Random Derby Stuff and More

• Friesan Fire. Enough said. If you're looking for an exacta, toss in Dunkirk. Feel free to send me a check. I recommend 20% of any earnings, but you may contribute more if you are really thankful.
• Cornhole boards available for Derby- I don't know what we are doing Derby Day yet, but it looks like the big shin-dig in Indiana is a possibility. I do have cornhole boards at work I can bring if anyone thinks they are needed (I know I'd use them).
• I have decided to play golf on Oaks Day. I have a morning tee time at Oxmoor with a few guys from work. I am trying to get in all the practice I can before the North Korean Express hits town next week (I thing Wag may want some revenge after the Herculean comeback at Shawnee on Sunday).
• I finally finished "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea." Jules Verne wrote the book in 1870. His foresight about submarines and other technology was amazing. While reading it, it seemed like he already new of the technology invented in the first quarter of the 20th century. I will have to learn more about him.
• Up next is the "His Dark Materials" trilogy by Phillip Pullman. The first book is "The Golden Compass." Beth is almost done with the last book, so I need to go ahead and read them so we can discuss. Maybe will have tea and strumpets...

I mean crumpets.

Showdown at the Valley

Saturday, May 9th, 2009 may begin just like any other day, but the hours that spill following sunrise will be retold for generations. The Coca-Cola Scramble at Sun Valley will witness two of the most formidable and electrifying scramble teams ever assembled on wide wide Dixie Highway. This town ain't big enough for the both of them, but the drama will be mammoth.

The first team is anchored by the father-son combo of Mark & Matt Wagner. This golf duo stooped to recruiting talent outside the United States. In a deal tenuously struck with North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, the Wagners acquired two of Pyongyang's biggest stars- Joo-Lee and Jit - in exchange for a collection of Warner Bros. cartoon DVD's. When asked if the language barrier may cause problems among the team, Wag senior snarled, "ya ain't got to speak no English to whoop some Tabler a**!"

When reporters asked Joo-Lee her reaction to playing in this tournament for the first time, she commented, "Coka-Cora ...been...very good... to me because... supreme leader say so very good."

The Don of the Tabler family, Bob "Steel Joints" Tabler, doesn't understand his family's sketchy reputation among those in the field. The Tabler's intimidation techniques are well known on the links, but the Don insists he raised his children to be respectful and upstanding members of the community. "I manage my boys with a firm and nurturing hand just like any loving father. They're good fellas."

His eldest son, Mark "Deep Freezer" Tabler, seems to have the raw ability, if not the refined skills of the "family business." Kevin " Hook n' Slice" Tabler works the ball around the course like a marionette. And Brian "Anchors" Tabler, the heavy weight of the team, has the experience and skill to drown the competition.

The golf committee may be wise to keep these teams separated on opposite sides of the course, but the TV ratings beg for a Team A-B match-up. With the Tabler team throwing daggers and the Wagner-Lee team launching missiles, the morning of May 9th will be a red dawn.

Cornhole Boards

A guy I work with built us some new cornhole boards for the office because the ones we plundered from the grounds crew were reclaimed on Thunder Saturday. I have put one coat of paint as a primer and lightly sanded them. My next job is to paint them with a semi-gloss paint and finally put on a thin coat of varnish.

I am also in the market for my own boards. Even though I have no space to store them (I'm sure my wonderful parents may watch after them for me because I'm sure we'd use them over there quite a bit). I haven't decided if I should have this same guy make me some or just buy a set. However, this brings me to the point of this blog post. I am searching for suggestions on the design of the boards. I have thought of the obvious idea of having team logos (I would like to have UK or St. Louis Cardinal designs). But I'm searching for something unique. I know my family is very creative and warped (in a good way) and could think of some interesting ideas.

For those of you unfamiliar with a cornhole board (and I can't imagine who that would be), I need to paint two of these:

Mt. Redoubt Web Cam

For any of you following the activity of Mt. Redoubt in Alaska, here is the link to the web cam updated every few minutes. Also, if you look to the left of the page, you will see a few different web cam locations for the volcano.

http://www.avo.alaska.edu/webcam/Redoubt_-_Hut.php

Happy Anniversary Mark & KIm

I didn't call you today because I knew you were out celebrating, but Happy Anniversary. I think we are all celebrating the fact that two such wonderful people found each other and ended up being such committed parents to two beautiful girls. We love you!

The Church & The Chiller

I had a few errands to run during lunch today and ended up on Bardstown Road in the Highlands. I pulled through a drive through to get a quick bite and decided to drive back in the neighborhoods around Cave Hill Cemetery. I found a nice quiet street and enjoyed the different architecture of the various houses and apartments unique to the Highlands. The grass is green, flowers and trees are in bloom and everything looks wonderful. As I sat in my car devouring my sandwich and listening to "State of Affairs" on NPR, I noticed several of the yards had signs in them that read: "Highland Presbyterian: Please Move Your Chiller."

I started wondering,"what the heck does that mean?" As I pulled away from the curb and drove down the block a few houses, I saw a different sign that read: www.thechurchandthechiller.com.

You can read for yourself the issue at hand, but it is hard to believe the church has so far gotten away with it. What happened to the days of shutting all the windows in the church in the summer and opening them all in the winter. That's how I remember it anyway (I'm looking at YOU Sister Margaret!)

When Worlds Collide

The article linked below came out in November 2008, but I only came across it last night. It is from World Net Daily. Though I have no idea of this publications background, I suspect it to be a right wing conservative publication. Again, I have not researched it, so I first read it as an unbiased article (although the author calls "The God Delusion" an anti-Christian book, which leads me to believe he has not read it, or did not comprehend it. Also, a link to a book in the middle of the article on the spread of atheism titled "The Marketing of Evil" was a little obvious). Please read:
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=81459

While respecting the circumstances and feelings surrounding a case like this, especially a suicide of a young student, I find the reasoning of the student's family and friends short sighted and ignorant. Emotions often cloud judgement in such circumstances, but the slant the writer uses in the article adds to my disgust.

To suggest a book's presentation of "irrefutable" evidence destroys and undermines a persons faith and should be held accountable for "malpractice" is like blaming the iceberg for the Titanic hurling faster and faster, unchecked, through the icy North Atlantic. The evidence is what it is, so maybe the preliminary mindset is to blame. Did it not occur to anyone this young mind had been molded and filled with so much unquestionable "faith" that he forgot to think for himself. And once faced with ideas that break the mold, he was unable to cope. Even though it may hurt, blaming the truth is never a good idea.

The father stated by allowing his son to attend a secular school, he felt like he "put a toddler in the front of [his] car ." Kilgore's son was 22 years old. Definitely not a toddler, but he demonstrated the binding paralysis of a lifetime of indoctrination.

"I want to hold schools accountable for what they're teaching our kids. This was malpractice," he said. Challenging college students to read a book (not in the curriculum? GASP!) and allowing them to come to their own conclusions? How appalling! The problem did not lie in the book. The demise of this student started 20 years earlier, with the force feeding of misinformation, the discouragement of questioning, and the unaccountabilty of fundamental religious teaching.

A Spring Time High School Movie Classic Worth Reposting

Caution: One 4-Letter Word at the End

My Champions Dinner

One of the great traditions of The Masters is the Champions Dinner. Below is a list of recent champions. Then, I will give you what I would pick.

"Winners of The Masters are members of an exclusive club, so they get together each year on the Tuesday night of tournament week to welcome the previous year's winner to the club. That club is officially known as the Masters Club, but unofficially the gathering is called the Champions Dinner.
The previous year's winner gets to select the menu (and pick up the tab!). Over the years, the dinner fare has ranged from cheeseburgers to sushi to haggis (if you don't know what haggis is, you're better off that way). But the former champs aren't required to eat what the defending champion selects. If the reigning champ's taste isn't to the taste of other Masters winners in the room, they can order off Augusta National's regular menu (which includes steaks, chicken and fish dishes).
Our favorite Champions Dinner menu was the one offered by Tiger Woods in 1998: cheeseburgers, chicken sandwiches, french fries and milkshakes. Hey, Tiger was only 22 at the time.
It's difficult to find info on Champions Dinner menus from the early days of the event, but more recent menus are usually reported in the media in the weeks leading up to The Masters.
Here is a sampling of Champions Dinner fare (the source for most of the pre-2000 menus listed below is a 1999 article in The Augusta Chronicle by Emily Sollie):
Trevor Immelman, 2009: Bobotie (a spiced minced meat pie with an egg topping), sosaties (type of chicken skewer), spinach salad, milk tart and South African wines.
Zach Johnson, 2008: Iowa beef, Florida shrimp.
Phil Mickelson, 2007: Barbecued ribs, chicken, sausage and pulled pork, with cole slaw.
Tiger Woods, 2006: Stuffed jalapeno and quesadilla appetizers with salsa and guacamole; green salad; steak fajitas, chicken fajitas, Mexican rice, refried beans; apple pie and ice cream for dessert.
Phil Mickelson, 2005: Lobster ravioli in tomato cream sauce, Caesar's salad, garlic bread.
Mike Weir, 2004: Elk, wild boar, Arctic char (that's a fish), Canadian beer.
Tiger Woods, 2002: Porterhouse steak and chicken with a sushi appetizer.
Vijay Singh, 2001: Seafood tom kah, chicken panang curry, baked sea scallops with garlic sauce, rack of lamb with yellow kari sauce, baked filet Chilean sea bass with three flavor chili sauce, lychee sorbet.
Mark O'Meara, 1999: Chicken fajitas, steak fajitas, sushi, tuna sashimi.
Tiger Woods, 1998: Cheeseburgers, chicken sandwiches, french fries, milkshakes.
Nick Faldo, 1997: Fish and chips, tomato soup.
Ben Crenshaw, 1996: Texas barbecue.
Jose Maria Olazabal, 1995: Paella (a Spanish rice dish) and hake (whitefish), plus tapas.
Bernhard Langer, 1994: Turkey and dressing, black forest torte."

Brian Tabler, 3-Time Lagoon Legend Memorial Champion: Prime Rib sandwiches w/ raw horseradish and au' jus, roasted red pepper chicken fettucini alfredo, baked potatoes and grilled sweet corn. For dessert, chocolate silk pie, rasberry cheesecake and hot fudge sundaes.

Yum, yum!

A Tradition Unlike Any Other...Taking Pop's Money

One of my favorite four day stretches is upon us as The Masters gets started Thursday morning. While I sit here and watch Live From The Masters on the Golf Channel, I have been contemplating the $1 bet I made with Pop. He took Tiger Woods and is giving me 5 golfers of my choice. If Tiger wears the Green Jacket, he collects the buck. If one of my guys slips it on, I get it. Simple as that. So, with hours upon hours of research, crunching numbers and reviewing over 60 years of footage, I give you my picks. Good Luck Pops...let's hope Tiger's knee doesn't get reinjured. "He'll quit the game."

1) Phil Mickelson

2) Geoff Ogilvy

3) Padraig Harrington

4) Paul Casey

5) Justin Rose

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY MOM & DAD!

The title says it all. I'm trying to remember...is this the 42nd? Please correct me if I am wrong. I hope you all have a great day and we love you.

Is This the New Coach-Mobile for "John Cal I"?

Question for Kevin

Is your new "Planet Earth" box set narrated by Segourney Weaver or Sir David Attenborough? Thankfully, mine is Attenborough. I think it's funny the BBC uses an actual famous naturalist, but the United States production needed to be "sexed up" with an actress. Not that it really matters I guess, but for some reason it bothers me. It would be like Morgan Freeman doing "Cosmos" on PBS instead of Carl Sagan.

Sunday Prognostications: Tiger, Tiger Woods Ya'll

I see Tiger is in 2nd place going into the final round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill. Problem is, he's 5 shots back of Sean O'Hair. Giving a professional golfer a 5 shot lead on Sunday should be a lock, but how often do you see them yack on their custom Dry-Joys the first couple of holes and let the field back in. O'Hair is skinny like me, so I think he'll win. Prediction: Tiger will smell blood and pounce early, but O'Hair holds him off and wins by one.

Michigan State makes "P-Spill" and the rest of Pitino's Crimininos go cold on 3-pointers. The Spartans will have a tough time with UofL's interior game, but eek out a win, thus giving me another final four team in my bracket. If Oklahoma beats UNC, I'll then have 3 of the 4.

As a side note, I have only missed one game in the West region of the bracket (BYU/Texas A&M)

Day 2: Coach Search

I have exhausted myself trying to think of possibilities for UK's next hire. I have been looking at the big boys as well as coaches from the mid-majors. The only place I haven't looked is the NBA. Not because I don't think UK wouldn't look there, I just don't know any coaches in the NBA. I have tried to keep myself away from the computer most of the day to keep from checking every few minutes on the latest news. I realize it will probably be a little while before a decision is made, but reading the same speculation over and over again is still fun.

I went to a Texas A&M basketball forum to see if they had any comments on Gillispie's firing. Most stated it was because of his record, but many acknowledged it was also in combination with his personality. If this is the opinion on a fan forum, shouldn't Barnhart have known this before he hired BCG?

And Digger Phelps is an idiot.

Thanks, Kevin!

Thank you Kevin for the heads up on the Planet Earth Box Set deal at B&ME on Bardstown Road. I've been wanting to get it for a while now. This was my first visit to the store and I enjoyed looking around. They have a nice collection (I even saw the first season of "The Great American Hero!).

The Usual Suspects

The trickle of news out of Lexington throughout the day has been agonizing. Knowing the decision has been finally made (right or wrong) is at least some consolation and allows my brain to mellow out a little. But now, I feel the weekend will feel the same as we await the announcement of Kentucky's next coach. The media outlets have not helped with my headache. Reports of Gillispie staying and leaving were everywhere and the speculation by the media concerning who will be the next coach are no different.

I have heard from numerous news sources, CBS, ESPN, Florida news papers, Fox Sports and more, that Donovan was to be named head coach. Then the same outlets reported he was not interested. Some reported Travis Ford was the pick and others reported Kentucky has not asked for permission to speak with him. Calipari has said he is not leaving Memphis. Izzo, Pitino, and Dixon are still in the tournament. So they are untouchable at least through the weekend.

As I attempt to collect my thoughts about Kentucky's next move, I sincerely hope Barnhart and Todd have a plan in place and aren't looking at each other right now saying, "OK, now what?" Firing Gillispie without reasonable leads would be foolish. The several names being tossed around all have pros and cons attached to them. Here are my thoughts and feelings on a few of them (excuse me if I misspell their names, I don't feel like checking the spelling).

Billy Donovan: Like any coach, he has qualities I strongly dislike. But he has proved himself to be capable of putting together championship teams. I think he would be a good fit at Kentucky, but a little voice in my head tells me it may not be the best choice.

John Calipari: Great recruiter and very solid coach. I have a bad feeling, however, his style of players would not give Kentucky the type of teams I can root for. Plus, his background is a little sketchy and a little baggage can become a full dowry at a big program (see IU).

Tom Izzo: I think if given the choice, Izzo would be my pick. Sure, low scoring games would be the norm, but I'm used to it by now. I'd rather have a boring, but winning, basketball program over a fast paced losing squad. I like Izzo's personality and he has shown his loyalty by living in Michigan all these years. He is playing Kansas right now, but I'm not sure if he'd be willing to leave Michigan State. He may be there as long as Boeheim has been at Syracuse.

Travis Ford: No no no no no no no no no damn crap damn it to hell no. Nothing against Travis (although I know Kevin doesn't care for him), but I just don't see him working out in Lexington in the near future. Maybe 5-10 years down the road with some success, but not yet.

Mike Anderson: The Mizzou (RAH!) Tiger's current trailblazer (pun intended UAB fans) has his kitties rolling after thumping Memphis last night, all the while keeping my bracket exceptionally strong. Anderson has obviously shown he can coach. He is obviously not stupid. Say what you will about whether Tubby's treatment at Kentucky was fair or not, but he and Anderson are good friends and I don't know if Tubby would recommend he take the job.

Rick Pitino: Yeah right. I would welcome Pitino back with open arms, as I think most UK fans would. But Pitino is not leaving Louisville. Not yet. And not for UK.

Thad Matta: Good recruiter? Most likely. Good coach? Sure. But this just does not get me excited. I know it's hard to compete against football at Buckeye U, but he has done a hell of a job. But the prospect of this coaching move doesn't make me all giggly. Maybe I'm wrong.

No matter what decision is made, I'll do my best to support and cheer like I always have. I know if things go poorly, more changes will be made...and made...and made again until Kentucky once again contends for a championship. But it won't stop this weekend from being a tortuous test of patience.

Idiot News

While checking on the latest news concerning the fate of Billy Gillispie, I surfed on over to WAVE 3's website. A headline read that UK fans were strongly in favor of a coaching change. Just below this headline, the WAVE 3 poll had 59% of voters IN FAVOR OF GILLISPIE GETTING ANOTHER SEASON. 5% had no opinion. The last time I checked, 36% is not very overwhelming.

WHAS 11 News reported with a breaking news crawler that Gillispie was fired. Nice considering no other station has reported this and they only reported this based on a rumour so they could be the first to break the news. Now I hope Gillispie stays just to spite WHAS. These must be the same people who called 2000 election.

I Want To...

• Walk Augusta National barefooted
• Vacation in Ireland and Scotland and play a little golf
• Visit the Grand Canyon, Meteor Crater in Arizona and the African Rift Valley.
• Spend another night under a clear winter sky in the Rockies
• Tour the Museum of Natural History & Science in New York
• Go on a ghost hunting trip
• Spend a summer reading all the books I ever wanted to read
• See St Louis beat the Cubs at Wrigley Field
• Find a meteor
• Experience a big earthquake (but I know I should be careful what I wish for)

If I think of more, I'll add them later. I'll also be blogging about tomorrow's metel detecting trip across the river.

Tonga Volcano

Seismic activity off the island of Tonga in the South Pacific has produced a 7.9 earthquake and a tsunami warning. The activity is also linked to this under sea volcano that has been erupting for the past couple of days.