The Softball Player

A father of one of the girl's on Hanna's softball team took a bunch of action shots of the team playing softball. This is a series he took of Hanna that I added to music. One of the most memorable tunes for me growing up that seems to fit this video. Enjoy.

The Graduate

Congratulations to Jacob. He has graduated from Kindercare and is ready to move on to bigger and better things. Mom and dad could not have been prouder. Here he is in his best Rodney Dangerfield "Back to School" pose.

Watch out Thunder Hill!!!! Here comes Jacob.

Today could be Oriole history

The Oriole's have called up the 2008 Minor League Player of the Year, Matt Wieters, to the big league club. Tonight will be his first major league start against the Detroit Tigers. He is supposed to bat seventh.

It has been quite some time since the Oriole's have had this level of hoopla surrounding a prospect. They are expecting 40,000 in attendance tonight. Considering attendance has been around 20,000 recently, there are a lot of fans excited about Wieters. I hope he succeeds. I really do. As an Oriole fan, the years of futility are draining. I also hope that the fans are reasonable in their expectations. He has been nothing short of outstanding in the minors. But the major leagues are a different game.

Instead of giving you predictions, I will give you what I hope he will do this year. Predictions are for those that track these things and have graphs and charts to show how certain players pan out. Mine are mere guesses.

80 games (he is a catcher and the Oriole's have 110 left)
.265 batting average
14 home runs (I would have said 13, but I have some superstitions)
45 rbis

We'll see. I wish him luck and am excited to see him play. Welcome to Baltimore, Matt Wieters. You are more than welcome to come over our house anytime.

What a weekend

With Memorial Day, we thought we had an easy weekend. No baseball or softball games to worry about. But, what ended up happening was a fun-filled and busy weekend. Let's start with Friday night....

5/22 - It was an early happy birthday dinner for Donny at El Azteca. The margaritas flowed and the food was decent.

5/23 - Day at the National Zoo. It was a very nice day to walk around the park. Walk was the optimal word as we spent 4 1/2 hours seeing various birds, mammals and reptiles. While we were able to see Jake's favorite, the elephants, none of Hanna's favorite, the polar bear, was present. And after a long day at the zoo, what could be more satisfying then the first snowball of the season. Ahhhhh!!!

5/24 - BBQ at Bill and Alisaa's. Getting together with family is always fun. Throwing things on the grill is always fun. So, my my math logic, throwing things on the grill with family is always funner. Steak, crab cakes, corn on the cob. The food was top notch.

5/25 - Baseball and BBQ. To celebrate my dad's borthday, we used the kid's discount tickets to go see the Orioles take on the Blue Jays. We lasted about 5 1/2 innings until the weather was too much to bear and we headed over to mom and dad's for BBQ (see math equation for 5/24). Good thing the Orioles held on for the win. 4-1 was the final. BBQ was old-fashion Kavalsky "Myrtle Beach"-style. We had steamed shrimp, taco salad and chicken on the BBQ. Follow that up with a huge bowl of fruit (watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew, pineapple) and (as Tiff likes to put it) a deconstructed trifle for dad's birthday cake.

Wow!!! Awesome weekend. Don't get many like that, so I had to share.

Peace in the middle east and I am outta here.....

No joke here

An article in the Baltimore Sun (http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/baltimore_county/bal-shabbat0527,0,5468633.story) states that the Jewish Community Center (JCC) in Owings Mills will now open on Saturday afternoons. While there was a rally last week at the Park Heights JCC to dissuade the board from approving this, the recommendation passed 97 to 33 by the board. I have to say that I am really disappointed.

While I am not a Jew who is observant of the Sabbath, I believe there are certain things that you hold sacred. The Sabbath is meant as a day of rest; a day to spend with family and friends; a day meant not to work. The Owings Mills JCC already opens their doors during the summer for the outside pool. Why the sudden need to open the indoor components? Being Jewish needs to mean something. And, yes, I know that you do not have to be Jewish to belong, but I bet you won't see the YMCA board vote to stay open on Christmas or Easter to suit their non-Christian members.

This will not change my support of the JCC. I am not a member nor do I plan to be a member. It simply is not convenient for me as I do not live in close proximity to their locations.

But this decision seems to be the start of a deterioriation of the "sacred-ness" of being Jewish. If the "Center" that bares it's name can't observe the simple rules of the Sabbath, how can we envision a population of Jewish people to aspire to and observe the rules of the Sabbath?

Another joke

From my buddy, Jim.

The economy is so bad...

• CEO's are now playing miniature golf.
• Jewish women are marrying for love.
• Even people who have nothing to do with the Obama administration aren't paying their taxes.
• Hotwheels and Matchbox stocks are trading higher than GM.
• Obama met with the following small businesses to discuss the Stimulus Package: GE, Pfizer and Citigroup.
• McDonalds is selling the 1/4 ouncer.
• Parents in Beverly Hills fired their nannies and learned their children's names.
• A truckload of Americans got caught sneaking into Mexico.
• The most highly-paid job is now jury duty.
• Dick Cheney took his stockbroker hunting.
• People in Africa are donating money to Americans.
• Mothers in Ethiopia are telling their kids, "finish your plate, do you know how many kids are starving in the US?".
• Motel Six won't leave the light on.
• The Mafia is laying off judges.

Joke of the day

Why does Snoop Dog carry an umbrella?

"fo' drizzle"

We mock those we don't understand

I had a long standing rule that no food was allowed in the mini-fridge I brought into work. You could put your drinks, but food needed to be cleared out immediately at the end of the day. I was rather strict with this rule as well. And here is why:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090513/ap_on_fe_st/odd_rotten_office_food

No, this is not the location I work at.

And I almost missed this unusual day

As a math major in college, I need to be on top of things like this. Today is "Odd Day". May 7th, 2009 or better to see as 5/7/09. "Odd day" is when 3 consecutive odd numbers make up the date. Check out http://www.oddday.net/.

Now go do something odd before it is too late.

To all my geeky friends

Did you know that 5/4 was Star Wars day? Do you know why? Guess in the comments section.