July 2003 Archives

Kristin's dad is in a bit of a predicament. As a developer, he constantly has to worry about preserving wetlands. Now, a section of virgin prairie, untouched by a plow since the begining of time, lies in the way of completing the development. The choice is between the prairie, virtually unheard of in Milwaukee County, and low-quality wetlands, which were rows and rows of crops just a few years prior.

I see a no-brainer decision. Why is there always someone that doesn't?

I fail to understand what Mr. Bush is afraid of. Maybe it's my apathy towards religion as the end-all to life's instruction book. But nonetheless, the President wants marriage reserved for heterosexuals.

If this idea continues, it could quite possibly be a worse abuse of power than Clinton ever committed. It does nothing for the well being of our country, it actually harms it. It's like putting rocks in the hands of the playground bully biggots to throw and the kids that aren't the same as everyone else.

Sorry, but I will never understand this line of thinking.

After watching the "This is SportsCenter" behind the scenes special show, I was enthralled with all that went down behind the scenes. Two things really stuck out:

1. There were four voices in the anchor's ears at all times, including their own reading of notes that they had received 10 seconds prior. One was the director, counting down cues for cameras, highlights and commercial breaks. And two others were the show producer and the coordinating producer, dictating which story was next, rearrainging the show as events happened (like Bill Mueller's two grand salamis), which highlight tapes were in, and coaching the anchors through unfamiliar graphics.
2. There is so little face time from the anchors. Watch for it the next time you see the 11 PM show. Most of it is clips, highlights, and scores, and very little face time with the anchors.

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Inspired by this amazing account of educated guessing, I decided to have a contest of my own.

For the past three years, I have been storing my loose change (pennies, nickels and dimes - quarters are for laundry) in two identical plastic containers. (Copper in one, silver in the other.) It was my orignal intent to fill them to the brim, but after three years and little progress, it's time to cash them in.

But before I do, let's take a gander at how much I've managed to collect. Below you will see two images, the first is of the pennies, the second is of the nickels and dimes.

Each jug contains standard United States Minted pennies, nickels and dimes. To aid in your guesses, the mint gives specs on each coin.

Your goal is to guess - educated or otherwise - how much money is in both jugs. To help you along, on our bathroom scale, the pennies (and jug) weighed approximately 17 pounds. The silver weighed approximately 10 pounds.

The person who guesses the closest, above or below, gets something, I haven't figured out what yet. Most likely it will be something small. Leave your guesses in the comments before midnight CDT July 31, 2003. Click See More... to see the detailed rules.

Update: I cashed in the jugs last weekend. There was a total of $139.41 of coins. Sweet for me. Kristin will get some sort of prize the next time I see her.

• Anna Kournikova is as hot in real life as in the pictures.
• The two guys requesting Anna's autograph kinda freaked me out. With glossies in hand, were they fans? Or, E-Bay veterans in it for the money? As soon as it was over, they switched cameras, typical of fans. But, getting on their phones right away made me think they were setting up business deals.
• Never trust the hotel alarm clock. Even if it worked the night before.
• Twice I saw the name Zeb. Each time my mind went, "Zeb's dead, baby. Zeb's dead."
• Segways are cool. I want one.
• Boarding a plane by groups rather than rows still doesn't prevent slow boarding times.
• Rapid check-in via kiosk is much faster and easier than checking in baggage.
• "Male assist!" is scary to hear after passing through the security check-point.
• The media coverage surrounding Kobe Bryant is annoying and deafening.
• Sunscreen's true value is felt after a round of golf, rather than during it.

I remember my mother saying these same words:

"It's not natural...You're not supposed to have to bury your baby."

Nineteen years ago, Roger wrote a message to a stranger, sealed it in a Pepsi bottle, threw it into Clearwater Bay, and got scolded by his mother for littering. Roger died 14 years later without receiving a reply. The bottle was found on the anniversary of his death and returned to his mother. Upon hearing the news, his father wept.

In the months and years after burying my brother, I still struggle to find something to latch on to, something to keep myself at ease, reminding me of what I miss so deperately. I am happy that this family has their bottle and note from Roger. It's a great story with a happy ending.

I hit the brakes and came to a stop, faster than comfortable, but slow enough to be in control. The road was still slick from the severe storm we just drove through. The parking was within sight, but we weren't moving. The kids ahead were already out and throwing discs and footballs. It was 3:30 in the afternoon, and the evening had just begun.