Live From Israel, It’s NCAA Tournament Time With Aberdeen’s Own Jai Lewis
March 18, 2008
Breaking down the brackets with Jai…
That’s right, there’s only one Jai and you know him well.
He’s the man who led the George Mason (GM) Patriots on their unbelievable and unforgettable journey back in 2006 when they quietly turned the NCAA Tournament Brackets into frappe. He’s the man who helped put the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) on the map with the big dogs. He’s also the man who has taken his skills on the road in Israel where he’s currently playing basketball.
He’s our very own Jai Lewis of Aberdeen and he’s talking college basketball with me. So thanks to electronic mail direct from Israel, let’s get down to business. Here’s what Jai has got to say about the upcoming Madness. It’s Jai Time…
Continue reading Live From Israel, It’s NCAA Tournament Time With Aberdeen’s Own Jai Lewis
Predictable Outcome: Another Blown Winter Weather Forecast in Maryland
February 21, 2008
I’ve stocked up on milk, bread and toilet paper. I have gasoline in the generator. I’ve backed the truck onto to the driveway and brought the snow shovel in from the shed. I’m ready for the winter storm that will be “dumping 2-4 inches of snow across the area beginning after midnight tonight.”
I’m watching TV and am somewhat distracted by the weather alert broadcast by the local networks and moving across the bottom of my screen. If that weren’t enough, I notice the snowflake icon in the upper left hand corner of the picture with the word “Warning” underneath it. For the last 12 hours I’ve heard from the local meteorologists about the coming winter storm. The National Weather Service has issued a “Winter Storm Warning” for most of Maryland. Wow! This must be it! The Big One!
Heading home from work, I notice the Maryland State Highway dump trucks, plows attached and salt spilling out of their beds, sitting, waiting, in the median of I-95 - a good 9 hours before the first flake was due to fall. Pick-up trucks, more than I can count, pass me by, also with plows attached and salt spreaders in their beds, hoping for that big snow that Chief Meteorologist Tom Tasselmyer says is on its way. Continue reading Predictable Outcome: Another Blown Winter Weather Forecast in Maryland
The Rocket Man Takes a Hit: “Misremembering” Roger Clemens’ Steroid Testimony
February 19, 2008
I had the opportunity to watch a good bit of the testimonials before the House Committee on Oversight and Reform that took place last Wednesday. You should know the one I am referring to whether you are a baseball fan or not. This was aired on Fox News and ESPN and Lord knows where else. Anyway, this was the Roger Clemens and Brian McNamee freak show where they took center stage to address allegations about steroid and HGH (Human Growth Hormone) usage from the Mitchell Report findings.
Many people feel that Congress has better things to do with their time. Since Congress has gotten involved and lit a fire under baseball commissioner Bud Selig’s butt, however, the implications have been impressive. Major League Baseball (MLB) has some of the strictest punishments for players getting caught of all the professional sports. Continue reading The Rocket Man Takes a Hit: “Misremembering” Roger Clemens’ Steroid Testimony
Of Civil Unions and Civil Rights: Gay Fathers Testify in Annapolis
February 15, 2008
A cold wind whips through Annapolis on a Monday night, but the crowd is untouched. Several hundred people gather next to the Governor’s Mansion for a demonstration. Every ten feet or so someone holds up a sign with a district number. Police orbit the crowd waiting for trouble, but mostly giving directions.
It looks like any rally you’d see during legislative session in Maryland, until you notice the two young men in business attire clutching each other close to get warm. And the signs that read, “I Love My Two Gay Dads.”
It’s the movement for same sex marriage and tonight they are going to see their representatives in Annapolis. What only a few years ago seemed a wild dream has become a movement. And it’s a movement that appears to be getting stronger by the day.
Continue reading Of Civil Unions and Civil Rights: Gay Fathers Testify in Annapolis
Harford Votes: Picks Obama and McCain for President, Eaves for Judge and Harris for Congress in Icy Election
February 13, 2008
About 41 percent of those registered to vote in Harford County’s 2008 Primary Election did so in the freezing rain Tuesday, choosing Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama over Sen. Hillary Clinton by fewer than 100 votes, overwhelming electing Harford County Circuit Court Judge Angela Eaves to the position she was appointed two months ago and helping propel state Sen. Andy Harris to his upset victory over longtime U.S. Congressman Wayne Gilchrest.
On Tuesday, about 48,000 voters of the 118,000 registered to participate in Harford County’s election did so, but Democrats voted more proportionally than Republicans. Forty-five percent of Harford County Democrats voted Tuesday (26,817 out of 59,552 registered) compared to only 36 percent of the county’s Republicans (21,351 out of 58,870 registered).
Even though the registration figures show a virtual dead heat between Dems and Repubs in Harford, the majority of Dems tend to vote GOP - as demonstrated in recent local Republican tides that have helped carry Bob Ehrlich and anyone holding onto his long coattails into office. Does this low Republican turnout mean Sen. John McCain isn’t going to be as successful motivating his base GOP votes or just that Harford voters knew he had no real challenge from Gov. Mike Huckabee? Continue reading Harford Votes: Picks Obama and McCain for President, Eaves for Judge and Harris for Congress in Icy Election
Super Bowl Sunday: Music, Food, Celebrities and, yes, even a little Football
February 1, 2008
Not a fan of the Patriots? Not a fan of the New York football Giants? Maybe football is just not your thing? Surely you know by now that there are other reasons that people tune in to the ‘big game,’ which airs Sunday on Fox at precisely 6:17 pm. Here is a sampling of some of my faves:
- First and foremost, I have to tell you about one of the greatest days that my husband, Neil, and I shared together. We were fortunate enough to be at the dance when the Baltimore Ravens beat the New York Giants in Tampa at Super Bowl XXXV. Let me tell you something: watching the half-time show was impressive. The performances were good, yes, but what I am really referring to is the construction and deconstruction of the stage on the field and how quickly they got it done.
That year MTV was responsible. After the first half convened and the players went to their locker rooms, the mammoth stadium screens came on and Ben Stiller, Adam Sandler and Chris Rock did pre-recorded skits with some of the musicians featured in the show. This bought time for the stage to get set. The field was dark. We could see all kinds of goings-on (when we weren’t watching the skits). It was amazing because once the show started: lights, camera, action! It was a full-scale production going on. Those girls and guys who worked diligently behind the scenes deserve major props. Continue reading Super Bowl Sunday: Music, Food, Celebrities and, yes, even a little Football
Up in Smoke: A Cigarette-Lover Supports the Maryland Smoking Ban
February 1, 2008
We’re taught early in our school years that tobacco was first discovered upon European’s adventures to North American Indian territory. Cheek and jowl with its addictive quality, tobacco use quickly went ‘Internationale,’ pretentiously inhaled among the upper classes.
It wasn’t until the late 18th century that smoking was perceived as vulgar by, “the arbiter of high fashion in high society in London, Tunbridge Wells and Bath, George Brummell. Beau Brummell, succeeded in making it unacceptable for nearly 80 years. Then in the 1860’s smoking reemerged, influenced by royalty and the aristocracy.”
Now, nearly a century and a half later, smoking is once again under siege, for reasons unbeknownst to the earlier pretenders of fashion and spiritualistic tradition. Scientific advances, health research and taxations are culminating to produce mixed signals regarding the use of tobacco products. Continue reading Up in Smoke: A Cigarette-Lover Supports the Maryland Smoking Ban
Housing Market of Horrors: A 20-Something’s Guide to Buying a Home
January 30, 2008
Since the housing market began its dramatic landslide last year, I’ve been pushing my fiancé to buy a house under the impression that this may be the most affordable time for first-time buyers. There’s a lot of real estate out there for sale, most of which has been sitting stagnant for several months. The lenders and agents continue to harp that this is a buyer’s market. And they’re right—it’s the best time to be a buyer if you’re not trying to sell a house first and have 20 percent to put down.
Being 20-Something Today
I’ve learned a lot since I started looking at homes, and one of those lessons is that unless you can put 20 percent down on a house, you’re monthly mortgage is going to be painful. There isn’t a lot of incentive for young people just getting started to do anything other than rent, because renting is still much cheaper here in
More and more kids are attending college, and not all of those kids have rich parents to pay off the debt that builds while in school. I’m pretty lucky, but not lucky enough. I had a $10,000 scholarship, and the rest of my debt was split between my parents and me. I worked part-time between classes, and after I got a decent job with my B.A., I started making payments on the other half of my debt. Five years later and I’m still hurting enough that when I looked at the mortgage estimate the broker gave me, I cringed. Continue reading Housing Market of Horrors: A 20-Something’s Guide to Buying a Home
This Bud’s For You: The Major League Baseball Commissioner’s Call to Action
January 27, 2008
Bud Selig’s contract as the Major League Baseball Commissioner has been renewed yet again. What started out as an interim position has moved well beyond what the term “interim” denotes. It began in September of 1992 when Selig replaced Bart Giamatti (the commish that banned Pete Rose). Selig was elected unanimously by the baseball owners in July 9, 1998. He’s been along for the ride ever since.
Selig was born as Allen H. Selig on July 30, 1934 in Milwaukee. He made his money as a car dealer. He had strong community ties and a true penchant for the game. He bought the Seattle Pilots for $10.8 million.
Ultimately, he’d lose his investment and his team until 1970 when a Seattle bankruptcy court order brought the Milwaukee Brewers back into business. Eventually, he became a majority owner of the Brewers. He is the only baseball commish to have owned a franchise and upon the bestowing of his current title, he put his daughter in charge of the family franchise. In January of 2005 the Brewers were sold, putting to bed Selig’s 35-year run with the franchise. Continue reading This Bud’s For You: The Major League Baseball Commissioner’s Call to Action
The Liberal Press: More myth than fact
January 7, 2008
The MoBseen: Observations as seen through the eyes of Mark
The Liberal Press. A moniker used to describe America’s media. Media of all sorts; radio, print media, and TV and the Internet. For years I’ve wondered how this term came to describe the media and reporting in the United States.
In my mind, it flew in the face of what I saw and heard and read on a daily basis. The likes of Rush Limbaugh, Anne Coulter, Imus, Bill O’Reilly, Sean Hannity, Martha Zoller, Pat Buchanan, Laura Ingraham, Glenn Beck and a laundry list of other talk show hosts are widely syndicated, very popular and all very conservative.
Many, such as Limbaugh, Imus and Coulter, to name a few, have become media icons. Very recognizable, syndicated in dozens of cities and consequently very rich. Many of these conservative talk show hosts also write columns in major market newspapers, are guests on TV news shows, are active in the world of blogging and all have their own web sites devoted to their point of view. They all have access to worldwide media that allows them to state their point of view. Continue reading The Liberal Press: More myth than fact
