Monday, October 23, 2006

World Series

I am happy to see the Cardinals and the Tigers in the World Series this year. I've always been a Braves fan and I would have certainly preferred to see the Braves make it to the "Fall Classic", or even the Cubs, which is my second favorite team. But the Cards are my third favorite team and I've been following the Tigers all year. I knew that they would be much improved with some good young pitching, some really good acquisitions, and a new manager, Jim Leyland. The boys and I even got to attend a Tigers game in Comerica Park in July. I was really glad, also, that the Tigers and Cards knocked out the Yankees and Mets.

The first game was Saturday night in Detroit. St. Louis pitcher Reyes was the story of this game. He was one of only two pitchers to ever start game one of the World Series with an earned run average over 5. He was going against Tiger's star rookie starting pitcher Justin Verlander. Verlander won 17 games and was repeatedly being clocked at over 100 miles per hour in one of his playoff starts against the Yankees. The Cards, behind Reyes, won easily in game one. Pujols hit a two run homer for the Cards.

I watched game two Sunday night with my Mom and Dad. Kenny Rogers of the Tigers continued his pitching in this year's playoffs. He now has thrown 23 consecutive shutout innings this postseason. Behind Rogers, the Tigers won game two by a score of 3-1. Pell City, Alabama resident Todd Jones picked up the save for the Tigers.

The big controversy in this game was whether Rogers applied pine tar to his pitching hand. The umpire, at Cardinal Manager Tony Larussa's request checked him out and ruled that it was just dirt on his hand and he told him to wash his hands between innings. However, listening to "Baseball This Morning" on XM 175 this morning, the three hosts of the show, Mark Patrick, Orestes Destrada, and Buck Martinez all seemed 99 per cent sure that it was pine tar, not dirt. They cited Larussa's close relationship with Leyland as the reason that no formal request was made to eject Rogers. Tim McCarver, the Fox analyst made a great point when he said, "If it wasn't illegal then why did he clean his hand?"

It was probably a moot point anyway, because that happened early in the game and Rogers continued to pitch awesome after the "incident". The series is now tied 1-1 and it moves to St. Louis on Tuesday. The Cardinals have to be satisfied to leave Detroit with a split and some of their best pitchers available, in Carpenter and Suppan.

Caught Looking

Sunday, October 22, 2006

Out in the Yard

I spent the day working in my parents' yard. There were numerous branches and limbs down from the storm that rolled through here on Monday night October 23. After I cleared those off, I did some trimming and pruning. Then I blew some leaves and mowed.

I moved dirt by hand all afternoon, spreading out the remainder of the topsoil on the south side of the house. I spoke with our neighbor, Mr. Smart and borrowed his garden rake. After all of that I planted some grass seed. My parents seemed so very appreciative. My Mom made me a wonderful spaghetti meal!

Tuesday, October 17, 2006

Testimony of Gianna Jessen

I mentioned in a post below to provide links to an amazing story of an amazing young lady. Please take a few minutes out of life to read, consider, ponder, and allow the Lord to speak to your heart. Thank you for considering this amazing story.

Testimony of Gianna Jessen Hearing on H.R. 4292, the "Born-Alive Infants Protection Act of 2000" House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution July 20, 2000
http://www.godandscience.org/doctrine/jessen.html


The following is based on an interview 28 year-old Gianna Jessen gave to the Independent, a newspaper in the UK.
http://www.abortiontv.com/Glitch/AbortionSurvivors.htm

WORLD PRAYER MOVEMENT
HOSTS A SPECIAL TEEN
http://www.marys-touch.com/testimonies/jessen.htm

Gianna Jessen, a hero
http://www.speroforum.com/site/article.asp?idCategory=34&idsub=127&id=3799

"This is the White House calling. You need to call us." These are the words Gianna Jessen heard as she listened to her voicemail.
http://www.afajournal.org/2006/march/306abortion.asp

Disability is a 'gift,' abortion survivor tells Fort Smith youth
http://www.arkansascatholic.org/article.php?id=657

Blood From a Turnip

First a disclaimer: None of the following events are necessarily real. But they may be, since I was in court tonight until 6:30 p.m.

What do you do with a person who has 6 children by four different women in two different counties? What if he has four separate orders to pay child support totaling $1008 per month (which includes both current and arrears payments), but his gross income is $1300 per month?

If you don't know the answer, join the club. We had a judge, two attorneys, a caseworker, and supervisor try to figure this one out and none of us had an answer. I am guessing that we had a combined 115 years of experience.

The good news is that the guy is paying most of what he owes.

I just post this to give those of you who live a sheltered life a tiny glimpse into the cesspool into which our culture has devolved.

I wont even go into the case involving an illegal alien mother on welfare with six children and even mre alleged fathers!

Lord have mercy!

Friday, October 13, 2006

Vinemont 24 Holly Pond 12

Monday night David's football team won another game.

Gianna Jessen...

Last Sunday 10/8/06, I saw a program on the Catholic Channel, EWTN. I stopped immediately and listened because I heard the most beautiful voice singing Christian hymns. I was cleaning and doing chores in the house, so I decided to listen while I was working. As great as the singing was, I had to stop what I was doing when this young lady began sharing her testimony. As I sat on my living room couch, I listened to a 29 year old describe how she survived a saline abortion. It was such an amazing story told with such heartfelt, childlike sincerity, it caused me to cry. I wish her testimony was heard by all Americans. It is a story that needs to be told and heard by every one of us. The written word cannot do justice to what I saw and heard on my television last Sunday afternoon. Nevertheless, I will post a few links I have found about her amazing story.

Monday, October 09, 2006

Thurs-Sat...

Wednesday October 4, 2006

As late as Wednesday night I had no idea what I would be doing on Saturday. However, I got a call that night from my friend Mike who had a friend who was trying to sell two tickets to the Alabama vs. Duke game. I had long since sold my four Tide Pride tickets because I knew my boys were not scheduled to be with me that day. Later that night I called the boys' mom and asked her whether David could go with me. She said that she would think about it. Thursday morning, I had driven about 22 minutes on my way to work. Their mom called and ask if I could take the day off to be with David and Matt, who were sick. I called in to work, turned around, and spent the day at home with David and Matt. They really were not feeling well. David had been to the doctor the day before and was diagnosed with a sinus infection. He was very sluggish, congested, had a sore throat, and was feverish. Matt was also sluggish and he had a bad cough. The three of us slept most of the morning after I fed them breakfast. The rest of the afternoon, we sat around, played some games, and they did some school work. Joe got home from school at three. The boys and I watched the baseball playoffs a good bit of the time on Thursday afternoon and evening. We pulled for the Cardinals to beat the Padres, the Tigers to beat the Yankees, and the Dodgers to beat the Mets. We didn't really have a preference on the A's / Twins series. The Cards, Mets, A's, and Tigers have advanced to the league championship series. Thursday evening I called the boys' mom again and told her that I needed to know if I could take David to the game, because I had to call about the tickets. She finally agreed. I called Mike's friend and agreed to purchase the tickets. Friday I bought the tickets.

Saturday October 7, 2006

Saturday morning David and I left the house at about 9 and arrived in Tuscaloosa a little before 11. We stopped at the Chevron and grabbed a burger and a burger and frosty at Wendy's. After parking a block off Hackberry Lane, we walked over to the Bryant Museum and picked up some programs from prior games. After going back to the car we walked across campus to the Ferguson Center and watched the Auburn-Arkansas game with some friends, including Tee and Gary. That place was rocking with Bama fans cheering on the Razorbacks, who defeated the Auburn Tigers 27-10. David also wanted to shop in the Supe Store. He got the book, "Bloodfeud", about the Alabama-Auburn rivalry. I got a new Alabama cap. It is a white cap with "U of A". Gary gave us two tickets for some good seats, which was real nice. David and I walked across campus and sold our other two tickets for $20 each on the street corner behind the Tutwiler parking lot. We walked back across campus and watched the end of the Auburn loss. We then ate Mexican at the Bama Dining center at the Ferguson Center. I had the burrito and David had a cheese quesedilla. I bought him a strawberry shortcake for dessert. He was real nice to share it with me. After dessert we walked over to the Quad where we watched the band warm up and perform on the steps of the Amelia Gayle Gorgas Library. After the band finished, we walked back to the car, got some drinks, and walked to Bryant Denny Stadium.

The game itself was a huge letdown. Alabama came in 3-2. They have looked good at times, but inconsistent. With a little luck they could have easily defeated one of the two games they lost. Both of the teams that defeated Alabama, Arkansas and Florida, were predicted to win. Despite that, Bama dominated both games and could have won. Duke brought the nation's worst offense to Tuscaloosa Saturday night, ranked 119 out of 119. David and I were expecting a blowout, perhaps something along the lines of 42-0. After all, Duke had been shut out in three of their first four games. The way it turned out, Bama had to mount a comeback in the second half, outscoring Duke 20-0, to finish with a 30-14 victory. Boos were reigning down in Bryant-Denny throughout the first half. As a fan, it appeared to me the boos were directed primarily at the Bama coaching staff. Many of the fans have been very vocal about the team running up the middle on third and long. The team was very flat and uninspired in the first half. Today the sports talk shows, such as the Paul Finebaum Show, are fielding calls from disillusioned fans. Even though I was really down on the coaching staff during the game, maybe we should sit back and take a deep breath before asking for Shula to be ousted. After all the team did win, and this happens every Saturday and always has. I know that even Bear Bryant had games that he had trouble winning against poor opponents. Bama (and Shula) is not as bad as people think. Now if the Tide plays like this against Ole Miss and lose, Shula may be digging his own grave. On the other hand, if the Tide wins the games they are supposed to win, and then wins one or two of the games they are not supposed to win, people will change their tune. College football is very interesting. Parity rules in the SEC. The top 7 or 8 teams in the SEC can all defeat each other on a given day. Anyway, back to Bama, I sure hope that Shula gets a grip on this team. Alabama need to come out and have a decisive victory against Ole Miss. Then, if the Tide can upset Tennessee, they will potentially be in real good shape for a decent season, because after the Vols, Bama has two more easy games before facing LSU and Auburn. Alabama then could go into those last two games with an 8-2 record, which will be basically what was expected of this team at the beginning of the season. Alabama then would have a chance to exceed expectations with a victory over one of the Tigers. On the surface, he team's performance against Duke does not give much reason for hope. Nevertheless, we can only hope that the scare that Duke put into the team (and hopefully the coaches) will provide the added motivation needed to reel of a long string of victories.

David and I were frustrated, but he said over and over what a great day that he had. He enjoyed seeing the Tide win. We left the stadium with about 4 minutes left in the game. We missed the final touchdown that came on Lionel Mitchell's interception return. We got out of town and beat the traffic. After a stop at the Gardendale Wal-Mart, we got home around 11:30. We were pumped up and stayed up until 2:30 watching some of the replay of the game, reading, and playing on David's Xbox. All that really mattered at the end of the day was hearing David say this, "Dad, it's been a great day!"

Wednesday, October 04, 2006

More Than a Name on a Wall

Here are the lyrics to an awesome song by the Statler Brothers about Vietnam Veterans and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. As far as I'm concerned this also applies to all of those who are sacrificing for us in the War on Terror as well.

I saw her from a distance, as she walked up to the wall
In her hand she held some flowers, as her tears began to fall
She took out pen and paper as to trace her mem'ries
She looked up to heaven, and the words she said were these.

She said, ''Lord my boy was special, and he meant so much to me
And Oh, I'd love to see him just one more time you see
All I have are the mem'ries and the moments to recall
So Lord could you tell him he's more than a name on the wall.''

She said, ''He really missed the family, being home on Christmas day
And he died for God and country in a place so far away
I remember just a little boy, playing war since he was three
And Lord this time I know, he's not coming home to me.''

She said, ''Lord my boy was special, and he meant so much to me
And Oh, I'd love to see him but I know it just can't be
So I thank you for my mem'ries and the moments to recall
But Lord could you tell him he's more than a name on the wall.''

''Lord could you tell him he's more than a name on the wall..."

Statlers "Teacher's Day" Story

I recently purchased a DVD of my favorite country group of all time, the Statler Brothers. It is a video of their farewell concert in Salem, Virginia a few years ago. I love their music, but one of the best things about the Statlers is their incredible sense of humour and the funny stories and interaction among the guys in concert or on TV.

Here is my version of one of Harold Reid's classic stories (Harold is the funny one, Don is the straight one) This is my written version, which wont totally do it justice...

Harold has a friend who is a teacher
she tells him about teachers day
teacher's day is when the students bring gifts to the teacher
the first boy's dad owns a candy shop
he brings a huge gift and she unwraps a huge box of candy
the next kid's dad owns a flower shop
she opens a box full of beautiful flowers
the third kid's dad owns a liquor store...............
she asks the boy...is it champagne
no
is it fine wine....
no
brandy
no
then she notices that it is leaking so she puts her finger in it and tastes it....
so she asks the boy what is it.....
he said....................
drum roll.............













puppies!

Vinemont, aka South Vinemont, AL


South Vinemont Trail


Vinemont-Providence Fire Station


Water Tower


Vinemont Town Hall

Joe and Matt's School


Vinemont Elementary

David's School


Vinemont Middle School

Tuesday, October 03, 2006

West Point 33 Vinemont 6

David's team lost last night. They are now 3 and 2 on the year.

Ailments

About this time last week I began a tough time with my right shoulder. Actually I've struggled with pain in my right shoulder on and off for several months. It usually flares up when playing catch with my boys.

I'm not exactly sure what triggered it last week, but I think it may have been when I was trying to reach my back with soap in the shower. I have a tendency to push myself and I reached harder than I should have because I didn't want to limit my range of motion with my right arm.
Ever since then, I have had intense pain in my right shoulder. I cannot do normal activities without intense pain.

It is amazing how much we take for granted things like: reaching over to grab something out of the back seat of the car, tucking in our shirt, reaching up to grab a book off the shelf, drying off after a shower, sleeping on our side, reaching into our back pocket for a billfold, and the list goes on and on and on!

If you know me, it had to be bad for me to actually visit the doctor for the first time in years. He thinks I tore my rotator cuff. He prescribed Celebrex to help easy any inflammation. He said if that worked, great! If not, I probably have a tear and will need to have an MRI and surgery.

As if that's not enough, I had to start taking medication for high blood pressue, which costs me $50 per month. Whew, I feel OLD!

There goes any hope of a Major League Baseball career!

Wait, I can throw a mean spiral with a football using my left arm. Just ask my boys!

Sunday, October 01, 2006

My Wish

Here is a song I heard on the Nashville XM Radio station by
Rascal Flatts...cool song!

I hope that days come easy and moments pass slow,
and each road leads you where you want to go,
and if you're faced with a choice, and you have to
choose,
I hope you choose the one that means the most to you.
and if one door opens to another door closed,
I hope you keep on walkin' till you find the window,
if it's cold outside,
show the world the warmth of your smile,
more then anything, more then anything,
My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that
you want it,
to your dreams stay big, and your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more then you can hold,
and while you're out there getting where you're
getting to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the
same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish.
I hope you never look back, but ya never forget,
all the ones who love you, in the place you left,
I hope you always forgive, and you never regret,
and you help somebody every chance you get,
Oh, you find God's grace, in every mistake,
and you always give more then you take.
Oh More then anything, Yeah, and more then anything,
My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that
you want it,
to your dreams stay big, and your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more then you can hold,
and while you're out there getting where you're
getting to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants
the same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish.

This Weekend

The boys and I watched the Vinemont varsity football team defeat Falkville 33-6 Friday night at their homecoming game.

I defeated David on XBox football but Joseph, my 10 year old, beat me twice lately. As Auburn, he crushed my Buffalo team, which should not be a surprise. The bad thing is his #1 USC team crushed my #2 Oklahoma team by over thirty points.

Saturday, we travelled to my Mom and Dad's home. We watched Bama lose to Florida down in Gainesville on CBS. Bama hung tough, and I think they gave it their best shot, but they were just outmanned by a superior Florida team. I won't even complain about Shula's play calling like I did last week after the Arkansas game. I think he did all that he could.

Today we watched the Braves defeat the Astros behind 16 game winner John Smoltz. The Braves knocked the Astros out of the playoffs. I'm sur my friend Rob was watching with glee knowing that it put his beloved Cards into the playoffs again.