The Difference A Year Makes..

2009 Playoffs:

2010 Playoffs:

Observations, Ramblings, & Utter Randomness

This will be a hodgepodge post containing a random assortment of topics. So clear your mind, start reading, and try to keep up.

Family & Friends
Monica and I have some of the greatest family and friends. Everyone has been exceedingly generous with baby gifts. To everyone that has been kind enough to send us or give us cards and gifts, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Additionally, a huge thank you to my Mom, my sister Kim, Monica’s sister Amanda, and friends Dru, Stephanie, and Mandy for throwing two wonderful baby showers for Monica.

Fuel Costs
Gas costs significantly less in DFW then it does in Lubbock. By significant I mean $.10 – $.20 cheaper. Ridiculous.

Tollways
I love tollways. Sure you have to pay, but it’s worth the money. Driving from Irving to Frisco took ten minutes. Can’t beat that.

Texas Tech
I hate using this phrase, but once again, it fits. Typical Tech. Come off a great win versus Texas A&M, get cocky, get put in your place by Mizzou. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – Mike Leach is not the man to lead Tech to the next level. Until we hire a head coach that realizes a team is only as good as its weakest link, Tech will continue to be the red-headed stepchild of the Big XII South. On a happier note, we received our Red Raider and Lady Raider basketball season tickets in the mail. This is the first year we’ve bought both men’s and women’s season tickets, so we’ll have an abundance of games to attend!

Chicago Cubs
Swept out of the first round. I’m definitely not a fair weather fan, but it’s rather repetitive to have to keep saying “Just wait until next year”. I guess it could be worse..

NFL
The Bears are struggling for consistency. It’s too early to assess whether or not they can rebound and turn the season around. The best news is that Grossman was finally benched; he was given far too many chances and failed almost every time. On a happier note, I’m in a fantasy league for the first time, and through yesterday, in first place! Let’s hope I can sustain that for the rest of the season; I could use the $120 prize.

Work
I’ve been at my new job for over a month now and I’m loving it. Like all jobs, there have been some stressful situations – namely a rather large one that still is on my mind. It’s a different kind of stress than my former job, and I am much happier where I am now. It’s what I was born to do.

2007-2008 TV Shows
Lots of great shows this year – new and returning!

• Damages – GREAT new show on the FX network. If you haven’t been watching this show, wait until they start over and replay it from the beginning. It’s another “serialized” show in that you can’t just pick it up mid-season. It was a summer show that I would imagine will come back next summer. The season finale airs this coming Tuesday.
• CSI: Las Vegas. We have too many shows we DVR, so we’re only following CSI: Las Vegas this year. We don’t watch the Miami version as David Caruso is a horrible actor. We’ll put CSI:NY in our Netflix queue.
• Heroes. After a rather slow start in the first episode, it’s gotten far better. I don’t know how long this show will last after last year’s fantastic rookie season.
• Back To You – A new show on Fox staring Kelsey Grammer and Patricia Heaton.
• Carpoolers – A new show on ABC staring Jerry O’Connell and a bunch of other people I’ve never heard of before.
• Grey’s Anatomy – This is more Monica’s show than mine, but it’s actually not that bad.
• Private Practice – As we watch Grey’s Anatomy, of course we’d watch its spin-off..
• Desperate Housewives – We’ve watched this show since day one, and this season is already far better than last year’s.
• Jericho – After the widely-covered fan outrage, CBS will be bringing Jericho back as a mid-season show to close up the storylines.
• Cold Case & Without A Trace – We love these mystery-type shows!
• The Big Bang Theory – This is definitely Monica’s show.. I’m not really that sold on it.

Hmm.. that list makes it seems like we have no life! Oh well – we enjoy it.

Well, that’s the end of this post.. I’ll be surprised if anyone makes it this far!

Do I Dare Mention It?

The Chicago Cubs are in first place in the National League Central division.

No, you aren’t reading that wrong and you are not daydreaming. The Cubbies are actually in first place! I don’t know how long this will last, but they are playing great as of late. Maybe this year actually is “next year”.. so as long as Steve Bartman isn’t allowed inside Wrigley Field.

On a related note, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has applied to purchase the Cubs. I don’t know what other Cubs fans feel about that prospect, but I know that I’m all for it. He’s energetic, focused on winning, and knows how to lead a team. Thankfully he’s no Jerry Jones – the Dallas Cowboys owner who should just add Head Coach to this title. Cuban lets his staff do their jobs. Cuban knows how to turn a team around. The Cubs aren’t necessarily in need of a turn around, but they definitely need consistency. Mark Cuban is the man to start that in Chicago.

Damnit

Damn the Mavericks.

They had every chance to win this series and they blew it. They let a very good team take four straight games from them. How much do you want to bet that in tomorrow’s papers/online articles/reports there will comments from Mavericks players, coaches, and/or owners blaming officiating and whatnot for their losses.

Bullshit.

I’ll admit that the officiating wasn’t the best in the series. The refs missed calls on both ends of the court numerous times. But the referees are humans; humans make mistakes. The Mavericks should never have been in the position to blame a loss on the officiating. Period.

Congrats to the Heat, I guess. They played a damn good season, and they definitely deserved to win the Finals.

Hopefully there won’t be too much changeover with Maverick personnel next year. This Maverick team has a great chemistry, and I know they’re going to be a force to reckon with next year.

But damnit.. they were supposed to win.

There’s always next year though. Oh wait, that’s the Cubs’ motto.

Shut up Keith.

Go Mavericks!

Mavericks up 2-0 on the Heat.

Since I was right in my prediction on the Spurs series, I’ll make another:

Mavericks in 5.

Mavericks Vs. Spurs

What a series so far; Mavericks up 3-1. The biggest surprise in my opinion isn’t the Spurs defense – it’s the play of Mavericks guard Devin Harris. I think he’s caused a huge shift in the Spurs defensive strategy.My prediction: Mavericks in 7.