2012: The Year in Review

Another year has come and gone.  It's time for another end of year review post!  This was definitely an interesting year.  A lot has happened!

Without further ado...here we go!

January took me to the Middle East, but this time to Qatar instead of Bahrain.  I got there on a Monday night and spent 3 days working in Qatar on a project that we started a year earlier.  We didn't get to do any sightseeing, so I didn't get to explore any of the souqs or any of the local culture.  I left Qatar and did a 24 hour stopover in Amsterdam.  Amsterdam in the middle of January is COLD.  But I was able to see sights such as the Anne Frank House, Van Gogh Museum, Heineken Experience, and the Red Light District.  It was a lot of fun even in the cold.

February saw us changing day cares for Emily to one closer to home and a little smaller.  It made dropping her off and picking up easier for both Lauren and me.  We saw a lot of changes in the first two weeks. 

February also brought my return to Daytona for Speedweeks.  After taking a year off, I was excited to be going back, albeit a week later than in previous years.  I did my garage tour on Thursday, getting up close with a few personalities.  I enjoyed the qualifying races on Thursday, having a great view of some of the action.  Friday I spent the morning at Ponce Inlet, enjoying a beautiful Florida sunny day.  I went to the truck race Friday night, enjoying it very much.  Saturday my friend Bart drove down from Jacksonville to attend the Nationwide race.  It was his first Daytona experience, and I think he was enjoying himself.  We went to dinner Saturday night with one of my friends who was in town with her husband for the race.  We ended up eating at a restaurant in Ormond Beach, and discovered Richard Petty would be there soon.  I got lucky and got a picture with him before he had to run inside for a dinner.  That made my weekend for sure!

Then the fun began.  The rain Sunday delayed the race until Monday.  I had to check out of my hotel Monday, so we waited out the rain delay and went to the race Monday night.  The jet dryer fire combined with the late start made for a very late night, but a memorable race!!  I drove to Jacksonville with Bart, crashed at his place, and drove home on 2 hours sleep.  That was insanity.

March brought on my first hockey playoffs.  I was pretty nervous going in.  We had a good regular season but faced a tough road ahead.  We easily won our first game, then barely squeaked by in a shootout win to go to the finals.  Right after our shootout win, I was informed I would be going to Florida on an unexpected trip to fix a problem with a system we had down in Tampa.  I went to Tampa, spent 3 days there, and returned home.  We didn't fully understand why there was a problem, but it got resolved.  I took in a Lightning game while there, which was good.  I came home to start our hockey finals.  We won game 1 in a best of 3 series.  Before the 2nd game, we were scheduled to play in a tournament in Atlantic City.  We went up there and while we were outscored 26-4, we walked away with 3rd place in our division, which meant we won medals!  Insanity!  We came back home and lost game 2 of the finals in our home league, so we went to a tiebreaking game.  My team put up enough offense, and we won the league championship!  It was the team's first championship in about 8 years of trying.  It was awesome.  I had never been part of a championship winning team, even going back to my younger days, so it was a great experience.

Right after winning, Lauren, Emily and I boarded a plane bound for Buffalo.  We decided our big vacation for the year would be Niagara Falls and Toronto.  I had never been to either, so I was excited.

We saw both sides of Niagara Falls.  The Canadian side was much better, and I think Emily enjoyed her first experience out of the United States.  She thought the mist from the falls was fun to play in, and ran around a lot.  We took her to a Sabres game and met up with my friend Jen and her boyfriend.  We had a great time.  Emily was kinda bored and fell asleep before the game ended.  She was worn out from running around Niagara.  We headed to Toronto on my birthday, going to the Ontario Science Centre spending the day there.  Em had a lot of fun.  They had lots of areas just for kids, so she got to play with a lot of cool stuff.  We had a small dinner and dessert that night.   The next morning we went to the CN Tower and the Hockey Hall of Fame,where I got my picture with the Stanley Cup!  It was amazing to be that close to it.  Hopefully one day I will watch my Caps raise it!  We headed back to Buffalo, and made a stop at Duff's for some wings.  Definitely worth it!!!  The remainder of April was quiet, watching the NHL playoffs and spending time with Em and Lauren.

May was a pretty quiet month.  Playing hockey, watching the Caps get eliminated from the NHL playoffs, time with Em and Lauren, and that about sums it up. 

June rolled around and started with a trip to the Reston Zoo with Lauren and Emily.  Em had a great time looking at the animals.  She wasn't a big fan of the goats and sheep since they made loud sounds, but she liked the monkeys and the watsui that came to greet us on the tram ride.  She was worn out when we left - that means she had fun!  June also brought a return to Dover for NASCAR.  25 consecutive years of attending at least one race at Dover!  It also brought my first battle with a severe case of poison ivy.  What I thought was a downed branch turned out to be poison ivy.  Two weeks of agony and looking terrible.  I learned the hard way what poison ivy roots look like and discovered my back yard trees are full of it.  The end of June brought in a line of thunderstorms, and the word "derecho" entered into many vocabularies.  What a mess.  Luckily we were spared the worst of it at our house and never lost power, but several friends lost power for more than a week.  Insanity.

July took us to New York to our family cabin for a few days, then Lauren and I left Emily with my parents to go to Dorney Park near Allentown.  We had a great time riding roller coasters!!  It had been a couple of years since we really got to do so, and since we went during the week, it was almost a ghost town.  We had a great time.  Went back to NY for a few more days, then headed home.  Lauren and Emily went to Williamsburg the last week of July, leaving me home alone to fend for myself.  I ended up going to a product testing event for M-Edge which was a lot of fun.

August saw me head to Houston to help give a training class for work.  We were working at Johnson Space Center for NASA.  I was surprised how small it really was.  I had envisioned JSC to be a lot larger than it was, but there wasn't a whole lot there.  While not working I did take in a trip to the Kenai Peninsula, an Astros game, and a visit to the St. Arnold brewery.  All were great times.  Also did my first round of paintball with some guys from church at the end of August.  It was a lot of fun!  I do want to go again sometime.

We went to NY for Labor day, then I boarded a plane bound for Belgium.  I was headed to Brussels, then Mons, for work.  We spent 4 days in Belgium.  Since we got done with work slightly ahead of schedule, we were able to sneak in an afternoon trip to Brugge, and then a day trip to Paris.  Paris was very interesting.  We did a blitz trip to see the Notre Dame, then quick stops at the Arc de Triomphe and the Eiffel Tower.  I do want to go back and spend more time there.  I'll just have to take Lauren sometime.  :)  Came home and went back to the grind.  I did go back to Dover at the end of the month for the September race.  I went with 10 other people, some who had never been to a race before.  They all had a great time.  They all wanted to go back next year, so Dover gets more of my money.  :)

October was quiet since we had decided to drop our Caps season tickets.  Then again, the NHL locked out in September, so we didn't have any hockey to miss.  Watching the Orioles get as far as they did in the post season brought back memories of the Orioles of the mid 90s, when they were in the playoffs every year but never could close the deal.  But after 15 years of nothing, they were back.  It was too bad they ran into the Yankees and were eliminated.  It was amazing to see how much orange and black came back after their amazing run.  A lot of people are excited about the future.  Hopefully Emily will see a championship in Baltimore or DC sometime in her lifetime!  :D  Hurricane Sandy came through the DC area with little to no major damage to our area.  We were lucky that we were spared the worst.  Unfortunately for people in NJ/NY, they got it bad.  It was really sad to see the damage and destruction left by Sandy.  I had a few friends in the area that were luckily unaffected other than power outages.  We celebrated Lauren's 30th birthday quietly, with a bigger party to come in November.  Emily had fun trick-or-treating.  I think she was starting to get the hang of it when we quit.  Next year, look out neighborhood!

November saw Lauren's 30th birthday bash.  She had a great time with friends and some family.  We had a night out in Annapolis.  The rest of November was pretty quiet, except Emily doing more and more things to remind me that she's a growing girl.  She started talking more and more, and was excited when we put up the Christmas lights and tree.  She definitely knows what they mean now!  November ended with some sad news, as a co-worker was killed in an auto accident a few days before Thanksgiving.  She was one of those people that always made you smile and always stopped to say hello.  It was a huge blow to the office.  She will definitely be missed.

December saw Lauren and I taking a weekend trip to Cleveland.  Her 30th birthday present was a trip to see the Redskins play in Cleveland.  We flew in Saturday morning and hit the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame.  It was good, but I just felt there was something missing from it.  I personally thought the Country Music HOF was better.  We hit up the Great Lakes Brewing Co restaurant and brewery tour.  Both were excellent.  I highly recommend picking up a Christmas Ale if you can find it!  Then the game.  The stadium was probably 25-30% Redskins fans.  The Browns fans weren't too bad, but I've heard can be awful when the Steelers are in town.  Of course seeing the Skins win was great for Lauren.  We then went to Skyline Chili and drove around Cleveland looking at Christmas lights.

Then the fun began.  We were supposed to fly home Monday.  Due to heavy fog in Baltimore, our flight was cancelled.  Southwest basically told us because it was "act of God" they were offering no hotel or meal money, and we were on our own for the night.  The best they could do was a 6 AM flight the next day.  It was 2:30 in the afternoon.  Rather than sit around all night, we rented a car and drove home.  6 1/2 hours later, we got home.  It was a long drive, but not bad. 

Christmas came and went, with Emily enjoying her gifts and spending time with family.  Then we celebrated Emily's 2nd birthday 3 days later.  She had a great day, spending time with family and getting to play at the park.  She continues to amaze me with everything that she does.

A lot happened this year, but it doesn't sound like it from reading what I just wrote.  It's hard to make a year sound exciting in just this one post.  I continue to enjoy watching my daughter grow up, play ice hockey, and spend time with my wife.  It's a great life. 

I look forward to 2013 with a few unknowns, but also a lot of optimism.  I can't wait to watch Emily grow for another year, play some more hockey, and do a little traveling.  Lauren and I are planning a trip to Vancouver this summer.  I've never been, so it will be a lot of fun. 

All the best for the new year!

Christmas

I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas! 

For those of you that don't celebrate Christmas, enjoy whatever you decide to do tomorrow!

Adventures in Cleveland

Last weekend I treated my wife to a weekend in Cleveland, the main attraction being the Redskins-Browns game.  Neither of us had ever been to Cleveland, so we were looking forward to a great weekend.

We flew into Cleveland Saturday morning and headed straight for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  We spent about 3 hours there, going through most of the exhibits.  I was kinda disappointed myself.  I was expecting a little more, but there just seemed to be something missing.  From there we went to the Great Lakes Brewing Co restaurant.  The food and beer were excellent!  We split a beer sampler, then I had the pretzel chicken and my wife had the mac and cheese.  Our waiter got us tickets for a brewery tour.  We went to that.  It was ok.  I've been on tours before so I knew what to expect. 

After the brewery tour we went to the Lake Erie Monsters-Chicago Wolves game.  I hadn't been to a pro hockey game in 8 months, so I was excited to see one.  What a letdown.  Neither team played particularly well.  I didn't recognize more than 2 names on either roster.  We left after the 2nd period and apparently didn't miss anything.

Sunday we got up and headed to Browns stadium.  We drove the short 15 minutes from the hotel to downtown.  After driving around for about 10 minutes, we settled for underground parking near a casino.  We headed for the stadium where we met up with some Redskins fans.  We chatted until the gates opened, then found our seats.  The game was pretty awesome.  We had a good time.  The Browns fans didn't give us too much trouble.  Then again, when your team isnt playing well, there's not much to complain about. 

After the game we went to Skyline Chili and Menchies, then drove around for about an hour looking at Christmas lights.  That was a lot of fun.  We saw some interesting displays to say the least!

We got to the airport Monday morning for our flight.  We got through security and sat waiting for the flight.  We heard there was fog in Baltimore that was pretty dense.  Reports had visibility under 1/4 mile, which isn't good.  Around 11:00 we found our scheduled departure of 11:30 wasn't going to happen.  They kept delaying the flight, but the 3:45 from Cleveland to Baltimore was cancelled.  I had a bad feeling we were going to get stuck in Cleveland for the night.  We got to talking to other passengers, most were either going home for the holidays or to see family, and they all had the same feeling.

Finally around 2:30, our flight was cancelled.  We raced to the ticket counter, found out Southwest was doing nothing except rebooking on a flight at 6:10 the following morning.  I decided it was cheaper for us to drive home than to sit for a night in Cleveland.  We found two other passengers that were interested in road tripping, so we rented a car and drove home with two random strangers.  We left the Cleveland airport around 3:00, stopped once in Breezewood, PA for gas and food, and rolled into Baltimore around 9:30 Monday night.  We made two new friends in the process, and got home safely at least 10 hours before Southwest would have. 

All in all, we had a fun trip.  Even with the unexpected drive home, I had a lot of fun, made a lot of memories, and enjoyed myself.  I don't know if I would go back to Cleveland if there wasn't a sporting event attached to it, but we definitely had fun. 

Highs and lows

What a week it's been.

Last Sunday night was a typical Sunday night.  I went to play hockey, scored my first goal of the season, and we won a thrilling game.  I was pretty excited, happy, and went home feeling pretty good.  I was facing a busy week at work and that was going to help me start it off right.

Then Monday morning hit.

I was sitting at my desk catching up on some e-mails when one of the managers walked up.  Normally when he does it's something funny or he's got a problem.  Instead he came with some news:  a co-worker at another office had died in a car accident Sunday night.  I was shocked and somewhat devastated. Tori was one of those people that would walk into a room of 100 people and come out with 100 friends.  She just had that kind of personality.  She was always very helpful, smiling, and just a great person to be around.  Every time I saw her she would at least stop and say hello and see how I was doing.  It was quite a shock to find out that I'd never get that opportunity again.  Then I found out that her accident happened about a mile from my house.  That made it even worse.  Tori was only 27 years old.  She had a bright future ahead of her.  She will be greatly missed.

That set the tone for the remainder of the week.

Tuesday through Thursday I was in a class in addition to my normal duties.  Class was interesting, but it was hard to concentrate.  Then came news that another co-worker had been involved in a serious car accident  and was in intensive care.  Now within a week we've had two co-workers involved in two serious car accidents, one fatal and one very serious. 

By the time Thursday afternoon rolled around, I was looking for a rock to climb under and hide.  But that wasn't going to happen.  Thursday was busy day at work - we were doing some maintenance after hours.  It would require some attention.  I left work to get my daughter from day care, take her home, wait for my wife to get home, then go back to work.

I made it to Friday without too many issues.  Luckily the maintenance went better than expected and we didn't have a lot of issues. 

Saturday I went to Tori's viewing, then we had family portraits.  The portrait gallery was an hour behind schedule.  We were lucky that our daughter didn't have a meltdown during the entire process.  We survived long enough to get some really good pictures. 

Sunday was hockey game #2 for the week. For whatever reason I didn't play well.  My head just wasn't in the game.  I missed several good opportunities and didn't have a lot of energy.  We still won the game, but it just didn't feel as good.  I felt that it was my worst game of the season.  It probably wasn't,  but when you don't play that great after a week of lows, it's hard to see the highs.

I'm ready for some more highs.  I'm done with lows for a while.

NASCAR Crowns a New Champion

Today was the 36th and final Sprint Cup race of 2012 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.  Two drivers went into the weekend with a shot at the Championship.

Jimmie Johnson started the day trailing Brad Keselowski by 20 points.  Brad had to finish 15th or better and would win the Championship, no matter what Johnson did.

There's an old saying "It's not over until the checkered flag falls."  Anything can happen in NASCAR.  There are too many variables and too many things can go right or wrong.

Keselowski was middle of the pack most of the day.  He was running 12th-18th most of the race.  Johnson was all over the map.  He led 25 laps and at one point was ahead of Keselowski by 7 points. 


Then everything unfolded in the worst of ways.

Johnson went to the pits for a routine pit stop.  While there, the NASCAR official assigned to his pit box noticed that a lug nut was loose.  Johnson would have to make a second pit stop to correct the issue.  That dropped him down one lap but still in contention.

A handful of laps later things went downhill for Johnson. 

He started to report of smoke in the car.  Then suddenly he slowed.  He headed to pit road and the crew discovered they had a drive shaft/gear issue.  No way were they going to fix that in the pits.  Johnson headed to the garage and never returned.

Keselowski finished 15th to clinch his first Sprint Cup championship.

Brad's only 28, in the prime of his racing career, and could be a force to be reckoned with for many years to come.  He also gave car owner Roger Penske his first Sprint Cup after 20 seasons in NASCAR.  Keselowski becomes just the sixth full-time active Cup Champion (the others are Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Matt Kenseth, Kurt Busch, and Jimmie Johnson).

The future of NASCAR looks bright.  I believe Brad will be a great representative of the sport for NASCAR, Sprint, and his sponsor, Miller Lite.

It's Time for NASCAR to Send a Message

Yesterday we saw how tempers can get the best of people.

Jeff Gordon and Clint Bowyer were battling for position late in the Advocare 500 at Phoenix International Raceway when the two made contact.  The result was a cut left rear tire on Gordon's car.

What happened next was straight out of a video game, or your Saturday night dirt track.

Gordon waited for Bowyer and intentionally wrecked him, collecting Joey Logano and Aric Almirola in the process.  Two guys that had absolutely nothing to do with what happened between Gordon and Bowyer.  After the accident, Gordon got out of his car and Bowyer's pit crew went after Gordon.  A large melee broke out.  NASCAR officials and sheriff's deputies got the crews separated.  Bowyer exited the remains of his race car, then sprinted through the garage towards Gordon's hauler, attempting to confront him.  He was stopped by several NASCAR officials and uniformed sheriff's deputies before he could reach Gordon. 

As usual, both drivers were summoned to the NASCAR trailer.

So where do we go now?

It was pretty obvious Gordon intentionally wrecked Bowyer in retaliation for the contact a few laps earlier.  Then the ensuing fight.

My suggestion:  Suspend both Gordon and Bowyer next week at Homestead.  Gordon for retaliation with his race car and Bowyer for his pit crew basically attacking Gordon.

NASCAR would look largely unpopular for this move, but it would set a precedence.  The last time an incident like this occurred, Kurt Busch was "parked" for a race.  Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick have seen similar fates as well.

It would send a rather harsh message to two drivers in the Chase.  Both have already been eliminated from Championship contention, so it wouldn't matter if they missed the weekend.  The teams would have to answer to their sponsors for their actions.  And it would send a clear message to others:  Actions like this will not be tolerated.

NASCAR has rarely put the brakes on drivers for their on-track incidents, but this was one that knocked Bowyer out of Championship contention.  While he was a long shot, he now has zero chance.  The initial contact between Bowyer and Gordon looked to me like a racing incident - two guys going for the same space late in the race.

Yesterday was definitely "have at it, boys".  They took it literally.

Hurricane Sandy

As I write this, Hurricane Sandy is headed our way.

Most of the area is shut down tomorrow.  County, state, and federal governments.  Schools.  A few businesses. 

I've already put away all my light objects from outside.  The rest have been secured and now we wait. 

So far just some light rain and a slight breeze.  Nothing major.  That will change over the next 12-24 hours. 

Stay safe everyone!

5k

I finally can cross running in a prepared race off my list of life's accomplishments.

I ran in my first 5k this morning.  I wasn't sure what to expect.  For those that know me well, I'm not much of a runner or really an athlete.  Sure, I play ice hockey and have played sports like soccer, basketball, and baseball.  None of those were at any sort of elite level. 

After a pretty good rain last night, I expected the racing surface to be wet and sloppy.  It was a trail run, not on a track or all pavement.

I decided to be timed, only for my own benefit.  There was really no chance I was going to win my age category, but I wanted to see how I did without having to think about it.  Due to some unexpected circumstances, I arrived at the starting line 10 minutes prior to start.  I had no time to stretch, warm up, or anything. 

The race started promptly at 9:05 AM. I began around mid pack, letting the sure runners take the lead and go forward.  The trail was still fairly wet from the rain, so we had to be careful in spots.  I had decided I was going to be part of the "run/walk team" as I am in no shape to run a complete 5k. 

Around the 3k mark, my legs started to get really heavy.  I had played ice hockey the previous two nights.  Not a very good combination.  I had to slow down and do my best to ignore the now growing pain in my calves and my left foot. 

At the 4k mark, it was pretty obvious I was running on fumes.  My body was just not having it.  I could see several runners way ahead of me, and I was basically by myself, with the next person about 30-45 seconds behind me.  But I could start to see the home stretch, so I forced myself to keep going.  The last 200-300 yards were on pavement.  As soon as I hit pavement, I started to pick up my pace, and had a friend who had already finished running along me as I rounded the last turn and started to sprint as fast as I could.

I hit the finish line with a huge sigh of relief.  I realized my electronic timer was not on my foot, so there wasn't really a way to score me electronically.  Luckily the race timer heard that I didn't have it on, so he recorded my time manually.

My best time at the gym was around 43 minutes.  I was expecting a 46-48 minute finish due to the amount of walking I had been doing.  To my surprise, as I crossed the line, I turned around and looked at the clock.  It read 40 minutes, 30 seconds.  I couldn't believe it.  I had finished the 5k in 40 minutes, 27 seconds according to my own observation.  The official time I was given was 40:36.  Either way, I was very surprised and happy with my time.

I placed 7th out of 8th in my age group, but I didn't really care.  My goal was to finish the race, which I did.  I finished 44th overall.

I don't have the running bug just yet, but that was a lot of fun.  I'm glad I ran. It was for a good cause, and I got good exercise out of it.  The pain, the exhaustion, are only temporary.  The feeling I got when I crossed that finish line was worth it.

Dale Jr

I'll be the first to admit I am not a Dale Jr supporter.  If he decided tomorrow to retire I wouldn't really miss him.

That doesn't mean I'm happy about him sitting out two races for a concussion.

I haven't liked Dale Jr since day one.  I always thought of him as a daddy's boy, only getting top rides and sponsors for his name.  Yes, he worked his way up through the ranks and has succeeded at almost every level.  But there's something about him that just rubbed me the wrong way.

There are several drivers out on the circuit of which I am not a fan.  Gordon, Johnson, Busch, Earnhardt, among others.  I'd be rather happy to see them finish at the back of the field every week, whether it be by accident or mechanical failure.  That doesn't mean I want to see anybody get hurt.  Wishing an injury upon any athlete or celebrity is just plain wrong.

Concussions are the hot topic in sports today.  The NHL and NFL have strict guidelines regarding concussions.  Players that are suspected to have one are pulled from the game and cannot resume playing until cleared by a doctor.  Several careers have been cut short by frequent or severe ones.  Unfortunately it doesn't just affect you on the field, rink, etc.  It affects your daily life.  Some athletes talk about difficulty getting out of bed, constant headaches, not being able to spend time with their children, etc.  Now concussions are rumored to be linked to several suicides that have occurred over the last couple of years.

We all know NASCAR is a dangerous sport.  The drivers know it, and most of the fans know it.  We never expect our favourite driver to get hurt.  Nobody thought Dale Earnhardt lost his life in his crash when it happened.  Same with Neil Bonnett, Adam Petty, Kenny Irwin, and others.  But at the speeds they race and the close competition, anything can happen in an instant.

Dale is expected to sit out the next two races.  His fans, his sponsors, and the rest of the NASCAR family want him to make a quick and full recovery. 

Add me to the list of those hoping he makes a full recovery and is back on the track soon.

NHL Cancels Rest of Preseaon

Not to be unexpected, the NHL cancelled all preseason games due to the lockout today.  With no talks going on, starting a season on time is in jeopardy.

For whatever reason, the league and the players' association have not met in over a week.  Their next scheduled meeting is not until Friday.  The chances of getting anything done tomorrow are slim to none, which means an on-time start of the 2012-13 season is in jeopardy.

The players have scattered - most are in Europe or Russia playing.  Arenas sit cold and empty.  Staff don't earn paychecks.  Concessions are not being sold.  With a struggling economy, this is not helping fix that issue.

Players and owners have both forgotten who gets hurt in this work stoppage.  I guess the silver lining is I'm not paying for season tickets anymore.  Right now neither side really deserves my money.

NHL Locks Out Again!

For the 2nd time in 8 years, the NHL is in a lockout.  The league officially locked the players out last night because the NHL and the NHLPA couldn't come to an agreement on a new labor contract.

And for the 2nd time in 8 years, I find myself seriously pissed off at both the NHL and the NHLPA.  They think the fans are going to come back after another round of their bullshit?  I'm tired of the two not being able to settle their differences and come up with a solution, when they've had a long time to work this deal out.

So if you're a hockey fan, your options are:

• AHL
• ECHL
• college hockey
• watching your kids play
• beer leagues

I play hockey in a beer league.  I PAY for the privilege to play on my team.  There are no sponsors, no contracts, etc.  We play because we love the game.  The NHL has forgotten where their loyalty is.  It should be with the FANS and those that love the game.

The players will simply go play in Europe and Russia and be welcomed with open arms.  It will hurt some of the lower tier players that get displaced as a result.   Who gets hurt in the end?  The fans.  Try explaining to your 5 year old why Alex Ovechkin isn't on the ice for the Washington Capitals.  Explain to millions of kids in Canada why the Leafs, Canadiens, and Canucks are not playing.  It's a no-win situation.

I am thoroughly disappointed in both sides. 

Back to Europe!

After a Labor Day in New York with friends, I boarded a plane bound for Atlanta, then for Belgium.  I was going to do some work about an hour south of Brussels.

I arrived Wednesday morning early.  My colleague was expected in about an hour after me.  I cleared customs and waited for him to arrive.  Once we got in and settled, we had a quiet, relaxing day.

We went to work Thursday and finished almost everything we had planned.  There were a few loose ends that would have to be tied up, but we pretty much finished our major work Thursday.

Friday we finished work around noon.  I was scheduled to go home Sunday.  We headed to Brugge, about 90 minutes from our location.  We spent the afternoon walking through Brugge, enjoying the sights.  We didn't make it to the coast or to Flander's Field. 

Saturday we had a complete day to do whatever we wanted.  So we headed to Paris, which was about 3 hours by car.  We arrived at de Gaulle airport around 10, hopped on a train, and was downtown by 11.  We started at the Notre Dame, then walked up the Champs-Elysses to the Arc de Triomphe.  Next stop was the Eiffel Tower.  We decided to not go to the top due to time.  After lunch we walked back to the Notre Dame to get back on our train to de Gaulle and head home.

We had a great trip.  Work was a success and we had a chance to spend a little time sightseeing.  I'll definitely go back at some point to see Paris again.

Houston

A few weeks ago I went to Houston for work.  I'd only been to Houston once for a friend's wedding and didn't have a lot of time to explore, so  I was excited to go back.  Work was teaching a class on Johnson Space Center.  I was excited about going, but later found it wasn't that big or exciting.

I arrived Sunday afternoon and was picked up by a co-worker who was already there.  Met up with my friend Craig and we went out to lunch.  Then spent the rest of the day preparing.

Work consumed Monday and Tuesday.  Tuesday night we headed down to the Kemah boardwalk for dinner and riding their roller coaster. 

Wednesday and Thursday were pretty dull, just going to work and hitting the gym and then dinner.

Friday we finished work around noon.  After a nice workout, we headed to the Saint Arnold brewery in Houston for their happy hour.  Good beer and times.  Then dropped my co-worker off at the airport and headed to the Astros game at Minute Maid park.  Decent game, but I missed the fireworks since the game ran late and I needed to get back to my hotel to pack for my flight the next morning.

Good week, good times.

Lightning Kills NASCAR Fan, Injures Others

Yesterday a group of fans were struck by lightning in a parking lot outside Pocono Raceway.  One was killed and several others injured. 

Having been to Pocono a few years back, I remember that the parking lots were vast, flat, open areas.  There  were few trees and few places for lightning to strike safely.  Since Pocono does not have lights, there were no light poles to attract lightning.  The highest point in the area is probably the press box at the track.  Since Pocono is a very large facility, the parking lots can be quite some distance away from the grandstands.  There are also not very many structures to stand under or in.  The only real place to stand for shelter are the bathrooms, but they are not very big and would not be able to hold 80,000+ fans that had gathered to watch the race.

The report also said that the track sent updates out via Facebook and Twitter.  Having been to several races up and down the east coast, I've rarely found ample bandwidth to download or upload any information from my phone.  In fact, most of the time I don't even bother to look at my phone during a race.  Data speeds are so bad and my battery will suffer during said times.

What can be done to help prevent such tragedies?

First thought of course is to evacuate the stands sooner if bad weather is impending.  Does that solve the problem?  No.  Not all fans will heed warnings and clearing out thousands of race fans through limited entrances is not practical.  There are not enough buildings at most tracks for all fans to get inside and be protected.  Lightning rods and towers might help.

Incidents like this take away from the fun of the sport.  Unfortunately it happened at a NASCAR race, but it could conceivably happen at an NFL, MLB, NHL, or NBA game.  They're not as probable, as most stadiums tend to be built in urban areas, whereas NASCAR tracks tend to be in more rural areas due to noise and parking issues.

AJ Allmendinger

Yesterday AJ Allmendinger was suspended indefinitely by NASCAR for failing a second drug test.  The reports I've read say he tested positive for a "stimulant" banned by NASCAR.  AJ denies the claims, saying that he took a supplement or a combination of supplements that must have created the positive test.  NASCAR refuses to name the substance found in the positive test.  Allmendinger claims his innocence. 

This sounds rather familiar to the Jeremy Mayfield case.  Mayfield was suspended for methamphetamine in 2009.  His career basically ended there as he never was reinstated by NASCAR since he did not follow the required steps for reinstatement.  Mayfield has since had run-ins with the law.

AJ has had his own run-ins with the law.  He was arrested in 2010 for DUI.  He served his community service and moved forward.  Other drivers have made similar mistakes (Kyle Busch, Dave Blaney, Kurt Busch, among others) and most has been either forgotten or forgiven.

 Several drivers and crew members have been tested and banned for substance abuse.  Many have passed through NASCAR's "Road To Recovery" and have been reinstated.

In the end, nobody wins. NASCAR will be scrutinized for their testing policy and AJ will probably have a black cloud over his head for the remainder of his driving career.  In the end however, if you want to participate in the sport, you need to comply with the rules.  Many drivers have nutritionists, good doctors, etc that should know the warning signs and the dangers of taking supplements.  I am by no means an expert in any of those fields, but if a driver, crew member, official, or anybody related to the sport wants to take a supplement, I would think they would have enough sense to check with a professional before taking such substance.

AJ's best best at this point is probably to go through the "Road To Recovery" program and get back in a race car.

Scary moment last night

While playing hockey last night we had an incident on ice.  I was on the bench at the time and about 100 feet away, so I didn't see it as clear as others.  It was about halfway through the 2nd period.  The game was tied 2-2 and was really close.  Both teams were playing hard but it was a good game so far. 

One of the opposing players (we'll call him Mr. S) collided with one of my teammates (Mr W).  It was an obvious attempt at a check as Mr S went in with a full head of steam and ran into Mr W.  Immediately Mr S went down and play stopped.  Mr S laid motionless while teammates gathered around.  First thing we heard was "He's out!  Go call an ambulance, NOW!"  At that point we knew it wasn't good.

Luckily Mr. S regained consciousness about a minute later.  He had a decent gash on his face from his lip to his cheek.  The thought is when he hit Mr W, it was a head to shoulder (later confirmed by Mr W) and that Mr S's visor and helmet was pressed against his face.

While 4-5 players attended to Mr. S, the opposing team gathered their gear and left the ice.   My team stayed on the bench, watching and waiting.  We'd been there a few months ago when one of our guys broke his leg during a game.  We knew Mr. S was done for the evening, but we anticipated that the game would continue after he was stabilized and off to the hospital.  Word began to spread that the opposing team had forfeited the game.  We waited, not really sure what to do.

Paramedics arrived and went to work on Mr. S.  He was alert and talking to the paramedics, which we were glad to see.  They immobilized him as a precaution and he was taken off the ice.  There was a small pool of blood where Mr S had fallen.  The good thing was he was talking to the EMTs and was moving.  We're grateful for that.

We left the ice, not really sure what to think.  The mood in our locker room was not as cheerful as it normally is after a game.  As much as we love hockey, you never want to see anybody get hurt. 

I haven't heard how Mr. S is doing this morning, but one would expect him to be ok.  Hopefully he'll be ready to play in a few days, but the expectation from the team was 3-4 weeks at the earliest.

Storms and aftermath

A few days late, but last Friday night (no Katy Perry references) we had a derecho go through the area.  Within 30 minutes parts of Maryland turned into scenes from a hurricane that lasts hours.  Hundreds of thousands were without power.  We were some of the lucky few that were spared a power outage.  However with temperatures in the upper 90s, those without air conditioning were quickly feeling the heat.

I drove around Saturday morning and saw tons of downed trees, branches, and power lines.  Several roads had only one lane open.  Many businesses were without power.  Gas shortages began as people stocked their generators or filled their cars to try and stay cool.

As of this writing, there are approximately 100,000 customers in the Baltimore metro area alone without power.  BGE, our local utility company, claims to have restored power to almost 600,000 of their 1.2 million customers.  So basically half their customers lost power at some point during the last 5 days.  Crews have come from as far as Texas to help restore power.

What could be done to improve the US power grid?  It's pretty obvious that our current system is not effective enough.  A lot of places have overhead power and other utility lines.  The second a tree branch falls on the wires, there goes your power.  I read the other day that in Germany, the average home loses power a total of 21 minutes a year.  That's pretty reliable!  Now, why can't the US catch up with the rest of the world?

The other option is for local utility companies to have "reserve" units.  The military has them.  There are volunteer fire fighters and EMTs.  Why can't we have volunteer power restoration crews?  Or reserve power restoration crews?  I realize that a lot of the power problems can't be fixed until trees have been removed from the lines.  But calling in crews from far far away isn't really cost effective.  By the time the crews get here, they are tired, they have to go check in somewhere to get assignments, and are probably getting paid double or triple time to be here.

If a 30 minute storm can cause this much damage, imagine what will happen if we get a hurricane or other major disaster.

Poison Ivy

Two weeks ago I noticed that something had fallen in my back yard.  It looked like a branch and was sitting on my fence.  I decided two weeks ago to cut it down as it was half over the fence, half not.

Turned out to be one of the biggest mistakes I could've made.

I didn't pay a lot of attention to it except that it appeared to be a tree/branch with a lot of branches.  I noticed occasionally some "moss" on the trunk but nothing that gave me any clues.  I continued to cut it up for about 2 hours.  I noticed a few leaves on some of the "branches" but didn't pay a lot of attention to the shape.

Yeah, good job dumbass.

A few days later I started to notice a few red bumps on my right arm.  I dismissed them but noticed that they were somewhat itchy.  This went on for a few days and began to spread.  Finally I decided to do some searching on google.  That's when I discovered the "tree" was really a poison ivy aerial root that had fallen over.

Crap.

For the last week or so, I've been going between Benadryl, cortizone, Tecnu, and other products.  So far they've been ok, but the rashes have spread and aren't really slowing down.  My wife thinks I should see a doctor since I had that much exposure.  I'm holding out, but I may end up losing this war.

The worst part is there are still remenents of the vine that fell down and there are still active leaves on it.  I need to get some herbicide on them and get rid of that effing root.  

Yeah, poison ivy sucks.

Kurt Busch's suspension

I will start this post by saying I have never met Kurt Busch so I can only go by what I have seen and heard from others and from personal observation.


Kurt Busch was suspended by NASCAR for "abuse of the media".  While it was only verbal abuse, he has been warned repeatedly for such actions and is a repeat offender. 

The question asked to Busch was more about his probation from NASCAR than the on-track action or what the discussion between Busch and Justin Allgaier was about.  Who really cares what they were talking about?  It was obvious to most fans that they were talking about an on track incident.  It wasn't heated, it didn't appear to be anything other than two drivers talking.  Could it have gone to blows - absolutely!

The media isn't completely innocent here.  I realize that the reporter is just trying to create a story.  However Busch completely handed the situation incorrectly.  He could have simply said "I'm not going to discuss that" and moved on.

I've been an advocate of giving drivers a few minutes after a race or incident to cool off.  Once a driver has had a chance to watch a replay or be alone with their thoughts their mood may change.  Personally if I was involved in an accident or had a mechanical issue the last thing I would want to see is a reporter trying to interview me.  I doubt that will ever happen.  But NASCAR is a unique sport where you can talk to drivers during a race, some competitors are not in the race/game while it's still going on, etc.  NASCAR doesn't have a policy like other sports where players can't talk to the media during the game.  How would that change if drivers could not be interviewed during a race?  What about crew chiefs?

Back to Busch - it's unfortunate that he was suspended.  I believe he has talent - you have to have some to make it to that level.  The problem is he can't seem to put his attitude and his pride away.  He has essentially been fired by two elite race teams in the last 7 years.  There are plenty of drivers that can only dream of having the same opportunities that Busch has had.  Yet he continues to squander them away. 

I've also heard he verbally abuses his pit crew.  I've actually witnessed that first hand - in 2006 at Richmond Busch got a speeding penalty on pit road and had to do a pass through.  On the subsequent pass through he got another speeding penalty.  When his crew chief tried to explain the ruling, Busch went crazy and chewed out his pit crew.  I doubt if I had been his crew chief I would've stayed on board with him for long.  You can only take so much abuse before you finally snap.

Now Busch may be out of a ride again - and this time I'm not sure he'll be welcomed with open arms to another team.  We may be talking soon about the 2004 Champion that couldn't find a ride since he couldn't keep his ego and attitude in check.

New Year, Same Shit

The New York Rangers proved tonight they wanted it more than the Washington Capitals.

NY beat the Capitals 2-1 to win game 7 and advance to the Eastern Conference finals

For the 4th year in a row, the Capitals failed to make it out of the 2nd round.  The Caps never were in the game.  They never held a lead.  That's called not getting it done. 

Another year thinking what might have been.  Another year to wonder why OV and company can't get their shit together.  Another year to have an office full of co-workers asking me why they didn't win.

Being a Caps fan is hard work.

Two minutes

In a span of two minutes (well, more like 25 actual minutes) the world came crashing down for the Washington Capitals.

Joel Ward took a double minor high sticking penalty with 20 seconds remaining in regulation with the Caps clinging to a one goal lead.  On the ensuing faceoff, the Rangers controlled the puck, and a flurry in front of the Caps' net resulted in Brad Richards sneaking one in past Braden Holtby and John Carlson, off the far post and into the net with only 6.6 seconds remaining.

In perfect Capitals fashion, Marc Staal scored 1:35 into overtime while still on the power play from the 2nd of the double minor penalties.  Staal's shot after a faceoff win by John Mitchell went past a screened Braden Holtby.  Holtby had zero chance to stop the puck - there was no way he could see it.  It was obvious as Holtby never reacted until the puck was in the net.  Not much you can do as a goalie at that point.  You can't stop what you can't see.

In a matter of two minutes, the Caps went from going back to Washington leading the series 3-2 to going back to Washington facing elimination.

A few have said that the Ward penalty shouldn't have been called.  To me, it was a must call.  Any time a player high sticks another player, boards another player, or illegally hits the head, it has to be called.  I know sometimes hooks, trips, and holds aren't called at critical points of the game, even though I think they should - consistency is key! 

Wednesday night should be interesting.  We will see how the Caps respond.  They have been with their backs against the wall before, and they have found ways to come back and win.  Time will tell.

NHL Playoffs

Round two of the NHL playoffs is underway.  I watched most of the 3rd period and OT of game 1 in the Phoenix-Nashville series.  I am surprised.  Phoenix played really well and fought hard to win in overtime.

I am looking forward to the Washington-New York series.  Mostly because I am a Caps fan, but also it looks like it will be a good series.  The Philly-NJ series will also be really good. 

I love playoff hockey.  It's an exciting time and you're always on the edge of your seat, especially in overtime.

Bring on the weekend series!

Summer hockey

Last night started our Summer hockey season.  It was time to start defending our championship.  When we got there I knew it was going to be an uphill battle.  Only 8 skaters and our goalie showed up.  Ouch.  So it was going to be a long game.

The first period we started off slow.  I don't know if it was jitters or just being a little rusty.  We were down 2-0 after one period. 

In the 2nd, we turned up the heat.  I battled in front of the net and ended up helping on our first goal as a screen.  Our 2nd goal was kinda entertaining.  I completely whiffed on a shot about 10 feet from the net, but our center was right behind me.  He's a much better shooter than I am, and he buried a shot to tie the game at 2-2.  The fatigue was starting to show, though.

In the 3rd, we jumped out to a 3-2 lead.  Our opponent, Pucks Gone Wild, tied the game at 3 with about 5 minutes remaining.  We pulled ahead 4-3 with about 3 minutes remaining.  PGW kept pressing though, and tied the game with about 40 seconds remaining in regulation. 

Overtime started as a 4 on 4 with running clock.  About a minute into OT, we were penalized and went short handed.  PGW scored on the ensuing PP to win 5-4. 

Great game even though we only had 3 subs all game.  We played hard and I think if we'd had 1-2 more guys we would've probably pulled out a win.    But it was good to get back on the ice and play. 

Toronto, Niagara Falls, playoff hockey

Been a while since I posted.  Have some catching up to do.

Went to Niagara Falls and Toronto the first week of April.  Great trip.

April 2 we arrived in Buffalo and headed to the Theodore Roosevelt Inauguration NHS.  Great time.  The staff were really friendly and there were lots of things to see.  They really made you feel like you were back in the early 1900s.  Nicely done.  We then headed to Niagara to check into our hotel and went to the American side of the falls.  It was a nice preview of things to come, but we decided to not go to the Canadian side yet.  We had dinner with one of the former pastors of our church and his family.   They had moved to NY a few weeks before we came and were really happy to see us.  Well, mostly Emily. 

April 3 we headed to the Canadian side of the falls.  What an amazing sight.  Even Emily was enjoying it - I think she wanted to get in the water and play.  Luckily we didn't let her!  unfortunately since it was so early in the year, the Maid of the Mist was not running, so we couldn't do that.  But we did do the Journey Behind the Falls, which was awesome.

After Emily took a nap, we headed to Buffalo to meet up with friends Jen and Chris for the Sabres-Leafs game.  What a game it was!  6-5 win for Buffalo in OT.  Great game.  Emily had a great time.  She passed out during the 3rd period and only woke up after the OT win.  Luckily she went back to sleep as we were walking out.  Poor girl.

April 4 we headed to Toronto.  We decided to hit the Ontario Science Centre after a quick stop for lunch at Harvey's.  It was well done.  There were lots of activities for kids and adults, too.  I spent some time at the amateur radio station but didn't get to make any contacts.  We had dinner at Mamma Martino's that night and ice cream at Tom's Dairy Freeze.    Both were pretty good.

April 5 we grabbed breakfast at Tim Horton's then headed downtown.  Our first stop was the CN Tower.  It had a really nice view of the city and surrounding area, but I thought it was overpriced.  The glass floor was pretty cool though - Emily even stopped to look down.  She was enjoying running around.

We then headed to the Hockey Hall of Fame.  I had been anticipating going there and seeing the Stanley Cup.  We did some of the games and Emily enjoyed playing rod hockey on one of the tables.  She didn't win, however.  We grabbed lunch, then made it upstairs to see the Cup.  I even was able to get this:

We went to the Q for dinner, then Lick's for ice cream.  I was disappointed with the ice cream from Lick's.  I thought the place we went the night before was better.

April 6 we drove back to Buffalo.  Since it was Good Friday, almost every store in Canada was closed.  So the wait to get across the bridge was almost 2 hours!  Ugh.  Luckily Emily slept almost the entire time.  We then met up with Jen and Chris again for lunch.  We spent about 2 hours with them while their daughter and Emily played.  They were having fun.  We then checked into the hotel and went to Duff's for some wings with my friend Beth.  Duff's was awesome.  The wings were good.  Beth said there's a debate on who is better - Anchor Bar or Duff's.  I was pretty happy with Duff's!

We eventually had to come home, though.  We flew back on April 7 in time for Easter at home with family.  We had a great time in Niagara though.  I'd love to take Emily back up there when she's older and actually do the Maid of the Mist and other fun activities.  Toronto was fun as well.  I'd love to go back and go to a hockey game there!


Now the NHL playoffs are in full swing.  Of course the Caps made it, but they're facing a game 7 vs Boston Wednesday night.  I look forward to it.  But I can't help but be glad that Pittsburgh, Detroit, and Vancouver are out - it's nice to see some of the big powerhouses fall!

Champions

My hockey team, Back2Black, played in game 3 of the league championship last night.  It was the final game of a best of three series.  After a 4-2 win in game 1 and a 5-1 loss in game 2, we were determined to win. 

The game started off slow and we found ourselves down 1-0 about half way through the first.  But we battered down the hatches and scored five unanswered goals.  Things were looking up.

Then at 1:15 of the first period, things came crashing down.  One of my teammates, Dave, was skating in the neutral zone and hit a rut in the ice.  He immediately went down and was writhing in agony.  Somebody skated over and said "He broke his leg".  EMS were called.  Dave said he could feel the bones tapping against his shin pads.  We did our best to keep him comfortable and distracted until EMS arrived.  All in all it took about 30 minutes to get him off the ice. 

We had been very fortunate to not have any major injuries on the ice all season.  This was the first time I'd seen a teammate carted off.  It was a surreal experience.  As much fun as we have playing hockey, in the back of your mind there's always a thought that somebody could get hurt.  You dismiss it as best you can.  You don't want to see any player get hurt.  We're all out there to have fun and enjoy a game we all love.  To watch anybody get hurt sucks.

But there was still 13:45 on the clock, so we had to finish the game.  After Dave was taken away, we had to put him in the back of our minds and carry on.  We surrendered a goal before getting one more to ice the win.  Final score , 6-2.  Skating around with the "beer league cup" was something special.

 
I made sure I got my picture with the "Cup":

We celebrated until we were basically asked to leave the arena so the staff could go home.  This was the team's first championship!  We didn't want to stop but we all had places to go and things to do!

We had a great season, a great time, and I look forward to another season in the summer.  I had a lot of fun and learned a lot.  Great job and GO BLACK!!

Weekend of hockey

This weekend I went with my hockey team to Atlantic City to play in a Can-Am tournament.  We were really excited about going to play and were looking forward to getting some hockey and some bonding time in.   It was to be a 3 game round-robin style Friday and Saturday with a championship and consolation game on Sunday.  There were four teams in our division, so we were guaranteed to play four games.

We got to the arena Friday afternoon to start the weekend.  We played a team from Pennsylvania.  From the start we realized we were in for a long game.  They got two quick goals and just seemed to be wiping the ice with us.  The game ended in a 6-1 loss. 

After a few hours of dinner and drinks, we had a 2nd game Friday night.  This time we played a team from New Jersey.  They were clearly better and beat us 7-0.  We were starting to think that we were over our heads.

We didn't play again until Saturday afternoon.  We played a team from Delaware.  Again, we were clearly outplayed.  Goal after goal after goal against.  The final was 10-0.  Our goaltender took a shot to the collarbone where she had no padding and was in pain.  One of our defensemen injured his back.  Another player twisted his knee.  We were banged up, tired, disappointed, and spent. 

After three games, we were 0-3 and had been outscored 23-1.  It was turning into a disaster.  What kept us going was hanging out together on the casino floor and at restaurants.

Our final game was Sunday at 7:30 AM.  Nothing like playing a game of hockey early in the morning!  We were playing the team from Pennsylvania in the 3rd/4th place game.  The game started and we came out of the gate much better than previous games.  We got a quick goal in the 1st period and added another before the end of the period.  We made it to the 3rd period when they tied the score at 2-2.  Then with 43 seconds remaining, one of our guys put a wicked wrist shot over the goalie's shoulder and put us ahead!  We scrambled for the next 43 seconds, and with a last second save, we won the game 3-2 and won 3rd place!   It was surreal.

We were clearly not the best team in the division, and we were outscored 25-4 during the weekend.  Yet we didn't give up.  We played hard in the final game and found a way to win.  It was a test of endurance and skill.  Each and every one of us were exhausted by the end of the tournament, but we had a great time.  I enjoyed spending time with my teammates.  It was a great experience.

One more win...

My rec league hockey team made the finals for the first time since the team was formed.  We played in the first game of the finals last night and won, 4-2.  We're now one game away from the championship for this season. 

It's been a long and fun time.  I can definitely tell my game has improved over the last few months.  I've got a LONG way to go, but I've had a lot of fun and enjoyed every second.  Well, ok, not every single second, but it's been a great experience.

We are headed to Atlantic City this weekend for a tournament, then continue our playoffs next week.  I can't wait!

Empty seats at Bristol?!

While watching the Sprint Cup race at Bristol today, I couldn't help but notice how many empty seats there were.  That was really surprising.

Normally the March/April race doesn't sell as well as the August night race, mostly due to being during the day, weather, and currently the economy.  But there were visibly at least 40,000+ seats empty today.  That is really alarming.  Bristol used to sell out both races every year without too much issue. 

Looking at Bristol's website, there are plenty of tickets available for the night race in August as well.  Is this a sign of the times - that what was NASCAR's most popular track now can't sell out?

Penske to Ford = end of Dodge in NASCAR?

With the announcement of Penske Racing switching to Ford for the 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup season, as of today Dodge has no major teams in their line up for the 2013 Sprint Cup season.

Looking at the Nationwide team chart on Jayski, Penske and MacDonald Motorsports are the only teams running Dodges in 2012.  The truck series has a few more teams besides Penske, but not many.

My guess is you will see an announcement in the coming months that Dodge has either thrown $$$ at a team to switch, or they will be leaving NASCAR.  With new car designs coming in 2013, one has to ask what the future holds.  Will Dodge be around in 2013?  Or will they cut their losses and move on?  

Daytona 500

Finally home and have a few to recap on the Daytona 500.

The race was postponed due to rain on Sunday.  It was decided Monday morning to run the race at 7 PM EST.  My guess was FOX wanted it in prime time.  I was looking at the radar and thought NASCAR could've had a window to get a lot of it in in the afternoon.  As it was the sun was out from 2-3:30 or so, then a short rain shower around 4.  After that we were home free.

The race was kinda slow at times.  It was obvious that the high line couldn't do anything all night.  A lot of cars tried to pass but couldn't.  Denny Hamlin, Matt Kenseth, and Greg Biffle had the best cars all night.  They definitely were strong. 

The incident involving Juan Pablo Montoya and the jet dryer was definitely one of the most bizzare incidents I have seen at a NASCAR race.  Kudos to NASCAR and their safety personnel to one get the driver of the jet dryer out of there quickly, but also to get the fire put out, the track cleaned up, etc.  It took a while, but they did a great job.  Brad Keselowski did a great job keeping the fans entertained with his twitter updates. 

The last 40 laps were somewhat uneventful.  I was kinda disappointed in the finish, but was glad that we got to see all 500 miles. 

Congrats to Matt Kenseth.  He earned his win both on the track and in the pits. 

Ugh...Rain

For the first time in 54 years, the Daytona 500 was postponed due to rain yesterday.  What a mess.

The rain started and just wouldn't quit.  It didn't really quit until around 12:30 this afternoon.  Since then the sun has peeked out and stuff.  Unfortunately NASCAR and FOX decided to wait until 7:00 to start it.  Thanks TV.

At least they should get it in tonight.  I can't wait - it's been a great race weekend!

I met my hero tonight!

After the Nationwide race today, I went to dinner with friends Bart, Juliane, and Randy.  We got to the restaurant and were told it was an hour wait.  After a few minutes they told me that they had a table ready but it would only be available for 90 minutes.  We asked why and were told that Richard Petty was going to have dinner in the restaurant later and we were sitting at his table!

After we ate we decided to hang around and meet up with the King.  When he arrived I raced over and was able to get a picture with him!  Awesome! 

Valentine's Day

As many of you have probably seen, Valentine's Day is next week.  Judging by the store displays, e-mails, and TV ads, advertisers are expecting billions to be spent. 

I will not be one of those people.

I have hated Valentine's day for a long time.  It goes back to my high school days.  My junior year my then girlfriend and I had a falling out that day that led to the end of our relationship.  Same scenario the following year.  Same thing happened to me my freshman year of college.  At that point I decided that the holiday was nothing but a waste of time and money. 

Now you're probably thinking, "Andy, aren't you married now?  Shouldn't you celebrate it with your wife?"  Yes, you are correct.  I should.  She likes the day.  She doesn't expect anything big, but expects me to do something for it.  I don't usually do anything big.  I know she's not happy about it.

Here's my deal:  Why should I spend a lot of money and care about my wife just one day out of the year?  I married her to enjoy every day with her.  I don't want to show my love and support just one day out of the year. 

I agreed to do something for what I call "Hallmark day".  But we agreed to do it on a day other than the 14th.  But I will also celebrate my marriage on more than just one day.

Valentine's day is over commercialized.  It now stands to force men to blow wads of money on chocolates, flowers, and the like to try and impress either your wife or girlfriend.  I am one of those people that refuse to give in to the commercialization for one stinking day.

Super Bowl

So glad the Super Bowl is over.  Pretty boring game until the last 60 seconds.  Then it was intense.

Now can we stop talking about football for a week?

Amsterdam

I spent Saturday in Amsterdam as a tourist.  After getting to my hotel, showering, and trying to wake up, I made it downtown around 10.  Went to the Van Gogh museum and the I Amsterdam letters.  Then had lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe.  Then I hit up the Heineken Experience followed by a canal tour of the city.  Then a walk through the Red Light District, dinner, then the Sexmuseum. 

I had a great time.  I don't know if I would go back since I've seen a lot of it, but it was fun.  People were friendly and they were rather welcoming to foreign visitors.

Now it's back to the grind.

Mission accomplished

Well, we finished what we set out to do here.  We installed the system and it works.  People are using it.  I'm happy.  I'm ready to go home.

One more day and I get a nice relaxing day in Amsterdam to play tourist.

Halfway around the world to run into somebody I know

I made it to Qatar last night and have been here working for the last day.  Tonight at dinner I was sitting with my colleagues and saw a guy with a name tag and face that looked rather familiar.  I did a double take and decided to go ask him if he went to Embry-Riddle and graduated in 2002.  Turns out he was a classmate of mine!  What are the odds of running into somebody you know 7000 miles from home and not expecting it?  It was pretty freaking awesome.

Tomorrow is my busy day here.  Let's hope it goes well.

Greetings from Schipol!

Sitting here in Amsterdam's Schipol airport waiting for my next flight.  I had a 7 hour layover so I went out on the town for a few hours.  It was cold - around 25 degrees.  Went to the Anne Frank House, which was really amazing.  It was really freaky and really fun at the same time.  It's really sad to think that people can be so mean as to force somebody from their home, never to see it again.  It's kind of a drag.

I don't get to my final destination until late tonight.  I am going to be exhausted.