my musings on nothing in particular

dumb and dumber...

Thu, 7 Jan 2010 05:51:36 -0800

Maybe by now you’ve heard about the Gilbert Arenas “Bringing Guns to Work” scandal. Although details are murky, Arenas (all star guard for the Washington Wizards), had a gambling dispute with teammate Javaris Crittendon and it escalated. Arenas threatened to blow up Crittendon’s house; Crittendon countered with a threat to shoot Arenas in his surgically-repaired knee. Arenas called Crittendon’s bluff by bringing four guns to the locker room the next day so make it easier for Crittendon to do the deed. Such a smart move.

To follow it up, the game after the story broke, during pre-game player introductions, Arenas pantomimed gun fire while dancing in circle of laughing teammates. Doubling down on stoopid. Wow.

To follow up dumb with dumber, PETA has just released an anti-fur add featuring Arenas in all his tatted-up glory. If killing a mink for it’s fur constitutes the “unethical treatment of animals,” what the hell is shooting a fellow human being? C’mon folks...think just a little bit next time. Oh, and I haven’t even commented on the former name of the Washington NBA franchise...the Bullets!

on tiger and faith

Tue, 5 Jan 2010 15:08:08 -0800

This caught my eye this morning. Fox News’ Britt Hume recommended that Tiger Woods should turn to Christianity to get through his infidelity scandal. Specifically, Hume stated, “The extent to which he can recover seems to me depends on his faith. He is said to be a Buddhist. I don't think that faith offers the kind of forgiveness and redemption that is offered by the Christian faith. My message to Tiger would, 'Tiger, turn to the Christian faith and you can make a total recovery and be a great example to the world."

I suppose I agree with Mr. Hume, but likely for quite different reasons. The notion that turning to Jesus can save Tiger from his sins has great appeal from a marketing standpoint. Religion and sports go hand in hand. Proclaim himself a Christian and Tiger will enter the ranks of countless professional athletes who praise God at every turn and thank the Lord for every home run, touchdown, or goal. The great thing about being born again is it gives you a fresh canvass. Before I found Jesus I slept with anything that moved - the skankier the better - but now I’ve found god and I’m a new man and all is fogotten and forgiven. I am saved. Religion could be the re-set button, the corporate re-branding that Team Tiger needs. Plus, there’s big money in religion and he needs it to fill the paycheck void created by all of his sponsors jumping ship. Tiger built his brand and sponsorship fortune on spectacular ability and a fraudulent persona. Finding religion is an easy way for Tiger to pivot to another con job. What is it they say about false idols...?

UPDATE: Check out Jon Stewart’s take from the Daily Show

and so it begins

Mon, 4 Jan 2010 15:42:46 -0800

So here we are, 4 days into 2010. Very glad to close the book on 2009. It was a year of struggles, patience, learning, and investment. With any luck, the difficulties of 2009 have prepared me for a banner year in 2010. Big challenges lie ahead:

Fatherhood: We’re down to the wire with Mag. She’s due on 1/31 and feeling great. Throughout this pregnancy, I have admired her grace, poise, patience and glow. When the baby comes, life will obviously change forever. There is no more important goal for 2010 and beyond than to be the best father (and husband) I can be.
Western States: It’s been a long road, but I finally will get another shot at the big dance. In 2006 I was in great shape, but failed to manage my body properly in the heat. This year will be different. All of the injuries of last year are behind me, my body feels healthy and strong, and my mind is ready for the journey ahead. My basic plan is to race Chuckanut and Capitol Peak as preparation. Both of these are local and can be done with no overnight. If things are going well with the baby, I might try to sneak down to Cali in May for some training on the WS course. I figure a quick trip that could log me 3-4 long runs on the course would be more bang for the buck than traveling to Cali for a one day race.
School: This is the fourth year of my PhD program. I am collecting data for my dissertation and have several other projects in the pipeline. Now is a critical time. If I stay productive and get some help from the experiment gods, I could hit the job market this summer with a strong Vita. The proverbial rubber is hitting the road.
Cycling: Speaking of rubber and roads, one positive of 2009 was that it rekindled my passion for cycling. Since I could do very little running, I hit the bike and hit it hard, logging 8000 miles in about 9 months of riding. I enjoyed this so much that I joined a local team - Thumbprint Racing - and will try my hand at some bike racing this season as well. The folks on the team are the best - great riders and even better people. They have welcomed this n00b into the fold with open arms.
Blogging: I know that New Year’s Resolutions are a dime a dozen and they are made to be broken, but I do certainly want to do a better job with this blog. I hope be offer short and relevant posts every week. We’ll see.

Here we go...