Day 221

Lets get it out of the way now - I've got little today. I'm cold. We've got some frigid temperatures here in c-town and snow is covering the ground. Its funny because when it snowed in Chicago, it used to totally bother me. You do a lot of walking and the sidewalks were always icy. Leah used to refer to the constant slush as "cookie dough" and I can't tell you how many times I would step in it jumping a curb. When you bring Casey into the mix, it would be freezing cold and we would have to take 4 walks a day in the snow, freezing our asses off. She always took her sweet time while Leah or I would be freezing and wanting to get inside as soon as possible. She loves the snow. Now, we just let her out the front down and watch as she frolics around the front yard for as long as she wants and then comes back in. All we have to do is wipe her paws.

Rumors are swirling that the 22 year run for Cousin Steve in Boulder is about to come to an end. True there have been stops in other places - Reno, Eugene (too much concrete in Oregon), Alaska (for three days on a boat), but Boulder was his true home for years. Looks like that train is headed West. Stayed tuned as details become available. In other coo-zon news, coo-zon Julie is winding down her time in San Francisco and is moving to Portland in February. For those who haven't been, it is as underrated of a city as there is in the country. I used to go to Portland and Seattle for work at my old job and I just loved the Pacific Northwest. Good luck Jules!

How about Falcons QB Michael Vick. The guy continues to make poor life decisions. The $130 million dollar man who is more athlete than QB was stopped at the Miami airport trying to bring a water bottle through security. No big deal, people have to throw away bottles of water all the time at security checkpoints. Vick wouldn't give the bottle up and made an issue of it, raising a red flag before finally having it confiscated. As it turns out, the water bottle had a compartment built-in behind the label that contained "a small amount of a dark particle and and a pungent aroma closely associated with marijuana." While I clearly am no saint and have flown with pot in my lifetime (pre-9/11 of course), I want to know how someone with all of that money and prestige can a) be so stupid to call attention to the water bottle, b) be so stupid to attempt to fly with pot in this day of increased screening, c) not have a hookup in whatever city he was going to, and d) not have his priorities in check. Mike Vick can smoke all the pot he wants, I have no problem with that at all, but what I do have a problem with is stupidity. When I used to do that, I was a stupid college kid who thought I had nothing to lose. In the NFL, none of these contracts are worth the paper they are written on. They can cut you tomorrow and you won't see the big money long term in the deal. Vick continues to be less and less valued as a player each year and in fact is probably the most overrated player in the league. He has a reputation of being lazy and a coach killer. Making more poor decisions like this one isn't likely to help his cause.

In baby news, we have our last class if you will tonight. It is a tour of the hospital to get us acquainted to where everything is located so when the time comes, we will know exactly where to go. I also got a solid tip from my barber Mark, who's wife is also giving birth in February. he said to go to the hospital ahead of time and pre-register Leah. The last thing Leah is going to want to do is fill out insurance documents and answer questions while she is in labor. So we are going earlier tonight to get that done. Next weekend when Jessica is in town, we are getting everything else done. Buying bottles, diapers, getting the car seat bases installed, etc. Gotta love crunch time.

Wednesday night, I was watching the second half of Texas/Oklahoma State and Leah said "why is it that you have to watch every game? I feel like you have changed." I said to her "where have you been living the last 12 years? I always watch every game, especially when there is nothing on." Of course, this game turned out to be an absolute classic. I couldn't stop watching it. Oklahoma State won 105-103 in triple overtime and didn't end until 12:15. And that is why I watch every game. For all of you basketball fans, remember the name Kevin Durant. The fabulous Texas freshman is the best player in the country right now and will be an NBA all star for sure. He is 6'10, handles like a guard, shoots from anywhere on the floor, and has post moves that are unstoppable. Think Tracy McGrady meets Kevin Garnett.

By now, I'm sure you've heard about the story of Ben Ownby, the 13 year old boy who was kidnapped and found four days later along with another missing teen, Shawn Hornbeck, who had been missing for 4 years. The man who kidnapped them both, Michael Devlin, admitted taking Ownby to police yesterday. The whole thing is disturbing. What bothered me the most was a side story I heard this morning. Montell Williams has a psychic on his TV show named Sylvia Brown. A few months after their son was taken, the Hornbeck parents were on the show in an attempt to find out the whereabouts of Shawn. Sylvia Brown told them that she was sorry, but the vibe she was picking up was that "Shawn is no longer with us." Fast forward 4 years, and Shawn is alive. Not only is she a complete kook, but she offered her services at $700 every three hours to assist in finding his body. That is criminal. She should be locked up. On top of that, I heard another clip of a woman talking to Brown about losing her husband and not knowing how it happened. Brown said, "I see water, just like the girl who is missing in Aruba" and the woman said "that is impossible, he died in 9/11," Brown replied back "I see water, maybe the fire hoses got to him?" How can Sylvia Brown live with herself? I found a great site that exposes her called Stop Sylvia Browne Click on the articles section. This woman should be thrown in jail.

Sog of the Day: "What I Got" by Sublime