4-0 and 64-6

"We've talked about it. I'm not going to get into it," Cutler said. "It was an unfortunate situation. They talked a lot and the talk got heated between the two teams. Personally I don't think the teams like each other, which is fine. It's just going to add to it next year. It's going to be exciting."

The Chargers swept Denver for the second straight year, holding the Broncos to just a field goal in each game. San Diego won 41-3 at Denver on Oct. 7.

San Diego beat arch-rival Denver by a total of 64-6 in 2 games this year!!!
I want my Chargers to go all the way, but I think beating the heck out of rivals like Denver, Oakland and KC are great times as well, and I suppose I should be happy for the fact that we do have a really good team...Even if not as good as the Patriots.

Governator and good leadership

*Why I really like the Governator. Enough already Bush Administration, you not only want to stick your head in the sand, but you want to drag everyone down to your level of ignorance and stupidity.

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger plans to sue the federal government over its decision not to allow a California plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, he announced Thursday.

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger says the state will sue the federal government.

Environmental Protection Agency chief Stephen Johnson announced the decision Wednesday, refusing the state's request for a waiver that would have allowed it to cut emissions faster than a new federal plan the president signed into law Wednesday.
"It's another example of the administration's failure to treat global warming with the seriousness that it actually demands," the governor said at a news conference Thursday.
Bush on Thursday defended the decision of his EPA administrator.
"Is it more effective to let each state make a decision as to how to proceed in curbing greenhouse gases? Or is it more effective to have a national strategy?" he said.

Wall Street Firms are your friends?

It's now clear that some of the major players on Wall Street were making fortunes bundling junky subprime mortgage instruments and selling this garbage into the financial markets. The heads of some of the major brokerages and investment banks approved of this conduct and reaped the rewards when the market was hot -- i.e., when the market was fooled by what was being sold. -From Ben Stein's column in yahoo finance.


Doesn't this sound very similar to what these great empires of wealth and knowledge did to the little guy during the great stock market bubble? As I recall they pumped up stocks that were essentially worthless, and at the same time they were cashing in on the IPO market largely fueled by their recommendations on said stocks. Hmmmm. what is that old saying? Fool me once, shame on you.....we all know how it goes. now shame on us if we listened to them this last go-around. And shame on anyone who EVER LISTENS to these mega-brokerage and financial services firms again!!

Go to Schwab or Vanguard, open an account. Spend the next few weeks/months reading all you can about investing principles. start paying attention to the ebb-and-flow of the market. then start managing your money yourself.

1 year, 39 days...

At the recent Global Warming summit in Bali, Al Gore drew a loud ovation when he “reminded delegates that President George W. Bush has only one year and 40 days left in the White House.”

Counting down the days until the WORST PRESIDENT IN AMERICAN HISTORY is no longer our president.......too early to put the Champagne on ice?

Al Gore speaks...Does anyone listen?

Al Gore, after winning the Nobel Peace Prize, warned the world yet again.....

"We, the human species, are confronting a planetary emergency – a threat to the survival of our civilization that is gathering ominous and destructive potential even as we gather here. But there is hopeful news as well: we have the ability to solve this crisis and avoid the worst – though not all – of its consequences, if we act boldly, decisively and quickly.
However, despite a growing number of honorable exceptions, too many of the world’s leaders are still best described in the words Winston Churchill applied to those who ignored Adolf Hitler’s threat: “They go on in strange paradox, decided only to be undecided, resolved to be irresolute, adamant for drift, solid for fluidity, all powerful to be impotent.”


Are we listening? Is he right? What if he is and we are not? Time will tell. I fear the worst here, knowing how none of our "great" political leaders of the world can think past today's political manneuvering or how to win the next election. How can we expect these people to guide policies and long term decisions?

Time will tell. For once I hope Al Gore is dead wrong.

Papa & His Son

It's true, the simple things in life are the best....Sitting on Dad's porch looking out at the mountains with my boy hanging with me.

Just chillin' together.

Why the Internet is great

A quarter ton… Think about that for a second. That is what Grand Rapids, MI native Nancy Makin lost over the course of 3 years. In 2001, Makin weighed over 700 pounds - largely the result of emotional eating brought on by divorce and loneliness. She spent 12 years in seclusion - only leaving her house about 10 times in that period. So how did she lose it... Surgery? Strict diet? Vigorous exercise?
A computer...
A gift from family, Nancy began to explore chat rooms and developed on-line friendships. Says Makin of the support:
"Faceless strangers helped save my life because the anonymity of the internet allowed me to connect to people who wouldn't out of hand reject me because of my appearance…It was beautiful, it was anonymous. I didn't have that barrier there. They saw my wit and they saw my intelligence and I was not in that shell."


If only we all could look past the surface and see real people. The internet allows this to some degree, and the fact that it can help people communicate like never before is a fantastic breakthrough.

NBA reving up it's Engine

OK, I'm still a huge NBA fan, but it's getting harder to explain why. I think a big part of it is the mix-up that seems to happen every year. Several teams grab some great free agents (Celtics) some teams grab some great draft picks (Bulls, Atlanta, Houston) and some teams have a key player get healthy (Nuggets). This creates a brand new look at each season and so many teams can make a case that this will be their year. And of course it's fun to see how it all plays out.

So how will it play out?

Bill Simmons takes the safe choice this year...

"Unfortunately for Suns fans, it's not nearly as conceivable as the alternative: Duncan rules, and the better all-around team prevails. It's the boring pick, the logical pick, but as much as we hate to admit it, sometimes sports is boring and logical. That's why I'm going with the Spurs over the Bulls in five, and that's why, eight months from now, you won't even remember that I was right."

I'm not so sure. I think the Spurs are played out. As in OLD. And there's a team I've yet to hear anyone pick, who just happened to look like sure-fire champions going into the playoffs last year. Dallas. Yes they imploded under the weight of Nelly and the Warriors. But the Warriors were their kryptonite, and the Warriors won't be in the playoffs this year. And Dallas has the weapons to beat both Phoenix and San Antonio........so there you go....I pick Dallas to be the 2007/08 NBA Champion.

LET'S GET IT ON!

The raw truth

Sometimes it's refreshing to hear someone just lay it out there, pulling no punches. I couldn't agree more with Nancy here...

“One of the big questions about the foreclosure crisis is, why didn’t anyone see it coming? Why didn’t anyone look at the subprime lending industry and react the way Nancy DelMaro, a senior VP for Coldwell Banker and manager of the Salem branch did.”
“It just doesn’t make a lot of sense,’ says DelMaro.”
“Putting true victims of the housing crisis aside, there is a category of debtor that could be called “predatory borrowers.” These are individuals who have treated their homes like bottomless ATM machines and have played the housing game like ‘Wheel of Fortune.’”
“These borrowers purchased homes with little money down, with perhaps no income verification, and at debt levels they knew they could not sustain if their homes did not continue to appreciate.”
“For those borrowers who mortgaged a lifestyle they knew they could not sustain, the system should not come to their rescue.”
“It is remarkable how quickly the sentiment surrounding the housing market has turned from embracing accommodating lenders who facilitated people’s ability to benefit from the unending price spiral of real estate to now vilifying the same lenders for making borrowing too easy.”
“In an upcoming election year, politicians simply lack the courage to make individuals accountable for their actions. Rather, it is more expedient to blame faceless corporations for any negative outcome to the consumer simply because more votes come from homeowners than from corporate boardrooms.”
“As children, we were taught that consuming too much cake and ice cream would have the consequences of a stomachache. But for many adults, who have gorged themselves on too much debt, their financial indulgence is now somehow someone else’s fault and they should not have to pay the price.”
“For those who have overindulged in debt and abused the system, their most valuable compensation should come in the form of an important lesson that they can pass along to their children.”

Meanwhile the .5% rate drop by the fed this week plays very nicely into my overall plan of paying down the mortgage during my 5 yr ARM, then rolling into a 30 yr fixed (or maybe 15 yr if the rate is significantly lower) and paying aggresively and hopefully getting it paid off in a total of 15-20 years.

NFL 2007 (prediction)

Some predictions for the season.

I'm picking my beloved Chargers to win it all this year. Yes, I am. Yes, I know no SD team has ever won a championship...ever...but this is the year. People are saying the coaching change was a killer and they can't get it done with Norv Turner. I say I'll put my trust in the same guy who's made at least 10 spectacular trade/draft/signings in the past few years and give AJ Smith the benefit of the doubt....they are absolutely LOADED, and they have a huge chip on their shoulders from last year's terrible defeat at the hands of the patriots...this is their year!

NC Justice

"The prosecutor who led the now-discredited Duke lacrosse rape case reported to jail Friday to serve a 24-hour sentence for contempt of court.
The former district attorney, Mike Nifong, declined to speak with reporters as he arrived at the jail. He was disbarred for ethics violations in his handling of the case, and a judge found him in contempt for lying to the court when he insisted he had given defense attorneys all results from critical DNA tests"

-Sometimes it's nice to follow a case in the news and watch how things play out. In this situation it's been hugely rewarding to watch as the players were exonerated and the scumbag prosecutor is getting worked over by the same justice system he used to attempt to destroy the innocent young men's lives with.

Jack & Bailey

A boy and his dog.....

Panic in the Streets?

The falling market spells doom and gloom...but I'm not buying into it. I'm instead buying more. Either I'm going to land face-first when we hit 1200 in S&P or I'll be a genius and my retirement plans will be way ahead of schedule when we hit 1550+.

Discipline in days like this is incredibly challenging. But as my man Brinker says..."there's a reason why stock market investors earn more overall than bond investors....because the stock market is volatile!"

Universal to sell songs without copy protection
Fri Aug 10, 1:24 AM ET
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Vivendi's Universal Music Group, the world's largest music label, on Thursday said it will test the sale of songs from artists such as Amy Winehouse, 50 Cent and the Black Eyed Peas, without customary copy-protection technology.
The company said in a statement it will allow the sale of thousands of its albums and tracks available in MP3-form without copy-protection software, known as digital rights management, over a trial period.


Hmmm...seems to me about 10 years ago, when this whole digital music age was just starting to really take off, a little company named Napster dominated the market and offered these same record labels the opportunity to share in their business and profit greatly from it. They chose instead to shut Napster down and stay the course....which, 10 years later, has lead them right back to this same exact concept of giving people what they actually want.....meanwhile the labels' profits and market shares have been beaten down...to the point where this new found revelation that doing what Napster had suggested a decade earlier might just be a little too little a little too late.

The most amazing runner

Need motivation and inspiration to run? Want to see just how amazing the human body is and what it's capable of? All you need to do is read the following story:
http://www.marathonandbeyond.com/choices/larkin.htm

let that prove an end to excuses why we can't...and a start of the reasoning behind why we can.

Half Marathon

I am going to commit to a real, honest to God race….
Half marathon in Sacto on Sunday, Oct 7th.

Where I am right now….can prob go 6 miles MAX. last runs were a total of 3 miles over the past couple weeks!!!!

Can I do it?

I know I can….will I do it is the only Q.


I need a goal…something to strive for. I can’t help but feel like running…really running is the only way to a good eating plan. If you run, you have to care about what you eat. Lifting weights too, but you can put on a lot of weight when lifting, not with running. And I don’t want a lot of weight.

I will keep up with weights, not shooting for any records, just pushing it hard 2-3x per week to keep my muscles moving in the right direction…but my emphasis will be running. I’d like to have a checkmark next to “ran a marathon” before I die.

Plus I feel like this will commit me to a great longevity program…eating right and really caring for my body as I head into my 40’s.



Today is the 176th day of the year…I’ve ran a total of 75 miles so far this year (avg of .42 miles per day, or less than 3 (2.94) per week! …not so great). That has to grow big time if I’m going to run 13 miles in one morning.

How to enjoy MLB Baseball

1. Tape a good game ("game of the week/month/whatever" -look for a game with announcers you like) on DVR during the week sometime.
2. when it's "game time" (and by that I mean when YOU want to enjoy said game), put an ice cold beer glass in freezer.
3. turn on the game, pour yourself a great beer, and take a deep breath and enjoy (blow through comercials so as not to destroy the wonderful tempo and conversation that is a great game.
:-)

Joakim Noah on Happiness

Joakim Noah; A guy who "get's it"....

Q: Certainly coming from a sports family, was it a big advantage to be in a big city like Chicago? There are certain lucrative endorsement opportunities that the other eight picks will not have.

Noah: Like I said, I'm very lucky. But to me, it's more about winning. I went to school in Gainesville, a small town. I've always been from the big city. I lived ten years in Paris, France. I lived the rest of my life in New York City. But I feel like Gainesville was a small town and I had a great three years over there and memories that I'll never forget. To me, you guys look at it as market and it's always about money and this and, oh, if I would have went last year, then would I have been a higher pick and it's money and money and you're talking about money. But to me, I feel like it's happiness. It's about being happy and winning makes me happy. I feel like I have an opportunity to win a lot of basketball games in Chicago, and to me, that's what's more important is the winning aspect of it.

Dodd for President?

Chris Dodd (presidential candidate). From his recent speech. Here’s a man with really, really interesting and BOLD ideas for America. So incredibly refreshing. Why is it that I can’t see him winning? I think I will, for the first time in my life, both contribute financially and voluntarily to a political candidate….

“A Senior Heroes Program would harness the power of experience by encouraging retired Americans to volunteer in our nation’s schools.
National service can strengthen our schools and retirement communities – but also our security and safety.
One of the greatest tragedies of Hurricane Katrina was that while families were stranded on rooftops and in nursing homes desperate for help, a third of Louisiana’s National Guard was in Iraq, slowing relief efforts with tragic consequences.
Indeed, I will never forget the Mayor of Pass Christian Mississippi telling about an elderly Connecticut couple who drove to the Gulf Coast in the wake of Katrina for no other reason than to help their fellow countrymen and women.
By mobilizing service corps alumni as well as retired military people in a Rapid Response Reserve Corps that is ready to supplement the good work of firefighters, police officers, health professionals, and other first responders at a moment’s notice, America will always be prepared to respond to emergencies and natural disasters wherever and whenever they may be.
But if the last six years have taught us anything, it’s that security is not simply about the example of our force – but the force of our example.
You cannot hate America if you know Americans.
That was but one of the lessons I learned from the people of the Dominican Republic who embraced a 22-year-old American and taught him a language – taught him to look at his the world differently, taught him to appreciate our leadership more, and, thus, I returned a more enriched American.
As Emerson wrote – “It is one of the most beautiful compensations of life that no man can sincerely try to help another without helping himself.”
That is why I intend to double the size of the Peace Corps by 2011 and again by mid-century. The Peace Corps offers a remarkable opportunity to send a strong message to the world that the American people stand ready to turn back disease and poverty not only with our checkbooks but also with the sweat and heart of a good and decent people.
I cannot imagine a time when the mission of the Peace Corps—supporting the development of other peoples, fostering a greater understanding of American values and culture abroad, and a deeper appreciation of other cultures and languages here at home—was more urgently needed.”

Blowout

Spurs took it in 4

MVP: Tony Parker

The NBA Finals 2007

I’d like to start a new tradition…predicting the winner of the NBA finals. I think, with a degree of confidence I’m not sure I deserve, that I can call it right at least 75% of the time.

This year (2007) we have the San Antonio Spure Vs. Cleveland Cavaliers
Tim Duncan trying to cement his legacy, along with the pride of knowing he took down the game’s most-hyped young star.
Lebron trying to jump ALL the way in one year. Trying to prove he’s not only worthy of the insane hype, but is pure in his intensions…to win rings.

Forget Jordan comparisons until you start winning championships. And…..have a seat young buck, you are about to face a really good san antonio team. This aint the east. This is the west. You don’t get here by having some mulligans.

Spurs in 6

so many great photos...one of my favorite shots.....

Stupidity in the ranks

From the NY Times, Describing Alberto Gonzales....
"Mr. Gonzales came across as a dull-witted apparatchik incapable of running one of the most important departments in the executive branch"

of COURSE he is....haven't we noticed a very strong theme for all of Bush's appointees? This is truly a broken record. Rumsfeld, Chirtoff, Brown, Gonzales, wolfowitz....on and on it goes....less than 2 years to go....let us pray we make it across that finish line with SOME resemblence of the great nation that America once was.

Reasoning with Dementia?

Yahoo headline: Va. Tech shooter was laughed at

SO???!!!!! Who the heck cares if this complete phsycopath was laughed at? I've been laughed at, EVERYONE has been laughed at!! Are we trying to find out why this guy did what he did through these simple headlines? I have breaking news...he was not right in his head, that's why he did it....not because his mother didn't love him, a girl broke his heart, people laughed at him....he was NOT RIGHT. this is a hell of a lot more complicated to explain than what the news tries to portray. it takes someone who is SERIOUSLY deranged to do something this horrible.

Let's stop trying to figuring out why. let's greive and accept that we as a society and a people must treat life as a special gift. you never know when it will end. love the people around us, appreciate the wonder and beauty that is life. cherrish it. You never know when your life, or the life of someone you love, will be taken from you.

Housing bubble blowup

From Fox 40. “Home foreclosures are rising across the country and there is no worse place than the Sacramento region. The latest figures show four of the top ten metro areas are Sacramento, Stockton/Lodi, Modesto and Yuba City.”
“Netta Savage believes she was scammed into her home loan, and that she is not alone. Savage said, ‘Under duress, you do dumb things. So I accept my responsibility. I should have said, ‘I’m not signing nothing. We need to take this home, and let me get with someone.’ But he’s saying sign it, sign it. It’s what we agreed on. It’s what we agreed on. Sign it, sign it, sign it. And I’m like…okay.’”
“Now into the second year of her loan, Savage’s mortgage payments exceed her monthly fixed income of $2,000.”

The housing market is due for a lot more stress over the next year/year and a half in my opinion. too many people got in over their heads. they can blame whoever they want but the truth is they were foolish and now it's time for a reality check. No doubt I could have made a foolish move as well, and there were times when I strongly considered it (can you say interest-only on a 850k fixer-upper in San Mateo?). but I'm glad I did the right thing. the fact remains I would have NO ONE to blame but myself if I had made a foolish move.
hang tight and love where you live. it's a HOUSE, not a means to get-rich-quickly. everyone got caught up in that mentality and now we are where we are. it needs to play itself out, and it's not going to be easy.

Lee Iacocca tells it like it is

All I can add is THANK YOU LEE...

"Am I the only guy in this country who's fed up with what's happening? Where the hell is our outrage? We should be screaming bloody murder. We've got a gang of clueless bozos steering our ship of state right over a cliff, we've got corporate gangsters stealing us blind, and we can't even clean up after a hurricane much less build a hybrid car. But instead of getting mad, everyone sits around and nods their heads when the politicians say, "Stay the course."
Stay the course? You've got to be kidding. This is America, not the damned Titanic. I'll give you a sound bite: Throw the bums out! "
-Lee Iacocca

full article: http://www.bordersstores.com/features/feature.jsp?file=wherehavealltheleadersgone

Dancing Machine

Crazy Little Man....

Who's responsible for you?

Read this online today and it really sticks in my craw...
"Really, the heart of the problem, as some have pointed out in the comments, is that banks should have known better. But the market was hot, they got carried away, and borrowers just followed the advice of their mortgage brokers."
This seems to be the prevailing attitude, that it was the lender's fault, the mortgage broker's fault. WAIT just a minute! what about the damn fool who signed on the dotted line? Did they seriously believe they could buy that $650k house and pay just $1,200 per month? Truth is they heard what they wanted to hear, and got in way over their heads just like a ton of other people do everyday with debt. the moral of the story being you don't get something for nothing so wise-up and manage your debt with intense focus, else you'll end up knee deep in it with nowhere to turn but the big "B" word.

Commute

A lot of cars...streaming about at 7:15 in the morning. everyone headed to the office. How lucky am I to have a home office? Did I mention gas prices are now well over $3 per gallon and my commute everyday is a walk upstairs?

Orman as a financial planner?

It kills me to think how many people listen to the advice of Suze Orman. Here's an exchange from an interview with the New York Times...

NYT: What do you do with the rest of your money?
SO: Save it and build it in municipal bonds. I buy zero-coupon municipal bonds, and all the bonds I buy are triple-A-rated and insured so that even if the city goes under, I get my money. I take a little lower interest rate to make sure my bonds are 100 percent safe and sound.
NYT: Do you play the stock market at all?
SO: I have a million dollars in the stock market, because if I lose a million dollars, I don’t personally care.

How could you possibly listen the the advice of a person who invests in this manner? INSANE!

Big N Strong!

Big & Strong but still loves his Snoopy:

Little man is growing so fast it's unreal. I keep telling Karen he's reached the "peak of cuteness". Of course the next month I say the same thing, and in fact I've been saying this every month since he was born!haha