring mean for you?

Disturbing E-mail

Today I received an e-mail from my friend Steve that I find very disturbing. It outlines a recent signing by President Obama regarding refugees in the Middle East, and their possible relocation to The United States. I've attached it to this post in hopes that all will read and pass it on to as many caring Americans as possible. This appears to be a potentially dangerous situation that our president has put us in, and the time to voice our disapproval has now come. Read it for yourselves and draw your own conclusions. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Subject: VERY IMPORTANT NOTICE Whether you are an Obama fan, or not, EVERYONE IN THE U. S. needs to know.... Something happened... H.R. 1388 was passed yesterday, behind our backs. You may want to read about it. It wasn't mentioned on the news... just went by on the ticker tape at the bottom of the CNN screen. Obama funds $20M in tax payer dollars to immigrate Hamas Refugees to the USA. This is the news that didn't make the headlines... By executive order, President Barack Obama has ordered the expenditure of $20.3 million in "migration assistance" to the Palestinian refugees and "conflict victims" in Gaza. The "presidential determination", which allows hundreds of thousands of Palestinians with ties to Hamas to resettle in the United States, was signed on January 27 and appeared in the Federal Register on February 4. Few on Capitol Hill, or in the media, took note that the order provides a free ticket replete with housing and food allowances to individuals who have displayed their overwhelming support to the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) in the parliamentary election of January 2006. Let's review...itemized list of some of Barack Obama's most recent actions since his inauguration: His first call to any head of state, as president, was to Mahmoud Abbas, leader of Fatah party in the Palestinian territory. His first one-on-one television interview with any news organization was with Al Arabia television. His first executive order was to fund/facilitate abortion(s) not just here within the U. S., but within the world, using U. S. tax payer funds. He ordered Guantanamo Bay closed and all military trials of detainees halted. He ordered overseas CIA interrogation centers closed. He withdrew all charges against the masterminds behind the USS Cole and the "terror attack" on 9/11. Now we learn that he is allowing hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refuges to move to, and live in, the US at American taxpayer expense. These important, and insightful, issues are being "lost" in the blinding bail-outs and "stimulation" packages. Doubtful? To verify this for yourself: http://www.thefederalregister.com/d.p/2009-02-04-E9-2488 PLEASE PASS THIS ON... AMERICA NEEDS TO KNOW WE are losing this country at a rapid pace.

More Than Manny Being Manny

Can we now apply the infamous saying 'Manny being Manny' to the latest episode in his, shall we say, adventurous life. Manny Ramirez received a 50 game suspension for violating the league's substance abuse, making his return to the LA Dodgers lineup around July 3rd. Now, being a Red Sox fan, I can attest that he's gotten caught up in some weird and bizarre situations over the years, but substance abuse was never an issue. It seems that he has really done himself in, resulting in a suspension that will cost him better than 7 million dollars once all is said and done. More importantly there is the matter of reputation and that infamous steroid cloud that could prove even costlier should it not go away. I'm talking about the Hall of Fame here! One of baseball's most talented hitters now is running the risk of being banned from The Hall.

Lawmakers Do It Again

Just when you might think that our lawmakers are screwing up, they manage to outdo themselves. The following is self-explanatory and rather unbelievable. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ From: Donald E. WildmonFounder andChairman, American Family Association Please help us get this information into the hands of as many people as possible by forwarding it to your entire e-mail list of family and friends. Senate poised to give special protection status to pedophiles Your calls are needed today! May 6, 2009 Dear Paul, The U.S. Senate is set to give legally protected status to pedophiles and 30 other sexual orientations. The Senate refused to define what is meant by sexual orientation in S. 909, the "Hate Crimes" bill. This means that the 30 different sexual orientations will be federally protected classes. To see the orientations that will be protected by the Hate Crimes bill (S. 909), click here. The House has already passed this bill, and the Senate will vote as early as Wednesday. Pres. Obama has said he would sign the bill. Take Action! • Call your two senators today and demand that he or she vote against S.909. Please forward this to all your family and friends. The Senate refused to define the term "sexual orientation," which means that all sexual orientations are protected. For the direct line to your senators office, click here.• Pastors, it is time to take a stand. Share this information with your members, and ask them to call. Thank you for caring enough to get involved. If you feel our efforts are worthy of support, would you consider making a small tax-deductible contribution to help us continue? Sincerely, Donald E. Wildmon,Founder and ChairmanAmerican Family Association Donate with confidence to AFA

Rain, Rain, Rain, Rain,......

And so, the precipitation continues as it has been for the last 3 or so days and the thought of any relief in sight seems to be avoiding us. Today is Thursday, another day off, and the forecast is less forgiving, as is to be expected, given that I don't have to go to work. My lawn is extremely happy, as I am pleased to report. It was my intent to mow it later on today, but after walking on it in order to put out my recycling bin, it appears the lawn will once again be avoiding the clippers. Some spots are actually puddles and if this ever stops, the water will take some time to sink in, so to speak. The local weather forecast calls for thunder showers later today and Friday, followed on Saturday by more showers. But alas Sunday, Mothers Day will be sunny, or so the local weather people are predicting. At this rate, I'll believe it when I see it!

The Save of The Playoffs

Now I realize that not everyone who gets this blog is into sports, but even a non-sports person will appreciate this unbelievable save in yesterdays playoff game in Washington by Capitals goaltender Simeone Varlamov. Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins literally has an entire open net to shoot at and when he does so.........well, just click the link below and see for yourselves the talent of this 21 year old. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01Ow7Kxaqb4

Remember February 17, 2009

Today it was announced that Michael Vick, who is scheduled to be released soon, will become a spokesman for PETA. Let us now rewind the clock to February 17 this year, when I put up a post entitled 'Listen Up Michael". In it I suggested what I felt Michael Vick should do to heal his badly damaged image. My suggestion was that he become a spokesman for PETA once he is released from prison. Nice to see that someone is reading these posts!