Right There Before You

My mom passed away Christmas night. She was 97. For as long as I can remember everytime we'd part she'd hug me and say, "God is right there before you." She taught us to be more understanding of people and ideas unfamiliar to us. She taught us to look upon every day as a gift to be cherished and not wasted. To my mother a blizzard was a beautiful white, fluffy blessing created to remind us of the power of things beyond our comprehension.

Every day mom read her bible and copy of Science and Health by Mary Baker Eddy. Through her life she believed she was a spiritual being living in a human body and that allowed her to face life and death with no fear.

Her faith served her well when my sister died in 1956 and again when my dad passed away in 1998. She faced every day with a positive outlook and always found something good to say about every place she ever visited, every person she ever met, every situation she ever faced.

As recently as two weeks before her passing she sang Christmas carols and played cards. Every time I showed up at her house or the nursing home where she spent her final months she would say the same thing. "Oh my son, I love you, I love." Then as we parted she would remind me, "God is right there before you."

Today God is right there before her and she couln't happier with the company.

A Little Gratitude

Thanks to everyone who came to see the Evergreen Family theatre production of A Christmas Carol. This timeless story is so much in line with the events of the past year or so. Too many people are looking at the holiday with an attitude of want rather than appreciation. I believe the more you think about what you do not have the more you will not have. As difficult as it is to do, it's a good idea to make a list of what's good in your life. As you think about it the list will grow longer.

Another holiday favorite of mine and many others is "It's a Wonderful Life," in which George Bailey discovers exactly how important his life really is and how many people it touches.

So take a minute today to express gratitude for the many blessings in this world. Doing that doesn't mean you should ignore the bad news or the great needs of others but before you help someone else you must get your house in order. A great writer named Dr. Wayne Dyer says in his book, "The Power of Intention," you cannot make yourself poor enough to help someone else who is poor. Do not fret over the situation of a person in need, just help them in any way you can.

Merry Christmas to my friends who celebrate Christmas and to those who don't, may you be blessed with wisdom , gratitude, health and happiness.

A Christmas Carol

In the mood for a little holiday cheer? Our theatre group, Evergreen Family theatre will present the Dickens Classic, "A Christmas Carol," December 2-12 at the Redwood Family Church in Redmond.

I've spent a good part of my life in community theatre and always wanted to play Scrooge in A Christmas Carol, so this year I'm doing it. We've got a wonderful cast of local actors and we're committed to presenting a show that'll make you smile when you might need it the most.

Our show is "schedule and family friendly," in that we're doing it in one 90 minute act with no intermission. Curtain for our evening shows is at 7 p.m. the children can get home on school nights and the parents can just get home. We'll do matinee performances on both Saturdays December 5th and 12th along with evening shows. Tickets are $12 for adults and $10 for children and seniors and are available at brownpapertickets.com. Look for A Christmas Carol by John Jakes in Redmond.

Spewing the Spittle of Suspicion

Thanks to our wonderful United States Constitution fear and hate mongers like Glenn Beck get to spew the spittle of suspicion across our land every day. Thanks also to our U.S. Constitution true patriots such as the people who build our country instead of breaking it down, have the right to ignore or at least filter out every negative morsel exiting the mouths Beck and his comrades.

Beck, Limbaugh, O'Reily and the rest of their gang are described as "entertainers" by the network for which they work. What did I miss here? I consider the great actors, comedians , singers and musicians of my time and yours to be the real entertainers.

I'll take an evening of Elvis music anytime over 5 seconds of Beck babble. Let me hear Johnny Cash sing about "A Boy Named Sue," over Rush's constant notes of negitivism about everything President Obama says and does.

Entertainment should make us laugh, cry or at least feel some emotion designed to allow the mind and body to recover "reality" we're bombarded with every day.

All Beck and Rush and Bill do is make their closest followers feel even more bitter, cast blame on everyone but themselves and continue to erode our trust in the basic values of the democratic system of government.

Good government in America comes from well informed, selfless people who are not afraid to get involved with positive ideas and solutions to difficult problems.

Beck and his gang of "entertainers" have every right to do what they do and say what they say. We as a free people have every right to filter out what they say and base our own opinions and actions on research and common sense.

Hold Them Accountable

It has never been more important to know the names and contact information of all of your local, state and U.S. representitives. The radio talk show babble will bring no results. Only your direct emails and letters to your public officials will bring results. On the health care issue we should all be writing our U.S. House of Representives members and our U.S. Senators with our opions and ideas. The time has come to stop letting the loudest voices of our society make the rules. Whether you support President Obamas health care reform ideas, which I do, or any of the other options, you must speak out now.

Every member of the U.S. House is up for re-election in 2010. Put the pressure on them now to let you know where they stand. Do not let them politicize or bash the opposition. Demand to hear their ideas for a solution. We live in a great nation but it loses some of it's greatness if we stand by and let a few loud voices on both sides of the political isle sway our own thinking. According to the U.S. Constitution our government only works if "we the people" speak our piece. We cannot be lazy and let the talk shows do our thinking for us. Check the facts, form your opinion based on the facts and contact your public servants to let them know how you feel.

Fear, Hate & Mis-information

I have just named my "All hate and fear" team for the 2009 season and I'm happy to say Sarah Palin, Sean Hannity and Glen Beck have made the roster.

Palin makes it for writing on her face book page about the mythical "death panel" in President Obama's health care proposal. Her party used the term death effectively a few times when opposing "estate taxes" over the years. They called them "death taxes." What they really are is a fair way to spread the tax burden equally throughout our society.

Back to the "death panel" for a minute. There is no such thing, never was, never will be. Palin is a "fear monger" of the highest order and should ne ignored.

Glen Beck has used his spewing of fear and hatred as a road to radio talk show success. He is profiting from the mysery of others. On September 26th he'll be presented with the key to the city of Mt. Vernon , Wa. his home town. This might be a good chance for people to let Mr. Beck know what they think of his dangerous hate filled commentaries.

Sean Hannity recently targeted Obama "green jobs" expert Van Jones and has now forced a good man to resign using the same hate and fear tactics of the others.

Thank God we have freedom of speech in America. It is a double edged sword but I wouldn't have it any other way. Hannity, Palin and Beck have every right to spread fear, hatred and lies across this great land of ours but by the same token we have the right to call them out for what they are. They are self profiting entertainers spewing verbal garbage across our landscape for the rest of us to pick up and put into the trash can.

Ted Kennedy

I made the mistake of listening to a few minutes of talk radio Wednesday, the day after the death of Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy. It never ceases to amaze me how people are so willing to speak out on topics they know nothing about. Ted Kennedy was one of the most effective United States Senators in our history. Was he the best ever? Probably not, but he was one of the best at crossing the ever widening isle between liberal and conservative. Kennedy never wavered on his mission or his beliefs. He was not afraid to call himself "liberal." He worked for the rights of women, seniors, immigrants, the poor and the un insured. In 1969 a horrible error in judgement caused the death of a young campaign volunteer. Kennedy made serious errors in judgement 40 years ago on the island of Chappaquidick. He and his female companion were coming from a re union of Robert Kennedy staffers, both were drinking and Kennedy was driving. There were rumors that they were having an affair or at least a one night stand. While I will not attempt to justify either of those possibilities I will say this. Both Kennedy and his companion were distraught over the death of RFK. It is quite likely and not that unusual that in the heat of that emotional turmoil excessive drinking and a "one night stand" may have occured. Why is this such a shock to people? It happens and it probably happened that night, but to continue to condemn a person for stupid actions 40 years ago seems crazy to me. Especially when that person tried and succeeded in turning his life around and focusing on inproving the lives of un told millions of others in his career. Ted Kennedy was born wealthy, he could have spent his money and life on trivial things as many rich people do. Instead he chose to use public service to help others. He was simply a man with some flaws and some natural gifts. He managed his flws and used his gifts to help others for 47 of his 77 years. Not a bad legacy.

Recipe for Disaster

In early 2000 the dot com bust was big news followed last year by the real estate bust and the bank bust. Let's face it busts are busting out all over.

It doesn't take a business expert to figure out why the busts happened. Values were inflated, people got greedy and everyone paid the price.

Recently most of the players picked in April's NFL draft signed their contracts. They all got huge signing bonues and "life time" pay packages. A few days ago baseball had it's draft. Same result. The top pick pitcher Stephan Strassburg signed with the Washington Nationals for 15.67 million dollars over four years including a 7.5 million dollar signing bonus. The second pick, pitcher Dustin Askley signed with the Seattle Mariners for 7.5 million and the third pick signed with San Diego for 6.25 million.

These are all fine college pitchers but do they really deserve this kind of money before throwing one pitch in a professional baseball game?

The idea of paying young people to play a sport is not new in America but it has gotten completely out of hand and I honestly don't know how much longer it can last at this level.

How much longer can television contracts and ticket sales sustain this kind of pressure? Is the bust just around the corner and if it is why don't the owners see it?

Recently at the University of Washington a beloved athletic department staff member was handed his walking papers as a "budget cut" just months after the new football coaching staff was handed a bag of money to rescue the dismal football program.

Am I the only one who sees a problem with this pattern? Maybe I am. I guess as long as people show up to the ticket window, purchase the game jerseys and the products they see on television game broadcasts everything will be fine. On the other hand if there's ever a dramatic slow down in the revenue flow professional sports franchises could be in for a rude awakening.

I just finished reading a baseball book called, "I would have played for nothing." In the case of some of the players in the book they practically did play for nothing. On top of that many of them served in the military at the height of their careers. Stars like Ted Williams, Joe Dimaggio and Joe Louis spent time in the service during WWII and the Korean War. They worked in the off season to make ends meet and ordinary people could easily identify with them.

I loved the games back then and I love them now I'm just worried that all this money up front for un proven players is a recipe for financial disaster.

Organized Murder

Harry Patch died last week. So who is Harry Patch? He was one of the last surviving British soldiers to have fought in World War I. Patch was 111 years old. Born in 1898 he was drafted into the 7th Battalion, Duke of Cornwell's light infantry. He spent four months in Flanders in France but never killed a German. He shot at their legs to wound them. He spent weeks in mud filled trenches going without a bath and wearing the same clothes. He endured lice and rats as big as cats.

He was once quoted as saying, "war is nothing more than organized murder.

Patches death leaves Claude Choules as Great Britain's last World War I veteran. Choules is 108. There are still two other WWI vets alive, one in Canada and one in the United States.

Seahawks Camp Opens

The short vacation is over, the Seahawks are back to work at VMAC in Renton preparing for the 2009 season. The first part of the first day is usually spent searching for numbers to see who's here and who isn't. There's not much mystery anymore since the public relations staff and head coach listed the missing players at at the first session. Marcus Trufant is on the PUP list with a sore back. PUP may be a cute dog to us but in ther NFL it means "physically unable to perform." It allows a team to replace that player on the roster temorarily. Baraka Atkins was excused to attend the funeral of a friend in Florida and top draft pick Aaron Curry isn't here and won't be until he signs his contract.

On the first day veteran offensive lineman Mike Wahl failed his physical exam and decided to retire. He had worked hard all during the off season but didn't quite get back to normal.

Everyone else who missed part of last season due to injury is back this year including 12 year veteran tackle Walter Jones, quarterback Matt Hasselbeck and receiver Nate Burleson.

Training camp continues through August 21.

Angry White Men

The Republican Party has become the party of angry white men. Any progressive ideas anyone comes up with are met with the same reaction. "No." Don't white men realize they have nothing to be angry about except maybe their inability to deal with the fact that they have nothing to be angry about.

Our president has been in office less than seven months and has been attacked more than any single American president in history. Let the guy govern, let him work, keep him on notice that we're all watching but let him work. Hey just for a brief moment there I think I became an angry white man myself.

Hall of Fame

Had a chance to visit the Baseball Hall of Fame at Cooperstown, New York last week. As I was walking through the Babe Ruth exhibit, I heard a young dad explaining to his pre-teen sons that the Bambino was the only "true" home run king. "He hit 60 homers in 1927 and then the "cheaters" broke his record. I had to step in and remind the guy that Roger Maris broke trhe Babe's record in 1961 and was not a cheater. He did have the advantage of a 162 game season to Ruth's 154 game season but he was no cheater.

Soccer

After watching the inaugural season of the Seattle SoundersFC in MLS I've decided to start playing the game myself. Let's face it if my grand parents hadn't imigrated from Italy in the early 1900s I probably would've grown up playing the "World's game" anyway. It's never too late to learn something new. Gotta go practice my headers.

Playing for Nothing

Just finished reading "The Yankee Years," by Joe Torre and Tom Verducci. It's the story of Torre's triumphant seasons as manager of the New york Yankees from 1996-2000 and the less than successful years that followed. Less than successful means the Yankees didn't win a World Series under Torre after they beat the Mets in October of 2000. They did get to the Series twice only to lose both times. The book details the departure of such stars as Bernie Williams and Andy Petite and the arrival of Gary Scheffield and Alex Rodriguez. As soon as I put that down I started reading, "They would have played for nothing," which follows the careers of some of the greats of the 1950s and 60 like Duke Snider, Jackie Robinson and Stan Musiel. Though I enjoyed both books I felt like reading the second one was like taking a shower on a hot day. It was so refreshing after reading about all the nightmarish stories about George Steinbrenner's frequent tirades and torre's constant effort to keep his players and owner happy.

Reading the second book also got me in a mood to buy old baseball cards again. Seems like they're the only ones that maintain or grow their value. Anything printed after 1975 is too plentiful to make it worth anything.

Every Precious moment

Who remembers that last day of school, the first day of summer vacation? Most of us have fond memories of stepping off the bus for the last time in late June without a care in the world. It's not that things in the world weren't a challenge, or dangerous, or frightening it's that we didn't know enough about it to care. The only thing that mattered was fishing and baseball and bike riding and friends. Summer meant 4th of July fireworks and a population of people who actually knew what they were celebrating on that day. Summer meant you were outdoors from dawn till dusk riding your bike with no helmet, making no contact with your parents until supper time and living every precious moment. We didn't have our faces on our cell phones all day because there was no such thing. We didn't waste hours on video games because there were none. We ran through poison ivy, got mumps and measles, went to the doctor and actually got treated without being asked how we were going to pay for it. I know, I sound like a baby boomer who's past was happier than his present. Not true. I'm very happy today but I think it's fun to point out that the "care free" season is here and for gosh sakes we ought to let our kids and grandkids enjoy it. Someday they'll write about the good old days when Twitter and Face Book will have gone the way of the Hula Hoop. By the way I bought a Hula Hoop on Craig's list the other day. Got a good price.

New title for FOX News

Why is everyone on the FOX news network so ticked off? Every time I see one of the poor souls they're upset over something. Lately they're up in arms because President Obama had the nerve to reach out to the Muslim world and suggest that they may be people too. Hey FOX news, I've got news for you, your act is old, negitive, boring and irrelevent. I'll go one step further, you're hate mongers disguised as news reporters and anchors. I'm happy to live in a country that allows FOX news to do what it does but I'm also happy to have quick fingers and a remote. As soon as I see Sean or Bill or Ann on HATE TV, I switch over to something that makes sense, like Family Fued or The Price is Right.

Quiet I Can't Hear the Music

Growing up in the 1950s I had plenty of opportunities to listen to disc jockeys fill time between songs. When Cousin Brucie or Dandy Dan Ingraham made a funny remark in between Elvis or Beatles songs that constituted "talk radio." For me and my generation it was all the talk radio we needed. I still listen to Cousin Brucie on Satalitte radio and he still makes more sense than any of the "talk" people I mistakenly tune in to today.

How much talk is too much talk? That's an open question of course and the answer is si9mple. When I get tired of hearing about the same topic I change the station.

In my home market, Seattle a lot of people are changinbg the station these days. They're changing to music and away from talk. In times like these I guess people feel more comfortable not hearing about "times like these." Music soothes the soul, settles the nerves, evokes the emotions. Talk too often has the opposite result.

I tuned out of talk radio about ten seconds after the last election. I love the new president but I'm sure I'll disagree with some of things he does in the next three years. I'll disagree on my own however, not with any prompting from Rush or anyone else.

So what about sports talk radio you ask? There's too much of that too. Two hours before the game starts I do not need to listen to "expert" anlayists tell me why one team will win and the other will lose. And when the game is over, I'm done, let me go on with my life. Please don't bore me with post game analysis let alone sound bites that don't change from week to week.

Good luck to all the radio talk show folks out there. I know you work hard and I wish you the best, just don't talk me anymore it distracts me from the music I'm trying to listen too.

Running for Office

I'm running for public office.
I've given a lot of thought to why I’m running for Newcastle City Council. It goes back a few decades to when my father Tony Ventrella Sr. ran for an office called “Constable” in my home town of Wilton, Conn. Dad was a barber with less than a high school education but a vast knowledge not only of national and local issues but of the wants and needs of people in his own community. My town was so small we had one police officer and he was on loan from the state of Connecticut. To fill the gap the town council created positions for four “constables” who would serve the public in various ways. My Dad performed such duties as serving subpoenas, directing traffic in construction zones and parking cars for town sponsored events. He loved people and was proud to work for the town. I feel the same way. “As Newcastle grows and welcomes new residents and businesses I want to be involved in its vision for the future.” To succeed as an individual, a family, a business or a small city you need a vision, a plan of action, a step by step climb into the future. I believe that “real political leadership can only emerge in a crisis.” I also believe that with every crisis comes opportunity. We are in a fiscal crisis in America that effects every one of us in big cities and small towns. We can only emerge from it by working together, unselfishly and without ego. I look forward to meeting every voter in Newcastle and because I have two ears and one mouth, I’ll listen twice as much as I talk. I look forward to serving my community.

Twitter or Not

I admit it, I'm a baby boomer, born in the 1940s. My life was fine before lap tops, cell phones and GPS systems and it was certainly fine before Face Book and Twitter. I don't need Face Book or Twitter so why did I sign up for both? I'll answer that. I don't need a talking JFK doll or a 1968 rookie Tom Seaver card either but I have both.

At least I get some enjoyment out of pushing the button on JFKs lapel and hearing him say, "Ask not what your country can do for you," over and over again. I'm not sure if I get any enjoyment out of Face Book or Twitter. I really don't care what concert my friends went to last weekend. Unless it was a Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons reunion it was a waste of time and money anyway.

I've been on Face Book for a month and Twitter for a week and I'm on the verge of leaving both. If I really want to send a message out to all my friends I'll call them or type a letter on my manual Royal typewriter to each one of them, spend $20 on stamps and drop them in a mail box. What a concept.

I have to go now. Just got Tweeted from someone who's interested in buying my talking JFK doll.

News about News

Thursday May 7 was a painful day if you follow sports media. Not painful from the stand point of the actual news stories but painful because of the relentless repetition of those stories by endless numbers of talking heads.

Shut up already. That's enough about Bret's retirement, Manny's suspension and A-Rods hip. Whatever happened to the good old days when we were all scared to get Swine Flu.

I'm pleased that Bret Favre is staying retired, so is my cousin Jack who taught high school for 30 years. I'm happy for both of them.

Manny Ramirez finally got caught juicing and was suspended for 50 games. Lot's of guys at the local gym juice all the time and wish they were Manny Ramirez yet they're the first ones to call talk radio and denounce the former Red Sox and now Dodgers star.

Sometimes I long for the old days when you had to wait for your local newspaper or television sports cast to see and hear what was happening. In those days you actually had time to digest the story before beating it into the ground among your own friends. Now it gets beaten into the ground even before half the public hears about it.

Thank God we live in a country that recognizes the value of free speech. It's just that sometimes I long for silence and that's just as free.

Rookies, Red Cards & Seagals

What a whirlwind weekend it was in Seattle sports. Seahawks rookies and veterans soent three days at the team facilities in Renton at the first full mini camp. Led by top draft pick Aaron Curry, the linebacker out of Wake Forest the Seahawks went through their paces under the upbeat direction of head coach Jim Mora.

This week veterans will work on red zone and two minute drills before the rookies return in two weeks for another mini camp. Full training camp begins in late July with the first pre-season game set for August 15th at San Diego.

On Saturday in Bridgeview, Illinois the Sounders FC struggled to a 1-1 tie with the Chicago Fire at Toyota Park. A red card on Fredy Montero in the 49th minutes gave Chicago a man advantage situation which they exploited for the go ahead goal late in the half. The Sounders salvaged a tie when Freddie Ljundberg set up Tyrone Marshall for his first goal in two years. Seattle has a 4-2-1 record with 13 points so far this season. They host Los Angeles on Mother's Day at 12 noon at Qwest field.

Sunday night at Qwest 61 perspective Seagals went through final auditions for the 2009 squad. Director Sheri Thompson chose 28 girls for the new squad excluding a couple of popular veterans Georgia and Kat from the new team.

It was emotional for the girls who didn't make the team as well as for Thompson who told all the auditioners after the event, "I wish I could take 40 of you but we're limited to 28."

The Mariners rounded out a big weekend in Seattle sports with a 15inning 8-7 victory over Oakland at Safeco field.

Welcome aaron Curry

At 9:30 this morning the Seahawks top draft pick Linebacker Aaron Curry walked into team headquarters in Renton with his mother Chris and Fiance Jamilla. At 11 a.m. the former Wake Forest star will meet with the Seattle media for the first time in person.

Curry topped the list of seven draftees by the Seahawks in the 74th NFL draft which ended yesterday afternoon around 4:15 Seattle time.

The Seahawks did a lot of trading with other teams to select the players on their pre draft wish list.

In the second round they drafted center/guard Max Ynger from the University of Oregon. Deon Butler, a receiver from Penn State was chosen in the third round and quarterback Mike Teel of Rutgers was picked in the 6th round.

The Seahawks had three compensatory picks in round seven and chose the folowing players. Courtney Greene a safety from Rutgers, Nick Reed and defensive end from Oregon and Cameron Morrah a tight end from California.

All the new players plus several un drafted invitees will be here Friday for the start of a three day mini camp.

U.S. Open Cup

The SoundersFC host Real Salt Lake Tuesday night at Starfire Sports Complex in a play in match for the U.S. Open Cup. Any soccer team in the nation can enter this tournament . This reminds me of the way they used to do the state basketball tournament in Indiana. All schools no matter what sized student body were able to compete in one single tournament with one champion. That was the inspiration for the movie Hoosiers starring Gene Hackman and Barbara Hersey a few years ago.

Seattle will mix it's line up using some reserve players and some starters. Kickoff is 7 p.m. Tuesday night.

Just came from the 5th annual Seahawks Draft Bowl Home Run Derby. Breaking news!!! The coaches beat the Scouts 24-23 on a walk off homer by Defensive Quality Control coach Tom Headlee.

The annual event serves as a much needed break from months of draft preview work by the scouts, coaches and front office.

The home run dreby was played on the practice fields in back of the Seahawks facility. It was a five inning affair with each team getting eights outs per inning. Anything that isn't a home run is an out.

Former Mariner great Jay Buhner threw out the first pitch and later commented on the slugging skills of the coaches and scouts. "These guys are pretty good, they use the old, swing in case you hit it method, I did that when I played."

The coaches started fast with nine consecutive homers in the first inning then after a 10th homer General Manager Tim Ruskell, captain of the Scouts team invoked the "ten run rule," calling for the inning to end.

Coaches captain Jim Mora argued the rule change but to no avail.

The game came down to the bottom of the 5th inning tied 23-23 when Headlee's home run ended it.

Tomorrow the guys really get down to work when the NFL draft begins at 1 p.m. pacific time. The Seahawks have the fourth overall pick and speculation is running rampant about their choice. They also have the fourth pick in the second round, 37th overall and there's been some interest among other teams in that pick but no indication that the Seahawks will trade down.

The draft continues Sunday with rounds 3 through 7. Overall the Seahawks have 10 picks in the draft.

Hello World

“The only way to make some people you agree with speak is to support the rights of people you don’t agree with.”

Hi everyone, welcome to my blog. I know I’ve made fun of bloggers in the past calling them dangerous, mis- informed, un accountable for their actions and down right irresponsible, It is in that spirit that I join the ever growing world of people key board tappers.

I’ll try to be informed, well researched, polite, fair, inspirational and entertaining. At times I will come across as a left wing socialist and at other times as a moderate Democrat just trying to make sense of the world. Most of all I’ll try to coax a laugh or two out of my readers.

Writing in any forum is a freedom we sometimes take for granted in America. I will always be grateful for that opportunity and will never abuse it.

May you find something useful in this space and perhaps even share it with others.

Bouncing Back

The day offered bright sunshine and spring time temperatures. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 289 points Monday, 1400 people applied for one job in Tacoma and the SoundersFC soccer team has lost two in a row. Can we ever rebound from all this. Of course we can, of course we must, of course we will.

The opening of baseball season this year was a special treat for a lot of reasons. First of all Ken Griffey Jr. is back in Seattle where his career started 20 years ago. The Mariners won 7 of their first 10 games and host the Tampa Bay Rays for the next three days. The Rays are an inspiration for any last place team. If they can go worst to first so can the Mariners.

The NFL draft takes place Saturday. This is the most over hyped off the field activity in the history of sports. Entire careers are made on guessing which team will pick which player. Is it much ado about nothing? Of course it is, but it’s also a lot of fun for millions of people so why not?

The NBA playoffs started over the weekend and people in Portland are besides themselves with joy despite that 20 loss to Houston in Game one.

In politics the right wing attack team is out in force all over talk radio. They are relentless, mean spirited and border on treasonous but we will always respect their right to make fools of themselves.

Barack Obama is the best President of our lifetime and will prove it by the time his first term is over. By the end of his second term there will be a push by some to end “term limits.” I love the guy but even I won’t support that. We messed with the constitution enough the last 8 years, so let’s leave it alone for a while.

And finally on that 48 year old British singer Susan Boyle I have only this to say. Thank you for showing the world that a book should never be judged by its color although so many of us are quick to do just that. You have the voice of an angel and have

"The tragedy of life doesn't lie in not reaching your goals, the tragedy lies in having no goals at all."

The tradgedy of life doesn't lie in not reaching your goal, the tragedy lies in having no goals at all."

Daily Quote

Treat yourself as if you already are what you'd like to become. Look for this blog every week.