Like, Love and Don't Like

This week, I like the 2010 SEC Championship Game. Recently (last night), I watched my DVD copy of the 2010 SEC Championship Game, one of 4 special DVDs that I purchased to commemorate Auburn’s national championship season. This particular DVD is my favorite because that was my favorite game of that season. Auburn’s offense was relentless against South Carolina that day and, other than a poor opening drive and some breakdowns here and there, AU’s defense played well too. Watching this DVD brought back a lot of great feelings – feelings that I haven’t associated with Auburn football for the past two seasons. I don’t know if Auburn will play that well ever again but it was neat to travel back in time and make mental notes of things I couldn't have possibly known back then.

• There’s not a lot of sense in getting worked up with college football recruiting. Two star freshman running backs from this game (Michael Dyer and Marcus Lattimore) left their schools before graduating, under very different circumstances. I would argue that neither lived up to their hype. 
• Ellis Johnson (South Carolina’s defensive coordinator at the time and Auburn’s current DC) apparently worked wonders with the South Carolina defense that year. They led the conference in sacks and were the best against the opposing rush. One would think that he could do the same with Auburn’s talent. Still, his abysmal record as Southern Miss’s head coach last season keeps me from getting my hopes up too high.
• A lot of Auburn players from this game are no longer on the team, and it ain't because they graduated. Same goes for coaches. While watching the DVD, it was easy to notice that Trooper Taylor’s antics hadn't reached a level of annoyance yet and Chizik’s slow, back-and-forth pace on the sideline masked his ineptness. With Cam Newton running the show, third-and-long didn't scare the heck out of me because Gus Malzahn’s offense was unstoppable. Everyone was happy.

I’ve always said that every...single...last star lined up perfectly for Auburn that season. The favorable road schedule, Cam’s legendary season and some lucky breaks along the way all contributed to the magic – nothing could stop it. Let’s hope for a repeat of that season soon! 

This week, I love family walks. Despite a recent cool snap, the weather has been a little warmer, which goes well with the longer days. Julie and I have recently developed a nice routine of taking Graham for a stroll around the neighborhood after dinner each night. Graham loves, loves, loves riding in his car, a wonderful gift from my coworkers. We like it too because it seems to zap any leftover energy from Graham before he takes his bath and goes to sleep. I like these walks for other reasons too. Julie and I have great walk-n-talks and they give me a good reason to move around after eating as opposed to hitting the couch.

"Stop looking and start pushing."

The only bad part about these walks is the nightly fit Graham pitches when it’s time to come inside!

This week I don’t like email elitists. I created my Hotmail account in 1998 and had no security issues with it up until last year, when it (along with my bank account) was hacked after linking it to my iTunes account (coincidence??). In college I had an Excite account and a Yahoo! email address as well. Within the last year or so, I opened a Gmail account and, more recently, I created an Outlook account, which is what all Hotmail accounts have been converted to – at least in appearance. Through it all, I’ve gathered that email is email is email. There wasn't a lot of communication about this Outlook conversion and it left a lot of people confused. It really gave Gmail elitists (who don’t want you to know that they also use Hotmail) an opportunity to proclaim Gmail’s greatness, with no facts to back it up. The same people have been quick to blame Hotmail for spawning of SPAM and they make sarcastic comments about Hotmail’s longevity. What they overlook is Hotmail’s worldwide use – up until LAST NOVEMBER, Hotmail was the most-used free email provider on the planet.

To all the keyboard warriors out their bashing Hotmail: get over yourself and please realize that you’re making an argument about two providers of an EXACTLY IDENTICAL service. Email is email is email.

He is Risen Indeed!

Easter is always a very special day.  It is a beautiful reminder of the mercy, grace and sacrificial love of our Savior.

We stayed in town this year and enjoyed spending the day with Nick's parents and sister.  These were our attempts at family pictures...FYI 15 months olds are not the most cooperative when it comes to taking pictures.

Taking a little ride before opening his Easter basket.

The Easter bunny came!

Time to eat!

After a good nap the rain finally stopped and we went for an afternoon ride.  This kid LOVES to be outside.

After such a fun filled day the boy passed out!

This week we have been getting ready for a visit from these two precious girls!  They are stopping by for a quick visit on their way to the beach.  They live in St. Louis, and we definitely don't get to see them enough.

Like, Love and Don't Like

This week, I like Cheers. I’ve been expressing my appreciation for certain television shows a lot lately and Cheers is a unique example for two reasons. First, we’re coming up on the twentieth anniversary of the series finale (May 20th). Secondly, I never watched Cheers during its original run because it wasn’t a show I would have particularly enjoyed from the ages of 4 to 15. But I do remember Cheers for being an iconic, primetime show that NBC proudly showcased on Thursdays nights, well before the networks devolved into platforms for talent contests. You may not have watched many episodes either but I bet you recognize the theme song.

So I was browsing through the TV shows that Netflix offers for instant viewing and I came across Cheers. Learning that all 275 episodes are available online struck me as a disappointing result for this show that was once so hugely popular. I dunno – I imagine that, for TV shows, being made available for unlimited online viewing with no commercial interruptions is the equivalent of a sick horse being put out to pasture to spend his final days alone. It’s like the owners of Cheers (NBC or whoever) have finally thrown their hands up and said, “We can no longer make any money off of this show. It can’t hurt to give it to Netflix.”

Let me get back on topic. Cheers is a great show and although I’ve only seen the first few episodes of Season 1 from 1982, they touch on some topics that remain very relevant in today’s world. A parent’s awkward dealing with a child’s homosexuality, the Boston Red Sox / New York Yankee rivalry and more. Other neat observations: men’s and woman’s fashion has changed A LOT since 1982 and even though he had been in the NBA for 3 seasons by 1982, Larry Bird was already revered enough to have his poster on the wall of the pool room in the back of the bar.

One last quality that I enjoy about Cheers: each episode is only 30 minutes long. Episodes of my current and all-time favorite shows (The Walking Dead, Twin Peaks, Breaking Bad, LOST, etc.) are all an hour long. So the shorter episodes of Cheers seem like small-but-refreshing bursts of entertainment.

OH! One more thing! I don't go to bars but if there was a bar like "Cheers" nearby, I would definitely go to it.  Nice open floor, well-lit, lots of tables and all that brown wood and shiny brass!

This week, I love NES nostalgia. I was the last kid in my class to get a Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) but unlike the other kids, I had unlimited access to a huge library of games to play thanks to my parent’s video rental store. I don’t get to play video games very often these days but I recently came across a YouTube channel that brought the NES nostalgia flooding back. The NES Guide’s lone purpose is to provide gameplay footage of every NES game that was produced for North America. Most of the videos are about 10 minutes long and even though I haven’t played these games since Cheers was on the air (see what I did there?) watching these videos makes me vividly remember guiding Mario to his next mushroom, getting pummeled by Mike Tyson, breaking tackle after tackle with Tecmo Bo and so much more. All of this nostalgia has made me scout eBay for used NESs and even learn more about the virtual console offered for the Nintendo Wii that allows you to play these classic games online. I don’t know if Graham will want to try video games but I sure would like to have him start where it all began for me.

This week, I don’t like Duke’s situation for next season.  Let me first just say that, even though Duke advanced a lot further in the NCAA tourney than I thought they would, I was still crushed when they lost to Louisville in the Elite 8. My main issue was the way they lost. Duke didn't lose many games (six this season) but when they did lose, they lost BIG.  Looking forward to next season, I don't anticipate any leadership coming from the few "big men" that will be returning.  Lots of fans will be looking to Josh Hairston to be a leader but he's much better at providing comic relief in the locker room. That's Josh goofing off in the background at the 1:00 mark of this video.  Duke has one (1) player returning next year that is taller than 6'8", and that guy will be a sophomore.  Even if Duke snags a tall, high-profile recruit that plays center, he'll still be a freshman.  It will be an interesting season indeed.

Like, Love and Don't Like

This week, I like The Walking Dead. I’ve got to give credit to my good friend that doesn’t like to be mentioned by name for suggesting this show. At first, I was doubtful that I would enjoy this show because I am a grown man and this show is about zombies. But I gave it a shot and now I’m hooked. Let me tell you something, fans of LOST: this show is right up your alley. The Walking Dead writers do a great job of creating a suspenseful plot and dropping information here and there that makes you pay attention to every scene. And actually, each episode features very little zombie footage.

Allow me to say a few things before you think I've booked my tickets to Nerd City (where my friend resides). First, don’t watch this show with the kiddies as there can be salty language as well as lots of blood and gore. Secondly, the CGI special effects can be comical at times (but the zombie makeup is AWESOME). The first two seasons of The Walking Dead can be viewed instantly (or by disc) through Netflix. Sorry, AMC doesn't share their content through HULU Plus. I haven't been able to start Season 3 yet so please...no spoilers!

This week, I love sharing Graham with our family. Graham gets really tired of being with just Julie and me so it’s always a good thing when we can help him be around other family members. Aunt Sarah Harper lives in town and her visits are always a treat. In recent weeks, we've taken Graham to see his grandparents in Camden, welcomed his Aunt Ellen for a visit from Washington DC and took a trip to see his grandparents and uncle in Auburn – where he got to play with Chops!

Graham is almost 15 months old now and he’s starting to show some bashfulness when around new people. But give him a few minutes (or some food) and he’ll really warm up to you. It’s really great to see how happy he gets around new faces! Sometimes during these trips, it’s difficult to tell who’s happier to see each other – Graham or his grandparents!

This week, I don’t like drastic landscaping. You know how I feel about hedges that have grown out of control. If you are familiar with elaeagnus, you know that this type of hedge grows very quickly and is difficult to trim unless you have professional landscaping equipment. We have a single row of elaeagnus hedge between our neighbor’s front yard and our front yard. We also have four elaeagnus bushes clumped together near our back door. Our neighborhood landscapers have done the best they can to keep these things at a reasonable height – but they have to use ladders when pruning them. I guess they finally felt that a major trimming was needed. Check out these before and after photos:

I know that this had to be done but I really miss the privacy that the hedge in the front yard provided.