Oh man, am I gonna lose some readers with this one.
I was surfing on Facebook the other day (Is that what we call it? I’m not really sure.) and I came across an old classmate blasting Tiger Woods for his “apology” Friday morning. She said that when the story broke last Thanksgiving, she didn’t let her son watch SportsCenter for two weeks.
Of course, she wasn’t the only person talking bad about the superstar. Every news channel on t.v., every radio station, and just about every internet sight had something bad to say about the guy.
By the way, I hate that about news channels lately. They have way too many opinions, and not enough news for me. And not just about this subject, but pretty much everything that comes across their desks.
But on this Tiger subject I’ve got to say… Shut up already. For three months, I’ve heard people screaming about how he needed to come out of hiding with a public apology. And when he finally did, all anyone wanted to do was critique him and his speech.
My goodness, I’d hate to be a public figure in this country.
Folks, he looked into a camera that was being watched by 200 hundred million people and admitted some pretty bad things. You don’t think that was a little tough? And worst than that, 40 of his closest friends, co-workers, and his mother were a couple of feet from him when he did it.
Look, am I happy with him for cheating on his wife? Of course not. But it’s none of my business, or your business, or anybody else’s business. He didn’t owe me an apology, or you, or anyone but his sponsors and his wife.
Besides, we don’t know what their bedroom life is like, so I don’t see how we can automatically just throw all the blame on him for all of this. Don’t wanna get too graphic here, but for all we know she might be a cold dead fish. (Yep, that’s where I’m gonna lose half of you.)
As for my kids, well, maybe I’m going about this the wrong way but I wanted my kids to watch SportsCenter when all this stuff broke. And I made my oldest two watch his apology Friday. I wanted to use this as a teaching moment, not something to be afraid of and avoid.
I want them to understand that public figures, athletes, movie stars, and politicians are just regular people with a different skill set. They all still have problems, just like the rest of us.
I remember having a conversation years ago with a father who was mad at Mike Tyson when he went to prison for rape. I was much younger then, and didn’t have children yet. But I still had the same opinion.
“My kids look up to that guy,” he said. “He’s their role model.”
I thought to myself, “Then, isn’t that a ‘you’ problem?”
I’m not letting athletes all the way off the hook, because it would be great if they were all like Drew Brees and Peyton Manning. But the fact is, they aren’t. And even the two guys I mentioned here have some sort of problems in their lives, I’m sure.
Of course, I hope I’m wrong about that. Because two things I’ve learned about people in this country is 1) We love to build public figures up and 2) We love to tear them back down.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Cabin Fever
Boy, do I have a pretty bad case of cabin fever. With football season over and nothing to watch on t.v. all weekend, I start thinking too much.
I start examining where I am in life, where I want to be, where I want my children to be, etc. Before I know it I’m remembering all the time, money and friendships that I’ve wasted over the years.
I know, I know. I need a hobby.
I’ve got to get back to running again. I hate running. Can’t stand it. In fact, I don’t like anything remotely close to exercise. But I’m getting older and more out of shape by the minute, and I’ve got to do something.
Two or three years ago, I got to where I was running up at the track a few nights a week. Actually started feeling pretty good, too.
Well, maybe it wasn’t so much running as it was jogging. And it wasn’t a marathon or anything, just four or five times around the track whenever I could.
Okay, it wasn’t so much jogging as it was half speed-walking/half stumbling forward in a big circle. But the fact is, I did feel better after a few weeks of doing it.
Anyway, I’ve got to get back to it as soon as it warms up a little outside. And no, that’s not just an excuse I’m using. I know that technically I could start running now, but the cold air feels like someone is stabbing you in the lungs every time you breathe heavy. Besides, it’s been documented several times how much I hate the cold weather.
And running, I mean jog-, I mean moving around the track isn’t the only thing the cold weather is keeping me from doing. There is a whole list of things that I can’t do until it warms up.
I want to get some work done out in the flowerbeds, but I’m not sure if another freeze is coming or not.
We have one of those fancy sprinkler systems already down in our yard, and I want to see what it will take to get working again, if anything at all. But who wants to work with water when it’s this cold out?
The cemetery that two of my buddies and I take care of needs a lot of work. I mean a lot of work. But see, it’s up on a hill, the wind blows pretty hard, and there’s just no way to stay warm up there.
I’ve been wanting to replace that stupid sliding glass door from the ‘60s with a set of French doors, but I’m not sure how long it’s going to take me to figure out how to put the new doors in. I can just hear my wife fussing when it’s 36 degrees outside and I’m using a tarp to cover up a huge hole in our back wall.
I’m ready to take the top down on my jeep, go ride 4-wheelers with my son, and do a little camping and fishing with the family. But I can’t do any of that with this stupid cold weather.
I guess the only thing left to do is to sit here inside and think of an excuse to put off running once it turns warm.
I start examining where I am in life, where I want to be, where I want my children to be, etc. Before I know it I’m remembering all the time, money and friendships that I’ve wasted over the years.
I know, I know. I need a hobby.
I’ve got to get back to running again. I hate running. Can’t stand it. In fact, I don’t like anything remotely close to exercise. But I’m getting older and more out of shape by the minute, and I’ve got to do something.
Two or three years ago, I got to where I was running up at the track a few nights a week. Actually started feeling pretty good, too.
Well, maybe it wasn’t so much running as it was jogging. And it wasn’t a marathon or anything, just four or five times around the track whenever I could.
Okay, it wasn’t so much jogging as it was half speed-walking/half stumbling forward in a big circle. But the fact is, I did feel better after a few weeks of doing it.
Anyway, I’ve got to get back to it as soon as it warms up a little outside. And no, that’s not just an excuse I’m using. I know that technically I could start running now, but the cold air feels like someone is stabbing you in the lungs every time you breathe heavy. Besides, it’s been documented several times how much I hate the cold weather.
And running, I mean jog-, I mean moving around the track isn’t the only thing the cold weather is keeping me from doing. There is a whole list of things that I can’t do until it warms up.
I want to get some work done out in the flowerbeds, but I’m not sure if another freeze is coming or not.
We have one of those fancy sprinkler systems already down in our yard, and I want to see what it will take to get working again, if anything at all. But who wants to work with water when it’s this cold out?
The cemetery that two of my buddies and I take care of needs a lot of work. I mean a lot of work. But see, it’s up on a hill, the wind blows pretty hard, and there’s just no way to stay warm up there.
I’ve been wanting to replace that stupid sliding glass door from the ‘60s with a set of French doors, but I’m not sure how long it’s going to take me to figure out how to put the new doors in. I can just hear my wife fussing when it’s 36 degrees outside and I’m using a tarp to cover up a huge hole in our back wall.
I’m ready to take the top down on my jeep, go ride 4-wheelers with my son, and do a little camping and fishing with the family. But I can’t do any of that with this stupid cold weather.
I guess the only thing left to do is to sit here inside and think of an excuse to put off running once it turns warm.
One Super Memory
I’ve got some good news for you during this rough economy. If you are looking for a job, there should be plenty of openings in the advertising industry after watching those $2.8 million dollar commercials from the Super Bowl.
I’m glad I took notes on them, because I can only remember a few.
Right off the bat they showed the Tim Tebow commercial that was supposed to be controversial, and it was a dud. There was nothing controversial about it. I’m not sure what the liberals hated about it, because it looked more like an E-Harmony commercial than anything else. Kind of icky, really.
No, the first controversy came when my wife started handling the remote like she had lost her mind- moving the volume up and down all willy-nilly like. There is never a good excuse for the wife handling the remote during any big game, much less the Super Bowl.
Our first laugh came during the Doritos commercial when the dog put the shock collar on the guy. I’d have to say that Doritos was the clear winner overall, because they had three or four pretty funny ones. My favorite was the little kid who pimp slapped his mom’s date. “Don’t touch my mamma, and don’t touch my Doritos.”
And of course the E-Trade commercials are always funny, with the little baby that has the grown up voice. The “milkaholic” one made me laugh the most.
One thing I noticed about this year’s commercials- way too many fat guys in their tighty whities. There were about two or three in a row at one point. Glad I was done eating by then.
Then it was halftime, and Oh Lord did that suck. The Who? Who ‘dat? I’m pretty sure my grandparents grew up listening to them.
I promise that if I ever meet Janet Jackson or Justin Timberlake, I’m gonna punch them right in the gut. Ever since the “wardrobe malfunction” in 2004, we’ve had a parade of old people during halftime.
I’m not saying put someone weird like Lady Gaga out there, but please find me someone under the age of 60, will you? We haven’t seen anyone relevant in six years. You had Carrie Underwood there to sing the National Anthem, why couldn’t you throw her on at halftime too? I wouldn’t mind looki-, um, hearing her sing for fifteen more minutes.
As for the game itself, I started out pulling for the Colts about 80%. I’m a pretty big Peyton Manning fan, and like to see hard work pay off.
But I’ll admit, the more interviews I watched on the pregame shows, and the more I saw how much it would mean to New Orleans , I started leaning toward the Saints a little.
The pictures that were in my mind of New Orleans were of the people looting, robbing, and whining about the government not helping them.
What I forgot about were the people who left when they were supposed to, came back to rubble, then worked hard and rebuilt without asking for help. For those people, I actually started pulling for the Saints a little by halftime.
And for Drew Brees.
I find it funny that for all the money that the companies spent on commercials, Brees provided the most memorable one for free.
The little kid slapping the guy made me laugh, the men in their underwear made me cringe, and Megan Fox in the bubble bath made me miss my mouth with my drink. But minutes after the game Brees held his one year old son and kissed his face and cried openly and drank it all in slowly. You could actually see him taking a mental snapshot of it all, because he never wanted to forget that moment.
As a father, I know I never will.
I’m glad I took notes on them, because I can only remember a few.
Right off the bat they showed the Tim Tebow commercial that was supposed to be controversial, and it was a dud. There was nothing controversial about it. I’m not sure what the liberals hated about it, because it looked more like an E-Harmony commercial than anything else. Kind of icky, really.
No, the first controversy came when my wife started handling the remote like she had lost her mind- moving the volume up and down all willy-nilly like. There is never a good excuse for the wife handling the remote during any big game, much less the Super Bowl.
Our first laugh came during the Doritos commercial when the dog put the shock collar on the guy. I’d have to say that Doritos was the clear winner overall, because they had three or four pretty funny ones. My favorite was the little kid who pimp slapped his mom’s date. “Don’t touch my mamma, and don’t touch my Doritos.”
And of course the E-Trade commercials are always funny, with the little baby that has the grown up voice. The “milkaholic” one made me laugh the most.
One thing I noticed about this year’s commercials- way too many fat guys in their tighty whities. There were about two or three in a row at one point. Glad I was done eating by then.
Then it was halftime, and Oh Lord did that suck. The Who? Who ‘dat? I’m pretty sure my grandparents grew up listening to them.
I promise that if I ever meet Janet Jackson or Justin Timberlake, I’m gonna punch them right in the gut. Ever since the “wardrobe malfunction” in 2004, we’ve had a parade of old people during halftime.
I’m not saying put someone weird like Lady Gaga out there, but please find me someone under the age of 60, will you? We haven’t seen anyone relevant in six years. You had Carrie Underwood there to sing the National Anthem, why couldn’t you throw her on at halftime too? I wouldn’t mind looki-, um, hearing her sing for fifteen more minutes.
As for the game itself, I started out pulling for the Colts about 80%. I’m a pretty big Peyton Manning fan, and like to see hard work pay off.
But I’ll admit, the more interviews I watched on the pregame shows, and the more I saw how much it would mean to New Orleans , I started leaning toward the Saints a little.
The pictures that were in my mind of New Orleans were of the people looting, robbing, and whining about the government not helping them.
What I forgot about were the people who left when they were supposed to, came back to rubble, then worked hard and rebuilt without asking for help. For those people, I actually started pulling for the Saints a little by halftime.
And for Drew Brees.
I find it funny that for all the money that the companies spent on commercials, Brees provided the most memorable one for free.
The little kid slapping the guy made me laugh, the men in their underwear made me cringe, and Megan Fox in the bubble bath made me miss my mouth with my drink. But minutes after the game Brees held his one year old son and kissed his face and cried openly and drank it all in slowly. You could actually see him taking a mental snapshot of it all, because he never wanted to forget that moment.
As a father, I know I never will.
It's a Super Week
Quite a few things to talk about this week.
The number one thing in the news right now is of course Super Bowl XLIV, which will be played this Sunday.. I believe that XLIV means 44, but I’m not 100% sure about that.
I can always tell if a man is a real football fan or not just by how and where he watches the Super Bowl. You see, a real football fan isn’t going to a busy sports bar or a big party to watch a game like this. He would rather watch the game with a couple of his buddies, some good sausage links, a little homemade cheese dip, and maybe an adult beverage or two.
Plus if you watch the game around all those people, how can you hear the commercials?
The last few years I haven’t really enjoyed the commercials that much, but I think this year will be different. If nothing else, the controversial ones will keep me entertained.
Former Florida quarterback and NFL hopeful Tim Tebow and his mother are said to have a commercial coming out against abortioin. For the record, I believe that a woman has a right to do what she wants with her own body, and the world is already over-populated as it is. But I totally respect other opinions on the matter and can’t wait to see the commercial, if for nothing else the controversy that will follow.
Speaking of controversy, CBS dodged a bullet when they decided against running an ad from a gay men’s dating website. The way I heard it, the commercial went like this. Three guys were watching the game, when two of them reached for the bowl of chips at the same time. Their hands brushed each other, they looked in each other’s eyes, and the spit swapping commenced.
Again, for the record, I’m not gay. But I totally respect gay rights and think that gay people deserve to be as happy or as miserable as straight people are. I think the commercial would have been hilarious, but I can’t blame CBS for not running it. I’m sure they would have lost more revenue than the $2.8 million dollar spot would cover.
The other commercials that I can’t wait to see are the Miller High Life commercials. Miller is pretty much donating their two $2.8 million dollar spots to four small businesses, letting them get some recognition. What a great idea in this tough economy.
Since everyone knows I’m a huge sports fan, I always get folks asking me who I think will win the big game, or at least who I want to win the big game.
I’ll say this. I’m a pretty big Drew Brees fan, and since I’ve met his grandparents there in Franklin I’ve pulled for him even more.. They are two of the nicest people I’ve met in a long time.
However, I’ve been kind of turned off from everything having to do with New Orleans ever since Hurrican Katrina. I’m not talking about the food, the restaurants and shopping places, or even Marti Gras. That stuff will always be great.
I’m referring to all the people who were whining and complaining about how long the government took to get help down there after the storm. And the way that some people acted and behaved themselves when the going got tough. All the looting, the pushing and shoving in food lines, etc.
It’s the same reason that I stopped listening to the news when they covered the recent tragic earthquake in Haiti for two weeks non-stop. The sense of entitlement that people in New Orleans and Haiti showed made me want to throw up.
I’m not saying that those people shouldn’t receive a little help, I just believe that it’s not the government’s job to help them. That should fall to the Red Cross, churches, and places like that. Helping people should always be volunteered, not required.
It’s like I’m always telling my wife- my son will be fine when he grows up because I make him help me out mowing the cemetery or working some other way to earn his money. He has chores around the house, such as taking out the trash, picking up the newspapers, etc. And now at the age of eight years old, he doesn’t expect me to buy him anything. He understands that if he wants something he has to work to get it.
My daughters, on the other hand… well that’s a different story. My wife hardly ever makes them help out around the house, and they still get pretty much everything they ask for. With an 11 year old daughter around, my wife should never have to wash another dish or fold another towel.
Call me harsh. Call me a jerk. And yes, I know I’m going to Hell because I can’t stand to see someone expecting charity. What can I say? That’s just how I feel.
And because I feel that way… go Indianapolis Colts.
The number one thing in the news right now is of course Super Bowl XLIV, which will be played this Sunday.. I believe that XLIV means 44, but I’m not 100% sure about that.
I can always tell if a man is a real football fan or not just by how and where he watches the Super Bowl. You see, a real football fan isn’t going to a busy sports bar or a big party to watch a game like this. He would rather watch the game with a couple of his buddies, some good sausage links, a little homemade cheese dip, and maybe an adult beverage or two.
Plus if you watch the game around all those people, how can you hear the commercials?
The last few years I haven’t really enjoyed the commercials that much, but I think this year will be different. If nothing else, the controversial ones will keep me entertained.
Former Florida quarterback and NFL hopeful Tim Tebow and his mother are said to have a commercial coming out against abortioin. For the record, I believe that a woman has a right to do what she wants with her own body, and the world is already over-populated as it is. But I totally respect other opinions on the matter and can’t wait to see the commercial, if for nothing else the controversy that will follow.
Speaking of controversy, CBS dodged a bullet when they decided against running an ad from a gay men’s dating website. The way I heard it, the commercial went like this. Three guys were watching the game, when two of them reached for the bowl of chips at the same time. Their hands brushed each other, they looked in each other’s eyes, and the spit swapping commenced.
Again, for the record, I’m not gay. But I totally respect gay rights and think that gay people deserve to be as happy or as miserable as straight people are. I think the commercial would have been hilarious, but I can’t blame CBS for not running it. I’m sure they would have lost more revenue than the $2.8 million dollar spot would cover.
The other commercials that I can’t wait to see are the Miller High Life commercials. Miller is pretty much donating their two $2.8 million dollar spots to four small businesses, letting them get some recognition. What a great idea in this tough economy.
Since everyone knows I’m a huge sports fan, I always get folks asking me who I think will win the big game, or at least who I want to win the big game.
I’ll say this. I’m a pretty big Drew Brees fan, and since I’ve met his grandparents there in Franklin I’ve pulled for him even more.. They are two of the nicest people I’ve met in a long time.
However, I’ve been kind of turned off from everything having to do with New Orleans ever since Hurrican Katrina. I’m not talking about the food, the restaurants and shopping places, or even Marti Gras. That stuff will always be great.
I’m referring to all the people who were whining and complaining about how long the government took to get help down there after the storm. And the way that some people acted and behaved themselves when the going got tough. All the looting, the pushing and shoving in food lines, etc.
It’s the same reason that I stopped listening to the news when they covered the recent tragic earthquake in Haiti for two weeks non-stop. The sense of entitlement that people in New Orleans and Haiti showed made me want to throw up.
I’m not saying that those people shouldn’t receive a little help, I just believe that it’s not the government’s job to help them. That should fall to the Red Cross, churches, and places like that. Helping people should always be volunteered, not required.
It’s like I’m always telling my wife- my son will be fine when he grows up because I make him help me out mowing the cemetery or working some other way to earn his money. He has chores around the house, such as taking out the trash, picking up the newspapers, etc. And now at the age of eight years old, he doesn’t expect me to buy him anything. He understands that if he wants something he has to work to get it.
My daughters, on the other hand… well that’s a different story. My wife hardly ever makes them help out around the house, and they still get pretty much everything they ask for. With an 11 year old daughter around, my wife should never have to wash another dish or fold another towel.
Call me harsh. Call me a jerk. And yes, I know I’m going to Hell because I can’t stand to see someone expecting charity. What can I say? That’s just how I feel.
And because I feel that way… go Indianapolis Colts.
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Facebook
What do I always say folks? Am I not always telling you how we need to strive to evolve as a person? We should always be looking for ways to improve ourselves. I always say not to be afraid to change a little every now and then, and not to knock something until you’ve tried it. Well, I did a little of that evolving last week. I finally let me wife make me a Facebook page.
If you have been living under a rock the last few years, Facebook is a social networking internet sight that lets you keep up and chat with friends and family.
I know, I know. I said I would never do it. I said it was nerdy, and a waste of time, and a barrel full of trouble for a married person. I said it was for women, and any man on there should have his Guy Card taken away for a while.
And to some extent, I still believe all of that. But I have to admit… it’s actually kind of cool, too.
I’ve caught up with and have seen pictures of old friends who I have not seen in over a decade. I got to exchange a few words with a buddy who’s sons played football with my son. I’ve even come across a couple of teachers that I had back in high school- one of which I thought had been dead for quite some time.
And everywhere I look on there, there are ideas for my column. For instance, I met this woman a few years ago when I used to deliver newspapers. For the longest time, I thought this lady was very (how should I say this?) … Martha Stewart. She was always quiet and reserved, and I could just picture her going home every day and making furniture out of toothpicks, a couple of pinecones and some hot glue.
Come to find out, she’s an avid 70s and 80s rock and roll fan. And she even told an amazing story the other day about pulling a calf all by herself. She pulled a calf by herself. Folks, she reached down, grabbed hold, and pulled a calf… by herself. Let’s see Martha do that on t.v.
Without Facebook, I would never have heard that story.
It’s also a great way to exchange a few words with friends and family without having to talk on the phone. I’m not a big phone guy, so this works out good for me. I can drop a few lines on someone’s wall (that’s what we FB users call someone’s message board), then come back in a few hours to see what they replied. You don’t actually have to carry on a conversation with them, and you don’t get stuck on the phone for a half hour discussing something that you have no interest in. It’s quick and to the point, and that’s what I like about it.
Of course, there is still plenty that I don’t like.
I’m not crazy about having to put a picture of myself up there. I’ve never seen a picture of myself that I liked, so I had to dig for one that I hated less than the others. Someone on there posted some photos of us back in high school. I never realized that I looked so bad.
I’m not crazy about the way it makes you feel needy, either. In order to talk to somebody, you have to ask to be their “friend”. That’s a lot of pride for me to swallow. In my 37 years, I’ve never once asked to be someone’s friend.
And whenever someone asks to be my friend or comments on my wall it sends an email to me, which I get on my iPhone. So now I’m addicted to checking my phone more times a day than my son ties his shoes.
And I’m not crazy about playing all the little farm games and stuff on there, either. Evolving or not, I’m not ready to turn my Guy Card in for good just yet.
What do I always say folks? Am I not always telling you how we need to strive to evolve as a person? We should always be looking for ways to improve ourselves. I always say not to be afraid to change a little every now and then, and not to knock something until you’ve tried it. Well, I did a little of that evolving last week. I finally let me wife make me a Facebook page.
If you have been living under a rock the last few years, Facebook is a social networking internet sight that lets you keep up and chat with friends and family.
I know, I know. I said I would never do it. I said it was nerdy, and a waste of time, and a barrel full of trouble for a married person. I said it was for women, and any man on there should have his Guy Card taken away for a while.
And to some extent, I still believe all of that. But I have to admit… it’s actually kind of cool, too.
I’ve caught up with and have seen pictures of old friends who I have not seen in over a decade. I got to exchange a few words with a buddy who’s sons played football with my son. I’ve even come across a couple of teachers that I had back in high school- one of which I thought had been dead for quite some time.
And everywhere I look on there, there are ideas for my column. For instance, I met this woman a few years ago when I used to deliver newspapers. For the longest time, I thought this lady was very (how should I say this?) … Martha Stewart. She was always quiet and reserved, and I could just picture her going home every day and making furniture out of toothpicks, a couple of pinecones and some hot glue.
Come to find out, she’s an avid 70s and 80s rock and roll fan. And she even told an amazing story the other day about pulling a calf all by herself. She pulled a calf by herself. Folks, she reached down, grabbed hold, and pulled a calf… by herself. Let’s see Martha do that on t.v.
Without Facebook, I would never have heard that story.
It’s also a great way to exchange a few words with friends and family without having to talk on the phone. I’m not a big phone guy, so this works out good for me. I can drop a few lines on someone’s wall (that’s what we FB users call someone’s message board), then come back in a few hours to see what they replied. You don’t actually have to carry on a conversation with them, and you don’t get stuck on the phone for a half hour discussing something that you have no interest in. It’s quick and to the point, and that’s what I like about it.
Of course, there is still plenty that I don’t like.
I’m not crazy about having to put a picture of myself up there. I’ve never seen a picture of myself that I liked, so I had to dig for one that I hated less than the others. Someone on there posted some photos of us back in high school. I never realized that I looked so bad.
I’m not crazy about the way it makes you feel needy, either. In order to talk to somebody, you have to ask to be their “friend”. That’s a lot of pride for me to swallow. In my 37 years, I’ve never once asked to be someone’s friend.
And whenever someone asks to be my friend or comments on my wall it sends an email to me, which I get on my iPhone. So now I’m addicted to checking my phone more times a day than my son ties his shoes.
And I’m not crazy about playing all the little farm games and stuff on there, either. Evolving or not, I’m not ready to turn my Guy Card in for good just yet.
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