I stumbled across a great quiz Monday on Forbes.com: "Are You An A$&H@L^?"
If you are one, work for one or just know one, take a peek at the link below and discover just how much of an ass you are or work for or know. I was just frightened that so many traits that I had associated with specific individuals were actually so universal.
There was a time that I was pretty much a total jerk/ass. Either I chose a different path (my story) or I matured (everyone else's story except for those who still maintain I am a jerk/ass). But we all have met people who:
• Believe that one of the best ways to "climb the ladder" is to push other people down or out of the way.
• When something goes wrong, always find someone else to blame.
• Constantly butter up their boss and other powerful people, and expect the same treatment from underlings.
• Enjoy lobbing "innocent" comments into meetings that serve no purpose other than to humiliate or cause discomfort to the person on the receiving end.
• Repeat jokes and teasing that can get a bit nasty at times.
Doesn't sound like anyone I'd want as a boss. My ability to recognize these as bad traits is my best evidence that I am, at best, a recovering ass. The quiz results for me said, "You don't sound like you are one, unless you are fooling yourself."
Anyway, check the quiz out and let me know how YOU score...
Are You An A$&H@L^?
More later,
Mark
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Monday, February 26, 2007
My Long Weekend Update...
Where do I begin?
Many weeks ago, Mary and I planned a long weekend at a beachside hotel in Daytona Beach to coincide with a.) My birthday; b.) The 25th anniversary/second honeymoon of our good friends, the Keefauvers.
I last saw Brad in April 2006 at Wrestlemania in Chicago. My gosh, has it almost been a year already? He and Kathy had some Fairfield points and elected to stay at the Oceanwalk next to our favorite Daytona haunt, the Main Street Pier and the Mardi Gras Fun Center.
Now, I didn't know Brad and Kathy 25 years ago, so I missed joining them on their first honeymoon. Having spent at least 16 years vacationing at Daytona Beach, we were all set to show them a good time this time around. Plus, I was going to prove that I could walk into the Mardi Gras and demand 100,000 Tootsie Rolls and GET THEM due to our 16 years vacationing in Daytona Beach and many accumulated points.
We arrived at out hotel at around noon. Our spacious suite (Priority Club perk) was not yet readied, so while management horse-whipped the housekeeping team for this indiscretion (or whatever they do), we took the opportunity to check the place out. I mean, we searched for the bar.
Heading out to marvel at the majestic ocean and the beautiful mid-70's Florida breeze, my cell phone rang. It was Brad. Their flight, which was some complicated Peoria-to-Kansas City-to-Moscow-to-Washington, D.C.-to-Daytona jaunt, was grounded by an ice storm. He promised an update. We got one: The Peoria airport was closed. But, have no fear: They would drive to Bloomington, Ill. and fly to Orlando and could we pick them up? Absolutely, even though the Melbourne-to-Daytona-to-Orlando-to-Daytona trip made almost as much sense as Peoria-to-Kansas City-to-Moscow-to-Washington, D.C.-to-Daytona expedition.
I kid Brad. I would gladly have driven to Peoria to pick him up (although, for the record, I NEVER offered this concept) because he is simply one of the most fun, most funny, most intelligent, most imaginative, most decent people I have ever been lucky enough to meet. To be considered one of his friends is truly an honor. That said, the man is a horrible traveler.
I suspect this is because for Brad, the entire journey IS the adventure whereas I believe in a very specific, efficient, redundant, overly coordinated travel regimen so that once I am where I need to be, the adventure can begin. We are different like that.
Of course, this brought to mind the time Brad was going to visit me in upstate New York when I worked at The Leader in Corning. Brad was going to New York City and he worked out this elaborate side trip to visit, flying into the Elmira-Corning Regional Airport. To my friends and co-workers there, I had built Brad up as this distinguished, visiting scholar/philosopher who would be greeted by a very tasteful society affair featuring cocktails and walking sticks.
His attempt to get to my apartment was similarily impacted by weather and he arrived about 12 hours late, and only after a three-hour cab ride. These were the days before cell phones and Instant Messages. So the party grew later and later and every now and then Brad would call and report something like "I'm in Schenectady. Where's that from you?" Eventually, everyone went home and presumed I had just made him up. A couple of people actually charged me for the walking sticks I had made them purchase. Low-brow cretins...
Because Peoria has a lousy, little airport, Brad and Kathy were not going to arrive until late Monday night. By then, we had checked out of the hotel, driven back to Melbourne, unpacked, had dinner and gone to bed.
But we're going to attempt to hook up again later in the week and, as always, it will be great to see them.
Meanwhile, my parents drove over from Ormond Beach and were great birthday substitutes (I also believe in a very specific, efficient, redundant, overly coordinated birthday guest regimen). I am just kidding, Mom! We drank at the Mai-Tai Bar, won a lot of points at the Mardi Gras (Dad hit a 1,000-coin jackpot on the slots and Mom mastered the quarter game) and ended up at Barnacles where Mary and I devoured all-we-could-eat king crab legs. Mmmmmm... Drawn butter...
Later, we received after-dinner drinks in the beautifully appointed hotel lounge. Walking sticks would have been appropriate. It was a truly a grand time.
More later,
Mark
Many weeks ago, Mary and I planned a long weekend at a beachside hotel in Daytona Beach to coincide with a.) My birthday; b.) The 25th anniversary/second honeymoon of our good friends, the Keefauvers.
I last saw Brad in April 2006 at Wrestlemania in Chicago. My gosh, has it almost been a year already? He and Kathy had some Fairfield points and elected to stay at the Oceanwalk next to our favorite Daytona haunt, the Main Street Pier and the Mardi Gras Fun Center.
Now, I didn't know Brad and Kathy 25 years ago, so I missed joining them on their first honeymoon. Having spent at least 16 years vacationing at Daytona Beach, we were all set to show them a good time this time around. Plus, I was going to prove that I could walk into the Mardi Gras and demand 100,000 Tootsie Rolls and GET THEM due to our 16 years vacationing in Daytona Beach and many accumulated points.
We arrived at out hotel at around noon. Our spacious suite (Priority Club perk) was not yet readied, so while management horse-whipped the housekeeping team for this indiscretion (or whatever they do), we took the opportunity to check the place out. I mean, we searched for the bar.
Heading out to marvel at the majestic ocean and the beautiful mid-70's Florida breeze, my cell phone rang. It was Brad. Their flight, which was some complicated Peoria-to-Kansas City-to-Moscow-to-Washington, D.C.-to-Daytona jaunt, was grounded by an ice storm. He promised an update. We got one: The Peoria airport was closed. But, have no fear: They would drive to Bloomington, Ill. and fly to Orlando and could we pick them up? Absolutely, even though the Melbourne-to-Daytona-to-Orlando-to-Daytona trip made almost as much sense as Peoria-to-Kansas City-to-Moscow-to-Washington, D.C.-to-Daytona expedition.
I kid Brad. I would gladly have driven to Peoria to pick him up (although, for the record, I NEVER offered this concept) because he is simply one of the most fun, most funny, most intelligent, most imaginative, most decent people I have ever been lucky enough to meet. To be considered one of his friends is truly an honor. That said, the man is a horrible traveler.
I suspect this is because for Brad, the entire journey IS the adventure whereas I believe in a very specific, efficient, redundant, overly coordinated travel regimen so that once I am where I need to be, the adventure can begin. We are different like that.
Of course, this brought to mind the time Brad was going to visit me in upstate New York when I worked at The Leader in Corning. Brad was going to New York City and he worked out this elaborate side trip to visit, flying into the Elmira-Corning Regional Airport. To my friends and co-workers there, I had built Brad up as this distinguished, visiting scholar/philosopher who would be greeted by a very tasteful society affair featuring cocktails and walking sticks.
His attempt to get to my apartment was similarily impacted by weather and he arrived about 12 hours late, and only after a three-hour cab ride. These were the days before cell phones and Instant Messages. So the party grew later and later and every now and then Brad would call and report something like "I'm in Schenectady. Where's that from you?" Eventually, everyone went home and presumed I had just made him up. A couple of people actually charged me for the walking sticks I had made them purchase. Low-brow cretins...
Because Peoria has a lousy, little airport, Brad and Kathy were not going to arrive until late Monday night. By then, we had checked out of the hotel, driven back to Melbourne, unpacked, had dinner and gone to bed.
But we're going to attempt to hook up again later in the week and, as always, it will be great to see them.
Meanwhile, my parents drove over from Ormond Beach and were great birthday substitutes (I also believe in a very specific, efficient, redundant, overly coordinated birthday guest regimen). I am just kidding, Mom! We drank at the Mai-Tai Bar, won a lot of points at the Mardi Gras (Dad hit a 1,000-coin jackpot on the slots and Mom mastered the quarter game) and ended up at Barnacles where Mary and I devoured all-we-could-eat king crab legs. Mmmmmm... Drawn butter...
Later, we received after-dinner drinks in the beautifully appointed hotel lounge. Walking sticks would have been appropriate. It was a truly a grand time.
More later,
Mark
Sunday, February 25, 2007
It's My Birthday!
And I've got great stories to tell, but no bandwidth...
So, stay tuned! We're home on Monday!!
Mark
So, stay tuned! We're home on Monday!!
Mark
Saturday, February 17, 2007
Interesting Passengers' Rights Site
A fellow blogger came across my rantings and directed me to this site:
Coalition for an Airline Passengers' Bill of Rights
Check it out if you are looking for more airline horror stories or feel like signing a petition!
More later,
Mark
Coalition for an Airline Passengers' Bill of Rights
Check it out if you are looking for more airline horror stories or feel like signing a petition!
More later,
Mark
Thursday, February 15, 2007
Jet Blue It
I got into an infamous jam with the airlines industry a decade or so ago by emotionally detailing my experiences after a botched flight during some - in my mind - relatively mild winter weather.
We were set to fly from Chicago to Memphis, Tenn., for an Elvis birthday weekend extravaganza one January evening. The plane was "de-iced" at the gate and then we sat there for about two hours before the pilot got clearance to leave. When we finally got our chance to take off, we didn't because the pilot feared the delay between de-icing and the upcoming takeoff was too long. Hence, we retuned to the gate to ge re-de-iced.
It was a very light snow (less than an inch accumulated eventually) and, of course, once you lose your place in line, you might never leave. Plus, this was a connection through Dallas and we'd never make our connecting flight. So I used the plane phone and discovered there were seats available on another airline that was flying non-stop to Memphis and that they would honor our current tickets.
Deal or no deal: Should we go to Dallas where we have luggage but no room and no party or should we go to Memphis where we have a room and a party but no luggage.
We chose the party.
I was writing a weekly column in those days and I caused a small flap because I unwittingly chose a term to describe the pilot that was viewed as an attack on his manhood (the term allegedly has roots in the Air Force or flight school or something as I was repeatedly told in nasty phone calls and e-mails emanating from the airline industry). It was like calling the guy the P-word. Really, that wasn't my intent. I was mad and I did - and will always - question the logic of de-icing a plane at the gate and then allowing it sit there for couple of hours before rolling it out to the runway only to then decide it was too long since the de-icing and, therefore, unsafe to fly.
I learned, by the way, that other airports and even other countries had a much better system than certain airlines were utilizing at O'Hare back in those times (in Europe it was commonplace THEN for airliners to taxi under a car-wash-type apparatus EN ROUTE TO THE FREAKIN' RUNWAY to get de-iced). Many improvements have been made since my infamous rage at the flying machine and I take credit for them all.
Anyhoo, from this vantage point, I have paid close attention to all of the many stories of passengers trapped on planes in New York for 10 or 11 hours on Wednesday. For the record, that would never happen on any plane that I was on. They have yet to build a plane that could contain me for that long.
What the situation calls for is not an emotional outburst like a young me so many years ago. No, the situation calls for a cool, calm, rational, well-thought-out plan. So, you have two choices: Either always fly with me or take the following words to heart.
The Plan:
First, after hour No. 3 (and I think it is very gracious of us to allow the crew three hours to solve a problem of getting a bus over to take us off the plane to return us to the gate) the passengers should begin to elect logical, calm, business-like spokesmen and spokeswomen. We would need six-to-eight leaders to equal the crew. We would encourage all cell phone users to call their families to tell them of our plight and make sure they have the flight number and the airline's name. The family members would be told to inform the airport with call after call that FLT 211 was stuck on the tarmac and passengers needed to be rescued.
Airport officials said Thursday they had no idea that a plane was stuck for that long. OK, I've eliminated that possibility.
At hour No. 4, should it be required, we would survey the 150 passengers for at-risk people: The elderly, the sick, the young. We would then have each family of these individuals call their attorneys to direct them to immediately call the airline and the airport to explain the dire legal consequences if their clients are not de-planed immediately.
At hour No. 5, should it be required, the passengers would instruct family members back home to start calling the media to have them seek out airport and airline officials to inquire about the status of FLT 211 and to share some of the horror stories they are hearing from the plane. After today, do you think any airport or airline wants another front-page story about or all-day cable broadcast about passengers stuck on a tarmac?
At hour No. 6, should there be any need for No. 6, and I think not, the elected core spokespeople would initiate a conversation with the crew. In an a non-threatening manner, they would seek arbitration to remedy the situation. What ideas have we not tried? Could you call your union (or do union officials only have media connections during strike talks)? How about a pilot on the phone live on CNN right now? Can you call some high-ranking company official? The ground crew? Some simple math would also be employed: There are six or eight of you and 150 of us and in a vote, the vote would be either unanimous or 150-6 (or 150-8) that we leave the plane now by using the window escapes. And if all the passengers decided to open the window hatches, you'd be unable to stop them. Any melee would be bad for everyone.
In addition, please recall that Jet Blue officials were quick to throw their own flight crew under the proverbial bus in response to media (and lawyer) inquiries after the Valentine's Day massacre calling the passengers' situation and the crew's reactions "unacceptable." So, you can act all officious in here, but out there – and we will get out – you will be vilified. Through our families, we have already secured www.flt211.blogspot.com and we have cell phone pictures and you are all going to be famous.
So, how do we remedy this together?
I don't think the crisis would get to hour No. 6, but if it did, it wouldn't probably make it to No. 7, let alone hour Nos. 8, 9, 10 or 11.
Anyway, that's how I'd fly. Keeping innocent people hostage against their will for 10 or 11 hours in an unsafe environment without proper water, food or sanitary toilet facilities is depraved behavior. Even airline officials are at a loss. An organized, prepared team of passengers can effectively regain control of the situation - and their lives.
Happily, I'm in Florida when winter storms are quite uncommon.
More later,
Mark
We were set to fly from Chicago to Memphis, Tenn., for an Elvis birthday weekend extravaganza one January evening. The plane was "de-iced" at the gate and then we sat there for about two hours before the pilot got clearance to leave. When we finally got our chance to take off, we didn't because the pilot feared the delay between de-icing and the upcoming takeoff was too long. Hence, we retuned to the gate to ge re-de-iced.
It was a very light snow (less than an inch accumulated eventually) and, of course, once you lose your place in line, you might never leave. Plus, this was a connection through Dallas and we'd never make our connecting flight. So I used the plane phone and discovered there were seats available on another airline that was flying non-stop to Memphis and that they would honor our current tickets.
Deal or no deal: Should we go to Dallas where we have luggage but no room and no party or should we go to Memphis where we have a room and a party but no luggage.
We chose the party.
I was writing a weekly column in those days and I caused a small flap because I unwittingly chose a term to describe the pilot that was viewed as an attack on his manhood (the term allegedly has roots in the Air Force or flight school or something as I was repeatedly told in nasty phone calls and e-mails emanating from the airline industry). It was like calling the guy the P-word. Really, that wasn't my intent. I was mad and I did - and will always - question the logic of de-icing a plane at the gate and then allowing it sit there for couple of hours before rolling it out to the runway only to then decide it was too long since the de-icing and, therefore, unsafe to fly.
I learned, by the way, that other airports and even other countries had a much better system than certain airlines were utilizing at O'Hare back in those times (in Europe it was commonplace THEN for airliners to taxi under a car-wash-type apparatus EN ROUTE TO THE FREAKIN' RUNWAY to get de-iced). Many improvements have been made since my infamous rage at the flying machine and I take credit for them all.
Anyhoo, from this vantage point, I have paid close attention to all of the many stories of passengers trapped on planes in New York for 10 or 11 hours on Wednesday. For the record, that would never happen on any plane that I was on. They have yet to build a plane that could contain me for that long.
What the situation calls for is not an emotional outburst like a young me so many years ago. No, the situation calls for a cool, calm, rational, well-thought-out plan. So, you have two choices: Either always fly with me or take the following words to heart.
The Plan:
First, after hour No. 3 (and I think it is very gracious of us to allow the crew three hours to solve a problem of getting a bus over to take us off the plane to return us to the gate) the passengers should begin to elect logical, calm, business-like spokesmen and spokeswomen. We would need six-to-eight leaders to equal the crew. We would encourage all cell phone users to call their families to tell them of our plight and make sure they have the flight number and the airline's name. The family members would be told to inform the airport with call after call that FLT 211 was stuck on the tarmac and passengers needed to be rescued.
Airport officials said Thursday they had no idea that a plane was stuck for that long. OK, I've eliminated that possibility.
At hour No. 4, should it be required, we would survey the 150 passengers for at-risk people: The elderly, the sick, the young. We would then have each family of these individuals call their attorneys to direct them to immediately call the airline and the airport to explain the dire legal consequences if their clients are not de-planed immediately.
At hour No. 5, should it be required, the passengers would instruct family members back home to start calling the media to have them seek out airport and airline officials to inquire about the status of FLT 211 and to share some of the horror stories they are hearing from the plane. After today, do you think any airport or airline wants another front-page story about or all-day cable broadcast about passengers stuck on a tarmac?
At hour No. 6, should there be any need for No. 6, and I think not, the elected core spokespeople would initiate a conversation with the crew. In an a non-threatening manner, they would seek arbitration to remedy the situation. What ideas have we not tried? Could you call your union (or do union officials only have media connections during strike talks)? How about a pilot on the phone live on CNN right now? Can you call some high-ranking company official? The ground crew? Some simple math would also be employed: There are six or eight of you and 150 of us and in a vote, the vote would be either unanimous or 150-6 (or 150-8) that we leave the plane now by using the window escapes. And if all the passengers decided to open the window hatches, you'd be unable to stop them. Any melee would be bad for everyone.
In addition, please recall that Jet Blue officials were quick to throw their own flight crew under the proverbial bus in response to media (and lawyer) inquiries after the Valentine's Day massacre calling the passengers' situation and the crew's reactions "unacceptable." So, you can act all officious in here, but out there – and we will get out – you will be vilified. Through our families, we have already secured www.flt211.blogspot.com and we have cell phone pictures and you are all going to be famous.
So, how do we remedy this together?
I don't think the crisis would get to hour No. 6, but if it did, it wouldn't probably make it to No. 7, let alone hour Nos. 8, 9, 10 or 11.
Anyway, that's how I'd fly. Keeping innocent people hostage against their will for 10 or 11 hours in an unsafe environment without proper water, food or sanitary toilet facilities is depraved behavior. Even airline officials are at a loss. An organized, prepared team of passengers can effectively regain control of the situation - and their lives.
Happily, I'm in Florida when winter storms are quite uncommon.
More later,
Mark
Thursday, February 08, 2007
A Lovely Way to Spend the Evening...
The future is, er, soon!
If things look a little squirrely, I spent Thursday night playing with the new optimized template and some new gadgets featured over there on the left.
It's a work in progress.
Gone is some of the stuff you learned to ignore shortly after I did. In that space is some new stuff. Some of the old stuff (like the map of the Melbourne area, the weather, etc.) was retooled for the new template provided to me, which, oddly, looks exactly like the old template, though the functionality is quite different.
So, this is progress, eh?
Somehow, all of this effort is probably just a good excuse to tidy Mark's World up. So, I'll keep tidying. And updating. Please be patient as the dust settles...
More later,
Mark
If things look a little squirrely, I spent Thursday night playing with the new optimized template and some new gadgets featured over there on the left.
It's a work in progress.
Gone is some of the stuff you learned to ignore shortly after I did. In that space is some new stuff. Some of the old stuff (like the map of the Melbourne area, the weather, etc.) was retooled for the new template provided to me, which, oddly, looks exactly like the old template, though the functionality is quite different.
So, this is progress, eh?
Somehow, all of this effort is probably just a good excuse to tidy Mark's World up. So, I'll keep tidying. And updating. Please be patient as the dust settles...
More later,
Mark
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
All rain, no reign
The shame of it all is that a very cool Web site no longer exists.
I had secured www.worldchampbears.blogspot.com and had spent my nervous energy prior to 6:25 p.m. EST Sunday playing with the new gadgets now available at Blogspot/Blogger/Google. Embedded images. RSS feeds. Podcasts from a variety of outlets. Real-time commentary. Push-and-click to all the cool Bears Super Bowl swag.
Blah, blah, blah.
Gone. It's all gone. Washed away like so many fans in Miami's Purple Rain. A couple of looping passes hopped off the back foot and the Super Dream is but a forgettable folly that can leave one empty and, even, a little disturbed. But at least I'm dry. My poor brother is still wet and may be wet for weeks – perhaps months – to come. His Super Bowl odyssey was one of $10 beers and fireworks-spark-stains and unrelenting rain and misery that may forever scar his desire to attend outdoor sporting events.
Bear weather? Think: Porpoise weather in a Dolphin stadium in a tropical climate gone mad because of man's tampering in God's domain.
What are we left with?
Next year. All that fury only leads us to yet another "next year." A year that needs to see the Chicago Bears with more depth on defense and and a honest-to-gosh quarterback. Good Rex? Bad Rex? How about Ex-Rex? Let him ride his last year on the bench as a back up to an actual pro starter. Jeff Garcia is an unrestricted free agent and he seemed to have a lot of pluck when he came in to replace Donovan McNabb. Kerry Collins is available, too.
Safety Mike Brown is a good guy and a good player but absolutely unreliable down the stretch (well, you can rely on the fact that he'll be injured). Todd Johnson, too, was banged up at the end. The Bears need a Pro Bowl-caliber safety who can be healthy for 20 weeks or so. The Bears also need a defensive tackle who can spot Tommie Harris (hint: this person is NOT Alfonso Boone).
Also, the Bears need to open up their wallets to pay Lance Briggs whatever he wants. Let's not have a repeat of the 1987 departure of Wilber Marshall and the subsequent unraveling of THAT Super Bowl team. The same goes for Lovie Smith. Pay the man. Duke him!
Let's review: More depth on defense, a pro quarterback and Briggs returns. Perhaps use the draft for some offensive line depth and some other spot players. Maybe even find another Mark Anderson or Devin Hester?
The Bears are close. So close. Can they keep it together?
Many things were washed away by a wet and wild Super Bowl. But, not my faith.
More later,
Mark
I had secured www.worldchampbears.blogspot.com and had spent my nervous energy prior to 6:25 p.m. EST Sunday playing with the new gadgets now available at Blogspot/Blogger/Google. Embedded images. RSS feeds. Podcasts from a variety of outlets. Real-time commentary. Push-and-click to all the cool Bears Super Bowl swag.
Blah, blah, blah.
Gone. It's all gone. Washed away like so many fans in Miami's Purple Rain. A couple of looping passes hopped off the back foot and the Super Dream is but a forgettable folly that can leave one empty and, even, a little disturbed. But at least I'm dry. My poor brother is still wet and may be wet for weeks – perhaps months – to come. His Super Bowl odyssey was one of $10 beers and fireworks-spark-stains and unrelenting rain and misery that may forever scar his desire to attend outdoor sporting events.
Bear weather? Think: Porpoise weather in a Dolphin stadium in a tropical climate gone mad because of man's tampering in God's domain.
What are we left with?
Next year. All that fury only leads us to yet another "next year." A year that needs to see the Chicago Bears with more depth on defense and and a honest-to-gosh quarterback. Good Rex? Bad Rex? How about Ex-Rex? Let him ride his last year on the bench as a back up to an actual pro starter. Jeff Garcia is an unrestricted free agent and he seemed to have a lot of pluck when he came in to replace Donovan McNabb. Kerry Collins is available, too.
Safety Mike Brown is a good guy and a good player but absolutely unreliable down the stretch (well, you can rely on the fact that he'll be injured). Todd Johnson, too, was banged up at the end. The Bears need a Pro Bowl-caliber safety who can be healthy for 20 weeks or so. The Bears also need a defensive tackle who can spot Tommie Harris (hint: this person is NOT Alfonso Boone).
Also, the Bears need to open up their wallets to pay Lance Briggs whatever he wants. Let's not have a repeat of the 1987 departure of Wilber Marshall and the subsequent unraveling of THAT Super Bowl team. The same goes for Lovie Smith. Pay the man. Duke him!
Let's review: More depth on defense, a pro quarterback and Briggs returns. Perhaps use the draft for some offensive line depth and some other spot players. Maybe even find another Mark Anderson or Devin Hester?
The Bears are close. So close. Can they keep it together?
Many things were washed away by a wet and wild Super Bowl. But, not my faith.
More later,
Mark
Sunday, February 04, 2007
Son of a...
There is much to say and plenty of time to say it.
For now, let's just pause to take a moment to be grateful for a long Chicago Bears season filled with so many great moments and so many exciting memories right up until the second half of a rather unnerving Super Bowl.
Thanks, Bears!
More later,
Mark
For now, let's just pause to take a moment to be grateful for a long Chicago Bears season filled with so many great moments and so many exciting memories right up until the second half of a rather unnerving Super Bowl.
Thanks, Bears!
More later,
Mark
Are You Ready For Some Football?
According to the countdown clock to the left, we have about seven hours to go before game time. Bears fans everywhere are facing their own nervous anticipation in a variety of ways.
Many are sticking to routines; single-mindedly following proven Sunday traditions. Superstitious? Why? Just because I haven't washed my jersey all season or gotten a haircut since the weekend before the last loss to a AFC team that played for the conference championship? Just because most wins were preceded by a Bloody Mary served in a pint glass with a stalk of celery and three olives?
Many have surrounded themselves with the icons of current – and past – championships. The big screen today is surrounded by a Super Bowl XX program signed by 11 Bears who played in that game, a Rex Grossman autographed football, a Brian Urlacher autographed photo and many other museum-quality pieces topped off with Super Bowl XLI pennants and bumper stickers and buttons.
The buffet has been planned. The food and drink tables were set up yesterday. The fridge is stocked.
The pre-game shows start at 12 p.m. EST on CBS and ESPN. Six hours and 25 minutes of hype and diversion until kickoff. What will they tell you? That Peyton Manning's destiny is to win a Super Bowl? That the Bears are seven-point underdogs? That Rex Grossman does not deserve to be in the big game? That the loss of Tommie Harris is a death-blow? That Marvin Harrison is due for a big post-season game?
To a point, a lot of that is true. What is also true is that Mr. Grossman had a better QB rating in the post-season than Mr. Manning (If Mr. Grossman would have had six, consecutive post-season quarters like Mr. Manning had stretching from the entire Baltimore Ravens game to the first half of the new England Patriots game, he would have been dumped into frozen Lake Michigan by a ruthless mob of fans). What is also true is that no one on either side of the field is more determined to win a Super Bowl than Mr. Urlacher. No one.
Look for the X-factor: The Colts are weak on special teams, an area in which the Bears clearly excel. Devin Hester, do you hear fate knocking on your door? How about you, Robbie Gould? Some players are playing for MORE than just a s Super Bowl ring. On Monday, Lance Briggs would still like to be known as the No. 1 linebacker on the free-agent market. Guess how many MORE millions of dollars a fumble recovery/touchdown run would mean for his future?
Pundits talks about the X-factor of Colts' tight end Dallas Clark. Hmmm... I wonder what will happen the first time he crosses the middle and sees Mr. Urlacher? Will he recall the preseason game in which Mr. Urlacher rendered him unconcious?
In a way, the Bears are deeper than the Colts because they are less reliant on a high-flying passing game. Take out any combination of Manning or Marvin Harrison and the game is won. You take out Mr. Grossman and/or Bernard Berrian and you still have to worry about the heart of the Bears game plan with left guard Ruben Brown tearing out big holes in your defense for Thomas Jones or Cedric Benson to power through for big gains.
And the biggest X-factor: How many points will the Bears will score on defense?
I'm a Bears fan so I am going to pick the Bears 30-24. That said, Bears fans and the team have already won, no matter the score. There is meaningful football to play in February and that is enough to cause much rejoicing.
Enjoy the game! Go Bears!
More later,
Mark
Saturday, February 03, 2007
The Mind Reels
After two weeks, it's all beginning to sink in:
• The Chicago Bears are IN the Super Bowl!
• I am going to watch the Chicago Bears in the Super Bowl TOMORROW!
• My brother will be AT the Super Bowl TOMORROW watching the Chicago Bears!
This is NOT a dream! This is NOT a hoax!
Aye-freakin-carumba!
Nerves got the best of me and so I awoke early this morning (well, early for a Saturday) because I was unable to stop pondering it all. My mind is racing! I hit some of the Super Bowl ticket sites and noticed prices had dropped about 50 percent in a week. Tickets that were about $3,600 a week ago are about $1,800 today. Still, I think I will be happiest ("most sane?") at home with a small crowd soaking up the game in beautiful, warm HD.
I'll post my prediction tomorrow, but regardless of the outcome, the fact that the Bears still have any football to play in February is amazing beyond mere words. This is SUCH a big deal for Bears fans. And I have the entire season on DVD and in iTunes format to watch and enjoy over and over.
For me, the backdrop of the Bears season in terms of my life is kind of fascinating. I enjoyed the 2006 draft in the comfort of my home in Crystal Lake, Ill. By the time training camp opened in July, I was working in Florida. I watched opening day against those cheaters from Wisconsin in a hotel room in Cocoa Beach. Within weeks I was bunking at the parents and we had joined a growing cadre of Bears fans each Sunday at Hooligan's, a sports bar in Ormond Beach. The weekend after Thanksgiving, I was back in Illinois at the Boxwood Drive abode watching the Bears fall to the New England Patriots with Mary as we took a break from finishing up the packing before the big move. By Dec. 3, we were in the new Melbourne home with a new big-screen TV in time for the Minnesota Vikings game. On Christmas Eve, Mom, Dad, Mary, Mary's Mom and I reconvened at Hooligan's to watch the Bears squeak by the Detroit Lions. And, in the end, the Bears will play in the Super Bowl XLI just 2-and-a-half-hours from our home down Route 95.
On one hand, the NFL football season always seems to go by so quickly. This year, a lot was going on!
It's been a wild trip from Illinois to Florida for both me and the Bears. And it all comes down to tomorrow!
Meanwhile, the alternative we came up with (vs. spending about $10,000 on a full-blown Super Bowl experience) is a trip back to Chicago in March for the Bears Fan Convention. I literally stole plane tickets from American Airlines last night and we are ticketed up for a few days of fun to celebrate a great season with the Bears and other Bears fans.
More later.
Mark
Friday, February 02, 2007
Thursday, February 01, 2007
What a mess!
Pardon our dust, over here at Mark's World.
Like all things, Blogspot is being taken over by Google. I, for one, welcome our new techno-overlords.
I ignored the many pleadings to move to the new system until they forced my hand last night. However, the migration to the new operation is going less smoothly than the Googlites obviously expected. And I have design augmentations that apparently don't mesh well with the Google Nation. This morning, something about the main template prevented many Blogspot pages like mine from being accessed by anyone at all. The complaints boards were popping!
Now, I have a brand new look planned post-Super Bowl. Until then, I am going to stubbornly cling to this one. So Bear Down and bear with us!
Meanwhile, I have replaced the poll at left with a new cam from inside Dolphins Stadium, the site of Super Bowl XLI. However, the view has not been updated since Tuesday at 11:30 a.m. Still, it's a good look at the scene for the big game!
More later,
Mark
Like all things, Blogspot is being taken over by Google. I, for one, welcome our new techno-overlords.
I ignored the many pleadings to move to the new system until they forced my hand last night. However, the migration to the new operation is going less smoothly than the Googlites obviously expected. And I have design augmentations that apparently don't mesh well with the Google Nation. This morning, something about the main template prevented many Blogspot pages like mine from being accessed by anyone at all. The complaints boards were popping!
Now, I have a brand new look planned post-Super Bowl. Until then, I am going to stubbornly cling to this one. So Bear Down and bear with us!
Meanwhile, I have replaced the poll at left with a new cam from inside Dolphins Stadium, the site of Super Bowl XLI. However, the view has not been updated since Tuesday at 11:30 a.m. Still, it's a good look at the scene for the big game!
More later,
Mark
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