Christmas Day

Another year of good health and happiness.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve...

Christmas Present #25

This is a reprint from

 December 1, 2009

As we do every year, we will be posting a present to give/ask for every day between now and Christmas. Many are things you can actually go out and buy. Some are realistic in price. Alas, a few are financially unrealistic. (Last year an $8,000 Viking oven made the list.) This time of year truly is the best part of the calendar. People seem to be just a tad nicer. And if you have kids, how can you not relish the looks on their faces as they open presents in the early morning hours of December 25?!?

But we figured we would start this season off not with a gift that can be placed under the Christmas tree. Rather, we want to begin with something that all of us can give as well as receive. And it doesn't cost a penny.

It's called ... wait for it ... A Better Attitude.

And 99 percent of us can use one.

To bitch and moan is to be human. And we're not asking you stop bitching and moaning. Instead, we just ask that as a present to yourself, you bitch and moan less.

Think about it. A majority of us don't have much to truly bitch about. Feel tired and overworked?!? Tell that to someone who is terminally ill. Hate your boss?!? Tell that to someone on welfare. Think your house pales in comparison to others?!? We're guessing the father of a homeless family would love to call your house his own.

The Playmaker's Sister spent last Saturday night with her grandparents and aunt. When she came home from the sleepover, she did so with a new pair of UGGS -- complete with a price tag of $110. Unfortunately, she discovered a scuff mark on them. No worries, as her mom exchanged them the next day. This time, however, we discovered there was a small rip in one of the UGGS. The boots would be exchanged for flawless ones. But not until this coming weekend. Our daughter was devastated. She so wanted to wear the new kicks to school and was despondent that she would now have to wait a week. Later that same day, we took her to the grocery store to get some grub. In the front of the store was a Christmas tree that had angels on it that you could "adopt" for Christmas. The angels were local needy boys and girls. Adopting one means you give the gifts that are lifted on the angel card. We adopted a 15 year old girl and an 8 year old boy. (The girl wants a Target gift card. She will get one from us, plus a gift card to Aeropostale. The boy wants a gift card to GameStop. He will get that, plus one to the Gap.)

On the way home, we ripped into The Playmaker's Sister for being selfish and spoiled. We asked her if she thought anyone on that angel Christmas tree could afford UGGS. She, of course, knew the answer and where the conversation was headed. We told her just what we wrote above. That everyone complains -- even her father. But that none of us really have much to gripe about. It clearly resonated with her -- because within a minute or two she was back to her normal, cheerful self. And the UGGS have not been brought up since.

So we share that story not to thump our chest as father of the year. Instead, it's a simple lesson that most of us really, truly have nothing to bitch about. Let's all shut our mouths and improve our attitudes. (And if possible, try to help someone or some people who truly need it.)

And in the process, we will be giving ourselves and those around us a wonderful gift. And we will enjoy the Christmas season more than ever.

Thanksgiving -- in pictures

 

Yes, we're back...

Nothing brings us out of hibernation like Thanksgiving.  So, we will have P L E N T Y of posts over the next 36 hours.  That, of course, will lead into the Christmas Season and our highly anticipated annual list of 25 gifts to give (a few of which are actually to receive).  For now, get into the Thanksgiving spirit with this awesome Turkey sound-bite by Lester:

Saturday's College Football Games:10 Things You Need to Know...

1. texASS beats Kansas State, 31-21! In the words of DC, Woop dee damn do! On second thought, Great Job!!! We speak for all of Sooner Nation when we say we NEVER want Mack Brown to leave texASS. Never. 

2. Johnny Manziel! He's the most entertaining college player we can ever remember watching. Yes, that's what we said.

3. Typical Notre Dame bullsheeeeet! The in-the-Irish-pocket refs called something like 12 pass interference penalties on Michigan State.  All seemingly came in the red zone.  And the majority of them were total crap calls. Total crap that allowed the Irish to prevail, 17-13.

4. Paul Finebaum's radio show! If you don't like it, you're a communist. Nothing funnier than Charles trying to verbally punch Danny Sheridan in the face. Hey, Sheridan! I don't like what you said about Auburn! I oughtta give you a country boy ass whopping!

5. Michigan's not very good! Should have lost to Akron last week. Should have lost to UConn last night. Hold off on the Brady Hoke statue.

6. And if Michigan blows, what does that tell us about Notre Dame?!? Think about that.

7. Time to fire UMass coach Charlie Molnar! Undoubtedly The Worst coach in D-1.

8. Just wait! The Philadelphia Eagles will continue to lose. And Texas and Southern Cal will start sniffing around one Chip Kelly.

9. Please pick up your parting gifts: Boise State Frauds.

10. Three words! Dee Dee Bonner.

S.I., August 31, 1987

Every Labor Day we read an old Sports Illustrated article from 8/31/87 on Oklahoma QB Jamelle Holieway. The last two lines sum up the day -- the final one of summer.

"That said, J-Boe goes inside to start packing. Summer's over."

We made it!!!

For obvious (read: work) reasons, we despise the end of summer. But the best part of fall (along with the autumn weather) is the return of college football. The season starts tonight, with eight games being played, six of which will be televised.

6:00 North Carolina @ South Carolina We love following SC because we love (love!) The Head Ball Coach. We love his visor. We love his shades. We love when he goes all "I don't give a sheet!" and takes his shirt off during practice on hot days. We love when he speaks into a microphone. And we love the fact he eats at ... wait for it ... Arby's. (If you don't know what we're referring to, you're NOT a college football fan.) And we love that The Cocks always seem to play in the first game of the year every August.  SC 27 UNC 16

7:00 Tulsa @ Bowling Green Reason we'll flip here during commercials: A starting D-lineman for BG went to our high school. Tulsa is getting 4 points on the road. Kids from Oklahoma are tough -- tough enough to cover. BG 35 Tulsa 31

8:00 Utah State @ Utah Reason we'll miss skip this game: It's on Fox Sports 1.  That means having to endure "analyst" (giggle) Eddie George on the pre-game show. Fox's college football coverage will NEVER be taken seriously as long as they employ stiffs like him. Reason you'll skip this game: You probably still haven't figured out what channel FS1 is on your box.  The Utes will Win One for Majerus. Utah 42 Utah State 38

9:15 Ole Miss @ Vanderbilt This will actually be the best game of the night. Ole Miss needs an opening night W before it embarks on a killer schedule. Vandy needs to prove it's a top 25 team by closing the deal at home. Can't wait for this one. Vandy 21 Ole Miss 20

10:30 Rutgers @ Fresno State The Bulldogs are 10 point favorites. Hmm... Rutgers 24 The Fighting Chris Herrens 21

11:00 Southern Cal @ Hawaii We know one thing: @billpear will be watching, cold one in hand. The Sons of Lane Kiffin need to show some stones/maturity and pound the crap out of Hawaii.  USC 49 Hawaii 24  

Coming soon...

Pictures from our two week stay in The Basement.

Fact...

The Phillies have the worst offense we have ever seen.  

E V E R.

Different day, different sport

Yesterday, field hockey. Today, basketball. We put The Playmaker through a 45-minute shooting and ball-handling driveway workout today. Finished with a game of '21' -- we lost 21-17.

Field hockey?!?

Took The Playmaker's Sister to the local high school and rand two miles with her.  After that, we ran three 100-yard gassers.  Um, she beat us in all three. Ugh...

Field hockey tryouts start Thursday.

Oops...

Forgot to talk about yesterday's playoff game. We lost by 5.  The playmaker had 6 points (3-8 shooting) and led the team with 3 assists.

And we're back...

Left at 5 this morning. By 10:30 we were picking up The Dog.  At 12:30 we were coaching The Playmaker's summer league team in its playoff game.

The Basement, 14.0

Heading up from The Basement tomorrow.  Been a great 15 days. Two Phillies games. Just one day of rain. Tons of gear to hold us over the next 12 months.  And a plethora of pictures, videos and tweets to preserve the memories.

The Basement, 13.0

We talked about it last summer, how getting a MacBook Air would be suh-weeet to take into The Basement with us. We got a Great Deal at Best Buy during a Black Friday on-line sale. And we kept it locked away in our home office for 9(!) months. We surprised the kids with it the day before we left.  And we absolutely love it.

The Basement, 12.0

Watched Brett Brown presser on the iPad at the beach.  How great is that?!?

The Basement, 11.0

Swam all morning.  Took The Family to The Boardwalk in the afternoon to go on rides and introduce the kids to pinball. Followed that up with pizza at Mack & Mancos Manco & Manco. 

The Basement, 10.0

Davenport

The local business magazines estimated that he'd gotten out with around forty million dollars.

So he was smart and rich.

And the first batch of clips demonstrated that he was, without a doubt, a killer.

Somebody, she thought, that she might like.

The Basement, 9.0

Had the biggest J U M B O shrimp we've ever seen for dinner tonight. Picked 'em up (1.5 pounds) from Avalon Seafood. $22 a pound -- totally worth it.

The Basement, 8.0

After eight days, we finally caved and ...... wait for it ...... went to 96th Street for ice cream.

The Basement, 7.0

Had a spectacular dinner at Busch's tonight. Blackened swordfish with crabmeat. Pictures to follow.

The Basement, 6.0

Took The Wife and The Playmaker to The Bank to watch the Phillies smash the Cubs today, 12-1.  Home runs for Ruf and Ashe.  Solid 5 innings from Ethan Martin.  After the game we hustled back to The Basement and swam from 6-7:15.

The Basement, 5.0

Knocked out 43 and 44. That's how we roll...

The Basement, 4.0

Took the kids out for pizza tonight -- our annual tradition the night before The Wife comes down.

The Basement, 3.0

Quick Hitters:

• Shaved 13 seconds off our 4.25 mile time this morning.

• Body-surfed for over an hour this morning.

• Split a wiffle ball double header (3 inning games) with The Playmaker.

• Bought a new pair of Avalon Nike Dri-Fit shorts to run in.

The Basement, 2.0

In the olden days we'd get up in The Basement and rip off 6 miles in under an hour and not even feel anything.  One hundred years later, we have bone on bone in both knees -- and that's why we now hump the elliptical every morning. But down here, we still get after it.  We can push out 10 or 11 days of running. Instead of six miles, we now jog four every morning. And our splits are much (much!) slower. This morning was 4.25 miles in 45:47. That's about an 11 minute mile -- clearly not great.  But who cares?!?  That's the point of The Basement; there is no point down here! That's the beauty of vacation. And that is the beauty of The Basement.

The Basement, 1.0

Went to the Phillies game last night. Got up early and hit the road this morning at 7:45. After a stop at ... wait for it ... Wawa, we arrived in The Basement around 10 AM. Raided a store for Eagles gear, then did the grocery shopping. Although the house comes with a cleaning service (and was spotless), we still put our own touch (read: OCD/anal) on it from 1-5 PM. Wanted to make it absolutely perfect for the next 14 days. Then took the kids for a dip in the ocean from 5:30 - 6:30. 

Stay healthy. Stay safe.

Here we go ...

Into The Basement.  A week earlier this year, on account of The Playmaker's Sister entering the high school sports world. Check back tomorrow.  We are back on our every day posting schedule.

Stay healthy. Stay safe.

Recap...

The second week of basketball camp (7/15-7/19) was a good one for The Playmaker.  He had games of 14, 8, 16, 10, 8, 16, 12 and 16.  Unfortunately, his team lost in the semi-finals. For the second week in a row he won the Best Playmaker trophy.

Giggle...

Best we can do...

A championship loss ... but some SERIOUS hardware!!!

The Playmaker's first place team lost in the camp championship today. He led his team to the finals with a 14 point semi-final performance.  In the championship game he was held to 8 points -- his low for the week.  However, at the conclusion of camp he was given a trophy for being named Best Playmaker in the camp.  (The irony of the award's name is surely not lost on us.)  Also, he finished second in the voting for Most Outstanding Player.  All in all, a great week of basketball camp.

Day 4

Consistency.  The Playmaker had two more wins (to improve to 7-1), with 12 and 14 points in those games.  Best move of the day?!?  Nursing a 2 point lead with under 2 minutes to play, he buried a deep step back in the right corner from 18 feet to clinch the morning win.

Day 3

Two more wins for The Playmaker's team, which is now 5-1.  He led the team in scoring in both games with 12 and 16 points.  Also, his 2-on-2 team won the championship.  In the clinching victory, he scored 8 of his team's 10 points in a 10-8 contest.

Day 2

The Playmaker led his team to a morning win with 14 points.  In the afternoon win, he netted a career high 20 points.  Also, he led his 3-on-3 team to the championship.

Suh-weeet...

First day of our annual two week summer basketball camp was today.  The Playmaker tore it up. He scored 17 points in a 22-21 morning loss.  In the afternoon game, he netted 10 of his team's 20 points to get their first W of the day.

Ugh...

Summer league basketball team dropped to 0-3 tonight.

Must be the coaching...

Dubya...

If this doesn't give you the chills, you're a frigging commie...

Woo! Hoo!

Held our four team Family +1 Friend Fantasy Football Draft today.  Check back tomorrow for our roster.

(Hint: We are a mortal lock to win the championship...)

Happy July 4th

Stay safe. And Happy Fourth of July!