It’s been awhile since I have posted. So time to get the ball rolling. Over the next couple of weeks, I am going to start a new blog series on coaching. After that, we will see where this blog will take me. We will be going all over the place with this blog but hopefully it will be fun for you as it is for me. So watch out and get ready.
Have you wondered what is wrong with America lately. I would like to spend some time with this blog exploring this issue.
Without a doubt, the hottest issue in America is gay marriage. Ask anyone on the street and they will have an opinion on this very issues. Countless states have ballot measures defining a marriage is between man and a woman. Overwhelmingly the people have voted to reaffirm that marriage is between a man and a woman.
The politicians in the cities of Boston and Chicago have even gone so far to suggest that would not want to allow a Chick-fil-A franchise business in their city because of the CEO’s belief that marriage is between a man and a woman as defined in the Bible. Today we saw the public overwhelmingly support Chick-A Fil franchisees all across America.
America is on a slipper slope in regards to this issue. The definition of marriage is not defined by man, but instead it has been defined by God. The Bible is clear on this definition. If we attempt to redefine God’s word, it will only lead to his judgment.
It has been 1000 days since Obama has been in office and what would you say is Obama’s greatest achievement. Without looking at his failures but only his achievements, what really stands out about his presidency so far. So far I have to say the only two things that stand out are the capture and death of Osama Bin Laden and the fact that he is the first African American president.
For a president, who ran on a platform of hope and change, not much has been accomplished in his first 1000 days in office. I think things today are worse than before he came into office.
I believe many people who voted for Obama wanted to be apart of history. Unfortunately when we vote for someone merely to be apart of history, we end up with a president that may go down as the worst president in history. This administration blames all their problems on the previous administration but it is time for this administration to work with the Congress and compromise.
My suggestion to both our president and members of Congress is simple, pay cut. The president and Congress should work for minimum wage.
Next I would suggest we cut spending. We need to look at all areas in the budget and determine what is waste and what is not. It is hard to make spending cuts but it time to “man up” and make some serious cuts. We can’t spend what we don’t have.
Lastly there is a big debate about Obama Care. A simple solution would be that the health care benefits enjoyed by our politicians should be accessible to the people as well. Our politicians have a great health care plan but what about the people? Premiums for health care have risen at an alarming rate the past few years and many companies are passing these increases to their employees to pay. To be honest I would rather pay a tax for health care and allow all U.S citizens have access to health care coverage similar to the plan enjoyed by our politicians.
I think our president has an opportunity to accomplish much more in office but we will have to wait and see what he does with the rest of his term.
I just got back from a trip to Washington State. A must for me on any visit to Western Washington is the Redhook Brewery in Washington. We stopped by the brewery on July 4th weekend and I was a little disappointed that the souvenir store was sold out of pint size glasses. :< We also just missed the start of the tour as well.
We decided to grab a bite to eat at the Forecasters Pub and immediately after we were seated, I ask the waiter for a beer sampler before our meal. I know, instead of getting the sampler, I should have taken the brewery tour. (For a buck, you get a tour of the brewery, learn a little about brewing, a little history about Redhook, and sample a few beers.) While I was looking over the menu, I noticed that the bar had on tap their signature Nitro beer, Nighthook. I was in for a treat. Nighthook is one of the smoothest dark beers I have ever had. I highly recommend this beer to anyone. For desert, I ask the waiter for a Nighthook Beer Ice Cream Float. It was very interesting combo. For my meal I had a BBQ Pulled Pork sandwich. It was rather good.
If you are ever in the Seattle area, I would highly suggest to take a little side trip to Woodinville and visit the Redhook Brewery.
Sherwood Pictures latest movie, Courageous, hits movie theaters Sept 30th. The official movie trailer for this movie was just released on their website. Looks like the folks at Sherwood Pictures will be putting out another good movie. Sherwood Pictures other movies include Flywheel, Facing the Giants, and Fireproof. I have not been disappointed yet with any of their movies My all time favorite movie by Sherwood is Facing the Giants. If you get a chance this fall, check out Courageous.
I also want to mention the movie, The Grace Card. I heard that the trailer for Courageous is played before they start this movie in the theater. I have not seen it yet but there is a lot of buzz about this movie on the Internet. It is not playing in too many theaters but if you do see it at your local theater, check it out and tell us what you think.
Early last year the cable station, the HUB, introduced a new series called GI Joe Renegades. It is not like the GI Joe cartoon from the eighties, since this new series has a little twist. Let me just add, this series is far better then the live action movie. Check out the intro below.
I know what many of you are thinking. This looks like A-Team meets GI Joe. I have to agree. I even found this clip on youtube of someone else who thought the same thing.
Overall, what I have seen of this series with my kids, we like it. I like the two part episode that gave background on Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow. If you get a chance, check it out on the HUB.
Tonight, we have the first game of the NFL Season, New Orleans vs Minnesota. What a game this should be but I am worried how rusty old-timer, Brett Farve will be. My prediction is that the New Orleans Saints will take a commanding lead early in the 3rd quarter and Minnesota will battle back in the fourth quarter to tie. I have a gut feeling Brett Farve will lead his team down the field to win the game but in the last-minute of the game he will throw an interception. New Orleans will be in field goal range and they will kick a field goal to win it.
Here are my prediction who will win each division.
In the AFC EAST, I like the NY Jets to win this division. The Jets made some key acquisitions during the offseason. These key changes will alow them to win this division. I think the New England Patriots will make the playoffs as a wild card team.
In the AFC North, I like the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens have added some good receivers to their team. The offense will be there this year and this will allow the defense some rest on the sidelines. This will be one tough division so don’t overlook the Steelers or the Bengals. I think Pittsburg will make some waves and might make it to the playoffs as a wild card team.
In the AFC South, I like the Indianapolis Colts. Peyton and his team are the team to beat in the AFC. I also like the Texans in this division and in week one they get a chance to make a statement to the league. The Houston Texans will square off against the Indianapolis Colts and this will be the game of the month. If the Texans can pull off a victory in week one, this may be the moment they need to make the playoffs. If they lose this game all bets are off.
In the AFC West, I hate to say it but go with the San Diego Chargers. As a Chiefs fan, I hate the Chargers but in this division they are the best by default. I expect very little from Kansas City, Denver, or Oakland this year. On paper, I like the Raiders defense but I am not too sure about the offense. As Chiefs fan, go chiefs, but with reality sinking in, I can’t see the Chiefs winning more than 6 games.
In the NFC East, I like the Philadelphia Eagles. I know everyone likes the Cowboys. I expect the Cowboys and Eagles slug it out to win the division but I think the Eagles will make a run in December in wun the division.
In the NFC North, I like the Green Bay Packers. Green Bay is out to make a statement and they will when the welcome back Brett Farve and the Minnesota Vikings back in Lambeau. After this game Brett Farve will retire from football again but he will decide to come back a week later. Minnesota will be a force in the NFC North but I am not sure if Farve will last the whole season.
In the NFC South, I like the New Orleans Saints. I hope Atlanta gives the Saints a run for the division but I know the Saints are poised to win the NFC South again.
In the NFC West, I like the Seattle Seahawks. If the Seahawks stay healthy then the 49ners better watch out. This division is a weak division but I don’t believe all the hype about the 49ners. Watch out for the Seahawks this year.
Division Winners:
AFC East: NY Jets
AFC North: Baltimore Ravens
AFC South: Indianapolis Colts
AFC West: San Diego Chargers
Wild Card: New England Patriots
Wild Card: Houston Texans
NFC East: Philadelphia Eagles
NFC North: Green Bay Packers
NFC South: New Orleans Saints
NFC West: Seattle Seahawks
Wild Card: Dallas Cowboys
Wild Card: Atlanta Falcons
Superbowl: New Orleans Saints vs Baltimore Ravens
Superbowl Champs: Baltimore Ravens
Let the fun begin…..
First off I want to begin by giving LeBron James some advice. You have almost every option at your finger tips. Any owner in the NBA would love to have you on their team. Any team would instantly sellout every home game for the next five years. The reality is there are only a few teams that will allow you to win an NBA Title.
Most notably missing from my list are both the New York Knicks and the New Jersey Nets. Going to either theses two teams would be a step backwards. Your chances to win an NBA Title would be just a dream. You would make it to the NBA Playoffs, half the NBA does, but only the best win it all.
NBC Sucks!!!!!!
I noticed the Olympics were going to start at 7:30 PM PST, so I told my kids let’s watch. I live on the West Coast and I knew we were going to get a slight delay, no big deal. This was the first opening ceremonies we were going to watch as a family. I thought it would be cool for the kids since they enjoy playing Mario and Sonic Winter Olympics on the Nintendo Wii.
Well 7:30pm rolls around and as my family and I watched the coverage, we notice no opening ceremonies. I thought, that’s alright, we are going to get some coverage on the luge racer, Nodar Kumaritashvili, who tragically died during a training run. Thirty minutes into NBC’s coverage and there were still no opening ceremonies. That was enough for us so we just turned off the television.
Whose stupid idea was it to tape delay the Opening Ceremonies for the Olympics on the West Coast from 6pm to 9pm? I can understand a slight delay but 3 hours you have to be kidding me. But what should we expect from the network that ask Jay Leno to retire from Late Night then give the Tonight Show to Conan O’Brien but when Jay Leno thinks about coming to Late Night, NBC offers Jay a talk show at 10pm. When Jay’s show fails at 10pm, NBC get the bright idea to move Jay to a 30 minute show from 11:35pm to 12:05 am and move the Tonight Show to 12:05am. But would the Tonight Show, no longer be the Tonight Show after midnight?
NBC and their bright ideas and they wonder why their ratings are in the toilet.
After a cold night, we awoke to another beautiful day. We enjoyed or coffee and tea along with some pasta my brother-in law cooked over the fire. We even filled some of our empty bottles with water from a natural spring close to the lake. Wow, was that water cold. After a morning swim, we finally torn down our campsite, put our gear in our kayaks, and off we went for day two of our adventure.
Today was a bit different. We spent less time on the lakes and more time kayaking in the rivers. Of course, it was easier to kayak on a river than a lake. It seems on the lake, when I was oaring, I was using too much power with my right arm and when I was oaring with the left, I was not putting enough strength into it. Instead of kayaking straight across the lake, we ended up zigzagging across it.
The river was a whole different story. Less oaring was required when going down the river. We just need to compensate more for the bends in the rivers. The scenery was spectacular going down these rivers. Looking into the water you see a whole different world than what was above the water.
We made it to our first stop. It was a point where we had to take our kayaks across a road. There river did continue under the road to the other side. The other side was a little recreational area where many of the locals enjoyed the water gushing out. There was a little market and place to grab a bit to eat. We enjoyed some beer, saltibarsciai (fresh beet soup), and some ice cream. We picked up a couple of snacks and continue with our journey down the river.
After a nice time floating down the river, we finally made it to another lake. We kayaked a little further across the lake to our final stop of the day. It would be here where we would set up camp for the night.
Life's Journey 