Somewhere deep in the night, I saw the light...

1st Inning.

Uncle Jeremy...This week let's take a break from saving the nation and look at saving or preserving marriage.  As I close in on 15 years of marriage, I would like to take a moment and share knowledge I have gathered personally and through conversations with friends, family, and strangers.  That knowledge is regarding the challenges of married sex and I will keep this as PG as I can so bear with me.  You see prior to saying 'I do' you may experience a world of relations that could be equated to going to Disney World, but after those vows are said and after many years it can be equated to going to the county fair or playing a round of Fear Factor.  Those days before marriage are filled with nights of sexy cologne or perfume, lace and silk undergarments, and everything else that is an attempt at a perfect evening of relations with your lover that you have seen portrayed in movies or romance novels. But that will all change.  Below I will list situations or challenges or advice if you decide to take a stroll down that aisle.

• Farts--There will come a time when you or your partner will be gassy and it will take extreme focus and concentration, not on your partner but on not letting that fart escape during intercourse. Sometimes it will so be prepared.
• Holey underwear--If you were seduced by your lover while they were wearing sexy silk boxers or lingerie don't expect that to last.  The days of  'Religious' underwear/panties are on the horizon. I say religious because they will be 'Hole-y'.
• Hot chicken wings sauce--If you decide to chow down on some Buffalo Wild Wings and order any flavor equal to or above Caribbean Jerk then please go through a hazmat wash down.  You don't want fingers with hot sauce touching any of your nether regions. 
• Vick's Vapor rub--A follow up to the previous point.  If by some chance you are suffering from a cold and have been rubbing Vick's Vapor rub on your chest then save everyone some trouble and keep it in the bathroom and not on the nightstand where it can be confused with lover's lube in the darkness of night.
• Morning breath--There will be mornings where you roll over and are in a mood for doing it but unlike those days before marriage where you would jump out of bed to brush your teeth, brush your hair, put on deodorant then jump back into bed you will be faced with a Fear Factor/Survivor-like challenge. How long can you go without breathing on your lover?  I'm sure the only thing going through their head if you do is "When did he/she get up in the middle of the night and eat a shit sandwich?"
• Children surprises--Like those days when you were younger and trying to be sneaky about making out without getting caught by your parents or your lover's parents, your new challenge is to accomplish this task without the kids catching you.  Make sure your bedroom has a deadbolt because those kids are smart enough to pick simple door handle locks.  Oh, and practice that emergency roll over while keeping the covers over you.
• Darkness--If you have kids then prior to going to bed do a sweep of your bedroom floor to remove any obstacles.  The last person to get into bed turns off the lights in most households and if you are caught trying to cross that minefield of children's toys you can expect a Lego injury to kill the mood as your lover has to perform battlefield medicine to remove it.
• Pulling hair--There were probably times during pre-marriage relations where you or your lover liked to have their hair pulled in some lustful erotic way, but that all changes.  If you find yourself in the middle of intercourse and you happen to have your hand on your wife's hair while she is lying down she will go all honey badger on you and threaten to Lorena Bobbit you afterwards if you don't immediately remove thy hand.
• Muscle cramps--Finally, there will be times when you are in the midst of finally having a romantic, erotic, and spiritual event only to have it come crashing down when one of you gets a muscle cramp in the hip/foot/leg.  Then hopefully you are in the dark because if they jump up and try to walk it/jump it out, well a naked person doing that just isn't the best image.  

2nd Inning.

Random Facts about me (things found on my work desk)...I have both a Captain America and Wolverine mego-like action figure...I have a Daryl Dixon bobblehead...I have two pocket copies of the Constitution and Declaration of Independence...I have 21 pictures of my daughters on a desk bulletin board...I have a Scentsy candle...A commemorative plate of Len Dawson...A Mark Teahan autographed baseball...Three glass ball paperweights of different sizes...A picture of me and 3 of my fraternity brothers from a conference in Indianapolis...








3rd Inning.

Music...Lost Country Stars of the 90s Top Ten countdown. #1, Rhett Akins.  Back in the mid-1990s I was really getting into the new country music that was emerging from Nashville.  Thanks to folks like Garth Brooks, Clint Black, Travis Tritt, and Alan Jackson, a whole wave of new artists were getting record deals and radio play time.  But unfortunately many were 1-CD wonders, if not 2-CD wonders, only to be relegated back to the county fair circuit.  But sometimes they shifted into a different role in the music industry.  Over the next several weeks I will be reviewing my own personal Top Ten list of such artists.  This week's entry is Rhett Akins.  Rhett first hit the radio right about the same time as Kenny Chesney and they both seemed to have early success.  I would consider Rhett a 2-CD wonder with both CDs full of great songs.  From his debut CD, 'A Thousand Memories', came hits such as 'She Said Yes', 'That Ain't My Truck', 'What They're Talkin' About', and my personal favorite (as it was the easiest to play on guitar for me) 'I Brake for Brunettes'.  His follow-up CD, 'Somebody New', saw a few hits with 'Love You Back' and my favorite, 'Don't Get Me Started'.

Rhett ended up focusing mainly on songwriting and currently writes with two other guys as group called 'The Peach Pickers'.  They have written many hit songs recorded by other artists.  Wikipedia shows them as the following, "Put a Girl in It" by Brooks & Dunn, "Barefoot and Crazy" by Jack Ingram,"Gimmie That Girl" and "The Shape I'm In" by Joe Nichols, "All About Tonight", "Honey Bee" and "Boys 'Round Here" by Blake Shelton, "All Over Me" by Josh Turner, "Hot Mess" by Tyler Farr, "Farmer's Daughter" and "Take a Back Road" by Rodney Atkins, "Bait a Hook" and "Point at You" by Justin Moore, "I Can Take It from There" by Chris Young, "Parking Lot Party" by Lee Brice, "Hey Girl" by Billy Currington, "Wild in Your Smile" by Dustin Lynch, "It Goes Like This" and "Get Me Some of That" by Thomas Rhett and "Granddaddy's Gun" by Aaron Lewis.

He may not be headlining at the local sports arena these days but he is definitely leaving his mark in other ways.  Also, his son, Thomas Rhett Akins, Jr., is a country artist getting his own radio play time.  The video for 'What They're Talkin' About' is below.  Enjoy!



4th Inning.

Articles of the week...

• The Exorcist..."Forty years after The Exorcist scared the wits out of cinema audiences around the world, the Roman Catholic Church is training up a new generation of priests to meet a growing demand for exorcisms."  The power of Christ compels you!
• NY Guns and Ammo..."New York’s new gun-control law, the so-called SAFE Act, largely survived its first federal-court challenge on this past Tuesday. The more than 1,140 New Yorkers it’s made felons will remain so. But even the testimony of the state’s own expert witness failed to show that the law will cut crime."  John Lott talks common sense with facts once again when discussing the lack of intelligence being used in New York.
• Preppers Unite!...A cool pictorial on a unique fallout/doomsday/man cave shelter.
• (Shaking my damn head)..."Americans are enthusiastic about the promise of science but lack basic knowledge of it, with one in four unaware that the Earth revolves around the Sun, said a poll out Friday." After all the $billions spent on education in my lifetime and we still have people that are this clueless about some of the basics of science...
• Would you like fries with that?..."What liberals don't realize or alternately, just don't care about, is that their obsession with income inequality may make them feel good, but it actually hurts the poor in a number of ways." YOU can make your situation better NOT the government!
• Convention of the States..."Close to 100 legislators from 32 states met in Mount Vernon, Va., Saturday to discuss the possibility of adding amendments to the U.S. Constitution through a convention of the states." A great exercise in Constitutional government! For more info go here. Let's get this convention going!
  
• Sky-High Farming..."Imagine stepping out of your highrise apartment into a sunny, plant-lined corridor, biting into an apple grown in the orchard on the fourth floor as you bid "good morning" to the farmer off to milk his cows on the fifth." A great idea on how to better utilize crumbling downtown areas.
• Homeschooling to the rescue? "Logan Laplante is a 13 year-old boy who was taken out of the education system to be home schooled instead. Not only was he home schooled, but Logan had the ability to tailor his education to his interests and also his style of learning, something traditional education does not offer." A great video presentation from Logan on how education can be tailored so we don't have people like the ones mentioned above we are shaking out heads at.
• Killer programming..."Gamers who play for hours are prone to hallucinations and seeing distorted versions of reality, according to a new study."  I have this theory that the school shootings we have experienced in the U.S. could be the end result of prescription meds and heavy video game use as this article describes.
  
  
  
   

5th Inning.

American History Lesson...February 27, 1827, the beginning of Mardi Gras.  It is that time of the year for Mardi Gras celebrations leading up to Fat Tuesday on March 4th.  As this is a major celebration that takes place in the United States and in the city of New Orleans I would like to take a moment and inning to discuss the history of this holiday in America.  

Per History.com, "On February 27, 1827, a group of masked and costumed students danced through the streets of New Orleans, Louisiana, marking the beginning of the city's famous Mardi Gras celebrations.  The celebration of Carnival--or the weeks between Twelfth Night on January 6 and Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the Christian period of Lent--spread from Rome across Europe and later to the Americas. Nowhere in the United States is Carnival celebrated as grandly as in New Orleans, famous for its over-the-top parades and parties for Mardi Gras (or Fat Tuesday), the last day of the Carnival season.

Though early French settlers brought the tradition of Mardi Gras to Louisiana at the end of the 17th century, Spanish governors of the province later banned the celebrations. After Louisiana became part of the United States in 1803, New Orleanians managed to convince the city council to lift the ban on wearing masks and partying in the streets. The city's new Mardi Gras tradition began in 1827 when the group of students, inspired by their experiences studying in Paris, donned masks and jester costumes and staged their own Fat Tuesday festivities.

The parties grew more and more popular, and in 1833 a rich plantation owner named Bernard Xavier de Marigny de Mandeville raised money to fund an official Mardi Gras celebration. After rowdy revelers began to get violent during the 1850s, a secret society called the Mistick Krewe of Comus staged the first large-scale, well-organized Mardi Gras parade in 1857.

Over time, hundreds of krewes formed, building elaborate and colorful floats for parades held over the two weeks leading up to Fat Tuesday. Riders on the floats are usually local citizens who toss "throws" at passersby, including metal coins, stuffed toys or those now-infamous strands of beads. Though many tourists mistakenly believe Bourbon Street and the historic French Quarter are the heart of Mardi Gras festivities, none of the major parades have been allowed to enter the area since 1979 because of its narrow streets.

In February 2006, New Orleans held its Mardi Gras celebrations despite the fact that Hurricane Katrina had devastated much of the city with massive flooding the previous August. Attendance was at only 60-70 percent of the 300,000-400,000 visitors who usually attend Mardi Gras, but the celebration marked an important step in the recovery of the city, which counts on hospitality and tourism as its single largest industry."

I have been to New Orleans twice while in college and both times the weekend after Mardi Gras unfortunately.  It is on my bucket list of things to do before I die so hopefully I will make it down there sooner rather than later (nobody wants to see an old guy throwing beads).  Below is a short video explaining the history and traditions of Mardi Gras.  Enjoy!



6th Inning.

Fantasy Baseball team game...

With teams starting their spring training workouts and the season on the horizon I started pondering on what my ultimate fantasy baseball team would look like if I had powers over the space/time continuum and could field a team that would obliterate any that it faced.  Below is my list.

1. First Base, Lou Gehrig. Bats-Left, Throws-Left. Career .340 Batting Average with 493 Home Runs. Over his 17 year career he struck out 790 times which is a 46.5 average per season.  To put that in perspective another famous Yankee by the name of Derek Jeter has averaged 92 strike outs over his 19 year career.  Oh, and Gehrig is the original "Iron Man".
2. Second Base, Frank White.  Bats-Right, Throws-Right.  Career .255 Batting Average with 160 Home Runs.  He was a 5-time All-Star with the Royals and won 8 Gold Gloves along with being named the 1980 A.L.C.S. MVP.  He is, in my opinion, the best defensive 2nd baseman to ever play the game and should be in the Hall of Fame.  
3. Shortstop, Honus Wagner.  Bats-Right, Throws-Right.  Career .327 Batting Average with 101 Home Runs (he played during the dead ball era).  Wagner won 8 batting titles in the National League during his career (tied with Tony Gwynn) plus leading the league in stolen bases 5 times.  Ty Cobb once said of him, "Maybe the greatest star to ever take the diamond."
4. Third Base, George Brett.  Bats-Left, Throws-Right.  Career .305 Batting Average with 317 Home Runs.  Arguably the best 3rd baseman of his era, Brett won 3 batting titles in 3 different decades.  He finished the 1980 season with a .390 Batting Average, the highest since Ted Williams.  Speaking of Ted...
5. Left Field, Ted Williams.  Bats-Left, Throws-Right. Career .344 Batting Average with 521 Home Runs. Williams won the Triple Crown in 1942 and 1947 and lost years during WWII which would obviously boosted his stats. He hit .407 in 1953 and was selected to 16 All-Star games. His career fielding % was .977 in Left Field. Hit it to left field and see what happens.
6. Center Field, Oscar Charleston.  Bats-Left, Throws-Left. Career .354 Batting Average with 157 Home Runs. Sadly, Charleston never got to play in the Majors but he has been described by many baseball historians to be the greatest ballplayer of the Negro Leagues. He is the all-time leader in stolen bases for the Negro Leagues. Buck O'Neil would always say about Charleston, "always said that while Willie Mays was the greatest Major League player he ever saw, Charleston was simply the greatest player he ever saw."
7. Right Field, Babe Ruth.  Bats-Left, Throws-Left. Career .342 Batting Average with 714 Home Runs. He is Babe Ruth so not much else to say about him, but did you know he was also a great pitcher? His career E.R.A. was 2.28 and he pitched 107 complete games and a win-loss record of 94-46.
8. Catcher, Josh Gibson. Bats-Right, Throws-Right. Career .350 Batting Average with 107 Home Runs. Another sad case of a great player not getting the opportunity to play in the Majors. An important note regarding the Negro Leagues players--they played many 'barnstorming games' as they were more profitable than league games. The stats I have included are just league games but if the other games were included the totals would be much, much higher. The only problem is they didn't keep good records of stats for the barnstorming games. The National Baseball Hall of Fame claims through their research that he probably hit 800 Home Runs during his 17 year career. Anyway, Gibson was called the 'black Babe Ruth' but others called Ruth the 'white Josh Gibson'. That's how revered he was in the game.
9. Starting Pitcher, Satchel Paige. Throws-Right. Rather than regurgitate Paige's stats, please refer to my prior blog post under 2nd Inning. American History Lesson for a good breakdown on what kind of player Paige was and why he is my #1 Starter.  
Starting Pitcher, Bob Gibson. Throws-Right. 251-174 Win-Loss record. Career E.R.A. of 2.91 and 255 Complete Games over his 17-year career. He was one of the hardest throwing pitchers in the game during his era and had no problem brushing guys off the plate. Something I like to see in today's game since the emphasis has been put on the offensive side of the game.
10. Starting Pitcher, Nolan Ryan.  Throws-Right. 324-292 Win-Loss record. Career E.R.A. of 3.19 and 222 Complete Games over his 27-year career. Another hard thrower with 7 No-Hitters and still the all-time leader in Strikeouts with 5,714.
11. Starting Pitcher, Cy Young.  Throws-Right. 511-316 Win-Loss record. Career E.R.A. of 2.63 and 749 Complete Games over his 22-year career. Not many players have an award named after them.
12. Starting Pitcher, Bert Blyleven.  Throws-Right. 287-250 Win-Loss record. Career E.R.A. of 3.31 and 242 Complete Games over his 22-year career. Some claim that he has the best curve-ball there ever was.
13. Relief Pitcher, Mariano Rivera. Throws-Right. 652 Saves and 1,173 Strikeouts. Arguably the best closer ever.
14. Relief Pitcher, Rollie Fingers.  Throws-Right. 341 Saves and 1,299 Strikeouts. Had a great mustache and a great sinker!
15. Relief Pitcher, Dan Quiesenberry.  Throws-Right. 244 Saves and 379 Strikeouts. Five time American League Saves leader during the 1980s. Submarine delivery and great sinking fastball caused many hitters to hit grounders.
    
    
    
16. Designated Hitter, Edgar Martinez.  Bats-Right, Throws-Right. .312 Career Batting Average with 309 Home Runs. He made the DH position what it is today. 7-time All-Star and 2 A.L. batting titles.
17. Backup Catcher, Johnny Bench.  Bats-Right, Throws-Right. .267 Career Batting Average with 389 Home Runs. Ten Gold Glove Awards, Rookie of the Year Award, 14-time All-Star, 2 MVPs, and a World Series MVP. Some of said he is the greatest catcher of all time. Oh, and he had a tv show too!
18. Utility Infielder, Omar Vizquel. Bats-Both, Throws-Right. .272 Career Batting Average with 80 Home Runs. He is for defense with 11 Gold Glove Awards. Considered one of the best defensive shortstops to ever play the game.
19. Utility Outfielder, Bo Jackson.  Bats-Right, Throws-Rights. .250 Career Batting Average with 141 Home Runs. All-Star Game MVP in 1989. Bo can play any of the outfield positions and is, well, Bo 'freakin' Jackson. For a lil breakdown on him check out the 1st Inning of my blog post "March Madness Begins...".

7th Inning.

Firearms Corner...Same Caliber, rifle-handgun combos.  There was a time back in the settler days and the Old West where carrying a handgun and a rifle chambered in the same caliber was seen regularly.  Per Shooting Times.com, "Having a long gun and a handgun that shoot the same cartridge enables shooters to carry one type of ammunition, and load both guns from one box or cartridge belt. Running short on one type of ammo doesn’t happen; both guns stay in the game—or fight—until the last cartridge is gone."  With the introduction of many more carbine rifles shooting handgun calibers that don't resemble something John Wayne would have carried, your options are becoming plentiful when choosing a combo.  I don't have a combo yet but I am trying to get my hands on a Ruger Blackhawk chambered in .30 Carbine to complement my M1 Carbine.  I am also looking at a lever action in .44Mag and a Ruger Redhawk.  The Shooting Times article can be found here and features a slideshow of several combos as well as pros and cons for having a rifle/handgun combo.  Obviously with the plethora of .22LR handgun choices and rifle choices that would probably be the cheapest route for someone to take but you also have Keltec carbines that take Glock magazines so that feature ups the ante even more with the ability to use the same magazines between your rifle and handgun.  What is your rifle/handgun combo? 

8th Inning.

FFL Factoid...Getting your FFL.  Brandon Maddox of FFL123.com recently wrote an article that was featured on The Truth About Guns website. In it he answers some of the questions pertaining to the process of getting your FFL, particularly if you are a home-based dealer like myself. He also discusses the pros and cons of having an FFL. Below I will show some of his comments with additional comments by me explaining my personal experiences.

Q:Can I get a Federal Firearms License for only personal usage?
A: No, the ATF will not issue an FFL for 100% personal usage. Do you have friends you can help with FFL transfers from gunbroker.com purchases, etc? If so, your FFL wouldn’t be 100% personal usage . . This is true.  Prior to my application interview with the ATF Inspector I went through the process of creating a legitimate business (an LLC) through LegalZoom.  In the interview the topic was mentioned but with my full paperwork in front of the inspector it was clear I was not just doing this to enhance my personal firearms collection as per her words (and I'm paraphrasing) it would result in, "Immediate denial of application". 

Q: Do I need a storefront to get an FFL License?
A: Our research shows that over 64% of all FFL locations are from home or residential addresses. Federal laws do not have conflicts with residential addresses. Massachusetts has a state law about residential addresses, but a work-around exists for online-only FFL dealers. Home is a viable option. Nothing has changed as you may have read online from forums, etc.  This is also true due to the fact I have my FFL and I am home-based.  The inspector knew that during the interview and there were no issues.

PROS of getting a home based FFL

• Low cost and overhead to start.-Exactly and is how I can offer lower prices than storefronts.
• No safe or alarm system is required.-True but you would be foolish to not at least have one. I have a large gun safe with FFL guns labeled as such and private firearms labeled as such.
• Access to manufacturer direct and wholesaler pricing; ordering online 24 X 7.-Yep, and at first I could spend hours going through their inventories making wish lists.
• Many part-time niche adventures possible with gunsmithing, Dura coating, Internet transfers, hydro-graphics, class 3 silencer sales, auction sales, Internet sales, etc.-Utilizing the Internet, specifically Armslist.com and Facebook have helped tremendously with my sales.  I'm still trying to nail my niche though.
• Help friends get good prices on hard to find firearms.-As my friend about his Keltec PLR-16.
• You can also work gunshows to gain exposure.-But be aware that gunshows are a peculiar beast and you may not make any $$$ if you are a home-based dealer unless you have a wide variety of inventory.  You will be going up against private sellers that don't charge sales tax or require background checks and going up against storefronts that have an extensive inventory.
• All activities with this new adventure are often tax deductible; reduce your taxes.-Learning that as I do my taxes this year.
• No waiting periods, background checks.-Sort of true.  Since I have an LLC, I still have to run a background check on myself to transfer a firearm to me from the FFL inventory to my personal inventory.

CONS of getting a home based FFL

• Security – You need to only invite those you know and trust.-This can be a bit hairy when advertising online and the fact they have to come to your home to purchase the firearm and complete the background check.  I stress that up front when anyone responds to my ads and I let them know I am a FFL dealer. I, of course, am carrying a concealed firearm or two when they do show up. But be careful and up front that you are a dealer and will require paperwork and you should be able to weed out the bad apples.
• Paperwork needs to be kept for 20 years and kept well-organized.-Unless you are selling several hundred/thousand firearms a year this should not be a problem.  Just make sure to keep them in a locked cabinet or safe.
• Renewal is $90 every 3 years.-Not a bad price for all this fun!
• To make largest profits, eventually you will need to focus on a niche market or grow volume.-Still working on this.
• Inventory can sometimes be hard to find quickly with demand being so high.-Having my first full year doing this be last year I can say truthfully it was rough. Thankfully I was not relying on this income to survive.
• Shipping to home address can be tricky with a day job.-As I work at home for my fulltime job this has worked out very well.

If you are a gun enthusiast and have always thought about owning your own gun shop, I would highly recommend checking out FFL123.com.

9th Inning.

Baseball video...Royals top ten highlights over the years...This week's entry--Steve Busby's 2nd No-Hitter.

Girl, you really got me goin'...

1st Inning.

Highlights of the Brew Crew....Last night, my 9-year old daughter celebrated her 9th birthday by inviting 7 of her friends (including a cousin) to our house for a sleepover.  But prior to the sleepover we took all the girls, in addition to my 11 year old and her friend and my 2 year old, to Chuck.E. Cheese for dinner and some fun.  Now this was not my first trip there nor will it be my last, but over the years I have learned there are times to go and times to avoid and well, Friday night during the winter with snow and ice throughout the city felt like a decent time to go.  The crowds were typical but not 'weekend birthday party' crazy.  We grabbed a couple of booths, piled up the coats in the booths, handed out tokens, and ordered pizzas.  As I sat there in the booth guarding eleven girls' coats I had time to observe the crowd and establishment.  I will list a few of those observations/wishes/hopes below:

1. I imagine and hope there is a wooden pallet in some back room that contains a metric ton of Clorox disinfecting wipes and the staff has to wipe down every surface in that place every night before going home.
2. The perfect background for a Chuck E. Cheese cleaning crew member would be crime scene cleanup.
3. The pizza sold there is WAY overpriced.
4. I miss Showbiz Pizza.
5. There is always one game that is the hot game when it comes to dispensing the most tickets with the least effort and best chance.
6. I imagined this place as a kiddie casino only there are no free drinks.
7. If you are there without kids and not there for a party then you have exceeded the creep factor.
8. There is always one group of kids that have never been taught manners and are rude to all patrons.
9. Where the hell is the sit-down Star Wars game?  I would have sat and played that all night long?

2nd Inning.

American History lesson...Satchel Paige nominated for Baseball Hall of Fame.  On February 9th, 1971, pitcher Leroy "Satchel" Paige became the first Negro League ballplayer to be nominated for the Baseball Hall of Fame. History.com summarizes his career quite well, "In August of that year, Paige, a pitching legend known for his fastball, showmanship and the longevity of his playing career, which spanned five decades, was inducted. Joe DiMaggio once called Paige 'the best and fastest pitcher I've ever faced.'

Paige was born in Mobile, Alabama, most likely on July 7, 1906, although the exact date remains a mystery. He earned his nickname, Satchel, as a boy when he earned money carrying passengers' bags at train stations. Baseball was segregated when Paige started playing baseball professionally in the 1920s, so he spent most of his career pitching for Negro League teams around the United States. During the winter season, he pitched for teams in the Caribbean and Central and South America. As a barnstorming player who traveled thousands of miles each season and played for whichever team met his asking price, he pitched an estimated 2,500 games, had 300 shut-outs and 55 no-hitters. In one month in 1935, he reportedly pitched 29 consecutive games.

In 1947, Jackie Robinson broke baseball's color barrier and became the first African American to play in the Major Leagues when he joined the Brooklyn Dodgers. The following year, Paige also entered the majors, signing with the Cleveland Indians and becoming, at age 42, baseball's oldest rookie. He helped the Indians win the pennant that year and later played for the St. Louis Browns and Kansas City A's.
Paige retired from the majors in 1953, but returned in 1965 to pitch three innings for the Kansas City A's. He was 59 at the time, making him the oldest person ever to play in the Major Leagues. In addition to being famous for his talent and longevity, Paige was also well-known for his sense of humor and colorful observations on life, including: 'Don't look back. Something might be gaining on you' and 'Age is a question of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter.'  He died June 8, 1982, in Kansas City, Missouri."

Segregation robbed many of us baseball fans from ever seeing/hearing about the great players in the Negro Leagues playing for Major League teams and going up against all those names in the record books.  Yes, they played against each other during exhibition or barnstorming games but that is not really the same.  If they had been given the chance that old records book would look a whole lot different.  With that said, if I was ever putting together an all-time fantasy baseball team, Satchel Paige is my #1 starter every time. 




3rd Inning.

Firearms Corner...AK-47. In late December 2013, Mikhail Kalashnikov, passed away at the age of 94.  Who is Kalashnikov you might ask?  Well, if you asked me 10 years ago I probably wouldn't have had a clue but over the last ten years I have learned that name and a bit of history on why he is famous or infamous.  You see Mr. K developed the iconic AK-47.  This weapon has been called the most popular assault rifle by many and has seen use in every former Soviet state/territory along with many Asian and African countries.  It's reputation for durability and reliability are discussed among any group of gun nuts you can find that have ever shot or owned one and it has seen plenty of tests to back up those claims.  I have seen video of people burying one in sand and mud, leaving it there for months then digging it up and upon clearing the barrel firing off a full magazine(that was buried with it too!). 

 Per BusinessInsider.com, "Kalashnikov was a self-taught peasant turned tank mechanic who never finished high school, and he only became a weapon designer after he was shot in the shoulder in World War II. The AK-47 was introduced in 1948 and became one of the first assault rifles of the 2nd generation. Its remarkable success come from a variety of factors, including durability and low production cost — they reportedly sold in war-torn countries for as little as $15. However, their popularity amongst criminals and terrorists led to some concern for the inventor.  “Whenever I look at TV and I see the weapon I invented to defend my motherland in the hands of these bin Ladens, I ask myself the same question: 'How did it get into their hands?' ” Kalashnikov said in 2006. “I didn't put it in the hands of bandits and terrorists, and it's not my fault that it has mushroomed uncontrollably across the globe. Can I be blamed that they consider it the most reliable weapon?”"It is painful for me to see when criminal elements of all kinds fire from my weapon," he explained again in 2009, on his 90th birthday."

Chambered in the 7.62x39 cartridge, the main advantages of the rifle are its simple design, compact size, and ease of ability to be mass produced. Being cheap to manufacture and easy to clean and maintain, along with its ruggedness and reliability have made it legendary.  The AK-47 was originally designed for ease of operation and repair by Soviet soldiers wearing gloves in freezing conditions. The rifle is able to endure large amounts of dirt or foreign matter without failing to cycle a round due to the large gas piston, generous clearances between moving parts, and tapered cartridge case design.  But this reliability comes at a slight cost of accuracy, as the legendary tolerances do not allow for precision and consistency when firing the rifle. 

There are many manufacturers that still produce these rifles but most are overseas and you will be buying imports.  But note--these are semi-automatic rifles NOT fully automatic.  Century Arms sells an American-made version that utilizes the black synthetic materials rather than wood.  For more information check out the video below.  Enjoy!



4th Inning.

Cool videos...

Kid guitarist kicks ass!


America!

5th Inning.

Baseball stadium bucket list...U.S. Cellular Field, White Sox.  In May 2010, I travelled with my wife on another one of her business trip conferences back to Chicago.  Just like previous trips with her, tickets were purchased for those attending the conference that wanted to take in a ballgame.  But this trip to Chicago would see us going to U.S. Cellular Field to watch the Chicago White Sox take on the Texas Rangers. This was a great opportunity to catch a fellow American League Central Division opponent's ballpark and scratch another ballpark off my  stadium bucket list. We were staying once again at the Sheraton downtown by the Navy Pier, so, after a quick cab ride we were there.  Being located off the freeway, we didn't have a chance to take in much of the surrounding environment.  I recall paying the cabbie and scurrying across an overpass to get in line to enter the stadium.  After hitting the fan store to get my customary team bobblehead we headed to our seats.  With seats out in the right field section we settled down to watch the Rangers beat the White Sox (no, I would never root for the White Sox!).

Brief history on the ballpark per the team's website:

 
New Comiskey Park / U.S. Cellular Field
The new Comiskey Park opened on April 18, 1991, three years after the Illinois General Assembly passed legislation to build the park directly across the street from old Comiskey Park. A ground-breaking ceremony was held on May 7, 1989, with Mayor Richard M. Daley and Governor James Thompson in attendance. The new park featured an exploding scoreboard, an old-time facade complete with arches and over 40,000 unobstructed-view seats. The ballpark attracted a club-record 2,934,154 fans in its first year. In January, 2003, it was renamed U.S. Cellular Field. 

Like the May evenings previously at other ballparks, we enjoyed a nice ballgame but ended up leaving before the end due to rain moving in. I'll be honest, this ballpark has a retro/modern  look to it but is probably the least eye appealing of the ballparks I have visited thus far.  Having decent concessions (first park where I saw churros being sold), good seating, and good baseball I would still recommend catching a game there.  With the opportunity to scratch another one off of my baseball stadium bucket list you can be guaranteed that wiill always leave a 'W' in my scorecard. 

A few bullet points of interest:                

• Seating Capacity-40,615
• There is a 'White Sox Legends Sculpture Plaza' featuring: Minnie Minoso,  Carlton Fisk, Billy Pierce, Charles Comiskey, Luis Aparicio, Nellie Fox, Harold Baines, Frank Thomas.
• Hosted the first two games of the 2005 World Series, the first World Series games in Chicago since 1959.

6th Inning.

Random thoughts...The person that invented the onion ring needs a national holiday in their honor...I don't really have a problem with Coca-Cola's commercial from the Super Bowl...Now that my wife has some gray in her hair I like to pretend that I'm making out with Rogue or Storm from the X-Men...What is the appropriate amount of melatonin to add to punch for a group of seven 3rd-graders?...In the event of a natural disaster in my area the week long+ food supply in my home will be consumed in 24 hours by my wife and daughters (they have no self control)...

When will Sonic start offering the 5-gallon bucket cherry limeade?...The only one to complain about you eating tacos for lunch and dinner for 3 days straight is your colon...I always want to dump someone out of those motorized carts at the grocery store or Wal-Mart when they are not elderly and they have no visible leg/foot cast...Rooting for the Broncos seemed to bring bad luck to them in the Super Bowl so maybe I will start doing that when they play my Chiefs...


7th Inning.

Articles of the week...

• New Gun Study... "Quinnipiac University economist Mark Gius, examined nearly 30 years of statistics and concluded that stricter gun laws do not result in a reduction in gun violence. In fact, Gius found the opposite – that a proliferation of concealed carry permits can actually reduce incidents of gun crime." Another gun violence study that proves the point that many of us 2nd Amendment supporters have been saying all along. 
• Honey badger don't give a $h!t... Ten great rules for parenting!
• Build your own garden of the future... A great little article and video explaining how to build an aquaponics system for anyone wanting to grow their own food or live off the grid.
• Wheelchair of the future... "The TEK Robotic Mobilization Device is a machine developed to replace the wheelchair. In this demonstration video, we see a man with a severe injury to his spinal cord able to move about in ways that a wheelchair would make very difficult."  Not an article to read but a great video demonstrating this new wheelchair substitute.
• Crazy T-Rex... A great little article with video of an optical illusion.
  
• Homeland Security?... "The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) received at least 7,868 complaints of DHS “employee criminal misconduct” in the first half of fiscal year 2013 alone."  Another example of a bloated government department that needs to be thinned from the herd.
• Corrupt politicians... "Judicial Watch (JW) has released its list of Washington’s “Ten Most Wanted Corrupt Politicians” for 2013, and it’s bipartisan in nature. Not only are eight members of the Obama Administration named, starting with Obama himself, but also GOP Speaker of the House John Boehner and GOP Senator Saxby Chambliss."  Power corrupts...absolute power corrupts absolutely...
• One last gift... "David Schmitz knew his wife loved him, but she confirmed the depth of her affection and fondness for him and their children with a surprise gift this Christmas — two years after she died from cancer."  A great story sure to warm your heart.
• Unions Gone Wild... "Defending workers’ rights is a noble mission.  But sometimes labor unions take it too far." Five great examples of your local unions working for you! 
  

8th Inning.

FFL Factoid...Purchase of Firearms by Current or Former Law Enforcement Officers (ATF FFL Newsletter, March 2013)

"Federal firearms laws contain provisions for the carrying of concealed firearms by qualified active duty and separated law enforcement officers. These provisions of the Act do not affect the requirements applicable to the sale of firearms to current or former law enforcement officers.

For the purposes of purchasing a firearm for personal use, the same requirements apply to current and former law enforcement officers and to other individuals purchasing a firearm. This includes compliance with the requirements of 27 CFR 478.124, which include completion of an ATF Form 4473, 27 CFR 478.102, which generally requires a background check, and meeting residency requirements.

Law enforcement officers may purchase a firearm for official use by providing the licensee a certification on agency letterhead. The letterhead must be signed by a person in authority within the agency (other than the officer purchasing the firearm), state that the officer will use the firearm in official duties, and that a records checkreveals that the purchasing officer has no convictions for misdemeanor crimes of domestic violence. If these conditions are met, the purchasing officer is not required to complete an ATF Form 4473, or undergo a NICS background check. However, the licensee must record the transaction in his or her required records and retain a copy of the certification letter. A law enforcement officer purchasing a firearm on agency letterhead may purchase a firearm in another State regardless of where the offi-cer resides or the agency is located. Reference 27 CFR 478.134."


9th Inning.

Baseball video...Royals highlights over the years. With pitchers and catchers ready to report shortly I am ready for baseball.  To get pumped up for a new season I am posting my top ten highlights from over the years.  First up is Game 3 of the 1980 American League Championship Series.  Brett and the Royals finally get past those damn Yankees.